Rampage
Date: February 17, 2023
Location: Saves Auto Arena, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Chris Jericho, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

It’s a special show this week with the show on at 7pm instead of the usual 10pm due to the NBA coverage. Therefore the show is call Slam Dunk as AEW stacks the card because it might be able to draw a good bit more fans this week. Hopefully that is the case as Rampage hasn’t felt important in a few weeks now. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Trios Titles: Elite vs. AR Fox/Top Flight

The Elite is defending and since this is Slam Dunk, there are a lot basketballs as props. Dante and Nick start things off by throwing a basketball at each other. Nick hits Matt in the face with the ball by mistake though and the champs are kicked out to the floor early on. Fox dives onto all of them in a pair of dives and then adds a third with a basketball. Back in and Omega grabs a headlock before running Fox over with a shoulder.

The basketball comes back in and the Elite tosses it around until Fox jumps for it, earning himself a double superkick. We take a break and come back with Fox kicking Nick into the corner. The hot tag brings in Dante to clean house, including a high crossbody for two on Omega. Everything breaks down (What took them so long?) and Fox dives off the top onto Nick and chucks the basketball at Omega in the corner.

A 450 gets two on Matt but Nick and Omega hang Top Flight over the ropes for Nick’s Swanton onto both. Fox makes the save and it’s time for the exchange of kicks to the save. The double cutter drops the Bucks but Matt is back up to shake the ropes. Fox’s middle rope moonsault is triple superkicked out of the air and Nick hits a big dive onto the floor. The One Winged Angel hits Fox to retain the titles at 10:22.

Rating: B-. The basketball stuff was goofy but harmless enough in a match where the Elite gets to beat another team. They need some challenges and that almost has to be the House of Black. I’m almost worried to see that match, but for now I’ll settle for another entertaining but pretty much drama free Elite match.

Post match the basketballs come back in but the lights go out. Cue the House of Black on the stage and we have a staredown.

The Gunns aren’t happy with the Elite bypassing the tag team battle royals but they’ll deal with them anyway.

Mark Henry is praising Orange Cassidy when Wheeler Yuta comes in. Yuta is glad he left the Best Friends because he has gotten so much more out of being in the Blackpool Combat Club. Now Cassidy doesn’t even think anything of Yuta being gone so Yuta is going to take the All-Atlantic Title from him. Cassidy says he wasn’t there to be a teacher but to be a best friend. If Yuta wants the title, come take it. That was a rather harsh heel spin from Yuta, who is pretty neutral most of the time.

Daniel Garcia vs. Ricky Starks

Starks punches him into the corner to start and hits the dancing Old School. A tornado DDT is broken up though and Garcia knocks him outside. We take a break and come back with Starks’ knee rather banged up as he walks into a Rock Bottom for two. The Sharpshooter goes on and here is Sammy Guevara to hold the rope away. Cue Action Andretti to go after Guevara and they brawl up the ramp. Starks gets up and hits the spear, setting up Roshambo (with a point at Jericho on commentary) for the pin at 9:45.

Rating: C. The match was just shy of ten minutes and had a break plus interference. It also doesn’t help as we’re still on this idea of Starks running through the Jericho Appreciation Society on the way to a rematch of a match he won in the first place. This isn’t the most logical story, but at least Jericho has someone to yell about.

Post match Guevara says he wants Andretti next week.

Evil Uno really doesn’t like Jon Moxley.

TBS Title: Jade Cargill vs. Vertvixen

Jade is defending and retains with Jaded at 1:05. I’ll take this over being asked to think Red Velvet is a threat.

Swerve Strickland is ready to go to war and thinks Dustin Rhodes has something to do with Trench not being here. Rhodes gets rather annoyed (granted that seems to be his default mode) and is ready to fight.

Swerve Strickland vs. Dustin Rhodes

Parker Boudreaux is here with Swerve (no Trench), who sends him after Rhodes on the ramp. That doesn’t go well for Parker and Dustin knocks Swerve around to start. The beating heads back inside, where Swerve gets in a quick shot to the face but misses a running knee.

A release German suplex drops Swerve but he kicks Dustin in the face for a knockdown. Swerve adds a pump kick from the apron to drop Rhodes and there’s a hard dropkick into the barricade. Dustin is busted open and we take a break. Back with Swerve hitting a Downward Spiral but Dustin fights up and yells a lot. Swerve bites his forehead but charges into the scoop powerslam.

The Canadian Destroyer gives Dustin two and they head to the apron, where Swerve grabs a Death Valley Driver for two. A superplex and piledriver give Dustin two and Cross Rhodes gets the same. The Final Cut connects but Boudreaux pulls Dustin out at two and sends him into the steps….for the DQ at 12:24. You always hear about these things but you never think you’ll actually see one.

Rating: B-. Rhodes is still one of the most consistently solid wrestlers anywhere, as you might not see him get to a great match but you’ll see him have a good one almost every time. Granted having a nearly thirty five year career is going to have a lot to do with that, along with Strickland being in there to help. Good match, as Rhodes continues to defy Father Time.

Post match Boudreaux and Strickland load up the cinder block but Keith Lee (clean shaven and with white/gray hair) pops up behind them (with the camera being set up low instead of at face level so the rising up shot is lost). Boudreaux and Swerve are destroyed, with a discus forearm taking Boudreaux out. Of note: Jericho mentioned that Lee must have attacked Trench for a way to explain his absence.

Overall Rating: B. This was the best, or at least biggest feeling, Rampage in a long time. Granted that is almost guaranteed to be due to the different time slot but I’ll take whatever I can get. There was nothing bad on here and the Lee return felt important, along with having the House of Black finally going after the Trios Titles. Good show here, and it’s nice to see one that feels like it matters.

Results
Elite b. AR Fox/Top Flight – One Winged Angel to Fox
Ricky Starks b. Daniel Garcia – Roshambo
Jade Cargill b. Vertvixen – Jaded
Dustin Rhodes b. Swerve Strickland via DQ when Parker Boudreaux interfered

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Dynamite
Date: February 15, 2023
Location: Sames Auto Arena, Laredo, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Revolution and as of last week, we officially have a main event. Bryan Danielson earned his title shot against MJF, which will come in the form of a sixty minute iron man match. With that out of the way, the rest of the card needs to be built up so let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Jerry Jarrett.

Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Sonjay Dutt/Satnam Singh vs. Orange Cassidy/Billy Gunn/Acclaimed

Bowens runs Lethal over to start and it’s off to Caster for two off a powerslam. Jarrett comes in and drops Caster before handing it off to Singh. Gunn, who almost a foot shorter than Singh, wants to come in but it’s Cassidy coming in instead. Actually it’s Dutt getting Cassidy instead……or actually make that Billy vs. Jeff.

Cue the Gunns to mock the scissoring before telling various people to suck it. Lethal gets in a knee to the back to take Billy down and Lethal grabs a front facelock. Jarrett comes back in as commentary questions Gunn’s parenting skills. Everything breaks down and Singh cleans house until he gets dropped with a Fameasser. Caster loads up Scissor Me Timbers to Dutt and, after various switches and saves (including Cassidy giving Dutt the lazy kicks), Bowens drops the leg for the pin at 9:00.

Rating: C. This was a bit slow for an opener but the Acclaimed get some momentum back. In addition to that, you have Cassidy there to pop the crowd so they had the right pieces in place. Jarrett wrestling the match is no surprise as he is an old pro at heart, but dang it must have been a hard one out there for him.

We look back at MJF attacking a bloodied Bryan Danielson last week.

Danielson is ready for MJF at Revolution.

Rush/Preston Vance vs. Claudio Castagnoli/Jon Moxley

Tornado tag and the fight starts in the crowd before the bell. We take a break and come back with Moxley and Vance getting inside for the opening bell as Rush and Castagnoli are brawling on the floor. Rush gets inside for a basement dropkick on Moxley but Castagnoli comes in to even things up.

Rush is sent outside and Vance is whipped into the buckle to put him down. A double big boot (came close to landing too) send Rush back to the floor and Moxley hits a dive. Everyone heads outside with Rush cracking a chair against a chair against Castagnoli as we take a break.

Back with Moxley getting beaten up with a chain. Castagnoli takes it away and unloads on Rush in the corner before Swinging the bloody Vance. Jose the Assistant comes in for a cheap shot on Moxley so Wheeler Yuta comes out to take care of him. Castagnoli and Rush brawl, leaving Moxley to elbow Vance in the face over and over. The cross armbreaker makes Vance tap at 14:49.

Rating: C. This match felt like violence for the sake of violence and that is not a good thing to see. Moxley bleeding is a running joke now and it lost its impact a long time ago. At the same time, why is it taking two World Champions to beat Rush and Preston Vance? It went too long and wasn’t interesting in the first place, making this a bad combination.

Kip Sabian/Butcher and the Blade jump Hangman Page, who had been watching the match in the back.

Jim Ross had a sitdown interview with Wardlow, who talks about his dad helping raise him, then leaving, but then coming back. Then he left again and the next time Wardlow saw him was when he was in hospice care. The last thing he told his dad was he was going to be a better man and that’s when he grew his hair out. Samoa Joe knew this and cut it off anyway, so now Wardlow must end him. That certainly got intense in a hurry but it gives Wardlow a more personal reason to come after Joe so well done.

Mark Briscoe vs. Josh Woods

Mark Sterling, Tony Nese and Ari Daivari are here too. It’s a brawl to start before Nese and Daivari get involved, only to have the returning Lucha Bros come in for the save. Mark looks confused and gets suplexed from the apron to the floor by Woods as we take a break. Back with Mark sending him outside and using a chair to dive onto Woods. Back in and Woods goes with more grappling to take over, leaving Briscoe having to escape a waistlock. An exchange of kicks to the head, setting up a Death Valley Driver to Woods. The Froggy Bow gives Mark the pin at 8:42.

Rating: C+. Getting Briscoe on the show is a good thing as he is going to need to get used to being a singles wrestler. Giving him wins is the right way to go as well and even if Woods isn’t the biggest star, he is a former champion in Ring Of Honor so there is some value there. Best match of the night too, possibly because it was (mostly) clean throughout.

We get a sitdown interview with Adam Cole, who talks about how his body is healing after the horrible concussions, including being able to look around without being in pain anymore. He’s been looking around at the roster and knows he has to be better than ever and he’ll be ready. Cole as a full on face is a direction that should have been explored before so this should work well.

