IMG Credit: AEW

Dynamite
Date: January 8, 2020
Location: Landers Center, Southaven, Mississippi
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re in the south again this week and it’s time for Jon Moxley to make his decision about joining the Inner Circle. That could go multiple ways but I think you know where this is headed. Other than that, we’ll be getting a tribute to Memphis wrestling legends, which seems prime for a certain loudmouthed rich kid to come in and mess everything up. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Memphis broadcasting legend Dave Brown is on commentary.

Kenny Omega/Hangman Page vs. Private Party

Page, whose name graphic says he’s “not gonna pay Private Party that $12”, and Quen start things off with the fans wanting some cowboy s***. Page slugs away to start but gets sent into the corner, with Kassidy coming in for a top rope double stomp/neckbreaker combination, plus a running knee to knock Omega off the apron. An elbow to the face gets Page out of trouble and it’s off to Omega, with Page seemingly getting along with him just fine.

A backbreaker plants Kassidy so it’s already back to Page, only to have Kassidy fight out of the corner. Kassidy hits a slingshot Downward Spiral to plant Omega and it’s a double tag off to Page and Quen. A standing C4 gets two on Page with Omega having to make the save. Everything breaks down and it’s a powerbomb to Kassidy, setting up Omega’s running knee to the back for two more.

Kassidy is right back with the Silly String for two but Page loads up a powerbomb. That’s broken up with a double dropkick to send Page into Omega though and Gin and Juice gets a VERY close two on Omega. Quen gets flipped away by Omega, but it lands in a Pele on Page as Omega panics. Page is fine enough to hit a Buckshot lariat as Omega nails the V Trigger. The One Winged Angel finishes Quen at 12:25.

Rating: C+. It was an energetic match and continued the story of Page’s issues, though I’m still not sure how this is going to wind up going. I could see Page being the leader of the Dark Order or just turning on Omega whenever he faces Pac again, but maybe they have something else in mind.

Post match Page and Omega seem fine but it’s Pac popping up on screen with Michael Nakazawa in the Brutalizer. Page demands his rubber match with Omega, who runs to the back. I’m so glad Nakazawa was there because he never wrestles but rather just stands in the back so Pac can beat him up.

Brandi Rhodes replaces Brown on commentary.

Women’s Title: Riho vs. Kris Stadtlander

Riho is defending but has bad ribs after last week. Brandi says that she’s more interested in having a nap than watching this match and asks if Excalibur takes his mask off to shower. Excalibur says that he keeps it on because of lucha libre tradition. I would have thought it’s because he thinks it’s a lot cooler than it really is.

Riho has to bridge out of an early cover but Stadtlander blocks a 619. The tilt-a-whirl backbreaker plants Riho for two and we take a break. Back with Stadtlander hitting a delayed superplex but here’s the Nightmare Collective at ringside. Riho gets kicked in the face but manages an elbow to Stadtlander’s face. The referee checks on her and it’s the Collective pulling Riho off the apron.

Stadtlander dives onto both of them as Brandi comes out to the ring. She and Stadtlander yell at each other but here’s the bald guy from the Nightmare Collective (identified as Luther, the Japanese deathmatch legend) to grab Stadtlander. Kong clotheslines Stadtlander down so Riho dives onto Luther instead of covering.

Back in and Riho misses the top rope double stomp, allowing Stadtlander to gorilla press her way up. That’s countered into a rollup for two, followed by Stadtlander’s Michinoku Driver for the same. Stadtlander loads up a piledriver but Kong trips her up, allowing Riho (who didn’t seem to see the interference) to get the rollup to retain at 9:35.

Rating: C-. And so much for that. They seemed to have something going with Stadtlander but hey let’s go with Riho retaining again and the focus being on the Nightmare Collective. I know Riho isn’t as bad as some people would say but egads people. You have so much talent out there and Riho is going over all of them for reasons that I don’t quite grasp. If Riho is that much more over than the rest of the division, she can survive without the title for a bit. But yeah it’s all about the Nightmare Collective (read as Brandi), again.

Post match the beatdown is on but some of the women’s roster, watching from the crowd, jump the barricade for the save.

Video on Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford.

Sammy Guevara vs. Christopher Daniels

Sammy has been saying Daniels doesn’t have it anymore so Daniels starts with a bunch of armdrags and chops in the corner. Sammy is right back with a fireman’s carry, with squats, into a Samoan drop for two. The 450 misses though and it’s a t-bone suplex to send Guevara down.

A running knee and running shooting star press give Sammy two but Daniels gets the same off a backslide. There’s a release Rock Bottom from Daniels but hang on as here’s Pentagon Jr. to show Daniels he can still do the Arabian moonsault. The distraction lets Sammy hit a jumping knee and a superkick to the back of the head for the pin at 5:49.

Rating: C-. This was much more about the storyline advancement than the wrestling and that’s fine. The Daniels doesn’t have it anymore story is perfectly fine and I’m curious to see which way they take to wrap it up. That’s more important than having some outstanding match here as the future is more of a positive than the present.

Post match it’s the Dark Order with Evil Uno saying that he’s known Daniels for fifteen years. Daniels isn’t the man he once was but they can help him with that. Uno holds up the mask but Daniels throws it back at him, meaning the big beatdown is on. SCU and the Young Bucks (that’s a nice addition as they should be out here) run in for the save. House is cleaned and Daniels hits the BME on Uno.

Cody/Dustin Rhodes vs. Lucha Bros

Arn Anderson is here with Cody and Dustin. Cody and Pentagon pose off to start so Cody sends him into the ropes. The Fear Factor and Cross Rhodes are both blocked so it’s Fenix and Dustin coming in for one of the strangest combinations I can imagine. Dustin gets kicked to the floor for the suicide dive and Pentagon adds the top rope double stomp for two as we take a break.

Back with Dustin still in trouble but Anderson kicks a chair away from Fenix. Dustin grabs a spinebuster to set up the hot tag to Cody, who can’t quite hit a headlock takeover/hurricanrana combination. Fenix kicks Cody in the head though and grabs a rolling cutter to drop him again. The rope run kick to the head drops Cody and the Pentagon Driver nearly drops him on his head. Dustin makes the save and hits a Canadian Destroyer on Fenix. The Cody Cutter sets up the Final Reckoning to give Dustin the pin at 10:15.

Rating: B-. I could watch the Lucha Bros do their awesome spots and flips for days as they are just so smooth out there. They lose too often though and while that’s not a problem yet, it might become one someday. Just let them win a few matches to keep their status and their talent will do the rest. Good match here though and the best one of the night so far.

Post match Arn says he and Cody will talk about MJF’s demands and get back to him next week.

Lanny Poffo talks about how great the Memphis legends are and he’s glad to be here.

Here are MJF and Wardlow with MJF wanting Cody out here right now. After giving him a ten count, it’s Diamond Dallas Page interrupting MJF instead. Page lists off his resume and we get a YOGA chant. As MJF checks his phone (so appropriate for him), Page puts over AEW and plugs his Instagram before saying people have been asking him for one more match. MJF: “ENOUGH!”

MJF doesn’t want to fight them but these guys do. Cue the Butcher, the Bunny and the Blade as MJF says Page can kiss the ring, or MJF can have one of Page’s daughters. The fight is on with Page laying out Butcher and Blade but getting kicked low by MJF. QT Marshall and Dustin Rhodes make the save. Page took WAY too long to get to the point here and is still one of the most protected guys in the company despite not really being in the company.

Orange Cassidy/Best Friends vs. Jurassic Express

Jungle Boy dropkicks Trent to start so it’s off to Stunt, who psyches himself up for a bit until Trent shoves him down. Stunt does his floss dance and it’s Boy coming in to put Trent down. Everything breaks down and we take a break. Back with Luchasaurus coming in to hit everyone in a hurry.

The Tail Whip hits Trent and it’s off to Cassidy to the big reaction. The slow motion kicks to the legs don’t do much to Luchasaurus but a Stundog Millionaire sends him to the floor. Cassidy hits his hands in the pockets dive but it’s Marko hitting a spinning Downward Spiral to Chuck. A Canadian Destroyer makes it worse so Stunt gets tossed onto Trent on the floor. Back in and Jungle Boy grabs a rollup for the pin at 10:42.

Rating: C. This was a good example of a lot of the things that get on my nerves about these guys. It isn’t the fact that Stunt is so small or the fact that Cassidy isn’t really funny. It’s having them do the same gags over and over. Stunt does the dance and Cassidy does the slow kicks. Those bits were funny once or maybe twice but we see them in every match. It’s like something we have to get through rather than something that should be included.

Here’s the Inner Circle for Jon Moxley’s answer. Moxley comes down as Jericho says he would beat up Elvis if he was here because the Beatles were way better. The car is gassed up and ready to go and Beal Street is blocked off for the Inner Circle only. Jericho asks the question so Moxley talks about how he has a lot of goals. Moxley doesn’t want a car or money but rather to dominate. That’s why he says yes, because the Inner Circle is the most dominant force in AEW. They can stand together and dominate AEW so let’s open up some of the bubbly.

Moxley asks for the car keys and is proud of having the $750,000 Ford. Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager leave but Moxley says cut the music. Moxley says he’s forgotten one thing: he’s just kidding because the Inner Circle is stupid. The only thing he wants is the World Title so Moxley breaks a bottle over Jericho’s head. Paradigm Shifts abound and Moxley, with the keys, bails before Hager can kill him. There’s nothing wrong with setting up an angle where you know what is coming but get strung along for a bit on the way there and they did it well here.

Overall Rating: C-. This was another one of their weak entries as the wrestling was just kind of there for the most part with nothing being all that memorable. It’s still a completely watchable show, but there were things that just left me sitting there and a good closing angle to set up the Revolution main event. Just not much of note here, though it was far from bad.

Results

Kenny Omega/Hangman Page b. Private Party – One Winged Angel to Quen

Riho b. Kris Stadtlander – Rollup

Sammy Guevara b. Christopher Daniels – Superkick to the back of the head

Cody/Dustin Rhodes b. Lucha Bros – Final Reckoning to Fenix

Jurassic Express b. Orange Cassidy/Best Friends – Rollup to Taylor

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

IMG Credit: AEW Wrestling

Dark
Date: December 31, 2019
Hosts: Tony Schiavone, Dasha Gonzalez

It’s the end of the year and we’ll be looking at the Best of 2019, despite not having a year’s worth of material to cover. That being said, there’s more than enough to fill in a show like this and it’s better than putting something like this on an episode of Dynamite that no one will watch. Let’s get to it.

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

The hosts welcome us to the show and tell us what we’ll be seeing.

From Dynamite, October 2.

Cody vs. Sammy Guevara

Brandi is here with Cody and that is a lot of pyro. Feeling out process to start with Sammy’s speed giving Cody some issues. A trip to the floor lets Cody have a breather and it’s back in for an armbar from Sammy. That’s broken up as Cody powerslams him down and slaps on the Figure Four so we can hit the WOOing. Sammy makes the rope so Cody kicks him down again and does some pushups, setting up a springboard cutter/Stunner for two. Sammy is right back with a slingshot cutter for two of his own.

Cody sends him outside as well though and nails a suicide dive….which hits both Brandi and Sammy. Thankfully Brandi isn’t knocked cold and gets in a shoe to Sammy’s head, setting up Cody’s Disaster Kick for two. To mix it up a bit, Cody takes it to the top rope for a reverse superplex for two more. They head up again with Sammy hitting a super Spanish Fly, only to have a shooting star hit raised knees so Cody can small package him for the pin at 11:52.

Rating: C+. They were clearly jazzed to be on a big show and you knew Cody was winning here to set up his World Title shot at the next pay per view. The spots were good here and Sammy was fine for a villain here. They didn’t need to do anything more than get through a fast paced match here and that’s what they did. Nice first match with Cody playing the face role well.

BUY MERCH!

From Dynamite, November 27.

Pac vs. Kenny Omega

Omega starts fast with a snapdragon and sends him to the floor for the big dive. Pac gets in a kick to the ribs but it’s another snapdragon to put him back down. The suplex off the apron doesn’t work as Omega gets knocked to the floor with Pac nailing a moonsault as we take a break.

Back with Omega striking away in the corner and hitting another suplex. Omega goes up though and gets caught in a super Falcon Arrow for two. The Black Arrow is loaded up as JR congratulates Excalibur for getting in the Bowling Shoe Ugly line. Omega rolls away to make Pac crash and there’s the V Trigger to set up the One Winged Angel. That’s reversed as well so Omega rolls him into a crucifix for the pin at 12:04.

Rating: B-. This felt like the structure of a Pac vs. Omega match but it needed another eight to ten minutes to really make it work. What we got was good enough though and Omega won clean to continue his road to redemption. Pac losing again so soon after the loss to Page is a bit questionable, but so is having this many big matches so soon after the show debuted.

WATCH REVOLUTION!

From Dynamite, October 9.

Tag Team Title Tournament First Round: Young Bucks vs. Private Party

Private Party weigh 27 ounces of vodka cranberry and come from a place you need an invitation to. Isaiah Kassidy and Nick Jackson start things off with neither being able to hit a superkick. Nick spits his gum in Kassidy’s face so Kassidy flips out of an atomic drop attempt. Kassidy gets caught in a backbreaker/flipping neckbreaker combination to put the Bucks in control. A dive misses though and Kassidy hits a Lionsault to take him down.

Marc Quen comes in and starts busting out his own dives to a BIG reaction (as he deserves). A 450 gets a VERY close two on Matt but Nick is back in to start the Superkick Party. Nick sunset bombs Kassidy, with the powerbomb onto the ramp for a nasty landing. Back in and a powerbomb/Sliced Bread #2 combination gets two on Marc, setting up the Sharpshooter to work on the back even more.

With Kassidy down, it’s a top rope double stomp/backbreaker combination for two more on Quen. A spear gets two more on Quen as Kassidy gets pulled back off the apron. Quen gets over for the tag a few seconds later though and Kassidy comes in with a missile dropkick. He comes up holding his back but is fine enough to hit a double hurricanrana. Matt rolls the northern lights suplexes to bang up the back quite a bit before suplexing Quen at the same time for two.

The buckle bomb/kick to the head in the corner sets up another Sharpshooter, with Nick adding a facebuster. The tap seems near but Kassidy rapid fire crawls over for the tag. Quen makes a blind tag though and it’s the hurricanrana into the cutter (Gin and Juice) to rock Matt. The perfect shooting star press gets two on Nick and that should have been the finish. The Meltzer Driver is loaded up but Kassidy breaks up the springboard, allowing Quen to roll Matt up for the pin at 13:47.

Rating: B. They had one too many false finishes in the end though I’m happy with Private Party winning. That could have gone either way though, as you can either give Private Party the rub now or give the rub to whoever beats the Bucks in the finals. As long as the Bucks didn’t win though, as there was no need for that to happen. Good match too, with Private Party looking like an incredibly polished team right out of the box.

From Dynamite, October 23.

Here’s Cody for an interview but the Inner Circle starts blowing air horns every time he talks. Cody says that this isn’t like the other wrestling company they used to work for and he can come up there and take Jericho out. Jericho makes fun of him and we get a shot of Cody showing the almost entirely empty hard camera side. After that rather bad angle, here are Dustin and MJF (Jericho: “Now I’m supposed to be scared of someone wearing a scarf? Who wears a scarf?”) to even things up a bit.

Diamond Dallas Page of all people is here to even things up and the Inner Circle bails into a locked room. MJF hands Cody the scarf so Cody can break through the glass and the fight is on as they head into the concourse. JR: “They’re gonna destroy Dip N Dots!” Jericho points at the ticket as security breaks things up and takes Cody away. Jericho was awesome here, as he tends to be.

From Dynamite, October 2.

Women’s Title: Nyla Rose vs. Riho

For the inaugural title and Britt Baker is on commentary. After the Big Match Intros, Riho starts with some dropkicks but gets shouldered down without much impact. Riho knocks her down again and tries a double stomp to the back but Rose just sits up for the block. The STF goes on for a bit until Riho makes the rope to save herself. A running knee sends Rose outside but she’s fine enough to send Riho into the barricade.

The ref takes a chair away so Rose sends her into the barricade again and pulls out a bunch of chairs. She puts Riho on those chairs but the middle rope dive only hits the steel, allowing Riho to hit a double stomp off the apron. Another double stomp sets up a Bank Statement inside and we take a break.

Back with Riho in trouble and making the mistake of trying a backdrop. Some forearms are cut off by a kick to the face but Riho slips out of a powerbomb. A rollup gets a very close two and the fans aren’t pleased by the kickout. Rose’s Death Valley Driver gets two more and she goes up top, only to get caught with even more forearms. A northern lights superplex gives Riho two so she knees Rose in the face for the pin and the title at 13:27.

Rating: C+. Yeah I can’t say I’m surprised. The tiny newcomer beats the seemingly unstoppable monster in your metaphor of the night. The problem with Riho continues to be that her whole character is that she’s small. Rose continues to lose far more often than she should and that was the case here as well. The crowd got into it though and those near falls were quite good at times. Fine match, but it’s going to take some time to get into Riho.

From Dynamite, October 30.

Tag Team Titles: Lucha Bros vs. SCU

For the inaugural titles and they’re just in the ring when we come back from a break. Various teams are watching in the back. It turns into a brawl to start and Pentagon hits the Pentagon Driver for a very early two on Kazarian. The Sling Blade takes Sky down but we settle down to Kazarian slamming Fenix and dropping the spinning legdrop for two, with Kazarian being ready for Pentagon’s save.

Fenix is back up to clean house and Pentagon superkicks Sky on the floor. Sky is sent outside and gets kicked in the face as well, setting up a backbreaker/slingshot legdrop combination to really take him down. Back from a break with Kazarian fighting out of trouble and hitting an Angel’s Wings as an ode to Daniels.

Sky gets the hot tag and everything breaks down (again) with Kazarian somewhat missing a hurricanrana tot he floor. Back in and a pair of tornado DDT drops both Bros for two. SCULater is broken up and Pentagon hits the Pentagon Driver on Kazarian. Fenix’s rolling cutter gets two on Sky, followed by stereo crossbodies to put Fenix and Sky down. Pentagon powerbombs Kazarian through a table at ringside, followed by a splash off of Pentagon’s shoulders for two on Sky. The spike Fear Factor is blocked though and Kazarian cuts Fenix off so Sky can get a small package for the pin at 12:36.

Rating: B. I know it’s a fine rating but that was a rather disappointing result. The wrestling and action was good (though it felt WAY too similar to the six man) but it didn’t have enough time and the ending came out of nowhere. I am a sucker for the fast paced, flying all over the place matches ending with a quick change of gear into a fast pin though and the match was entertaining, but I was expecting a lot more and didn’t get it, mainly due to having everything be so rushed.

And from Dynamite, November 20.

Darby Allin vs. Jon Moxley

Allin has a big, special entrance this time with a video of a Moxley body bag being crowd surfed. Allin is then carried to the stage in said body bag for a creepy visual. Moxley comes in through the crowd so Allin takes him down with a dive. They fight into the crowd, including a Thesz press onto the concrete to Moxley. Allin gets thrown back to ringside and an overhead belly to belly makes things even worse for him.

They head inside for the opening bell and Allin hits a shotgun dropkick in the corner. Allin’s high crossbody bounces off of Moxley though and it’s another shotgun dropkick to put Allin in the corner this time. Moxley even chills on the top rope as we take a break. Back with Moxley letting go of an STF, allowing Moxley to hit a running crossbody to the floor. Moxley’s hand is slammed into the steps but he gets knocked off the top, landing on the ropes in the process.

Moxley knocks him to the floor but stops to pick up the body bag, allowing Allin to hit a running flip dive. Back in and a heck of a clothesline turns Allin inside out and it’s time to put him in the body bag. Allin isn’t having that and hits a Stunner, only to get caught in a swinging Boss Man Slam. The Paradigm Shift is blocked and a missed charge into the corner lets Allin get two. Code Red gives Allin two but the Coffin Drop is countered into a rear naked choke. Allin flips backwards for the near fall and Moxley heads up, bites Allin on the head, and hits a SUPER PARADIGM SHIFT (Allin sold it like death too) for the pin at 11:15.

Rating: B. That ending alone makes this work as Allin got dropped HARD on his head for one of the best looking endings in a long time. Allin has become a star during his time with AEW and that is something they had to do. He is the kind of guy who you can point to and say that AEW is creating stars and the more of those they can do, the better they are going to be. Moxley winning here is good too, as he needs to build up his record quite a bit.

Overall Rating: A-. Yeah that’s exactly what it needed to be and all they could have asked for. AEW is built around its in-ring product and showcasing that for an hour and a half is a good idea. The matches covered a lot of stuff in the show’s history and I had an easy time watching everything here. We can get back to normal next week and there’s nothing wrong with something like this as a one off.

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

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Dynamite
Date: January 1, 2020
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tazz, Excalibur

It’s the Homecoming edition as we start the new year in the home stomping grounds of Jacksonville. That means we should be in for a big show to start the new year, which is taking place a year to the day of the announcement of the company. I’m curious to see what they have in store as it should be interesting. Let’s get to it.

The opening video looks at how bad things have been for the Elite. Tonight is their reckoning as they try to turn it around.

JR tries to throw it to the first match but we run down the card instead.

During the entrances, JR mentions that the win/loss records are being reset. The all time records will still be kept, but 2020 will have their own records.

Cody vs. Darby Allin

Rematch from back in the day when they went to a surprising draw. Allin has a member of a band with him while Cody debuts Arn Anderson as his new manager. They don’t bother with the feeling out process to start and it’s a quick pinfall reversal sequence for several near falls each. Arn offers some advice, allowing Cody to block the Coffin Drop. Cross Rhodes is blocked as well and a slugout goes to Cody with Allin being sent outside.

Back in and Darby hits a springboard back elbow to the face to put Cody on the floor. A big suicide dive hits Cody square in the shoulder and a posting makes the arm even worse. Back in and the arm gets sent into the corner for two but Cody is right back with a Figure Four. A finger tip on the rope gets Darby out of trouble and he grabs a Fujiwara armbar. That’s adjusted into something like a reverse Rings of Saturn but Cody makes the rope as well.

With nothing else working, Darby pulls off a turnbuckle pad, only to get shoved off the top and onto the ramp, though he sticks the landing. Cody rolls through a high crossbody for two and snaps off a powerslam for a breather. The Cody Cutter connects and it’s time to take off the weight belt.

Cody takes him up top for a reverse superplex and it’s time for a break. We come back with Darby hitting the Coffin Drop on the apron, with Darby landing on Cody’s half raised knee. The knee is fine enough to try the Cody Cutter but Darby counters, only to get caught with the Cross Rhodes….for two. Cody misses a charge into the exposed buckle but the Coffin Drop hits raised knees (as instructed by Arn), letting Cody roll him up for the pin at 17:16.

Rating: B. They were teasing the draw again as Allin continues to look great with Cody. These two have some awesome chemistry together and it was on full display here. You have to put Cody over given the circumstances (like having Arn around) here though, and Allin has already gotten a ton out of Cody. Very good match, though not quite as awesome as their first one.

SCU is ready to face all comers, but Sammy Guevara interrupts to call out Christopher Daniels as a has been. A match is set for next week.

Women’s Title: Nyla Rose vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Britt Baker vs. Riho

Riho is defending and it’s one fall to a finish after #1 contender Kris Stadtlander had to drop the title match due to a prior commitment. Rose jumps Riho before the bell but Shida knees Rose outside as we officially get going. With everyone down, Rose grabs a table, which is what got her suspended in the first place. Riho takes Shida down with a high crossbody on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Rose cleaning house and backsplashing Shida through a table at ringside. Baker can’t get Lockjaw on Rose so she goes with a triangle instead. That’s broken up with a powerbomb so Baker superkicks Rose and hits a fisherman’s neckbreaker for two on Riho. Shida is back up with a backbreaker to Baker but Rose starts taking everyone out again. A Swanton misses Shida and Riho though, leaving Riho to hit some double knees. Shida kicks her in the face though and a Michinoku Driver gets two on Rose. Lockjaw goes onto Shida but Riho grabs a rollup to pin Baker at 9:48.

Rating: C+. This was almost all action and it was entertaining while it lasted, though you knew Riho wasn’t dropping the title with Stadtlander waiting in the wings. That being said, you could hear the reactions from the crowd on Shida here so maybe it’s time to change things up a bit. Riho has cooled off a bit due to her absence, but I’m not sure if it’s enough to have her drop the title yet.

Post match Rose runs Riho over and puts her through a table.

Joey Janela….can’t say anything as Penelope Ford hits him low.

We look at the Dark Order’s attack last week. An exalted one is mentioned.

Jon Moxley vs. Trent

Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy are here too. Moxley works on a headlock and then a wristlock to take Trent down. Trent reverses into a headlock of his own but a right hand puts Trent on the floor. A slam onto the ramp has Trent in more trouble and we take a break. Back with Trent slugging away but getting sent upside down in the corner.

A half and half suplex sends Moxley to the floor though and that means the big flip dive. The tornado DDT gives Trent two but Moxley is back with a faceplant for two of his own. The pinfall reversal sequence gets some near falls each, followed by Moxley blasting him with a clothesline. That’s enough to draw Cassidy in and the hands go into the pockets. Moxley puts his hands into his own pockets and the distraction lets Trent hit a running knee. Trent tries a dive to the ramp but gets caught in the Paradigm Shift. Another one back inside gives Moxley the pin at 10:50.

Rating: C+. I was worried about the Cassidy bit for a second but thankfully it didn’t go anywhere. Moxley won in dominant enough fashion and the match was all it needed to be. It’s pretty clear that Moxley is heading for the World Title match at some point in the near future so giving him a nice win is the best thing they could do.

Post match here’s Sammy Guevara through the crowd. He gets why Moxley comes to the ring this way but Moxley grabs a chair just in case. It’s 2020 and that means we’re in for a new year, plus a new world for Moxley. The Inner Circle has offered him a spot and Chris Jericho has something else.

Jericho appears on screen to say that he is offering Moxley co-leadership of the team, with 49% of the Inner Circle LLC. He can be Executive Vice President and the team has a special gift for him: a Ford GT, which costs millions of dollars and includes a MOX license plate. Jericho wants the two of them to rule the wrestling world and take out the Elite one by one. He drives away so Moxley can make his decision. Moxley says he’ll make his decision next week.

Sammy Guevara vs. Dustin Rhodes

Dustin (who is now in his fifth decade as a regular performer on a major roster) sneaks in from behind and starts hammering away before Sammy can get his jacket off. Sammy gets knocked to the floor for a flip dive from the apron but here’s Jake Hager for the staredown (JR: “I would say Boomer Sooner but he doesn’t deserve it.”). A cheap shot doesn’t work though as Dustin powerslams Sammy on the floor, meaning it’s the staredown sequel. Now the cheap shot works and Sammy dances into a pose as we take a break.

Back with Dustin fighting out of the chinlock so Sammy flips forward for a change of pace. Dustin fights up anyway and hits the usual, only to have the Final Reckoning countered into an enziguri. The running shooting star press gives Sammy two but Dustin is right back with a Canadian Destroyer onto the apron for one, as Dustin has to knock Hager down. Sammy gets backdropped onto Hager but the referee breaks up Shattered Dreams. The distraction lets Hager hit Dustin low and Sammy steals the pin at 11:23.

Rating: C. I wasn’t feeling this one as much but Dustin can still go. This is pretty clearly setting up Dustin vs. Hager, but I’m not sure if they should have Dustin losing on their way there. Sammy is the guy who should be there to take losses for the Inner Circle, though at least the loss wasn’t clean.

Private Party is at a bar where Hangman Page is the bartender for some reason. Page isn’t impressed by them and says their parties suck before leaving.

Here are Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Wardlow to respond to Cody. After some insults to the fans, MJF announces that the match with Cody can take place at Revolution, provided Cody doesn’t touch him in the meantime. Before we get there though, Cody is going to have to beat Wardlow one on one in a steel cage. Finally, Cody has to get down on all fours, live on TNT, and have MJF whip him ten times like the dog that he is. Those scars are going to remind Cody of one thing: MJF is better than him.

Jurassic Express talks about their big year, with Jungle Boy focusing on surviving ten minutes with Chris Jericho. Luchasaurus has to keep swatting away Marko Stunt’s hand.

Next week: a tribute to Memphis Wrestling and Stadtlander vs. Riho for the Women’s Title.

Britt Baker breaks up Riho’s interview to say that Riho hasn’t been around here and stole the win earlier. Baker can wrestle and be a dentist at the same time, unlike Riho who sneaks in and steals wins. Riho has nothing to say.

Lucha Bros/Pac vs. Young Bucks/Kenny Omega

Hangman Page is on commentary. Pentagon and Kenny start things off so the glove comes off. Omega catches it and slaps Pentagon in the mask with it, followed by the chop off. Fenix comes in and it’s the Bros being taken down at the same time. It’s too early for the One Winged Angel so it’s off to Nick for an exchange of shoulders. A dropkick puts Fenix on the floor and Nick follows, only to get kicked in the head. An exchange of kicks to the head back inside gives us a double nipup and we take a break.

Back with Pac breaking up the Rise of the Terminators and hitting a big flipping dive to the floor. It’s Omega getting in trouble in the corner but rolling over for the diving tag off to Nick. Everything breaks down and the Bucks hit stereo Canadian Destroyers on the Lucha Bros. That leaves Omega and Pac for a showdown with Omega getting the better of it. The running knee to the back of the head sets up a sitout powerbomb for two with Pentagon having to make the save.

Pentagon hits some Sling Blades followed by a Backstabber to Omega but the spike Fear Factor is broken up. Fenix is back in with a double rolling cutter to the Bucks. A regular rolling cutter plants Omega and the Black Arrow gets two as the Bucks make a save of their own. The Brutalizer goes on but that’s broken up as well, leaving Fenix to get kneed out of the air. The One Winged Angel finishes Fenix at 12:33.

Rating: B-. Some of the ending kickouts and near falls were a bit much but the match was still entertaining and the Elite gets a much needed win. Omega vs. Pac III is likely coming at Revolution and that could go either way. Throw in the Bucks vs. the Bros and we should be in for a heck of a strong undercard for the pay per view.

Post match Page leaves commentary and the team invites him into the ring, but it’s just a thumbs up from a distance. Posing ends the show.

Overall Rating: B. They started the year back strong with nothing bad and some rather nice matches up and down the show. One of the best things they could have done is stay away from the Dark Order stuff until they’re ready with an upgrade and that’s what they did. Having a quick recap/vignette is fine and teasing a big leader should help. They’re not exactly hiding who that leader likely is, but bigger swerves have happened. Rather good show this week.

Results

Cody b. Darby Allin – Rollup

Riho b. Hikaru Shida, Britt Baker and Nyla Rose – Rollup to Baker

Jon Moxley b. Trent – Paradigm Shift

Sammy Guevara b. Dustin Rhodes – Low blow

Kenny Omega/Young Bucks b. Lucha Bros/Pac – One Winged Angel to Fenix

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

IMG Credit: AEW Wrestling

Dynamite
Date: December 18, 2019
Location: American Bank Center, Corpus Christi, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross

It’s a big night around here as we have a double main event. This time around it’s Chris Jericho vs. Jungle Boy in a non-title match with a ten minute time limit. On the other hand we have the Young Bucks getting a long awaited Tag Team Title shot against SCU. This is their last show of the year so hopefully they go out with a bang. Let’s get to it.

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

Kenny Omega/Hangman Page vs. Lucha Bros

Omega and Fenix go to an early standoff so Omega hits a chop, only t have Fenix slip out of a One Winged Angel attempt. The running Fameasser connects but Fenix slips away again and makes the tag off to Pentagon. Page comes in as well and the fans like this staredown. They take their time before chopping it out, followed by a big boot to drop Pentagon.

Omega gets the tag, though Page doesn’t seem happy about it. With Pentagon down, Page and Omega celebrate a bit, allowing Pentagon to come back with a rake to Omega’s eyes. Omega is fine enough to hurricanrana Pentagon outside, meaning it’s the big flip dive to take out both Bros.

Fenix grabs Page’s feet though and Pentagon hits a Codebreaker, with Page staying on the knees so Fenix can add a top rope double stomp. Page is back up for the tag to Omega though and a high crossbody drops Fenix. You Can’t Escape hits knees and Fenix kicks Omega in the face.

A hurricanrana is countered into a powerbomb though and there’s the V Trigger to drop Fenix again. Omega rolls out of the corner for the tag off to Page so house can be cleaned. Back to back to back suicide dives put the Bros down on different sides of the ring and a dropsault gets two on Fenix.

The Bros are back with their wheelbarrow splash to Page, but a kick to the face lets Page hit a super fall away slam. It’s back to Omega, who buckle bombs Fenix into Pentagon in the corner. Everything breaks down and the Buckshot Lariat hits Omega by mistake. Page is sent outside and it’s the spike Fear Factor to finish Omega at 18:46.

Rating: B. This was a bit longer than it needed to be but how else are you going to keep fans from watching NXT? They were telling a story with Omega and Page not trusting each other after last week, but at the same time it was only their second time teaming together. Doing a feud between the two of them works, though it might have needed a few more weeks of build.

Post match Omega and Page shove each other but we cut to Pac backstage. Pac goes into Michael Nakazawa’s locker room and closes the door so Omega bails through the back for the save.

Darby Allin/Cody vs. Butcher and Blade

The Bunny is at ringside too of course. Darby is willing to help Cody but if they win, he wants a rematch from a few months ago. Butcher shoves Darby down to start and it’s off to Blade, who gets armdragged outside so Darby can bring in Cody. Blade shoves Cody around as JR mocks himself for not remembering which is which. JR: “He’s the one with BUTCHER written on his a**. Sorry about that one TSN.”

A side slam plants Cody and he gets whipped into the corner as we take a break. Back with Cody and Blade hitting stereo crossbodies so Darby can come in. Butcher is right there to run Darby over though and we hit a Texas Cloverleaf. Cody makes the save and hits Cross Rhodes on Blade. Bunny’s distraction means there’s no cover so it’s Cody and Darby hitting stereo suicide dives. The Disaster Kick drops Butcher and Darby adds the Coffin Drop onto the apron. The Cody Cutter finishes Blade at 11:02.

Rating: C+. I could go for Allin vs. Cody II and that’s a smart match to set up. It was long ago enough that I want to see it again and it feels fresh after several months away. Allin has proved he’s more than a flash in the pan and it wouldn’t shock me to see him win. Good match here too, though beating Butcher and Blade so soon is cutting them down in a hurry.

Jungle Boy training video.

Awesome Kong vs. Miranda Alize

Spinning backfist and the Implant Buster finish Alize at 57 seconds.

Kong cuts off some of Miranda’s hair post match.

Jungle Boy thinks his dad would be proud of him.

Chris Jericho vs. Jungle Boy

Non-title with a ten minute time limit. Boy starts fast with forearms and a rollup for two. The Walls are reversed into a hurricanrana for two and Boy hits some knees to the ribs. Back to back Codebreakers give Jericho two and he throws Boy outside. Jake Hager sends Boy into the barricade so it’s Luchasaurus brawling with Hager. Marko Stunt gets forearmed out of the air so Luchasaurus has to carry him to the back.

Jericho gets rolled up for two so it’s time to get serious. Boy knocks him outside and hits the big flip dive, followed by a diving DDT for two. A Backstabber puts Jericho down and Boy adds the Lionsault for another near fall. Jericho sends him throat first into the bottom rope and we have two minutes left. A powerbomb sets up the Walls with a minute and twenty seconds to go. Boy crawls to the rope but gets dragged in, only to survive anyway for the time limit draw at 10:00.

Hold on though as Jericho demands five more minutes so he throws Boy over the top, only to have Boy skin the cat. A hurricanrana and crucifix get two each on Jericho, who walks out as we take a break. Back and apparently the match is over at we’ll say 12:00, despite the lack of a bell.

Rating: C+. The build was good, the execution was better, and Jungle Boy looks like a much bigger star than he did coming in, which was the target goal. This worked very well, even with everything going on at the same time. It’s not like Jericho gives up a lot by not winning in ten minutes either as he doesn’t get pinned but gets shown up, which works even better for him. The match might not have been great, but I heartily approve of everything they did to get here, as well as the match itself.

Post match Jericho says he knew Boy couldn’t beat him but Tony points out that Jericho said Boy couldn’t last. They go back and forth until Jericho threatens to beat Tony up. Anyway he’ll deal with Boy later because this is all about whether or not Jon Moxley is joining the Inner Circle. The team has been in the Inner Sanctum all week and they have some big surprises planned for Moxley. Dynamite is back in two weeks and they’ll have something special planned for him on New Year’s Day.

The Lucha Bros interrupt an SCU promo and show Daniels a video of his botch last week, saying he doesn’t have it anymore. Daniels walks away hanging his head and SCU isn’t sure what to make of it.

Kris Stadtlander vs. Britt Baker

#1 contenders match. Stadtlander cartwheels around a lot before bailing out of a Lockjaw attempt. Another Lockjaw attempt is countered into an Oklahoma roll for two on Baker and it’s a standoff. Baker avoids an ax kick and hits a neckbreaker to set up a chinlock. We take a break and come back with Stadtlander hitting a running knee on the apron. Baker hits a suplex into a Falcon Arrow and they’re both down. Lockjaw is loaded up again but Baker powers up and reverses into the Big Bang Theory for the pin at 9:26.

Rating: C. I certainly appreciate pushing someone new in Stadtlander, but it doesn’t mean much if she doesn’t beat Riho. I know they’re going with the idea of big vs. small but they did that at Nyla Rose and pushed Riho instead. The fact that she hasn’t been around in forever makes this a little less interesting, but Stadtlander is at least something different.

Post match Stadtlander does her finger point (as her species communicates) but here’s Brandi to ask if she’s in with the Nightmare Collective. That’s a no, so Brandi hits her in the eye with the high heeled shoe. Sadie Gibbs comes out for the save.

Shawn Spears and Tully Blanchard are glad tag team wrestling means something in AEW but they need to find Spears’ perfect partner.

Video on the Young Bucks trying to prove they’re the best tag team in the world.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. SCU

The Bucks are challenging and they’re in the ring for the Big Match Intros. A very early SCULater attempt is broken up and it’s Kazarian being sent outside with Matt running Sky over. Sky’s TKO is blocked as well and everything breaks down with the Bucks getting the better of it. Nick’s rope walk hurricanrana is blocked so he pulls Sky to the middle rope with him and then hits the hurricanrana instead.

Matt adds a top rope elbow for two and Nick adds a big dive to the floor as we take a break. Back with Kazarian taking over on both Bucks, including a hiptoss into a neckbreaker on Matt. A double clothesline puts the Bucks down and the champs grab stereo dragon sleepers.

Nick flips Sky into Kazarian for the break and we’re told that the extra time in Jericho vs. Boy did not count, meaning it was a time limit draw. You might want to mention that somewhere other than in an unrelated match. Matt and Kazarian come in to slug it out with Matt pulling him up into the Tombstone. Kazarian manages to tag Sky and escape, setting up a German suplex to Matt. Nick gets DDTed onto the apron and the SCULater retains the titles at 10:43.

Rating: B. Good match with a very sudden (and somewhat surprising) finish. I can go for the Bucks not winning the titles as they definitely don’t need them, but I was surprised at SCU beating them pretty easily. That being said, after everything the Bucks have been through lately, it’s not the most illogical thing. Nice decision to push a team though and SCU looks like much bigger deals.

Post match the Creepers come out and here’s the Dark Order on the stage to say that was a hard loss for the Bucks. On any other night they would recruit the Bucks to the team, but this isn’t a recruitment. Tonight is an initiation so the Creepers come after the Bucks and SCU. Alex Reynolds and Jon Silver lead the charge but the beatdown is on. Christopher Daniels, Cody, Kenny Omega and Dustin try for the save but get beaten down as well. Grayson gives Reynolds and Silver their masks. Evil Uno says no one will ever doubt them to end the show. They’re going full on with the Dark Order and….yeah I still don’t care.

Overall Rating: B. This was a very busy show and I liked most of what they did. The wrestling was good, the storytelling was solid (your tastes on the Dark Order may vary) and they have some things that can take place later. I liked this one far better than the previous few weeks and the sound problems seem to be gone. I know they can’t do this kind of show every week but for what felt like an important show, it came off very well, with some minor issues here and there.

Results

Lucha Bros b. Kenny Omega/Hangman Page – Spike Fear Factor to Omega

Cody/Darby Allin b. Butcher and Blade – Cody Cutter to Blade

Awesome Kong b. Miranda Alize – Implant Buster

Jungle Boy vs. Chris Jericho went to a time limit draw

Kris Stadtlander b. Britt Baker – Big Bang Theory

SCU b. Young Bucks – SCU Later to Matt

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

IMG Credit: AEW Wrestling

Dynamite
Date: December 11, 2019
Location: Curtis Culwell Center, Garland, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We’re down in Texas for one of the last two shows of the year. This time around the focus is going to be on a Texas Street Fight between the Young Bucks and Santana and Ortiz, which should be a heck of a battle if they’re allowed to be themselves. Other than that it’s time to get ready for next week’s World Title match between champion Chris Jericho and Jungle Boy. Let’s get to it.

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

Jon Moxley vs. Alex Reynolds

Paradigm Shift finishes Reynolds at 8 seconds.

Post match Reynolds’ partner John Silver takes the Paradigm Shift as well. Cue the Inner Circle to surround the ring though, with Chris Jericho getting into the ring to praise Moxley for his success. They have a history together, with Moxley having asked him for advice ten years ago. Then they became adversaries and beat each other up, with Jericho gaining his respect. Now they’re here in AEW and Jericho wants him to join the Inner Circle. Jericho gives him until after the holidays and leaves him with the shirt.

Video on the Young Bucks vs. Santana and Ortiz, with Excalibur talking about how the street fight rules favor the Bucks.

The announcers preview the show.

Butcher and the Blade vs. QT Marshall/Cody

The Bunny is with the Butcher and the Blade. During Cody’s entrance, MJF mocks Cody’s misfortunes over the last few weeks and is looking forward to this one. Cody tags himself in to start and hammers on the Blade to start. The snap powerslam puts him down so it’s off to Butcher. Marshall comes in but the Bunny offers a distraction so Butcher can take over as we go to a break.

Back with Marshall jawbreaking his way out of trouble but getting pulled down again. An enziguri off the ropes gets Marshall a breather though and the Blade misses a charge in the corner, allowing the hot tag to Cody. The Disaster Kick hits the Butcher and a high crossbody gets two.

A double springboard cutter gets two more but the Figure Four is broken up, allowing Bunny to get in a rake to the eyes. Marshall tags himself in and hits a handspring tumble over the top to take both of them down. Back in and Marshall hits Cross Rhodes on the Blade and a twisting Swanton gets two. Butcher takes Cody down though and it’s a Stunner for Marshall. The suplex onto the double knees finishes Marshall at 11:04.

Rating: C. This was angle advancement more than anything else but the act works well for the Butcher and the Blade. That being said, the Bunny is going to be the star of the team no matter what they do as they aren’t the most interesting team on their own. That being said, putting someone like the Bunny out there is going to get attention and that’s what they got here.

Post match Darby Allin comes out to help Cody up and seemingly offer his friendship.

Here are MJF and Wardlow for a chat. First though, MJF says one of the grips was laughing last week when Cody made fun of his Cross Rhodes. Therefore MJF has him get in the ring and kiss the ring. With that out of the way, it’s Cross Rhodes for the grip anyway. That brings MJF back to Cody, who is a great wrestler and incredible on the microphone, but one man is better.

Last week MJF liked Cody’s business proposal, but MJF already has as much money as he needs. What he wants is for Cody to suffer. Last week Cody called him a knockoff Chris Jericho, which may have been because of the scarf. The fans think it’s fake, which is what MJF thinks of when he hears Cody’s name. You have the fake hair and the fake teeth, plus Cody’s fake feelings about the fans.

MJF brings up the lisp and says he knows Cody wants to get his hands on him more than anything else. The people want to see it too so Cody is on….with a catch. We won’t be hearing those stipulations in a hick place like Texas though, which is why we’ll hear them in Jacksonville on January 1. What matters is that MJF is in control because he’s better than Cody and Cody knows it. MJF is just great on these kinds of promos and can command the microphone like few others.

Alex Reynolds is in his hotel room when the Dark Order commercial comes on. The TV talks to him, saying they know he’s sick of losing and there is strength in numbers. John Silver comes in and asks what Reynolds is listening to.

Big Swole vs. Emi Sakura

A drop toehold lets Sakura rake the back, with Excalibur saying it’s like a Freddie Mercury cat. Sakura pulls her back into a surfboard and we take a break. Back with Sakura throwing her down and starting the clapping to the tune of We Will Rock You. A tilt-a-whirl backbreaker plants Swole but hang on because we need the mic stand.

The abdominal stretch with the mic stand included is….quickly broken up because the referee takes it away. JR isn’t impressed but seems to like it better when Swole takes it away for some James Brown. Sakura spins her into a backbreaker and gets two off a spinning Vader Bomb. The moonsault misses though and Swole kicks her in the face for two. Dirty Dancing (discus forearm) finishes Sakura at 10:38.

Rating: D+. Yeah forgive me for not getting interested in a match that turned into Freddie Mercury vs. James Brown for the sake of unfunny comedy. I don’t know what the appeal is of the Mercury stuff but it’s about as dumb of a thing this company does aside from the Librarians. Swole is growing on me though and they seem interested in pushing her so maybe they can make something.

Pac wants his rubber match with Kenny Omega or he can’t be responsible for his actions.

Kip Sabian/Shawn Spears vs. Kenny Omega/Hangman Page

Penelope Ford is here with Sabian but there’s no Tully Blanchard. We do get an insert promo from Tully though, talking about how you have to find the partner who meshes with him. Maybe Sabian can be that for Spears. Page sends Sabian into the ropes to start and it’s time to run a bit. A kick to the chest puts Sabian down and it’s off to Omega for the chop. Kenny hits a running hip attack in the corner but gets knocked outside, leaving Page to fight both of them off as we take a break.

Back with Omega fighting back against both of them and dropkicking both legs out at once. A running jumping Fameasser/bulldog puts both of them down again but a Ford distraction lets Sabian get in a Backstabber. The springboard missile dropkick gets two and there’s a hurricanrana to keep Omega rocked. The fans want cowboy s*** but settle for Ford’s hurricanrana off the apron as they keep getting in all of the spots from the Dark match between Sabian and Omega.

Ford comes in again and hits a handspring elbow in the corner, setting up Sabian’s fisherman’s suplex for two. Omega slips out of the Deathly Hallows though and it’s the V Trigger to put Sabian down. The lights go out and it’s…..Tully Blanchard tied up on the stage with Joey Janela waiting on Spears.

They fight on the stage with Spears saving Tully (who looked like he was tied up ala a bad gangster movie) and then head to the back. Back inside and Kenny hits the snapdragon on Sabian, setting up the V Trigger to the back of the head. Page tags himself in though and hits the Buckshot lariat for the pin at 11:32. Kenny isn’t sure but then takes the win for being a win.

Rating: C+. The unintentionally funny scene of Tully looking like the damsel in distress on the train tracks aside, this was a nice tag match with page showing some issues of needing a win. Omega vs. Page could be interesting, though Sabian didn’t get any favors here because Ford looks like a far bigger star.

Brandi Rhodes talks about how AEW is nothing without her. Riho is gone for weeks at a time and Britt Baker keeps talking about her boyfriend. Kris Stadtlander’s offer still stands as the family is waiting on the alien to come home. There is someone else, with a shaved head, whose back is to the camera but Brandi won’t let us see their face. This continues to be a thing that does not need to exist.

Luchasaurus vs. Sammy Guevara

Jericho and Jake Hager replace Schiavone and Excalibur on commentary. Sammy is here alone but Luchasaurus has the rest of the Jurassic Express with him. A running dropkick into the corner has Luchasaurus in very limited trouble so it’s a big boot to put Sammy on the floor. Sammy gets dropped onto the apron and we take a break. Back with Sammy kicking away, with Jericho saying Sammy is kicking the tar out of him. Jericho: “Yeah tar! It’s what killed the dinosaurs!” The moonsault misses though and Luchasaurus hits the reverse powerbomb for the pin at 6:32.

Rating: C. This is a step up for Luchasaurus and it’s a very good sign that he is getting these bigger matches. The idea of eventually pushing him to the top of the card certainly sounds interesting and it wouldn’t shock me to see it happen one day. Yes he’s a gimmick, but with that size, power and talking ability, they can find a way around it.

Post match Jericho and Hager go after Luchasaurus so Stunt and Jungle Boy come in for the save. Boy hits a quick hurricanrana on Jericho with Stunt counting the pin.

Revolution is coming to Chicago on February 29.

The announcers talk about next week’s Dynamite when Jericho comes up to shout that IT DIDN’T COUNT.

Young Bucks vs. Santana and Ortiz

Anything goes and this is officially sanctioned with the winners getting a Tag Team Title shot next week. Santana and Ortiz, plus Sammy Guevara, jump the Bucks during the entrance. The beatdown is on with Brandon Cutler’s save earning himself a powerbomb through the stage. The Bucks fight back though and it’s an Indytaker to plant Sammy on the stage as well.

A Swanton off the entrance puts Ortiz through a table for two despite the lack of a bell. Matt launches Nick for a dropkick to Santana but hang on as Matt needs to point at SCU in the front row. They get inside for the first time with Santana getting in some shots with the rolled up sock. Nick is put in a chair and beaten up with various weapons, only to have Nick come back with a Dallas Cowboys helmet to avoid a lot of the pain.

A double spear takes Santana and Ortiz down but Santana gets in a shot to the ribs and steals the helmet. He then SPITS ONT HE HELMET, because he just wasn’t evil enough yet. Santana and Matt are sent through tables at ringside so Ortiz hits the Cannonball to put Nick through another table as we take a break. Back with Nick hitting a 450 onto a trashcan onto Ortiz for two, with Hager making the save.

Nick kicks the referee in the face by mistake as Dustin Rhodes comes out to deal with Hager. More Bang For Your Buck hits Ortiz but there is no referee. Cue Aubrey Edwards to count two but Nick gets knocked off the apron and through another table. The Street Sweeper onto a trashcan gets two with Nick making another save. Another Street Sweeper onto some chairs is broken up and Nick bulldogs Ortiz onto said chairs. The Meltzer Driver onto a chair finishes Ortiz at 14:30.

Rating: B. They got the wild stuff in and the interference made sense in this case. Sometimes you need to have the wild brawl which actually counts and the Bucks vs. SCU is enough of a dream match. A title change wouldn’t surprise me either as AEW has made no secret of the Bucks being the top team in the promotion. Just give them the titles already so they can get on with it already. Good match here though as the teams have chemistry together.

Post match SCU comes in to hold up the titles to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I liked more of this than I didn’t and other than the stupid battle of the musicians deal in the women’s match, it was a mostly solid show. Next week is the big one though and AEW isn’t really hiding that. We could be in for a rather nice evening if we can have the big matches deliver. Nice effort this week, but it was just setting the table for the major show.

Results

Jon Moxley b. Alex Reynolds – Paradigm Shift

Butcher and the Blade b. QT Marshall/Cody – Suplex onto double knees to Marshall

Big Swole b. Emi Sakura – Dirty Dancing

Kenny Omega/Hangman Page b. Kip Sabian/Shawn Spears – Buckshot lariat to Sabian

Luchasaurus b. Sammy Guevara – Reverse powerbomb

Young Bucks b. Santana and Ortiz – Meltzer Driver to Ortiz onto a chair

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

IMG Credit: AEW Wrestling

Dark
Date: December 10, 2019
Location: State Farm Center, Champaign, Illinois
Commentators: Excalibur, Chuck Taylor, Orange Cassidy
Hosts: Dasha Gonzalez, Tony Schiavone

It’s another week as we get closer to the end of the year. The card is going to be your usual mystery bag as the show is likely to get even longer. Rather than just being a collection of dark matches (which aren’t dark as they are being filmed and aired but that isn’t the point). Instead it’s just a toned down Dynamite, which doesn’t work as well when it’s the day before next week’s show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

The announcers run down the card.

Scorpio Sky vs. Jimmy Havoc vs. Peter Avalon

Havoc goes straight for the weapons to start so Sky knocks him down before the staple gun can be brought in. That lets Sky hit a spinning crossbody for two on Avalon as Havoc gets inside again. Havoc sends Sky into the corner and hits a sitout implant DDT on Avalon. Sky fights back but Avalon knocks him down as well, meaning it’s time for the double teaming.

That’s fine with Sky, who suplexes Avalon onto Havoc and then dives onto both of them again. With Avalon down on the floor, Havoc hits a Landslide for two on Sky. It’s staple gun time but Avalon knocks it out of Havoc’s hand and gets his own two. Sky throws Havoc outside though and TKOs Avalon for the pin at 6:30.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and a way to get Sky back on the winning track, even though the title should be more than enough to do just that. Avalon taking the fall was of course the right way to go as Havoc has a lot more value than an average wrestler with a bad gimmick. This would have been fine as a dark match, but instead it’s on TV as something completely forgettable, much like a lot of this show.

Dark Order initiation video.

From Dynamite.

Here’s Chris Jericho, flanked by Jake Hager, for a chat. After shilling A Little Bit Of The Bubbly, Jericho pulls out a list….and the fans cheer. Actually they need to get out of 2016 because this is THE LEXICON OF LE CHAMPION! Anyway he has to wrestle one more time in two weeks to wrap up the year but he has some people he won’t wrestle:

Jon Moxley, Cody (“Because he can’t.”), the Young Bucks, Papa Buck, Uncle Buck, Buck Owens, Moxley, Hangman Page, Diamond Dallas Page, Paige, Moxley, Scorpio Sky, 2 Cold Scorpio, Any member of the Scorpions, Moxley, Michael Nakazawa, Kenny Omega, Kenny Ortega, Kenny Shields, Kenny Chesney, Kenny from South Park, Moxley, the chubby guy with the popcorn in the fifth row, the ugly guy with the dumb glasses in the third row, Moxley, Darby Allin, Rick Allen, Alan Jones (AJ Styles), Moxley, Evil Uno, Angry Dos, Hateful Tres, Moxley, Marty…..and here’s the Jurassic Express to interrupt.

Jericho says he wasn’t finished because dinosaurs and little children were up next. Luchasaurus roars at him and then speaks normally, bringing up that he can talk and has a degree in Medieval History. It’s no surprise that dinosaurs are on the list because they’ve been marginalized for 65 million years. Yes Marko is small, but he’s more of a man than Jericho will ever be. That leaves Jungle Boy, who Jericho dubs “a piece of s***”. Jericho doesn’t think Boy could last ten minutes with him, so Boy takes the mic and says he’ll take Jericho out. The fight is on with Hager and Jericho bailing.

Jurassic Express vs. John Silver/Alex Reynolds

Marko Stunt and Luchasaurus for the Express here. Luchasaurus growls Reynolds into the corner so it’s off to Silver, whose chop is swatted away. The monster starts kicking away so it’s off to Stunt to miss a charge in the corner. A running knee gets two on Silver but Reynolds breaks up the dive. Silver’s superkick gets two and Reynolds stands on Stunt’s hair as it is rather cathartic to see Stunt get hurt.

A gorilla press into a cutter gets two on Stunt but he’s fine enough to small package Reynolds for the same. Stunt can’t kick him away so it’s a wheelbarrow roll to get over to Luchasaurus instead. House is cleaned in a hurry (as expected) and there’s the double chokeslam. A powerbomb/top rope flip neckbreaker combination finishes Reynolds at 6:18.

Rating: C. Just a step above a squash here and there is some quality Stunt damage in there as well. Sometimes you just need to see a smaller guy get beaten up to entertain you a bit. That’s what we got here, plus the awesome Luchasaurus getting to wreck people. It’s a fine enough match, but just get back to Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy already.

We look at the current state of/recent events in the women’s division, including Nyla Rose being suspended for attacking a referee.

From Dynamite.

Post match here are Awesome Kong and Brandi Rhodes to dub themselves the Nightmare Collective, saying that they do the jobs no one wants to do. Kris is all up in her business and that may give Kris an opportunity. Brandi tells Kris to pledge herself to the Nightmare Collective right now but before there’s a yes, Kong gets in Kris’ face. A female fan at ringside offers to pledge and security lets her come to ringside. She lets Kong cut off her hair and that’s that. No answer from Kris, as she doesn’t seem interested in joining the newest cult/faction.

We get a profile on Big Swole, whose name means a big personality. She had emergency surgery in 2008 and actually died but had to be brought back to life. Then she had a daughter and has taught her that she needs to live every day because you never know when it might end.

Here are the women’s rankings:

5. Kris Stadtlander

4. Britt Baker

3. Emi Sakura

2. Nyla Rose

1. Hikaru Shida

Christopher Daniels was banged up and is furious at hurting himself. He came out early and got beaten up by Pentagon Jr. Daniels isn’t done with him.

We get the explanation from the Bunny of why the Butcher and the Bunny attacked Cody.

From Dynamite.

Here’s Cody for a chat. He talks about how he isn’t allowed to challenge for the World Title again but everything his gone nuts around here. His brother and the Young Bucks are in a blood feud with Santana and Ortiz, his wife has joined forces with a monster who steals women’s hair and then there’s the Butcher and the Blade. If they wanted a match with him, all they had to do was ask and they can even choose his partner.

That brings him to Maxwell Jacob Friedman, who had no business to throw in the towel at Full Gear. There are a lot of things people can criticize about MJF. He’s short, he might wear a fake scarf, and he does the worst Cross Rhodes in wrestling. Cody: “At least they’re botching it on two channels now.” Or maybe it’s the fact that he’s an NWO low rent Chris Jericho. But MJF won’t fight him, so Cody is willing to sweeten the pot.

Cody offers the keys to his Ford Black Ops (Google says it costs about $88,500), his watch from Tony Khan, and his Louis Vuitton shoes. If that’s not MJF’s speed, Cody brings out a briefcase with about $50,000 cash. To prove it’s real, he gives a kid in the front row $100 and the kid looks….confused? Anyway, come play ball with him and name your price. Cody is a great promo, NXT/WWE shot aside.

We get MJF’s response, where he announces that he hired the Butcher and the Blade to jump Cody, which somehow didn’t make Dynamite.

Video on the six man tag opener from Dynamite.

Here’s where Dynamite is coming.

Buy a Little Bit Of The Bubbly!

Kenny Omega vs. Kip Sabian

Sabian has Penelope Ford in his corner. They fight on the mat to start with Omega tripping him a few times to take over. Omega misses a big chop so they run the ropes, with Kenny plowing through him for two. A head fake lets Omega chop away in the corner and some more knock Sabian off the top to the floor. Ford offers a distraction though, allowing Sabian to hurricanrana him to the floor.

Ford’s hurricanrana makes it worse and Sabian keeps it up with a hard whip into the corner. A hanging swinging neckbreaker gets two on Omega but he Hulks Up for the slugout. Omega clotheslines him down and You Can’t Escape gets two. Sabian is right back with a springboard tornado DDT for two and Omega is sent to the apron. Ford grabs the leg but Omega is back with a powerbomb.

The running knee to the back of the head rocks Sabian again but he pulls Aubrey Edwards in the way of the V Trigger. Omega pulls up, allowing Ford to come in for a Stunner so Sabian can get two off a kick to the chest. The V Trigger into the snapdragon so Ford comes in again, only to get thrown into Sabian. A Tiger Driver 98 gets two on Sabian and it’s another running knee to the back of the head, setting up the One Winged Angel for the pin at 14:21.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of win that Omega needs: where he has to sweat a bit but is never in any real danger. At the end of the day, he is going to be the big deal going forward, as he should be, and it makes sense to build him up with wins like this. Ford continues to have more star power than she knows what to do with but she almost never gets to do anything significant. Anyway, fine match here for a Dark main event.

Overall Rating: C. This show hasn’t been around very long but it has already started to evolve. Instead of just a collection of matches, the show is also a recap/backstage show. That makes it a bit longer than it needs to be though, as it is now regularly over an hour, and in this case over an hour and fifteen minutes. AEW isn’t at the point where they need to have that much TV time yet and it might be better to cut this by about fifteen to twenty minutes. The fans who are watching this show are already watching Dynamite so why show them the same things again? It’s still good, but tighten things up a bit.

Results

Scorpio Sky b. Jimmy Havoc and Peter Avalon – TKO to Avalon

Jurassic Express b. John Silver/Alex Reynolds – Powerbomb/top rope flip neckbreaker combination to Reynolds

Kenny Omega b. Kip Sabian – One Winged Angel

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

IMG Credit: AEW Wrestling

Dynamite
Date: November 27, 2019
Location: Sears Center Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross

It’s back where things got started with a return to Chicago. As luck would have it, we are in for a big show here with the World Title being defended as champion Chris Jericho faces Scorpio Sky in an unlikely title defense. That could make for a heck of a match and hopefully the rest of the show backs it up. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with Chris Jericho’s Thank You celebration, complete with people in rather large costumes, a marching band, large presents and MIKE JONES (Virgil) as emcee. Jericho, sounding rather distorted, talks about how much he has earned this thank you, but he has a thank you for the fans too. Some of the people in this arena have coupons underneath their seats for FIFTY CENTS off the new Le Champion shirt.

Jericho has also found some grapes from the mountains of Nepal and we now have official Little Bit Of The Bubbly champagne available. With a toast out of the way, Jericho brings out the Inner Circle for the celebration. Sammy Guevara has a present for Jericho: a cardboard cutout of the two of them hugging. Santana and Ortiz have a gift basket, including some Vaporub, a photo of someone whose name I couldn’t understand, some flip flops (Ortiz: “These double as a weapon.”), a little bit of the 40 (in a brown paper bag), and a Puerto Rico bandanna.

Cue Jake Hager with a goat named Chris Jerigoat. Now it’s time for the BIG surprise (it’s in a big box) which is…..Jericho’s dad, Ted Irvine! Ted talks about beating the Chicago Blackhawks all of the time and busts out some custom New York Rangers jerseys for the Inner Circle.

Jericho has a letter from AEW but since he isn’t in the mood to read, Justin Roberts can come do it for him. The statement is a nice proclamation about Jericho as World Champion but Jericho didn’t like Roberts’ tone. The beatdown is on but the marching band, which happens to be SCU, comes in for the save and beat down Virgil. This was a bit long, but the gifts were funny and Jericho can sell anything.

Best Friends vs. Lucha Bros

Orange Cassidy, in a turkey suit, is here with the Best Friends. The Bros jump them in the aisle so Cassidy dives onto the Bros, giving us a WKRP In Cincinnati references from JR (look it up). The Friends fight back in a hurry and we get the hug out of the way early on. A few cheap shots behind the referee’s back let Pentagon superkick Trent down for two. Back from a break with Trent still in trouble and a top rope double stomp, which looked rather low, gets two more.

Trent fights up and gets over for the tag to Chuck, who grabs a half crab of all things. That’s broken up with a quick superkick but Trent is right back with a running flip dive to the floor. Pentagon’s Canadian Destroyer gets two and it’s Fenix hitting his springboard kick to Trent. The rolling cutter is countered into the Crunchie for the pin on Fenix at 7:54.

Rating: C. The Friends looked good here, though I’m not sure how much sense it makes to have the Lucha Bros lose, especially after Pentagon lost the previous night. I can appreciate them building up a team like the Best Friends though, even if they’re not a team I care for all that much. I’m not sure I can picture them against SCU, but someone has to face the champs.

Here are the women’s rankings. Before the next match, we hear guest commentator Marco Martinez thanking JR and Excalibur in a statement I don’t think was supposed to make air.

Emi Sakura/Bea Priestly vs. Kris Stadtlander/Hikaru Shida

JR during Sakura’s entrance: “Freddy Mercury never looked so Oriental.” It’s a brawl to start with Stadtlander sending both of them to the floor. Shida loads up her dive off the chair so Sakura sits in it, only to be knocked out of it in a hurry. The dive hits and we take a break.

Back with Shida in trouble and Sakura grabbing an abdominal stretch, complete with her mic stand to continue the Mercury tribute. Sakura gets sent into Priestly in the corner though and an enziguri knocks Priestly sillier. She’s fine enough to grab a German suplex so Shida hits a running knee and makes the hot tag to Stadtlander. A pumphandle rollup gives Stadtlander two on Sakura but a rolling cutter takes her down.

Priestly hits a top rope double stomp to the back for two but Stadtlander avoids the moonsault. A running knee sets up a superkick to the back of Sakura’s head and an ax kick gives Stadtlander two (in a very near fall). Priestly gets in a cheap shot from behind though and Sakura grabs la majistral to finish Stadtlander at 9:33.

Rating: C. This felt sloppy in a lot of places with the fans not being happy with the ending. Shida is losing me in a hurry with the same knee strikes in every match. It’s still better than the Mercury thing, which is one of the more out there tributes that Sakura does every week. Are we really hoping to cater to the Mercury/wrestling fan crossover audience? Not the worst match, but it wasn’t exactly a tight effort.

Cody vs. Matt Knicks

Post match Cody calls out MJF but a masked man comes out from a hole in the ring. Excalibur: “IT’S THE BLADE!” Another man comes out, with Excalibur calling him the Butcher. Excalibur: “We have not seen them before!” They pull Allie, now going by the Bunny, out of the hole. JR was as confused as I am about who those two are, but Excalibur knows and that’s all that matters.

Pac vs. Kenny Omega

Omega starts fast with a snapdragon and sends him to the floor for the big dive. Pac gets in a kick to the ribs but it’s another snapdragon to put him back down. The suplex off the apron doesn’t work as Omega gets knocked to the floor with Pac nailing a moonsault as we take a break.

Back with Omega striking away in the corner and hitting another suplex. Omega goes up though and gets caught in a super Falcon Arrow for two. The Black Arrow is loaded up as JR congratulates Excalibur for getting in the Bowling Shoe Ugly line. Omega rolls away to make Pac crash and there’s the V Trigger to set up the One Winged Angel. That’s reversed as well so Omega rolls him into a crucifix for the pin at 12:04.

Rating: B-. This felt like the structure of a Pac vs. Omega match but it needed another eight to ten minutes to really make it work. What we got was good enough though and Omega won clean to continue his road to redemption. Pac losing again so soon after the loss to Page is a bit questionable, but so is having this many big matches so soon after the show debuted.

We look back at the end of last week’s battle royal.

Dynamite Diamond: Adam Page vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

MJF, with Wardlow, says he is the only one who deserves the diamond. Page says he isn’t a ring guy but he’d be glad to win this. It’s a brawl to start with Page sending him to the floor and over the barricade as we take an early break. Back with Page hitting a moonsault to the floor, followed by the Buckshot lariat for two with Wardlow putting the foot on the rope. Wardlow gets in a shot of his own and the Cross Rhodes gives MJF the pin and the ring at 6:58.

Rating: D+. What we got was decent but Page losing another match isn’t helping him, though it’s hardly some career killer as it wasn’t even a clean loss. MJF getting the big win here is great though as he is the kind of guy who needs to be pushed as hard as they can. He’s the best heel in the company if not all of wrestling at the moment so giving him a win like this works well.

Post match here’s Diamond Dallas Page to present the ring. Page hands him the ring but isn’t happy with some of MJF’s recent actions. That means a hard slap on the shoulder but Page is willing to be the bigger man and offers a handshake. MJF puts his gum in the hand instead and gets pulled back, only to have Wardlow get in Page’s face. Agents and referees break it up in a hurry as I can’t believe they didn’t reference Page’s Lord Of The Ring from WCW.

Here’s Dustin Rhodes to say he’s out for Jake Hager’s blood. Cue the Inner Circle to go after Dustin though, drawing out the Young Bucks for the save. Triple Shattered Dreams leave the Circle laying.

We get another Join The Dark Order vignette, featuring various people flashing back to what drove them here. Anyone could be Dark Order, and they are all better now that they are part of the group.

AEW World Title: Chris Jericho vs. Scorpio Sky

Jericho is defending and seconds are banned from ringside. They take their time to start with Jericho shouldering him down but getting sent outside for his efforts. Sky hits a running boot to the face and a jumping elbow to the jaw back inside. Jericho is back up to send him to the apron though and the triangle dropkick connects to send us to a break.

Back with Sky still in trouble but hitting something like a Thesz press. A dropkick puts Jericho down and it’s the slingshot cutter for two. Jericho is right back with the Walls though, sending Sky straight to the ropes. Another cutter from Sky sets up a dragon sleeper but here’s Hager for the distraction into the break.

Jericho is back up for his half of a double clothesline and they’re both down again. Cue Kazarian and Daniels to go after Hager and drive him to the back, leaving Sky to hit the TKO for two. Sky gets two more off an enziguri but the Codebreaker pulls him out of the air for two more. A backslide gives Sky his own near fall but Jericho pulls him into the Walls for the tap at 12:13.

Rating: B-. This was a case where the ending wasn’t exactly in doubt but they gave us enough good stuff to make the match work. They weren’t out there a crazy amount of time and there was never a situation where I was thinking “get on with it because Sky isn’t winning”. It wasn’t the best match, but they didn’t do anything terrible or stupid and that means a lot.

Post match Jericho goes after Sky again but Moxley appears in the crowd for the big staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. That’s probably the weakest and least interesting show they’ve done so far and it was still a perfectly watchable and at times good two hours of wrestling. The energy was a bit down though and very little felt like something you needed to see (though the opening segment was highly entertaining). The most promising thing for the future though is that this felt like a one off dip instead of something I’m worried about. It wasn’t a great show but I have no reason to believe that they’re falling apart. That isn’t the case for a lot of companies and it’s a good sign for them.

Results

Best Friends b. Lucha Bros – Crunchie to Pentagon

Bea Priestly/Emi Sakura b. Hikaru Shida/Kris Stadtlander – La Majistral to Stadtlander

Kenny Omega b. Pac – Crucifix

Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Adam Page – Cross Rhodes

Chris Jericho b. Scorpio Sky – Walls of Jericho

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dark
Date: November 26, 2019
Location: Indiana Farmers Coliseum, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Shawn Spears, Excalibur
Host: Tony Schiavone

It’s a big week this time around with the AAA Mega Champion Kenny Omega defending against Jack Evans. Jack was a big deal down in AAA so it makes sense to give him a shot here. You never can tell what you might get around here and in this case, that is a better case than most. Let’s get to it.

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

Tony, without Dasha this week, welcomes us to the show and runs down the card.

Trent vs. Pentagon Jr.

Orange Cassidy is here with Trent. Pentagon starts with some CERO MIEDOS but gets chopped for his efforts. You don’t chop with Pentagon so he slugs away, only to get caught in a bridging northern lights suplex for two. They head to the apron with Trent knocking him down and hitting a sliding knee to the floor. The slingshot dive misses though and Pentagon hits a quick superkick to set up some more chops.

Back in and they slug it out until Trent clotheslines the heck out of him. The big flip dive takes Pentagon down and it’s a running knee for two back inside. Pentagon is right back with the Sling Blade but can’t get the Fear Factor. Trent is right back with a tornado DDT but he gets knocked off the top, setting up the double stomp for two.

A Backstabber into a springboard Canadian Destroyer (egads) gives Pentagon two more, only to have Trent blast him with a running knee. Pentagon is right back on the apron and hits the Package Piledriver to knock Trent silly. Back in and Pentagon snaps the arm but the Fear Factor is countered into the belly to back kneeling piledriver for the clean pin at 12:00.

Rating: C+. The ending rather surprised me as I wouldn’t have bet on Trent getting a fall over someone like Pentagon Jr. If nothing else, Trent hasn’t won much in AEW so far and it was quite out of nowhere to see him beat a former World Champion. What we got here was fine and rather action packed, but Trent winning was a real shock. We’ll figure out if that is good or bad later.

Video on Shanna, a Portuguese wrestler by way of Portugal. She has always wanted to wrestle and tried to get here, including several tryouts from WWE. Impact told her that she was too fat for television and she was considering leaving the business. Then AEW came around and here she is to this day. She is fighting for everything she has.

Big Swole liked Shanna’s story but everyone has own. Tonight, she is going to show everyone what a Swole attitude is all about.

Big Swole vs. Shanna

Feeling out process to start with neither being able to get anywhere off an attempt at arm control. Swole grabs the wristlock and takes her down for a second but Shanna is right back up. Some armdrags take Swole down and it’s time to start each other down again. Shanna hits a running flip neckbreaker but Swole is right back with a big boot for two. Swole chokes away in the corner and we’re off to the neck crank.

A running clothesline gives Swole two more but Shanna fights out of a choke on the ropes. They slug it out from their knees until Shanna gets the better of it off a running charge to tie her up. Swole’s tornado DDT is countered as she gets tied up in the ropes, meaning it’s a top rope double stomp to the back for a change. A Deep Six gives Swole two more but Shanna is right back with the dragon suplex for the fast pin at 11:12.

Rating: C-. Swole continues to not do anything for me and it is getting to be a problem. She is here every week and it isn’t like they have anything worse to use in her place. Shanna is someone who could be turned into something that matters sooner rather than later and that vignette helped her a good bit. Not a great match but it was fine enough.

We look at SCU tricking Chris Jericho into giving Scorpio Sky a World Title match.

We see the end of last week’s battle royal.

We get a By The Numbers video, including:

88 days since Kenny Omega lost at All Out

0 losses for Chris Jericho until he was pinned in the six man

8 stitches Cody needed after his most recent match

Come to our shows!

Leva Bates vs. Awesome Kong

Before the match, Peter Avalon insults the Indianapolis Motor Speedway but Kong’s entrance cuts him off. Brandi is out with Kong and Bates tries to show the monster some reading after the bell. The Implant Buster finishes Bates at 1:05.

Post match Kong cuts some more hair due to reasons.

AAA Mega Title: Kenny Omega vs. Jack Evans

Omega is defending. Evans plays to the crowd a bit before get get to some quality circling. Omega can’t get far off an armdrag so instead he does the Omega BANG pop. That gets him a right hand to the face and get some some of the fast paced flips. Evans shrugs off the running Fameasser by blocking most of it before dropkicking a springboarding Omega out of the air.

A hard whip into the corner has Omega in control again, setting up a backbreaker for two. Omega goes for a Gory Stretch to stay on the ribs, with Evans being bent hard over the shoulder. With that broken up, Omega hits a heck of a right hand, only to have his powerbomb reversed into a faceplant.

Omega shrugs that off and hits an over the shoulder kneeling backbreaker for two. Evans manages to kick him to the floor though and that means the big springboard moonsault. A slingshot 450 gets two back inside and a standing corkscrew moonsault is good for the same near fall.

Omega kicks him straight into the corner though and there’s the snap dragon suplex to put Evans down. A second sends him to the apron and it’s a running knee to send Evans to the floor. Back in and the V Trigger is cut off with a dropkick but Omega cuts off a charge. Omega gets two off a Tiger Driver 98 and it’s the One Winged Angel to retain Omega’s title at 15:49.

Rating: C+. Omega never felt close to being in trouble here but I think that was the point. It is going to take someone special to take the title from him and Evans isn’t that kind of a wrestler. The stuff with Omega wearing down the back worked fine and they did well enough, though it could have been trimmed down a bit.

Quick wrap up from Tony.

Overall Rating: C+. The show still needs to be a bit shorter (an hour and fifteen minutes for three regular matches and a squash is FAR too long) but it was nice to have something that felt big for a change. Even if Omega wasn’t in any danger of losing and Trent winning is kind of shocking, you could have done them in shorter matches. Shanna got a nice rub out of this week though and Omega gets back on the winning track. Just don’t have it go so long.

Results

Trent b. Pentagon Jr. – Belly to back kneeling piledriver

Shanna b. Big Swole – Dragon suplex

Awesome Kong b. Leva Bates – Implant Buster

Kenny Omega b. Jack Evans – One Winged Angel

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Full Gear
Date: November 9, 2019
Location: Royal Farms Arena, Baltimore, Maryland
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur

Despite being less than a month and a half after the debut of their weekly television show, it is already time for their next pay per view. The big main event tonight is Cody vs. Chris Jericho for the latter’s World Title, but if Cold loses he can never challenge for the title again. I’m not sure what is going to happen there and that makes things more interesting. Let’s get to it.

Preshow: Britt Baker vs. Bea Priestly

There is a ramp to the ring for an old WCW feel. It’s a fight to start with Baker taking her down but not being able to get in the Lockjaw. Priestly is right back with some kicks to the chest and choking across the ropes until Baker is able to fight back up with some forearms of her own. A double clothesline gives us a double knockdown and it’s Baker up first with a Sling Blade.

Priestly is right back with a bridging belly to back suplex for two and it’s off to an arm trap choke to keep Baker in trouble. The slow crawl gets Baker over to the ropes for the break so Baker is right back up with a Canadian Destroyer for two of her own. A Paige Turner looks to set up Lockjaw but Priestly stacks her up for two instead. Baker tries it again and this time Priestly has to tap at 11:22.

Rating: C. Just a match for the most part and it’s time for Baker to get closer to the title scene, even though Riho already beat her. I would have gone with Priestly winning here as she seems like someone who could take the title from Riho and then drop it to Baker (or Allie) eventually but they’re going with the Baker push again, which is far from a terrible idea. Just push someone up against Riho though.

Post match here are Brandi Rhodes and Awesome Kong with the latter laying out Priestly. Brandi whips out a knife (yes a knife) and it’s time for a haircut.

The opening video focuses on the pressure to prove that you are the best over and over, including tonight.

Young Bucks vs. Proud And Powerful

Just call them Santana and Ortiz. The Rock N Roll Express is in the front row. Ortiz hits Matt in the face for an early cheap shot and everything breaks down in a hurry. Matt spears Santana down and it’s the stereo dives out to the floor. We settle down to the Bucks working on Santana’s arm and it’s off to Ortiz, who gets armdragged into an armbar. Santana: “WHAT HAPPENED???”

