Block? Busted! | AEWeekly #174

Welcome to the #AEWeekly review discussion where PWM contributors reflect on the highlights of the last week in AEW. The eligibility week always includes the most recent episode of Dynamite and Collision, plus any social-media exclusives up until publication.

This week’s contributors are Abel [@loza3.bsky.social] covering Match of the Week, Lauren [@sithwitch.bsky.social] exploring a key Story Beat, Emiliana [@emilianartb.bsky.social] with the Moment of the Week and the MVP, and Sergei [@sergeialderman.bsky.social] editing and organizing it all.

 A page of links to prior installments may be found here: #AEWeekly

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Will Ospreay vs Swerve Strickland 

"Brothers may clash like thunder and lightning, but their bond is unbreakable like a rock."

by Abel.

I never want to hear that All Elite Wrestling doesn't tell stories ever again. That notion was never really true; however, naysayers and haters often use this excuse as to why they criticize AEW. Even at its worst, AEW has always been telling fantastic stories in the ring, compelling stories of what two fighters are willing to go through to win a single match. The perfect example of that came last Wednesday in the form of not only the match of the week, but one of the contenders for match of the year: Will Ospreay versus Swerve Strickland.

The storytelling position of both the men in this match is practically unique in wrestling. This match isn't about a title, a tournament, or even a grudge. The match isn't even between a face and a heel. This is about two brothers fighting for what THEY think is the right way to move forward dealing with the fascist Jon Moxley and the man coming between them, "Hangman" Adam Page. Two men who are willing to put it all on the line to prove they are right. It's similar to two brothers fighting over the player one controller on the Super Nintendo. If you have a sibling, you know how intense those fights can get. As the match started, you could see Swerve mouth, "I love you, brother." Even after the backstage brawl last week, Strickland still has love for his protégé. As impressive as the match was in the ring, the elements that this is telling outside of it might be even more remarkable. 

Few wrestlers in the world could tell this tale. Two wrestlers who love each other have a history, and there was no need for a heel turn for either man. They know each other so well that the reversal and counter spots are not only well timed – on a worker level – but, more importantly, believable. In a match-up between two of the most athletic people in the company, the real highlights of the Summer Blockbuster were the punches and the physicality that both men displayed… Just brutal bumps and hits – Mesmerizing. Also, blood from the nose – whether it was a shoot or not – should be much more prevalent in wrestling than forehead bleeding, as that makes more sense. It was a great touch to the match. 

Another nice touch to the match was when Swerve pulled the trigger on the Dead-Eye. It was a masterclass. It signifies that he has been watching Hangman and studying – very subtle but compelling storytelling. Towards the end of the match, we saw glimpses of what each man was willing to do. Ospreay was willing to crush Swerve with the Tiger Driver '91, and Swerve was willing to blast Ospreay with the Swerve stomp on the apron. 

Unlike last week, the best match of the week opened up the four-hour slate instead of being the buffer between the two shows. The crowd was hot, and it was the perfect setting for the match. AEW is and has been for a while redefining what the main event is and should be. The reason for this is apparent: The story beats that emanate from this match set the tone for the rest of the night. 

The time limit draw, when done effectively, is such a great way to end a match between two stars. In this instance, both men, beaten and bruised, did not want to give up and fight until someone won. The point was not to have a winner or determine who was right or wrong; it was to give us something to bite into and hold onto until All In and for us to hope that something big would happen between the three AEW defenders. 

Ospreay taking the tacked Superkick for Swerve set the tone for both of them to reconcile and POSSIBLE/HOPEFULLY team up to help Hangman. Instead of telling Swerve he loved him too, Ospreay showed it by eating tacks. His sacrifice will undoubtedly prompt Strickland to reconsider his stance on Ospreay and, ultimately, his views on Adam Page. 

This 2-year-long story is now going down the home stretch, and we are in for something special at All In. When the story of AEW is written, this story, and specifically this match, will need to be added to a very special chapter in that tale. 

The Men's World Championship Scene

"All you have to do now is stick the landing."

by Lauren.

As All In 2025 approaches, the disparate storylines of the past year have been connecting and narrowing, particularly around the Men's World Title scene. Fyter Fest and Beach Break in particular took advantage of the longer show times to showcase the varying sides of the fight and their alliances.

