AEW Forbidden Door 2023 Results and Review

People are falling over themselves regarding the Forbidden Door PPV, with some people calling it a perfect event. I’ve yet to see anyone jeer at it, and it’s interesting to see what is to come for me as I watch and review it. This is my take on the results and review of Forbidden Door from 2023!

MJF defeated Hiroshi Tanahashi

MJF kept saying that he was going to roll through Tanahashi, and I was surprised that he couldn’t do i. Ok, I wasn’t surprised, but Tanahashi wouldn’t go down lightly. He took a beating a lot of the time though, and it was interesting to see MJF dissect the ACE for the most part. However, Tanahashi did get some offense in, but it wasn’t a simple open and shut case. Thanks to a distraction and a gold ring on the finger of MJF, the champion remained such with a win over Hiroshi Tanahashi. A good opening match, not great, but good overall if you ask me. Tanahashi had some good offense, but it was definitely MJF that shined here, as usual, the guy is a great heel.

Cm Punk defeated Satoshi Kojima

A solid chess match of pro wrestling overall. This was a brawl, a fight, and a wrestling match all thrown into one solid event. CM Punk was able to catch Kojima several times with lariats, and stop gaps, throwing in some interesting moves. This was a cerebral match, so there was focus on wearing down Kojima, relaxed and mental overall. Punk wrestling heel was good overall. Kojima turned things around at one point, and had Punk reeling several times. After some back and forth, it was Punk with the GTS that would put way Kojima in a hard fought battle.

Orange Cassidy defeated Daniel Garcia, Katsuyori Shibata, and Zack Sabre Jr. in the AEW International title

Orange Cassidy steals a victory in this one. There was a lot of back and forth, and a lot of wrestling, frenetically paced wrestling at that. Zack Sabre Jr. was impressive again, Garcia and Shibata threw down too, but it was Cassidy that was able to pull a victory. He pulled one out here, and it was an interesting match with a lot of great moments. I loved it, it was so entertaining, full of pure wrestling and reversals, great just great. I loved it, and it was the match of the night up to this point, and wow, just amazing fun match.

Sanada defeated Jack Perry

Sanada put on a clinic against Perry. Perry got a beat down, and while he did have a few moments, it was not the night for Perry to win. Senada put on one hell of a clinic in regards to some of his moves, and while Jack was able to counter here and there, it just wasn’t for him to get the victory, he needed something more punishing and Sanada just was too powerful. Quality wrestling match here, with a great deal of back and forth, until Sanada pinched in his submissions, and moves.

Post match Perry cheap shots Hook and leaves him laying on the floor.

The Elite (Adam Page, Matt Jackson, Nick Jackson) and Eddie Kingston and Tomohiro Ishii defeated Blackpool Combat Club (Claudio Castanoli, Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta), Konosuke Takeshida and Shota Umino

An all out war of a match, with a lot of action. There was a little bit of wrestling for everyone, with brawling and all out moves left and right. You got something from everyone here, with superkicks, buckshot attempt, shooting star presses, ddts, and just a lot of brawling. The end came with an insane brain buster from Ishii to Wheeler Yuta. One hell of a match, fun overall, just fun overall. One of the best ten man tag matches you’re going to see, and it’s just a great match to see.

Toni Storm defeated Willow Nightingale in the AEW Women’s World Title Match

This was a fun match, with Nightingale getting a lot of action throughout. Storm did manage to bring things around, and there was some moments where you thought Nightingale was going to win this one, but nope, after a distracted ref and eye gauge, Storm pulled through with a nice piledriver, quick and easy, and boom, Storm wins the match. Nightingale was great here, but it was Storm that was a little smarter this time around.

Will Ospreay defeated Kenny Omega for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Title

Will Ospreay put on a clinic with Kenny Omega. Omega did everything in his power to take control and at times he had it, it was stalemated. Then after time and time again Will Ospreay reversed things, and Omega was not able to win the bigger picture. He just couldn’t overcome the onslaught that Will Ospreay threw down. He got busted open, he got beaten, bruised, and just lost his belt. This was one hell of a battle, and it really just showcases amazing things.

Darby Allin, Sting, Tetsuya Naito defeated Minoru Suzuki, Chris Jericho, and Sammy Guevara

The weakest of the matches from the night. This was ok for the most part, but just OK overall. There was a lot of back and forth, brawling, and a sick 630 into a table on sting from Guevara! But outside of that, this was a bland matchup with not a lot to write home about. It was ok, at best if you ask me.

Bryan Danielson defeated Kazuchika Okada

If you were looking for a technical wrestling match, then you got it. These two men put on a clinic of what a technical wrestling match is all about. There were a variety of different moves, reversals, on going hits, and a great deal of transition overall. The match was hard hitting, technical, full of psychology and perhaps one of the best showcases of talent that you could expect from wrestling today. Okada tapped out to Danielson! One hell of a match, just amazing.

Overall Thoughts

Perhaps the best PPV show I’ve seen all year. This has been a good year for live events, and this was one of the best ones I’ve seen. Nearly 4 hours of the most impressive, and amazing shows. Danielson broke his arm in this match and still finished it. Much respect to him.

AEW Dynamite 6/14/23 Results and Review

Another night of Dynamite came and went. I was watching a movie so I didn’t see it live, but you better believe that I wasn’t going to miss the show that people on twitter kept spoiling for me. So let’s get into the action and see what’s up from Washington DC.

Adam Cole vs. MJF went to a time limit draw 30 minutes

A solid opener, a great deal of quality wrestling went down here. MJF is mega talented, and Adam Cole is no slouch. The two went back and forth with control, and power moves, not wasting a minute of things. This was methodically done, with focus on wrestling and counters. This wasn’t just brawling, mind you, it had a lot of different components, and went 30 minutes. It was a great opening option, and I was impressed with how they gave this one away for free on tv, and first thing on the program. This may very well may be the best match I’ve seen this week, great one. See it for yourself.

Sammy Guevara came out for an interview, then Darby Allin and Chris Jericho came out, and there was a little back and forth on the mic. This was a good exchange, and then Sting came out with a bat, and evened out the odds here. This was an interesting face off! First time Sting and Jericho stared down one another.

Darby Allin, Keith Lee, Orange Cassidy, and Sting defeated The Mogul Embassy

Another fun pro wrestling match. There was a lot of back and forth, wild moments, and some great reversals. Some fast paced action and great movement from all made this an instant classic. Fun back and forth, Darby, Keith, Orange, and Sting all got their moves in, including Sting’s Scorpion Death Drop for the ending. A great match overall, and some fun interactions throughout.

Wardlow defeated Jake Hager

Not a bad match here, a good back and forth, but Wardlow was not going to lose. Jack Hager did try to get in some good shots, but it was Wardlow that was impressive here. He took out Hager with two bombs, and an interesting array of moves. The guy can move, he’s good, and we’ll see him once again in action against Luchasaurus, as they came on the screen with a bloodied Arn Anderson. Way to continue the story!

Toni Storm defeated Skye Blue in the AEW Women’s Title Match

A fun women’s match on the show? Yeah, it was about 7 minutes, and while it wasn’t the most technically advanced match, it was fun to watch. Ruby Soho came into play at some points, but Toni Storm was able to muster up enough offense to beat Skye Blue overall. A Texas cloverleaf was the ending submission, and we had things move forward with another successful title defense.

The Elite defeated Blackpool Combat Club in a six man tag team match

This match was on fire, and all six men threw together some great moments. I was impressed how much brawling there was early on, then it moved into a more technical wrestling match. They kept pushing, and eventually got the crowd going crazy for everyone. The Elite would get the win after the BCC tried a bunch of different moves.

After the match Eddie Kingston came down an beat up the BCC.

Overall Thoughts

To be honest, this was a good beakdown of matches and fun overall. I thought the night had an enjoyable array of matches. The 30 minute draw was great, the women’s match delivered, and the other tag matches were fun romps as well. This was a good show, check it out.

AEW Dynamite 6/7/2023 Results and Review

I thought for sure I didn’t have anything to review today, but then I remembered that I had to watch AEW Dynamite. Not that anyone is reading my writing, but I wanted to drop in and once again review what is going on with AEW Dynamite, and the latest and greatest from the company that puts on good wrestling, regardless of what an empty arena says.

Orange Cassidy defeated Swerve Strickland in the AEW International Title Match

Once again we open the show with Orange Cassidy, and this time he defends against Swerve Strickland, and his record is 14 and 0 for the year. He’s defended the title 23 times, and is still going. Everything you could want in a match was found in this back and forth limit pushing match. I was impressed with Swerve’s push forward, and Cassidy’s reversals. This was a great match, and perhaps the best one to see this week. The House Call was hit, but Swerve didn’t get the pinfall, as Cassidy kept pushing. Orange rolled over Swerve, pulled the tights, and got the win overall. A great opener, no doubt, had fun, great stuff here.

The lights went out, and when they came back on it was Sting and Darby Allin! They helped Orange fend off a beat down after the match.

Blackpool Combat Club defeated CHAOS

CHAOS started this match fast, bringing the fight right to Blackpool Combat Club. I was impressed witih how fast this one started, and we even got a nice superplex in the early goings of the match. There was a frenetic pace with this match, and the Best Friends were doing very well against the BCC. Nice back and forth throughout the match, but with CHAOS throwing down some offense. There was a lot of back and forth, good stuff, with pacing that never truly slowed down. I loved how it worked out. I loved it, great fun here. The BCC won this one, and dis so in dominant fashion towards the end.

MJF came out and talked a bit, and even talked with Adam Cole. I liked this, and we should see the next competitor for MJF to win over.

JungleHook defeated La Faccion Ingobernable in a Texas Tornado Match

This was a fight between two teams. I found it to be fun to watch. The Texas Tornado rules made for an interesting match, with both teams fighting to get control. One set of guys were outside of the ring while the other two were in the ring, and there was a lot of back and forth. It was a fight, a brawl at times, with little to no wrestling to speak of, and it was interesting to see. Nothing was wasted here, as they just brawled and really fought to make a hardcore match out of this one. There was a sick table spot, a DDT on a table, and just a great deal action. Jungle Boy got the win with a submission, and wow, what a match to see. Great action, fun stuff, just great in my book.

Konosuke Takeshita defeated Damon Ace

Less than 2 minutes overall. This was a squash of sorts, a burial even. Not much to see here, skip it, I didn’t really feel like saying much else.

Kris Statlander defeated Anna Jay AS in the AEW TBS Title match

Only one women’s match tonight? Fine with me. Statlander did not roll over through Anna Jay here. The competitor in Anna Jay pushed the limits overall. She had a lot of offense against Statlander, and looked good against the champ. Statlander did some fighting back too, but she was definitely not making quick work of Anna Jay. I was impressed with how much offense was given from Jay. A beautiful tombstone piledriver later, and Kris Statlander would win this one.

Jay White defeated Ricky Starks

This thing started on the ramp with a lot of brawling. The two just embroiled in rivalry, fought one another with punches flying right away. This was a slower moving match, which isn’t a bad thing, but I definitely noticed that the pace had slowed down. The match featured a good bit of brawling over technical wrestling. It was a match where both men got the upper hand here and there, driving some good moves and constant brawling. This was a hard hitting battle, and in the end Jay White was able to put away Ricky Starks.

Overall Thoughts

A good overall show, with just a little bit of a lull. It was a good night for those that are looking for quality wrestling. There was a lot of wrestling here, and some great moments. The main event delivered, but so did the majority of the matches, with the exception of one. I liked this night of wrestling and am impressed with how the AEW company keeps moving with quality shows.

AEW Dynamite 5/31/23 Results and Review

Well, I had a couple of days off from work so I decided to wait before reviewing all of the things I missed in wrestling. So here we go, let’s play catch up so that we can enjoy a little bit of wrestling and banter, for all two of you readers.

Blackpool Combat Club defeated The Lucha Brothers and Bandido

There’s a lot of trios matches in AEW, which I don’t mind, but it is apparent that they really like them. Not only that, we got some luchadors up front, which is always cool in my book. El Chapulin lives with the awesome outfit from one of the lucha guys, Bandido. A fun opener with a lot of back and forth action, and some great tags. This was a lot of fun with some great high flying moves, and some reversals from the Blackpool Combat Club. Smart moves, psychology was there, and well, the BCC just gets the win, but it wasn’t a pushover matchup in any way. Fun is how I’d describe this one, as the crowd was into it as well as I was.

Jay White and Juice Robinson came out, and I was falling asleep so this was meh, just an interview segment. It’s ok I guess. FTR came out and the four men started to brawl, and set up a match I’m sure, but I was so tired that this wasn’t that grand for me. I’m sorry, I just think this will lead to a great match next week with Ricky Starks.

