Collision
Date: February 8, 2025
Location: Fort Bend Epicenter, Rosenberg, Texas
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re closing in on Grand Slam and the show is mostly set up. The question now becomes what happens with everything already on the card but there is still the chance that something else is added tonight. Odds are we’ll get some good action as that tends to be the norm around here. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Mark Briscoe and Kyle Fletcher are ready to fight.

Opening sequence.

Here are the Death Riders to jump security and get in the ring. Jon Moxley isn’t about to give Cope (or Adam Copeland) a title shot. Instead a tag match is set up for Grand Slam.

We run down the card.

Undisputed Kingdom vs. Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Daniel Garcia/Matt Menard/Angelo Parker

Strong and Taylor start things off, with Strong managing to kick him into the corner to start the beating. O’Reilly comes in but gets caught in the corner so the Infantry can start firing off the running forearms. Parker and Menard take over on Dean though, only for Menard to jump on commentary and brag about his team. Garcia comes in and hammers on Dean in the corner but it’s back to Taylor for a headbutt. The Promotions get to pose a lot and we take a break.

Back with Garcia suplexing his way to freedom and the Kingdom coming in to beat on the Infantry. Everything breaks down and the posing Cole gets rolled up for two, followed by a double clothesline to leave everyone down. Back up and the nine way brawl is on, with Garcia getting double stomped down hard. Taylor gets jumped on the floor, leaving Dean to get caught with the Boom to give Cole the pin at 13:15.

Rating: C+. There were a lot of people involved here and that made things a bit tricky to follow. You can only get so much out of this much, but maybe it leads to the Kingdom getting to do something more. Other than that, the Promotions get to lose again, which is probably the only reason they were there in the first place.

Post match the Death Riders run in to beat down the Kingdom. The beatdown is on, but Cole issues the challenge for the Trios Titles on Dynamite.

Video on FTR.

Max Cater says his open challenge is still set for Dynamite.

Bandido vs. Bryan Keith

The slugout is on with Keith knocking Bandido’s hat off, which isn’t the best way to bring him back to action. Back up and Bandido knocks him down but gets knocked out of the air as we take a break. We come back with Bandido hitting a spinning high crossbody into a one armed gorilla press for two.

Keith catches him on top with a high collar superplex and they’re both down again. They trade kicks to the head, then go back to back, nod at each other, march away, and hit running strikes for a double knockdown. Back up and Bandido flips him into a knee to the head, setting up the 21 Plex for the pin at 10:05.

Rating: B-. The showdown spot was funny enough and that’s all it needed to be. You had a logical match here and it worked out well, with Bandido getting a win on the way back. There is a good chance that Bandido gets the next title shot against Chris Jericho and having him win over Jericho’s good makes sense.

Powerhouse Hobbs challenges Big Bill for Dynamite.

La Faccion Ingobernable vs. Ares Alexander/Jay Alexander/Brick Savage

Ares gets planted with a pop up Samoan drop and the Bull’s Horns finishes at 1:24.

Post match the beatdown is on but Komander makes the save. Komander gets beaten down as well, with Hologram returning to make the save. Rush beats up some referees because he has to look strong. Komander getting beaten up is almost a free spot on the AEW Bingo card these days.

Thunder Rosa and Megan Bayne have a bit of a staredown before Rosa talks about being ready for Penelope Ford.

And now here is Harley Cameron for a concert, complete with the Mercedes Mone puppet. First up, she sings a song called The Money Train, which consists of saying the title over and over. Cue Mercedes Mone to interrupt, saying everyone is here to see her. The second song is about how Mone is scared to feel the wrath but Mone cuts her off, saying Cameron is a loser.

Cameron goes on a rant about how she’s worked hard to get here and has had her hand up Mone’s puppet’s a**. A mic shot puts Mone down and she agrees to the title match at Grand Slam. I could have gone for more of Cameron, but that would mean less Mone and that is just not ok.

We get a sitdown interview with Buddy Matthews and…an empty chair which is supposed to contain Kazuchika Okada. Eventually Okada strolls in, with Mathews talking about how it’s Australia’s best vs. Japan’s best. They go nose to nose and Okada calls him a b****, only for Matthews to make him flinch off the threat of violence.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Izzy James

Cross Rhodes and the Final Reckoning finish James at 25 seconds.

Post match Rhodes talks about how MJF calls himself the Devil but Rhodes has already beaten the Devil up. He has been doing this in five decades and put in the effort and MJF can’t do the same thing. Rhodes issues the challenge for next week on Dynamite.

The Death Riders are ready to beat the Undisputed Kingdom next week.

Thunder Rosa vs. Penelope Ford

A local sports mascot comes out with Rosa, who fights over a lockup with Ford to start. Rosa goes up top but gets forearmed outside as we take an early break. Back with Ford getting two off a gutbuster but missing a charge into the post. Rosa’s running dropkick connects against the ropes and a northern lights suplex gets two. Ford is back up with a handspring elbow in the corner and a lick to Rosa’s face (yep) sets up a missed moonsault. Back up and Ford hits a quick dropkick only to get caught in a Tijuana Bomb to give Rosa the pin at 10:04.

Rating: C+. Yes Ford loses a fairly big match. I’m not sure why this should be even slightly surprising, as that is just what she does every time she’s out there. The match was fine, though I kept waiting for the mascot to do something. It’s a good enough match, ubt Rosa seems to be set up for a big match with Megan Bayne instead.

Post match Megan Bayne comes out for the staredown, with Ford jumping Rosa from behind. Bayne drops Rosa with an F5.

We look at Ricochet cheating to beat Swerve Strickland and stealing Prince Nana’s robe. Then over the weekend, Strickland attacked Ricochet at an independent show but couldn’t get the robe back.

Someone named Bun B is here but Ricochet interrupts and mocks him for being Strickland’s friend. Ricochet tries a burger that Bun seems to have provided and spits it out. Ricochet beats up the food worker as Bun isn’t happy.

Mariah May vs. Shay KarMichael

Non-title and a running knee sets up May Day to finish KarMichael at 24 seconds.

Post match May attacks KarMichael with lipstick but here is Luther (Toni Storm’s butler) for a distraction. Cue Storm to jump May, sending her running.

The Don Callis Family beats up various people backstage, with Mark Davis joining in.

Mark Briscoe vs. Kyle Fletcher

Fletcher strikes away in the corner to start but Briscoe is back up in a hurry. Briscoe knocks him to the floor and loads up a table, only to get launched head first into the post. An apron bomb rocks Briscoe and we take a break, coming back with Briscoe, head being rather busted open.

A double clothesline leaves both of them down before Briscoe grabs a suplex for two. Fletcher is back with a flipping butterfly powerbomb for two but Briscoe catches him with a fisherman’s buster. The Froggy Bow is broken up but so is the counter, only for Fletcher to come back with a brainbuster for two.

Briscoe knocks him off the top and out to the floor, where a Froggy Bow sends a standing Fletcher through the table. Back in and a super Jay Driller is broken up, allowing Fletcher to catch him on top instead. Fletcher hits a brainbuster onto the top turnbuckle to knock Briscoe silly for the pin at 14:55.

Rating: B. These two beat each other up pretty well and that’s all it needed to be. Fletcher was doing his usual thing, while Briscoe was doing the same, which means looking good in defeat. This is a way to tie things together with the Continental Classic, but at the same time it would be nice to see Briscoe get another win here or there.

Post match Fletcher promises to win at Grand Slam.

Overall Rating: B-. Nice show here and I liked having some of those matches go short. There was no reason for those to go long and thankfully they got to the point, which made things that much better. It makes you wonder how long a match will go while still being effective. That’s something AEW has been missing and it helped things here. Good enough show here, with some stuff being advanced for the upcoming bigger events.

Results
Undisputed Kingdom b. Shane Taylor Promotions and Daniel Garcia/Matt Menard/Angelo Parker – Boom to Dean
Bandido b. Bryan Keith – 21 Plex
La Faccion Ingobernable b. Ares Alexander/Jay Alexander/Brick Savage – Bull’s Horns to Ares
Dustin Rhodes b. Izzy James – Final Reckoning
Thunder Rosa b. Penelope Ford – Tijuana Bomb
Mariah May b. Shay KarMichael – May Day
Kyle Fletcher b. Mark Briscoe – Brainbuster onto the turnbuckle

 

 

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Collision
Date: February 1, 2025
Location: Propst Arena At Von Braun Center, Huntsville, Alabama
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We have two weeks to go before we get to Grand Slam and the top of the card has come together. The show has some more spots to fill in though and we’ll start taking care of that this week. As for this week, we have a Mid-South street fight, despite not being in the Mid-South (well, at least the wrestling version). Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Hook/Samoa Joe vs. The Patriarchy

Wayne shoulders Hook down to start but gets suplexed for his efforts. Joe comes in but misses a charge into the corner, allowing Sabian to kick away. That doesn’t work for Joe, who runs Sabian over and hits the backsplash. Hook comes back in but gets taken into the wrong corner so the villains can take over.

Sabian grabs a chinlock as Schiavone rattles off the rest of the card, sounding more robotic than ever. A double suplex gives Wayne two but Hook is over to the corner without much trouble. Joe comes back in, hits the release Rock Bottom out of the corner, and MuscleBusters Sabian for the pin at 8:59.

Rating: C. This was what it needed to be, with Joe getting in there and smashing through everyone as soon as he got the chance. That’s the point of someone like Joe, as he is an absolute monster when he gets the chance. Joe vs. Cage could be interesting, though Joe should have something to do with Chris Jericho first.

Post match Christian Cage comes in with the metal contract and lays the winners out.

Cope thinks Jon Moxley is always whining about something and was stupid to hide the World Title in a briefcase. He wants Moxley at Revolution. Logical, but dang that’s a long time to sit through this feud.

The Beast Mortos vs. Adam Priest

The discus lariat and the spinning piledriver finish Priest at 44 seconds. Yep.

Post match here is Max Caster to say he doesn’t want to fight, but he does want to issue his first open challenge.

Max Caster vs. Rush

Rush isn’t having any of this waiting around to start and pounds Caster into the corner to start. The Bull’s Horns finishes at 1:03. Yep again.

Post match Rush and Mortos, with Dralistico get in the ring so Rush can do his catchphrase.

The Outrunners think the Learning Tree need to dig two graves.

Outrunners vs. Learning Tree

Big Bill is here with the Learning Tree. Jericho pokes Magnum in the eyes to start and takes those eyes into the corner for some raking. Floyd comes in for some alternating atomic drops and the villains are cleared out to the floor. Bill gets in a big boot for a cheap shot though and we take a break.

Back with Floyd getting to clean house but the Mega Powers elbow takes too long. Jericho gets the Walls on Floyd but Magnum comes back in with a suplex. NOW the Mega Powers elbow can connect, only for Bill to break up Total Recall. Keith small packages Floyd for the pin at 8:21.

Rating: C+. Maybe I was stupid for thinking they could do something with the Outrunners, but here they are losing to bigger teams. I know they weren’t going to be AEW Tag Team Champions, but they could have beaten some biggish team in a funny feud. Instead, they are the latest stars to be sacrifice on the altar of Jericho.

Post match, Big Bill beats up the Outrunners again. A double chokeslam through the table is loaded up but Bandido comes in for the save. Keith goes through the table instead.

Kyle Fletcher wants to even the score with Mark Briscoe. They’re set for next week.

Buddy Matthews again challenges Kazuchika Okada, who isn’t interested. B******* ensues.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Harley Cameron

Taya jumps her to start and stomps away in the corner, only to get kicked in the head. Back up and the sliding German suplex drops Cameron and we take a break. We come back with the fans chanting FEEL THE WRATH and Cameron hitting a Canadian Destroyer. Cameron misses a Swanton but gets speared, only for Cameron to roll her up for the pin and her first AEW victory at 7:34.

Rating: C. Now THIS is what AEW needs to do more often. It wasn’t some stunning upset or total nonsense, but one of the most popular stars in the promotion got a clean win. They still have time to do this on the way to Grand Slam where Cameron likely gets to lose to Mercedes Mone. Not a particularly good match, but it was what the fans wanted to see and it went well.

We get a sitdown interview with Ricochet, who is happy to be here among the best around. Then the fans turned on him and threw toilet paper at him. Swerve Strickland thought it was a good idea to join the fans booing him. Cue Strickland to say he could end Ricochet but that would disappoint fans in Atlanta. Strickland talks about how the two of them have a long history and now it is going to be a fight, which Ricochet can’t win. Ricochet talks about how he doesn’t care about the fans and they’ll see each other in Atlanta. Nice stuff here, as they’re making this feel like a showdown.

Here is Toni Storm to say that she has been playing the role of Toni Storm for the last six weeks. Naturally no one got this because she’s such a great actress. She has to run away after Mariah May broke her heart and now she has seen everything she has. May is a “shambolic b****.” and her time is over. At least they’re winking at the fact that it wasn’t a big surprise.

Video on Christopher Daniels.

Harley Cameron is outside of Mercedes Mone’s dressing room….and whips out a Mone puppet for some outstanding ventriloquism. Mone comes in to mock Cameron for being a loser who doesn’t get to ride the money train. Sweet goodness this woman is talented.

Video on Daniel Garcia.

TNT Title: Daniel Garcia vs. Kyle O’Reilly vs. Lee Moriarty

Garcia is defending and Moriarty’s ROH Pure Title isn’t on the line. Feeling out process to start with neither going much of anywhere. We get the parade of holds with neither being able to get very far, meaning it’s another standoff. Moriarty gets sent outside so the other two can get kicked in the face. A big dive drops O’Reilly and Garcia and we take a break.

Back with Moriarty hitting an Eat Defeat/Downward Spiral combination for two each. Some double teaming takes Moriarty down until an exchange of kicks leaves everyone down. Garcia hammers away at both of them in the corner. With O’Reilly down, Garcia gets the Dragon Slayer but O’Reilly breaks it up. Moriarty’s associate Shane Taylor punches Garcia into the Border City Stretch but Garcia reverses into the jackknife cover for the retaining pin at 11:31.

Rating: B-. This was mostly just a nice wrestling match, but CAN WE STOP PINNING RING OF HONOR CHAMPIONS??? If you don’t want O’Reilly to lose here then fine, but don’t put another champion in there to take the fall. Heck you had Shane Taylor RIGHT THERE on the floor to take the fall instead. This is one of those things that Tony Khan does far too often and it drives me insane.

Post match Shane Taylor Promotions surround O’Reilly and Garcia but the Undisputed Kingdom makes the save.

Video on Penelope Ford vs. Thunder Rosa.

Hologram is walking the streets and seems to have electrical powers.

Megan Bayne vs. Hyena Hera

Bayne powers her into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs to start and hits a pump kick for a knockdown. An F5 finishes Hera at 1:25. That’s how she should have debuted rather than being just another name in the Casino Gauntlet.

Lio Rush might take up Darius Martin’s challenge. Maybe.

Mariah May is ready to watch Toni Storm vs. Queen Aminata.

Kris Statlander apologizes to Willow Nightingale over their issues. Nightingale says it’s time to focus on herself, but Statlander pulls out their friendship bracelet, showing it was never broken.

Death Riders vs. FTR

Street fight and FTR jumps them in the crowd to start fast. The weapons are brought in rather quickly and the Riders fight back, with Cash being sent into the steps to put him down. Harwood is sent into them as well and Moxley puts him in a chair for a kick to the face and two, as “Mid-South Street Fight” apparently means falls count anywhere. Yuta chairs Harwood in the ring and here is Moxley with some pliers. Cash fights up and helps clean some house but Moxley pliers Harwood’s nose…and we take a break. Because of course.

We come back with Moxley pouring out the thumbtacks, only to get powerbombed onto them. Cash and Yuta fight over a suplex before Cash settles for a suicide dive. Moxley Death Riders Cash on the floor and puts a table up in the corner. The double suplex is broken up and Harwood hits a brainbuster for a needed breather.

Harwood grabs Moxley low, only for Marina Shafir to come in and grab Harwood low. Shafir grabs a choke but gets sent through the table in the corner for his efforts. A piledriver sets up a Sharpshooter on Moxley so here is Claudio Castagnoli for the save. Cue Jay White and Cope to even things up, with Yuta getting piledriven through the announcers’ able for the pin at 16:51.

Rating: B-. Quite the fight here and it’s nice to see the Riders lose, but at the same time, it was quite a bit of the same stuff that we have seen in this kind of a match before. The match did come a bit out of nowhere, though apparently this was the last minute replacement for Powerhouse Hobbs due to his injury, so fair enough. Good stuff here, but the Death Riders in general are just not that interesting.

Post match the Riders keep up the beating but get taken out, with a Shatter Machine and spear dropping Moxley. The Conchairto is broken up to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. Nice enough show here, even if the audience is going to be crushed by the Royal Rumble. The last two non-squash matches were pretty good and I liked them throwing in some shorter matches to keep things moving. It’s not a show you need to see, but it was perfectly enjoyable.

Results
Hook/Samoa Joe b. The Patriarchy – MuscleBuster to Sabian
The Beast Mortos b. Adam Priest – Spinning piledriver
Rush b. Max Caster – Bull’s Horns
Learning Tree b. Outrunners – Small package to Keith
Harley Cameron b. Taya Valkyrie – Rollup
Daniel Garcia b. Lee Moriarty and Kyle O’Reilly – Jackknife rollup to Moriarty
Megan Bayne b. Hyena Hera – F5
FTR b. Death Riders – Spike piledriver through the announcers’ table to Yuta

 

 

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Dynamite
Date: January 22, 2025
Location: Knoxville Civic Auditorium, Knoxville, Tennessee
Commentators: Taz, Tony Schiavone, Excalibur

We are closing in on Grand Slam and that means it is time to start getting ready for the show. There is a good chance that we are going to see something set up this week, as we are starting up some big things. Revolution is coming up as well and that means there are a lot of things going on. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Will Ospreay to get things going, with Kenny Omega coming out to join him. Sidenote: like him or not, Omega gets the superstar entrance to end them all around here and there is no way around it. The fans love him and he comes off like the king of the world. Ospreay talks about how Omega came back in a weird time because the Death Riders are holding the World Title hostage and Ospreay wants to do something about it but can’t get away from the Don Callis Family.

