By Will Pruett, ProWrestling.net Co-Senior Staffer (@itswilltime)
And now my friends, for the real challenge – keeping myself to just ten thoughts on a filled-to-the-brim AEW pay-per-view. Can I do it? Probably.
Before I get to the very concise ten thoughts, please check out my instagram for exclusive photos from Revolution as I process them this week! I took some gems last night and look forward to sharing them.
– AEW made a very bold move with the stipulation for the AEW Men’s World Championship match. “Hangman” Adam Page – who has been in the AEW title picture since the very first show in 2019 – now cannot challenge for that title again. It creates a true storytelling challenge that is exciting to me as a longtime viewer. Who is a character, still in their prime, when they’re unable to be world champion? This also opens that title picture up to more main event wrestlers in AEW as the “main character” of the promotion cannot be in it. While it could go wrong (See the Cody-verse for an example), I like the big bold move. Tony Khan is booking AEW with confidence and it shows.
– At Revolution, MJF has matches that cement his title reigns. In 2023 MJF faced Bryan Danielson is an amazing Iron Man Match that told us he could truly wrestle as champion. Now, MJF cements his second reign in a match against the AEW Championship’s biggest perennial contender and vanquishes his foe. At both editions of Revolution, it is like MJF’s title reign can truly begin after. There are a ton of directions for this version of MJF to go in. There are still matches lined up with Kenny Omega, Swerve Strickland, Andade El Idolo, and (of course) Will Ospreay.
– My biggest complaint about this show would be the prevalence of biting and one-count kickouts on the card. It was clear that those backstage in AEW are not talking to each other and that each match is put together in a vacuum. While nothing was truly bad, repeating these themes made each of them less effective. By the time the Texas Death Match main event featuring a biting spot, we had seen flesh get chomped on so much, it did not matter. Something needs to improve in the organization process in AEW.
– At long last and after five years of waiting, we finally got to see a great version of The Young Bucks vs. FTR. The teams were properly aligned going into this match and the extra drama surrounding Matt and Nick Jackson’s family helped this one. This was the match we were all imagining from these teams in 2016. It was my favorite match of the night. The Super Shatter Machine that finished this off was as perfect as that spot could be.
– Jon Moxley and Konoske Takeshita only needed four more minutes than they had in Australia. This was a delightful match early on in the show centered around making Takeshita despite him taking an eventual loss. This makes sense, as the Continental Championship does not quite work for what Takeshita is doing in the Don Callis Family. When the moment comes and Takeshita breaks away, crowds are going to go insane for him. Some of the loudest ovations all night were for Takeshita almost winning this match.
– Will Ospreay’s return was a real highlight of this show that felt a little bit lost by the time the show ended. Ospreay returning as AEW’s top pure babyface with vengeance on his mind against The Death Riders is super cool, however it does cause a little bit of conflict. Jon Moxley is a babyface. The rest of The Death Riders seem like heels or tweeners (aside from the infinitely hate-able Wheeler Yuta). Ospreay facing Moxley also creates a problem with the Continental Championship. I don’t believe Ospreay should challenge for a title until All In’s main event.
– Ronda Rousey debuted for AEW on this show and despite not getting an All Elite graphic, I would assume it was to set up Rousey vs. Toni Storm at All In. The crowd really did not like this. Rousey is simply too damaged in the eyes of wrestling fans after a good year in WWE followed by an absolute disaster of a year. Her star power has diminished. I would argue that she is not worth the live or online backlash that AEW received and is receiving.
– The World Trios Championship match, Kazuchika Okada, Kyle Fletcher, and Mark Davis vs. Kevin Knight, Speedball Bailey, and Mistico was absolutely amazing. This was some state of the art high flying and spectacle-based wrestling. The placement on this show, deep in the card and after hours of rapid fire matches, did not hurt it. I am so excited about seeing more of Mistico in AEW and more trios matches from Bailey, Knight, and Mistico. The ideal use of the Trios Championships is a title that changes hands often.
– Bandido vs. Andrade El Idolo was another blast of a match the brought a ton of unique action and joy to this show. Bandido’s Super Dragon tribute gear warmed by PWG-loving heart. These two should have multiple rematches as the years go on in AEW. Their chemistry was amazing.
– This was a very long show to be at live, but it did not suffer from the same dips other AEW shows I have attended have. While there was a lot going on, the pacing of this one and the match order kept it from feeling bad or stale. AEW pay-per-views definitely could stand to be shorter, but I do understand the philosophy of delivering a meaningful chapter of every story on major shows. The arena was absolutely packed for this show, by the way, with no curtained off sections, aside from those behind the stage. This was a successful night for AEW.
Will Pruett writes about wrestling and popular culture at prowrestling.net. To see his video content subscribe to his YouTube channel. To contact, check him out on Bluesky @itswilltime, leave a comment, or email him at itswilltime@gmail.com.
Too many returns on the same exact show shows how immature this company still is.