AEW Rampage Review - September 10, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Andrade El Idolo def. Pac

I had high hopes for this, and while it was very good, it didn't exactly reach the level I expected it to. It was very well wrestled and they were given an ample amount of time, but it felt like it ended before it could get to that next gear. Plus, the crowd was quieter than I would've like, but I chalk that up to Dynamite being taped right beforehand. It's possible they were holding back a bit because there will be more matches, and based on that lame finish, that's what I'm assuming. Chavo Guerrero interfered and cost Pac the victory, but apparently Andrade didn't want to win that way and turned on Chavo afterward. So, their partnership is over after only two months. I've seen speculation that this could lead to Ric Flair being brought in as his new manager, but they really should have given his alliance with Chavo more time.

Tully Blanchard Distracted Sting While Shawn Spears Attacked Darby Allin

It was already announced on Wednesday's Dynamite that Allin and Spears will be going one-on-one on next week's Dynamite, so this was supposed to serve as some last-minute build to that. Blanchard distracted Sting with his promo that Spears was able to attack Allin at ringside, and that was about it. It was weirdly done because you almost expected someone else to rush the ring and go after Sting, but that didn't happen. Hopefully it will be an easy win for Allin and he can move on to other opponents.

Ruby Soho, Riho and Kris Statlander def. AEW Women's World Champion Britt Baker, Jamie Hayter and Rebel

I'm surprised AEW booked this bout two days after it was set up on Dynamite as opposed to saving it for either Dynamite or Rampage next week. That's in addition to Soho debuting at All Out and winning the Casino Battle Royale. Man, they're really burning through this rivalry between Soho and Baker. Does that mean they plan to do the match on the sooner side? Nonetheless, this was a perfectly fine six-woman tag team affair designed to give more momentum to the babyfaces and keep Soho's roll going.

Brian Pillman Jr. def. Max Caster

The Acclaimed returned on the Dark shows earlier this week and quickly rekindled their rivalry with Varsity Blonds. I believe it's already been confirmed that Pillman will face MJF on the Grand Slam edition of Dynamite in two weeks, so there was no way he was losing here. Nonetheless, they had an enjoyable little match and Pillman was well-received being the hometown hero. Fellow Cincinnati native Jon Moxley making the save for Pillman from The Acclaimed afterward was a nice touch.

Overall Show

I've enjoyed most of the Rampage shows AEW has done thus far, but the taped format doesn't do it any favors. The crowds are always quieter because Rampage is taped after Dynamite and the matches suffer. That said, this was still a solid show. Pac vs. Andrade was easily the highlight, but the rest of the hour flew by per usual. It wasn't most the exciting episode, but several storylines were progressed and there was hype for next week's Dynamite. A pretty simple and straightforward (albeit slightly uneventful) show.

SEE MOE: Rampage Reviews