3/7/2021: AEW Revolution Review and Results

Mar 10, 202110 min read

Updated: Mar 20, 2021

Welp, Revolution is in the books, and while, to some, the already infamous ending soured the entirety of the show, this does not change the objective quality entertainment that I believe still existed throughout.

So no more Revolving around the bush, let's get right into it.

Pre-show match: Thunder Rosa and Riho vs. Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D and ???

Before the match, it is announced that rebel, not Reba, is not cleared to compete tonight. Such a shame, who will ever rise to the occasion? Luckily, a deity of shit rises from the ashes and MAKI ITOH appears, singing her way to the ring to the joy of the socially distanced crowd of Jacksonville. The hard-headed fallen idol from the east had a great showing in a losing effort to Rosa and Riho, with commentary being especially effective in explaining what her character and backstory is. Britt Baker, Riho, and Thunder Rosa are also all excellent in this match, solid work between all four participants to kick off a very memorable night. Match ends after Britt uses the literal crutch of Reba to win.

Result: Britt Baker and Maki Itoh victorious.

Rating: 3 Stars

The pre show officially closes, and now the real revolution can begin.

Second Match: The Young Bucks vs. Chris Jericho and MJF for the AEW World Tag Team Championships

Tensions from the brutal massacring of papa buck boil over fast, and from the outset this match is a gasoline powered freight train between two teams who simply cannot hate each other more. They are probably great friends, but jesus, watch this match and you will believe that the Young Bucks would settle for nothing less than to brutalize and humiliate the two singles stars for having the audacity to try their hand in the illustrious AEW tag team division. The action really is non-stop, Matt and Nick Jackson take us through what seems like the entire Young Bucks repertoire of offensive maneuvers while Jericho and Friedman can do nothing but try and keep up. Eventually, as the pace works towards a more Jericho-friendly style the representatives from the Inner Circle gain more ground, managing to almost steal one after countering the Meltzer driver into the Walls of Jericho, but the Young Bucks quickness and a stiff BTE Trigger seal the win for the Jackson, who are STILL your AEW world tag team champions

Result: The Young Bucks retain their gold.

Rating: 4.25

Second Match: TAG TEAM BATTLE ROYALE

Time now to see who will face the Young Bucks for their title at a later date, I refuse to write the full names of every single team and every single name as it would take me 57 hours to write and probably 58 hours to read. Match started out between the Natural Nightmares (QT Marshall and Dustin Rhodes) and one of three iterations we will see of the Dark Order in this match, with "Number 5" Alan Angels and 'Number 10" Preston Vance getting a shot at eliminating the Nightmare Family early. Spoilers, they don't, but in one of the more interesting things to happen in this match is QT seemingly turning his back on his Rhodes branded cohorts, storming off and spitting in Dustin's face in the process. From here this is a typical battle royale, more and more action is illuminated after bodies are thrown from the crowded ring, your final three are Rey Fenix, Jungle Boy, and PAC, with Rey Fenix emerging victorious for Death Triangle.

Result: Rey Fenix outlasts all others for Death Triangle.

Rating: 3.25

Third Match: Hikaru Shida vs. Ryo Mizunami for the AEW Women's Championship

Ryo Mizunami fiercely fought through the entire Japan side to earn this shot, as well as having to vanquish Nyla Rose on last weeks dynamite, so can she after all this determination and hard work shock the world and upset the most dominate women's champ in AEW history? I was very impressed with this match, it was not the break neck speed of the opener nor the settled pace of a battle royale, but this match managed to captivate with a story of its own, one that constantly builds and works toward its end goal. A swift head kick from Shida is where we find this end tape, and Ryo Mizunami despite a valiant effort does not capture the glory tonight.

Result: Hikaru Shida still the Champion.

Rating: 3.5

After the match both participants are jumped by a group consisting of Reba/Rebel, Vickie Guerrero, Nyla Rose, Britt Baker, and Maki Itoh, who all do their part in beating the wounded gladiatrix's after their war. The heels scamper away when Thunder Rosa makes her presence known, showing where the lines will be drawn on future shows.

Fourth Match: Kip Sabian and Miro vs. Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy

Famed teleporter Alex Marvez joins Chuck and Cassidy right before they are set to square off, but Miro and Kip jump at the opportunity for an advantage and beat them, slamming Orange on a crate and smashing the former butlers head through glass on a door. Miro then commands his music be played, marching out dragging the bloody carcass of Taylor, in the ring Miro says Chuck can "make it all stop", but Taylor simply replies "ring the damn bell". Chuck Taylor is now fighting for his life, Miro and Kip beat him down relentlessly for awhile, basically playing with their food, too bad they don't have a drink... but wait... ITS ORANGE CASSIDY, he stumbles out and collapses on the stage, Miro sees an opportunity to inflict more damage on the pulped Orange, but "Xanax boy" himself springs to his feet and hits Miro with the Orange Punch, evening the odds drastically. From there OC and CT put up a good fight, a beach break stomp combination and multiple orange punches make it seem that the good guys will come out on top, but with the aid of Penelope and the vengeance of Miro, Kip and Miro win, making it GAME OVER for Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy.

Result: Miro and Kip Sabian defeat the wedding crashers.

Rating: 3.75

Backstage now with the failed Inner Circle, "Failed? We failed to win the titles? Do you WANNA GET YOUR ASS KICKED MARVEZ YOU FAT HEAD IDIOT?!" Replies Jericho, who goes on to explain the dismal state of the Inner Circle, and that there needs to be changes. Him and MJF agree that Wednesday there will be an "Inner Circle War Council", where they will take a new direction in their villainous ways.

Fifth Match: "Big Money" Matt Hardy vs. "Hangman" Adam Page

All you need to know for the build to this match is that Matt Hardy is a "money grabbing carney son of a bitch piece of shit asshole" according to Adam Page, and that on the line are each wrestlers entire quarter one earnings, a big money matchup for big money men. From the starting gun you can tell these men are dreaming of the others money, brawling on the outside results in Hangman getting the upper hand, until that very same hand is heavily crippled by Matt, now, the right hand of Page is focused on heavily, the carny fully in control. Hangman mounts a slight comeback and even hits the deadeye, but Private Party on the outside keep the Ref from counting the three, and when it looks like they will interfere further the entirety of the Dark Order come out for the save, driving back the Hardy Party, and assisting Hangman to win.

Result: "Big Money" Adam Page is born, Hardy left.....Broke.

Rating: 4

Sixth Match: Face of The Revolution Ladder Match featuring Max Caster, Lance Archer, Scorpio Sky, Rey Fenix, Penta el Zero M, Cody Rhodes, and Ethan Page

This match is wild from the onset, firstly the debut of Ethan Page was a great surprise and addition to this match, making his presence known multiple times, including sadly botching a gnarly looking side slam which rendered Scorpio Sky almost blind, but besides this hiccup he was solid. The rest of the competitors also play their roles beautifully, we get the expected insanity from superstars like Penta, Fenix, and Lance Archer, as well as some star making performances from Caster, Scorpio, and Page, especially Caster, who before the match absolutely spit super hot fire from his mouth in one of the greatest raps I have ever heard, which included mentions of Lola Bunny, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and Andrew Cuomo. Did I mention what they are grabbing for is a literal gigantic brass ring? I apologize that I haven't, but there is just so much going on in this match that I do not see how you could let a molecule of boredom seep into your mind, the constant brutality, the constant action, and the fire bars all force you to be entertained. Destroyers on ladders, splashes on ladders, cutters off ladders, people going through ladders, what more do you want? Are you not entertained? Simply stunning skill from all performers involved. After all combatants are strewn about the ringside from exhaustion or brain damage, two men, Cody and Scorpio, are the last men on the ladder, but in the end, Scorpio Sky needs the brass ring more than Cody.

Result: Scorpio Sky grabs the brass ring.

Rating: 4.25

The commentators sum up this wild experience, talk about how the night has many surprises left, and then send it to Justin Roberts to find out what major star will become all elite. A countdown starts, this time when it ends, something actually happens, and the man who promises to out work everyone arrives, and it's...…. Christian Cage! At last, at last you are on your own, personally I never got to experience the ring general Christian Cage that was so talked about in Total Nonstop Action, so I am very excited to see what he does in AEW, all I know is that he will at least have one...more...match.

Seventh Match: Team Taz (Ricky Starks and Brian Cage) vs. Sting and Darby Allin

I will admit, the choice to keep commentary on for this match which is clearly cut together is a bit weird, but very easily looked over, as the opening instantly catches your attention, the two teams making their way to an abandoned warehouse in their respective ways, Team Taz opting for a stylish sports car, with Sting and Darby Allin arriving via skateboard hitches to truck, along with a legion of "hoodlums", masked figures bearing the resemblance of sting. The match itself is a thrilling brawl in a great environment, Darby and Cage quickly leave the dilapidated ring, making Sting and Ricky fight it out in the early goings of this fight, where Sting shows off his skills a bit, taking care of Ricky for the meantime after throwing away the bat, but quickly the four men are reunited for more degenerate violence, broken bottles, broken tables, massive coffin drops, and the appearance of hook and will Hobbs making the numbers advantage impossible to overcome for the face painted duo. Cage and Hobbs absolutely destroy Darby by throwing him through a pane of glass, and soon all of Team Taz slowly follow Sting, looking to end it once and for all, but when somehow, someway, Darby Allin is able to get up and retrieve the once cast away bat to throw it to Sting (think episode 6), and once again the odds are evened as Sting swings for the fences on all of the Taz collective. Will Hobbs and Hook are decimated by the icons bat, Brian Cage gets laid out on the floor and Darby hits a huge elbow from what has to be around 2 stories up, leaving just Sting and Starks. Starks holds his own, but the Stinger is too experienced to lose, countering a back elbow into the Scorpion Death Drop, leaving Team Taz in the dust in the process.

Result: The Hoodlums Sting and Darby lay waste to team Taz

Rating: 4.5

Main Event: Jon Moxley vs. Kenny Omega in an exploding barbed wire death match for the AEW Heavyweight Championship.

Forget what you know and instead remember, remember how excited you were for the absolute insanity of an exploding barbed wire death match and how you could not wait to see, now think about the match and realize one thing, it delivered. These two men are such incredible performers, they play up the stipulation to perfection and keep their audience chopping at the bit throughout, the first explosion shocked me, each subsequent one more brutal than the last, both men bleed , both men wince in absolute agony, both men put on an absolutely unforgettable performance. They left everything out there, and if the match had just ended when it did and there was no promises of the ring completely exploding everyone would agree, but alas, this is not the world in which we live. Go watch this match and appreciate what it is, it is one of the most compelling pieces I have ever seen, ending with an absolutely insane exploding barbed wire bat hit and a chair assisted one winged angel, leaving a handcuffed, bloody, nearly dead Moxley helpless in the ring. Omega's posse wants to celebrate, but then, the countdown for the final explosion starts (even though Excalibur had said "if the match hasn't ended" earlier), the audience is completely distraught at the thought of seeing Moxley potentially having his career ended, and all hope looks lost until Eddie Kingston comes out looking like a nervous wreck, he fights off his family and gets in the ring to protect his former friend and brother, 5...….Don Callis exits in fear...4...…commentary plead Kingston to carry out Moxley...3...….2.....1...…

*pop*

And then, the show ends.

Yes, it is highly embarrassing that this happened, the explosions botched harder than Sin Cara ever did and go into business for themselves, what was supposed to be a deadly explosion is instead a wimpy whimper, and the crowd knows it, they boo instantly as commentary attempts to pretend anything at all monumental happened, and that is the final note of AEW's Revolution. It really is a terrible shame, this match and event were so, so good, but no one will remember that, and for a completely understandable reason, AEW promised something crazy and delivered, but when you say there's going to be a huge explosion, it is best to put on a huge explosion. These antics were all technically after the match, so they will not factor into my grade, it is just such a terrible disappointment that the failure of the ending will always overshadow the absolute labor of love and violence that was this match.

Result: Kenny "by god" Omega retains in agonizing fashion.

Rating: 4.75

So a full revolution has been made, but what shall be the final grade?

Overall Grade: A +

Just go watch the show, there are many seedy websites that probably contain bootlegged Russian versions of this event already, and the malware is certainly worth the price of admission. This show achieved something always amazing for a wrestling show, there was not one shitty wrestling match, and while you may not be able to look past the botched finish just realize that the matches themselves were incredible, and even though the last sip was soured a bit, the full shake was one of the most sweetest I have ever consumed.

So how did you feel about the show? Tweet us @BladeJobPW with your opinions, and make sure to tune in every week for the most professional podcast in the world, the one... the only... BLADE JOB WRESTLING PODCAST.