AEW - SUMMER 2019

[John from Cincinnati]

 

[OSJ]

46 minutes ago, Wyld Samurai said:

Allin might be the modern day Blitzkreig.

Nah, Blitz was actually very safe and sane in what he did.

[Craig H]

36 minutes ago, Technico Support said:

Yeah, all this.  "They didn't have a proper build to the match so it was just dumb violence" is ridiculous.  There's no company right now to even have a build.  "We both think we're badass death match wrestlers so let's go ahead and fight to see who is right about that" is fine.  The old gunfigter vs the new young gunfighter coming to take his crown doesn't need a month's build of skits and promos ffs.

Also, LOL @ guys talking shit on Janela's body.  How many top guys in the 70s and 80s wore short trunks and didn't have a good build?  Especially guys not in the WWF?  Holy shit just about everybody.  He's working for a company run by the son of Dusty Rhodes for Christ's sake.  When did we all get all McMahony about dudes' pecs, abs, traps and whatnot?

Didn't realize I touched a nerve about Janella's body. I'm not really a body guy. I mean, shit, to of my favorite guys are Owens and Killian Dain. I just thought that for someone as short as Janella you can be a skinny shredded guy or you can be more filled out like Jericho was in WCW or ECW. Janella is close to that now and it's not like he has to look shredded, but the way he looks now it's just hard to take him seriously against someone like Moxley.

Put another way, he looks like a slob, but it doesn't look right. Half of everyone I cheered for in ECW looked like fuckin slobs too, but they had the height or style to where I never cared. I don't know what it is about Janella's look that bugs me so much. Square peg, round hole type of thing I guess. I really wish I could pinpoint why someone like Sandman makes sense and is aesthetically pleasing, but Janella isn't.

Or maybe it's something as simple as his tights.

[Technico Support]

It's cool, it's just funny to see that so much in this thread.  Not you in particular.

As @Tromatagon said...sleazy looking with a very very average body is the guy's gimmick.

[HarryArchieGus]

1 hour ago, Technico Support said:

Also, LOL @ guys talking shit on Janela's body.  How many top guys in the 70s and 80s wore short trunks and didn't have a good build?  Especially guys not in the WWF?  Holy shit just about everybody.  He's working for a company run by the son of Dusty Rhodes for Christ's sake.  When did we all get all McMahony about dudes' pecs, abs, traps and whatnot?

Fair, but Dusty, as flabby as he was, still looked big and imposing.  I don't think anybody is looking for a juiced up Joey Janela - rather a less doughy and more remotely imposing look (again, a pretty easy fix with the right attire).  I'm new to Joey, so forgive me for being unaware of his toughness (or interpret that as stupidity if you wheel) but as he is, in his falling down trunks and ultra downy softness, he does not look like a formidable threat to a Jon Moxley.  Which kinda makes Moxley look a bit weak for eating his offence - tho it worked well enough by keeping it limited.  That said, it was certainly fine and  enjoyable enough and a treat for those into the death match style.  If Janela remains at the lower end of the card as a high risk jobber to the stars I think that's completely fair.  I'm not quite sure in his current form that he ought to be main eventing cards. 

Further, to be clear, I like what I've seen of Young Joey's charisma and his mic skills, and am interested to see some of his indy work worth watching that didn't result in bloodletting.  I'm also thankful to Joey as a promoter for the show I saw a clip from wherein Ricky Morton along with the audience chant 'Spring Break'.  One of the truly great phone videos.    

[HarryArchieGus]

48 minutes ago, Craig H said:

Didn't realize I touched a nerve about Janella's body. I'm not really a body guy. I mean, shit, to of my favorite guys are Owens and Killian Dain. I just thought that for someone as short as Janella you can be a skinny shredded guy or you can be more filled out like Jericho was in WCW or ECW. Janella is close to that now and it's not like he has to look shredded, but the way he looks now it's just hard to take him seriously against someone like Moxley.

Put another way, he looks like a slob, but it doesn't look right. Half of everyone I cheered for in ECW looked like fuckin slobs too, but they had the height or style to where I never cared. I don't know what it is about Janella's look that bugs me so much. Square peg, round hole type of thing I guess. I really wish I could pinpoint why someone like Sandman makes sense and is aesthetically pleasing, but Janella isn't.

Or maybe it's something as simple as his tights.

I am completely with you on this.  The reason Sandman et al worked so well is he and they had the right look.  The (Am I wrong to suggest) Sapolsky-led little tights era forced bodies to be showcased that were better accentuated by clothing that fit the personalities.  This, of course, came about from the complaints post and during ECW of the style effect it was having on the indies - ppl looking like they were off the street rather than 'wrestlers'.  There's certainly a point to be made there, but I personally always liked the idea of the outlaw/off the street competitors.  

I really hope this well funded/produced company seeks out some stronger stylists.  Makes a huge difference.  As does good ring entrance music - which they are not excelling at right now. 

 

 

[Casey]

Joey Janela doesn't need to change his body style, ya'll are fuckin' wild.

"I can't take this fake fight seriously because one normal looking guy is beating up a bigger, more ripped guy".

Like that even matters in a real fight.

[Burgundy LaRue]

My thoughts:

--The triple-threat tag match was a good showcase for Private Party. I went in knowing nothing about them, and came out wanting to see more. 

--The rest of the pre-show was a dumpster fire. The Librarians are apparently part of the Being The Elite YT series. But they shouldn't expect everyone to know that. It was stupid and unfunny leading into Allie trying to get something resembling a match from Leva Bates. A complete mess.

--I understand that if the CEO of the company helping to put on the show wants to be involved, you have to oblige. That said, I did not need to see a hardcore match that was a total insult to that concept.  

--Daniels vs CIMA was a solid opener. 

--The women's triple threat was a good showcase for Nyla Rose. She's still on a learning curve, but she's got something special. That said, I don't think having her get pinned was the smart choice. I realize they're trying to tell a story with her, but it seems they would be better off feeding jobbers to her until they get to their desired point.

--The fatal four-way was fine. MJF's promo was standard stuff, but very well delivered. At 23, he's already ahead of the game into becoming a star. I thought Page blended in a bit much. Jungle Boy came off decently, I can see him and Luchasaurus becoming the kids' favorite for AEW. 

--Cody/Darby was pretty good at first, but started fizzling out for me about midway. I see that Darby was playing a determined plucky underdog, but I don't think it quite made the mark. The Coffin Drop was scary. The body bag spot didn't land well. And I don't need to see an unprotected chairshot. Once it happened, it would have been better to go with the flow and get heat for Spears, but the Bucks basically shot that down with their post-show comments. 

---Elite vs Luchas/Laredo Kid was a spotfest, which was to be expected. It was fine, but not a must-watch.

--Moxley vs Janela was a good trashcan match. The feet into the tacks spot was something else. Probably would have benefitted if it was based on actual hate rather than seeing who could be more edgy, but still enjoyable if they don't overdo it. Omega's run-in was logical and seeing Moxley laugh as he pulls Omega further into his dark world was good, even if they sacrificed Mox's selling for it.

The main show was fine enough, but they crapped the bed with the pre-show. We diehard fans may look past it, but it's not going to help retain any potential new fans who may have decided to watch because it was free entertainment on a Saturday night. 

[AxB]

7 hours ago, Technico Support said:

  The old gunfigter vs the new young gunfighter coming to take his crown doesn't need a month's build of skits and promos.

It's more the old gunfighter, who hung up his six shooters and moved to the big city to join Big Time Vinnie's Old West Revue, comes back to take on the hip young gunslinger who's ruling the street now. Mox never passed the torch, he dropped it, and Joey Janela picked it up. And on Saturday, Moxley ripped the torch out of Janela's grasp, and said "You were never holding this. All you were doing was keeping it lit".

[BrianS81177]

I enjoyed it top to bottom. Never felt the urge to fast forward through a single match (I watched a replay yesterday). Since everyone else shares their random thoughts, here's mine:

Goldenboy was great. I have no idea who he is (never heard of him before this show) but that dude needs to be AEW's full time 3rd man in the booth with Excalibur and JR instead of Marvez (because face it folks, JR ain't going anywhere)

Daniels vs Cima was a very solid opener. Considering he's nearly 50 Daniels is still quite a performer. Didn't hurt him to lose either, the crowd loves SCU. 

Women's 3 way was great. I wasn't familiar with any of the participants but I was impressed by all 3. They mentioned Riho was a 13 year veteran despite only being 22, is she the little girl that used to do those matches with Omega in DDT?

4 way was alright but got a little clusterfucky at times. MJF is gonna be a license to print money for AEW if they keep him around. People will pay to see him get his ass kicked once he's on TV every week. I get Page winning but don't see what the point was of repeatedly promoting that the winner of this was gonna face Kip Sabian at FFTF. 

Cody vs Darby was probably my favorite match of the show. It was actually my first time seeing Darby and I can definitely see him becoming their Jeff Hardy as someone said earlier in this thread. Kind of dragged the last few minutes, and the post match was just odd. I don't mind the chairshot (Cody's a grown man who can make his own decisions), but it completely took away from Darby. Spears beating down Cody, hitting his finisher then getting ran off by Darby would have been much better. Instead what should have been a star making moment with Darby taking Cody to the limit was quickly forgotten about. 

6 man was good, but it basically felt like a rehash of the Bucks/Lucha Bros tag match from the last show, just with 2 added guys. The matches are fun and definitely get a reaction but they're too video-game like for my taste. How many Canadian Destroyers were hit in that match? 3? 4? Just takes me out of it after a while. It becomes less of having a good match with a good story and more "Hey look at all the cool shit we can do!!!"

Main Event was...ok. This was my first time seeing Janella other than the battle royal last month. I liked Mox taking a bow to the crowd as they changed "You sick fuck!" at him. But as I've gotten older I've just lost the taste for seeing these types of matches because they're less of a match and more like a stunt show (christ, I know I sound like Jim Cornette saying that). Obviously Mox was gonna win but I definitely saw why people like Janella. I may not care for the deathmatch shit, but he has a natural charisma. Loved all the Omega/Mox stuff afterwards. 

[Octopus]

Janella needs zubaz. That would fix all.

[Nice Guy Eddie]

14 minutes ago, OctopusCinema said:

Janella needs zubaz. That would fix all.

I don't have a problem with Janela's look. It's never stopped me from enjoying his work, but Zubaz would take the sleaze to another glorious level.

Edited July 2, 2019 by Nice Guy Eddie

[Godfrey]

Two more thoughts:

Hangman Page reminded me that so many wrestlers have trouble putting on the Sharpshooter and I'm really not sure why.

Both the Fyter Fest and DoN main cards kicked off with CIMA and Daniels doing some basic wrestling and both times I was hoping for something more high energy. 

[odessasteps]

Wonder if they will bring back Curry Man.

[matt925]

37 minutes ago, BrianS81177 said:

Women's 3 way was great. I wasn't familiar with any of the participants but I was impressed by all 3. They mentioned Riho was a 13 year veteran despite only being 22, is she the little girl that used to do those matches with Omega in DDT?

She isn’t, someone asked Kenny about that on bte mailbag I think? And he hinted that we may see her in the future. 

(Riho did wrestle with him in japan but she wasn’t the little girl from the famous match). 

[Casey]

We need to let Haruka enjoy her well earned retirement, goddamnit.

[Just Dave]

I actually kinda thought Janela got too much offense. Moxley has the best look in the company. At 6'3, 235, he's probably the scariest looking guy on the roster. Other than Luchasaurus. If Mox is gonna be one of their tippy-top guys, he should've steamrolled Janela. And then put up more of a fight against Omega. But they'll figure it out. 

[Ace]

10 hours ago, OSJ said:

Nah, Blitz was actually very safe and sane in what he did.

Blitzkrieg even made Jack Evans promise to be safe when he was to do the gimmick...

 

First and last match as Blitzkrieg II, Evans spiked himself on a moonsault.

 

[HumanChessgame]

I remember Luchasaurus being green as goose shit in LU. Has he gotten any better since then?

[Nice Guy Eddie]

17 minutes ago, HumanChessgame said:

I remember Luchasaurus being green as goose shit in LU. Has he gotten any better since then?

I thought he looked fine in his ROH matches. I don't recall anything being so objectionably terrible. I think being the muscle of a team is a good spot for him. I think he and Jungle Boy will work really well together.

[John from Cincinnati]

3 hours ago, Godfrey said:

Hangman Page reminded me that so many wrestlers have trouble putting on the Sharpshooter and I'm really not sure why.

You ever try putting the move on another kid when you yourself were a child? Between that experience and Bret himself explaining how impractical it is and the cooperation required to make it look good, I'm amazed that the move ever looks decent. 

I'm sure we still have some actual workers lurking here who can explain better than myself. I just know that move is some bullshit. 

Edited July 2, 2019 by West Newbury Bad Boy

[HumanChessgame]

10 minutes ago, West Newbury Bad Boy said:

You ever try putting the move on another kid when you yourself were a child? Between that experience and Bret himself explaining how impractical it is and the cooperation required to make it look good, I'm amazed that the move ever looks decent. 

I'm sure we still have some actual workers lurking here who can explain better than myself. I just know that move is some bullshit. 

Being the smallest and skinniest kid of the group, I was always the one getting used as a crash test dummy by my buddies. I remember on more than one occasion one of my friends rewinding a tape a few times while figuring out how to put it on me.

[Curt McGirt]

Pretty sure I got put in it once, and that shit hurt.

As far as it being impractical, well it is originally a lucha hold. So what did you expect?

Edited July 2, 2019 by Curt McGirt

[LoneWolf&Subs]

8 hours ago, OctopusCinema said:

Janella needs zubaz. That would fix all.

I agree with this. I mean that’s his out of ring look. The more he looks like his out of ring look, the better. 

I think another thing he was missing the other night was having Penelope with him. That added to his look, plus her screaming like 90’s Nancy Sullivan during matches added a lot too.

[Casey]

Darby Allin needs to change his ring gear, if anyone. Short shorts with leggings aren't a good look.