Dynamite
Date: April 2, 2025
Location: Peoria Civic Center, Peoria, Illinois
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re less than a week away from Dynasty and that means it’s time for the final push towards the show. That can be a tricky thing to pull off as you’re only going to get so much out of this show with the pay per view so soon. Hopefully the action works here, though that is rarely an issue for AEW. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Jon Moxley/Marina Shafir vs. Willow Nightingale/Swerve Strickland

It’s a brawl on the floor to start, with Shafir hitting a snap suplex. Moxley and Shafir pull out a table and the women fight inside as we get the opening bell. Strickland sends Moxley into the steps before the pairs trade places. A dropkick rocks Moxley and Nightingale is back in with a middle rope version to put him down again.

Strickland’s middle rope elbow to the back connects and he and Nightingale dance a bit. That earns them a beating from the villains again and Shafir chokes Nightingale on the ropes. Back in and Strickland grabs the JML Driver on Shafir and holds her up as Moxley teases the Death Rider to Nightingale. Both women are let go and they shove the men into each other before slugging it out on the apron. Shafir hits a powerbomb off the apron and through a table, which almost went rather wrong.

We take a break and come back with Shafir and Moxley taking turns raking Strickland’s back. Nightingale hits a Tower Of Doom and slugs away, including a Cannonball to Moxley. Nightingale’s spinebuster gets two on Shafir but Moxley gets the choke on Strickland. That’s broken up with a powerbomb to send Shafir onto Moxley and everyone is down. The women brawl to the floor, leaving Moxley and Strickland to slug it out. The rolling Downward Spiral hits Moxley but Strickland’s House Call hits Shafir, who shoved Moxley out of the way. Nightingale hits The Babe With The Powerbomb to finish Shafir at 13:32.

Rating: B-. Nice fight with the two feuds getting to beat each other up for a little while. It’s a little surprising to see Shafir take a fall, as she has been well protected for a good while now. At the same time, it’s nice to have Nightingale get the win, as she has done little more than brawling with Shafir in recent weeks.

Post match Moxley gives Nightingale a Death Rider for the big serious moment.

We look at Wheeler Yuta pinning Dax Harwood on Collision, resulting in Harwood shoving Cash Wheeler after the match.

Harwood pays his $10,000 fine and gives it to the referee. He apologizes to Wheeler as well and says it’s time for them to win the Trios Titles. Harwood goes to hug him but Wheeler says they’ll team together at Dynasty, but then they need to talk.

We see the brackets for the Men’s Owen Hart tournament:

Will Ospreay
Kevin Knight

Brody King
Konosuke Takeshita

Mark Briscoe
Kyle Fletcher

Hangman Page
Wild Card

We look at Kevin Knight almost beating Jay White, who is injured, with Knight replacing him in the tournament.

Here are the Women’s Owen Hart tournament brackets:

Jamie Hayter
Billie Starkz

Thunder Rosa
Kris Statlander

Julia Hart
Mercedes Mone

Harley Cameron
Athena

Toni Storm vs. Penelope Ford

Non-title. Storm knocks her to the floor to start but Ford gets in a boot to the face on the way back in. A quick suplex hits Ford but she avoids the running hip attack in the corner. Ford gets booted down again and we take a break. Back with Ford hitting a handspring elbow in the corner, followed by a Helluva Kick.

Storm fights up and slugs away, setting up a Thesz press. Now the hip attack connects and a DDT gets two on Ford. An STF sends Ford over to the ropes and she knocks Storm outside for an apron moonsault. Back in and a gutbuster gives Ford two and she counters Storm Zero into a backdrop for two. Storm is right back with Storm Zero for the pin at 8:13.

Rating: C+. Nice outing from Ford here, though there was no reason to believe that Storm was in any serious danger. That’s what happens with most of Ford’s matches, as she hasn’t won anything significant in the better part of ever. At least she can still do some nice enough things in the ring before losing to bigger names, which is what happened again here.

Post match Megan Bayne comes out but won’t get in the ring with Storm.

Willow Nightingale is getting checked by the medics. Swerve Strickland isn’t pleased with this and swears vengeance on Jon Moxley tonight.

Here are MVP and Bobby Lashley (minus Shelton Benjamin, who couldn’t make it to the show due to bad weather) for a chat. Before they can say anything though, here is MJF to interrupt. After praising MVP’s fashion choices, MJF introduces himself to Lashley (“Bob”), who he says has been around the block.

This is AEW though, meaning it is the block that MJF built. MJF knows what it takes to set records around here, and he and the Hurt Syndicate could help each other. He puts his hand on Lashley’s shoulder, saying Lashley needs him. Lashley says that out of respect for MVP, he won’t drop MJF where he stands. He doesn’t like or trust MJF and suggests that MJF get out right now, which is what MJF does. I’m curious where this is going, but they could only do so much with Benjamin out for the week.

Learning Tree vs. ???/???

The Learning Tree offer Lashley and MVP a chair in the aisle but they’ll stand instead. Keith’s running knee into the chokeslam finishes at 1:14.

Post match Bill issues the challenge for the Tag Team Title shot at Dynasty and it seems to be on.

Mercedes Mone is ready for Julia Hart at Dynasty. She’s also ready to team up with Harley Cameron….who pops up with the puppet. Mone isn’t interested and storms off, with Cameron saying they could be the Mone Wrath Train. Taz: “I want to buy a puppet.”

Will Ospreay/Kevin Knight vs. Blake Christian/Lee Johnson

Ospreay shoulders Christian down to start so Christian grabs a quickly broken headlock. Back up and Ospreay gets in a strut and a hip swivel before handing it off to Knight for a twisting splash. Everything breaks down and the villains are dropkicked to the floor for stereo running dives. Back up and Christian drops Knight before spearing Ospreay off the apron as we take a break.

We come back with Ospreay coming in off the diving tag and starting to clean house. A springboard is broken up though and Christian hits a 450 stomp (geez). Ospreay is back up with the Stundog Millionaire though and it’s Knight coming back in to take over. Knight makes Johnson poisonrana Christian outside (yep) for a dive from Ospreay and Knight’s springboard clothesline finishes Johnson at 9:15.

Rating: B-. This was the fast paced tag match you probably expected, with Knight getting to showcase himself again. Odds are he doesn’t make it out of the first round of the Owen Hart tournament but he should be able to have an impressive performance. Other than that, Christian continues to do well and his “I’m boring” stuff is kind of amusing.

Post match, Ospreay and Knight are told that their match will take place at Dynasty. Respect is shown.

Samoa Joe says he started the Opps because things are changing around here. They’ll be watching at Dynasty.

Lance Archer vs. Brody King

They fight over a lockup to start as Don Callis joins commentary. They trade shots to the face until Archer clotheslines him to the floor. King sends him into the barricade but Archer is back with a ram into the steps. We take a break and come back with Archer missing a charge into the corner and getting dropped with a German suplex. King wins a strike off and drops a backsplash for two. A swinging Boss Man Slam and chokeslam give Archer the same but King clotheslines him down in the corner. Now the Cannonball connects to give King two and a big clothesline finishes Archer at 10:28.

Rating: C+. Well, at least King didn’t lose again. That’s not exactly glowing praise but at this point, it’s about as good as he’s going to get. The match was another big hoss fight and it went well enough. Also, a few bonus points for having King face a member of the Don Callis Family before facing Konosuke Takeshita in the tournament.

Dynasty rundown.

Cope vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Castagnoli jumps him in the corner to start and they go to the floor, where Cope is sent into the barricade. Back in and Cope kicks away, followed by a running forearm off the apron. Cope forearms him against the barricade and they head back inside to trade clotheslines. The Edge O Matic gets two and a spear through the ropes takes Castagnoli off the apron. Another dive is cut off with an uppercut though and we take a break.

Back with the two of them going up top, with Cope grabbing a super bulldog. Castagnoli hits a quick double stomp into the Swing for two. The Sharpshooter goes on but Castagnoli switches into a Crossface to keep Cope in trouble. Cope reverses that into the Grindhouse, sending Castagnoli over to the ropes. They go to the apron where Castagnoli grabs a powerslam and throws Cope over the barricade.

Castagnoli demands a ten count, as we suddenly have countouts around here. Cope beats the count and boots him down but the spear is countered into Swiss Death for two. Castagnoli grabs some chairs so the referee gets rid of them, allowing Cope to get in a low blow. The spear finishes Castagnoli at 17:48.

Rating: B-. Well that was…lengthy. This was the latest long Cope match where he looked pretty good and then goes over in the end. The match helps set up the title match on Sunday, where we’re likely to see FTR and Cope come close but ultimately lose to the Death Riders. It wasn’t a bad match, but it never went to a higher gear.

Swerve Strickland is still looking for Jon Moxley but runs into Hangman Page. Security immediately runs in as Page shouts about how Swerve broke into his home. Swerve: “YOU BURNED MY HOUSE DOWN!” Page: “YOU DESERVED IT!” Swerve: “I KNOW!” That has Page confused and he storms off, but here are the rest of the Death Riders to jump Swerve. The villains throw him into some glass and then carry him into the arena. A bag of glass is poured out and Castagnoli gives Swerve a Riccola bomb into the glass. Swerve, with glass in his back, sits up and glares at Moxley to end the show.

First of all, Page and Swerve have are likely going to team together one day and it’s been a long, drawn out and well done story with both of them growing a lot. On the other hand, Swerve being slammed onto glass and then popping back up to end the show is a bit insane and not in a good way.

Overall Rating: B-. This show did enough to help boost Dynasty up, though your taste in tournaments may bring this up or down. There wasn’t anything you really needed to see, but it did set up enough things for both Dynasty and beyond, which is a good use of the show. While Dynasty doesn’t seem like the biggest show, this did boost it up a bit, which should help on Sunday.

Results
Willow Nightingale/Swerve Strickland b. Jon Moxley/Marina Sharif – Babe With The Powerbomb to Shafir
Toni Storm b. Penelope Ford – Storm Zero
Learning Tree b. ???/??? – Chokeslam
Brody King b. Lance Archer – Clothesline

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

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Dynamite
Date: March 12, 2025
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re done with Revolution and Jon Moxley is still the World Champion, having defeated both Cope and Christian Cage, the latter of whom cashed in his contract for a title shot. Other than that, Kenny Omega is the new International Champion, having finally defeated Konosuke Takeshita. Let’s get to it.

Here is Revolution if you need a recap.

Here is Kenny Omega, fresh off winning the International Title. Omega can’t believe he’s back here after the health issues he was having, and now he has a singles title again. He thanks Konosuke Takeshita for the match and is looking forward to the start of the tournament to crown a new #1 contender to his title. Omega hits the catchphrase and is out in a hurry. As Omega is leaving, the Opps come out for their match and have a bit of a staredown with Omega (as Katsuyori Shibata is in the tournament), but everything is ok.

Opps vs. Vinny Pacifico/Eli Theseus/Gabriel Aeros

Joe hammers on Pacifico to start and it’s to Theseus, who gets clotheslined in the corner by Hook. Shibata comes in to strike away at Aeros in the corner, setting up the sleeper. The PK finishes at 2:16. Another squash.

