AEW TV - 5/13 - 5/19/2026 - Conglomeration Is A Part of Life

[Curt McGirt]

Brings to mind, what I liked about Moxley's last speech to him was that though it was like he was supposed to be talking about Ospreay to Ospreay, he was actually talking about himself. Listen closely. All the shit he was attributing to him was stuff he'd personally done in the past. 

[Technico Support]

2 hours ago, Curt McGirt said:

Brings to mind, what I liked about Moxley's last speech to him was that though it was like he was supposed to be talking about Ospreay to Ospreay, he was actually talking about himself. Listen closely. All the shit he was attributing to him was stuff he'd personally done in the past. 

Well, universalizing our own experiences instead of understanding that everyone’s experiences are different is just one of the many failings of human nature, if I can spit some deepness for a minute.

[The Natural]

6 hours ago, Technico Support said:

He's not going to totally stop doing highspots just because, in kayfabe, some bald edgelord who talks like he's seen Fight Club too many times told him he's still a bird or some shit

 

Legit LOL at 02:27 in the morning. Cheers, my friend.

[The Natural]

6 hours ago, Technico Support said:

He's not going to totally stop doing highspots just because, in kayfabe, some bald edgelord who talks like he's seen Fight Club too many times told him he's still a bird or some shit

 

 

Just now, The Natural said:

Legit LOL at 02:27 in the morning. Cheers, my friend.

Will Ospreay's next entrance theme:

Spoiler

Enjoy!

 

[Technico Support]

I was thinking “I Believe I Can Fly” but I can see how that one is out of fashion.

[The Natural]

51 minutes ago, Technico Support said:

I was thinking “I Believe I Can Fly” but I can see how that one is out of fashion.

Only place that's flying is in the Phantom Zone along with R. Kelly. Fuck R. Kelly.

[The Green Meanie]

On 5/14/2026 at 8:24 PM, BobbyWhioux said:

LeDuc? Dino Bravo?  The Vachons? PCO? Jacques? Pat Patterson?

Even Martel is at least as famous for his heel stint as his face runs.

Speedball is swimming against the tide as it is.

I can remember many, many years ago, during an episode of Raw, Bobby Heenan was commentating during an 8-man tag team match featuring The Quebecers, Rick Martel, and Adam Bomb: "The Quebecers, from Canada, Rick Martel, also from Canada...Adam Bomb is from Three Mile Island, that's like Canada!"

[The Natural]

Bald Elite Wrestling.

[The Natural]

1 minute ago, The Natural said:

Bald Elite Wrestling.

We got a John Silver sighting on AEW Dynamite! Tony Khan really dropped the ball with the Dark Order post the late great Mr. Brodie Lee's passing.

[AxB]

Collision thoughts: It was a show with a lot of matches that on paper were going to be short and uncompetitive, and then the match happened and the underdogs held their own and it got time. Willow vs Velvet felt way longer than most AEW women's matches. The Conglomeration vs Shane Taylor Promotions is on paper a Conglomeration squash, but it started right after the show did and ended at 20 past.

But then the one squash match that was a squash match was Divine Dominion vs Allie Katch & Kaia McKenna. Which did get me wondering, Allie Kat was a young indie wrestler doing a comedy gimmick, who was told (by MJF) that her best shot at getting signed was to drop the Catgirl schtick and focus of technical wrestling. So she became serious wrestler Allie Katch and started having serious matches, and... that was 6 years ago.

So it was probably bad advice. She just wrestled a Loser Leaves GCW match on Spring Break and lost, so Gods know what she's got next.

Tony Khan has certain booking habits that he likes to reproduce all the way up and down a card. Like he won't just sign one big tall woman, he'll sign a bunch of big tall women (Megan Bayne, Lena Kross, Stori Denali, Christian XO... it's a miracle J-Rod is still unsigned, really. But he also right now really likes 'Stables that consist of a Veteran leader or two, and a bunch of younger wrestlers as their proteges'. We had The Opps vs The Lethal Johnsons, and that was a Senpai/ Kanpai vs Senpai/Kanpai match, with the added bonus that Lethal was apparently a former Joe protege as well. But we also have an angle where Ospreay is playing Young Boy to Moxley's vet, but also the veteran leader of the United Empire in NJPW at the same time. 

The 'Darby Allin will wrestle anyone for the title' angle, if that's a way to create doubt in the fan's minds about who is winning the PPV match with MJF, they're going about it smartly. Because at this point, Sammy Guevara is a guy who used to be on TV. He's a relic of OG AEW, who looked like the future of te company in 2019, but it's seven years later and the future wasn't him. And Darby barely beating him, passing out while applying a submission and scoring a pinfall in the end that was less about "You've got to hook the leg" and more about draping my corpse atop his corpse and hoping he stays dead, that does imply that as soon as he faces another proper main eventer, he might be toast.

