Supercard Of Honor 2024
Date: April 5, 2024
Location: Liacouras Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

It’s time for another of these pay per views which have a limited connection to what has been going on with the regular show. The main event will see Eddie Kingston defending the World Title against Mark Briscoe, eleven years to the day of Briscoe’s brother Jay winning his first World Title. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Premiere Athletes vs. Rhett Titus/Tony Deppen/Adam Priest

This is the Athletes’ return after a rather lengthy hiatus. Titus and Josh Woods start things off with Woods wrestling him to the mat rather quickly. That’s broken up as Titus fights into an armbar but Woods breaks that up even faster. Tony Nese comes in but gets his arm cranked on as well. It’s off to Deppen for a dropkick, only to have him get hammered down into the corner so the villains can take over.

Said taking over doesn’t last long as Deppen gets over for the tag to Priest to pick the pace back up. Ari Daivari is in for a reverse DDT and two on Priest, who also gets over for the tag almost immediately. Titus’ dropkick into a belly to belly suplex gets two as everything breaks down. Titus is left alone to roll Nese up for two until Woods is back in with a nasty German suplex. Priest gets muscled up over the top into a powerbomb from Woods, setting up stereo top rope fists from the other Athletes for the pin at 8:16.

Rating: C+. It’s hard to get behind the idea of the Athletes being back as they haven’t exactly been impressive during their time in Ring Of Honor. I can go with the idea of pushing someone fresh and this was a nice start, but they did what they could here against fairly low level competition. I’m not sure how far they can go, but at least ROH is trying something.

Zero Hour: Beast Mortos vs. Blake Christian

Mortos is better known as Black Taurus. Commentary even brings up WWE superfan Vladimir being here for the show, which always feels off when WWE isn’t involved. Christian takes the leg out a few times and snaps off an enziguri. Mortos’ headscissors is reversed for a standoff so Christian hits a springboard elbow. Mortos finally gets smart by running him over with straight power before grabbing a bearhug.

That’s broken up as well and Christian’s handstand into a headscissors out of the corner sends Mortos outside. The big running flip dive drops Mortos again and a top rope elbow gets two. Mortos isn’t having this and grabs a pop up Samoan drop for two of his own. Christian is right back with a Death Valley Driver, followed by a spinning tornado DDT onto the ramp for two. They both go up top, where Mortos grabs a super gorilla press into a pumphandle piledriver for the pin at 8:41.

Rating: B-. I got into this one, despite it being another bonus match with no story or even appearances from the people involved. Mortos is a good monster and Christian hung with him well enough, though it isn’t likely going to matter if the two of them are going to be gone again after the show. For now though, I’ll take a nice power vs. speed match, which is as classic of a story as you can get in wrestling.

Post match Komander comes out for a stare of respect at Mortos.

Zero Hour: Griff Garrison/Cole Karter vs. Spanish Announce Project

Maria Kanellis is here with Garrison and Karter, who have stolen Serpentico’s mask. The villains jump them to start but get cleared out rather quickly. Stereo dives to the floor connect but Maria distracts Serpentico with the mask. The ensuing cheap shot puts Serpentico down and they head inside, where Garrison puts on the mask. That earns him a rather violent…sunset flip, which is broken up by Karter.

Garrison rips at Serpentico’s mask (as in the one he’s wearing) but Serpentico grabs a hurricanrana, allowing the tag off to Angelico. A small package gives Angelico two as everything breaks down. Serpentico hits a double Downward Spiral so Maria gets in, only to be ejected. Angelico mocks her as she leaves but gets tripped down by Garrison. Back to ringside and Garrison steals Serpentico’s mask, allowing Karter to roll him up (with tights) for the pin at 8:31.

Rating: C. I could go a long time without seeing the stolen mask into a rollup pin finish. Also, after weeks of Angelico and Serpentico being upset over having the mask stolen, they just lose again. For the sake of protecting Garrison and Karter? As in the team who has been stuck in at best second gear since they came together about 68 years ago? I’m not sure why this wasn’t the big revenge moment as it’s just a showdown at one of the biggest shows of the year after more than a month of buildup.

Zero Hour: Momo Kohgo vs. Mariah May

May takes her into the corner for a clean break before taking things up against the ropes for some forearms to the back. Some running knees to the back give May two and she plants Kohgo for two more. Kohgo fights up and sends her to the corner, setting up a 619 for two of her own. May is right back with a missile dropkick but a German suplex is countered with a kick to the head. A DDT gives Kohgo two and they trade kicks to the head, allowing May to hit a Saito suplex. It’s Gonna Be May (running knee) finishes at 6:12.

Rating: C. There wasn’t much to see here as it was just a step above a squash. May never felt in danger here as Kohgo was little more than someone getting beaten up. That’s not something you expect from a Stardom wrestler but it did a nice job of showcasing May. She’ll be fine going forward, as the Toni Storm match is going to be a big deal sooner than later.

May decks her post match.

The opening video focuses on Ring Of Honor’s history in Philadelphia while looking at the show’s major matches.

For a bonus, here is Nigel McGuinness to join commentary.

TV Title: Kyle Fletcher vs. Lee Johnson

Fletcher is defending and Johnson is on the roll of his career. Since it’s a big show, Fletcher is dressed up as Kishin Liger (Jushin’s evil alter ego). They stare each other down for about a minute before going with the grappling, which goes nowhere. Johnson hits a dropkick, followed by some rather hard chops in the corner. That doesn’t work for Fletcher, who grabs a swing out Side Effect for two of his own to take over.

Fletcher goes up but gets knocked to the floor, meaning it’s a big flip dive to take him out. A charge sends Johnson over the barricade though and Fletcher adds his own running dive. Back in and Johnson gets in a shot of his own, setting up a standing shooting star press for two. The Blue Thunder Bomb gives Johnson two more but Fletcher catches him on top with a super Falcon Arrow.

Johnson goes up again but gets kicked down, allowing Fletcher to it a sitout Last Ride for another near fall. Some more kicks cut off Johnson’s comeback bid but they head to the apron, where the Big Shot Drop (more like a little shot given how much elevation he got) plants Fletcher hard.

The double dive back in lets them beat the count and they slug it out. Fletcher grabs a heck of a Tombstone for two and they go up top, where Johnson is back with a super Canadian Destroyer. A frog splash gives Johnson two but the Big Shot Drop is countered into a hard Lawn Dart. Fletcher takes him up and hits a twisting brainbuster onto the turnbuckle to retain at 19:52.

Rating: B-. And yes, we continue to keep the title on Fletcher because he just gets so much out of being champion. Johnson’s hot streak was enough to get him the title shot, but it feels like he’s just filling in for Ethan Page. It was a hard hitting opener, but my goodness I do not get the hype with Fletcher whatsoever.

We run down the rest of the card.

Video on Stardom.

Mei Seira/Maika/Mina Shirakawa vs. Tam Nakano/Saya Kamitani/AZM

Stardom showcase. AZM rolls Seira up for two to start as they’re moving rather quickly. Saya gets in a cheap shot from the apron to cut Seira down and it’s Nakano coming in to take over. Seira’s forearms don’t get here anywhere but a superkick and a running Blockbuster do a bit better.

Maika (Stardom World Champion) comes in to suplex Saya and Nakano but the latter’s running knee connects for two. It’s off to AZM for a Disarm-Her as everything breaks down, with AZM hitting a suplex on Maika. Mina comes in to go after Saya’s knee but the Figure Four is broken up. Saya’s northern lights suplex gets two but Mina is right back on the leg.

This time the Figure Four goes on until AZM makes the save and everything breaks down again. Nakano hits a huge dive to the floor to take out a bunch of people, leaving Mina to forearm Saya down. A snazzy rollup gives Mina two with Nakano and AZM making the save. Back up and a lifting reverse layout DDT gives Mina the pin on Saya at 14:26.

Rating: B. This was the match with some rather impressive action to pop the crowd over and over again and that’s not a bad thing. I’m not sure why it needed to be added over something that had been built up on ROH’s regular show but to be fair, this was probably better than anything else they could throw out there. The oddest thing: this was longer than any match on the full Stardom show from the weekend.

Post match here is Mariah May to celebrate with Mina, her Stardom stablemate, though Mina and Toni Storm don’t get along.

Tag Team Titles: Kingdom vs. Infantry

The Infantry is challenging after going to a time limit draw in a Proving Ground match. The champs jump them from behind to start, with Bravo being kicked to the floor as the bell rings. We settle down to Dean chopping Bennett down in the corner and dropping an elbow for two. Everyone but Taven goes to the ramp so Taven hits a running dive to take all of them out.

A table is loaded up at ringside before the Kingdom hits a Hail Mary to plant Dean on the ramp. Bravo gets taken into the wrong corner for a bunch of stomping but he uses the ropes to pull himself away. The diving tag brings Dean back in and a jawbreaker into a German suplex gets two. Taven is back in with Just The Tip to give Bennett two and the Proton Pack hits Dean for two more.

Everything breaks down and Boot Camp hits Taven, with Bennett having to make a save of his own. An assisted swinging Rock Bottom plants Bennett on the ramp and Bravo splashes Taven through the table. Back in and the top rope splash hits Bennett but there is no referee. There is however a Wardlow to run Dean over and give Bennett the retaining pin at 13:50.

Rating: B-. Yeah that isn’t the biggest surprise as this was set up earlier this week so it’s not like it was some big story. At the same time, there was the chance to have a nice moment with the Infantry winning but they went with the heels winning again off some cheating. Ring Of Honor has a real problem with not giving the fans many of those happy moments and that was the case again here, as the Undisputed Kingdom’s lame run continues.

We recap the Women’s TV Title Tournament.

Women’s TV Title: Queen Aminata vs. Billie Starkz

For the inaugural championship. Feeling out process to start with Starkz taking her down but not being able to hit a big kick. Instead Aminata sends her into the ropes for one heck of a kick to the face. A full nelson with the legs has Starkz in more trouble and Aminata sends her flying with a suplex. Starkz fights back up but gets caught with a fisherman’s neckbreaker for two.

Back up and Starkz manages a quick clothesline for a double knockdown and a needed breather. Aminata sends her throat first into the ropes but misses a running dropkick, allowing Starkz to send things to the floor. Starkz’ Swanton only hits apron and a German suplex on to the floor knocks Starkz silly.

Back in and a running Air Raid Crash gives Aminata two, meaning it’s time for doubt to set in. A running kick in the face hits Starkz again but she’s able to knock Aminata off the top. The Swanton hits raised knees though and it’s time for the referee to pause things to check on Starkz. Everything gets all serious and Starkz gets a neck brace applied. Aminata holds the ropes open….and gets German suplexed into a sleeper to make Starkz champion at 17:41.

Rating: B. Well the ending was certainly creative and I think I liked it, as it fits something that a follower of Athena’s “win at all costs” mentality would do. At the same time, Starkz is a much better choice for the inaugural champion as Aminata just caught some fire in recent weeks. Probably the best match of the night so far and the right call.

Top Flight is ready to face FTR on Collision.

Here is Bullet Club Gold, with commentary saying you never know who might show up in Ring Of Honor. Coleman: “Even the champions!” It’s time for an open challenge for the Six Man Tag Team Titles, so here are some challengers.

Six Man Tag Team Titles: Bullet Club Gold vs. Lance Archer/Alex Zayne/Minoru Suzuki

The Club is defending and I guess we ignore that Archer and the Righteous are a regular three man team but aren’t getting the shot here. White and Suzuki start things off with the fans thinking White’s chops were a bad idea. Suzuki’s sleeper sends White bailing out to the floor, with White promising to knock Suzuki out.

Austin comes in so Suzuki calls him “A** Boy” before no selling his chops. It’s off to Archer for a choke toss to Colten, who pokes Archer in the eye. That doesn’t do much good as it’s Zayne coming in and getting dropkicked down. It’s back to White to take over on Zayne, including the chinlock. Zayne fights up and rolls over to Archer so the house can quickly be cleaned.

Austin escapes the Blackout and manages to knock Archer down for a double breather. Suzuki and White get the double tags with a running kick to the chest getting two on White. The Blade Runner is countered into the sleeper but White breaks that up as well. Zayne comes in with a running hurricanrana out of the corner but White gives him a swinging Rock Bottom. 3:10 To Yuma hits Archer and the Blade Runner to Zayne retains the titles at 15:26.

Rating: C+. This was your “here is a random team to challenge for the titles because these titles still exist because reasons”. I’m aware that Archer/Zayne/Suzuki have enough of a connection in New Japan. Why that is enough to warrant a fifteen minute title shot on a show that is probably going to run over four and a half hours isn’t clear.

I really hope the Six Man Titles are unified with the Trios Titles sooner than later, as these matches just drag things doing, even when they include Suzuki and his “I make funny faces and don’t sell much but I’m a legend so it’s cool” status. I get that he’s a legend but he shows up infrequently and doesn’t really do much of note these days. Find someone else to do it instead.

Post match the champs brag about their win so here are Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed for the brawl. Anthony Bowens gets taken down with a Blade Runner and the Club bails.

We recap Dalton Castle vs. Johnny TV. Johnny and Taya Valkyrie have stolen everything from Castle, including the Boys (who got fired due to no showing events so they’re not here despite being the focal point of the story), so now it’s a Fight Without Honor.

Dalton Castle vs. Johnny TV

Fight Without Honor so anything goes and Taya Valkyrie is here with Johnny. Castle has the replacement Boys with him, which do help a little. Castle also seems back to normal, which should help him out a good bit here. The Boys leave but Castle is fine enough to try an early Bang A Rang, with TV bailing out to the floor. Taya shouts about the Boys to annoy Castle though, allowing Johnny to drop him onto the barricade.

