Collision
Date: July 6, 2024
Location: Landers Center, Southaven, Mississippi
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

The big story this week is going to be focused on talking, as Maxwell Jacob Friedman is set to open the show with an explanation for what he did to Daniel Garcia on Dynamite. Other than that, we have the second semifinals of the men’s Owen Hart Tournament, as the winner of Jay White vs. Hangman Page will face Bryan Danielson next week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of MJF turning on Daniel Garcia on Dynamite.

Here is MJF to explain what he did. MJF laughs off the idea that he and Daniel Garcia would be friends because Garcia is a Make-A-Wish Kid at best. Of course he isn’t going to give Garcia a match at All In and now Garcia might never wrestle again. With that out of the way, MJF shows us a clip of himself talking about his condition with rejection and how scared he is to let anything go wrong.

Back live, MJF says he let everyone in and then he lost it all. He was sitting on his couch watching Dynamite and saw his fans turn on him for Samoa Joe, Swerve Strickland and WILL OSPREAY. Garcia was just the tip of the iceberg because he is going to take everything they love.

The only way to do that is with him on top and Ospreay is a guy who only cares about ratings from Meltzer. MJF cares about ratings from Nielsen so get out here right now. Ospreay’s music plays but MJF laughs, as there is no Ospreay tonight. He is MJF (and he doesn’t like the fans chanting his name) and you can thank him later. Good enough explanation and rather in line for MJF.

The Conglomeration is ready for another fight and to get back up after a bad Forbidden Door. Orange Cassidy doesn’t care.

Conglomeration vs. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages

Roderick Strong, with the Kingdom, joins commentary. Briscoe grabs the Savage Sauce to start and gets even zanier than usual. O’Reilly comes in and gets run over as we take an early break. Back with O’Reilly getting over for the tag to Briscoe to clean house. Cassidy comes in and starts rather quickly, including the tornado DDT for two on Bronson. Everything breaks down and Briscoe hits a big flip dive to the floor, leaving Cassidy to hit the Orange Punch for the pin on Boulder at 7:56.

Rating: C+. I like that they’re doing something different with Cassidy, as he hasn’t had much in the way of a different trajectory in a long time. This is the kind of thing that could lead somewhere for him, though we’re still at the beginning. Other than that, it’s nice to see the Savages and Jameson get beaten up, though I could go with them not being around as much. Or at all really.

Jack Perry talks about the sacrifices that he has made to become TNT Champion. Now he to give someone else a chance to make the same sacrifice.

Video on Swerve Strickland beating Will Ospreay to retain the World Title at Forbidden Door.

Hangman Page is asked why he is back, sending him into a near meltdown over how much he wants to destroy Swerve Strickland.

Toni Storm vs. Trish Adora

Non-title and Mariah May and Luther are here with Storm while the Infantry is with Adora. They fight over headlocks to start until Adora runs her over with a shoulder. Adora ties her up for some neck cranking but Storm escapes and hits the hip attack to the floor as we take a break. Back with Storm hitting a running hip attack in the corner, setting up the forearm off. Storm gets the better of things and hits Storm Zero for the pin at 8:24.

Rating: C+. This was the traditional short and to the point women’s match with the commercial break eating up even more of the time. Adora is someone who can work well with anyone but doesn’t seem likely to win much on her own anytime soon. On the other hand you have Storm, who is being kept warm before her big showdown, likely against Mariah May, at All In.

Willow Nightingale and Mariah May are ready for the Owen Hart finals.

The Patriarchy wants the Trios Titles but Christian Cage had to look up who held the titles. That’s how unimportant the Bang Bang Gang really is. Colten Gunn has some promise but that’s beside the point. He’s going to take the titles and revive them. Kip Sabian comes in to say he’s just lost his father and implies he wants some guidance. Cage says it’s a good thing Sabian’s dad isn’t here to see what kind of a loser he is and has Killswitch wreck him. Cage’s delivery here was great as usual.

TNT Title: Jack Perry vs. Marko Stunt

Stunt, the home state boy, is challenging and Perry is stunned. Perry knocks him down to start and hits some hard forearms before planting Stunt for a fairly near fall. Stunt fights up and gets two off a hurricanrana but Perry buckle bombs him. The running knee finishes Stunt at 3:21.

Rating: C-. They weren’t exactly hiding what they were going for here and while I would usually want a bit more time for this kind of a call back match….it’s Marko Stunt. The idea here was to have Perry get an easy win because the Young Bucks are treating him favorably, which is fine enough, but it’s not going to give us much of anything for a bit. I’m sure he’ll get a better challenger one day, but we could be a long way off from that.

The House Of Black is ready to hurt the Patriarchy.

Video on Bryan Danielson’s path in the men’s Owen Hart Tournament.

Claudio Castagnoli vs. Beast Mortos

Castagnoli flips out of a wristlock to start and hits a quick backbreaker. Back up and Mortos sends him into the corner for a running elbow and an early two. Mortos’ running knee misses though and the crash to the floor takes out the cameraman for a great visual. Mortos is right back up and sends Castagnoli outside for the corkscrew suicide dive. Castagnoli gets in his own knockdown back inside and we take a break.

Back with Castagnoli getting the better of a slugout until Mortos headbutts his way to freedom. Castagnoli knocks him outside for the running uppercut against the barricade as the fans want the Swing. Back in and Mortos’ torture rack backbreaker gets two but Castagnoli uppercuts him out of the air. Now we get the Swing and a big clothesline finishes Mortos at 11:35.

Rating: B-. This felt like “hey, Castagnoli is still around”, and that’s not a bad thing. There is always going to be a place for a strong man to throw around a big guy and that is exactly what we got here. Castagnoli has been kind of floating without much to do as of late and it would be nice to see him have a little something. Hopefully this is a start, but I’m not sure if I would get my hopes up.

Matt Menard says Daniel Garcia lost all of the strength in the left side of his body but he’ll get better. Garcia is going to get his revenge on MJF and it’s going to be Red Death.

Someone dives into a vortex and will apparently be loading soon.

Serena Deeb is willing to run it back with Riho, but she’s grown since their first match in 2021.

Lady Frost vs. Riho

They trade escapes to start until Frost gets two off a neckbreaker. Riho drop toeholds her to set up a 619 and we take a break. Back with Riho fighting out of a double arm crank and sending her outside for a dive, which hits Frost’s feet. Back in and Frost kicks her in the head for two, with frustration setting in. Frostbite is broken up via a grab of the leg but Frost knocks her down again and hits a regular moonsault for two. Riho is right back with a dragon suplex into Run Hey (Kofi Kingston’s SOS) for the pin at 7:45.

Rating: C+. Frost seems to be one of the better designated jobbers to the stars around here and that’s not a bad role for her. She has a unique look and can do almost anything asked of her in the ring so it went well enough. At the same time you have Riho, who is likely going to go over Serena Deeb, win another match or two and then go away for a few months, so it’s hard to get that invested in whatever she does.

Shane Taylor Promotions is ready for Top Flight and Action Andretti on Rampage. They’re ready to fight tonight but nothing happens.

Samoa Joe wants to hurt Chris Jericho on Dynamite.

Men’s Owen Hart Tournament Semifinals: Jay White vs. Hangman Page

The rest of the Bang Bang Gang is here with White. Actually hold on, as the Young Bucks send in an order to get rid of everyone else to make it one on one. Page knocks him to the floor for some chops to start, followed by a hard forearm back inside. There’s the fall away slam to send White to the apron again but he manages a shot of his own. They head back outside with White being sent into the barricade, followed by some rapid fire right hands back inside.

We take a break and come back with Page busted open and White starting in on the knee in the corner. White chops away and rakes at the eyes, setting up a DDT for two. They slug it out until a Downward Spiral into a German suplex plants Page. White drops him on the apron but gets powerbombed back inside for two.

The Buckshot Lariat is countered into a spinning Rock Bottom for two more but the Blade Runner is blocked. The referee gets bumped and Page chokes White with a belt. Cue Jeff Jarrett to take said belt away, allowing White to suplex Page. Another referee gets rid of Jarrett, allowing Christian Cage to come in with a spear to take out White. The Buckshot Lariat finishes White at 15:41.

Rating: B. Easily the best match on the show here and that shouldn’t be a surprise. The match having some actual stakes helped and they managed to pull off quite the feat here. It’s rather impressive that this turned into a competitive and engaging match when Page couldn’t have been a more obvious winner. That takes some effort and talent and they pulled it off here. Good stuff to wrap up the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a great example of a show that would have been much better at just an hour. They had enough stuff in there that felt like it mattered and had the quality to back it up, but then there was almost just as much that felt like “ok who else can we throw out there to fill in time”. That’s been an issue for Collision for a long time now and while the show wasn’t bad by any means, a lot of it didn’t feel overly important.

Results
Conglomeration b. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages – Orange Punch to Boulder
Toni Storm b. Trish Adora – Storm Zero
Jack Perry b. Marko Stunt – Running knee
Claudio Castagnoli b. Beast Mortos – Lariat
Riho b. Lady Frost – Run Hey
Hangman Page b. Jay White – Buckshot Lariat

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: June 22, 2024
Location: PPL Center, Allentown, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

It’s time to wrap up the build for Forbidden Door, with just over a week to go before the event. In this case we have a major match as Kazuchika Okada will face CMLL legend Ultimo Guerrero in a rather unique international match. Other than that, we have the International Title on the line as Will Ospreay defends against Brian Cage so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata vs. Premiere Athletes

Joe and Tony Nese start things off with Joe running him over off a shoulder. An elbow to the face does it again and it’s off to Hook for some clubberin in the corner. Daivari comes in and takes Hook down for a seated full nelson, with Hook fighting up rather quickly. It’s off to Shibata vs. Woods, who strike it out for a bit before fighting over arm control on the mat. Nese comes in for a cheap shot to the knee but Shibata just sidesteps a top rope moonsault (Joe approves).

In addition to approving, Joe also comes in but a distraction lets Woods get in a neck snap across the top rope to take over. That doesn’t last long either as Joe is back with a backsplash and Hook comes in to beat up the Athletes. Woods manages a release German suplex so Shibata comes back in and dropkicks Nese in the corner. The cross armbreaker finishes Nese at 7:35.

Rating: C+. I’d think we’re done with Joe and company against the Athletes, which we should have been done with a few weeks ago. If nothing else, it’s another case where people treated as bigger deals in Ring Of Honor are massacred on the main roster, but it’s also Joe and company taking longer than they needed to in order to beat a weak set of opponents. Joe and company could have something, but they need better competition.

The Bang Bang Gang isn’t happy that Juice Robinson isn’t an official Trios Champion. Now the House Of Black is getting a title shot so Jay White is going to come back with TEN ABS.

Learning Tree vs. Private Party

Bryan Keith is here with the Learning Tree. Jericho starts with Quen but hands it off to Bill before anything can happen. Bill hammers away in the corner and then sends Quen flying right back out of it. A missed charge gives Quen a breather but Bill drops him with a right hand. Jericho comes in but charges into a boot in the corner, allowing Kassidy to come in and hammer away. The Silly String gives Kassidy two on Jericho and it’s Quen coming back in to rain down his own right hands. Jericho gets in a cheap shot though and we take a break.

Back with Quen managing to knock Jericho down and bring Kassidy back in. The pace is picked up until Jericho knocks Quen down, leaving Kassidy to dive onto Bill. Quen’s 450 gets two on Jericho but Bill gets in a big boot to give Jericho two of his own. A hurricanrana is countered into the Walls but Kassidy makes the rope. The very swinging Boss Man Slam gets two more and Bill chokeslams Quen onto Kassidy for the same. Kassidy is back up with a step up dropkick to Bill and Gin and Juice into a Codebreaker gets two on Jericho. Keith is back up with a foreign object to knock Kassidy silly though, giving Jericho the pin at 14:53.

Rating: C+. The best thing here is the fact that it wasn’t Jericho talking. Jericho having more followers isn’t the worst idea but the talking is quite a bit to take. Beating Private Party is fine, but the Learning Tree needs someone better to feud against than a fairly low level tag team.

Post match the villains go for the beatdown but Hook/Samoa Joe/Katsuyori Shibata come in for the save. The challenge is made for the six man at Forbidden Door. Jericho seems in as Keith seems to have hurt his arm.

Kazuchika Okada vs. Ultimo Guerrero

Non-title and Guerrero is in a mask here despite having lost his mask in 2014. Okada slaps his hand in respect to start and they trade armdrags for an early standoff. We pause for Guerrero to play to the fans as commentary says their Spanish isn’t great. Guerrero plants Okada for two and chops away in the corner before grabbing the chinlock. With that broken up, Guerrero goes after the leg and then the arm, only for Okada to come back with White Noise onto the knee as we take a break.

Back with an exchange of running shots in the corner for a double knockdown. They fight to the floor with Guerrero firing off a chop before heading back inside. Guerrero has to adjust his mask for about the fourteenth time, allowing Okada to come back with the dropkick. Guerrero’s belly to back superplex is broken up but the Rainmaker is blocked as well. Not that it matters as Okada pulls the mask off and hits the Rainmaker for the pin at 11:45.

Rating: B-. This is a good example of what’s wrong with the way these international guest stars are introduced. Guerrero is a legend and has done all kinds of amazing things in wrestling but unless you’ve watched him in CMLL or elsewhere, he’s just a guy who was brought in and lost to Okada in about twelve minutes. If you want to do some kind of dream match, set it up a bit better than just throwing it on Collision with a few days’ notice and nothing from Guerrero coming in.

Dante Martin talks about breaking his leg in a ladder match and some people say he’s crazy for getting in another one. It’s going to take a bit of crazy to make him TNT Champion. Lio Rush comes in and says he has Top Flight’s back, but he wants the TNT Title for himself. They’ll see each other at Forbidden Door.

We look at the Patriarchy attacking Buddy Matthews last week.

Patriarchy vs. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages

Christian Cage joins commentary, despite being in the match. Bronson takes a sip of the Savage Sauce to start and gets dropped, allowing Wayne to get in a cheap shot from behind. Bronson gets up and hits a backdrop before rubbing Wayne’s face into Boulder’s chest. It’s off to Killswitch to clean house and Wayne dives onto Boulder and Jameson on the floor. Back up and Bronson clotheslines Killswitch to one knee, only for Killswitch to come back with a chokeslam. Now Cage is willing to go to the ring and hit the Killswitch for the pin on Bronson at 4:40.

Rating: C. Jameson and the Savages are at or near the top of the worst acts in all of AEW or ROH and that was the case again here. They talk trash, they do the stupid hairy chest deal, and then they lose. I’m not sure who I was supposed to be cheering for here and the way both teams acted didn’t make it any less complicated.

We look at Mercedes Mone going to Arena Mexico and getting in a big brawl with Stephanie Vaquer. Still not shown in AEW: Vaquer having a match.

Toni Storm/Mariah May vs. Lady Frost/Leyla Hirsch

Storm and Hirsch start things off and fight over a lockup with neither being able to get very far. Storm front facelocks her into the corner and brings May in to chop away at Frost. A running hip attack puts Frost on the floor and we take a break. Back with Storm hitting a Backstabber out of the corner for two on Hirsch.

A cross armbreaker has Storm in trouble but May hits a running knee for the save. Stereo hip attacks miss in the corners though and Hirsch hits running knees on May (Nigel: “SHE’S JUST A CHILD!!!”). Everything breaks down and Storm and May hit stereo German suplexes. The running hip attacks set up Storm Zero to pin Hirsch at 8:05.

Rating: C+. Not bad here and a good way to show Storm and May working well together. That’s the kind of thing that plays into the story with May needing to pick between Storm and Mina Shirakawa, which continues to be one of the best things going into Forbidden Door. I’m still not sure why I’m supposed to be interested in Shirakawa, but I’ll take what I can get.

Serena Deeb talks about being on a losing streak but she won’t give up. Open challenge next week.

House Of Black vs. LSG/MSG

Black and MSG start things off with Black striking away, as you might have expected. King comes in and chops the soul from LSG, setting up Dante’s Inferno to finish MSG at 1:52.

Post break the House Of Black says revenge is a straight line and they feel nothing.

Hechicero vs. Matt Menard

The Gates Of Agony are here with Hechicero. Menard strikes away to start and is quickly knocked out to the floor. Hechicero bites away at his head and hits a backdrop before snapping Menard’s arm. A missed charge in the corner lets Menard strike away and a cutter gets two. Hechicero is right back with the headscissor driver into an armbar using his legs for the tap at 3:19.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t exactly a major showcase for Hechicero and I’m still not sure why he is the one getting MJF’s first pay per view match after six months away. He has some cool technical stuff and his match with Bryan Danielson was rather good, but it was only kind of on display here. Also, they didn’t have anyone other than Menard to be the designated victim here? Why do that to one of your commentators?

We get a rather emotional interview with Jeff Jarrett talking about his friendship with Owen Hart. Jarrett, fighting back tears, talks about how he wants to be there for Owen’s kids and how this means more to him than anything else. This was really good, though it’s hard to imagine that Jarrett is making it past the first round.

International Title: Will Ospreay vs. Brian Cage

Ospreay is defending and Cage charges at him in the corner to start. The champ gets dropped fast and his running hurricanrana attempt is pulled out of the air. Cage misses a charge over the top though and Ospreay takes him out with a slingshot dive. We take a break and come back with Ospreay fighting out of a bearhug and scoring with an enziguri.

A Phenomenal Forearm gets two on Cage but he snaps off a German suplex to drop Ospreay again. The apron superplex gets two on Ospreay so the fans try to get behind him. Ospreay is back with a shot to the face but the Hidden Blade and Oscutter are both blocked. A sitout powerbomb puts Cage down for no cover and they slug it out from their knees. Cage is back up with an F5 for two and we take another break.

Back again with Ospreay firing off some kicks to the face but Cage gives him a helicopter bomb. Ospreay’s hard shot to the head gets two so he puts Cage up. The super hurricanrana is loaded up but Cage reverses into a super swinging powerslam (that’s a new one) for two. They go up top again and this time the super hurricanrana puts Cage down. A Stundog Millionaire into a poisonrana drops Cage and the Oscutter gets two. The Hidden Blade finishes Cage at 17:21.

Rating: B. It’s the kind of match where the ending wasn’t in doubt and that’s perfectly fine. Ospreay can get an audience into just about anything and that’s what he did here. There is something fun about watching Ospreay fight back against a monster and win in the end, though I’m still not sure if I can imagine him winning the World Title next weekend.

Overall Rating: B-. Your taste in this show is going to depend on whether you like the international guest stars and the Learning Tree. That and the main event were the majority of this show and it went well enough, with a bit more interest than in most weeks. I’m not sure what they are going to do once Forbidden Door is over as it is going to take away a lot of their content, but hopefully they have something to make up for it.

Results
Samoa Joe/Hook/Katsuyori Shibata b. Premiere Athletes – Cross armbreaker to Nese
Learning Tree b. Private Part­ – Foreign object to Kassidy
Kazuchika Okada b. Ultimo Guerrero – Rainmaker
Patriarchy b. Jacked Jameson/Iron Savages – Killswitch to Bronson
Toni Storm/Mariah May b. Leyla Hirsch/Lady Frost – Storm Zero to Hirsch
House Of Black b. LSG/MSG – Dante’s Inferno to MSG
Hechicero b. Matt Menard – Armbar
Will Ospreay b. Brian Cage – Hidden Blade

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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Rampage
Date: June 21, 2024
Location: EagleBank Arena, Fairfax, Virginia
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard

The road to Forbidden Door continues and we have another qualifying match for the TNT Title ladder match. That at least adds some drama to this show, but a good chunk of the rest of it seems to be the usual Rampage fare. In other words, it should be some solid action. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Private Party vs. Metalik/Komander

Zay headlocks Komander to start but gets taken into the wrong corner so Metalik can come in for a chinlock. That’s broken up and the Silly String gives Zay two and it’s off to Quen. Metalik elbows his way out of trouble and everything breaks down, with Komander and Metalik hitting a big running flip dive to the floor each.

We take a break and come back with Zay hitting a spinebuster and diving over for the tag to Quen. A superplex hits Metalik and Quen drops a 450 for two. Metalik is back up with a reverse Sling Blade with Zay having to make a save. With Zay and Metalik both down, Komander and Quen both miss shooting star presses, leaving Metalik to charge into Gin and Juice for the pin at 9:42.

Rating: B-. While this was little more than a way to build up Private Party for their match against the Learning Tree tomorrow, it wound up being an entertaining match. Komander and Metalik were more or less the designated luchadors but since they have such little status, a loss doesn’t hurt them. Nice amount of action here and it will serve something of a purpose tomorrow.

Post match here is the Learning Tree for the brawl, with the outnumbered Private Party getting beaten down.

Video on Ultimo Guerrero, who is facing Kazuchika Okada on Collision.

Rey Fenix vs. Turbo Floyd

Floyd hits a shoulder and poses, setting up an elbow drop for one. Fenix avoids a charge in the corner though and hits a springboard spinning crossbody. The frog splash finishes for Fenix at 1:29.

TNT Title Qualifying Match: Lio Rush vs. Action Andretti

They go to the grappling to start with Rush dodging a bunch to send Andretti outside. An exchange of flips gives us a standoff so they collide to give us a double knockdown. We take a break and come back with Andretti firing off some forearms. Rush gets kicked to the floor and an Arabian moonsault takes him down again. Back in and a Falcon Arrow gives Andretti two, followed by the Cameron Grimes flipping powerslam for two more. Rush strikes away though and hits the springboard Stunner, setting up the Final Hour for the pin at 8:21.

Rating: C+. You knew what you were going to get with these two and it went about as expected. There is nothing wrong with that as Andretti is a god high flier and Rush can do some things that almost no one else can do. There’s nothing wrong with sending two high fliers out there and letting them do their thing, which they made work here.

Post match Top Flight comes in and Rush shows respect to Andretti.

Shingo Takagi vs. AR Fox

Fox jumps him to start and takes it to the floor, setting up a middle rope moonsault. Back in and Takagi drops him with a clothesline, followed by a neckbreaker. Fox dodges a basement lariat and jumps to the top for a 450 and a near fall. Lo Mein Pain is broken up but Fox rolls him up anyway. A Death Valley Driver sets up a hard lariat, followed by Last Of The Dragon to finish Fox at 4:46.

