This was a special three-hour show, doubling as a special Wednesday night edition of “Collision.”
The back-to-back episodes featured eight matches, three of which were six-men tag matches.
AEW television has been apathetic as of late, lacking any real imagination, conviction or direction.
This three-hour block of programming may have been the promotion’s weakest effort of the calendar year.
On its best days, AEW has separated itself from the doldrum of formulaic wrestling television with its discerning voice and a rebel heart. This week’s television was completely devoid of that uniqueness. It feels like Tony Khan is either operating on autopilot or using ChatGPT for booking advice. The proliferation of the Don Callis Family and Death Riders has become an anchor for Khan – enabling his worst creative inclinations.
While the wrestlers’ work in the ring is always impressive, much of it blends together until it’s virtually indistinguishable. The back-to-back episodes featured eight matches: two of which were six-men tag team matches featuring the aforementioned Don Callis Family. Two more of the matches featured members of the Death Riders – highlighting Khan’s overreliance on distended factions and haphazard multi-man matches. The end result is television that feels rudderless and mind-numbingly homogenous.
For months, the promotion was fueled by the search for Moxley’s successor. Now, “Hangman” Adam Page seems lost in the shuffle and insignificant compared to Moxley and Don Callis – whose numbers could field the roster of an entirely new pro-wrestling promotion.
While an inordinate number of injuries have certainly played a role in AEW’s diminishing returns, the reintroductions of Eddie Kingston and Orange Cassidy have been lackluster at best, and downright forgettable at worst.
Adam Copeland abruptly left amidst his feud with FTR, Kenny Omega’s efforts have been stop-and-go due to injuries, and Andrade’s contractual obligations to WWE have precluded him from reappearing in AEW anytime soon.
And, with Will Ospreay, Swerve Strickland, and MJF gone for the foreseeable future, it’s hard to imagine that AEW will find its spark anytime soon.
Rating: **
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