Opinion: Match & Show Ratings for August 21 to August 28, 2022

Welcome to TPWW’s Emperor Smeat’s Match and Show Ratings for the week of August 21st to August 28th, 2022.

Match and show star ratings (out of 5):

WWE

WWE RAW (Aug. 22)
* WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship tournament Semi-finals Round match – Dakota Kai & IYO SKY vs. Alexa Bliss & Asuka – 3.0
* Dolph Ziggler vs. Finn Balor – 2.5
* Alpha Academy Open Challenge – Otis vs. Kevin Owens – 3.5
* Aliyah vs. Bayley – 2.0
* Ciampa & The Miz vs. Bobby Lashley & AJ Styles – 3.0
* Damien Priest vs. Edge – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Otis vs. Kevin Owens match and Johnny Gargano’s surprise return.
Worst – Aliyah vs. Bayley match being rough at times and the buzzkill DQ  shenanigans ending to the Ciampa & The Miz vs. Bobby Lashley & AJ Styles match.
Show Notes – Opening brawl between Riddle & Rollins was splendid. Trish Stratus’ promo about being back in a WWE ring, Bayley & Pals interruption bashing Stratus, Belair, Bliss, and Asuka interruptions, & banter was decent despite dragging a bit long. Kai & SKY vs. Bliss & Asuka was pretty good despite the anti-climatic finish & the first half’s sluggish pacing. Ziggler vs. Balor moments: Balor’s new remix theme sounds awful and/or very generic. Match itself was a solid back-and-forth bout despite dragging long & ending shenanigans. Aliyah’s backstage interview about getting a 2nd chance in Women’s Tag titles tournament & Bayley and Pals interruption bashing Aliyah was decent at best. Gable’s pre-match promo about open spots in his group, bashing Canadian folk and Toronto hockey & Owens answering the challenge was splendid. Gable vs. Owens: Owens’ leg sweep counter of Gable’s running attack on the apron into Gable’s backdrop counter of Owens’ powerbomb on the apron into Gable’s back suplex onto the apron. Owens & Gable’s strikes exchange into Owens’ Fisherman neckbreaker. Gable’s block & spiked bridging German suplex counter of Owens’ stunner. Owens’ Avalanche Fisherman Buster to Gable. Gable’s knees counter of Owens’ senton into Owens’ dodge, superkick, & pop-up powerbomb finisher counter of Gable’s moonsault. Match itself was a very entertaining action filled bout. Aliyah vs. Bayley was mostly solid despite being a bit rough at times & flat ending. Ciampa & Miz vs. Lashley & Styles moments: Lashley’s Press Slam toss to Miz onto Ciampa on the outside. Lashley’s block & spear counter of Ciampa’s Fairy Tale Ending. The fake Lumis run-in swerve & real Lumis pop-up surprise afterwards was pretty cool. Match itself was going on well until the buzzkill DQ ending. Johnny Gargano’s surprise return was great. Gargano’s promo about his NXT accolades and his WWE gold dream goals, Theory’s interruption about their past history together, mocking Gargano over his WWE accolades, and offer for Gargano to be his lackey, & Gargano’s High Five fakeout attack was splendid & a bit goofy. Priest vs. Edge moments: Priest’s new remix theme sounds much better than Balor’s one. Edge’s powerbomb to Priest onto the top of the barricade was cool. Priest’s chokeslam to Edge onto the apron ropes into Priest’s Razor’s Edge through a table. Priest’s thrust kick & Unpreitter counter of Edge’s spear. Edge’s South of Heaven counter of Priest’s spear. Edge’s dodge, Canadian Destroyer, & spear finisher counter of Priest’s Razor’s Edge. Match itself was a quite good back-and-forth action bout. Post-match ambush attack by Judgement Day & Beth Phoenix’s run-in save was all right.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was enjoyable overall despite the first half dragging at times.

WWE NXT (Aug. 23)
* NXT UK Tag Team Championship – Gallus (Mark Coffey & Wolfgang) vs. Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen (c) – 2.5
* Javier Bernal vs. Cameron Grimes – 2.0
* Indi Hartwell vs. Blair Davenport – 1.5
* The Dyad (Jagger Reid & Rip Fowler) vs. Legado Del Fantasma (Joaquin Wilde & Cruz Del Toro) – 2.5
* Tyler Bate vs. Von Wagner – 2.5
* Lights Out match – Tiffany Stratton vs. Wendy Choo – 3.5
Overall – 2.5
Best – Meiko Satomura surprise appearance, InDex reunion moment, and the Lights Out match.
Worst – The baffling booking decision for the ending to the NXT UK Tag Team titles match and the Indi Hartwell vs. Blair Davenport match.
Show Notes – Opening Bron Breakker & Bate promo about Bate being the last NXT UK Champ and unification match request & Breakker’s retort boasting about NXT and accepting the match was all right. Gallus’ hype video was okay. NXT UK Tag titles moments: The mass brawls between Lash Legend & Fallon Henley and Pretty Deadly & Briggs and Jensen at ringside. Match itself was mostly solid despite the overbooked ending shenanigans mess involving the ref blatantly not caring about the DQ at ringside and giving Gallus the countout win instead. Post-match brawl between Diamond Mine & Gallus was decent. Chase U & Charlie Dempsey class segment about Dempsey beating up Chase U students was splendid. Grayson Waller Effect show about Waller bashing Apollo Crews for stealing his spotlight, Crews’ retort about his NXT return, & insults banter was superb & the PiP split-screen just being a zoomed in cam shot of Waller the whole time was a bit funny. Davenport’s “wicked” hype video promo was decent. Hartwell vs. Davenport was mostly a dud topped with being rough at times. Hartwell somehow has regressed badly in recent months. Meiko Satomura’s surprise appearance & proclaiming that she’s the most dominate NXT women’s champ was the only good part of a horrible promo segment by Davenport & Mandy Rose. JD McDonagh promo video about his loss to Breakker & his fetish pain tolerance was a bit weird. Wes Lee, Katana Chance, & Kayden Carter’s backstage locker room segment about Lee being creeped out by McDonagh, & Carter and Chance mocking WWE’s Women’s Tag titles tournament was a bit corny. Hartwell’s promo about hitting rock bottom with her NXT career, Dexter Lumis’ surprise appearance, and InDex reunion was splendid but Lumis getting arrested afterwards was a bit funny. Dyad vs. Legado was a solid back-and-forth bout despite the botched ending sequence. Legado’s backstage parking lot segment about Escobar suddenly appearing & taking the rest of Legado for a ride was interesting. Bate vs. Wagner was a solid back-and-forth hard hitting bout. Lights Out match moments: WWE taking the “lights out” stip literally for the match was a bit funny. Choo’s kendo sticks whacks to Stratton inside a trash can. Choo’s whip & overhead suplex to Stratton into Stratton’s shoves to Choo into a trash can in the corner. Choo’s dodge counter of Stratton’s moonsault into Choo’s suplex onto a chair. Stratton’s hair spray attack counter of Choo’s crossface into Stratton’s powerbomb onto a trash can. Choo’s legos loaded body pillow whack to Stratton. Stratton’s bodyslam & running Meteora to Choo onto legos. Choo’s kick counter of Stratton’s powder attack into Choo’s Uranage through the bed. Match itself was a very entertaining hardcore style bout.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was average overall.