Rating: C+. Takagi is one of the people who was randomly thrown onto one of the previous Forbidden Door cards with no in-ring exposure around here. This wasn’t exactly a glowing showcase, but getting him in the ring at all is the right way to go. Let us know what he can do and show that he could be a threat to take someone out, just for the sake of adding a bit of interest. Nicely done.

Post match Bryan Danielson comes out to shake Takagi’s (his opponent in the Owen Hart Cup) hand but Takagi isn’t interested.

Women’s Owen Hart Tournament First Round: Serena Deeb vs. Willow Nightingale

We get a handshake to start and Deeb grabs the wrist for some spinning. A running shoulder doesn’t work on Nightingale, who runs Deeb over with one of her own. The basement crossbody gets two but Deeb snaps the knee over the ropes for a breather. A neckbreaker on the floor has Nightingale in trouble as we take a break.

Back with Nightingale striking away and superkicking Deeb for two. Deeb’s Black Widow is broken up so she grabs a half crab on the leg she went after earlier. With that broken up, Deeb hits a DDT for two as frustration sets in. Deeb goes up but gets superplexed back down, leaving them both on the mat. Back up and Deebtox gets two on Nightingale, who is right back with the Pounce. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes Deeb at 11:32.

Rating: B-. They telegraphed the result with all of the talk about the winner facing Kris Statlander but that’s not the worst way to go. Nightingale continues to feel like a star in the making and a win over someone as dangerous as Deeb will only make her feel stronger. Other than that, it was a good match with Nightingale surviving the knee and winning in the end.

Overall Rating: B-. Now this is more what I want from Rampage: a bunch of matches that either set something up for a future show or take care of some of the smaller stories that Dynamite doesn’t have time to cover. The Fenix match, which wasn’t even two minutes long, was the only part that felt like filler and it included one of the Outrunners to make up for it. Good use of TV time here, which has been a problem for Rampage for a long time.

Results
Private Party b. Metalik/Komander – Gin and Juice to Metalik
Rey Fenix b. Turbo Floyd – Frog splash
Lio Rush b. Action Andretti – Final Hour
Shingo Takagi b. AR Fox – Last Of The Dragon
Willow Nightingale b. Serena Deeb – Babe With The Powerbomb

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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Ring Of Honor
Date: June 13, 2024
Location: Acrisure Arena, Palm Desert, California
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Maybe it’s false hope but the Kyle Fletcher pinning World Champion Mark Briscoe this week on Dynamite has me wondering what they might be doing for the title going forward. Briscoe hasn’t defended the title in two months now so maybe he’ll have something to do. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Billie Starkz vs. Sandra Moone

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if Moone wins or survives the ten minute time limit, she gets a future title shot. Moone gets in a quick shot to start but Starks knocks her down and scores with a kick to the ribs. Moone’s elbow out of the corner just annoys Starkz again and we hit the double arm crank. That’s broken up and Moone sends her outside for the dive. Starkz’s Swanton attempt is blocked but she knocks Moone off the top. The Swanton….isn’t launched as Starkz drops down again. A half nelson fish hook chickenwing makes Moone give up at 4:58.

Rating: C. That’s a Proving Ground match alright, though Moone did get in some offense to make it a bit better. Starkz seems to have her next challenger set up in Red Velvet though, making this little more than a warmup for her before that match, likely in a little over a month. Not much to the match, but that’s not the point of something like this.

Nick Comoroto/Jacoby Watts vs. Shane Taylor Promotions

Moriarty strikes away at Comoroto but a gorilla press puts Moriarty down. Watts comes in but stops to tell the fans to praise him. It’s off to Taylor for the shove off with Comoroto, the latter of whom skins the cat. Taylor plants him with a release Rock Bottom into a splash for two. Comoroto fights up and powerslams Moriarty, with Watts tagging himself in for two. Moriarty sends Comoroto face first into the middle buckle though and Taylor hits the big right hand for the pin at 4:20.

Rating: C-. Here’s the problem: we just saw Comoroto treated like a total jobber on Dynamite. That doesn’t make me want to see him do something here, especially something as lame as the story with Watts. Having ROH stars as jobbers in AEW doesn’t make them feel bigger. It just makes Ring Of Honor feel that much less important.

Taya Valkyrie and Johnny TV aren’t happy with recent loses. Valkyrie is ready to knock Queen Aminata off her throne.

Red Velvet vs. Viva Van

Velvet headlocks her down into a chinlock to start as commentary talks about Forbidden Door. Van is back up with a cravate and knees to the face but Velvet fights out of a cross armbreaker attempt. Velvet works on the arm for a change until Van runs the corner and bounces around for a wristdrag. Some running knees against the rope rock Van and the Mix finishes Van off at 5:12.

Rating: C. It’s pretty clear that Velvet is set for the TV Title shot and that isn’t a bad thing. She’s been built up well in recent weeks, though I still don’t think I can imagine her actually winning the title. For now though, she got a nice win against Van as she gets to keep the pace with Starkz, who did the same thing earlier.

Lance Archer/Righteous vs. Top Flight/Action Andretti vs. Dark Order vs. Infantry/Dalton Castle

Andretti snapmares Reynolds down to start but misses a kick to the head. Top Flight and Andretti start in on Reynolds’ arm until he scores with an elbow to the face. Uno comes in to Russian legsweep Dante for two but Dante brings in Bravo to pick up the pace. Everything breaks down (I’m shocked it took that long) with Archer getting to wreck just about everyone.

Dean manages to duck a corner clothesline though and it’s Castle coming in for the parade of suplexes. Castle’s falling splash gets two on Dutch with a bunch of people making the save. Dante and Reynolds slug it out but stop to beat up Dutch and Archer. Silver comes back in for the Spin Doctor on Dante and Castle DDT’s Darius, who rolls to the floor rather quickly. Top Flight’s double swinging slam finishes Reynolds at 9:14.

Rating: B-. This was exactly the match you would expect from something like this one: all action, nothing that resembles a story throughout, and the winner likely gains nothing. That being said, I don’t think there is anything to suggest that it was supposed to be something other than that. I don’t need to see this every week, but once in awhile can make for a fun fast paced match.

Diamante/Marina Shafir/Alex Windsor vs. Lady Frost/Abadon/Leyla Hirsch

Marina and Leyla start things off with a grapple exchange going to a standoff. Leyla takes her down and Abadon comes in with a backsplash for two. A bite to the arm sends Marina over for the tag to Diamante, who gets chopped into the corner by Frost. Abadon is sent into the corner so Shafir can start cranking on the legs to take over. A save is made and everything breaks down with Windsor hitting an Angle Slam for two, with Abadon breaking it up. Windsor’s Shining Wizard sets up a spinning brainbuster for the big upset pin on Leyla at 7:21.

Rating: C+. Just like the previous match, it was hard to get much out of this with so many people running around. I can go with Windsor getting a win, but there is a good chance that this was the best way they had to make her feel like a bigger deal before her match against Toni Storm on Collision. In other words, it’s a nice moment which isn’t likely to get her very far.

Harley Cameron vs. Trish Adora

Cameron grabs a headlock to start but Adora snapmares her into a double arm crank. A rolling sunset flip gives Adora two but Cameron takes her down for a lick to the cheek. Adora is right back with her Air Raid Crash leg crank, only to have Cameron slip out and hit a sliding Downward Spiral. Cameron grabs a cross arm choke but Adora powers her into the corner for some hips to the face. Back up and they collide, with Cameron going to the throat. A running kick to the chest gives Cameron the pin at 5:56.

Rating: C. Cameron is the bigger star, but dang it always feels like Adora should be on her way to something bigger somewhere. At the same time, putting Cameron, who is still very inexperienced, in there with someone like Adora is a good idea, as she can help Cameron learn. Not much of a match, but Cameron has made some strides in the ring.

Kingdom vs. Che Cabrera/Bad Dude Tito

Another non-title Proving Ground match. Tito chops away at Taven to start, at least until a dropkick takes his leg out. Cabrera comes in for a double flapjack but Taven gets in a neck snap. Taven’s running splash in the corner misses but it’s back to Bennett to strike away. Tito gets in a hard clothesline though and it’s Cabrera coming back in to clean house. A Sky High gets two on Bennett but it’s the Death Valley Driver to cut Cabrera off. Just The Tip into Hail Mary finishes for Bennett at 6:15.

Rating: C+. Nice enough match here, but again it’s hard to get into the idea of a match with ten minutes at most and little reason to believe that the champs were going to lose. Cabrera and Tito looked good out there and commentary mentioned they had experience. It was easy to see that they have a history, though it’s hard to showcase that in a match that barely gets six minutes.

Overall Rating: C+. Another show that feels rather like the norm for Ring Of Honor, with all kinds of people running around doing their thing and little that actually stands out. There is also little that feels like it matters going forward, which is a bit of a stretch with about five weeks to go before Death Before Dishonor. I would say Ring Of Honor needs to work on that, but that has been the case for years now.

Results
Billie Starkz b. Sandra Moone – Fishhook chickenwing
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Nick Comoroto/Jacoby Watts – Right hand to Comoroto
Red Velvet b. Viva Van – The Mix
Top Flight/Action Andretti b. Dark Order, Dalton Castle/The Infantry and Lance Archer/Righteous – Double swinging slam to Reynolds
Diamante/Marina Shafir/Alex Windsor b. Lady Frost/Abadon/Leyla Hirsch – Spinning brainbuster to Hirsch
Harley Cameron b. Trish Adora – Running kick to the chest
Kingdom b. Che Cabrera/Bad Dude Tito – Hail Mary to Cabrera

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Collision
Date: June 8, 2024
Location: Mid-American Center, Council Bluffs, Iowa
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We have about three weeks to go before Forbidden Door and there is a chance we’ll see some more build towards it this week. Toni Storm is set to defend her Women’s Title against Mina Shirakawa and has a warmup match against Lady Frost this week, which could see Shirakawa get involved. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. FTR

For the same of simplicity, I’ll only refer to Cash Wheeler as “Wheeler” and Wheeler Yuta as “Yuta”. Wheeler (in long tights for a change, just like Harwood) wrestles Yuta to the mat to start and it’s off to Castagnoli vs. Harwood. They go around the ropes to start until Castagnoli uppercuts him out to the floor. Back in and Harwood hits a hard chop but Castagnoli knocks him right back down.

Yuta comes in to strike away in the corner and a backsplash gets two. A hard shot to the face gets Harwood out of trouble and it’s back to Wheeler to uppercut the heck out of Yuta. FTR catapults Yuta throat first into the bottom rope for two but he’s right back over to Castagnoli for the tag anyway. Wheeler breaks up the Swing on Harwood but we get stereo Sharpshooters from Harwood and Castagnoli. An exchange of slaps break those up and everything breaks down again with the fights heading outside.

We take a break and come back with Castagnoli grabbing a superplex for two on Harwood. Yuta comes in to cut off Wheeler but Harwood is back with a spinebuster for two of his own. Everyone is down for a bit before Wheeler gets Giant Swung into the dropkick from Yuta for two more. Castagnoli uppercuts the heck out of Wheeler for two and everyone is down again.

