‘AEW Collision: Maximum Carnage’ Review (Jan 18th 2024)
Welcome to this week’s review of AEW’s, Collision, which brings wrestling back to Saturday nights, with this week’s show part of the “Maximum Carnage” week of AEW programming. We’ve got the commentary team of Tony Schiavone, Matt Menard and Nigel McGuinness calling the action, so let’s get into the review!
Match #1: “Hangman” Adam Page def. Christopher Daniels
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Page slapped Daniels in the face. CD fired back with forearms. They traded strikes until Page gouged Daniels in the eyes. Page grounded and pounded the Fallen Angel. Page flew over the top rope with a cross body press to Daniels. Page whipped Daniels into the barricade and then rammed Daniels in the head with the butt of a steel chair. Daniels was busted wide open, the blood pouring down into his right eye. Hangman Page pulled a strand of barbed wire out from beneath the ring. Page whipped Daniels with the barbed wire. Page blasted Daniels with a pump kick. Page wrapped the barbed wire around his right arm and then delivered a lariat to a bloody Daniels. Daniels clubbed Page with a clothesline, knocking Page into the ring. Page whipped Daniels into a steel chair that was propped between turnbuckles. Page double stomped Daniels through a table that was set up outside the ring. Page pulled out a table wrapped in barbed wire. Hangman grabbed Daniels, looking for the Dead Eye through the table. Daniels defended with headbutts. Daniels hooked Page and planted him through the table with a uranage! Daniels nailed Page with a German Suplex. Page countered a second uranage with a lariat, knocking Daniels onto the rampway. Hangman Page wrapped barbed wire around his arm. Page went for the Buckshot Lariat, but Daniels countered with a submission. Page escaped by gouging the barbed wire into Daniels’ head. Daniels blasted Page with the Angels Wings, countering a Dead Eye attempt. Daniels planted Page with another uranage and then hit the Best Moonsault Ever! Daniels put a piece of the barbed wire table on top of Page and connected with another Best Moonsault Ever! Page got to his feet before the 10-count. Page spiked CD with a tombstone on a steel chair. Page cracked CD with a Dead Eye on the steel chair! Page smashed Daniels with a Buckshot Lariat in the back of the neck! Daniels was unable to answer the 10-count and Page was declared the victor!
My Score: 3.5 out of 5
Match #2: Undisputed Kingdom (Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, & Roderick Strong) def. Shane Taylor Promotions’ The Infantry (Carlie Bravo, Shawn Dean, & Lee Moriarty)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Strong got pushed into the corner by Lee. Dean tagged in but ate a dropkick from Roddy. Kyle grabbed a tag and Kyle and Roddy hit tandem offense on Dean. Dean retaliated with a jawbreaker and then tagged out to Bravo. Dean tripped Kyle and then Bravo blasted Kyle. Taylor decked Kyle, knocking Kyle down to the arena floor. Cole came in and cleaned house, running down Dean with back elbows and a pump kick. Cole cracked Dean with a neck breaker for a near fall. Dean dodged a Panama Sunrise but got caught with a thrust kick from Cole. Strong smashed Dean with a running knee lift. Cole planted Lee with a Panama Sunrise. Roddy and Kyle swept the leg of Dean and pinned him!
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #3: The MurderMachines (Lance Archer & Brian Cage) def. Top Flight (Dante & Darius Martin)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
The MurderMachines battered Top Flight and grounded them at the start of the match. Darius was double teamed in the corner. Archer blasted Darius with a back breaker and then Cage charged at Darius with a running kick to the head. Darius dodged a running elbow from Archer. Darius connected with a pele kick to Cage. Dante and Archer tagged in for their respective teams. Dante drilled Archer with repeated forearms. Cage and Archer double teamed Dante with the choke slam lariat combo and pinned Dante!
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #4: AEW Continental Championship Match – Kazuchika Okada def. Tomohiro Ishii
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Ishii chopped at Okada. Okada retreated from the ring, but Ishii followed him and bulldozed Okada with a shoulder block. Ishii superplexed Okada back into the ring for a near fall. Okada staggered Ishii with a neck breaker. Okada scoop slammed Ishii and then dropped an elbow from the top rope. Ishii drilled Okada with a lariat. Okada fired back with a giant dropkick. Ishii headbutted Okada. Ishii absorbed a lariat and then nailed Okada with a running lariat. Okada rocked Ishii with a shotgun dropkick. Ishii retaliated with a lariat. Okada dropkicked Ishii from behind, knocking Ishii out of the ring. Okada grabbed the ring bell. The ref pulled it away. As the ref was distracted, Okada kicked Ishii with a low blow and then finished off Okada with the Rainmaker lariat for the pin!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #5: Dustin Rhodes def. Adam Priest
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Dustin took down Priest with an arm drag. Dustin powerslammed Priest. Rhodes went to shatter Priest’s dreams with a kick, but Priest escaped the turnbuckles. Dustin drilled Priest with the Cross Rhodes and then pinned him after a spinning suplex.
My Score: 0 out of 5
Match #6: Julia Hart def. Harley Cameron
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Harley unleashed her wrath and grounded and pounded Julia. Harley connected with a kick to the back of Julia’s head. Julia dug her fingers into the eyes of Cameron, as Cameron was tied up in the ropes. Julia rag dolled Harley, bashing her head against the mat. Harley raked Julia’s eyes across the top rope. Harley hit a pump handle pickup for a near fall on Julia. Julia applied the Iron Octopus in the center of the ring. Harley escaped and cradled Julia for a near fall. Julia spiked Harley with a DDT, but Harley kicked out at the two-count. Julia used a leg trip and tried for the Hartless, but Harley got to the ropes. Julia connected with a lariat from behind. Julia locked on the Hartless and Harley was forced to tap out!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #7: Cope, FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler), The Outrunners (Truth Magnum & Turbo Floyd), & Powerhouse Hobbs def. The Death Riders (Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, & Wheeler Yuta), & The Learning Tree (Chris Jericho, Big Bill, & Bryan Keith)
The following is courtesy of allelitewrestling.com:
Jericho and Dax exchanged slaps and chops in the center of the ring. Jericho blasted Dax with a shotgun dropkick. Bryan Keith tagged in, but Dax hit a leg drop. Cash grabbed a tag and FTR used tandem offense on Keith. Cash backdropped Wheeler Yuta. Truth entered the fray, but Wheeler yanked him to the mat by the bleached hair. Turbo came in and the Outrunners double teamed Yuta. Turbo smashed Wheeler with a brain buster for a near fall. Big Bill tagged in and chopped down Dax. Marina grabbed Dax’s ankle, distracting him. Big Bill power bombed Dax. Jericho took a few shots at Dax and then extended his hand to Moxley. Moxley slowly accepted the tag. Mox spiked Dax with a piledriver. Wheeler dropped a knee on Dax. Wheeler snap suplexed Dax for a near fall. Wheeler sent Dax into the ring post. Dax dodged the charging knee attempt from Wheeler. Dax made the tag to Cope! Cope cleaned house on the opposition! Cope went for the spear, but Jericho countered with the Code Breaker! Turbo came in and body slammed Jericho. Turbo then body slammed Bryan Keith onto Jericho. The Outrunners dropped the double biceps elbow on Jericho and Keith. Moxley caught Dax with a cutter out of nowhere. Cope clotheslined Mox out of the ring but Big Bill booted Cope in the head! FTR nailed Big Bill with the Shatter Machine! Cope blasted Mox with the Impaler on the ramp. Pac interjected himself and booted Cope in the head, preventing Cope from getting back toward Mox. The Death Riders ganged up on Cope. Cash jumped off the ramp to make the save! Both teams brawled through the crowd. Jericho rolled up Turbo, but Turbo kicked out in the nick of time. Powerhouse Hobbs’ music hit, and Hobbs hobbled out on one leg, his knee taped up. Hobbs tagged in and laid out Keith and Jericho. Hobbs and Big Bill had a face off! They slugged it out, back and forth! Big Bill charged at Hobbs, but Hobbs threw him out of the ring. Jericho blindsided Hobbs with a double ax handle. The Outrunners rocked Jericho with the Total Recall. Keith tried to smash Hobbs with the ROH World title, but Hobbs blocked it. Hobbs planted Keith with a spinebuster and pinned Keith to win the match!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Final Verdict: 3/5
Well this week’s Collision was a mixed bag. It also felt a little off… Like why was the Okada/Ishii match so quick? Was the Dustin Rhodes squash quickly slotted in to fill the time afterwards? And why were Top Flight the subject of a quasi-squash from the “MurderMachines”? Thankfully the opening match delivered and so did the last two matches of the show – the women’s match and the massive 12-man match. Not sure if the latter did anything in terms of overall storytelling but at least Julia Hart is being booked strong in her comeback!