Reviews

The John Report: AEW Fight for the Fallen 07/13/19 Review

TJR Wrestling

Welcome to the TJRWrestling review of the third All Elite Wrestling show called Fight for the Fallen. Just like Fyter Fest two weeks ago, this was not a pay-per-view show and some key guys on the roster were missing, but I still want to cover AEW regularly. The next major AEW show is All Out on August 31, so they are building to that event as well. I watched this on Bleacher Report Live free for those of us in the United States and Canada.

I’m not going to review the Buy In Pre-Show. The main show is nearly four hours and this review is over 8,000 words already. It’s a lot to write about. Here are the results.

Sonny Kiss defeated Peter Avalon
Bea Priestley and Shoko Nakajima defeated Britt Baker and Riho

AEW Fight for the Fallen
July 13, 2019
Daily’s Place at Jacksonville, Florida

The opening video package aired hyping up the matches that will take place tonight. It was really good.

Jim Ross welcomed us to the show with a shot of the live crowd at Daily’s Place.

I like the way the arena was set up. Some fans were on a stage near the ring and other fans had great seats. The venue was located beside the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars stadium. The Khan family that owns AEW also owns the Jaguars, so that’s the connection.

The announce team for the show is Jim Ross, Excalibur in the mask and Alex Marvez.

The introductions took place for the opening match with Maxwell Jacob Friedman (no pre-match promo from him makes me sad), Sammy Guevara and Shawn Spears, who is the former Tye Dillinger. Shawn’s got a “The Chairman” shirt since he attacked Cody with a chair at the last AEW show and he was introduced as “The Chairman” as well. MJF was not happy about teaming with Spears since MJF claims he is Cody’s best friend.

The babyface team was made up of Darby Allin, Jimmy Havoc and Joey Janela. They all have a similar style in that they are all hardcore style wrestlers.

Shawn Spears, Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Sammy Guevara vs. Joey Janela, Darby Allin and Jimmy Havoc

Janela worked over MJF a bit, then Havoc bit MJF’s hand and Havoc got a two count followed by some more hand biting. MJF distracted the referee, then did an eye poke and a body slam. Guevara tagged in with a kick to the head, Janela avoided a cross body block and Janela hit a German Suplex into the turnbuckle. Guevara with a knee to Havoc, then Havoc with a forearm to the back and a running kick to Sammy. Guevara came back with a rising knee to the face of Havoc. Spears was booed heavily when he tagged in against Allin, who was cheered a lot. Spears tagged himself out to Guevara and Allin slapped on an armbar on Sammy. Allin with a sweet arm drag off the top rope. Janela with a shoulder tackle, but then a diving attack missed and Janela hit the turnbuckle. Janela with a headscissors on Guevara, who came back with a dropkick. Excalibur made a Blink 182 reference for Janela due to his “fight” with Enzo Amore in the last week. MJF tagged in with a forearm to knock Janela to the floor and Spears tagged himself in. Spears with a belly to back suplex on Janela. There were quick tags from the heel side, but also some issues with MJF and Spears. MJF did a Perfect 10 gesture to Spears and then the middle fingers. That was funny. Janela came back with an elbow to MJF. Havoc tagged in with forearms and he slammed Spears onto MJF. Guevara sent Havoc to the turnbuckle, then MJF accidentally hit Spears and Havoc hit a superplex off the top and off MJF’s back for a two count. That was unique. Havoc sent Spears and MJF outside the ring. Allin tagged himself in and he hit a flipping crusher for a two count because Spears made the save. Janela with a forearm to Spears. MJF sent Janela into the turnbuckle and Havoc with an Acid Rainmaker clothesline. Guevara with a Backstabber on Havoc. Guevara went for an attack on Janela on the floor, but Janela moved and Guevara ended up hitting two dives to take out Havoc and Janela on the floor. Sammy hit a standing Spanish Fly on Allin for a two count. Great sequence by Sammy there. Janela grabbed Guevara on the top rope and gave him a Death Valley Driver onto the ring apron. Spears tagged himself in and Allin hit a spinning attack on MJF. Spears with an Ushigoroshi followed by a running Death Valley Driver on Allin for the pinfall win at 13:15.

Winners by pinfall: Shawn Spears, Maxwell Jacob Friedman and Sammy Guevara

Analysis: ***1/4 Good match with all six guys getting a chance to show off what they could do. I liked the story of Spears/MJF not getting along, yet they were on the winning side, so it worked out. Spears winning the match makes sense because he’s likely going to face Cody at All Out, which makes it smart for Spears to get the win.

There was a shot of Shad Khan, who is the owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars and really the owner of AEW as well. His son Tony is running the company, but it is Shad’s money. He’s a multi-billionaire. They also showed Calais Campbell of the Jacksonville Jaguars. They showed the Farah brothers that are the sponsors for the show. The tag team of Private Party were shown at ringside. They have AEW contracts.

A video package aired about Brandi Rhodes, who is married to Cody. It was about how Brandi had doubts about her wrestling career, but now she’s motivated. There were some comments from Allie too.

Allie entered first. She’s from my hometown of London, Ontario, but they say Toronto, which is okay. I’ve met her a few times. She’s talented. Brandi was next and then Awesome Kong came out to support Brandi. The Awesome Kong appearance was a surprise.

Allie vs. Brandi Rhodes (w/Awesome Kong)

Allie knocked down Brandi with a kick to the head, then she had a staredown with Kong and Brandi hit a dropkick to knock Allie down. Brandi dumped some water on Allie and Brandi sent Allie face first into the side of the ring apron. Back in the ring, Brandi with a running kick. Brandi with a standing side kick on Allie for a two count, which led to Brandi following with punches. The announcers noted that Brandi hasn’t had a match since last December. Allie ran the ropes, Kong grabbed her foot and the ref didn’t see it. Brandi with a waist lock takedown for a two count. I don’t know if that was supposed to be a German Suplex, but it just looked like a basic takedown. Alli got a rollup for two followed by a hair grab into a neckbreaker. They got into a forearm exchange, Allie with a clothesline, running elbow and a running forearm to the face. Allie with a sliding elbow strike against the turnbuckle for a two count. They had a bit of a sloppy exchange leading to Allie hitting a bulldog for two. Brandi with a snapmare, boot to the face and Brandi hit a suplex out of the corner for two. Brandi charged right into a superkick by Allie for two. Allie hit a running Death Valley Driver for two because Kong pulled Brandi under the bottom rope to break up the count. Allie turned her attention to Kong. Brandi got an inside cradle. Allie slapped on a Dragon Sleeper, Kong went on the apron, the referee was distracted by her and Brandi tapped, but the referee never saw it. Brandi with an eye gouge followed by the Bionic Spear by Brandi for the pinfall win. They call it the Bionic Spear because Brandi had a collarbone injury earlier in her career. It went 11:01.

Winner by pinfall: Brandi Rhodes

Analysis: *1/2 It was a cheap heel win by Brandi because she won thanks to the help of Awesome Kong. I thought Ali performed very well. Her offense looked good, she sold everything well and I liked how she reacted to Kong being out there. Brandi doesn’t have that much experience and had no matches this year going into this, so she seemed off. They got enough time to tell a good story, but the match wasn’t that interesting.

Post match, Brandi and Kong celebrated. Brandi gave Allie to Kong to do a move, but the legendary Aja Kong slowly walked to the ring in a face off between the two Kong ladies. The women had a staredown, but referees showed up to break it up and Brandi told Kong to move back. Kong left with Brandi, so there was no physical contact.

Analysis: I assume that will lead to Awesome Kong vs. Aja Kong at All Out next month. That should be a very interesting match.

The Dark Order tag team of Evil Uno and Stu Grayson entered with some dudes in masks known as “creepers” who went to the back. They were the unknown guys that showed up at Double or Nothing that are a Canadian tag team that were called Super Smash Brothers, but they have the Dark Order name in AEW now. This is their first AEW match. Jack Evans and Angelico were the next team to enter and this is their second AEW match because they lost to the Best Friends at Double or Nothing. The team of Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy entered along with Marko Stunt. They got the best reaction of the three teams.

Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy (w/Marko Stunt) vs. Jack Evans and Angelico vs. Dark Order (Evil Uno and Stu Grayson)

Two guys are in the ring and the others are on the apron. The first fall wins the match.

Evans went for a leaping attack off the top, but Grayson hit an overhead suplex. Angelico tagged in leading to Grayson hitting a dropkick. Grayson with a spinning uranage slam on Angelico. Uno, the masked man, tagged in to bite the ear of Angelico. Boy tagged in with an armdrag on Uno, then a hurricanrana and a dropkick. Uno with a neckbreaker. Luchasaurus tagged in with fans chanting for him and Uno tagged out. Evans tried a shove that didn’t work, then the chop was blocked and Luchasaurus tossed Evans across the ring. Luchasaurus with a boot to the face and Boy knocked Evans into the Dark Order corner. Boy worked over Grayson with chops and then Grayson shoved Boy out of the ring because Uno pulled the rope down. Grayson with a senton splash onto Boy on the apron for two. Grayson and Uno worked over Boy in their corner. Marvez noted that Dark Order are from Canada while Excalibur said I guess that means Parts Unknown is in Canada. Now we know! That’s a mistake by Marvez. Uno with a dropkick to send Luchasaurus out of the ring. Uno with a boot to the face of Boy, he went up top and hit a Senton Bomb for a two count. Boy hit a Spear off the ropes on Uno and Luchasaurus got the hot tag against Grayson. Luchasaurus with several kicks to the face of Grayson, a spin kick on Angelico, a kick on Evans and a standing moonsault by Luchasaurus on Evans drew a big pop. Luchasaurus launched Evans over the top onto Angelico on the floor. Boy hit a moonsault off the apron onto Angelico/Evans on the floor to take them out. Luchasaurus caught Grayson for a sitout slam face first with Uno showing up to break up the pin. Luchasaurus with a sitout slam on Uno. Grayson with a backflip kick on Boy and Luchasaurus. Angelico tagged in while Evans hit a double foot stomp on Boy. Evans with a spinning kick to the head of Uno. Evans tagged in, there were several kicks from Evans/Angelico and Evans hit an assisted 450 Splash on Boy for a two count. The fans chanted for Jungle Boy as Angelico hit a Black Tiger Bomb into the turnbuckle. Marko Stunt got involved as he knocked Angelico off the apron and he went up top and hit a hurricanrana off the top to a big pop. The referee did nothing while it happened, but then he tossed the little man Marko to the back.

Luchasaurus put Stunt on his back and tossed him onto Angelico on the floor. Boy held Evans up, Luchasaurus with a spin kick and Luchasaurus launched Evans into the air right into a Powerbomb by Boy for a two count. That was cool. Uno with a chop block to the knee of Luchasaurus, rising knee by Grayson on Boy and he tossed Boy onto Luchasaurus in the corner. Grayson hit a 450 splash on Jungle Boy while Uno hit a cannonball on Luchasaurus against the turnbuckle. Uno held Boy on his back, Grayson went off the top and hit a Blockbuster like move that they call the Fatality and that Uno pinned Boy for the win at 15:15.

Winners by pinfall: Dark Order (Evil Uno and Stu Grayson)

Analysis: ***1/2 Good action from the moment the bell rang with Dark Order getting the big win. I was really impressed by Luchasaurus when he got the hot tag even though he wasn’t in the match for that long. He did a great job while the crowd was strongly behind him. Jungle Boy did very well. Angelico and Evans are great athletes, but they didn’t get to show off too much in this match. I didn’t know that much about Dark Order going into this, but they had some incredible tag team moves including what they did towards the end of the match.

After the match, the announcers put over Dark Order for the big win while JR noted that Jungle Boy may have been the MVP of the match.

There was a brief video package about Adam Page.

Kip Sabian entered as a cocky heel to not much of a reaction. “Hangman” Adam Page got a big pop along with a bit of a pyro display for his entrance. Page will face Chris Jericho at All Out on August 31 with the winner becoming the AEW World Champion.

“Hangman” Adam Page vs. Kip Sabian

They touched hands as a bit of a handshake. JR noted both guys were 27 years old, so they have bright futures ahead of them. They did some mat wrestling to start with not much happening. It turned into a chop fest with Page taking control after a spinning elbow to the face. Page with a fallaway slam followed by a clothesline that sent Sabian over the top to the floor. Page was selling the left knee that he has been selling for two months. Sabian with a springboard kick off the turnbuckle to knock Page to the floor. Back in the ring, Page slammed Sabian off the shoulders. Page with a bridging pumphandle suplex on Sabian for a two count. Sabian teased a move on the apron, then he kicked Page to the floor followed by a suicide dive. A fan got in Sabian’s face for some trash talk, so Sabian turned to kiss him. I think that’s what that was. That drew laughs. It shut the guy up at least. Back in the ring, Sabian with a missile dropkick off the top for two. Sabian with a running knee for a two count. Sabian with an enziguri kick to the head, then he went up top and he hit a double foot stomp off the top for a two count. Page got back into it with an overhead belly to belly suplex. Page with a fireman’s carry followed by a running clothesline and a standing Shooting Star Press by Page got a two count. Sabian came back with a DDT off the ropes for a two count. Sabian with three hard kicks to the chest of Page along with a stomp to the knee for a two count.

They got into a slugfest as they exchanged forearms. Page with hard chops to the chest, Sabian with a rising knee and a punch to the head. Sabian charged, but Page countered with a spinning clothesline to knock both guys down. They battled on the turnbuckle with Sabian hitting Page with a headbutt. Sabian went for the stomp, Page avoided it and Page hit a belly to back suplex on Sabian on the apron. Page went up top with a moonsault onto Sabian on the floor. Page grabbed his left leg to sell the injury again. That was an impressive move. Back in the ring, Page picked up Sabian and launched him over the top onto the ramp, so it was like a Powerbomb off the top onto the ramp. That was a cool spot that drew a big reaction from the crowd. Sabian crawled back into the ring before the ten count. It was a 20-minute time limit with about three minutes left. Page set up Sabian off the top with a swinging neckbreaker for a two count. Sabian got back into it with a dragon screw leg whip on the left knee of Page against the middle ropes. Sabian with a springboard attack into a hurricanrana for two. They went into a pinfall exchange. Page put Sabian on his back and dropped him with the Deadeye slam for the win at 19:03.

