AEW Rampage Review - February 16, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Sammy Guevara def. Jeff Hardy in a No Disqualification Match

Wednesday's Dynamite was headlined by a Texas Street Fight and this show started with a No Disqualification match. For the record, neither match needed a stipulation. AEW really should save this stuff for when it actually matters. It was an enjoyable hardcore brawl, but Hardy does not need to be having these matches at this stage of his career. Reportedly, Hardy may have gotten hurt in that spot Guevara performed right before the finish, so hopefully it's not too serious. Powerhouse Hobbs laid out Guevara afterward to further that feud.

Dustin Rhodes and The Von Erichs def. Romero Crews, Hitt and Shimbashi

I'm glad Rhodes has been making more appearances on AEW TV in the last few months despite teasing retirement was on the horizon for him a year or two ago. He has since said he plans to wrestle for another two to four more years and that's positive news. I dig the pairing of him with The Von Erichs, assuming it sticks and this wasn't just a one-off for the Texas crowd. This was a solid showcase for them. I don't believe The Von Erichs have officially been signed by AEW, but I'd be in full favor of it.

Queen Aminata def. Anna Jay

Aminata has had plenty of matches in AEW since the beginning of the year but hadn't won any of them. I was convinced she was losing here as well, so the fact she finally won was a pleasant surprise. This was a fun sprint as both women had quality showings. Tony Khan subsequently announced online that Aminata is "All Elite", even though it was originally reported by Fightful Select weeks ago that she had been signed. Please let this be the start of something for her.

The Bang Bang Scissor Gang (AEW World Trios Champions The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn and ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions Bullet Club Gold) def. The Dark Order (Alex Reynolds, John Silver and Evil Uno), Jay Lethal, Jeff Jarrett and Satnam Singh

This was the multi-man mess you'd expect. Thankfully, it wasn't given a ton of time, but there was way too much going on, especially during the finishing sequence. Bang Bang Scissor Gang (I hate that I had to type that) was winning no matter what, but their opponents were hardly a threat. AEW really needs to hurry up and get to the part where Bullet Club Gold turn on The Acclaimed and Gunn to (ideally) set up a title unification match.

Overall Show

Rampage aired three hours earlier than normal this week, and as I've said before, that's a much better timeslot for the show. It isn't worth waiting up for, but it does work as a prelude to WWE SmackDown. At any rate, this was a decent episode by Rampage standards. Guevara vs. Hardy was unnecessary, but at least it stood out, unlike the lame main event. Aminata winning was cool and I'm interested to see if Rhodes and The Von Erichs will be a trio going forward.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews