AEW Rampage Review - September 20, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

ROH World Champion Mark Briscoe def. Bryan Keith (Non-Title)

You didn't think The Conglomeration was actually done feuding with Chris Jericho and his crew just because Orange Cassidy beat Jericho on Wednesday's Dynamite, did you? Ha! How foolish of you. Seriously, this is stupid. Briscoe and Keith had a well-wrestled, competitive contest, but Keith was never going to win, and it only existed so the groups could brawl afterward. I'm sorry but I have sub-zero interest in any of this.

AEW World Trios Champion Wheeler Yuta def. The Butcher

Yuta continues to do an excellent job of acting distraught after what went down at All Out. Him attempting to leave Dynamite early on Wednesday was weird, but this is easily the most interesting he's been in ages. I'm especially curious how his scheduled AEW World Trios Championship defense on the Grand Slam edition of Dynamite will be handled. His match with Butcher was along the same lines as his outing against Anthony Henry last week, but it was fine.

Hikaru Shida def. Harley Cameron

That backstage segment with Shida and Cameron on Dynamite was ridiculously dumb. This was better, but it was a low bar to clear. Just because Cameron has exceeded my expectations in the ring doesn't mean I give a single shit about her matches. This was essentially a showcase for Shida as it should have been. We found out afterward Jamie Hayter will fight Saraya in a "Saraya's Rules" match at Grand Slam, whatever the hell that means.

Roderick Strong and The Beast Mortos def. Joe Keys and Marcus Mathers

Mortos has had an alliance with Strong as of late for whatever reason. It makes little sense, but it's gotten him consistent television time, so there's that. This took place because they'll be a part of a 10-man tag team match on Saturday's Collision and thus this was intended to be a warm-up for them. Thankfully, it was kept short and sweet and was exactly what it needed to be.

Nick Wayne def. Kip Sabian, Rocky Romero and Lio Rush in a Four-Way Match

I've said it a thousand times already it feels like, but I don't understand why Rampage routinely features these multi-man main events that mean nothing. At the very least, put a damn title shot on the line so these guys have something worth fighting for. Instead, you're left with fun four-ways that you won't remember a week from now. Wayne stealing the win from Sabian furthered that feud, but it's not one I care about, personally.

Overall Show

Fingers crossed the rumors are true that Rampage will soon be replaced by whatever this Shockwave show is going to be. I don't see Shockwave being much different in the long-term, but it'd likely feel more important for the first few months. Rampage has gotten to a point where it's completely pointless television. The hour is quick, but a none of these matches made a lick of a difference. Don't waste your time.

SEE MORE: Rampage Reviews