AEW Dark Episode 39
June 23rd, 2020
Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
By: Davie Portman
Commentary by: Excalibur and Taz
Robert Anthony vs Brian Cage
Robert Anthony jumps Cage immediately but the attack doesn’t last for long. Cage hits him with a huge Lariat followed by a Buckle Bomb. Brian Cage hits the Drill Claw for the win.
Davie’s thoughts: Incredibly quick squash match but I like the storytelling here. A couple of weeks ago Robert Anthony pushed Jon Moxley to a competitive match. With Cage making such easy work of Anthony it makes him appear to be an even bigger threat for the champion.
Brian Cage defeats Robert Anthony via Pinfall in 53 secs
David Ali & Musa vs SCU (Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian)
Musa and Daniels have a nice sequence at the beginning of the match which ends in a standoff. David Ali jumps in and takes a cheap shot at Daniels allowing Musa to hit a Powerslam. Musa hits a Moonsault and goes for the pin but isn’t the legal man. Daniels gets back into the match with a Blue Thunder Bomb and makes the tag to Kazarian. SCU hit the Total Elimination to Ali and the Powerbomb/Neckbreaker Combination to Musa. SCU hit the Best Meltzer Ever to Ali for the win.
Excalibur announces that Kazarian and Daniels going forward are going to focus on the Tag Team Division and Scorpio Sky is going to focus on the singles division.
SCU defeat David Ali & Musa via Pinfall in 3 mins 30 secs
Davie’s thoughts: Recently on Dark, it looks like Daniels has lost a step. During these tag matches his opponents have been getting a lot of offense in on him and it isn’t until Frankie Kazarian gets tagged in that they win the match easily. With Kazarian and Daniels being the team going forward I wonder if they are going to make more of this in a story. From what I’ve seen of David Ali and Musa recently I’ve been impressed although the moment where they forgot who the legal man was showed off their inexperience.
Pineapple Pete vs Shawn Spears w/ Tully Blanchard
Pineapple Pete frustrates Spears early in the match by getting a few near falls. Spears bails to the outside and Tully tries to get him focussed. Spears gets a couple of near falls, which frustrates Tully who leaves a piece of metal in the ring. Tully then distracts the referee as Spears puts the metal into the glove. He punches Pineapple Pete and picks up the win.
Shawn Spears defeats Pineapple Pete via Pinfall in 4 mins 57 secs
Davie’s thoughts: I was surprised to see Pineapple Pete be given as much as he was here. I do like that we have some story advancement on Dark, so I was pleased to see the foreign object loading the glove being introduced here. I hope this gets recapped on Dynamite.
Griff Garrison vs Lance Archer w/ Jake Roberts.
As Lance Archer comes to the ring he carries someone he has found backstage and lays them out. This guy is laying out cold on the ramp for the duration of the match. Griff Garrison tries to get a little bit of offense in but Archer comes back very quickly with a huge Pounce. Archer lays in some thick Chops and Garrison tries to hit some of his own that frustrate Archer. Archer plants Garrison with an Urinage but Garrison kicks out. Griff Garrison manages to get a couple of Back Elbows in but eventually gets caught in the Blackout. Lance Archer applies the EBD Claw for the win.
Lance Archer defeats Griff Garrison via Pinfall in 3 mins 46 secs
Davie’s thoughts: It was nice to see Griff Garrison put up a bit of a fight here as so far all of Archer’s squash matches have been much the same. I do enjoy watching Archer as a big man as he does have this genuine sense of danger to his work.
Dark Order (John Silver & Alex Reynolds) vs Sonny Kiss & Joey Janela
Janela and Sonny Kiss hit their double team Submission/Dropkick moves to Reynolds for a two count. Silver gets tagged in and hit by a great looking Rolling Elbow from Kiss. As Janela is running the ropes Alex Reynolds kicks him in the back, which allows Silver to get the upper hand. At some point during the match Silver’s mask falls off. Janela fights back and makes the hot tag to Sonny Kiss. Janela hits a Tope Suicida but gets caught by Silver. Silver holds Janela up and Reynolds hits a Tope Suicida that drops Janela into a Brainbuster on the floor. Janela and Sonny Kiss come back with Stereo Missile Dropkicks. Janela has Silver on his shoulders for a Death Valley Driver, Sonny Kiss jumps off Silver’s back to hit the Splitting Leg Drop to Reynolds for the win.
