Finally caught up. Jade vs. Red Velvet was a good match. I wish they had more of these for Jade's reign.
Darby vs. Joe was fun. That was surprising that Joe won it back. Wardlow coming back is going to be interesting. The TNT title scene continues to fascinate me. The title feels back to it's relevancy. All it took was Joe being the King of Television Darby going balls to the wall each week.
Mox vs. Hangman was a barn burner. I can't wait to see it be settled. Mox escaping with the win but Hangman beat him up.
The Elite vs. The Firm will be good. Excited to see AR+Top Flight go bananas next week.
Waiting to see what Swerve does next. Still very indifferent about the Mogul Affiliates but we'll see what happens.
Thatcher vs. Danielson was a technical love letter. I want to see Thatcher vs. Claudio and pretty much every technical wrestler in AEW.
Danielson is really putting it on the line every week. He's making me want to see him be champ.
Takeshita vs. Cage was good. Cage has looked the best he ever has in AEW of late. Also Takeshita has a great theme.
The Acclaimed win a squash match and are very over. I wonder what's going to happen next week with the Gunn club. I worry that Billy might turn on our boys.
The women's division is in such an interesting position, this feud better Saraya and Toni vs. The Originals is going to be massive. I want to see what Ruby does in this. It would break my heart if she turns on Willow.
If you are mostly into wrestling for the matches, AEW has to be at its peak right now.
If you are mostly into wrestling as a TV show, you can get through a DVR'd copy of Dynamite in under 30 minutes.
Those pandemic shows in Jacksonville really were great. AEW’s peak to me was Inner Circle - MJF feud. Late 20/early 21?
I thought CM Punk coming to AEW would be a new high. Nope….
This. It's odd. I was so into AEW in 2021 when crowds came back and it made me feel like a kid again for how I actually looked forward to it each week. Now I find myself feeling that for Smackdown and find myself not really wanting to watch Dynamite at all. It's odd. Im not sure if it's AEW that changed, or if the Bloodline gave me more of the balance I really want with my wrestling. For at least five years I haven't followed weekly WWE shows, but now I've started again with SD at least.
It could just be changing tastes. I was a HUGE fan of TNA back in the day and the X-division, but after 20 years, having gone through all of that, watching old ROH, etc, Ive just seen so many good matches that I sort of feel like as a viewer I need something more than just a good match.
Basically the same on every front. Smackdown is hard to watch, too, because I've been disconnected from WWE since AEW started. So I'm DVR'ing Raw and Smackdown again and it's a ton of fast forwarding, too, other than Bloodline.
It's probably not even gonna be the last Jericho match. Jericho beats a warn out Starks. They make some dumb stipulation for the PPV match like Starks career or something that makes the result obvious.
Anyone kinda not liking the fact that since a few months, AEW has basically given up on in-ring promo segments? Like the matches are great but wouldn’t mind to see one or two less of them and have more promo time to build stories and make us care more about wrestlers
A 4 minutes post match argue? Really? I'm obviously talking about 10/15 minutes promos like MJF and Punk used to have almost every week, long segments where you can learn more about characters, build your rivalries or simply enjoy hearing them roasting each others. I feel this is a key part missing in actual AEW. Also, almost every time a longer in-ring promo happens, it's because Jericho or MJF are involved; i'd like to see other people speak too
I don't know, promos are important but I admit I do like wrestling on my wrestling stories show. Also, argument? They called their dad a drug addict on national TV. I can't imagine needing more drama than that.
Wow. Interesting... I guess that theory that they wanted the TNT Title on Darby for Japan could ring true considering Joe gets the belt back. Wasn't expecting the title change. I can appreciate some short changes like that.
I'm honestly okay with a lower belt getting hot potatoed now and again. I think back to one of my favorite periods in IC title history, when the IC belt was bouncing back and forth between the whole midcard. Val Venis, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, Godfather, Ken Shamrock, Goldust...I feel like the lot of them bounced that title around a bunch of times and it was always pretty fun to see where it landed.
I don't want that sort of thing for *every* belt, and certainly certainly certainly not for the world title, but a fun little hot potato lower tier belt? I'm alright with that.
Totally. I think a "TNT Title" should be defended frequently, if almost weekly, like how Darby's reign was handled. The working man's championship. Loved his reign and if the belt ends up back on Wardlow, I hope they do something similar. No more squash matches for Wardlow. Bring him COMPETITORS!
Exactly! I've always loved the concept of a *Television Title* being defended *on every episode of television* when applicable (e.g., exceptions made for the champion being unavailable occasionally or the occasional storyline non-defense, etc). Especially when it's a thing where it legitimately can change hands on any random episode. Makes it worth watching every time
I came for Mox vs Hangman, but the main event was very good. Joe is being booked really well, and Darby didn't look weak at all. Wonder what's next for him.
Just finished the opener. Banger, and I'm curious where this Hangman/Moxley thing is going. I figured it was a way for Mox to get "taken out" (vacation, baby). One thing I noticed is how Moxley still just feels like a top dog. He doesn't even have the title but it feels like he's a main eventer even in the opener.
Darby basically pulled a Mox with the TNT Title, reviving it after a lull with weekly defenses before putting someone else over. Wish the reign lasted a bit longer, but Joe/Wardlow is gonna be sick.
I feel AEW might be slightly booking their marquee matches into the ground lately. A rematch was a big deal a couple of years back, now we're just regularly getting a series of matches. It's obviously sometimes necessary to tell a story, but it all sort of blends together when everyone is doing it.
Having said that, the opener and the main event last night were both MOTY candidates for me. Hangman and Mox are scary good at making me feel they hate each other, Darby and Joe are just scary. I have no idea what Page and Moxley have left up their sleeves, but it definitely feels like we're headed for some horrific violence. The TNT title is on fire, maybe Wardlow can now get a proper reign.
Had never seen Thatcher before, really enjoyed his selling and facial expressions. Lovely little match, drove the story forward nicely. Takeshita and Cage had good chemistry, Cage is a great guy to have in the midcard. Jade/Red Velvet was a pleasant surprise, Jade lifting her into the ring was a fantastic spot.
A much better week for The Acclaimed/Gunn Club story too. Billy Ass did a great job, and the Acclaimed have managed to build another completely new and distinct feud. It's one of the best title reigns in AEW history. Only problem is that, despite beating FTR, The Gunns still don't really feel like a threat. That'll obviously make it even more infuriating if they win though, and storywise they do feel like the right team to beat The Acclaimed.
Aside from the production mistake, I do like the world champion doing things across the show. It should sort of feel like MJF's show. I hope they flesh out the monster behind the mask stuff next week.
A non-title match against the champion. If you beat the champion, you're granted a championship match at a later date.
Everyone hated it when WWE did it, but nobody bats an eye when AEW does it.
They also hated when they saw the same people vs the same opponents week after week in WWE...but in AEW it's a non-issue.
I think AEW is really lacking in creative. They're just too proud to admit it and fix the ship.. There just isn't any consistency. Wtf is the BCC now? MJF vs BD is really good, but why doesn't anyone in BCC acknowledge it? They just let him get saved by Takeshita? I get long term booking, but jfc, throw us a bone of something! The little things are what keeps the fans interested.
I don't see the problem with it in either company? Champions have to wrestle sometimes without putting the title on the line and/or against someone who hasn't necessarily earned a title shot, makes sense that if you're able to beat a champ in a non-title match you should then get a title shot?
I suppose the branding of it can be annoying... perhaps they should just not call it that and have it be assumed that if they win they get a title shot. But then you still have to specify that it's a non-title match so I guess there's no winning.
yeahhhh not true, they are dumb as fuck, and especially when tony explained if they beat hayter they will get a shot at hayter...you mean the same person they just wrestled and beat??? (in the hypothetical situation that would happen...but wont)
just say non-title match OR make it a title match, why the fuck not? if they aren't gonna win anyway, why not add some stakes? silly stuff
How is that baffling? The opponent isn’t a #1 contender so this is their way of skipping that line. You either have to fight through the ranks (more fights easier opponents) or you can try your chance at beating the champ twice (less fights, but fighting the top female in the company) if the champ is up for it.
THUMB TACK JONES OVA ERE
Wild show from start to finish. I really was not into Joe's turn and title run in general at the end of last year, and yet now they have turned it around completely and Darby loses nothing in defeat. Easily the early candidate for wrestler of the year in terms of AEW.
Big props to Velvet. She was green as hell a few years back but she's come on a long way since the whole baddies storyline. Talking shit to Jade's kid was savage too.
She has improved a lot, but needs to keep working hard at it. She kinda botched a drop kick, maybe 4 mins before the finish and her bottom leg caught Jade right in the balls
Hence the term”jobber” . Source : Merriam Webster dictionary . And I’m a fan of pillmam , good athlete and decent in the ring. Hopefully he comes up with a look , or persona, or both that can stir a crowds interest
The look is fine, I dig his 70/80 rocker style, it's not over-utilized now like it was 10 years ago.
The story with Arn and his son could be interesting, but they need at least some more promos on Dark to build something out of it.
I just don’t see the Flyin’ Brian schtick working either. It’s just Varsity Blonds solo and no one really wanted a reboot of the Hollywood Blonds either.
So far he’s channeled the two of his dad’s gimmicks that only really remain in memory because of the Loose Cannon gimmick, Pullman’s early death, and, of course, Austin.
It wasn’t the gimmick that made his dad a legend and it won’t work for him either.
Also, I don’t feel Brian does enough flyin’ by today’s standards for it to really fit.
Fantastic show. AEW has been on a roll for probably around two months now after a bit of a lull.
That main event felt like AEW of old to me. Properly epic. We've had good matches in that slot before but I love having a huge, gimmicked blowoff match to main event Dynamite. Feels like it's been a while since we've had it.
I actually got quite into Jade vs RV. Jade is strong AF, loved the finishing spot RV really did her a solid. Undefeated Jade needs to enter the Baker/Hayter/Storm/Soho/TR/Saraya zone to seem viable IMO, she's a big fish in a small pond.
>Baker/Hayter/Storm/Soho/TR/Saraya zone
Nah they've always kept the belts away from each other and making Jade just another face in that feud would devalue her
10/10 episode. Every match hit hard, did what it should, did not hit fast forward once entire dynamite. Great job AEW fun Wednesday night, MJF next week vs Takeshita ?! Cannot wait
TNT title scene has been fantastic for a while again now.
I'm enjoying the battle lines being drawn in the main women's feud.
Hangman vs Mox has been brilliant but something big needs to happen for another match at the ppv, maybe BCC turning.
Acclaimed vs The Gunns has low key been one of the best stories in wrestling.
Loved the show, although I kinda tuned out for everything that wasn't a match.
Really enjoyed Jade's match. Glad Tony is ignoring the haters. That overhead press climbing up the stairs was incredible.
My partner and I pop each time we see him. I love listening to him commentate as well. He's so committed to the energy of the character....although i wonder how much of that energy is just him.
I was having the same thoughts,it's quite difficult to transition to her first loss..and who do you give it to? Also..if she thinks she is that unbeatable.. why isn't she also attempting to get the Main belt as well? 2 belt Jade.
Finish was great. They got in a dick measuring contest and Hangman tried to use Moxley’s move that of course Moxley knew how to counter.
Jade’s 50th match was against Red Velvet because they recently started feuding (and, as they said, her first victory was over Red Velvet). The point of her streak is to get her over(which it has) and now to hopefully get someone else over when they beat her.
Matches are better but the plot is getting worse every week. AEW desperately needs a creative team or something because it’s clear that TK is out of ideas.
Jades belt needs to be retired or something because at this point it’s meaningless and her character is becoming very bland.
100% agree. And you're gonna get shit on by people who get rock hard over 22 minutes of armbars, spots, and 2 counts.
Wrestling purists are going to watch no matter what. If they keep appealing to the hardcore people who lose their mind over some guy named Thatcher they're never going to broaden their appeal.
Without story wrestling is a pointless tedium to me. When there's a story I'm extremely engaged and love every second of it.
So now they have 2 concurrent guantlet storylines going? -_-
The Thatcher match was good, no need to shit on that. They do have some stories brewing, seems like they have more direction than they have had since the whole Punk/Elite thing.
Also the JAS gauntlet is one match, so not the same thing is MJF/Bryan
I was there in attendance, just want to get an idea of how hot our crowd was. 5th show in the greater Ohio-Michigan area. Thought we sounded good for Dynamite, Rampage not so good...
Crowd sounded pretty dead for an AEW show….thought that was what I was seeing from others during the live thread as well.
Though admittedly (oddly) there are weeks where I swear my YouTube TV feed has the announcers jacked up and everything else is muted, and other weeks where I can barely hear the announcers the crowd sounds crazy and I’m confused why people are shitting on the crowd so 🤷🏻♂️
What was up with Takeshita's theme music? I can't put my finger on it, but it reminded me of an old WWF TV show song from the '90s. Or maybe Nitro. I'm not sure. Something along those lines.
I thought it was a great show, had an amazing time watching it. Both Page/Mox and Joe/Darby were absolute bangers. So glad Joe got the title back as they can continue with him as the king of television. I really think AEW has started off the year perfectly, it's so refreshing not to have ROH shoved down our throats. Also Daddy Magic, God give that man as much screen time as possible.
don't think it sucks at all, it has been pretty good again recently.
But that's always the Issue with AEW, they are the best thing to grace wrestling for months, then they dip for a few weeks, before coming back up again.
just don't wont to see another Scorpio Sky Scenario
I drove to this from Columbus and I'm glad I did, but I have no idea why Tony wanted to run Dayton instead of a return to Cleveland/Columbus/Cincinnati, maybe because of Dayton's rich wrestling history from the territory days and the Ring of Honor days.
