Csonka’s AEW Dark Review 12.03.19

Csonka’s AEW Dark Review 12.03.19

OFFICIAL RESULTS
– Jimmy Havoc defeated Brandon Cutler @ 7:55 via pin [**½]
– Shawn Spears defeated Sonny Kiss @ 4:10 via pin [**]
– Santana & Ortiz defeated Marko Stunt & Jungle Boy @ 13:50 via pin [***]

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– Follow all of my reviews at this link.

– Here are the viewership numbers for the series so far:

Ep1: 859,353
Ep2: 885,541
Ep3: 653,250
Ep4: 579,466
Ep5: 574,720
Ep6: 349,816
Ep7: 416,411
Ep8: 554,245

– We open with highlights from last week’s Dynamite.

– Tony & Dasha welcome us to the show and run down the card.

– Shanna was to be on commentary but was attacked by Nyla Rose. Nyla Rose will be on commentary with Excalibur.

Jimmy Havoc vs. Brandon Cutler: They lock up and work to the ropes. Havoc starts to work the arm, and the cradle follows for 2. Cutler counters back and he grounds things, and they work into counters until Havoc bites Cutler. He follows with strikes and chops. Cutler counters back, hit san enziguri and flying forearm. Cutler dumps Havoc and Havoc gets the staple gun. The ref takes it and he low blows Cutler. Havoc follow shim out and whips him to the barricade. Cutler fights back, follows with strikes and end up chopping the post. Havoc rakes the eyes and back in, Havoc suplexes him to the buckles, does it again and covers for 2. Cutler counters the purple rainmaker, lays the boots to him but Havoc bites him. Cutler fights back into a black hole slam for 2. Havoc counters with the double stomp, teases a suplex to the floor but Cutler trips him up and the draping apron leg drop follows. Back in and Cutler hits the springboard elbow drop for 2. Havoc cuts him of, and the acid rainmaker finishes it. Jimmy Havoc defeated Brandon Cutler @ 7:55 via pin [**½] This was a perfectly solid opening match.

– Post match, Havoc staples a check to Cutler’s head, instantly paying his $10,000 fine.

– Backstage, Havoc is informed he is bring fined again. He says they signed a villain, and if he wants to get drunk and fight or staple people, he will.

– We get a Dark Order infomercial.

– we see Cody’s win on Dynamite, and the debuts of the Butcher & The Blade, along with the dark Bunny.

Shawn Spears (with Tully Blanchard) vs. Sonny Kiss: They lock up and work to the ropes. Spears backs off for the clean break and they lock back up, working into counters as Kiss frustrates Spears. The cradle follows for 2. Kiss twerks, but Spears cuts him off and follows with a back elbow. He flexes his ass at Kiss, and Kiss fires back with the dropkick, strikes and a flipping leg drop for 2. Kiss follows with kicks, but Spears dumps him to the floor. He follows and slams Kiss to the apron and barricades. Back in and Spears lays the boots to Kiss, and the DVD follows for the win. Shawn Spears defeated Sonny Kiss @ 4:10 via pin [**] This was ok for the time given as the rebuild of Spears continues.

– Post match, Tully & Spears spike piledriver Kiss on the floor.

TULLY. #AEWDark

➡️ https://t.co/2wd4XN1Zb0 pic.twitter.com/UGQ4n8SYOL

— TDE Wrestling (@tde_wrestling) December 4, 2019

– Tony & Dasha recap last week’s Dynamite and then hype tomorrow’s show.

– We get a wacky Jurassic Express video package.

Santana & Ortiz vs. Marko Stunt & Jungle Boy: Santana & Jungle Boy begin. They lock up and work to the ropes. Santana follows with a chop and he grounds the action, Jungle Boy counters and they work back to the ropes. They work into counters, RANA by Jungle Boy and Jungle Boy follows with a dropkick. He lays in chops and Stunt tags in and double teams follow. They work over Ortiz n and more double teams follow for 2. Jungle Boy tags back in as quick tags and double teams follow. Ortiz & Santana cut them off with double teams and isolate Stunt. Ortiz works back rakes, and follows wit a belly to back suplex for 2. Santana tags n and continues the beat down on Stunt and poses. Stunt fires back, but is cut off by the hand off delayed suplex until Stunt cradles Santana for 2. Santana follows with rolling suplexes and hands him off to Ortiz who finishes and then takes him to the floor. They take control on the floor and run them together. Santana slams Jungle Boy on the floor, slams Stunt onto him and get chairs. They set them up and sit them into them. Santana follows with a cannonball. Back in and Ortiz works a crab on Stunt. Stunt fights and makes the ropes. Tag to Jungle Boy and he runs wild. The lariat follows and he heads up top, Santana cuts him off, but he fights him off and the high cross gets 2. They cut off Jungle Boy, but he dumps Ortiz and then it breaks down as Stunt hits a top rope double stomp. The tornado DDT follows and double teams follow for 2. They isolate Santana, and hit a double stomp cutter combo for 2. Stunt up top and the 450 is cut off, and the powerbomb follows, Santana finishes him with the running boot. Santana & Ortiz defeated Marko Stunt & Jungle Boy @ 13:50 via pin [***] Good and fun match, and I loved that Santana & Ortiz didn’t need their regular finish to win.

– Sammy joins in for the post match beat down until Luchasaurus arrives to make the save. He runs wild and stands tall. Hager arrives and they face off until the Inner Circle attack. The Bucks make the save as Sammy is laid out by Luchasaurus. The faces stand tall.

The 411 on Wrestling Podcast returns to the 411 Podcasting Network for episode 71. On the show, 411’s Larry Csonka talks to the Cubsfan about the world of lucha libre, Jerome Cusson joins the show for a look into ROH’s complete breakdown and decline in 2019, and finally, Steve Cook talks WOW – Women of Wrestling. The show is approximately 238-minutes long.

* Intro
* Background on the Cubsfan Covering Lucha: 2:55
* Who Are The Must-See Guys in Lucha Right Now For Casual Lucha Fans?: 6:35
* What Was With Flamita’s “Deal” With MLW & Then Signing With ROH?: 10:55
* What is Bandido’s Future in ROH/NJPW?: 15:55
* How Strong is the NJPW/CMLL Relationship Heading Into 2019?: 17:55
* Where Will Dragon Lee Officially End Up?: 20:35
* General Thoughts on ROH’s 2019: 23:45
* Steve Cook Discusses Season Two of WOW – Women of Wrestling/The State of Women’s Wrestling Heading Into 2020: 1:01:00
* Jerome Cusson on His Time as an ROH Fan, What Changed, & The Decline/Institutional Breakdown of the Promotion in 2019: 2:23:30

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* Google Play

– End scene.

– Thanks for reading.

6.0

The final score: review Average

The 411

Tonight’s episode of AEW Dark was a solid show, with nothing must-see, but some good video packages and recaps that need to make their way onto Dynamite.