Chihayafuru Manga

(Potential spoilers for the whole series inside)

So Chihayafuru is one of my favourite manga. Back in August 2022 it completed it's run in Be Love and the final chapter was released. Then in December 2022 the 50th and final volume of the series was made available in Japan. This volume included a sequel chapter that I somehow did not know about until a week or two ago. I found this extra chapter to be a fantastic read.

Not just because it focused on one of my favourite characters, but because it sets up a full sequel to Chihayafuru so well.

Well it is with a heavy heart I wave goodbye to this wonderful manga. Thank you Suetsugu-sensei for all of your hard work on this amazing series for so many years.

Shout out to my boy Taichi and maybe one day the anime adaptation will continue and put the rest of the story to screen.

Thanks for reading!

..........

Wait....

Sets up a sequel so well?

Does that mea-

https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2023-10-31/chihayafuru-manga-gets-sequel-series-with-new-main-lead/.203995

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

WE ARE BACK, BABY!

DECEMBER 1ST, 2023!

Chihayafuru plus: Kimi ga Tame!!!

In Naniwa Bay, now the flowers are blossoming. Again!

Please expect more blog posts on Chihayafuru and read the manga if you have not yet done so!

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Some Thoughts on AEW Double or Nothing 2023

Although the last two or three Dynamites before Double or Nothing 2023 were mostly a return to form, the section of weekly AEW television following Revolution 2023 was much weaker than usual. This run of up and down shows led to a PPV event that was good when it probably should have been great.

Double or Nothing Buy-In

Hardy Party versus Ethan Page and the Gunns

The pre-show was not very good and consisted of pointless WWE-style talking head shenanigans plus Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, and Hook against Ethan Page and the Gunns. Hook rules but the Hardy's are pretty shot. Not much to see here. I would love a return to having three or four fun matches on AEW pre-shows.

Double or Nothing

21-man Blackjack Battle Royal

Orange Cassidy defending his title in a battle royal turned out to be pretty good! The story line of Orange being a fighting champion and slowly being worn down by each title defense has been a real highlight of AEW the last while. Glad that the match came down to Orange and Swerve Strickland who will face each other in a singles match on the June 7th Dynamite.

Adam Cole versus Chris Jericho in an unsanctioned match

This one started pretty well with Sabu as the guest enforcer, but quickly became very boring and stayed that way. Ending didn't work at all either. Next!

FTR versus Jeff Jarrett and Jay Lethal

The video from the chicken farm was my favourite part of the build for this match. As for the match itself, it started very slow but heated up eventually. Somewhat expected that at one point I would be made to bite on Jarrett / Lethal scoring a pin, but that didn't end up happening.

Wardlow versus Christian Cage in a ladder match

I was nervous about this one coming in, but it definitely exceeded expectations. There were ladders and Armed Anderson was there. Fun times!

Jamie Hayter versus Toni Storm

More of an angle than a match due to Hayter's injury. Hoping Jamie is healthy in time for the Wembley show.

House of Black versus The Acclaimed

A good match. However, The Acclaimed not picking a rule (as one does in Open House Rules matches) felt weird.

Jade Cargill versus Taya Valkyrie

Jade and Taya had one of the better matches of Jade's career so far. Jade's hubris finally catching up with her and Statlander winning the TBS belt was awesome as well.

MJF versus Sammy Guevara versus Darby Allin versus Jack Perry

Amazing match that lived up to the hype. Unfortunate that the build to get here was messy, but the match itself was as great as you'd expect.

Blackpool Combat Club versus The Elite in Anarchy in the Arena

A match that constantly had cool stuff happening. Just as I like it. Super hot ending as well.

The last two matches were by far the best parts of the show. Show as a whole was not up to the usual (very high) AEW standard, but I have high hopes for Forbidden Door 2023. Looking forward to being there live in Toronto! Wembley Stadium on August 27 should be a sight to see as well (though I will not be at that one live).

Thanks for reading!

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When A Long Running Series Ends

I always get a certain feeling in my chest when a long running piece of media I love ends. An intense bittersweet feeling. As if someone I've been on a long journey with has reached their destination while I still have more to do. In the year 2022 I felt this way regarding three different series.

Better Call Saul

The ending of this prequel to Breaking Bad felt both satisfying and inevitable. Given that I knew this season would be the show's last I was pretty prepared for this one. Assuming the final episode of BCS will be the last made in the Breaking Bad world it's a good way to wrap things up. I'm definitely excited for Vince Gilligan's next project. For those who have finished the show I would suggest checking out the YouTube channel What's Therapy? for some great analysis.

