AEW Rampage Review - December 17, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Best Friends (Trent, Chuck Taylor and Orange Cassidy) and Rocky Romero def. Bobby Fish and The SuperKliq

This was a lot like most of the other matches these two factions have had over the last month as far as the goofiness and some of the over-the-top spots were concerned. I don't mind it personally, but I can understand that stuff not being for everyone. This was an enjoyable eight-man tag team affair as they kept the pace consistent throughout. The babyfaces arguably needed the win more, especially if Adam Cole is beating Orange Cassidy on Dynamite next week. Could that be where Kyle O'Reilly debuts?

Dan Lambert Addressed the Audience; AEW TNT Champion Sammy Guevara and Dustin Rhodes Saved Cody Rhodes From Men of the Year

I like Lambert and there's no doubt he's a talented talker, but I really don't see why he needed to be brought back, especially so soon after he got his comeuppance by Chris Jericho at Full Gear a month ago. If Men of the Year need him to make them interesting or get them heat, that's a problem. I wasn't a fan of him using all the insider terminology in his promo, but it was apparent this was designed to get people to cheer Cody (which obviously didn't work). Cody and Guevara will collide for the AEW TNT Championship on next week's Christmas Rampage.

Tay Conti def. Penelope Ford in a Submission Match

Was the feud between these two really that personal to warrant a gimmick match? I know Conti and Anna Jay were embroiled in a rivalry with Ford and The Bunny in the fall, but that was months ago. That said, this exceeded my expectations and was very well worked. Granted, they didn't get a ton of time, but I don't know that they needed to. Even Ford had a solid showing and she's...

Daniel Garcia, 2point0 and The Acclaimed def. Eddie Kingston, Santana, Ortiz and AEW World Tag Team Champions The Lucha Brothers

This felt rushed compared to the opener despite having more people involved. The action was entertaining and chaotic, but I though this one was more of a mess and didn't have as much of a consistent flow. Rather, it felt like 10 guys thrown in there for no reason. Garcia pinning Kingston was quite the surprise, and while I'm all for Garcia building credibility, the problem is that Kingston should be winning more as well. In other words, I don't think it's the best idea for them to be paired off in a program together. Meanwhile, Lucha Brothers vs. Jurassic Express (which was teased afterward) for the AEW World Tag Team Championship should be fun. They've faced off before and Lucha Brothers won both times, but I don't see the outcome being any different. Then again, with how over Jungle Boy is at the moment, this might be the time to pull the trigger.

Overall Show

These taped shows are always a risk when it comes to the crowd and how tired they may be from Dynamite, but this crowd was hot for the entire episode, which was refreshing. I wasn't a fan of doing two huge multi-man tag team matches on the same show because the main event suffered as a result, but they were well wrestled enough to where it's hard to complain. Throw in a better-than-expected Submission match with Conti and Ford and you have yourself a rock solid show from start to finish, though that one segment in the middle didn't do much for me.

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