SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
Tonight is Beach Break which has turned into one of the biggest Dynamites of the year. Two huge title matches. A Casino Gauntlet match. It’s time to grab a cold beverage of your choice because tonight’s show is sure to be hot.
Surviving Death’s Door
Latest Developments
Team Briscoe won the Death’s Door steel cage after Andrade El Idolo finally broke with the Don Callis Family and took out MJF and Jake Doyle.
Analysis
The 12-man steel cage match was as wild as expected. First of all, it was a new round cage that was christened “Death’s Door.” While I like the cage itself, the fact that it was a new cage and that it got a fancy new name concerns me a little bit. It certainly makes it seem like this could become an annual thing. Anarchy in the Arena and Blood and Guts are already annual 10-12 person tag matches. We don’t need another one.
As far as the content of this match, I enjoyed most of it. Darby taking a face-first bump on thumbtacks was nuts, only topped by Kevin Knight falling from the top of a cage onto a stack of four tables – only two of which broke. Even Kyle Fletcher having juice from an orange slice squeezed into his bloody face worked for me. Where I draw the line is Lio Rush. His gimmick is garbage and he had no business in this match which was otherwise supposed to be serious. Luckily the climactic moment of this match was so well done that I’m willing to forgive the Lio Rush nonsense.
For weeks, Andrade’s frustration with Don Callis’s business relationship with MJF and prioritizing of his shiny new toy in Kevin Knight has been palpable. It was obvious that a breaking point was coming. That breaking point finally happened when MJF demanded that Andrade hold Mark Briscoe in place for a Dynamite Diamond Ring shot. Andrade initially complied before dropping Briscoe and nailing MJF with his Dia de los Muertos spinning elbow. He then kicked Jake Doyle low and ripped off his DCMJF t-shirt to reveal another shirt that said “F— Don. F— MJF”. Briscoe then hit a Jay Driller on Doyle for the win.
This was nearly perfect. The only thing I would’ve changed was the shirt. Even though I got a hearty laugh out of it put too much a bright light on the idea of Andrade fighting alongside the DCF and MJF for 20 minutes when he was obviously intending to be done with them. It’s one thing to think Andrade was frustrated and finally got fed up. It’s another to think he planned the turn from the beginning.
Briscoe received his title shot and, despite putting up a good fight, he fell to the Heat Seeker. MJF was not satisfied with the win and attacked Briscoe with the Dynamite Diamond Ring after the bell. That brought out Kenny Omega who ran MJF off and then challenged him to a world title match. MJF initially turned him down, but he then reconsidered and dropped the gauntlet. Kenny could have his title match if he agreed to the same stipulation as “Hangman” Adam Page: Lose and never challenge for the AEW World Championship again.
Kenny spent the rest of the show mulling over the offer, talking things over with the Bucks and later Will Ospreay. At the end of the night, Kenny came out and cut one the better promos he’s cut in awhile and accepted MJF’s terms.
I along with most everyone else expected this match to happen at Redemption. Instead, it’s taking place tonight at Beach Break. I expect a great match and fully expect Omega to defeat MJF. Omega and Ospreay’s journeys have been intertwined for months now. Them meeting in the main event of All In, in a passing of the torch match of sorts feels appropriate. Where that leaves both MJF and Andrade is an open question however.
Grade: B
Spider Bites Stardom
Latest Developments
After defeating Starlight Kid and declaring Stardom dead, Thekla now awaits the winner of the Women’s Casino Gauntlet match at Redemption.
Analysis
Thekla and Starlight Kid had great match at Forbidden Door. Thekla finally overcame the woman she had never beaten and did exactly what she said would do – ripped her mask off and spat in it. She then beat Stardom president Taro Okada, who was at ringside, with the mask for good measure.
On Collision, Thekla came out and cut a quick promo gloating about her victory. She declared Stardom dead and said that her next challenger needed to load her gun because she would catch the bullet with her teeth and spit it back at her.