Omega talks about them fighting at Forbidden Door, where Ospreay tried to drop him on his head. That makes Ospreay no better than Callis, and no matter what he does, Omega is still better. Ospreay can take the #2 spot, but Omega has the #1 spot locked up. Cue Callis but Omega immediately goes after him, with Konosuke Takeshita jumping Omega. Kyle Fletcher comes in for the beatdown and Ospreay, eventually, comes in for the save.

The big brawl is on with Callis sending in the Murder Machines and the big fight heads into the concourse. Ospreay and Omega fight back and put Lance Archer through a well placed merchandise table. The brawl heads back into the arena, with Omega and Ospreay hitting some gorgeous dives off various structures to take the villains down. Omega and Ospreay climb the light structure and Omega says next time it’s Callis’ turn. Omega issues the challenge for Grand Slam to Takeshita and Fletcher.

The catchphrase is loaded up and, after Omega’s music starts and stops, he gets it in. Then Omega wants to get down because he is scared of heights (fair enough as I can relate). This was a heck of an opening segment, mainly because Omega and Ospreay were acting like superheroes, which is where they shine. The only drawback was they were doing it against Don Callis, as the energy just goes sailing out the window whenever he’s around.

Video on Pac.

The Death Riders talk about how Cope is in a world he doesn’t understand. He’s willing to finish the job on Cope’s neck because they don’t have time for relics of the past.

Tag Team Titles: Hurt Syndicate vs. Private Party

The Syndicate, with MVP on commentary, is challenging. Lashley takes over on Quen to start before handing it off to Benjamin. A neckbreaker/Swanton combination gives Kassidy a quick two but Lashley grabs Quen from the apron. The Syndicate is sent to the floor, where they catch stereo dives and hit belly to belly suplexes.

We take a break and come back with Kassidy having been put through the announcers’ table and Quen being thrown around by Benjamin. Kassidy is back up and Quen fights up, allowing the tag off to Kassidy to pick up the pace. A pop up dropkick hits Benjamin and a 450 gets two, with Lashley making the save. Lashley spears Kassidy in half for the pin and the titles at 9:10.

Rating: B-. This was how the match should have gone, as Private Party has not felt important since winning the titles. The problem came down to they have done nothing in AEW other than beat the Young Bucks twice. Since winning the titles, they have mainly sat back while teams qualified to face them or watched Action Andretti/Lio Rush vs. Top Flight. What else was supposed to happen here? The Syndicate has looked like monsters since showing up and them winning the titles is the right move.

Video on Mariah May vs. Toni Storm at Grand Slam.

Harley Cameron gives Toni Storm a pep talk. In Australian. Renee Paquette: “I didn’t get a word of that.”

Karen Jarrett tries to calm Jeff Jarrett down but he’s got this.

Here is Jeff Jarrett for a chat. Jarrett talks about being on after Jerry Lawler one night and not doing quite as well, including on the microphone. After the match, Lawler asked what Jarrett was thinking. Never get in the gutter with your opponent, like he did with MJF last week. They’ll deal with that one day, but for now, he wants Jon Moxley out here.

Moxley’s music plays but Claudio Castagnoli comes in to jump Jarrett instead. Castagnoli says no one gets to Moxley without getting through him first, so stay out of their business. With Castagnoli in the crowd, Jarrett challenges him for next week, with a title shot coming if he wins. I guess Jarrett might get the title hot in Australia, which is certainly a choice they could make.

Video on Megan Bayne.

Swerve Strickland vs. AR Fox

They fight over a suplex to start until Swerve sends him outside for a moonsault. Back in and Swerve drops him gain without much trouble and we take a break. We come back with Fox working on the arm and hitting a step up moonsault to the floor. Swerve fights back but cue Ricochet for a distraction. Prince Nana whips out a pipe to chase him off, leaving Fox to hit a quick Lo Mein Pain for two, only to miss the 450. Swerve is back with the rolling Downward Spiral into the House call. Fox has to scoot WAY over so the Swerve Stomp can finish at 9:15.

Rating: B-. This was a perfectly fine match between two guys who know how to work well with each other. It also didn’t go quite as long as I was expecting and that is nice to see for a change. Strickland didn’t give up a ton of offense and it made things better. Nana whipping out a pipe from nowhere was amusing enough as a bonus.

Post match Ricochet pops up to show that he has Prince Nana held a scissors point. They’ll meet next week. I’m still not sure about Ricochet as this crazy violent guy, but that’s where we’re going. Or at least what is being teased.

We look at Powerhouse Hobbs getting a win in a twelve man tag on Collision.

The Learning Tree is happy to be here in Knoxville, in the Rocky Mountains. Big Bill seems ok with the loss but Chris Jericho isn’t happy. What is Bill going to do about it? Bill gets serious and challenges Hobbs for Collision. They really aren’t going to stretch this Learning Tree stuff out until Eddie Kingston is back right?

