AEW TV - 9/25 - 10/1/2024 - Slam! Let The Boys Be Boys!

[Log]

Thought this show was pretty great top-to-bottom. Yeah, I liked the tag match. To me, felt like the Bucks looked better than they had in a while.

Interested to see where Darby goes from here. I have to think we're getting him vs. Danielson at some point.

[just drew]

Anyway, I liked the show. I understand why some folks would be irked by Darbs losing his title shot to Mox, but I get the feeling Mox will be the one to drop the title to Darby. This might be something that's being necessitated by Danielson's physical deterioration. 

MVP cut a hell of a promo. Idk who all is coming in with him, but that might be a good way to elevate Hobbs when he's ready. Lashley, Hobbs, and Shelty B? Sign me up. 

The tag title match had lots of sweet stuff happen while it was going on, but nobody sold and it was like watching a match in FF. 

Boy, Mariah May is a STAR. Probably makes it easier for TK to deal with not getting Stephanie Vaquer. 

I can't decide if I think Daniel Garcia is gone or not. I think it'd be a mistake on his part but people make those all the time. 

Good show. AEW is stacking great shows together. Idk why more people aren't watching. I'm not entirely convinced they aren't.

[Technico Support]

This show was like an old time PPV.  Very little in the way of promos and promo packages, just good to great matches back to back to back.  All killer, no filler as the saying goes.

Danielson/Nigel, for a good part of the match, felt like there was no way it would live up to the hype.  Then I adjusted my expectations and it met me in the middle, and was very good.

I concur with @Zimbra that Taven and Bennett are the best stooges going today. 
 

Hook retiring the  belt in New York with his dad was great; now let's see him move on and up.

I loved the tag match but it did have maybe two near falls too many.  But I did enjoy the story and the finish.  I'd love to hear some posters here articulate why they hate the Bucks so.  Aside from @just drew because I know he thinks they're just too tiny to be believable

MVP as a manager?  Cool.  Bringing in Shelton Benjamon and Bobby Lashley, both of whom are pushing 50, when there's a whole roster of dudes who could use the elevation?  Fuck no.

Mariah continues her streak of needing another person in order to be interesting, while being dull as an apartment paintjob on her own.  Now Mina's involved, so we're safe for a while.

Mox kills Darby.  In the end, this leads to Darby defeating Mox for the word title and it'll be awesome.  Still, I feel like it's too early for Mox to beat Danielson.  I'll save thoughts on that for if it happens.

Excellent show.  God damn.

Edited September 26 by Technico Support

[just drew]

5 minutes ago, For Great Justice said:

I meant Fifth Field Stadium in Kennesaw, but turns out that’s a USL team. Would look cool for wrestling.

I was on the broadcast team for the first ever football game there. That would be a hoot!

(also, KSU's mascot is the Owl, so pun intended.)

[Log]

3 minutes ago, just drew said:

MVP cut a hell of a promo.

I really dug how he was rattling off specific moments in Swerve's year. Made it seem like he'd really been extensively scouting him. Also made it sound like he's been an AEW fan for a while.

[just drew]

@Technico Support the quick version is; it has nothing to do with their size. Bryan Danielson might be my favorite wrestler of all time. It’s their insistence on not selling so that they can sprint from spot to spot while winking to the camera. “Look how good at movez we are!” They don’t show ass nearly enough, even when working bigger, more physical teams. Again, you don’t have to be huge to be dominant. Just do shit that makes sense for someone your size. Everything Danielson does looks like it hurts. It’s believable. I don’t watch wrestling to see flips for the sake of them. If el Hijo Del Vikingo does flips in his offense bc it keeps his opponent off balance and he needs that to overcome larger opponents, that’s one thing. But doing flips and mugging to the camera for no reason other than to pop yourselves and a handful of others is another. I understand that wrestling is a work. That doesn’t mean I don’t want some realism. I know Captain America isn’t really fighting those Hydra agents, either. That doesn’t mean he should wink to the camera and do Three Stooges gags in the middle of action sequences. The bucks doing things the way they choose to do them murders my suspension of disbelief. 
 

Trust me, that WAS the short version.

 

I also thought it was pretty lame to whine in their book about getting beaten up in a professional wrestling match, especially when Danielson & Strong were doing it to try to get the Bucks over as babyfaces. But I’ll admit that that’s more “personal preference” as opposed to “takes a wet shit on what pro wrestling is supposed to be” like my original list of grievances.

Edited September 26 by just drew

[Matt D]

Just don’t watch the match! I didn’t watch the match!

[just drew]

7 minutes ago, Matt D said:

Just don’t watch the match! I didn’t watch the match!

I usually don’t. @Technico Support asked a question.

[EVA]

I know the roster is full, and there have been plenty of (recently discussed!) examples or ex-WWE guys being a major pain in the ass for AEW…But the idea of who could be following after MVP clearly sent a charge through the live crowd, and me sitting at home, too.

