AEW COLLISION HITS & MISSES (1/13): Zilem’s look at Adam Copeland’s open challenge, Dustin’s promo, Hangman’s match, Hook, main event six-man tag, more

AEW COLLISION –HITS & MISSES
JANUARY 13, 2024
NORFOLK, VA. AT CHARTWAY ARENA
AIRED ON TNT
BY BRIAN ZILEM, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Welcome! While David Bryant is out for the next few weeks, I and other staffers will do our best to fill his shoes.

HITS

THE NORFOLK FANS – HIT

These fans for the whole three hours of AEW TV were fantastic from start to finish. The atmosphere reminded me of the crowds from AEW in 2021 when the company was red hot.

LEE MORIARTY VIDEO PACKAGE – HIT

Moriarty has bounced around from AEW and ROH for a while now, and it was a great idea to show a brief video package to remind fans how good

Moriarty is.

THE COPE OPEN – HIT

The Cope Open is a wink and nod that the rankings are back without showing the weekly standings. I’m amazed at how in-shape and great Adam Copeland’s work is at 50 years young. Copeland did a impressive job putting over Lee Moriarty in this match.

ROH SIX-MAN TITLE MATCH – HIT

I was worried about the quality of this match. Boy, was I wrong. What a fun party match this was. The match started slow but ramped up to fun chaos in the second half of the match. I couldn’t believe that dive from Dutch onto the Mogul Embassy members.

DUSTIN RHODES – MEGA HIT

They call him The Natural for a reason. I was confused about the match graphic for Rhodes vs. Willie Mack. Man, did this certainly play out in a significant way. The match Rhodes had with Mack was a fun four minute sprint. Unbelievably, another wrestler in his 50s can look so crisp and explosive in 2024. Any wrestler trying to get into the business should be required to take a promo class from Dustin Rhodes. What a promo he had to set up a TNT Title match against Christian Cage this coming Wednesday on AEW Dynamite.

“HANGMAN” ADAM PAGE vs. J.D DRAKE – HOME RUN

The Collision Cowboy made his Collision debut in his hometown. I’m glad AEW decided to have Hangman wrestle and continue to build up his win-loss column to make his claim to recapture the AEW World Title. For those unfamiliar with the Work Horsemen, J.D. Drake and Anthony Henry are both excellent, and I’m happy to see them continue to get TV time to showcase their talents.

AEW WOMEN’S DIVISION – HIT

Diana Perazzo and Mariah May made their triumphant entrances on AEW and, within the same few weeks, Red Velvet made a comeback. Hopefully, Serena Deeb will follow suit soon. Plus, the probable debuts of Megan Bayne and Mercedes Mone. To quote a fan’s sign from the Collision show, Women’s Wrestling is Alive and Well.

HOOK – HIT

Hook has never needed a 30-minute class to show why he’s over. The victory over Kevin Matthew’s was straightforward and to the point.

THE MAIN EVENT – HIT

FTR has a habit of making these main events on Saturdays great and, no surprise, they did it again. The promos from House Black don’t consistently deliver, but when the group has their working boots on, they are a great trio to watch weekly. I would rate this six-man match on the same level the House of Black against The Elite when they won the Trio’s Titles.

FINAL THOUGHTS

HITS – 9

MISSES – 0

AEW Collision is two-for-two to start the new year. I understand this card wasn’t great on paper, but two things remain about Collision. One, the show always over-delivers on the card promoted, and two, this show is the fastest two hours in wrestling to watch. Meanwhile, the staff will try our best to fill David’s shoes and hope he has a great time away.

RECOMMENDED NEXT: AEW COLLISION RESULTS (1/13): Keller’s report on FTR & Garcia vs. House of Black, Purrazzo vs. Red Velvet, Copeland Open Challenge, Mogus Embassy vs. Archer & Righteous

OR CHECK THIS OUT AT PROWRESTLING.NET: AEW Collision results (1/13): Powell’s review of House of Black vs. FTR and Daniel Garcia, Bishop Kaun, Toa Liona, and Brian Cage vs. Lance Archer and The Righteous for the ROH Six-Man Tag Team Titles