Dirty J. Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 This shit sucks. We need the separate show threads back! My dvdvr brethren usually decide for me if I watch Rampage or not. Quick glance through the thread and I knew if it was worth my time. Also makes the shows easier to discuss. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shartnado Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 I'm very slowly catching up with wrestling, as all the running and not drinking has severely been interfering with my viewing habits. DAZN is missing the important OC-Swerve episode of Dynamite for some reason, so I skipped to the next episode out of necessity. Starts with MJF-Cole non title. The match accomplished many things. MJF survived by the skin of his teeth, refused overtime, because fuck you, that's why. Adam Cole got to have a forced epic in a new environment and is still undefeated since returning. The match went long and if there is a segment of the audience who were wondering "how would MJF-Cole turn out?", now they know and it doesn't NEED to be revisited, unless Tony really wants to. A draw doesn't give Cole a title match, but he is still kept very strong. Sting-Darby-Sammy-Jericho segment was entertaining, but it was getting late so I cut off at this point. Sorry that this commentary belongs into weeks old thread, but the cut doesn't just happen by itself, especially at this age. It's been hard trying to avoid reading all episode specific threads trying to keep up the suspense. And so far, if it has been a choice between going for a run or watching an episode of Rampage or a half of Dynamite, the running has won almost every time. I can see the huge benefits of doing cardio while watching wrestling, but 1) I don't have cardio equipment at home and 2) wrestling is when I do my drinking, so let's not ruin that, unless I actually get an opportunity to watch during weekdays, which hasn't really been happening for a bit now. This is going to naval-gaze area, so I'll just stop here at this point. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hail Sabin Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 4 hours ago, Casey said: AEW wishes they had a talent as incredible as Johnny Swinger! I'm still hoping they make a Swinger Micro Brawler. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evil Otto Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 (edited) This episode of Rampage completely exceeded my expectations. Was tonight the first night Swerve has alluded to MJF and the AEW championship? That is a road worth going down. I realize the promo was likely more to build up Tanahashi, but I don't think it would be just thrown out there and wasted. I hope there's more to the story. Swerve is truly one of the best right now, and at least deserves to be in more main events. Filthy Tom and Royce Isaacs! Hooray! I've got no problem whatsoever with Johnny TV, I've always liked him. It'll be fun to see what he can do with a more sustained push. I'm happy to see where Skye Blue has gotten to so far, but both her and Anna Jay need to really work on not hesitating slightly before hitting moves. There is a lack of fluidity that hopefully will improve over time. Skye Blue has to be a little more snug (or snug-looking) in general. If AEW ever develops a relationship with Stardom (which Tony K seems to want), Anna Jay should be sent over for a tour or even longer. That being said, I still have high hopes for both of them. Douki actually got seriously over. Jack Perry did the Skull End better than Sanada in one try. Maybe not the best show, but certainly a bizarre, intriguing one. Edited June 24, 2023 by Evil Otto 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AxB Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 https://twitter.com/Bowens_Official/status/1672432275911491586 Was that the first time they've had Antony Bowens actually say he was gay on TV? Because I know they've talked around it quite a lot, played the "If you know, you know" game, but in terms of strictly the TV product, I think that was the first time. The fact the Gunn and Caster were both overjoyed with him saying it is a really cherry on top. A whole building of Wrestling fans chanting "He's gay" in a supportive, positive way, that wouldn't have happened a few years ago. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLowe Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 9 hours ago, zendragon said: Adam Cole attacked by a board member … and all was right in the world What was the chant that Excalibur commented on that was directed at Harley? Johnny Television was previously know on AEW television as Johnny Elite… how quickly we forget lota John Cena references The chant I thought I heard was “who are you” 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Natural Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 Love is love in Pride month xxx. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumanChessgame Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 2 hours ago, JLowe said: The chant I thought I heard was “who are you” That's what I thought as well, especially considering I had no idea who she was until QT came out and I figured she was the girl from their bits. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarryArchieGus Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 (edited) Another fun Rampage! Ospreay is making the haters focused on whether or not his past catalog of matches had enough psychology look silly. They should have waited to make their final judgment after he started his fantastic character game on USTV. What an absolute fucking star! To no surprise a fun opener between the Chaos Frenz v Uniteds. Nice Toni Storm-Willow video. Toni has beem great since her debut, but her character work is now matching it. Clearly her star has really caught fire in the last month or so. Willowmania isn't far off from running wild. Not seeing much talk of a Mercedes debut and confrontation post-match on Sunday, but I'm thinking maybe that's the direction. The Adam Cole-MJF segment was good. MJF's save from the clutches of 'Team Filthy' could've been a bit better. Cole v Lawlor, sure 'I'll buy that for a dollar'. Lawlor's a nice choice for a hired gun. I could see them using him in a similar manner here and there going forth. Assclaimed squash was quick, decisive and better than their general squashes. Harley Cameron Interruption was fucking awesome!!! What a natural! I suspect our board brethren may need a little time to warm up to her talents (not unlike the post-debut of Jarrett). This segment could've done without Billy Gunn's classic mic work, and expected and dated Penis reference, but Harley fucking killed it with that silly rhyme. And perfectly set-up the feel good Bowens moment. Now we have a worthy rap battle! Harley's gonna fuck Caster up. I love Johnny TV with the QTV gang, perfect! It's probably good to understand that this was a debut/return on 'Rampage, baby!' with a (minus-Powerhouse) low card stable. Johnny's 'a good hand' and will be as such in AEW rings. Nice Swerve video. I like him referencing MJF. Stoked to see Swerve beat the shit out of Tanahashi! Skye Blue v Anna Jay was pretty solid. A lot of focus in the reviews on Skye's weak offense, granted(!), but it's always weak, that's nothing new. What is new is Anna Jay's vast improvements. This is a couple weeks in a row now that she's working with a simpler tighter set of tools. Not a flashy performance, but (perhaps quietly) a really good one. She was clearly the better wrestler here. I like Blue's upside, but she's still a ways away from being anywhere near her peak. Did @JLowe mention she's dating Kyle Fletcher? I thought she was with Dante? Haha, maybe she needs to go heel and 'tell all' about how she dumped poor Dante after he busted his leg. I want that to be a JR sitdown. Would Jim call her a 'JEZEBEL' to her Face!?! Collision Main Event/Mark Henry's Main Event video segments were both solid. They should let Mark host more of these videos for random matches on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Jungle Boy v Douki was really terrific. I like to think Jungle Jack's gonna be a fucking awesome heel. So looking forward to it. Douki certainly raised his stock in the US with this one. As good as he was that crowd was particularly interested in hating on Jacky! Jack's body language ought not be overlooked in this matter. But still, Douki brought Jungler a nice bout. That table spot was BANANA! So fun. Sanada is a good looking man. Sanada-Jungle Boy may be this weekend's darkhorse - or Andrade-Brody King on Saturday. 3 out of the last 4 weeks of Rampage have been excellent B show fun! Okay, (Breath)... I'm going live the rest of the weekend! Wow, so stoked! I hope my fellow Torontonians (and all those visiting this grand city) can bring the molten heat again like last October. I need to feel that atmosphere again. What's down on paper tells me it should be an easy 'Yes!' Edited June 24, 2023 by HarryArchieGus 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Log Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 Is it weird that I think Powerhouse Hobbes and Johnny TV would be an interesting tag team? It’s is weird, isn’t it? I’m sorry. I’ll stop. But, maybe? Nah! You’re right. It’s weird. Never mind. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infinit Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Technico Support Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 HOLY DOOKIE! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 RAMPAGE WORKRATE REPORT What worked: The fact that I somehow finished Rampage before Collision started. What didn't work: Nah, it was all ok. An ok show. In all seriousness, I don't have a lot to say. The commercial break is a godsend for these Chaos tags since it slows things down. I would have liked more Swerve interaction with UE but he was cheering on Will late in the game which was fun. It's interesting how Skye has sort of outpaced Anna but I liked the way the cutoffs were due to 2.0 being out there. Jack Perry flustered by the fans turning on him and then begrudgingly accepting them singing his song post match was the most interesting thing he's ever done basically. He's on the verge of something and I hope he manages it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infinit Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 I got to meet Douki today! Super nice, super humble dude. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Salads Posted June 24, 2023 Share Posted June 24, 2023 'WHO'S YOUR PARTNER STING? WHO IS IT?' to end the show is the kind of thing that just makes me happy. Thanks to US non-jobber matches having to be 50/50 the main event saw Douki having possibly the most dominant performance against a heavyweight in his career. Weird seeing him take it to one of the four pillars fresh out of finishing 7th in his BOSJ block, and also the transition straight back into Jack on offence after eating the table spot but fun match nonetheless, partially thanks to the crowd. No vocal Taka intro for the Just Five Guys guys. No chance for it to meme them into popularity but probably for the best. On the subject of English being spoken by Japanese I chuckled at Mark's 'well, looks like there's been enough talk' after Douki finished his nine word sentence. Looking forward to hopefully getting some Forbidden Door pre-show matches announced tonight. I've been whelmed by the recent match announcements but last year the buy-in was also great so hoping for the same here. Hiromu has to get his money's worth for the AEW gear he had made at some point, right? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casey Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 I thought Punk was supposed to be absolutely hated everywhere outside of Chicago? What happened? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Cincinnati Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 On 6/21/2023 at 8:06 PM, John from Cincinnati said: Between this and Forbidden Door and all the TV matches lately, it's clear Tony's decided to work him to death in a futile attempt to get the belt off of him before the Bidding War of 2024. Scumbag promotor stuff, really taking advantage of the generosity of the Salt of the Earth. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octopus Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 12 minutes ago, Casey said: I thought Punk was supposed to be absolutely hated everywhere outside of Chicago? What happened? Lol, CM Punk might be my favorite thing in wrestling right now (?) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Cincinnati Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 Shame on you for ever doubting, @Octopus! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greggulator Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 Powerhouse made that guy regret every single life choice he ever made. Dear lord, that was some Steiner Brothers level reckless jobber beating. We need that every single week. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octopus Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 (edited) 23 minutes ago, John from Cincinnati said: Shame on you for ever doubting, @Octopus! You don’t know how Minnesota sports fans work The term is AVATAR Syndrome, Aggravated Vikings Anticipatory Traumatic Abandonment Syndrome EDIT FOR CONTEXT: @John from Cincinnati Edited June 25, 2023 by Octopus 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casey Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 Maybe it’s my Punk fandom but I’ve enjoyed Collision way more than Dynamite two weeks in a row now. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Cincinnati Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 3 minutes ago, Casey said: Maybe it’s my Punk fandom but I’ve enjoyed Collision way more than Dynamite two weeks in a row now. It’s a lot of that for me with Punk getting time, but I also prefer Nigel and Kevin to any combination of Ex and Tony with their over-reliance on bits and grab-ass. And I dig Andrade doing his thing, the shinny black stage, and colour scheme. Some shit just feels fresher. Sucks that the houses are such that they can’t light the building on nights like this. And Jericho and Schiavone’s stuff tonight had the stink of the worst Dynamite had to offer. So Collision still has to carry some of that. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greggulator Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 I have no idea what to make of the main event. A lot of it is incredibly good. But so much of it is Punk playing into the heel reaction of the crowd while he is on the babyface team. That is just a guy putting heat on himself at the expense of the story. Kind of a giant AEW metaphor, actually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ziggy Posted June 25, 2023 Share Posted June 25, 2023 Besides the Women's match everything on this show was really good. I marked out for Will Hobbs Kevin Nash shoulder strikes in the corner. That main even once again was good. This was my first time seeing Ricky Starks since he was on NWA Powerr. He has that star presence. They would be crazy not to try push him on higher. I know Guevara, Jungle Boy, and Darby is higher on Tony's priority list as far as which younger talent to get over as another one of The top guys to get on the level of the Elite but Ricky has more natural charisma and just a SuperStar presence than those guys right now. I also think with Forbidden Door coming up, Switchblade is really benefiting off AEW working with New Japan. Jay White seemed like not much of a big deal after the first week on being an ARW contracted talent. Now history in New Japan is relevant to the current booking and he's now more than just another guy you can expect a good make from 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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