Dynamite
Date: May 4, 2022
Location: Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

I’m not sure how but we’re less than a month away from Double Or Nothing. Last week’s show saw the announcement that CM Punk would be challenging Hangman Page for the World Title at the pay per view so at least they have the top match set up pretty far in advance. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Jeff Hardy vs. Bobby Fish

Adam Cole is on commentary and Matt Hardy and Kyle O’Reilly are at ringside. Fish takes him into the corner to start and kicks away at the leg, setting up a dragon screw legwhip onto the other leg. They head outside with another dragon screw legwhip sending Hardy into the barricade and we take a break.

Back with Hardy making a comeback and dropping Fish to go up top. The Swanton is broken up though and it’s the super Falcon Arrow to put Hardy down for two. Fish grabs the kneebar but Hardy gets over for the rope. Hardy puts him down again and it’s the Swanton to give Hardy the pin at 10:15.

Rating: C. That’s about as high as I can go, as the match was technically fine, but they were both looking old and slow here. Granted that might be because they’re both old and slow, though I can always go for someone taking out a knee. Fish banging up Hardy’s knee was a good way to explain the slower pace, but it’s getting harder to watch Hardy out there.

Post match the Young Bucks come out for a staredown with the Hardys. I don’t think that’s a big surprise, but the Hardys trying to go at that pace could be rough.

We get a video from William Regal on training the Blackpool Combat Club. Regal talks about how this is about physicality and hurting people, which is what wrestling is. The video includes Regal physically training the team before saying that the Club would rather cut you on the face than stab you, because that is what you will remember. Check this out as it was nearly chilling with Regal sounding so serious about the whole thing. Also note that this is the shortened version, with the whole thing being available on Twitter.

AFO vs. Blackpool Combat Club

It’s Butcher/Blade/Angelico for the AFO here and the fight starts before the bell. Blade beats on Danielson at the bell before Angelico comes in and gets rolled up for two. Danielson starts on the arm and hands it off to Yuta for the same. The armdrag into an armbar keeps Blade down but it’s off to Butcher to take Yuta into the corner.

We take a break and come back with Yuta taking Butcher down so Moxley can come in. A cutter of all things drops Blade (that’s a new one from Moxley) and some biting allows Danielson to come back in on Angelico. Stereo chokes keep Butcher and Blade down and set up the triple stomps. Danielson chokes Angelico out for the win at 7:40.

Rating: C+. This needs to be about it for the Club in these nothing matches. They’re fun and entertaining, but they’re glorified target practice. The good thing is that we should be getting ready for a bigger match at Double Or Nothing so at least things aren’t going to be run into the ground. It’s still very fun to see them pounding the stuffing out of people, but it’s time to move up.

Jurassic Express is in on Team Taz’s challenge for the Tag Team Title match. First though, how about Jungle Boy gets an FTW World Title shot?

Keith Lee and Swerve Strickland are ready for Team Taz as well.

Wardlow vs. ???

Before the match, MJF and Shawn Spears come to the stage to insult Maryland and the opponent is….William Morrissey (better known as Big Cass, or W. Morrissey in Impact), which is the name that was all but guaranteed last week. They start slowly with the power game not getting either very far. Morrissey’s running splash in the corner doesn’t work but Wardlow’s does, only to have Morrissey come back with a big boot.

Wardlow is knocked outside for a posting as we get dueling WE WANT ENZO/NO WE DON’T chants. Back in and the slug it out until Morrissey hits a swinging Boss Man Slam. Morrissey puts him on top but gets knocked down, with Wardlow hitting something like a moonsault while landing on his feet. A one movement Powerbomb Symphony (also known as a powerbomb) finishes Morrissey at 5:29.

Rating: C. This went a bit longer than it needed to but Wardlow surviving a beating and then coming back for the win is all that matters. Wardlow continues to run through monsters, which should mean he can destroy MJF when he gets the chance. Not a bad monster clash here, with Wardlow continuing his roll.

Post match Wardlow isn’t being handcuffed and beats up security, leaving MJF with a stunned look on his face. Wardlow says he wants his release so MJF says they can have a little match. The match is on, but there are going to be some stipulations. Wardlow can hear about those stipulations in a contract signing next week in Long Island.

Toni Storm/Ruby Soho and Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter are ready for their tag match on Rampage. It’s the first time a women’s match has opened the show, which is another point for Baker. Soho is sick of hearing about Baker and they are counting down the minutes until 5:30 on Friday (special start time).

Here is Hangman Page for a chat. Page talks about his World Title defense against CM Punk at Double Or Nothing and he sees it differently than some do. It would be easy to talk about the two of them having a great match and a classic with a handshake but that isn’t what is going to happen.

Page is going to destroy Punk and yells at a fan in a Punk shirt, saying she is going to be running back to the merch stand for a refund. Punk isn’t here tonight because he is probably off filming another TV show. If Punk wants a fight, it will be the fight of his life. This was a pretty hard shift from Page and I can go for more of the serious version.

