Rampage
Date: January 14, 2022
Location: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina
Commentators: Chris Jericho, Excalibur, Ricky Starks, Taz

We are still in Horsemen Country and that means we should be in for another pretty good night. Rampage has found its groove in recent weeks and now it is time for a Tag Team Title match, as the Dark Order gets the first shot against Jurassic Express. Adam Cole is here too so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Adam Cole vs. Trent Beretta

The Best Friends and all of Adam Cole’s friends are here. They trade chops to start until Beretta tosses him down with a suplex. Back up and Beretta is sent to the floor and then into the barricade to put him in trouble for a change. They go inside again with Cole hitting his own suplex before Beretta is tossed right back to the floor. The Panama Sunrise is countered into a backdrop so Cole sends him into the barricade.

We take a break and come back with Beretta fighting out of a chinlock. A tornado DDT plants Cole and Beretta drops him down again for two each. There’s a German suplex to rock Cole again but he’s right back with a brainbuster onto the knee. Beretta doesn’t seem to mind as he comes back with a piledriver onto the apron.

That doesn’t seem to bother Cole either as he’s back with the Panama Sunrise maybe fifteen seconds later. Another Panama Sunrise is countered into a Saito suplex and a hard clothesline from Beretta. Cole still can’t hit the Panama Sunrise as Beretta reverses into Strong Zero for two. Everyone gets in a fight on the floor, allowing Cole to hit him low. The Boom finishes Beretta at 11:33.

Rating: C+. It’s how you would have expected the match to go but those kickouts and popping up from big moves is about as ridiculous as you can get. Being dropped on your head on the apron is something that should have you down for a few minutes, but here it isn’t even enough time to roll your eyes at how fast someone is getting up. I would say cut that out already, though I think we’re long past the point of that being a realistic possibility.

Thunder Rosa and Mercedes Martinez are ready to hurt each other.

Andrew Everett vs. Shawn Spears

Everett gets sent into the corner but he does a handstand on the corner to escape. Back in and the C4 finishes Everett at 57 seconds. That’s how I like my Spears matches.

Post match Shawn Spears asks if he (meaning CM Punk) is ready the best in the world. Spears doesn’t realize he has crossed a line until he is already over it and all it takes is one swing of his chair. Punk is going to be in the ring with a twenty year veteran and Spears is going to expose him.

We get an Acclaimed music video on Sting and Darby Allin, who the Acclaimed certainly don’t seem to like. They seem to think it’s weird that an old man is friends with a younger man, with references to Sting taking a buckle bomb and Sting having a bat for reasons of compensation.

Leyla Hirsch/Red Velvet/Kris Stadtlander vs. The Bunny/Penelope Ford/Nyla Rose

They’re already in the ring when we come back from the Acclaimed video and it’s Hirsch being sent into the corner for some choking. Rose hits a belly to belly suplex but lets Hirsch get over for the tag to Stadtlander. Bunny comes in and gets taken down with a front facelock, followed by a powerslam for two. An assisted moonsault gives Hirsch two on Bunny so Velvet tags herself in, where Rose runs her over.

We take a break and come back with Rose hitting a chokeslam for two on Velvet, causing Vickie Guerrero to scream at ringside. Rose misses a backsplash though and the hot tag brings in Stadtlander to run Ford over. A sitout gordbuster gives Stadtlander two and the Spider Crab goes on, only to have Guerrero offer a distraction. Bunny kicks Stadtlander in the face for the save but gets caught in a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Stadtlander and Hirsch collide though, allowing Bunny to roll Hirsch up for the pin at 9:13.

Rating: C. This was a bit of a rushed match as they felt like they were packing in a lot of people without much time. Hirsch seems to be teasing a heel turn sooner rather than later and her style could play towards that rather well. The rest of the match was just an exchange of moves, though Stadtlander continues to look like a monster.

Scorpio Sky wants to know why he isn’t getting a TNT Title shot when he is the face of TNT.

Ricky Starks rants about Jay Lethal messing with Team Taz business so here is Lethal to interrupt. Lethal has been watching Starks for a few months now and doesn’t remember him wrestling very much. The challenge is thrown out for an FTW Title match, but Lethal knows Starks has to check with Taz. So whatever Daddy says, do the opposite. Referees have to break it up as Taz goes on a rant about how he doesn’t care what Lethal did in Ring of Honor.

We get the face to face main event interview. The Dark Order bust out some kazoos to play a song about joining them but Christian Cage doesn’t find it funny. Imagine what Jurassic Express is going to do to them tonight. Mark Henry hits his catchphrase, with John Silver mouthing along with him.

Tag Team Titles: Jurassic Express vs. Dark Order

Jurassic Express, with Christian Cage, is defending. Reynolds works on Jungle Boys’ arm to start and armdrags him down. Jungle Boy pops back up with a dropkick and brings in Luchasaurus for a chop. It’s already back to Jungle Boy so Silver gets to come in and toss him around. Silver sends him outside for a big dive and we take a break.

Back with Jungle Boy slipping out of an electric chair and hitting a German suplex on Silver. They all go up top and Luchasaurus comes back in for the Tower of Doom. Luchasaurus is sent outside as well, leaving Dark Order to hit a bunch of shots to Jungle Boy, setting up a German suplex into a jackknife cover for two. A rebound lariat drops Reynolds for two but it’s Luchasaurus coming back in for the Extinction Level Event to finish Reynolds and retain at 12:43.

Rating: B-. It’s good to get the Express their first win, though they had to work rather hard to beat two guys who aren’t exactly known for success in big matches. What matters here though is the champs get a first defense under their new belts and they had to break a sweat in doing so. Good match for a Rampage main event.

Overall Rating: C+. They had another good week, but they really could go for finding a way to slow things down a bit. As usual, this show felt really rushed, with stuff like the fast commercials and coming back from one segment with the bell for the next match ringing almost immediately. It feels like I’m trying to catch my breath too often around here and that isn’t exactly how a show should be making you feel. What they’re doing overall is good, as was the case here, but some tweaking could make it even better.

Results
Adam Cole b. Trent Beretta – Boom
Shawn Spears b. Andrew Everett – C4
The Bunny/Penelope Ford/Nyla Rose b. Leyla Hirsch/Kris Stadtlander/Red Velvet – Rollup to Hirsch
Jurassic Express b. Dark Order – Extinction Level Event to Reynolds

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Dynamite
Date: November 17, 2021
Location: Chartway Arena, Norfolk, Virginia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross

We’re done with Full Gear and Hangman Page is FINALLY the AEW World Champion. To say this is a long time coming is an understatement but now we get to see where things go from here. That could be in a variety of directions but this week is all about the big celebration. We have a long way to go before Revolution next year so let’s get to it.

Here is Full Gear if you need a recap.

We open with a Full Gear recap.

The Elite is in the back and Kenny Omega is rather sad. He hasn’t watched the match with Hangman Page back but he knows he has some things to fix. Omega wants them to hold the fort down while he’s gone and Adam Cole says they’ve got it. Omega just meant the Bucks though and they walk off. This would be the write off for Omega so he can go have shoulder surgery.

The Dark Order is in the ring and here is Hangman Page, in a Virginia Is For Lovers shirt. Fans: “YOU DESERVE IT!” Page: “I’m gonna stop you right there. I didn’t deserve it. I f’ing earned it.” Page says he doesn’t usually come out here and talk but since he’s the World Champion, he’s going to do whatever he wants. He’s still just a man with a boss to answer to and that boss is the fans.

The title means a lot and now his responsibility is Bryan Danielson….and here is Danielson to interrupt. Danielson is here to say one thing: congratulations. He’s excited for the match, but he’s a bit disappointed that it isn’t Kenny Omega standing across the ring from him. Page says it’s not Omega because he beat Omega at Full Gear…and he did it in less than 30 minutes. Danielson isn’t here to start anything but he’s here for some wrestling instead of flapping his gums.

When he won the World Title at Wrestlemania, he wrestled the very next day (Without actually doing a move!). The fans aren’t thrilled and Danielson isn’t surprised that Virginia doesn’t appreciate hard work. Danielson is here in his gear while Page is in cowboy boots and….whatever that vest is. Page says we might not have the match here in Virginia, but we can have a fight. The Dark Order breaks that up and Danielson mocks Page for hiding behind his friends. I can absolutely go for heel Danielson so this is a nice change of pace. It’s more interesting than the idea of good vs. good so well done.

Bryan Danielson vs. Evil Uno

Danielson takes him down in a hurry and grabs a half crab. Some shots to the mask and an Affirmative Kick to the chest have Uno in trouble. More kicks to the back allow Danielson to say HE HAS UNTIL FIVE. Uno tells Danielson to kick him so Danielson obliges, only to get caught with a neckbreaker. Danielson just blasts him with a shot to break up the comeback and then slaps away in the corner. There’s the running knee but Danielson would rather stomp away than cover. The triangle choke knocks Uno out at 6:24.

Rating: C+. This was exactly as it should have been, with Danielson toying with someone who was out of his league. Uno was destroyed throughout here and Danielson knows just how to come off as evil. Good stuff here, as Page is going to be angry at Danielson for hurting his friend to make the title match all the more personal.

Post match Danielson says he is going to take out the Dark Order one by one. Next week they’re in Chicago and that is the hometown of Colt Cabana. If Cabana is interested, come get your head kicked in.

MJF talks about being covered in Darby Allin’s shame. He has destroyed every wrestler who thinks he can do nothing but talk. Yeah his knee is banged up but he got every one of your little mark chants and then won anyway. He has the best right hand in wrestling and now everyone has to admit it.

We look at Eddie Kingston vs. CM Punk, with Kingston walking away from a post match handshake.

Daniel Garcia and 2.0 come up to Kingston to say they’re tired of the losses. Kingston isn’t cool with 2.0 calling Garcia their son and a fight is proposed. With them gone, Kingston goes to catering while complaining about never being able to get in one promo without being interrupted.

Butcher and the Blade vs. Tomohiro Ishii/Orange Cassidy

Matt Hardy, the Bunny and Rocky Romero are here. Ishii and Butcher start things off but it’s quickly off to Cassidy to put his hands in his pockets. That earns him a knock to the floor and we take an early break with Cassidy in trouble. Back with Ishii suplexing Blade for two so Butcher comes in for the big power brawl. Some chops in the corner just wake Ishii up and he walks through some forearms, backing Butcher (who is still firing off strikes) into the corner.

A superplex gives Ishii two with Blade making the save. It’s off to Cassidy for a Stundog Millionaire and a tornado DDT to Blade for the near fall. Butcher and Blade hit a powerbomb/neckbreaker combination for two with Ishii making a save this time. Ishii comes back in and unloads on Butcher in the corner but Matt Hardy and the Bunny offer a distraction. Bunny slips in the brass knuckles but Rocky Romero breaks it up, with Cassidy diving onto Matt and Blade. Cassidy throws Blade back in so a heck of a clothesline and the brainbuster can finish for Ishii at 11:24.

Rating: C. The Cassidy vs. Hardy N Pals feud continues, though I did miss the elbow being involved this time around. They have to be setting up the hair vs. hair match at this point and that could very easily headline the first hour of an upcoming Dynamite. Other than that, it was cool to see Ishii here, as his presence alone is worth a look.

Andrade El Idolo, with FTR, brags about beating Cody Rhodes and Pac clean. Now he’s going to show them his good size. FTR says they’re so annoyed that they’ll wave their fee, get Malakai Black in there, and make it an eight man tag against Rhodes/Pac/the Lucha Bros. Tully Blanchard even threatens Arn Anderson because he has one more fight in him.

We recap Tay Conti vs. Britt Baker at Full Gear, with Conti saying she’s coming out of her next title shot as champion.

Britt Baker can’t wait to see Jamie Hayter destroy Thunder Rosa and make her not a thing.

TBS Title Tournament Quarterfinals: Nyla Rose vs. Hikaru Shida

Vickie Guerrero is here with Rose. Shida takes her into the corner to start but gets powered over with a suplex. That earns Rose a kick to the head and it’s time for a breather on the floor. Back in and Rose drives some shoulders into the ribs before slowly starting in on the knee. They head outside with Shida sending her into the barricade and then setting up the chair. It turns out that setting up a chair and then yelling at the camera is enough for Rose to make a comeback (good, because Shida looked stupid there), only to cannonball off the apron and through the chair.

Vickie tries to take the kendo stick away and gets blasted with it instead. The delay (the second one) lets Shida get slammed off the top and we take a break. Back with Serena Deeb, who popped up during the break, jumping Shida and sending her back inside. Rose adds the top rope knee to the back for two but Shida pulls her into a triangle choke. That’s broken up with a powerbomb but Shida raises the knees to block a backsplash. Shida misses something off the top though and it’s a stretch muffler to give Rose the win at 10:59.

Rating: C. The ending surprised me a bit here and Rose moving forward makes sense. This also opens up a third match between Deeb and Shida, which should work out fine. I could see Rose making it to the finals of the tournament as the next monster for the winner to slay. That’s a classic formula and it should work fine if they do it here.

Malakai Black is ready for next week’s eight man tag.

Here is MJF, flanked by Wardlow and Shawn Spears, the latter of whom talks about how MJF can beat any hero with a headlock takeover. MJF says he’s the man who will start a bidding war in 2024. He could take your hometown horse and send him straight to the glue factory. The rankings won’t tell you this, but he deserves to be the next World Champion. There is no one in that locker room on his level….and here is CM Punk. The fans (and JR) like this while telling MJF to shut up. MJF extends his hand but Punk walks away without saying a word. Yeah I think this is going to be fine.

Darby Allin says he’ll face MJF again but for now, he wants the biggest and the baddest AEW has to offer. Cue the Gunn Club, with Billy accepting the challenge.

The Superkliq doesn’t like Jurassic Express so on Rampage it’s the two of them against Bobby Fish/Adam Cole.

Acclaimed vs. Dante Martin/Lio Rush

Stereo dives take out the Acclaimed to cut off the rap (about Martin and Rush’s issues with relationships) and Caster in trouble to start. Martin gets sent outside for a ram into the barricade, setting up a middle rope stomp back inside. It’s Martin getting stomped in the corner, setting up Caster’s neckbreaker for two.

We take a break and come back with Rush coming in to clean house, including the spinning kick to Bowens’ head. Caster gets kicked to the floor and an ax kick gives Rush two on Bowens. Rush has to bail out of the frog splash and Bowens strikes away to put him down. Martin springboards in with a missile dropkick though and everyone is down. Back up and Caster clotheslines Rush’s head off and Bowens plants him with a spinning slam. Caster drops a top rope legdrop for two but Martin makes a save. Martin plants Bowens down and a heck of a frog splash gives Rush the pin at 10:24.

Rating: B-. These guys know how to do this kind of thing and they didn’t waste time here. This was about flying around and letting Martin/Rush look good over a team with a reputation. The Acclaimed might not be the flashiest team but they know how to get the fans annoyed at them in a hurry, which is a lot more important most of the time.

Post match here is Team Taz for another sales pitch to Martin. They think Martin could be a heck of an addition to the team, but saying no might be a bad idea.

Christian Cage and Jurassic Express are ready for Adam Cole/Bobby Fish at Rampage because you don’t bring a fish to a fist fight.

Video on Red Velvet vs. Jade Cargill.

Here’s what’s coming on Rampage and Dynamite.

The Lucha Bros are ready for next week’s eight man tag.

TNT Title: Sammy Guevara vs. Jay Lethal

Lethal is challenging in his company debut. Guevara (with bad ribs) tries a quick GTH but settles for an exchange of rollups for two each into a standoff. Lethal hits his hiptoss into the basement dropkick for two and starts in on the bad ribs. A jumping knee sends Lethal outside though and there’s the big flip dive. Back in and the shooting star press hits raised knees and Guevara is in trouble.

We take a break and come back with Sammy blocking the Lethal Injection to hit a Spanish Fly. Lethal rolls outside for a breather before they change places so Lethal can try the suicide dive. That’s blocked in a hurry though and Sammy hits a brainbuster on the floor. Sammy loads up the Swanton but only hits a table at ringside for the huge crash.

Back in and Lethal’s Hail To The King elbow is countered into a cradle for two. He’s right back up with a reverse fisherman’s suplex into a faceplant, setting up the Figure Four. Sammy grabs the rope and is back with another knee but the ribs won’t let him hit the GTH. That means another jumping knee to rock Lethal and now the GTH retains the title at 12:55.

Rating: B. Lethal looked awesome in his debut but they’re not taking that title off of Guevara until they want to take away a piece of the audience’s soul. The fans know who Lethal is and what he has accomplished so he already has a leg in the door. Guevara fighting through an injury and winning with his hard hitting finisher was the right way to go here and Lethal is going to be fine going forward.

Tony Nese (in the crowd) is not impressed. The Inner Circle comes out to celebrate and Lethal shakes Sammy’s hand. Lethal gets some respect from the team to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show started off well, hit some lulls in the middle and then bounced back strong for the last thirty minutes or so. The important thing here was setting up a bunch of stuff for the future and that is looking bright. Odds are we’ll see another special Dynamite in December for some of these matches and that should be enough to get us to the Clash of Champions style show in January. Another solid week here, as they come off the pay per view looking good.

Results
Daniel Bryan b. Evil Uno – Triangle choke
Tomohiro Ishii/Orange Cassidy b. Butcher and the Blade – Brainbuster to Blade
Nyla Rose b. Hikaru Shida – Stretch muffler
Dante Martin/Lio Rush b. Acclaimed – Frog splash to Bowens
Sammy Guevara b. Jay Lethal – GTH

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 5, 2021
Location: Chafetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri
Commentators: Ricky Starks, Taz, Excalibur

It’s another live show this week and that could be a good thing. The big story this week is a face to face showdown between CM Punk and Eddie Kingston, meaning it’s time to get the popcorn ready. The talking alone should be great to hear and you can all but write in the Full Gear match from here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Bryan Danielson vs. Anthony Bowens

Max Caster is here with Bowens and raps about how Danielson loves cucumbers, is famous for his wife’s reality show, has skinny legs and a father in law who kills wrestlers’ careers (Johnny Ace). Excalibur completely butchers the Full Gear announcement, saying that’s one week from tonight (try again), before saying it’s Saturday November 30 (that’s a Tuesday) and FINALLY getting it right with Saturday November 13.

Danielson goes after the arm to start but Bowens runs him over with a shoulder. Some kicks to the face don’t do much to Danielson, who is back with a kick to the chest. They fight to the floor though and Danielson is sent into the barricade. Caster gets in a shot of his own and we take a break. Back with Danielson kicking away again, including the running dropkick in the corner.

Another misses though and a twisting DDT out of the corner gets two. Danielson is back up and kicks Caster off the apron, setting up a big dive to take both of them down. Back in and a missile dropkick sets up the arm trap stomps to Bowens’ head. The LeBell Lock finishes for Danielson at 9:02.

Rating: C. They kept this to the point as Danielson was only in trouble when Caster interfered. Other than that, Danielson picked Bowens apart before finishing him off, which is all it needed to be. This was more or less a way to get Danielson on the show without having to do much, which has been the case more than once recently.

MJF gets a payoff from Andrade El Idolo for renting out FTR. With MJF gone, FTR is happy with winning the Tag Team Titles back at Full Gear. As for this week though, Dax Harwood didn’t see Pac out there so maybe they can get together on Dynamite. Top Guys out.

Here is CM Punk to say it’s nice to be back in St. Louis before calling out Eddie Kingston for a chat. There’s no Kingston, so Punk thinks he needs to talk more because Kingston likes to interrupt people and be rude. Now here is a rather serious Kingston, who doesn’t think much of Punk wanting an apology. Punk says Kingston interrupted him last week and that’s a little condescending.

Kingston mocks “the great CM Punk” and says he wasn’t at Dynamite because he was getting checked for Covid so he wouldn’t get everyone sick. We get the world’s smallest violin for Punk and a rather forced (and short) apology. Kingston wants to know who Punk is but Punk doesn’t think much of the apology. After mocking Punk some more, Kingston talks about how Punk was one of his heroes when he was getting into the business.

We hear some more names (Samoa Joe, Homicide, Amazing Red etc.) who inspired Kingston before he talks about how Punk is a narcissistic son of a b****. Kingston goes into a rant about how Punk disrespected him for being fat and not playing the right backstage politics. Punk thinks Kingston is putting a lot of baggage on him because the reality is a lot of people judged Kingston for falling short of that mark.

It wasn’t Punk’s fault for Bryan Danielson beating Eddie Kingston last week. It was Punk’s fault for expecting greatness from someone who is a bum. That one gets to Kingston, who asks if a bum would headline Full Gear and make it (Kingston: “This is a shot”) to the ONLY professional wrestling company in the world today. The whole locker room wants Punk out of here but Kingston is the only one willing to say it.

The challenge is on for Full Gear but Punk thinks Full Gear is a little high bar for Kingston. Maybe something like Dark or Elevation because that’s more Kingston’s speed (oh that was a good one). Kingston: “FIGHT ME! FIGHT ME! FIGHT ME AT FULL GEAR!” Punk polls the crowd and the match is on for Full Gear. Before Punk can leave, Kingston says he’ll beat him up and then Punk can go away for seven more years. The fight is on and here are the referees and security to break it up.

This was VERY different and one of the most emotional things AEW has ever done. I bought everything Kingston was saying as he blamed Punk for everything that has happened to him in his career. Punk acknowledged how good Kingston was but also his shortcomings, which is a reality he doesn’t want to face. Awesome stuff here and I’m down for these two having one heck of a fight on pay per view.

Christian Cage mocks the idea of the Superkliq calling themselves tough guys. Jungle Boy throws out the challenge for the six man tag at Full Gear, Falls Count Anywhere.

TBS Title Tournament First Found: The Bunny vs. Red Velvet

Velvet charges to the ring to start fast and they’re on the floor in a hurry. Velvet yells at Jade Cargill in the crowd but gets jumped from behind, allowing Bunny to kick her into the steps. Back in and Velvet grabs a rollup for two but Bunny hits a superkick. A kick to the stomach drops Bunny though though and the Final Slice gives Velvet the pin at 3:38.

Rating: C-. They made the right call by keeping this short as these two are only going to be able to do so much in a longer match. Their in-ring work isn’t their strong suit so let them stay out there, get their stuff in and get out before they overstay their welcome. That’s the right way to go with something like this and it worked out well enough.

We get the face to face interview with John Silver and Adam Cole. Mark Henry explains the BUDGE deal (thank you) from Silver’s interview on Dynamite but Cole doesn’t want to hear about this. Silver: “Budge got a boo boo!” Cole does have a banged up head after the Conchairto but he’s still ready to take Silver apart.

Full Gear rundown, with Jurassic Express/Christian Cage vs. Superkliq confirmed.

John Silver vs. Adam Cole

The Dark Order and the Young Bucks are here too. Silver mocks Cole’s pose to start and gets kicked in the head for his efforts. Cole is a little slowed due to the Conchairto aftereffects though and Silver gets in a few shots. That’s it for now though as Cole snapmares him to the floor, setting up the camel clutch into the double kiss from the Young Bucks.

We take a break and come back with the two slugging it out, with Silver getting the better of things. A suplex attempt is countered into the brainbuster onto the knee to give Cole two but Silver runs him over again. The Bucks try to get involved but here is the Dark Order to cut them off. Silver blocks the low blow and hits a heck of a helicopter bomb for two. A superplex is broken up though and Cole hits a superkick into the Boom for the pin at 11:03.

Rating: C+. Not too shabby here with Cole’s head issues making it more of a fair match. I don’t think there was any serious doubt about Cole winning, but they did what they could to make it interesting. Throw in the good near fall off the helicopter bomb and this was one of the best showings that Silver has ever had.

Overall Rating: B-. That Punk vs. Kingston promo alone is more than worth a watch here as it was about as invested as I can remember being in an exchange for a long time in two people talking. This show helped set up some things for Full Gear and felt like more of the third hour of Dynamite. That isn’t always the case here, but it’s nice to have as an option when you need to get some more things done.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Anthony Bowens – LeBell Lock
Red Velvet b. The Bunny – Final Slice
Adam Cole b. John Silver – The Boom

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: October 27, 2021
Location: Agganis Arena, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re closing out October and that means Full Gear is coming up next month. Most of the card is either already booked or pretty obvious (Tony Khan’s notebook is available if you need some pointers) but we still need to fill in some gaps. As for tonight, it’s CM Punk’s in-ring Dynamite debut against Bobby Fish. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Bobby Fish

It’s Fish’s birthday and Punk’s birthday was yesterday for a bit of trivia. JR says Fish is an 18 year veteran so he won’t be blown out of the water. Always good for a Fish. Feeling out process to start with Fish going after the leg and pulling him down into a chinlock. Punk fights up and fires off knees in the corner, setting up the slow motion slams, which he has somehow turned into a thing.

Fish kicks the leg out again though and scores with a slingshot hilo for two. Punk fights up and sends him outside for the suicide dive. Back up and Fish takes the knee out again though and it’s a running elbow to the jaw back inside. The knee gets spun around a few times and Fish knocks him outside, where Punk fires off some forearms. Fish gets the better of the slugout though and they head back in but Fish’s superplex is broken up.

Punk is back with the (one legged) top rope elbow drop and they’re both down. A swinging neckbreaker rocks Fish and the running knee in the corner makes it even worse. The GTS is countered into a twist of the knee though and Fish hits a running basement clothesline. Fish goes for the leg again but Punk pulls him into a jackknife for two. They slowly bridge up and Punk grabs the GTS with the bad knee. That means a delayed cover for the pin at 13:14 (with Fish kicking out at about 3.01 seconds).

Rating: B. Is it a surprise that this was a good match? You have two people who can work the same style well enough and both guys seem like they want to prove themselves. Fish worked on the knee throughout and the just too late kickout showed how Punk barely won. Solid match with a good story, and that shouldn’t be a surprise.

Malakai Black says that his match with Cody Rhodes wasn’t about a pinfall, because he has divided the Nightmare Family.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Bryce Donovan

Wardlow and Shawn Spears are here with MJF. The beating is on in a hurry and the Heatseeker finishes Donovan at 34 seconds.

Post match MJF, who isn’t even sweating, says Boston is exactly as he remembers it, which isn’t a good thing. You just got to see him do what he does best: pin shoulders to the mats and bang rats, but he’ll skip the second half, because he’d rather deal with a blender than a Boston woman. The accents are disgusting, and speaking of disgusting, we have Darby Allin. After the Allin chants, MJF explains breaking Allin’s spirit, along with knocking out the creepy papi Sting.

It’s the same ring he used to knock out Hangman Page, so with Allin out of the picture, it’s time to fulfill his destiny. Cue the Sting entrance…..but MJF is just messing with us. Then the lights go out, but this one isn’t him. We see a black and white video of a man in an MJF mask and then Darby Allin beats up a man at what seems to be a concert. Cue Sting with a baseball bat to take out Wardlow and Spears, but MJF gets out. Allin is in the crowd as the Invisible Man, so it’s time for the big beatdown on Wardlow and Spears instead. Allin says cut the music and the challenge is on for Full Gear.

Tony Schiavone tells Britt Baker that since she walked out on a match with Abadon on the Chris Jericho Cruise, she has to face Abadon in a Trick Or Treat match on Rampage. The treat is that if Abadon wins, she gets a future title shot and the trick is that it’s No DQ. Baker isn’t happy, but she has some tricks of her own.

TNT Title: Sammy Guevara vs. Ethan Page

Guevara is defending and if he wins, he gets to pick the rest of American Top Team in the big tag match at Full Gear. If he loses though, he loses the title and is out of the Inner Circle. It’s a brawl before the bell and Sammy knees him to the floor, setting up the big flip dive. They head inside for the opening bell with Sammy busting out some more flips into a dropkick to Page. Sammy strikes away and throws Page in the corner for a kick to the back. Page crotches him on top though and Sammy is knocked outside for a crash.

We take a break and come back with Sammy striking away. A springboard cutter into the Spanish Fly gets two on Page, who falls out to the floor. Sammy isn’t about to let him stand out there and hits a shooting star clothesline from the top for the big crash. Back in and Page gets in a shot of his own and heads up top, where he slams Sammy back down (that’s a new one). The super Ego’s Edge is countered into a hurricanrana though and Guevara grabs a jackknife pin to retain at 10:58.

Rating: B-. Guevara is just fun to watch and that is often more than enough to get by. There is something about watching a good high flier flying around rather high and that’s what you get with Guevara. Page is a good opponent as well and they had a nice match with some time, making it a nice title defense.

Post match Page beats Guevara down and Scorpio Sky runs in to help. Cue the Inner Circle (with music and pyro) for the save. After the music plays again, Jericho mocks the Men of the Year and now the ten man tag is going to be a street fight. We’ll pick the American Top Team members next week, but for now, we get some Aerosmith lyrics so Jericho can promise a beating at Full Gear.

Eddie Kingston gets in Bryan Danielson’s face to threaten him for their #1 contenders tournament match. Kingston walks off before Danielson can reply, but Danielson says that’s the Kingston he wants to face. There are so many people who have made it through all of the garbage and keep working hard. Kingston and Jon Moxley are the toughest wrestlers in the world, but on Friday, Danielson is proving that he is the best.

The Lucha Bros accept FTR’s challenge for the Tag Team Title match at Full Gear. Yelling ensues.

TBS Title Tournament First Round: Hikaru Shida vs. Serena Deeb

Rematch from a few weeks ago when Deeb upset Shida, which set up a brawl the next week. Deeb takes her down to start and wraps Shida’s knee around the post. Shida sends her head first into the post though and manages a superplex to bring Deeb back inside for two. We take a break and come back with Shida hammering away to take over. The missile dropkick sets up a delayed vertical suplex for two but Deeb counters a powerbomb. That’s fine with Shida, who snaps off a dragon suplex.

Something like a sitout Dominator gives Shida two and a running knee is good for the same. The Katana is blocked and Deeb is back with a twist of the knee. What looked to be a Figure Four is kicked away to send Deeb outside but she breaks up the springboard off the chair. Since Shida couldn’t possibly do something with a running start but no chair, she uses the steps as a springboard into the missile dropkick instead.

Shida tweaks her own knee though and Deeb puts on something like the Figure Four around the post. Back in and Shida’s knee is fine enough to hit a question mark kick but the running knee is countered into a half crab. An inverted Figure Four sends Shida over to the rope so Deeb grabs the trophy that Shida would have received for her 50th win. Shida kicks it away and picks the trophy up but can’t bring herself to swing. A rake to the eyes lets Deeb roll her up for two but Shida is back with a cradle and the pin at 11:00.

Rating: B. They had me with the drama here as I really wasn’t sure who was going to win. That’s a great sign as Deeb continues to be one of the best wrestlers going today and can work well with just about anyone. I’m not sure if I wouldn’t have gone with Deeb winning here to make her Shida’s Kryptonite, but it’s not like this was a bad call whatsoever.

Post match Deeb snaps and destroys Shida’s knee with the chair, setting up the Serenity Lock.

Since Mike Sydal is injured, Dante Martin will face Matt Sydal instead of the planned tag match. Lio Rush says it just wasn’t the right time so his in-ring debut will be postponed. Rush promises that Matt will learn again at Rampage. Martin continues to look bored.

World Title Eliminator Tournament First Round: Jon Moxley vs. 10

Moxley throws him down to start and hits a running forearm to knock him outside. That’s not enough so Moxley bites at his head and sends 10 into the post for a hard crash. Back in and the bloody 10 manages a pump kick, only to get run over again. The Paradigm Shift finishes 10 at 2:02. That’s what it should have been.

Tully Blanchard and FTR have hit the reset button and they are ready to take out the Lucha Bros again.

Here is Cody Rhodes, with Arn Anderson for a chat. Cody talks about how he has heard the booing and ready about it online (even from retired wrestling managers). Last week, he hit Malakai Black with the Cross Rhodes and then a Tiger Driver 98, but he almost did something else (meaning the piledriver). That would have been the easy way to go but he wasn’t going to take that road. Of course you can boo him because it’s easy to boo the guy who signs the checks.

Just remember that he helped build the bank. Cody takes his shoes off and throws them into the crowd so they can know what it’s like to be in them. He has a wife who is way too hot for him, a brother who is better in this ring than he is, and a father whose legacy he could never match, even if he lived to be 300 years old. Cody: “I will not turn.” Cody talks about how much he loves all of these people, everyone in the Nightmare Family, and Arn Anderson, who gets a handshake.

Cue Andrade El Idolo, who says he doesn’t care about the people. Andrade talks about Cody’s stupid choices, including that tattoo. Then Cody got in Andrade’s business and now he can make Cody his little b****. The showdown is on but the lights go out. Cue Malakai Black for the beatdown, including on Arn, but Pac runs in for the save. The villains bail from the threat of the big dive.

Dark Order vs. Super Elite

It’s Stu Grayson/John Silver/Evil Uno/Colt Cabana vs. Kenny Omega/Young Bucks/Adam Cole and yes, the Order is in Halloween costumes. Not to be outdone, the Super Elite are the Ghostbusters (with a personalized theme), complete with a goon as a walking baby and another as the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Silver (Bambi) shoves Cole around to start and hits a headbutt. Cowboy Evil Uno comes in but it’s off to Omega, who is wearing a Proton Pack, to hammer on Uno in the corner.

Uno splashes the pack by mistake though and the baby hits a splash. Matt comes in and gets ridden like a horse, setting up a splash from Grayson (Kratos from God of War) and cold spray from Cabana (Brandon Cutler). A quadruple slam plants the Elite and the Order gets in a group pose as we take a break.

Back with Grayson cleaning house and managing to beat up all of the Elite at once. Cabana comes in and gets to clean house with elbows and Flying Apples but Nick finally superkicks him into the corner. That means the tag off to Silver to clean house again, until more superkicks take him down. A group superkick gets two with Uno making the save and getting to beat up the Elite this time.

We hit the parade of strikes to the face until Matt takes out the referee by mistake. Nightfall is broken up and Grayson gets hit low, setting up a triple low blow to take down the rest of the Order. The Proton Packs go on (JR is not having this) and crash into the Order, setting up the TripleBomb (Is that some weird shot at Roman Reigns?) onto the packs.

Cue a horse (who was in the Order’s entrance but left) and the big beatdown is on. The mask comes off and it’s Brandon Cutler, with his mouth taped up. That means Hangman Page is the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man (JR: “Let’s have some cowboy shiznit here in Boston!”) and the Dead Eye plants Omega. The Spin Doctor gives Silver the pin on Matt at 13:00.

Rating: B-. I’m really not sure what to think of this. They did a nice job with the surprise from Page and the team did win, but I rolled my eyes fairly hard at another costume/parody deal (though it is the week of Halloween). Omega has not shown the slightest bit or worry coming up on his match with Page and that is taking me out of the whole thing a good bit. It’s nice to see the Dark Order FINALLY win something over these guys, but dang it would be nice to have something played straight for once.

Overall Rating: A-. This is the kind of show that makes Dynamite shine, as they had one awesome match after another. Two things stood out to me here and both of them had me thinking about the glory days of NXT. First of all, commentary does a good job of focusing on things. While they will talk about things coming up or on sale dates for tickets, the majority of their focus is on what is in front of them and that makes things feel so much more important.

Second, they have started having some shorter matches. There was no reason for Moxley vs. 10 to go on long and they didn’t even pretend it would be anything else. They went with logic instead of stretching things out, which was a problem they have had in the past. Both of those helped make the show that much better, and this was a pretty great week.

Results
CM Punk b. Bobby Fish – GTS
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Bryce Donovan – Heatseeker
Sammy Guevara b. Ethan Page – Jackknife cover
Hikaru Shida b. Serena Deeb – Rollup
Jon Moxley b. 10 – Paradigm Shift
Dark Order b. Super Elite – Spin Doctor to Matt Jackson

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews 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.

Dynamite
Date: October 23, 2021
Location: Addition Financial Arena, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

It’s another tournament focused show as we continue the World Title Eliminator Tournament and begin the TBS Title Tournament. We are also less than a month away from Full Gear and that show is going to need some more attention sooner than later. The card is being set up, but it rarely feels like something that is receiving focus. AEW knows how to pull these things off though so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

World Title Eliminator Tournament First Round: Bryan Danielson vs. Dustin Rhodes

Feeling out process to start with Rhodes seeming to be a bit nervous to go after him. Danielson takes him down by the legs and ties them up in kind of an Indian deathlock. Back up and Rhodes hits the drop down uppercut but gets knocked to the floor, setting up the suicide dive.

Dustin is right back up with a flip dive off the apron and scores with a belly to back suplex for two. Danielson pulls him down by the arm though and it’s a short armscissors, setting up the stomp on the arm. They go up top with a superplex bringing Danielson back down, setting up Dustin’s snap powerslam.