Here is MJF for a chat. After insulting the Spanish speaking fans, MJF talks about how he is the Devil and until recently, these people were Devil worshippers. We’ll move on to Bryan Danielson, who is called the best in the world, but what matters is the title. MJF will win at Revolution because he is the best in the world and he’s better than Danielson. In case you want proof, MJF brings out one of Danielson’s mentors: Christopher Daniels.

Now Daniels makes one thing clear: MJF paid Daniels a bunch of money to come out here and badmouth Danielson. This time though, he’s going to talk about how great Danielson is, including when Danielson chopped him so hard he thought he would die. Danielson won the King of the Indies tournament, which led to the creation of Ring Of Honor.

Danielson is going to beat MJF, who doesn’t seem happy with any of this. Daniels goes to leave but MJF spins him around, earning a slap to the face. MJF kicks him low and grabs the Salt of the Earth until Danielson makes the save. This Danielson vs. MJF build has been meh at best and this really didn’t help things.

The Gunns brag about winning the Tag Team Titles without having to work on the indies for $10 and a handshake.

Brian Cage vs. Jungle Boy

They go to the floor to start with Cage dropping him on the apron. We take a break (less than a minute in, because that’s something AEW needs to copy from WWE) and come back with Jungle Boy fighting out of trouble. An F5 gives Cage two but Jungle Boy takes him down again. A splash gives Jungle Boy two and a Death Valley Driver gets the same. Cage gets fired up so Jungle Boy superkicks him into a crucifix bomb. The running elbow to the back of the head sets up a rollup to give Jungle Boy the pin at 7:22.

Rating: C. When did Brian Cage become the AEW MVP who had to be out there every week? Jungle Boy getting a win is a good thing as it keeps him strong, which he’ll need until he gets a real feud. The match was nothing great and a lot of it was during the break, but at least the right person won.

Post match Christian Cage returns, with his arm still in a sling, to mace Jungle Boy. The sling comes off to reveal that Christian is fine, setting up the Killswitch on the stage. So now we can finish that off…..several months after it was dropped due to the injury.

Renee Paquette announces that the Gunns will defend their Tag Team Titles at Revolution in a triple threat match. Those opponents will be determined by TWO tag team battle royals, one traditional and one casino, with the winners getting the title shots. The Acclaimed come in to say they’re invoking their rematch clause, so we’ll make it a four way. Sure, why not. It’s not like we haven’t seen battle royals done to death around here.

The Elite, with basketballs, are in the back when Top Flight/AR Fox, also with basketballs, come in for the challenge for Friday’s Rampage: Slam Dunk. It’s on, with Brandon Cutler taking a basketball low blow. During the exchange, the video blipped with a shot of the House Of Black appearing. Is there another viable trio to challenge for the titles at the moment?

Hangman Page vs. Kip Sabian

Penelope Ford is here with Sabian. They start fast with Sabian hitting a Stundog Millionaire and a reverse Cannonball in the corner. A big boot gets Page out of trouble so Sabian bails to the floor. They trade places so a Ford distraction sets up a Sabian baseball slide. An Arabian moonsault drops Page and we take a break. Back with Page whipping Sabian into the barricade and taking him back inside for the Deadeye and the pin at 6:39. Not enough shown to rate but it wasn’t as much of a squash as it should have been.

Post match here is the Blackpool Combat Club to talk to Page, with Moxley saying their issue is over. Page doesn’t think so, and says it should end at Revolution when one man can’t stand. Moxley says Page has no friends so here is the Dark Order, with Evil Uno getting in Moxley’s face. Moxley challenges Page to a Texas Deathmatch and leaves. Page isn’t happy with the Dark Order for getting involved. The crowd didn’t seem to care, and Dark Order feels like a holdover from the old days that Tony Khan forgot to release.

The Jericho Appreciation Society says Ricky Starks isn’t facing Chris Jericho again. Instead, he can face Daniel Garcia on Rampage.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Stokely Hathaway is furious about Hook injuring him and has talked to Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson. Matt Hardy thinks it could lead to a big match but we get word that Hook has been suspended pending an investigation.

Penelope Ford vs. Britt Baker vs. Ruby Soho

Saraya and Jamie Hayter are here too. Before the match, Saraya and Storm attack a fan at ringside and rip up her sign. The bell rings and Soho isn’t interested in a quick alliance offer, instead clearing the ring without much trouble. Soho doesn’t go after either of them though, allowing Storm to come back in and elbow her in the face.

We take a break and come back with an exchange of shots to the face until Storm loads up the running hip attack to Baker. Storm grabs a German suplex on Soho, with Baker rolling Storm up at the same time to make it worse. Baker hits the fisherman’s neckbreaker on Storm but gets sent into the corner off a Downward Spiral.

Soho gets knocked out of the air to set up the Texas Cloverleaf, with Baker trying to add the Lockjaw. Saraya makes the save and Storm goes after Hayter, leaving Baker to get caught with the hip attack (complete with said hips being spray painted by Saraya). Soho sends Storm into Saraya on the floor though and rolls Baker up for the pin at 9:19.

Rating: C-. So not only was the match a mess with people running in, but it also accomplished/changed absolutely nothing. This whole story has only been so interesting in the first place and having it be a three way feud between the homegrowns, the imports and whatever Soho is isn’t going to make it that much better.

Post match Saraya and Hayter yell at Soho before going to check on their friends. Soho motions that she wants a title to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This was a weird show in that it wasn’t bad but it was just kind of there. Not much seemed important and it felt like something that they threw together at the last minute after forgetting they had a show this week. There are two more Dynamites before Revolution and AEW has a lot of work to do to make the show feel important. This didn’t really come close to doing that, but AEW knows how to make up for lost time in a hurry. Not a terrible show, but it was bad for a Dynamite.

Results
Orange Cassidy/Billy Gunn/Acclaimed b. Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Sonjay Dutt/Satnam Singh – Scissor Me Timbers to Dutt
Jon Moxley/Claudio Castagnoli b. Rush/Preston Vance – Cross armbreaker to Vance
Mark Briscoe b. Josh Woods – Froggy Bow
Jungle Boy b. Brian Cage – Rollup
Hangman Page b. Kip Sabian – Deadeye
Ruby Soho b. Britt Baker and Toni Storm – Rollup to Baker

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

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Rampage
Date: February 10, 2023
Location: County Coliseum, El Paso, Texas
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Chris Jericho

We are still in Texas with less than a month to go before Revolution. That should make for a few interesting weeks but this week’s lineup doesn’t exactly offer much in the way of hope. The Blackpool Combat Club is here though and that is one of the better things Rampage could do. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Butcher and the Blade/Kip Sabian

Sabian drives Yuta into the corner to start but a sunset flip gets Yuta out of trouble. Yuta is sent outside and Castagnoli comes in, with Butcher getting to come in as well for the power staredown. They yell at each other and slug it out, with both of them staggering. Moxley and then Yuta come in to take turns on Butcher as Jericho talks about the Impractical Jokers cast stealing his baseball bat.

Sabian is able to grab a flipping Stunner on Yuta for a breather and Blade gets to stomp away. That doesn’t last long and it’s Moxley coming back in to bite Sabian in the head. Moxley goes for the Kimura and elbows at the head, only to get kneed in the face. Sabian sends him outside and we take a break.

Back with Moxley fighting out of trouble and handing it off to Castagnoli for the running uppercuts in the corner. A running dropkick puts Blade down and Sabian has to save him from the Swing. That means the Swing has Sabian in trouble and the Blade gets caught in the Sharpshooter. Butcher makes the save but gets cuttered and we hit the parade of big shots to the face. Castagnoli plants Blade for two with Sabian making the save. Moxley cutters a springboarding Sabian out of the air and Castagnoli finishes with the uppercut at 13:27.

Rating: B. This was similar to last week’s Elite match, as there was no reason to believe there was an upset coming, but it was a lot of fun to watch. That’s the kind of no pressure match that could do a lot of good around here as you get star power, entertaining action and nothing that really matters. Very fun stuff here and it’s not like Sabian and company are hurt by the loss.

Darby Allin promises to not go after the TNT Title again as long as Samoa Joe is champion. He and Sting have something planned though.

We get a short sneak preview of a sitdown interview with Adam Cole. He’s interested in facing some people on the roster.

Ricky Starks wants Chris Jericho again and he’ll beat up Daniel Garcia to take his first step there.

Here are the Impractical Jokers with Chris Jericho’s bat. It’s a lot smaller than they were expecting but here is the Jericho Appreciation Society to beat them down. One is put on a table, with Hager powerbombing the other through him.

Dustin Rhodes says Swerve Strickland crossed the line by mentioning his family. Rhodes has been doing this longer than Strickland has been alive. Rhodes: “What are those three triangles on your chest? They look like Doritos, and I like Doritos!” He’s coming for Strickland’s blood and soul so here are Parker Boudreaux and Trench to beat him down. Strickland comes in to say the match is on for next week.

Ruby Soho vs. Marina Shafir

Vickie Guerrero is here with Shafir. They go to the mat to start with an exchange of arm cranking. Back up and Soho hits a running forearm as we take a break. Back with Soho hitting a kind of reverse fisherman’s suplex but missing a top rope something. No Future is countered so Soho hits some headbutts. Destination Unknown finishes Shafir at 6:40.

Rating: C. They didn’t have time to do anything here, especially with half of the match in the commercial. Soho continues to be the What If in the originals vs. newcomers feud and odds are we’ll get to see something develop there soon. Shafir is fine in this role and Soho beating her feels like a bit of an accomplishment. Granted Soho beating anyone at this point is a bit of a surprise.

Post match Saraya and Toni Storm come out to talk to Soho but Britt Baker and Jamie Hayter run in for the big brawl as Soho looks on.

Mark Briscoe is feeling real good about wrestling again on Dynamite next week. Mark Sterling comes in to offer his services but Briscoe “will be flying solo on this excursion.” The brawl is teased but Josh Woods comes in for the staredown, saying this isn’t Sandy Fork.

