Reviews

TJR: AEW Dynamite 09/09/20 Review

By John Canton • Published 10th September 2020

Welcome to another AEW Dynamite review following this past Saturday’s All Out pay-per-view. It was a good event, but also not at the same level as some of the past AEW PPVs. There are new AEW Tag Team Champions after FTR beat Kenny Omega and Adam Page for the gold while Lance Archer earned a future AEW World Championship match against champion Jon Moxley, who defeated MJF in the main event. The next AEW PPV is Full Gear on November 7, so they have two months to set that up.

This is episode #50 of AEW Dynamite from Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, FL. Follow me on Twitter @johnreport. Here’s my AEW Dynamite TV review archive. Let’s get to it.

The show began with a shot of AEW announcer Tony Schiavone in the parking lot “Earlier Today” with Chris Jericho and Maxwell Jacob Friedman arriving in separate cars. Chris told MJF that he got cheated by Moxley. Jericho told Moxley he said that he will be the AEW Champion very soon. MJF said that means the world to him since Chris is a legend. MJF said that Jericho losing to Jericho twice is criminal and MJF guaranteed that Chris would get back his AEW World Title. Jericho told MJF he believes in him and they wished eachother the best in having a great show. There was a split screen shot after that with both guys saying “what a loser” as they walked away.

Analysis: That was pretty funny to show how egotistical two of AEW’s top heels are and how phony they are when talking to other people. Well played.

The Dynamite intro video aired as some pyro went off at AEW’s home at Daily’s Place. There were shots of some fans in the crowd sitting far away. The announce team of Jim Ross, Tony Schiavone and Excalibur welcomed us to the show.

Lucha Brothers – Pentagon and Rey Fenix (w/Eddie Kingston, The Butcher and The Blade) vs. Jurassic Express – Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy (w/Marko Stunt)

Fenix and Boy did some cool moves early on with Boy hitting an arm drag across the ring. Fenix did an incredible flip off the ropes with an arm drag. Fenix with a dropkick on Boy, then Pentagon tagged in with a move where he slammed Fenix onto Boy. Luchasaurus tagged in as Boy hit an assisted flatliner on Pentagon. When Boy slipped doing a move off his partner’s back, JR mentioned it was really hot and humid in Jacksonville in the 90s Fahrenheit. I use Celsius where I live. So do most countries other than America. Pentagon and Luchasaurus exchanged strikes with Pentagon hitting a springboard cross body, Boy tagged in with a headscissors and a hiptoss/headscissors takedown. Boy with a suicide dive on Fenix, but then Pentagon shoved Boy off the ropes into a superkick from Fenix that got a two count for Pentagon. Good action there. Pentagon with a hard kick to the leg of Boy. JR thought that Brodie Lee vs. Dustin Rhodes will be one of the best matches that you will ever see in AEW. Really? I think that’s a stretch. Boy managed to avoid a double team attack, then Luchasaurus got the tag and was on fire with chops, a pump kick and hit Fenix with a spinning slam off the shoulders. Luchasaurus with a knee to Pentagon and then a one armed slam off the ropes on Fenix, who is great. Luchasaurus with a standing moonsault for two as Pentagon kicked him in the head. Fenix did a spot where he slammed Boy at the same time as he hit a leg drop on Luchasaurus. Pentagon back in with a Slingblade and a backstabber. Fenix went up top and the Brothers hit the double foot stomp into a piledriver for two as Fenix hit a dive onto Luchasaurus on the floor. That should be a finisher. Pentagon jumped off the ropes going for a Destroyer on Boy, who moved and then Pentagon hit the Destroyer on his brother instead. Boy did a ROLLUP OF DEATH~! on Fenix for the pinfall win after about nine minutes.

Winners by pinfall: Jurassic Express – Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy

Analysis: *** Good stuff here with Fenix really standing out as usual. I liked some of the Phoenix spots with Jungle Boy. I didn’t like the result that much because I want to see Lucha Brothers booked stronger. Boy and Luchasaurus lost to Young Bucks on Saturday, so they got a win back here. It was a weak finish with the Lucha Brothers messing up and the ROLLUP OF DEATH~! is deadly in any wrestling company. I get why they did it that way, but I didn’t love it.

Post match, Fenix and Pentagon shoved eachother a bit. Eddie Kingston said that he is there for them, but their little British friend isn’t there. That’s a reference to Pac, who was aligned with Lucha Brothers before the pandemic hit. Kingston asked The Blade “where’s your wife?” in reference to Allie, who is paired with QT Marshall. Kingston said in the battle royal, there was five of them and he kicked Blade in the face by accident. Kingston told them they should be running this place, not fighting with eachother. Kingston told them to shake hands, but Pentagon shoved Fenix away. Kingston told Pentagon he is his best friend and told Pentagon to shake his hand. There was finally a handshake from Fenix and Pentagon along with a hug from the brothers. Kingston said he was never eliminated from the battle royal and said look up the rules. That ended it.

Analysis: Kingston is a great talker. No doubt about that. I don’t want to see Pentagon and Fenix broken up anyway. This five-man group might get booked stronger in the future, but the roster is so deep right now that it’s hard to know if they will be booked the right way.

There was a backstage promo from Lance Archer standing behind Jake Roberts, who did the talking. Roberts talked about how Moxley is going to piss himself when they get a hold of him. Archer said that Moxley will have nothing but despair to look forward to when Archer gets his hands on him. Archer said he’ll become the AEW World Champion and there is nothing anybody can do about it.

(Commercial)

Let’s Hear from Matt Hardy

Matt Hardy made his entrance wearing an “I Don’t Die” shirt. Matt was part of a controversial moment at All Out when he took a big bump off a platform (when Sammy Guevara tackled him) and Matt went through a table while hitting his head hard on the cement. The crowd gave Matt a nice ovation with Matt thanking the fans with fans chanting “Hardy” for him.

Matt said it was amazing being in an arena with a live audience with real people and said that they are part of their magic. Matt stared into the camera to thank them too. Matt said that Saturday at All Out, he suffered a very, scary fall and he knows it frightened a lot of people. Matt talked about how the outpouring of support has been overwhelming, mind-blowing and he thanked people for the support again. Matt said that after a myriad of tests, he is expected to make a 100% full recovery. Matt said he’s a lucky man while pointing out his wife Reby holding their third son Bartie. Matt shouted out other sons Maxell and Wolfgang that were watching at home. Matt said he was sorry for putting them through that on Saturday and he’s sorry to the wrestling fans concerned about him. Matt said that we showed how much we care about the wrestlers that put their bodies on the line to entertain us. Matt also apologized that the All Out “Broken Rules Match” wasn’t what he wanted it to be due to his injury in the match, but maybe it’s a good thing that it’s over. Matt said that he’ll get back to getting healthy, when he’s cleared he’ll get back in the ring, start winning matches and then it’s time for Matt Hardy to chase his first AEW Championship. He shouted out Private Party standing by at ringside. Matt said his journey is not over while thanking fans and said pro wrestling fans are the best. That was it.

Analysis: Well done by Matt Hardy. I’m glad Matt is fine. The fall at All Out was brutal and he was definitely not in good shape after he hit his head on the cement. I thought they should have stopped the All Out match when Matt was out of it. The fans would have understood if you explain it. I know AEW said something about how he didn’t have a concussion, so if that’s the case then why is he saying he’ll make a full recovery. They didn’t specify what the injury is although I saw he posted a photo about getting treatment on his back/neck as well, so its just general soreness. The good thing is AEW has a light schedule, so taking a few weeks off isn’t a bad thing for a company that has about 100 wrestlers. Matt is one of the older guys in AEW in his mid-40s, but maybe he’ll get a decent push whenever he gets back.

They showed some highlights of Orange Cassidy beating Chris Jericho at All Out this past Saturday.

Orange Cassidy vs. Angelico (w/Jack Evans)

The Angelico/Evans team is rarely on Dynamite and I don’t watch Dark. Angelico trapped Cassidy in some submissions, but then Cassidy managed to get to the bottom rope to break free on the second submission attempt. Angelico charged, Cassidy ducked and Angelico went over the top to the floor. Cassidy hit a suicide dive on the floor, then back in the ring and Cassidy hit a cross body block off the top. Cassidy with a swinging DDT followed by a kip up to show he was fired up. Cassidy hit the Orange Punch aka Superman Punch for the pinfall win after about three minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Orange Cassidy

Analysis: *1/2 It was fine as a way to give Cassidy an easy win. It’s weird that Cassidy is now a regular wrestler in AEW, but the goal of the Jericho feud was to get him to that point, so here we are. I like Cassidy more now than I did a year ago and he works hard in the ring. The fans like Cassidy too, so that matters a lot too.

