What's the story, superfans of scripted scuffling?!
This is a rather special edition of the Weekly Watchlist, as I attended this show live! You guys get a unique perspective to this show that only a live viewer can provide, so I hope my takes on this show please you, dear reader! So, without further ado, let's get into this!
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| AEW |
Here's what I watched for the week;
AEW Redemption 2026 - Tales from the road
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| AEW |
Honestly, I was supposed to watch this show live (probably a day later, honestly) from my computer desk, like I watch most of my PPV's nowadays. My wife and I did try to convince a friend of ours to come with us to the show when tickets first went on sale, but he deemed it to be out of his budget, so we dropped the idea of going altogether. But, as the show drew closer, I started to tell her about the card and how I'd never seen Tommaso Ciampa live and this would be my chance to finally see him, now that he's no longer with the WWE. Pretty quickly, she started to hunt down tickets, found some for cheap, (under $100/head) and local AirBnb's for a reasonable price as well. Just like that, I went from catching Redemption whenever, to going live with my dear wife. All with less than a week to go before bell time.
The day of the show came and we left bright and early, with the venue, the Bell Centre or "Centre Bell" as the French call it, was about 4 and a half hours away from us by car. Setting off for the near 500km/310mi drive, we were packed with snacks for the road, caffeine to keep me focused on the road, and a loaded iPhone with music for when the wife is awake and The Lapsed Fan podcast when she decides it's time for a road nap. The drive was easy, a single highway took us from our apartment to the front door of the Bell Centre, and my GPS navigated me through Montreal with ease, even if I hate city driving and can't understand a single lick of French. Regardless, we survived.
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| Nothing but the best. |
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| They have bald people in Montreal! |
I wasn't told where our seats were, except that we'd be on the side that hard cam faces, so there was a good chance we'd get picked up by cameras. As it turns out, we were a few sections to the (camera) right of middle, so we didn't get picked up by the main cam, but there may be some shots where my TheShirtFarm Ciampa shirt are visible. I'm pretty confident I was the only person in the arena wearing that shirt. I did see someone wearing the Willow Nightengale one, but couldn't spot a Ciampa one.
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| The view from our seats. |
The opening match, or the Buy In match, was a 6-man match with the Lethal Twist taking on The Conglomeration. I won't give this a full review, as I never do for Buy In matches, but just know that my wife was having the time of her life with this one. Orange Cassidy may be her favourite wrestler, she did name our orange cat after him after all, miss Peach Cassidy. It was your standard "get the crowd hot" match and didn't do anything revolutionary, but it was a lot of fun! Great way to open a show.
All in all, the show was great! I've been seeing a lot of criticism for this show online, saying that AEW's run of fantastic PPV's came to a screeching halt with this show. I'll admit, it may not have been the same quality of Double Nothing or Revolution earlier in the year, but it wasn't bad either! Far from it! Sure, it slumped in the middle, and I'll get to that, but the rest of the matches met or exceeded my expectations and I had a great time having fun at a wrestling show with my wife. The atmosphere was fun, even if they did chant in French at times, and we had a fantastic adventure from top to bottom.
The worst part of the trip came from my anxiety and paranoia about making sure my parking would be valid the next day. Our ticket said it would be good until 6am, and we were sticking around until about 10, making sure to get as much sleep as our Bnb would allow us before hitting the road. Being the guy that I am, I agreed to wake up at 7am, after being out until midnight the night before, walk down to the parking garage, and pay for another days worth of parking to make sure I didn't get a Montreal-sized ticket or fine or, even worse, towed away. When I got there, the parking attendant wasn't sure what I meant by "update my parking," despite speaking fluent English, and assured her she'd square up with me on my way out. So, to make the early trip worth it, I went back to the vertical McDonalds, grabbed breakfast, and went back to the Bnb to get maybe another hour or so of sleep.
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| Guess Montreal ain't all bad. |
The trip back was a bit more eventful, as I needed to top up on gas twice, first at the Costco in Montreal and again at the OnRoute on the way home, purely because I figured $100 would be enough to fill my truck's tank, but alas, not quite. My wife did get a nice snap of a beautiful old building in downtown Montreal, so maybe the city isn't all bad. Not that I want to spend a lot of time in the downtown, so I guess I'll never know.
All told, this trip was great! My wife and I love going on adventures and exploring the world together, no matter if its in our own backyard or somewhere miles away. This trip is the furthest we have travelled together by vehicle (Mexico doesn't count as we went by air) and it was all for some silly wrestling. Imagine that, you get married and your partner is like "sure honey, let's drive nearly 5 hours to go and watch some spandex-clad goofs fake fight for a couple of hours! I love you!" crazy how the universe works, eh? I couldn't be happier or more lucky than I already am. Looking forward to the next wrestling adventure we go on. Hopefully with 100% less French.
The Beast Mortos vs. El Clon vs. Mike Bailey vs. Jack Perry vs. Komander vs. Nick Wayne - Six Way Ladder Match - 🟢
The proper start to the show was a crazy 6-man ladder match, with the entrances all happening before the pyro to start the broadcast, which I thought was interesting. I figured they'd at least have Speedball come out last or on the PPV feed, but he was second last in the lineup, which was curious to me. Regardless, this was exciting and nutty from top to bottom, with some crazy ladder spots and exciting, fast-paced action all around. I really like this match and it set a great tone for the rest of the show. Speedball winning seemed like a foregone conclusion with this show taking place in his hometown, but the drama of him climbing the ladder before the cathartic "YEEEAHHH!" pop when he grabbed the contract were awesome. I think they've made my wife a fan of Mr. Bailey with this match.
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| Images you can hear. |
The Young Bucks vs. Death Riders - 🟢
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| Big love for the Billy Goat. |
Bang Bang Gang vs. The Dogs - Double Chain Tag Team Match - 🔴
I'll be honest, this match sucked. I went to the bathroom once I realized this match was next on the card so all I can really tell you about is the weird bowtie-clad goof that loitered around the bathroom like an attendant until he decided to cut the line and use a urinal when he realized nature was calling him. I got a compliment for my shirt while waiting in line, and then I had to return to my seat and watch whatever this match was. The weakest build of anything on the entire show, I have no earthly idea why this was on the card. I told my wife "if you were in the woods and you had this match with you to start a fire, you'd freeze to death because there isn't an ounce of heat here." The chains were about 50 feet long and everyone kept getting tangled up trying to do shit, meaning they never got out of first gear the entire match. They'd start to build steam, then have to untie each other, then be back at square one. The crowd was cold and the match stunk. Next.
Hikaru Shida vs. Maya World - 🟡
Sadly, this was when most of the crowd decided to get up and leave. Look, I get it, Shida hasn't been great since her return, and Maya is super green, but do we need to let the WWE stigma of "it's a women's match, let's use the bathroom" follow us to AEW? Seriously guys? This match wasn't terrible, but it was also pretty cold. The action between the ropes was good, with both ladies working hard and managing to get the crowd with them later on, but it was a slog for a while and they never got much out of this one. The shocker of Maya winning was legitimate and had the crowd reacting completely organically and popping big. The TBS Championship feels like the right level for Maya, being as green as she is but clearly pleasing the higher ups enough that they want to strap a mini rocket to her early, being a mid card champion like this will give her time to shine and improve in the ring week after week. Good stuff.
Cage And Cope vs. Death Riders - 🟡
The third match in the slump of this PPV, Cage and Cope once again played the "veterans in peril" game, with this feeling like a bunch of prolonged beatdowns from PAC and Claudio. First, they'd isolate Cope, then Cage, so on and so on until Cope and Cage got in the ring together to beat the Death Riders down and get the pin. There was a really, really annoying guy a few rows back that kept cussing Bryce Remsburg out for being a terrible referee. Honestly, it was like this was his first time seeing a heel team do their thing in wrestling, I felt like I was listening to an infant discover that the world is not as pure and special as they believed it to be for so many years. The poor cherub. Anyways, this one was slow and didn't really go anywhere, but my wife was happy to see Copeland, who she claims is my dad, which wouldn't upset me if that were the case, honestly. A fine match, but nothing to write home about.
Jericho vs. Tommaso Ciampa - No Holds Barred Match - 🟢
Oh boy, the match we drove to Montreal to see. I mean, the guy we drove to Montreal to see. I didn't want to see Jericho, much less the Painmaker, but such is the cost of seeing Ciampa live. I had to eat shit and learn to like the taste of it here tonight. You can hear my wife and I reacting big to Ciampa in the video I've included. After my excitement for the Fletcher match, this was the one I was most excited to see. It was equal parts comedy hardcore, with Ciampa landing a Project Ciampa, the greatest move on the planet, on a stuffie of the Montreal Canadiens mascot, Youppi! The rest of the match was violent and bloody, with a Psycho Driller through a fucking mirror having me legitimately concerned for Ciampa's arm after he went through it. The finish was shocking, and not in a good way, with Ciampa's tap out invisible to a lot of people in attendance, even if it was picked up on the PPV feed. To us, Jericho drilled Ciampa's skull and the match was called off. Not a great finish, especially because we wanted Jericho to get his ass beat, but it was still a fun match. I guess Jericho coming out to Judas Priest was enough for some people to excuse the geriatric old fucker from being overly pushed all the time. Whatever, man. I got to see Ciampa.
Mark Davis vs. Andrade El Idolo - 🟢
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| ¡Nuevo campeón! |
Thekla vs. Willow Nightingale - 🟢
I have a very distinct memory leading into this match of leaning over to my wife and saying "I really want Willow to win this match, but AEW doesn't usually do too many title changes in a show, so that's a real shame." Man, I was proved wrong tonight, eh? Also, someone behind me decided to start watching French TikTok's with the most god-awfyl high pitched voice during this match at near max volume. I was pretty close to asking the guy "hey! How much did you pay for those seats?" and then when he responded, I'd respond "oh wow! you sure paid a lot of money to look at TikTok!" Fuckin jackass. It was only this match too, unreal. Anyways, this match was a whole lot of fun, with Willow fighting from beneath to gain an advantage against the vicious and brutal Thekla. The diminutive champion has the presence and ring skills of someone twice her size, and she made the most of every bit of that in this matcy, putting Willow on the backfoot often and doing everything in her power to retain. Despite her best efforts, Willow was able to pick up a shock win, becoming the first AEW Women's Grand Slam Champion, no small feat when you consider that she's held each of those titles within the last 365 days too. A huge congratulations to our new Women's World Champion on the victory and a fantastic match.
Kenny Omega vs. Kevin Knight - 🟢
The main event of the evening was a match that I had decent expectations for that were not only met but exceeded. I do enjoy Kevin Knight, but can't help but feel this main event match and push came out of left field. Evidently, the rest of the arena felt that way, as his entrance was cold and silent. Shame, honestly. Getting to see Kenny Omega live during what may be his last few years of wrestling is pretty nuts to me, and something I don't take for granted. This match was fantastic, honestly, from bell to bell, Knight proved that he can hang against someone on the level of Omega, arguably elevating the TNT Championship at the same time. I really enjoyed everything these two did, with the V-Triggers from Omega being heard (and felt) all the way in the nosebleeds. What a brilliant main event, fantastic work from both men.
The scenes after the bell were exciting and shocking in equal measure, with the Death Riders trying to take out Omega, only for Ospreay to turn down the plastic bag offer and turn on the Death Riders, to a massive pop. I recorded almost all of the after-the-bell proceedings, stopping when Omega and Ospreay were celebrating together. As a result, I missed Omega's turn, but man, did that get a reaction from the crowd. A heel Omega vs a face Ospreay at All In is gonna be a crazy fucking match. I can't wait.
Match 1000
It's no secret that I keep a meticulous spreadsheet of the matches I watch, so I knew this occasion was coming rather quickly. I did have the idea of making a special post for match 1000, hoping it would be something decend, but as it turns out, my 1000th match for the year was just me catching up on Collision after Redemption had already aired, with "The Young Bucks vs. Death Riders" from the 07/25 episode of Collision being match 1000. I will not, sadly, be making a special post for that match, but I did want to point out such a milestone.
