Collision
Date: November 17, 2023
Location: Kia Forum, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Kevin Kelly, Tony Schiavone

It’s the night before Full Gear and therefore the schedule is a little wacky, as Collision is taking place before Rampage and in the same building. That is going to make things a bit more interesting, but Collision has been up and down in recent weeks. It would be nice to have a more old school feel to this one….or as old school as a show about five months old can be. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Tony Schiavone (in a very green suit) brings out Christian Cage and company to start things off. Cage is ready for the six man tag tomorrow night, plus a TNT Title defense tonight on Rampage. Other than that though, in a town full of phony people, we need some reality. Cage says tomorrow is going to be Sting’s last match because he has been living off his past name and reputation for fifteen years. Darby Allin is going to need a father figure and Cage knows someone who can do that for him.

As for Adam Copeland, Cage knows he is here to steal the spotlight but Cage is a different person than he was back then. Beth Phoenix needs to keep the girls up late because Cage is breaking Copeland’s neck. It doesn’t matter who he is facing tonight, but he can beat any of the four in the qualifying match anyway. Fans: “PROVE IT!” Cage quotes not so popular NBA player James Harden, saying he doesn’t work within the system because he is the system.

Ricky Starks and Big Bill have a new stipulation for their four way Tag Team Title defense: we’ll make it a LADDER match. WELL OF COURSE WE WILL.

Miro vs. Daniel Garcia

Miro throws him down without much trouble to start and then suplexes him out of the corner for a bonus. A gutwrench suplex drops Garcia again so Miro loads up the Garcia dance. You don’t do that though as Garcia strikes away, only to be caught in a swinging release Rock Bottom. We take a break and come back with Miro grabbing a chinlock but Garcia fights up. Some slugging in the corner has Miro in trouble and he can’t swat a dropkick away.

Garcia’s running knee to the face just annoys Miro, who superkicks him down. It’s too early for Game Over though and Garcia slaps away, setting up a belly to back suplex. The dance is loaded up but cue Matt Menard to break it up. Not that it matters as Garcia pulls him into a crossface, which he switches into the Dragontamer. The bending back too far is a bad idea for Garcia though, as Miro slams his head into the mat or the break. Game Over finishes Garcia at 10:14.

Rating: C+. This was what it needed to be, as Miro is mad at Garcia for approaching his wife and wrecked him as a result. That’s all this should have been, as Garcia got in some offense before losing. Miro seems likely for a showdown with Andrade El Idolo sooner or later and this should be a good warmup.

CJ Perry and Andrade El Idolo are happy with their new business relationship, which is why Perry has entered into the Continental Classic. If he wins, he gets extra money.

Kings Of The Black Throne vs. The Boys

Brent goes after Black’s wrist to start and is easily shoved away. King comes in so it’s off to Brandon as everything breaks down. Brandon’s enziguri doesn’t do much to Black as it’s Dante’s Inferno to give King the pin at 2:09. Pretty much a squash.

Julia Hart, Skye Blue and Kris Statlander are ready to win/keep the TBS Title.

Trent Beretta vs. Brian Cage vs. Komander vs. Penta El Zero Miedo

The winner gets a TNT Title shot on Rampage and Prince Nana is here with Cage. The fans aren’t sure who they like here so Penta stops to take his glove off. That earns him a shot to the face before Cage gets triple teamed to the floor. Trent elbows Penta down before a jumping knee sets up a half and half suplex. Back in and Cage apron superplexes Komander onto the other two to send us to a break.

We come back with Penta striking away at Cage, followed by Trent suplexing Komander a few times. Penta gets suplexed as well but Cage blocks one without much trouble. A discus lariat knocks Trent silly and there’s a faceplant for two on Komander with Penta making the save. Penta is back up with a Canadian Destroyer to Komander and a Sling Blade to Cage. The big springboard flip dive hits Cage, leaving Komander’s rope walk shooting star to not quite hit Trent. The Scrunchie finishes Komander at 10:34 to give Trent the title shot.

Rating: B-. This felt like something you would see at a house show to set up a title match later in the night. That isn’t a bad thing either as it at least gives the match some stakes, even if Beretta doesn’t seem like a heavy favorite in the title match. For now though, good all action match and that’s what it needed to be.

Don Callis and Powerhouse Hobbs are proud of getting rid of Paul Wight with a heck of a slam onto a car on Dynamite. Hobbs tells Wight to stay away because anyone can get it.

Wardlow vs. Evan Daniels

Powerbomb, Swanton, Powerbomb for the stoppage at 57 seconds.

Full Gear rundown.

Dax Harwood vs. Rush

Ricky Starks is on commentary (Big Bill is with him but wasn’t introduced for some reason) and the rest of LFI is here. They shove each other around to start until Rush backdrops him out to the floor. Some rams into the barricade have Harwood in even more trouble as Starks does a Harwood impression.

Harwood gets sent shoulder first into the post and Rush unloads in the corner, setting up the single boot. We take a break and come back with Harwood chopping his way off the top. That lasts all of three seconds as Rush is back up with a superplex for two. They strike it out for a double knockdown before getting back up to trade clotheslines.

Rush can’t get a backslide so Harwood is right back with a piledriver for two of his own. The fight heads outside with Rush hitting a jumping knee to the face, setting up a posting. Rush goes after Starks before loading up the Bull’s Horns, only to have Starks come in with the spear to Rush for the DQ at 14:01.

Rating: B-. This was quite the Rush match, as he mostly beat the fire out of Harwood, though at least Harwood got in a bit of offense of his own. That being said, I’ll absolutely take having one of them avoid a pin before a title match, as that has always felt like the biggest waste of time. Rush continues to feel like a star, but he certainly likes being on offense. Maybe a bit too much at that.

Post match the beating is on until the other people in the ladder match run in for the huge brawl. Referees can’t break it up as we take a break. Of note: we’re told Tony Khan says this is a no contest. I know he’s a big wrestling fan, but in my day, someone coming in and attacking a single wrestler was a DQ.

Action Andretti is cut off by Roderick Strong and the Kingdom, the former of which says he has found his next victim.

Buddy Matthews vs. Wheeler Yuta

Matthews works on the arm to start but Yuta flips out to escape and crank away as well. Yuta even offers him a shot to grab the leg before pulling it back. Instead Yuta sends him outside, where a dropkick through the ropes makes it worse. That’s not ok with Matthews, who beats him up around ringside.

They head to the apron for a slugout until Yuta is LAUNCHED onto the announcers’ table. We take a break and come back with Matthews striking him down until Yuta is back up with a heck of a forearm. Yuta manages to knock him down to one knee but Matthews is back with a shot of his own.

A rollup and German suplex give Yuta two each and there’s a superkick to put Matthews on the floor. They fight on the apron until Matthews drops him ribs first onto the turnbuckle. Yuta kicks his way out of trouble and drapes him over the top for an ax handle. Matthews hits a heck of a powerbomb though and the Stomp finishes Yuta at 13:43.

Rating: B. I can always go for a power vs. speed match and they had a nice one here, with Yuta doing what he could against the far stronger Matthews. That’s a formula that has worked forever in wrestling and they did it here with two potential stars. Matthews has long since felt like he could be moving up the ladder whenever he’s given a chance but there is only so much that can be done with the rest of the House Of Black around. See also Yuta with the Blackpool Combat Club, as he is by far the lowest member of the team but is still a talented star. Anyway, pretty sweet match here and that’s always nice to see.

Post match Matthews grabs a chair but here is Claudio Castagnoli to cut him off. Castagnoli says the House Of Black has his attention so he and Matthews can fight at Full Gear.

Orange Cassidy and Jon Moxley are ready to fight again at Full Gear.

Ruby Soho/Saraya vs. Kris Statlander/Hikaru Shida

Shida and Soho grapple around to start as we hear about Angelo Parker “pitching woo” about Soho. Nigel is of course all over Kelly for that one as Statlander comes in to take over on Saraya. Back up and Statlander shoulders her down for two as Julia Hart is watching in the back. Statlander suplexes both villains down at once and hands it back to Shida as we see Skye Blue watching in the back as well. The villains pull Shida down out of the corner and we take a break.

Back with Parker watching at ringside as Saraya kicks Shida in the ribs. That brings Statlander and Soho back in, with Statlander hitting a Falcon Arrow for two. Statlander has to get Soho back inside, but sees Parker in a Soho shirt. Saraya comes back in and gets to clean some house, setting up a forearm off with Shida. After a double knockdown, Shida is back up with a knee each for Saraya and Soho, which has Parker checking on the latter. Saraya is livid as Statlander clotheslines Parker (seemed to be aiming for Soho). That leaves Shida to Katana Saraya for the pin at 10:32.

Rating: B-. This wound up being more of a focus on the Parker stuff and that might be a bit more interesting than the match. Saraya is already starting to feel forgotten around here and it’s not like her matches are tearing the house down. Maybe she ties in with the Parker story, but she certainly needs something. Shida probably will as well, as it feels almost impossible to imagine her leaving Full Gear with the title. Statlander might be in a safer spot, but Hart winning feels long overdue. They covered a bit here, but it didn’t quite feel like a big time main event.

We get a sitdown interview with MJF, who is defending the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles to keep his promise to Adam Cole. The Gunns are very ugly but he’ll beat them anyway. Other than that, he doesn’t like Jay White stealing his title belt, but he’ll get that back at Full Gear. Schiavone brings up MJF winning the title a year ago, sending MJF into a rant about overcoming the odds over the years. He likes the odds against White, so we’ll see them tomorrow. This was fired up MJF and that is often the best kind.

Overall Rating: B. There was good action throughout and the Yuta vs. Matthews match was quite good, but it did feel like a show that didn’t really need to be here. I was hoping they would have pulled the show from the schedule for the sake of the PPV but we got a decent enough push towards Full Gear. The pay per view still doesn’t exactly feel must see, though this show did a nice job of boosting it up a bit.

