Dynamite
Date: September 28, 2022
Location: Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We continue the road to Full Gear and that means we need to start laying the groundwork. Before we get there though, World Champion Jon Moxley has a title match coming up in about three weeks against Hangman Page. That should make for some good weeks of build so let’s get to it.

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

Here is the Jericho Appreciation Society (all in purple), plus Luigi Primo, who has made some NEW YORK PIZZA for….well no one here because this place is full of losers. Anna Jay says no one gets pizza and it’s all about Jericho. She threatens to choke everyone out but seems to get a bit shaken by the WE WANT PIZZA chants. Jericho gets the mic and says he is now the most watched and viewed Ring Of Honor World Champion of all time.

Tonight he is ready to take out Bandido, who no one saw as Ring Of Honor Champion because no one knows what Ring Of Honor is. Jericho even has a present for Daniel Garcia, in the form of a purple Gilligan hat. That’s too far for Garcia, who drops Primo and says this is all too much. Garcia thinks it is time for….and Jericho covers the mic, saying Garcia needs to think about this.

Cue Bryan Danielson to say that it’s time for Garcia to make up his mind, with Jericho saying Garcia is with him. Garcia gets in Jericho’s face and says he can make up his own mind. He asks about thing that would entertain Jericho, like making pizza….or teaming with Danielson against Jericho and Sammy Guevara. Matt Menard has had it and says he wants to fight Garcia or maybe punch Danielson. That’s cool with Danielson, who is ready to do the match right now. This was a rough segment, as it was a bit too over the top, even by Jericho standards. Also, Garcia continues to be pretty weak on the mic.

Here’s what’s coming on the rest of the show.

Bryan Danielson vs. Matt Menard

William Regal is on commentary and continues flirting with Excalibur (calling him a Rice Krispie Treat who can snap, crackle and pop him anytime). Danielson kicks him into the corner to start but Menard gets in a cheap shot and knocks him outside as we take a break. Back with Danielson getting caught by a distraction from Angelo Parker, allowing Menard to grab a German suplex. Cue Claudio Castagnoli to pick up Parker and carry him to the back like a bag of light groceries. The running knee sets up the LeBell Lock to make Menard tap at 8:44.

Rating: C. This was exactly what you would expect from Jericho vs. Menard and that isn’t a bad way to go. Sometimes you need to let Danielson get in there with someone he can mow down without much effort. At the same time you have Castagnoli doing some ridiculous power display for some fun and this worked just fine.

Video on Juice Robinson beating Jon Moxley in New Japan.

Video on MJF.

Here is Wheeler Yuta instead of the scheduled MJF. He didn’t like MJF hitting Tony Schiavone, who has done more for AEW than MJF could ever do. Yuta calls MJF out right now but says MJF is going to hide behind people instead. After mocking MJF’s cheap heat, Yuta calls him out again and this time MJF comes out, in a New York Mets jersey.

MJF rips on Schiavone and Philadelphia before saying Yuta is one of the best wrestlers in the world today. Then Yuta made the mistake of trying to talk with him last week and Daddy had to put him in timeout. Yuta has as much charisma as Joe Frazier AND HE’S DEAD. MJF mocks the Phillies and says he doesn’t care because he makes more money than anyone in this bum town.

Yuta comes up the ramp but the Gunn Club comes out to stand guard. MJF says he’ll fight Yuta next week in Washington DC and no, Philadelphia doesn’t deserve to hear his catchphrase. The Gunns do it instead. This really didn’t work as Yuta isn’t great on the mic and MJF is starting to get a bit repetitive instead of hitting the great lines. Then again, what is he supposed to insult about someone like Yuta? He’s a talented guy, but Yuta is pretty dull and that doesn’t give MJF much to riff on.

Video on Darby Allin vs. Jay Lethal next week.

Jon Moxley vs. Juice Robinson

Non-title and Robinson jumps Moxley on the floor to send him into the barricade before the bell. Moxley fights back and sends Robinson into the barricade as MJF is watching from a sky box (where he is not pleased). Back in and they slug it out some more until Moxley gets backdropped to the floor.

We take a break and come back with Moxley running him over and grabbing the ankle lock. That’s broken up with a grab of the rope so Moxley hammers away in the corner. Robinson sends him into a buckle though and Pulp Friction (jumping Unprettier) gets two. Moxley is back up with a Regal knee and a bunch of stomps. The cross armbreaker makes Robinson tap at 10:32.

Rating: C+. They didn’t go that far here and they didn’t really need to. This wasn’t supposed to be some major match or showdown for Moxley but they did bring in someone he has some history with and that works fine. Also, they let us know what that story was without trying to make it seem like some huge deal. Good use of Moxley here and Robinson has some name value.

Post match Hangman Page comes out for a staredown with (the bleeding) Moxley. MJF interrupts them from the sky box though and suggests that he’ll cash in his chip after their October 18 title match. Then Wheeler Yuta pops up behind him and the beating is on.

Video on Bandido, who faces Chris Jericho tonight.

Video on Saraya debuting last week.

Here is Saraya for a chat. She says she is the revolution and this is her house but she’s ignoring the time cues because she’s not leaving until she’s ready. Saraya wants the women’s division out here so we get Toni Storm and a few others, only to have Britt Baker and company cut them off. Britt makes fun of how to pronounce Saraya’s name but Saraya says Baker’s name rhymes with s***.

Britt brings up Storm being ready to lose to Serena Deeb so let’s get her out here for the (scheduled) title match right now. Saraya says hang on a second (egads) because she now has a boss that listens to her (I think that might have been a shot at WWE) so this is a lumberjack match. This was ROUGH as Saraya seemed lost at times and the whole thing felt off. Maybe she’s just rusty, but this wasn’t exactly working.

Interim Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Serena Deeb

Storm is defending and Saraya is on commentary. Deeb works on the arm to start but Storm is right back with some shots to the head. Storm is sent outside in a heap though and it’s a big shouting match with the lumberjacks as we take an early break. Back with Storm getting two off a high crossbody but Deeb pulls her into a leglock.

With that broken up, Hayter trips her to the mat. Hayter gets chased to the back by Willow Nightingale, leaving Deeb to grab the Serenity Lock. With that broken up, Storm backdrops her and hits another high crossbody, only to have Deeb roll through into a half crab. Storm gets out again and hits Storm Zero for two in a surprising near fall. Deeb goes up top where Storm catches her with a super piledriver for the pin at 11:17.

Rating: C. Deeb is still someone who can put on a good match with just about anyone and Storm can do something solid when she has the right situation. This time though there was a bit too much going on and there was no reason for this to be a lumberjack match. It’s ok to not add in something else to everything and that was the case here.

The Acclaimed have an open challenge for a title match on Rampage. Keith Lee comes in to get in Billy Gunn’s face and a challenge seems to be issued.

Private Party yell at Butcher and Blade. Jose the assistant tells Private Party to get it together or get fired. Matt Hardy comes in to tell Private Party to quit and get out of their deal, because he’ll be waiting for them.

Ricky Starks vs. Eli Isom

Spear and Roshambo finish Isom at 48 seconds.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Video on Luchasaurus/Christian Cage vs. Jungle Boy.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Chris Jericho vs. Bandido

Bandido is challenging. They shake hands and Bandido flips him off, earning a shot to the face. Bandido sends him outside and hits the big flip dive, albeit possibly banging up his leg. We take a break and come back with Bandido hitting a VERY long delayed vertical suplex but needing some time to get up as well.

A frog splash (with Eddie dance) gets two but Jericho is back with a Codebreaker. Back up and they fight to the apron with Bandido hitting a hurricanrana to the floor. We take a break and come back with Bandido hitting a springboard sunset bomb for two, followed by a crucifix bomb for the same.

The X Knee is loaded up but Jericho reverses into the Walls. That’s broken up with a rope grab and Bandido catches him with a kick to the head on top. The X Knee and 21 Plex get two so Jericho messes with the mask. That’s enough to set up the Liontamer for the tap at 18:21 to retain the title.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going and they got going by the end. Aside from the mask twisting setting up the finish being almost a requirement around here, it did feel like a big main event. I would assume that the only reason Bandido isn’t signed to AEW or WWE is that he doesn’t want to be, as the guy is pretty awesome just about every time he’s in the ring. Good start for Jericho’s title reign against an exciting opponent.

Post match Jericho says he’s coming for every former Ring Of Honor Champion and he’ll start with Bryan Danielson on October 12. Then he kicks ring announcer Bobby Cruise low and gives him the Judas Effect to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t their best effort, though there is a very good chance that Hurricane Ian had something to do with the show’s setup. It wouldn’t surprise me if a lot of the stars were down in Florida taking care of things and if that is the case, it is a more than acceptable excuse. The main event is just about the only really good thing on here and some of the talking segments were closer to the brutal. It wasn’t an awful show, but it’s one of their weaker in a good while.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Matt Menard – LeBell Lock
Jon Moxley b. Juice Robinson – Cross armbreaker
Toni Storm b. Serena Deeb – Super piledriver
Ricky Starks b. Eli Isom – Roshambo
Chris Jericho b. Bandido – Liontamer

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

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

AND

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

Dynamite
Date: September 21, 2022
Location: Arthur Ashe Stadium, New York City, New York
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

It’s probably the biggest Dynamite of the year as we are in a stadium for Grand Slam. As expected, the show is going to be a huge one with a World Title match between Bryan Danielson and Jon Moxley for the vacant championship. Other than that, Swerve In Our Glory is defending the Tag Team Titles against the Acclaimed in an All Out rematch. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Chris Jericho vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Castagnoli is defending and starts fast by gorilla pressing Jericho onto the top rope. A big boot knocks Jericho outside and Castagnoli follows him, only to have Jericho hide behind former Ring Of Honor owner Cary Silkin. That’s enough for Jericho to get in some cheap shots to stagger Castagnoli but he’s right back with the uppercuts back inside. They fight to the apron and fight over a suplex before forearming it out instead. Jericho gets the suplex onto the floor and they’re both down as we take a break.

Back with Jericho charging into a boot in the corner but managing to catch Castagnoli on top. A super hurricanrana pulls Castagnoli down for two and the fans bought that kickout. The Judas Effect is blocked though and a double stomp sets up the Sharpshooter to put Jericho in trouble.

A rope is grabbed so Castagnoli hits the Riccola Bomb for two. Castagnoli goes up but dives into the Codebreaker for two more. The Walls go on but Castagnoli is out fast, setting up the Swing. That and a clothesline are enough for two so Jericho grabs Floyd the baseball bat. That’s taken away but the distraction lets Jericho hit him low. The Judas Effect gives Jericho the pin and the title at 14:48.

Rating: B. I’m really not sure on this one as Jericho is the definition of someone who doesn’t need to win a World Title. Castagnoli was on a roll since winning the title and he loses to Jericho of all people? I’m not exactly interested in more of the Sports Entertainers vs. Wrestlers (read as WWE vs. AEW) feud but that seems to be where we’re going. Good match of course, but that result is a head scratcher in a lot of ways.

Post match the Jericho Appreciation Society, including Daniel Garcia, come out to celebrate.

Tag Team Titles: Swerve In Our Glory vs. Acclaimed

Acclaimed is challenging and Caster’s rap makes reference to a glory hole. The champs have rapper Fabulous in their corner while the Acclaimed have Billy Gunn. Lee runs Bowens over to start and then snaps off a running hurricanrana, which has Bowens scared and the crowd impressed. Bowens comes in and manages a hiptoss, meaning it’s scissoring time. Strickland isn’t having that and breaks it up with a dropkick, much to Gunn’s annoyance.

We take a break and come back Caster powerslamming Swerve and brainbustering Lee (which might have been planned as a suplex). The hot tag brings in Bowens to clean house, including a hurricanrana (or maybe a headSCISSORs) to Lee and a rollup for two on Strickland. Back up and Lee tosses Bowens HARD onto the ramp but misses a moonsault to Caster. Swerve goes for a boombox shot but hits Lee by mistake, allowing Bowens to hit a Blockbuster.

The Mic Drop connects for a VERY delayed two as Caster seems to hurt his knee. Strickland comes back in and drives Caster (knee seems ok) into the corner. Lee Pounces Caster and throws him into Swerve’s sitout powerbomb for a rather near fall, with the kickout bringing the crowd back to life. Strickland’s springboard flip dive is more of a springboard flipping kicks to their faces but Gunn gets in his face. The Fameasser on the floor hits Swerve and it’s the mic Drop to give Caster the pin and the titles at 13:41.

Rating: B-. It wasn’t the match they had at All Out but there was no way it was going to be able to live up to that standard. That being said, this was ALL about the huge moment as the fans were ready to see it and AEW went exactly where they should have. The Acclaimed has turned into one of the most over acts in the company and they needed the titles here.

Post match scissoring ensues as Swerve is stunned.

FTR congratulates the new champs but it’s time for their title shot. The Gunn Club comes in to mock them and I think FTR has their next non-Tag Team Title feud.

Wheeler Yuta….is interrupted by MJF, who comes to the stage with a Ric Flair strut. MJF says Wheels will never get a reaction like this. These people love him and would drink his sweat or let him sleep with their wives. The only reason he wouldn’t do it is because he has standards but Yuta calls him the King of The Low Hanging Fruit.

Yuta brings up MJF getting engaged to be married recently and suggests that MJF’s fiance is too smart for her. His fiance has figured out that MJF is a spineless piece of garbage who will walk out on her like MJF walked out on AEW. MJF: “Give it up for Wheeler. He has went from drying paint to pet rock personality.” MJF is here to wish the “Blackpool Cuckold Club” luck in the main event tonight and mocks both Danielson and Moxley. Oh and William Regal can teach him how to pop pills! That earns MJF a slap to the face but he headbutts Wheeler and SHOVES TONY SCHIAVONE! Yuta is back up but W. Morrissey comes in for the save.

Jade Cargill and the Baddies aren’t worried about Diamante and her friend. Cue Diamante, who brings in her friend….Trina, who is apparently a rapper. Not that commentary or anyone else tells us that of course.

All-Atlantic Title: Pac vs. Orange Cassidy

Cassidy is challenging and throws his sunglasses at Pac to start. Pac doesn’t care for that and the lazy kicks make him even angrier. They’re enough to make Pac stomp him down in the corner as Tony keeps talking about how MJF will be fined but it won’t matter. They head outside with Cassidy getting posted, setting up the big flip dive over the top.

We take a break and come back with Cassidy raising his boots to prevent the Black Arrow from launching. Cassidy knocks him outside for a dive, setting up the top rope DDT back inside. The Orange Punch is blocked though and Pac pulls him into the Brutalizer, which is countered into a rollup for two. The Orange Punch connects for two and Pac rolls outside for a breather. With the referee not able to see it, Pac gets in a shot with the ring bell hammer to knock Cassidy silly and retain at 12:15.

Rating: B-. This is where Cassidy has found his sweet spot. He isn’t likely to ever become a main eventer or a World Champion but giving him a title shot like this, only for him to come up short is fine. Good match here and Pac continues to be someone who feels like a major star every time he’s in the ring. The fans would have gone nuts for the title change, but it wasn’t the right call.

Interim AEW Women’s Title: Britt Baker vs. Serena Deeb vs. Athena vs. Toni Storm

Storm is defending and Rebel is here with Baker. It’s a brawl to start with everyone getting a quick near fall. Deeb even breaks up a backslide and rolls Baker and Athena up at the same time. Then it’s a leglock to Storm and an abdominal stretch (and then a suplex) to Athena at the same time.

We settle down to Storm hitting a running dropkick for two on Baker before going up top. That means a Tower Of Doom to bring everyone down and we take a break. Back with Storm and Deeb holding half crabs but slapping each other instead of cranking back harder. With those broken up, Athena dropkicks Baker to break up the Stomp and Deeb neckbreakers Baker over the ropes.

A swinging neckbreaker gives Deeb two on Storm and the Serenity Lock goes on. Athena breaks that up and throws Baker and Deeb at the same time. A powerbomb swung into a faceplant gives Athena two on Storm and Deeb makes the save. Baker tries the Lockjaw on Storm, who reverses into a crucifix to retain the title at 9:47.

Rating: C+. They went fast here and got to the point, with Storm getting the pin to retain in the end. Storm needs more wins to make her feel like a bigger star and pinning Baker is one of the best ways to do so. Storm needs a feud for the title, but getting rid of the Interim name would make things better than anything else.

Post match Baker (whose nose is busted) goes after Storm but Jamie Hayter runs in to pull her off. Then Hayter and Baker beat Storm down together and hug. Deeb beats on Athena at the same time. Lockjaw is loaded up….and Saraya (Paige) debuts. She clears the ring and invites anyone to come fight her but no one accepts. There’s your big debut, but seeing her in the ring is going to be a scary sight.

Darby Allin drags a body bag around New York before getting in a cab, saying he’s going to a funeral.

Here is what is coming on Rampage.

AEW World Title: Jon Moxley vs. Bryan Danielson

For the vacant title and William Regal is on commentary. Danielson goes for the leg to start before we get to the chops that you knew were coming. The chop off goes to Danielson, who takes Moxley into the corner for more chops and kicks. The running dropkick misses but Danielson keeps striking away anyway. Another kick knocks Moxley off the top and down to the floor for the flying knee as MJF, with the chip, is watching in the crowd. Moxley gets him onto the apron and tries a choke, only to get German suplexed hard. The running knee from the apron drops Moxley again as we take a break.

Back with Danielson striking away but Moxley pulls him into a half crab, followed by the ankle lock. With that broken up, they go up top with Moxley raking the back and backdropping him down. Moxley grabs a LeBell Lock of his own but Danielson slips out. They lock legs and wind up standing on their heads to slug it out, with Danielson getting the better of things.

Danielson grabs Cattle Mutilation to keep Moxley in trouble and the Hammer and Anvil elbows make it even worse. Moxley manages to survive and hits the King Kong lariat as MJF is chuckling over what he’s seeing. Danielson suplexes his way out of the Death Rider and hits the running knee for two, which has MJF on his feet. Moxley stomps Danielson in the ankle and hits the Death Rider for two.

Back up and Danielson starts kicking away, setting up some stomps. A triangle choke goes on before shifting to the LeBell Lock but Moxley makes it to the ropes. That’s fine with Danielson, who goes up top and hits a knee onto the arm. Moxley is right back with a Death Rider on the ramp for two, setting up a sleeper to make Danielson tap for the title at 19:32.

Rating: A-. They had a heck of a fight here and what matters most is that the title situation is set as we get ready for MJF to take the title, probably at Full Gear. You knew this was going to be an awesome match and that is what they pulled off in another great one. Moxley winning the title is a safe way to go, even if it makes it feel like we could have been here a few months ago.

Post match Regal comes in to hand Moxley the title but Danielson takes it away and points at Regal to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. What else is there to say here? The action was great, big things happened, and the main event set up things for the future. What mattered the most here was the atmosphere though, as they were in front of a ton of people in a huge venue and it was an outstanding show that delivered on every front. Absolutely worth checking this one out, as there is nothing bad in the slightest and some of the stuff was excellent.

Results
Chris Jericho b. Claudio Castagnoli – Judas Effect
Acclaimed b. Swerve In Our Glory – Mic Drop to Strickland
Pac b. Orange Cassidy – Hammer to the head
Toni Storm b. Britt Baker, Serena Deeb and Athena – Rollup to Baker
Jon Moxley b. Bryan Danielson – Choke

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

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

AND

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

Rampage
Date: September 16, 2022
Location: MVP Arena, Albany, New York
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Chris Jericho, Tony Schiavone

The road to normalcy continues this week but there might not be as much to get hyped about with this show. The problem is that with no tournament matches for this week, there is only so much that can be done to bring in the interest. Rampage has a tendency to not feel the most important but maybe they can pull it off. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Matt Hardy vs. Darby Allin

They shake hands to start and it’s Allin grabbing a headlock takeover. Hardy fights up so Allin crucifix bombs him for two. With Hardy on the floor, Allin’s dive is cut off but he drives Hardy into the steps to knock him silly again. Allin goes Jeff/PCO by trying a Swanton, which only hits apron because people like him never learn.

We take a break and come back with Hardy hitting a Side Effect out of the corner for two. The Twist of Fate is countered and a suplex is as well, with Allin grabbing a Scorpion Death Drop to put them both down. Allin loads up the Coffin Drop but gets powerbombed out for two. Hardy misses a moonsault and gets Code Reded for two, followed by the Last Supper to give Allin the pin at 10:00.

Rating: C. Well at least Hardy didn’t go over. If Hardy can go at a pace like this then he’s fine to keep around, as long as he isn’t given a story to go with it. Allin winning is of course the only way to go here, even if he doesn’t have much going on. They didn’t exactly go extreme here, which was the point, but it could have been worse.

Post match Allin leaves so the lights go out. Cue Brody King and Julia Hart to run Hardy over, with King calling out Allin and Sting. The challenge is on for a No DQ match next week, so King chokes Hardy (playing off Sting’s longtime association with Matt) until the lights go out again and King disappears. This is a feud that was wrapped up and is continuing, which is rarely a good idea.

Eddie Kingston wants Sammy Guevara next week in New York. The match is already made.

Here is Claudio Castagnoli, flanked by Wheeler Yuta, for a chat. Claudio says the title represents what he can do and the Blackpool Combat Club represents the new symbol of excellence. Last week, Yuta lost the Pure Title to Daniel Garcia but you learn the most by losing. Then last week, Castagnoli defended his title against Dax Harwood, who was one of the toughest opponents he ever faced.

Next week is a great week for the Club though as it’s two members of the team fighting for the AEW World Title. Next week, the Club will have two World Champions in its ranks….but Chris Jericho interrupts. Jericho wants to talk about the Jericho Appreciation Society’s great week, including how he should be fighting for the World Title. Castagnoli reminds Jericho for tapping so the fans get on him, with Jericho saying he wishes he was in Albany, Georgia. Jericho brags about his World Title wins and now he wants #8 to be the Ring Of Honor World Title. Castagnoli was hoping for that so it’s on.

Jade Cargill and the Baddies were cut off by Diamante, who challenges her for the title. Note that Excalibur said Diamante was “red hot”, despite that she has lost her last two matches.

Penelope Ford vs. Willow Nightingale

Kip Sabian is here with Ford, who sees to have caught JR’s eye. Ford slugs away to start but gets caught in a headlock for her efforts. Nightingale takes her down for some rollups and we pause for Excalibur to rapid fire the matches for next week. A basement crossbody lets Nightingale get a rather smiley two, only to miss a Pounce. Some middle rope knees crush Nightingale and we take a break.

Back with Nightingale getting fired up and hitting a spinebuster for two. Ford is fine enough to Matrix away from a clothesline and hit a jumping cutter for two of her own. A kick to the face rocks Nightingale and something like a Stroke sets up a Muta Lock for the tap at 8:27 (as Sabian talks to the box helmet).

Rating: C. Ford is being reheated after her long absence but dang it is depressing to see Nightingale lose so often. She has so much charisma and is rather fun to watch every time she’s out there, but I do get why AEW wants to push Ford so much more. Decent enough match too, as Ford gets her footing back.

Hangman Page and the Dark Order are ready for the Golden Ticket Battle Royal at Grand Slam for, say it with me, a future World Title shot. La Faccion Ingobernable comes in to glare and shout.

Danhausen vs. Ethan Page

Stokely Hathaway is here with Page, who isn’t having anything of this being cursed. A big boot and running shoulder sets up the Ego’s Edge for the pin at 1:27.

Ricky Starks tells Powerhouse Hobbs to think about everything that is about to happen to him because Hobbs has his undivided attention. They’ll see each other in New York.

Josh Woods and Mark Sterling are ready to send Samoa Joe on a permanent vacation. Joe doesn’t buy it.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Ring Of Honor TV Title: Samoa Joe vs. Josh Woods

Joe is defending and drives him into the corner to start for an exchange of grins. Woods cranks on the arm so Joe reverses into a cravate. With that not working, it’s time for the big forearm exchange, because that’s what so many AEW matches become. Joe sends him outside but Tony Nese snaps Joe’s arm across the top as we take a break.

Back with Joe rolling him up for two but not being able to get the Koquina Clutch. Joe puts him down and hits a backsplash for two but his arm is giving out. Nese and Sterling offer distractions so Woods can escape the rollup. A knee to the face rocks Joe and a pin into another knee to the face gets two more. Back up and the Rock Bottom out of the corner cuts Woods off, followed by the MuscleBuster to retain at 10:09.

Rating: C+. This felt like a Ring Of Honor match with Joe doing his usual stuff to win. I can go with more and more Joe so this was one of those fun matches that will work almost every time. It worked for a Rampage main event, even if the ROH TV Title feels like it has no value whatsoever.

Post match the triple teaming is on but Wardlow comes in for the save. Sterling escapes the Powerbomb Symphony and we get a Wardlow/Joe staredown to end the show. Unify some titles and I’m thrilled.

Overall Rating: C. The main thing that this show did was prove how easy it would be to have a regular Ring Of Honor show. This week featured two Ring Of Honor champions, including a title defense in the main event. There’s no reason to have Dark and Dark Elevation, so turn one of them into a Ring Of Honor show and keep all that stuff there. As for the show itself, this was little more than the final table setting show for Grand Slam, which is going to be huge. Not a must see show, but it gets us to the must see shows.

Results
Darby Allin b. Matt Hardy – Last Supper
Penelope Ford b. Willow Nightingale – Muta Lock
Ethan Page b. Danhausen – Ego’s Edge
Samoa Joe b. Josh Woods – MuscleBuster

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

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

AND

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

Dynamite
Date: September 7, 2022
Location: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

And then, everything changed again. AEW World Champion CM Punk and AEW Trios Champions Kenny Omega/the Young Bucks got in a hue bar fight and the question now is what happens to the titles. Odds are this is going to be a huge night of change, which is not what you want after a major pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Here is All Out if you need a recap.

We open with a look at MJF returning as the Joker and winning the Casino Ladder Match, with help from Stokely Hathaway and company.

AEW President Tony Khan joins us (in a VERY rare appearance) to announce that the Trios and World Titles are both vacated. The Trios Titles will be crowned tonight as Death Triangle meets the Best Friends. The World Title will be crowned in a tournament, with the finals at Grand Slam on September 21.

Here are the brackets:

Chris Jericho
Bye

Hangman Page
Brian Danielson

Sammy Guevara
Darby Allin

Jon Moxley
Bye

The Trios Titles are fine but yes, it’s ANOTHER TOURNAMENT and apparently based on past accomplishments. One would think this would be about the #1 and #2 ranked contenders fighting for the title, but that would imply that the rankings had any meaning in AEW. What matters here is that the tournament is going to be over in just two weeks on a grand stage, but I really could have gone with another way to get there instead of AEW’s favorite way of crowning a champion.

Here is MJF, in a Buffalo Bills jersey, to hype up the crowd. He asks how happy people are to see him and says yeah he meant most of what he said last time he was on Dynamite. The fans get an apology for calling them stupid marks and yes that honey in the front row can hit him up after the show. The World Title has been vacated so the Tournament Of Champions is coming to crown a new World Champion.

There is one person who deserves to be champion but he is willing to work smart instead of hard. What we need right now is a leader and he tells the story of Moses, but MJF is better than Moses. Cue Jon Moxley to interrupt and after his Undertaker length entrance, he gets in the ring to say MJF is full of it. MJF turns on the crowd (Tony: “He’s back.”) and sticks it to the Buffalo fans. He talks about how the only Khan worth anything in wrestling is Jolly Old St. Nick but as his all time favorite wrestler, the Game, said, MJF being the World Champion is best for business.