Video on Konosuke Takeshita.

Jay Lethal, Sonjay Dutt and Satnam Singh aren’t impressed with DDT Pro’s Konosuke Takeshita getting the red carpet treatment. Where is Lethal’s red carpet? Lethal throws out the challenge for Rampage.

Santana vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho, now billed as the Wizard, has the rest of the Jericho Appreciation Society while Santana is here alone. Santana isn’t waiting and hits a flip dive onto Jericho before the bell. The fight starts on the floor with Santana sending him into the barricade but taking way too long to set up the steps. Instead Jericho grabs the camera, giving us a first person view of Santana’s double middle fingers.

Santana kicks him down and they get inside for the opening bell. Minard grabs Santana’s leg and the triangle dropkick puts Santana on the floor and we take a very early break. We come back with Santana hitting the Three Amigos, setting up a top rope splash for two. Jericho is right back with a knockdown into the Walls but Santana makes the rope. The rest of the Society tries to bring in the bat but Santana fights them down and hits a discus lariat for two. A Society distraction lets Jericho get in a low blow though and the Judas Effect finishes for Jericho at 8:58.

Rating: C+. They kept Santana strong here as there is no shame in losing to a much bigger star when said star has a five on one advantage. Santana and Ortiz continue to feel like they should be the breakout stars but it just hasn’t clicked yet. A singles match like this is a good start, but AEW needs to follow up on it. Also, ending this team feud already would be a good move because it has started to get old.

Post match the beatdown is on with Ortiz’s save being cut off almost immediately.

Samoa Joe is coming for Jay Lethal.

The Gunn Club has gifts for the Acclaimed: SCISSORS! Scissoring ensues. As long as it isn’t a running joke, they should be fine.

Here are the Varsity Blonds for a chat. Brian Pillman Jr. talks about how the team has gotten complacent, but that brings him to his father’s best friend (and college roommate), Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. John told him to attack every day, so that is what he is doing tonight. The House of Black is called out and here they come, with the House destroying the Blonds in short order.

Malakai Black comes over to Julia Hart and stares at her before she is handed a chair. Julia can’t bring herself to swing so Black rips the eye patch off….but here is the Death Triangle for the save. This went on WAY too long and we still didn’t actually have anything happen. Please just get to the Death Triangle vs. the House of Black already so we can move on to anything else.

Jade Cargill and the Baddies are ready to keep dominating.

Owen Hart Foundation Qualifying Match: Dante Martin vs. Rey Fenix

Julia Hart is still here as Fenix kicks Martin down to start. Martin is sent outside and we take an early break. Back with Fenix hitting a middle rope reverse Spanish Fly (kind of making it into a flipping Russian legsweep) but Martin kicks him down again. Commentary isn’t happy with how long Martin is taking to stay on Fenix, allowing Fenix to hurricanrana him to the floor. Back in and Fenix hits a pop up cutter for two, setting up another super reverse Spanish Fly. This time they both land on their feet, setting up Martin’s poisonrana. The Nosedive misses though and Fenix grabs an over the shoulder piledriver for the pin at 9:38.

Rating: B. This was more exciting than pretty much anything else on the show and they did exactly what you would have expected from them. They flew through the match with one big spot after another (meaning we didn’t need a break here) and that’s all they should have tried here. Fenix winning makes sense but Martin looked good in defeat. Very fun match and the kind of stuff you knew was coming when it was announced.

We finally have Owen Hart Foundation brackets:

Rey Fenix
Kyle O’Reilly

Samoa Joe
JOKER

Jeff Hardy
Darby Allin

Adam Cole
Dax Harwood

Darby Allin and Sting know Allin’s match with Jeff Hardy will be special.

Here is Thunder Rosa for a chat. Everyone has a story and they all have good and bad people. She is the undisputed Women’s Champion and has worked hard to get here. Now she is the boss of this division and wants the best competition in the world. She drove eight hours to see the wrestler who made her what she is today and calls out the #1 contender, Serena Deeb. Cue Deeb, who thinks they can make this the best women’s division in the entire world. Deeb says Rosa knows she is on another level and it is time for her to win the title to show the world. The title match is set for Double Or Nothing after a fairly stumbling exchange.

Here’s what’s coming up on various shows.

John Silver is ready for CM Punk next week.

Ring Of Honor Women’s Title: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Mercedes Martinez

Champion vs. Interim Champion for the undisputed title. Feeling out process to start with neither of them being able to get very far. Purrazzo is looking frustrated early on as we take a break. Back with the forearm exchange with Purrazzo getting the better of things until a fisherman’s buster gives Martinez two. Purrazzo can’t get the Fujiwara armbar and it’s a double clothesline to put both of them down. The armbar is blocked again and this time Martinez pulls her into a surfboard dragon sleeper for the tap and the title at 10:38.

