Double Or Nothing 2021
Date: May 30, 2021
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross, Excalibur

We return to pay per view and that is a nice feeling to have. The card is absolutely stacked and one of the biggest that AEW has had in recent or even long term memory. Possibly the most important story here is the fact that the fans are back in full capacity, meaning it will be even more energized than usual. Let’s get to it.

Buy-In Show: NWA Women’s Title: Riho vs. Serena Deeb

Deeb is defending and cranks on a headlock to start. That doesn’t last long as Riho bridges up and offers a handshake. Deeb slaps her in the face instead so Riho knocks her into the corner, setting up a high crossbody. Back up and the Serenity Lock is blocked so Deeb dragon screw legwhips her into the corner. The leg cranking begins before Deeb is sent out to the apron.

Riho charges into a choke, setting up an inverted Gory Special for a pretty cool visual. With that broken up, Riho knocks her off the top to set up a top rope double stomp. The leg is too banged up to cover so Riho grabs a headscissors into a 619 for two. Riho drapes her over the middle rope but the top rope stomp only hits apron.

Deeb is right back with a powerbomb for two but the Deebtox is countered with a backdrop. Riho snaps off a dragon suplex and hits another double stomp for two. A half crab has Riho in more trouble but she makes the rope. That’s enough for Deeb, who snaps off another dragon screw legwhip and grabs the Serenity Lock for the tap to retain at 14:03.

Rating: B. This was a very high energy opener and, in case they weren’t fired up enough already, got the crowd even more into things. Deeb felt like she was tested here and that’s how a hot title defense should feel. Riho losing isn’t going to hurt her and it does a lot for Riho, so well done all around with a heck of a warm up match.

Jim Ross gets his big introduction.

Hangman Page vs. Brian Cage

Taz is on commentary and Cage has I believe Terminator inspired gear. Page charges right at him to start hammering away but gets shoved off with raw power. What looked like a powerbomb is broken up and Page slugs away again, with Cage bailing to the floor. This time Page is right there with a big dive but Cage powerbombs him into the post.

Back in and a jumping knee rocks Page again and there’s a hard whip into the corner. A crucifix bomb gets two on Page but he ducks a clothesline. Page Cactus Clotheslines him out to the floor and pops back up for a middle rope moonsault to hit Cage again. Back in and Page snaps off a top rope hurricanrana for two but a superbomb is blocked.

A discus forearm gets two on Cage but Deadeye is countered as well. Cage puts him in a fireman’s carry and flips him into a hot shot (with one arm, because of course), setting up a superplex onto the apron. Back in and Cage tries his own Buckshot Lariat but slips a bit, allowing Page to hit an F5. The real Buckshot is countered into a German suplex and a discus lariat blasts Page again. A helicopter bomb gives Cage two and here is Team Taz. Hook distracts the referee so Ricky Starks can slide in the FTW Title. Cage tosses it right back and the Buckshot Lariat finishes Cage at 12:07.

Rating: B. This was a white hot opener as you had two guys in there giving it everything they had for a long time. Page is starting to have his head back on straight and if they keep going with this version for him, he’ll be the kind of challenger who could give Kenny Omega a lot of trouble. Cage having issues with Team Taz is interesting too, as a face Cage looks like a total monster. The crowd helped elevate this one too and it was an outstanding way to open things up.

Post match an annoyed Cage walks away from Team Taz.

We run down the rest of the card.

We recap the Young Bucks vs. Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston. The Bucks have sided with Kenny Omega so Kingston and Moxley have come after them. This includes breaking a bunch of the Bucks’ stuff and stealing their shoes so it’s time for a title match.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston

Kingston/Moxley are challenging and we get the full Major League Wild Thing intro through the crowd. Don Callis is here with the champs and joins commentary as is his custom. Believe it or not, it’s a brawl to start and they fight into the crowd with the Bucks being sent into a variety of hard objects. Cue Brandon Cutler with the cold spray to Nick, earning himself a clothesline/German suplex combination.

Nick comes back in to jump Kingston and the opening bell rings. Kingston backdrops Nick and a double clothesline puts him down again. Moxley comes in so Matt yells, allowing Moxley to do the fake tag to another big reaction. Kingston STO’s Nick for two but a Matt distraction allows a poke to the eye. Matt dropkicks Moxley through the ropes and it’s a Cannonball/enziguri combination to Kingston. A double back elbow lets Nick do the Macho Man finger point but Kingston catches him in a hot shot.

Matt sends Moxley into the barricade and some running clotheslines have Kingston knocked into the corner. Ten right hands go down but Kingston is back with an exploder suplex. That’s enough for the hot tag off to Moxley and house is cleaned, including a piledriver for two on Nick. Nick has to break up a bulldog choke as everything breaks down again. Cue the Good Brothers but Kingston takes down Doc Gallows and Frankie Kazarian jumps Karl Anderson.

Matt uses the distraction to take down Moxley with a can of cold spray to the head for two. Moxley is busted open and an Indytaker on the ramp knocks him silly again. Back in and Moxley gets kicked down as JR wants to know where the doctor is to look at the cut. The Bucks go Ax and Smash to demolish Moxley, who counters an attempt at a Shield powerbomb. Moxley hammers away and the hot tag brings in Kingston to clean house. Nick’s right hands to Kingston just make him glare back and knock him down without much trouble.

A shot to the knee works a bit better on Kingston and an assisted Sliced Bread gets two. Kingston fights over and makes the hot tag to Moxley, who is immediately superkicked down. A 450 gets two but Kingston is back in with one of the Bucks’ expensive shoes. The referee yells at Matt and it’s a Doomsday Device to Nick. The Paradigm Shift to Matt is countered into a Sharpshooter but that’s broken up as well.

Now the Paradigm Shift can connect with Nick making another diving save. Another double superkick to Moxley sends him into the ropes but he comes back with the double clothesline. The double superkick connects for two and a pair of superkicks (one to the knee and one to the face) drops Kingston. Back to back to back to back BTE Triggers drop Moxley to retain the titles at 21:09.

Rating: B. The energy stayed high here and the Young Bucks got to do their video game/all of the other wrestlers’ spots. That does work well now that they are full on heels, as you do want to see them get their heads knocked off. I’m not sure if I should be surprised by the result, but this very well might mean every champion on the roster is a villain, which is a little weird to see. Anyway, another awesome match to keep up the trend tonight.

Commentary goes over some substitutes in the Casino Battle Royal (QT Marshall/Blade out, Aaron Solow/Serpentico in) due to injuries.

Paul Wight comes out for commentary.

Casino Battle Royal

There are 21 entrants with four groups of five (designated by suits). One group enters every three minutes and then the Joker completes the field, with the winner getting a future World Title match. First up are the Clubs, with Christian Cage, Matt Sydal, Powerhouse Hobbs, Dustin Rhodes and Max Caster (who raps about some of the Clubs, including saying Cage hasn’t been cool since he had an edge).

The eliminations are teased to start with Caster saving himself. Sydal is tossed and Caster follows him out until the Diamonds come in. That would be Isaiah Kassidy, Matt Hardy, 10, Nick Commorado and Serpentico, with Kassidy and Hardy failing to jump 10 during his entrance. 10 comes in and starts wrecking people, including tossing Serpentico. Commorado runs 10 over but can only get him to the apron, allowing Dustin to toss both of them at once.

Hold on though as Commorado hits Dustin with the cowbell so Hobbs can get the elimination. Christian hits the Killswitch on Hobbs and we get the Christian vs. Hardy showdown. Here are the Hearts (Brian Pillman Jr., Griff Garrison, Colt Cabana, Anthony Bowens and Penta El Zero Miedo) are in with the Varsity Blondes getting to go nuts for a bit to a nice reaction.

Penta gets to clean house and Kassidy gets rid of Cabana. The Blondes toss Bowens and Hardy punches Garrison out as well. Commentary tries to figure out if Hobbs is still in (he seems to be) as it’s kind of hard to keep track of where everyone is given that some of them are on the floor. Pillman gets a rather strong response until the Spades (Jungle Boy, Marq Quen, Aaron Solow, Evil Uno and Lee Johnson) with Boy getting the big musical entrance….and Penta takes him down in a hurry.

Private Party gets rid of Pillman (in a rather lame exit after the reaction) and Johnson eliminates Solow, only to get taken out by Hardy. Penta kicks Uno out but gets taken out by Boy as Hobbs and Christian get back in. Hobbs misses a charge at Christian in the corner and gets tossed for a big elimination. Matt and Private Party stare down Boy and Christian and start the beatdown until…..Lio Rush is the Joker. That gives us a final grouping of Lio Rush, Matt Hardy, Isaiah Kassidy, Marq Quen, Christian Cage and Jungle Boy.

Rush gets to clean house but the springboard Stunner doesn’t quite work on Hardy. Everyone but Rush is knocked down so he goes after Private Party, who fight off an elimination with the Silly String. Rush tries to break that up but gets eliminated by Hardy in the process. Boy and Christian get back up to eliminate Quen and Kassidy, leaving us with the two of them and Hardy.

Matt tries to team up with Christian and gets eliminated as well, meaning we’re down to two. Boy manages to get underneath Christian but can’t quite get him out. Instead Boy is sent to the apron but pulls Christian out with him. A pendulum kick rocks Christian but he shoves Boy into the post….which Boy swings around and gets back in to kick Christian out for the win at 22:32.

Rating: C. I didn’t see this one coming but well done on the surprise winner. Boy is someone who has seemed ready to break through for a good while so it was great to see him doing something like this. They pulled the trigger here and while I’m not exactly buying Boy’s chances in the title match, it was a smart move here. Not much in the way of a battle royal leading up to it as the grouped entrances are still a little weird, but the ending worked.

Post match the rest of Jurassic Express comes out to celebrate with Boy and Christian shows respect.

Some soldiers who train dogs for former soldiers are here for a nice presentation.

We get a rather over the top video on the wonders of America, including quotes from generals and Presidents about how great of a country it is.

Anthony Ogogo vs. Cody Rhodes

QT Marshall and Arn Anderson are here too. Cody has new gear and hands his American weightlifting belt to a fan. Ogogo doesn’t waste time in hitting the body shot and grabs an Olympic Slam for two. Cody is right back with the powerslam but the ribs give out on the landing. Some knees to Ogogo’s also injured ribs and Cody goes American (Dragon) with Cattle Mutilation.

That’s broken up and Ogogo snaps off a German suplex for two. A running uppercut gets the same and Marshall adds a cheap shot for another near fall. Ogogo misses a running elbow but is fine enough to nail a spinebuster. Cody gets in a kick to the face though and Ogogo’s eye is busted open.

The Cody Cutter connects but Ogogo punches him off the top for the crash. Ogogo hits a frog splash for a delayed two but Cody is right back with a dropkick. The Figure Four goes on so Ogogo punches him in the face for two (while still in the hold). Cross Rhodes is broken up and a pair of right hands knock Cody down, though his hand is under the rope. The pop up right hand is countered though and Cody hits a Vertebreaker for the pin at 10:32.

Rating: C. Ogogo over performed but Cody winning was about the only possible outcome. They weren’t going to build him up as the American Dream for one night only and then have him lose the showdown. The American vs. England deal was pretty ridiculous and while Ogogo winning would have been too far, he shouldn’t have lost either. At least Cody’s all American gear was so over the top that it was goofy fun.

TNT Title: Miro vs. Lance Archer

Archer is challenging and there is no Jake Roberts thanks to Miro taking him out earlier this weekend. Rather than waiting around, Archer dives onto Miro on the ramp and the beating is on in a hurry. Old School gets two on Miro and they head outside with Archer spinebustering him through a table. Miro is back up and suplexes him over the barricade onto some fans.

Another toss sends Archer back to ringside and they head back inside. A crossbody runs Miro over but he nails a spinwheel kick. Miro kicks him in the chest but Archer is back up to plant him down for two. Archer misses the moonsault though and Miro kicks him in the head for another near fall.

Cue Jake Roberts with the snake bag but Miro kicks him down as well…..and throws the snake bag out to the floor. Archer cuts off a superkick to Jake with a chokeslam for two but Everybody Dies is broken up. Miro gets Pounced to the floor, only to get in a kick to the ropes for the low blow on the way back in. The jumping superkick sets up Game Over to retain the title at 10:46.

Rating: B-. It was a hoss fight, but I was expecting a bit more from these two. They beat each other up rather well and while the result wasn’t quite in doubt, it was a fun match. Maybe it was a bit too much waiting between spots or the Roberts stuff, but it was just a bit lacking given the hype they had set up.

All Out is in Chicago on September 5.

Women’s Title: Britt Baker vs. Hikaru Shida

Baker, with Rebel, is challenging. A very early Lockjaw attempt doesn’t work but neither does Shida’s knee to the face. They go to the mat with Shida grabbing a bodyscissors but Baker is back up with a hammerlock. Shida sends her into the corner to take it outside, setting up a high crossbody to take out Baker and Rebel. Back in and the running knee is countered with a kick to the face an Shida is in trouble for a change.

Lockjaw is blocked again so Baker grabs a suplex for two. Shida is right back with a bunch of strikes, including three straight running knees in the corner. A suplex of her own gives Shida two and an enziguri rocks Baker again. Baker is right back with a fisherman’s neckbreaker for two but Shida grabs a Stretch Muffler to send her to the ropes. Back up and Baker hits a Sling Blade into an Air Raid Crash for two.

Lockjaw is loaded up again but Baker kicks herself off the rope, allowing Shida to escape. A German suplex drops Baker and Shida takes her up top for a fireman’s carry but Baker slips off in a weird looking landing. Instead, Shida hits a superplex for two and the Stretch Muffler goes on again.

Rebel jumps up to the apron for a distraction but accidentally hits Baker to give Shida two. The Falcon Arrow gives Shida two so Rebel gets on the apron again, this time allowing Baker to hit a superkick. A Stomp onto the belt gets a very close two but Shida is back with the jumping knee. The running knee gets two but Baker crucifixes her into Lockjaw for the tap and the title at 16:22.

Rating: B. They did something impressive here by making me believe that Shida might sneak away with the title despite there being no reason to think that would be the case. Baker’s win is long, long overdue and it is great to see her finally get the championship. The fans LOVED her here and it makes all the sense in the world to do the title change. There is a good chance she is going to be turned by crowd reaction alone, though I don’t know how beneficial that would be. Still though, heck of a back and forth match with the only possible ending.

Tony Schiavone leaves commentary to hug Baker in a great moment.

Sting/Darby Allin vs. Ethan Page/Scorpio Sky

Sting and Allin get a special entrance video featuring them driving through the desert. Sting: “It’s showtime.” It’s a brawl to start before the match with Sky and Sting fighting up to the stage. Sky plants Sting down but Sting pops back up to send Sky down to ringside. That means Sting can hit the big dive onto both villains (because of course he can do that) and they head inside for the bell.

Allin starts in on Sky’s arm but Page breaks up a springboard to put Allin in trouble for the first time. Sky hits a backbreaker so Allin cranks on the wrist, only to get knocked right back down. Allin manages to flip out of a belly to back suplex and makes the hot tag to Sting…but the referee doesn’t see it. With Allin still banged up, Page LAUNCHES him from the ring over the barricade and onto Allin’s family in the big crash. Somehow Allin dives in to beat the count at nine and a choke has Page in trouble. Page drives him into the corner for the break so Allin is right back with the flipping Stunner.

NOW the hot tag brings Sting back in and it’s back to back Stinger Splashes. Something like a Code Red out of the corner gets two on Page so it’s back to Allin, who gets crotched on top. Page slams Allin down onto Sting but Sting sweeps the legs and puts on the Scorpion. That doesn’t count because Sting isn’t legal so Allin adds the Fujiwara armbar. Sky grabs a heel hook on Allin, so he and Page slap it out while both are in holds.

With that broken up, the double tag brings in Sting and Sky, with JR pointing out the similar motifs. Sting gets fired up but misses the Stinger Splash (with Sky having already made it to the apron before he even jumped). Not that it matters as Sting counters the slingshot cutter into the Death Drop finishes Sky at 14:05.

Rating: C. I love Sting but this is the second match in a row where he has beaten a team with some potential. I’m not sure when Sting is going to take a loss, but having Sky and Page lose here didn’t feel right. The match wasn’t exactly great either, though Sting did look a heck of a lot better than he did in any of his WWE matches. It’s still amazing to see how much they botched Sting, but he had a much better outing here.

We recap the World Title match with Kenny Omega defending the World Title against Pac and Orange Cassidy. After Excalibur explains the winning multiple World Titles in wrestling is like winning Olympic medals in multiple sports, we look at Pac and Cassidy going to a draw to become co-#1 contenders. Omega has tried to get Cassidy out of the match but the triple threat is on.

AEW World Title: Kenny Omega vs. Pac vs. Orange Cassidy

Omega is defending and Don Callis is on commentary again. Pac starts fast and Cassidy is knocked outside. A kick to the head staggers Omega but they collide for a double knockdown. Cassidy comes back in for a pair of lazy near falls and a double hurricanrana sends Pac outside. There’s the suicide dive to knock Pac into the barricade, setting up the springboard DDT for two on Omega.

The Orange Punch is broken up but Pac is back up to take Omega down. Pac shotgun dropkicks Cassidy into the corner and there’s another one to Omega. With Pac flipping back up, Omega catches him with the Regal Roll and knocks Cassidy off the corner as well. Omega sends Pac outside and hits a backbreaker for two on Cassidy. Pac starts fighting back but gets pulled to the floor, leaving Omega to baseball slide both of them.

A running flip dive puts Pac and Cassidy down again but Cassidy is back with the Stundog Millionaire. Cassidy and Omega go to a pinfall reversal sequence until Pac comes in with a 450 to break things up. Back to back snapdragons put the challengers down and it’s time for the V Triggers. Pac blocks another snapdragon so Omega hits a hard clothesline to cut him off again. Cassidy has to fight his way out of a super snapdragon and puts his hands in his pockets to save himself.

Pac is up for a German superplex to Omega but falls out to the floor. Omega hits a Tiger Driver 98 for two on Cassidy, followed by a German suplex for two on Pac. Some knees to the face rock Cassidy, who puts his hands in his pockets….and then falls down. Back up and Cassidy hits a Michinoku Driver on Omega but walks into a brainbuster to give Pac two. Omega catches Pac on top but gets countered into a sunset bomb. Pac’s superplex drops Omega again with Cassidy running in for the near fall.

Cassidy starts the slow motion kicks on Pac, who kicks him low. There’s the big dive onto Omega and the Black Arrow connects on Pac, with Omega having to dive in for a save (Callis going silent save for sighs of relief is a great addition). Another Black Arrow misses Omega but the One Winged Angle is countered into the Brutalizer. The Orange Punch hits Pac for the save and the Beach Break gets two on Omega.

Cassidy hits an Orange Punch each (Callis: “S***!”) and there’s a second to Pac, but Callis pulls the referee at two. Pac gets the Brutalizer on Cassidy but Omega knocks the referee down, setting up a pair of belt shots (with a different belt each). There’s a third belt shot but Omega wants the AEW World Title to knock Pac out again. Cassidy runs back in with the Orange Punch to Omega for two with a different referee counting…but Omega reverses into a crucifix to pin Cassidy and retain at 27:10.

Rating: B. They managed to make me believe in a title change that wasn’t going to happen here (that Black Arrow had me thinking something might happen). That is rather impressive given how one sided this should have been, though the match did go longer than it needed to go. They probably could have cut 5-10 minutes out and had a tighter match, but this was much more entertaining than I was expecting.

Full Gear is November 6 in St. Louis.

Tony Schiavone brings out the newest AEW analyst for Rampage: Mark Henry! That’s quite the surprise, though we won’t be hearing from him until Friday.

Inner Circle vs. Pinnacle

Stadium Stampede (no fans), Inner Circle has to split up if they lose and Pinnacle (or at leas MJF) arriving via stretch limousine. MJF rants about Inner Circle not being here due to fear…..and they repel down the video screen (you can almost see MJF gulp). The chase is on with MJF hiding in the limo as the rest of the Pinnacle arrives in FTR’s truck to start the fight. Sammy Guevara and Shawn Spears fight into the ring, with Sammy hitting a springboard cutter. After kicking Wardlow down, Sammy misses a shooting star press.

MJF finally gets out of the limo but Chris Jericho is waiting on him. The slugout it on but MJF sprays him with a well hidden fire extinguisher before running off the field. Jericho follows him to keep up the beating, including putting a trashcan on MJF’s head. MJF throws coffee into his eyes and hits him with a phone but Jericho screams at him with a bullhorn. Said bullhorn is tossed at MJF and hits him in the back of the head, which thankfully doesn’t do a lot of damage.

They fight into an office….where Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer and assistant coach Charlie Strong are working on plays. Jericho throws some footballs at MJF and then throws him out, with Meyer saying “holy s***”. MJF FINALLY gets smart by going after the really big brace on Jericho’s arm, including flipping a white board into it.

We actually cut to someone else, as Wardlow powers Jake Hager around but can’t lock him in a freezer. They fight into it instead (with a cut up pig hanging from the ceiling) and Wardlow grabs an icicle. That doesn’t last long and they head back into what looks like a storage area, with Hager being sent into a rolling steel cabinet. Hager flips him off so Wardlow spears him through a wall and into a kitchen.

We cut to Sammy Guevara searching for Shawn Spears and finding him sitting in a chair (with hundreds of chairs in storage around him). The chair duel is on before heading back into a hallway. Sammy runs up a wall and backflips to his feet, setting up a kick to Spears’ head. Spears launches Guevara into a steel door though and grabs a chair. That takes way too long though and Sammy hits a running knee.

Spears sends him into a scissor lift and grabs a cable, only to get choked by Sammy’s cable. Sammy climbs up onto some scaffolding but has to drop back down, allowing Spears to hit him in the face with a ladder. With Sammy down, Spears handcuffs him to the structure and says Sammy is done.

Sammy sees some bolt cutters but we cut to a bar where Santana/Ortiz find FTR/Tully Blanchard. Some drinks are shared but DJ Konnan plays some music to start the fighting. Konnan hands Santana something to hit FTR with and we actually get a near fall on Dax Harwood. Cash Wheeler throws beer bottles at Ortiz but Santana comes back up and they fight into an elevator.

With the door closed, we cut back to Wardlow almost dropping a wooden pallet onto Hager. They fight on top of a golf cart and Hager chokeslams him through something made of wood. It’s back to MJF vs. Jericho, with MJF accidentally punching a cutout of Shad Khan (Tony’s dad). Jericho says he is in so much trouble and then hits him with the cutout. After rubbing off cardboard Khan’s head it’s time to go into a conference room, where Jericho staples a Jaguars paper to MJF’s head.

Then he rips it off and throws MJF over the conference table, where MJF hits him in the face. A piledriver onto the table gets two and MJF grabs a hammer. Jericho hits him with a trashcan though….and finds a well placed Floyd the Baseball Bat. After some choking, Jericho sends him face first through a glass window. MJF is busted open (Tony: “Good!”) and we cut to Spears looking for Tully Blanchard. Instead he finds the Inner Circle motorcycle club, who chase him down a hall.

Back to Jericho dragging MJF into Daily’s Place, with MJF getting crotched on a handrail. Jericho powerbombs him through a table (Tony: “DO IT AGAIN!”) and we cut to Spears running outside….where Sammy chases him down with a golf cart. The cart drives Spears into the arena and they head into the ring. Spears chairs him out of the air to break up a springboard and a hard chair shot gets two. The chair is wedged into the corner but Guevara comes back with the GTH. Sammy kicks Spears head first into a chair and it’s the 630 to give Sammy the pin at 32:26.

Rating: B+. They completely got me with the result as I would not have bet on Inner Circle winning whatsoever. Sammy getting the win was absolutely the right call as you can do Jericho vs. MJF in a singles match at some point in the future. Guevara is one of the true bright stars waiting to break out and it makes all the sense in the world to give him the big moment.

That being said, I liked last year’s version a good bit more, as this felt like a series of segments rather than one match going on. It was like a bunch of stuff loosely tied together under the same title, with some people just disappearing for 10+ minutes at a time (Santana/Ortiz/FTR were only involved for about five minutes total). They really needed to organize this better and it would have been a much more entertaining deal.

The biggest thing I can give this though is that it is creative. One of the places where AEW really shines is thinking outside of the box and that is what they did here. Stuff like the cameos were great for surprise moments and it felt like they used the atmosphere to their advantage. It isn’t as good as the original, but this felt big and the ending actually shocked me so they did a lot right.

The Inner Circle celebrates for a long time to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. This felt like an AEW pay per view as there is nothing close to bad on the whole show and some stuff on here is very good. The atmosphere helped it a lot, though you could feel some of the energy going away as the night went on (fair enough). It’s another great show and while they could have trimmed a bit here or there, it is probably the show of the year so far. AEW continues to be nearly perfect at these things and it more than lived up to my expectations.

Results

Hangman Page b. Brian Cage – Buckshot Lariat

Young Bucks b. Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston – BTE Trigger to Moxley

Jungle Boy won the Casino Battle Royal last eliminating Christian Cage

Cody Rhodes b. Anthony Ogogo – Vertebreaker

Miro b. Lance Archer – Game Over

Britt Baker b. Hikaru Shida – Lockjaw

Sting/Darby Allin b. Ethan Page/Scorpio Sky – Death Drop to Sky

Kenny Omega b. Orange Cassidy and Pac – Crucifix to Cassidy

Inner Circle b. Pinnacle – 630 to Spears

 

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I always get a bit excited for an AEW pay per view because they have earned the reputation of putting on good shows. Aside from their misfire with the exploding ring fiasco at Full Gear, AEW has not had a truly bad pay per view or even that many bad pay per view moments in their history. They are getting another chance to keep that record strong and hopefully they can pull it off. Let’s get to it.

Buy-In: NWA Women’s Title: Serena Deeb(c) vs. Riho

There is a bit of history here as Riho beat Deeb in the #1 contenders tournament a few months back. The title has been kind of a weird addition to AEW as it only pops in every so often and there are rarely any interesting stories involved. Riho has not been around so often lately, but she is always presented as one of the bigger stars in the company. Deeb is awesome at what she does though and now gets the chance to showcase herself.

I’ll take Deeb to retain here as it is almost hard to fathom the NWA title changing hands on an AEW show. This feels like a match being added for the sake of adding something in and that is a fine enough excuse for a pre-show. The action will be good and that is about all you can ask for from a match like this. Deeb retains, though I’m not entirely sure where that leaves Riho.

Hangman Page vs. Brian Cage

This one has my interest up a bit and that is because of Page. For months now, the theory has been that Page is the one to take the AEW World Title off of Kenny Omega, but there has been nothing to suggest that is actually going to happen. Page has been toiling with the Dark Order for a good while now and doing little more than comedy stuff. This week’s Dynamite saw him get a lot more serious and that is a good sign for his future.

I think it’s a good sign for him in this match too as he’ll beat Cage. As much of a monster as Cage is, there is no reason for him to win here. Page is possibly being primed to go after the World Title so a win over someone of Cage’s stature should help. Throw in that Cage is having issues with the rest of Team Taz and it is hard to imagine him having much of a chance here.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks(c) vs. Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston

I usually save the bigger matches for later but let’s have some fun. This is the match that interests me the most on the card as I really could see it going either way. The main catch here is that, assuming another title match goes a certain way, we very well could be looking at all heel champions in AEW. Someone would have to break through that wall and balance things out a bit and that might be Moxley and Kingston.

That being said, I don’t think the titles change hands here. It seems more likely that the Bucks and Omega get to hold their three titles at once because that is what AEW finds interesting. I very well may be wrong on this and the title change would not shock me in the least, but I think the Bucks hold on here, likely through some sort of overthought shenanigans.

Cody Rhodes vs. Anthony Ogogo

Then we have this one and it might be the most discussed match on the entire show. Rhodes is becoming the American Dream for one night only and is fighting one of those evil foreign….uh….British guys. The patriotism aspect has felt rather forced in this story as it seems to come out of the 1980s rather than a modern wrestling company. Ogogo doesn’t have much experience either, but here he is anyway.

I’ll go on a limb here and pick Ogogo, which is where this story should head if they want to make a bigger star for a change. Ogogo has only wrestled a handful of matches and it would be a huge deal to beat Rhodes. I’m not completely sold on the idea that Ogogo wins as Rhodes has a tendency to get some questionable victories, but I’ll take Ogogo here and hold AEW rolls the dice.

AEW World Title: Kenny Omega(c) vs. Pac vs. Orange Cassidy

Omega has been mentioned enough so far that we might as well just knock his match out. This match does not grab my interest very well and I can’t believe that I’m alone in that. It came out of nowhere as suddenly these two were top contenders and the match was set as a result. I’m not sure how I’m supposed to buy Omega as being in danger here but that is what AEW is asking.

Of course I’ll take Omega to retain here as I can’t imagine either Pac or Cassidy getting the title. This match feels like a token title defense for Omega as I can’t fathom him losing the title anytime soon. Cassidy feels way over his head here and while Pac is great, I don’t think he’s going to get the title. Omega retains here in a match that has as much drama as a screwball comedy.

AEW Women’s Title: Hikaru Shida(c) vs. Britt Baker

This would be the one title match standing in the way of likely total heel dominance and I’m not sure how much you would bet on the good guys. Of all of the matches on the card, this one might have the least drama to the whole thing and I’m not sure if there is even a point in suggesting otherwise. I think you know where this is going and that is what is best for all of us.

In a moment that is a very long time coming, Baker finally breaks through the glass ceiling and wins the title here. Shida has held the thing for over a year now and is pretty far past the point of being ready to lose. Baker is one of the best things going in AEW and has been for a long time now. It is time that she claims her destiny and holds the title for a long time, so go with the only logical option here.

Sting/Darby Allin vs. Ethan Page/Scorpio Sky

AEW has made a big deal out of this being Sting’s first regular match in five years and that is not exactly drawing me in. Sting and Allin make a fine mentor/student pairing, but I really don’t have any interest in seeing Sting wrestle again. It doesn’t help that the villains have been pretty tacked on, to the point where they feel like bad guys of the month for Sting to beat without breaking a sweat.

That being said, I’ll go with Sky and Page to win here as there is no need for Sting and Allin to beat them. If AEW wants Sky and Page to mean anything, it would be fairly ridiculous to have them beat someone who isn’t going to his status no matter what. Allin should not be taking the fall, but his team should be taking the loss so the two new villains can have something to brag about for a bit.

Casino Battle Royal

Man alive this company loves these gambling themes. I never know what to do with a match like this because there are so many options out there. You could probably bet on one of the favorites but with at least one spot being open, it really could go in multiple directions. The announced lineup looks pretty deep, but that TBA spot has my interest up a little higher.

Based on who is currently announced for the match, I’ll take Christian Cage to win. The rest of the field is mainly a bunch of midcarders, with Cage as the only one I could see (outside of maybe Dustin Rhodes) having a real chance. That being said, I do think there is a possibility of Andrade winning here and there is little reason to have someone of his stature debut if he wasn’t winning the match. So Cage if no Andrade, but Andrade if Andrade.

TNT Title: Miro(c) vs. Lance Archer

Sidenote: just make it the TV Title already. Dynamite is moving over to TBS later this year so just go with the logical move. With that out of the way, this should be a heck of a hoss fight and that is all they have advertised it as being. Miro has come a very long way in a short amount of time as getting rid of Kip Sabian and all of the gaming stuff has worked wonders for him, which should not surprise anyone.

Based on that alone, Miro retains here, as Archer seems to be heading for a split with Jake Roberts. At this point that is the right idea too, as Archer can cover anything Roberts can do for him. Miro is looking like he could be the breakout star around here and that is why he was brought in in the first place. Go with what makes sense here and have Miro retain after a heck of a battle.

Stadium Stampede

This almost has to end the show due to the magnitude and the stakes, as the Inner Circle has to split up if the Pinnacle can beat them. The original version was complete insanity and very memorable, which is what I’m expecting this time around too. The Inner Circle is coming in banged up after Dynamite so the writing is starting to look like it is on the wall here.

I’m going with what should make sense and say Pinnacle wins, though I can’t shake the idea of a fast one being pulled. The Inner Circle has had a great run, but there isn’t much left for them to do. Spitting them up does not mean we can’t see MJF vs. Chris Jericho, so maybe that is where we go for All Out. Either way, the match should be good and insane, which is all you could want from this.

Overall Thoughts

This is a heck of a stacked card and has me more interesting in a show than I have been in a long time. The top of the card is loaded and the rest is not bad at all, meaning we could be in for a pretty awesome night. AEW knows how to set things up but more importantly they know how to deliver on them, which is what I’m counting on here. The show looks great and that excited feeling is always nice to have.

 

 

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Double Or Nothing
Date: May 23, 2020
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

It’s back to the pay per view calendar, which isn’t somewhere AEW goes all that often. It’s a triple main event with the Stadium Stampede, Jon Moxley defending the World Title against Brodie Lee and Cody vs. Lance Archer for the inaugural TNT Title. They’ve done well on pay per view before so let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Best Friends vs. Private Party

For the #1 contendership. Chuck headlocks Kassidy to start and takes him to the mat a few times. That goes so well that it’s off to Trent to chop Quen but everything breaks down. Kassidy and Chuck stare each other down and then hit stereo standing Sliced Breads, causing Trent to lose his headband. He’s fine enough to hit a belly to back on Kassidy but does pause to put the headband back on.

Private Party is back with Silly String to Trent, who comes up holding his knee. Trent, now holding his ribs, is sent outside for a big running flip dive but he catches Quen on top. Chuck comes back in to help him with a superplex for two and things settle back down. The running elbow in the corner staggers Quen, who is still able to get two boots into Trent’s banged up ribs.

That’s enough for the hot tag to Kassidy for a slingshot Downward Spiral. Trent breaks up some kind of double team and suplexes Kassidy down. It’s back to Chuck, who suplexes Kassidy into Quen in the corner. Strong Zero is broken up and it’s a slow motion forearm off with Quen and Chuck.

The G9 (Cryme Tyme’s old Samoan drop/running flip neckbreaker finisher) sends Chuck outside in a very nice moment and Quen’s shooting star gets two on Trent with Chuck making the save. Back up and Trent blasts Quen with a clothesline but Kassidy sends him outside. Gin and Juice is broken up though and it’s Strong Zero to give Trent the pin at 15:16.

Rating: C-. There were some noticeable botches in here and the match felt like it was just a bunch of moves and spots until the finish. As usual, Private Party is really flashy and entertaining but they aren’t very good at putting a match together or having much of a sense of urgency. I’m no Best Friends fan but if they’re going to be on every show, you might as well put them in the title hunt. The G9 was great though and a rather nice thing to see, which I wouldn’t have bet on.

The opening video thanks the healthcare workers for helping in these horrible times, plus pays tribute to Shad Gaspard.

Casino Ladder Match

This is a nine man ladder match for a future World Title shot, represented by a big poker chip because this company LOVES the gambling motif. Two people will start the match and it is another entrant every two minutes, though you can win at any time. Kazarian is in first and Scorpio Sky is in second. They both go for ladders but then throw them out for the sake of slugging it out.

A double clothesline puts them both down and it’s Kip Sabian, with Penelope Ford and Jimmy Havoc (not in the match), in third. Havoc tries a super hurricanrana on Kazarian but gets dropped on a ladder for his efforts. Another ladder is brought in but here’s Sky to make a save. Darby Allin is in fourth and starts cleaning house on everyone involved. Since the previous ones aren’t good enough for him, Allin grabs another ladder and bridges it between the ring and the barricade.

A skateboard to Kazarian’s face lets Allin put him on the ladder, meaning it’s a huge dive off the top of the ladder to drive the skateboard into Kazarian. With Allin down clutching his knees, Orange Cassidy is in fifth and needs the rules explained to him again. Cassidy is finally in the ring after 45 seconds and, after finding out that he can’t reach the chip, he stands on the ladder that is laying on the mat. He doesn’t know how to set up a ladder so here’s Colt Cabana in sixth to take Cassidy out.

Now that our designated comedy segment is over, Sky and Kazarian break up Cabana’s climbing attempt and his fingers get crushed in the ladder. Cassidy is back in for the slow kicks to SCU’s legs, followed by a regular double dropkick to put them outside. The hands in the pockets dive connects and it’s Joey Janela coming in seventh. That means a bunch of dives to take everyone out until Kazarian sends him into the ladder.

Janela comes back in with a chair to take out Kazarian but Sky takes it away and blasts Janela to even things up. No one can get up the ladder so it’s Luchasaurus in eighth. House is cleaned again until it’s a powerbomb to send Sabian into the pile at ringside. Kazarian is still in the ring so Luchasaurus chokeslams him down too. Allin, thankfully able to walk, is back in to hammer on Luchasaurus, including a super Code Red.

The clock counts down and it’s….BRIAN CAGE, as accompanied by Taz, in ninth to complete the field. Cage brings in his own ladder and starts wrecking people, including tossing Sky into the corner. Janela gets thrown down as well and an Eric Young wheelbarrow neckbreaker drops Kazarian. Cassidy jumps on Cage’s back as the climb is on but it takes almost everyone involved in the match to pull him down.

A bunch of people get together and put a huge poker chip on top of Cage as Janela is thrown over the barricade. The ladder is set up and Cassidy elbows Kazarian, setting up a slugout with Sabian on top of the ladder. Cassidy snaps the finger to send Sabian down into a ladder in the corner so here’s Penelope Ford, who gets dropped onto Sabian. Jimmy Havoc comes back in so the Best Friends come out to take care of him. Luchasaurus shoves the ladder over but Cassidy slips out of a chokeslam attempt.

Cue Marko Stunt with a small ladder so a double chokeslam can plant Cassidy. Janela hits a running Death Valley Driver to put Cassidy onto the poker chip (on top of Cage) and it’s Kazarian and Sky on the ladder at once. Luchasaurus breaks that up and Cage gets up for the big monster off. The Tail Whip hits Cage but he’s back with a jumping knee to the face and a buckle bomb into the ladder.

Cage sets up the ladder (off center of the chip) but here’s Allin again with another ladder. That just earns Allin a Drill Claw and Cage sets up the small ladder on the top rope. Allin is placed on top and Cage picks up both of them and tosses them into a standing ladder for a scary crash. That’s enough for Cage to pull down the chip and win at 28:25.

Rating: B. You can only get so much stuff out of something like this as there were so many people involved. The spots were very entertaining though, albeit rather dangerous in some cases. I like Cage as the surprise a lot as he is someone you can instantly market based off his look alone. Entertaining match as expected, but there is only so much that can be done in these circumstances.

We run down the rest of the card. I still don’t get it.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Jungle Boy

This is the one that I wanted to see more than anything else on the card. They take turns flipping each other over to start and, after an exchange of tugging at their own trunks, MJF gets sent outside for a breather. Back in and Jungle Boy grabs a bodyscissors but they wind up interlocking legs and standing on their heads for a slapoff. Hold on though as MJF grabs his knee, only to pop up and deck Jungle Boy to take over.

The chinlock keeps Jungle Boy down but he comes up with a slap to the face. That just earns him an elbow to the jaw and MJF whips him hard into the corner. It’s time to start on the arm but Jungle Boy isn’t taking the trash talk and strikes away in the corner. A rolling double chop to the chest staggers MJF but he sends Jungle Boy outside. The chop off goes to Jungle Boy and there’s the big running flip dive to drop MJF again.

Back in and a middle rope tornado DDT gives Jungle Boy two, partially due to the arm delaying the cover. They chop it out again until MJF gets smart by hitting him in the arm. Jungle Boy snaps off a Canadian Destroyer but MJF hits a quick low superkick. MJF gets puled into a Crossface though, only to have MJF bite his way to freedom.

They go to the apron with Jungle Boy hitting a SCARY reverse hurricanrana to drop MJF on his head. Thankfully MJF is back in with a crotching on top but Jungle Boy hits a super sitout powerbomb for two of his own. MJF hammers on the arm until Jungle Boy gets two off a rollup. That sets off an exchange of rollups until MJF bridges back for the pin at 17:34.

Rating: B. The crash off that reverse hurricanrana was terrifying but what mattered here was the two young guys had a heck of a performance and looked like the stars of the future. That’s what they needed to do here and they made it work. I could go for a lot more of these two, with MJF being the guy who could be the top villain for a LONG time to come if they play their cards right.

We look at the TNT Title tournament, which is something Cody wants because he can’t be World Champion. Jake Roberts has brought in Lance Archer to destroy everyone and take the title, which has caused Brandi Rhodes to be dragged into everything. In other words, it’s personal and for the title.

TNT Title: Cody vs. Lance Archer

For the inaugural title and Mike Tyson is here to present the belt….which looks terrible. It literally looks like a TNT logo over the word CHAMPION. I’m hoping that the title isn’t ready and this is what they have for a fill in. That thing makes the 24/7 Title look like a classic. Jake Roberts is here with Archer and Arn Anderson is in Cody’s corner. We get a special intro with the chance to shake hands (not happening of course) and thankfully Tony confirms that the title isn’t complete so that’s not the final design. That’s such a relief that I won’t even get on them for not having the belt ready for the show.

Archer hits the Black Out in the first fifteen seconds but Cody blocks the Claw by countering with an armbreaker. That’s broken up but the Cody Cutter is knocked out of the air with a shoulder. Archer goes to peel back the ring mat so Cody is back up with a suicide dive. You don’t do that with Archer, as he throws Cody off the barricade for a huge crash. Back in and a heck of a clothesline drops Cody and it’s time to rip at his face.

The rope walk into a moonsault gives Archer two and Tyson thinks this is amusing. Cody is right back up with a delayed vertical suplex but Archer pops back up and rips a turnbuckle pad off. After we quickly cut to a yawning Tyson, Cody bends Archer’s ribs around the post. The ribs are fine enough to lift Cody up and toss him over the post, complete with a cool closeup shot from a turnbuckle camera.

Back in and Archer cranks on the arm but Cody fights out to the floor. The slugout goes to Archer, despite Cody shouting a lot. Back in and Cody’s striking doesn’t work but he pulls Archer down into a YES Lock. Roberts offers a distraction to break things up but Cody is back up with a DDT. JR isn’t impressed because Jake’s DDT beats people, but Anderson plants Cody with the spinebuster to annoy Anderson.

Cody is back up with the Cody Cutter for two and it’s the Flip Flop and Fly into the Final Reckoning. A Stinger Splash (gotta pump up those rumors) gets two but Archer is back with the EBD Claw. He’s too banged up to keep going with it though and Cody is back up. Jake offers a distraction so Arn breaks up the rope walk for some turnabout into fair play.

The reverse superplex plants Archer but Jake points out what Arn did. That means an ejection, only to have Jake thrown out as well. There’s a release German suplex to drop Cody, drawing out Jake with the snake. Tyson chases him off though, leaving Cody to reverse the Black Out into a pair of Cross Rhodes for the pin and the title at 21:15.

Rating: B-. This one never got into that higher gear and they didn’t make any secret out of the fact that Cody was winning. Like they were going to have Tyson hand the title to Archer when Cody was there. That’s fine too, as Cody needed a major win to keep his spot near the top. The match was good, though it wasn’t exactly awesome and Archer already losing isn’t exactly great. I get why they had to do it this way, but they booked themselves into a corner and didn’t have a good way out.

Tyson hands Cody the title and leaves immediately so Cody can celebrate by himself.

The AEW doctor says Britt Baker has a knee fracture, a torn ligament and a torn tendon. Since she’s a role model though, she’ll give you an update on her status on Dynamite.

Penelope Ford vs. Kris Stadtlander

Ford is replacing the injured Baker and the very banged up Kip Sabian is in her corner. Stadtlander headlocks her down to start and shrugs off an armdrag attempt. Some cartwheels just annoy Ford and the threat of a right hand sends her outside. Sabian: “LEAVE HER ALONE YOU ALIEN FREAK!” Back in and Ford grabs a suplex for two and we hit the chinlock.

That’s broken up and Stadtlander forearms her outside, setting up the big dive to drop both Sabian and Ford. Back in and Stadtlander’s dive hits raised boots but she’s fine enough to throw Ford with a German suplex. A running knee in the corner rocks Ford again, only to have her grab a Stunner for a breather. Ford’s super hurricanrana takes her down again but Stadtlander is back up with a Blue Thunder Bomb. The Big Bang Theory finishes Ford at 8:12.

Rating: C. I wasn’t sure which way to go with this one but it was nice to see Stadtlander get a win. Either of these two could easily be a top star in the division as Stadtlander is very unique and Ford is the classic evil blonde that you want to see get taken out. They had a nice enough match too and while Baker would have been better, Ford held up her end rather well.

Here’s Shawn Spears in a suit to say he’s here but Dustin Rhodes must be at home washing his tights. Dustin’s music comes on but he’s not there, meaning Spears can laugh at the fans for falling for the fake. Now ring the bell so it can be a countout.

Shawn Spears vs. Dustin Rhodes

The music hits again but this time it’s Brandi Rhodes coming out so Dustin can sneak up on Spears. The beating is on as the suit is ripped off but Spears gets in a quick clothesline for a breather. Spears wraps the belt around his hand, only to stop to flip Brandi off. That lets Dustin grab him by the tights, which come down in a hurry. JR: “Looks like an audition for a prison movie.” After seeing Tully Blanchard’s face on Spears’ underwear, the Final Reckoning gives Dustin the pin at 4:07.

Rating: D. This was more of an angle than a match and while I still can’t bring myself to care about Dustin all that much, they did a good job of shutting Spears up. That being said, I’m not sure how many more times they can reheat Spears after he keeps losing like this. The good hand term seems accurate, as there is only so much that can be done with him given what he has shown so far.

All Out is on September 5 in a location to be announced.

In memory of Hana Kimura, who passed away early this morning.

We recap Nyla Rose vs. Hikaru Shida for the Women’s Title. Rose is a monster but Shida has been #1 in the rankings for months. The commentators put this over as a big showdown.

Women’s Title: Nyla Rose vs. Hikaru Shida

Rose is defending and anything goes so Rose has the kendo stick with her. After the Big Match Intros, Rose swings away but gets the stick dropkicked away. That doesn’t matter though as Rose takes it back and blast Shida down. A running knee puts Rose in the corner though and there’s the running knee to the face for a bonus.

Rose is back up to send her hard through a poker table (Rose: “Always bet on black.”) and some chair shots keep Shida in trouble. They get back inside where Shida fights out of the Beast Bomb but Rose his a quick suplex. A clothesline puts Shida back on the floor where she hits the running knee to the back of Rose’s head.

They head into the crowd (in front of Vickie Guerrero) with Shida throwing her onto a poker chip. Another running knee rocks Rose and this time it’s Shida getting to hammer away with the stick. A brainbuster onto the stick gets two but Rose is back with a tilt-a-whirl powerslam. Rose drapes her over the top and hits a top rope knee to the back of the head for two.

It’s table time with Rose setting one up in the corner and powerbombing Shida through it for another near fall. The Death Valley Driver sets up more kendo stick shots so Rose goes up, only to have Shida throw the stick at her. A super Falcon Arrow gets two on Rose so Shida hits another running knee for another two. Yet another running knee finishes Rose for the pin and the title at 17:03.

Rating: B. Another solid match here with both of them beating the heck out of each other until one of them couldn’t get back up. Shida has been on fire for a long time now and while I’m a bit surprised Rose lost, Shida was the right choice to take the title. She has been built up for months now and if they were going to pull the trigger on her, this was the right time.

The announcers talk about how sad of a week it has been but AEW is trying to make people feel a little better.

We recap Jon Moxley vs. Brodie Lee for the World Title. Lee arrived and was revealed as the Dark Order’s Exalted One. That was cool with Moxley because he wants world class competitors, but then Lee and the Order beat Moxley down with Lee stealing the title belt. Therefore tonight is about the title and revenge.

AEW World Title: Jon Moxley vs. Brodie Lee

Lee is challenging but has the title belt coming in. The rest of the Dark Order is here, plus a bunch of security before the bell rings. Moxley charges straight at him but gets hammered in the corner. With that not working, Moxley sends him outside for a suicide dive but Lee isn’t having much of that.

Back in and a slingshot hilo sets up some rolling butterfly suplexes on Moxley, meaning it’s time to go back outside. Lee hits his own suicide dive and sends Moxley into the barricade, followed by a suplex into one barricade laid up against another barricade. Back in and Moxley hits a heck of a clothesline and a pile driver is good for two. They head outside yet again with both of them hitting a running boot for a double knockdown.

Lee is back up but his powerbomb off the steps is backdropped through a variety of tables. Back in again and they’re already back on the floor before they have time to settle down, this time with Lee sending him into a wooden Moxley poster. Lee boots him in the face and gets two off a sitout powerbomb and they’re both down in the corner. Lee gets up and Moxley tries to do the same but collapses back to the apron.

They fight to the ramp and Moxley hits a quick Paradigm Shift through the ramp, which just does not work as well without the big crowd reaction (though it was still good). Moxley crawls out first, followed by the blood Lee. Another Paradigm Shift gets two so Moxley unloads on the cut. Another Paradigm Shift gets two more so it’s a rear naked choke to finish Lee at 15:37.

Rating: B. They beat the heck out of each other here and that’s what you were looking for in a match like this. Moxley retaining makes sense as it’s too early to put the title on Lee, plus I’m not sure how much he needs to be champion. He’s fine as a monster and had a rather fine match here. Moxley vs. Cage could be interesting, though I’m not sure I can picture it taking place.

AEW action figures debut this summer. Those are pretty cool.

We look back at the rest of the show.

We recap the Inner Circle vs. the Elite, which has been going on for months now. The Inner Circle took out Nick Jackson so Matt Jackson got Matt Hardy to help them out. Now it’s time for a major war in what might be the final match of the feud (though likely won’t be).

Inner Circle vs. Elite/Matt Hardy

This is the Stadium Stampede, a ten man tag inside TIAA Bank Field (home of the Jacksonville Jaguars) with a ring in the middle of the field and anything goes. The Jaguars’ cheerleaders and mascot are here, plus a bunch of fire and individual entrances, with the Inner Circle wearing numbered jerseys. Matt Jackson has heavily taped ribs coming in. There is no Page to start so the referee blows a whistle to get us going, meaning both teams start around the opposite thirty yard lines and charge.

The Elite is smart enough to bring weapons and take over early as the wild brawling begins. Call me crazy but I don’t think this is going to be easy to call. Omega hits Sammy with a trashcan and Santana/Ortiz suplex Nick down. Sammy staggers to his feet…..and here’s Page riding a freaking horse, sending Sammy running into a tunnel and out of the stadium. Nick unloads on Jericho in the ring as Page, still on the horse, chases after Sammy. Back in the ring and Jericho misses the Judas Effect on Nick so here’s Matt Jackson to launch Nick at Jericho.

Santana and Ortiz come in to beat on Omega, who snapdragons Santana in a hurry. Sammy is back and the entire Inner Circle is in the ring, only to have Sammy miss a shooting star press. That means a running buckle bomb into Omega and Nick’s boots in the corner. That’s enough of the wrestling in the ring as the brawl heads outside again with Santana hitting an Asai moonsault onto everyone. Sammy shooting stars onto a bunch of people on the floor so Hardy starts hammering away with a football helmet. Everyone starts splitting up as the ring wasn’t exactly needed.

Nick slams Sammy onto Hager and, with the help of a ladder, Matt Jackson moonsaults onto the two of them for the first big spot. Santana and Omega slug it out in the stands and a few others join them, with everyone involved heading through a tunnel. We cut back to Page, who is still on his horse to look for….I guess Sammy? Either way he gets off the horse upon seeing a sign for a bar and goes off for a drink.

Omega sends Santana and Ortiz through a few barricades and then bridges another barricade over some tables. Ortiz makes the save with some salt to the eyes and it’s a double powerbomb through the barricade for two. Hardy gets thrown into the pool (because a football stadium needs a pool), where Santana and Ortiz try to drown him. Since it’s Hardy though, he comes up as Version 1, meaning we get the Matt Fact of Hardy can hold his breath for 346 seconds.

They put him under the water again and this time….Hardy pops up as Broken Matt again, meaning it’s time to put Santana and Ortiz through a table. Ortiz’s head is put inside a big bell, which Hardy rings to really shake Ortiz up. With Ortiz not able to stand, Hardy duct tapes him into a chair of wheels but Santana makes the save. They fight into the tunnels and Hardy sends Santana into the ice chest. If he doesn’t come out as Tito Santana, I’m going to be very disappointed.

Elsewhere, Hager has found the horse and follows Page into the bar, where he’s having a drink. Hager sits next to Page, who asks if he’s here to fight or drink. Hager has a drink and the fight is on with the brawl going over to a pool table. Page is sent into the bar, so he backflips off of it, only to get Rock Bottomed onto the table. Hager puts him on the bar and runs him down ala a stereotypical western movie for two. Omega finds the two of them and breaks a bottle over Hager’s head to no avail.

Several bottles over the head stagger Hager and it’s a V Trigger into the Buckshot lariat. Page and Omega stop for a drink (Omega has milk in a smart choice) and we cut back to Matt Jackson fighting Sammy on the field. Jericho goes after Nick as Sammy gets rolling northern lights suplexed halfway down the field. Nick is sent into a large Jaguars’ helmet, followed by the Judas Effect to the Jaguars’ mascot.

The rolling suplexes continue as Sammy has been taken from one end zone almost to the other. Jericho hits Nick with Floyd the baseball bat for two…..and he wants to challenge the count, complete with a red flag. Jericho and Aubrey Edwards go into the replay booth and the call on the field stands. Jericho: “YOU’RE A S***** REFEREE!” Matt Jackson gets to the other end zone and is so pleased that he does the Alex Wright Dance, which is a flag for excessive celebration. That means a superkick to the referee and we cut to Jericho losing Floyd.

As JR makes an Andy Griffith reference, Jericho is laid on the table so Nick can run the steps, dive onto a barricade, and splash Jericho though the wood. They run the paint line over Jericho as the sprinklers go off to wake Sammy up. Sammy thinks he won…..and here are Hardy and Omega in the golf cart again.

The chase is on with Sammy diving into the stands so the two of them go after him, with Sammy kicking Omega down. Sammy chokes Omega but it’s NEO1 making the save. Omega is back up with a V Trigger and the one Winged Angel off a tunnel and through a bunch of wood (and onto a crashpad) finishes Sammy at about 34:00.

Rating: A-. As usual, your mileage on these things are going to vary but this was a lot of fun with all of the football references. It was a great case of adapting to the environment and having a blast, though some of the jokes were a bit too silly for the kind of violence that they were shooting for. That being said, I never got bored in the slightest and it didn’t feel long whatsoever. They had a lot of fun here and it was a heck of an entertaining match, which is the kind of thing they wanted to do in this sort of a match.

Hardy and the Elite celebrate, including a Gatorade bath to Omega, to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. There were some weak points in the middle of this show but the start and end are more than enough to carry the rest. This was another very entertaining show and felt like it belonged on the big stage. That’s what they should have been trying to do here and there were some moments to make you want to see where things are going. It feels like a big time pay per view and given that AEW has had about five of them, that’s a good sign for their future. Well done, as their pay per view success continues.

Results

Brian Cage won the Casino Ladder Match

Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Jungle Boy – Rollup

Cody b. Lance Archer – Cross Rhodes

Kris Stadtlander b. Penelope Ford – Big Bang Theory

Dustin Rhodes b. Shawn Spears – Final Reckoning

Hikaru Shida b. Nyla Rose – Running knee

Jon Moxley b. Brodie Lee – Rear naked choke

Elite/Matt Hardy b. Inner Circle – One Winged Angel to Guevara

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

It’s that time of the season again as AEW actually ventures into the pay per view market. This time around it’s going to be a little different though as, like everything else, there won’t be any fans in attendance outside of whatever wrestlers AEW can have sitting in the crowd. It’s not much but it’s better than nothing and that’s what they have to do here. The card looks ok but the build doesn’t have the same fire as usual (fair enough in this case). Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Private Party vs. Best Friends

This is for the #1 contendership, despite Private Party only wrestling on Dark in recent months (their last win in a two on two tag match on Dynamite was before Thanksgiving, as in before the records reset) and Best Friends, who seem to be on every AEW show in the history of ever (the world needs those hugs)…..well not being all that great. There hasn’t been much of a build to this, but given that the champs haven’t defended their titles since the last pay per view, I don’t think it matters all that much.

I’ll take the Best Friends here, as AEW certainly loves them and Private Party has cooled WAY off since their hot start in the Tag Team Title tournament. The tag division is something that has a lot of depth to it but AEW doesn’t really use a lot of what they have. I know there are more important things around, but that division has cooled off a lot in the last few months and that started before the pandemic. Getting this on here is nice, but it doesn’t mean much if you don’t follow up on it.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Shawn Spears

I know this won’t go over well but I really can’t bring myself to care about Rhodes as much as AEW wants me to. Yes he’s had an incredible career resurgence the last few years and looks great, but he’s the same guy who has been a career midcarder for about thirty years. He’s had some very good matches and can talk as well as ever, but I’m not exactly hanging on the edge of seat to see what he is going to do next.

Therefore, Spears is the one that makes sense here and it seems like we’re heading towards Rhodes’ retirement. Then again that has seemed to be the case for a long time now and it wouldn’t shock me to see him win in a YOU STILL GOT IT moment. That might not be the best idea, but that has never stopped a member of the Rhodes family before. Spears should win and I think he will, but I don’t have that much confidence in it.

Penelope Ford vs. Kris Stadtlander

Ford is a replacement for the injured Britt Baker, as AEW had one of the rockiest nights in their history with injuries this week. As a result there isn’t a story here, but there wasn’t much of one between Baker and Stadtlander either so it evens out well enough. I’ve been a fan of both of these two since I saw them for the first time so we could be in for a good one here, assuming they can have much of a match.

I’m going with Ford here, but not by much. Stadtlander has been on a pretty hard slide since serving as the challenger of the month so there isn’t much of a reason to give her a win here. Ford doesn’t need it either as she is the kind of person who can get heat just by putting on the sunglasses and frowning while doing the splits, but I’ll go with her as she has a lot of potential on her own. It’s another coin flip though.

Casino Ladder Match

Dang they love this gambling motif (yes I know the show was scheduled for Las Vegas). This is a nine person ladder match because the more people you have in a ladder match, the better it is. Or something. Fenix has been replaced by Joey Janela, because the best replacement for a skilled high flier is a guy who randomly dives off of stuff with his eyes bugging out. There’s never any way of guessing these things so it’s kind of a blind gamble.

Give me Scorpio Sky for the surprise win as they seem to have some plans for him. I can’t imagine him winning the title, but he can wrestle a good match and talk well enough to make it work for a one off. As for the mystery entrant…..assuming none of the April 15^th people are available because of no compete clauses, I’ll go with…..probably Marko Stunt actually, though Drew Gulak is a possibility. But yeah, Stunt would be the least interesting so I’ll take him and hope that he crashes off of something really high.

TNT Title: Cody vs. Lance Archer

Even though this has been presented as the main event, I’ll take AEW’s word when they called the World Title match the main event. The big draw here is Mike Tyson, (Who has somehow gone from a convicted rapist to this lovable goof who happened to be a bit of a psycho, because the first part of that is just erased from history. I completely get the business decision but it’s kind of an interesting sidenote on pop culture in general.), whose appearance kind of gives away the ending.

Anyway, of course Cody wins here, as you know he’s going to. Do you honestly believe that AEW is going to have Archer pose with Tyson instead of one of the faces of the company? That was kind of a giveaway and it wouldn’t shock me to see this as the big ending of the show. It shouldn’t be, but it also wouldn’t surprise me.

Women’s Title: Nyla Rose(c) vs. Hikaru Shida

This is a match that has been built up for several weeks now as Shida has been #1 in the rankings for months. Why it took so long to get to the title match isn’t clear, but at least we are finally seeing it go down. The women’s division has gotten a lot better in recent weeks and hopefully it continues to improve. I’m just not sure if it would get better with Shida winning.

I’ll go with Rose retaining, as she seems to be someone there for the sake of building up a challenger to take the title off of her later on. Rose hasn’t been around as much lately but there is only so much that you can do in the current situation. Maybe she can be around more often in the future, and that would include retaining the title here.

Jungle Boy vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Boy has been one of the best surprises in all of AEW as I was expecting some lame Tarzan character and got someone whose name has almost nothing to do with what he does in the ring. That’s a good thing, as the character could have been something so much worse. What matters here is showcasing the future though, as these are two guys who could be a big deal for AEW for a long time to come.

There is no real reason to pick Boy here so I’ll take Friedman to win after an entertaining match. Friedman is one of the most entertaining people in all of AEW and it would make little sense to have him lose here. Just let him continue rising up the card until he can eventually win the World Title, which would confirm his status as one of the best in the world today. For now though, he wins here.

Inner Circle vs. Elite/Matt Hardy

This is going to be your completely insane match of the night as it’s taking place in the middle of an empty football stadium where anything goes. These people could be all over the place with one crazy idea after another, but I have a bad feeling that we are just going to get something overly ridiculous with one spot after another rather than anything that follows a flow. Then again, they have surprised me before and they might again here.

I’ll go with the Elite winning here, as the Inner Circle has won a lot of the major battles in the rivalry so far. Therefore, it’s time to switch things up a bit and it makes sense to have the Elite get a win back. If nothing else, with the Young Bucks and Hangman Page finally back, it would be a little strange to have them lose here. The match will be a spectacle, but hopefully they focus on the match enough and not just the spectacle.

AEW World Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Brodie Lee

So Lee is 5-0 in AEW, having defeated QT Marshall, Lee Johnson, Justin Law, Marko Stunt and Christopher Daniels. Given that two of those people have never won a match in AEW and another is a glorified mascot, I don’t think strength of schedule matters much around here. I’m not entirely sure who is going to win here, but it should be a heck of a fight.

Give me Moxley to retain here, but after they beat each other up a good bit. Lee is a lot better now that he has dropped the Vince McMahon stuff but he still isn’t all that entertaining. Couple that with the fact that Archer is pretty much better at every aspect, there isn’t much of a reason to go with Lee as the champ here. Moxley should be destined to face Friedman, but you never know where they might go around here.

Overall Thoughts

AEW knows how to do some great things but they are lacking a bit without their crowds around. I’m not sure how well the show is going to go but I’m interested in enough of the matches and hopefully that means they can pull something off. The pieces are in place to make for a good show and AEW’s pay per view track record is pretty solid so far. If anyone can make you forget about the lack of fans it’s this company and maybe they can do it here.

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

Now that some time has passed, it’s a little easier to look at what went down.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-reviewing-review-double-nothing/

Double or Nothing
Date: May 25, 2019
Location: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Alex Marvez

It took long enough. This is the first show for All Elite Wrestling and the question is….egads there are a lot of them actually. The biggest of them all though is can they live up to the hype. All In certainly did, though that’s not exactly the same thing this time around. I don’t know if the show is going to be good (though it probably will be), but it’s going to be important. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Casino Battle Royal

Sonny Kiss, Brandon Cutler, Ace Romero, Glacier, Brian Pillman Jr., Sunny Daze, Maxwell Jacob Friedman, Joey Janela, Dustin Thomas, Billy Gunn, Jimmy Havoc, Michael Nakazawa, Jungle Boy, Isiah Kassidy, Marq Quen, Luchasaurus, Shawn Spears, Orange Cassidy

Those are all the announced entrants. This is a special kind of battle royal with five people starting and five more coming in every three minutes until we get to twenty. The final entrant, number 21 (the Joker, which is better than a Wild Card), gets to enter on his own. Nakazawa, Thomas, Friedman, Daze and Cutler (the clubs) start things off with Friedman stomping on Thomas in the corner. This is a true heel move because Thomas has no legs.

Friedman keeps up the yelling by stomping on Cutler, saying he is just a Young Bucks favor. Nakazawa busts out some baby oil (a trademark) and uses it to slip out of a waistlock from Daze. Cutler gets thrown over the top but isn’t all the way out, allowing him to springboard back in to take Friedman down. There are no eliminations yet and here are the Diamonds: Pillman, Kassidy, Janela, Havoc and Spears (Tye Dillinger) with Janela and Havoc beating Pillman up on the ramp.

Spears is the only one of the group to get in as Kassidy was beaten up on the floor as well. A poke to the eye drops Friedman and Spears hits the TEN pose. The clock speeds WAY up with the Hearts coming in next: Gunn, Jungle Boy, Glacier, Quen and Romero. Pillman, Janela, Kassidy and Havoc still aren’t in the ring. Friedman takes Gunn down and does the Karate Kid pose on Glacier. Daze knocks Glacier through the ropes (not an elimination) and then knocks Nakazawa out for the first elimination.

Janela is in with a cigarette as Glacier uses the mist to freeze Daze and get rid of him. Friedman dumps Glacier as Havoc puts the cigarette on Janela’s head. Pillman gets in to take Janela down and the spades are in: Luchasaurus, Marko Stunt, Sonny Kiss, Tommy Dreamer and….I’m assuming Cassidy, who wasn’t announced here. Dreamer gets knocked off the apron so Romero (weighing about 400lbs) dives onto him and Luchasaurus. Romero and Luchasaurus slug it out as Cassidy is on the floor.

Dreamer brings in the weapons and hits a bunch of people in the head with the trashcan lid. There’s a cutter to Havoc and a double chokeslam from Luchasaurus to Quen and Kassidy (the combined team of Private Party). The Joker is here….and it’s Adam Page, who limps to the ring. The fans are very pleased as he cleans house, including a fall away slam on Jungle Boy. Janela is waiting on him for an All In rematch and the fight is on. The Dead Eye (over the shoulder kneeling piledriver, formerly known as the Rite of Passage) plants Janela but there’s no elimination.

Page tries to pick Romero up but hurts his knee again. That means it’s Jungle Boy and Stunt going after Romero to no avail. Romero Pounces Stunt out onto Private Party for a heck of an elimination. Jungle Boy dropkicks Romero in the back and gets rid of him on his own for a heck of an upset. Thomas comes back up with the 619 to Janela (WHICH THE CAMERA MISSES), followed by a springboard 450. Friedman puts Thomas on top so Thomas can DDT Spears out.

A slingshot DDT is blocked though and Friedman gets rid of Thomas. Cutler dumps Gunn but gets eliminated by Friedman as the ring is starting to empty out. Luchasaurus chokeslams Janela through a well placed table for a great bump that makes Janela’s girlfriend Penelope Ford scream. Kiss does his weird Stink Face variation to Dreamer in the corner and gets tossed for him.

Cassidy comes in (billed as the twenty second man, even though he was announced in advance) for his slow motion kicks so Dreamer punches him down. Cassidy keeps his hands in his pockets and nips up, only to get thrown out anyway. Havoc’s staple gun between the legs gets rid of Dreamer, leaving us with Friedman, Page, Jungle Boy, Havoc and Luchasaurus, assuming there are no more hanging out on the floor.

Havoc sends Jungle Boy over the ropes and bites his fingers for the elimination. Friedman gets caught in the corner and triple stomped to send him through the ropes for a breather. Havoc’s Acid Rainmaker hits Luchasaurus and there’s a Death Valley Driver to Page. Another Acid Rainmaker is blocked and Luchasaurus kicks Havoc out. The fans are split as Luchasaurus shrugs off Page’s strikes to the face and hits the reverse powerbomb. Page low bridges him anyway for the elimination and the bell rings but Friedman comes back in….and takes the Buckshot Lariat to give Page the win at 23:55.

Rating: C+. Page was a bit of a letdown as the Joker but I can understand the idea of bringing in someone bigger for later on in the actual show. What we got here was good and a nice representation of how unique the roster can be. I had fun watching it and the match certainly didn’t feel like twenty four minutes, though the Joker winning was just kind of there after a parade of quick eliminations near the end.

Pre-Show: Kip Sabian vs. Sammy Guevara

Sabian is British and Guevara wears what looks like a panda skin to the ring. Sammy’s headlock doesn’t get very far as Kip takes him down into a headscissors for a nipup escape. Back up and Sammy starts flipping around to set up the dropkick, followed by another nipup. That’s enough for Guevara to take a bow but Sabian sends him to the floor for a kick to the face and a springboard flip dive.

Back in and Sammy hits a kick to the spine, followed by an Andrade double moonsault into a standing shooting star press for two. Sabian nails a springboard dropkick to the back, followed by a penalty kick to the chest for the same. Sammy suplexes him over the top and goes down with him, meaning it’s another suplex on the floor for a cool crash. Sammy drapes him over the barricade for a shooting star to the back and Sabian is in trouble. The 630 hits knees though and the Deathly Hallows (torture rack into a reverse Samoa driver) finishes Sammy at 9:41.

Rating: C. Sammy is a great heel but he didn’t get to showcase a lot of his usual stuff here, which is what makes him that much better. What we got was fine, though this was much better served in the pre-show. It’s the kind of a match that you can see on a bunch of indy shows and it was really nothing that I’ll remember in a few minutes. Still though, it’s probably a good idea to have a regular match instead of just the battle royal to get things going.

Some people from a charity called Kulture City sing the National Anthem.

The opening video looks at the rise of AEW, including the press conferences and media events, which are really all they have to go on at the moment. Well aside from Being The Elite.

So Cal Uncensored vs. Strong Hearts

The Strong Hearts (El Lindaman/T-Hawk/Cima) are from Oriental Wrestling Entertainment, a group out of China. Before the match, SCU does their usual spiel about this being the worst town they’ve ever been in, but it’s their favorite worst town. Of note: wrestlers now have ten seconds to get out of the ring as opposed to five in most promotions. Daniels and Cima start things off with a pair of missed dropkicks as the feeling out process begins. T-Hawk comes in to face Kazarian for a chop off.

Kazarian hits a dropkick of his own to possibly draw a little blood. The rather small Lindaman comes in to throw Sky around but a takedown lets SCU start with the revolving elbows. Excalibur talks about cutting off the ring at the hypotenuse, marking the debut of that word in wrestling. Daniels gets caught in the corner though and Cima drapes him over the ropes for a top rope double knee to the back.

T-Hawk chops Sky off the top as everything breaks down. SCU takes over again and it’s Lindaman getting caught in the wrong corner. Sky comes in for a running double stomp to the back but Lindaman manages a bridging German suplex for two. It’s back to Kazarian for two off a northern lights suplex on T-Hawk, leaving Daniels to suicide dive onto Cima. Back in and Cima plants Daniels but walks into a slingshot cutter from Sky.

Lindaman dropkicks Sky down but walks into Kazarian’s slingshot DDT. Daniels and Cima clothesline each other for a double knockdown. Back up and they slug it out with Daniels hitting Angel’s Wings but Lindaman comes in off a blind tag for a deadlift German suplex. Cima’s Meteora gives Lindaman two more and Kazarian hurricanrana T-Hawk to the floor, setting up Sky’s running flip dive. That leaves Lindaman inside to the Best Meltzer Ever for the pin at 13:08.

Rating: B. Heck of an entertaining match here with everyone moving and looking good. SCU is a heck of a team and they’re the kind of people you can put into a match anytime you need a good performance. Strong Hearts looked great as well and that’s a very bright sign for the future. You need some people you can just throw in there for some interchangeable matches and that might be what they’ve found here.

Allie joins commentary for the dreaded four person booth.

Nyla Rose vs. Kylie Rae vs. Britt Baker

Actually hang on as here’s Brandi Rhodes to make it a four way.

