Collision
Date: August 5, 2023
Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Greenville, South Carolina
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Nigel McGuinness

It’s another big title night as FTR defends the Tag Team Titles against Big Bill/Brian Cage and Ricky Starks challenges CM Punk for….whatever we’re calling Punk’s title. Ricky Steamboat will be the guest referee, which sounds like a way to boost things up for the local crowd. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

CM Punk, Ricky Stark, Brian Cage, Big Bill, Prince Nana and FTR are all ready for tonight.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Titles: Big Bill/Brian Cage vs. FTR

Bill and Cage, with Prince Nana, are challenging and Cash Wheeler’s mother is here for a bonus. Wheeler and Cage start things off with Cage being a bit too strong. Harwood comes in and gets clotheslined but reverses a gorilla press into a crossbody for two. Cage runs him over though and it’s Bill coming in (to quite the response) for a double shoulder. It’s already back to Wheeler, who is promptly slammed and elbowed for two.

Everything breaks down though and it’s a double clothesline to send Cage outside, but Bill blocks the Shatter Machine. Instead, Bill chokeslams Wheeler onto Harwood and then presses him out onto Harwood on the floor as we take a break. Back with Bill hammering on Wheeler in front of his mom, who is completely unfazed and even slaps Bill in the face. Cage plants Wheeler for two back inside but Wheeler slips out of Bill’s torture rack. That doesn’t work for Bill, who blasts him with a clothesline to cut off any comeback.

Bill misses a splash in the corner though and a German suplex drops Cage, allowing the big tag to Harwood. Right hands abound and Cage gets caught in a Steiner Bulldog for a rather near fall. Back up and Cage gets Harwood in a fireman’s carry before catching Wheeler in the air (geez) and dropping both of them.

A Jackhammer gives Cage two (as Bill chokeslams Harwood) and Bill sends both champs outside. Cage busts out his big no hands flip dive (because that’s something he can do), setting up a big boot to give Bill two on Wheeler. Back up and Wheeler sends Cage into Bill, who gets caught with a quick Shatter Machine to retain the titles at 15:03.

Rating: B. This was a heck of a match and Bill/Cage are a much better team than I was expecting. They did the power stuff well and looked impressive doing it while making FTR work to retain the titles here. I was getting into this one and it was a rather awesome match, especially given how new of a team the challengers are.

Post match FTR grabs the mic and says they’ve done a lot, but there is one more thing they need to do…..so how about they finish things with the Young Bucks at All In?

Video on CM Punk vs. Ricky Starks over the REAL World Title.

Juice Robinson, with Jay White cardboard cutout, says when you’re hot you’re hot. Cue the real White to chop the cutout (a distraught Robinson takes it away) and introduce the Gunns (now the TOP Gunns) to mock commentary in a bit of a weird bit.

TBS Title: Kris Statlander vs. Mercedes Martinez

Statlander is defending and they start fast, with Martinez slipping out of a suplex attempt. A running boot to the head misses for Martinez but Statlander misses a flipping splash. Martinez sends her into the corner and elbows her way out of another suplex as Statlander isn’t off to the best start. A chokebomb drops Statlander for two more and a hard forearm puts her down in the corner as we take a break.

Back with Statlander making a comeback and knocking Martinez to the floor. Statlander misses a crossbody off the apron but manages a backbreaker to slow Martinez down again. Martinez cages her on top though and a rather nasty looking release German superplex drops Statlander hard. A running knee gives Martinez two and a quick fisherman’s driver gives Martinez the same. Martinez drops her again but a running forearm to the back of the head is countered into a rollup to retain the title at 10:15 (Martinez’s shoulders looked to be up).

Rating: C+. This got better near the end but Martinez was dominating most of the match until the quick ending. Statlander working with a veteran like Martinez is a good thing and hopefully she got something out of it. Martinez is someone who has not gotten a ton of TV time in recent months and it would be nice for that to change.

Post match Martinez says her shoulders were up and jumps Statlander. Cue Diamante to help Martinez beat her down until Willow Nightingale makes the save.

Here’s the problem with that post match angle:

1. Diamante has not wrestled a match on AEW TV since last September (A loss to Jade Cargill which ran about two and a half minutes. Her most recent TV match before then was in 2020.).

2. This week on ROH TV, ROH Women’s Champion Athena told Diamante to find what she was missing and fix it.

3. The only thing mentioned about Diamante’s time on this week’s ROH TV was that she lost to Athena. No mention whatsoever of Athena’s comments to her.

Again: Tony Khan really needs to stop assuming that everyone is watching every show, because otherwise this was an unprovoked turn from someone who has had one match in AEW in about two and a half year. Show us a clip, tell us what happened or give us some reason why this is taking place.

Toni Storm seems to be on the verge of snapping over losing the Women’s Title last week. She goes into a rant about how she deserves better because she’s that good.

Samoa Joe vs. Serpentico

Non-title and the Koquina Clutch finishes Serpentico at 16 seconds (more than a fourth of which was spent in a staredown).

Post match Samoa Joe says we are coming up on All In and he has no one to face. He has had to deal with things over the years, while a certain REAL World Champion got to travel the world. Joe knows that man is nowhere near his level, but that REAL World Champion took something from him in the Owen Hart Foundation tournament. A rollup is not good enough for their legacy, so Joe wants to be given what he wants. One more time at Wembley Stadium. If Joe has to wait until next week, he’s coming for Punk (the only time Joe said the name).

Andrade El Idolo seems happy with getting his mask back last week over Buddy Matthews.

We get a sitdown interview with the Acclaimed, who have Billy Gunn’s boots. They have talked to him and he is confirming that he is retiring. Gunn was the only one who believed in them and helped them become champions. For now though, they are going to bring Gunn’s boots to the ring with him. Well that’s morbid.

Trios Titles: House Of Black vs. Action Andretti/Lee Johnson/Darius Martin

The House, with Julia Hart, is defending. Actually hold on as the House Rules are back and the Dealer’s Choice rule is Hart being banned from ringside. King runs Martin over with a shoulder to start but Martin knees him in the face, only to have his high crossbody bounce off. Black comes in to strike away at Andretti, who knocks him outside but gets kicked in the face.

Matthews jumps off the top to stomp on Andretti’s arm before tossing him ribs first onto the top rope for a good looking visual. Andretti is knocked into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Johnson hitting a moonsault into something resembling a double reverse DDT. Black kicks him into the corner though and everything breaks down. Andretti dives onto Black and Murphy before Martin’s top rope splash to King’s back gets two. Matthews and Black knee Martin out of the air though and the titles are retained at 9:10.

Rating: C+. This is one of those matches where the ending wasn’t in doubt but you got some cool moments before the inevitable. There was no way a thrown together team was going to win the titles here, even with the return of the not quite necessary House Rules. It’s a perfectly nice title defense though and they let the guys have some fun.

Next week: CM Punk and FTR get a Trios Titles match. Ok.

QTV throw out Tony Schiavone to talk to Will Hobbs. They offer him a gold chain and suggest that Hobbs get in the ring at All Out. Hobbs doesn’t want or need their help, but he’ll take the chain.

Christian Cage, with his daughter, and Luchasaurus are here with Christian talking about how he wants to be a good father to everyone. She asks to hold his title, but Christian says she didn’t win it so go find your mom and get out of here. Christian: “Security, she’s not credentialed. Have her removed from the building.” Well that was awesome.

Metalik vs. Jay White

The Gunns and Juice Robinson, with the cardboard Jay White (Cardblade) and the former join commentary. White knees Metalik in the ribs to start but gets a headscissors into the corner. A springboard doesn’t work so well for Metalik but he gets knocked back to the apron. White snaps him throat first across the top but misses a baseball slide, allowing Metalik to springboard moonsault onto him. White has had it with this though and grabs a cobra clutch suplex, setting up the Blade Runner for the pin at 5:10.

Rating: C. It was a nice way to get White in the ring and keep him hot as the Bullet Club gets to do their wacky antics. It wasn’t meant to be some competitive back and forth match and while Metalik got in some offense, he isn’t anywhere close to White’s level and everyone knows that. They stuck to the point here and that is nice to see.

Video on Anna Jay vs. Hikaru Shida.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Jim Ross is back for the main event.

Real World Title: Ricky Starks vs. CM Punk

Punk is defending and Ricky Steamboat is the outside referee. They start fast with Punk knocking him out to the floor but pausing to let him back in. Punk runs him over with a shoulder and steals Starks’ pose a few times for a cute spot. Starks is right back with the armdrag (you knew that was coming) to send Punk outside and there’s the mocking the go to sleep motion. Back in and Starks hammers away in the corner, setting up a Cactus Clothesline.

We take a break and come back with thinking picking way up, including Starks unloading with right hands in the corner. Punk strikes away as well (nowhere near as fast but he was trying) until Starks is sent outside. Back in and Starks manages to knock him outside for a change, followed by an elbow to the face back inside. The Steamboat style chop to the head lets Starks glare at Steamboat before grabbing a waistlock. Punk fights up and hits a spinning middle rope crossbody but can’t get a sunset flip (Starks grabbing the rope didn’t help).

We take another break and come back again with Punk hitting a top rope superplex. Some right hands into a swinging neckbreaker keeps Starks in trouble and there’s the running knee into the bulldog for two. Starks rolls through a high crossbody (not exactly smoothly) for two before countering another running knee in the corner with a powerbomb.

The GTS is broken up but Starks misses a charge into the corner and hits the buckle. Punk kicks him in the head for two but Starks’ Alabama Slam gets the same. The ref gets bumped (of course) so Starks goes to yell, allowing Punk to roll him up, with Steamboat (very eventually) counting the pin to retain Punk’s title at 22:20.

Rating: B. They took some time to get warmed up here but it was rolling once they got into the rhythm of things. Punk continues to be able to shift from good to bad in the blink of an eye and he was full on fan favorite this week. Starks continues to be someone who feels like a star, though the loss after that long of a wait on the count didn’t help him. Steamboat looks to be about twenty years younger than he is (if not for the hair color, you wouldn’t think he aged) but he didn’t get to do much here.

Post match Punk pays homage to Steamboat but Starks shoves Steamboat into him. Starks whips out a belt and whips the heck out of Steamboat (he can still sell) until Punk (also very eventually) makes the save. Punk glares at Starks and then chases him off to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. As tends to be the case with a lot of shows, the opener and main event were the best parts, with the stuff in the middle being mostly ok. What mattered here was setting things up for the future, as Punk vs. Starks isn’t done but Punk also has the House of Black and Samoa Joe to deal with coming up. Collision has really started to figure out what it wants to be and is turning into one of the best shows of the week as a result.

Results
FTR b. Big Bill/Brian Cage – Shatter Machine to Cage
Kris Statlander b. Mercedes Martinez – Rollup
Samoa Joe b. Serpentico – Koquina Clutch
House of Black b. Lee Johnson/Action Andretti/Darius Martin – Double knees to Martin
Jay White b. Metalik – Blade Runner
CM Punk b. Ricky Starks – Rollup

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Rampage
Date: August 4, 2023
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz, Chris Jericho

Rampage is in a weird place as it has become something of a short bridge between Dynamite and Collision. There is usually one important match on the show though and in this case it is going to be a fight that takes place in a parking lot. I’m not sure what else that is going to leave but hopefully it works. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Hardys/Keith Lee vs. Kip Sabian/Butcher and the Blade

This is fallout from Royal Rampage. Ethan Page/Brother Zay are here with the Hardys/Lee while the Bunny is with the villains. Sabian shoulders Jeff down to start but Jeff is right back in to work on the arm. Matt comes in for a splash in the corner but gets dragged into the wrong corner so Blade can chop away. A Side Effect gets Matt out of trouble and he does his ten buckle rams in the corner. Jeff comes back in but gets pulled outside for a double teaming from the weird team of Blade and Sabian.

We take a break and come back with Jeff getting beaten up even more, but a jawbreaker gets him out of trouble. The big tag brings in Lee to clean house, including throwing everyone around at the same time. Sabian is thrown at his partners to take both of them out before everything breaks down. Lee’s big spinebuster plants Sabian and Jeff adds the Swanton for the pin at 8:53.

Rating: C+. Perfectly fine six man tag here and it worked out well. Lee getting to be the battering ram that gets the tag at the end worked well, though I’m not sure I want to see him getting to stand next to the Hardys every week. For a one off match though, it could have been a lot worse. Just a nix six man with the good guys beating up some villains and that is a pretty much guaranteed win.

The Kingdom talks about their history with Dam Cole, who did all kinds of things with them, but then just vanished when he moved on. Roderick Strong should be worried about this.

The Young Bucks want back in the tag division. The Hardys come in and the match is made for Dynamite.

Anna Jay vs. Skye Blue

Matt Menard and Angelo Parker are here with Jay. They go technical to start with Blue’s headlock not getting her very far. Jay is send outside before coming back in so Blue can fire off forearms. A basement superkick hits Jay again, allowing Blue to take a quick bow (as she has done more than once now). Jay sends her to the apron and hits a running spinning kick as we take a break.

We take a break and come back with Blue fighting up and hitting a high crossbody. A running knee against the ropes gives Blue two but Skyfall is broken up. Jay grabs a Downward Spiral for two but Blue is right back up with Skyfall. Parker and Menard offer distractions though and Jay pulls her into the Queenslayer for the tap at 9:13.

Rating: C. Jay was showing some fire here but it’s almost weird to see her beating Blue at this point. Blue has steadily been falling back down the card and I don’t remember the last time Jay won a big time match. Not a bad match, and maybe Jay is getting a push out of nowhere from here?

Kris Statlander, while doing squats with Renee Young (as in Young is on Statlander’s shoulders) says it pickles her egg when someone hits her with her own belt. As for tomorrow night, Mercedes Martinez better “clean out the gutter, wash the card and caulk the tub” because Mama’s coming home on Collision. Uh….well it was different.

Tony Schiavone and Paul Wight are in the parking lot and announce that Pac is injured and unable to wrestle, but the Lucha Bros are still going to fight the winners of the Parking Lot Fight on Dynamite.

Mogul Embassy vs. Logan Cruz/Tyshaun Perez

Prince Nana is here with the Embassy. Fox wastes no time in hitting a missile dropkick to both of them at once, setting up the big running flip dive to the floor as Swerve stands there and watches. Back in and Swerve hits a top rope elbow to the back, followed by an assisted sitout powerbomb to Perez. Fox hits an Iconoclasm into a cutter and Swerve’s brainbuster sets up a 450 to finish Cruz at 2:18. That was a slick squash with the Embassy looking very good.

QTV isn’t happy with losing to the Acclaimed and Johnny TV is missing in protest. We see a clip of Johnny TV issuing an open challenge to anyone who has been on television. He also did the splits and slid backwards down a red carpet.

Big Bill and Brian Cage are ready for FTR and the Tag Team Titles.

We recap the Blackpool Combat Club vs. the Best Friends in the Parking Lot Brawl.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Best Friends

Parking Lot Brawl. Before the match, the Club checks through the trunks of cars for Orange Cassidy. The fight is on fast with Taylor sending Castagnoli into a side mirror while Moxley uses a fork to bust Trent open. Castagnoli suplexes Taylor onto the hood of a car and Trent dives off a car onto Moxley, who gets carved up with a fork. Some shots with a broken spoiler put the Friends down but they flapjack him onto the trunk of a van (as it is opening).

The spoiler goes over the Club’s backs and Castagnoli gets crushed by a car hod. Moxley is back up and Trent gets crushed under the hood, with Chuck being dropped onto it. A trash can to the head rocks Trent again but he fights back up with some forearms. Chuck is back up with a street sign and some forking of his own.

We take a break and come back with Castagnoli being dropped onto a piece of barricade and crushed with a backsplash off a car. Moxley makes the save but Trent is back with a Dudebuster to Castagnoli on top of a car. Trent and Moxley slug it out on top of a car until Moxley Death Riders him onto a windshield. Then Chuck grabs a barbed wire 2×4 and lights it on fire, only to have Wheeler Yuta pop out of a car.

That lets Moxley hit Trent in the ribs with the 2×4 so Yuta can screwdriver him in the head. Cue Sue in the minivan, with Orange Cassidy on top. The chain is pulled out but the Club beats Cassidy down without much trouble. The Club opens the door and tells Sue to leave before Castagnoli ribs the door off the minivan. Chuck is dropped onto the door and Trent is stomped onto a windshield for the pin at 18:01.

Rating: B-. it was a hard hitting violent brawl with a lot of blood, but the whole thing only worked so well. Not only did it feel like it just kept going, but it came off like they just wanted to recreate the first one with one spot or idea after another. You knew the Sue stuff was coming and while it’s funny once, having it be this big saving grace moment feels so out of line with the violence they have been focusing on for a long time. Throw in Moxley and his stupid fork and there were several moments here that held down the stuff that did work.

Overall Rating: C+. The main event was the focal point and it is going to be well received for the violence. Other than that though, this wasn’t the strongest episode from top to bottom. It continues to be a show where you don’t feel like you missed much if you skip a good chunk of it and that isn’t the best feeling. Thankfully it’s just an hour long and far from bad, but this show rarely feels important and that is going to catch up to them at some point.

Results
Hardys/Keith Lee b. Kip Sabian/Butcher and the Blade
Anna Jay b. Skye Blue – Queenslayer
Mogul Embassy b. Logan Cruz/Tyshaun Perez – 450 to Cruz
Blackpool Combat Club b. Best Friends – Stomp onto a windshield

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Dynamite
Date: August 2, 2023
Location: Yuengling Center, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Taz, Excalibur

It’s the 200th episode and you know that means we should be in for something good. The most important thing here is that it is time to start getting ready for All In, which needs something announced already. Other than that, we have a Women’s Title match as Hikaru Shida challenges Toni Storm. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

The old set is back for a nice touch.

Sammy Guevara/Daniel Garcia vs. Chris Jericho/Konosuke Takeshita

Jericho and Takeshita have Don Callis with them. Guevara and Jericho chop it out until the former scores with a jumping knee. Garcia and Guevara get to strike a pose before Garcia chops it out with Jericho. Takeshita comes in to kick Garcia down so Jericho comes back in for a suplex. Jericho drops Garcia again and we take a break.

Back with Guevara coming in to clean house, including a suicide elbow to Jericho and a running flip dive to Takeshita. They get back in and Takeshita gets the Blue Thunder Bomb on Guevara but can’t get the Walls Of Takeshita (which is apparently a thing). Jericho is back in with the Codebreaker for two as all four get in again. Guevara kicks Takeshita to the floor as Garcia gets the Dragontamer on Jericho. Callis bats Garcia down but Jericho doesn’t approve….but does get the pin at 12:21.

Rating: B-. This was about Callis still trying to recruit Jericho, who might be getting with the program a bit. Other than that, you had Garcia and Guevara being entertaining enough as a team and Takeshita feeling like a star. Odds are this is heading towards Jericho vs. either Takeshita or someone else from Callis’ family down the line, but we might be a good way off from that point just yet.

Tony Khan says we are on the way to the biggest wrestling event of all time (no) and we see a highlight package from some of the best moments in Dynamite history.

Matt Menard tells Chris Jericho has to be at a mandatory meeting of the Jericho Appreciation Society.

Here is Jack Perry to say that he wants Jerry Lynn out here to end this. Lynn comes out to say that he isn’t going to come down there and beat up Perry, because that would be child abuse. On top of that, his neck is so banged up that no doctor would ever clear him. Instead, he’s made a phone call to a friend of his, who wrestled in ECW and still wrestles today. Cue Rob Van Dam to chase Perry off, with Perry hiding behind a young girl. Was there anyone else who could have stood up for ECW and been something of a big deal?

Video on the Women’s Title match with Hikaru Shida challenging Toni Storm.

Trent Beretta vs. Jon Moxley vs. Penta El Cero Miedo

The introduction make it clear that this is anything goes. Trent and Penta hit dives to start but Moxley is back up and grabs the 2×4 with nails. Penta ducks a swing and Backstabs Moxley, only to get a trashcan lid kneed into his face. Moxley piledrives Trent but Penta is right back to take Trent outside. Some tables are set up at ringside and the already bleeding Trent superplexes Moxley through them as we take a break.

Back with Penta hitting a super Canadian Destroyer to drive Trent through a table, followed by Moxley spearing Penta through a table in the corner. Moxley gets the thumbtacks and opens Penta’s shirt, setting up a piledriver into the tacks for two. Trent, for some reasons not in an ambulance, is up with the Crunchy to Moxley into the tacks but Penta makes the save. Moxley Paradigm Shifts Penta but Trent hits the running knee to steal the pin at 12:21.

Rating: C. Yeah fine. You knew you were going to see some kind of violent match on here whether it made sense for the story or not and they even had one of the fan favorites get a pin on a milestone show. The Canadian Destroyer through the table not knocking Trent out of the match was nonsense but that ship has long since sailed. I still can’t stand this kind of stuff, and they really didn’t need the weapons and violence.

Post match Moxley chokes Trent out and the Blackpool Combat Club comes out to help. Cue Orange Cassidy and Chuck Taylor to cut them off and clear the ring, with Taylor issuing the challenge for a parking lot fight on Rampage.

Rob Van Dam challenges Jack Perry for the FTW Title next week. When Van Dam wins the title, he’ll just retire the thing.

Here is MJF to talk about having ADD, but also a condition that makes it difficult for him to accept rejection. One day when he was a kid, some people threw quarters at him and said “pick it up, Jew boy, pick it up.” It made him believe that he had to stab everyone in the back before he did it to them, but that’s no way to live.

It’s tough for him to trust people, but he’s not scared anymore because of all these people. These people have sympathy for the devil, even if he’s still a scumbag. But dang it he’s ready to be YOUR scumbag. He also has to thank Adam Cole, so here is Cole to see MJF face to face.

Cole says MJF is not alone and knows that there is a good guy down in there. The people here are proud of him, which has MJF thanking him for the kind words. That brings MJF to the promised title match, which Cole doesn’t deserve. That’s because Cole deserves THE match in the main event of the biggest show AEW has ever seen, in the main event of All In. Cole signs the contract (fans: “READ IT!”) without reading it and they hug. MJF has told that story before but it still has impact. Other than that, they’re building towards someone turning and it’s going to be a big moment when it happens.

Roderick Strong breaks a bunch of stuff in the back but here is the Kingdom to say they Cole is forgetting his real friends.

Elite vs. Jeff Jarrett/Satnam Singh/Jay Lethal

Brandon Cutler, Sonjay Dutt and Karen Jarrett are here too. Jeff slams Omega down to start but Matt comes in to take over. That brings in Singh, with Omega and Nick immediately backing away. Singh shrugs off some dropkicks and crossbodies both of the Bucks, meaning the villains get to most the Elite’s pose.

We take a break and come back with Nick getting over to bring Omega back in for the pace to pick up. You Can’t Escape is broken up by Singh, allowing Lethal to get his knees up on the moonsault. The Bucks kick Singh down the though and Omega adds the V Trigger to put him completely down. Dutt has to break up the One Winged Angel and Karen offers a distraction. That earns her a cold spray from Cutler as the Hardys come out to beat up the villains as well. Cue Hangman Page to jump Jarrett with the Buckshot Lariat, meaning (after an Omega guitar solo) the One Winged Angel can finish Lethal at 8:58.

Rating: B-. Much like some of the other stuff on this show, they absolutely had to get the Elite on here somehow and putting them in a fun match like this one was the way to go. They were the centerpiece of the company for a long time and getting them on a show like this, even in a match where they weren’t going to be in serious trouble, was a requirement.

Post match Page announces that the Elite have re-signed with AEW. Omega says you’ll be seeing more of them everywhere, including Collision. We get the old goodnight and goodbye catchphrase to wrap it up. That’s a nice little flashback.

The Mogul Embassy (Swerve Strickland/AR Fox in this case) is happy with beating up Darby Allin and we see them going to Nick Wayne’s gym (which is in a garage). Wayne and some students get beaten up and Swerve breaks something made of glass over Wayne’s head. Swerve puts down a photo of Wayne and his father, before calling Darby Allin to show the bloody Wayne. It’s that easy to make a phone call, so why didn’t Allin call AR Fox when he got to AEW? The beating continues to wrap up one heck of a segment. This felt like Swerve and Fox getting to show what they can do and it was really effective.

Ring Of Honor Tag Team Titles: Aussie Open vs. Komander/El Hijo del Vikingo

The Aussies are defending. Fletcher and Vikingo start things off with the latter avoiding a charge in the corner. Vikingo’s springboard crossbody takes Fletcher down so it’s off to Davis, who gets superkicked outside. We settle back down to Fletcher clotheslining Komander, who is right back up with the chops in the corner. Komander’s springboard is broken up so it’s of to Vikingo instead. The champs are sent outside but they are fine enough to cut off the stereo dives as we take a break.

Back with Vikingo getting caught with a flipping Iconoclasm for two, leaving Fletcher frustrated. Vikingo is put in a fireman’s carry but Komander tags himself in, jumps on Vikingo’s back, and hits a Canadian Destroyer. The challengers walk the ropes at the same time for stereo moonsaults, setting up stereo 450s for two on Davis. Vikingo is taken down though and the rope walk shooting star press misses for Komander. The double clothesline sets up Coriolis to retain the titles at 9:57.

Rating: C+. There was some nice stuff in here with the Aussies using their power offense to hold off the rather flashy high fliers. I’d like to believe that this is just a one off as I really do not need the Ring Of Honor titles on the show again, but at least they had an entertaining match and didn’t go too long. It’s also always nice to see Vikingo, as some of that stuff he does is hard to fathom.

Video on Ricky Starks vs. CM Punk on Collision.

Women’s Title: Hikaru Shida vs. Toni Storm

Shida is challenging and Storm has the rest of the Outcasts with her. Shida starts fast and knocks Storm to the floor, followed by some right hands back inside. They go outside again and this time Storm takes over, only for Shida to head back inside and suplex her into the corner. Storm gets in a shot of her own and adds the running hip attack to knock Shida outside again. The Outcasts get in some stomping and we take a break.

Back with Shida hitting an enziguri into a German suplex but Storm pulls her off the top. The hip attack in the corner and a DDT get two on Shida (which would not be stealing it, despite what Excalibur says). They strike it out until Shida knees her in the face and hits a Falcon Arrow for two. Saraya throws in the kendo stick but Shida takes it away and takes out the other two. Storm uses the distraction to hit the spray paint into the Storm Zero for two more. Shida is right back with a rollup for the pin and the title at 13:16.

Rating: B. And there’s your big moment to make the show feel special. Storm hadn’t exactly been doing anything as champion and wont he title from an injured Jamie Hayter. The story coming into this was that Shida deserved to have a title run in front of people rather than empty chairs and that is exactly what she is going to get. Good match here, with Shida getting a nice moment to wrap up the show.

Overall Rating: B. I kept saying that they had to get this and that in, but they managed to cover everything and had a heck of a show as a result. This was a nice look back at Dynamite’s history, while also giving a feel good moment at the end and also setting up something for All In. That’s a heck of a way to spend two hours and I smiled more than I have in a good while with an AEW show.

Results
Chris Jericho/Konosuke Takeshita b. Sammy Guevara/Daniel Garcia – Baseball bat shot to Garcia
Trent b. Jon Moxley and Penta El Cero Miedo – Paradigm Shit to Penta
Elite b. Jeff Jarrett/Satnam Singh/Jay Lethal – One Winged Angel to Lethal
Aussie Open b. Komander/El Hijo del Vikingo – Coriolis to Komander
Hikaru Shida b. Toni Storm – Rollup

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Collision
Date: July 29, 2023
Location: XL Center, Hartford, Connecticut
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Nigel McGuinness

It’s another title match as FTR is defending the Tag Team Titles against MJF/Adam Cole. No matter what the outcome, the result is likely to have a big impact on All In/Out. Other than that, CM Punk is here and that should mean something is going down with Ricky Starks. That should be enough to carry the evening so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Darby Allin, MJF/Adam Cole and FTR are ready.

Opening sequence.

Buddy Matthews vs. Andrade El Idolo

Ladder match for Andrade’s mask and Julia Hart is here with Matthews. They slug it out to start until Andrade knocks him outside, where Andrade jumps onto a ladder and moonsaults down onto Matthews. Back in and Andrade hits Two Amigos but takes too long on the third. Not that it matters as Matthews is hiptossed into the ladder in the corner. Andrade gets tossed down as well though and we take a break with Matthews’ shoulder in trouble.

Back with Andrade in trouble and Matthews (shoulder seems to be ok) pulling out the really big ladder. Said ladder is bridged between the apron and the announcers’ table and they fight over a suplex. Andrade tries a spear through the ropes but gets DDTed onto the ladder. The table is loaded up in the corner but Matthews takes too long, meaning it’s time to slug it out on the ladder outside. Andrade goes big with a sunset bomb to drive Matthews onto a bridged ladder for a terrifying crash and it’s time to climb.

Back in and Matthews (who should be like, down at least) pulls Andrade into a knee to the face as Hart pulls out some handcuffs. Andrade fights back though and ties Matthews up, only to have Hart climb on his back as he climbs up. That takes long enough that Matthews makes the save, only to be knocked down again. Hart slaps Andrade on the ladder, so he shoves her off and into Matthews, through the table in the corner. Andrade gets the mask (that he doesn’t wear in the ring) to win at 18:06.

Rating: B. It’s a ladder match. That’s about all there is to say on this one, as there is very little that can make something like this stand out. The huge sunset bomb onto the ladder with Matthews up in thirty seconds was stupid, but at this point you just kind of have to accept something like that in this kind of a match. Good enough, but this felt like a ladder match for the sake of having a ladder match.

Miro is asked about the upcoming battle he has promised when Aaron Solo (I believe at least, as he isn’t identified) jumps him with a chair. Miro fights him off and uses the chair on him without much trouble.

Here is Darby Allin with an open challenge.

Darby Allin vs. Minoru Suzuki

Allin wastes no time in dropkicking Suzuki off the apron during his entrance, setting up the suicide dive (with Allin nearly dying). A dropkick off the apron hits Suzuki and they head inside for an opening bell and two. Suzuki grabs a choke over the ropes and kicks Allin down to the floor. We take a break and come back with Allin standing up to start the chop off. This doesn’t go well for Allin so he picks up the pace and hits a springboard body block. The Coffin Drop is pulled into a rear naked choke but Allin backflips over to pin Suzuki at 8:12.