Be proud or ashamed of me in equal measure, or praise me for my commitment to the game. Whichever you please. Send whatever you feel I am deserving of to cliffmorganwstl@gmail.com
| Match | Show | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Kyle Fletcher vs. Bandido | AEW Redemption 2026 | 04/26/2026 |
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| A snap from my camera roll. |
Bell To Bell
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| via @RyanLoco on Instagram |
This was her first time seeing both of these men compete, and she liked the "cowboy outlaw luchador" Bandido as soon as he came out. When Fletcher came out, she tried to get a good pic of his crown, but couldn;t given the seats we had. I was able to find a good pic of Fletcher from the show on my Instagram after the fact, and she loved his crown. I knew she would.
The first thing that caught my dear wife off guard, was how much shorter Bandido was than Fletcher, who is in the neighbourhood of 6'2" which is just about the same as me! I didn't realize that 'Dido was about 5'5" I honestly thought he was taller. Guess I'm just used to wrestlers being tall boys.
A striking exchange starts things off, with 'Dido getting shot into the ropes and coming back with a shoulder block to Fletcher. Responding by using the momentum to rebound off the ropes, Fletcher drops Bandido with a shoulder block of his own. Back to rebounding off the ropes, 'Dido springs to his feet and nearly trips up Fletcher, with Fletcher trying to trip up Bandido as well, but he's able to flip through the dropdown and land on his feet. To the ropes again, 'Dido looks for a headscissors, but Fletcher halts his momentum and stands tall, with Bandido able to escape before a powerbomb is landed. A brainbuster is nearly lined up, but 'Dido slips behind and survives, rolling Fletcher up after shoving him into the ropes, scoring a dangerously close two count.
Rolling to the outside, Fletcher lets out a little scream, trying to get himself back in the zone again. He sips some water before returning to the ring, feigning a lockup as he lands a boot across the skull of 'Dido. Ducking a forearm shot off a rope rebound, 'Dido springboards into a crossbody, but gets caught by Fletcher! He tries for a bodyslam, but Bandido slips behind and is able to hotshot Fletcher on the top rope, stunning him long enough to send him to the floor with a headscissors. Bandido lines him up for a dive to the floor, but Fletcher slips in quickly and drops him with a snap bodyslam, resetting the pace.
Another boot to a prone Bandido keeps him down, and a series of bottom-rope assisted jumping boots keep the damage on, all before Fletcher drills 'Dido with hammering forearm shots on the canvas. Pulling himself up using the ropes, Bandido lands a few body shots on Fletcher, trying to create distance between himself and the champion, with Fletcher responding with a knee to the gut. Shooting Bandido off the ropes, he instead gets sent across the ring, with Bandido landing a crossbody that sends both men over the top rope!
Springboarding off the middle rope, 'Dido soars with a moonsault, with Fletcher showing that he's been doing some sniper training as of late. Catching the face of 'Dido with a beautiful kick, Fletcher drops him like a stone. Picking up the body of a limp Bandido, Fletcher sets him up at ringside for a powerbomb, drilling him into the apron with vicious impact.
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| Dentists hate this guy! AEW |
Back inside the ring, the French-Canadian crowd starts chanting something at Fletcher in French, to which he responds by shouting "I have no idea what you're saying! I have literally no idea!" same, brother. 'Dido is able to roll back in the ring before the referee got to dix- I mean, ten, with Fletcher dragging him to centre and going for a pin, but Bandido gets free at two. Pulling him up in a full nelson position, Fletcher tries to ragdoll him in the middle again, laying out to try and force a submission, but 'Dido squirms and gets to the bottom rope to break the hold.
Back in the middle, Fletcher leaves his chest open and eggs on 'Dido to lay into him with strikes. Bandido obliges, landing a few heavy chops that do little to Fletcher, who responds with a heavy forearm shot that drops 'Dido to the canvas. A knee on the chest of Bandido is all Fletcher tries for a cover, with his challenger easily getting out at two. Pulling him back to his feet, he tries for his brainbuster, but Bandido stays grounded, driven down to one knee with a forearm shot across the shoulder blades from Fletcher as a result. Another attempt, with 'Dido going up, but he responds by nearly taking Fletcher into the air for a suplex of his own. Frantic, Fletcher clobbers the back of Bandido, dropping him to the canvas in a heap.
