Following AEW All Out, the response to the extreme violence polarized some. Jon Moxley starved Bryan Danielson of air using a plastic bag.
“Hangman” Adam Page stuck a needle into Swerve Strickland’s mouth. Some called All Out one of the strongest PPVs in AEW history.
Memes contrasting Wembley’s opposing euphoria compared to Chicago’s stark depravity show dark humor to deal with what was intended to be disturbing. It is clear who the good and bad guys are.
If you are still someone clinging on to the notion that Page is a justified “anti-hero”, like Breaking Bad’s Walter White, it’s now harder to justify. The fact that Page is drinking again and the subtle detail at the end of last week’s house burning indicates the poison is back.
This darker relapse from his first arc continues downward. For others, it was too far.
Dangerous. Stupid.
Risks were taken like another chair shot to the head. Unnecessary.
If you are interested in an analysis of the impact of All Out’s violence and/or the deconstruction of criticism against AEW for extreme violence, check out Last Word on Pro Wrestling later this week for my insights on both topics.
Yet, it’s funny that, compared to WWE, controversy with AEW is sometimes described as off-putting rather than something to be capitalized on. Someone once wrote something about controversy creating cash.
With a day to go, the announcements for Dynamite are limited. Only one announced segment.
The biggest talking point post-All Out besides the main event. It gets center stage on an edition of Dynamite that elsewhere will be about regrouping and setting up what’s next.
Announced Card Thus Far:
Matches announced:
- No matches at the time of writing
Other segments announce:
Jon Moxley speaks
Speculation:
- Darby Allin to address and speak to Jon Moxley
- Explanation from The Blackpool Combat Club- what happens to the AEW Trios Championships?
- MJF vs Daniel Garcia to continue?
- When will Mariah May have her championship celebration?
- Further fallout from All Out.
Jon Moxley Speaks
A powerful message was given to Danielson, who is Moxley’s co-founder of Blackpool Combat Club. The angle from All Out itself I will discuss in more depth soon in a fuller article.
The reasoning Mox will have for betraying and symbolically putting down The American Dragon like a sick dog, a necessary evil, could be one of Mox’s best promos. I would be lying if I said the Moxley I wrote about in April, the greatest transitional champion of this age and the true alternative icon in pro wrestling, delivered a stellar NJPW World Heavyweight Championship run.
Particularly when performing in AEW, Moxley seemed mechanical in the sense of going through motions. For a while, Moxley felt uninspired and predictable.
A spinning wheel without a clear storyline or character development after losing the AEW International Champion. Maybe it was what Moxley needed to go away to be fresh again but it felt like this is not my Jon Moxley anymore.
I’ve seen some fear that Moxley is the guy to retire Danielson. That’s the sign of an effective angle.
Doubt and/or a shift of expectations. Of the potential big dream rematches, this one I did not consider.
Find out which ones I want here. I perhaps overlooked Moxley at the time of writing due to my own disengagement with death jitsu.
Then again, was the angle for the benefit of building Moxley vs. Danielson? Or like Ivy, will this storyline spread out and wrap itself around other players in the game?
Blackpool Combat Club and Moxley have been symbolic gatekeepers or catalysts before. Whether for Page, cementing championship reigns like MJF’s or Orange Cassidy’s or even modern masculinity.
Mox, more so than a former WWE stablemate, has been an architect developing AEW’s landscape.
What About Darby Allin?
For two weeks, Moxley has called out this man. Surely after Saturday night, Darby Allin is going to confront Moxley?
Not long ago, Allin descended from the rafters. Tony Schiavone has used the same sentimental tone and elongated pronouncement he used for Sting.
The positioning of Darby as this generation’s Stinger goes beyond the face paint and the association with Sting. There is something special about Allin’s approach to wrestling.
Something magical that the daredevil can create is either a crash test dummy or a defiant underdog. Allin’s history with Moxley is deep.
The pair have fought and teamed with each other. The reason Moxley wants to speak to Allin is surely connected to the fact that it’s only two more Dynamites until Grand Slam.
Where Allin will face Danielson for the championship. It’s one of the many first-time dream matches that I and others want Danielson to have before retirement.
You can read about other dream match opponents here. However, there is a real feeling, beyond rumors, that it’s Allin’s time.
Just as Laci Schlatz has written about this past August. Does Moxley want to fight Allin or for him to join his new faction?
As history has shown, Allin is selective. Before Sting arrived in AEW, Darby was feuding with Team Taz.
Darby rejected Taz’s offer of help. Thus began one of the best early factions of AEW that put Brian Cage, Ricky Starks, and Powerhouse Hobbs firmly on fans’ radars.
If Allin takes the mantle of Sting, he will adopt the position of AEW’s conscience. Standing against Moxley.
Another gritty, bloody, and possibly hardcore feud would ensue. Or does Allin see Moxley’s reasoning?
Or is there another path that cannot be seen yet?
What’s Next for Blackpool Combat Club?
With Claudio Castagnoli siding with Moxley and Marina Shafir, Eddie Kingston was right. With the dissolution of Death Triangle, “The Bastard” PAC joining with Moxley is an inspired choice.
Both men share brutality and an aura of no regard for human life. It could allow this new BCC to be something it failed to be before – a supergroup with a clearer unified purpose.
The history of BCC as a group exemplifies AEW’s nirvana peaks of in-ring action but creative potholes. The contrast between highly emotive and engaging matches but inconsistent build and characterization.
A revamp or change has helped Moxley and should also help the BCC. Their reason for turning on Danielson might also add further depth to this story.
And, if this leads to some longer-term feud, the prospect of Allin wrestling Castagnoli and PAC is… sorry I was lost in fantasy booking. As for Wheeler Yuta, who had to be held back as Danielson was bagged, will he side with the man who he fought and bled for multiple times to join the BCC?
Or has Danielson’s bullying and negging mentorship changed his loyalty? Yuta, as a character, out of all the BCC men, is the one who suffered worse in terms of character development and elevation.
Yuta has felt stuck in place for so long as a scrappy underdog/terrier heel. Yuta is yet to find his voice in the way Daniel Garcia is currently.
Yet, the emotiveness and the look of helplessness at All Out could lead to a reset. Character growth.
But there’s a concern for the AEW trios championship. AEW creatively frustrated some by vacating the championship rather than have The Bang Bang Gang lose clean to The Patriarchy.
How the company handles this could harm the championships further if there’s no logical, satisfying plan in place.
Looking for an AEW Deep Dive?
James has also written a series that takes a deep dive into AEW’s short but impactful history. In part 1, James discussed how AEW changed the wrestling industry (here). In Part 2, James discussed how AEW’s continued existence benefits wrestlers and fans alike (here).
Part 3 has been divided into two articles. One discusses the differences between in-ring action and storytelling (here). The other excellent in-ring action is compensating for wider issues in AEW creative (here). The final part will discuss AEW’s future. Including discussing the problems that AEW faces and questions Tony Khan will have to address. In a bonus article, James evaluates the criticism levelled at the company on social media and podcasters as well as the company’s response (here). In the final upcoming part, James examines how for AEW’s future Tony Khan can compete with WWE beyond just in the ring (here).
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – AEW – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world. As well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can catch AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TBS. AEW Rampage airs on TNT at 10 PM EST every Friday night. AEW Collision airs Saturday at 8pm Eastern on TNT. More AEW content available on their YouTube