Danielson kicks away in the corner but gets caught with the jumping clothesline. Dustin has to block the LeBell Lock and it’s time for some more kicks. A big one to the chest makes Dustin Hulk Up and it’s a piledriver to plant Danielson for two. Dustin is back up but Danielson slaps on the guillotine to finish at 15:24.

Rating: B. I’m not a big Dustin fan but he was going hard here and the match got a lot better as a result. This was about the old gunslinger taking one more shot but running into the buzzsaw that is Danielson. I don’t know how much reason there was to believe in an upset here, but they absolutely made it interesting on the way there. Very good stuff, with Rhodes pulling his weight and then some.

Kenny Omega and the Elite are ready for the Superkliq to face the Dark Order next week. Omega saw Hangman Page being all tough last week but he knows the man behind the mask. He knows Page’s weaknesses and at Full Gear, it’s going to be COWARD S*** instead of COWBOY S***! The Bucks compliment him on the last line.

FTR brags about winning the AAA Tag Team Titles last week. They have been waiting on the sidelines for over a year now and it is time to complete their return by winning the AEW Tag Team Titles.

Penta El Zero Miedo and Alex Abrahantes swear revenge on FTR for hurting Fenix last week.

FTR says bring it.

Tony Schiavone brings out Sting for an update on Darby Allin. Before he can say anything though, here is MJF to interrupt. After asking Florida to try and have some class, MJF talks about how Sting needs to tell these people that their little hero is a coward. Sting can paint his face, swing a bat, or even have your leftover stash from the 80s rain down on the, but you can’t fool MJF: Sting isn’t a good guy.

MJF talks about how all of Sting’s fans stick by them and then he leaves them, like he left Lex Luger in a wheelchair. The fight is on and here is the Pinnacle to beat Sting down, despite Sting swinging MJF’s jacket at them. MJF picks up Sting’s head and asks if he has broken Darby Allin’s mind this time. Allin can listen to these people all he wants, but this is what is waiting on him, because MJF is just that much better. The Pinnacle gets ready to leave but MJF hits Sting with the Dynamite Diamond.

Britt Baker isn’t happy with Tay Conti sticking her nose in the title picture. If Conti had worked hard to get to the main event, they could have had a nice title match. Now though, since Conti put her hands on something that didn’t belong to her, Baker is going to kick that a** that Conti loves showing everyone (her words) and keep her title. Baker continues to come off like she believes every word she says and that is why she is one of the best talkers in wrestling today.

TBS Title Tournament First Round: Penelope Ford vs. Ruby Soho

Ford takes her into the corner and starts the stomping but a running boot is blocked. They fight to the apron and slug it out but here is the Bunny for a distraction. That’s enough for Ford to get in a kick to the face and we take a break. Back with Soho striking away for two but missing a charge into the corner. Ford catches her with a jumping cutter for a close two so Soho gives her an STO out of the corner. Another kick to the head rocks Soho though and it’s the fireman’s carry gutbuster for two. Bunny tries to throw in the brass knuckles but the referee sees what’s going on, allowing Soho to grab an O’Connor roll for the pin at 8:30.

Rating: C-. Another not very long match here as Soho doesn’t quite impress. She is a weird case where she has all of the tools on the surface and seems to have a mind for wrestling but for some reason it hasn’t exactly clicked in the ring. Maybe that can be changed with just a few tweaks, but it isn’t working out perfectly.

Post match the Bunny goes after Soho but Red Velvet runs in for the save.

MJF says he sent Darby Allin a message this week but Wardlow interrupts. Wardlow wants to know why MJF shoved him in front of Sting last week. MJF says it was just fight or flight and tries to talk his way out of it. He sees that Wardlow has been working hard and that’s too much pressure. Therefore, he is assigning Shawn Spears (here as well) to be his account-abili-buddy. Wardlow and Spears are confused but MJF has to leave for a meeting. That was a little weird.

Bobby Fish vs. Anthony Greene

Green grabs a rollup for an early two but Fish is right back with the kicks to the knee. A hard suplex sets up a big kick to the head to end Green at 1:48.

Post match Fish kicks Greene down again to turn heel. The beating is on but CM Punk runs in for the save. So Fish vs. Punk? Well if it’s all you have.

Lio Rush still tries to tell Dante Martin that they’re going to be a great team. Martin still isn’t sure but Rush has already gotten them a match against the Sydal Brothers next week. Dante does not look happy.

World Title Eliminator Tournament First Round: Eddie Kingston vs. Lance Archer

Kingston jumps him in the aisle to start and the brawl is on outside the ring. Archer gets the better of things and pulls a plant over the barricade to slam onto Kingston. A chokeslam off the apron plants said plant onto Kingston and we head inside for the opening bell. Archer chops away but Kingston slips out of the Black Out. The chinlock goes on to put Archer in trouble and we take a break.

Back with Archer choking away in the corner but missing a running shoulder. Instead he gets a boot up to Kingston’s face so Archer tries a moonsault and lands ON THE TOP OF HIS HEAD. Thing stop pretty soon and Archer rolls outside, only to go back in where Kingston rolls him up for the pin at 8:12.

Rating: C. I’m going with right in the middle because I’m a bit shaken up after that landing. It isn’t often that I get scared watching wrestling but seeing a giant like that landing on the top of his head is one way to make it happen. That looked horrible and the best thing to see is that Archer was walking around. Hopefully he is on his way to the hospital though, because that was a scary situation.

Of note: former WWE star Tony Nese was shown in the crowd just after Archer’s crash.

Here are Dan Lambert and the Men of the Year for a chat. They aren’t impressed by the Inner Circle, because the team has been beaten down time after time. Yeah Jake Hager has an undefeated MMA record but no one has ever seen it. Santana and Ortiz are from the streets, but the Men of the Year treat the streets like a runway. As for Chris Jericho, why is AEW paying him to come to the ring and flirt with Paige Vanzant?

Cue Sammy Guevara to quote Jericho, by asking them to shut the h*** up. Sammy remembers hearing that they had some stipulations so let’s have them. Dan Lambert cuts them off and says that Sammy doesn’t suck on the stick as much as he thought he did. The Inner Circle can have their big team match at Full Gear, but only if Sammy defends the title against Ethan Page next week.

WHEN Sammy loses though, he’s also out of the Inner Circle forever. Sammy says it’s on, but if he wins, he gets to pick the members of American Top Team. That’s a deal, but Scorpio Sky is ready to fight right now. Cue the rest of the Inner Circle to chase the villains off in a hurry.

Jon Moxley knows he is supposed to be talking trash and yelling about how he’s going to take out everyone in the tournament. He’ll be doing that, but right now, all he can think about is his baby daughter. His daughter squeezes his finger (which is a little messed up) for all she’s got and all he can think about is her looking up at him. Winning this tournament will let him do more for her, and it’s time so smash everyone.

The Dark Order is ready for the Superkliq when Hangman Page comes in. Page is sorry for not getting back with them sooner. If they are going back after the Elite, and so close to Halloween, it might be time for some costumes. The Dark Order seems interested, with John Silver mentioning Bambi.

Jungle Boy vs. Brandon Cutler

Jungle sends him outside for an early suicide dive and throws him back in for a backdrop. The Snare Trap finishes Cutler at 1:02.

Post match Jungle Boy says he’s still feeling good and wants another member of the Elite. Since no one comes out, the Snare Trap goes on again so Cole screams for someone to help him. Cue Adam Cole to say we can do this right now but it’s a ruse so the Young Bucks can run in for the beatdown. Jungle gets beaten up the ramp and then throw off the stage through some tables in a huge crash.

Miro wants to know why his God has forsaken him. Now he will hurt everyone in front of him and become the favorite champion again. Therefore he can return to his wife, with blood on his hands, which is on us.

Malakai Black vs. Cody Rhodes

Black has beaten Rhodes twice before but now Cody is being more serious. Arn Anderson is back with Cody, who charges into the ring and we get the opening bell in a hurry. Cody goes straight for the knee but can’t get the Figure Four. Back up and they strike it out as the fans chant CODY SUCKS. A shot to the knee has Cody in trouble but he knocks Black away for a breather. Cody is right back on the knee and we hit the Figure Four as the fans seem to be paying attention to something else. Black bails to the floor and we take a break.

Back with Black in trouble after Cody hit Cross Rhodes through a table at ringside. Black manages to post Cody and they’re both busted open. The fans want Anderson to GET THE GLOCK as Andrade comes out for a distraction. Anderson cuts off Andrade’s assistant with the spinebuster and here is Pac to take out Andrade. Black mists Anderson but walks into the Cross Rhodes for two (and A LOT of booing).

Back up and Black kicks him down, setting up a bridging German suplex for two. Black Mass connects but Cody falls into the ropes to avoid the cover. Cody is back up and gets backdropped out and onto the apron. Black misses the middle rope moonsault and gets taken down by Cody’s suicide dive. The Cody Cutter drops Black back inside and it’s Cross Rhodes into a double underhook piledriver for the pin at 11:44.

Rating: B-. Is it really a surprise that Cody got his win back here? This whole thing has been a Cody story since the beginning with Black getting in some good shows and moments, but ultimately this was about Cody rediscovering the eye of the tiger. This isn’t the end of Black and this isn’t some horrible moment, but it isn’t something that needed to happen. Black is a potential breakout star and the fans do not seem to like Cody very much. Unless this is leading to something down the road with Cody turning, I’m really not feeling this move.

Overall Rating: B-. This was an interesting one as it certainly didn’t hit the heights that some of their shows did, though there was enough to make it worth watching. What interested me the most here is just how much energy there was to the show and how far it took everything else. The fans were into everything they were seeing here (even if they weren’t happy with Cody at any point) and that is going to make a show so much more fun. AEW might be a lot of things and there are criticisms to be made about it, but they know how to make their fans care about everything they are doing and that is huge.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Dustin Rhodes – Guillotine
Ruby Soho b. Penelope Ford – Rollup
Bobby Fish b. Anthony Greene – Kick to the head
Eddie Kingston b. Lance Archer – Rollup
Jungle Boy b. Brandon Cutler – Snare Trap
Cody Rhodes b. Malakai Black – Tiger Driver 98

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews 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.

Dynamite
Date: October 16, 2021
Location: James L. Knight Center, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, CM Punk

We’re on a rare Saturday night due to the MLB playoffs and they are going to have a hard time topping what they did last night with Rampage. Tonight we see the brackets for the #1 contenders tournament, as Full Gear is less than a month away. Add in a AAA Tag Team Titles match and we should be good to go. Let’s get to it.

Here is Rampage if you need a recap.

Guest commentator CM Punk gets his big entrance.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Malakai Black vs. Dante Martin

Lio Rush is here with Black. Some armdrags put Martin down to start but he sends Black outside. It’s too early for a dive though as Black comes back in and elbows him in the face. A powerbomb sets up a half crab to put Martin in trouble but he slips out in a hurry. That earns Martin and STO and shinbreaker, setting up a kneebar. Martin makes the ropes to escape and goes up top, only to have his springboard blocked. A sunset flip gives Martin two and a poisonrana out of the corner staggers Black.

With Black out on the ramp, Martin hits a springboard flip dive (with a bit of a slip) to drop him again. Back in and a double springboard moonsault misses for Martin, setting up a slugout. Black kicks him down and scores with a top rope double stomp, setting up a kick to the head. There’s a hard German suplex to drop Martin hard so he heads up top. That’s broken up with a super hurricanrana but Black is right back with a half crab. Martin escapes again and tries to go up again, only to get caught with Black Mass (Rush is NOT pleased) for the pin at 9:37.

Rating: B. They pulled me into this one as I wasn’t exactly thinking that it was great at the start. That was all changed by the end as these guys were beating the heck out of each other, with one big spot after another. I didn’t buy Martin as possibly winning, but it would have been too much of a stretch to have that take place anyway. Rather good match here as Black continues to prove that WWE was totally wrong about him every single week.

Post match Black goes to leave but stops to nod at Martin in respect.

The Jurassic Express talks about being banged up but the Elite comes in to beat them down. Kenny Omega manages to powerbomb Luchasaurus through the table to show that he can do it.

Here is the Inner Circle, fresh off their loss last night, to quite the reception. Santana isn’t happy about American Top Team, which brings them out with Dan Lambert to brag about their MMA success. Jericho tells us to welcome the “fat faced dip****” and yes the fans chant the name. Jericho accuses Paige Vanzant of having a thing for him, but he wouldn’t touch her with her husband’s genitalia. Punk: “I don’t believe him. I think he would.”

