How "Timeless" Toni Storm Exorcised her WWE Demons on Collision

Before I start, I have to give credit where it's due here: after we basked in the glory of Toni Storm's brilliant transformation back into her "Timeless" persona on January 25th's edition of AEW Collision, my wife was the one to notice some crucial subtext in the act of stripping away her "Rocker Toni" gear, transfiguring back into her "Timeless" persona while standing in the middle of the ring on a 45-degree night in Jacksonville, clad in her unmentionables.

First, some backstory: since being betrayed by her...superfan? Padawan? Lover? Mariah May and losing the AEW Women's World Championship to her at All In back in August, delusional Golden Era Hollywood starlet "Timeless" Toni Storm had been absent from AEW TV for months, instead showing up to work some shows in Japan and Mexico for STARDOM and CMLL, respectively. Finally, in December, she made her surprise return after Mariah's successful title defense against the third in their love triangle, Mina Shirakawa. However, Toni was no longer "Timeless," having reverted back into her classic "80s rocker" Toni Storm gimmick.

This edition of Toni Storm seemingly had no memory of her last three years in AEW – so much so that her return mimic'd very closely her original surprise debut in All Elite Wrestling in March 2022:

For the next month, Toni continued to behave like this was her rookie month in the company: she asked veterans (some who've probably been there for a shorter time than she's been) to watch her matches and give her pointers; she offered to help strike the lights after her interview segments; she even had to be told that she didn't need to dress in the hallway like a rookie and could actually use the women's locker room. Mind you, she's a three-time former AEW World Champ, so those around her reacted with more than a little confusion.

During the last month, as Storm worked her way up the ladder with wins over lower-ranked AEW talent (including working the pre-show at the World's End PPV against Leila Grey), commentary would occasionally take pains to explain her obvious 80s rocker gimmick. Nigel McGuinness especially delighted in repeatedly describing her as an 80s throwback on episodes of Collision. This jumped out at my wife and me, because it sounded like a borderline parody of how Toni's character was treated in her days working for WWE. Week after week, Toni would wrestle on Smackdown as Michael Cole spelled out the obvious for the TV audience. "She fashions herself a wild child of the 80s," Cole would explain, week after repetitive week. Was McGuinness aping this on purpose, or was it just a coincidence?

It's crucial to note here that Toni Storm's WWE main roster experience was the subject of much fan debate at the beginning of her AEW run. Not long after her All Elite debut, Storm appeared on the AEW Unrestricted podcast and recalled a pitch for an angle that made her a bit uncomfortable:

Toni Storm’s short-lived run on the WWE main roster is best remembered for an angle near Thanksgiving last year where Charlotte Flair smashed two pies in her face.

During an interview on the AEW Unrestricted podcast, Storm was asked about that pie-in-the-face segment. She said it was actually one of her better times in WWE, and much better than their original creative idea for that night:

“I was actually quite happy with that segment that day because it was a lot better than the original idea. The original idea was...I was called up and asked if I was comfortable with having my shirt ripped off, or something. They wanted to do this whole angle where it was like they were gonna rip my shirt off so I was gonna be...embarrassed in my underwear, I guess. I don’t know. When you’re asked if you’re comfortable if you’re to do that, and it’s like literally people are being fired every single week, it’s like, well yeah...I guess I’m comfortable with that. I guess I’m gonna be doing that. But then a lot of people fought to not have that happen because that would have been terrible. A terrible idea.”

“So to be honest, the pie was actually...it was quite a sweet treat in comparison to what it could’ve been. In hindsight, I don’t really mind. You know what? I’m not even mad. People think I’m so mad about that. I think it’s hilarious. Standing there covered in pie!”

“That was a good day. Not painful memory at all. That was a good one...that was one of my better times.”

Fast forward to this past Saturday, as Toni Storm, 80s rocker, stood face-to-face with AEW World Champion Mariah May for the "first time ever," in promotion of the title shot Storm recently earned as the winner of a #1 contender's Casino Gauntlet match on Dynamite. What was obvious in this encounter, of course, was how Storm flipped the script on "Timeless" Toni's first ever interaction with AEW rookie Mariah May back in November 2023. "I'm your biggest fan!" Toni gushed, mere seconds after Mariah verbally laid into her. And in a mirror reflection of how "Timeless" Toni once cradled her young protege in her bosom, Rocker Toni stunned Mariah by grabbing her in an embrace, burying her head in Mariah's chest. Mariah, infuriated, attacked and beat down Toni, whipping her with the championship belt in lieu of smashing a pie into her face. It was this beatdown that triggered Toni's decision to snap back into her "Timeless" persona, stripping down to her skivvies while the rekindled brass in her voice slammed into Mariah's face, fear flaring in her eyes as Storm threatened to "rip [her] tits off."

It was a goosebump-inducing moment, but not just because of the history between the two women. In shedding her shades, t-shirt and baggy jeans, Toni did exactly what WWE writers wanted to do to her four years ago: strip her down to her underwear in the middle of the ring. But instead of someone like Charlotte Flair or Mariah May doing it to her, Toni undressed of her own volition, an act of defiant autonomy and power.

Was this a purposeful subtext? Perhaps we'll never know; perhaps this was just a happy coincidence, the proud Hollywood starlet wielding her sexuality like a lethal weapon to be used against her opponent at the upcoming Grand Slam Australia event, when her previous employer wanted to use it as a cudgel with which to humiliate her character. But the entire story of "Timeless" Toni Storm has been about the agency and power of feminine sexuality. Months ago, in the lead-up to Toni's title defense against Mina Shirakawa at last year's Forbidden Door, I wrote about how the queer love triangle that built to that match was a refreshing change of pace for pro wrestling, an art form that historically used gay character beats as exploitive titillation or cheap heat for a heel character. Instead, the Storm/May/Shirakawa love triangle, for all its comedic beats, never played into its queerness as a joke in and of itself, and most importantly, was not built for the male gaze whatsoever. In point of fact, the "Timeless" Toni story has been built around a woman who utilizes her own sexuality for her own purposes – yes, often for comedic effect, but always on her terms.

In the middle of the Daily's Place ring on Saturday, clad in bra, panties and fishnets, lipstick smudged with unhinged fervor, "Timeless" Toni Storm stood half-naked for the world to see, much in the way the WWE writer's room wanted to display her years ago. She has never looked so powerful, and Mariah May should be scared out of her boots.