SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Blackpool Combat Club (Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli) defeated Butcher and Blade: MINOR HIT
Good action here with some nice commentary from Jim Ross and William Regal. However, I can’t help but feel that if you started watching AEW in 2022, you’d barely know who Butcher and Blade are. The match could have had more heat if you replace Butcher and Blade with Dark Order, given Hangman Page’s allegiance with them.
Post-Match Promo by Moxley and Claudio: MISS
Moxley was very brief and didn’t say anything he hadn’t already said before. The Claudio involvement wasn’t very productive either. I don’t think having Claudio as a BCC hype man for two weeks running after he lost his title is the best use of him.
Swerve in our Glory backstage Interview: HIT
Good to see Paquette in AEW! The promo work here was good too. Strickland clearly didn’t have his priorities straight, and I appreciate Keith Lee calling him out on needing to cheat to win against Billy Gunn. Yes, their relationship has been a bit confusing over the past few months, but this made sense. We haven’t seen Lee act heelish since the PPV loss.
Dark Order-Jose backstage Interview: MISS
Preston Vance laid out a stipulation for his next match with Rush, where if he beats Rush, Los Faccion leaves him alone. What’s confusing is why didn’t Jose add in a stipulation for if Rush wins? If Preston could add a stipulation back against Andrade, why couldn’t Jose at least propose one here?
Jericho Appreciation Society Promo (JAS-only part): HIT
Daniel Garcia was good in getting the crowd to turn against him here. I thought the pro wrestler-sports entertainer dilemma storyline came a little too early for his character. They should have built up more heat with his “sports entertaining” for several months before that. Now that they’ve already done that story, it would look silly to revisit it in a year. However, I liked what I saw tonight.
Jericho Appreciation Society Promo (with Dalton Castle): NARROW MISS
The only time I remember seeing Dalton Castle was an unspectacular appearance in a Battle Royal.
Anyway, they did nothing to explain to me who this guy is, other than “he’s a good wrestler and former ROH champion.” Castle didn’t do anything to introduce himself either. They didn’t even name the two people he is Trios champions with.
If you’re a Dalton Castle fan, you probably loved this. All I can say is I kind of like his style, but I have zero investment in seeing him fight Jericho.
Toni Storm-Hikaru Shida Video Promo: HIT
Hikaru Shida is another star who AEW heats up too much too quick then stow away for months at a time. Decent work from both here, but I’m not as excited for this match as I should be.
Nyla Rose defeated Anna JAS: MISS
The build to this match was mostly stupid (with the only silver lining being some of Nyla’s clever lines). It’s heel vs. heel serving as a backdrop to another heel vs. heel feud where the more likable heel is stealing the other’s belt.
Anyway, there wasn’t much to this match either side of the commercial. I don’t like giving anything Nyla is involved with a “MISS” but that’s honestly how I felt about it.
Post-Match: NARROW MISS
After the match, Jade Cargill and the Baddies came out to try and reclaim the TBS title belt from Nyla, but were blocked by Nyla’s security. While I thought Cargill laying them out was cool, the casting of the security staff was pretty bad here. These guys didn’t really come across like trained security professionals who do the job full time, and they were way too passive when taking Cargill’s moves.
Ariya Daivari Video Promo: IT HAPPENED
Ariya addressed the envelope he left for Hook, suggesting that he wanted to buy the FTW title from him. Since Hook rejected the offer, Ariya now wants to fight him for it.
Nothing special here. It’s naïve for a savvy, rich heel to just drop an envelope of money like that with no context. I don’t think the intent is to portray Daivari as an incompetent rich guy, so I’m not sure what to make of this.
Ethan Page defeated Isiah Cassidy: MISS
This wasn’t much of a match. It just served as a means to an end. I guess the Firm now owns Private Party’s contracts and Matt Hardy is dejected. This story has skipped too many chapters for me to care.
Best Friends Video Promo: MINOR HIT
They want the Trios titles now, in addition to the All-Atlantic Title that Cassidy won two nights ago. There was a little bit of charming Orange Cassidy humor here, but otherwise nothing special.
Main Event Promo: MISS
Prince Nana is a horrible stereotype, Brian Cage has lost a ton of steam since his loss to Starks, and Shawn Spears doesn’t do much for me either. I thought it was incredibly silly to have him come out to help Wardlow two nights ago. The last time we saw him, he was trying to make Wardlow’s life miserable. They seemed to be having a bit of a stare down before they shook hands, but the camera never focussed on it. The announcers never made mention of their past either. It reminded me so much of WWE’s worst flaws when it comes to erasing their own history.
I don’t mind a rebooting of Shawn Spears’s character, and I think it is a good idea to bring him back in Canada if you want him to be a babyface. However, this wasn’t the best way to go about it.
Shawn Spears and FTR defeated Brian Cage, Bishop Kaun, and Toa Liona: MINOR HIT
Good match, sure, but it felt more like a match designed to please a hometown crowd at a house show than a television match that builds heat for an ongoing feud.
I am amazed at how over FTR is though. The company should build to a PPV tag match between FTR and the Acclaimed at Full Gear or Revolution next year.
Post Match: NARROW MISS
After the match, Maria Kanellis, Matt Taven, and Mike Bennet came out, cut a promo, and joined the heels in beating down the babyfaces. War-Joe then made the save.
The only reason this doesn’t get a full “MISS” is because I appreciate Maria at least trying to introduce Matt Taven and Mike Bennet. However, the haphazard influx of new faces and start-and-stop pushes for existing talent is getting tiring. I would also like to see a brawl where the heels come out on top for once.
Commentary: MINOR HIT
Jim Ross, Excalibur, and Tony Schiavone tonight. Ross had a stronger night than usual.
Overall Show: NARROW MISS
Good crowd heat for a rather mediocre show. Yes, the AEW World Champion wrestled in the opener, but it didn’t really feel like a big deal, nor did it generate as much heat as it could have for his title defense next week. Everything else was either poor or designed for an ultra-hardcore fanbase. I’m sure I would have had fun if I went to this show, but I’m glad I didn’t.
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