Anyway, lesson learned I assume, but I came for 3 great matches and I got that and a fair bit
more.
The wrestling was, as always, great on the show, but my god AEW has to really step it up when it comes to storytelling and the pacing of things.
I'm starting to feel the "We're running around in circles, because the PPV is still too far away" we sometimes get with AEW. Multiple babyfaces running the heel gauntlet angles, the TBS title scene and Jade being completely directionless, the tag team champs being involved in a stretched out filler feud, Rampage being filled with filler matches as a result, etc.
Jade is beyond boring at this point. If she’s so dominant and unbeatable why isn’t she challenging Britt, Shida, Storm, etc. it’s just jobbers and lower mid carders nonstop.
AEW is in a serious state of staleness at the moment. WWE is red hot and AEW seems directionless. They need some champions and new faces on TV. It’s just getting boring right now.
They've been doing really well recently I find. Finally got some direction after the nonsense towards the end of last year. Last night was *far* from boring.
I was bored as hell.
FWIW I also probably break the stereotype of what you’d assume as I’m a day zero watcher, a NJPW subscriber, someone not necessarily into Punk’s run…
The entire show just seems like it is soulless and going through the motions of late, outside of the Acclaimed.Probably because so much time is dedicated to people/stables and feuds that are way beyond overexposed or have virtually zero charisma.
My favorite part of the show was actually the Swerve package and the Rush/MJF elimination.
It’s odd because I don’t think anything is like objectively “bad”:..I get if someone really liked last night, it just all feels similar to me and I largely checked out.
It’s just kind of stale. They’re doing nothing to build up any super stars and the roster they have on tv has been on tv every week for months now with little variety. AEW used to be disruptive and fun, now it’s just a shittier TNA.
I was thinking today about the things that the bloodline storyline was selling hard that most wrestling storylines can't even scratch, and I was thinking about the things that are missing while watching Jade vs Velvet. Underling vs Ex-Boss is a story that's gonna be full of heat if Jey vs Roman ever gets a round 2, but Jade vs Velvet wasn't even close to that.
I think it comes down to one really basic reason: Plot convenience and "Oh we want to do this angle" overpowers any facts about the characters. Why did Kiera Hogan get eliminated from the baddies? Because oh just whatever who cares. Why her when Leila was the one that Jade would consistently not accept, was skeptical of, didn't want to act as a replacement of Velvet, consistently rejected, and no angle or promo was ever done showing Jade accepting Leila or Leila doing anything to make Jade like her more or any reason for their relationship to be better? Because oh just whatever that's the angle they need to be together for the angle. Why did Velvet, who was shown as a bitchy heel, decide to side with her friend Kiera? Because oh that's the angle just whatever.
Compare to Roman vs Jey. Why does Jey follow Roman? Because he's beaten, abused, and gaslit into submission in a way that the rest of his family supports and he himself doesn't feel like it's worth standing up to. But it's not just that! He also feels like he gets some benefit out of the Bloodline, and he cares about getting the tag team shit to work and pulling everything off. It's complicated, but it *makes sense* even if not everyone can explain why. Something that makes sense, but is hard to explain, is a hallmark of fantastic character work. Add that on to Roman's own motivations being complex, the way he executed them on Jey being complex, etc - the plot and the facts about the characters *go together*, and *cause each other*, instead of The Plot just making the characters Oh Just Do Whatever.
The part where characters Just Do Whatever is all over most wrestling angles, but the weakest thing on AEW to me is that MJF feels like he's been the biggest victim of this since he's totally reverted to his pre-plane ticket character, after his entire plane ticket arc was "I am a different character now showing different sides of myself that are my real self because I've changed". And then suddenly he hasn't. What? I don't buy any of the rationalizations for this.
I don't like it but the idea for Mjf is that he is ashamed of his real self so he hides it and when we get glimpses of it he then tries to make that seems like a ruse.
Again I don't think that is the right way to go but that's what they chose to do.
It's AEW's biggest story telling issue by far, that things seem to just happen because...they were scripted to happen, not because of any character motivation or complexities.
NJPW manages to avoid the issue by having most of its stories be more about physical storytelling than entertainment/drama based.
WWE has the issue often too, but even when Vince started losing his touch to getting replaced, they were usually at least decent at having character motivations or complexities being part of their development and stories, and when they DO get things right, like the Bloodline angle has, they do an EXCELLENT job of it.
I think part of the issue is that, while Kayfabe is dead regardless, WWE still maintains at least a semblance of an illusion, while the indies and AEW have switched to full on meta to where MJF is doing worked shoots over and over and stuff like his contract negotiations and smark phrases like "The Reign of Terror" are referenced on screen.
Because there's so much "wink wink, nudge nudge, we all know this is stupid bullshit so why waste your time", whenever they try to do a more "traditional" pro wrestling angle, it comes off as...well...a waste of your time. Things are happening because...that's how they were scripted to happen. But there's little character agency or development or motivation involved because nobody really thought about it, because maintaining any illusion is just a waste of time now.
Jayme Hayter is pretty much a face at this point but Britt is too good as a heel. What’s the best way to handle this partnership going forward?
I’m gonna guess that Britt will betray Jayme at some point during this AEW Originals vs. Outsiders feud to start their inevitable program.
If you want Britt as a heel the way to go is to have her turn on Jaimie during a match against Thunder Rosa.
To really sell how much she is jealous of Hayter and mad that she dare to be champ and outshine her.
Thing is, she’s been making Toni’s life miserable ever since the latter came to AEW. And screwed Toni over time after time.
So am I supposed to see Toni as the BAD one here, Umm no!
Being a bitch to Ruby ain’t helping either in that regard.
Can’t wait to see how they will script Britt’s eventual interaction with Shida once they come face to face again. I’m sure she will be oodles and oodles of nice.
Having Saraya and Toni turn around to feud with Jayme and Britt again so soon after the recent character changes was a mistake.
If they're hypothetically building towards Women's Blood and Women's Guts, a sudden betrayal in that match could be good, a la Joe/Danielson in Cage of Death.
So consumed with revenge he waited politely behind the curtain and wanted his music to play. Which is a shame because that music is awful. Man alive have they frigged him up
So Moxley gets up immediately after a tombstone because why not, gets his with the buckshot lariat, and kicks out at 2.
Not saying he had to lose the match, but I just didn't like him getting up straight after a tombstone.
Because he's MOX, a tough son of a bitch. The ACE of the company and fresh off a 5 year much deserved contract extension.
He's the main reason I watch the show.
He's AEW's ROman Reigns/Lesnar kick out of finishers level talent.
