All Elite Wrestling presents Dark
Date: 11/19/2019
From: Nashville, TN
Matches:
1.) Best Friends (Chuck Taylor & Trent) defeated Private Party (Isiah Kassidy & Marq Quen)
2.) Dr. Britt Baker DMD & AEW Women’s Champion Riho defeated Big Swole & Kris Statlander
3.) The Young Bucks defeated Stronghearts (El Lindaman & T-Hawk)
Angle Developments/Notes:
1.) Tony Schiavone and Dasha Gonzalez host the program and rundown the matches scheduled to take place, which are all tag team matches.
2.) Dustin Rhodes joins commentary for the episode.
3.) Quen and Trent kickoff the tag match. Quen offers a necklace to Trent, but tosses the necklace to Orange Cassidy on the floor. Trent backs Quen into the corner, but backs off cleanly. Trent backs Quen into a corner again, but Quen delivers a forearm strike. They trade a few forearm strikes. Trent elbows Quen to send Quen to the apron. Quen tries for a slingshot DDT, but Trent hits a northern lights suplex for a near fall. Taylor tags into the match and clubs Quen over the back with a strike. Taylor continues to strike Quen in the corner to maintain the advantage. Quen takes Taylor over with a hurricanrana and a dropkick. Kassidy tags in and forearms Taylor into the corner followed by a boot to the midsection. Taylor elbows Kassidy in the corner. Taylor tosses Kassidy overhead with a suplex and plays to the crowd. Trent chops Kassidy against the ropes and misses a clothesline. Kassidy arm drags Trent followed by a heel kick and plays to the crowd. Quen returns to the match and kicks Trent in the corner. Quen dropkicks Trent off the apron to the floor. Taylor is met with an atomic drop and kick by Private Party. Quen double stomps Taylor while Kassidy had a chin lock on Taylor.
Orange Cassidy gets on the apron to do his trademark thumbs up, but drops down. Taylor sends Quen into the railing and Best Friends deliver a double vertical suplex on the floor. Trent covers Kassidy for a two count. Taylor tags into the match and Kassidy continues to be worked over. Kassidy forearms Best Friends a few times, but Taylor delivers Sole Food and Trent hits a suplex for a two count on Kassidy. Taylor bites Kassidy’s foot before sitting Kassidy on the top turnbuckle. Trent strikes Kassidy on the top turnbuckle and attempts a suplex, but Kassidy fights free. Kassidy knocks Trent down, but Taylor puts Trent on his shoulders to hit an assisted suplex for a near fall. Taylor returns to the match and chops Kassidy against the ropes. Kassidy sends Trent into Taylor and hits a hurricanrana. Trent stops Kassidy from tagging out, but Kassidy breaks free to tag in Quen. Quen moonsaults Trent and takes Taylor out with a suicide dive to the floor. Quen dropkicks Trent and dives over the top to take Taylor out again. Quen nails Trent with a springboard crossbody for a near fall.
Quen heads to the top, but Taylor stops Quen on the apron only to be knocked to the floor. Quen nails Trent with a kick and tags in Kassidy. Private Party hit a neckbreaker/swanton combo for a two count on Trent. Trent side suplexs Kassidy and tags in Taylor. Taylor forearms Quen off the apron, but Kassidy pump kicks Taylor. Taylor elbows Kassidy on the apron. Kassidy misses a corkscrew dive and lands on the floor. Trent spears Kassidy and Taylor slams Quen on the floor. Trent sends Kassidy into Taylor’s knee and nails Kassidy with a running knee strike for a two count. Taylor decks Kassidy with a forearm strike and Trent returns to the match. Kassidy avoids Trent’s tornado DDT and spikes Taylor with a tornado DDT to send Taylor reeling to the floor. Quen kicks Trent from the apron and tags into the match. Trent bails to the floor and Orange protects Trent. Quen takes Trent out with a swanton dive to the floor. Quen hits a shooting star press for a near fall as Taylor makes the save. Kassidy sends Taylor to the floor. Trent is sat onto the top turnbuckle, but avoids a splash by Quen. Taylor tags in and buckle bombs Kassidy into Quen in the corner as Quen was stuck in the corner. Best Friends embrace in the middle of the ring. Best Friends hit Strong Zero on Kassidy to pickup the victory. (***. A good tag match and it shows how competitive the division is with any team being able to pull off a victory. Private Party are an incredible tag team already and it will be fun to see how they develop over time. These are two of my favorite teams in AEW at the moment and they delivered a quality match.)
4.) Riho and Swole kickoff the tag match. Swole backs Riho into a corner, but backs off. Riho controls Swole with a headlock on the mat. Swole kicks Riho, but Riho avoids a snapmare. Swole shoulder blocks Riho and runs the ropes. Riho gets a rollup, but misses a double stomp and they have a standoff. Statlander and Baker enter the match with Baker getting a rollup for a two count. Baker tries for a suplex, but Statlander drives Baker to the mat with a front suplex and taunts the crowd. Statlander dropkicks Baker and covers for a two count. Swole tags into the match and uppercuts Baker on the mat for a two count. Swole tries for a suplex, but Baker breaks free and delivers a sling blade for a one count. Baker decks Swole with a clothesline. Baker clotheslines Swole a second time for a near fall. Baker runs the ropes to stop Swole with a neckbreaker. Baker controls Swole with an abdominal stretch on the mat, but Swole refuses to submit. Baker knee strikes Swole in the corner, but misses a superkick. Swole nails Baker with a clothesline and both women are down. Riho gets the tag and prevents a tag out by Swole. Swole strikes Riho with elbows, but Riho responds with forearms.
Riho head scissors Swole to the mat and puts Swole over the middle rope. Riho runs into a pump kick and Swole crawls to the corner to tag in Statlander. Statlander is stopped by Riho forearms. Riho ducks a clothesline, but Statlander connects with a backbreaker and a double leg drop. Statlander nearly wins following a senton splash. Statlander tries for a slam, but settles for a kick. Riho takes Statlander down to the mat and delivers a double stomp. Baker tags into the match and Swole enters, too. They trade strikes with Swole nailing Baker with a headbutt and a flatliner for a near fall. Swole plants Baker with a swinging slam. Statlander slams Riho onto Baker for a two count. Swole uppercuts Baker in the corner, but Baker dumps Swole to the apron. Swole strikes Baker from the apron and shoulder rams Riho. Baker kicks Swole and Riho leaps off the top to double stomp Swole. Baker spikes Swole with a DDT for a near fall as Statlander makes the save and tags into the bout. Statlander strikes Baker, but Riho forearms Statlander. Statlander powerslams Riho followed by kicking Baker. Baker drives Statlander to the mat with a cutter for a near fall. Riho leaps off the top to double stomp Statlander leading to another near fall for Baker. Statlander rolls Baker around the ring several times, but Baker kicks out at two. Statlander connects with a fisherman driver for a near fall on Baker. Statlander has Baker on her shoulders, but Baker breaks free to deliver a swinging neckbraker for a near fall as Swole breaks the cover. Swole sends Riho to the floor. Swole accidentally elbows Statlander and Baker nails Swole with a superkick. Baker sends Swole to the floor and kicks Statlander. Baker locks in the Lock Jaw submission to force a submission. (**1/2. A bit of a slower match, but it was a decent match. There’s no denying that the women in AEW have a ton of potential to put on some great matches in the future. Baker is clearly being groomed for a top face role in the division.)
5.) From Undesirable to Undeniable hosted by Cody is next. This week, Cody talks with Justin Roberts. Cody credits Roberts for helping Brandi Rhodes learn to be a ring announcer. Roberts says in October 2014 he felt undesirable when he was fired by “the other company.” Roberts thought he was done with wrestling and went did some TV/film while also doing some other combat sports. Roberts didn’t leave WWE hating wrestling and instead became a wrestling fan again. Roberts recalls watching Being The Elite and found his passion again.
6.) Nick and Hawk kickoff the tag team main event. Nick controls Hawk with a wrist lock, but Hawk counters. Hawk invites Nick to run the ropes and Nick collides with a shoulder block causing neither man to budge. Hawk shoulder blocks Nick to the mat and taunts the fans. Hawk chops Nick, but runs into a dropkick. Nick delivers a neckbreaker over the middle rope and Matt dropkicks Lindaman on the floor. Matt hits a neckbreaker on Hawk over Nick’s knee. Matt works over Hawk with a strike and tags in Nick to maintain the advantage. Hawk chops Matt off the apron to the floor. Hawk plants Nick with a spinebuster. Lindaman tags into the match and trades forearms with Nick. Lindaman plants Nick with a flatliner. Lindaman tries for a German, but Nick elbows free. Nick avoids a German suplex and kicks Lindaman. Nick sends Lindaman into the corner, but Lindaman suplexs Nick and Matt into the corner. Lindaman forearms Nick over the back and rams Nick into the corner. Nick fights out of the corner with strikes to both men. Nick elbows Lindaman, but Hawk connects with a kick and a sit out suplex. Lindaman gets a two count with a German suplex on Nick for a near fall. Lindaman takes Nick out with a dive to the floor. Hawk chops Nick in the corner and rolls Nick to the mat by the leg. Hawk tries for a submission, but Nick quickly reaches the ropes.
Nick forearms Hawk several times, but Hawk delivers a chop before Nick kicks Hawk to the mat. Matt gets the hot tag as does Lindaman. Matt hits a series of northern lights suplexs. Matt hits a double northern lights suplex and the crowd pops for it. Hawk stops Matt with a chop and Lindaman delivers a German suplex for a two count. Nick sends Hawk to the floor and kicks Hawk from the apron. Nick hits a facebuster on Lindaman and moonsaults Hawk on the floor. Nick knee strikes Lindaman in the corner. Matt superkicks Lindaman followed by a double superkick to Hawk. Matt holds Lindaman to hit the Meltzer Driver for the win. (**1/2. There wasn’t a ton of heat for the match probably because of the lack of steam that Lindaman and Hawk have in AEW. Bucks worked a decent match and the action was average for the most part. I was a bit surprised they did the Meltzer Driver for this one.)
Final Thoughts:
A breeze of an hour with some good wrestling throughout.
Thanks for reading.