When Fletcher hooks up Bandido for another brainbuster attempt, he doesn't get a chance to even try, with Bandido able to deadlift Fletcher off the canvas and into a vertical suplex. Insane shit, honestly. Firing up to his feet, 'Dido charges to Fletcher in the corner, mounting him and landing punches to the skull of the champion, who is able to slip free before 'Dido build too much momentum. Soaring from the top, 'Dido lands a twisting moonsault press on Fletcher, lining him up from the opposite corner and scoring with a triplet of jumping forearm shots!
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| Fucking gnarly. AEW |
With Fletcher groggy, he rebounds off the ropes and walks into Bandido, who is able to press Fletcher above his head, holding him with one arm before slamming him down onto the canvas. Climbing to the top, 'Dido pays tribute to Eddie Guerrero before landing a beautiful splash on Fletcher in the middle, holding him down for a cover, but only scoring two. Again, he ascends to the top, but Fletcher stops him with a leaping forearm shot, meeting Bandido on the middle rope. Jumping down, Bandido pulls Fletcher into another military press, trying to send him to the floor but his foe slips free, back inside the ring. A short lariat drops 'Dido on the apron when he turns around, with Fletcher out to join him, landing a disgusting brainbuster on the apron.
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| That's one way to bust a brain. AEW |
Again, Fletcher rolls into the ring, leaving Bandido to be counted out on the floor. A young fan in the front row helps Bandido to his feet in a touching moment, with Fletcher landing a massive Last Ride powerbomb on Bandido once he re-enters the ring. He holds him for the pin, but 'Dido survives! With his foe using the ropes to pull himself up, Fletcher seizes on his weakness, grabbing him in a half-and-half hold before snapping back with a nasty suplex. Despite this, Bandido stays on his knees, refusing to go down. Again, Fletcher hooks him, half-and-half, but 'Dido slips around to take Fletcher's back!
Somehow, someway, Bandido is able to land a german suplex on Fletcher, maintaining the hold as he goes for a second, only to change his grip and grab Fletcher in a full nelson hold. Going for the ropes to break the hold, Fletcher folds forward to try and muscle out of the grip, but 'Dido's hold is too tight! As Fletcher folds, 'Dido goes for the ride up and over, rebounding his legs off the top rope to land a modified 21 Plex! Holding Fletcher, he scores a close two count, with both men catching their breath on the canvas.
Now, it's Fletcher's turn to use the ropes to pull himself to his feet, with Bandido seeing the window open for him to land his signature 21 Plex. Calling his shot, 'Dido takes off for the ropes, rebounding and rolling onto the back of Fletcher, but ends up over-rotating and landing out on the apron instead. Acting quick, Fletcher tries for another brainbuster, but 'Dido slips back inside the ring and lands a boot to the gut of Fletcher, bending him down into 21 Plex position again, but this time on the apron.
Rebounding off the ropes, 'Dido flips over and onto the back of Fletcher, sitting on his shoulders and hooking his boots into the legs of Fletcher, trying to drill his foe with a powerbomb, but Fletcher holds tight! Eventually, his grip loosens, and 'Dido is able to spike him onto the floor. Adjusting the position of Fletcher, 'Dido ascends to the top rope and fucking soars with a massive splash, crushing Fletcher from 5 miles high. God, that had to suck.
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| Absolutely brutal. AEW |
Rolling Fletcher back inside, 'Dido ascends again, landing a shooting star press this time! It's a close two count off a cover, with both men sucking wind off the cover. Bandido is up first this time, with Fletcher using the ropes to pull himself up, resulting in a 21 Plex nearly being landed, but he holds tight and is able to switch his spot with 'Dido, taking the back and going for another half-and-half suplex. By some small miracle, Bandido is able to flip around and land on his feet, catching Fletcher with a superkick. Fletcher lands one of his own, nearly able to get 'Dido up for a lawn dart in the corner, but 'Dido slips down Fletcher's back and instead sends him into the corner.