What Next

I struggled to think of a show to recommend to people who loved BCS. The best choice I could think of is the anime adaption of Naoki Urasawa's Monster. Which conveniently is now available on Netflix! These shows are not that similar to be honest, but I am pretty sure most who enjoyed BCS will get into Monster as well.

Chihayafuru

The ending of the manga Chihayafuru was the result of many years of writing quality character growth. This sports manga about a card game earned it's emotional ending from over a decade of consistent evolution of it's cast. Please read and watch Chihayafuru.

What Next

I'd like to recommend two different manga, both by Naoki Urasawa. If you are looking for something with romance and sports but more comedy and less heartbreak than Chihayafuru then watch Yawara!. If you can deal with a lot of heartbreak (in a bit of a different sense) then read the manga Happy!. Hopefully one or both of these will be to your liking.

Golden Kamuy

Golden Kamuy rocks, but I won't get into it too much here as I plan on writing a longer post on the series. Please take the time to read it.

What Next

If you are looking to start another adventure after finishing Golden Kamuy you should finally start reading One Piece! Though it should be mentioned that One Piece has not reached its ending yet.

Endings of long running series don't always go well, but not much is better than when they feel right. Having closure for a story you have followed for awhile is tough not to have. It's rare for an ending to be so bad it retroactively ruins a story, but unsatisfying endings are common.

So I salute those storytellers who are able to stick the landing. I find a good ending generally closes the book on the story's themes and main characters while still giving a feeling that lingers on. Sometimes the feeling of being left wanting more can be bittersweet, but it's a feeling I cherish.

Thanks for reading!

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Money on the Mat: The Jeff Glover Story

Money on the Mat is a documentary that follows famed Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competitor Jeff Glover. It was directed by BJJ black belt Roy Dean and focuses on the five days leading up to the tournament of Glover's creation, Money on the Mat.

The film looks / sounds great and is a fairly breezy watch at 77 minutes. Scenes of Glover training / philosophizing are mixed in with competition footage from the tournament. It's more of a glimpse into the daily life of Jeff Glover than an overarching narrative. Effort is made to explain what Jiu Jitsu is and how the rules of the sport work to those who are unfamiliar, but I think this film would mainly appeal to current practitioners.

A trailer is available to watch on YouTube. Money on the Mat can be purchased for $19.99 USD at Roy Dean's website.

Honestly I enjoyed the documentary and would recommend giving it a watch. If you want more background info check out this interview with Roy Dean. Thanks for reading and I plan on writing more Jiu Jitsu related articles soon assuming I can find the time!

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End of Year, Best of Year 2022

It's 2023! For this retrospective of 2022 I will just give various recommendations separated by category. No overall winners this time.

My Favourite Anime This Year

• Ranking of Kings

• Cyberpunk: Edgerunners

• Kaguya-sama: Love Is War – Ultra Romantic

Lots to choose from this past year. Honestly Kaguya-sama was probably the best anime this year, but I said no winners and I stand by that! Ranking of Kings wasn't perfect but it was a breath of fresh air and Bojji is best boy. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners had a decidedly less uplifting story than the other shows listed here but was a spectacular production.

My Favourite Anime Songs This Year

• 裸の勇者 (Naked Hero) by Vaundy - Ranking of Kings OP 2

• SOUVENIR by BUMP OF CHICKEN - Spy × Family Season 2 OP

• The Rumbling by SiM - Attack on Titan: The Final Season Part 2 OP

• Heart wa Oteage by Airi Suzuki - Kaguya-sama: Love Is War – Ultra Romantic ED

Some catchy / hype tunes from 2022!

My Favourite Video Game This Year

• Kirby and the Forgotten Land

I didn't play a lot of video games this year, but this new entry in the Kirby franchise was the best one in awhile. Just a delight to play.

My Favourite Album This Year

• Bad Mode by Hikaru Utada

• Growing Up by The Linda Lindas

• Hold The Girl by Rina Sawayama

More tunes! Also my favourite song from 2022 has to be Talking to Myself by The Linda Lindas.

Pro Wrestling in 2022

Professional wrestling was pretty great in 2022 if you watched the right stuff. AEW was awesome throughout the year despite the backstage drama. Adding up the five AEW PPVs plus the three ROH events made for an all time great year of major shows for Tony Khan.

