AEW Collision: August 12

August 13, 2023 9:39 PM - Season 1, Episode 9

If you like tag team matches, you're going to like this episode. If you looooove tag matches, you're going to love this episode. Also, if your "Miro Alert" watch went off, this episode is the reason. (Late post b/c I was out yesterday, match results below the cut.)

Results and a little commentary from Bleacher Report:

The show opened with Tony Schiavone telling Ricky Starks that he had been suspended 30 days for attacking Ricky Steamboat. Starks said "Actions have consequences." This turned into a promo for Starks where he said he got a manager's license and would still be on the show every week.

I believe that the last time anyone got a "manager's license" on an AEW show, it was Chuck and Trent trying to smuggle a chainsaw to the ring to help Orange Cassidy defend the International title, so the sky is truly the limit on how bonkers this angle can get.

The Acclaimed def. The Iron Savages

Iron Savages are a re-packaged Bear Country, except now Bear and Bronson are "sippin' savage sauce and livin' hoss", mostly on Ring Of Honor until now. I love when a gimmick is unironically dorky (see also WWE's current "Alpha Academy") so it was nice for them to get booked competitively against the Acclaimed and get some feats-of-strength spots in before losing to dual Fameassers.

Mercedes Martinez & Diamante def. Willow Nightingale & Kris Statlander

Decent showing for the heels, hopefully this leads to Kris defending her title at All In (or at All Out the following week, but seriously Tony, is your "biggest wrestling event in history" really going to have just one women's match?)

Samoa Joe squashed Andrew Everett

...and then demanded Punk answer his politely worded request for another rematch at All In, whereupon Punk conspicuously did not appear.

TNT Championship Match: Luchasaurus (c) (with Christian Cage) def. Brock Anderson (with Arn Anderson)

...which was really just a place-setter for Darby Allin attacking the champ to promote their upcoming match.

Powerhouse Hobbs called out Miro

I'm curious where this goes, because if the storyline doesn't end with Miro -- who lest we forget, cut a promo against God a few weeks ago -- defeating Hobbs, or somehow recruiting him to a "Hosses Against God" stable, then I will declare it to be unholy and purge it with fiery wrath.

AEW World Trios Championship Match: The House of Black (c) def. CM Punk & FTR

"With two trios like this, anything short of a good match seems almost impossible. Everyone got to play to their strengths and worked together to put on a fun and physical main event."

The match tilted in the champions' favor when Samoa Joe reappeared after Punk spilled out onto the barricades, grabbed him, and choked him out for refusing to answer the call from earlier that night. I'll give the backstage team here the benefit of the doubt and assume that there's an intentional through-line in this episode: Ricky Starks (Punk's recently defeated opponent) opened the show by saying "actions have consequences", Joe made demands of Punk at the middle of the episode, and by the end... CONSEQUENCES. That's classic A to B storytelling, and when it happens on an AEW show I assume it's intentional.

posted by The Pluto Gangsta (1 comment total)

Acclaimed vs. Iron Savages was in no way fancy but it was fun and showcased both teams in a way that catered to their strengths and made them both look great while leaving the audience happy.

Powerhouse Hobbs and Miro is a hoss fight I would love to see and if it results in a hoss team I would be extra-super-delighted.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 9:58 AM on August 14, 2023 [1 favorite]