By Briar Starr, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@briarstarrtv)
AEW Dark (Episode 107)
Taped September 3, 2021 in Chicago, Illinois at NOW Arena
Streamed September 7, 2021 on the AEW YouTube Page
Still shots from AEW All Out was shown before Excalibur and Taz checked in on commentary…
1. Jason Hutch vs. Lance Archer. Prior to getting into the ring, Hutch attempted a sucidia, but Archer chokeslammed him. Archer then hit the Hellacoster and the Blackout to pick up the victory.
Lance Archer defeated Jason Hutch via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Typical stuff from Archer, but I always get amused whenever he is chasing his opponent down the ramp before the match even begins.
2. Laynie Luck vs. The Bunny. The Bunny began the match with a sliding elbow strike. Luck attempted a few roll ups but was unsuccessful in getting the pin. Shortly thereafter, The Bunny planted Luck down with the Rabbit Hole and scored the pin.
The Bunny defeated Laynie Luck via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Another quick match here and another pinfall victory for The Bunny.
An All Elite General Manager ad was shown.
3. Alan “5” Angels vs. Evil Uno. Before the match started, Uno extended his hand as a sign of respect, but after Angels shook his hand, Uno quickly rolled him up. Angels then hit the leg lariat to Uno and landed the crossbody from the top rope. Angels again followed with the drop step enzuigiri and spiked Uno with the DDT. Angels then leaped off the middle turnbuckle for a moonsault onto Uno on the outside. The two fought at ringside as Uno hit the high kick to Angels and then threw him into the stairs. Uno hit a cross arm Flatliner on Angels to win the match.
Evil Uno defeated Alan “5” Angels via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: This match/storyline is very random. The crowd didn’t seem into the match between the two Dark Order members, as they were chanting “please don’t fight.” The match was slow to begin and somewhat picked up steam toward the end. I guess we’ll see where this story goes in the weeks to come.
4. Robert Anthony and Shawn Dean vs. The Acclaimed” Max Caster and Anthony Bowens. Bowens flattened Anthony before tagging out. Caster hit the Mic Drop on Anthony from the top rope to gain the victory.
The Acclaimed defeated Robert Anthony and Shawn Dean via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: The Acclaimed were welcomed back by the crowd as they received a big time pop. The match on the other hand is too brief to write about, but I thought it was amusing that Caster came out rapping to a scripted line before tearing the script and starting the rap over and saying, “They won’t be as offensive this time.” The crowd even booed Caster when he said his rap was scripted.
5. Lee Moriarty vs. Joey Janela. Janela hit a back elbow followed by the right hand to the jaw. Moriarty rallied with a hammer lock on Janela on the apron. Moriarty was sent into the barricade after Janela’s manager swept his leg off the apron. Returning to the ring, Moriarty briefly hit back elbows to Janela until Janela hammer threw him into the corner. Later, Janela planted Moriarty with a piledriver and nearly got the win. Moriarty powered through with a clothesline and almost got the upset victory. Janela finished off Moriarty with the Death Valley Driver.
Joey Janela defeated Lee Moriarty via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: A great back and forth match between Janela and Moriarty. The crowd even began to get behind Moriarty after multiple near falls. Great stuff here.
6. Travis Titan and RSP vs. Colt Cabana and Stu Grayson. Grayson hit a back flipping kick to Titan and RSP and tagged out. Cabana hit the exclamation point on Titan before landing a moonsault on RSP. Cabana landed the Chicago Skyline on Titan while Grayson hit RSP with the Nightfall.
Colt Cabana and Stu Grayson defeated Travis Titan and RSP via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: A good tag team outing from Cabana and Grayson, despite the awkwardness going on with Evil Uno and Alan Angels. Cabana received a warm welcome from his hometown crowd.
A Big Swole vs. Diamante video package was shown…
7. Diamante vs. Big Swole in a Three Strikes Match. The first fall was be decided by pinfall, the second via submission, and the third fall via knockout. Swole hit Diamante with a Flatliner and then threw kicks afterward. After bouncing off the ropes, Diamante hit the Kitchen Sink. Swole planted Diamante with a Blue Thunder Bomb. Swole looked for the Dirty Dancing, but Diamante rolled her up and got the victory in the first strike.
Diamante defeated Big Swole via pinfall for the first strike.
Following the first victory, Diamante kept the momentum going with the diving dropkick to Swole in the corner. Diamante locked in a submission move, but Swole got to the ropes to break the hold. Diamante continued on Swole with hammer strikes, but Swole made her tap out to an ankle lock.
Big Swole defeated Diamante via submission for the second strike.
Diamante grabbed a chain from underneath the ring and struck Swole in the midsection. Diamante continued to strike Swole with the chain. However, Swole finally knocked the chain out of Diamante’s hand with the kick. Swole knocked out Diamante with Dirty Dancing using the chain.
Big Swole defeated Diamante in a three strikes match.
Briar’s Take: Diamante and Swole really brought their A-game and I enjoyed the match for what it was. For now, I assume their storyline would be over. Overall, this episode of Dark was one of the better ones and definitely better than Saturday night’s episode. The show was mainly centered around the Three Strikes match. Of course, we can’t forget about the Dark Order situation between Evil Uno and Alan Angels, which was awkward with the crowd was chanting “please don’t fight.” The Acclaimed made their long awaited return and received a warm welcome from the crowd. We’ll see if they’ll challenge for the tag titles at some point in the near future. As for the match of the night, I’m going with Lee Moriarty vs. Joey Janela. Their match was phenomenal. The main event was good as well. Final Score: 8.0 out of 10. Episode 107 clocked in at 52 minutes and 30 seconds.
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