AEW Collision Review - December 7, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Darby Allin def. Komander in a Continental Classic Gold League Match

I'd say it was predictable that Allin was winning, but we ended up getting a shocker in the main event, not to mention that Allin just lost to Brody King last week and can afford the loss. He won as he should have, but the match we got was great. Komander shines every single time he's in the ring and his style meshed really well with Allin's. This was the perfect choice for the opener.

Willow Nightingale def. Serena Deeb in a Wrestle Dynasty International Women’s Cup Qualifier Semifinal Match

It's worth noting that Deeb came out wearing a shirt that said "Nobody Cares" on it, which is what Britt Baker said to the camera when Deeb walked out following Baker's most recent match on Dynamite. It does make me wonder if Baker is in the doghouse with the company over that considering we haven't seen her since. At any rate, this was a quality contest while it lasted. Nightingale vs. Jamie Hayer in the finals of this mini tournament could go either way.

The Death Riders Attacked Orange Cassidy

The most interesting thing about the AEW World Championship picture right now is the inclusion of Adam Page and Jay White. I have zero desire to desire Cassidy continue to feud with Moxley and the rest of Death Riders, especially since Moxley beating Cassidy decisively at Full Gear. This segment just sort of existed for me. A four-way for the title with Moxley, Cassidy, Page and White is appealing on paper, though.

Kyle Fletcher def. AEW Continental Champion Kazuchika Okada in a Continental Classic Blue League Match

This was one of the matches I was looking forward to the most coming into the Continental Classic and it did not disappoint. Fletcher has really leveled up as of late and I'm so glad he picked up the clean win here. I know Okada hasn't been the same since coming to AEW, but this was huge for Fletcher, nonetheless. They worked wonderfully together and had an entertaining encounter.

The Beast Mortos def. Aaron Solo

To my knowledge, Mortos is the only guy in the Continental Classic that is also wrestling in non-tournament matches. That's probably because they want to give more credibility, but these matches won't make much of a difference if he never wins when it matters. That said, this was kept short and sweet with Mortos squashing Solo in about a minute, so it didn't overstay its welcome.

Mina Shirakawa def. Emi Sakura

Shirakawa will challenge Mariah May for the AEW Women's World Championship on Wednesday's Dynamite, so this was designed to be a warm-up for her before then. Sakura was the wrong person to put her in the ring with, however. Yes, Sakura can easily take a loss, but she's not remotely over, so the crowd couldn't have cared less about this despite it being a well-wrestled affair.

Mark Briscoe def. AEW TNT Champion Daniel Garcia in a Continental Classic Blue League Match

Although this wouldn't have headlined your average edition of Collision, it ended up being worthy of the spot from an in-ring standpoint in addition to its Continental Classic stakes. Both are fan favorites, but the crowd was invested in the action, regardless. They received plenty of time and Briscoe winning was a surprising result. I appreciate that not all of the tourney matches have foregone conclusions this year.

Overall Show

Much like last week, this show benefited from the Continental Classic. There was an abundance of very good wrestling between the three tournament matches. The rest of the show was standard stuff, but this was a thumbs-up episode on the whole. The Death Riders segment may have been the weakest thing of the night, which isn't the most encouraging indicator that the angle is working.

SEE MORE: Collision Reviews