Bobby Lashley was consistently WAY more over than his push for his last couple of years in WWE, and the Hurt Business still lingers in a lot of fans’ minds as a great “what if” of untapped potential after senile Vince broke them up on a whim. I think there’s a LOT of potential in a 1-2 year run in AEW for those guys, and Lashley/Swerve would be a helluva way to kick that off. (A great way to pull Swerve away from Hangman for a while, too.)

[Lawful Metal]

Haven’t watched a live Dynamite in a minute. It flew by. 

I’m assuming this is Nigel’s swan song? Perfect match to go out on if that’s the case. 

Hook and Roddy was great, loved the unexpected show of respect at the end. Quasi face turn? Retiring the belt makes sense. Hook probably outgrew it, and it doesn’t make sense outside of a “Team Taz” type and Hook was the only one left. 

Im not a Bucks hater, so I loved the match. The Bucks superpower is their timing, especially on breaking up the pin. Yes, the Bucks traditionally always kick out of ridiculous spots. I know. But it usually just ratchets the tension up and up and up to a fever pitch. It just sucks that it led to typical Don Callis bullshit. I think Don Callie has outlived his usefulness. Honestly I wish he’d be a main color commentator instead of a manager. I mean, for such a heat magnet, everyone he manages is basically a face or indefinitely injured. 

Mariah May throws strikes like she hates humanity. Lots of people throw a shotgun dropkick but few put that amount of stink on it. I wish Riho was in this role instead of Yuka. 

if Willow is here, does this mean we get Stat vs Mone?

 

 

[BrianS81177]

Did Nigel actually say Thank You? Because it was muted when I watched so I assumed he said Fuck You instead.

[Log]

12 minutes ago, BrianS81177 said:

Did Nigel actually say Thank You? Because it was muted when I watched so I assumed he said Fuck You instead.

I thought the same thing. The censor had their finger ready to mute all night. I couldn't tell if the commentators were trying to downplay him cursing or if the censor just got overzealous and muted "thank you".

[Technico Support]

56 minutes ago, EVA said:

I know the roster is full, and there have been plenty of (recently discussed!) examples or ex-WWE guys being a major pain in the ass for AEW…But the idea of who could be following after MVP clearly sent a charge through the live crowd, and me sitting at home, too.

Bobby Lashley was consistently WAY more over than his push for his last couple of years in WWE, and the Hurt Business still lingers in a lot of fans’ minds as a great “what if” of untapped potential after senile Vince broke them up on a whim. I think there’s a LOT of potential in a 1-2 year run in AEW for those guys, and Lashley/Swerve would be a helluva way to kick that off. (A great way to pull Swerve away from Hangman for a while, too.)

That might be my problem.  I don’t watch WWE so I did not see one second of Hurt Business.  I just see them as two guys who are about my age, possibly coming onto a roster that really doesn’t need two more guys my age.

[caley]

I never want to hear anyone complain about the MITB suitcase being lame after Christian's title shot was derailed because of theft of the official pen! Seriously there are no other pens at ringside?! Or does it have to be that pen?! So you could just steal the pen and his title shot just disappears??

Danielson-Nigel was all right but there was too much goofiness (the headstand spot was so stupid that a guy who's supposed to be such a ring technician wouldn't just stand on the other side of the ring and wait for him to climb down instead of running into discreet repeatedly; you could argue he was so infuriated by Nigel that he charged in but that doesn't line up with this vicious personal feud opening with chain wrestling) and such weak strikes (I think Danielson was trying REALLY hard not to get anywhere near Novel's head).

Highlight of the show was Prince Nana cosplaying as Jimmy Hart as the Hulkster's manager ( "Swerve is working so hard to get back for you kids!" ) being interrupted by MVP who delivered the promo of he night, just pandering enough to get pops, just heelish enough to set up the future.

[Matt D]

I'm kind of dying to write up Danielson/Nigel. My take on it was that it was Nigel's Impossible Dream and that Danielson didn't give a damn about it because he was so focused on Moxley. That they basically sacrificed what could have been a ROH fan's deep fantasy for the overarching storyline in relatively subtle ways (so much so that those fans still seem entirely enamored by it) but in a way that helped them to put a huge exclamation point on the end of the night. Very surprising and appreciated narrative discipline. On some level it's a shame but the fact it's a shame is what gives it weight as a sacrifice. If it didn't matter then it wouldn't matter, etc. 

But I really need to see it again just to make sure my read is correct. 

[EVA]

Following Dragon/Nigel with that cash-in angle should be a jailable offense. The cash-in teases might be the most annoying modern WWE trope. Keep that shit away from AEW plz.

[Zimbra]

My stand is that Sabian stealing the pen was Looney Tunes wrestling (complimentary) while the tag match was Looney Tunes wrestling (derogatory).

[EVA]

42 minutes ago, Technico Support said:

That might be my problem.  I don’t watch WWE so I did not see one second of Hurt Business.  I just see them as two guys who are about my age, possibly coming onto a roster that really doesn’t need two more guys my age.

