It’s always fun to see AEW back on pay per view as they really have figured out the formula. They know what they are doing with the whole thing and we should be in for another one this time around. The card is absolutely stacked from top to bottom and we could be in for one of the more historic moments in AEW’s history to date. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Hikaru Shida/Thunder Rosa vs. Jamie Hayter/Nyla Rose

It’s a battle of four people who are still in the TBS Title tournament and I’ve heard worse reasons to have a pre-show tag match. There isn’t much else connecting these women and they haven’t interacted much on TV, but it should do rather well as a way to get things rolling for the evening. It isn’t like Shida and Rose don’t know each other so maybe they can have a good match through familiarity.

I’ll go with Shida and Rosa to win here as there is little reason to go with having the popular wrestlers lose to open the night. This isn’t the kind of a match that needs to be anything more than a few competitive minutes while commentary plugs the tournament as much as they can. It would be nice to see the tournament move forward a bit more, but Shida and Rosa winning here will work for now.

Tag Team Titles: Lucha Bros(c) vs. FTR

We’ll get going on the main card with a match that could go either way. I liked their first match against each other but there is a bad chance of this getting sloppy in a hurry. It is going to come down to the idea of whether FTR can keep things a bit more down to earth than usual, but that is no guarantee. That’s the way to put the match together, but it needs a winner as well.

I’m not sure on this one, but I think I’ll go with the Lucha Bros, as they can retain the titles to even the series and then win the AAA Tag Team Titles at an upcoming show in Mexico. Other than that though, we should be in for a fun match, as their first match worked out pretty well. At the same thing though, there is always the chance that it could go bad in a hurry, which makes things that much more fun.

Cody Rhodes/Pac vs. Andrade El Idolo/Malakai Black

Let’s keep going with the tag theme here and get a rather odd pair of pairings out of the way. Believe it or not, this is mainly about Rhodes, which tends to be the case far more often than it probably needs to be. Pac doesn’t like El Idolo and Black and Rhodes are still feuding for some reason, with El Idolo going after Rhodes to tie the whole thing together. Sounds like a great way to get Rhodes on pay per view no?

This could go either way but I’ll go with Rhodes and Pac winning here, as Black probably takes the fall. I’m at the point where I have no idea what to make of Rhodes these days and it is getting harder and harder to figure it out. Hopefully they can figure out what to do with him sooner than later, because throwing him out there to try and make him the most popular guy in the company isn’t exactly working.

Darby Allin vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

We’ll mix it up a bit here with a match that could (and should) be between two of the company’s stars of the future. That has even been the focus of the feud, as Friedman has talked about how these two are pillars of the company. Allin has mainly been sitting around letting Friedman say whatever he wants, but he has a history of turning it on when he gets the chance on the big stage.

I’ll go with Friedman here, as Allin is someone who is going to be over no matter what he does, while Friedman would seem to be on the road to a (rather) eventual World Title run. Allin is the kind of wrestler who will be popular with the fans based on how hard he goes whenever he is in the ring. Hopefully they can steal the show here, as tends to be the case when these two are on the big stage.

Inner Circle vs. Men Of The Year/American Top Team

To recap: we have a bunch of mixed martial artists, a tag team and a gym owner vs. five wrestlers in a street fight where the wrestlers got to pick sixty percents of who they are fighting. Got all that? This match has all kinds of details included and I’m not sure how well it is going to play out on paper. What matters is how it goes, but also how much longer they want the feud to continue.

Somehow this is a flip of the coin as I have no idea who is winning here. I’ll go with the Inner Circle to finally wrap up the feud though, which is probably how things should go. The idea is likely going to be built around Dan Lambert running away, which is probably the best thing for everyone involved. I’ll say Guevara pins one of the Men Of The Year, which is the pick that is most likely to be wrong of the show.

Women’s Title: Britt Baker(c) vs. Tay Conti

This is in a rough place and I’m not sure how well they are going to be able to get out of it. At the end of the day, it’s hard to imagine Baker losing the title to anyone before her eventual showdown with Rosa, as they almost have to get to the big rematch. That leaves almost any other challenger, including Conti, as a bit of a lame duck no matter what they do on the way to the title match.

Of course I’ll go with Baker here, as there is little reason to believe Conti has much of a chance. It might wind up being a good match, but at the same time it does not have the most drama. Conti is someone who could become a huge star down the line (and probably will), but we are still in Baker’s time and that is not going to stop anytime soon, or at least not until she runs into Rosa again.

Christian Cage/Jurassic Express vs. Superkliq

Falls Count Anywhere, because we need another wild tag team brawl. These guys have been feuding since Cage debuted and this does feel like a bit of a big blowoff to the whole thing. Then again, this is a feud that could go in a few directions, such as Cole vs. Jungle Boy or Cage, both of which would be good. Add in the absence of Marko Stunt and this is already getting more interesting.

That being said, you know full well there is practically no chance of the Superkliq losing a big time match so I’m not sure if there is any real drama here. The other three will fight hard and there will likely be a big spot, but ultimately this will involve several superkicks and end with the Boom to Jungle Boy. Why not Luchasaurus you may ask? Heck if I know, but that’s probably how it ends.

CM Punk vs. Eddie Kingston

This is the one that everyone is talking about with good reason. Between the amazing exchange last week and the equally awesome Kingston piece in the Players Tribune (go out of your way to read that), Kingston is white hot going into this match. That’s going to tie into everything that Punk has been talking about too, as all of the pressure is going to be on Kingston in this one.

As much as I would really, really love to see AEW go nuts and have Kingston get the biggest win of his career, I can’t validate having Punk lose at any point in the near future. Punk is someone with a lot of star power and while a loss to Kingston wouldn’t kill that, it isn’t the kind of thing that needs to happen. I would love to see Kingston win, but I don’t think it is going to happen.

Bryan Danielson vs. Miro

Now we’re getting to the important stuff, as the last two matches on the card are tied together. This is the finals of the #1 contenders tournament and I could easily see this going either way. You could go with almost any combination of these two and either World Champion (save for probably Miro vs. Kenny Omega) and have a major title match, which is a sign that they are doing something right.

I think I’ll take….Danielson here, as he opens up more doors and was the original finalist anyway. Miro losing to some kind of a choke to focus on his bad neck works, but e pluribus gads it would be amazing to see him go nuts and slaughter Danielson. It’s so nice to have both as possible options here, but ultimately I think it’s Danielson’s to win and set up the huge title showdown. He’ll need an opponent though, which leaves us with this.

AEW World Title: Kenny Omega(c) vs. Hangman Page

Here we go. This is the big one that AEW has literally been building towards for years. While some might think that is a big much and they should have gotten to the point a good while ago, it’s time to finally have this big showdown. They have set this up from several interesting angles and there is something to the idea of FINALLY having Page win. At the same time though, there might be something to having Danielson take the title off of Omega and finally slay the dragon.

But I think we’ll go with the sane idea here and have Page just win the match and take the title off of Omega. It is already the longest title reign in AEW history (nearly double the second place reign) and Omega hasn’t exactly led AEW to the promised land as champion. I don’t know if Page is going to be the one to do it, but I think he wins the title here, finally paying off a story that is a few years in the making.

Overall Thoughts

There is the potential for an incredible show here and that is kind of what you expect from AEW these days. I could go for seeing whatever they do here, as there is a good shot at some history being made in the main event. Other than that, the rest of the show looks great and maybe it can help boost their audience back up (which they kind of need these days). I’m excited for the show, and that’s always a good starting point.

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

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

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

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

Opening sequence.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

FTR says bring it.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Bobby Fish vs. Anthony Greene

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Jungle Boy vs. Brandon Cutler

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

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

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

Malakai Black vs. Cody Rhodes

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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AND

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

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

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

Buy-In: Tay Conti vs. Santana Garrett

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

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

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

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

Buy-In: Lee Moriarty vs. Bobby Fish

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

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

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

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

Buy-In: Bryan Danielson vs. Minoru Suzuki

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

CM Punk vs. Matt Sydal

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

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

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

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

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

Respect is shown post match.

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

Bunny vs. Ruby Soho

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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AND

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

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

Here is Rampage if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

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

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

Adam Cole vs. Jungle Boy

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Post match Sting lays Greene out for a bonus.

