8 Ups & 1 Down From AEW Dynasty (Results & Review)
3. A Towering Achievement
At Dynasty, the Young Bucks and FTR achieved something virtually impossible: they followed up the Match of the Year and performed CPR on the most dead crowd you'll ever not hear.
They followed the best main event on any show you'll ever be blessed to watch, only, it wasn't the main event: Bryan Danielson Vs. Will Ospreay went on third to last. FTR and the Bucks had no right to wake that crowd back up, and for at least half of the run-time, they didn't. Even when Dax Harwood's forehead exploded and he pissed blood all over the canvas, the fans didn't respond with a gasp of distress. That crowd was on such a comedown that the natural law of pro wrestling - that blood always elicits a reaction - wasn't enacted.
FTR and the Bucks responded by going progressively more batsh*t crazy with a wild, utterly terrifying spree of major set-pieces. That's not to say there was zero connective tissue between those insane stunts. In one great moment, Nicholas Jackson crotched Cash Wheeler on a suspended ladder before both Bucks blasted his prone head with the EVP Trigger.
It's also worth noting that both teams built on their previous encounters; in one of the best spots of the match, Nicholas flexed his better grasp of the high-flying art by blasting Cash through a table with the 450 splash where Cash has struggled to execute the move through desperation across the series. Cash was a total animal throughout. In one of several heart-pounding, legitimately scary moments, he speared Matthew off the apron and through a table. Matthew's head connected with the barricade so hard that he had no means of protecting himself. The bumps in this demented war were so committed that the fans devised a new chant.
Usually, such a detached, performative chant is annoying. Earnest, incomprehensible noises are far better. But the chant of "Please be careful", on this night at least, really underscored and elevated the effort shown in that plasma-stained ring.
At the finish, a masked "fan" entered the ring and tossed Dax off a ladder when FTR were inches away from victory. It was revealed to be Jack Perry, whose smug facial expression was sublime. It was a predictable finish, but in the throes of ultra-violent drama, everybody had forgotten was nailed on to happen.
The Bucks are the new AEW Tag Team champions. AEW should run this back as Escalera de la Muerte at a later date: as unbelievably impressive as this match was, both teams deserve a shot at a fifth match in front of a less clinically deceased set of fans.