Five questions for AEW Full Gear
AEW has one of its biggest shows on Saturday night. I've got some questions.
I kept up with every All Elite Wrestling (AEW) pay-per-view show for many years. That was easy when they held four major shows a year. The pace of a big show each quarter was perfect, at least for me.
Now there are too many shows. I'm not even sure the exact number each year at this point. They might be monthly. Sometimes they feel more frequent than that. And while those extra pay-per-views deliver some great moments, I finally hit the point where I don't try to watch every single one of them.
I'm still in for all of the original AEW pay-per-views, however. One of those shows is Full Gear, and the 2024 edition is taking place on Saturday night in Newark, New Jersey.
In today's Kanefabe wrestling newsletter
AEW has a big show this weekend. It's one of their flagship pay-per-views, dating back to its first year in business. Let's take a look at Full Gear and some questions we can ponder as we enjoy the show.
I'm glad you're here. On we go.
Will the Don Callis family take over?
There is a lot happening with this heel group. Konesuke Takeshita is defending his International Championship against Ricochet. That match might only be rivaled in terms of showstopping potential by the other matchup involving the Don Callis family: Kyle Fletcher versus his old buddy Will Ospreay.
I think we're in the early phases of whatever story is unfolding with this group. Maybe new members will join. Maybe current members will defect. Right now, they are ascending and establishing themselves as a frightening group of big bads (the addition of Brian Cage and Lance Archer as a tag team was such a good touch).
The main story for the AEW Championship doesn't currently involve this group (more on that in a moment). But I think that's where things are going in the long term. I'm curious how those stories will move along on Saturday night.
A highlight of this show's build for me: Kyle Fletcher losing his mind in this promo about how he isn't the same as Will Ospreay.
Which direction is our favorite unhinged cowboy going?
Hangman Adam Page has fallen into the darkness. As the main character of AEW since its inception five years ago, the Hangman’s stories have played out over months and years. He was the hero of the company’s story for its first two years of existence, rising all the way to a victory for the AEW world championship in an awesome moment.
In recent months, Hangman has taken a turn in the other direction. His feud with Swerve Strickland was his undoing. The current version of Hangman is a broken man who cannot make sense of his downfall. Hangman is mad at the fans. He's mad at the locker room. He's just mad.
At one point he was out to get the AEW championship back. Now he’s just on an all-encompassing quest for revenge. What’s not clear at this point in the Hangman’s quest is widespread or aimless.
This has provided an interesting wrinkle as Hangman has moved on from his feud with Swerve. His opponents know he’s in a spiral. Jay White, for example, has managed to get under Hangman’s skin. He already beat him once. He has taunted Hangman about their historical win-loss record.
So, what happens with the rematch between Hangman and Switchblade on Saturday night? Will our favorite cowboy get a win and kickstart a comeback? Or will he continue his fall from grace?
Even if he’s not around the championship picture right now, I’m very interested to see the next chapter for Hangman and AEW’s story.
Do the AEW Tag Team Champion belts fit in fanny packs?
The current trend is moving away from people actually wearing the championship belts. Some people carry their belt, a familiar alternative. Some have a lacky carry the belt. But the newest trend, and one that is central to the action at this weekend's pay-per-view, is putting the belt in a bag or case of some kind.
Jon Moxley has the AEW World Championship in a case (and has Marina Shafir carrying it for him, to boot). Orange Cassidy wants to put that same championship in his JanSport backpack. And then, of course, the Outrunners have their fanny packs and a title shot as part of the four-way match for the AEW Tag Team Championship.
AEW commentator Nigel McGuinness wondered about this pressing issue that is surely at the top of everyone's minds:
"I’m not sure there’s room in their fanny packs for those title belts."
If you're anything like me, and I know I am, then I believe that the Outrunners could find a way.
How many bites will there be?
More than five, less than 10. Lock that in. See if Draft Kings offers an over/under prop bet for the number of times that one wrestler bites another wrestler on the head.
Weirdos.
Is Kenny Omega coming back?
The thread running through the show's main event and touching a few other stories is the takeover of AEW by the Death Riders, the new name for the group led by Jon Moxley. Through means of violence and bullying that would make any Human Resources professional squirm, this faction claims that they are challenging AEW's locker room to step up and restore the company to the heights where it belongs.
The group of wrestlers responding to this threat represents a combination of AEW originals and more recent additions. They have been led by day-one stars like Orange Cassidy and Darby Allin, with the former taking the first shot at Moxley this weekend.
A question lingers over this whole storyline: where is the core group who formed the company in the first place? What are the EVPs going to do? Where is the Elite?
Cody Rhodes is in WWE. As we already discussed, Hangman Adam Page has gone full unhinged cowboy. The Young Bucks fled the scene, for now, with a bit of a tease of a babyface turn to defend AEW after they spent the last few months as politicking heels who abused their power.
That was an intriguing wrinkle when the Bucks left the backstage area a couple weeks ago and were called out by Christopher Daniels, the assistant to the general manager (or whatever his title is). He pleaded with them, asking if they were going to do something.
They weren't interested in defending the company, at least not right now. The door was certainly left open for a redemption arc where the Bucks come back as good guys.
But I don't think that's the return that most fans are looking for. Because we haven't talked about the final member of the original Elite.
Kenny Omega has been out for months. One thing that has come into focus for me in that time is how much Kenny has distinguished himself as a superstar on another level than most of his peers. That might seem obvious to some fans, and it's probably been true for the company's entire run. But I've really been feeling it during this most recent absence.
Omega represents AEW and its essence as a company. He and Moxley battled in one of the company's original rivalries. To that point: the company's very first show ended with the image of Moxley standing over Omega. The pieces are in place to bring this story full circle, especially with the plot focused on the soul of the company.
Maybe it won't be at this show. And maybe it won't even be Kenny who ultimately dethrones Moxley as champion (looking at you, Darby). But the setup is there if AEW wants to deliver a huge moment with one of its headlining originals making his return to defend his company from a hostile takeover.
I'll be wearing one of my Kenny Omega shirts, just in case.
