AEW WrestleDream
October 12, 2024
by Doc Allen
Live from the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. WrestleTix estimates attendance at 7,628. Excalibur, Tony Shiavone, and Nigel McGuinness are on commentary.
Jay White (with Juice Robinson) vs. Hangman Adam Page
The story here is White just returned from sabbatical and knows that he needs to get past Hangman to get into World title contention. Crowd chants "F** you, Cowboy" at the bell. White enjoys a hot start, hitting quick, vicious attacks. He slams Page onto the apron for a 2 count. Hangman answers with his springboard clothesline. Fans chant for Swerve while Page goes on the attack. White comes back with a tight dragon screw and then blasts a DDT for 2. Page blocks a German suplex, but tweaks his knee on the landing. White tries again with a jackknife German for 2. Page gouges the eyes but White chops him into an awkward single leg tree of woe. The fans rally behind Jay while he gouges a helpless Hangman's eyes. Page escapes and angrily hits a DVD onto the ring frame. Jay blocks the Buckshot, hits a mean Dragon screw between the ropes, but Hangman answers with a powerbomb onto the steps! White answers with a kneebreaker onto the ramp! It was like a single leg atomic drop, but Hangman landed on his kneecap. Back to the ring, White blows a low blow, but Hangman reverses into Deadeye, further damaging his own knee. Fans give them a dueling chant. Jay reverses the Buckshot into Blade Runner and WINS at 16:31! It's a testament to Hangman's starpower that White pinning him feels like a big upset. They beat the crap out of each other, and it's good to see Jay on a journey, ****½.Winner: Jay White
AEW Women's World Championship:
Mariah May © vs. Willow Nightingale
Not much backstory here, Mariah is building her resume as champion, Willow became #1 contender this past Tuesday. Willow wrestles like she doesn't know she's a placeholder challenger and takes it to May at the bell. May gets serious with a shotgun dropkick. She gets a bit overconfident and gets blindsided by THE POUNCE! May recovers with a leg sweep and goes on offense. Mariah gets carried away rubbing herself against Willow's face and gets bitten on her ear. Willow makes a plucky comeback and nails a spinebuster for 2. MayDay is blocked, so Mariah nails a German suplex. Willow answers with a deathlock, they exchange slaps. Willow smashes Mariah into her own knee, the fans love it. Willow's cannonball connects, but May dodges her moonsault. Missile dropkick by May, then MayDay, but Willow kicks out! That false finish just took this from death-slot-on-Dynamite-worthy to PPV-worthy. Willow desperately blasts a lariat, they take a breather to a round of applause. May blocks the Doctor Bomb, then counters into a Victory Roll. Thrust kick by Willow, then a running DVD into the corner. May kicks out! Willow almost reverses an avalanche rana, but May reverses back and steals Storm Zero again to win at 10:52! Absolutely impressive match in that they took a routine title defense and convinced the live crowd that Willow had a real chance to win. May gets some shine from taking everything Willow had and coming out on top anyway, ***½.Winner and still AEW Women's World Champion: Mariah May
TNT Championship:
Jack Perry © vs. Katsuyori Shibata
This is another insta-feud, but they managed to cram in a lot of sneak attacks and insults into the short window of buildup. This is a cool match on paper, the live crowd is receptive at the bell. Shibata controls the wrists, hits a suplex, and forces Perry into a rope break and timeout. Perry lures Shibata into giving up the high ground and goes on offense. Sadly, they get into a chopping contest, and Shibata has Perry's number in that department. Perry manages a lariat, but Shibata responds with a snug suplex. Shibata might have knocked himself loopy on that suplex, but goes into serial killer mode when Perry spits at him. Shibata misses a corner dropkick, but reverses a suplex into the ring frame! Everytime Shibata stiffs Perry, the fans roar, Perry makes a great punching bag. Perry absorbs machine gun kicks and grabs the Snare Trap. Shibata is about to get the ropes when Perry lets go for a draping DDT. Shibata digs deep to hit a DVD, headbuster, and rear naked choke. Perry rolls Shibata over for the fluke pinfall at 9:17! Brutal bell to bell action, ***½.Winner and still TNT Champion: Jack Perry
Perry is a sore winner and smashes the TNT title against Shibata's injury prone head. Daniel Garcia (who has been speculated all week to be WWE-bound) runs in to confront Jack. Perry slips away, leaving Garcia behind to deal with a surprise MJF appearance. Jack returns to knock out Garcia, leaving him vulnerable to MJF's beatdown. MJF found his Dynamite Diamond in a pawn shop and wants Garcia to kiss it. Now we're joined by Adam Cole, apparently no longer The Devil, and once again a babyface since MJF is a solid heel again. Cole chases MJF away and stands tall to a great ovation.
AEW International Championship:
Will Ospreay © vs. Konosuke Takeshita vs. Ricochet
Ospreay and Ricochet have been beefing since their original late 2010's rivalry, and Takeshita has inserted himself by interfering in their latest battle. Fans chant "holy sh*t" at the bell. Ricochet and Ospreay put their differences aside to kick Takeshita out, before blocking each other's finishers and putting on a gymnastics show to reach a stalemate. Takeshita interrupts their superhero landings with a mean dropkick. Loud "AEW" chant while Takeshita runs wild. This crowd rules. Ricochet dodges Takeshita's running knee strike, Takeshita blocks the Sasuke Special, only for Ospreay to take them both out with one of his own. "Holy sh!t!" chant. Phenomenal Forearm by Ospreay gets 2. Ricochet hits a spike DDT and standing SSP. Ricochet rolls into Takeshita's snug forearm shot. Ospreay ambushes with a double somersault kick. They battle on the apron until Takeshita gives Ospreay a DVD, then gets blasted by Ricochet's Meteora! "This is awesome!" chant. Ricochet thinks about using a table, and gets surprised by Ospreay's standing Spanish Fly. Ricochet reverses Stormbreaker and the Hidden Blade. Ospreay dodges a 450 and gives Ricochet the Styles Clash! Takeshita breaks the pin. They stumble around hitting drive-by shots, Takeshita hits a massive Blue Thunder Bomb for a stellar nearfall! Ospreay and Ricochet realize they must team up to stop Takeshita's dominance. He won't stay down and blasts them both with snug forearms, the fans give a standing ovation. Ospreay recovers with an enziguri, Takeshita blocks OsCutter, but Ospreay lands on his feet on a lariat and hits it anyway! Ricochet almost steals the pinfall with a springboard 450 for an awesome false finish! "Fight forever" chant. Ospreay gives Ricochet a Doomsday Clothesline, but Ricochet lands on his feet. Ricochet blocks a Poison Rana and hits one of his own. Takeshita delivers a DOUBLE GERMAN SUPLEX! They all go down for another standing ovation! Takeshita drops them both with a plancha, then decapitates Ricochet for only 2. Ospreay gives Ricochet a top rope rana into Takeshita's arms for another takedown. I think they had a more elaborate spot planned, but they managed to save face. SSP by Ricochet, Takeshita interrupts the pinfall with a running knee! Takeshita and Ricochet battle on the apron until Takeshita hits a flying Tombstone through a table! Ospreay hits a surprise Hidden Blade, Takeshita kicks out at 1! One more Hidden Blade, but Don Callis pulls the referee away from the cover! Don swings a screwdriver at Ospreay but gets caught in the Butterfly Suplex. Kyle Fletcher saves Don, Takeshita is allowed to hit a running knee for the win at 20:41! Lots to unpack here. They decided to have an ambitious spotfest aiming for five stars and also pull the trigger on the Don Callis Family betraying Ospreay all at once. Overall, I'd call this a rousing success, they'd already accomplished what they needed to when the fans were giving Takeshita a star making reception. Matches like this don't come along everyday, ****¼.Winner and new AEW International Champion: Konosuke Takeshita
Fletcher angrily gives Ospreay a Tiger Driver while Takeshita poses with his newly won gold.
Renee Paquette is standing by with Jerry Lynn and Orange Cassidy. Lynn thinks Cassidy could be The Man around here if he really wanted to. Hook thinks Cassidy is already The Man.
