8 Ups & 2 Downs From AEW Dark (Nov 26)

3. Trent & Penta Share The Shine

As confusing and surprising as the outcome was, Trent vs. Pentagon was a good opening bout that gave each wrestler plenty of moments to shine.

Workout with a typical momentum seesaw layout, it looked like the bout would rely on character work and shtick early on, but it really came alive during its second and third acts. Pentagon always comes hard. Here, his striking was stiff and his execution typically impactful, particularly on the apron Package Piledriver, which really should have led to the finish. It's about time that this move was respected as a surefire kill shot rather than a setup to a counter defeat.

This is a considerable scalp for Trent, whose only AEW singles outing prior to Dark saw him lose to PAC. With this triumph and Shawn Spears' insinuation that he and Tully Blanchard may try to pry Trent away from Orange Cassidy and Chuck Taylor, perhaps AEW plan on doing something with the former Mr. Beretta.