The official wrestling sim topic

[Evil Vito]

As mentioned, I'm not doing detailed Dark results since it's not a storyline show...I'm only booking between 4-6 matches but in real life it's a 2 hour web show with a dozen or more matches, many of them are fast paced enhancement style matches with the people I sent to developmental...so I'm imagining those matches are happening and I'm just booking the few matches featuring exclusively "main roster" talent. The rest of the show in game is filled with feud hype packages.

Also, Dark is taped the same night as the previous night's Dynamite and guys don't typically pull double duty.

AEW Dark: February 9, 2021:
-Colt "Boom Boom" Cabana def. "Pretty" Peter Avalon
-Bad Romance (Sonny Kiss and Joey Janela) def. Chaos Project (Luther and Serpentico)
-Matt Sydal def. Jack Evans
-Big Swole def. Mel
-"The Machine" Brian Cage def. Billy


AEW Dynamite: February 10, 2021

First Match:

Eddie Kingston leads us off and he's in as foul a mood as ever, never a good sign for his opponent. Brian Pillman Jr. tried his hardest, but the mad man from Yonkers was never going to be denied in this one. Backfist to the Future finishes him off, and Kingston gives him another one after the bell for good measure. **1/2, 66% overall

Not content with just administering a beating, Eddie Kingston grabs a mic, and everyone knows Eddie Kingston with a live mic is fire. Now that his Family has taken Archer and that ancient hack Jake Roberts out of the picture, he's ready to take his rightful spot up the chain and he's not waiting around. He heard Cody Rhodes tell the world last week that he was looking for his next challenge...well look no further. 81% overall

Second Match:

Two weeks ago on Dynamite, Jungle Boy scored a big win over Dax Harwood with both of their stables handcuffed to each other at ringside, but FTR dismantled Jurassic Express after the bell. This time it's Cash Wheeler's turn as he faces off with Luchasaurus, this time with everybody banned from ringside. Cash did an impressive job keeping the big man grounded, but just as Luchasaurus started rallying and gaining the upper hand, Cash thought better of it decided to just punch him in the dick for the DQ before hightailing it out of there. No flips, just fists indeed. ***, 73% overall

Chris Jericho and MJF continued to gloat about their battle royal win and impending Tag Title victory, much to the visible annoyance of the other members of Inner Circle. Santana and Ortiz still feel that they are the premier tag team of the Inner Circle, and they want to prove it tonight on their own. 93% overall

Third Match:

AEW Women's World Champion was in action tonight against the always dangerous "La Sicaria" Ivelisse. Shida had to contend not only with the highly skilled Ivelisse but also her tag team partner Diamante at ringside. After a highly athletic, hard fought contest, hitting her with the Three Count for...well, the three count. There was no time to celebrate as the lights went out, and when they came back on, Awesome Kong stood over her with the AEW Women's championship. ***, 73% overall

Team Taz cut a pre-taped video promo showing them dishing out their brand of street violence on some enhancement talent backstage. They warn Sting and Darby Allan that the fate that awaits them at Revolution. 77% overall

Fourth Match:

Orange Cassidy vs Kip Sabian : Lightning kick by Cassidy on Sabian. Orange Cassidy moves in for the kill. Beach Break! 1....2....3. Miro comes running down the aisle with a chair, and gets into the ring! Miro hits Cassidy with a chair to the back! Orange Cassidy goes down to the canvas, hurt. *** rating, as it was good, but nothing too special.

(I don't normally copy and paste the direct EWR write up...but I felt like I had to because it's hilarious that they effectively booked a two move squash, very on brand for Cassidy if he didn't want to fuck around this week. And hey, Kip must've had the sell job of the centure. In my brain though Chuck Taylor was shown knocked out backstage by Miro before this as well). ***, 72% overall

It is announced that next week, live on Dynamite, Jon Moxley will face PAC to determine the #1 contendership for the AEW World Championship. Kenny Omega was asked who he preferred to face, but Don Callis quickly interjected that Kenny's beaten them both and he won't allow Kenny to give a hack interviewer the benefit of a soundbite. 88% overall

Fifth Match:

Matt Hardy faced off against Colt Cabana of the Dark Order. A fairly even match with the fun-loving Colt throwing the now-serious Hardy off his game a few times with his off-beat shenanigans. Colt goes for the Flying Apple in the corner but Hardy moves out of the way, leaving a stunned Colt easy pickings for a cruel Twist of Fate. ***1/4, 79% overall

Matt Hardy takes a microphone and gives a shout out to "Hangman" Adam Page. It's no secret why Hangman turned down membership a group of losers like the Dark Order, and once again, there's always a spot in the Matt Hardy brand for him. Cameras pan to Page in the arena bar, sipping a beer and contemplating what he just heard. 87% overall

Main Event:

The Young Bucks and Santana and Ortiz are no strangers to one another, having a few classics before. Tonight was certainly no exception as they displayed incredible chemistry with one another, both teams anticipating what the other side will do. All of this was against the backdrop of Jericho and MJF on commentary, being insufferable pricks all along.

Eventually, Jericho and MJF can see no more and head on down to the ring. They hop on the apron to try to distract the Bucks, the Bucks duck and Jericho/MJF go down instead! Santana and Ortiz are confused, Superkick Party! And the Bucks get the big win. Inner Circle bickers as Dynamite goes off the air. ****1/4, 86% overall (95% match quality)

80% show rating

Hot damn, I don't know if they'll all be that good this early on but I figured that main event would slap, and a few other matches delivered more than what I was expecting. Having a lot of charismatic people in feuds helps a lot with the talking segments.

[Evil Vito]

AEW Dark: February 16, 2021:
-Shanna def. Leva Bates
-Wardlow def. Michael Nakazawa
-"The Spanish God" Sammy Guevara def. Marko Stunt (in apparently a **** match, I'll have to make note of that one)
-Riho def. Penelope Ford
-The Butcher and The Blade def. Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian


AEW Dynamite: February 17, 2021

First Match:

Cody Rhodes opens us up against Matt Sydal. The two have themselves a competitive match that sees Cody ultimately besting Sydal with a Cross Rhodes. The two shake hands, Sydal leaves only for Cody to be jumped by Eddie Kingston and The Family! ***, 76% overall

Eddie grabs himself a mic and runs down Cody, he challenged him last week. "I know you're the EVP, cut the shit and give me an answer!" The Butcher and the Blade hold Cody's head up to the mic and the stubborn bastard accepts, see you at Revolution. 81% overall

Second Match:

A month ago, Miro beat Chuck Taylor in a match that forced Taylor to briefly be Miro's butler. Now Taylor looks for some measure of retribution, but Miro was just too powerful to be stopped. Game Over, and Taylor taps. But he holds it longer and longer, refs can't pull him off! Kip Sabian cuts Orange Cassidy off at the pass as Miro leaves the hold locked in on Taylor for so long as officials and paramedics intervene. **3/4, 72% overall

Third Match:

Last week, Matt Hardy bested Colt Cabana of the Dark Order. Tonight we're in 6 man action as The Hardy Party (Matt Hardy and Private Party) faced Dark Order members Colt Cabana, Alex Reynolds, and John Silver. The Dark Order (who are way more over IRL now than they are in these stats ) got most of the shine in this one, but the Hardy contingent's underhanded tactics ultimately prevailed with Hardy hooking Reynolds' tights. **3/4, 69% overall

Matt Hardy once again makes a plea for Hangman Page, who was once again enjoying the libations in the stadium bar. Turning down The Dark Order was the best move he's ever made in his career. A spot with the Matt Hardy brand is still wide open for him, and next week he'd love to join Hangman at the bar to seal the deal. 87% overall

Fourth Match:

Awesome Kong makes her official in-ring return with AEW, and poor Leva Bates drew the short end of the stick on this one. This was effectively a squash and Leva never stood a chance. After the match, Hikaru Shida rushes to the ring and stuns Kong with a kendo stick shot to the head! I think that means challenge accepted. **, 65% overall

It is announced that next week, live on Dynamite, Jon Moxley will face PAC to determine the #1 contendership for the AEW World Championship. Kenny Omega was asked who he preferred to face, but Don Callis quickly interjected that Kenny's beaten them both and he won't allow Kenny to give a hack interviewer the benefit of a soundbite. 88% overall

Backstage, Chuck Taylor had a back brace on as he was being taken to the hospital (yes the hospital, not the local medical facility, for fuck's sake). Miro boasts that he put Trent on the shelf and now he put Chuck on the shelf. Orange Cassidy has seen enough and he starts throwing haymakers at Miro, this is the maddest anyone's seen Orange Cassidy. 87% overall

More backstage antics as the Young Bucks happen upon the Inner Circle in the hallway, just as Santana and Ortiz were arguing over Jericho and MJF's miscommunication last week. Jericho attempts to play the "EVERYTHING IS FINE" card once again, and says the Inner Circle will prove its strength next week. Tell the Bucks to bring their Bullet Club buddies with them because next week it'll be an 8-man tag team match. 90% overall

Fifth Match:

A month ago Darby Allin handed Brian Cage his first pinfall defeat in AEW and tonight Cage was determined to prove that it was a fluke. I imagine this match was a pretty frantic pace with them going hell for leather with each other and just going all out for 10 minutes or so. Taz slides the FTW Belt into the ring for a belt shot and Cage get the win. ****, 85% overall (92% quality...I loved their match in real life, they have a great small guy vs. big guy dynamic, I'm surprised they gel this well in game)

Taz can never resist the urge to gloat. He reminds Darby he has no idea what he's in for when there are no rules at Revolution. Cage gives Darby a Drill Claw, everyone expects Sting to appear to help him but a cut backstage shows him down with the rest of Team Taz standing over him with baseball bats. 87% overall

Main Event:

PAC vs. Jon Moxley for #1 contendership to the AEW Championship. These men are evenly matched, having fought to a time limit draw on Dynamite in 2019. Don Callis on commentary says Kenny Omega has no preference for a winner, but after a ref bump it would sure seem to not be the case as The Good Brothers hit the ring and start beating down Mox. PAC is having none of it and tries to intervene, but Kenny whacks him with the belt and hits him with the One Winged Angel.