Ricochet is ready to win the tournament and offers Shibata the chance to quit before their match at Collision.

Long recap of Revolution.

Swerve Strickland is ready to challenge for the World Title at Dynasty. Cope comes in to say that either he’s going to win the title before Dynasty, or if Swerve wins at Dynasty, Cope is coming for it. Works for Swerve.

Jon Moxley is annoyed at himself for not putting Cope away earlier and he admires the toughness. Next week, they’ll have a street fight for the title, which is fine with Moxley because he won’t make the same mistake twice.

Hologram/Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Brian Cage/Dralistico

Harleygram is here with the good guys while the other team has the Beast Mortos. Cage and Hobbs brawl on the floor to start before Dralistco and Hologram trade armdrags. Dralistico teases taking off the mask but hands it off to Cage instead. Hologram slips out of a press slam but Cage pulls a dive out of the air for a suplex (that was impressive). We take a break and come back with Mortos stomping away on Hologram.

Cue Harleygram to swivel a bit, which gets Mortos’ attention. Back in and Hologram takes Dralistico down, allowing Hobbs to come in and clean house. Cage gets to trade the clotheslines with Hobbs before the apron superplex connects. Dralistico hits…something from the top for two but Hobbs is back up with a spinebuster to Cage on the apron. Hologram uses Hobbs’ chest as a launch pad before Hobbs spinebusters Dralistico out of the air for the pin at 10:38.

Rating: B-. This was good enough with a nice mixture of some people you don’t often see together. Hologram is more than ready to do something else, as he has won everything he’s done and needs to have some kind of a bigger story. Hobbs getting a pin is good as well, as he still feels like someone who is ready to become one of the breakout stars in AEW very soon.

Post match Mark Davis and Lance Archer come out to yell at Cage.

The Hurt Syndicate is happy with their win and MVP wants them to have some fun in southern California. They’ll be at the gym instead.

We look at Toni Storm defeating Mariah May in the Hollywood Ending match. It was bloody and violent and I can get why it was a bit too much in some eyes, but I had fun with the whole wacky thing.

Here is Toni Storm, saying she has staples in her head and glass in her a**, this tramp is still the champ. The title makes it all worth it though and now it is time to find new challengers. Fighting with her is like going to the zoo, because she will bleed like a pig, lick you like a giraffe and eat you like a lion. No one swings like her so it’s time to get messy and sweaty. Cue Megan Bayne to jump Storm from behind and pose.

International Title #1 Contenders Tournament First Round: The Beast Mortos vs. ???

The surprise opponent is….the debuting Speedball Mike Bailey. Ever the high flier and striker, Bailey flips away to start and kicks Mortos down, with Mortos bailing out to the floor. A running shoulder takes Bailey down but he’s back with some chops. The big running flip dive drops Mortos again and we take a break.

Back with Bailey hitting a running shooting star press for two but the tornado kick misses. Bailey kicks him to the floor and hits a triangle moonsault, followed by a powerbomb out of the corner for two back inside. Mortos’ pop up Samoan drop gets two and the super gorilla press gets the same. Bailey grabs a hurricanrana for two and some moonsault knees set up a spinning kick to the face to pin Mortos at 10:55.

Rating: B-. I’m not a big Bailey fan but he’s tailor made for AEW. Between the flying and the strikes and the kind of awkward charisma, he is someone who will fit in perfectly well around here. As usual, Mortos is the perfect choice to make someone look good and that is exactly what he did here.

Christian Cage is annoyed at Renee Paquette asking about what happened at Revolution because he is NOT talking to anyone related to Jon Moxley. Cage declares himself still the undisputed next World Champion and he was just relegating his breathing before reversing the hold. Nick Wayne says Cage is lying to himself and the team and owes them an apology. Cage goes for Nick but Mother Wayne gets in the way. Cage threatens to have her back at Waffle House before yelling at Nick, telling him to keep riding his coattails or the next time they have this conversation will be the last.

MJF did not want to talk after Revolution.

Here is MJF for a chat. He’s sore from Revolution and the truth is he had that match won until Hangman Page gave him a cheap shot (commentary remembers it differently). MJF isn’t upset anymore, because he is 10x smarter than Page and all of the fans. This thing with Page isn’t over…and here is MVP to interrupt. They stare each other down and then have a big hug.

MVP met him eight years ago and was impressed because MJF once volunteered to take him on a long drive for the price of getting to pick his brain in the car. MVP is proud of him for all of MJF’s accomplishments, but he isn’t impressed with what happened to MJF on Sunday. Why isn’t MJF out here hurting people? He has lost his edge and people in the back don’t fear them.

They do fear the Hurt Syndicate so maybe MVP can help him again. MVP offers him the business card but MJF declines it, saying he’s not the young kid that he was eight years ago. MJF doesn’t want or need MVP’s help, but MVP brings up that MJF WAS the World Champion. Now MJF takes the card and seems to be thinking about something.

Here is Max Caster for another open challenge.

Max Caster vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Caster thinks Takeshita is here to invite him into the Don Callis Family. Takeshita knocks him silly, picks him up, and hits Raging Fire for the pin at 1:29.

We look back at Chris Jericho attacking and unmasking Gravity at Revolution.

Jericho holds up Gravity’s mask and says gravity has been added to his feud with Bandido. Their family was terrified at Revolution and now it is time that people stop taking advantage of Jericho. This was serious Jericho again and it’s a nice relief after the goofiness has been going on for so long.

Penelope Ford vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale slams her down to start and they take turns sending the other into the corner. A suplex gets two on Ford but she sends Nightingale throat first into the ropes. We take a break and come back with Nightingale making the clothesline comeback. A spinebuster gives Nightingale two and the Gory Special goes on, with Ford biting her way out. They trade kicks to the face and Ford hits a Stunner, only to get Pounced for the pin at 8:39.

Rating: C+. I want to be able to buy into Ford but it isn’t going to matter if she never wins anything important. That has been the case for a long time and this is the latest loss in a long series of them. That being said, it is nice to see Nightingale get a win, which doesn’t happen often enough either. She needs something to do, and I’m not sure what that is going to be at the moment.

Post match Ford chairs Nightingale down so here is Kris Statlander for the save. Then Megan Bayne takes both of them down.

Mercedes Mone’s throat is messed up so Renee Paquette has to do Mone’s catchphrase. Billie Starkz comes in to say she wants a TBS Title shot. Mone laughs it off but gives her the match for next week.

Here is Will Ospreay for a chat. He’s banged up but happy to have gotten out of the cage match with Kyle Fletcher alive. Ospreay is in a bit of trouble with his wife because he lied to her, saying he wouldn’t do anything stupid off the cage. Then he forgot there was a guy in a green shirt filming him and after the match there were fifteen missed calls from the wife.

They finally talked and she was livid…but she made him a nice dinner anyway. Now Ospreay wants some gold around his waist in the form of the World Title. Ospreay looks at the All In Texas banner, so he’s in the Owen Hart Tournament. He’s ready to face Cope, Swerve or Moxley, whomever is waiting for him at All In. Simple and to the point here and the story about his wife was funny.

Jay White would love to face Will Ospreay again but he gets asked about hitting Cope with the briefcase. White to Renee Paquette: “Are you asking or accusing?” White goes on a rant about the Death Riders and says he wants to be the #1 contender.

Hangman Page runs into MJF and says he doesn’t believe MJF was going to light him on fire. MJF says they’re now 1-1 and MJF is going to go on to become a two time World Champion, while Page will fall on his face as he always does. The people will get tired of Page failing to win the big one (ignoring the one he’s already won I guess) while MJF will be World Champion over and over. So he’s admitting he’ll lose a lot?

International Title #1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Hechicero vs. Orange Cassidy

Hechicero blocks the hands from going into the pockets but Cassidy walks the rope and gets his hand into his pocket. Then Hechicero just pulls him down, showing it was quite the waste of time. Cassidy slowly runs the ropes and falls to the mat before nipping up as we take a break.

Back with Hechicero choking over the ropes and then tying the leg up in the same ropes. Cassidy’s leg is fine enough to come back with a high crossbody but gets caught in a swinging hammerlock backbreaker for two. The Stundog Millionaire and the spinning DDT get Cassidy out of trouble but his knee is banged up. Cassidy’s lazy top rope elbow is almost countered into a cross armbreaker before Hechicero grabs the Rings Of Saturn. Cassidy makes the ropes and grabs the Mousetrap for the pin at 10:07.

Rating: B-. This felt like Hechicero was far in advance but got caught at the end for the sake of putting Cassidy in the four way final. Hechicero continues to be someone who can do some rather awesome things in the ring, but at the same time it doesn’t matter as much if he keeps losing in bigger matches. Either way, nice main event here, even if it only has so much in the way of stakes.

Mike Bailey comes out for the staredown with Cassidy to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. They definitely took their foot off the gas a bit here and that’s not a bad thing. Revolution was such a big show that it is time to let things breathe a bit here. They did set some things up for Dynasty, which is coming up rather quickly. It wasn’t a bad show, but it did feel less important than some of what they have been doing lately. That has to be the case at some point though and this was still a good show.

Results
Opps b. Vinny Pacifico/Eli Theseus/Gabriel Aeros – PK to Aeros
Hologram/Powerhouse Hobbs b. Brian Cage/Dralistico – Spinebuster to Dralistico
Mike Bailey b. The Beast Mortos – Crescent Kick
Konosuke Takeshita b. Max Caster – Raging Fire
Willow Nightingale b. Penelope Ford – Pounce
Orange Cassidy b. Hechicero – Mousetrap

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

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Dynamite
Date: January 29, 2025
Location: Propst Arena At Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Tony Schiavone

We are closing in on Grand Slam and that means it is time to start hammering down the card. One of the biggest matches is already set as the once again Timeless Toni Storm will be challenging Mariah May for the Women’s Title. We also have a big tag match already set but there is a lot left to cover. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Will Ospreay vs. Brian Cage

Lance Archer is here with Cage and Don Callis is on commentary. Hold on though as Callis points us to the screen, showing Kenny Omega having been attacked backstage. Ospreay snaps off a middle rope hurricanrana to start fast and they head outside, where Cage gets posted. Ospreay tries a Blockbuster off the barricade but Cage pulls him out of the air, walks him around the ring, and then hits a suplex on the floor. Archer gets in a cheap shot and Cage adds a leg lariat for two back inside.

Back to back backbreakers give Cage two and we hit the bearhug. Ospreay fights out and hits a handspring elbow before sending Cage outside. The Sasuke Special connects, only for Cage to hit his apron superplex to bring him back inside. Ospreay kicks him in the face a few times but gets powerbombed for his efforts. A middle rope F5 (that looked good) gets two and Archer gets caught shoving the foot off the ropes. Ospreay sends them into each other and hits the Styles Clash for the pin at 12:46.

Rating: B-. Nice back and forth match here, with Ospreay not exactly feeling in jeopardy but rather having to find a way to get around all those muscles. That’s a fine way to go and lets Ospreay look good in the process. The big match is coming in a few weeks, but my goodness it will be nice to get away from this feud for good.