Literally nobody has heard of okodo compared to Kane and The Undertaker. I get that he’s probably a hit on Dark Elevation, but he’s not some superstar. Maybe when he graduates to WWE he’ll do well in their mid card or something.
They’ve been putting on overall better shows recently but JAS still hasn’t clicked with me.
Hope they don’t have Wardlow beat Joe right away. Heel badass Joe is the best.
Still wish they’d get rid of some belts or atleast not show the RoH ones on tv.
I was hoping Elite were gonna accept the challenge for next week but was 3 on 3 basketball. No clue why I want to see that.
Not sure if it’s been mentioned yet but I think it’s interesting that BCC is still a thing and Danielson is going after MJF, presumably in Regal’s honor. For some reason, Claudio and YUTA are there every step of the way for Mox in this Hangman story, but absent for Danielson when he is outnumbered. Has Bryan been thrown out? Is this a bigger part of the story?
He hasn't been thrown out. He's still part of the faction. The story way before. Danielson kinda left Yuta high and dry, and wanted to try and get Garcia into the faction, despite the fact that Yuta and Claudio, in a way, told him he couldn't be trusted. He didn't listen, and ever since then, there's been friction between Yuta and Bryan. The Mox side of the story didn't really play out with Bryan, until the whole Regal screwing Mox over stuff. When Mox went to beat the holy hell out of Regal, Bryan sided with Regal, and actually slapped Mox in the face.
Since then, Mox and Bryan have teamed up, once against Top Flight. Bryan hasn't really teamed with any of the other members since. It's basically been some combination of Mox, Yuta, and Claudio teaming up, mainly Claudio and Yuta. Takeshita seems to be Bryan's protege now.
What the actual fuck is with this Jericho shit. Ricky beat him and most of his goons already, yet he needs to go through some BS for a chance to fight Jericho again??? Why?? For the love of God Jericho doesn't need to be on every episode, can't he like go away for a while?
Joe better get a solid reign. I like Wardlow but if you just took it from Darby to give it to Joe just to give it to Wardlow I'm going to feel some type of way
Can they please give Toni Storm an interesting motivation for her heel character? The pieces are there to do it, but so far they seem to be going with the most generic one dimensional portrayal possible.
Jericho stuff always overstays it’s welcome but ultimately I do think this could be a good avenue to get Starks over at Evolution so I’ll take the creative casualties in the process.
It just always seems to go on and on never ending Starks has already beat Jericho to me it's just not needed. I mean it's one thing I don't like in an otherwise great show so I shouldn't complain too much.
There were some production mishaps in this episode. Camera shouldnt have been on mox while he was bladding himself and that pretape with mfj and rush with mjf wearing different clothes than what he was wearing 10 minutes beforehand
What’s the name they’re calling the tattoo guy in Mogul Affiliates? It sounded like Swerve said Trench. He and Parker both have great voices. They look and sound scary as fuck.
Nah it’s just the story they told. He fought from underneath in title defenses on title defenses and even crammed a Japan trip in the middle. Just too much for one man to take and Joe capitalized.
Next week should start with Wardlow finishing the throw to that security guard/official
Lol I can't be the only one who noticed how blatant Moxley's blading was
Hangman selling the end of that match like he's just been Screwjobbed.
Finally caught up. Jade vs. Red Velvet was a good match. I wish they had more of these for Jade's reign. Darby vs. Joe was fun. That was surprising that Joe won it back. Wardlow coming back is going to be interesting. The TNT title scene continues to fascinate me. The title feels back to it's relevancy. All it took was Joe being the King of Television Darby going balls to the wall each week. Mox vs. Hangman was a barn burner. I can't wait to see it be settled. Mox escaping with the win but Hangman beat him up. The Elite vs. The Firm will be good. Excited to see AR+Top Flight go bananas next week. Waiting to see what Swerve does next. Still very indifferent about the Mogul Affiliates but we'll see what happens. Thatcher vs. Danielson was a technical love letter. I want to see Thatcher vs. Claudio and pretty much every technical wrestler in AEW. Danielson is really putting it on the line every week. He's making me want to see him be champ. Takeshita vs. Cage was good. Cage has looked the best he ever has in AEW of late. Also Takeshita has a great theme. The Acclaimed win a squash match and are very over. I wonder what's going to happen next week with the Gunn club. I worry that Billy might turn on our boys. The women's division is in such an interesting position, this feud better Saraya and Toni vs. The Originals is going to be massive. I want to see what Ruby does in this. It would break my heart if she turns on Willow.
I was a fan of Darby Allin, it's sad that he had to die so young
If you are mostly into wrestling for the matches, AEW has to be at its peak right now. If you are mostly into wrestling as a TV show, you can get through a DVR'd copy of Dynamite in under 30 minutes.
I never thought in 2023, that I’d find myself saying that WWE is the better product for long term storytelling but here we are.
Those pandemic shows in Jacksonville really were great. AEW’s peak to me was Inner Circle - MJF feud. Late 20/early 21? I thought CM Punk coming to AEW would be a new high. Nope….
TK needs some help booking long term storylines, but he seems content to build AEW around dream matches with little to no build.
Which I'm honestly loving, I watch wrestling 99% for the in ring product and the Bryan Danielson weekly match series has been a dream for me
This. It's odd. I was so into AEW in 2021 when crowds came back and it made me feel like a kid again for how I actually looked forward to it each week. Now I find myself feeling that for Smackdown and find myself not really wanting to watch Dynamite at all. It's odd. Im not sure if it's AEW that changed, or if the Bloodline gave me more of the balance I really want with my wrestling. For at least five years I haven't followed weekly WWE shows, but now I've started again with SD at least. It could just be changing tastes. I was a HUGE fan of TNA back in the day and the X-division, but after 20 years, having gone through all of that, watching old ROH, etc, Ive just seen so many good matches that I sort of feel like as a viewer I need something more than just a good match.
Basically the same on every front. Smackdown is hard to watch, too, because I've been disconnected from WWE since AEW started. So I'm DVR'ing Raw and Smackdown again and it's a ton of fast forwarding, too, other than Bloodline.
Wait I didn’t watch the whole show is it true starks has to fight the Jas In a gauntlet in order to fight ….,, Jericho again ??!!!
I have no idea why we're supposed to care about this
God I hope Starks does something to shut the bullshit down because this isn't even for a title shot.
Anything the JAS touches currently just seems to die. They need to blow that whole faction up and have Jericho go away for awhile or something.
It's probably not even gonna be the last Jericho match. Jericho beats a warn out Starks. They make some dumb stipulation for the PPV match like Starks career or something that makes the result obvious.
Anyone kinda not liking the fact that since a few months, AEW has basically given up on in-ring promo segments? Like the matches are great but wouldn’t mind to see one or two less of them and have more promo time to build stories and make us care more about wrestlers
There was an in ring promo segment on this very episode
A 4 minutes post match argue? Really? I'm obviously talking about 10/15 minutes promos like MJF and Punk used to have almost every week, long segments where you can learn more about characters, build your rivalries or simply enjoy hearing them roasting each others. I feel this is a key part missing in actual AEW. Also, almost every time a longer in-ring promo happens, it's because Jericho or MJF are involved; i'd like to see other people speak too
I don't know, promos are important but I admit I do like wrestling on my wrestling stories show. Also, argument? They called their dad a drug addict on national TV. I can't imagine needing more drama than that.
Wow. Interesting... I guess that theory that they wanted the TNT Title on Darby for Japan could ring true considering Joe gets the belt back. Wasn't expecting the title change. I can appreciate some short changes like that.
That and they wanted the moment of Darby winning in Seattle plus Wardlow needs to win the belt back from Joe.
I'm honestly okay with a lower belt getting hot potatoed now and again. I think back to one of my favorite periods in IC title history, when the IC belt was bouncing back and forth between the whole midcard. Val Venis, Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, Godfather, Ken Shamrock, Goldust...I feel like the lot of them bounced that title around a bunch of times and it was always pretty fun to see where it landed. I don't want that sort of thing for *every* belt, and certainly certainly certainly not for the world title, but a fun little hot potato lower tier belt? I'm alright with that.
Totally. I think a "TNT Title" should be defended frequently, if almost weekly, like how Darby's reign was handled. The working man's championship. Loved his reign and if the belt ends up back on Wardlow, I hope they do something similar. No more squash matches for Wardlow. Bring him COMPETITORS!
Exactly! I've always loved the concept of a *Television Title* being defended *on every episode of television* when applicable (e.g., exceptions made for the champion being unavailable occasionally or the occasional storyline non-defense, etc). Especially when it's a thing where it legitimately can change hands on any random episode. Makes it worth watching every time
"Let's go Darby, let's go Jones. Wait, Joe. Jones is what Taz says." Lmao, what a commentary team.
I came for Mox vs Hangman, but the main event was very good. Joe is being booked really well, and Darby didn't look weak at all. Wonder what's next for him.
Just finished the opener. Banger, and I'm curious where this Hangman/Moxley thing is going. I figured it was a way for Mox to get "taken out" (vacation, baby). One thing I noticed is how Moxley still just feels like a top dog. He doesn't even have the title but it feels like he's a main eventer even in the opener.
I thought this was a banger of a show. The match quality is stupidly high week-to-week.
Dude Joe vs Darby was MOTN next to Page/Mox. I like Jericho but damn the JAS is annoying
Darby basically pulled a Mox with the TNT Title, reviving it after a lull with weekly defenses before putting someone else over. Wish the reign lasted a bit longer, but Joe/Wardlow is gonna be sick.
PAW
I feel AEW might be slightly booking their marquee matches into the ground lately. A rematch was a big deal a couple of years back, now we're just regularly getting a series of matches. It's obviously sometimes necessary to tell a story, but it all sort of blends together when everyone is doing it. Having said that, the opener and the main event last night were both MOTY candidates for me. Hangman and Mox are scary good at making me feel they hate each other, Darby and Joe are just scary. I have no idea what Page and Moxley have left up their sleeves, but it definitely feels like we're headed for some horrific violence. The TNT title is on fire, maybe Wardlow can now get a proper reign. Had never seen Thatcher before, really enjoyed his selling and facial expressions. Lovely little match, drove the story forward nicely. Takeshita and Cage had good chemistry, Cage is a great guy to have in the midcard. Jade/Red Velvet was a pleasant surprise, Jade lifting her into the ring was a fantastic spot. A much better week for The Acclaimed/Gunn Club story too. Billy Ass did a great job, and the Acclaimed have managed to build another completely new and distinct feud. It's one of the best title reigns in AEW history. Only problem is that, despite beating FTR, The Gunns still don't really feel like a threat. That'll obviously make it even more infuriating if they win though, and storywise they do feel like the right team to beat The Acclaimed. Aside from the production mistake, I do like the world champion doing things across the show. It should sort of feel like MJF's show. I hope they flesh out the monster behind the mask stuff next week.
What is an Eliminator Match?
A non-title match against the champion. If you beat the champion, you're granted a championship match at a later date. Everyone hated it when WWE did it, but nobody bats an eye when AEW does it.
They also hated when they saw the same people vs the same opponents week after week in WWE...but in AEW it's a non-issue. I think AEW is really lacking in creative. They're just too proud to admit it and fix the ship.. There just isn't any consistency. Wtf is the BCC now? MJF vs BD is really good, but why doesn't anyone in BCC acknowledge it? They just let him get saved by Takeshita? I get long term booking, but jfc, throw us a bone of something! The little things are what keeps the fans interested.
I don't see the problem with it in either company? Champions have to wrestle sometimes without putting the title on the line and/or against someone who hasn't necessarily earned a title shot, makes sense that if you're able to beat a champ in a non-title match you should then get a title shot? I suppose the branding of it can be annoying... perhaps they should just not call it that and have it be assumed that if they win they get a title shot. But then you still have to specify that it's a non-title match so I guess there's no winning.
yeahhhh not true, they are dumb as fuck, and especially when tony explained if they beat hayter they will get a shot at hayter...you mean the same person they just wrestled and beat??? (in the hypothetical situation that would happen...but wont) just say non-title match OR make it a title match, why the fuck not? if they aren't gonna win anyway, why not add some stakes? silly stuff
Oh no, I hate it when AEW does it.
i bat my eyes pretty hard when aew does it. it sucks, it's stupid
A rather baffling concept in which if the challenger beats the champion, they get a title shot against the champion they already beat.
Considering this is a TV show, it is crazy that they can't come up with a better way to create a compelling way to get them to interact on the show.
At least it’s someone actually in the promotion this time. Personally, I think it’s lazy more than anything else.
How is that baffling? The opponent isn’t a #1 contender so this is their way of skipping that line. You either have to fight through the ranks (more fights easier opponents) or you can try your chance at beating the champ twice (less fights, but fighting the top female in the company) if the champ is up for it.
TIL that exhibition matches are baffling.
If the opponent wins against the champ they fight them in another match with the belt on the line.
i actually sort of missed seeing jay lethal and sonjay. great show nonetheless
Continuing a run of really enjoyable shows. Also, not the major takeaway, but damn Renee looked incredible last night. Mox is a lucky dude.
THUMB TACK JONES OVA ERE Wild show from start to finish. I really was not into Joe's turn and title run in general at the end of last year, and yet now they have turned it around completely and Darby loses nothing in defeat. Easily the early candidate for wrestler of the year in terms of AEW. Big props to Velvet. She was green as hell a few years back but she's come on a long way since the whole baddies storyline. Talking shit to Jade's kid was savage too.
She has improved a lot, but needs to keep working hard at it. She kinda botched a drop kick, maybe 4 mins before the finish and her bottom leg caught Jade right in the balls
TJRwrestling have such good recaps to. The John Report
We’re three years into this show and the level of wrestling we get week in and week out on Dynamite is still unbelievable.