WWE Friday Night SmackDown (Aug. 26)
* Ricochet vs. Happy Corbin – 3.0
* “Last Chance” Fatal Four-Way Tag Team Match – Shotzi & Xia Li vs. Tamina & Dana Brooke vs. Nikki A.S.H. & Doudrop vs. Natalya & Sonya Deville – 1.5
* Women’s Tag Team Championship Tournament Semi-Final match – Aliyah & Raquel Rodriguez vs. Natalya & Sonya Deville – 2.5
* Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Sheamus and Gunther’s promo & staredown segment.
Worst – “Last Chance” Fatal Four-Way Tag Team being a bit rough and very rushed in terms of flow and anti-climatic ending.
Show Notes – Ricochet vs. Corbin opener moments: Corbin’s overhead toss counter of Ricochet’s running attack on the outside into Ricochet landing on the post & corkscrew splash to Corbin. Corbin’s leg grab counter of Ricochet’s apron kick into Corbin’s slam onto the announcer’s table. Ricochet’s rana counter of Corbin’s chokeslam. Corbin’s dodge, big boot, & spin slam counter of Ricochet’s Flying Nothing. Ricochet’s sweet looking Shooting Star Press finisher to Corbin. Match itself was a good back-and-forth action bout. Pat McAfee mocking Corbin & his loss via teleprompter drawings was funny. Kross’ black & white promo mocking McIntyre was decent. Women’s 4-Way Tag match moments: Brooke’s superplex to Nikki onto everyone on the outside. Match itself was a somewhat rough bout in terms of flow & topped with a flat anti-climatic ending. Baszler “sadistic” hype vignette was all right. Sheamus’ promo about him claiming he will beat Gunther and become a WWE Grand Slam Champ, Gunther & Ludwig’s interruption, Sheamus mocking Gunther’s Ring General nickname, Gunther’s response about the beating he will unleash, & death staredown between Gunther & Sheamus while their pals brawled around them was great. Sami Zayn & Bloodline backstage segment about Usos mocking Zayn for losing his match last week and not taking out McIntyre, Reigns appreciating Zayn for helping him last week and favor request over his McIntyre issues, Zayn claiming it will be a piece of cake, & Reigns’ rejection Zayn’s offer for all the Bloodline to take out McIntyre was all right. Aliyah & Rodriguez vs. Natalya & Deville was somewhat solid despite being a bit sloppy at times. New Day’s somber promo about Viking Raiders burning their merch and legacy, V.R.’s interruption bashing New Day for not leaving with honor, banter, & Woods’ injury fakeout and surprise attack with Kingston was decent. Maximum Male Models, Hit Row, & Los Lotharios backstage segments over Max Durpi being annoyed over Hit Row interrupting his photo shoot & the wrong bus being sprayed painted was a bit lame. McIntyre promo vignettes about his pre-WWE career, failed 1st WWE run & his mom’s passing, return to WWE and WWE career revival, & upcoming match with Reigns success was splendid. McIntyre vs. Zayn moments: McIntyre’s block & head smash onto the announcer table of Zayn’s head smash. Zayn’s punches & sunset powerbomb counter of McIntyre’s superplex. Zayn’s Blue Thunder Bomb to McIntyre via Usos’ distraction assist. Zayn’s punches to McIntyre into McIntyre’s double hand chop flooring Zayn into McIntyre’s Claymore Kick finisher. Match itself was a good back-and-forth bout. Post-match brawl with Usos & Reigns was all right.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was mostly enjoyable overall.

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AEW

AEW Dark Elevation (Aug. 22)
* Anna Jay vs. Nikki Victory – 2.0 (Squash)
* Ruby Soho & Ortiz vs. Queen Aminata & Mikey Midas – 2.0 (Squash)
* Dante Martin vs. Jackson Drake – 2.0 (Squash)
* Serena Deeb vs. Megan Meyers – 2.5 (Squash)
* Dark Order (John Silver, Alex Reynolds, & 10) vs. D’mone Solavino, Alexander Apollo, & RC Dupree – 2.5
* Julia Hart vs. Hayley Shadows – 2.0 (Squash)
* Josh Woods & Tony Nese vs. Andrea Guerico & Logan James – 2.0 (Squash)
* Death Triangle (Penta Oscuro, Rey Fenix, & PAC) vs. Rosario Grillo, Manscout, & Dean Alexander – 3.0 (Squash)
* Emi Sakura & Maki Itoh vs. Hikaru Shida & Skye Blue – 3.0
Overall – 2.5
Best – Emi Sakura & Maki Itoh vs. Hikaru Shida & Skye Blue match.
Worst – The very heavy amount of squash matches.
Show Notes – Jay vs. Victory opener was a decently mostly squash brief bout. Soho & Ortiz vs. Aminata & Midas moments: Ortiz’s lariat and powerbomb & Soho’s cazadora splash combo to Midas. Ortiz’s Fisherman Bomb finisher to Midas. Match itself was a decent mostly squash style brief bout. Martin vs. Drake moments: Ouch at Martin’s face getting busted open after getting splatted hard by Martin’s top rope crossbody. Martin’s Half & Half sitout suplex finisher to Drake. Match itself was a decent mostly squash bout. Deeb vs. Meyers was a fine grapple heavy & mostly jobber destruction bout. Dark Order vs. Solavino, Apollo, & Dupree moments: Silver’s Snake Eyes toss onto the ropes & running Euro uppercut combo to Dupree launching him into the ropes. 10’s big boot to Dupree launching him into the corner. Dark Order’s moves fest & 10’s brutal discus lariat finisher combo to Dupree. Match itself was a solid bout. Hart vs. Shadows was a decent squash bout. Woods & Nese vs. Guerico & James was a decent mostly squash style bout. Death Triangle vs. Grillo, Manscout, & Alexander moments: Penta’s double foot stomp to Manscout’s yambag via PAC’s legs hold assist. Penta’s release Fear Factor finisher to Grillo. Match itself was an entertaining jobber destruction bout. Sakura & Itoh vs. Shida & Blue moments: Itoh shrugging off Shida’s punch to her “iron” head into Itoh’s headbutt into Shida’s dodge counter of Itoh’s Kokeshi. Shida & Sakura’s slugfest on the ropes into Itoh’s grab, headbutt, & Kokeshi combo to Shida. Shida’s dodge & leap up rana counter of Sakura’s chop. Itoh shrugging off Blue’s head smashes on the turnbuckles into Itoh’s raging headbutts fest to the turnbuckle & Blue’s surprised reaction afterwards. Itoh shrugging off Blue’s kick to her head into Itoh’s headbutt flooring Blue. Sakura & Itoh’s gutbuster on the knee & Sakura’s underhook facebuster to Blue. Sakura’s dodge counter of Blue’s superkick nailing Shida into Itoh’s diving DDT to Shida & Sakura’s tilt-a-whirl backbreaker and Queen’s Gambit finisher to Blue. Match itself was a good back-and-forth action filled bout. Post-match Shida & Sakura confrontation over Shida’s Regina Di Wave title was all right.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was mostly average overall.

AEW Dark (Aug. 23)
* Renegade Twins (Charlette & Robyn Renegade) vs. Rocky Radley & Allie Recks – 2.0
* Anthony Ogogo vs. Meto – 2.0 (Squash)
* The Wingmen (“Pretty” Peter Avalon & Ryan Nemeth) vs. Adrian Alanis & Liam Gray – 2.0
* Blake Christian vs. Lucky Ali – 3.0
* Jora Johl vs. Vary Morales – 2.0
* Max Caster vs. Justin Cotto – 2.0 (Squash)
* The Factory (Aaron Solo & Nick Comoroto) vs. Dante Martin & Matt Sydal – 3.0
* Daniel Garcia vs. Westin Blake – 3.0
* Trustbusters (Ari Daivari, Slim J, & Parker Boudreaux) vs. Ryan Howe, Omar Amir, & Cash Flo – 2.0 (Squash)
* Dark Order (John Silver, Alex Reynolds, & 10) vs. Joey Sweets, DK Vandu, & Tyshaun Perez – 2.0 (Squash)
* Tony Nese & Josh Woods vs. GKM & Oliver Sawyer – 2.0 (Squash)
* Iron Savages (Bronson & Boulder) vs. Sean Maluta & Manny Lo – 2.5 (Squash)
* The Workhorsemen (JD Drake & Anthony Henry) vs. Rosario Grillo & Dean Alexander – 2.5
* KiLynn King vs. Mafiosa – 2.5
Overall – 3.0
Best – KiLynn King & Britt Baker show closing promo segment & brawl.
Worst – The long runtime for this week’s show
Show Notes – Renegade Twins vs. Radley & Recks opener was a mostly solid bout. Ogogo vs. Meto was a decent squash bout. Wingmen vs. Alanis & Gray Tag was a mostly solid brief bout. Wingmen post-match promo boasting about their good looks, being the kings of AEW Dark, & plans to make AEW “pretty” was decent. Christian vs. Ali was a pretty good back-and-forth action bout. Christian’s post-match interview about his win & thanking the fans for their support was all right. Johl vs. Morales was a somewhat solid at best bout despite being a bit dull at times. Caster vs. Cotto moments: Caster’s pre-match rap mocking his opponent for being similar to a worthless NFT and hair style was not one of his better efforts. Match itself was a decent mostly squash style bout. Factory vs. Martin & Sydal was a good back-and-forth action bout. Garcia vs. Blake moments: Garcia & Blake’s chops exchange into Blake’s kick counter of Garcia’s throat grab into Garcia’s open palm hand strike & Saito suplex. Blake’s pendulum style double knees strike to Garcia via ropes assist. Blake’s powerbomb style gutbuster to Garcia. Garcia’s dodge, reverse suplex, & Dragon Sleeper finisher counter of Blake’s moonsault. Match itself was a really good back-and-forth action bout. Trustbusters vs. Howe, Amir, & Flo Trios Tag was a decent mostly squash bout. Daivari’s post-match promo about his recent hiring of VSK as the group’s newest butler & bragging about the Trustbusters was all right. Dark Order vs. Sweets, Vandu, & Perez Trios Tag was a decent squash style bout. D.O.’s post-match promo about being the underdog in the Trios Tag tournament & upcoming match against House of Black was splendid. Nese & Woods vs. GKM & Sawyer was a decent mostly brief squash bout. Post-match Mark Sterling interview about his group’s lawsuit threat over BCC’s recent actions costing them money & glory was decent. Iron Savages vs. Maluta & Lo moments: Bronson’s catch & DVD to Maluta onto Lo in the corner into Iron Savages double team cannonball finisher splatting Maluta & Lo in the corner. Match itself was a fine mostly jobber destruction bout. Post-match interview by JT Davidson & Bronson’s about Bear Country’s transformation to Iron Savages was splendid, more so Bronson’s angry portion. Workhorsemen vs. Grillo & Alexander Tag was a solid back-and-forth bout. King vs. Mafiosa was also a solid back-and-forth bout. King’s passionate post-match interview about her AEW return and upcoming match against Britt Baker, Baker’s interruption bashing Cleveland and King and boasting about being the Face of AEW’s Women’s division, heated banter, & brawl was great.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was mostly enjoyable despite its long runtime.

