TJRWrestling AEW WrestleDream 2023 Preview
It’s AEW WrestleDream with Christian Cage-Darby Allin for the TNT Title, Bryan Danielson faces Zack Sabre Jr. in a dream match and more.
John: This is the third AEW PPV in about six weeks. It’s a lot of content. They are probably overdoing it, but that’s the world of pro wrestling these days. Like most AEW PPVs, I expect there to be several great matches. I also wonder why they can’t tell better stories for some of the matches. My parts of the preview will be brief. I’ve been so busy of late with another preview/review this weekend and it just never ends. We’ll do our best to get through it.
If you need info on how to order AEW WrestleDream on PPV, check out AEW’s website for info on how to watch it in your country. There are different options depending on where you live.
Joining me for the preview are Alex Podgorski, Matthew Fowler, Kristian Thompson and Gino Lewis.
Alex: Aside the Danielson/Sabre match, this show seems like one big bait-and-switch. Although Tony Khan promoted this as a tribute to the late Antonio Inoki, I don’t see much on this show that aligns with Inoki’s vision of wrestling. There’s more of AEW’s usual stuff than anything specifically NJPW related, save one or two matches. That said, this should be an interesting show if nothing else, especially since it had to be reshuffled due to recent injuries.
Kristian: This is the first AEW PPV I have been interested in since Forbidden Door. It is still not a complete card, but it has more ‘must-see’ matches than All In and All Out. It is another mainstream wrestling company PPV where the main championship is not being defended. At least we get a break from the goofball tag team of Adam Cole and MJF for one show (for the record I do not wish injuries on anyone, the storyline is just so lame!). The main event will probably get 18 stars from Dave Meltzer and will be awesome. I am so glad that Danielson is back to singles matches and not being held back by his faction.
Gino: This is the second straight AEW Pay Per View I won’t be able to watch live. Unlike All Out, I don’t think I’ll be able to see it this time. I’m still looking forward to the outcomes and seeing if anything comes out of the show as far as storylines or debuts. There seems to be too much smoke around an Adam Copeland (Edge) debut for it not to happen. Rumblings of Tony Khan buying New Japan are out there as well. Dynamite ended with a potentially huge angle. It could be a newsworthy show. I’m excited for it even if I won’t be able to watch it.
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PLEASE NOTE: We previewed ten matches that were locked in after Dynamite. Other matches were added after that. These are the added matches on the Zero Hour Pre-Show.
* AEW World Trios Championship Match: The Acclaimed and Daddy Ass (c) vs. Shane Haste, Mikey Nicholls and Bad Dude Tito
* Claudio Castagnoli vs. Josh Barnett
* Luchasaurus vs. Nick Wayne
* Satoshi Kojima, Keith Lee, Athena & Billie Starkz vs. Shane Taylor, Lee Moriarty, Mercedes Martinez & Diamante
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Wheeler Yuta vs. Ricky Starks
Alex: Here are two guys who have been around in AEW for a long time yet still haven’t seen much progress. Both are stuck in the midcard and this match seems like more of an excuse to throw them onto the card than to further any sort of storyline. Either way, this’ll probably be a competitive opener though I doubt anything monumental will occur.
Winner: Ricky Starks
Matthew: These are two young, talented wrestlers who both could be top stars for the company in the next few years. The issue is there is not a lot of reason to why these guys are wrestling each other right now, and like a lot of AEW matches feels thrown together. Nevertheless, these two should have a solid match, with Starks picking up the win to continue the momentum he has had since facing Danielson.
Winner: Ricky Starks
Kristian: Ricky Starks has been fantastic lately and absolutely showing why he should continue to be pushed. I think Yuta is under-rated and probably underused. Starks is hot now and should get the win.
Winner: Ricky Starks
Gino: I like the match. Their segment on Dynamite to set it up was good. I would like AEW to strap a rocket to Starks rather than always starting and stopping his push. This match feels like a stop part of his push. It should be a good match that Ricky should win.
