By Briar Starr, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@briarstarrtv)
AEW Dark (Episode 24)
Taped March 4, 2020 in Broomfield, Colorado at 1stBank Center
Streamed March 10, 2020 on the AEW YouTube Page
Excalibur and Taz welcomed us ringside and ran down the show lineup.
1. Kip Sabian and Peter Avalon vs. Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy. Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy came out to a nice reaction as they are super over right now. Luchasaurus tried for a chokeslam right away, but Sabian quickly rolled to the corner and tagged Avalon. After a couple of choreographed moves and counters, Jungle Boy took down Avalon with an arm drag and used the rope for assistance.
Jungle Boy eventually took Avalon down with a dropkick. Sabian blind tagged in, but Boy quickly realized the tag and did a rolled up senton to Sabian, as he then later jumped from the rope with a torpedo to Avalon. A few short moments later, Boy tried jumping again from the ropes onto Sabian, but Ford interfered and tripped Boy as Sabian countered with a swinging neckbreaker.
Sabian and Avalon teamed up to take Boy down with a move. Sabian was only able to get a two count out of it. Excalibur noted that Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus were slated to be in the original tag team title tournament back in October and he questioned what might’ve been had Luchasaurus not been injured. Outside the ring, Ford and Bates gets into it with each other. While the two were distracting each other, Luchasaurus made the tag and is dominating Avalon and Sabian. He hits both of them with a roundhouse kick.
Avalon went for his own superkick to Luchasaurus, but he countered with a chokeslam and then a moonsault. He almost picked up the win, though Sabian broke up the pin. Shortly after, Jungle Boy is tagged in and took down Sabian with a running clothesline. Standing on the outside, Sabian is hit with another roundhouse kick from Luchasaurus. After Sabian is sent to the outside, Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy team up to take Avalon down for the count and eventually the victory…
Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus defeated Peter Avalon and Kip Sabian via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: A weird pairing with Avalon and Sabian. As I’ve mentioned in previous episodes and this is no knock on Avalon, but anytime he is in the match, it feels really predictable since I don’t think he has won a match yet on Dark. Aside from that, a nice showing from Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy, These two are over with the crowd and I found it fascinating that Excalibur brought up the tag team title tournament last October. It makes you wonder if they are planned for a push later this year. If so, the time is now. Imagine the reaction if Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy end up winning the tag titles? Though, I can see how it would be a little cartoony, but you never know until you try it.
Tony Schiavone and Dasha Gonzalez welcomed us to 1stBank Center. The duo hyped that you can buy a Nightmare Collective shirt that features Cody’s dog and that part of the proceeds will go to the Planned PetHood International foundation…
2. Severino Corrente vs. Jimmy Havoc. Corrente made his AEW debut as Excalibur notes during the ring introduction. Once the match starts, a “He’s Gonna Kill You” chant broke out from the crowd. Havoc right away put Corrente in an arm lock and tried breaking his fingers. Havoc let Corrente get a couple of shots to the face in, but Havoc countered and took him down himself with an elbow.
Havoc hit Corrente with a suplex in the corner and followed that up with a diving stomp from the top rope. Corrente tried a submission lock on Havoc, but Havoc managed to bite Corrente’s fingers. Havoc later planted Corrente and hit him with a drop foot dropkick. Just a few seconds later, Havoc finished Corrente off with an Acid Rainmaker. Jimmy Havoc defeated Severino Corrente via pinfall.
After the match, Luther came out from behind and attacks Havoc. Luther planted Havoc with a DDT on the ramp. Excalibur noted that this feud is not over between the two…
Briar’s Take: It was what it was. You really can’t say much in a match when an AEW regular faces someone that’s making their debut other than they are building Havoc up. Or as in usual cases, having him wrestle until creative can find something for him to do. One thing that continues to lack with AEW is video packages. How are we supposed to care about and invest in Severino Corrente when we know nothing about him? Schiavone and Gonzalez hyped where AEW will be visiting next…
Briar’s Take: I still have to chuckle that there is a match named “Blood and Guts.” Nicely done AEW.
3. Abadon vs. Hikaru Shida. This was Abadon’s AEW debut and she literally dressed up as a zombie, and it was just creepy. When the bell rang, the crowd chanted “Eat Her Soul.” Shida took Abadon down with a shoulder tackle, but Abadon quickly sit right up. Abadon managed to hit a quick dropkick as well. Shida hit Abadon with a couple of elbow strikes and followed up with a high knee strike.
