Collision
Date: March 9, 2024
Location: Gas South Arena, Duluth, Georgia
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone

We’re still near Atlanta for the third show of the week, though this show is going to be a bit of a follow up from Dynamite. In this case we have the first match for the new Elite, as the Young Bucks and Kazuchika Okada are now the new big evil trio. Other than that, we have a street fight, because that’s what we do around here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Shane Taylor vs. Bryan Danielson

Lee Moriarty is here with Taylor, who backs Danielson into the corner to start. The test of strength goes to Taylor of course but Danielson kicks away at the chest. That only goes so far so Danielson goes for the leg and uses the ropes to slow Taylor down. Nigel: “He’s using the ropes! That’s illegal!” Tony: “You never used the ropes during your career?” Nigel: “Of course!”

Taylor’s leg is tied up in the ropes so Danielson hits a running dropkick but a right hand sends Danielson outside (and us to a break). Back with Taylor hitting the apron legdrop for two but missing a splash in the corner. Danielson ties the leg around the post and kicks away to put Taylor down back inside.

The big kick to the head gets one and Danielson can’t believe the kickout. The running dropkicks in the corner just wake Taylor up though and it’s a big clothesline for two on Danielson. Taylor’s cannonball misses so he tries a powerslam, only for Danielson to take him down for the kicks to the head. The running knee finishes for Danielson at 14:00.

Rating: B-. Danielson is this generation’s wrestler who can get the best out of any opponent and that is amazing to see. Taylor had a good match here and wrestled like a power monster should, which made for a good showing. You could see Danielson trying to take him apart out there and it worked well in the end. Good opener.

Post match Will Ospreay comes out and says he’s here for a chat. After praising Danielson and Taylor, Ospreay praises…the sandwiches backstage before talking about how so many people are in awe of Danielson. Ospreay then calls him a “cheeky little slag” for interrupting him on Dynamite and wonders if Danielson has a question for him. Danielson praises Ospreay’s match with Konosuke Takeshita, but he’s also heard Ospreay talking about how great he is the best in the world, so the challenge is on for Dynasty. Ospreay is in.

Young Bucks/Kazuchika Okada vs. Jon Cruz/Liam Gray/Adrian Alanis

Nick and Cruz start things off but it’s Okada coming in instead. Okada takes him up against the ropes for a pat on the head to start so the bigger Alanis comes in. The forearms just annoy Okada so he hits the dropkick, followed by the Rainmaker to pin Gray at 2:03. That’s what it should have been.

Post match Eddie Kingston runs in and gets beaten down so here is Penta El Zero Miedo…who gets beaten down as well. Cue Pac to come in and stare up at Okada (Nigel: “TAKE MY MONEY! TAKE MY MONEY! TAKE MY MONEY!”) before striking him out to the floor. Pac says he’s here to look for trouble and a six man is set up for Dynamite.

Video on Darby Allin vs. Jay White on Dynamite.

Mariah May vs. Trish Adora

May works on a wristlock to start as Nigel completely swoons over Mariah’s…well everything. Adora takes her down a few times without much effort but May grabs a running headscissors. A running dropkick puts Adora on the floor and we take a break. Back with Adora hitting a pump kick into a backsplash for two. Adora grabs a German suplex from her knees, only to have May hit a running knee. May Day finishes Adora at 6:13.

Rating: C. I’m not sure why a match that barely breaks six minutes needs a break but unfortunately that’s the AEW women’s division for you. May’s rise continues and having her dressed as rocker Toni Storm could be going in a few different directions. Not much in the way of a match, but what are you supposed to do with so little time and so much of that in a break?

Post match here is Toni Storm to present the first ever Toni Award (Storm: “That’s Toni with an I so we don’t get sued.”). May is the only nominee and she does indeed win. Cue Deonna Purrazzo to go after Storm but May lays her out with a DDT.

Video on Riho vs. Willow Nightingale.

Nick Wayne vs. Adam Priest

The rest of the Patriarchy is here too. Wayne starts fast and hammers away before sending Priest outside. A running boot rocks Priest again but he fires back, only to get a glare from Luchasaurus. Back in and Wayne chokes on the ropes, setting up Wayne’s World for the pin at 3:12.

Rating: C. More or less a squash here for Wayne, who still doesn’t have much in the way of interest. He’s Christian’s secondary lackey but having him beat up a relative unknown for a few minutes is hardly the worst thing. They kept this short and that’s the right way to go for a match like this one.

Post match someone in a mask pulls Cage into the crowd (Tony: “Is this a luchador? Is this someone from CMLL?” That’s a perfectly reasonable reaction and you don’t get many of those in wrestling today.) before diving onto the Patriarchy. It’s Adam Copeland, who gets in the ring and grabs the TNT belt, plus a metal case. Copeland opens it and Cage sees it (we don’t see what’s in there), making him back up. The match seems ready for Dynamite March 20.

Jeff Jarrett says Mark Briscoe can trust him tonight. Mark isn’t sure but they’ll fight together.

Chris Jericho vs. Titan

Jericho wastes no time in pulling him into a surfboard, which is broken up just as fast. Back up and they chop it out until Titan knocks him to the floor. That means a big suicide dive to drop Jericho and a whip sends him into the steps. Back in and they both go up, with Jericho hitting a super faceplant for two as we take a break. We come back with Titan kicking him out to the floor, setting up another dive.

That bangs Titan up a bit though and it’s a butterfly backbreaker to put him down again. The Lionsault misses though and Titan grabs a springboard tornado DDT for two. Titan’s top rope double stomp gets two but his leglock is countered into a failed Walls attempt. The Judas Effect misses as well and Titan grabs a spinning Death Valley Driver for two. Titan tries a springboard hurricanrana but gets pulled into the Walls for the submission at 11:59.

Rating: B. I liked that a good bit more than I thought I would have and Jericho hung in there with the younger high flier well enough. That being said, I’m still waiting on some kind of a point to these CMLL guys being around other than “here they are”. They had the feud with the BCC but that seems to have mostly wrapped up (thanks to the visa situation). Are we just going to have random matches like this with nothing really happening?

Post match the Gates Of Agony run in to beat down Jericho but Hook makes the save.

Here is FTR for a chat. Things didn’t go how they wanted at Revolution but that’s life. They’re officially throwing their names into the hat for the Tag Team Title tournament but they know it’s going to be difficult. Harwood isn’t sure they belong in the tournament but they will give everything they have if they get a chance. Cue the Infantry to interrupt, with a quick introduction. They say the tag division needs a revival and we get some of the old Revival theme song. Harwood: “The revival is dead and if we meet you in the tournament, you will be too.” Well that was efficient.

Mistico vs. Angelico

Serpentico is here with Angelico. They fight over wrist control to start and Angelico gets up for something of a dance. Mistico grabs some armdrags for a standoff and we take a break. Back with Mistico hitting a 619 into a springboard missile dropkick, followed by a slingshot hurricanrana to the floor. A slingshot corkscrew splash gets two on Angelico and a Swanton is good for the same. Angelico grabs la majistral for two and they trade running clotheslines in the corner. Both of them are knocked down but Mistico is back up with a very spinning rollup for two. La Mistica finishes Angelico off at 9:26.

Rating: B-. Again, nice match but it’s kind of hard to get interested in Mistico, as big of a star as he is, facing someone the caliber of Angelico. It’s a match that came and went with some nice high flying, but it doesn’t seem to have any connection to anything else going on. That’s fine once in awhile, but this is the second match on the show with the same stuff. It would be nice to have this tied into something, as otherwise it’s just wrestling for the sake of wrestling.

Respect is shown post match.

House Of Black vs. Mark Briscoe/Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal

Street fight. The brawl starts on the floor with Briscoe and Black slugging away inside. The good guys start in with the dives before it’s time to set up some tables. Lethal sends a charging King into an open chair but King is back up to crush Lethal through a table. Briscoe and Matthews slug it out until Briscoe’s dive off the top completely misses a table, hitting chairs instead.

We take a break and come back with Matthews pouring lighter fluid over a table but Sonjay Dutt offers a distraction. Cue Julia Hart with gasoline, which Matthews pours on Dutt. Karen Jarrett cuts off the whole murder thing so Hart gives her the mist. Lethal and Jarrett hit the Infantry’s Boot Camp (Russian legsweep/running big boot combination) to put King down but he’s back up with the sleeper to Lethal.

Jarrett makes the save with a heck of a guitar shot, only to walk into the End from Black. Hart slips in the spike but Briscoe blocks a stabbing and Jay Drillers Black. Briscoe’s big flip dive is pulled out of the air and the table is set on fire. The powerbomb puts Briscoe through said table and Black gets the pin at 12:47.

Rating: C+. Yeah it was another big brawl and had the spots and carnage but how many of these hardcore matches are we supposed to be interested in? This one had the fire theme but there was so much going on that it was just another big wild fight than anything else. It kept my interest but it feels like we get some kind of big weapons brawl every few weeks. Slow down with them already.

Overall Rating: B-. They were going back and forth from stuff that felt important to stuff that felt like it was just there to fill in time, which makes for a rather long two hours. The show was good enough, but after a pay per view on Sunday and three hours of AEW since then, the two CMLL matches, another brawl and a quick Elite match isn’t quite enough to make this a great show.

Results
Bryan Danielson b. Shane Taylor – Running knee
Young Bucks/Kazuchika Okada b. Jon Cruz/Liam Gray/Adrian Alanis – Rainmaker to Gray
Mariah May b. Trish Adora – May Day
Nick Wayne b. Adam Priest – Wayne’s World
Chris Jericho b. Titan – Walls Of Jericho
Mistico b. Angelico – La Mistica
House Of Black b. Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Mark Briscoe – Powerbomb through a flaming table to Briscoe

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: March 6, 2024
Location: Gas South Arena, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

It’s the Dynamite after Revolution, which was quite the smashing success. Now though comes the hard part in following up on what they did. Samoa Joe is still the World Champion after the triple threat and now we are on the way towards both Big Business next week and Dynasty next month. Let’s get to it.

Here is Revolution if you need a recap.

Opening sequence. We have a new theme song and set/logo. The song works well enough and the set/logo….well they’re a set/logo.

Tony Schiavone brings out Swerve Strickland, with Prince Nana, for a chat. Swerve talks about how he came up short in his house on Sunday. That isn’t cool with him because he remembered signing with AEW about two years to the day at Revolution 2022 in Orlando, Florida. Strickland was going to give it his all but here he stands with no gold. Maybe he is paying for all of the bad things he has done around here and maybe he isn’t supposed to be a champion here.

Maybe instead he is supposed to be a role player, but then he hears the reactions he is receiving and people have even flown in from his home state of Washington to see him. Whether Samoa Joe is still World Champion or not, Swerve is coming for the title because Swerve’s house. Cue Samoa Joe, complete with using the towel to polish up the belt. Joe thinks Swerve is talking funny after that beating at Revolution, because here we are in Swerve’s house, but that house is in Joe’s world. Swerve is ready to go right now but here is the Undisputed Kingdom to interrupt.

Adam Cole talks about how great the team did at Revolution and in a few months, no one is going to remember Swerve’s name. The only person that matters is Wardlow, who is going to win the title and bring it back where it belongs. Swerve calls out Cole going to the back of the line over and over. If he needs extra clients, he has Britt Baker’s phone number in his pocket. Cole doesn’t like that so how about we do Swerve/Joe vs. The Kingdom next week. Swerve says let’s do it right now and Tony Khan agrees.

Kingdom vs. Samoa Joe/Swerve Strickland

Non-title and Joe hammers Bennett down into the corner to start. Taven’s running splash in the corner misses (with Joe just stepping aside as only he can) and his middle rope dropkick hits Bennett (again with the sidestep). The Kingdom finally manages to kick Joe in the face to put him down and we take a break. Back with Swerve getting the tag to clean house, with Joe not being pleased at anything happening. Swerve hits the Swerve Stomp to Bennett and glares over at Joe, who still looks unhappy. The House Call sets up the JML Driver to finish Bennett at 6:54, with Joe still being furious over the whole thing.

Rating: C. That might have been the most WWE opening I’ve ever seen from outside of WWE. We had people interrupting promos, an impromptu match and the champions losing clean. Odds are this won’t have any impact on the titles (and it certainly shouldn’t as those are WAY beneath Joe and Swerve), but it’s yet another unnecessary blow to Ring Of Honor, which does in fact want you to pay for its show in thirty days (no matches announced thus far either).

Post match Wardlow comes out to glare at Swerve, who gets choked out by Joe.

Chris Jericho interrupts Hook and talks about Taz dropping him on his head in his first ECW match. Jericho sees talent in Hook, who isn’t impressed and walks away.

We look at Hangman Page going nuts at Revolution.

The Young Bucks, in a parody of Tony Khan, have two huge announcements, which they’ll make later tonight.

FTW Title: Hook vs. Brian Cage

Hook is defending under FTR Rules. Cage starts fast by snapping off some suplexes before wedging a chair in the corner. Hook comes back with the fire extinguisher blast and some trashcan lid shots to the face. A dive off the steps is powerslammed out of the air though and Hook crashes down hard on the floor. Cage misses a charge through the barricade and crashes out into the crowd as we take a break.

Back with Cage chairing Hook down but Hook DDTs him onto the chair for a breather. A suplex into the barricade in the corner gives Hook two so Cage grabs an F5 onto the chair for two of his own. It’s time for thumbtacks but Hook suplexes him into said tacks, leaving…not that many in Cage’s back. Redrum goes on so Cage drops him back into the tacks, which doesn’t work and Cage is out at 10:06.

Rating: C-. That was a bit much for this kind of a match and that’s not a good thing in this case. I know they’ve had issues, but going from soe tag matches to this in their first singles match is a little bit much to take. They were also sloppy in some spots with a few big moves missing and the whole thing not exactly making Hook look good.

Post match the Gates Of Agony run in to beat Hook down but Chris Jericho makes the save. Oh joy: Jericho teaming with a young guy.

We’re having a tournament to crown new Tag Team Champions.

Orange Cassidy wans a new title and the Best Friends are ready to get the Tag Team Titles…but Chuck is still hurt. Instead, Cassidy and Trent Beretta should win the tournament, and they happen to have their first round match on Rampage.

Killswitch vs. Matt Menard

Menard is fighting for revenge after Revolution and Christian Cage is on commentary. A bunch of right hands in various corners rock Luchasaurs and some clotheslines put him on one knee. That doesn’t last long as Luchasaurus is up with a chokeslam, followd by the running clothesline to finish Menard at 1:56.

Post match Daniel Garcia runs in for the brawl but Nick Wayne runs in to take him out. The villains go to leave but Adam Copeland is back to jump the Patriarchy. Mother Wayne’s low blow is blocked and Copeland chases Cage into the crowd. We follow the chase through the tech area and into the back, with Cage running into the parking lot where he steals someone’s car to escape. Copeland issues the challenge for an I Quit match for the title in two weeks in Toronto. Since two seconds have passed, Tony Khan has made the match official.

Kyle O’Reilly is happy to be back and he is medically cleared.

We look at Sting’s final match at Revolution.

Here are the Young Bucks, who throw Tony Schiavone out for bringing up their loss. They aren’t happy with Sting’s sons, who are 6’8 and 305lbs because THEY CHEATED! The Bucks are going to get their Tag Team Titles back, but first they have to take care of some things. First of all, Hangman Page put his hands on some officials at Revolution and is suspended indefinitely. The other item is Kenny Omega, who has no showed various dates for no good reason (commentary brings up his health issues) so he’s fired from the Elite.

Cue Eddie Kingston, who says you might as well fine him now because he’s got something to say. They try to cool things down but the fight is on, with a low blow cutting Kingston off….and Kazuchika Okada is here. The staredown is on and Okada lays out Kingston with the Rainaker because Okada is Elite. That’s certainly a way to go for Okada, who does work better as a villain. I’m worried about putting him with the Bucks, but the debut could have been a lot worse.

We look at Will Ospreay winning his debut match over Konosuke Takeshita at Revolution.

Kris Statlander vs. Riho

Stokely Hathaway is here with Statlander. Riho gets slammed down to start and tries to pick up the pace, only to get knocked straight back down. Statlander powers her into the corner and slams her down as we take a break. Back with Riho striking away in the corner, despite needing to get ont he bottom rope to be close to Statlander’s size.

Statlander tries a powerbomb but gets hurricanranaed into the 619. Riho’s high crossbody doesn’t work so she grabs a dragon suplex for two. Statlander knocks her down again so Hathaway throws her a chain, which Statlander drops onto the floor. Some hard suplexes rock Riho but she grabs a victory roll for the pin at 9:21.

Rating: C+. It’s time for the Riho push again because…well for some reason AEW insists. Statlander was on fire as TBS Champion and now here she is instead, teaming with Willow Nightingale and having her main issue with a manager. The match itself was a good big vs. Small format and Riho’s offense looked nice as usual, but egads it’s hard to try and make myself care about anything she does.

Toni Storm is happy to retain her Women’s Title and presents Mariah May with her first shirt. Yes Storm is getting a cut.

Willow Nightingale is ready to face Riho next week because she wants to be a champion herself. She’s coming for the TBS Title.

Here is Daby Allin to talk about being happy with Sting’s retirement match. He has Jay White next week and then in three weeks, he’s off to climb Mount Everest. He might not come back alive so next week, he’s going to go out fighting for his life. Allin lays down the Tag Team Title belt and congratulates whoever holds them next but here is Bullet Club Gold to interrupt.

Jay White talks about how Allin has been doing some great things but warns him about what is going to hapen if they get in the ring. Instead of a match, how about Allin comes hang with the Bang Ban Scissor Gang. We can even call him Darby Scissorhands! Allin doesn’t want to hear it and says White should climb Everest too. He’ll see White next week. I’m really not sure why that one off match for next week needed this much hype.

Julia Hart issues an open challenge for Rampage.

The House Of Black is ready to burn Mark Briscoe. Do they need to dig one grave or three?

Mark Briscoe talks about walking through flames and dancing with the devil. He’s ready for a street fight, but Jay Lethal comes in to say it’s time he mans up to help Briscoe. Mark says don’t bring Jeff Jarrett, but Lethal says trust him. Commentary implies Jarrett will be there.

Will Ospreay vs. Kyle Fletcher

Non-title and Don Callis is on commentary. They trade takedowns to start until a hsoulder doesn’t get Ospreay very far. Back up and Ospreay ducks some shots to the head before snapping off a headscissors. Fletcher hits a heck of a chop to drop Ospreay and we take a break. We come back with Ospreay hitting a dive to the floor but the Oscutter is countered into a hard suplex for two.

They grab hands and chop it out with Ospreay getting the better of things, only to have another Oscutter countered. The powerbomb countered is countered into a DDT to plant Fletcher but he ducks the Hidden Blade. A middle rope Snake Eyes hits Ospreay but he’s back with a cutter on the apron and we take a break (at 9:57). Back with Ospreay planting Fletcher and going up top, where Fletcher crotches him. Ospreay has to flip out of dragon superplex before grabbing a Liger Bomb for two.

Some kicks to the face set up a failed Stormbreaker attempt so Fletcher hits a double underhook slam of his own. Fletcher hits a heck of a sitout powerbomb for two before putting Ospreay on top. That’s broken up for Cheeky Nandos into a super poisonrana, followed by a running back elbow for two. Back up and a Spanish Fly is countered so Fletcher hits a superkick, only to get caught with the Spanish Fly for two. The Oscutter gets two and the Hidden Blade finishes for Ospreay at 19:23.

Rating: B. This was very similar to the Takeshita match from Revolution but there is quite the difference between Taekeshita and Fletcher. Some of the kickouts in here didn’t leave me wanting more like I did on Sunday, but rather wondering why in the world Fletcher was getting to survive this long. Ospreay is a lot of fun, but hopefully they don’t have him doing the same kind of match week in and week out, or the spark is going to be lost quickly.

Post match Bryan Danielson comes out for the staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I’m not sure what to make of this show. It definitely moved things forward into the next pay per view cycle and the new look/set made things feel fresh, but some of the stuff wasn’t exactly great. Having Ring Of Honor be treated like the whipping boy around here a month before their big show is a choice and having more of Riho and the Young Bucks is not the most intriguing. What matters here is it feels like they know where they want to go and that is a very nice thing to see with a month and a half before their next pay per view.

Results
Samoa Joe/Swerve Strickland b. Kingdom – JML Driver to Bennett
Hook b. Brian Cage – Redrum
Killswitch b. Matt Menard – Running clothesline
Riho b. Kris Statlander – Victory roll
Will Ospreay b. Kyle Fletcher – Hidden Blade

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.

Revolution 2024
Date: March 3, 2024
Location: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, North Carolina
Commentators: Excalibur, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back on pay per view with one of the big four events, which should make for a good night. There are a few major matches on tap for the show, including Samoa Joe defending the World Title against Samoa Joe and Hangman Page. In what should be the real main event though, Sting and Darby Allin are defending the Tag Team Titles against the Young Bucks in Sting’s retirement match. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Bang Bang Scissor Gang vs. Private Party/Willie Mack/Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Satnam Singh

Max Caster still can’t get the rap right as he seems to have the yips. Kassidy headlocks Austin to start but gets shoved away and dropkicked down. Colten comes in for a dropkick to Quen and Bowens adds Scissor Me Timbers. It’s back to Colten, who gets knocked into the corner by Mack but manages to knock Kassidy down. Bowens comes in to clean house but a distraction lets Jarrett grab a Russian legsweep.

Back up and is able to hit a Blockbuster and the big tag brings in Billy to clean house. Singh offers a distraction though and it’s a Mack Stunner into Lethal’s cutter. Quen hits a 450 and Mack gets two, with the fans being impressed by the kickout. The Blade Runner is broken up and it’s Singh coming in to wreck everyone. White and Billy manage to get him down for a Fameasser and White grabs the Blade Runner for the pin on Mack at 12:16.

Rating: C+. This was a match where there were so many people that it was hard to stand out. The Gang winning was the only way to go, but at the end of the day I can’t imagine the team lasting that much longer. There is little reason to have both of the six man champs together when neither of them defend their titles, so hopefully the unification is coming soon enough. Perfectly fine opener, even if it was really busy with so many people around.

Post match White puts over the team and brags about their success. After hyping up the card, he teases doing something of his own on March 13.

Zero Hour: Kris Statlander/Willow Nightingale vs. Skye Blue/Julia Hart

Stokely Hathaway is on commentary. Blue kicks Nightingale into the corner to start but gets whipped away, allowing Statlander to elbow her in the jaw. Statlander’s slam is escaped though and it’s off to Hart, who gets crossbodied by Nightingale. Stereo suplexes put the villains down for two on Hart and Statlander’s belly to back suplex gets the same. Blue comes back in and kicks Nightingale into the corner, meaning the villains can take turns stomping away.

Three straight whips into the corner wake Nightingale up for some reason and she gets over for the tag back to Statlander. House is quickly cleaned with a shot to the face getting two on Blue. Hart’s sliding lariat to the back of the head gets two on Statlander so Blue goes up, only to have her high crossbody pulled out of the air. Nightingale Death Valley Drivers Hart for two as Blue superkicks Statlander on the floor.

Statlander and Hart slug it out back inside until Hart knocks her down. The moonsault gets two and it’s Blue coming back in to kick Statlander in the face a few times. Statlander gets in a shot of her own though and brings Nightingale back in to Pounce Blue. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes Blue at 13:16.

Rating: C. This felt like an extended Collision or Rampage match and that’s not a bad choice for a Kickoff Show match. Nightingale very well could be in for a TBS Title shot and this could put her into contention. Now that Hart is healthy again, it would be nice to see her actually defend the belt. Nightingale has needed a big win and while this wasn’t that, it could set her up for something in the near future.

And now, the show proper.

TNT Title: Daniel Garcia vs. Christian Cage

Cage, with the Patriarchy, is defending. They fight over a lockup to start with Garcia being taken up against the ropes but getting a clean break. Cage takes him down into a front facelock but Garcia fights up and knocks him outside without much effort. Back in and Garcia takes him down again, with Cage suggesting a leg injury. Naturally that’s a fake for a thumb to the eye and Garcia is back in trouble.

We hit the chinlock with a knee in Garcia’s back but he fights up again, only to be sent out to the floor. The big dive to the floor drops Garcia again but he’s able to hit a chop block back inside. Garcia’s ankle lock doesn’t last long as Cage sends him outside and then does it again for a bonus. The back of the neck snap across the top rope but Garcia finally fights up and hits some forearms to the head.

Cage goes up and gets legdragged down, allowing Garcia go roll him up for some near falls. They go outside again, this time with Cage’s knees being sent into the steps. Back in and the reverse DDT onto the knee gives Cage two but Garcia snatches on the ankle lock again. Cage manages to send him into the corner, where Killswitch gets in a chokeslam (the referee seemingly thinking Garcia knocked himself down), setting up Cage’s top rope splash for two.

Cue Matt Menard to go after Killswitch but Mother Wayne offers a distraction. Menard brawls with Killswitch to the back, leaving Garcia to hit the piledriver for two. Garcia’s rollup gets two more as Cage grabs the rope this time. Cue Nick Wayne for a Stunner over the ropes, setting up the Killswitch to retain at 16:43.