Here is MJF, who orders a jobber to get out of his ring. MJF wants an apology from Jeff Jarrett because it is hilarious that Jarrett thinks he can win a World Title in 2025 without MJF’s help. Maybe he is as senile as he looks. The reality is that wrestling does not love Jarrett anymore and neither do these fans. A mediocre strength DOUBLE J chant slows things down a bit before MJF says Jarrett might go better off making by making a deal with the devil rather than defying him.

Hangman Page vs. ???

It’s the same guy who MJF sent to the floor before the match and it’s a Buckshot Lariat for the pin at 33 seconds.

Post match Page gives him the Angel’s Wings. Christopher Daniels comes out to say he regrets taking the match with Page, because his neck is so damaged that his doctors have advised him to never wrestle again. He hopes Page can be happy and then walks away, leaving Page looking a bit shaken. That sounds like the end of Daniels’ career and the start of Page coming back to reality.

Mercedes Mone is ready to continue her international expansion. She’s ready to fight in Australia so here is Harley Cameron to challenger her. In song. She’s going to make Mone feel her wrath because four belts is a bit much. Mone says no because Cameron hasn’t won a mach on AEW TV. Renee Paquette does compliment the song.

Jamie Hayter vs. Julia Hart

they go outside to start and Hart is sent into the barricade. Then Hart is sent into the barricade and steps as this is a rather violent match to start. A missile dropkick gives Hayter two but Hart pulls her off the middle rope to send Hayter face first into the buckle. We take a break and come back with Hayter knocking her off the top for a double knockdown.

Hayter snaps off some German suplexes and hits a spinebuster for two. The half crab sends Hart over to the ropes and she grabs an Octopus hold. Hayter powers out and hits a backbreaker but Hart crucifix bombs her for two more. Hart stops to glare at the crowd though and the Hatebreaker into Hayterade finishes for Hayter at 9:38.

Rating: C. I’m not sure what it is about Hayter but there isn’t much to get interested in about her since she has been back. She’s just not very interesting and it’s showing more every time she’s out there. Hart is fine enough but these matches haven’t made me want to see either of them again, which is likely why we’re probably getting a rubber match.

Post match Hayter says she’s up for a rubber match anytime.

Powerhouse Hobbs will be waiting for Big Bill in the parking lot at Collision.

Swerve Strickland is coming after Ricochet soon.

Brody King/Buddy Matthews/Julia Hart, now with a dog, suggest that they have no leader. Then King puts on a mask and talks about barking. Then he barks.

Cope vs. Pac

They go to the mat to start and trade hammerlocks with neither getting very far. Back up and Pac backs him against the ropes before kicking away at the ribs. Cope heads to the floor and drops him face first onto the steps, followed by a whip into the barricade. Pac kicks the knee out and sends him into the apron, with Cope instantly favoring his neck.

A big dive takes Cope out again and we take a break. Back with Cope fighting out of a chinlock and hitting a dropkick to leave both of them down. Cope gets up and hits the Impaler but goes to the corner instead of covering. The spear is cut off and Pac hits a superkick to the back of the head.

A pump kick tot he back of the head sets up a release German suplex and Cope is rocked. The Brutalizer goes on but Cope powers up and plants him for the escape. Cope hits a spear to the back and another to the front, setting up a TKO of all things for the pin on Pac at 17:33.

Rating: C+. I wasn’t getting into this as the match was decent enough but it wasn’t very exciting. That has been the case with Cope for a good while now as he seems to love the idea of these long matches. Not a great match and the fans were only so into it, mainly because it’s yet another Death Riders match, despite the seeming lack of any interest in the story.

We cut to the back where the Death Riders have kidnapped FTR (again) and beat up the Rock N Roll Express. Cue the Death Riders to go after Cope and the beatdown is on. Jay White runs in for the save but gets beaten down as well, leaving Moxley to choke Cope out to end the show.

Oh I laughed hard at this ending, as AEW is now probably up to septupling up on the Death Riders stuff. Moxley gets to come out and look all awesome not once but twice, leaving the good guys laying again. Such is life in AEW, as this story keeps going, likely until Darby Allin is done climbing Mount Everest or whatever his latest thing is. Lucky us indeed.

Overall Rating: C+. This one didn’t do much for me, as the opening segment and title switch were about the only things worth seeing. The rest of the show fell into the same trap that AEW has been dealing with for a long time: it is all so serious and, save for Harley Cameron, most of it just isn’t fun. Everything feels like it’s all about being serious and such and that can get rough fast. I’m not sure what AEW needs, but just giving us some kind of comic relief or something a bit more goofy might be very nice for a change. For now though, not a bad show, but it got tedious in a hurry in the last hour or so.

