6 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dynamite (28 February - Results & Review)
2. Excellent Trios Match Deepens The "Feeling"
FTR and Eddie Kingston Vs. Blackpool Combat Club was a killer trios war that effectively built the respective matches at Revolution. It was brimming with several ideas and overlapping plots that never detracted from the urgent tone, one moment aside.
FTR are rather too fond of the stagy sequence in which they reach out with one another's hands to escape a submission predicament they are trapped in together. They did a three-way version of this trademark here, and it felt even more glaring in the context of such a pissy, frenetic brawl. The crowd seemed removed from this brief threat of jarring melodrama. Elsewhere, though, this kicked ass. It broke down early in such an awesome, organic way that early with a fight on the outside that felt genuinely out of control.
On Collision, Bryan Danielson sought to peck at Eddie's psyche, knowing that his rival is prone to impulsive fits of temper and a lack of composure. This story was told throughout and informed the finish of the match. Eddie faded into unconsciousness trapped in a triangle choke. Bryan is in Eddie's head.
He has said that Eddie beating him was a one-off, that class is permanent and form is temporary. That finish juiced up Revolution nicely, and in a cracking subplot that underscored how believable Eddie is as a character, he spent the opening phase distracted by his other condescending nemesis in Claudio Castagnoli.
It's a shame that Cash Wheeler happens to be a member of an all-time great tag team (and that Dax likes to volunteer himself for singles matches) because, as displayed again last night, he'd be absolutely incredible in a one-on-one grudge programme. He chopped Jon Moxley like Mox had killed a close family member of his in cold blood. He is incredible.
The structure did threaten to loop with the placement of a second commercial break. The match sagged as it meandered through this obligation, but the crowd sparked back into life after a three-way machine chop spot.
A blistering series of near-falls and saves preceded the finish, during which Eddie came agonisingly close to pinning Danielson. This was inspired - the layout made you want to preview the feel-good result on Sunday before casting doubt over the outcome.
It's also really quite sweet that every single time Mox and Eddie find themselves in the same ring, they share a very brief glance of "How did we end up here again?" before kicking each other's face in. Their reunion will rule even more than this did.
This was (mostly) a tremendous TV match.