Rating: B-. Well that came out of nowhere and that’s a bit weird. I’m not sure why you would have a fan favorite like Suzuki out there with no notice but it was a fine enough one off match. Allin picks up a win on the way towards All Out, and for a surprise match it went about as well as could be expected.

Post match Christian Cage, with Luchasaurus, pops up on screen to say that Allin is no longer worthy of being the TNT Champion. Cage promises to send him back to Hot Topic.

Toni Storm is ready for Hikaru Shida, “the pandemic champion”, next week on Dynamite.

Samoa Joe vs. Gravity

Joe’s ROH TV Title isn’t on the line (as Gravity is still in the tournament to crown a new #1 contender). Gravity dodges him to start but gets knocked into the corner. Back up and Gravity manages a shot out of said corner, only to take too long going up. The MuscleBuster finishes for Joe at 2:05. So Gravity just got squashed by a champion who he could still earn a shot at later. I can’t wait to see how far he goes next week on ROH.

Here is CM Punk, with the bag, for a chat. He had a rough travel day but always makes his towns because he won’t disappoint his fans. Punk brings up All In, even referencing that the show has pretty much not been acknowledged. Maybe we’ll figure that out by the end of the night, but now he wants to talk about Ricky Starks. Ricky has beaten him twice, but he is more disappointed than anything else.

Now as for the bag, it isn’t that he’s carrying it, but rather he’s been left holding it. After a WHAT’S IN THE BAG chant, Punk pulls out the AEW World Title, which he has never been pinned or submitted for, which is why his name (and blood) are still on it. Punk whips out some spray paint and paints the X on the title. It has been his symbol since the 90s and it still is here.

Cue Ricky Starks, to say play his music because he wants to make an entrance. Starks’ music plays and Nigel loses it because WHAT A SURPRISE, RICKY STARKS IS HERE. Speaking in the third person, Starks says he’s focused on gold right about now. He bit Punk before Punk can bite him and that title belongs to him because he’s beaten Punk twice. Starks calls himself the face of collision but Punk calls him the face of cheating. Punk thinks Starks wants a title shot and says we can do it a third time….with a special referee.

Starks recommends Julio Dinero or Dave Prazak (or someone from Stamford) but Punk has already made a phone call to someone from his past. They shake hands and the match is made for next week….and Tony Schiavone announces Ricky Steamboat as guest referee. Cool reveal, though I’m wondering why MJF, the official World Champion, who is in the building tonight, didn’t storm the ring to say NOT SO FAST.

Video on MJF/Adam Cole.

Bullet Club Gold vs. Darius Martin/Action Andretti/El Hijo del Vikingo

Juice Robinson/The Gunns here but no Jay White. The Gunns get taken down by Martin and Andretti and we take a break less than thirty seconds in (it’s stupid when WWE does it and it’s stupid here). Back with Vikingo diving for a tag but the Gunns pull his partners away. A full nelson slam gets two as there is now a cardboard cutout of Jay White at ringside. The hot tag to Andretti goes through a few seconds later and a double Tajiri handspring elbow connects with the Gunns. Everything breaks down and the 3:10 To Yuma finishes Martin at 6:53.

Rating: C+. I guess this was the “Bullet Club Gold Gets Momentum Back” match, though the thing with the cardboard cutout was a little weird. What mattered here was having a fun enough match without going too far and it worked well enough. That being said, Robinson and White are a lot more interesting than the Gunns, who really don’t need to be involved in this thing.

Kiera Hogan vs. Mercedes Martinez

Martinez tags her in the face to start but charges into an elbow in the corner. A brainbuster gets two on Hogan, who comes back with a knee to the face for a breather. Martinez shrugs it off and hits a neckbreaker out of the corner for two more. We take a break and come back with Martinez suplexing her way out of trouble. The Brass City Sleeper (surfboard dragon sleeper) goes on to make Hogan tap at 7:03.

Rating: C. Not much to this one, but Hogan shouldn’t be any kind of a serious threat to Martinez anyway. Martinez hasn’t been around much lately so it’s nice to have her back in action. There aren’t many more polished stars in the women’s division so she could give anyone around a rather nice rub. That being said, this was also the third straight match to have a break in the middle without going ten minutes, and that isn’t helping anything.

Post match Martinez won’t let it go so here is Kris Statlander for the save. Martinez gets the TBS Title and knocks Statlander silly, saying she’s coming for the title. Willow Nightingale makes the real save. I’ve heard far worse ideas than Martinez vs. Statlander.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Tag Team Titles: FTR vs. Adam Cole/Maxwell Jacob Friedman

FTR is defending. Cole and Harwood exchange headlocks to start before it’s off to Wheeler for a headlock of his own. Everything breaks down and the threat of the double clothesline sends FTR to the ropes for a breather. Harwood slams MJF down but gets kicked away, only to have MJF hurt his knee on a leapfrog. They don’t even waste time with the gold bricking this time though as MJF is up with a poke to the eye. Some shoving causes everything to break down and we take a break.

Back with MJF in trouble but escaping a Sharpshooter attempt. That’s not enough for the tag so he crawls through some legs and hits a double DDT. Now it’s back to Cole to pick up the pace, including a rollup and superkick out of the air for two each. MJF comes back in but can’t hit the double clothesline, instead settling for a fight over a Tombstone with Wheeler.

Cole makes the save and MJF gets two off a rollup but the double clothesline is broken up again. A top rope PowerPlex gets two on Cole, followed by a heck of a slingshot powerbomb for two on MJF. Everything breaks down and MJF, after thinking about it, hits Shattered Dreams for two on Harwood. The Boom is broken up but MJF shoves Cole away from the Shatter Machine and blocks it himself. The Heatseeker is loaded up but MJF gets rolled up for the pin at 17:55.

Rating: B. This was a weird one as while the action was good, the focus was on whether or not Cole or MJF would turn on the other. I’m glad they didn’t change the title here as MJF/Cole can easily continue without the belts involved. FTR is on another planet of awesome right now among the tag teams and having them lose for a short term angle between Cole/MJF wouldn’t have been a good move. Solid main event here, but the angle (or lack thereof) was what mattered.

Post match FTR shows respect to Cole before leaving. Cole helps MJF up and turns his back on him, saying do what you have to do. MJF loads up the belt shot but throws the belt down and hugs Cole instead. They raise each others’ hands to end the show. I’m glad they didn’t pull a trigger here as Cole vs. MJF only has to be set for either All In or All Out and that means they still have time to milk a lot more out of this.

Overall Rating: B. This was a definite improvement over last week and felt a lot more energetic. It was a show that felt like it wrapped up some things while keeping some other stories moving and that is always great to see. While I really didn’t need a ladder match on this show, it felt more like the Collision we had been seeing and that is a very good thing.

Results
Andrade El Idolo b. Buddy Matthews – El Idolo pulled down the mask
Darby Allin b. Minoru Suzuki – Rollup
Samoa Joe b. Gravity – MuscleBuster
Bullet Club Gold b. Darius Martin/Action Andretti/El Hijo del Vikingo – 3:10 To Yuma to Martin
Mercedes Martinez b. Kiera Hogan – Brass City Sleeper
FTR b. Adam Cole/MJF – Rollup to MJF

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Rampage
Date: July 28, 2023
Location: MVP Arena, Albany, New York
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

For the second week in a row, the featured match is a battle royal, though this time it is a tag team battle royal for a future Tag Team Title shot. Other than that, we might get more on the upcoming All In card, as no matches have been announced though you can probably guess quite a few from here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Battle Royal

Luther/Serpentico, Jay Lethal/Satnam Singh, Hardys, Brother Zay/Ethan Page, Big Bill/Brian Cage, Christopher Daniels/Matt Sydal, Butcher/The Blade, Angelo Parker/Matt Menard

Both members have to be eliminated and the winners get a future Tag Team Title shot. Everyone goes after Bill to start but can’t get anywhere. It’s the usual brawling to start with no one going anywhere until Luther gets a knee in to Cage. Bill isn’t having that and dumps Luther, with Blade getting rid of Serpentico a few seconds later.

The fans seem to approve of Big Bill, even as Parker hits him in the ribs. Singh gets rid of Zay and Sydal follows him out. The Hardys get rid of Parker and Singh dumps Page. The Hardys get smart and ram Singh into Lethal for another elimination, leaving Page and Lethal to brawl up the aisle as we take a break.

Back with Menard being dumped, leaving us with Bill, Cage, Butcher, Blade, the Hardys, Singh and Daniels. Butcher and Blade toss Daniels but Matt can’t do much with Singh, who tosses him with ease. Jeff manages to stagger Singh and Cage/Bill help out with a double clothesline to put Singh out. Butcher and Blade dump Jeff and we’re down to the two of them vs. Cage/Bill in what sounds like a good hoss fight.

Cage gets knocked down with a fisherman’s neckbreaker and a Stunner into a lariat drops Bill. Back up and Cage saves Bill but Blade hits him in the face. Bill pulls himself up and hits his own double clothesline as the fans still seem to approve. A powerbomb/clothesline combination gets rid of Blade but Butcher fights away. Bill’s splash hits Cage in the corner and a backbreaker puts Cage down again. That’s it though as a clothesline/chokeslam combination knocks Butcher silly for the win at 16:36.

Rating: C+. This went on for a good while and Bill continues to get bigger and bigger reactions. I do like having some fresh blood in the division and Cage/Bill have done well so far. The division has fallen through the floor in recent months and maybe they can start building things back up a bit here. It also makes me want to see more Butcher and the Blade, as they still feel like they could be the big bruising heels of the division at any time.

Video on the Kingdom getting a second chance at being great in Ring Of Honor. Why Maria Kanellis-Bennett isn’t here isn’t clear.

Komander vs. Kip Sabian

Komander is replacing the injured Scorpio Sky and Alex Abrahantes and Penelope Ford are here as well as Sabian takes him down to start. Sabian sends him outside and mocks the salute, earning himself a knock out to the floor and a dive. We take a break and come back with Sabian getting the better of a slugout.

A headscissors gives Komander two and a cradle gets the same. Sabian knocks him back down and hits a running shooting star press for two. Komander fights up but gets his eyes raked by Ford, allowing Sabian to hit a hanging suplex for two more. That’s enough for Komander, who hits a springboard Canadian Destroyer into the rope walk shooting star press to put Sabian away at 10:19.

Rating: C+. This was a bit better than most Komander matches as he didn’t do a bunch of his usual stuff. His matches have a tendency to be centered around trying to set up one convoluted match after another but this one was about fighting back and hitting a spot here and there. Nice match here, even if Sabian is still as middle of the road as you can be.

Video on Jack Perry disrespecting the memory of ECW and getting called out by Jerry Lynn.

The Kingdom vs. Hayden Backlund/Hyaung-Jae Lee

Taven kicks both of them down to start and hands it off to Bennett for a Death Valley Driver. Just The Tip sets up the Proton Pack to finish Backlund at 42 seconds. I can go for more of the Kingdom.

Video on the Dark Order beating the Righteous and Stu Grayson in a Fight Without Honor at Death Before Dishonor. They will NOT be disrespected and it is time to rebuild. Can it be time for the Dark Order to be dropped already?

Video on FTR vs. MJF/Adam Cole.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Video on Hikaru Shida vs. Nyla Rose, a feud with quite the history.

Hikaru Shida vs. Nyla Rose

Marina Shafir is here with Rose, who jumps Shida fast to start. Rose grabs the kendo stick but throws it away after realizing that would be stupid. Back up and Shida headscissors her into the corner and rains down some right hands square into the turnbuckle. Rose knocks her outside though and we take a break.

Back with Shida hitting a running elbow and managing a suplex for two. They fight to the apron with Shida hitting a knee to the head, setting up a dropkick from the apron. Shida loads up a springboard but gets chokeslammed down for two. Back up and Shida hits a Falcon Arrow but Rose runs her over with a clothesline. Rose goes up but gets crotched down, setting up a super Falcon Arrow. Shafir puts the foot on the rope though, earning her a heck of a kendo stick shot. Rose loads up the Beast Bomb but gets reversed into the Katana to give Shida the pin at 10:57.

Rating: B-. This is one of the feuds that has been around since the start of AEW and it works well enough, even though both of them have fallen a bit down the ladder. Pushing Shida again isn’t a bad idea and that stick shot to Shafir was loud enough to get some attention. On the other hand you have Rose, who feels like she hasn’t won anything of note in, like, ever.

Post match the Outcasts come out for the staredown.

Overall Rating: C+. Oh this was the full on B show this week and there was no hiding it. While they did set some things up for the future with the title shot (or possibly shots with Shida), the show didn’t feel important whatsoever with the lack of star power or really anything involving the big stories. It’s a completely skippable show, but you won’t be bored if you watch it either.

Results
Brian Cage/Big Bill won a tag team battle royal last eliminating Butcher and the Blade
Komander b. Kip Sabian – Rope walk shooting star press
The Kingdom b. Hayden Backlund/Hyaung-Jae Lee – Proton Pack to Backlund
Hikaru Shida b. Nyla Rose – Katana

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Dynamite
Date: July 26, 2023
Location: MVP Arena, Albany, New York
Commentators: Taz, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

We’re about a month away from All In and nothing has been announced so far. There is still more than enough time to set things up but they might want to start getting things ready. Other than that, it’s the fallout from Blood & Guts and that should make for some interesting situations. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We get a video from Darby Allin talking about AR Fox and how great/influential he is.

International Title: Orange Cassidy vs. AR Fox

Cassidy is defending and we get a handshake to start. They fight over a wristlock with Fox flipping around to take him down and grabbing a bodyscissors. Back up and Cassidy rolls away with his hands in his pockets but the dropkick is countered into a rollup. Cassidy it sent outside so Fox runs up the corner for a moonsault to take him down again. Back in and the Stundog Millionaire gives Cassidy two but Fox grabs a spinning suplex for the same.

We take a break and come back with stereo neckbreakers taking both of them down for a breather. Fox sends him outside for a big flip dive, followed by a Swanton back inside. Lo Mein Pain is broken up and Cassidy hits a suicide dive. The Beach Break gets two but Fox is back with Lo Mein Pain for two. Fox’s 450 misses and Cassidy grabs the Mouse Trap to retain at 13:47.

Rating: B-. This was a rather flip based match but it was an entertaining one while it lasted. Cassidy continues to run through people and at some point that is going to have to lead somewhere. Granted that has been the case for months now and I don’t know if there is any reason to believe it is changing anytime soon.

Post match Cassidy offers him the sunglasses in respect but Fox breaks them and hits him in the face. Cue Darby Allin to yell at Fox, calling it embarrassing. As Fox seems to realize he went too far, Jon Moxley runs in to beat up Cassidy.

Video on Blood & Guts.

Don Callis is still trying to get Chris Jericho on his side and has gotten Jericho a tag team match with Konosuke Takeshita (Jericho approves) vs. Sammy Guevara/Daniel Garcia (Jericho doesn’t approve). Jericho agrees, so Callis gives Jericho a painting of the two of them under Bad News Allen’s watchful eye.

Claudio Castagnoli says not to mess with the Blackpool Combat Club. He isn’t happy with Pac and here is Jon Moxley to say that’s what happens when you mess with his friends.

Here is Jack Perry for a chat, now in orange and black with an I BEAT HOOK shirt. Perry said he was going to win a championship, but he didn’t mean one like this. It was created in a second class company, but now that he has it, it has become relevant. He insults Taz and the history of ECW, which draws out Jerry Lynn to say there wouldn’t be a Jungle Boy without ECW. The challenge seems to be on but Perry says we’ll do it next week. One of the last thing this company needs is to turn into an ECW tribute show for a few weeks.

Britt Baker is ready for Taya Valkyrie.

Gravity vs. Pac

Pac actually asks Gravity if he remembers him (as Pac was known as The Man That Gravity Forgot in WWE) and gets dropkicked to the floor. After Pac takes a minute, Gravity sends him into the barricade and hits a splash from the apron as we take a break. Back with Gravity hitting a high crossbody for two. Pac isn’t having that and hits a brainbuster, setting up the Rings of Saturn for the win at 8:21.

Rating: C+. For a match that was built around one joke from years ago, I’ve seen worse. Pac didn’t really have a ton of trouble here and he shouldn’t have, so this went pretty well all things considered. I could have gone for some follow up with Pac and the BCC but maybe that comes later. Either way, not bad here.

Adam Cole and MJF mock FTR, with the latter promising to punch Dax Harwood so hard that he’ll spit out CM Punk’s jockstrap. Cole says he wasn’t coming for the title because he and MJF are friends. MJF says that win, lose or draw, after their Tag Team Title match on Collision, Cole is getting a rematch for the World Title. Cole is happy but Roderick Strong runs in to shove MJF. Cole asks MJF to give them a second before telling Strong that he’s acting crazy. It’s ok if Cole has other friends and Strong needs to learn boundaries. This is going somewhere and it could be an interesting ending.

FTR likes Adam Cole but no one likes MJF. Anyone who gets to know MJF walks away from him, including his fiance. Harwood doesn’t like the goofiness and as much as he respects Cole, going after his family and the titles is too far.

Darby Allin vs. Swerve Strickland

Nick Wayne and Prince Nana are here too. Feeling out process to start with neither being able to get very far. Swerve knocks him up against the ropes and out to the floor, where Allin hits a Code Red for two back inside. Allin takes it back to the floor for a whip into the steps but Swerve climbs onto said steps for the House Call (and a LOUD one at that). We take a break and come back with Swerve hitting a suplex for two before going after Allin’s arm.

That’s broken up and Allin gets two off the Last Supper before hitting a suicide dive to take Swerve out on the floor. Another dive is cut off by a jumping knee though and the Swerve Stomp gets two. Swerve takes him up top but gets caught with a flipping Stunner. Allin takes too much time going up and it’s a super AA onto the apron. Since that insane move isn’t enough, here’s AR Fox to jump Allin, setting up the JML Driver for the pin at 11:58.

Rating: C+. Well, that spot was ridiculous and way more dangerous than it needed to be but that’s an Allin match for you. The ending was the logical next step after earlier, but after Allin was knocked silly by the AA, it felt like it was overkill. At least Swerve didn’t lose again though, as he has been beaten too often lately.

Post match Fox and Swerve beat down Allin and Wayne. Fox is officially in the Mogul Embassy. Sure why not.

The Jericho Appreciation Society is waiting for Chris Jericho. They go into his locker room, where the Callis painting is hung on the wall. The team doesn’t like where this is going and walk out on him.

We look at Billy Gunn teasing retirement on Collision.

Britt Baker vs. Taya Valkyrie

Baker grabs a headlock to start but gets knocked down with a hard shoulder. The running knees hit Baker in the corner and some hard chops put her down again. Taya loads up a wheelbarrow faceplant but they kind of fall down as we take a break. Back with Baker avoiding a charge into the corner, setting up a forearm for two.

They forearm it out until they trade kicks to the head. Taya’s clothesline gets two but Baker is back up on the middle rope. What appeared to be a Panama Sunrise DDT is countered into a northern lights suplex for two. Back up and the Panama Sunrise gets two but Lockjaw is broken up. Taya tries the Road To Valhalla but Baker spins out and grabs Lockjaw for the tap at 9:42.

Rating: D. Oh this was bad in every sense of the word. I don’t know if they were just on different pages here or what, but it was a rough sit throughout and almost nothing worked. They needed to slow down somewhere in there and figure things out, but instead it just kept going and got worse and worse. While it wasn’t an all time bad match, it was as bad as anything AEW has done in a long time.

Nyla Rose is ready for Hikaru Shida.

Various teams are ready for the tag team battle royal on Rampage. I approve of these rapid fire mini promos. It’s better than not hearing from anyone.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Best Friends vs. Lucha Bros vs. Blackpool Combat Club

The Club’s entrance takes some time so the other teams slug it out. Everyone brawls up towards the entrance, where Taylor hits a flip dive onto the pile on the floor. Back in and Fenix is waiting on Castagnoli, with the latter telling him to chop away. The springboard high angle armdrag takes Castagnoli down but everyone else is back in for the parade of knockdowns until Castagnoli gives Fenix Swiss Death for two.

Fenix superkicks Castagnoli but gets taken down by Trent for some forearms to the face. Trent’s tornado DDT gets two on Castagnoli, who cuts off Trent’s dive with an uppercut. We take a break and come back with Moxley striking away at Chuck, who hits a knee out of the corner. Penta tags himself in and takes over on Chuck, including a Backstabber for two.

Everything breaks down again and we get a pair of three way slugouts. We settle down to the Best Friends vs. the Bros with Fenix ankle locking Chuck. Made In Japan gets two on Trent with the Club diving in for the save. The Riccola Bomb is loaded up but here is Orange Cassidy to go after Moxley. Trent hits the Crunchy on Castagnoli but he’s not legal (sure). Instead, the Fear Factor finishes Trent at 14:25.

Rating: B-. This was all about the insanity and not bothering to do anything but go all over the place for most of the match. The Bros winning was a bit of a surprise but they’re the kinds of team who could be reheated very quickly. I could go for having them do some more, with less of the Best Friends being nice too.

Post match the Club keeps up the fight but Moxley leaves through the crowd. The Bros beat down the Best Friends as we hear about Moxley vs. Trent vs. Penta in a three way anything goes match next week. Cassidy hits the Orange Punch on Castagnoli to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. It was pretty clear that they took their foot off the gas after last week and it makes to do so. They still have enough time to get ready for All In and some of the likely matches for the show are already set. We should be in for some bigger shows in the coming weeks, but this was definitely one of their weaker shows in a good while. They’ll be fine going forward though and it’s nice to have that confidence about a promotion.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. AR Fox – Mouse Trap
Pac b. Gravity – Rings Of Saturn
Swerve Strickland b. Darby Allin – JML Driver
Britt Baker b. Taya Valkyrie – Lockjaw
Lucha Bros b. Best Friends and Blackpool Combat Club – Fear Factor to Beretta

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Collision
Date: July 22, 2023
Location: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Nigel McGuinness

We’re back to what I guess passes for normal around here after last week’s huge show. That could make for some interesting changes, as this week’s show features a Trios Titles match. Other than that I’m sure CM Punk is going to want some revenge on Ricky Starks after last week’s screwy finish so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn, Action Andretti and Darius Martin, Bullet Club Gold and Ricky Starks are ready for tonight.

Opening sequence.

Tony Schiavone brings out Ricky Starks, with the Owen Hart belt and a bag, for a chat. The fans tell him he deserves it and he certainly seems to agree. As for the bag…..there’s nothing in it but he wanted to show off what he treated himself to after he won last week. As for the controversial ending, it isn’t about how he won but how many he won, and anyone in his (Prada) shoes would do the same thing. It’s by any means necessary so talk to him about how stylish he is. He doesn’t want to be a pillar because he stands by himself and those Pillars haven’t won any Owens.

Cue CM Punk (no music) to say this is Starks’ celebration and he is only mad at himself. He’s cheated some people before and so has everyone else. Maybe if the New Jersey Devils did it before, they could have made it out of the first round. Punk says he can live with the loss, but isn’t sure if Starks can live with the win. He goes to leave, but Starks says the bag Punk has been carrying is empty, which brings Punk back.

Punk says he is the real world’s champion…but here are Christian Cage and Luchasaurus to interrupt. They are contractually obligated to be here as champion but this is taking too long. Christian says that he, er, we, are the faces of TNT but here is Darby Allin to interrupt. Allin promises to become the new face of TNT at All Out, though that’s a ways off. For tonight, let’s have a tag match (Allin: “Christian you don’t wrestle anymore so give me the TNT Champion.”) This was the most WWE opening since the last time WWE opened a show in their signature “talking leads to a main event” style.

Andrade El Idolo was not allowed in the building due to his actions last week.

Action Andretti/Darius Martin vs. Bullet Club Gold

The Gunns are here too. Martin takes over on Robinson to start and hands it to Andretti for the twisting crossbody. Andretti’s multiple springboard wristdrag sends Robinson down again but he’s right back with a kick to the face. A hanging neckbreaker on the floor drops Andretti and he’s sent hard into the barricade as we take a break.

Back with Andretti hitting an enziguri and diving over for the tag to Martin. Some right hands and a high crossbody get two on White, followed by Andretti’s Asai moonsault to the floor. Back in and a dropkick into a German suplex (which didn’t look great) gets two on Robinson. Andretti gets dropped though and Robinson hits the big left. The forward DDT into the Blade Runner finishes Andretti at 10:18.

Rating: C+. This was one of those matches that wasn’t about drama but rather Bullet Club Gold having to work a bit to get their momentum back after last week’s classic. There’s nothing wrong with a match like that and it worked well here without lasting too long. Andretti and Martin are fine as the young high fliers and everything worked out there.

We look at Willow Nightingale winning the Women’s Owen Hart Foundation tournament last week and then losing to Athena last night at Death Before Dishonor because Ring Of Honor isn’t about having fun.

Miro vs. Nick Comorato

Comorato jumps him from behind on the stage and sends him into the steps to start fast. Some shoulders in the corner have Miro in trouble as the match officially starts. Miro avoids a charge though and hits the jumping superkick, setting up Game Over to finish Comorato at 1:26.

Video on FTR.

Trios Titles: House Of Black vs. Acclaimed/Billy Gunn

The House of Black is defending and break up Caster’s rap to start fast. Caster gets caught in the wrong corner and Black hits him in the face for two. King drops the backsplash for two and Matthews drives Caster into the corner. Caster manages to send Matthews outside and then kicks him away, allowing the tag off to Gunn. House is cleaned but King blasts him with a clothesline, setting up Black Mass to retain the titles at 4:30.

Rating: C. This was pretty much a squash as Acclaimed and Gunn never got anything going. It was little more than destruction and that isn’t what you expect to see from them. Also, unless I missed it, there was no mention of the House Rules deal so maybe that has already been dropped.

Post match the House seems to show respect to Gunn. The House leaves and Gunn takes off his boots, leaving them in the ring to show his retirement. The Acclaimed tries to stop him but he walks off anyway.

Here is FTR for a chat about their Tag Team Title defense next week against Adam Cole and MJF. They have unfinished business with a bunch of teams but first they have to deal with these two. Wheeler gets that the fans like MJF and Cole at the moment, but he has first hand experience dealing with MJF’s lies. Harwood talks about having to get a job when he was about 14 and some of the rich kids made fun of him for having to work. He always wanted to punch them in the face but it brings him here, where people like MJF take wrestling as a joke.

We pause for a DOUBLE CLOTHESLINE chants before Harwood talks about how he doesn’t like how much of a joke MJF and Cole make wrestling. Next week, Harwood is giving them the beating he should have given those other kids. Nice job here of keeping composure when the fans were on the other side.

Video on Blood & Guts.

Skye Blue vs. Taya Valkyrie

Taya goes with the power to start and takes Blue down, allowing some kicks to the ribs. Back up and Blue gets in an armdrag but is knocked hard off the apron. Blue gets back inside and gets Blue Thunder Bombed for two as we take a break. We come back with Blue kicking away but getting caught in the ropes for the sliding German suplex. Taya hits a hard clothesline and a curb stomp finishes Blue at 8:54.

Rating: C. That was quite the surprise as Taya more or less ran through her here without much trouble. It’s a bit weird that Taya seems to be getting reheated, though I’m not sure how far that is going to take over. Blue seemed ready to move up the ladder and then she just gets beaten clean like this. Weird but ok then.

Post match Taya calls out Britt Baker for Dynamite.

Video on AR Fox.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Ricky Starks/Christian Cage vs. CM Punk/Darby Allin

Luchasaurus is here too. Starks has to start with Punk and is so hesitant to get in that the referee gets to a nine count with Starks on the apron. Once inside, Starks gets rolled up twice in a row and has to get away from the GTS. Christian comes in and gets caught in an armbar, allowing Allin to come in and stay on said arm. It’s already back to Punk, with Christian having to convince Starks to come back in. Punk and Allin clean house, setting up the double dives and we take a break.

Back with Punk in trouble as Scorpio Sky is watching from the sky box. Punk gets away and brings Allin back in for the house cleaning, including a Code Red for two on Starks. Allin’s suicide dive is knocked out of the air by Luchasaurus and Cage sends him head first through the bottom of the announcers’ table. Back with Allin still in trouble but Christian misses a top rope headbutt. Starks pulls Punk off the apron though and there is no one for a diving Allin to tag.

Allin kicks christian away and it’s back to Punk to clean house, including body slams and cartwheels. A clothesline gets two on Christian and the top rope elbow gets the same. Starks blocks the GTS and hits a headbutt to really rock Punk. He’s fine enough to get over to Allin off the tag but a quick Roshambo gives Starks two. Starks takes him up top but a superplex is reversed into a super reversed DDT. Christian saves but gets pulled outside into a GTS on the floor. Luchasaurus breaks up the Coffin Drop though and Starks grabs a rollup, with rope, for the pin at 25:07.

Rating: B. Another long main event here and Starks continues his rise after last week’s big win. The interesting thing here is that he cheated again after saying it didn’t matter earlier, as he is leaning into his turn a bit more. That could be quite the thorn in Punk’s side going forward and I’m curious to see where it goes. Allin vs. Cage/Luchasaurus is already set, so the other side worked well on its own. Good match here, with the time well spent.

Overall Rating: B-. Maybe it was how much Tony Khan produced wrestling I’ve seen in the last few days but this show felt long and didn’t have nearly the same pop to it that the previous episodes have had. There was no big moment for this one and it was hurt a bit as a result. That being said, there was good wrestling throughout and it advanced enough stuff to make it worth a look. Certainly not a bad show, but the first few episodes gave it a pretty high bar.

Results
Bullet Club Gold b. Action Andretti/Darius Martin – Blade Runner to Andretti
Miro b. Nick Comorato – Game Over
House Of Black b. Acclaimed/Billy Gunn – Black Mass to Gunn
Taya Valkyrie b. Skye Blue – Stomp
Ricky Starks/Christian Cage b. CM Punk/Darby Allin – Rollup to Allin while holding rope

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Rampage
Date: July 21, 2023
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Chris Jericho

We’re in for one of the more unique shows this week as this was taped after Blood & Guts, meaning it’s a double ring. Therefore, we’re getting the Royal Rampage two ring battle royal, which was rather well received for the most part last week. Other than that, the road to All In/Out needs to get started so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Royal Rampage

So you have a red ring (with Darby Allin in at #1) and a blue ring (with Swerve Strickland in at #2). Those rings have a Royal Rumble each (with one minute intervals) and the winners eventually go one on one for the All Out TNT Title shot. Jay Lethal (Red) and Nick Wayne (Blue) are in at #2…..as Excalibur has lost his voice. Allin and Wayne take over to start as Excalibur’s voice suddenly pops in (I wonder if that’s in post production) and Jericho gets in the interesting bit of three of these entrants being from the Seattle area.

Minoru Suzuki (Red) is in at #3 and teams up with Lethal to beat on Allin as Brian Cage (Blue) is in at #3 to help go after Wayne (Red and Blue are now getting alternating entrances rather than coming in at the same time). Cage plants Wayne as Ethan Page (Red) is in at #4 to go after Lethal until Komander (Blue) is in at #4. Komander walks the ropes and steps over Cage’s shoulders to DDT Strickland in a cool spot. Butcher (Red) is in at #5 as we still haven’t had any eliminations.

Big Bill (Blue) is in at #5, with Chris Jericho going into MJF’s story of slamming Bill for a nice chuckle. Page gets rid of Lethal but Lethal grabs his hand, allowing Suzuki to toss Page as well. Butcher and Suzuki slug it out, with Butcher actually getting rid of him as Blade (Red) is in at #6.

We take a break and come back with Brother Zay (Blue) having come in at #6. Toa Liona (Red) is in at #7 and the three villains throw Allin into the corner. Matt Sydal (Blue) is in at #7 and teams up with Zay to clean a bit of house (still no eliminations in Blue). Bishop Kaun (Red) is in at #8, giving us Butcher/The Blade vs. Gates of Agony as Allin tries to recover. Zay is tossed and Butcher and Blade follow to clear things out rather quickly. Matt Hardy (Blue) is in at #8 and hits a DDT on Bill. Allin has to dodge the Gates as Matt Menard (Red) is in at #9.

Sydal is out as the Gates stare Menard down for some reason. Instead Menard goes after Allin in the corner as Jeff Jarrett (Blue) is in at #9. Angelo Parker (Red) is in at #10 to complete the first ring (Toa, Kaun, Parker, Menard and Allin). Jake Hager (Blue) is in at #10 to complete the second ring (Matt Hardy, Big Bill, Jake Hager, Jeff Jarrett, Komander, Brian Cage, Nick Wayne, Swerve Strickland) and we take a break.

Back with Allin slipping out of a quadruple powerbomb and dropkicking the Gates to the apron. The Gates dump Menard and Parker and Toa tackles the heck out of Allin. Hardy gets rid of Jarrett but gets F5’d into a cutter, allowing Bill to knock him out. As Komander and Hager were apparently eliminated during the break, Swerve dumps Bill to get us down to three in the Blue ring.

Actually make it two as Wayne just jumps to the Red ring (which I guess you can do) and helps Allin get rid of Kaun. So we’re down to five total (Cage, Wayne, Strickland, Allin and Toa) until Wayne and Swerve get rid of Cage. Swerve drops Wayne out and All low bridges Toa, leaning we’re down to Swerve vs. Allin for the whole thing.

Allin sends Swerve to the apron but cue Prince Nana to hit Allin with a skateboard. Swerve powerbombs Allin onto the skateboard (wheels up because of course) and they go to the apron, but Allin slips out of a suplex to get back inside. Allin hits a spear through the ropes (not over so he’s fine) for the win at 28:32.

Rating: B. I really didn’t care for last year’s version all that much but they put this one together far better, with the cameras cutting just enough to keep track of everything going on. Allin going wire to wire is a very Allin thing to do and him getting the big title shot in Chicago will work well. Good stuff here and it never felt long, so well done on fixing what was wrong last year.

Acclaimed/Billy Gunn vs. QTV

Billy and Johnny TV start things off and don’t go anywhere, so it’s off to Marshall, complete with a very bandaged back. Bowens comes in for the jumping Fameasser and we get some scissoring to send us to a break. Back with Gunn getting the hot tag as everything breaks down. Bowens gets to clean house but Johnny clotheslines Billy and Max down. Solo adds a top rope double stomp for two on Billy but Bowens is back in with the Arrival. Max drops the Mic Drop for the pin at 8:47.

Rating: C+. See now this is a good use of QTV. They can do their backstage stuff and wacky segments but then put over a bigger team in a decent match. Why that needs to involve Powerhouse Hobbs and drag him down is beyond me, but there is a place for goofs like them. The Acclaimed and Gunn get a decent win before their Trios Titles match tomorrow as well, so this was the right way to go.

Post match Bowens says they’re winning the titles tomorrow.

Video on Marina Shafir vs. Kris Statlander for the TBS Title.

TBS Title: Marina Shafir vs. Kris Statlander

Statlander is defending. They go with the grappling to start until Shafir grabs a suplex to take over. Some right hands on the mat have Statlander in trouble but she’s back up with an electric chair drop (good for three replays). Back up and Statlander hits a running knee in the corner, setting up a delayed vertical suplex (again with the three replays). Shafir gets a standing Figure Four but Shafir reverses and hits Friday Night Fever to retain at 5:02.

Rating: C. This was just a quick “hey here’s a title match” match and it went as well as could be expected. Statlander is still in the mode of having to reestablish herself and the best way to do that is stacking up wins. Shafir is fine as the grappler/MMA woman of the division and she did fine here, but there wasn’t time for this to get anywhere.

Overall Rating: B-. About half of this show was one match which went well so you could only complain so much about it. If you ignore that some of the wrestlers were working both the ROH PPV and appearing here at the same time (which must be the most difficult issue to overcome in history), it’s a completely entertaining enough show. Granted that’s mainly due to something that won’t be around every week, but I’ll take what I can get.

Results
Darby Allin won the Royal Rampage last eliminating Swerve Strickland
Acclaimed/Billy Gunn b. QTV – Mic Drop to Solo
Kris Statlander b. Marina Shafir – Friday Night Fever

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Dynamite
Date: July 19, 2023
Location: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Commentators: Taz, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

It’s time to get violent, as this week’s show is all about Blood & Guts. That alone is going to be enough to carry things but we also have the FTW Title on the line as Hook defends against Jungle Boy, plus the tag team tournament finals. That should guarantee us a good show so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

FTW Title: Hook vs. Jungle Boy

Jungle Boy is challenging and we get the old Tarzan Boy music…..but instead here’s a video of Jungle Boy burying someone in the desert, then getting in a car. That seems to leave us with this.

FTW Title: Hook vs. Jack Perry

Perry (formerly Jungle Boy) is challenging. Hook starts fast and slugs away in the corner, with Perry being knocked outside. The beating continues in the crowd and Hook hits a jumping shot to the face off the barricade. Back in and Perry rakes the eyes to take over, meaning the beating can be on as we take a break.

We come back with Perry not being able to hit a German suplex off the apron. Instead, Hook exploders him to the floor and Perry needs a breather. Perry is fine enough to hit a draping DDT onto the floor but Hook is right back with another suplex. A low blow cuts Hook down and the running elbow to the back of the head gets two. The referee gets bumped so Hook’s head and arms suplex gets no count. Perry gets up and hits a belt shot to win the title at 11:38.

Rating: B-. The ending was a bit flat as I was expecting someone to come in and help Perry, but the result is what matters most. Perry has had failure after failure as the good guy but wins something here after going evil. Above all else, Jungle Boy is no more and that should be enough to make a huge difference. Hook is going to want revenge too and that’s your rematch.

Chris Jericho and Don Callis had a meeting but security got the camera out.

Adam Cole went to a restaurant last night, where MJF got to face two of his biggest fears: Spicy food and poor people. They sit down and MJF tells a story about slamming the 600lb Big Bill in front of 95,000 Maxamaniacs, bu then the food is really spicy. They drink a lot to kill the spice and then realize they drank 100% alcohol. Later, Max tells the Bill story again and then think the waiter looks like Daniel Garcia…..or maybe Sammy Garcia. There is one thing left to do: and they seemingly double clothesline the waiter. Still hilarious, with the Hulk Hogan storytelling being a gem.

Don Callis and Chris Jericho arrive and call Alex Marvez an idiot.

Britt Baker vs. Kayla Sparks

Baker stars fast with the Sling Blade and a fisherman’s neckbreaker, setting up the Lockjaw for the win at 1:06.

MJF and Adam Cole are ready to win the Tag Team Titles and Plan A is the double clothesline. MJF: “Unlike Sammy Guevara’s wife, we don’t need Plan B.” They even have matching trunks and jackets, plus one more surprise from Cole. The two of them leave, but here is Roderick Strong in a neck brace to chase after Cole.

Blind Eliminator Tag Team Tournament Finals: Daniel Garcia/Sammy Guevara vs. MJF/Adam Cole

Chris Jericho comes out to join commentary and we find out that Cole’s surprise is…..a theme music mash up! Garcia and MJF have a dance off before the bell, complete with music. After the lights and music end (and Jim Cornette dies), the villains jump MJF and Cole to start fast. Back to back eye pokes put Garcia in trouble though and MJF clears the ring, runs the ropes about eight times, and then stops to pose. Garcia gets in a cheap shot though and we take a break.

Back with MJF doing the staggering falling headbutt low blow to Guevara. MJF gets over to Cole, who ducks a double clothesline and superkicks Garcia. Guevara breaks up the Boom and a double Spanish Fly gets two. A half crab is broken up but MJF can’t bring himself to dive. Cole begs him to do it and MJF actually does hit a dive (leaving himself shocked). Back in and the Panama Sunrise sets up the DOUBLE CLOTHESLINE to finish Garcia at 10:42.

Rating: B. The heck do you say about this? It’s a match where you’re either having a good time with it or it’s not your thing whatsoever and that is completely understandable here. The friendship deal, as short term as it is going to be, is cracking me up more than once and it isn’t like this is going to be anything more than a bunch of fun. The match was inconsequential as MJF and Cole working together was so much fun. This was a blast overall and one of the funnier things I’ve seen in a good bit from AEW.

