The Fastest Hour in Professional Wrestling featured some great AEW action that saw The Acclaimed and Sammy Guevara picking up huge victories and some big news from Mark Briscoe
This week's edition of AEW Rampage followed up a Dynamite that saw two huge title changes, so it had a huge act to follow. And for a fast 60 minutes on Friday? It did exactly that.
While there were no title tilts in this one, it helped smooth out the wrinkles from All Elite Wrestling's massive Revolution PPV this past weekend. Most notably, a development between The Acclaimed and The Jericho Appreciation Society, and advancement of the angle involving the 'invaders' in the women's division.
Again, it was less about angles and more about action on Friday, as Tony Khan & Company seemed content to coast the car into the driveway following a highly successful week of booking. That doesn't mean that this show had nothing to offer. It was quite the opposite, actually. Here are three noticeable items from this week's show:
#1 - The Sammy Guevara-Action-Andretti-Daniel Garcia circle of life continued to start things off on AEW Rampage
The duo from the Jericho Appreciation Society continued their long-overdue program with AEW's ultimate underdog, Action Andretti. The kid has burst onto the scene following his shocking upset win over the legendary Chris Jericho putting him on the map. And it's pretty clear that the promotion has a lot of high hopes for this kid's future. Despite having his share of critics, he looks as if he could be a mainstay for All Elite Wrestling IF they finally let him evolve.
Unfortunately, it seems like this has been a movie with an awful lot of sequels. Every time the AEW faithful looks up, Andretti is in the ring against either Sammy Guevara or Daniel Garcia. This storyline has run its course unless one of the heels turns on the other to side with Action.
As far as the match is concerned, The Spanish God got a win over Andretti with an assist from (who else?) Daniel Garcia.
2 - Preston Vance is getting a chance as a singles performer, but he had no chance against the heavily-pushed Konosuke Takeshita
Preston Vance looks great these days, but he ran into the pencil this week when he climbed into the ring with Konosuke Takeshita.
Not only is the sensation from The Land of the Rising Sun one of the promotion's favorite up-and-coming stars, but he's also now involved in a storyline with Don Callis. And while The Jackyl has mostly been associated with Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks, he's now been put in charge of giving Takeshita the rub.
So, there's no way this kid is going to lose any time soon, not even to a veteran on the rise like Vance.
Takeshita is destined to be a major player in AEW for a long time to come, and for good reason. He's got good size and power, along with incredible skills. Throw in the fact that he's already a favorite of Khan and the AEW audience, and Friday night was just another stopover on his way to stardom.
#3 - Reach for the Sky!
Mark Briscoe came out and cut a promo putting over the vast achievements of his team with his late brother. The AEW love being shown for the Briscoe Brothers is terrific, especially considering how much these guys put their heart and soul into their careers. As well as their dedication to Ring of Honor and its fans.
Still recognized as the tag team champions, Mark suggested that they hang the ROH title belts high above the ring in a ladder match to decide the new champions. He then said they would call it the 'Reach for the Sky' match - in honor of the expression that Dem Boyz always used.
Not only has this continuing tribute been heartwarming, it's also helped really fuel the resurgence of ROH. The sentiment around Jay's passing has made a whole group of fans remember not only his greatness but the greatness of the promotion that made him famous.
Mark introduced the Lucha Brothers as the first participants, and they would certainly be a tailor-made fit for the new face of Ring of Honor. Their wild style makes them perfect candidates to take the torch from the legendary Briscoe Brothers.
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