Kenny basically shows up and says he's requested a match tonight as he's winless in AEW thusfar. Props to the Bucks for voicing annoyance at Kenny interrupting their interview. They're fine with this...until they find out it's Lights Out against Joey Janella, at which point they're pissed at him and they leave. This was fine for what it was. Say what you will about giving away a match like that on TV, but I think not having main event tier matches on your 'B' shows kills the marketability of the B-show over time.
Kip Sabian vs Peter Avalon (w/ Leva Bates) vs Sonny Kiss
Peter Avalon comes out to no music, and is shushing the crowd. The crowd hates this. Bates and Avalon have a Robert Roode/Traci Brookes, energy, down to Avalon having a Roode-esque robe. and I like it. Peter basically cuts a Damien Sandow "I'm smarter than you promo. Peter rips on Boston for having the inferior hockey team, which popped me (GLORIA). Bates takes the mic, apologizes to the crowd and gets to her corner. They have a very unique energy that I'm intrigued by.
Kip and Sonny do cool Lucha depositing of Avalon, eventually Kip gets deposited and Sonny (who, within three minutes of seeing him wrestle, I'm convinced is money) gets worked over by Avalon. Kip does moves, and has to get checked out by the ringside doc after disloctaing his finger on a dive, leading to more working over of Mr.Kiss. Leva hits Sonny with a book during an O'Connor roll but because she's a pencil neck geek, this isn't a finish. Kip hits Deathly Hallows on Peter to win.
This was a fun opener, and Sonny Kiss is definitely money
7.5/10
CIMA comes out fucking jamming to the SCU theme, which was awesome.
This starts out as every by the numbers Lucha 8 man tag you've ever seen. The faces get their fun moves in and the heels work over Daniels, which included a handspring eye rake by Jack Evans. Kazarian makes a dope comeback after being tagged in and this devolves into moves. Arm-in srm low blow, by The Hybrid and a backslide nets the win for the heels.
This match was predicated on the heels being good heels and Kazarian's nutty comeback. That said, The Hybrid are a money team.
6.75/10
From Undesirable to Undeniable with Cody Rhodes and Aubrey : Interesting. Aubery shoots about her journey thusfar and puts over how big it was to ref Page vs Jericho at All Out.
They plug all the dates of the tag tournament stages. I like this, now I have three weeks of wrestling TV to work with, thank God for Tony and the Event Center
Kenny Omega vs Joey Janella
Joey goes for a chair but Kenny cuts him off with stomps and chops. Jim Ross turns Kenny having to pump up the crowd into telling us how Kenny has fallen short of people's expectations considering the year he had last year, and how Kenny wants to get back into it, and I refuse to hear anyone disparage JR on commentary ever again. Jim also says that referees have to use their brain and stop the match if a competitor is hurt, no matter the stipulation. Hmmm....
Anyway, Joey gets out some plunder, which results in Kenny taking a thrown chair to the head, which looked gnarly as hell. Kenny fights back and face crushes Joey into some chairs and now it's all Kenny, Joey fights back, and Kenny hits more of his signature moves, which leads to a SNAP DRAGON ON THE APRON. ON THE B-SHOW, WTF? Joey counters an OWA off the stairs into a botched German Suplex. FUCKING GERMAN SUPLEX ON THE LADDER IN THE TURNBUCKLE TO KENNY! FUCKING OW! Kenny blocks a Russian Leg Sweep off the apron which sends Joey head first to the floor which sounded fucking disgusting. Kenny gets back body dropped onto the legs of a folded table, which can't feel good, Kenny dodges a frog splash off a ladder through a table. Big strong style exchange, and now Kenny goes through a table propped up on the apron upside down, which again means folded up legs first, which again, ow. Joey tries more shit, but Kenny kicks out of it. Kenny throws Joey off the top turnbuckle and into some unfolded chairs, which, for the fourth time this review, OW! Kenny knees Joey's face into a chair wedged in the turnbuckle and hits the OWA on some chairs for the three. Kenny is back lads.
All they needed to do was book a match in which Kenny won and show us he can be competent in a deathmatch environment against Moxley. But, because Kenny's a fucking madlad, we of course get a CRAZY good match out of it that could've main evented a show anywhere in the world
9/10
This was on its way to being a great episode of AEW Dark, but then Kenny Omega graced us with his presence to remind us why he's the best wrestler in the world right now.