Moxley says MJF needs to be out of the ring right now but MJF takes his shirt off. After that takes some time, MJF bails anyway. Moxley: “Your music sucks.” Anyway, Moxley says that he wants the title back and it is time for someone to take the shot. He needs to be the best and he is taking the shot because it is time to be a legend. You could feel the emotion here, but the better part is that MJF is back.

Trios Titles: Best Friends vs. Death Triangle

For the vacant titles and Danhausen and Alex Abrahantes are here too. Pac and Orange Cassidy start things off but Pac isn’t down for that. Instead Penta comes in for the pose off until Cassidy snaps off a headscissors. Everything breaks down and Death Triangle is sent outside for the big flip dive.

We take a break and come back with Cassidy in trouble but they head outside for Danhausen vs. Abrahantes. Cursing ensues so Danhausen tries the same on Pac, earning himself a shot to the face. Back in and the hot tag brings in Pac to clean house but Trent gets in a shot of his own to take over. Soul Food into the half nelson suplex drops Fenix and we get the Big Hug.

Back up and Fenix fires off the kicks but Death Triangle has to superkick him out of the Crunchie. The Orange Punch knocks Penta into the Crunchie for two with Pac making a save. An assisted Canadian Destroyer drops Trent and the spike Fear Factor hits Taylor. Instead of covering, Pac dives onto the other two, leaving Pac to hit the Black Arrow for the pin and the titles at 11:59.

Rating: B. This was about as good of a choice as they could have made as Death Triangle might be the most established trio in all of AEW. Let them have the titles and do their wacky stuff, which should be more interesting than whatever Elite melodrama we were supposed to get. The Best Friends were doing their serious version here and the whole thing worked well, as it was all about getting some new champions crowned.

Dark Order gets interrupted by Jose the Assistant, who has been sent by Andrade El Idolo to hire 10. John Silver isn’t having that Andrade and Rush come up, with 10 seeming interested.

We recap the Interim Women’s Title match, with Britt Baker costing Jamie Hayter the title.

Hayter won’t talk to Baker.

Toni Storm vs. Penelope Ford

Non-title. Ford, with Kip Sabian in her corner, takes Storm down with a headscissors to start but gets knocked into the corner. The running hip attack misses and Ford bails to the floor, where she sends Storm into the steps and we take a break. Back with Storm knocking her into the corner and hitting the hip attack. The jumping DDT finishes Ford at 5:53. Not enough shown to rate but it was just below a squash for Storm.

Matt Menard and Angelo Parker yell about Action Bronson interfering after Hook beat Parker.

Bronson says he’ll be at Grand Slam.

Here is the Acclaimed but Swerve Strickland cuts them off and says he has a joke for them: Acclaimed as AEW Tag Team Champions! Billy Gunn cuts them off and says this isn’t Swerve’s house anymore. Anthony Bowens says the rematch is in two weeks in New York City and they’re taking home the gold because everyone loves the Acclaimed. They have to change the titles there right?

Chris Jericho talks about finding the Fountain of Youth and drinking it in man. After beating Bryan Danielson, he is the greatest wrestler in history. This is his company and championship and no one is taking that away from him EVER. As for this Friday, Sammy Guevara is ready to beat Darby Allin and Daniel Garcia is winning the Ring Of Honor Pure Title tonight. Sammy didn’t hear him because he was admiring Jericho’s abs.

TNT Title: Wardlow vs. Tony Nese

Nese, with Mark Sterling, is challenging. A headbutt and lariat sets up the three movement Powerbomb Symphony to retain the title at 1:30. That was such a squash that it made up for Wardlow’s music not playing, Wardlow saying “where’s my music” and his old theme playing before the match by mistake.

Post match Wardlow loads up a powerbomb on Sterling but Josh Woods makes the save. Wardlow says he is tired of hearing that he is being misused and this is still WARDLOW’S WORLD!

Video on Darby Allin vs. Sammy Guevara, with Darby talking about how they have been competing since AEW started. He’ll throw in a bonus: no Sting when they fight on Rampage.

Tournament Of Champions First Round: Bryan Danielson vs. Hangman Page

William Regal is on commentary. Feeling out process to start with Danielson grabbing a headlock to no avail. A chop sends Danielson outside but he is right back in for a takedown into a double knee stomp. Danielson kicks away in the corner but gets sent outside. That doesn’t go well for Page, who is sent shoulder first into the post and we take a break.

Back with Danielson chopping away even more but getting caught in the fall away slam to the floor. Danielson gets back in and walks into a Death Valley Driver for two but Danielson takes him back down for two of his own. Page gets sent to the apron and we take a break. Back with Page hitting a sitout powerbomb for two but Danielson ties him in the Tree of Woe for some kicks to the chest. A belly to back superplex is broken up so Page hits a discus lariat for two.

Danielson is able to pull him into the LeBell Lock but Page slips out again. Back up and Danielson takes him down by the arm for another LeBell Lock, which is escaped as well. Danielson charges into the Deadeye for a very close two but Page misses a moonsault. Danielson’s running knee connects to send Page outside, where his suicide dive is countered into a powerbomb onto the apron. Page hits the moonsault to the floor, but the Buckshot Lariat is countered into a bridging O’Connor Roll for the pin at 22:50.

Rating: A-. Yeah of course this was great as Danielson can do no wrong while Page is able to have a very good match with a lot of people. This was a great way for Danielson to come back as it isn’t like Page was going to lose much in a match like this one. They had a long wrestling match here and it was very well put together, which shouldn’t be a shock at all.

Jungle Boy is ready to take out Christian Cage. As for Luchasaurus, it was appropriate that Luchasaurus carried him to the ring for so many years, because Jungle Boy carried his entire career. At All Out, it felt like an anchor was taken off of him and he has never been happier.

Stokely Hathaway and company come out for a chat but he is told they are out of time. Hathaway grabs the production guy by the throat, demands respect, and then drops him with a mic shot. Hathaway’s guys beat the production guy down.

Claudio Castagnoli and Dax Harwood are ready for their Ring Of Honor World Title match on Rampage.

Here’s what’s coming at various shows.

Ring Of Honor Pure Title: Daniel Garcia vs. Wheeler Yuta

Garcia is challenging and gets rapped to the ring. Feeling out process to start and they fight over a lockup before falling outside. We take a break and come back with Garcia coming up for an exchange of chops, with Yuta hitting a snap suplex. Garcia snaps off some suplexes and a running shot to the face gets two.

Back up and Yuta grabs some rolling German suplexes, only to have Garcia come back with his own. Then they trade German suplexes until Garcia hits a middle rope release German superplex, with Yuta landing on the back of his head (yow) as we take a break. Back with Garcia winning a slap off and putting on the Dragonslayer. With that broken up, Garcia does it again and bends back to make Yuta tap at 16:00.

Rating: B. These matches are still a good concept, though they feel out of place on such a high energy show as Dynamite. Garcia had to win here after everything he has done, though now we get to continue the wrestler vs. sports entertainer deal with him. Very technical match, though I’m not sure how well it served as a main event.

Post match Bryan Danielson comes out as the Code Of Honor is adhered to (they shake hands). Danielson then puts the title around Garcia’s waist as an aghast Chris Jericho comes out to end the show.

Overall Rating: A-. This show told me a few things. First of all, AEW has WAY too many stars on its roster if four big names can be dropped and you don’t really notice because there is still so much talent around. Second, having a show focusing on wrestling is always going to work and that is what they did here. There were three good matches with one near classic in the middle. This was an awesome two hours of TV, which flew by, and had some excellent wrestling included. Great show, and hopefully the end of so much AEW drama.

Results
Death Triangle b. Best Friends – Black Arrow to Taylor
Toni Storm b. Penelope Ford – Jumping DDT
Wardlow b. Tony Nese – Powerbomb Symphony
Bryan Danielson b. Hangman Page – O’Connor roll
Daniel Garcia b. Wheeler Yuta – Dragonslayer

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All Out 2022
Date: September 4, 2022
Location: Now Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

It’s time for the big night and in this show’s case, that means really big, as we have a whopping fifteen matches on the card. That alone is going to make this a busy night, but the question becomes what happens in the main event. CM Punk is challenging Jon Moxley despite having a bad foot as of last week. This could go in a few ways, and I’m not sure how well it is going to wind up. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: AAA Mixed Tag Team Titles: Sammy Guevara/Tay Melo vs. Ruby Soho/Ortiz

Sammy and Tay are defending and get jumped during their entrance at the Red Carpet. Soho and Ortiz chase them down with a golf cart and beat them into the ring, where we officially start with Sammy and Tay in street clothes. I have no idea what street, but they’re street clothes. Sammy gets kicked in the face to start and is busted open but manages a shot of his own.

Tay comes in and kisses a downed Soho on the cheek before putting Soho on top. The guys come in so Sammy launches Tay at Ortiz for a Canadian Destroyer. A Swanton gives Sammy two but Soho missile dropkicks Melo and lands on Sammy in the process. Cue Anna Jay for a failed save attempt, leaving Soho to hit No Future and Ortiz to hit a clothesline for stereo near falls. Back up and Melo catches Soho on top for a superplex onto the guys on the floor. They head back inside where the TayKO finishes Soho to retain the titles at 6:04.

Rating: C. So now Tay gets jumped before the match, wrestles in street clothes, and still pins Soho? At what point should she just move on to a trade school? The match was the usual collection of rapid fire spots as we have now seen this match three times in ten days. That is more than enough but hopefully everyone can move on from this feud, as it has been rather overdone in short order.

Zero Hour: FTW World Title: Hook vs. Angelo Parker

Hook is defending and Matt Menard is here with Parker. Hook takes him down to start but gets poked in the eye, allowing Parker to send him throat first into the ropes. Parker: “I’M EXPOSING HOOK!” That earns him a shot to the face but Menard grabs the foot for a distraction. Granted it doesn’t matter as Hook throws him down and an exploder suplex. Another suplex drops Parker again and Redrum makes him tap at 3:38.

Rating: C. They kept this short, as tends to be the case for Hook matches. As usual, it’s the idea of getting him in and out before anything can go badly, which is the right way to go for him. I’m sure Hook will get to beat up Menard next before moving on to whatever his next goofy match is, as it isn’t like this title matches whatsoever.

Post match Menard runs in to jump Hook but Action Bronson, who performs Hook’s music, comes in for the save.

Zero Hour: All-Atlantic Title: Kip Sabian vs. Pac

Sabian, with the box on his head, is challenging and yeah I still have no idea what the deal is supposed to be with that thing. Pac starts fast and kicks away at Sabian but it’s too early for the Black Arrow. Sabian gets shoved off the top but is right back with a springboard kick to the head.

That’s enough to knock Pac outside, setting up a springboard moonsault to drop him again. Pac is fine enough to hit a suplex on the floor and they head back in for some kicks to the unboxed head. A pop up knee to the head sets up a dragon suplex for two on Pac but he snaps off a German suplex for the double knockdown. The Black Arrow is loaded up again but Sabian rolls away before it can launch. Pac chokes him down again and stomps away, setting up the Red Arrow for the pin to retain at 10:20.

Rating: C+. I for one totally get why we waited six months to set this up with Sabian sitting in the crowd without being acknowledged in any way. Pac winning and getting this over with is the right way to go because there wasn’t much to the story anyway, and I’d much rather not have to figure out what the point of Sabin was supposed to be. Nice enough match as Pac was there, but Sabian is still his old self.

Post match Pac says he needs a new challenger so here is Orange Cassidy. Pac: “NO!” Cassidy is a joke instead of a wrestler and he can get to the back of the line.

Sabian yells at his box hat.

Zero Hour: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Eddie Kingston

Rematch from a New Japan match earlier this year, with Ishii winning. The chop it out to no avail to start with Ishii getting the better of things until Kingston drops him with a hard clothesline. Back up and Ishii unloads on him in the corner with Kingston being knocked down for a change. Kingston can’t hit a belly to back suplex so Ishii hits a vertical suplex but they’re both banged up.

Ishii misses a charge in the corner so Kingston hits, you guessed it, more chops. A DDT plants Ishii and a sliding forearm gives Kingston two. Ishii gets up and is more serious so he stands there while Kingston chops him. A kick to the back frustrates Kingston for a change so this time they slap it out.

Kingston hurts his shoulder on a suplex attempt and Ishii is back with a German suplex. One heck of a clothesline staggers (but doesn’t drop) Kingston so they hit each other for a double knockdown. Back up and Kingston hits a hard lariat for two before Ishii runs him over for the same. Ishii’s brainbuster is blocked and Kingston hits the spinning backfist for a VERY near fall. Another spinning backfist is shrugged off and Kingston grabs a northern lights bomb for the pin at 13:28.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of a match that might not be everyone’s taste and that was the case for me as well. The chopping part was more than a bit repetitive but eventually they started beating the fire out of each other and that made up for a lot of it. Kingston winning the match made sense, but there is only so much that you can get out of these two hitting each other with such similar stuff over and over.

Casino Ladder Match

Rey Fenix and Wheeler Yuta start things off and Fenix is right there with the first ladder, which he leans over the barricade. That takes too long so Yuta takes him down and goes up. Rush is in at #3 and shoves both of them down to take over. Andrade El Idolo comes in at #4 and this is not going to go well for everyone not named Rush. A ladder is set up in the middle and it’s a super sunset bomb to drop Martin hard onto the bridged ladder.

Claudio Castagnoli is in at #4 and pushes the double ladder, with Andrade on it, over for the big crash out to the floor. Dante Martin is in at #5 and has a ladder fall on him as he hits the ring. Martin kicks away at Castagnoli before getting shoved from one ladder to another. Penta El Cero Miedo is in at #6 and Canadian Destroys Martin on the ramp and another one drives Andrade onto a bridged ladder.

Fenix frog splashes Rush through a table at ringside and….we’ve got a bunch of masked men to wreck everyone else. One of them goes up to pull down the chip and it’s Stokely Hathaway. Apparently that doesn’t count because he’s not a wrestler, so whoever get the chip wins the title shot. Cue the Joker, another masked man, and it’s…well we don’t know as he doesn’t unmask but he wins at 14:12.

Rating: B-. It’s another wild ladder match and there are only so many things that you can see in one of these things. They were doing all of their crashes and dives but what matters most is having the Joker as a wild card. That could be a lot of people and odds are we’ll be finding out in a few weeks at the most. Good stuff here, but these ladder matches completely run together.

We recap the Trios Titles tournament, which should make for a big final.

Trios Titles: Elite vs. Hangman Page/Dark Order

For the inaugural titles and Don Callis is on commentary. Reynolds and Matt Jackson start things off and neither gets anywhere of note. That means a lot of glaring as we recap the issues among Page and the Elite over the years (and there are a lot of them). Matt gets knocked down by Silver and his back seems to be messed up, which is enough for Page to call off the Order. It’s off to Omega vs. Page and the fans are WAY into this.

They lock up and go into the Order corner, where Silver comes in, much to some booing. Omega’s recently repaired shoulder gets cranked on but Page doesn’t like that either. A big boot and fall away slam connect for Page but his springboard is superkicked out of the air. The Bucks start taking turns on Page before Omega tells him that HE CAN’T ESC….ok I guess Page can as he slips out and gets Silver back in.

Everything breaks down and the Order hits a suicide dive/brainbuster combination to Nick on the floor, giving us a rare ALEX REYNOLDS chant. Matt suplexes both of them but hurts his back again, as tends to be the case with him. Omega gets caught in the corner for the running lariats and the German suplex into a jackknife rollup gives Reynolds two. The Bucks are back in with the superkicks to set up the V Trigger to send Silver outside.

Omega hits the big running flip dive to the floor but Silver is back in with a Backstabber. Page moonsaults onto Nick on the floor and the Pendulum Bomb gets two on Matt. The Bucks and the Order trade clotheslines and a four way superkick puts all of them down. That leaves us with Page vs. Omega….and the referee actually says they need to tag in. With that idiocy out of the way, Omega hits a V Trigger into the Jay Driller for two but Page is able to catch him on top.

A super fall away slam into a cover gives Page two of his own and there’s a Buckshot Lariat to the back of Omega’s head. Matt teases grabbing Page’s leg ala when Page won the World Title but the delay lets Nick hit his own Buckshot Lariat to drop Page. The BTE Trigger gets two with Silver making the save but a V Trigger cuts him down. The One Winged Angel is countered into a rollup to give Silver two but a Buckshot Lariat accidentally knocks Silver silly, with Omega stealing the pin at 19:47.

Rating: B+. Heck of a match as you knew it would be, but there is something amusing about the Elite winning again and setting up even more Bucks/Page/Omega melodrama. What we got here was another pretty awesome match though and that is the point of these belts. Just let them get in their car crash, all action stuff and pop the crowd, which I’ll take over it being the focal point of the show. Very good stuff, even if I’m not at all into the never ending Elite story.

We look at Jade Cargill and Athena yelling at each other on Rampage.

TBS Title: Jade Cargill vs. Athena

Cargill is defending and is painted green for a She-Hulk look. Athena starts fast and hits the O Face in less than a minute, but the Baddies pull Athena out (a second late as the referee had to slow his count). That earns the Baddies a beating but Jade runs Athena over for two back inside. A big toss sends Athena flying until she’s back up with a springboard spinning crossbody for her own two. The fans get behind Athena as she goes up but Kiera Hogan grabs her leg again. Another springboard is pump kicked out of the air and Jaded retains the title at 4:25.

Rating: C-. So remember every big match that Cargill has had? This was the latest one as Athena gets beaten down and added to the list. I’m not sure who is next for Cargill but she continues to be the most pushed woman in AEW, which does make sense given how oddly charismatic she is, but it is going to be very interesting to see what happens when she loses.

CM Punk arrived earlier and put over Chicago again as the live crowd gets more love.

FTR/Wardlow vs. Jay Lethal/Motor City Machine Guns

Satnam Singh and Sonjay Dutt are here, with the latter’s shirt mocking Dax Harwood’s daughter. Harwood one ups that by bringing out his daughter for a sweet moment. Lethal and Wardlow start things off but it’s way too early for a powerbomb. Harwood and Sabin come in, with the latter slapping him in the face. Everything teases breaking down before Harwood runs Sabin over again.

Shelley gets knocked off the apron but it’s time to chase Dutt, allowing Sabin to get in a cheap shot back inside. Harwood chops his way out of trouble though and it’s Wardlow coming in to clean house. A double suplex drops the Guns and Harwood comes back in (rather quickly) for a chop off with Lethal.

Harwood fights his way out of the corner and hands it off to Wheeler to pick up the pace. Sabin is sent outside, leaving Shelley to kick Wheeler’s leg out. The villains take turns wrapping Wheeler’s leg around the post, leaving Lethal to grab a Figure Four. With that broken up, Wheeler gets over to Wardlow for the tag, setting up the house cleaning.

Everything breaks down and Singh punches Wardlow in the face for two, leaving Wardlow to be tied in the Tree of Woe for the series of baseball slide dropkicks. Lethal is back up with the double Lethal Injection to FTR. That’s enough time for Wardlow to fight up and start wrecking everyone, including a four movement Powerbomb Symphony on Lethal at 16:36.

Rating: C+. Good enough match here as Wardlow gets some momentum back after a few weeks of nothing. That doesn’t really help FTR, but maybe we can get a regular tag match against the Guns sooner than later. This match never felt important from the moment it was announced and this didn’t help, though of course it was at least pretty good.

Post match Samoa Joe returns and goes after Sonjay Dutt. Cue Harwood’s daughter Finlay so Harwood decks Dutt, allowing Finlay to get the pin for a feel good moment.

We recap Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Ricky Starks. They were friends and partners, but then Hobbs got sick of Starks’ singles success. Fighting ensued and here we are, as Starks wants revenge.

Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Ricky Starks

Starks charges straight at him to start and is promptly powered down without much trouble. Hobbs goes into the slow power beating as Starks realizes he might be in over his head. The neck crank goes on as Hobbs is working on the recently injured neck. Starks fights up and strikes away in the corner, setting up a DDT for two. Back up and Starks charges into a spinebuster to give Hobbs the sudden win at 5:13.

Rating: C. This feels like the match that was cut down due to time but the ending made up for it. Hobbs winning is a fine way to go (and Starks would have been as well) because AEW is giving someone young and talented a win. We could be in for something from Hobbs and I could certainly go for that kind of a push, as he seems like he could be a breakout star.

We look back at Acclaimed and Swerve Strickland/Keith Lee arguing on Rampage.

Tag Team Titles: Swerve Strickland/Keith Lee vs. Acclaimed

Acclaimed, with Billy Gunn, is challenging. Bowens takes Swerve down to start as the fans chant OH SCISSOR ME DADDY at Billy. Thankfully they are smart enough to let the fans get it out of their system before handing it off to Lee vs. Caster. For some reason Caster tries to go with power vs. Lee but gets about as far as you would expect. A middle rope hurricanrana works a bit better as Lee is taken down before all four come in at once.

The champs are sent outside, meaning it’s time for the big scissoring, much to Billy’s delight. We settle down to Lee taking over on Caster, despite the fans letting Lee know that HE CAN’T SCISSOR. Caster fights out of the corner and hits a middle rope cutter to put Lee down. It’s back to Bowens to hit a running neckbreaker on Swerve, followed by a discus forearm.

A shot to the leg cuts Bowens down though and Swerve throws him over the top, with the leg being banged up again. Lee adds a splash to the knee but misses a charge, allowing the hot tag off to Caster for the house cleaning. For some reason Caster tries a fireman’s carry on Lee, which works as well as you would expect. Lee Pounces over by mistake and a knee gets two on Lee.

Back up and Lee kicks out Bowens’ bad knee but gets caught up top. Swerve makes the save and hits the Swerve Stomp for a VERY close two on Bowens. A half crab goes on but Caster makes the save with a missile dropkick. Swerve’s running kick to the head gets two on Caster, leaving Bowens to break up Swerve’s springboard. With Bowens holding Swerve over the floor, Caster hits a Mic Drop, only to hurt Bowen’s knee in the process. Back inside and Lee chops away, until Billy gets up for a distraction.

Somehow Caster uses the distraction to hit an FU on Lee and it’s the Arrival to Swerve setting up the Mic Drop for a VERY close two with Lee making the save (and the fans aren’t pleased). A Death Valley Driver onto the apron plants Caster and Bowens gets pulled into a backbreaker back inside. Bowens has to fight off both champs but his knee gives out, causing Swerve to kick Lee by mistake. A rollup gets a VERY close two on Lee but Bowens gets caught on Lee’s shoulders. Swerve adds the Stomp to make it a sitout powerbomb for the pin to retain at 22:18.

Rating: B+. Oh I’m not sure about that result, as the fans were BEGGING for the Acclaimed to win here. I get why they didn’t do it and I get why they want Swerve and Lee to retain, but egads if there was ever a reason to call an audible, that might have been it. Either way, at least they had a big pick up match that got a lot of time, with some of those near falls being too close to believe.

Post match Lee and Billy scissor, much to the fans’ uncertainty.

All of the Women’s Title match participants want the title.

Interim Women’s Title: Jamie Hayter vs. Britt Baker vs. Hikaru Shida vs. Toni Storm

For the vacant title, Rebel is here too and the fans seem to like Hayter. It’s a big brawl to start and we get an exchange of rollups. With that not working, Hayter half crabs Storm to leave her in trouble. Baker and Shida trade some rollups before Baker is back up with a Sling Blade. Hayter suplexes Shida and Storm at the same time before being sent outside. Storm dives onto Hayter but gets Sling Bladed by Baker.

With Baker taken down, Shida and Storm face off back inside with Storm being shouldered down but nipping right back up. Rebel tries to come in and gets double headbutted down, which is good for a flat back fall and a lot of laughter from commentary. Hayter carries Shida up the ramp and Baker follows for a Stomp to Shida. That’s enough to get Shida taken out, leaving us with three for the moment.

Storm is double teamed inside and the fans think Hayter is better, which has JR talking about….a sale in a department store? And now here is Shida, complete with two kendo sticks, because KENDO STICKS ARE COOL. Shida gets to clean house and suplexes Baker into Hayter in the corner. Everyone is back up for an exchange of strikes and the villains get a double rollup for two on Shida.

Now it’s Shida with a Falcon Arrow for two on Hayter, with Storm making the save. Hayter breaks up a German suplex with a Tombstone to Storm (that was cool) but Shida makes a save of her own. Baker is back up with a Stomp to Shida for two but Storm breaks up a Lockjaw attempt. There’s a ripcord lariat from Hayter to Shida, causing baker to pull the referee out at two. Storm hits Storm Zero on Hayter but Baker steals the cover for two more. Back in and Storm gives Baker and Hayter a jumping DDT each, with the latter being enough to make Storm champion at 14:41.

Rating: B-. There were some plot points in there, as Baker costing Hayter is going to come back and bite her in the near future. Storm needed to win here as you can only go so far with the losses before she stops mattering. Good match here with the right result, so I’ll take what I can get.

We recap Christian Cage vs. Jungle Boy. Christian claims that Jungle Boy cost him money by losing the Tag Team Titles so he started insulting the memory of Jungle Boy’s dead father. Jungle Boy is out for revenge.

Jungle Boy vs. Christian Cage

Hold on though as Jungle Boy can’t find Luchasaurus, who comes up from behind and chokeslams Jungle Boy onto the lighting grid. Jungle Boy is taken to ringside and beaten down again, but insists on the bell ringing. A spear gives Christian two and the Killswitch finishes for Christian at 21 seconds.

Death Triangle is ready for the Best Friends on Dynamite, though Pac still doesn’t like Orange Cassidy.

We recap Chris Jericho vs. Bryan Danielson, which is about who is the better professional wrestler/sports entertainer.

Chris Jericho vs. Bryan Danielson

William Regal is on commentary and it’s Lionheart here as the 17 Faces Of Jericho continues. Danielson is sung to the ring by someone named Elliott Taylor. They go technical to start until Danielson takes him down for the stomping. With that broken up, they stare at each other a bit in the corner and Jericho hits a hard chop. Danielson goes with a hammerlock but lets him go instead of firing off the palm strikes.

Jericho takes him down on the mat for a change, which is reversed into a double knee stomp. A cross armbreaker is blocked and Jericho reverses up for some elbows to the head. Danielson reverses that and ties up the legs before asking if the fans want some entertainment. That means a Rick Rude hip swivel, which has Jericho angry enough that he chops away in the corner.

Jericho sends him to the apron and hits the triangle dropkick to the floor, but the dive is knocked away to give Danielson a breather. Back in and Danielson hits a missile dropkick, setting up the YES Kicks. A super hurricanrana is countered into the Walls though but Danielson slips out and sends Jericho outside.

That means a suicide dive through the ropes in the corner, only to miss the Swan Dive back inside. Jericho takes his time following up though and Danielson tries the LeBell Lock, which is reversed into a catapult. Naturally Danielson skins the cat so Jericho hits a Tombstone into the Lionsault for two. Back up and the Judas Effect misses and Danielson kicks him in the head.

Danielson stomps away at Jericho, setting up the LeBell Lock. It’s rolled into the middle for better position but Jericho reverses into the Walls again. That’s reversed into a triangle choke but Jericho gets him into the ropes for the break. They chop it out from their knees with Jericho getting chopped into the corner. The backflip over into the clothesline is countered with the Codebreaker for two, setting up a Liontamer to make it even worse.

Another rope is grabbed so Jericho goes primal by hammering away at the head. Danielson gets up again though and it’s the running knee for two. Cattle Mutilation goes on but Jericho rolls out again. That works for Danielson, who fires off the hammer and anvil elbows. Cattle Mutilation goes on again but this time Jericho makes the rope with his foot. More kicks stagger Jericho until Danielson is backed away from the rope. Instead it’s a rolling forearm to rock Jericho and more hammering and elbowing ensues. Jericho manages a low blow though and the Judas Effect finishes Danielson at 23:31.

Rating: A-. They were having a classic and a low blow brought it down a bit. Otherwise, this was a heck of a wrestling match, but I’m really not sure on having Danielson lose again. I’m sure this will be more about Daniel Garcia on the end than anything else, but could we get Danielson a big win for a change? He’s a made man for the rest of his career, though I’m still not sure how many more losses he needs.

The House Of Black is ready to end Sting, Darby Allin and Miro.

House Of Black vs. Sting/Darby Allin/Miro

Miro and Black start things off with Miro taking him into the corner. King comes in for the power brawl with Miro until Allin has to tag himself in. Allin counters Matthews’ Murphy’s Law into a cradle for two but a Code Red is countered (Allin: “Oh s***.”) by Black’s kick to the head. King throws Allin into the corner and Black comes in for the chinlock. Allin fights up and goes over to the corner but Julia Hart distracts the referee, meaning no tag.

The tag goes through a few seconds later, allowing the tag brings in Sting. Some Stinger Splashes connect and it’s time for the staredown with Black. The brawl is on and we hit the Scorpion Deathlock, with the rest of the House not being able to break it up. Sting is finally staggered enough to let Black reverse into a kneebar, with Miro having to make a save.

Allin hits a Coffin Drop for two but Matthews gets in a bat shot to send Miro crashing into the steps. Allin is back up with a flipping Stunner and a suicide flip dive, only to come up holding his shoulder. Back in and Sting mists Black, setting up Allin’s Last Supper for the pin at 12:09.

Rating: C+. This didn’t get crazy for Sting but at least he got to get in there and do his thing while Allin got the glory in the end. I’m still not sure what AEW is doing with Black and Miro, but neither of them did much of anything here. What we got was a fun match, but it is coming near the end of a FAR too long show and that hut things a lot.

Chris Jericho asks Daniel Garcia where he was. As a result, Garcia is challenging Wheeler Yuta for the Pure Rules Title without the Jericho Appreciation Society.

We recap the AEW World Title match. CM Punk came back from his injury and lost to Jon Moxley in three minutes. Now he is motivated by his friends and family and wants to win the title back for Chicago.

AEW World Title: Jon Moxley vs. CM Punk

Moxley, with William Regal in his corner, is defending. They stall to start until Moxley starts hammering away in the corner. Punk gets in a kick to the head with the bad foot, setting up the running knees in the corner. Some Hammer and Anvil elbows rock Moxley and the GTS gets two. They fight into the crowd with Punk unloading as Moxley seems to be covering up.

Back at ringside and Moxley manages to post him, which busts Punk open. They get back inside where Moxley licks the blood off of his hand before kicking away at Punk again. Back up and Punk hits the running knee in the corner but the knee gives out, allowing Moxley to hit a shinbreaker. We hit the leglock, followed by a half crab, which Moxley switches into an STF and then a Figure Four.

Some middle fingers fire Punk up enough to roll over to freedom and Moxley gets beaten up on the floor. Back in Punk grabs the Anaconda Vice but Moxley slips out and stomps away. The clothesline misses though and Punk hits a dropkick but the top rope elbow is pulled into a bulldog choke.

That’s broken up and Punk hits a kick to the head, only to be taken down for more Hammer and Anvil elbows to knock Punk silly. The bulldog choke goes on again but that’s muscled up as well. The GTS attempt is countered and Moxley hits the Death Rider for two. Moxley isn’t having that and grabs the choke again, only to get GTS’d for the third time and the title at 19:43.

Rating: B. This was more of a fight than anything else, though it does feel like they spent a long time setting up this one moment when they could have cut out a lot of stuff in the middle. Anyway, Punk got to get his big hometown moment (as it had been…four days since the last one) and is champion again, but now he needs something else to do as we start to close out the year. Heck of a match here, but I really don’t think it was worth the effort they put in to make it happen.

Then the lights go out and we hear a voiceover from Tony Khan, talking about how someone is gone over and over and keeps screwing the fans. Show up at All Out and everything is forgiven, with whoever it is being put in the Casino Ladder Match, plus get a big bonus. We see a clip of Punk in the old ROH days talking about the devil. Then we see the devil from earlier….and he’s wearing a scarf. MJF is back and comes into the arena and the fans are VERY happy to see him. MJF motions that he wants the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. It was a show where the high points were very good, but there is enough stuff here that REALLY needs to be cut or just dropped altogether. The biggest problem as always with these shows it he length, but at least we had some very good action in there as well. The big ending should set up Grand Slam where MJF gets the World Title, but other than that, you also have Jericho vs. Danielson in a great one and the far better than expected Tag Team Title match.

This was another awesome AEW pay per view, but if they want to really make them all timers, enough with the Wrestlemania lengths. It doesn’t work there and it doesn’t work here, as I was sitting around wondering how in the world there were so many matches left on the show, despite how good they might be. Anyway, certainly check this out, but have a fast forward button loaded up, or at least take a break in the middle.

Results
Tay Melo/Sammy Guevara b. Ortiz/Ruby Soho – TayKO to Soho
Hook b. Angelo Parker – Redrum
Pac b. Kip Sabian – Black Arrow
Eddie Kingston b. Tomohiro Ishii – Northern lights bomb
The Joker won the Casino Ladder Match
Elite b. Hangman Page/Dark Order – Buckshot Lariat to Silver
Jade Cargill b. Athena – Jaded
FTR/Wardlow b. Jay Lethal/Motor City Machine Guns – Powerbomb Symphony to Lethal
Powerhouse Hobbs b. Ricky Starks – Spinebuster
Swerve Strickland/Keith Lee b. Acclaimed – Sitout powerbomb/Swerve Stomp combination to Bowers
Toni Storm b. Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker and Hikaru Shida – Jumping DDT to Hayter
Christian Cage b. Jungle Boy – Killswitch
Sting/Miro/Darby Allin b. House Of Black – Last Supper to Black
CM Punk b. Jon Moxley – GTS

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Dynamite
Date: August 31, 2022
Location: Now Arena, Chicago, Illinois
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Taz

We’re four days away from All Out and it would be nice to have a main event announced. I would certainly hope we know who that is this week, but the question now is which way they go. There is a good chance that it is a rematch with CM Punk, but other than that, is there another option outside of maybe Hangman Page? Let’s get to it.

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

Here is Jon Moxley to get things going. Moxley says let’s talk about it: he had 57 minutes left in him last week but CM Punk didn’t. Last week, we found out what Punk was made of and it turned out that Moxley didn’t care. Champions never fold and it just didn’t work out for him. Moxley knows this is Punk’s town but he has no sympathy. That’s last week though and now he has a signed open contract for All Out, which he will leave in the ring. He’s not sure who he’s going to face and he really doesn’t care. Cue Ace Steel, Punk’s mentor, who grabs the contract and takes it to the back.

Chris Jericho is ready for Bryan Danielson on Sunday. Daniel Garcia comes in to say that he is loyal to the Jericho Appreciation Society and wants to see Jericho crush Danielson at All Out. Works for Jericho.

Jake Hager vs. Bryan Danielson

Chris Jericho and William Regal are on commentary. Hager hits him in the face to start but charges into a boot in the corner. The guillotine goes on but Hager powers out without much trouble. They head outside with Danielson’s suicide dive being cut off and Hager hitting a running spinebuster through a table. Back in and Danielson can’t grab a kneebar as Hager elbows him in the face.

We take a break and come back with Danielson firing off the kicks to the chest but getting hammered with more heavy forearms. That’s pulled into the guillotine, which is countered into something like a powerbomb to drop Danielson again. Danielson is fine enough to pull him into the LeBell Lock, which sends Hager over to the rope. Back up and Danielson hits the running knee for the pin at 10:45.

Rating: B-. That’s what Danielson does best, as he got the most out of Hager by playing to his strength and making the match that much better. Hager does not exactly have the best track record in AEW but Danielson made it work. Nice match, as Danielson continues to show what a master he is every week.

Post match the Jericho Appreciation Society runs in for the beatdown but the Blackpool Combat Club makes the save. Jericho tries to come in with a chair but Daniel Garcia takes it away. The distraction lets Danielson hit another running knee.

Here are the Wingmen to complain about not being around much lately. From now on, Dynamite is their show, but here is W. Morrissey (better known as Big Cass) to wreck things. Stokely Hathaway comes out and seems to have a new client. Tony Schiavone stops them in the aisle and asks Hathaway what’s up with all of the business cards. Hathaway says none of his business and grabs Tony for daring to say it is AEW business. Morrissey had a Sid like energy in Impact Wrestling but I don’t know if that is going to work in AEW.

Will Ospreay and Aussie Open are in the back when Don Callis comes in to praise him a lot, saying he knows it’ll be different than the last time Kenny Omega gave him the One Winged Angel.

Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter vs. Hikaru Shida/Toni Storm

Rebel is here with Baker/Hayter. Shida hammers on Hayter to start so it’s off to Storm, who gets taken down with a jawbreaker. Baker comes in and we take an early break. Back with Shida getting the hot tag to start cleaning house but Baker takes her down with a neckbreaker for two. A basement superkick nails Shida but the Stomp misses. Shida gets in a shot of her own though and goes outside to distract Hayter. Storm comes in with a running hip attack and takes out Hayter again. Shida’s spinning kick to the head finishes Baker at 7:34.

Rating: C+. This didn’t have time to do much as a good chunk of it was in the commercial. Shida getting the pin boosts her up a bit for the title match but I don’t exactly see her having much of a chance on Sunday. Having her win in a tag match is a good way to go, even if there wasn’t much to see here.

Kip Sabian talks about how brilliant his box on the head plan was and how he took it out on Pac. Now they are meeting on Sunday for the title.

Miro/Sting/Darby Allin are ready for the House Of Black.

Here is CM Punk, looking rather emotional. Punk talks about breaking his foot on June 1 and wrestling a match on it anyway. His doctor said he “pulverized” the bones so he had a bunch of plates and screws put in his foot during a June 8 surgery. After saying the number of screws he had put in his foot is more times than this fat guy in the front row has been screwed in his life, he talks about his loss last week. His foot was completely cleared last week but it’s a new 100%. What he doesn’t know is if that 100% is good enough and he doesn’t want to let his fans down.

Maybe that love just isn’t enough anymore, but here is Ace Steel to interrupt. Steel explains who he is (thank you) and doesn’t know what Punk is doing here. The two of them are family and Punk didn’t let his family down last week. Punk filled an arena up on a rumor last year and now he is going to get up and fight on Sunday.

Steel pulls out the contract for Sunday and says sign it (possibly dropping an F bomb in there). Punk takes off his jacket and says people have been trying to kill him since he was born with a cord around his neck. Moxley isn’t a man who can do it because THIS IS CHICAGO and, as Punk goes into the crowd, he declares WE ARE CHICAGO and signs. So yeah, this whole story has been about the live crowd instead of the people watching at home, which is one of those AEW tropes that needs to go away.

Earlier today, Jim Ross sat down between Christian Cage and Jungle Boy with the rule of no physicality. Christian says he is here to make money instead of being Jungle Boy’s father. Jungle Boy isn’t looking for a father, and on Sunday, Christian is going to fight Jack Perry. Good closing line there and the name change would not be a bad idea.

Wardlow/FTR vs. Silas Young/Ren Jones/Victor Capri

Wardlow and Jones start things off and we don’t waste much time getting to the dominance. After Harwood takes over on Capri, a two movement Powerbomb Symphony finishes him off at 1:59.

Here is Moxley to say that if that is what Punk wants, that’s what he can have.

10 is injured and out of the Trios Title match so here is Andrade to offer to buy him if he’ll take the mask off. Evil Uno says no, so Andrade hits him with a crutch. Then Jose the Assistant….either tazes 10, who doesn’t move, or just threatens to do it. I think it’s the latter, which would be a lot better.

Rush vs. Rey Fenix vs. Dante Martin vs. Wheeler Yuta

William Regal is on commentary. Rush powerslams Fenix to start and Martin snaps off a Code Red for two. The big series of dives is on, with Rush wiping out Fenix on the landing. We take a break and come back with Fenix spinning Martin into a knee to the face, followed by a spinning powerbomb for two. Rush makes the save but gets sent outside, leaving Martin to drop Fenix with a poisonrana. Fenix pops up to catch Yuta on top, only to get sent outside. Yuta misses a top rope stomp to Martin but pulls him into the Seat Belt for the pin at 7:57.

Rating: B-. I know I say this a lot for a match like this but you know exactly what you’re getting with this style. Everyone not named Rush can wrestle that style just fine and he was there for the power to offer a different way to go. I was thinking Martin would get the pin here but at least they didn’t talk about the idea of building momentum for ten minutes.

The Dark Order needs a partner and Hangman Page is willing. You knew that was coming.

Trios Titles Tournament Semifinals: United Empire vs. Elite

That would be Will Ospreay/Aussie Open vs. Kenny Omega/Young Bucks. Omega and Osprey slug it out to start and everything breaks down. The Bucks’ dives onto Aussie Open on the floor are pulled out of the air, leaving Ospreay to hit a VERY twisting dive to take them out.

We take a break and come back with Aussie Open beating on Matt, who hurricanranas his way to freedom. The hot tag brings in Omega to start cleaning house but the V Trigger is blocked. The Oscutter is blocked as well and Ospreay snaps off a hurricanrana to send Omega outside. Ospreay misses the Space Flying Tiger Drop and gets kicked down, leaving Aussie Open to hit a double delayed vertical superplex for two on Omega.

We take another break and come back with Nick cleaning house but having his 450 hit Ospreay’s raised knees. The snapdragon drops Nick and it’s Omega vs. Ospreay with the forearm slugout. A sitout powerbomb plants Omega HARD, leaving Aussie Open to load up the assisted Oscutter but Matt countered into a cutter of his own. Omega is back up for the triple knees to the head but Ospreay makes a save. A shooting star Meltzer Driver (just go with it) gets two on Matt but Omega’s V Trigger is broken up. The spike Indytaker gets two more and there’s the V Trigger into the One Winged Angel to finish Davis at 18:53.

Rating: A-. This is a great example of a match that isn’t for me but I get why it is taking place. This was tailor made for the AEW audience and the fans are going to eat it up. The flips and dives worked very well and it was incredibly high energy, which is the kind of match you had to expect take place here. I don’t think there was much in the way of question about the winner, but Omega vs. Ospreay is going to be a big match down the line and it should be a blast.

Overall Rating: B+. They got this one right and built up All Out rather well. I’m not wild on how they got to Punk vs. Moxley II and AEW still has issues with rushing through things as fast as they can, but it is certainly not boring and that is a great thing to see. Very fun show this week and it got some stuff done, so it’s quite the success.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Jake Hager – Running knee
Hikaru Shida/Toni Storm b. Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter – Spinning kick to Baker
Wardlow/FTR b. Victor Capri/Silas Young/Ren Jones – Powerbomb Symphony to Capri
Wheeler Yuta b. Rush, Rey Fenix and Dante Martin – Seat Belt to Martin
Elite b. United Empire – One Winged Angel to Davis

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Rampage
Date: August 19, 2022
Location: North Charleston Coliseum, Charleston, West Virginia
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Jim Ross, Chris Jericho

Things have gotten all the more interesting around here in the last few days as we are now getting ready for one of the biggest matches in Dynamite history. Forget that for now though, because we have something far more important this week. That could only be one thing and say it with me: the Trustbusters are here! Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Claudio Castagnoli, with Wheeler Yuta, to get things going. After praising Ricky Steamboat (in the front row), Claudio gets to the point: an open challenge for a future Ring Of Honor World Title shot. Cue Dustin Rhodes to say he has wanted to hold the World Title for thirty four years and until recently, they both had people saying they should be World Champion. Castagnoli knows the feeling Dustin has and sees the fire in his eyes. The challenge is accepted for next week, with Castagnoli wanting the best Dustin has. Respect is shown. I could go for this.

Ruby Soho and Ortiz want to fight Sammy Guevara and Tay Conti next week.

Tag Team Titles: Keith Lee/Swerve Strickland vs. Private Party

Private Party is challenging. Kassidy punches away at Lee to start and it’s off to Swerve, who can’t hit a suplex. He can however duck a Quen springboard crossbody but gets hurricanranaed to the floor by Kassidy. A corkscrew dive takes Swerve down and we take a break. Back with Kassidy posing at Lee, with the delay allowing Swerve to hit a middle rope stomp on Quen. That’s enough for the hot tag to Lee so house can be cleaned. Kassidy gets Pounced into the ropes and Swerve adds the running kick to the back of the head for two. Swerve doesn’t like that kickout so it’s the JML Driver to retain the titles at 7:58.

Rating: C+. Lee and Swerve didn’t exactly feel like they were in a ton of danger here and that really is how things should have gone. Private Party had that one big win over the Young Bucks and then have done almost nothing of note since them. That isn’t enough to make them threats to the titles here, but their athleticism is still worth at least a glance.

Powerhouse Hobbs interrupts the Factory’s card/dominoes game, asking why they didn’t take care of Ricky Starks. QT Marshall promises they’ll get it done.

FTW Title: Hook vs. Zack Clayton

Clayton (formerly of some Jersey Shore spinoff) is challenging and brags about his star power and promises to take it back to a state people actually like in New Jersey. Redrum retains the title in 12 seconds.

Angelo Parker and Matt Menard don’t like Hook having the FTW Title and think it should be around the waist of a sports entertainer.

Billy Gunn isn’t happy with the Gunn Club and is bringing the Acclaimed to deal with them next week.

We look at La Faccion Ingobernable turning on Dragon Lee and kicking him out of the team.

Buddy Matthews vs. Serpentico

This is billed as a standby match because Hook’s match was so fast in a nice touch. Julia Hart is here with Murphy, who knocks him to the corner to start. A buckle bomb sets up what used to be known as Murphy’s Law for the pin on Serpentico at 1:10.

Post match Miro comes out, holding Malakai Black’s mask. Miro brawls with Matthews and beats him down.

Britt Baker (in a KISS shirt), Rebel and Jamie Hayter aren’t happy that they’re not in the title match at All Out. They do want to see Toni Storm and Thunder Rosa implode though. It’s not like either of them can win anyway.

Penelope Ford vs. Athena

Athena armdrags her into an armbar to start but gets driven into the corner. A jumping knee cuts Ford off but she rolls Athena throat first into the middle rope as we see the guy with a box in his head. Commentary confirms that it’s Kip Sabian as Ford hits a slingshot elbow and we take a break. Back with Ford being sent into the barricade, setting up the O Face to finish Ford at 5:20. Not enough shown to rate but it’s nice to have Ford back.

Post match the Baddies run in to beat down Athena. Jade Cargill and Stokely Hathaway come out and destroy Athena’s wings with a sledgehammer. Cargill sledgehammers Athena down too. Can we GET TO THE MATCH ALREADY? This has been going on for months already.

We recap Jon Moxley and CM Punk on Dynamite.

Video on Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Ricky Starks. Hobbs was hired to keep the FTW Title on Starks but Starks couldn’t keep up his end. More from Starks on Dynamite.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

The Best Friends and Orange Cassidy are ready for the main event.

Trios Titles Tournament First Round: Trustbusters vs. Best Friends/Orange Cassidy

Sonny Kiss is with the Trustbusters. Slim J drives Trent into the corner with Jericho comparing Slim J to a ferret. Chuck makes the save and tosses him into a sitout powerbomb from Trent. Some house is cleaned but Boudreaux comes in to wreck people without much effort. Everything breaks down and we take a break with the Best Friends in trouble.

Back with Trent getting in a forearm but Daivari brings in Slim J, who knocks Chuck off the apron. Cassidy’s staredown distracts Slim J though and Trent gets in a suplex. That’s enough for the tag to Cassidy so the pace picks up, including a high crossbody to Slim Jr and the satellite DDT to Daivari. Now Cassidy wants Boudreaux (and seems to talk some trash). Boudreaux wrecks the good guys, at least until he gets knocked into the corner for a triple dropkick.

Slim J takes the Best Friends down with a top rope corkscrew dive, followed by something like a Whisper in the Wind to Cassidy. Daivari’s frog splash gets two as everything breaks down again. A series of shots send Boudreaux over the barricade but Kiss crotches Cassidy. Slim J’s top rope elbow gets two on Cassidy but here is Danhausen to curse him. That’s enough for the Best Friends to hit a double chokeslam, setting up an assisted splash (with the Best Friends holding Slim J up and Cassidy diving off of their shoulders at the same time) to give Cassidy the pin at 10:32.

Rating: C+. The finish was rather cool and they had the right team win, but it’s still trying to make me interested in the Trustbusters. Good luck with that, as I’ve yet to see something from either Daivari or Boudreaux that will draw my interest. They are getting it much more right with Cassidy though, as he is filling hie role as the guy who is better than the lower card and a possible spoiler for bigger spots perfectly.

Danhausen poses with the winners to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Better than last week’s as it felt like some interesting things took place here, but still not a must see show. Rampage has been around for just over a year now and the show hasn’t felt important in a long time. You might get one somewhat important thing a week and the rest of the show feels like they are just filling in their hour. Not a bad show whatsoever, but nothing you would need to watch, as has been the case with most recent editions.

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 29, 2022
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Excalibur, Chris Jericho, Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross

It’s another night of Fight For The Fallen, which went very well on Wednesday so maybe they can keep it up here. You never know what that might mean but the more star power this show can have, the better it is going to be. I’m not sure what that is going to be this week, but Rampage can be quite fun. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Best Friends vs. Satnam Singh/Jay Lethal/Sonjay Dutt

Dutt is still in his suit, complete with pencil behind his ear. I know this because we actually get entrances this week instead of rushing straight to the ring. Trent and Lethal start things off with Trent countering la majistral into a cradle for two. That means a standoff and the fans seem pleased. Cassidy comes in (under the bottom rope) and gets Dutt, who takes off his jacket and tie, which he hands to the referee. Jericho: “That’s a $5000 suit he’s wrestling in!” Ross: “You really believe that?” Jericho: “Well it’s wrestling.”

Cassidy puts his sunglasses on the referee and kicks him in the legs, but it’s off to Singh for the chop in the corner. Taylor and Trent come in for some chops of their own, earning a double crossbody from Singh. Cassidy gets stomped down in the corner and we take a break. Back with Cassidy jumping over Lethal and very calmly tagging in Taylor.

House is cleaned, with Jericho referring to Taylor as a modern day Bobby Eaton (which has to be designed to get on Jim Cornette’s nerves). Singh breaks up the big hug but gets knocked outside, allowing the hugging to take place. That earns the Best Friends a double Lethal Injection so it’s back to Cassidy to hit the tornado DDT. Dutt tries his own lazy kicks but Cassidy breaks his pencil. The Orange Punch finishes Dutt at 7:29 as the Best Friends grab Singh’s leg.

Rating: C. Cassidy beating Dutt is a completely fine way to go as Dutt is little more than a joke and not even a wrestler these days. The Best Friends did their thing and they protected Singh and Lethal well enough. This felt like a one off match, leaving me wondering what is next for everyone involved.

Post match the beatdown is on but Wardlow makes the save and poses with the Best Friends.

We look at FTR retaining the Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles against the Briscoes at Death Before Dishonor.

Ethan Page vs. Leon Ruffin

Ruffin charges at him to start but gets driven into the corner so the beating can begin. A hard whip into the corner has Ruffin crashing again and a heck of a forearm cuts him off again. The Ego’s Edge (Page: “I hate this place.”) finishes Ruffin at 1:38. Total dominance.

Cole Karter is in the back when the Factory comes in to offer him a spot on the team. Karter doesn’t say no, so QT Marshall tells him to sleep on it. Marshall: “But in your own bed, not with the fishes.” In case you didn’t get it, THAT’S A REFERENCE TO HOW HE LEFT NXT!

Lee Moriarty vs. Matt Sydal

Moriarty mocks Sydal’s peace sign to start and then suplexes him over. A clothesline misses for Moriarty though and there’s a kick to his chest to put him down. We take a break and come back with an exchange of kicks to the head until Moriarty drops him with a clothesline. Sydal gets in a kick to the head of his own and the Lightning Spiral gets two. Cue Stokely Hathaway as Sydal goes up top, with Moriarty catching him. Sydal kicks him away but has to slap Hathaway off, allowing Moriarty to crotch him down. A lifting Downward Spiral gives Moriarty two and the Border City Stretch gives Moriarty the win at 7:57.

Rating: C+. These two can do the technical stuff rather well and that is why they were put in the ring. Hathaway is the interesting factor though as there is a good chance that he is going to get Moriarty and that could get good. Sydal continues to be a good hand who is just kind of there, but that isn’t a bad role to have.

Britt Baker, with Rebel, isn’t worried about Thunder Rosa and Toni Storm next week. Baker thinks Rosa is keeping Storm close because Storm is the biggest threat to the title. See you next week.

Tony Schiavone brings out Ring Of Honor World Champion Claudio Castagnoli, with William Regal, for a chat. Castagnoli soaks in the YOU DESERVE IT chants and then thanks the fans in a variety of languages. This is just the beginning for himself and the Combat Club so here is Ring Of Honor Pure Champion Wheeler Yuta. Before that can go anywhere, Chris Jericho interrupts to say he is tired of hearing about the Club, but Yuta tells him to shut up. Yuta knows that Jericho is going to talk about how sports entertainers beat wrestlers every time, except when he beat Daniel Garcia at Death Before Dishonor.

The challenge for Jericho is on, with Yuta going on about how he knows he can win, so the match is on. Jericho says they can do it on Dynamite, but Yuta says nah because he knows he can win. They yell at each other again until Jericho says shut up. Jericho is so confident that he’ll put up his title match against Jon Moxley at Quake By The Lake. Yuta: “Well that was easier than I thought.” The match is on after a clever segment.

And now, an Acclaimed music video about the Gunn Club, who need to be thrown out on trash day. This involves beating up Gunn Club lookalikes, mocking the Smoking Gunns, and a challenge for a dumpster match. In other words, funny stuff.

Anna Jay cuts off Ruby Soho and doesn’t have to pretend to like her this time. Soho had high hopes for Jay but she’s just another entitled ***** who needs to be beaten up. Jay says Soho doesn’t learn her and she’s learning the dark side.

Here’s what’s coming up on various shows, including Battle Of The Belts, which is a show that’s happening next Saturday. Good to know.

Anna Jay vs. Ruby Soho

Feeling out process to start with Jay having to avoid an early No Future attempt. Some chops against the rope go a bit better for Soho so she tries a headstand in the corner. For some reason she does this right in front of Jay, who kicks her in the bad hand to take over. We take a break and come back with Jay getting the brace off of Soho’s hand, causing Aubrey Edwards to take it away. Soho hits some headbutts for a breather and adds a running kick to the head.

