Ah, the fall of 2021. It was perhaps the most promising time in the short history of AEW, especially up to that point. In the weeks prior to the first-ever AEW Grand Slam in New York, the promotion had added CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, and Adam Cole to its roster. It’s safe to say a lot has changed in the years since, as none of those three men are currently active performers in the company. Irvin Rivera/Getty Images

Including matches and commentary, these two shows had nine wrestlers who would go on to leave AEW for WWE, plus a few more that are rumored to possibly head there eventually with Private Party and Chris Jericho. Being the number-two promotion in the United States, it’s inevitable that you’re going to have wrestlers join the bigger company, and it’s actually a good thing for the business in the long-run.

Still, there is a part of me that thinks it’s a shame that Cody Rhodes left, and that the House of Black never fully took off in the way it could have. CM Punk’s departure eventually became an inevitability, but just weeks after his big return, his future in AEW seemed to show nothing but promise. His opponent on this night? None other than Powerhouse Hobbs, who just debuted in WWE as Royce Keys. Then there are the Lucha Brothers, Rey Fenix and Penta, who wrestled in a decent eight-man tag on “Rampage” and can now both be found in WWE.

Beyond Punk, in my eyes, Ricky Starks is the biggest loss that AEW missed the boat on. While he has yet to get his big break on WWE’s main roster as Ricky Saints, I have little doubt that he will, and I think he has a massive future ahead of him.

Good for Saints, but not so good for AEW, where he could’ve been one of their top stars.

The main event of “Rampage” is far from the classic that is Danielson vs. Omega, but there’s something to be said for a good old-fashioned brawl. I’m especially onboard if said brawl includes some combination of Jon Moxley and Eddie Kingston, and this one most certainly does. Whether they’re partners or opponents, Moxley and Kingston have a chemistry that’s hard to match.

The wrestlers get straight into the action, with Suzuki challenging Moxley to a steel chair battle right when the match begins. Suzuki comes out on top of that particular interaction, and they transition straight into a contest of chops between Suzuki and Kingston in the center of the ring.

There’s some kendo stick action, Kingston breaks out a table, and Suzuki sends him through it, all in quick succession. The match continues on at this pace for another 10 minutes, ending before it fully kicks into high gear.

Not that the match is tame (consider Archer at one point hangs Moxley on the ropes with a belt), but it doesn’t feature the amount of violence expected from a Lights Out match, especially compared to some of the other matches bearing that same stipulation. It’s a fun bout nonetheless, and as a bonus, it features Ricky Starks on commentary before things became more complicated for the wrestler in AEW.

I understand the thought process behind putting Omega vs. Danielson on first. There are time constraints to think about, and opening with that match will ensure you get as many people as possible to tune in right away. However, looking back, nothing else on the show reaches the level of the opening bout, and how could it?

It’s one thing when you’re watching a show live and you have no real idea of what’s going to, or what could, happen next. Watching the show back now, I felt very aware that nothing was going to top the first match, which makes the remaining three-and-a-half hours slightly more of a chore to get through.

There are definitely good matches throughout Grand Slam, but there’s a reason bookers usually slot their most anticipated match into the main event. Looking back years later, rather than a finely-crafted card that builds to a stellar main event, the show gets the best part out of the way first and leaves you thinking, “Oh, yeah, and then this happened, too.”