There’s no sugarcoating or exaggeration. AEW Full Gear 2020 was a Grade A pay-per-view. Start to finish. Was every match fantastic? No. But overall feel of the PPV was the “big fight” feel which, I can only speak for myself, is thanks to AEW not overkilling the PPV concept and stretching each one out over a few months.
The pre-show saw Serena Deeb successfully defend the NWA Women’s Championship against Allysin Kay. How many different ways can her name be spelled? Good match, which takes an interesting turn after the bell when Thunder Rosa appears.
The opening match of the main show sees “The Cleaner” Kenny Omega defeated “Hangman” Adam Page to win the Eliminator Tournament. Commentary focus on Kenny “talking to himself” and the reversion to his “Cleaner” moniker. This was a wrestling match and a heavy hitting fight. There was as much action outside the ring as there was in the ring, with a surprising amount of physical finesse displayed. Hangman lobbing Omega around only to have Kenny counter back with some impressive power of his own, first of many surprised being a moonsault off a guardrail. Hangman gains advantage for some time with his signature power moves, one after another. Fallaway slam, big boot, superplex. Omega and Page would then trade heavy-handed chops, with Omega taking the brunt and being lit up like a fireplace on Thanksgiving Eve. Plenty of one knowing what the other was going to do moments, many caught by commentary.
I should add, Cyrus (Don Callis) was on commentary for this. Seems Impact Wrestling may soon have a presence like the NWA? Page pulling out all the stops, after being dropped on his head with an underhook pidedriver, answering with the Dead-Eye, a move we haven’t see for a while. Page tried for the Buckshot Lariat, but Omega would sense it coming, hitting a V-Trigger, followed by a One Winged Angel, which Page tried relentlessly to escape but was driven down for the three-count.
I was hoping the Anxious Millennial Cowboy would win, but the booking makes sense as Omega recently went through his character change, and chances are, 2021 might be the year of The Elite.
Another Grade A match has Orange Cassidy defeating John “4” Silver. Yes, this match was excellent. Silver is great, despite all the brash taunting and muscle flexing, he proved to be the powerhouse of the match. Silver would overpower Freshly Squeezed more often than not, even getting nasty by ripping out the pockets of Cassidy’s pants, thus draining him of his mysterious power. However, this would soon turn out to be a solid back-and-forth, with Cassidy giving another unexpectedly awesome performance. It should not be a surprise, as these two have worked together in the indies. Silver launching Cassidy with a Spin Doctor was one hell of a sight. Silver got cocky and made a mistake, trying to tribute to Brodie Lee, which opened the door for the Orange Punch followed by the Beach Break for the win.
After the match, Best Friends came out to give the people what they want.
Darby Allin defeated Cody Rhodes by pinfall to become the NEW TNT Champion
The ring announcement was a big deal, as Cody Rhodes now finally gets back his right for the full name treatment. Sigh of relief.
What a finish. The match was fantastic, but it was the unexpected finish which had me jump from the couch. I feel fans have been so accustomed to “the big finish” or expecting a finishing move to end a match, when we see it end via a countered roll-up it’s all the more shocking.
In a great way. Wrestling matches in the ’80s and for most of the ’90s would not always end on the “big move.” Other moves, cradles, reversals were more prevalent to add to the unpredictability of a finish. This match brought it back. Cody barraged Allin with power, at one point lobbing the slimmer Allin clear over the top rope and planted on the entrance ramp, appearing to have injured his arm. Rhodes would continue this, as Allins facial expression tell the tale of being relentless. At one point, Arn Anderson looked like he was going to blow a gasket as Cody got cocky and nearly lost. This cockiness turned to rage and desperation, as Rhodes nearly destroyed Darby with a TOP ROPE CROSS RHODES (now I get to type it correctly!)
The desperation set in as Cody teased using his weight belt as a weapon, which led to Darby attempting the Last Supper Pinfall but Cody scrambled out and away, only to get dropped with a Stunner. Allin scores with the Coffin Drop but the champ would not cave in. A series of aforementioned rollups would occurred with the third or fourth (I lost count) resulting in Allin maintaining leverage for the win.
A shocked and dismayed Rhodes would concede the TNT Championship to Darby Allin, only for Team Taz to attack after the match. Looks like this feud is far from over.
Hikaru Shida retained the AEW Women’s Championship against Nyla Rose
Unfortunately, this was a match which came out weak, compared to everything else so far. There was a sudden burst of hype for this match, which didn’t do any favors for the two pressured to put on a slugfest. Unfortunately it didn’t match the hype, and while Shida absolutely demonstrates she could legit KO someone, too many sluggish exchanges, and some easily visible miscommunications hurt the match. I wasn’t into it. Vickie’s yelling shtick didn’t really contribute at all. Even slapping a despondent Rose at the end just seemed bland.
Nyla dressing up as Mega Man X was neat.
