Cazer’s AEW Dark Review 7.26.22

It’s Tuesday night so you know what that means we’re back for another AEW dark recap this weeks episode of dark has 10 matches on the card which is a little longer than I prefer but I’m not gonna complain especially considering we have a mid Atlantic championship match on the slate as park defends against blank the rest of the card features a number of notable AEW dark superstars including blank blank and blank while the cards in a little bit weaker than last week so I think will still get a good shells let’s jump into it

Keira Hogan vs. Allie Recks

This is an interesting choice for an opener if I must say. It wasn’t a bad match but it wasn’t very exciting. It was pretty short, Allie got a decent amount of offense early. Keira closed it up strongly, finished with the kind of week roundhouse kick and picked up the victory in relatively short order, just not really a match that I would put on first expecting to keep people around.

Rating: **
Review: Not a bad match but really nothing worth checking out. 

Alex Reynolds vs. Ryan Nemeth

This was a good back-and-forth match. I’m surprised it wasn’t the opener as it went a little bit longer than the opening match and it’s just a little bit more intriguing for me. I think that Nemeth did a good job at one point it looked like he was going to steal the victory with a rollup with the tights but Reynolds kicks out Nemeth hits a pendulum DDT the old pendulum Jones as Taz likes to call it looked like he was going to win there but Reynolds kicked out and looked real strong and in doing so. Then Reynolds hits a running boot in the corner followed by a top rope stunner for the victory again Reynolds looked really strong. Nemeth didn’t look so strong but he looked good in this solid match. I don’t really love the Dark Order Wingmen feud that’s been going on forever but this is a good match.

Rating: **
Review: 

Marina Shafir vs. Tracy Nyxx

Not a bad squash match at all Marina looked pretty strong throughout. Tracy had one moment where she got a little bit of offense in. Predominantly it was Marina dominating as it should’ve been. Sometimes AEW dark squash matches get a little too 50-50. This wasn’t that at all. Commentary even mention multiple times that it seem like Tracy was out of your element here so really good match Marina wins with a submission victory

Rating: N/A
Review: Solid squash victory for Marina against a serviceable jobber opponent. 

Slim J vs. Blake Li

Blake is a student of The Factory while Slim J has returned to prominence with his appearance last week on Dark then on the ROH PPV with Ari. Blake had a burst of momentum but Slim J was about to counter and hit Blake with a flatliner into a modified STF for the victory. Not a bad match but a good match to establish Slim J as an upcoming superstar.

Rating: **1/2
Review: Solid singles matchup for both competitors, nothing too out of this world but decent showcase. 

 

Julia Hart vs. Renee Michelle 

Julia with a darker entrance, and a bit of a darker look. They’re clearly still fleshing this out, I’m convinced it’ll never work. Julias in ring aggression is better this time than times past. Rough spot with Hart hitting a neckbreaker onto Michelle on the apron and she slid all the way to the mat on the outside but both played it off like it was the intention. Michelle with a decent bit of offense. There were a few moments that felt a bit awkward but it never really broke down to an obviously bad botch. Julia with a submission for the victory.

Rating: **1/43
Review: Not a bad much but a little slower than you might expect from a typical AEW match. Julia had decent moments in this match where she came off as evil and it worked but stuff like the evil stare at the end of the match just looks very forced to me. 

 

Cole Karter vs. Mike Orlando

The Green Machine nickname for Mike pops Taz big. Karter getting a fair bit of opportunity in AEW after being released from NXT a few weeks back. Orlando with a decent bit of offense so Karter offers a handshake only to follow with an eye poke. Something about Karter feels like he can easily be a solid heel squash talent who can generate heat relatively easily. Karter with a 450 splash for the victory. 

Rating: **1/2
Review: Nothing special but this was a solid first victory for Karter in AEW. He plays his heel character well and he’s technically sound in the ring. He’s a really good pick up for his position as a consistent heel job guy who wins from time to time on dark to maintain relevance. 

 

Angelo Parker vs. Cameron Stewart

Stewart a flamboyant character showing his appreciation for the JAS dancing to the theme. His tights say OnlyCams. I dig it. Angelo is not a big fan of the seductive dancing and neither is Taz. Parker makes quick work of Cam after getting tired of his antics and finishes him with an elevated DDT for the victory.

Rating: **
Review: Really short squash to get Parker a win, Cam has a character and in ring work that you’re gonna remember so for that I think he wins some points but overall this match did nothing for me for either guy. 

