By Rich Bailin, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@RichBailin)
AEW Dark: Elevation (Episode 43)
Taped December 22, 2021 in Greensboro, North Carolina at Greensboro Coliseum
Streamed December 27, 2021 on the AEW YouTube Page
Tony Schiavone welcomed us with “It’s Monday, and you know what that means…its time for Elevation” and then introduced fellow broadcast team members Eddie Kingston and Mark Henry. Schiavone it to ring announcer Justin Roberts at ringside…
1. Fodder, JR Miller and Brandon Scott vs. John Silver, Alex Reynolds and Preston “10” Vance. Silver and Scott started the match. Henry and Kingston were confused as to which one was Fodder. Silver dropped Scott with a shoulder block. Fodder came into the ring and hit Silver but Vance entered the ring and they hit a double shoulder block. Miller (who Kingston and Schiavone called Fodder) entered the ring but was backdropped by Reynolds. The Dark Order members posed. A short while later, Silver and Reynolds hit their cutter/suplex combo on Fodder. Vance and Reynolds then lifted up Miller by his arms as Silver ran into Miller flipping him over which allowed Silver to get the pinfall.
John Silver, Alex Reynolds and Preston “10” Vance defeated Fodder, JR Miller, and Brandon Scott by pinfall in 3:00.
Bailin’s Breakdown: A showcase match for half of the Dark Order not much else beyond that. I did like the finisher that was used. Unfortunately, the name of it (if there is one) wasn’t said.
An ad for Dynamite’s move to TBS on January 5 aired… Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling made their entrance and joined the commentary booth…
2. Thunder Rosa vs. Dani Mo. Rosa stared down Cargill as she made her entrance and threw her flower at her. Rosa dominated early with forearms and kicks all while staring down Cargill. After a pair of dropkicks while Mo was against the bottom rope, Rosa lifted up Mo and hit her with the Fire Thunder Driver for the pinfall.
Thunder Rosa defeated Dani Mo by pinfall in 1:30.
After the match Cargill started to walk down to ringside before being stopped by Sterling. Rosa and Cargill continued to yell at each other as Cargill walked back up the ramp…
Bailin’s Breakdown: Yet another dominating match for Thunder Rosa this week. With Cargill out there though it was a simple but effective build up for their semifinal match in the TBS Women’s Championship tournament this Wednesday on Dynamite.
3. Anthony Ogogo (w/Aaron Solo, Nick Comoroto, QT Marshall) vs. Duncan Mitchell. Ogogo started with a trio of knees to Mitchell’s midsection and then dropped Mitchell with a shoulder tackle. Ogogo went to lift Mitchell, but Mitchell dropped down hitting Ogogo with a chinbreaker. Mitchell then punched Ogogo in the face which had no effect. Mitchell came off the ropes but was caught by Ogogo and just threw him down. Ogogo then dragged Mitchell to the corner and lifted him on the top rope. After a headbutt, Ogogo hit his new finisher The Tower of London (hanging cutter off the top rope) for the pinfall…
Anthony Ogogo defeated Duncan Mitchell by pinfall in 1:20.
Bailin’s Breakdown: A good showing for Ogogo. This may have been his longest match on Elevation but obviously not by much.
4. Santana and Ortiz vs. Movie Myk and Alexander Moss. Myk and Moss attacked Santana and Ortiz from behind as the bell rang. Myk hit Santana with a dropkick and made a cover but only got a one count. Santana fought back by rolling up Moss then leaping out and catching Myk with a lung blower before making the tag to Ortiz. A short while later Ortiz delivered a powerbomb to Myk and then lifted Myk into a thrust kick by Santana for the pinfall.
Santana and Ortiz defeated Movie Myk and Alexander Moss by pinfall in 2:20.
Bailin’s Breakdown: A solid showcase for Santana and Ortiz. Surprisingly, while Kingston mentioned his relationship with Santana and Ortiz, no mention was made for their match on Dynamite against 2point0 and Daniel Garcia.
5. Lee Moriarty vs. Shawn Spears. Both men traded armbars and headlocks in the early portion of the match with neither gaining an advantage. Spears narrowly avoided a kick from Moriarty. Moriarty got in Spears face to let him know just how close he was. Moriarty caught a kick attempt from Spear but Spear grabbed onto Moriarty’s ear and pushed Moriarty back into the corner. Spears chopped Moriarty but hesitated doing so a second time.
Moriarty reversed it and started chopping Spears. Moriarty sent Spears to the opposite corner with an Irish whip and then charged but Spears with a backdrop that sent Moriarty over the top rope. Moriarty caught part of the ring stairs as he fell to the floor. Spears followed Moriarty outside the ring. Spears dropped his knee pad and then pressed Moriarty’s head between the ring post and Spear’s knee. Spears pulled on Moriarty’s arm to add more pressure. Spears then intimidated a kid at ringside before throwing Moriarty back inside the ring.
Moriarty swung wildly at Spears but Spears bucked and then caught Moriarty in a sleeper hold. Moriarty dropped down, catching Spears with a jawbreaker. Moriarty then caught Spears’ arm and kicked it. Moriarty continued to fight back with a pair of kicks followed by the Pepsi Twist. Spears retreated to the corner but was hit with a forearm smash. Moriarty lifted Spears to the top rope but Spears caught him in position for the C4. Moriarty fought out by grabbing Spears by the arm and dropping to the ring apron followed by an enziguri. Moriarty then went to springboard off the top rope but Spears caught him with the C4 for the pinfall…
Shawn Spears defeated Lee Moriarty by pinfall in 5:40.
Bailin’s Breakdown: A good competitive match. Moriarty looked pretty good here and Spears was a perfect veteran opponent for him. More of this type of match on Elevation please.
