AEW Dark: Elevation Review - October 31, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Madison Rayne def. Diamante

Matches between contracted talent should happen on the Dark shows more often as opposed to an entire card devoted to nothing but squash matches with people we've never seen before. Rayne and Diamante are both seasoned, so this was the competent contest you'd expect from them. It may have been better with a bit more time, as it felt like the finish came out of nowhere.

Frankie Kazarian def. Rhett Titus

Titus was obviously a staple in Ring of Honor for many years and is a former ROH World Tag Team Champion and ROH World Television Champion. He lost that title to Minoru Suzuki at Supercard of Honor earlier this year but was never signed to an AEW/ROH deal like most of the other talent, so he's spent his time in the NWA instead. Like the women in the opener, both of these guys have been around the block and had the well-wrestled affair they're capable of in the time they were allotted.

Kiera Hogan def. Skye Blue

I see Blue and Hogan as being in the same spot on the roster, so this could have gone either way. These two had a nice dynamic, but this was barely two minutes long and was average at best. Blue is the perfect underdog and can easily absorb the loss while Hogan gains credibility with the victory. There wasn't much more to this than that, but it's good that they're getting more experience.

Dante Martin def. Brandon Cutler

I'm confused what Cutler's role is supposed to be. He's come off like a babyface on recent episodes because the crowds like watching him look like an idiot, but he faced a fan favorite in Martin here. Either way, the guy is a goof and I find his whole act to be dumb, though I give him credit for playing the role well. Cutler shouldn't have been on offense as much as he was, but at least the result was what it needed to be.

Athena def. Janai Kai

If it wasn't already apparent, it should be after this: the Athena heel turn is officially underway. She was once again extra aggressive in this bout and proceeded to attack Kai afterward. These squashes of hers on Dark have bene a blast to watch and have allowed her to bounce back from the loss to Jade Cargill at All Out. Hopefully it isn't long before we see this new side of her on AEW.

AEW All-Atlantic Champion Orange Cassidy and Best Friends def. Anthony Young, Victor Andrews and Patton

Cassidy has another three-way title defense coming up on Dynamite and I assume this was supposed to serve as a warm-up for him before then. Best Friends are lost in the shuffle at the moment, but this is better than them not appearing at all. This was a glorified showcase for the trio that didn't last longer it needed to. Death Triangle have barely defended the AEW World Trios Championship so far, reinforcing my opinion that Best Friends would have been a better fit for them.

Eddie Kingston and Ortiz def. Breaux Keller and Myles Hawkins

Kingston and Ortiz continue to team up and find success as partners. Does this make Kingston the official replacement for Santana who may or may not be back at some point depending on his contract status? He and Ortiz won almost immediately, but the focus was on whether Kingston could control his anger. He again attacked their opponents afterward, so the storyline is headed somewhere. It'd be nice if it played out on Dynamite or Rampage so more people knew it was happening.

AEW TBS Champion Jade Cargill def. Trish Adora (Non-Title)

Cargill is still without her title belt after having it stolen by Nyla Rose. She'll be defending against Marina Shafir on Dynamite this week in a rematch not a single person asked for. This was your standard squash from Cargill, who has obviously improved. She also hit her best bicycle kick in this match. That said, I'm ready for AEW to get to what's next for her because her undefeated streak shtick has gotten stale. On a side note, it was cool to see Adora get another opportunity here.

Danhausen def. QT Marshall

It was quite fitting that Danhausen headlined Elevation on Halloween, which I'm sure was intentional. It's been wonderful to see Danhausen in action more as of late (even if it's primarily been on the Dark shows) receiving strong crowd reactions. Marshall was a fine foil for him and I thought they had an enjoyable outing. Lee Moriarty showed up at the end and cost Danhausen the victory, joining The Factory in the process. How long was he gone? And I could've sworn he was already in the group, but I'm probably thinking of when they were all with Cody Rhodes. Danhausen losing was a bummer, but I understand why they did. Moriarty may as well join The Factory since it's not as if he's doing much on his own, anyway.

Overall Show

For a Halloween edition of Elevation, there wasn't anything out of the ordinary about the show other than Danhausen wrestling in the main event and Lexy Nair wearing a witch costume while interviewing Marshall backstage earlier in the episode. Then again, I didn't expect anything other the norm. Moriarty returning to join The Factory was somewhat notable, but as noted, I forgot he was even gone. I appreciated that we got more talent on the roster than usual, but this was a very middle-of-the-road show.

SEE MORE: Elevation Reviews