CC's AEW All Out 2021 Coverage - 9/7/21
AEW World Championship -- Kenny Omega (c) vs. Christian Cage
The Build-Up
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Prediction: I will say, they did a great job hooking me with this matchup when Christian pinned Omega for the Impact title, and it was a hell of a moment for TV. But in the grand scheme of things, there are are five or six other guys I would have given this spot to on the PPV. Cage has no business winning this match, and Omega should retain and move on to a bevy of big time challengers.
Match Reaction - Winner: Kenny Omega
This was a good match, a very good match in fact, but to be honest, it just wasn't as good as the first match because the finish was never in question. There was no way Omega was losing here and he didn't, but at least they gave us a good quality outing. I was stunned that Christian agreed to take a One winged angel off the top rope, given his injury history, but they pulled it off and it was a spectacular finish. Omega retaining set him up for some great possible matchups for the rest of the year. As far as match quality, nothing could follow the cage match, but considering everything post match here, this had to main event the show.
After all the speculation, Adam Cole made the right the decision and joined his fellow Elite brothers in AEW. This just felt right. They teased that Cole was coming out for revenge on Omega, but instead he super kicked Jungle Boy and joined his boys. This was so great! I loved the Elite when Adam Cole was a key member of the group in NJPW and ROH, and I always felt that as soon as his NXT contract was up, he should go straight to AEW. Fact is, Vince McMahon is a terrible judge of talent and if he any brain, the Undisputed Era would've been a main event faction on the main roster two years ago. So I'm happy Cole is out of there and has gone to AEW where he will be used to the best of his talent.
But the best part of the night for me was the arrival of Bryan Danielson, who came out and kicked ass!!! This was absolutely phenomenal. DB has been my favorite wrestler since Dragon was the Best in the World prior to going to WWE. And while injuries derailed his career, booking hurt it worst. I'm so happy to see him in AEW where he has an endless amount of match options that will be so fun to see. Excellent way to close the show.
CM Punk vs. Darby Allin
The Build-Up
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Prediction: This is Punk's first match back, in Chicago, on PPV. There should be no question or doubt that Punk win this match, but it should be a great, just for the heat alone. It will be interesting what type of ring shape Punk is in and we should know who his first real heat feud will be against by the end of the night. I say Moxley.
Match Reaction - Winner: CM Punk
This was a very fun match and the crowd of course made it even more special. Darby will throw his body all around and sell his ass off to make a match look great. This was fun. Punk winning was the right call and Darby was not hurt by the loss. You could tell Punk has to get his ring wind back, but he looked good.
AEW Tag Team Championship -- The Young Bucks (c) vs. Lucha Brothers (Steel Cage Match)
The Build-Up
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Prediction: This should be a classic. These guys are going to kill each other, and do everything possible to make this a classic. I am excited for the creative spots and spectacular bumps we can expect here. Nick Jackson and Rey Fenix are going to put on a masterpiece, I have no doubt.
Match Reaction - Winner: Lucha Brothers
I can't lie, this was one of the greatest tag matches I have ever seen. There were so many fun and creative spots that it would be hard for me to recap everything. But the blood absolutely added to the match. This felt like a blood feud type of match and these teams have gone to war in the past, so this was great. My only gripe was the contrived spot where they stood in a circle and took turns punching and super kicking each other. I hated that and it took me out of the match. Otherwise, this was excellent. I have watched it twice now, and its a classic.
Chris Jericho vs. MJF
The Build-Up
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Prediction: I am so over this feud. I actually have no desire to see these two wrestle and I think AEW has totally botched this one. Its complete overkill, and the matches in the ring between the two have not been particularly good. After everything that has happened in this feud between these two factions, why are we left with two back to back singles matches, with no extra juice to them? I'm bored by this. And honestly, MJF should win and send Jericho off into the sunset. Its time. AEW has so many guys who aren't even on this card who could use this spot on the card. Guys like Sammi G would have been my choice.
Match Reaction - Winner: Chris Jericho
This was the most boring match on the show, as I expected. The end with the "dusty finish" got the crowd into it, but I was never convinced and was bored by it all. Jericho simply does nothing for me and I didn't think MJF needed to be in this match. He should be getting groomed for a title match but instead he's losing to a 55 year old Chris Jericho who can't let it go. I disliked this on many levels.