Post match, Santana and Ortiz attacked Cassidy from behind. The Best Friends duo of Chuck Taylor and Trent went out for the save.

Taylor did a promo saying that this has got to end. Taylor challenged them to a fight in the parking lot. Trent said that the apology they did can be shoved up their asses. Trent said that next week they’re not coming to hug eachother or have fun, they are coming to hurt them and make Trent’s mom proud (since Santana/Ortiz wrecked the van). Speaking of that van, Taylor had a shirt of them in a van. Best Friends picked up Cassidy and the trio did a big hug in the ring.

Analysis: The Best Friends rivalry with Santana/Ortiz has been built up for several weeks, so a resolution to that next week is fine with me.

(Commercial)

The Young Bucks were about to be interviewed backstage by Alex Marvez, who knocked on the door, then the Bucks opened the door and hit a double superkick on Marvez. The announcers talked about how you can’t be beating up interviewers like that and Excalibur said that the Bucks are in a dark place now.

Analysis: I thought this was more comical than anything. I laughed at how silly it was. I know it’s about the Young Bucks having more of an edge, but kicking the innocent announcer made me laugh.

Kip Sabian Announces “The Best Man” For His Wedding

Kip Sabian entered with the lovely Penelope Ford for an interview with Tony Schiavone. I don’t remember the last time Sabian had a match on Dynamite and he’s supposed to be one of the young talents they should be pushing. Sabian and Ford are engaged. They met after she dumped Joey Janela to be with Sabian shortly after AEW started.

Sabian told “Timmy” Schiavone to get out of there. Sabian said that everyone wants to know while plugging his Twitch account – I don’t use Twitch. Kip said he was asked by people who is the best man, so Kip introduced “the best man.”

That led to some fat guy walking out doing some dance routine. It was some guy that Kip was calling “Puff.” Kip said that he told the guy “he’s the best…for subscribing” to his Twitch and told him to get out of there.

Kip said “the best man” is handsome as hell and he pointed to the entrance with Brian Pillman Jr. walking out there. Kip wondered what Brian was doing there. Brian said that he was excited after getting a text. Kip said he texted “you’re the best, man” because Brian was bothering him after All Out. Kip said they’re not even friends and told him to get out while saying he hopes his birthday sucks.

Kip introduced “the best man” with a song saying that this person is the best and it’s Miro…aka the former Rusev in WWE. Miro has a blonde short hair look along with a black beard. Excalibur called him the “Beast from Bulgaria” and the announcers were excited about it with Excalibur noting that Miro is big on Twitch too, so obviously he hit it off with Sabian. I guess that explains it. Miro is a shorter version of his real name Miroslav Barnyashev, in case you’re wondering. Nice ovation for Miro. I did accidentally write “Rusev” before editing. Force of habit, pal.

Miro said ten years in the same house under the same glass ceiling with an imaginary brass ring…well you can take that brass ring and shove it up your ass. There were “Miro” chants. Miro said that elite recognizes elite and recognizes the best. Miro said he’ll be Kip’s best man because he is THE best man. If you turn into Miro’s Twitch channel, he’s got the best gaming channel and you will see him devour people every day, every night, whenever you tune in. Miro ended with this: “My name is Miro and I’m all elite.” Miro picked up his buddy Sabian and the fans were excited about it.

Analysis: It’s great to see Miro in AEW. I think he’s a talented guy that could have been more in WWE, but for whatever reason they didn’t push him all the way to the top. I thought the promo was what it needed to be with the “brass ring” line as a shot at WWE because AEW loves taking shots at WWE. We know Vince McMahon has talked about the “brass ring” thing, so that’s where it comes from. Anyway, I’m happy for Miro being happy in AEW. He’s a likable guy that’s a hard worker that will probably do well in AEW. As for Sabian’s promo, it showed off his heelish personality although by the end of the segment, fans were cheering for Miro, so I wonder if they will co-exist for a long time.

