We’re still a couple of weeks away from AEW Revolution and I’m happy to say that the build-up to this pay-per-view has been nothing short of great. While we didn't get a segment as good as last week's Cody lashing, the women's championship match, Jeff Cobb's debut, and a surprisingly great encounter between MJF and Jungle Boy made this week's Dynamite feel surprisingly fresh.
I do have something to bitch about and it has nothing to do with the show’s quality at all. If you’re a wrestling fan who’s active on Twitter, Facebook, or any other social media platform then you probably know what I’m talking about…
Your New WOMEN’S Champion
Nyla Rose is your new AEW Women’s World Champion.
Nyla Rose is a WOMAN who won the company’s WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP!
As much as I want to gush about how good the match between Riho and Rose is, and it was really good, I can’t help but be bothered by all the transphobic assholes who have been voicing their displeasure over the move. While the fans in the arena applauded it, the disgusting dudebros and TERFs of social media have done their best to crap all over it.
The sad thing is this isn’t news to Nyla Rose, who has probably been dealing with this hate for all of her wrestling career. It’s almost a shame that Nyla’s a heel since I would love it if she addressed the hate in a promo. Granted, she could still do that, but the unfortunate side about being a heel is that you go out there to get booed and if Rose were to address what happened, people can react negatively and it would “work.”
I could be overthinking things but it just sucks that people are up in arms about this move. If they were just sad about Riho losing that would be fine since you’re supposed to root for the babyface. I’m sure there are some fans upset about the title change and nothing more but you won’t find too many of those complaints online.
Watch this match. Not just for its quality, easily being the best match in this episode, but to be on the right side of history.
Cobbamania
Not gonna lie, while I’ve seen Jeff Cobb’s name float around online, the first time I saw him wrestle was on PWR Special: Homecoming. It was awesome seeing him suplex Chris Panzer and Quatro around like rag dolls and I can’t wait to see Cobb do the same to Moxley next week.
AEW should get some credit for hyping up Jeff Cobb like he’s a superstar. Jericho praised Cobb’s in-ring talent and ferocity when he announced the NJPW and ROH wrestler as his hired gun to take down Moxley. We also got a short video package that showed his prowess in action and, to put the cherry on top, he hit Moxley with his impressive Tour of the Islands powerslam.
Reports claim that Cobb hasn’t signed a contract yet and will freelance with the company while continuing to work with New Japan and Ring of Honor. Whatever the case, Cobb has a potential home in Dynamite and I’m excited for all the potential matches he could take part in.
Wild and Young
Nyla Rose vs. Riho might have been my match of the night but if anyone thinks MJF vs Jungle Boy was better, I won’t begrudge them for it because they had one hell of a showing. I’m surprised that a match based off a Twitter spat could be this good but that’s just the world we live in now.
MJF vs. Jungle Boy was such a good clash of styles. The Jurassic Express member tried his best to take down MJF, using his speed and impressive athletics. In turn, MJF tried to use his obvious power advantage to beat down the smaller man.
The ending was great, with MJF only winning after hitting Jungle Boy with his ring thanks to Wardlow’s timely interference. It gives Jack Perry an out for losing and has us looking forward to a future rematch down the line.
Both guys are just so good and it’s crazy how they’re only in their early 20s. These two are clearly AEW’s future and I look forward to more matches between them when they get even better.
When Honor Doesn’t Cut It
Though not as good as their Jericho Cruise match, I really dug the rematch Kenny Omega and Hangman Page had with SCU.
Scorpio Sky and Kazarian made it clear throughout the match that they would do everything within their power to get the AEW World Tag Team Championships back from Omega and Page; even play dirty. I loved seeing Sky kick Omega as he ran the ropes since it showed that they weren’t playing around. The fact that they tried to hit SCU Later early on showed just how desperate they were to get their championships back.
Omega and Page did end up winning at the end, which was the obvious outcome, though that didn’t lower the match’s quality. There weren’t any moments of uneasiness between the two and that’s fine; we don’t need to see them bicker all the time. They are the AEW World Tag Team Champions after all and should work like a well-oiled machine. You earned that beer Hangman.
If the Young Bucks win the Tag Team Battle Royal next week, and they probably will, then we’re definitely getting a Match of the Year candidate in Revolution.
Final Grade: This week’s AEW Dynamite gets another A! The company's younger talent put out all the stops to give us a fairly entertaining show. Definitely give Riho vs Nyla Rose and MJF vs Jungle Boy a watch.
Matches Announced for Next Week
- Cody vs. Wardlow in a Steel Cage Match
- Tag Team Battle Royal to determine the #1 contender for the AEW World Tag Team Championship at Revolution
- Kenny Omega and Hangman Page (c) vs. The Lucha Bros for the AEW World Tag Team Championship
Elite Thoughts
- I can’t believe I’m excited to see a Jake Hager match, on pay-per-view too! While I liked the former Jack Swagger’s in-ring work during his lengthy run in WWE, he never really felt like a star after some horrendous booking. Big props to AEW for making him feel important and I hope his match with Dustin Rhodes doesn’t disappoint.
- Jon Moxley and Santana put on a fun main event here, though I did like Moxley’s match with Ortiz a bit more. Still, good effort from both men.
- Britt Baker is AMAZING. The heat she got for making fun of Whataburger almost resulted in a riot.
- That tease for the Tag Team Battle Royal next week was pretty fun, though I’m curious as to how this will be booked. The graphic for next week showed even more tag teams will be in the mix, including Private Party, Jurassic Express, and the freaking STRONGHEARTS! Where have these guys been?
- Apologies for forgetting to cover that awesome Darby Allin segment from last week, where he used a freaking flamethrower to burn down that cutout of Jericho and Guevara. They followed it up this week by having Allin copy Sammy Guevara’s cue cards shtick in first-person, where he challenged the Inner Circle member to a match. That should be amazing!
- Where did Christopher Daniels go after that Dark Order promo? This storyline continues to entertain.
Images from All Elite Wrestling
Nico Parungo is a writer for Epicstream.com and has contributed several reviews for PWR and MWF. When he isn't frustrated about the WWE, he's playing video games at home and is bugging his friends with glorious puns. He's new to the world of Twitter drama but is quickly getting hooked.
Nico Parungo is a writer for Epicstream.com and has contributed several reviews for PWR and MWF. When he isn't frustrated about the WWE, he's playing video games at home and is bugging his friends with glorious puns. He's new to the world of Twitter drama but is quickly getting hooked.
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