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

Dark Order/Orange Cassidy vs. Hardy Family Office

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

TNT Title: Miro vs. Sammy Guevara

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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AND

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

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

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

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

CM Punk vs. Powerhouse Hobbs

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

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

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

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

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

Superkliq vs. Christian Cage/Jurassic Express

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

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

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

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

Men of the Year vs. Chris Jericho/Jake Hager

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

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

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

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

Lucha Bros/Santana/Ortiz vs. Hardy Family Office

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

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

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

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

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

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

Anna Jay vs. Penelope Ford

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

The long celebration ends the show.

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

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

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

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

AND

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

Dynamite
Date: September 15, 2021
Location: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, CM Punk

Things have been getting big in a hurry around here and that is going to be the case again this week. This time around we have the in-ring debut of Adam Cole, which should make for quite the moment. Other than that, Grand Slam is on the horizon and that should be an even bigger show. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

CM Punk, on commentary tonight, gets a big introduction and dives into the crowd again.

Adam Cole vs. Frankie Kazarian

The fans are behind Cole as Kazarian takes him over a few times. Cole flips out of a headlock and backdrops Kazarian over the top and onto the apron for a nasty crash. Back in and Cole takes some bows but Kazarian hits the slingshot Fameasser over the ropes. That doesn’t seem to do much to Cole, who is back with right hands into the chinlock. That’s broken up as well and Kazarian grabs a leglock while cranking on the arms at the same time.

Cole fights up and hits the fireman’s carry backbreaker for two more. Kazarian is back up as well and grabs a Rolling Chaos Theory out of the corner. The running knees in the corner connect but Cole is right back with a superkick. The Panama Sunrise is countered into an Alabama Slam and the springboard spinning legdrop leaves them both down. They forearm it out from their knees with Kazarian getting the better of things until a brainbuster onto the knee gives Cole two. Kazarian sends him to the apron but misses another Fameasser. The Panama Sunrise into the Last Shot finishes for Cole at 8:04.

Rating: C+. That’s all you could have asked for here as they gave Cole a win over a name after he had to work a bit to get there. I don’t think there was any doubt about the winner here but this was a much better way to debut Cole than having him win a squash match. Good stuff here and Cole was absolutely a star.

Post match, it’s time for Storytime with Adam Cole. He hasn’t been around long but there are three people who have gotten under his nerves. That would be Christian Cage, Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy, so how about next week it’s Cole and the Young Bucks vs. those three at Rampage Grand Slam. I think Cole might have meant Dynamite, but either way, the Superkliq is back.

The Lucha Bros are ready for Butcher and Blade on Rampage.

Fuego del Sol has a new car but he would give it up for the TNT Title. Actually let’s make that a challenge: title vs. car on Rampage.

Here is MJF for a chat. He doesn’t like being in New Jersey because this place is horrible. We hear about how various famous people from New Jersey suck harder than….and we’ll move on. The fans tell him to shut the f*** up but MJF doesn’t care. He is the salt of the earth and a very religious man. Therefore, he is going to have a conversation with the late great Brian Pillman. MJF looks down at the mat and says he and Pillman need to talk.

Next week, he is going to go to the horrible town of Queens and beat up the worst second generation wrestler of all time. The catchphrase is cut off by Brian Pillman Jr.’s music so MJF sends Wardlow to deal with him….and Pillman comes in through the crowd with a chair. Wardlow cuts that off so Pillman slaps him in the face and low bridges him outside. The threat of a chair shot sends MJF and Wardlow running. Good for them for trying to build someone up, because that’s what needs to happen.

Earlier today, Jim Ross sat down with Brian Pillman Jr. and talked about Pillman Sr. calling to say he had a son. Next week, Pillman Jr. has a chance to redeem himself against MJF and that’s what he wants to do to fulfill his father’s legacy. When MJF was being fed with a silver spoon, he was growing up fighting to survive. Next week, MJF is stepping in the ring with a Pillman.

Christian Cage and the Jurassic Express accept the challenge for Rampage (which is also called Grand Slam).

Dante Martin/Matt Sydal vs. FTR

Sydal armdrags Harwood down to start but he drives Martin into the corner without much effort. Martin is sent outside for some hard shots from Wheeler, including quite the posting. Back in and a headbutt rocks Martin and we hit the chinlock. Martin slips out and dives over for the tag to Sydal so the strikes can clear the ring. A double dive takes FTR down on the floor as we take a break.

Back with Sydal flipping out of an abdominal stretch but his crossbody is caught. That’s fine with Martin, who comes in off a blind tag and springboard missile dropkicks everyone down. The pace picks up and Martin hits a running Swanton, setting up a rollup for two. Stereo hurricanranas get two on FTR but Sydal is sent outside. That leaves Martin to walk into the Big Rig for the pin at 8:59.

Rating: C+. I can go for seeing FTR getting a nice win because it just does not happen very often. They had to break a sweat to win but then got the win in the end. That’s all you can ask for and I’m hoping to see a little bit more from them in the future. FTR just doesn’t get to wrestle regular tag matches very often and I don’t get why as they’re really good at it.

Commentary talks about the Suzuki Incident, meaning Minoru Suzuki isn’t happy that his music was cut off early last week.

Lance Archer and Minoru Suzuki (stable mates in New Japan) aren’t happy with Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston so the tag match is on for next week.

Here is Malakai Black for a chat (with commentary being silent to make it that much better). The House of Black has an enemy and we cut to actress Rosario Dawson in a Nightmare Family shirt. Black goes over to glare at her but here is the returning Cody Rhodes (Dawson’s fellow judge on the Go Big Show) as Dawson jumps on Black’s back. That’s broken up and the guys fight into the crowd until we take a break. Good brawl here and Dawson was a nice addition.

The Bunny isn’t happy with Anna Jay being back because Jay can’t just leave her alone.

The Dark Order is ready for Anna’s Rampage debut but here are Alex Reynolds and 10 to argue with Evil Uno. Anna doesn’t want to hear any of this and says if this is what is going on, none of the Dark Order needs to be here for Rampage. She and Tay Conti leave together.

Here is Dan Lambert, with the Men of the Year and others, to complain about AEW fans being small men and large women. These fans will cheer for a wrestler throwing six superkicks, climbing three floors and diving through a bunch of tables onto a lifeless body. Cue Chris Jericho and Jake Hager, with Lambert complaining about the fans singing Judas.

The fans sing it sans music as Excalibur lists off all of the MMA fighters here with Lambert. Jericho calls Lambert a “fat faced dips***” and sings a song of his own about it. Lambert can’t believe Jericho is out here to defend the fans, but he is the master manipulator around this company. He insults Jericho and the Fozzy fans, who use their allowance to buy their records. Jericho: “You guys get an allowance?”

Jericho sees Lambert and American Top Team but wants to know which one is on top. Hager and Jericho aren’t going to be intimidated because Hager is undefeated and Jericho has been fighting with MMA guys backstage for years. Lambert issues the challenge for next week and Jericho and Hager say it’s on, because there will be no escape from New York.

The Gunn Club talks about why they attacked Paul Wight. They are undefeated around here but now wins and losses don’t matter. Respect will be earned one way or another and if anyone has a problem with that, do something about it. Makes sense. Still the Gunn Club.

Jade Cargill vs. Leyla Hirsch

Leyla, billed from New Jersey, sends her outside to start and then dives onto Mark Sterling. Back in and Leyla hits some knees in the corner, setting up a slingshot dropkick. Cargill has to counter a cross armbreaker into a powerbomb and we take a break. Back with Jade fighting out of a choke but getting German suplexed down for two. Cargill bails to the floor and gets taken down again by a dive. A running knee to the face gives Leyla two but Cargill gets in her own shot to the face. Jaded finishes Leyla at 6:07.

Rating: C. Cargill is still a physical marvel but you’re only going to get so much out of her in the ring at this point. Hirsch put her in trouble for the first time though and there was a point where I thought they might go with the big upset. That’s a good sign for the match and while it wasn’t great, it was Jade’s best match by far.

Andrade El Idolo isn’t happy with Chavo Guerrero interfering with his match last week, which is why he took Chavo out. He can beat anyone he wants whenever he wants.

Taz and Hook interrupt commentary to accuse Punk of trying to take Taz’s jobs. It’s a ruse though and Powerhouse Hobbs jumps Punk from behind. Punk tries to fight back but Hook hooks a dragon sleeper. Hobbs slams Punk onto the announcers’ table for the big crash.

Shawn Spears doesn’t like Darby Allin calling him generic and brings up giving Allin his first AEW loss.

Shawn Spears vs. Darby Allin

Spears has Tully Blanchard and his chair while Allin has Sting. Allin sits in the corner to start so Spears hits a running knee to his face. After that far too logical opening, Spears drops him ribs first onto the top to take things outside. A whip sends Allin into the steps but he avoids a running knee to the face against said steps. Back in and Allin’s dive is cut off by Blanchard getting in the way so Sting offers a well timed glare. Spears gets in a cheap shot though and grabs a bottle of water and a towel, which he uses to rub the paint off of Allin’s face.

We take a break and come back with Allin crawling to the ropes to escape the Scorpion Deathlock. Spears takes him up top but Allin catches him in the Tree of Woe and hammers at the bad knee to put Spears in trouble. They head to the apron with Spears trying the C4 onto the steps but getting countered into the flipping Stunner. The big flip dive sends Spears into the steps instead and it’s the Coffin Drop to give Allin the pin at 8:20.

Rating: C. Every time I see Spears, the more I agree with what Allin said about him: he really is generic and it gets to be a bit difficult to find a reason to care about his matches. Spears is far from bad, but egads I could go for something a little more interesting from him. Allin continues to feel like a star and that’s what AEW has been going for with him since the beginning.

Post match here is FTR for the brawl with Sting and Allin. Blanchard’s chair shot to Sting does nothing but the numbers game has Sting down for the beating. Allin gets the same treatment, leaving Sting to take the spike piledriver. Then Blanchard goes huge by wiping off Sting’s face paint (or at least some of it). I’m sure this is going to mean violence and it should after a good angle.

Bryan Danielson thinks the Elite acts like people who are insecure so he is going after Kenny Omega. He is excited to get in the ring and he would love for Omega to be his first match. He’s here and he is game so let’s go. This was the same promo from Rampage.

Tony Schiavone brings out Bryan Danielson for a chat. Danielson is glad to be here but here are Don Callis and Kenny Omega to interrupt. Callis calls Danielson a hippie millionaire who thinks that he is here to jump into the title match. Callis: “And people call me a carny piece of s***”.

Danielson finally cuts him off and says he is here to talk to Omega. This might be about the title one day but for now, let’s give the people what they want. The match is teased but Callis says no way. Danielson talks about how he came here to face the Best Bout Machine but all he sees is someone hiding behind a bunch of goons. Maybe Omega has lost his testicular fortitude, so is it yes or no? Omega says he’s in and the fans approve. This was a formality but something they had to get out of the way.

Miro promises to bash Fuego del Sol’s brains and his car.

Matt Hardy wants to shave Orange Cassidy’s head.

Here’s what’s coming on Dynamite and Rampage, including Bryan Danielson vs. Kenny Omega on Dynamite.

Jon Moxley/Eddie Kingston vs. 2.0

2.0 and Daniel Garcia jump them on the floor before the bell but Moxley takes over inside as we officially get going. 2.0 is sent outside in a hurry and Garcia gets whipped into the barricade. That’s enough of a distraction for Moxley to get beaten down and we take a break. Back with Moxley still in trouble but he fights them off like they/re 2.0 and brings Kingston back in. Everything breaks down and the spinning backfist sets up the DDT. Moxley comes back in for a clothesline/half and half combination for the pin on Lee at 6:38.

Rating: C-. Not much of a main event as this was little more than a glorified workout for Moxley and Kingston. I was wondering what would headline the show and it was kind of a disappointment when I saw what they were doing. I’m sure there will be something after the match ends, but it’s not much of a match for the main event.

Post match here is Minoru Suzuki, who gets the full version of his theme song this time. Cue Lance Archer to pull Kingston to the floor for the brawl into the crowd. Moxley and Suzuki fight at ringside, where Moxley has to save himself from a piledriver through the table. They fight into the crowd as well to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Not so great main event aside, this was a good example of fitting a lot of stuff into two hours. Several stories were covered and they set up all kinds of stuff for next week’s two special shows. This week’s show might not have been great, but it got things ready for the next great show and that is very important in its own right. Good show here, which shouldn’t surprise you.

Results
Adam Cole b. Frankie Kazarian – Last Shot
FTR b. Matt Sydal/Dante Martin – Big Rig to Martin
Jade Cargill b. Leyla Hirsch – Jaded
Darby Allin b. Shawn Spears – Coffin Drop
Eddie Kingston/Jon Moxley b. 2.0 – Clothesline/half and half suplex combination to Lee

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

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

AND

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

Dynamite
Date: September 8, 2021
Location: Fifth Third Arena, Cincinnati, Ohio
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re in for a special one this week as it is the All Out fallout show, which will feature a bunch of wrestlers making their Dynamite debuts, or at least making a special appearance. The next major show is Grand Slam in two weeks and that is going to require some building up. Let’s get to it.

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

Note that I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the lower section, directly opposite the entrance ramp.

Opening sequence.

All Out recap video. Dang that was a show.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Malakai Black

Dustin is fighting for his family/multiple stable mates who have been taken out by Black. They start fast with Dustin hammering him into the corner and snapping off a German suplex out of said corner. Dustin takes it to the floor and keeps pounding but Black drops him hard through a table to put him in trouble. The referee goes to check on him so Black takes off a turnbuckle pad. Back in and Black knees him in the ribs before grabbing a chinlock, which looked like it was supposed to be something else. Black switches over to a kneebar but Dustin gets over to the rope without much effort.

Back up and Black kicks the knee out for two but Dustin fights back up with right hands. The scoop powerslam….seems to be mistimed, as Black holds the rope but Dustin snaps over anyway. Another attempt works better, even if Black is back up at two. Dustin hammers away in the corner but Black kicks the knee out again.

With Dustin down, it’s time to go outside and grab Cody Rhodes’ boot. Dustin gets up, blocks the Black Mass, and strikes away. The Canadian Destroyer out of the corner rocks Black for two and we hit the YOU STILL GOT IT chants. Black slips out of a suplex though and kicks the leg out, sending Dustin into the exposed buckle. Black Mass (to the arm) finishes Dustin at 9:56.

Rating: B-. They told a story here, as Dustin was in over his head but kept right on fighting because he is out to defend his family’s honor. That’s the kind of thing that Dustin would do no matter what and he was trying his hardest here. There were a few messy spots here and there, but Black continues his dominance on the road to the big rematch with Cody Rhodes.

The Lucha Bros are happy to FINALLY be the Tag Team Champions and it took a lot of blood to get here. If anyone is willing to suffer, come try and get them.

Eddie Kingston talks about Miro cheating to beat him and knows that despite what Miro said, God doesn’t play favorites.

Miro says he is going to offer Kingston’s broken bones to his wife and his soul to God.

Here is CM Punk to a crazy ovation for a chat. Punk thanks the fans for being there and has been asked if he can still do this. It feels like being on a violent bicycle, but a YOU STILL GOT IT chant cuts it off. Punk says we also have Minoru Suzuki vs. Jon Moxley in a main event that he is going to be watching as a wrestling fan. Hold on though as Punk needs to say that Aunt Linda (who raised Brian Pillman Jr. and in the front row) really is an angel.

As for All Out, we saw the debuts of Ruby Soho, Adam Cole and Bryan Danielson, the latter of whom has the fans’ attention. After All Out, Punk texted his wife April, who asked what was next. Maybe Punk should leave it up to the fans to decide what he does next. The chants are on, and the fans suggest Moxley and Pillman but Taz of all people interrupts from commentary. Punk: “Out of respect, I’ll let you speak but don’t ever interrupt me again.”

Taz is tired of this Punk love fest and doesn’t want to hear Punk about Team Taz ever again. Cue Hook and Powerhouse Hobbs as Taz says Punk has been bringing up the team in interviews and on podcasts. Punk says send Ricky Starks, Hook or Hobbs. All of them can beat Punk if they can and survive if they he lets them (Taz’s ECW catchphrase). Punk goes outside to hug Aunt Linda and highs a lot of fives. This was a heck of a segment and Punk is about as comfortable on the mic as anyone in the world right now.

Santana and Ortiz have beaten FTR and now they want the Tag Team Titles.

Ruby Soho has issued an open challenge and Jamie Hayter has accepted. Cue Britt Baker, Rebel and Hayter to say that Soho will be forgotten after she loses tonight. Soho: “Hello Brittany.” They have known each other for a long time and Soho lists off some of Baker’s nicknames, including the “baddest b**** on the block.” Soho: “This is my block.” Baker says the only nickname that matters is Women’s World Champion.

Soho is the Runaway, so why doesn’t she run away to catering like she has been doing for the last four years? The crowd gasps at that one (it was a loud gasp too) and even Hayter cringes a bit. Hayter has to get in between them and Baker promises Hayter will be giving Soho a dose of whoopa**, courtesy of Dr. Britt Baker, DMD (Tony Schiavone doing the finger wave at the same time is great). This was awesome too, as Baker has more confidence than anyone but Soho didn’t back down at all.

Dante Martin vs. Powerhouse Hobbs

Martin makes the mistake of going straight at Hobbs, who isn’t having any of that and runs him over. A springboard crossbody is cut off but Martin flips over Hobbs and kicks him out to the floor. The suicide dive is cut off though (mid-dive) and Hobbs sends him face first into the post to cut him down again. There’s a whip into the barricade and then Hobbs does it again to send us to a break.

Back with Hobbs dropping a knee for two and cranking on Martin’s neck. Martin fights up and gets to the top for a missile dropkick. A running flip splash gets two but Hooker is ready to cut off a big dive to the floor. Martin dives over him anyway and takes Hobbs out but a double springboard misses back inside. Hobbs is right back with a spinebuster for the pin at 8:24.

Rating: C+. Martin is a heck of a high flier and can make himself look good no matter what, but I couldn’t quite get to the next level with this one. The lack of dull action during the break helped, but it felt like it could have been more than what it was. That being said, both guys have all kinds of potential and should be stars around here in the pretty near future.

Dan Lambert is with the Men of the Year (right above where I was sitting) and talks about how Tony Khan is signing every person he can to hide the fact that this company isn’t the hottest thing in the world. These idiots can be played like a fiddle and maybe they can be convinced to sing a terrible song, but there are only two real men in this company. The three of them will speak with loud voices. If anyone can stop them, come do it.

We recap Matt Hardy and the Hardy Family Office vs. Orange Cassidy. Hardy wants to cut Cassidy’s hair.

Cassidy: “Whatever.”

Here is MJF, with Wardlow for an angry chat. MJF talks about how he beat Chris Jericho on Sunday but the match was restarted due to bias against him. There is bias against him because he is better than everyone else and because he hates being in S***cinati. Oh no. Now people are going to accuse him of going after CHEAP HEAT because they’re a bunch of marks.

Cincinnati is the midwest because everything here is MID. Skyline Chili? MID! (Psh. Skyline Chili would sell its Sky and its ili to get close to being “mid”.). The Cincinnati Reds? MID! Every person who lives here? MID! If anyone hates him, come jump the guardrail so he can take them out. MJF points out a woman at ringside and calls her 16 and pregnant so he goes over to yell at her. It turns out she is the daughter of Brian Pillman, which MJF says explains her looks.

Cue Brian Pillman Jr. in his dad’s Bengals jersey to say he heard MJF talking about his family and hometown. Pillman isn’t from New York, but rather a city that breeds bad***** like his dad and Jon Moxley. WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE! MJF brings up Pillman’s drug addicted mother “Methanie”, which is enough for Pillman Jr. to charge the ring but Wardlow cuts him off. There could have been 500 second generation Pillmans, but Pillman Jr. was the only one she didn’t swallow. MJF sends Wardlow to stand in the corner and look pretty, leaving MJF to threaten to abort Pillman….and the fight is on.

Wardlow pulls Pillman off but he slips by and stomps on MJF again, with Wardlow taking a bit of time to make the save. A German suplex drops Pillman so here is Griff Garrison, who is promptly taken out with the Dynamite Diamond. Pillman covers Garrison up as the villains leave. The fans went NUTS for this and MJF had as much heat for a promo as I’ve seen in a very long time.

Jon Moxley says Minoru Suzuki is dying in the jungle tonight.

Jamie Hayter vs. Ruby Soho

Britt Baker and Rebel are here with Hayter. It’s quite the reaction for Soho as the fans seem rather impressed. Hayter drives her into the corner to start and runs Soho over with a shoulder. Back up and Soho cranks on the arm, setting up a knee to the face. Hayter drops her throat first across the top though and we take a break.

We come back with Soho charging for what looks like a monkey flip but getting caught with something like a spinebuster onto the top, which is countered into a DDT. That was sweet, but only gets two, so they try a poisonrana but they kind of fall down instead. The fireman’s carry neckbreaker into a basement lariat gives Hayter two but Soho is back with whatever we’re calling the Riott Kick for the pin at 7:38.

Rating: C. Soho felt like a star but this didn’t exactly click. There were some good spots though (that bounce back into a DDT was awesome) and you know Soho is going to be moving up the ranks in a hurry. She has the title shot with Britt Baker in her back pocket and that’s more than most people have.

Post match Baker and Rebel run in to beat on Soho until Riho runs in for the failed save attempt. Kris Statlander makes the real save and I think you have a six woman tag coming.

Video on Ricky Starks vs. Brian Cage.

FTR/Shawn Spears vs. Dark Order

Earlier today, the Dark Order got in an argument over whether or not they were fine, with Tay Conti and Anna Jay telling the guys to figure this out. It’s Evil Uno/Stu Grayson/John Silver for the Order and egads Silver is popular. The rest of the Order and Tully Blanchard are here as well. Spears shoulders Silver down to start but Silver does the same and hits the double bicep. Grayson comes in to take over on Spears and it’s Uno coming in for a side slam/springboard elbow combination.

As the beating continues, Tony talks about how Tony Khan has heard CM Punk talking about wanting to face Team Taz members. Taz: “WHAT ARE YOU? TONY KHAN’S MESSENGER NOW???” Tony: Yes! I am!” Taz: “…..ok.” Silver drops Spears for two more but a jawbreaker gets spears out of trouble.

Harwood comes in to stomp away for two on Silver and even flips off Uno for trying to make a save. Silver reverses a suplex into one of his own but Wheeler and Spears knock the rest of the Order off the apron. Some knees rock Harwood and a bridging German suplex gets two. Back up and Harwood sends Silver into Uno to knock him off the apron. The slingshot suplex (Tully is pleased) sets up the C4 to finish Silver at 4:51.

Rating: C-. There was a lot here but the point was to continue showcasing the issues between the Dark Order. That is quite the problem to deal with and I’m not sure how long it is going to take before we hit the full on split. Hopefully it involves some of the members fading away or changing themselves in a big way, as there is no need to have most of these people around.

Post match FTR and Spears leave and the Dark Order finally explodes. Tay Conti and Anna Jay come out to glare at them but Conti holds Jay back from going to help. Not shown here, but the women eventually turned around and stormed off.

Video on Ruby Soho winning the Casino Battle Royal, with a lot of women getting to talk about how great they were in the match.

Tully Blanchard talks about how happy he was with his team demolishing the Dark Order. Then you have people like Sting and Darby Allin as people from his past and present, so next week, Blanchard wants Spears vs. Allin for next week. At the same time, Blanchard and Sting are going to go face to face. That gets a big gasp.

Sammy Guevara comes out with his signs, which talk about how great summer has been and gives a plug for his social media.

Griff Garrison is in the trainer’s room getting ice on his eye. Brian Pillman Jr. is here too and wants to get his hands on MJF at Grand Slam. The Acclaimed comes in with some ice and flowers with Max Caster saying he has a match with Pillman for Rampage. That’s cool with Pillman, who throws down the flowers.

Tony Schiavone brings out the Elite (and there are a lot of them) for a chat. Don Callis thanks the fans for making Kenny Omega #1 in the PWI 500 (Callis: “Thank you for your votes! And your money!”) At All Out, the Young Bucks had the greatest tag match in the history of the world but the titles were stolen from them. They have a plan to get the titles back, but they also got their best friend back.

Cue Adam Cole for Storytime, but first of all he gets in Tony’s face. Cole: “Now I know that you are really close with Britt Baker.” The crowd is into this as Cole threatens to kick him in the face if he even looks at her the wrong way and throws Tony out. Cole puts over the company as the best in the world because of the Elite. Anyone who bought a shirt, the pay per view or a ticket did it because of them.

Cole talks about the Bucks and Omega being the best ever and you should all be thanking them because now the Elite is complete BAY BAY! You’ll see it even more when he makes his in-ring debut next week and you will see how elite he really is. Kenny Omega thinks that’s a reason for a celebration, but all of the interruptions at All Out bothered him. Cue Bryan Danielson so Omega asks if he can have the ring.

Omega invites Danielson in and Danielson asks the fans a quick question: do you want to see the two of them fight? That’s a completely non-trademark infringing affirmative so Danielson confirms that he is better than Omega. That means he’s going to kick Omega’s head in and prove that he isn’t on Danielson’s level. Omega lunches and gets pulled into the YES Lock.

The Elite comes in but here are Kazarian, Christian Cage and the Jurassic Express to clear them out, with Luchasaurus throwing Marko Stunt onto the pile (and over Christian, who didn’t seem to know it was coming). Brandon Cutler is left alone in the ring and it’s Danielson’s running knee to knock him silly. Heck of a Dynamite debut here, though I want to see Schiavone vs. Cole more than anything else.

Here’s what’s coming at various shows.

Minoru Suzuki vs. Jon Moxley

Suzuki’s entrance is cut short and they don’t even get to the chorus of his song. That being said, the fans getting to hear Wild Thing for Moxley kind of renders that meaningless. Moxley takes his time getting to the ring and is clearly thrilled to be in his hometown. They waste no time in going with the exchange of forearms and the fans dub it awesome. An exchange of kicks to the face rocks both of them so Moxley knocks him into the ropes as we take a break.

Back with Suzuki kicking him in the face but the running kick to the chest is blocked. They trade bites to the face (this should not surprise you) and then headbutts, including both of them hitting a headbutt at the same time. It’s time for another forearm off until Moxley’s running lariat is blocked. Another attempt is countered a failed choke attempt so Suzuki tries the Gotch Style piledriver.

That’s countered into the Paradigm Shift as Suzuki is bleeding from the eye. A lariat gives Moxley two but another lariat can’t even knock Suzuki down. Instead he hits a running dropkick to take Moxley down as that eye is VERY busted. Moxley drops him with a right hand and grabs the lifting Paradigm Shift (making it a butterfly suplex) for the pin at 8:08.

Rating: B. They beat on each other for a little while but I kept waiting to see this get to the next level. It wasn’t quite the brawl that I was expecting, though Suzuki’s eye being busted open was certainly a sight. Moxley winning a near dream match over a legend in his hometown was a great way to end the show though and it felt special as a result, which was the right idea.

Moxley celebrates in the crowd (in the section next to me) to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I’ve seen most of these wrestlers in person before but never at an AEW event. The word you hear about AEW is “fun” and that is exactly what you got here. It was a very entertaining two hours and that’s all you could ask for. The seats were cheap (about $34 each counting fees) and good, the wrestling was solid and there was star power galore. What else can you ask for out of something like this? Save for Rampage and Dark: Elevation of course, but for now we’ll just settle for a solid Dynamite.

Results
Malakai Black b. Dustin Rhodes – Black Mass
Powerhouse Hobbs b. Dante Martin – Spinebuster
Ruby Soho b. Jamie Hayter – Riott Kick
FTR/Shawn Spears b. Dark Order – C4 to Silver
Jon Moxley b. Minoru Suzuki – Lifting Paradigm Shift

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

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

AND

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

Dynamite
Date: August 25, 2021
Location: UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

Then everything changed. CM Punk made his, ahem, surprise debut last week on Rampage in what might be the greatest moment AEW has had in its history. Other than that….I mean does anything else really matter? All Out is in a week and a half and most of the card seems to be set but there are still some spots available. Let’s get to it.

Here is Rampage if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We get a quick clip from Punk’s debut on Rampage.

Orange Cassidy vs. Matt Hardy

No seconds here for a change. We open with the DELETE vs. lazy kicks, which I think we’ve seen before. Matt breaks up the lazy superkick though and reaches into his own pockets to pull out money. Cassidy hits the dropkick into the nipup, complete with hands in his pockets. Then he picks up the money and put it into his pocket. Well some of it at least, as he would rather dive onto Matt, who catches him with the Side Effect on the floor.

Cassidy’s ribs are wrapped around the post and it’s back inside (with a bunch of money on the mat) for some belly to back suplexes. Matt stops to pick up a bunch of money and even steals the money back from Cassidy (as he should, since Cassidy is a thief). Cassidy tries to fight back but Beach Break is countered into a nasty Splash Mountain for two. The Twist of Fate is blocked though and Cassidy takes him down.

A high crossbody lands on Hardy’s face and Hardy is busted open. Cassidy goes up, hits the Jeff Hardy pose, and puts his hands in his pockets for the Swanton. Hardy blocks a Twist of Fate and a top rope elbow hits Cassidy’s back again. Then Cassidy grabs his own Twist of Fate for two as Matt’s blood is all over Cassidy. Hardy tries a guillotine choke but Cassidy reverses into a cradle with his hands in the pockets for the pin at 10:08.

Rating: C+. The match was good enough, despite it having a lot of comedy and being two guys I’m not fond of most of the time. Cassidy should be beating Hardy, who doesn’t need to be going over just about anyone at this point. Also, it was very, very refreshing to have a straight match without 437 people getting involved at the same time.

Aleister Black is ready to destroy Arn Anderson’s son, plus the rest of the Nightmare Family. That could take a whole lot of destructing.

Here is Chris Jericho to talk about tapping out to MJF last week. Jericho talks about the Labors of Jericho and how he came up short in the grand finale. It has become a mantra for him: “BEAT MJF! BEAT MJF! BEAT MJF!” Jericho has an idea for a final match between them but MJF won’t come out. His idea is one more match at All Out, where he will put his career on the line.

Cue MJF with a “MJF – 3, Jeriblow – 0” shirt, to say this is getting a little embarrassing. He knows Jericho needed a rub from the fastest rising star in the history of professional wrestling, but the cash cow’s udders are sore. Last week, MJF made him tap out faster than someone listening to a Fozzy CD, but the idea of Jericho never wrestling again is too much to pass up so the match is on. That was about the only way they could go after last week.

The Varsity Blonds say they’re a real family and they’re ready to beat the Lucha Bros.

Tag Team Title #1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Varsity Blonds vs. Lucha Bros

Julia Hart is here with the Blonds and the Elite comes out to watch. Garrison can’t get very far with Fenix so it’s off to Pillman to superkick Penta. A running hurricanrana takes Penta down but he is right back with a Sling Blade. Back from a break with Penta taking down both Blonds and handing it back to Fenix for a bunch of kicks.

The rolling cutter gets two on Pillman and everything breaks down, including Fenix hitting a very fast suicide dive onto the Blonds. Back in and Pillman hits a heck of a powerbomb for two on Fenix. Garrison adds a springboard elbow but Penta makes the save this time. The Bros send Garrison outside and it’s an assisted Fear Factor for the pin at 8:23.

Rating: C+. It was fun while it lasted and the right team won in the end. The Lucha Bros are about as awesome of a team as you’re going to find when they are on a roll and that was the case there. What mattered here was getting the right team moving forward, and the Varsity Blonds will have their day (eventually).

Post match Jurassic Express joins the Lucha Bros in the ring. The Elite tries to come in and are knocked off the apron in a hurry.

Video on Pac vs. Andrade.

All Out rundown, now including Britt Baker defending the Women’s Title against Kris Statlander.

Jamie Hayter vs. Red Velvet

Hayter has Britt Baker and Rebel in her corner. Hayter wastes no time in throwing Velvet into the corner for the choking. Velvet manages to send her to the floor for back to back suicide dives (with Hayter going flat down for a different kind of selling). A hard posting drops Velvet and Baker gets in a few cheap shots as we take a break. Back with Velvet winning a slugout and hitting a running elbow against the ropes. Some running knees connect on the ropes but Baker offers a distraction, allowing Hayter to hit a hard lariat for the pin at 6:53.

Rating: C. Velvet got in some offense here and that should have been the case when she was getting the title shot just two weeks ago. Hayter needs to get a few wins to establish herself as someone to beat and this was a good step. Put her over someone Baker beat so that Hayter looks like she is on a higher level.

Post match the beatdown is on but Kris Statlander makes the save.

The Dark Order doesn’t seem to be on the same page over, uh, Page. Alex Reynolds doesn’t like what Evil Uno has been saying and walks out, with John Silver going with him. Uno tries to apologize but the rest of the team isn’t thrilled either.

Tony Schiavone brings out CM Punk for a chat. Punk is asked what one thing brought him back to wrestling, but Punk can’t hear over all of the people. Punk lists off some of the younger wrestlers who he wants to face, but there is one guy who has gotten his attention first. He’s going to retire the nickname Voice of the Voiceless because there are people who have a voice and there are people who listen.

Punk has been looking at someone like Darby Allin who looks like he is willing to kill himself. There are people asking if Punk can still go and if he still has it to be the best in the world. He looks at Allin and sees someone who would have been Punk’s favorite wrestler at 15 years old. Allin isn’t the biggest or the strongest but he has heart.