Jungle Boy vs. Ryan Nemeth

Jungle Boy knocks him outside for a suicide dive in less than ten seconds. Back in and Nemeth rolls through a high crossbody for two, setting up a DDT. Nemeth gyrates a bit so Jungle Boy hits a sliding forearm to the back of the head for the pin at 1:24. Well that was efficient.

Post match Brian Cage comes out for the staredown.

Ortiz isn’t going to let Eddie Kingston become a follower of the House Of Black.

Stokely Hathaway and Danhausen are ready for Lee Moriarty vs. Orange Cassidy.

Hangman Page is livid over losing to Jon Moxley again and says it’s not over yet. Kip Sabian comes in with Penelope Ford to mock Page, who lunges at him before walking away.

All Atlantic Title: Orange Cassidy vs. Lee Moriarty

Cassidy is defending with Danhausen and Stokely Hathaway here too. Moriarty grabs a hammerlock to start and even steals Cassidy’s glasses. As Cassidy slips out, JR sends best wishes to Jerry Lawler, with Jericho immediately talking about how much he loves Lawler. Cassidy uses the hands in the pockets to escape but gets shouldered down. That means some lazy kicks from the mat (Jericho: “Like Inoki against Ali!”) before Cassidy is sent to the apron.

Some rams into the buckle rock Moriarty but Cassidy misses a top rope clothesline. A European Clutch gives Moriarty two and he slams the arm onto the apron as we take a break. Back with Cassidy hitting the top rope clothesline, allowing Excalibur to rapid fire off the preview for next week’s shows. The Stundog Millionaire rocks Moriarty but he blocks the tornado DDT. Cassidy grabs a sleeper but Moriarty drops backwards for the break.

The Border City Stretch is blocked so Moriarty elbows away at the shoulder instead. With Cassidy on the floor, Danhausen goes for his low blow on Hathaway, who blocks it with the cast on his left arm. Cassidy hits his dive onto Moriarty and grabs the top rope DDT back inside. The Orange Punch is countered into a hard lariat but Cassidy Beach Breaks him for two. Now the Orange Punch can connect but the arm is too banged up. Moriarty gets the Border City Stretch, only to have Cassidy roll him up to retain at 11:27.

Rating: C+. Rampage as something like the Orange Cassidy Show isn’t the worst idea, as the fans love him and he holds the most worthless of the AEW titles. It really only has value to Cassidy and having him beat one midcard challenger after another is a fine way to go. That was on full display here and the formula still works.

Post match Satnam Singh comes in for the staredown but Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal run in from behind. Lethal hits Cassidy and Danhausen with the Golden Globe. The Best Friends try to come in but get beaten down as well. Jarrett loads up the guitar….but the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn run in with chairs to end the show. What an odd choice for the save.

Overall Rating: B-. Good show here, though the ending was more than a little head scratching. What matters is that Rampage is starting to find itself again. AEW has made it pretty clear that they have no long term interest in making Rampage important so just do something like this every week: a few big names, feature the people who aren’t on Dynamite that often, and just have a good time. If that’s all Rampage is going to be, I can think o worse uses for the hour.

Results
Blackpool Combat Club b. Kip Sabian/Butcher and the Blade – Uppercut to Sabian
Ruby Soho b. Marina Shafir – Destination Unknown
Jungle Boy b. Ryan Nemeth – Sliding forearm
Orange Cassidy b. Lee Moriarty – Rollup

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

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Rampage
Date: January 27, 2023
Location: Rupp Arena, Lexington, Kentucky
Commentators: Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Chris Jericho

We’re still in Kentucky and in this case that means it’s time for Hangman Page to face Wheeler Yuta on his way to next week’s showdown with Jon Moxley. Other than that, Jamie Hayter is in a Women’s Title eliminator match and we should be in for a treat there. The show continues to be up and down, but maybe they can make it work this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

I was in the arena for this show, sitting in the middle deck with the video screen on the right.

Opening sequence.

Hangman Page vs. Wheeler Yuta

Yuta knocks him into the corner to start and hammers away. The Octopus has Page in early trouble before Yuta switches to the legs. They trade slaps to the face until Yuta bridges back into a leglock. Page fights up and knocks Yuta down for a change and a fall away slam sends Yuta to the apron. There’s the springboard clothesline to send him outside, setting up a slingshot dive.

Page sends him back inside where Yuta hits a very fast dive of his own. That earns Yuta a pop up powerbomb onto the apron, followed by the Liger Bomb for two back inside. We take a break and come back with Yuta hitting a middle rope dropkick. A top rope forearm drops Page again but he catches Yuta on top. The super Death Valley Driver gets two (Why debut a huge move like that if it’s a two count?) and a release German suplex drops Yuta again.

Yuta grabs his own German suplex and ties Page’s leg in the rope for some elbows to the head. Another German suplex on the apron and another on the floor (with Yuta flipping him backwards because EGADS) drops Page hard. Yuta adds a heck of a dive on the floor but a frog splash only hits knees. The Buckshot Lariat is countered into an Angle Slam, setting up a frog splash to give Yuta two. They strike it out again until Page sends him through the ropes. Yuta hangs on so Page goes to the apron, setting up the Buckshot Lariat. A Jon Moxley Death Rider finishes Yuta at 14:59.

Rating: B-. Good fight here, though that super Death Valley Driver was a good bit annoying. Other than that you have Page trying to get more and more violent for the sake of getting ready for Moxley next week. Yuta tried hard and looked good in defeat, but can we please have another champion stop losing over and over?

Action Andretti and Ricky Starks aren’t done with the Jericho Appreciation Society, who had to cheat to win.

Eddie Kingston is done fighting and understands the House of Black. He’s ready to go home.

Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Satnam Singh vs. Best Friends/Danhausen

Sonjay Dutt and Orange Cassidy are the seconds here. Danhausen even has a ukulele and gets in a contest with Jarrett’s guitar. Not musical of course, but just who the fans like more. Then Singh steals the ukulele and breaks it with ease, allowing Lethal to jump Taylor from behind. The Beat Friends elbow Lethal down and it’s off to Jeff, who gets elbowed in the face as well.

Danhausen comes in for a single kick before handing it back to the Best friends for a double shoulder. We get a quadruple double bicep pose from the good guys and it’s Soul Food into the half and half suplex on Lethal. The Big Hug is broken up though and Trent makes the mistake of going after Singh, earning himself a hard whip out to the floor. We take a break and come back with Trent flipping out of a German suplex so Taylor can come back in to take over.

The Koji Clutch has Lethal in trouble but Jarrett makes the save. Taylor Figure Fours Jarrett and Lethal’s Hail To The King misses. Jarrett inches over for the tag off to Singh though and Danhausen comes in for the, ahem, showdown. Danhausen slugs away and clotheslines the stomach but Singh misses a charge in the corner. All four of the good guys get in a neck snap over the top rope. Danhausen grabs the guitar but the distraction lets Jarrett use the Golden Globe to knock out Danhausen so Singh can get the pin at 10:02.

Rating: C-. I really wasn’t feeling this one as it was a bunch of goofy shenanigans that didn’t exactly make Singh look good. Other than shrugging off offense, he didn’t do anything that made him feel like a monster. I can definitely go with this version of Jarrett/Lethal/Singh rather than them going after the Tag Team Titles, but this match wasn’t exactly great.

Britt Baker tells Ruby Soho to grow a backbone and pick a side. If she’s smart, she knows which one to pick.

Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Tony Gunn

Gunn is a former OVW Champion. Hobbs powers him around, plants him and hits a reverse Attitude Adjustment for the pin at 1:12.

Top Flight want to team up with AR Fox to go after the Trios Titles.

Dustin Rhodes is back after a rough month (losing his mother) but Mogul Affiliates interrupt. Swerve talks about Dustin’s brother having a slick mouth and Dustin’s daddy….and that’s too far. A fight seems imminent.

Video on Jamie Hayter vs. Emi Sakura.

Mark Henry does his catchphrase.

Jade Cargill is interrupted by Red Velvet and has a 50th opponent.

Jamie Hayter vs. Emi Sakura

Women’s Title eliminator with Britt Baker, Rebel and Sakura’s royal court. They strike away to start with Jamie Hayter as Baker has found a rather nice HAYTERADE sign in the crowd to hold up. The fight heads outside with Sakura whipping her from the apron and into the barricade over and over. Back in and Sakura strikes away in the corner before grabbing the surfboard.

We take a break and come back with Hayter grabbing some exploder suplexes. Hayter pounds her down in the corner and grabs a Haytebreaker for two. Sakura counters a sliding forearm into a crucifix for two of her own but Hayter blasts her with clotheslines. A Tower Of London drops Hayter but Sakura avoids a moonsault. Sakura’s Tiger Driver gets two and a moonsault connects for the same. The ripcord lariat is countered into a suplex from Sakura but Hayter BLASTS her with a clothesline. Hayterade finishes Sakura at 12:33.

Rating: B. Hayter continues to look like an absolute star and Sakura gave her a heck of a match. These two beat each other up and looked solid in the process. It felt like a main event and Hayter got a great boost out of it. She has turned herself face with all of the good things she does and it is kind of amazing to see. Heck of a main event.

Overall Rating: B-. The main event carries a lot of this show and the opener is good, but there is a big half an hour gap in the middle with only a Hobbs squash being noteworthy. It was another enjoyable show, but like Rampage most of the time, it felt like little more than a preview for Dynamite. If that is what Rampage wants to be then cool, but it still feels like a bit of a waste of TV time.

Results
Hangman Page b. Wheeler Yuta – Death Rider
Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Satnam Singh b. Best Friends/Danhausen – Golden Globe to Danhausen
Powerhouse Hobbs b. Tony Gunn – Reverse Attitude Adjustment
Jamie Hayter b. Emi Sakura – Hayterade

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

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Dynamite
Date: January 18, 2023
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re about six weeks away from Revolution and that means Bryan Danielson is still on the road to getting his Iron Man match with MJF for the World Title. Other than that, Orange Cassidy is defending the All-Atlantic Title against Jay Lethal and Ricky Starks continues his issues with the Jericho Appreciation Society. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Jay Briscoe.

All-Atlantic Title: Jay Lethal vs. Orange Cassidy

Cassidy is defending and there are no seconds, though here are Jeff Jarrett, Satnam Singh and Sonjay Dutt through the crowd to take fans’ seats. They start fast with Cassidy grabbing a small package and backslide for two each before Lethal knocks him outside. Cue Danhausen, who is now an usher, demanding to see Jarrett and company’s tickets. Because reasons, they hand them over, and Danhausen waves over the Best Friends (with concessions) to sit behind them.