Results
Hurt Syndicate b. Private Party – Spear to Kassidy
Swerve Strickland b. AR Fox – Swerve Stomp
Hangman Page b. ??? – Buckshot Lariat
Jamie Hayter b. Julia Hart – Hayterade
Cope b. Pac – TKO

 

 

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American Dream 2024 In The Keystone State
Date: April 4, 2024
Location: 2300 Arena, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tom Lawlor, Veda Scott

So this is from Stardom, the Japanese women’s promotion, who are in town for Wrestlemania Weekend. I was in town for the weekend and since I’m not likely to ever see something like this again in person, it was worth a look. I’m not sure what to expect from this and that’s part of the fun. Let’s get to it.

I was sitting in the corner of the arena for this show with the entrance on my right and the ring pretty much straight in front of me. Keep in mind that I do not follow Stardom whatsoever and will likely have no idea what is going on as far as characters or storylines. I apologize in advance for any errors but I’m coming in mostly blind.

The opening video runs down the card, which is only five matches.

High Speed Title: Mei Seira vs. Ram Kaichow vs. Saki Kashima

Seira is defending and from what I can tell, this is similar to the X-Division/Cruiserweight Title. The audio mix is really missing as commentary is barely audible over the entrance music and I can’t make out more than a few words of what they are saying. Seira has two belts and Kaichow has one, making things all the more confusing. The fans seem to like Kaichow, who might be a bit dead.

Kashima locks up with Kaichow, who has dust flying off of her to scare Kashima away. More dust gets Kaichow out of a double wristlock before they pick up the pace with Seira hitting a running basement dropkick on Kaichow. They run the ropes until the challengers fall down, leaving Seira as the only one standing. Kaichow rolls Seira up for two and an exchange of rollups give not-Kaichow two each. Back up and Kaichow throws more dust, allowing Kashima to pin Seira for the title at 5:06.

Rating: C+. Well they weren’t kidding about the HIGH SPEED part as this was rather fast paced until the ending, which came out of nowhere. I got the concept well enough and Kaichow’s dust thing made her stand out, but the other two didn’t do much to separate themselves from the other. Either way, it was a nice introduction to the show as it was flying by and kept me interested.

AZM/Saya Kamitani/Camron Branae vs. Stephanie Vaquer/Starlight Kid/Momo Watanabe

Saya and Kid start things off, which is apparently a big rivalry. They go to the mat and get nowhere so they both flip up for a staredown. Branae comes in for part of a triple Gory Bomb to put Kid down for two and it’s back to Saya, who gets caught with a headscissors. Watanabe crushes Saya in the corner but gets cut off with a spinning kick to the face. A springboard crossbody gives Saya two and a triple dropkick takes Watanabe down again.

Back up and Watanabe kicks Saya in the head and the double tag brings in AZM and Vaquer. AZM kicks Vaquer in the head and it’s back to Branae, who gets caught with Eat Defeat. Some running knees give Branae two but the villains (I think?) take her into the corner for the train of running shots. Everything breaks down and Kid dives onto the floor to take out AZM and Saya. That leaves Vaquer to headbutt Branae in the corner and go after her recently injured knee. Branae manages a neckbreaker but walks into a package piledriver onto the knee to give Vaquer the pin at 9:11.

Rating: C+. Another fast paced match here as they had a bit more time to showcase the people involved. Six women spread over nine minutes isn’t much but it’s better than cramming it into even less time. Vaquer felt like a star and that makes sense as she is the New Japan Women’s Strong Champion. Not a great match, but if the idea is to get as many people on the show as possible, they’re doing well.

Willow Nightingale/Saki vs. Konami/Syuri

Syuri is one of the most revered names going today and I might have seen her once before. Saki and Syuri start things off with Syuri grabbing a rollup for a fast two, giving us an early standoff. Nightingale comes in for a double shoulder to Syuri but she’s back up t kick Saki in the back for two. Konami comes in for a dropkick and a one kneed cover gets two. It’s already back to Syuri for a kick to the back but Saki suplexes her way to freedom. Nightingale comes back in to run Syuri over, setting up a spinebuster for two.

A Cannonball misses though and Syuri gets two off a DDT. Everything breaks down and Syuri and Konami grab stereo holds, both of which are broken up just as fast. Syuri chokes Saki on the floor, leaving Konami to missile dropkick Nightingale. Saki is back in to make a save and Konami is tossed onto Syuri. Nightingale has had enough of this and hits a heck of a Pounce on Konami, setting up a DDT for two. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes for Nightingale at 8:28.

