Rampage - 5/13/2023

[Dolfan in NYC]

This week on Rampage...

 

[Elsalvajeloco]

Don't let the title fool you, folks. The show is happening tonight.

WOO SATURDAY NIGHT WRESTLING~!

[Matt D]

This is kind of a sleeper good looking Rampage.

I liked Fletcher's solo outing on ROH so let's see what he can do against Andretti; hopefully it's beat him around the ring a bit. Storm vs Kay probably won't get a ton of time, but what we get will be good. I'd be pretty surprised if Silver and Reynolds don't actually have good chemistry with Swerve and Cage; the bigger question is whether Swerve and Cage have any chemistry. And I feel like Acclaimed vs Butcher/Blade never even happened as a straight tag, so the six man should feel fresh and fun.

[Gordi the former AEW fan]

Is this the first time we got two Cage match main events in one week?

Dustin & Lee vs Gates of Agony should be fun.

The Storm match was way more back and forth than I had anticipated. Enjoyed that.

Got a new hamster for my younger daughter yesterday. Cutest thing ever. So we're all in good moods today.

[Curt McGirt]

It was... okay. Feeling cynical tonight. Allysin Kay needs a spot on the roster and more than a squash, didn't know she was a former Knockouts champ until AxB told me on the Discord, and I sure as hell had the feeling. Probably the best match was Andretti/Fletcher (who still has terrible hair! It just didn't look like it last time he was onscreen! YAYYYYYYYY!). Sunshine and Jimmy Garvin The Ass Boys are definitely gonna be down on the Von Erich Ranch Hardy Compound having Jeff ramp over them in a four-wheeler while digging a ditch and having to make a perfect omelet for Matt's wife and kid or else Vanguard-1 is gonna shoot bottle rockets at them.

[Curt McGirt]

Excuse me... VANGAURD One.

[BrianS81177]

Random thoughts:

I assume we're working towards Acclaimed/Daddy Ass vs House of Black at the PPV? I don't hate it. Still can't believe Billy Gunn is almost 60.

Fletcher vs OC is gonna be a hell of a good time.

I dunno why but The Outcasts just aren't doing it for me. I like Ruby, I like Toni and I don't mind Saraya but for some reason this whole angle just makes me wanna reach for the fast forward button.

I really don't care to see more of this Matt Hardy/Ethan Page stuff unless it leads to a match where Stokely faces Matt's kids.

Swerve is such a great dickhead heel (which I'm sure means he's a super nice guy IRL since that almost always seems to be the case). Swerve/Cage vs Lee/Rhodes in some sort of brawl around the arena could be fun.

Dark Order is staler than 3 month old bread. Something needs to be done. Split them up, turn them heel, add some new members, something. I like them all too, so it sucks to see them just floating aimlessly in the sea.

 

[hobo joe]

11 hours ago, BrianS81177 said:

I dunno why but The Outcasts just aren't doing it for me. I like Ruby, I like Toni and I don't mind Saraya but for some reason this whole angle just makes me wanna reach for the fast forward button.

Dark Order is staler than 3 month old bread. Something needs to be done. Split them up, turn them heel, add some new members, something. I like them all too, so it sucks to see them just floating aimlessly in the sea.

 

The Outcasts have gotten a lot better since adding Ruby, getting a name/matching gear, but… where’s this going? I’m sure the eventual war games match or big brawl or whatever will be good but it all seems like a distraction from Hayter being an asskicking champion.

The Dark Order is the Brodie Lee memorial act, held in stasis until Negative One turns 18. They didn’t even feud with JAS when Anna left or with Rush when Ten turned. If I’m fantasy booking, some malevolent force (House of Black?) returns Uno and Stu to their cult roots and they turn heel and feud with Silver/Reynolds 

[JLowe]

This was kind of there.

At this point, the Acclaimed are basically an attraction. Super over, have good matches, hit all their spots, but kept away from title angles. I don’t like it.

Andretti-Fletcher was a good show for Fletcher as a singles wrestler and a warmup for the OC match. AA as plucky babyface JTTS is a good spot for him.

I expected way more of a squash for Toni Storm, but reading that Kay is a former TNA champion and not just local enhancement explains why it was so competitive. I miss babyface Toni Storm having stiff, killer singles matches. Ready for the Outcasts to end I think.

I liked some individual elements of the main event. I liked John Silver going strength for strength with Brian Cage (who I still just don’t care for). I really want to see a Swerve-Reynolds singles match that goes 12-15 minutes. I think they’re wasting Swerve. I am also one who thinks Dark Order is stale, but I like Silver-Reynolds as a tag team.

They smartly didn’t waste any big matches on this show, since it was moved to a different night.

[HarryArchieGus]

18 hours ago, Gordlow said:

Is this the first time we got two Cage match main events in one week?

Easy 'got me' from the King there. 