Post match Archer comes in for the save but Kenny Omega makes the save with a chair. The rest of the Don Callis Family comes in and beats the heroes down. Stereo piledrivers leave them laying. This went on for awhile, much like anything involving the Family.

Hangman Page can’t find Swerve Strickland but he runs into MJF. With Page gone, MJF says no one is ruining his mood tonight because Jeff Jarrett is going to lose to Claudio Castagnoli.

Powerhouse Hobbs isn’t cleared to travel this week but he’s coming for Big Bill.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Jeff Jarrett

If Jarrett wins, he gets a World Title shot. Jarrett starts fast with an armdrag and hiptoss before hammering away in the corner. The threat of a Figure Four sends Castagnoli bailing and we take an early break. Back with Wheeler Yuta at ringside and Jarrett fighting out of a chinlock. Jarrett grabs a Russian legsweep and hammers away but can’t get the Figure Four.

An enziguri misses though and Castagnoli gives him the Swing, setting up the Sharpshooter. Jarrett reverses into one of his own so Yuta sends in a chair for a distraction. Somehow the referee doesn’t notice Jon Moxley running in with the Paradigm Shift, setting up the Neutralizer to give Castagnoli the pin at 10:08.

Rating: C+. So the monster heel needed help to beat the old, past his prime star? This felt like just another reason to have the Death Riders out there getting in another beatdown. It’s also another way to crush something the fans are getting behind, which falls in line with the “we don’t like fun around here” style.

Post match MJF comes out to deck Jarrett with the ring. He respects his elders and that’s why he isn’t going to say he told Jarrett so.

Ricochet is going to deal with AR Fox and then move on to Swerve Strickland.

Ricochet vs. AR Fox

They start fast with Fox hitting something like a Stunner, setting up a swinging suplex. The fight heads outside with Fox chopping away, only to get hiptossed onto the apron. We take a break and come back with Ricochet hitting a People’s Moonsault for two. Fox fights up and slugs away, setting up stereo crossbodies for a double down. Ricochet slips out of a package piledriver to start but Fox puts him down for a 450. A fireman’s carry is loaded up so Ricochet grabs the referee to escape. The Recoil into the Spirit Gun into Vertigo finishes Fox at 11:01.

Rating: B-. I have no idea what else you were expecting here as this was exactly what you would have thought it would be. They did their flips, Ricochet won, it was entertaining. This was all it needed to be as Ricochet gets a win, though he wasn’t exactly being a big time villain here after his major turn.

Post match Swerve Strickland runs in with a chain but Ricochet busts out the scissors and uses Fox as a hostage/human shield to escape.

Jon Moxley won’t show the World Title because he is the World Title. He is forged in combat and wants 1000 of himself.

Chris Jericho says Roll Toad but isn’t happy with Big Bill for not being up Powerhouse Hobbs.

Jay White vs. Wheeler Yuta

Schiavone: “Well, here come the Death Riders again.” Yuta tries to jump him before the bell but has to bail from the threat of a Blade Runner. They trade headlocks to start until White crotches him on top in the corner and chops away on the floor. Yuta starts going after the knee to take over and a fisherman’s suplex gets two back inside. Excalibur sends us to a break but we stick around for another minute or so with Yuta staying on the leg.

We finally do take the break and come back with White breaking up a superplex and hitting one of his own. They trade rollups for two each until Yuta takes him down for the elbows to the face. Yuta tries the running knee but gets reversed into the Blade Runner for the pin at 13:34.

Rating: C+. This was good enough with White likely on the way to the title shot at Grand Slam. That is the kind of thing that is going to build up a title match like that and it should go well until Moxley gets to retain again. White is someone who feels like he can be raised up quickly and this was a good step forward for him.

Post match the Death Riders run in for the beatdown but Rated FTR makes the save. Harwood doesn’t like what happened to Ricky Morton and wants the Death Riders in a Mid-South street fight. The match is going to be in Huntsville but I guess Continental street fight doesn’t have the same ring.

We recap Toni Storm revealing that she is still Timeless in a bit of a confusing result.

Here is Mariah May to insist that Toni Storm is not real. May brings up beating Storm, who can’t win anything lately. May doesn’t need to cosplay because she is the best of the world.

The Gunns are coming back.

Here’s what’s coming on Collision.

We look at the Hurt Syndicate winning the Tag Team Titles.

Video on Konosuke Takeshita.

We look back at various things from earlier tonight.

The Vendetta yell about Harley Cameron and are ready for revenge on Collision.

TBS Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Yuka Sakazaki

Mone is defending and gets wristlocked to start. Back up and Mone runs her over, meaning we get a bit of a dance. Sakazaki’s basement clothesline is cut off and they fight outside with Mone taking over. A Meteora off the apron connects to put Sakazaki down and we take a break.

Back with Sakazaki hitting a brainbuster for two but Mone grabs Three Amigos for the knockdown. A superplex hits for Sakazaki and she grabs a spinning faceplant for two. The Statement Maker is broken up so Sakazaki kicks her in the head and gets two off a rollup. Mone hits a powerbomb into the Mone Maker to retain at 13:33.

Rating: B-. As usual, Sakazaki is fine enough to good in the ring because she is talented. The problem is she’s just dropped into the title picture after not being around for months. She has never been established as a big deal around here so it’s hard to care about seeing her getting a title shot and then losing. The match was good enough, even if there was still no reason to believe Mone was losing.

Overall Rating: C+. And here we have the latest night of heel dominance, which is par for the course around here. It’s just what we see and that gets tiring in a hurry. Other than White winning and getting to stand tall (with help), it was mostly the villains getting in everything they did and having little comeuppance (even Ospreay got beaten down after being Cage). It was another skippable show and that is happening fairly often in AEW these days.

Results
Will Ospreay b. Brian Cage – Styles Clash
Claudio Castagnoli b. Jeff Jarrett – Neutralizer
Ricochet b. AR Fox – Vertigo
Jay White b. Wheeler Yuta – Blade Runner
Mercedes Mone b. Yuka Sakazaki – Mone Maker

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

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Dynamite
Date: December 4, 2024
Location: Fishers Events Center, Fishers, Indiana
Commentators: Excalibur, Matt Menard, Tony Schiavone

We’re on the road to Worlds End and that means we’ll be having another show focused on the Continental Classic. Other than that, we’re going to need to start putting together the pay per view card. That is likely going to have a big focus on the Death Riders, which is still the big focus of the show. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of week one of the Continental Classic.

Continental Classic Blue League: Shelton Benjamin (3 points) vs. Kyle Fletcher (3 points)

Don Callis is on commentary. Benjamin takes him into the corner to start as Excalibur rapid fires off their history in round robin tournaments. Fletcher is drive into the corner and then bails out to the floor as they’re still waiting to really get going here. They take turns lounging on the ropes before Benjamin gets in a slap to the back. A Cactus Clothesline takes them both to the floor and we take a break.

Back with an exchange of forearms until they head outside, with Fletcher being sent into the steps. Fletcher is right back with a running clothesline and a Michinoku Driver for two. Benjamin hits the Dragon Whip into a powerbomb and something like an STF sends Fletcher to the ropes. Back up and Fletcher drops him again, setting up a top rope elbow for two. Some German suplex rock Fletcher and have the fans rather excited but he grabs a rollup, and the rope, for the pin at 15:47.

Rating: B. This was starting to rock near the end and the fans were way into it by the time they were wrapping it up. The ending felt a bit disappointing but I’ll take what we got over Benjamin doing a clean job. Heck of a show here, with the two of them both working hard and doing the kind of match that feels like it belongs in a tournament like this.

Blue League Standings

Kyle Fletcher – 6 points (3 matches remaining)
Shelton Benjamin – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Kazuchika Okada – 1 point (4 matches remaining)
Daniel Garcia – 1 point (4 matches remaining)
Mark Briscoe – 0 points (4 matches remaining)
The Beast Mortos – 0 points (4 matches remaining)

Juice Robinson is out of the tournament due to injury and will be replaced by Komander. Because of course it’s Komander.

Here is Hook for a chat. He’s heard Nick Wayne’s challenge for a few weeks but he wants to fight Christian Cage in the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York instead. Cue the Patriarchy and the beatdown is on, with a Conchairto crushing Hook’s hand/wrist.

Mercedes Mone doesn’t care about Mercedes Mone, but she’ll be paying attention to Anna Jay’s match.

MVP is disappointed in Shelton Benjamin, who beats up a production worker to blow off some steam.

Dynamite Dozen Battle Royal

Adam Cole, Mark Davis, Rocky Romero, Kyle O’Reilly, Dante Martin, Darius Martin, Lance Archer, Evil Uno, Lio Rush, The Butcher, Action Andretti, Brian Cage

The final two will face off next week and the winner of that faces MJF for the Dynamite Diamond Ring at Worlds End. Uno does Cole’s pose to start and is kicked out by Davis for the first elimination. A bunch of people go after Archer before Rush and Andretti take out Top Flight (on purpose) to clear out part of the ring.

Cage and Archer get rid of Davis and we take a break. Back with Andretti being kicked out with Rush being knocked out as well. Romero is sent out as well and Cole eliminates Butcher, leaving us with Cole, O’Reilly, Cage and Archer. The monsters are sent to the apron and then kicked out to give Cole and O’Reilly the win at 10:09.

Rating: C. They kept this relatively short and that is the right idea, as there was no reason for anyone but Cole and O’Reilly to move forward here. We’ll either see Cole or both of them face MJF at Worlds End, which should hopefully wrap up everything for good. The story is ready to wrap up and has been for a long time, but here we have the next step ready to set up the next step.

Post match O’Reilly leaves, shoving Cole a bit in the process.

Julia Hart is still hunting Jamie Hayter.

Billy Gunn and Anthony Bowens tell Max Cole to prove how good he is.

Swerve Strickland vs. Max Caster

Strickland cuts off the rap and sends him into the barricade a few times to start fast. They get inside and the bell rings with Swerve snapping off a German suplex. Caster’s dropkick is shrugged off and it’s the House Call to put him down. Another House Call finishes at 2:15. Total destruction.

Post match Swerve adds a Swerve Stomp.

MJF says all of this is Adam Cole’s fault, including Roderick Strong having a broken arm. He knows Cole can’t beat Kyle O’Reilly and we’ll see that next week.

Video on Pac vs. Jay White.

Pac vs. Jay White

Wheeler Yuta is here with Pac. An early distraction attempt doesn’t work as Pac is knocked to the floor, where he yells at Yuta in frustration. Back in and White hits a backdrop for two and another seconds Pac outside again. Yuta gets in a cheap shot though and Pac sends White into the barricade as we take a break.

Back with White suplexing him into the corner and grabbing a DDT for two. A double knockdown gives us a breather before Pac kicks him down again. The Black Arrow misses but the Blade Runner is blocked as well. White’s half and half suplex looks to set up the Blade Runner but Pac reverses into a standing Brutalizer. The rope is grabbed so Yuta gets in a running knee, which the referee somehow doesn’t see. Not that it matters as White is right back with the Blade Runner out of nowhere for the pin at 13:26.

Rating: B-. This was starting to pick up near the end but it’s nice to see White getting another win. AEW needs something fresh so why not let White show what he can do? It wouldn’t stun me to see him getting the title shot against Jon Moxley at Worlds End, which isn’t a bad idea. It’s different, and that is nice to see around here.