Winner by pinfall: “Hangman” Adam Page

Analysis: **3/4 A solid match with Page as the obvious winner. Everybody watching knew that Page was going to win since he’s in the AEW Title match at All Out, so there wasn’t that much to get excited about. Sabian put up a fight, but a lot of it was just filling time until they went home with an exciting final few minutes. Sabian should have worked over the left knee of Page more than he did. I think the match dragged on for too long. This is an example of a match that would have been a lot better if it was around 12-15 minutes instead of going nearly 20 minutes. By having Page take that long to beat a guy that is barely known to the average fan, it doesn’t make Page look like enough of a star. I don’t think Sabian would have been hurt by losing in a shorter match.

The win by Page meant that he was 3-0 in his AEW career not counting that first match with PAC that wasn’t on an official AEW show.

After the match, a masked man that was one of the “creepers” was in the ring. The masked guy hit Page with a clothesline with punches while the announcers wondered who it was as if we didn’t know. There was another clothesline by the masked man followed by a Codebreaker. The masked man revealed that it was Chris Jericho. Referees went into the ring to try to stop Jericho and he hit Page with a Judas Effect elbow to the face of Page. The elbow by Jericho cut open Page’s head above the eye. Fans chanted “Thank You Jericho” and Jericho gave them the double middle fingers hand gesture.

Analysis: The cheap attack from Jericho was a good way to build to the Jericho/Page match at All Out on August 31.

The So Cal Uncensored group entered with Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky wrestling in this match while Christopher Daniels was at ringside for the match. They had Jacksonville Jaguars colored gear. They did their usual “worst town I’ve ever been in” promo while Daniels mentioned the Jaguar colors. That was followed up by the SCU chants.

The Lucha Brothers team of Pentagon Jr. and Fenix made their entrance. They lost their first two matches in AEW in a tag team match to the Young Bucks and a six-man tag against the Young Bucks with Kenny Omega, so going into this, the expectation was that they would get the win.

The Lucha Brothers (Pentagon Jr. and Fenix) vs. So Cal Uncensored – Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky (w/Christopher Daniels)

Kazarian knocked Fenix down with a shoulder tackle followed by a few exchanges of moves. Pentagon faced off with Sky for some taunting and mannerisms where the crowd chanted for each side. Pentagon tossed the glove to the referee, she dropped it, then they did it again and the crowd cheered. Sky with a Thesz Press followed by a clothesline. Pentagon sent Sky to the turnbuckle, superkick to the head and a double superkick by the Lucha Bros on Kazarian. Pentagon and Fenix slid out of the ring to hit Daniels with a double superkick as well. Pentagon chopped Daniels in the chest and then Fenix chopped Sky in the chest. Fenix went for a dive, Daniels moved and Fenix hit Pentagon by accident. Daniels hit an Arabian Moonsault off the top onto both Lucha Brothers guys. The referee Aubrey Edwards ejected Daniels from ringside. Kazarian with a diving cross body block off the top onto the Lucha Bros on the ramp. Double team slam by SCU on Fenix followed by Kazarian hitting a springboard leg drop for two. Kazarian and Sky hit corner dropkicks on Fenix against the turnbuckle. Fenix with a superkick on Kazarian followed by a step up spin kick to the face. Wow. That was impressive. Pentagon and Sky tagged in with Pentagon hit the Slingblade on both guys followed by superkicks for both guys. Sky sent Fenix to the ropes, Fenix held on with a superkick, then the Lucha Bros connected with a kick to the head, forearm to the head of Kazarian and Pentagon was sent into Sky against the turnbuckle. Pentagon went up top with a double foot stomp for a two. That’s the second straight match with a double foot stomp off the top for a two count, but it works for Finn Balor! Just saying.

Fenix went back in with a superkick followed by a dive over the top on Kazarian while Pentagon hit a pumphandle driver on Sky for a two count. Kazarian with a leg drop to the back of Pentagon and a German Suplex on Fenix. Kazarian with a backstabber to the back of Pentagon, then Sky jumped off the ropes and hit a double stomp to the chest. Fenix with a double cutter on SCU. Sky with an Ace Crusher on Pentagon on the apron and Kazarian with a corner dropkick. Sky launched Kazarian to the top rope for a top rope DDT on Fenix for two. JR was shocked that was a nearfall. It was an amazing move that should be a finisher in most matches. Pentagon got back in the ring with chops, but Kazarian hit a DDT on him. JR: “How many DDTs have we seen now?” Yes. A lot of people to DDTs in wrestling today. Lucha Bros got back into it with Fenix doing a rope walk into a stomp on the back of Kazarian and Pentagon hit a Canadian Destroyer on Sky for a two count. Great nearfall. Pentagon held up Sky for a package piledriver, Fenix jumped off the top with a double foot stomp and Pentagon drove Sky to the mat. Perfect timing on that double move. Pentagon covered Sky for the pinfall win at 15:10.

Winners by pinfall: The Lucha Brothers (Pentagon Jr. and Fenix)

Analysis: ***3/4 That was an exciting tag team match that didn’t run too long. They ignored tag team rules because that’s how AEW does tag team matches, which I don’t like, but I guess I’ll get used to it. The amount of double team moves by both teams were incredible. The Lucha Brothers getting the win made sense since they lost their first two AEW matches and they are obviously going to be a big factor in the company going forward. I’m so impressed by the Lucha Brothers every time I see them. I like SCU a lot because they’re a polished act that works well together.

Post match, the Lucha Brothers brought a ladder into the ring and hit Daniels in after Daniels was in the ring checking on his buddies. They hit Kazarian with the ladder as well.

Pentagon and Fenix set up the ladder in the ring. They clipped the ladder. The fans were chanting “Cero Miedo” which is the Lucha Brothers chant that means “No Fear.” Pentagon spoke in Spanish and then he said they are the best tag team in the planet. He called out the Young Bucks. Fenix said there should be a Ladder Match between The Young Bucks and Lucha Brothers at All Out in Chicago. Pentagon said “Cero Miedo” again to end it. It would likely be for the AAA Tag Team Titles.

Analysis: A ladder match between the Young Bucks and Lucha Brothers will be amazing at All Out. They had an outstanding regular tag team match at Double or Nothing as well as many other great matches together, so upping the ante a bit with a ladder match should make that match even more special.

CIMA made his entrance to a solid reaction. The announcers noted he was a 22-year veteran that has never wrestled Kenny Omega before.

Kenny Omega got the loudest crowd reaction of the show so far. There’s a cool light display for his entrance, but the song doesn’t stand out that much. His entrances in New Japan were cooler. The announcers noted he was looking for his first singles win in AEW because he lost his only singles match to Chris Jericho and then he got the win in a six-man tag team match. Omega greeted fans all around the ring.

Kenny Omega vs. Cima

Cima hit arm drag takedowns followed by a double foot stomp to the chest. Omega with a hurricanrana, but Cima rolled through into a nearfall leading right into an armbar submission. When Omega got back up, they exchanged hard chops, Omega with a kick to the face and a belly to back suplex for a two count. An elbow drop by Omega got a two count. Cima with a hard punch to the stomach followed by Omega hitting a hurricanrana. Cima went to the floor, Omega ran the ropes and Cima went back in with a kick to the head. Omega came back with a DDT for a two count. Cima hit the Perfect Driver for a two count. Omega blocked an attack followed by a spinning kick to the back of the head and a running knee splash against the turnbuckle. Omega set up Cima on the top rope, Omega put him on his shoulders and Cima countered into a sunset flip Powerbomb. Cima went for the double knees off the top, but Omega missed and Cima hit the mat hard. Omega worked over the left knee of Cima by stretching it against the ropes and he stomped on the back of the knee. Omega with a rolling senton followed by a moonsault, but Cima got the knees up to block. Cima worked over Omega with chops to the chest, Omega with a chop block to the back of the knee and a snapdragon suplex. Omega had Cima on his shoulders, Cima countered and hit a backstabber. Cima with a running dropkick to knock Kenny off the apron to the barricade. Omega slammed Cima knee first into the side of the ring apron to continue working on the knees. Omega grabbed the small ringside announce table, the referee wasn’t counting them out and Cima came back with a snap suplex on the floor. Cima climbed up onto the staging area and hit the Meteora double knees onto Omega across that small table. Huge move! Big pop from that and the crowd chanted “AEW” as well. That was very cool with a bit of danger, but not too dangerous.

Cima rolled Omega back in the ring and hit a springboard Meteora to the back of the head and then up top again with a Meteora to the front of the head for a two count. The fans gave them the well deserved “this is awesome” chant. Cima went up top, he jumped off, Omega caught him and gave him a Buckle Bomb into the turnbuckle. Omega with a Snapdragon suplex followed by a V-Trigger knee for a two count. Omega picked up Cima for a Perfect Driver across the knee. Omega with another V-Trigger knee to the head. Omega went for his finisher, but Cima fought out of it and Cima came back with a DDT. Amazing move. Cima with slaps, Omega with two knees to the face and Cima with a double knee onto the chest of Omega. Cima with another Meteora knee attack off the middle ropes to the chest. They battled on the apron with Cima hitting a side slam onto the side of the apron. Cima up top with another Meteora double knee attack onto the chest of Omega for a two count because Kenny’s foot was on the ropes. It was announced that they had gone 20 minutes so far. Omega and Cima got into an exchange of hard palm strikes to the face. Cima with a roundhouse kick, Omega with a forearm, Cima came back with a dropkick and when Cima tried to run the ropes, he collapsed to sell the left knee. Omega with a V-Trigger knee and a double underhook Tiger Driver 98 only got a two count. Cima hooked the arms for a two count. Omega with a V-Trigger knee followed by the One Winged Angel finishing move for the pinfall win at 22:30.