In the melee, Cassidy hits a suicide dive but Lethal knocks him back down without much effort. Now Danhausen is at ringside as Lethal drives Cassidy into the apron. A hard posting (great bump) has Cassidy in more trouble and Lethal gets to strut. Back in and Hail To The King is loaded up but Cassidy rolls away, even as Lethal tries multiple buckles.

The Stundog Millionaire and tornado DDT hit Lethal for two but he’s right back with the Lethal Combination. The Lethal Injection connects, only for Cassidy to roll outside. Hold on though as the referee goes to yell at Jarrett and company, allowing Danhausen to steal the guitar. Lethal gives chase and runs into the Orange Punch to retain the title at 9:09.

Rating: C. This was a tricky one as the match itself was entertaining but there is only so much you can do with all of the shenanigans going on outside. I’m not sure why the Jarrett/Best Friends and company stuff was supposed to be entertaining but it felt like we were going into what Danhausen thought of Memphis. The match worked well enough, but the outside stuff was so distracting that it brought things back down.

Post match everyone else gets in and Cassidy gives Dutt the lazy kicks. Dutt has to be held back and we don’t get much physicality. Well Cassidy and Danhausen do have some popcorn if that counts.

Video on Kushida vs. Darby Allin for the TNT Title later tonight.

Top Flight vs. Young Bucks

Brandon Cutler is here too. Nick cranks on Dante’s wrist to start and with the traditional wrestling out of the way, they start trading the flips until it’s a standoff. Dante hits Nick in the face so it’s off to Matt, who gets tripped down by Darius via the blind tag. Everything breaks down and Dante gets caught on the middle rope. Darius gets sent outside and we take a break.

Back with Nick breaking up a hot tag attempt by punning Darius to the floor. A bulldog/dropkick combination hits Dante and a 450/standing moonsault combination gives Nick two. Dante manages to hurricanrana his way out of trouble and the hot tag brings in Darius to clean house. A high crossbody gets two on Matt and everything breaks down again. Dante hits a springboard Downward Spiral on Nick and springboards outside to dive onto Matt.

The powerbomb/Nose Dive combination gets two on Matt with Nick making a fast save. Nick gets to do his rapid fire comeback, with a slingshot Canadian Destroyer getting two on Dante. Matt, after adjusting his JAY armband, loads up a Doomsday Device for two on Darius with Dante making his own diving save. The BTE Trigger is loaded up but the Darius misses so the knees collide, allowing Darius to grab a rollup pin at 12:14.

Rating: B. Top Flight continues to get better and better, as they are becoming that high flying team that you almost need to have on your roster. Beating the Bucks still means something and hopefully this is a sign that Top Flight could be on their way up the ladder. It wouldn’t stun me to see them getting the Tag Team Titles this year and they seem to be on their way.

Here are the Gunns for a chat. The take credit for the Acclaimed’s success (“WE EVEN GAVE THEM OUR DAD!”) and promise there will never be any more embarrassment. Cue the Acclaimed and, after an argument over whether Caster can rap, Caster raps about how the Gunns are the worst kids since Hunter Biden and…something that is censored. Gunn talks about how the Gunns are pathetic and tells the Acclaimed to start acting like champions. Next week: family therapy. Billy leaves on his own.

Hangman Page feels great after last week’s fight with Jon Moxley. Page said he would knock Moxley out if he had to and then he did just that. As for his future, he won’t go into it, but Page does ask Renee Paquette how Moxley is doing and seems sincere. He asks her to tell him….never mind. Nice touch by not ignoring the big personal side there.

Jake Hager vs. Ricky Starks

Chris Jericho is on commentary and the rest of the Jericho Appreciation Society is at ringside. Hager, with hat, starts fast but Starks takes the hat away and they head outside. Hager posts him and Starks tries to dive through the ropes to avoid the contact, only to crash into them to make it even worse (that looked bad).

We take a break and come back with Starks dropkicking him through the ropes to the floor. A springboard crossbody hits Hager and a running clothesline takes him down again. Starks plants him with a DDT but takes a long time posing, allowing the Society to get up on the apron. That fails as well, allowing Starks to hit the spear for the pin at 6:22. Not enough shown to rate, but Starks continues his rise.

Video on Adam Cole’s return. He could be a heck of a mega face if he is given the chance.

The Jericho Appreciation Society wants to end Ricky Starks, so next week they’re facing Starks and Action Andretti. Hold on though as Daniel Garcia wants to take Sammy Guevara’s place. Guevara says cool, but only if Garcia can beat Andretti on Rampage. Guevara, who seemingly had no knowledge this was happening in advance, has new leather pants ready for Garcia.

Bryan Danielson vs. Bandido

They shake hands to start and we’re ready to go. They go to a quick standoff until Danielson headlocks him down. Back up and Bandido takes him down for a change, setting up the surfboard. That’s broken up and Danielson does the double leg stomp. They trade finger guns until Bandido ties up the legs and arms at the same time. Danielson sits up to escape but has to get out of a Texas Cloverleaf attempt as well.

Back up and Danielson knees away but gets hiptossed down, setting up…something where he ties up Danielson’s arms and legs and lifts him up. That can’t last long so Danielson rolls outside, allowing Bandido to hit the running flip dive. We take a break and come back with Danielson striking away at the ribs but getting small packaged for two. Danielson uppercuts him into the corner for the kicks to the chest.

Bandido isn’t having that and hits a springboard twisting crossbody. The delayed vertical suplex takes Danielson down again but he pulls Bandido into the LeBell Lock. Bandido gets a foot on the rope so Danielson fires off the YES Kicks. The big one is blocked and Bandido hits the X Knee. Danielson flips out of the 21 Plex though and la majistral gets two.

Back up and Bandido is sent outside for a dropkick through the ropes. There’s the running knee off the apron and they head back inside, where Bandido takes him up top. The super fall away slam sets up the 21 Plex for two and they strike it out. Danielson can’t pull him back into the LeBell Lock, allowing Bandido to pull him back up. That’s broken up and the running knee finishes Bandido at 17:53.

Rating: B+. This was the chess match that I was hoping it would be as you could see both of them trying to get into the right place to knock the other one off. What made it different though is it felt like they were going through a game plan throughout the match and had planned for everything the other had to offer. Awesome match, but that shouldn’t be a surprise with Danielson these days.

Post match MJF pops up on screen to say he doesn’t like how Danielson is treating him. So far Danielson has only dealt with Masked Max, but the further Danielson goes down this road, the more the mask comes off. Even the Dragon is no match for the Monster behind the mask.

Saraya and Toni Storm aren’t happy with Hikaru Shida screwing up in their match last week.

Next week it’s Bryan Danielson vs. Brian Cage, so MJF offers Cage a lot of money to Cage to unleash the hate. He even intentionally messes with Cage to make him angrier, which has MJF rather pleased.

Toni Storm vs. Willow Nightingale

Saraya is here with Storm. Nightingale shoulders her down to start and hits a spinning belly to back suplex. Back up and Storm slaps her in the face as Hikaru Shida comes out. We take a break and come back with Nightingale hitting a spinebuster, followed by a middle rope dropkick. The Cannonball misses though and Storm is back with the running hip attack. A tornado DDT plants Nightingale for two but she Pounces Storm into the corner. Now the Cannonball can connect for two….but then Saraya gets on the apron for a distraction so Storm can roll her up for the pin at 7:12.

Rating: C. What was that ending? Why would you have Saraya get on the apron after Storm had already kicked out? It makes sense that Saraya was worried, but why make Nightingale look bad in the process? Anyway, Nightingale gets knocked back a bit, which is a shame as she is starting to move up and while it was screwy she probably didn’t need to lose.

Post match Saraya and Storm beat on Nightingale until Ruby Soho runs in for the save. Shida stayed neutral in the whole thing.

Video on Jungle Boy vs. Ethan Page.

Konosuke Takeshita is honored to have fought Bryan Danielson, and now he wants MJF. There’s the next match that Takeshita gets to lose.

TNT Title: Darby Allin vs. Kushida

Kushida, with some students from the Los Angeles New Japan Dojo is here, with Sting in Allin’s corner. Kushida misses some kicks to start and gets pulled into a quick chinlock. With that broken up, Allin sweeps the leg for two and rolls over into an exchange of armbar attempts. The grappling continues until Kushida slips out of an armdrag, setting up the basement dropkick to send Allin outside.

Back in and Kushida kicks him in the arm before cranking on said arm. That’s broken up and Allin hits a fast Code Red, setting up the big flip dive to the floor onto the Dojo students. Kushida uses the distraction to take Allin down by the arm though and we take a break. Back with Kushida kicking at the arm, which only fires Allin up again. A Scorpion Death Drop plants Kushida for a double knockdown but he’s able to send Allin outside.

Kushida goes after the arm, only to have Allin come back with a flipping Stunner onto the apron. Allin knocks Kushida into an open chair and goes up for the Coffin Drop, only to get pulled into the cross armbreaker. Back in and Kushida cranks on the arm on top, setting up an arm crank top rope superplex (egads). The Hoverboard Lock goes on and the students offer Sting a towel to throw in. Sting wipes his face with it and throws it into the crowd. Allin slips out and grabs the Last Supper to retain at 13:40.

Rating: B. Another solid match here, as Kushida is going to be able to have a good one against anyone. Allin gets a win over an established name as he continues his nice resurgence. I could go for more of Kushida around here and that might be the case, though Sting shrugging off students might have been better.