Mox dragged up to the announce table as Gallows and Anderson give him a Magic Killer through the table (all while Callis continues to deny Kenny having a preference). Ref comes to, PAC is knocked out in the ring but wins #1 contendership via countout. Before he can get to his feet, Kenny hits him with a V-Trigger knee to the back of the head. ***1/4, 79% overall

79% show rating

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Conspiracy Victim Vito AEW Dark: February 16, 2021: -Shanna def. Leva Bates -Wardlow def. Michael Nakazawa -"The Spanish God" Sammy Guevara def. Marko Stunt (in apparently a **** match, I'll have to make note of that one) -Riho def. Penelope Ford -The Butcher and The Blade def. Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian

Looking at that I'm just imagining all of the low-key **** matches out there that have been lost to history and weren't seen by a massive audience. I mean, for all we know Paul Wight and Kevin Nash put on a clinic in some bumfuck little town in the Carolinas. Also big ups to Daniels and Kazarian still hanging in there.

AEW Dynamite: February 17, 2021 First Match: Cody Rhodes opens us up against Matt Sydal. The two have themselves a competitive match that sees Cody ultimately besting Sydal with a Cross Rhodes. The two shake hands, Sydal leaves only for Cody to be jumped by Eddie Kingston and The Family! ***, 76% overall Eddie grabs himself a mic and runs down Cody, he challenged him last week. "I know you're the EVP, cut the shit and give me an answer!" The Butcher and the Blade hold Cody's head up to the mic and the stubborn bastard accepts, see you at Revolution. 81% overall

What I took away from this segment was Sydal basically saying, "Cool, I got my handshake. Laters." Also it's a shame that Cody never really got a fair shake in WWE, in my opinion.

Second Match: A month ago, Miro beat Chuck Taylor in a match that forced Taylor to briefly be Miro's butler. Now Taylor looks for some measure of retribution, but Miro was just too powerful to be stopped. Game Over, and Taylor taps. But he holds it longer and longer, refs can't pull him off! Kip Sabian cuts Orange Cassidy off at the pass as Miro leaves the hold locked in on Taylor for so long as officials and paramedics intervene. **3/4, 72% overall

You should make it so that this win means Taylor has to continue being Miro's bitch a little longer.

Third Match: Last week, Matt Hardy bested Colt Cabana of the Dark Order. Tonight we're in 6 man action as The Hardy Party (Matt Hardy and Private Party) faced Dark Order members Colt Cabana, Alex Reynolds, and John Silver. The Dark Order (who are way more over IRL now than they are in these stats ) got most of the shine in this one, but the Hardy contingent's underhanded tactics ultimately prevailed with Hardy hooking Reynolds' tights. **3/4, 69% overall Matt Hardy once again makes a plea for Hangman Page, who was once again enjoying the libations in the stadium bar. Turning down The Dark Order was the best move he's ever made in his career. A spot with the Matt Hardy brand is still wide open for him, and next week he'd love to join Hangman at the bar to seal the deal. 87% overall

"The Hardy Party". OK, that's actually pretty clever. Also, bonus points for using the word 'libations'.

Fourth Match: Awesome Kong makes her official in-ring return with AEW, and poor Leva Bates drew the short end of the stick on this one. This was effectively a squash and Leva never stood a chance. After the match, Hikaru Shida rushes to the ring and stuns Kong with a kendo stick shot to the head! I think that means challenge accepted. **, 65% overall

In real life, the kendo stick would have said "FUCK THIS" and flew out of Shida's hands.

It is announced that next week, live on Dynamite, Jon Moxley will face PAC to determine the #1 contendership for the AEW World Championship. Kenny Omega was asked who he preferred to face, but Don Callis quickly interjected that Kenny's beaten them both and he won't allow Kenny to give a hack interviewer the benefit of a soundbite. 88% overall

Don Callis going strong!

Backstage, Chuck Taylor had a back brace on as he was being taken to the hospital (yes the hospital, not the local medical facility, for fuck's sake). Miro boasts that he put Trent on the shelf and now he put Chuck on the shelf. Orange Cassidy has seen enough and he starts throwing haymakers at Miro, this is the maddest anyone's seen Orange Cassidy. 87% overall

YES! "HOSPITAL"!!! WHO THE FUCK SAYS "MEDICAL FACILITY"? He's not going to see his OBGYN!

More backstage antics as the Young Bucks happen upon the Inner Circle in the hallway, just as Santana and Ortiz were arguing over Jericho and MJF's miscommunication last week. Jericho attempts to play the "EVERYTHING IS FINE" card once again, and says the Inner Circle will prove its strength next week. Tell the Bucks to bring their Bullet Club buddies with them because next week it'll be an 8-man tag team match. 90% overall

8-Man action is always fun. It should bring in a healthy amount of snowflakes.

Fifth Match: A month ago Darby Allin handed Brian Cage his first pinfall defeat in AEW and tonight Cage was determined to prove that it was a fluke. I imagine this match was a pretty frantic pace with them going hell for leather with each other and just going all out for 10 minutes or so. Taz slides the FTW Belt into the ring for a belt shot and Cage get the win. ****, 85% overall (92% quality...I loved their match in real life, they have a great small guy vs. big guy dynamic, I'm surprised they gel this well in game) Taz can never resist the urge to gloat. He reminds Darby he has no idea what he's in for when there are no rules at Revolution. Cage gives Darby a Drill Claw, everyone expects Sting to appear to help him but a cut backstage shows him down with the rest of Team Taz standing over him with baseball bats. 87% overall

"Drill Claw" reminds me of Wolverine in those X-Men fighting games. But **** is nothing to sneeze at.

Main Event: PAC vs. Jon Moxley for #1 contendership to the AEW Championship. These men are evenly matched, having fought to a time limit draw on Dynamite in 2019. Don Callis on commentary says Kenny Omega has no preference for a winner, but after a ref bump it would sure seem to not be the case as The Good Brothers hit the ring and start beating down Mox. PAC is having none of it and tries to intervene, but Kenny whacks him with the belt and hits him with the One Winged Angel.

The only reason I get the One Winged Angel reference is because YouTube won't stop recommending me videos of different versions of it just because of one God damn video I watched one time.

Mox dragged up to the announce table as Gallows and Anderson give him a Magic Killer through the table (all while Callis continues to deny Kenny having a preference). Ref comes to, PAC is knocked out in the ring but wins #1 contendership via countout. Before he can get to his feet, Kenny hits him with a V-Trigger knee to the back of the head. ***1/4, 79% overall 79% show rating

The V-Trigger? OK, now you're just fucking with me. Does it unlock his secondary Critical Art super combo, too?

Overall, more stars can only mean good things going forward.

[Evil Vito]

AEW Dark: February 23, 2021:
-The Dark Order (Evil Uno and Stu Grayson) def. Chaos Project
-"Rock Hard" Jake Hager def. Michael Nakazawa
-Serena Deeb def. Emi Sakura
-Rey Fenix def. Sammy Guevara
-Hikaru Shida def. Allie


AEW Dynamite: February 24, 2021

We open up with a good old fashioned contract signing for Saturday's AEW World Heavyweight Title match between Kenny Omega and PAC. As we know, contract signings don't go well. The Good Brothers hop in and jump PAC, Rey Fenix runs in to help his Death Triangle brethren. Kenny gets a belt shot on PAC while Rey Fenix gets Magic Killer'd through the table by the Good Brothers.87% overall

First Match:

Jurassic Express and FTR resume their rivalry with another singles match between team members. Two weeks ago, Cash Wheeler noped out mid-match against Luchasaurus and this week Dax Harwood did the same. As soon as Luchasaurus got his momentum, Dax signaled to the back as Cash ran in for the DQ. Jungle Boy rushes out for the save and we may as well do our next match right now! **3/4, 71% overall

Second Match:

Jungle Boy vs. Cash Wheeler to complete the teams' recent pairing off in singles matches. Jungle Boy had a standout performance winning a great match over Dax Harwood last month. This match wasn't quite at the same level but it was still a quality TV match. Luchasaurus kept Dax at bay as Jungle Boy grabbed a win. Jurassic Express are now 4-0 in their singles match series with FTR, FTR will get to go back to what they do best in tag action on Saturday. **3/4, 69% overall

Team Taz deliver their closing remarks ahead of their street fight against Darby Allin and Sting this Saturday. That is, if Sting hasn't taken last week's ambush as a sign that he needs to go back to retirement. The lights go out, a loud smack can be heard, and when they're back on - Powerhouse Hobbs has been left laying, busted wide open with Darby Allin's skateboard laying next to his head. Well that will prevent Hobbs from turning Saturday's street fight into a handicap match. 78% overall

Third Match:

Ahead of his match against Cody Rhodes on Saturday, Eddie Kingston faces off against Dustin Rhodes. The two have a real old school wrasslin' brawl, slugging the shit out of each other. Sliding D puts Dustin down for the count. Kingston continues to pound away on Dustin before Cody rushes the ring to run Kingston off. ***, 75% overall

The Young Bucks bump into Santana and Ortiz backstage, who they'll be meeting in 8-man tag action later tonight. The Bucks basically tried to needle the ongoing dissension amount the Inner Circle, pointing out how close they came to beating them two weeks ago before Jericho and MJF cost them the win. They're way too good to be second fiddle to them. 85% overall

Matt Hardy and "Hangman" Adam Page had been shown at the bar numerous times throughout the night, Matt doing most of the talking. The mics picked up him continuing to trash The Dark Order who Hangman had a hard time declining a month ago. Hardy produces a contract for him to join The Matt Hardy Brand. Hangman takes a long look at it, but he can't go through with it. He's still not ready to join a group. Matt had a feeling he might feel that way, and he's a big believer in actions speaking louder than words, so he'd rather show how great they could be together. Which is why he talked to Tony Khan and got them booked in a match for Saturday...against The Dark Order! 80% overall

Fourth Match:

Women's champion Hikaru Shida and fellow Japanese competitor Riho faced off against Awesome Kong and her former partner in the Nightmare Collective, Mel. Just imagining Riho vs. Kong.....poor Riho would get ragdolled so badly. In any event, I imagine she is always able to tag out and Kong always leaves when Shida tags in, not because she's afraid, but because she's smart enough to wait until Saturday and not give anything away. Shida locks in a Full Metal Muffler on Mel and stares down Kong on the outside as Mel taps. **3/4, 68%

Miro and Kip Sabian were on their way to the ring to squash some developmental guys, but they never made it as Orange Cassidy came out of nowhere and cracked Sabian with a chair on the rampway! Orange is out for revenge to defend his Best Friends, this is a side of Orange Cassidy we've never seen before. He and Miro brawl and have to be pulled apart. 91% overall.....Miro and Orange = ratings

Main Event:

It's The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, MJF, Santana, and Ortiz) vs. The Elite (Young Bucks and Good Brothers) for some 8 man tag goodness. Inner Circle bickered a bit early on but eventually started to work together cohesively. The Elite were doing well for themselves until Rey Fenix showed up on the rampway, carrying a table under his arm. The Good Brothers immediately left their post to go take him out, only for the music of Jon Moxley to hit as he emerges from the crowd and they start brawling on the rampway.

