AEW Rampage and Battle of the Belts IV 10/7/2022 Match Ratings and Commentary
Freak of nature (Credit: AEW)
Here’s where we landed with the live, double-shot of Rampage and Battle of the Belts IV. Curious how we rank matches? We’ve got a rubric for that.
AEW Rampage & Battle of the Belts IV - 10/7/2022
The Blackpool Combat Club def. Rush and Private Party: ★★
Tony Nese and Josh Woods def. Varsity Blonds: ★
Tay Melo and Anna Jay def. Madison Rayne and Skye Blue: ★★
Death Triangle def. Dark Order to retain the AEW Trios Championship: ★★
PAC def. Trent Beretta to retain the AEW All-Atlantic Championship: ★★★
Jade Cargill def. Willow Nightingale to retain the AEW TBS Championship: ★★
FTR def. Gates of Agony to retain the ROH World Tag Team Championship: ★★
(Credit: AEW)
Show Highlight—
PAC. Impressive feat in going double-duty for two very good matches. It was an organic way to tie both Rampage and BOTB together. Did they lean into the hammer gimmick too much? Does this make Lucha Bros heels by extension? For some fans, PAC’s going over twice may not have worked in the sense that we’d theoretically cheer for someone to get back-to-back wins and fight twice in one night (hence using the hammer). Worked for me! I loved the finish to the Trent match in particular, a little flashback to Randy Savage winning the IC belt over Tito Santana.
What Worked—
Claudio’s bigger spin. Great spot. Funny how he got over in AEW just by wrestling. I’ll always contend if Andrade got to do that he’d be in a far different place. Nevertheless, Claudio means so much to the AEW fanbase and it boggles the mind that Vince couldn’t see this potential in him.
Honoring Brodie Lee. You know what’s nice? How AEW never resorts to using Brodie’s passing for cheap heat. Basic human fucking decency isn’t always an automatic in the wrestling industry.
…Into a piledriver?! That sequence in the PAC/Trent match was fantastic, when Trent dragged PAC by his legs out of the ring corner and PAC got flipped into a piledriver for an innovative and fantastic false finish. The match was just a TV match until that spot, which popped the crowd accordingly and immediately got a “This-Is-Awesome!” chant percolating.
What Didn’t Work—
Jericho on commentary. I couldn’t put my finger on it initially but Jericho’s commentary equivalent lands like Mr. Perfect from ’95 and ’96; so fixated on getting himself over when he’s all but capable of getting over the talent, a little more. As annoying as Jericho is when he’s screeching, boy can he throw in a redeeming bit that’s just hilarious. JR said the Lucha Bros never had a bad match and Jericho referenced that one against the Mulkeys. Brilliant.
Show Cringe—
Branding of the Battle of the Belts. These were totally fine, solid shows with good wrestling, this is just a general wondering: is Battle of the Belts supposed to be just a bonus Rampage or is it like a Saturday Night’s Main Event or Clash of the Champions? These shows don’t feel too particularly special—and that’s fine if they’re not meant to be, just something that undercuts the title fight appeal of the show when it’s really only happened once in four episodes, especially given the amount of titles on TV. Again, minor dig, freebie AEW shows are always appreciated!
(Credit: AEW)
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