CM Punk and MJF Engaged in a War of Words; Punk def. QT MarshallWhen Punk confronted MJF last week, I was really excited for their first promo battle. I thought they would wait a while and tease it before finally giving it to us, so I was surprised it happened here. I can't complain, though, as this was a stellar segment with fantastic mic work from both men. MJF was exceptional as always and we got to see Punk fired up for a change. Both of them had such great lines that I was left wondering if the program peaked early with this segment. I guess time will tell. The subsequent match between Punk and Marshall was completely inconsequential and it shouldn't have taken Punk as long as it did to defeat Marshall, but I suppose it served to give Punk another win. Gunn Club (Billy and Colten Gunn) def. Bear CountryThis was total filler that would have been better off on Dark or Elevation, but I realize it happened on Dynamite to set up what happened afterward. I like Bear Country, but the best thing I can say about this was that it was kept short and sweet. The less of Gunn Club, the better. Unfortunately, their feud with Darby Allin and Sting isn't over yet. This is obviously leading to a tag team match that I simply don't care to see as it feels beneath Allin and Sting. Thunder Rosa def. Jamie Hayter in an AEW TBS Women's Championship Tournament Quarterfinal MatchEven with Britt Baker and Rebel at ringside, Hayter didn't stand a chance here. I assumed Rosa would advance, but I don't see her winning the whole tournament (Ruby Soho is still my pick). That said, this was a quality, hard-hitting affair from them. The interference from Baker further planted the seeds for the inevitable Rosa vs. Baker rematch and it will be interesting to see if this dissension between Hayter and Baker continues. Bryan Danielson def. Colt Cabana; AEW World Champion "Hangman" Adam Page Confronted DanielsonCabana shared a graphic on Twitter this week of a Ring of Honor match card these two fought on 15 years ago also in Chicago, which is pretty crazy. Cabana is a Chicago native and thus he was the perfect person to take a beating at the hands (and feet) of Danielson on this show. The crowd was behind Cabana, but Danielson still put him away in a matter of minutes as he should have. The promo exchange Danielson and Page had afterward was excellent and left me looking forward to their eventual championship clash. At this point, they may as well save it for the newly-announced Battle of the Belts Saturday special on January 8th. Andrade El Idolo, Malaki Black and AAA World Tag Team Champions FTR def. Pac, Cody Rhodes and AEW World Tag Tam Champions The Lucha BrothersAll eight of these men have been intertwined in similar storylines for weeks now, so it was logical for them to collide in a multi-man match at some point and it was a blast. There weren't any stakes and I don't know what's next for anyone involved (aside from FTR possibly getting another shot at the AEW World Tag Team Championship), but from an in-ring standpoint, this definitely delivered, even with all the shenanigans down the stretch. I'm just ready for Cody to do something new that doesn't involve Black and maybe Andrade. These guys seem to be having matches for the sake of having matches at this point. Overall ShowIt would have been easy for AEW to phone it in the day before Thanksgiving, but this ended up being a really fun show. I was not expecting the show to start so strong with that Punk and MJF promo battle and it was everything I hoped it'd be. Nothing else on the episode came close to topping it, and I could've done without Gunn Club vs. Bear Country, but everything else was enjoyable and they closed out the night on a high note with that main event. Per usual, they also did an effective job of setting the stage for Friday's Rampage and potential matches for next week's Dynamite.
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