Things were a bit rough in Japan with the continued clap crowds and the less said about the barren indie landscape the better. Honestly if you aren't an AEW fan the year wasn't fantastic. Things look positive or at least hilarious for 2023 though with Vince being back in charge of WWE and NJPW coming off an awesome Wrestle Kingdom 17.

The year 2022 had its ups and downs for me, but I think it was more positive than negative. I'll be doing my best to make 2023 a great year!

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HonorClub: December 2022 Review

During the post-show media scrum that followed Ring of Honor Final Battle 2022 Tony Khan announced that the new weekly ROH show would be aired on the newly re-launched HonorClub streaming platform. While it has to be considered a pretty big disappointment that he was not able to strike a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery, it did give me an idea for a blog post. So with this post I will take the plunge and see what HonorClub currently has to offer!

The newly re-launched HonorClub is here and although the weekly show hasn't started yet there is tons of Ring of Honor content to watch. The service costs $9.99 USD a month and it seems like the only way to pay for the monthly subscription service is by credit card. There is no free trial period so the card you enter will be charged immediately for the month. Ring of Honor pay-per-views will appear on HonorClub ninety days after they air live and will still have to be bought separately.

The service itself works great although little details are still missing. For example, when you click the "More Info" button after selecting a show to watch a blank text area pops up. I was happy with the sign up process and there are no annoying password rules when creating an account. Functionality like the ability to search for shows or wrestlers works as expected.

I believe the first Ring of Honor PPV I ever bought was Final Battle 2016 so I watched some of that show to test out HonorClub. When watching the video through a browser I did not notice any buffering. Though of course a lot of the materials available to watch on HonorClub weren't exactly recorded on 70mm film the streaming itself works without a hitch.

I also tried out the Android app and tested the service on a TV using my Chromecast. Everything there worked smoothly and I tried watching some early ROH matches. The only issue with a lot of those old matches on HonorClub is the silence that happens during the entrances. Not much you can do about that I guess but it's not a great experience.

As of December 2022 I'd only recommend HonorClub for people who really want to check out some classic Ring of Honor wrestling. The service works great but until the weekly show starts in early 2023 it is a tough sell. There was also talk of partnerships with NJPW and other promotions from Tony Khan during the media scrum following Final Battle so maybe HonorClub will become a streaming service worth subscribing to next year.

Thanks for reading!

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Fall 2022 Anime Season

The Fall season approaches and with it brings new anime. Summer was a bit of a dud in that aspect as I think the only weekly show I followed was Yurei Deco which I wasn't super impressed with. This season however promises an overflowing bounty of riches!

Legend of the Galactic Heroes: Die Neue These Season 4

The original Legend of the Galactic Heroes is my favourite anime and Die Neue These is a pretty decent adaptation. You should definitely watch the original before Die Neue These though!

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

Spy×Family Season 2

A sequel to the hit anime based on the hit manga is here already! Spy×Family's first season aired recently back in the Spring of this year. I'm hoping this season keeps up the quality from the first and brings even more comedic hijinks and spy capers.

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury

A new Gundam series! You can even check out the prologue right now to get a taste. I thought the prologue was good and generally enjoy Gundam so I anticipate keeping up with this one. It should be noted that you do not need to have any previous Gundam knowledge to watch this show.

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

Mob Psycho 100 III

Mob and Reigan are back! This is the third season of the anime based on the manga by One. Mob Psycho has always been quality so I would expect the same from this latest season.

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

Chainsaw Man

Probably the most hyped anime of this season. The manga it's based on is awesome and the trailers released so far have looked great. I have high hopes for this anime to be a break out hit.

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

To Your Eternity Season 2

To Your Eternity is adapted from the manga by A Silent Voice. It is often sad, but always with a tinge of hope which I like. It was only recently that I finished watching the first season so I'll hop right back into watching this one.

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War

Bleach's final arc is finally being adapted into an anime. I'll be honest and say that though it had a few bright spots the arc this anime will be adapting isn't super great. Hopefully Studio Pierrot is able to elevate the material! The Bleach franchise has probably had more downs than ups at this point in terms of quality so it would be nice if this sends off the anime on a high note.

This show has been licensed by Viz and I don't think it has a streaming home yet.

Urusei Yatsura

I'm not entirely sure why Urusei Yatsura is getting a new anime adaptation now, but I'll definitely check it out! I've read some of the manga but haven't watched any of the previous anime from back in the day. I could see a lot of the humour from the original manga / anime not landing the same in 2022 so we will see how this goes!