With the Good Brothers having completely fucked off leaving their partners high and dry, the Young Bucks were at a 4 on 2 disadvantage. They fought hard and valiantly, but could never get a pin without somebody being around to break it up. Jericho and MJF fighting with Matt Jackson on the outside, Santana and Ortiz inside the ring start to line Nick Jackson up for the Street Sweeper. Before they can hit the move, Jericho pops onto the apron, tags himself in, Judas Effect on Nick to get the triumphant pinfall for Inner Circle! ***, 77%

Before going off the air, we cut backstage and see The Good Brothers and Moxley/Fenix are brawling. The Good Brothers are stacked atop each other and Fenix leaps off a few crates to smash through both of them! [B]70% overall

76% show rating


---

Happy with the episode and although I had to rush the Revolution build I think it should end up being a good show.

That main event segment though....oops. I caused Mox to lose overness, probably because The Good Brothers are in the low 70s for overness while Mox is like a 90. This is kinda a placeholder show for him.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Conspiracy Victim Vito AEW Dark: February 23, 2021: -The Dark Order (Evil Uno and Stu Grayson) def. Chaos Project -"Rock Hard" Jake Hager def. Michael Nakazawa -Serena Deeb def. Emi Sakura -Rey Fenix def. Sammy Guevara -Hikaru Shida def. Allie

Somewhere Vince Russo is kicking himself over not thinking to push somebody named "Rock Hard". Serena Deeb wrestling is an almost foreign concept to me. Remind me again why she didn't get a WWE Women's Title run.

AEW Dynamite: February 24, 2021 We open up with a good old fashioned contract signing for Saturday's AEW World Heavyweight Title match between Kenny Omega and PAC. As we know, contract signings don't go well. The Good Brothers hop in and jump PAC, Rey Fenix runs in to help his Death Triangle brethren. Kenny gets a belt shot on PAC while Rey Fenix gets Magic Killer'd through the table by the Good Brothers.87% overall

You should've had a cake get destroyed to really tackle that checklist.

First Match: Jurassic Express and FTR resume their rivalry with another singles match between team members. Two weeks ago, Cash Wheeler noped out mid-match against Luchasaurus and this week Dax Harwood did the same. As soon as Luchasaurus got his momentum, Dax signaled to the back as Cash ran in for the DQ. Jungle Boy rushes out for the save and we may as well do our next match right now! **3/4, 71% overall Second Match: Jungle Boy vs. Cash Wheeler to complete the teams' recent pairing off in singles matches. Jungle Boy had a standout performance winning a great match over Dax Harwood last month. This match wasn't quite at the same level but it was still a quality TV match. Luchasaurus kept Dax at bay as Jungle Boy grabbed a win. Jurassic Express are now 4-0 in their singles match series with FTR, FTR will get to go back to what they do best in tag action on Saturday. **3/4, 69% overall

This spirit of Teddy Long lives on....sort of....!!!

Team Taz deliver their closing remarks ahead of their street fight against Darby Allin and Sting this Saturday. That is, if Sting hasn't taken last week's ambush as a sign that he needs to go back to retirement. The lights go out, a loud smack can be heard, and when they're back on - Powerhouse Hobbs has been left laying, busted wide open with Darby Allin's skateboard laying next to his head. Well that will prevent Hobbs from turning Saturday's street fight into a handicap match. 78% overall

Sting in a street fight in this day and age would almost qualify as senior citizen's abuse. We do need more skateboards being used as weapons in wrestling. You'd think the early nineties would have been all about that shit.

Third Match: Ahead of his match against Cody Rhodes on Saturday, Eddie Kingston faces off against Dustin Rhodes. The two have a real old school wrasslin' brawl, slugging the shit out of each other. Sliding D puts Dustin down for the count. Kingston continues to pound away on Dustin before Cody rushes the ring to run Kingston off. ***, 75% overall

Dustin would give the Sliding D to Terri Runnels all the time...

The Young Bucks bump into Santana and Ortiz backstage, who they'll be meeting in 8-man tag action later tonight. The Bucks basically tried to needle the ongoing dissension amount the Inner Circle, pointing out how close they came to beating them two weeks ago before Jericho and MJF cost them the win. They're way too good to be second fiddle to them. 85% overall

Yeah, I mean who the hell would want to play second fiddle to a guy responsible for the well being of Lucy the Dog?

Matt Hardy and "Hangman" Adam Page had been shown at the bar numerous times throughout the night, Matt doing most of the talking. The mics picked up him continuing to trash The Dark Order who Hangman had a hard time declining a month ago. Hardy produces a contract for him to join The Matt Hardy Brand. Hangman takes a long look at it, but he can't go through with it. He's still not ready to join a group. Matt had a feeling he might feel that way, and he's a big believer in actions speaking louder than words, so he'd rather show how great they could be together. Which is why he talked to Tony Khan and got them booked in a match for Saturday...against The Dark Order! 80% overall

Wow, Matt, you're a douche. That's like getting your wife a vacuum for your anniversary.

Fourth Match: Women's champion Hikaru Shida and fellow Japanese competitor Riho faced off against Awesome Kong and her former partner in the Nightmare Collective, Mel. Just imagining Riho vs. Kong.....poor Riho would get ragdolled so badly. In any event, I imagine she is always able to tag out and Kong always leaves when Shida tags in, not because she's afraid, but because she's smart enough to wait until Saturday and not give anything away. Shida locks in a Full Metal Muffler on Mel and stares down Kong on the outside as Mel taps. **3/4, 68%

Full Metal Muffler is such a bad ass name.

Miro and Kip Sabian were on their way to the ring to squash some developmental guys, but they never made it as Orange Cassidy came out of nowhere and cracked Sabian with a chair on the rampway! Orange is out for revenge to defend his Best Friends, this is a side of Orange Cassidy we've never seen before. He and Miro brawl and have to be pulled apart. 91% overall.....Miro and Orange = ratings

So when Miro eventually destroys Orange would that be known as the Orange Crush?

Main Event: It's The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, MJF, Santana, and Ortiz) vs. The Elite (Young Bucks and Good Brothers) for some 8 man tag goodness. Inner Circle bickered a bit early on but eventually started to work together cohesively. The Elite were doing well for themselves until Rey Fenix showed up on the rampway, carrying a table under his arm. The Good Brothers immediately left their post to go take him out, only for the music of Jon Moxley to hit as he emerges from the crowd and they start brawling on the rampway. With the Good Brothers having completely fucked off leaving their partners high and dry, the Young Bucks were at a 4 on 2 disadvantage. They fought hard and valiantly, but could never get a pin without somebody being around to break it up. Jericho and MJF fighting with Matt Jackson on the outside, Santana and Ortiz inside the ring start to line Nick Jackson up for the Street Sweeper. Before they can hit the move, Jericho pops onto the apron, tags himself in, Judas Effect on Nick to get the triumphant pinfall for Inner Circle! ***, 77%

Sounds like fun. Keeping up those stars in the main event.

Before going off the air, we cut backstage and see The Good Brothers and Moxley/Fenix are brawling. The Good Brothers are stacked atop each other and Fenix leaps off a few crates to smash through both of them! [B]70% overall 76% show rating --- Happy with the episode and although I had to rush the Revolution build I think it should end up being a good show. That main event segment though....oops. I caused Mox to lose overness, probably because The Good Brothers are in the low 70s for overness while Mox is like a 90. This is kinda a placeholder show for him.

[/QUOTE]

Yeah, that happens with me from time to time, too, where I want to get a lower guy more over but the guy with the higher over level drops. It's usually mitigated if the people involved are in an actual feud. That said, let the Revolution be televised!

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G Wow, Matt, you're a douche. That's like getting your wife a vacuum for your anniversary.

Hey, if it gets her to suck...

[Evil Vito]

Tonight's results are sponsored by Thunder Rosa.



AEW Dark: March 2, 2021:
-Thunder Rosa def. Diamante
-Wardlow def. QT Marshall
-Dr. Britt Baker DMD def. Serena Deeb
-Scopio Sky def. Isiah Kassidy
-The Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, Colt Cabana, Evil Uno, John Silver, and Stu Grayson) def. Angelico, Jack Evans, Luther, Peter Avalon, and Serpentico


AEW Dynamite: March 3, 2021

Segment 1:

Not gonna lie, I can be a sucker for cold openings on a wrestling show, and that's what we get here as AEW World Champion Kenny Omega arrives at the building with his manager Don Callis, and he doesn't make it a few yards before "The Bastard" PAC pounces on him, still irate about being screwed out of the title on Sunday. Security has some early work to do to keep them apart. 89% overall

Segment 2:

"The Machine" Brian Cage is here and he's pissed off, ready for a fight and the man who has the unfortunate task of facing him tonight is "The Bad Boy" Joey Janela. Janela being a tough bastard in his own right hangs in there as best he can but for the most part Cage is prolonging the inevitable. Taz, sitting in on commentary for this match, is ranting about Sunday's street fight that went awry, and says Darby Allin's business with Team Taz is far from over. ***1/4, 76% overall

Segment 3:

"The American Nightmare" Cody Rhodes makes his way out to the ring. He confirms the rumors that had been making their way around online in the past few days, AEW is ready to get back on the road and it all starts on Saturday, March 27th at Blood and Guts, with the fans getting the titular match they missed out on a year ago. Now, Tony Khan will be deciding who will be in the landmark match over the next week, but he's already thrown his hat in the ring, his dad was in so many matches like Blood and Guts over the years and he wants to continue carrying on his legacy.

The music of Eddie Kingston hits, Eddie says it's bullshit that Cody's using his pull with the office to try to get into the match. He won on Sunday and citing his lengthy career in CZW and IWA Mid South, if anybody is suited for a Blood and Guts match, it's him. He gets in Cody's face, Cody shoves him back, and we've already got our second pull apart of the night with The Family and Natural Nightmares coming in as well, sounds like a future trios match to me! 90% overall

Segment 4:

New AEW Women's World Champion Awesome Kong teamed with Dr. Britt Baker to take on Big Swole and former champion Hikaru Shida. This was more or less a showcase match for all four, Kong having some fiery brawls with Shida while also mixing it up with Swole for the first time. Baker has history with both opponents throughout 2020 so that was played up on as well. Kong and Shida eventually brawl out of the arena, as the ref tends to that, Britt pulls out her doctor's notebook and smacks Swole with it, she goes down like a stack of bricks...what is that thing made out of? Britt swipes the pinfall victory. **3/4, 73% overall

Segment 5:

The Inner Circle are backstage in their dressing room, more infighting with even Jericho losing his patience especially after MJF's miscommunication at Revolution. MJF attempts to calm the mood and says the Young Buck problem will be tended to before long - Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager will get their turn tonight. Sammy gets in MJF's face and tells him to stay in the back this time. 95% overall

Segment 6:

It's "Freshly Squeezed" Orange Cassidy vs. Jack Evans. I feel for TH2 (Jack Evans and Angelico) because while they're talented, they're almost certainly not going to be winning any matches for me as they're clearly at the bottom of the pecking order and I'm relatively low on jobbers since much of the actual enhancement guys are in the developmental system. I like to imagine when I don't book them on Dark, they're grabbing wins against the developmental guys.

Be that as it may, the least I can do is give them the occasional showcase match and I do just that here, because hoooooly shit do these guys gel well. OC's still reeling from his match with Miro last weekend, allowing Evans to hang in there for a while before OC comes charging back and gets the win with the Stun Dog Millionaire. Camera cuts to Miro backstage, looking pissed that OC still has something in the tank. ****, 81% overall

Segment 7:

Sting and Darby Allin having a chat backstage for what amounts to an unofficial torch passing segment. 5 years ago, he never thought he'd get the chance to be in the ring again, the chance to get closure. He thanked Darby for allowing him to mentor him and fight Team Taz alongside him. Maybe he'll be lurking in the shadows again when he's needed, because the only thing that's for sure about Sting is that nothing's for sure. 84% overall

Segment 8:

Six man tag team action as SoCal Uncensored (Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, and Scorpio Sky) face off against FTR and Shawn Spears. Tully Blanchard was mum as to why he brought Spears back into the fold this past Saturday, and why his former client is back under his tutelage. For now, the focus is just on some solid trios action. The 50 year old Daniels is, as you can expect, mostly being used to put over others at this point and on this night he takes a C4 for Spears as the Blanchard trio picks up an impressive win over the longtime SCU group. ***, 75% overall

Segment 9:

Matt Hardy flexing his agent skills once again got a match booked for "Hangman" Adam Page against a Dark Order member Coit Cabana. Hardy continues to try to sell Hangman on joining the Hardy brand and drive a wedge between him and his friendship with Dark Order. Page and Cabana have a spirited match, Page opting to fight clean again despite Matt yelling at him to do illegal stuff on the outside.

Colt throws some Dusty-style elbows, Page is groggy in the corner, Colt signals that he's gonna go for the Flying Asshole but Hardy grabs his feet. Colt stomps him off, turns around into a Buckshot Lariat. Hangman wins and Matt comes in to celebrate and kick Colt when he's down. Page once again is like WTF man, I don't want to fight dirty. ***1/2, 82% overall

Segment 10:

Jon Moxley cuts a promo from a shady back alley somewhere. Putting the Good Brothers through tables at Revolution was fun, but it's time to move onward and upward. Eddie Kingston wants to talk about the places he's been? Moxley has been there too...Blood and Guts is right up his alley, and he wants in. 90% overall

Segment 11:

The Young Bucks vs. Sammy Hager is the main event of the evening. Not sure what else to say about the Bucks at this point...they hit it out of the park in every match, I guess that tag experience rating really does make a difference. Anyway, Sammy works a similar fast paced, spotty style to the Bucks so I can see why that would work, whereas Hager is more of a brute strength change of pace.

Inner Circle are shown backstage, Jericho wants to get the troops out there at one point but MJF talks him out of it. Sammy Hager come pretty damn close to pulling an upset on multiple occasions. Ultimately though, Hager is sidestepped and sent tumbling out of the ring leaving Sammy to take a Meltzer Driver for the big Bucks win.

The celebration doesn't last long as the rest of the Inner Circle run out with MJF and an increasingly frustrated Jericho getting most of the shots in. Will the Young Bucks ever be able to shake off the Inner Circle? I kinda hope not, cause this feud is bringing the goods. ****1/4, 87% overall

84% show rating


---

Dean Malenko informs me afterwards that Brian Cage and Joey Janela work well together.

Hikaru Shida requests to work in a regular team with Big Swole. I have no real plans for a women's tag division, but Shida's legitimately in my top 5 wrestling crushes at the moment...decisions decisions.

Best Dynamite I've had so far.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Conspiracy Victim Vito Tonight's results are sponsored by Thunder Rosa.

Mmmm...I could get behind that....

AEW Dark: March 2, 2021: -Thunder Rosa def. Diamante -Wardlow def. QT Marshall -Dr. Britt Baker DMD def. Serena Deeb -Scopio Sky def. Isiah Kassidy -The Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, Colt Cabana, Evil Uno, John Silver, and Stu Grayson) def. Angelico, Jack Evans, Luther, Peter Avalon, and Serpentico

Women as the opening match reeks of middle fingers to the establishmentness!

AEW Dynamite: March 3, 2021 Segment 1: Not gonna lie, I can be a sucker for cold openings on a wrestling show, and that's what we get here as AEW World Champion Kenny Omega arrives at the building with his manager Don Callis, and he doesn't make it a few yards before "The Bastard" PAC pounces on him, still irate about being screwed out of the title on Sunday. Security has some early work to do to keep them apart. 89% overall

Man, what a sore loser PAC is. That was totally a clean finish at Revolution.

Segment 2: "The Machine" Brian Cage is here and he's pissed off, ready for a fight and the man who has the unfortunate task of facing him tonight is "The Bad Boy" Joey Janela. Janela being a tough bastard in his own right hangs in there as best he can but for the most part Cage is prolonging the inevitable. Taz, sitting in on commentary for this match, is ranting about Sunday's street fight that went awry, and says Darby Allin's business with Team Taz is far from over. ***1/4, 76% overall

Pfft, Taz on commentary. What promotion would ever make a move like that. I imagine Cage has some pretty good stats.

Segment 3: "The American Nightmare" Cody Rhodes makes his way out to the ring. He confirms the rumors that had been making their way around online in the past few days, AEW is ready to get back on the road and it all starts on Saturday, March 27th at Blood and Guts, with the fans getting the titular match they missed out on a year ago. Now, Tony Khan will be deciding who will be in the landmark match over the next week, but he's already thrown his hat in the ring, his dad was in so many matches like Blood and Guts over the years and he wants to continue carrying on his legacy. The music of Eddie Kingston hits, Eddie says it's bullshit that Cody's using his pull with the office to try to get into the match. He won on Sunday and citing his lengthy career in CZW and IWA Mid South, if anybody is suited for a Blood and Guts match, it's him. He gets in Cody's face, Cody shoves him back, and we've already got our second pull apart of the night with The Family and Natural Nightmares coming in as well, sounds like a future trios match to me! 90% overall

This is some good shit, sprinkled in with some classic "heel accuses face of receiving favoritism" whining. I'm not completely on board with bragging about CZW but use what you can I guess.

Segment 4: New AEW Women's World Champion Awesome Kong teamed with Dr. Britt Baker to take on Big Swole and former champion Hikaru Shida. This was more or less a showcase match for all four, Kong having some fiery brawls with Shida while also mixing it up with Swole for the first time. Baker has history with both opponents throughout 2020 so that was played up on as well. Kong and Shida eventually brawl out of the arena, as the ref tends to that, Britt pulls out her doctor's notebook and smacks Swole with it, she goes down like a stack of bricks...what is that thing made out of? Britt swipes the pinfall victory. **3/4, 73% overall

More importantly, where was Baker hiding that thing?

Segment 5: The Inner Circle are backstage in their dressing room, more infighting with even Jericho losing his patience especially after MJF's miscommunication at Revolution. MJF attempts to calm the mood and says the Young Buck problem will be tended to before long - Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager will get their turn tonight. Sammy gets in MJF's face and tells him to stay in the back this time. 95% overall

Sammy Guevara and Jake Hager = Sammy Hager

*facepalm* How did I not fucking get it all this time?

Segment 6: It's "Freshly Squeezed" Orange Cassidy vs. Jack Evans. I feel for TH2 (Jack Evans and Angelico) because while they're talented, they're almost certainly not going to be winning any matches for me as they're clearly at the bottom of the pecking order and I'm relatively low on jobbers since much of the actual enhancement guys are in the developmental system. I like to imagine when I don't book them on Dark, they're grabbing wins against the developmental guys. Be that as it may, the least I can do is give them the occasional showcase match and I do just that here, because hoooooly shit do these guys gel well. OC's still reeling from his match with Miro last weekend, allowing Evans to hang in there for a while before OC comes charging back and gets the win with the Stun Dog Millionaire. Camera cuts to Miro backstage, looking pissed that OC still has something in the tank. ****, 81% overall

"Freshly Squeezed". You can try to get TH2 more over by feuding them with another low-ranking team until the point where it's believable that they'd be beating some mid-card teams if you're high on them.

