AEW's biggest strength is the talent enjoying their time working for the company with many feel they are being used to the best of their abilities. Former WWE talents like Jon Moxley and Miro feel they are hitting their groove. Homegrown stars like Darby Allin, Britt Baker and Ricky Starks are thriving with their bigger opportunities.
However, one noteworthy name has not been used to the best of his skill set. Pentagon Jr. is easily one of the best wrestlers in the world at his peak. AEW has dropped the ball of making the most of him throughout the first two years. Time will tell when or if things change, but Pentagon may have the biggest gripe of anyone on the roster today.
Pentagon Jr. Got Off To A Hot Start
AEW introduced the Lucha Brothers of Rey Fenix and Pentagon Jr. in one of the company’s first major programs against the Young Bucks. The two electric tag teams lit up every show they faced off on in the set-up of AEW before Dynamite was launched. Fans treated both Fenix and Pentagon like huge superstars and AEW seemed ready to make them major players as well.
The feud between the two brother tag teams peaked with a spectacular ladder match at All Out 2019. Pentagon and Fenix each joined AEW in the early stages after ending their Impact Wrestling runs. Both wrestlers had incredible stints in Impact, especially Pentagon winning the Impact World Championship for a short run at the top.
All the momentum from Impact to the first few months of AEW should have led to a bigger run for Pentagon. The Lucha Brothers joining Pac to form Death Triangle felt like they were going to do something special, but the pandemic prevented Pentagon and Pac from being AEW regulars for a few months.
Pentagon has still been finding his footing in the promotion since returning with quite a few different roles. Anyone to start watching AEW during the first few PPVs would be shocked to see the inconsistent use of the well-rounded superstar.
Inconsistent AEW Booking Hurt Pentagon Jr.
One of the biggest negatives about Pentagon Jr.’s current position in AEW is that he seems to jump back and forth between roles. There have been the switches from face to heel too many times to keep track of in a short span. Pentagon and Fenix aligned with Eddie Kingston as a heel unit when Pac was unable to travel, but they eventually reunited Death Triangle as faces.
The singles work of Pentagon also provided confusion when challenging Kenny Omega as a face but then attacking fan favorite Orange Cassidy. AEW struggled at figuring out if to use him alone or with his teammates, along with the face vs heel dynamic. Things appeared to be trending upwards when Pentagon entered a short feud with Cody Rhodes.
The promo of Pentagon was translated by his new manager Alex Abrahantes when insulting Cody’s pregnant wife Brandi and their unborn child at the time. AEW sadly dropped the feud after one match and made Pentagon a face afterward. The current position sees him uniting with Eddie Kingston in tag matches but also with Death Triangle in trios action. Few fans can keep up with Pentagon’s role in AEW, which is the last thing you want from a valuable asset.
Pentagon Jr. Has Untapped Potential
Pentagon Jr. always receives a huge pop from the crowd and does a great job regardless of the booking woes. That makes it more frustrating that he’s among the few top AEW talents to not get treated as such. The addition of Alex Abrahantes adds a fun dynamic between the two to make up for his lack of English in singles programs.
AEW does get a slight pass for doing a good job of having so many names in upper card spots, but that should never come at the expense of a hot commodity. Pentagon Jr. would attract huge interest from WWE and the top independent promotions if he were to hit the free-agent market when his contract expires.
The addition of the Rampage show should create more opportunities for talents who deserve more. Time is ticking for AEW to make the most of their spectacular luchador. Pentagon is unlike any other performer in wrestling and has true main event potential. A promotion reliant on knowing how to book impressive talents must find a way to use the underrated star better.