A frequent criticism about AEW is that they have too much talent with too few ideas on how to use them. What is depth to one person is bloat and excess to another.
It’s shows like Sunday’s AEW WrestleDream (8 PM EST from Seattle, Washington’s Climate Pledge Arena on PPV) that show the incredible fountain of talent at Tony Khan’s disposal and remind us that yes, depth is important.
Sunday is a card, much like September’s All Out, that has neither of the biggest championships defended. It’s a card with no clear, definitive main event, but that still offers a compelling product. There are no duds (unless you count The Righteous) and all the matches either offer intrigue or the promise of an incredible in-ring product. It might not have your favorite flavor of ice cream, but the thing about ice cream is that regardless of the flavor, it’s always good.
The biggest attraction Sunday, and for however long he chooses to keep wrestling, is Bryan Danielson: a man responsible for so many modern wrestling fans falling in love with, or rekindling a lost love of, pro wrestling. There’s a much longer piece about his tremendous impact on wrestling and his historical greatness, but that is for another day.
Whenever he decides to hang up his boots to happily live off the grid and be the best weird dad he can be, his absence will be glaring. A man who influenced an entire generation cannot be replaced, nor should anyone try. He is a one-of-one talent, and has my vote as the greatest wrestler of all time.
So join me, friends, as we venture to the idyllic Pacific Northwest, resplendent as it is, and preview the inaugural WrestleDream. This is everything announced as of Saturday morning prior to Collision.
Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.
There are moments of magic in the world and we don’t have to look that hard to find them. Picture sitting outside at a restaurant on a late May evening. You sit close enough to the street to hear car engines idling at stop lights, but not close enough to smell the gasoline. A graveyard of nearly empty glasses flecked with condensation lines amidst the small, slatted table with uncomfortable chairs. Your partner’s cheeks are flushed and so are yours. You lean over to kiss them. Their lips are soft and warm. You can feel them smile as you do it. The world gets quiet and starts to move at half-speed. You part your lips and see their eyes open a moment before yours. You can’t imagine anything ever feeling this good.
That is all to say that this match is a reminder that true beauty does exist.
These are two perfect pro wrestlers, drawn to each other by a shared love of stretching limbs and crushing joints. These are two delightful weirdos with their own idiosyncrasies: ZSJ’s meandering promos and nicknames and Bryan Danielson’s, well, everything. This is a match years in the making and one sure to be a feast for our eyes. If this really is the beginning of the last act of the American Dragon, there are a few better ways to kick it off than having a dream match in front of his home crowd. A genius-level artist of the purest and silliest form, each moment with Danielson should be treasured. There is only so much time left.
Prediction: Danielson
Ricky Starks vs. Wheeler Yuta
Back-to-back PPVs with Big Rick Starks on them? We are blessed and I will not let the opportunity to sing his praises slip by. Starks emits a smoldering, stylish ember in a sea of normalcy, a beacon of charisma that lights up a room, a crowd, and televisions like the first rays of spring sunshine after a long winter. His excess charisma could light even the furthest reaches of our universe. Starks’ ascension up the card cannot, and should not, be stopped. What’s working for him is what has always worked: everything. His current feud with Danielson should forever establish him as not just someone with potential, but as someone who has realized it. He should be closing shows. Whether it’s promos or matches, he is in the position to be the person who sends the crowd home happy for years to come. He is now and forever, absolute.
Yuta is great in his role as the whipping boy of the Blackpool Combat Club, but he is punching out of his depth here. Starks is leagues beyond him as a performer and he’s going to show that on Sunday.
Prediction: Starks
ROH Tag Team Champion MJF defends against The Righteous (Vincent & Dutch) in a handicap match
I was told to expect less Ring of Honor on AEW TV moving forward. I was promised, in fact. Is this really all AEW had for Adam Cole and MJF? The Righteous? In this economy?! But Mike, you’ll say, it’s all in service of something bigger!
To you, dear reader, I’ll politely respond that I understand. I’ll remind you that I deeply love you and always will, but this is still unfortunate. The number of good, available tag teams stretches longer than the highway to eternity. There is no end to worthy contenders for these titles — both on the roster and otherwise. Contenders that would actually provide intrigue and could provide, at least, a great in-ring product. Alas, this is all we have. On Dynamite this week, Excalibur said, “The Righteous have exploded onto the tag team scene in AEW” and that certainly is a statement to make on live television.
