Welcome to the WrestleTalk News, I’m Pete Quinnell.
Since Triple H took over control of WWE back in 2022, there was a flurry of re-signings
that he made, including people like Karrion Kross, Bronson Reed, Dexter Lumis, Emma, Dakota
Kai, Braun Strowman, Hit Row, Mia Yim, Johnny Gargano, Candice LeRae etc.
However, there may be another two names to add to that list, though we haven’t seen
them on TV yet, despite them reportedly potentially being re-signed since 2022 as well.
Akam & Rezar, known as The Authors of Pain, or AOP, were released by WWE in September
2020, and went on to try and do a wrestling show in the UK called WES.
That didn’t quite go as planned, with talent booked on the show complaining about issues
with pay.
But according to Fightful Select, sources have told them that AOP had re-signed with
WWE as far back as last year, though they haven’t managed to confirm that as of yet
themselves.
Specifically, they were told that “it was before Vince McMahon came back, because that
put a halt on all signings besides new recruits”.
They were also reportedly internally listed on a travel list back in May, so there’s
every chance we could be seeing AOP back again soon.
Then again, we could have another Eric Young situation on our hands, where they’re re-signed,
unused, and then leave again.
Which frankly, would be hilarious.
Moving over to AEW, we’re in the between times between All In and All Out, and with
Dynamite last night having to both have the comedown and reset from All In and also do
the final build for All Out, there were quite a lot of plates to spin.
But there’s even more plates than we realised, as there’s been some details behind the
planning for Dynamite and All Out.
There’s the elephant in the room of CM Punk & Jack Perry’s suspensions changing plans
for the shows, with Fightful Select revealing that the likely original plan for All Out’s
main event was going to be CM Punk vs Ricky Starks for the Real World Championship, however
we don’t know whether that match can go ahead now with Punk’s suspension lingering.
Oddly, Tony Khan announced on X after Dynamite that Ricky Starks will be on Collision to
challenge Ricky Steamboat to a Strap Match at All Out, which was not a sentence I had
on my 2023 bingo card.
Whether this is the actual match, or could lead to a Punk interruption, we don’t know,
as details on Punk’s suspension are still hazy.
So that’s one factor that changed plans this week.
There were also Bray Wyatt’s funeral, which was originally planned to take place this
week, and as such Tony Khan had granted time off for anyone on the roster who wished to
attend.
The funeral was then delayed until next week, but regardless it seems some stars were already
off.
So that’s factor two.
Tony Khan also tweeted before the show that due to minor illnesses among the roster, that’s
factor three, and Hurricane Idalia affecting flights, that’s factor four, there were
going to be some changes to AEW Dynamite.
I saw a tweet this morning, and apologies I can’t remember who posted it and couldn’t
find it again when I searched for it, but I think it summed this all up pretty well.
You can’t blame Tony Khan or AEW for the travel issues, the illnesses, the funeral
and the circusmstances that led to Dynamite needing to be changed.
You can blame them for booking two PPVs on consecutive weekends, meaning that if there
were a disaster week like this one, then the show would be drastically affected, exponentially
so.
Regardless, I’m still excited for All Out, so they at least pulled that off.
Now it’s time for my review of the post-All In, pre-All Out, maybe there are too many
shows to promote, Shake It All About episode of AEW Dynamite… in about 5 minutes.
The show began with an awesome recap package of Sunday night’s All In.
I was there!
And apparently so were CM Punk and Jack Perry, who were both included in the footage despite
their reported suspensions.
After Jon Moxley killed Rey Fenix last week in a great match, he tried to murder another
luchador on this episode by wrestling Kommander.
They worked a big man, small man match, which Mox viciously won - quickly transitioning
a piledriver kickout into elbows, and a series of submissions.
Spoiler for my overall thoughts on this episode - it was both a bad post-All In show, and
a bad All Out go-home show.
There were too many masters to serve, too many shows to run to an increasingly fatigued
Chicago crowd, and too many backstage controversies clouding Dynamite.
However, putting all that to one side, this was an excellent bottle episode focusing on
the International Championship, which has become one of the best titles in wrestling.
Just like how WWE’s presentation of the Bloodline, and AEW’s own MJF and Adam Cole
storyline, were elevated by having multiple segments on each episode, the All Out feud
of Orange Cassidy vs Mox felt far more significant because it got far more TV time here.
There was Moxley’s opening match, three backstage promos, and an awesome main event
+ post-match angle to make this the bookend focus of the show.
Everything else, unfortunately, felt incredibly lacklustre considering the All In and Out
scheduling.
We were shown a clip backstage from All In, where the Young Bucks apologised to FTR for
not shaking their hands.
All In was meant to be their show, and they lost.
Enter possibly the most fun heel act right now, Bullet Club Gold, to challenge them to
an 8 man tag at All Out.
It’ll be a great match, but it feels like card filler.
Perhaps the Bucks will definitively turn heel on FTR in the post-match to give it more impact.
Toni Storm continued her entertaining new meltdown character following the Outcasts
split, where she even threw a shoe at Renee Paquette.
Who throws a shoe?
Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara made up again after Jericho had shoved Guevara following
the Ospreay match.
And then they argued again.
And then they made up again.
I’ve grown really tired of Jericho’s back and forth split teases with Guevara and/or
Daniel Garcia.
Again, hopefully something definitively happens to get these characters out of storyline purgatory
next week when Le Sex Gods fight FTR for the tag team titles.
Don Callis might be involved in that, as he tried to schmooze Sammy later on.
An Eddie Kingston singles match - yay!
He defended his New Japan Strong title against Heeler Yuta in a very decent bout.
Yuta worked over Eddie’s injured right arm from Stadium Stampede, but Kingston fought
through the pain to use that arm as a weapon and win.
Claudio helped Yuta out afterwards, but never looked at Eddie in a show of disrespect.
The only MJF appearance was a clip backstage from All In, where he went into full exposition
mode, explaining the next three weeks of TV.
He’s going to take this week off.
Then he’ll defend the ROH tag team titles with Adam Cole at All Out; their challengers
will be decided in a Rampage Battle Royal.
And there will also be a Grand Slam Eliminator tournament, where the winner faces Max at
Arthur Ashe.
Adam Cole then cut a live in-ring promo, where he was talking about getting another title
shot in the future, when he was interrupted by ADAAAAAAAM!
Jealous ex-boyfriend Roderick Strong.
Roddy was excellent here, moaning about how Adam doesn’t care about his neck, but he
does care about MJF’s.
And the Kingdom’s Mike Bennett and Matt Taven got a chance to shine, with Bennett
getting his own storytime speech, putting over their shared history and close personal
friendship.
I thought for sure this was building to the Kingdom being Cole and Max’s All Out tag
title contenders, but…
Rampage spoiler…
That’s the Dark Order, what the f-? Roddy then promised to enter the Grand Slam
tournament so he can do what Adam couldn’t, and beat MJF.
If Adam enters the tournament too, we could get a Roddy vs Cole match, which has a Wembley
stadium full of storyline potential.
Max could watch on as an increasingly more title obsessed Cole beats up Strong, despite
him being a former best friend, and Strong’s neck injury - mirroring MJF’s own fears
of Adam turning on him.
It’s time for the compulsory quarter past the second hour women’s match!
We got the randomly assorted babyface team of Kris Statlander, Shida and Britt Baker
vs randomly assorted heel team Nyla Rose, Marina Shafir and Emi Sakura.
Baker and Shida argued after an accidental kick, and Statlander picked up the win in
some decent action.
Ruby Soho attacked Kris afterwards to build their TBS title match.
The women’s division is more of an afterthought to Tony Khan than All Out.
I love Shane Taylor, but him vs Samoa Joe for the ROH TV title at All Out only increases
the pay-per-view’s B-show feel.
At least Kenny Omega vs Takeshita feels genuinely bigtime.
We got Don Callis doing a TED talk on all of Kenny’s injuries - not just playing footage
of how they affect him, but showing x-rays of them too.
The Acclaimed unveiled one of the best custom belt designs I’ve ever seen, debuting hot
pink straps for the trios belts, with straps that scissor to connect at the back.
And the main event saw Orange Cassidy vs Penta for the International title.
Initially I was down on this booking.
It’s so predictable that Cassidy will retain, given how the press conference announced Cassidy
vs Mox at All Out first.
Also, there is a real blood feud between Mox and Penta, given than Moxley sent Penta’s
brother Fenix off in an ambulance last week.
They could have a No. 1 contenders match, where Mox could get a strong win going into
All Out.
That said, this was an incredible main event, so good I actually bought into Penta winning
the title at the end.
Penta catching Cassidy’s dive in an overhead press, three back to back Canadian Destroyers,
and the near fall of the week somehow, Cassidy kicking out of an arm break and a Fear Factor
to roll up Penta to retain.
To close the show, Cassidy then cut a promo sitting on a steel chair in the ring.
He’s tired.
He’s beat up.
He’s been defending this title on an almost weekly basis all year.
But that’s the magic of AEW, they give people like him - people who’re told they can’t
draw money, they’re too skinny, they don’t look the part - a chance to succeed.
And in a somehow badass, spine tingling, and joke last line, referencing Moxley’s own
‘no catchphrase’ promo from earlier, Cassidy said: “I’m Freshly Squeezed Orange Cassidy,
and I do not have a catchphrase.”
It’s been an incredible journey for what I thought in 2020 was a one-note joke character.
That Jericho feud, where he actually puts in effort, will be the end of him, I said.
The joke will get tired.
And I suppose that’s right.
The joke did die down.
But it left what’s at Orange Cassidy’s core, what makes him endure and work so well
four years into AEW: he’s a fantastic wrestler.
I can’t think of many times where I’ve wanted a babyface to keep the title after
such a long reign, but this Sunday I’ll be rooting for Cassidy to retain.
An excellent episode for the International Championship.
Unfortunately, AEW needed a big go-home show focus for multiple feuds to capitalise on
their All In momentum, and they really missed it.
After the best go-home show they’ve ever done last week, this week’s Dynamite is
73%.