Can Punk still do it? Fans: “YES! YES! YES!” Punk: “That’s someone else’s thing and you just have to wait a little longer.” He’ll see Allin in Chicago and loves his wife April. Punk gets a very strong sendoff. This was a straight promo from Punk and it was a good way to set up the Darby match at All Out.

Miro talks about how he will forgive Fuego del Sol but he is going to drag Eddie Kingston under the water because he is the Redeemer. Bring him the Mad King before he burns this place to the ground.

Eddie Kingston/Jon Moxley/Darby Allin vs. Wingmen

Sting and Peter Avalon are here too. Allin chokes the much bigger JD Drake to start and sends him outside. The big dive has to be canceled so Ryan Nemeth swivels his hips at Kingston. A single chop gets rid of him so Cezar Bononi comes in to shrug off Kingston’s chops. Moxley tags himself in and a double shoulder clears the ring.

We take a break and come back with Moxley suplexing Bononi and it’s Kingston coming in to strike away on Drake. Moxley has to save Kingston from a Vader Bomb with a bite to Drake’s face, allowing Allin to hit a super Code Red. Avalon gets beaten up on the floor as Nemeth tries to bring in a chair. That goes horrible, and it’s a flipping Stunner into the Coffin Drop to finish Drake at 7:40.

Rating: C. This was a total weekend show main event and that’s all it needed to be. I was worried about the Wingmen giving three much bigger names too much of a problem but they got out of there just in time. Good enough match here, even if it was just a workout for the openers.

Post match everyone else is brawling on the floor so here is Daniel Garcia to jump Allin from behind.

Tay Conti is ready for the Casino Battle Royal but the Bunny comes in to offer her a spot in the Hardy Family Office. The contract is ripped up with a NO and the fight is on.

FTR wants one more match with Santana and Ortiz.

Here is the Elite to promise to take out Christian Cage. Cue Cage, to show a video of Don Callis hyping up the ten year old Kenny Omega, which is why he fired Christian. Back in the ring, Omega says that makes him like Vince McMahon, Verne Gagne or Eddie Graham, but this isn’t Greg Gagne or Eric Watts. Christian accuses Callis of manipulating Omega, who asks Christian “You think you know me?” Callis takes off his pink suit and the group beatdown is on until Frankie Kazarian runs in for the save with a lead pipe.

Jon Moxley sent a contract to New Japan and got it sent back with one signature. Satoshi Kojima has signed the deal and Moxley is ready to send him out in a blaze of glory. Moxley wants to do some horrible things to Kojima and he’ll see him at All Out.

Gunn Club vs. The Factory

Paul Wight is on commentary. Comoroto gets sent outside to start and it’s off to Solow, who gets taken down by Austin. Marshall gets in a cheap shot though and we take a break. Back with Colton coming in to clean house as everything breaks down. Marshall stops to yell at Wight though and the distraction lets Colton grab the small package win at 5:51. Not enough shown to rate, but it was just a way to mess with Marshall.

Dan Lambert, with the Men of the Year, rants about wrestling fans being soft and how they all want their safe spaces. Those people need to believe in men like these two, and there may be hope for them yet.

Arn Anderson knows that his son Brock is in over his head and he’s probably going to lose to Malaki Black. He’ll be there with his son though.

Brock Anderson vs. Malakai Black

Brock takes him down and hammers away but Black unloads with strikes in the corner. Hold on though as Black yells at Arn, allowing Brock to get in a few shots to the leg. That earns Brock a suplex and Black Mass, making Arn cringe. The delayed pin finishes Brock at 2:29.

Post match Arn comes in to check on Brock but Black has a chair. Arn is ready to fight and blocks a kick to the head. He can’t block a low blow though and then the kick to the head drops Arn. Lee Johnson runs in for the save to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This wasn’t the must see episode as it was much more about having the people involved in the bigger stories talking rather than wrestling. That being said, this is the show that All Out has been needing as everything else has been cleared out and the pay per view could get some focus. It’s not a show you need to watch, but there was some good storyline advancement and nothing bad up and down the show.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Matt Hardy – Rollup
Lucha Bros b. Varsity Blonds – Assisted Fear Factor to Pillman
Jamie Hayter b. Red Velvet – Lariat
Eddie Kingston/Darby Allin/Jon Moxley b. Wingmen – Coffin Drop to Drake
Gunn Club b. The Factory – Small package to Marshall
Malaki Black b. Brock Anderson – Black Mass

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

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AND

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

Dynamite
Date: August 18, 2021
Location: Fertitta Center, Houston, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone

We’re still on the way to both All Out and the First Dance, meaning we could be in for an interesting night. AEW knows how to put on a good show out of nowhere and things were a little bit flat last week. There is a good chance that they can come up with something big here, as Kenny Omega is not going to be happy with losing to Christian Cage last week. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Commentary previews the card.

Here are Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston but 2.0 and Daniel Garcia jump them in the crowd. 2.0 wants Sting and Darby Allin right now.

Sting/Darby Allin vs. 2.0

Texas Tornado rules and Allin jumps 2.0 from behind with the skateboard. The running charges in the corner rock 2.0 and it’s time for the brawl to head into the crowd. They make it up to what looks like a VIP area with Daniel Garcia getting in on the beating. 2.0 lifts Allin up into a piece of the ceiling and Sting is sent into a wall.

Sting is taken back to ringside but Allin runs down the barricade to break it up. Eddie Kingston comes back in to make the save as a table is thrown in. Kingston and Garcia fight off as Allin is suplexed onto his skateboard. Sting is powerbombed through a table and pops back up, setting up the double Scorpion Death Drop and the double Deathlock makes 2.0 tap at 6:15.

Rating: C-. This is a match where the wrestling wasn’t the point and that’s fine. The lack of any semblance of rules was the fight call for Sting and beating up a couple of goons like this doesn’t hurt anyone. I’m not sure how wise it was to burn through a Sting match on free TV, but at least it was a fun one.

Earlier tonight, Sammy Guevara proposed to his girlfriend in the ring, getting a yes.

Shawn Spears and Tully Blanchard are happy for Sammy (Shawn: “Slim pickings in Houston.”) and promise to let the girlfriend be in the Pinnacle. For tonight, she can be on top for once.

Sammy Guevara vs. Shawn Spears

Sammy is the hometown boy but Spears jumps him from behind on the ramp. That’s fine with Sammy, who tosses him down for the big running flip dive. A missed charge sends Sammy knees first into the steps though and Tully Blanchard joins in on a spike piledriver on the floor. Now we get the opening bell so Tully loads up another spike, only to get ejected in a hurry. Back in and Sammy grabs a rollup for two but the chop off sends us to a break.

We come back with both guys on top and a piece of barricade loaded up between the ring and the barricade. Guevara busts out a jumping super cutter for two but Spears hits a super C4 for the same. They head to the apron and Sammy hits a C4 (not a Death Valley Driver Excalibur, you proper name psycho) onto the barricade. The 630 (What spike piledriver onto the floor?) gets two (good grief) and the GTH finally puts Spears away at 9:59.

Rating: C+. It was certainly high energy, but dang there was a lot going on here and not in the best way. There were far too many finishers being burned through, meaning I was left sitting here with a “REALLY?” look on my face a few too many times. This needs to be the end of the feud too, as there is nothing left for these two to do against each other. Good action, horrible use of finishers, which tends to be the case around here a lot of the time.

Post match a bleeding Guevara kisses his fiance.

Don Callis talks to Christian Cage about how he got Christian into wrestling 25 years ago. Now Callis is on top of the wrestling world and Cage is….well he’s here too. Cage calls him some rather unpleasant names.

Here is Dan Lambert to rant about how AEW is on the cancel culture train. The people around here got triggered and AEW sent out Lance Archer out here to hit a 52 year old main the place. Lambert has former UFC Heavyweight Champions Andre Arlovski and Junior Dos Santos and if you’re feeling froggy, come out here and jump.

Lambert keeps going and talking about how AEW fans are all pathetic and have nothing better to do than play Dungeons and Dragons and look up creepy stuff on the dark web. Cue Lance Archer but the Men of the Year jump him from behind. Lambert is a better talker than 90% of the roster. Also, the Men of the Year can beat down Lance Archer?

Chris Jericho talks about all of the Labors he has had to go through to get here. Tonight, he has no Judas Effect and no Judas theme song, but the Friends of Jericho will sing it for him.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Jurassic Express

The Bucks are defending and have Brandon Cutler, Michael Nakazawa, Don Callis and the Good Brothers with them, while Marko Stunt is with the Express. Callis goes to commentary to clear things out a bit. Nick is sent outside and busts out the cold spray so Jungle dives onto him.

