AEW Rampage Review - December 16, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Jon Moxley def. Sammy Guevara

As good of a match as this was, I didn't care much to see it coming into the show considering we've already seen it twice before and Guevara had virtually no chance of winning. That said, they gave it a hell of an effort, the crowd was into the action and they told an interesting story with Guevara targeting Moxley's ear. This was the second straight week Moxley busted his ass on Rampage and was the highlight of the night. The lesson here is that if you want to improve Rampage, just call up Moxley. By the way, I thought Blackpool Combat Club vs. Jericho Appreciation Society ended at Final Battle?

IWGP/AAA World Tag Team Champions FTR Addressed The Gunns

I'm really glad we got to hear from FTR for once in the ring and not in a quick pre-taped promo/package. Despite their lack of meaningful television time this year, they're still one of AEW's hottest acts, and I'm also glad they didn't wait too long after their war with The Briscoes at ROH Final Battle to have them address The Gunns' attack on them. This was simple stuff but it set up their match with The Gunns next week on Dynamite effectively.

Britt Baker def. Skye Blue

I appreciated that this wasn't a two-minute squash (we got that in the next match instead), but I can't say it held my interest, either. Blue is perfect underdog role and she's definitely improving, but this didn't go very long and it felt like half of it took place during the commercial break? Blue gained nothing from this. Rather, it likely existed to give Baker a singles win, so I suppose it served a purpose in that respect.

Wardlow def. Exodus Prime

I was pleasantly surprised we didn't see Wardlow run in at Final Battle last weekend and cost Samoa Joe the ROH World Television Championship against Juice Robinson. Needless to say, Wardlow has lost a lot of his luster these past six months, but he's still at his best when he's squashing jobbers like he did here. This was what it needed to be, and Joe's post-match promo successfully furthered their feud. I'm looking forward to their eventual one-on-one match.

Dustin Rhodes, AEW All-Atlantic Champion Orange Cassidy and Best Friends def. Trent Seven, Kip Sabian, The Butcher and The Blade

This was the second straight Rampage main event featuring Trent Seven, though I don't believe there's been any word on him officially signing with AEW. He's just being used to eat losses for now and that's fine. This played off all the issues Rhodes and Cassidy have had with Sabian in recent weeks, and from an in-ring standpoint, it was fun. It doesn't really mean much in the long run, but it does get us another step close to Cassidy vs. Sabian and possibly Sabian vs. Rhodes.

Overall Show

Rampage has definitely been an easier watch in the last two weeks and hasn't felt as inconsequential, which is greatly appreciated. Moxley vs. Guevara was the best bout on the show, and although the stuff in the middle wasn't overly exciting by any means, it all served a purpose (except for Baker vs. Blue, which didn't really accomplish anything). The same can be said for the main event, which was enjoyable enough. Thumbs-up for Rampage this week.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews