{"id":175281,"date":"2024-03-13T15:26:57","date_gmt":"2024-03-13T20:26:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=175281"},"modified":"2024-03-13T15:26:57","modified_gmt":"2024-03-13T20:26:57","slug":"aew-feud-tracker-assessing-and-grading-samoa-joe-vs-swerve-okada-vs-kingston-ospreay-vs-danielson-christian-vs-copeland-saraya-vs-soho-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2024\/03\/13\/aew-feud-tracker-assessing-and-grading-samoa-joe-vs-swerve-okada-vs-kingston-ospreay-vs-danielson-christian-vs-copeland-saraya-vs-soho-more\/","title":{"rendered":"AEW FEUD TRACKER: Assessing and grading Samoa Joe vs. Swerve, Okada vs. Kingston, Ospreay vs. Danielson, Christian vs. Copeland, Saraya vs. Soho, more"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-2483877799\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p>Over the course of the last week Kazuchika Okada officially became All Elite, Dynamite featured maybe the best TV main event of this short year, and a legitimate dream match was made official for Dynasty.<\/p>\n<p>There are two top babyfaces &#8211; one for now and one for the not too distant future &#8211; and a new top heel. It feels like AEW is really starting to build some momentum. That momentum train rolls into Boston tonight for &#8220;Big Business,&#8221; where Mercedes Mon\u00e9 is expected to make her long-awaited official AEW debut. How that goes down exactly is a mystery (it probably involves some combination of Serena Deeb and Dr. Britt Baker), but one thing is for certain Mon\u00e9 adds star power to the women\u2019s roster and could help pull some of her passionate and devoted fan base into watching AEW more regularly.<\/p>\n<p>With Mercedes, Tony Khan completes the year=long clean sweep of the major free agents. Now it\u2019s time to start making those acquisitions count. As far as tonight goes though, in the words of someone I never thought I\u2019d quote in a million years, Michael Cole: \u201cIt\u2019s Boss time&#8221; in Beantown.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Samoa Joe vs. Swerve Strickland<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;Hangman&#8221; Page is officially out of the picture, but Swerve remains laser-focused on the AEW World Title. He cut a promo last week wondering out loud if karma for bad behavior cost him the match at Revolution. Swerve then said it was the fan&#8217;s support that\u2019s motivated him to keep going. The promo was good but Swerve has to be careful not to lose the edge and effortless coolness that got him over with the crowd in the first place. Being a babyface doesn\u2019t have to mean kissing babies and shaking hands. Swerve can still be himself just without committing any felonies.<\/p>\n<p>There is one minor speed bump on Swerve\u2019s road to Dynasty, and that\u2019s Wardlow challenging Samoa Joe for the title tonight. It\u2019s as guaranteed as a Caitlin Clark 3-pointer that Wardlow is losing to Joe. It\u2019s just a matter of what happens to Wardlow after that. Does Adam Cole remove him from the Undisputed Kingdom? Can he maintain any credibility after the loss? Whatever happens to Wardlow, this is Swerve\u2019s time and Dynasty will be his moment.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: A-<\/p>\n<h3>Will Ospreay vs. Bryan Danielson<\/h3>\n<p>No, you\u2019re not seeing things. This is an actual thing that\u2019s happening. The GOAT vs. the best wrestler in the world right now. This fight sells itself. That said there\u2019s another layer of story here because Don Callis is going to stick his nose in this and try to manipulate things, take credit for stuff he has no business trying to take credit for, and maybe attempt to sic the Callis Family on Danielson against Ospreay\u2019s wishes. I suspect Ospreay who genuinely wants to prove who the best in the world really is, will be unhappy about that and it will push him even closer to separating himself from the Family.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: A+<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1314579542\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<h3>Kazuchika Okada vs. Eddie Kingston<\/h3>\n<p>To go from talking about Will Osperay and Bryan Danielson to talking about Kazuchika Okada is wild, but I digress. The Rainmaker made his debut as an official AEW roster member. He did so by taking the spot in the Elite left vacant after the Young Bucks fired Kenny Omega from the group. (Omega\u2019s reaction on Twitter being future endeavored from his own faction was hilarious.) He attacked Eddie Kingston who thought Okada was coming to his rescue after he got into a scuffle with the EVPs.<\/p>\n<p>On Collision, the new look Elite made their trios debut. It really wasn\u2019t a trios match though as Okada &#8211; totally too cool for school and dripping with enough arrogance to fill Rick Martel&#8217;s infamous atomizer twice over &#8211; dispatched of all three enhancement wrestlers by himself. After the match, Eddie attempted to get revenge on the Elite only to trip over himself before getting swarmed. Penta attempted to save his friend only to get overwhelmed himself. That\u2019s when a certain lovable bastard made his return. Pac, out since last September with health issues, hit the ring and cleared out the Elite before challenging them to a trios match.