Post match Yuta goes after White but gets taken out with the Blade Runner. Cue the rest of the Death Riders to take White out but Hangman Page shows up….and Orange Cassidy jumps Moxley from behind. All three of them get together to lay Moxley out, with Christian Cage popping up with the contract.

Jamie Hayter doesn’t know what Julia Hart has against her but she’s ready to win the International Women’s Cup. For now, she’s willing to come find Hart though.

Chris Jericho is ready to defend the Ring Of Honor World Title at Final Battle. We’ll find out more about his challenger tomorrow night on Ring Of Honor.

We get an old west themed video, talking about how someone is coming back but the sheriff is scared. The wanted poster shows that Bandido is on his way back. Cool.

Video on Anna Jay vs. Penelope Ford.

Anna Jay vs. Penelope Ford

They shove each other to start until Jay hits a running forearm. Ford is back with a knock out to the floor, with some knees keeping Jay in trouble. We take a break and come back with Ford hitting a handspring elbow in the corner but Jay crotches her on top. A basement Blockbuster gives Jay two but the Queenslayer is countered into a Stunner for two. The Muta Lock sends Jay over to the ropes and she’s right back up with the Gory Bomb for the pin at 8:54.

Rating: C+. Jay wins again and seems to be coming up on a feud with Mercedes Mone, but it isn’t going to matter if Jay loses yet another high profile math. As for this, Ford was her usual decent self, so the match could have been far worse. They did something by showing their history here, but thankfully it wasn’t presented as anything overly important.

Post match Mercedes Mone comes out to laugh off the idea of Anna Jay being a threat to the title. Jay can come back when she has done something in wrestling, so Jay slaps her, sending Mone scrambling.

We get a sitdown interview with Mariah May, who doesn’t think much of Renee Paquette. May wants Mina Shirakawa to do something other than shake her chest, so here is Mina to hand her the champagne bottle. Mina says do it to her face, which has May a bit shaken.

Continental Classic Gold League: Brody King vs. Claudio Castagnoli

They strike it out to start with King getting the better of things but Castagnoli goes after the arm. Castagnoli sends him into the corner and wraps the arm around around the post as we take a break. Back with Castagnoli going after the arm again to cut off a comeback bid. Swiss Death and the Death Valley Driver get two each but King is back with a hard clothesline.

A running splash in the corner drops Castagnoli again for two and King plants him with a top rope superplex. The piledriver gives King two and Castagnoli bails out to the floor. King follows by gets sent over the barricade and has to beat the count. Back in and King hits a lariat but can’t get the Ganso Bomb. Instead Castagnoli kicks him low and the Neutralizer finishes King at 14:18.

Rating: B. This was two big, strong guys beating the fire out of each other until one of them couldn’t get up any more. That’s a good way to go and it worked well here, with King getting in his big shots before falling in the end. It was a good match and it’s nice to see Castagnoli getting a win in a featured spot.

Gold League Standings

Claudio Castagnoli – 6 points (3 matches remaining)
Will Ospreay – 3 points (4 matches remaining)
Ricochet – 3 points (4 matches remaining)
Brody King – 3 points (3 matches remaining)
Darby Allin – 0 points (4 matches remaining)
Komander – 0 points (4 matches remaining)

Overall Rating: B. As usual, the tournament makes the show a good bit easier to watch as you’re guaranteed a nice bit of content focusing on the in-ring side. Other than that, it looks like we might be coming up on a four way match for the World Title at Worlds End. Some of the pay per view card started coming together here and that’s a good sign with just a few weeks to go. Nice stuff here, as the tournament is helping the company a lot.

Results
Kyle Fletcher b. Shelton Benjamin – Rollup while holding the rope
Adam Cage and Kyle O’Reilly won the Dynamite Dozen Battle Royal last eliminating Brian Cage and Lance Archer,
Swerve Strickland b. Max Caster – House Call
Jay White b. Pac – Blade Runner
Anna Jay b. Penelope Ford – Gory Bomb
Claudio Castagnoli b. Brody King – Neutralizer

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

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Dynamite
Date: November 13, 2024
Location: Total Mortgage Arena, Bridgeport, Connecticut
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re closing in on Full Gear and the big story continues to be the Death Riders taking over everything. That changed a bit last weekend though as Orange Cassidy and friends stood up to the villains, with Cassidy himself scaring Jon Moxley off. The rest of the show could use some time of their own though so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Christian Cage/Hangman Page vs. Bang Bang Gang

Cage has the Patriarchy here with him. White backs Page up against the ropes to start and elbows him in the face but Cage tags himself in. Robinson comes in as well and flips Cage off but Cage manages to send him outside. Nick Wayne gets in a cheap shot on the floor and the slow beating continues. Cue Hook to choke Wayne over the barricade and drag him into the crowd though, allowing Robinson to hit a reverse DDT on the floor. Back in and the tag brings in White for a reverse DDT on Cage, plus a suplex into the corner to Page.

Everything breaks down and Robinson gets crotched on top, followed by a triangle clothesline to White. A super all away slam brings Robinson down for two but White is back in. Cage’s spear is countered into the Blade Runner but White has to duck the Buckshot Lariat. Back to back suplexes put the villains down and the Blade Runner sends Cage into the barricade. Back in and Robinson slugs away at Page, who gets sunset flipped for two. Kip Sabian gets in a contract shot to Robinson though and the Deadeye finishes at 12:33.

Rating: B-. Good opener here with something that felt a little bit different. Throwing something like Page and Cage together is an interesting way to go and the Gang was protected with the interference. I like this kind of thing every so often and it was a nice way to go for a change.

Here’s what’s coming at Full Gear and later tonight.

Mercedes Mone blames Kamille for the car issues last week and tells her to take care of her jacket. Then Kris Statlander shows up for a brawl, with Statlander driving Mone through a wall and onto Kamille. As the destruction of Kamille continues.

Here is Will Ospreay, who gets straight to the point by calling out Kyle Fletcher. Cue Fletcher, who threatens violence and then asks what Ospreay wants to talk about. Ospreay doesn’t buy this and tells Fletcher to drop whatever weapons he has because this is just for a talk. Fletcher throws a screwdriver down before Ospreay talks about their history together.

Fletcher knows everything about him, down to where his kids go to school, so why is all of this happening? That sends Fletcher into a rant about how Ospreay was selfish over the years and turned on a bunch of people, which is why Ospreay would have done the same thing in Fletcher’s spot. Ospreay asks what Fletcher has done, and he doesn’t mean Aussie Open. Fletcher wants a match at Full Gear, which sends Ospreay into a rant about how he’s Mr. PPV around here. He’s fought all kinds of champions on pay per view and stolen the show each time (yet he’s not like, in the title picture at the moment).

The match is set, with Lance Archer and Brian Cage coming in. Ospreay has friends of his own with Mark Davis and Powerhouse Hobbs so the fight is on. Cue Roderick Strong to go after Archer for their scheduled (falls count anywhere) match and we’re ready to go. Other than that, this was another long segment built around things that happened years ago and mostly not in AEW, which happens rather frequently around here.

Roderick Strong vs. Lance Archer

Falls count Anywhere and Archer sends him through some things as we take an early break. Back with Archer missing a charge into the barricade but Brian cage pops up to try a powerbomb. The Undisputed Kingdom makes the save but Archer is back up with a chokeslam to send Matt Taven into security. Strong comes back with a chair to the face and a jumping knee for the pin at 6:42.

Rating: C+. What do you say about something like this? It was a big brawl with a bunch of interference and a good chunk of it was spent in the break. Strong gets another win on the way to the MJF match and Archer loses again, which tends to be the case in any match that matters. Not much to see here, as the falls count anywhere aspect was little more than a way to have a bunch of interference.

Post match Strong promises to come after MJF (as he has not secured his match with his third win) but cue Konosuke Takeshita to jump him from behind. Cue Adam Cole for his scheduled match with Takeshita.

Adam Cole vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Non-title. Cole knocks him out to the floor to start while the theme song is still going, only for Takeshita to come in side and take over as we take a break. Back with Cole hitting the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two but Takeshita hits a Blue Thunder Bomb. Back up and Cole hits him in the face, only to miss the Boom. A brainbuster onto the knee gives Cole two but Takeshita is back with his modified Tombstone into a wheelbarrow suplex.

The big lariat gets two but another is cut off by Cole’s superkick. The Panama Sunrise connects, only for Takeshita to roll outside before the Boom. Takeshita whips out the Dynamite Diamond Ring and the referee turns away for the sake of plot convenience. The big shot to the head gives Takeshita the pin at 9:29.

Rating: C+. Well the ending did surprise me, and thankfully we won’t be getting a triple threat match with Cole, Strong and MJF. If nothing else, I’m not sure why Cole was getting a chance to equal Strong’s three wins but it wound up not mattering. Not a great match, which shouldn’t be a surprise given that it’s Cole, but at least the right person won.

Post match the beatdown is on but Kyle O’Reilly runs in for the save, with Ricochet coming out to fight Takeshita to the back. Cole and Strong shake hands but O’Reilly walks away.

The Hurt Syndicate is ready for Bobby Lashley to make an example out of Swerve Strickland.

Here are the Death Riders beating up JD Drake. Jon Moxley hijacks a cameraman and talks about what he has done to Orange Cassidy’s friends. Chuck Taylor is drinking through a straw and Wheeler Yuta believes in Moxley because Cassidy couldn’t save him. Cassidy is going to learn a lesson and the Death Riders have the power. Cue Cassidy to interrupt, with Rocky Romero and Mark Briscoe joining him.

Cassidy talks about how the World Title gives Moxley power so they’re going to wrestle for the title at Full Gear, where Cassidy will beat him. First though, he has to take out some pawns, like Wheeler Yuta, who he’ll face next week, before he can take down the king. The villains go to leave but Darby Allin dives off the balcony onto them. The Riders try to leave again (leaving Yuta behind) but Allin dives onto the back of their truck. Claudio Castagnoli swings him into a garage door and Yuta dives into the back of the truck to escape. That was a lot in one segment, though Cassidy still feels like his loss is just a formality.

Chris Jericho, with the Learning Tree, talks about Tomohiro Ishii being a young boy thirty years ago and having to wash Jericho’s back in the shower. Jericho accepts Ishii’s challenge and the match is n for two weeks.

Britt Baker vs. Penelope Ford

They fight over wrist control to start until Ford kicks her out to the floor as we take an early break. Back with Ford hitting a handspring elbow in the corner, only to get caught with a discus lariat. Ford Matrixes away from a clothesline and tries a….well commentary calls it a cutter but I’m not sure they made contact. Baker kicks her down and loads up the Lockjaw but takes too much time. Ford pulls her into the Muta Lock, which is reversed into the Lockjaw to finish Ford at 8:55.

Rating: C. Baker feels like she is just going through the motions here and that has been the case for a good while. She just doesn’t feel like she is doing anything overly good these days. At the end of the day, she has just stopped evolving and the rest of the division has, which doesn’t work out well. Ford is trying rather hard and while it’s not exactly getting her anywhere, it’s definitely noticeable.

Post match Serena Deeb comes out for a staredown with Baker.

Mina Shirakawa is back and read for a champagne celebration with Mariah May. Cue Harley Cameron, who says Shirakawa is called the Harley Cameron of Japan. Cameron: “Well welcome to the Harley Cameron of Harley Cameron!” They get into a chest shaking contest until Renee Paquette yells at them to stop.

Lio Rush vs. Swerve Strickland

They take turns flipping away from each other to start before going out to the floor. Rush rakes the eyes and yells a lot but gets sent ribs first into the apron. Rush sends him into the announcers’ table though and we take a break. Back with Swerve kicking him in the head on the apron and adding a suplex for two. Rush is back with a cutter for two of his own, followed by the Final Hour for another near fall. Rush’s rollup with ropes doesn’t work so he hits a rolling kick to the head. Strickland has had enough of this and hits the JML Driver for the pin at 10:06.

Rating: B-. Nice match here, as we get our required Rush appearance. Swerve had to fight through some adversity to win as Rush continues to try and get the Hurt Syndicate’s attention. Swerve having some issues with Rush made sense and it went the way it should have without hurting Swerve in any way.

Post match Swerve calls out Bobby Lashley for the brawl (saying we’re in Stamford, Connecticut). Cue Lashley and MVP and, after a THIS IS BRIDGEPORT chant, MVP says they have the numbers advantage and here is Shelton Benjamin to jump Swerve from behind. Prince Nana has to watch as Swerve is taken out. Lashley beats up Nana for a bonus.

Jamie Hayter is coming after one thing. Then the lights go out and we get a Julia Hart vignette, showing her recovering from being shot with an arrow in another vignette. Brody King calls her and says it’s time to come back. Then she seems to have a mental breakdown and screams a lot. Then she is handed a crossbow and puts on a hat.

Kings Of The Black Throne vs. FTR

For a spot in the Tag Team Title match at Full Gear, meaning Private Party is watching. Wheeler tries to pick up the pace against King to start but gets backdropped down hard. Black comes in to strike away at Harwood, who misses a right hand so Black drops down to the mat. Black kicks Harwood to the floor, where FTR gets in a shot of their own to take over. We take a break and come back with Black fighting his way out of trouble, allowing the tag back to King. Wheeler catches King on top though and a powerbomb/top rope clothesline combination gets two.

Black moonsaults onto Wheeler on the floor as King powerbombs Harwood for two back inside. King gets taken up top again but he gets knees up to block the PowerPlex. Black’s top rope double stomp hits Harwood for two and the Shatter Machine gets the same with Black making the save. A spike piledriver onto the apron plants Black but King is there with a dive. Back in and a pair of lariats into a sleeper finish Harwood at 13:28.

Rating: B. Another hard hitting match here and I like the result. FTR has been done to death in the title picture and it will add at least a little spice when they turn on the Outrunners at the show. The Kings Of The Black Throne needed a win to give them some momentum, even if it’s hard to buy that they are going to win the titles at Full Gear.

Respect is shown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I’m not sure what to make of this show. It was absolutely not boring, but the biggest thing is I’m not really overly interested in Full Gear. A lot of the matches feel like things we have to get through on the way to whatever is next and that’s not a great feeling to have. All of the run-ins and people interfering here didn’t really boost my interest as much as it made me want the show to calm down. It certainly felt like they were trying something different, though I’m not sure how well it worked.

Results
Hangman Page/Christian Cage b. Bang Bang Gang – Deadeye to Robinson
Roderick Strong b. Lance Archer – Jumping knee
Konosuke Takeshita b. Adam Cole – Punch with the Dynamite Diamond Ring
Britt Baker b. Penelope Ford – Lockjaw
Swerve Strickland b. Lio Rush – JML Driver
Kings Of The Black Throne b. FTR – Sleeper to Harwood

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

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Collision
Date: November 9, 2024
Location: Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, Rhode Island
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re closing in on Full Gear and this week will see a Trios Titles match as the Death Riders defend against the Conglomeration. That should be enough to carry the end of the show, but there is going to need to be more. We could be seeing that coming in a few different ways, some of which should work. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

House Of Black vs. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages

King knocks Bronson around without much trouble to start and the House gets in some running shots in the corner. Jameson comes in for some quick shots on Matthews, which go about as well as you would expect. King hits a dive to the floor to take out all three of them, followed by a Jackhammer to Boulder. The triple strike in the corner finishes Jameson at 3:27.

Rating: C. If the House is being turned good, this was a nice way to go about making it happen. They smashed their way through some annoying villains and the match was never in any real doubt. That’s what something like this should have been and the ending looked rather devastating.

Post match FTR interrupts the House and say they want the Tag Team Titles back. They want one more match with the House, so Black and King step up.

Lio Rush says there is a shift happening around here and that’s why he has one of MVP’s business cards. He’s been on a roll lately and wants to feel alive again, so he wants Swerve Strickland.

Outrunners vs. Top Flight

For one of the three spots in the Tag Team Title match at Full Gear so Private Party is out to watch. Magnum and Darius start things off with Darius hitting a flying shoulder to put Magnum down early. Floyd and Dante come in as everything breaks down, with an atomic drop staggering Darius.

We take a break and come back with Dante elbowing Magnum for two and sending him outside. Darius doesn’t like Magnum getting too close to Leila Grey so he hits a dive, which Dante doesn’t like for some reason. Back in and Top Flight gets dropped, with Floyd slamming Magnum onto Dante. Darius makes the save and breaks up a double suplex, with the Outrunners being knocked outside. Magnum is back in to Hulk Up, meaning it’s Total Recall to finish Dante at 10:18.

Rating: C+. The Outrunners getting a chance is a good thing to see as they’re one of the most popular teams going today, but sweet goodness it’s hard to believe it’s ever going to happen for Top Flight. They seem like they should be ready to move up to the title scene but here they are losing clean again. I’m not sure why they can’t get that kind of a push, though it doesn’t seem to be happening anytime soon.

The Acclaimed are ready to take out La Faccion Ingobernable but here is the Hurt Syndicate to say Max Caster should be more serious. Anthony Bowens tells them to drop it and leaves, but MVP knows Caster still has his business card.

Roderick Strong vs. The Beast Mortos

Mortos looks confused to start so he hits Strong in the face but Mortos knocks him down. A powerslam gives Mortos one but he continues to be conflicted over what to do. Strong gets planted with a crucifix slam and we take a break with Mortos in control. Back with Strong firing off some running forearms and the Sick Kick gets two. Mortos is back with a backbreaker into a discus lariat for two of his own but Mortos is conflicted again. The distraction lets Strong hit a jumping knee for the pin at 9:41.

Rating: C+. The idea here seems to be that Mortos is having issues deciding which side he wants to be on, which is fine. What isn’t fine is having him lose so often, as it’s hard to get interested in someone who can’t win a big match to save his life. There’s a story here, but wins and losses have a big impact on these people.

Post match Brian Cage and Lance Archer run in to take out Strong.

Mariah May used to love women’s wrestling but now that she is the Women’s Champion, she realizes she hates everything about it. She’s going to kill women’s wrestling because no one can touch her.

Anna Jay promises to choke May out and wants a third match, No DQ.

We look back at Will Ospreay returning on Dynamite.

Kris Statlander vs. Ashley Vox

Staturday Night Fever finishes Vox at 44 seconds.

Post match Mercedes Mone runs in to choke Statlander out.

La Faccion Ingobernable yells at The Beast Mortos and Jake Roberts is ready to take out the Acclaimed.

TNT Title: Jack Perry vs. Action Andretti

Perry is defending in an open challenge. They trade wrist control to start until Perry takes him outside for a whip into the steps. We take an early break and come back with Andretti getting two off a rollup. A Falcon Arrow gives Andretti two and they head to the apron for a slugout. Andretti hits a Death Valley Driver onto said apron and a top rope splash gets two more. Perry comes back with a superkick into a buckle bomb into a brainbuster for two but a running knee is countered. The second and third attempts both connect to finish Andretti at 9:49.

Rating: C+. This was the latest Perry win as he gets to do his thing, which went as well as most of his matches. Stealing the running knee from Danielson isn’t making Perry feel special, much like everything else he does. Perry needs better competition, though that’s only going to go so far as he’s not connecting, and there isn’t much of a way around that.

Post match Daniel Garcia comes out to call Perry a multi millionaire nepo baby while Garcia fights for everyone in the back. The challenge is on for Full Gear, with Perry accepting but saying Garcia isn’t ready.

We see Julia Hart as a cheerleader but she sees her evil version in the empty stands. Said evil version shoots the cheerleader version in the heart with an arrow.

Video on the Outrunners.

Matt Menard gives Daniel Garcia a pep talk.

AR Fox vs. Nick Wayne

Wayne says this is the anniversary of Fox’s dad’s death and a prodigy never forgets (referencing Fox attacking Wayne at his home over a year ago). Fox wastes no time in hitting a big dive but gets crotched on the barricade as we take an early break. Back with Fox hitting another big dive, setting up a Swanton for two.

A rolling cutter is countered into a dragon suplex to give Wayne two but Fox powerbombs him for the same. Lo Mein Pain looks to set up the 450 but Fox has to deal with Kip Sabian, meaning the 450 misses. Wayne dragon suplexes him into the double underhook Canadian Destroyer for the pin at 8:59.

Rating: C+. So this match was set up on Ring Of Honor as the two of them had a match each, plus a post match brawl. It wound up being about twenty minutes to set up this eight minute match, which seems to be tied to an angle that took place over a year ago when these two were rather different people. That seems like quite the setup for this match, which really didn’t need it in the first place. For now though, at least it should be over, even though neither of them have anything going on.

Post match Wayne staples a picture of Fox’s father to his head.

The MxM Collection has slid into Jonathan Television’s DM’s and they will get to be in his corner next week. They do TV’s pose and leave, as a cart wheels them out.

Trios Titles: Death Riders vs. Conglomeration

The Conglomeration is challenging. O’Reilly and Yuta go to the mat to start with O’Reilly striking away to take over. Briscoe comes in for some chops in the corner before handing it off to Ishii, who isn’t having any of Yuta hitting him in the face. It’s already back to Briscoe, who gets taken into the corner for some uppercuts from Castagnoli.

Everything breaks down and the villains are sent outside, with Briscoe hitting the step up flip dive off a chair. Back in and Yuta gets caught against the ropes but Pac comes in to take over on O’Reilly. We take a break and come back with a backbreaker/middle rope double stomp combination hitting O’Reilly for two. A Tombstone gets the same with Briscoe having to make a save.

O’Reilly is able to get up and bring in Ishii for the big house cleaning. Briscoe comes in with a fisherman’s buster for two on Castagnoli but the Jay Driller is blocked. A running flip dive takes out Castagnoli and the Froggy Bow gets two on Yuta with Pac making the save. Everyone is down so cue Jon Moxley and Marina Shafir. That brings out Orange Cassidy, with O’Reilly ankle locking Yuta. With that broken up, Shafir gets in a briefcase shot to O’Reilly, setting up the running knee to give Yuta the pin at 19:09.