The challenge is on for the ten man tag but Lambert insults the team, including talking about the size of Jake Hager’s head. Lambert is down if the Inner Circle will accept their challenge, but he’ll give them the terms next week. Scorpio Sky says he has pinned Chris Jericho twice, but the fans think he still sucks. Sammy Guevara is ready to fight right now and he’ll see them next week. Vanzant continues to look like a star every time she’s on camera.

AAA Tag Team Titles: Lucha Bros vs. Las Super Ranas

The Ranas (the Super Frogs) are two guys in green suits with masks and challenging. Punk: “I don’t know if the Lucha Bros care, but that’s clearly FTR.” We’ll say #1 starts with Fenix, who spins the arm around to start until #1 takes him down and goes for the mask. A victory roll faceplant takes #1 down and everything breaks down, with the Bros going for the masks. Commentary confirms that it’s FTR, mainly due to the lack of flips. The masks come off and FTR clotheslines the Bros down to take over as we go to a break.

Back with Fenix getting dropped ribs first on top but Penta is back in for the brawl. Fenix gets a running start to springboard onto both of them, setting up the Lucha version of What’s Up. Everything breaks down and FTR tries to bring in the belts, only to get kicked down in a hurry. Cue Tully Blanchard (in matching green) for a distraction though, allowing Harwood to belt Fenix out of the air. A brainbuster gives Harwood the pin and the titles at 8:14.

Rating: C+. The frogs deal was weird but points for a surprise title change. FTR getting some gold is certainly a nice thing to see and I could go for another match between these two. The AAA Tag Team Titles have enough meaning for this to be an important win so nice job in a surprise, even if it doesn’t last long. It was also nice for commentary to sound smart, as they weren’t exactly fooled by the disguises.

Lio Rush says Dante Martin failed because he screwed up but Martin can be successful if he just listens. From this point forward, they’re tag partners, though Martin doesn’t seem convinced.

Andrade and FTR celebrate the win. MJF comes in to celebrate with them and gets paid by Andrade, seemingly to rent FTR for the night. MJF’s horrible Spanish is that much better.

Wheeler Yuta vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley jumps him to start, puts Yuta down, and finishes with the Paradigm Shift at 1:11. Well that worked, though Orange Cassidy staring down at Moxley as Yuta is checked on by the medics seems to give us a future.

Serena Deeb beat Hikaru Shida last week but she’s not happy with how the division has been since she went on sabbatical. It was time to drag the division back up but here is Shida to jump her from behind.

Dark Order vs. Superkliq

It’s Evil Uno, Alex Reynolds and John Silver for the team here but the Superkliq jump them before the bell. Silver escapes the TripleBomb (because the Elite is the Shield these days) on the ramp with Reynolds coming in to help out. They get back inside for the opening bell and Cole gets triple dropkicked to the floor. We settle down to Silver having to kick all three of them away but a Don Callis distraction lets Matt kick him down.

Cole cuts off Reynolds’ dive with an enziguri and it’s a double superkick into a brainbuster onto the knee on the floor to drop him again. JR: “You might want to bother counting.” More kicks and shots to the face have Silver in trouble and we take a break. Back with Nick losing a shoe as Silver makes the comeback, allowing the tag to Uno. That means a full on Mr. Socko return, because AEW doesn’t like to put together the most unique stuff. Uno runs wild for a bit until a few more shots cut him (and the crowd) off.

Cole gets Uno in a camel clutch and the Bucks load up the double kiss, but the rest of the Order takes their place for the kiss instead. A double backdrop puts Cole on the floor and the Order gets to pose for a change. Something Evil gets two on Cole as everything breaks down again. The Order is sent outside and get take out by dives, leaving Cole to kick Reynolds down. A rollup gives Reynolds two and he knees Cole in the face for a bonus. The Bucks are back in with superkicks and the Panama Sunrise into the BTE Trigger into the Boom finishes for Cole at 10:48.

Rating: C+. I can forgive the Superkliq for not exactly taking the Dark Order seriously but they ultimately had to put in some effort to win. Cole getting the pin works as well as he continues to pad his resume while the Bucks take a bit of a step back from him. Silver continues to look like a star, though I’m not sure how much of a future he has in this 837 member group.

Post match here is Jungle Boy to go after the Superkliq, who run off because he grabs a chair. Brandon Cutler is left alone to try the cold spray, which is blocked by the chair. The Snare Trap has Cutler in trouble, with Boy adding the spray to Cutler’s eyes. Now see how easy it is to make Jungle Boy look good? Get rid of the freak show and he’s a star. It’s not that hard.

Cody Rhodes appears at his wrestling academy, where his fellow coaches (or maybe students) aren’t happy with him. Arn Anderson puts him through a drill where everyone goes after him one at a time. Cody wants to know what this is supposed to teach him so Anderson pulls out a photo of Dusty Rhodes beating him up back in the day. Arn talks about how Cody never wanted to disappoint kids, but would kids have thought Dusty was bad for busting Arn open that night? Of course not, because Arn had it coming. Malakai Black has it coming too.

Here is MJF to say he is stuck in a place that smells like hookers and gasoline. He doesn’t like not being announced for his match, even though there is no match scheduled. Punk: “You know how I can tell? No Wardlow.” MJF doesn’t think Darby Allin is ready to fight him so maybe he did break Allin mentally. After telling a fat guy to shut up, MJF feigns shock over hearing about Allin being attacked last week. MJF: “TONY SCHIAVONE! DID YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS???”

MJF is going to give us a match with Allin, so Wardlow brings out a referee to count the ten. The count is on….and here’s Sting to answer. A baseball bat shot to the ribs drops Wardlow and MJF runs into the snow. MJF teases running back in but runs despite Sting dropping the bat, much to commentary’s disgust.

Britt Baker interrupts Anna Jay’s interview and talks about how the Superkliq beat the Dark Order. Anna: “They are not losers!” Baker talks more trash and the fight is on with referees breaking it up in a hurry.

Kiera Hogan vs. Penelope Ford

The Bunny is here with Ford. Hogan grabs a headlock to start as Punk wants to know if there is any relation, though commentary isn’t sure which Hogan he could possibly mean. Tony is right there to bring them back to focus on the TBS Title as Ford misses a running boot in the corner, setting up a takedown to give Hogan two. Ford bulldogs her into the corner to take over again though and we go to a break. Back with Hogan hitting a superplex but not being able to follow up. A sliding kick to the face in the corner rocks Ford for two more but Ford hits a running cutter. The Muta Lock finishes Hogan at 7:53.

Rating: D+. Not the best match here, but neither of these two are exactly known as a ring general. They were both trying but ultimately you’re only going to be able to get so much out of them. Hogan is someone who has potential due to her amazing charisma and it’s clear that AEW sees a lot in Ford. Keeping it short was the right call here, and it’s not like this dragged down the show.

Post match here is Ruby Soho to jump Ford in revenge from last night. The beating is on but the Bunny comes out to….do nothing actually.

Miro isn’t sure what happened that caused him to lose the TNT Title. He thinks his God has turned on him because he was given a body of granite and a neck of sand. Miro will either be a champion or an enemy and it is time to destroy. He hasn’t seen his wife since losing the title and he will not again until he is God’s favorite champion again.

Here is Hangman Page for a chat. Tony Schiavone recaps Page’s feud with Kenny Omega, leaving Page to talk about how the Elite left their home in Ring of Honor in 2019. Their world changed and then he lost his big matches on the way. It felt like he started to lose a bit more, including his confidence. The one thing that it felt like he never lost was the fans chanting COWBOY S***, which means we have to pause for a chant.

That meant taking his shot on day one and learning to let the past live in the past and accept new friends in his life. It meant taking his chance to stick his neck out like his friends did so many times. It means having the guts to go back home for the birth of his son, but last week he finally picked up the phone and took a shot.

Page feels the people still believe in him though, and for the first time in his life, he does too. The promise he can make is that he will give us everything at Full Gear, including COWBOY S***! This was a heck of a promo and it was nice to have Page finally say these things instead of having to figure out the big story for ourselves. It wasn’t hard to figure out, but it’s nice to hear it from the source for a change.

Here’s what’s coming next week, including Malakai Black vs. Cody Rhodes III and tournament matches.

Bryan Danielson vs. Bobby Fish

Feeling out process to start with Fish’s headlock not working, as Danielson kicks him into the corner. Back up and Fish strikes away, only to get knocked outside. Fish gets posted but is fine enough to cut off the running knee from the apron as we take a break. Back with Fish working on the knee and hitting a sliding lariat for two more.

The half crab goes on but Danielson is back up with a suplex to send Fish flying. Danielson evens things up by wrapping the knee around the post but Fish is back in with a backdrop driver. Fish takes him up top for a super Falcon Arrow and starts tying up the knee. They both get kneebars until Danielson kicks him in the head for the break. A heel hook makes Fish tap at 12:28.

Rating: B. Fish got in a lot here, which is the kind of thing that makes AEW work so well. They know how to make someone look good in defeat, albeit in a match they had no business winning. There is nothing wrong with Fish losing to a much bigger star and Danielson gets a win over someone with some name value. AEW has figured out that formula and that is a great thing to see.

With less than a minute to go in the show, here is the bracket for the #1 contenders tournament:

10
Jon Moxley

Orange Cassidy
Powerhouse Hobbs

Dustin Rhodes
Bryan Danielson

Lance Archer
Eddie Kingston

That’s….interesting. I guess?

Overall Rating: B. Not so great brackets aside, this was another good show from AEW, who don’t seem to know how to had a bad one these days. They throw in at least two exciting matches to keep you hooked and the rest is all gravy. The title change was a nice surprise too, though I’m not completely sure why the frog suits were included. Anyway, another good night here, as AEW is on fire (again).

Results
Malakai Black b. Dante Martin – Black Mass
Las Super Ranas b. Lucha Bros – Brainbuster to Fenix
Jon Moxley b. Wheeler Yuta – Paradigm Shift
Superkliq b. Dark Order – Boom to Reynolds
Penelope Ford b. Kiera Hogan – Muta Lock
Bryan Danielson b. Bobby Fish – Heel hook

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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AND

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Rampage
Date: October 15, 2021
Location: James L. Knight Center, Miami, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Ricky Starks, Taz

This is another special edition of the show as we have a bonus first hour airing on YouTube, which seems to be retaliation for WWE running an extra half hour of Smackdown this week. The bonus hour will feature Bryan Danielson vs. Minoru Suzuki while the regular show has CM Punk against Matt Sydal. Let’s get to it.

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

Buy-In: Tay Conti vs. Santana Garrett

Anna Jay is here with Conti, who takes Garrett down by the arm to start. Neither of them can hit am armdrag as commentary hypes up the Rampage card, including a commercial free opener. Conti’s leglock has Garrett in more trouble and she kicks Garrett in the face for two. Garrett is sent to the apron but misses a kick to the face, allowing Conti to roll her back inside for two.

There’s a forearm to Conti’s face to stagger her again and a running elbow in the corner makes it worse. Conti fights out of a leglock and a double hair takedown leaves both of them laying. Garrett’s handspring is broken up and Conti kicks her in the face. Some running kicks to the face in the corner rock Garrett again and the DDTay finishes Garrett at 4:47.

Rating: C. They hit/kicked each other hard here and it was a good way to start the show. The fans respond to Conti and Garrett is someone who can make anyone look better than they already are. You can see that Conti is going somewhere sooner than later and a big run towards the TBS Title would not be a surprise.

Video on Dan Lambert/American Top Team/Men of the Year vs. the Inner Circle. This includes various talking heads (and masks, because Excalibur is here too) talking about how Lambert is getting away with everything he says because of the MMA fighters behind him. As a result, we hear about their careers, which sounds more like reading a Wikipedia entry about their careers. Jorge Masvidal joins in and says they’re going to destroy the Inner Circle tonight. They’re ready to prove their dominance again.

Buy-In: Lee Moriarty vs. Bobby Fish

They go to the mat for the grappling to start before going to an early slugout. Moriarty takes him down by the arm but Fish punches his way to freedom. Fish grabs an armbar and drives Moriarty into the corner for some elbows to the face. Moriarty takes him down though and scores with a running kick to the arm. That’s broken up with a drive into the corner into a dragon screw legwhip to put Moriarty down again. Fish kicks him in the knee and gets two off a snap suplex.

