wrestling / TV Reports
Winfree’s AEW Dark: Elevation (Ep. 73) Review 7.25.22
Image Credit: AEW
Loading...Hello everyone, time for another episode of AEW Dark: Elevation. Tonight we’ve got Dark Order vs. The Factory again, Toni Storm, Hikaru Shida, and a potentially solid main event of JD Drake battling the potential filled Konosuke Takeshita.
Excalibur, Caprice Coleman, and Mark Henry are on commentary for this episode.
Match #1 – Trios Match: Angelico and Private Party (Marq Quen and Isiah Kassidy) vs. AR Fox, Liam Gray, and Adrian Alanis
Gray and Angelico start us off. Angelico quickly out wrestles Gray and they start trading arm wringers and escapes then Angelico hits an arm drag. Kick from Gray then he tags in Alanis who hits a uranage backbreaker. Quen in illegally and takes a double back body drop but he allows Angelico to recover and tag in Kassidy. Kassidy sends Alanis to the outside, Alanis boots Quen but Kassidy dives onto him. Quen tags in and hits a springboard cross body to a seated Alanis. Kassidy drop kicks Gray off of the apron but Quen takes too long trying to follow up and Alanis suplexes him then Angelico and Fox tag in. Fox runs wild for a bit culminating with a rolling Cutter. Quen gets ejected by Fox, Fox then hits a Shooting Star Press onto Quen off of the ring post, but Kassidy is able to hit him with a Cutter that allows Angelico to tie up Fox in the Navarro Death Roll and Fox has to tap out.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Angelico and Private Party won in 3:59
Rating: 2.5 stars
Solid match that was a bit more competitive than expected, but it’s nice to see AR Fox get a few bigger looks. Private Party continue to be a bit stagnant.
Match #2 – Tag Team Match: Marina Shafir and Nyla Rose w/ Vickie Guerrero vs. Angelica Risk and Shalonce Royal
Rose and Risk start, and Rose just boots her down then tosses her around by the hair for a bit. Shafir tags in and starts laying in strikes. Risk starts fighting back with strikes then Shafir cuts her off with an arm throw and tags Rose back in. Rose with a clothesline, then another one. Risk runs into a back elbow, then Rose hits a Torture Rack that flips into a Cutter but Royal breaks up the resulting pin. Shafir tags back in, then kicks Royal off of the apron before laying in kicks to Risk culminating in a modified Hart Attack that uses a boot instead of a clothesline which finally ends things.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Marina Shafir and Nyla Rose won in 2:17
Rating: Golias. . . SQUASH
Risk definitely bumped all over the place for this one. Shafir is still really green, but is showing improvement.
Match #3: Toni Storm vs. Emi Sakura w/ Baliyan Akki
Emi jumps Storm at the bell and lays in stomps. Chop from Emi, then she tosses Storm into a corner. Storm tries to fight back but Emi cuts her off with a Mongolian chop then tosses her around by the hair again. Emi ties up Storm and sits on her to mime drinking tee, then she spanks Storm. Storm fights back with elbows then a drop toe hold and running drop kick. Now Storm throws Emi by the hair but Emi blocks the follow up scoop slam and grabs a Dragon Sleeper then hits the Whirling Dervish but she doesn’t go for a cover. Emi chops Storm down and mocks her, but Storm chops her back and they start trading chops now, with Emi getting the better with a double chop. Storm starts landing elbows now and Emi fires up as she’s being hit then scratches the chest of Storm. Emi wants the Queen’s Gambit but Storm fights out with a back drop only to run into a shoulder block. Storm sends Emi out of the ring, then tries to follow up with a DDT but Emi blocks it and chops her. Another DDT attempt from Storm but again Emi blocks it and lands a strike before sending Storm into the barricade. Emi bounces Storm between the ring apron and barricade, but eventually Storm turns one of those into a tornado DDT on the floor. They head back into the ring, Storm goes up top and hits a cross body for a 2 count. Hip attack from Storm is avoided and Emi then chops her in the corner before hitting the corner cross body. Emi tries the Queen’s Gambit again, this time she hits it but it only gets a near fall. Storm counters out of another Queen’s Gambit and hits an Alabama Slam then crushes Emi in the corner with a hip attack. Tornado DDT from Storm connects, but she doesn’t cover and instead hits a jumping DDT to pick up the 3 count.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Toni Storm won in 7:33
Rating: 3 stars
Not surprising those two turned in a hard hitting match, Storm rising to the physical challenge Emi goaded her into was a nice little story, no major botches, and they got a decent amount of time to work. Good match and good effort from both ladies.
Match #4: Kris Statlander vs. Brittany
Statlander and Brittany trade rear waist locks then Statlander slings Brittany to the mat and grabs a side headlock. Brittany counters into a head scissors, Statlander hand stands free and then hits a drop kick. Some strikes from Brittany but she runs into a snap powerslam. Statlander with some corner offense then counters a crucifix attempt into the Night Fever for the win.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Kris Statlander won in 1:54
Rating: Kiszombori. . . SQUASH
Delicious squash. Also I’m fully on board with the idea of Statlander being the one to end Jade Cargill’s title run, it probably wont happen but she’s worked hard and altered her gimmick significantly to be more in sync with the title picture.