Wheeler is back up with a Sharpshooter of his own to Castagnoli, who reverses it int the same thing. That’s broken up and Yuta dives onto Harwood. Wheeler’s piledriver gets two on Castagnoli and we have a minute left in the time limit. Castagnoli superplexes Wheeler and rolls through into the Neutralizer for two. A crossface into the Rings of Saturn have Wheeler in trouble but the time limit expires at 20:00.

Rating: A-. I was wondering why one of these teams was going to lose and I’m rather pleased with the outcome we got instead. FTR can still work a good to great match with anyone and they had me wondering who was going to win all the way until the end. This was one of the best TV matches I’ve seen in a while and I had a lot of fun with the whole thing.

Post match Harwood wants five more minutes but Brandon Cutler is here on behalf of the Young Bucks (oh geez) to say no. Castagnoli swings Cutler and FTR adds the Shatter Machine. Ok so the Bucks don’t work Collision, but Tony Khan was here last week to make a ruling. Is Khan not here this week, or is he just not paying attention or doesn’t care here? Either way, assuming this isn’t just a one off, this is now FIVE PEOPLE with authority in this company. With that out of the way, Castagnoli says a handshake is too much of a cliché, but they’ll have a rematch anytime.

Kyle O’Reilly respects Orange Cassidy but the Undisputed Kingdom interrupts. They think someone or something is missing for O’Reilly and the team is cheering for him tonight. O’Reilly doesn’t want to hear it. Strong tells O’Reilly to remember what he said when he came back, but we don’t know what that is.

Kris Statlander vs. Robyn Renegade

Statlander powers her into the corner to start and fires off some shoulders to the ribs. Renegade slips out of a powerbomb out of the corner but the second attempt works just fine. Saturday Night Fever finishes Renegade at 1:33. Statlander looked awesome here.

Post match Stokely Hathaway praises Statlander and as of earlier today, she is officially in the Owen Hart Foundation Cup.

Post break, Willow Nightingale says she’s in the tournament too and hopes to see Statlander there.

Dustin Rhodes vs. Johnny TV

Taya Valkyrie is here with Johnny. Dustin slugs away to start and goes outside to annoy Taya for a bonus. A hard chop against the barricade rocks TV but Taya’s yelling lets him come back with a running flip dive through the ropes. They both step onto Dustin for some kissing on the steps as we take a break.

Back with Dustin fighting back and getting two off the scoop powerslam. The flipping neckbreaker gives TV two but Dustin hits a Destroyer (with TV appearing to give him a lot of help), setting up Shattered Dreams. The Cross Rhodes gives Dustin two, with Taya putting the foot on the rope. That’s enough for an ejection, with TV using the distraction to hit a superkick for two. Some knees to the face set up a missed Starship Pain and Cross Rhodes gives Dustin the pin at 9:33.

Rating: C+. I know it’s impressive that he’s been around for the better part of ever, but Dustin’s matches haven’t done much for me in a good while. It’s cool to see him still be able to have a decent match this late in his career, but odds are this is going to lead to another “I don’t know if I still have it in me but I’m going to give it all I’ve got” speech. That might work a bit better if we hadn’t heard it from him since AEW started.

Post match Dustin says he’s getting old. He’s got two things to talk about tonight, starting with the fans, who have not abandoned him after almost 37 years. Dustin thanks the production crew before moving on to the second thing, which is Jack Perry. AEW missed Perry when he left and they were happy to see him come back, but then Perry attacked the boss.

Perry has been talking about sacrifice despite being born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Dustin has been sacrificing for his family for decades but Perry has been a follower for years. If you’re a follower for that long, the view never changes. Dustin is facing Perry on Dynamite and Dustin promises to destroy his little punk a**. Perry will never forget his name. This was close enough to Dustin’s normal stuff, and that means it was good enough but not exactly exciting.

Zack Sabre Jr. wants Orange Cassidy at Forbidden Door.

Premiere Athletes vs. Trip Gordon/Dante Leon

The Athletes jump them to start and an over the shoulder Tombstone finishes Leon at 48 seconds.

Scorpio Sky offers to be our hero, our voice, and our champion.

Toni Storm vs. Lady Frost

Non-title and Luther and Mariah May are here with Storm. Frost gets taken down to start and Storm dances a bit before they fight over wrist control. Storm is knocked to the floor for an apron moonsault and we take a break. Back with Storm hitting the hip attack in the corner for two but Frost’s Air Raid Crash gets the same. Frostbite misses and Storm Sky Highs her for two more. Storm Zero finishes Frost at 7:57.

Rating: C+. Storm gets a nice win over someone who can work hard in the ring and that’s about all it needed to be. What mattered here was making Storm feel strong again, which should often be the case for a champion on the way into a big title match. Frost has a unique look, but she sems destined to be there to make people look better.

Post match Storm hugs May and says she knows how rough it is for May to see Storm and Mina Shirakawa fighting. As a distraction, Storm demands that May is entered into the Owen Hart Tournament. They’ll get through this together.

Dante Martin and Lee Moriarty argue over an Owen Tournament spot, with their respective partners getting in on it too.

Samoa Joe and Hook, after arguing about lacrosse, jump the Premiere Athletes.

Daniel Garcia vs. Tate Mayfairs

Mayfairs is from Progress Wrestling and this is his AEW debut. Garcia takes him down into a wristlock to start but Mayfairs knocks Garcia into the corner for some posing. Mayfairs hammers away both on the mat and on their feet but Garcia rolls some swinging neckbreakers. The Saito suplex into the shotgun dropkick into the Red Cross finishes for Garcia at 3:19.

Rating: C+. I guess it’s time for the next Garcia push, though I’m not likely to get my hopes up for this one being the time where everything comes together for him. Garcia has been a project for AEW for a long time now but it has never quite clicked. He’s come a long way, but seeing him make it up to the next level does not seem like the most likely result.

Post match, dancing ensues.

Video on Zeuxis, who faces Mercedes Mone on Dynamite.

Here’s what’s coming on various shows.

Orange Cassidy talks about how bad things are going for him and now he has to deal with Zack Sabre Jr. at Forbidden Door. He has to go deal with things, including Kyle O’Reilly tonight.

Orange Cassidy vs. Kyle O’Reilly

O’Reilly takes him to the mat to start as the Undisputed Kingdom is watching from the crowd. Cassidy makes it over to the ropes so O’Reilly sits down and tells him to bring it. Instead Cassidy tries a monkey flip but has to get to the ropes to escape an armbar. They trade rollups for two each before a neck crank sends Cassidy to the floor and us to a break. Back with Cassidy grabbing a headlock takeover but O’Reilly reverses into a sleeper.

That’s reversed into a cradle to give Cassidy two but Cassidy has to escape a standing choke. The hands go into the pockets so O’Reilly sweeps the leg without much trouble. O’Reilly starts in on the arm before switching to a dragon screw legwhip over the ropes. They head outside and the Kingdom distracts O’Reilly but he’s fine enough to dragon screw Cassidy into the barricade. It works so well that O’Reilly does it again and there’s a fourth back inside.

We take another break and come back again with Cassidy working on O’Reilly’s arm. Cassidy sends him outside for a dive, followed by the high crossbody back inside. O’Reilly kicks the leg out and snaps off a German suplex, only for Cassidy to do the same, leaving them both down. Back up and they trade lazy kicks until Cassidy’s Stundog Millionaire is countered into a cross armbreaker.

Cassidy slips out of that and hits a Michinoku Driver for two, followed by a hard kick to the face. The Orange Punch is countered into a chickenwing, with O’Reilly putting his own hand into Cassidy’s pocket in a…..I guess you can call it smart touch. Cassidy powers him up for a Beach Break and a standing Orange Punch staggers O’Reilly. The more regular version finishes for Cassidy at 19:37.

Rating: B. Another good back and forth match here with the two of them both working hard. Cassidy needed a win after having some bad luck as of late, though O’Reilly losing again isn’t the best thing to see. Maybe he joins the Undisputed Era after some more losses, but egads I could go for a long, as in permanent, break from that entire team getting together again. Rather good main event here, with the fans still loving Cassidy.

Post match Trent Beretta and Kyle Fletcher come in to jump Cassidy but O’Reilly makes the…well the failed save attempt actually as the villains take over. Kris Statlander comes in as well and shakes hands with Trent. Willow Nightingale runs in to chase Statlander off to end the show

Overall Rating: B+. The opener was outstanding and the main event was rather good, which is enough to make this a heck of a show. They focused on the wrestling here and as usual, it made for a solid AEW offering. It still amazes me how much easier AEW is to watch when they don’t focus on the top storylines, but I can easily take something like this week to week. Check out the opener, as it was rather awesome.

Results
Blackpool Combat Club vs. FTR went to a time limit draw
Kris Statlander b. Robyn Renegade – Saturday Night Fever
Dustin Rhodes b. Johnny TV – Cross Rhodes
Premiere Athletes b. Trip Gordon/Dante Leon – Over the shoulder Tombstone to Leon
Toni Storm b. Lady Frost – Storm Zero
Daniel Garcia b. Tate Mayfairs – Red Cross
Orange Cassidy b. Kyle O’Reilly – Orange Punch

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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Ring Of Honor
Date: May 30, 2024
Location: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

The slow road to Death Before Dishonor continues with about two months left before the show. That isn’t likely to mean much this far out but we might be able to start seeing some inklings of the card. Athena seems ready to defend her Women’s Title against Queen Aminata but that might be a long wait for the pay per view. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Athena vs. Vita Van

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning that if Van can win or survive the ten minute time limit, she gets a future title shot. Athena backs her into the corner to start and sweeps the leg for an early two. Van grabs an armbar but Athena takes it to the floor and hits a hard powerbomb. Back in and a low superkick lets Athena pose a bit and she throws in a few slaps for a bonus. Van fights up and shoves her to the floor, with Athena coming back in favoring her foot/ankle. A big right hand ends Van at 3:50, the only thing Athena did when she got back in.

Rating: C. This didn’t have a ton of time and the ending is not exactly encouraging. They went home very quickly as soon as Athena seemed to be hurt, though it’s hard to imagine this was going to go much longer. What matters now is getting Athena back in the ring, and thankfully it wouldn’t be a stretch to have her sit out for a bit before her next title defense.

Kingdom vs. Jacoby Watts/Nick Comoroto

Another Proving Ground match. The Kingdom jumps Comoroto to start and superkick him into the corner without much trouble. Comoroto headbutts his way to freedom, only to walk into a dropkick for his efforts. Skinning the cat gives Comoroto a nice reception but Bennett forearms him into the corner. A double clothesline drops the champs though and Comoroto snaps off some slams. Instead of tagging though, Comoroto talks to Watts and walks into a Death Valley Driver into Just The Tip to give Taven the pin at 3:21. Watts never got in the match (or took off his cowboy hat).

Rating: C+. So I’m guessing Watts is going to exploit Comoroto and have him do everything, though that is only going to make so much sense if they lose a bunch. Comoroto looked like a monster out there with his visuals being great, but he needs a bit more than that. I’m not sure if Watts is that thing, but at least they’re trying.

Watts circles around the ring and then yells at Comoroto, asking if he wants to feel like a loser.