Winners by pinfall: Kenny Omega

Analysis: ****1/4 That was an excellent wrestling match, which was no surprise considering Omega was involved and Cima’s a very talented veteran wrestler. Omega is my favorite wrestler in AEW. I’m sure they have wanted to wrestle eachother for a long time. Their styles worked well together. Cima went to the Meteora so many times that it felt like too much because it couldn’t put Omega away, so it made the Meteora look weak a bit. Omega ending with a flurry of offense was the right way to bring it home. I thought they sold better than a lot of guys in other matches, the pacing was just right and the final few minutes were exciting.

Post match, the referee checked on both guys and gave them a bottle of water to help cool down because it was hot out in Jacksonville. It was Kenny’s first singles win in AEW. The fans gave them a well-deserved round of applause. I am really looking forward to Omega vs. Jon Moxley at All Out.

Let’s Hear from Chris Jericho

The legendary Chris Jericho made his entrance for a promo. He was in full jacket and scarf gear along with a black top hat. Jericho is one of the greatest of all time. There’s no question about it in my mind. To be as good as he still is a few months before he turns 49 years old is amazing.

Jericho was in the ring saying he was looking at the blood of Hangman Page on his hands right now. He still had blood on the outside of his hands. Jericho asked for his “thank you” and told the fans he didn’t want it to them. Jericho said they were in Jerksonville, Jackoffville and that pissed off the crowd, so they booed him a lot. Jericho said a thank you doesn’t mean anything because he’s going to beat up everybody here in AEW starting with the Hangman. Jericho said if he wasn’t there, none of them would be there because you’d be on the street recycling bottles to make money. Jericho said that the company started because of him and the TV deal in October is because of him. Jericho said of course he beat Kenny Omega at Double or Nothing while he said he watched the battle royal. He wondered if the winner would be the guy with no legs, Joey Janela with a cigarette stapled to his head or others. Jericho said the Hangman got the win and he put him over as one of the hottest products in AEW. Jericho said when he beats Hangman it will be another notch in the belt of Jericho. He said if he loses to Hangman, it will be the beginning of the end of AEW and the beginning end of his illustrious career. Jericho said “I have to beat the Hangman” repeatedly. Jericho said that’s why he attacked him and left him in a pool of his own blood. Jericho said he’s going to prove at All Out that he’s going to become the AEW Champion. He said all the people in Jackoffville wouldn’t be there without him being in AEW and he’s going to prove that Hangman is nothing more than a little bitch.

Page ran out to the ring to brawl with Jericho. The fight was broken up by referees and officials including Jerry Lynn. There were more wrestlers that entered the ring to try to break up the fight. Page broke free and attacked Jericho again. Jericho left the ring and got helped to the back by Daniels, Avalon, referees and others.

Analysis: It was a fun promo from Jericho as usual. He’s the best talker in AEW. Jericho was out there trying to build up Hangman and he did a great job of that. This is the last AEW show before All Out, so it was smart of AEW to use this show to build up their AEW World Title match at All Out. I still say Page should have won his match earlier to make him look like more of a star.

The announce team talked about the main event tag team match. After every match, they went to the announcers for an on-camera discussion. JR had to ask if the main event is where they were going and that was right.

The video package aired to set up The Young Bucks vs. Dustin and Cody Rhodes. It featured Jake Roberts and Tony Schiavone talking about both teams. They showed Dustin/Cody talking about the match by pointing out that The Young Bucks made fun of them during their “Being the Elite” show. Dustin mentioned Cody and him were the first team that beat The Shield although they bleeped “The Shield” since it’s a WWE copyright. Anyway, nice video by involving Jake and Tony for their insight.

The Young Bucks duo of Matt and Nick Jackson were up first to a good reaction as some “bucks” aka money was shot into the air during their entrance. They are 2-0 after two AEW shows with a win over the Lucha Brothers in a regular and a six-man tag team victory.

Dustin Rhodes was up first for his team with the phrase “One Last Ride” featured prominently for the 50-year-old who had a tremendous match with Cody at Double or Nothing in late May. Cody (Rhodes) was up last without his wife Brandi. As I have mentioned, Cody can use the Rhodes last name if he wants, but he chooses to just go by Cody as his ring name. Dustin and Cody hugged before the match. This is one of those matches where I’ll use the first names of the competitors since they are brother teams.

