AEW Dynamite- May 19, 2021
by Samoa Rowe
From Daily's Place. The big news story of the day is that Dynamite is moving to TBS in 2022, but there will also be a second weekly show and quarterly specials on TNT. Pretty exciting, though bittersweet because I love the TNT tradition. Also, what does this mean for the branding of the belt currently held by Miro? Anyways, our hosts are Jim Ross, Tony Shiavone, and Excalibur.
Christian Cage vs. Matt Sydal
Taz joins commentary, presumably to mess with Christian later. The guys trade holds and feel each other out. Sydal is a guy long-branded as a spot-monkey by IWC experts, but he holds up against Christian in the mat game. When it's time, Sydal turns it up with a rana and spin kick, but Christian viciously blocks a springboard moonsault. Baseball slide dropkick by Christian sends Sydal into the rails. Backbreaker by Christian, Sydal escapes a cravat, Christian hits a diving uppercut. Christian hits a falling headbutt and another backbreaker. Sydal rallies and hits Meteora for 2. Christian survives a lariat and then headbutts the gut, but Sydal answers with a running spin heel kick. Running knees by Sydal gets 2. Christian counters into a backbreaker but Sydal leaps into a sunset flip and then Straight Jacket submission. Christian escapes but misses a flying splash, but a spear gets 2. Christian blocks a moonsault and finishes with Killswitch at 9:08. They packed a lot of very good back and forth action into a relatively short package. Sydal looks good in defeat and could really use some direction, ***.Winner: Christian Cage
Christian wants a piece of Taz, but they're interrupted by Ricky Starks. Ricky might be hurt but he's not waiting on the sidelines, and unleashes Team Taz onto Christian and Sydal. Hangman Adam Page saunters out, hands his drink to a confused Starks, and tries to clear out Team Taz. Hook attacks Page's leg and Brian Cage puts Hangman down with a powerbomb. Team Taz look pretty formidable when they're not cowering in fear from Sting.
Backstage promo from the Varsity Blondes, now accompanied by Julia Hart. Brian Pillman Jr. says he stayed away from wrestling for a long time because of what it did to his father, but that changed when he met the Young Bucks. At the time, the Bucks appeared to be good, family men, and changed his perception of the wrestling business. They're ashamed of what the Bucks are doing now.
Backstage promo from Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston. They are facing the Acclaimed tonight, and Moxley isn't sure who they are, Eddie knows that one guy is a rapper and the other is a friend. They want to improve their standings in the tag ranks, so they are pulling out the brakes.
The Acclaimed respond, they're ranked higher than Moxley and Kingston, and are going to knock them on their @sses.
Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston vs. The Acclaimed (Max Caster and Anthony Bowens)
This week, Moxley's music is a cover of “Wild Things” and the wrestlers in the crowd are singing and dancing along. Max Caster's rap makes fun of Eddie's attire and includes an innuendo about Jon's wife, Renee. That earns the Acclaimed a swift beatdown. Caster desperately counters Eddie with a dragon screw off the ropes, and the Acclaimed take control as they cut to picture-in-picture. They conveniently return just in time for Moxley's hot tag and house clearing sequence. The Acclaimed answer with a superplex, straight into a crossbody/suplex combo, and Kingston saves the match. The Acclaimed break up the Violent Crown, and Caster throws a chain to Bowens, but the ref catches them. Caster tries to use the boombox, but it's reversed. Moxley and Kingston finish with a Wheelbarrow Paradigm Shift at 10:24. Good match, and a nice example of how the ranking system can be an asset, ***.Winners: Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston
Chris Jericho chats with Dean Malenko and doesn't have time to talk to Alex Marvez.
