wrestling / TV Reports
Winfree’s AEW Dark: Elevation (Ep. 103) Review 2.20.23
Image Credit: AEW
Loading...Hey there people, let’s see what Elevation has for us this week. Looks like we’ve got Juice Robinson, Athena, some trios matches, and the Lucha Bros in our main event. Could be a decent episode this week, let’s get to it. Paul Wight and Matt Menard welcome us to the show.
Match #1: Fuego del Sol vs. Juice Robinson
Juice tosses Fuego around for a bit, but Fuego shoves him down. Some roll ups from Fuego while we use every camera except the hard cam, what’s going on technically here? Fuego wants the tornado DDT but takes too long and Juice tosses him off then hits a running back elbow. Some mounted punches from Juice then a Flapjack and a Russian leg sweep then a standing splash from Juice all for a 2 count. Juice makes sure the referee can in fact count to three, then argues with her about unmasking Fuego. Fuego fires up with strikes then hits an enziguri. Juice staggers into the corner, Fuego follows up with a running uppercut then a corner spear and a hook kick. Fuego goes up top, avoids a Juice charge then hits a hurricanrana to send Juice out of the ring. Now Fuego follows with a kick from the apron and an asai moonsault. Back in the ring Fuego hits a jumping knee then tries the tornado DDT but Juice blocks him and hangs him up over the ropes. Senton from Juice but again only a 2 count. Juice argues with the ref again, then goes for the mask and yells that he hates lucha libre by way of explaining his motivation. Corner clothesline from Juice then a cannonball follow up. Juice starts laying in jabs but Fuego with a Victory Roll for 2. Juice pulls off the mask, hits a punch then The Juice is Loose connects to end things.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Juice Robinson won in 6:06
Rating: 2.5 stars
Fun little match here, I still don’t really get Juice Robinson in the general sense but he played well off of Fuego here and it was nice to see Fuego back and getting paid.
Match #2: Athena vs. Evelyn Carter
Athena is amused by Carter and clocks her with an elbow. Next Athena posts Carter then kicks her though the ropes and baseball slides her to the floor. Athena goes out of the ring and lands another elbow, but Carter fights back with strikes of her own which just piss off Athena. That leads to another elbow from Athena then she tosses Carter over the barricade. Athena then lands a dropkick to the back of Carter. Back in the ring Athena avoids some roll ups and hits a slightly awkward spinning chokeslam, then locks up the Crippler Crossface to get the tap.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Athena won in 2:52
Rating: Prizewinner squash
Decent squash, but I’m still saying it’s about time to move Athena on from squashing jobbers and have a few more real matches. This is still relatively enjoyable but there’s an expiration date on it that’s coming up.
Post match Athena faceplants Carter onto the title belt.
Match #3 – Tag Team Match: Big Bill and Lee Moriarty w/ Stokely Hathaway vs. Zach Zilla and Warren Johnson
Lee and Johnson get us going, they hit the ropes and Lee lands a shoulder block. More rope running then Lee with a DDT to spike Johnson. Corner offense from Lee but Johnson avoids him and Zilla makes a blind tag to land a dropkick. Zilla tags back out and they work to isolate Lee but Lee gets a blind tag and Bill comes in to wipe them both out. Boot to Zilla then a fall away slam to Johnson. Bill with some corner punches then tags in Lee. Lee hits a bridging suplex but only a 2 count. Johnson is able to tag out and Zilla comes in with clotheslines to Lee. Zilla runs wild for a bit then tags out. Lee avoids a double team move as Bill disrupts things leading to Lee landing a shotgun dropkick. Bill tags back in and he and Lee take turns with corner splashes on Johnson then they polish things off with an assisted full nelson slam to get the pin.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Lee Moriarty and Big Bill won in 5:33
Rating: Hokkaido squash
Decent squash, not sure it needed five and a half minutes though. Zilla and Johnson had a solid overall showing though.
Match #4 – Trios Match: Leva Bates, Madison Rayne, and Willow Nightingale w/ Skye Blue vs. Emi Sakura, Marina Shafir, and Nyla Rose w/ Vickie Guerrero
Nyla and Bates start us off, Bates runs into an avalanche. Right hand from Nyla just floors Bates and then Emi tags in. Emi just looks on as she takes a chop then Rayne tags in. Rayne and Emi trade some strikes before Emi slams her into the corner and tags in Shafir. Shafir with kicks then a judo hip toss. Nyla tags in and they work to isolate Rayne. Dragon Sleeper from Nyla then a leg drop. Emi back in and lays in chops in the corner followed by the corner crossbody. Shafir tags in now, she lands some kicks then Vickie gets some cheap shots only for Blue to break that up. Nyla and Blue get face to face, and Blue super kicks her. Rayne is able to tag in Willow who runs wild for a bit. Corner attacks from Willow then a spinebuster to Shafir but Nyla breaks up the pin. Everything breaks down for a bit, Nyla tags in and boots Bates back tot he apron. Blind tag from Bates as Willow takes the Snapshot from Nyla and Shafir. Bates with kicks to Nyla, that doesn’t work well and Nyla just kills her with Beast Bomb to end it.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Nyla Rose, Marina Shafir, and Emi Sakura won in 5:09
Rating: 2 stars
Decent match, hurt just a bit by the predictability and a fairly dead crowd. Really nice to see Willow back though.
Match #5: Powerhouse Hobbs vs. Sal Muscat
Hobbs offers a handshake, Muscat takes it and then eats a clothesline. Corner offense from Hobbs as he just clubs away at Muscat. Muscat tries an enziguri, Hobbs doesn’t care and crushes him with an avalanche. Spinebuster from Hobbs, then the inverted Attitude Adjustment connects and we’re done.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Powerhouse Hobbs won in 1:41
Rating: Trombone squash
Delicious squash, Hobbs is starting to come into his own in the ring.
Ethan Page comes out with a mic, and cuts the music quickly. Hardy takes the mic and say they’ll get back to the party in just a minute, but they want to make sure Butcher and Blade get a proper entrance. That brings out Butcher and Blade, then we get back to the Hardy music. Page takes exception to Kassidy talking on the mic, so all is not quite well there.
Match #6 – 10-Man Tag Team Match: Matt Hardy, Isiah Kassidy, Ethan Page, The Butcher and The Blade vs. Best Friends (Chuck Taylor and Trent Beretta) and Dark Order (Evil Uno, John Silver, and Alex Reynolds)
Reynolds and Blade start us off, Blade grabs a side headlock then hits a shoulder block. More rope running and Reynolds hits a hip toss then a crossbody for a 1 count. Another arm drag from Reynolds then he tags in Silver. Butcher tags in and hits a double clothesline. Blade back in, now everyone comes in and things break down leading to the faces posing. Kassidy gets punched down by Uno and we get a big hug around Uno doing a Camel Clutch on Kassidy. Page runs over Uno and tags in Blade. Uno tags back in and lands an elbow then tags in Hardy. Hardy with an elbow then bounces Uno’s head around the turnbuckles. Kassidy tags in to hit some Poetry in Motion for a 1 count. Hilo from Kassidy and he tags in Butcher. Butcher unloads on Uno with chops then tags in Page. Double headbutt to Uno, but Page thinks that was a stupid call as he didn’t like it. Uno with chops to Page, but Page rakes the eyes then hits a 10 count delayed vertical suplex. Uno fights back with a neckbreaker and both men are down. Uno tags in Kassidy as Taylor takes the hot tag on the other side. Taylor runs wild, Trent tags in though as Blade gets involved. Sole Food into the half nelson, now everything breaks down and Kassidy takes a bunch of clotheslines in the corner then a Strong Zero attempt but Hardy shoves Taylor to the floor and Page boots Trent. Hardy with a Side Effect to Trent, then Kassidy follows with a Swanton Bomb but Dark Order break up the pin. Uno boots Hardy then hits Page with a Twist of Fate. Uno wants a dive, but Butcher and Blade pull him out to hit a Drag the Lake on the floor. Ow. Silver and Reynolds with dives to Butcher and Blade, then Kassidy dives onto Silver and Reynolds. Back in the ring Trent avoids a flying nothing and misses a tornado DDT when Trent shoves Kassidy into Hardy and knocks him off the apron, then Trent follows up with a super kick. Both men are down, Page wants the hot tag but he’s distracted by Hardy on the floor complaining of a broken nose. That leaves Kassidy high and dry, he and Trent trade roll ups but Kassidy gets caught in a Strong Zero as Taylor comes in with the double stomp and that ends things.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Dark Order and Best Friends won in 8:50
Rating: 3 stars
I’ll bump this one up just a bit as the character work between Page, Hardy, and Kassidy continues to be entertaining stuff. Hardy and Page have been getting along recently, and if Kassidy really does wind up running afoul of Hardy in advance of Quen’s return it might set up some interesting dynamics.
Mark Sterling talks on his way to the ring, the same old same old schtick. Our random law for Texas is that it’s illegal to emit obnoxious odors in elevators (Matt Menard: “Hear that Tony?”). Tony Schiavone has joined commentary as apparently Mark Sterling hasn’t taken kindly to Wight’s commentary about him and Sterling has been complaining enough to get him pulled from this match. This is unfortunate for the fans because it means they have to take the stairs.
Match #7 – Tag Team Match: Lucha Bros. (Rey Fenix and Penta el Zero Miedo) w/ Alex Abrahantes vs. Tony Nese and Ari Daivari w/ Mark Sterling
Penta and Tony get us going. Some playing to the crowd, then Penta offers a handshake, Tony would rather pose. That leads to Penta pulling the glove off, and Sterling misses his attempted interception of the glove. Penta and Tony trade some shoves then Tony goes into strikes. Ari with a cheap shot to Penta. Ari tags in but Penta flips out of a double back suplex and Fenix hits a double drop kick. Things break down as Tony and Ari avoid a double baseball slide. Eventually Ari and Penta wind up back in the ring. Ari puts Penta in the tree of woe and tags in Tony who works on his abs for a bit. Penta clocks Tony with an enziguri, Ari tags in and prevents a tag. Now Penta drops Ari with a super kick. Tony tags in and cheap shots Fenix to prevent the hot tag. Ari back in, but Penta fights back with kicks to both men then a Sling Blade to Ari, and one for Tony as well. Fenix finally gets the tag and comes in like a house on fire. Sandwich super kick to Tony then a rolling Cutter to Ari gets a 2 count. Penta tags back in, Sterling then distracts them from a double team finish, Ari gets a roll up for 2. Tony tags in but accidentally super kicks Ari, now super kicks for everyone. Sterling gets in the ring and takes a double super kick. Fear Factor double stomp from Penta and Fenix then Rey dives onto Ari and we’re done.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Lucha Bros. won in 4:32
Rating: 2.5 stars
Probably should have been more of a squash than it was, but this was a solid enough homecoming style match for the Luca Bros.