Results
Miro b. Daniel Garcia – Game Over
Kings Of The Black Throne b. The Boys – Dante’s Inferno to Brandon
Trent Beretta b. Brian Cage, Komander and Penta El Zero Miedo – Scrunchie to Komander
Wardlow b. Evan Daniels via referee stoppage
Rush b. Dax Harwood via DQ when Ricky Starks interfered
Buddy Matthews b. Wheeler Yuta – Stomp
Hikaru Shida/Kris Statlander b. Saraya/Ruby Soho – Katana to Saraya

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Collision
Date: November 11, 2023
Location: Oakland Arena, Oakland, California
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone

We’re taped for a rare situation this week with only seven days to go before Full Gear. In theory that should mean we get a few things built up towards the pay per view, which could make things interesting. You never know what you’re going to get around here but an in-ring focus tends to be the case. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Sting, Darby Allin, Adam Copeland, the Righteous, Lance Archer, Jake Roberts, La Faccion Ingobernable, Powerhouse Hobbs, Daniel Garcia and Andrade El Idolo are ready to fight.

Opening sequence.

Andrade El Idolo vs. Daniel Garcia

CJ Perry is here with Andrade. Feeling out process to start with Andrade getting the better of things. Garcia sends him into the ropes for the Tranquilo pose, meaning it’s time for the slugout. The frustrated Garcia is sat on top for a dropkick out to the floor as things get worse. Back in and Andrade strikes away until Garcia gets in a knee snap over the ropes.

Garcia knees him off the apron and out to the floor but it’s time to stare at Perry. That means some dancing from Garcia, though Perry actually dances back a bit. Garcia takes it back inside for a German suplex and we take a break. Back with Garcia putting on the ankle lock and Andrade pounding the mat.

With that broken up, Andrade hits some running clotheslines and nips up. The running knees in the corner give Andrade two, followed by Garcia hitting a brainbuster for the same. Andrade runs him over again and hits the double moonsault for two more. Another shot to the knee sets up the Figure Eight to give Andrade the win at 15:41.

Rating: C+. This was longer than it needed to be and there was only so much that you can get out of these two going for almost sixteen minutes. It was a good enough match, but it was feeling long and came off more like they were trying to fill in time. Andrade winning does at least boost him up though and now we should be in for a big Miro vs. Andrade match in the near future.

In the back, Miro is not pleased.

We look at the end of Dynamite, with the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn being taken out by masked men. MJF was upset but Samoa Joe seemed amused.

Nick Wayne vs. Dalton Castle

Christian Cage and Luchasaurus are here with Wayne while the Boys are here with Castle. Feeling out process to start with Wayne taking over and stopping for a pose. Castle wrestles him down without much trouble and grabs a gutwrench to send Wayne flying. Wayne gets in a shot of his own to set up more posing though and we hit the face ripping.

That’s broken up and Castle snaps off some suplexes but the Bang A Rang is blocked. Wayne’s World is blocked as well so Luchasaurus gets on the apron. The Boys make the save and get double chokeslammed, allowing Wayne to send Castle into the corner. Wayne’s World finishes Castle at 6:47.

Rating: C+. And there’s your next challenger to the Ring Of Honor World Title, as he loses to Christian Cage’s lackey two days after issuing the challenge. AEW has that big of a roster but apparently here was no one else to take this loss than Castle. Other than that, it was nice to see Castle on television again, as that star power and charisma are always worth a look.

Hangman Page is livid at Swerve Strickland for invading his home, so it’s time for a Texas Death Match at Full Gear. He’s ready to kill Strickland and then take his son to his grave every year for a visit. Heck of a promo from Page here, as he continues to do well when he’s serious.

La Faccion Ingobernable vs. Workhorsemen

Dralistico gets taken into the wrong corner to start and the alternating beatdown is on. A quick shot allows the tag to Rush though and Drake is quickly struck down. The fight heads outside and we take a break. Back with Rush slapping Drake in the face and posing before forearming Henry down. Back up and Drake runs Rush over, setting up a missed moonsault. Dralistico hits a top rope Codebreaker, setting up a running flip dive to Henry. The Bull’s Horns finishes Drake at 8:25.

Rating: C. This was another match that felt a bit longer than it needed to be, though at least La Faccion never really felt like they were in any serious trouble. The Workhorsemen have been around Ring Of Honor for a long time without much success and now they seem to be moving into the same jobbers to the stars roles around here. There are worse spots for them, but they’re not exactly must see TV.

Post match the House Of Black pops up to say they’re coming for the Tag Team Titles at Full Gear. As for Julia Hart, she’ll beat Willow Nightingale tonight and then gets a rematch for the TBS Title at Full Gear.

Kris Statlander thinks Willow Nightingale should get a title shot and has no comment on Red Velvet vs. Skye Blue next week. Apparently the winners of Hart vs. Nightingale and Velvet vs. Blue get into a triple threat title match at Full Gear. Velvet has wrestled twice since returning and is 1-1 but is a win away from a title shot?

Roderick Strong vs. Darius Martin

Strong, with the Kingdom, is wheeled to the ring. They start fast with Strong hammering away in the corner before hitting a half nelson backbreaker. One heck of a chop in the corner lets Strong drop him in the corner again. A dropkick cuts off Martin’s comeback and we hit the seated abdominal stretch. With that broken up, Martin flips out of the corner for a kick to the head, followed by a bulldog onto the middle rope. Back in and Strong hits the Sick Kick, setting up the End of Heartache for the pin at 5:50.

Rating: C+. Strong’s story continues, though I’m not sure where it is supposed to go. The ans are getting behind Strong and that might create some issues for everyone involved. For now though, at least Strong is getting back in the ring so there are some more options available. Maybe just tone down the comedy stuff if Strong is supposed to stay a heel?

Post match the beatdown is on until Action Andretti makes the save.

Tony Khan is with Bryan Danielson and announces that Danielson will be at next year’s All In. Also, we’ll be getting the Continental Classic, a 12 man round robin tournament over the next month and a half, with the finals taking place at World’s End. The first entrant: Bryan Danielson. Round robins haven’t gone so well in America and a month and a half is a lot, but the talent should be there.

Willow Nightingale vs. Julia Hart

They start slowly with Hart not knowing what to do with Willow’s power. Hart slugs away but gets slammed down without much trouble. With that not working, they head outside where Willow hits a suplex to plant Hart as we take a break. Back with Hart working on the arm, meaning Nightingale can’t pick her up for the gutwrench powerbomb. Hart hits some running shots in the corner and a running forearm to the back of the head.

Hartless is blocked so they head outside where Nightingale misses a charge into the steps. Back in and Willow pulls her off the top for a full nelson slam and another near fall. The Babe With The Powerbomb….doesn’t quite work as Hart lands sitting down. Another running forearm drops Willow and the moonsault gives Hart the pin at 12:01.

Rating: C+. And so, Nightingale loses again, as tends to be her custom. That being said, Hart seems all but destined to win the title at Full Gear, as Kris Statlander hasn’t had much of note or a bit now. Hart’s moonsault still looks great too as she has come a long way in a short amount of time. Just give her the title while not having Nightingale lose as much and they’ll get somewhere.

Big Bill and Ricky Starks won’t fight the House Of Black at Full Gear. That’s true, because they’ll be fighting the House of Black, La Faccion Ingobernable and FTR. Starks isn’t worried.

Powerhouse Hobbs vs. ???

Paul Wight is on commentary. Spinebuster and World’s Strongest Slam finish for Hobbs at 53 seconds.

Post match, Don Callis mocks Chris Jericho and calls Wight Jericho’s last friend in wrestling. Callis praises Wight but says he’s scared of Hobbs. The fight is teased but nothing happens.

FTR wants the Tag Team Titles back.

Lance Archer/The Righteous vs. Sting/Darby Allin/Adam Copeland

Copeland strikes away at Dutch to start and finally clotheslines him down. Allin (with a taped up shoulder) comes in to headlock Vincent before it’s off to Archer vs. Sting. After a WOO off, Sting knocks him to the floor as we take a break. Back with Sting in trouble as Archer gets to stomp him down in the corner. Sting fights away and, after a clothesline to Archer, brings Allin back in.

What looks to be the Code Red is blocked and Dutch hits a running clothesline as we take another break. Back again with Allin fighting out of trouble and bringing Copeland back in to clean house. Allin dives onto Archer on the floor but Dutch takes Copeland down. Sting makes the save and it’s a Death Drop/middle rope elbow combination to drop Dutch. The spear finishes Dutch at 16:21.

Rating: B-. Copeland was looking like a star in here and was moving better than he did during some of his time in WWE. At the same time, Sting continues to look good on the way towards retirement and if he can keep it going for a few more months, we should be in for a nice run. I could have gone with the Righteous not losing so soon into their teaming up with Roberts, but at least it was to a team with much higher star power.

Christian Cage and company come out for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. While it wasn’t a bad show, I couldn’t get into things this week. It felt like there wasn’t a ton of effort put into this show and very little involving the top stories took place. I can go with a show focused more on the midcard feuds, but nothing n here really stood out for the most part. It’s far from terrible, but I was bored more than once and that makes for a long show.

