AEW Dark
Episode 54
#AEWDark
Original Air Date: September 29, 2020
Event Date: September 23, 2020
(uploaded to YouTube)
City: Jacksonville, FL
Venue: Daily’s Place
Commentary: Excalibur, Taz, Shawn Spears (1), Ricky Starks (2 – 9)
Ring Announcer: Justin Roberts
Match 1
Ray Rosas & Ryzin vs Frankie Kazarian & Scorpio Sky
(referee: Rick Knox)
Result: Frankie Kazarin pins Ray Rosas after a Gory Special (Sky) spun into a rising knee strike (Kazarian)
Time: 6:28
Match Thoughts
Good match. Shawn Spears was on commentary talking about Scorpio Sky (because Sky got involved when Spears attacked Matt Sydal last week on Late Night Dynamite), so the potential feud between Sky and Spears was really the biggest story element in this match. The action was good though, and Ryzin hit some strong moves for his team which helped make SCU look even better when they fought.
Backstage
John Silver tells Evil Uno that he doesn’t like Colt Cabana, and he doesn’t want to team with him. Evil Uno tells Silver that he needs to trust his judgment, saying Cabana can be an valuable part of Dark Order. Silver isn’t convinced, but as Cabana walks up, Silver has no choice but to go along with Evil Uno and Cabana.
Match 2
Alex Gracia vs Penelope Ford w/ Kip Sabian
(referee: Aubrey Edwards)
Result: Penelope Ford wins via pinfall with a bridging fisherman suplex
Time: 3:22
Match Thoughts
Pretty good match. Alex Gracia never really got going, so this ended up being a methodically paced squash. Ford hit Gracia with a couple of really good moves though, including snapping her throat into the top rope and really nice fisherman suplex.
Match 3
M’Badu & BSHP King vs Best Friends
(referee: Bryce Remsburg)
Result: Trent pins M’Badu after Strong Zero
Time: 5:50
Match Thoughts
Good match. M’Badu and BSHP King had a bit of offense early in the match, but that just seemed to annoy Trent. Best Friends started making quick tags and hitting strong moves, and that led to a definitive finish.
Backstage
Brandon Cutler says there will be a rematch with Peter Avalon. They will continue to dance until one of them is doomed.
Match 4
Dark Order’s 5 & 10 w/ Evil Uno, Anna Jay vs Jungle Boy & Luchasaurus w/ Marko Stunt
(referee: Bryce Remsburg)
Result: Luchasaurus pins 5 after an assisted cutter from Jungle Boy
Time: 9:39
Match Thoughts
Very good match. The first part of the match had 10 take on Luchasaurus in an agile battle of power followed by 5 versus Jungle Boy is a high speed sequence. Dark Order then showed some great teamwork and started to get a slight advantage on Jurassic Express. That, of course, made the comeback by Jurassic Express that much more fun to watch as the match neared its end.
Backstage
Luther and Serpentico talk about how evil the Chaos Project is.
Match 5
Shawn Dean & Cezar Bononi vs Billy & Austin Gunn w/ Colten Gunn
(referee: Aubrey Edwards)
Result: Billy pins Shawn Dean after the Famouser
Time: 5:57
Match Thoughts
Pretty good match. Shawn Dean looked good against the Gunn Club, but Cezar Bononi slowed the match down considerably when he got into the ring. I didn’t really care for who took the fall in the match either, but the action was alright leading up to the finish.
Backstage
QT Marshall, Brandi Rhodes, and Dustin Rhodes talk about beating up Dark Order.
Match 6
Red Velvet vs Tay Conti
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: Tay Conti wins via submission with a choke
Time: 4:11
Match Thoughts
Good match. Tay Conti threw Red Velvet around the ring quite a lot, but Velvet managed to fight back at times. Conti had some really nice moves throughout the match, and showing her strength and her way of incorporating her judo and jiu-jistsu background into her style seemed to be the point of the match.
Ring Area
After the match, Anna Jay (who had been watching at ringside) enters the ring and hugs Tay Conti. Jay then goes over to Red Velvet, helps her up, then kicks her in the face. Tay Conti looks troubled by Jay’s actions, but Brandi Rhodes runs out to the ring which causes Jay and Conti to leave the ring. Jay and Conti leave the ring area together as Brandi checks on Red Velvet.
Match 7
Griff Garrison & Brian Pillman Jr. vs Chaos Project
(referee: Rick Knox)
Result: Serpentico pins Brian Pillman Jr. after a meteora (with Luther elevating Pillman)
Time: 5:00
Match Thoughts
Pretty good match. Serpentico and Luther started with a pre-match attack using Serpentico’s streamers as a distraction, and the match continued to be chaotic from there. Luther repeatedly slammed Serpentico into both Pillman and Garrison which, besides a few boots, was most of Luther’s offensive contributions for his team. The match wasn’t pretty, but I liked it okay.
Match 8
Raché Chanel vs Nyla Rose w/ Vickie Guerrero
(referee: Mike Posey)
Result: Nyla Rose wins via pinfall after the Beast Bomb
Time: 2:43
Match Thoughts
Raché Chanel got a few moves in, but this was a squash. It was fine.
Match 9
Colt Cabana & John “4” Silver w/ Evil Uno vs The Natural Nightmares w/ Brandi Rhodes
(referee: Paul Turner)
Result: QT Marshall pins John Silver after a cutter
Time: 6:35
Match Thoughts
Good match. The big story here was the lack of cohesion between Silver and Cabana. They did okay throughout the match together, but when it counted they couldn’t get on the same page. This was a nice match though.
Show Impressions
This was a pretty good show. The better matches were mostly earlier in the night, but it was fine overall. I liked the multiple backstage promos between matches. It made it feel more like a cohesive show rather than just a bunch of random matches thrown together (though there was still a bit of that as well). I’m always happy to see story development happen on Dark.
Match of the Night
Dark Order’s 5 & 10 vs Jurassic Express
This easily had the most fun and competitive action tonight.