Interview with Hangman Page

There was an Earlier Today interview with Tony Schiavone talking to “Hangman” Adam Page who had a drink. Tony mentioned FTR are the new Tag Team Champions. Page said that the ribs are a bit messed up, it was very humid and he’s feeling good. Tony asked again, how are you feeling? Page said for 30 minutes, it felt like nobody was there making a sound because it felt like people were holding their breath. Page commented that people thought his team with Omega would fall apart, but it didn’t have to happen. Page complained about how FTR shouldn’t have been number one contenders in the first place and said it’s his fault.

Page said that the Young Bucks are the best tag team in the world, they should have won the gauntlet and now he lost two of his best friends. Page said that he feels terrible about it while saying he thought FTR was like him. Tony talked about Kenny and Page splitting after the match. Page said that he had a lot of problems with Kenny, but a lot of victories and he wanted to get another title shot. Page said they’ll get through this. Tony told him to hang in there and wished him good luck.

Analysis: That was more of a humble version of Page showing that he felt bad about costing the Young Bucks their match in the Gauntlet a few weeks ago.

(Commercial)

The team of Chris Jericho and Jake Hager made their entrance as fans sang Jericho’s song. Their opponents were already in the ring.

No Disqualification: Inner Circle – Chris Jericho and Jake Hager vs. Joey Janela and Sonny Kiss

Janela with a running shoulder tackle, Kiss tagged in and they hit a double guillotine onto the top rope followed by a double dropkick. Jericho with an eye rake on Kiss to take control briefly until Kiss came back with a spin kick to the head. Jericho and Hager in the ring, so double missile dropkicks by the face. Jericho and Hager were knocked out of the ring. Kiss with a running kick on Hager and Janela with a suicide dive on Jericho because I think every AEW match needs one of those. Janela brought a chair into the ring and hit Jericho in the back with it. Janela jumped off the chair, Jericho caught him and hit a back suplex onto the chair on the mat.

(Commercial)

The heels were in control with Hager pulling Janela to his corner so that Jericho can hit a running kick to the face. Janela whipped Jericho shoulder first into a chair that was wedged against the turnbuckle. Kiss tagged in with a dropsault, a step-up enziguri and a boot to the face. Hager pulled Kiss off the ropes and Kiss got a rollup for two followed by a superkick with Jericho breaking up the pin. Kiss sent Jericho onto the staging area. Hager hit Kiss in the back with a forearm. Hager put the trash can on Kiss, who lifted it up and hit Hager in the face. Janela with a clothesline that sent Hager over the top to the stage. Janela with some weak looking punches on Jericho, who threw Janela into part of the set. Jericho with a catapult that sent Janela into Hager’s arms and Hager gave Janela a spinebuster through a conveniently placed table that was nearby. Kiss with a cross body block on both opponents. Kiss with a kick to Hager, a leg split kick to Jericho and a clothesline to Hager. Jericho sprayed some fire extinguisher spray into Sonny’s face. Hager gave Kiss a uranage slam while hooking the arm/head for the pinfall win after 10 minutes.

Winners by pinfall: Chris Jericho and Jake Hager

Analysis: **3/4 I don’t think Jericho and Hager should take more than ten minutes to beat this team, but that’s what happened. There were some impressive moves by Sonny while Janela is capable of taking the big bumps. Also, any time you do No DQ in a tag team match, from a logical standpoint you should just have all four people in the ring because you can’t be disqualified. At least they figured it out by the end.

Jericho did a promo where his microphone wasn’t working at first, but then it did and he still called Justin Roberts a son of a bitch. Jericho did a promo asking for some love, which led to a mixed reaction. Jericho complained about what happened at All Out. Jericho said that Jake & Jericho are going to build up their wins in the tag team division, so they can get a shot at the AEW Tag Team Championships.