Rating: B-. This was a bit longer than it needed to be but they had a good match. Garcia wasn’t ready to win the title here and thankfully he got in some near falls here. The interference got a bit annoying but I’ll take it for a way to keep the title on Cage. Garcia has come a long way in recent weeks but this was the right way to go, especially with Adam Copeland likely coming back soon.

Continental Classic: Eddie Kingston vs. Bryan Danielson

Kingston is defending and Danielson has to shake his hand if he doesn’t win the titles. Danielson takes him into the corner to start but Kingston fires off the chops to leave Danielson’s chest in trouble. A suplex puts Danielson down on the floor and Kingston hits a big dive before they head up to the apron. Kingston’s chop only hits post though and Danielson suplexes him off said apron to the floor before taking him back inside to stay on the bad hand.

A middle rope dropkick to the shoulder keeps Kingston in trouble and Danielson does it again for a bonus. Danielson goes up again but dives into an exploder suplex to give Kingston a breather. The Stretch Plumb has Danielson in trouble so he goes after the bad hand to break it up. Kingston uses the good arm to fire off his own elbows but Danielson sends him into the corner for a running dropkick.

Another running dropkick misses so Danielson settles for a dragon suplex instead. Danielson kicks away in the corner and puts Kingston on top for a running dropkick. Oddly Kingston doesn’t react so Danielson butterfly superplexes him into a failed LeBell Lock attempt. That’s escaped so Kingston hits a spinning backfist into the northern lights bomb for a near fall.

Danielson goes back to the hand though and hits a running kick, setting up the running knee for an even nearer fall. Danielson’s triangle choke has Kingston in trouble but the arm drop doesn’t work. Instead Kingston gets his feet into the ropes, sending us into dueling chants from the fans. Danielson starts kicking away and Kingston tells him to bring it before winning an exchange of suplexes. They strike it out until Danielson reverses the powerbomb attempt, only to have the running knee clotheslined away. Kingston’s powerbomb retains the title at 19:43, leaving McGuinness rather pleased.

Rating: B+. This was Kingston’s specialty: fighting from behind and coming back up to win in the end as the fans get behind him. There is something so easy to get behind with Kingston and that was the case here. Heck of a match, which shouldn’t even be that surprising with Danielson involved.

Post match Danielson teases not shaking the hand but goes through with it before leaving.

Hook vs. Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Lance Archer vs. Brian Cage vs. Wardlow vs. Dante Martin vs. Chris Jericho vs. Magnus

Non-title and one fall to a finish for a World Title shot. The four power guys clear the ring to start and are left alone, giving us a MEAT chant. Said monsters have a pose down before slamming into each other. A bunch of clotheslines are no sold until it’s Wardlow and Archer slugging it out inside. Archer walks the rope to take Wardlow down and then goes after Hobbs, only to have Jericho come in to Codebreaker Wardlow for two.

The vegetarian options come in to slug it out, doing the same things the meat guys did. Martin hits a dive onto the floor and Hook hits a top rope ax handle onto Cage on the floor. Wardlow and Archer are back in as we miss some of the others doing something rather loud. Cage apron superplexes Hook and everyone but Martin is down, with Martin hitting a frog splash for two. Martin’s middle rope crossbody gets two on Jericho, with Magnus making the save.

Magnus goes after Martin in the corner but gets hiptossed down by Archer, who hits the chokeslam for two. Jericho is back in to take Archer down for stereo Lionsaults along with Magnus. Hobbs is back in to powerslam Archer, who rolls outside. Hook and Cage get to have their showdown until Wardlow is back in to throw some suplexes. Hook breaks up the powerbomb to Cage by grabbing Redrum but Jericho puts the Walls onto both of them. Cage breaks up the Walls and Hook lets go of Redrum for no logical reason before staring Jericho down.

Hobbs breaks that up and sends Hook outside, leaving Jericho to triangle dropkick him to the floor. Hobbs plants Jericho on the floor but he’s back up with a fog machine of all things to cut him off. Back in and Cage knees Hook into an F5 but Martin gets two on Magnus. Archer breaks that up so Martin kicks him in the head. Wardlow cleans more house and breaks up Redrum, setting up the powerbomb to finish Martin at 16:19.

Rating: C. The result helps a lot as Wardlow cutting those fired up promos and then being put out there to lose wouldn’t have made a ton of sense. At the same time, the match was long, had WAY too much going on and as is usually the case with these things, it felt like someone hit one move to win rather than someone being the best. Wardlow is the best option but this really didn’t work.

We recap the International Title match. Roderick Strong wants the title and Orange Cassidy is willing to give him a shot, which set up a feud between Cassidy and the Best Friends and the Undisputed Kingdom.

International Title: Orange Cassidy vs. Roderick Strong

Strong, with the Kingdom, is challenging and Cassidy is here on his own by his request. Strong misses an early Sick Kick attempt and they go to the floor, where Cassidy’s banged up ribs are sent into the barricade. Back in and Cassidy manages a high crossbody but bangs up his ribs in the process. The backbreaker keeps Cassidy in trouble and Strong wisely hammers away on the ribs.

They go up top with Strong hitting a crazy gutwrench superplex to send Cassidy bouncing onto the top turnbuckle (GEEZ). Strong sends him into the corner and is already rather confident, even getting his his own lazy kicks. The threat of a chop makes Cassidy go face down and Strong is even happier.

Back up and End Of Heartache is countered into a Stundog Millionaire to give Cassidy a breather. The Stronghold goes on but Cassidy slips out and hits the tornado DDT. The middle rope DDT gives Cassidy two and he hits his own Panama Sunrise. Beach Break is broken up so they trade big shots to the face. The second Beach Break connects for two but Strong comes back with the End Of Heartache for the pin and the title at 12:45.

Rating: B-. Strong might not be the most interesting star in the world but he is someone who can have a good match with just about anyone. Working on the back/ribs over and over is a fine way to go and Cassidy really needed to get away from the title for a bit. They also didn’t go too long, which makes for a nice change of pace on the show.

Post match the Undisputed Kingdom celebrates, with Kyle O’Reilly returning. He’s in too for a nice return.

FTR vs. Blackpool Combat Club

Rematch of the teams going to a draw and the Club comes out in pretty bad looking Road Warriors style spikes. FTR on the other hand has the Midnight Express lighting, which hopefully goes better than the time the Express fought the Warriors. Harwood and Castagnoli trade rollups for two each to start but Castagnoli is back up to knock him into the corner.

They slap it out and then trade strikes with neither being able to get very far. Schiavone talks about Dean Martin as Moxley comes in to take over on Wheeler. That’s broken up and Moxley is knocked into the corner, only to kick Wheeler in the face. It’s back to Castagnoli, who gets Russian legsweeped to put him down in a hurry. Wheeler comes back in and gets sent outside in a heap, followed by a gutwrench suplex for two back inside.

The Club trade front facelocks as the fans trade supportive chants. Moxley takes Wheeler up top for a back rake into a superplex for two. We get the trash talk in the corner, which is enough for Wheeler to fight up and hand it back to Harwood. Striking abounds but Castagnoli slips out of a suplex. Harwood hits him in the face but the spike piledriver is broken up and Harwood is sent into the post. Castagnoli snaps off a powerslam for two as Harwood is busted open rather badly.

Moxley and Harwood have their slugout but Wheeler is back in with the spike piledriver for two more. The Club is back in with a Doomsday Device (European uppercut variation) for two on Harwood and everyone is down. Moxley grabs a cutter into the Swing with a dropkick for two more on Harwood and everyone is down again. Moxley takes Harwood up top for some elbows and biting to the cut, with Castagnoli adding a running big boot.

Wheeler is back in for the save and a powerbomb/top rope clothesline gets two, setting up the Shatter Machine for two with Castagnoli making the save. A Neutralizer hits Wheeler on the floor but Harwood plants Castagnoli as well. Back in and Moxley Death Riders Harwood for two, with Harwood rolling him up for the same. The choke finishes Harwood at 21:43.

Rating: A-. This was very good and they got the crowd into it, with all kinds of big near falls and quite the violent edge. I could have gone for FTR winning instead of more of the Club’s dominance but that’s just going to happen. Heck of a fight here and it wouldn’t surprise me to see the Club going after the Tag Team Titles in the near future.

We recap Toni Storm defending the Women’s Title against Deonna Purrazzo. They used to be friends but now Purrazzo wants the old Storm back. Plus the title.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Storm is defending and has Mariah May, who dresses as old school Storm, plus Luther, with her. Feeling out process to start with Purrazzo going technical to take over. Storm is back up to fight over a hammerlock until Purrazzo takes her down into a headscissors. Purrazzo can’t get the Fujiwara armbar so she goes for it again, only to be taken into the corner for some shots to the face.

Storm kicks her low to take over and then stomps the chest, setting up a bit of dancing. Purrazzo gets up and slugs away, setting up the clothesline comeback. Storm rolls out of the armbar so Purrazzo kicks her in the face for another knockdown. A missed charge in the corner sets up Storm’s hip attack and a DDT gives Storm two.

Storm grabs an ankle lock but Purrazzo gets out and kicks her to the floor, where Luther makes a catch. Purrazzo hits a dive onto both of them and the Fujiwara armbar goes on back inside. Storm taps but Luther has the referee, allowing May to offer her own distraction. That’s enough for Storm to grab the piledriver to retain at 12:16.

Rating: C. This was ok, but they never hit that level that you might have expected on a pay per view title match. Neither of them have exactly hit a high point in the ring in recent matches, but this was miles better than Purrazzo’s disaster against Madison Rayne a few weeks ago. Storm still seems destined to face Mariah May, which is going to need to be built up a bit more before we get there.

We recap Konosuke Takeshita vs. Will Ospreay. This is Ospreay’s in-ring debut as a full time AEW star and they’re both in the Don Callis Family, though there is some tension.

Konosuke Takeshita vs. Will Ospreay

Don Callis is on commentary. The fans are clearly amped for this and the OSPREAY chants are off to a fast start. The fight over a lockup goes to the ropes, where Ospreay slaps him in the face. Ospreay snaps off a running hurricanrana before it’s time to slug it out. A springboard clothesline drops Ospreay and a delayed superplex gives Takeshita two. Takeshita takes him down again but Ospreay comes back up with the hard chops.

Ospreay is back with a springboard elbow and then knocks Takeshita outside in a heap. Back in and Takeshita fires off his own strikes, setting up a running kick to the face to send Ospreay outside. There’s the big running flip dive to take Ospreay down again, followed by a NASTY bridging German suplex for two. A release version cuts Ospreay off but he’s back with a running Spanish Fly to put them both down. Ospreay knocks him down again and we need the referee to check on him for a second.

Back up and Takeshita hits a heck of a headbutt, which doesn’t knock Ospreay down. Another headbutt wakes Ospreay up and he’s back with the Kawada Kicks. Back up and neither can hit a powerbomb variation so Ospreay kicks him in the face a few times. The tiger driver gives Ospreay two but the Oscutter is knocked out of the air for two. Takeshita can’t get in Rolling Chaos Theory so Ospreay kicks him in the head again. There’s the Oscutter for two but the Hidden Blade is countered with a shot to the face for two of his own.

Takeshita puts him on top but Ospreay slips out and hits the Cheeky Nandos kick. The super hurricanrana is blocked and Takeshita hits an El Generico Brainbuster, with Ospreay’s back taking a terrifying landing. Takeshita takes down the knee pad but his running knee is blocked. The Stundog Millionaire and a poisonrana have Takeshita in trouble but he’s right back with a wheelbarrow piledriver.

Ospreay pops up with a Hidden Blade for one and they’re both down again. Back up and Takeshita’s running knee is countered into a Styles Clash for two and they’re both down again. Ospreay is back up with a tiger driver 91, setting up the Hidden Blade for the pin at 21:48.

Rating: A-. This is the definition of “if you like this style, you’ll love this” and there is nothing wrong with that. It was a great spectacle with one cool looking move after another and if you can ignore some no selling issues, it was a blast. I had a good time with it and it’s a great debut for Ospreay, though some of those spots had me cringing in a less than good way.

Post match Kyle Fletcher comes out to celebrate with Ospreay.

We recap the AEW World Title match. Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland are still in their blood feud but Samoa Joe, the reigning champion, is still involved in the whole thing and promises violence.

AEW World Title: Samoa Joe vs. Swerve Strickland vs. Hangman Page

Joe is defending. They circle each other to start until Page is knocked into the corner, with Joe getting to step away from Swerve’s middle rope elbow. Swerve is sent outside for the suicide elbow, with Joe kicking Page in the head for daring to try a dive. Joe gets knocked down on the floor though and Swerve is back in to stomp away on Page. Swerve goes outside to drop Joe again, setting up a springboard dropkick to Page for another near fall.

Page is back up with a belly to belly for two of his own with Joe making the save this time. Back in and Joe powerbombs Page into the STF into the crossface so Swerve makes a save of his own. Joe and Swerve go up top with the former hitting a headbutt out to the floor. Swerve is right back in though and a double powerbomb plants Joe for a triple breather. Page and Swerve slug it out until Page middle rope moonsaults into a tombstone for two on Swerve.

Joe gets dropped again and Swerve suplexes Page for two with Joe being right there for a save. Back up and Joe gets to strike away, setting up the MuscleBuster for Page. Swerve Stomps Joe though and everyone is down. There’s the House Call to Joe and another to Page but the delay lets Joe break up the cover. With Page on the floor, Swerve hits a 450 to Joe’s back for no cover. Swerve knocks Joe down again for two but Page pulls the referee. A belt shot hits Swerve in the head and Page yells at him a lot, followed by a pair of Buckshot Lariats.

Here’s another referee to count the two but another Buckshot is pulled into the Koquina Clutch. Swerve breaks that up with a Sky Twister Press and grabs a foreign object, only to throw it down instead. Joe grabs the Clutch on Swerve but Page takes out another referee. Back up and Joe runs Page over but he’s back up with a Buckshot Lariat. Swerve hits Page with a Buckshot of his own into the JML Driver but Joe suplexes Swerve down. The Clutch finishes Page to retain the title at 19:40.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going but it got a lot better by the ending. They did have a setup where all three could have pulled it off, though Joe winning does make the most sense….I think. Swerve is going to be champion one day but winning in a three way doesn’t quite feel great. For now, it’s a good title match that was in a rough spot after Takeshita vs. Ospreay.

Post match commentary suggests that Page gave up to cost Swerve the chance of winning. That’s….certainly a way to go.

AEW Dynasty is in St. Louis on April 21.

We recap Sting and Darby Allin defending the Tag Team Titles against the Young Bucks. It’s Sting’s retirement match and the Bucks have gotten violent. Oh and Ric Flair is here too because of course he is.

Tag Team Titles: Young Bucks vs. Darby Allin/Sting

Allin and Sting are defending, it’s a tornado match, Ric Flair is here and Ricky Steamboat is here as a guest time keeper. With everyone else here, we get an amazing entrance, with Sting sitting in a theater and watching a highlight reel of his career. Sting says it’s showtime for the last time. We get some old era Sting’s on the stage (apparently played by Sting’s kids) and Seek & Destroy is back for one last time.

Allin starts fast against the Bucks with all three Sting’s getting in a Stinger Splash. A double Scorpion Deathlock has the Bucks in trouble but they slip out and head to the floor. Some tables are set up at ringside and Nick is slammed off the barricade. There’s a backdrop to put Matt down as well, leaving Allin to Coffin Drop off the top onto both of them. Sting whips out a pane of glass (JR: “You think we might be taking things a bit too far?”) but Sting misses a baseball bat shot and shatters it.

They go up to the stage with Matt having to break up a Scorpion Death Drop. Instead Matt suplexes him through a pair of tables and Sting appears to be mostly done. The Bucks take Nick back to the ring and toss him into a ladder in the corner. Allin fights back and loads up some chairs with glass on top on the floor before climbing up the ladder and flip diving through the glass and chairs onto the floor. Sting is back in as the medics check on Allin’s very bloody back.

The comeback is on and Matt is put on the table, with Sting going up the ladder (oh geez), only to be sent through a table. Sting pops up but gets knocked down through the glass again for two. The Bucks go to grab more weapons but Steamboat makes an attempted save. That’s broken up so Flair gets in the ring to protect Sting. A superkick drops Flair and Steamboat is taken out as well, setting up a belt shot to Sting for two.

The Bucks superkick Sting again (“WE HATE YOU!”) but he pops up and hits the Death Drop for two on Matt. The EVP Trigger gets two more and another….gets one. Sting laughs at them and Allin is back up to break up the Meltzer Driver. The Scorpion Death Drop gets two on Matt and the still bleeding from the back Allin hits the Coffin Drop. Sting puts on the Deathlock to retain at 20:56.

Rating: B. I have no idea how to rate something like this as it’s barely a wrestling match and is all one big ridiculous sendoff for Sting. I could have gone for not having the glass nonsense or Allin attempting his latest dumb idea, but I’ve been a Sting fan for more than thirty years and my goodness did he get a respectful sendoff. That’s all this was supposed to be and they didn’t do anything ridiculous with the result so we’ll call it a positive.

Post match Allin says we have three minutes left so let’s show some love for Sting. After soaking in some cheers, Sting thanks the fans for being there with him since the 80s and that he hoped he gave them a night to remember. Sting thanks Allin as the greatest partner he ever had and wonders how many stitches Allin needs. Sting talks about being a risk taker but hang on because he’s getting cues….and we’re done because the show went long. As usual, AEW can never time anything right, but at least we got the gist of it.

Overall Rating: A-. This is a show where the good was excellent and the worst was still fine. There is a one-two punch of the Ospreay vs. Takeshita match and FTR vs. the Club, plus the big emotional moment for Sting (that video is top notch). I’m not sure if it’s the best thing AEW has ever done but it was back to form after some weaker entries at the end of last year. Great stuff here, and check out most of it (with the fast forward ready for that scramble).

Results
Bang Bang Scissor Gang b. Willie Mack/Private Party/Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Satnam Singh – Blade Runner to Mack
Kris Statlander/Willow Nightingale b. Skye Blue/Julia Hart – Babe With The Powerbomb to Blue
Christian Cage b. Daniel Garcia – Killswitch
Eddie Kingston b. Bryan Danielson – Powerbomb
Wardlow won the All Star Scramble – Powerbomb to Martin
Roderick Strong b. Orange Cassidy – End Of Heartache
Blackpool Combat Club b. FTR – Rear naked choke to Harwood
Toni Storm b. Deonna Purrazzo – Piledriver
Will Ospreay b. Konosuke Takeshita – Hidden Blade
Samoa Joe b. Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland – Koquina Clutch to Page
Sting/Darby Allin b. Young Bucks – Scorpion Deathlock to Matt

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It’s been a little while since AEW has been on pay per view as there was no monthly pay per view in January or February. It helps that Revolution is one of the main four pay per views from AEW so we should be in for a big one. Samoa Joe is defending the World Title against Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland in a triple threat but the real main event will see Sting/Darby Allin defending the Tag Team Titles against the Young Bucks in Sting’s retirement match. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Julia Hart/Skye Blue vs. Kris Statlander/Willow Nightingale

This is a feud that has been going on and off for a few weeks now and the interesting part is whether Nightingale and Statlander are on good terms with Stokely Hathaway in the middle. Neither of them seem to like him but he’s there anyway for some reason. At the same time, either of them could be the next challenger for Hart’s TBS Title, whenever that might take place.

I think they’ll go for the title challenger coming out of this match, which would see Nightingale and Statlander winning. Nightingale pinning Blue would go a long way towards making that happen so we’ll say that takes place, even if Hart could use a boost since she has been out of the ring for a few weeks now. This should be how the night gets started and we could be in for a good kickoff.

Pre-Show: Bang Bang Scissor Gang vs. Jeff Jarrett/Jay Lethal/Satnam Singh/Willie Mack/Private Party

This was added recently and the villains actually got to work together a bit this weekend on Collision. That’s more interaction than I was expecting, even if Mack feels very tacked on to the team. The story here would seem to be the problems between the Gang, which could make things interesting as they hopefully head towards a unification match for the two six man titles.

For now though, I’ll go with the Gang winning, as there is little reason for a team of lowers like Jarrett and company to win here. Unless there is some kind of an issue between the Gang, there is no reason to believe that the team will be in danger. This is going to be a total circus given how many people will be involved, but that is what happens when you have this big of a roster.

FTR vs. Blackpool Combat Club

This is a match that has been built up in recent weeks and they went to a time limit draw the first time around. FTR is probably the best team going today and it is always fun to see them in the ring, regardless of their opponents. The first match between these guys worked well so hopefully they can recreate it here on the bigger stage. And have one of the teams win, which often helps.

As much as I like FTR and would love to see them win, the Club seems to be the likely choice here so we’ll go with them. The Club is regularly featured while FTR gets put out there for a lot of high profile losses. Unless the CMLL wrestlers get involved to mess with the Club, I’m seeing them taking out FTR, who can go on being the best team in the world no matter what happens here.

International Title: Orange Cassidy(c) vs. Roderick Strong

So this is the match that has been set up for several weeks now and there is more or less zero reason for Strong to lose. The Undisputed Kingdom desperately needs a win as they have barely done anything since coming together last year. Strong winning the title wouldn’t be some saving grace but it would be better than nothing and it’s not like Cassidy needs the title any longer.

I’ll go with the logical move here and have Cassidy lose the title to Strong. There is no reason to keep the title on Cassidy, who has done the “I’m tired and fight everyone” bit to death over the last year. Strong isn’t likely to be some big, dominant champion, but at least he will have won something. Just make it happen already and move on, as the build for this hasn’t been the best.

Will Ospreay vs. Konosuke Takeshita

This is Ospreay’s debut as a full time member of the AEW roster and he happens to be facing off with a fellow member of the Don Callis Family. That should open up some doors, but the reaction that Ospreay received on Dynamite should tell you exactly what you should be expecting from the match. While it should be good, I’m not sure how much drama there is going to be.

Naturally this is going to be Ospreay going over, as there is zero reason to have him lose in his first match as part of AEW. At the same time, there is a good chance that this will lead to his departure from the Family, as there is no reason to keep him in. Ospreay wins here in a heck of a match, which will be made better as Takeshita has been treated as a big enough deal so far in AEW.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm(c) vs. Deonna Purrazzo

This is a match that feels like it is more about the future than what is going on here. After Mariah May won her match on Collision, Storm came to the ring and ignored May’s win, which likely hurt her feelings. That should set up the May vs. Storm fight, which makes me wonder how things are going to go here. May very well could get involved, and that could change things quite a bit.

At the end of the day, while I think May will get involved, I’m thinking Storm retains the title. Purrazzo has been doing well but I’m not sure she has been doing well enough to take the title. The May vs. Storm feud is already set up and very well could be up next for the title. For now though, Storm retains over Purrazzo, who can move on to something else after the loss.

Continental Crown: Eddie Kingston(c) vs. Bryan Danielson

While this is for the title, it’s much more about respect, as Danielson cannot stand Kingston and wants the title. At the same time, Kingston wants Danielson’s respect and will get a handshake if he wins. Kingston has already been elevated by winning the title and it might be time for him to move on to something else. Then again that would mean Danielson winning a big match and that has already happened in the last year.

For now, I’ll take Kingston retaining the title. While I can’t imagine him being a long term champion as it doesn’t seem to be his nature, he could use another big win or two to really establish himself as a bigger deal. Danielson has long since proven that he isn’t going to be hurt by a loss, so we’ll say he goes that way here. It should be a heck of a fight, but it ends with the title being retained.

All Star Scramble Match

This is an eight way and replacing Meat Madness due to reasons. With so many people involved it can be kind of difficult to pick a winner, as you might have someone come in and steal a pin. There are some that you can probably write off to start, which leaves you with only a few real options. That makes things all the more interesting, though it’s still hard to pick.

Since it’s quite the crap shoot, I’ll go with with a wildcard and pick Dante Martin. He could be slotted into a one off title match and lose to the champion without giving up anything big. At the same time you could easily have him steal a pin somewhere in there, as the whole thing will be all over the place. I have next to no confidence in Martin winning, but with eight options it’s more or less a glorified guess anyway.

TNT Title: Christian Cage(c) vs. Daniel Garcia

Here we have a match that feels like it belongs more on Rampage or Collision but it could work out well enough as a one off title shot. Garcia has been built up in recent weeks, but I’m not sure I can imagine the idea of him winning the title. It feels like quite a jump for him to go that high up the ladder out of nowhere, though there is one way that I could see it happening.

One way or another, I’m expecting Adam Copeland to come back here and set up his next match with cage. At the same time though, Copeland wants to take the title back from Cage rather than helping Garcia win it, so we’ll say Cage retains and then Copeland shows up. Garcia has come a long way in recent weeks, but Cage’s title reign feels like it is going to end in epic fashion and losing to Garcia isn’t it.

AEW World Title: Samoa Joe(c) vs. Swerve Strickland vs. Hangman Page

The more I think about this one, the more confused I am about which way to go. Oddly enough, Strickland might be the least likely to win the title, which is almost hard to fathom coming in. Joe is already defending the title and hasn’t held it that long while Page is in the middle of a turn and is such a wildcard that I could see him getting the title so Strickland could chase him.

At the end of the day though, I think I’ll take Joe winning to retain, possibly over Strickland after Page costs him the title. Normally this would feel like a feud between two people with the champ just on the side but that would suggest Joe is normal, which is flat out wrong. I’ll go with Joe retaining here, though I could easily see any of them getting the belt, which is quite the impressive build.

Tag Team Titles: Sting/Darby Allin(c) vs. Young Bucks

This has to headline right? There is more or less no way this isn’t the biggest match on the show and that has me scared. Tony Khan has a bad tendency to go with the heat ending rather than sending the fans home happy and I’m scared that’s where he’ll go here. There is nothing in the world that would say Sting and Allin should lose and I’m worried that it’s going in that direction.

With that being said, I’ll go with Sting and Allin to retain, as there is more or less no reason for the Bucks to win. It would be the definition of the wrong kind of heat as the fans want to see the good guys get a win to send Sting off into the sunset as a champion. While I can absolutely see the Bucks naming themselves champions after the loss, they need to go down here and in spite of Ric Flair being around, I think that’s what will happen.

Overall Thoughts

The more I look at this card, the more interested I am. The show has some variety going on and we should be in for a good show, which tends to be the case with the pay per views. AEW has had time to set this up and we could be in for something that works out well for everyone. As long as Sting and Allin walk out on top, everything should work out, especially with what could be some rather good matches.

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Dynamite
Date: February 28, 2024
Location: Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

It’s the last Dynamite before Revolution and in this case that means we are seeing the final appearance of Sting on the show. Other than that, we will be getting more of the build towards the show, plus possibly something else being added to the pay per view card. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Hangman Page, on a crutch, to get things going. Page, looking rather disappointed, talks about how he said the title match at Revolution should be a singles match, but it’s going to be the wrong two people. Due to his injury, he is not going to be involved in the World Title match at Revolution.

Cue Swerve Strickland to say the two of them have been to war in the last six months, with both of them trying to kill the other. Swerve targeted him because of what Page has done in AEW but he didn’t want this to happen. You can’t escape fate though, which is why he is going to Revolution to win the World Title.

Cue Samoa Joe to mock the idea of them talking about destiny. After calling Page Hopalong, Joe promises to beat up one or two of them at Revolution. Joe goes to leave, but Swerve says he went from unemployed to headlining pay per views. He is the same man who broken into a wrestling school and left an 18 year old bleeding.

Swerve is the man who broke into a house and threatened a child and after he gets done with Joe, it might be time for Joe to go back to commentary wearing a poncho again. Then Page blasts Swerve with the crutch and says he’s winning the title, as his ankle is fine. That’s a lot of effort to get in a few crutch shots but at least the match isn’t changing. Also, Swerve was bringing the emotion here and he feels like a top star.

The Young Bucks arrived and want to conduct an interview with Sting. They just happen to be carrying baseball bats. Note that as they arrived, there was a picture of Ruby Soho on the back of a truck, making it look like a giant Soho was leaning around the Bucks’ car to look at them.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. FTR/Eddie Kingston

Kingston wants Danielson to start but settles for a shoulder to drop Castagnoli instead. Harwood comes in to take Danielson down, only to have Danielson grab a headscissors. That’s broken up as well so Moxley comes in to unload on Wheeler in the corner. Everything breaks down and it’s a big fight n the floor as we take a break.

Back with Wheeler fighting out of trouble and jawbreakering Castagnoli. A shot to Moxley is enough for the hot tag to Harwood but Danielson take shim down and taunts Kingston. Moxley sends Harwood shoulder first into the post and Danielson sends Kingston into the barricade. A running basement dropkick hits Kingston on the floor as Harwood is beaten down back inside.

We take another break and come back again with Harwood fighting out of a chinlock. Not that it matters as Harwood gets taken down for a top rope shot to the back. Everything breaks down and Kingston exploders Castagnoli but Danielson cuts him off. The Swing into the dropkick sets up the piledriver from Moxley for two, with Harwood making the save.

FTR comes back in and hit a Steiner Bulldog to give Kingston two on Danielson but the other two make the save. The Club get everyone down for chokes/elbows but they’re all broken up for the triple rapid fire chops in the corner. A Shatter Machine hits Castagnoli and we hit the parade of finishers. Danielson’s running knee hits Kingston and stomps on his head, setting up the triangle choke to knock Kingston out at 21:53.

Rating: B. It was rather good, but this felt like it should have been the pay per view match. They had all kinds of time here and the action was good, with everything feeling like it mattered. Danielson vs. Kingston should be pretty awesome, but seeing the Club against FTR in a regular match doesn’t feel as important after seeing them go to a draw and then going this long here.

We look at Chris Jericho wrestling Atlantis 30 years ago in CMLL. Tonight, he’s facing Atlantis Jr.

Jericho promises violence.

Here is Tony Schiavone in the ring to bring out Will Ospreay for a chat. Ospreay talks about how he had to get through with some contractual obligations in New Japan, but now he’s here full time. We hear about his time in AEW so far, which includes being part of the Don Callis Family…and here they are. Callis talks about the talent in the Family and is ready for Ospreay vs. Konosuke Takeshita at Revolution. Ospreay and Takeshita shake hands but neither will let go, with Callis approving. Ospreay came off as an absolute star here and I’d be stunned if he’s still in the Family within two weeks.

The Young Bucks interrupt Eddie Kingston in the back and don’t like what he’s been saying about them. Oh and Kingston needs to dress better, so a dress code might be in order. They’re off to look for Sting.

International Title: Nick Wayne vs. Orange Cassidy

Wayne, with the Patriarchy, is challenging. Cassidy takes him to the mat with a headlock but Wayne reverses into a headscissors. That’s broken up but Wayne reverses the Beach Break, only to miss Wayne’s World. They go outside with Cassidy being taken down again but he rolls away back inside. Wayne takes him up top but gets shoved down, only for Christian Cage to crotch Cassidy. The referee ejects the Patriarchy and we take a break with Cassidy down.

Back with Cassidy being sent into the corner but sending Wayne into the buckle. The tornado DDT gives Cassidy two and Wayne’s fisherman’s suplex gets the same. Cassidy penalty kicks him but gets German suplexed. Not that it matters as Cassidy hits the Beach Break for two…and here is the Kingdom for a distraction. Cue Rocky Romero and Trent Beretta to take care of the Kingdom, allowing Daniel Garcia to come down for a distraction. Cassidy hits the Orange Punch to retain at 10:58.

Rating: C+. That was quite a bit, as you had a stable being ejected, plus five people interfering in a match featuring Orange Cassidy vs. Nick Wayne. Cassidy shouldn’t have needed more than about six minutes to put Wayne away but it went WAY more complicated than that. It felt like this was designed to fill in time and the interference was more than it needed to be.

Post match Roderick Strong runs in for the beatdown on Cassidy.

The Bang Bang Scissor Gang comes up with a new wacky lineup.

Kris Statlander vs. Skye Blue

Willow Nightingale, Stokely Hathaway and Julia Hart are all here too. Blue charges at her to start but gets taken into the corner for some hard chops. Blue’s headscissors is countered with a whip into the corner but she sends Statlander to the apron. A knee to the face puts Statlander on the floor but she catches Blue and throws her over the barricade.

We take a break and come back with Statlander getting a knockdown. They forearm it out until Statlander sends her into the corner for a running knee. A powerslam gives Statlander two and she suplexes Blue on the apron. Hart and Nightingale almost get into it on the floor, allowing Blue to get in a cheap shot of her own. Back in and a Canadian Destroyer but Statlander is back with a Michinoku Driver. Hathaway offers the use of a chain but the distraction lets Hart get in a belt shot. Code Blue finishes for Blue at 9:38.

Rating: C+. Another match with a lot of people involved, including Hart with a rather terrible looking belt shot. Other than that, Statlander having issues with Hathaway should be interesting, as should Blue actually beating someone of note. Granted it isn’t going to matter if AEW doesn’t follow up on it, but it’s a start.

The Young Bucks go into Sting’s locker room and find a bunch of baseball bats hanging from the ceiling. And a mirror.

Chris Jericho vs. Atlantis Jr.

Atlantis Sr. is here too. Jericho goes right after him to start but Atlantis is back with some monkey flips. The Walls have Atlantis in trouble but he makes the ropes, leaving Jericho to go after the mask. They go outside with Atlantis catapulting him into the post and loading up the steps. Jericho drops him onto the steps though and we take a break.

Back with Jericho knocking him down for two but not being able to get the Walls. Instead Atlantis is back with a wheelbarrow German suplex for two and Jericho is banged up. Atlantis snaps off a powerslam for two and sends Jericho outside for the dive. Back in and Jericho knocks him off the top but misses the Judas Effect. Something close to a spinning torture rack is reversed into the Walls so Atlantis Sr. throws in the towel at 12:15.

Rating: C. This match is a great example of one of AEW’s underlying problems: I’m sure it was something Jericho wanted to do and I’m sure he had a good time with it, but that doesn’t mean the masses are going to want to see it. AEW has a bad tendency to think that what certain wrestlers, and presumably Tony Khan, want to see is what everyone wants to see and that doesn’t always seem to be accurate. The video package on Jericho in CMLL helped, but why is that supposed to make it interesting? It’s just Jericho vs. a guy in pretty generic looking gear having a pretty standard match.

Respect is shown post match.

Revolution rundown.

Here are the Young Bucks to look for Sting. They find a bunch of guys in Sting masks, one of whom is Darby Allin. The fight is on but the numbers game puts Allin down. Back in and the baseball bats have Allin trouble….and Ric Flair comes out with a big smile. Flair takes one of the bats and turns on the bucks, only to get taken down with a low blow.

The beating stays on until Sting makes the save….by repelling from the ceiling one last time. Allin is back up with a Coffin Drop and the Scorpion Death Drop lays out Nick to end the show. As has been the case, the Flair stuff was bad but Sting saved it, with him repelling in one last time being an awesome flashback.

Overall Rating: C+. There were good parts here, but this show felt like it had a lot of filler. Between the rather long opener, Cassidy’s latest title defense and the Jericho match, this show felt like it was designed to just get through the two hours and move on to Revolution. The Sting deal at the end was cool, but I could go for something big involving someone who will be here next week. The good parts save it, but this didn’t feel like a show you really needed to see.

Results
Blackpool Combat Club b. FTR/Eddie Kingston – Triangle choke to Kingston
Orange Cassidy b. Nick Wayne – Orange Punch
Skye Blue b. Kris Statlander – Code Blue
Chris Jericho b. Atlantis Jr. – Walls of Jericho

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

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Rampage
Date: February 23, 2024
Location: BOK Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

We’re almost to Revolution and as usual with this show, it could mean almost anything. I’m not sure what to expect around here, though there will likely be a nice mixture of different things. That tends to be the formula for Rampage, though you never can tell what you’re going to get. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Matt Sydal/Private Party vs. Penta El Zero Miedo/Komander/Bryan Keith vs. Top Flight/Action Andretti

One fall to a finish and Sydal/Andretti get things going. Sydal takes him down with some headlocks to start but Andretti runs the corner for a wristdrag. Darius comes in and gets kicked in the face for his efforts so it’s off to Keith, who is forearmed by Quen. Penta and Quen have a big staredown but Dante tags himself in before things can get physical. Komander rope walks into a springboard armdrag (seems like a lot of work for the payoff) and we hit the parade of people hitting one move before being knocked down.

We take a break and come back with Dante elbowing Private Party down and hitting a springboard high crossbody for two. Everything breaks down and Dante hits a big dive onto the floor, leaving Sydal to hit a top rope Meteora to Komander on the apron. Back in and Penta counters the Gin and Juice into a middle rope Canadian Destroyer and Komander is launched over the top to take down a bunch of people. That leaves Penta to Fear Factor Sydal for the pin at 11:31.

Rating: B-. This is one of those matches where it’s all about the flipping and the diving and nothing at all about a coherent match. They kept things a bit more structured at first and then went completely nuts, with everyone hitting a bunch of big moves. For a match that felt important it was a waste of time, but as a total spectacle, it was a fun time.

Saraya freaks out that Ruby Soho is on a date with Angelo Parker but has good news: her brother Zak Knight is ALL ELITE. Saraya: “THIS COULD HAVE BEEN YOURS RUBY!” Harley Cameron: “LOOK AT HIM! HE’S HOT! I mean her whole family is hot. Look at daddy. And mommy. And you.” Saraya sprays her down with the water bottle, says things are about to get spicy around here, and gives Cameron a quick spank as they leave. That went in a direction.

Young Bucks vs. Jonny Lyons/Cappuccino Jones

Nick hammers on Lyons to start and hands it off to Matt for an elbow to the face. Jones comes in and gets dropped by a DDT, followed by a heck of a discus lariat. A top rope Meltzer Driver (now dubbed the Tony Khan Driver) finishes for Matt at 1:18.

