27/05/2024
AEW Double Or Nothing PPV Review/Results (Warning- SPOILERS)
• Deonna Purrazzo defeats Thunder Rosa via pinfall (Buy In). Solid if unspectacular pre-show opener. 3*
• The Acclaimed defeat Cage of Agony via pinfall (Buy In) Standard stuff here and a bit uneven, with the heels looking more impressive than the better known favorites who I generally enjoy. Max Caster oddly proclaimed himself "The best wrestler in the world." Didn't that used to be heel schtick? To be quite honest, he didn't even come off as the best in this match. 3*
• Will Ospreay defeats Roderick Strong for the AEW International Championship via pinfall Two Artists creating Art. The only complaint- and a running theme throughout this card- is you don't need a zillion guys outside the ring interfering. It tends to take a match down a notch. Nonetheless, it was excellent stuff, as expected. Strong so great, and underrated- I never saw this guy in a bad match, and Ospreay truly really is best in the world. 3 ¾*
• The Bang Bang Gang defeats Death Triangle to retain the Trios Championships via pinfall. Fast-paced spot fest with one of several screw job finishes on the card, taking it down a notch. Ultimately disappointing- Jay White vs. Pac and Gunns vs. Lucha Brothers would have been far more satisfying. The great Jay White needs to go solo and get back to previous glory. 3 ¼*
• Toni Storm retains the AEW Women's Championship vs. Serena Deeb via pinfall. I enjoy Storm's schtick as much as any active wrestler, and she's excellent and innovative in the ring, as well. Deeb is a top-notch technician. Excellent stuff here. 3 ¾*
• Orange Cassidy defeats old best friend Trent Beretta via pinfall Good match that felt like a feud, but at some point Cassidy endlessly winning feels predictable and unnecessary. Give somebody else the rub, and Beretta is deserving. 3 ½*
• Chris Jericho defeats HOOK and Katsuyori Shibata via pinfall With too much going on outside the ring and silly weapons throughout, it ended up feeling a bit cartoonish. And stop with the tables already- it's overkill. Such talented guys need a better showcase than THIS. 3*
• Jon Moxley defeats Konosuke Takesh*ta via pinfall Excellent match and brawl with intensity. Takesh*ta is amazing- he should be pushed to the moon. 3 ¾*
• Adam Copeland defeats Malakai Black in a barbed wire steel cage match via TKO I don't know why a cage match should end up with a slew of other guys involved- "less is more" is a running theme on this show- and it DID diminish it- but a bloody, brutal match anyway. It's amazing that Copeland (and Cage, for that matter) are delivering on THIS level at their respective ages. 3 ½*
• Mercedes Moné defeats Willow Nightingale to become the new TBS Champion via pinfall. It was a really good match, and Mone came through after all the endless hype. 3 ¾*
• Swerve Strickland defeats Christian Cage to retain the AEW World Championship via pinfall. Once again, "everybody and their (literal) mother" took a very good match down a notch. 3 ½*
• The Elite defeat Team AEW (FTR, Bryan Danielson, and Darby Allin) via pinfall. When you're setting a guy on fire, dragging the owner about the arena, working explosions and gimmicked sneakers (product placement alert!) into play, and the camera can't even follow all the action, anarchy ISN'T a good thing. At bare minimum, people should be able to SEE the match they're watching. Like Brock Lesnar in a tractor pulling up the ring in WWE, this just crossed the line into an utter circus. They worked hard, and there were some good spots, but this just wasn't for me. And imagine how many great solo and tag matches were squandered- Okada vs. Danielson at the top of THAT list- to choose to do this nonsense instead. All time greats Okada and Danielson deserve better than THIS. 3 ¼*
Wrap-Up- The endless run-ins, silly weapons, and mobs outside the ring took what could have been a great show down to a very, very good one, which is a bit of a shame. We know Tony has all the money in the world to book everybody and their mother and toss in all kinds of crazy gimmicks and weapons and even a car crash smh, but when you have one of the greatest rosters in the history of the business, LESS IS MORE. Just let great and even all-time great talent WRESTLE. Ospreay and Roderick Strong, and so many others on this show don't need a supporting cast outside the ring distracting from their bouts. Let them wrestle, Tony. Rinse, repeat. Let them wrestle. And you certainly don't need multiple bloody matches on the same card either- emphasize brilliant wrestling instead. In spite of it all- and there not being any one match I'd qualify as great- this was a top-notch card without a stinker on it and utterly blew away WWE's vanilla King and Queen of the Ring the day before. Great to see MJF back, too. Lesson to be learned: at Forbidden Door, just have great WRESTLERS like Ospreay, Okada, Jay White, MJF, and Strong in singles title matches, and don't allow a soul at ringside. The result will be classics, not "what could have been…"
-- Evan Ginzburg
Visit: https://www.facebook.com/EvanGinzburgsOldSchoolWrestlingMemories