Ortiz slaps Santana’s foot but that’s not a tag, which does not please the fans. Now the referee doesn’t see a tag to Santana and it’s another armbar. The referee’s shirt gets untucked and it’s Ortiz sneaking in for a cheap shot to Nick. Everything breaks down and it’s a Boston crab to Nick and a Gory Stretch to Matt, with everyone standing together in one big ball for a heck of a visual. That lets LAX beat on Nick with some shots to the back but it’s off to Matt pretty quickly.

Everything breaks down and a big dive takes Ortiz down on the floor. Nick goes leg first into the post though and Ortiz is all over the injury, like any good heel should be. That’s not enough as Nick gets thrown at the Rock N Roll Express, with Santana blowing his nose at them for a bonus. Back in and Matt gets knocked to the floor, setting up another shot to Nick’s legs to cut off the comeback bid.

There’s a dragon screw legwhip for two but Nick uses the good leg for the superkick. Matt comes in for the rolling northern lights suplexes, including a double version for a double near fall. The standing moonsault/top rope splash combination gets two but Nick gets pulled out to the floor. Ortiz rolls Santana backwards so he can cutter Matt for two as we hit the fifteen minute mark.

The Street Sweeper is countered with a belly to belly suplex for a little Steiner Brothers and it’s Nick coming back in for a double superkick. The powerbomb/Sliced Bread #2 combination gets two on Ortiz but the leg gives out on a Meltzer Driver attempt. Nick spits his gum at Ortiz so Ortiz puts it in his mouth, meaning it’s Nick forearming both of them at once. That’s cut off by a powerbomb though and the Street Sweeper gives Santana the pin at 21:10.

Rating: B+. This was exactly what fans wanted to see out of this match as it really was two of the biggest teams in the world today going at it on the big stage. That being said, they really need to cut out the dives, cutters and false finishes as they go through so many of them in a single match that it takes away the impact they have. It’s one thing if it happens here, but how many matches are going to have several of them all over again?

Post match Sammy Guevara comes in for the beatdown, bringing in the Express for the save. Ricky Morton hits a Canadian Destroyer and a suicide dive to stand tall.

Here’s the rest of the card that you already paid to see.

Hangman Page vs. Pac

Pac beat him a few weeks ago and Page wants revenge. It’s a brawl to start with Pac being sent outside, which of course means a dive. Back in and Pac gets his knees up to block a running shooting star press and it’s time for Pac to hammer away. A running knee in the corner gets two and there’s a kick to the face for a bonus. Pac snapmares him into a chinlock as the pace continues to go slowly.

The delay lets JR rant about refereeing, though clarifying that this match’s referee is doing it right. Pac’s running kick to the head rocks Page again and it’s time to stare at the crowd. The chinlock goes on again, with JR saying Page looks like Tony Schiavone getting out of a tanning booth. Pac misses a middle rope Phoenix splash and Page hits a big clothesline. A spinebuster sends Pac to the apron where Page hits a Boss Man Slam.

The middle rope moonsault to the floor drops Pac again but he’s fine enough to roll to the floor before the Buckshot Lariat can launch. Page goes out after him and gets brainbustered onto an open chair. For reasons of modern wrestling, that isn’t two weeks/months away from the ring but rather Page coming back inside and telling Pac to kick him harder. Pac gets crotched on top so Page hits a super fall away slam to put them both down.

The Buckshot Lariat is countered into the snap German suplex but Page is right back with a pop up powerbomb. The Deadeye is countered into the Brutalizer but they fall into the ropes for the break. Page can’t hit the Buckshot again but he’s able to block a low blow. A hard clothesline sets up the Deadeye for the pin on Pac at 18:51.

Rating: B. So in a match where someone too a brainbuster onto a steel chair, he wins the match five minutes later? Sure why not. They beat each other up well here and it gives Page the big win, though I’m not sure where he is supposed to go from here. We’ve done Jericho vs. Page already and there isn’t anything else for him to do at the moment. Maybe we get a trilogy match, but at least round two was good.

We look at the preshow.

Shawn Spears vs. Joey Janela

Grudge match after Janela put a cigarette in Spears’ manager Tully Blanchard’s soda, so they tried to pull out his tongue with pliers. Spears chops away to start but gets knocked outside with Janela hitting a quick hurricanrana. That’s fine with Spears, who powerslams him on the floor to start in on the back.

They head inside with Spears working on the back, including a chinlock with a knee in said back. Janela’s back gets rammed into the apron and Spears ties him into the corner by the hair. That’s broken up and Spears grabs a Sharpshooter to work on the back some more. Janela makes the ropes and hits a superkick, followed by a top rope flip dive to the floor. Back in and Spears catches him on top with a superplex for two more.

Spears gets sent outside though and it’s a suicide dive (take a shot) to give Janela two again. Janela goes up top so Spears catches him with a backbreaker onto the buckle and it’s time to go for a turnbuckle pad. The referee deals with that so Tully does the spiking in a spike piledriver to knock Janela silly. A running Death Valley Driver finishes Janela at 11:28.

Rating: C. Both of these guys continue to just exist for the most part. Spears has gotten a little better, mainly because he has actually won a few things. Janela on the other hand comes off as someone who just kept showing up one day and then was allowed to have a match to make him happy. Tully getting more involved is a good idea too, and hopefully it happens more often.

Kip Sabian is glad to be teaming with the Hybrid Two because he can trust them and rely on them. Penelope Ford comes up and kisses him on the cheek, saying it’s time to bring some sex appeal to the company. Ford: “Why be bad, when you can be super bad?”

We recap the Tag Team Title tournament.

Tag Team Titles: SCU vs. Lucha Bros vs. Private Party

SCU is defending and this is one fall to a finish. Kazarian headlocks Quen down to start so Quen flips to his feet for a standoff. Fenix comes in and counters the whip to the floor, setting up the kick to Kazarian’s back. Everything breaks down for a bit until Fenix suplexes Kazarian for two. It’s Pentagon coming in for some kicks of his own, including a superkick to Kazarian’s jaw.

There’s a double clothesline and it’s off to Kassidy for a kick to Pentagon and a springboard X Factor for two. Quen takes Kassidy’s place and it’s the camel clutch into a double stomp to the back of Pentagon’s head for two more. The Bros are back with a Doomsday Dropkick to Quen, followed by a monkey flip Cannonball for their own near fall. The spike package piledriver is broken up though and Quen hits a Backstabber for two as Kazarian makes the save.

Quen hits a dropkick and brings in Sky for some kicks of his own. A slingshot cutter sets up a dragon sleeper on Fenix, who gets caught in a cutter from Kazarian. Everything breaks down and it’s time for the series of dives, with Fenix walking the ropes for a knee to Sky’s face to cut him off.

More dives ensue, with Fenix hitting a big corkscrew version onto the pile. Kazarian hits an assisted tornado DDT on Fenix for two with Private Party making the save. Quen drops the perfect shooting star on Kazarian for two more, because that move isn’t allowed to EVER get a pin. Gin and Juice is broken up and it’s the SCULater to finish Quen at 12:02.

Rating: B-. Entertaining stuff, but it feels like the kind of match that we see at least once a week around here. I like SCU retaining and Private Party taking the loss isn’t going to hurt them. The Lucha Bros or Santana/Ortiz would make great next challengers and you have to expect that to be the case in one way or another, though the latter would be more likely. It’s a fun match, but it’s been done better.

Post match the Bros beat up the champs until a third masked man runs in for the save. He unmasks as….Christopher Daniels.

Video on Riho, who is awesome and was trained by Emi Sakura, her challenger for the Women’s Title. Kenny Omega makes sure we know how big this is.

Women’s Title: Riho vs. Emi Sakura

Riho is defending and we hear about them being in the ring together in one way or another 287 times. An early test of strength goes to Sakura off a legsweep and a dropkick puts Riho down again. Riho gets sent outside but she’s back up in time to block a dive to the floor. The top rope double stomp to the apron rocks Sakura and it’s off to a half crab to keep the champ in control.

Sakura fights right back with a surfboard that doesn’t last long so Riho is up with a high crossbody for two more. A spinning Vader Bomb gives Sakura her own two and a tiger driver makes it worse, only to have Riho pop up for a fast double stomp before Sakura can get up.

Riho hammers away and hits a middle rope double stomp to put Sakura in more trouble. The top rope double stomp gets two with Sakura bridging up for the kickout. Riho is right back with a spinning pair of knees to the chest before spinning around into a rollup for a stacked up pin to retain at 11:17.

Rating: C+. Well worked, nice technical match here with Riho doing enough to make up for the size different. Sakura is hardly huge but she’s bigger than Riho, which isn’t that hard to do. Riho has to wrestle the right style to be believable and she did that here. The story worked well enough, though it was a pretty basic way to do everything. That’s fine enough, but it could have been more.

We recap the World Title match. Cody needs to win and is willing to never challenge for the title again should he not win here. Jericho is as arrogant as he can get and that is one of the best things about him. He also had Cody’s brother Dustin’s arm broken by the Inner Circle.

AEW World Title: Cody vs. Chris Jericho

Cody is challenging and has MJF with him while Jericho has Jake Hager. There is a sixty minute time limit and if we go the distance, Arn Anderson, Dean Malenko and Great Muta are here to pick a winner. The fans give Jericho a HAPPY BIRTHDAY chant and he bails to the floor at the bell. Back in and Cody works on a hammerlock to send Jericho to the ropes, meaning it’s a cartwheel from Cody for a little mind game.

Back up and Jericho grabs a headlock before shouldering Cody down. The Dustin Rhodes pop up uppercut rocks Jericho so he goes to the floor and glares at Malenko. Cody is right back with a dive (in front of the judges) and it’s time to work on the arm. Some good cranking has Jericho in trouble but he sends Cody down hard onto the ramp, with Cody coming up bleeding.

We get a breather for the doctor to check on Cody so Jericho sits down in a chair in the ring as he should. Cody comes up favoring his ribs but Jericho is right on the cut forehead in an attempt to get the doctor to stop it. Hager gets in a cheap shot behind the referee’s back and Jericho puts a knee in the ribs to drop Cody again. Cody fights up and knocks Jericho down, only to have the moonsault hit knees.

The chinlock doesn’t last long so Jericho dropkicks him down for two and we hit the chinlock with a knee in the back. The Lionsault hits raised knees as well though and Cody hits a springboard cutter (Has there been a match yet that didn’t include a cutter? The Women’s Title maybe?) to start the comeback. There’s the Disaster Kick to knock Jericho off the apron and even Cody’s mom gets in some yelling.

Back in and the Alabama Slam (with Excalibur blanking on the name) out of the corner plants Jericho again. The Figure Four goes on as Excalibur remembers the name of the Alabama Slam (JR: “DING DING DING!”) but Hager gets in a cheap shot for the save. Cody goes with a rollup instead but the kickout sends him into another shot from Hager as JR is losing his mind at the cheating. MJF yells at Hager and gets mauled for it, allowing Jericho to get in a belt shot.

The very slow cover gets two but the Judas Effect is countered into Cross Rhodes. JR wants Cody to pull….I’m going to assume leg because JR is rather unbiased but Jericho kicks out anyway. Back up and Jericho knocks him into the ropes, setting up a whipping with the weight belt. Cody fights back and puts Jericho up, only to get pulled down into the Walls in the middle of the ring. It’s broken up so Jericho tries it again, this time making it the Liontamer. Cody is in trouble and MJF throws in the towel to keep the title on Jericho at 29:33.

Rating: B-. This was a tricky one to grade and I’m going to have to let the ending sink in a bit. What matters here is finding a way around the ending, but what would matter the most here would be to have MJF turn on Cody, though you could go the other way also. Good match, but it felt like they were stalling at times. That being said, they were VERY smart to not drag this out any longer. It felt a little long, but thank goodness the judges were red herrings.

Post match MJF looks crushed as the Inner Circle has some bubbly. The team leaves and Cody tells MJF it’s ok….and then MJF kicks him low and gives us a great evil smirk. A fan throws a bottle at him on the way out. That was a heck of a heel turn, even it if was far from shocking.

We recap Kenny Omega vs. Jon Moxley. They’ve been trying to fight for months now but this is the rescheduled match after Moxley was hurt. Moxley has promised violence so the match is unsanctioned.

Kenny Omega vs. Jon Moxley

Anything goes. Moxley goes straight at him to start and it’s a Boss Man Slam to put Omega down early. The trashcan is brought in but they fight to the floor with Moxley being put over the barricade. Kenny hits a running dropkick over the barricade, followed by a beer to the head. The regular trashcan is poured onto Moxley and a stomp off the barricade crushes him again.

Omega’s moonsault is broken up though and it’s time to go back to ringside. That means Moxley can pull out a barbed wire baseball bat and some shots to the back have Omega pounding the mat in pain. Moxley puts the wire on Omega’s back and stomps on it as the fans are impressed. Back up and Omega blocks a shot to the face before trying a snapdragon, only to have Moxley rake it across his arm. That’s a good storytelling device as Omega is in Moxley’s world here.

Omega gets in a trashcan shot to the head and it’s table time, plus the barbed wire broom. Moxley throws the trashcan at his head to break it up though, only to have a dive cut off with a broom to the head. Back in and Omega sweeps Moxley’s back to keep the blood flowing. The bat across the face cuts Moxley open and it’s a running Fameasser onto the bat to make it worse.