This show will air in English on Hidive.

Golden Kamuy 4th Season

Golden Kamuy is one of my favourite manga. For the fourth season of the anime a new studio is in charge. I'm looking forward to some great stuff being adapted into anime form.

This show will air in English on Crunchyroll.

This is probably too much to keep up with, but all efforts will be made to follow these shows. The other thing happening this Fall in the anime world is Makoto Shinkai's new movie. Which should be an entertaining watch at the very least. Though who knows when it will be available in English!

Thanks for reading! What shows will you be watching this Fall?

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Fight League Atlantic 4

Hot off the heels of Fight League Atlantic 3, FLA returned for another MMA event. Fight League Atlantic 4 was broadcast live from the Tantramar Civic Center in Sackville, New Brunswick.

Before reading about how the action unfolded you can watch the FLA 4 trailer.

For this pro-am show all fights except the final two were three rounds of three minutes each. The last two bouts were three rounds of five minutes. It should also be noted that when on the ground no strikes to the head were allowed for the amateur bouts. The advanced amateur and professional bouts allowed strikes to the head when grounded.

Garret Rafuse versus Giancarlo Tamayo

135 lbs

Very fast start. Rafuse bolted across the cage to his opponent and strikes were exchanged. Rafuse landed a takedown half way through the first round, but Tamayo got on top with a guillotine. The action then went back to the feet for the rest of the round.

Second round saw more action on the feet until a punch from Rafuse caused a knockdown and the referee stopped the fight soon after. The winner of the first fight by TKO was Garret Rafuse.

Devin Turner versus Mark Palmer

145 lbs

At the start of round one Turner immediately got a clinch, brought the fight to the ground, and went to mount. Turner sunk in an arm triangle and Palmer went unconscious. The winner of the second fight by submission was Devin Turner.

Yannick Jacob versus Charles Gallagher

170 lbs

Jacob got the takedown early with a Sumi Gaeshi throw. He worked in side control for a bit then attempted to go to mount and briefly got caught in half-guard. After freeing his leg Jacob setup a guillotine and finished the choke in mount. The winner of the third fight by submission was Yannick Jacob.

Khalifa Hamilton versus Zach Young

135 lbs

There was some good striking in the first round with Young getting the better of things. In round two Hamilton shot for a takedown, but Young threatened a guillotine and got on top. He stayed on top for the rest of the round. Early in the third round Young landed a big punch to the head of his opponent to end the fight. The winner of the fourth fight by TKO was Zack Young.

David Chapman versus Zach Raymond

145 lbs

Shout out to David Chapman for entering the cage to Tarzan Boy. Round one started with some leg kicks being landed. Chapman got a knockdown and the fight then turned into a brawl for the rest of the round. In round two Raymond landed a knockout punch to end the fight. The winner of the fifth fight by KO was Zach Raymond

Rory Gillis versus Matt Macdonald

175 lbs

There was a brief grappling exchange to start round one. After a bit more action on the feet some work was done on the mat. Gillis probably won the round due to his ground work.

Round two started fast and Macdonald landed some strong shots to the head. Gillis survived and the pace settled down. There was some good ground work near the end of the round by Gillis, but Macdonald probably took the round.

In round three Gillis got the takedown early and displayed strong control throughout the round. This was the first fight tonight to go the distance. The winner of the sixth fight by unanimous decision was Rory Gillis.

Rob Logan versus Kalem Furey

190 lbs

Furey landed a teep kick to start the fight. For most of round one Furey was able to press Logan against the cage, but near the end of the round managed to land some big punches. A minute into round two Furey started landing hard shots again so Logan went for a takedown. Logan wound up in the guard of Furey for the rest of the round.

For round three Logan spent most of the round on top after the fighters went to the ground. The winner of the seventh fight by split decision was Kalem Furey.

Josh Leblanc versus Jimmy Pineault

155 lbs

Both men put in a solid performance for round one. In round two we could really see how composed each fighter was. There was a lot more solid technique than brawling. Leblanc locked in a guillotine and finished the fight in the second round. The winner of the eight fight by submission was Josh Leblanc.

Corey Forsythe versus Sebastian Akerley

145 lbs

This fight got off to a fast start and Akerley got the win with punches. The winner of the ninth fight by TKO was Sebastian Akerley.

