10 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Double Or Nothing 2021

9. The Greatest Opening 20 Minutes To Any Wrestling Show Ever

Hangman Page
AEW

Hangman Page Vs. Brian Cage was an absolutely fantastic pro wrestling match received with a festival atmosphere so electric that it became genuinely moving.

Everything you ever mourned about the loss of crowds returned to life. The Jacksonville crowd roared and fist-pumped and never let up for a second. This was unforgettable. This was everything you wanted it to be as the month of March 2020 mutated into something harrowing.

This was the perfect choice to open the show because Hangman Page and Brian Cage are two super-agile brick sh*thouses who have no physical right to do the spectacular things that they do. That they did those spectacular things after a year in which you had no right to do almost anything in a dystopian hell-scape just heightened the feeling.

Page rocked Cage with an early tope suicida with a sweet connection after backflipping out of a Flatliner attempt. Cage caught the follow-up and curled Page for the taunt after posting him with a gruesome powerbomb. The crucifix bomb counter was superb, intelligent babyface work after which the match embraced its lunatic pursuit of the pop. Orihara moonsault; a superplex to the ramp; Brian Cage taking a hurricanrana: there was no better time to do it, so why not? Who gives a sh*t if some of those kick-outs were asking too much? A set of fans had never been happier to give it.

Amid the super-physical lunacy, Brian Cage turned face to pay off a slow-burning TV thread, and the Hangman reinforced that he's the face to dethrone Kenny Omega.

The greatest opening 20 minutes to a pro wrestling show ever.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!