Kevin’s AEW Dark Review 6.02.20

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Taz and Excalibur were on commentary.

Billy Gunn (2-1) w/ Austin Gunn vs. John Skyler (0-1)

Skyler is a veteran but nowhere near on the level of Billy. He got irked by Austin being annoying at ringside. He also busted out a solid slingshot spear spot in the early stages. That was really just about it for him, though. Billy used his power advantage to win with the Fameasser in a short 3:38. This was fine for what it was but not really entertaining. [*1/2]

Outside, Brandi and Dustin were interviewed about the hot streak of the Natural Nightmares. QT Marshall showed up in a blue Corvette with Allie. QT is getting arrogant, saying he’s on a roll. He went to get food with Allie rather than work with Dustin and Brandi.

The Butcher and the Blade (4-4) vs. Joe Alonzo (0-2) and Jon Cruz (0-3)

AEW has been putting a lot of guys like Alonzo and Cruz on episodes of Dark lately. Butcher and Blade pulled a Suzuki-Gun and attacked before the bell. That’s just mean against two dudes with no wins. As this became a traditional tag, Cruz got his ass kicked. Butcher and Blade took turns beating on him. He was tossed across the ring so Alonzo could get the tag. He didn’t fare much better. Butcher and Blade had it won but pulled up Alonzo. I’m not sure of the name of the finisher but they won with a spinning backbreaker and then a suplex onto Blade’s knees in 5:19. It was a total squash, though it went on far too long for being one-sided. [NR]

In the back, Leva Bates attempts to keep the peace between the winless Peter Avalon and Brandon Cutler, who are teaming tonight. Cutler just doesn’t want them to cheat tonight.

Christi Jaynes (0-2) vs. Kilynn King (0-1)

King lost to Penelope Ford last week, while Jaynes looked really good against Hikaru Shida on Dynamite. There’s a cockiness to Jaynes. It backfired when King ran her over with a shoulder block and mocked her dancing. They had some solid back and forth before Jaynes won a battle of rollups to earn her first AEW victory in 4:03. I like the idea of two winless people trying to break into the win column against each other. It was solid. [**]

Big Game Leroy and EJ Lewis (0-0) vs. Santana and Ortiz (4-4)

It’s a shame that Santana and Ortiz are just 4-4. They’re the best tandem in AEW for my money. Leroy played a Nintendo Switch and had it stomped out of his hands before Lewis was thrown across the ring. Santana and Ortiz busted out some nice offense, like when Lewis was trapped in a Gory Special and just got chopped loudly. Maybe it was louder because of the empty location but it still ruled. They had Lewis beaten but Leroy went for the save. They got off the pin and dared him to come in. He became the legal man and impressed with quickness to avoid some rights and lefts. A Liger Bomb followed and they just kept up the offense. A cannonball Poetry in MOtion was next. The Street Sweeper wrapped it up in 5:08. Like earlier, this was a lengthy squash. However, this was entertaining because Santana and Ortiz are that good. [NR]

Brandon Cutler (0-13) and Peter Avalon (0-13) w/ Leva Bates vs. The Natural Nightmares (4-0) W/ Brandi Rhodes

The Natural Nightmares are the #2 ranked tandem now. QT brought out Allie and had her join commentary. She cheers on every tiny bit of offense that he gets. He slapped Leva’s book out of her hands but it opened him up to take a tope suicida from Avalon. I really liked how Avalon kept going for pins. It showed his desperation to finally win. She also chastised Dustin when QT was taking the heat segment. He started fighting off Cutler and Avalon. An accidental shot from Avalon to Cutler led to the hot tag to Dustin. He did his thing but when he went for the Unnatural Kick, Leva grabbed his ankle. Her poor acting led to Brandi coming in and hitting her with a Stunner. She then threw Leva into Avalon for a spear. Cutler was all alone to take a Canadian Destroyer and the QT Cutter, losing in 7:27. A pretty basic tag but a solid one. [**1/2]

A post-match interview saw Dustin say that he couldn’t have done it without Brandi’s help. QT looked over at Allie and said he couldn’t have done it without her. She’s the apple of his eye.

6.0

The final score: review Average

The 411

My issue with recent episodes of Dark has been that they've clocked in between 80-90 minutes. That's too long for what they've been putting out. This shoe was similar in terms of quality but it only lasted 44 minutes, which is great. Santana and Ortiz got to look great, the main event was solid, and I liked the women's match.