‘AEW: Dark’ Review (Jan 18th 2022)
Welcome to this weeks review of AEW: Dark, which this week emanates from AEW Universal in Universal Studios, Florida. We’ve got eleven matches to cover so let’s get to it!
Match #1: Adam Cole def. Kaun
My Thoughts: Former ROH wrestler Kaun made his debut in AEW back in December on Elevation and no here he is, facing Adam Cole on Dark(!) This wasn’t the expected squash either, with Kaun really delivering some great offense on Cole, using his size to his advantage and breaking out some hard-hitting moves. Cole may have picked up the win but Kaun came out of this one impressing. Fantastic opener for this weeks Dark!
My Score: 3 out of 5
Match #2: Gunn Club (Austin & Colten) def. Bison XL & Larintiz X
My Thoughts: And we’re back to squash matches… Talk about the antithesis of what had come before it. This was more of the usual from the Gunn Club, or is that the Ass Boys? Bison XL looked like a beast, even getting some good offense on Colten at one point; he should’ve kicked Austin’s ass too!
My Score: 1 out of 5
Match #3: “Legit” Leyla Hirsch def. Katalina Perez
My Thoughts: Going in you knew Leyla Hirsch was going to get a decisive win over her opponent in this match, Not because Katalina Perez has lost seven matches so far but more because AEW are building this massive Hirsh/Kris Statlander feud and the former needs some strong, fast and decisive wins to build her repo with the unfamiliar AEW audience…or those with short attention spans as Hirsch has been a badass throughout her AEW career! However, this WASN’T a squash at all, as Perez was given space to take it to Hirsch, working her taped-up shoulder and going punch for punch with Hirsch too! This was a cracking match for both Hirsch and Perez.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #4: Lance Archer def. Liam Cross
My Thoughts: Lance Archer is back in AEW and back doing what he does best, beating the crap out of his poor opponents and throwing them around the ring like ragdolls! Short and sweet, this one seemed to be like a statement for Archer, showing he’s recovered from injury and is back to the usual business. Love to see it!
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #5: Varsity Blondes def. Liam Grey & Adrian Alanis
My Thoughts: Varsity Blonds’ Julia Hart is still rocking that eye patch I see… And she’s been playing things less, cheerleader-ish than usual too. I’m hoping this is some long-term storytelling that is going to give Hart some character development. As for this match, this was the Blonds doing their usual thing against two guys who I actually always enjoy seeing on AEW programming. This one was over in a couple of minutes, with the Varsity Blonds ending it with a promo on Malakai Black and Brody King.
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #6: Red Velvet def. Vipress
My Thoughts: Not the best match from Red Velvet, but you have to admit she’s come a LONG way from her early days in AEW. Vipress has a good look but she, like Velvet, still needs time to grow and develop her skills. A decent enough match and thankfully not another squash match.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #7: Skye Blue def. Robyn Renegade
My Thoughts: This one felt like a warm-up match to gain some momentum for Blue before she faces Serena Deep on Dynamite (where she’s surely gonna get killed?) That didn’t mean Robyn Renegade was taking things lying down but it did mean Blue was in control of this match for the most part.
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #8: Anna Jay def. Tiffany Nieves
My Thoughts: Now this was a squash match, with Anna Jay getting super-aggressive and destroying Nieves in about 2 minutes. She looked dominant and she should after THAT hardcore women’s match; now she just needs to do the same for some of the bigger names on AEW’s roster!
My Score: 1.5 out of 5
Match #9: Daniel Garcia def. Anthony Greene
My Thoughts: I’m not a huge fan of Anthony Greene so I was behind Garcia for this entire match, and it felt like the crowd were too – even if Garcia and 2point0 were playing dirty throughout this match. Green got some offense in early but the numbers game worked to Garcia’s advantage and he took control after Green took a beating from 2point0 outside the ring and never let up.
My Score: 2.5 out of 5
Match #10: Bear Country def. Brandon Bullock & Jameson Ryan
My Thoughts: It’s always good to see Bear Country in action even if it’s in a squash match like this! Bear Country threw their opponents around, slammed their bodies into them. Basically made mince meat of Bullock and Ryan! There are a few times where I think a squash match works and this was one of them.
My Score: 2 out of 5
Match #11: Orange Cassidy & Wheeler Yuta def. “Pretty” Peter Avalon & JD Drake
My Thoughts: It still seems strange that we’ve got a Best Friends vs The Wingmen feud running on YouTube AND a Best Friends vs. Superkilq feud running on TV. Why? I don’t know. All I do know is that this YouTube feud means we get plenty of JD Drake screentime and I’m here for that. I could watch Drake fight Orange Cassidy every week and not be bored – the fact Drake gets so riled up by Cassidy lackadaisical move set is hilarious! Which means I loved this match!
My Score: 3 out of 5
News of the Night:
- Kip Sabian, or a lookalike, sat in the audience, box on his head, for this episode.
Final Verdict: 3/5
Another decent episode of Dark. It did what the show set out to do, give performers and enhancement talent a showcase. At least this week we didn’t get a ton of squash matches and when we did they really counted. Between the matches and the promos, this was solid “TV”.