Respect is shown after the match and Kushida wants to do it again. Excalibur gives Jay Briscoe one more shout out to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This show had a nice mixture of stuff and it made for a rather fun night of stuff. A lot of that was due to a series of good to excellent matches, but there were also some moments of things being a bit overthought. What mattered though is you can see a lot of the Revolution card starting to take shape and this show advanced a few of those stories. Very good show here, with the wrestling carrying things.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Jay Lethal – Orange Punch
Top Flight b. Young Bucks – Rollup to Matt
Ricky Starks b. Jake Hager – Spear
Bryan Danielson b. Bandido – Running knee
Toni Storm b. Willow Nightingale – Rollup
Darby Allin b. Kushida – Last Supper

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: January 13, 2023
Location: Kia Forum, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Chris Jericho

We’re still in Los Angeles and you know that is going to mean a big show. I’m not sure what all it is going to entail but that is some of the fun of Rampage. This week’s Dynamite was a strong show so they have a lot to live up to this week. If nothing else, there is a street fight so that means violence. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

TNT Title: Juice Robinson vs. Darby Allin

Allin is defending. Feeling out process to start with Robinson grabbing a waistlock to send the champ to the ropes. A headlock slows Robinson down but he grabs a belly to back suplex to escape. The backsplash only hits knees though and Allin is back with another headlock. This time Robinson sends him up and over the top for a nasty crash to the floor, followed by some whips into various hard things. A drop onto the steps rocks Allin again and we take a break.

Back with Allin shrugging off the snap jabs and sending Robinson outside for the suicide dive. They get back in, where Robinson leg lariats him down for two, meaning frustration is setting in. Now the backsplash can connect for two and a fireman’s carry gutbuster gets the same. Allin hits a Code Red for a fast two but gets crotched on top for a middle rope clothesline. Robinson takes him up top but the superplex is countered into a super Scorpion Death Drop (that looked GREAT). The Coffin Drop retains the title at 11:45.

Rating: B-. More solid work here and it’s nice to have Allin face someone closer to his size for a change. He’s great as the giant killer but you have to mix it up every so often. The important thing is that the fans love him and are completely behind him, meaning everything he does receives quite the energetic response.

Post match Sting comes out to celebrate. Kind of a weird cameo there as he didn’t do anything.

Powerhouse Hobbs is ready to spread ashes over everyone.

Here is the Acclaimed to accept their stars on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. The team is VERY happy to be here (as Bowens lives in Los Angeles) and want the scissors held high. They want everyone to come after them to know that EVERYONE LOVES THE ACCLAIMED. They put the scissors down in the cement….and the Gunns interrupt, because this feud is still going.

The Gunns say the Acclaimed is only popular because they stole Billy Gunn. Billy agrees (with a huge wink at the Acclaimed) and thinks the Gunns should get to put their prints in the cement. The Gunns go to do so and get their pants removed, allowing certain parts of them to be shoved into the cement.

Mogul Affiliates introduces another rapper to talk about how great they are.

House Of Black vs. Ortiz/Eddie Kingston

Malakai Black/Brody King for the House here. Ortiz strikes away at King to start and can’t get very far. A front facelock works a bit better for Ortiz as he brings King over for the tag to Kingston. Black comes in and gets chopped hard enough that he needs a walk around the ring. They both miss spinning shots to the face and sit down for a staredown as we take a break.

Back with King hitting a Cannonball on Kingston but Kingston manages a knockdown of his own. Ortiz comes in sans tag for a jumping DDT on Black, leaving Kingston to grab a suplex for two. Kingston’s spinning backfist misses though and Black hits a jumping knee. King tries to come in but gets sent outside and here are Buddy Matthews and Julia Hart.

The former brings in a chair, which Kingston takes away and uses to threaten Julia (who hits some Melina level high notes in a scream). Kingston doesn’t swing but Ortiz yells at him anyway, with Kingston saying he thought it was Black. The distraction lets Black kick Kingston’s head off and shove Ortiz down, allowing him to pin Kingston at 9:46.

Rating: C+. It’s nice to see the House Of Black winning here, though I’m still not sure why this feud is supposed to be interesting. Kingston is better on his own but he’s no Santana when it comes to being Ortiz’s partner. The match got going by the end and worked, though the stuff with the chair could have gone a bit more smoothly.

Black seems to say Ortiz did well, though it’s not clear if Ortiz heard him.

Jade Cargill doesn’t like the idea of Red Velvet and fires her from the Baddies. Hadn’t she already left?

Actor Paul Walter Hauser is here to talk about how much he loves wrestling and always bypasses Connecticut to come to Jacksonville. You never know what is going to happen here and here is Danhausen. Since Hauser (a recent Golden Globe winner, with the trophy in hand) wants to talk about awards, Danhausen brings up being the #1 merchandise seller last year.

After thanking the fans, Danhausen asks if he can have the Golden Globe. Cue Jay Lethal/Jeff Jarrett/Sonjay Dutt/Satnam Singh to interrupt, but Hauser says this isn’t Memphis. Hauser says Jarrett looks like a woman who owns a Crunch Fitness and he never plays that guitar.

The other guys look like they are dressed for a home school prom, which is enough for the villains to beat Hauser down, leaving Singh to stand in front of Danhausen in the corner. The guitar shot drops Hauser but Orange Cassidy and the Best Friends run in for the save. Why the villains, who are even in numbers and have a SEVEN FOOT FOUR GIANT, runs isn’t clear. They do steal the Golden Globe though.

We recap Tay Melo/Anna Jay vs. Willow Nightingale/Ruby Soho. They’ve hurt each other so now it’s a street fight.

Mark Henry doesn’t even bother interviewing the women because it’s time to get violent.

Tay Melo/Anna Jay vs. Willow Nightingale/Ruby Soho

Street fight so Nightingale jumps Melo and Jay from behind with a hockey stick. They set up a table next to the stage but the fight heads down to ringside instead. Nightingale and Melo fight on top and fall to the floor as commentary talks about everything else. Soho got busted open somewhere in there as Jay jumps off the apron to stomp a trashcan around Nightingale.

We take a break and come back with an assisted Gory Bomb sending Nightingale into trashcan for two. The barbed wire is busted out to choke Nightingale but Soho makes the save with a chain. Jay trashcan lids Soho (whose face is COVERED in blood) hard and piles up some chairs but Nightingale turns it into a Tower of Doom. Melo gets a chair shot to Nightingale to save Jay in the corner. Nightingale sends Melo outside though and it’s a Cannonball into a trashcan into Jay for two. Everyone goes to the floor and it’s No Future to Melo.

Another table is set up at ringside as Nightingale and Jay fight up the ramp. Nightingale grabs a Batista Bomb off the stage and through the table….which Jay COMPLETELY MISSES, sending her straight onto the floor as Nightingale crashes through the able instead. Back at ringside and Melo piledrives Soho through the table for two, giving us a well earned shocked face. It’s thumbtacks time because of course it is but Soho throws some of them into Melo’s face. Destination Unknown finishes Melo at 12:34.

Rating: B. This is the definition of a “your mileage may vary” match, as the four of them beat the fire out of each other. That Soho cut was absolutely sick though and one of the worst looking ones I’ve seen in a lot time. What mattered was it felt like they were wanting to hurt each other and end this, but EGADS learn how to place a table. That Jay landing shouldn’t have happened and could have been made a lot better than it was otherwise.

Soho and Nightingale show respect to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. Well it was certainly an energetic and eclectic show, even if there was very little that felt like it mattered long term. If AEW isn’t going to turn this into a show that matters, having an energized supplement is about as good as it is going to be. I had a good time with it though and the main event was definitely different enough to stand out. Good show, though AEW might want to try to find a way to have something a little more important on here occasionally.

Results
Darby Allin b. Juice Robinson – Coffin Drop
House Of Black b. Eddie Kingston/Ortiz – Black Mass to Kingston
Ruby Soho/Willow Nightingale b. Anna Jay/Tay Melo – Destination Unknown into thumbtacks to Melo

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: January 11, 2023
Location: Kia Forum, Los Angeles, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re in for a big show this week as things head back to Los Angeles. AEW knows how to bring it on the bigger stages and that is what should happen here. This week is centered around the ladder match to end the Best Of Seven series between the Elite and Death Triangle for the Trios Titles. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Jon Moxley vs. Hangman Page

They go right to the fighting with Page sending him into the corner for a running boot to the face. Page forearms him down but Moxley fights up and starts the swagger. The cross armbreaker doesn’t work for Moxley so he knocks Page off the apron instead. Back in and Moxley blasts him with a clothesline for two and we take a break.

We come back with Moxley hitting another clothesline to set up the exchange of forearms. Page hits the fall away slam and nips up to knock Moxley outside. The moonsault to the floor connects but Moxley counters the Buckshot Lariat into the Death Rider for two. Page gets out of the choke so Moxley hits a hard piledriver for two more. The Deadeye is broken up as well and now the Deadeye connects. Moxley staggers to the ropes though and hits the Stomp to leave both of them down. Back up and the slug it out with Page getting the better of things and hitting the Buckshot Lariat for the pin at 14:10.

Rating: B. Good fight, though it didn’t quite hit that level they had built the match up towards. The important thing here is that Page won, as he pretty much had to given everything that had happened. He had a personal issue with Moxley but also needed to win to boost himself back up so well done with the whole thing.

Post match Moxley is checked out by the doctors and Page walks away without a second look. That might be Moxley’s long awaited vacation.

Here is Tony Schiavone to bring out….the returning Adam Cole! It’s Story Time with Adam Cole, who always wanted to be a professional wrestler, and here he is in an AEW ring in Los Angeles. He’s been going through a bunch of health issues, from a destroyed shoulder and two serious head injuries. Someone told him that they don’t care if Cole wrestles again but all he wants is Cole to be ok.

For six months, he has given the fans nothing but the fans still seem to care about him. For that he is eternally grateful and we pause for the ADAM COLE chants. Cole has some bad news though….and it’s not for him. The bad news is for everyone else because he is BACK! Remember this day because the new Adam Cole is being born, and one day he is going to be at the top of the AEW mountain. Cool moment here as it’s nice to have Cole back and seemingly as a good guy.

The Acclaimed is getting stars on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame. Oh boy.

Lee Moriarty/Big Bill vs. Hook/Jungle Boy

Stokely Hathaway is here with Bill/Moriarty. Hook and Moriarty start things off with Moriarty having to fight out of a short armscissors attempt. Jungle Boy comes in for a basement dropkick but Bill grabs him by the throat. The chokeslam onto the apron is broken up by Hook’s baseball slide though and Bill gets to dance a bit. Jungle Boy is knocked to the floor and we take a break. Back with Jungle Boy fighting out of Moriarty’s triangle choke and bringing Hook in. House is quickly cleaned and Hook manages to suplex Bill. With Bill looking stunned, Jungle Boy Snare Traps Moriarty for the tap at 7:38.

