idk how this match will go but i suspect i will be disappointed

I often talk about my disdain for The Young Bucks, but they had some great matches with Roppongi Vice in NJPW. I was pleasantly surprise to discover that they hadn't lost any of their chemistry. They put on a really exciting match to open Rampage. Wasn't overly spotty and there were some really clever sequences.

Plus JAY WHITE appeared post-match and hit the Blade Runner on Trent Barreta. And they're fighting on Dynamite.

Speaking of tag team matches, the championship match between Jungle Express and Gunn Club was very good as well.

Looking forward to seeing Jay White in action tonight. Trent is a good first opponent for him too.

I read spoilers for tonight (just the results, nothing else) and I’m going to be questioning one of the decisions tonight quite a bit.

Yeah, looks like Jay White has a busy weekend, Trent tonight, Eric Young tomorrow at Impact Wrestling's No Surrender PPV.

That Revolution Ladder Match is getting overloaded with BEEF! We have Keith Lee, Wardlow, and now Powerhouse Hobbs is in it. We're gonna need some heavy duty ladders for this one.

Feb 19, 2022 3:29:00 GMT CM Punk'd said:

That Revolution Ladder Match is getting overloaded with BEEF! We have Keith Lee, Wardlow, and now Powerhouse Hobbs is in it. We're gonna need some heavy duty ladders for this one.

This was what I was referring to in my last post. I’m both intrigued and worried about this match.

On one hand, stacking a ladder match with BEEF is very interesting and not something you see often.

On the other, if the match is shit, everyone is going to wonder why you didn’t have high-flyers like Dante Martin, Max Caster and Isiah Kassidy in the match. I thought FOR SURE that Dante Martin would be in at the very least. Dude is nuts and gets so much height. Could have been a defining match for him.

I’ll reserve judgment until I see the match but I dunno man.

Yeah, you'd think there would be more high fliers in the match, though I do like the idea of Keith Lee and Wardlow throwing down.

Yep, I was also expecting Dante Martin to beat Hobbs. Gotta say I'm very interested in this ladder match. Wardlow, Lee and Hobbs bulldozing each other will be entertaining. We've seen enough ladder matches with guys flying around doing stupid shit, let's see something different.

Wardlow may not be in it. MJF may make him give the match to Spears or something odd.

Jay White vs Trent Beretta was really good. Achieved its goal of being a showcase of Jay White's personality, style and offensive arsenal, but Beretta also got a lot of offense in near the end. Very stiff match. Amazing finish as well, showing White's tremendous counter-wrestling ability. Great debut.

Feb 19, 2022 13:59:09 GMT X-zero said:

Wardlow may not be in it. MJF may make him give the match to Spears or something odd.

I wouldn't rule this out but I'm feeling the opposite: I think it's a foregone conclusion that Wardlow is going to win, and it'll be the fuel that he needs to have him finally drop MJF and rise above.

Spoilers about Jay White for anyone that might still watch No Surrender…

SPOILER: Click to show

Jay White attacked Tama Tonga and replaced GOD in Bullet Club with The Good Brothers.

Entirely possible Jay White brings them back to AEW in the near future.

Yay?

SPOILER: Click to show

Fucking hell.

Anybody but Good Brothers. Jay White and GOD are great together, and it would have been kinda cool for them to roll into AEW. Good Brothers are go away heat.

Gonna make a post in the Rest of Wrestling forum to discuss this more. I’m interested. Maybe this actually goes somewhere this time.

People talk about how Rampage is insignificant but yesterday's show was stacked.

Sammy Guevara (c) vs Andrade El Idolo
Wardlow vs Nick Comoroto + Shawn Spears promo
Serena Deeb's 5 Minute Challenge
Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa contract signing
Orange Cassidy vs Anthony Bowens

First two matches were really good, particularly the second. Comoroto really took the fight to Wardlow, great hoss battle.

Admittedly the second half of the show was weaker. Baker and Rosa wasn't as good as it could have been: Rosa barely spoke while Baker verbally destroyed her.

Main event was decent but suffered due to its predictability.

By the way, you may notice Caster's rap sounds a little off. That's because he said "You're about as popular as Putin", a line that was cut in post-production. Harmless line but under the circumstances I get it. At the time the promo was recorded Putin hadn't yet invaded Ukraine, in fact it was announced during the taping, 15-20 minutes after he rapped those words.

Fast Nationals are out, the show drew 437K.

I honestly don't know if you were taking the piss or not Emperor. Two competitive squash matches and a mid-card title defence with a guy who has barely wrestled on television since Cody put himself through a flaming table and still got the win.

You really put a damper on that one.

I'm not trying to say it's Wrestlemania but by stacked I mean there were matches and plot developments that made me want to tune in. In particular the women's contract signing. Disappointing as it was, I still wanted to see it. Isn't that the kind of thing you were talking about when you said you wanted Rampage to be different?

Plus in my eyes any title defense is significant. It's a midcard show so the perfect place for a midcard title defense, which we get every week with the TNT or Tag titles. You're talking like any title defense is completely irrelevant.

Feb 27, 2022 10:24:22 GMT Emperor said:

You really put a damper on that one.