Adam Cole could wrestle this match with his leg in a boot and win this match. MJF on two legs is more than enough to get it done against two men.
Prediction: MJF retains for Better Than You Babay
The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) vs. The Gunns (Austin & Colten) vs. Lucha Brothers (Rey Fenix & Penta El Zero Miedo) vs. Orange Cassidy & Hook for a future AEW Tag Team title shot
Cassidy went from main eventing All Out with Jon Moxley to this. There are two reasonable explanations for this and neither of them good. Either this is keeping him on TV but giving his body a much-needed break, or, more likely, AEW had no real plan post-title reign. One or both can be true, but neither are acceptable.
I assure you, and am imploring Tony Khan to understand that it is possible to have plans for wrestlers after they drop a title. Darby Allin almost always has something to do and MJF always had a major program even before he won the big belt. OC was, and hopefully still is, one of the more popular acts in the company. He should always have something of substance to do.
This looks like the multi-team PWG tribute match that seems to find its way onto most AEW shows: a crazy sprint filled with high spots, gif-able moments, all done in service of heating up the crowd. Sounds like the perfect opener to me. It’s going to be a whole bunch of fun and can go a number of ways. The only outcome that doesn’t make sense would be the Bucks winning. It seems like the Bucks/FTR book is closed, at least for now. The Lucha Brothers are the freshest matchup for FTR and they’ll take this one.
Prediction: Lucha Brothers
TNT Champion Christian Cage defends against Darby Allin in a two-out-of-three falls match
The king, Josh Nason, had me on his podcast in the week leading up to All In where we talked (bemoaned, really) about the state of the TNT Championship and what it currently means. Calling it a secondary title does a great disservice to the International title – the actual secondary title. It’s become tertiary, at best. But Christian is doing his best to change that. The belt sitting on his shoulder gives it more meaning than it’s had in years. A polished champion doing must-see TV every week has elevated the belt to heights not seen since the pandemic era of AEW.
I know this is kind of “Darby’s title” and the show is in his hometown, but taking it from Christian would be a massive mistake. Christian is in a position to continue elevating the belt and can use it to help make a new star. What does winning the TNT title for a third time really do for Darby? He’s already the guy who hangs out with Sting; how much more of a rub can he possibly need? Against all odds, Christian has made us care about a title that was floundering. He deserves the chance to keep doing it.
Prediction: Cage retains
Ring of Honor World Champion & New Japan Strong Champion Eddie Kingston defends against Katsuyori Shibata
When the referee’s hand slapped the mat for the third time declaring Kingston the new ROH World Champion, Arthur Ashe Stadium erupted. It was the sound of dreams realized, the audible embodiment of years spent grinding in the shadows. A story that almost quietly ended many times had its fitting conclusion. Kingston, once the perennial underdog, finally reached the summit. It was a victory not just for Kingston, but for every heart that beats to the rhythm of perseverance, resilience, and an unconquerable spirit.
His counterpart in determination and spirit is his opponent on Sunday. Shibata’s return to a somewhat regular wrestling schedule is a miracle. From nearly dying in a ring to being the Ring of Honor Pure Champion is a story befitting the wrestling industry. An industry where people have survived plane crashes, lightning strikes, and multiple broken necks gets another reminder of the power of the resolute mind. Shibata’s comeback stands as a reminder that the fighting spirit knows no bounds and that sometimes, miracles can happen.
This is the match I’m looking forward to most. Two men with tremendous respect for wrestling and each other. I can’t wait.
Prediction: Kingston retains
AEW Tag Team Champions FTR (Cash Wheeler & Dax Harwood) defend against Aussie Open (Kyle Fletcher & Mark Davis)
A very good tag team match with two very good tag teams will happen on Sunday. FTR will continue their year-long run of having sensational matches with everyone but, somehow, the Young Bucks. They have incredible chemistry with any team and any style. The living legend moniker is fitting; equally well-earned and deserved. They are historically great and will continue to be until they decide to go do something else. I hope they never do.