On the side of evil, Jon Moxley is as determined as ever that AEW should be forged in his own image, and has taken to taunting Hangman, if not outright kidnapping him, in order to ensure that he gets the fight that he wants at All In. Moxley still values strength above all else, and with Hangman at something of a crossroads, he is taking advantage of that insecurity in order to rile up his opponent. If Moxley is going to lose, he wants to lose to someone that he sees as on his level. And if that opponent is not on his level, then Mox will continue to antagonize and provoke everyone around him until somebody is.

Likewise obsessed with Hangman are the Young Bucks, whose current activities may be the cause of their current Large Blond Man, Kazuchika Okada, stepping away from the Elite for now. The Bucks, seeing that Hangman has become both more stable and more deadly since they booted him from the Elite, have been trying to win him back with attacks on Hangman's arch enemy Swerve Strickland. Unfortunately for them, this has only served to annoy their former friend and drive him further away. After interfering once again – and this time, injuring Hangman's tentative ally Will Ospreay in the process – the Bucks were on the receiving end of Hangman's wrath.

Hangman may not be making friends, but he has been gaining allies. Will Ospreay's continued insistence that Hangman is the hope for a new era of AEW has made a few inroads, with the Opps and the remainder of the Conglomeration rallying against the Death Riders and coming to Hangman's assistance. Swerve, however, has been a hold-out, willing to stand against Mox but unwilling to work with Hangman, still convinced that the Bucks’ actions were done with Hangman's tacit approval. Ospreay's self-sacrifice to defend Swerve from the Bucks at Beach Break seems to have acted as a moment of revelation for both Swerve and Hangman. While Page came to check on his ally and warned the Bucks away from both Ospreay and Swerve, Prince Nana eavesdropped from the door of Ospreay's recovery room. Through the cracked door, Swerve – who was sitting vigil beside his friend Ospreay – admitted to hearing "every word."

Hangman is the axis on which the men's side of AEW is currently tilting. There is less than a month to go between now and All In, and the match that will decide how the next chapter of AEW will go. Swerve Strickland may find himself in the position of kingmaker. And we, the fans, hold our breath as we wait to see which way the chips will fall.

Hangman Adam Page

"If I Speak…"

by Emiliana.

We are back to our regularly scheduled Hangman Appreciation Wednesday, folks! This (yee)H.A.W. I’d like to personally thank the Young Bucks for being the most annoying men alive (laudatory). I would also like to thank Will Ospreay for taking that bullet for Swerve Strickland that he said he would take last week. I would also like to thank Prince Nana for being so quick to the chisme.

I would also like to thank Swerve Strickland for not only looking soooo handsome while being held back against his will, but also for HEARING EVERY WORD!!!!!!!!!

And lastly, I would like to thank Hangman Adam Page, for being so deliciously himself that every wrestler in the world, including the world champion Jon Moxley, wants him so damn bad. (No, I won’t mention Hangman being bound and gagged, because I just don’t think I can manage to be normal and not say something completely out of pocket.)

Look, listen, it just wouldn’t be All Elite Wrestling without some Elite melodrama stirring the plot pot, okay? And I’m sure Lauren has already gone over this so I’m just going to get into my favorite bit of the backstage segment: Hangman told the Young Bucks to stay out of Swerve’s business.

Hangman told the Young Bucks to stay out of Swerve’s business.

Hangman told the Young Bucks to stay out of Swerve’s business.

HANGMAN TOLD THE YOUNG BUCKS TO STAY OUT OF SWERVE’S BUSINESS!!!!!!!!!

If Swerve wasn’t sure (he was) that Hangman was telling the truth about not getting the Young Bucks involved in Swerve’s title match, there was no doubt in his mind by the end of that segment. One thing that Swerve Strickland has never wavered on is honesty. He knows what he is and he knows what he has to do to win, and sometimes that means finding a target and destroying him. He did that with Hangman. But even in the ruthlessness of his feud with Hangman, he didn’t lie. Not like Hangman did. Hangman sacrificed a lot of truths to get to where he is today. But I think that Swerve probably knows that the one person Hangman lies the most to is himself. It’s almost hard not to realize this at this point, watching him for so long. But to other people? He’s as honest as they come. And overhearing that conversation with the Bucks, something Swerve knows wasn’t intentional, I think Swerve has finally rested all doubts he may have had of Hangman.

It was a really “sports entertainment” level scene. Renee was in frame for all of two seconds before she raised her hands in the air and just left, but you can’t deny that this stuff works with the right people involved, and the Elite and Swerve are the right people. They are all so very good at this. Like I don’t know that I can gush enough at how much Swerve has been able to demonstrate his capabilities as a performer on AEW tv. He’s been here a little over three years and he fits this place like a glove. Much like Hangman, he’s grown and gotten exponentially better over time. I’m always floored at the parallels in their journeys.

But I think back to the look on Swerve’s face after he heard what Hangman said. And I can’t really pinpoint it. What is the thinking? What will he do? I think I kind of love that I have no true certainty of the answer.

No matter what, I know that Hangman, along with Swerve and Ospreay – and, hell, even the Young Bucks and the Death Riders – will put on the most enjoyable performance in the build to All In that we’ve ever gotten. And yes, I remember Better Than You BayBay. I still think this will take the cake.

“But, Emi, you talked more about Swerve in this than you did Hangman. Shouldn’t he be the awardee this week?”

You misunderstand me, friend. For everyone’s sake, I cannot type the 500 extra words I want to say about Hangman Adam Page being bound and gagged. Just trust me, bro. He is him.

The AEW Women

"I Told You So"

by Emiliana.

Last week I had the privilege of writing about the AEW women’s roster for Moment of the Week, because I only saw them for what felt like a small moment and they made my week. This week, the women are the MVPs of Summer Blockbuster, because boy howdy, were they all over this show in the absolute best way possible.

From Kris Statlander’s backstage segment with Wheeler Yuta and Marina Shafir, to Willow Nightingale in a mixed multi-man tag with the rest of the Conglomeration against the lovely Taya Valkyrie, to Mercedes with her steak (& sides, this time), Timeless Toni, to an absolute banger of a match between Queen Aminata and Thekla – I heard some people didn’t like this match and they’re wrong – to TayJay against (Penelegan? FordBayne? The SuperBad Megases?) Megan Bayne and Penelope Ford, Julia Hart and Skye Blue again, all these badass babes were all over the four hours of this show. And you know what? This four hour block went by like the snap of my fingers. I barely even felt it going into hour four – but don’t tell WBD or Tony Khan that.

It is genuinely mind-boggling to think that I could have had this many women on the show last week, but I didn’t for some reason. This show was ten times more entertaining than last week, and yes, a big part of the reason is because I got to see so many badass women on my screen. You cannot go wrong with more women.

Since I can’t talk about them all too in-depth (Hangman brainrot has consumed me), I’ll talk about the bit that I liked best: Kris has got some weird stuff going on. Despite their match against each other a few weeks prior, her and Willow are still not on the same page. And you know what? That’s okay. Sometimes you don’t get your best friend back. I had to learn that the hard way.

But what I loved the most about that backstage segment with Kris is the callback to what the predecessor of the Conglomeration used to be: The Best Friends. It was a happy world, a beautiful world. Now we are a-shambles. When Yuta brought them up, I lit up like a child on Christmas, because I remembered those BTE segments where Kris Stat would choke him out to teach him a wrestling lesson. I remembered the way Trent Baretta never trusted Yuta or liked him, for god knows what reason (maybe he was right – because Yuta is a little shit). More importantly, I love that even though Kris has no one, she’s still probably doing better than Wheeler F’n Yuta. Because that guy does not “make good choices,” and it’s the hypocrisy of the statement that got to me, and I think Kris understood that, as well.

Toward the end of the segment, Kris checked Yuta’s shoulder like the older sister she is and walked past him, only to end up face to face with Marina Shafir. If this is how we get Kris Stat back into the main storyline of AEW, I’m all for it. If this is how Willow comes to Stat’s rescue, I’m all for it. If this is how we neutralize Marina so Hangman Adam Page can win the AEW men’s world championship and restore the soul of AEW, hey – I’m all for it. If this is how I get more Kris Statlander on my tv screen – you already know, I’m all for it.