12 Match Star Ratings For AEW Revolution 2022
3. Bryan Danielson Vs. Jon Moxley
Jon Moxley Vs. Bryan Danielson played out to a subdued, spent crowd that wasn't up for all of it, but really, this probably would have happened had they opened the main card.
This was not mainstream, arena-sized professional wrestling. On some, very strict level, you could even describe it as a failure. It didn't work for this specific audience. That's a harsh way of analysing the match. Certainly, it was a bit self-indulgent. It was very much the match that Jon Moxley and Bryan Danielson, handed a plain sheet of paper, a razor, and 20 minutes, wanted to have. It wasn't a crowd-pleaser.
It was however f*cking incredible.
Moxley's winded selling was as unique as it was authentic. Danielson targeted his abdomen with one eye cast towards a longer runtime. Mox responded by attempting to bludgeon Danielson to death. Low on bumping, this was an intricate grappling match so brutal that it bordered on unsettling. The physical intimacy of the struggle lost the upper deck but informed the most powerful explosions; Mox's King Kong lariat almost took Danielson's head off in one incredible sequence all the better for the slow-burn. The storytelling was tremendous if, again, a bit understated for the major arena.
After both men attempted suicide dives, they exploded into a hockey fight in an unspoken agreement, almost. They don't dive. They should stop diving. They should show each other violence. They did, and in doing so, reflecting the build and foreshadowing the finish, they literally bled together. Gore as foreshadowing. Artful, brutal, ridiculously accomplished.
The crowd was mostly excellent, but they were swine for this.
Star Rating: ★★★★½