AEW Dynamite (Aug. 24)
* Dax Harwood vs. Jay Lethal – 3.5
* Colten Gunn vs. Billy Gunn – 2.0
* Dr. Britt Baker vs. KiLynn King – 3.0
* Undisputed AEW World Championship Unification match – Jon Moxley (Interim) vs. CM Punk (AEW) – 2.5 (Squash)
* AEW Trios Championship Tournament First Round match – United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) vs. Death Triangle (Penta Oscuro, Rey Fenix, & PAC) – 4.5
Overall – 4.0
Best – Rick Starks’ fiery promo segment, Jon Moxley’s backstage promo segment, and the United Empire vs. Death Triangle Trios match.
Worst – The audio quality issues at times throughout the show and the ending shenanigans to the Colten Gunn vs. Billy Gunn match.
Show Notes – Opening JAS segment about Jericho demanding an apology over Garcia’s actions last week, Garcia’s retort about Jericho running his special handshake moment with Daneilson, Danielson’s interruption about his respect of Garcia & him being a wrestler, Garcia not giving an answer and shove to Jericho, Danielson and Jericho’s match setup banter, & Hager’s ambush attack was great. Harwood vs. Lethal moments: Harwood’s stiff chops & punches to Lethal in the corner into Lethal’s escape & top rope Russian Leg Sweep counter. Harwood’s catch & slingshot Liger Bomb counter of Lethal’s Lethal Injection. Match itself was a very good action filled bout. Sonjay Dutt’s post-match promo about Lethal’s Trios tag partners against FTR & Wardlow being revealed to be Motor City Machine Guns was cool despite him fumbling his promo. Thunder Rosa’s teary announcement about being pulled from All Out due to an injury & a new Interim champ to be crowned was interesting. Gunn vs. Gunn was somewhat solid despite the ending shenanigans by Stokely & Gunn Club. Death Triangle & U.E. backstage interview about their upcoming match & PAC promising to murder U.E. was all right. Baker vs. King was a pretty good brief bout. Baker’s post-match promo bashing Rosa and Toni Storm, brawl with Storm and Hayter, & Shida’s run-in save was all right. AEW World title Unification match moments: Punk’s roundhouse kick to Moxley’s head causing Punk to buckle in pain. Moxley’s King Kong Lariat, overhead elbow strikes, foot twist, & Death Riders finisher combo to Punk. Match itself was a very surprising mostly squash match. Starks’ heated promo trashing Hobbs over Hobbs’ jealousy of his success, being the head of the table but making sure Hobbs got a share of his spotlight, Hobbs’ attack on his neck, New Jack reference, & match request was amazing. Moxley’s backstage promo mocking Punk’s “Best in the World” moniker and those who always write him off, being “The Guy”, & this being Moxley’s Time was superb. United Empire vs. Death Triangle Trios Tag moments: Davis’ legs grab & hold to Fenix on the outside into Ospreay’s top rope double foot stomp to Fenix on the apron & Sky Twister to PAC & Penta. Penta’s cazadora to Davis & Crucifix Bomb to Fletcher. Fenix’s rope rope kick to the face & PAC’s deadlift bridging German suplex combo to Ospreay. Lucha Bros & A.O.’s superkicks exchange into Ospreay’s Poison rana to Lucha Bros & PAC’s Poison Rana to A.O. at the same time was cool. PAC’s ropes assisted release German to Ospreay into Ospreay’s pop-up Oscutter to PAC. PAC’s escape & rope crotch counter of Ospreay’s top rope attack into PAC’s Avalanche brainbuster. PAC’s rana counter of Ospreay’s Stormbreaker. Kip Sabian’s sneak attack to PAC. U.E.’s triple forearm strikes to Fenix into Ospreay’s Oscutter finisher via A.O. hold assist. Match itself was am amazing action packed bout. Post-match United Empire & Omega and Young Bucks staredown was nice.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was mostly great overall.

