By Briar Starr, ProWrestling.net Contributor (@briarstarrtv)
AEW Dark (Episode 178)
Taped January 6, 2023 in Portland, Oregon at Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Streamed January 10, 2023 on the AEW YouTube Page
Excalibur and Taz were on commentary…
1. Travis Williams vs. Juice Robinson. Robinson hit a cannonball in the corner. Robinson followed with a standing senton. Williams countered a brainbuster attempt from Robinson and attempted many pinfall attempts. He then hit a German suplex and received a two-count. Robinson came back with a lariat and then scored the pin.
Juice Robinson defeated Travis Williams via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: This was a simple showcase from Robinson, who pretty much dominated Williams.
2. Emi Sakura and Diamante vs. Ruby Soho and Willow Nightingale. Sakura and Diamante jumped Soho and Nightingale prior to the bell ringing. Diamante attempted to fly to the outside, but Soho connected with an elbow strike to counter. Eventually, the bell rang. Nightingale hoisted up Sakura and hit a Death Valley Driver on the floor before getting struck with a dropkick from Diamante. Back in the ring, Soho planted Diamante with the destination unknown to win the match.
Ruby Soho and Willow Nightingale defeated Emi Sakura and Diamante via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Boy howdy, that was a bit of a mess when the match started. Nightingale and Sakura spent most of the time fighting on the floor while Soho and Diamante were in the ring. Excalibur did note that this could be a preview of what we would see Friday on Rampage from Soho and Nightingale. There was no screaming from Sakura for once!
3. Steve Migs vs. Jake Hager. Hager struck with a shoulder tackle on Migs, who then accidentally knocked down Hager’s hat that was on the turnbuckle. Shortly thereafter, Migs hit a knee lift to Hager and messed with the hat once again. As Migs were getting ready to put the hat on his head, Hager finished him off with a clothesline.
Jake Hager defeated Steve Migs via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Comedy, comedy, comedy. Can’t say I’m a big fan of Hager’s hat obsession, as I think it really limits his character. Hager made short work of Migs, who made his AEW debut.
4. The Voros Twins vs. Lee Moriarty and Big Bill (w/Stokely Hathaway). Once Big Bill got in the ring, he quickly attacked the Voros Twins. Afterward, Big Bill hit a throwaway slam to one of the Twins before tagging out. Moriarty followed up with a standing elbow drop of his own. The twin tried teaming up on Moriarty, but Moriarty hit a double dropkick on the twins. Big Bill planted one of the twins with a chokeslam for the win.
Lee Moriarty and Big Bill defeated The Voros Twins via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Is it bad that Excalibur couldn’t pinpoint which of the two Voros Twins was in the ring? Anyway, it appears W. Morrissey has a new ring name called “Big Bill.” He completely obliterated both of the Voros Twins and made short work of the team.
Lexy Nair was interviewing Juice Robinson backstage about his victory before getting interrupted by the Dark Order. Evil Uno made an offer to Robinson to join the Dark Order. Robinson declined his offer because he is Bullet Club for life.
Briar’s Take: Robinson made the smart move here by not joining the Dark Order, though I can’t say the Bullet Club isn’t much better, especially in 2023.
5. Teal Piper and Kel vs. Anna Jay and Tay Melo. Melo and Jay hit a double suplex on Kel after Jay tagged in. Jay and Melo continued to mock Piper after Jay slapped Piper in the face. Shortly thereafter, Jay landed a leg lariat on Kel in the corner. Kel found a breakthrough and tagged out to Piper.
Piper hit multiple lariats to Jay and Melo until Melo hit a punt kick. Quickly, Melo landed the DDT on Kel, while Jay got the job done with the queen slayer submission.
Anna Jay and Tay Melo defeated Teal Piper and Kel via submission.
Briar’s Take: As noted during ring introductions, Teal is the daughter of Roddy Piper. She had some moves, but she didn’t really stay in the ring long, as Jay and Melo dominated Kel for most of the match.
6. Judas Icarus, Sebastian Wolfe, and Caleb Teninty vs. Ethan Page, Matt Hardy, and Isiah Kassidy. Kassidy sent Wolfe to the outside with a dropkick and came over the top rope with a moonsault shortly thereafter. Kassidy tagged out to Hardy, and then Hardy and Kassidy landed a double suplex on Icarus. Later, Kassidy hit a senton from the top rope on Wolfe. Before going for the pin, Page took the mic and said ‘tag me in now, I’m your boss.’ Kassidy tagged him in and then Page landed a Twist of Fate on Wolfe to score the victory.
Ethan Page, Isaiah Kassidy, and Matt Hardy defeated Judas Icarus, Sebastian Wolfe, and Caleb Teninty via pinfall.
Briar’s Take: Man, I got a kick out of Page talking throughout the match and mocking Kassidy while Hardy continued on like it was nothing. Great storyline continuation from the Page and Hardy Party saga.
7. Athena vs. Marina Shafir (w/Vickie Guerrero) for the ROH Women’s Championship. Shafir attempted a leg lock on Athena, who escaped to the ropes to break the hold. Shafir continued her power on Athena with strikes to the midsection. Athena drove Shafir head-first into the ring post. The fight took to the outside with Athena planting Shafir on the floor.
Later, Athena was walking to the back with the titlewhen Shafir caught up with her and dragged her back into the ring. Shafir powerbombed Athena and received a two count. Shortly thereafter, Shafir locked in a submission, but this time both women were on the top turnbuckle. Athena fell asleep and both women fell off the turnbuckle. Athena grabbed the tights and got the pinfall victory to retain the title.
Athena defeated Marina Shafir via pinfall to retain the ROH Women’s Championship.
Briar’s Take: While the outcome was never in question due to the match being made out of nowhere, Shafir came off like a strong challenger and the match went well. Athena showed a fiery side, while Shafir didn’t back down from the fight. The only critique I have of this match is that I didn’t care for Athena acting afraid of Shafir and needing quick “timeouts.” Nonetheless, the best match on the card.
Overall, this episode had a little bit of everything. The Ethan Page and Hardy Party tag match and ROH Women’s Championship were the best matches on the show. Those two matches are enough to get your quick fix from this weeks show. Everything else ended fairly quickly. Episode 178 clocked in at 50 minutes and 28 seconds. Final Score: 7.0 out of 10.
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