Swerve Strickland defeated Big Bill and Trent Beretta in a triple threat match

Big Bill was mopping up at one point, truly using his size to throw the others around. I found it interesting overall, as he was being booked like a larger wrestler, slow and methodical. Swerve and Trent didn’t just roll over, mind you, but they were definitely having to deal with the bigger man. I found that psychology to be good, and interesting overall. A double suplex impressed me, and the crowd went wild too for it, making this triple threat a lot of fun to watch. Swerve would get the pinfall after some nice counters, and seizing the victory with an interesting finisher and crucifix pin. Fun stuff.

Don Callis and Takeshita get booed out of the building, in a promo. It wasn’t bad. There will be a match with Kenny Omega I’m sure.

Darby Allin and Orange Cassidy defeated Gates of Agony in a tag match

The team of Gates of Agony had this match sewn up for the most part. They threw around their opponents left to right, and then some. I couldn’t believe how much attention was paid to the beatdown that was going on. Cassidy and Allin scored a pinfall after the coffin drop, and some previous fast offense. However, the Gates of Agony delivered a beat down throughout, and I was personally impressed with how it went down. It was a fun match.

Sting came down with a bat, and the crowd went nuts.

Kris Statlander defeated Nyla Rose in the AEW Women’s Title match

I gotta admit, the women’s division in AEW impresses a lot. This was a hard hitting match, and both women put in some work, getting some hits in and moves that you don’t usually see with women’s wrestling under 5 minutes ala WWE sometimes. I found this to be great fun, with Statlander escaping, because Nyla Rose is no joke as a competitor. A good back and forth match, with some nice maneuvers. I liked it a lot. A 450 splash and Statlander got the victory, in a hard hitting match.

Adam Cole and Dr. Britt Baker defeated Chris Jericho and Saraya in a mixed tag team match

A nice back and forth match here. Saraya wrestling is cool, and Britt Baker is always fun to watch too. Jericho and Cole hit each other hard, with some heavy chops, and great overall back and forth. Baker even got some offense on Jericho! That was fun to see, and the crowd was all over it. Cole and Baker would get the win, but it was not an easy battle, there was a good amount of back and forth here.

Overall thoughts

A good night of Dynamite if you ask me. It had a little bit of everything you could ask for in a wrestling show. It had a lot of fun, and some good wrestling. They also announced some fun matches for next week as well. This was just a fun night of wrestling, and definitely had me enjoying every bout.

AEW Double or Nothing 2023 Results and Review

Alright, enough was enough, I saw he memes and saw hat so many people were posting that the arena wasn’t even full, so what? I went ahead into watching AEW with open eyes, and no judgments, because I love wrestling and just wanted to see what would happen overall. So here we go, my thoughts on AEW Double or Nothing 2023, from Las Vegas, Nevada. I was at the first AEW, by the way, and hat was a great time, so I was expecting big things.

Orange Cassidy wins a 21 Man Blackjack Battle Royal

A great overall opener, and the crowd was into it. I like a good Battle Royal and well, Orange Cassidy survived, more than got a lot of offense in this one. He outlasted a ton of wrestlers, some more famous than others. I don’t want to write out the list, so I won’t. But there was a great showing from all, including the luchadors, which were fun to watch. Big Bill was interesting, I thought he was going to win to be honest. Brian Cage, Dusting Rhodes, Swerve Strickland, and Penta El Zero Miedo was great to see in the end. Orange won, and wow, good overall fun match if you ask me, which you didn’t.

Adam Cole defeated Chris Jericho in an unsanctioned match w/ Sabu as enforcer

So this was your street fight, which wasn’t terrible, but the naming convention was a little weird. Jericho got the bricks beat off of him at one point by Dr. Baker, and Adam Cole got hit hard a few times too, this was back and forth, no one had an edge for too long, and there was a great deal of damage done, including a table at ringside that Cole fell through. The match had a lame ending with Adam Cole winning after hitting Jericho in the face with punches. He just hit him a bunch until the ref stopped it. Meh. I didn’t like that ending, and I thought they could’ve thought of something more creative to end the match.

FTR defeated Jay Lethal and Jeff Jarrett w/ special guest referee Mark Briscoe in the AEW Tag Team Title Match

Not exactly a classic, but definitely not a bad match either. I found this to be a good overall match with a lot of action. There was back and forth, and lots of brawling, with some moves from FTR being tandem. Lethal and Jarrett are a good team, and they work well together. At one point, however, Jarrett hit Briscoe with a guitar and knocked him out, making this very exciting. But then Karen Jarrett hit the second ref with a guitar! This was a fun match, and went nuts at one point. After Briscoe woke up, a bit of back and forth and a shatter machine to get the victory. This wasn’t too bad, it ended up being a fun match, and FTR wins again.

Wardlow defeated Christian in a ladder match for the TNT Championship

As far as ladder matches go, this was ok at best. I liked it, fair enough, with Christian taking some major hits. Wardlow is young, and the announce team mentioned that several times. I didn’t hate this, but it was at half speed sometimes. Wardlow is good, and he meshes well with Christian’s offense. Wardlow really showed off his strength, and threw Christian around a bit, which was interesting to see. The two didn’t immediately go for the ladders, mind you, they took a little time before introducing the ladder inside the right, although they did get a few throws outside. Some major moments occurred including one hell of a dive off the top of a ladder through a table, and just splat. Wardlow wins this one, but it wasn’t without some punishment, and even Arn Anderson showing up.

Toni Storm defeated Jamie Hayter for the AEW Women’s Championship

Jamie Hayter caught a beat down from Ruby Soho and Saraya before coming out, and got beat up on the way to the ring. Storm would try to focus on Hayter’s arm as a result, and was dominant initially. A short match, with Toni Storm getting the win, and that was that. She’s pretty cool, and she won the match, fun stuff. Hayter couldn’t compete with 3 on one, and her arm was just wrecked. Dang.

The House of Black defeated Billy Gunn and The Acclaimed in the AEW Trios Open House Match

Not a terrible match, with some great back and forth action in this one. I liked the way things moved through quickly, and notably with Gunn and the Acclaimed doing some great tandem things. House of Black is awesome, I liked how they work. In the end House of Black would get the win, and it was a fun match.

Jade Cargill defeated Taya Valkyrie in the TBS Championship match

This was a good overall women’s match, with lots of back and forth. I liked it a lot, with Jade getting a good deal of offense against Taya. Taya is impressive too, and I liked to see her wrestle. The two put on a good showcase, and it was only about 9 minutes, but still had some hard hits and reversals. Fun stuff here.

Kris Statlander defeated Jade Cargill for the TBS Championship

Well, this got the crowd going, it was a squash basically, with just 50 seconds of action. Statlander basically went in and conquered with a tombstone piledriver and wins the TBS title. Fun stuff here, bu not a whole lot of action to write about.

MJF defeated Darby Allin, Jack Perry, and Sammy Guevara in the AEW World Title Match

Alright, so 3 out of the 4 guys in this match were flying around the ring. I mean flying, with dives, frog splashes, and a lot more. It was intense, and just amazing to see. All participants got a bit of offense in, and MJF would get the win at the end. However, if there is a weak link it’s MJF in terms of extremes, not to say he isn’t a good wrestler, but the acrobatics of the other 3 really outshined traditional wrestling at times. I liked the flying a lot, although the lucha themed elements leave a little to be desired in terms of psychology. This was a lot of fun, and MJF survives an onslaught of offense from all corners. This was plain fun, and just about 30 minutes of pure offense, not a lot of rest holds, although there were some great submission moments.

Blackpool Combat Club defeated The Elite in an anarchy in the arena match

So this was a wreck of a match. It was a brawl across the arena, and a hardcore match from the 2000s. It’s an interesting concept, but the execution is a little weird. It had a lot of guys fighting in different areas, all of them just brawling. There wasn’t a lot of great moves here, just a lot of brawling, and what not. Well, at least for the first majority of the match, lots of back and forth around the arena. There is a lot to explore on this one, but the end came with an outsider coming in, and well this was just a fun match overall.

Overall Thoughts

There’s a lot of great wrestling going on with Double or Nothing. I found that each match had a little charm, and the whole ppv was good. Nearly 4 hours of action, so it was a lot, but it was fun. The main event delivered, but it was every match that added a little bit to the overall event. I liked it. I had fun, hope you did too, and I’m slowly caching up to all the wrestling possible.