Another year has gone, and AEW’s 2022 has nearly wrapped up. It has been an up and down year for sure in the company, but for the most part their in-ring content has still been very strong, and that has carried many of their shows throughout the year.
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Their PPVs and TV Specials have had a varying quality at times, though some shows have been far better than others. Whether it be great segments, big matches, or huge title changes, AEW have done their best to upkeep the reputation they have formed for themselves over the last few years.
18 Dynamite & Rampage: Fyter Fest
Fyter Fest has become a yearly tradition for AEW, and in 2022 it was a two week, four show event. The first episode of Dynamite was incredible, with Wardlow vs Orange Cassidy, Jon Moxley vs Konosuke Takeshita, and Swerve In Our Glory winning the Tag Team Titles.
The following three shows weren’t as strong, with two bland and unnoteworthy episodes of Rampage, and an average Dynamite show main evented by an awful Chris Jericho vs Eddie Kingston match. These three shows let the opening one down.
17 Dynamite: St. Patrick’s Day Slam
It must be said that on paper this looked like a huge show, but only Adam Cole & reDRagon vs Adam Page & Jurassic Express really delivered.
Thunder Rosa winning the AEW World Title was a great moment, but it came after a very uninspiring steel cage match. Scorpio Sky vs Wardlow was also poor too, with a screwy finish. The JAS had a strong segment, but it came on an up and down show.
16 Dynamite & Rampage: Thanksgiving Eve & Black Friday
AEW’s Thanksgiving shows were a mixed bag, though matches such as The Elite vs Death Triangle, FTR vs Top Flight, and Chris Jericho vs Tomahiro Ishii were all superb.
There were some duds, with Rampage not being overly impressive, and a lackluster tag team match which saw Britt Baker and Jamie Hayter defeat TayJay and Willow Nightingale & Skye Blue.
15 Dynamite: Quake By The Lake
This was an up and down show, bookended by a brutal Coffin Match between Darby Allin and Brody King, and a blockbuster World Title main event between Jon Moxley and Chris Jericho.
The middle of the show unfortunately dipped with not much happening.
14 Dynamite: Anniversary
Dynamite’s Anniversary show had some strong in-ring action, but nothing really wowed on the night. Wardlow vs Brian Cage, Hangman vs Rush, and MJF vs Wheeler Yuta were fun, but not amazing.
It was a solid show up and down the card, though the main event with Sammy Guevara standing tall received some criticism due to his real-life fight with Andrade.
13 Dynamite: 3 Year Anniversary
Things kicked off with Wardlow destroying Shawn Spears in what was more of a segment than a match, but it was still fun. The build to Forbidden Door also began with a surprise appearance of United Empire. Samoa Joe and Kyle O’Reilly had a phenomenal match, with other bouts on the card strong too.
The face off between CM Punk and Adam Page was a little awkward, and for a go-home show it wasn’t overly enthralling.
12 Dynamite & Rampage: Beach Break
Beach Break was up and down for AEW. Things started off with a five-star ladder match (as rated by Dave Metlzer, per cagematch.net) between Cody Rhodes and Sammy Guevara, and CM Punk and MJF had a great back and forth promo too.
The Lights Out Match between Orange Cassidy and Adam Cole was a let down, with the rest of Dynamite and Rampage being just “fine”.
11 Dynamite: Wild Card Wednesday
Wild Card Wednesday was dominated by the Owen Hart tournament. Johnny Elite’s debut was good, but only because fans thought it was Johnny Gargano appearing at the show. Maki Itoh was an underwhelming surprise too.
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Kyle O’Reilly vs Rey Fenix and Adam Page vs Konosuke Takeshita were both stunning bouts.
10 Dynamite: Title Tuesday
AEW loaded up this show with four huge title matches, though not everything was perfect. Death Triangle vs Best Friends was explosive fun, Toni Storm and Hikaru Shida had a technical and physical battle, Chris Jericho vs Dalton Castle was hugely entertaining, but the main event ended awkwardly when Adam Page got concussed against Jon Moxley.
MJF’s promo with William Regal was the highlight of the show though, and elevated it in a huge way.
9 Dynamite: Winter Is Coming
MJF vs Ricky Starks was a strong main event between two young stars, Death Triangle and The Elite put on another strong performance in their best of seven series, and Action Andretti had the biggest upset in AEW history by defeating Chris Jericho.
The rest of the show was all good, though some matches did feel a little basic and by the book.
8 Dynamite & Rampage: Road Rager
The Dynamite portion of Road Rager was top class, with Dax Harwood vs Will Ospreay and Young Bucks vs Jurassic Express in a ladder match. Other undercard matches were solid too.
Rampage wasn’t so good, with pretty much nothing to shout about.
7 Double Or Nothing
The distraction of the MJF controversy did damage this show quite a lot, with it slow to start. Wardlow vs MJF, Hardys vs Young Bucks, and Jade Cargill vs Anna Jay kicked the show off in a lethargic manner.
The Owen Hart Finals were underwhelming, but things kicked into gear for a thrilling second half of the show, with CM Punk vs Adam Page, Anarchy In The Arena, Darby Allin vs Kyle O’Reilly, and a three-way Tag Title match.
6 All Out
If it weren’t for the post-show press conference, this PPV would be considered a lot better. Without that, the show was pretty good, although it opened with an oddly booked ladder match.
The Trios Title finals were marvelous, and Swerve In Our Glory vs The Acclaimed was a show-stealer. CM Punk and Jon Moxley was a great main event, but the rest of the event was quite standard for a PPV.
5 Dynamite: Fight For The Fallen
There was a lot to love about this show, with the FTW Title segment being a highlight. Hook won the gold in a shock, followed by a heel turn from Powerhouse Hobbs on Ricky Starks.
Elsewhere, Jon Moxley defeated Rush in a great opener, and the main event between Daniel Garcia and Bryan Danielson was a technical masterpiece.
4 Dynamite & Rampage: Grand Slam
AEW produced a PPV quality card for Grand Slam, with both Dynamite and Rampage delivering two nights of super fun action. Chris Jericho vs Claudio Castagnoli, Acclaimed vs Swerve In Our Glory 2, and Jon Moxley vs Bryan Danielson for the vacant AEW World Title were all brilliant.
It was a great way to bounce back from the disappointing All Out PPV.
3 Full Gear
After some up and down shows, AEW pulled out Full Gear, and it was a wonderfully constructed PPV. Jack Perry vs Luchasaurus, The Elite vs Death Triangle, the ROH Title four-way, Jamie Hayter vs Toni Storm, and The Acclaimed vs Swerve In Our Glory all provided something special.
MJF won the AEW World Title in a great main event, though in retrospect, having William Regal turn heel was the wrong move given he would leave AEW weeks later.
2 Revolution
Revolution was a tremendous PPV event, with matches like Eddie Kingston vs Chris Jericho, CM Punk vs MJF, Jon Moxley vs Bryan Danielson, Adam Cole vs Adam Page, and a triple threat Tag Title match all offering match of the night candidates.
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Despite a long runtime, the pacing of this show was excellent, with only a few duds such as Britt Baker vs Thunder Rosa. This show delivered on nearly every account.
1 Forbidden Door
Forbidden Door is in contention for the best wrestling show of the year full stop. Stars from AEW and NJPW clashed in a night of world class in-ring work.
This had great multi-man matches, star power in the main event bouts, and many intriguing matchups, in addition to surprise appearances to cap it all off.