Rating: C-. I’m really not sure what to think of this, but these two were put in about as bad of a position as they could have been. Purrazzo is an Impact wrestler and Martinez, while in AEW, is hardly a regular. They were fighting over another company’s title in an AEW main event. In short, the fans came here to see AEW, not another company’s wrestler fighting for a third company’s title.

It was also an ice cold match as there was no hype for it on AEW TV and the limited promo time they had coming in was “I’m going to be the champ/No I’m going to be the champ”. The match might not have been great on its own, but they were put in a no win situation and the crowd being so eerily silent told you everything you needed to know about how this went.

Martinez celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This was not the strongest edition of Dynamite, as aside from the Fenix vs. Martin match and Page’s (short) promo, there wasn’t much to see. It felt like a show that was designed to fill in two hours with the main event in particular being a letdown. I wasn’t feeling this one, though odds are the NBA and NHL games are going to put a big hit in the audience. Maybe they took the week off as a result, but it didn’t make this much easier to get through. The good thing about AEW though: I have every reason to believe that this is a one off and not a downward trend, which is more than most companies can say.

Results
Jeff Hardy b. Bobby Fish – Swanton Bomb
Blackpool Combat Club b. AFO – Triangle choke to Angelico
Wardlow b. William Morrissey – Powerbomb
Chris Jericho b. Santana – Judas Effect
Rey Fenix b. Dante Martin – Over the shoulder piledriver
Mercedes Martinez b. Deonna Purrazzo – Dragon sleeper

 

 

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Dynamite
Date: March 23, 2022
Location: HEB Center, Cedar Park, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re still in Texas and this time around CM Punk is back for a match with Dax Harwood. Other than that we are probably going to hear something from Thunder Rosa after she won the Women’s Title last week in her hometown. If we’re lucky, we might even get more of the Young Bucks trying to find out who their real friends are. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Dax Harwood

Cash Wheeler is here too. They grapple into the corner to start and Harwood takes him down for an early breather. Punk is back up with a hammerlock but Harwood elbows him in the face to break it up. Back up and Punk gets kneed in the ribs, setting up a snap suplex. A backbreaker doesn’t even get one so Harwood grabs a chinlock. Harwood misses a headbutt though and it’s time to forearm it out. Punk gets the better of things and goes up top, where he has to cut Harwood off from trying a superplex.

The Macho Man elbow takes WAY too long though and Punk gets crotched down and now the top rope superplex connects. The top rope headbutt connects to give Harwood two and Punk is back up without much trouble. They suplex each other over the top for the nasty crash to the floor, setting up a high crossbody for two on Harwood back inside. The Anaconda Vice goes on but Harwood goes to the hair for the break.

Punk kicks him in into the corner and grabs a rollup, only to have them trade small packages for two each. Harwood is back up with a slingshot powerbomb for two, with Cash Wheeler being pulled up off the floor on the near fall. Punk fights up and sends him into the corner, setting up the GTS, which is countered into a Sharpshooter of all things. That’s too far for Punk, who gets out and pulls him into the GTS for the tap at 12:54.

Rating: B. Like this wasn’t going to be good, as you have Harwood who can wrestle an old school style and Punk who can work with anyone. It made for a good match and I wanted to see more, which is about as good as you can get. What I especially liked here was they took a tag wrestler and let him hang with Punk for a bit before ultimately falling. Punk gets a workout and Harwood isn’t going to be hurt by an out of his element loss to a top star. Rather good opener here.

Punk signals that he wants the title.

The Jericho Appreciation Society love that there is a photo of John Silver meeting Chris Jericho as a kid. Being in the same ring puts Silver on another level but not on the same level. The team looks around for Eddie Kingston, Santana and Ortiz, who they know are gone, because that’s entertainment.

Sting/Darby Allin/Hardys vs. AFO

Tornado tag match with Private Party/Butcher and the Blade for the AFO. Allin and Sting start fast with the dives and the multiple brawls start on the floor. Jeff charges at Blade to take him over the barricade and Sting actually hits the Stinger Splash on Kassidy against the barricade. Allin gets powerbombed up against some walls and Butcher tosses him down the steps as we take a break.

Back with Private Party giving Matt a double Side Effect off the stage through a table as we cut to the concourse, where Jeff Hardy climbs up a ladder, goes up onto a ledge, and Swantons onto Butcher and Blade through some tables. With that huge spot out of the way, we head back to the ring where Sting shrugs off a chair shot to the back and fires up on Private Party. Matt is back up (because of course he is) and a stereo Twist of Fate and Twist of Fate set up the double pin at 9:24.

Rating: B-. It was another fun match with some crazy spots, but I can’t bring myself to get that invested in these things anymore. Sting and the AFO just had one of these big wild brawls earlier this month and there is likely to be another one not too long from now. Jeff diving off of stuff doesn’t do much for me anymore, but the AFO losing is always good for a bit of a smile.

FTR is all fired up and wants to fight the Gunn Club next week, with Harwood going into a good rant about how they’re the best tag team around here.

