03rd Nov2021

‘AEW Dark: Elevation – Episode 35’ Review

by Phil Wheat

Welcome to this weeks review of AEW Dark: Elevation which eminates from Boston, Massachusetts in front of a baying wrestling-hungry crowd. Let’s get right to it…

Match #1: Nyla Rose & Emi Sakura def. Ryo Mizunami & Kris Statlander

My Thoughts: This one was an interesting back and forth, really selling all four women’s strength rather than technical ability. I could watch Ryo Mizunami and Nyla Rose go at it in a lengthy singles match – I think that would really be something to see. In the end Nyla took to the top rope and hit a HUGE swanton onto Statlander to get the win. Cracking opening match for Elevation.

My Score: 2.5 out of 5

Match #2: Frankie Kazarian def. Victor Benjamin

My Thoughts: I’m not going to lie, when this match started I thought we were in for a quick squash as we’ve frequently from Kazarian. But that was NOT what we got! Victor Benjamin looked that part, and that could’ve been all he had, but instead he actually delivered some decent opposition for Kazarian and looks impressive doing it to – with some real examples of “big man” strength and power. This one surprised me.

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #3: Riho def. Kayla Sparks

My Thoughts: The crowd were, initially, excited for this match with both competitors getting a good response but that excitement seemed to die down the longer the match went on. In the end this was a quasi-squash match in the typical AEW style.

My Score: 1.5 out of 5

Match #4: FTR def. Waves & Curls

My Thoughts: Waves & Curls make their third appearance in AEW in a match that really was one-sided. FTR out-wrestled and out-thought Waves & Curls at every step, with a brilliant “playing possum” move that led to them hitting the Big Rig and getting the easy win.

My Score: 1.5 out of 5

Match #5: Tay Conti def. LMK

My Thoughts: You knew LMK wasn’t hitting anything on Tay Conti right from the get-go. Conti looked like a vicious machine here whilst LMK looked way too excited to be in this match that she took her eye off the ball. Even a VERY brief flurry of offense did nothing but p*ss Conti off. If the goal of this match was to make Conti look super-strong going into her title match with Britt Baker then they certainly succeeded!

My Score: 2 out of 5

Match #6: Chuck Taylor, Wheeler Yuta & Orange Cassidy vs The Acclaimed & Serpentico

My Thoughts: With a hilarious opening “rap” from Orange Cassidy this match got off to a great start. The Acclaimed looked on top form here, with smooth transitions between moves and superb double teams. The duo even threw Serpentico around like Luther normally would – though not with as much panache! In the end though it was Chuck Taylor, Wheeler Yuta & Orange Cassidy (who also hit some good double and triple team maneuvers) that were victorious – with Cassidy hitting a huge Orange Punch on Serpentico for the win.

My Score: 2.5 out of 5

Final Verdict: 2.5/5

On paper this was an average episode of AEW DarK: Elevation but yet one that still managed to, whilst watching it, feel incredibly fun and exciting. It didn’t outstay its welcome either – the perfect appetiser for the rest of the AEW week to come.

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