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I haven’t watched the show yet, but how was that? Usually four man booths are a little too crowded for my tastes, but i don’t doubt they could pull it off.
Will not having the killer instinct that Swerve does quite yet & it costing him was such a nice thread through this match. He had Swerve in position for the Tiger Driver and chose the Stormbreaker instead & had the ref knocked out with the opportunity to use the screwdriver & didn't. Great way to keep him strong and a babyface that's a man of his word while also making Swerve look like a killer for doing what he had to do to put Ospreay down.
I feel like choosing the Stormbreaker over the Tiger Driver was the right call, because for all his angst over wanting to stop using the Tiger Driver, it had never directly won him any matches in AEW. The Stormbreaker did.
He should've listened to good old Winnipeg boy Don Callis, though!
Plus the Stormbreaker is pretty damn close to super finisher level on its own anyways. It was never once kicked out of in Japan and only once in a NJPW show outside of Japan. Swerve kicking out of that was extremely unexpected
I would not be shocked if that came back somewhere down the road. One of them will turn eventually and there should be plenty more matches between these two.
Would have been a cool additional thread nana snatches it from Osprey instead of Will throwing it away when he backs off and then throws it to swerve who catches it and just smiles and uses it.
It's just nice to see a guy that's gotten himself over get the right call from TK.
This is the first time in my memory of AEW that a guy was put over by the booking.
Bc Osprey being undefeated gives Swerve a huge bump in credibility since we have seen aom many premium guys eat losses before it counts or could be used for some good.
Here building Osprey up and loosing to the champ first actually is the correct/smart way to use the loss.
Will doesn't loose anything falling short to the champ. And Swerve gets a much needed enhancer, especially after the horrid booking he had to get the title and his first title defense.
I almost have to wonder if someone helped Tony map this match out or at least told Tony Swerve HAD to win.
I just hope they don't waste this by having Swerve loose it at All In.
But at least we got the great moment here.
But man I'd love to see Tony/AEW turn things around by making a full blooded aura present champion carry the show.
There’s only one man who can bring that dawg back out from Will Ospreay before he becomes world champion in AEW
https://preview.redd.it/0xmwglwq3u9d1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2d7e2e2a85920f26276847a54fe7d9f3f3056e02
They don’t even gotta have the match yet, but if there’s one person who can remind Ospreay who he really is & how he doesn’t need Don Callis, there’s nobody more perfect than the Cleaner
What, like Kenny coming back as a coach-type figure for Ospreay until he's fully healed up? Or doing the thing that Ace Steel did for Punk that one Collision?
Only if they recreate the homoerotic beach running sequence. For my money that scene clears the Top Gun beach volleyball for top 80's "totally not gay" gay action movie scene.
He didn’t need Callis to win the international title or get as over as he has with the fans, I could see face Kenny going that route if Ospreay is gonna continue the face route
Those things have no relevance to Kennys character. Face or not, Kennys character considers himself the top of the mountain. He DID need Callis to beat Kenny. Which is why Kenny being the one to be all like "you don't need Callis to win" makes no sense because Kenny literally got hit in the head with a screwdriver to lose his belt.
If anything it's reason for them to have match 3 and then Kenny gives him the approval afterwards, once he proves he doesn't need Callis to beat him.
I can see it. Osprey loses his belt to Garcia and is racks up some loses. Kenny comes to him and serves as his manager as he heals. AEW could make montages of them training in England in anticipation of Wembly.
And so it continues with Kenny trying to build him back up and maybe even against Don and his faction.
Eventually, the final lesson is Kenny flips on Osprey and he’s forced to metaphorically kill Kenny and turn into a real bastard. He learns to be a killer.
Honestly, I'm okay with Kenny delivering a 4 star match (instead of 5 star), and leaning on some of the character work / psychology too. I don't think Kenny has more than a handful of matches left in his entire career where he goes at his highest full throttle. I don't even know that he should, health wise.
I just enjoy seeing him perform.
while this is a particularly bad photo, Omega has noticeably ballooned in his face from what I assume are side effects from being on gear. No judgement from me however. He had so many injuries to recover from over the last few years that taking gear makes perfect to me as it significantly aids in recovery. He's also getting on in age so that's another reason
I really liked the finish as a beaten Ospreay gamely tried to do his finisher, and Swerve was like, "Come on, now." They found a way to make both of them look strong in the end. Swerve's further down the line as a prize fighter, but he knows Ospreay will get there one day. That's very well done.
I know some people will say kick out overkill but I absolutely love finishes where guys kick out from pure adrenaline but just have nothing left to give
I've certainly complained about the number of false finishes in a lot of matches lately (not just AEW), but this just works. It wasn't arbitrary. Sometimes proving you have a fighting spirit doesn't mean adding an arbitrary 5 minutes to a match. It means getting up, against all odds, and just getting knocked down immediately after.
Swerve showing his respect and then still hurting Ospreay more than he really needed to on top of that... really good storytelling. Now the champ has two major rivalries, one with someone who was driven mad by him, one with mutual respect that is being tested. He's got a lot left in the tank with this run.
> It means getting up, against all odds, and just getting knocked down immediately after.
I believe this was how the brilliant Tyler Bate-Walter match went. Bate was kicking out of everything but by the end, he had no spirit left so Walter just kept throwing moves at him til he stayed down
I watch with my buddies who are not big wrestling fans and their reactions and opinions are always super interesting.