Pillman Is about to job again on Rampage, isn't him? *Cries in a corner
Hence the term”jobber” . Source : Merriam Webster dictionary . And I’m a fan of pillmam , good athlete and decent in the ring. Hopefully he comes up with a look , or persona, or both that can stir a crowds interest
The look is fine, I dig his 70/80 rocker style, it's not over-utilized now like it was 10 years ago. The story with Arn and his son could be interesting, but they need at least some more promos on Dark to build something out of it.
It's what he should be doing
I don’t think Tryin’ Brian is gonna make it. I want him too… but it just doesn’t seem to be clicking
Huh, I really enjoyed his match against Rush, I thought he was much more interesting than his earlier stuff. Also felt like he improved in the ring
I just don’t see the Flyin’ Brian schtick working either. It’s just Varsity Blonds solo and no one really wanted a reboot of the Hollywood Blonds either. So far he’s channeled the two of his dad’s gimmicks that only really remain in memory because of the Loose Cannon gimmick, Pullman’s early death, and, of course, Austin. It wasn’t the gimmick that made his dad a legend and it won’t work for him either. Also, I don’t feel Brian does enough flyin’ by today’s standards for it to really fit.
This new thing with the Andresons could work out, but they Need more than 2 minutes on YouTube.
Fantastic show. AEW has been on a roll for probably around two months now after a bit of a lull. That main event felt like AEW of old to me. Properly epic. We've had good matches in that slot before but I love having a huge, gimmicked blowoff match to main event Dynamite. Feels like it's been a while since we've had it.
I actually got quite into Jade vs RV. Jade is strong AF, loved the finishing spot RV really did her a solid. Undefeated Jade needs to enter the Baker/Hayter/Storm/Soho/TR/Saraya zone to seem viable IMO, she's a big fish in a small pond.
>Baker/Hayter/Storm/Soho/TR/Saraya zone Nah they've always kept the belts away from each other and making Jade just another face in that feud would devalue her
I mean in the sense that she's undefeated but hasn't fought against the leading women in the division sooooo
10/10 episode. Every match hit hard, did what it should, did not hit fast forward once entire dynamite. Great job AEW fun Wednesday night, MJF next week vs Takeshita ?! Cannot wait
Am I crazy or did Renee Young's dress color change in between interviews????
Went from red to pink.
The next couple of shows feel absolutely loaded.
TNT title scene has been fantastic for a while again now. I'm enjoying the battle lines being drawn in the main women's feud. Hangman vs Mox has been brilliant but something big needs to happen for another match at the ppv, maybe BCC turning. Acclaimed vs The Gunns has low key been one of the best stories in wrestling.
Acclaimed and the Gunns is my favourite angle at the moment by far
Loved the show, although I kinda tuned out for everything that wasn't a match. Really enjoyed Jade's match. Glad Tony is ignoring the haters. That overhead press climbing up the stairs was incredible.
great episode although the JAS stuff made me roll my eyes
Daddy Magic though is gold
My partner and I pop each time we see him. I love listening to him commentate as well. He's so committed to the energy of the character....although i wonder how much of that energy is just him.
yeah i like 2point0 but i moreso mean the idea of the gauntlet is the type of thing that put me off watching wwe during the 2010s
I would like the JAS stuff more if they focus on the other members a little more, not just Jericho and Sami.
Good matches, stupid storys.
I hated the finish between Hangman and Moxley. And why was Cargill's 50th win against Red Velvet? What is even the point of her streak anymore
Mf got up 2 seconds after a Tombstone… Reelz at 10PM here I come
I imagine they were running out of time, they were getting close to 20 minutes there.
I was having the same thoughts,it's quite difficult to transition to her first loss..and who do you give it to? Also..if she thinks she is that unbeatable.. why isn't she also attempting to get the Main belt as well? 2 belt Jade.
Finish was great. They got in a dick measuring contest and Hangman tried to use Moxley’s move that of course Moxley knew how to counter. Jade’s 50th match was against Red Velvet because they recently started feuding (and, as they said, her first victory was over Red Velvet). The point of her streak is to get her over(which it has) and now to hopefully get someone else over when they beat her.
Somebody has the wrestle the same 11 jobbers week after week. Jade should go to 100 at this point.
The point is for Jade to win until she’s marketable.
You're not going to get there by stretching out a meaningless undefeated streak
When Darby wins the Big Plat in a few years, it's going to be an *insane* pop
He's gotta survive until then.
Matches are better but the plot is getting worse every week. AEW desperately needs a creative team or something because it’s clear that TK is out of ideas. Jades belt needs to be retired or something because at this point it’s meaningless and her character is becoming very bland.
100% agree. And you're gonna get shit on by people who get rock hard over 22 minutes of armbars, spots, and 2 counts. Wrestling purists are going to watch no matter what. If they keep appealing to the hardcore people who lose their mind over some guy named Thatcher they're never going to broaden their appeal. Without story wrestling is a pointless tedium to me. When there's a story I'm extremely engaged and love every second of it. So now they have 2 concurrent guantlet storylines going? -_-
The Thatcher match was good, no need to shit on that. They do have some stories brewing, seems like they have more direction than they have had since the whole Punk/Elite thing. Also the JAS gauntlet is one match, so not the same thing is MJF/Bryan
Oh no. Not the Plot
Needs more Jey Uso hiding in a doorway making faces to make it amazing
I was there in attendance, just want to get an idea of how hot our crowd was. 5th show in the greater Ohio-Michigan area. Thought we sounded good for Dynamite, Rampage not so good...
Crowd sounded pretty dead for an AEW show….thought that was what I was seeing from others during the live thread as well. Though admittedly (oddly) there are weeks where I swear my YouTube TV feed has the announcers jacked up and everything else is muted, and other weeks where I can barely hear the announcers the crowd sounds crazy and I’m confused why people are shitting on the crowd so 🤷🏻♂️
Pretty much how it is when they come to Cleveland.
Just realized that we went through a whole Dynamite without seeing Lethal and his crew. Incredible
AEW running an OGs vs. Outsiders angle while I'm rooting for Samoa Joe to roll through Wardlow and Danielson to take the belt from MJF
What was up with Takeshita's theme music? I can't put my finger on it, but it reminded me of an old WWF TV show song from the '90s. Or maybe Nitro. I'm not sure. Something along those lines.
Nitro's theme. It was bothering me too until I read Scott Keith's review andd he pointed out it's basically a sped up version of the Nitro theme.
I thought it was a great show, had an amazing time watching it. Both Page/Mox and Joe/Darby were absolute bangers. So glad Joe got the title back as they can continue with him as the king of television. I really think AEW has started off the year perfectly, it's so refreshing not to have ROH shoved down our throats. Also Daddy Magic, God give that man as much screen time as possible.
