Fight for the Fallen 

AEW Fight for the Fallen has officially concluded. Proceeds from the gate will go to Jacksonville’s Victim Assistance Advisory Council to help victims of violent crimes. $150k was raised for victims of gun violence. Whether you loved the show, felt it was average or detested it, the money raised is the most important story here.

I enjoyed Daily's Place venue as the Amphitheatre came across well on television. The production standards remains very reputable but the angles jumped around a lot. You could tell the wrestlers were often confused in terms of where to look. 

I heard there were quite a few issues with the BR Live stream. Other than the Closed Caption issues with seemingly everyone encountered, it was fairly smooth until the final couple of matches were it acted up like crazy. Let’s hope they can resolve this in the future. 

Commentary wise, everyone sounded a little uninspired. Perhaps it was the heat. Alex Marvez playing that insider role similar to Jay Glazer just simply doesn’t resonate with me.  Mike Tenay was really the only individual that comes to mind who filled that role well. 

By the way, what’s Joey Styles up to nowadays? 

The Buy In 

Sonny Kiss vs Pete Avalon with Leva Bates

Sonny Kiss defeated Peter Avalon with a falling split from the top-rope called Kiss Is It. 

A “reading sucks” chant broke out at one point. 

Admittedly, I have only seen a few Sonny Kiss matches, but Sonny is extremely athletic and really pumped up the crowd. 

I have been an AEW supporter since the formation of the company, but this Librarian gimmick is embarrassingly bad and eats up screen time for far more deserving talent. 

The match was kept this short, but sweet and it was a wise decision and that includes the outcome. 

Britt Baker and Riho vs Shoko Nakajima and Bea Priestley 

The team of Nakajima and Bea Priestley got their arms raised after Nakajma pinned Riho with a hurricanrana. Following the conclusion, tensions flared between Priestley and Baker as they continued to fight. I sense this is planting the seeds for a future one on one bout. 

There were a few sequences that were rather slopping, but the match did an excellent jump on highlighting the skill and sheer depth of the women’s division. 

In a hilarious slip-up, Britt Baker went to the wrong corner to tag in her partner. Yes, the wrong Japanese partner. Excalibur did a good job of covering it up. 

Bea Priestley draws many similarities to Paige and that's a big compliment.  A great on-screen debut for Priestley as she was aggressive and opportunistic. Excellent Ring IQ.

Britt Baker has star written all over her and will be the face of the women’s division. 

Main Card 

Darby Allin, Jimmy Havoc and Joey Janela vs. MJF, Sammy Guevara and Shawn Spears (Six-Man Tag Team Match)

Shawn Spears wore a shirt that borrowed artwork from Cody and stated “The Chairman.” La Parka called and wants his nickname back. 

Spears earned the victory for the team after pinning Darby Allin with a Death Valley Driver.

Darby Allin received a very strong reaction. To me, the MVP in the match was arguably Sammy Guevara who looked outstanding. 

This was a hot way to kick off the main card. 

Brandi Rhodes vs. Allie

Brandi introduced Awesome Kong as the great equalizer in her corner. That’s about the most effective backup one could ask for. As expected Brandi played the opportunistic heel.

Awesome Kong distracted the referee while Brandi Rhodes tapped out to the Dragon Sleeper. Allie went after Kong, but Brandi landed the Bionic Spear for the victory. 

Post-match, Awesome Kong went for the Awesome Bomb until Aja Kong made the save. 

Brandi and Allie simply didn’t click in the ring and it was a bit of a letdown. I noted this point on the previous episode of the podcast that while I admire Brandi’s work ethic and passion, I am not particularly drawn to her ring work.

The Dark Order vs Jack Evans and Angelico vs Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus  with Marko Stunt (Who is essentially the Spike Dudley of the team) 

The winner earns an opportunity to advance to All Out for an opportunity at a first round bye in the NEW World Tag Team Championship tournament

The audience still seemed rather confused by the Dark Order. Who are they? Why should we pay attention to them? At a glance, they come off as a D-list version of the War Raiders. They won the match and received zero reaction to their victory. 

Evans and Angelico got in some spots, but they were fairly forgettable. 

Luchasaurus saw his stock dramatically rise. Sure, the gimmick is a tad over the top, but he's a legitimately solid hand. At 6’5’’, he moves like a cruiserweight yet his moveset still features effective power moves.  Also, the crowd was very invested in Jungle Boy. He’s plays the smaller babyface who garners sympathy very well. There’s money in that pairing and they should have won the match, but their time will come.

This was a fun tag-team match which the fans clearly enjoyed.

Adam Page vs. Kip Sabian

Hangman Page has one of the best theme songs in the game today. 

It was an excellent clash in styles, though the crowd died down during the match. Much of that was due to placement on the card following an exciting tag-match, a predictable conclusion and also the fact Sabian didn’t play a heel in the match, so there was a noticeable lack of heat. Perhaps he was nursing the knee injury via storyline, but maybe there’s something more to it as Page seemed a bit slower than usual.

The action picked up towards the end with Page powerboming Kip onto the entrance ramp. Page quickly won with the Dead Eye.

Post match, Chris Jericho was wearing one of the Dark Order minion masks and viciously attacked Hangman Page who was left bloodied. 

I’ll admit, I’m a little nervous that Hangman Page vs Chris Jericho will headline All Out, since it might be a bit of a let down. Time will tell, of course.

SoCal Uncensored (Frankie Kazarian and Scorpio Sky) (with Christopher Daniels) vs. Lucha Brothers (Pentagón Jr. and Rey Fenix)

I believe the Lucha Bros are the best tag-team on the planet today. Pentagon Jr possesses a larger than life presence. It's truly incredible to witness. 

As fully anticipated, this was a bit of a spotfest. Christoper Daniels even got involved, but was ejected.

Following the double footstomp from Rey Fenix into the Package Piledriver from Pentagon Jr, the Lucha Bros emerged victorious.

Post match, the Lucha Bros attacked SCU with a ladder and proceeded to challenge The Young Bucks to a ladder match at All Out. 

Kenny Omega vs. CIMA

CIMA is primarily known for his time in Dragon Gate and from what I’ve seen, this was arguably his best singles match to date.

After a slower pace to kick off the match, the action quickly picked up. Yes, there were many V-Trigger’s and Meteroa’s, but it was also methodical too.  At this point, it was match of the night. 

Kenny Omega won his first singles match in AEW with the One-Winged Angel. He goes on to face Jon Moxley at All Out next month. 

Talk Is Jericho 

Chris Jericho came out and admired Hangman’s blood on his hand. Once again, he demanded a thank you from AEW, but not from Jack Off Ville. 

After running down Hangman, this brought out Page attacked Jericho. 

Officials and members of the locker room broke them up. 

The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson) vs. Cody and Dustin Rhodes

The Young Bucks often get criticized for wrestling for spots, but they were able to slow it down with Cody and Dustin and put together a story based on competitiveness.

The Bucks teamed up for a Meltzer Driver on Cody and scored the pin.

I really wish they sent the fans home happy with a Brotherhood victory. 

Dustin Rhodes continues to prove why he's one of the most underrated performers of the past two decades.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I’m grateful for this free show and enjoyed several matches, but I’m struggling to find myself fully engaged without proper storylines and feuds. It feels more like an Exhibition than a PPV. You can tell they are  laying the groundwork for them towards All Out and especially in October once they land on TNT. That being said, Fyter Fest and Fight for the Fallen lacked the same excitement as Double or Nothing. 

If I’m ranking all three events, Fight for the Fallen is in third.

𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: Kenny Omega vs CIMA 

𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲:  Somewhere between a B - to C +