Dynamite
Date: April 8, 2026
Location: Rogers Place, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Taz

It’s the last Dynamite before Dynasty and that means we’re going to be seeing one of the last pushes towards the pay per view. In this case we have a big six man tag, which should make for a rather entertaining match. We might be seeing some more matches added to the card, which still has some spots available. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Will Ospreay jumps Jon Moxley in the parking lot so here are the Death Riders to cut him off. Cue Alex Windsor and the United Empire (New Japan stable) for the big brawl. The fight heads into the arena, with Callum Newman (the new IWGP World Champion) hitting a dive. The Death Riders run off and Ospreay says this is him using his head. Ospreay issues the challenge for the big team match tonight.

Don Callis announces that Kyle Fletcher is injured so the TNT Title is vacated. There’s going to be a casino gauntlet match for the title at Dynasty, but he’s not done. People are asking to see Takeshita vs. Okada but he doesn’t give them what they want. The Family will be stronger than ever.

Darby Allin/Bandido/Jack Perry vs. Don Callis Family

It’s Konosuke Takeshita/Andrade El Idolo/Mark Davis for the Family. Bandido is replacing Brody King, who had a family issue. Allin starts with Andrade, who hands it off to Takeshita and walks out. Davis teases a piledriver but gets knocked outside for some dives. Allin calls Andrade back out, so here he is to suplex Allin in the aisle. Takeshita throws Allin into the corner but it’s off to Perry to take over, including a dive to the floor. Back in and Takeshita knocks Perry out of the air and Andrade sends him into the barricade. Andrade gets his weekly photo with the woman and we take a break.

We come back with Perry enziguring Davis, allowing Bandido to come in and start the comeback. A pop up hurricanrana gets two on Davis and Allin dives onto Andrade. Allin gets caught though and LAUNCHED over the announcers’ table for a huge crash. Bandido gets powerbombed onto the apron to take him out as well. Back in and Davis hits the piledriver on Perry, leaving the rather cocky Andrade to come in and hit the DM for the pin at 11:40.

Rating: B-. This was quite the wild match, with Allin’s huge toss over the announcers’ table being a heck of a visual. The Family basically won by diving and conquering, which was a fun strategy. It should mean that Andrade gets the next National Title shot, but can we pleased stop having the champion get pinned? It’s happened far too often in the title’s short history.

Post match the beatdown continues, with Andrade distracting Allin to kick him low. Even Callis gets to go after Perry’s eyes but the Young Bucks run in for the save. Kazuchika Okada comes in to save Davis from the TK Driver before going face to face with Takeshita. They slug it out until the Family breaks it up. Cue the Rascalz to hit some dives onto the Family as this was quite the populated segment.

The medical doctor says Kenny Omega has been cleared, no matter what MJF said.

TBS Title: Queen Aminata vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale is defending. Aminata snaps off a quick neckbreaker for an early two and they head outside to forearm it out. We see Hikaru Shida watching as Aminata misses a running boot over the barricade. Back in and Nightingale fires off the clotheslines in the corner but gets taken down for a PK.

We take a break and come back with Nightingale grabbing a backbreaker, followed by a middle rope dropkick. The Death Valley Driver gives Nightingale two and Aminata rolls outside, where a running flip dive from the apron takes her down. Back in and Aminata hits a running elbow for two, followed by some chops. Nightingale grabs a backslide for two before Pouncing Aminata out to the floor. The Babe With The Powerbomb finishes for Nightingale at 11:08.

Rating: B. Aminata hasn’t been around in a rather long time but she had a good return here. It certainly helped to be in the ring with Nightingale, who can work well with just about anyone. The match kind of came out of nowhere but it wound up being better than I was expecting, which is always a nice bonus.

We get a video on MJF’s impact on wrestling, which is quite praising of everything he has done.

Here is Chris Jericho for a chat. Jericho has a clipboard and talks about how glad he is to be back. He’s going to sign his new AEW contract, just 100 kilometers from where he wrestled the first match of his career. Yes he’s glad to be back, but he admits that everything he’s done here hasn’t been great.

There have been times when things haven’t gone as they were supposed to but all he cares about is trying to build AEW. Jericho is about to sign the contract but here is the Demand to interrupt. Ricochet insults all of Canada, though he’s here to talk to Jericho (as you might have guessed). His advice to Jericho is to just don’t sign and come back. Why would he want to come back after a year?

The reality is that Ricochet is the man right now and no one wants Jericho here right now. Jericho: “Wow. You really are bald.” He doesn’t care what Ricochet thinks and signs the contract. Oh and there’s a bonus: he can pick whomever he wants to face at Dynasty, so he’ll face Ricochet. He hasn’t done this in about ten years, but he takes the back of the clipboard off to reveal his own logo. Ricochet being bald means HE JUST MADE THE LIST!

Don Callis announces the Young Bucks vs. Okada/Takeshita, neither of whom are happy with this. Takeshita wants to challenge Okada for the International Title, which is fine with Callis. He even makes them shake hands, but they argue over which one is Pippen and which is Jordan.

Tommaso Ciampa vs. Mascara Dorada

For the #1 spot in the Casino Gauntlet match at Dynasty. Ciampa works on the arm to start but has to escape a quick crossface attempt. Back up and Dorada flips around a lot, setting up a nice wristdrag. Ciampa avoids a flip to the floor and hits a heck of a running knee. Dorada gets back inside for a headscissors out of the corner and we take a break.

We come back with Dorada coming off the top with another wristdrag to send Ciampa outside. A big moonsault off the post hits Ciampa, followed by a middle rope 450 for two. Dorada’s handspring is cut off with a dropkick but Dorada catches him with something like a 619 on top. Something like a standing Iconoclasm gets two but Dorada misses a charge and gets caught in Willow’s Bell. The running knee finishes Dorada at 11:01.

Rating: B. When Ciampa signed, he felt like just another guy but he has wound up being one of the best additions to the roster in a good while. He’s had one good match after another and it wouldn’t be a bad idea to give him the title back on Sunday. Dorada is quite the star in his own right but Ciampa felt like the better one here, which has me encouraged about where he’s going.

The Dogs have attacked Orange Cassidy and Roderick Strong and now they’re coming for the Trios Titles.

Thekla is so sick of hearing about Jamie Hayter being a former Women’s Champion that she threatens….to take Lexi Nair to a strip club, give her a nice dinner, and drag her onto the stage and break every bone in her body. Oh and general threats to Hayter. I have no idea what Thekla was going on about here but it certainly had my attention.

Here are Adam Copeland and Christian Cage. Copeland talks about how FTR’s jealousy of being in his shadow but that’s not his fault. He’s not shrinking to their size and they’re not big enough to get into his. Cage talks about how FTR has ticked off all of Canada and as everyone’s favorite father figure, they have been very naughty. He has visited both of their mothers and, just so there’s no confusion, “I mean, I banged them both” (Copeland needs a minute on that one). Oh and Stokely shouldn’t feel left out, because Cage will be visiting Stokely’s mother very soon, but as half of the Tag Team Champions.

Cue FTR and Stokely for a distraction, allowing Roppongi Vice of all people to sneak in and beat Copeland and Cage down. That left FTR come in to beat the Canadians down, with Stokely even spearing Copeland. Cage’s arm gets Pillmanized as well to leave him in big trouble. It’s not a great ending for them, but Cage was hilarious here.

Darby Allin talks about how he really wants to be champion and he’s coming for the winner of the title match at Dynasty.

United Empire vs. Death Riders

Anything goes as this is CHAOS IN CANADA. The Empire jumps the Riders in the crowd to start fast and they head back to ringside. Cue Alex Windsor to go after Marina Shafir as Francisco Akira and Henare pull out a ladder to go after Castagnoli. Newman hits a huge dive onto a pile of Riders and we take a break.

We come back with the Empire setting up a table at ringside (to go with another on the other side) but Castagnoli cuts Newman off. Akira gets taken inside for a string of running shots in the corner and Newman receives the same treatment. Henare is back in to take the Riders down again but Castagnoli muscles him up on the floor, where he walks Henare around to suplex him through a table.

We take another break and come back with Castagnoli forearming away at a downed Ospreay. Henare comes back in and we hit the parade of knockdowns. Garcia gets Ospreay into a Dragontamer, with Moxley adding a Stomp to knock Ospreay silly. Akira breaks up the cover and strikes away at Moxley, which doesn’t go so well. Newman comes in to strike it out with Moxley until Ospreay is back in for a double cutter and a double near fall

Castagnoli swings Ospreay, only to get taken down by Henare’s clothesline. Henare finally spears Castagnoli through the table at ringside and Garcia is put onto (not through) another table. A top rope double stomp puts Pac through a table at ringside and Callum’s splash still won’t put Garcia through another table. Back in and Moxley gives Ospreay the Paradigm Shift and then does it two more times. Newman makes a save with a clothesline and Ospreay Hidden Blades Moxley through the table in the corner for the pin at 20:49.

Rating: B. I’m not sure what to think of this one. It was a wild brawl and felt like a bigger deal than most of the matches of this kind…but that’s kind of the problem. This is something AEW does fairly often and they threw it together on about two hours’ notice. You have all of these guest stars, including the IWGP World Champion, and he’s in an eight man tag with no rules. It felt like this was thrown together without much planning, which left it more like “yeah go do something and we’ll call it a main event”. Still good, but it felt like it should have been something more.

Video on Kenny Omega’s history in wrestling, basically his version of the MJF video from earlier.

Here is Omega (in a suit) for a chat. He talks about how he used to drive here about twenty five years ago because he wanted to be part of this place’s independent scene. That brings him to MJF, who thought he was surprising people by bringing up his diverticulitis. Omega points out that commentary mentions it EVERY SINGLE WEEK so it wasn’t exactly shocking

MJF is best known for his talking about everything he can do. Well everything MJF can do, Omega can do better and everything MJF can’t do is what Omega does every day (that’s a great line). He thought the idea here was to have the title on the best wrestler, as in someone who can actually wrestle. These fans deserve a better champion and while he might not be the same Omega he was before, but now it’s about working harder. At Dynasty, he’s taking the title and starting to right MJF’s wrongs.

This brings out MJF, who thinks Omega and the fans are scared. Is this going to be Omega’s last match? It will be his last shot, because his health isn’t holding up and MJF is ready to show that Omega isn’t on his level. Omega says this is their last chance to act civil together and offers one final handshake before Dynasty.

MJF swings instead and gets kneed in the face, with Omega calling him predictable and stealing the ring. Omega hits his catchphrase and drops the ring to end the show (a whopping 25 minutes after the scheduled ending). This was really long after it started late in the first place, but Omega’s promo was great.

Overall Rating: B+. This was the big final push towards Dynasty and that worked pretty well, even if Dynasty doesn’t feel like the biggest show. I liked Omega’s promo a lot and Ciampa is always worth a look. It would be nice to keep the card a bit smaller than usual, though there is always the chance that more matches will be added on Collision. Good show here though, and that’s what they needed for Dynasty.

Results
Don Callis Family b. Darby Allin/Bandido/Jack Perry – DM to Perry
Willow Nightingale b. Queen Aminata – The Babe With The Powerbomb
Tommaso Ciampa b. Mascara Dorada – Running knee
United Empire b. Death Riders – Hidden Blade to Moxley through a table

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

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Collision
Date: April 2, 2026
Location: Canada Life Center, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness, Excalibur

It’s a rare Thursday night show and it would be nice to see this show be treated as something special for a change. There are some big names set for the card and I could go for seeing some of those stars in action for the week. That includes an open challenge for the TBS Title so let’s get to it.

Here is Dynamite if you need a recap.

Jon Moxley vs. Anthony Bowens

Non-title Eliminator match. Moxley shoves him in the face to start so Bowens is right back up to fire off some right hands. Forearms and elbows have Moxley in more trouble but he slugs away against the ropes. A spinning faceplant drops Moxley though and Bowens clotheslines him to the floor. They go to the mat for some grappling and then trade right hands in the corner.

Bowens follows him to the floor, where Moxley takes it into the crowd with Bowens sending him into a wall. We take a break and come back with Moxley working on the arm, apparently after Bowens was sent into…something metal during the break. Bowens gets up for a superkick and they’re both down for a breather. A top rope superplex drops Moxley and Bowens grabs a spinning DDT out of the corner for two more.

Moxley manages a cross armbreaker, which Bowens escapes pretty quickly. They go outside again, where Bowens’ chair shots only hit various metal objects. Back in and Bowens drops him with a trio of discus forearms…but Moxley snatches him into a bulldog choke. Bowens is in trouble so Moxley throws him into the Death Rider for the pin at 14:58.

Rating: B-. Good enough opener here, though I had a bit of a problem buying Bowens hanging in there for fifteen minutes against Moxley. It’s not some totally ridiculous result, but it felt like Moxley could have put him away faster. Either way, there’s a good chance this will tie into Bowens wanting to join the Opps, which would at least be something to do.

Post match Will Ospreay runs in to Hidden Blade Moxley. Ospreay grabs a chair but the Death Riders run in to get Moxley out. Ospreay says Moxley usually has Claudio Castagnoli do his dirty work but at Forbidden Door, Moxley did it himself. They’ll be facing off at Dynasty, but Ospreay wants the Continental Title on the line so no one is allowed at ringside and he gets twenty minutes to do all the damage he can. Moxley doesn’t really answer…but Tony Khan makes it official via Tony Schiavone.

The Don Callis Family is ready for a tag match, even though Kyle Fletcher is injured. Kazuchika Okada says the replacement will be better than Konosuke Takeshita anyway.

Megan Bayne/Lena Kross vs. Kristara/Ava Lawless

Non-title. Bayne throws Kristara down without much trouble and adds an overhead belly to belly suplex. The champs hit stereo fall away slams and some running boots in the corner rock Lawless. For some reason Kristara fights back so it’s Divine Intervention to finish her at 2:28. Total squash.

Jon Moxley, with the Death Riders, isn’t surprised by Will Ospreay’s actions and Ospreay should expect no mercy. Ospreay is going to beat himself.

The Hurt Syndicate is back and they could use another member. All that matters is they’re back in business. Yeah I could go for them being back.

TBS Title: Willow Nightingale vs. ???

Nightingale is defending against…Hikaru Shida, who hasn’t wrestled here since November 2024. Feeling out process to start with Nightingale running her over but getting dropped by a shoulder. A running knee in the corner hits Nightingale and we hit the one armed camel clutch. That’s broken up and Nightingale runs her over with a Pounce and then drops Shida again on the floor.

We take a break and come back with Shida knocking her off the apron before setting up a chair. A running charge off of said chair connects and Shida throws her back inside for a top rope Meteora. Nightingale grabs a Death Valley Driver for two but misses the moonsault, allowing Shida to hit a pair of running knees for two each. A backslide out of nowhere retains the title at 9:35.

Rating: B-. The match was completely decent, with Shida being back as a nice surprise. With Toni Storm gone, the division is going to need some fresh blood and this might be the right way to go. Shida is someone with quite the resume in AEW so why not see what she can do in the spot? Nightingale gets a nice win of her own and her singles run continues to go rather well.

Post match Shida pulls out her kendo stick and teases swinging but everything is cool.

FTR vs. Mo Jabari/London Lightning

Non-title. Harwood drives Lightning into the corner to start and takes him down. Some chops and a clothesline have Lightning in trouble and he gets sent to the apron. A slingshot shoulder drops Harwood though and Jabari comes in. That’s fine with Wheeler, who takes Jabari into the corner for some clubberin. Jabari actually fights his way out and kicks both of them down, allowing the tag to Lightning. He tries to cover Harwood, who kicks out immediately and grabs the Shatter Machine to pin Jabari at 2:50.

Post match Christian Cage and Adam Copeland show up with chairs in hand to take out security and get inside for the brawl. The Impaler hits Wheeler but Stokely breaks up the Conchairto. One of the security guards takes it instead, which seems rather mean.

The Brawling Birds and Mina Shirakawa are happy with their win on Dynamite but Jamie Hayter wants Thekla at Dynasty. Shirakawa wants quite the beating.

Juice Robinson vs. Tommaso Ciampa

They trade headlocks to start until Robinson grabs a quick atomic drop. Another atomic drop lets Robinson send him face first into the buckle over and over, followed by the left hands. Ciampa heads to the floor and pulls Robinson face first into the apron to take over. Robinson is right back up with a slingshot dive but Ciampa sends him into the announcers’ table as we take a break.

We come back with Robinson getting fired up and winning an exchange of headbutts. A spinebuster drops Ciampa and Robinson strikes him down in the corner. Ciampa is able to send him to the apron for a running knee to the floor and they crash into the barricade. Back in and Robinson scores with a Cannonball into something like a Jackhammer for two.

Ciampa slips out of a powerbomb though and gets in a low blow, setting up the Willow’s Bell for two more. Robinson fights out of the corner and grabs a powerbomb (a nice one too) for two of his own. The forward DDT is blocked though and Ciampa hits a pair of running knees to the head for the pin at 13:56.

Rating: B. Ciampa’s hot run in AEW continues as he is getting to show what he can do in the ring, especially against good opponents. Robinson is someone who can work well and he’s playing it a bit more serious since his return, which made for a good match here. Now just find something bigger for Ciampa to do to capitalize on this streak.

Isiah Kassidy says he’s forced to change due to Marq Quen being injured. He wants an opportunity.

Darby Allin is ready for Andrade El Idolo when Brody King and Jack Perry come in. King and Perry talk about their history with Allin but they agree to team with him to face the Don Callis Family on Dynamite. Perry seems obsessed with Allin setting him on fire. Dude of all the dumb things Allin has done, that’s the one that sticks with you?

Don Callis Family vs. Rascalz

Andrade El Idolo/Mark Davis for the Family and Myron Reed is the odd Rascal out. The Family jumps them on the floor before the bell, much to Don Callis’, on commentary, happiness. The Rascalz are send inside, where they score with some dropkicks, setting up stereo suicide dives. Xavier and Davis get inside for the opening bell and some double teaming, including a Motor City Machine Guns Dream Sequence, has Davis in trouble.

Andrade gets in a cheap shot though and Davis adds a backsplash to take over. Andrade comes in and gets knocked outside, where he elbows Xavier’s dive out of the air. We pause for Andrade to take a photo with a fan and take a break. We come back with Andrade grabbing a chinlock as commentary talks about how the team is vicious and delicious. Come on, leave Norton and Bagwell out of this.

Andrade sends him into the corner but charges into a superkick, allowing Wentz to come back in and strike away. A bunch of kicks to the face set up a spinning high crossbody for two. Wentz blocks the piledriver and gets two off a hurricanrana. Everything breaks down and the Hot Fire Flame hits raised knees. Andrade takes out Xavier on the floor and it’s the piledriver to knock Wentz silly. The DM gives Andrade the pin at 10:48.

Rating: B-. The Rascalz seem to be a team who exists to make others look good in defeat, which isn’t the worst thing to see. At the same time, the Family team only means so much as the group is thrown into all kinds of pairings. It isn’t like there is a regular two man team, though Davis and that piledriver looked rather good.

Post match the Family leaves and here are more of the team to jump the Rascalz. Myron Reed comes in for the save and hits a big running flip dive. Apparently Kazuchika Okada was in for the beatdown to prove that he’s a better friend to Kyle Fletcher than Konosuke Takeshita. This company is WAY too obsessed with friendship angles.

Dogs/Death Riders vs. Conglomeration/Mistico/Kevin Knight

Tornado tag with Clark Connors/David Finlay/Claudio Castagnoli/Wheeler Yuta for the former team. The villains jump them on the floor to start fast until Castagnoli throws Mistico inside to start the real match. Mistico slips out of a gorilla press and grabs a rather spinning wristdrag. The Dogs pull Mistico outside but Cassidy cuts off a dive, allowing Knight to hit a big dive of his own.

Back in and the Dogs drop Knight and Cassidy, leaving Mistico to get double teamed by the Riders. Mistico manages a running hurricanrana to send Castagnoli outside, leaving Knight to frog splash Yuta for two. We take a break and come back with Cassidy in trouble in the corner but he manages to take them all out. The Dogs are back in but a suplex is countered into a Stundog Millionaire. Strong is back in to help clean house and Mistico adds a top rope hurricanrana to Castagnoli.

Mistico’s springboard hurricanrana hits Yuta and we hit the parade of knockdowns until Knight’s springboard clothesline gets two on Castagnoli. Finlay Dominators Knight into a spear from Connors but Strong is back in for the save. A triple Stronghold goes on but Castagnoli breaks up two of them.

The boots to the face don’t break up Strong’s though, as he comes up with chops instead. Most of the people head outside and Yuta hits a running knee to Knight. Mistico sunset bombs Castagnoli for two but he’s back up for the Swing. The Fastball Special misses and Mistico gets Castagnoli in La Mistica. Knight hits the UFO Splash to pin Yuta at 15:05.

Rating: B. This was completely insane throughout with all action and that made for a fun match. At the same time, I’m not sure why this needed to be tornado rules other than AEW thought it would be more entertaining that way. I’m also not sure why the Dogs need to lose again, though at least it was Yuta taking the fall here instead of one of them. What else is Yuta supposed to be there for anyway?

Overall Rating: B. The best thing about this show is it felt more like an episode of Dynamite, which is a good sign given the special time slot. There is no reason to make this show feel normal and they did a nice job of putting bigger names and stars out there this week. It would be nice to continue that when Collision is back in its regular spot, but I’ll take it for one week at least.

Results
Jon Moxley b. Anthony Bowens – Death Rider
Megan Bayne/Lena Kross b. Kristara/Ava Lawless – Divine Intervention to Lawless
Willow Nightingale b. Hikaru Shida – Backslide
FTR b. Mo Jabari/London Lightning – Shatter Machine to Jabari
Tommaso Ciampa b. Juice Robinson – Running knee
Don Callis Family b. Rascalz – DM to Wentz
Conglomeration/Kevin Knight/Mistico b. Dogs/Death Riders – UFO Splash to Yuta

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

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Dynamite
Date: April 1, 2026
Location: Canadian Life Center, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Nigel McGuinness

We’re up in Canada with about a week and a half to go before Dynasty. That should make for an interesting night, though I’m almost scared to see what might happen around here on April Fool’s Day. There is a good chance that we’ll get some kind of a gag this week and the humor may go in a variety of ways. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Here is Tony Schiavone to get things going with the contract signing between Kenny Omega and MJF…and he’s cut off by a returning (hometown boy) Chris Jericho. Oh dear that’s going to get people talking. Jericho walks around and soaks in the fans’ version of Judas, plays to the crowd a bit, says “Winnipeg! AEW! I’m home”, and we’re done.

In the back, Will Ospreay is attacking Jon Moxley until the Death Riders make the save.

Here are MJF and Kenny Omega to sign their contract. Omega signs without saying anything and then cuts MJF off from whatever he was going to say. Omega knows MJF rehearsed this stuff in front of his bathroom mirror and MJF brags about the ratings. These people aren’t here to hear MJF talk though, because they’re here to see the best wrestle.

Omega was less than twenty four hours from dying and someone needs to chop down MJF for thinking he’s a wrestling god. MJF laughs off the idea that this is Omega at his best and while he could talk about how Omega is a stiff breeze away from his career ending, just like Kota Ibushi. No, instead let’s talk about what Omega doesn’t want to talk about: why he wants the World Title so badly.

Apparently his diverticulitis is getting worse and his career and life are ticking time bombs. MJF says Omega would be better off dead at Dynasty, which has Omega turning the table over. Cue Mike Bailey (since Omega isn’t allowed to touch MJF or he loses his title shot) for a lecture and some threats of kicking in the head. Omega says he’s missing 24 inches of intestines but he’d rather miss that than his testicles. MJF agrees to face Bailey and be an American hero.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Kenny Omega/Brody King/Jack Perry vs. The Demand

Omega and Ricochet start things off so let’s go with Kaun instead. Ricochet gets in a shot from the apron and Omega is knocked down into the Demand corner. That’s broken up with a quick backdrop and Omega’s partners both come in for running corner clotheslines. Everything breaks down and Perry moonsaults onto a pile at ringside. Back in and we get a parade of fighting over a suplex until the good guys all get together to make it work. Liona runs Perry over on the floor though and we take a break.

We come back with Perry in trouble until he hits a running clothesline to put Ricochet down. The tag brings in Omega and everything breaks down, with Omega hitting an enziguri on Ricochet. King hits a Cannonball on all three in the corner but Lion is up for some running shoulders around ringside. Ricochet hits some dives, followed by a springboard 450 for two on Omega. Perry’s running flip dive is pulled out of the air so King adds a suicide dive to take all of them out.

Omega avoids another 450 and comes back with a running knee but Ricochet grabs a poisonrana to leave both of them down. King and Liona crash into the timekeeper’s area and Ricochet tries to grab the National Title, which is pulled away. Omega nails the V Trigger into the One Winged Angel to pin Ricochet at 16:59.

Rating: B+. This was all about flying around and going nuts for a pretty long time and it was quite the opener. Omega gets some momentum on the way to his title match at Dynasty and Ricochet loses again, which is a rather fun thing to see. Good stuff here, with everyone working hard and going as fast as they could, as you should in a match like this.

Willow Nightingale wants a title defense on Collision so it’s open challenge time.

Adam Copeland and Christian Cage arrive with chairs and want to take out FTR, including everyone in the way. Cage seems to think this includes Renee Paquette, but Copeland cuts him off. Copeland: “Really? Renee?”

Post break Copeland and Cage find FTR’s locker room…but it’s really Roppangi Vice’s locker room. Apparently FTR is on Collision tomorrow, so Copeland and Cage chair Vice down for being in their way.

Pac vs. Will Ospreay

Pac jumps him on the ramp and hits a brainbuster so the medics are here to check on him. Ospreay gets up and tries to go to the ring, but the medic says give it more time. That’s all of two seconds before Ospreay gets inside and we’re ready to go. Pac is right there to stomp him down and we take an early break.

We come back with Ospreay hitting a Phenomenal Forearm for two but the Cheeky Nandos Kick is broken up. Ospreay hits a brainbuster into a 450 for two but the neck is really bothering him. Pac counters a sunset bomb to the floor and hits a tornado DDT to leave Ospreay on the floor. Back in and something like an Octopus on the mat sends Ospreay to the ropes and us to another break.

We come back again with Pac’s bridging German suplex getting two. Ospreay is back up with a Styles Clash for the same and they’re both down again. Pac gets back up this time and snaps off a hurricanrana, followed by a running clothesline. Rather than covering though, Pac goes up and hits the Black Arrow to the back, followed by the Brutalizer. The hold stays on for a rather long time until Ospreay goes for the rope. Pac tries to roll him away but Ospreay stacks him up for the pin at 17:09.

Rating: B. Another good match here, though Ospreay being slowed down a bit by the neck takes away some of the superhero feeling. That being said, I’d rather him slow down a bit and be here later in his life than have his neck give out all over again. The Brutalizer staying on for so long at the end was a bit much to believe but it hardly killed the match.

Post match Pac goes after Ospreay again but gets cut off with a Hidden Blade. Cue the Death Riders, with Jon Moxley wrapping a chair around Ospreay’s neck. Actually Moxley just talks to him though, saying this was how it was going to go because it’s six on one. Next time, use your head or you might lose it permanently. This isn’t personal for Moxley and Ospreay should keep it that way. The Riders leave without hurting him any more.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Triangle Of Madness vs. Brawling Birds/Mina Shirakawa

Shirakawa and Thekla start things off with Thekla having to duck underneath an elbow, meaning it’s quickly off to Blue. A pull of the hair brings Shirakawa down but she’s right back with a springboard kick out of the corner. The Birds come in for a sunset flip/PK combination and Blue gets knocked into the corner as well. Shirakawa’s slingshot corkscrew splash connects but Thekla gets in a cheap shot from the apron. A double stomp from the apron to the back hits Shirakawa and we take a break.

We come back with the Triangle getting triple suplexed (just like in the opener) and everyone needs a breather. Shirakawa’s Sling Blade looks to set up a Figure Four but Thekla kicks her away, allowing Blue to grab a swinging full nelson faceplant. Hart comes in and gets backbreakered and everyone is knocked down again. Thekla loads up the brass knuckles but gets them taken away, earning herself Two Birds, One Stone. Another backbreaker cuts Hart off and Hayterade finishes her at 9:20.

Rating: C+. The crowd did not seem overly interested here but the women were working hard for a pretty nice result. Maybe the result means that Hayter is going to get back towards the title picture now that Toni Storm is gone. Someone is going to need to be in that spot and Hayter might be the best possible option they have at the moment.

We recap Tommaso Ciampa’s recent issues with the Bang Bang Gang, leading to his match with Juice Robinson on Collision.

Here is Darby Allin, who wants the World Title and for someone, anyone, to beat MJF. Allin calls him out but gets the Don Callis Family instead. Don Callis gets right to the point: if Allin can beat a member of the Family, he gets a title shot. That would be Andrade El Idolo, but for now, the team comes in to go after Allin. Cue Jack Perry and Brody King to cut the Family off and then stare Allin down. Kenny Omega comes out and says something to Allin, though we can’t hear him.

Mike Bailey vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

Non-title and Kenny Omega is on commentary. MJF even brings back the big American flag because he’s an American hero. MJF jumps Bailey from behind to start but Bailey says ring the bell anyway. Bailey strikes back but has to stop the Tornado Kick as MJF pulls the referee in the way. A toss sends Bailey outside and MJF grabs a chinlock back inside. That lets MJF throw him down and recite part of the Pledge Of Allegiance.

Omega thinks that if Bailey could put his mind and feet to it, he could be a champion soon. See? Even the EVP doesn’t care about the Trios Title that Bailey has at the moment. MJF mocks Bailey’s kicking prowess and gets his leg swept out, allowing Bailey to start firing off the kicks. A running boot puts MJF on the floor but it’s too early for the Ultimate Weapon back inside. Bailey grabs a weird sunset flip for two, followed by something like a Spanish Fly powerslam for two more.

Bailey’s springboard is countered into a sitout powerbomb for two and they’re both down. Back up and MJF kicks him to the floor, meaning it’s a middle finger to Omega. The Heatseeker is countered though and it’s a top rope Asai moonsault to the floor. We take a break and come back with MJF kicking him off the top and heading to the apron.

The piledriver is broken up so Bailey tries, and misses, the Ultimate Weapon, instead settling for a running boot in the corner. A snapdragon puts MJF down (Omega approves) and now the Ultimate Weapon (middle rope version) gets two, with MJF putting his foot on the rope. Bailey misses the moonsault knees on the apron though and it’s an apron piledriver to knock him silly. The Heatseeker finishes Bailey at 15:40.

Rating: B. Bailey taking a beating is one of the best ways to use him and it worked well enough again here. At the same time, it’s smart to have MJF get a clean win like this one. He needs to be ready for the World Title shot and at some point he needs to prov that he’s still a top level star. They pulled that off here and Bailey looked good in defeat.

Post match MJF goes after Bailey some more so Omega makes the save. Omega helps Bailey up to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. AEW continues to be on something of a roll with television as of late and this show was no exception. They did a good job of building up Omega vs. MJF here while also getting Ospreay back in the ring. This show was all about getting us closer to Dynasty and building up the hype, which worked rather well, along with the rather good matches to back it up. Very good show here, with Dynasty having more potential.

Results
Kenny Omega/Brody King/Jack Perry b. The Demand – One Winged Angel to Ricochet
Will Ospreay b. Pac – Rollup
Brawling Birds/Mina Shirakawa b. Triangle Of Madness – Hayterade to Hart
Maxwell Jacob Friedman b. Mike Bailey – Heatseeker

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

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Dynamite
Date: March 25, 2026
Location: Roy Wilkins Auditorium, St. Paul Minnesota
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Nigel McGuinness, Taz

Somehow we’re only about two and a half weeks away from Dynasty, which doesn’t have much set up as of yet. That’s really going to need to change and a lot of things could be added this week. We do already have a bit ready to go though and some of those things should get some extra boosts this week. Let’s get to it.

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

Kenny Omega vs. Swerve Strickland

Omega is putting up his EVP title and Strickland is putting up his #1 contendership. Prince Nana grabs Omega’s foot to start and Strickland hits an early clothesline. Omega gets dropped throat first across the top rope but he’s fine enough to grab a hurricanrana to send Strickland outside. The running flip dive connects and Omega adds a running hip attack against the barricade.

Strickland rams him into the barricade though and they back inside with Strickland grabbing something like a standing crossface. Omega breaks out and hits a running Fameasser into You Can’t Escape. They trade some hard strikes to the face until Omega sends him into the corner for the V Trigger. Omega goes up top but gets pulled down with something like a super Angle Slam as we take a break.

We come back with Omega winning a slugout and grabbing some snapdragons. They head to the apron, where Strickland distracts the referee so he can kick Omega low. A piledriver onto the barricade knocks Omega even sillier, followed by a suplex powerbomb for two back inside. Big Pressure is countered so Strickland hits a House Call to send Omega into the ropes.

The Swerve Stomp gives Strickland two but Omega kicks him into the corner. Strickland is able to hit a powerbomb into a powerslam for two more so Omega knees him into the ropes. The V Trigger and Vertebreaker are countered so Strickland goes to the eyes, setting up the Vertebreaker for the rather near fall. Another Swerve Stomp misses so Omega V Triggers him into the One Winged Angel for the pin at 20:34.

Rating: B+. This was a good way to go as you had two main eventers beating each other up with some important things on the line. The ending sets up Omega for a likely title shot in Canada at Dynasty, which isn’t a bad way to go. I’m not wild on Strickland losing so soon, but that’s the way to go given the stakes here.

We look at some of Darby Allin’s bigger stunts.

Will Ospreay wants to fight Pac and then he’s coming for Jon Moxley, who he wants to fight at Dynasty.

Death Riders vs. SkyFlight

That would be Jon Moxley/Marina Shafir/Daniel Garcia vs. Top Flight/Zayda Steel and Top Flight are the hometown stars. The men head to the floor as Shafir chokes Steel, who comes back with a headscissors. It’s off to Garcia, who takes over on Darius, followed by Moxley coming in to stomp away. Darius dropkicks his way out of trouble and Dante comes in to clean house. Everything breaks down and SkyFlight hits a triple dive as we take a break.

We come back with Dante in trouble but he fights out without much trouble. A jumping enziguri hits Shafir and it’s back to Steel to clean house. Steel has to escape a Doomsday Device attempt (with Moxley playing Hawk) and Top Flight is back in to take over. Wheeler Yuta knees Christopher Daniels down on the floor and Garcia Dragontamers Darius. Moxley adds a stomp and Garcia gets the pin at 11:03.

Rating: B-. This was ok, though there wasn’t much of a reason to believe that SkyFlight was going to have a change here. Granted there is always the chance that it could go badly for the Riders if Garcia is involved but he held up here. Steel held her own here and it’s nice to see her not take the fall, so maybe she has a bit more of a future than it seemed.

Post match Moxley accepts Ospreay’s challenge for Dynasty but warns him to not let his mouth get him in trouble.

The Young Bucks want the Tag Team Titles back.

Mike Bailey vs. Rocky Romero

Romero takes him down to start and, after dancing, hits a kick to the chest. Back up and Bailey fires off some rapid fire kicks to knock Romero outside, setting up the triangle moonsault. Bailey’s tornado kick misses back inside so Romero does his sliding dance. Bailey kicks him down twice and the Ultimate Weapon finishes Romero off at 2:43. Pretty much a squash.

We look at MJF beating Hangman Page in the Texas Deathmatch at Revolution. How many times do we need to look at this?

Here is MJF for a chat. He’s the World Champion and the man who hanged the Hangman and that means Page can never ever (repeat about 17 times) be World Champion again. That was the easiest win of his career and he holds the ultimate prize in this business. He hits both catchphrases but here is Kenny Omega to interrupt.

Omega mocks MJF’s appearance and smell before listing off his own nicknames. If MJF is the Devil, Omega might be the god of professional wrestling because he can cancel MJF out. Yeah MJF beat a weakened version of Omega but now Omega is back and better than MJF. The title match is set for Dynasty and no, MJF won’t shake hands. Omega gets in his own catchphrase before leaving.

Earlier today, Adam Copeland and Christian Cage talked about the choices that FTR have made to get here. It was going after Beth that went too far, as they have been friends for years, but now Copeland is swearing to take them out.

Here is FTR, with a now standing Stokely Hathaway. The team made a choice to dump Copeland and look at the result of that choice. Cash Wheeler talks about how he used to live in Copeland’s guest house and ate his food, but now he doesn’t need Copeland or his stupid kids. Dax Harwood says if he’ll drop Beth Copeland on her head, what will he do to Adam?

Conglomeration vs. The Dogs

That would be Orange Cassidy/Roderick Strong vs. David Finley/Clark Connors, though FTR shoves the Conglomeration on their way to the ring. Finlay and Strong lock up against the ropes to start before it’s off to Connors, who gets chopped in the corner. Cassidy sends both of them into the corner but the Dogs pull a double high crossbody out of the air. Connors rams both of them into the barricade and we take a break.

We come back with Strong getting knocked off the apron but Cassidy manages a Stundog Millionaire. Cassidy ducks a dive as well and it’s back to Strong to pick up the pace. The belly to back faceplant gets two on Connors, who is right back with a powerslam. Strong is back in to pick Cassidy up and ram him into the Dogs and Cassidy hits his top rope DDT on Connors. Finlay takes Cassidy out to save Connors and a high/low hits Strong. Cassidy is back up to put his hands in his pockets though and a running dropkick hits the Dogs. A chop block cuts Cassidy off though and the Full Clip gives Connors the pin at 10:40.

Rating: B. They had a good, fast paced match, though the Dogs have lost to the Conglomeration so many times that it’s hard to care about them very much. At least they won here, though it’s only going to mean so much for them. At the same time, both teams need to move on from this feud already.

Megan Bayne and Lena Kross are ready to beat the Babes Of Wrath again.

Kyle Fletcher is proud of his recent title defenses but he wants the World Title. Konosuke Takeshita comes in and they’re close as a team. Certainly closer than anything involving Kazuchika Okada.

Women’s Title: Mina Shirakawa vs. Thekla

Shirakawa is challenging and gets more flowers from her mystery admirer. Thekla gets sent into the corner and then back out of it to start, followed by a quick DDT. They head outside and strike it out as Shirakawa is looking more serious than usual. Back in and Thekla hits a running knee and knocks Shirakawa outside. That’s fine with Shirakawa, who sweeps the leg and hits a hanging DDT onto the floor.

We take a break and come back with Thekla holding something like a Rings Of Saturn. With that broken up, Thekla’s spear is cut off with a running boot, followed by a missile dropkick for two. Back up and they trade some shots to the face until Thekla gets in the spear. Thekla takes off her belt so the referee takes it away, allowing her to take out some brass knuckles to knock Shirakawa cold for the pin at 10:45.

Rating: C+. This is where the past catches up with them, as Shirakawa went from a regular loser to winning a single match and getting a title shot. That’s not enough to make this work and it didn’t here, as there was pretty much no reason to believe the title was changing hands. That being said, at least the secret admirer/who attacked Storm should be good enough to keep this part of the division going.

Kenny Omega is ready to take the World Title off of MJF. Mike Bailey comes in to shake Omega’s hand and say he wants the first shot when Omega wins the title. Works for Omega.

Ricochet admits that he lost it the last time they saw him because he had to defend his National Title in a battle royal. Now people like Kenny Omega is getting a World Title shot, even though Ricochet beat him. Anyway, Ricochet and the Demand will be back.

Rush vs. Darby Allin

No countouts for your weird stipulation of the night. Rush jumps him on the floor to start fast and sends Allin hard into the barricade. Another whip sends him into the steps, followed by the barricade again. Allin is sent hard into the steps, with his legs hitting the barricade but he’s able to fight back. The suicide dive only hits barricade though and Rush suplexes him off the apron as we take a break.

We come back with Rush stomping away in the corner as Allin is busted open. Rush tries the Tranquilo pose so Allin jumps him and hammers away, albeit to little avail. Instead Allin chops on the corner to set up a Coffin Drop to send Rush outside. Now the big dive connects so Allin puts him in the chair for a missile dropkick. The Code Red gives Allin two but Rush sends him flying into the corner with an overhead belly to belly. The Bull’s Horns miss though and Allin grabs a flipping rollup for the pin at 11:29.

Rating: B-. Believe it or not, Allin got beaten up for a good while here and took a lot of painful looking crashes. That’s pretty much the crux of a lot of his matches, though at least he won here. The stipulation didn’t make much of a difference at all here, which makes me wonder why this was even the main event in the first place.

Post match the Don Callis Family comes in to lay Allin out, though Andrade El Idolo isn’t sure about this to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was a nice edition of the show, with some stuff being added to Dynasty and a few good matches throughout the night. The opener should have been the main event, though I’m assuming they needed the extra time to hype up MJF vs. Omega at Dynasty. They had a good show here, though Dynasty still has a long way to go to really be ready.

Results
Kenny Omega b. Swerve Strickland – One Winged Angel
Death Riders b. SkyFlight – Stomp to Darius
Mike Bailey b. Rocky Romero – Ultimate Weapon
The Dogs b. Conglomeration – Full Clip to Connors
Thekla b. Mina Shirakawa – Punch with brass knuckles
Darby Allin b. Rush – Rollup

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

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Dynamite
Date: March 18, 2026
Location: Save Mart Center, Fresno, California
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Bryan Danielson

We’re done with Revolution and the big story is…well that could be a few things really. There were several returns with Adam Copeland/Christian Cage, Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega returning. That’s in addition to MJF retaining the World Title, meaning Hangman Page is no longer allowed to challenge for the belt. Other than that, it’s time to start getting ready for Dynasty so let’s get to it.

Here is Revolution if you need a recap.

Revolution recap.

Will Ospreay vs. Blake Christian

Since there is no one in the company who can do this other than the person chasing the ROH World Title. Christian bails out to the floor to start before coming back inside to fight over wrist control. Ospreay knocks him down and snaps off a running hurricanrana to send Christian outside. A slingshot dive takes him out again and Ospreay tosses him back inside, allowing Christian to hit a running flip dive.

Ospreay shrugs that off and hits a springboard clothesline for two so Christian is back with a clothesline of his own. A stomp to the back sends Ospreay outside, with Christian hitting a diving tornado DDT. Back in and a 450 and cutter give Christian two each and he loads up his own Hidden Blade. That’s cut off of course though and Ospreay hits the real Hidden Blade for the win at 7:23.

Rating: B-. Ospreay is back and this was basically just a way to get him back in the swing of things. Now he can move on to his first important match, likely at Dynasty. Christian could have been anyone here and that’s about how the likely #1 contender to the ROH World Title is seen most of the time.

Post match Ospreay calls out Jon Moxley and threatens to snap his neck with his bare hands. Cue Moxley through the crowd so Ospreay charges into the crowd and the brawl is on. Pac comes in for the save and Ospreay is caught in the Brutalizer.

The Bang Bang Gang come out for a match but we pause for Ospreay to dive onto Moxley again.

Death Riders vs. Bang Bang Gang

The Riders jump them to start but Robinson takes Yuta into the corner for some left hands. Yuta rakes the eyes though and it’s off to Moxley to stay on the eyes. Robinson fights out of trouble and hands it off to Austin for the rather speedy kicks. Austin sends Moxley outside for the running dive and we take a break.

We come back with Austin grabbing an STF on Austin, which he quickly switches into a Crossface. That’s broken up and Austin gets over to Robinson so it’s time to clean house. The left hands have Yuta down and Austin goes up, only to dive onto raised knees. Austin is able to fight up with a springboard spinning kick to the face and everything breaks down. A cutter takes Robinson down and Yuta dives onto him, setting up the Paradigm Shift for the pin at 11:10.

Rating: C+. This was about what you would expect, though it seems that Moxley is now the full on heel version again, which is quite the quick shift. Austin and Robinson both got in a bit of offense before losing and that didn’t make for the most interesting match. At least Yuta got beaten up a bit, which is always fun.

Gabe Kidd isn’t scared of Darby Allin.

Kidd wants Allin to meet him in the parking lot.

Kenny Omega wants to face Swerve Strickland one more time and if Strickland is so confident, he can put that #1 contendership up.