Cody and Dustin Rhodes vs. The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)

Cody shook hands with Nick to start the match. They did a running shoulder tackle competition where neither guy got the advantage and then Nick slapped Cody. Nick and Cody did a sequence of moves where neither man was able to connect. They did a lot of counters leading to a staredown. Dustin tagged in with a bulldog on Nick, the Rhodes boys did the uppercut punch and a double clothesline sent Matt over the top to the floor. Matt got back into it with a double cross body block on the Rhodes boys. Matt launched Nick into the air for a dropkick on Dustin and a kick on Cody to knock him off the apron. The Bucks hit double dives over the top to take out both Rhodes boys followed by the Young Bucks mocking the Dustin and Cody hug with some fake tears. Nick with a leaping facebuster onto Dustin and then a moonsault onto Cody on the floor. Young Bucks hit a double suplex on Dustin. The Young Bucks worked over Dustin in their corner while Nick also spit on Cody. Matt with a jawbreaker on Dustin while the announcers pointed out Nick turns 30 years old soon while Dustin has already been wrestling for over 30 years. The Young Bucks punched Cody off the apron, Dustin hit a back body drop on both guys and Cody wasn’t there to tag. Dustin with a spinebuster on Matt and Nick pulled Cody off the apron. Dustin decked Nick with an uppercut punch and Matt hit a clothesline on Dustin. Dustin with back elbows on both guys followed by a cross body block off the middle ropes onto both Bucks. Cody got the tag with a forearm to Matt, dragon screw leg whip on Nick and a suplex on Matt. Cody with a boot to the face of Nick followed by a moonsault press on Nick. Cody with a dive over the top rope onto Matt on the ramp. Cody took off his weight belt and hit Matt in the back with the belt. The referee took the belt away. Cody hit a reverse superplex on Matt for a two count. They shot that from the wrong angle because it didn’t show how impressive of a move that it was. Cody hooked Matt’s arms, Matt sent him to the turnbuckle and Matt charged leading to Matt hitting the turnbuckle with his shoulder. Dustin whipped Matt’s left arm into the steel ring post. Cody tagged in, he whipped Matt’s left shoulder into the turnbuckle and stomped on the arm repeatedly. Dustin stomped away on the left arm of Matt followed by an armbar. Dustin decked Nick with a punch to knock him off the apron. Cody with a hiptoss into the armbar, then a roundhouse kick to the left arm and Matt was doing a good job of selling. Dustin whipped Matt left shoulder first into the turnbuckle. The crowd quieted down for a few minutes as Dustin sent Matt into the ring post in their corner. Cody stomped on Matt’s chest. Matt came back with a Northern Lights suplex, but Cody brought Matt down to the mat with an armbar with Matt getting to the ropes to break it. Matt countered a bulldog by tossing Cody across the ring and then Matt hit a back body drop onto the wooden ramp. Cody back in the ring and Matt hit a Spear with the left arm that the Rhodes boys were working over for several minutes.

Nick got the hot tag with kicks on Cody including a spin kick and then a bulldog/clothesline combo on Cody/Dustin. It was announced that they had passed the 20-minute mark. Nick with a kick to the head of Dustin, then a backstabber on Cody and the crowd was getting into it more. The Young Bucks hit a double sunset flip into a Sharpshooter, the Rhodes boys kicked out of it and then they slapped on the Figure Four Leglock on Matt and Nick. They broke free of that leading to a double clothesline to knock down all four guys. Dustin tagged himself in with a powerslam on Nick and a powerslam for Matt as well. Dustin with a flipping senton off the apron onto Matt while Cody climbed the ropes leading to a dive onto Nick on the floor. Cool spot. Matt with a blind tag, superkick on Dustin and Cody with a springboard kick on Nick and a disaster kick on Matt. Cody picked up Matt, Dustin held Matt and they hit a double team Cross Rhodes. There was a cover leading to Nick going up top and hitting a Senton Bomb to break up the pin attempt as fans chanted “AEW” for them. Cody and Matt got into a slugfest as they exchanged punches with Matt selling the left arm injury well. All four guys went into the ring for a slugfest called a slobberknocker by JR. Cody and Dusty hit spinning powerslams at the same time. Cody and Dustin tagged in leading to the double Shattered Dreams kick and then Cody and Dustin each hit a suplex into a neckbreaker for a two count. The referee counted both pins because the referee lost control of this match several minutes ago. The Young Bucks were on the floor, Cody tried a leaping attack and he was hit with a double superkick. Dustin worked over both Young Bucks with punches, but then Nick hit him with a superkick, running knee and Matt went up top with an elbow drop for two. Dustin kicked arm of Matt leading to a sunset flip into a Powerbomb for two. Cody tagged in, superkick to Nick, who wasn’t legal and Nick hit a superkick on Cody. The Young Bucks hit a superkick to the back of Cody’s head leading to Dusting breaking up the pin. It was announced that they have passed the 30-minute mark. Dustin helped Cody back up to their feet, then the Young Bucks did the Rhodes uppercut punch and the Rhodes hit superkicks. The Young Bucks hit a double superkick on the Rhodes boys and then Nick hit Cross Rhodes on Cody with Matt covering for two. Nick up to the top rope and he jumped onto Dustin on the floor although it was really only Nick’s hands that connected. Matt picked up Cody and Nick jumped off the top for the Meltzer Driver pinfall at 31:25. Matt was selling his left arm injury while he pinned his buddy Cody.

