Collision recap & reactions: What’s in the box?

Saturday night is alright for fighting. AEW Collision (Mar. 16, 2024) emanated from Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The show featured Adam Copeland revealing what was inside his mystery box, the Infantry scoring an enormous upset in the tag title tournament, Katsuyori Shibata standing with the Blackpool Combat Club as an unlikely ally, and more.

Catch up on all the Collision details with top-notch play-by-play from Geno Mrosko.

Adam Copeland’s mystery box

Adam Copeland’s appearance with a mystery box last week created one suspenseful question. What’s in the box? It was a secret that viewers were dying to have solved. Channeling Brad Pitt from Seven, “What was in the box? What’s in the boooox? What’s in the f-ing box?” We have our answer now. Meet Spike.

Spike is a wooden paddle full of nails. Copeland is going to spank Christian Cage’s bottom red in the ‘I Quit’ TNT Championship match next week on Dynamite.

Copeland closed the show with a deeper explanation. Christian’s ego is out of control. Copeland came to AEW to finish his career with his best friend. He didn’t come there to steal the spotlight. As Copeland recovered from the conchairto, he received a phone call from Mick Foley as a reminder of who he truly is. Copeland is the Rated R Superstar. Just like Foley had Barbie (the barbed wire baseball bat), Copeland was inspired to create Spike.

Copeland plans to take away pride, ego, and manhood from Christian in the ‘I Quit’ match.

That was an excellent promo job to hype Copeland versus Christian. Copeland crafted a tale blending past and recent history. It works on both levels for new fans and old fans alike. The main appeal was what’s in the box, and now the surprise adds an extra level of intrigue. Creating a backstory for the object hooks an emotional attachment to cheer for Copeland to maim Christian with Spike. Well done.

Bracket buster

If you planned to cash in big bucks on the House of Black winning the AEW World Tag Team Championship tournament, well, I have some bad news for you. Bracket busted!

The House of Black lost to the Infantry in the wild card round, and Mark Briscoe is to blame. Brody King and Buddy Matthews mauled Shawn Dean and Carlie Bravo throughout the bout. The Infantry had a few rallies, but they didn’t gain much traction. King executed a Dante’s Inferno driver to Dean, but Bravo made the save on the cover. King took Bravo outside for a piledriver onto the commentary table.

Matthews stomped Dean’s head. Instead of taking the win, he lifted Dean’s shoulders off the mat during the three-count. Julia Hart whispered something evil in Matthews’ ear. She distracted the referee while he climbed the corner. That’s when Briscoe rushed in to hit Matthews with a chair. As King chased Briscoe through the crowd, Dean placed his arm over Matthews’ chest for the winning pin. Upset city!

That finish was damn stupid. Oh, let me count ways. So, what was Hart’s purpose for distracting the ref? I didn’t see Matthews holding any foreign objects for his dive. It looked like he would have attempted a clean move. This distraction turned out to be a poorly constructed window for Briscoe to interfere. While I understand the story connection here, I’m not a fan of outside screwjobs in tournaments. It taints the process. Why get invested in the outcome if any old ragamuffin can influence the result? The worst was that this match did zero favors to elevate the Infantry. They didn’t do any substantial damage to the House of Black inside the ring. There was nothing about that win that makes we want to watch the Infantry wrestle FTR in the next round. That’s not a shot at the skills of Dean and Bravo. It’s criticism about the booking. Even though the Infantry picked up a huge win, it was completely artificial.

From rival to ally

In a cutthroat business, respect can unite wrestlers from rivals to allies. The Blackpool Combat Club received a helping hand from Katsuyori Shibata, which was a move nobody saw coming.

Danielson battled Shibata in the opening bout of the evening. It was a badass affair transitioning from a grappling clinic to a striking duel. The pace had a steady incline in intensity causing big moves to really pop with emphasis. And then there was a firefight of fists. Shibata ate kicks from Danielson, waved the Mutumbo finger, then asked for more. When it was Danielson’s turn on the receiving end, he went into a meditative state to absorb the blows. Shibata sat down alongside Danielson to engage in a slap fight. Sound on!

In the end, Danielson and Shibata performed a splendid dance of counter roll-ups. Danielson was able to secure top position for victory. A handshake of respect was shared after the contest.

That match lived up to dream status. Danielson and Shibata showcased the sweet science of professional wrestling in a variety of ways. They mixed technical skill with grit and heart rising to the climax. There wasn’t much storytelling beforehand to book the match, other than being competitive rivals to prove who is best. Danielson and Shibata did all the storytelling they needed inside the ring. It was easy to get hooked into the emotion of their action-packed fight.

Backstage, Danielson reflected on the previous match against Shibata as well as the upcoming match against Will Ospreay at Dynasty on April 21. The American Dragon meditated about gratitude. He was thankful to wrestle Shibata. Both were told they would never wrestler again, and yet here they are fighting like hell in the ring. Danielson was also thankful for Ospreay’s praise, however, he took issue with Ospreay’s idea that the bout will be live or die. Ospreay doesn’t know what that’s truly like. The careers of Danielson and Shibata have been on death’s door only to come back to life. Ospreay has never experienced that.

