9 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dark (Sep 2)

3. Kip Sabian vs. Shawn Dean

Kip Sabian Penelope Ford
AEW

Not leaning too heavily on his usual shtick and letting his wrestling largely speak for itself worked to Kip Sabian's benefit against Shawn Dean.

Dean has long been one of AEW's best enhancement guys. He entered a performance that allowed him enough shine without working to Sabian's detriment, while 'Superbad' looked more impressive here than in recent outings. There was still plenty of room for character work, of course, with Sabian plugging his Twitch channel and quest to get the male crop top back in fashion, though this existed primarily to give Dean believable openings.

A nifty little bout with exciting, quickfire exchanges, this was a definite step in the right direction.

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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.