AEW Rampage Review - April 7, 2023

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

FTW Champion Hook def. "All Ego" Ethan Page in an FTW Rules Match

FTW Rules meant that anything went and falls counted anywhere. This was more competitive than their original encounter on Dynamite, which was over within two minutes. Page scored much more offense this time, which I appreciated because the Hook squash matches have gotten repetitive. Of course, the outcome was never in doubt. The most surprising part was that Matt Hardy didn't appear after costing Hook the win on Wednesday.

The Acclaimed and Jericho Appreciation Society ("Daddy Magic" Matt Menard and "Cool Hand" Angelo Parker) def. The Infantry, Bobby Orlando and LSG

I haven't cared at all about The Acclaimed teasing they could be joining Jericho Appreciation Society, nor would that be a good idea if that actually happened. Thankfully, it isn't anyway with Jericho Appreciation Society attacking The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn afterward. The match itself was meant to establish that the two teams could coexist, and maybe the post-match was supposed to be a surprise even though you could see it coming from a mile away.

Darby Allin def. Lee Moriarty

Moriarty is a talented dude and we've seen him showcase his skills in various matches on AEW TV in the past, but he and the rest of The Firm simply aren't threats. If anything, this was a warm-up match for Allin as he works his way toward an opportunity at the AEW World Championship, which is all but guaranteed at this point. I don't think this needed to be as competitive as it was, but at least it was well wrestled. Brian Cage attacked Allin afterward to establish that Mogul Affiliates and The Embassy are now working together, for anyone that gives a shit.

Julia Hart def. Anna Jay A.S.

Never did I think I'd live to see the day that Julia Hart wrestled in the main event of Rampage, but here we are. To her credit, she's improved from where she was a year ago, but this was definitely not important or good enough to warrant enough being in this spot. They put forth a commendable effort, but this belonged on Dark in my opinion. Alas, it's a part of a Jericho Appreciation Society-House of Black feud I have zero interest in, so that's why this existed.

Overall Show

This was a very subpar show even by Rampage standards. Hook vs. Page was a rematch from two days earlier that wasn't necessary, the stuff with The Acclaimed and Jericho Appreciation Society was whatever, Allin vs. Moriarty was the solid albeit nothing special, and the main event was average at best. This was a live show with Battle of the Belts airing immediately afterward, but that didn't really add to my enjoyment of this episode at all. It was a completely forgettable hour of wrestling.

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