SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
News & Notes
• Lee Moriarty vs. Nigel McGuinness, Mercedes Moné vs. Red Velvet, and Athena vs. Persephone were all excellent matches worth the price of ROH Final Battle. It just makes me wish with the PPVs, which always deliver, had better build up.
• Claudio Castagnoli will defend his newly won CMLL World Title against Último Guerrero on the CMLL Dream Match Friday show. Also on the card, “Speedball” Mike Bailey challenges Mascara Dorada for the Welterweight Title and Místico defends the World Historic Middleweight Title against Soberano Jr. This show will be available on TrillerTV and will be worth the $10.
Intro
This week AEW presents a cross-continental Winter is Coming. The first half will be tonight in Atlanta. The second half will be on Saturday in Cardiff, Wales. Tonight’s portion will see the Continental Classic continue, the first Women’s Tag Champions crowned, and Samoa Joe’s first AEW World Title defense. So grab a cup of hot cocoa, a warm blanket, and curl up in front of the best graps on TV.
Frenemies Unite
Latest Developments
“Hangman” Adam Page and Swerve Strickland will team up for the first time ever to battle The Opps; Samoa Joe will defend the AEW men’s AEW World Title against Eddie Kingston.
Analysis
After the Opps quickly dispatched of the Dark Order, Hangman hit the ring to get his hands on Powerhouse Hobbs, Katsuyori Shibata, and Hook. Later, he challenged them to a tag match for tonight. He also made clear that he wants the men’s AEW World Title back.
On Collision, Swerve held court mid-ring. He explained that he too had his eyes squarely focused on Samoa Joe and the title. He understood that meant going through the Opps which is why, for the first time ever, he would team up with Hangman. He said after the match was over, he and Hangman would have to have another long chat about their mutual desire for the title.
Josh Alexander interrupted him, upset that Swerve didn’t come gunning for revenge against the Don Callis Family. He also felt like Swerve couldn’t just waltz back in after three months out and expect a title shot. He challenged to a number one contender’s match for the Wales portion of Winter is Coming.
The Hangman-Swerve stuff continues to be very intriguing. It’ll be fun to see the two fierce rivals fighting side-by-side tonight. More importantly, though, is the title situation. I’m glad both men each expressed their interest in the title. Obviously, Swerve is going to beat Alexander. I’m extremely curious, though, how Swerve and Hangman will determine which of them gets the first crack at Joe.
I say Joe because, even though he’s defending the Men’s World Title tonight, there’s no chance Eddie’s winning.
Grade: B+
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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Who Will Be Crowned Champion
Latest Developments
In something of a surprise, The Timeless Love Bombs will battle the Babes of Wrath to determine the inaugural AEW Women’s Tag Team Champions.
Analysis
The semi-final match between the Timeless Love Bombs and the newly dubbed MegaProblems was a an unfortunate misstep for the tournament. On paper, a Hardcore Holiday Deathmatch felt like an unnecessary stipulation so soon after Blood & Guts and a bloody PPV. In execution, it had the vibe of a silly WWE holiday-themed street fight. The four women involved are talented and could’ve put together a good straight up tag match which would’ve been more appropriate for a tournament anyway.
The Timeless Love Bombs winning was something of a surprise as I expected the heels to win to set up a heel/face matchup. Instead, it’s face vs. face match. That’s fine. Their sit-down segment on Collision was quite entertaining. I expect both teams to put their best foot forward and end the tournament on a high note.
As far as a winner goes, it could go either way. I would probably give it to The Babes of Wrath as they could use the big moment and Toni & Mina won’t be hurt by it one bit.
Grade: B-
Show Me the Money
Latest Developments
Don Callis used the money he stole from The Young Bucks to goad them down to the ring where they were quickly overwhelmed by the Don Callis Family.
Analysis
Callis got on the mic and said that while he could forgive a lot of things, the one thing he couldn’t forgive was siding with Kenny Omega. He told the Bucks if they wanted the $600K they won as part of the trios match at Full Gear, to come down and get it. The Brothers Jackson obliged and, while they got the initial advantage, the number of DCF members proved too much and they were quickly overwhelmed after Okada hit a Rainmaker on Matt Jackson much to Nick’s shock. The Jurassic Express attempted to make the save, but they too were overwhelmed. Eventually, Kenny himself ran down for the save and finally chased the Family away.
This segment was perfectly fine. It set up a likely six-man tag match for Worlds End. The only real issue is that it made zero sense for Kenny to wait so long to come out. It’s not as if the DCF trapped him in his locker room. Maybe they’ll explain it tonight, because if I were the Bucks, I’d be a little perturbed with my old friend.
Grade: B-
Random Questions
– What title will Mercedes Moné lose next? Mercedes went from 13 titles to 12 on Friday night when she lost the ROH Women’s TV Title back to Red Velvet. It was a huge moment for Velvet becoming the first woman to take a title from Mercedes. Now begins Mercedes slide. She failed to win the big one at Full Gear and now she’s starting to lose her other titles. Which title goes next? The CMLL World Women’s Title. Maybe since AEW is going across the pond, she’ll drop the RevPro British Women’s Title. Whichever it is her continued breakdown should make for entertaining TV.
– When will FTR and the Bang Bang Gang finally fight? We’ve seen two very good promo segments between these two teams in back to back weeks of Collision. I think both segments did a good job building interest in the match. The question is will the match take place in the UK or will it held off until Worlds End. Either option feels acceptable.
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