By Briar Starr, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@briarstarrtv)
AEW Dark (Episode 161)
Taped September 2, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois at NOW Arena
Streamed September 13, 2022 on the AEW YouTube Page
Excalibur and Taz were on commentary…
1. Alice Crowley vs. Penelope Ford. Ford threw a clothesline at Crowley after the two dodged each other’s early move attempts. Ford set up Crowley in the middle ropes and hit a dropkick to her back. Eventually, Ford hit a backhand spring elbow and a high boot. Ford locked in a bridge submission and get the victory.
Penelope Ford defeated Alice Crowley via submission.
Briar’s Take: Nothing flashy from Ford. She did her work and moves and sent Crowley home early.
Backstage in the sound stage area, Alex Marvez was by Hikaru Shida’s locker room when Britt Baker who came out of the room with kendo sticks. Baker said if she can’t get a title shot, she would force it out of them…
2. “The Wingmen” Cezar Bononi and Ryan Nemeth vs. Dante Martin and Matt Sydal. Martin and Sydal crashed on top of Bononi and Nemeth after the bell rang. Sydal then swept the leg of Nemeth and hit a standing moonsault. Nemeth briefly turned the tide with a dropkick on Sydal and then tagged out. Bononi began stomping Sydal in the corner and then followed through with a hammer throw.
Nemeth tagged in and began using his knee to strike the midsection of Sydal, who then planted Bononi and tagged out. Martin came off the lower rope with a dropkick to Bononi and landed a crossbody block. The Wingmen doubled up on Martin with a combination maneuver. Martin leapt from the top rope with a moonsault on Nemeth and pick up the victory.
Dante Martin and Matt Sydal defeated “The Wingmen” Cezar Bononi and Ryan Nemeth via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Typical heel vs. babyface tag team matchup. The Wingmen used their heel tactics to gang up on Martin and Sydal before Martin/Sydal made their baby face comeback.
3. Emi Sakura and Diamante vs. Skye Blue and Queen Aminata. Diamante planted Blue with a release German suplex to begin the match. She quickly tagged in the always screaming Sakura, who dropped Blue with a facebuster backbreaker-type maneuver. Aminata tagged in and flat-lined Diamante and had a brief opportunity to pick up the win.
Sakura and Diamante regained momentum with Sakura using a Vader Bomb. Blue made the tag and jumped on top of Sakura and Diamante. Blue hit a thrust kick on Sakura, and Aminata blocked Diamante from breaking up the pinfall attempt, allowing Blue to get the victory.
Skye Blue and Queen Aminata defeated Emi Sakura and Diamante via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: This match was essentially a match for Blue to gain a victory in front of her hometown and nothing more. Yes, the match was back and forth for a brief bit, but ultimately Blue picked up the victory.
4. Peter Avalon vs. Danhausen. Avalon planted Danhausen with a scoop slam. Danhausen then threw Avalon with a northern lights release suplex. He followed up by hitting Avalon with a release German suplex. Danhausen made Avalon tap out to a standing submission move for the victory.
Danhausen defeated Peter Avalon via submission.
Briar’s Take: Per usual, Danhausen was very over with the crowd and came away with his third career victory in AEW. Nothing flashy from either side.
5. Angelico vs. Matt Hardy. The match started out slow with both men exchanging holds until Hardy hoisted up Angelico, and planted him on the mat. Hardy started to use all four turnbuckles pads by driving Angelico’s head into them. Hardy lifted up the legs of Angelico and sat him out with a powerbomb.
Angelico countered a Side Effect and drew in the arm of Hardy. He continued by striking Hardy with kicks, which made Hardy fall on the apron. Furthermore, Angelico used his technical submission holds on Hardy to slow the match down before Hardy finally hit the Side Effect. Angelico turned Hardy inside out and nearly got the victory. Eventually, Hardy performed the Twist of Fate and gained the victory.
Matt Hardy defeated Angelico via pinfall.
Briar’s Take:There was a little backstory behind this match as Excalibur noted that Hardy was trying to make amends with people he wronged in the past. Angelico had some brief moments, but ultimately the victory went to Hardy to send the crowd home happy.
Overall, a passable and brief episode of AEW Dark this week. This episode rounded out the tapings that AEW had during All Out week in Chicago. There were only five matches on this show and most of them are very passable due to feeling predictable. We didn’t really have any storyline development other than Britt Baker allegedly beating up Shida in her dressing room back at Universal Studios. Martin/Sydal and The Wingmen had an okay match that could be worth out of your way to go see, while Hardy and Angelico were alright themselves. I’m guessing we are headed back to Universal Studios for another round of tapings this weekend and that the match card will be bumped a bit next week. Episode 161 clocked in at 42 minutes and 56 seconds. Final Score: 5.0 out of 10.
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