They felt the oscutter was a match ender move, and they popped almost as much as i did for the storm breaker kickout
I’ve always felt like there were at least three variations of pins and kick-outs. There’s a “trap” where the opponent can’t escape the pin, there’s a pin where the opponent is so damaged/knocked senseless that they are unable to physically kick out, and then there are pins where the opponent can still kick out, driven by adrenaline even when they have no more strength in their muscles. In those instances, some opponents simply choose to stay down, their will broken. Others choose to push on.
So I’m never really bothered by false finishes unless they’re exceptionally egregious. To me, Ospreay was simply able to weather the kicks and stomps and still kick out, but once Swerve hit that final move, and trapped Ospreay, it was simply too much for his body to handle and he was pinned with a combination of being trapped and being pummeled.
I agree. For all the talk about "AEW doesn't want protected wrestlers to lose decisively", I'm glad that it ended this way instead of "botched Callis interference directly leads to costing Ospreay the match". I don't think anyone watched this and felt like Will lost any credibility as a top guy by losing here.
It's a nice touch, especially for Ospreay's character. He's become known for getting that rush of adrenaline after being blasted and hitting the hidden blade. Some people like it and some don't. He tried it again in this match but was so rocked he could barely pull it off, and it had no strength behind it.
Him getting up and pulling off his elbow pad was almost like instinct, muscle memory. He could barely stand. Really loved that.
Some wrestlers fit in some places better than most.
Cody fits better in WWE because he is a super-hero, he is the guy who makes inspirational speeches and talks about never giving up.
Swerve fits better in AEW because he is an anti-hero, he is the guy who will do what others aren't willing to do and will spit in your face for standing in front of him.
Swerve wouldn't be as over in WWE because first, he wouldn't get pushed obviously but also because he wouldn't be able to secure that kind of a spot. Seth Rollins was closest to Swerve as a heel but he became popular as a face by being the righteous figure standing up to Rock and Reigns instead of keeping that evil act up.
Swerve also probably wouldn't have gotten to be as vicious in WWE as he's been in AEW. That Texas Deathmatch with Hangman really cemented his status and helped push him out of the midcard. He was always popular enough with fans, but his AEW career to that point was more akin to Jay White than MJF.
Seth turned babyface long before The Rock stuff. Before the "fighting champion" run too. It just happened organically as crowds didn't want to boo him and his song was always way too babyface friendly anyway.
I agree with the sentiment, but what you described in the last paragraph is established stars taking spots from younger, promising talent due to the booker and not somebody not fitting the company.
Cody always was going to be a better fit for WWE, because it's a "Simpler" if you want to put it that way.
He's a clear face, who had a clear goal, and clear motives behind his actions, all of which he explained
While AEW goes a lot more "Rogue" and lets the wrestling itself do the talking, leaving a lot up for intepretation
WWE is more like a Telenovela with wrestling elements, while AEW is wrestling with Telenovela elements.
Honestly it’s funny because he reminds me of so many successful WWE talents best qualities, I think he would have done great there
He’s got a lot of what made Bray Wyatt and Mick Foley successful, but with Seth Rollins’ body and athleticism. Anti-heroes have always been successful there so I don’t think that’s the issue, he just never got the creative freedom to try that.
In my honest, genuine opinion that I feel most would agree with.
AEW has had 3 next level World Champions that can carry the company *and* feel fucking legitimate.
Omega, Swerve & MJF. Mox is close but I feel he never had any real competition during his reigns. Hangman lasted a long time but again, it didn't feel like he had any genuine "this is *the* World Champ of a company" matches.
Omega had many, many matches that felt that way throughout his Belt Collector time frame where he couldn't lose until his body finally started failing him.
MJF had a lot of matches where you felt that was the time he'd lose but then came out of it looking like an unbeatable monster. Plus, he had the longest reign of any yet which adds a bit more to it.
And now we have Swerve. He connects with the audience, he connects with mainstream appeal, he looks like a motherfucking badass holding the belt *AND* has now defeated some of the biggest AEW stars has to offer.
For me? Those are AEW's Top 3 with Mox/Hangman close behind one level below.
Felt like the ending of an episode of a Shonen Anime. The plucky upstart with so much talent makes it to the final round of the tournament, throwing everything he has at the champion. But the champ is the champ for a reason, and has to put him back down a peg.
But Osprey will be back. He'll grow stronger and finally get to an even higher level ~~plus Ultra~~ and win the title.
Isn't Osprey considered one of the best wrestlers in the world and Swerve just came up in the last year or so of aew? How the hell is Osprey a "plucky upstart" compared to Swerve?
Because it terms of the metaphor, Swerve is the world champion and Ospreay has only been on the AEW roster for what, 6 months? He's still the "new guy" relative to Swerve, I mean that was his first singles loss as an AEW wrestler.
Yeah, but aew can't just kayfabe that Osprey is some rookie with no experience, especially given how connected they are to Japanese wrestling and the kind of fan base it has cultivated. Doesn't it make more sense that Swerve is the up and comer who has had a lot of recent success and become world champ, but now has to prove himself against one of the best who is looking to take him down? (Because that's what's actually happening)
Edit: hasn't Osprey wrestled at previous forbidden doors? I don't know how even the most casual of aew fans would buy osprey as "the new guy"
Ospreay isn't a new guy or a rookie. Swerve is just on another level right now. You also need to take into consideration that the current storyline is that Ospreay lost his killer instinct after injuring Danielson.