Back in and it’s off to Luchasaurus to throw mat around and chop both Bucks down. It’s back to Jungle, who sends Matt to the apron for a running hurricanrana over the top to the floor. We come back from a break with Luchasaurus coming in to clean house. The Tail Whip sets up the Extinction Level Event for a delayed two on Matt. Back up and a double superkick drops Luchasaurus and it’s the Indytaker on Jungle with a backsplash to Luchasaurus at the same time for a near fall.

Cue Kenny Omega to hit Marko Stunt with a chair so here is Christian Cage to take care of Omega. The rest of the Elite gets on the apron but Jungle hits a brainbuster onto the chair for a VERY delayed two on Matt. Thurassic Express gets two on Matt with Nick making another save. Nakazawa offers a distraction so Luchasaurus dives onto everyone outside. The BTE Trigger finishes Jungle at 11:45.

Rating: C+. It was another fun match from the Bucks, even with them surviving everything. That’s a big AEW problem and it’s worse with the Bucks than anyone else. I can go with them not losing the titles on Dynamite, but did they really have to pin Jungle Boy to retain here?

Post match Christian is dragged back to the ring and the huge beatdown is on, with Callis getting in a few shots of his own. The One Winged Angel connects and Callis counts the pin. This was the latest Elite beatdown.

Britt Baker brags about her win on Rampage and introduces Jamie Hayter. Jamie is friends with Baker from way back and was glad to come in and help her out.

Video on Matt Hardy vs. Orange Cassidy.

Here is Paul Wight for a chat about how great it was to be back in the ring last week. QT Marshall and company interrupt and say they would get in here and take him out but Marshall knows something. We see x-rays of Wight’s hip with a bunch of metal in it, meaning he can’t do much. Wight says it doesn’t matter, because he is facing Marshall at All Out. Marshall gives a great shocked face. It’s almost as shocking as AEW still trying to make Marshall a thing.

The Elite celebrates, but Tony Schiavone announces a tournament for a future Tag Team Title shot at All Out……inside a cage.

Taz brings out Ricky Starks, who wants to bring out Brian Cage. We cut to the back where Powerhouse Hobbs is standing over Cage…..who stands up and fights back. That’s too much for Starks so cut the feed.

Death Triangle is ready for All Out but Chavo Guerrero and Andrade come in. Chavo has some terms for the All Out match and hands Pac a phone book sized contract. Point for a funny visual.

Thunder Rosa vs. Penelope Ford

Ford doesn’t seem to be in her regular gear. Rosa wastes no time in sending her into the corner for the rapid fire stomping. They head outside in a hurry with Ford nailing a cutter to take us to a break. Back with Ford missing a running boot in the corner and getting caught with a running clothesline. The slingshot knees rock Ford in the corner again but the Fire Thunder Driver is countered into a rollup for two on Rosa. The Muta Lock has Rosa in trouble but she is back up with the Death Valley Driver for two. Ford goes for the legs again but gets pulled down into something like an STF for the tap at 7:59.

Rating: C. This was a good way to have Rosa come back and get a win as she is likely heading for the big showdown against Britt Baker. Ford is perfectly fine in a midcard role like this as she has just enough credibility to make Rosa break a sweat and that’s about all she needs to do. They understood their roles here and the match worked as a result.

We look back at Malakai Black’s debut.

Arn Anderson is a bit scared of Black and next week, his son Brock gets to face Black.

Here’s what’s coming this/next week.

Miro liked hurting Fuego del Sol last week and now he wants Eddie Kingston.

Jon Moxley is sick of all the teams running around here, either in basketball jerseys or Hangman Page not being able to get over his high school drama. Moxley would run through Christian because he is the guy who carried the World Title on his shoulder during dark days around here. It is time to show what it takes to be the top guy around here and if Daniel Garcia wants a taste of the main event, come get it on Rampage. Just make sure that is what you want before you need the ringside doctor checking on you.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Chris Jericho

Jericho can’t use the Judas Effect (leaving him with only three finishers). As expected, the fans sing Judas a cappella, complete with some fans holding up signs with lyrics for a pretty cool moment. The fans are all over MJF and it’s an early Walls attempt to send him outside. Jericho follows him out with a dive but MJF takes Jericho down and steals the camera (ala Jericho). That earns him a big right hand and Jericho grabs the camera to flip it off.

Back in and MJF goes after Jericho’s bad arm to take over. We take a break and come back with Jericho slugging away until another shot to the arm takes him down. Jericho gets in a shot to the face to set up the Lionsault for two though, meaning it’s a surprised kickout. Some clotheslines and right hands in the corner set up a super hurricanrana but MJF reverses into the Salt of the Earth.

That is countered into the Walls but MJF goes for the bad arm to escape. They slug it out until Jericho is sent to the apron for the Heatseeker and another near fall. MJF gets creative by kicking him low (the referees get distracted really easily around here) and grabbing his own Walls of Jericho. The rope grab breaks that up so it’s time for the diamond ring. That’s taken away so Jericho gets in the Floyd shot. Instead of covering, Jericho loads up the Judas Effect but can’t do it. MJF hits one of his own though and it’s the Salt of the Earth to (eventually) make Jericho tap at 15:53.

Rating: B. Good match, with the weird stipulation making Jericho look like a complete buffoon. I would assume this set up either a rematch at All Out or Jericho going on tour with Fozzy, as it was a pretty flat way to end the show Labors story. MJF winning is smart, but it was more a “that’s it?” moment than anything else.

Overall Rating: C+. I wasn’t entirely feeling this one as the show felt a step off. While not complete dominance, it was a pretty heel beatdown heavy show as both the Young Bucks and MJF get big wins. All Out is coming up in about two weeks and the little amount of the card that we have is not thrilling me so far. That is a lot of time, but this show was pretty lacking from a story perspective. The good action brings it up and it’s nowhere near a bad show, but I could go for moving things forward a bit. Kind of like say in Chicago on Friday.

Results
Sting/Darby Allin b. 2.0 – Double Scorpion Deathlock
Sammy Guevara b. Shawn Spears – GTH
Young Bucks b. Jurassic Express – BTE Trigger to Jungle Boy
Thunder Rosa b. Penelope Ford – STF
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Chris Jericho – Salt of the Earth

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

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

AND

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

Dynamite
Date: June 30, 2021
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Chris Jericho, Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross

We’re finally back to the normal schedule and that is a very good thing. It’s the final night in Daily’s Place as the show is heading back on the road starting next week. The big match this week is Sammy Guevara vs. MJF, which should make for a heck of a grudge match. Throw in the Young Bucks vs. Penta El Zero Miedo/Eddie Kingston and we should be good to go. Let’s get to it.

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

Chris Jericho is here for commentary.

Young Bucks vs. Penta El Zero Miedo/Eddie Kingston

Non-title but if Penta/Kingston win, they get a title shot later. The Bucks debut their latest horrible look with some rather thin facial hair. Matt gets taken down for an early rollup to start and Kingston holds the legs for Penta’s top rope double stomp. It’s off to Nick to take Penta down though and the double fist drop sets up some pelvic thrusting. Penta gets sent outside where he grabs a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker on Matt.

Back in and a high crossbody hits Nick, allowing the hot tag off to Kingston to start the house cleaning. Kingston is taken outside though and a knockdown sets up the apron moonsault/splash combination. Back in and Matt grabs a chinlock, but Kingston fights up again. That earns him a running knee to the face but More Bang For Your Buck is broken up. A superplex plants Nick though and the hot tag brings in Penta to start striking away. Everything breaks down and a corkscrew Code Red gets three but the referee calls it two anyway, earning a VERY unimpressed chant from the crowd.

A Backstabber gets a slightly farther apart two but Nick grabs the referee and kicks Penta low. The spike Fear Factor gets two on Penta with Kingston diving in for a save. Cue the Good Brothers (JR: “Where the h*** do they work anyway?”) but Kingston starts the comeback. That earns him a series of superkicks and it’s back to Penta, who gets backdropped to the floor. Brandon Cutler spray Nick in the face with the cold spray, so here is Kazarian to take him out. Penta hits the big flip dive onto everyone and the Fear Factor into the spinning backfist finally puts Matt away at 13:50.