There’s an STO for two but Jay hits a Gory Bomb for the same. Jay threatens to choke out people at ringside but then tries to choke Soho instead. That’s escaped so No Future can connect for two but Soho’s backsplash is countered into a backsplash. Jay reverses that into a choke, which is broken up as well. The frustrated Jay throws her gauntlets down, which is enough of a distraction to grab the cast and put on the Queenslayer for the win at 9:56.

Rating: C+. Jay has gotten significantly more competent in the ring and that was on display here. She looks comfortable out there and much more sure of herself, though having someone as skilled as Soho in there certainly helped. I could go for more of evil Jay and that certainly seems to be what we are in for going forward.

Overall Rating: C+. Pretty nice show here, even without a lot of the big names involved. It’s always a good sign when a company can put together a solid show even without the main stars, if nothing else for the sake of finding some good stories that don’t burn out the top of the card. Throw in an Acclaimed Video and this was a nice hour of wrestling.

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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Death Before Dishonor 2022
Date: July 23, 2022
Location: Tsongas Center, Lowell, Massachusetts
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Ring Of Honor is back and that should be a good thing. The company certainly has a history and it is nice to see that history continuing, but there has only been a limited build to the show on AEW TV. Then again, Ring Of Honor has always been about the in-ring work more than anything else and maybe that is enough to make the show work. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Colt Cabana vs. Anthony Henry

JD Drake is here with Henry. Cabana takes him down by the arm to start but Henry spins out and strikes away in the corner. A sunset flip is blocked and Henry twists Cabana’s neck around to slow things down. Some more neck cranking sets up some kicks to the chest, which just fire Cabana up. Henry is fine with that and cuts him off with a piledriver for two.

Back up and Cabana grabs a spinning belly to back suplex, setting up the Flip Flop and (slightly delayed) Fly. The Flying Apple sets up a lariat to put Henry on the floor, meaning it’s time for Drake to offer a distraction. Henry sends Cabana into the barricade and drops a frog splash for two back inside. Cabana is fine enough to try the Billy Goat’s Curse, sending Henry over to the ropes. That’s fine with Cabana, who hits a moonsault for the pin at 9:53.

Rating: C. It’s a Colt Cabana match and you probably know what you’re getting with one of those. Cabana isn’t going to be there to have some classic at this point, but rather to wake up the crowd and let them have a good time. That is something he can do as well as anyone else, making him a great choice for the first spot on a show like this. Perfectly watchable match, which did its job.

Zero Hour: Shinobi Shadow Squad vs. Trust Busters

That would be Eli Isom/Cheeseburger vs. Ari Daivari/Slim J. Daivari takes Cheeseburger into the corner to start and it’s off to Slim J, who was around way back in the earlier days of Ring Of Honor. A forearm gets Cheeseburger out of trouble and the tag brings in Isom to pick up the pace. An armdrag out of the corner drops Slim J and Cheeseburger comes back in to work on the arm.

That’s too much for Daivari, who offers a distraction from the apron and gets in a cheap shot to put Cheeseburger in trouble. That doesn’t last long either as Cheeseburger gets away again and brings Isom back in so everything can break down. Cheeseburger is sent outside so Slim J can hit a running cutter on Isom. Daivari’s frog splash is good for the pin at 5:30.

Rating: C-. The match was ok enough, but is Slim J/Ari Daivari supposed to be interesting enough to do much of anything? They didn’t show anything to make them stand out here and odds are they’ll be used as cannon fodder for the bigger teams. I’m sure they’ll get some time before then, but that is only going to be so interesting at best.

Prince Nana announces that he has purchased Tully Blanchard Enterprises.

Zero Hour: Tony Deppen/Alex Zayne/Blake Christian vs. Tully Blanchard Enterprises

Prince Nana is here with Gates of Agony/Brian Cage. Deppen marches right at Deppen to start and hits him in the face a few times. You don’t do that to Cage, who hits a Bron Breakker gorilla press into a powerslam to shut that down in a hurry. Kaun comes in with a slingshot hilo to the back but misses a charge, allowing the tag to Zayne. A bit of house cleaning ensues, only to have Toa come in off a blind tag and run Zayne down.

Kaun comes back in and hammers away in the corner, setting up a side slam onto the top turnbuckle. Cage’s apron superplex gets two, with Deppen having to make a save. Zayne tries to fight back and gets wheelbarrow suplexed for his efforts. Another suplex is escaped though and the hot tag brings in Christian for a Phenomenal Forearm.

Christian’s big dive is cut off so Deppen adds his own dive to take the Gates of Agony down. Back in and Cage clotheslines Deppen but gets enziguried by Christian and Zayne. Everything breaks down and Deppen gets all fired up, even if he’s all alone. Kaun’s fireman’s carry gutbuster into something like a Dominator/running boot combination finishes Deppen off at 11:26.

Rating: C. Good action here, but do you really want three monsters like this to need the better part of twelve minutes to beat a thrown together team? The match was entertaining enough as Zayne can fly around rather well and Deppen has enough of a reputation with the fans, but I kept waiting on the dominance and it never happened. At least Nana feels like more of a fit here than Blanchard, which does say something.

Zero Hour: Willow Nightingale vs. Allysin Kay

Nightingale takes her down for an early two and hits an enziguri. Kay doesn’t mind and hits a kick of her own for two as the pace slows down. An STF doesn’t do much to Nightingale as she’s back up with a bulldog. The Babe Breaker is countered into a Kimura but Nightingale plants her down for two of her own. Kay’s sunset driver gets two more but Nightingale kicks her in the face and hits a Pounce. Back up and a gutwrench powerbomb gives Nightingale the pin at 7:49.

Rating: C. Another quick match without much impact here, but it is nice to see Nightingale getting a win. She has so much charisma and it is a lot of fun to watch her, but at some point you have to win something. This might not be some big breakthrough win, though it’s better than taking another loss. Now do something with her and see if you have a star on your hands.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Jonathan Gresham

Castagnoli is challenging and William Regal is on commentary. Gresham has to avoid the running uppercut in the corner to start but Castagnoli powers him down by the arm. That works for Gresham, who uses his feet to pop the arm and escape. Castagnoli goes with the power again, this time grabbing the legs for the giant swing (complete with an overhead view for a cool change of pace).

Despite the dizziness, Gresham kicks the knee out and ties the legs up for a breather. That’s broken up with straight power and Gresham is kicked outside. Castagnoli’s leg is fine enough for an apron gutwrench superplex. Back up and Gresham kicks him in the leg again, setting up a quickly broken ankle lock.

Castagnoli can’t get the Sharpshooter and it’s another kick to the leg to hobble him again. Gresham gets another ankle lock, sending Castagnoli over to the ropes. A strike off goes to Castagnoli but the knee gives out on the UFO attempt. Gresham’s German suplex gets two but Gresham gets uppercutted out of the air. A heck of a lariat drops Gresham, with Castagnoli getting fired up. Some hammer and anvil elbows set up the Riccola Bomb to give Castagnoli the pin and the title at 11:34.

Rating: B. They didn’t have much of another choice here as Castagnoli has been pushed as a major star since he debuted. You need to give him something solid and the Ring Of Honor World Title would certainly qualify. Gresham was great, but at some point you need to go in a different direction and that is what they did here, albeit in a heck of a match with power vs. technical skills.

Respect is shown post match as Gresham doesn’t seem to be a full on heel any longer. William Regal looks so pleased with Castagnoli’s win.

Daniel Garcia doesn’t like the rules of the Pure Wrestling Title and wants to take it back to AEW and destroy it.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Righteous vs. Dalton Castle/The Boys

The Righteous (Vincent/Bateman/Dutch) are defending and have Vita VonStarr in their corner. Castle wrestles Vincent down to start but gets sent to the floor for some fanning. Back in and Bateman gets suplexed and Castle slams Brent onto him for two. Dutch comes in to run the Boys over and a suplex gets two on Brent. It’s back to Bateman, who misses a clothesline so Brent can roll over for the tag off to Castle.

Everything breaks down and Castle tosses the Boys over the top onto the champs for a cool visual. VonStarr offers a distraction though and it’s Dutch sending Castle outside. There’s the big running flip dive from Dutch, which is quite the crowd popper. Back in and Vincent’s Death From Above gets two, with Castle having to make a save. Castle takes Vincent outside for a hurricanrana, setting up the Bang A Rang to Bateman for the pin and the titles at 9:35.

Rating: C+. This is one of those matches that worked, even if it was something that could have been cut from the card without missing anything. The Six Man Tag Team Titles have always been a bit of a weird addition to Ring Of Honor but at least they gave us a feel good moment with the popular team getting them back. Not a great match or anything, but it was fun enough while it lasted.

Jay Lethal and company are ready to take the TV Title from Samoa Joe.

Pure Title: Daniel Garcia vs. Wheeler Yuta

Garcia is challenging and William Regal is on commentary. They go technical to start (shocking) with Yuta having to power out of an early arm crank. That means Yuta can put on a cross arm choke but Garcia is up with a headbutt for the break. Yuta gets sent outside for a whip into the barricade, setting up a suplex back inside.

A leg takedown lets Yuta pull him into a bow and arrow as Regal talks about hurting someone’s nose so their eyes water and they can’t see. What a villain he made. Back up and Yuta works on the arm so Garcia bites his ear (Regal: “Good for Daniel.”) for the break. Garcia stays on the ear (there’s something you don’t say often) but Yuta knocks him back, setting up a missile dropkick. A top rope forearm drops Garcia again as we hear about the attendance/pay per view buys, meaning it’s time to praise Tony Khan.

Yuta gets the better of a strike off and a German suplex gives him down. The hammer and anvil elbows rock Garcia but he flips out and hits some of his own. Garcia’s lean back Sharpshooter is reversed into a choke, which is reversed into a Regal Stretch of all things. Coleman: “Did you teach him to get out of your move?” Regal: “What do you think?” After Yuta escapes, a Boston crab sends Garcia over to the ropes for his first break. Garcia loads up some stomps but gets reversed into a quick cradle for the retaining pin at 15:57.

Rating: B. I don’t know if these two are ever going to be breakout stars, but they know how to work this style really well and that is what they did here. Throw in Regal on commentary (that “what do you think” line was great) and this was a heck of a match with both guys working hard and getting in one sweet counter after another. This style can be a lot of fun and they were nailing it here so well done.

Dragon Lee vs. Rush

Brother vs. Brother so they start with a hug instead of a handshake. Rush powers him into the corner to start before they hit the mat, with Rush grabbing an armbar. That’s countered into a rollup for two and they trade shoulders to no avail. Lee kicks him into the corner for a slingshot dropkick but Rush sends him outside for a heck of a running flip dive. The hard whips into the barricade rock Lee again, with Rush insisting that he is TRANQUILO.

Back in and Rush hits some boot scrapes in the corner, setting up a powerslam for two. Lee manages to kick him down though and knocks Rush outside, where he is sat on a table. That means a suicide dive, which drives Rush through the table and thankfully doesn’t end Lee. Back in and they slug it out, with Lee spitting on his hand before a chop. Rush finally takes him down but needs a breather of his own, meaning it’s a double down.

They chop it out on the apron until Lee charges into an overhead belly to belly to the floor (OUCH). Lee is somehow right back up with a hurricanrana and they’re both down again. Back in and Rush counters a charge into an overhead belly to belly suplex into the corner. The Bull’s Horns gets two, as commentary does their best WWE impression by swearing it’s over before the cover.

Lee is placed up top but knocks him into the Tree of Woe, setting up the Alberto double stomp for one. The Incinerator gets two more and Rush is in trouble. He’s in so much trouble that Lee checks on him, allowing Rush to knock him into the corner. The Bull’s Horns gives Rush the pin at 15:36.

Rating: B. This was the kind of hard hitting lucha match where you’re sure that one of them is going to knock themselves silly but it keeps being fun anyway. It’s a different style and the brother vs. brother deal made it even better. Lee is in the same vein as Rey Fenix as he can fly around so fast that it is hard to believe what you’re seeing, meaning it’s quite entertaining as always. That was the case again here, even if Rush’s Ring Of Honor dominance continues to give me some scary flashbacks. Another awesome match here.

We recap Mercedes Martinez defending the Women’s Title against Serena Deeb. They’ll both do anything to win.

Women’s Title: Mercedes Martinez vs. Serena Deeb

Deeb is challenging. They wrestle to the mat to start with neither being able to get the better of things. Back up and Martinez uses the power to run her over but Deeb is right there with an armbar to cut things off. Martinez powers up and hits a spinebuster, meaning Deeb needs to roll outside for a breather. They fight to the apron with Martinez knocking her backwards but getting caught with a hard spear.

Back in and Deeb busts out Diamond Dust of all things for two. Deeb slows things down a bit, which is enough for Martinez to snap off an overhead suplex. That doesn’t go well for Martinez, who gets tied in the Tree of Woe for some choking, followed by something like an abdominal stretch. Deebtox (double arm crank with a bodyscissors) has Martinez in big trouble but she flips her way out with more power.

They fight over a choke on the mat until Martinez is up with a hard shot to the face. Martinez puts her up top for a NASTY German superplex, with Martinez hanging on and not going down as well. Some hard strikes rock Deeb again but the TKO is countered into a rolling neckbreaker. Deeb grabs the Serenity Lock but gets reversed into a cradle for two. Martinez catches her on top with the OG Drop for two, so it’s the Brass City Sleeper to retain the title at 17:19.

Rating: C+. They had a nice story here with the power vs. technical skill, but it never quite hit that next level. The good thing is that they made it work well and the match didn’t feel anywhere near as long as it went. This is the title that needs to stay far away from AEW as it absolutely does not need three Women’s Titles, but it was a lot better than most of the Ring Of Honor women’s division over the years.