Nyla Rose vs. Kylie Rae vs. Britt Baker vs. Awesome Kong

Well that’s a wild card. Kong and Rose go straight for the staredown but all three go after Kong instead. That’s shrugged off and Kong hits the swinging backfist to send her to the floor. Kong misses the running splash on Baker and Rae though and gets low bridged out to the floor. The very smiley Rae runs Baker over but misses a low superkick, allowing Baker to grab a suplex for two, setting up a smile of her own.

Kong is back up though and Baker dives on her for no logical reason. That means a suicide dive from Rae to take both of them down as Rose is back up. Rose can’t chokeslam Rae, who tries some forearms to the back to no avail. Instead Rose plants her with a spinebuster for two with Britt coming back in for a Sling Blade. A Samoan drop takes Baker down but Rae is right back with a Code Red for two of her own on Rose.

Back up and Rose starts cleaning house before heading up top, which of course means the Tower of Doom from Kong. Kong takes Baker outside for the spinning backfist but Baker fights out of a powerbomb on the apron. Rose spears Kong into the steps, leaving Kylie to hit a low superkick on Baker.

That’s fine with Britt, who comes back with a swinging fisherman’s neckbreaker for a two that is so close that JR isn’t convinced. Rae is right back with a dead lift German suplex for two more and it’s time for Rae to get serious for the first time. Baker hits her in the face though and the Last Shot (Adam Cole’s old finisher) finishes Rae at 11:14.

Rating: C+. This felt like two matches going on at once with Kong and Rose having one match while Baker and Rae had the other. It was entertaining though and that’s the best thing that could happen. Baker and Rae aren’t very well known and having Baker win the match over Kong, who is a known name, is a good sign. Nice match too, though a singles match would have fit better.

Best Friends vs. Jack Evans/Angelico

Evans bounces off Trent to start and a bigger shoulder takes him down. It’s time to load up the big hug but Angelico and Evans break it up in a hurry. Evans starts cleaning house with JR declaring him “like a deadly…..wasp.” Everything breaks down with Evans elbowing Trent in the face.

The Friends get caught in the corner but a kick to the face sets up the Falcon Arrow with Excalibur getting in all of his usual shtick. A double stomp from the apron takes Angelico out so Evans starts his variety of odd kicks, including a backflip kick to Trent’s head. Soul Food sets up the big hug and it’s a reverse Razor’s Edge to send Evans into a cutter from Trent for two.

Angelico comes back in for an assisted Code Red on Trent, followed by an assisted cyclone knee to the head. Trent charges into a knee to the face in the corner and the Fall of the Angels (running crucifix buckle bomb) sets up Evans’ 630 for two with Chuckie breaking it up. Chuckie hits the running flip dive onto Angelico and the spike Strong Zero finishes Evans at 12:16.

Rating: B-. I’m not a big Best Friends fan but they went with the serious stuff here to make it work that much better. Evans and Angelico have a spot going forward as well as the spot fest guys and there’s nothing wrong with that. Best Friends winning makes sense though as the company is looking to be based on tag teams and having a bigger name team is the right call.

Post match they load up a hug….and the lights go out. They come back up with a bald guy and a masked guy in the ring. The lights go out again and it’s…..a bunch of masked men around the ring to pull Angelico, Evans and the Best Friends to the floor for a beating. The fans don’t recognize the bald guy and the masked guy as they destroy the four of them. The team is better known as the Super Smash Bros, though they’re not named here.

All Out is coming to Chicago in August. They do have some decent pay per view names.

Aja Kong/Yuka Sakazaki/Emi Sakura vs. Hikaru Shida/Riho Abe/Ryo Mizunami

Kong is a legendary monster. Shida and Sakazaki start things off for a missed running knee to the face, meaning it’s off to Mizunami vs. Kong. A power battle easily goes to the much larger Kong until some kicks to the head work a bit better. Sakazaki comes back in for a top rope seated senton on Riho and a slam, followed by the tag off to Sakura. The surfboard goes on for a bit before it’s back to Kong for the loud kick to the back.

Kong’s partners hold the other two in the corner as Kong hits a piledriver for two, with a pair of diving saves breaking it up. Riho is mostly dead but a shot to the ribs allows the hot tag off to Ryo. Everything breaks down for the big brawl until it’s Kong vs. Mizunami. The power game goes nowhere so it’s off to Riho as everything breaks down.

Knee strikes abound and it’s Kong suplexing Riho and Ryo (They couldn’t call one of them Earl?). A suicide dive takes both of them down and it’s a brainbuster to Shida. Sakura adds a moonsault for two that is so close that the bell rings and music starts playing. The fans aren’t pleased with the kickout but settle for Shida hitting a running knee to Sakura’s head for the pin at 13:09.

Rating: B-. It was a pretty wild brawl with a lot of physicality, but it was one of those cases where the people involved felt like they were interchangeable outside of Kong. The match was good and that’s all you can ask for and the majority of the match is all about having these people featured. That worked quite well and as long as you get a taste, everything should be fine.

We recap Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody. They’re brothers who don’t get along and it’s a personal feud this time. Dustin is much older and Cody wants to take him out for good. Dustin isn’t ready to be put out to pasture/taken out behind the barn/whatever other Texas saying they can think of.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody

Cody has a flashy robe and discount HHH throne, plus Brandi in his corner for a rather nice bonus. In case you didn’t get the idea from the cross and skull throne, Brandi hands him a sledgehammer to destroy the throne. ARE THEY BEING TOO SUBTLE FOR YOU??? Dustin has half of his face painted because, again, he isn’t much without the links to Goldust. Cody’s weight belt says Attitude Killer because we need to get that in there too.

We get a DUSTY chant for a nice touch (Dustin looks near tears) and the fans declare this awesome. Did they see their WWE matches? Cody trips him down and throws in a cartwheel for the early pose. Dustin gets sent outside for a suicide dive and it’s a bit of a botch as Dustin isn’t ready for something like a 619 on the apron. A running flip dive off the apron drops Cody and the bulldog connects back inside.

Ten right hands in the corner set up some snap jabs and Cody bails again. Fans: “NEVER LOST IT!” Cody grabs some water and Brandi gets in a cheap shot so Cody can hit a fireman’s carry gutbuster for two. A powerslam gives Cody two but Dustin hits his kneeling uppercut. Dustin loads up Shattered Dreams but Cody pulls the buckle pad off and throws it at Dustin, who charges anyway. That earns him a drop toehold into the exposed buckle for a trip to the floor.

Brandi adds a spear, with JR wondering what kind of family this is. That earns Brandi an ejection and Diamond Dallas Page makes a cameo to help get rid of her. Dustin is busted WAY open so Cody rubs the blood on his own chest. Cody punches at the cut and Dustin can’t see through the blood. A curb stomp gives Cody two and he adds a top rope ax handle. The scoop powerslam gives Dustin (who is now reaching an all time amount of blood) two but Cody takes him down into the Figure Four.

That’s powered over until Cody lets it go, so it’s time for a whipping with the weightlifting belt. Dustin grabs a Code Red (third time tonight) for two and the fans are on their feet. The top rope superplex is a near crash as Dustin slips off the top but he’s fine enough to hit Cross Rhodes for two. A low blow gets Cody out of trouble and the Disaster Kick sets up the real Cross Rhodes…..for two.

There is blood EVERYWHERE, with Earl and Cody both having it all over them and the mat is covered. Dustin hits another Cross Rhodes for another two and it’s time to trade kneeling uppercuts. Cody grabs something like a Vertebreaker (more like a backbreaker though as Cody was sitting before Dustin’s head started going down) but pulls Dustin up at two. Cross Rhodes finishes Dustin at 22:28.

Rating: B+. I had no expectations for this one and while I’m still not sure exactly why they’re fighting (I get the story but I’m not buying it), this was a heck of a war and far better than most people would have guessed. They beat each other up and had the best match they could have, which was also the best match tonight.

Post match Cody gets back in the ring and says Dustin doesn’t want to do this just yet. Instead, Cody has an upcoming match against the Young Bucks with a partner of his choosing. He doesn’t need a partner or a friend though because he needs his older brother. That gets a big hug in a scene reminiscent of Dusty Rhodes saying something similar to Dustin back in 1994 (that’s not a bad thing).

We look at the battle royal again as things are set up for the title presentation.

Here’s BRET HART of all people to put over the event and talk about how important the title is. He brings out Hangman Page, who will be facing either Kenny Omega or Chris Jericho “Next month…..or in a few months. Sorry it’s been a little while.” Page comes out but here’s Maxwell Jacob Friedman to interrupt. He does his usual…..Friedman: “BRET LOOK OUT! A FAN!”

After Friedman is done laughing, he talks about how he’s going to be the future of this company because a horse like Page certainly can’t be its face. Friedman talks about taking horses out back and shooting them before telling Page to give him the title shot. He demands that the old man look at him because he’s going to be the best there is, was and ever will be. Actually scratch that because that catchphrase sucks.

Page comes after him so Friedman drops to the floor. Friedman: “Easy Seabiscuit, easy.” Cue Jungle Boy to stop Friedman on the ramp and Jimmy Havoc to cut him off again. Page, Jungle Boy and Havoc surround Friedman, who wants to talk about this. The beatdown is on as Bret unveils the title, which is rather large with AEW in the middle. Not bad at all, with a pretty simple design.

We recap the Young Bucks vs. the Lucha Bros. The Bucks showed up in AAA and won the titles from the Brothers, who had won them earlier in the night. This is the only title match all night and it’s an actual dream match….which has happened before.

AAA Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Lucha Bros

The Bucks are defending and come out in Elvis style jumpsuits. Matt and Pentagon start things off with a staredown and Matt breaks up CERO MIEDO. An early Pentagon Driver attempt is broken up so it’s already off to Fenix. Nick comes in off a blind tag but the Bucks get caught in a double wristdrag to the floor. Everyone winds up outside and it’s Fenix and Nick both trying dropkicks at the same time for a standoff.

Back in and it’s a chop off with Fenix getting the better of Nick. The rolling dropkick puts Nick down again and the double superkicks make it even worse. The assisted wheelbarrow splash gives Fenix two but Nick is back up with a springboard wristdrag/headscissor takeover combination. Matt comes in to pick up the pace and it’s a gorilla press to Fenix, followed by a spear to Pentagon. Nick’s top rope double stomp hits Matt’s back by mistake but Nick takes Pentagon down to keep control.

Pentagon is right back with a monkey flip to send Nick into Matt in the corner. Fenix comes in and plants Matt on his head for two. It’s already back to Pentagon, who gets caught in a top rope flipping Stunner (nearly a neckbreaker) from Matt. Rolling northern lights suplexes set up a Sharpshooter but Fenix makes a quick save. Nick comes back in and it’s time for the rapid fire offense, including a kick to Fenix and a slingshot X Factor to Pentagon. Back in and the Bucks grab stereo Sharpshooters but ropes are grabbed in a hurry.

Nick hits the top rope 450 to a draped Fenix with Pentagon making the save. A powerbomb/super Sliced Bread #2 gets two on Fenix and we need a breather. Pentagon comes back in to start firing off the superkicks and everyone is down. Matt and Pentagon head to the floor to trade kicks to the legs. Kicks to the face give us a double knockdown but it’s the Bros up with back to back slingshot Canadian Destroyers for two on Nick.

Fenix’s middle rope flip dive takes out both Bucks, followed by the Fear Factor into the Swanton for two on Nick. It’s back to Matt and the Bucks superkick Fenix out of the air. A Helluva Kick into a brainbuster onto the buckle gives us the Sami Generico special on Fenix. More Bang For Your Buck gets two on Pentagon, followed by a spike package piledriver for two more.

Fenix breaks up the Meltzer Driver though and Pentagon snaps Matt’s arm. The Pentagon Driver gets two on Matt as Nick is down near the top of the ramp. That leaves Fenix to start kicking Matt in the arm but in true Bucks fashion, Matt is suddenly fine and Nick is suddenly back, meaning it’s the Meltzer Driver to retain at 24:59.

