AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door Review - June 28, 2026

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Buy-In: Drilla Moloney def. Daniel Garcia

Why is AEW going back to calling the pay-per-view pre-show The Buy-In instead of Zero Hour? Not that it makes much of a difference, but it'd be nice if they kept it consistent. Nonetheless, this was a very well-wrestled match from these two. Garcia bores me to tears these days, but there's no denying he's talented, and Moloney has stood out to me more and more every time I've seen him. The guy looks like a star, so it will be interesting to see how his career continues to progress going forward.

The Buy-In: Maika def. Skye Blue to Qualify for the AEW TBS Championship Survival of the Fittest Match

They had to give Stardom something on this show, so I was fine with her beating Blue, especially since I don't think anyone was putting money on Blue to win the vacant AEW TBS Championship on Wednesday's Dynamite, anyway. I know nothing about Maika, but I was impressed by what I saw from her here and I thought she and Blue had a solid match.

The Buy-In: AEW Women's World Tag Team Champions The Divine Dominion def. Thunder Rosa and Olympia

The team of Rosa and Olympia came together on a whim, and it was clear this only existed to get some female representation from CMLL on the card. There was nothing wrong with the match, and all four ladies put forth an admirable effort, but the predictable outcome didn't help. As I've said before, Divine Domination are simply killing time until they defend against The Brawling Birds at All In.

The Young Bucks def. Unbound Co. (Titan and Shingo Takagi) and ROH World Tag Team Champions and CMLL World Trios Champions El Sky Team (Mistico and Mascara Dorada) in a 3-Way Tag Team Match (Non-Title)

It was cool to see three top teams from AEW, New Japan Pro-Wrestling and CMLL face off, even though I wish something was at stake. We know the Bucks will be back in contention for the AEW World Tag Team Championship, but maybe not imminently. Regardless, this was an enjoyable, fast-paced opener. On a side note, I was surprised to see El Sky Team with the ROH World Tag Team Championship belts before the commentators explained that they won them at a CMLL event a few days ago. I must have missed that.

Kenny Omega def. Zack Sabre Jr.

Sabre Jr. has won at Forbidden Door before, but not when it's mattered most, so while I realize he's been positioned as a top star in NJPW in the past, I never bought into the idea of Sabre Jr. actually beating Omega here. Despite that, they had the excellent match you'd expect from them. Omega needs this victory if he is indeed challenging for the AEW World Championship again at Redemption.

AEW Continental Champion Jon Moxley def. ROH World Champion Bandido (ROH World Championship Was Not Defended)

Bandido's in a big match, and he loses. That's pretty much been his 2026 in a nutshell. I'm glad he's been a part of so many high-profile matches in AEW this year, but he has to win when it matters most eventually (and not just when the ROH World Championship is on the line). That said, this was a great match. I don't care for most of Moxley's character work, but he tends to deliver whenever the bell rings and this was no exception.

IWGP Global Heavyweight Champion Shota Umino def. Pac

This was randomly announced for the card in the last week or so. We typically get a defense of the IWGP Heavyweight Championship at Forbidden Door, but this year, it was the IWGP Global Heavyweight Championship being defended. Umino and Pac had a really good match, and they were given plenty of time, but I found it difficult to care because it was obvious that Pac wasn't winning. Umino and Moxley (who have history dating back several years) faced off afterward before Hiroshi Tanahashi emerged to put the belt on Umino.

AEW Women's World Champion Thekla def. Starlight Kid

It's amazing that I know next to nothing about Kid yet I was invested in this match solely because of Thekla's mic work coming into the event. That's a testament to how tremendous Thekla is. The match was hard-hitting, but this was more about the storytelling than the in-ring action to me. Kid wasn't going to win the title this close to All In (if at all), but I did think she had a superb showing.

AEW World Tag Team Champions Cope & Cage def. The Dogs (David Finlay and Clark Connors)

The Dogs were hardly positioned as legitimate threats to the tag titles prior to the pay-per-view, so this wasn't a match on paper that did much for me personally, but it ended up exceeding my expectations. All four guys worked hard and had an entertaining outing. Cope & Cage retaining was a foregone conclusion, but Jay White returning to cost The Dogs the win was an awesome twist. He's been gone for long, so I'm happy he's finally back.

Mercedes Mone def. Maya World in the Finals of the Women's Owen Hart Cup

Although it's been abrupt, the rise of World has been going so well that I seriously thought they might have her win the whole thing. That's what made every nearfall so suspenseful. Honestly, I would've preferred to see AEW attempt to make a new star out of World by having her go over, but no such luck. Plus, if they stick with Thekla vs. Mone at All In, that's a big first-time-ever encounter). At any rate, this was a terrific match and a career-making performance from World. Now the key is following up with her accordingly.

The Conglomeration (Mark Briscoe and AEW World Trios Champions Orange Cassidy, Roderick Strong and Kyle O'Reilly), Darby Allin and AEW International Champion Konosuke Takeshita def. The Don Callis Family (Jake Doyle, Andrade El Idolo, Kyle Fletcher, Kazuchika Okada and AEW TNT Champion Kevin Knight) and AEW World Champion MJF in a Steel Cage Match

This might have been the first circle cage I've ever seen. It was definitely a unique visual and it made for a fun atmosphere. Most of AEW's cage/hardcore matches blend together, but this was a hell of an effort from everyone involved and they made effective use of the cage. Briscoe's team was always going to win, but I didn't think Andrade would turn on MJF here, so that was a welcome development. The spot with Lio Rush being in the bag was so wacky that it worked. They could have just done MJF vs. Briscoe for the AEW World Championship on this show, but I'm sure Tony Khan wanted to get as many of his stars on the card in a meaningful spot as possible.

Will Ospreay def. Swerve Strickland in the Finals of the Men's Owen Hart Cup

I'm happy they saved the best for last. Yes, everyone knew Ospreay was winning, but they proved in previous meetings that their chemistry is incredible, so I was looking forward to them killing it more than anything. They did not disappoint. My biggest gripes with the match were that there were way too many kickouts and that the blood was not necessary. You could have shaved off a few minutes, too. It was a fantastic main event, though, and it closed out the night on a high note.

Overall Show

As I've said several times before, I'd have no issue with AEW moving away from the Forbidden Door concept, or at least putting it on ice for a few years because it doesn't mean remotely as much as it once did. However, this turned out to be the usual top-notch pay-per-view from AEW. Double or Nothing last month was better, of course, but there was a lot to like about this event as well. More importantly, the build to All In is officially underway and now the company can go back to fully focusing on the active roster and their own storylines.

SEE MORE: AEW PPV Reviews, NJPW Reviews