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lancearcherinrippedjeans · 4 years

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Don’t Hurt Him

For previous parts, click HERE

Pairings - Adam Page x OFC, Chuck Taylor x OC, Marq Quen x OFC

Catergories - Fluff, comedy and kinda angsty at the end

Warnings/Promises - Cheating, cussing

Word Count - 2,333

Summary/Desc - Marq and Bri get closer, week by week. Though, there is a slight dilemma in the road.

@kploveswrestling ,,,Bri and Alex might have something in common here

Another week at Daily’s Place for Gabby, Parker and Bri. Well, for Gab and Parker.

“Where is she?” Parker said, pacing back and forth in the parking lot. “You act like I know.” Gabby said, smacking her lips. The two had been calling and texting Bri for 30 minutes, not sure where the hell she was. “How much do you wanna bet that she’s sleeping?” Gabby asked, thinking of things Bri usually does.

Parker stopped her pacing and looked over at Gabby, “23 dollars.” “That’s very specific.”

“You’re very specific.” “Parker that makes no fucking sense!” “You make no fucking sense!” “Y’know what-” The two sat there arguing when they were stopped by the honk of a horn. They looked over to see a car pulling up. They had no idea who it was, until Bri stepped out of the passenger seat. “Brianna where the fuck were y-” Gabby was about to yell, when Marq also stepped out of the car.

“She was with me. Sorry that we lost track of time.” He said, happiness in his voice. Parker glared at Marq, swiping her tongue across her teeth. She was about to argue with him before her face softened and she held out her hand, “Pay up Gabby.”

“Goddamnit.” Gabby grumbled under her breath, paying up.

Marq looked over at Bri, “I’m gonna go find Isiah, meet up with us in 20?” Bri nodded, a certain look in her eyes. Marq just smiled and walked towards the building, “Catch you guys later.”

Gabby started grinning at Bri, “What?!” Gabby held her hands up in defense, “Nothing! Nothing.” “Just that you and Marq are in looove.” Parker said, voice girly at the end.

Bri shoved past the two, “Shut up, we are not.” “Okay then what are you two?” Gabby asked, genuinely curious. Bri stopped and turned around, a huge smile on her face, “I don’t know yet, but I really really like him.”

“Then ask him out!” Parker exclaimed. Bri turned away from the two and walked away mumbling, “We’ll see.”

The Elite

The The Elite

The Elite

The The Elite

The Elite

The The Elite

Superkick PAAARRRR-

Gabby was sitting in the EVP’s room, waiting on Adam. When she heard footsteps. “Why are you in here?” She looked up from her phone to see Kenny Omega above her. “I’m waiting for Adam to get back.”She said in confusion, could she not be back here? “Well uh, I need to talk to both of you anyways, but mostly you.” Kenny sat besides Gabby. “What is it?” Gabby folded her hands in her lap, interested in what Kenny had to say.

“I don’t know you. But I don’t like this thing you and Adam have. You're making him worse.” Kenny spat while looking down at the ground, not being able to look Gabby in the eye. “Worse?! That man isn’t worse Kenny, he’s being himself.” Gabby aggressively stated, she was offended by his words. “Look Gabby, no.” Kenny laughed in a serious matter, “He is not being himself ok? I’ve known him for years and he’s never been drinking this heavily. I blame YOU!” He shouted.

Gabby smirked, “What Kenny? Ya jealous you can’t find love? Get over yourself and let your friend be happy.” Gabby got up from her seat, Kenny got up as well. “Who the fuck are you to tell me about my love life? You’re not what he needs.” Kenny got in her face. “You know what? I’m gonna leave before I say something I’m gonna regret.” She gave him the middle finger before walking out the door.

Gabby walked out the room when on her way down the hallway she ran into Adam. “Gabby?” He mumbled out, obviously drinking again. She stop in her footsteps, “Get your fucking friends in line Adam. Because I’m not dealing with that.” Gabby said. Then kept walking, not wanting to deal with Adam right now.

Who The Fuck Is Griff Garrison?

Parker sat on her phone, living her best socially awkward life and sat on the apron of the ring. For the first time on Being The Elite she was genuinely smiling, that is until Alex Reynolds and John Silver walked up.

“Parker! Good to see ya!” John spoke up, happy tone in his voice. She rolled her eyes and groaned, “What the fuck do you guys want now?” Alex chuckled, “I think it’s pretty clear, we-”

“Want me in the Dark Order?”

“Yes, yes exactly!” Parker shook her head, “I made it pretty clear that it’s a no.” John put his hands up, trying to reason with her, “Listen, we got Colt, we got Anna Jay, you, my friend, are the perfect edition to the Dark Order.”

“No.”

“Oh come on! You would be another one of the first evers!” Parker arched a brow, “Really? Like what?”

John stuttered for a second before speaking up, “You’d be the first non-binary member!” “And?” “And the first one who’s 5’10!”

“Stu Grayson is 5’10. See you guys can’t even keep track of all of them.” John and Alex whispered back and forth for a moment before looking back to Parker, “Well, your anger issues can actually play a huge part in-”

“Anger issues!? You’d better hope I don’t smack your idiotic big ass heads off your shoulders!” Alex leaned down to John, “I told you.”

“Y’know what? That’s it!” Parker stomped off camera while Reynolds and Silver taunted her, “Alright fine!” “Walk away you pussy!”

Their words suddenly stopped when she walked back, arm ahold of Mr. Brodie Lee, “What’s his face, House Mouse over there,” she pointed towards John, “had the AUDACITY, to insult me, saying I had anger issues, and call me a certain word when I walked away.”

John tried to convince Brodie that it wasn’t true when Parker continued, “And Pretty Boy over here,” She paused, “Well he didn’t do anything. So you, gentleman, correction, spooky perverts, will not be seeing me in the Dark Order.”

She grabbed her jacket, “Good day!” “But-” Parker turned around, clearly stifling laughter, “I said good day.”

Brodie turned to John, no words coming out of his mouth, all he did was pull out papers and throw them at Silver’s face. “Gah!”

Hey, did you like that video? Click the screen for more.

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And thanks so much for Being The Elite.

The Elite The The Elite

What Nick you’re not gonna sing it all with me this time?

After BTE, Parker was talking with the three men she had done her bit with this week, “Way to call out my anger issues guys.” The three men laughed before Alex spoke up, “I mean, are we wrong?” “Watch it pretty boy.”

The conversation went on for a few minutes before Chuck snuck up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist, she let out a small yelp before she saw who it was, she rolled her eyes and smiled, “Why you gotta scare me?”

Chuck shrugged, “Because it’s fun and you look adorable when you get scared.” The three men in front of them made that annoying “aw” sound. “Bye now.” She said, grabbing Chuck’s hand and walking them away. “You have to let people call you cute at some point!” “Shut it pretty boy!”

Chuck looked down at Parker, brows raised, “Pretty boy?” She put her hand on his arm, “Oh come on it’s just a nickname. You know you’re my only pretty boy.”

Chuck put his hand around her shoulder, “And you’re my only whatever.” “Even though you could go for anyone else yet you go for me.”

Chuck signed before he turned and hugged her, “Stop over thinking it,” He said in a soft voice, “It’s only been a few weeks and I can already tell you’re about to be one of the best things that's ever happened to me, ya idiot.”

She looked up at him and smiled, “I’ll try, for you.” They shared a kiss before he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, “C’mon, let’s go read the comments about us.”

Brianna walked into the bar, without Marq surprisingly.

“Bri!” Gabby nudged her shoulder in a greeting matter. “Hey bitch! And hey, Adam, and Cash?” Gabby nodded and chuckled, “Look I don’t wanna come off weird but, you should come out with us.” Gabby took a sip of her alcohol. “Yeah Bri, see Cash here he uh, can help you around.” Adam explained. Cash waved at Bri, his way of greeting her. “Gabby you do know I’m in a sorta kinda relationship right?” Bri and Marq still didn’t know what they were, all Bri knew is that she really liked him.

“See keywords sorta kinda, ma’am you can go out once.” “You know what? Whatever I’ll go.” Bri gave in. “Great!” Cash tilted his cup towards Bri, while she tried to hide that she was blushing.

The couple had walked over to their usual spot where they had multiple shot glasses, full of alcohol. “You wanna know something babe?” Adam took one shot. “What is it?” Gabby took one shot, then smiled at him. “Getting drunk with love helps my anxiousness.” Adam took another shot. “Aww Adam, I love you so much.” Gabby ran her hand through his long curly hair.

“You know I really enjoyed myself last night.” Gabby smirked, taking another shot. “Oh really?” Adam's eyebrows lifted, the previous night they slept with each other for the first time. “Yessir.” Gabby said, pulling Adam in for a kiss. Adam smirked at the ground then looking back at her, “Well I’m glad you did, I don’t wanna make you anything less than happy.” Adam made his lips down to her neck. Gabby pulled his head up from her then looked him in his eye. “Same for you.”

In the corner, far away from Gabby and Adam, were Bri and Cash, who actually seemed quite awkward.

“So...how long have you, Gabby and Parker been friends?” Bri smiled, “Well Gabby and I have been friends for the longest, we made a group chat that we thought would die within a few days, but I met Parker there, and the rest is history. How did you and Dax become friends?”

Cash took a drink before answering, “We almost instantly became friends for our respect for Bret Hart, and look at where we are now. Weird things happen.” Bri laughed and absentmindedly put her hand on his shoulder.

Many topics and a many drinks later, Bri and Cash were pretty much shit-faced.

“So you and Marq, how long have y’all been dating?” “Oh, we’re not, y’know, dating.”

“Really? I just assumed that you two were, considering you guys have been together a lot these past few weeks.” “I mean, yeah, it’s been like what a month or two? He hasn’t asked me to be his girlfriend yet.”

“So would it be okay if I called you beautiful?” Bri let out a flirty laugh, “Of course.”

“What about if I tell you I’ve had my eyes on you since you first walked in here with Parker and Gab?” “Then I wouldn’t stop you at all.” Cash put his hand on her thigh, “How about I kiss you right now?” Bri bit her lip, “Do it.”