Varsity Blonds vs. Jon Moxley/Bryan Danielson

Julia Hart sits on the steps with her back to the ring and William Regal is on commentary. Moxley and Danielson jump Garrison to start and the fight is on fast. Danielson knocks Garrison down and we take an early break. We come back with Garrison backdropping Danielson to the floor but getting dropped with a right hand from Moxley. Back up and a dropkick/spinebuster combination gets two on Moxley. Danielson is back in with the running knee to Pillman and a bunch of hard strikes to the head knock the Blonds silly. Stereo submissions are enough to make the Blonds tap at 6:00.

Rating: C+. That’s the kind of squash Danielson and Moxley should be having, as they beat up a team with a bit of credibility and did it fast. The Blonds had no change here but they got in a bit of time to keep it from being total destruction. As for Julia….does she really need some story? She can’t just keep being the pretty cheerleader for the time being while she builds up some experience?

Post match Regal comes into the ring, where Moxley talks about how there is no greater honor than to learn from Regal. He wears the Blackpool Badge of Honor and along with the perfect wrestler Bryan Danielson, they were forged in combat. If you want to step up to them, you better be ready for some violence. Of note: Julia Hart sat on the steps throughout the match and the post match promo.

Here is MJF, flanked by Shawn Spears and security. MJF mocks Wardlow for lowing to Scorpio Sky last week, but for now he wants to talk about CM Punk some more. Punk knows that he was beaten at Revolution, just like he did in Chicago, but rest assured that there will be another match. Then MJF will take him out and give him the most embarrassing loss ever.

Back to Wardlow, there are people who like him and that is because they are inbred. MJF is going to start calling Wardlow “Pig”, because he is a greedy little pig. When MJF met him, Wardlow had nothing and no one would know who Wardlow was without him. Now Wardlow actually has something, but he dared to cost MJF the biggest match of his career. Then Wardlow DARED to ask for MJF to release him from his contract? That was a deal with the devil, and it is iron clad.

Wardlow is going to ask how high when MJF tells him to jump, but MJF might even throw Wardlow’s mom out of her house anyway. Cue Wardlow, but a ton of security holds him back. MJF says he’s going to keep paying Wardlow, but it is to keep him at home until everyone forgets he ever existed. Security gets Wardlow to the back, with MJF saying that the Pinnacle has never been better. Next week FTR is in action and the Pinnacle is going to move up.

Trent Beretta throws Wheeler Yuta out of the Best Friends for suggesting he wanted to join William Regal and company. Yuta never liked Trent either and says he’s here to be the best wrestler, not to be the best friend. Trent should get that.

Adam Cole vs. Jay Lethal

Lethal takes him into the corner to start but gets elbowed in the face. Back up and Lethal starts taking things a bit more seriously, including a waistlock to the mat. Cole fights up with an enziguri but Lethal grabs the Lethal Combination. Lethal gets knocked outside so Cole poses, allowing Lethal to knock him outside. The series of suicide dives connects until Cole runs away from the last one, only to have Lethal hit another one. Cue ReDRagon to watch as we take a break.

Back with Lethal’s Figure Four attempt being countered into a small package for two, so Lethal tries it again. This one works a bit better, with the hold actually going on and Cole having to go to the ropes. Cole grabs the ring skirt to distract the referee so ReDRagon can distract Lethal. That lets Cole roll Lethal up for two but the Boom is countered with a cutter. Cole superkicks the Lethal Injection away though and the Panama Sunrise gets two on Lethal, leaving Cole stunned. The Boom misses again but ReDRagon offers another distraction so Cole can hit Lethal low. Now the Boom can finish Lethal at 10:03.

Rating: C+. They did their thing well enough here and that shouldn’t be a surprise. These two have a history together and they got to have their match until the villain cheated to win. Lethal is someone you can send out there and guarantee at least a pretty good match and Cole gets a nice win too. It’s cool to see a match where you know it’s going to work and then it does just that for a change.

Post match Cole says no one deserves to be the World Champion more than he does and he is going to ruin Hangman Page’s life. Page is scared of him but here is Page to interrupt, even though it’s 3-1. The title is dropped so Page takes the belt out of his jeans and starts whipping away. Cole manages a low blow though and the beatdown is on, with Cole holding up the title. Jurassic Express and Christian Cage run in for the save, but Cole leaves with the title.

Video on Lance Archer vs. Dustin Rhodes, which is coming up on Rampage. Rhodes wants revenge (for Archer beating him up a long time ago on Dynamite) in his hometown because monsters die too. Point for a good last line.

Sammy Guevara is in the ring with Tay Conti and isn’t happy about losing the TNT Title. He wants to be the guy that fans want to pay to see because he is going to do something so crazy that you have to see it. Yes he knows he can’t do this style forever, because it’s going to catch up to him eventually, but it’s worth the whole thing. Conti rants in Portuguese and translates it into a threat to Paige VanZant.

