AEW Rampage Review - March 4, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

AEW TNT Champion Sammy Guevara def. Darby Allin and Andrade El Idolo in a Three-way Match

This was the match I was hoping we'd get at Revolution instead of the six-man tag team match we're getting instead. Don't get me wrong, that should still be fun, but I don't see how it tops this. I had high hopes and they didn't disappoint. What a wildly entertaining three-way match with everyone having strong showings and the crowd being invested in the action from start to finish. I didn't expect a title change, but some of those nearfalls were suspenseful. I appreciate how regularly the TNT title has been defended lately.

Erick Redbeard Saved Death Triangle From The House of Black

Penta Oscuro looks beyond badass with his Pentagon Dark look from Lucha Underground, but whatever the hell Alex Abrahantes is wearing now is a bit over the top. This was a simple angle designed to introduce Death Triangle's partner for their six-man tag team match against House of Black at Revolution: Erick Redbeard, who hasn't been seen in AEW since the Brodie Lee tribute show in December 2020. It's an interesting choice but not one I would have gone with, personally. Rey Fenix probably isn't 100 percent cleared to compete yet, but why not use one of the many people on the roster who barely get used on TV? Jay Lethal and Brian Cage come to mind.

Keith Lee def. JD Drake

Drake is a significantly bigger than Lee's first AEW opponent Isiah Kassidy, so while it took longer for Lee to put him away, it was still essentially an extended squash. Drake is easily the most bearable of all the Wingmen goofs, so I'm glad he was the guy in there with Lee. There were some cool moments and Lee got to showcase his skills, so it was what it needed to be. The rest of the combatants in the Face of the Ladder match came out afterward to hype that up.

Serena Deeb def. Leila Grey in a 5-Minute Rookie Challenge

Grey has made a number of appearances on the Dark shows in the past. Unfortunately for her, she didn't have a chance to do much of anything. She ran in and out of the ring before being put away by Deeb in under a minute. Hikaru Shida making her return afterward was a surprise. I was hoping Deeb's open challenges would lead to someone new beating her and maybe it still will, but I don't want it to be a backdrop to the Deeb vs. Shida feud. A fifth and final match is coming, but I didn't think we'd be getting it this soon.

Christian Cage def. "All Ego" Ethan Page to Qualify for the Face of the Revolution Ladder Match

I know there was some confusion among fans whether there were going to be six or seven people involved in the Face of the Revolution Ladder match, but it was confirmed by the commentators there will indeed be just six, so Christian takes the final spot. Page has won absolutely nothing of note (at least on his own) since coming to AEW, so I had no desire to see him in the Face of the Revolution match. Then again, Christian has basically been sidelined lately due to serving as the manager for Jurassic Express, but at least he has Ladder match experience. This was solid stuff with the right result. The post-match angle with Jurassic Express, The Young Bucks and reDRagon was also well done.

Overall Show

This was definitely one of the more eventful editions of Rampage in recent memory and I thoroughly enjoyed it as a result. We got a surprise appearance from Redbeard, the return of Shida, a Face of the Revolution qualifier, last-minute build for Revolution, and a terrific TNT title match that you absolutely need to seek out if you haven't seen it. All in all, this was an easy thumbs-up show that left me looking forward to Sunday's pay-per-view.

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