AEW Rampage (Aug. 26)
* AEW Trios Championship tournament First Round match – Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, John Silver, & 10) vs. House of Black (Buddy Matthews, Brody King, & Malakai Black) – 3.0
* TNT Championship – Ryan Nemeth vs. Wardlow (c) – 2.5 (Squash)
* Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Ashton Day – 2.0 (Squash)
* Sammy Guevara & Tay Melo vs. Ortiz & Ruby Soho – 3.0 (Squash)
* ROH World Championship – Dustin Rhodes vs. Claudio Castagnoli (c) – 3.5
Overall – 3.0
Best – ROH World Championship match.
Worst – The ending shenanigans to the mixed tag team match and Claudio Castagnoli’s yambag after getting nailed hard by Dustin Rhodes’ head from his botched leap over attempt.
Show Notes – Dark Order vs. HoB Trios opener moments: King’s chops, bodyslam, & running senton splatting Reynolds. Reynolds & Silver’s strikes and kicks fest to Murphy & King into King’s stiff punches flooring Reynolds & Silver. 10’s block & Full Nelson hold counter of Black’s Muay Thai kick into Black’s leg strike, escape, & kneebar. Miro’s backdrop launching Murhpy onto the ramp & brawl with King into Reynolds’ roll-up finisher to Black via Miro distraction assist. Match itself was a good back-and-forth hard hitting bout despite the shenanigans ending. Post-match attack by HoB to Miro & run-in save by Darby Allin & Sting was all right. Nemeth’s pre-match promo bashing his hometown Cleveland, Cleveland Browns, & Wardlow was somewhat decent. TNT title match moments: Wardlow’s headbutt & windmill punch flooring Nemeth. Match itself was a sweet jobber destruction bout. AFO backstage interview about Private Party & La Faccion’s losses last week and Andrade’s consequences warning to PP was all right. Hobbs vs. Day moments: Hobbs’ vicious spinebuster finisher to Day. Match itself was a decent brief squash bout. Post-match promo by QT Marshall about his Factory taking out Ricky Starks was decent. The Baddies backstage interview about Jade Cargill tossing out Leila Grey and issues with Athena & Athena’s ambush attack was decent. Guevara & Melo vs. Ortiz & Soho moments: Ortiz’s short arm lariats to Guevara into Ortiz’s bodyslam & Soho’s cazadora via Ortiz lift assist. Melo & Guevara’s double team suplex to Ortiz via Angelo Parker’s ref distraction leg grab. Guevara’s leg grab counter of Soho’s top rope attack to Melo into Soho’s Poison Rana to Guevara into Melo’s top rope crossbody to Soho. Match itself was a good back-and-forth bout despite the ending shenanigans by JAS. CM Punk video recapping his AEW title loss to Moxley & foot injury status was decent. Rhodes & Castagnoli’s pre-match split-screen backstage interview about Rhodes’ World title dreams & Castagnoli’s retort about shattering his dreams was splendid. ROH World title match moments: Claudio’s shoulder tackle to Rhodes sending him whiplashing hard into the ropes. Claudio’s deadlift Gutwrench slam to Rhodes into Claudio’s crossface hold into Rhodes’ escape & side slam counter. Claudio & Rhodes’ forearms & backslide duel exchange into Rhodes’ lariat flooring Claudio. Rhodes’ lariat to Claudio over the ropes into Rhodes’ cannonball off the apron. Rhodes’ top rope rana to Claudio into Rhodes’ Code Red. Claudio’s Giant Swing & crossface combo to Rhodes. Rhodes’ powerslam & botched piledriver to Claudio. Ouch at Claudio’s yambag after his failed leap over to Rhodes. Match itself was a very good back-and-forth action bout despite the abrupt ending.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was mostly enjoyable overall.

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NJPW, Impact, & Other Wrestling

Impact Wrestling Impact! (Aug. 25)
* Impact Knockouts World Tag Team Championship – Mia Yim & Jordynne Grace vs. VXT (Chelsea Green & Deonna Purrazzo) (c) – 3.0
* Mike Bennett vs. Karl Anderson – 2.5
* Jason Hotch vs. Bhupinder Gujjar – 2.0 (Squash)
* Vincent vs. Josh Alexander – 2.5
* Alisha vs. Jessicka – 2.0 (Squash)
* Violent By Design (Deaner, Joe Doering, & Eric Young) vs. Time Machine (KUSHIDA, Alex Shelley, & Chris Sabin) – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Violent By Design vs. Time Machine match.
Worst – Impact Knockouts World Tag Team titles match being a bit sloppy at times.
Show Notes – Knockouts Tag titles match opener moments: Purrazzo’s leg swipe counter of Grace’s suplex to Green into Green’s DDT to Grace. Green’s Blockbuster to Yim into Grace’s Gutwrench powerbomb to Green. Grace’s rough dive splatting Purrazzo hard on the outside & Green’s punch counter of Yim’s dive. Match itself was a pretty good back-and-forth bout despite being a bit sloppy at times. VBD’s backstage dark room promo about their sickness, sweet taste of victory at Emergence 2022, & upcoming match against Time Machine was splendid. Bennett vs. Anderson was a solid back-and-forth bout. Tasha Steelz’s backstage interview about being angry over Killer Kelly injuring Savannah Evans & ambush choke out attack by Kelly was decent. Hotch vs. Gujjar moments: Gujjar’s spinebuster counter of Hotch’s slingshot rolling attack into Gujjar’s Gargoyle Spear finisher. Match itself was a decent mostly squash bout. Post-match brawl with Brian Myers was decent. Vincent vs. Alexander moments: Alexander’s dodge & release German suplex counter of Vincent’s running knees in the corner. Vincent’s backdrop counter of Alexander’s C4 Spike into Alexander’s Ankle Lock. Alexander’s Falcon Arrow counter of Vincent’s Guillotine Choke into Alexander’s C4 Spike finisher. Match itself was a solid back-and-forth brief bout. Post-match promo by Eddie Edwards about his upcoming Impact title match and offer for Alexander to join HNM, & ambush attack by Heath to Edwards was all right. Raj Singh’s backstage promo about his warning to Impact’s locker room was decent but it randomly being interrupted by Moose & Maclin’s loud arguing in the background and brawl with Callihan was a bit funny. Slamovich hype vignette was all right. Alisha vs. Jessicka was a decent mostly squash match. Bloody & barbed wire wrapped Callihan’s promo trashing Moose and Maclin over their weak attack to him earlier. & Barbed Wire Massacre match challenge was pretty cool. VBD vs. Time Machine moments: KUSHIDA & Shelley’s legs yank to Young onto the post into Sabin’s running dropkick to Young via Shelly & KUSHIDA hold assist. Sabin’s double dropkick to Young & Doering on the apron into Time Machine’s moves feast into Shelley’s hold, Sabin’s running kick, & Shelley’s flatliner to Deaner into the turnbuckle. Deaner’s backbreaker & Young’s slow mo DVD to Sabin. Doering’s slam, Deaner’s top rope headbutt, & Young’s top rope elbow drop combo to Sabin. Sabin’s backdrop counter of Young’s piledriver. Time Machine’s moves combo to VBD into Sabin’s big boot to Deaner in the corner into Shelley & KUDHISA’s kicks and Sabin’s Cradle Shock finisher. Match itself was a good back-and-forth action filled bout.
Final Thoughts – This week’s show was enjoyable overall.

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Weekly Awards:

• Best match of the week – AEW Trios Championship Tournament First Round match – United Empire (Will Ospreay & Aussie Open (Mark Davis & Kyle Fletcher) vs. Death Triangle (Penta Oscuro, Rey Fenix, & PAC) (AEW Dynamite)
• Best match of the week runner-up – Dax Harwood vs. Jay Lethal (AEW Dynamite)
• Worst match of the week – Indi Hartwell vs. Blair Davenport (WWE NXT)
• Worst match of the week runner-up – “Last Chance” Fatal Four-Way Tag Team Match – Shotzi & Xia Li vs. Tamina & Dana Brooke vs. Nikki A.S.H. & Doudrop vs. Natalya & Sonya Deville (WWE Friday Night SmackDown)
• Best show of the week – AEW Dynamite
• Worst show of the week – AEW Dark Elevation