Sonny Kiss & Joey Janela defeat Dark Order via Pinfall in 7 mins 42 secs
Davie’s thoughts: I really enjoyed this match. I think Sonny Kiss and Joey Janela are looking great as a tag team and have some really great looking double team moves and chemistry. Reynolds and Silver looked great too and I almost thought they were going to win after the Assisted Brainbuster to the floor.
KiLynn King vs Mel
Both women try to outmuscle the other at the start. King attempts an Arm Drag but Mel uses her power to block King and throw her to the mat. Mel continues to bully King with Kicks and Forearms. Kind attempts the Arm Drag again but again gets blocked and Kicked to the mat. King starts to make a comeback after hitting an Uppercut and Crossbody. King goes for a Missile Dropkick but gets blocked. Mel hits a Chokeslam Spinebuster for the win.
Mel defeats Kilynn King vs Mel via Pinfall in 5 mins 26 secs
Davie’s thoughts: I thought this was a pretty dull match. This is the first time I’ve seen Mel wrestle and I didn’t find anything particularly interesting about her. The match was mainly just Mel bullying King with punches and kicks. I know the Nightmare Collective didn’t work out but I do think being used as “hired muscle” could be a good fit for her character-wise.
Lee Johnson vs Scorpio Sky
Both Johnson and Sky lay in some stiff Chops at the start of the match. Johnson ducks two Clotheslines so Sky hits him with a Jumping Knee to the face instead of on the third attempt followed by a beautiful Dropkick. Johnson makes a comeback with a combination of strikes. He flips out of a German Suplex and hits a Blue Thunder Bomb for a near fall. Johnson gets caught in the TKO allowing Scorpio Sky to pick up the win.
Scorpio Sky defeats Lee Johnson via Pinfall in 4 mins 58 secs
Davie’s thoughts: I enjoyed this short match between Lee Johnson and Scorpio Sky. Johnson definitely has potential and impressed with his speed and reversal sequences with Sky. With Scorpio Sky being in the singles division now I could see him challenging for the TNT Championship pretty soon.
Luther, Serpentico & Max Caster vs Jurassic Express
Marko Stunt is all over Max Caster at the start of this match. He hits a series of Dropkicks in the corner, tags in Jungle Boy, and jumps off his back for another Dropkick. Serpentico and Jungle Boy have a great exchange both showing off their speed and Lucha style. Luchasaurus gets tagged in and takes out both Serpentico and Max Caster. Stunt hits a Splash to Caster off Luchasaurus’ shoulders followed by a Rolling Senton from Jungle Boy and a Standing Moonsault from Luchasaurus for a near fall. Luther hits a variation of Suplexes to Stunt and complains to Aubrey Edwards for not counting the pins fast enough. Luther and Serpentico abandon the match, which allows Jungle Boy to apply the SGS for the win.
Jurassic Express defeat Luther, Serpentico & Max Caster via Submission in 7 mins 36 secs
Peter Avalon vs Orange Cassidy w/ Best Friends
Orange Cassidy enters with the Best Friends sporting the brand new Orange Cassidy beach towels. Peter Avalon applies a Wrist Lock but Cassidy puts his opposite hand back in his pocket. Avalon switches and applies a Wrist Lock to the other arm, so Cassidy puts his other hand in his pocket. This frustrates Avalon, so he applies a Waist Lock and Orange Cassidy puts both hands in his pockets and slips out. On the outside, Cassidy flirts with Leva Bates allowing Avalon to hit a Baseball Slide followed by a Pescado. Cassidy comes back by hitting Avalon’s head on every turnbuckle followed by a Tilt-a-Whirl DDT for a two count. Avalon catches a Crossbody and turns it into a Roll Up for a two count. Orange Cassidy comes back with a Superman Punch for the win.
Orange Cassidy defeats Peter Avalon via Pinfall in 5 mins 56 secs
Davie’s thoughts: This match was ok. Orange Cassidy’s antics are always fun to watch but I do worry that he is being overexposed by wrestling on TV too much. I feel they are trying to give him some wins so he feels enough of a threat against Jericho but I think the match sells itself.
Overall, this was a much better show than the last few week. It was a shorter show, coming in at 72minutes and the pacing was a lot better. I still however feel you could cut at least two matches from the show and include more backstage interviews or vignettes showcasing the talent we don’t see weekly on Dynamite. I thought Dark Order vs Sonny Kiss & Joey Janela was the best match of the night as it was the most competitive. I’m really enjoying the team of Kiss & Janela and hope to see them work on Dynamite more.
5 Orange Cassidy Towels Out of 10