To be fair, even if you were a WWE watcher, you could have blinked and missed the peak of the Hurt Business, which was really just a couple months in Fall 2020, before Vince nuked it for unclear reasons (then brought it back for a half-assed reunion the next year, which he also quickly nuked). But they were by far the coolest thing in WWE for those few months.

I don’t have any desire to see Shelton brought in (I’d rather see some AEW guys get the rub; let’s do a Bobby and Lio Rush reunion instead), but Bobby is in incredible shape for his age and as good as he’s ever been in the ring. Knows exactly how to use his strengths. Would be a great, unique challenge to test top AEW guys.

Edited September 26 by EVA

[Log]

If I could ban two things from pro wrestling forever, it’d be evil authority figures and MitB-type “anytime, anywhere” title shots. 

[The Natural]

Had a big smile on my face during Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness. Bryan Danielson is the GOAT. I've always liked Nigel McGuinness especially the London Dungeon and Tower of London. McGuinness looked great considering his age, it was only his second match in 13 years, his first singles since then. The chain wrestling was the highlight so smooth. Match went 18:51 according to cagematch.

[The Natural]

Skipped The Young Bucks vs. Will Ospreay/Kyle Fletcher. Zimbra and Matt D nailed why.

Edited September 26 by The Natural

[NoFistsJustFlips]

I'm not feeling this Bryan & Mox match at all. So been there / done that. Bryan vs Darby was an exciting new pairing we've never seen, and it's pretty unlikely we'll ever get to see it now.

If I'm gonna be honest Mox doesn't do a lot for me. I do like this little character refresh for him but just do not want to see him in a top spot anymore. I may be in the minority on that.

Feels like a story they could have held the trigger on until Bryan was part time too. He loses the belt. Mox snaps and does the plastic bag deal. He's out for months. Comes back when the time is right, boom.

Give me a Hobbs, Lio Rush, Lashley with MVP Hurt Business please. Feels like a good mix and a way to elevate two younger current AEW guys. If Keith Lee ever gets healthy can come back to help Swerve. Add one more guy Swerve's side and there's a solid trios title feud that feels important.

[The Natural]

41 minutes ago, NoFistsJustFlips said:

I'm not feeling this Bryan & Mox match at all. So been there / done that. Bryan vs Darby was an exciting new pairing we've never seen, and it's pretty unlikely we'll ever get to see it now.

If I'm gonna be honest Mox doesn't do a lot for me. I do like this little character refresh for him but just do not want to see him in a top spot anymore. I may be in the minority on that.

Feels like a story they could have held the trigger on until Bryan was part time too. He loses the belt. Mox snaps and does the plastic bag deal. He's out for months. Comes back when the time is right, boom.

I'm the biggest Bryan Danielson fan on the board with all due respect to Octopus, NikoBaltimore, Brandon Bones and Gordi to name a few but Bryan Danielson vs. Jon Moxley does nothing for me for those reasons you give. In addition to, Danielson vs. Moxley don't have the best chemistry and Mox really doesn't need the rub of ending Bryan's full time career which I expect will actually happen, pissed about it already. I'd give that (Ring of) Honour to Darby Allin. Make someone with it. Mox is overpushed.

Edited September 26 by The Natural

[Octopus]

1 hour ago, Matt D said:

I'm kind of dying to write up Danielson/Nigel. My take on it was that it was Nigel's Impossible Dream and that Danielson didn't give a damn about it because he was so focused on Moxley. That they basically sacrificed what could have been a ROH fan's deep fantasy for the overarching storyline in relatively subtle ways (so much so that those fans still seem entirely enamored by it) but in a way that helped them to put a huge exclamation point on the end of the night. Very surprising and appreciated narrative discipline. On some level it's a shame but the fact it's a shame is what gives it weight as a sacrifice. If it didn't matter then it wouldn't matter, etc. 

But I really need to see it again just to make sure my read is correct. 

I feel very much the same way, but in a way that it oddly works. Danielson being beaten up and returning from betrayal gives Nigel a chance. This is merely a stop for Bryan and the world for Nigel, which sadly parallels their rivalry and their careers. McGuinness falls short in his one chance where his odds will at most he in his favor, in a nearly one sided long build of overt jabs and insults.

Danielson is champion. Danielson had the WWE run. Danielson was still on tv during his forced retirement. Danielson is called the greatest. Danielson has more rivals ahead. Danielson wins.

Nigel is a commentator. Nigel didn’t accomplish his dreams. Nigel had a long road to accept his position in life. Nigel is thought of as what could have been. Nigel will still only focus on Danielson. Nigel taps in the middle of the ring.

Admittedly, this is all likely my own imagination waxing poetic and overly romanticizing a moment of time that truly touched me. I’ll hopefully have time to ramble on the match itself. A very fun moment.

[Matt D]

Oh it absolutely worked!