AEW Collision Review - May 8, 2025

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

AEW Women's World Champion "Timeless" Toni Storm Addressed the Audience

The venue was such that Storm got to cut her promo from a theater balcony and it made for a really cool visual. She did her usual risqué, over-the-top promo and the crowd ate it up. Granted, this didn't really accomplish anything (much like everything else Storm has been involved in since Dynasty), but at least it was entertaining. I'm just ready to find out who will win the women's Owen Hart Cup so Storm can have direction again.

Ricochet def. Angelico

This gave me Lucha Underground flashbacks to Angelico and Prince Puma's time in The Temple. A win over Angelico means nothing these days, but it was a nice little sprint while it lasted. It was immediately overshadowed by the post-match angle that saw Ricochet embarrass Detroit native Zack Gowen (remember him?). Apparently we're getting a match between them on the Beach Break edition of Dynamite this Wednesday, so that should be interesting.

The Don Callis Family (Trent Beretta, Rocky Romero, Lance Archer and Kyle Archer) def. AR Fox, The Outrunners and ROH World Champion Bandido

Even though this was an eight-man tag team match, it still would've been silly for Fletcher's team to lose here. I can understand The Outrunners and Fox eating a loss, but why relegate Bandido to enhancement status? Despite that, this was an entertaining outing. I maintain that The Don Callis Family has too many members at this point, but I appreciate that they're being built up a bit.

Anthony Bowens def. Lee Johnson

Bowens is off to a solid start as a singles star and having him rack up wins is the key. Granted, beating Johnson doesn't mean much, but he has to start somewhere. For what this was, it was perfectly passable. I wasn't a fan of Billy Gunn making the save for Bowens afterward when Blake Christian attempted to attack him because it could be leading to a tag team match and Bowens should be on his own.

The Gates of Agony Brawled with Big Bill and Bryan Keith

Gates of Agony brawled with Bill and Keith in the parking lot on last week's Collision, so this was an extension of that. This brawl was better because of the two table spots near the stage. I'm all for AEW doing more with Gates of Agony, but I assume the sole purpose of this program is to keep Bill and Keith busy until Chris Jericho inevitably returns to put them in their place.

Kris Statlander def. Willow Nightingale

Statlander and Nightingale continue to have terrific chemistry together as this was another excellent outing from them. The tease for them getting back together has been going on for way too long, mind you, but it finally feels like it's imminent. Statlander didn't see that The Death Riders interfered and cost Nightingale the win, so while I wasn't a fan of the finish, they told a story with it.

The Don Callis Family (Josh Alexander and Konosuke Takeshita) def. The Dark Order (Alex Reynolds and Evil Uno)

It was already announced that Alexander and Takeshita will be facing Will Ospreay and Adam Page at Beach Break, so this was designed to be a quick warm-up for them. Dark Order haven't been relevant in ages, so it was necessary for this to be as brief as it was with the heels being completely dominant. That should be a hell of a match on Wednesday night and I'm excited for it.

"Speedball" Mike Bailey def. Dralistico

This was a rematch from last month. I don't know why it was necessary for these two to run it back since they aren't currently feuding (especially since the outcome wasn't in doubt whatsoever), but it was another quality contest from them, so there was that. Rush stared down Bailey from the stage afterward, so that looks to Bailey's next opponent after Rush attacked Bailey's friend Kevin Knight on Dynamite.

Daniel Garcia vs. Dax Harwood Ended in a No Contest

I haven't minded what they've been doing with FTR and Garcia in the absence of Cope, but it isn't a main event storyline, I'm sorry. It's been the focal point of Collision for a few weeks when it's a midcard storyline at best. To their credit, though, this was a very well worked match with an invested crowd. The non-finish was strange, but Nigel McGuinness getting involved was awesome, so I hope this is leading to him getting back in the ring again.

Overall Show

Don't be surprised to see Collision and potentially Dynamite bouncing around a lot in the coming weeks. AEW didn't do a whole lot to convince viewers this was an important episode while hyping it up on Dynamite and my mind didn't change after watching it, especially with the abundance of enhancement matches. That said, there was enough good stuff to make it a slightly-thumbs-up episode, and the fact it was live also helped.

SEE MORE: Collision Reviews