Winner – Ricky Starks
John: Ricky Starks has lost twice to Bryan Danielson recently, so he needs a win. That’s why Wheeler Yuta is there. A competitive match that Starks will win.
Winner: Ricky Starks
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The Young Bucks – Matt & Nick Jackson vs. The Gunns – Austin & Colten Gunn vs. Lucha Bros – Rey Fenix & Penta vs. Orange Cassidy & Hook
(Winners Receive AEW Tag Team Title Match)
Alex: This one will take a bit of guesswork since there’s potential for any team to win here. The Bucks winning would be an obvious choice since their feud with FTR is money for the company’s diehard audience. The same can be said for the Lucha Bros since they’re just like the Young Bucks in all but name and background and people just love watching these acrobats mesh with FTR’s more old school style. Cassidy & Hook is an interesting pick for the simple reason that Cassidy is Khan’s favorite wrestler so you know he’ll always get at least some degree of strong booking. As for the Gunns, they’re still relatively inexperienced but they represent something different from AEW’s usual output. A growth-minded booker would go with the odds team of the bunch to win to give the fans something different. But that doesn’t appear to be AEW’s mindset right now, which leave us with a three-way coin toss.
Winners: Orange Cassidy & Hook
Matthew: One of these tag teams feels thrown together, another team has a member who is a singles champion and another has someone going for a singles title this week. FTR is the best tag team in the world, and deserves better for challengers than this. As for who wins this thrown together mess, I will go with The Gunns to give FTR some fresh people to beat.
Winners: The Gunns
Kristian: The outcome of this match probably hinges on which team fits better against the face duo of FTR. We have seen a few Young Bucks vs FTR matches of late so that probably rules them out. The Gunns don’t do much for anyone so it probably comes down to the fantastic team of the Lucha Bros and Orange Cassidy & Hook. I’m going out on a limb and picking the new team of Hook and Orange. AEW love Orange and after him dropping the International Championship, they will want to sure he remains relevant.
Winners: Orange Cassidy & Hook
Gino: This will be fun. AEW can’t have a PPV without a crazy spotfest that this will surely be. AEW’s tag division isn’t very interesting right now. This match could help that I suppose but it’s not like there is any story headed in. I can make cases for or against any team winning this match. Cassidy and Hook seem most likely. Hook only has one loss and Cassidy is a top guy. Putting them in a title match, possibly at Full Gear makes sense. A title change might too.
Winners – Orange Cassidy and Hook
John: I get the feeling it will be Orange Cassidy & Hook getting the win just because it’s a unique team that will find a way to win. If they go with The Young Bucks to set up another match with FTR then that’s fine too.
Winners: Orange Cassidy & Hook
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AEW TBS Championship: Kris Statlander (c) vs. Julia Hart
Alex: I don’t think AEW likes doing short reigns in general and now that Jade Cargill is gone I predict they will book Statlander to have as long a reign as possible.
Winner and STILL AEW TBS Champion: Kris Statlander
Matthew: AEW spent years using the TBS Championship to build Jade Cargill, just to have her jump to WWE once she lost the title. AEW is now trying to regain some prestige for the title with Statlander, with her getting a win here to do exactly that.
Winner: Kris Statlander
Kristian: Hart has been getting a bit of a push with the House of Black lately and is decent. Her character is pretty cool and I am all for new challengers being given an opportunity. I think there’s a chance that she wins but not yet.
Winner AND STILL TBS Champion: Kris Statlander
Gino: I like the way Julia Hart has been built up for this title shot. I wrote recently that AEW needs to build title contenders better. They did that with Julia Hart. That said, this isn’t a huge rivalry or hot match. Julia definitely has a lot going for her. If she keeps improving at the rate she is, she will be a star very soon. I would really like to see her win here. My wife would too. She won’t like me saying this but this isn’t Hart’s time. Yet.
Winner and still TBS Champion – Kris Statlander
John: Julia Hart is only 21 years old and has impressed a lot of people of late. There is a bit of a story here with cheap attacks by Hart to get heat, but it’s not that riveting. If Statlander lost it wouldn’t bother me at all. I just think Statlander will win and lose to somebody that’s a bigger name.
Winner: Kris Statlander
===
ROH World Tag Team Championships: MJF (c) vs. The Righteous – Vincent & Dutch
Alex: Adam Cole breaking his ankle might end up being the best thing possible for MJF. Had this been a standard tag match it would’ve fallen into the generic ‘competitive tag match’ that happens on almost every AEW and ROH show. But now that MJF is alone, he has the chance to show how good he really is by beating these guys one-on-two. And why shouldn’t he? I have no idea who The Righteous are and odds are neither do most of my colleagues here or the people reading this. Why should AEW’s biggest and most important star be in any peril against two guys that aren’t even champions in their own promotion? MJF should absolutely destroy these guys Roman Reigns style to show that he isn’t to be messed with. After all, most people like dominant babyface heroes, and even though MJF’s only cosplaying as one right now, booking him in dominant fashion here would only help in making people believe that he’s as good as he says he is.
Winner and STILL ROH World Tag Team Champions: MJF
Matthew: Thanks to an unfortunate injury to Adam Cole, the AEW World Champion is now defending tag belts on a PPV that nobody cares about, against two guys that nobody cares about. This is just the best example of how just getting a blank check from your daddy, does not make you a wrestling booker. If this is truly the best that AEW can do for MJF, then I hope he jumps to WWE in 2024 so he can have someone competent booking for him.
Winner: MJF
Kristian: I was a big fan of Vincent during his recent Impact run in the Honor No More faction. He is a great talker and more than handy in the ring. I think the fact that ROH Championships are defended on a lot of different shows, speaks to the fact that they’re not as important as the AEW titles. I’m not sure on the timeline of Cole’s injury but I highly doubt MJF loses here. I don’t know why they couldn’t have had another match with Samoa Joe here for the AEW Championship, with a stipulation.
Winners AND STILL ROH World Tag Team Championships: MJF (and Adam Cole)
Gino: Adam Cole’s injury is such an unfortunate turn of events. It’s not likely but it could be an elaborate rogue. Don’t get me wrong. I know he’s hurt. I just wonder if it’s really 3 breaks, torn ligaments hurt. To me that sounds like a year injury or more. A dude on my hockey team had multiple breaks but no torn ligaments two years ago and hasn’t come back. I don’t like this match at all if they do it as a handicap match. Ironically Cole’s injury really helps my intrigue in this match. Tony Khan and AEW’s creative team will be fools if they don’t have Roderick Strong replace Cole as MJF’s partner. AEW could really make lemonade out of lemons by starting a new frenemy story between MJF and Strong. It should start here. It actually probably started at the end of Dynamite.
Winner’s still/new? ROH Tag Team Champions – MJF and Roderick Strong
John: MJF wrestling this match on his own is certainly a possibility, but I think they’ll do something where they say Adam Cole found MJF a partner. The obvious “surprise” tag team partner for MJF is Roderick Strong. I don’t think it will work out, maybe Jay White costs MJF the win and The Righteous leave as the ROH Tag Team Champions. I can’t say I care that much either way. I guess I can also add I barely know anything about The Righteous. AEW has done a poor job of introducing them. I think it’s disappointing that MJF didn’t defend the AEW World Title at All Out or this show. Plan things better, AEW.
Winners AND NEW ROH Tag Team Champions: The Righteous
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ROH World & NJPW Strong Openweight Championships: Eddie Kingston (c) vs. Katsuyori Shibata
Alex: Don’t expect Shibata to turn the clock back to his 2017 prime. He’s far more physically worn down in 2023 and likely won’t be able to fight at his physical best but he sure will try. But it won’t be enough to beat the champion. Kingston may not be the most physically imposing but he’s got guts and guts is enough. I’m sure he’ll channel some strong style/King’s Road energy to deliver an entertaining match to win in about fifteen minutes. This’ll be fine but I’m not expecting anything earth-shattering here, especially since the Japanese guys that come to AEW tend to be older and more broken down and thus less likely to take on serious risks.
Winner and STILL ROH World Champion and NJPW Strong Openweight Champion: Eddie Kingston
Matthew: I am sure for fans of NJPW, this will be a great match. For the average fan however, no one knows who Shibata is or cares about this match. I am sure both these guys will fight hard, and put on a good match for those hardcore fans who care.
Winner: Eddie Kingston
Kristian: Kingston only won the titles last week on Dynamite so he’s not losing here. As much as I’d like to see him drop the titles. He is probably my least favourite wrestler in AEW, alongside Moxley. I find him slow, offensive and I don’t see the appeal.
Winner and STILL ROH World & NJPW Strong Openweight Champions: Eddie Kingston
Gino: Really cool match. It will be hard-hitting for sure. Like a lot of matches on this card it doesn’t have a strong story. Eddie cut a promo explaining it that made sense but there hasn’t been any interaction on TV or real reason to care about this one other than being a cool match.
Winner and still ROH World & NJPW Strong Openweight Champion – Eddie Kingston
John: This is an easy match to predict because I doubt Kingston is losing his two titles to Shibata, especially since Kingston won the ROH World Title less than two weeks ago. A physical match with Kingston getting the clean win.
Winner: Eddie Kingston
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AEW World Tag Team Championships: FTR (c) – Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler vs. Aussie Open – Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher
Alex: This will be another “workrate” match with lots of moves, reversing, and competitive back-and-forth action. That’s all fine and good, but I don’t see why this match exists beyond just showing that stuff off. There appears to be a marked lack in tension and purpose for this match, other than FTR’s never-ending quest to prove they’re the best tag team around today. There won’t be anything inherently bad or wrong with this match, but I don’t expect it to be shocking or tense in any way.
Winners and STILL AEW World Tag Team Champions: FTR
Matthew: As I said earlier, FTR is the best tag team in the world. Aussie Open are also very talented, but are currently not close to the level of FTR. Nevertheless this match should be excellent, with FTR winning in the end.
Winner: FTR
Kristian: This should be a terrific match if they get 15 minutes plus. Aussie Open are a great team and are slowly getting some recognition in AEW/ROH. I don’t think they will be the team to take the titles from FTR however.
Winners AND STILL AEW World Tag Team Champions: FTR
Gino: This will no doubt be excellent! These teams have had a 5-star match before. Maybe two. I don’t think it was just Uncle Dave that gave them that either. I hate to say it but I really don’t like the story for this one. FTR has gone the overused Open Challenge route. Aussie Open made the challenge after losing big matches recently to MJF & Adam Cole and Chris Jericho & Sammy Guevara who aren’t even regular tag teams. I don’t see Aussie Open winning. It would be pretty cool if they did. It’s like I mentioned earlier. AEW needs to book title contenders better than that. Even though I’m not watching live, I will try to check this match out at some point. It’s not like I don’t like or appreciate the matchup.
Winners and still AEW World Tag Team Champions – FTR
John: It could be the best match in terms of match quality. Aussie Open are really talented while we know FTR are amazing too. It would be a surprise if FTR lost the titles. I think they’ll win.
Winners: FTR
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“Hangman” Adam Page vs. Swerve Strickland
Alex: This feud hasn’t done much for me so I’ll keep this short. Page isn’t that interesting and Strickland delivered a money promo a few weeks ago to set this up. Strickland needs the win more than Page since Page is just spinning his wheels while Strickland can get some upward mobility here. AEW’s main-event scene needs fresh faces who aren’t ex-WWE guys, and what better way to build up MJF’s next challenger than by having him beat a former AEW World Champion?
Winner: Swerve Strickland
Matthew: This match is one of the few on the card that has actually had some sort of story behind it, with one of these guys trying to get to the world title picture while the other is trying to get back. Swerve Strickland is a future world champion, with a win over Page being a great step to getting there. I will go with exactly that happening, with Strickland getting the win after a great match.
Winner: Swerve Strickland
Kristian: The promo work for this match has been really strong, which is a little surprising because that’s not always Page’s strong suit. It feels like forever since Strickland has been given a singles feud (did he even end up having a match with Keith Lee? And where is he?!). I think this could be the dark horse for match of the night. Strickland probably needs the win more, but in AEW that doesn’t always mean he is going to win. I’ll stick with him for now.
Winner: Swerve Strickland
Gino: This was the first storyline and match announced for WrestleDream. I like the story a lot so far. It still seems fairly early. It’s only been going about three weeks. TK and AEW creative are trying to treat it as a main event level match. That was evident by the contract signing ending Dynamite. It has a chance to produce at a main event level for sure. I’m glad to see Hangman Page back in a meaningful storyline and hope these guys tear the house down in Swerve’s home state. I think it makes a lot more sense for Swerve to win here and keep the story going.
Winner – Swerve Strickland
John: It has been built well and probably better than anything else on the show. I feel like it’s the start of the rivalry rather than the finish, so I’ll go with Swerve for the win. They’ll do a rematch at Full Gear in November with Hangman winning that one.
Winner: Swerve Strickland
===
Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho & Kota Ibushi vs. Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
Alex: The only sensible thing to book here is for Takeshita to pull ahead even further. After decimating Omega in Omega’s last singles match most people are expecting Omega to win for his side here to send a message to Takeshita. But why book the obvious and the unnecessary, especially when Omega also has unfinished business with Will Ospreay as well? I can see tons of hard-to-follow nonsense happening here with few rules being enforced and lots of things happening all at once, like a Michael Bay movie with lots of camera cuts and generic ‘stuff’ happening without rhyme or reason. Some people like that sort of stuff, but I don’t expect anything truly exceptional here.
Winners: Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
Matthew: Oh goodie, another pointless six-man car crash. Tony Khan could have had several great singles matches out of this one match, to strengthen this weak PPV. Instead, we get this thrown together, pointless match. I am sure blind referee Rick Knox will be the referee for this one, so he can ignore any tag rules and maybe just stop randomly counting a pinfall. I honestly could not care less who wins this match, but will go with Takeshita, Guevara and Ospreay.
Winners: Takeshita, Guevara and Ospreay
Kristian: Just when I thought Kenny Omega was back on the path to singles glory he gets shoved in another 6-man tag match. However, this has a bit of a different spin with the freshly face-turned Chris Jericho teaming up with him. Jericho turning face is the right call after his whole career in AEW has been spent as a heel. He gets cheered no matter what but it freshens him up. Everyone in this match is a great worker so the match should be outstanding. I think Guevara might get the pin over Jericho after losing to him at Grand Slam in a singles match.
Winners: Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
Gino: This is going to be awesome. No doubt about it. I really like the storyline. If you’re making a first time ever PPV this is the kind of bitter rivalry you want featured on the show. Don Callis is probably the greatest villain AEW has ever had. His domination of Omega and Jericho has been built up well with his family now firmly behind him. I would love to see Callis get his comeuppance here. It could happen but I think it’s too soon. This should be another win to fuel the nuclear heat Callis is getting until AEW figures out a way to pay it off. It makes for an unpredictable exciting outcome. This one I will definitely find a way to see someday.
Winners – Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
John: It should be fun seeing Ospreay and Jericho. I know they teamed on AEW Collision too, but this is a bigger stage. The Guevara/Jericho story should be a focal point in this match. A cheap win for the heels makes sense. Sammy pinning Jericho for the finish and then they do that at Full Gear as a singles match too.
Winners: Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
===
Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Alex: Honestly this is the only match that I really care about. I’ve wanted to see this match for a long time and I think there’s potential for greatness here as both men know how to make the most mundane and most overly-technical of actions into something exciting. With all the high-flying, chaos, and surrealism that usually defines AEW’s wrestling product, this will be a much-needed breath of fresh air.
But let’s not kid ourselves. While ZSJ is younger and healthier, he’s not beating Bryan in Bryan’s home state, even though he should. The only way that happens is if Bryan ends up so shocked at his own loss in front of his home crowd that he decides to kick off a retirement tour right then and there knowing that he doesn’t have it in him anymore. But if that doesn’t happen, then Bryan takes this one to send the crowd home happy.
Winner: Bryan Danielson
Matthew: I respect both of these guys greatly, and this will unquestionably be a technical masterpiece. My issue with it, is my issue with most things with AEW. Instead of actually creating a reason for these two guys to wrestle, Tony Khan just labels it a “dream match” and says good enough. I have no doubt this match will earn all sorts of stars, but just imagine how epic it could be if there was actually a reason for these two guys to wrestle. As for who wins, I will go with Danielson as he is the actual AEW wrestler.
Winner: Bryan Danielson
Kristian: I’m assuming this will be the main event and Danielson wrestling in front of his home crowd should receive a thunderous ovation. There’s every chance that this could be a match of the year contender. Bryan’s recent matches (not including the Okada match- I found that disappointing) have been stellar so I expect that to continue. I have not seen a great deal of Sabre Jr. this year but have read enough to know that he’s a brilliant talent and many are calling this a dream match. Hopefully they go over 20 minutes and I predict Bryan gets the submission win.
Winner: Bryan Danielson
Gino: I see why this is being billed as a dream match. It will most likely main event the show. If it’s not the greatest technical wrestling match of all time it will be disappointing. These guys are that good. Danielson is one of my favorites. Sabre, while excellent isn’t as big of a star to me as others from New Japan like Kenny Omega, Okada, Cody Rhodes or Will Ospreay. Even Jay White. Until recently I’ve watched a lot of New Japan. I think it’s worth pointing out this match might not be as big of a dream match as TK thinks it is. However, booking this match in Bryan Danielson’s make it a worthy main event that the crowd will love. I’m sure Danielson would prefer to put Sabre over but Bryan losing to close the show seems unlikely.
Winner – Bryan Danielson
John: Bryan Danielson winning is the logical move here. Sabre’s style isn’t that exciting to watch, but he’s obviously very good at what he does. They’ll get 20+ minutes to have a technical wrestling masterpiece and the fanbase that loves that sort of thing will be gushing about it.
Winner: Bryan Danielson
===
TNT Championship 2/3 Falls: Christian Cage (c) vs. Darby Allin
Alex: With Darby Allin still committed to climbing Mount Everest next year and needing to embark on serious training to prepare for that, I don’t see him accepting the commitment of another championship run anytime soon. He needs to focus his mind elsewhere, especially since he’s going into that challenge not caring if he lives or dies. Plus, Christian Cage has been fun to watch as champion and there’s plenty to do with him now that his brother/best friend/tag partner Adam “new wrestling name here” Copeland will be freed up. I can see Allin willing the first fall and then Christian evening the score, only for Edge-based shenanigans to win the match for Christian. Sometimes this stuff just writes itself.
Winner and STILL TNT Champion: Christian Cage
Matthew: Cage just captured the title last week on AEW Collision, with him now having another match with Allin here. It would be silly for AEW to change the TNT title again so soon, but they love hot potatoing this belt. Therefore, I will go with Allin winning the title here, so AEW can have yet another title change
Winner: Darby Allin
Kristian: I have enjoyed the combinations of matches between Cage, Luchasaurus, Allin and Sting over the last couple of months. Cage has been so great as the faux TNT Champion and then won it in classic heel fashion on a recent Collision show. It was predictable but clever booking. This should be another top match on the card. Allin is slowly winning me over but Cage has just been crowned champion so he should win. There’s some speculation about Edge debuting but I’m not sure about that.
Winner and STILL TNT Champion: Christian Cage
Gino: If you like old school heel work like me, how could you not love Christian’s run recently? He’s operating at a very high level. He’s actually elevated Darby Allin who has always been booked well in AEW. It has been an excellent feud. This seems like where Nick Wayne will turn on Darby Allin and join Christian. Darby said he’s asking Nick Wayne not to come to the ring with him. Christian has been talking crap to Nick about his mom for weeks. In the wrestling world we know that means a heel turn is coming. Even more interesting is the possible Edge debut. If it’s going to happen this would seem like the place.
Winner and still TBS Champion – Christian Cage. Nick Wayne heel turn and Adam Copeland debut here as well.
John: Since Christian Cage just won the title, it makes sense for him to win. However, Darby is in his hometown of Seattle and I think he’s going to win the title again. As for Edge aka Adam Copeland appearing, it seems like a strong possibility so maybe he’ll arrive after the match.
Winner AND NEW TNT Champion: Darby Allin
===
BONUS TOPICS!
The Match I’m Looking Forward To The Most
Alex: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Matthew: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Kristian: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Gino: Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho & Kota Ibushi vs. Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
John: Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho & Kota Ibushi vs. Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
===
The Match I Care About The Least
Alex: Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart.
Matthew: Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart.
Kristian: Eddie Kingston vs. Katsuyori Shibata.
Gino: Wheeler Yuta vs. Ricky Starks.
John: Ricky Starks vs. Wheeler Yuta.
===
Longest Match
Alex: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (30 minutes)
Matthew: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
Kristian: Bryan Danielson vs Zack Sabre Jr.
Gino: Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho & Kota Ibushi vs. Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara & Will Ospreay
John: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
===
Shortest Match
Alex: Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart (~6 minutes)
Matthew: Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart
Kristian: MJF vs The Righteous
Gino: Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart
John: Kris Statlander vs. Julia Hart
===
Excitement Level on a Scale of 1-10 (1 being low, 10 being high)
Alex: 6. This is a one-match show for me. I only care about the Danielson/ZSJ match since I’ve seen a lot of their matches over the years and enjoy what they both bring to the table. Everything else, though, seems underwhelming and in some ways average without much hype or story behind it, so it’s only a 6 from me.
Matthew: 3. Tony Khan couldn’t book a PPV when he had four months to do it, so it is no surprise that this is what we get when he has one. Hopefully AEW brings in someone to help with booking, or there is going to be a lot of pointless PPV’s in the future.
Kristian: 7.5 – I think it will be a terrific show and I am excited for over half of the bouts. The rating would be higher had the AEW Championship been on the line. Kudos to Tony Khan for honouring a wrestling legend with this show. He cops a lot of criticism online but for this show you can only respect him.
Gino: 6.5. It’s a hard one for me to rate because I’m not going to watch it. I want to be clear. I’m not choosing not to watch. Just have too much going on. I think the only way I would watch it is if John rates it a 9 or higher. I’d probably order the replay Monday in that case. AEW will eventually have some sort of streaming service. There are matches on this show I will definitely watch someday. I’m sure there will be few things on the show I will spend a lot of time reading about so I think a 6.5 rating is justified even if I miss it.
John: It’s a 7.5 for me. The match quality always delivers on AEW PPVs and I don’t think this one will be any different. I would have liked to see some more important titles on the card and there are some big names missing too. Generally speaking, I like the card for the most part.
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In Closing
John: I’ll be back with a review of AEW WrestleDream on TJRWrestling.net most likely on Monday morning.
You can also tweet me @johnreport. If you want to send an email, send it to me at mrjohncanton@gmail.com as well. Thanks for reading.