Sammy wants the two of them to fight any two of the Men of the Year, so here is the team (minus VanZant) to rant about how great they are. Did you know that Sky hasn’t lost a match since Tony Khan hit puberty? That was more than a year ago! Dan Lambert says not so fast on the match and kisses the interim TNT Title, but Sammy says if Lambert only knew what Sammy and Conti did while they wore that title. Lambert’s disgusted reaction is hilarious.

Video on Shane Strickland vs. Ricky Starks for the FTW World Title on Rampage this week.

Leyla Hirsch vs. Red Velvet

Kris Statlander is barred from ringside and Hirsch knocks Velvet off the apron before the bell. Velvet sends her into the barricade though and they go inside for the opening bell and a lot of stomping. Hirsch knocks her back down though and we take a break. Back with Velvet hitting a running knee to the back and pounding away a bit. The springboard is countered into a German suplex but Velvet catches her on top. The Mix connects so Hirsch rolls outside and pulls out the turnbuckle. That’s taken away, so here’s another piece of the turnbuckle out of her gear to knock Velvet silly for the pin at 6:24.

Rating: C-. This is a good example of a match that didn’t need to be on Dynamite as it was there to help advance a midcard feud at best. Velvet continues to look pretty lame by comparison and this was a pretty big downgrade over everything else on the show so far. Keep this on Rampage or Dark.

Post match the beatdown stays on and Kris Statlander runs in for the save.

Jade Cargill wants plans for the after party of her thirtieth win, including a lot of green stuff and exotic dancers.

Here is Thunder Rosa for her first chat as the Women’s Champion but Vickie Guerrero interrupts. Vickie does not like Rosa acting like she is really from Texas so she can “backstroke back to Mexico”. This turns into an argument about citizenship until Nyla Rose jumps Rosa from behind and beats her down. Two people arguing about the love of Texas. This sounds familiar for some reason.

Dark Order vs. Daniel Garcia/Chris Jericho

John Silver/Alex Reynolds for the Order. Before the match, Matt Minard praises Jericho a bit. Silver armdrags Jericho down to start and the Order knocks Jericho outside, setting up a brainbuster/dive combination. Back in and Garcia gets launched into a forearm to the face, leaving Jericho to pretend that the rest of the Order sent him into the steps. That’s enough for a big ejection and we take a break.

We come back with everything breaking down and Silver getting to clean house. Silver even takes down Jake Hager on the floor and a high crossbody gets two on Jericho. The Codebreaker gives Jericho two of his own and Jericho is shocked. The Order hits the running boot into the German suplex into the flip over rollup for two on Garcia but Hager starts wrecking people on the floor. Reynolds hits Garcia with a pop up knee but Jericho uses Floyd, setting up Garcia’s Scorpion Deathlock to make Reynolds tap at 9:59.

Rating: C. That’s your main event? It wasn’t awful but Jericho and company needing a numbers game and a baseball bat to beat some midcard guys isn’t a good sign for them. This didn’t feel like a main event match and it needed something bigger going on to get to that high of a spot on the show. Silver continues to shine in this role, and an underdog run after the TNT Title would be fun.

Overall Rating: B-. This show started off red hot and then dropped a fairly good bit. There was no way they were following those two openers, with the crowd carrying both of them to even greater heights. As usual, a weak AEW show is still good and the fans made this one feel that much better. Mix up the order on this and it’s a lot better, but for now it’s just another entertaining show.

Results
CM Punk b. Dax Harwood – Anaconda Vice
Sting/Hardys/Darby Allin b. AFO – Double pin to Private Party
Bryan Danielson/Jon Moxley b. Varsity Blonds – Rear naked choke to Garrison
Adam Cole b. Jay Lethal – Boom
Leyla Hirsch b. Red Velvet – Turnbuckle rod to the face
Chris Jericho/Daniel Garcia b. Dark Order – Scorpion Deathlock to Reynolds

 

 

 

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Rampage
Date: March 18, 2022
Location: Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Ricky Starks

We’re on late this week due to the NCAA Tournament so I’m not sure what kind of an audience this show is going to have. The good thing is Rampage is rarely the show that features a lot of important developments, but it does offer some good action more often than not. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Butcher vs. Darby Allin

Sting is in Allin’s corner. Allin charges right at him to start but gets sent into the corner and out to the floor. Back up on the apron and Allin slaps him in the face. They change places though and Allin hits a hard suicide dive into the barricade. Back in and Allin starts working on the hand but Butcher knocks him down again as Jericho talks about how a hand injury could hurt Butcher’s music career. A hard clothesline drops Allin and they head outside, with Butcher glaring at Sting.

We take a break and come back with Butcher putting on a Texas cloverleaf but Allin makes the ropes. Butcher picks him up on the floor and swings him into the barricade/steps. Allin fights up and knocks him down for a change, setting up the Coffin Drop from the top to the floor, which is actually good for a countout win at 10:41.