Rating: B. Now this is more like it with the Death Riders. They spent their first few weeks running through people like the Dark Order and Top Flight/Action Andretti. That wasn’t going to get them anywhere and while the Conglomeration weren’t going to win here, they were a vast improvement over what we had been seeing. The Conglomeration at last feels like a team who could give the champs some trouble and that’s what the story has been needing.

Post match Cassidy Orange Punches Yuta and goes after Moxley and the big fight is on. Moxley bails so Cassidy dives onto the pile. Moxley looks worried to end the show. Cassidy has a grand total of no chance at Full Gear, but having Moxley show some fear is the right way to go. He has to have some kind of vulnerability or this isn’t going to go anywhere.

Overall Rating: C+. Not a great show here, but good enough with a nice main event and a better post match brawl. The rest of the show featured some bolstering of the midcard feuds, which they did need. As usual it feels nowhere near as important as Dynamite, but it did feel more important than what we usually get around here. Good show this week, and hopefully a new trend in how the show is going.

Results
House Of Black b. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages – Triple strike to Jameson
Outrunners b. Top Flight – Total Recall to Dante
Roderick Strong b. The Beast Mortos – Jumping knee
Kris Statlander b. Ashley Vox – Staturday Night Fever
Jack Perry b. Action Andretti – Running knee
Nick Wayne b. AR Fox – Double underhook Canadian Destroyer
Death Riders b. Conglomeration – Running knee to O’Reilly

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

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Rampage
Date: November 8, 2024
Location: SNHU Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

The show’s slow departure continues with a rematch of last week (which drew the lowest audience in the show’s history, meaning the rematch doesn’t seem to be entirely logical) as Lio Rush faces Komander again. Other than that, we might hear some more from Will Ospreay after his return on Dynamite. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Hikaru Shida vs. Viva Van

They go with the grappling to start until Shida’s waistlock sends Van flying. Back up and Van runs her over for two before they slug it out. Shida’s middle rope dropkick connects and she hammers away in the corner. The Katana misses though, leaving Shida to have to roll through a middle rope crossbody. Shida is right back up with a Falcon Arrow for the pin at 5:18.

Rating: C. Not much to this one other than a way to get Shida back in the ring after an absence. Shida is someone who can work with anyone and Van is one of the better jobbers to the stars around here. I could go for Shida getting to do something else in the near future but the title picture is a bit booked at the moment. For now though, nice start back.

Harley Cameron recaps her recent actions in a rather long sentence, which gets more and more unhinged. She’s ready for more though. I have no idea what she’s talking about half the time but it still works.

Dark Order vs. The Infantry vs. Undisputed Kingdom

The Infantry knocks the Kingdom to the floor so the Order takes over on Dean. Taven comes back in with a dropkick and a clothesline gives Bennett two. Bennett gets taken outside though and a whip into the barricade has him in more trouble as we take a break. Back with something like a Demolition Decapitator keeping Bennett in trouble. The chinlock is broken up and Bennett hits a spinebuster, allowing the tag off to Silver. Everything breaks down and it’s quickly off to Taven to clean house. A pop up right hand rocks Reynolds and the Climax gives Taven the pin at 9:27.

Rating: C+. Pretty fun match here as I’ve long since wanted the Kingdom to be used better. There is only so much you can do when the team is a pair of comedy lackeys and the division has long since needed the depth. I fully expect them to wind up as low level villains again, but this is nice while it lasts.

Post match Brian Cage comes out for a distraction and Lance Archer jumps them for the beatdown.

Roderick Strong (thanks for the help) isn’t surprised that MJF sent the Don Callis Family after them. Jake Roberts comes in to say he’ll have the Beast Mortos come after him. The match is set for Collision.

Deonna Purrazzo and Taya Valkyrie, now known as the Vendetta, are interested in revenge.

Top Flight vs. JD Drake/Beef

Beef runs Darius over to start and then snaps off a cartwheel to set up a dropkick to Dante. Drake comes in and gets muscled over with a suplex as we take a break. Back with Dante hammering on Drake, who misses a charge into the corner. Everything breaks down and Drake gets caught with a tornado DDT on the floor. Beef misses the Meat Shower (yep) and it’s a DDT/leg trip combination to give Darius the pin at 8:27.

Rating: C. This is what gets annoying about Top Flight. They’ll start getting moved up a bit and then come crashing all the way back down to an absolute nothing match like this one. Yeah they won, but they’re a good team who seem like they can never get away from stuff like this. Give them something important where they can win already.

Respect is shown post match.

Komander vs. Lio Rush

Rush dodges around to start and gets two off an early rollup. Komander sends him out to the floor and we get a breather. Back in and Rush isn’t interested in a handshake, instead hitting him in the face with some forearms. A belly to back suplex and clothesline give Rush two and Komander is sent outside for the dive.

We take a break and come back with Komander hitting a springboard armdrag, followed by a standing moonsault for two. It’s too early for Cielito Lindo and Komander’s backstabber on the apron misses as well. Rush hits a big dive on the floor but Komander suplexes him into the corner. A moonsault gives Komander two but Cielito Lindo still doesn’t work. The springboard Stunner connects for Rush and the Final Hour finishes Komander at 12:08.

Rating: B-. And now I’m sure we’ll get a trilogy match next week and it’ll be about the same. There was nothing here that made me want to see these two fight again, but then again there was nothing last week that would make me want to see this match. It’s perfectly good, fast paced wrestling but nothing that isn’t being done by a bunch of people on the same shows.

Overall Rating: C. In case you needed a textbook definition of a show where the company does not care. This was as low level of an hour as you can get with pretty much nothing that felt important going on. It was a bunch of low level stars having completely fine matches, but you would not notice a bit of change on Dynamite if this show hadn’t taken place. I know it’s going away soon, but that doesn’t make shows like this feel any less useless.

Results
Hikaru Shida b. Viva Van – Falcon Arrow
Undisputed Kingdom b. Dark Order and the Infantry – Climax to Silver
Top Flight b. JD Drake/Beef – DDT/leg trip combination to Beef
Lio Rush b. Komander – Final Hour

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

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Collision
Date: November 2, 2024
Location: Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

While we’re not quite in a new era, we’re in for something different as Private Party has finally won the Tag Team Titles, ending the total reign of darkness. I’m not sure how long that is going to last but at least things have changed up a bit. We might even be in for another title change here as Anna Jay is challenging Mariah May for the Women’s Title. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

A bunch of wrestlers are in the ring to welcome Private Party for their celebration of winning the Tag Team Titles. The fans say Private Party deserves it (…eh) and the champs talk about how great it was to win the belts. Quen thanks the Young Bucks for making them better and they’re ready to defend the titles against anyone. FTR is ready to fight but the Outrunners break it up. Magnum: “If you’re anything like me, and I know I am…” The Outrunners say the marquee says AEW so let’s celebrate. Private Party goes into the crowd.

Anna Jay is ready to win the Women’s Title.

The Acclaimed congratulates Private Party but they’re still coming for the titles. Caster cuts off the catchphrase and Bowens isn’t happy, but he’s even less happy when Caster pulls out MVP’s business card. Bowens cuts off Caster’s last line too as some slight tensions arise.

Harley Cameron vs. Thunder Rosa

Dia de los Muertos match, meaning a themed hardcore match and Cameron has her own face paint. Rosa puts a picture of Cameron in the display usually saved for the dead people being remembered to make things….is personal the right word? Cameron kicks her down to start but Rosa comes back with a dropkick to the apron.

They head outside with Rosa hitting her in the back with a tombstone before getting on the barricade (with help from a fan). Cameron crotches her down and sets up a table, which Rosa whips her through to take over again as we take a break. Back with some weapons in the ring as the two of them trade clotheslines against the ropes for a double knockdown. Rosa scores with a Codebreaker before setting up some chairs and laying another tombstone over them.

Cameron is back up with a pinata (the candy flies) and then suplexes Rosa through the tombstone for two. Cameron’s running knee hits chair by mistake so Rosa chairs her down. Some kicks to the can, with Cameron inside, connect in the corner and it’s time for a table. This time thought he table is used as a ramp for a running dropkick against Cameron (still in the can) in the corner for the pin at 10:03.

Rating: B-. This was another way to get Rosa back in the groove of things after her long hiatus. If she is built up well, she’ll be right back in the title picture sooner than later. Cameron is someone who can be built up through pure charisma and then lose in a match like this without taking any real damage. She’ll say something funny and get right back to where she was and everything will be fine.

Roderick Strong, with the Kingdom, is ready for Shane Taylor. The Kingdom want the Tag Team Titles but Brian Cage and Lance Archer come in to say stay out of their way.

Kyle Fletcher vs. Komander

Fletcher kicks him down before the bell and sends him flying off a slam to start. Komander gets tied in the Tree of Woe for some stomping but comes out and strikes away. The very springboardy armdrag is shoved off the top for a big crash into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Komander hitting a middle rope Sliced Bread, only to have Fletcher send him outside for a big dive.

The posing takes too long though and Komander is back up with a springboard moonsault to the floor. Back in and a running Spanish Fly drops Fletcher for two but he’s back up with a boot to the face. A sitout Last Ride gets two but Komander gets up in an electric chair. They crash out to the floor with Komander still on his shoulders, setting up a poisonrana for the big crash.

Back up and Komander plants him onto the apron, setting up a moonsault for two. Fletcher kicks him in the face but gets sent outside, setting up the rope running flip dive. Cielito Lindo is broken up though and Fletcher hits a brainbuster into the brainbuster onto the turnbuckle for the pin at 13:25.

Rating: C+. This is a good example of a match that absolutely did not need to go in this direction. Komander got to do all of his big, flashy spots, but Fletcher took the better part of fifteen minutes to beat a guy who is best known as a jobber to the stars. If you want me to believe that Fletcher is a threat to Will Ospreay, don’t have him take this long to beat Komander. “But AEW doesn’t do that.” Well, in short, that’s dumb.

Second: between Ring Of Honor, Rampage and Collision, this is Komander’s third match in three days, totaling about 35 minutes. With the roster Tony Khan has, there is zero reason to have someone show up that often. Komander does some cool stuff, but I rolled my eyes and said “again?” when his music started here. You have this kind of a roster. Use it better.

Post match Mark Davis runs in to yell at Fletcher, who walks off.

Jack Perry is talking in the back when Daniel Garcia interrupts. Garcia says they’re two different people, with Garcia fighting from when he was a kid. Perry talks about how he’s already done that and Garcia still thinks there are good and bad people. He’s scared of sacrificing and isn’t ready. Perry needs to stop watching so many Raven promos.

Brian Cage/Lance Archer vs. Joe Keys/Shaun Smith

Archer sends Keys into the corner to start and drops him with a clothesline before it’s off to Smith. The chokeslam/powerbomb combination finishes Smith at 2:04. Total destruction, which is what these matches should be.

Post match the massacre continues but the Undisputed Kingdom runs in for the save.

The Patriarchy interrupts AR Fox, with Nick Wayne bringing up Fox attacking him at his wrestling school last year. Fox wants a match next week.

Kris Statlander isn’t happy with being attacked by Mercedes Mone on Dynamite so she wants a title shot at Full Gear. Mone is afraid and she knows it.

