3 Ups & 7 Downs From AEW Dark (Nov 5)

Lowlights aplenty in AEW's worst weekly show so far.

by Andy H Murray
Shawn Spears
AEW

So here it is: the first net negative show of AEW's weekly existence, and what a stinker it was.

These 62 minutes were a slog to get through, and that's something one should never be able to say about a show designed to be a light, breezy, and easily-digestible platform to highlight performers yet to break through on Dynamite. Parts of it felt like a genuine trainwreck. It's a shame, because Dark has been consistently solid so far, but while the B-tier classification means that these issues don't matter all that much in the grander scheme, they can't go unmentioned either.

Dasha Gonzalez (formerly Dasha Fuentes in WWE) joined Tony Schiavone in the studio. She brought a different energy to proceedings, but neither contributed to nor detracted from the presentation to warrant an individual Up or Down. In the ring, we got a women's tag featuring two unsigned stars, Michael Nakazawa vs. Shawn Spears, and a Joey Janela/Jimmy Havoc vs. Jurassic Express main event, broken up by a strong Britt Baker promo and the latest instalment of From Undesirable to Undeniable.

Let's break down everything that happened on this sloppy show...

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Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.