AEW Dark Review - March 30, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Butcher and The Blade def. Milk Chocolate

I've never been the biggest fan of Butcher and Blade, but as I've said before, I appreciate the intensity they bring to their matches. It also means most of their matches are on the shorter side because they completely annihilate their opponents. Unfortunately, this was a little longer than it needed to be, maybe because it was the opener. I also can't stand The Bunny's screeching at ringside. It's beyond obnoxious.

Madi Wrenkowski def. Jazmin Allure

Wrenkowski has had a handful of matches in AEW this year and has shown signs of potential. It was nice to see her spotlighted in singles competition here and pick up the win. She's definitely a work in progress and needs additional experience, but matches like this will help her cause. I also think she'll benefit from working with more experienced women on the roster, though Allure was an easy person for her to beat.

Chaos Project def. Dean Alexander and Justin Law

Despite the several wins they've scored on Dark and Dark: Elevation, Chaos Project still have more losses as a team than wins. Serpentico deserves better because Luther is a total loser. I'm sorry but the guy brings nothing to the table. Chaos Project hit their signature spots and won within five minutes. Any match where Chaos Project is the focus bores me to tears, so I thought this was a waste of time.

Angelico def. Sonny Kiss

This was one of the more unpredictable matches I've seen on this show in recent memory. It wasn't a marquee match by any means, but both guys are somewhat stuck in limbo at the moment, so it certainly could have gone either way. It was a well-wrestled affair and I'm fine with the matches featuring only contracted talent going a little longer. On a side note, Joey Janela teased turning heel on Kiss a few weeks ago and there was never any follow-up, oddly enough.

The Dark Order (Evil Uno, Stu Grayson and Colt Cabana) def. Vary Morales, Bill Collier and D3

Every Dark Order six-man tag team match blends together for me. That's not to say they're bad, but there also isn't anything overly interesting about them, either. I assume it's AEW's way of getting as many of the Dark Order guys on the show as possible to give them exposure. On the bright side, their offense is entertaining and they have great chemistry together. This gives them a bit more credibility as they feud with Matt Hardy's new faction.

Jurassic Express (Jungle Boy and Luchasaurus) def. Adam Priest and KC Navarro

I've said before that Navarro impressed me with the little I saw of him in IMPACT, so hopefully he gets more of a look by AEW at some point and isn't solely utilized in an enhancement role. That said, this was the definition of a squash match with Jurassic Express making quick work of their opponents. I'm glad they're booked to look dominant so often, but it's odd they haven't been in the tag title hunt for some time.

Diamante def. Vipress

Diamante has been flying solo as of late and it's been cool to see her making the most of the opportunities she's been given. Hopefully she ends up in more a regular role on Dynamite in the future, but at least she's been doing well on Dark. She had more of an impressive outing than usual here and booking her matches to be more of a sprint is a smart call. Her aggressiveness helps her stand out in a growing women's division.

Team Taz (FTW Champion Brian Cage, Ricky Starks and Powerhouse Hobbs) def. Jake St. Patrick, Sage Scott and Chandler Hopkins

Team Taz has been teasing tension for weeks now and I can't say I'm a fan. Hopefully it doesn't end up leading to a split because it is way, way too soon for that. They only came together late last year and have the potential to be one of the best factions in the company. They just need to win when it matters most. Despite the dissension, they continue to rack up wins as they took turns dominating their opponents here.

Big Swole, Red Velvet and Kilynn King vs. Vertvixen, Ashley Vox and Delmi Exo

I don't know if I would have followed one six-person tag team match with another, but that's merely nitpicking. I've been enjoying the ongoing alliance between Swole and Velvet as they really bring the best out of each other as partners. King teaming with them felt completely random, but at least this was the most interesting she's been. This was actually a pretty good match and it was cool to see Vox in there again, even if she was on the losing end. Hopefully she lands a contract with some company eventually.

MT Nakazawa def. Mike Magnum

The comedy matches Nakazawa has on this show are bad enough, but it's even worse when they don't serve much of a purpose like other than boosting his win-loss record. It's one thing for the Sydal brothers to beat him up, but Nakazawa getting his own squash is awful, especially when the comedy isn't funny. I mean, does anyone honestly view Nakazawa as any more of a threat after this?

Kip Sabian and Miro def. Baron Black and John Skyler

Sabian and Miro have Arcade Anarchy coming up on Wednesday's Dynamite against Best Friends, so this served as a last-minute momentum boost for them. From an in-ring standpoint, they work well as a team, but it couldn't be more apparent that Sabian and Miro need to go their separate ways, solely to allow Miro to branch off on his own. Sabian can flounder in the midcard, but Miro has a much better chance of going a lot farther as a singles star. Miro's post-match promo was better than the bout itself.

Max Caster def. Alex "3" Reynolds

While Anthony Bowens comes close to returning to the ring, Caster is excelling as a singles star. His pre-match raps are consistently entertaining and he's good enough in the ring where he's been able to hold his own against a variety of opponents. He's been having quality matches and this was another one as Reynolds is talented in his own right. It was more "main event" worthy than most of the matches that are typically put in the same spot on this show.

Overall Show

Any edition of Dark that lasts around 90 minutes gets an instant thumbs-up from me. I can't say I found many (or any) of the matches to be memorable, but the time flew by with most of them being kept on the shorter side. There was also solid hype for Wednesday's Dynamite. I think it's safe to say that Dark isn't going to back to being an hour or its original format despite Elevation being around. Instead, we're getting twice the amount of wrestling, for better or for worse.