Gabe Kidd goes to the parking lot where Darby Allin tries to run him over. The brawl is on with Allin getting the better of things and throwing him in the trunk. Then Allin gets in the car and drives onto a pile of trash, which flips the car over. Allin breaks out of the window and then pops the trunk so that Kidd falls down in a heap. Since there is an anvil case next to them, Allin puts him on the case and wheels him inside for their casket match.

Gabe Kidd vs. Darby Allin

Casket match. Allin wheels him into the arena and opens the case, pulling out his skateboard and a straitjacket as this is going to be really stupid. Kidd is tied up in the straitjacket and put in a chair but manages to kick him low. The jacket isn’t entirely tied so Kidd can choke and bite at the same time. Allin is bleeding a gusher and Kidd slams the casket lid on Allin’s fingers.

We take a break and come back with Allin biting Kidd and giving him a super Code Red. Allin gets the arms tied up tighter and hits a Scorpion Death before going up top. Kidd kicks the referee into the ropes for the crotching though and a powerslam puts Kidd down again. They go to the casket again and Allin bites the nose, followed by a skateboard shot. Back to back Coffin Drops set up a suicide dive to knock Kidd into the casket and give Allin the win at 9:59.

Rating: C+. Yeah sure. I have no idea what to say about this as it started with Allin’s latest stupid stunt and then Kidd wrestled most of the match in a straitjacket, like any good villain should. This was the latest thing that feels like Allin had a dumb idea and got to do it on national TV. I stopped caring about his weird ideas a long time ago and this didn’t make it any better. The guy has talent and a weird charisma that could make him a top star but instead we have to see whatever stupid thing he thinks of this week and it’s been old.

Post match Allin says he’s coming for the World Title.

Video on Jack Perry leaving his house in the new Jurassic Express and riding to the show (as driven by the one armed Luchasaurus), though not before he feeds a squirrel. Once at the arena, he runs into the Young Bucks, who are ready for their six man tag tonight.

Here is Prince Nana to introduce Swerve Strickland, who sits in a chair. Strickland talks about power, which he didn’t get even after winning at Revolution. The reality is that power can be more important than titles. He’s spent most of his life fighting against people with power and that brings him to Kenny Omega. There is no reason for him to face Omega, except for one thing. Omega has power, so if he wants to face Strickland again, he can put up his EVP title, with Strickland getting the spot if he wins.

Mike Bailey talks about the work that he has had to put in to get where he is today and he’s willing to keep doing it.

Mike Bailey vs. Mark Davis

Davis charges at him to start but Bailey kicks away. That only gets him so far but Bailey is back with a middle rope dropkick. Bailey kicks at Davis but can’t knock him off the apron. A legsweep does send him to the floor though and Bailey hits a dive as we take a break. We come back with Bailey in trouble but catching Davis on top with the kicks to the chest. A powerbomb out of the corner puts Davis down but he’s back up to win a strike off.

Bailey kicks him in the head though and they’re both down again. Davis is up first and hammers away, followed by a toss powerbomb for two. Another powerbomb is escaped so Bailey kicks him in the head again but Davis is back with a running clothesline. Bailey kicks him into the moonsault knees, followed by the Ultimate Weapon for the pin at 10:51.

Rating: B. I’m far from a Bailey fan but he was doing well here, as it was a classic monster vs. smaller guy deal here. Bailey kept chopping away (or kicking away in this case) until the giant went down and that’s something that will work almost every time. This was better than I was expecting and that’s always nice to see.

After Revolution, MJF dubbed himself Mr. Revolution, even though he felt every bit of pain from his match. It was all worth it though and he won it the day he turned 30. He has twenty years to go and Hangman Page will be staying in the midcard where he belongs. Now that this is out of the way, he’s going to Disney World.

Kazuchika Okada laughs off the idea of the Young Bucks being his family, because the Don Callis Family is what matters. Well not Konosuke Takeshita.

Marina Shafir vs. Mina Shirakawa

No Holds Barred. Toni Storm was supposed to be in Shirakawa’s spot but was attacked earlier today. Shirakawa comes out with a barbed wire bat and gets in a shot to the knee but Shafir takes it away from her. Shafir says she doesn’t need a bat and gets kicked down for running her mouth too much.

A champagne bottle is brought in but Shafir knocks it away and plants her down to take over. Shafir flips the fans off and we take a break. We come back with Shirakawa knocking the (open) champagne bottle out of her hands but taking too long to load up a chair. Shirakawa is able to faceplant her onto the chair though and a missile dropkick puts Shafir down again.

The top rope Sling Blade onto the chair gets two but the Figure Four is cut off. Shirakawa has to break out of the Mother’s Milk so Shafir grabs a table. The strike out on the apron goes to Shafir, who suplexes Shirakawa through the table. Back in and Shirakawa gets the bottle to crack her over the head, followed by Storm Zero for the quick pin at 10:53.

Rating: C+. Commentary was pointing out that this style isn’t geared to Shirakawa and that was getting clear when things got a bit more violent. At the same time, they were in a weird spot as Storm was pulled out of this match for whatever reason. I’m not sure how much interest there is in having Storm vs. Shafir again now, but maybe they’ll move in a different direction, as they should.

Andrade wants the World Title but gets a briefcase full of money from MJF. Don Callis calls in to say that the deal is to get rid of Darby Allin. Andrade doesn’t seem convinced.

Don Callis Family vs. Young Bucks/Jack Perry

Okada flips the Bucks off to start so Perry gives him a quick dropkick. Beretta and Romero come in but get cut off by the Bucks, who clear the ring. The Bucks hit their dives and Perry adds a moonsault to take the Family down again. Back in and Perry gets caught in the wrong corner, with Okada hitting the Air Raid Crash onto the knee. We take a break and come back with Perry fighting out of trouble and bringing in Matt. The threat of a superkick sends Okada outside and it’s time for the string of northern lights suplexes.

The Bucks both go up and come down onto Romero and Beretta, setting up the superkicks. Romero and Beretta are back with the jumping knees though, only for the Bucks to come back with stereo Sharpshooters. Perry adds a quickly broken Snare Trap but Okada is back in to break up the TK Driver. The Family load up stereo Tombstones but get bitten low, giving us a triple small package for two each. The Bucks hit a BTE Trigger to Romero, setting up Perry’s running knee for the pin at 12:06.

Rating: B. As usual, the best thing they can do here is keep things moving as it made for an entertaining six man. Perry and the Bucks work well together, partially just due to their experience as a team. At the same time you have Romero, and I can’t imagine he gets in the ring for much of a reason other than to put someone else over.

Post match the Bucks say they blew it at Revolution and have to admit that FTR was the better team. The Bucks’ dad told them to remember who they are and work their way back to the top. Cue Adam Copeland and Christian Cage, with Copeland saying they shouldn’t hang their heads after a match as great as the one they had at Revolution.

Copeland knows what it’s like to hate FTR, which is why he and Cage are challenging for the titles at Dynasty. Cage says if they win, they get a bunch of money and prove their greatness. Cue FTR and Stokely, with FTR coming straight tot he ring and getting beaten up. The Bucks hold the titles but hand them to the Canadians, who pose to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. There were some good parts to the show but it only got so far. Ospreay’s return is nice to see, but the idea of Copeland and Cage winning the titles (even in Canada) doesn’t do much for me. The Allin stuff was even worse, which somehow left Bailey to pick up the slack. It’s a weird show, but that is often the case after an AEW PPV.

Results
Will Ospreay b. Blake Christian – Hidden Blade
Death Riders b. Bang Bang Gang – Paradigm Shift to Austin
Darby Allin b. Gabe Kidd – Kidd was shut in the casket
Mike Bailey b. Mark Davis – Ultimate Weapon
Mina Shirakawa b. Marina Shafir – Storm Zero
Young Bucks/Jack Perry b. Don Callis Family – Running knee to Romero

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

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

Dynamite
Date: February 18, 2026
Location: Memorial Auditorium, Sacramento, California
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Bryan Danielson

We’ve got a big match this week, as Kenny Omega will be facing Swerve Strickland. That is the kind of match that could easily be on the upcoming Revolution card but instead we have it this week. At the same time, we are getting ready for the pay per view, meaning MJF and Hangman Page need to go face to face this week. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Mina Shirakawa wants the TBS Title.

Willow Nightingale knows that it’s tough to be a double champ but may the best woman win.

Megan Bayne says she deserves gold.

Swerve Strickland needs to beat Kenny Omega.

Omega says Strickland is in his way.

Orange Cassidy has a replacement partner for Roderick Strong: Tomohiro Ishii.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Jon Moxley vs. Mark Davis

Non-title. Feeling out process to start with Davis grabbing a waistlock to little avail. Instead Davis tries some chops, which have Moxley chopping right back. A sunset flip is broken up with a sitdown splash and a sliding forearm in the corner knocks Moxley silly again. They go outside where Davis hits some rather loud chops but Moxley ducks one of them, which hits the post instead.

The suicide dive connects and Davis’ hand is bleeding (that’s a rare one) as the fans are way behind Moxley. Naturally Moxley bites and stomps on the cut as we take a break. We come back with Moxley biting the cut again and superplexing Davis down. A PK gives Moxley one and they strike it out, with Davis using the bad hand.

Davis gets smart by using an enziguri but the clothesline is countered with a jumping cutter. Back up and Davis manages to hit the clothesline, followed by a gutwrench piledriver of all things for two. Moxley shakes a lot and escapes a choke, allowing him to avoid a running enziguri. The stomp doesn’t leave Davis down for very long so they’re back up to trade clotheslines. Moxley pulls him into the bulldog choke for the win at 14:00.

Rating: B-. They did a nice job of beating each other up as Moxley is always going to be in for a big brawl. Davis still feels a lot better as a tag guy but it’s not his fault his partner got hurt. I can go with having him around for something like this, but he’s going to be better off with someone helping him out.

After winning on Collision, Hangman Page praised Andrade El Idolo but says he’s coming for MJF and the World Title at Revolution.

Here are FTR and Stokely Hathaway to complain about the Young Bucks. The Bucks coined the phrase FTR but now they’re the second best team in AEW’s history. Hathaway is sick of doing the same things over and over and they hate everyone around here. He insults the Bucks over and over…and here they are to superkick FTR. Hathaway (still in his wheelchair) gets superkicked as well and the Bucks want their title shot at Revolution.

After losing at Collision, Brody King says getting so close to winning the World Title and losing makes him want it that much more. On February 25, he’s getting back in the title hunt. I’ll avoid making a joke about the bag of ice on his knee.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

TBS Title: Marina Shafir vs. Megan Bayne vs. Mina Shirakawa vs. Willow Nightingale

Nightingale is defending and Penelope Ford is here with Bayne. Shirakawa is sent outside to start, leaving Bayne and Shafir to double team Nightingale. That’s broken up as Nightingale sends them outside for the cannonball off the apron, only for Shirakawa to hit a dive of her own. Back in and Nightingale gives the villains a double Codebreaker but Bayne is able to snap off a super hurricanrana. Shirakawa is sent crashing out to the floor and we take a break.

We come back with Shirakawa striking away and Bayne accidentally hitting Shafir. Nightingale fires back with three straight spinebusters before she and Bayne drop each other with a double clothesline. Bayne clears the ring and hits a big dive to the floor but Shafir breaks up the pin attempt. A powerbomb puts Shafir down on the floor but Nightingale puts Bayne down back inside. Shirakawa is right there with a missile dropkick and kick to the head for Nightingale. That lets her load up the Figure Four, which Nightingale reverses into a small package to retain at 11:15.

Rating: B. They got rolling here and it turned into quite the spectacle for all four. Nightingale gets to retain again and that’s always nice to see, even if it still feels like she has no need to be a double champion. At the same time, Shirakawa’s fall continues, as she loses the match not long after losing some of her hair. That’s just a bad run, unlike this good match.

Video on Grand Slam.

Commentary pays tribute to WWE director Kerwin Silfies, who passed away at 75. That’s rather touching.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Here are Hangman Page and MJF for their face to face showdown. MJF says he isn’t going to cut some cutesy wrestling promo to sell Revolution. The truth is that he hates everything about Page, from his attitude to his wrestling, and he hates the fact that the fans think Page is the main character of AEW. What makes it even worse though is that MJF has lost to Page twice.

Page is just a lucky shot and on March 15, MJF’s birthday, MJF is going to prove it. Page talks about how the fans carried him to two World Titles and says MJF basically stole the belt. The reality is Page hates MJF far worse than MJF hates him, because they’re so much alike. MJF’s desperation for love and acceptance feels just like Page and they have both always needed the fans’ reception. He wants to end this at Revolution for good so it needs to be something different.

MJF can think of a stipulation because Page already has his own, and the people can pick. MJF thinks he hears Texas Death but SHUT UP because this is going to be a regular match. Page is willing to sweeten the pot a bit: if he loses, he never challenges for the World Title again. MJF says that’s a deal, but he wants a week to think about his stipulation. That’s fine with Page, who wants Texas Death. They definitely raised the stakes, but hopefully they have a good stipulation because otherwise it could be quite the mess.

The Death Riders still hate the Don Callis Family and a challenge is issued for Collision. As for Revolution, Jon Moxley wants Konosuke Takeshita, no time limit. That’s not exactly under Continental Rules there Mox.

Orange Cassidy/Tomohiro Ishii vs. Gabe Kidd/Clark Connors

Cassidy has to duck a big swing from Kidd to start and immediately hands it off to Ishii. Kidd wastes no time in taking Ishii into the corner and it’s off to Connors, who dares to try chopping. That just ticks Ishii off and Connors gets double chopped in the corner (Ishii is a bit more into it than Cassidy) before everything breaks down. Cassidy gets chopped down and Ishii is sent into the announcers’ table as we take a break.

We come back with Ishii and Kidd chopping it out until Kidd bites the head. Something like a Pounce puts Kidd down and they slap each other in the face over and over. Kidd hits a hard running lariat to put Ishii down and it’s back to Connors, who drops Ishii again. Ishii, who is favoring either his back or hamstring, manages a belly to back suplex and brings Cassidy back in. Everything breaks down and Kidd is sent outside, where Darby Allin kidnaps him into the crowd. Ishii grabs the brainbuster (really a suplex but it’s understandable as he seems injured) to pin Connors at 9:53.

Rating: C+. This was kind of a messy match, though that might be due to Ishii getting hurt. They kind of had to go to the ending in a hurry, though they got the big deal with Allin in and that’s all that matters. It’s certainly better than having Allin get beaten up all the time, as he has a reason for revenge here and is actually taking it for a change.

The Don Callis Family beat up a bunch of people in the back and accept the Death Riders’ challenges, both for Collision and Revolution. Kazuchika Okada comes in to say he’s here because he’s a champion while Konosuke Takeshita couldn’t even show up. Andrade El Idolo comes in to say he wants the World Title. Don Callis wants the CMLL World Title for the Family.

Hook wants to bring some new members into the Opps.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

Brawling Birds vs. B3cca/Viva Van

Windsor hammers on Van in the corner to start and quickly powers out of a headlock. A sunset flip takes Van down and Hayter comes in for a running boot to the face. The Birds chop away in the corner but Van slips out of a double suplex. B3cca comes in and gets catapulted into an Irish Curse. A Hart Attack finishes for Windsor at 3:58.

Rating: C. Total squash here and that’s a nice start for the Birds. They’re pretty much two women with nothing else to do being thrown together and that’s a tried and true way to build a tag division. It was just a small sample size but it was a good way to start, so maybe they have something here.

Renee Young brings in Kris Statlander, who wants the Women’s Title back, and Thunder Rosa, who is back and cleared to return. That’s good to hear.

Kevin Knight vs. The Beast Mortos

Mike Bailey is here with Knight, who avoids a charge to start and sends Mortos crashing out to the floor. Knight slingshots over the post and takes Mortos down as we take a break. We come back with Mortos sending him outside for a running flip dive, which is quite the sight. Back in and the pop up Samoan drop gives Mortos two but Knight hits a great looking dropkick. A jumping clothesline drops Mortos again and Knight even manages a slam. The running splash gets two and Knight plants him with a running DDT. The UFO Splash gives Knight the pin at 8:36.

Rating: B-. They did some good stuff here, which shouldn’t be a surprise, and they didn’t waste any time. Knight continues to feel like a star in the making, with some outstanding athleticism. At the same time, I have absolutely no idea why Page/Jetspeed are the Trios Champions, as I don’t remember the last time they were even together on TV.

Video on Will Ospreay.

The Demand wants the Trios Titles. Say on Collision. They go to their dressing room, where they find a knife in the door. Eh must be nothing.

Swerve Strickland vs. Kenny Omega

Prince Nana is here with Swerve. They fight over a lockup to start with Swerve knocks him down. Omega is back with a running shoulder so Swerve slaps him in the face. Swerve is knocked outside but it’s way too early for the Terminator dive. They head outside with Omega chopping away and moonsaulting off the barricade as we take a break. We come back with Omega grabbing a suplex to put them both down.

You Can’t Escape gives Omega two and he drops Swerve face first onto the top turnbuckle. The snapdragon drops Swerve for two more but he manages to send Omega into the buckle right back. The Vertebreaker is countered though and Omega grabs a snapdragon on the apron for the big knockdown. Swerve is able to escape a snapdragon from the apron to the floor but then has to flip out of a German suplex to the floor.

That lets Swerve grab a suplex on the floor as they’re both starting to feel this. Back in and a 450 in the general vicinity to Omega’s back gets two but Omega is able to hit a running knee in the corner. The snapdragon superplex plants Swerve for two but he pulls the referee into the V Trigger (though it might have been due to her checking on Swerve’s banged up shoulder).

The One Winged Angel is countered into the House Call but there is no one to count. Instead it’s a Swerve Stomp to the apron before Swerve catapults him throat first into the exposed turnbuckle. Another Swerve Stomp gets two from another referee but Omega grabs another snapdragon. The poisonrana looks to set up the One Winged Angel but Swerve escapes for the House Call. Big Pressure finishes Omega at 20:10.

Rating: A-. These two had a pay per view quality match and I’m still not sure why it wasn’t on the pay per view. Swerve was definitely going more violent here, though I’m not sure how easily he would be able to turn heel. Either way, it was a heck of a match and definitely worth a look, as Swerve gets to show how good he can be in a huge match.

Post match Swerve beats Omega down even more and even hangs him over the top rope with the chain. A Vertebreaker through the announcers’ table ends the show.

Overall Rating: B. The main event is great and the TBS Title match was worth a look, but the rest of the show wasn’t quite as awesome. The good thing is that they’re setting up Revolution, which has the potential to be quite the show. They still have some time to add a few things in and I’m curious about what is next for Swerve. For now though, the excellent main event more than carries the show.

Results
Jon Moxley b. Mark Davis – Bulldog choke
Willow Nightingale b. Marina Shafir, Megan Bayne and Mina Shirakawa – Small package to Shirakawa
Brawling Birds b. B3cca/Viva Van – Hart Attack to B3cca
Kevin Knight b. The Beast Mortos – UFO Splash
Swerve Strickland b. Kenny Omega – Big Pressure

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

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Dynamite
Date: February 4, 2026
Location: Pearl Theater At Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

We’re out west this week and the big question now is who gets the next title shot against MJF. While we have something of a tournament for the title shot going on at the moment, this week will also feature Brody King vs. MJF in a Proving Ground match. Other than that, the Grand Slam Australia show needs to start coming together. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

The venue looks small but in a good way, with some cool balconies and a closer feel.

MJF, Brody King, Kenny Omega, Don Callis, the Babes Of Wrath, Penelope Ford and Megan Bayne are all ready to fight tonight. Well Callis says his goons are at least.

Death Riders vs. Don Callis Family

Garcia takes Alexander down by the leg to start and then drops him with a running shoulder. That means it’s off to Pac vs. Clon, with the former grabbing a headlock takeover but Clon breaks it up without much trouble. Takeshita and Moxley come in for the exchange of forearms and everything breaks down in a hurry.

We settle down to Takeshita being sent into the corner so the Riders can take turns striking away. A backdrop sends Pac outside though and Takeshita suplexes Moxley into the corner. That’s enough for the tag off to Clon, who is German suplexed by Pac. Everything breaks down again and we take a break.

We come back with Alexander’s northern lights suplex dropping Pac for two, followed by a Regal Roll. Pac avoids a middle rope knee though and the diving tag brings in Moxley to forearm it out with Takeshita. Moxley gets the better of things and cutters a diving Clon out of the air. Garcia Dragontamers Takeshita but it’s broken up, meaning it’s time for a dive from each team. Takeshita Blue Thunder Bombs Garcia for two and a wheelbarrow slam drops him again. Raging Fire finishes Garcia at 13:18.

Rating: B. This was the kind of wild brawl that AEW tends to do rather well and that was the situation again here. In theory this continues the road to Takeshita vs. Moxley, which is certainly a big time match. That would make for a fine main event at Grand Slam and given the timing, that very well may be where it’s going.

Swerve Strickland doesn’t want to talk about his loss last week but Prince Nana with an Embassy towel, says they aren’t going anywhere.

We run down the card.

Video on Will Ospreay, who is working to come back.

Orange Cassidy/Toni Storm vs. Jordan Oasis/Brittnie Brooks

Oasis was formerly a regular on WWE Evolve and Storm is in denim ala Cassidy. Speaking of Cassidy, he puts his hands in his pockets to start and takes over on Oasis with a flying mare. Brooks comes in and shouts a lot but gets caught with a German suplex. Everything breaks down and, after some dancing from Cassidy and Storm, it’s a tornado DDT to plant Brooks. The running hip attack hits Oasis and the Orange Punch finishes Oasis at 2:52. Total squash for the sake of showcasing the entertaining Cassidy/Storm pair.

Post match Cassidy and Storm aren’t sure if it was a good idea to accept the hair vs. hair match because they both like their hair. But it’s ok, and either Cassidy is giving Yuta a makeover or Marina Shafir will look like Mox.

Darby Allin skateboarded into the show (of course) but was attacked by the War Dogs (Clark Connors/Gabe Kidd). This involved throwing him in the trunk of a car and driving away.

Hangman Page vs. Mark Davis

Page jumps him to start but Davis fires off some chops. A missed charge sends Davis crashing over the top though and Page rams him into the announcers’ table. Page is crushed against the barricade though and we take a break. We come back with Davis blocking a sunset bomb but getting pulled off the ropes for two instead. Some triangle clotheslines don’t knock Davis off the apron and he sits on Page’s chest to block a sunset bomb.

Davis misses a charge into the barricade, allowing Page to hit a moonsault for two back inside. Davis’ Razor’s Edge is countered into a hurricanrana for two but he’s right back with a heck of a clothesline. An exchange of clotheslines goes to Davis but Page grabs the Deadeye for two more. The Buckshot Lariat is blocked so Page Tombstones him on the ramp and now the Buckshot can finish Davis at 11:24.

Rating: B-. Well, it’s kind of a shame but it seems that Davis’ run is over due to Doyle’s injury. After becoming part of a nice power team, Davis is right back to doing what he was doing before. I’m not sure what is next for him, but right now his future isn’t looking so bright. Page is on his way to Australia to fight for a title shot, which is about where he should be right now.

Post match Page says he hopes to face Kenny Omega, but he’s coming for MJF and the World Title at Revolution.

Video on Kevin Knight.

Kenny Omega vs. Andrade El Idolo

The winner faces Hangman Page in Australia for the Revolution title shot and Don Callis/Lance Archer are here with Andrade. They chop it out to start until a knee sends Andrade outside. A One Winged Angel on the floor is blocked though and Andrade suplexes him out there instead. Back in and Andrade takes his shirt off but gets caught on top for some headbutts.

Omega’s superplex gets two and the You Can’t Escape moonsault connects for the same. Andrade is right back with Three Amigos, with the third connecting on the floor. A springboard corkscrew dive to the floor drops Omega again and Andrade poses with some attractive fans as we take a break.

We come back with Andrade grabbing a Figure Four, which is turned over so the rope is grabbed for the break. They slug it out from their knees until Omega snaps off a snapdragon, followed by the V Trigger in the corner. A super One Winged Angel is countered as well and a hammerlock DDT gives Andrade two.

The running knees in the corner crush Omega for another two and it’s time to chop it out again. A quick V Trigger drops Andrade but he scores with the discus elbow. The screwdriver is thrown in but Swerve Strickland runs out to take it away. The distraction lets Andrade hit Omega low and the DM gives Andrade the pin at 16:33.

Rating: B. At first I wasn’t wild on having to see another Andrade match, but that might be more about not wanting to hear from Callis until Australia is done. I’m good with the idea of Andrade getting built up to face Page for the title shot, as there are far worse ideas. At the same time, this could set up Omega vs. Swerve, which sounds pretty intriguing. Just don’t let Callis talk as much maybe?

Post match Omega and Swerve have to be held apart, which makes sense.

Video on Brody King.

Kris Statlander gets to pick the stipulation for her rematch with Thekla next week…but she’ll tell us on Collision. That fits well as Collision’s main story tends to be “announcing things for Dynamite”.

Babes Of Wrath vs. Penelope Ford/Megan Bayne

Non-title but if Ford and Bayne win, they get a future title shot. Ford and Cameron start things off but they both tag rather than do anything. Bayne takes over until Nightingale whips the villains into each other, with Cameron being dropped onto Ford for two. It’s back to Bayne to take over on Nightingale and a super hurricanrana sends her to the floor. Bayne’s big dive connects and we take a break.

We come back with Nightingale Pouncing Bayne, allowing the tag to Cameron. House is cleaned for a big, only for Ford to knock her down again. Cameron catches Bayne up top and a double superplex brings her crashing right back down. Ford hits a double running Blockbuster and all four of them are down. Nightingale’s spinebuster gets two on Bayne, who throws Ford at Nightingale for a cutter. The Doomsday Device finishes Cameron at 9:35.

Rating: C+. I’m still not wild on seeing the champions lose, especially without cheating, but at least we have a title match set up. Ford and Bayne don’t feel like the next big bad team and I’m still not sure why Bayne isn’t going after a singles title. At least the double champion didn’t get pinned here, but that’s only so much better.

Video on Tommaso Ciampa winning the TNT Title from Mark Briscoe in a heck of a match.

Ciampa issues an open challenge for Collision and has dubbed his title Silvie.

Here’s what’s coming on Collision.

IMG Credit: All Elite Wrestling

National Title: Ricochet vs. Jack Perry

Ricochet, actually without the Gates Of Agony, is defending. Perry jumps him on the ramp before the bell and knocks him to the floor to start fast. They get inside with Perry hammering away but Ricochet is back with a shot of his own to take over. Some right hands wake Perry up a bit and he knocks Ricochet outside, where he drops Perry onto the announcers’ table.

We take a break and come back with Perry knocking him outside again for a running flip dive. Back in and Ricochet suplexes him on the mat, then onto the apron, and then adds a Death Valley Driver on the floor. The belt is thrown inside so the referee takes it away, only for Ricochet’s low blow to be blocked.

A poisonrana and cutter give Perry two and it’s off to the Snare Trap. Perry has to let it go when Ricochet gets too close to the ropes but here are the Gates Of Agony to pull Ricochet to said rope. Cue the Young Bucks to cut them off, only for Perry to be sent into the belt. Vertigo retains the title at 13:26.

Rating: B-. That makes two losses in title matches to Ricochet, who got pinned to set those matches up. Unfortunately that’s dipping into the old WWE style of setting up title shots and that’s less than great. Ricochet cheating to win is a fine way to go for him, but don’t have him lose so much on the way there. It just makes him look weak, which doesn’t need to happen so often.

The War Dogs have taken over the production truck and make us watch them dragging Darby Allin behind their car in the desert. Yeah Allin gets beaten up and hurt in some wacky stunt. I absolutely do not care anymore.

Maxwell Jacob Friedman vs. Brody King

Non-title but if King wins, he gets a title shot in Australia. They stare at each other to start, Hangman Page shows up, King chokes MJF out and the Cannonball into the Ganso Bomb finishes MJF at 1:19. That’s the whole match. It’s certainly different and I do like it, though having two champions lose to set up title matches on the same show is a bit much.

Post match Andrade El Idolo comes in to drop King but Page takes Andrade out. MJF kicks Page low but walks into another Ganso Bomb to end the show. They pretty much didn’t need to include any of this post match stuff.

Overall Rating: B. It definitely wasn’t boring and it set up the main core of the Grand Slam card. That’s the most important thing they can do at the moment and they did it well enough. The show is feeling like a mini PPV and having MJF defend against King feels like a good In Your House level main event. I liked this well enough, though I’m completely over Allin’s shtick anymore. Good show which did its job.

Results
Don Callis Family b. Death Riders – Raging Fire to Garcia
Orange Cassidy/Toni Storm b. Jordan Oasis/Brittnie Brooks – Orange Punch to Oasis
Hangman Page b. Mark Davis – Buckshot Lariat
Andrade El Idolo b. Kenny Omega – DM
Penelope Ford/Megan Bayne b. Babes Of Wrath – Doomsday Device to Cameron
Ricochet b. Jack Perry – Vertigo
Brody King b. Maxwell Jacob Friedman – Ganso Bomb

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

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Forbidden Door 2025
Date: August 24, 2025
Location: 02 Arena, London, England
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Bryan Danielson

We’re back to the international show, but this time the guest star aspect has been toned down a good deal. That’s made for a better build to the show, which feels like more of a regular AEW pay per view with a few bonuses rather than a big side trip before we can get back to what matters. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Yuya Uemura/El Desperado/Paragon vs. Cru/Don Callis Family

Don Callis is here with the villains. Hechicero and Desperado start things off and go to the mat, which is good for an early standoff. An exchange of rollups gets two each and Desperado rolls out of a leglock. Cru comes in to send Desperado into the corner but he rolls over for the tag off to O’Reilly. Kicks to the chest put Cru down and Strong comes in for the save. The backbreaker/middle rope knee drop combination hits Hechicero but Andretti slips out and hammers away for a bit.

O’Reilly fights up and gets the cross armbreaker on Andretti. That’s switched into a leglock on Rush but Andretti is back in with a running shooting star. Uemura and Alexander slug it out with Uemura getting the better of things off a dropkick. Hechicero is back in to kick Uemura into a DDT and Rush hits the Final Hour for two as everything breaks down. Andretti hits a big corkscrew dive to the floor and Uemura grabs a butterfly suplex for two on Rush. A double arm capture suplex gives Uemura the pin on Rush at 12:04.

Rating: C+. Fun match, but this was a case where you could drop Paragon and Cru without losing much. Paragon has been losing a good bit lately and Cru hasn’t wrestled on TV in over a month. I’m not sure why they needed to be here, save for adding more people to the card. Still though, nice fast paced match to start the show, which is often a good idea.

Post match the beatdown is on but Tomohiro Ishii comes in for the brawl with Lance Archer. Ishii gets to stand…well not very call but he gets rid of Archer at least.

Zero Hour: Gates Of Agony/Ricochet vs. Jet Speed/Michael Oku

The Gates and Ricochet jump them to start and pose on the apron, only for Jet Speed to slap Ricochet in the head. Back up and a Pounce sends Oku over the top and out to the floor for a big crash. We settle down to Liona dropping a knee on Oku, who manages to avoid a shot and bring in Jet Speed (yeah both of them) to clean house.

Everything breaks down and Oku hits a missile dropkick, followed by Bailey’s standing moonsault knees to Kaun. A missed charge sends Kaun into the post and Oku hits a frog splash for two on Ricochet. Bailey moonsaults onto the Gates, leaving Oku to Lionsault Ricochet into the half crab. A rake to the eyes breaks that up though and it’s Open The Gates into the Spirit Gun to finish Oku at 9:54.

Rating: B-. The flips and dives were nice, with Jet Speed and Ricochet getting to do their flips and dives. I’m still not sure I get the appeal of Oku, but he’s a talented star in the ring. Other than that, the Gates getting to smash through smaller people was fun, though they are little more than Ricochet’s goons at this point. Granted that’s better than pretending that they’re going to be serious title challengers anytime soon.

Zero Hour: Triangle Of Madness/Megan Bayne vs. Willow Nightingale/Queen Aminata/Kris Statlander/Harley Cameron

It’s a big brawl to start, with Cameron shouting FEEL THE WRATH as the villains are sent to the floor. Some dropkicks through the ropes have Bayne and the Triangle down until Thekla comes back in to kick Nightingale in the face. Statlander comes in to take over on Hart but the Triangle knocks her outside. Bayne sends Aminata and Cameron flying and a pair of dives drop them on the floor.

Blue’s front facelock is broken up but Statlander intentionally brings in Cameron instead of Nightingale. Cameron hits some running shots in the corner before it’s back to Aminata, who gets clotheslined by Bayne. The hips to the face just annoy Bayne but Aminata pulls her down with a headscissors.

Nightingale comes in to a big reaction as everything breaks down. Thekla hits a big dive to the floor and brawls to the back with Aminata. That leaves Cameron to take her mask off and hit Bayne in the face, setting up a tornado DDT for two. Bayne kicks Nightingale off the apron and Statlander kicks Nightingale, setting up Bayne’s Liger bomb for the pin at 11:16.

Rating: C+. Well thank goodness Cameron came back and got to take a pin so fast. It’s not like Aminata was right there to take the fall or anything. The match was basically another chance for Bayne to come in and wreck people, which she does rather well. As has been the case here though, there are too many people in the match for someone to really stand out, including Bayne.

Zero Hour: Trios Titles: Opps vs. Bullet Club WarDogs

The WarDogs (Clark Connors/Robbie X/Drilla Maloney) are challenging. Connors and Shibata slug it out to start with Shibata getting the better of things and taking him outside for some rams into the barricade. Back in and Joe comes in, which scares Maloney away. It’s off to Robbie X, who gets knocked into the corner, with Shibata coming back in for a running dropkick.

Everything breaks down and Connors sends Shibata into the barricade with Hobbs making the save. Back in and Maloney takes over on Shibata, with Shibata dropping an elbow. Connors chops away with Shibata telling him to keep going before coming back with an STO. Hobbs comes in to clean house but the numbers take him down. Robbie X’s Spiral Tap gets two but Hobbs is back in with a spinebuster for two. Joe kicks Robbie X into the corner as everything breaks down. Shibata chokes Maloney and Joe MuscleBusters Robbie X to retain at 7:21.

Rating: B-. They didn’t have much time here and you could see how rushed they were as a result. Again though, it isn’t like there was much of another option because Zero Hour absolutely had to have four matches with that many entrances and people. Anyway, it’s nice to see the champs get a win over an established group, as there are only so many of them out there to come after the belts.

And now, the show proper.

The opening video talks about how special it is to have wrestlers from so many promotions on one show. That would have more of an impact if these wrestlers weren’t around so regularly.

Adam Copeland/Christian Cage vs. Matriarchy

This is Copeland and Cage’s first match as a regular team in over 14 years. As usual, the fans sing Copeland’s song to him. Copeland and Sabian start things off and it’s already time for a chase, with Copeland managing to send him face first onto the floor. Cage comes in and hammers on Sabian in the corner before it’s off to Killswitch. That’s enough for Cage, who lets Copeland have him for a change.

A superkick cuts Copeland down and now Sabian is willing to come back in for a neck snap across the top rope. Killswitch sends Sabian hard into Copeland in the corner and we hit the neck crank. That’s broken up so Sabian tells Killswitch to tag him, earning a chop for a tag. Sabian comes in and takes Copeland up top, with Cage coming in for an electric chair and a Doomsday spear.

That’s enough for Cage to come in and face Killswitch with Cage sending him into the post. Cage chokes both Killswitch and Sabian on the rope and then hits a big dive onto Killswitch. Back in and Killswitch kicks out at one but Sabian tags himself in. A double implant DDT drops Killswitch and Copeland spears him to the floor. Cage fights out of Sabian’s Killswitch attempt and throws Sabian into the air cor Copeland’s spear and the pin at 13:48.

Rating: C+. The second the match was announced, it was a question of whether Sabian would get pinned off the spear or a Killswitch from Cage. Killswitch got to look awesome as you knew he would in his return to the ring but there was no way Copeland and Cage were going to lose here. They’re in for a major match at All Out in Toronto so this was little more than a warmup which went a good bit longer than it needed to last.

We recap Kyle Fletcher defending the TNT Title against Hiromu Takahashi. Fletcher recently won the title and needs a top challenger so here we go.

TNT Title: Kyle Fletcher vs. Hiromu Takahashi

Fletcher, with Don Callis, is defending and shoves Takahashi down to start. Back up and Takahashi strikes away but Fletcher kicks him in the face. Takahashi strikes away in the corner but gets knocked down just as fast. The chinlock does on to keep Takahashi in trouble, only for him to fight up and snap off a hurricanrana.

Fletcher is right back with a Michinoku Driver and they’re both down for a breather. A hard belly to back suplex into a sitout powerbomb gives Fletcher two more. Back up and a boot to the face makes Takahashi come up smiling so they go to the apron. Fletcher’s suplex is reversed into a DDT and Takahashi powerbombs him to the floor.

A clotheslines gives Takahashi two and he reverses a powerbomb into a Canadian Destroyer for two more. Fletcher is back with a jumping Tombstone for two and a running boot in the corner. The brainbuster is countered into a rollup to give Takahashi two, only for Fletcher to come back with the brainbuster to retain at 15:23.

Rating: B. This took its time to get going but then it really picked up once Takahashi made his comeback. What mattered the most is that Fletcher had to break a sweat against someone with that kind of a resume. Fletcher is going to be a big project for AEW and having him win here is the right way to go. There was no reason to believe Takahashi was winning here, but at least the match went as it should have.

We recap the TBS Title match, which has Mercedes Mone defending against challengers from three companies. Only Alex Windsor has gotten a serious focus and it would be a lot better off with her getting her own shot.

TBS Title: Mercedes Mone vs. Bozilla vs. Alex Windsor vs. Persephone

Mone is defending. It’s a staredown to start with Mone being sent outside, leaving the rather large Bozilla to clothesline the other two. Back in and Mone gets gorilla pressed out to the floor as it’s all Bozilla to start. Mone comes in again and gets flapjacked by Persephone and Windsor, only for Bozilla to come back in and run them over.

Bozilla drives Mone into the corner but a Codebreaker over the ropes sends Bozilla outside. Mone’s dive is countered though, leaving Persephone to make a save. Back in and Persephone gets some rollups for two on Mone, only to get bearhugged by Bozilla. That’s broken up and Mone comes off the middle rope with a double knee to put Bozilla down. They go to the corner for the Tower Of Doom with Windsor getting the best of it.

Windsor ties up Mone and Persephone in a double half crab, at least until Bozilla making some saves. Bozilla clotheslines Windsor for two but Persephone is back with a Razor’s Edge. Mone breaks up Windsor’s Sharpshooter and counters Persephone’s Razor’s Edge into a hurricanrana to retain at 15:34.

Rating: B. Kind of like the Copeland/Cage match, there wasn’t much doubt here as the question was more who was taking the pin. Persephone and Bozilla were both basically just there to fill in the international quota, as the build for this was all about Mone vs. Windsor, which will likely take place at All Out.

Bozilla absolutely stood out here, as someone with her size and power is going to get attention no matter what she’s doing. On the other hand, Persephone didn’t really get the chance to show up until the ending, which again goes back to the theme of having too many people in the match. That’s always an issue and it was certainly the case again here.

We recap Nigel McGuinness challenging Zack Sabre Jr. for the IWGP World Heavyweight Title. McGuinness is mostly retired but he’s a technical master who has Daniel Garcia in his corner. Ignore Garcia seemingly all but saying “I’m going to turn on you.”

McGuinness trained with wrestling legend Johnny Saint by playing chess. To be fair, McGuinness did win.

IWGP World Title: Nigel McGuinness vs. Zack Sabre Jr.

Sabre is defending and McGuinness has Daniel Garcia with him. Feeling out process to start and they both roll through a snapmare attempt to start. McGuinness takes him down with a headlock but Sabre slips out as only he can. Sabre’s headlock takes him down as well, with McGuinness slipping out too.

Some arm cranking has McGuinness down again but he comes up with a middle finger to a nice reaction. McGuinness pulls him down into an armbar, which is reversed into the neck twist, allowing Sabre to go after the arm again. Back up and McGuinness avoids a charge into the corner and hits a clothesline for a needed breather. The big lariat gives McGuinness two but Sabre gets to the rope to avoid the London Dungeon.

The Tower Of London is countered as well and Sabre gets in a Disarm-Her, which is escaped rather quickly. They uppercut it out until the rebound lariat blasts Sabre for two. Something close to a Rainmaker drops Sabre for two more so it’s something like the London Dungeon again. Sabre makes the rope again but McGuinness grabs another Tower Of London for another near fall. They trade rollups for two each until Sabre gets a sunset flip to retain at 17:01.

Rating: B. Points for not having Garcia cost McGuinness the title here, though McGuinness was a long shot at best to take the title here. Sabre is an absolute monster when it comes to the technical stuff, though McGuinness more than held his own out there. This was more a “here’s one last great moment for McGuinness in his hometown” and there is nothing wrong with that, as they had a heck of a match.

Post match Tony Schiavone gets in the ring for a special presentation, which (after Garcia and McGuinness stand there for a second and realize it has nothing to do with them) is the pro wrestling record attendance for the venue: 18,982.

Queen Aminata and Thekla brawl from the back into the arena, with the Triangle Of Madness running in to beat Aminata down. Jamie Hayter returns for the save to quite the strong response.

We recap the Tag Team Titles. The Hurt Syndicate are the dominant champions and Bandido/Brody King and FTR…well they didn’t win a tournament but they didn’t lose it either, so it’s time for a three way title match.

Tag Team Titles: Hurt Syndicate vs. FTR vs. Bandido/Brody King

The Syndicate is defending and Stokely Hathaway is here with FTR. The challengers pair off to start, with FTR taking Lashley to the floor while Bandido and King take over on Benjamin. We settle down to Bandido headscissoring Harwood to take over. Lashley is back in with a double clothesline and a suplex. Harwood dares to chop at Benjamin, who just glares at him in response.

Bandido comes in to send Benjamin outside for a suicide dive, only for Lashley to take Bandido down. Benjamin can’t hit a suplex as Bandido slips out but FTR drops to the floor to avoid a tag. Bandido’s spinning high crossbody drops Benjamin and it’s off to King to clean house. King crushes FTR in the corner and hits a cannonball, followed by the showdown with Lashley (the fans like this).

The big spinebuster drops King but he’s back up with a clothesline to send Lashley outside. Back in and Benjamin rolls some German suplexes on King but walks into a Shatter Machine. King makes the save and sends Wheeler into the Syndicate on the floor, with King taking them down. Bandido’s top rope flipping fall away slam onto the pile leaves everyone down. Cue some guys in New Japan gear (we can’t see their faces) to brawl with the Syndicate, leaving Bandido to kick a chair into Harwood’s face.

Wheeler gets punched out of the head but Harwood chairs King in the head. The New Japan guys are Ricochet and the Gates Of Agony, who can’t believe King kicks out. The PowerPlex is loaded up but Bandido breaks it up and hits a frog splash. King monkey flips Bandido into the 450 to Harwood for the pin and the titles at 15:07.

Rating: B+. Good stuff here and while the Syndicate wasn’t even involved in the decision, they did have a reason for being taken out. At the same time, it would have been better to have Bandido and King win the tournament and the titles, even with the interference. Just let them be the best team rather than a team that escaped with the belts. Either way, best match of the night thus far and the new champs are an interesting choice.

We recap Kazuchika Okada defending the Unified Title against Swerve Strickland. Okada is the dominant champion and Strickland doesn’t like him, so the title match is on.

Unified Title: Kazuchika Okada vs. Swerve Strickland

Strickland is challenging and Okada gives him the pat on the chest against the ropes to start. That’s shrugged off and Strickland hits a dropkick to send him outside. Strickland follows with a knee, which he seems to bang up on contact. Back in and some rolling neckbreakers put Okada down, followed by the middle rope elbow to the back of the neck.

Okada catapults him over the top so Strickland tries to stick the landing, over to hurt his knee again in the process. Okada sends him into the steps to keep the knee in trouble and they go back inside with the pace slowing a good bit. Strickland manages to roll some suplexes, followed by a belly to back superplex for two. They head back outside, with Okada hitting a tombstone on the floor.

Back in and the Rainmaker is countered into the House Call and Strickland fires off some clotheslines. The Rainmaker misses again and Strickland hits a dropkick. A powerbomb is swung into a powerslam (cool) to plant Okada, followed by the Swerve Stomp for two. Okada gets smart by going back to the knee, meaning it’s another dropkick, only Strickland to hit another House Call. Strickland tries it again but walks into the Rainmaker to retain the title at 16:33.

Rating: B. This got going in the end, though Strickland’s knee injury seemed to go away for a long stretch in the middle. I wasn’t quite sold on Strickland winning here but it felt like there was at least a reasonable chance he would get the title. It was a good, hard hitting match with Strickland going for it but ultimately coming up short, which is a good way to go.

Post match Okada goes after the knee again but Prince Nana makes the save with a pipe. Freaking WARDLOW of all people comes in for the beatdown though, laying out both Nana and security. Then Wardlow hugs Don Calls, whose Family somehow has another member. Konosuke Takeshita comes out to show his approval.

We recap Athena challenging Toni Storm for the Women’s Title. Athena is cashing in her Casino Gauntlet title shot and has been coming after Storm, who finds Athena rather annoying.

Women’s Title: Athena vs. Toni Storm

Only Storm is defending and Billie Starkz is here with Athena. Storm hammers away in the corner to start and they head outside, where Starkz offers a quick distraction. Athena dropkicks her up against the barricade and we hit the neck crank back inside. A backsplash misses for Athena but she swings Storm’s head into the post.

Storm gets knocked into the corner but Athena takes too long loading up a running hip attack. A clothesline drops Athena for two, though the TCM Chickenwing is broken up. Athena hits a snap belly to back suplex and they forearm it out. Storm Mongolian chops her down but Athena hits an elbow to the face for two. Starkz’ distraction lets Athena hit a running boot in the corner, followed by a powerbomb for two more.

A Koji Clutch has Storm in even more trouble until she makes the rope and gets outside. Storm sends Athena face first into the steps, followed by Storm Zero for another near fall. Starkz offers another distraction though and the O Face across the top rope connects but here is Mina Shirakawa to cut Starkz off. Another O Face is countered into the TCM Chickenwing to retain the title at 15:15.

Rating: B. Gah I was getting into this one near the end and I was wanting to see Athena win the title. While there are other challengers waiting for Storm, it would be great to see Athena’s incredible Ring Of Honor reign rewarded with a run with the real title. Either way, good match here, though the ending left me a bit disappointed.

We recap Hangman Page defending the World Title against MJF. They don’t like each other as MJF says they’re the villain/main character of the AEW story, with MJF cashing in his Casino Gauntlet contract. Then he changed his mind, but got the title shot anyway by threatening to burn Mark Briscoe alive (as you do).

AEW World Title: Hangman Page vs. Maxwell Jacob Friedman

MJF (in a snazzy green feathered robe) is challenging and Page can lose the title via countout or DQ. After the Big Match Intros, MJF bails out to the floor, with Page following him to hammer away against the barricade. Page drops him throat first across the barricade, followed by a belly to back suplex back inside. They’re already back on the floor, with Page teasing using a chair and getting sent into the post as a result.

Back in and a quick piledriver gives MJF two before he goes after the arm. Page is suplexed into the corner by the arm but he’s fine enough to hit a top rope clothesline for two. MJF is sent outside for the moonsault, followed by a sitout powerbomb for two back inside. Somehow MJF grabs a quickly broken Salt Of The Earth but the Heatseeker is blocked. A hammerlock DDT gives MJF two and he sets up a table at ringside, only for Page to snap off a moonsault.

Rather than covering, Page loads up the table (Danielson disagrees) and hits the Deadeye through the wood (now Danielson approves). MJF manages a foot on the rope back inside and they’re already back outside, with MJF avoiding a charge to send Page into a chair. They jumping (and running) Tombstone onto the broken tables rocks the (bleeding) Page but he beats the count at nine.

Back in and the turnbuckle is exposed, with Page sending MJF into it to bust him open as well. They pull themselves up and slug it out (I’ll take it over forearms) until stereo rolling elbows drop both of them. A rather rapid fire pinfall reversal sequence gets a bunch of twos (and ones) until the Deadeye gives Page a rather near fall. Page is frustrated so MJF hands him the ring and insults him, only for Page to use a regular punch.

The referee gets bumped and MJF gets in a low blow into the Heatseeker, with Page’s foot on the rope. Cue Mark Briscoe for a distraction as the referee gets up and sees the foot on the rope, meaning no count. MJF kicks Page low again and hits him with the contract for two but Page is back with the Deadeye. The Buckshot Lariat FINALLY retains the title at 31:10.

Rating: B-. WAY too long here as they proved the point time after time: MJF was trying to steal the title through any means he could but Page kept surviving. The idea was explained multiple times in there and it was getting to the point of “get on with this already”. Page winning is good, but dang I was annoyed when they pulled back the contract and that’s still the case now. Just let Page move on already, but he can’t because of that stupid contract.

The cage is lowered.

Quick recap of the main event. The Death Riders and the Young Bucks are bad and a bunch of people are after them. Put them all in a cage, including the injured Will Ospreay, non-sanctioned.

Young Bucks/Death Riders/Gabe Kidd vs. Kenny Omega/Kota Ibushi/Darby Allin/Hiroshi Tanahashi/Will Ospreay

In a cage, which is VERY wide and basically a Cell without the roof. Ospreay gets a special entrance video for quite the hero’s welcome. The Bucks’ pyro and entrance stuff isn’t exactly right, but at least the chyron spells their names properly. It’s a huge brawl to start and yes there are weapons already provided around the ring. Tanahashi does the air guitar inside but gets decked by Kidd, who gets in a brawl with Ospreay.

Back up and Ospreay hits a big flip dive to the floor onto Kidd and Allin hits his own running flip dive. We get the Bucks vs. Omega/Ibushi showdown with the Bucks being sent outside for stereo moonsaults. Allin and Moxley are handcuffed together as the Bucks fight back and beat up Omega and Ibushi inside.

The Legos are poured out and Tanahashi comes in to faceplant Matt, followed by Omega powerbombing him into Ibushi’s German suplex. A ladder is brought in and the Bucks (amazing how they keep popping back up) powerbomb Allin into said ladder, allowing the Bucks to clear out the Legos. The bleeding Ospreay is up and wraps a chair around Moxley’s neck (no longer handcuffed) but Kidd is back in with a piledriver.

Castagnoli swings Omega and catapults him into a superkick from Matt. The TK Driver gets two on Ibushi and Allin gets launched over the top and into the cage for a crazy crash. Tanahashi is back in to clean house until Moxley drops him with a DDT. Back in and Allin is duct taped to a chair….so Moxley can try to use a fork to cut his ear off. Hey did you know that Moxley is hardcore? I’m not sure we made that clear.

The barbed wire table is loaded up as Allin is out as well (because not much has a lasting impact in this match). Moxley is sent face first into the barbed wire but Castagnoli gives Tanahashi the Neutralizer. The BTE Trigger connects on Tanahashi but Ospreay dives in for the save. Tanahashi drives Moxley through the barbed wire board and Omega takes Kidd down with the snapdragon.

Ibushi adds a snapdragon of his own (he’s been looking WAY better here) and everyone goes out to the floor. Naturally Ospreay goes up to the top of the cage for a moonsault back down, because he’s kind of out there. Kidd and Omega have their staredown but everyone else gets back in and brawls for the big everyone down.

Omega beats up Moxley and hits the one Winged Angel for two with multiple saves being made. A big stack of four tables are set up outside of the cage so of course Allin goes up, with Kidd trying to choke him. They go crashing through the tables, leaving Nick to take the Golden Trigger. A top rope Hidden Blade into the One Winged Angel drops Matt and the High Fly Flow gives Tanahashi the win at 32:36.

Rating: B-. I get the appeal of the match, but this felt like they were trying to do Anarchy In The Arena without going around the arena. Having this be in a cage only added a few spots, to the point where you could probably have gotten rid of the cage and done about the same thing. Other than that, it felt like a big collection of violence and spots without anything that really felt like it belonged in the main event spot of the pay per view.

Post match Ospreay gets the big moment (as he’s likely off to have neck surgery)…but the Death Riders jump him for a big beatdown. They lock the cage and Pillmanize Ospreay’s neck until the cage is raised, allowing the Opps and company to run in for the save. Everyone is sad and serious as Ospreay is checked on to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This was in a weird place as the wrestling itself ranges from good enough to rather good, with only the opener being a bit lower on the scale. The problem here was that with the guest stars concept mainly being just a feature rather than the focus (Tanahashi could have been taken out of the main event without losing much of anything), there was only so much that felt really high level about this show. It came off like a pretty weak level pay per view (at least by comparison to other AEW shows) and hopefully they come up with something better next year.

The biggest problem though is I really didn’t care that much about what was happening. The action was good and it’s a fine enough show, but in addition to the usual length issues, the two main events don’t really change anything. MJF still has a World Title shot in his back pocket and the main event was really just about revenge. That doesn’t make it feel must see, especially when the two matches added up to over an hour. Anyway, a good show overall, but it really didn’t feel special.

Results
Paragon/El Desperado/Yuya Uemura b. Don Callis Family/Cru – Double arm capture suplex to Rush
Gates Of Agony/Ricochet b. Michael Oku/Jet Speed – Spirit gun to Oku
Megan Bayne/Triangle Of Madness b. Queen Aminata/Harley Cameron/Kris Statlander/Willow Nightingale – Liger Bomb to Cameron
Opps b. Bullet Club WarDogs – MuscleBuster to Robbie X
Adam Copeland/Christian Cage b. The Matriarchy – Spear to Sabian
Kyle Fletcher b. Hiromu Takahashi – Brainbuster
Mercedes Mone b. Alex Windsor, Persephone and Bozilla – Hurricanrana to Persephone
Zack Sabre Jr. b. Nigel McGuinness – Sunset flip
Bandido/Brody King b. Hurt Syndicate and FTR – Monkey flip 450 to Harwood
Kazuchika Okada b. Swerve Strickland – Rainmaker
Toni Storm b. Athena – TCM Chickenwing
Hangman Page b. MJF – Buckshot Lariat
Hiroshi Tanahashi/Kenny Omega/Kota Ibushi/Darby Allin/Will Osprey b. Death Riders/Young Bucks – High Fly Flow to Matt

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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We’re back to the international themed show and in this case it’s actually going international. In this case the show is taking place in London, which should open up quite the excited audience. The big main event features Lights Out steel cage match, which has the potential to be quite the spectacle. Other than that, there are multiple title matches, which makes sense in a promotion that has so many titles. Let’s get to it.

Zero Hour: Paragon/El Desperado/Yuya Uemura vs. Cru/Don Callis Family

This is your latest reminder that Cru is in fact still employed. It’s a match that was thrown together on the Collision before the show, meaning it doesn’t have much in the way of a backstory, though the action should be fine. Paragon is getting more serious and wants revenge for Adam Cole being injured, so maybe they can start things off here, even if Kyle Fletcher isn’t around.

I’ll take the good guys to win, as there are too many people on the other side who could take a fall. Cru has absolutely no value at the moment so beating one of them is a perfectly fine way to go. Paragon or one of the guest stars can get a win so this is likely going to be fine, albeit without much drama. In other words, it’s fine for a match on the Kickoff Show, assuming it isn’t coming up fourth.

Zero Hour: Triangle Of Madness/Megan Bayne vs. Harley Cameron/Kris Statlander/Queen Aminata/Willow Nightingale

This one was set up on Collision so points for having an actual build to the match for a change. The villains are another group trying to dominate without actually winning anything and that’s not the most thrilling deal, but Bayne is someone who could be put into the title picture at the drop of a hat. Other than that, you have the in-ring return of Cameron, which should work out rather well.

When I was putting the participants down for this match, it was a case of looking to see who would be taking the fall and it’s hard to imagine it being anyone but Aminata. Odds are Bayne pins her and gets to look all dominant while saving the others for bigger stuff. That’s a good way to go and a nice effort to get a bunch of women on the show, though it only feels so important.

Zero Hour: Gates Of Agony/Ricochet vs. Jet Speed/Michael Oku

I still don’t know if I get the appeal of Oku, who is fine in the ring but never really comes off as a huge star. That being said, he’s fine as a guest star here as the fans will know who he is and he’s a bigger deal in England than he is in the United States. The rest of the people involved seem to be cases of “get them on the show one way or another” and there are worse options for that status.

I’ll take the good guys to win here, for the sake of having the guest starring Oku win. The Gates have shown that they can lose over and over (and over and over) without really changing so they should be fine here. Ricochet very well could get the win here and if that involves him getting to beat up Mike Bailey along the way, I can think of a few worse outcomes for the match.

Zero Hour: Trios Titles: Opps(c) vs. Bullet Club War Dogs

It’s better than no main event at all. The Opps are at least turning into something of an established team with the titles so I’ll take that over another thrown together team with no reason to be in the title picture. At the same time, they’re facing an established faction so this could be a heck of a lot worse (as it tends to be when either set of six person titles are defended around here).

I’ll go with the champions retaining in a hard fought match, which will be another nice win on their resume. The Opps have already been champions for several months and there is a good chance that they’ll hold the titles for a long time to come. Let them face other established teams (as many of them as there are) and their reign will feel even better, with this being a nice example.

TBS Title: Mercedes Mone(c) vs. Persephone vs. Alex Windsor vs. Bozilla

We’ll get one of the international matches out of the way here with challengers from AEW, CMLL and Stardom. The problem with Forbidden Door season is that Bozilla and Persephone have barely been a factor while Windsor has been the real challenger to Mone. In theory that’s going to be the match at All Out, as it’s certainly the match that has gotten the most attention on the way to this show.

So yeah of course I’m going to take Mone to win, as she needs to get a victory back after losing to Toni Storm (and since winning those random titles means a grand total of nothing, this is what she can do). Odds are she beats either Bozilla or Persephone to retain, leaving Windsor free to get the title shot later. It should be a good match, though it would be that much better as a singles match.

TNT Title: Kyle Fletcher(c) vs. Hiromu Takahashi

This is another match where there isn’t exactly much in the way of drama about the result. Fletcher just won the title a few weeks ago and seems primed for a big run. Takahashi is an incredible talent in his own right but he feels like he’s there for the sake of making Fletcher look good. That’s not the worst thing in the world, but it doesn’t exactly leave much in the way of questions about how it’s going to go.

Naturally Fletcher retains here, albeit after a heck of a match. Fletcher can work well with anyone and Takahashi is one of the most talented starts you’ll find today. This has the potential to steal the show (or at least come close) but I can’t find a way to believe that Takahashi is going to win here. It’s part of the issue of the international theme, but at least the match should be great.

Adam Copeland/Christian Cage vs. Matriarchy

I’m still not sure if that’s the right name for the team or not but I’m going with it. Now I’m trying to figure out something to say about the match, as it’s rather amusing to suggest that this has any kind of drama. The team is back together after twenty plus years (ignoring two matches in March 2011 because…well they don’t really matter) and they’re coming up on the pay per view in Toronto. What do you think is happening here?

You can put Killswitch in there all you want and it isn’t going to matter, as Cage and Copeland could go out there and split a sandwich and they would find a way to win. This is all about getting the big reunion and that should get quite the reception. I’m sure the match itself will be fine, but there is just no reason to believe that the Canadian legends are going to have any real trouble.

IWGP World Heavyweight Title: Zack Sabre Jr.(c) vs. Nigel McGuinness

So again, there isn’t much drama about who is walking away with the title here, but also again, this should be a heck of a match. Sabre can get in the ring and torture anyone, while McGuinness is a technical master in his own right. Both of them are from England as well so the fans will be way into things. At the same time though, there is a wild card to be considered and that’s not going to go well.

While Sabre is all but a lock to retain here, McGuinness is likely to give him a run for his money and probably get close with some submission attempts. That being said, ever since McGuinness won the Technical Spectacle to get the title shot, there has been a big countdown going until Daniel Garcia turns on him. That likely happens here, with Garcia likely costing McGuinness the title to set up something of a teacher vs. student match at All Out. McGuinness comes close here, but ultimately comes up short, thanks to Garcia.

Tag Team Titles: Hurt Syndicate(c) vs. Bandido/Brody King vs. FTR

This is the result of a #1 contenders tournament, because tournaments don’t need to have conclusive winners in the name of a triple threat title match. If nothing else, it’s nice to have a match which could go in a few ways though and that’s what we have here. While the Syndicate is great at what they do and have been dominant champions, they might not be able to hang in there the whole way here.

While there is always the chance of having the Syndicate win and move on to All Out as champions against fresh challengers, I’ll go with what feels like the more likely path of FTR winning here. That means they can face Copeland and Cage at All Out, possibly even in a ladder match for the belts. While that match doesn’t need the belts (or the ladders), it’s what feels the most likely, so we’ll say FTR wins here.

Unified Title: Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Swerve Strickland

Now we’re getting into the interesting stuff, as while Okada would seem like the heavy favorite here, beating Strickland is no easy feat. That could make for some interesting results, as Strickland is certainly a worthy challenger. Okada is someone who could run with the title until the Continental Classic, but there is also an interesting situation with Strickland possibly taking it.

I’ll take Okada to retain here, but dang it should be a fun one. This is one of the matches that has me the most interested and hopefully it lives up to its potential. Strickland has shown that he can hang with anyone in the world and beating Okada isn’t out of the question. Either way, Strickland needs something to do, though I don’t think it’s going to be winning the title.

Women’s Title: Toni Storm(c) vs. Athena

Here we have another one that has me really intrigued. Storm is one of the most successful stars in the history of the women’s division (if not the most), but at the same time, Athena has been Ring Of Honor Women’s Champion for so long that it’s hard to remember not having the belt. She’s absolutely hit the ground running in AEW and feels like she could easily carry the division. That being said, I’m just not sure if she will.

I’m going to go out on a limb and take Athena to win here, with the full on feeling that Storm will wind up winning so she can put Mercedes Mone over and give her the win back later on. Athena needs the win more, and it isn’t like Storm is going to be hurt by losing anything. Hopefully Athena wins and I’ll go with that as my pick, albeit one that I expect to be wrong.

AEW World Title: Hangman Page(c) vs. MJF

So this was the contract match from All In but instead we’re getting that later, because the Money In The Bank style thing HAS TO BE AROUND. As annoying as that is, we should be in for a good match here, as MJF has an ability to bring it on the big stage. The stipulations of Page being able to lose the title by countout or DQ make things more interesting and that’s a positive sign for this.

That being said, it’s almost impossible to imagine Page losing the title in his first pay per view defense after the big title win at All In. I’ll take Page to win here as it makes the most sense, though hopefully we get the contract for another match immediately thereafter to burn that thing off for good. Either way, Page overcomes the odds to win and retain the title.

Kenny Omega/Kota Ibushi/Darby Allin/Hiroshi Tanahashi/Will Ospreay vs. Death Riders/Young Bucks/Gabe Kidd

This is a Lights Out steel cage match with Will Ospreay likely not being around much longer after this due to needing neck surgery. I’m not sure what that is going to mean, but having ten people in a single cage is kind of asking for trouble. That being said, I have no reason to believe that they’re all going to stay in the cage anyway, which tends to be the case with these things.

At the end of the day, this is a match which could go either way and I’m curious about how it goes, but I’ll take the villains to win here. It allows Moxley to get a big win back after his World Title loss and sets up Allin to be the one to finally take Moxley and the Death Riders down. This also could be the match where Ospreay is written off television, even if it means sacrificing him getting a big win in the main event in front of his home country.

Overall Thoughts

If I didn’t know any better, I might miss the fact that this is Forbidden Door. The build has been far less than previous years and that is making it a lot better. Instead of taking a big side trip with all of the guest stars, the outsiders are little more than bonus pieces on the show and that has me a lot more interested. The show might not be a guaranteed smash hit, but it fees a lot more interesting coming in and I’ll definitely take that.

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

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Dynamite
Date: August 20, 2025
Location: OVO Hydro, Glasgow, Scotland
Commentators: Bryan Danielson, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

It’s the last Dynamite before we get to this weekend’s Forbidden Door. As a result, that means we are probably going to get some rapid fire build to the show. The good thing is that most of the card is already set, including a rather big lights out steel cage match, which should be…something. Let’s get to it.

Here is Collision if you need a recap.

Bryan Danielson comes out to be a special guest commentator. Yeah that still works.

Here is Will Ospreay to get things going. Ospreay says he’s been having one of the worst months of his career. He talks about the first time he ever came to Glasgow and got screwed over by a promoter. Ospreay praises the UK’s ability to drink and brings up Greggs’ sausage rolls (which are delicious) and we pause for a SAUSAGE, SAUSAGE ROLLS chant. Ospreay: “None of that vegan crap either!”

After calming Danielson down (that was funny), Ospreay talks about feeling human for the first time after having a bunch of health issues. A lot of wrestlers have gone down this same road and they never come back the same. Last week, he was not cleared for Forbidden Door, which is why he wanted the match to be lights out, meaning unsanctioned by AEW. He knows the risks and is willing to take them, and if he can’t be Will Ospreay after Sunday, then he’s going to give everything he has. This is about revenge and he is ready to enter the cage and tear the Death Riders apart.

Cue the Death Riders to interrupt, with Ospreay asking why Jon Moxley needs people to fight his battles. Ospreay is coming to get rid of Moxley, so Moxley should be ready to fight on his own. Cue Jet Speed to brawl with the Death Riders (before their scheduled six man tag tonight) and here is Hiroshi Tanahashi so let’s do the match now.

Jet Speed/Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Death Riders

Tanahashi crossbodies Moxley down to start but gets kicked in the face by Castagnoli to cut him off. Bailey comes back in to kick away at Yuta, who knocks him down to take over again. Marina Shafir gets in a cheap on the floor, with the referee looking right at her, before we continue. Thankfully she is ejected, with Will Ospreay coming out to carry her to the back, and we take a break.

We come back with Knight in trouble in the corner, allowing Castagnoli to strike away. Knight kicks his way to freedom and it’s Tanahashi coming back in to clean house. Triple Twist And Shouts take the Riders down but cue the Bullet Club Wardogs from New Japan for a distraction. Cue Will Ospreay with a body bag, leaving Tanahashi to hit the High Fly Flow for the pin on Yuta at 11:04.

Rating: B-. Tanahashi is retiring in a few months and that is pretty much the best for everyone. He’s an all time legend and one of the best ever, but my goodness his body is horribly broken down and it’s sad to see what he can’t do these days. The rest of the match was fine and Yuta losing is always worth a look, but Tanahashi’s inability to run is just sad to see.

Post match the Wardogs and the Death Riders beat down the winners, with the Young Bucks running in to superkick Ospreay. The Conglomeration cuts them off but Darby Allin pops out of the body bag to help with the brawl. Cue the Opps to help clear the villains out but the brawl goes into the crowd, where Allin Coffin Drops off the balcony to wipe everyone out. Total people involved in this whole thing: 19.

Video on MJF vs. Hangman Page, focusing on the main character vs. villain angle.

Here is Adam Copeland for a chat, along with a serenade from the crowd. Before he can say anything though, here is Christian Cage to join him in the ring. Cage goes to tell the fans to be quiet but Copeland cuts him off, saying these people love him. Copeland admits that Cage is an a******, but he’s COPELAND’S a******.

As Copeland realizes that wasn’t the best way to word things, Cage acknowledges that he has found himself…which is someone who does not need to change. They aren’t on the same page, but at least they are reading the same book. This is a reunion of necessity because they are agreeing to help each other with their respective problems. We get the handshake and here are Kip Sabian and Mother Wayne to interrupt.

Nick Wayne pops up on screen, carrying a pair of crutches though, because he has a broken foot. Wayne won’t be at Forbidden Door, so consider it a blessing that he can’t cost Copeland and Cage everything. He is always one step ahead though…and Killswitch is back. A chokeslam plants Copeland and Cage is laid out as well, as Sabian seems to have a replacement partner. Copeland and Cage being back together is what matters here, and I’m sure they’ll be on the same page sooner than later. It’s the Canadian way.

Mark Briscoe is in England to hurt MJF.

MJF interrupts Ricochet and the Gates Of Agony, asking for their help with Briscoe tonight. Ricochet is in.

#1 Contenders Tournament Finals: FTR vs. Bandido/Brody King

Stokely Hathaway is here with FTR. Bandido shoves his way out of the corner to start before Harwood takes him down by the arm. Harwood’s running shoulder drops Bandido again and they trade takedowns until Bandido does the gun point at Harwood’s head. Wheeler comes in and gets dropkicked to the floor as the Hurt Syndicate is watching in the back. Harwood is so frustrated that he grabs a chair as King comes in to shove Wheeler down.

King strikes away at Harwood, who is right back with a piledriver…which King shrugs off. Bandido is dropped onto Harwood for two but Wheeler comes in to send King outside. Hathaway gets in a cheap shot with a loaded sling and King is in trouble as we take a break. We come back with Bandido and Harwood coming in to pick the pace back up. Everything breaks down and Bandido’s dive to the floor is cut off, with FTR dropping him onto the apron.

A Demolition Decapitator gives Wheeler two, though Danielson wasn’t impressed by the cover. The chinlock goes on but Bandido fights up and hits a middle rope crossbody for two more. We take another break and come back again with Bandido hitting a double hurricanrana, followed by a double DDT. That’s finally enough for the tag back to King to clean quite a bit of house. The cannonball in the corner gets two on Harwood, with Wheeler having to make the save.

Bandido hits a big flip dive to hit Harwood but he has kick Hathaway down and get his mask back. A frog splash gives Bandido two and Wheeler tornado DDTs King on the floor. The PowerPlex is cut off by King’s choke but King gets crotched on top. The top rope belly to back superplex into the top rope splash gets two as we hear the five minute call. A quick Shatter Machine gets two as Bandido is back in for some rollups. King saves Bandido from a Shatter Machine and chokes Harwood, who is chopped out to the floor.

Harwood is back up with a spike piledriver on the apron but Bandido is up with a moonsault to the floor. Back in and the Shatter Machine is blocked, as is the 21 Plex. Another Shatter Machine connects with King making the save…so FTR grabs a table with less than a minute left? King sends them into the barricade but Wheeler is up to miss a suicide dive through the table as time expires at 30:00.

Rating: B+. The ending with the table was rather odd and the ending setting up another triple threat for the titles is rather annoying. Maybe it’s a way to get the titles off of the Hurt Syndicate without them having to lose, but at least the match was rather good. King and Bandido are a team who were thrown together and wound up working very well, though being in there with FTR isn’t hurting things. Heck of a match here, weird table aside.

Post match Bandido gives Harwood the 21 Plex, as his timing is a bit off. And then we get the announcement of the three way title match because…well because of course.

Video on Swerve Strickland vs. Kazuchika Okada.

Here is Hangman Page for a chat. Last week, he was attacked in the parking lot by MJF and that shouldn’t be a surprise, because MJF is a coward. Page needs him to know that at Forbidden Door, there are no second chances and Page is sticking his boot up MJF’s checkered a**. MJF’s music plays but he’s nowhere to be found. Tony Schiavone says that MJF is in the back and has a message for Page, and if Page leaves the ring before he’s done, something bad is going to happen.

MJF is with Ricochet and the Gates of Agony, who have kidnapped Mark Briscoe. They threaten to LIGHT HIM ON FIRE unless Page agrees to three conditions at Forbidden Door: the title can change hands via countout or via DQ and the contract is NOT being used. MJF whips out a lighter and Page agrees. OH SCREW OFF with the contract still being a thing. Just get rid of the stupid contract and move on.

Post break, Page jumps Ricochet with a chair and then beats up security.

Mercedes Mone/Athena vs. Toni Storm/Alex Windsor

Billie Starkz is here with Mone/Athena. Mone headlocks Windsor to start but it’s too early for the Statement Maker. Windsor fall away slams Mone into the corner, where Storm kisses the side of her head before coming in. Athena backs Storm into the corner but gets caught with a basement dropkick. Mone breaks up a double suplex as everything breaks down. Double headbutts put Athena and Mone in the corner, though they avoid the double hip attack. Athena plants Storm on the floor but gets taken out by Windsor’s dive as we take a break.

We come back with Storm getting to come in and clean house, including a PerfectPlex for two on Athena. Windsor’s short arm lariat gets two and it’s right back to Storm, who gets Codebreakered into the Statement Maker. That’s broken up and Mone misses the running knees in the corner. Storm gives Athena a tornado DDT, which is enough for the diving tag back to Windsor.

A running clothesline and Blue Thunder Bomb get two each, leaving Athena to piledrive Storm on the steps. Windsor decks Athena and gives Mone a Samoan drop. The Sharpshooter makes Mone tap…but she’s not legal so it means nothing. Athena comes in with the O Face to finish Windsor at 16:02 in a smart finish (and extra points for Athena looking all fired up after the win, which doesn’t happen often enough in modern wrestling).

Rating: B. That ending was awesome and clever, which is a nice combination to see. I’m always a fan of taking two title matches and mixing them together like this, with the result working well. Good match here, and I’m becoming more and more convinced that Athena is winning the title.

Post match Mone gets shoved down by Persephone, another of her challengers at Forbidden Door, to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. I get that it makes sense for the person doing it, but that whole deal with the contract took me out of a lot of the show. It feels like a twist for the sake of a twist or some massive backtracking, neither of which are something you want to see. Other than that, the show was rather good, with the tournament final and main event offering good action and Forbidden Door’s build going well, even without bogging the show down with all kinds of guest stars.

Results
Jet Speed/Hiroshi Tanahashi b. Death Riders – High Fly Flow to Yuta
FTR vs. Brody King/Bandido went to a time limit draw
Mercedes Mone/Athena b. Alex Windsor/Toni Storm – O Face to Windsor

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

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