Serpentico vs. Brady Roberts

Serpentico strikes away to start and gets two off an early superkick. Roberts actually gets in a takedown and hits a neckbreaker for two as commentary talks about Roberts’ appearances on various TV shows. A front facelock keeps Serpentico down but he’s back up for a running chop in the corner. Serpentico hits a superkick and a reverse Sling Blade, setting up a Swanton. La majistral finishes Roberts at 4:27.

Rating: C. Serpentico is definitely a crowd favorite and he’s completely passable in the ring, but that doesn’t make him the most thrilling watch. I can go for the idea of giving him a quick win on his own, as if nothing else it gets him away from the Griff Garrison/Cole Karter stuff. They kept it short too so there isn’t much bad to be seen here.

Marina Shafir demands to be asked why she is the problem. That would be because she says so, and what happens when you don’t take care of a problem? It gets worse. This was certainly someone talking.

Red Velvet vs. Kel

Kel, who towers over Velvet, mocks not being able to see her and gets kicked in the shin so aww here it goes. Velvet runs her over with a running forearm and the Final Slice finishes Kel in a hurry at 1:48. Needed more Kenan.

Post match Athena’s music plays for a distraction as Billie Starkz runs in to jump Velvet and lay her out.

Zak Knight vs. Sebastian Wolfe

Knight is now very stereotypically British and takes a long time to disrobe. He punches Wolfe down at the bell and Knight is NOT pleased with Wolfe daring to try and chop away. A slightly delayed suplex gives Knight two and a lariat gets the same, with Knight pulling him up both times. The running right hand finishes for Knight at 1:48. As usual, Knight’s intensity carries him far enough.

Lee Johnson vs. Aaron Solo vs. Action Andretti

Solo gives some rather enthusiastic handshakes to start but gets sent outside to start. Andretti and Johnson trade some rollups for two each, with Johnson being sent outside as well. Solo is back in to break up Andretti’s dive and the stomping in the corner is on. Johnson comes back in and gets kicked in the head, leaving Solo’s top rope double stomp to get two on Andretti.

This time it’s Solo being sent outside for a dive from Johnson, who is taken out by a dive from Andretti in a rather quick turnaround. Back in and Andretti hits a double handspring elbow before firing off kicks to the chests. Johnson slips out of the torture rack neckbreaker but the Big Shot Drop is escaped as well. Andretti kicks Johnson down for the split legged moonsault but Solo is there to steal the near fall. Solo drops Andretti again but gets caught in the Big Shot Drop to give Johnson the pin at 6:38.

Rating: B-. Match of the night by far to this point as you had three people out there going nuts for a bit. This could have gone on longer to a greater effect but I’ll take what I can get. Johnson continues to seem like someone who could become a bigger deal if given the chance and if ROH would ever actually pull the trigger on him, we could see how far he could go.

Premiere Athletes vs. Bollywood Boyz

The Boyz are the hometown favorites and come out in Vancouver Canucks jerseys. The Athletes break up the dancing before the match (culture haters) and the beating is on fast. Harv is sent outside to start and Gurv gets slammed down, only for Harv to come back in for the save. The Athletes are sent outside and the Boyz get to pose but the dancing is broken up AGAIN.

Nese comes in to help Daivari hammer Harv down in the corner, setting up a hard running elbow for two. Harv fights out of the corner without much trouble though and it’s Gurv coming in to clean house. Everything breaks down and NOW THEY DANCE! Nese gets in a cheap shot though and the pumphandle driver finishes Gurv at 6:52.

Rating: C+. I’m not bit on the Boyz most of the time but they were absolute heroes here and the fans were all over everything they were doing. I can get why they didn’t win as the Athletes are presented as big deals, but dang the reaction to the Boyz was fun. For now though, I can settle for a one off cool match.

Post match the Athletes beat the Boyz down until the Infantry makes the save.

Video on Dalton Castle vs. Kyle Fletcher for the TV Title next week.

Workhorsemen vs. Top Flight

Henry and Darius fight over arm control to start until Darius gets two each off some rollups. Drake comes in to win the chop off but it’s quickly off to Dante for an anklescissors. Everything breaks down and they head outside, where Drake sends him into the ropes for the big right hand.

Back in and a Codebreaker/double stomp combination has Dante in trouble but he fights out of the chinlock rather quickly. It’s back to Dante as everything breaks down again, this time with Drake hitting a Sick Kick for two. Darius is back in for a double DDT and the hot tag brings in Dante to clean house. Drake gets taken out with a dive and a high crossbody gets two on Henry. Dante’s swinging half nelson slam is enough to pin Henry at 7:41.

Rating: C+. Good, fast paced main event here with the power of Drake and speed of Henry working well enough against a fast paced team like Top Flight. As tends to be the case though, it’s hard to get excited over Top Flight when they never win anything important. It’s just another meaningless win over a team that it feels like they have beaten more than once.

Overall Rating: C+. I liked the show well enough as it moved by quickly, but it suffered from the normal problem of not having in the way of importance. We at least get a big time title match next week (the first time an ROH title has been on the line in over a month). This warmed things up well enough, but don’t go into it expecting it to mean much.

Results
Athena b. Viva Van – Right hand
Kingdom b. Jacoby Watts/Nick Comoroto – Just The Tip to Comoroto
Serpentico b. Brady Roberts – La majistral
Red Velvet b. Kel – Final Slice
Zak Knight b. Sebastian Wolfe – Running right hand
Lee Johnson b. Aaron Solo and Action Andretti – Big Shot Drop to Solo
Premiere Athletes b. Bollywood Boyz – Pumphandle driver to Gurv
Top Flight b. Workhorsemen – Spinning half nelson slam to Henry

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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Ring Of Honor
Date: May 23, 2024
Location: Rogers Place, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

We are about two months away from Death Before Dishonor and that means we are still too far away to really start setting things up. I’m not sure what that is going to mean for a bit, though it would be nice to have something of an interesting program going on around here. Ring Of Honor is capable of pulling that off but just doesn’t for some reason. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

JD Drake is ready to fight on his own but Anthony Henry comes in to say the Workhorsemen are back.

Here’s what’s coming on the show.

Kyle Fletcher vs. London Lightning

Non-title Proving Ground match meaning if Lightning wins or survives the ten minute time limit, he gets a future title shot. Fletcher takes him down with a headlock to start but Lightning slips out and hits a running crossbody. They head outside with Fletcher hitting a brainbuster but Lightning beats the count back in. Lightning strikes away until Fletcher runs him over to cut it off. Fletcher snaps off three slams but Lightning fights up and hits an atomic drop.

A suplex drops Fletcher and a middle rope elbow gets two. Back up and Fletcher knocks him to the floor, setting up a suicide dive. Another brainbuster gets two back inside but Lightning fights up AGAIN and gets two off a hurricanrana. A spinebuster plants Fletcher and Lightning grabs a Sharpshooter. That’s escaped with a rollup so Fletcher hits a superkick into the piledriver for the pin at 9:09.

Rating: C. Ring Of Honor/AEW is mad at Fletcher right? He regularly loses on AEW TV and then has to escape a match like this one. It’s ok to let a champion act like a dominant force every so often, but for some reason that doesn’t seem to apply to Fletcher these days. And also: a brainbuster on the floor should not be something that just happens in the middle of the match. That should have been a countout or a pin, and no I do not care that it happens that way on a regular basis. It’s stupid when that is just another move and it was awful here.

Workhorsemen vs. Spanish Announce Project

Angelico and Drake start things off with Angelico failing to sweep the leg. Henry comes in to trade wrist control with Serpentico before an exchange of headscissors gives us a standoff (and a VERY intrigued crowd). Drake comes back in and dances a bit before hitting a hard chop to Serpentico in the corner.

Serpentico manages a tornado DDT and kicks Henry away, allowing the hot tag to Angelico. Everything breaks down and a dive takes out Drake, leaving Henry to get planted with a lifting Downward Spiral. Cue Griff Garrison and Cole Karter for a distraction, allowing the Workhorsemen to hit a Downward Spiral/enziguri combination to finish Serpentico at 7:44.

Rating: C. The Workhorsemen are back and that’s about all of the interest I can muster about them. They’re a fine team who aren’t going anywhere but will be around more weeks than not. At the same time we have the Project still dealing with Garrison and Karter because that feud must continue for months on end.

Post match Garrison and Kole jump the Project but Serpentico fights back and the villains are dispatched.

Matt Menard is ready for Mike Bennett, even if Angelo Parker isn’t here.

Nyla Rose vs. Riea Van Slasher

Van Slasher has some size to go with her awesome name. She stomps on Rose’s foot to start but gets run over with a hard shoulder. A neckbreaker and the Beast Bomb finish for Rose at 1:32.

Video on Marina Shafir

Satnam Singh vs. Jimmy Jacobs

Singh hits a crossbody for one and a chokeslam for the pin at 46 seconds.

Blake Christian is in the Best Of The Super Juniors.

Shane Taylor Promotions vs. Artemis Spencer/Jon Cruz

Spencer’s wristlock to Ogogo gets nowhere so it’s already off to Cruz. For some reason Cruz wants Taylor, who drops him with a single left hand. The big right hand and the Marcus Garvey Driver finish Cruz at 1:56.

Mike Bennett vs. Matt Menard

Matt Taven is here with Bennett. Menard, with his taped up ribs, wastes no time in backdropping his way out of a piledriver attempt. Bennett grabs a headlock takeover instead but they head outside where Menard hammers away. Menard sends him shoulder first into the steps, only to be whipped into them as well to put him in trouble. Back in and Bennett hits a nice dropkick and we hit the chinlock.

That’s broken up and they trade rollups until Bennett grabs a Kimura. Menard reaches the rope for the break and blocks the piledriver three more times. The third sees Bennett backdropped out to the floor, with Taven offering some advice. Back in and Menard hammers away before grabbing the Boston crab. Taven’s distraction breaks things up though and Bennett hits a Death Valley Driver. The referee gets distracted so Taven tries powder but hits Bennett by mistake. Menard cutters them both and pins Bennett at 10:35.

Rating: C+. This right here is what I’m wanting more from on this show: a match that felt like it actually mattered. Menard mentioned that a win here might put he and Angelo Parker that much closer to a Tag Team Title match, making it feel somewhat important. It’s an actual story that could go somewhere and that is very needed around here.

Post match the Kingdom jumps Menard and beats him down.

Athena and the Minions are ready for Queen Aminata and Red Velvet.

Griff Garrison/Cole Karter/Premiere Athletes vs. Lee Johnson/Top Flight/Action Andretti

Darius backslides Daivari for two to start but an armbar is driven into the evil corner. That doesn’t last long and it’s off to Andretti, who headscissors Nese into a dropkick. Andretti slips out of Karter’s suplex and hands it off to Johnson to clear the ring. Johnson gets caught in the wrong corner as well, with Daivari grabbing a backbreaker into a chinlock. That’s broken up in a hurry and Johnson wins a slugout, setting up an enziguri.

Nese breaks up the tag attempt but gets caught in a Blue Thunder Bomb, allowing the diving tag to Dante (wrestling in a shirt for some reason). Everything breaks down and the villains are sent outside, where they are taken down by four way stereo dives. Andretti tries a springboard back inside but gets knocked down, leaving Garrison to break up Dante’s Nose Dive. A chair is loaded up in the corner but cue Serpentico to take it away for a distraction. Dante’s spinning half nelson slam finishes Garrison at 11:27.