Analysis: It’s fine to put them in the tag team division to create some matches and feuds that would feel fresh.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman was in his office with his staff saying that Jon Moxley cheated him out of the AEW World Title. MJF said he figured out who was to blame. MJF said that this campaign was supposed to create change and supposed to make him a World Champion, but they all blew it. MJF fired all of them while yelling at Nina saying he was tired of her “bullshit face” and told her to get out now. Wardlow spoke to “sir” with MJF yelling at him if he was “sir” when Wardlow cost him the World Championship. MJF complained to Wardlow about his poor ring throw. MJF asked if they had a problem with MJF noting that MJF signs his checks, not Tony Khan. MJF said that he’s the only person on this planet who sees his potential and he is Wardlow’s only friend. MJF told Wardlow if he doesn’t get it together then he’ll put him and his family out on the street. Wardlow said there was no problem. MJF said now is a time to plan to get back on top where they belong.

Analysis: We learned some information there with MJF noting that Wardlow is his employee rather than a contracted AEW wrestler. This should eventually lead to a split between MJF and Wardlow with Wardlow becoming a babyface, but there’s no need to rush it.

(Commercial)

The AEW World Champion Jon Moxley was backstage with his title talking about how Lance Archer winning the Casino Battle Royale. Moxley thought “son of a bitch” while noting that it’s never easy being the World Champion. Moxley said when you look at Lance Archer, you might think that Moxley may as well be going into a wood chipper, but what you can see with your two eyes is about what Moxley feels in his heart and soul because he knows he is unstoppable. Moxley said when their paths cross, the only question is do you really want to bet against him? End promo.

Analysis: They give him two-minute promos all the time and they are very good all the time. This was no different.

FTR Championship Celebration

The FTR team of Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler were in the ring with Tully Blanchard as the new Tag Team Champions. Blanchard said, “Fear the Revelation” twice. There were AEW tag teams surrounding the ring along with a table in the ring along with cake and balloons since it was a celebration. Tully said that it was 117 degrees on Saturday, these two men battled for 30 minutes and at the end of the night, it was Dax and Cash 1…2…3 and they became the best tag team in the world.

Wheeler said that they had the deepest tag team division in the world while talking about the guys around the ring. Wheeler said that they had to fight for every one of those victories. Wheeler joked that they grew up watching SCU and wondered if they were still in their prime. “If this was 20 years ago, who knows?” Wheeler wasn’t impressed by Private Party.

Harwood said that they represent the deepest tag team division in the world, so they are the locker room leaders and top guys in AEW. Harwood mentioned Billy (Gunn), who is in a “second rate Hall of Fame” (there’s a shot at WWE), and said that just because you’re there it doesn’t mean you and your son (Austin) will get to jump to the front of the line. Harwood said that next week, Jurassic Express has the opportunity to face FTR, but don’t get it twisted because it’s non-title. FTR said maybe if you beat them then they can get the opportunity. FTR said that they won’t let a cosplay Tarzan and a dumbass dinosaur run the division. I liked those comments!

Luchasaurus went into the ring with Marko Stunt as if Marko is supposed to intimidate somebody. FTR threw something in Luchasaurus’ face, but then Luchasaurus grabbed them and FTR left the ring. FTR was on the floor and stood there in place for a comedy spot with Jurassic Express dumping ice from a cooler on them. Oh no, not ice. It’s not a big deal. FTR left while other wrestlers ate some cake.

Analysis: This was all about getting some heat on FTR as the new champions that are also conceited jerks. I don’t think it was that interesting overall even though FTR are my favorite team in AEW.

(Commercial)

The show returned with Taz joining the announce team to complain about Darby Allin going after Ricky Starks at All Out in the Casino Battle Royale, which led to Bryan Cage putting Allin in a body bag with thumbtacks.

Ricky Starks made his entrance in an outfit that made him look like Darby Allin with the face paint. Starks as Allin complained about hurting his pinky, having a thumbtack in his foot and said that he can’t go skating with his friends. Starks spoke as himself as he stared in the camera talking about how there’s a reason Allin is hurt and alone because he’s reckless. Starks said that he’s “Absolute” Ricky Starks and the next time Allin shows up, he will beat Darby’s ass. Taz thought he did a great job since Starks is on Team Taz.

Analysis: Starks is a very good promo, so it’s never a bad thing when he gets TV time like that. Nice job by him.

There was a recap of the women’s matches at All Out. Tay Conti is in action and she’s 1-1 in AEW. They said Tay Conti just signed her AEW contract. She was in WWE. I think I write that a lot. Anyway, she is being recruited to the Dark Order by her buddy Anna Jay as well.

