AEW Full Gear Review - November 23, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Zero Hour: Anna Jay def. Deonna Purrazzo

Jay recently failed to beat Mariah May for the AEW Women's World Championship twice and Purrazzo hasn't done anything of note since her feud with Thunder Rosa ended months ago, so while I didn't mind them getting a spot on the show, why not have them establish a reason for why they're having a match? This was decent, but it was total silence in the building because it was far from full and they wouldn't have cared, anyway. I'm not sure why AEW starts their pre-shows so early.

Zero Hour: Buddy Matthews def. Dante Martin, Komaner and The Beast Mortos in a Four-Way Match

I can virtually guarantee you that Hologram would've been in this match instead of Matthews had he been medically cleared, just because this is the type of random four-way he would've been thrown in and won. Nonetheless, this is the fun, fast-paced matchup you'd expect from these four. I doubt this win will amount to anything for Matthews, but at least it was the right outcome.

Zero Hour: Big Boom! A.J. def. QT Marshall

Everything about the "build" for this bout (including the fact it was booked at all) was completely ridiculous, but quite honestly, this is the sort of stuff AEW should be doing more of. No, they shouldn't bring in celebrities/social media influencers on every pay-per-view, but the Costco Guys are relevant enough to where this match made sense for the pre-show, especially given A.J.'s background as an independent wrestler. This was exactly what it needed to be and the crowd ate it all up. It went better than it had any right to be.

AEW World Tag Team Champions Private Party def. The Acclaimed, The Outrunners, and Kings of the Black Throne in a Four-Way Tag Team Match

It was probably for the best to follow up on the A.J. vs. Marshall match with The Outrunners because they're genuinely one of the most over acts in AEW right now. Granted, the tag titles were never truly in jeopardy of changing hands because Private Party just won them, but it was a good opener for what it was. That's putting aside the stupid spot where The Acclaimed attempted to pin each other and referee Rick Knox actually counting it despite the commentators saying that wasn't possible.

MJF def. Roderick Strong

I realize MJF has been off AEW TV since WrestleDream (other than pre-taped promos and segments), so I had no issue with MJF vs. Adam Cole not happening on this show considering it would've had such little buildup, but MJF vs. Strong was a glorified Dynamite main event. MJF attempted to turn this crowd against him with his Boston Bruins gear and pre-match promo, but the crowd was never fully behind Strong at any point. They had a well-wrestled match, but it was not a pay-per-view-worthy encounter. I have to imagine MJF vs. Cole is being saved for Worlds End, which will mark one year since Cole betrayed MJF and formed The Undisputed Kingdom.

AEW TBS Champion and NJPW Strong Women's Champion Mercedes Mone def. Kris Statlander (NJPW Strong Women's Championship Was Not Defended)

This crowd sat on their hands for the first portion of this match and I can't say I'm shocked given how not over (how else would you describe it?) Mone has been in recent months. She's been a champion for a majority of her run, but the booking has been questionable and it's not like she's been lighting the world on fire in the ring, either. That said, this was her best bout in many months. She and Statlander had great chemistry together and the crowd was hot for the nearfalls. More of this from Mone, please.

Jay White def. "Hangman" Adam Page

Although this was roughly on the same level as their last match at WrestleDream, I enjoyed that one significantly more because that crowd was much more into the action. Unfortunately, these two didn't have the benefit of starting the show this time, but I liked the story they told with Page targeting White's (potentially previously injured) ankle throughout. I thought for sure that Page would get his win back from WrestleDream, so White winning clean again was a pleasant surprise. The key now is AEW doing something meaningful with him, perhaps putting him back in the AEW World Championship picture.

Kyle Fletcher def. Will Ospreay

For as excellent as this was, I have to address the obvious first: The vast amount of nearfalls and kick-outs after certain spots was completely ridiculous. That's nothing new from AEW, but they really need to tone it down. It happens so much across the card that it becomes excessive. Complaining aside, these two stole the show. It was already established that Fletcher is talented, but this was a breakout performance for him and the clean win was the cherry on top. The aftermath will be important, of course, but it would've been easy for Ospreay to win with Fletcher looking credible in defeat. This was the correct call.

AEW Women's World Champion Mariah May and RevPro Undisputed British Women's Champion and BBW Women's Champion Mina Shirakawa's Champagne Celebration Descended Into Chaos

When this was originally announced a week or two ago, the popular belief was that it would be where Toni Storm finally returned and sought revenge on May. Then Storm declared she was "retired" in an interview earlier this week, so May turning on Shirakawa was the next logical direction to go in. Sure enough, they did just that, and I appreciated that they kept it short and sweet. The table spot on the side of the stage was a nice touch.

Daniel Garcia def. Jack Perry to Win the AEW TNT Championship

Similar to most of the other matches, the crowd sat on their hands for the first half or so, but Garcia and Perry did an effective job of telling their story and getting them invested as it progressed. They also reacted big to the title change, so that's an encouraging sign Garcia is getting over again. Garcia has lost so many high-profile matches over the last two years, so it was wise for AEW to finally pull the trigger on him here.

AEW International Champion Konosuke Takeshita def. Ricochet

It was weird that this wasn't confirmed for the card on Wednesday's Dynamite but rather on social media. Regardless, this was an entertaining affair. It actually paled in comparison to other matches on the show as they didn't go all out the way I thought they would, but the crowd came alive for the bigger moments. This marked Ricochet's first singles loss in AEW, so I'm curious to see where he goes from here.

Bobby Lashley def. Swerve Strickland

After three hours (or four-and-a-half hours if you count the pre-show), these guys were in a tough spot. As is the case with virtually every AEW pay-per-view, the crowd was clearly exhausted (though it didn't sound like they were overly enthusiastic to begin with), but Lashley and Strickland still delivered a top-notch match with a clean finish. Lashley had to win in his AEW pay-per-view debut and Strickland won't be damaged by the loss in the slightest. He can always avenge it eventually if the feud continues (and it should).

AEW World Champion Jon Moxley def. Orange Cassidy

Cassidy attacking Moxley during the ring introductions was a refreshing change of pace. Cassidy proceeded to take a hell of a beating and get busted open, which was when the crowd went back to being quiet for a bit until the closing stretch. They once again worked well together, but it was difficult to buy into the idea that Cassidy would win (even with some of the suspenseful nearfalls right before the finish), not to mention that the tease of this being for "control of the company" was nonsense. This Death Riders storyline has yet to get out of first gear and this didn't do anything to change my mind. Christian Cage attempted to cash in his contract on Moxley afterward but was thwarted by White. That gives me hope White is next for Moxley after all. Darby Allin also targeted The Death Riders as they exited the arena, but they fled in a different vehicle before he could get his hands on them. That was certainly an ending that happened.

Overall Show

My top takeaway from the show was that there were way more clean finishes than there normally are for an AEW pay-per-view. That was a big positive. I've never been a fan of the four-hour format because of how it kills the crowd, but interestingly, this crowd largely sucked during the main card and the main event was one of the only matches they were loudest for. From an in-ring standpoint, there was plenty to like about Full Gear and it was a solid show on the whole, but I couldn't help but think that the lousy atmosphere (save for a few moments) had a lot to do with AEW's current product being ice cold. The Continental Classic should be a blast, but they desperately need storylines that will resonate with viewers and make matters more exciting.

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