Jerico MacPhee versus Jesse Heartz

155 lbs

This was the first pro fight of the night. There was some solid striking to start the first round, but MacPhee brought the fight to the ground. It ended up being an incredible first round that ended with seconds to go when MacPhee sunk in an arm triangle. The winner of the tenth fight by submission was Jerico MacPhee.

Justin Bourgeois versus Patrick Connors

150 lbs

The main event and second pro fight of the night was ended by a short shot from Conners in the first round. The winner of the eleventh fight and main event by KO was Patrick Connors.

FLA 4 was another impressive MMA event from Fight League Atlantic. The production was on point and I was impressed by the skill level on display in each bout. The replay of FLA 4 should be available for purchase on Monday, June 13th, 2022 for $19.99 on the Fight League Atlantic website.

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Fight League Atlantic 3

Fight League Atlantic is a combat sports promotion running events on the east coast of Canada. On April 30th, 2022 they ran their third MMA event, this time in the Moncton Coliseum located in Moncton, New Brunswick.

FLA has been a leader in Atlantic Canadian MMA and Jiu Jitsu events and put on competitions even in the rough times of 2020 and 2021. Their YouTube channel contains videos from their previous events if you would like to check them out.

For this pro-am show all fights except the main event were three round of three minutes each. The main event was three rounds of five minutes.

Dawson Sampson versus Dylan Sheppard

140lbs Catchweight

Dylan Sheppard was the first combatant to enter the FLA cage to start the evening. You can check out an interview with Sheppard here. Sampson entered next and was also previously interviewed by FLA on their YouTube channel. Both fighters came in with a Judo background according to the commentary, and were making their MMA debuts.

First round began with both men exchanging strikes in the middle, but the fight went to the ground quickly. Back on the feet Sheppard landed a big back kick and knocked down Sampson briefly. Round one was action pact and fairly even, but shortly into the second round a huge spin kick was landed by Sheppard to knock out Sampson. This was a really fun fight.

Levi Nickerson versus Jesse Opper

Featherweight

Here is a highlight of one of Opper's Jiu Jitsu matches that took place in a FLA cage. This fight started fast and Opper got Nickerson to the ground. They stand up after a bit of work and Nickerson took some punches to the head. Ended up being a fairly close round. Second round began a bit slower. Opper setup a guillotine on the feet then rolled and finished the guillotine in mount.

Fabian Ixkes versus Mike Macleod

215lbs Catchweight

You can see a previous fight of Ixkes' here. Macleod was interviewed by FLA about two week before this event on their YouTube channel. In the first round of this bout Ixkes caught the kick of Macleod and put him down to the mat twice, but did not follow his opponent to the ground either time. In the second round Ixkes seemed to pull ahead with Macleod being pressured and fighting off his heels for most of the round. The third round saw Macleod starting out aggressive, but it became a repeat of the second. Macleod was bleeding from the mouth (or it looked like from the mouth) quite a bit near the end. Fabian Ixkes won the fight by unanimous decision.

Simon McKeon versus Cam Nelson

Welterweight

Here is a look at Nelson inside the FLA cage as part of a Jiu Jitsu event. For this fight the first round ended up being all that was needed as Nelson hurt McKeon early then finished the fight.

Maria Clinton versus Sarah Wilson

Flyweight

An interview with Clinton can be found here while Wilson can be seen picking up a victory in a Jiu Jitsu match here. First round started and is mostly a striking battle til the end of the round when Wilson brought Clinton to the ground late. In the second round Clinton continued to throw heavy strikes and Wilson seemed to be trying to get a clinch going to take things to the ground. Near the end of the round the action went to the ground, but there was very little time left to work. Third round Wilson attempted to get the back of Clinton and did with some time left. She worked on getting the neck of Clinton, but without the ability to strike her opponent she found it difficult to sink in a choke. Entertaining fight! Maria Clinton won by split decision.

Rob Logan versus Owen Warren

215lbs Catchweight

An interview with Logan can be found here. A lot of strikes landed while against the cage in the first round of this bout. In the second round Logan made a big comeback and won by guillotine.

Luc De Ste Croix versus Jesse Heartz

Lightweight

Here is a FLA interview with Ste Croix. Heartz went for a throw early in the first round, but Ste Croix managed to get his back. Ste Croix then sunk in the rear naked choke and got the tap. Short but exciting fight!

Eric Wilson versus Morgan Rhynes

Featherweight

Here is an interview with Wilson. Crisp strikes were thrown to start to first round of the main event. Rhynes ended up winning this enjoyable scrap by decision.