Rating: C+. The story here is Hook, who is now getting to work longer and more complicated matches as he is coming along nicely. You can only get so much out of a few suplexes and Redrum so having him live in a match with a more serious story is a great sign. Hook seems like he could have something in the future and I could go with seeing how they use him.

An actor named Paul Walter Hauser has a present for Danhausen and Orange Cassidy, which he’ll give them on Rampage. The Best Friends come in and everything is cool.

The Elite has nothing to say.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Bryan Danielson

Hold on though as before Danielson comes out, here is MJF (with his chyron saying he is looking to avoid a match with Danielson at Full Gear instead of Revolution) to say KONICHIWA. He loves Takeshita, even though he has never seen a second of his stuff. MJF mocks Takeshita’s name and tells him to win tonight, earning a yell in Japanese. Takeshita is ready to fight but the referee holds him back.

MJF says people are accusing him of being scared of lasting an hour, but ask your mama about that. He’s all about pinning shoulders to the mats and bending rats but everyone here is irrelevant. Actor Ken Jeong is here, with MJF mocking his career stalling a bit. Freddie Prinze Jr. is here too and gets the same round of insults. Cue Danielson to chase MJF off (dude can run when he is wearing a belt) and we’re ready to go.

They start fast and wrestle to an early standoff as some people are standing up and talking in the front row. Takeshita works on the arm but Danielson pulls him into a surfboard with a dragon sleeper. That’s reversed into Takeshita’s attempt at a dragon sleeper but he goes with forearms to the face instead. Danielson goes for the arm but Takeshita bails to the rope for the save. Back up and Danielson charges into a heck of a Blue Thunder Bomb for two and they chop it out as we take a break.

We come back with Danielson trying a dive off the apron into….I think the running knee but he gets spun around and lands hard on the floor. Takeshita grabs a brainbuster on the floor but a springboard Swanton hits raised knees back inside. Danielson grabs the LeBell Lock but Takeshita gets a foot on the rope.

They slug it out again until both of them go down for a breather. Takeshita’s running knee is countered into the elbows to the head but Takeshita is back with a wheelbarrow driver. A wheelbarrow suplex looks to set up the running knee but Danielson hits it instead for two. The stomps to the head set up the Regal Stretch to finishes Takeshita at 14:17.

Rating: B+. Yeah this was great and I don’t think that was any kind of a surprise. Danielson can work wonders with just about anyone and Takeshita has been a treat almost every time he is in the ring. Danielson is on the road to Revolution and an Iron Man match with MJF for the title, but MJF’s stand up set might not be over by then. The jokes before the match didn’t do much and MJF running away was the highlight of his appearance.

Juice Robinson wants to face Darby Allin on Rampage for the TNT Title.

Saraya/Toni Storm vs. Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter

Hikaru Shida and Rebel are the seconds here. Storm and Hayter fight over a lock up to start with Storm taking over and bringing Saraya in. Saraya knees her in the ribs for two but Baker offers a distraction. That doesn’t seem to matter as Saraya sends Hayter into the steps as Baker punches Storm as we take a break.

Back with Baker coming in to get clotheslined by Saraya. A knee gives Saraya two and it’s back to Storm, who hits the running hip attack in the corner. Baker takes her into the corner though and a super Air Raid Crash gets two. The quick piledriver gives Storm two on Hayter as everything breaks down. Baker gets in a kendo stick shot to Storm and Hayterade gives Hayter the pin at 11:45.

Rating: C+. The match was good enough, but after teasing Mercedes Mone and not delivering her, it felt a bit flat. A lot of that was built on fan theory, but when Baker called herself a boss, they were leaning into it quite hard. As for the match, it’s Storm losing again, which shouldn’t be a surprise anymore.

Here’s what’s coming on Rampage.

Eddie Kingston and Ortiz don’t seem to be on the same page for Friday, but Kingston says he’ll prove himself.

Here is the Jericho Appreciation Society for a chat. We hear about how great the team is, including their PWG invasion over the weekend. On top of that, Tay Melo/Anna Jay are totally going to wreck Willow Nightingale and Ruby Soho on Rampage. Cue Ricky Starks and Action Andretti to interrupt with Starks bragging about beating Chris Jericho last week. Andretti mocks Daniel Garcia and Sammy Guevara, the latter of whom can’t even control his own wife. Guevara can’t control where his wife’s hands go, because last week they were between Andretti’s legs.

Garcia rants about how pro wrestlers like Andretti don’t get it because he isn’t a sports entertainer. Starks wants Jericho to move aside so he can talk to the idiot in the purple hat. Jake Hager was a top athlete but then he got with Jericho and became the village idiot. Starks wants to fight next week, with Excalibur saying the match has already been made. Hager talks about his hat and MMA career before promising to slap Starks’ face off his face (yes). Starks continues to feel like a star in recent weeks and that is great to see.

Trios Titles: Elite vs. Death Triangle

Death Triangle is defending in the final match of a Best Of Seven series and this is Escalara de la Muerte (TLC match). The brawl is on to start with Omega and Pac being left inside for the slugout. Matt and Penta come in for the Backstabbers and slug it out on their own but it’s too early for the Fear Factor. Death Triangle clears the ring with Penta hitting a running flip dive to take Omega down on the floor.

Back in and the first ladder is set up but Fenix springboards in with an armdrag to pull Nick down. Omega grabs some snapdragons but misses a running flip dive through a table at ringside. Matt hits a high crossbody to dive Pac through a table though and we take a break. Back with Nick being dropped legs first onto a ladder and Omega’s hand being stomped inside another ladder.

Omega is fine enough to try a One Winged Angel but Pac reverses into a poisonrana. The Bros hit dives but the Bucks are back up with superkicks. Nick 450s Penta through a table at ringside and it’s time for Matt to go up…and get shoved over by Alex Abrahantes. Brandon Cutler cold sprays Abrahantes and the ladder is bridged into the standing version. Penta and Omega fight up the ladder, with Omega hitting the One Winged Angel to knock him silly. The Black Arrow hits Omega’s raised knees and Omega pulls down the titles at 14:49.

Rating: B. This was the violent carnage you would have expected coming in. It’s also the result you probably expected, as the Elite get their titles back, making the last few months more or less a total wash. The series was fun and gave us some good matches, but I’m sick of seeing these teams against each other. Both of them need to be far, far apart from each other and that’s probably going to be best for everyone involved.

Overall Rating: A-. They felt like they were trying for the pay per view level Dynamite here and it was a success. You could tell that being in Los Angeles made things feel more important and that made the show feel much more important. Nothing was bad (save for maybe MJF’s jokes) and there was one awesome match after another. That’s a heck of a two hour show and this was a smash.

Results
Hangman Page b. Jon Moxley – Buckshot Lariat
Hook/Jungle Boy b. Lee Moriarty/Big Bill – Snare Trap to Moriarty
Bryan Danielson b. Konosuke Takeshita – Regal Stretch
Jamie Hayter/Britt Baker b. Toni Storm/Saraya – Hayterade to Storm
Elite b. Death Triangle – Omega pulled down the titles

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Battle Of The Belts V
Date: January 6, 2023
Location: Portland Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Portland, Oregon
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Chris Jericho

We’re back with another of these shows that doesn’t feel like all that important to AEW. It’s another three match card and all of them have titles on the line. This includes a rematch from Dynamite, where the Acclaimed retained the Tag Team Titles over Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal. This time it’s No DQ though so let’s get to it.

We open with Darby Allin leaving the ring after his Rampage main event.

Tag Team Titles; Jay Lethal/Jeff Jarrett vs. Acclaimed

The Acclaimed is defending, No Holds Barred, and Satnam Singh/Sonjay Dutt/Billy Gunn are here too. The champs get jumped from behind before the bell and the fight is on fast. Lethal gets a Figure Four on Bowens on the ramp but it gets broken up rather quickly. We settle down to a regular tag match with Bowens grabbing a Blockbuster to take over.

Caster comes in, runs the ropes, drops to the floor and punches Singh in the face (no effect) as everything breaks down again. Jarrett saves Lethal from Scissor My Timbers, setting up a double strut as we take a break. Back with Bowens and Lethal slugging it out until Bowens blasts him with a clothesline. The double tag brings in Caster and Jarrett, with the former cleaning house. An Angle Slam drops Jarrett and, after pulling off the invisible straps, Caster grabs the ankle lock.

With that broken up, Singh takes out Caster, leaving Bowens to hit the running jumping Fameasser. The referee got bumped in there somewhere so it’s a second one sliding in to count the late two. Jarrett grabs the guitar but Gunn makes the save and blasts Singh with the guitar. A Stroke takes Gunn down but Jarrett walks into an AA from Caster.

Singh chokeslams both champs though and then does it to the referee as well. Dutt puts the referee shirt on (Jericho: “It even matches his black trousers!”) and counts two with Aubrey Edwards coming out to break it up. Then she breaks his pencil and shoves Dutt down, leaving Lethal to get caught with the Arrival and the Mic Drop to retain the titles at 10:53.

Rating: C. Well that was a lot. I’ve never quite gotten the concept of starting with rules and then breaking down into no rules but that’s a modern wrestling issue. What got me here was Edwards going after Dutt, as if ANYTHING he did would have mattered in the first place. That came off as a spectacle for the save of involving the referee in a match that was already way overloaded. Gunn’s guitar shot to Singh was good but that was about it for the decent weapons stuff. Total insanity here and I absolutely didn’t need to see these teams fight twice in three days.

Will Hobbs has the Book Of Hobbs with him, which includes everything that has happened to him. Now it’s going to happen to you.

Eddie Kingston and Ortiz aren’t sure what is going on with the House of Black but they’ll fight next week on Rampage.

TBS Title: Jade Cargill vs. Skye Blue

Jade, with Leila Grey, is defending. Blue goes right at her to start and snaps off a crucifix for two. After a quick breather on the floor, Jade comes back in and knocks her to the floor with a rather hard forearm. A chokeslam on the ramp plants Blue again but cue Red Velvet to stare Cargill down from the stage.

We take a break and come back with Blue snapping off a rather spinning headscissors. One heck of a pump kick drops Blue though and it’s Velvet coming down to check on her. Back in and Jaded is countered into a victory roll for two, followed by Code Blue for the same. Blue loads up a springboard hurricanrana but Jade catches her and spins it (after a few movements) into Jaded to retain at 9:13.

Rating: C+. They were working here and that finish was awesome. There is something really impressive about Cargill managing to manipulate a full sized human around like that into Jaded and she made it look easy. Blue was putting in the effort, but as I’ve said multiple times now: until they put Jade in there with some big name, there is little reason to believe the title is in serious jeopardy.

The Firm is ready for Junglehook (yes, combining names is very clever) on Dynamite.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Video on Ruby Soho/Willow Nightingale vs. Ruby Soho/Tay Melo in a street fight next week on Rampage.

All-Atlantic Title: Orange Cassidy vs. Kip Sabian

Sabian, with Penelope Ford, is challenging and Danhausen here is with Cassidy. They start fast with a more ticked off than usual Cassidy getting headlocked. That earns Sabian a bunch of right hands, meaning it’s time for a breather on the floor. Cue the Bunny so Sabian can hide behind the women, which is enough of a distraction for a cheap shot on Cassidy.

Hold on though as Danhausen loads up the curse, only to have Sabian bite his finger. The distraction lets Cassidy hit the suicide dive, followed by the Stundog Millionaire back inside. They head back outside though, with Sabian hitting a hanging neckbreaker to the floor. We take a break and come back with Cassidy still in trouble, though he avoids the reverse Cannonball.

Cassidy knocks him off the top but Bunny grabs the leg. That’s enough for an ejection for both Bunny and Danhausen so here are Butcher and Blade to beat up Danhausen. Cassidy and Sabian slug it out, with Sabian trying his own lazy strikes. That wakes Cassidy up but Sabian knees him in the face for two.

Another hanging neckbreaker gets two on Cassidy so Sabian hits his own Orange Punch. Cassidy fights back up and the Beach Break gets two. The frustration makes Cassidy hammer away in the corner until he accidentally shoves the referee away. Sabian tries to go after him again but back to back Orange Punches finish to retain the title at 16:44.

Rating: B-. So Cassidy wins over Sabian, who isn’t exactly the most enthralling opponent. They did something with Sabian getting underneath Cassidy’s skin but that doesn’t really make up for a lot of Sabian’s flaws. I know he has been around since the beginning but I’ve still yet to have much of a reason to get interested in anything he does. Cassidy continues to own Friday night and that’s a good place for him as the fans still love everything he does.

Overall Rating: C+. That’s the latest Battle Of The Belts and while it was certainly entertaining enough, it still doesn’t feel important. That has been the biggest flaw of this series since it started and nothing about this changed it. AEW might be better off by having an expanded Rampage instead of one of these, as that’s pretty much what you got here. It was good on its own and combined with Rampage, this was a rather nice two hour Friday night show.

Results
Acclaimed b. Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal – Mic Drop to Lethal
Jade Cargill b. Skye Blue – Jaded
Orange Cassidy b. Kip Sabian – Orange Punch

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Dynamite
Date: January 4, 2023
Location: Climate Pledge Arena, Seattle, Washington
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

We’re in a new year and the big story is a new look for the show. That is somewhat long overdue and the question is will AEW have a good show to back it up. The likely main event is Samoa Joe defending the TNT Title against hometown boy Darby Allin in a rematch from a few weeks back. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence, with remixed themed song.

There is a new set with new graphics. They’re nothing mind blowing but they look sleek and rather nice.

Chris Jericho vs. Ricky Starks

Feeling out process to start with Starks slapping him in the face and pounding away in the corner. Starks does a rather length Old School but gets knocked to the apron. The triangle dropkick is broken up though and Jericho suplexes him off the apron as we take a break. Back with Starks hitting a running clothesline to leave both of them down.

Starks grabs a sitout powerbomb for two, blocks the Codebreaker and hits a superkick for two. Jericho is right back with the Walls so he goes to the rope, only to have one of the Society member knock him silly with a foreign object. The referee gets two arm drops before Starks is up again. Jericho tries a running something but gets caught in a tornado DDT. Starks drops the Society and hits the spear for the pin at 12:41.

Rating: B-. Well that’s a surprise, but what matters here is Starks overcame the odds and got a pretty big win. It seems like they are trying something with him and that is one of the best things that could happen. Starks has the talent and has been on a roll over the last few weeks. Maybe he goes somewhere with this and I can think of far worse ideas. Good match too, as Starks overcame the odds, just as he should have.

Post match the beatdown is on with the rest of the Society coming in, only to have Action Andretti make the save. Anna Jay and Tay Melo come in for the low blow though and the beatdown is on again. Starks gets powerbombed off the apron through a table.

Here is Hangman Page for an update on his medical condition. He can’t give us the good news that he is cleared, but he can pass one more brain scan before next week and fight Jon Moxley then. Cue Moxley, who says he is tired of the candlelight vigil for Page. He also seems sick of thinking that the mic isn’t on (though we can hear it at home, including him dropping an F bomb about it). Moxley: “Let’s go Seahawks. Ok let’s get this back on track.”

Page talks about being knocked out by everyone from enemies to his best friends. Moxley has been making jokes about everything though and thinks it’s because Moxley is scared. That’s why Page is here right now and he has two in the chamber for Moxley. That doesn’t work with Moxley, who says Page doesn’t belong in the ring with him, and next week, he’ll make sure Page doesn’t get back up. This was intense stuff, but Page better win next week.

Video on Samoa Joe, who is ready for Darby Allin.

Tag Team Titles: Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal vs. Acclaimed

The Acclaimed is defending, with Max Caster talking about how Jarrett is going to blame the loss on Dixie Carter because TNA means Total Nonstop Acclaimed. Billy Gunn, Sonjay Dutt and Satnam Singh are all here too as Caster jumps over Lethal to start and kicks him a few times. The running Fameasser from behind drops Lethal and Scissor Me Timbers hits Lethal again. Jarrett breaks up the big scissoring though and it’s Scissor Me Timbers for him too.

Back up and Lethal slides outside to slap Gunn in the face, which is enough to draw him inside. That’s enough for the ejection and we take a break. Back with Lethal grabbing a chinlock on Bowens, only to miss Hail To the King. Bowens hits some suplexes and it’s back to Caster for the house cleaning, including a dive to Lethal on the floor. A high crossbody gets two on Lethal with Jarrett making the save. Caster gets shoved off the top so it’s a Figure Four to Bowens.

Singh and Dutt get caught going after Caster so they’re out as well, which is enough for Lethal to let go of Bowens’ leg. The Stroke hits Bowens instead and Lethal covers but Bowens gets his foot on the rope….which Dutt shoves off for the pin. Thankfully even AEW isn’t that insane and here is Aubrey Edwards to say not so fast, meaning the match continues. In the chaos, Bowens rolls Lethal up to retain at 12:01.

Rating: C. That was a heck of a false finish, though the fear of Jarrett and Lethal being champions is so strong that I’m not sure what to think of the whole thing. I still don’t get the reason why they’re in this spot as it isn’t like they’re a thrilling team, but at least they didn’t do anything insane here. They may have teased it, but they didn’t go all the way.

We get a sitdown interview with Britt Baker and Jamie Hayter. They aren’t worried about whoever Saraya has as her partner because they are AEW originals. How does Saraya not know who her partner is yet? It doesn’t matter because Britt is the pillar and Jamie is the killer (that’s a great line).

Jungle Boy is ready for the Firm and has Hook with him.

Bryan Danielson vs. Tony Nese

Mark Sterling and Josh Woods are here with Nese and the fans go NUTS for Danielson. A distraction lets Nese take him into the corner for the Running Nese and a near fall. Danielson fires off the kicks in the corner to set up the YES Kicks but the big one is blocked. Nese hits a not so great buckle bomb but misses the Running Nese this time. The running knee knocks Nese silly and Danielson stomps him unconscious. The Regal Stretch makes the referee stop it to give Danielson the win at 3:23.

Rating: C. This was little more than a squash and a way to get Danielson in the ring in front of his (close enough) hometown crowd. Danielson seems ready to be getting ready for the World Title shot against MJF, so running through a schnook like Nese is a good way to go. They didn’t give this any kind of time and they shouldn’t have done so, making it a perfectly acceptable use of time.

Post match Danielson says he’s glad to be home and calls out MJF. Cue MJF to say he isn’t coming out there and wrestle Danielson right now. MJF doesn’t care about wrestling like this but doesn’t think much of Danielson anyway. If Lance Storm and Dean Malenko could procreate, it would still be more interesting than him.

MJF mocks Danielson’s mother having relations with a goat, but Danielson has heard MJF’s mother had enough male suitors to fill this arena. MJF: “THAT’S NOT FUNNY!” MJF says marks like these fans have anointed Danielson, but people like Disco Inferno, Eric Bischoff, “and the smartest man of them all, and my #1 fan, Jim Cornette” have put MJF over. Danielson is ready to fight but MJF backs away, saying Danielson has to become #1 contender. Fans: “SHUT THE F*** UP!” MJF: “No.”

MJF has talked to Tony Khan, who said that Danielson has to win a match every week until February 8 to get the title shot at Revolution. Danielson: “No.” He’ll just wrestle when he wants, become #1 contender the title and win when he feels like it. That sends MJF over the edge, promising to have Mark Sterling filibuster. Danielson: “Mark Sterling is a horrible lawyer.” He wants a stipulation of his own, so let’s have a one hour Iron Man match. Schiavone: “DO IT DUMBA**, DO IT!”

The match is on….but MJF says Danielson still has to win until February 8. Danielson says MJF doesn’t have what it takes and promises to run the gauntlet and win the title. This went on a good bit longer than it needed to but it got the point across. That Cornette line is going to get a lot of hype though.

Video on Kip Sabian vs. Orange Cassidy.

AR Fox vs. Swerve Strickland

Mogul Affiliates are here with Swerve. Fox is sent to the apron and drops to the floor, with Swerve flipping through the ropes (that was sweet) so an Affiliates distraction can ensue. Swerve takes him down on the floor and we take an early break. Back with Swerve grabbing a suplex for two but Fox fights out of the corner. A basement cutter sets up another cutter to plant Swerve, setting up a 450 for two. Fox gets caught on top and pulled back down though, setting up the Swerve Stomp for the pin at 9:12.