Results
Andrade El Idolo b. Daniel Garcia – Figure 8
Nick Wayne b. Dalton Castle – Wayne’s World
La Faccion Ingobernable b. Workhorsemen – Bull’s Horns to Drake
Roderick Strong b. Darius Martin – End Of Heartache
Julia Hart b. Willow Nightingale – Moonsault
Powerhouse Hobbs b. ??? – World’s Strongest Slam
Sting/Darby Allin/Adam Copeland b. Righteous/Lance Archer – Spear to Dutch

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Rampage
Date: November 10, 2023
Location: Oakland Arena, Oakland, California
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone

It’s the rather rare live Rampage as AEW is shaking up its schedule a bit. As usual though, the card is kind of all over the place, as we’re getting a rare non-Collision FTR match. Rampage can be so random that it is hard to guess what we’ll be getting and that can make for a fun night. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Ricky Starks vs. Preston Vance

This isn’t quite as interesting as I was expecting after the RUSH graphic came on the big screen. Big Bill joins commentary as they trade chops in the corner to start. Vance knocks him to the floor but Starks rams him into the barricade. That’s enough for Starks to jump in on commentary to praise himself before suplexing Vance on the ramp.

We take a break and come back with Starks’ apron legdrop getting two. Vance hits a middle rope shoulder into a spinebuster but Starks hits a springboard tornado DDT. A Samoan driver plants Starks but he counters the full nelson into a rollup for two. Vance gets up so Bill offers a distraction, setting up the spear to finish for Starks at 7:08.

Rating: C+. This continues the interesting multi-team feud that seems to be breaking out on Collision. The good thing about a feud like that is it opens up a variety of options for matches as AEW can run all kinds of singles and tags out of there. Starks getting a win is good as well and it’s not like Vance has anything to lose.

Post match the beatdown is on but La Faccion Ingobernable makes the save.

Chris Jericho is ready to face Konosuke Takeshita in Japan and thinks Takeshita needs to be ready for one of the best wrestlers in the world. Revenge is promised.

Don Callis, with Prince Nana, is asked about who will be the fourth member of the Don Callis Family in the upcoming street fight. That would apparently be Brian Cage, who is being rented from the Mogul Embassy. Geez Sammy Guevara is still not cleared from his concussion? That’s not a good sign.

Jeff Jarrett and company are ready to see Jay Lethal win the Ring Of Honor World Title whenever he gets his title shot. Ortiz comes in to say he wants them to say what they’ve been saying from his face. Ortiz knows he’s going down, so he’s going down swinging. The fight is on and off rather quickly.

Ruby Soho vs. Red Velvet

Soho is doing this on her own, with Saraya happily heading to the back. Velvet throws her down to start and hits a leg lariat to drop Soho again. Velvet sends Soho into the corner but gets sent into the same corner for her efforts. Soho gets in a shot of her own and we take a break.

Back with Velvet making the clothesline comeback and hitting a standing moonsault for two. Some basement superkicks put Velvet right back down for two and a pair of Saito suplexes knock Velvet silly. Hold on though as someone delivers Soho flowers, allowing Velvet to strike away. A spinning kick to the head gives Velvet the big upset at 9:02.

Rating: C+. Velvet is doing a bit better than she was before the injury though it’s almost hard to fathom her beating Soho. It wasn’t a clean win but the result itself is quite the surprise. I’m curious to see where the secret admirer (assuming that’s what it is) idea goes as that could have quite the variety of options. Now just don’t screw it up.

We look back at the end of Dynamite with the masked men attacking Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed, much to MJF’s chagrin.

Kingdom vs. ???/???

Roderick Strong is here with the Kingdom and dedicates the match to his best friend Adam Cole. The Kingdom jumps them to start and finishes with the Neck Check at 50 seconds.

Post match Strong gets out of the wheelchair for a Backstabber and then gets back in for the ride up the ramp.

Daniel Garcia and pals challenges Andrade El Idolo for Collision. Ruby Soho, with flowers and Saraya, come in so the latter can accuse Angelo Parker of sending them. Storming off ensues.

The Kingdom and Roderick Strong are interrupted by Action Andretti and Darius Martin. A match is teased for some point in the future.

El Hijo del Vikingo/Komander vs. FTR

Harwood and Komander start things off with Komander grabbing a rollup for a fast two. That’s broken up so it’s off to Wheeler vs. Vikingo for a change. Vikingo kicks him into the corner and Wheeler is sent outside, setting up a suicide dive…which goes straight into the announcers’ table.

We take a break and come back with Vikingo hitting a dive off the top to drop Wheeler on the floor again. Komander hits a high crossbody on Harwood and Vikingo’s missile dropkick gets two. Harwood catches Vikingo on top with a superplex but Komander breaks up the….I guess Power as it’s part of the PowerPlex.

Wheeler catches Komander in a Gory Bomb and Harwood Tombstones Vikingo for two. Back to back slingshot powerbomb attempts are countered into hurricanranas for two on Harwood but the third attempt connects. Komander takes both of them down in the corner but walks into the Shatter Machine for the pin at 11:45.

Rating: B. Every time I start to get a little over FTR, they come up with something like this match. This was a completely different kind of match from them and it worked very well for a heck of a main event. The idea of FTR not being able to keep up with the luchadors and having all of them usual stuff getting countered was a cool way to go and I had a good time here. Heck of a match and a nice twist off of the usual.

Respect is shown….and the House of Black pops up on the screen for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event was by far the best part of the show but the rest was good enough. I can go with having a randomly awesome main event to go with a few stories getting advanced, though it’s hard to believe that will continue. For now though, pretty nice Rampage and having more FTR around is a good thing.

Results
Ricky Starks b. Preston Vance – Spear
Red Velvet b. Ruby Soho – Spinning kick to the head
Kingdom b. ???/??? – Neck Check
FTR b. Komander/El Hijo del Vikingo – Shatter Machine to Komander

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: November 8, 2023
Location: Moda Center, Portland, Oregon
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Tony Schiavone

We are a week and a half away from Full Gear and that means we should be getting the final push towards the show. This week that includes MJF defending the World Title against Daniel Garcia and an interesting main event of Jay White vs. Mark Briscoe. Other than that, we have a heck of a showdown between Keith Lee and Samoa Joe for the ROH TV Title. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Tony Schiavone brings in MJF to talk about his lost last week but MJF says it will never happen again. Adam Cole calls him so MJF throws it to a video screen and says MJF should take Samoa Joe up on his offer. MJF isn’t sure why but here is Daniel Garcia (challenging MJF for the title tonight) to laugh a bit. Garcia says tonight, MJF is getting the professional wrestler. With Garcia gone, the Kingdom wheels in Roderick Strong, who offers MJF some tips. MJF walks off, which Strong says is what the devil would do. It’s time to remind people who Strong is.

Opening sequence.

AEW World Title: Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Daniel Garcia

Garcia, with Matt Menard and Angelo Parker, is challenging. MJF hits him in the face to start so Garcia does the same, only to have his friends break up the dance (as tends to be their custom as of late). An armbar has Garcia down and a rollup gives MJF two. We take a break and come back with Garcia hitting a one armed German suplex and dancing a bit.

MJF is right back on the arm before a hammerlock DDT gets two. Garcia kicks the leg out and hits a one armed piledriver for two. They’re doing something there with the arm not working at full strength. The Dragontamer goes on but MJF escapes and grabs the Salt Of The Earth to retain the title at 10:38.

Rating: B-. Not too bad at all here, though Garcia continues to not exactly be the most interesting star in the world. He’s a strong technician, but that doesn’t do much to help his charisma. Thankfully they didn’t let this go on too long, as there was no way to make Garcia feel like a serious threat to the title.

Post match MJF wants to shake hands but Garcia’s friends won’t allow it.

Mark Briscoe is ready for Jay White.

Sting/Darby Allin vs. Outrunners

Allin headlocks Magnum to start but gets take into the corner for a stomping from Floyd. A suplex is broken up and String comes in to clean house. The Scorpion Deathlock finishes Floyd at 2:58. That’s how it should have gone.

We have a sitdown interview (in black and white) between Hikaru Shida and Toni Storm. Shida promises to beat her again as usual but Storm doesn’t seem to buy it. They sign the contract and go face to face.

Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Swerve Strickland

Feeling out process to start until Swerve takes him into the corner for a kick to the leg. Swerve bites the fingers but Penta is back with some chops. A Backstabber sends Swerve outside, where he is able to drop Penta face first onto the steps. Penta strikes away and hits a big running flip dive as we take a break.

Back with Made In Japan and the JML Driver both being blocked, leaving us with a double knockdown. A Death Valley Driver gets Penta two and he drops Swerve hard onto the apron to leave Swerve on the floor. Back in and Swerve reverses a headscissors out of the corner by flipping Penta into the corner. A 450 is blocked and Made In Japan gives Penta two. Swerve is back with his own Death Valley Driver and snaps Penta’s arm. The Swerve Stomp gives Swerve the pin at 13:33.

Rating: B. One of AEW’s greatest strengths is being able to take any two wrestlers out of a huge number available and have them put on a good match. That’s what they did here as these two came pretty close to tearing the house down. If you can get Penta away from doing his CERO MIEDO line over and over again and let him do his thing, he can put in a heck of a performance and that was the case here. At the same time you have Swerve continuing to showcase just how good he really is as his roll continues.

Post match Swerve goes for the mast but Hangman Page runs in to lay Swerve out with a Deadeye off the stage and through some tables. It seems WAY too early for that as it could have come during their Full Gear match instead.

Jay White is ready to beat up Mark Briscoe tonight and hopes MJF is watching.

The Don Callis Family is ready for serious violence next week against Chris Jericho and pals.

Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega are ready to fight next week, but the Young Bucks come in to bring up an idea of the Elite. They think Jericho is just here to get a paycheck, but Jericho thinks he and Omega are a better team. They agree to fight at Full Gear, with Jericho wanting the Bucks’ Tag Team Title shot on the line. That works with the Bucks, but if they win, Jericho and Omega are done as a team and they get back to being the Elite. Omega says he’s beaten the Bucks before so he can do it again.