[Sublime]

The Ospreay/DR angle is partly to help fans accept a new form of Will who has said he physically can’t do some of the things he used to do after his neck injury, I know he said can’t do a SSP specifically. He can still hit lots of high spots but he is changing his style out of physical necessity as well. 

[Curt McGirt]

I was off-and-on for this one all night. 

- Not sure if I want an actual answer to my question of whether there is something in Kyle's backpack or not. I don't know where I read it but somebody said nobody stomp-punches anymore, like Bret Hart. Well, Chicken still does it. Also his pull-apart with Ciampa was vicious, this should be one nasty fucker of a match between them.

- Red vs. Willow felt fucking long, and every time I looked up either Willow was missing something or being reversed. So, it really felt like Red took 3/4 of the match and then Willow just won. Okay...

- Somebody is gonna have to tell me how many times Joe and Lethal have been on opposite sides of a ring against each other. Bowens showed a lot of good good fire tonight. It was funny how the "I should get a standing ovation" comment was super arrogant and then people... actually did it? A little bit? Which was even funnier, him only getting half an O. 

- Allie! Did not know her and MJF used to be partners. That just feels weird to me. Maxwell Jacob Friedman the character definitely seems like he would prefer only the most vapid, rich, and Aryan of mates. 

- Sammy stole his mustache from Dominik and slipping in all the Spanish words and inflections is super cringeworthy. Due to him I was honestly gonna pass on the match and get to bed early but they immediately went to the Swanton through the table and the crack sound of the table exploding was so satisfying it hooked me in. The Darby collapse was probably too realistic for its own good. I can see that happening with some seriousness down the way. His three-point fall off the top was just goddamn ridiculous in an almost Looney Tunes kinda way. They, surprise, did only one more spot down the line that required the stipulation, it was another table bump, Sammy ate shit and they pinned him right away to wrap it all up. That was way better than whatever the PAC match was. 

[HarryArchieGus]

Solid Mox promo to open. They love that awkward second camera. O'Reilly/OC/Briscoe-STP was fine. I wouldn't mind seeing an O'Reilly-Moriarty bout. Carly Bravo seems to get lost everywhere. Is that dude on a no cut contract? I wish somebody could convince Shane Taylor to work in those Adidas track pants with an undershirt - he looks 10 fold better than his ill-fitting spandex. Good Ospreay promo in there. Mark Briscoe seems rejuvenated lately - his mic work has that spark again. Lexi Nair emoting provides some of the most awkward television AEW has to offer. Maybe an acting coach would help? Willow-Red was okay. One of Red's better outtings. Willow's Comeback Killer gimmick is making her feel like more of a heel than it oughtta. I like the Willow-Windsor booking. Darby's mic work has gotten significantly better in the last while. Good Guevara promo in there too. The Ciampa-Briscoe angle was a solid way to lead into their match. Impromptu stuff helps the show come alive. Bowens/Joe-Lethal/Johnson was solid. I like Bowens with Joe. He seems capable of working the mic, but what he comes up with is never anything but loud cliches and loud overstatements - that'll work better as a heel. The Divine Dominion squash was what it needed to be. Katch took a nice beating there. They need to start pushing some worthwhile challengers tho. The Queue in the Women's Tag Division feels empty. The Lio Rush stuff is a lot corny, but sorta works. A little fine tuning is needed there. Finlay/Davis/Connors-Rascals was mostly good. I'm getting extremely tired of stereo spots (and the awful wait for everyone to get into position) and all the other flimsy choreography. David Finlay is quietly killing it out there. He's a great hand and feeling a little underrated right now. Tay/Jay promo with nothing much to say nor much of a reason. I like both, but they need to step it up-in ring and on the mic. A very good, as expected, Sammy-Darby main event. Not sure killing off the Guevara finish with two GTHs and a top rope splash was necessary for the false finish - crowd did not bite. I bet they would have if he'd done 1 GTH and gone for the cover. I always dig Nigel, but he was particularly good Nigel on this show. He felt like the host. They're doing some good packages and meaningful wraparounds lately, and it makes the show feel a lot more alive. Really Good crowd in Maryland. A fun show.

Edited May 17 by HarryArchieGus

[SovietShooter]

6 hours ago, HarryArchieGus said:

O'Reilly/OC/Briscoe-STP was fine. I wouldn't mind seeing an O'Reilly-Moriarty bout. Carly Bravo seems to get lost everywhere. Is that dude on a no cut contract? I wish somebody could convince Shane Taylor to work in those Adidas track pants with an undershirt - he looks 10 fold better than his ill-fitting spandex.

I don't watch ROH very often, so I was not only surprised at how much STP got here, but I liked how Dean/Bravo looked. They're more my pace than the Rascalz. 

Moriarity needs a real push in the main roster, like yesterday. I'd love to see him in the Opps. 

Speaking of the Opps, this gimmick is working for Bowen, and he looked great in there. 