Tony Shiavone hosts Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky in the ring. Sky admits that he idolized Sting as a kid, but now he threatens the Stinger to step aside. Ethan dismisses Shiavone, and gushes about how they threw Darby Allin down a flight of stairs. Ethan likes to think that Darby's TNT title loss is a little bit his fault and vows to take everything from him. They're interrupted by snowfall, and Sting arrives on the stage, while Allin heroically attacks Page and Sky from behind with a skateboard. Sting (slowly) puts Sky into the Scorpion Deathlock. Sky taps frantically before slipping out. Page and Sky consider another attack, but the Dark Order shows up to end the scene.
The Pinnacle are having dinner together, but MJF can't enjoy himself because of all the mean things Chris Jericho has said about him. MJF stabs the table and promises to get the last laugh. Dax Harwood is mad that he and Cash Wheeler can't focus on tag team gold because Jericho is dragging them into this. Shawn Spears suddenly loses it on the waiter and smashes the poor guy into the table. They insinuate that this year's Stadium Stampede will not be an SNL sketch, and will be the last time the Inner Circle are ever together.
Rebel, not Reba (with Dr. Britt Baker) vs. AEW Women's Champion Hikaru Shida
Rebel fakes a knee injury, but jumps n jacks when the ref isn't looking. Her advantage is short-lived as Shida tries to injure the knee for real. Shida puts on her own doctor's glove and tries to put on Lockjaw, but gets distracted by Britt posing with the title. Rebel hits a crutch shot and suplex for 2. Shida comes right back with a sitout knee breaker and finishes with the Stretch Muffler at 2:04. Fun squash match.Winner: Hikaru Shida
Britt assaults Shida and curb stomps her onto the belt. I think most of us can agree that it's Britt's time to be champion.
Last week, Kenny Omega and Don Callis try to check on Orange Cassidy, although Kris Statlander and Best Friends are rightfully suspicious of them. Cassidy is getting iced up after the terrible bump he took against Pac. They offer Cassidy a legal agreement to get out of the match at Double or Nothing in exchange for a future singles match against Omega. Cassidy stares off into space as he slowly rips the paper in half. Kenny warns that a One Winged Angel could hurt him even more, and tells OC to think about it.
Chris Jericho, sporting an arm brace, and the Inner Circle come to the ring to talk about Stadium Stampede. Ortiz is finished talking about the Pinnacle and it's time to fight. Sammy Guevara says he won't ever stop going after the Pinnacle, even if he has to spray them down with the bubbly every week. Jake Hager feels they have no choice but to put their faction on the line, because they want to prove they aren't schoolgirl b!tches like the Pinnacle. Chris Jericho says last week's Bubbly Bath was meant to get the Pinnacles' attention, since they're heads are so far up their own @sses. He's been questioning if Blood & Guts was worth all the injuries and loss of blood. Jericho admits that MJF hurt him, and scared his family and friends. It was all worth it for Jericho, because now he has the fire necessary to gain his revenge, and agrees to Stadium Stampede, where they'll p!ss all over their graves.
Tony Shiavone asks Jade Cargill if she's chosen a manager. She's interrupted by Mark Sterling, who wants to work FOR her, and questions why she has to settle talking to Shiavone instead of Jim Ross. Jade doesn't care for Sterling interrupting HER air time, but doesn't say no.
NWA Women's Championship:
Serena Deeb © vs. Red Velvet
Deeb is back from injury and tears into Velvet in uncharacteristically vicious fashion. Velvet blocks Detox, but Deeb resumes her onslaught. Velvet turns it around with a series of body shots, but Deeb answers with a mean dragon screw legsweep. Back from commercials, both women are down. Velvet rallies and sends Deeb into the ropes with a drop toe hold and hits running knees to the back. Velvet hits a wild standing moonsault, and then blocks a neckbreaker in the ropes by tossing Deeb to ringside. Velvet hits a dangerous moonsault off the apron, her knees crash into Deeb's face. Back to the ring, Velvet hits an enziguri for 2. They trade urgent counters, and then Deeb blocks a top rope moonsault and stacks Velvety up for a good nearfall. Deeb applies the Serenity Lock, Velvet survives, so Deeb chop blocks the knee and then smashes it into the canvas. The Serenity Lock ends it at 9:37. Great performance by Deeb that reestablishes her as a subtle heel, Velvet looked a bit rough with her nearly botched moonsaults, **¾.Winner and still NWA Women's Champion: Serena Deeb
Pac rants about Kenny Omega, but I'm still trying to formulate my thoughts about Serena Deeb and Velvet Sky.
Austin Gunn (with Cody Rhodes and Arn Anderson) vs. Anthony Ogogo (with The Factory)
Ogogo looks like a million bucks, it's easy to see why they're grooming him for big things. Gunn gets a hot start and hits a bulldog. Ogogo cuts Austin off with a single punch to the gut. Austin stumbles up and takes a second gut punch. Austin is bleeding from the mouth but pleads with the ref not to stop the match. Ogogo hits a pop up punch to the face and wins via referee stoppage at 2:13. Productive squash.Winner: Anthony Ogogo
Ogogo mockingly throws the American flag and Cody rushes in to catch it. Ogogo stands tall with his Union Jack flag.
Alex Marvez talks to the newly split up SCU. Christopher Daniels doesn't want to talk about his possible retirement, shakes Kazarian's hand, and leaves without saying a word. Kazarian chokes up and says that no one knows just how much Daniels means to him. He's blaming the Young Bucks, Good Brothers, Kenny Omega, and Don Callis for his pain and vows to hunt them all down.
New TNT Champion Miro comes to the ring to talk. He thanks Jesus Christ for protecting him, and also for giving him strength and power to crush everyone. Darby Allin disrespected him, so he beat him up badly and took away his title. Miro wants to defend the TNT title next week, and he'll crush whoever it is over and over and over. Lance Archer interrupts. Archer competed in the first TNT Championship match and now it's his time. He hopes that he and Miro beat each other up like Godzilla and King Kong at the "sold out" Double or Nothing. Miro isn't bothered by Archer's trash talk and mocks him for using old man Jake Roberts to hold him back. Then Jake proves Miro's point by holding Archer back.
AEW Tag Team Championship:
The Young Bucks © (with Don Callis) vs. Varsity Blondes (Brian Pillman Jr. and Griff Garrison, with Julia Hart)
Garrison scores first with a big boot onto Matt. Varsity Blondes catch the Bucks with stereo dropkicks, and mockingly do the Bucks' pose. Pillmanarm drags Matt into an armbar. The Blondes hit Matt with a tandem dropkick/slam. Matt blocks Pillman's slingshot senton, and Nick dropkicks Griff off the apron. Matt helps Nick tightrope walk from post to post to double stomp Pillman onto the stage. The Bucks reclaim their pose and are in control heading into picture-in-picture. They return with Pillman hitting Nick with a springboard crossbody. Garrison gets the hot tag and burns the house down. The Bucks amusingly put themselves into position for a double spear and then overly telegraph Griff's dive by promptly going to ringside. The Blondes look for a Doomsday Powerbomb, but it's reversed into a superplex. Pillman absorbs a series of kicks and pops up to hit a hard superkick on Matt. The Bucks make a blind tag and Matt flips Pillman into a Sharpshooter. Nick sprays aerosol into Pillman's face! Brandon Cutler tosses another can to Matt, but Julia Hart gets the ref's attention. Cutler throws a backup can to Matt and he sprays it in Julia's face. Quick rollup by Pillman, but Matt answers with another sharpshooter. Nick hits a facebuster on Pillman (still stuck in the hold) and moonsaults onto Griff, and Pillman finally submits at 11:35. Good match that capitalized on the recent sympathy for Pillman to make the Bucks like even bigger a-holes, ***.Winners and still AEW Tag Team Champions: The Young Bucks
The Bucks' celebration is cut short when Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston attack and put them into sleeper holds. The Bucks pass out, so Mox and Eddie steal their shoes.
Final Thoughts: Just a good show to build up Double or Nothing. Sometimes, that's all you need.
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