We are essentially 48 hours after the Full Gear pay per view by All Elite Wrestling from Newark, New Jersey so let’s discuss the show after predictions and previews.
You can check out my AEW Full Gear 2024 Previews here.
You can check out my AEW Full Gear 2024 Predictions here.
I thought All Out 2024 was the best pay per view of the year, surpassing Revolution. I felt WrestleDream 2024 surpassed it. Full Gear 2024 didn’t make it a combo but it was still a strong pay per view. Not as consistent as previous events but still a lot of good.
For once we had a match on Zero Hour that felt important with BIG BOOM! A.J. facing QT Marshall, a match that garnered AEW a lot of good publicity. I don’t know if that match really generated any pay per view buys but I wouldn’t be surprised if a few people decided to pay the PPV price just to see what A.J. was promoting. It likely helped get 10,000 into the building.
The PPV proper started a little rough with the opening matches but kicked into gear on the TBS Championship, Hangman/Switchblade, and Fletcher/Ospreay. It once again started slowing down on the next two before ending strong on Swerve/Lashley and OC/Moxley.
It wasn’t the all good matches spectacle that was WrestleDream 2024 so I’m sure a lot of people feel let down just for that. I still think five out of nine being very good is worth my money. Anyway let’s break it down a bit.
Favourite Wrestling Match
Switchblade Jay White versus Hangman Adam Page
For the second straight pay per view Switchblade Jay White and Hangman Adam Page capture my pro wrestling heart. Shouldn’t be no surprise with how much I loved their last match.
Was this one better than the last one? I’m feeling right now it was. The last one I went into it not knowing who was going to win. This one I felt pretty confident Page was going to even things up. No way Jay White was going to have his number again would he? Well, he did.
I felt the build up to this was pretty weak and AEW should have given both men more time on the microphone to sell it. It also had a weak reasoning for the match, with Jay basically just giving Page a rematch for no real reason. He said it was for redemption, but Page insists he is beyond redemption. I guess he is if he’s losing.
The counters, the selling, the offence, the defence, the pacing, the finish? Everything on this was spot on. Like I said last time. This is exactly how I like my pro wrestling. This is the good soup.
We get to find out soon if Adam Page attacking Christopher Daniels ends up having him fined or suspended, not that it matters much. What’s more interesting was both Page and Jay getting involved in the main event. It feels like both men might be finding themselves wrapped up in the main event of World’s End when this is all said and done.
If so? AEW better come up with a real good reason why Adam Page is up there. He’s got a lot of high profile losses to be arguing for a Men’s World Championship shot. If it was up to me I’d be having him either beating Christian Cage for his briefcase, or honestly? Have him pin Jon Moxley in a multi-man match.
More likely he just talks his way into it and ends up eating the pin at World’s End.
Best Wrestling Match
Orange Cassidy versus Jon Moxley
What a great main event. Orange Cassidy and Jon Moxley have such excellent chemistry. Moxley can look like a brutal force of nature against OC unlike anyone else, but Orange Cassidy is also believable getting offence on Mox despite giving up several inches and a lot of muscle.
Moxley was an animal in this match, a lot more than usual with bloody back scratches and knocking shots out of the air. Both men essentially did everything to each other before the reinforcements arrived.
Now I promise to talk about his later this week because the reaction to the heel champion with a gang cheating is perplexing to me, but I thought it made sense for The Conglomeration to come out to try to stop the Death Riders, only for everyone to forget about Wheeler Yuta not coming out.
The best moment was absolutely Willow Nightingale returning to attack Marina Shafir. I’ve been screaming for weeks now that Marina beating up on the men does nothing for nobody. She has to actually face women in the women’s division, and it made no sense for the entire AEW women’s locker to ignore what was going on. If Jon Moxley is actually taking AEW hostage? It has to involve everyone. Men and women.
Great match. Orange Cassidy sadly came up short in defeating Jon Moxley, and it already looks like they are moving onto Christian Cage, Hangman Adam Page, and Jay White getting in his way. What does Orange Cassidy do next? He’s already beaten Wheeler Yuta, though the two could go at each other on pay per view next month with Claudio in the Continental Classic. I hope AEW doesn’t forget about him now that he isn’t going for the title.
More Thoughts After 48
King Kyle The Protostar: Pick one nickname young man! Either you’re the young King of All Elite Wrestling (which in that? Beware the old King) or you’re the Protostar. Whatever that is. Sounds like an enemy in Earthbound.
AEW Coaches: I think we had three spots on the show involving the broadcast table and I might just be forgetting. We also had two stair spots. Are you guys actually discussing this with the wrestlers to make sure they don’t step on people’s toes or do you just not care? I’m not saying it ruined the show or anything but after Fletcher did that tombstone to the stairs I don’t see any point of having anyone else do a stair spot. Same goes to Swerve doing the stomp to Lashley in the broadcast table. It’s done. Everyone else can make up a different spot.
BIG BOOM!: I thought BIG BOOM! A.J. of the Costco Guys did a great job representing AEW and working the match with QT Marshall. The Rizzler might be one of the most over people in pro wrestling right now. That kid must be walking on sunshine every day. Good work by Big Justice on the spear as well. Some wrestlers in AEW should take notes. QT Marshall was typical QT Marshall. Would have preferred Chris Jericho in that spot.
Mercedes Moné: Talk about a great performance from Moné. No surprise against Kris Statlander but both women were absolutely phenomenal. I loved how as the match wore on, Moné got more and more upset about the fact she hadn’t won. She always gets so close to losing her cool completely only to win and revert back to confidence. Great heel work from her and probably the best victory of her TBS Championship run. I feel like after that she can just drop Brickhouse Kamille as she proved she never needed her.
Ricochet: Disappointing performance by Ricochet. I don’t know why he thought he should work the match against Takeshita like he was back in WWE and having to sell for the bigger guy and ignore the fact the crowd wanted action. They knew those two could do what Fletcher and Ospreay did and Takeshita was clearly game. Ricochet was not. We really don’t need another singles title shot for Ricochet for a while and he needs a big performance in the C2.
Jack Perry: I like Jack. I think as a babyface he’s one of the best in the company. As a heel? I think he knows how to work half a heel match and that’s the second half. The first half? He doesn’t really have it yet. It took forever for the match with Garcia to get going and for the crowd to get into. Once they finally did, the last stretch was pretty good. Perry is still going to be busy as he’s facing Yota Tsuji at the NJPW/AEW/CMLL Wrestle Dynasty show but I wonder if taking a break and coming back when Luchasaurus is healthy is the way to go for him. If not? With The Elite broken up, he did seem sure chummy with Mox when Mox originally returned…
Adam Cole: Adam Cole was late on the save for Roderick Strong. There’s currently a theory floating around that Adam Cole’s bad tan job is reflective of MJF’s bad tan job, and a sign that actually both men are going to be once again united as heels this time in Better Than You Bay Bay. I guess they would face KOR and Roddy? I’m really… unsure how I feel about that. On one hand it gets all of those guys out of the singles divisions. On the other hand… can we really live through BTYBB again?
Max Caster: If Anthony Bowens breaks up The Acclaimed can they just throw Max Caster in a crate and ship him to TNA Wrestling? I’m sure the Best Wrestler Alive would love to work against another self proclaimed best wrestler Nick Nemeth. Call it Bound For Delusion.
Bobby Lashley: Strong debut against Swerve Strickland. Bobby got the memo that AEW is very much a “go go go” promotion and worked a faster pace than even Ricochet. He was always moving and always setting up the next spot. Lashley will fit in AEW just fine. Looking forward to the rematch.
Private Party: They need a rival. Someone. Give them two heels. Making their first PPV title match to be a four way involving three other babyface tag teams was ridiculous. Babyfaces need heels. If Claudio is in the C2, have PAC and Yuta face them at World’s End if Yuta isn’t facing OC. If you think I’m forgetting the Trios Championship? So is AEW.
Darby Allin: Apparently Darby ran that car into the Death Riders truck legitimately and was a bit concussed from the crash. Stunt driver or not I loved the spot. Death Riders escaped but they have an absolute lunatic on their tail. Darby needs to start climbing that mountain and the Continental Classic will be a good start.
Road to World’s End
The 2024 Continental Classic will be starting up on the Thanksgiving Dynamite on Wednesday, meaning the next four weeks of Dynamite and Collision will be busy with the C2:
November 27: Thanksgiving Dynamite
November 30: Collision in Chicago
December 4: Dynamite in Indiana
December 7: Collision in Columbus
December 11: Winter is Coming
December 12: Collision in St. Louis
December 18: Dynamite in D.C.
December 21: Christmas Collision
December 22: Dynamite on 34th Street
December 28: World’s End
In 2023 they had five Dynamite’s and Collision’s for Continental Classic matches with the Dynamite before World’s End containing the semi final matches for both the Gold and Blue League. This year they only have four.
I could see them stacking one of those weeks with 4 to 5 matches for the C2 instead of trying to balance with only three. I honestly would consider opening the C2 with at least 4 matches from each League. It’s 30 matches across 8 shows. There’s going to be an imbalance.
(They could use Rampage, as there was a Blue League match on Rampage last year, but I have my doubts Rampage will be used too much as it’s likely a dead show at the end of 2024.)
My current expectation with World’s End is that we get some rematches from Full Gear (Swerve versus Lashley and possibly Statlander versus Moné) but the main event will likely involve Page, Christian, White, and Moxley which will be interesting to see how they build that up.
AEW has a good chance to end the year strong. What’s more important is that they end the year healthy. 2025 means MAX simulcast, and having all of your top stars for the simulcasts will be significant in attracting new viewers to Dynamite and Collision in 2025. Hopefully we get the return of Kenny Omega as well. I’d do it first Dynamite of 2025.