Ring Of Honor TV Title: Samoa Joe vs. Keith Lee

Joe is defending and grabs a headlock to start. Lee isn’t having that and runs Joe over with a shoulder. Some choking on the rope keeps Joe down but he’s back up with the snap jabs in the corner. Back up and Lee leapfrogs over him and knocks Joe outside to send us to a break. We come back with Joe taking out the leg, including hitting a dragon screw legwhip. Lee manages a pop up powerbomb for a delayed two but Joe is right back up. Joe pulls him into the Koquina Clutch to retain the title at 11:26.

Rating: B-. This was the hoss match it was advertised as being and that made for a good fight. While I could go for more of Lee being a monster who runs people over, there is little shame in losing to someone as dominant as Joe. That being said, this felt like a match that could have been built up a lot better, but that is the case for a lot of things on AEW TV.

Post match Joe says he’s vacating the title to go after the AEW World Title. After a year and a half and Joe retaining the title when it seemed perfect for Joe to lose, he just walks away from it without putting anyone over? And not even on the ROH show. This has been your weekly reminder that RING OF HONOR MEANS NOTHING.

Orange Cassidy, with Hook, is rather serious and says he has to beat Jon Moxley.

Gunns b. Bollywood Boyz

3:10 To Yuma finishes Gurv at 42 seconds.

Post match the Gunns promise to beat up MJF and win the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles.

Jon Moxley says he’s in for the Full Gear title shot against Orange Cassidy, but he and Wheeler Yuta might crush Cassidy and Hook before they get there.

Wardlow is ready to end MJF.

Julia Hart vs. Red Velvet

This is Velvet’s return after nine months on the injured list. Velvet snaps off some armdrags to start and strikes away in the corner. Hart knocks her out of said corner though and we take a break. Back with Velvet making the clothesline comeback and hitting some running knees. An Iconoclasm out of the corner gives Velvet two but Hart kicks her down. The moonsault finishes for Hart at 8:26.

Rating: C+. Hart gets some momentum back after losing at WrestleDream and still looks like she’s keeping most of her momentum. She seems to have turned a corner in recent months and that moonsault looks good every time. It’s also nice to have Velvet back as you never want to see someone on the shelf, especially for that long.

Post match Hart goes after Velvet but Skye Blue comes out for the staredown. Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale come in to break it up before things get physical.

Mariah May is ready to debut in AEW and is excited about Toni Storm being here.

Jay White vs. Mark Briscoe

The rest of Bullet Club Gold is at ringside. Mark sends him outside to start and White needs an early breather. Back in and Mark chops away, setting up a suplex to put White down again. Redneck Kung Fu puts White on the floor and there’s the Bang Bang Elbow to make it worse. The Club knocks Mark off the top though and we take a break.

Back with White kicking the knee out but getting cut off with a middle rope dropkick. They strike it out with Mark getting the better of things and hitting a fisherman’s buster for two. A dragon screw legwhip over the ropes hits White again and there’s a Death Valley Driver. The Froggy Bow gets two but White snaps off the swinging Rock Bottom. White goes for the knee but the Blade Runner is countered into an exploder suplex. More chops have Mark down again and the sleeper suplex drops him hard. The Blade Runner finishes for White at 14:00.

Rating: B. Another good one here, though I’m not wild on having Briscoe lose so soon after his comeback. Granted it’s against a big name in White who has a major match coming up, but it’s still a bit of a weird choice. That being said, Mark getting to showcase himself is a good thing as he really is one of the better hands in the ring around here.

Post match MJF comes out with the diamond ring to chase White off but he still can’t get the belt back. For the first time ever, MJF has a reason to fight for everyone in the arena and wants to know if White can pull the trigger.

The lights go out and we cut to the back where the masked men are attacking Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed. Anthony Bowens is sent through some glass as we see the person in the devil mask watching. MJF runs to the back, where Samoa Joe pops up to say MJF is running out of friends.

Overall Rating: B. Better show than last week and it’s nice to see things getting a bit back to normal. They had more of a focus this week as they get ready for Full Gear and things got more interesting with the angle at the end. Throw in some good wrestling up and down the card and it made for a good Dynamite. Now just get to Full Gear with the same efficiency and everything should work very well.

Results
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Daniel Garcia – Salt Of The Earth
Sting/Darby Allin b. Outrunners – Scorpion Deathlock to Floyd
Swerve Strickland b. Penta El Zero Miedo – Swerve Strickland
Samoa Joe b. Keith Lee – Koquina Clutch
Gunns b. Bollywood Boyz – 3:10 To Yuma to Gurv
Julia Hart b. Red Velvet – Moonsault
Jay White b. Mark Briscoe – Blade Runner

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Rampage
Date: November 3, 2023
Location: KFC Yum Center, Louisville, Kentucky
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Paul Wight

We are just over two weeks away from Full Gear and that probably has very little to do with this show. As is occasionally the case around here, the focal point is going to be an international match as we have a lucha three way, which has quite the potential. Other than that, we are likely to get more build towards Collision. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Komander

Penta wastes no time in Fear Factoring Vikingo but Komander makes the save. Vikingo sends them outside for the big dive but Penta Sling Blades him on the floor. Back in and Vikingo hits a very twisting springboard splash onto Komander. Penta is back up with a big lip dive onto both of them, followed by the big chop to Vikingo. Komander gets chopped as well and we take a break.

Back with Penta striking away at Vikingo in the corner until a missed charge lets Vikingo kick him in the head. Komander is back in to take Vikingo down, setting up a springboard Canadian Destroyer. Penta kicks both of them down but Komander poisonranas him onto the apron. Vikingo dives into a superkick though, leaving Penta to hit a Gory Bomb and piledriver on the apron at the same time.

Back in and Penta hits a wicked spinning powerslam to Vikingo, who is back with a swinging Rock Bottom to plant Penta. Vikingo 630s Penta but Komander breaks it up. Komander’s implosion phoenix splash hits Vikingo but Penta Fear Factors Komander onto Vikingo for the pin at 12:40.

Rating: B. This is the kind of match where you know what you’re getting and that is not a bad thing. The match was all over the place with one bit of insanity after and it was hard to take your eyes off of it. These guys know what they are doing with this style of match and while it might not mean anything beyond this one show, it was a lot of fun and a good way to get the crowd hot again.

Sonjay Dutt and company cannot believe that Ortiz turned down his offer last week. Jay Lethal doesn’t care because he’s ready for Eddie Kingston anyway. With the team gone, Ortiz comes in to say he’ll deal with the team next week.

The Gunns vs. Matt Sydal/Christopher Daniels

Sydal strikes away on Austin to start and hands it off to Daniels, who avoids a charge in the corner. Colten gets in a cheap shot from the apron though and the Gunns get to take over. A running knee into a clothesline combination puts Daniels down and it’s Cardblade time. Back up and Daniels suplexes his way out of trouble, allowing the tag back to Sydal to clean house. The top rope Meteora gets two on Austin as everything breaks down. Daniels is sent outside, leaving Sydal to walk into 3:10 To Yuma for the pin at 4:30.

Rating: C. Just a quick win here to give the Gunns some momentum heading into their Ring Of Honor Tag Team Title shot. They’re as fine a team as any other to get one and it does tie into the Jay White Title shot. Other than that though, you have Daniels and Sydal as a jobber to the stars team in Ring Of Honor, making me wonder why this is happening on Rampage and not the Ring Of Honor show.

Post match the Gunns promise to take the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles.

Danhausen is back. Actually correction as he comes back in to say never mind as he’ll be back next week.

Ruby Soho talks about how she’s been in a downward spiral as of late but Saraya tells Soho to “stick with me kid” and she’ll be fine. Soho: “Kid? I’m older than you.”

Matt Menard wants to know what was up with Angelo Parker on Dynamite when they couldn’t beat Chris Jericho. Parker says he’s going to check on Daniel Garcia before his main event.

Marina Shafir vs. Skye Blue

Shafir takes her down to start and Blue needs an early breather. Blue gets in a throat snap across the middle rope and unloads on the floor. We take a break and come back with Shafir sweeping the leg. A kick to the back has Blue in more trouble but she kicks her way to freedom. Blue even bites her, much to Shafir’s shock, setting up a pair of superkicks and Code Blue for the pin at 8:10.

Rating: C. As opposed to the Gunns getting a win to advance towards something, this was the latest Blue win as she is on a bunch of shows but rarely gets elevated in any way. I know she has the whole black mist poisoning her thing and seems ready to fight Julia Hart, but it’s a little hard to get interested in her when she has been doing so many of the same things for months now.

Video on Darby Allin vs. Lance Archer.

Video on Daniel Garcia vs. Trent Beretta.

Daniel Garcia vs. Trent Beretta

They go to the mat to start and trade some early near falls until Garcia hits a basement dropkick. Trent breaks up the Garcia dance and sends him outside for the middle rope moonsault. A brainbuster on the floor drops Garcia and we take a break. Back with Trent hitting a superplex for two but Garcia snaps off a belly to back suplex.

Trent comes back with a half and half suplex into a Death Valley Driver for two of his own. They trade German suplexes and slug it out until Trent hits a running knee. A piledriver gives Trent two more and they forearm it out. Garcia grabs a piledriver for two and puts on a crossface for the tap at 13:03.

Rating: C+. The wrestling was good enough and they got more time than any other match on the show, but this couldn’t have felt more like a forgettable midcard match if they tried. This came off like AEW forgot they needed a main event for the show and just threw two talented wrestlers in the ring. It wasn’t about the match quality, but rather about feeling that this match didn’t matter, which isn’t helping Rampage’s reputation.

Post match Garcia calls out MJF for a World Title shot. He almost calls himself a professional wrestler but stops to say he’s a sports entertainer to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The opener was really fun but this show was right back in the pattern of Rampages that mean nothing and feel like they’re airing because they have to. This show was the definition of “well, that exists” and not much more, which isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement. I know AEW doesn’t put much effort into this show, but they should be able to make it feel more important than this.