Cash listened to Bri and connected his lips with her. He pulled away, “That was...I’m sorry I don’t know why I asked that.” Bri put her hand on his chest, “Don’t apologize, just do it again.”

Cash pulled Bri back, hands on her waist while her hands tangled in his hair. Even if they weren’t in a dark corner, Adam and Gabby were too distracted by each other, so no one could see Cash and Bri, at least that’s what they thought.

They heard a cough, interrupting them, they looked up to see the surprising duo of Isiah and Parker, probably looking for Bri. “Excuse me, could we borrow Bri for a moment.”

Bri laughed, still shit-faced, “Be right back handsome.” She got up, and Isiah grabbed her by the arm, dragging her away from Cash.

“Bri what the fuck?” Parker spat. “What Parker, I’m just having a little fun.” “You are kissing someone that isn’t Marq.” Isiah said, trying to stick up for his best friend. “Marq isn’t even my boyfriend, plus he doesn’t need to know, you guys just have to keep it a secret….shhhhhhhhhh.” She held up her finger to her mouth, while laughing like it was some joke.

Parker looked over at Isiah, “What do we do?”

Isiah just scoffed, “Well, I don’t want my best friend heartbroken, so I’ll keep it a secret. I don’t know how long.” He looked over at Bri, “Cause Marq is important to me.” He turned to walk away, “Catch you later Parker.”

Bri just laughed, “What’s the problem with him?”

“Do you not even realize what you just did?” Bri just shrugged, “No, not really.” Parker shook her head, “Don’t hurt Marq, Bri. I’m serious.”

“I won’t!”

Parker walked away, angrily. Bri heard a ding from her phone. She saw it to see it was a text from Cash.

Don’t worry, what Marq doesn’t know won’t kill him ;)

You can come stay in my room tonight if you want

Suddenly Bri realized that what she was doing was wrong, but, she still wanted to do it. “Fuck. This is really really bad.”

Cash walked out of the bar, clearly impatient, “You comin with me?”

Bri bit her lip, “Let’s go.” From inside, Gabby and Adam saw the pair walk away, “Maybe, he’s just showing her around.” He suggested.

Gabby sighed, “Yeah, but I’m sure it’s not around Daily’s Place.” Bri and Cash got in a Lyft, Marq completely off her mind.

What Marq doesn’t know, won’t kill him. Right?

Omg???? Part 3??? On a Sunday??? Sorry guys! I got school tomorrow and won’t be able to take my laptop to school. BUT part 4 WILL be out next MONDAY. Hope you enjoyed! <3

#marq quen #marq quen x ofc #chuck taylor x oc #Chuck Taylor #sexy chuckie t #Adam Page #Hangman Adam Page #adam page x ofc #Kenny Omega #being the elite #the dark order #alex reynolds #john silver #aew fanfic #aew dynamite #all elite wrestling #aew fanfiction #aew x reader

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danwhobrowses · 4 years

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AEW Double of Nothing 2020 - My Thoughts

Well that was a long night, it’s tough watching USA PPVs in the UK. But Double or Nothing is in the books and since I have free time I thought I’d talk about some stuff I liked and disliked I’ll have to note, I’m not a sole AEW fan, I like stuff from WWE, NJPW, Stardom, TJPW and DDT Pro too, dabbling in ROH, Impact and NWA from time to time and reminiscing fondly over the time Lucha Underground was great. But I say this because I don’t want people quickly pointing fingers at me accusing me of being a stan for AEW or WWE just because I like or dislike something they disagree with, I’m not playing bias I am literally working on impulse and sleep deprivation

Spoilers for AEW Double or Nothing 2020 obviously, watch, enjoy, look at some gifs maybe and come back here

The Buy-In:

Private Party vs Best Friends (Winner is No.1 Contender for the AEW World Tag Team Championship) Winner: Best Friends via Pinfall (Strong Zero to Marq Quen)

For a pre-show match it was fine, the Buy-In stream did start way too early and streaming and audio issues would plague both Fite and BR Live streams throughout. As for the match, it was a tad sloppy at times but it is worth reminding people that PP haven’t been wrestling in a while. And they weren’t terrible botches, just a few overexersions, people can’t be as crisp as Rey Fénix every match, especially since there’s more margin of error the more people involved in the spot there is. The match was very back and forth at times, and the highlight has to be the G9, PP (and Big Swole) had been wearing SG armbands in honor of Shad Gaspard, who tragically died in Venice Beach due to a rip current submerging him, I had been a big fan of Cryme Tyme (and PS4′s God of War which he did motion capture of Kratos for) when they were in WWE, so the nice homage of using their finisher was a nice touch. As for the result I didn’t mind either way, I had backed PP due to their ongoing BTE feud with Hangman Page, but the Best Friends have definitely been consistent enough to challenge and possibly even win the titles, it would be sensible for them to win it too since they have lingering feuds with TH2, Death Triangle, The Superbad Death Squad and Butcher and Blade.