We recap Jay Lethal challenging Samoa Joe for the TV Title. Lethal and company took Joe out and kept demanding a title match. At the same time, Lethal is also Joe’s former student and wants to prove that he is the better man. Joe, as you might expect, is mad (in theory, as he hasn’t been on TV in over a month).

TV Title: Samoa Joe vs. Jay Lethal

Lethal, with Sonjay Dutt and Satnam Singh, is challenging. Joe jumps him on the floor before Lethal can even get in the ring and they start fast on the outside. A few cheap shots cut Joe off and Lethal hits his three suicide dives. Lethal’s charge is cut off with a chop but Singh drops Joe and crushes the arm against the post with a chair. They go inside for the opening bell (after a heck of a pre-match fight) but first, the referee ejects Singh.

Lethal goes after the injured arm but Joe manages to send him into the corner for the enziguri. That takes a bit out of Joe as well though and it’s a missile dropkick to give Lethal two. An enziguri drops Joe this time but he’s able to knock Lethal outside. The big dive drops Lethal and the fans are right back behind Joe. A hard clothesline and the snap powerslam give Joe two but Lethal is back with the Lethal Combination.

For some reason Lethal tries his own MuscleBuster, which is knocked away to set up a middle rope leg lariat to give Joe two. Joe’s MuscleBuster is countered into the Lethal Injection for two more and Lethal can’t believe it. Dutt offers a distraction with the lead pipe so Lethal can get in a belt shot for a VERY near fall. Back up and the Lethal Injection is countered into the Koquina Clutch to retain Joe’s title at 12:27.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure what the deal is with Joe at the moment as he has been gone in recent months and then had a shorter than expected match here. It’s nice to have him back, but hopefully he is around a little bit more than he has been recently. Good enough match here, though Lethal losing again isn’t quite a great sign for his future.

We run down the Fight For The Fallen card, including Bryan Danielson’s return to the ring.

We recap the Briscoes vs. FTR. They have a huge rivalry, including their likely Match Of The Year at Supercard of Honor. Now it’s time for a 2/3 falls match to settle the score once and for all.

Tag Team Titles: FTR vs. Briscoes

FTR is defending and this is 2/3 falls. Mark and Harwood take their time locking up until Mark hits a shoulder for a standoff. Harwood takes him down for a change and Mark isn’t sure what to do here. An armbar starts in on Mark’s bad arm and it’s Wheeler coming in to stay on it. Mark armdrags his way to freedom and hits a bit of Redneck Kung Fu to give himself a breather. Jay comes in to stare Harwood down before grabbing a hurricanrana of all things.

Harwood is knocked outside and hang on as he has to be looked at by the doctor. We settle back down to Wheeler chopping and suplexing Jay, setting up a drop toehold. Harwood comes back in to drop an elbow but Jay gets up and brings Mark back in to slug away. That means Wheeler needs a breather of his own but Mark isn’t having that and tosses him right back in. The chinlock goes on for a bit before Wheeler manages to counter a leapfrog into a powerslam.

There’s the tag back to Harwood for the rolling German suplexes but a Jay distraction lets Mark get a rollup for two. The Bang Bang Elbow is blocked by a heck of a clothesline from Wheeler, leaving Harwood to DDT Jay for two of his own. Harwood gets catapulted into the post though and it’s a Doomsday Device to give the Briscoes the first fall at 16:28.

After a quick break between falls, Jay kicks Harwood outside for the hard chops from Mark. Harwood’s chest is busted open (geez) as Jay sends him into the barricade and then takes it back inside for more chops. Mark grabs a headlock of all things until Harwood suplexes his way to freedom. A belly to back superplex still isn’t enough for the tag though as Jay makes a save. Redneck Boogie gets two and we hit the chinlock again.

Harwood fights up and they slug it out until he falls backwards into the tag to Wheeler (nice). House is cleaned with a hard clothesline to Mark, setting up a brainbuster for two. The Gory Bomb gets two more, even as Harwood cuts Jay off. The fight heads outside (Coleman: “Spanish announce table, not us!”) with Mark being sent into various things. A high crossbody gives Wheeler two but Jay gets in a bell shot for a rather near fall (and what feels like a heel turn). The Death Valley Driver into the Froggy Bow gets the same but Harwood flapjacks Mark onto the steps. Back in and the Big Rig to Jay ties us up at 29:35 total.

Wheeler and Mark, both bleeding, trade headbutts with Mark getting the better of things before Rock Bottoming Harwood. Mark and Harwood chop it out on the apron until Redneck Kung Fu drops Harwood to the floor. There’s the apron Blockbuster, setting up a superkick from Jay back inside. The Jay Driller is countered into a hard piledriver for two (and the fans aren’t that interested in the kickout).

Mark is back up so Wheeler has to break up the Doomsday Device. An errant right hand drops the referee by mistake, meaning Jay gets no count after dropping Harwood. Yet another Doomsday Device is broken up so the Briscoes do it again for two on Harwood, leaving everyone down. Back up and Wheeler slugs it out with Mark until they can’t quite suplex each other over the top. That leaves Harwood and Jay to slug it out with Jay getting the better of things.

The Briscoes grab stereo camel clutches but FTR locks hands (ala their match against DIY in NXT) and then grabs the rope for the double break. Mark goes up but Wheeler is right there with a belly to back superplex through a table on the floor, leaving Jay stunned. Harwood and Jay slug it out again until Harwood catches him on top. A middle rope piledriver is enough to finally finish Jay to retain the titles at 43:36.

Rating: A. What else is there to say here? I’d put it just a hair beneath the Supercard of Honor match but it takes something special to go almost 45 minutes and keep it at this kind of a level. This felt like an absolute war, with Harwood hitting the big finisher to finally put Jay down. There was way this couldn’t headline the show and they more than delivered in another Match of the Year candidate.

Post match FTR high fives a bunch of people around the ring and calls in the Briscoes for some respect. Harwood says he f’ing loves this and wrestling saved his life. Call him an f’ing mark if you want but he’ll see you on Dynamite. Top Guys out.

The Blackpool Combat Club comes out to applaud FTR and we might have some new challengers. It isn’t like there is another team worth challenging FTR on the ROH roster so that makes sense.

Overall Rating: A-. As usual, this worked well because they focused on the wrestling rather than the mostly non-existent storytelling. That is where Ring Of Honor tends to shine and it worked very well here. I’m still not sure where Ring Of Honor is going, but they still need their own show instead of just a bunch of one off (and great) events. The main event is more than worth watching, but there is a lot of other good stuff on the show to make it worth seeing. Great show here, and a good next step for Ring Of Honor, assuming they have a path forward anytime soon.

Results
Colt Cabana b. Anthony Henry – Moonsault
Trust Busters b. Shinobi Shadow Squad – Frog splash to Isom
Tully Blanchard Enterprises b. Alex Zayne/Blake Christian/Tony Deppen – Running boot/Dominator combination to Deppen
Willow Nightingale b. Allysin Kay – Gutwrench powerbomb
Claudio Castagnoli b. Jonathan Gresham – Riccola Bomb
Dalton Castle/The Boys b. Righteous – Bang A Rang to Bateman
Wheeler Yuta b. Daniel Garcia – Rollup
Rush b. Dragon Lee – Bull’s Horns
Mercedes Martinez b. Serena Deeb – Brass City Sleeper
Samoa Joe b. Jay Lethal – Koquina Clutch
FTR b. Briscoes 2-1

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

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AND

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Rampage
Date: July 22, 2022
Location: Gas South Arena, Duluth, Georgia
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Jim Ross

We’re finally finishing up the two week long Fyter Fest and hopefully there is a bit less shark enthusiasm this time around. We’ll be seeing some good stuff this week, including Christopher Daniels vs. Jay Lethal as we are only a day away from Ring Of Honor’s Death Before Dishonor. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Hangman Page/John Silver vs. Butcher and the Blade

Silver charges at both of them to start before Page can even get his vest off. That means Silver gets beaten down in the corner as the numbers game gets the better of it. Butcher, who looks to have slimmed down a bit, chops away and it’s off to Blade for the stomping. A suplex gets Silver out of trouble and it’s back to Page to clean house. The fall away slam sends Blade flying and a slingshot dive takes Butcher out. A top rope clothesline gets two on Blade but Butcher pulls Page to the floor for some whips into the barricade.

We take a break and come back with Silver getting the hot tag and coming in to drop Blade with a running elbow. Butcher comes in and tries some double teaming but Silver hands it back to Page to beat both of them down. Page and Butcher trade clotheslines until Page hits a discus lariat to drop him. Everything breaks down and the lights go blue for no apparent reason. Silver gets in a shot on Butcher and it’s the Buckshot Lariat to give Page the pin at 8:07.

Rating: C+. As usual, the match was fast paced and Silver was basically a bowling ball going after Butcher and Blade to limited success. Page is in a weird place as he is one of a handful of former World Champions but is in this match, rescuing his Dark Order buddies from some bullies. Oddly enough, it only feels somewhat like he is toiling beneath his level by being in this match.

Video on Daniel Garcia vs. Wheeler Yuta, with a focus on Garcia’s car crash from a few years ago that almost killed him.

Here is Claudio Castagnoli for a chat. He’s ready for his shot at the Ring Of Honor World Title at Death Before Dishonor, because the World Title is the one thing that he has chased for his entire career. Castagnoli doesn’t believe he is the best because he has a bunch of titles. He believe it because the fans cheer for him every time, but now he wants some gold to go with it. The only way to continue this great start is to take the title from Jonathan Gresham on Saturday. Mic drop. Castagnoli doesn’t talk much but he got the point across here.

Video on Wardlow.

Lee Moriarty vs. Dante Martin

Matt Sydal is here with Moriarty. They trade arm control to start as JR says this is the kind of wrestling he loves. An exchange of flips and dives results in Moriarty being sent to the floor and we take a break. Back with Moriarty crashing off the top as Stokely Hathaway comes out to watch.

A high crossbody gives Martin two and he uses the bottom rope to springboard flip over a charging Moriarty. That’s fine with Moriarty who pulls Martin into the Border City Stretch but Martin is over to the rope. Martin is back up with a suplex for two and Hathaway is rather pleased. The Nose Dive misses so Martin grabs an O’Connor roll, only to have Moriarty roll him over and use the rope for the pin at 8:40.

Rating: C+. This was the technical exchange match on the show, along with the “here’s the latest heel turn”, because AEW likes having a lot of villains. Moriarty hasn’t exactly lit the world on fire yet, but maybe turning him will give him a little more of an opening. Granted it doesn’t look likely if he’s toiling with Martin and Sydal, but maybe he can move on.

Post match Sydal says he’s facing Moriarty next week. Uh, yay. Moriarty is happy but turns down Hathaway’s business card.

Britt Baker/Jamie Hayter vs. Skye Blue/Ashley D’Amboise

Baker takes Blue down to start and cranks on the arm a bit. Blue fights up and tries to fight back only to get kicked down while trying a Matrix. A kick to the head allows the tag off to Ashley, who gets decked by Hayter. Baker grabs a butterfly suplex so Hayter can drop Ashley again, setting up Lockjaw for the tap at 4:13.

Rating: C. Total squash here and that isn’t a surprise. Baker and Hayter continue to need something to do, but I’m sure Hayter will be breaking away from here any day now, just like I’ve been sure of it for months. I’m not sure what there is for Baker to do at the moment, but down the line, a face turn and a big run at Jade Cargill might be in the cards.

It’s time for a rap battle between Austin Gunn and Max Caster, with the rest of their associated friends/family here too. A hip hop artist named Lil Scrappy is the judge and Gunn goes first. Austin brings up Caster playing one of Bobby Lashley’s sisters and possibly not being able to please Kris Statlander when they were dating. Then we get a reference to Caster’s dad’s NFL career mixed with a Bowens gay joke, which has Scrappy laughing.

Caster gets to go and mocks Austin’s rap abilities. Austin goes again, and says Cena wants his gimmick back. Caster says he’s been a star since Billy was called the One. That sends him onto a roll of jokes about gun control, Pokemon and bad reality shows. Austin has no comeback and Caster is named the winner, triggering the brawl. The Acclaimed gets beaten down, partially due to a trashcan. Austin got in some lines, but you could see that Caster turns this into an art rather than just rhyming.

Christopher Daniels is sick of hearing Jay Lethal talk and tells Mark Henry to say the catchphrase already.

Death Before Dishonor rundown.

Jay Lethal vs. Christopher Daniels

Sonjay Dutt and Satnam Singh are in Lethal’s corner. Daniels chops away to start until Lethal gets in an enziguri. Back up and Daniels runs him over for a fast two as commentary finally brings up that Samoa Joe is out of action due to being attacked a few weeks ago. That hasn’t been mentioned much and it hasn’t exactly made Joe look great to just have him missing for reasons not very often mentioned. Daniels gets knocked to the floor for a dive from Lethal and we take a break.

Back with Lethal hitting a basement superkick, only to have Daniels knee him in the face. There’s an STO to drop Lethal again, followed by the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. The Lethal Combination gets two but the Figure Four attempt is blocked. Daniels is cut off by a big boot to the face and the Lethal Injection finishes for Lethal at 8:26.

Rating: C+. This was a match where the talent involved was going to guarantee that it worked out well enough, but it isn’t like there was any drama. Daniels still works very well in his fifties but this was all about setting up a match that was already set. Lethal vs. Joe should be good as well, though a Joe appearance to help boost it might have helped.

Post match Daniels gets beaten down, including a Koquina Clutch on the floor.

Overall Rating: C+. The show was ok, but they didn’t exactly have a ton of things that I would have wanted to see. This week was a rare instance where Rampage felt like a B show and that doesn’t make for the best night. Certainly not a bad night, but it didn’t’ feel important, which is a rare thing for Rampage.

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