8 Ups & 1 Down From AEW Dark (Oct 15)

4. The Stars Come Out To Play

Joey Janela
Scott Lesh Photography/AEW

WWE Main Event was the worst-case scenario for AEW Dark.

It was easy to be cynical about the concept when it was announced because, well... these are dark matches, and dark matches generally aren't great. Main Event is a dull, listless 60-minutes of Raw and SmackDown highlights broken up by **-**1/2 five-minuters featuring The Ascension, Dana Brooke, and other lost toys. Dark could quite easily have become that, though nobody on AEW's roster feels anywhere near as pointless as Konnor or Viktor.

Fortunately, it looks like Dark is going to be treating with a lot more respect than that - and the evidence is in this week's show.

Kenny Omega wrestled Joey Janela in the night's main event. That's one of the company's three biggest stars going up against the modern king of independent wrestling, and a surefire sign that AEW will be going out of their way to bump Dark's prestige. It'll never be Dynamite, of course, but if guys like Kenny, The Young Bucks, and Cody are showing up, it's going to be a lot more important than anyone first thought.

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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.