<\/p>\n<p>That much should be a whole lot fun as will an Okada vs. Pac singles match. With the Bucks focused on the tag team title tournament (see below), Okada has his sights set on the Continental Crown. If\/when he wins it, it will immediately raise the prestige of that title. Okada as heel is an unexpected choice, but it makes sense given how crowded the babyface side of the roster is. I think he&#8217;ll be successful as long as he&#8217;s positioned against popular faces like Eddie.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: A<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Toni Storm vs. Deonna Purrazzo<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>I said last week that Toni and Deonna&#8217;s feud wasn\u2019t finished after she lost the match at Revolution despite getting the visual tap on Toni. Sure enough on Collision, Mariah May had a good match with Trish Adora during which she cosplayed as old Toni Storm. Afterwards, Toni came out to present her with the Toni Award for Best Performance as Toni Storm. That\u2019s when Deonna struck. She attacked Toni before Mariah jumped in, pulled her off, and dropped her with a version of Maryse\u2019s French Kiss DDT on the ramp. This entire sequence was interesting. Deonna got booed when she ran out despite being the aggrieved babyface. To me, that says she needs to be the heel. It doesn\u2019t have to be anything drastic. It can be little subtle changes that implicitly give the audience permission to boo her. I think Toni needs to be a face for the eventual Mariah turn to work right anyway so just go with it now.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: B+<\/p>\n<h3>Adam Copeland vs. Christian Cage<\/h3>\n<p>Copeland returned Wednesday seeking vengeance on Christian Cage for the Conchairto that put him out for three weeks. Christian made a break for it, running like hell through the backstage area before ultimately committing grand theft auto to get away from his former best friend. Copeland then challenged Christian to an I Quit match on Dynamite in Toronto. Christian was celebrating Nick Wayne\u2019s victory on Collision when someone sitting in the audience but dressed conspicuously like one half of Los Conquistadores jumped the barricade and attacked him. Of course it was Copeland.<\/p>\n<p>Copeland pulled a long gray box with the word \u201cSpike&#8221; emblazoned across the top of it from underneath the ring. He opened it opposite the hard cam and just enough for Christian to see what was inside at which point the color drained from The Patriarch\u2019s face. We now have a mystery as to what\u2019s in the box. (Because of smartphones and the internet, I already know what\u2019s in the box but I won\u2019t ruin the surprise.) It feels like it\u2019s time to blow off this feud so both parties can move onto something else.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1224558301\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Grade: A<\/p>\n<h3>Kris Statlander &amp; Willow Nightingale vs. Julia Hart &amp; Skye Blue<\/h3>\n<p>Kris Statlander faced the perpetually over Riho in singles competition. Once again, at a pivotal point in the match, Stokely Hathaway threw a chain into the ring for Stat to use and distracted the ref. Stat thought about using it, but wound up deciding against it. She hit a series of suplexes on Riho, but wound up rolled up for the victory. Even though she didn\u2019t use the chain, she was clearly tempted again. This story has become a version of &#8220;Star Wars&#8221; with Stokely as Emperor Palpatine trying to tempt Kris StatWalker to the dark side while Obi-Willow Kenobi tries to keep her on the straight and narrow. Eventually Stat will succumb to temptation and go to the dark side. In the meantime, though, Willow wants a shot at Julia Hart&#8217;s TBS Title, but first she\u2019s going through Riho tonight. I doubt Stokely even brings the chain out because Willow&#8217;s too pure and wholesome to even be tempted.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: A-<\/p>\n<h3>Mark Briscoe vs. House of Black<\/h3>\n<p>This feud just continues to escalate. House of Black cut a promo on Briscoe on Dynamite that was replete with fire imagery as a retort to Briscoe attempting to incinerate Buddy Matthews&#8217; head. They challenged him to a street fight on Collision. Jay Lethal offered his assistance to his longtime friend and offered to bring Jeff Jarrett as a third partner. I\u2019m no fan of the Team TNA clown car, but this was an acceptable use of them.