5 Ups & 4 Downs For AEW Collision (May 25 - Results & Review)

Ups...

5. A Welcome Surprise

An appearance from Hiroshi Tanahashi is always welcome, even more so when the Ace of New Japan Pro Wrestling - and the President of NJPW nowadays, of course - arrives unexpectedly and is ready for in-ring action.

Collision teased that Claudio Castagnoli and Daniel Garcia may take on Lance Archer and the Righteous in a two-on-three handicap match before Claudio paused as the attention turned to the entrance ramp. There, Tanahashi shocked the MGM Grand Arena crowd by making his way out to team with Castagnoli and Red Death.

The match itself was a fun if unspectacular one, with long-time New Japan fans likely getting a kick out of seeing Tanahashi and Archer mixing it up, and also the sight of Tana playing the air guitar while Garcia danced receiving a nice pop - plus the post-match moves of Hiroshi and Danny.

Framing this as a Team AEW vs. Team Elite scenario didn't really click - does anyone care that Archer and the Righteous were hired goons of the Elite last week? - but the action was kept concise, clocking in at just under ten minutes and culminating with Tanahashi hitting Vincent with the High Fly Flow for the win.

While it can become nauseating at times when AEW regularly features so many non-AEW talents as so many valuable AEW-contracted names are kept on the sidelines, this Tanahashi appearance did at least serve to whet the appetite for next month's Forbidden Door PPV.