AEW Women's Championship -- Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (c) vs. Kris Statlander
The Build-Up
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Prediction: No reason to think there is any reason to take the title off of Britt Baker at this point, and the alien certanily would not be my choice. Britt should be over huge with this crowd.
Match Reaction - Winner: Dr. Brit Baker
Good win by the Doctor. Wasn't a bad match at all, but the end was pretty much a forgone conclusion so it was hard for me to get into it. I did pop for the Panama Sunrise.
AEW TNT Championship -- Miro (c) vs. Eddie Kingston
The Build-Up
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Prediction: I think this is a very interesting matchup and for some reason I think its too soon for Miro to lose the title, but when he does, Kingston would be the best person to dethrone him. I could see Miro escaping with a win, which would set up a rematch in New York, or just a series between these two. This is one of the most anticipated matches for me personally on the card.
Match Reaction - Winner: Miro
This was a fun way to open the main card and the crowd was super hot. I really like both these guys and I feel like this feud needs to continue. Eddie should be the guy to defeat Miro for the title, and since he used a low blow to gain the advantage here, I think we will for sure see these two continue to go at it.
Jon Moxley vs. Satoshi Kojima
The Build-Up
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Prediction: Maybe I'm in the minority, but this seems so pointless to me. I get bringing in a special attraction, I get getting Moxley a special match on the card. But to me, a match with Kojimi is not high on the list. Tanahashi? Okada? Ospreay? Yes, yes, yes! Kojima doesn't check that same box for me. There are so many other guys on the AEW roster who should have gotten this spot on the biggest card of the year. If Moxley doesn't have a feud for the card, that's the fault of booking, and he should have been left off, and his spot given to FTR vs. Santana & Ortiz or Maliki Black & Cody or Dustin. Just doesn't make sense to me. Also, Moxley needs a feud coming out of this and as I stated earlier, he should jump Punk and spark a feud with him. I need it.
Match Reaction - Winner: Moxley
Kojima has been wrestling for a long time, and his better days are behind him, but these two did have a good match. Moxley is a brawling style wrestler, so his technical prowess is not exactly conducive to a 4 star classic wrestling match. But these two did bring the intensity. You could tell the crowd wasn't as familiar with Kojima, as he has spent most of his career in All Japan, not New Japan, which fans are more familiar with. But it was good.
Post match saw Minoru Suzuki come out and the crowd went nuts!! I popped huge as I have always been a big Suzuki fan and it was great seeing him in AEW. These two have wrestled before in NJPW, so Suzuki coming to Moxley's turf for revenge was a nice surprise. Suzuki ended up giving Mox the Gotch piledriver and it was great.
Paul Wight vs. QT Marshall
The Build-Up
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Prediction: Another example of a match that would be much better served on Dynamite or Rampage. I just want AEW to utilize its vast roster and feature some of the more talented upper level guys that they seem to be overlooking for big shows like this. For all the tag teams this company has and the emphasis on the division, we have one tag match on the show? And instead we get Big Show vs. QT? I don't like it.
Match Reaction - Paul Wight
At least it was short.
21-woman Casino Battle Royal
The Build-Up
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Prediction: Honestly, these Battle Royals are almost always a mess. I think Thunder Rosa or Jade Cargill should be the future opponents for Britt Baker, but they sure have been pushing Ty Conti a lot.
Match Reaction - Ruby Soho
There were some strange booking choices in this one, like eliminating Rhio quickly and not shining Jade Cargill. Jade has been booked so weird and I don't undertand why you wouldn't put her in teh moster role, where she eliminates alot of people throughout, and only loses because she's ganged up on or her next feud eliminates her. I get that Ruby is the new signee they want to shine, but they have some great talent who they keep starting and stopping with who deserve better. Good win for Ruby on her debut.
Overall, this was a great show. It wasn't the best show, as there weren't classic matches up and down the card, but it was historic. Punk's first match back, the classic cage match, and the arrivals of Adam Cole and Brian Danielson made this show excellent. Daniel Bryan is the biggest game changer in my opinion and I'm so glad he is here, joining CM Punk as legit superstars AEW should be proud to push to the top.