AEW RISING AND FADING STARS: Jet Speed losing speed, Brody King shining in newly crowned tag team,

Welcome everyone!

The follow up Dynamite after Forbidden Door is about to happen so let’s look back on the last week of AEW.

Last week’s Dynamite was a weird show (threat of murder, anyone?) with a hot crowd. Collision might have been an even more strange show. That said, Forbidden Door is typically a weird part of the calendar for AEW. This year felt more like it was an AEW show with a few New Japan guys sprinkled in.

Let’s be honest, there is no true Forbidden Door with AEW. The wrestlers work independent shows and other big companies across the world. It might be time to move on from the concept. Just rename this PPV.

Just a note that I did not put any of the men or women who retained their titles at the show on my list. As I’ve mentioned before, they have risen to the top of their divisions, no need for them to be put at the top of the Rising list.

With my caveat out of the way let’s get to the list!

Rising Star of the Week

Brody King

It has been a long time coming for this man. He lived in the shadow of Malakai Black during his first few years. Yeah, they won the Trios Titles, but we all know those have zero credibility. Just look at how they were defended on the Forbidden Door pre-show.

Now Brody looks more like the guy that most of the hardcore wrestling fans fell in love with eight or so years ago. Brody works in AEW so well because there just aren’t that many big guys like him around. He stood nose-to-nose with two of the biggest in Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin on Sunday. While neither were involved in the pin, Brody never looked small or like lesser-than when in the ring with The Hurt Syndicate.

So going forward, AEW has the opportunity to really help rebuild this AEW Tag Division. Brody and his partner Bandido can be a big part of that.

Look at the most featured teams they have right now in the division and it looks to be in great shape.

• Brody King & Bandido
• FTR
• The Young Bucks
• The Outrunners
• Gates of Agony
• Jet Speed
• Adam Copeland and Christian Cage
• Big Billy and Bryan Kieth
• The Hurt Syndicate (question mark)

And that’s not even adding in the lower card ones or ones that are injured/not on television. Continuing to put those mid-card feuds on Dynamite, sometimes, and mostly Collision has paid off. I could see any of those teams holding tag gold this year.

1st Runner Up: Wardlow

Welcome back, Wardlow! I know he didn’t do much to warrant this spot, but the fact he was brought back the way he was and is being put with Don Callis makes me excited for what’s next. Prince Nana is a beloved character in AEW who almost never gets physical. Having Wardlow beat him down is not a small thing at all. This could be the start of a Wardlow and Swerve feud which immediately puts Wardlow in a bigger place on the card.

Wardlow, much like Killswitch and Brody King, is a big guy within AEW. There is no reason he should not be booked that way by Tony Khan. When he finally split from MJF years ago, that should have been the beginning of his ascension, but alas it was not. So you have one of two ways for him to go – as a singles guy or he can team with someone.

Well, last week I lobbied for another member of the Don Callis Family, Josh Alexander, to go back to his roots and the tag team division. What about Alexander and Wardlow together? That would be a big, size-wise, heel tag team in a division that does not have a lot of bigger guys together as teams. It would allow Alexander to, as I said before, get back to his roots but it also allows Wardlow to ease his way back into the ring.

Regardless, it’s great to see the big guy back in AEW.

ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…

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Fading Star(s) of the Week

Kevin Knight & “Speedball” Mike Bailey (Jet Speed with no stylization for Wade)

Remember last months PPV All In Texas? I know a lot has happened since then so a quick reminder of the AEW Tag Title match. It was The Hurt Syndicste vs. Jet Speed vs. Nick Wayne & Christian Cage. Everyone from that match was originally slated to appear at the Forbidden Door PPV proper show (not the pre-show). Except for Jet Speed. Yes, Nick Wayne missed the show, but that was due to injury.

Since All In Texas, unless Jet Speed is alongside the AEW World Champion or alongside New Japan legend Hiroshi Tanahashi, they haven’t won a match. Knight and Bailey both lost singles matches to Jon Moxley. As a team, Jet Speed also lost to Mox and Wheeler Yuta. Do you know the last time they won a tag match? Their last win as a tag team was way back on the June 25 Dynamite defeating Ricochet & A.R. Fox.

Then came Forbidden Door and a team who competed for the AEW World Tag team titles lost a trios match on the pre-show. The first match on the pre-show no less.

Look, I get that this is part of rebuilding the tag team division. Having parity across it will help elevate everyone, especially now that the Goldberg-esque team is no longer holding the titles. That said, what would a win over Mox & Yuta could have done for Jet Speed? Instead, they just got beat up by Mox for a month straight.

So now it’s time to reset and see if this team will be a solid part of the new tag team division. Or will they break up and go there separate ways? Time will tell.