Post match Nick threatens the referee with a fine for improper name use. Tony Schiavone is called into the ring, with Nick saying it was an accident when he tripped into Schiavone. They even give him a $25 Amazon gift card. The fine will NOT be rescinded though and now they are ready to beat up Darby Allin and Sting at Revolution.

Post break Schiavone is still in the ring and brings in Sammy Guevara for a chat. Guevara isn’t happy with what Don Callis said about him, or Powerhouse Hobbs putting him through a table. Hobbs is a force on his own and doesn’t need Don Callis, but it’s too late for now. Guevara calls out Hobbs but gets Callis instead. Cue Hobbs from behind but Guevara cuts him off instead. Some chair shots have Hobbs staggered….until Sammy tries the GTH and gets laid out as a result.

Skye Blue isn’t happy with Stokely Hathaway but Julia Hart interrupts. Hart promises to dig graves for Hathaway, Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander, but Blue wants someone to step up.

Anna Jay vs. Mariah May

May takes her up against the ropes to start and hits a chop against the ropes before doing it again in the corner. We take a break and come back with Jay catching her on top and pulling May back down for two. May knees her in the face but has to break out of the Queenslayer. Jay’s backbreaker gets two and the Queenslayer goes n. May actually bites her way out and hits May Day for the pin at 7:47.

Rating: C. And that’s a women’s match on Rampage. It’s what they do almost every week, to the point where I was just waiting for the commercial. May getting a win is nice to see as she is still relatively unproven in the ring around here. At the same time, this is what Jay does: gets heated up by a win or two, loses two or three in a row, starts the cycle over. I get that AEW wants her to be a thing, but she has to break this cycle if that is ever going to happen.

Angelo Parker and Ruby Soho had a nice date but Soho says it’s clear Saraya needs her instead of the other way around. When Soho starts talking about Parker, it gets serious. So next week, let’s just have everyone out there at once to deal with it. Parker: “You’re very hot when you’re mad.” They’re off for a drink.

Jake Hager vs. Roderick Strong

Hager has the Tulsa Drillers’ mascot with him while Strong has the Kingdom. Strong chops him to no avail so Hager glares him out to the floor. Back in and Hager fires off some much harder chops in the corner but has to chase Strong outside. Hager plants him down for two and we take an early break. Back with Strong hitting a knee to the face and grabbing an Angle Slam for two.

The mascot tries to play cheerleader and gets scared off by the Kingdom. A confetti cannon just annoys the Kingdom so here is Orange Cassidy to…throw Hager his hat. We now remember that there is a match going on as Hager cleans house. The Vader Bomb gets two and a Doctor Bomb sets up the ankle lock. Strong kicks his way out and the Kingdom offers a distraction. That’s enough for the jumping knee to finish Hager at 10:17.

Rating: C+. Maybe it was being at home or something, but Hager was feeling it here and put in one of his better showings in a good while. At the same time, Strong needed the win to help get him ready for Cassidy at the pay per view. Having him get beaten up for the better part of ten minutes didn’t help that, but the story has enough issues so far.

Overall Rating: C+. As usual, this felt like the C show but the action we got was good enough. They covered quite a few things and did well with most of it, though very little of it feels like it will make a big impact. Saraya and Soho’s segments were good and the opener was wild, which should be enough to get you through most of this show.

Results
Penta El Zero Miedo/Komander/Bryan Keith b. Top Flight/Action Andretti and Matt Sydal/Private Party – Fear Factor to Sydal
Young Bucks b. Jonny Lyons/Cappuccino Jones – Tony Khan Driver to Jones
Mariah May b. Anna Jay – May Day
Roderick Strong b. Jake Hager – Jumping knee

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

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AND

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Dynamite
Date: February 21, 2024
Location: BOK Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Tony Schiavone

We have about a week and a half to go before Revolution and there are still some spots left to add to the match. Odds are we will see some of those matches added tonight, along with some of the other matches getting some extra attention. That should make for a nice show so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. FTR

Moxley knees away at Wheeler to start so it’s off to Castagnoli for an exchange of uppercuts. A slam puts Wheeler down but it’s off to Harwood to suplex Moxley. Wheeler comes back in for an uppercut off before a Harwood distraction lets Wheeler come off the top with a double clothesline. FTR clears the ring before taking over on Moxley, with Harwood grabbing an abdominal stretch.

The cheating is detected though and Castagnoli comes in with a big boot to Harwood. Not that it matters as it’s right back to Wheeler for a basement dropkick. Moxley clotheslines his way out of the corner and falls into the tag to Castagnoli to clean house. Harwood gets spike piledriven on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Harwood fighting out of a chinlock and handing it back to Wheeler to clean house. A brainbuster gets two on Moxley but the Shatter Machine is broken up. The powerbomb/top rope clothesline combination gets two on Moxley as we have four minutes left in the time limit. The Swing puts Wheeler down and it’s Moxley grabbing the bulldog choke on Harwood. Wheeler drives Castagnoli onto the hold to break it up and they’re all down with two minutes left.

Harwood gets the Sharpshooter on Moxley, with Castagnoli’s boots to the head not breaking it. Castagnoli grabs the same thing on Wheeler and slaps it out with Harwood until Harwood piledrives Castagnoli, with Moxley grabbing a crucifix for two. The Shatter Machine is loaded up but time expires at 20:00.

Rating: B. Good, hard hitting match here, with the draw being better than the Club winning again. This is a weird feud as they are just started fighting one week and then had a big serious brawl, though odds are we’ll be seeing them fight again. I’m not sure where it’s going, but at least they had a good match to start it off.

Post match the brawl is on until a bunch of people have to break it up.

Orange Cassidy is rather tired from wrestling both here and in England but he’s medically cleared to compete.

FTR wants the Blackpool Combat Club again at Revolution. The Club comes in to shout a lot and in theory the match is set.

Orange Cassidy vs. Mike Bennett

Non-title and Matt Taven is here with Bennett. Cassidy jumps Taven to start and hammers away at Bennett, including the Stundog Millionaire. Cue Roderick Strong for a distraction though and Bennett gets in a low blow and piledriver for two as we take a break. Back with Bennett grabbing a headset to yell about Cassidy, who takes him down with a suicide dive.

Bennett spinebusters him against the apron but Cassidy gets in a shot of his own for a breather. A fight over a Beach Break/piledriver ends with Bennett hitting a Gotch Style piledriver (fourth piledriver and we’re 45 minutes into the show) for two. Bennett loads up another piledriver but gets Beach Broken (Beach Breaked?) for the pin at 9:38.

Rating: C. Not exactly a great match here as it was more about Bennett hitting a bunch of piledrivers (or at least trying to) as the Cassidy vs. Strong feud continues to limp along. The title match can’t get here soon enough, as hopefully Strong wins to let something fresh take place in the title picture. This second reign has felt like Cassidy has come way back down to earth and it’s time for something different with the title.

Post match the beatdown is on but Jake Hager of all people makes the save.

Angelo Parker and Ruby Soho go on a date, with a car coming up….that isn’t for them. In said car: Ric Flair.

Post break Flair gives a rather serious interview about how he should have been more involved over the last few weeks. Now he’s going to explore some options. Flair goes into the Young Bucks’ locker room for a chat.

Here is Daniel Garcia for a chat and we get right to the point: since Adam Copeland is out of action, Garcia is getting the TNT Title shot at Revolution. Garcia talks about how he felt he should be something great in wrestling and he finally won a match at the end of the Continental Classic. He was ready to make Copeland tap last week and now he’s going to make Cage do the same.

Cue the Patriarchy, with Cage saying he doesn’t think much of the idea of a match with Garcia at Revolution. Instead, Cage would rather talk about Garcia’s family, including his mother and….his dead father. Cage is willing to be his daddy, but that’s enough for Garcia to want to fight. The brawl is teased but Matt Menard runs in for the save. Garcia’s stuff was good enough but as usual, this was the Cage show as he is absolutely feeling it with everything he does. He almost has to get at least a mention in the World Title picture after he loses the TNT Title.

Hangman Page gives Rob Van Dam and Hook, his partners tonight, a pep talk about hurting Shane Strickland.

Toni Storm vs. Syndi Winnell

Winnell, the hometown girl, takes too long to soak in the crowd and gets decked by Storm. A Thesz press and right hands have Winnell in trouble and there’s a running bulldog to make it worse. The running hip attack sets up Storm Zero and Break A Leg….but Storm lets go. Instead it’s Deonna Purrazzo’s Venus de Milo for the tap at 1:48.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Madison Rayne

Purrazzo’s entrance interrupts Storm’s exit and we get a staredown. They go to the mat to start with Purrazzo taking her down into an early chinlock. Purrazzo sends her outside and hits a sliding dropkick as we take a break. Back with Rayne getting two off a sunset flip, setting up a kick to the…arm. A double clothesline leaves both of them down but Purrazzo is up with some clotheslines. A running knee cuts Rayne off and they slowly exchange weak forearms. Purrazzo grabs a Downward Spiral, which Rayne tries to take like a suplex, landing HARD on her head (Taz: “Check her!”). An ankle lock makes Rayne tap at 7:16.

Rating: D-. This very well may be in the running for worst match in AEW history. It was awkward, it felt like they were in different books (let alone pages) and that botch looked horrible. I’m not sure if this was just a horribly off night for both of them or if there was some kind of miscommunication or what, but they’re both capable of doing much better than this. Absolutely awful match and I have no idea how it could have gone this bad.

Post match Toni Storm runs in and grabs Break A Leg on Purrazzo. Then Storm lets go and applies an obsessive amount of lipstick.

Darby Allin talks about how different you are when your end is year. He and Sting (off camera) have been looking at some old photos, including Sting with his young sons. Sting steps into camera and talks about how his father passed away and it made him realize he’s not immortal. Everything he has left, he is bringing to Revolution so the Bucks are going to have a fight on their hands. This was VERY serious Sting and it came off as someone who has nothing left and is willing to do anything on his way out.

Here is a ticked off Wardlow for a chat. Two years ago he had thousands of people chanting his name but the rocket attached to his back was put on upside down. He should have been the champion a long time ago, but he never got a World Title shot. We hear about some of the men to hold that title, because he beat the Best In The World and that man’s body is still falling apart.

Then you had the one who was better than us, who Wardlow squashed like an insect. As for Samoa Joe, Wardlow does the custom suits with a title look better. He is better than you and the best in the world, so this is now war. Ok, cool. Now do something with him. None of that matters if he’s back doing the same stuff he’s done for years.

The Ban Bang Scissor Gang will team up again on Collision, but this time they’re mixing up the lineup a bit.

Will Ospreay will be in action at All In.

Wardlow will be in Meat Madness at Revolution. No word on what that is but it better involve some Bulgarian trumpets.

Don Callis is ready to get Will Ospreay to AEW. Also, Powerhouse Hobbs is in Meat Madness and Callis hasn’t forgotten about Sammy Guevara.

Brian Cage/Swerve Strickland/Samoa Joe vs. Hangman Page/Hook/Rob Van Dam

Hook actually knocks Joe down to start but Joe unloads in the corner to take over. Van Dam comes in to hammer on Cage, setting up the legsweep rollup for two. Page and Strickland come in for the brawl and have to be pulled apart as we take a break. Back with Hook in trouble but he reverses an F5 into a spinning DDT. That’s enough for a tag to Van Dam so house can be cleaned, including a variety of kicks. The Five Star gets two on Cage but Joe breaks it up and drops Van Dam.

We take another break and come back with Page cleaning house as everything breaks down. Page loads up the Buckshot Lariat to Cage but stops to glare at Strickland. Cage catches Page on top but Hook turns it into a German superplex to Cage, bringing Page down in the process. Hook gets Redrum on Strickland but it’s broken up and Swerve hits the House Call.

Page Buckshots Cage and we get the Page vs. Swerve vs. Joe showdown. The three of them fight to the floor where Page powerbombs Swerve through the announcers’ table. Back in and Page slips out of the MuscleBuster to hand it back to Van Dam. Hook suplexes Joe but Cage breaks up the Five Star. Joe chokes out Van Dam for the win at 21:35.

Rating: B. Solid six man here with Joe getting the win over the only person who was going to take the fall on his team to remind you that Joe is still awesome. Hook was doing well here and Swerve/Page did their thing, but Van Dam continues to be pretty much perfectly cast in his role. He’s the veteran who still feels special and can still go in the ring but isn’t likely to win a major match. That’s a good spot for someone to fill and Van Dam has done it rather well.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a rather odd show as the opener and main event were good, Purrazzo vs. Rayne was terrible, and the rest of the action was in the middle. The talking was good enough but mainly set things up for later, which is the right thing with a pay per view so close. At the same time though, stuff with Flair, Cassidy vs. Strong (your mileage may vary), the Don Callis Family and the Undisputed Kingdom isn’t quite inspiring material. In other words, the good was good but the bad was really dull, and that makes for quite the strange show.