Back up and Moriarty goes after the arm to take Fish down again, setting up the double stomp for two. Another comeback doesn’t get Fish very far as Moriarty suplexes him down for another near fall, complete with holding the bad arm. Fish reverses a suplex into a choke and a jumping knee gives him two. An exploder suplex sends Moriarty into the ropes and a big kick to the face finishes for Fish at 7:53.

Rating: B-. Yeah this worked, and it’s great to see Moriarty getting a chance. He really was one of the better indy stars going before he was signed to AEW so they certainly have an eye for talent. On top of that, Bobby Fish getting a chance to shine as a singles star is great as well, even if he might not go very far beyond being a good hand.

Video on Bryan Danielson, who is awesome and impressive, but his toughest test is tonight against Minoru Suzuki.

Buy-In: Bryan Danielson vs. Minoru Suzuki

They fight over arm control to start with Suzuki getting the better of things. The fans say this is wrestling as Danielson can’t get anywhere with an armbar. A snapmare takes Danielson down into a chinlock and he has to go to the ropes to escape a kneebar. Back up and Suzuki (mostly) blocks a dragon screw legwhip and tells Danielson to bring it. The fans do the YES pose and chant SI (ok that’s really clever) as it’s time to trade big shots.

Suzuki stands in the middle of the ring for a kick to the chest and actually gets staggered for a surprise. One heck of a forearm puts Danielson down and he seems to be immediately regretting this decision. Danielson is back up to take Suzuki to the mat for the hammer and anvil elbows. The threat of Cattle Mutilation sends Suzuki bailing to the ropes, where he pulls Danielson into a cross armbreaker.

Suzuki takes him to the floor and strikes away but lets Danielson get back in like a good monster. Danielson’s strikes don’t get him very far as the fans seem split. The armbar goes on, with Danielson getting to the rope as fast as he can. They head outside again with Danielson getting in a shot of his own, setting up the running knee off the apron. Back in and Danielson starts kicking at the chest, which just fires Suzuki up even more.

The SI stomps set up Cattle Mutilation but Suzuki rolls out, leaving Danielson to unload with strikes in the corner. Suzuki kicks him right back down so this time it’s Danielson pulling himself up to a strong reaction. The Fujiwara armbar has Danielson in trouble but he makes the rope again. That’s not cool with Suzuki but Danielson pulls him into the LeBell Lock. Somehow Suzuki rolls him over into the ropes for the break and they have to pull themselves back up.

Suzuki isn’t even pretending to be scared of Danielson and the big slugout is on. Stereo shots to the face put both of them down to a standing ovation. The delay lets Taz insult any fans who are watching TV at the moment rather than this before they’re back up for another slugout. Suzuki can’t get the sleeper but Danielson can’t get the LeBell Lock again. Back up and the running knee finishes Suzuki at 19:17.

Rating: A-. This was exactly what you would have wanted it to be and it was great stuff. What matters here is having two guys hit each other really hard until one of them couldn’t get up again. That’s all you could have asked for out of the match and Danielson gets a pretty big win over a legend. Suzuki is someone who can take loss after loss and not lose a thing, so this was about as great as it could have been.

Video on CM Punk’s time in AEW so far, because he has that IT factor. Tonight he has Matt Sydal, who is getting this match as a favor from Lio Rush. They know each other well and we see a clip from their first match in 2005, complete with Sydal talking about how Punk followed him to AEW. Everyone knows it’s going to be big, mainly because Punk is going to be involved.

CM Punk vs. Matt Sydal

We open the regular show with an exchange of arm control and an ICE CREAM BARS chant. Punk throws him into the ropes, possibly by the hair, to get out of an armbar and Sydal isn’t pleased. Sydal flips out of a suplex and they’re at another standoff. Punk gets in a slam and the fans chant OTRA VEZ (ONE MORE TIME) but another attempt is countered with a whip into the ropes.

A kick to the face rocks Punk and we hit the chinlock, with Sydal trapping the arms into a cradle for two in a nice move. It’s time to start in on Punk’s knee for kind of a reverse Muta Lock. The GTS and Lightning Spiral are both blocked and Punk gets two off a dropkick. The leg lariat puts Sydal down again but he is back up with a shot to Punk’s face. They head to the apron with Punk hitting a slam to drop Sydal back first for a nasty landing.

Back up and they both go to the top where an exchange of punches send them crashing to the floor. They get back inside, where Sydal hits him in the face for a near fall. Another Lightning Spiral attempt is countered into a neckbreaker to give Punk a breather and they take their time getting up.

Sydal grabs something like a reverse Texas Cloverleaf (like the Billy Goat’s Curse but with a Cloverleaf instead of a Boston crab) before trying to switch to a cobra stretch. That’s reversed into an Anaconda Vice attempt but Sydal is in the ropes in a hurry. A big kick to the head sets up the Lightning Spiral for two and they’re both down off the kickout. Sydal tries a crucifix but Punk counters into the GTS for the pin at 14:48.

Rating: B. This was the kind of match that Punk needs at the moment, as he had to go long to get a good win. It shows that he can still do it against good wrestlers, as Sydal can have a solid match with anyone. It’s easily Sydal’s best match in AEW and Punk broke a serious sweat to get there. Commentary did a nice job throwing in their history with each other to make it even better. Heck of a TV match here.

Respect is shown post match.

The Dark Order is back together and they’re ready for Adam Cole and the Young Bucks.

Bunny vs. Ruby Soho

Ruby goes after the arm to start before getting serious with a knee to the face for one. Bunny avoids a charge in the corner though and hits a dropkick to send Ruby into the buckle for two. Ruby manages to kick her away and goes up, only to get pulled down head first onto the buckle. Bunny’s sliding elbow in the corner rocks Ruby again and we take a break.

Back with Bunny in trouble on the floor thanks to a Downward Spiral. Soho unloads with chops in the corner and pulls her face first into the middle buckle. A running shot to the back of the head gives Ruby two but Bunny is back with a German superplex for two of her own. Down The Rabbit Hole is loaded up but Ruby reverses into a backslide for the pin at 10:43.

Rating: C. Perfectly fine match here with Ruby picking up a win over a high profile enough name. Bunny might not be the best in the ring but she has a presence that makes her feel important. Ruby is still a big deal and looks different enough to stand out, so she should be someone to watch in the TBS Title tournament.

Post match Penelope Ford comes in to help double team Ruby and the brass knuckles knock her silly.

Here’s what’s coming on Dynamite and next week on Rampage.

We get the split screen interview with Dan Lambert and American Top Team being ready to destroy the Inner Circle. The Inner Circle isn’t scared though and promises that Junior Dos Santos’ grandmother can make him a cake.

Inner Circle vs. Men of the Year/Junior Dos Santos

Dan Lambert and Jorge Masvidal are here with Dos Santos and company, with Lambert wanting a lot more respect. Sammy Guevara starts for the Circle and dropkicks Scorpio Sky down, setting up a quick bow. It’s off to Chris Jericho for a clothesline but Dos Santos comes in, with Jericho trying to punch with him for some reason. This goes very badly for Jericho, who is punched out to the floor in a hurry.

Jake Hager comes in for the showdown with Dos Santos taking him into the corner, only to be powered down as well. Dos Santos knees Hager in the face and the beating is on until Hager knees Sky down. The hot tag brings in Jericho, who goes outside to get into Masvidal’s face. The distraction lets Ethan Page get in a cheap shot from behind to take over as we go to a break. Back with Dos Santos powerslamming Jericho for two and handing it off to Page. An enziguri gets Jericho out of trouble and the hot tag brings Guevara back in.

The double springboard cutter drops Sky and there’s a Spanish Fly to Page. Guevara’s running shooting star press gets two on Sky as everything breaks down. The Lionsault gets two on Skyw ith Page making a save. Everyone else goes to the floor with the fans going nuts off….I think a big Guevara dive that the camera missed. Dos Santos gets Rock Bottomed through a table to put him down with Hager still on top of him. Back inside and Jericho gets Sky in the Walls but Paige Vanzant jumps the barricade for a distraction. Masvidal uses the distraction to hit the running knee on Jericho, giving Sky the pin at 11:27.

Rating: B-. Pretty good brawl here with Dos Santos more than hanging in there despite a lack of experience. This feud seems to have a long way to go and it will get better once the rest of the Inner Circle gets involved. Right now they don’t have much to counter all of the MMA guys, but taking it to the streets might work a little better. For now though, this was a nice win for the villains and the feud should be able to continue at a high level.

Post match the big beatdown is on (including Paige Vanzant taking selfies, because she’s an amazingly natural heel) until Santana and Ortiz run in for the save and clear the rung to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Heck of a night here, even with the extra run time. Having this as a one off two hour special was quite good, though I would hope that they don’t think it should be a regular idea. What we got here was mostly rather good, with Danielson vs. Suzuki being exactly the kind of match this audience would want to see. Punk’s match was good and the main event was a nice match and angle rolled into one. Pretty awesome stuff here and hopefully a good amount of people watched the whole thing.

Results
Tay Conti b. Santana Garrett – DDTay
Bobby Fish b. Lee Moriarty – Kick to the head
Bryan Danielson b. Minoru Suzuki – Running knee
CM Punk b. Matt Sydal – GTS
Ruby Soho b. The Bunny – Backslide
Men of the Year/Junior Dos Santos b. Inner Circle – Running knee to Jericho

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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AND

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

Rampage
Date: October 1, 2021
Location: Blue Cross Arena, Rochester, New York
Commentators: Taz, Ricky Starks, Excalibur

It’s time for a special night as we have two big matches on the same show. First of all, we’ll be seeing Bryan Danielson facing Nick Jackson in a match that could be rather interesting. Other than that, Jack Evans is putting his hair on the line against Orange Cassidy, as per Matt Hardy’s orders. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Bryan Danielson vs. Nick Jackson

They start slowly until the threat of some strikes send Danielson outside. Nick spends too much time getting some cold spray that Danielson is right there with the suicide dive. Back in and Danielson takes him down into the surfboard/Dragon Sleeper. Not that it matters as Danielson is right back up with a flip into a rebound clothesline to take over.

A cross armbreaker sends Nick over to the ropes but Danielson is right back on the arm. Danielson suplexes him down to set up a hammerlock, complete with knees to make the arm worse. Back up and Danielson misses the running dropkick in the corner to put him on the floor. Matt Jackson gets in some cheap shots of his own and we take a break. Back with Danielson not being phased by the YES Kicks before firing off his own in the corner.

The moonsault into the running clothesline sets up the big kick to the head for two on Nick. The LeBell Lock is broken up in a hurry so they head to the apron, with Danielson kicking the post by mistake and getting suplexed hard. Nick hits a big flip dive and it’s a Scorpion Deathlock to put Danielson in trouble back inside. With that broken up, Nick hits a superkick but Danielson is back with a tiger suplex. The hard elbows to the face rock Nick again and Cattle Mutilation gives Danielson the win at 15:32.

Rating: B. This worked much better than I would have expected, as Danielson pulled Jackson in and eventually caught him in a hold. You can see a good difference between the two, as Nick is all about hitting whatever he can while Danielson feels more controlled and going with what he’s looking for each time. It made for a good match though and that is one of the reasons you have Danielson on the show.

Post match the Elite comes in for the beatdown but Jurassic Express and Christian Cage come in for the save. Danielson and Jungle Boy make Kenny Omega and Adam Cole tap.

We get a video from Ricky Starks, who is absolute in the fact that he is not scared of Brian Cage. This is reaching Blood Runs Cold levels of GET ON WITH IT ALREADY!

CM Punk talks about how the only reason he beat Will Hobbs is experience. People are starting to get that he is back and people are going to be gunning for him. That’s what he wants, because he would rather choke on greatness than starve on mediocrity. Going to sleep is always on the menu.

Jade Cargill vs. Nyla Rose vs. Thunder Rosa

Rosa kicks Cargill down to start but gets planted by Rose. Cargill makes the save and we get the big power showdown with Rosa being knocked outside. That leaves Rosa to hit a missile dropkick and we take a break. Back with Rosa hitting a running dropkick to Cargill against the ropes, followed by another involving a trashcan. Rose sends Rosa outside and grabs a half crab on Cargill, with Rosa making the save this time. Rosa has to win a fight on the apron and powerbombs Rose off the apron through a table at ringside. Back in and Cargill unloads on Rosa with a chair for the pin at 9:06.