Rating: B-. Another fun match here but they were blazing through it again. That’s been a trend with this show, which isn’t the best idea for a five match card. Nightingale continues to be a ball of energy no matter where she is and it’s great to see her getting a win like this. Now give her a win with some gold on the line and it’ll be even better.

Mayu Iwatani/Tam Nakano/Momo Kohgo vs. Mina Shirakawa/Mariah May/Xia Brookside

This is Stars vs. Club Venus, the latter of which comes off as some kind of pop band/Mean Girls deal. Venus seems to be mainly about Shirakawa, with the other two being her henchwomen. May ducks Kohgo’s running dropkick to start and plans her with a very spinning side slam. Brookside comes in for the running knees to the back and we get a triple Venus pose.

The fans approve of Shirakawa coming in and grabbing a quickly released surfboard. May comes back in but gets caught with a dropkick, allowing Kohgo to hit a crossbody. Iwatani comes in and gets to pick up the pace, including a double springboard wristdrag to May and Shirakawa. May is back up with a Sling Blade and it’s Shirakawa coming in for a kick to the head. Nakano comes in for the first time for a shake off (just go with it) with Shirakawa.

A hanging suplex gives Shirakawa two and it’s Brookside coming in with a neckbreaker for the same. Everything breaks down and a double 619 hits Brookside to give Nakano two. Venus is back in with a double Paige Turner to give Brookside her own near fall on Nakano. There’s a running Codebreaker to drop Nakano as everything breaks down again. Iwatani hits a big dive to the floor and a kick to the face gets two on Brookside, with the rest of Venus making the save. Nakano has had it with this and grabs Twilight Dream (tiger suplex) for the pin at Brookside at 12:13.

Rating: B-. This was another case where the extra time helped but the other thing here was it felt like Venus came off as a full time team rather than two people thrown together. Everyone got a chance to shine here and it felt like more of a showcase, with Brookside getting a lot of time in there. Good stuff here, and probably the best match of the show so far.

Post match the winners leave….and here is Toni Storm, with the AEW Women’s Title and a bouquet of flowers. She talks about the time she has had in Philadelphia, where she started with Easter Championship Wrestling. Storm: “I’ll have you know that this is the very place where I entered Sandman.” She puts over Stardom and praises May, even giving her the flowers. As for Mina Shirakawa, who is standing in the ring as well, the Forbidden Door is always open. Shirakawa is game.

We recap the main event. Maika is the World Champion, Megan Bayne is a power monster, they’ve teamed together and fought before, title match on.

World Of Stardom Title: Maika vs. Megan Bayne

Bayne, billed as the Megasus and the much larger of the two, is challenging. Maika tries some running shoulders to no avail so she tells Bayne to come on. An armdrag works better but Bayne is back up to run her over with a real shoulder. A butterfly suplex gets two, followed by a Samoan drop for the same.

Back up and some running clotheslines in the corner give Maika two and she goes after the arm. Bayne powers up and suplexes her way to freedom, setting up a side slam for two more. Maika puts her up top for a superplex and another near fall, followed by a cutter for the same. Bayne is back with a big boot and a heck of a running clothesline to leave them both down.

Back up and they slug it out until Maika snaps off a powerslam. Maika catches her up top with a powerbomb for one but Bayne is back with a heck of a spear. An apron German suplex gives Bayne two more with an F5 getting the same. They go up again and this time it’s a super Michinoku Driver to give Maika two of her own. A Michinoku Driver II gives Maika the pin at 14:24.

Rating: B. This was just starting to cook when they went home, with Maika being a good fighting from underneath champion. Bayne is a monster with something of a Beth Phoenix look/style so there was an obvious story to be told here. Good match and the best part of the show, though they could have gone longer.

Post match respect is shown and here is Momo Watanabe to say she’s the next challenger. Watanabe pulls back her baseball bat to swing at Maika but Bayne gets in her way and sends Watanabe bailing. Maika says they’re on for April 27 in Yokohama before leading the fans in the WE ARE STARDOM chant to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. That’s it? The show didn’t even run an hour and forty five minutes, with the longest match out of five lasting less than fifteen minutes. I’m not sure if that is Stardom’s style, but this was really short and felt like it could have gone another hour or so. What we got was good, but I was sitting in the crowd wondering what else they were going to do because it wasn’t even two hours and then the show just ended. For the prices being charged, this should have been more, as it just didn’t last long enough. What we got was good, but egads give us more than that.

Results
Saki Kashima b. Ram Kaichow and Mei Seira – Crucifix to Seira
Stephanie Vaquer/Starlight Kid/Momo Watanabe b. AZM/Saya Kamitani/Camron Branae – Package piledriver onto the knee to Branae
Stars b. Club Venus – Twilight Dream to Brookside
Maika b. Megan Bayne – Michinoku Driver II

 

 

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.