AEW Collision Review - August 31, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Hologram and The Conglomeration (Orange Cassidy and Kyle O'Reilly) def. Johnny TV, The Beast Mortos and ROH Pure Champion Lee Moriarty

I hate to sound like a broken record, but these meaningless multi-man tag team matches have become so tiresome. The Conglomeration have multiple matches each week and none of them have any real reason to exist other than to get those guys on the shows. With all of that said, this was a very fun opener. I believe this marked the first time that Hologram has competed for AEW outside of the Esports Stadium in Arlington and he got over in front of this crowd. That's an encouraging sign for his future.

Bang Bang Gang (Juice Robinson and The Gunns) def. Premier Athletes (Josh Woods, Tony Nese and Ari Daivari)

I know Bang Bang Gang were feuding with The Patriarchy heading into All In, but I didn't consider them babyfaces because they never had an actual turn. I guess the fact they faced Premier Athletes here all but confirms they're faces now. It was a glorified squash for Bang Bang Gang, who got a great reaction from this crowd. Hopefully Jay White is back soon because he's missed.

FTR def. The Undisputed Kingdom (Matt Taven and Mike Bennett)

Taven and Bennett have been with AEW since late 2022, but amazingly, this was the first two-on-two match they've ever had with FTR (their only other interaction was in an eight-man tag team match at the beginning of August). I'm glad we got it after all this time because it was very good. The Undisputed Kingdom stuff has been a massive flop, but there's no denying the talent of Taven and Bennett. Post-match, Grizzled Young Veterans attacked FTR. I like how they've been handled their first week in AEW.

Top Flight, Action Andretti and Lio Rush def. Turbo Floyd and Iron Savages (Bronson, Boulder and Jacked Jameson)

I don't know how many times I have to say it, but it's difficult to not want to change the channel whenever I see Iron Savages in action. It'd be one thing if they popped up occasionally to put a team over, but they're featured almost every single week on either AEW TV or ROH TV. They're skilled in the ring, but their gimmick is insufferable. Thankfully, this was essentially a showcase for Top Flight and company that didn't last much longer than it needed to.

Kyle Fletcher def. Tomohiro Ishii

Tony Khan previously said Ishii would be around in AEW for the summer, so with it being August 31st, so if he's on his way out, he's ended this run with some strong matches, first with Adam Page on Wednesday's Dynamite and now with Fletcher here. I was worried for Fletcher would lose, but him going over was absolutely the right call, especially after he already lost to Ricochet on Dynamite. This was an highly physical, hard-hitting affair.

Buddy Matthews def. Komander

It's been almost exactly four months since Matthews' last televised singles match in AEW. He's obviously a hell of talent, so it was cool to see him shine in singles competition for a change. He and Komander had an enjoyable sprint even if the outcome was never in doubt. Post-match, MxM Collection challenged Matthews and Brody King to a match on next Friday's Rampage because apparently it's New York Fashion Week.

Hikaru Shida def. Queen Aminata, Serena Deeb and Thunder Rosa in an AEW TBS Championship No. 1 Contender's Four-Way Match

Finally! A multi-person main event on Collision with stakes. This would've been an excellent match regardless, but putting an AEW TBS title shot at All Out on the line made the match that much better because they had something to fight for. They all worked well together and it was a very entertaining four-way. I'm looking forward to Mercedes Mone vs. Shida again at All Out. It's hilarious how AEW has quickly moved on from the underwhelming outing Mone and Britt Baker had at All In and haven't even acknowledged it.

Overall Show

Collision is hit or miss most weeks, but this edition was certainly a hit. The main event was the highlight for me (and I wish more matches on the show had stakes), but the quality action throughout the night combined with a hot crowd in South Dakota made for an easy episode to digest. There was also the usual setup for next week's Dynamite and even Rampage. It was announced that next week's Collision will air opposite of WWE SmackDown on Friday night before Rampage due to All Out happening on Saturday night.

SEE MORE: Collision Reviews