Shida went to the top rope and hit Abadon with a diving dropkick to only get a two count. She tried for a elbow strike, but only got a two count. Despite the kick out, Shida followed up with a knee to the back of the head on Abadon, but Abadon once again kicked out. Abadon was able to hit Shida with a sit down neckbreaker and almost scored the upset. Shortly after, Shida ended Abadon with a running knee strike…
Hikaru Shida defeated Abadon via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Okay, this is just one of the weirdest things I’ve seen so far in all my years of watching wrestling. Abadon is just super weird and creepy, but maybe that was the plan. As for the match, easily skippable. Backstage, Gonzalez was trying to get answers from Havoc about any potential injuries. While interviewing him, Luther came out of nowhere to continue his beat down on Havoc. AEW officials quickly pulled him away…
Leva Bates and Peter Avalon hyped their Book of the Month. They into Colt Cabana, who was listening to a podcast. Avalon got angry at Cabana, saying there is something with this generation listening to podcasts. Avalon then hesitantly said challenge? Bates followed up with accepted. Avalon kind of agreed, but walked away. Bates says she loves his podcast but Avalon came back to pull her away…
Briar’s Take: We’ll never know what Cabana was listening too. Maybe, the Pro Wrestling Boom?
4. “Private Party” Isiah Kassidy and Marq Quen vs. Sonny Kiss and Brandon Cutler. Isiah Kassidy and Cutler start the match with a couple of rest holds. Kiss is tagged in and takes down Quen with an arm drag take down and got a couple of offensive moves in on Quen. Quen dragged Kiss to the corner to make a tag to his partner Kassidy. Both team up to do a foot stomp and neckbreaker combination. Kassidy was quickly able to get a two count on Kiss. Later, Quen is tagged again and the two hit Kiss with a couple of their combination moves. Quen got a quick two count on Kiss after the tag. After isolating Kiss in the ring and not letting him make a tag, Kiss was finally able to tag Cutler in.
Cutler then jumped from the top rope with a double clothesline. Both members of Private Party are stuck in the ropes and Cutler hit both of them with a diving leg drop. Cutler then followed up with a suicide dive to Quen and eventually took down Kassidy with a diving elbow drop to only get a two count on Kassidy. On the outside, Kiss managed to hit Quen with a moonsault.
Back in the ring, Quen was able to hit Kiss with a double splits. Shortly after, Cutler illegally hit both members of the Private Party with the TPK. He then rolls out of the ring and Sonny Kiss comes back in after resting to almost get the victory. After a nice effort from both Kiss and Cutler, Kassidy and Quen finished Kiss off with their finishing move Gin and Juice.
Private Party defeated Sonny Kiss and Brandon Cutler via pinfall.
Afterward, “The Death Triangle” Pac, Fenix, and Pentagon Jr. come out to attack Private Party, Cutler, and Kiss. Pac grabbed the mic and said there would be no happy ending tonight. He said that any member of the roster that continues to disrespect them is in for some deep trouble.
Joey Janela came out to try to save the day, but Pac and Fenix ganged up on him. Eventually, Chuck Taylor, Trent, and Orange Cassidy came out to stop Pac, Fenix, and Pentagon Jr. from beating up on the others. Excalibur said The Death Triangle will in action on Wednesday’s Dynamite…
Briar’s Take: A nice ten-minute tag team match to send the crowd home happy. It was nice to see Cutler and Kiss get some of their moves in on Party. Still, whenever Cutler and Kiss are in the ring, it is pretty predictable on who the winner is going to be. Nothing on their part, it just the way it goes sometimes. Overall, wow. We actually got a little hype on Dynamite for once on Dark. I really can’t remember the last time that happened. A nice change and I hope they continue to do that moving forward, but as we’ve seen in previous episodes, don’t hold your breath while waiting for it. As for the episode, it was better than the last couple we saw in the last few weeks. However, there’s really nothing you’re missing out on. Sure, they followed up with the Luther and Havoc rivalry and The Death Triangle storyline, but really, most of the matches are skippable. I don’t really have a favorite match from this show, but the one I would watch from this episode would either be Luchasaurus and Jungle Boy vs. Kip Sabian and Peter Avalon, or the main event between Private Party vs. Sonny Kiss and Brandon Cutler. Final Score: 7.4 out of 10.
Be the first to comment