#44: Keith Lee & Swerve Strickland vs. The Acclaimed, AEW All Out (9/4/2022).
This is for Keith & Swerve's AEW World Tag Team Championships.
Once upon a time, I hated The Acclaimed. I remember them as early as their days on AEW Dark, and I thought they were annoying and they sucked. I am proud to say that times have changed. I fucking love The Acclaimed! And I believe that new found love for them started with this match.
Swerve tries for a takedown and Anthony Bowens counters with one of his own. The crowd is white hot for The Acclaimed. I cannot stress how hot they are. Swerve takes control of the leg, then goes for an armbar. Half crab attempt. Bowens is up and he tries for a monkey flip and Swerve tries for a half crab again. Swerve with a hurricanrana. Keith is in, and Max Caster tags in as well.
Side headlock to Keith from Caster. He easily escapes. Caster tries a shoulder tackle and it fails. Keith goes to toss him and Caster lands on his feet. Uppercuts to Keith, who just throws him in the corner. Hurricanrana from the top rope by Caster. Caster tries a sunset flip and Lee is able to power through. Both Caster and Bowens knock Keith and Swerve down. They scissor with Billy, and the crowd explodes.
Huge chants of "Oh, scissor me Daddy." Lee fakes a hand shake and beats the hell out of Caster. Allegedly, I hear this is the moment where the face/heel dynamic of the match was changed on the fly. Sliding side splash from Lee gets a 1 count. Diving uppercut to the back of Caster by Swerve. Double handed chop by Lee in the corner. Shoulder tackle to Caster in the corner, and Lee places him on the top rope. Caster fights back with a diving Cutter. He finally tags in Bowens. He clotheslines Swerve a few times. Rip cord neckbreaker. A forearm to the head, and a back elbow to Lee.
Bowens tries to dive off the middle and his knee buckles. A Famouser connects flush, but his knee is fucked. Swerve sends him to the outside, causing further damage. A nice Baseball slide dropkick right to the knee by Swerve. He gets right in Billy's face, who's getting pissed. In the Ring, Swerve targets the knee. He lifts him up and drops the knee on Lee's leg.
Sick sounding double chop in the corner, and Lee tosses Bowens across the Ring. Bowens connects with a few forearms, and he goes to the top rope. He flies off with a neckbreaker from the middle rope. More damage to the knee. Caster is in. Body drop to Swerve, followed by a clothesline. He dives onto Swerve, and comes off the top rope with a crossbody to Lee for 2.
The Acclaimed double team Lee in the corner, and Caster tries to lift Lee. He escapes and he accidentally hits the Pounce (Period) to Swerve. A running knee to Lee by Bowens only gets 2. Bowens strikes Lee and gears up for another strike, but his knee gives out. Lee kicks it out from Under him. Lee goes to the top, and Caster meets him up there. Bowens joins him, and they chop Lee. Superplex connects. Swerve tags in and hits the Double Stomp to Bowens, and he kicks out! The crowd explodes. They are helping this match a lot.
Swerve with the Half Crab to Bowens. Dropkick by Caster from the top to break it up, but Swerve falls into Bowens leg from it. Swerve with a kick to the side of Casters head, and it only gets 2. Bowens stops Swerve from an attack. He places him draping off the apron, and Caster hits the Mic Drop. Lee with a double chop, and he gets in Billy's face. Thrust kick to Lee, and Caster hits a Death Valley Driver to Lee! Caster hits the Mic Drop to Swerve, and Lee just barely breaks it up. The crowd absolutely ate on that nearfall.
Swerve brings Caster to the apron with a Death Valley Driver. He chops Bowens leg and hits a backbreaker. Huge forearm to Swerve. Lee tags in, and Swerve accidentally kicks him in the face. Bowens rolls Lee up, and he still kicks out. DDT off the middle rope to Swerve by Bowens. Lee counters the Famouser and lifts Bowens up in a powerbomb positon for Swerve to hit the Double Stomp for the win to retain the titles.
So, I don't hate this. I certainly don't like it as much as I did in 2022. I don't think it's a bad match by any stretch. The biggest issue I had with this was something I've really noticed since I finished researching for my wrestling book "King's Road." I really pick up on when a match feels choreographed. Like, sure. All of wrestling is a choreographed dance, right? But the great ones feel organic, and natural.
This didn't, at least for a good chunk of it. It felt like it was going move to move, like they were following straight off of a script. Still, the work was good. The nearfall at the end, after Caster's Mic Drop in the ring, was extraordinary. I bit on it just like the fans in Chicago did that night. This match, with its flaws in my eyes, did wonders for the Acclaimed. They were made men after this match. Of course, Keith Lee and Swerve are fucking awesome, too.