All Elite Wrestling comes our way from Milwaukee’s UWM Panther Arena. Last week, the show opened with a chaotic tornado tag match against 2.0 and Sting & Darby Allin. Unfortunately, for 2.0, they messed with Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston on their way to the ring, and you know what they say, “you reap what you sow.” Sammy Guevara got engaged to his girlfriend and then beat up Shawn Spears. New Impact champion, Christian Cage, set his sights on the AEW championship. Lance Archer tried to interrupt Dan Lambert’s shockingly good promo but was blindsided by Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page. After a classic bout of shenanigans, the Young Bucks defeated Jurassic Express to retain the tag team championships. Britt Baker hyped up her girl Jaime Hayter. Paul Wight officially challenged QT Marshall to a match at All Out. HOOK got some tv time. Thunder Rosa defeated Penelope Ford in a short but great match. And finally, Chris Jericho failed to defeat the fifth labor when he was forced to tap out to MJF.
This Week’s Headliner:
Sure, there are a lot of matches planned for tonight’s show, but the only thing we really want to see, talk about, and think about is CM Punk on AEW Dynamite.
Despite all the rumors, CM Punk shocked the wrestling world when he actually showed up on AEW Rampage last Friday night. Yeah, we all knew he was going to be there but - and be honest here - we didn’t believe it. Seven years is a long time! But, seeing is, in fact, believing! After an emotional return speech that had many in tears (including yours truly), Punk made it clear that he’s not just back. He’s back and is ready for action. He challenged Darby Allin, creeping in the rafters, to a match at All Out. After all, Darby Allin is a train track jumping daredevil, and if he wants a thrill, well, “nothing is more dangerous than wrestling CM Punk in Chicago.”
Tonight we hear from CM Punk on the flagship show and hopefully hear a little from Darby Allin. He’ll be in trios tag team action tonight when he suits up with Moxley and Kingston to take on The Wingman, but I’m sure he has something to say about The return of Punk. Come to think of it...I bet Moxley and Kingston have something to say too.
* rubs hands together furiously * ooooooo, it’s going to be a good show!
The Title Scene:
World Champion, Kenny Omega, thought he was done with Christian Cage after losing his Impact Title. But while Omega may wish he was, Cage certainly isn’t done with him. The two are constantly in each other’s back pockets, ready to fight at the drop of a hat. Last week we heard Cage issue the challenge; perhaps tonight, we hear just what Omega thinks of that.
Tony Khan is a little sick of the Tag Team Champions’ relentless shenanigans. Therefore he has scheduled a series of tag matches to determine who will face them at All Out for the titles in a steel cage! It’s not impossible to cheat whilst trapped in a cage, but it is harder! Tonight the tournament kicks off as The Varsity Blondes take on Lucha Bros.
Not only is Britt Baker The World Women’s Champion, but she’s also a locker room leader and is ready to whip this division into shape, and she hand-picked Jaime Hayter to be her protege. Tonight Hayter finishes what she started with Red Velvet, hopefully killing two birds with one stone. If Jaime wins, she starts to rebuild her rankings, and Red Velvet is out of Britt Baker’s way. Britt really is a brilliant strategist.
Presumably, the TNT Champion is going to cut a promo where he talks about his hot wife, God, and the next person he’s going to CRUSH. Hey, it works for him.
Other things to keep an eye on:
-Chris Jericho lost his fifth and final labor after MJF hit Jericho with a Judas Effect and forced him to tap. Tonight Jericho addresses what the future holds after such a big loss.
-Malakai Black will kick Brock Anderson’s head off, all the while pretending that it’s actually Cody’s face underneath his boot. It’s called manifesting.
-Orange Cassidy and Matt Hardy go one-on-one because this feud refuses to gain more traction while also refusing to die.
-The Gunn Club will face off with The Factory because QT Marshall has a really good lawyer, and his contract MUST say he has to be on Dynamite every week. It must, right?
Tune into AEW on TNT at 8pm ET to see how all this plays out.