Main Card:

Intermission build for Casino Ladder Match

It was mostly people explaining how and why they were gonna win, but I did have to make a separate mention for Jimmy Havoc, dressed to fucking drip. Man looks like a bond villain.

Casino Ladder Match (Winner is No.1 Contender for the AEW World Championship at Fyter Fest) Winner: Brian Cage An early point I wanna make, I think AEW are spying on me because I had much earlier thought up a similar idea of a ‘Bargaining Chip’ to work as a guaranteed contendership boon. If Tony Khan wants to pick my brain all he has to do is call, I still think all non-title ‘Double or Nothing’ matches should be worth 2 wins/losses in the spirit of the PPV name. I also didn’t mind the giant chip, would’ve been silly if it was regular sized. AEW has a winner with this format I think, the battle royale format was good for introducing a group of new faces, but in a more condensed format the Casino rules for a Ladder match work two ways, the early people have less opposition to win while the last people are fresh, the red ladders were a bit much for my tastes though. As for the match, it was still a bit messy but there were 9 people plus interferences to deal with, also since Fénix was pulled from the match we have to give benefit of the doubt in terms of the match narrative changing. It was an odd choice picking both members of SCU to start but we may be setting up Superbad Death Squad vs SCU tensions as well, adding Darby in the halfway mark was a good burst of energy but you really do wince with the stuff Darby ragdolls through. OC was his usual hilarious self, the low-effort reach attempts, the brief pause with Cabana. The frenetic energy of Janela resumed the pace from the comedy segment until the super heavyweights came in; I did find that Luchasaurus did prioritize a fight over the match itself, but it worked for his heavyweight mentality and after being undone by Allin’s sunset bomb, gave us the space for the final entrant. Brian Cage, I love that man he is just nonsense talented, his moveset is unique and malleable and his power is insane. What a way to debut as well, completely ripped apart a ladder, murdered Allin with a ‘F-5000′ (Props to Excalibur as always) and was running roughshot - aside from OC, who almost hilariously piggybacked a win - until most of the competitors basically flattened him under a bunch of miscellaneous objects and a giant poker chip. This gave Luchasaurus some time to have some fun as the ‘Big Man’ too, really did enjoy the Marko mini-ladder and OC channeling the Hurricane with the chokeslam attempt, I do appreciate that Best Friends and Jurassic Express still have that rivalry, also Janela’s running DVD to OC on top of the pile of miscellaneous objects was a great spot, but it was all leading up to Cage bursting out and squaring off with the Dino, more of this! There was a bit of wobbly knees but the powerbomb on the ladder with gnarly, and we are due a hoss match for Luchasaurus since his feuds with Wardlow and the Butcher fell through due to COVID. But this was Cage’s time, I thought Allin was gonna sneak it for a moment but then I remembered that Cage winning was much more story-based. The ladder spot was brutal and a bit too much for the finish but the result I am still quite happy with. Before Fénix was pulled I backed him to win because I felt that the world title picture needed some speed after the methodical match with Hager, but Cage does have the speed and the power to put on a good show, he’s a proven world champion at Impact and he has been on AEW’s radar for a long time, injury keeping him out.As much as one can complain that this was just a gratuitous spot fest there was storyline; the faction conflicts of SCU, Superbad Death Squad, Best Friends and Jurassic Express was apparent but the main story by the end was the story of Allin and Tazz, Tazz was angered by Darby’s hostile response to his offer of managing him after his loss to Cody, so he’s taken Cage under his wing to enact some payback. It’s a solid looking pairing too, using the legends as managers is something AEW does well and using Tazz as Cage’s manager with his promo skills and their physical similarities is an interesting combination.

Jungle Boy vs MJF Winner: MJF via Pinfall (Modified European Clutch) This was one of my favourite wrestling matches on the card. The back and forth between MJF and Jungle Boy had some great athleticism and technical wrestling. This can easily be a top tier feud between the two later down the line, they are like two sides of a coin. The match had great storytelling in the fact that MJF worked Jungle Boy’s arm, which allowed him to escape situations like the crossface and hold on to the final pinfall, MJF was pulling great heel works and trickery while trying to work Jungle Boy into the Salt of the Earth finisher, the knee injury fakeout was great. But Jungle Boy also rallied with the babyface resilience, the explosive anger in the face of MJF’s undermining and proved his strength. I appreciated the finish as well, MJF won clean but Jungle Boy looked excellent, and it avoided Wardlow ex Machina. MJF continues to look more and more like world champion material and I can see him stealing it from Moxley.

TNT Presentation with Mike Tyson

Okay, I don’t like the belt. I’m sorry, I know it’s unfinished due to COVID so there’s room for improvement but it just looks too simple on the main plate. It seems like every other belt AEW releases is a bit lacking. The World and Tag titles are sublime but the Women’s title is far too small and the TNT title just lacks detail, it’s also hard to not think it looks like the WWE Raw Tag Titles mixed with the 24/7 title, I have never been a big fan of plastering the name in BIG DISTRACTING LETTERS in the middle. Granted, I get why silver was used for a midcard belt, and not every title can be Big Gold, Winged Eagle, NXT UK, IWGP or the ROH world title, but it could’ve taken more inspiration from the IC white strap, NXT NA title, AWA Southern Heavyweight or even the NJPW US title if you’re so adamant about the bright red strap. Frankly I was just disappointed that AEW presented such a weak design.

TNT Championship Tournament Final Winner: Cody via Pinfall (2 Consecutive Cross Rhodes) The finals for the match started off impressively, Archer looking like a total monster even bringing in some poor sod to decimate in front of an entertained Tyson before striking early with his finisher on Cody. Cody fought from under Archer’s offence to get some licks into his core. Sadly not all the cuts to Tyson were great, the one that’ll dominate media being the one where he was caught yawning. Before smarks jump at it, people are allowed to yawn, it’s not always a sign of boredom, given that Tyson is 53, has been hitting the gym hard and it was past 10pm, every other time they went to him he looked like he was loving the match, especially Archer’s heel intensity. The match didn’t have enough of Arn and Jake for my liking, given what was hinted at during Dynamite, I didn’t mind them being ejected especially since Arn was playing dirty too. Cody did pull out some storied offence with the Stringer Splash and Dustin’s Final Reckoning, but the ending kinda felt like the wrong result. After Jake was scared away by a Ripped Tyson from bringing his snake to the ring, Archer just became undone by Cody wriggling out of the Black Out and nailing two Cross Rhodes (third of the match) for the W. It was a bit iffy, I mean Cody has used the double Cross Rhodes to win a few matches already, so it felt like for me if Cody was to win then he’d need to pull off something extra. One Cross Rhodes made Archer kick out at one after all. Many people will use this as ‘Cody is an EVP of course he books himself as champion’ trying to liken him to Triple H or Jeff Jarrett, but while I disagreed with the result, I don’t think it’s bad that Cody wins a midcard title. He is never going to win the world title, he’s been a consistently great babyface for the company too and put MJF and Jericho over, as a wrestler you can’t have Cody not win a title ever. But that being said, I think defeat did hurt Archer, he was so in control of the match and just came undone right at the end, there was a heavy contrast to the Archer that started the match and the Archer that finished. It doesn’t mean he’s lost his aura completely, but winning the title would’ve done him more favours than it would have done Cody at this current time.

Intermission: Britt Baker Injury Update To prelude the Ford/Statlander match, there was a small bit explaining the nature of Britt Baker’s injury. It was kinda decent to still sell Britt’s gimmick by the doctor admitting that she’s being a handful, but the 6-8 week time frame is a shame, that’s only competing though, it’ll be interesting what they do with her on next Dynamite, she may get herself an enforcer too (Nyla could work, or Sadie Gibbs since she’s due a re-debut).

Penelope Ford vs Kris Statlander Winner: Kris Statlander via Pinfall (Big Bang Theory) While Penelope only had brief involvement in the Casino Ladder Match (she did have a weird space of just standing there for a bit as OC started to use 0.5% of his full power), hers and Kip’s entrance did put a smile as Kip sold the ladder match hard, as did Kris’ booping to the crowd and the joyous reactions of Nakazawa, Austin Gunn and Suge D/Pineapple Pete from it. The match itself was okay, this stage felt like a palate cleanser if anything. Ford and Kris did work pretty well, there was a nervy suicide dive where Kris’ head almost went into the barricade but we also got some great strikes, a good hurricanrana from Ford and a solid end as Kip tried to break the pin using his crutches. Ford has been lowkey great for the women’s division, her surprise win over Riho is proof of that, but Statlander was due a win. I felt like against Britt she was due a loss but now it feels like we can expand on that feud a bit, it’s good signs from AEW’s weak spot and it just needs a bit more faces - which of course is limited by COVID but I do really miss seeing Bea, Allie, Swole (who almost every heel in the crowd seemed to wanna rile up), Anna Jay, Shanna, Riho, Emi Sakura (who streamed her reactions of the show) and personal favourite Yuka Sakazaki in the ring, as well as hoping for returns from Ivelisse, Jamie Hayter, Sadie Gibbs and Awesome Kong for the Women’s Division, also maybe bring Vickie into the fold as a manager, she was a presence in the crowd.

Dustin Rhodes vs Shawn Spears Winner: Dustin Rhodes via Pinfall (Final Reckoning) Sadly this was the weakest match on the card. Started pretty well though, Spears was heeling it up a la Booker T in KOTR when Angle wasn’t cleared to compete and still demanded that they be counted out. There was also the HBK Montreal music fake-out which was pretty good, but he did wait a bit long to pull off the smile. Brandi halted the count allowing for Dustin to pull a sneak which was made great by the camera movement but from there it started to devolve into a weak spot. Comedy matches are fine, but times and place work for it, and Shawn Spears’ continued pursuit against Cody should not have been a comedy match in my opinion. I never dig the strip bit as well, there’s only so much you can suspend disbelief and Shawn being stripped to his boxers that have Tully Blanchard’s face on them is over that line. If Dustin was to win then I wished it wasn’t this way, sadly Spears has been hit with a revolving door of gimmicks, the Chairman was good but lacked intensity, the needing a partner looked to be going somewhere until COVID limited his options (and sank Brandon’s push) and this new anti-Cody gimmick has suddenly became a joke, it’s not a good spot for him especially when he had a pretty good match with Cody in the TNT tournament. We know through MJF that he can do comedy, but the key to comedy is timing and Shawn’s character should’ve been looking towards him contending for Cody’s newfound TNT title rather than being humiliated ass-cheeks out on TV...at least Peyton has something to giggle about at home though. Pre-Match Tribute to Hana Kimura (1997-2020)