Rating: B-. And here’s your latest multi team match with a bunch of people flying around until one of them got the pin. They tied the ending into a feud, but unfortunately it’s a feud that stopped being interesting months ago but is still going week after week. It’s nice to see Top Flight and Andretti getting a pin, but I have long since stopped believing that they are going to mean anything after seeing them fail in big matches far too often.

Overall Rating: C-. The wrestling was ok enough, but at the same time, this show could not feel more worthless if they tried. Throughout this show, a total of two feuds feud got any significant development and one of them is the Spanish Announce Project vs. Garrison/Karter feud. This show keeps coming and going with almost nothing whatsoever that feels important.

Case in point: assuming the there isn’t a last minute title match on either Collision or at Double Or Nothing, none of the Ring Of Honor Title will have been defended in a month, with most of them closing in on two months. We get Proving Ground matches, which have had one successful win in the show’s history, but other than that it’s nothing more than talking about title matches that come around once every few months. That makes for an incredibly tedious show as you’ll spend months waiting around for anything that feels important.

I’ve gone on a similar rant to this several times now but it just keeps happening. What happened on this show? Fletcher won his third straight Proving Ground match over a very low level opponent, the tag feud continued, Rose, Singh and STP won squashes, Menard and Parker (who isn’t here) might be on their way to a title shot and the main event saw the second segment in the same tag feud (which has been going for five plus months now). That is pretty much nothing and that is pretty much what it feels like around here WAY too often. Fix this stupid show already.

Results
Kyle Fletcher b. London Lightning – Piledriver
Workhorsemen b. Spanish Announce Project – Downward Spiral/enziguri combination to Serpentico
Nyla Rose b. Riea Van Slasher – Beast Bomb
Satnam Singh b. Jimmy Jacobs – Chokeslam
Shane Taylor Promotions b. Artemis Spencer/Jon Cruz – Marcus Garvey Driver to Cruz
Matt Menard b. Mike Bennett – Cutter
Lee Johnson/Top Flight/Action Andretti b. Griff Garrison/Cole Karter/Premiere Athletes – Spinning half nelson slam to Garrison

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: May 11, 2024
Location: Rogers Arena, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re still in Canada, where every arena is apparently named Rogers. The big draw this week is Kyle O’Reilly getting a TNT Title shot against Adam Copeland, which is quite the Canadian showdown. Other than that, you can expect your regular assortment from Collision so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Blackpool Combat Club vs. Top Flight

Danielson and Darius start things off, with Nigel thinking the fans are most excited about seeing him. Darius fights out of a wristlock but gets shouldered down for his efforts. It’s off to Dante as Danielson is taken into the corner for some chopping as the fast start continues. Castagnoli comes in and gets headscissored down, with Darius adding a slingshot hilo for one.

Castagnoli isn’t having that and drapes Darius over the top rope for a dropkick from Danielson. The surfboard keeps Darius in trouble as the fans already think this is awesome. Darius is knocked hard to the floor and we take a break. Back with Danielson kicking away at Darius in the corner, only to have Darius use the corner for a Pele kick. Dante comes back in to clean house as Tony thinks Castagnoli is Swedish.

Dante’s frog splash gets two on Castagnoli, who is right back with the Swing into the Sharpshooter. That’s broken up with a Downward Spiral as everything breaks down. Darius dives onto Danielson and Dante’s Nose Dive gets two on Castagnoli. Back in and Danielson hits the running knee, leaving Castagnoli to drop Darius with a running uppercut for the pin at 13:48.

Rating: B-. This was a way to get Danielson back in the ring after his loss to Will Ospreay at Dynasty and to help get him ready for Anarchy In The Arena. It helps the Top Flight are a rather nice team who can work well with anyone. I could go for seeing them get a better spot in AEW but that doesn’t seem likely at the moment. Good match to start the show here.

Post match Danielson gets the mic and asks for some respect for Top Flight. Danielson talks about hearing an AEW chant at the start of this match and that is why he is willing to get back into Anarchy In The Arena. He loves this place and the Elite is not what AEW is all about. The Young Bucks aren’t even here tonight and Danielson is wanting to fight because he loves what AEW represents and he will do anything to protect it. Very fired up stuff from Danielson, and the Bucks not being around makes things even better.

Lee Moriarty vs. Will Ospreay

Roderick Strong, with the Undisputed Kingdom, is on commentary and Shane Taylor is here with Moriarty. Ospreay gets caught in a wristlock to start but flips up to a rather positive reaction. They fight over an exchange of flips until Ospreay snaps off the running hurricanrana to the floor. The slingshot dive takes Moriarty down again and we take a break.

Back with Moriarty working on the neck, including grabbing a cravate. Ospreay breaks that up and nips up to start the comeback, with the fans being rather pleased. A Phenomenal Forearm gives Ospreay two but he backs out of the Tiger Driver 91 attempt. Moriarty uses the distraction to plant him for two, only to get caught with the Cheeky Nandos kick. Taylor gets superkicked off the apron but the Oscutter is countered into the Border City Stretch. That’s broken up as well and Stormbreaker finishes for Ospreay at 10:26.

Rating: B-. Ospreay gets another win as he is on his way to the title match with Strong, which brings up the issue: Ospreay feels like he is punching WAY down to Strong and the International Title. Maybe they are trying to boost the title up by having Ospreay fight for it, but when you go from an instant classic with Danielson to this, it feels more than a little bit off. For now though, Ospreay having one awesome match after another is an acceptable way to go.

Post match Strong offers a distraction so Taylor can jump Ospreay from behind.

Mercedes Mone threw out the first pitch at a Rex Sox game. At least she’s actually doing a star thing rather than just saying she’s a star.

Gates Of Agony/Brian Cage vs. Evan Rivers/Voros Twins

Cage suplexes Rivers down to start and the Twins are knocked off the apron. The toss sitout powerbomb gives Cage the pin on one of the Twins (we’ll call him Porkchop) at 1:09.

Post match Tony Schiavone asks Cage why he attacked Swerve Strickland, and apparently it’s due to Swerve being selfish. The team wanted real leadership like the Young Bucks but here is Strickland with a chain for the beatdown. Kaun is chained to the post but Toa runs Swerve over for the save. Toa tries a running charge but Swerve whips out a cinder block to cut him off. A Conchairto on the steps crushes Toa again as Cage escapes. See how cool it is when the World Champion gets to look awesome for once?

Post break Swerve talks about trying to be the company guy as the World Champion and now a bunch of people are after him. Brian Cage is all that’s left of the Mogul Embassy so they can fight on Dynamite. This is the Swerve that felt like a big star.

Daniel Garcia vs. KM

The rather large KM powers him into the corner to start and does his own dance. Garcia fights back and stomps away in the corner before hammering away, meaning some crotch thrusts to the face. A dragon sleeper makes KM tap at 2:07.

We look at the end of Dynamite with Anarchy In The Arena being set up.

Dax Harwood vs. Tommy Billington

That would be Dynamite Kid’s nephew and Cash Wheeler is here Harwood. They fight over a lockup to start and Billington is looking rather surly (it must be a family thing). Harwood grabs a headlock takeover before switching into a hammerlock. Back up and Billington actually runs him over with a shoulder but Harwood hits a heck of an elbow to the face. Billington manages a running crossbody to send them both crashing out to the floor and we take a break.

Back with Billington hitting a big dive to the floor, followed by a missile dropkick back inside. A top rope elbow gets two on Harwood but he catches Billington going up again. The top rope superplex leaves both of them down as the fans find this awesome. They trade rolling German suplexes until Billington tries a rollup, which is reversed into a slingshot sitout powerbomb for the pin at 12:33.

Rating: B. They had a heck of a match and Billington looks like he has the potential to be something if he stays at it. That being said, I’m not quite sure I get the idea of having Harwood go 50/50 with an unproven star for twelve minutes about two weeks before he’s likely headlining a pay per view. With all of the people on the AEW roster, Harwood was the only person who could have this match that has nothing to do with the upcoming pay per view match? Odd decision, though the match was quite good.

After Dynamite, Kazuchika Okada challenges Dax Harwood for Dynamite and Jack Perry brags about his awesomeness. Christopher Daniels comes in and doesn’t like how they talk to him, with a threat ensuing.

Daniels talks about how the Young Bucks have forgotten where they came from. The company is about to turn five years old and Daniels has been there from the beginning. This Wednesday, Daniels is teaming up with Matt Sydal to face the Bucks and someone will be punished, but it won’t be who the Bucks expect. Daniels told the story here and while he and Sydal are going to get wrecked, he put in the energy to make it feel important.

Dax Harwood is ready to face Kazuchika Okada on Dynamite.

Thunder Rosa vs. Robyn Renegade

Rosa takes her down with a headlock to start so Robyn sits Rosa on the top. The trash talk just makes Rosa send her into the ropes and fire off the hard chops. Robyn gets sent to the apron for a kick to the head but rams Rosa into the barricade as we take a break. Back with Robyn’s running stomp getting two as some frustration is setting in. Rosa fights back and hits the running dropkick against the ropes for two more. Robyn is able to kick her down again, only to miss a moonsault. A seated cobra clutch makes Robyn tap at 7:41.

Rating: C+. Robyn got in a lot of offense here and that’s not a bad thing, as she and her sister have looked solid during their Ring Of Honor appearances. At the same time, Rosa got to showcase something a bit different here, with that seated cobra clutch being a new way to go. Solid back and forth match here as Rosa gets a hard fought win.

Taya Valkyrie and Johnny TV are happy to be here, with Johnny issuing a challenge to Pac. That doesn’t sound overly smart.

Hook says Chris Jericho doesn’t know anything about him but he’ll learn soon enough.

Here’s what’s coming on various show.

TNT Title: Adam Copeland vs. Kyle O’Reilly

Copeland is defending and looks rather happy to be here. They shake hands to start and then go to a clean break off a lockup. The fans dub this awesome about a minute in, more than forty seconds of which were spent on staring. They (the wrestlers, not the fans) go to the grappling with O’Reilly headlocking him down.

O’Reilly drives in some knees but Copeland whips him chest first into the buckle to get a breather. Another whip has O’Reilly down again and Copeland gets to go after the back for a change. Copeland knocks him outside and we take a break. Back with O’Reilly’s superplex attempt being blocked but he pulls Copeland out of the air for the cross armbreaker.

That’s reversed into the Grindhouse, with O’Reilly having to go to the rope. A suplex gutbuster sends O’Reilly into the rope but he bounds back with a rebound lariat and they’re both down again. Back up and O’Reilly strikes away, setting up a suplex into a kneebar. Copeland makes the rope so O’Reilly drops a top rope knee to the back for two. The cross armbreaker is broken up and they trade shots to the face again.

The spear misses and O’Reilly rolls him up for two, allowing Copeland to grab a choke. That’s broken up as well so Copeland hits a gutbuster for another double knockdown. They go up top with O’Reilly grabbing a flying armbar for a nasty crash. Another shot to the ribs has O’Reilly back down but he tells the referee he can go. Copeland’s spear is countered into a guillotine choke but that’s reversed into the Impaler (cool). The spear retains the title at 19:36.