Rating: B-. These two just work well together and they have everywhere else I’ve seen them. The good thing here is Fox looked good in defeat and that is all he needed to do. At the same time, Swerve looked as smooth as he always does, showing just how far he could go in AEW. Now just drop the completely unnecessary Affiliates and we could go somewhere fast.

Saraya, with Toni Storm and Hikaru Shida, won’t announce her partner for next week. She talks about how great AEW’s women’s division has been…and then picks Storm as her partner. Shida looks stunned.

Here are the Gunns for the FTRIP funeral. We hear about how FTR won a bunch of titles, save for the AEW Tag Team Titles. Then they lost them, because the Gunns are just better. After the Gunns fake out the FTR entrance, they promise FTR will never wrestle here again.

Video on the Elite vs. Death Triangle Best Of Seven series, with the finals next week.

Jade Cargill/Red Velvet vs. Skye Blue/Kiera Hogan

Velvet and Blue wrestle to the mat to start but neither can get anywhere. Hogan is brought in to take Velvet down, much to Cargill’s annoyance. Blue comes back in and kicks away, setting up a DDT to drop Hogan again. We take a break and come back with Velvet suplexing her way out of trouble. Cargill comes in to kick away though and Hogan is right back in trouble. Velvet comes in and has to suplex her way to freedom, meaning it’s back to Cargill coming in for some kicks. Cargill plants Hogan again so Velvet walks, leaving Cargill to get rolled up for two. The pump kick finishes Hogan at 6:43.

Rating: C-. You mean Jade Cargill, who is the same wrestler as she was before she got the Baddies, might lose the Baddies, who have added nothing to Cargill whatsoever? Gee, I wonder if this is going to change the way Cargill squashes everyone in her path, just like she has done since she debuted. More of the same as we have seen from Cargill for months and just as exciting.

Here’s what is coming on various shows, including Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal vs. the Acclaimed for the Tag Team Titles, No DQ.

Jarrett and Lethal are ready.

TNT Title: Samoa Joe vs. Darby Allin

Allin, the hometown boy, is challenging and dives on Joe before the belly. A skateboard shot to the back rocks Joe and Allin gets in another shot to the back for a bonus. Allin climbs a ladder and hits the huge flip dive, only to come up holding his knee. We get the opening bell to start the match and Joe drops Allin hard onto the steps.

Back from a break with Allin going for a choke, only to have Joe drop back down onto him. Joe kicks him in the chest for two and crushes Allin in the corner. Allin tries to drive him into the corner but Joe rips the turnbuckle pad off. The Koquina Clutch goes on but Allin flips over into a cradle for two. The flipping Stunner is countered into another Koquina Clutch but Allin sends him into the exposed buckle. Back to back Coffin Drops give Allin the pin and the title at 8:50.

Rating: B. This was all action as they played this one as well as they could have. Take Allin, let him bounce off of Joe as much as possible until the ending. Sometimes the best way to go is with the hometown star getting the big win. Allin has been trying to get back to the top of the mountain and he did it here. Keep it simple and let what works work.

Post match Sting comes out for the big celebration and Allin gets to pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. There might not have been anything great on this show but there was more than enough quite good to carry it pretty far. The main event was the high point, but what mattered was making the show feel important. Most of what you saw here was either good enough on its own or set something up for the future. Solid show here, as AEW starts the new year off well.

Results
Ricky Starks b. Chris Jericho – Spear
Acclaimed b. Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal – Rollup to Lethal
Bryan Danielson b. Tony Nese – Regal Stretch
Swerve Strickland b. AR Fox – Swerve Stomp
Jade Cargill/Red Velvet b. Skye Blue/Kiera Hogan – Pump kick to Hogan
Darby Allin b. Samoa Joe – Coffin Drop

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

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Rampage
Date: December 30, 2022
Location: 1st Bank Center, Broomfield, Colorado
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Paul Wight

We’ll close out the AEW year with this and as is often the case around here, Orange Cassidy is defending the All-Atlantic Title. This time though, it’s against his friend Trent Beretta. That could go in a few directions and on top of that, we’ll be hearing from Jon Moxley about something. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

In Memory Of Don West.

Opening sequence.

All-Atlantic Title: Orange Cassidy vs. Trent Beretta

Cassidy is defending, Chuck Taylor/Danhausen are on commentary and Kip Sabian is on commentary. They shake hands for a good bit to start until Trent misses an armdrag. Back up and they run the ropes until Cassidy is hiptossed outside. Cassidy gets back in and sends him outside as well. Then they switch places again, with Cassidy being sent outside for the second time.

Trent’s dive hits Chuck by mistake but it’s turned into a well timed Big Hug. Cassidy dives onto Trent to take over, setting up a high crossbody back inside. Trent knocks him to the floor again (you might be noticing a pattern emerging here) but this time Cassidy gets whipped into the barricade. A hard charge hits barricade only though and Cassidy dropkicks him into it again as we take a break.

Back with Cassidy hitting the lazy chops, capped off by a regular one. They forearm it out until a Michinoku Driver gives Cassidy two. He can’t bring himself to try the Orange Punch though and instead tries the Beach Break. That’s reversed into a failed piledriver attempt so Trent settles for a running elbow in the corner. A tornado DDT plants Trent again and the top rope DDT gives Cassidy two more.

Trent’s Crunchie attempt is countered but he can hit the tombstone for his own near fall. A piledriver out of the corner gives Trent two and here is Penelope Ford to interrupt. Ford gets up on the apron to distract Trent, allowing Cassidy to hit a quick Beach Break for two. The Orange Punch retains the title at 11:23.

Rating: C+. The action was good enough and they told a nice story of the two friends not wanting to fight each other but having to in the end. The Ford addition seemed to be there to move us towards Cassidy vs. Kip Sabian again, because that is a thing we need to do one more time. Good match here, as Cassidy gets in his traditional Rampage win.

Post match Trent walks away and Cassidy passes Sabian, who is on the way to the ring for his match.

After Dynamite, Tony Schiavone asked Darby Allin about his upcoming TNT Title shot. Allin is glad to get his title shot in his hometown of Seattle. Everyone laughed at him when he was 115lbs at the end of high school and he proved all of them wrong. Then he became TNT Champion but he lost it all. Now he isn’t sure if anyone, including Sting, believes in him. Sting asks what if he says no before saying he knows Joe is going to kill him. We get the big firing up speech and Sting wants Allin to forget what everyone else is saying. Go get your title back! Nice stuff here as they went with what made sense.

Kip Sabian vs. Atifa

I have no idea if that is Sabian’s opponent’s name but it’s the closest I can get. Sabian mocks Orange Cassidy, hits a Cannonball in the corner, and finishes with his own version of the Orange Punch at 1:18.

La Faccion Ingobernable is in the back with Preston Vance mocking the idea of the Dark Order. Vance isn’t happy that he doesn’t know next week’s opponent, but he doesn’t mind mocking Negative One on national TV.

Here is Jon Moxley in the ring for a chat (no entrance this time). He isn’t happy with Hangman Page and knew that there was going to be a showdown coming. There can only be one true ace and last man standing after what happened between them in Cincinnati. Page woke up in the hospital that night but he slept like a baby. The Blackpool Combat Club works harder than anyone else and deserve their praise. Wrestling is a tough business and if Page can make it to January 11, he’ll be ready to show Page how rough things can be. Keep your hands up b****.

Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal are ready to win the Tag Team Titles on Dynamite. Lethal is rather over the top while Jarrett is serious and to the point about wanting to hurt Max Caster.

TBS Title: Kiera Hogan vs. Jade Cargill

Cargill, with the rest of the Baddies, is defending. Hogan small packages her for a fast two and ducks the pump kick. A chokeslam plants Hogan and we take a break. Back with Hogan slipping away but getting caught with the pump kick for two. They head outside where Leila Grey holds Hogan for a slap….which Red Velvet blocks. Back in and Hogan slips out of another chokeslam, setting up a running hip attack on the ropes to rock Cargill. A high crossbody gives Hogan two more bud it’s Jaded to retain the title at 7:33.

Rating: C. And that is the latest Jade Cargill match with no drama about her losing as she absorbs everything and then wins with Jaded in the end. Hogan was going hard here but there was no chance she was going to lose for the first time to Hogan on Rampage. As has been the case for a long, long time now, Cargill desperately needs something new and this wasn’t it.

Post match Red Velvet leaves on her own.

Jamie Hayter is ready for whomever Saraya has for a partner on January 11.

Mark Sterling is tired of Bryan Danielson messing with MJF so next week, Danielson gets to face Tony Nese.

Wheeler Yuta (and company) is ready for Swerve Strickland (and company).

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Swerve Strickland vs. Wheeler Yuta

Non-title and the rest of the Affiliates are here. They go with the grappling to start before trying to run the ropes. Swerve can’t get a leglock so Yuta slams him down to set up a backsplash for less than one. A bow and arrow keeps Swerve in trouble but he slips out, only to get dropkicked down. The Affiliates offer a distraction so Swerve can get in a shot from behind as we take a break.

Back with Yuta knocking him away and going up top for a forearm. A bridging German suplex gives Yuta two but Swerve’s brainbuster gets the same. Yuta is right back with something like an Angle Slam for another near fall but his knee gives out. Swerve unloads in the corner and hits a running dropkick to said knee. The Swerve Stomp is broken up though and Yuta hits a heck of a top rope superplex. Swerve hits the jumping kick to the head but again can’t hit the JML Driver. The referee gets bumped so it’s a low blow and NOW the JML Driver can finish Yuta at 12:40.

Rating: B-. I wasn’t sure on the winner here and it made for an entertaining match. The good thing is that Strickland is off to a nice start on his own, even if the Affiliates are kind of lame as henchmen. Strickland winning on his own here (even with cheating) is a good sign and beating Yuta means something. Yuta will be fine as he’ll get a win whenever Ring Of Honor is back so this was a solid enough main event.

Overall Rating: B-. This show felt a bit more important as some of the developments felt like they were leading towards something else. The action was good enough and you can only get so bored with an hour long show, which is one of the best things about Rampage. Not a must see show, but it does seem like they are addressing some issues.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Trent Beretta – Orange Punch
Kip Sabian b. Atifa – Orange Punch
Jade Cargill b. Kiera Hogan – Jaded
Swerve Strickland b. Wheeler Yuta – JML Driver

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