Rating: C+. I can go with a curve in the end as it spiced things up a bit here. Butcher looked like a good monster and that is something that will always have a place in a wrestling company. Allin needs something a little bigger than a feud with Andrade and company though, like perhaps just a feud with Andrade for a change.

Post match the AFO comes in for the beatdown but the Hardys run in for the save. Matt issues the challenge for an eight man Texas Tornado match next week, with the answer coming later.

Dan Lambert and company brag about winning the TNT Title and beating up Tay Conti, though they’re worried that signing Paige VanZant’s contract on her gave the contract an STD.

Leyla Hirsch vs. Red Velvet

The fight starts on the ramp and Velvet hits a suplex to take Hirsch down. They get inside for the opening bell with Velvet hammering away as much as she can. Hirsch knocks her into the ropes and starts choking away as we take a break. Back with Velvet firing off some kicks but a bit one is countered into a suplex. A German suplex sets up a cross armbreaker but Velvet makes it to the ropes. Hirsch goes for her turnbuckle connector but here is Kris Statlander to take it away. The distraction lets Velvet hit a spinning kick to the face for the pin at 8:00.

Rating: C. Velvet is someone who needs a good opponent to rein her in and Hirsch did well enough here, even if this was much more about the Statlander/Hirsch stuff. I don’t see Velvet going very far but she is a name that has been at least somewhat established around here. Not exactly a thrilling match but they have both done worse.

QT Marshall talks about his mom being so upset over what Hook did to him that she even called him. Apparently he went to the same high school as Bruce Springsteen and offers to give Hook the QT Marshall Certificate Of Accomplishment next week.

House Of Black vs. Fuego del Sol/Bear Country

Malakai Black sweeps Bear Bronson’s leg to start so it’s off to Fuego. Black kicks him down and knees Bear Boulder in the face. Buddy Matthews comes in for a few shots before Brody King gets to come in and wreck everyone. Bounder looks to stare the House down but it’s a series of strikes to set up King’s big lariat. Fuego comes in and goes after all three, including an enziguri to Black. King misses the big lariat but Matthews runs Fuego over. Black and King take out Bear Country, leaving Matthews to hit the former Murphy’s Law to pin Fuego at 3:19.

Rating: C. It was nice to see this be the squash that it should have been as I was half expecting it to go a lot longer than it needed to. The House of Black is a dominant enough faction and they looked good here, with Matthews and King getting the change to shine over the leader. I’m sure they’ll have to have their big showdown with Death Triangle whenever they’re all together, but I’d like to see where they go from there.

Penta Obscuro wants to destroy the House of Black.

Max Caster is ready to take out Keith Lee, with Bowens saying Lee sounds like King Henry VIII. Lee tells them to be prepared for pain because they are his stepping stone.

Keith Lee vs. Max Caster

Caster’s rap makes various Texas references, including saying people will remember Lee like the Alamo. Caster goes for the knee to start but Lee grabs him by the arm for some driving shoulders. Lee knocks him down again but Powerhouse Hobbs comes to the stage as we take a break. Back with Bowens choking Lee from the floor so Caster can get in some crossface shots. Lee fights up and Pounces Caster, setting up the Big Bang Catastrophe for the pin at 9:45.

Rating: C-. Lee is little more than signature moves at this point and while they still look good, this wasn’t a match I’ll ever need to see again. Caster isn’t exactly great in the ring in the first place and Lee can’t move very well anymore. It was longer than it needed to be and not very good either, making this a pretty weak main event.

Post match Hobbs and Starks go after Lee but Shane Strickland makes the save.

Overall Rating: C. Maybe it was the show being on so late but I wasn’t feeling this one as much as usual. Granted there is a good chance that they took things more slowly tonight because they knew no one was going to be watching and if so, fair enough. The wrestling was ok at best and the best thing about it was that it was only an hour, so this wasn’t one of the better Rampages.

Results
Darby Allin b. Butcher via countout
Red Velvet b. Leyla Hirsch – Spinning kick to the head
House Of Black b. Bear Country/Fuego del Sol – Spinning Samoan drop to del Sol
Keith Lee b. Max Caster – Big Bang Catastrophe

 

 

 

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Dynamite
Date: March 16, 2022
Location: Freeman Coliseum, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

It’s time for another major show with St. Patrick’s Day Slam and we actually have a rematch from last year’s edition. This week will see Thunder Rosa challenging Britt Baker for the Women’s Title inside a cage following their classic war last year. Other than that, Wardlow gets his TNT Title shot so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Jurassic Express/Hangman Page vs. Adam Cole/ReDRagon

Jungle Boy hurricanranas Cole down to start but gets sent into the corner so Fish can come in to crank on the arm. That doesn’t last long as it’s off to Luchasaurus, who sends the villains outside but gets kicked off the apron. Fish posts him to take over and it’s time to work over the leg back inside. O’Reilly twists the knee around but Luchasaurus fights his way out and the hot tag brings in Page to clean house.

