AEW Revolution was perhaps the most hyped pay-per-view in the last five years, if not longer. AEW’s model of 4-5 PPV’s per year and taking time in between to build stories truly made fans excited to see the outcomes here. In front of a raucous Chicago crowd, let’s take a look at how this show delivered.
SCU vs. The Dark Order
Before the match, Scorpio Sky and Frankie Kazarian told Chris Daniels to stay in the back because they didn’t trust him, building tension for the eventual Exalted One debut. This pre-show match was a lot of fun. Uno and Grayson continue to morph into their characters and add to their offense. They used their thin masked army to beat down SCU in chosen moments, and Scorpio Sky had a heck of a fiery hot-tag. A northern lariat into a roll-up gives the Dark Order the needed win here. Colt Cabana comes out to aid SCU since he’s the hometown hero. “The Exalted One” seemingly comes out in his robe, but winds up being Chris Daniels, as he runs off the heels. Matt Hardy’s contract with WWE is up at the time of this writing, and Luke Harper’s non-compete clause can’t be far behind. We should expect a big reveal soon.
Dustin Rhodes vs. Jake Hager
The main show kicked off with a physical battle of the bulls. This is Hager’s debut, and this is the perfect use for the veteran Rhodes. Hager hasn’t missed a step in his time off from the ring, as his brawling looked tight and his suplex array was impressive. Rhodes ages like fine wine, as he continues to do some of the best work in his career since joining All Elite. Hager had his significant other sitting at ringside, so Dustin went over for a funny kiss spot. After some nice reversal work, Hager made Dustin pass out with a standing choke. Good match, great result.
Darby Allin vs. Sammy Guevara
Barring some tragedy, I truly believe both of these men will be a future AEW World Champion. Darby is insanely over, and he started this match with a running tope to the outside immediately. This was not only fast and furious action, but so many big spots happened before the bell ever rang. Guevara hit a top rope 630 to the outside through a table in the first few minutes. This was a death-defying showcase for two of the youngest and most talented members of the roster. They used Allin’s skateboard as a nice continuity spot a few times, including Sammy throwing it right at Darby’s face. Allin hits the Coffin Drop for the win to a monstrous pop, but Hager pulls Sammy to safety before Allin can get any further revenge. I’d like to see this continue with a stipulation match at the next PPV. Great stuff.
Kenny Omega/Adam Page vs. The Young Bucks- Tag Team Titles
This match had a nice combination of athleticism and storytelling. Early on, Page spat in Nick Jackson’s face and turned the friendly rivalry into a personal one. They told the story that Omega wanted to win the right way, whereas Page wanted to show the Bucks up and retain the titles in any way possible. Adam Page must be doing something right as the defiant alcoholic character, because he was more over than nearly anyone in the building. The champs worked over Matt Jackson’s back and tailored their offense to the injury nicely. My problems came two-fold with this match: it was too long, and there were too many false finishes. Building a story was done well, but when you get into 30+ minute territory with a mid card match, it’s overkill. They did crazy things, like an IndyTaker to Page on the ramp, and multiple northern lights suplexes on the ramp. Eventually it drug and became implausible that each team would keep kicking out of such brutal offense. Omega hits the One Winged Angel to retain the titles for his team. Page teases turning on Omega, but doesn’t. This pair has more of a story to tell in the coming months before a split.
Nyla Rose vs. Kris Statlander- Women’s Title
These two ladies tried hard here, but they were stuck in an untenable position. They were following a long match that the crowd was extremely into, and their story didn’t have much build. So the crowd was totally dead here, and it hurt the match. To be objective, some of their power offense on each other looked choppy and even a bit dangerous here. Statlander hit her smooth series of flips, and I think she’s got big-match potential once they flesh out exactly what her character is. Nyla has a ton of raw potential herself, but she’s still coming into her killer instinct. Nyla retained her title after a dangerous looking top rope Beast Bomb. This was the weakest match on the show, but not for lack of effort.
MJF vs. Cody
This had all the trimmings of a 70s NWA brawl, and I mean that in the best way possible. MJF’s heat was palpable, and Cody came out with a live performance of his song, and his whole Nightmare Family (including Arrow’s Stephen Amell) to greet him. They used the seconds (Wardlow, Arn, and Brandi) extremely well here to tell this long-bubbling masterpiece. MJF used classic heel tactics like running and avoiding Cody at first, but then he got the advantage by working over Cody’s broken toe and injuring Cody’s arm. MJF is an underrated grappler, and he got to use some nice submissions here, like an armbar and a modified bow-and-arrow. This was intense and captured the crowds’ emotions without overusing flips and spots. MJF wins by simply using his ring from his trucks to clock Cody and get the pin. A beautifully simple statement win by MJF that doesn’t hurt Cody, but advances their story. AEW is great at getting their “big fights” right, which is always lacking in WWE. This was the match of the night for me.
Pac vs. Orange Cassidy
If you’ve been reading my column for any period of time, you know by now that overly comedic or implausible wrestlers aren’t my cup of tea. Such is the case with Orange Cassidy. But the same cannot be said for the Chicago crowd, because Cassidy got the loudest reactions of anyone on this show. Pac played a nice foil to “Freshly Squeezed” as he cut off some of his signature spots and sold very well. Cassidy went back and forth between his “lazy” spots and his fast-paced moments of “trying”. I’m not denying that it worked with the crowd, and moments of it were even worth a chuckle. The part that I didn’t like was that it hurt Pac, who was getting bested by a guy who at times wasn’t even trying. It was creative and different, and when Cassidy kicked it into gear, he was swift and smooth. Pac gets the tap-out win with the Brutalizer in a match that wasn’t for me, but was well crafted.
Chris Jericho vs. Jon Moxley- World Title
Once again, AEW nailed the “big fight” feel. Moxley walked in intensely from all the way outside the arena, and Jericho had a female choir sing the first verse of “Judas” before he came out. This was the ending of a long show, but it still was rife with psychology. Jericho spent his time brawling and working over Moxley’s injured eye. Jericho powerbombed Mox on the timekeepers table and caused a pair of sizable gashes on Moxley’s forehead. Moxley valiantly fought through the trauma as the crowd rallied behind him. As the referee kicked out Hager, Santana, and Ortiz, Sammy Guevara came in with a belt shot for a great false finish. In the end, Moxley took off his eye patch, revealing he could see all along. Two Paradigm Shifts later, and Moxley is your second ever AEW Champion. This match wasn’t spectacular by workrate standards, but was an intense and well-told story. Moxley takes the mic afterwards and thanks the fans, saying he’ll take on all challengers.
Overall, this can’t be considered anything but an absolute home run PPV. The undercard delivered with big and brutal spots, and the hyped matches had great psychology and the correct results. As most WWE cards these days leave you angry and wondering why you still support them, AEW leaves you satisfied with things to talk about. The logic, the booking, and the quality of this show was unmatched by anything in U.S. wrestling this year so far. I’ll see you all Thursday this week for a (slightly late) Dynamite review!
