PWInsider - WWE News, Wrestling News, WWE

LOOKING AT ONE LAST STINGER AND MORE THOUGHTS ON AEW REVOLUTION

ONE LAST STINGER

Last night's AEW Revolution will be remembered for the retirement of Sting and man, he did not go quietly into that dark night.

No, if anything, Sting worked way too hard for someone who could have easily done five minutes of his greatest hits and called it a night.  Instead, Steve Borden crashed through tables, including going through one off a stage, and battled and battered himself silly to give Greensboro all that he could give them.  I can't help but applaud the effort as it was certainly in the spirit of the late, great Terry Funk with Borden pushing himself way harder than he ever needed to do in order to give fans one last happy memory on the way out. 

If all is right with the world, that's the last time Sting wrestles, hopefully learning the mistakes of others who retired and got their flowers and came back, permanently dousing those happy moments.  I think everyone would be happy to see Sting show up with a baseball bat from time to time and hit a Scorpion Deathdrop on someone who deserves it or play guest enforcer referee, but I really hope that this happy ending is one that stays as happy memory over time for fans as it played out last night.

Sting stated last night's match was in his top three of all time and while that's going to be an opinion that changes based on who's giving it, if it was that highly valued by Sting, one can't help but praise The Young Bucks for their work as his foil last night as they bumped and double-teamed and did everything needed to set up Sting looking as much of a superhero as he ever did against the likes of the NWO, Ric Flair, etc.

A lot of truly great performers didn't get to have a "final" hurrah or match that was meant to be a meaningful celebration of their career.   Hulk Hogan didn't.  Terry Funk didn't end his career that way.  Randy Savage and Roddy Piper just disappeared.  Sting got to have that moment and I am glad he did.  Sting was WCW and was a true hero to a lot of fans growing up. He deserved the "happy ending" and I congratulate him on getting that milestone.

OH, DARBY

I'd be remiss if I didn't point out the Darby Allin glass bump.  I hated it.  I don't think it was needed or necessary and it didn't even play into the ending of the story.  If it was Darby was taken out and Sting had to make the Superman comeback one last time to beat both Bucks, I could at least see the point.  But, Darby returned to save and help Sting.  I've seen a lot of wrestlers in promotions great and small take insane bumps like that, but in many cases, that bump was the turning point or the finish of the match.  This was neither.  I'm not adverse to blood but the shot of all the droplets rising out of Allin's back at once, for some reason, really turned me off to the match in the moment - and as someone who was once hit by a piece of glass at a CZW show I was covering where I was a good 50 feet from the ringside area, I was legitimately worried for ringside fans about that glass flying in the air.

I think Darby Allin is a hell of a talent and I respect that he wanted to go all out for Sting's retirement match, but he's going to be needed for a lot of future moments and matches for AEW and I really hate watching him shorten his career with these bumps.  In the past, Allin has told me that he does a lot of prep and a lot of maintenance on his body that the average person wouldn't know and I hope that to be true, because if he has any interest in having the career longevity that Sting had, bumps like that should be allowed maybe once a year. 

There's a reason Mick Foley began taking the big bumps off the table when he was working in the Memphis territory - they weren't worth the money he was being paid and they were going to shorten his career.  We know AEW talents make great money.  I'd just like Darby to be able to enjoy his riches when he is done with his career and I hope that when he returns from his Mount Everest excursion, he considers a far more conservative approach, because if he did one 1/3rd of what he does now, the AEW fans will still adore him.

OLD SCHOOL SMILES

I can't help but smile at the idea of Ricky Steamboat and Ric Flair trying to help Sting last night.  No, I don't want to see either of them in the ring again, but they were a big part of why I truly LOVED pro wrestling as a kid and I'll always appreciate AEW for trying to weave some of that old school nostalgia in with their appearances, as well as the use of David Crockett on camera with Tony Schiavone.  It was, after all, a show in Crockett Country last night.

It was nice to see Nikita Koloff and Magnum TA last night as well, especially since Lex Luger and DDP couldn't appear on camera.  I just wish we could have heard them talk about Sting before or after the match.  Hopefully AEW filmed some interviews that will be rolled out on social media.