Segment 7: Sting and Darby Allin having a chat backstage for what amounts to an unofficial torch passing segment. 5 years ago, he never thought he'd get the chance to be in the ring again, the chance to get closure. He thanked Darby for allowing him to mentor him and fight Team Taz alongside him. Maybe he'll be lurking in the shadows again when he's needed, because the only thing that's for sure about Sting is that nothing's for sure. 84% overall

Oh, come on, I'm sure he's got one more battle for WCW's honor left in him.

Segment 8: Six man tag team action as SoCal Uncensored (Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, and Scorpio Sky) face off against FTR and Shawn Spears. Tully Blanchard was mum as to why he brought Spears back into the fold this past Saturday, and why his former client is back under his tutelage. For now, the focus is just on some solid trios action. The 50 year old Daniels is, as you can expect, mostly being used to put over others at this point and on this night he takes a C4 for Spears as the Blanchard trio picks up an impressive win over the longtime SCU group. ***, 75% overall

Yikes, a smack of reality as I realize Daniels is 50. Has there been another guy like him where he's received chance after chance but never hit the upper echelon despite what he can do?

Segment 9: Matt Hardy flexing his agent skills once again got a match booked for "Hangman" Adam Page against a Dark Order member Coit Cabana. Hardy continues to try to sell Hangman on joining the Hardy brand and drive a wedge between him and his friendship with Dark Order. Page and Cabana have a spirited match, Page opting to fight clean again despite Matt yelling at him to do illegal stuff on the outside. Colt throws some Dusty-style elbows, Page is groggy in the corner, Colt signals that he's gonna go for the Flying Asshole but Hardy grabs his feet. Colt stomps him off, turns around into a Buckshot Lariat. Hangman wins and Matt comes in to celebrate and kick Colt when he's down. Page once again is like WTF man, I don't want to fight dirty. ***1/2, 82% overall

Quit being a pussy, Page! If that's what Matt wanted he'd have just stuck with his drugged out, rainbow-haired brother!

Segment 10: Jon Moxley cuts a promo from a shady back alley somewhere. Putting the Good Brothers through tables at Revolution was fun, but it's time to move onward and upward. Eddie Kingston wants to talk about the places he's been? Moxley has been there too...Blood and Guts is right up his alley, and he wants in. 90% overall

You can tell it was shady because you could spot David McLane in the back soliciting some corner girls.

Segment 11: The Young Bucks vs. Sammy Hager is the main event of the evening. Not sure what else to say about the Bucks at this point...they hit it out of the park in every match, I guess that tag experience rating really does make a difference. Anyway, Sammy works a similar fast paced, spotty style to the Bucks so I can see why that would work, whereas Hager is more of a brute strength change of pace. Inner Circle are shown backstage, Jericho wants to get the troops out there at one point but MJF talks him out of it. Sammy Hager come pretty damn close to pulling an upset on multiple occasions. Ultimately though, Hager is sidestepped and sent tumbling out of the ring leaving Sammy to take a Meltzer Driver for the big Bucks win. The celebration doesn't last long as the rest of the Inner Circle run out with MJF and an increasingly frustrated Jericho getting most of the shots in. Will the Young Bucks ever be able to shake off the Inner Circle? I kinda hope not, cause this feud is bringing the goods. ****1/4, 87% overall 84% show rating

Another strong finish to a show. You'd have a pretty good upper-midcard/main event scene if you ever decide to split some of these guys down the road.

---

Dean Malenko informs me afterwards that Brian Cage and Joey Janela work well together. Hikaru Shida requests to work in a regular team with Big Swole. I have no real plans for a women's tag division, but Shida's legitimately in my top 5 wrestling crushes at the moment...decisions decisions. Best Dynamite I've had so far.

DEAN FUCKING MALENKO doesn't mess around! Now is Shida a wrestling crush because of her work or because she's got it going on in other departments?

[Evil Vito]

Originally Posted by M-A-G I imagine Cage has some pretty good stats.

Yeah he's got upper 70s brawl and fairly decent tech especially for a big dude.

This is some good shit, sprinkled in with some classic "heel accuses face of receiving favoritism" whining. I'm not completely on board with bragging about CZW but use what you can I guess.

One interesting thing AEW had to navigate early on is that the four guys who basically created the company (Cody, Omega, and the Bucks) are all EVPs. Cody did an angle really early on where he said he would challenge for the AEW World Title once and only once, and if he lost he would never challenge for it again. He lost, and has been out of the World title picture since. Down the line if he goes full-blown corrupt heel, who knows if he renegs.

Nobody really cares that Omega and the Bucks are champions right now because they haven't been overpushed, their spots on the card feel warranted as they're all really good, and they'll inevitably put the right guys over when it's time to pass the belts on.

Being proud of your time at CZW is a weird flex but Kingston (and Moxley too) have kinda embraced their deathmatch roots, like a sense of pride that they were tough bastards but able to rise above it.

Oh, come on, I'm sure he's got one more battle for WCW's honor left in him.

Haha, it definitely won't be the last time I use him but I can't imagine a scenario where I book him in an actual match again. I wish he were a manager instead of a non-wrestler but I could always go the authority figure route down the line I suppose.

Yikes, a smack of reality as I realize Daniels is 50. Has there been another guy like him where he's received chance after chance but never hit the upper echelon despite what he can do?

Yeah, Daniels fell into the dreaded "hell of a hand" label. A utility player who can get a great match out of anyone but never get pushed to the top guy. ROH gave him a thank you 3 month World title run in 2017 but that's about it. Cesaro's probably the closest guy to that in modern WWE.

Think Luke Harper/Brodie Lee was also in that group as well and his AEW run sure made it seem like he was gonna go to that top level, making his sudden illness and passing all the more sad.

Another strong finish to a show. You'd have a pretty good upper-midcard/main event scene if you ever decide to split some of these guys down the road.

Yeah the Bucks are on fire with this series of matches against Inner Circle. Obviously I'm teasing a split coming and I have plenty of options. MJF is legit probably the best heel in the business and is only 24, he's decent in the ring too but his charisma is so off the charts it would barely matter. Sammy Guevara's only 27 and should have a bright singles future too.

Now is Shida a wrestling crush because of her work or because she's got it going on in other departments?

A little from column A, a little from column B.

[Evil Vito]

Tonight's results are sponsored by Dr. Britt Baker



AEW Dark: March 9, 2021:
-"The Concrete Rose" Sonny Kiss def. Peter Avalon
-Ivelisse and Diamante def. Thunder Rosa and Shanna
-Wardlow def. Billy
-Santana and Ortiz def. Alex Reynolds and John Silver
-Rey Fenix def. Matt Sydal


AEW Dynamite: March 10, 2021

Segment 1:

Starting off with a bang as Darby Allin defends his AEW TNT title against "The Spanish God" Sammy Guevara of the Inner Circle. These two had a match way back at Revolution 2020 and it was a fast paced encounter that did not disappoint, and that was no different here as Darby grabs the win after a Coffin Drop. Afterwards, Brian Cage of Team Taz levels Darby with his FTW Championship, Taz meant it when he said his beef with Darby is not yet over. ***1/4, 81% overall

Segment 2:

Speaking of starting a show with a bang, here comes a special appearance by friend of the promotion Diamond Dallas Page! He promotes the latest upgrades of the DDP Yoga plan before the music of Eddie Kingston hits. Eddie runs down Page and uses it as a knock against Cody that he's giving valuable airtime his has-been legend friends. Before Page knows it, The Butcher, The Blade, and Allie are in the ring and The Family put the boots to poor Page. The Nightmare Family of Cody, Dustin, and QT Marshall run out for the save to build to the match later. 77% overall...as an aside, remembering that DDP is 3 years older than Sting will never not shock me

Segment 3:

Miro destroys Michael Nakazawa with reckless abandon in just a few moves. He leaves the Game Over locked in for long after the bell just to be an asshole. He points up to Orange Cassidy who is watching the match hanging out amongst the fans (YAY the mythical post-COVID era!) Orange gives him the thumbs up, not looking phased by Miro at all. **3/4, 68% overall...easily the worst segment of this feud so far, the plight of using one of the least over workers on the roster in his proper spot as an enhancement worker

Segment 4:

"Hangman" Adam Page is at his favorite place, the arena bar, when The Hardy Party walk in. Matt tells Hangman that he knows he doesn't always approve of his methods, but he can't argue with the results. He hands Hangman another contract to consider signing the Matt Hardy Brand. He tells Hangman for just a meager 33.3% of his career earnings, he can take him to the highest levels of the sport. It's a no brainer! But just to show he means business, he's got them a match against another of Page's former friends, the AEW Tag Team champion Young Bucks, next week! 79% overall

Segment 5:

Another 2020 rivalry renewed as Dr. Britt Baker faces off against Hikaru Shida, who broke Britt's nose last year. I actually thought these two had some decent matches in real life but these ratings were nowhere near as kind to them, c'est la vie. Shida hits the Three Count for, well, the three count. Awesome Kong marches down to the ring afterward but hops off the apron as a fired up Shida swings her singapore cane at her. **1/2, 70% overall....actually, as Scott Keith says, that's still Perfectly Acceptable Wrestling

Segment 6:

Another member of Inner Circle is in action tonight as Wardlow who has rung up a lot of wins on Dark faces off against Jon Moxley. During the match, it is confirmed that The Purveyor of Violence was granted his wish to be a part of the Blood and Guts match. This was a pretty decent brawl that gave Wardlow a good showing while also letting Mox keep his age. Mox gets the win with the Paradigm Shift. **3/4, 74% overall

Segment 7:

We cut backstage where there's a fracas going on. PAC finds himself the victim of a three on one beatdown by Shawn Spears and FTR. Those three had been feuding with Jurassic Express, what beef does PAC have with them? In the background, we see Don Callis handing an envelope to Tully Blanchard, guess we know who ordered this beatdown. 69% overall

Segment 8:

Six man tag team action, Family vs. Nightmare Family. Fairly standard six man tag affair here, again with some decent enough brawling going on since guys like Eddie Kingston and Dustin Rhodes are never afraid to throw hands. Butcher and the Blade hit the Full Death on Cody but it is narrowly broken up by Dustin before the inevitable pier six brawl breaks out. Natural Nightmares take out The Butcher at ringside, Cody recovers in the ring and gets The Blade in position for the Cross Rhodes, staring down Eddie Kingston on the rampway. Cody picks up the win for the face team. **3/4, 69% overall

Segment 9:

Interview backstage with the Young Bucks. As Scott Keith's write up says, nothing fancy, just a solid interview. They talk about Jericho and MJF taking the night off while leaving their Inner Circle mates to fight their battles, and say they're always welcome to another shot at their belts after they get past Hangman and Hardy next week. 81% overall

Segment 10:

In our main event of the evening, World champion Kenny Omega faces off against Jungle Boy. Don Callis joins commentary and says he's been given assurance that Jurassic Express are banned at ringside for this one, but also ignored having anything to do with the Spears/FTR beatdown despite visual evidence to the contrary.

Much as Wardlow/Mox was meant to get Wardlow over by letting him hang with a big name, that was true in this main event as well. These two definitely gelled and I could easily buy Jungle Boy getting a few convincing near-falls. FTR make their way out for the distraction, Spears chair shot in the ring, One Winged Angel, Kenny wins another match in classic heel fashion. ***1/4, 79% overall

Segment 11:

Callis and Blanchard shake hands again on the ramp before Blanchard's group leaves and Callis hands a mic to the champ. Kenny cuts an obnoxious promo, reminding everyone that he's the best wrestler in the world.

His promo is soon interrupted by PAC appearing on the video monitor, still selling his beatdown from earlier. If you'd rather fight in a group, so be it...I spoke to Tony Khan and he told me that you and I will both be in Blood and Guts! Kenny is not happy about this at all and yells at Callis to do something as we go off the air. 89% overall

77% show rating

Pretty happy with it considering a few of the segments fell flat and didn't click. Finding that Inner Circle is the only stable I can get away with doing Stable angles for is Inner Circle since Jericho and MJF are hella over and actually 5 of the 7 are at 80 overness or above. All other stable angles are usually one big name and then a lot of far less over workers. But dammit, I love stables and have so many of them!


---

Dean Malenko informs me afterwards that Moxley and Wardlow didn't really click in their match.

Then Moxley tells me he didn't really click with Wardlow. I GET IT, GOD!!!!!!

Eddie Kingston wants to be higher up the card, he's quietly moved all the way up to 84 overness having gained overness in most of his promo as well as his various brawls with Cody. Well shit, that does sound like Upper Midcard territory to me.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Conspiracy Victim Vito Tonight's results are sponsored by Dr. Britt Baker

I know what you're trying to do and it won't work!!!













Possibly....

AEW Dark: March 9, 2021: -"The Concrete Rose" Sonny Kiss def. Peter Avalon -Ivelisse and Diamante def. Thunder Rosa and Shanna -Wardlow def. Billy -Santana and Ortiz def. Alex Reynolds and John Silver -Rey Fenix def. Matt Sydal

'Concrete' is a word that doesn't seem to get used enough in wrestling. I used it for Kerry Cemenko because why not? Also please tell me John Silver has a parrot mascot.

AEW Dynamite: March 10, 2021 Segment 1: Starting off with a bang as Darby Allin defends his AEW TNT title against "The Spanish God" Sammy Guevara of the Inner Circle. These two had a match way back at Revolution 2020 and it was a fast paced encounter that did not disappoint, and that was no different here as Darby grabs the win after a Coffin Drop. Afterwards, Brian Cage of Team Taz levels Darby with his FTW Championship, Taz meant it when he said his beef with Darby is not yet over. ***1/4, 81% overall

They don't just give out those FTW Championships, you know.

Segment 2: Speaking of starting a show with a bang, here comes a special appearance by friend of the promotion Diamond Dallas Page! He promotes the latest upgrades of the DDP Yoga plan before the music of Eddie Kingston hits. Eddie runs down Page and uses it as a knock against Cody that he's giving valuable airtime his has-been legend friends. Before Page knows it, The Butcher, The Blade, and Allie are in the ring and The Family put the boots to poor Page. The Nightmare Family of Cody, Dustin, and QT Marshall run out for the save to build to the match later. 77% overall...as an aside, remembering that DDP is 3 years older than Sting will never not shock me

Yeah, DDP was a bit of a late bloomer. Again, beat downs on legends is gold.

Segment 3: Miro destroys Michael Nakazawa with reckless abandon in just a few moves. He leaves the Game Over locked in for long after the bell just to be an asshole. He points up to Orange Cassidy who is watching the match hanging out amongst the fans (YAY the mythical post-COVID era!) Orange gives him the thumbs up, not looking phased by Miro at all. **3/4, 68% overall...easily the worst segment of this feud so far, the plight of using one of the least over workers on the roster in his proper spot as an enhancement worker

Not everyone can be a Bo Dallas. You sometimes have to settle for a JTG.

Segment 4: "Hangman" Adam Page is at his favorite place, the arena bar, when The Hardy Party walk in. Matt tells Hangman that he knows he doesn't always approve of his methods, but he can't argue with the results. He hands Hangman another contract to consider signing the Matt Hardy Brand. He tells Hangman for just a meager 33.3% of his career earnings, he can take him to the highest levels of the sport. It's a no brainer! But just to show he means business, he's got them a match against another of Page's former friends, the AEW Tag Team champion Young Bucks, next week! 79% overall

Now if Hardy had been asking for 33.5% that would have been a bridge too far.

Segment 5: Another 2020 rivalry renewed as Dr. Britt Baker faces off against Hikaru Shida, who broke Britt's nose last year. I actually thought these two had some decent matches in real life but these ratings were nowhere near as kind to them, c'est la vie. Shida hits the Three Count for, well, the three count. Awesome Kong marches down to the ring afterward but hops off the apron as a fired up Shida swings her singapore cane at her. **1/2, 70% overall....actually, as Scott Keith says, that's still Perfectly Acceptable Wrestling

I love how both of us have universes where the women are constantly cranking out the goods.

Segment 6: Another member of Inner Circle is in action tonight as Wardlow who has rung up a lot of wins on Dark faces off against Jon Moxley. During the match, it is confirmed that The Purveyor of Violence was granted his wish to be a part of the Blood and Guts match. This was a pretty decent brawl that gave Wardlow a good showing while also letting Mox keep his age. Mox gets the win with the Paradigm Shift. **3/4, 74% overall

I want to steal that Purveyor of Violence title.

Segment 7: We cut backstage where there's a fracas going on. PAC finds himself the victim of a three on one beatdown by Shawn Spears and FTR. Those three had been feuding with Jurassic Express, what beef does PAC have with them? In the background, we see Don Callis handing an envelope to Tully Blanchard, guess we know who ordered this beatdown. 69% overall

That was really nice of Callis to finally getting around to giving Blanchard his Valentine's card.

Segment 8: Six man tag team action, Family vs. Nightmare Family. Fairly standard six man tag affair here, again with some decent enough brawling going on since guys like Eddie Kingston and Dustin Rhodes are never afraid to throw hands. Butcher and the Blade hit the Full Death on Cody but it is narrowly broken up by Dustin before the inevitable pier six brawl breaks out. Natural Nightmares take out The Butcher at ringside, Cody recovers in the ring and gets The Blade in position for the Cross Rhodes, staring down Eddie Kingston on the rampway. Cody picks up the win for the face team. **3/4, 69% overall

I'd have figured something like this would have gotten a higher rating.

Segment 9: Interview backstage with the Young Bucks. As Scott Keith's write up says, nothing fancy, just a solid interview. They talk about Jericho and MJF taking the night off while leaving their Inner Circle mates to fight their battles, and say they're always welcome to another shot at their belts after they get past Hangman and Hardy next week. 81% overall

*GASP* They said 'belts'!!! WITCHCRAFT!!!

Segment 10: In our main event of the evening, World champion Kenny Omega faces off against Jungle Boy. Don Callis joins commentary and says he's been given assurance that Jurassic Express are banned at ringside for this one, but also ignored having anything to do with the Spears/FTR beatdown despite visual evidence to the contrary. Much as Wardlow/Mox was meant to get Wardlow over by letting him hang with a big name, that was true in this main event as well. These two definitely gelled and I could easily buy Jungle Boy getting a few convincing near-falls. FTR make their way out for the distraction, Spears chair shot in the ring, One Winged Angel, Kenny wins another match in classic heel fashion. ***1/4, 79% overall

More win in the main event segment. And just because Callis was there doesn't mean he had anything to do with it.

Segment 11: Callis and Blanchard shake hands again on the ramp before Blanchard's group leaves and Callis hands a mic to the champ. Kenny cuts an obnoxious promo, reminding everyone that he's the best wrestler in the world. His promo is soon interrupted by PAC appearing on the video monitor, still selling his beatdown from earlier. If you'd rather fight in a group, so be it...I spoke to Tony Khan and he told me that you and I will both be in Blood and Guts! Kenny is not happy about this at all and yells at Callis to do something as we go off the air. 89% overall 77% show rating

I'm sure Callis will get around to handing out some more Valentine's.

Dean Malenko informs me afterwards that Moxley and Wardlow didn't really click in their match. Then Moxley tells me he didn't really click with Wardlow. I GET IT, GOD!!!!!!

But did you remember the cover sheets on your TPS reports?!?

Eddie Kingston wants to be higher up the card, he's quietly moved all the way up to 84 overness having gained overness in most of his promo as well as his various brawls with Cody. Well shit, that does sound like Upper Midcard territory to me.

Ah, the dreaded 'move me up the card' emails. You can get away with ignoring them if they stay at one level below where they're supposed to be but if they have, like, 96 over and you still have them at midcarder they'll get really agitated.

[Evil Vito]

Tonight's results are sponsored by Riho



AEW Dark: March 16, 2021:
-Big Swole def. Emi Sakura
-Team Taz (Ricky Starks and Powerhouse Hobbs) def. Bad Romance (Joey Janela and Sonny Kiss)
-Matt Sydal def. Brian Pillman Jr.
-Luchasaurus def. Jake Hager
-Colt Cabana def. Christopher Daniels


AEW Dynamite: March 17, 2021

Segment 1:

Over the weekend, it was announced that Rey Fenix, who is a member of Death Triangle with PAC and teamed with Jon Moxley in a Tables match at Revolution was selected to be a part of their team at War Games Blood and Guts. Tonight they faced off against Santana and Ortiz of the Inner Circle. These two teams really tore the house down to open the show.

Many probably expected this to be a showcase match for the face team, but experience ended up winning out as Mox found himself thrown out of the ring leaving Fenix prey for the Street Sweeper as Santana and Ortiz score one of their biggest wins in AEW! ****1/4, 88% overall

Segment 2:

After the match, an unlikely trio made down to the ring: Kenny Omega, Eddie Kingston, and Brian Cage. These three are all from different corners of AEW - Kenny is the World Champion with Impact talents (Don Callis and The Good Brothers) watching his back, Kingston leads The Family, and Brian Cage is the heavy hitter of Team Taz. But they're all putting their differences aside temporarily as they've been drafted into battle on the same team at Blood and Guts.

Santana and Ortiz are from yet another faction in The Inner Circle, but seeing how they just put down two guys from the face team, they want Santana and Ortiz to get the final two spots on the heel Blood and Guts team. Santana and Ortiz look at each other, smirk, then pull out a madball and start beating down their opponents with it! I suppose that's a painful way of saying yes. 85% overall

Segment 3:

A continuation of the Jurassic Express vs. FTR/Spears angle with Spears making his singles in-ring return against the diminutive Marko Stunt. Unfortunately, I feared these dudes would be sent out to die after that opener and that's exactly what happened, tough to balance out a card in EWR. Anyway, crowd was still fired up from the opener but with FTR and Jurassic Express getting in each others' business on the outside, Spears puts Marko down with the C4 (a running Death Valley Driver, which I imagine Marko would be able to sell like death). **1/2, 63% overall

Segment 4:

Chris Jericho and MJF are backstage. With tensions rising in the Inner Circle, MJF feels like Santana and Ortiz might be upstaging the group by going into the Blood and Guts match. So if they're gonna go big, so should they - he wants the Young Bucks again at Blood and Guts. Jericho, not wanting to be upstaged himself, takes it a step further - if the Inner Circle can't bring home the belts, they'll go their separate ways. GASP! 91% overall

Segment 5:

AEW Women's World Champion Awesome Kong is in action tonight, and another big size differential in this one going up against inaugural Women's champion Riho. I've seen Riho work really good size mismatches against Nyla Rose so I imagine this would be good in real life too, and it was a real solid match in game. Alas, Riho threw everything in her 5'1" frame at Kong but it was not enough as an Awesome Bomb folds her up like a lawn chair for the win.

Kong grabs a pair of scissors and seems content to humiliate Riho and take a memento...but CRACK! Shida's singapore cane connects and Kong goes down! Shida aids her friend and this business with Kong is still not over. **3/4, 73% overall

Segment 6:

Cody Rhodes backstage with Darby Allin. Darby and Cody had numerous wars with one another throughout AEW's 2 year history, and Darby's also fought and teamed with Moxley on many occasions. Darby is a guy Cody wants to go to war with, and now that Brian Cage is on the other team, that's all Darby needed to accept the gig. Darby Allin is in for Blood and Guts, and the two cut a promo on their current rivals (Kingston and Page). 80% overall...Cody has very high charisma but Darby's 72 charisma wore it down, ah well, I was running out of segments

Segment 7:

We have a rematch from Revolution with Orange Cassidy and Miro resuming their unfinished business. I imagine the match was certainly not PPV length, but the intensity was still there and they got through what they needed to and had a nearly identical rated match. Orange got fired up, looked like he'd rally and grab the win only for "Superbad" Kip Sabian to come out of nowhere and hold Orange's foot at ringside. The distraction was all that was needed to give Miro time to sneak up for a Sambo suplex and the win. ***, 82% overall

Segment 8:

The Young Bucks due battle against Matt Hardy and his reluctant partner, Hangman Adam Page. Between their overness and talent it seems damn near impossible for the Bucks to not have a 4 star match at this point...and it was no different here. Lot of high octane work with Page and the Bucks. Matt Hardy trying to cheat wherever possible.

Ref bump leads to Matt Hardy going out and getting a chair, but Page won't let Matt use it. They have a tug of war over the chair, which Hardy wins only to turn into a Superkick Party into the chair. The ref comes to and Matt Hardy is pinned. The Bucks win, Page just shakes his head.

Bucks can't celebrate for long as here comes Jericho and MJF to jump them as the two teams brawl out of the arena. ****1/4, 90% overall

Segment 9:

As Matt Hardy recovers from having a chair Superkicked into his face, he tries to regain his composure and address Page. He knows Hangman is trying to do the honorable thing, but getting on your high horse only gets you so far in this business. That is why he needs the guidance that the Matt Hardy brand can provide. He pulls out the contract again from last week and implores Hangman to sign.

Hangman looks conflicted, looks back and forth to the audience chanting "NO!" before ripping the contract up! Matt is beside himself! Private Party sneak into the ring and blindside Page. They hit him with the Gin and Juice! The Hardy Party have left Hangman laying. 90% overall

Segment 10:

The scheduled tag match main event pitting PAC and Darby Allin vs. Brian Cage and Ricky Starks of Team Taz took on even more meaning now that Darby is officially in for Blood and Guts. This was a step down from the last match, but thankfully not enough to be punished with the fans being burned out or anything.

Given that Starks is the only one of the four not in the Blood and Guts main event, I think we know who is eating the pin. Darby and Cage are off fighting at ringside while PAC pins Starks after the Black Arrow. ***, 77% overall

Segment 11:

Has it been made clear yet that I love a good belt shot? Such an easy way to add heat to an angle. Anyway that's what happens here with Kenny cutting PAC's celebration short, blasting him with the World Title.

Officially, that's all that was booked for this segment in EWR. But in imagination land, Darby and Cage spill back into the ring and eventually Mox/Fenix/Cody/Kingston/Santana/Ortiz all come out in various groups and we have both teams duking it out to put over the mayhem of Blood and Guts. 85% overall

82% show rating

Hell yeah.

[M-A-G]

Originally Posted by Conspiracy Victim Vito Tonight's results are sponsored by Riho

Meh, I've seen better....

AEW Dark: March 16, 2021: -Big Swole def. Emi Sakura -Team Taz (Ricky Starks and Powerhouse Hobbs) def. Bad Romance (Joey Janela and Sonny Kiss) -Matt Sydal def. Brian Pillman Jr. -Luchasaurus def. Jake Hager -Colt Cabana def. Christopher Daniels

Gonna need some details as to why Bad Romance has that name. Did they both have Lady Gaga at some point in their lives?

AEW Dynamite: March 17, 2021 Segment 1: Over the weekend, it was announced that Rey Fenix, who is a member of Death Triangle with PAC and teamed with Jon Moxley in a Tables match at Revolution was selected to be a part of their team at War Games Blood and Guts. Tonight they faced off against Santana and Ortiz of the Inner Circle. These two teams really tore the house down to open the show. Many probably expected this to be a showcase match for the face team, but experience ended up winning out as Mox found himself thrown out of the ring leaving Fenix prey for the Street Sweeper as Santana and Ortiz score one of their biggest wins in AEW! ****1/4, 88% overall

That's how you open a show! But really, is the Blood and Guts thing just War Games with a different paint job? How are they getting away with that? I mean Cody and Dustin are certainly heirs to whatever Dusty Rhodes ever created but doesn't the WWE essentially own everything?

Segment 2: After the match, an unlikely trio made down to the ring: Kenny Omega, Eddie Kingston, and Brian Cage. These three are all from different corners of AEW - Kenny is the World Champion with Impact talents (Don Callis and The Good Brothers) watching his back, Kingston leads The Family, and Brian Cage is the heavy hitter of Team Taz. But they're all putting their differences aside temporarily as they've been drafted into battle on the same team at Blood and Guts. Santana and Ortiz are from yet another faction in The Inner Circle, but seeing how they just put down two guys from the face team, they want Santana and Ortiz to get the final two spots on the heel Blood and Guts team. Santana and Ortiz look at each other, smirk, then pull out a madball and start beating down their opponents with it! I suppose that's a painful way of saying yes. 85% overall

But whose side is Sting on?!?!? Oh, wait, I'm having a flashback...

Segment 3: A continuation of the Jurassic Express vs. FTR/Spears angle with Spears making his singles in-ring return against the diminutive Marko Stunt. Unfortunately, I feared these dudes would be sent out to die after that opener and that's exactly what happened, tough to balance out a card in EWR. Anyway, crowd was still fired up from the opener but with FTR and Jurassic Express getting in each others' business on the outside, Spears puts Marko down with the C4 (a running Death Valley Driver, which I imagine Marko would be able to sell like death). **1/2, 63% overall

Yeah, that moment when you book a hell of a match between competitors who are over as fuck immediately before some scrubs. The game will give the middle finger to stats in this regard and will only care about how over your guys are. So sticking a bunch of guys in their forties right after a bunch of guys in their mid-eighties to nineties is just asking for a let down. I try to keep anybody lower than seventy in the first few matches. Also, booking angles and interviews in between will not help mitigate the problem.

Segment 4: Chris Jericho and MJF are backstage. With tensions rising in the Inner Circle, MJF feels like Santana and Ortiz might be upstaging the group by going into the Blood and Guts match. So if they're gonna go big, so should they - he wants the Young Bucks again at Blood and Guts. Jericho, not wanting to be upstaged himself, takes it a step further - if the Inner Circle can't bring home the belts, they'll go their separate ways. GASP! 91% overall

I smell dramz!!!

Segment 5: AEW Women's World Champion Awesome Kong is in action tonight, and another big size differential in this one going up against inaugural Women's champion Riho. I've seen Riho work really good size mismatches against Nyla Rose so I imagine this would be good in real life too, and it was a real solid match in game. Alas, Riho threw everything in her 5'1" frame at Kong but it was not enough as an Awesome Bomb folds her up like a lawn chair for the win. Kong grabs a pair of scissors and seems content to humiliate Riho and take a memento...but CRACK! Shida's singapore cane connects and Kong goes down! Shida aids her friend and this business with Kong is still not over. **3/4, 73% overall

Is that 'haircut-as-a-memento' thing real? I've always wanted to see something like that and I don't think it's ever been implemented. It totally fits Kong.

