AEW Double or Nothing Review - May 23, 2020

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Buy In: Best Friends def. Private Party in an AEW World Tag Team Championship No. 1 Contender's Match

I'm a big Private Party fan, but despite their impressive win-loss record so far in 2020, it's a shame they haven't been featured more prominently on Dynamite lately. That foreshadowed the finish to me, but this was still a solid match with a few hiccups here and there. Best Friends have been all over AEW TV for months and it only made sense for them to become the new number one contenders to the AEW World Tag Team Championship. This was wisely positioned on the pre-show.

Brian Cage def. Darby Allin, Luchasaurus, Colt Cabana, orange Cassidy, Joey Janela, Scorpio Sky, Kip Sabian and Frankie Kazarian in a Casino Ladder Match to Earn a Future AEW World Championship Opportunity

I've seen so many Ladder matches in wrestling (specifically WWE) over the last year that I wasn't as excited for this as I probably should have been, but I really liked how it played out Gauntlet-style as last year's Casino Battle Royale did. In fact, this was so well done that I'd like to see it brought back as an annual happening at Double or Nothing going forward. It was far from the greatest Ladder match I've ever seen and I could have done without all the interference, but it was a blast on the whole and everyone had their time to shine at one point or another. Cage finally debuting (it was originally rumored earlier this year) and earning the future title shot made for a cool moment. If he can stay healthy, he can be a big star in AEW.

MJF def. Jungle Boy

I wasn't expecting much from this due to the nonexistent buildup, but it ended up being the best pure wrestling match of the night. Jungle Boy will be one to watch in the future and had a really showing in defeat here. As for MJF, he had been lacking that one memorable performance until now and this was it. A lot of fans forget that he hasn't been beaten in singles competition yet and I assume he was headed for world title contention before COVID-19 forced the company to change their plans. I'm looking forward to seeing him face Jon Moxley eventually because I think that could be a fun feud.

Cody def. Lance Archer to Become the Inaugural AEW TNT Champion

This was the match I was most excited for coming into this show, yet I feel it under-delivered to an extent. Mike Tyson yawning at ringside at one point didn't help, but in all seriousness, this was hurt more by the lack of live crowd than any other matchup on the card in my opinion. It didn't need to go over 20 minutes and lacked drama down the stretch. It was an enjoyable outing, but I don't think the focus on Arn Anderson and Jake Roberts at ringside was necessary. Although I wanted Archer to win, I figured Cody would become the inaugural champ coming off his last two pay-per-view losses. Archer can maintain momentum so long as the company keeps booking him as strongly as they have been.

Kris Statlander def. Penelope Ford

Statlander was originally scheduled to take on Britt Baker one-on-one on this show before Baker suffered an injury on Wednesday's Dynamite. Ford has potential and is talented, but this match never had a chance as a result of the change. I appreciated their effort and it was far from bad, but it felt like something you'd see on any average episode of Dynamite. Here's hoping Statlander can continue to be built back up and we see her collide with Baker once she's back in action.

Dustin Rhodes def. Shawn Spears

I had no desire to see this match in the first place and thought it was odd when it was added to the card at the last minute, but I would have fine with a short and serviceable bout between the two with Spears picking up the much-needed victory. Granted, it was short, but it wound up being a complete waste of time and their attempt at "comedy" was a failure. If Spears wasn't dead in the water before, he is now. AEW could have shaved five minutes off this show by getting rid of this crap all together.

Hikaru Shida def. Nyla Rose in a No Count-Out, No Disqualification Match to Win the AEW Women's Championship

Aside from Baker, Shida has been the biggest standout from the women's division over the last year for me and I was stunned that she hadn't received a one-on-one shot at the AEW Women's Championship prior to this point. As for Rose, she's grown on me in recent months and I like how she's been booked as a dominant champ. Normally, I'd be disappointed that her reign didn't last longer than it did, but Shida is on such a roll right now that it was almost imperative that she won the title on this show. The match itself was excellent and among my favorite women's matches AEW has produced to date. I wasn't sold on the No Count-Out, No Disqualification stipulation initially, but they utilized the environment exceptionally well and took their fight all over the arena. Shida can have a hell of a run, assuming she appears more on Dynamite than Riho and Rose did while they were in possession of the title.

AEW World Champion Jon Moxley def. Brodie Lee

The world championship match should usually headline the pay-per-view, but I'm happy it didn't in this case considering how rushed this rivalry has felt. That said, they had a top-notch title match as both guys brought the best out of each other. They worked with a sense of urgency and Lee proved he was on Moxley's level. I also appreciated how he didn't get pinned and didn't submit, so he was protected in defeat. It would have been nonsensical for Moxley to drop the strap so soon, so the result was the right one.

The Elite (The Young Bucks, AEW World Tag Team Champions Kenny Omega & "Hangman" Adam Page, and "Broken" Matt Hardy) def. Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Sammy Guevara, JAke Hager and Santana & Ortiz) in a Stadium Stampede Match

I'm not sure anyone knew what to exactly to expect from the Stadium Stampede coming into this show, yet it was everything I hoped it would be and so much more. It can be debated that it wasn't a "cinematic match" because of how there wasn't any music and how it actually had commentary, but either way, it wasn't your traditional pay-per-view main event given the circumstances and that's why it worked. It was a blast from start to finish that never seemed to drag despite going over 30 minutes. Page riding a horse onto the field, Hardy switching personas, Guevara taking some more crazy bumps, and Jericho challenging referee Aubrey Edwards' call were among the highlights. I wouldn't make this an annual staple, but I was thoroughly entertained and thought it was a suitable main event for a show with no fans.

Overall Show

After such a depressing week in wrestling, Double or Nothing provided fans with the perfect distraction from reality, if only for a few hours. Although it wasn't a perfect pay-per-view by any means, it just may have been one of my favorite events so far this year. The main matches all delivered and the Stadium Stampede in particular was a wonderful way to cap off the evening. I was skeptical whether Double or Nothing would be worth the $50 price tag, but I'd argue that it was. Props to AEW for making the most of the current circumstances and giving fans some stellar shows, including this one. I was satisfied once it was over and was left looking forward to finding out what's next on Wednesday's Dynamite.