Rating: C. Just a match here and I’m not sure how much it really accomplished. Cargill was able to win a match that went a little longer than usual, but seeing Rosa lose, especially when Rose is right there, isn’t the easiest thing to see. Rosa has been waiting to break through for a long time now and it seems we’ll be waiting even longer. It’s hardly some death sentence, but it’s a bit frustrating.

Malakai Black says the black mist to Cody Rhodes came from the heart. There is more destruction coming for the Nightmare Family.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

We get the face to face interview between Jack Evans/Matt Hardy and Orange Cassidy. Evans is ready to win but Cassidy doesn’t know what a hair vs. hair match is. Once he figures it out, he decides he won’t lose.

Jack Evans vs. Orange Cassidy

Matt Hardy is here with Evans and his distraction lets Evans get in a rollup for two. Cassidy is back with the lazy kicks before spinning Evans around by the hair. Hardy gets in a cheap shot though and Evans adds a spinning kick from the apron. A 450 from the apron crushes Cassidy and we take a break.

Back with Evans countering the tornado DDT into a northern lights suplex. A Michinoku Driver gets two and a standing sky twister press hits Cassidy for the same. Cassidy is right back with the tornado DDT and the top rope DDT gets two more. Cue the Hardy Family Office to even things up but the Dark Order, Chuck Taylor and Wheeler Yuta to cut them off (because Cassidy vs. Evans needed the extras). The Orange Punch finishes Evans at 9:04.

Rating: C. The wrestling wasn’t the point here, but that has never stopped AEW from having WAY too many people come out during a match. Cassidy winning was never in question here and that’s fine, as it is nice to see him in this lower level feud instead of up near the top of the card. This is where he thrives and feels more like a star, so nice job of figuring that out.

Post match Hardy and company leave, so Evans can get his hair cut. Cassidy even sweeps up the hair, which is turned into a mustache for Negative One. The big hug ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This is what I wanted from Rampage: supplementing matches stories that get their main focus on Dynamite and giving other stories more attention than they are going to get on the main show. It made for a very easy to watch hour and that’s how this show should go. Nicely done, and they seem to be figuring out the Rampage formula.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Nick Jackson – Cattle Mutilation
Jade Cargill b. Thunder Rosa and Nyla Rose – Chair shot
Orange Cassidy b. Jack Evans – Orange Punch

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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AND

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Dynamite
Date: September 29, 2021
Location: Blue Cross Arena, Rochester, New York
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, CM Punk

AEW has been on a roll as of late and that means we could be in for something special tonight. I’m not sure what we are going to be seeing here, but it certainly could be a fun night. If nothing else, we’re in Brodie Lee’s hometown and that means we are probably going to be in for some tributes. Let’s get to it.

Here is Rampage if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We open with some BRODIE chants, which are just awesome.

Here’s CM Punk, who will be on commentary tonight but can’t dive into the crowd because of the athletic commission.

Adam Cole vs. Jungle Boy

Feeling out process to start until Boy hits a heck of a chop into a springboard armdrag. A dropkick puts Cole on the floor and let’s take a breather for a bit. Jungle follows him out and Cole kicks him down, setting up a neckbreaker back inside. The chinlock holds Boy in place for a bit but he is right back up with a shot to the face. Jungle hits a brainbuster into a belly to belly into the corner, followed by the rolling German suplexes for two.

Cole rolls his way out of a torture rack for two and hits the brainbuster onto the knee for two of his own. Jungle snaps off a poisonrana into a running forearm to the back of the head, setting up kind of an Angle Slam into a Death Valley Driver for two. Back up and Cole superkicks him out to the floor, leaving Jungle down for a good bit. The Panama Sunrise on the floor is broken up but Jungle’s suicide dive is cut off by an enziguri.

Cole gets back on the apron so Jungle snaps off a running hurricanrana to the floor. Back in and Cole hits another enziguri, setting up the Panama Sunrise…..for two. I’m not sure if someone should be kicking out of that so soon but Cole’s stunned face made it a little better. Jungle pulls him into the Snare Trap but Cole slips out and kicks him outside. Back in and a low blow cuts Jungle down, leaving Cole to hit the Boom for the pin at 13:45.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a back and forth match, which is something that you can always go for around here. It was a lot of dives and flips and kicks to the face, but at least they were putting on an entertaining match. Jungle losing again isn’t my favorite thing, but at least it was to someone like Cole, who is being pushed as a major star.

Post break here is the Elite and after a break, Karl Anderson talks about how great the Elite is, including introducing most of the team. Anderson: “And of course Nak and Cutler.” Cole talks about how he beat Jungle Boy on his own, because Bay Bay is elite and undefeated. The fans chant for Punk, who has not had the nicest things to say about the Elite so far.

Kenny Omega talks about how his social media has been blowing up over his match with Bryan Danielson last week. Last week might have been the greatest match in AEW history and he isn’t surprised. Danielson cashed in on his promise to kick Omega’s head in but he couldn’t make it work when it counted. Since Danielson has no record though, he isn’t getting a rematch and he’ll never see Omega face to face again.

Cue Danielson to refer to the champ as Kenny “NO BALLS” Omega. Punk: “Well that’s a t-shirt.” Danielson issues the challenge to face any member of the Elite on Rampage but gets no takers. Instead, Omega wants to fight right now but Danielson calls out the reinforcements from the back and gets Frankie Kazarian, Christian Cage and Jurassic Express. The Elite bails from the fight of course.

Andrade interrupts the Lucha Bros and says they haven’t defended their AAA Tag Team Titles in a long time. He has some friends if they’re up for a defense, and the Bros seem down.

Matt Sydal/Dante Martin vs. Cody Rhodes/Lee Johnson

Cody headlocks Sydal to start and gets nowhere with it. Instead it’s off to Sydal to headlock takeover Johnson, setting up a kick to the back. It’s back to Martin to stare Johnson face to face and we take a break. Back with Cody getting the hot tag to clean house as commentary talks about how the fans aren’t thrilled with Cody these days. Everything breaks down as Johnson and Sydal fight outside.

Martin missile dropkicks Cody for two and a double jump moonsault is good for the same. Johnson tags himself back in and gets kicked in the face by Sydal. That doesn’t seem to matter as Johnson kicks Sydal in the face, only to get rolled up by Martin for two more. Another superkick rocks Martin though and a fisherman’s buster onto the knee finishes for Johnson at 7:45.

Rating: C+. They kept this moving and that was a good thing. Sometimes you don’t need a match to keep going forever and that was the case here. Good little match, with Johnson getting to shine a bit and the fans’ displeasure with Cody being highlighted for a change. That’s interesting, and it’s a smart path to take, even if it takes some time.

Post match Cody calls out Malakai Black but Arn Anderson tells him to shut up. Anderson talks about how Black has destroyed everything they love and Cody is missing the point. Black is an assassin who will take out everyone to win a match. Cody is the kind of person who would give up his car if someone tried to steal it but Anderson would shoot them in the head. He isn’t going to coach a loser, so Johnson can leave with him.

Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston/Darby Allin vs. Bear Country/Anthony Greene

Sting is here with Darby and company and it’s a brawl to start, with Allin and Greene being left alone in the ring. That’s fine with Allin, who gets two off of la majistral. An armdrag sends Greene down and we get a Ricky Steamboat reference. We settle down to Bear Country beating up Moxley but Kingston breaks up the double splash. The spinning backfist sets up a German suplex and the brawl heads to the floor. That leaves Greene alone with Moxley and Kingston, who shrug off a springboard spinning high crossbody attempt. The German suplex/lariat combination finishes Greene at 3:30.

Rating: C-. Mostly a squash here and that’s all it needed to be. Sometimes your best bet is to get people on there on screen and let them do their thing, which is exactly what they did here. It wasn’t a great match or anything, but it can be a good idea to let big stars feel like big stars. Nice job, even if it was hardly a classic.

Post match Sting lays Greene out for a bonus.

Video on Ruby Soho vs. Britt Baker, with Soho promising to take the title.

Dark Order/Orange Cassidy vs. Hardy Family Office

Negative 1 is here with the team because AEW likes making its fans emotional. This is a sixteen man tag to make things a bit complicated and the Dark Order is already fighting among themselves. Alan Angels loses his mask and it’s a suplex/top rope spear combination from Butcher and Blade for two. Private Party comes in to work on on Angels as we get a THANK YOU BRODIE chant.

Everything breaks down though and we take a break. Back with Jack Evans (Flippy McGillicutty according to Punk) coming in to pick up the pace until Evil Uno kicks him in the face. Alex Reynolds gets sent into Uno as the issues continue, so Cassidy comes in for the top rope thumbs up splash. Uno walks out on the match so some more of the Order goes to talk to him.

Evans flips over into a backslide for two on Cassidy as everything breaks down again. Uno keeps walking but cue Negative 1 and Amanda Huber (Brodie’s widow) with 1 throwing the papers and Amanda telling the team to get it together. The Order charges the ring and cleans house, with the parade of secondary finishers. A series of strikes sets up a German suplex and the Fatality is good for the pin at 7:51.

Rating: A. This was all about the emotions and they nailed that on every level. I wasn’t a big Lee fan but I was smiling throughout the entire thing, which is all it needed to be. Outstanding stuff here, with the Dark Order reunion bringing all the feelings. I loved this and they did exactly what they were trying to do.

Post match the Dark Order gets back together and it’s about as cool as you can get.

Lio Rush is All Elite. Rush? Not actually retiring? I’m as stunned as you are.

FTR and Tully Blanchard are ready to show that they’re the best again. Top guys out.

Here are Dan Lambert and the Men of the Year to talk about how Chris Jericho got kneed in the face by UFC’s Jorge Mazvidal last week. The thing is, Jericho saved this promotion from itself and turned it into the hottest promotion anyone has seen in years. Then Jericho came after them and got beaten down like never before, leaving his earning potential the same as everyone here: zero. Now they have cut the head off of AEW and Tony Khan-man will have more trouble selling snake oil.

Scorpio Sky talks about how he was a star around here at the beginning and then he grabbed the giant Sonic ring, but it wasn’t good enough. No one around here was paying attention, but Dan Lambert was watching. Lambert sees him as a main eventer, just like Ethan Page. That sends Page into a rant about how great he is at everything but he can’t get an action figure or a spot in the opening video. He has the best smile around here and now he rolls with champions, because the Men of the Year are the Top Team.

Hikaru Shida is ready to get her 50th win in AEW, but she has to beat Serena Deeb next week on Dynamite’s second anniversary show.

Penelope Ford/The Bunny vs. Tay Conti/Anna Jay

It’s a brawl to start with the villains being sent into the corner. Tay tries to jump to the apron but falls down and comes up holding her knee. Ford kicks Anna into a neck snap from Bunny before dropping a knee. We take a break and come back with Ford and Conti coming in off the double tag. A double suplex gets two on Ford but she Matrixes away from a clothesline and hits a Stunner on Jay. Ford’s fireman’s carry gutbuster gets two but she misses a moonsault. The TayKO knocks Bunny silly on the floor and the Dangerous Jay kick sets up the Queenslayer to finish Ford at 6:31.

Rating: C. This should be the end of the feud and that’s how it should have gone. Conti and Jay are a good team for the young and plucky faces and that’s what they did here. Ford and Bunny were a good obstacle for them to get by and it wound up being a completely watchable match as well.

Post match Negative 1 comes in to celebrate. Punk: “He’s a smart kid.”

Video on Thunder Rosa vs. Nyla Rose vs. Jade Cargill on Rampage.

Here is MJF for a chat. MJF doesn’t think much of upstate New York and wants to talk about the four pillars of AEW. You have Jungle Boy (“Beat him.”), Sammy Guevara (“Beat him.), Darby Allin (“…..yeah whatever.”) and the strongest pillar of them all, which is the man who was in the first match at All In, Maxwell Jacob Friedman himself. He is the past, present and future of AEW and that means he should be the AEW World Champion. Tony: “Earn that in the ring then dude.” MJF teases talking to Bruce Prichard if he doesn’t get a title shot, but here is Allin to interrupt.

MJF: “As much as I love the whole school shooter mime on a skateboard routine”, he’s not happy with the interruption. There is nothing wrong with being a #2 guy, like Mark Messier, Scottie Pippen, or Sting. MJF says he’s the #1 guy, so Allin asks if MJF is done talking and tells him to go if he isn’t happy. See, Allin is AEW for life until death, but he doesn’t understand how MJF can be #1 when Allin is the only one of the two of them to win a title.