Back in and Castle grabs a DDT before going after the arm. They go outside again where another distraction lets TV gt in a running knee to take over. Back in and the flipping neckbreaker gives TV two and he whips Castle over the corner for a crash to the floor. The table is set up but TV is smart enough to kick Castle in the head to keep him down. TV and Taya whip out his and hers kendo sticks to beat Castle down, both on the floor and back in the ring.

Castle fights up again and gets the stick, which has TV running away for cover. Back in and Castle snaps off some suplexes to send TV outside again. That leaves Castle to take the kendo stick and….slide it through his trunks before it falls onto the floor. Taya gets creative by spraying Castle with a leaf blower, allowing TV to powerbomb him through a table. TV wraps a chair around Castle’s head and hits him with the stick for two more, meaning it’s time to get frustrated.

Starship Pain takes way too long though and Castle knocks him outside again, meaning it’s time for the Boys to come out and get throw outside. The biggest one doesn’t quite hit TV so here is Jack Cartwheel as a Boy to take TV out. That’s not enough so here is actor/wrestler Paul Walter Hauser as a Boy to chill in the corner. That leaves TV to dive onto the pile at ringside, followed by Hauser laying out TV with a Sky High. The Boys kidnap Taya, leaving Hauser and Castle to pour out the thumbtacks. A Bang A Rang onto the tacks finishes TV at 22:06.

Rating: C+. This was a weird mixture of anger/violence and goofiness, which didn’t make for the best match. Castle didn’t really feel like he wanted to get revenge on TV and instead came off more like he was just having a half comedy match. The Cartwheel and Hauser stuff didn’t do much for me but I get why ROH would want to have someone as big as Hauser around. That being said, this was one of the matches I wanted to see on the show and it really didn’t work as well as it could have.

We recap Hikaru Shida challenging Athena for the Women’s Title. Shida is a multi-time AEW Women’s Champion and beat Athena (ten years ago) so now it’s time for a big showdown.

Women’s Title: Hikaru Shida vs. Athena

Athena is defending and bails to the floor to start as they hit the stall button early on. Back in and Shida cranks on the arm but Athena bails from the threat of the Katana. Athena comes back in and gets dropped with a string of clotheslines but is able to tie Shida’s leg up in the ropes. An ankle lock keeps Shida down, at least until she slips out and slugs away against the ropes. A suplex gives Shida two and she hits a dropkick, only to get booted out to the floor.

Shida hits a running knee against the barricade but is too banged up to stay after things. Back in and Shida misses a kick, allowing Athena to snap off a Saito suplex. Athena is already getting frustrated so she goes up, only to have the O Face blocked. With that not working, Athena gets smart by going back to the leg with another ankle lock. Shida bails out to the ramp, where she gets in a knee to block Athena’s dive.

Strong Zero on the ramp plants Athena and the top rope Meteor gives Shida two. The Dominator into the Codebreaker gives Athena two and she is looking rather stunned. Shida grabs a Falcon Arrow for one and she hurricanranas Athena to the floor, where she hangs on to powerbomb Shida hard. Back in and the O Face gives Athena two but Shida is right back up with the Katana for the same. Athena gets back up and ducks a knee, setting up a superkick. Another O Face retains the title at 22:35.

Rating: B. Yeah it’s a good match and no the result isn’t a surprise. Athena has held the title for so long now that these wins barely register anymore. Shida felt like the most “here’s an AEW star to come after the belt” challenger ever and that isn’t exactly inspiring. Good match, but Athena continuing to hold the title has not exactly been interesting for a long time.

Here’s what’s coming on various AEW shows.

We recap Eddie Kingston defending the Ring Of Honor World Title against Mark Briscoe. They’re friends and Eddie is giving Mark a shot because he deserves it. At the same time, Eddie just lost the Continental Crown and can’t handle losing again. This match is eleven years to the day that Mark’s brother Jay won his first World Title so it’s a mixture of honor and family.

Ring Of Honor World Title: Eddie Kingston vs. Mark Briscoe

Briscoe is challenging and Kingston backs him into the corner to start. They fight over wrist control to no avail until Kingston snaps off a backdrop driver. Briscoe fights up and hits a big boot, followed by a running boot to send Kingston outside. Kingston gets in his own shot out there and hits a dive off the apron to make it worse. The announcers’ table is broken up and Briscoe is busted open as he gets back inside, with Kingston pounding him down into the corner.

Kingston snaps off a suplex and hits a clothesline to drop Briscoe to the floor. The suicide dive is cut off though and Briscoe dropkicks him into the barricade. There’s the Cactus Elbow to hit Kingston but he knocks Briscoe down again to take back over. Things get more violent as Briscoe is tied in the Tree of Woe before falling out for two. Back up and Briscoe wins a chop off and grabs a fisherman’s buster for two of his own.

There’s the Blockbuster from the apron to the floor to put Kingston down again and a Death Valley Driver connects back inside. The Froggy Bow gives Briscoe another near fall and they trade suplexes before a double clothesline leaves them both down. They go to the apron again, where Kingston snaps off a t-bone suplex to the floor.

Briscoe has to dive back in to beat the count and they slug it out from their knees. Another chop off goes to Briscoe, who hits a running clothesline to take Kingston down. A discus forearm puts Kingston down and they trade spinning shots to the head. Briscoe goes old school with the Cutthroat Driver into the Jay Driller for the pin and the title at 24:13.

Rating: B. It was another good fight and Mark finally getting his big moment was nice to see, but the lack of animosity between them made this feel a bit flatter than it should have been. Briscoe should have won the title a long time ago but I’ll take it over him losing again like he did last year. This was the only thing that could have headlined and it was a special feeling, though Kingston’s collapse could make for some rocky moments going forward.

Friends, family and wrestlers celebrate with Briscoe to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show might have been every Ring Of Honor problem rolled into one. As usual, the action itself was good to very good so the criticisms are not aimed at the wrestlers. Instead, we had a show that went on WAY longer than it needed to (just shy of four hours and forty minutes counting Zero Hour) with a staggering five matches going over fifteen minutes.

It’s a good example of a show that just needed to be trimmed WAY down, including cutting off say three Zero Hour matches and shortening some of the midcard stuff. It isn’t that the show was bad, but I was sick of watching it bay the end as it just kept going for hours. On top of that, it’s another big show with only so many noteworthy things happening, as the World Title and Women’s TV Titles changing hands aren’t likely to mean much in Ring Of Honor’s week to week status. Overall a pretty good show, but as usual, Ring Of Honor is REALLY in need of someone to say “and that’s enough”.

Results
Premiere Athletes b. Tony Deppen/Adam Priest/Rhett Titus – Double top rope fist drops to Priest
Beast Mortos b. Blake Christian – Pumphandle piledriver
Griff Garrison/Cole Karter b. Angelico/Serpentico – Rollup with tights to Serpentico
Mariah May b. Momo Kohgo – It’s Gonna Be May
Kyle Fletcher b. Lee Johnson – Super brainbuster onto the turnbuckle
Mei Seira/Maika/Mina Shirakawa b. Tam Nakano/Saya Kamitani/AZM – Lifting reverse layout DDT to Kamitani
Billie Starkz b. Queen Aminata – Sleeper
Bullet Club Gold b. Minoru Suzuki/Alex Zayne/Lance Archer – Blade Runner to Zayne
Dalton Castle b. Johnny TV – Bang A Rang onto thumbtacks
Athena b. Hikaru Shida – O Face
Mark Briscoe b. Eddie Kingston – Jay Driller

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Dynamite
Date: April 3, 2024
Location: DCU Center, Worcester, Massachusetts
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We are less than a month away from Dynasty and that means it is time to start hammering home the card. First up we are likely set for Swerve Strickland challenging Samoa Joe for the AEW World Title. In addition, Will Ospreay will face Bryan Danielson in a dream match, but first Ospreay has to face Will. Hobbs that is. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Adam Copeland to get things going. He’s here to have some fun and, after some microphone feedback (Copeland: “Live TV baby!”), he talks about all of the run he has had over the years. Copeland watched all kinds of wrestling in his life, including the WWF, the NWA, places in Canada and everywhere else and now he’s here where he sees the best roster he can imagine.

There are all kinds of wrestlers he can face for the first time ever and he has never had more fun in his career. AEW has pushed this industry into a better place and it gives more people a chance to do what they have never done before. This is where the best wrestle and now he’s calming down after getting fired up. Now it is time to move forward and there is a reason so many stars came here. For now, Copeland introduces Will Ospreay and some respect is shown. This was a rather nice rah-rah speech and Copeland knows how to give them as well as anyone.

Will Ospreay vs. Powerhouse Hobbs

Don Callis is on commentary as Hobbs knocks Hobbs out of the air to start. Ospreay gets smart by going after the knee and knocks him to the floor before hitting a dive. Hobbs is sent into the steps but he catches Ospreay on the barricade and plants him onto the steps. There’s the toss over the announcers’ table to drop Ospreay again and we take a break.

Back with Ospreay dropping Hobbs off a handspring kick to the face before going up. Hobbs pulls him down by the throat but a Stundog Millionaire gets Ospreay out of trouble again. Hobbs gets in another knockdown but misses a splash off the top of all things. The Hidden Blade is countered into a World’s Strongest Slam, which is countered into a small package to give Ospreay two.

Hobbs blasts him with a clothesline to take over, setting up a middle rope swinging powerslam (that was cool) for two more. Another powerslam attempt is countered into a DDT and a sky twister press puts Hobbs down again. The Hidden Blade finishes for Ospreay at 14:15.

Rating: B. Ospreay’s run continues and I liked this one more than some of the other things he’s done so far. It felt more like Ospreay was fighting up against the monster Hobbs before slaying the beast in the end. At the same time, it should be about it for his stuff with the Callis Family, which has been done pretty much to death so far. Good stuff here, and the shorter time helped it a bit.

Post match Callis has to break up Ospreay and Hobbs before Ospreay goes to leave. Cue Bryan Danielson for a staredown as we take a break.

Bryan Danielson vs. Lance Archer

Archer starts fast and takes over by knocking Danielson down. Danielson gets sent into the corner but avoids a charge, setting up a dragon screw legwhip. Cranking on and kicking at the leg have Archer in more trouble, followed by a running dropkick to the leg in the corner. They go outside, with Archer running Danielson over and slamming a production worker onto him for an impressive spot.

We take a break and come back with Danielson moonsaulting over him but getting run over with a crossbody. Danielson fights out of the corner and scores with some running dropkicks. Archer slips out of the LeBell Lock and bails outside, where Danielson hits a running knee off the apron.

Back in and Danielson hits a missile dropkick, followed by the YES Kicks. Archer doesn’t care for that and hits a hard chokeslam, only to have the Blackout broken up with elbows to the face. Danielson’s sleeper is broken up so Danielson kicks him in the head three straight times. The running knee finishes Archer at 15:38.

Rating: B-. This was the latest instance of Danielson having a good match around to keep up with Ospreay. If nothing else I do like the idea of having Danielson face someone different than Ospreay as it adds a fresh direction. It’s always fun watching Danielson strike down a monster and Archer has enough credibility to make Danielson seem like a big deal here so well done.

Here is Chris Jericho on the stage to call out Hook so hit that signal. Cue Hook, with Jericho praising him and asking Hook to believe in him. Hook does, to the point where they can team together this week on Collision. Works for Jericho.

Shane Taylor Promotions are ready to face Hook and Jericho on Collision.

Jay White vs. Billy Gunn

Gunn jumps White on the stage during his entrance and the beating begins around ringside. They get inside, the bell rings, and White punches him out to the floor. The fight heads into the crowd as White can’t get anything going to start. White gets knocked back to ringside but avoids a superkick, which hits the steps instead. A clothesline puts White on the floor again though and we take a break.

Back with White unloading in the corner but Gunn runs him over again. We see the Acclaimed down in the back, with the distraction letting White set up the Blade Runner. The One And Only connects instead and Gunn grabs a chair. Cue the Gunns to beg for mercy though, allowing White to hit a low blow for the DQ at 11:39.

Rating: D+. I’m not sure what this was but I think we can safely call it a bad miss. This was barely a match until the last minute and a half and then they went to a DQ (which is becoming more common around here). I’m liking the idea of the titles being unified, but this was really not a good way to help get us there. The fact that I had to pause this a few times out of pure boredom isn’t a good sign and it just got less interesting as it kept going.

Post match the beatdown is on until the Acclaimed make the save. The Gunns save White from going through the announcers’ table.

Willow Nightingale, with Stokely Hathaway and Kris Statlander, is feeling mother fluffin great about getting a TBS Title shot and talks about how she worked hard in this town for years. This is a home away from home for her and if she can be convinced she belongs here, anyone can do it. Now she’s ready to win the TBS Title and she thanks the fans for their love and support. Hathaway is proud of Willow’s win but here is Mercedes Mone to interrupt. She wants the winner of Willow and Hart, because money changes everything. Then Mone dances.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta vs. Young Bucks

Chuck Taylor and Sue are here with Cassidy and Beretta. Matt gets suplexed down to start but he’s back with the rolling northern lights suplex for two. The Bucks are sent to the floor where they trip Beretta down to take over. Matt even jumps on commentary to send us to a break. Back with Cassidy hitting a high crossbody but his double hurricanrana is blocked. Matt’s ram into an exposed turnbuckle is blocked but Cassidy gets knocked down anyway.

The EVP Trigger misses though and Cassidy’s top rope DDT gets two on Matt. Cassidy and Beretta hit their own TK river and it’s Soul Food into the half and half suplex to send Matt flying. Back up and Matt fires off some superkicks but stops to threaten Sue, who slaps him instead. The spike Strong Zero gets two on Matt with Nick making the save. Sue gives Trent the reviving kiss on the cheek….but Matt sends him into the exposed buckle. A rollup with tights pins Beretta at 12:28.

Rating: C+ This got some time but it never quite moved up to the higher level I was expecting. Cassidy and Beretta were a thrown together team but they did well in their limited time in the role. The Bucks have been all but penciled in for the finals since the tournament started so this was almost a formality, Not a bad match, but it seemed more built around Sue near the end and that’s not quite how a chance for a title shot should feel.

Post match the Bucks mock Sue before leaving. Beretta loads up the Big Hug but gives Cassidy a running knee instead. Chuck Taylor isn’t sure what to think as Beretta leaves. I haven’t been a big fan of the Best Friends stuff but this will be a big deal to a large portion of the AEW audience. Also more Beretta is a good thing.

Mariah May vs. Thunder Rosa

Toni Storm is on commentary and the winner gets the Dynasty title shot. Rosa chops away in the corner to start but May takes over and hits the running hip attack. Back up and Rosa hits a spinning faceplant before knocking May hard to the floor. May wins a strike out on the apron but gets hurricanranaed onto the floor. We take a break and come back with May striking away, followed by a Saito suplex. A Stratusphere is blocked so May hits a running knee for two instead. May Day is loaded up but Rosa reverses into a Backstabber, setting up the Tijuana Bomb for the pin at 7:48.

Rating: C+. They didn’t give Rosa much until she won in the end, though that’s what matters more than anything else. Rosa does need her title shot after never being defeated for the title and the ending should have May in some hot water with Storm. They might not have taken the most interesting route to get there but they got the title shot right, which is all that matters.

Penta El Zero Miedo wants a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland next week on Dynamite.

Penta El Zero Miedo receives a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland next week on Dynamite.

Here are Swerve Strickland and Samoa Joe for the contract signing for Dynasty. Joe signs without saying anything but then warns Swerve before he can sign as well. He has been watching Swerve’s rise to the top but Swerve has received some bad information, saying that he’s going to win the World Title. Joe threatens violence and gives Swerve a chance to walk, but instead Swerve says he has wanted this moment his entire life.

Swerve has worked to get here and he’ll do anything to win the title. At Dynasty, he’s going to show that he’s every bit of the man Joe is. The fight is on but Joe breaks up a chain shot and chases Swerve off. The beatdown leaves Swerve down in the corner. Joe leaves but a bloody Swerve laughs and crawls over to sign the contract in his own blood. That’s fine with Joe, who comes back in to put Swerve through the table to end the show. Joe being freaked out by Swerve crawling to the contract was good, and it was entirely logical for Joe to come back and beat him up again.

Overall Rating: B-. This show had a bit of a different feel to it as it came off more focused on a few things than on several things at once. At the same time, they helped set things up for the next few weeks, including Dynasty. The action (save for Gunn vs. White) was good and it made for a pretty solid show all around. Nice show, and points for making it feel a bit different.

Results
Will Ospreay b. Powerhouse Hobbs – Hidden Blade
Bryan Danielson b. Lance Archer – Running knee
Billy Gunn b. Jay White via DQ when White hit Gunn low
Young Bucks b. Trent Beretta/Orange Cassidy – Rollup with tights to Beretta,
Thunder Rosa b. Mariah May – Tijuana Bomb

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

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Collision
Date: March 30, 2024
Location: Budweiser Gardens, London, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Nigel McGuinness, Tony Schiavone

It’s tournament time this week as we have two first round matches in the Tag Team Title tournament. Other than that, we have about three weeks to go before Dynasty and it is time to start hammering out the rest of the card. There is a chance we could see some of that tonight so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Here is TNT Champion Adam Copeland for his Cope Open open challenge and he loves the crowd reaction. He’s done with Christian Cage and now it’s time for the title to be on the line.

TNT Title: Adam Copeland vs. ???

Copeland is defending and the open challenge is answered by….the returning Matt Cardona. They trade knockdowns into kickoffs and it’s an early standoff. An exchange of dropkicks give us a standoff as Schiavone runs down the card. Copeland gets him to the floor to take over but the Impaler on the apron is blocked with a rake to the eyes.

We take a break and come back with Cardona holding a chinlock with a knee in Copeland’s back. That’s broken up and stereo big boots leave them both down again. Cardona goes up but gets pulled down by the leg for his efforts. This time Copeland goes up and hits a top rope bulldog for two, followed by an Edge O Matic for the same.

Cardona bails to the floor so Copeland gives chase, only to get kicked low on the way back in. An Impaler gives Cardona two but Radio Silence (Rough Ryder) is countered into a buckle bomb. A sitout powerbomb gives Copeland two but the spear is countered into Radio Silence for two more. Cardona loads up a spear, only to have Copeland hit one of his own to retain at 13:26.

Rating: B-. This was a nice surprise though it’s still weird to me to see the serious Cardona. He deserves amazing credit for reinventing himself like this and turning a spot that cripples a lot of careers into something totally new. They were playing up the “we know each other really well” idea here but Copeland was just that much better. Good opener and Cardona was a bit of a treat as the challenger.

Post match the lights go out and Malakai Black is here, with Buddy Matthews jumping Copeland from behind. Mark Briscoe and Eddie Kingston run in for the save. The House vanishes and commentary hypes up Briscoe vs. Kingston for the Ring Of Honor World Title at Supercard Of Honor next Friday. This marks one more appearance than they’ve had together in Ring Of Honor this year so well done?

FTR isn’t sure if they’re the best team anymore but they want to be the first three time ROH Tag Team Champions. That means going through the Cinderella team of The Infantry tonight and so be it.

Tony Schiavone brings out Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed (rap not included) for a chat. Schiavone gets to the point of Bullet Club Gold invading Billy’s home on Rampage. Billy is ticked off and says White is always bragging about selling out Madison Square Garden. Billy: “I’ve done that so many times I’ve lost count.” Next week on Dynamite it’s vs. Billy, with Max Caster saying the Acclaimed and the Gunns should stay in the back. Bowens can’t blame White for running from Billy’s wife because she would have slapped the hair off his face. They’re ready for the Club.

Tag Team Title Tournament First Round: FTR vs. The Infantry

Wheeler takes Dean down to start but Dean is back with some armdrags into an armbar. Bravo comes in to face Harwood, who gets dropped by some dropkicks. The Infantry clears the ring so we settle down to Dean chopping away at Wheeler. A jumping elbow gets two but Wheeler powerslams a leaping Bravo out of the air for a nasty crash. Harwood’s top rope superplex drops Bravo and we take a break.

Back with Harwood chopping the soul out of Bravo but Dean is fine enough to hit a hue dive onto all three of them. Back in and Bravo’s high crossbody gets two on Harwood, followed by another high crossbody for another two on Harwood. Wheeler is back in with a powerbomb into a German suplex from Harwood into a rollup for two. Back up and the Infantry superkicks FTR into a neckbreaker for two on Wheeler but Harwood is sent into Dean to knock him outside. FTR collides with each other but Wheeler flips over Harwood to set up the Shatter Machine for the pin at 12:23.

Rating: B. The Infantry brought it here, which makes their near squash by the House Of Black all the more confusing. If you’re willing to let them have a close match against a great team, why not give them some more against the House? Anyway, this was an interesting one as you had FTR having trouble keeping up with the fast young team, only to eventually catch them. You could see Harwood’s face almost saying “gotcha” right before the Shatter Machine and that’s a great story, as the veterans take out the young upstarts by catching them rather than beating them.

Big Bill and Ricky Starks aren’t looking past Top Flight but they’re really not worried. They’ve beaten FTR before so they can do it again and prove just how great they are.

Adam Copeland, Eddie Kingston and Mark Briscoe are ready for the House Of Black at Dynasty. Briscoe is down but wants a dogfight from Kingston at Supercard Of Honor. Kingston is ready to make the House spit up blood and teeth.

Kyle O’Reilly vs. JD Drake

Drake grabs an early cobra clutch before hitting a dropkick for two. A Vader Bomb misses for Drake though and O’Reilly strikes away. O’Reilly kicks him down and grabs the cross armbreaker for the tap at 2:36. It’s nice to see a fast match like that, as this didn’t need to go long and made O’Reilly feel that much more dangerous.

Post match the Undisputed Kingdom comes out to celebrate with O’Reilly, who just kind of goes with it.

We get a preview of Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Will Ospreay on Dynamite.

Tag Team Title Tournament Quarterfinals: Big Bill/Ricky Starks vs. Top Flight

Darius wrestles Starks down into an armbar to start and a snap suplex puts him down again. A slingshot hilo gives Darius two but it’s off to Bill, who has Darius a bit nervous. With the solo efforts not working, Top Flight dropkicks both of them to the floor. Starks offers a distraction though and a big boot drops Dante as we take a break.

Back with Bill missing a charge into the corner, allowing the tag off to Darius to pick up the pace. A Pele kick out of the corner catches Starks and a rollup gets….two, despite Starks not really moving. Darius uses Dante as a launchpad for a tornado DDT to pin Starks at 9:40 (about ten seconds after the weird near fall so someone seems to have gotten screwed up there).

Rating: C+. The ending was a bit odd but they recovered just fine and got the result they needed, which is all that matters. Top Flight moving on despite Bill and Starks’ confidence is a good way to go and FTR should have their hands even fuller with the more established team. Good match here, though Starks and Bill seemingly being finishes so fast is a bit disappointing.

Christopher Daniels wants Malakai Black on Rampage.

Thunder Rosa vs. Lady Frost

They go to the mat for some grappling to start until Rosa shoulders her down. Frost is back up with chops and boots in the corner but Rosa hits a hard clothesline as we take a break. Back with Rosa wining a slugout and hitting another clothesline. Rosa scores with the running dropkick against the ropes for two but Frost scorpion kicks her way out of trouble. Rosa isn’t having that though and hits a Backstabber, setting up the Tijuana Bomb for the pin at 8:50.

Rating: C+. There is nothing wrong with a match between a big star and a lower level opponent where said opponent gets in some offense before coming up short. That’s what we got here and it should move Rosa up a bit more before her likely title match at Dynasty. Frost continues to be someone who might not be moving up the ladder but she’s a solid enough opponent for a spot like this. That’s not a bad place to be and AEW seems to get that.

Post match Rosa shouts at the camera and demands respect from Toni Storm.

We go to the back with Toni Storm being told that next week it’s Thunder Rosa vs. Mariah May for the title shot at Dynasty. Storm turns to May, asks if this is what she has been planning all along….and then kisses her, saying she was a genius. Storm: “I see myself in you and I love me. What do you think about that eh Lightning Daffodil?” Everyone seems confused to wrap it up.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Video on Will Ospreay.

Blackpool Combat Club/Katsuyori Shibata vs. Lance Archer/Righteous

Shibata strikes away at Archer to start and then kicks him down as commentary talks about Bobby Heenan. Dutch comes in and requests/receives Castagnoli, who he runs over with a shoulder. Castagnoli is back up with a rather impressive slam and it’s of to Danielson to strike away. The rapid fire kicks in the corner connect but Dutch runs him over without much trouble.

Danielson slugs away on Vincent (not Dutch, Tony) and hits a suicide dive on Dutch (yes Dutch, Tony). That earns him a whip into the barricade though and the villains take over as we take a break. Back with Danielson not quite being able to pull Dutch into the LeBell Lock. Instead Dutch pounds him down into the corner, only to miss a charge. Archer and Dutch take turns slamming each other onto Danielson for two but he manages t knock Dutch off the top.

A missile dropkick allows Danielson to get over for the tag off to Castagnoli for the showdown with Archer. Everything breaks down and Castagnoli and Shibata double team Archer. The Swing has Archer in more trouble and Castagnoli grabs the Sharpshooter. Orange Sunshine hits Danielson but Shibata makes a fast save. Archer chokeslams Castagnoli so Vincent can hit a Swanton for two. Shibata suplexes Vincent but Dutch breaks up the cross armbreaker. Shibata’s sleeper takes Vincent down and the PK finishes at 16:47.

Rating: B-. This was another showcase match for most of the Club plus Shibata, which only made for the most interesting main event. Archer and the Righteous continue to feel like a team who should be something of a deal but mainly serve to beat up jobbers and lose to bigger teams. That’s not a bad role for them, but it did make for a fairly long match before we got to whichever of the good guys got the win.

Overall Rating: B. This show felt like it was trying to have more in the way of importance, but it still feels like it pales in comparison to Dynamite. AEW could use a bit more of a balance between the two shows, but this was one of the stronger Collisions in a bit. Dynasty still doesn’t feel like the most important show, though Danielson vs. Ospreay will be enough to carry a lot of it. Good show here, with the wrestling overcoming the other issues, as usual.

Results
Adam Copeland b. Matt Cardona – Spear
FTR b. The Infantry – Shatter Machine to Bravo
Kyle O’Reilly b. JD Drake – Cross armbreaker
Top Flight b. Big Bill/Ricky Starks – Tornado DDT to Starks
Thunder Rosa b. Lady Frost – Tijuana Bomb
Blackpool Combat Club/Katsuyori Shibata b. Lance Archer/Righteous – PK to Vincent

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

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AND

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Dynamite
Date: January 24, 2024
Location: Enmarket Arena, Savannah, Georgia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

The road to Revolution continues and the big story coming out of last week is what could be a three way feud between World Champion Samoa Joe, Hangman Page and Swerve Strickland. We should be able to find the next step in that story this week, plus a good bit more. Like Adam Copeland vs. Minoru Suzuki. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Here is Samoa Joe to get things going. Joe talks about how people have to earn title shots but just like Hook last week, they’ll take a beating. Here is Hook to interrupt, saying Joe won last week, but they’ll see each other again. Joe bets Hook will, but calls for security to get him out of here. Cue security…with Hook beating them up before leaving. Well that was fast.

Hangman Page vs. Penta El Zero Miedo

Samoa Joe is on commentary. Penta does the usual pose to start so Page backs him into the corner. That earns Page some running Sling Blades but Page sends him into the corner for a running boot to the face. They trade chops in the corner until Penta has to slip out of the Deadeye. An exchange of clotheslines and superkicks leave them both down and we take a break.

Back with Penta kicking him to the floor for a big running flip dive. They get back inside where Page hammers away in the corner, followed by Penta’s running Death Valley Driver. Page avoids having the arm snapped and comes back with a sitout powerbomb for two. Neither can hit anything big on the apron so the Buckshot Lariat is countered into Made In Japan for two. Page is sent to the apron again but he counters a Canadian Destroyer into the Deadeye. Now the Buckshot finishes Penta at 13:45.

Rating: B. It was the kind of back and forth match that you would expect in this spot as Page gets a win over someone with some credibility. They were trading big spots here and while at times it felt like they were checking moves off a list they had planned to cover, it was still more than exciting enough stuff. At the very least, this should put Page on the road to the title match, where he seems destined to go.

Orange Cassidy is down to defend the International Title against Roderick Strong at Revolution. For now though, he’s setting up a match for Rampage where the winner gets a title shot on Collision.

The Young Bucks like the show’s format and want to be called Nicholas and Matthew. Backstage morale is way up and they want a great show! Top Flight come in and get chastised for being late but respect is shown. Do you get the joke yet? I’m not sure they’re hammering it in hard enough.

Trent Beretta vs. Wardlow

The Best Friends and the Undisputed Kingdom are here too. Wardlow knocks him into the corner to start and fires off some shoulders to the ribs. Trent manages to knock him outside and hits a dive, only to be driven into the barricade. We take a break and come back with Trent slugging away. A clothesline sends Wardlow outside, where a distracted referee misses Trent getting in a chair shot. Back in and a tornado DDT sets up a piledriver for two on Wardlow so Trent goes up top. Wardlow pulls him down into a knee and the powerbomb finishes Trent off at 7:59.

Rating: C+. Between this match and the Kingdom’s first match after being revealed, I’m really not sure what the thinking is with this team. They’re struggling to beat midcarders and haven’t shown the slightest bit of dominance. If Wardlow is supposed to be the guy to go after the World Title, he’s going to need a lot more than this, as needing eight minutes to beat Trent is hardly impressive.

Post match the beatdown is on but the Best Friends make the save.

Adam Copeland is ready for Minoru Suzuki.

Here are Deonna Purrazzo and Toni Storm for a face to face interview on the stage. Storm says she’s going to speak first because she has a massage scheduled. Purrazzo was recently body shamed which is ridiculous when there is SO MUCH MORE to shame about her. Storm threatens to twist Purrazzo’s lips around but Purrazzo says she’s here to be champion.

She’ll win the title arm by arm because this delusional Storm isn’t the one she wants. She wants the Storm who worked on the dojo floors and lived in Purrazzo’s house. They even show off matching ankle tattoos, which is why Storm doesn’t have Purrazzo fooled. Shoe throwing ensues and Purrazzo pulls her into the Venus de Milo, with Mariah May making the save. That added a little personal touch to the story, though Purrazzo still doesn’t sound overly confident with her promos.

Jon Moxley says the Blackpool Combat Club has won a lot of titles but haven’t had any victory parties. He’s ready to hurt anyone who gets in the ring with him.

Taya Valkyrie and Johnny TV aren’t happy with people jumping to the front of the line. That’s why Taya wants to face Deonna Purrazzo next week.

Swerve Strickland vs. Jeff Hardy

Matt Hardy is here with Jeff. They start slowly, with Swerve knocking him into the corner so Jeff has to hold his neck. Jeff shoves him away to get a glare from Swerve, who takes him down and goes for the arm. Matt offers a distraction though and Jeff gets out, only to be sent to the apron. A superkick drops Jeff again and Swerve drops him hard on the floor. Back up and Jeff manages a Poetry In Motion of the steps to take Swerve over the barricade as we take a break.

We come back with Jeff knocking him off the top and hitting the Whisper In The Wind. Jeff kicks him in the face and hits a splash for two. Swerve gets in a knock off the top and they go outside, with Jeff hitting a Twist of Fate onto the steps. Back in and the Swanton hits raised knees, allowing Swerve to backslide him for two. The rolling Downward Spiral sets up a suplex into the Swerve Stomp to finish Jeff at 13:57.

Rating: C+. Well the right guy won, though he took his sweet time getting there. I get that they’re doing the Swerve/Hangman are matching each other, and that makes all the sense in the world assuming you ignore their two pay per view matches within the last ten weeks or so. Jeff wasn’t exactly his old self here, but he did seem like he was trying.

Post break Hangman Page is interrupted by Swerve Strickland, where they’re told they get to pick the other’s opponents for next week.

Red Velvet vs. Thunder Rosa

Velvet grabs the arm to start but Rosa drop toeholds her into the corner. They go outside with Velvet chopping away and we take a break. Back with Rosa hitting a running dropkick against the ropes but Velvet rolls her up or a double stomp. Rosa hits a dropkick and a Tijuana Bomb for the pin at 7:10.

Rating: C. Nothing much to see here, which tends to be the case with a good deal of the women’s matches. There is only so much you can do when about half of a match that doesn’t last eight minutes is in a break and that was the case here. Rosa is slowly getting back to her pre-injury status, but it is going to take a long time.

Here are Sting and Darby Allin for a chat. Allin talks about being asked what it means to be in the ring with Sting. He remembered hearing about Sting’s career being over and going down to Sting’s house in Texas. They got in a ring he had down there and within five minutes, Allin said “you still got it”. Now Sting is about to hang it up, but maybe they should go out as Tag Team Champions. Sting is in.

Big Bill and Ricky Starks accept Sting and Allin’s challenge.

Trios Titles: Mogul Embassy vs. Billy Gunn/Acclaimed

Gunn and the Acclaimed, with Bullet Club Gold, are defending. Cage drives Caster into the corner for the shoulders to the ribs to start. Caster grabs the arm and hands it off to Bowens to stay on said arm, only to have Cage pull him into the corner. Bowens fights up but Prince Nana offers a distraction, allowing Kaun to knock him off the apron.

We take a break and come back with Bowens hitting a Blockbuster but Toa cuts of the tag attempt. That doesn’t last long either, as Bowens gets over to Gunn for the house cleaning tag. Everything breaks down and Kaun faceplants Gunn for two. Kaun brings in a chair but Jay White takes it away, allowing Gunn to hit a cobra clutch slam. The Gunns powerbomb an interfering Nana through the timekeeper’s table, leaving Toa to take a not very good 3D. The Fameasser into the Arrival into the Mic Drop retains the titles at 8:52.

Rating: C+. It wasn’t boring, though there was a lot packed into this, with the interference and the chair and the match itself, all in less than nine minutes. Still though, the Club being involved gives me hope that we could be in for a title unification match. If nothing else, it would mean three less belts floating around and that sounds rather nice.

Serena Deeb returns on Collision.

Adam Copeland vs. Minoru Suzuki

They slug it out to start with Suzuki getting the better of things (shocking I know), including a hard forearm to put Copeland down. Copeland is back up and sends him to the apron for the big boot. The spear is countered into a guillotine though, with Copeland having to drive him through the barricade.

Back in and they slug it out again for another double knockdown. Back up and they slug it out again until Copeland grabs an Impaler. Copeland hits a quick spear for two but gets pulled into the rear naked choke. He reaches for the corner and the pad is pulled up, with Suzuki going face first into the buckle. A really not good Killswitch gives Copeland the pin at 8:52.

Rating: C+. I’m sure there was an audience for this and it definitely did feel like a major event, but I couldn’t get into the idea of Copeland and Suzuki trading forearms and then exchanging some finishers for Copeland to win in about nine minutes. It felt like a way to say “wait, those two had a match?”, which is ok, but doesn’t exactly guarantee the quality or interest.

Post match Copeland says he’s never been hit that hard and offers respect but Suzuki walks off instead. These two had the kind of match that Christian Cage has never had and Copeland is still coming for him.

Overall Rating: C+. There was some good wrestling in here but a grand total of nothing felt important. This show felt like AEW was saying “here’s two hours of stuff, see you next week”. While that’s not good, it’s something that every promotion has done before and it just happens on occasion. They have a stacked Collision and next week’s Dynamite could very well be back to full form, so hopefully we can call this a one off slip and move on.

Results
Hangman page b. Penta El Zero Miedo – Buckshot Lariat
Wardlow b. Trent Beretta – Powerbomb
Swerve Strickland b. Jeff Hardy – Swerve Stomp
Thunder Rosa b. Red Velvet – Package spinning slam
Acclaimed/Billy Gunn b. Mogul Embassy – Mic Drop to Toa
Adam Copeland b. Minoru Suzuki – Killswitch

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

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AND

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Collision
Date: January 20, 2024
Location: Chaifetz Arena, St. Louis, Missouri
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Kevin Kelly, Nigel McGuinness

The card is looking pretty good here as Jon Moxley is back after his recent New Japan matches. In this case he’ll be fighting Shane Taylor, which should be a heck of a showdown. Other than that, we have another Adam Copeland open challenge and that could go in a variety of directions. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Shane Taylor vs. Jon Moxley

Lee Moriarty is here with Taylor. They slug it out to start with neither being able to get very far until Taylor knocks him into the corner. A hard chop brings Moxley down but he’s back up to trade chops. Taylor hits a running splash in the corner and he backdrops his way out of a piledriver attempt. They go outside with Moxley sending him into the steps as Nigel makes a joke about how Moxley is likely about to bleed.

Moriarty gets in a cheap shot though and Taylor grabs a chinlock back inside. Taylor misses the middle rope splash, allowing Moxley to grab a running cutter. The King Kong Lariat gives Moxley two but Taylor hits his own clothesline. Back up and they trade headbutts until Taylor hits a powerbomb, only to get pulled into a triangle choke. Taylor dead lifts his way out, only to have Moxley elbow him in the face. Back up and they slug it out until Moxley pulls him into the bulldog choke for the knockout at 9:37.

Rating: B. Sometimes you just need two guys to beat the fire out of each other and that’s what we had here. Moxley can hang in fights like this one and Taylor has the raw power to make his half work too. It was an entertaining slugout and Moxley gets to come back with a bang after a few weeks away.

Post match Moxley says this is going to be his year and if you want to be his opponent or teammate, you better keep up.

We look at Hook vs. Samoa Joe from Dynamite.

Adam Copeland vs. Dante Martin

Copeland grabs a headlock to start but Martin is back up with some leapfrogs into an armbar. Back up and Copeland manages to send him outside as we take an early break. Back with Copeland holding a headlock. Martin fights up but gets sent to the apron, where he has to fight out of a sunset bomb to the floor. A hurricanrana takes Copeland down as commentary thinks Martin’s balance and equilibrium are off.

Back in and the half nelson slam is broken up but Copeland misses the spear. Martin hits the Nose Dive for two as Copeland has to grab the rope. Commentary says Martin has vertigo (egads if true as that is a nightmare) as he goes up, only to get caught on top. Martin is fine enough to hit a sunset bomb for two but another springboard is speared out of the air. Copeland’s Grindhouse finishes at 11:51.

Rating: B. If Martin wrestled that match with vertigo, my goodness it’s an amazing performance. That is one of the nastiest conditions you can have and the idea of walking in a straight line, let alone wrestling a match, would be horrible. For now though, this was another match where Copeland got to go in there and have a good one against some younger star, which makes for some interesting situations. They’re not instant classics or anything, but Copeland wrestling a random wrestler once a week is not a bad idea whatsoever.

Post match Tony Schiavone gets in the ring to talk to Copeland, who wonders what he was thinking with these open challenge. He sees a bunch of young guys going after him instead of a veteran. They want to take a bite out of him and there’s a lot to eat. Copeland: “I’m a five course dinner. I don’t know what the h*** that means.” He’s coming for the TNT Title and he’ll be champion the next time he wrestles in this city.

Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli aren’t happy with losing to Eddie Kingston in the Continental Classic and want revenge in the main event.

Private Party interrupts Top Flight and Action Andretti so a match is set up.

Queen Aminata vs. Thunder Rosa

Feeling out process to start with Aminata grabbing an armbar and shaking her hips a bit for some mind games. They run the ropes until Aminata drops down, allowing Rosa to cradle her for two. Aminata hits a backbreaker for two and then drives some knees to the ribs. Rosa is fine enough to send her outside for a dropkick through the ropes and we take a break.

Back with Aminata kicking her in the back again, with Rosa’s eyes bugging out. Rosa is fine enough to strike away in the corner, setting up some running knees. A running dropkick against the ropes sets up a northern lights suplex for two but Aminata’s Air Raid Crash gets two. Rosa wins a kick off and grabs the Tijuana Bomb for the pin at 9:19.

Rating: B-. This was the kind of physical win that Rosa needed and Aminata put in a good showing. I liked the idea of focusing on Rosa’s recently injured back as it’s a simple yet effective way to go, but the break in the middle took away some of the momentum they were building. At the same time, Aminata has now had six televised matches (counting ROH) this month alone. It’s ok to hit the brakes on her a bit.

Eddie Kingston and Ortiz are ready for Bryan Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli tonight. Kingston doesn’t have time for this.

Here is Bullet Club Gold, with Colten imitating the Rock’s catchphrase and Jay White talking about being glad to be back on Saturday. There is something missing though….and we have a cardboard cutout of Juice Robinson. If you’re not down with them, they have two words for you. Cue Billy Gunn and the Acclaimed (minus rap for some reason) to interrupt and again offer to form a super group. The people want to see these guys getting some gold, which gives us a BANG BANG SCISSOR GANG chant. Bowens gives a heck of a speech….and the Club is in!

Toni Storm admits she knows Deonna Purrazzo and threatens to beat and eat her. Storm: “Now where is my pork dinner?”

Buddy Matthews vs. Daniel Garcia

The House Of Black and FTR are here too and Matt Menard is on commentary. Matthews powers Garcia down to start and then knocks him to the floor. Back in and Garcia hits a running shoulder to put Matthews on the floor for a change. All six get up on the apron for a staredown and we take a break.

Back with Garcia escaping a powerbomb on the apron and hitting a piledriver to plant Matthews. They both barely beat the count, with Garcia hammering away back inside. Garcia wraps the knee around the post and even grabs the Hartbreaker to make it worse. The Dragonslayer goes on but Matthews grabs the head and slams it into the mat for the break. Matthews hits a knee to the face into a Jackhammer for two as the fans think this is awesome. Garcia dances at him from his knees so Matthews grabs a powerbomb, which is reversed into a jackknife rollup to give Garcia the pin at 11:19.

Rating: B. This is the kind of Garcia who could get somewhere, as he’s starting to figure some things out. It’s one of the better matches he’s had and having him there to even the odds with FTR against the House is a good idea. Keep this up and they might have something, as long as they don’t go too far with it too fast as they did before.

Post match the fight is on and the locker room comes in to help break it up. The fans were WAY into this as it was a hot fight.

Post break FTR and Daniel Garcia want a six man elimination tag….in a cage.

Roderick Strong vs. Matt Sydal

The Kingdom is here with Strong and yes we get a Generation Next reference. Strong pulls him into a quickly broken surfboard to start so they grapple against the ropes. Sydal sends him outside for a crash and we take a break. Back with Sydal in trouble but elbowing his way out of a fireman’s carry. Some running shots to the face take Strong down but he’s back up with the jumping knee to the face. End of Heartache is the end of Sydal at 8:15.

Rating: C+. They kept this going fast but there is only so much you can get out of an eight minute match with a break in the middle. Sydal continues to be the good hand who hang in there with just about anyone but isn’t likely to win match. That makes it a valuable win for Strong as he is on his way to the International Title match at Revolution.

Eddie Kingston/Ortiz vs. Claudio Castagnoli/Bryan Danielson

Kingston and Danielson start things off with the fans not being sure who they like more. They trade some poses and don’t actually make any contact until nearly two minutes in. A lockup doesn’t go anywhere so Danielson starts kicking away at the leg. That lets Danielson pose some more until Kingston snapmares him down for a kick to the back. Ortiz comes in for a double suplex so it’s off to Castagnoli for the hard uppercut.

Ortiz dropkicks them both at once but Castagnoli drops him face first onto the buckle to cut that off fast. We take a break and come back with Ortiz fighting out of a chinlock. That’s not enough for the tag though as Danielson comes in to kick at Ortiz, who says bring it. As we’re told that the ranking system is returning (erg), Ortiz escapes and brings Kingston in for the showdown with Castagnoli.

Kingston fires of the machine gun chops in the corner but Castagnoli hits a hard clothesline. Danielson adds the top rope headbutt for two, followed by Castagnoli sending Ortiz into the barricade. Back in and Kingston hits a quick DDT on Danielson, allowing the tag off to Ortiz. A t-bone suplex drops Castagnoli and Kingston hits him with a suicide dive. Danielson manages a LeBell Lock on Ortiz, who gets over to the ropes. That leaves Danielson to stomp away as Castagnoli holds Kingston. The running knee gives Danielson the pin at 16:13.

Rating: B-. This was the match that got the most time but it wasn’t quite as good as some of the other things that were on the card. What mattered here was having Danielson get a win, which should set him up for a title shot against Kingston down the line. It’s a good enough main event, which says a lot when it was one of the weaker matches on the card.

Ortiz apologizes to Kingston to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. There was more than enough good to very good action here to make this one of the better Collisions in awhile. This show felt a bit more straightforward as you had wrestlers in feuds and matches that advanced those feuds. That is what AEW has tended to shine and it’s nice to see them doing it again here. Pretty awesome show this week as Collision is starting to get back to what works.

Results
Jon Moxley b. Shane Taylor – Bulldog choke
Adam Copeland b. Dante Martin – Grindhouse
Thunder Rosa b. Queen Aminata – Tijuana Bomb
Daniel Garcia b. Buddy Matthews – Jackknife rollup
Roderick Strong b. Matt Sydal – End Of Heartache
Bryan Danielson/Claudio Castagnoli b. Eddie Kingston/Ortiz – Running knee to Ortiz

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Dynamite
Date: January 17, 2024
Location: North Charleston Coliseum, North Charleston, South Carolina
Commentators: Excalibur, Ian Riccaboni, Taz

It’s time for a special main event with Hook challenging Samoa Joe for the World Title. That should make for an interesting learning experience for Hook but the question seems to be what happens next. We’re coming up on Revolution and the show needs a card to be set up so let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

We open with a video on Hook vs. Samoa Joe.

TNT Title: Christian Cage vs. Dustin Rhodes

Cage, with Killswitch and Nick Wayne, is defending. They fight over a lockup to start and roll around the ropes with neither getting anywhere. Cage hammers away in the corner but Rhodes is right back with the rolling powerslam for two. The fight heads outside with Cage being sent into the steps and Rhodes hitting a clothesline off of those steps. Back in and Cage knocks him off the top and out to the floor, setting up a big dive.

We take a break and come back with Rhodes missing a crossbody to fall outside. Rhodes gets back in to slug it out from their knees until the bulldog gives Rhodes two. The Code Red gets two more so Cage goes outside, where he cuts off a dive. Back in and a frog splash gives Cage two so he grabs the belt, only to have it taken away.

Rhodes grabs a small package but Wayne turns it over to give Cage two more. Back up and Shattered Dreams connects and Cross Rhodes connects for a VERY near fall. Rhodes stops to go after Wayne so Cage hits a spear into the Killswitch….for two. Cage is stunned so he hits another Killswitch to retain at 15:26.

Rating: B. I wasn’t looking forward to this one coming in and they had a heck of a match with Rhodes trying everything he could but coming up short in the end. Rhodes as the guy who just does not age is rather impressive and Cage’s great run continues. Awesome match here and they were absolutely rolling by the end.

Swerve Strickland is going to be focused on the main event because he’s watching everything. Yes he wants the World Title but yes he’s also watching Hangman Page. The thing is, Page could beat everyone in AEW to the Lord himself…but he can’t beat Swerve.

Chris Jericho wants revenge on the Don Callis Family. Matt Sydal of all people comes in to say he wants a match tonight so they’re on (with Jericho making a Bourne reference).

Trent Beretta/Orange Cassidy vs. Komander/Penta El Zero Miedo

Cassidy and Penta go face to face to start with both of them taking the other to the mat for a string of misses. Trent comes in and reverses Komander’s springboard dive into a half and half suplex. We take a break and come back with Komander sending Trent to the floor, followed by the big running flip dive.

Back in and the spike Fear Factor is broken up, allowing Trent to come back inside to hammer on Komander. Penta kicks Trent in the head though and adds a Canadian Destroyer. Cassidy has to dive over the referee for the save so Komander goes up top. The Phoenix splash misses though and Trent adds the running knee. Cassidy hits Penta with the Beach Break, followed by the Orange Punch to Komander. The Crunchy finishes for Trent at 10:16.

Rating: B-. This was another fast paced match with Cassidy and Trent hanging in there with the faster team. I could go for more of Trent as he’s an underrated star, but at the same time, Cassidy seems all but destined for a big showdown with Roderick Strong. Penta and Komander were just opponents here, but their high flying stuff was as entertaining as ever.

Post match here is the Undisputed Kingdom, with Roderick Strong wanting Orange Cassidy to take off his glasses for the staredown. Strong wants an International Title shot because he is coming for the title. Fans: “SHUT THE F*** UP.” Cassidy is willing to put the title on the line right now….but let’s wait until Revolution because Strong wants Cassidy to think about it. Strong is a dumb villain.

Hangman Page (looking more like Magnum TA every week) wants the World Title back. Oh and it doesn’t matter if he can’t beat Swerve Strickland, because Swerve isn’t World Champion.

Here is Mark Briscoe, with his family in the crowd, for a chat on the anniversary of his brother’s death. Jay’s daughters were in the car with him and one was told she would never walk again. Well here she is, walking on her own (with presumably her sister and brother). That’s awesome.

Video on Jay Briscoe.

We get a sitdown interview with the Young Bucks, who want to be called by their full names because they are Executive Vice Presidents. You have heard some things about them, but what would you do to protect your family? Things were changing and they needed to stop leaning on yesterday’s self serving cancerous stars. Sting is the last of a dying breed so it’s time to get rid of him too. When asked if that’s a direct call out for Revolution, they leave for the sake of a meeting. I can’t believe it but somehow they’re more annoying than they were before.

Ring Of Honor Six Man Tag Team Titles: Bullet Club Gold vs. Mogul Embassy

The Club is challenging. Kaun strikes away at White to start so it’s off to the Gunns to take him down. Cage comes in with a superkick and it’s Kaun coming back in for an elbow as we take a break. Back with Colten cleaning house and getting two off a neckbreaker. The Embassy takes him back down though and a sitout powerbomb into an Air Raid Crash gets two.

Colten backdrops his way out of trouble and hands it back to White to strike away at Kaun. 3:10 To Yuma hits Cage but a Prince Nana distraction lets Kaun hit a fireman’s carry gutbuster. Cue Anthony Bowens for a distraction though and White hits the Blade Runner for the pin and the titles at 9:31.

Rating: C+. If there is any sanity around here, this will lad to a unification match to get rid of one set of the Six Man Titles. There has never been any need to have two sets of them around and now it’s time to get rid of one. Other than that, you had a good enough match with a title change that needed to happen due to Cage’s injury.

Post match the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn come out for the staredown.

Adam Cole hypes up Wardlow as the new wrecking ball on his way to the World Title.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Anna Jay

Toni Storm is on commentary. Purrazzo spins out of a wristlock to start and rolls Jay up for a fast one. Jay has to bail over to the ropes, where she grabs a neckbreaker over the ropes. We take a break and come back with Purrazzo getting two off a clothesline. Jay kicks her in the face for two more but the Queenslayer is countered into a quickly broken armbar. They forearm it out until Purrazzo pulls her into the Venus de Milo (double armbar) for the tap at 6:40.

Rating: C. There was barely enough to rate here with the commercial involved and that’s pretty normal for a lot of women’s matches around here. Purrazzo is off to a good start and I wouldn’t be surprised if she got the next title shot either on a big Dynamite or at Revolution. As usual, Anna loses after building up some momentum, which tends to be her case.

Post match Purrazzo says she doesn’t know what is up with Toni Storm, but Purrazzo has changed as well. Storm has never met the Virtuosa, but Storm calls her an artificially tanned hag. The shoe is thrown and Purrazzo chases her off.

Top Flight vs. Private Party

Kassidy takes Darius down to start but they nip up for the staredown. Everyone gets in for the staredown and it’s off to Dante vs. Quen. Dante takes him down by the arm but Kassidy is back in with a springboard crossbody. We take a break and come back with Darius working on Kassidy’s arm as commentary talks about almost anything else. Kassidy fights up and brings in Quen to clean house, including a 450 to Dante. Everything breaks down and Dante knees Quen in the face. Gin and Juice takes Dante down, leaving Quen to roll up Darius (while grabbing the rope) for the pin at 10:11.

Rating: B-. Take two high flying teams and let them go nuts for a bit. It’s a little strange to see Private Party come back and have a fairly high profile match like this one but at least they won. I can go for Private Party as villains, but AEW needs to actually go somewhere with them or it won’t matter.

Video on Sting and Darby Allin.

AEW World Title: Hook vs. Samoa Joe

Only Joe’s title is on the line. Hook goes right after him to start and they’re already on the floor, where Joe strikes away. Back in and Joe hits a jumping enziguri in the corner, followed by the hard kick to the chest. Hook gets in some shots of his own and knocks Joe outside, setting up the big forearm from the apron. Joe isn’t having that and release Rock Bottoms him through the announcers’ table.

That earns him a double middle finger so Joe powerbombs Hook onto the apron. Back in and Joe snaps off a powerslam for two, followed by a Death Valley Driver for the same. The MuscleBuster gets one but Hook is back up with some running clotheslines and the t-bone suplex. Redrum goes on but Joe reverses into the Koquina Clutch for the knockout win at 8:45.

Rating: B. This is a good example of a match that was pretty much exactly what you would have expected but better. Hook wasn’t going to win the title here but he brought the energy and Joe felt like he was in a fight. Granted I could have gone without the new World Champion’s finisher only getting a one count, but otherwise Joe looked like a killer as usual.

Post match Joe gives him another MuscleBuster but here is Hangman Page to chase Joe off. Swerve Strickland is watching from the crowd and stares at Page as Hook leaves to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a show that focused on the wrestling and that ranged from pretty good to very good. They also took some steps towards Revolution as you can see a lot of the card from here. If you take out the Young Bucks making me want to put my head through a wall, it’s that much better of a show. Rather strong show this week and I had a good time throughout.

Results
Christian Cage b. Dustin Rhodes – Killswitch
Orange Cassidy/Trent Beretta b. Komander/Penta El Zero Miedo – Crunchy to Komander
Bullet Club Gold b. Mogul Embassy – Blade Runner to Kaun
Deonna Purrazzo b. Anna Jay – Venus de Milo
Private Party b. Top Flight – Rollup to Darius while grabbing the rope
Samoa Joe b. Hook – Koquina Clutch

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

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Dynamite
Date: January 10, 2024
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

We’re back to Jacksonville for the Homecoming show, which is likely going to focus on a lot of the greatest hits. At the same time, there is still a chance that some of the regulars are going to be over in Japan, so it is hard to say who will be around for the show. We’re also less than two months away from Revolution so it might be time to start getting ready. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Hangman Page vs. Claudio Castagnoli

They start fast and slug away with the fight heading to the floor. Castagnoli gets the better of things before they head back inside. A bunch of forearms to the head rock Page and Castagnoli gets the Swing, setting up the Sharpshooter. The rope is grabbed so Castagnoli slugs away again, only to get caught with a fall away slam.

A springboard clothesline sends Castagnoli to the floor and there’s a slingshot dive to hit him again. We pause for Page to have a fan’s beer, with Castagnoli gorilla pressing him over the top and onto the ramp. Back from a break with the fight on the ramp, with Page clotheslining Castagnoli into the ring. The Buckshot Lariat is countered into Swiss Death for two and they slug it out back inside.

Page knocks him to the floor hits a moonsault, followed by another off the stage to drop Castagnoli again. A Tombstone gives Page two and they both need a breather. They trade more hard shots until the Deadeye gives Page two. Castagnoli takes him to the corner and tries a super Riccola Bomb but Page reverses into a hurricanrana. That and a pair of Buckshot Lariats finish Castagnoli at 17:05.

Rating: B. For a cold match, this was a heck of a fight with both guys laying it in as well as they could. That’s all you can ask for out of a match like this and they made it work rather well. Page needs the win as he seems primed for another match with Swerve Strickland so starting against Castagnoli is a good thing. As for Castagnoli…oh he’ll be fine as always.

We take a quick look at Brodie Lee.

Dustin Rhodes/ Preston Vance/Orange Cassidy/Adam Copeland vs. Mogul Embassy/Lance Archer

Jake Roberts and Prince Nana are here with the heels. Rhodes powerslams Toa to start and hands it off to Vance, who gets driven into the corner. Cage comes in to send Vance into the buckles but it’s off to Copeland to slug away. Cassidy gets to come in and tires his usual on the Gates of Agony, with Toa Pouncing him out to the floor.

We take a break and come back with Archer beating on Cassidy in the corner. Roberts and Jose the Assistant get in a fight on the floor, with the distraction letting Cassidy fight over to Vance. House is cleaned and everything breaks down, with Copeland Impalering Cage. The villains clear the ring but Archer and Cage hit each other, leaving Copeland to spear Cage down. Vance’s discus lariat finishes Cage at 10:21.

Rating: B-. This was a bit about Brodie Lee but more about getting some people on the show, even in something of a random fashion. The match was the usual form of chaos and it was good enough for a match that got a bit of time. That being said, Copeland being in there felt a bit off, as this kind of match seems somewhat beneath him. Anyway, nice stuff here, even with Vance feeling out of place.

Bullet Club Gold wants the Trios Titles so here are the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn, who again suggest an alliance. The Club wants more time to think about it.

Here is Samoa Joe to get things going. After a THANK YOU JOE chant, it’s time to make some changes to who gets title shots. Here are the changes that we’re making: no more whining and crying here or on social media. Bring your record and your reputation and submit it to the championship committee. If you’re deemed worthy, you get the right to get beaten up. The new championship era is here and for all who want a piece of him, our champion will be waiting….and here is Swerve Strickland, flanked by the Mogul Embassy.

Swerve declares this his house and says the same thing he said to Hangman Page: this isn’t personal, but Swerve wants something Joe has. Now once he takes the title, and Joe makes it personal, Swerve can do that too. Cue Page to interrupt, saying he’s throwing his name in the title picture too. Page talks about what he did in 2023 and promises to make the title his in the new year. Swerve is about to go after him but leaves instead.

Joe and Page go face to face, with Page saying he remembers what Joe did and promises to take the title. With everyone else gone, here is Hook to confront Joe. Hook gets in his face and says one week before leaving. Even Taz sounds confused. Hook in a one off title match where he gets to showcase himself in defeat isn’t a bad idea, as it isn’t like he has anything else going on.

Toni Storm didn’t watch Mariah May’s match and is worried about Wendi Richter rather than the debuting Deonna Purrazzo. May: “She kicked me in the face.” Storm: “Darling, have a chocolate.” She wants to meet this Donna Polazzo but can’t remember the last line of her catchphrase. May tries to help her and is told she’s ruined the moment. This was absolutely hilarious.

Ricky Starks vs. Sammy Guevara

Starks works on the wristlock to start but Guevara is back with a headlock. Guevara knocks him outside for the moonsault, with Starks coming up favoring his arm. Back up and they fight on the apron, with Starks hitting a double underhook faceplant to take over as we take a break.

We come back with Guevara knocking him down but moonsaulting onto raised boots. Starks’ sitout powerbomb gets two but he has to reverse the GTS into a rollup for two more. Back up and Guevara kicks him in the face twice and grabs a quick small package for the pin at 9:22.

Rating: B-. I’m not sure if something happened in there but Starks was looking off for a good chunk of the match. The ending came a bit out of nowhere too and made things feel all the weirder. They did the right thin by having Guevara win of course, as the Tag Team Title match is looming this weekend

Post match respect is shown but it’s a ruse for Big Bill to come in and beat up Guevara. Chris Jericho runs in from behind for the save. Jericho and Bill fight into the crowd while Guevara celebrates with fans.

Willow Nightingale/Kris Statlander/Anna Jay/Thunder Rosa vs. Saraya/Ruby Soho/Skye Blue/Julia Hart

Harley Cameron is here with Saraya and company. Anna and Soho lock up to start with the former snapping off a headscissors. Nightingale comes in for the basement crossbody before it’s off to Rosa vs. Hart. The villains get to stomp away in the corner but Rosa elbows her way out of trouble. It’s back to Nightingale to take over but Cameron shoves her off the top.

We take a break and come back with Statlander getting the tag to come in and clean house. A falcon Arrow gives Statlander two and the villains get caught in a quadruple suplex, leaving commentary trying to figure out how to call it. Everything breaks down and we get the parade of knockdowns. We get a Jay vs. Hart slugout until Blue tags herself in and superkicks Jay. That’s fine with Anna, who pulls her into the Queenslayer for the tap at 8:58.

Rating: C+. This got a hair more time than women’s matches tend to get around here and that helped things out a bit. At the same time, there is only so much you can do with eight women in a match that barely gives them a minute each. At least it got them on the show though, and in this case that feels like the main goal.

Wheeler Yuta doesn’t like Eddie Kingston and challenge him for the Continental Crown on Rampage. Of note: commentary says that if Yuta wins, he’s a quadruple champion, so apparently all of the titles are defended at once.

Bryan Keith vs. Roderick Strong

The rest of the Undisputed Kingdom is here too. Keith kicks him down to start and chops away before taking it to the apron. Strong fights back and takes him back inside for the stomps in the corner. An enziguri into the Angle Slam gives Strong two but Keith kicks him in the face again. Diamond Dust plants Strong and Keith rolls him up for two, only to get kneed in the face. End o Heartache finishes for Strong at 4:21.

Rating: C+. This was a better debut than the Kingdom had as part o the team last week. At the very least, Strong didn’t take a good while to pick up the win, which should get him closer to Orange Cassidy and the International Title. Keith feels like he is on an extended tryout and that might be better. While he is talented, the roster is heavy enough already and adding someone else doesn’t seem like the best idea, at least with someone of Keith’s status.

Post match the team gets in the ring, with Adam Cole promising that the team is going to win a lot of titles.

Deonna Purrazzo wants the Women’s Title and will debut on Collision. Red Velvet comes in and seems to accept the challenge.

Jim Ross joins commentary for the main event.

Sting/Darby Allin vs. Don Callis Family

Texas Tornado tag with Ric Flair and Don Callis here too. It’s a brawl to start with Sting chasing Hobbs into the crowd and hitting him with a chair. Takeshita and Allin follow in a different area as Hobbs is sent into some trashcans. Back at ringside, Takeshita hits a scary rolling German suplex on Allin and we take a break.

We come back with Allin being tossed into a powerslam, with Sting (looking spent) having to make a save. The Family sends Allin flying, with a nasty landing head first in the ropes. Sting gets kneed down by Takeshita….s Flair comes in to chop away at Hobbs. Sting is back up for the save and they all fight to the stage, with Allin being sent into the wall.

Takeshita’s running knee misses so Allin climbs the stage and Coffin Drops onto Takeshita, who kind of guides him down instead of catching him. Hobbs and Sting fight along the platform around ringside, with Sting hitting a Death Drop off said platform and through the announcers’ table for the in at 9:59.

Rating: B-. To call this wild would be an understatement, with Sting and Allin doing some crazy bumps that are probably not exactly safe. For now though, Sting’s retirement tour continues with another win, and now all he needs is to get through Revolution in less than two months. This was a crazy main event, but at times it was scarier than it needed to be.

Post match Sting is asked who he wants to face in his final match…..and here are the Young Bucks to interrupt. The staredown seems to say the match is on to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. There was a weird theme to this show as it felt like they were trying to get in as much stuff as they could. Granted that is probably due to what seems like some of the bigger names still missing, which is ok for a one off. The good thing is they still do have a lot more time before Revolution, so having more of a fun show designed to set things up for the future is hardly some terrible choice. They tried something different here and it worked well enough to get by for a week.

Results
Hangman Page b. Claudio Castagnoli – Buckshot lariat
Orange Cassidy/Preston Vance/Adam Copeland/Dustin Rhodes b. Mogul Embassy/Lance Archer – Discus lariat to Cage
Sammy Guevara b. Ricky Starks – Small package
Willow Nightingale/Anna Jay/Thunder Rosa/Kris Statlander b. Saraya/Ruby Soho/Julia Hart/Skye Blue – Queenslayer to Blue
Roderick Strong b. Bryan Keith – End Of Heartache
Sting/Darby Allin b. Don Callis Family – Scorpion Death Drop through a table to Hobbs

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

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Collision
Date: January 6, 2024
Location: Bojangles Coliseum, Charlotte, North Carolina
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s the first Collision of the new year and this time around we have a big showdown with the House Of Black finally facing FTR. These teams have been teasing a fight for a long time now and it should be quite the fight. Other than that, Sting and Darby Allin are in action as the retirement tour continues. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Sting/Darby Allin vs. Workhorsemen

Ric Flair is here with Sting and Allin and….yeah ok it’s Charlotte. The Workhorsemen try to jump them before the bell, with Sting no selling a chair shot from Drake and Flair even getting in a chop. The fight keeps going on the floor with Sting and Allin being beaten down until we go inside for the opening bell. Allin gets beaten down to start and Henry grabs a Backstabber for two. A cheap shot knocks Sting off the apron but Allin rolls away, allowing him to bring the quickly recovered Sting back in. The Scorpion Death Drop finishes Drake at 2:51. Well that was quick.

Post match the winners and Flair celebrate with some fans, including a Flair cosplayer in a nice touch.

We look at Konosuke Takeshita destroying Allin on Dynamite, setting up the Don Callis Family vs. Sting/Allin on Dynamite.

Continental Crown: Trent Beretta vs. Eddie Kingston

Kingston is defending, and it’s still not clear if this is for one individual title or all three combined. Trent gets powered into the corner for the early break before winning a strike off. Trent grabs a quick tornado DDT for one and a snap suplex gets the same. Back up and Kingston fires off the rapid chops in the corner, including one chop to the face.

That leaves Trent rather bloody (his nose might be broken) and his missed dive to the floor makes it even worse as we take a break. Back with Kingston hitting a running boot in the corner before pulling Trent off the ropes for a head first crash into the buckle. Trent manages some forearms to pound Kingston down against the ropes and a basement dropkick puts him on the floor.

Back in and Trent powerbombs him out of the corner for two but Kingston snaps off an exploder. The DDT gives Kingston two but Trent rolls some German suplexes. The running knee to the face and a Gotch style piledriver give Trent two more. They slug it out from their knees until Trent grabs the half nelson suplex. Kingston grabs one of his own though, setting up a spinning backfist into the northern lights bob for two more. Another northern lights bomb retains the title at 15:13.

Rating: B. It wasn’t a match with the highest level of drama but they traded big shots here until one of them got the win. Kingston is still the kind of wrestler who can get a crowd behind him like few others and that is a very valuable thing to have. He’s getting featured in a big way here and it makes sense with the reception he receives. Trent can still have a good match with anyone and that was the case again here.

Earlier today, Tony Schiavone asked Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale about Stokely Hathaway but they’d rather just be friends and have a big new year.

Hook says he’s coming for Samoa Joe.

Kingdom vs. Bryan Keith/Komander

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Keith and Komander win or survive the ten minute time limit, they get a future title shot. Roderick Strong is here with the Kingdom, who take Komander into the corner to start the beating. Komander kicks away at Taven and brings in Keith to strike away against the ropes. A blind tag brings in Bennett to knock Keith down though and we take a break.

Back with a top rope elbow getting two on Keith and something like a Border City Stretch going on. Keith gets out and manages to suplex Bennett into the corner. Komander comes in with the spinning DDT, setting up a running headbutt in the corner to Taven. Komander’s big assisted flip dive takes the champs down but Bennett is back in with a piledriver. Just The Tip hits Keith and the powerbomb/Zig Zag combination finishes for Taven at 8:33.

Rating: C+. You have the new champs (on Collision rather than ROH, where the titles have not been seen in over five months) making their debut after being revealed as part of the big heel stable and it takes almost nine minutes to beat a makeshift team? At the same time, commentary pointed out that no one has ever beaten the champ/survived in a Proving Ground match. It shouldn’t have taken place here, but maybe it should take place at some point to add some drama?

Bullet Club Gold says they have no relationship with the Acclaimed, who come in to interrupt. Violence is teased but Anthony Bowens thinks they might be better together. The Club will think about it.

