AEW Dark: Elevation Review - November 14, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Gates of Agony def. Big Cuzzo and Teddy Goodz

Gates of Agony are an impressive duo and The Embassy isn't an awful group on paper by any means, but it's been impossible to care about them thus far because of how they've been booked. Maybe they'll be a dominant faction in Ring of Honor when the time (hopefully) comes that the brand gets its own platform again, but they've been stepping stones in AEW. If nothing else, this was a short and sweet squash for them and it was nice to see them win for a change.

Tay Melo def. Paris Van Dale

Thank the lord that Melo wasn't accompanied by Sammy Guevara here. The two are unbearable together, but I suppose that's the point of their heel act. Melo has lost a lot of momentum as an in-ring performer since earlier this year when she was still on her own, but the occasional win on the Dark shows doesn't hurt. This was a basic bout that thankfully didn't last longer than it needed to.

Matt Hardy and Private Party def. Kyle Bradley, Smiley Fairchild and Channing Thomas

Hardy and Private Party are all now members of The Firm (unless I missed something and they're not anymore), and the last time Hardy was in action, he had to come out to The Firm's music I believe. There was nothing about this match that would make you think they were with The Firm. The entire angle is confusing as hell. This was a decent match otherwise and it was cool to see Thomas make an appearance, a standout from the northeast wrestling scene.

Athena def. Kayla Sparks

The slow-burning Athena heel turn has been the best part about the Dark shows in recent weeks. It's a shame it isn't playing out on Dynamite and Rampage, but I know there's only so much television time to go around. That said, I hope we see heel Athena on the main shows sooner rather than later. This was another intense performance from her, and after submitting Sparks, she hit her finisher on her afterward for good measure. In other words, there's no questioning her heel status.

The Butcher and The Blade def. Waves & Curls

I praise Waves & Curls often but not often enough. I will continue to sing their praises until they are signed somewhere, and the fact it hasn't happened already is a crime. Unfortunately, this was more about Butcher and Blade than it was about making them look competitive. They took the beating well, but Butcher and Blade were dominant from start to finish in this one.

ROH Pure Champion Daniel Garcia def. Leon Ruffin

Garcia's role on TV has been significantly curtailed as of late despite being one of the most over people on the roster over the summer. He was on the verge of becoming a breakout babyface, but it's clear Tony Khan isn't ready to pull that trigger just yet and is keeping him busy on the Dark shows in the meantime. Ruffin wasn't an unknown opponent for him, but it's not as if he was a threat to the title here. This was a well-worked affair.

Preston "10" Vance def. Jora Johl

Johl wins the award for the most irrelevant AEW wrestler you probably forgot was still on the roster (assuming you were aware he was signed in the first place). Not to knock the dude (he's certainly not bad), but he's definitely in jobber purgatory at this point and I don't think his alliance with Andrade Family Office (or whatever it is/was called) ever actually ended on-screen. Vance made quick work of him here and that was it.

AR Fox def. Serpentico

Fox getting a televised entrance was appreciated, and it makes sense now that we know he'll be teaming with Top Flight to challenge Death Triangle for the AEW World Trios Championship on Dynamite this week. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Fox is a special talent and I'm happy to see him getting recognition. It's possible he ends up with a contract after that match on Wednesday. This was a fun sprint that allowed him to showcase his skills.

Riho and Willow Nightingale def. Emi Sakura and Mei Suruga

This marked Nightingale's first match since being officially announced as "All Elite" on Rampage last month. I believe the reason for her absence from AEW programming was that she was gone on a tour of Japan, but she picked up right where she left off here in what was a really fun main event. Sakura and Suruga work exceptionally well together as a team and Riho and Nightingale also had chemistry. Despite not lasting long, this was an above-average main event by Dark/Elevation standards with entertaining action.

Overall Show

I don't know if doing nine matches was necessary (Melo's match was pretty pointless as was Vance vs. Johl), but on the bright side, Elevation was only around 47 minutes this week, so it didn't drag at all. The main event was easily the best bout of them all and there was some solid stuff in the undercard, making for an adequate episode on the whole. The defense of the ROH Pure Championship was a nice touch as well.

SEE MORE: Elevation Reviews