After a raucous few nights in the bedroom with Allie and trying to avoid being murdered by The Butcher and The Blade, I'm back for another week.
AEW Dark: May 18, 2021:
-Dr. Britt Baker def. Leva Bates
-"Absolute" Ricky Starks def. QT Marshall
-Chuck Taylor def. Brian Pillman Jr.
-The Dark Order (Colt Cabana, Alex Reynolds, and John Silver) def. Luther, Serpentico, and Peter Avalon
-Shawn Spears def. Brandon Cutler
-Darby Allin def. Angelico
AEW Dynamite: May 19, 2021
Segment 1:
We were scheduled to open with tag team action but instead, "Superbad" Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford hit the ring before the Dynamite intro could even finish and he immediately talked trash on Jon Moxley, accusing him of slashing his tires last week. He challenged Mox to a fight right there, right now.
I think everybody knew Miro would be just waiting to pounce to beat on Mox with his best friend, but I don't think it came soon enough for Kip. I also don't think Kip was expecting Kurt Angle to send referee Mike Posey out to the ring to turn it into an impromptu match. Mox didn't even take his jacket off, flattening Kip with a few lariats and a Paradigm Shift in a quick win.
As Penelope tends to her beau, out comes Miro finally. Miro marches down to the ring only to think better of it, wanting to save it for Double or Nothing in 10 days.
***, 78% overall
Segment 2:
And from that, we move into our actual scheduled opener. Cody and Dustin are out first to a big hand from the crowd. Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager are out next accompanied by MJF and Wardlow.
MJF addresses Cody on the mic on the way down, stating his second stipulation if he is to agree to face Cody at Double or Nothing. You might think he's going to make Cody put his career on the line against him, but he's not going to do that. He's going for something even more personal...he knows how hard Cody Rhodes fought to reclaim his name from some rich guy, well if Cody loses, he can sign those naming rights right back over to another one. Cody Rhodes will be dead forever and MJF will own him.
This seemed to just stoke a fire for both of the Rhodes boys, as they started the match with a house of fire and took Guevara and Hager to the proverbial woodshed. They end up having themselves a good tag match. Cody and Sammy brawl in the ring not as the legal man, Sammy slips to the outside to take a breather with MJF and Wardlow only for Cody to hit a Moonsault to the outside on all of them.
This distracts Hager long enough for Dustin to spin him around and hit him with the Final Reckoning! And it's over! The Rhodes brothers get the win and it's an enormous victory for Dustin as well, calling back to his loss against Hager way back at Revolution 2020. This seems to fire up Dustin who last week was questioning his future.
An incensed MJF gets back on the mic. "Hey Cody, remember how I said I wasn't going to make you put your career on the line against me? I was telling the truth. Instead, you're going to have to win a match next week when the opponent is putting his career against you. You want me next at Double or Nothing? You have to win a career threatening match against...DUSTIN RHODES!!!" Mic drop. MJF is the biggest dickhead of all time.
***1/4, 83% overall
Segment 3:
The Dark Order are backstage hanging out in a big locker room. Adam Page, Evil Uno, and Stu Grayson are talking about their wins from last week as Silver and Reynolds play foosball and Colt enjoys some fancy massage chair. Eddie Kingston, The Butcher, and The Blade make a surprise appearance. Kingston and Page, two of the favorites for the Casino Battle Royale, get in each others face and a brawl between the groups is teased. I love a good stable war.
81% overall
Segment 4:
"Where is My Mind?" by the Pixies hits which means Orange Cassidy is on his way to the ring with Chuck Taylor for more tag team action against Powerhouse Hobbs and Ricky Starks of Team Taz. Another pretty solid tag match that sees OC's Double or Nothing opponent Brian Cage attempt to interject himself only for Orange to send Ricky Starks into him, crashing him off the apron. Superman Punch to Starks and the faces get the win.
The big hosses Cage and Hobbs get back into the ring for the 3 on 2 beatdown until Kris Statlander appears on the ramp and waves somebody out from the back. It's........
Trent? We haven't seen him in months coming off of a torn pectoral muscle! Trent hits the ring and helps rid Taz's minions. The four Best Friends all look at each other and have a big group hug.
***, 77% overall
Segment 5:
We have even MORE tag drama as we cut backstage to see FTR meeting Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian in the hallway, Tully lays down the formal challenge for Double or Nothing, as FTR wants to get the revenge on SCU they deserve. It leads to all 4 men brawling which leads to officials having to intervene. It's fun having so many teams and stables to book, imagine having actual tag depth?
79% overall
Segment 6:
Nyla Rose dipped out of her tag match last week but this week it was no such option as she was made to face Hikaru Shida and per orders of Kurt Angle, Nyla getting herself counted out would cause a forfeit. The two are no strangers to each other, with Shida hholding a 2020 triumph over Rose to win the AEW Women's Title.
The two continued the streak of good matches on this week's Dynamite, gelling well together. Vickie Guerrero at one point undoes one of the middle turnbuckle pads and Rose sends the unsuspecting Shida into it with a drop toe hold. Shida is out cold and Rose grabs the cheap win.
Vickie Guerrero laughs at the victory, but the face of elation turns to one of pure terror as Awesome Kong arrives at ringside and grabs Vickie by the hair, prompting her shrill scream. Kong doesn't hurt Vickie (yet) but does carve out a lock of her hair all as Rose looks on mortified.
***, 77% overall
Segment 7:
Young Bucks interview. Usual interview asking if they have any preferences on the #1 contenders match coming up (spoiler alert: they don't). Not much here, just had to get these over guys onto the show.
88% overall
Segment 8:
#1 contenders tag match: Santana and Ortiz of Inner Circle vs. Uno and Grayson of Dark Order. Do we continue our streak? You god damn right we do. This is turning out to be one of the better Dynamites in terms of in-ring quality and the crowd reactions have steadily been getting better too.
The heels turn to their weapon of choice (the madball/rock in a sock) in this one, Ortiz waffling Grayson with it when he was sent into the ropes. Santana, perhaps sending a direct message to the Bucks, follows up with a Superkick to finish it off.
Santana and Ortiz earn the Double or Nothing title shot, as the announcers mention they're one of the few teams to have a victory over the Bucks in AEW. The Bucks stand up at the commentary table and face their new challengers.
***1/2, 82% overall
Segment 9:
The Rhodes Brothers are backstage. Cody is distraught. MJF's head games have reached a new low. He already agreed to put his Cody Rhodes name on the line, but that third stipulation MJF laid out is too far. He can't bring himself to put his older brother out of the very business his father brought him into.
Dustin gets in Cody's face, giving the kind of tough love only an older brother can give. Dustin basically tears Cody a new one for even considering to think about forfeiting this opportunity and surrendering his name over to that snot nosed, Long Island scumbag. "Besides, why are you assuming you'd win?" And with that, Dustin slaps Cody clean across the face and walks off.
80% overall
Segment 10:
Main event of the evening sees AEW World Champion Kenny Omega face off against Rey Fenix of Death Triangle. To say the least, this was a far greater challenge than what Michael Nakazawa brought to the table last week. The two are no strangers to one another and had an excellent, high octane bout.
Kenny throws Fenix out of the ring and hams it up to the crowd before distracting referee Aubrey Edwards. At ringside, Rey Fenix is suddenly jumped by a "fan" in a Fenix mask. The fan throws Fenix back in the ring as Don Callis on commentary blasts AEW security for having no control. Fenix is easy prey as Omega hits a V-Trigger for the win. The "fan" breaks away from security and hugs Don Callis, unmasking of course as Karl Anderson.
Callis and Karl laugh it up as Omega decides to put Fenix up for a One Winged Angel for good measure. But before he can, Anderson takes a lariat to the back of the head from PAC and PAC runs in to save his bud.
****, 86% overall
Segment 11:
Kurt Angle cuts off Kenny's retreat to the back with another big announcement for Double or Nothing. We already knew Kenny would be defending his title against PAC - but Kenny won't be able to be up to his old tricks. PAC's been screwed twice now by cheating and interference, and to ensure that doesn't happen again and the two have enough time to settle the score once and for all - everyone will be banned from ringside as they do battle in a 30 minute Iron Man Match!
89% overall
82% overall show rating