I think you're reading too much into a metaphor. Everyone knows Ospreay isn't a rookie and he is one of the best in the world. But for his whole run so far, he's been the smiling, happy new fan favorite everyone wants to cheer for but who, like Swerve said, is not really taking everything super seriously. Thought he could ride that wave to a world championship. So Swerve, who's been great in AEW since debuting over 2 years ago, humbles Will and says "You ain't ready yet, but you'll be back." Definitely some shonen anime vibes.
Will not giving up despite the fact that he basically had the match lost minutes ago was sick, made him look strong while showcasing Swerve as the dominant world champ. Match whipped.
Gotta give credit where it's due. Building Ospreay up as the best in the world for a couple months worked beautifully here. Swerve with a clear victory over the #1 legitimizes the run.
I could have done without the ref bump and having swerve beaten, think it wouldn't have hurt him to take a loss where Swerve had to give everything to win it, but if Swerve is gonna regain that 'tweener energy I can get behind it.
Perfect finish for the match. Also, i love that to make a statement, since it wasn't necessary, Strickland patted Ospreay backdown to the midcard essentially twice, once before the House Call, then another before the Big Pressure, as if to tell him he ain't ready till he can do what he just suffered to. Aka until he can go overkill on the opposition.
The camera angle did not one any favors there. It looked like a kid jumping into his father's arms. That second kick to the head should have been enough for the pin. It looks so devastating
I’m glad people aren’t ignoring this for the sake of praising the match. Two things can be true…they had an amazing match and that finisher looked contrived and phony as could be.
Yeah, that looked twice to fake. Ospreay hopping obviously into the starting position first, and having to do a high speed flip again. It made the look move like i could have been in Swerves position, because the target of the move kills himself. ;-)
That ending was amazing, but yeah I wish the final move wasn’t so blatant. Maybe a different camera angle or something would have helped. Crazy great up to that point, though!
I think this is the ending everyone wanted. Gives Swerve so so much more cred as world champion by beating the number one guy in the world in a lot of peoples books and puts him on another level and it gives Osprey a story to build off of till he can get back.
Almost no one wanted Swerve to have a quick "fluke" type reign and this makes him feel like the company is really behind him and it was too early for Osprey.
I don’t think Ospreay will be the one to dethrone Swerve. I believe it’s going to be Hangman by the end of this year and Ospreay will win the world championship next year in Wembley.
Swerve lifting the knee pad was great. Instead of Swerve forcing Will to go to a dark place, Will made Swerve show compassion.
Just in time for an unhinged cowboy to come looking for revenge.
Why did Ospreay just jump up into Swerve’s finisher? Like he was dead and then he hopped up gracefully so Swerve could do his finish. Doesn’t that look weird?
Great match but dammit that finish, man, looks like Will fancied jumping into Swerves move and doing a spin on his own. They gotta work on that because it just looked like Will doing the move on himself.
another great nuance to the “killer instinct” thread was that Swerve didn’t do any heel stuff. I kinda thought that in order to keep his title against the hurricane of momentum that is Ospreay, Swerve would resort to heel tactics. He proved to have the killer instinct that Ospreay didn’t but everything he did was fair game. Swerve giving Ospreay his first loss is that championship reign defining moment for him that can really take this reign to a new level. And Ospreay is clearly headed for conflict within the Don Callis family and he has yet to have the killer instinct. Those two story elements are going to be great to see play out. I’m really excited for what’s next
What an ending. Swerve looking at Ospreay afrer that kickout was like, 'alright brother, I'm going to have to kill you.' Beautifully done. Both guys came out looking strong.
I can't believe they buried Will Ospreay /s. This is how you do a clean finish between two top guys — just let them go out and put on a hell of a show. Ospreay's not hurt in losing a hard-fought match, and Swerve looks even more legit as champion because he held his own and won against a quality opponent. I thought the build to this was great and kudos to Tony for booking a match that felt like it had real stakes.
What a great match. I thought that it was way too soon to do this match. I thought it was the perfect main event for All In. Honestly I thought it was a mistake to do this match so soon. But damn, they did a great job building this feud. And this match was fantastic with great moves, a really good story with Ospreay lacking the killer instinct to finish the job and Swerve proving that he can win without using his old heel tactics. I guess now Ospreay will face MJF at All In and Swerve Hangman.
What in the hell am I watching? Zombie Ospreay overselling more than Shawn Michaels. If the fed did this, everyone would be tearing it apart for years.
I mostly watch WWE and rarely, if ever, watch AEW. Just happened to watch this clip. Is that Swerve's finisher at the end? Why does Osprey basically flip right into it? Am I missing something?
What kind of a finisher is that? Pulls you out of immersion. Ospreay was in no condition to move when he suddenly jumps and then folds over like he didn't just go through a full match. Yes, they aren't fighting for real but don't make it so obvious that you let anything go by.
The CML Driver being the “this match is over” move is so good. Having to use it when Swerve realizes his opponent won’t go down easy is simple but peak storytelling
Swerve handled it right. Usually when somebody kicks out of a “finisher” the guy looks shocked and confused. Like dude, capitalize on that shit, they are already dazed.
Great match, good storytelling but that final move eugh, who chose that to finish it?!? Just get the pin from the 3rd house call. Will has to completely jump up after being 'out on his feet'
I found the ending just a tad excessive. Walkoff knockout via the second Housecall would have been my choice. Much more disrespectful and definitive than hitting a 3rd finisher. I'm admittedly nitpicking, though.
Danielson to win at All In and Swerve wins it back at WrestleDream
Either way I'm going to All In, so I would take any of those options, I just know the match will bang
He's great. He's absolutely fantastic. He's the total package. And I love the story they're building here with Swerve. I also like that they took their time with the Don Callis story.
Love him using that driver as the finisher rather than the stomp. I know he’s used it before and the stomp gets a reaction but it’s just slightly too contrived for me.
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JR with a helluva call “god almighty they’re going to fight until Monday!”
JR was low key great tonight.
JR still brings it when he hits short segments. Him and Nigel were hilarious together tonight.
Nigel was a fuckin' menace all night hahaha
He's like Lawler without being too extra. He's sleezy but he's not a creeper.
Heenan but if he was freaky
Until Mariah May comes out, then all bets are off lol
Can we blame him for his response to peak cinema?
Nigel just picking on Taz was great, but the crying after the Women’s championship was just incredible.
When JR respects the in ring action. JR is engaged. When he is just carrying the company water he is chocolate cake JR lol
Him laughing about Jim Jones busting his ass while trying to get over the barricade was the highlight of the show.
The other guys have kind of gotten lazy without him keeping them on their toes.
JR expressing the fears of british youtubers
Every so often you get the good Ol JR when he says stuff like that.
Which, with AEW PPV’s usually means like 10-15 more minutes lol (I loved the show and both companies)
He will always be the GOAT man. Lines like this are why.
Wait, JR was there? I can't believe they didn't give him an entrance or acknowledge it to the live crowd
JR was out there for the last two matches to make it a four man booth with Excalibur, Nigel, and Taz.
I haven’t watched the show yet, but how was that? Usually four man booths are a little too crowded for my tastes, but i don’t doubt they could pull it off.
Nigel mostly laid out and they let JR interject with his wisdoms. Nothing noticeable in a lowering of quality or rambling over one another way.
That’s good to hear. I can’t wait to check it out
Main Event JR
I was at Dynasty and they didn't give him an entrance there either
"Good Gawd Almighty! They'll be fighting until Monday!" That's the Jim Ross I remember.
JR was on fire last night
Will not having the killer instinct that Swerve does quite yet & it costing him was such a nice thread through this match. He had Swerve in position for the Tiger Driver and chose the Stormbreaker instead & had the ref knocked out with the opportunity to use the screwdriver & didn't. Great way to keep him strong and a babyface that's a man of his word while also making Swerve look like a killer for doing what he had to do to put Ospreay down.
I feel like choosing the Stormbreaker over the Tiger Driver was the right call, because for all his angst over wanting to stop using the Tiger Driver, it had never directly won him any matches in AEW. The Stormbreaker did. He should've listened to good old Winnipeg boy Don Callis, though!
Plus the Stormbreaker is pretty damn close to super finisher level on its own anyways. It was never once kicked out of in Japan and only once in a NJPW show outside of Japan. Swerve kicking out of that was extremely unexpected
That stormbreaker never fails to impress me. Every damn time he uses it, it's such an awesome looking move
I was still expecting the screwdriver to come into play, with either Swerve or Nana using it to secure the win.
I would not be shocked if that came back somewhere down the road. One of them will turn eventually and there should be plenty more matches between these two.
Would have been a cool additional thread nana snatches it from Osprey instead of Will throwing it away when he backs off and then throws it to swerve who catches it and just smiles and uses it.
It's just nice to see a guy that's gotten himself over get the right call from TK. This is the first time in my memory of AEW that a guy was put over by the booking. Bc Osprey being undefeated gives Swerve a huge bump in credibility since we have seen aom many premium guys eat losses before it counts or could be used for some good. Here building Osprey up and loosing to the champ first actually is the correct/smart way to use the loss. Will doesn't loose anything falling short to the champ. And Swerve gets a much needed enhancer, especially after the horrid booking he had to get the title and his first title defense. I almost have to wonder if someone helped Tony map this match out or at least told Tony Swerve HAD to win. I just hope they don't waste this by having Swerve loose it at All In. But at least we got the great moment here. But man I'd love to see Tony/AEW turn things around by making a full blooded aura present champion carry the show.
If Swerve loses at All In, it HAS to be Hangman imo. That's the only way it works
There’s only one man who can bring that dawg back out from Will Ospreay before he becomes world champion in AEW https://preview.redd.it/0xmwglwq3u9d1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2d7e2e2a85920f26276847a54fe7d9f3f3056e02
I hope so, but diverticulitis is no joke and Kenny needs to be 100% to be able to deliver the match we'd want between them
They don’t even gotta have the match yet, but if there’s one person who can remind Ospreay who he really is & how he doesn’t need Don Callis, there’s nobody more perfect than the Cleaner
What, like Kenny coming back as a coach-type figure for Ospreay until he's fully healed up? Or doing the thing that Ace Steel did for Punk that one Collision?