The Young Bucks defeated FTR to become the NEW AEW World Tag Team Champions
Oh my. This is your top candidate for Tag Team Match of the Year. For about 30 minutes, both Bucks and FTR put on one of the best wrestling clinics I have seen in a long time. Really long time. Despite the clash of styles “Fists versus Flight” each team dipped into the reptiore of the other when desperate measures were necessary. Hell, at one point we got a rundown of famous finishers from the 90s. I popped huge when the Bucks scored the 3-D on Cash Wheeler. Steiner Bulldog, Hart Attack, Hardy Fate-to-Swanton combo… Only thing missing was the Bushwhacker Battering Ram.
Dax’s hand got sliced open early on, requiring a quick patch up by the ringside doctor. Bad slash. FTR aimed for Matt’s already weakened leg, which to be fair, he did more damage to with some top flight dives. As per usual, when Nick Jackson gets a hot tag, he I becomes a dashing fireball of flying assaults. Good grief. The impeccable combination of back-and-forth exchanges and the moments where one teams solidly dominated the other really highlights not just wrestling ability, but ability to have a match so well paced, you had no idea how long had gone by until you checked a watch, which, I didn’t do until the end.
Matt seemed to lose his cool and threatened to clobber Dax with a chair, but was a feint to set up for the Meltzer Driver, which Cash interrupted with a moment to spare, plowing Nick through the timekeeper’s table. Wheel got cocky, went for a mid-rope 450, crashing and burning which allowed Matt to barefoot super-kick him down-and-out for the pinfall victory.
Kenny Omega rushed to celebrate with his Elite brothers, but one could spy Hangman Page lurking in the tunnel…
Matt Hardy defeated Sammy Guevara in the Ultimate Deletion Match
I might be in the minority, but I enjoyed this weird one. The appearances by Shane “Hurricane” Helms and Gangrel were completely unexpected, adding to the weirdness. Lots of destruction, fireworks, leading to a bloody climax which sees Matt winning.
I was disappointed the Lake of Reincarnation wasn’t utilized more.
Maxwell Jacob Friedman defeated Chris Jericho, both he and Wardlow now join The Inner Circle
A match with two booked heels you say? Yes, and it worked. Perfectly. MJF and Y2J gave us a solid wrestling match with plenty, and oh, I mean plenty of mindgames throughout. From cheating attempts to using the ref as a shield, MJF and Jericho stayed true to their characters, neither one trying to portray is being “the good guy.” This is a story of respect and earning a spot, which MJF solidly did here. Even if he was booked to lose, he would have still come out looking major strong.
It seemed the Judas Effect was out of the picture as Jericho missed early on, ramming into the ring post, allowing MJF to capitalize and even lock on the Salt of the Earth Armbar more than once for some near submissions. Jericho channeled his younger self with a Lionsault, and then later, taking MJF from air to ground with a top rope Hurricanrana. Jericho moved like it was 1995 all over again. However multiple points during the match saw MJF ground Jericho and use brawling tactics to keep him weakened on the mat.
The crazy finish, which, brilliant execution, saw Jericho arguing with Aubrey Edwards (he does this a lot, doesn’t he?) while Wardlow tossed MJF the Diamond Ring. However, Jericho grabbed his baseball bat in return. MJF then flipped off Jericho, flopping to the mat, feigning injury. Jericho in panic tried to exonerate himself, but within moments, MJF rolled up Le Champion for Le Pinfall.
Jericho announced both MJF and Wardlow are now in the Inner Circle. MJF and Jericho embrace while Wardlow and Hager stare each other down.
I don’t believe this will initially be a case of MJF trying to steal the stable away, but if you notice, there has been some stable building going on the past few weeks, with Nightmare Family increasing numbers, and Team Taz may be actively recruiting. I feel 2021 may be a year for stables which would certainly add a novel element to AEW.
Jon Moxley defeated “Mad King” Eddie Kingston to retain the AEW World Championship
This was not for the feint of heart. Blood was shed early and throughout the match. There were chairs. There was a barb-wire baseball bat, and there were thumbtacks. All were used.
Probably one of the best feuds seen in modern wrestling. Kingston is a king on the mic, while Moxley is runner up in vocal prowess. I feel given the story is where Mox either thrives or cruises along. He thrived here. So much verbal exchange during a match where each one was ready to do the unthinkable to the other. Kingston and Mox used the barbed wire itself to gash open wounds and add another level of bloodshed. I admit, I have not seen many Kingston matches, but if this was an indicator, he could be one of the best, if not THE BEST Deathmatch wrestlers of the modern era.
Moxely would be first to fall onto the tacks, however he would rip his opponent open with barbwire and multiple punches to the face, bloodying Kingston’s mouth. A crazy moment, Kingston pours a bottle of rubbing alcohol all over the cut up champion. Piledrivers for everyone.
In a tense apex of the match, Kingston flips off Moxley as the champion stalks then wraps Kingston’s neck with a barb-wire assisted Bulldog Choke for the win.
If we were in Philadelphia, there would have been E-C-Dub chants for it all.
After the match, Kenny Omega would show up, and will likely challenge Moxley at Revolution in February 2021.
Full Gear 2020 delivered folks, no other way to say it.