Nyla Rose (w/Vickie Guerrero) vs. Tay Conti

Rose did a hair whip across the ring. Conti with two kicks to the head, then a forearm to the back and a weak looking rollup. Conti tried a submission, Rose powered out and sent Conti out of the ring. Vickie did an eye gouge on Conti while Rose sent Conti into the barricade.

(Commercial)

The match returned with Conti going for a sunset flip off the top, but Rose powered out and slammed her down. Conti tried for an armbar. Excalibur tried to sell the idea that Conti might win, but nobody believed that. Rose hit the Beast Bomb for the win in a match that went six minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Nyla Rose

Analysis: * This dragged on too long. A boring, predictable match. I think it went six minutes because of the commercial. They could have booked it in three minutes and done the commercial before the match began. I don’t know. This didn’t seem like a big deal at all.

Post match, Vickie did her over the top “Excuse Me” yelling. Vickie said that the Vicious Vixens are here to make a statement and they’re not going anywhere. Rose went to attack Conti, but AEW Women’s Champion Hikaru Shida showed up with a kendo stick. The heels backed away.

Analysis: I guess this means they are going to Shida vs. Rose again even though we’ve already seen them wrestle. They have not done a poor job in terms of building up other women in the division.

The announcers said that Young Bucks were fined $5,000 each for the superkick on Alex Marvez. I find that as comical as the video.

Kenny Omega Interview

Kenny Omega was seated in a locker room with Jim Ross in an interview conducted earlier in the day. Kenny said he was a champion going into All Out, but now he is not a champion. Kenny said these things happen, you win belts, you lose belts and it’s just part of the game. JR spoke about how they were rocking as a team and Kenny said that there was this magic between them. Omega said he had these expectations that he was supposed to be this singles star, an inaugural champion, an ace of the company, but then he found Hangman and maybe he was meant to do this. JR asked what is next for him. Omega said that they had such a deep tag team division, so for them to get where they got, they dug deep and found out about themselves. Omega said he was glad they had that experience, he was proud of that run, but he thinks Page can make other plans if he wants to do it again. Omega said he had other goals here, but it’s time for him to go back to singles and give people a piece of what they wanted to see.

Analysis: Great. I’m all for Omega as a singles wrestler. He has shown signs of maybe being a heel, which I would support, but if he’s a face then that’s fine too. I think Kenny could definitely be AEW’s next World Champion.

It was announced that Jon Moxley will defend the AEW World Championship against Lance Archer on the One Year Dynamite Anniversary Show on October 14.

Next week on Dynamite:

* Parking Lot Fight: Best Friends vs. Santana and Ortiz.

* FTR vs. Jurassic Express (Non-Title).

* NWA Women’s Championship: Thunder Rosa defends against Ivelisse.

* Chris Jericho and Jake Hager vs. Private Party.

* Maxwell Jacob Friedman in action.

* “Hangman” Adam Page vs. Frankie Kazarian.

The announcers talked about how because of the NBA Playoffs, they don’t know if it’s going to be Wednesday or Thursday for Dynamite next week. They said follow AEW social media for updates.

Dustin Rhodes made his entrance for the main event. He had sister-in-law Brandi Rhodes and tag team partner QT Marshall with them, but then they went to the back.

(Commercial)

Brodie Lee, who is the leader of the Dark Order, entered as the TNT Champion with John Silver as the only other Dark Order member with him. They stood in the ring for the championship introductions.

Rhodes attacked from behind with a forearm since he wanted revenge for brother Cody. They went fighting into the crowd a bit as Dustin hit a back body drop onto a table that did not break. They were back to the ringside area where Rhodes punched Silver to knock him down.

TNT Championships: Mr. Brodie Lee (w/John Silver) vs. Dustin Rhodes

They went back into the ring to start the match officially. There’s more than 50 years of experience here with Dustin as a 32 year pro (thanks Tony for that) and Brodie with about 20 years in pro wrestling. When they left the ring again, Lee got in a punch and was in control. Rhodes worked over Lee with some chops as well as corner punches. Lee managed to take control with a hard punch to the face and then a catapult that sent Dustin throat first into the bottom rope.

(Commercial)

Rhodes was on fire with an uppercut punch and a bulldog. Rhodes hit a powerslam. Lee with a back body drop to avoid a Destroyer attempt. Rhodes with a boot the face, then he jumped off the middle ropes and hit a hurricanrana. Rhodes also hit a Sunset Bomb for the two count. It’s incredible that Dustin can pull off those kinds of moves at 51 years of age. What a great athlete. Lee went for a suplex, but Rhodes slipped out of it and hit the Cross Rhodes that his brother Cody uses, which was good for a two count. Nice nearfall there. Lee was talking to Dustin so JR covered for it saying Lee was talking trash, which is what a veteran announcer should say. Lee came back with a superkick and a Powerbomb for two. Lee charged with a running boot, Rhodes moved and Lee bumped over the top to the floor. Rhodes with a cannonball senton off the apron onto Lee on the floor. The crowd popped for that. Silver went on the apron, Rhodes with the Unnatural Kick to the groin of Lee. Silver jumped in, Rhodes with an atomic drop and a powerslam got Silver out of the ring. Silver didn’t touch Rhodes, so no DQ. Dustin picked up Lee for a piledriver, he struggled a bit at first and then Dustin hit it. That got another two count for Rhodes as Lee got his hand on the bottom rope. JR noted it wasn’t a kickout, but grabbing the bottom rope saved Lee there. They exchanged strikes, Lee went for a boot, Rhodes avoided it and hit a clothesline for two. Rhodes charged, Lee went for a slam, Rhodes avoided it, Lee hit two superkicks and a discus lariat for the pinfall win at 12 minutes.

Winner by pinfall: Brodie Lee

Analysis: ***1/2 I thought it was a very good, hard hitting match by two veterans who treated this like a fight, which are my favorite kind of matches. There were some believable nearfalls from Rhodes after some cool moves by him. I like how it was structured with Rhodes getting a lot of two counts while Lee wasn’t on offense that much, but once Lee hit his power moves towards the end of the match, it was enough to win. By doing it that way, you’re putting over Lee as a dominant power wrestler that is able to finish guys when he hits his big moves like the double superkick leading to the discus lariat.

Post match, the Dark Order guys went out to the ring with Harper shoving Colt Cabana to get him out of the ring. Dark Order had QT Marshall with them because they beat him up. Rhodes was held up in the air with Lee kicking Rhodes in the groin. Lee celebrated with the TNT Title.

Analysis: A strong way to end the show with Brodie Lee continuing to look dominant.

The announcers talked about how Cody some big announcement during the whole show. There was a talent show called the Go Big Show with a $100,000 prize up for grabs. Cody is one of the judges on the show. It’s going to be on TBS.

Analysis: Yawn. Looks boring to me because I don’t watch those kinds of shows. It’s good exposure for Cody being a judge on a show that nobody is going to watch.

Three Stars of the Show

  1. Miro – I’m a fan of him and I hope he does well in AEW.
  2. Dustin Rhodes – He lost his match, but I thought he had the best in-ring performance of the night.
  3. Brodie Lee

The Scoreboard

This week: 6.5 (out of 10)

Last week: 7.25

2020 Average: 7.17

Final Thoughts

This was below average for an AEW show. I’m sure the AEW diehards that can see no wrong will get mad at me for saying that, but this just felt below the high quality AEW shows that they deliver when they are at their best. There are still plenty of things I like including a good main event match with Brodie Lee beating Dustin Rhodes. That felt like a fight between two old school wrestlers rather than guys out there doing moves for the sake of looking cool. However, the match quality is down from their better shows and some of the angles they did didn’t interest me that much. I am excited to see Miro in AEW because he’s a talented guy that do a lot of good things for them. It felt like there was more talking on this show than any episode of Dynamite. Plus, some of the talking didn’t work. I like FTR as much as anybody, but that was a bad promo segment that they were a part of. It felt like filler.

The matches were too predictable. They were shorter with obvious outcomes, so it’s harder to get into them. T don’t think the Jericho/Hager win or Nyla Rose’s win should have gone as long as they did. Some of the better wrestlers in the company weren’t in matches either, so that hurt the show overall.

I saw that they got over 1 million viewers in the US last night (that’s live viewers), so that’s something for them to be proud of. Good job by AEW. The boss Tony Khan seems pretty proud of it.

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John Canton

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