AEW Dark Review - July 27, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Red Velvet def. Alejandra Lion

Velvet is the perfect example of someone who can continue to benefit greatly from competing on the Dark shows. It's an obvious step down from being on Dynamite like she was fairly regularly earlier this year, but she's getting exposure in addition to the experience she needs. And wouldn't you know it, she's showing signs of improvement. Like I said last week, I dig her new Playmaker-esque finisher. Keeping this on the shorter side was a good call.

Abadon def. Killa Kate

If you read my reviews of these shows regularly, you're likely well aware that I'm no fan of Abadon. My mindset when it comes to her matches is that less is more; the shorter they are, the better. This was only around three minutes, so it was relatively harmless and didn't overstay its welcome. My big question is why AEW keeps feeding Abadon wins so regularly if she hasn't been on Dynamite in over six months. Her against Britt Baker sounds like an awful idea, but I hope that's not what the direction they're headed in.

Diamante def. Big Swole

Diamante and Swole have been building toward this match for weeks. Considering next week is apparently the 100th episode of Dark, I would have advertised it a week out and done it then. I've appreciated the storyline attention these two have gotten in recent weeks and they had a serviceable match here, though I know they can do better. It felt like it ended abruptly, but I like that Diamante won to keep the feud alive and to give her a rare meaningful win.

The Dark Order (Stu Grayson and Evil Uno) def. Zach Mason and Warren Johnson

I maintain that Grayson and Uno are the best duo in Dark Order and that they deserve more chances to shine. If Dark Order does end up beating The Elite on Wednesday's Dynamite, these two should be the ones getting the shot at the AEW World Tag Team Championship. This basically served as a reintroduction to them as a team, as I can't remember the last time we got just the two of them in action. In other words, this was an extended squash.

Dante Martin and Varsity Blonds def. Ryan Nemeth and The Acclaimed

Nemeth was a random partner for Acclaimed considering he has a faction of his own and doesn't have any established issues with Martin or Varsity Blonds. I should have automatically assumed the heels were losing when I found out Nemeth was their partner. Nonetheless, this was a super fun sprint. Martin was the biggest star of the match and that dive off the top rope in particular looked insane. It was way more impressive than the finish, which was unfortunately botched. Varsity Blonds and Acclaimed exchanged words afterward, further building toward their eventual two-on-two encounter.

Overall Show

Getting three women's matches in a row to kick things off was a nice change of pace and it allowed the women to be showcased right out of the gate, but that also means AEW should be doing more with most of those women on Dynamite. All in all, this was an easy watch. It was way better to sit through compared to Monday's Dark: Elevation, which was over two hours. This wasn't a must-see episode by any means, but I enjoyed it while it lasted.

SEE MORE: Dark Reviews