4 Ups & 7 Downs From AEW Dark (Jun 16)

1. Allie/Brandi Rhodes vs. Kenzie Paige/Red Velvet

With awkward, clunky work and overbooked story work that served as a hindrance rather than a help, the latest entry in the QT Marshall/Allie saga was comfortably the roughest thing on last night's Dark.

This came about against Brandi Rhodes' will. Allie requested the bout as part of her insincere bid to win The Nightmare Family's trust, having already wrapped Marshall around her little finger. The bout played out with this in mind. Allie was a dick, working a super nasty style while blowing kisses to Marshall on the outside, much to Brandi's chagrin. Rhodes worked a lot cleaner but was left alone when Allie faked an injury on the outside. Controlled for much of the third act, Brandi fired back and had Paige defeated, though she failed to notice Allie's blind tag. In came the former Bunny, putting a book on Paige's chest off Brandi's Spear, scoring the W.

Allie and Brandi got in each others' faces after the bell, so the story rumbles on.

There were a couple of good ideas in here. Ultimately, though, they tried to do a little too much with the story and the work wasn't strong enough to compensate.

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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.