Here is the Blackpool Combat Club for a chat. They stay in the crowd, where Jon Moxley says at Full Gear, Orange Cassidy is going to have to cut the head off the snake. Cassidy has to make it to Full Gear so he can bring the World Title back to Philadelphia. Moxley knows what it takes to make it in Philadelphia and it’s people like Wheeler Yuta.

Moxley says Yuta knows what it’s like to sacrifice yourself for something greater, because he is a Philadelphia hero. Cue Action Andretti, who says Yuta isn’t what Philadelphia represents, because Andretti is more Philadelphia than him. Cue Pac to jump Andretti though and a referee comes in.

Action Andretti vs. Pac

The Blackpool Combat Club is at ringside as Pac kicks away in the corner to start. We take an early break and come back with Pac grabbing a chinlock but Andretti fights up. A handspring elbow cuts Pac down, followed by a pop up dropkick to the floor. Back in and Andretti hammers away in the corner, setting up a springboard kick to the head for two. Yuta offers a distraction though and Marina Shafir gets in a cheap shot, leaving Pac to hit the top rope superplex. The Brutalizer finishes Andretti at 8:05.

Rating: C. This was Andretti’s third match in three days as well, though thankfully they didn’t spend as much time on this one. Pac gets to maul another of the low level people before getting on to something else, though it would be nice to see someone give him a challenge. Andretti is another case of someone who is perfectly ok, but he’s around so often that his charm wears thin.

Post match the hold stays on until Orange Cassidy comes to the stage to talk about his times with Yuta in this city. This Yuta doesn’t do what the old one does and Cassidy says Moxley doesn’t care about Yuta. That’s enough for Yuta to go after him with a chair, which Yuta throws down, earning himself an Orange Punch.

Malakai Black is ready to take out Adam Cole.

Kyle Fletcher and Konosuke Takeshita want to fight Ricochet on Dynamite.

Lio Rush vs. Ariya Daivari

Daivari slams him down to start but Rush hammers away in the corner to take over. They head outside where all of their friends get in some glaring, leaving the two in the match t slug it out inside. Rush gets two off a Falcon Arrow but goes after Mark Sterling on the floor. Daivari gets in a cheap shot off the distraction but Rush scores with the springboard Stunner. The Final Hour finishes Daivari at 4:42.

Rating: C. Well at least they kept it relatively short. There is only so much to get out of anything involving the Premiere Athletes because there is no better example of an act where you know what you’re going to get. They probably haven’t won a match in months and that wasn’t likely to change here, yet they’re on TV almost weekly. Not a bad match, but nothing of interest whatsoever.

Johnny TV is impressed with the MxM Collection and offers to collaborate with them. If they’re interested, slide into his DM’s. The Collection is in awe.

Roderick Strong vs. Shane Taylor

All of their respective friends are there too. Taylor stomps him into the corner to start as we see MJF in what is completely and totally a live shot. Strong gets knocked out to the floor and Taylor gets in another beating on the way back in. We take a break and come back with Taylor missing a legdrop on the apron and Strong making a fired up comeback. Some running shoulders and a clothesline give Strong two, followed by an Angle Slam for the same. Taylor is back with a release Rock Bottom into a splash for two of his own but Strong knees him in the face for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: C. Nice enough for a power vs. speed match and Strong gets a win over an imposing opponent. That being said, this is another example of a match that works fine here but hurts Ring Of Honor, as Taylor and his friends are being built up over there. It’s a bit hard to care about them when their leader is losing on the bigger show.

We look at Bobby Lashley debuting on Dynamite and laying out Swerve Strickland.

There will be a four way for the Tag Team Titles at Full Gear with qualifying matches coming.

Mina Shirakawa is coming back.

Women’s Title: Mariah May vs. Anna Jay

Jay is challenging and isn’t having any of May driving her into the corner to start. May suplexes her into the corner and bends Jay around the ropes for a bonus. We take a break and come back with Jay making the comeback and rolling May up for two. A Backstabber gets the same but May chokes her in the corner.

May’s middle rope dropkick gets two and a running knee connects for the same. Jay neckbreakers her over the middle rope and, after blocking a Stratusphere, gets two off a Blockbuster. The Queenslayer goes on but May eventually flips backwards for the escape. A quick hot shot into a rollup retains the title at 10:21.

Rating: C+. Remember when WWE had this really annoying habit of having champions lose and then they would win the rematch like nothing happened? That’s what happened again here and it’s just as annoying. May looks more vulnerable, Jay continues her up and down booking, and we’re right back where we were before, as we wait on Mina Shirakawa and Tony Storm to come back and do something interesting with May.

Overall Rating: C. There was a good hour long show in here and they stretched it out to two hours, which took away the impact it could have had. Some important stories did get some attention, but then you had stuff like Fletcher taking so long to beat Komander and matches like the ones from Rush and Strong, which were just waiting around until the only reasonable results. This show had its moments but they were dragged down by all of the filler, and that made it quite the tedious watch.

Results
Thunder Rosa b. Harley Cameron – Dropkick into a trashcan
Kyle Fletcher b. Komander – Brainbuster onto the turnbuckle
Brian Cage/Lance Archer b. Joe Keys/Shaun Smith – Powerbomb/chokeslam combination to Smith
Pac b. Action Andretti – Brutalizer
Lio Rush b. Ariya Daivari – Final Hour
Roderick Strong b. Shane Taylor – Jumping knee
Mariah May b. Anna Jay – Rollup

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

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AND

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Dynamite
Date: October 23, 2024
Location: Maverik Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

We’re a month away from Full Gear so that means it’s time for a ladder match with a title on the line. In this case it’s the Ring Of Honor World Title with Chris Jericho challenging Mark Briscoe, who beat Jericho clean at WrestleDream. Other than that, Jon Moxley and company are still all tough and violent and such. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of the Blackpool Combat Club being all mega evil.

Jon Moxley is in the desert and saying it’s for the greater good when the rest of the Club pulls up in a truck to take him away.

Mark Briscoe fires up a bunch of low level stars who are ready for the Club to arrive.

Here is Hangman Page to brag about how awesome he is but here is Colten Gunn to jump him for attacking Austin Gunn last week. Jay White and Juice Robinson run in to clear Page out. White talks about having Page’s number and all of the violence that Page loves isn’t hiding the fact that he’s not as good as the Switchblade. They’ll see each other again.

Video on Shelton Benjamin vs. Sammy Guevara.

Shelton Benjamin vs. Sammy Guevara

MVP is here with Benjamin, who wastes no time in launching Guevara into the air for a backdrop. Some hard knees set up a snap suplex to keep Guevara in trouble but he’s right back with a dropkick. Benjamin cuts off a suicide dive and hits an overhead belly to belly as we take a break.

Back with Benjamin snapping off another German suplex but Guevara hits some superkicks. Guevara hits a big running flip dive to the floor, followed by a pop up cutter for one back inside. Benjamin staggers up but manages to superkick Guevara out of the air (I wonder where he learned that…). A knee to the face and the exploder finish for Benjamin at 10:07.

Rating: B-. See, this is something that made a lot more sense than the Lio Rush match last week. Guevara is a far more established name around here and him giving Benjamin trouble fits perfectly. That’s the kind of win that actually builds Benjamin up rather than making him look like he’s needing to try too hard to beat someone who hasn’t accomplished much. Far better situation for everyone here.

Mariah May throws Anna Jay’s stuff out of the locker room so the brawl is on. It’s broken up in about three seconds, but it was on.

Video on Will Ospreay vs. Kyle Fletcher. They were friends, mainly in other promotions, but then Fletcher turned on him at WrestleDream and now we need an explanation.

Here is Fletcher, with Don Callis, for his explanation. For eleven days, Will Ospreay has been in a hospital bed while fans are wondering why. When Fletcher arrived in AEW, people thought he was the next big thing (Who thought that?) but then Ospreay got here. That made people call him the next Will Ospreay, because people said he looked and sounded like Ospreay. Fletcher is better than him in every single way but the fans don’t seem interested.

Don’t worry though because Don Callis has bought him all the TV time he needs so you will listen to him! Anyway, we move on to Kazuchika Okada, who brought Will Ospreay into New Japan (as we go back years and halfway around the world to another promotion to explain this story), who Ospreay stabbed in the back. Then Ospreay did the same thing to Kenny Omega. Fletcher turned on Ospreay because it’s what Ospreay did to people, so Fletcher is giving him one chance to save face.

They can face each other next week and Fletcher will give him tiger driver after tiger driver. For now though, he will be nothing like Ospreay. Then he shaves his own hair. So we have a feud between one of the company’s superheroes and a mostly midcard star over something that happened years ago in another promotion in Japan as the Don Callis Family/Will Osprey Saga is now going on for….how many months? Fletcher is getting a bit of a boost out of it, but if this is the best they have for Ospreay, I have no idea what to think of how screwy this place is.

We look at Ricochet showing up at Maple Leaf Pro over the weekend to go after Konosuke Takeshita.

Ricochet isn’t done with Takeshita, but MVP (who compliments his suit) and Shelton Benjamin come in. MVP leaves him with a business card and Ricochet doesn’t say no.

Lance Archer/Brian Cage vs. Pillars Of Destiny

Powerbomb/chokeslam combination finishes for Cage at 1:01.

Chuck Taylor tells the army outside that Mark Briscoe’s match is up next. Taylor holds Orange Cassidy back and says Cassidy can beat the villains so it’s time to step up.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Chris Jericho vs. Mark Briscoe

Briscoe is defending in a Ladder War and slugs away to start fast. Jericho is knocked off the apron and through some tables and Briscoe beats him around ringside. A suplex gets Jericho out of trouble but Briscoe hits him in the face with a ladder. Briscoe’s big running flip dive only hits ladder and Jericho hits him in the face with another ladder as we take a break.

Back with Briscoe hitting a Death Valley Driver through a ladder in the corner before throwing in a fresh one. They go up the ladder with Jericho going for the belt but Briscoe shoves the ladder over for the crash. The Froggy Bow through the table is loaded up but Bryan Keith comes in to break it up.

Rocky Romero runs in and hits Keith with a kendo stick, setting up the Froggy Boy to crush Jericho. It’s such a crash that Briscoe is on his feet eight seconds later and the Jay Driller connects but here is Big Bill to send Briscoe through a table. Jericho gets the title back at 15:46.

Rating: B-. Of course he did. You could feel the title change coming when Jericho said he wanted a rematch, because I’m sure we now need to set something up where Jericho allegedly puts someone over before moving on to something bigger. That’s just what the Ring Of Honor Title is about, as we now get to see which non-Ring Of Honor wrestler gets the shot at Final Battle in about two months. The match was pretty run of the mill ladder showdown, but another heel champion around here isn’t exactly appealing right now.

Post match Tomohiro Ishii returns with Rocky Romero. Gee man. Thanks for coming out and helping with Big Bill!

Video on Kamille vs. Kris Statlander, featuring both of them being rather strong.

Here is Adam Cole for a chat but the Undisputed Kingdom cuts him off. They don’t like MJF either, but they did check on Cole while he was healing up. The team does great things when they are together and agree to go after MJF. Cue MJF on the Titantron, getting a massage, who says either Roderick Strong or Cole has to win three matches in a row to get a match with him at Full Gear.

