AEW COLLISION HITS & MISSES (4/27): Sound issues, Prince Nana, Swerve vs. Claudio, Grizzled Young Vets vs. Acclaimed, Storm vs. Anna Jay, more

AEW COLLISION – HITS & MISSES
APRIL 27, 2024
JACKSONVILLE, FLA.
AIRED LIVE ON TNT
BY DAVID BRYANT, PWTORCH CONTRIBUTOR

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OPENING THE SHOW WITH A RECAP VIDEO OF SWERVES WIN OVER SAMOA JOE — HIT

This was a good video package, and it should have opened this week’s Dynamite.

PRINCE NANA CUTS A BRIEF IN-RING PROMO — HIT

Swerve came out wearing a coat that can best be described as a cross between the American Revolution, Fall Out Boy, and looking like an absolute star. Prince Nana came out looking like a Dad who last bought new clothes in 1999.

Nana spoke first, and his introduction was a strong one! He served the crowd less of his normal “comedic” mannerisms and acted like a serious hype man for Swerve. If Prince Nana dropped his bootleg-looking TikTok dance and dressed like a serious person, I could get behind him with promos like the one he gave tonight.

THE SOUND ISSUES ARE FIXED! ( HALLELUJAH!) — MEGA-HIT (ALSO, THIS SHOULD NOT BE A THING.)

The sound quality for this week’s Dynamite was some of the worst audio quality I have ever heard on a modern television program. As someone who wears a hearing aid and was born with profound hearing loss, I understood less than 30 percent of what was being said. My fiancé had to translate the show for me in real-time. If I wasn’t a passionate AEW fan, I would have changed the channel in a heartbeat.

I do not know whose fault the audio issues this past week were, but regardless of whether it was TBS, AEW, or LMFAO, these issues need to be fixed. WWE has a lot of problems with their product, but stuff like this isn’t one of them.

SWERVE CUTS A PROMO — HIT

Swerve started his promo by addressing the Young Bucks’ attack on the owner of AEW. Swerve talked about being the face of AEW and how Tony Khan was the first person to give him major opportunities on a widely distributed program to show how good he is in the ring. I liked this part of the promo. A storyline as monumental as what happened on Dynamite last Wednesday should touch everything on the show, and it should be something the World Champion feels he needs to address as part of his duties within the company.

“There is no telling when we’re gonna… You know… See Tony Khan again,” Strickland said. (OMG. I had no idea Swerve Strickland was ALSO deaf and blind and trapped in the In-between.) Swerve then quickly added, “… in a healthy condition!” probably remembering that the crowd had just seen Tony Khan in public.

Swerve then said what The Young Bucks did was a “bitch move,” and the crowd started chanting, “Bitch move.”

Interesting.

With FTR potentially on the shelf due to reports of Dax Harwood sustaining a concussion at Dynasty, maybe Strickland could be the babyface who defends AEW against the Elite and Jack Perry, at least until FTR returns. I’d be here for it. I’d love to see Swerve Strickland kick Jack Perry’s well-defined, very-muscular, very-pert ass all over the MGM Grande Arena. Hell, right before Strickland hits his finisher, have him do the Go To Sleep instead. While I’m not 100 percent on Jack Perry’s side IRL, I am mostly on Jack Perry’s side IRL, but after what he did to Tony Khan on Wednesday, I hope his next match involves a two-story-high Swerve stomp, razor-sharp thumbtacks, and Jon Moxley because Jon Moxley is terrifying.

Swerve then shifted the promo to talk about his victory at AEW’s Dynasty PPV last weekend, and he talked about how he’d worked so hard for this moment that after he won the title, his daughter said, “Daddy, I feel like I don’t know you.” (Holy crap.) However, Swerve assured us that his reign would make all of his sacrifices and time away from home worth it. (Side Note: That is not how therapy works.)

Swerve then said he wanted to be a fighting champion, and he threw down an open challenge to anyone in the back who wanted a shot at his AEW Championship because we were only busy doing rankings over here.

Claudio Castagnoli answered the challenge, and you know what? Forget what I just said about rankings. This match has to happen, and I am fine with being a hypocrite if it means we get Castagnoli vs. Strickland for the AEW Championship tonight. (Or, as Tony Khan would say it, “Here, tonight, right here, in Daily’s Place, in Jacksonville, tonight.)

VIDEO RECAP OF THE ELITE ATTACKING TONY KHAN — MEGA-HIT

AEW is making its most prominent storyline feel like a big deal, which, historically, has not been this company’s strong suit. I hope they play this footage endlessly between now and Double or Nothing.

Side Note: Kudos to the person in charge of making Jack Perry’s punch to Tony Khan’s stomach look fantastic. That man is a gifted editor and probably utilized magic.

Second Side Note: Shout out to Shad Khan’s fashion courage. I have never seen a man wear pajamas in public so proudly.

BULLET CLUB GOLD vs. TOP FLIGHT & ACTION ANDRETTI — MINOR-HIT

I am frankly surprised to discover that Top Flight & Action Andretti are the number one contenders to the Trios Titles. I would have thought the prerequisite for obtaining a title shot would have involved things other than losing.

Either way, this was a fun match, but it is destined to get lost in the colossal shadow of tonight’s epic main event. (More on that later.) Still, there was a great rewind-worthy moment in which Darius Martin leaped to tag himself out, and instead of making the tag, he landed face-first in front of both of his tag team partners as they stared at him from the apron.

VIDEO RECAP OF THE YOUNG BUCKS DEFEATING FTR AT DYNASTY — HIT

As disappointed as I was to see FTR lose this match, and by “disappointed,” I mean “threw things.” I am thrilled to see AEW replaying this footage and once again reminding us of their central storyline. This kind of thing may not show up in the ratings immediately, but if AEW sticks to making their storylines feel consistently present, realistic, and cohesive (and does so with a sound quality higher than 20 KBPS), I’m willing to bet that it will pay off in the long term.

HOUSE OF BLACK CUTS A MORE STRAIGHTFORWARD PROMO THAN LAST WEEK — HIT

Unlike some of House of Black’s more riddle-rrific promos, this one was straightforward and easy to understand. One member of the House of Black will accept Adam Copeland’s open challenge for his TNT Championship on this week’s Dynamite, but they won’t tell him which one until Wednesday.

This promo also incorporated footage of Copeland having black mist blown into his face this past Sunday at Dynasty. I hope AEW continues to show us highlights from Dynasty because every time they do, it makes their PPVs appear more relevant.

REY FENIX vs. THE BEAST MORTOS — HIT

Rey Fenix has not lost a step during his time away from AEW. He looked to be in great shape, and he wrestled like he was competing on his best day. During the course of this match, there were several eye-popping moments, breathtaking near-falls, and “Rey Fenix” chants.

THE LENGTH OF REY FENIX vs. THE BEAST MORTOS — MINOR-MISS

That said, there is no reason that a returning Rey Fenix should be going 15-plus minutes against The Beast Mortos (formerly Black Taurus in AAA) in his first-ever match on AEW Collision. If they want to build up The Beast Mortos as a potential star, I’m all for that idea, but to the average fan, a returning Rey Fenix — AEW’s 2021 match-of-the-year winning star — just went 50/50 with a guy from the Supercard of Honor pre-show.

ORANGE CASSIDY CUTS A BACKSTAGE PROMO — MINOR-HIT

There wasn’t anything wrong with this promo, but it didn’t make me any more excited for the Parking Lot Brawl on Rampage than I already was before the program began (and I very much was.)

That said, my two biggest takeaways from this promo were that AEW debuted a new backstage announcer (Her name is Arkady Aura.), but because they waited until after the promo was over for Tony Schiavone to mention who she was, I spent the beginning of Orange Cassidy’s promo wondering. My second takeaway from this promo is that Kris Statlander is continuing to improve in her character’s presentation and her acting. I’m not saying she’s going to get an Emmy, but compared to where she was a few months earlier, she should at least get a shout-out in my column.

RUSH vs. MARTIN STONE — HIT

This was a squash, and that is what it should have been. Hopefully, AEW has a well-thought-out plan for Rush going forward that doesn’t involve vignettes of a Clint Eastwood film directed by Quentin Tarantino.

SERENA DEEB CUTS A BACKSTAGE PROMO — HIT

Serena Deeb made a straightforward and coherent case for why she should be the number 1 contender and why Toni Storm should take her seriously. I especially liked that Deeb talked up Toni Storm as “one of the greatest champions in this company’s history.” It’s a lot easier to make yourself look good in a promo than it is to make your opponent look good. In this promo, Deeb did both.

TONI STORM vs. ANNA JAY — HIT (TO MY GREAT SURPRISE)

Toni Storm wrestled this match in a yellow checkered 1940s-inspired ring gear — a look best described as being “when you have a championship match at 10 but need to be at the beach by 11.”

Given Anna Jay still has some in-ring weaknesses, I was expecting to “endure” this match rather than watch it, but I was pleasantly surprised. Storm worked around Jay’s weaknesses and focused on grounded wrestling moves to highlight her strengths. As a result, this was an enjoyable match that both women can be proud of.

Side Note: Anna Jay’s main weakness is what appears to be a lack of confidence in her in-ring skills. This shows up primarily in minor hesitations, pulled strikes, and lots of daylight. While I have never directly advised a wrestler, I have advised plenty of actors, and my advice for Anna Jay would be the same advice I give other performers: I would rather you f— it up with confidence than do it right with insecurity.

THE ACCLAIMED vs. THE GRIZZLED YOUNG VETS — HIT

Wow. The Grizzled Young Vets are a talented duo! The Acclaimed are talented, too, but I couldn’t help but feel like The Grizzled Young Vets were making them look even more talented than they already are.

This was a fun match, and Max Caster’s facial expressions (not his rapping) were a highlight throughout its entirety. If you’re a fan of tag team wrestling and you get a chance, check this match out!

SHIBATA’S PHONE TYPES ITSELF — MINOR-MISS

While I can’t help but laugh (in a good way) at Shibata’s Voice-To-Text promos, seeing Shibata pretend to type his responses into his phone would go a long way in making these fun segments more believable. As it is, it comes off like his phone has developed sentience.

SWERVE STRICKLAND vs. CLAUDIO CASTAGNOLI — MEGA-HIT

Holy s—.

This was outstanding.

This could have been the main event of a PPV, and I don’t think anyone would have complained about the quality of the match. This match got both a “This Is Awesome” chant and a random chant for AEW’s video game “Fight Forever.”

There are no number of words I could type out in this column that would do this match justice. In fact, it might have been even better than last week’s Bunkhouse match. (I say “might” because I’m not sure; I’d have to go back and watch them back-to-back.) However, if I were to give this match a star rating, it would be somewhere in between (not that In-between) 3.75-stars and 4-stars.

Side Note: I loved the quality of Swerve Strickland’s recent matches against Kyle Fletcher and Claudio Castagnoli, but I also hope he doesn’t burn himself out. Tonight’s match went over 20 minutes and featured some daring offense (including a double stomp that Castagnoli blocked with his shoulders, caught in mid-air, and turned into a pop-up European uppercut.) Strickland is a phenomenal athlete, but he is also a human being, and Powerhouse Hobbs showed us last week what can happen to even the most talented of human beings. Please be safe, Mr. Strickland.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This is the second AEW Collision in a row that has delivered on all cylinders. After I gave last week’s episode of AEW Collision an A-, I texted someone at the Torch who I consider to be a good friend, and I said:

“This week’s Collision was better, but I know it will go back to what it was last week, and the week before that, and the week before that. They only did a good one last night because it was before a PPV.”

I was wrong.

SHOW GRADE: A-

DAVID’S DODGY MATCH RECOMMENDATIONS:

Match of the Night: Swerve Strickland vs. Claudio Castagnoli

Second Best Match: Rey Fenix vs. Not The Black Taurus

Third Best Match: The Acclaimed vs. The Grizzled Young Vets

Thank you all for reading. I truly appreciate it. And as always, I’m still working on my sign-off, but until next week, remember, we still don’t know if the “In-between” is a state of consciousness or a physical place, so until Tony Khan clarifies, watch out for wormholes.

(David Bryant’s new bathroom-selfies can be found on his “Artist Formerly Known as Twitter” account @IamDavidBryant; a video of David Bryant being knocked unconscious by an exploding television set can be found on his Instagram account @IamDavidBryant, and David Bryant’s Threads account is threadbare and also located @IamDavidBryant because David Bryant sucks at usernames. David is a published author, circus artist, drag promoter, male pageant winner, unrenowned musician, sloppy figure skater, and the inventor of the world’s first Death Metal telegram. Less impressively, he studied screenwriting at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.)