 

Blake Christian vs. Ari Daivari

This was a hell of a singles match between Blake and Ari and easily would’ve been my pick for the opener on this card. Ari is good and Blake is someone I have always been fond of. I like that he’s been used somewhat consistently on dark but not as an every week jobber so he can always elevate a bit if necessary. The local crowd gives him solid support which is more than you can say for a lot of the indy talent on Dark. Blake got plenty of offense in this one hitting a sweet frog splash to the back of Ari at one point but the outside interference from Slim J allowed Ari to win here. I would love to see a short feud between Ari/Slim J and Blake and a partner. Ari wins with the frog splash after the interference from Slim J. 

Rating: **3/4
Review: This was one of the better showcase matches of the week. Ari and Slim J are growing as upcoming AEW Dark mid level talent. I appreciate the breakdown of Ari’s sudden change and explaining how he’s rich now. A bit odd having Ari explaining he just purchased Slim J’s contract after teaming with him at ROH this weekend but it’s cool.

 

Dante Martin vs. Peter Avalon 

Dante looked awesome in this one as he always does and he’s shown a ton of growth in his time in AEW. The crowd was firmly behind him from start to finish as he worked a really solid back and forth with Avalon. I prefer to see a more traditional squash when it’s a situation where I feel someone like Dante is so much higher on the card than Avalon but the heel work helped this make sense. Dante is always super impressive, he hit his top rope moonsault for the victory. 

Rating: ***
Review: Solid singles match between two really good singles competitors. Avalon is good but hard to consider more than anything other than a jobber so when he gets much offense in it can fill a bit weird but this was pretty much exactly what i’d want here. Dante’s done great for a guy who has felt stuck in limbo for nearly a year. 

 

Mid Atlantic Championship

LJ Cleary vs. PAC

Not aware of Cleary at all but this is a great showcase for him. I find it odd AEW doesn’t make the effort to just send out a camera guy with Pac everywhere and get hard cam footage of his run as Mid Atlantic champion, you could easily expand it to a docuseries and get a lot out of it. It’s something smaller companies would love to do and AEW has the funds to do but doesn’t. Instead we see this event in slightly lower quality than the rest of the show. Not a horrible issue but still clearly apparent to anyone who cares. One thing I will say is I appreciate the level of pomp and circumstance these promotions are giving the Mid-Atlantic Championship. This is a great treat for AEW Dark fans who now have a championship they can follow and a champion that they can really get behind. I don’t imagine we’ll ever see the title change hands on Dark but you never know. Great technical back and forth between Pac and Cleary, LJ is clearly young and newer to wrestling but this is a great opportunity for some growth against a magnificent opponent.  Cleary showing so much promise in this match and should be someone to keep an out for in the future, his work as Pac’s opponent has been better than any random  unknown AEW Dark guy i’ve seen up to this point. I know he’s not your traditional Dark filler talent but for someone i’ve never heard of he’s impressive. This is a match that could use AEW commentary giving it a bit more attention, find out LJ’s history and inform us about him, no need to run down the Dynamite card six times a show. Great hard hitting action both in and outside the ring for this one. Cleary got a good bit of offense early but down the stretch Pac took control with his strength and size. Cleary got a brief moment of momentum and a decent comeback but it was no match for the Bastard. Cleary with a sick burst of offense near the end hitting Pac with back to back destroyers but in his moment of distress in not picking up the victory was quickly locked in the brutalizer for the victory.

Rating: ****
Review: What a stellar singles match to close out Dark and a great tradition if that’s gonna be the case week to week. Pac’s reign as Mid Atlantic Championship has been fantastic already. Whether it’s used to face guys like Shota Umino last week who are established or guys like LJ Cleary who are relatively unknown it’s already being used so well. Cleary was awesome in this and goes from a guy I didn’t know to a guy i’d love to see more in the US and elsewhere. Great stuff with this championship so far it adds a ton to Dark. 

6.8

The final score: review Average

The 411

Not a bad episode of Dark but outside of the last three matches it was a largely forgettable episode. Cole Karter looked decent in his first singles victory for AEW but outside of that most of the jobbers featured on this episode did nothing special and the guys and girls you're used to seeing did just fine but nothing to really stand out either. LJ Cleary did the most to really make a name for himself on this episode if you ask me.