Fight League Atlantic 3 was a really impressive event with great production values. Every fight was fun and the crowd was really into the proceedings. The replay of this event should be available on Monday, May 2nd for $19.99 on the Fight League Atlantic website. Check it out!

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A Pro Wrestling Take

The last three AEW PPVs are clearly the top three North American pro wrestling PPVs of all time.

AEW figured out their PPVs in 2021. The only PPV they have done so far that I felt was not good was All Out 2020, but previous to All Out 2021 their yearly big four events mainly ranged from good to great. Starting at the 2021 edition of All Out AEW has been delivering on another level.

Just absolutely crushing any show the main roster of WWE has put out. WrestleMania 17? Yes that show did a great job accomplishing what it set out to do and was both the peak and the end of the Attitude Era. However, I don't think its wrestling holds up to the standards of today.

Now don't get me wrong there were some great NXT Takeovers in the past and if you really wanted to argue for one of those as placing quite high on the list of best PPVs that would be legitimate. Personally they would fall out of the top slots for my taste at least.

As an overview of each of the shows, I have made a list of each event's main strengths and weaknesses.

All Out 2021

Strengths

Minoru Suzuki coming out to attack Jon Moxley after Mox's bout with Satoshi Kojima. Plus the preceding match itself was quite good!

Britt Baker versus Kris Statlander was the best match of Britt's title reign in my opinion. Orange Cassidy hyping up Statlander was also a great moment.

Lucha Brothers versus the Young Bucks was both one of the best tag team matches of all time and one of the best cage matches of all time. Even without the ability to use hot tags it was emotional and intense throughout.

CM Punk having his AEW debut match against Darby Allin was a great choice. I re-watched the match for this article and liked it even more than I did when seeing it the first time.

The aftermath of the main event with the debuts of Adam Cole and Bryan Danielson was amazing.

Weaknesses

The main event wasn't quite as good as Kenny and Christian's first match that took place on the inaugural episode of Rampage.

It all came together for AEW in Chicago at All Out 2021. The most criticism I can muster is that the main event was a good match, but not a great one.

Full Gear 2021

Strengths

MJF vs Darby Allin told a great story and started the night off hot!

Christian and Jungle Express vs The Superkliq was a fun brawl both in the ring and in the crowd.

CM Punk vs Eddie Kingston may have been the match of the night. It was super intense even before the bell rang!

Kenny Omega may not have been at full strength but the coronation of Hangman Adam Page was still great.

Weaknesses

The ending of Lucha Bros versus FTR was a tad wonky and I hoped for a little more from Bryan Danielson versus Miro.

Full Gear 2021 showed that AEW's previous PPV was no fluke! Another classic show!

Revolution 2022

Strengths

House of Black versus Death Triangle took place on the hour long Buy In along with Kris Statlander versus Leyla Hirsch and HOOK versus QT Marshall. I think they should stick with the hour long pre-show if they can keep up the quality this one had. With the roster AEW has acquired I'm sure it's possible!

Eddie Kingston versus Jericho started the show and may have been the match of the night. Big match Eddie!

Jurassic Express versus reDRagon versus the Young Bucks exceed my fairly high expectations. Really fun match that continued the story of the Young Bucks and reDRagon while giving Jurassic Express a big win.

Wardlow winning a ladder match that was full of big spots was cool to see. This match setup a lot of future stories as well.

The build. The entrances. The Wardlow turn. The match itself! CM Punk versus MJF in a dog collar match was fantastic.

Jon Moxley versus Bryan Danielson was the brawl that it needed to be and was followed by the AEW debut of William Regal!

The six man tornado tag team match blew away all of my expectations.

For the main event I was very happy Adam Page versus Adam Cole was not a 40 or 50 minute NXT-style "epic". Instead it was a very good main event match.

Weaknesses

Britt Baker versus Thunder Rosa went for way too long and wasn't very good. I'm not entirely sure why this was given so much time when it was setup for Rosa's big title win two weeks later.

Amazing PPVs have now become a pattern with three in a row for AEW!

Final Thoughts

One could argue the shows would be better if they were 30 minutes shorter, but with the big roster AEW has it's understandable. Or maybe if the shows just started an hour earlier in my time zone. I get sleepy by the time one in the morning rolls around!

As for ranking the three events personally I would go:

3. Full Gear 2021

2. Revolution 2022

1. All Out 2021

I can only hope the trend of all time great PPVs continues with the upcoming Double or Nothing 2022!

This work by Thomas Lloyd is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

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