9 Ups & 2 Downs For AEW Dark: Elevation
1. The Show-Long Angle Was Itself Far Too WWE
Come on. Tighten that sh*t up. Don't fall into the rotten WWE patterns.
This very company was formed because those patterns are so overdone and so insulting to the intelligence. This is meant to be the alternative, and between the awesome unscripted promos, attentive booking and the undiluted range of the in-ring action, it is, more often than not.
This, however, was a modern WWE bullsh*t trick.
Kenny Omega interrupted the Sydal brothers to engineer a contrived show-long angle drenched in WWE tropes. Interrupted promo > impromptu match > authority figure intervention: that is Monday Night RAW. AEW is meant to promote cards, not shows. What was planned for the slot Kenny overtook? And yes, it was sold by Khan as a development that has no business on an AEW show, so there is that. There is something to cling to here. But at the same time...don't do it.
You can hang a lantern on bullsh*t, but it's still bullsh*t.