Rampage
Date: July 19, 2024
Location: Simmons Bank Arena, North Little Rock, Arkansas
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

We’re coming off a pretty outstanding Dynamite and that might make for a bit of a hard standard to live up to here. With just over a month to go before All In, there isn’t much in the way of desperation yet so this show might not need to mean much. I’ll settle for some good matches though so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Conglomeration vs. Undisputed Kingdom

Strong and O’Reilly start things off and go to the mat with the grappling. O’Reilly can’t get away from a leg trip but they go to a standoff so it’s off to Cassidy to take Taven into the corner. That doesn’t last long so Ishii comes in to run all three villains over. The Conglomeration hit a triple suplex and it’s Bennett getting caught in the corner for some rapid fire strikes.

We take a break and come back with Ishii chopping away at Bennett but Strong grabs his foot. A dropkick cuts Ishii off though and Strong takes him into the corner for some rather loud chops. Taven spends too much time trash talking though and gets caught with a nasty German suplex. O’Reilly comes back in with a guillotine as everything breaks down. The Stundog Millionaire hits Bennett and Ishii adds the big clothesline.

The Proton Pack/Sick Kick combination hits Ishii and Taven adds the frog splash for two. Ishii blocks the jumping knees and Cassidy low bridges the Kingdom to the floor, where they cut off the big dive. We take another break and come back again with Cassidy getting stomped down in the corner but managing to escape the Proton Pack. Instead it’s back to Ishii for the superplex to Taven, leaving Strong and O’Reilly to slug it out. Everything breaks down and Cassidy rolls Taven up for two before DDTing Bennett. Strong and Ishii knock each other down, leaving Cassidy to Orange Punch Taven for the pin at 17:22.

Rating: B+. Not only did this get time but it made use of that time, with all six working hard and having a heck of a match. There was very little in the way of down time and it wouldn’t shock me to see Cassidy and O’Reilly wind up getting the Tag Team Title match at Death Before Dishonor. Someone has to and if it wind up being similar to this match, everything could go rather well. Really good stuff here.

Post match here is Don Callis to distract Cassidy, allowing Kyle Fletcher to jump him from behind. Mark Briscoe runs in for the save but Strong gets in a cheap shot and poses with the Ring Of Honor World Title.

Saraya and Harley Cameron brag about the former’s abilities. She guarantees to find a way to All In.

Learning Tree vs. Outrunners

Jericho is in street clothes. Bill powers Floyd around with no trouble to start as Jericho, wearing his belt, is on his phone in the corner. Magnum gets slammed so the Outrunners get together for a double dropkick. That just earns them some shots to the face as Jericho is back on his phone. Bill unloads on Floyd in the corner and, after kicking Magnum to the floor, hits a chokeslam so Jericho can get the arrogant pin at 3:32.

Rating: C. Pretty much a handicap match here and it was barely a match at all. The Learning Tree stuff hasn’t been great overall but Bill has looked like a monster out there. He’s destroying people like a big man should and that is what he has been needing to do for a long time now. Bill was the only thing to see here, which seems to be the point.

Post match Minoru Suzuki comes out for a staredown with Jericho.

Minoru Suzuki vs. The Butcher

They forearm it out to start and Suzuki laughs at Butcher’s strikes. Something close to a Jackhammer gives Butcher two but Suzuki pulls him into a sleeper. The Gotch Style Piledriver finishes Butcher at 2:59. Not much to this one.

Mark Briscoe introduces Tomohiro Ishii to the Conglomeration and goes over the two rules: you have to be down to conglomerate and you cannot in any way be a s*******. Today’s word is miscombobulation, which is what happened when Briscoe got kneed in the face last week. That’s why Ishii is going to take out Roderick Strong tomorrow night. Briscoe turns into incoherent babbling as he continues to be maybe the best talker in wrestling right now.

Kris Statlander vs. Sydni Winnell

Stokely Hathaway is here with Statlander, who forearms her in the face to start (Menard: “YES!”). Statlander knocks Winnell into the corner but Winnell forearms her way to freedom. Not that it matters as Staturday Night Fever finishes Winnell at 1:26.

Hologram is coming.

Lucha Bros vs. Private Party

Fenix and Kassidy trade rollups to start before it’s off to Quen, who is caught on top. Quen gets knocked outside but Kassidy cuts off the dive. Everyone gets knocked down for an early double breather and we take a break. Back with Fenix and Kassidy slugging it out until Silly String tales Penta down.

Kassidy’s moonsault gets two on Fenix but Gin and Juice is broken up. Back up the spike Fear Factor is broken up, meaning Gin and Juice and hit Fenix for two with Penta making the save, complete with a Canadian Destroyer. The Bros superkick both of them down and the spike Fear Factor finishes Kassidy at 10:17.

Rating: B-. This was another match where you knew it would be good due to the teams involved. These guys know how to get in the ring and work an exciting match, which is what we got here. The Bros, assuming they can stay healthy, could very easily be put into the Tag Team Title picture. For now though, I’ll settle for them having a good main event.

Overall Rating: B. The opener was almost great, the main event was good, and Mark Briscoe had one of the most entertaining promos I’ve seen in a long time. This was a very entertaining show as the wrestlers were allowed to do their thing, which is often great to see. Keep doing this and Rampage would be a lot more entertaining week to week.

Results
Conglomeration b. Undisputed Kingdom – Orange Punch to Taven
Learning Tree b. Outrunners – Chokeslam to Floyd
Minoru Suzuki b. The Butcher – Gotch Style Piledriver
Kris Statlander b. Sydni Winnell – Staturday Night Fever
Lucha Bros b. Private Party – Spike Fear Factor to Kassidy

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: July 5, 2024
Location: Wintrust Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Don Callis

We’re still in Chicago for the second half of Beach Break, which didn’t exactly mean much on Dynamite. Hopefully the show goes somewhere off of the big ending from Dynamite, but there is a real chance they save that for tomorrow night. We are starting to get ready for All In though and that build might continue here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Rush vs. Komander

Metalik is here with Komander. For some reason Komander tries a handshake to start, earning a shove down. Rush knocks him outside without much trouble and adds a whip into the barricade as Callis talks taking Rush to a baseball game. A chair is sent in, which is enough of a distraction to let Rush whip Komander with a camera cable. Back in and Rush hits a running double stomp but Komander manages a tornado DDT. That doesn’t work for Rush, who takes him outside for a HARD swing into the barricade as we take a break.

We come back with Rush stomping away in the corner and hitting the cocky kick to the mask. Komander is tied in the Tree of Woe for a rather hard kick but the Bull’s Horns misses. The comeback is on with a dropkick to the knee (Callis: “That’s a dirty move.”) to send Rush outside. Komander hits the dive into the Asai moonsault, setting up the shooting star press for two back inside. A headbutt cuts Komander off and an apron superplex gives Rush two. Rush suplexes him off the apron and the Bull’s Horns finishes at 11:56.

Rating: C. This is a good example of a match that went long and really shouldn’t have. If Rush is supposed to be the next big star for Callis, there is pretty much no reason for him to take about twelve minutes to beat Komander. It’s ok to just have Rush go in there and maul someone and that’s what should have happened here.

Post match Rush throws Komander at Callis’ feet.

The Undisputed Kingdom isn’t worried about the Conglomeration, who has Kyle O’Reilly bamboozled. Roderick Strong swears vengeance and are ready to bring O’Reilly back.

Konosuke Takeshita/Kyle Fletcher vs. Private Party

The Family jumps them before the bell and Private Party is in trouble to start. Kassidy armdrags Fletcher down for a breather and it’s off to Quen for a springboard missile dropkick. Takeshita comes in and gets caught with a moonsault but he’s fine enough to suplex Kassidy and Quen at the same time. We take a break and come back with Quen fighting his way to freedom, allowing the tag off to Kassidy. The pace picks up and the Family is sent outside for Kassidy’s big flip dive.

Kassidy throws on a shark hat but the Family fights back and hits stereo brainbusters for two each. A superbomb is reversed into Gin and Juice to Takeshita and Silly String gets two on Fletcher. Takeshita runs both of them over with a clothesline though, leaving Fletcher and Quen to slug it out. Back in and Takeshita takes out Kassidy, leaving Quen to get caught with the piledriver for the pin at 10:10.

Rating: B-. For once, commentary covered part of the issue here, as they hammered in the idea that Takeshita and Fletcher are part of the same stable but not a regular team. That makes the match feel a bit more competitive, as while Private Party isn’t the most successful team, they’re at least a regular team with experience. Takeshita got to look like his usual awesome self and Fletcher was….well Takeshita was great.

We see a clip from earlier this week, with Rush and Don Callis coming to terms.

We look at MJF turning heel and attacking Daniel Garcia on Dynamite.

Kyle O’Reilly vs. GPA

Roderick Strong, with the Kingdom, is on commentary. O’Reilly kicks away to start and shrugs off GPA’s comeback attempt. The cross armbreaker finishes for O’Reilly at 1:48.

Samoa Joe wants to massacre Chris Jericho on Dynamite. Ticked off Joe is always awesome.

Video on Mariah May vs. Hikaru Shida.

Toni Storm does a kind of old school newsreel announcement about her match with Trish Adora on Collision.

Women’s Owen Hart Tournament Semifinals: Mariah May vs. Hikaru Shida

Toni Storm and Luther are here with May. The fans are behind Shida to start before the slow forearm exchange gets things going. May takes her down out of the corner and a running kick to the chest gets two. May’s sunset bomb to the floor is countered into a hurricanrana, leaving Storm annoyed as we take a break.

Back with May making the clothesline comeback and hitting a middle rope hurricanrana out of the corner. May goes up but gets caught with a superplex. Back up and May grabs a spinning side slam before they trade German suplexes. Shida’s Falcon Arrow gets two but May sends her into the corner for the hip attack. They trade rollups until Shida tries the Katana, which is reversed into a cradle to give May the pin at 11:37.

Rating: B-. They haven’t exactly been hiding that this is May’s tournament to win, but they’re doing a nice job of making her work to get there. Beating Shida still means a lot as she’s one of the most successful stars the division has ever seen and May gets to beat another former champion. Storm is waiting for her though, and the finals could not feel like more of a formality.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was mostly good but this was a show that you absolutely could have skipped. With the first half being the Don Callis Show and the main event being the only match with any value (and not exactly much in the way of drama), I wasn’t exactly invested in this one. That’s a bit of a step down from recent Rampages, which is a shame as the show was fun for a bit.

Results
Rush b. Komander – Bull’s Horns
Konosuke Takeshita/Kyle Fletcher b. Private Party – Piledriver to Quen
Kyle O’Reilly b. GPA – Cross armbreaker
Mariah May b. Hikaru Shida – 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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Forbidden Door 2024
Date: June 30, 2024
Location: UBS Arena, Elmont, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Nigel McGuinness, Taz

It’s back to the pay per view schedule with one of the biggest shows AEW presents every year. This is built around the international guest stars, including several stars from New Japan and CMLL. The main event will see Swerve Strickland defending the World Title against Will Ospreay in a pretty big showdown. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Kyle Fletcher vs. Serpentico

Bonus match (on a card that already has 14 matches). Fletcher runs him over to start and poses a bit before going after the mask. The comeback is cut off with another kick to the face, followed by a running kick to the back. The piledriver plants Serpentico but Fletcher would rather put him on the ropes. An El Generico brainbuster in the corner finishes for Fletcher at 3:12.

Rating: C-. Total squash as I guess Fletcher gets some heat back after losing the ROH TV Title in Mexico on Friday. The match was nothing to see as Serpentico gets wrecked again, but it also didn’t make me any more interested in Fletcher. He does well enough in the ring, but there is little about him that stands out in any significant way.

Zero Hour: Private Party vs. House Of Black vs. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly vs. Gabe Kidd/Roderick Strong

O’Reilly and Black go to the mat to start before trading shots to the ribs. Ishii comes back in to a nice reaction and gets to chop it out with King. Kidd tags himself in and Strong adds a running shot to the face. Quen tags himself in as the rapid fire tags continue, only to be sent outside. Kidd comes back in to chop away (and bark) at O’Reilly, who gets caught in the corner for an exchange of chops from Kidd and Strong.

