WrestleRant
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact
Picture

AEW Rampage Review - July 14, 2023

7/14/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Keith Lee and Dustin Rhodes def. Jericho Appreciation Society ("Daddy Magic" Matt Menard and "Cool Hand" Angelo Parker)

Lee's been getting some shine recently on Dynamite and I've been hopeful that it's leading to a renewed push for him. Granted, both were tag team matches, but neither were with Rhodes. They work well together, but they really don't need to be teaming regularly going forward. Lee should be back on his own. That said, this was a well-worked match. I'm just not sure what purpose it was supposed to serve.

Taya Valkyrie def. Izzy McQueen

This was a total squash win for Valkyrie. Seriously, it was over within seconds. Post-match, she was confronted by Toni Storm and Saraya, and that led to Storm granting her an AEW Women's World Championship opportunity at Battle of the Belts VII. Yes, Valkyrie is Canadian and will be the babyface in front of that crowd, but she just turned heel, so it's a weird dynamic. I have no doubt it will be a good match, but Storm acknowledging Valkyrie's recent losses and proceeding to hand her another isn't ideal.

Lance Archer def. Trent Beretta

Every six months or so, AEW will dust off Archer for a short-lived singles push. It happened last year when he challenged Adam Page for the AEW World Championship, again that fall when he took part in the AEW World Championship Eliminator Tournament, and now again so he can challenge Orange Cassidy for the AEW International Championship. Him beating one of Cassidy's best friends (pun intended) here set that up. This was fine, but who can possibly care about Archer at this point?

Konosuke Takeshita def. Mentallo

Don Callis got some mic time beforehand to take shots at Kenny Omega. He and Takeshita get great heat, but you'd think Takeshita would be getting more focus ahead of an eventual singles match with Omega. Currently, he just feels like another guy in this Blackpool Combat Club vs. The Elite feud. Hopefully that changes coming out of Blood and Guts. This was a quick and simple showcase for him and I appreciated his intensity.

Willow Nightingale def. ROH Women's World Champion Athena in a Women's Owen Hart Cup Semifinal Match (Non-Title)

This match was supposed to happen last week on Collision, but Nightingale wasn't cleared in time. Well, now we know why Athena wasn't given an automatic bye to the finals: Nightingale was always going to go over. Nonetheless, they had a really good match. It wasn't on the level of their original encounter on ROH TV earlier this year, but they made the most of their time and the crowd was into the action. With this being Athena's first singles loss in a long time, this should set up Nightingale for another opportunity at the ROH Women's World Championship at Death Before Dishonor.

Overall Show

The last-minute build for Battle of the Belts VII tomorrow night has been beyond lazy. Luchasaurus vs. Shawn Spears was already announced, but Cassidy vs. Archer and Storm vs. Valkyrie came together quickly on this show. I suppose those developments made this a more eventful edition of Rampage than usual, along with the main event. Takeshita's squash was fine, but the opener felt like a waste of time.
SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.


    Categories

    All
    #AskGSM
    Battle Of The Belts
    Cruiserweight Classic
    Halftime Heat
    Hidden Gems
    Interviews
    Lists/Rankings
    Mae Young Classic
    Mixed Match Challenge
    News
    NJPW
    NWA Shockwave
    NXT PLEs
    Opinion
    Previews
    Retro Reviews
    Reviews
    RJ's Two Cents
    Satire
    Slammy Awards
    SNME
    SummerSlam Recall
    The Deadly Draw
    The World Is A Vampire
    Tribute To The Troops
    Women's Eliminator
    Worlds Collide
    WrestleMania Recall
    WWE Draft
    WWE Network Specials
    WWE PLEs
    WWE Starrcade


    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010

    RSS Feed

©2025 WrestleRant. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact