By Don Murphy, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@DonThePredictor)
AEW Collision (Episode 40)
Taped April 4, 2024 in Worcester, Massachusetts at DCU Center
Aired April 6, 2024 on TNT
[Hour One] The Collision opening aired, complete with Elton John and “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” and pyro shot off from the stage. Tony Schiavone and Nigel McGuinness checked in on commentary. Bobby Cruise was the ring announcer…
1. “FTR” Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler vs. “Top Flight” Dante Martin and Darius Martin in a semifinal tournament match for the vacant AEW Tag Team Titles. Harwood started out with Darius Martin. Harwood hit a shoulder block. Martin responded with an arm drag. Both exchanged some chain wrestling maneuvers. Wheeler tagged in and went to work on the arm. Darius responded with a take down and an arm drag. Dante tagged in and the two double teamed Wheeler. Wheeler rolled to the outside.
Back in the ring, Harwood tagged back in and went to work on Dante’s arm. Dante responded with two arm drags. Dante rolled up Harwood for a near fall. Dante went to work on Harwood’s arm. Darius tagged back in and kept up the attack. Harwood regained the advantage and tagged in Wheeler. They hit Darius with a double clothesline. Wheeler followed up with chops in the corner. Wheeler kept Darius near FTR’s corner. Darius countered and moved Wheeler back to Top Flight’s corner. Darius tagged in Dante who delivered a double stomp to Wheeler’s arm. Wheeler quickly regained the advantage.
Dante and Wheeler exchanged offense. Dante gained several near falls on Wheeler. Dante hit dropkicks on both Harwood and Wheeler. Dante and Darius quickly tagged in and out on Harwood and knocked Wheeler out of the ring. They then sent Harwood to the floor as well. Dante went after both on the floor but was lured into a clothesline by Wheeler as the show went to its first picture-in-picture break. [C]
Back from commercial and Dante reversed a superplex attempt by Harwood into a near fall. Dante tagged in Darius who cleaned house, gaining several near falls on Harwood. Harwood responded with a loud chop. Dante rebounded and hit chops on both Wheeler and Harwood. Dante small packaged Harwood for a near fall. All four competitors battled in the ring.
Darius hit a flatliner on Harwood for a near fall. Darius and Wheeler ended up on the floor. Dante went for a splash on Harwood but Harwood got the knees up which resulted in a near fall. Dante and Darius recovered and attempted a double pin via a cross body and roll up on Harwood and Wheeler respectively for a near fall. Darius hit a release German suplex on Harwood. Wheeler responded with a vertical suplex on Darius. The finish saw Darius and Wheeler exchanging moves and Darius attempting a dive off into the second rope right into a Shatter Machine for the FTR win.
FTR defeated Top Flight in about 15:40 to advance to the finals of the AEW Tag Team Championship Tournament to face the Young Bucks at AEW Dynasty on April 21..
Don’s Take: Have enough wrestling yet? Amid all the other shows this weekend, this was a great match to open the late-night of Collision. I’m pleased that through this tournament, the company seems to be taking its tag team division a bit more seriously. I’m glad that FTR seems to have moved to the forefront again and with the addition of FTR vs. the Young Bucks at Dynasty, the card is coming together very nicely.
A hype video on Kazuchika Okada aired. The video was narrated by Nigel McGuinness and “written by Matthew and Nicholas Jackson.”
2. PAC vs. Encore Moore. Moore was listed as making his 2024 debut. This was a complete squash match for PAC. After a series of offense and several suplexes, he climbed to the top rope seemingly for the Black Arrow, only to climb down and lock in the Brutalizer submission for the win.
PAC defeated Encore Moore in about 2:30.
After the match, PAC grabbed the mic. He said he warned AEW that he was done waiting for opportunities he deserves. He added that now he is taking matters into his own hand and is on a mission to remind everyone who he is – the best professional wrestler on earth. With that, he challenged Okada to a match and said that he “eagerly awaits Okada’s response.” [C]
Don’s Take: Add another likely match to the Dynasty lineup which has the potential to a show stealer. That’s not a light statement considering the rest of the lineup thus far. It appears that Tony Khan is really trying to showcase the new “where the best wrestle” mantra.
Renee Paquette was backstage with Bryan Danielson. She asked him about his upcoming match with Will Ospreay at Dynasty. Danielson said that he never competed to see if he was better than anyone else, but rather if he was being the best version of himself. He added that life is all about evolution and that he’s not the same wrestler he was when he was 21 and that Ospreay won’t be the same wrestler when he’s Danielson’s age. He recounted watching Ospreay’s match with Konosuke Takeshita at Revolution and Jennifer Pepperman saying that Ospreay may be the best wrestler she’s ever seen. He said that while he understands how much the fans want this match, but he’s not doing it for them, he’s doing it for himself…
3. HOOK and Chris Jericho vs. Shane Taylor and Lee Moriarty. A graphic hyped next week’s live edition of Collision followed by a “Battle of the Belts” special.
Jericho and Taylor started off. Taylor overpowered Jericho in the corner and splashed him in the opposite corner. Jericho got the foot up to prevent another attempted splash in the corner. Jericho attempted a suplex on Taylor but couldn’t get him up. Jericho tagged in HOOK and the two succeeded in getting Taylor up.
Moriarty tagged in and took over on HOOK, who countered with a suplex. Jericho tagged back in and chopped Moriarty. Jericho attempted the Walls of Jericho but is too close to the ropes. Taylor misses a clothesline from the outside and Jericho springboard dropkicks him off the apron. Moriarty hits a big boot on Jericho as the show goes to a picture-in picture break. [C]
After the break, the heels were still on offense. Taylor went for a splash on Jericho but Jericho got the knees up. Moriarty missed a dropkick and Jericho hit the Lionsault. Jericho got tagged HOOK who cleaned house with a series of offense and suplexes. HOOK attempted to suplex Taylor but was unable to. Taylor missed a charge at HOOK and flew over the top rope. HOOK tagged in Jericho and hit a flying double ax handle on Taylor on the floor.
Back in the ring, Moriarty hit a flatliner on Jericho and locked in the Border City Stretch. Jericho reversed it into the Walls of Jericho. Simultaneously, HOOK locked in Red Rum. Taylor made the save but HOOK was finally able to suplex him. Still in the Walls of Jericho, Moriarty tapped out.
Chris Jericho and HOOK defeated Shane Taylor and Lee Moriarty in about 9:00.
After the match, Anthony Ogogo returned and attacked Jericho. HOOK made the save but was double teamed by Taylor and Moriarty. The heel trio beat down the babyfaces, which ended with Ogogo knocking out Jericho with a right-handed punch. Ogogo is apparently now a member of Shane Taylor Promotions.
Don’s Take: The match was fine for what it was. It’s only a matter of time before Jericho turns on HOOK and I’m not really feeling it at all. That said, I’ve been saying that AEW should do more with Taylor. I don’t know that Anthony Ogogo is the guy to accomplish that, but giving the faction more members may lead to more prominence on TV. Time will tell.
Dustin Rhodes was backstage. He said that those that feel he’s under appreciated are correct. He told the story of Dusty Rhodes bringing the World Heavyweight Championship home for the first time and added that in 36 years, the one thing he had never done was win that particular title. He then challenged Samoa Joe to a title match on this coming week’s Dynamite… [C]
Don’s Take: It appears that Dustin wants to finish his……oh never mind.
Renee Paquette was backstage with Will Ospreay. She asked about the matches he’s had so far. He said everyone is a lot quicker and that he’s trying to keep up. He said Japan has more of a ground style which is similar to the style Bryan Danielson has. Paquette asked about the match vs. Danielson at Dynasty. Ospreay said that while it is an honor, he doesn’t see it as different than any other match. He talked about Danielson’s legacy but feels that he is the best wrestler of the 21st century. He also doesn’t feel that Danielson is at his highest level while he is. He dubbed the match the “greatest of all time vs. the greatest of the 21st century.” He said the match will feature the greatest wrestlers where wrestlers wrestle.
Don’s Take: They’re really hammering the motto home. That said, for hardcore fans, while Danielson vs. Ospreay sells itself, I appreciate the promo work by both in an attempt to grab the more casual viewer.
4. “The House of Black” Malakai Black, Buddy Matthews and Brody King vs. Christopher Daniels, Matt Sydal and Bryan Keith. This match was a follow-up to Black defeating Daniels on this week’s Rampage. Keith exchanged moves and strikes with Black. Keith hit an exploder suplex for a one count. Black hit a knee strike and tagged in King. Keith rolled out and tagged in Sydal who tagged in Daniels. Daniels and Sydal double teamed King, who responded with a double clothesline on both.
[Hour Two] King hit a strong clothesline on Daniels as the show went to a picture-in-picture break. [C]
Coming out of the break, Daniels was back on offense gaining several near falls on Black. Daniels hit a Saito suplex on Black who tagged in Matthews. Daniels hot tagged Sydal who cleaned house. Down the stretch, Brody hits Dante’s Inferno on Sydal as Keith blind tagged himself in. King hits Keith with a clothesline and hits a cannonball in the corner with simultaneous kicks from Matthews and Black. Daniels enters with all three House of Black members and is hit with Black’s The End kick finisher. Matthews is back with Keith and hits a high knee followed by a pump handle slam for the win.
“The House of Black” Malakai Black, Buddy Matthews and Brody King defeated Christopher Daniels, Matt Sydal and Bryan Keith in about 10:00.
After the match, Adam Copeland’s music played. Black went up the ramp to meet him, but Copeland ran in from the crowd and hit King with a chair. The House of Black regained the advantage and attacked Copeland. Mark Briscoe and FTR made the save. Matthew and Nicholas Jackson made their elevator entrance and brawled with FTR. Copeland hit King with a chair again and speared him. He did the same to Matthews. Black was left in the ring with the babyfaces and retreated. Matthew Jackson was then alone in the ring but Nicholas pulled him to safety.
Don’s Take: The match was standard. The post-match angle was designed to seemingly set up a multi-man tag match on an upcoming episode of Dynamite or Collision.
Lexy Nair was backstage with Rocky Romero. Romero said he has yet to win an AEW Championship. He knows there are rules to earning a title match so he challenged AEW International Champion Roderick Strong to an Eliminator Match. Strong entered and laughed at Romero’s challenge. He said he’s done everything all by himself just like Kyle O’Reilly and that Romero has a one percent chance of beating “us, I mean me.” He then said “isn’t that right Wardlow?” He told Romero not to worry as he could tell his grandkids that he was defeated by a wrestling legend.
Tony Schiavone announced that on Dynamite, the Young Bucks will present backstage footage from All In from Wembley Stadium and will discuss it for the first time. [C]
Don’s Take: They will reportedly show the backstage footage of the CM Punk and Jack Perry incident. It’s a decent hook for Wednesday’s show.
Lexy Nair was backstage with HOOK and Chris Jericho. Jericho spoke about the attack from Shane Taylor Promotions earlier tonight and said that they had three members while Jericho and HOOK were only two. HOOK said he had a third man and brought in Katsuyori Shibata who said that he would have their back.
5. Trish Adora vs. Yuka Sakazaki. The match was even to start. Sakazaki hit a running clothesline while Adora was sitting down for a near fall. Adora blocked a tarantula and hit a back breaker as the show went to a picture-in-picture break. [C]
Back from the break, Adora had Sakazaki in a submission hold but Sakazaki got to the ropes. Sakazaki hit a flying dropkick which took a long time to execute meaning that Adora had to stand there awkwardly. Adora blocked a suplex and hit one of her own. Adora and Sakazaki exchanged forearms and strikes. Adora hit a German suplex but Sakazaki quickly recovered and slammed Adora down. Adora retaliated with a suplex. Adora hit a sit out bomb for a near fall. Sakazaki put Adora in an airplane spin and face planted her. Sakazaki hit a splash by jumping off the middle of the top rope for the pinfall.
Yuka Sakazaki defeated Trish Adora in about 9:00.
After the match, Serena Deeb walked onto the stage and stared down Sakazaki…
Don’s Take: I’m guessing that this is why despite losing to Deeb on Rampage, Adora got the match with Sakazaki. This was solid and Sakazaki vs. Deeb should be good as well.
A video recapped Trent Beretta’s turn on Orange Cassidy from Dynamite.
Matt Menard and Daniel Garcia were backstage. Menard put over Garcia and his win on Rampage. Menard said they want more. Garcia added said that it’s time to insert himself into the conversation with some of the greats, including Konosuke Takeshita, Kazuchika Okada and Will Ospreay.
6. Claudio Castagnoli vs. The Butcher. This was a fairly basic match, with Castagnoli on offense early. The Butcher took over with a back breaker, forearms to the back and a cross face. Castagnoli retaliates with a Death Valley Driver followed by his signature European uppercuts. Castagnoli hit the giant swing and Neutralizer for the win.
Claudio Castagnoli defeated The Butcher in about 5:00.
Don’s Take: I’m hoping this is the re-emergence of Castagnoli into higher level programs. Way too much talent to waste on squash matches.
Julia Hart, with Skye Blue, cut a promo on Willow Nightingale to preview their match at Dynasty. She asked Mercedes Mone why she is focused on Willow and not her, as Hart has beaten Willow twice. [C]
Samoa Joe was backstage and turned down Dustin Rhodes’ challenge for a title match on Dynamite but agreed to fight him. He said that if Rhodes beats him he will make him the number one contender.
7. Komander vs. Penta El Zero Miedo (w/Alex Abrahantes). Tony Schiavone mentioned Penta’s upcoming TNT Championship match against Adam Copeland on Dynamite. This is where Don doesn’t even try to follow this spot fest. Heading into the final picture-in-picture break, both wrestlers were on the floor where Penta dropped Komander on the ring steps. [C]
Back from the commercial, Komander regained the advantage and dove onto Penta on the floor. Down the stretch, Komander hit a top rope moonsalt onto Penta on the floor. Komander followed up by attempting a top rope shooting star press, but Penta caught him and delivered a code breaker, followed by his Fear Factor finisher for the win.
Penta El Zero Miedo defeated Komander in about 15:00.
After the match, Adam Copeland walked onto the stage to stare at Penta as the show went off the air.
Don’s Take: The expected outcome given Penta’s upcoming title match. The live crowd loved the standard spot fest, but I have no reason to buy into Penta as a threat to Copeland. I will say that the difference in styles should make for an interesting match.
Overall, in the midst of an overloaded weekend of wrestling, this was a solid episode of Collision. Unfortunately, it likely won’t due great in the ratings given the late hour it aired and potential fan burnout from the other shows this weekend. That said, the company is starting to do some of the little things right that we’ve criticized the lack of before. Here’s hoping they keep it up.
That’s all for me! Enjoy the rest of this packed weekend and I’ll be back on Friday with a Rampage review. Until then!
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