Results
Blackpool Combat Club vs. FTR went to a time limit draw
Orange Cassidy b. Mike Bennett – Beach Break
Toni Storm b. Syndi Winnell – Venus de Milo
Deonna Purrazzo b. Madison Rayne – Ankle lock
Samoa Joe/Brian Cage/Swerve Strickland b. Rob Van Dam/Hook/Hangman Page – Koquina Clutch to Van Dam

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

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AND

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

Dynamite
Date: February 14, 2024
Location: H-E-B Center, Cedar Park, Texas
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Tony Schiavone

We have two and a half weeks to go before Revolution and after last week’s ending, what very well could be the main event got a lot more serious. Last week the Young Bucks brutally attacked the new Tag Team Champions, Sting and Darby Allin, before their title match at Revolution. Odds are we’ll hear something about that tonight so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Jon Moxley vs. Dax Harwood

There are no seconds here and Moxley takes him into the corner to start…for a kiss? Happy Valentine’s Day I guess. Moxley puts his hands behind his back so Harwood kisses him as well, followed by some right hands. Harwood slugs away but Moxley bites his face and kicks him down in the corner. A choke is broken up but Harwood can’t get the Sharpshooter.

They fight to the floor where Harwood is sent over the barricade, followed by the slingshot into the post to rock him hard. Back in and Moxley hammers away but a powerbomb out of the corner plants him down for two. They crash out to the floor again and we take a break. Back with the two of them striking it out until they both go down. Moxley goes up but Harwood catches him with a top rope superplex and they’re both down again.

Harwood grabs the Sharpshooter as we get the five minute call. Moxley breaks it up and goes for the cross armbreaker, which is broken up as well. Harwood’s piledriver gets two and they head outside again, with the fans dubbing this awesome. Back in and Moxley hits a Stomp into a piledriver of his own for a rather near fall. The Paradigm Shift is countered into a brainbuster to give Harwood two as we have two minutes left. Harwood goes up but dives into the rear naked choke for the tap at 18:39.

Rating: B+. This wasn’t exactly meant to be a big showdown but rather a way for Moxley to get a good win under his belt. Harwood continues to lose every singles match he has despite putting up a heck of a fight every time. It would be nice to see him win a match on his own once in awhile, though that certainly wasn’t going to be the case here. I did like the close call with the time limit, as they got close enough that Harwood could have pulled it off, only to fall short in the end.

Post match Moxley won’t let go so Cash Wheeler runs in for the save, only to have Claudio Castagnoli jump Wheeler.

Don Callis says his Family has all the talent so we’ll do Konosuke Takeshita vs. Will Ospreay at Revolution.

Wardlow vs. Barrett Brown

Knee to the face and powerbomb finish Brown at 1:24.

Earlier today, the Young Bucks, still in their bloody gear, landed at the airport.

Adam Copeland vs. Daniel Garcia

For a TNT Title shot and Matt Menard is on commentary. Copeland knocks him into the corner to start but it’s way too early for the Grindhouse. Garcia tries a drop down but gets splashed on the back for two, allowing Copeland to choke away in the ropes. Garcia fights out and stomps on the knees, only to dive into a shoulder breaker.

We take a break and come back with Garcia catching him on top but having the arm snapped down over the rope. Garcia is back up with a dragon screw legwhip and stomps away in the corner, allowing him to snap the leg back again. An STF has Copeland in more trouble but he’s right back out again. Garcia goes up so Copeland pulls him down with a single underhook superplex….and Nick Wayne runs in for the no contest at 12:18.

Rating: B-. This was a good back and forth match with the exchange of limb work (AEW really likes that style) until the screwy ending. Garcia was hanging with Copeland, though it would have been hard to imagine him doing anything but stealing a win. What matters here is the ending, which I would hope doesn’t lead to a three way at the pay per view.

Post match the Patriarchy beats them both down, with Killswitch taking out Menard for daring to try and help. Copeland gets a chair and saves Garcia from a Conchairto…until Shayna Wayne hits Copeland low. The Conchairto crushes Copeland’s head and Garcia finally gets up as the villains leave.

We look back at Hangman Page vs. Swerve Strickland going to a time limit draw last week, setting up a triple threat World Title match at Revolution.

Here is World Champion Samoa Joe for a chat. Joe talks about bringing back the ranking system to make sure he faces the best, but then Page and Swerve went to a draw. Therefore, AEW took a page out of the Texas playbook by making the title match bigger and dumber. Joe promises to hurt one if not both of them, but here is Strickland, with Prince Nana, to interrupt.

Swerve says this wasn’t supposed to be personal but it is getting that way. Joe has said hunger defines the greats, and no one is hotter than Swerve. He has been hoping for a break for years now and today is that day. When the people walk away, all they can say is “whose house” and they’ll do it again when he leaves Revolution with the title.

Cue Page to say Swerve couldn’t beat him last week so it should be Page vs. Joe at Revolution. Page says Swerve doesn’t deserve a second of his time because Swerve couldn’t get it done. Joe isn’t having this and says he’s winning at Revolution. As usual, Joe can talk with the best of them, but it still feels like Page vs. Swerve with Joe on the side.

We see Toni Storm’s new film, which looks at her history with Deonna Purrazzo. Storm let Purrazzo be her young girl but now Purrazzo has forgotten who she is so now she can have the old Toni Storm, if that’s what she wants.

Purrazzo says Storm talks too much and promises to break her arm. B****.

Young Bucks vs. Top Flight

Nick and Dante start things off with the latter working on the arm. Matt comes in and gets ping ponged between the Martins before everything breaks down early on. Top Flight’s dives don’t get to launch but the second attempts connect on the floor. Back in and Matt takes over with a clothesline and we take a break.

We come back with Darius clotheslining his way to freedom and hitting an enziguri, allowing the tag to Dante. Everything breaks down and Top Flight’s stereo sunset flips get stereo near falls. Dante drops both of them and Darius uses his brother to hit a tornado DDT for two on Matt. Nick sends Dante into the barricade though and it’s a low blow to drop Darius. The EVP Trigger is enough to finish Darius at 11:07.

Rating: B-. This was a good way for the Bucks to look good on the way to the title match. They are long since established but giving them some wins before Revolution is a good idea. At the very least, the Bucks got a long way off their attack last week and we should be in for a heck of a showdown at Revolution.

Post match the Bucks talk to Tony Schiavone, by praising Top Flight and talking about how they are the official #1 contenders. At the same time, they do no like what Tony has been saying about them, so that’s a $1000 fine. Tony gets shoved down and the EVP Trigger is loaded up, only to have Darby Allin make the save with the baseball bat. Allin talks about not being able to get a job while all of the Bucks’ friends got hired, but thankfully there was a sane EVP here, and he isn’t talking about Kenny Omega.

After the required CODY chant, Allin talks about how the Bucks re-signed here because it was easier. Allin brings up the first Dynamite, which didn’t feature him but did feature BRANDON CUTLER? Now it’s about the Tag Team Titles at Revolution in Sting’s final match and the champs have nothing to lose. Apparently that makes the title match official. It wasn’t before? Allin was bringing the fire here and leaned a lot into the inside stuff, but what mattered here was the emotion he was bringing with everything he said.

The Bang Bang Scissor Gang is ready for a 12 man tag on rampage, though Billy Gunn isn’t happy with his sons taking his lines.

Willow Nightingale vs. Skye Blue

Stokely Hathaway is on commentary. Blue takes her into the corner to start but Nightingale cartwheels her way out of trouble. One heck of a Pounce sends Blue outside and we take a break. Back with Blue getting the better of a strike off but Nightingale crushes her in the corner. A spinebuster connects but Blue kicks her in the face for two. Nightingale sends her to the apron and knocks her down, only to get caught on top back inside. Blue’s powerbomb out of the corner sets up Code Blue, only to have Hathaway offer the distraction. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes for Nightingale at 8:52.

Rating: C. This was the weekly women’s match that got around nine minutes and went through a commercial break. In this case we have a slight step forward for the Nightingale/Hathaway/Kris Statlander story, which still only feels so important. At the same time, Blue has fallen quite a ways and that was obvious here, as she lost in one of the lower level feuds in the women’s division.

Orange Cassidy vs. Matt Taven

Non-title Texas Deathmatch, which means Last Man Standing. Cassidy slugs away to start but Taven hits a dropkick. A powerbomb gives Taven two and they head to the floor. Cassidy beats him over the barricade and we take a break. Back with Taven dropping an elbow off the stage to put Cassidy….not quite through a table.

A suplex puts Cassidy through another table for a near ten so Taven hits a running knee on the ramp. Taven pulls another table out from underneath the ring but a bleeding Cassidy is back up. Taven’s Flight Of The Conqueror only goes through the table for an insane crash. Cassidy pulls out a box of chocolates from Chuck Taylor (again, Valentine’s Day)….and yeah it’s thumbtacks instead.

Cassidy tornado DDT’s the rather bloody Taven onto the tacks but here is Mike Bennett to break something over Cassidy’s head. Cue Trent Beretta with a pipe (out of his own gift box) but Taven sends him into a chair. Cassidy hits the Beach Break onto a chair, with Taven popping up and ripping off the pockets. The Orange Punch connects to finish Taven, despite Roderick Strong running in, at 13:27.

Rating: B. The match had some insane bumps (that dive by Taven was nuts), though I have no idea why they had this knockdown bloody war to set up a singles match between Strong and Cassidy. This was all about avenging Chuck Taylor and while it seems to be a bit of an over the top reaction, they need something more interesting than Strong vs. Cassidy in a straight match for the title.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a pretty textbook example of AEW as of late: the action was good to very good (that opener was a blast) but I’m not sure how much difference it made as far as building things up. I was actually surprised when the Tag Team Titles match was made official and the only other thing set for the pay per view was done in a quick backstage segment. That being said, with two and a half weeks before Revolution, most of the card should be set. Right now there are five matches set so they’re doing well enough, at least with the top of the card. Really solid action this week and that’s a good way to go.

Results
Jon Moxley b. Dax Harwood – Rear naked choke
Wardlow b. Barrett Brown – Powerbomb
Daniel Garcia vs. Adam Copeland went to a no contest when Nick Wayne interfered
Young Bucks b. top Flight – EVP Trigger to Darius
Willow Nightingale b. Skye Blue – Babe With The Powerbomb
Orange Cassidy b. Matt Taven when Taven couldn’t answer the ten count

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

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Rampage
Date: February 9, 2024
Location: Footprint Center, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

We’re still in Arizona and there is a heck of a crowd for the show this week. That alone should make the energy that much better and everything else should be fine. Rampage has quite the success rate, if nothing else for the sake of the show having so little pressure involved. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Orange Cassidy/Rocky Romero/Trent Beretta vs. Kingdom/Roderick Strong

The fight starts in the aisle and Cassidy even throws the sunglasses at Strong to show how serious he is. Then he puts his hands in his pockets to take care of that. Cue Adam Cole and Wardlow to watch as Trent takes out Bennett’s legs to start. Taven comes in and gets draped over the top, setting up a top rope knee to the back.

It’s off to Strong, who gets German suplexed for his efforts. Trent finally gets pulled into the corner so the beating can be on, including a suplex from Bennett. Taven’s top rope splash misses though and it’s Cassidy coming in with a high crossbody. The tornado DDT plants Taven but Bennett is back with a spinebuster to put Cassidy down. Everything breaks down until Taven kicks Cassidy down to block the Orange Punch.

We take a break and come back with a low blow cutting Cassidy down and the Hail Mary getting two. The powerbomb/Zig Zag combination hits Trent but he rolls outside before a cover. Instead the Kingdom goes after Romero, who is right back in for a big dive. Back in and Romero hits the Forever Clotheslines but Strong cuts him off with the End of Heartache for the pin at 9:13.

Rating: C+. This was the match to help set up Cassidy vs. Strong for the International Title at Revolution, which brings up the bigger problem: the match is almost a month away. The match was set up really far in advance and that doesn’t make for the best setup. I’m not sure how the match is going to go, but I’m also worried about how the story is going to go on the way there.

Post match Romero is sent through a bunch of chairs to make it even worse.

We look at Hangman Page vs. Swerve Strickland going to a time limit draw on Dynamite, meaning they both get a shot at Samoa Joe for the World Title at Revolution.

Young Bucks vs. Mondo Rox/Robbie Lit

The Bucks are still in their bloodstained white suits from Dynamite. Matt runs over Lit to start and stomps away in the corner. Nick comes in with a Blockbuster into a backbreaker and doesn’t even lose his hat on the way down (that’s talent). A Matt distraction lets Nick get in a low blow and the EVP Trigger finishes at 2:11.