Match #5: Hikaru Shida vs. Robyn Renegade w/ Charlette Renegade
The Renegade twins have their own entrance music, good for them. They tie up, then we get a mostly clean break before Robyn shoves Shida. Kick from Robyn but Shida then catches her with a hurricanrana and a running knee strike in the corner. 10 punch in the corner from Shida but Robyn escapes at around 7. Shida with a right hand, Charlette ties up Shida though and Robyn is able to take over with strikes. Back elbow from Shida on the ropes, Charlette again tries to get involved but Shida intimidates her then chase her to the floor but Charlette leads her into a clothesline from Robyn. Robyn lands a few chops on the floor before Shida fights back with a bevy of strikes. Back in the ring Robyn avoids a punch and hits a Backstabber for a 2 count. Shida starts fighting back with strikes again then avoids a corner rush and slaps Robyn. Robyn gets set up across the top rope and Shida drills her with a running knee strike from the apron. Shida with a Meteora then a suplex for a 2 count. Charlette tries for some Twin Magic but Shida gets hit with a Stunner across the ropes. Spinebuster from Charlette but the ref realizes that Charlette isn’t Robyn. Shida avoids Robyn who runs into Charlette, then Shida drop kicks Robyn before coming down with a splash on Charlette. Ax kick from Shida then the Falcon Arrow connects to get the win.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Hikaru Shida won in 5:33
Rating: 2 stars
A lot more competitive than I thought it’d be, but boy did they make the ref look like a total idiot here. Charlette and Robyn had very different hair styles, 0 reason for him to ever have them confused. Shida is still really good at wrestling.
Match #6 – Tag Team Match: Dark Order (Evil Uno and 10) vs. The Factory (Aaron Solo and Nick Comoroto) w/ QT Marshall
Uno and Solo start things off, Solo immediately goes to striking but Uno drops him with a shoulder block. They hit the ropes, Uno then lands a Manhattan Drop and stomps on the hands of Solo. A 10 count delayed vertical suplex follows with 10 counting for Uno. Comoroto distracts the ref as Uno follows Solo out of the ring, and Marshall is able to shove Uno into the ring post so his boys can take over. Comoroto follows up by tossing Uno into the barricade then back into the ring. Control from Comoroto now as Marshall lays in cheap shots. Solo tags back in and hits a drop kick to assist a suplex from Comoroto. Comoroto tags back in and starts trading strikes with Uno. Uno fights back with a jawbreaker, Solo tags in but eats a neckbreaker then tags in 10. 10 runs wild with clotheslines and tosses to both Solo and Comoroto. Spinebuster to Solo then a pump kick as he tags in Uno. Combination offense from Uno and 10, but Comoroto breaks up the pin. Comoroto and 10 square off, and Comoroto hits a Spear to deal with 10. Solo with a super kick to Uno then they hit the Decapitation with a double stomp and 10 has to break up the pin. Uno and Solo trade strikes then Uno hits the Something Evil (End of Days) and tags in 10. 10 with a slingshot Spear to Comoroto but Marshall gets involved to try and assist a pin but the ref catches him and ejects Marshall. Uno DDT’s Comoroto on the apron as 10 then wipes out Solo with the discus lariat to get the win.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Dark Order won in 6:35
Rating: 2 stars
Comoroto has the look but still needs seasoning, and the stuff with Marshall can get tedious in a hurry if not managed properly. There’s also a bit of rematch fatigue with Dark Order and The Factory, but this was competent.
Brandon Cutler heads to the ring with a mic, he talks about being friends with the Young Bucks. With friends like that you get perks, like being able to get a match with the biggest loser in this company. He mocks Baron Black’s record then mocks the crowd in Atlanta but Black cuts him off with a spinning chop to get the match going.
Match #7: Baron Black vs. Brandon Cutler
More chops from Black before Cutler cuts him off by tossing him into the middle turnbuckle. Scoop slam from Cutler then an elbow drop. Dancing elbow drops from Cutler follow but he only gets a 2 count on the cover. They start trading strikes now, Black gets the better of things then hits a snap German suplex. Folding powerbomb from Black gets a near fall. Cutler grabs his cold spray, sprays Black in the eyes and hits a super kick for a near fall. Black avoids a BTE Trigger and rolls up Cutler with an O’Connor Roll to get the 3 count.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Baron Black won in 3:12
Rating: 2 stars
It’s nice to see Black get a win, but this felt like they were trying too hard to manufacture a moment for him and they probably could have laid this match out better. Cutler’s face after the loss is hilarious though.
Match #8: JD Drake vs. Konosuke Takeshita
They tie up and they start trading strikes. Drake grabs a side headlock then they both land shoulder blocks but neither goes down. Calf kick from Takeshita connects then a Helluva Kick in the corner but Drake blocks the brainbuster then shoves Takeshita over the top rope and to the floor. Scoop slam from Drake then a falling headbutt for a 2 count. Drake lays in some strikes, then Takeshita fires back with strikes of his own. They hit the ropes and Takeshita hits a leaping back elbow. Drake avoids a Blue Thunder Bomb then avoids a Zahi in the corner, the momentum sending Takeshita to the floor. Both men on the floor now and Takeshita lands a blow but Drake hits his rebound elbow off of the ropes on the outside to retain control. Back in the ring Drake gets a 2 count on a cover but Takeshita then hits him with a German suplex. Drake avoids a clothesline and hits a back suplex then a cannonball senton in the corner. Now Drake goes up top and hits a moonsault for a near fall. Takeshita avoids a suplex and hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall of his own. Zahi connects for Takeshita and he pins to win.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Konosuke Takeshita won in 3:40
Rating: 2.5 stars
The only real limiting factor here was time, they had to pack a lot into a sprint situation when another 3-4 minutes might have really elevated this match. That said, Takeshita is really good and Drake is almost criminally underrated in terms of what he can do in the ring. Good effort from both guys.
