AEW Collision: September 16, 2023

September 16, 2023 4:32 PM - Season 1, Episode 14

Since Punk's exit, the roster boundaries between Dynamite and Collision have gone by the wayside, and tonight will feature yet another big Collision debut, as Matt and Jeff Hardy head to Saturdays to take on "The Righteous," Vincent and Dutch, also making their Collision debut.

Tonight's announced card:

Anthony Bowens vs. John Silver

Yesterday this was going to be Evil Uno repping the Dark Order, but the card, she is subject to change. If AEW wants me to take the Dark Order seriously as heels, maybe they shouldn't send their funniest, most meme-worthy member out to fight? I suppose this is headed towards a trios title match down the line, either at Grand Slam or the next big event, but here's the thing: I'm never not going to root for the Dark Order to hold a belt.

The Hardys vs. The Righteous

If Jeff is truly finishing his contract and retiring, I'd like the Hardys to go out on some kind of wild adventure. It doesn't have to be the return of Broken Matt, just something noteable. Perhaps The Righteous are a step along that path? Their gimmick does lend itself to some extended confrontations down the line.

Andrade el Idolo vs. Scorpio Sky

Andrade is back on Collision, he has his mask back from Malakai Black, and CM Punk is no longer... to be honest, I don't know if Punk's presence on Collision was a help or hindrance to Andrade. But if he doesn't do something to set himself apart on this show, he's going to fade into the background again.

Bryan Danielson & Claudio Castagnoli vs. Big Bill & Ricky Starks

Starks needs a win so that he doesn't come off like a handsome but stupid heel. Big Bill needs to knock some dents in the perfect physique that is Claudio, so that I can make myself believe Eddie has a chance against him at Grand Slam next week.

TBS Championship Match: Kris Statlander vs. Britt Baker

I'm kinda done with Britt Baker at this point. There's nothing wrong with her, she's not bad at any aspect of her job, but is there anything about her that says "new champ"? Can she elevate the title? Does she need the title to elevate her? What she needs (and what I would like better) is if her formal rival, the once-upon-a-time-glimpsed-on-this-program Thunder Rosa, makes her in-ring Collision debut tonight, causes a DQ, and the two ladies go ham on each other at Grand Slam.

AEW World Tag Team Championship Match: FTR vs. Iron Savages

I don't think FTR's losing, but I am intrigued. Usually FTR's been the bigger guys in their matches (notwithstanding Brody King in House of Black), so I'm curious how their throwback style will play against two guys built like brick outhouses.

posted by The Pluto Gangsta (4 comments total)

Watching this one a day late because of Rosh Hashanah, and sure enough Starks gets the win. I'd like to imagine that the child sitting near the commentary team, constantly screeching in favor of Ricky, contributed something to that victory.

Meanwhile it makes me sad to hear the crowd chant "Who are you?" when the Workhorsemen show up to make the next challenge. Were you casuals not watching AEW Dark?
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 3:32 PM on September 17, 2023

Eddie Kingston is always a good promo, but tonight's gives me an ECW-era chills.

I'm pretty sure Hook was snacking on chips to avoid corpsing, but Orange Cassidy and Hook are gonna tag team at Grand Slam! I hope their team is called "Tag Team".
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 3:54 PM on September 17, 2023

The one downside I can see with FTR having this open challenge policy for their tag team belts is that AEW doesn't have enough tag teams that present a credible threat, eventually we'd have to circle back to the same few teams they've already fought.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 4:36 PM on September 17, 2023

AEW sets a good precedent by having the women main-event two nights in a row. Right now the TBS title is looking like the "hard workers" title while the Women's Championship is the "hijinks and melodrama" title, which is fine for me. Still no Thunder Rosa, but seeing Julia Hart eyeball Kris Stat after the end of her match is a nice sign.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 5:12 PM on September 17, 2023