Rating: B-. It took a lot but it was nice to see the Bucks lose for a change. You can only be so unbeatable for so long before it stops having any impact so it making them seem a little vulnerable is a good idea. I’m not sure I buy Penta and Kingston’s chances of winning the titles, but it gave them a bit of an opening and that is a good thing.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Christian Cage gives Jungle Boy another pep talk, saying he’ll be World Champion one day. Tonight is important too though, as Boy can be the first AEW wrestler to fifty wins. The rest of Jurassic Express comes in with Luchasaurus thanking Christian for having Boy’s back on Saturday. Christian happens to be related to a dinosaur and Luchasaurus is interested.

Here are the Men Of The Year for a chat about Ethan Page’s match against Darby Allin. Page is sick of trying to get rid of Darby Allin so it is time to try and exterminate him. After everything he has put Allin through, both here and on the independent circuit, Page needs to do more. Every time Allin tries the Coffin Drop, it’s going to get even worse….and here is Sting, pulling a coffin. Allin is inside of course and house is cleaned in a hurry. Page and Scorpio Sky bail out, with Page saying the coffin match is off for next week. If Allin will agree to not touch him until the match, MAYBE they can do this at Fyter Fest.

Jungle Boy vs. Jack Evans

They go technical to start with neither being able to get very far. An early Snare Trap attempt sends Evans bailing to the ropes, setting up a kick to the ribs. A very springboard wristdrag sends Evans down and a dropkick does the same. We take a break and come back with Boy dropkicking the knee out and hitting a hard clothesline. Evans catches him up top but a German superplex is escaped. Boy catches him in the Tree of Woe for a quick shot and the Snare Trap makes Evans tap at 6:06.

Rating: C. Boy has one of the best attributes you can have as a wrestler: likability. There is something about him that makes you want to see him win and that is going to take him a very long way. The fact that he can wrestle a good match with just about anyone is going to make it even better, and it has been working so far.

Post match here is the Hardy Family Office for the brawl, but Christian and the rest of Jurassic Express comes in for the big brawl. Christian chokes Hardy with the suit jacket until Evans makes the save, allowing Hardy to escape.

MJF talks about how he infiltrated the Inner Circle and started his own stable with the Pinnacle. It amazes him to see how Chris Jericho has turned into a version of the Looney Tunes and we hear about some things Jericho has done. MJF is feeling generous though and is willing to give Jericho some stipulations to get one more match. If Jericho can meet those, which he won’t, he has to leave MJF alone once MJF beats him again. That’s for next week though, because tonight Sammy Guevara has to learn that while he’s the future, MJF is the now. MJF was all fired up here, which is where he does his best.

Andrade El Idolo, in English and Spanish, with subtitles, wants to face Matt Sydal (“Matt Something”) at Road Rager in Miami.

Tony Schiavone brings out Kenny Omega, also with some questionable facial hair, for a chat. Omega talks about how earlier today, Tony asked him how he stayed motivated to find that next gear. Tony: “I didn’t ask you anything today.” Omega lists off everyone that he has beaten (or at least their accolades) before saying there is no one left in the rankings to face. That means he is going to take some time off from around here so he’ll be defending his other titles at the moment.

Cue the Dark Order with Evil Uno saying there are some challenges left. Omega laughs that off (fair) as the fans chant for some COWBOY S***. Uno admits that they don’t have the singles wins to make that work, but they know someone who does. Omega knows who they mean but doesn’t think he has the guys. This is where Omega bids them goodbye and goodnight and that’s that. They had me a bit scared with the Dark Order tease so the ending helped.

Brian Pillman Jr. didn’t like Miro putting his hands on Griff Garrison, who is like a brother to him. This isn’t just about the TNT Title, because this is personal.

TNT Title: Miro vs. Brian Pillman Jr.

Miro is defending and throws him into the corner to start. There’s an Irish whip into the corner and Miro starts hammering on the back. Miro slams him down again and we take an early break. Back again with Pillman making a comeback and sending Miro into the barricade. Air Pillman connects for two and Pillman hits a few superkicks but Miro hits his own. Game Over knocks Pillman out at 8:40.

Rating: C+. The 180 that Miro has done is outstanding as he is now one of the best things going in AEW. He is a serious monster at this point who is running through everyone in front of him. On top of that, his God’s champion deal is excellent and it is fun to watch him every time he is on screen. On top of that too, you have him wrecking people in the ring to make it even better.

Hangman Page is ticked off as the Dark Order for bringing him up to Kenny Omega. They don’t think he’s scared of Omega but they think he might be scared of failure. They’re here for him….and then leave him alone. Page doesn’t seem sure about this being his time.

Taz talks about how Team Taz is not at full strength, but sometimes family has to fight to clean things up. That’s why on July 14, Brian Cage is defending the FTW Title against a medically cleared Ricky Starks.

Rebel/Britt Baker vs. Nyla Rose/Vickie Guerrero

Baker jumps Vickie to start so Rebel can fail at a choke on Rose. A splash crushes Rebel and now it’s off to Vickie, meaning the Eddie Dance is back. We take a break and come back with Baker coming in for a Sling Blade on Rose. That earns her a failed Beast Bomb attempt and a low superkick staggers Rose. The glove is loaded up but Rose is back with a chokeslam. The splash in the ropes gets two but Baker pulls Vickie comes in, only to get pulled out of the corner. Lockjaw finishes Vickie at 6:55.

Rating: D+. So what was the plan here? Vickie asked for this match and then didn’t do anything out of the ordinary here, making it little more than a handicap match. That’s a weird way to go, unless the plan was just to be a distraction so Rose could do her thing. It really didn’t work and doesn’t exactly make Vickie look that smart.

Post match Rose lays Baker out again and it’s a powerbomb off the apron and through a table at ringside. Rebel seems to have been hurt, as she disappeared about halfway through the match and never came back.

The Inner Circle is ready for their six man tag against the Pinnacle next week because it’s time for some revenge. They’ll have their dogs around to deal with Tully Blanchard too.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Sammy Guevara

MJF bails to the floor to start before coming back in to run the ropes…into a strut. Guevara is back with a weak strut but misses a dropkick. Sammy runs him over but the GTH is countered into a pinfall reversal sequence with both guys nipping up. A rake to the eyes doesn’t cause Sammy many problems as he sends MJF into the buckle. It’s too early for the 630 so MJF bails outside, only to get caught with a double springboard cutter for two back inside.

They head outside again with Guevara being sent into the barricade as we take a break. Back with MJF tying him in the ring skirt for some forearms but Guevara grabs a backdrop. A springboard is countered into a sitout powerbomb to give MJF two but a Spanish Fly gives Guevara two. Guevara sends him to the floor for a big running corkscrew dive, followed by a springboard Canadian Destroyer for two more.

MJF is back with a shot of his own and grabs a chair, which is dropkicked into his face. That sends MJF over the barricade and Sammy busts out a CRAZY dive from the top to take MJF out again (that was amazing). Back in and Sammy goes up but MJF crotches him down. MJF hits a super Tombstone and that gets two, while also banging up MJF’s knee.

Another pinfall reversal sequence gets two each until Sammy hits the GTH for two, as MJF’s foot is in the rope. The 630 connects for two more and here is Shawn Spears. Chris Jericho gets up from commentary to cut him off but Wardlow jumps Jericho from behind and throws him off a not very tall platform. Spears gets in the chair to Guevara to give MJF the pin at 20:07.

Rating: B. This was a crazy match with some amazing athleticism and way too much going on to bog it down. There was too much interference, far too many people involved and at least two spots that either should have finished the match or not been included. The result was fine as MJF is gearing up for the mega showdown with Jericho, but there was too much here and it brought it down from great to good.

We get a rather nice highlight package on the time in Jacksonville with a song talking about thanking everyone for being there. That’s pretty cool of AEW after almost a year and a half. JR: “There is nothing like seeing WWE Dynamite live!” End of show. I know it’s just a slip of the tongue, but that has happened, way, way too often for JR and they need to do something about it.

Overall Rating: B+. Now this was more like the old school Dynamite which worked out rather well. They had good action up and down the card while also setting up some things for the future. It was energized, had the right flow and did everything they needed to do. I had a good time watching this and it flew by with a heck of a pair of bookend matches. Awesome show here and their best in a long time.

Results
Penta El Zero Miedo/Eddie Kingston b. Young Bucks – Spinning backfist to Matt
Jungle Boy b. Jack Evans – Snare Trap
Miro b. Brian Pillman Jr. – Game Over
Rebel/Britt Baker b. Vickie Guerrero/Nyla Rose – Lockjaw to Guerrero
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Sammy Guevara – Chair shot

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