I was glad that AEW took a moment to tribute Hana’s death. After the homage to Shad in the Buy-In I was hoping that they would reference her before the women’s title match and my hopes were realised. Reading the headline of her death yesterday morning put a horrid pit in my stomach, I had always felt that Hana was one of the most talented women in Stardom, as ‘Dark Hana’ in Oedo Tai, ‘Rave Hana’ when feuding with Kagetsu, ‘Death-Hana’ when teaming with Yama and of course as the TCS leader, I easily saw her in a few years time being the face of the company, her faction was on a high, she partook in Stardom’s first ever Tokyo Dome match at Wrestle Kingdom, she had wrestled in guest entires for DDT Pro and ROH, and I also hoped to see her in an AEW ring one day (Brandi had Stardom ties after all). Her dedication to the business was palpable as she even went into a reality show to try and get more eyes on wrestling, and yet cyberbulling drove her to feel so sub-human that she likely took her own life. It was a horrible, horrible thing to read about, and I really wanted to vent this out yesterday but didn’t due to the fact that I didn’t tribute Shad’s death and didn’t want it to appear that I only cared about Hana’s death. Shad’s death was sad of course, he nobly prioritised the rescue of his son and sadly time was not on his side against the elements, it’s obviously terrible that he died and the world is poorer for his loss as well, but Hana’s death hit me harder for different reasons. For one, she was 22, 5 years younger than me, her career was bright and her smile wide, and yet anonymous sadsacks were able to torment her enough for no reason other than so they could bring a young woman down to make themselves feel better, as a person who underwent a lot of bullying at a young age - I was forced to eat dirt once in primary school - this did hit hard for me, because despite both deaths being tragic: Shad died because of the elements nobody can control, Hana died because of people, sad, despicable people and even though I never knew Hana or would’ve even been able to reach her, it sucks feeling that there was nothing we could do to help her. In conclusion, bullying sucks, and Excalibur put it aptly as many others have, it doesn’t cost a thing to be kind and if you’re struggling there’s people who’ll be there for you.

AEW Women’s Championship (No DQ or Count-Out) Nyla Rose (c) vs Hikaru Shida Winner: Hikaru Shida via Pinfall (’Three Count’ Knee Strike) Perhaps one of the best women’s matches AEW have put on, I was very looking forward to this matchup. I am not one of those people who disliked Rose winning the title, she (yes she, grow up) was a good, dominant heel and I bloody love that jumping knee strike. But I also love Shida, she’s been a consistent force in AEW, being a part of most of the Women’s Division’s best matches, also she as a person is very likeable. I have to add a note that while I’m not too familiar with Final Fantasy (Tumblr seems to think I am mind you), I did like the small Tifa Lockhart cosplay in Shida’s attire. In general the fancy entrances and attires were sadly limited by COVID, but when you did see them it did make it a little special because of its rarity. The No DQ stip was a good one, I did worry it would lead to Shida’s downfall but the storytelling revolving around Shida’s tenacity, Nyla’s brutality and the coveting of the kendo stick all really meshed together well. There were some solid spots and some proper brutal strikes. I appreciated the attention to the fact that Nyla’s arm and Shida’s leg were weakened and that came into play as they landed their big moves to a near fall. The finale though was good, following a beautiful sequence of an Avalanche Falcon Arrow and the weak-legged ‘Three Count’ at two, Shida’s resiliency proved too much for the native beast as she laid her out with a Kendo stick to the head and one more ‘Three Count’ for the eventual namesake. While Nyla’s reign was long, COVID did sadly prevent her from defending much and that was a shame, her only real defense being against Statlander, but it was the right call to pull the trigger on Shida. Like Asuka in WWE, she has been a consistent fan favourite with star aura, being No DQ also aided Nyla in saving face; Shida only won due to her Kendo strikes and out-of-ring spots, so it made her strong that it took that stipulation to bring her to her limit. I do welcome the type of storylines they’ll have to build opponents for Shida too, with Britt in recovery it gives her time before they can renew hostilities, which grants a platform for other heels to develop and challenge. Also do appreciate that the top titles were carded back-to-back, speaking of which...

AEW World Heavyweight Championship Jon Moxley (c) vs “The Exalted One” Mr. Brodie Lee Winner: Jon Moxley via KO by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) While the build to Moxley and Brodie started abrupt, one had to appreciate jumping at this matchup sooner rather than later. Both men were lacking a strong feud to go with since the Inner Circle were still involved with The Elite and SCU were being preoccupied with the TNT title. The Dark Order had gained a resurgence with the mystery of the Exalted One, and with some impressive squashes by Brodie and Preston Vance impressing as his new protegee ‘10′, things were looking decent for the faction, but this still remained a risky angle. For Brodie this would be a make or break moment for his character, he had already gotten some disdain as people compared his gimmick to a Vince McMahon caricature and questions rose on whether he was ready for this spot, if he wasn’t then the Dark Order would’ve fell to square one. But that didn’t happen. From the moment Brodie came out with his horde he exuded a brilliant amount of heel smugness, feeling as if being champion was already a certainty (I do also love how previously he had a minion carry the belt for him like a boxing entourage), the mind games already on display before the bell even rang. Moxley also looked raring to go, his usual swaying self with a bit of purpose and a lovely gold sprayed jacket as he strided to the ring, separated by a row of security to sell the animosity between the villain and the antihero. The match was very strong, a really enjoyable world title match that meshed the brawling styles of both men, the advantage going to and fro as Brodie used his power to gain advantage while Moxley used his unconventional assault - even grabbing Lee’s beard for a headbutt - and the outside of the ring with a lovely Paradigm Shift through the ramp that brought some believable (in the context of the spot) colour to Brodie’s face. The finish increased the pace in brilliant fashion as Brodie shockingly kicked out of the Paradigm Shift at one, from there Moxley looked desperately to put Brodie away before he could rally, hammering at the head wound before cleverly bringing Brodie down with a Rear Naked Choke. I was surprised a lot of people didn’t like that finish, it kept Brodie strong that he didn’t tap out and a rear naked choke is a great finish, it has legitimacy since it ends many UFC fights, it was smart as well because Brodie was bleeding, so on top of blood loss making him light-headed Moxley cut off his blood flow to his head to knock him out. You also have to appreciate this incorporation to Moxley’s moveset, adding submission means there’s a new way he can win and it comes from the MMA background of Hager, like the Gotch Piledriver adopted from Minoru Suzuki (and I have to say Kaze ni Nare whenever I see him do it), seeing Moxley adapt his moveset is a nice little tidbit that helps Moxley feel more studied in his experiences. Also side bar, god bless Leva Bates. In the past two matches she kept in-character and rescued a laptop from destruction. Her wrestling does need a bit of fine tuning but her character work is undeniably great. Overall, like Jungle Boy vs MJF, it did help the match not to have interference, it was two people decking each other to see who’s best and Moxley proved himself more ferocious. Brodie showed himself as a main event quality wrestler who looked good with the title on, pushing through assault multiple times to only be eked into defeat (unlike Archer). Hopefully his story furthers in either respecting that even he must strengthen or lashing out because of his weakness.

Stadium Stampede Match Winner: The Elite, ‘Broken’ Matt Hardy & ‘Hangman’ Adam Page via Pinfall (One-Winged Angel on Sammy Guevara) Well, that was surely something. Not to be outdone by MITB, the storied rivalry of The fractured Elite, Hangman and Matt Hardy against the Inner Circle went hilariously wild and creative with the Stadium Stampede and I loved every single second of it. I’ll try to remember everything in the match to praise so here goes; the Inner Circle’s entrance like an NFL team was great fun, would’ve liked them to jump out of a paper symbol of the Inner Circle but it didn’t take away from the entertainment value. The Elite started without Hangman as they charged at the IC to meet in the middle, some fighting in the ring and some out. Hangman won the entrance game though by ominously strolling on horseback as Sammy Guevara quickly read between the lines and bolted, only to have shaken off Hangman to return for a missed shooting star press on Matt and then a very nearly uncaught one out of the ring too. Not to be outdone, Matt Jackson - broken ribs and all - pulled off a crisp moonsault off the goal post of the stadium while the Bucks tussled with ‘Le Sex Gods’, Santana and Ortiz tussled with Omega and Hardy and Hager went to search for Hangman, who had since dismounted after locating the lobby bar. Kenny had a rough double powerbomb table spot which was quickly cut to replay in order to mask either Santana and/or Ortiz losing his footing on the table and fell off it, but the cut allowed that moment to be skipped as the tag team focused on Hardy. Broken Brilliance would ensue as the team would try to drown Matt in a swimming pool(!?) that happened to be a pool of reincarnation, surfacing Team Extreme ‘Classic Matt’ and then ‘V1 Matt’ with graphics of ‘MATTer of Fact’ that Santana and Ortiz hilariously acknowledged with confusion, all the while an underwater cam would film Matt still happily doing his Team Extreme/V1 hand gestures while drowning. Damascus resurfaced from the pool to deal with the duo, sending both through a table, immobilizing Ortiz by ringing a bell with his head inside and taping him to a ‘chair of wheels’ and then getting his own back by locking Santana in an ice box. I will have to say, while this was great fun with Matt, I do worry a little for Santana and Ortiz. The former LAX were one of the best tag teams in the world leaving Impact and I had hoped they’d take the tag titles in this feud, but they’ve been kept from it like the Bucks have, between the Lucha Bros, SCU, Best Friends and rumours of FTR, the pool does have a lot of strong teams and it’s easy to get lost in the fold. But back to the action, Hager finds Hangman enjoying a whiskey, after a brief ceasefire to drink the bar brawl hits the right notes of great western tropes, including cue stick strikes, Hager dragging Hangman across the bar stand and table spots. Hager looked really strong here, taking on Page and the arriving Omega before being sent wobbly by multiple bottles of bubbly to the head, followed by a V-Trigger and a Buckshot Lariat over the bar as Kenny platformed for Page’s flip, a nice resolution as the tag team get on the same page, sharing a whiskey and a milk. Stories returned to the stadium as the Bucks and Jericho had their own mixture of creative spots and comedy; Matt did a ‘100 yard’ chain of Northern Lights Suplexes onto Guevara while Jericho demanded a VAR replay on a 2 count from Aubrey Edwards (I love how involved Aubrey gets as well), Le Champion also sent Nick through a Jaguars jaguar head’s mouth and did a Judas Effect on the team mascot while Matt was penalized after his touchdown dance referencing Alan Wright, leading to the ref being Superkicked. The Bucks then were able to isolate Jericho and lay him out with Nick doing a bonkers splash through a table starting from the steps of the stadium all the way down to the field, added insult to injury following as Hangman drove over Jericho with a chalk liner But the star of the match had to be Guevara. That kid is a literal star, his expressions and delusion is so on point as well, Spanish gods bless him and his 1000+ lives. After recovering from the 100 yard suplex run, he collapsed onto sprinklers which turned on, his mindset loopy as he started celebrating thinking he won, his face slowly dropping perfectly as the return of the Golf Kart gave him flashbacks of a past death of his in the Tag Street Fight on a previous Dynamite. Sammy was a little wiser and faster though, escaping into the seats out of the Kart’s reach, he slowly ended up being cornered by Matt and Kenny as the Bucks and Hangman watched below, Guevara fended off Matt, but was distracted by Vanguard-1′s reincarnation, NEO-1, for Kenny to daze him. The finish coming as Kenny One-Winged Angel’d Sammy off the ramp to a crash mat below at an incredible height, Aubrey needing to climb a ladder to count the win. Afterwards, the Elite celebrated with Matt and Hangman, hinting that Hangman has reconciled with the Elite as graphics appeared again on the stadium, closing out the PPV. Fantastically bonkers match, but once again this match had a great story in the terms of how the Inner Circle lost. For weeks, the IC ended consecutive Dynamites with the advantage due to their masterful use of the numbers game, but in the Stadium Stampede they are defeated because they split ranks, together they were strong but alone they were broken down, it’s only when the likes of Hager, Jericho and Guevara were isolated did the Inner Circle begin to lose the tide. There was also the recurring elements of the Icebox, Matt’s Broken character, Nick’s prior injury by the IC, Kenny bringing the broom and Hangman’s Cowboy Shit and strained relationship with Kenny and the Bucks, not to mention the many deaths and PTSD of Sammy Guevara. Say what you will about the Elite favouring spots, but you cannot deny that even in this Inner Circle feud, they have made stars out of Guevara and Hangman, it isn’t just self-indulgence. I will say though, I was surprised not to see FTR make a jump, we already had the IC and Elite have graphics on the Stadium so I hoped that the final one would be FTR, but maybe they’re saving it, after all, Blood and Guts is still waiting to be used.

Final Thoughts Outside of the matches itself it was unique that foley crowd sounds were added in to add to immersion, if it weren’t the Empty Arena era of course it would be a down but under the circumstances it made the PPV feel bigger having at least some white noise. The roster as a crowd continues to be good as we saw various personnel react but not steal any spotlight. We do have to appreciate that AEW acknowledges some shortcomings such as the TNT title’s unfinished model and the injuries to Fénix and Baker. Production issues should not have persisted as long as they have, and while it may not all be AEW’s fault due to COVID and the alternate streaming services they must be aware that this will continue to be treated as a blemish, unfortunately whatever AEW does will be compared to WWE - like the Women’s and TNT title have or the respective pushes to select wrestlers. While the current wrestlers are doing well and Dark is providing a platform for local talent - some like Jay, Suge D, Vance and Angels capturing the eye of AEW - it’s worth not forgetting the roster still there; Janela, Kiss, Swole, Avalon, Leva, and practically anyone in the crowd of shows should be able to compete right? All of personnel are tested for COVID so I do appreciate the attention to safety but from a fan’s perspective you do hope that talent get proper exposure. I will also say that I think we’re reaching a threshold of ‘Legends managers’ for the singles men’s roster, we’re fine for now but you don’t want to overdo it. But, overall Double or Nothing was a solid and enjoyable show, had some fun moments and strong matches. While I found the Archer finish and the Spears match disagreeable, it wasn’t too much of a down to ruin the show, the highs still outweighed the lows and there was still a good amount of variety, decent pacing due to good card positioning and nothing overstayed its welcome. We’ve got intriguing directions now too as we build to Fyter Fest; a feud between Moxley and Cage, Cody and the TNT title, fallout for Brodie and Archer’s losses, Best Friends in the tag title hunt, Britt Baker on promo and new champion Shida waiting for us in anticipation of the next show.

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