By Briar Starr, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@briarstarrtv)
AEW Dark (Episode 167)
Taped in October 13, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario at Coca-Cola Coliseum (unless noted)
Streamed October 25, 2022 on the AEW YouTube Page
Excalibur and Taz were on commentary…
1. Iseah Bronson vs. Lance Archer. Prior to the match, Archer dragged his opponent to the ring, as he did in his early days of AEW. Bronson attempted to take the big man down but was caught with a running shoulder tackle. Archer suplexed Bronson across the ring. Afterward, Archer hit multiple running-back elbows to Bronson in the corner. Eventually, Archer set Bronson up and landed the blackout for the victory.
Lance Archer defeated Iseah Bronson via pinfall.
2. Shane Sabre vs. Zack Clayton. Clayton dominated Sabre early by stomping him in the corner. Sabre attempted to fight back but was caught by a dropkick from Clayton, who then delivered a knee drop to the face of Sabre. Clayton came off the rope with a flying knee to Sabre and then finished him off with a fisherman’s buster suplex to win the match.
Zack Clayton defeated Shane Sabre via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Archer and Clayton’s matches were very brief and didn’t amount to much. Archer’s match was quicker than Clayton obviously, but both men continued their winning ways.
3. Alexia Nicole vs. Athena. Nicole took Athena off her game quickly after the bell rang with an arm drag takedown and a low-hanging dropkick. Athena regained her momentum by knocking Nicole off of the top rope and then hit a release German suplex. Athena won with the O-Face.
Athena defeated Alexia Nicole via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Nicole made her AEW debut in this match and got to work in some early offense before putting over Athena.
4. James Stone vs. Danhausen. Stone threw punches at Danhausen as the match started. Danhausen turned the match around with a release suplex from the turnbuckle. Danhausen locked in a stretch submission hold and made Stone tap out for the win.
Danhausen defeated James Stone via submission.
5. Aaron Solo (w/Q.T. Marshall) vs. Serpentinco (w/Luther). Solo took down Serpentinco with a shoulder block while Serpentinco landed a huracanrana and followed up with a dropkick. Serpentinco hit a baseball slide dropkick to Solo after Marshall entered the ring. Shortly thereafter, Seprentinco speared Solo on the outside.
Back in the ring, Serpentinco threw a dropkick and then leaped over the top rope with a jumping sucidia. With a ref distraction, Luther was able to hit a vertical suplex on Solo on the outside. Serpentinco nearly picked up the win with a splash from the top rope. Marshall distracted Serpentinco just enough to allow Solo to hit a corkscrew kick to score the win.
Aaron Solo defeated Serpentinco via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: There was no question that Solo would pick up the win over Serpentinco, who hasn’t won much. There were also some annoying distractions on the outside, but thankfully the comedy was a bit toned down.
6. Jungle Kyona vs. Riho. This match was taped at Daily’s Place. Kyona hit a throwaway slam to Riho after the bell rang and continued by locking in a brief stretch submission hold. Afterward, Kyona nearly got the win with a hanging dropkick to the back of Riho. Riho regained momentum with a high bridge suplex on Kyona. Kyona once again had flashes of momentum with a clothesline to Riho in the corner. However, Riho delivered flying knees once more from the top rope before finishing Kyona off with double knees.
Riho defeated Jungle Kyona via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: A nice back-and-forth match between Kyona and Riho. There were a few instances where Kyona shined. With Riho returning to television, she picked up the return victory.
7. “The Workhorsemen” Anthony Henry and JD Drake vs. “Lucha Brothers” Penta El Zero Miedo and Rey Fenix. Drake and Henry took Penta off his feet early and Drake went for the early pinfall. Penta struck back with a kick to Drake and tagged out to Fenix. Henry then flattened Fenix in the ring, while Drake once again went for another early pinfall. Afterward, Penta tagged in and turned Henry inside out with a pump handle. The Lucha Brothers pinned Henry after landing a package piledriver and diving double-foot stomp.
“Lucha Brothers” Penta El Zero Miedo and Rey Fenix defeated “The Workhorsemen” Anthony Henry and JD Drake via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: The Lucha Brothers made quick work of The Workhorsemen.
8. KC Spinelli and Taylor Rising vs. Emi Sakura and Serena Deeb. Deeb and Rising began the match respectively. Deeb planted Rising with a shoulder block. Sakura tagged in as did Spinelli. Sakura would hit a double underhook backbreaker on Spinelli. Rising returned to the ring after hitting a crossbody block. Sakura hit a running crossbody of her own to Rising in the corner. Deeb dropped Spinelli and made her tap out to the single-leg crab submission for the win.
Emi Sakura and Serena Deeb defeated KC Spinelli and Taylor Rising via submission.
Briar’s Take: A solid showcase victory for Sakura and Deeb. Spinelli and Rising showed some upside before Deeb and Sakura finished them off.
9. Nick Comoroto (w/Q.T. Marshall) vs. Ricky Starks. Starks threw openhanded shots to Comoroto, who was then sent to the outside after Starks hit a leaping shoulder tackle. While on the outside, Comoroto planted Starks on the ring apron. The two returned to the ring and Comoroto delivered shoulder tackles to Starks. As the ref was distracted, Marshall threw a cheap shot from the right hand to Starks.
Comoroto planted Starks with a scoop slam while he followed up using a leaping elbow drop. Shortly thereafter, Comoroto hit a hammer throw that sent Starks into the low turnbuckle. Starks regained momentum with a clothesline and planted him with a DDT. Starks attempted the Roshambo, but Comoroto avoided it and almost got the victory with an Alabama Slam. Eventually, the ref ejected Marshall and Solo from ringside and then Starks went on to win with a powerbomb.
Ricky Starks defeated Nick Comoroto via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: This was your classic heel vs. babyface matchup and what a great match it was. Comoroto and Starks had the Canadian crowd at the palm of their hands and when the rest of The Factory got ejected the whole crowd cheered. Starks and Comoroto played their parts, and Starks sent the crowd home happy with his victory.
As expected, Dark aired the rest of the matches that took place in Canada two weeks ago. I found it interesting that AEW decided to throw in a match with Riho from Friday’s taping in Jacksonville. I assume it was because that Riho made her return recently. The best match on this show was Comoroto vs. Starks in the main event with Solo vs. Serpentinco a close second. The other seven matches were very brief. Episode 167 clocked in at 1 hour, 02 minutes, and 18 seconds. Final Score: 6.5 out of 10.
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