Segment 6: Cody Rhodes backstage with Darby Allin. Darby and Cody had numerous wars with one another throughout AEW's 2 year history, and Darby's also fought and teamed with Moxley on many occasions. Darby is a guy Cody wants to go to war with, and now that Brian Cage is on the other team, that's all Darby needed to accept the gig. Darby Allin is in for Blood and Guts, and the two cut a promo on their current rivals (Kingston and Page). 80% overall...Cody has very high charisma but Darby's 72 charisma wore it down, ah well, I was running out of segments

You're a braver man than I am. I never stick a person with less than 85 charisma in an interview segment unless accompanied by a manager. Like you put it, sort of, work with what you got.

Segment 7: We have a rematch from Revolution with Orange Cassidy and Miro resuming their unfinished business. I imagine the match was certainly not PPV length, but the intensity was still there and they got through what they needed to and had a nearly identical rated match. Orange got fired up, looked like he'd rally and grab the win only for "Superbad" Kip Sabian to come out of nowhere and hold Orange's foot at ringside. The distraction was all that was needed to give Miro time to sneak up for a Sambo suplex and the win. ***, 82% overall

These guys work pretty well together, I've noticed. Their stats have to be pretty boss, no?

Segment 8: The Young Bucks due battle against Matt Hardy and his reluctant partner, Hangman Adam Page. Between their overness and talent it seems damn near impossible for the Bucks to not have a 4 star match at this point...and it was no different here. Lot of high octane work with Page and the Bucks. Matt Hardy trying to cheat wherever possible. Ref bump leads to Matt Hardy going out and getting a chair, but Page won't let Matt use it. They have a tug of war over the chair, which Hardy wins only to turn into a Superkick Party into the chair. The ref comes to and Matt Hardy is pinned. The Bucks win, Page just shakes his head. Bucks can't celebrate for long as here comes Jericho and MJF to jump them as the two teams brawl out of the arena. ****1/4, 90% overall

Ugh, Page being a dumbass AGAIN! Matt just needed to sit down and take a breather for a bit.

Segment 9: As Matt Hardy recovers from having a chair Superkicked into his face, he tries to regain his composure and address Page. He knows Hangman is trying to do the honorable thing, but getting on your high horse only gets you so far in this business. That is why he needs the guidance that the Matt Hardy brand can provide. He pulls out the contract again from last week and implores Hangman to sign. Hangman looks conflicted, looks back and forth to the audience chanting "NO!" before ripping the contract up! Matt is beside himself! Private Party sneak into the ring and blindside Page. They hit him with the Gin and Juice! The Hardy Party have left Hangman laying. 90% overall

No, no, I'm as shocked as you are. Being a dumbass only grants you so much mercy, Page.

Segment 10: The scheduled tag match main event pitting PAC and Darby Allin vs. Brian Cage and Ricky Starks of Team Taz took on even more meaning now that Darby is officially in for Blood and Guts. This was a step down from the last match, but thankfully not enough to be punished with the fans being burned out or anything. Given that Starks is the only one of the four not in the Blood and Guts main event, I think we know who is eating the pin. Darby and Cage are off fighting at ringside while PAC pins Starks after the Black Arrow. ***, 77% overall

Solid, logical booking here. Black Arrow is a DC villain, right?

Segment 11: Has it been made clear yet that I love a good belt shot? Such an easy way to add heat to an angle. Anyway that's what happens here with Kenny cutting PAC's celebration short, blasting him with the World Title. Officially, that's all that was booked for this segment in EWR. But in imagination land, Darby and Cage spill back into the ring and eventually Mox/Fenix/Cody/Kingston/Santana/Ortiz all come out in various groups and we have both teams duking it out to put over the mayhem of Blood and Guts. 85% overall

*GASP* You said 'belt' again!!! VINCE MCMAHON CURSES YOU!!!

I should probably think long and hard about trimming my roster down so that I'm focused on a select few people, kind of like what you're doing but I have such good talent that no one else deserves.

[Evil Vito]

Tonight's results are sponsored by Penelope Ford



AEW Dark: March 23, 2021:
-"Superbad" Kip Sabian and Penelope Ford def. Peter Avalon and Leva Bates
-Scorpio Sky def. Angelico
-Evil Uno and Stu Grayson def. Chaos Project
-Powerhouse Hobbs def. "The Natural" Dustin Rhodes
-Colt Cabana def. Frankie Kazarian


AEW Dynamite: March 24, 2021

Segment 1:

It's Orange Cassidy vs. Kip Sabian to kick us off, Sabian having returned last week and cost OC his match against Miro. The last time these two met, Sabian did not last very long. Tonight he had a much better account of himself. Miro's attempted interference goes awry, and Cassidy puts Kip away with the Superman Forearm. Miro and Kip but the boots to Cassidy after the bell, when the music of Best Friends hits! Chuck Taylor is back! Chuckie T runs out with a chair, backing Miro and Kip out of the ring for the save. ***, 75% overall

Segment 2:

Backstage, we see Jurassic Express backstage, getting ready for their 6-man tag match tonight. The lights are cut off in their dressing room, a loud commotion is heard, and when they come back, FTR and Shawn Spears are standing over them, chairs in hand. It's chair night in AEW, apparently. Tully Blanchard declares that since their opponents are apparently in no condition to compete, guess they can call it an early night. Tully and Co head for the parking garage. 66% overall

Segment 3:

Hikaru Shida is out for some singles action against her fellow countrywoman Emi Sakura. These two have competed each other many times across various Japanese promotions, and the chemistry is obvious as they had a solid match here. With a rematch for the Women's title on Saturday looming, Shida gets the Three Count for the win. ***1/4, 76% overall

Segment 4:

Shida can't celebrate for too long, as the music of Awesome Kong hits. Shida immediately gets her kendo stick at the ready. Kong emerges with a kendo stick of her own! Security tries to hold Kong back but she plows through them to the ring, members of the AEW women's roster try to break them up and get caned for their trouble. Pull apart brawl for the women, not something you see everyday. 77% overall

Segment 5:

Backstage, Kenny Omega and Don Callis have gathered Team Taz, The Family, and Santana and Ortiz into a conference room. This gathering of the groups is meant to put their differences aside ahead of tonight's main event and Saturday's Blood and Guts, but really it came across more like a town hall meeting with Omega and Callis putting Omega over. FEAR NOT, you are being led into battle by the best wrestler in the world! 97% overall (!)....I actually set the whole group up as a stable called "Heel Team" for this, muahaha

Segment 6:

Hangman Page in action against the ring veteran Christopher Daniels. Matt Hardy joined the commentary team, still incensed about Hangman ripping up the contract last week, but hinting he's got a better offer up his sleeve after this match. Page and Daniels have themselves a banger, Daniels can still go and it's nice to get whatever I can out of him before the game tries to send him into retirement land. Page wins with the Dead Eye. ****, 84% overall

Segment 7:

Matt Hardy sarcastically applauds Hangman's win. "You may have turned down my contract last week, but this week I have a new offer for you. I have in my hand a contract for a match this Saturday at Blood and Guts. You and me. Mano y mano. IF you beat me, I will so generously write you a check for 100% of my 1st quarter earnings. But WHEN I beat you, you have to sign with the Matt Hardy Brand for the next year. So what do you say, cowboy? You know what happened the last time you turn down my contract."

Hangman looks to the crowd, and gets a couple beers from ringside. "I look forward to making some money on Saturday, but this is the only way to close a deal". Hangman and Matt toast, Page hits the lariat mid-sip, beer flies everywhere. Hangman signs the contract and leaves it on the downed Matt. ***, 86% overall

Segment 8:

We see a video package highlighting the members of the other team at Blood and Guts (and yes, I made the face team their own stable in-game for this). Each man talks about the opportunity to make history in the first ever Blood and Guts match in history. Mox embracing the chance to get back to his violent roots, Cody wanting to honor his dad who fought in wars like this, everyone getting a chance to get their hands on their rivals, etc. 87% overall

Segment 9:

Chris Jericho and MJF get some last-minute work in ahead of Saturday's tag title opportunity as they face Evil Uno and Stu Grayson of Dark Order. Announcers remind everyone that Jericho threatened to disband Inner Circle if they don't win the titles on Saturday....is this the last time we're seeing the Inner Circle team on Dynamite?

Lots of hijinx outside the ring with fellow Inner Circle members Sammy Guevara, Jake Hager, and Wardlow cheap shotting Dark Order members Colt Cabana, Alex Reynolds, and John Silver. Grayson dives onto the whole pile to try to help his friends. Ref doesn't see Jericho poke Uno in the eyes. Uno loses his bearings, MJF drop toe holds him down and then locks in the Salt of the Earth armbar for the win. ***1/4, 81% overall

Segment 10:

Jericho and MJF obnoxiously celebrate like they just won the World Series while the Dark Order and Inner Circle are still fighting at ringside. They gesture that they'll have belts around their waists soon enough, but don't see the Young Bucks have slid into the ring. Superkicks in stereo and the champs hold their titles above them before sliding back out to avoid the Inner Circle. 81% overall

Segment 11:

TEN MAN TAG TEAM ACTION in our main event pitting Saturday's teams against each other in standard tag action, and it is of great consequence as this match will determine which team will receive the all-important entry advantage ahead of Blood and Guts.

Given this involves ten prominent names, everyone gets a chance to showcase and get some stuff in. There's a reason multi-man tags always devolve into a wild brawl though - because it's fun and it works! Bah gawd what's it gonna be like on Saturday when all of these men are locked in a cage together? Signature fest from everyone, Cody gets the Cross Rhodes on Ortiz but Eddie Kingston hucks him out of the ring. Rey Fenix launches off the ropes at Kingston but Kingston perfectly times it with a Backfist to the Future! Ouch.

The bad guys pick up the win and the advantage for Saturday. ***, 82% overall

81% show rating