I'm not trying to say it's Wrestlemania but by stacked I mean there were matches and plot developments that made me want to tune in. In particular the women's contract signing. Disappointing as it was, I still wanted to see it. Isn't that the kind of thing you were talking about when you said you wanted Rampage to be different?

Plus in my eyes any title defense is significant. It's a midcard show so the perfect place for a midcard title defense, which we get every week with the TNT or Tag titles. You're talking like any title defense is completely irrelevant.

I'm speaking purely from the perspective of boostings ratings, so this isn't an attack on anyone's taste just to be clear.

So let's talk about the contract signing. First of all, yes I believe they need to incorporate more angles on the show if they want to boost ratings. However, contract signings have been so played out and the main take-away that the match is going ahead and that Martinez is on Rosa's side could have easily been summised on Dynamite. The fact it took over a week to clarify that doesn't make the feud feel as urgent or as significant as it could be.

When I say they should run more angles, I believe the shows should be laid out in a way that keeps you in suspense. For instance, Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa went to war last year and now they have to find a way to settle this once and for all, the good doctor has an ace up her sleeve but what is it? Tune in Rampage/Dynamite. Or Thunder was laid out in the back, Britt claims it wasn't her and she has a good allibi but who and why? We'll have more as this is developing OMG! BREAKING NEWS! We know who did it just as Rampage has come onto air! And the injury to Rosa isn't as good! What is Rosa going to do to this assailant? Find out on Dynamite!! etc. etc.

Now you can't do it for everyone but if you want to boost ratings instead of just getting everyone on a taping, cliffhangers really help draw interest. Well, that and stars and it just so happens a lot of the biggest names this week had the week off from wrestling.

While we're on the topic unless it's a hot program, I just don't see mid-card title defences on their own as attractions. It's almost an expectation that they're going to happen and it's not like they do a ton to build attraction. The build-up for Andrade has been pretty lackluster, so much so, they sacrificed him so they could build to a 6-Man tag involving the HFO, one of the least over acts in the company.

I write this knowing that TK views Rampage as a bonus hour of Dynamite and it's just filled with talent who just so happened to be off Dynamite. If he thinks that's what's best for the company long term, that's his choice but if he wants to build things quickly he needs to re-think things.

Looks like we were at cross purposes from the get go. I'm talking from a fan perspective, you're talking from a business/ratings perspective.

Agree with all your points. Although Rampage does generally have good cards and good matches, it is very much the Dynamite leftovers show, although the AEW roster is so stacked you can get plenty of upper card talent on Rampage. It's true that contract signings are played out, and that the TNT title defenses feel like formalities, get another win under Sammy's belt and put on a ***1/2 match filled with lots of high spots to make the fans happy.

You have great ideas. Cliffhangers draw interest. Exactly.

Segments like Wardlow squashes and Serena Deeb squashes may not bring in the ratings, but they are really fun to watch. Perhaps those are better placed on Dynamite in between the heavier segments, and put something a bit meatier on Rampage.

Sammy vs Darby which main evented Dynamite would have been a perfect Rampage main event (or opener with the way they organise the Rampage cards). Mid-card championship match, a challenger who could realistically beat Sammy so it's not a formality that the champion retains.

Tonight's Rampage Card

TNT Championship
Triple Threat Match
Sammy Guevara(c) vs. Andrade El Idolo vs. Darby Allin

Face of the Revolution Ladder Match Qualifier
Singles Match
Christian Cage vs. Ethan Page

Also both Keith Lee and Serena Deeb will be in action.

I'm looking forward to the triple threat match, I wonder if they'll crown a new TNT Champion tonight.

Nice, a midcard championship match with stakes. Andrade vs Sammy was extremely predictable, but strangely I could see any of the three participants winning the triple threat.

Keith Lee in his second AEW match is also interesting.

Keith Lee will probably squash some poor bastard before cutting a quick promo, which is fine. He's probably the favourite for the ladder match at this point, although I think Wardlow is winning.

Every time AEW makes me think a title is going to change hands, it doesn't (unless it's insanely obvious like Hangman beating Omega). I'm not holding my breath tonight, but it would be fucking sweet if Andrade won the TNT title tonight before he faces both Sammy and Darby on Sunday.

SURPRISE ME FOR ONCE, YOU FUCKS. I don't know why they shy away from title changes so often. I have literally been surprised by one title change since the company started, and it wasn't even one of their titles (Archer beating Moxley for the IWGP US title).

I'm curious if Serena Deeb's opponent is going to be "a name" tonight, since it's a live show.

Not sure if it is Wardlow's time or not, but when that dude turns it will be huge.  He gonna end up costing AEW a lot since no doubt Vince wants him bad.  Moreso since he can keep the name in WWE.

Keith Lee is facing JD Drake tonight.

So yeah. Squash.

TNT Title kicking things off, guess that means Christian Cage/Ethan Page is closing the show.

so is sammy just gonna carry two of the same belt around forever or

I am not used to seeing Andrade: Super Hoss

God damn, that was a great opening match, not necessarily who I wanted to win, but I can't complain.

That match was great minus the finish. Well, even the finish was good. Even though I didn't want Sammy to win.

I am Jack's complete lack of surprise.

Druid Alex Abrahantes is stupid as fuck.