A sitout powerbomb gets two on Fish and Jungle Boy hits a big flip dive over Page to take out all three villains. Back in and the good guys go up top and it’s a triple moonsault off the same corner (Luchasaurus from the apron, Page from the top to the floor and Jungle Boy from the top onto Fish) for the big wipe out crash and a near fall. Back in and ReDRagon is back up with the running strikes in the corner to Jungle Boy and we take a break.

We come back with Luchasaurus coming in to clean house with kicks and chokeslams. What looks to be a Doomsday Device is broken up though and O’Reilly gets a kneebar on Luchasaurus. Page is caught in a guillotine but drives it into O’Reilly for the save. It’s off to Page vs. Cole for the strike off until Page hits the Deadeye. Everything breaks down and Jungle Boy hits a double Doomsday Device for two as Fish has to make the save. Back up and Cole hits the Boom on Jungle Boy for the pin at 13:49.

Rating: B. This is the match that you should have been expecting from these guys and it was quite the showcase as a result. Cole getting the pin makes sense and at least it was in a six man instead of in a regular tag match so it doesn’t hurt Jungle Boy as much. I’m not sure why we are setting up Cole vs. Page again but it should make for a good main event on a big Dynamite.

Team Taz mocks Keith Lee and tell him that he’ll get another beating if he shows up on Rampage this week. Lee threatens to punch out Ricky Starks again and says he’ll see them on Friday.

Bryan Danielson/Jon Moxley vs. Chuck Taylor/Wheeler Yuta

William Regal is on commentary. JR: “William Regal, can you control these two?” Regal: “Of course not.” As Regal has Danhausen explained to him, Moxley and Danielson jump the two of them to start fast. Yuta gets kneed in the ribs and Moxley adds a suplex for two. Some choking in the corner keeps Yuta down and Danielson comes back in to stomp on the arm as Regal talks about selling jam.

Yuta manages to get over for the tag to Taylor for some house cleaning, including a single leg crab on Danielson. The tag brings Moxley back in anyway and a kick to the face gets Danielson out of trouble. Danielson comes back in to grab an Indian deathlock on Taylor and a superplex gets two. We take a break and come back with Yuta hitting a dropkick and running forearm on Moxley, who runs him over with a clothesline. A Hart Attack gets two on Yuta but he fights back, only to get suplexed back down. The bulldog choke finishes Yuta at 11:46.

Rating: C+. It was mostly a squash, but it was longer than it needed to be as Moxley and Danielson should be running through people. Yuta got to fight a bit and that is a good thing, though at the same time it didn’t exactly make Danielson and Moxley look dominant. The two of them will be looking for some bigger competition soon though and that is what will matter most.

Post match Regal gets in the ring and Yuta offers to join up, earning a slap in the face. Yuta stares at Regal, who says something to him and Yuta leaves.

FTR seems happy to have fired Tully Blanchard but the Young Bucks come in to say it doesn’t matter who manages FTR because they’re just not that good.

The Acclaimed is ready for Keith Lee but Team Taz cuts them off for a pep talk. Shane Strickland comes in and says he’ll steal Ricky Starks’ spotlight. Strickland leaves and Caster wonders if Strickland was supposed to be a rapper.

Here is the Jericho Appreciation Society, with the fans still singing along with Judas. Matt Lee asks if the fans love singing that song and says that if it were up to him, there would be no song or singing, but Jericho is a better man than him. That is why Jericho deserves to be praised, for his contributions as a human being.

Jericho says the earth has been around for 4.5 billion years and you are lucky enough to be around during his era. We hear about some of the things he has done (including angles and promos (his words)) and how he has helped build companies, just like AEW. Instead of praising him though, people have said some very hurtful things about him on social media. Eddie Kingston was mean to him by making him tap out at Revolution but he isn’t coming out here.

Jericho isn’t a wrestler but rather a sports entertainer. Daniel Garcia grabs the mic and says he is one too. Jericho talks about a car crash on January 6, 2019 when a bunch of wrestlers were in a car crash so he donated thousands of dollars to help them. One of those men was Garcia, who was starting to get better.

As for 2.0, it’s a bad name from bad creative, so they are now using their real names: Angelo Parker and Matt Mirand. His former best friend Kevin asks Jericho to put them on Talk Is Jericho so they could hopefully get a job. Jericho saw the passion in them and helped them get to AEW. Then there is Jake Hager, who is Jericho’s ride or die man. Hager says they beat up pro wrestlers, with Jericho saying this is the start of the era of the Sports Entertainer. This felt more like the Jericho I was hoping to see, but him running another heel stable isn’t the most interesting thing.

Video on Serena Deeb vs. Hikaru Shida.

TNT Title: Wardlow vs. Scorpio Sky

Sky is defending and has Dan Lambert and company with him. Wardlow gets taken into the corner to start but Wardlow powers out and heads outside for a staredown with Paige VanZant. Paige’s husband gets in his face so Wardlow loads up the powerbomb, allowing Sky to hit a basement dropkick as we take a break.