These two teams have done it before – exactly a year ago at New Japan’s Royal Quest II. It was a match that received near universal praise and certainly played a part in Aussie Open getting signed with AEW. The bar is awfully high and we know FTR is up to the challenge. But are the Aussies? This is their biggest match on the biggest stage with the wide eyes of the wrestling world on them. The stage might not be too much, but their opponents happen to be just that.
Prediction: FTR retains
Chris Jericho & The Golden Lovers (Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi) vs. The Don Callis Family (Konosuke Takeshita, Sammy Guevara and Will Ospreay) (w/ Don Callis)
Leading into All In, I was sitting on my sad Ibushi take. Just wait, I said to my empty office. Wait until after All In before reacting. See how our beautiful son performs. All In has long since passed my thought remains the same. The Kota Ibushi we all fell in love with, the craziest diamond that ever did shine, is probably gone forever. He’s just not the same. The brightest light in the sky has begun to dim. Years of an impossibly physical style combined with such an extended absence have taken their toll on a man who is one of the most gifted wrestlers of the 21st century.
Ibushi in his prime was a force of nature — an athletic marvel that seemed to be unbound by the traditional laws of human biology. Hands, feet, and knees made of cinderblocks, but a neck somehow made of either rubber or adamantium. But physics and Father Time remain irritatingly undefeated. Plenty of wrestlers have reinvented themselves after their bodies began to fail them. I hope Ibushi can do the same. A wrestling world without him just won’t be as bright. Given the chance to write about Ibushi, I will take every opportunity.
Getting to do that instead of having to write some combination of ‘Jericho and Guevara’ over and over again is a welcome privilege. There is simply no reason for this to still be happening. The audience has made their feelings on Guevara very clear. He’s a mid-card heel who can get heat and make a babyface look great. You know what’s wrong with that? Absolutely nothing. That is the type of performer that has belonged on a televised wrestling program since the advent of wrestling and television. And that’s where he should stay. How many opportunities to be more is he going to get?
In the past month, Takeshita has pinned Omega twice. Since June, Ospreay has beat Jericho and Omega clean as a sheet. There is no way they lose on Sunday.
Prediction: The Don Callis Family
TBS Champion Kris Statlander defends against Julia Hart (w/ Brody King)
Hart is a rising star. She has become fully comfortable with her character and it has allowed her natural charisma to shine through. Anyone can put on black, wear a cool hat, and look spooky. It’s one thing to have a gimmick, but it’s another to have presence — something she has in spades. Yes, the mist helps (because who doesn’t love the mist?), but this is a performer who is coming into their own at a frighteningly young age. Having this much comfort as a performer at 21 is staggering. At 21, I thought a wispy goatee was the pinnacle of facial hair and could barely exist on my own. Hart has the owner of the company openly singing her praises. Big, big things are ahead.
As bright as Hart’s star is, she is not quite ready for the former (?) alien in Statlander. Statlander dethroned the dearly departed Jade Cargill and beat her again in a hell of a rematch. The time for a change is not now. The only argument for her losing is if there are imminent big plans for her like World title plans. Either way, she, like the two men I’ll talk about next, is a performer they should be building around, and getting her ready for a run at the top of the women’s division.
Prediction: Statlander retains
Swerve Strickland vs. Hangman Adam Page
Along with the aforementioned Ricky Starks and Kris Statlander, these are two performers AEW should be building around. Swerve, 33, and Page, 32, check every box anyone could ever want in a performer. Wrestling ability, microphone skills, presence, easy and natural charisma: both have it all and both have been desperate for something meaningful to sink their teeth into.
Page has been seemingly adrift since he lost the World title last summer and I’m sorry, but winning the ROH Six-Man titles does not count as meaningful. Strickland has overcome the AEW trademarked momentum stops and starts since he joined the company, all while being saddled with two of the more worthless stables in the company. He is a singular star that can stand on his own. Pairing him with other talents that can’t come close to matching his ability only drags him down. Prince Nana forever, though.
The promos leading up to this have been some of the better non-Eddie Kingston promos in recent AEW. It speaks to the talents of both Page and Strickland that they had almost no interaction leading up to this program and so quickly made it mean something. More of Page stabbing people with writing utensils, and less of meandering Chris Jericho vanity projects. Give guys (and girls) with main event ceilings the space to reach them. That’s how you wind up with a galaxy of stars.
Prediction: Strickland
