{"id":217796,"date":"2026-06-10T12:31:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-10T17:31:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=217796"},"modified":"2026-06-10T12:31:12","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T17:31:12","slug":"aew-rising-and-fading-stars-the-don-callis-family-is-clicking-mercedes-mones-character-is-still-stuck-in-ambiguous-mode-aews-medical-staff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2026\/06\/10\/aew-rising-and-fading-stars-the-don-callis-family-is-clicking-mercedes-mones-character-is-still-stuck-in-ambiguous-mode-aews-medical-staff\/","title":{"rendered":"AEW RISING AND FADING STARS: The Don Callis Family is clicking, Mercedes Mone&#8217;s character is still stuck in ambiguous mode, AEW&#8217;s Medical Staff"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-3021937832\" 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>Welcome everyone!<\/p>\n<p>Well, last week was in depth on Kevin Knight. That was not what I set out to write but sometimes you just start writing and before you know it you have written the most words about one wrestler you have ever written.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s look back at how I felt some people did last week on AEW television.<\/p>\n<p>On a side note. Dynamite\u2019s ending felt like a throwback in the best way possible. Just do not overdue it.<\/p>\n<p>Here we go.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>RISING STAR OF THE WEEK<\/h3>\n<p><strong>THE DON CALLIS FAMILY<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I know it seems like a crutch to just throw the entire family up there, but hear me out. I am, of course, not talking about the lower part of the group. Instead, I am talking about Kazuchika Okada, Kevin Knight, Andrade El Idolo, Kyle Fletcher, and Mark Davis? Yes, Mark Davis.<\/p>\n<p>Last week had some bigger news for the group with Kevin Knight joining the family, which I think could be good for Knight. It also had some subtlety as well. The part I loved about the reveal wasn\u2019t even Knight. Did you see Andrade\u2019s reaction when Kevin Knight was introduced as the newest member of the family? If you were not paying attention, go back and watch. You will see Andrade\u2019s disgust at this announcement, and it was played perfectly. This is Andrade\u2019s best run on American national television, not to mention how Callis is all about Knight going after MJF but has stopped Andrade from going at MJF several times now.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-2827716671\" 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<p>Okada is coming off his best match in AEW last month. I think he and Takeshita will be running it back in London later this summer and that could be a show-stealer. Okada is not who I thought he would be in AEW, but neither is his biggest rival, Kenny Omega.<\/p>\n<p>Last but not least are the the two Aussie men in the family, Fletcher and Davis. Fletcher feels poised to make the jump to the main event scene this summer. That should make for some amazing matches. Then, surprisingly, Mark Davis has been a standout in 2026. He showed how you can gain momentum in a loss last week. Also, his crazy piledriver he can do out of nowhere shows some unbelievable core strength.<\/p>\n<p>All in all, I think the Don Callis Family is in for a huge summer. There is a possibility of them holding all the men\u2019s singles gold at some point, which I would love and it would feel like a throwback to a different time &#8211; not to mention all the heat it would generate because of how smug Callis, himself, would be.<\/p>\n<p><em>ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW&#8230;<\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>Check out the latest episode of the &#8220;All Elite Conversation Club&#8221; with Joel Dehnel and Gregg Kanner, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spreaker.com\/episode\/all-elite-conversation-club-dehnel-kanner-discuss-mercedes-returns-mjf-injured-kevin-knight-joins-the-don-callis-family-more--72390303\">CLICK HERE<\/a> to stream (or search \u201cpwtorch\u201d on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)<\/h3>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"All Elite Conversation Club - Dehnel &amp; Kanner discuss Mercedes returns, MJF injured, Kevin Knight joins the Don Callis Family, more\" src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?episode_id=72390303&amp;theme=light&amp;playlist=false&amp;playlist-continuous=false&amp;chapters-image=true&amp;episode_image_position=right&amp;hide-logo=false&amp;hide-likes=false&amp;hide-comments=false&amp;hide-sharing=false&amp;hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200px\" frameborder=\"0\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3>FADING STAR OF THE WEEK<\/h3>\n<p><strong>MERCEDES MONE<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This one is more about presentation since Mercedes is not truly fading. The issue is that Mercedes has not changed one bit during her time away from AEW. She came out to slightly changed music, doing her little \u201clook at me\u201d dance, and the fans still chanting &#8220;CEO!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>I know putting Mercedes on this list makes me a little bit of a hypocrite. I am someone who has said the women\u2019s division is lacking star power. We all know Mercedes Mone has an abundance of what she thinks is star power. The issue is that AEW and Mercedes have not known how to present her. Last week does not make me think they have suddenly learned, either.<\/p>\n<p>We had Mercedes make her triumphant return to a babyface pop. Like I said before, the issue is that Mercedes did not act any differently than she did when she left. So you have her out there strutting around like a heel once again. Mercedes then kept her Bank Statement submission on after she had already won, which is not very babyface-like. Not to mention that on Collision, Mercedes attacked Persephone after her with the Owen belt. Not a babyface move at all.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-1409435124\" 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>If the plan is for Mercedes to win the Owen Hart Tournament and go on to face Thekla, I do not understand her coming back as a heel. Once again, this shows that either AEW or Mercedes does not understand what her character should be. Thekla is doing really good heel work right now, so AEW should be building up a true babyface to take her title. Instead, it feels like we are now headed for a heel vs heel match at All In, which will be a good in ring match but not as good as it could have been.<\/p>\n<h3>HONORABLE MENTION<\/h3>\n<p><strong>AEW\u2019s MEDICAL STAFF<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I know they are not \u201cstars,\u201d but hear me out.<\/p>\n<p>I do not know what is going on with the way the medical staff is being portrayed. It it feels as since Will Osprey came back, we have seen the medical staff far more often, but not in a good way. Last week, we had the medical staff, apparently, call off the match, but then both wrestlers continued anyways. You also had a wrestler attack part of the medical staff for no real reason. I hope this is cleaned up quickly.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Wade Keller Post-show (6\/3) - AEW Dynamite w\/Keller &amp; Lilly\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8VzX-Hw_wV4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-3801607809\"><div id=\"pwtor-537632335\"><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>Welcome everyone! Well, last week was in depth on Kevin Knight. That was not what I set out to write but sometimes you just start writing and before you know it you have written the <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2026\/06\/10\/aew-rising-and-fading-stars-the-don-callis-family-is-clicking-mercedes-mones-character-is-still-stuck-in-ambiguous-mode-aews-medical-staff\/\" title=\"AEW RISING AND FADING STARS: The Don Callis Family is clicking, Mercedes Mone&#8217;s character is still stuck in ambiguous mode, AEW&#8217;s Medical Staff\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":217797,"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":[52,4309,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-217796","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opnionandanalysis","category-rising-star-fading-star","category-specialists"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2026\/06\/Screenshot-2026-06-10-at-12.27.51-PM.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217796","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=217796"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217796\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":217798,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217796\/revisions\/217798"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/217797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=217796"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=217796"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=217796"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}