Results
Penta El Zero Miedo b. Komander and El Hijo del Vikingo – Fear Factor to Vikingo
The Gunns b. Matt Sydal/Christopher Daniels – 3:10 To Yuma to Sydal
Skye Blue b. Marina Shafir – Code Blue
Daniel Garcia b. Trent Beretta – Crossface

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Collision
Date: November 4, 2023
Location: InTrust Bank Arena, Wichita, Kansas
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Kevin Kelly, Nigel McGuinness

We are two weeks away from Full Gear and a good chunk of the card is already set. This show is going to be in a big of a rough patch in the coming weeks though, as Bryan Danielson is going to be out of action. Someone is going to have to step up and I’m not sure who that will be. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

FTR, Big Bill, Ricky Starks Lance Archer and Darby Allin are ready to fight. Swerve Strickland is as well but AR Fox jumps him to start their match fast.

Opening sequence.

AR Fox vs. Swerve Strickland

They fight to the ring with Swerve in trouble and bailing to the floor, meaning Fox can be right there for the big running flip dive. Back in and a rolling cutter gives Fox two but Swerve sends him outside to take over. Cue the Gates of Agony (Prince Nana dances) as Swerve pulls Fox off the top as we take a break.

We come back with Swerve fighting back and hitting a hanging DDT. The 450 gives Fox two and Lo Mein Pain is good for the same. Swerve is back with the House Call for two of his own, followed by a knee first hard toss into the buckle. A powerbomb flipped into a powerslam (that was cool) sets up the Swerve Stomp to give Swerve the pin at 10:07.

Rating: B-. I don’t think there’s any surprise that these two had a good match as they’re both talented stars who have shown chemistry in the past. They made this work well and that flipping powerslam looked very good. Swerve is on the rise though and it should be interesting to see what he gets to do next.

Post match the Gates of Agony are ready to go after Fox but FTR runs in for the save. Ricky Starks and Big Bill run in to help the Gates with the beatdown but LFI makes the real save. FTR and LFI don’t seem to get along.

The House Of Black is watching.

Video on Daniel Garcia vs. MJF for the World Title at Dynamite. Geez what did we do to deserve that?

MJF rants about Jay White needing all of the Bullet Club Gold to catch him off guard and pin him. White has been in wrestling twice as long as MJF and White is twice as stupid!

Bullet Club Gold sings about beating MJF and say they’re taking a break from Collision. They’ll be back on Dynamite with another World Title eliminator though.

Kip Sabian is mad at Mark Briscoe for last week and brings in the Workhorsemen. Briscoe needs two partners tonight.

Kingdom vs. Brixton Nash/James McGregor

Roderick Strong interrupts Dasha’s entrance and complains about the lack of being neck strong. The Kingdom jumps them before the match and a spike piledriver finishes McGregor at 1:17.

Post match the beatdown is on, with Strong running in for a shot of his own.

We look at Christian Cage recruiting Nick Wayne.

Mark Briscoe is happy to be back when FTR comes in to offer to work twice tonight to team with him. Mark appreciates that but he has two people in mind, which is cool with FTR. When asked who his partners are, Mark shouts that he “CANNOT DIVULGE THAT INFORMATION!”

Darby Allin vs. Lance Archer

Jake Roberts is here with Archer. Allin strikes away a bit to start but is promptly Pounced out to the floor. Back in and Archer’s Old School is countered and they fight to the floor. That’s fine with Archer, who LAUNCHES Allin with a release suplex onto the ramp. Archer tosses him again as we take a break.

Back with Allin raking the eyes but getting caught with a running knee to the face in the corner. Allin slips out of the Black Out but gets chokeslammed over the top and onto the apron. Roberts loads up a skateboard shot, only to be ejected before he can swing. That leaves Archer to go up top but Allin catches him with a super sunset bomb for the pin at 9:51.

Rating: B-. Much like the opener, these two work well together and have every time I’ve seen them square off. It’s a natural idea to have Allin vs. the monster and these two work that style very well. Archer continues to feel like someone who could be in a bigger role but that is only going to last so long when he loses matches like this one.

Post match Roberts says that’s not how it’s going to be and introduces his new friends….the Righteous. Allin is distracted and gets chokeslammed by Archer. Again: only feels so impressive when Archer just got pinned.

Kris Statlander again attempts to calm things down with Skye Blue and Willow Nightingale. Blue says she helped Willow for Willow and wishes her luck tonight. Statlander does the same.

Alex Abrahantes is happy with Penta El Zero Miedo’s win on Rampage. Swerve Strickland comes in and gets a match with Penta on Dynamite. He even threatens to take Penta’s mask.

Here are the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn to celebrate 69 day (as in days as Trios Champions). Gunn loves all of the fans’ signs and we launch the confetti. Caster gets a special present: a video from MJF talking about how he respects Caster and says Caster is starting to grow on him. MJF: “Like a fungus, but it’s starting.” He wishes us a happy 69 day and says “uh, yay scissoring.”

Caster’s amazed face is great but he’s even happier because they have a trophy! They make a bunch of jokes about the holiday (Gunn seems to be having a blast) but as they’re about to wrap it up, here are Dalton Castle and the Boys to interrupt. The Boys grab the trophy (Kelly: “These two are idiots.”) and hand it to Castle, who throws it out to the floor. The brawl is on and let’s have a match.

Trios Titles: Acclaimed/Billy Gunn vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys

Castle and the Boys are challenging. The Boys hit a double dropkick to tart but a pinata is brought in. The Acclaimed take it away and beat the other three up with it, revealing….Acclaimed stuff inside! We take a break and come back with Castle knocking Gunn off the apron as apparently this is the result of an open contract which was only discovered during the break. The champs fight back and it’s Scissor Me Timbers into a Fameasser into the Arrival into the Mic Drop to retain at 6:24. Not enough shown to rate but maybe they could have waited to set this match up instead of doing it immediately?

Andrade El Idolo will have his answer for CJ Perry next week.

Kip Sabian/Workhorsemen vs. Mark Briscoe/???/???

Briscoe’s partners are Dustin Rhodes and Keith Lee. Sabian jumps Briscoe to start and it’s off to Henry, even as Briscoe fights up. Drake cuts him off as we hear about Drake being a professional bowler, which has the rest of commentary interested. The beating continues until Mark manages a suplex. Lee comes in and powerbombs Sabian onto Henry, allowing Briscoe to come back in with the Froggy Bow for the pin on Sabian at 4:28.

Rating: C. It’s very nice to have Briscoe back in the ring after such a long absence. He has so much charisma and it is a blast to watch him out there doing just about anything. At the same time, it should be interesting to see where things go for him, as I can’t imagine the Lee/Rhodes pairing is anything more than a one off.

Post break, Briscoe says he has been watching while he was injured and now he sees an impostor. Jay White is running around with a title that isn’t his, so he challenges White to put the title shot on the line next week on Dynamite.

Willow Nightingale vs. Emi Sakura

They run at each other to start until Nightingale slams her down. The fight heads outside with Nightingale being sent into the steps. A crossbody against said steps crushes her hard and Sakura drops her again inside. We take a break and come back with Nightingale hitting a Death Valley Driver on the floor. The Doctor Bomb is countered though and Sakura hits a reverse swinging neckbreaker. Nightingale fights up and hits a spinebuster, followed by the Doctor Bomb for the pin at 9:57.

Rating: B. That was a heck of a match as these two beat the fire out of each other. You don’t get to see that kin of a fight very often and it worked well here. Nightingale is still someone who feels like she should be a much bigger deal but for some reason this tends to be the highest level of win she is going to get. For now though, they had a rather good match and I’ll take what I can get for Nightingale.

Samoa Joe says he has beaten everyone….but Keith Lee pops in to say not EVERYONE. They’ll fight on Dynamite.

FTR/La Faccion Ingobernable vs. Big Bill/Ricky Starks/Gates of Agony

Vance strikes away at Bill in the corner and moves around to do it again. Kaun comes in and gets taken down by FTR. Toa slams Harwood and drops a headbutt for two. It’s off to Starks, but Rush takes him outside for some whips into various barricades. We take a break and come back with Harwood in the wrong corner, allowing Starks to walk the rope for an elbow to the head.

Harwood fights over to the corner and hands it back to Rush to clean house. The cocky kick to the face hits Starks in the corner and he charges into a powerslam for two. It’s back to Vance, who avoids a charge to send Toa into the post. Bill chokeslams Vance as everything breaks down. Harwood comes in o slug away at Kaun until Rush plays Wheeler in a Big Rig. Wheeler dives onto Toa and the Bull’s Horn finishes Kaun at 14:52.

Rating: B-. It was smart to not take this one to the near thirty minute lengths that some Collision main events get but or now I’ll settle for another solid enough match. LFI looked good in their return and they should be in for some kind of strong push in the future. FTR almost has to get another title shot at some point, though the House Of Black might be looming before they get there.

Post match LFI leaves without shaking FTR’s hands. The House Of Black pops up to threaten FTR….and then they’re in the ring to make good on the threats. Wheeler Yuta and Claudio Castagnoli run in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Good show here, with solid wrestling up and down the card. The best thing to say about this show was nothing got boring, as it felt like there was at least someone interesting or an important match out there the whole night. That isn’t always the case with AEW and it is nice to see them fixing things up a bit. Dynamite is looking stacked and it would be nice to see AEW follow up this show with another good one.