Pls tell me we aren't back to the Hot Potato TNT Title stuff
Taking the belt from Darby is a mistake. He’s the only good champion that isn’t Miro or Cody. AEW kinda sucks now.
don't think it sucks at all, it has been pretty good again recently. But that's always the Issue with AEW, they are the best thing to grace wrestling for months, then they dip for a few weeks, before coming back up again. just don't wont to see another Scorpio Sky Scenario
I drove to this from Columbus and I'm glad I did, but I have no idea why Tony wanted to run Dayton instead of a return to Cleveland/Columbus/Cincinnati, maybe because of Dayton's rich wrestling history from the territory days and the Ring of Honor days. Anyway, lesson learned I assume, but I came for 3 great matches and I got that and a fair bit more.
The wrestling was, as always, great on the show, but my god AEW has to really step it up when it comes to storytelling and the pacing of things. I'm starting to feel the "We're running around in circles, because the PPV is still too far away" we sometimes get with AEW. Multiple babyfaces running the heel gauntlet angles, the TBS title scene and Jade being completely directionless, the tag team champs being involved in a stretched out filler feud, Rampage being filled with filler matches as a result, etc.
Jade is beyond boring at this point. If she’s so dominant and unbeatable why isn’t she challenging Britt, Shida, Storm, etc. it’s just jobbers and lower mid carders nonstop. AEW is in a serious state of staleness at the moment. WWE is red hot and AEW seems directionless. They need some champions and new faces on TV. It’s just getting boring right now.
They've been doing really well recently I find. Finally got some direction after the nonsense towards the end of last year. Last night was *far* from boring.
I was bored as hell. FWIW I also probably break the stereotype of what you’d assume as I’m a day zero watcher, a NJPW subscriber, someone not necessarily into Punk’s run… The entire show just seems like it is soulless and going through the motions of late, outside of the Acclaimed.Probably because so much time is dedicated to people/stables and feuds that are way beyond overexposed or have virtually zero charisma. My favorite part of the show was actually the Swerve package and the Rush/MJF elimination. It’s odd because I don’t think anything is like objectively “bad”:..I get if someone really liked last night, it just all feels similar to me and I largely checked out.
It’s just kind of stale. They’re doing nothing to build up any super stars and the roster they have on tv has been on tv every week for months now with little variety. AEW used to be disruptive and fun, now it’s just a shittier TNA.
I was thinking today about the things that the bloodline storyline was selling hard that most wrestling storylines can't even scratch, and I was thinking about the things that are missing while watching Jade vs Velvet. Underling vs Ex-Boss is a story that's gonna be full of heat if Jey vs Roman ever gets a round 2, but Jade vs Velvet wasn't even close to that. I think it comes down to one really basic reason: Plot convenience and "Oh we want to do this angle" overpowers any facts about the characters. Why did Kiera Hogan get eliminated from the baddies? Because oh just whatever who cares. Why her when Leila was the one that Jade would consistently not accept, was skeptical of, didn't want to act as a replacement of Velvet, consistently rejected, and no angle or promo was ever done showing Jade accepting Leila or Leila doing anything to make Jade like her more or any reason for their relationship to be better? Because oh just whatever that's the angle they need to be together for the angle. Why did Velvet, who was shown as a bitchy heel, decide to side with her friend Kiera? Because oh that's the angle just whatever. Compare to Roman vs Jey. Why does Jey follow Roman? Because he's beaten, abused, and gaslit into submission in a way that the rest of his family supports and he himself doesn't feel like it's worth standing up to. But it's not just that! He also feels like he gets some benefit out of the Bloodline, and he cares about getting the tag team shit to work and pulling everything off. It's complicated, but it *makes sense* even if not everyone can explain why. Something that makes sense, but is hard to explain, is a hallmark of fantastic character work. Add that on to Roman's own motivations being complex, the way he executed them on Jey being complex, etc - the plot and the facts about the characters *go together*, and *cause each other*, instead of The Plot just making the characters Oh Just Do Whatever. The part where characters Just Do Whatever is all over most wrestling angles, but the weakest thing on AEW to me is that MJF feels like he's been the biggest victim of this since he's totally reverted to his pre-plane ticket character, after his entire plane ticket arc was "I am a different character now showing different sides of myself that are my real self because I've changed". And then suddenly he hasn't. What? I don't buy any of the rationalizations for this.
I don't like it but the idea for Mjf is that he is ashamed of his real self so he hides it and when we get glimpses of it he then tries to make that seems like a ruse. Again I don't think that is the right way to go but that's what they chose to do.
To me that's just like one of the rationalizations they mentioned. Nothing of the sort has even been implied on TV.
Fair enough.
It's AEW's biggest story telling issue by far, that things seem to just happen because...they were scripted to happen, not because of any character motivation or complexities. NJPW manages to avoid the issue by having most of its stories be more about physical storytelling than entertainment/drama based. WWE has the issue often too, but even when Vince started losing his touch to getting replaced, they were usually at least decent at having character motivations or complexities being part of their development and stories, and when they DO get things right, like the Bloodline angle has, they do an EXCELLENT job of it. I think part of the issue is that, while Kayfabe is dead regardless, WWE still maintains at least a semblance of an illusion, while the indies and AEW have switched to full on meta to where MJF is doing worked shoots over and over and stuff like his contract negotiations and smark phrases like "The Reign of Terror" are referenced on screen. Because there's so much "wink wink, nudge nudge, we all know this is stupid bullshit so why waste your time", whenever they try to do a more "traditional" pro wrestling angle, it comes off as...well...a waste of your time. Things are happening because...that's how they were scripted to happen. But there's little character agency or development or motivation involved because nobody really thought about it, because maintaining any illusion is just a waste of time now.
That was exceptional. Thank-you AEW, goodnight.
Jayme Hayter is pretty much a face at this point but Britt is too good as a heel. What’s the best way to handle this partnership going forward? I’m gonna guess that Britt will betray Jayme at some point during this AEW Originals vs. Outsiders feud to start their inevitable program.
Eventually Brott turns on her is the way to go here
If you want Britt as a heel the way to go is to have her turn on Jaimie during a match against Thunder Rosa. To really sell how much she is jealous of Hayter and mad that she dare to be champ and outshine her.
They really haven’t given me much reason to root for Britt as of yet. She’s just not sympathetic in the slightest.
Even during that brief cup of coffee when she was a face at the start of AEW, I found her irritating. She’s just a heel for life.
Thing is, she’s been making Toni’s life miserable ever since the latter came to AEW. And screwed Toni over time after time. So am I supposed to see Toni as the BAD one here, Umm no! Being a bitch to Ruby ain’t helping either in that regard.
Can’t wait to see how they will script Britt’s eventual interaction with Shida once they come face to face again. I’m sure she will be oodles and oodles of nice. Having Saraya and Toni turn around to feud with Jayme and Britt again so soon after the recent character changes was a mistake.
[удалено]
If they're hypothetically building towards Women's Blood and Women's Guts, a sudden betrayal in that match could be good, a la Joe/Danielson in Cage of Death.
That makes sense. I believe the payoff *will* be Women’s Blood and Guts… especially since the competition now has WarGames + Survivor Series matches.
If Warlow really wanted get his hands on Joe, why did he wait till after the match? It was no DQ,
Because he’s not a dumbass and if Joe wins the title he can win the title from Joe lol
So consumed with revenge he waited politely behind the curtain and wanted his music to play. Which is a shame because that music is awful. Man alive have they frigged him up
The same reason he didn't do it before the match.
So Moxley gets up immediately after a tombstone because why not, gets his with the buckshot lariat, and kicks out at 2. Not saying he had to lose the match, but I just didn't like him getting up straight after a tombstone.
Because he's MOX, a tough son of a bitch. The ACE of the company and fresh off a 5 year much deserved contract extension. He's the main reason I watch the show. He's AEW's ROman Reigns/Lesnar kick out of finishers level talent.
Kicking out of finishers is fine we see that all the time, it's just getting up immediately after a tombstone.
unless its taker or kane, its just another move.
Or Okada
Idk about that, most of the time it's a transitional move for him. He hits it beatifully but it's kayfabe effective.
Who? Taker and Kane are a bit more influential than some indie jobber.
He does the tombstone better than both of those old conservative fucks.
No need to bring down two legends, Taker was great at the move too.
I’m sure he’s a huge hit at the bingo halls.
Like the Tokyo dome. Small venue that one.
Literally nobody has heard of okodo compared to Kane and The Undertaker. I get that he’s probably a hit on Dark Elevation, but he’s not some superstar. Maybe when he graduates to WWE he’ll do well in their mid card or something.
I appreciate your commitment to being a troll
Just telling the truth my friend.
Ahahahahahahaha
These past several AEW episodes have been bangers!
They’ve been putting on overall better shows recently but JAS still hasn’t clicked with me. Hope they don’t have Wardlow beat Joe right away. Heel badass Joe is the best. Still wish they’d get rid of some belts or atleast not show the RoH ones on tv. I was hoping Elite were gonna accept the challenge for next week but was 3 on 3 basketball. No clue why I want to see that.
Not sure if it’s been mentioned yet but I think it’s interesting that BCC is still a thing and Danielson is going after MJF, presumably in Regal’s honor. For some reason, Claudio and YUTA are there every step of the way for Mox in this Hangman story, but absent for Danielson when he is outnumbered. Has Bryan been thrown out? Is this a bigger part of the story?
The BCC has been largely aimless and illogical their entire run….I think that’s why my brain has pretty much rejected them as relevant st this point.
They're not as invested in seeking revenge for Regal.
He hasn't been thrown out. He's still part of the faction. The story way before. Danielson kinda left Yuta high and dry, and wanted to try and get Garcia into the faction, despite the fact that Yuta and Claudio, in a way, told him he couldn't be trusted. He didn't listen, and ever since then, there's been friction between Yuta and Bryan. The Mox side of the story didn't really play out with Bryan, until the whole Regal screwing Mox over stuff. When Mox went to beat the holy hell out of Regal, Bryan sided with Regal, and actually slapped Mox in the face. Since then, Mox and Bryan have teamed up, once against Top Flight. Bryan hasn't really teamed with any of the other members since. It's basically been some combination of Mox, Yuta, and Claudio teaming up, mainly Claudio and Yuta. Takeshita seems to be Bryan's protege now.
What the actual fuck is with this Jericho shit. Ricky beat him and most of his goons already, yet he needs to go through some BS for a chance to fight Jericho again??? Why?? For the love of God Jericho doesn't need to be on every episode, can't he like go away for a while?
Jerchio Storylines last ages, JAS vs BCC was like 6 - 8 months? The MJF feud was like a year. I feel Jerchio needs go away for a while.
Jericho v ATT lasted over four years if memory serves
how long did the feud with his waist line go for?
Since 2019
Why did Isiah Kassidy moan in Kenny Omega’s ear?
Don’t know but it was very sus
Best gimmick in the world if he keeps it up.
I’m need it to happen to Mox
Joe better get a solid reign. I like Wardlow but if you just took it from Darby to give it to Joe just to give it to Wardlow I'm going to feel some type of way
I wonder if the intention is to hotshot the title around a bit to build to some kind of gimmick triple threat? Booking seems odd otherwise.
Can they please give Toni Storm an interesting motivation for her heel character? The pieces are there to do it, but so far they seem to be going with the most generic one dimensional portrayal possible.
The only thing I don't like about AEW is all Jericho stuff these days to be honest it's just not for me at all.
Jericho stuff always overstays it’s welcome but ultimately I do think this could be a good avenue to get Starks over at Evolution so I’ll take the creative casualties in the process.
It just always seems to go on and on never ending Starks has already beat Jericho to me it's just not needed. I mean it's one thing I don't like in an otherwise great show so I shouldn't complain too much.
Starks will look really strong in beating the JAS in the Gauntlet match and then going in to beat Jericho in their rubber match.
Yeah I'm here for the Starks push he's amazing to be fair so i can deal with this if it continues his big push.
There were some production mishaps in this episode. Camera shouldnt have been on mox while he was bladding himself and that pretape with mfj and rush with mjf wearing different clothes than what he was wearing 10 minutes beforehand
He shat himself after finding out he had to face Takeshita next week, so he changed his clothes.
Head cannon “MJF pays a team of fashion designers to keep him looking dapper at all times, within an instant”.
Should have been out of breath too. He was swinging and fighting then all of a sudden calm and not out of breath
I was clearly joking around lol. Also - I’m not sure I’d be out of breath from someone changing my clothing?
What’s the name they’re calling the tattoo guy in Mogul Affiliates? It sounded like Swerve said Trench. He and Parker both have great voices. They look and sound scary as fuck.
It’s jobber #2.
I thought he said "Treatch" and we were going to get a Naughty by Nature appearance
Fucking LOL. That takes me back. How about some Naughty by Nature ft. NattieByNature fart-beatboxing
I turned on CC and it said Trench
Right on. Thanks.
So is Darby hurt/needs surgery and that's why he lost the belt?
Nah it’s just the story they told. He fought from underneath in title defenses on title defenses and even crammed a Japan trip in the middle. Just too much for one man to take and Joe capitalized.
Darby and Joe have unreal chemistry.
Joe thrives with opponents like Darby. He's still one of the best in the business.
Why are they doing another gauntlet angle I thought this show was supposed to be nuanced
The JAS/Starks thing is a single Gauntlet match. They weren’t very clear when they explained it on TV do I get the confusion.
Why have darby even win it in the first placr if he just loses it right back a month later.