Rating: B+. This is pretty much what you know you’re getting from Copeland: a long, pretty high quality match against a random challenger of the week. Copeland is likely going to face Malakai Black at Double Or Nothing for the title and these warmup matches should make that feel bigger. For now though, he and O’Reilly had a hard hitting, back and forth match, which is what you should have expected from them.

Overall Rating: B+. Collision is often at its best when the wrestlers are allowed to go out there and do their thing, which is what happened here. While Dynamite is often the storytelling/talking heavy show, Collision has proven to be the opposite, which makes it a nice change of pace. I liked this show quite a bit, with one good match after another and nothing bad throughout. That momentum won’t likely last until Dynamite, but I can certainly go for a show like this week to week.

Results
Blackpool Combat Club b. Top Flight – Running uppercut to Darius
Will Ospreay b. Lee Moriarty – Stormbreaker
Brian Cage/Gates Of Agony b. Evan Rivers/Voros Twins – Sitout powerbomb
Daniel Garcia b. KM – Dragon sleeper
Dax Harwood b. Tommy Billington – Slingshot sitout powerbomb
Thunder Rosa b. Robyn Renegade – Seated cobra clutch
Adam Copeland b. Kyle O’Reilly – Spear

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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Ring Of Honor
Date: April 25, 2024
Location: Indiana Farmers Coliseum, Indianapolis, Indiana
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Caprice Coleman

Things have been getting longer around here again and that has not often been the best thing for Ring Of Honor. It often results in matches that are just there to make the show longer and I’m still not sure how that makes for better weekly events. Odds are we’ll get more on Queen Aminata coming after the Women’s Title this week so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

We run down the card.

Isiah Kassidy vs. Komander

Kassidy takes him down to start and fires off some dancing as commentary talks about Shaquille O’Neal. Komander grabs an armbar into a rollup but gets dropped throat first onto the top. Stomping in the corner keeps Komander in trouble until he comes out with a kick to the face. Kassidy cutters him across the top to send Komander outside but he comes back in with a running hurricanrana.

An Asai moonsault takes out Kassidy on the floor and a springboard Swanton connects for two. A poisonrana plants Kassidy again but he’s right back with a Spanish Fly for two of his own. Back up and Komander grabs a waistlock, only to have Kassidy kick him low. A reverse Twist of Fate finishes for Kassidy at 7:42.

Rating: C+. This was in fact a high flying match between a perennial jobber and one half of a tag team. They both have athletic abilities and I certainly wasn’t bored with what I was seeing. At the same time though, it’s a little hard to get invested in seeing something between people that AEW has made feel so unimportant. That’s a big problem with ROH and I don’t see it being cured anytime soon.

We look at Bullet Club Gold unifying the two sets of Six Man Tag Team titles.

The Club brags about their win but they don’t have room for all of the gold.

Dark Order vs. Top Flight/Action Andretti

Silver and Darius start things off with Darius slipping out of a wristlock and grabbing a cravate. Andretti comes in to work on the arm before everything breaks down, meaning a triple superkick to send the Order outside. Back in and the Order takes over on Dante, who flips over to hand it right back to Andretti.

Everything breaks down again and an assisted tornado DDT puts Reynolds down. Andretti’s running shooting star gets two with the Order having to make the save. The Order isolates Darius and strike away at him until Dante makes a save of his own. Darius and Andretti grab a double spinebuster to finish Reynolds at 6:58.

Rating: C+. This was the match designed to warm up Andretti and Top Flight before their shot at Bullet Club Gold this weekend. Andretti and Top Flight work well enough together but it feels like they are up and down all the time around here. Giving them a win is nice, but it doesn’t feel like anything more than getting them ready for their latest loss against better competition. It makes sense, but it’s not the most engaging stuff.

Anna Jay vs. Allysin Kay

Kay powers her into the corner to start but Jay knocks her into the corner to cut that off. A spinning kick is countered into a suplex, only to have Jay stomp her down in the corner without much trouble. Kay grabs a hotshot into a chokebomb for two but Jay is right back with a middle rope Blockbuster for the same. The Queenslayer finishes for Jay at 3:44.

Rating: C. Believe it or not, Jay goes from losing on Dynamite to winning on Ring Of Honor. That’s the story of her career, as she is so all over the place with her wins and losses that it is not wonder she can never get any kind of traction. Yes she’s on a winning streak around here, but it only means so much when she loses any big match she has.

We recap Queen Aminata seemingly coming after Athena for the Women’s Title.

Athena has an emergency Minions meeting and offers a beating to Aminata and Red Velvet.

Johnny TV vs. Will Austin

Taya Valkyrie is here with Johnny, who takes Austin down without much effort. A springboard hurricanrana into a dropkick works well for Austin, with Ian saying “Make your name Austin!” I’m thinking that might not be the best idea as it’s already taken. Taya offers a distraction so Johnny can get in a shot from behind and work on the arm. A spinning knee to the face sets up the Flying Chuck into Starship Pain for the pin at 3:16 (….hey).

Rating: C. As usual, there’s only so much you can get out of what was just a step ahead of a squash. TV is back after his loss at Supercard Of Honor and now he can find something else to do. I’m not sure what that is, but it’s better than having him sitting around waiting for something to happen.

Mogul Embassy vs. 1 Called Manders/Beef/Calvin Tankman

No Prince Nana with the Embassy as they’re getting it right. Beef gets taken into the corner to start the beating in a hurry, with Toa hammering away. Kaun backbreakers him onto the turnbuckle and Cage hits the apron superplex for two. Beef finally gets in a shot of his own and hands it off to Tankman, who gets to clean some house. The numbers catch up with him though and it’s a triplebomb to give Cage the pin at 4:06.

Rating: C+. This was more than I was expecting with Tankman getting to show what he could do if given the chance. The guy can be a wrecking ball when he is in there and that worked for a little while. At the same time, not having Nana out there with the Embassy is a good sign, as the face turn continues.

Video on the Premiere Athletes, focusing on Ariya Daivari.

Mark Sterling is impressed with how many people it took to stand up to the Premiere Athletes.

Leila Grey vs. Yuka Sakazaki

Sakazaki takes her over with a headlock to start before hitting a spinning kick to the chest. A running dropkick misses though and Grey drops a backsplash for two. Grey gets two off a bulldog and there’s a Hennig necksnap to drop Sakazaki again. They go up top, where Grey grabs a sunset bomb for two more before it’s time to trade forearms. We go to a random replay of the sunset bomb, which has me wondering if they needed to edit something out. Sakazaki grabs a spinning hammerlock slam and hits the Magical Girl Splash for the pin at 4:44.

Rating: C-. This was a weird one with that replay/seemingly an edit feeling really out of nowhere. I’m not sure what was going on here but the ending felt like they were told to go home in a hurry. Grey has done well enough in some limited roles and was working here, but the chemistry was pretty far off with this one.

Griff Garrison and Cole Karter are upset at their recent losses. Maria Kanellis comes in to say she is disappointed too but says it’ll work in the end. This team’s existence continues to confuse me.

Kingdom vs. Outrunners

Non-title Proving Ground match, meaning if the Outrunners win or last the ten minute time limit, they get a future title shot. Floyd works on Bennett’s arm to start but it’s quickly off to Taven for a cheap shot to take over. Back up and Magnum fights back and manages to clear the ring but Bennett drops him again. Taven chokes away and Bennett gets two off a suplex.

The chinlock keeps Magnum down but he atomic drops his way to freedom and hands it back to Floyd to pick up the pace. A spinning suplex drops Taven and Magnum hits a top rope forearm. Boot Camp is loaded up but Bennett reverses into a rollup with tights for the pin at 7:18.

Rating: C+. The extra time helped this one, along with the fact that we saw the champs go to a time limit in a Proving Ground match a few weeks back. It adds just enough drama to make this work better than that is great to see. It wasn’t a great match, but the Outrunners are always fun and the champs get a win, meaning they are at least here for a change.

Queen Aminata and Red Velvet are ready for Billie Starkz and Athena.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Laynie Luck

Taya goes with the power to start and chokes away on the ropes but Luck strikes away. That earns her the running knees in the corner, followed a double underhook drop for two. The STF makes Luck tap at 3:26.

Rating: C. Pretty much a squash for Taya, though Luck got in a few shots of her own. That isn’t the biggest surprise as Luck is something of an indy mainstay around this area and is a step above some of the jobbers you’ll see. Taya is still someone who could be used in a bigger spot but she seems pretty stuck in the midcard gatekeeper heel spot at the moment.

The Infantry wants more but the Outrunners interrupt and brag about their own success. The challenge is on for next week, with the Outrunners repeating what the Infantry says.

Lance Archer/Righteous vs. GPA/Ren Jones/Jon Cruz

Vincent punches GPA down to start as Ian talks to students. Dutch comes in for some clotheslines before running Jones over for a bonus. It’s off to Archer, who gets annoyed at Jones’ dropkick. A full nelson slam plants Jones, who kicks Vincent away and hands it off to Cruz. It’s back to Jones all of ten seconds later but the villains are tired of this and wreck everyone. The Blackout sends GPA onto Jones to give Dutch the double pin at 3:43.

Rating: C. Archer and the Righteous are doing well with these squashes but it’s hard to believe that they’re going to get a title shot. I base this on the idea that we have seen them do something similar to this for a good while now and they have never been near the titles. That’s how Ring Of Honor works with a lot of this stuff and it can be rather frustrating.

Abadon vs. Nova

Nova takes things into the corner to start for a running shoulder to the ribs but Abadon is right back with some clotheslines. The Meteora in the corner sets up a running knee and Black Dahlia finishes Nova at 1:35.

Johnny TV and Taya Valkyrie (the latter of whom got a shower and changed in record time) are happy about their reality series when Aaron Solo interrupts. Taya isn’t impressed and Johnny mocks his win/loss record so Solo promises to win next week. Now we’re getting an Aaron Solo story?

Blake Christian vs. AR Fox vs. Beast Mortos

Mortos runs them both over to start but gets sent to the corner as commentary talks about the things Christian has been doing with Missy Hyatt in GCW. Mortos is back inside and takes out Christian before powerslamming Fox for two. A shinbreaker puts Fox down again and we hit a leglock. Christian comes in off the top for the save and Sling Blades Mortos, who is back with a Samoan drop for two.

The pace picks up and Christian takes Mortos down for a quick splash. Fox is back in to double team Mortos to limited avail but they manage to knock Mortos down into the corner. With the other two up top, Mortos pulls them back down for a big crash but Fox kicks him out to the apron. Christian’s spear puts Mortos on the floor and a springboard 450 into a Swanton connects back inside. Christian goes after Fox but Mortos is back up with a spinning piledriver to finish Fox at 6:52.

Rating: B-. Best match of the show as it was more competitive but it’s not like this was anything great. There were no stakes to this and Mortos already beat Christian at Supercard Of Honor. That didn’t leave much in the way of drama here, though it was nice to see a match that had a bit more time and all three were putting in some energy.