Results
Swerve Strickland b. AR Fox – Swerve Stomp
The Kingdom b. Brixton Nash/James McGregor – Spike piledriver to McGregor
Darby Allin b. Lance Archer – Super sunset bomb
Acclaimed/Billy Gunn b. Dalton Castle/The Boys – Mic Drop to Brent
Mark Briscoe/Dustin Rhodes/Keith Lee b. Kip Sabian/Workhorsemen – Froggy Bow to Henry
Willow Nightingale b. Emi Sakura – Doctor Bomb
FTR/La Faccion Ingobernable b. Gates Of Agony/Big Bill/Ricky Starks – Bull’s Horns to Kaun

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Rampage
Date: October 27, 2023
Location: Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni, Tony Schiavone

The countdown to Full Gear continue and hopefully so does the string of good Rampages. In this case, we have the showdown between Ortiz and Mike Santana, which has been brewing for the last few weeks. Other than that, we get more of a build towards MJF vs. Kenny Omega tomorrow night. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Mike Santana vs. Ortiz

Street Fight. They stare at each other to start with Ortiz sending him outside for the running flip dive. Various weapon shots keep Santana in more trouble but Ortiz takes too much time to set up a table. Santana fights up and manages a suplex back inside…with Ortiz rolling right back to the floor. An Asai moonsault hits Ortiz and the table is set up against the barricade. Ortiz is back up with a heck of a powerbomb through said table for two back inside. Santana suplexes him off the apron for a big crash to the floor as we take a break.

Back with the slugout from their knees until Ortiz fights up. They trade kicks to the head until Santana grabs a rolling cutter for two. Ortiz’s powerslam gets two and they both need a breather. A discus lariat hits Ortiz and a Cannonball makes it worse, followed by a torture rack powerbomb for the pin at 10:36.

Rating: B. This was a match that felt like a hard hitting fight and that’s what it needed to be. At the same time, it was nice to have them cut out the weapons later in the match and just hit each other a bunch of times. Santana’s finisher looked good too and he should move forward to something more important. Pretty sweet fight here and Santana gets a nice rub.

Post match Santana talks some trash to Ortiz and leaves. Cue Sonjay Dutt to talk to Ortiz.

Video on MJF vs. Kenny Omega for the World Title tomorrow night on Collision. MJF talks about his rise to the top, as well as seeing Omega watch him at any indy show and being amazed. Now if he can get the win over Omega, he will be happy. On the other hand, Omega is not what he once was but he is ready to show that he is still great. This is also Omega’s last chance to prevent MJF from breaking his record for longer title reign. Hold on though as Jay White interrupts Omega and says he’ll be waiting for him at Full Gear.

We cut to Don Callis, who offers MJF a spot in the Don Callis Family. MJF thinks it might be a great idea…except he’s already World Champion so he doesn’t need Callis.

Kris Statlander talks to Willow Nightingale and Skye Blue, both of whom have gotten more evil since being misted. Blue says she’s fine but Nightingale doesn’t get it. Nightingale realizes this isn’t who they are, but Blue tells her to be ready for tonight. Statlander isn’t sure what to say.

Here is Kip Sabian, with Penelope Ford, to mock Philadelphia sports. He knows the Phillies are going to come back in the next game and win the Super Bowl! Ford whispers to him so Sabian corrects himself before saying bet on James Harden (Philadelphia 76 who isn’t exactly happy with being on the team). Cue the returning Mark Briscoe who, after hearing one more Philadelphia sports joke, beats up Sabian without much effort.

The former Jericho Appreciation Society is ready for Anna Jay to become #1 contender to the Women’s Title. Don Callis comes in to recruit Jake Hager but Matt Menard isn’t pleased. Callis offers them help if they take out Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega before walking off. Anna tells them to calm down. Everyone but Parker leaves and Ruby Soho pops in to return Parker’s lost comb. They seem to be flirting a bit.

Willow Nightingale vs. Abadon vs. Anna Jay vs. Skye Blue

For a future Women’s Title shot. Anna runs off to start so Abadon sends the other two into each other. Abadon German suplexes Anna and hits a Codebreaker on Nightingale and Blue. Cue Toni Storm to watch as we take a break. Back with Nightingale running over Abadon and Blue, setting up some running shots in the corner. Anna comes back in and gets Pounced but everyone gets together to put Nightingale on the floor. Abadon slugs away at Anna, who is back with the Queenslayer. That’s broken up and Abadon hits something like a DDT to pin Jay at 8:21.

Rating: C. So since it’s near Halloween, Abadon wrestles her first televised match since November and gets a title shot. This could have been solved by having her win a few matches over the last few weeks but that would be too much effort. Other than that, at least Nightingale didn’t lose the fall.

Max Caster offers MJF an invitation to National 69 Day (yes seriously, as it’ll be that day in their reign) but Anthony Bowens tells him to cool it.

We see a clip of the AEW International Championship press conference with Orange Cassidy proving he can wear a suit better than Claudio Castagnoli.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Kyle Fletcher

Don Callis, with powerhouse Hobbs, is on commentary. Takeshita grabs an armdrag to start but Fletcher slams him and they go out to the floor. Fletcher sends him over the barricade but Takeshita is back with a Blue Thunder Bomb for two as we take a break. Back with Fletcher charging into an elbow but managing to send Takeshita outside.

There’s a suicide dive, followed by a high crossbody for two back inside. Takeshita snaps off a poisonrana but Fletcher is right back with a brainbuster for two. Fletcher goes up but caught in something like a kneeling middle rope Tombstone for another near fall (because a middle rope piledriver is a near fall). A nasty wheelbarrow suplex wakes Fletcher up for some reason and they strike it out until a knee to the face finishes Fletcher at 11:15.

Rating: B-. These two know how to do a rather AEW style match and it went well enough for the C show main event. At the very least, it was nice to see Callis and company on this show rather than Dynamite as it lets them stay a bit more fresh. Good match as you would expect from these two, though I could go with less Fletcher for a bit. His matches work, but he’s just not that interesting.

Post match Fletcher comes back in with a chair to Hobbs. That’s broken up and Callis says that’s the hate they want. He seems to offer Fletcher a spot no the team, with Fletcher being a bit non-committal to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I’m not sure what it was on here but this was a more entertaining edition of Rampage than most. The story of Callis looking for a new member of his Family made things a bit more interesting by giving it a mostly show-long story. Other than that, Santana vs. Ortiz was a good fight and they set up a title shot for Collision. I liked this, mainly because it felt like a show that mattered a bit more than usual.

Results
Mike Santana b. Ortiz – Torture rack powerbomb
Abadon b. Anna Jay, Willow Nightingale and Skye Blue – DDT to Jay
Konosuke Takeshita b. Kyle Fletcher – Knee to the face

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Battle Of The Belts VIII
Date: October 21, 2023
Location: FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone, Kevin Kelly

We’re back with another one of these and this show is extra packed with four title matches in one hour. Granted I’m not sure how much of a difference that is going to make when there has not been a title change at a Battle Of The Belts in over a year and a half. Maybe that changes tonight though so let’s get to it.

We open with Jon Moxley leaving the ring and going to the back, where he runs into International Champion Orange Cassidy. They bump shoulders (Cassidy seemed to be the instigator) and the fight is…not on as the rest of the Blackpool Combat Club and a referee breaks it up.

International Title: Orange Cassidy vs. John Silver

Cassidy is defending and Silver has Alex Reynolds with him. Silver puts his hands in….Cassidy’s pockets so Cassidy puts his own hands on Silver’s head for a headbutt. Cassidy dives onto Reynolds, who had taken the sunglasses before the match. Back in and Silver misses a kick to the head but manages a heck of a toss into the corner. Cassidy manages to ram him into the buckle a few times but Silver is right back with a delayed superplex for two. They head to the apron where Silver hits a one armed gorilla press (that’s not bad) to the floor.

We take a break and come back with Cassidy hitting a Michinoku Driver for two, followed by some harder than usual lazy kicks. The spinning DDT is countered into a small package to give Silver two but Stundog Millionaire gets Cassidy out of trouble. Beach Break gets two but Reynolds offers a distraction and gets in a belt shot for two of his own. The Spin Doctor gets another near fall on Cassidy, who is right back with the Orange Punch to retain at 9:30.

Rating: C+. I know it’s a minor show and not exactly worthy of a big name challenger, but it was really hard to get into Silver coming for the title. He felt like someone thrown out there for the sake of having a title shot and that doesn’t make for the most interesting match. Cassidy vs. Moxley seems destined to take place again sooner rather than later so Cassidy losing was a very long shot at best against almost anyone, but there wasn’t a more serious challenger available?

Andrade El Idolo is banged up after his loss to Bryan Danielson but CJ Perry comes in to offer her guidance. Andrade seems intrigued, apparently not knowing what this means for his future health.

Ring Of Honor TV Title: Samoa Joe vs. Tony Nese

Nese, with Mark Sterling, is challenging and we get their traditional “you’re all fat and need to exercise” bit before the match. Joe hammers away in the corner, avoids a moonsault (as only he can) and finishes with the MuscleBuster to retain at 1:17. Total squash.

Post match Joe says MJF can give him what he wants or he can take it, but he’ll be the next AEW World Champion.

TBS Title: Kris Statlander vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale is challenging. They trade shoulders to start and neither can get very far. Statlander sends her to the floor and hits a moonsault off the apron for a crash. A posting cuts Statlander off (despite a visible gap between her head and the steel) and Nightingale Cannonballs her against the steps.

We take a break and come back with Nightingale launching her into the corner but Statlander hits a running knee. The Blue Thunder Bomb gets two but Nightingale is right back with a Pounce. A quick DDT gives Statlander two and she goes up top, only to get super Death Valley Drivered back down. The Cannonball crushes Statlander but she’s fine enough to powerbomb Nightingale out of the corner. The 450 retains the title at 10:23.

Rating: B-. They went with the hoss fight here and the two of them beat the fire out of each other for about ten minutes. It was an exchange of one big shot after another and it made for a good match. Statlander is still clearing out the division and is going to need a new challenger. Right now though, I’m not sure who that is, though she almost needs to move up to the Women’s Title sooner or later. At the same time, Nightingale continues to lose in big matches, which is quite the sad thing to see for her.

Post match respect is teased but Skye Blue runs in to break it up. Nightingale does shake Statlander’s hand as Blue isn’t pleased.

Orange Cassidy doesn’t like the Blackpool Combat Club (Cassidy: “I don’t care about Yuta.”) but if they want to fight, Claudio Castagnoli and Bryan Danielson can fight him and…..Kazuchika Okada on Dynamite. Well that elevated quickly.

Trios Titles: Acclaimed/Billy Gunn vs. Matt Menard/Angelo Parker/Daniel Garcia

Menard and company, with Anna Jay, are challenging. Hold on though as the Memphis Grizzlies’ mascot is here for a pre-match scissoring. Caster grabs a hammerlock on Garcia to start before pulling him down into a headscissors. Garcia gets up and teases the dance but Menard breaks that up again. More dancing is teases but this time Anna breaks it up and gets ejected for her efforts.

Bowens slugs away at Menard and kicks Parker out to the floor. Gunn comes in (the fans approve) and we get the scissoring double elbow. It’s already back to Caster, who gets stomped down in the corner as we take a break. Back with Bowens getting punched down, allowing Garcia to step over him a few times. Bowens manages to kick the villains away but Garcia decks Caster before the tag.

A rolling tag brings Gunn in though and house is quickly cleaned. Scissor Me Timbers hits Menard and we get the three way scissoring. Garcia is back in and tries the dancing but has to beat up Caster instead. Now the dancing can ensue, but it takes too long and Gunn is back in with the Fameasser. The assisted Iconoclasm retains the titles at 10:48.

Rating: C+. This was more of a fun match than anything else and there is nothing wrong with wrapping up with that sort of thing. The fans are going to cheer for the Acclaimed and Gunn pretty much no matter what and Garcia’s dancing is crazy popular right now. There was even a hint of some drama over a title change here so this was a nice way to go to wrap up the show.

Overall Rating: B-. As can be the case around here, the wrestling was fine but there is a grand total of no need to watch this show. There hasn’t been a title change on one of these shows since last April and it’s not like there was anything great on this one either. It’s worth a look if you are completely out of anything to see, but don’t expect much of anything that matters in the grand scheme of things.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. John Silver – Orange Punch
Samoa Joe b. Tony Nese – MuscleBuster
Kris Statlander b. Willow Nightingale – 450
Acclaimed/Billy Gunn b. Matt Menard/Angelo Parker/Daniel Garcia – Assisted Iconoclasm to Parker

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Rampage
Date: October 20, 2023
Location: Fort Bend Epicenter, Rosenberg, Texas
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We are less than a month away from Full Gear and the card is starting to come together. This week is all about CMLL’s Mistico star though, as he will be facing Rocky Romero in a match for the (unofficial) Pound For Pound Title of Mexico. That alone should be enough to carry the show so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Rocky Romero vs. Mistico

Neither Romero’s CMLL World Historic Welterweight Title or Mistico’s CMLL World Middleweight Title is on the line and this is 2/3 falls. They fight over a lockup to start as commentary talks about an NFL game. Romero takes him up against the ropes to start and they trade Eddie Guerrero dances. A running shoulder puts Mistico down but he’s back up with a Tajiri handspring elbow out to the floor. The big corkscrew dive takes Romero down again and the fans are rather pleased with Mistico. Back in and Mistico ties him up in something like an Octopus on the mat for the fast tap at 2:42.

The second all starts fast as Romero takes him outside for a ram into the steps as Excalibur lists off previous holders of their titles. Back in and Romero goes after Mistico’s mask and we take a break. We come back with Romero hitting some running clotheslines before grabbing a one armed camel clutch. Mistico is back up and snaps off a headscissors before running the corner for an armdrag to the floor.

They slug it out on the apron until Romero snaps off a suplex to take over. The suicide dive sends Mistico sprawling up the ramp and a superplex brings him back inside for two. The two arm camel clutch goes on but Mistico slips out, earning himself a stomp to the back. Sliced Bread gives Romero the pin to tie it up at 9:52 total.

We take another break and come back again with Mistico kicking him to the floor, setting up a big dive off the top. Back in and a springboard spinning crossbody gives Mistico two. A moonsault hits Romero’s raised boots but Mistico snaps off a powerslam for two. Romero is placed on top but he comes back with a super Sliced Bread for a rather near fall. Romero goes up top again, only to get pulled down with a super Spanish Fly for two more. One heck of a running Canadian Destroyer plants Romero and La Mistica makes Romero tap for the win at 18:35.

Rating: B. It was a good match and it did feel special, as commentary was making Mistico seem like one of the biggest stars around. His high flying did look good and at times he came off like a superhero, which seems like something they’re shooting for. On the other hand you have Romero, who can wrestle a good match with anyone and its into these spots when he’s working in the right spot, which was the case here.

We get a face to face talk between Jay Lethal and Eddie Kingston. Lethal pitches his case for a Ring Of Honor World Title shot but Kingston doesn’t say anything. Jeff Jarrett calls him the Bronx B**** but ROH boss Stokely Hathaway (oh yeah that’s a thing) makes Jarrett vs. Kingston. If Jarrett wins, Lethal gets a title match. Works for Kingston, who gets in Jarrrett’s face and talks about how much he knows about Memphis wrestling. He’ll eat Jarrett alive.

John Silver vs. Kip Sabian vs. Brother Zay

For an International Title shot at Battle Of The Belts and there are a bunch of people at ringside. Silver gets knocked outside to start leaving Sabian to get armdragged by Zay. Some right hands in the corner are broken up by Silver, who gets caught by Zay’s dropkick. Zay dives onto Silver but Sabian breaks up another one with a kick to the head. We take a break and come back with Zay firing off some kicks, setting up an Asai moonsault onto Silver.

A springboard flipping Stunner gives Zay two on Sabian but a Twist of Fate is broken up. Silver German suplexes Sabian for two but misses a charge and falls outside. That lets Sabian hit an Arabian moonsault but the seconds get in a fight, allowing Zay to hit a springboard dive. Back in and Zay hits a Swanton on Sabian, only to have Silver kick Zay in the face for the pin at 8:08.

Rating: B-. Good match here with Silver getting the kind of surprising win. It’s a bit hard to imagine Silver being a serious challenger to a singles title but he’s the best choice of these three. They kept the action going here though and it was another entertaining match, thankfully with the seconds not doing much to screw things up.

Video on Mike Santana vs. Ortiz, which will take place next week.

Wheeler Yuta/Claudio Castagnoli vs. Exodus Prime/Bryan Keith

Keith knocks Yuta into the corner to start and unloads with forearms. Yuta isn’t having that and snaps off a German suplex, meaning it’s Castagnoli coming in to clean house. Prime gets gorilla press dropped before Castagnoli goes outside for a running uppercut to Keith. The Swing into the dropkick sets up the Fastball Special to finish Prime at 1:44. Nearly a squash here, though Keith continues to feel like trying more than most people.

The former Jericho Appreciation Society argues again, with Jake Hager storming off. Anna Jay tells them to get it together because they can win the Trios Titles.

The Young Bucks and Hangman Page say they’re the Ring Of Honor Trios Titles (not Six Man, despite the words that can be seen on the belts) and issue an open challenge for Dynamite.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows, including a “dream match” between Andrade El Idolo vs. Bryan Danielson on Collision.

Video on Skye Blue vs. Ruby Soho.

Skye Blue vs. Ruby Soho

Saraya is here with Soho, who takes her into the corner for some chops. Blue gets annoyed and tells her to keep chopping before firing off her own chops. Soho sweeps the leg to put her down and then hits a standing clothesline. Back up and Blue kicks her into the corner, only to charge into an elbow. They fight to the apron where Blue faceplants her down. A knee to Saraya distracts Blue enough for Soho to hit a kick from the apron though and we take a break.

Back with a double clothesline putting them both down, setting up the exchange of forearms. Blue is back up with some running clotheslines and a running knee against the ropes has Soho in more trouble. A kick to the head and a swinging neckbreaker give Blue two each but Saraya grabs the leg for a distraction. Blue has to deal with Saraya and walks into No Future for two. Another No Future is blocked but Saraya hits her with the spray paint can, allowing Soho to get a rollup pin at 10:03.

Rating: C. This wasn’t much to see as Blue’s matches are only so good in the first place and then it didn’t get much better. The ending here was lame as it was just a can to the head rather than a spray. It’s also hard to imagine Soho actually getting anywhere after another win as she never seems to get to the next level, but at least she didn’t lose here.

Post match the beatdown is on but Kris Statlander makes the save but Blue doesn’t want the help to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This started good but then went down in pretty quick fashion. There is only so much you can get out of a bunch of matches that don’t seem to have much to do with major storylines at the moment. Silver getting an International Title shot is the biggest story going here, though the Mistico vs. Romero match was quite good. Check out the first two matches, but then move on to some Munsters or Welcome Back Kotter.

Results
Mistico b. Rocky Romero 2-1
John Silver b. Kip Sabian and Brother Zay – Kick to Zay
Wheeler Yuta/Claudio Castagnoli b. Exodus Prime/Bryan Keith – Fastball Special to Prime
Ruby Soho b. Skye Blue – Rollup

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Dynamite
Date: October 18, 2023
Location: Fort Bend Epicenter, Rosenberg, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re back to the normal time slot this week after last week’s stacked show. In this case, we have a pretty deep show tonight, though a good bit of it appears to be focused on talking. That’s something that could do a lot of good though as we are a month away from Full Gear and the show needs some build. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Jay White

Alex Abrahantes and the rest of Bullet Club Gold are here too. Penta flip dives onto the Club at ringside and adds a top rope double stomp back inside. White hits a DDT out of the corner to take over but Penta scores with a superkick. A missed charge puts Penta in the corner though and White chops him out to the floor.

