AEW Dark, for those unaware, is AEW’s newest YouTube show. It’s something of a sister program to AEW Dynamite. The show is similar to the likes of HEAT or Xplosion, with matches additionally filmed before and after Dynamite. However this show is presented as a much bigger deal, with wins and losses still factoring into the records.
It’s also morphing to more take the place of the Road To episodes that were a regular staple leading up to the promotion’s initial PPVs as well as the premiere of Dynamite.
This week, in addition to the usual AEW Dark matches, Cody Rhodes sat down with popular referee Aubrey Edwards to talk about her journey to AEW. It’s a new segment called “From Undesirable To Undeniable”. This is a slogan Cody has taken to in pertaining to his own path to AEW EVP. Her tale is short but similar to many in AEW, noting her officiating work in WWE’s Mae Young Classic, only to never be called back for a real job with them for whatever reason.
The show also saw Kip Sabian win an entertaining triple threat with Sonny Kiss and Peter Avalon. Sabian showed out as a high flier and eventually pinned one half of the Librarians. This was in spite of dislocating his index finger early on and having to have a medic at ringside pop it back into place for him! Tough as well as talented.
In addition, The Hybrid-2 and the Dark Order defeated SCU and CIMA in an eight-man tag. Hybrid-2 slowly building up wins to make up for the winless streak they started with. Meanwhile the Dark Order builds yet more momentum heading into their Tag Title Tournament semi-final bye. It’s also the first time SCU have lost as a team, though they’re technically still unbeaten in trios action.
By far however, the big talking point was the main event, pitting Kenny Omega against Joey Janela in an Unsanctioned Lights Out match.
Omega demanded the match, refusing to take the night off even after being put through a glass table the week before. It would seem he wanted to one-up Moxley’s own unsanctioned bout against Janela back at Fyter Fest. This would be backed up by his hilarious use of the Wacky Line – the rebound clothesline that Moxley has completely disowned from his WWE days – as well as hitting Dirty Deeds. (Note: Not quite the same as the Paradigm Shift/Death Rider, in spite of what some commentators might say. Dirty Deeds has no lift or spike, just a straight DDT!)
You’ll never believe this, but the Dirty Deeds was kicked out of!
Aside from this, the match was absolutely littered with violence and brutality. It wasn’t as gorey as the Moxley/Janela match, which saw Moxley’s back torn to shreds by barbed wire and Janela’s bare feet gouged with thumb tacks, but it was still abundantly violent. The two did not hold back with their weapon shots, every collision a solid one. Kenny found himself thrown through an upside down, hanging table to the floor at one point. Janela also got him with a vicious frog splash off a ladder through a table. Omega, in turn, pelted Janela with the hardest high knees he’s hit since leaving New Japan. One of which were even aided by a chair in the corner.
This is really just a taste of what went down in the lengthy, near half hour encounter.
The match ended with arguably the most frightening spot of all. And perhaps the most brutal One Winged Angel of all time, sending Janela headfirst onto the seat of a steel chair.
This seems to establish that AEW Dark can theoretically get more violent than Dynamite. The rules are different on YouTube, where theoretically you could do or say whatever. We’ll see that tested tonight with Jericho and Darby’s street fight I suppose. But I suspect that’ll be more of a rugged brawl than this kind of carnage.