Fast forward to the top of the hour. Claudio Castagnoli wrestled Lance Archer in a hoss fight. There was no story to set up this match. Just like Danielson and Shibata, they did their talking in the ring with meaty collisions, heavy-duty strikes, and power moves. Down the stretch, Claudio hammered a springboard European uppercut. That contact stunned Archer long enough for Claudio to attempt the big swing. The Swiss Superman actually lifted the Murderhawk Monster into the air for a few spins. Unfortunately, the Righteous rushed the ring to break it up. I assume the victory went to Claudio via disqualification.

Danielson rushed out to help his teammate, but the numbers game stomped him. That’s when Shibata surprisingly arrived with a chair to send the bad guys scurrying into darkness. The BCC thanked Shibata for his assistance. Also of note, commentary explained that Jon Moxley and Wheeler Yuta were not in the building.

Whew. That hoss fight was a meat fest. Claudio and Archer treated it like a big fight slugging to the fans’ delight. Claudio’s swing on Archer was so awesome. Even though we only saw a glimpse, it was was well worth it. We definitely need a rematch between those two. In the meantime, it would seem logical that a trios clash is in the cards. It is an interesting choice to pair Shibata with the BCC, especially with how Yuta treated him when winning the ROH Pure Championship. That just goes to show how strong a bond of respect was built between Shibata and Danielson through combat.

Let’s jam through the rest of Collision.

TBS Championship: Julia Hart defeated Trish Adora to retain the title. Open House rules in effect. Adora chose the stipulation that the loser is banned from ringside to support their squad in the upcoming tag team tournament bout (Infantry vs. House of Black). Adora folded Hart into a pretzel early. The champ gained an edge by ramming the challenger into the steel ring steps and the barricade. Hart relied on speed inside the ring to finish with a moonsault.

Typical showcase match for the champ. Adora scored enough moves on offense to make it respectable and also make a positive impression to win new fans, but Hart was never in serious trouble.

Daniel Garcia defeated Lee Moriarty. Shane Taylor was ringside as a distraction for Moriarty to blindside Garcia on a suicide dive. Garcia focused on damaging Moriarty’s knee, and that tactic paid off with Moriarty limping in pain hindering his performance toward the finish. Garcia slapped on a kneebar to win via submission.

Solid bout between a pair of young guns. They mixed sports entertainment and professional wrestling with amusing dancing spots that fit the flow of the action and technical holds inflicting pain.

PAC defeated Aaron Solo. The underdog started strong until the Bastard got angry. A Black Arrow dive led to the Brutalizer submission to win. Afterward, PAC called out Tony Khan to demand tougher competition. PAC is looking for trouble. Either Khan serves it to him, or else he’ll find it on his own.

This angle from PAC has potential for intrigue. It can basically become an open challenge without a title involved. I’m curious who Khan books next against PAC, and I’m also curious to see what happens if PAC isn’t satisfied.

Kyle O’Reilly defeated Bryan Keith. This was O’Reilly’s first match since June 8, 2022 due to injury. The story was to test himself against stiff competition. Keith did just that. The Bounty Hunter didn’t hold back attacking the surgically repaired neck of O’Reilly. O’Reilly found his groove to rally for a victory via armbar. Roderick Strong, Matt Taven, and Mike Bennett came out to celebrate.

O’Reilly passed this test, in story and in real life. He took his lumps to show that he can still wrestle at a high level. The post-match celebration felt like a genuine moment shared between friends rather than a story tool. Sure, it could turn into both, but it was still a happy moment regardless.

Notes: Zak Knight was supposed to wrestle Cool Hand Angelo Parker on the program, but Zodiac scoffed at the ‘hometown’ advantage for Ang in Canada. Knight will have the fight on his time.

Cool Hand was frustrated at the news of Knight cancelling. Ang had family in the stands for support. If there won’t be a match, then Cool Hand suggested finding Zodiac for a fight backstage. Ruby Soho was the voice of reason cautioning Ang not to fall into Saraya’s trap.

Deonna Purrazzo and Thunder Rosa are ready to give drama to Toni Storm. No games, no jokes, no bullshit.

Darby Allin broke his foot in the match against Jay White on Dynamite. AEW showed the dive when it happened and the x-ray image of the crack.

Stud of the Show: Kyle O’Reilly

A feel-good win after nearly two years on the injured list.

Match of the Night: Bryan Danielson vs. Katsuyori Shibata

Two master technicians plying their craft.

Grade: B

Dynamite action. Oh wait, wrong show. Collision was alright for fighting. The wrestlers brought their best, however, AEW still had the common issue of slapping matches together. They delivered quality in the ring, but it can only go so high without much build. Overall, it was an entertaining show.

Share your thoughts about Collision. How do you rate it? What were your favorite moments from the show?