The team argues over who gets to chop him so it’s off to Ishii for a double clothesline. The House kicks Ishii down before everything breaks down. Quen hits a Trouble In Paradise on Black, who is back with a jumping knee to the face. Kidd brainbusters Ishii but gets chopped by King. Private Party hit stereo running flip dives before Kassidy rolls King up, with tights, for two, only to get Ganso Bombed for the pin at 8:35.

Rating: B-. This was the wild match that you would have been expecting and that’s not a bad thing. There is something to be said about getting a bunch of people in the ring and letting them fly all over the place to go nuts, which is what we got here. Good choice to fire the fans up, as this kind of thing almost always tends to be. The House winning is the right choice too as they’re the bigger of the two regular AEW teams.

Zero Hour: Willow Nightingale/Tam Nakano vs. Momo Watanabe/Kris Statlander

Stokely Hathaway is here with Watanabe and Statlander. Nakano takes Statlander down to start and hits a quick dropkick before it’s off to Nightingale. That means Statlander runs off to Watanabe, who is quickly dropkicked down for two. Watanabe and Nakano slug it out until Nakano hits a heck of a superkick. A Hathaway distraction slows things down though and Statlander gets in a belly to back suplex.

Statlander’s delayed vertical suplex gets two and Watanabe hits a hard shot to the back of the head. Nakano finally manages a quick shot and brings Nightingale back in to beat up Statlander. That lasts for all of ten seconds before the threat of the Pounce means it’s back to Watanabe. A hard spinebuster gives Nightingale two but Statlander offers a distraction, allowing Watanabe to get in a kick to the head.

Nightingale is back up with a dropkick, only for Nakano to miss a high crossbody. Nakano’s German suplex gets two on Statlander and a tiger suplex plants her again. That leaves Nightingale to hit a super Death Valley Driver for two on Watanabe, followed by a heck of a Pounce. Nakano comes back in and grabs a bridging German suplex to pin Watanabe at 10:23.

Rating: B-. Another good one here, though a middle rope Death Valley Driver not being the finish is a bit ridiculous, especially when the finish came a minute later. Either way, this was more about teasing Statlander vs. Nightingale, which does feel like a personal feud and a big rivalry. Throw in the fans loving Nightingale and things are even bigger.

Zero Hour: Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Mariah May vs. Saraya

Toni Storm and Harley Cameron are here too. May sends her into the corner to start and hits some running uppercuts, setting up a rather spinning side slam for two. A Stratusphere plants Saraya again and a missile dropkick gets two more. The hip attack takes too long though and they fight up to the top. May gets sent crashing out to the floor, leaving Saraya to do some jumping jacks until she gets back in.

A double knockdown gives them a breather and they slug it out from their knees. May sends her into the corner for the running hip attack but Storm has to cut off Cameron. Saraya’s superkick into the Rampaige gets two but the Scorpion Crosslock is broken up. Instead Saraya rams her face first into the mat over and over but a suplex is countered into a bridging rollup to give May the pin at 8:28.

Rating: C+. That was the only way this should have gone as May winning the whole tournament to set up a title match against Storm at All In is not the worst idea. At the same time, May gets a nice boost here and beats another former champion in Saraya. Good enough match here, though I’m not sure why it needed to be on this show.

Zero Hour: Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Mistico/Lucha Bros

Fenix and Titan start things off with Fenix knocking him down and springboarding around, setting up a double flip into a standoff. The fans greatly approve as it’s off to Penta vs. Tsuji, with the latter blocking Cero Miedo. Penta isn’t having that and sends him into the corner for the running dropkick, only to be stomped face first onto the mat. Back up and they chop it out before trading shots to the face.

The Fear Factor is broken up so Penta kicks him to the floor instead. It’s off to Mistico to face Takahashi and the fans greatly approve again. An early mask tear attempt is blocked so Mistico sends him outside instead. Tsuji and Titan come in to stomp away but Mistico breaks that up and hits a dive onto Takahashi. Back in and the Bros strike away, setting up Mistico’s Swanton for two on Takahashi. Titan and Tsuji send the Bros outside for dives, followed by a running sunset bomb from Takahashi to send Mistico onto the floor.

Back in and Mistico fights off all three of them at once, allowing the tag back to Penta. Everything breaks down and Fenix’s assisted splash off of Penta’s shoulders gets two on Titan. We hit the parade of big knockdowns until Titan tornado DDT’s Fenix into a superkick for the six way knockdown. Mistico hits the big dive to the floor and the spike Fear Factor hits Takahashi, who rolls out to the floor. Back in and La Mistica finishes Titan at 12:05.

Rating: B. I’m not sure why this wasn’t on the main show, or maybe just make this the only Kickoff Show match. It had the action, but having Mistico, a CMLL star, and the Lucha Bros, best known as AAA guys, on the same show is a big deal that you do not see very often. Almost like it would be….forbidden.

The opening video looks at the major matches and how big this night really is.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Hechicero

MJF is of course the big hometown boy and gets a hero’s welcome, even doing a bit of crowd surfing. Hechicero takes him to the mat to start for a quickly broken cross armbreaker. Back up and MJF shakes his hand, which allows for a kick to the ribs and a “yeah of course I did” shrug.

MJF flips (yes flips) away into a double eye poke ala Roddy Piper. They head outside with MJF setting him in a chair and hitting a running boot to the face. Back in and Hechicero snaps the arm across the top rope to take over and we hit the armbar. MJF fights up but the Heatseeker is blocked, allowing Hechicero to plant him down for two. A running knee in the corner connects for Hechicero and the fans are NOT happy.

MJF manages a quick clothesline before spinning around into a piledriver for a needed breather. Hechicero is right back up with a springboard spinning dropkick before grabbing the cross armbreaker. That’s broken up as well so MJF tries the Salt Of The Earth, which is reversed into a double arm crank with Hechicero’s legs. The ropes are reached for the break so MJF hammers away in the corner and even bites the mask. A Canadian Destroyer into the brainbuster gives MJF the pin at 9:48.

Rating: B-. The match could have been worse, but it still feels like quite the waste of MJF in a spot where he could have been doing something more important. At the same time, it made Hechicero look great all over again, as he has more than enough talent to be a star anywhere. That kind of thing will always work, though I’m not sure if it was the best idea in this spot.

We get a rather praise-heavy Young Bucks video (with Kenny Omega’s face blurred in a nice touch) which mocks the Acclaimed and Hiroshi Tanahashi.

Elite vs. Acclaimed/Hiroshi Tanahashi

Caster’s rap mocks President Biden at the debate and Okada’s use of the word b****. Okada and Caster start things off but Okada decks Tanahashi off the apron, meaning it’s time for a historic standoff. Instead of doing anything though, it’s off to Matt, who gets taken down with a middle rope crossbody into some air guitar. Bowens comes in to take Matt into the corner, where some running elbows put him in even more trouble. Nick is brought in and it’s a double Scissor Me Timbers for a nasty crash.

Back up and Okada gets in a cheap shot to take over on Caster, with Matt putting on the headphones so Okada can dance. Caster gets caught in a camel clutch so Nick can run the ropes and then kiss his brother on the cheek. The slow beating continues in the corner as we get a few CM PUNK chants. That turns into a HE GOT FIRED chant as Caster knocks Matt off the top and hits a high crossbody.

Okada comes in and gets dropped as well, allowing the tag off to Bowens for the house cleaning. Okada gets dropped with a right hand and a spinning torture rack slam gets two on Matt. Bowens is taken down as well though and it’s a double tag to bring in Okada and Tanahashi. The dragon screw legwhip sets up the Texas Cloverleaf on Okada but the Bucks make the save.

Everything breaks down and the Rainmaker is countered into the Arrival into the Mic Drop. The High Fly Flow is broken up though and the rather delayed version hits raised knees. A superkick puts Tanahashi down again and the Bucks hit stereo slingshot dives to take the Acclaimed down on the floor. Okada hits his top rope elbow but the Rainmaker is countered into a small package for two. Back up and the Rainmaker finishes Tanahashi at 13:02.

Rating: C+. Tanahashi was trying here but those knees are just not holding him up any longer. Other than that, it was about what you would expect with the Bucks and the Acclaimed, which was only going to go so far. We still have the title match to come between the teams and that probably should have been here, but instead we get this feud extended even further.

We recap Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi

McGuinness is already on Danielson, as you knew he would be. Danielson goes after the arm to start before tying up Takagi’s leg. That’s broken up in the ropes so Danielson takes him down again and grabs a surfboard. As usual, that doesn’t last long and it’s Takagi dropping him down hard. A backsplash gives Takagi two as McGuinness compares Danielson to Mozart and Napoleon, both of whom were FAR more successful.

Danielson gets knocked out of the corner but manages to send Takagi outside. The suicide dive doesn’t quite work though and Takagi catches him with a hanging fisherman’s neckbreaker,. Danielson lands on his head, because Danielson, and we pause for the medics to check on him. Thankfully he gets back up and beats the count back in, where Takagi drops a knee to the back of the head. Danielson fights up and they trade shots to the face until Takagi hits a clothesline.

Another kick to the head gives Danielson a breather and he goes up top. Takagi is right there with him, so Danielson grabs a belly to back superplex for the big double knockdown. Danielson’s triangle choke is muscled up into a powerslam and they’re both down again. Back up and Takagi superplexes him into a heck of a sliding lariat for two.

Made In Japan is broken up but Danielson misses a charge into the corner. Now Made In Japan can connect for two more, with McGuinness being left speechless. Danielson can barely get up so Takagi hits a running shot to the side of the head. Another sliding lariat is loaded up but Danielson reverses into a Fujiwara armbar.

That’s switched into the LeBell Lock but Takagi slips out. A reverse fisherman’s suplex puts Takagi down and the running knee gives Danielson two. Danielson stomps away at the head and grabs a triangle choke but Takagi powers up. That doesn’t work though as Danielson pulls him into a Disarm-Her for the referee stoppage at 19:58.

Rating: B+. These guys beat the fire out of each other and it’s another awesome Danielson match. At some point he needs to win a few of these things and this was a goo example of how to make it work. Rather awesome match here and Danielson gets to move on towards what could be a rather deep run in the whole thing.

We recap Toni Storm defending the Women’s Title against Mina Shirakawa. The bigger story though is the battle over Mariah May, as both of them want her too.

Women’s Title: Mina Shirakawa vs. Toni Storm

Storm is defending and Mariah May is in a neutral corner. As you might expect, Storm is dressed as the Statue Of Liberty. May refuses to pick before the match so they circle each other instead. Shirakawa stops to dance and gets a hip attack to the face for her efforts. That just earns her more dancing before Shirakawa drops Storm knees first onto the mat. The Figure Four around the post goes on and McGuinness thinks May needs a hug. Back in and a dropkick to the leg keeps Storm in trouble but she’s back with a fisherman’s suplex for two.

There’s the running hip attack to put Shirakawa on the floor but another one only hits the steps. Shirakawa uses the breather to hit a big dive, only to have Storm catch her with a super chokebomb back inside. Storm misses a charge though and Shirakawa grabs the Figure Four to stay on the bad leg. They sit up and slap it out until Storm manages to escape.

Back up and they slug it out with Shirakawa getting the better of things and going up top. Storm is right there for another forearm off until Shirakawa hits a super DDT for two more. Shirakawa’s Glamorous Driver is broken up and Storm snaps off a release German suplex. Another hip attack gives Storm another two but Shirakawa is right back with the Glamorous Driver for her own near fall. Storm gets in a quick rollup for two, followed by Storm Zero to retain at 11:38.

Rating: B. Storm continues to feel it in these big pay per view matches, but May was more or less just window dressing. That’s normally a good thing, but she’s the entire point of the story in the first place. The match was good, though it was hard to believe that Shirakawa was going to be the one to end Storm’s reign.

Post match Storm and May look at each other and Shirakawa wants a handshake. Respect is shown and we get the big hug and we get the three way kiss. So May’s choice of a side was to not pick a side. Got it.

We recap Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy.  Sabre isn’t over Cassidy pinning him last year and Cassidy is having a rough time but is ready to fight again.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy

They go technical to start with Cassidy not being able to get very far with some arm cranking. Instead Cassidy bails out to the floor for a breather before rolling back inside, with Sabre holding the ropes open. Back in and they fight over a cross arm choke until Cassidy ties him up on the mat.