Acclaimed/Daddy Ass v Butcher/Blade/Kip was fine. So, when Billy/Bowens/Caster won that trios (ugh) battle royal was it said that they had earned a title shot? That Battle Royal was to determine a number 1 contender to the House of Black, no? But then on Wednesday Bandido/Besties got the next shot(?). Why hasn't there been any follow up on the Trios Battle Royal win? I assume they're all still meeting up at the PPV, but I don't quite understand the No Sell from the Champions and Contenders and Commentators? QTV is the new excellence of execution. Kudos Harley! Kudos! Alysin Kay v Toni Storm was pretty alright. I dig Toni's new ring gear. Former TNA Champion or not, Alysin Kay is enhancement, how does it make sense to have the Outcasts cheat so heavily to score a Win against a wrestler not signed or likely to work TV again in 2023? Still, questions aside, it was okay. I dig the Outcasts, but losing the continous 'Paint fail' would be a upwardly progressive move. Action Andretti v Kyle Fletcher was a fun TV match. I thought Andretti, haircut aside, looked pretty solid here. Tho, he's of no concern to anybody until he turns heel. Small complaint... not a fan of devastating sheer drop brainbusters for forgettable 2 counts. Fletcher is slowly burgeoning into a bright big shiny star. Loved his half thumb on the win. Bring on the Orangemin! Hardys and Zay join us for a completely dogshit awful segment. I did like Jeff calling to attention the contract bullshit. I like the Gunns just fine, and blame the material, but their mic game could use to greatly improve. I sense Matt Hardy needs to be flat out banned from the creative room. Work that into a contract stip Tony! Quite a try by Zay. Maybe they could loan Matt to Impact to get this shit out of his system? Dark Order v Swerve/Cage was alright. I agree with the Dark Order being stale, but I sense some things are happening with them on ROH. I too wanna see Reynolds/Silver feud with Uno/Grayson, and I think it might happen. I'd love to see either team go on a nice run with the ROH Tag TItles. I like Brian Cage. And I like Nana running with Strickland. Yeah, Swerve, Keith Lee and Dustin are all better than this lameduck feud. That said, the Lee/Dustin v Cage/Swerve tag match should be excellent if they eeehh-ver get to it. Definitely a middle of the road Rampage, but I didn't not have fun. 

[AverageKong]

Toni's new gear was cool. Switching to pants is a great heel move for her. Although we knew Allysin was there to do the job, it was still competitive. In fact Allysin looked rather strong having Toni beat with the finish and getting the run ins. 

I think Kay would be good for the ROH brand. She worked there sporadically before. 

I haven't been feeling the Outcasts from its genesis. Unfortunately the stable still has steam, they have merch, and they're the 3 biggest female names in AEW. We'll be seeing them a while longer I imagine. 

[Log]

21 hours ago, Gordlow said:

Is this the first time we got two Cage match main events in one week?

Dammit, Gordlow!!!

[zendragon]

On 5/13/2023 at 9:05 PM, BrianS81177 said:

 

Dark Order is staler than 3 month old bread. Something needs to be done. Split them up, turn them heel, add some new members, something. I like them all too, so it sucks to see them just floating aimlessly in the sea.

 

Merge them with The Wingmen so we can get a running gag of John Silver going up to women backstage and saying “Johnny Hungee” or “wann know why they call me The Meat Man” and getting his face slapped 

I want Burt The Machine to work a celebrity match

[Peck]

1 hour ago, zendragon said:

I want Burt The Machine to work a celebrity match

He's a good dude. Big Jimmy Buffett guy like myself. lol

[zendragon]

I can’t tell it’s him with a shirt on

@hobo joeI think Dark Order needs to lean more in to the comedy Silly Hats, John Silver as mini hoss and then once in a while revert back to the brutality we saw in Uno v Mox

[Matt D]

Finished up Rampage on my commute today. Not a ton of thoughts but I thought Swerve and Reynolds matched up well and Cage and Silver matched up ridiculously, but you can't say it wasn't entertaining. Probably would have preferred Reynolds to not kick out of that double team but to have Silver break it up instead but other than that it was put together in a very fun way (Reynolds/Silver are best at putting together bullshit "anyone can come in whenever" anti-tags). I agree that Kay would be good in ROH. I'd like to see her in a Proving Ground with Athena. I'm ready for the Fletcher vs OC match and hope we get it next Friday. Say what you will about the Gunns but they get a different level of heat from just about everyone other than Christian. It's different than Christian's but it's well appreciated. Jeff grumbling about the contract stuff was funny too but screw it, I want another 3 months of Matt Hardy and Ethan Page interacting on ... well we don't have C shows anymore, so I'm not sure how it'd work in practice. I guess just on Rampage? I do think we get Acclaimed/Gunn vs HOB at some point, and i'm curious what the special rule will be. That's going to be a nice little surprise element to HOB matches moving forward.