MJF won’t be around until then, which might be enough time to realize that this is the third time MJF has forced someone to beat a string of opponents to face him. Second, the Undisputed Kingdom is working for MJF right? It’s the most logical way for all of this to go. Otherwise, this is the second “group of good guys bands together to fight the villain” story going at the moment.

Video on Penelope Ford vs. Jamie Hayter.

Hayter talks about how hard she has worked to get here and she’s ready for a fight, but Ford isn’t here. How about they fight in two weeks?

House Of Black vs. Jaden Monroe/Kevin Koa/Pirata de la Muerte

The House beats up Monroe, sends Koa bailing into the corner, and hits the Cannonball/dropkicks combination to Muerte. The toss powerbomb into Murphy’s stomp finishes Monroe at 1:59. That team was squashed flatter than something that is very flat.

Post match, Matthews challenges Adam Cole for next week. We cut to Cole in the back, who walks up to Matthews and wonders what’s up with that. The match seems set.

Kamille vs. Queen Aminata

Mercedes Mone is here with Kamille, who powers Aminata down to start. A short arm lariat gives Kamille two but Aminata is back with a running headscissors. Aminata rolls her up for two but gets dropped as we take an early break. Back with Aminata hitting a running elbow and grabbing a neckbreaker. A running shot against the ropes gets two on Kamille and Aminata grabs a full nelson with her legs. Kamille’s powerbomb attempt is countered into a hurricanrana for two but Kamille is back with a torture rack spun into a powerbomb for two of her own. The reverse spinning DDT finishes for Kamille at 8:16.

Rating: C. Of course. Of course you have a monster like Kamille in her fifth match in AEW and of course it takes her eight minutes to beat someone who is best known in AEW for not winning a match for months when she got there (What else is she known for?). This made Aminata, who isn’t set for a big showdown with Kris Statlander, look like someone who could go somewhere while Kamille, the new monster, looked like she had trouble beating someone who hasn’t won anything of note around here. “But AEW doesn’t squash it’s own stars!” Then don’t book the match. Really not that complicated.

Post match Kris Statlander comes out for the staredown. With Kamille. Who just struggled to beat Queen Aminata. Kamille and Mone lay her out.

The Patriarchy arrives and the army is looking for them. The Patriarchy backs off, but chases Kip Sabian away, because THE KIP SABIAN/PATRIARCHY STORY IS STILL A THING.

After commentary talks a bit, the Patriarchy chases Sabian into the ring but Hook shows up on the screen, saying that the people in the ring took out his dad. Hook storms the ring and goes after Nick Wayne before trying to Choke Christian Cage. Sabian saves Cage, who tells Sabian to get in that corner to be dealt with later. The Patriarchy takes out Hook, with Cage calling him “Tyler” and says “it’s not what it seems” (I think). Well thank goodness Kip Sabian is getting something to do. Now I can stop losing sleep over him lack of direction.

Elite vs. Private Party/Daniel Garcia

The Elite gets taken out before the bell…and then the bell rings a second later. Garcia stomps on Perry in the corner before it’s off to Kassidy to hammer on Matt. A quadruple clothesline gives us a quadruple nip up until Garcia comes in to take out villains. We see the army still waiting outside as the Bucks take over on Quen.

We take a break and come back with Stokely Hathaway watching in the front row as Nick accidentally kicks Matt in the face. The big tag is cut off and Garcia is sent into the timekeeper’s area. Risky Business gets two on Kassidy but a headscissors/wristdrag gets him out of trouble. Quen comes in to clean house but gets caught in the powerbomb/stereo enziguris in the corner. Garcia cuts off something on the apron, with Quen breaking up the TK Driver. Silly String is enough to pin Matt at 11:11.

Rating: B-. For those of you keeping track, this is now the fourth match between Private Party and the Bucks which has been set up by that one time Private Party beat them five years ago. They weren’t interesting challengers at WrestleDream and they aren’t going to be interesting challenges whenever they get their next title shot, but this is what we’re getting until whomever is ready to fight the Bucks next.

Post match, Private Party says they want another title shot and put their future as a team on the line. The Bucks are down and the match is made. Oh no. What ever would we do if a team who was apart for over a year is apart for good? Anyway, the Blackpool Combat Club’s truck arrives in the back but it’s just Marina Shafir. The men sneak in from behind and take out Private Party with Chairs. Jon Moxley throws Chuck Taylor inside to Pillmanize his neck. A bunch of people, including Orange Cassidy, run in to clear them out. The Elite watch on as commentary is DISGUSTED to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. I liked most of the wrestling tonight, but I do not remember being so bored, uninterested and uninvested in an AEW (or most anywhere else) show in a LONG time. The stories they are telling are a mixture of far more complicated than they need to be, illogical, and flat out dull. Right now, in 2024, the biggest good guy champion in AEW/ROH is Dustin Rhodes. That’s what we have to cheer for at the moment.

Other than that, you have the BCC not only dominating everyone but making them look like idiots, because NO ONE THOUGHT TO GUARD THE OTHER DOOR. It’s astounding how dumb the heroes in this promotion are presented as being and it’s not making an already annoying show that much worse. Between insisting on Kyle Fletcher getting Will Ospreay’s attention, Chris Jericho winning ANOTHER title, whatever Adam Cole/MJF are doing now and their insistence on making sure that people like Queen Aminata are kept strong, this place has its priorities in a really weird place.

I’m sure I’m just watching it wrong or I’m not bright enough to get the subtle nuances of “Private Party could TOTALLY win this time and you should care that they might split up even though they’ve won one thing that matters in five years”, but dang I haven’t been this down on AEW since its inception.

Results
Shelton Benjamin b. Sammy Guevara – Exploder
Lance Archer/Brian Cage b. Pillars Of Destiny – Powerbomb/chokeslam combination
Chris Jericho b. Mark Briscoe – Jericho pulled down the title
House Of Black b. Jaden Monroe/Kevin Koa/Pirata de la Muerte – Stomp to Monroe
Kamille b. Queen Aminata – Reverse spinning DDT
Daniel Garcia/Private Party b. Elite – Silly String to Matt

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

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Rampage
Date: October 11, 2024
Location: Spokane Arena, Spokane, Washington
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Jeff Jarrett

It’s the night before WrestleDream and in this case we won’t be having a Collision tomorrow night, so this is the last push towards the pay per view. That very well could mean a different kind of Rampage, which is often not exactly there for the sake of pushing towards a pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Conglomeration vs. Kingdom

Cassidy and Bennett start things off with an exchange of covers that don’t even get one each. The lazy kicks set up a running shoulder to put Bennett down so it’s off to Taven, who accidentally teams up with Cassidy for a double clothesline. O’Reilly comes in for the knees but gets knocked into the corner so the beating can ensue. That doesn’t last long either as O’Reilly fights out of trouble and everything breaks down.

The tornado DDT hits Taven and O’Reilly gets the cross armbreaker on Bennett, sending him straight tot he ropes and us to a break. Back with Taven backbreakering and DDTing Cassidy, setting up a Lionsault for two on O’Reilly. Some rapid fire strikes have Taven back down but Bennett is back in with a piledriver on Cassidy. Since it’s just a piledriver, Cassidy is back up with the Beach Break to Bennett but Taven hits him with Just The Tip. Back up and O’Reilly guillotines Taven for the win at 10:09.

Rating: B-. The teams works well together, but there was little drama here as the Kingdom has long since been established as losers who certainly aren’t going to beat a team like the Conglomeration. Otherwise, that’s three straight wins for O’Reilly and Cassidy so a title shot isn’t out of the cards. I mean it’s not like Private Party has won three matches…maybe this whole year?

Mercedes Mone and Kamille are rather busy and time is money.

The Acclaimed come out for a match but the MxM Collection jump them from behind. The Collection throw out the challenge for WrestleDream and promise to have a third man in their corner.

Kris Statlander blames Mercedes Mone for making everything all apart. She’s coming for the TBS Title. We’re never getting a clear explanation for why she and Stokely Hathaway are done are we?

Rocky Romero is ready to prove that he’s not the Conglomeration’s lackey.

Kris Statlander vs. Amira

A suplex and Friday Night Fever finish for Statlander at 1:00.

Chris Jericho is ready to become the Nueve. The word of the day is humbled, which is what Mark Briscoe needs to do.

The Beast Mortos vs. The Butcher

Roderick Strong is on commentary. They take turns powering each other around to start and an exchange of shoulders goes nowhere. Morton rolls over him and grabs a snapmare, with Strong approving. Butcher is right back up with a knockdown for two of his own before avoiding a charge to send Mortos crashing to the floor. We take a break and come back with a double knockdown for a double breather. Mortos misses the twisting moonsault and Butcher gets two off a Jackhammer. Back up and Mortos hits a torture rack backbreaker, setting up a twisting top rope headbutt for the pin at 8:33.

Rating: B-. Take two big guys and have the beat on each other for a few minutes until one of them can’t get up. It’s a rather simple formula and they made it work here, with both guys doing their usual good stuff. Mortos gets a nice win on his way to what should be a loss to Hologram while Butcher does what he’s there to do.

Harley Cameron says Saraya is incapacitated and but Cameron wants to fight the newly tough Anna Jay.

Lance Archer vs. Matt Brannigan

Brannigan slips out of an early chokeslam attempt but Archer knocks him into the corner for some running elbows. The Blackout finishes at 2:10.

Jake Roberts is happy with La Faccion Ingobernable. We’ll have to see what they do next.

Anna Jay says she and Harley Cameron aren’t friends. Cameron wants to kick her a**, but this a** kicks back.

Bryan Keith vs. Rocky Romero

Keith jumps him in the corner to start but Romero, still in his ring jacket, is back with a spinning middle rope crossbody. Keith bails to the floor so Romero dropkicks him through the ropes, only to have an exploder cut off. We take a break and come back with Romero stomping away in the corner but Keith hits a double underhook knee to the face for two. The running Sliced Bread gives Romero two, followed by the super Sliced Bread but Romero bangs up his knee. The knee is fine enough to hit a suicide dive…and cue Big Bill to boot Romero in the face. Diamond Dust finishes for Keith at 10:25.

Rating: C+. You kind of knew what you were going to get with this one as the people are talented, though Romero as the unhappy lackey of the Conglomeration isn’t exactly hooking me. He’s been on the team for approximately 18 seconds and is already having issues. Romero is only so interesting in the first place and having him be upset by this stuff isn’t helping.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling was good and it added just enough to WrestleDream (ok the Kickoff Show but it’s something) to seem somewhat important. The big stuff is already set so there wasn’t much to cover here, but we did get some good enough matches. WrestleDream isn’t the strongest card, but at least they did well on their last stop on the way.

Results
Conglomeration b. Kingdom – Guillotine to Taven
Kris Statlander b. Amira – Friday Night Fever
The Beast Mortos b. The Butcher – Top rope spinning headbutt
Lance Archer b. Matt Brannigan – Blackout
Bryan Keith b. Rocky Romero – Diamond Dust

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

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AND

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