That’s broken up as well so they trade rollups for two each. Sabre ties him up in a headscissors but Cassidy makes it over to the ropes rather quickly. Sabre does his own slow kicks but Cassidy takes out the knee to put him down for a change. Cassidy twists on the leg outside and again inside, setting up a top rope DDT for a rather near fall.

Sabre is right back with a kick to the arm and some finger snapping to put Cassidy down. The double arm crank goes on but Cassidy escapes and goes back to the leg. The Texas Cloverleaf is broken up so Cassidy hits the Beach Break for two instead. Back up and the Orange Punch is blocked so Sabre pulls him back into the European Clutch for two. Cassidy tries the Mouse Trap but Sabre reverses into a….well he tied up all four of Cassidy’s limbs at the same time with Cassidy having to give up at 16:20.

Rating: B. I’m still not sure I get why Cassidy was so upset coming into this one but he was holding his own out there well enough, only to get tied up by Sabre. It was a good back and forth match, with Sabre being able to do things in there that no one else can make work. Cassidy needs something new though, and I’m not sure what that is going to be coming off this loss.

Post match Sabre actually gives him the sunglasses back.

We recap the Learning Tree vs. Samoa Joe and company. Joe and company are sick of Chris Jericho and want a fight, with Jericho bringing in Jeff Cobb to replace the injured Bryan Keith.

Learning Tree/Jeff Cobb vs. Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata

Jericho is sure the fans don’t really want him to retire as he starts with Shibata. Before that goes anywhere though, it’s already off to Bill to face Shibata instead (third time tonight we’ve seen the “heel tags out instead of fighting” sequence). Chopping ensues with neither being able to get the better of things so it’s off to Cobb vs. Joe for the hoss showdown.

Cobb takes over by powering Joe into the corner and Jericho comes in to rake the eyes. Cobb comes back in and Joe gets the better of things for a change, allowing the tag off to Hook. Jericho chokes him on the ropes to cut him off and Cobb adds a standing moonsault. Hook manages to fight back and brings Shibata back in, with the good guys taking over on Cobb in the corner.

Jericho comes back in to take over on Shibata as everything breaks down. Shibata gets posted and Hook goes up top for an ax handle to Bill. The referee gets distracted though and Jericho hits Shibata low, setting up the Walls. That’s broken up so Cobb comes back in for the Tour of the Islands, only to have Hook t-bone him. The Codebreaker gives Jericho two on Hook but Hook comes back up with his own Judas Effect for the pin at 13:38.

Rating: C+. Hook gets a nice rub off the ending but this was the least interesting match n the card and the match didn’t make things much better. While the ending would suggest something of a downgrade for Jericho and the Learning Tree, that doesn’t seem to be the most likely outcome. Perfectly fine match, but it could have been on any AEW TV show instead.

TNT Title: Jack Perry vs. Dante Martin vs. El Phantasmo vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Lio Rush vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Ladder match for the vacant title. Takeshita drops Perry to start and everyone else goes after ladders. With that not working, the fight heads outside instead with Briscoe grabbing various toys. Perry goes up a ladder but Rush makes the fast save. A ladder is thrown outside and almost hits Briscoe, leaving Rush to go up the ladder for a change. Phantasmo goes up but Martin makes the save and climbs as well.

That’s broken up but Martin dives onto Phantasm on the way down. Back up and Takeshita brainbusters Martin onto the side of the ladder, only for Briscoe to come in with the ladder around the neck. Briscoe grabs a chair and hits a step up flip dive onto a ladder onto Takeshita on the floor for the big crash. Perry goes up but Phantasmo walks across a bridged ladder to cut him off on top.

Martin gets taken down and bangs up his leg, leaving Perry to set up a table. Briscoe and Takeshita brawl on the floor until Rush dives onto the latter. That leaves Briscoe to go up a ladder for a splash but he lands on his feet, instead hitting a forearm on Perry on the table, which doesn’t break (similar to how Adam Copeland broke his leg).

Back in and Takeshita powerbombs Rush onto a ladder before pulling Phantasmo into a knee to the face. One heck of a Blue Thunder Bomb puts Phantasmo through the tables but Briscoe cuts off the climb attempt. Briscoe plants Takeshita onto the ladder and goes up, only to have Perry breaks up Briscoe’s climb. Perry beats on Briscoe with the chair and then wins the title at 16:48.

Rating: B-. That was a ladder match alright. Looked like it had about six people, some ladders, a chair and some tables too. There really isn’t much else to say about this, as it featured pretty much exactly what you would expect and had the most likely winner getting the title in the end. That’s pretty much exactly what was expected the second the match was announced and while it was ok enough, it was hardly thrilling.

We recap Mercedes Mone vs. Stephanie Vaquer, which is winner take all for the TBS Title and the New Japan Strong Women’s Title respectfully.

TBS Title/NJPW Strong Women’s Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Stephanie Vaquer

Title for title. We get the referee’s instructions and Vaquer headbutts her to start. They trade rollups for two each until Vaquer grabs a wristlock and hits a very springboardy wristdrag. Mone gets in a quick breather and hits a Meteora for two. Vaquer is right back up with a shot of her own but Mone grabs Two Amigos, with Vaquer countering the third. Vaquer starts in on the leg and ties her legs around Mone’s head for some rams into the mat to wake the crowd up.

Mone fights up again and knocks her into the corner for the running knees and a springboard DDT gets two. The Mone Maker is countered into a DDT from Vaquer and she drops a leg for two more. Another shot from Mone leaves them both down so it’s a double nip up for the forearm exchange. Vaquer grabs a crossface but Mone reverses into a Bank Statement. That’s broken up as well, with the fans mostly cheering for Vaquer now.

Some knees to the ribs put Mone down but Vaquer can’t follow up. The fans give us a F*** THE CELTICS (as in Mone’s hometown team) chant as Mone goes up, only to dive into raised boots. Vaquer dragon screws her into the corner as the fans move on to the Red Sox. Mone’s crossface is countered, as is the Mone Maker, only to Mone pull her into the crossface for the tap at 16:47.

Rating: B-. This is where the Forbidden Door concept stops working for me. The action was fine enough, but it was really hard to get interested in a match between Mone, who has only wrestled here a handful of times, and Vaquer, who has had one short match in the promotion. It didn’t feel like a feud or a rivalry, but rather two people who don’t have a history around here having a match. It was good, but I had no attachment to either of them and it kept me from getting into this one.

Post match Mone celebrates….and Britt Baker returns to a hero’s welcome.

We recap Jon Moxley defending the IWGP World Title against Tetsuya Naito. Moxley took the title from him a few months ago and it’s time for the rematch.

Jim Ross is back for the last two matches.

IWGP World Heavyweight Title: Tetsuya Naito vs. Jon Moxley

Moxley is defending. They slug it out to start with Moxley going after the knee to take Naito into the corner. Some corner clotheslines have Naito in more trouble and they head outside with Moxley dropping him onto the announcers’ table. Back in and Naito spits in his face so Moxley slaps him down for two. A piledriver gives Moxley two more and he puts Naito on top for a rake to the back.

Naito slips between the legs though and shoves Moxley down to the floor for the big crash. They go outside with Naito grabbing a piece of the barricade to beat on Moxley, sending JR into a hilarious frenzy about that not being tranquilo. Back in and Naito has to fight out of a Figure Four, turning it into a small package for two. Moxley’s Death Rider attempt is countered into a springboard tornado DDT for two more and they’re both down.

Moxley gets up and tries a sleeper, only to be reversed into Destino for…no cover, as Naito tries it again but gets reversed into a Death Rider. They slug it out again until Moxley hits a heck of a lariat into the Death Rider for two. With nothing else working, Moxley grabs a chair, which is quickly taken away by the referee. Destino and the Death Rider are both blocked, only for Destino to to give Naito the pin and the title back at 16:41.

Rating: B-. Much like the previous match, this was a feud that has been taking place elsewhere and the match was only taking place here because it had to. Naito getting the title match is a good thing, if nothing else to get it away from AEW, which doesn’t need another title floating around. The match was good and it feels like a big deal when Moxley loses in AEW, but it wasn’t overly interesting.

We recap the AEW World Title with Swerve Strickland defending against Will Ospreay. Strickland is the reigning champion but Ospreay is the hot new star so it might be time for a changing of the guard.

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland vs. Will Ospreay

Ospreay is challenging and his International Title isn’t on the line. They fight over a lockup to start before both of them flip out of hurricanrana attempts. Missed kicks to the head leave us with a standoff and the fans are WAY into this. Swerve kicks away but Ospreay chops him into the corner to cut that off. They head outside with Ospreay striking away, only to get caught with the middle rope elbow to the back of the head back inside. Swerve slows things down and chops away as Prince Nana is a bit worried.

They go outside again and Swerve loads up something on the barricade, only to be hurricanranaed back down. Back in and Swerve manages a short armscissors but Ospreay slips out. Swerve hammers away but Ospreay gets up and they forearm it out. The Hidden Blade and House Call both miss, with Ospreay grabbing a Styles Clash for two. The Oscutter is countered into the Swerve Stomp as we cut to Daniel Garcia watching in a sky box.

They go up top again with Strickland grabbing something like a super Angle Slam for the big crash and a near fall. Swerve takes it to the apron, where the Oscutter misses, sending Ospreay crashing onto the apron. The Swerve Stomp is loaded up but Ospreay rolls away before it can launch, leaving Swerve to hit the Stomp onto a standing Ospreay against (not through) the announcers’ table.

A piledriver onto the barricade (geez) rocks Ospreay again and the JML Driver gets two back inside. Another Swerve Stomp takes too long and Swerve gets crotched, setting up a springboard Oscutter for a very near fall. The Hidden Blade is blocked and the Oscutter is as well, leaving Swerve to go after the arm. That’s broken up and now the Oscutter connects, setting up the Storm Breaker for two. Ospreay scores with a headbutt but the Tiger Driver 91 is countered into a cradle to give Swerve two of his own.

The Hidden Blade connects for Swerve but he misses a Swerve Stomp. The referee gets hit by another Hidden Blade, followed by another to Swerve….and Don Callis is here. Nana won’t let Callis use a screwdriver so Ospreay goes after him, only to let him go. Back in and the House Call into the Swerve Stomp gets two more with a second referee. Swerve snaps the arm and another House Call (that looked great) gets a VERY near fall. Another House Call sets up a JML Driver to retain the title at 27:04.

Rating: A-. This was pretty easily the best match on the show and I might even be underrating a bit. They beat the living daylights out of each other but took their time to get there, with Swerve getting to show just how awesome he can be. Swerve needed a big win like this and even Callis being around didn’t bring it down. Awesome stuff here and a heck of a main event.

Medics check on Ospreay and Swerve shows respect to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. The main event pulled it up a lot and there is nothing really bad on the show, but this is absolutely not my show and it never has been. The amount of matches and the parade of guest stars isn’t something that draws me in, as it feels more like Tony Khan getting to run loose in a candy store and do a show he finds fun rather than something for everyone else. As usual, the wrestling is more than good enough to hold up, but you could pretty easily chop off almost all of the pre-show and not lose anything.

Results
Kyle Fletcher b. Serpentico – Brainbuster onto the turnbuckle
House Of Black b. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly, Gabe Kidd/Roderick Strong and Private Party – Ganso Bomb to Kassidy
Willow Nightingale/Tam Nakano b. Momo Watanabe/Kris Statlander – Bridging German suplex to Watanabe
Mariah May b. Saraya – Bridging German suplex
Lucha Bros/Mistico b. Los Ingobernables de Japon – La Mistica to Titan
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Hechicero – Brainbuster
Elite b. Acclaimed/Hiroshi Tanahashi – Rainmaker to Tanahashi
Bryan Danielson b. Shingo Takagi via referee stoppage
Toni Storm b. Mina Shirakawa – Storm Zero
Zack Sabre Jr. b. Orange Cassidy – Arm and leg crank
Hook/Samoa Joe/Katsuyori Shibata b. Learning Tree/Jeff Cobb – Judas Effect to Jericho
Jack Perry won the TNT Title Ladder Match
Mercedes Mone b. Stephanie Vaquer – Bank Statement
Tetsuya Naito b. Jon Moxley – Destino
Swerve Strickland b. Will Ospreay – JML Driver

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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It’s that time again as we have the show built around the idea of gust stars from a variety of other promotions. You get to wrestlers from around the world coming in to compete against the stars of AEW, which can make for some rather interesting situations. The buildup to the show is not often the strongest but you can see one heck of a night of action. That should be the case again so let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Kris Statlander/Momo Watanabe vs. Willow Nightingale/Tam Nakano

This, along with the other two Zero Hour matches, were not important enough to be announced on Dynamite but rather a few hours later on Twitter. I’m not sure I get the thinking, but it isn’t exactly making me interested in what we’ll be seeing here. In this case, Statlander vs. Nightingale is the big draw, as they are already set to face off in the Women’s Owen Hart Tournament.