Overall Rating: C. That was Ring Of Honor all right, with a bunch of people doing a bunch of stuff and very little of it standing out. The last few weeks have gotten away from the focused version and have been back to being little more than getting as much content out there as possible. As usual, that’s great for the wrestlers who get more work, but it doesn’t make for an entertaining show. It’s almost impossible to have this much content while also having the wins and losses matter for the sake of title shots, especially when those shots are few and far between. Ring Of Honor is proving that and it’s not working well.

Results
Isiah Kassidy b. Komander – Reverse Twist of Fate
Top Flight/Action Andretti b. Dark Order – Double spinebuster to Reynolds
Anna Jay b. Allysin Kay – Queenslayer
Johnny TV b. Will Austin – Starship Pain
Mogul Embassy b. 1 Called Manders/Beef/Calvin Tankman – Triplebomb to Tankman
Yuka Sakazaki b. Leila Grey – Magical Girl Splash
Kingdom b. Outrunners – Rollup with tights to Floyd
Taya Valkyrie b. Laynie Luck – STF
Lance Archer/Righteous b. GPA/Ren Jones/Jon Cruz – Double pin
Abadon b. Nova – Black Dahlia
Beast Mortos b. Blake Christian and AR Fox – Spinning piledriver to Fox

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: April 27, 2024
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness

We’re doing another double shot this week with Collision and Rampage going back to back. That makes for a rather interesting night, as last week’s Collision was great while the following Rampage definitely took its foot off the gas. Odds are we’ll be getting an update on what happened to Tony Khan on Dynamite, which is suddenly the top story in AEW. Let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

We open with a recap of Swerve Strickland winning the World Title at Dynasty.

Here is Swerve Strickland, with Prince Nana, for a chat. Nana introduces Swerve as the boss of bosses, one h*** of a wrestler and the new World Champion. Swerve runs down what we have been seeing around here over the last week, including Jack Perry and the Young Bucks attacking Tony Khan. Swerve has done a lot of things in wrestling, but that sounds like a b**** move.

The biggest thing in wrestling though is him winning the World Title and he got here while making some sacrifices. Swerve’s oldest daughter said she doesn’t really know him and he can’t make up for lost time, but he can make sure that this is all worth it. He beat Kyle Fletcher on Dynamite so let’s do the open challenge tonight. Cue Claudio Castagnoli in a suit and I think we have a main event. Swerve says he’ll see him tonight in whose house? Castagnoli takes the mic and says it’s going to be his.

We look at the attack on Tony Khan.

Tony Schiavone says Tony Khan has suffered multiple head and neck injuries. Khan cannot travel but he can run AEW remotely from Jacksonville. Nigel McGuinness asks what happens if Khan something happens and Khan isn’t there. Are we really to believe that Khan can’t be expected to call/text in orders? That isn’t what was said, but I would hope they have a better explanation than “he’s not here in person”.

Trios Titles: Bullet Club Gold vs. Top Flight/Action Andretti

The Club is defending. White and Dante start things off with Dante striking away until White chops him into the corner. The Gunns come in for a clothesline into a knee lift as the villains start taking turns on Dante. A quick dive cuts Austin off though and it’s Darius coming in to clean house. Darius’ Downward Spiral gets two on Austin but White plants him face first onto the apron as we take a break.

Back with Dante and Andretti being pulled off the apron but Colten avoids a splash. Darius rolls over and brings Andretti in to pick up the pace. A split legged moonsault into a Spanish Fly gets two on Colten as everything breaks down. White crotches Andretti on top and the swinging Rock Bottom plants Dante. 3:10 To Yuma plants Darius but Andretti dropkicks White into the corner. Not that it matters as Andretti handsprings into the Blade Runner to retain the titles at 11:13.

Rating: B-. This was a perfectly good first title defense for the champs as Andretti and Top Flight were fine challengers. The division is hardly deep in the first place so it is nice to see a regular team getting a title shot. They don’t need to defend the titles every week but they did need to defend them at least once to get the unified reign off to a nice start.

We look at the Young Bucks winning the Tag Team Titles over FTR in a ladder match at Dynasty, albeit with help from Jack Perry.

The House Of Black is happy with beating Adam Copeland again at Dynasty. One of them will be accepting the Cope Open on Dynamite.

Rey Fenix vs. Beast Mortos

This is Fenix’s first match since October. Fenix fires off kicks to start and bounces off the ropes, right into a powerslam from Mortos. With Fenix sent outside, Mortos takes him down with a corkscrew dive. Back in and Mortos hits a crucifix bomb, followed by a heck of a clothesline for two.

Mortos starts in on the leg and gets in something like a reverse Figure Four, with Fenix having to roll to the ropes. It’s time to go after Fenix’s mask, because that is something we have to see quite often around here. We take a break and come back with Fenix striking away and snapping off a hurricanrana out of the corner. Fenix fires off some more kicks before running and…stepping up onto Mortos’ head, because that’s something someone can do.

Mortos doesn’t like having his head stepped on and knocks Fenix out of the air for a double knockdown. Back up and Fenix knocks him to the floor for the required dive but Mortos grabs a nasty gutbuster for two back inside. Fenix kicks him away again and hits a superkick into a frog splash for two. A rollup gives Fenix the pin at 15:11.

Rating: B-. Well they certainly got some time. This was a long match that let Fenix showcase his athleticism while letting Mortos get in his own power stuff. It made for a good match and a nice return, though there were some points when it felt like it was going long for the sake of going long.

Video on Trent Beretta turning on Orange Cassidy, with Chuck Taylor standing up to Beretta.

Cassidy is scared of what Taylor and Beretta are going to do to each other in the parking lot. Kris Statlander comes in to say Beretta needs them.

Rush vs. Martin Stone

Rush, in his first match since December, snaps off a German suplex to start and knocks Stone outside to choke against the barricade. Some whips with the TV cables make things worse and they head back inside. Rush suplexes him into the corner and the Bull’s Horns completes the squash at 2:15.

Post match Rush hits another Bull’s Horns for a bonus.

We look at Serena Deeb saying she’s coming after the Women’s Title.

Deeb says she is the obvious #1 contender and it is now or never. After all these years of being told she’s great, she needs to be Women’s Champion.

Toni Storm vs. Anna Jay

Non-title and Mariah May (in black for a change) is here with Storm. They lock up to start until Storm grabs a headlock and grinds away. Jay sends her into the corner for a running kick to the face, setting up a hip attack. That just wakes Storm up and she is back with a Thesz press, followed by some hips to the face. Another hip attack knocks May down, allowing Jay to grab a neckbreaker and Nigel to panic as we take a break.

Back with Storm hitting a Backstabber into a DDT into a fisherman’s suplex for two. A Gory Special gives Jay two and we hit the Queenslayer. Nigel: “THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME! THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME!” Storm fights up and knocks her into the corner, setting up the big hip attack and Storm Zero finishes Jay at 9:22.

Rating: C+. Something has clicked for Storm in the ring lately and it has been going much better. She has the character stuff to be incredibly entertaining, but the in-ring part has been going way up lately. That helps a lot and has made things that much better, which is quite good given the amount of challengers coming for the title.

Chuck Taylor, with his dog, tells Orange Cassidy that he has to do this on his own. Works for Cassidy.

Grizzled Young Veterans vs. Acclaimed

This is the Veterans’ (James Drake/Zack Gibson) debut and Billy Gunn is here with the Acclaimed. Gibson and Caster start things off with the former working on the arm and handing it off to Drake for the same. Bowens comes in and grabs a neckbreaker, setting up a slugout. Gibson isn’t having that and comes in for some double teaming, setting up something close to a Poetry In Motion to knock Caster off the apron as we take a break.

Back with Drake hitting a dive on Caster as Tony manages to figure out what Nigel means by “don’t GAF.” Gibson’s chinlock doesn’t last long and Caster ducks a spinwheel kick allowing the tag off to Bowens. House is quickly cleaned and Caster tags himself back in (rather quickly) for Scissor Me Timbers to Drake.

Gibson gets back in to distract Caster, allowing Drake to hit a running boot to the face. Bowens gets Codebreakered out of the corner, with Drake adding a missile dropkick for two. With nothing else working, Gunn offers a distraction so Bowens can come back with the Arrival, setting up the Mic Drop for the pin on Gibson at 12:10.

Rating: B-. If the Veterans want to stick around, they probably earned themselves a job with this match. They looked like a polished, experienced team and were running circles around the Acclaimed here. I’m not sure what has happened to the Acclaimed, but they seem to have just stopped evolving or advancing in the ring whatsoever. They feel like a colder version of the same act from a year ago and that is a really bad sign. The team needs something to change them up and it needs to happen soon.

Katsuyori Shibata is ready to beat up Shane Taylor Promotions himself tonight and then he’ll beat up Chris Jericho. Daniel Garcia comes in to offer some help and Shibata accepts, saying “save the last dance for me.”

AEW World Title: Swerve Strickland vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Strickland is defending. Feeling out process to start until Castagnoli wrestles him to the mat without much trouble. They fight over a test of strength on the mat with neither being able to get very far. Swerve twists up to his feet but Castagnoli is right there with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Castagnoli knocks him to the apron but Swerve comes back with a hurricanrana on the ramp for a nasty crash.

Back in and a high crossbody knocks Castagnoli down again, setting up some rolling neckbreakers for a new idea. Castagnoli isn’t having this and knocks him outside, where a hard running uppercut against the barricade takes us to a break. Back with Swerve hitting a basement superkick to send Castagnoli outside, where another kick to the chest makes it worse. The rolling Downward Spiral gives Swerve two and a forearm puts Castagnoli on the floor again.

Swerve gets sat up on the stage and a running flip dive brings him back off, while dropping Castagnoli at the same time. Back in and a 450 gives Swerve two but Castagnoli hits a running stomp of his own. That just fires Swerve up and he strikes away, at least until Castagnoli runs him over for a double knockdown. Swerve muscles him over with a suplex and there’s the Swerve Stomp for a rather near fall.

The House Call is loaded up but Castagnoli reverses into the Swing, setting up the Sharpshooter to put Swerve in a lot more trouble. The crossface goes on but Swerve gets out, earning himself a heck of a running clothesline for two. Swerve grabs a DDT and goes up for the Stomp…but Castagnoli just blocks him in the air and slams him down. A running stomp drops Castagnoli though and it’s the House Call to retain the title at 21:04.

Rating: B+. Now this was more like it, as Swerve had to work to get through a rather tough opponent. It takes someone special to be able to hang with Castagnoli and Swerve not only did it but even looked better at times. Castagnoli is one of those guys you call if you want to make an opponent look good and he did it in spades here, with a rather excellent match.

Respect is shown post match.

Overall Rating: B+. This had some pretty quality wrestling matches and I had a good time with the show. That’s two weeks in a row with high level Collisions and I could certainly go for more of this. While Dynamite needs to spread the important parts around to the other shows, it’s nice to Have a show that isn’t packed with storylines and lets the wrestlers do their thing. Rather strong stuff here as Collision is getting into a heck of a groove.

Results
Bullet Club Gold b. Top Flight/Action Andretti – Blade Runner to Andretti
Rey Fenix b. Beast Mortos – Rollup
Rush b. Martin Stone – Bull’s Horns
Acclaimed b. Grizzled Young Veterans – Mic Drop to Gibson
Swerve Strickland b. Claudio Castagnoli – House Call

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