[DreamBroken]

10 hours ago, Curt McGirt said:

every time I looked up either Willow was missing something or being reversed. So, it really felt like Red took 3/4 of the match and then Willow just won. Okay.... 

Unfortunately how all these momentum killing matches are going, blow off shoulder work whatever and win with ease.  Hated it for Persephone, blew Aminata's return, and as someone who's loved Red's ROH win streak all year, this was probably the worst yet for the ROH women's TV champ.  I turned it off and went to watch the mma fights at that point.

[HarryArchieGus]

4 hours ago, SovietShooter said:

I don't watch ROH very often, so I was not only surprised at how much STP got here, but I liked how Dean/Bravo looked. They're more my pace than the Rascalz. 

Moriarity needs a real push in the main roster, like yesterday. I'd love to see him in the Opps. 

Speaking of the Opps, this gimmick is working for Bowen, and he looked great in there. 

I hold out hope for Shawn Dean despite his decision to dust off the lousy Bronco Buster. I feel like he continues to improve his game. Bravo has some physical potential, but he lacks the mental game. Multiple times in this Trios match he was either out of position or standing around in ring for far too long without a tag to set-up poorly timed spots. Timing and general clumsiness is a consistent problem for him. He also does a lot of goofy selling that feels very cosplay. 

I like Lee Moriarty a lot. He's shown some considertable improvement to his game over the passed year. His fundamentals are fantastic, but he still lacks a certain edge and aggression badly needed to elevate his game. I dunno, I kinda like where he's at. I think he's getting to where he needs to be, but may need a little more time yet. 

It's early, but I agree on Bowens' Opps debut. I liked his aggression. 

Edited May 18 by HarryArchieGus

[tbarrie]

I sort of feel I should throw "The Lethal Swirl" into the discussion of worst faction names ever, but it's so hilariously absurd I don't have the heart.

[HarryArchieGus]

11 hours ago, DreamBroken said:

Unfortunately how all these momentum killing matches are going, blow off shoulder work whatever and win with ease.  Hated it for Persephone, blew Aminata's return, and as someone who's loved Red's ROH win streak all year, this was probably the worst yet for the ROH women's TV champ.  I turned it off and went to watch the mma fights at that point.

I get some similar vibes concerning this Comeback Killer gimmick, but for different reasons. First, it feels like a heel move to want to cut off or 'Kill' returning wrestlers comebacks. They work so hard to get back, and then their 'dead'? Which does seem to be the case for Kamille - tho I liked that match (and build) just fine. Returning wrestlers generally come back with at the very least some crowd anticipation - which is a natural babyface vibe. Willow 'killing' said comeback feels like a heel move. Add to that some of her ridiculously cocky mannerisms - like the smiling pin. That's a textbook heel Jericho move. That said, and despite these character question marks, I'm actually pretty pleased to see her being pushed so hard. She's not only winning all her matches, but also getting consistent mic time. And doing generally pretty well with it. There's a lot she is doing very well - her matches have also been generally pretty good. I'd argue that Red, Persephone and Aminata all benefitted from getting a good amount of time on television going toe to toe with the current top babyface. I do completely undestand somebody invested in the weekly ROH product not wanting the Champions used to elevate non-ROH ppl on AEWTV. 

[DreamBroken]

7 hours ago, HarryArchieGus said:

I get some similar vibes concerning this Comeback Killer gimmick, but for different reasons. First, it feels like a heel move to want to cut off or 'Kill' returning wrestlers comebacks. They work so hard to get back, and then their 'dead'? Which does seem to be the case for Kamille - tho I liked that match (and build) just fine. Returning wrestlers generally come back with at the very least some crowd anticipation - which is a natural babyface vibe. Willow 'killing' said comeback feels like a heel move. Add to that some of her ridiculously cocky mannerisms - like the smiling pin. That's a textbook heel Jericho move.

I'd argue that Red, Persephone and Aminata all benefitted from getting a good amount of time on television going toe to toe with the current top babyface.

Agreed on extremely unlikable heel shit.   Persephone & Aminata both went right back off AEW TV for over a month as if it never happened. I'm sure Red will face the same fate, pointless.

[HarryArchieGus]

18 hours ago, DreamBroken said:

Agreed on extremely unlikable heel shit.   Persephone & Aminata both went right back off AEW TV for over a month as if it never happened. I'm sure Red will face the same fate, pointless.

I am with you - I don't like the booking decision to bring Aminata back for one loss followed by a lengthy absense. That's not on Willow tho. TK likes putting certain wrestlers on hiatus following a loss. I suspect in the case of Aminata they may be readying a push. I kinda hope in the process she retires that lousy looking 'Chocalate Kisses' move. It always makes her opponents look goofy trying to sell it. It's not at all worth the pop. I also think there's some plans in place for Persephone, but she's in developmental mode - paying dues and losing. I have no issue with this strategy. The current Men's World Champion did it and turned out just fine.

Edited May 19 by HarryArchieGus