MJF appreciates the Batman voice and brings up Allin being straightedge. We hear about Allin getting in a car with his drunk uncle as a kid and they got in an accident. The uncle died, and it’s a travesty because the wrong man died. Allin says MJF isn’t breaking him mentally, which sends MJF leaving. MJF was on fire here, even if he was going really far with some of these things.

Video on Sammy Guevara vs. Miro, which is fallout from Miro beating Fuego del Sol up to take his car. Guevara will buy him a new car if he wins.

TNT Title: Miro vs. Sammy Guevara

Guevara is challenging and they circle each other to start. A knee strike misses for Guevara and Miro takes him down for the stomping. Miro runs him over for two but Guevara is back up with a running crossbody to knock both of them outside. Guevara posts him hard and avoids a charge into the steps but Miro is fine enough to snap off a belly to belly back inside.

We take a break and come back with Guevara jawbreaking his way to freedom from a chinlock but Miro kicks him down again. That earns Miro a Spanish Fly and they’re both down for a bit. There’s a low superkick to rock Miro and a running knee does the same. Miro’s missed charge sends him flying out to the floor so Guevara hits a HUGE flip dive to the floor. Back in and Guevara charges into a swinging release slam for two but Guevara blocks a superplex attempt.

A middle rope cutter can’t keep Miro down and Guevara can’t load up the GTS. The jumping superkick gives Miro two so Guevara rolls outside. That leaves Miro to pull off a turnbuckle pad, which brings out Fuego for a save. Guevara is back in with a jumping knee to send Miro into the exposed buckle. There’s a tornado DDT into the GTH to drop Miro. The 630 gives Guevara the pin and the title at 13:42.

Rating: B. The best way I can describe this match is that it was a ride. I wanted to see if Guevara could pull off the impossible here and win the title and you could feel the release of emotion when he actually pulled it off. It didn’t feel like they rushed the title change either, and it would be fine if Miro gets the title back. If nothing else, they gave Guevara his big win and that’s what matters most here.

A bunch of wrestlers come out to celebrate with Guevara to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. I had a great time with this show as they were focusing on the emotions. This was about having a good time in front of a crowd that wanted to be entertained. Throw in some things being announced for the anniversary show and the big title change at the end and this was a heck of a way to spend two hours. Awesome show and things might be getting better soon.

Results
Adam Cole b. Jungle Boy – Boom
Cody Rhodes/Lee Johnson b. Dante Martin/Matt Sydal – Fisherman’s buster onto the knee
Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston/Darby Allin b. Bear Country/Anthony Greene – German suplex/clothesline combination to Greene
Dark Order/Orange Cassidy b. Hardy Family Office – Fatality to Johi
Tay Conti/Anna Jay b. The Bunny/Penelope Ford – Queenslayer to Ford
Sammy Guevara b. Miro – 630

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: September 24, 2021
Location: Arthur Ashe Tennis Stadium, New York City, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Ricky Starks

It’s the second half of AEW’s New York Adventures and that’s not a bad thing. This week’s Dynamite was huge and this is the biggest Rampage to date, clocking in at two hours instead of the usual one. I’m not sure what that is going to mean, but odds are it’s going to be fun. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Powerhouse Hobbs

Hook is here with Hobbs. Punk, in trunks for a change, goes after Hobbs to start but a single shot sends him down on the ropes. Hobbs plants him down and we hit the neck crank to keep Punk in trouble. Punk’s comeback includes a knee to the ribs but Hobbs runs him over again and seems to be toying with him so far. A running crotch attack on the ropes hits Punk and we take an early break.

Back with Punk fighting out of a bearhug and striking away, including a running shot to the face to put Hobbs down. The top rope elbow gets two (and has Team Taz freaking out on commentary) but the GTS is countered. Hobbs plants him with a spinebuster for two more and then drops Punk again to cut off a comeback.

The Oakland Stampede gives Hobbs two more but Punk catches him top top. A super hurricanrana gives Punk two off the big crash. Punk’s cross armbreaker is countered into a powerbomb and it’s time to slug it out. Hook gets up for a distraction but Punk sends Hobbs into him, setting up the GTS for the pin at 13:35.

Rating: C+. Hobbs got a lot in this and that’s the reason you put him in there with someone like Punk. They had a good fight here and Punk survived, likely setting up the big match with Ricky Starks down the line. The Team Taz feud gives Punk a chance to shake off some rust and that’s the right idea, without burning through some big matches.

Thunder Rosa isn’t scared of Jade Cargill or Nyla Rose and fights on her own.

Superkliq vs. Christian Cage/Jurassic Express

Don Callis is on commentary and a lot of the Elite is here too. Christian takes Matt down to start as Callis takes shots at the “Stanford Supermax.” Matt comes in and gets taken down as well with Jungle Boy adding the running kick to the face. Cole runs away from Jungle but the Bucks take over on Jungle’s arm. Everything breaks down and the chase is on outside, with Jungle charging into a double superkick. Jungle is brought back inside for a double dropkick and we take a break.

Back with Jungle not being able to get away for the hot tag until he sends the Bucks into each other. That’s enough for the hot tag off to Luchasaurus to clean house, including the big Tail Whip. Matt head fakes Jungle to plant him with a DDT but More Bang For Your Buck is broken up. The Snare Trap has Matt in trouble until a save is made.

A running clothesline drops Matt and everything breaks down again. The brawl heads to the ramp, where Matt hits Christian low and throws him off the stage. That leaves Cole to hit a Shining Wizard on Luchasaurus, followed by the Panama Sunrise. The Bucks are back in for the BTE Trigger into the Boom (Last Shot) for the pin at 14:38.

Rating: B-. This was the all action match that it should have been and Cole getting the pin is the right way to go. As little as I need to see a subset in the Elite, Cole getting pushed is the right idea for now. He has the spark at the moment and it makes sense to go with him. It’s not like the Bucks need to win anything right now anyway.

Men of the Year vs. Chris Jericho/Jake Hager

Dan Lambert is here with the Men of the Year. Jericho and Sky start things off but it’s quickly off to Hager to pummel Page in the corner. Like a good veteran, Jericho gets in some choking in the corner, allowing Hager to get one off a belly to belly. Jericho comes back in but gets taken into the wrong corner as we go to a break.

Back with Hager in trouble for a change but he manages a running shot to the face to get a breather. The hot tag brings in Jericho to face Sky, plus a triangle dropkick to Page. The top rope ax handle drops Sky and the Lionsault is good for two. Everything breaks down and it’s an ankle lock to Page and the Walls to Sky as we take a break…and come back a second later to officially start the second hour. Both holds are broken and Jericho slingshot dives onto Page. Lambert trips Hager though and Sky grabs a small package for the pin at 11:01.

Rating: C+. Another perfectly fine match as Lambert and company get to run their mouths some more. That’s why you have someone like him around and it should work out when someone finally shuts him up. The Men of the Year aren’t the most thrilling team, but at least they’re getting to do something else.

Post match Jericho and Hager go after Lambert but a bunch of MMA guys come out to surround the ring. The big beatdown is on, including Paige VanZandt getting in some shots to Jericho’s ribs. A running knee leaves Jericho laying.

Lucha Bros/Santana/Ortiz vs. Hardy Family Office

Butcher and the Blade/Private Party for the Office here as this company continues to love itself some tag matches. The good guys start fast and send the Office outside for the huge quadruple dive (that was awesome). Back in and it’s another big brawl with the Office taking over for a change. Matt Hardy loads up some scissors but here is Orange Cassidy to cut things off.

Cassidy takes out Jack Evans and we take a break. Back with Fenix handing it off to Ortiz to clean house. Penta hits a torture rack backbreaker onto Quen and kicks Butcher in the leg for a bonus. Back in and Fenix kicks Butcher in the face but Blade kicks him in the face to even things up. Quen misses his shooting star though and Penta hits the Sling Blade. The spike Fear Factor hits Quen and the Street Sweeper is enough for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: B-. What we got was fun and there were all kinds of high spots, with that four way dive looking great. You don’t watch a match like this to have people stand out and there is nothing wrong with that. Santana and Ortiz getting the hometown win is a good thing, though the show is running very heavy on tags so far.

Matt Hardy isn’t happy with Orange Cassidy and he’s going to watch Penelope Ford beat Anna Jay to make himself feel better. As for Cassidy though, he’s issuing the challenge for a hair vs. hair match. If Cassidy has the guts, he can put his hair on the line against….Jack Evans. Matt to Evans: “YOU BETTER WIN!”

Sammy Guevara and Fuego del Sol come out for Sammy’s cue card deal but Miro jumps both of them and the beatdown is on. Fuego is tossed HARD off the stage and Game Over leaves Sammy down.

Andrade doesn’t like someone interfering in his matches like Chavo Guerrero did. Now he wants to beat Pac with no interference.

Anna Jay vs. Penelope Ford

Jay jumps her on the ramp to start fast and the low bridges Ford outside. Back in and a hook kick drops Ford and sets up a choke but here is the Bunny for a distraction. Ford drapes her over the top and kicks her out to the ramp as the beating begins. We take a break and come back with a slugout but the Bunny throws in the brass knuckles to knock Jay out for the pin at 6:48.

Rating: C-. This was a quick one and it didn’t get to showcase much. Jay continues to feel like a star but this is mainly going to be about Tay Conti at the end of the day. They’re a good team together and have done rather well so far. I could see either of them getting a nice push out of this feud, once they get to the big blowoff tag match.

Post match the beatdown is on so here is Tay Conti for the save, only to get dropped with the knuckles as well. The Hardy Family Office comes out to stand tall but here are Orange Cassidy and Kris Statlander, with the Dark Order joining them, giving us about fifteen people in one segment. The Dark Order clears the ring but Stu Grayson and Evil Uno walk away.

We get the face to face showdown between Lance Archer/Minoru Suzuki and Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston. They want to fight so Mark Henry hits the catchphrase to get us out in a hurry.

Lance Archer/Minoru Suzuki vs. Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston

Lights out, meaning anything goes. Suzuki and Archer jump them to start with Suzuki and Moxley having their chair duel on the ramp. With that broken up, Suzuki and Kingston go inside to chop it out, with Suzuki laughing a lot. Kingston sweeps the leg and grabs a table. That goes badly as Suzuki kicks Kingston through the table in the corner but Moxley is back in to forearm Archer.

That’s broken up and Archer chokeslams Moxley off the apron onto a pile of people outside. It doesn’t last long as Moxley and Suzuki slug it out inside until Archer puts a belt around Moxley’s throat for a hanging. We take a break and come back with Moxley’s hands duct taped behind his back so Archer can get in another whip with the belt. Suzuki grabs a half crab but legs it go for no apparent reason. Archer holds Moxley in place so Suzuki can hit/bite him.

Moxley avoids a charge in the corner though and Kingston, with his left arm hanging, comes in to clean house. A poke to the eye sets up some machine gun chops to stagger Archer in the corner. That’s broken up and some chairs are set back to back. Archer loads up the Blackout but here is Homicide of all people to clean house with a chair. Some spinning backfists and the Paradigm Shift from a freed Moxley put Archer down, but Kingston puts him in a trashcan instead of covering. A bunch of kendo stick shots to the trashcan knock Archer silly for the pin at 15:10.

Rating: C. I couldn’t get into this one as it felt like a long segment at times, especially with the Moxley beating going on for the better part of ever. It also doesn’t exactly make Moxley and Kingston look that great to need someone to come in and save them, but that was more for the live crowd than anything else. Pretty good brawl, but it wasn’t exactly anything that kept my interest.

The long celebration ends the show.

Overall Rating: C+. There were a crazy amount of people on this show and a lot of tag matches, but it felt like a special show instead of another run of the mill edition. Nothing was bad and the big Punk match felt like it mattered. As long as this is a one off two hour edition, they’re going to be fine, as this was basically Dynamite II for the week. It absolutely does not need to be this long every week, but for a one time special, it worked well enough.

Results
CM Punk b. Powerhouse Hobbs – GTS
Superkliq b. Christian Cage/Jurassic Express – Boom to Luchasaurus
Men of the Year b. Chris Jericho/Jake Hager – Small package to Hager
Santana/Ortiz/Lucha Bros b. Hardy Family Office – Street Sweeper to Marq Quen
Penelope Ford b. Anna Jay – Brass knuckles
Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston b. Minoru Suzuki/Lance Archer – Kendo stick to Archer

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews 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.