AEW Rampage Review - October 1, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Bryan Danielson def. Nick Jackson

A lot like CM Punk, you can just tell that Danielson is absolutely loving his new venture in AEW. He was having terrific matches in WWE, of course, but he's back to being The American Dragon in the ring and it's been a blast so far. The Young Bucks are a perfect example of a team that should never break that (you hear that, TNA?), but Matt and Nick have proven they can more than hold their own as singles competitors when given the opportunity. This was a very well-wrestled match and they made excellent use of the time they had. Bryan's road to a rematch with Kenny Omega continues. Danielson vs. Matt Jackson incoming?

Jade Cargill def. Thunder Rosa and Nyla Rose in a Three-Way Match

It's rare we get three-ways or four-ways in AEW, and in fact, this have may have been only the third three-way we've ever gotten in the company (the ones from All Out 2019 and Double or Nothing 2021 come to mind, but I'm not sure if there have been more). Thus, this felt fresh. It was good but not great due to being shortchanged for time and most of it happening during the commercial break. I have no problem with Cargill winning if Britt Baker vs. Rosa isn't the AEW Women's World Championship match at Full Gear (I'd hold off on that until at least 2022), but Cargill pinning Rosa was an odd choice when Rose was right there and could have easily endured the loss. Rosa will bounce back, but it's a strange setback unless the idea is to do a Rosa vs. Cargill feud with Rosa going over in the end.

Orange Cassidy def. Jack Evans in a Hair vs. Hair Match

Did anyone honestly expect Cassidy to get his head shaved? There was a reason why he faced Evans and not Matt Hardy, and it looked like Evans was due for a haircut, anyway. This whole Hardy vs. Cassidy feud has done nothing for me personally, largely because Cassidy has gotten the better of him every time. He probably should be given Hardy is in the twilight of his in-ring career, but has Cassidy really benefited from beating him and the H.F.O. so often? I'd argue not. This was fine as a television main event and the right guy won, but I'm ready for everyone involved in to move on. Unfortunately, they'll both be competing in the Casino Ladder match next week on Dynamite. Cassidy being in there makes sense, but Hardy being given a spot considering where he's slotted on the card is baffling. Surely someone else on AEW's stacked roster could have occupied that spot.

Overall Show

This was the third or fourth straight week where Rampage was taped after Dynamite in the same city on Wednesday night. The crowd was a bit livelier this week than they have been before for Rampage, but the taped shows almost always pale in comparison to the live ones. It's just a different energy. If you didn't catch this edition of Rampage, you didn't miss much, but it was a perfectly solid hour of wrestling also featuring comments from CM Punk about his future and the Casino Ladder match combatants being announced. The Joker spot still needs to be revealed and my money is on it being Adam Page.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews