AEW Collision Review - January 13, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Adam Copeland def. Lee Moriarty

This was another one of Copeland's open challenge and was way better than what we got last week from him and Griff Garrison. AEW hasn't done much with Moriarty since he was signed back in 2021 other than putting him in a failed faction (The Firm) and now in Shane Taylor Promotions, but he was given plenty of offense here and was made to look credible in defeat. Post-match, Copeland made it clear he still has his sights set on Christian Cage, so I assume the open challenge gimmick is just to keep him busy before another rematch with them at Revolution.

ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Champions Mogul Embassy (Brian Cage and The Gates of Agony) def. The Righteous and Lance Archer

The ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship was defended a fair amount on ROH TV last year, but they're back to being on AEW TV more and I have no idea why. I can't imagine many people care about those belts, even though I do like Mogul Embassy (Swerve Strickland certainly doesn't need them at this point, by the way). Despite all of that (and the odd heel vs. heel dynamic), this was fun. Mogul Embassy will defend against Jay White and The Gunns coming up on Dynamite.

Dustin Rhodes def. Willie Mack

We don't see Rhodes in action often enough. He'll never be pushed at a meaningful level, but he can clearly still go at this stage of his career and should wrestle more than he does. This was a well-wrestled match designed to give him a win before he faces Christian Cage for the AEW TNT Championship next week on Dynamite. I'm really looking forward to that one even if the outcome is hardly in doubt.

"Hangman" Adam Page def. JD Drake

This was billed as Page's Virginia homecoming. It was also his Collision in-ring debut, believe it or not. The crowd was hot for him and they were into the action. I was hoping Drake would have a standout showing and he did not disappoint. The Workhorsemen lose a lot, but they're a talented team and Drake in particular has potential as a singles star if AEW ever wanted to try him out on his own. This was a hell of a sprint and the win gets Page closer to AEW World Championship contention.

Deonna Purrazzo def. Red Velvet

This marked Purrazzo's AEW in-ring debut, or at least as a member of the full-time roster. She previously lost the ROH Women's World Championship to Mercedes Martinez in the main event of Dynamite back in May 2022 (she was under contract to TNA/IMPACT at the time). Velvet was fine here, but this was all about Purrazzo and allowing her to showcase her skills. She's an awesome addition to AEW's growing women's division and she feels like a logical next challenger for AEW Women's World Champion Toni Storm.

FTW Champion Hook def. Kevin Matthews (Non-Title)

Matthews works backstage at AEW as a producer, if I'm not mistaken. He's also probably best known for his time spent in TNA years ago. This was total domination for Hook as it should have been heading into his AEW World Championship opportunity against Samoa Joe on Wednesday's Dynamite. Obviously, he isn't winning, but it's a chance for him to show what he can do against a higher-profile opponent.

House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King and Buddy Matthews) def. FTR and Daniel Garcia

I'm sure Garcia is legitimately close with Angelo Parker and Matt Menard (who was on commentary as he is for most of Garcia's matches), but I'd much rather see Garcia aligned with FTR. Menard and Parker bring out Garcia's personality, but he'll be taken more seriously alongside FTR. At any rate, this was an excellent main event that received plenty of time coming off a string of squashes on this show. The heels avenged their loss from last week before the babyfaces stood tall afterward, so we can expect more matches between them.

Overall Show

Is Collision's new purpose simply to serve as a setup show for Dynamite? If so, that's disappointing, because there was a time early on in Collision's run that it featured its own storylines and stars, separate from the Wednesday program. Time will tell, but I can't complain too much because I actually thoroughly enjoyed this episode. There wasn't anything too eventful about it beyond Purrazzo's official AEW in-ring debut, but the wrestling was top-notch on the whole and the crowd was lively. The main event in particular is worth seeking out.

SEE MORE: Collision Reviews