#the bastard pac

[kayfabe-is-king]

In all seriousness though, these numbers flashed onscreen during the new Death Riders’ World’s End teaser.

Time to put our collective thinking caps on to figure out what they mean. Or I could be reading way too much into things. Per usual.

[questintheskies]

[likesummerrainn]

AEW Dynamite | 12.11.24

[gh0st-patr0l]

This is Pac with the death riders to me

[throesofincreasingwonder]

The Blackpool Combat Brothers! (+ a secret under the cut)

The PAC brother(s)!

[chiraltalkswrestlez]

[malakaie]

House of Black + pacts

[justagirlandhersims]

I truly believe this new version of the Blackpool Combat Club is what creative hoped The Elite angle would be. While Matt and Nick are a great tag team, their strength as heels is comedy (side note - Okada has turned out to have some pretty good comedic chops as well). If you're trying to "take over" a promotion, can we really take you seriously if you're wearing your weight in grandma's pearls? If anything, the only one who seems to have understood the assignment in The Elite is Jack Perry.

On the other hand, the new BCC is brutal. They have a mission and are singularly focused in accomplishing it. They have shown in a short time how far they are willing to go to "save" AEW. Moxley has always been known for his mastery in violence, while Matt and Nick's heel personas have always been more "douchebag frat bro". What a takeover needs is ruthlessness, violence, brutality - all the things that Moxley, Claudio, PAC and Marina (who is finally being used properly!) have in spades. Wheeler is their newest disciple and his turn was telegraphed beautifully by this shot:

Wheeler, who has been by Bryan's side. Who was forced to watch the BCC turn on his hero. Who was struggling to understand how Claudio (who lets be honest is his tough love father figure) could "abandon" a club Wheeler gave his blood, sweat and tears to. That Wheeler is reaching out for help (after being attacked viciously by the aforementioned father figure) while Bryan plays to the audience. Did Bryan eventually go and check on Wheeler? Yes. But I think by that time, the damage (both physically and emotionally) had already been done.

Now we come to the end of Wrestledream last night. This is one of the final shots before the PPV went off the air. Why? Because these are the people who will be leading the fight against this new Blackpool Combat Club. Who do we have?

Darby Allin - the handpicked successor of Sting. The very Sting who led the charge in World Championship Wrestling against the New World Order. Darby has had a tough time of it lately (both in and out of the ring - who gets hit by a bus and then goes to a play afterwards?). He has been a little lost now that Sting has retired. He was even handed his first coffin match loss. Moxley pretty much offered him a spot in the new BCC but Darby doubled down and pledged his loyalty to AEW. His fight against Brody King last night showed he is willing and able to go against seemingly insurmountable odds... and win.

Orange Cassidy - this man has become the heart of AEW. From a gimmick to hands down the best International champion this company has had. That speech (not a promo, a speech... in ring and heartfelt) he gave before his match against Moxley for the international belt at All Out last year? That was when we saw the beginnings of Orange Cassidy, the leader. This year, he has been betrayed by not one but TWO of his best friends. He knows what it is like to believe in a faction, in a group of friends and have that blow up in your face. He has clawed his way back with The Conglomeration (which, who knew that would turn out to be the faction we all needed right now), which shows his resilience. And much like Darby, he has never turned his back on AEW.

Daniel Garcia - I'm going to be honest... I didn't like him at the beginning. I especially didn't like him under the Jericho Appreciation Society (but the JAS was a joke from the get go, so I can't really fault him for that). The dancing... I could have done without. BUT I understand why the audience loved it. He has the same amount of potential Bryan did when William Regal started mentoring him. I'm not just stating my opinion - Bryan himself has said as much. While MJF betraying him wasn't that surprising or life changing, it opened Daniel's eyes to the "worst" part of AEW (kayfabe wise, not in real life - MJF is meant to be the personification of the overblown ego of a wrestler). His contract came up and what did he do? He recommitted to AEW and when Bryan was attacked, he came out to help. Because like so many younger wrestlers in the back, Bryan is his hero.

Hook - Let's be honest. Hook could have coasted on his father's name and reputation. TAZ is so well respected (and rightfully so), we all know doors were opened for Hook that may not have been available to others. But unlike a lot of nepo babies in the business, Hook has put in the work to become a solid technical wrestler. He doesn't have the ego one would associate with a nepo baby. He happily looks up to and takes mentorship from those around him (except Jericho but ignoring anything Jericho says is a sound life strategy). And like his father, he has put his lot completely in with All Elite Wrestling.