Prince Nana is in the ring to pimp his coffee line and introduce Swerve Strickland to his hometown crowd. Swerve is dealing with neck pain, which is karma for all the mean things he said about Bryan Danielson. Still, he's medically cleared, and has big plans. MVP and Shelton Benjamin interrupt to complain about Swerve not responding to their recruitment attempts. Strickland has a lot of respect for MVP from their previous battle and for Benjamin inspiring him as a child. He admits that he's lost many things under Prince Nana's watch, but he wouldn't have had any of it without him either. It does bug him that Nana still sells weed to high school kids, but hey, they're family, and Swerve doesn't turn on family for anything. Swerve tells MVP to stick his business cards up his tuchus. Shelton takes this poorly, officials rush in to stop him from fighting Swerve. I kept waiting for the Bobby Lashley run-in that never came. I appreciate the continued evolution and development of Strickland's character.
2 / 3 Falls:
Hologram vs. The Beast Mortos
The story here is that Hologram has put together an undefeated streak, and La Faccion Ingobernable recruited Mortos to knock him down a peg. Also, Jake Roberts is aligned with the rudos, which certainly came out of left field. Most of this backstory happened on Collision and Rampage, so they might have an uphill battle connecting in a PPV match. The fans prove me wrong by playing along and chant "lucha!" during the feeling out portion. Hologram nails a slick tope suicida, Mortos tried and failed to counter it. Mortos comes back with Sling Blade, crucifix bomb, and pop-up Samoan Drop for only 2. Hologram counters with an avalanche rana and flying Crucifix Bomb for the first fall at 3:45! Mortos restarts with a body block and twisting crossbody outside. He follows with a press slam onto the ramp. Mortos slows things down, hits a suplex into the buckles and a Tree of Woe spear. Hologram blocks a second spear and nails a standing moonsault outside! Poison rana by Hologram, Mortos blocks the Portal Bomb. Torture Rack backbreaker by Mortos, then a powerbomb onto the knee! Mortos pins Hologram at 8:50! Third fall starts with Mortos blasting a lariat for 2. Hologram counters into a spinning avalanche armdrag! Hologram flips circles around Mortos before delivering poison rana onto the apron! He follows with a tightrope walk somersault senton! Flying double stomp by Hologram, but Mortos blocks a 450 splash. Hologram counters a spear but eats a mean lariat. They battle on the top rope until Mortos nails an avalanche press slam, Hologram kicks out! Backbreaker and lariat by Mortos, Hologram kicks out again! Hologram answers with a super rana and a flying crucifix bomb. Mortos kicks out! "This is awesome" chant. Hologram musters a Portal Bomb and wins at 16:43! The fans are pleased. This had some brilliant moments and sequences, but felt a bit directionless at other times. I also feel that you shouldn't have 2 / 3 falls matches unless you're prepared to give them serious time, and the first falls came too fast for my liking. I can't argue with the final result though, putting this match on PPV is a serious investment in both guys, ***½.Winner: Hologram
Darby Allin skateboarding music video. He travels across town to the Tacoma Dome.
Darby Allin vs. Brody King
Darby issued an open challenge on Dynamite and King violently accepted. Brody has won 6 of their previous 7 matches, in case you were worried there wasn't any backstory. Darby attacks with quick chops, King easily tosses him outside. He grabs Darby by the belt and swings him into the barricade. King grabs the steps but Darby flies onto his back. Darby dives onto King's shoulders, blocks a hard whip into the steps, and flies off the steps into King's forearm! He buries Darby under the steps and climbs up for some nasty stomps. Darby is a perfect rag doll for King and takes a beating.Darby dodges a cannonball and finds his second wind with consecutive dives outside. Code Red by Allin gets 2. King smashes Allin out of a choke hold. Fans chant "Let's go, Darby" while King retakes control. King hits an unbelievable German suplex from the second rope, Darby takes a hideous landing on the side of his head. I'm barely done typing that when King hits a top rope German. King thinks about another German onto the ring steps, but Darby sends him crashing and burning for a brutal Coffin Drop! "Holy sh**!" chant. King beats the countout but eats another Coffin Drop for the pin at 12:26! Darby once again destroys himself for a memorable match and survives. This was a grim spectacle, ***½.Winner: Darby Allin
Not too long ago, Private Party were used as TV jobbers with no entrance, but now they're PPV title contenders. We get a training montage as The Amazing Red gives the motivation speech. They still feel like placeholder challengers, but maybe they can pull off the same magic as Willow did in the Women's title match.
AEW Tag Team Championship:
The Young Bucks © (Nicholas and Matthew Jackson) vs. Private Party (Marq Quen and Isiah Kassidy)
The Bucks go on a (correct) tirade that Private Party accomplished nothing after beating them 5 years ago. Private Party attack and they fight up to the stage. Quen hits a Swanton Bomb from an entrance tunnel. Bell rings, Kassidy hits a springboard crossbody for 2. Nicholas hits a facebuster, but Quen hits a double rana to set up Kassidy's corkscrew senton. Private Party give Nicholas a neckbreaker/swanton combo, Matthew breaks the pin. The Bucks recover with tandem offense, including a SUPERKICK PARTAY! Kassidy is allowed to run wild on a hot tag. Kassidy's springboard DDT gets 2. The Bucks answer with a buckle bomb/enziguri combo, then a diving foot stomp that turns into a Kassidy rana! Kassidy nails a springboard facebuster for a decent nearfall. The Bucks block Silly String, Nicholas hits a nifty senton outside. Nicholas moonsaults Quen into the crowd. Kassidy blocks a makeshift TK Driver and hits a reverse rana, but Nicholas blocks with a Destroyer. Quen hits a 450 from the guard rails! These are elaborate spots, I get the sense the fans WANT to be into this, but no one believes Private Party stands a chance to upset. Nicholas and Kassidy slug it out until Nicholas traps the wrist for a top rope cutter. Quen interrupts the TK Driver, Kassidy nearly steals the pinfall. Private Party hit a neckbreaker/DDT combo. The Bucks answer with a draping diving foot stomp. They pump up their sneakers for another SUPERKICK PARTAY. Private Party block More Bang for Your Buck and hit the Gin n' Juice for only 2! Fans bought that nearfall. Fans chant ‘Private Party!" Private Party steal More Bang for Your Buck, Matthew breaks the cover! The Bucks respond with a makeshift Doomsday Dropkick and nail the TK Driver. The EVP Trigger connects but Kassidy kicks out! The fans are vocally into this now. Kassidy blocks another EVP trigger and rolls up Matthew for a fantastic nearfall. The Bucks nail the TK Driver to win at 15:49! It took a long time for this to really start cooking but they pulled it off and the hot nearfalls prove it. This still probably would have worked better as a Dynamite main event, or if Private Party hadn't been defined down so much over the years. ***¼.Winners and still AEW Tag Team Champions: The Young Bucks
Kassidy sobs over the loss. The fans cheer him up with a standing ovation and "Private Party" chant.
ROH World Championship:
Mark Briscoe © vs. Chris Jericho (with Big Bill)
The story here is Jericho pinned Briscoe on Collision and wants the ROH title for the hell of it. Jim Ross joins commentary for the festivities. Bell rings, Mark enjoys a hot start with punchy/kicky attacks. Jericho hits a Codebreaker out of nowhere for a 1 count. Mark hits a suplex outside, followed by a flying elbow. Mark leaps from the chair and then seats Jericho for a flying blockbuster. Jericho distracts the ref long enough for Big Bill to hit a big boot and prop up a table. Orange Cassidy attacks Big Bill with the Orange Punch. Mark backdrops Jericho onto the apron and hits a rolling DVD. Jericho answers with a vertical suplex from the apron. Mark fights back with Redneck Kung Fu, Jericho cuts him off with a super rana. Mark shakes it off to continue his comeback. Fisherman buster by Mark gets 2. Jericho grabs the Walls, Mark gets a dramatic rope break. Bryan Keith attacks Mark, Jericho gets a nearfall out of it. Rocky Romero runs in to remove Keith. Mark boots a chair into Jericho's face and does the Sabu leap through the table. Jericho counters the Froggy Elbow into the Codebreaker, Mark kicks out! Jericho hits the Judas Effect but doesn't make a cover, instead stealing the J-Driller, but Mark kicks out! Mark hulks up and unleashes more Redneck Kung Fu. Finlay Roll by Mark, then the Froggy Elbow! Mark pauses to salute Jay, hits the J-Driller, and wins at 15:22! Surprisingly straightforward and effective victory for Mark over a dastardly heel. This played out as a main event match and got over, ***¼.Winner and still ROH World Champion: Mark Briscoe
AEW World Championship:
Bryan Danielson © vs. Jon Moxley (with Marina Shafir)
This could be Bryan's final match, as he's supposed to retire when he loses the AEW title. Moxley has gone full blown evil but claims it pains him that Danielson is the champion because he must beat him for a higher authority. Mox doesn't let Bryan enter the ring and they brawl at ringside while "The Final Countdown" continues to play. Bryan hits a running dropkick against the barricade, Mox chokes him with a cable. Bryan bonks him with the mic, but is forced to snapmare Marina off his back. Danielson dropkicks Mox with a chair while the music continues playing. Bell finally rings and Bryan unloads chops. He counters the Bulldog Choke with a Saito Suplex and BuSaiKu knee! Mox kicks out! Fans chant "Let's go, Bryan" as he hits a springboard shoulder block outside. Tope suicida by Bryan, YES kicks on the Spanish table, but Mox thumbs the eyes and nails a piledriver! Fans chant "F*** you, Moxley" while Bryan grabs his neck in pain. Mox slows things down and goes to work on Bryan's famously injured neck. Marina gets her cheap shots in when she can. She exposes some concrete, but luckily Bryan reverses a back body drop. They take turns biting and Bryan unleashes Tree of Woe YES kicks. Bryan serves a Spider German suplex but misses a flying head butt. Curb stomp by Mox gets 2. Moxley resumes attacking the neck, Bryan counters into a Tombstone piledriver! They restart with a slugfest. Mox pokes the eyes, but Danielson nails a running clothesline. Bryan unleashes more YES kicks, Marina grabs his ankle, Mox nails a cutter. Marina gets ejected! Bryan blocks a German and nails the BuSaiKu knee, Mox kicks out! Fans chant "YOU'RE GONNA GET YOUR F***ING HEAD KICKED IN" and Bryan does just so. Mox claws out of the LeBell Lock and reverses into Death Rider on the exposed concrete! Mox grabs a chinlock, Danielson carries him up the ropes for a nasty backdrop! They trade submissions until Bryan nails another BuSaiKu knee, Mox kicks out! King Kong Lariats by Mox, Bryan kicks out! Death Rider only gets a 1 count! Bryan spits in Mox's face but suffers a Gotch piledriver. Bryan nearly succumbs to the Bull Dog choke but they fall backwards and Bryan passes out at 26:50! Noooooo! Mox is once again AEW Champion and Danielson's active career ends again. Devastating conclusion to an incredible match. There sure are worse ways to go out, ****½.Winner and new AEW World Champion: Jon Moxley
The Blackpool Combat Club join Moxley for the celebration, but Mox decides he'd like to suffocate Bryan with a plastic bag again. Wheeler Yuta and Darby Allin come to the rescue. Yuta then turns heel with a BuSaiKu knee on Darby! The BCC tape Darby to the ropes so he can watch them murder Danielson. Yuta does the honors suffocating Bryan. Private Party and Jeff Jarrett try to help but get taken down. Claudio Castagnoli gives Danielson a Pillmanizer! The babyface locker room empties to finally chase the BCC away. Fans chant "Thank you, Bryan" while he gets stretchered out. The final shot is Orange Cassidy and Darby Allin looking distraught.
Final Thoughts: This was a bunch of incredibly talented wrestlers having high level, high effort wrestling matches in front of a hot, receptive crowd. These factors generally lead to great results. There were no bad matches and many exceeded expectations. The decision for Danielson's last match to end on such a down note is certainly daring. They did keep clarifying that Danielson is retiring from full-time action, which does leave the door open for him to come back later in a part-time role to seek retribution. He also subtly passed the torch to Orange Cassidy and Darby Allin by setting them up as the heirs to battle the BCC. I guess what I'm trying to say is that WrestleDream was an awesome event that set the seeds for a new season in AEW. Highly recommended.
Sound Off!
Comment about this article on Da' Wrestling Boards!