4 Ups & 3 Downs From AEW Rampage (April 20 - Results & Review)

Downs...

3. The Opener's Downside

Yeah, it was a bit awkward that RVD was the only one who received any sort of crowd reaction during the opening four way. Komander, Lee Johnson and Isiah Kassidy just aren't over at all, which exposes a fundamental problem with a lot of wrestlers on AEW's roster: They've got practically no character development to speak of.

Many do moves for the sake of moves. Those spots can be impressive, but that only goes so far. Being brutally honest, this opener was the kind of one off match you'd expect to see an indy company book. Y'know the ones? An old favourite from the past is flown in as a special guest and stuck out there with some lesser names to run through his greatest hits.

That's what this bout was.

There's an upside to the four-way that'll be examined in the 'Ups', but it'd be a lie to suggest Van Dam didn't stick out like a sore thumb next to the other three workers he was sharing the ring with. It's 2024 and he's still a much bigger star than any of them. In fact, it isn't even close.