I’ll go with Statlander and Watanabe winning here to give a bit of doubt about Nightingale being able to make it to the finals of the tournament. That should make for a good match here, but Watanabe and Nakano are people who have not been around AEW very much over the years. That doesn’t exactly make for a big time match, but that is kind of the point in having the match on the Zero Hour show.

Zero Hour: Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Mariah May vs. Saraya

It’s a little weird to have May on the show when she already has a major role in another, bigger match on the card. For now though, we could be in for a nice match as either of them going forward could be an interesting way to go. Both of them could make for an a solid choice for the next round, though there is some logic that comes into play here which should determine the winner.

At the end of the day, May being involved in the Toni Storm vs. Mina Shirakawa match is a lot more important and there is pretty much no reason for her to go into that spot as a loser. May going over here makes a lot more sense and while there is something to the idea of Saraya going on towards a title shot in London, it isn’t the best option that they have available here.

Zero Hour: Los Ingobernables de Japon vs. Mistico/Lucha Bros

The big draw here is that Mistico and the Bros have never teamed together before. That isn’t the biggest draw in the world but it is certainly a cool enough moment and better than nothing. In other words, this feels like an excuse to get Mistico onto the show and that is not a bad idea. The match itself is only so important here, but that is often the case on Zero Hour.

There is pretty much no reason for Mistico and the Bros to lose here as Mistico can do his stuff and pop the crowd. There are some talented people in Los Ingobernables but it feels like they are here for the sake of making Mistico look that much bigger. It’s not a bad idea either, so hopefully they at least have an entertaining match on the way to the main show proper.

Zero Hour: House Of Black vs. Tomohiro Ishii/Kyle O’Reilly vs. Gabriel Kidd/Roderick Strong vs. Private Party

Yes there is a fourth match on this show, which was added during this week’s Collision. This feels like little more than a way to get a bunch more people onto the card, which is often not the most thrilling way to go. In this case we do have some big names who probably should have been on the show, but that doesn’t exactly make for the most exciting match possible.

I’ll take the House Of Black here, as they’re the biggest of the two regular teams (at least in AEW) and it makes the most sense to give them the win. This is going to be the insane match with everyone going nuts all over the place and trying to get in as much as they can, which isn’t going to be easy given how many people are involved. Odds are it should be fun though and that’s what you want out of a match like this one.

Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Orange Cassidy

We’ll start the main card here as Sabre wants revenge on Cassidy for beating him at last year’s show in a four way match. The other idea is that Cassidy isn’t good enough to beat Sabre on his own and is going to need some kind of special trick to pull it off. I’m not sure what that is going to be, but then again that’s kinds of the point of watching the match in the first place.

As much as I want to take Sabre here, it feels like a situation where Cassidy is coming in as the huge underdog but manages to pull it off somehow anyway, as tends to be his custom. It might not be the most thrilling way to go but that has never really stopped AEW with Cassidy before. It’s always fun to see whatever Sabre can do to torment someone else so we should be in for a good one here with Cassidy winning.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Hechicero

This is a bit early for a match involving someone as big as MJF but it isn’t like AEW has treated it like anything important. For the second year in a row, MJF’s Forbidden Door match feels like it was thrown on for the sake of giving him something to do and I do not get the thinking behind that move. It’s MJF’s first pay per view match since December and he’s more or less an after thought. That’s quite the odd way to go, but at least it’s an easy pick.

Save for some wacky interference, there is no reason for Hechicero to win here so we’ll take MJF in what should be an easy one. MJF will probably get in some trouble here but then wind up winning anyway, because there is pretty much no reason for Hechicero, who is probably not sticking around, to beat one of the biggest stars in the company. I’m still not sure I get the thinking here, but MJF wins.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi

The roller coaster that is the last full time year of Danielson’s career continues and that means we have another match against a hard hitter. That is kind of his trademark at this point and in this case he actually has a better chance to pull it off. It’s quite the way to go for a first round match in a #1 contenders tournament, but Danielson has a tendency to go a bit nuts anyway.

While Danielson might not have the best win/loss record, there is no reason to believe he goes down here. Takagi is another guy who isn’t likely to be around for the long term, which would likely include another match in the tournament. That leaves Danielson to win a heck of a fight, which isn’t something you get to say very often in AEW but it makes all the sense in the world here.

Learning Tree/Jeff Cobb vs. Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata

Cobb is substituting for an injured Bryan Keith as Jericho’s latest weird character gets a pay per view match. The good thing about Jericho being in the match is that he can’t talk, which would be about as bad as it could get around here. Joe vs. Cobb is the hoss fight fans would want to see while the rest…well they’re all involved as well, no matter how odd it might be.

I’ll take the Learning Tree and Cobb to win here, as it seems like we’re going to be seeing Jericho do his thing for a long time to come, no matter how much of a mess it might be. That doesn’t go well if he loses his big match as part of the team, so odds are Cobb pins Shibata to get the win, giving Jericho something else to talk about. The match itself should be ok, but egads this has been a rough sit for a good while now.

Elite vs. Acclaimed/Hiroshi Tanahashi

Tanahashi is replacing Billy Gunn for the sake of it’s Forbidden Door and therefore Tanahashi has to be on the show. Much like the Learning Tree match, the good thing here is that if the Bucks are in the match, they can’t be talking (in theory at least) and that should make things a bit less annoying. This feels like a match that should be on Dynamite but here we are instead, though at least the addition of Tanahashi makes it feel more special.

It’s hard to imagine the Bucks losing a big match until Blood And Guts at the earliest so we’ll say the Elite wins here and keeps things going. Odds are we get a rematch of this later on with Gunn in there rather than Tanahashi, but for now at least we should be in for something good enough. The Elite go over though, as they’re a bigger deal than another makeshift team.

TNT Title: Konosuke Takeshita vs. Dante Martin vs. El Phantasmo vs. Mark Briscoe vs. Lio Rush vs. Jack Perry

Here we have a ladder match for the vacant title as Adam Copeland decided that jumping off a cage and landing on his feet was a good idea. The ladder match part makes it all the more eye roll inducing because it’s such a cliché at this point, but it also lets someone potentially steal the title without having to get a pinfall. That opens up some doors, but I think you know where this is going.

As much as I’d love to see someone like Martin, who could actually be made by something like this, get the title, this feels like it’s Perry all day. AEW is obsessed with getting this guy over one way or another and it feels like he’ll do it here as a way to become that much bigger of a deal. The match will be the usual car crash, meaning it’s only going to be so good, but it should be exciting.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm(c) vs. Mina Shirakawa

This is both a title match and part of a love triangle, as both of them are trying to woo Mariah May. That has made for quite the unique story but it is something that has been set up well enough that I’m curious to see where it goes. The match quality itself might be up in the air as Shirakawa doesn’t have a long track record in AEW, but that is far from the most interesting part here.

I’ll go with Storm to win of course, as the title isn’t likely changing hands here, though the question becomes what happens with May. It would not surprise me at all to see her side with Storm before eventually winning the Owen Hart Tournament and getting a shot against Storm at Wembley. For now though, all is right in the world as May signs with Storm and moves forward, though it could be quite the path there.

AEW TBS Title/NJPW Women’s Strong Title: Mercedes Mone(c) vs. Stephanie Vaquer(c)

We’re going title for title here and…I have almost no idea what to expect here as all I’ve seen from Vaquer is most of an eight minute match this week on Collision. Other than that it’s been all hype videos and promos from Mone, which isn’t the best way to go. What matters though is that we have what could be a huge match which could go either way, as the title vs. title stipulation shakes things up.

While there is a chance that Vaquer wins, I can’t imagine Mone loses anywhere near this close to her AEW debut. AEW knows that she is a star and isn’t about to have her lose a big match, or any match for that matter, here. They have also hyped up the idea that she needs to win the NJPW belt, even if that means we are going to be seeing another title running around AEW, because we haven’t had that in a bit.

IWGP World Title: Jon Moxley(c) vs. Tetsuya Naito

This is the other World Title match on the show, which is arguably a bigger match than the main event. Thankfully AEW has managed to avoid treating this as such a big deal, as that would be about as bad of a result as you could get for the AEW World Title. Moxley is already one of the biggest stars in AEW, but that brings up the question of whether or not he gets to retain the title here.

This one could go either way, but I’ll take Naito to win here, as I can’t imagine Moxley being the next big thing in AEW. Naito can get back the title that Moxley took fro him and we could be in for a rather good match on the way there. It also gives the other promotions their big win on the show, which very well could otherwise be dominated by AEW. This one could go either way of course, but I’ll take Naito to get the title back.

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland(c) vs. Will Ospreay

Here we have the biggest match on the card and thankfully the best built up story. It’s an idea that has been done before, as you have Ospreay as the new ace of the company and Strickland being the “not so fast” champion. Ospreay has pretty much been able to do no wrong so far in AEW and Strickland can work well with anyone. That opens up the door for something great, but there is one thing in the way.

That thing is the Don Callis Family and unfortunately I’m expecting them to be what costs Ospreay the match here. Ospreay getting the World Title at some point seems to be an inevitability, but I would hope that Strickland gets at least one successful defense in the main event spot. Strickland has done incredibly well in this role and this could be another great one, though odds are the Family gets involved to cost Ospreay. It’s predictable, but that’s about all I can expect to happen.

Overall Thoughts

As you can probably tell from here, this is going to be a very long show. Fourteen matches and a show that could go around six hours makes for one heck of a marathon and I’m worried about things getting bogged down by sheer volume. There is a great show in there somewhere but AEW has a tendency to put in way too much on any pay per view. Hopefully they can find a way around it, but they’ve got a big challenge in front of them.

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.

Collision
Date: June 22, 2024
Location: PPL Center, Allentown, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time to wrap up the build for Forbidden Door, with just over a week to go before the event. In this case we have a major match as Kazuchika Okada will face CMLL legend Ultimo Guerrero in a rather unique international match. Other than that, we have the International Title on the line as Will Ospreay defends against Brian Cage so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata vs. Premiere Athletes

Joe and Tony Nese start things off with Joe running him over off a shoulder. An elbow to the face does it again and it’s off to Hook for some clubberin in the corner. Daivari comes in and takes Hook down for a seated full nelson, with Hook fighting up rather quickly. It’s off to Shibata vs. Woods, who strike it out for a bit before fighting over arm control on the mat. Nese comes in for a cheap shot to the knee but Shibata just sidesteps a top rope moonsault (Joe approves).

In addition to approving, Joe also comes in but a distraction lets Woods get in a neck snap across the top rope to take over. That doesn’t last long either as Joe is back with a backsplash and Hook comes in to beat up the Athletes. Woods manages a release German suplex so Shibata comes back in and dropkicks Nese in the corner. The cross armbreaker finishes Nese at 7:35.

Rating: C+. I’d think we’re done with Joe and company against the Athletes, which we should have been done with a few weeks ago. If nothing else, it’s another case where people treated as bigger deals in Ring Of Honor are massacred on the main roster, but it’s also Joe and company taking longer than they needed to in order to beat a weak set of opponents. Joe and company could have something, but they need better competition.

The Bang Bang Gang isn’t happy that Juice Robinson isn’t an official Trios Champion. Now the House Of Black is getting a title shot so Jay White is going to come back with TEN ABS.

Learning Tree vs. Private Party

Bryan Keith is here with the Learning Tree. Jericho starts with Quen but hands it off to Bill before anything can happen. Bill hammers away in the corner and then sends Quen flying right back out of it. A missed charge gives Quen a breather but Bill drops him with a right hand. Jericho comes in but charges into a boot in the corner, allowing Kassidy to come in and hammer away. The Silly String gives Kassidy two on Jericho and it’s Quen coming back in to rain down his own right hands. Jericho gets in a cheap shot though and we take a break.

Back with Quen managing to knock Jericho down and bring Kassidy back in. The pace is picked up until Jericho knocks Quen down, leaving Kassidy to dive onto Bill. Quen’s 450 gets two on Jericho but Bill gets in a big boot to give Jericho two of his own. A hurricanrana is countered into the Walls but Kassidy makes the rope. The very swinging Boss Man Slam gets two more and Bill chokeslams Quen onto Kassidy for the same. Kassidy is back up with a step up dropkick to Bill and Gin and Juice into a Codebreaker gets two on Jericho. Keith is back up with a foreign object to knock Kassidy silly though, giving Jericho the pin at 14:53.

Rating: C+. The best thing here is the fact that it wasn’t Jericho talking. Jericho having more followers isn’t the worst idea but the talking is quite a bit to take. Beating Private Party is fine, but the Learning Tree needs someone better to feud against than a fairly low level tag team.

Post match the villains go for the beatdown but Hook/Samoa Joe/Katsuyori Shibata come in for the save. The challenge is made for the six man at Forbidden Door. Jericho seems in as Keith seems to have hurt his arm.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Ultimo Guerrero

Non-title and Guerrero is in a mask here despite having lost his mask in 2014. Okada slaps his hand in respect to start and they trade armdrags for an early standoff. We pause for Guerrero to play to the fans as commentary says their Spanish isn’t great. Guerrero plants Okada for two and chops away in the corner before grabbing the chinlock. With that broken up, Guerrero goes after the leg and then the arm, only for Okada to come back with White Noise onto the knee as we take a break.

Back with an exchange of running shots in the corner for a double knockdown. They fight to the floor with Guerrero firing off a chop before heading back inside. Guerrero has to adjust his mask for about the fourteenth time, allowing Okada to come back with the dropkick. Guerrero’s belly to back superplex is broken up but the Rainmaker is blocked as well. Not that it matters as Okada pulls the mask off and hits the Rainmaker for the pin at 11:45.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of what’s wrong with the way these international guest stars are introduced. Guerrero is a legend and has done all kinds of amazing things in wrestling but unless you’ve watched him in CMLL or elsewhere, he’s just a guy who was brought in and lost to Okada in about twelve minutes. If you want to do some kind of dream match, set it up a bit better than just throwing it on Collision with a few days’ notice and nothing from Guerrero coming in.

Dante Martin talks about breaking his leg in a ladder match and some people say he’s crazy for getting in another one. It’s going to take a bit of crazy to make him TNT Champion. Lio Rush comes in and says he has Top Flight’s back, but he wants the TNT Title for himself. They’ll see each other at Forbidden Door.

We look at the Patriarchy attacking Buddy Matthews last week.

Patriarchy vs. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages

Christian Cage joins commentary, despite being in the match. Bronson takes a sip of the Savage Sauce to start and gets dropped, allowing Wayne to get in a cheap shot from behind. Bronson gets up and hits a backdrop before rubbing Wayne’s face into Boulder’s chest. It’s off to Killswitch to clean house and Wayne dives onto Boulder and Jameson on the floor. Back up and Bronson clotheslines Killswitch to one knee, only for Killswitch to come back with a chokeslam. Now Cage is willing to go to the ring and hit the Killswitch for the pin on Bronson at 4:40.

Rating: C. Jameson and the Savages are at or near the top of the worst acts in all of AEW or ROH and that was the case again here. They talk trash, they do the stupid hairy chest deal, and then they lose. I’m not sure who I was supposed to be cheering for here and the way both teams acted didn’t make it any less complicated.

We look at Mercedes Mone going to Arena Mexico and getting in a big brawl with Stephanie Vaquer. Still not shown in AEW: Vaquer having a match.

Toni Storm/Mariah May vs. Lady Frost/Leyla Hirsch

Storm and Hirsch start things off and fight over a lockup with neither being able to get very far. Storm front facelocks her into the corner and brings May in to chop away at Frost. A running hip attack puts Frost on the floor and we take a break. Back with Storm hitting a Backstabber out of the corner for two on Hirsch.

A cross armbreaker has Storm in trouble but May hits a running knee for the save. Stereo hip attacks miss in the corners though and Hirsch hits running knees on May (Nigel: “SHE’S JUST A CHILD!!!”). Everything breaks down and Storm and May hit stereo German suplexes. The running hip attacks set up Storm Zero to pin Hirsch at 8:05.

Rating: C+. Not bad here and a good way to show Storm and May working well together. That’s the kind of thing that plays into the story with May needing to pick between Storm and Mina Shirakawa, which continues to be one of the best things going into Forbidden Door. I’m still not sure why I’m supposed to be interested in Shirakawa, but I’ll take what I can get.

Serena Deeb talks about being on a losing streak but she won’t give up. Open challenge next week.

House Of Black vs. LSG/MSG

Black and MSG start things off with Black striking away, as you might have expected. King comes in and chops the soul from LSG, setting up Dante’s Inferno to finish MSG at 1:52.

Post break the House Of Black says revenge is a straight line and they feel nothing.

Hechicero vs. Matt Menard

The Gates Of Agony are here with Hechicero. Menard strikes away to start and is quickly knocked out to the floor. Hechicero bites away at his head and hits a backdrop before snapping Menard’s arm. A missed charge in the corner lets Menard strike away and a cutter gets two. Hechicero is right back with the headscissor driver into an armbar using his legs for the tap at 3:19.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t exactly a major showcase for Hechicero and I’m still not sure why he is the one getting MJF’s first pay per view match after six months away. He has some cool technical stuff and his match with Bryan Danielson was rather good, but it was only kind of on display here. Also, they didn’t have anyone other than Menard to be the designated victim here? Why do that to one of your commentators?

We get a rather emotional interview with Jeff Jarrett talking about his friendship with Owen Hart. Jarrett, fighting back tears, talks about how he wants to be there for Owen’s kids and how this means more to him than anything else. This was really good, though it’s hard to imagine that Jarrett is making it past the first round.

International Title: Will Ospreay vs. Brian Cage

Ospreay is defending and Cage charges at him in the corner to start. The champ gets dropped fast and his running hurricanrana attempt is pulled out of the air. Cage misses a charge over the top though and Ospreay takes him out with a slingshot dive. We take a break and come back with Ospreay fighting out of a bearhug and scoring with an enziguri.

A Phenomenal Forearm gets two on Cage but he snaps off a German suplex to drop Ospreay again. The apron superplex gets two on Ospreay so the fans try to get behind him. Ospreay is back with a shot to the face but the Hidden Blade and Oscutter are both blocked. A sitout powerbomb puts Cage down for no cover and they slug it out from their knees. Cage is back up with an F5 for two and we take another break.

Back again with Ospreay firing off some kicks to the face but Cage gives him a helicopter bomb. Ospreay’s hard shot to the head gets two so he puts Cage up. The super hurricanrana is loaded up but Cage reverses into a super swinging powerslam (that’s a new one) for two. They go up top again and this time the super hurricanrana puts Cage down. A Stundog Millionaire into a poisonrana drops Cage and the Oscutter gets two. The Hidden Blade finishes Cage at 17:21.

Rating: B. It’s the kind of match where the ending wasn’t in doubt and that’s perfectly fine. Ospreay can get an audience into just about anything and that’s what he did here. There is something fun about watching Ospreay fight back against a monster and win in the end, though I’m still not sure if I can imagine him winning the World Title next weekend.

Overall Rating: B-. Your taste in this show is going to depend on whether you like the international guest stars and the Learning Tree. That and the main event were the majority of this show and it went well enough, with a bit more interest than in most weeks. I’m not sure what they are going to do once Forbidden Door is over as it is going to take away a lot of their content, but hopefully they have something to make up for it.

Results
Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata b. Premiere Athletes – Cross armbreaker to Nese
Learning Tree b. Private Part­ – Foreign object to Kassidy
Kazuchika Okada b. Ultimo Guerrero – Rainmaker
Patriarchy b. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages – Killswitch to Bronson
Toni Storm/Mariah May b. Leyla Hirsch/Lady Frost – Storm Zero to Hirsch
House Of Black b. LSG/MSG – Dante’s Inferno to MSG
Hechicero b. Matt Menard – Armbar
Will Ospreay b. Brian Cage – Hidden Blade

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: June 21, 2024
Location: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Virginia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

The road to Forbidden Door continues and we have another qualifying match for the TNT Title ladder match. That at least adds some drama to this show, but a good chunk of the rest of it seems to be the usual Rampage fare. In other words, it should be some solid action. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Private Party vs. Metalik/Komander

Zay headlocks Komander to start but gets taken into the wrong corner so Metalik can come in for a chinlock. That’s broken up and the Silly String gives Zay two and it’s off to Quen. Metalik elbows his way out of trouble and everything breaks down, with Komander and Metalik hitting a big running flip dive to the floor each.

We take a break and come back with Zay hitting a spinebuster and diving over for the tag to Quen. A superplex hits Metalik and Quen drops a 450 for two. Metalik is back up with a reverse Sling Blade with Zay having to make a save. With Zay and Metalik both down, Komander and Quen both miss shooting star presses, leaving Metalik to charge into Gin and Juice for the pin at 9:42.

Rating: B-. While this was little more than a way to build up Private Party for their match against the Learning Tree tomorrow, it wound up being an entertaining match. Komander and Metalik were more or less the designated luchadors but since they have such little status, a loss doesn’t hurt them. Nice amount of action here and it will serve something of a purpose tomorrow.

Post match here is the Learning Tree for the brawl, with the outnumbered Private Party getting beaten down.

Video on Ultimo Guerrero, who is facing Kazuchika Okada on Collision.

Rey Fenix vs. Turbo Floyd

Floyd hits a shoulder and poses, setting up an elbow drop for one. Fenix avoids a charge in the corner though and hits a springboard spinning crossbody. The frog splash finishes for Fenix at 1:29.

TNT Title Qualifying Match: Lio Rush vs. Action Andretti

They go to the grappling to start with Rush dodging a bunch to send Andretti outside. An exchange of flips gives us a standoff so they collide to give us a double knockdown. We take a break and come back with Andretti firing off some forearms. Rush gets kicked to the floor and an Arabian moonsault takes him down again. Back in and a Falcon Arrow gives Andretti two, followed by the Cameron Grimes flipping powerslam for two more. Rush strikes away though and hits the springboard Stunner, setting up the Final Hour for the pin at 8:21.

Rating: C+. You knew what you were going to get with these two and it went about as expected. There is nothing wrong with that as Andretti is a god high flier and Rush can do some things that almost no one else can do. There’s nothing wrong with sending two high fliers out there and letting them do their thing, which they made work here.

Post match Top Flight comes in and Rush shows respect to Andretti.

Shingo Takagi vs. AR Fox

Fox jumps him to start and takes it to the floor, setting up a middle rope moonsault. Back in and Takagi drops him with a clothesline, followed by a neckbreaker. Fox dodges a basement lariat and jumps to the top for a 450 and a near fall. Lo Mein Pain is broken up but Fox rolls him up anyway. A Death Valley Driver sets up a hard lariat, followed by Last Of The Dragon to finish Fox at 4:46.

Rating: C+. Takagi is one of the people who was randomly thrown onto one of the previous Forbidden Door cards with no in-ring exposure around here. This wasn’t exactly a glowing showcase, but getting him in the ring at all is the right way to go. Let us know what he can do and show that he could be a threat to take someone out, just for the sake of adding a bit of interest. Nicely done.

Post match Bryan Danielson comes out to shake Takagi’s (his opponent in the Owen Hart Cup) hand but Takagi isn’t interested.

Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Serena Deeb vs. Willow Nightingale

We get a handshake to start and Deeb grabs the wrist for some spinning. A running shoulder doesn’t work on Nightingale, who runs Deeb over with one of her own. The basement crossbody gets two but Deeb snaps the knee over the ropes for a breather. A neckbreaker on the floor has Nightingale in trouble as we take a break.

Back with Nightingale striking away and superkicking Deeb for two. Deeb’s Black Widow is broken up so she grabs a half crab on the leg she went after earlier. With that broken up, Deeb hits a DDT for two as frustration sets in. Deeb goes up but gets superplexed back down, leaving them both on the mat. Back up and Deebtox gets two on Nightingale, who is right back with the Pounce. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes Deeb at 11:32.

Rating: B-. They telegraphed the result with all of the talk about the winner facing Kris Statlander but that’s not the worst way to go. Nightingale continues to feel like a star in the making and a win over someone as dangerous as Deeb will only make her feel stronger. Other than that, it was a good match with Nightingale surviving the knee and winning in the end.

Overall Rating: B-. Now this is more what I want from Rampage: a bunch of matches that either set something up for a future show or take care of some of the smaller stories that Dynamite doesn’t have time to cover. The Fenix match, which wasn’t even two minutes long, was the only part that felt like filler and it included one of the Outrunners to make up for it. Good use of TV time here, which has been a problem for Rampage for a long time.

Results
Private Party b. Metalik/Komander – Gin and Juice to Metalik
Rey Fenix b. Turbo Floyd – Frog splash
Lio Rush b. Action Andretti – Final Hour
Shingo Takagi b. AR Fox – Last Of The Dragon
Willow Nightingale b. Serena Deeb – Babe With The Powerbomb

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: June 12, 2024
Location: Wells Fargo Arena, Des Moines, Iowa
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We have less than three weeks to go before Forbidden Door and last week saw some more of the card coming together. In addition to all of that though, Will Ospreay is the #1 contender and will be challenging Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Title. On the New Japan front, Jon Moxley will be defending the IWGP Title against former champion Tetsuya Naito. We have 18 days to get to those matches though so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Swerve Strickland, with Prince Nana, for an opening chat. He hypes up the Forbidden Door title match against Will Ospreay and praises Ospreay’s recent successes. Ospreay has been an assassin, but that won’t be the case at Forbidden Door. Strickland is called Killshot because if you don’t pull the trigger, he will. Ospreay is a fighting champion, unlike the Young Bucks….which brings out the Elite to interrupt.

The Bucks brag about how they have cleared out half the roster and that means they want the best of AEW to Blood & Guts at some point in the future. The Elite gets in the ring and offer Swerve a spot on the team as the fifth man. They throw in an offer of their new shoes, but they aren’t Swerve’s size so he throws them into the crowd. The fight is teased but the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn run in for the save. Christopher Daniels pops in to say get out of the ring because we have a match to get going. I’m not sure when Blood & Guts is happening but it very well might be the big blowoff to the whole Elite thing.

TNT Title Qualifying Match: Dustin Rhodes vs. Jack Perry

Perry is in street clothes and they brawl out to the floor to start, with Perry sending him into the steps. A piledriver onto the exposed concrete is countered into a backdrop to put Perry down and we take a break. Back with Rhodes busted open and Perry choking on the rope. Perry takes too long though and gets caught in a snap powerslam for a breather.

They slug it out until Rhodes snaps off a bulldog and hammers away as well. Cross Rhodes is broken up so we get an old Flip Flop And Fly. Now Cross Rhodes can connect for two but Perry sends him into an exposed buckle (apparently the pad was pulled off earlier). Dustin gets dropped onto the exposed concrete but beats the count. Back in and Perry gets in a low blow, only for Dustin to flip him off. The running knee finishes for Perry at 10:06.

Rating: C+. I still do not get the Perry hype and this didn’t change that stance. The match was full of things like low blows and cheap shots and it didn’t make me care about Perry any more or less. He’s still just a guy in the ring whose best attribute seems to be the friends he keeps and that’s not exactly making him feel like a star. Odds are he wins the TNT Title, though maybe sanity will prevail instead.

We look at Kyle O’Reilly and Willow Nightingale saving Orange Cassidy on Collision.

Cassidy is happy to have O’Reilly, Nightingale and Mark Briscoe behind him. Briscoe calls them a conglomeration and goes into a crazed rant about how they are going to hurt the Don Callis Family (O’Reilly’s jaw dropping in awe makes it even better). That was some amazing stuff from Briscoe, who just turned up the insanity and went nuts on his opponents.

Rush vs. Deonn Rusman

Rush knocks him to the floor, beats him up, and hits the Bull’s Horns for the pin at 1:29.

Post match Rush grabs the mic and calls Rusman a typical weak American. Cue MJF and the brawl is on, with MJF and Rush stopping to beat up security. The fight heads into the crowd and then into the back, with Christopher Daniels failing to break it up. The locker room and agents break it up.

We look at Samoa Joe and Hook attacking the Premiere Athletes on Collision.

Mark Briscoe/Orange Cassidy/Kyle O’Reilly vs. Roderick Strong/Kyle Fletcher/Konosuke Takeshita

Don Callis is on commentary and Trent Beretta and the Kingdom are here with the villains. Strong wants to face O’Reilly to start before handing it off to Fletcher instead. Briscoe comes in and strikes away at Takeshita and it’s off to O’Reilly as the rapid fire tags continue. Everything breaks down and Fletcher hits a big dive, followed by one from Cassidy. Trent offers a distraction though and Takeshita drops Cassidy as we take a break.

Back with O’Reilly getting the tag and starting to clean house. Everything breaks down and Red Neck Kung Fu clears the ring. Cassidy’s top rope DDT gets two on Fletcher but Takeshita counters the Jay Driller into a Blue Thunder Bomb. Stundog Millionaire hits Fletcher but Strong distracts Cassidy on top. Fletcher gets dropped with a brainbuster and Briscoe adds the Froggy Bow for two. A cheap shot drops Briscoe and Fletcher hits the piledriver for the pin at 13:05.

Rating: B. They didn’t even try to have a normal tag match here and they shouldn’t have. This was all about getting in as much as they could and it was a blast once they just went full speed ahead. I’m not wild on the Ring Of Honor World Title being made to look less important, but that whole thing has been a wash for a long time now. Really fast paced, entertaining match here.

Post match the villains keep up the beatdown so Willow Nightingale tries to make the save. Kris Statlander cuts that off though and Stokely Hathaway threatens more violence.

Rey Fenix is ready for Will Ospreay.

Shingo Takagi is in the Owen Hart Cup.

Christopher Daniels says Tony Khan is putting the Elite in Eliminator Matches next week, with all seconds barred from ringside.

Hook/Samoa Joe vs. Premiere Athletes

Hook and Joe jump them during their entrance and Katsuyori Shibata is a cameraman. We start with Joe hammering away on Nese before it’s off to Hook, who gets stomped down in the corner. Hook sidesteps Daivari’s dive (Joe approves) and stereo chokes finish the Athletes at 2:30. Now can we please stop presenting the Athletes as a big deal on ROH? Of course not, but this isn’t going to make me care about them any more.

Stephanie Vaquer is ready to face one of the best in Mercedes Mone.

TBS Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Zeuxis

Zeuxis (Vaquer’s regular partner) is challenging and sends her into the ropes to start. That doesn’t get her very far as Mone gets in her dancing before taking Zeuxis down for two. A spinning kick staggers Mone but she takes the legs out, only for Zeuxis to pop back up. The running dropkick puts Mone on the floor as we take an early break.

Back with Zeuxis hitting a fireman’s carry into a powerbomb for two. Mone’s middle rope sunset flip is countered into a stomp to the ribs for two more. Back up and Mone hits a middle rope Meteora for two of her own. Three Amigos are countered into a Backstabber for two on Mone but she’s right back with the Mone Maker for the pin at 10:07.

Rating: C+. This is a good example of why Forbidden Door season is a problem. We barely know who Stephanie Vaquer is and now we’re supposed to be interested in Mone wrestling Vaquer’s partner. These stories tend to go at about a million miles an hour (as they don’t have time to do anything else) and if you aren’t familiar with the guest stars, it can be really hard to get into these matches. Zeuxis was good enough, but I’m having a real hard time getting into this Mone vs. Vaquer match and this didn’t help things.

Video on Mina Shirakawa and her friendship with Mariah May.

May, cuddled up to Toni Storm, promises to run next week’s contract signing, though Storm isn’t worried.

Big Bill introduces Chris Jericho for TV Time (and yes there is now a Learning Tree set). Jericho tells the local farmers how to grow better corn but thinks Private Party needs to learn. Cue Private Party, with Jericho not thinking much of their fundamentals. He learned from Stu Hart and explains how to go up top like Owen Hart. Then Private Party beats up the villains and clear the ring. Well at least this should be the lone Jericho segment this week.

Video on Jon Moxley vs. Tetsuya Naito at Forbidden Door.

The Bang Bang Gang isn’t impressed by the House Of Black so the challenge is issued for Collision.

Daniel Garcia vs. Nick Comoroto

Jacoby Watts is here with Comoroto (for those of you who don’t watch ROH). With MJF watching in the back, Garcia grabs a guillotine and hits the Red Cross for the win at 1:10.

Will Ospreay is ready for tonight and Forbidden Door.

A ticked off Pac enters the Owen Hart Cup.

International Title: Will Ospreay vs. Rey Fenix

Ospreay is defending and Swerve Strickland is watching in the crowd. They trade missed kicks to the head to start and it’s an early standoff. A pop up hurricanrana sends Ospreay outside and a frog splash gives Fenix two. We take a break and come back with Fenix grabbing a quickly broken Black Widow.

As we’re told that Blood and Guts is on July 24 in Nashville, Ospreay flips out of a super hurricanrana to stick the landing. They trade kicks until Ospreay’s spinning Air Raid Crash gets two, sending us to another break. Back again with Ospreay getting the better of a strike off until Fenix grabs another Black Widow.

A crucifix bomb gives Fenix two and a German suplex gets the same. The Oscutter gives Ospreay two but the Hidden Blade is countered with a jumping hurricanrana. Fenix’s flip is forearmed out of the air and Ospreay (with a stare) hits his own Swerve Stomp. The Hidden Blade retains the title at 15:11.

Rating: B. I don’t think there was any doubt to this one but it was a way to give Ospreay another big win on the way to Forbidden Door. Fenix is someone who can wrestle an exciting match with anyone and of course Ospreay can do that kind of thing rather well too. It was a big spot fest and that’s what it should have been, with the pretty obvious result not being a problem.

Post match Strickland gets in the ring and won’t shake hands. Strickland accuses Ospreay of thinking this is still a game and says he isn’t strong enough to hold this on his shoulders. Ospreay takes the title and puts it on his shoulder so Swerve takes it back. Swerve says he’d kill Ospreay if they weren’t friends and leaves, with Ospreay pointing at the Forbidden Door sign (oh dear) to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a show where the wrestling carried it, though they did build up more than a few things for Forbidden Door. While I am having a really hard time caring about what happens there as almost nothing has my attention, they did a nice enough job of making what they have feel more important. I can go with a show that has a goal and makes a good effort to accomplish it, even if it’s not my style. Nice show this week.

Results
Jack Perry b. Dustin Rhodes – Running knee
Rush b. Deonn Rusman – Bull’s Horns
Roderick Strong/Kyle Fletcher/Konosuke Takeshita b. Mark Briscoe/Orange Cassidy/Kyle O’Reilly – Piledriver to Briscoe
Samoa Joe/Hook b. Premiere Athletes – Redrum to Daivari
Mercedes Mone b. Zeuxis – Mone Maker
Daniel Garcia b. Nick Comoroto – Red Cross
Will Ospreay b. Rey Fenix – Hidden Blade

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: June 5, 2024
Location: Blue Arena, Loveland, Colorado
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Taz, Excalibur

We’re coming up on Forbidden Door and now we have the World Title match set, as Will Ospreay will challenge Swerve Strickland. Other than that, it’s going to be time to see which guest stars we have for the show, some of whom might pop up for the first time this week. Let’s get to it.

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

Here is MJF to get things going and he references being high on weed to start. He shills his new merch and tickets for Forbidden Door before talking about the people who have shown up while he’s gone. First up we have the Rainmaker, who looks like he can’t even afford a gym membership. Then you have Swerve Strickland, who says he’s a business mogul but apparently he skipped public speaking classes at business school.

Finally we have a guy with a cockney accent saying he’s the best in the world. MJF lists off a bunch of people better than Will Ospreay, including himself. He carried this place but then when he was gone healing up, people tried to smear his name. Cue Rush to say like every other American, MJF never shuts up. Where are Rush’s celebration and big moment?

MJF: “I didn’t get any of that.” Maybe Brandon Cutler is running the audio because no one can hear him. He asks if anyone could hear him before doing his version of It Doesn’t Matter. MJF casually suggests that Rush is a nepo baby before praising Rush’s successes. Sure Rush has beaten some of the best, but MJF is the best. MJF goes into some Spanglish before the fight is on, with security and Christopher Daniels breaking it up. This was MJF showing the insane charisma that he has, though starting with Rush, even in a one off match, is a little weird.

Video on Roderick Strong before his World Title shot tonight.

Orange Cassidy vs. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Jay Lethal vs. Rey Fenix

For an International Title shot next week. The bell rings and Excalibur’s copy for the WOO Energy spot pops up on screen as Lethal clears the ring but poses instead of diving. Cassidy is back in to send Lethal to the apron but O’Reilly grabs Cassidy for an armbar. Fenix comes back to clear things out, only to pose too long so Lethal can get in a shot from behind.

The Lethal Injection is cut off by O’Reilly and Fenix kicks Lethal in the head. Everyone gets kicked down and we get a four way breather. We take a break and come back with Fenix diving in to break up a cover, leaving all of them down again. Lethal grabs a Figure Four on Cassidy and O’Reilly grabs a guillotine on Fenix. Lethal lets go to save Fenix so O’Reilly grabs Lethal for a cross armbreaker. Cassidy and Fenix break that up until Cassidy puts Fenix down with a DDT. Back up and Lethal takes everyone out before trying a Figure Four on Fenix, which is reversed into a small package for the pin at 8:34.

Rating: B. This is the kind of match that is almost always going to be entertaining and it worked well here. Lethal was good as the normal wrestler who wasn’t going nuts for long stretches out there while the other three did their collective things. Fenix vs. Ospreay will be fine for a big flashy title match next week and that’s all it needed to set up.

Post match Trent Beretta and Don Callis come out, with the latter throwing a chair inside. Cassidy grabs a chain to even things up but here is Kris Statlander to get between them. Stokely Hathaway comes out to threaten Cassidy with Statlander violence…and then Statlander decks Cassidy. Since Cassidy can’t bring himself to hit Statlander, Willow Nightingale runs in to chase her off. That feels like a mixed tag in the making.

Chris Jericho goes all educational to his driver. Then he does it to the camera operator too.

Willow Nightingale is annoyed at losing her TBS Title but she’s ticked off at Kris Statlander. Orange Cassidy comes in for a fist bump. Nightingale was showing some intensity here and it worked.

Christopher Daniels comes out to announce the next TNT Title qualifying match.

Mark Briscoe vs. Brian Cage

Mark Briscoe’s ROH World Title isn’t on the line (he won it two months ago today and has yet to have a title defense). Briscoe starts fast and sends him outside for a dropkick through the ropes. Cage is back with a ram into the barricade, setting up the apron superplex for the crash as we take a break.

Back with Briscoe applying Redneck Kung Fu as Don Callis and Konosuke Takeshita are watching from the crowd. Briscoe grabs an exploder suplex for two and Cage is sent outside. That means Briscoe can use a chair for the step up flip dive but Cage is right back with a helicopter bomb. Briscoe shrugs that off and knocks him down again, setting up the froggy bow for the pin at 10:15.

Rating: C. This was pretty much what you would expect from Briscoe vs. Cage and it wasn’t exactly great. I’m not sure why how but they’ve managed to make the Ring Of Honor World Title feel that much more worthless. That’s a heck of a trick, but I wasn’t sure if Briscoe was going to win here and Cage almost never wins.

Jack Perry says he’s going to win the TNT Title.

The Premiere Athletes interrupt Samoa Joe and Hook, with Hook’s Funions being knocked away. Joe holds Hook back from violence, saying people like them pick their spots.

Chris Jericho and company educate Matt Menard and Angelo Parker about commentary and parenting.

The Acclaimed come out for their rap but the Young Bucks (the subject) cut them off.

Swerve Strickland calls MJF a little b**** and says he’s ready for Will Ospreay. He’s proud of Team AEW, but next time, include the World Champion.

Video on Mercedes Mone vs. Stephanie Vaquer, which is title for title at Forbidden Door.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Team CMLL

Wheeler Yuta is back from injury for the first time since January and it’s Rugido/Magnus/Volador Jr./Esfinge. Thankfully Excalibur is there to tell us that Magnus is the one with his back to the camera. This would be more informative if he didn’t say it when all four had their backs to the camera. It’s a brawl to start and all eight head out to the floor.

We settle down to Danielson and Rugido chopping it out but it’s quickly off to the parade of strikes. Team CMLL clears the ring and hit stereo dives, setting up Magnus’ 619 for two on Danielson. Everything breaks down again and Hart plays Bret in a Hart Attack on Magnus. Yuta’s Fastball Special connects and we take an early break.

Back with Moxley striking away on Magnus, who manages to enziguri his way to freedom. Esfinge comes in to monkey flip Castagnoli and then grabs a leg tie rollup for two. Castagnoli cuts off the running knees with the Swing to Magnus and Moxley adds the dropkick. Volador is back in with a sunset flip for two and Rugido’s powerslam gets the same on Yuta. Back up and Yuta hits the Angle Slam, setting up the seat belt to pin Rugido at 11:58.

Rating: B-. This is the definition of “it’s not for me”. The action was good and the CMLL guys are talented, but this felt like little more than an exhibition as you had people coming in from a different promotion and getting a match against a top faction because it’s Forbidden Door season. I’m sure the CMLL guys will have a match at the pay per view and it will be good, but it’s likely nothing that is going to interest me very much.

Chris Jericho explains how to scoop chicken and dumplings. I have no idea who thinks this is funny but they should be severely punished.

Video on Daniel Garcia.

The Acclaimed threaten the Young Bucks.

Post break the Young Bucks talk to the Patriarchy, with Christian Cage wanting another title shot. They agree to keep up their partnership.

Mariah May vs. Saraya

Toni Storm/Luther and Harley Cameron/Zak Knight are here too. May wears an Outcasts jacket to the ring so Saraya jumps her to start fast. The big chase is on with May getting suckered into a superkick so Saraya can look at the camera. May is sent hard into the barricade and we take a break.

Back with May winning a slugout and hitting a hard headbutt. May hurricanranas her out of the corner and hits a missile dropkick for two. The running hip attack gives May two but Saraya is back up with Rampage for the same. Saraya grabs the Scorpion Crosslock for the win at 9:06.

Rating: C. This was a weird situation as Saraya hasn’t been doing much of anything lately and she beat May, who has at least been presented as a big deal, clean. The match wasn’t exactly great either, as Saraya isn’t exactly as sharp in the ring as she used to be. Maybe we’re getting ready for Saraya to be in a title match down the line, but otherwise this was way out of left field.

Post match Storm comes in to check on May but the Outcasts beat Storm and May down. Mina Shirakawa runs in for the save. May hugs both Mina and Toni.

Chris Jericho tells Private Party that they should open up their party and make it public. An argument ensues.

Bryan Danielson is happy with Wheeler Yuta for winning but isn’t happy with his own losses. He isn’t done with his last year yet though and now he wants in on the Owen Hart Cup to go on to a World Title shot at All In. Danielson getting fired up for anything is a good thing, but it’s still hard to fathom him winning anything big.

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland vs. Roderick Strong

Swerve is defending and Prince Nana/the Kingdom are here too. They go technical to start until Swerve grabs a headscissors into an armdrag. It’s too early for the House Call though and Strong bails out to the floor. Back in and Swerve starts in on Strong’s knee but an Undisputed Kingdom distraction breaks up the Swerve Stomp. Strong backbreakers Swerve onto the turnbuckle but his dropkick through the ropes is blocked. Swerve posts him hard and we take a break.

Back with Swerve fighting out of a seated abdominal stretch and starting the comeback. The middle rope elbow to the back sets up a brainbuster for two and we slow down a bit. The powerbomb into a powerslam gets two on Strong but the threat of the House Call sends Strong outside. They go outside with Swerve diving onto the Kingdom, allowing Strong to send him into the steps. Back in and Strong hits a Codebreaker to cut off a comeback. The Sick Kick gives Strong two but Swerve sends him to the apron for the Stomp. Back in and the House Call retains the title at 14:10.

Rating: B. This is the kind of match where you know it’s going to be good because the wrestlers are rather talented. Strong isn’t going to be a top level challenger but he is perfect for a spot like this as he made Swerve look good. Rather nice main event here, and sometimes you just need to have that kind of a match.

Overall Rating: C+. They were having a weird balancing act here as it was a mixture of good to ok at best wrestling, the Forbidden Door stuff (which I find a chore to get through) and whatever the heck they’re trying for with those Jericho segments. Those things were TERRIBLE and not in a way that makes me want to see someone beat Jericho (whomever that is going to be as he doesn’t seem to have any serious challenges at the moment) but rather wanting to wring the neck of whomever allowed it on TV. There are good parts to this show and it is NOT bad, but egads the rough parts ranged from boring to dreadful.

Results
Rey Fenix b. Jay Lethal, Orange Cassidy and Kyle O’Reilly – Small package to Lethal
Mark Briscoe b. Brian Cage – Froggy Bow
Blackpool Combat Club b. Team CMLL – Seat Belt to Rugido
Saraya b. Mariah May – Scorpion Crosslock
Swerve Strickland b. Roderick Strong – House Call

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

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Dynamite
Date: March 27, 2024
Location: Centre Videotron, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Dynasty and the card is starting to come together. With Bryan Danielson vs. Will Ospreay as the likely co-main event, we need someone to challenge Samoa Joe for the World Title. Odds are we’ll be finding that out tonight as Swerve Strickland faces Konosuke Takeshita. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Will Ospreay vs. Katsuyori Shibata

The fans are behind Ospreay as Shibata takes him to the mat and an armbar sends Ospreay over to the ropes. Ospreay takes him down into a headscissors but Shibata slips out, only to miss a kick to the chest. Back up and Ospreay sends him to the floor and hits a dive, followed by the strikes to Shibata’s face. As usual, these have no effect and he suplexes Ospreay in the aisle. Back in and Shibata shrugs off some chops and hits another suplex as we take a break.

We come back with Ospreay being sent into the barricade but Ospreay scores with a Phenomenal Forearm for two back inside. Shibata is fine enough to hit a running boot in the corner and forearms him down. Ospreay fights up but gets chopped down and put into a quickly broken ankle lock.

Shibata’s kick is cut off and they trade forearms until Ospreay manages an enziguri for a double knockdown. Back up and Shibata grabs the sleeper for two arm drops, only for Ospreay to drape him in the ropes. A top rope kick to the head sets up the Oscutter for one and the running elbow gets two. Ospreay plants him with a tiger driver so Shibata sits up, meaning the Hidden Blade can finish him at 18:58.

Rating: B-. Yeah I’m going to get yelled at for this one but I cannot see the good in having Shibata no sell a bunch of stuff and then trade forearms for the better part of ever. Ospreay’s thing seems to be having one long match after another and while that can be entertaining, there’s something a bit off putting about Shibata just sitting there and waiting for the finisher. Ospreay looked good for the most part here, but these Shibata matches are not doing it for me and mostly never have.

Video on Bryan Danielson’s career, including his time before AEW.

The Young Bucks are proud of doing what they want, including retiring Sting. Now it’s time to get rid of their loss to Private Party. Oh and Renee Paquette needs to smile some more.

Kazuchika Okada arrives.

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

The Bucks pitch to Excalibur for an announcement of Double Or Nothing being in Las Vegas during their entrance for a very on point move. Matt takes Say down to start and everything breaks down, with Private Party hitting the superkicks. The Bucks head outside and there are the stereo dives. Silly String off the barricade drops Matt, leaving Nick and Quen to slug it out on said barricade. A Falcon Arrow off the barricade drops Quen on the floor and the Bucks try for the countout. With that not working, they drop Quen again inside and we take a break.

Back with Say getting the hot tag to clean house, including a kick to the head and an Asai moonsault to take out Nick on the floor. A springboard high crossbody gets two on Matt but he’s back up with a German suplex onto the apron to Quen. Say is back up with the save and it’s Gin and Juice to send Nick outside. More Bang For Your Buck hits Matt for two with Nick having to make the save. Quen tries a 630 but only hits mat (as opposed to Matt), setting up a totally botched EVP Trigger (Nick didn’t make contact) for the pin at 13:27.

Rating: B-. That ending took a lot of the air out of the place and that’s a shame as they were starting to cook until the last few minutes. The problem here is the story of the match was that Private Party scored a fluke upset on the Bucks about four and a half years ago. Things have changed quite a bit since then and it was a bit much to buy that happening again with a match that went fairly long. The Bucks winning is the only move to make here, but they could have done it a good bit faster.

Video on Konosuke Takeshita.

Darby Allin is with Tony Hawk and promotes Hawk’s skate park charity. His now canceled Mount Everest climb was going to benefit said charity, which is always nice to hear.

Chris Jericho praises Hook and offers to mentor him, with Hook accepting despite knowing what Jericho is all about.

Willow Nightingale vs. Anna Jay vs. Kris Statlander vs. Skye Blue

For a TBS Title shot and Mercedes Mone is on commentary. Statlander and Blue fight to the floor to start, leaving Nightingale to crush Jay in the corner. A basement crossbody gives Nightingale two but Blue is back in to kick Nightingale away. Blue DDTs Nightingale for two but Jay is back up. Nightingale heads outside to Pounce Blue and glares at Mone as we take a break.

Back with Jay and Blue kicking Nightingale to the floor but Statlander plants Blue for two. Jay superplexes Statlander but Nightingale makes the save with a backsplash to crush both of them. The Babe With The Powerbomb is countered with Blue’s hurricanrana, followed by Code Blue for two. Nightingale is back up to plant Blue on the apron with a Death Valley Driver, leaving Blue to roll Statlander up for two. Back in and the Babe With The Powerbomb gives Nightingale the pin on Jay at 9:49.

Rating: C. This was another match where there was too much going on at once and it hurt things a bit. It didn’t feel like there was anything in the way of a story to the match and instead it was four people doing a bunch of moves to each other until someone got the pin. At the same time, Mone was VERY subdued on commentary here and sounded somewhere between bored and tired, which is quite the change after her first appearances. Nightingale getting the title shot is good, but egads it would be nice for her to actually win a championship that mattered.

Post match Julia Hart jumps Nightingale from behind and glares down at Mone.

Dustin Rhodes talks about the talent level in AEW and how great all of his matches have been. Butcher comes in and the match is set up for Rampage. Dustin says he’s a natural born legend and Butcher will find out why everyone loves him.

Toni Storm is in the TCM studios with Ben Mankiewicz, who congratulates her for her accomplishments. Storm congratulates him for….whatever he does around here. She tries to get him to say her catchphrase and then drops a shoe.

Swerve Strickland is ready for Konosuke Takeshita.

Tag Team Title Tournament First Round: Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta vs. Kingdom

Non-title and Chuck Taylor/Roderick Strong are here as well. Cassidy starts fast and they head to the floor, with Bennett hitting a big flip dive. That’s fine with Cassidy, who dives onto everyone for a crash. Back in and Beretta German suplexes Taven until Bennett makes the save. A piledriver on the apron knocks Beretta silly and we take a break.

Back with Cassidy coming in to clean house, including a high crossbody to Taven. The Stundog Millionaire takes Bennett down and Taven is sent outside, leaving Bennett to get hit with a spike Strong Zero for two. We pause for a hug but Strong offers a distraction, only to be pulled down by Taylor. Cassidy cuts Strong off, leaving Beretta to escape Hail Mary and roll Bennett up for the pin at 9:33.

Rating: B-. Now why do I have a feeling that Cassidy and Beretta, who were teaming in ROH earlier this month, are not going to be in line for an ROH Tag Team Title shot after beating the champions here? Other than that, this was a fast enough paced match, though I still could go for more of the Kingdom as a dangerous team. Cassidy and Beretta still feel like the Cinderella team in the whole thing though and that is a great spot for them.

Post match the Young Bucks come out for the staredown.

Kyle O’Reilly is still sure he’s doing this on his own.

Video on Adam Copeland winning the TNT Title back last week. The Cope Open is coming back.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Swerve Strickland

Don Callis is on commentary and Prince Nana is ringside. Takeshita takes over on the arm to start but Swerve flips away and grabs a rollup for two. A hard clothesline drops Strickland as we see Samoa Joe watching in the back. Swerve fights up and takes over, only to have Takeshita come back for the exchange of forearms. A backbreaker gives Swerve two but Takeshita grabs a heck of a brainbuster.

Swerve tries to get back up but is rocked with some forearms against the ropes. Takeshita misses a charge and gets German suplexed, only to forearm Swerve out to the floor as we take a break. Back with Swerve fighting out of a chinlock and sending Takeshita out to the floor. A running hurricanrana takes Takeshita down and a high crossbody connects for two back inside.

Swerve tries to strike away but his neck/shoulder gives out (thanks to the brainbuster earlier), leaving him to shoulder Takeshita in the ribs. Takeshita counters a rolling neckbreaker into a sitout F5 to send Swerve outside. The big flip dive takes Swerve down again but he’s able to break up a brainbuster onto the turnbuckle. A DDT out of the corner plants Takeshita but he’s right back with a Blue Thunder Bomb for two.

Swerve is back up with a rolling Downward Spiral for two, only to miss the Swerve Stomp. Takeshita wheelbarrow suplexes him into the running knee for another near fall and they’re both down. Another Swerve Stomp misses so Swerve settles for an anklescissors into the corner. The House Call sets up the Swerve Stomp for two and Swerve is stunned. A standing stomp sets up the JML Driver to give Swerve the pin at 19:41.

Rating: A-. This is the kind of match I was hoping for when AEW started: two incredibly talented people getting the chance to showcase themselves on a big stage for the first time. The match told a story of Takeshita hurting Swerve early and Swerve having to fight around the injury and win in the end. Throw in some high impact offense and some hot near falls and this is one of the best matches I’ve ever seen on Dynamite. Loved this.

Overall Rating: B-. The show wasn’t their best effort for the most part but my goodness that main event was great. In other words, it felt like an In Your House and that is not the worst way to present television. The focus here was on setting up some things for Dynasty, with the TBS Title match officially being set and the Tag Team Title tournament getting rid of some teams. Not an excellent show, but dang check out that main event (and the opener, depending on your taste in Shibata).

Results
Will Ospreay b. Katsuyori Shibata – Hidden Blade
Young Bucks b. Private Party – EVP Trigger to Quen
Willow Nightingale b. Skye Blue, Kris Statlander and Anna Jay – Babe With The Powerbomb to Jay
Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta b. Kingdom – Rollup to Bennett
Swerve Strickland b. Konosuke Takeshita – JML Driver

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: March 8, 2024
Location: Gas South Arena, Duluth, Georgia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Chris Jericho

We’re done with Revolution and the big story coming out of Dynamite is the debut of Kazuchika Okada. Not only did he show up, but he has officially joined the Elite along with the Young Bucks. That should make for an interesting future, but we should also be seeing something else here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta vs. Kip Sabian/Butcher

Cassidy and Sabian start things off but it’s off to Butcher before anything happens. Trent comes in as well and gets shoved down a few times as Excalibur runs through the card. A suplex doesn’t work for Butcher as Trent slips out, only to break up the tornado DDT. Trent gets taken into the corner and it’s back to Sabian, who is quickly backdropped. Cassidy comes in for his half of a double suplex and they go to the mat for some quick rollups. It’s back to Butcher, who plants Cassidy down with a powerslam to further wreck Cassidy’s…everything. Sabian comes back in to stay on Cassidy and we take a break.

Back with Cassidy putting his hands in his pockets and rolling under Sabian to get to Trent (though Cassidy doesn’t want to take his hands out for the tag). Butcher accidentally runs Sabian over and Trent knocks Butcher outside for the slingshot dive. A running knee gets two on Sabian but Butcher is back in to kick Trent in the face. Sabian’s top rope double stomp gets two, with Cassidy making the save. Everything breaks down and Sabian is dropped, leaving Butcher to get caught with the Orange Punch into Strong Zero for the pin at 11:12.

Rating: C+. The way the promo on Dynamite had sounded, I thought this was going to be the first round of the tournament but instead it was Cassidy and Beretta just having a match against a team of guys who have lost a good deal of matches before. That being said, the fans are always going to respond to Cassidy and it makes the show feel more important by having him around.

Video on the Infantry.

Ruby Soho is in tears and says Angelo Parker is hurt, possibly with torn ligaments in his knee. Soho hates Saraya, who is an ugly person deep down. Saraya and her inbred family are going to get what’s coming.

TBS Title: Julia Hart vs. Robyn Renegade

Hart is defending in an open challenge House Rules match, with the rule being nothing off the top rope. They go to the mat to start with Hart grabbing a headlock and then bashing said head against the mat. Choking on the ropes has Renegade in more trouble and we hit the chinlock. Back up and Hart sends her into the corner, setting up Hartless for the win at 3:40.

Rating: C-. Total squash for Hart here with the top rope thing not playing any sort of role. There was little reason to believe that Renegade was going to be a threat of any sort and that is exactly what happened, as Hart ran through her with no trouble. Hart is likely coming up on a title defense against Willow Nightingale or Riho and that should be a bit more competitive.

Renee Paquette (being recorded by a phone and the main camera for some reason) is interrupted by the Outcasts, who swear vengeance against Ruby Soho and Angelo Parker. Saraya slaps something out of a man’s hand so that it hits Zak Knight, causing violence.

Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Action Andretti

Andretti doesn’t care for Penta’s shouting to start and takes him down with a double leg. Back up and a tornado DDT plants Penta, who is right back with a shot to the face. They head to the floor, where Penta wins a chop off and sends him into the steps. Andretti is right back with a hurricanrana off the apron as we take a break.

Back with Andretti hitting a flip splash off the apron, only to get superkicked out of the air. Andretti is fine enough to grab a Spanish Fly for two, followed by Penta hitting a Death Valley Driver powerslam (I guess Keith Lee isn’t around) for the same. Penta knocks him out of the air again and the Fear Factor finishes Andretti at 9:08.

Rating: B-. They were trading their big flips and flashy moves until one of them won and that’s almost always going to work. It might not have been a classic or anything, but there are far worse ways to fill in about ten minutes. Penta has been getting some more television time in recent weeks and that is nice to see after he was just kind of hanging around for so long.

Video on Titan (Tee-Tahn), who faces Chris Jericho on Collision.

Private Party vs. Top Flight vs. Komander/Bryan Keith

Keith and Quen start but the latter tags in Kassidy, who tags in Dante. Everything breaks down in a hurry and it’s a big brawl with Top Flight clearing the ring. We take a break and come back with Quen kicking Keith down but Keith crotches Kassidy on top. Quen gets taken down as well but Komander has been knocked to the floor, meaning Keith has to tag in Darius.

Komander is back up to tag himself in for a rope walk dropkick. Private Party tries to double team Komander but Keith makes the save. Komander rolls Dante up for two but gets kneed in the face for his efforts. Dante dives onto a bunch of people, leaving Darius to hit the Ripcord to finish Komander at 11:00.

Rating: B-. This was pretty much exactly what you would expect from this kind of a match, as they were going all over the place until one of the established teams beat the makeshift team. It’s similar to what has been going on with Ring Of Honor for weeks now and it had about the same impact. It’s fine for a one off match, but it’s little more than a showcase for Private Party and Top Flight.

Overall Rating: B-. It wasn’t a bad show and it was an improvement over last week, but this still felt like a show that could have complete disappeared without missing a thing. This show came and went with pretty much nothing that made a difference in the slightest, with the biggest part being Orange Cassidy and Trent Beretta beating a pretty nothing team. The action was good and even entertaining, but it was nothing that you need to see.

Results
Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta b. Butcher/Kip Sabian – Strong Zero to Butcher
Julia Hart b. Robyn Renegade – Hartless
Penta El Zero Miedo – Fear Factor
Top Flight b. Private Party and Bryan Keith/Komander – Ripcord to Komander

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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