Post match the Bucks say they want more respect and congratulate Sting and Darby Allin for winning the Tag Team Titles. Sting and Allin are apparently banged up though and the Bucks are thinking of them. That being said, they still want the titles back and they are going to play by the rules to get there.

Video on Tomohiro Ishii.

Mistico vs. Matt Sydal

Sydal offers respect while Menard goes on a rant about how AEW has to fight to feed their families when other companies are invading. Mistico snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor and naturally follows with a dive. Another dive is cut off though and Sydal grabs a bow and arrow. A standing corkscrew backsplash gets two on Mistico and we take a break.

Back with Sydal hitting a jumping knee to the face and an Air Raid Crash gets two. They strike it out with Mistico getting the better of things but Sydal gets his boots up to block a moonsault. Mistico snaps off a powerslam though and they’re both down. They go up top and Mistico grabs a super Spanish Fly for the pin at 8:48.

Rating: C+. They had to give the CMLL guys a few more wins after they’ve lost their big matches to the Blackpool Combat Club. It’s not exactly a huge win but Mistico got to showcase himself a little bit and that’s a good thing to see. I’m still not sure how long this feud can go on, but you can almost guarantee that some AEW stars will wind up in Arena Mexico at some point out of all this.

Brian Cage issues a challenge for a handicap match on Collision to show he’s better than Hook.

Willow Nightingale/Kris Statlander vs. Saraya/Ruby Soho

Stokely Hathaway is on commentary and Harley Cameron is at ringside. Soho looks at a note in her pocket on the way to the ring but doesn’t want the others to see it. Statlander headlocks Saraya over to start and nails her with a basement dropkick. Soho comes in and gets armdragged down as Excalibur rapid fires off things coming on Collision.

Nightingale’s fisherman’s suplex gets two on Soho and Statlander runs her over with a shoulder. Some running backsplashes in the corner connect but Saraya pulls Nightingale off the ropes as we take a break. Back with Nightingale hitting a big boot and the double tag bringing in Statlander and Soho.

Statlander’s powerslam gets two as everything breaks down. Saraya knees Statlander down for two but accidentally hits Soho. Statlander is back up to drop Saraya for two and a Blue Thunder Bomb gets the same. Saraya tries to get over to Soho….who drops to the floor and walks out (including decking Cameron on the way). The Babe With The Powerbomb gives Nightingale the pin on Saraya at 10:38 as Soho watches.

Rating: C. This was a match for the sake of an angle and there’s nothing wrong with that. Soho has been having issues with the team for weeks now and the whole note in her pocket should make things more interesting. It’s not like the Outcasts have been doing much in recent weeks anyway so having Soho walk away is the best choice.

Post match Skye Blue comes out to stare down Nightingale and Statlander. Then the lights go out and Julia Hart is next to Blue. The lights go out again and they vanish to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Yeah this was ok. That’s just slightly below average for Rampage as it’s a show that takes an hour, has about one or two things that feel like they might matter and then we move on to the important shows. While it might not be the most important show, it’s the kind of show that you can watch without needing some deep backstory and have a good time. It worked well and goes by quickly, which is a nice change after how intense Dynamite and Collision tend to be.

Results
Kingdom/Roderick Strong b. Orange Cassidy/Rocky Romero/Trent Beretta – End of Heartache to Romero
Young Bucks b. Mondo Rox/Robbie Lit – EVP Trigger to Lit
Mistico b. Matt Sydal – Super Spanish Fly
Willow Nightingale/Kris Statlander b. Saraya/Ruby Soho – Babe With The Powerbomb to Saraya

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Dynamite
Date: February 7, 2024
Location: Footprint Center, Phoenix, Arizona
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Revolution and the card is rather stacked this week. First of all, Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland have another match (ignore the results of the first two) for the World Title shot at Revolution. Other than that, Sting and Darby Allin get a Tag Team Title shot against Ricky Starks and Big Bill. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Hangman Page vs. Swerve Strickland

The winner gets Samoa Joe for the World Title at Revolution and Prince Nana is here, though Swerve has asked him not to interfere. They start slowly and then crank it up by heading outside, where Swerve sends him over the barricade. Back in and Swerve knocks him into the corner and stomps away as the fans are almost entirely behind Swerve. Page comes back with a shot of his own and hammers in some right hands so Swerve goes for the arm.

That’s broken up and Swerve is sent to the apron for a ram into the buckle. Page takes him into the barricade and chops away inside as the pace has slowed a lot. A kick to the head looks to set up the Buckshot but Page has to backdrop him to the floor instead. Page misses his moonsault so Swerve is back up with a running dive of his own, setting up the middle rope elbow to the back.

The House Call gives Swerve two so he takes Page up top, where a bite to the head gets Page out of trouble. A sunset bomb doesn’t work for Page so he grabs a sitout powerbomb for two instead. Swerve is back up with a Buckshot Lariat of his own, setting up the Swerve Stomp for two. They go to the floor and Page hits a DDT onto the barricade as we take a break. Back with Swerve hitting a backbreaker and putting Page on a table at ringside…which breaks before Swerve can do anything.

They go back inside and Page gets his knees up to block a 450 as we get the five minute call. The Buckshot Lariat gives Page two and the Deadeye on the apron gives him a near count out (thanks to….apparently the healing powers of Nana’s dance). That doesn’t work for Page, who hits Nana with a chair, leaving Swerve to get in a shot of his own.

The Swerve Stomp connects back inside but Swerve hurts his ankle, allowing Page to kick him in said ankle. They head to the apron and Swerve hits his own Deadeye through another table at ringside. The Swerve Stomp misses back inside but Swerve is back with a JML Driver for two….as time expires at 29:33.

Rating: B. I’m of a few minds on this. First of all, it was a hard hitting match where they beat each other up and continued their trend of working well together. At the same time, they couldn’t have telegraphed that time limit more if they tried (though some of the near falls had me wondering). You can all but guarantee the triple threat at Revolution from here, and that’s going to make things feel all the less logical.

Swerve wants five more minutes but Page says nah because Swerve didn’t beat him to become #1 contender. Or not as Tony Schiavone is told by Tony Khan that this isn’t done because it’s a triple threat at Revolution. So yeah, the rankings and the entire #1 contenders match seem rather pointless now and Tony Khan looks like an idiot for putting Page, who hasn’t actually beaten Swerve, in the same spot.

Post break Samoa Joe isn’t pleased with this celebration of mediocrity.

Toni Storm vs. Red Velvet

Non-title and Deonna Purrazzo is on commentary. Storm knocks her around to start but gets taken down by a leg lariat. Velvet gets to stomp away in the corner but a Thesz press takes her down as we take a break. Back with Velvet striking away and sending her into the corner. Storm gets a boot up and hits the hip attack, setting up a DDT for two. With that not working, an ankle lock of all things makes Velvet tap at 7:45.

Rating: C. While Velvet has gotten better in the ring, this is a match that could have gone about half as long to be that much more effective. Storm is set for a major title match at Revolution but she can’t beat someone whose career peak is middle of the pack? It’s ok to let the champ run someone over and that should have happened here.

Post match Purrazzo chases the villains off.

Orange Cassidy and the Best Friends are ready for Tomohiro Ishii on Saturday. For now, they need to check out Chuck Taylor getting checked out. They go to leave but Renee Paquette asks them to bring it in. She also likes Rocky Romero’s jacket.

Mascara Dorada/Hechicero/Volador Jr. vs. Blackpool Combat Club

Danielson and Hechicero start things off with Hechicero taking over in the technical off. A rollup gives Hechicero two so it’s off to Dorada for some chops to Castagnoli. Those don’t work so Dorada stomps on his foot, setting up a hurricanrana to the floor. Volador comes in and sends Moxley to the floor as well, setting up a dive to the floor. Everyone gets in a brawl on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Castagnoli Swinging Volador for two as Moxley comes in. They trade kicks to the face and it’s Dorada coming in to kick Danielson in the face. The CMLL guys clear the ring and hit a pair of dives, with Dorada adding a shooting star onto the pile. Back in and Hechicero grabs a hammerlock swing on Danielson and Dorada’s 450 gets two. The Club is back in to clean house until Hechicero hits his reverse hurricanrana driver for two on Castagnoli. With the referee not looking, Castagnoli kicks Hechicero low for the pin at 14:38.

Rating: B-. This felt like a wilder version of Hechicero vs. Danielson from Collision, as the Club was getting beaten throughout and had to use a miracle (or in this case cheating) finish to escape. It was sloppy in some places but this was about going out there and doing a bunch of stuff to pop the crowd, which worked very well. It’s also nice to have some luchadors who aren’t just high fliers as there is so much more to lucha libre than the flips and dives.

Post match some CMLL guys run in to go after the Club but more AEW stars make the save.

The Undisputed Kingdom has attacked Chuck Taylor. I didn’t think they could pull that off.

Here is Tony Khan’s big announcement: AEW is returning to Boston on March 13 and it’s…..AEW Big Business. It’s going to be an important night and tickets are on sale this Saturday. That was in fact an announcement. Tickets are on sale for one show and it takes place over a month from today. Riveting stuff there and you can’t buy this type of energy.

Chris Jericho vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Don Callis/Powerhouse Hobbs are here and Jericho sends Takeshita outside to start. Callis isn’t happy and slaps Takeshita, who takes over with some right hands. A brainbuster on the floor plants Jericho but he’s able to get back in for a top rope elbow to the head. Cue Sammy Guevara with a chair to the back of Hobbs, followed by a cutter off the steps.

A chair to the head sends Hobbs over the barricade, leaving Jericho to fight back. Takeshita is sent outside so Jericho puts on his mask and hits a big dive to the floor. We take a break and come back with Takeshita hitting a hard dropkick. A backsplash hits knees though and the fans are behind Jericho.

The Walls are blocked but Jericho settles for the Codebreaker for two. Jericho loads up the Lionsault, which is countered into the Blue Thunder Bob for two more. A super Blue Thunder Bomb gives Takeshita two but the big knee is countered into the Walls of Jericho. Callis slides in a chair though and uses the distraction to hit Jericho with a screwdriver. Takeshita puts on the Walls for two arm drops and then Jericho taps at 13:50.

Rating: C. This really didn’t work as Jericho wasn’t exactly feeling crisp out there. At the same time, I cannot bring myself to care about the Callis vs. Jericho feud. It feels like it has been going on forever and now we’ll have to wait on Jericho’s next revenge. It’s a feud that feels like it’s continuing because it needs to continue and that is never a good sign.

Tag Team Titles: Big Bill/Ricky Starks vs. Sting/Darby Allin

Sting (with his family in the crowd) and Allin are challenging and this is under Texas Tornado rules. They fight into the crowd to start and use some trashcans, setting up Sting’s dive off an entrance onto the champs. We take a break and come back with Allin’s suicide dive being countered into Allin’s swinging Boss Man Slam for a huge crash (that was incredibly smooth).

Back in and a choke toss sends Allin flying and Starks hits a Scorpion Death Drop for two on Sting. That doesn’t keep him down long as he’s back up with a Stinger Splash to Bill, setting up Code Red to send him outside. Allin hits the Coffin Drop to a standing Bill on the floor, leaving Starks to miss a dropkick.

The Scorpion Deathlock goes on to Starks as the other two crash through a table. Starks escapes and avoids a Stinger Splash, sending Sting into an exposed buckle. The Spear gives Starks two and he can’t believe the kickout. Back up and the Scorpion Death Drop gives Sting the pin and the titles at 13:16.

Rating: B-. That Boss Man Slam alone was worth a look but this was all about the big moment at the end and it went very well. Sting and Allin winning the titles is far from a stretch as they’ve been a strong team since they started. It’s not out of nowhere and gives Sting a genuine feel good moment on his way out of the ring.

Post match Sting and his family celebrate but the Young Bucks come in (wearing all white suits) with baseball bats (also white) for the beatdown. Allin is busted open and the blood is all over the white suits. THAT was effective and made the Bucks look like evil villains rather than wasting their time making jokes that all of 14 people care about.

Overall Rating: B. The wrestling on here was very good and the Sting/Allin title change made it even better. This was a show where it felt like the old energy was back and that is something that is always great to have. At the same time, the announcement was another (hilarious) letdown and Callis continues to kill my interest anytime he appears. The good heavily outweighs the bad here though, with three rather awesome matches (even if the rankings/#1 contender situation is still absurd).

Results
Swerve Strickland vs. Hangman Page went to a time limit draw
Toni Storm b. Red Velvet – Ankle lock
Blackpool Combat Club b. Hechicero/Volador Jr./Mascara Dorada – Low blow to Hechicero
Konosuke Takeshita b. Chris Jericho – Walls Of Jericho
Sting/Darby Allin b. Ricky Starks/Big Bill – Scorpion Death Drop to Starks

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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