The Regal Roll sets up a middle rope moonsault with the trashcan for two….and it’s time for a board of mousetraps. Yeah I’m done with this now as this is CZW level nonsense. Omega hits a jumping knee but gets clotheslined down. Moxley drops him onto the mousetraps and now, it’s time for some big gold chains. They get wrapped around Omega’s mouth before Moxley pulls out a spike.

That’s blocked with a chain to the ribs but Moxley suplexes him onto the chains. Omega hits the snapdragon suplex and a second one makes it even worse. The chain goes around Moxley’s throat to choke him over the rope but Omega’s hands slip to get Moxley to the floor. Omega hits a big flip dive through a table and takes his sweet time finding a bag of….broken glass.

A Sky High puts Moxley onto the glass for two and Omega drags him through the glass to set up a Sharpshooter. Moxley has to crawl through the glass to get to the ropes, thankfully with the referee not calling for the break and only watching as Moxley climbs the ropes for the break. Omega tries to put the glass in Moxley’s mouth but gets German suplexed into the glass.

Some V Triggers rock Moxley and they head to the ramp. Omega calls Page and the Bucks to bring something out but the say that’s too far. They reluctantly bring out….a big barbed wire spider web board. The One Winged Angel is loaded up but Moxley reverses into a suplex to send them both into the wire and get a lot of gasping.

A bunch of people come out to help them escape and Omega hits him with something made of metal. The V Trigger sends Moxley through a wall covering a spotlight and stay down for a bit. Back in and it’s a Paradigm Shift onto the glass for two so Moxley grabs a knife and cuts up the mat away from the ring.

The pad is pulled back as well and the wood is exposed. Omega backdrops him onto the wood and hits a V Trigger, setting up a Paradigm Shift to Moxley onto the wood….for two. END THIS ALREADY. Omega’s Phoenix splash hits wood and Moxley gets two more. An elevated Paradigm Shift onto the wood finally finishes Omega at 39:22.

Rating: D+. That’s the one that is going to get the most arguments and I completely understand that one. They went on WAY too long here and you could have cut at least ten to fifteen minutes out of it. Some of the near falls near the end had me sighing because it just kept going for whatever reason. The violence and hardcore elements went further than I was good with, though it didn’t get all the way to the point of no return (the mousetraps were at least kept…..yeah I’m not finishing that). I completely get why people are going to like this, but it’s a case of a match not being for me.

Overall Rating: B. That main event took a lot out of what was an otherwise rather good show. There are still some things that I would change but they’re getting to a point where they have an established style. That may or may not be to your liking, but it is a good thing for them to figure out something that works for them. I would still cut down some of the lengths, but the action itself is good enough. Stick with what works and fix what didn’t and they have something, but that main event is going to divide the audience, at least somewhat.

Results

Proud And Powerful b. Young Bucks – Street Sweeper to Nick

Adam Page b. Pac – Deadeye

Shawn Spears b. Joey Janela – Running Death Valley Driver

So Cal Uncensored b. Lucha Bros and Private Party – SCULater to Quen

Riho b. Emi Sakura – Rollup

Chris Jericho b. Cody when MJF threw in the towel

Jon Moxley b. Kenny Omega – Elevated Paradigm Shift

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

IMG Credit: AEW

Dynamite
Date: November 6, 2019
Location: Bojangles Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

We’re back in Flair Country this week and it’s the go home show for Full Gear. Therefore, Chris Jericho is wrestling again because he does that quite often. In theory we should get some more matches announced for the show tonight as there are only five matches for the regular pay per view card so far. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

The announcers preview the show.

Pac vs. Trent

Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy are here too. Pac takes him down with a headlock to start and goes outside to glare at Cassidy. Back in and Trent hits a chop in the corner but Pac takes him outside for some hard whips into the barricade. Trent’s head gets bounced off of the ramp and there’s the big flip dive to knock him down again. The missile dropkick gets one back inside and the headline goes on. A bridging German suplex gives Pac two and we hit the chinlock again.

Trent gets sent outside and it’s time for the Pac vs. Cassidy showdown, including the leg kicks. Pac kicks him down though (Tony: “He’s black and blue Cassidy now!”) and Trent is ticked off enough for a half and half suplex. That’s enough to put Pac on the floor for a big flip dive from Trent and there’s a whip into the barricade. A running knee to the back of the head gives Pac two and a tornado DDT is good for the same. Pac busts Trent’s brain on the floor and it’s the Red Arrow….for two? With that out of the way, it’s the Brutalizer to make Trent give up at 11:43.

Rating: C+. This was much longer than it needed to be as Trent shouldn’t be hanging with Pac for that long. That’s been a problem with AEW: it’s ok to have a match like this go a little shorter to make Pac look better. Instead he was standing there so Cassidy could do his thing and going move for move with Trent. There’s nothing wrong with Trent, but he’s not a singles guy and shouldn’t be hanging this long (six or seven minutes would have been fine) with Pac and certainly not kicking out of his finisher.

Here’s Cody for his big announcement. Cody thanks the fans for being behind AEW before moving on to the match with Chris Jericho at Full Gear. He brings up some great bookers (Eddie Graham, Bill Watts, Dusty Rhodes), saying that they were great bell to bell and great at the box office. The controversy about them is that they were also management and that is where they connect to him. He has been honest about that since the beginning and loves the pressure that comes with it.

However, if he does not defeat Jericho at Full Gear, he will never challenge for the title again. Cody is tired of hearing about Jericho thinking he is some privileged kid when Jericho is the son of a famous hockey player. Jericho is a carny succubus because Jericho needs this generation more than it needs him. This isn’t about Cody or his family but rather the fourteen years it took him to get from undesirable to undeniable. At Full Gear, he’s eating Jericho alive. This was a heck of a promo and I want to see Cody win the title, which wasn’t the case before.

Dark Order vs. Private Party

The winners are added to a triple threat title match at Full Gear, along with the Lucha Bros and SCU, the latter of whom is on commentary. Therefore, there are even bronze medals for the winners. The Dark Order takes over on Quen to start but it’s an atomic drop into an enziguri to Grayson. Kassidy screeches rather loudly and gets planted with a Rock Bottom so Uno can come in for some choking on the ropes. The Order poses with the Creepers and we take a break.

Back with Grayson suplexing Quen for two but the Fatality is countered with a dropkick. Another dropkick puts Grayson on the floor and a middle rope moonsault drops Uno. There’s the big flip dive to Order but Uno is back in with a Russian legsweep. Grayson suplexes Quen into Kassidy in the corner and it’s a Cannonball/450 combination for two on Quen. Kassidy gets kneed out of the air but Quen breaks up another Fatality attempt. Silly String puts Uno down and it’s Gin and Juice for the pin on Grayson at 11:46.

Rating: C+. Total spotfest here and you knew that was going to be the case when the match started. The Order has looked better in their last two matches but that doesn’t make them much more interesting. Private Party winning is the better call though and that is what matters most in the end. I could see them winning the titles too and that could be interesting.

Post match SCU comes in to stare down Private Party.

We get an Inner Circle video mocking Cody’s big video from a few weeks back. Basically Jericho is awesome and a legend who likes the bubbly and is going to retain the title. Even Virgil gets a cameo. His friend from church, Patricia Bobski, knew him when he was a kid and knew that he would be AEW World Champion. Jake Hager says nothing at all while Virgil says Jericho’s talent is like the Olive Garden breadsticks: unlimited. All that matters to Jericho is finding the best bubbly, which is hard to do but it’s part of being le champion. Hilarious stuff here and one of the best things AEW has done so far.

We look at the Proud and Powerful jumping the Rock N Roll Express and the Young Bucks last week.

Full Gear rundown.

Jamie Hayter/Emi Sakura vs. Shanna/Riho

Riho and Sakura trade takedowns and escapes to start until Sakura throws her down by the hair. Hayter comes in for a cheap shot from behind to slow Riho down, only to have Riho knee Sakura down. Shanna comes in with a dropkick to Sakura before dropping Riho onto Sakura for two. Sakura is back up with a double underhook backbreaker to Riho and it’s Hayter coming in for the first time.

Back from a break with Riho fighting out of a chinlock and getting in a headscissors, only to have the hot tag attempt broken up. A double stomp crushed Sakura and the tag brings in Shanna to take over. Shanna runs into Hayter in the corner a few times but charges into a chokebreaker. Sakura’s Vader Bomb hits raised knees but Hayter pulls Riho off the apron. Shanna is back up with a dive to the floor and a double underhook piledriver to drop Sakura on her head.

Sakura is comes back as well and hits a rolling cutter on Shanna, followed by a Falcon Arrow from Hayter. Riho tries to come back in but gets knocked right back to the floor. Sakura’s butterfly backbreaker sets up a Vader Bomb with Riho’s top rope double stomp making the save. Riho and Sakura trade near falls until La Majistral finishes Riho at 13:49.

Rating: C+. Nice match here, though the same issues with Riho and Sakura continue. These matches come and go and it still feels like there is a huge gap between the women AEW wants to push and the rest of the division. Riho and Sakura are very technically skilled but I know almost nothing about them other than how long they have been training and that they’re from Japan. You can’t give me anything more than that?

Brandi Rhodes talks about how people have written her off as just another pretty face. However, there is nothing wrong with a combination of her mind and Awesome Kong’s body. As Kong’s face keeps popping up, Brandi talks about how she never wanted to be in charge of a women’s division so the question is who are the bullies now. Well it’s better than the witchcraft stuff last week.

Brandon Cutler vs. Shawn Spears

Cutler starts fast and sends Spears into the ropes for a slingshot legdrop to the head. That’s enough for Spears to snap and send him into the barricade, followed by a running knee to the side of the head. Back in and Spears chops away but gets kicked in the arm and head. Spears shrugs that off and hits the running Death Valley Driver for the pin at 3:15.

Rating: C-. Now was that too much to ask for??? Spears gets to beat up one of the designated jobbers and gets a little boost, which he has been needing since he debuted. Maybe this is more his style, but it certainly hasn’t been what he has been doing so far. He’s not bad, but he hasn’t been interesting and around here that is worse.

Post match Blanchard throws in a chair but here’s Joey Janela, who Blanchard and Spears attacked on Dark, for the save.

Video on Jon Moxley vs. Kenny Omega, who are driving each other to get violent in their match at Full Gear.

Hangman Page/Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho/Sammy Guevara

Jericho and Omega start things off and never mind as let’s make that Sammy instead. Omega takes him down to start but gets caught in an early front facelock. That’s broken up and Omega chops him down so it’s off to Page as Omega hits the running Fameasser from behind. Page’s running shooting star gets two on Sammy and the tabletop suplex gets the same.

Jericho comes in for a middle rope missile dropkick, knocks Omega off the apron and does a rather obvious spot call (made even worse as the camera was on the corner). Page gets in a clothesline and it’s off to Omega to start cleaning house, including a discus double ax handle to Sammy’s chest. The Regal Roll into the middle rope moonsault gets two more and Omega dropkicks Sammy out of the air. A hurricanrana puts Jericho on the floor but Jake Hager breaks up a big flip dive.

Back from a break with Jericho elbowing Omega down, only to have Omega make the hot tag a few seconds later. Page blocks the Walls attempt and Sammy’s dive hits Hager by mistake. Omega’s dive drops both of them and Page moonsaults onto Omega and Sammy at the same time. Cue Pac to kick Page low though and the Judas Effect finishes Page at 13:05.

Rating: B. This was almost a straight formula tag match and it was a good, entertaining way to make Jericho look strong heading into Sunday. Pac vs. Page is advanced as well, which was kind of needed after being set up not too long ago. They’ve done a nice job with Omega vs. Moxley as well and we should be in for a good show on Sunday on all counts.

Post match the Inner Circle is on Page but Cody runs in for the save. The Circle leaves so here’s MJF to hit them with a chair, allowing Cody to hit Cross Rhodes on Jericho. Cue Moxley with a barbed wire baseball bat but Jericho and Hager go after Cody and MJF. Omega finds the barbed wire bat but it’s Santana and Ortiz to jump Omega and Moxley. Therefore it’s the Young Bucks coming in for the save with superkicks and dives.

They fight up the ramp and it’s Moxley and Omega making the save before getting in a fight of their own. Nick gets on top of the entrance and hits the big flip dive to take down everyone, including the cameraman. The fight is on one more time to finally end the show. This was a HECK of a fight and one of the best go home segments for a pay per view I can remember in a long time.

Overall Rating: B+. I wasn’t into some of the wrestling here but they got one big thing accomplished by making me want to see the pay per view. This was a very, very effective go home show that made the pay per view feel a lot more important. Now if they can back that up on Saturday and keep it going in the future, they’re in business. Last week didn’t feel that energized but it seems more like a fluke, which is a very nice sign for the future. Great go home show here and one of the better shows they have done so far. Oh and find that Jericho video if you can because it was hilarious.

Results

Pac b. Trent – Brutalizer

Private Party b. Dark Order – Gin and Juice to Grayson

Emi Sakura/Jamie Hayter b. Riho/Shanna – La Majistral to Riho

Shawn Spears b. Brandon Cutler – Running Death Valley Driver

Chris Jericho/Sammy Guevara b. Kenny Omega/Hangman Page – Judas Effect to Page

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