Post match Guevara and Garcia walk away from Jericho. With the villains gone, the referee hands Cole the World Title and MJF snaps. Cue FTR for the big staredown and everyone leaves.

Darby Allin, Nick Wayne, Orange Cassidy, Kris Statlander and the Best friends are ready for their respective matches. Allin owes AR Fox a favor and gets him an International Title shot next week. Wayne and Allin won’t put their hands in.

Chompy the dancing shark (Shark Week mascot) annoys commentary.

Here is what’s coming on various shows.

Video on Blood & Guts. The Blackpool Combat Club and Elite hate each other so let’s fight.

Here are the rules:

Two men enter for a five minute round.

The team who won the coin toss (Blackpool Combat Club) send in their second man for a three minute advantage.

The teams alternate entrances until all ten are in.

First submission wins.

Blackpool Combat Club/Pac/Konosuke Takeshita vs. Elite/Kota Ibushi

Claudio Castagnoli starts for the Club and Kenny Omega is in for the Elite. Castagnoli starts with the uppercuts before they fight over a suplex. Omega is sent into the space between the rings and sends Castagnoli into the corner. A high crossbody lets Omega hammer away but the fans want them in the other ring. Omega obliges and stomps away in the corner, setting up a standing hurricanrana. Pac comes in to make it 2-1 though and we take a break.

Back with Hangman Page coming in to even things up 2-2 and the fight is on again. House is cleaned and Page gives Pac a pop up powerbomb, setting up a top rope moonsault onto Castagnoli. Page German suplexes Pac and they split up into different rings. Castagnoli and Page take over their respective fights until Jon Moxley is in for the Club to make it 3-2. He comes complete with screwdriver (or maybe a fork) and gets to carve people up before grabbing some weapons. We get the broken glass but before anyone can get carved up, Nick Jackson is in to tie it up at 3-3.

Nick snaps off some hurricanranas to send people into the glass until Moxley drops Nick into it instead. Moxley even puts it on Nick’s chest and stomps away before Omega is slammed onto the glass. Wheeler Yuta is in to make it 4-3 with the villains taking over again. We take a break and come back again with Matt Jackson coming in to even things up at 4-4.

Matt faceplants Pac and hits an assisted Sliced Bread on Castagnoli. Moxley is back up for some suplexes to drop the Bucks as Castagnoli seems to have stolen Page’s vest. A Kitaro Crusher sends Yuta into the glass but here is Konosuke Takeshita to complete the evil team and make it 5-4.

Takeshita suplexes both Bucks at once (take that Moxley) and then punches a chair into Omega’s face. Don Callis is now on commentary as Omega has a freaking bed of nails. Moxley whips him into it and slams him onto them, with Castagnoli looking terrified. Kota Ibushi is in to finalize both teams at 5-5, so Yuta goes to meet him on the stage and gets dropped.

Moxley stands on Omega’s hand on the nails but Ibushi comes over to kick away at him. Ibushi puts him on the nails and hits a standing moonsault as Matt and Wheeler fight outside the cage. The Club gets in another quick advantage and we take a break. Back with Matt suplexing Yuta around the top of the cage until Yuta suplexes his way out of danger. Moxley piledrives Ibushi onto the glass and a bunch more piledrivers are loaded up.

Instead Matt drops thumbtacks from the roof and Castagnoli/Pac are backdropped onto the tacks. Nick fires off a bunch of superkicks to take over again. A toss powerbomb into two kicks in the corner drop Pac and a string of shots from the top rope have him in more trouble as we take another break. Back with the villains hitting a string of superplexes as Pac goes up top. A dropping double stomp puts Matt through a table in a crazy crash.

We get the big ten man brawl in the middle, with the Bucks (screw that falling stomp from the top of the cage) up for superkicks. The parade of strikes set up the dragon suplex to drop Takeshita onto the glass. A bunch of submissions have the Elite in trouble but Ibushi makes some rather slow motion saves. Hold on though as Castagnoli and Pac have issues, resulting in Pac flipping them off and leaving.

Omega uses the distraction to get up and clean house with a bunch of suplexes. The Buckshot Lariat drops Castagnoli and Wheeler gets hit in the head a lot. Moxley gets handcuffed to the ropes as Don Callis pulls Takeshita out of the match. Yuta is sent face first into a boot covered with thumbtacks before a chain around the throat makes him give up at 50:49.

Rating: B-. And that’s probably being generous. This was WAY too long (longer than the 1991/1992 editions combined) with far too much time spent standing around and not even trying to win the match. I still can’t stand all the weapons (like the BED OF NAILS that Omega was slammed onto, only to be up a few minutes later) being brought in as the cage and violence itself really should be good enough.

Other than that, Ibushi did just shy of nothing here and looked like he would have rather been anywhere else. The match was far from terrible as the violence was good in parts, but this needed to be at least twenty minutes shorter. The point of these matches is supposed to be hatred and violence, not stretching it out for as long as you can. Cut it down, sell more and stop with the ridiculous weapon spots. You’re in a double steel cage. That’s enough for the majority of the carnage, or at least it should be.

Overall Rating: B. This was the pay per view level TV show that you get to see at times and it worked rather well. You had a title change, a very fun tag match, and a main event that certainly felt big but didn’t exactly stick the landing. What mattered here was the big atmosphere though and they absolutely nailed it. Very entertaining show, but the main event needed some work.

Results
Jack Perry b. Hook – Belt shot
Britt Baker b. Kayla Sparks – Lockjaw
MJF/Adam Cole b. Daniel Garcia/Sammy Guevara – Double clothesline to Garcia
Elite/Kota Ibushi b. Blackpool Combat Club/Pac/Konosuke Takeshita when Yuta submitted

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Battle Of The Belts VII
Date: July 15, 2023
Location: Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Ian Riccboni, Nigel McGuinness

It’s back to the series that doesn’t seem to matter much to AEW. Most of the card was announced last night on Rampage so it isn’t like there was a ton of effort put into the build. That has been the case for a long time now with this series but maybe this one will be different. Let’s get to it.

We open with Ricky Starks celebrating winning the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament and walking up the ramp, where Jushin Thunder Liger is waiting with the cup. Starks snatches it out of his hands, celebrates really fast, and leaves with Liger being a bit confused.

We run down the card.

International Title: Lance Archer vs. Orange Cassidy

Cassidy is defending and has the title back after Jake Roberts (with Archer) took it on Rampage. Cassidy slugs away to start but gets caught on top with a shot to the face. The Blackout is countered into a sleeper but Archer powers out and sends him outside. We get a Cassidy vs. Roberts tease until Cassidy kicks away at Archer. That doesn’t matter, as Archer swings him hard into the barricade before stopping to beat up some security. The distraction lets Cassidy dropkick him into the barricade a few times and then stack some security on top.

Archer shrugs that off and sends Cassidy into the barricade, followed by into the corner back inside. We take a break and come back with Cassidy escaping the Blackout and a chokeslam attempt. A basement superkick connects but the Orange Punch is knocked out of the air. Archer grabs a hammerlock swinging Rock Bottom for two and Cassidy is sent outside. Roberts loads up a DDT but Archer stops him, only for Cassidy to grab his own DDT. They fight on the apron until Cassidy knocks him to the floor to retain by countout at 10:15.

Rating: C+. This was Cassidy being dominated again but retaining again, which is a bit of a huge stretch. The idea of Cassidy being hurt and overwhelmed has been done for months now and I’m not sure when they are actually going to do something with it. Cassidy has gotten almost all he can out of the title, but he should be seeing Archer again soon.

Tony Schiavone brings out the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn for a chat. They don’t like QTV mocking them and promise revenge next week in a trios match. Then next week on Collision, they get a Trios Titles match against the House of Black. Four way scissoring ensues.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm vs. Taya Valkyrie

Storm, with Ruby Soho, is defending. Taya starts fast and hammers away to send her outside (where Soho says Storm NEEDS A MINUTE). Running knees against the ropes get two back inside but they fight right back to the floor. Taya runs her over again and we take a break.

Back with Taya running her over and hitting a running hip attack in the corner for two. The television feed seems to go out and we take an unexpected break, coming back with…..part of Julia Hart vs. Bambi Hall from last week’s Collision. We then cut to commentary welcoming us back from the satellite feed being knocked out by bad weather. They don’t actually say who won the match but we’ll say it ended at about 11:00. I won’t rate half of the match but they were having a pretty physical fight before it was cut off.

Here are Tony Khan and Martha Hart to present Willow Nightingale and Ricky Starks with their titles and trophies. She gives a speech about the greatness of Calgary and what it means for the two of them to carry on Owen’s legacy.

TNT Title: Shawn Spears vs. Luchasaurus

Luchasaurus, with Christian Cage, is defending and commentary tells us that Toni Storm retained the title. Spears is sent outside for the early beating and we take a break. Back with Spears hammering away in the corner before they head outside. Spears rips off Christian’s jacket and gets sent through the barricade for his efforts. Back in and a chokeslam gets two on Spears but Luchasaurus charges into a chair in the corner to give Spears the same. Cage offers a distraction though and a Northern Lariat retains the title at 10:04.

Rating: C+. This went about as expected as Spears was there to give the Canadian fans something to cheer about. He was a good choice to get beaten down and Luchasaurus’ stuff did look solid, but I’m not sure how much anyone else was interested in Spears as a challenger. It’s an odd choice to close the show, but at least we could see everything.

We see a clip of Ruby Soho forearming Valkyrie so Storm Zero could retain the title. That’s a nice touch.

Overall Rating: C. As usual, this is a show that serves no real purpose other than having another AEW show on television. There hasn’t been a title change on the show in over a year, making it feel less and less important. Two of the show’s matches were added on last night, as despite all the talent and titles available in AEW, nothing can be given a nice 2-3 week build. It’s a shame and while it seems clear that AEW doesn’t care, it would be nice to see them try something for at least one match.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Lance Archer via countout
Toni Storm b. Taya Valkyrie – Storm Zero
Luchasaurus b. Shawn Spears – Northern Lariat

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.