Move Of The Match
Dazed and staggering out of the corner, Fletcher finds himself in the middle as Bandido rebounds off the ropes and twists around his body, popping up at one point before catching Fletcher with a huge DDT! I can assure you, the camera does not do it justice here, Bandido fucking soared above Fletcher here, looked like he was 10 feet above him. It was insane.
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| In person, this was fucking nutty. AEW |
Slow to rise, both men meet head first on all fours in the middle, with a headbutt exchange that would make the most territorial Bighorn Sheep blush, my lord. Fletcher is vertical first, kicking the head of Bandido before his foe rises and responds with more headbutts and forearms, dropping Fletcher to a knee. Getting Fletcher up from a gutwrench, he tries for the X Knee, but fletcher catches the strike and saves himself from disaster. Holding 'Dido's leg, he winds up and drills his foe with a massive forearm shot, dropping him to the canvas heavy.
Stealing from the playbook of Ciampa, Fletcher backs himself into the corner and removes his kneepad, lining up Bandido, only to get popped up and dropped face first into the canvas when he charges in for the shot. A quick cover is made, but Fletcher survives. Backing Fletcher into the corner, Bandido laces the chest of Fletcher with a heinous chop, seating his dazed foe on the top rope. Pulling Fletcher to his feet, Bandido pulls him into position before falling backwards, landing a massive blockbuster off the top rope! Going for the cover, Fletcher looks to be out of it, but manages to get his hand on the bottom rope, but just barely.
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| Consider your block, busted. AEW |
Pulling Fletcher onto his shoulders with ease, Bandido tries for the X Knee again, and lands it! Sniping Fletcher in the side of the head! Crawling for the ropes, Fletcher holds himself off the canvas, saving himself from a cover but leaving him vulnerable to the 21 Plex. Calling his shot again, 'Dido takes off, rebounding off the ropes while holding the waist of Fletcher and drilling him with the 21 Plex! He holds him for the cover, with Fletcher down for one, then two, and finally thr- no! He survives!
Back on his feet, Bandido finds the champion holding his boot, trying to grant himself a couple extra seconds to recover. 'Dido kicks and punches Fletcher to break the hold, even mounting him at one point and landing right hands to the jaw of Fletcher. Again, Fletcher drags himself to the ropes and again, 'Dido calls his shot, but this time, Fletcher is ready. Playing possum, he rises to his feet as Bandido takes off for the ropes, catching a rebounding 'Dido with a stiff lariat, his foe flipping inside out from the impact.
From the corner, Fletcher is able to ram his knee through the skull of 'Dido, using this as a prelude to the end. He pulls his foe off his feet and into position for the sheer drop brainbuster, drilling him in the centre with his signature move. Laying across for the cover, Fletcher manages to reta- no! Bandido escapes!
Looking for the decisive, killing blow, Fletcher seats Bandido on the top rope, pulling him up for a sheer drop brainbuster on the top turnbuckle, but 'Dido slips behind and escapes certain disaster. Shoving Fletcher down stomach first to the turnbuckle pin, Bandido climbs and looks to try for another Blockbuster, but Fletcher fights free. From the ring to the top rope jumps Bandido, but Fletcher catches him, drilling him with a huge bodyslam off the top rope! He covers, but again, 'Dido survives at two!
Wasting no time, Fletcher drills Bandido into the corner with snake eyes, catches him in the back of the head with his signature running boot, all before seating him on the top and fucking killing him with a top rope sheer drop brainbuster. Covering, Fletcher keeps Bandido down for three, retaining his International Championship.
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| That drop is pretty sheer. AEW |
Match Time: 26:14
This match was fucking fantastic, probably the best match I've ever seen live, honestly. I will say this, I do wish that Bandido felt like a bigger deal. I mean, he's the Ring of Honor World Champion, he's the flag bearer of an entire brand. Of Ring of Honor for God's sake. Feels weird that he's treated like just another guy on the roster when he's in AEW. Regardless, this match ripped. Exciting from the opening bell and more than meeting my expectations, this match was so much fun to watch live and was just as good upon rewatching for the review this week. Fantastic work from both men.
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Until next week. Be well, stay safe, and love one another.
cliffmorganwstl@gmail.com
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