Thekla’s promo style remains unique. She comes off not just super intense, but totally unhinged, yet you believe everything she says. She single-handedly made her feud with Stardom work and now she moves on to her next challenger. The question is who will that be?
With Mercedes Moné waiting in the wings for the match at Wembley, I seriously wonder if Thekla’s going to even retain the title at Redemption. A heel vs. heel match on the biggest show of the year feels like a bad idea. Willow Nightingale is already on the comeback train. I wonder if she makes a surprise return tonight to win the gauntlet. If so I think it’s extremely likely she dethroned Thekla and moves on to defend against Mercedes in London.
Grade: B+
Tournament Finales
Latest Developments
Mercedes Moné defeated a very game Maya World to win her second consecutive Owen Hart Tournament; Will Ospreay outlasted Swerve Strickland in an absolute bloodbath to punch his ticket to Wembley.
Analysis
The Mercedes-Maya match was better than I think some people are giving it credit for. Maya held her own and didn’t look out of her depth at all. The match wasn’t always the most crisp, but Maya still proved she can hang on the big stage. Credit to Mercedes for helping Maya look as good she did. In the home stretch, the women traded Statement Makers until Mercedes was able to lock hers in and bend backwards, forcing Maya to tap.
The follow-up was brief but sufficient. Mercedes cut a pre-taped promo on a beach bragging about her win. By contrast, Maya was right back at it battling Julia Hart for the number two spot in the women’s Casino Gauntlet match for a shot at Thekla at Redemption.
This was all perfectly fine. Mercedes got to gloat and Maya immediately got back into the thick of things and is set to start the Casino Gauntlet match against Athena. My only concern is that the blowoff to the Maya-Athena feud ends up taking place on an ROH PPV which would not be very advantageous.
Over on the men’s side, Will Ospreay and Swerve Strickland had a bloody, 35 minute war that only ended when Ospreay pulled out the Tiger Driver ’93. The Death Riders had gathered at ringside to cheer him on and raised him on their shoulders after the win.
Last week on Dynamite, footage aired of Mox approaching Ospreay in the hallway after the match and presenting him with an official Death Riders patch. That was followed by another in the series of interactions we’ve seen between Ospreay and Kenny Omega over the last few months. On the live show, Ospreay teamed with Mox to defeat The Swirl. By that point he’d thought about Mox’s offer of membership in the Death Riders and the patch was prominently displayed on his gear.
Will Ospreay as an official Death Rider was not necessarily where I thought this was going, at least not yet. I was expecting a Mox-Ospreay final challenge at Redemption. That seems unlikely now. My issue with this is the ambiguity of every Death Rider not named Jon Moxley.
While acting as Ospreay’s sensei, Mox has remained a “by any means necessary” fighter, but not done anything explicitly heelish. The rest of DR literally joined The Dogs in attacking The Bang Bang Gang on Collision. Perhaps this leads to Mox and Ospreay breaking off from the Death Riders, but I’m not going to hold my breath. Instead, I’ll just hope that the different philosophies between Ospreay and The Death Riders are addressed not ignored.
Grade: B
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
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A Darwinian Challenge
Latest Developments
Hikaru Shida was crowned the new TBS Champion after winning the Survival of the Fittest match.
Analysis
The actual match left a bit to be desired. With the exception of the final fall, every pin came after a roll-up. That’s not very interesting, especially after the third one in a row. The match also felt a little rushed to me.
Nonetheless, the person I expected to win, won. Shida’s had a fresh coat of paint with her heel turn; it certainly felt like she had the most momentum coming in. Persephone probably shined the most in the match and came out with a ready-made feud after clocking Kris Statlander with the title to cost her the match.
Grade: C+
Random Questions
-Ciampa has to win tonight, right? Right? After weeks of barely compelling feuding, Tomasso Ciampa and Chris Jericho are finally going to do battle tonight. For Ciampa’s sake, let’s hope this is a one and done. He needs to beat Jericho and move on. Chris Jericho has very little left to offer and there is nothing Ciampa gains from an extended feud with him.
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