RAPID FIRE REVOLUTION THOUGHTS

Will Ospreay is amazing but I wasn't shocked at all to hear he was hurt after his tremendous match with Konosuke Takeshita.  Ospreay has one gear - GO CRAZY - and I respect and enjoy watching it, but like the soon to debut Kazuchika Okada, Ospreay will need to, in my opinion, adapt to weekly television wrestling and you can't have performances like that weekly without tearing yourself apart and burning yourself out.  I truly loved the hell out of that match last night and if AEW wants those performances on PPV, more power to them, but if Ospreay is going to work like that every Wednesday and/or Saturday, he's not going to have a lot left in the tank for the PPVs.  Still, that was a hell of a "full time" debut and Takeshita has really upped his game as a talent as well.

The AEW Championship match with Samoa Joe emerging victorious was a good match with everyone working hard.  The story of Page being so obsessed with Swerve is going to end up with a double turn at the rate they are going, as the audience did not seem to like Page losing his sh** by using the title belt as a weapon and attacking the referee.  Plus, Swerve is just too damn cool as a performer, even without Prince Nana's awesome dance antics.  Samoa Joe is the man, a stoic oak who comes off like an adult in a sea of teenagers, the old school mafioso ready to smack respect into the younger generation.  His work is impeccable and I hope everyone involved realizes how lucky they are to have him in that locker room.

Toni Storm vs. Deonna Purrazzo was solid but way too short.  Storm is absolutely great playing her role.  Purrazzo usually flourishes in longer matches but with a show this long and with that many main events, she wasn't going to get the amount of time she would usually receive in TNA.  I am very interested in seeing the ripple effect of Mercedes Mone coming in for the rest of the women's division as there are lots of unique matches but a good story that can unite the women's division and push them all forward would be welcome as well.   Storm vs. Mariah May, when they get there, should be interesting to see, but all eyes are on Mone going forward.

FTR vs. Blackpool Combat Club was good but I couldn't but feel that the wrong team won here.  When FTR hit the Shatter Machine on Moxley, that felt like the perfect moment  - in Greensboro - for a team weaned on Midnight Express and Four Horsemen to score the win.  We'll see what comes next for FTR, but I felt like BCC didn't need the win here given how they've been presented in recent months.  Really liked the Road Warriors-inspired entrance for BCC.

Roderick Strong is going to be one of those talents that everyone looks back on and just marvels at how good he is.  The match with Orange Cassidy was a much needed win for the Undisputed Kingdom from a story standpoint but also gave Strong and Orange Cassidy the chance to just tell a really good, physical story.  Really appreciated the performances here and hope they aren't overlooked.

The Scramble match really spotlighted Wardlow, Brian Cage and Hook and was probably the best performances for the first two - in my opinion - in some time.  With the exception of Dante Martin coming up short with some dive attempts, 90% of this was entertaining in the right chaotic way.  Magnus from CMLL is a hell of a talent.  Wardlow winning makes sense given the promo he had on Collision the night before and the effort from everyone here was really good.  Will Hobbs is insanely talented.  I give AEW credit for letting fans have the sequence where the bigger, beefier guys all battled it out in the ring, since this replaced the silly-named "Meat" match.

Eddie Kingston vs. Bryan Danielson told a good, physical story.  There was a sequence where they were battling back and forth with body strikes to the mid-section and chops that just resonated with me as if they were really fighting.  Kingston getting the win meant something here, as did Bryan shaking his head.  I expected Danielson to lay him out after, but that didn't happen.

Christian Cage vs. Daniel Garcia was a solid opener but whatever Nick Wayne was trying to do at the end just didn't work as planned and that detracted from the finish.  There's no argument that Cage is in the zone as his current person and that the audience really, really liked Garcia's works and dancing.

I did feel that between the Greensboro crowd's enthusiasm, the hard work of the wrestlers and Sting's big hurrah, that this was one of the stronger AEW efforts in a long time.  I know I will be in the great minority here, but I thought this show was worlds better than All In: London.  My hope is that the momentum of the show and the additions of Okada, Ospreay, Mone, etc. will kickstart AEW into new, stronger chapter going forward.  We shall see soon enough!

If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!

• Tweet