Rating: A-. This was the best match of the night, even if it had that rather annoying Bucks tendency to get destroyed and then pop up and win in about two seconds. I liked the idea of the Bucks using moves from their past rivals to to make sure they could beat the Bros, though I’m not sure who is supposed to beat the Bucks now. Either way, it’s a heck of a match, though both teams are capable of doing better.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega. Jericho needs to win the match to avenge his loss in Japan. Omega knows that Jericho might be the best of all time but also that Jericho needs this win.

Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho brings out the List of Jericho, the light up jacket and….finally the hat because he’s Evil Jericho this time around. They trade slaps in the face to start with Jericho hitting a running shoulder. The early V Trigger misses so Omega tries a hurricanrana, which is countered into the Walls. Omega bails to the rope and gets knocked outside where Jericho rings the bell. This time Jericho throws him into the crowd and grabs a camera for some filming (with Excalibur calling him Generico twice in a row).

That earns him a soda to the face and they go back inside for a Regal Roll into the middle rope moonsault from Omega. Jericho is right back with a dropkick and some chops to bust Omega’s chest open. For some reason Jericho stops to flip off a fan and throw in some yelling, allowing Omega (who might have a broken nose) to snap off a hurricanrana. Jericho goes outside and finds a table, which Omega dropkicks into his face. Omega isn’t done though as he hits a big running flip dive to knock the table into Jericho again.

The table is set up on the floor but Omega takes him back inside for the jumping Fameasser for two. Omega hits the first V Trigger to the back of the head, followed by the belly to back superplex for the huge crash. Another V Trigger is broken up but the Lionsault hits knees. Now the second V Trigger can connect and Jericho adds a release German suplex. The second and third Lionsaults connect (the second to Kenny’s head) for two but Omega is right back with another V Trigger.

Jericho backdrops him to the floor through the table though and they’re both down. They slug it out with Omega on the apron so Jericho breaks up a springboard with a dropkick. Omega breaks up a superplex but dives right into the Codebreaker for two. The Walls are broken up again and a tiger driver gives Omega another near fall. Another V Trigger is countered into the Walls with Jericho even turning it into the Liontamer.

Omega slips out again and hits one heck of a V Trigger (that’s about seven total) but the One Winged Angel is countered into the deformed cousin of a DDT. It was so bad that they do the same sequence again so the DDT can work as designed. The Codebreaker drops Omega for no cover and it’s the Judas Effect (a spinning back elbow to the face) to give Jericho the pin at 27:37.

Rating: B+. It’s a strong main event and I completely understand the idea of putting Jericho on top but it never felt epic. It came off like they were just trading big finishers until we got to the ending. Jericho winning is fine as you can either have him as the first champion or have him put Page over for the title, both of which would work. Still though, rather good, just not great.

Post match Jericho rips on the fans, saying he doesn’t care what they think and calling them marks. It’s his time now though and this is his company. This company is all about him and he’s the reason for this building, the logo and the TV deal. With all that done and Omega defeated, it’s time for a thank you.

Instead, he gets Jon Moxley coming through the crowd to hit Dirty Deeds on Jericho and the referee but Omega fights one off and the brawl is on, all but guaranteeing the next main event. They fight into the crowd and onto the poker chip set, with Moxley hitting Dirty Deeds on top of the pile. An AA off the pile of chips plants Omega to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. It was very good and that’s what matters most here. They had some rather good matches (the last three all delivered) and while it felt a little long near the end, I liked just about everything they put on. It wasn’t a blow away show or an instant classic, but what we got was very good and I’m curious to see where they go with the next show.

The important thing to remember is that this is a first step. Most of the matches didn’t have much of a backstory and they didn’t need to. This show was much more about letting these people get in the ring under the AEW banner and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a very good debut and while I liked All In more, this is a good way to go for the first step on a long road.

So what does this mean for their long term future? Not much really, as they’re still several months away from having their weekly show, which is what really matters. They’re not going to have the Rhodes blood bath or the crazy Bucks vs. Bros match or a Jon Moxley coming through the crowd every single time. What matters is getting people to watch when that hype is gone and while this doesn’t show much about that ability (as it’s something completely different), it showed that they can put on a very good and entertaining show.

Another good sign was Jim Ross, who sounded motivated and energized for the first time in a long time. His New Japan run just made me sad as he clearly didn’t care and wasn’t trying, but he can still bring it when he needs to. Let him be a guiding light behind the scenes and things will be great. This show wasn’t quite great, but it was a very strong start and that’s a nice sign.

Results

So Cal Uncensored b. Strong Hearts – Best Meltzer Ever to Lindaman

Britt Baker b. Kylie Rae, Nyla Rose and Awesome Kong – Last Shot to Rae

Best Friends b. Jack Evans/Angelico – Spike Strong Zero to Evans

Hikaru Shida/Riho Abe/Ryo Mizunami b. Aja Kong/Yuka Sakazaki/Emi Sakura – Running knee to Sakura

Cody b. Dustin Rhodes – Cross Rhodes

Young Bucks b. Lucha Bros – Meltzer Driver to Pentagon

Chris Jericho b. Kenny Omega – Judas Effect

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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

It’s about time. Nearly nine months have passed since All In and that means it’s time to finally move forward. A lot of fans, myself included, have been wanting to see how Double Or Nothing goes as it could be the start of something that changes the future of wrestling. I’m not sure how things are going to go, but they have their work cut out for them. The talent is there though and that gives me some hope. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Casino Battle Royal

Earlier this week, the announcement came down that the winner of this will be competing for the World Title against the winner of Chris Jericho/Kenny Omega. Now that makes things a lot more interesting as the match suddenly goes from the get everyone on the card to a #1 contenders match. At the moment there are seventeen out of twenty one entrants named, meaning the big one at the end is going to be a major surprise.

I know the money move would be Jon Moxley, but I just don’t think it’s going to be him. He would be the big ace, but wouldn’t it make more sense to have him show up at the end of the show as the big surprise? I’ll go with someone who would serve both as a surprise and as someone with some star power and pick John Hennigan (probably Johnny Elite this time around). He’s a former Impact World Champion and has made a name for himself in recent months. It’s a safe bet and getting him back on the big stage would be a good way to start the show. Most of the rest of the field is immaterial, which is the case in most battle royals.

Pre-Show: Kip Sabian vs. Sammy Guevara

This is the first match where you might not have heard of the wrestlers and hopefully you’re in for a treat. Sabian is a British wrestler (and not to be confused with the one from CZW who occasionally wrestled in TNA as Sabian) who was on World of Sport (not everyone is perfect) and Guevara is one of the most easily hateable wrestlers in the world today. He’s obsessed with pushing his social media channels and will often stop his matches to plug them.

I’ll go with Guevara here as he’s one of the best heels going today and someone who could get over very well in a place like AEW. Let him get out there and annoy the crowd so much that they want to see him get beaten up. The most important thing AEW needs to do is build up some stars and Guevara is the kind of person who could be a nice name for them going forward.

Best Friends vs. Angelico/Jack Evans

You knew the Best Friends would be on here somewhere. I’m not their biggest fan as some of their bits seem to be old jokes that they’ve done before and if you weren’t there at first, you might not get what they’re doing. Their matches are usually pretty good though and they’re crazy popular with that big hug being one of the most over spots around today. It makes sense to have them here, even if I’m not wild on them.

And of course the Best Friends win here, as Evans and Angelico are a nice team but nowhere near as important as the Best Friends could be. With the promotion seemingly putting a priority on tag wrestling, having another team like the Best Friends built up is a smart move. The match should be entertaining too so hopefully this will be more positive than I’m expecting.

So Cal Uncensored vs. Strong Hearts

The Strong Hearts are Cima, T-Hawk and El Lindaman and are part of the Oriental Wrestling Entertainment contingent. These guys seem like the cruiserweights from the early days of Nitro and that’s not a bad group of people to have around. This place needs some talent that fans aren’t familiar with but need to go out of their way to see. If that’s the case with the OWE guys, so be it and maybe it can work.

I’ll go with the Strong Hearts to win here as there is little reason to have them lose. So Cal Uncensored are already a known group (well more known than the OWE group) and there is almost no reason to have them lose. Let them do their shtick and get the crowd going and then lose a hot match. It gets both sides over with the fans and hopefully the masses while showing that they can both go somewhere.

Aja Kong/Yuka Sakazaki/Emi Sakura vs. Hikaru Shida/Riho Abe/Ryo Mizunami

This is another match designed to throw something different on the card, which makes sense as Japanese women’s wrestling is certainly a strong niche product. The stars can become big deals in a hurry, such as Asuka who took both NXT and WWE by storm in a hurry. Much like the OWE stars, this could work very well if done right and there’s a real chance it could happen here.

I’ll go with Kong’s team as Kong is a legend and the kind of star that the promotion would like to push for a one off appearance. This feels like an old vs. new match and at some point the old has to win something. If nothing else it gives us an excuse to see the spinning backfist from Kong, which is always worth a look. It’s going to be a fine showcase though, and that’s what matters most here.

Britt Baker vs. Kylie Rae vs. Nyla Rose

This is an interesting one as Rose is the first ever trans woman to be wrestling for a major company. Baker is best known for being the wrestling dentist and Adam Cole’s girlfriend. Rae on the other hand caught my attention over WrestleMania weekend and is basically the original Bayley combined with Dakota Kai. That can make for an interesting match as the women’s division starts up.

I’ll take Baker to win here but none of them are exactly running away with the thing. Rae is such a gimmicky character and Rose is an unknown, leaving Baker as the talented yet not exactly thrilling best option. It should be a fun match with a good look at some of the female wrestlers, though I’m not expecting to be blown away based on past experiences.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody

I know this one is getting some hype as of late and I’m really not sure why. They had a few matches back in WWE and none of them were anything more than ok at best. Maybe this one will be a little bit better as Rhodes doesn’t have the WWE shackles on him anymore, but I’m really not getting my hopes up for this one. It’s not a match that I care to see as the idea of battling brothers feels both cliched and forced.

I’ll go with Cody winning here as he’s the most important guy in the company and is going to be around a lot more than Rhodes going forward. At the end of the day, Rhodes is fifty years old and hasn’t wrestled in a little while due to an injury. Maybe the match will be fine, but Rhodes as himself hasn’t been an interesting thing to see in about twenty five years. I get what they’re going for here, but that’s not exactly something that is guaranteed to work.

AAA Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks(c) vs. Lucha Bros

The Bucks showed up Rey de Reyes and took the titles from the Bros the night the Bros won them. It gives the match something on the line since the AEW Tag Team Titles aren’t around yet, which is as good of an idea as anything else. This is all but guaranteed to be the show stealer as these are two of the best teams in the world, even though the Bucks have only wrestled twice this year and not in over two months.

We’ll flip a coin here and go with the Bros winning, though I could see this being a match that we see again for the AEW Tag Team Titles not that far down the line. These guys are going to tear the house down and that’s the kind of thing the show leaves. I believe I heard something about this headlining the show, which makes sense as it’s the only title match on the card. The place is going to be bananas for the Bucks in the first place and the Lucha Bros will be right there with them. It’s going to be awesome though and that’s what this place is built on.

Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho

So that leaves us with this one and I’m not sure where they’re going here. Omega won the first match between the two and in a normal wrestling promotion, you would go with Jericho winning here to even the score, but AEW doesn’t seem to be a normal wrestling promotion. That being said though, this is for the #1 contendership to the World Title and that makes things more interesting.

I’m going with Jericho, who seems to be the right choice to have in the World Title match. If the company is building towards the future and the masses, having someone beat Jericho for the title is the right way to go. Omega can become the star later on with his show stealing abilities, but until he becomes a bigger name, this should go to Jericho and I believe that it will.

Overall Thoughts

I was more excited for All In but this show is more important (I think). The company needs to get off on the right foot and now it’s going to be interesting to see where things go when they’re on their own. It’s also going to give you an indication of where things are going as the next show is taking place in about a month. They’re starting to do this regularly and the path has to start somewhere. That’s where we are on Saturday and I’m curious to see where things are going. Hopefully it’s in the right direction.

 

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

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