Back with Wardlow in trouble but Sky has to punch his way out of a powerbomb out of the corner. The TKO is countered into a spinebuster and there’s the first powerbomb. Two more powerbombs make it worse but a distraction breaks up the fourth. Sky rolls to the floor but here is Shawn Spears, complete with some chairs, to offer a distraction. The referee yells at Spears, allowing MJF to come in with the Dynamite Diamond to knock Wardlow silly. That’s enough for Sky to retain the title at 9:20.

Rating: C+. I was expecting to see Wardlow win the title here but this is hardly some terrible decision. Wardlow getting to wring MJF’s neck should be fine and it will likely take place after MJF brings in a few hired goons to try to slow Wardlow down. I can also go with Sky getting a longer run with the title, as he is a bit different than most of the champions so far.

Post match Wardlow goes after MJF but gets chaired down by Spears, allowing VanZant’s husband to choke him out. Spears adds a chair to the head and MJF adds the Dynamite Diamond punch.

Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling want someone to step up to be her 30th victim.

Hardys vs. Private Party

Matt cranks on Quen’s wrist to start and it’s off to Jeff (strong reaction) and the Hardys hit their double elbow and Poetry In Motion. The chinlock goes on before it’s back to Matt, who gets taken into the wrong corner. A double elbow takes Matt down and a legdrop/standing shooting star press combination (mocking the Hardys’ sequence) gets two. Matt gets sent outside for a crash and we take a break.

Back with Kassidy hitting a running flip dive tot he floor on Matt, followed by an assisted boot to the face for two. Kassidy mocks Jeff with his own dance and Matt is over for the tag to Jeff a few seconds later. Jeff comes in and cleans house, including the middle rope splash for two on Kassidy. Everything breaks down and the Silly String is broken up, leaving the Hardys to hit stereo Twists of Fate. The Swanton finishes Kassidy at 12:17.

Rating: C+. The Hardys got a big reaction but it was just a Hardys match. I get why the team was put back together for a (or another) nostalgia run, but that’s about all it is. I’ve been watching the Hardys for almost twenty five years now and it isn’t like they haven’t been together in the last ten years or so. It was nice for a bit of a smile, but I’m not likely to get this excited over a team that I’ve seen together so many times.

Post match the AFO comes out to threaten the Hardys but Sting and Darby Allin make the save.

Red Velvet is ready for Leyla Hirsch on Rampage.

Women’s Title: Britt Baker vs. Thunder Rosa

Rosa, the hometown girl, is challenging in a cage (more like the Cell, as there is room on the floor) and gets played to the ring by a live band. Baker is in Scott Hall style gear and it’s a feeling out process to start. Rosa gets in a kick to the face and a clothesline and rakes Baker’s face into the cage. Some not very great right hands in the corner have Baker busted open and they head outside. Baker manages to send her into the cage for a breather and we take a break.

Back with Baker missing a chair shot so Rosa sends her into the corner for a running dropkick. The referee gets bumped though and it’s the Fire Thunder Driver for no count on Baker. That’s not enough to hold Baker down as she comes back and makes a pile of chairs. A super Air Raid Crash onto the chairs rocks Rosa as another referee runs in to count the delayed two.

With Rosa mostly done, Baker piles up six chairs (two on top of four) but Rosa sends her into the cage, sending her crashing onto the chairs. Baker busts out a superkick and grabs a bag of thumbtacks (in the match’s required call back, though JR wondering why those are there is funny).

Rosa loads up a powerbomb but gets backdropped onto the tacks, meaning she can try Lockjaw. That’s broken up with a bite to the hand before Rosa slams the other hand into the tacks. A powerbomb (with Rosa kind of falling) sends Baker into the tacks but she gets in a chair to the head. Rosa shrugs it off and hits the Fire Thunder Driver onto the tacks to win the title at 17:34.

Rating: B. It was another violent match, but this comes at the end of a story that felt like we were just sitting around waiting on this since last year when Rosa beat her in the first place. That has been the problem with all of Baker’s reign, as it has been a countdown to Rosa beating her again to get the title. As for the match itself, it was a brutal fight, though having so many violent and bloody matches in the last few months takes away some of its impact.

Confetti falls and Dustin Rhodes comes in to celebrate with Rosa to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Another good show, though it was still missing a little something to take it up to the next level. I don’t know if that’s the show focusing on a pair of rematches or something else, but it was only very good instead of great. Still though, I can certainly live with that as this was another awesome show with the opener and main event being more than enough to carry things.

Results
Adam Cole/ReDRagon b. Hangman Page/Jurassic Express – Boom to Jungle Boy
Jon Moxley/Bryan Danielson b. Wheel Yuta/Chuck Taylor – Bulldog choke to Yuta
Scorpio Sky b. Wardlow – Pin after a Dynamite Diamond punch from MJF
Hardys b. Private Party – Swanton Bomb to Kassidy
Thunder Rosa b. Britt Baker – Fire Thunder Driver onto tacks

 

 

Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.