Samoa Joe has made his return to AEW.
On Saturday night, following the Tailgate Brawl event in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, Joe appeared unexpectedly and attacked Jack Perry shortly after Perry defeated Katsuyori Shibata. The hour-long show, broadcast on TNT and HBO Max, took place at the NOW Arena just before the All Out event.
In recent weeks, Perry had been challenging Joe, even delivering a taped promo on the September 16 episode of Dynamite, urging the former AEW World Champion to come back, finishing with the line “Make my day.” That segment ended with the phrase “Joe is gonna kill you” painted on a wall—a nod to the chant fans associate with Joe. Members of Joe’s faction, The Opps, responded on Collision by stating Perry had to defeat Shibata before facing Joe, which set the stage for Saturday’s showdown.
Although Perry won the match, Joe emerged after the bell and knocked him out.
This marked Joe’s first appearance in AEW since late May. His last match was at Double or Nothing, where he fell to Will Ospreay in the quarterfinals of the Owen Hart Foundation tournament. On the May 27 episode of Dynamite, Joe announced to The Opps that he would be taking time off to film the upcoming season of Peacock’s Twisted Metal series. He said, “But once again, opportunity calls and Hollywood’s ringing. Gentlemen, I’ll be stepping away for a few months, but you all know how this works. I expect you to hold it down.”
Perry has been going through a rough patch lately; as F4W highlighted on September 16, he had lost six straight matches since signing a new AEW contract in July, despite a previous victory over Nick Wayne.
Fan Take: Samoa Joe’s return injects fresh excitement into AEW and shakes up the current roster dynamics, especially with Jack Perry’s recent struggles. This comeback could spark new rivalries and storylines that keep fighting fans invested and elevate the storytelling within the sport.
Source: wrestlingnews.co
