AEW Rampage Review - November 18, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Ricky Starks def. Lance Archer in an AEW World Championship Eliminator Tournament Quarterfinal Match

Yes, we already know Ethan Page is in the finals of this tourney and the quarterfinals weren't even over yet prior to this show. Per Tony Khan on Thursday's media call, a legitimate injury to Starks caused this bout to be pushed back and the finals will now take place next Wednesday on Dynamite with Starks facing Brian Cage in the semifinals on the Full Gear Zero Hour pre-show. I liked the chaotic nature of this contest with it beginning backstage and Starks withstanding all the punishment Archer was dishing out. Starks winning was never in doubt, but I appreciated how they got there and the story they told.

FTW Champion Hook def. Lee Moriarty

Despite Moriarty taking Jon Moxley to the limit recently on Dynamite, I still didn't see him as much of a threat to Hook here. That said, this was probably the most competitive match Hook has had in the last year, which is a positive. I enjoyed all the technical wrestling and Hook showcasing his skills for more than 90 seconds. Props to Moriarty for bringing that out of him. Hook having an actual storyline one of these days would be nice, though.

Athena def. Madison Rayne

Athena has been slowly turning heel on the Dark shows for weeks now and I'm happy it finally played out on television. She hasn't done much of note since failing to beat Jade Cargill for the AEW TBS Championship at All Out, so this is a logical direction for her to go in. Plus, she plays the role very well. Her against Rayne wasn't anything special, but it resulted in a needed win for Athena. Mercedes Martinez also returned from injury afterward and it looks like that will be our next program for the ROH Women's World Championship. Athena striking Aubrey Edwards might have been the best part of all of this.

Jun Akiyama and Konosuke Takeshita def. Eddie Kingston and Ortiz

I'm not going to pretend like I know anything about Akiyama because I don't, but from what I understand, he's a Japanese legend Kingston has a ton of respect for and has wanted to face for a while. This wasn't a very memorable match by any means, but what we got was good and Takeshita is always a pleasure to watch work. It was revealed after the show went off the air that Kingston will face Akiyama one-on-one on the Full Gear Zero Hour pre-show, so that should be a gem based on what we saw from the two of them here. If gets Kingston on the card, if nothing else.

Overall Show

Even with this being a live episode right before Full Gear on Saturday and there being more energy than usual, this was still not a show I would recommend going out of your way to see. The tag team main event had some buzz among hardcore fans online when it was announced during Dynamite on Wednesday, but it felt like a setup for Kingston vs. Akiyama more than anything else and I assume that was what it was designed to be. The first three matches had their moments, making for a slightly-above-average edition of Rampage but nothing you need to check out. The issue is that it always feels like AEW throws all of their undercard storylines on Rampage and it makes the show come across as inconsequential more often than not.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews