SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Jon Moxley defeated Konosuke Takeshita: HOME RUN
What. A. Match! It was physical. It was gritty. There was desperation for victory. And even with Moxley bleeding, there was very little about this that I would call “gratuitous.”
Takeshita has certainly proven himself to be a good storyteller in the ring. Next step is for him to translate that into long-term, week-to-week feuds.
Post-Match Attack by Hangman Page: MINOR HIT
This wasn’t quite as good as the previous Hangman-Moxley brawl. They seem to be leaning hard into the notion that Hangman isn’t cleared to wrestle yet, so he will exact his revenge through non-sanctioned attacks. I do like that wild edge of Hangman, but I hope they find a way to keep these attacks fresh.
All told, there was quite a bit of star power featured in the first quarter of Rampage tonight.
Powerhouse Hobbs Video Promo: INTRIGUING HIT
They showed scenes of the city where Hobbs grew up, illustrating that he had a rough childhood. This was compelling on its own, but I’m not sure what it’s building toward.
Stokely Hathaway Video Promo: HIT
Hathaway seemed to place far too much stock in a Hook vs. Moriarty match. How is this the “biggest” atrocity after everything you went through with MJF?
The bit at the end where he just disengaged from the promo might have been cute, but it undercut anything he was trying to sell earlier.
Hikaru Shida defeated The Bunny to retain the Regina Di Wave Championship: MINOR HIT
A decent match that would have been better if not for inconsistently featured characters, a belt I am not familiar with, and a lengthy commercial break that really stalled momentum.
Post-Match: IT HAPPENED
After the match, Jamie Hayter came out to stare down Hikaru Shida. This ought to be a cool match.
Athena – Mercedes Martinez Video Package: MINOR HIT
Decent promotional stuff for their match at the ROH Final Battle PPV tomorrow. Likely to be Athena’s most competitive match since turning heel in AEW.
Lee Moriarty and Big Bill Morrissey defeated Clayton Bloodstone and Izzy James: IT HAPPENED
Quick squash. Why did Morrissey change his name though?
FTR Backstage Interview: MINOR HIT
It seems the Briscoes have challenged them to a double-dog collar match at the ROH Final Battle PPV. That ought to be cool. Decent promo work here.
Ortiz and Eddie Kingston Video Promo: MINOR HIT
They addressed the House of Black’s beatdown on them. Very brief and nothing special.
Main Event Promo: MINOR HIT
They know that the matches they slot into the main event of Rampage have no business being there. So, these main event promos are frequently carried by trolling Mark Henry. It’s amusing to me, I guess.
Shane Taylor and JD Griffey Backstage Promo: 50-50
Decent promo work for what it was, but if Keith Lee leaving was the best thing that happened to Shane Taylor, why is he after him now?
Orange Cassidy defeated Trent Seven to retain the AEW All-Atlantic Title: MINOR HIT
I was really hoping for Miro to be Kip Sabian’s pick, as much as I thought he was better off separating from Sabian. I am all for people getting jobs, but there’s something to be said for maximizing the people currently under contract for you before bringing others in.
The match itself was fine. Definitely better than the Lumberjack match last week. It’s just hard to get into this when I have a feeling Seven will just be relegated to Dark pretty soon.
Post-Match: MINOR HIT
After the match, the heels beat up the babyfaces until Dustin Rhodes came out for the save. Looking like he will be Cassidy’s next opponent? Anyway, I got a kick out of some of the Dusty Rhodes moves, so this was cool.
Commentary: MINOR HIT
Jim Ross, Excalibur, and Tony Schiavone tonight. They were fine.
Overall Show: MINOR HIT
The opening contest is worth going out of your way to see. Everything else was fairly typical/skippable AEW Rampage content.
CATCH-UP: 12/9 AEW RAMPAGE TV REPORT: Moxley vs. Takeshita, Shida vs. The Bunny, more
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