6. Billy, Colten, and Austin Gunn vs. Evil Uno, Stu Grayson and Alan “5” Angels. Austin and Angels started the match. Austin was stalling so Angels hit him in the face with a spinning punch. Austin backed up in the corner so Angels climbed up and hit Austin with mounted punches. Angels ran the ropes and ducked a clothesline from Austin but got caught with a knee to the back from Billy. Austin caught Angels with a sliding trip then tagged in Austin. Austin punched Angels once then tagged in Billy. Billy sent Angels into the ropes with an Irish whip but ducked down too early and was caught with a kick by Angels.
Angels caught Billy with a DDT and tagged in Uno while Billy tagged in Colten. Uno worked over Austin and Colten. Uno set up Austin and Colten next to each other and came off the ropes but Billy came between Austin and Colten with a boot to Uno. The Gunn’s worked over Uno though Uno tried to fight back and make a tag. Uno eventually caught both Austin and Colten and hit them with a DDT/Flatliner before making the hot tag to Grayson.
Grayson cleared the ring of Austin and Billy and caught Colten with a uranage followed by an Asai moonsault. Grayson lifted Colten up in a torture rack position but Colten dropped out and pushed Grayson into the ropes and a forearm from Billy. Grayson made the tag to Angels. Angels and Grayson both caught Billy with dives from the outside. Angels was left in the ring with Colten and sent Colten into the corner. Angels went for a monkey flip out of the corner but Austin held on to Colten and Angels fell to the mat. Colten then rolled up Angels and put both feet onto the middle rope for the pinfall.
Billy, Colten and Austin Gunn defeated Evil Uno, Stu Grayson and Alan “5” Angels by pinfall in 5:00.
Bailin’s Breakdown: Another good competitive match but still a notch or two below the previous match. I still don’t understand why the Gunn Club continues to be featured and win matches but have no actual storyline support behind them.
7. Diamante and Emi Sakura vs. Tay Conti and Anna Jay. Conti and Sakura started the match. After trading forearms Conti locked Sakura in an abdominal stretch and then rolled her up for a near fall. Conti tagged in Jay who hit Sakura with a series of kicks and locked in the Queenslayer. Diamante came in to break it up but Jay ducked and Diamante was met with a punch to the face from Conti. Conti and Jay then ran the ropes with Conti hitting pump kicks to Sakura and Diamante while Jay would hit them with back elbows. Jay attempted the Queenslayer again but Sakura reversed it into her backbreaker.
Sakura hit Jay with her Rock You chops and cross body block. When Sakura went to pose Conti hit her with a knee to the head and entered the ring. Conti and Jay attempted a double Irish whip but Sakura held on and sent Jay and Conti into one another and then caused Conti to sunset flip Jay. Sakura then tied up Jay and Conti together and posed as Diamante entered the ring and posed with Sakura. Sakura then tagged in Diamante who came into the ring with a splash on Jay from the bottom rope. Diamante hit Jay with a trio of clotheslines and sent her into the corner.
Diamante followed up with a hesitation dropkick on Jay for a near fall. Diamante went to lift Jay, but Jay dropped and caught Diamante with a jawbreaker before making the tag to Conti. Conti hit Diamante and Sakura with clotheslines and then hit Diamante with the TayKO. Conti followed up with a Gotch style Piledriver on Diamante for a two count before Sakura broke it up. Sakura went after Jay in the corner but Jay ducked and pushed Sakura into a pump kick from Conti. Conti tagged in Jay who quickly locked in the Queenslayer on Diamante for the submission victory.
Tay Conti and Anna Jay defeated Diamante and Emi Sakura by submission in 4:30.
Bailin’s Breakdown: This match didn’t work for me. It started off ok but once the choreographed pose happened it took me out of the rest of the match. Everyone looked bad during that part of the match. All f0ur of those women are capable of better matches so I wouldn’t be upset if they wanted to do a rematch. Just leave the forced poses out of it please.
8. Matt Hardy vs. Darius Lockhart. Hardy came out to the biggest reaction of the night. Hardy and Lockhart traded arm locks until Hardy caught Lockhart with a back elbow to the face. After a bodyslam and leg drop, Hardy attempted a pin but only got a two count. Hardy sent Lockhart to the corner and then tried to follow up but Lockhart moved out of the way. Lockhart pushed Hardy onto the ring apron and then twisted Hardy with an arm drag that dropped Hardy to the floor.
Lockhart mocked Hardy then rolled outside the ring himself and grabbed Hardy’s arm before sending Hardy face first into the ring post. Lockhart continued to work on Hardy’s arm with a hammerlock. Hardy tried to fight out with another back elbow but Lockhart ducked a kneed Hardy in the gut. Hardy fought back with forearms and then rammed Lockhart’s head into the turnbuckles as the crowd chanted “Delete”. Hardy then caught Lockhart with a Side Effect, followed by an elbow drop from the middle rope and finally hitting Lockhart with the Twist of Fate for the pinfall.
Matt Hardy defeated Darius Lockhart by pinfall in 4:00.
Bailin’s Breakdown: Another good competitive match the end result was less in doubt than the previous three matches. Lockhart got a fair amount of offense in, otherwise it was a Matt Hardy match. While that is not necessarily a bad thing, it is not a new thing either.
Overall, this was a better than average episode of Elevation tonight. The match of the night without question though goes to Lee Moriarty vs. Shawn Spears and it was not even close. In fact, AEW could have given that match a few more minutes and I don’t think many would have minded.
I did like how this show was laid out more than I have in the past with showcases in the front, competitive matches in the back. This episode clocked in at 46 minutes and 3 seconds and while that seems like a short amount of time for eight matches, the format made it work.
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