Here is Adam Copeland for a chat. Copeland talks about how he and Christian Cage had a fight at Worlds End and he won the TNT Title. Then on Dynamite, Cage said that because he beat Copeland to get the title back, Copeland goes to the back of the line. If he has to earn his title shot, he’ll start right here because he works hard. So get him someone out here.

Adam Copeland vs. Griff Garrison

Maria Kanellis-Bennett and Cole Karter are here with Garrison. Before the match, Garrison says he wants respect but Copeland says he’s coming from below sea level to Mt. Everest. A slap to the face has Copeland saying he likes Garrison, but it’s time for a beating. Copeland chops him into the corner to start and drops Garrison face first onto the top turnbuckle. Maria breaks up the spear though and Karter offers another distraction, allowing Garrison to get in a big boot to take over.

The chinlock doesn’t last long so Garrison faceplants him for two instead. Copeland is back up with the Edge O Matic and takes out Karter, setting up a high crossbody for two more. The spear is cut off by a discus right hand but Copeland headbutts him on top, setting up a superplex. The crossface finishes Garrison at 6:37.

Rating: C. It was nice to have Copeland in a random match like this, as we keep hearing about him wanting to work with others but he’s been around Cage for a long time. Putting him in a quick match like this one was a fine way to go and it seems we might be seeing more of it in the near future, as he has to go up the ladder to get at Cage again.

Post match Karter jumps Copeland but gets speared down instead.

Sting, Ric Flair and Darby Allin are fired up for the tag match on Dynamite.

Skye Blue vs. Kiera Hogan

Hogan powers her into the corner to start and we actually get a clean break. Blue’s headlock slows Hogan down until she’s back up with some slaps. A kick to the head gives Hogan one but Blue drops her again and we take a break. Back with Blue kneeing her in the chest but diving into a superkick for the double knockdown. Hogan hits the running hip attack (as seems to be required in women’s wrestling these days), only to have Blue pull her into the dragon sleeper for the win at 8:49.

Rating: C. I’ve said this before but it’s getting more and more difficult to get into a match between either of these two as they have been on the treadmill for the better part of ever. They’ll win some matches, they’ll get a bigger match, they’ll lose, they’ll start over. Odds are that is going to be the case again with Blue again, as has been the case with her for months now.

Serena Deeb is coming back.

Andrew Everett vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Everett’s running dropkick has no effect and Castagnoli slams him down (with Schiavone continuing Everett’s “I’m a seven footer” deal, which just kind of makes Schiavone sound dumb as it’s not exactly something you hear about around here very often). The Swing connects but Everett is back with a springboard spinwheel kick. The shooting star press is loaded up but Castagnoli misses what seemed to be an uppercut to knock it out of the air. Thankfully Castagnoli just picks him up and hits the Neutralizer, followed by a clothesline to finish at 3:15.

Rating: C. This wasn’t quite a squash and they weren’t exactly on the same page. Everett’s deal with the thinking he’s a giant is kind of a weird thing and thankfully he’s not around often enough for it to become a thing. At the same time, points for not worrying about the missed uppercut and moving on to the next thing without missing a beat.

Castagnoli wants (and will get) Hangman Page on Dynamite.

Big Bill and Ricky Starks are ready to face Chris Jericho and Sammy Guevara….at Battle Of The Belts. And we’ll make it a street fight. Well dang. That’s been one of the biggest issues with Battle Of The Belts and they addressed it. Nice job.

FTR vs. House Of Black

FTR has some friends and family here. Wheeler and Matthews fight over a lockup to start and go into the corner. Matthews gets shoved away but comes back with some hard arm cranking. They go to the mat for some quick escapes so FTR grabs a double Russian legsweep (and yes we get a Brad Armstrong reference). It’s off to Harwood vs. Black, with the latter dropping into a sit to avoid a right hand.

Harwood sits down as well and flips him off as we take an early break. Back with Harwood and Matthews chopping it out until Harwood is sent into the wrong corner. That’s broken up and the tag brings in Wheeler, who is sent outside again for a middle rope moonsault. Wheeler manages to send them into each other back inside but Matthews cuts Harwood off in a smart move.

We take another break and come back with Harwood hammering on Black in the corner before diving onto Matthews. A brainbuster gets two on Black but the Sharpshooter is broken up. Matthews gets in a cheap shot from the floor but Harwood is fine enough to get Black into the PowerPlex. A Matthews saves breaks up the cover though and all four of them are down.

Back up and Wheeler is sent over the announcers’ table so Black grabs a chair. We pause for Black to look menacingly at Harwood’s family but the distraction lets FTR hit the Shatter Machine for two on Matthews. Black gets spike piledriven onto the apron so here is Brody King. Cue Daniel Garcia to chair King in the back and then throw the chair at his head. Back in and Matthews stomps Harwood for two but a powerbomb is countered into a sunset flip to give Harwood the pin at 21:28.

Rating: B+. As usual, if you give FTR some time and the right opponents, they can make some magic happen. That was the case here as these guys tore the house down and had a heck of a main event. What matters is the good guys won for a feel good moment in front of their family, which gave the show a nice ending. King and Garcia get to continue their deal but they didn’t actually get involved so the ending was even clean. Really strong stuff here, with FTR showing they can still do it.

Post match the House beats down FTR and Garcia, with Black spin kicking a chair into Harwood’s head. Julia Hart pops up to slowly ring the bell to end the show. Well so much for the happy ending.

Overall Rating: B. This show was carried by two matches and that was more than enough to make it work. It went by quickly and the main event was a grudge match that more than delivered. Some of the stuff in the middle was a bit lacking, but they had a nice variety and it felt more like one of the first few Collisions, which is quite the compliment as those were some very good shows.

Results
Sting/Darby Allin b. Workhorsemen – Scorpion Death Drop to Drake
Eddie Kingston b. Trent Beretta – Northern lights bomb
The Kingdom b. Bryan Keith/Komander – Powerbomb/Zig Zag combination to Keith
Adam Copeland b. Griff Garrison – Crossface
Skye Blue b. Kiera Hogan – Dragon sleeper
Claudio Castagnoli b. Andrew Everett – Clothesline
FTR b. House Of Black – Sunset flip to Matthews

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

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Dynamite
Date: January 3, 2024
Location: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Taz

It’s the show after Worlds End and Samoa Joe is the new World Champion. In what might be a bigger story though, Adam Cole was revealed as the Devil, with his henchmen (Wardlow/The Kingdom/Roderick Strong) wrecking MJF to end the show. We’re about two months from Revolution and it might be time to start the slow build. Let’s get to it.

Here is Worlds End if you need a recap.

We get a video from after Worlds End where a rather serious Samoa Joe talks about how MJF might be a scumbag but he’s a mean SOB. He’s going to take everything from anyone who tries to take the title from him. This was intense Joe and that is a great thing.

We look at the Devil/Henchmen reveal.

Here are Adam Cole and the henchmen, now with a graphic saying UNDISPUTED, for a chat. Roderick Strong tells us to shut up and listen to his best friend, ADAM. Cole finds it ironic that people were appalled and SHOCKED at him being the Devil. It means people are not only stupid but they also don’t understand right and wrong. Cole turned on MJF, who has talked bad about everyone in that locker room, but people are mad at him?

MJF only cares about himself and he’s never coming back. The second MJF felt like he didn’t need Cole anymore, he would have done the same thing. Cole never needed MJF but MJF needed him, which is why Cole sacrificed everything. No one would have cared about MJF without Cole and you can chant all you want, but MJF is dead. This is the Undisputed Kingdom, and they want gold.

Roderick Strong wants the International Title and Wardlow is after the AEW World Title. Then when the time is right, Wardlow is going to forfeit the title to Cole (Wardlow doesn’t seem opposed). That brings us to Samoa Joe, and it was nice to do business with him. This includes taking out Hangman Page for him, but it would suck to see Wardlow hurt Joe when it’s time to get there. The Devil is here to stay….bay bay.

The team poses but here is Jay White of all people to interrupt. He liked what happened to MJF, but he isn’t happy with being the catalyst to start all this. Cue the Gunns so Wardlow gets Cole to the floor so the fight can be on. Wardlow gets back in though and the Undisputed Kingdom takes over. Cue the Acclaimed and Billy Gunn to chase the Kingdom off but Bullet Club Gold leaves without scissoring.

They needed to have the big speech here and that worked well, but there is something missing because Cole can’t wrestle. Granted it is a good bit less bad because MJF is out of action as well. I could have waited on someone to interrupt the team, as it took something away from the segment, but the big explanation was good enough.

We look at Eddie Kingston winning the Continental Classic.

Daniel Garcia is ready to face Swerve Strickland.

International Title: Orange Cassidy vs. Dante Martin

Cassidy is defending and gets armdragged into the corner, leaving him a bit annoyed to start. A headlock takeover works a bit better for Cassidy but Dante kicks him away and flips over for a standoff. They go outside with Cassidy sending him into the barricade, then putting his hands in his pockets for a run around the ring and a dropkick. Dante manages a suplex though and we take a break.

Back with Martin hitting a nice high crossbody for two before they trade the slow motion strikes. Martin gets taken into the corner for more slow stomps, followed by the spinning DDT for two. The Orange Punch and Beach Break both miss so Martin loads up a powerbomb, only to drop Cassidy face first onto his knee (that was cool). Martin goes up so Cassidy rolls away…leaving Martin to jump REALLY FAR to splash him instead. Martin misses a dropkick though and the Orange Punch retains at 13:29.

Rating: B-. This was straight out of the same playbook that Cassidy has been using for the better part of a year now, though there was pretty much nothing with him being aggressive or coming close to cheating. The good thing is that he seems to have a much bigger challenger coming in Roderick Strong so things should be picking up. Martin looked solid here too, as he can do the flying stuff rather well.

Post match Action Andretti, Darius Martin, Hook and Danhausen come out to check on their friends. Respect is shown but here is the returning Private Party to interrupt. They want the titles and put the tag teams on notice. Is there a reason a two person tag team interrupted a singles champion and a trio so they could talk about winning Tag Team Titles?

Toni Storm is here for Mariah May’s debut but changes her mind because it’s off to Broadway.

The House Of Black is ready to hurt FTR and make their families sad.

Swerve Strickland is ready to ace Daniel Garcia tonight but wants gold in 2024. Like from Samoa Joe.

Mariah May vs. Queen Aminata

May strikes her up against the ropes to start and a running dropkick gets one. Another running dropkick to the back sends Aminata to the floor and us to a break. Back with Aminata striking away and hitting a dropkick, followed by a running forearm in the corner. May Sling Blades her way out of trouble and a Samoan Driver (May Day) finishes Aminata at 6:37.

Rating: C. Well that was lengthy and I’m not exactly sold on May as a big star. She did well in her debut but this felt more like it was almost about making Aminata a big deal than getting May her debut. May does look like a star though and she seemed polished enough in the ring. Not a bad match, but a strangely put together one.

Post match May says she wishes Toni Storm could have been here. And that this wasn’t in New Jersey. Cue Deonna Purrazzo (of the New Jersey Purrazzos) to say this is her home because she is All Elite. May calls her a b**** and gets kicked in the face for her efforts. Good debut, even with Purrazzo sounding rather nervous. Also, I’m not sure how smart it was to have May’s debut and Purrazzo as the surprise back to back, as it took away from May’s start.

Here is the Patriarchy for a chat. Shayna Wayne can’t believe that the people here boo her, so Christian Cage threatens them all with discipline. Cage talks about his title defense at Worlds End and we hear about how he left as champion (with no mention of the title changing hands)….but he specifically doesn’t mention Killswitch.

He talks about how Adam Copeland is out of title shots and brags about having no soul, which is why he beat Copeland. No one needs to come after this title but the fans chant LUCHASAURUS. Cage insists that his name is Killswitch to wrap things up. Shayna continues to be rather awful with a microphone. I’m not sure why they needed Wayne’s real mother there when there has to be someone better at talking who could play either that role or something close enough.

Ruby Soho admits that Harley Cameron was a success, with Cameron insisting she would do ANYTHING to help.

Darby Allin vs. Konosuke Takeshita

Don Callis joins commentary as Takeshita grabs a wheelbarrow suplex to start. Allin flips out and lands on his feet, with even Callis being impressed, only to have a heck of a backdrop put Allin down. Back up and Allin manages to send him outside for a dive, with Takeshita cutting it off with a jumping knee for a NASTY crash. Some rolling German suplexes on the ramp knock Allin even sillier and we take a break.

Back with Allin hitting the flipping Stunner out of the corner and sending Takeshita to the floor for the big running flip dive. Takeshita is sent hard into the barricade and bangs up his knee, allowing Allin to hit the top rope Coffin Drop to take him down on the floor. Back in and a Code Red gives Allin two, only to have Takeshita German suplex him down. A top rope German superplex (and Allin landed straight on the mat) sets up a running knee to give Takeshita the pin at 12:47.

Rating: B. I feel bad about watching these Allin matches as he feels like someone ready to suffer a career ending injury every time he gets in the ring. Since he doesn’t seem to care, it would be nice to have someone tell him to stop and not let him wrestle if he doesn’t listen, but that doesn’t seem likely. On the other hand you have Takeshita, who looked like a monster here. I could really go for him doing pretty much anything but being stuck with Callis and company, as he seems ready to be a breakout star (and has been so for a long time).

Post break Don Callis issues a challenge to Darby Allin and Sting next week, with promises of making the team 25-1.

Trent Beretta vs. El Hijo del Vikingo vs. Brian Cage vs. Bryan Keith

For a Continental Crown shot against Eddie Kingston (on commentary) on Collision. Vikingo takes Trent out to start but Cage runs people over. Vikingo gets suplexed and Trent is ran over on the floor as Cage is in control on the way to the break. Back with Vikingo cleaning house until Cage catches him on top.

Trent drops Cage for two with Vikingo making the save, leaving all four of them down. Cage F5’s Keith and hits a helicopter bomb for two on Trent. This brings Danhausen out of the crowd for a curse, allowing Vikingo to dive outside onto Cage. Keith hits a running headbutt to Trent, who is right back with Strong Zero for the pin at 9:41.

Rating: B-. This was your usual wild free for all, but that’s where it’s a little weird. We just spent six weeks on these straightforward singles matches for the right to be the first champion and then it’s a four way with a bunch of midcarders fighting for a shot. On a side note, what is Trent fighting for? The new title or the Triple Crown? I would hope the latter, because having Kingston defend three separate titles is absolutely not what was being teased in the tournament.

Matt Menard is interrupted by Hangman Page, who wants to fight someone.

Daniel Garcia vs. Swerve Strickland

Matt Menard is on commentary. Feeling out process to start with Swerve taking him down without much trouble. Garcia fights back up and they head to the floor, with Swerve being sent into the barricade. That means it’s time for a dance off between Garcia and Prince Nana, but Swerve breaks it up.

We take a break and come back with Garcia dropkicking Swerve into the corner. A Saito suplex gets two on Swerve and they fight to the floor where Garcia doesn’t quite get all of a Sharpshooter the announcers’ desk. Back in and Swerve manages a suplex to put them both down, followed by a House Call for two. The Swerve Stomp gets two and, after Garcia gets a rollup for the same, Swerve finishes with the JML Driver at 11:41.

Rating: C+. That’s a weird way to end the show, as the big focal point was a dance off with a heel manager. Strickland took a good while to beat Garcia here, which isn’t the biggest stretch, but it’s a weird way to go when he’s talking about coming for the World Title. This didn’t quite feel like a big main event either, and that’s not a great sign to start the road to Revolution.

Post match respect is teased but Nana hits Garcia low. Matt Menard tries to come in but gets beaten down as well. Hangman Page comes out for the brawl with Swerve and they’re separated to end the show. So the ultra violent and bloody Texas Deathmatch was just a stop in the feud?

Overall Rating: B-. This wasn’t the show I was expecting but it also wasn’t a bad one. They covered the Adam Cole explanation well enough, but as tends to be the case in AEW, they tacked on more stuff right after and it took away from some of the impact. Other than that, you could definitely tell that a lot of people were gone for either Wrestle Kingdom or something else and it hurt the show a bit. This felt like a show that they ran when they had a week to burn, which is a weird feeling coming off a pay per view. Not bad whatsoever, but not one of their best.

Results
Orange Cassidy b. Dante Martin – Orange Punch
Mariah May b. Queen Aminata – May Day
Konosuke Takeshita b. Darby Allin – Running knee
Trent Beretta b. Bryan Keith, Brian Cage and El Hijo del Vikingo – Strong Zero to Keith
Swerve Strickland b. Daniel Garcia – JML Driver

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: December 23, 2023
Location: Frost Bank Center, San Antonio, Texas
Commentators: Kevin Kelly, Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re a week away from Worlds End and that means we need some more semifinalists in the Continental Classic. The Blue League should be getting down to its final two this week and maybe we can even add in some new matches to the pay per view card. On top of that, Thunder Rosa is back in the ring tonight after more than a year away. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Continental Classic Blue League: Bryan Danielson vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Castagnoli powers him around to start before grabbing a test of strength to keep Danielson in trouble. Danielson takes it to the mat by the leg though and rips at the face for two. Back up and Danielson goes for the leg again but Castagnoli fights up for another test of strength. They go to the mat with the hands interlocked and bridge up at two each until Castagnoli blasts him with an uppercut.

Danielson tries the LeBell Lock but Castagnoli bails to the floor, where a knee off the apron takes him down again. Back in and Castagnoli fires off an uppercut but Danielson shrugs if off and hits the running corner dropkicks. Castagnoli shrugs that off just as well and grabs the Swing for two. A headbutt and clothesline put Danielson on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Danielson hitting a belly to back superplex for a nasty crash and a delayed near fall. The LeBell Lock goes on again but Castagnoli makes the rope again. We have five minutes left as Danielson takes him to the top, only to get caught in a spinning superplex for a sweet counter.

The Riccola Bomb is countered into a triangle choke, which is countered into something close to a Neutralizer for two. Another Neutralizer is countered and the running knee gives Danielson two. They trade stomps to the face before locking hands and kicking each other even more. Castagnoli pulls him into the Sharpshooter with a minute to go before letting Danielson out. An uppercut drops Danielson again but time expires at 20:00.

Rating: B. Well at least they finally had a draw. This was another heck of a fight with both guys beating the fire out of each other, which made for a good brawl. Danielson is still likely moving on to the next round and it’s nice to see Castagnoli get a draw instead of taking another loss. You knew these two were going to bring it and thankfully neither of them went evil in the process.

Blue League Standings
Bryan Danielson – 10 points (0 matches remaining)
Andrade El Idolo – 9 points (1 match remaining)
Claudio Castagnoli – 7 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)
Eddie Kingston – 6 points (1 match remaining)
Brody King – 6 points (1 match remaining)
Daniel Garcia – 0 points (1 match remaining, eliminated)

Danielson officially advances to the semifinals. Castagnoli is frustrated but respect is shown.

We look at Dynamite’s Gold League matches.

Trios Titles: Acclaimed/Billy Gunn vs. Top Flight/Action Andretti

The Acclaimed and Gunn are defending with Bowens kicking Darius in the face to start. A superkick gets two so it’s quickly off to Andretti to pick up the pace. Everything breaks down and we get a big staredown until Gunn and Andretti trade SUCK IT’s. Andretti gets taken into the wrong corner though and we take a break.

Back with Gunn missing a Stinger Splash, allowing Andretti to get over to Dante. A springboard high crossbody hits Caster as everything breaks down again. Gunn gets triple teamed (the fans don’t seem to approve) so the Acclaimed make the save, leaving Gunn to hit a tilt-a-whirl slam. Scissor Me Timbers takes too long though as all three champs get kicked down. Top Flight dives onto Gunn and Bowens on the floor but Caster avoids the running shooting star press and pins Andretti to retain at 9:14.

Rating: C+. I’m a bit surprised at the result here as Andretti and Top Flight have been built up rather strong in recent weeks. That match on Rampage last week was more than enough to get them some attention but we’ll be continuing with the Acclaimed and Gunn for the moment. That’s not a terrible idea, but I was almost expecting a fluke title change.

Commentary thinks Caster might have pulled the tights.

Hook wants Wheeler Yuta in an FTW Rules match for the FTW Title at Worlds End.

Brian Cage vs. Keith Lee

Prince Nana is here with Cage and yes Lee is wearing a Santa hat. They fight over a lockup to start with Lee shoving him away but Cage is back with a headlock. A running headscissors takes Lee down and now it’s time to get a bit more serious. Lee snaps off his own headscissors so Cage kicks him in the head. Cage’s running tornado DDT plants Lee and we take a break.

Back with Lee hitting a running splash in the corner and hammering away to put Cage in more trouble. Lee throws him down for two more but Cage is back with a 619. For some reason Cage tries the apron superplex, which goes as badly as expected. Instead a top rope superplex plants Lee for two (with about 30 “2” signs in the first few rows). An F5 gives Cage two….so let’s get a cinder block. That’s too far for Lee, who comes back with a Big Bang Catastrophe or the pin at 9:54.

Rating: B-. This was the spectacle match and it worked very well for what it was supposed to be. Lee seems on his way to the Swerve Strickland match because waiting a year and a half is more than fine. Cage did get to showcase his crazy power and cool moves here, which made for a heck of an entertaining match.

Post match Lee brings up the cinder block attack from….someone (Swerve Strickland) in this building about a year ago. He’ll be at Dynamite to make his point clear.

Toni Storm isn’t sure who Mariah May, who is standing behind her, actually is. May says they’ve met before but more importantly, her wrestling license is here. Storm is ready for Riho.

Here is Christian Cage, with Nick Wayne, for a chat. Cage brings up Shayna Wayne attacking Adam Copeland and brings her out for the official explanation. Shayna is surprised that the fans are booing her (A MOTHER!) for what she did to Copeland. She was just protecting her son, who Copeland hit with a Conchairto a few weeks earlier. The only person who cares about her son is Cage, who goes into a speech praising Shayna.

You would think Copeland would understand what it’s like to grow up with a single mother. Cage kind of wishes Copeland’s mother was still alive so she could see what her son became. We head suggestions of what happened between Cage and Shayna after he beat Copeland (she seems pleased) and Cage dubs her the Matriarch, Mother Wayne. And sure Copeland can have another title shot at Worlds End, because Cage can finish him for good.

Big Bill and Ricky Starks say their Tag Team Title match at Worlds End is off. Cue Chris Jericho to say it’s still on (date not clear) and he’s looking for a new partner.

Continental Classic Blue League: Daniel Garcia vs. Brody King

Garcia slaps him in the face to start so King unloads with forearms in the corner. The Cannonball gives King two and Garcia heads to the apron, where he gets forearmed in the face. King breaks up a choke and grabs one of his own, with Garcia falling out to the floor as we take a break.

Back with King slamming him down by the hair and dropping a backsplash for two. Garcia stands up and won’t be put down by chops as the fans seem to approve. King lets him chop away and Garcia’s running forearms manage a staggering. Garcia finally muscles him over with a belly to back suplex but King is back with a Death Valley Driver. A hard clothesline into the Ganso Bomb gets two on Garcia and King is stunned. Another Ganso Bomb is loaded up but Garcia reverses into a jackknife rollup for the upset pin at 10:18.

Rating: B-. This was another step in Garcia’s road to…something, as he continued to fight through the odds and win in the end. His tournament didn’t exactly go so well but at least he didn’t lose the whole time. This told a nice story and should pay dividends later, while King’s tournament comes to something of a bad halt.

Blue League Standings
Bryan Danielson – 10 points (0 matches remaining)
Andrade El Idolo – 9 points (1 match remaining)
Claudio Castagnoli – 7 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)
Eddie Kingston – 6 points (1 match remaining)
Brody King – 6 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)
Daniel Garcia – 3 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)

Post match the lights go out and the House Of Black goes after Garcia. Matt Menard tries to come in for the save but FTR offers the real save, with the House running. The challenge is issued for some point in the future.

Skye Blue/Julia Hart vs. Abadon/Thunder Rosa

Blue is now all evil and Rosa is in her first match in over a year. Blue stomps Abadon into the corner to start and hands it off to Hart for some forearms. A swinging Rock Bottom lets Abadon hammer away but Blue cuts Rosa off. Blue and Hart chop away at Abadon and we take a break.

We come back with Abadon hitting a double Downward Spiral, allowing the hot tag to Rosa, which the fans appreciate. Rosa cleans house, including running knees in the corner to Blue. A northern lights suplex gets two with Hart making the save. Blue catches her in the corner though and a powerbomb brings Rosa back down. Everything breaks down and Rosa hits the Tijuana Bomb to finish Blue at 8:18.

Rating: C+. Rosa is indeed back and that is a good thing, as she can be put into a variety of spots on the roster immediately. If nothing else, she should be getting a guaranteed Women’s Title shot in the near future, but for now she’s off to a good start with a win here. Hart vs. Abadon is already set and that should be a nice addition to Worlds End, as Hart gets to be protected here to continue her momentum.

Continental Classic Blue League: Eddie Kingston vs. Andrade El Idolo

Kingston advances with a win while Andrade advances with a win or a draw. An early spinning backfist misses for Kingston so Andrade grabs a headlock. Andrade takes him into the corner and then grabs an armbar as commentary plugs upcoming pay per views. Back up and Kingston hits a hard clothesline and we take a break.

We come back with Andrade fighting out of a chinlock, setting up some dragon screw legwhips. The running knees in the corner give Andrade two and Three Amigos are good for the same. Andrade goes up but dives into a kick to the face, which damages Kingston’s bad leg even more. Kingston unloads with the chops in the corner but Andrade sends him outside for a moonsault.

The double moonsault gives Andrade two back inside but Kingston’s belly to back gets the same. It takes a bit for Andrade to get up and he scores with the spinning elbow for two. Kingston gets caught in the Figure Four but is straight into the ropes. Back up and the spinning backfist into the northern lights bomb gives Kingston the pin at 15:30.

Rating: B-. Kingston felt like he was fighting to survive here and that is pretty much exactly what he was doing. It made for a good fight as the two of them were both doing their thing, including Andrade continuing to be on quite the roll as of late. This sets up Kingston vs. Danielson in a heck of a showdown though and that should be enough to help carry Dynamite.

Blue League Standings
Bryan Danielson – 10 points (0 matches remaining)
Eddie Kingston – 9 points (0 matches remaining)
Andrade El Idolo – 9 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)
Claudio Castagnoli – 7 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)
Brody King – 6 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)
Daniel Garcia – 3 points (0 matches remaining, eliminated)

Overall Rating: B. This show covered a good bit more than just the Continental Classic, making it that much more interesting than Dynamite. The tournament has been full o good action, but I’m kind of glad to see this phase of it wrapping up. We’ve seen these same six people wrestling for weeks now and there comes a point where it doesn’t have quite the same impact. Other than that, Keith Lee’s path to Swerve Strickland continues and Thunder Rosa is back. That’s a nice use of two hours and we should be moving into something new next time.

Results
Bryan Danielson vs. Claudio Castagnoli went to a time limit draw
Acclaimed/Billy Gunn b. Top Flight/Action Andretti – Rollup to Andretti
Keith Lee b. Brian Cage – Big Bang Catastrophe
Daniel Garcia b. Brody King – Rollup
Abadon/Thunder Rosa b. Skye Blue/Julia Hart – Tijuana Bomb to Blue
Eddie Kingston b. Andrade El Idolo – Northern lights bomb

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AND

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