Back in and White ties Penta’s mask to the rope and stomps away for two. We take a break and come back with Penta hitting a Sling Blade to send White outside, setting up the big running flip dive. They chop it out (with Penta getting to do the full glove removal) with Penta even taking his shirt off so the chops can be harder.

Penta plants him for two but the Fear Factor is countered into a swinging Rock Bottom for two. White grabs the chinlock but Penta is right back up with Made In Japan for two. The Fear Factor is loaded up again so the Club offers the distraction. Juice Robinson gets in the left hand and White hits the Blade Runner for the pin at 13:12.

Rating: B-. This was another match in White’s quest to get higher up the card before his World Title shot at Full Gear. Penta is someone who has enough star status to give White something and the fans are way into him. Having the Club interfere is fine as that’s White’s thing, so this worked out on pretty much all points.

Post match Jay White mocks the idea of MJF not being able to find some partners to face the Club. Juice Robinson promises to win the battle royal and then the ring next week. He wants to pawn it to get another gold tooth you see.

MJF says he could have run in there and gone after all of those villains but he’s not that stupid. He promises to keep the ring next week and hopes that it’s against Robinson. He’s asked about Adam Cole but Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed come in to ask about being his partners. Max Caster asks about scissoring and putting a ring on it, which has MJF storming off. Billy Gunn: “That guy is such a scumbag.” Caster: “Yeah, but he’s my scumbag.”

Video on Emi Sakura vs. Hikaru Shida.

Hikaru Shida vs. Emi Sakura

Non-title. Sakura jumps her to start and we ring the bell as Shida gets back up. They roll around into an exchange of cradles until Sakura hits a running crossbody in the corner. We take a break and come back with Shida getting choked in the ropes, followed by an exchange of rollups. Sakura tiger drivers her for two but Shida….kind of hits the Katana as Sakura might have blocked it. A Fujiwara armbar doesn’t work for Shida so she hits a Falcon Arrow into the Katana for the pin at 8:50.

Rating: C+. It was good enough while it lasted but as usual, there’s only to much that can be done when the match isn’t even nine minutes long and includes a commercial. There is a history between them though and that helped set things up better here. Just maybe give them more of a chance to do something.

We get a sitdown interview with Renee Paquette and Adam Copeland to talk about his issues with Christian Cage. Copeland’s idea was to come to AEW and finish his career with Cage but Cage wasn’t down with that. We hear about the two of them being friends for over thirty years and Copeland tried to get Cage into the industry and pushed as much as possible.

Over the years, Copeland has been pushed as the bigger star but he never wanted that. They’ve known each other for such a long time and they’re the godfather to each other’s children. Why do they keep doing this? Copeland doesn’t want the TNT Title and he will not fight Cage so he doesn’t know what he wants. Eventually Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus are going to leave Cage and Copeland will be there to pick him up. Good stuff here, as a lot of it is established history but that makes it easier to tie into their current story.

Wardlow vs. Ryan Nemeth

Powerbomb, referee stoppage, 21 seconds.

Post match Tony Schiavone comes in to ask Wardlow what he wants, with Wardlow holding up wrist tape showing MJF. Wardlow pushes past him and leaves.

Kenny Omega knows his year hasn’t been great but he’s ready for Kyle Fletcher. MJF comes in to shake his hand, then whispers “thirteen days b****.” Assuming he means thirteen days from today, that means Halloween, but it’s also thirteen days from MJF becoming the longest reigning World Champion in AEW history (nice catch Art).

The Kingdom (including a bongo solo for a song called Neckstrong) and Roderick Strong convince Adam Cole to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Apparently it’s his specialty, but STRONG DID NOT WANT CRUST. Cole leaves and Strong says he’ll have to talk to the Scum Bag.

Here is the Don Callis Family, with Powerhouse Hobbs talking about trying to get to meet Chris Jericho as a kid but it didn’t go well. That’s why he wanted to hurt Jericho and that’s exactly what he did last week. Callis hypes up Hobbs but then blames Kyle Fletcher for the team’s only loss in four months. Cue Fletcher, who says he did that match as a favor to Will Ospreay. Tonight though, Fletcher gets Kenny Omega, and Callis implies a spot on the team if Fletcher wins.

Kyle Fletcher vs. Kenny Omega

Don Callis is on commentary. Omega chops away against the ropes to start but Fletcher takes him down and fires off some right hands. Back up and Omega sends him outside for the dive but Fletcher gets in a whip over the barricade. Omega misses a charge into the barricade and we take a break.

We come back with Omega missing a middle rope moonsault but hitting the same thing out to the floor. Back in and Fletcher hits a running kick to the face, setting up a brainbuster for two. Fletcher tosses him face first into the middle buckle and then plants him down for two more. A running kick to the back of the head sets up….something Omega escapes. A poisonrana into a powerbomb into the V Trigger gets two. The One Winged Angel is loaded up but Fletcher reverses into a dragon sleeper. Omega flips out, hits a running knee and finishes with the One Winged Angel at 13:55.

Rating: B. I’m still not sure what it is that’s missing about Fletcher, but it’s not what he can do in the ring. He can work well with almost anyone and if he can figure out a way to be more interesting, things will get even better for him. As for Omega, he might not be what he was before, but he can still do something like this more than well enough.

Danhausen is coming back.

Lance Archer vs. Barrett Brown

Archer is introduced as “kicking his opponent Barrett Brown to the ring” and then chokeslams him onto the apron. Archer crushes him into the corner and hits the Black Out for the pin at 58 seconds.

Prince Nana is really excited about Swerve Strickland’s new music video being released. Swerve isn’t happy though because he isn’t the TNT Champion. That’s because of Hangman Page, with Swerve threatening retribution. Just maybe not against Page himself.

Here is Sting for a chat. He talks about how he went up and down the road for years with people like Lex Luger, the Steiner Brothers and Buff Bagwell (kind of a weird fourth choice). They looked at the people who shaped his career like Dusty Rhodes and Hulk Hogan (the ans don’t like him) but he wants to really thank Ric Flair. It was Flair who put him on the map and he can’t thank him enough. So why do people keep coming back year after year?

It’s the smell of the arena and the roar of the crowd that makes him want to come to the ring and do all this crazy stuff. Now though, we need to get to the big word: retirement. His first match in AEW was at Revolution 2021, and his last match will be at Revolution 2024. And that’s for sure. That’s good for Sting, as he can still work well enough in the ring and you absolutely do not want to stay too long.

We get Toni Storm’s latest silent movie, Gone With The Storm, in picture in picture.

We get a sitdown interview with Nick Wayne and his mom, with his mom talking about how he doesn’t understand what her son is doing. Wayne says he was always in Darby Allin’s shadow and Christian Cage is a better father than his dad ever was. Cage pops in to egg Wayne on so his mom slaps her son. Wayne says she is dead to him and leaves, where Darby Allin jumps them both. Allin beats Wayne into the ring and Wayne has lost a tooth. Luchasaurus and Cage get Wayne out. It got better when Allin came in but the interview stuff was….not good.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Kris Statlander wants to defend the TBS Title against Willow Nightingale at Battle of the Belts. Orange Cassidy didn’t realize what he had until he lost the International Title, which he will defend against the winner of a Rampage triple threat.

Dynamite Dozen Battle Royal

Dustin Rhodes, Juice Robinson, Johnny TV, Jake Hager, Max Caster, Matt Menard, Trent Beretta, Komander, Matt Sydal, Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Daniel Garcia

The winner gets a shot at MJF’s, on commentary, diamond ring next week. TV is sent to the apron to start but spins his way back in, setting up a break dance routine. Garcia loads up his own dance but Menard isn’t having that. Instead Jeff does his own dance and Dustin joins Matt Hardy in some DELETING. TV is tossed out and Hager dumps Matt Hardy. MJF heads to the ring and offers Rhodes cash to…go after Robinson.

Rhodes is perfectly happy to do so and Shattered Dreams connects. We take a break and come back with Menard and Garcia tossing Komander. Dustin hits the Canadian Destroyer on Garcia. Dustin and Trent have the big hug but Hager breaks it up. Trent knocks Hager out but gets knocked to the apron where Menard eliminates him. We’re down to Menard, Garcia, Jeff Hardy, Rhodes, Robinson and Caster.

Garcia knocks Hardy out (that’s an upset) but Menard breaks up the dancing AGAIN. Garcia hits Menard by mistake, allowing Rhodes to toss Menard, but Garcia tosses Rhodes as well. NOW Garcia gets to dance but Caster tosses him out. That leaves us with Caster and Robinson with Caster knocking him to the apron.

Robinson pulls him out as well and goes up for some reason, only to get taken back down. Hold on though as we cut to Jay White going after MJF at the announcers’ table. MJF gets the belt back but White hits him low and steals it again. We get back to the actual match and Robinson uses his own ring to knock Caster out for the win at 13:55.

Rating: C+. There’s only so much you can get out of a battle royal with about two potential winners and that was the case here. Robinson might as well have had a big sign around his neck counting down until he won, though in this case that isn’t a bad thing. They set him up well and it wouldn’t shock me to see him win the ring next week. For now though, it was just an ok battle royal featuring a bunch of people doing their various things.

Overall Rating: B-. There was a lot of talking on this show and it was good enough, though I could have gone for a bigger focus on the actual wrestling. That being said, they are setting up some things for the future and we could be in for some big stuff in the upcoming weeks. Above all else is probably the Sting announcement, and now he should be in for a nice victory lap. Overall, not a terrible show, but maybe a step down from the norm for Dynamite.

Results
Jay White b. Penta El Zero Miedo – Blade Runner
Hikaru Shida b. Emi Sakura – Katana
Wardlow b. Ryan Nemeth via referee stoppage
Kenny Omega b. Kyle Fletcher – One Winged Angel
Lance Archer b. Barrett Brown – Black Out
Juice Robinson won the Dynamite Dozen Battle Royal last eliminating Max Caster

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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