SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
AEW DARK ELEVATION REPORT
OCTOBER 3, 2022
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
Commentators: Ian Riccaboni, Paul Wight
(1) SKYE BLUE vs. TRISH ADORA
Adora led most of the match, getting in more offense and briefly holding Blue in a submission over her shoulders. Adora hit an unusually slow German suplex. Blue regained the advantage with kicks, including her spinning kick lying on her side, then got the win with Skyfall, a new finish.
WINNER: Blue.
-A promo aired for AEW Heels, the community for woman fans. I recall Heels being a Brandi Rhodes initiative, so I was surprised to see it still going.
(2) BRIAN CAGE (w/Prince Nana) vs. TRACY WILLIAMS
Cage entered accompanied by Prince Nana. Williams is a former ROH TV champ. Riccaboni urged us not to let the appearance of Williams fool us, bringing back fond memories of Silver King in WCW. Williams showed his technical prowess early on, but looked stumped when Cage had him answered hold for hold. Cage did curl reps with Williams before easily chucking him back over his head. Wight showed nice enthusiasm for Williams as he made a comeback, but Cage took back over and ruined Williams with the Drill Claw. A good tune-up victory for Cage, preparing him for his TNT title match with Wardlow on Dynamite.
WINNER: Cage.
(3) LANCE ARCHER vs. CHEESEBURGER
Archer menaced Burger in his corner before the bell. When Archer turned away, Burger leapt to his back and tried for a sleeper, going for the Princess Bride/Andre tactic. Archer easily broke the hold and no sold-Burger’s offense. Wight did a good job trying to explain the Japan-style spot of both wrestlers trading standing punches/forearms. Archer couldn’t get the Blackout from the turnbuckle, but set it up more impressively in the middle of the ring, and pinned his opponent effortlessly.
WINNER: Archer.
(4) ABADON vs. ABBY JANE
Maybe the Halloween season explains the Abadon return after a long absence? Wight always does a good job selling Abadon’s intimidating presence, as did her opponent tonight. Abadon went on nonstop offense, and won quickly with the Black Dahlia, similar to a Famouser/Zig Zag.
WINNER: Abadon.
Brian Cage gave a pretaped promo, addressing having been away so long. He talked about winning matches in ROH, as though ROH had a separate, ongoing TV presence. His promo was iffy and generic, but it was good to hear him present an idea of who he is before his big title match.
(5) DALTON CASTLE & THE BOYS vs. PRIMAL FEAR (Adrien Soriano & Matthew Omen & Gabriel Hodder) – ROH Six-Man Title match
Dasha announced the ROH Six-Man Title match. Riccaboni pointed out how few teams work as a trio on the indy circuit, as Primal Fear do. Castle and the Boys got an unusually long, grand entrance for Elevation, with two other lackeys dressed as Boys clapping along in the background, and Castle stepping over one Boy’s back like stairs onto the ring apron. The bell rang and after hardly any offense was exchanged, Castle was back in his corner with the Boys fanning him. Pretty funny stuff. The Boys hit some tandem offense on Soriano before things shifted to one on one wrestling. Primal Fear hit three simultaneous boots on Boy Brent while he was in the ropes. A shift in momentum enabled Castle to launch his partners at each opponent, before hitting his Bang a Rang finisher on Soriano.
WINNERS: Castle & The Boys.
(6) KIP SABIAN & PENELOPE FORD vs. GIA SCOTT & LSG
Riccaboni referred to Scott and LSG as ROH mainstays, noticeably speaking of his time in ROH more or less in the past tense. Sabian started out with smart counters for LSG’s high flying offense. Ford and Scott had some exchanges that weren’t totally crisp. Ford did her signature spots, including the Matrix backbend dodge and her Muta Lock finisher, tapping Scott out promptly. I was half expecting Ford and Sabian to have one of their excessive makeout sessions after the bell, but they’ve left that part of their act behind, and they come across as a cooler, slicker tandem these days.
(7) LUCHA BROTHERS vs. DANTE MARTIN & TONY DEPPEN
Martin and Deppen seem like an odd couple. Was Matt Sydal busy? Big cheers for the Lucha Bros as they made their way to the ring with Alex Abrahantes. Somewhere LA Park is nodding in pride at Penta’s gear with its multiple masks. Wight can be fun on commentary, but he does need to remember to focus on the action in the ring. Martin and Fenix traded flashes of unreal agility before coming to a respectful standoff. Deppen no-sold Penta’s taunt, intercepted Penta’s glove tossed toward Abrahantes, and blew his nose in it before returning the glove to its owner. Ballsy! Martin tagged in and ended up eating stereo superkicks, then wisely tagged back out. The Bros systematically double-teamed Deppen, who improbably fought them both off with knee strikes. Eventually the tag rules broke down and three or all four wrestlers were in the ring together, until the Bros finished Deppen off with the Fear Factor assisted piledriver.
WINNERS: Lucha Bros.
(8) THE FACTORY (Q.T. Marshall & Aaron Solo & Nick Comoroto & Cole Kater) vs. BEST FRIENDS (Trent Beretta & Chuck Taylor) & ROCKY ROMERO & DANHAUSEN
Best Friends got a big reaction on their way out. Danhausen and Solo started out before Solo tagged quickly to Marshall, who got a healthy dose of booing. Marshall did a goofy version of Danhausen’s curse pose, and was rewarded with Danhausen chomping down on his fingers. A series of tags led to the Factory taking control, getting heat on Romero. Romero escaped and let his Best Friends buddies turn the tide. Wight made a nice literary reference about Marshall possibly exploiting the big brute Comoroto. Best Friends and Rocky did their adorable routine with high-fives and hugs while the ring was cleared. A fun sequence followed, with Best Friends nearly getting their tandem finisher and Marshall almost landing a Diamond Cutter. Solo attempted a double underhook driver but foolishly let himself be distracted by Danhausen landing the successful curse, leading to Trent hitting Crunchy on Solo with Danhausen’s help. As the crowd cheered, the winners hit a celebratory Best Friendly pose.
WINNERS: Best Friends & Romero & Danhausen.
FINAL THOUGHTS: A solid episode of Elevation, longer than usual. AEW could use more fun, colorful characters and tonight had a good sprinkling. Wight and Riccaboni worked quite well for their first time together. If you don’t care to watch the entire episode, the matches most worth seeking out were Lucha Brothers vs. Dante Martin & Deppen and The Factory vs. Best Friends.
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