<\/p>\n<p>The match went about as you would expect; that is to say, completely out of control. The HOB turned babyface briefly when Julia doused Sonjay Dutt in gas and attempted to light him on fire before spitting mist into Karen Jarrett\u2019s face. In the end, HOB won when Buddy Matthews powerbombed Briscoe through a mildly flaming table. It doesn\u2019t feel like this feud is over. In fact, it feels like this is destined to end in an inferno\/ring of fire match between Briscoe and Matthews while Brody King and Malakai Black are off in the tag title tournament. That would be quite the sight.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: B+<\/p>\n<h3>Ruby Soho vs. Saraya<\/h3>\n<p>It feels like this feud, which has been slow cooking like a brisket in a smoker, turned a corner on Rampage. We got full-on pissed off Ruby which is the best version of Ruby. There\u2019s a certain intensity that she has when she\u2019s really angry that\u2019s missing with the scrappy underdog Ruby. Saraya had her man taken out so now she\u2019s coming for Saraya. Saraya, meanwhile, is an ice cold master manipulator with her maniac brother and the ever unstable Harley Cameron behind her as she openly torments a woman she used to consider her best friend. It certainly feels like there\u2019s mixed tag coming soon. We definitely need to get this feud in the ring, though. I\u2019m really looking forward to the eventual one-on-one blow off between Ruby and Saraya where Ruby finally gets her big win on PPV.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: B+<\/p>\n<h3>AEW Tag Team Title Tournament<\/h3>\n<p>In light Sting\u2019s retirement, the AEW Tag Team Titles have been officially vacated. A tournament to crown new champions will begin this Saturday on Collision. No bracket has been released, but we do know some teams involved. In addition to the Young Bucks, FTR as well as the Infantry from ROH are officially in. I expect Private Party, Blackpool Combat Club, and Kings of the Black Throne to also be included. Given the promo battle the two teams had, one that included the Atlanta crowd cheering for the famous local gentlemen\u2019s club Magic City, I expect FTR and The Infantry to cross paths. I also expect to get BCC and FTR 3. Who knows what else we might get, though. Hopefully there\u2019s some intrigue built into this thing and the finals aren\u2019t an immediate foregone conclusion.<\/p>\n<p>Grade: N\/A<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>RECOMMENDED NEXT:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2024\/03\/10\/aew-collision-hits-misses-3-9-pac-returns-for-the-tenth-time-ftr-speaks-hook-exists-in-public-toni-awards-the-infantry-visit-copeland-joins-cmll-briefly\/\">AEW COLLISION HITS &amp; MISSES (3\/9): Pac returns for the tenth time, FTR speaks, Hook exists in public, Toni Awards, The Infantry visit, Copeland joins CMLL briefly<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>OR CHECK THIS OUT AT PROWRESTLING.NET:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/prowrestling.net\/site\/2024\/03\/07\/powells-aew-dynamite-hit-list-the-season-premiere-with-kazuchika-okadas-debut-will-ospreay-vs-kyle-fletcher-hook-vs-brian-cage-for-the-ftw-title-riho-vs-kris-statlander\/\">Powell\u2019s AEW Dynamite Hit List: The \u201cseason premiere\u201d with Kazuchika Okada\u2019s debut, Will Ospreay vs. Kyle Fletcher, Hook vs. Brian Cage for the FTW Title, Riho vs. Kris Statlander<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-485808585\"><div id=\"pwtor-3226391051\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>Over the course of the last week Kazuchika Okada officially became All Elite, Dynamite featured maybe the best TV main event of this short year, and a legitimate dream match was made official for Dynasty. <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2024\/03\/13\/aew-feud-tracker-assessing-and-grading-samoa-joe-vs-swerve-okada-vs-kingston-ospreay-vs-danielson-christian-vs-copeland-saraya-vs-soho-more\/\" title=\"AEW FEUD TRACKER: Assessing and grading Samoa Joe vs. Swerve, Okada vs. Kingston, Ospreay vs. Danielson, Christian vs. Copeland, Saraya vs. Soho, more\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":175282,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,6447,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-175281","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-feud-tracker","category-specialists"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2024\/03\/Screenshot-2024-03-13-at-3.13.46\u202fPM.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175281","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=175281"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175281\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":175283,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175281\/revisions\/175283"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/175282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=175281"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=175281"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=175281"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}