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Andrew from Cape Breton
Matt Taven has had a rough go of things in the past few years with his much-maligned ROH Title run being the major knock on him. I think that he made the most out of his opportunity tonight and maybe he could be taken seriously down the road. I hope Mike Bennett gets something like that too, as the stench from his WWE run is hard to get rid of. I also didn’t know how to feel about the DQ tonight, as normally in WWE, they’re annoying, as they always come at the end of a long match. The fact that AEW rarely does DQs though did help with that finish, as well as all the heat for it being put on The Patriarchy. I’m just not sure where they’re going with Copeland now, as normally the conchairto is a heavy angle. And lastly, I wasn’t a fan of Darby making the Cody Rhodes reference. It reminded me of WCW and when they would talk about all the great guys they had who left. Maybe it could be justified, as Darby had a history with Cody, but it’s something you want to avoid. Good show in general though.
Jordan from the Bronx
Dynamite was a fun show and the Revolution card is filling out nicely. Ospreay and Takeshita will be great and I’m looking forward to seeing how both guys will be booked after the match. Takeshita has had one too many hot/cold spells.
Speaking of, Wardlow feels like he’s just treading water. His squashes mean less now and his longer matches fail to hold my attention. Now he seems to be The Narcissist? I don’t know what else he can do to be more interesting than he is.
Did Toni Storm get a legit cover up tattoo for a wrestling angle? That’s metal as fuck!
Question: Is there a reason why AEW doesn’t announce injuries? I recently watched an interview on their YouTube channel featuring Queen Aminata, and she talked about her having a knee injury. But on TV, she seemingly disappeared. I find myself asking about guys whereabouts like Miro, Wheeler Yuta, PAC. Since AEW is leaning into a sports presentation, maybe including an injury report (whether legit or kayfabe) could be a nice inclusion.
The slow burn double turn between Hangman and Swerve took another step forward. It’s also rare for AEW to do a DQ finish but it made sense for Copeland and Garcia to get ruined by that turtleneck SOB and his brood. Was it a write-off for Adam?
Ospreay drawing Takeshita for his first match at Revolution could be a vehicle to turn Will babyface. I think he’s outgrown Don Callis and company.
OC/Taven didn’t need to be a Texas Death Match because the sanctity of it needs to be protected for more heated rivalries.
The not-so-Young Bucks are leaning into the Type-A executives with such douchey zeal.
Moxley-Dax is the match of the week. Joe has the thing that the kids call aura in spades. Have some gripes with the direction of the Hangman character, which for the most part has nailed the zeitgeist.
While I loved the angle last week and wearing the blood-tinted outfits, these Young Bucks characters have just fallen flat and haven’t been nearly as clever as they seem to think they are. Stands out when you’re seeing the “wrestler in a management position” deal done better at the same time. Using Darby’s origin story to gain heat is clver, but it’s interesting to see Cornette’s “All Friends Wrestling” shtick become babyface material in AEW cannon. The death match was not my cup of tea without the heated feud to go with it.
Overall, thought the show lacked a little substance and was a come down from last week’s, my favorite episode of wrestling TV in 2024.
Cody From Maine
I’ll be making the trip down to Greensboro for the PPV next month. I was sold on the Sting retirement alone, but with what has been announced for this card so far? I don’t need another match to be happy. This show should be incredible…and I’m sure we’ll get at least four more matches anyway.
I’m very happy to have seen Matt Taven get a chance to shine. It’s a shame ROH tried to push him a bit too hard, too soon. It soured people on a really solid performer. Hopefully tonight changed some opinions. Although my lone negative with the match was the stipulation. It could’ve just been a hardcore match or no DQ. You need to save the Texas Death stipulation for what we’ve seen it used for previously.
Brian in New Jersey.
Fun episode with a lot of good wrestling, especially in the first hour, and good storytelling and PPV build throughout. I love Samoa Joe continuing to run with the ball given to him. I could listen to him talk for even longer. Hangman’s heelish character since the last match with Swerve is an interesting twist… and coincidentally kind of mirrors Roxanne Perez’s current character on NXT. Orange Cassidy and Matt Taven really escalated quickly, but all parties delivered. Short but savage build for Storm vs. Purrazzo. I’m fully behind the evil EVP act of the Young Bucks, it gives good fuel for faces like Darby and Kingston, and the always changing facial hair is fun.
Quick aside, did you catch the news from Marvel Studios today? The new Fantastic Four have been cast, and Richie from The Bear has been cast as The Thing.