Not pictured: Eddie Kingston. Eddie can turn out to be such an amazing addition to this storyline. Think about it. His brother from another mother Jon has aligned himself fully (and brutally) with his mortal enemy Claudio. Bryan spent a good month and change belittling Eddie. At the same time, Eddie loves wrestling. Anyone with half a brain knows how much this man lives and breathes this sport. So what will he do when he returns? Will he set aside his hatred of Claudio and align with Jon? Will he avenge the honor of someone who called him the "king of the bums"? Or will he (and this is what I think will happen) become just as much a leader of the locker room as Bryan has been since he came to AEW?

Now finally, let's talk about Bryan's last run. He has said in recent interviews that Tony Khan wanted him to have that Wembley moment. That was not a creative decision he made. TK did it out of respect and I can understand his reasoning. But Bryan didn't want his end to be in service of himself. Instead, he picked Moxley to "retire" him. He used his final match to set up a civil war within AEW - a storyline which will bear a lot of fruit in the coming year. This will also set him up to come back (once this poor man's body gets the rest and recovery it so desperately needs) as a leader for the next generation. He will be the new William Regal but without the darkness that Regal freely admits he carried within himself.

Every single person involved in this angle deserves a standing ovation. Not just for their wrestling prowess but for the emotional weight they added to it. Wheeler alone deserves some sort of award for the turmoil he's shown week in and week out since All Out. You could hear the tears in Excalibur's voice as he tried to finish his duties as commentator. The look on Bryce's face when he called the match for Moxley... that hurt my heart. Darby struggling against so.much.tape in a vain attempt to help Bryan. Hell, his face as he came to the conclusion (whether right or wrong) that this wouldn't have happened if he beat Moxley.

What really got me though? The screams of "no" when Wheeler stood up after checking on Bryan. He hadn't even done anything yet but we all saw the train wreck happening in slow motion. That's how you know a story has been told well.

I for one cannot wait to see where all of this takes us. I have been a wrestling fan for over 30 years. I was watching live when the nWo formed. To see a new, fresh and even more brutal take on that iconic storyline is an absolute treat for me.

So thank you, Bryan. Thank you Blackpool Combat Club. Thank you Orange Cassidy, Darby and Private Party. Thank you to every single person who brought this story to life.

[thotferatu]

i truly believe that pac MUST be wet in order to be pac otherwise he becomes a very well behaved british man in a sweater vest

claudio probably has to carry around a little misting bottle to ensure that pac never dries out

[muffin-man-marq-lynch]

If people are wondering where the name 'The Death Riders' came from and just googled it quickly they might think it's a reference to an old American cowboy pulp fiction novel that inspired a graphic T-shirt line. While that book has some great visuals, I'm positive Mox's version of The Death Riders is a deeper cut that is unfortunately much harder to find info about online in 2024.

The 1976 Documentary Death Riders follows a band of stunt men as they push the boundaries traveling on the 1974 state fair circuit.

There was a glut of stunt performer films through the 1970s & early 80s from the popularity of TV shows like The Dukes of Hazzard, and Films like Bullit, but Death Riders differed from others in a handful of ways, being directed and produced by the stuntmen involved, emphasizing the youth of most of the stuntmen involved (being 17-18 on average) and dedicating the film to the memory of all the stuntmen who had died, giving the final project a feeling between 'Jackass' & the final montage of 'The Fall'.

The constant push for escalation, adrenaline, and a good show at the risk of personal safety is emphasized, with ridiculous world records shown on the film, as well as failed stunts with long, lingering shots on the pain that follows that does not let the audience avoid the consequences of what they wanted to see, and just sheer insanity full of fire, glass, and nudity not seen on other Hollywood stuntman films.

Preview on Vimeo:

The entire film can be found here, though some scenes may be mildly edited for the filters:

[lghockey]

I love how Pac still doesn't wear clothes... he's just in his trunks. So cunt

[kayfabe-is-king]

Why is the locker room waiting in the parking lot like this scene from Airplane for Moxley’s Murder Club?

[questintheskies]

[likesummerrainn]

AEW Collision | 05.18.24

[twiggy-ink]

at the Providence collision taping people kept yelling Cesaro and Neville at Claudio and Pac and someone in our section screamed “STOP DEADNAMING WRESTLERS”

[princessxpunk]

What is Orange Cassidy thinking?!