Winners by pinfall: The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson)

Analysis: ***1/2 It was a very good tag team match especially in the last ten minutes. I think they made a mistake by going 30 minutes. It didn’t need to go that long. We know Cody and the Young Bucks are helping to run the show, so they can go as long as they want, but I think timing is important. Dustin was impressive again as the oldest guy in the match and he showed that he could keep up with the younger guys. There was good psychology with Matt selling the left shoulder injury for most of the match, so it helped tell the story they were going for. The Young Bucks getting the win was the right move since they are a full-time tag team that are going to lead the tag team division in AEW, so they should get the win.

The win by the Young Bucks means that they are 3-0 in AEW so far, Cody is 1-1-1 and Dustin is 0-2.

After the match was over, Cody was selling the finisher in a big way. Nick didn’t want his hand raised by the referee.

Matt Jackson said that they had fun at the expense of the Rhodes brothers, but it was all in the spirit of competition. Matt was selling the left arm injury while he spoke. Matt said that he didn’t watch much of the other product, so he didn’t really see it, but dammit Dustin and Cody are one of the best tag teams that they have ever been in the ring with. When Matt was talking, there was some music that played and a bunch of people came out from the back.

Shad Khan, who owns the company along with his son Tony, was with Kenny Omega, Brandi Rhodes, Luchasaurus, Jungle Boy and others with a giant cheque in his hands. Cody pointed out it was Shad Khan and the fans cheered.

There was a $150,000 cheque donated from AEW to the Victim Assistance Advisory Council in Jacksonville to help victims of gun violence. Cody mentioned that $110,000 of that was from AEW leading to “AEW” chants. Cody said they wanted to help those affected by gun violence, so the VAAC makes sure that it goes to those that need it. Cody said he didn’t know if they were on the air, but you can’t counter program what AEW is doing. Cody said you can’t counter program the love, the genuine feeling and the revolution that is AEW. The fans cheered and there were more “AEW” chants. Cody asked the fans if they are coming with them when this group goes to TNT this fall. The fans cheered. Cody called on Kenny to say something.

Kenny thanked the fans for coming out there to support a great cause. Kenny said that the most important statement they made was that they are doing something for this community and they thanked the fans for all the support. Matt whispered something in Kenny’s ear. Kenny said as much as he would like to bid us all adieu, tonight it would seem a bit inappropriate. Kenny said that we should have fun with it since they are off the air, but they are still on. Kenny did the goodbye, wish you adieu, he threw in a boing and he thanked the fans. That was the end of the show.

Analysis: That was a happy way to end the show with the giant cheque donation for the VAAC group in Jacksonville. The money is going to go to people that really need it. That’s what this show was all about. It’s a smart move by AEW to run a charity show as their third event. I think they should have posted a website where fans can donate for the cause too, but they didn’t mention that. Oh well. People can look it up if they want. Good job by everybody involved.

This event had a run time of 3:35:46 on B/R Live.

Five Stars of the Show

  1. Kenny Omega
  2. CIMA
  3. The Young Bucks
  4. Lucha Brothers
  5. Dustin and Cody Rhodes

Final Thoughts

It gets a 7.5 out of 10 from me.

The match quality was very good, but since AEW is a new promotion I want to provide some feedback that may be helpful. They went too long. If they went under three hours it would have been better. I saw a Cody Rhodes interview saying that they want to give wrestlers time and the fans didn’t leave, so it was a success. It’s not about fans leaving. It’s about the quality of the show. I think that several matches were hurt by being too long. If you shaved of 5-10 minutes off some of these matches, not only would it be a better show overall, but the match quality would have improved. If cut out 35 minutes and made it a three-hour show then it probably would have helped.

Also, I don’t think Alex Marvez is a good wrestling announcer. I know he’s a successful NFL writer, he does radio and he’s written about wrestling, but that doesn’t mean he should be an announcer on AEW shows. My understanding is he’s a close friend of Tony Khan, but that doesn’t mean he should be boring us with his commentary for three hours. They really don’t need a third person with JR and Excalibur.

I think they built some angles well towards All Out on August 31 including Jericho vs. Page. I was surprised there was no Cody/Shawn Spears interaction because I figured Shawn would challenge him to an All Out match, but that didn’t happen. They have time obviously, but this is the last AEW show before All Out, so it would have been the right time.

My favorite match was Omega vs. CIMA. They worked together so well and their styles meshed perfectly. There were four tag team matches (five if you count the pre-show), some of which ignored tag team rules a lot, so they felt a little bit repetitive.

The right person or team won every match. All of the booking decisions made sense. I’m going to be interested to see how they utilize the wins/losses going forward and how it affects their storytelling when the TV show begins in October.

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Email: mrjohncanton@gmail.com

Twitter: @johnreport

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