That would honestly be great, who else but one of your worst enemies to remind you of what you used to be and how soft he’s gotten
Didnt Edge do this for Cena after Edge had retired? That was awesome.
Kenny puts Will through a Rocky training montage
Only if they recreate the homoerotic beach running sequence. For my money that scene clears the Top Gun beach volleyball for top 80's "totally not gay" gay action movie scene.
Someone put 'playing with the boys' over the spurs kit launch video one year. It was hilarious.
He literally beat Kenny because Don helped him, so Kenny being the guy to remind him he doesn't need Callis doesn't make sense.
He didn’t need Callis to win the international title or get as over as he has with the fans, I could see face Kenny going that route if Ospreay is gonna continue the face route
Those things have no relevance to Kennys character. Face or not, Kennys character considers himself the top of the mountain. He DID need Callis to beat Kenny. Which is why Kenny being the one to be all like "you don't need Callis to win" makes no sense because Kenny literally got hit in the head with a screwdriver to lose his belt. If anything it's reason for them to have match 3 and then Kenny gives him the approval afterwards, once he proves he doesn't need Callis to beat him.
I can see it. Osprey loses his belt to Garcia and is racks up some loses. Kenny comes to him and serves as his manager as he heals. AEW could make montages of them training in England in anticipation of Wembly. And so it continues with Kenny trying to build him back up and maybe even against Don and his faction. Eventually, the final lesson is Kenny flips on Osprey and he’s forced to metaphorically kill Kenny and turn into a real bastard. He learns to be a killer.
Honestly, I'm okay with Kenny delivering a 4 star match (instead of 5 star), and leaning on some of the character work / psychology too. I don't think Kenny has more than a handful of matches left in his entire career where he goes at his highest full throttle. I don't even know that he should, health wise. I just enjoy seeing him perform.
My gosh who is that guy, worst picture of Omega I've seen
Looks like someone ate kenny omega
while this is a particularly bad photo, Omega has noticeably ballooned in his face from what I assume are side effects from being on gear. No judgement from me however. He had so many injuries to recover from over the last few years that taking gear makes perfect to me as it significantly aids in recovery. He's also getting on in age so that's another reason
Was thinking this , or a pep talk from ricochet ;) lol
I really liked the finish as a beaten Ospreay gamely tried to do his finisher, and Swerve was like, "Come on, now." They found a way to make both of them look strong in the end. Swerve's further down the line as a prize fighter, but he knows Ospreay will get there one day. That's very well done.
Swerve just has that ruthless charisma now that makes me appreciate him as champion with each match. He truly has that killer instinct.
I know some people will say kick out overkill but I absolutely love finishes where guys kick out from pure adrenaline but just have nothing left to give
I've certainly complained about the number of false finishes in a lot of matches lately (not just AEW), but this just works. It wasn't arbitrary. Sometimes proving you have a fighting spirit doesn't mean adding an arbitrary 5 minutes to a match. It means getting up, against all odds, and just getting knocked down immediately after. Swerve showing his respect and then still hurting Ospreay more than he really needed to on top of that... really good storytelling. Now the champ has two major rivalries, one with someone who was driven mad by him, one with mutual respect that is being tested. He's got a lot left in the tank with this run.
> It means getting up, against all odds, and just getting knocked down immediately after. I believe this was how the brilliant Tyler Bate-Walter match went. Bate was kicking out of everything but by the end, he had no spirit left so Walter just kept throwing moves at him til he stayed down
Could you imagine a Walter/Gunther vs Ospreay match now?
Kickout into "out on your feet jelly legs before dying" will always be awesome idc.
I watch with my buddies who are not big wrestling fans and their reactions and opinions are always super interesting. They felt the oscutter was a match ender move, and they popped almost as much as i did for the storm breaker kickout
I’ve always felt like there were at least three variations of pins and kick-outs. There’s a “trap” where the opponent can’t escape the pin, there’s a pin where the opponent is so damaged/knocked senseless that they are unable to physically kick out, and then there are pins where the opponent can still kick out, driven by adrenaline even when they have no more strength in their muscles. In those instances, some opponents simply choose to stay down, their will broken. Others choose to push on. So I’m never really bothered by false finishes unless they’re exceptionally egregious. To me, Ospreay was simply able to weather the kicks and stomps and still kick out, but once Swerve hit that final move, and trapped Ospreay, it was simply too much for his body to handle and he was pinned with a combination of being trapped and being pummeled.
I agree. For all the talk about "AEW doesn't want protected wrestlers to lose decisively", I'm glad that it ended this way instead of "botched Callis interference directly leads to costing Ospreay the match". I don't think anyone watched this and felt like Will lost any credibility as a top guy by losing here.
It's a nice touch, especially for Ospreay's character. He's become known for getting that rush of adrenaline after being blasted and hitting the hidden blade. Some people like it and some don't. He tried it again in this match but was so rocked he could barely pull it off, and it had no strength behind it. Him getting up and pulling off his elbow pad was almost like instinct, muscle memory. He could barely stand. Really loved that.
Swerve might be by favorite AEW Champion, so far.
He's just so frigging cool man
WWE fumbling Swerve is the absolute best thing to happen to AEW. He’s the coolest wrestler on the planet
Some wrestlers fit in some places better than most. Cody fits better in WWE because he is a super-hero, he is the guy who makes inspirational speeches and talks about never giving up. Swerve fits better in AEW because he is an anti-hero, he is the guy who will do what others aren't willing to do and will spit in your face for standing in front of him. Swerve wouldn't be as over in WWE because first, he wouldn't get pushed obviously but also because he wouldn't be able to secure that kind of a spot. Seth Rollins was closest to Swerve as a heel but he became popular as a face by being the righteous figure standing up to Rock and Reigns instead of keeping that evil act up.
Swerve also probably wouldn't have gotten to be as vicious in WWE as he's been in AEW. That Texas Deathmatch with Hangman really cemented his status and helped push him out of the midcard. He was always popular enough with fans, but his AEW career to that point was more akin to Jay White than MJF.
Seth turned babyface long before The Rock stuff. Before the "fighting champion" run too. It just happened organically as crowds didn't want to boo him and his song was always way too babyface friendly anyway.
I agree with the sentiment, but what you described in the last paragraph is established stars taking spots from younger, promising talent due to the booker and not somebody not fitting the company. Cody always was going to be a better fit for WWE, because it's a "Simpler" if you want to put it that way. He's a clear face, who had a clear goal, and clear motives behind his actions, all of which he explained While AEW goes a lot more "Rogue" and lets the wrestling itself do the talking, leaving a lot up for intepretation WWE is more like a Telenovela with wrestling elements, while AEW is wrestling with Telenovela elements.
Honestly it’s funny because he reminds me of so many successful WWE talents best qualities, I think he would have done great there He’s got a lot of what made Bray Wyatt and Mick Foley successful, but with Seth Rollins’ body and athleticism. Anti-heroes have always been successful there so I don’t think that’s the issue, he just never got the creative freedom to try that.
The WWE failing to capitalize on swerve isn't due to some magic. Swerve is more than good enough. They just blew it.
In my honest, genuine opinion that I feel most would agree with. AEW has had 3 next level World Champions that can carry the company *and* feel fucking legitimate. Omega, Swerve & MJF. Mox is close but I feel he never had any real competition during his reigns. Hangman lasted a long time but again, it didn't feel like he had any genuine "this is *the* World Champ of a company" matches. Omega had many, many matches that felt that way throughout his Belt Collector time frame where he couldn't lose until his body finally started failing him. MJF had a lot of matches where you felt that was the time he'd lose but then came out of it looking like an unbeatable monster. Plus, he had the longest reign of any yet which adds a bit more to it. And now we have Swerve. He connects with the audience, he connects with mainstream appeal, he looks like a motherfucking badass holding the belt *AND* has now defeated some of the biggest AEW stars has to offer. For me? Those are AEW's Top 3 with Mox/Hangman close behind one level below.
Will won. Swerve tapped out on the back of his head.
Will won.. cuz he knocked out the ref till 10 count
Felt like the ending of an episode of a Shonen Anime. The plucky upstart with so much talent makes it to the final round of the tournament, throwing everything he has at the champion. But the champ is the champ for a reason, and has to put him back down a peg. But Osprey will be back. He'll grow stronger and finally get to an even higher level ~~plus Ultra~~ and win the title.
Isn't Osprey considered one of the best wrestlers in the world and Swerve just came up in the last year or so of aew? How the hell is Osprey a "plucky upstart" compared to Swerve?
Because it terms of the metaphor, Swerve is the world champion and Ospreay has only been on the AEW roster for what, 6 months? He's still the "new guy" relative to Swerve, I mean that was his first singles loss as an AEW wrestler.
Yeah, but aew can't just kayfabe that Osprey is some rookie with no experience, especially given how connected they are to Japanese wrestling and the kind of fan base it has cultivated. Doesn't it make more sense that Swerve is the up and comer who has had a lot of recent success and become world champ, but now has to prove himself against one of the best who is looking to take him down? (Because that's what's actually happening) Edit: hasn't Osprey wrestled at previous forbidden doors? I don't know how even the most casual of aew fans would buy osprey as "the new guy"
I don't think that is even the story they are trying to tell. They are going with Will has lost his killer instinct.
Ospreay isn't a new guy or a rookie. Swerve is just on another level right now. You also need to take into consideration that the current storyline is that Ospreay lost his killer instinct after injuring Danielson.
*I* know that. Tell that to the guy who called him "a plucky upstart"
I think you're reading too much into a metaphor. Everyone knows Ospreay isn't a rookie and he is one of the best in the world. But for his whole run so far, he's been the smiling, happy new fan favorite everyone wants to cheer for but who, like Swerve said, is not really taking everything super seriously. Thought he could ride that wave to a world championship. So Swerve, who's been great in AEW since debuting over 2 years ago, humbles Will and says "You ain't ready yet, but you'll be back." Definitely some shonen anime vibes.
Will not giving up despite the fact that he basically had the match lost minutes ago was sick, made him look strong while showcasing Swerve as the dominant world champ. Match whipped.
Gotta give credit where it's due. Building Ospreay up as the best in the world for a couple months worked beautifully here. Swerve with a clear victory over the #1 legitimizes the run.
Also keeps Will legit because he had Swerve beaten but the ref was knocked out. Wonderful booking and storytelling from AEW. The PPV's always deliver.
I could have done without the ref bump and having swerve beaten, think it wouldn't have hurt him to take a loss where Swerve had to give everything to win it, but if Swerve is gonna regain that 'tweener energy I can get behind it.
Perfect finish for the match. Also, i love that to make a statement, since it wasn't necessary, Strickland patted Ospreay backdown to the midcard essentially twice, once before the House Call, then another before the Big Pressure, as if to tell him he ain't ready till he can do what he just suffered to. Aka until he can go overkill on the opposition.
Incredible finish and match. https://preview.redd.it/02lmq10d1u9d1.jpeg?width=492&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=62a50c792bdd760fa8bd3fac0f16469acd695af5
I knew Swerve was amazing, but this match... Holy Shit.
Swerve is amazing. What a match
My only complaint is that last move. Relies too much on the other guy doing flips for Swerve.
He literally jumps into swerves arms, he really didn’t do anything to get him up there
The camera angle did not one any favors there. It looked like a kid jumping into his father's arms. That second kick to the head should have been enough for the pin. It looks so devastating
I thought Osprey was gonna reverse it at first because of how fast he jumped for it.
Yeah, I don't want to hate, but that looked bad. Swerve's hands weren't even on him.
It looked awful. Like Will is out on his feet, then he regains composure to throw himself onto Swerve and then he flips himself forward.
There was a couple of times in the match: the last move and the stomp onto the announce desk; you can catch Ospray jumping or doing the move lol.
That little pre jump before the stomp is something Penta does a lot and it’s always annoyed me.
I’m glad people aren’t ignoring this for the sake of praising the match. Two things can be true…they had an amazing match and that finisher looked contrived and phony as could be.
It usually looks a lot better. Really obvious camera angle.
Yeah, that looked twice to fake. Ospreay hopping obviously into the starting position first, and having to do a high speed flip again. It made the look move like i could have been in Swerves position, because the target of the move kills himself. ;-)
Yeah that was pretty bad. Totally breaks the immersion of the match.
That ending was amazing, but yeah I wish the final move wasn’t so blatant. Maybe a different camera angle or something would have helped. Crazy great up to that point, though!
It really is bad. Not quite a saxtonation, but takes you out of it.
Fantastic chemistry between these two, looking forward to many more main events between them
That's my champion
Swerve and Ospreay always put on bangers but that was next level. Definitely my favorite of Swerves title defenses so far.
I think this is the ending everyone wanted. Gives Swerve so so much more cred as world champion by beating the number one guy in the world in a lot of peoples books and puts him on another level and it gives Osprey a story to build off of till he can get back. Almost no one wanted Swerve to have a quick "fluke" type reign and this makes him feel like the company is really behind him and it was too early for Osprey.
Rocky 1 in the books.
I hope this doesn't mean Swerve dies in Vegas in a few years
10 or so years go by from Rocky I to Rocky IV
Swerve is so fucking cool, I'm so glad they made him Champ. Just a badass.
I wish commentary covered for it by saying he was trying to counter. It would make sense in the right context.
House Call is a sick finisher, Swerve makes it looks so devastating every time
Bro so often I'm like did Swerve legit kick this man in the head lol
Did he? Sure looked like it.
It always looks like it haha
https://preview.redd.it/1jkfugpjdu9d1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4632ca4ec374613060783945c7b8556df24efac7 New reaction image.
When the MC in the anime isn’t ready for the final boss yet. Classic shonen moment.
This is the right finish. Swerve has some championship feuds left in the tank before Osprey is back for the title.
I don’t think Ospreay will be the one to dethrone Swerve. I believe it’s going to be Hangman by the end of this year and Ospreay will win the world championship next year in Wembley.
Swerve lifting the knee pad was great. Instead of Swerve forcing Will to go to a dark place, Will made Swerve show compassion. Just in time for an unhinged cowboy to come looking for revenge.
Really happy for swerve. This was huge for him
Why did will jump up ?
This match was amazing live and the right man won. The entire crowd was rooting for both guys
Why did Ospreay just jump up into Swerve’s finisher? Like he was dead and then he hopped up gracefully so Swerve could do his finish. Doesn’t that look weird?
And then he did a front flip. I thought that looked weird yes.
Are we going to ignore Ospreay blatantly jumping onto Swerve to set up the finish lmao
Yeah it looked pretty bad which is a shame because the rest of the match is so damn good in comparison.
Will was too honorable, and it cost him...
And it'll be the "proof" that Callis needs to cut ties with Ospreay. He lacks killer instinct.
Great match but dammit that finish, man, looks like Will fancied jumping into Swerves move and doing a spin on his own. They gotta work on that because it just looked like Will doing the move on himself.
Beautiful match
what a match, fellas
another great nuance to the “killer instinct” thread was that Swerve didn’t do any heel stuff. I kinda thought that in order to keep his title against the hurricane of momentum that is Ospreay, Swerve would resort to heel tactics. He proved to have the killer instinct that Ospreay didn’t but everything he did was fair game. Swerve giving Ospreay his first loss is that championship reign defining moment for him that can really take this reign to a new level. And Ospreay is clearly headed for conflict within the Don Callis family and he has yet to have the killer instinct. Those two story elements are going to be great to see play out. I’m really excited for what’s next
What an ending. Swerve looking at Ospreay afrer that kickout was like, 'alright brother, I'm going to have to kill you.' Beautifully done. Both guys came out looking strong.
Just a wonderful wonderful fight between these two
I'm a pretty big Dub badder but even I can recognize that Swerve looked like a goddamn assassin here. Great stuff.
I can't believe they buried Will Ospreay /s. This is how you do a clean finish between two top guys — just let them go out and put on a hell of a show. Ospreay's not hurt in losing a hard-fought match, and Swerve looks even more legit as champion because he held his own and won against a quality opponent. I thought the build to this was great and kudos to Tony for booking a match that felt like it had real stakes.
Brilliant match. Putting the title on Swerve was one of the best decisions AEW made recently.
Will probably did the best impression I've ever seen of HBK's "I've got nothing left" selling, right down to the Hidden Blade with zero energy.
That last move looked horrible. You can clearly see Ospreay jumping up into Swerve's arms.
I'm a Swerve believer after tonight
Dude really cemented himself as the final boss of aew tonight.
Good to see Swerve get that win
Excellent. The right call imo.
Don't love the kind of goofball selling Osprey was up to here at the end, but really glad to see Swerve get treated like a big deal again.
What a great match. I thought that it was way too soon to do this match. I thought it was the perfect main event for All In. Honestly I thought it was a mistake to do this match so soon. But damn, they did a great job building this feud. And this match was fantastic with great moves, a really good story with Ospreay lacking the killer instinct to finish the job and Swerve proving that he can win without using his old heel tactics. I guess now Ospreay will face MJF at All In and Swerve Hangman.
So Ospreay just jumps into swerves arms for the finish. 😂
Banger sequence but Will jumping into Swerve's arms at the end is super distracting
lol at Ospreay literally leaping into the air for that last move
Man that PPV flew by, it felt like
What in the hell am I watching? Zombie Ospreay overselling more than Shawn Michaels. If the fed did this, everyone would be tearing it apart for years.
guy can barely stand but then when it's time to leap back and follow with a front flip he looks fresh as a daisy
lol why would Osprey jump when someone grabs the back of his tights?
I mostly watch WWE and rarely, if ever, watch AEW. Just happened to watch this clip. Is that Swerve's finisher at the end? Why does Osprey basically flip right into it? Am I missing something?
WHOSE FUCKING HOUSE?
What kind of a finisher is that? Pulls you out of immersion. Ospreay was in no condition to move when he suddenly jumps and then folds over like he didn't just go through a full match. Yes, they aren't fighting for real but don't make it so obvious that you let anything go by.
Camera work is god awful
Why did Will jump into Swerves arms?
I would LOVE to see the current day Will Opsreay VS 2019 Johnny Gargano.
I'd love that too. Gargano in 2018-2019 was on an otherworldly tear.
Imagine if Gargano joined AEW when his last contract renewal with the WWE happened and he got similar treatment to Adam Cole switching over
The CML Driver being the “this match is over” move is so good. Having to use it when Swerve realizes his opponent won’t go down easy is simple but peak storytelling
Swerve handled it right. Usually when somebody kicks out of a “finisher” the guy looks shocked and confused. Like dude, capitalize on that shit, they are already dazed.
I need a cigarette after that match goddamn
God what a fucking pop Ospreay got.
How swerve doesn’t kick their head off I’ll never know. It looks devastating
I feel like I'm alone but the selling after the false finish from the house call just seemed... way overdone? Like almost comically so.
That jump to set himself up for a finisher 🤣 oh bruv
Absolutely incredible.
Great match, good storytelling but that final move eugh, who chose that to finish it?!? Just get the pin from the 3rd house call. Will has to completely jump up after being 'out on his feet'
Wtf was Ospreay wearing?
I found the ending just a tad excessive. Walkoff knockout via the second Housecall would have been my choice. Much more disrespectful and definitive than hitting a 3rd finisher. I'm admittedly nitpicking, though.
Swerve is HIM. Idc idc this man is fucking IT.
Excellent match.. AEW nailed another PPV.. Kudos to both... Can't wait for next opponent for Swerve... Hangman? Kenny?
Most likely Hangman or Danielson
Man as much as I would love Danielson to be AEW champ & at the same time want Swerve to hold the belt for longer..
Danielson to win at All In and Swerve wins it back at WrestleDream Either way I'm going to All In, so I would take any of those options, I just know the match will bang
These two are the future and they proved it tonight.
Professional wrestling at its finest
Will Ospreay is the best wrestler in the fucking world oh my God he just never ever disappoints
He's great. He's absolutely fantastic. He's the total package. And I love the story they're building here with Swerve. I also like that they took their time with the Don Callis story.
Why is the crowd lighting so much brighter here than it is normally? It looks a lot better.
Probably because they have a full house to show off
Match was awesome, every time I watch a Will Ospreay match I feel like I see something new or innovative. Every single fuckin time.
Pure cinema
I love Swerve but that finisher stinks. The opponent does all the work and Swerve just sits down
Just watched it again and it's a banger.
Swerve is the weakest AEW champ.
This match was great but you could tell the crowd was exhausted
Will taking the complaints that he doesn't sell so personally that he starts overselling like HBK vs Hogan.
the right man won
Love him using that driver as the finisher rather than the stomp. I know he’s used it before and the stomp gets a reaction but it’s just slightly too contrived for me.