Dark – July 7, 2020: The Stupid Idea
IMG Credit: AEW
Dark
Date: July 7, 2020
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Taz
It’s the go home show for the second half of Fyter Fest and I’m not sure if that is going to matter. This show continues to be all over the place and I’m not sure what to expect from it week to week. One of the biggest draws here is the in-ring debut of Brian Pillman Jr., who could be a star in a few years. Let’s get to it.
Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.
Taz and Excalibur give us a quick hello.
Brian Pillman Jr. vs. Shawn Spears
Tully Blanchard is here with Spears. Feeling out process to start with Pillman flipping out of a wristlock and kicking Spears into the corner. Some chops put Pillman in the corner but he’s right back with a dropkick. That means a chat with Blanchard on the floor, which seems to work as Spears dropkicks him off the ropes back inside. Pillman gets sent head first into the steps on the way to the ring but he’s right back with a running forearm to the face. The springboard spinning crossbody misses though and it’s the C4 to give Spears the pin at 5:14.
Rating: C-. Well that was a little surprising. Pillman isn’t the biggest star in the world and while he isn’t a bigger star than Spears (for now), you might have expected a little something more than a five minute clean loss. It wasn’t terrible, but I was hoping for Pillman to be treated as a little bit of a bigger deal in his debut.
Rache Chanel vs. Big Swole
Chanel is into fashion if that wasn’t obvious. Swole powers her around to start and strikes the bicep pose, followed by a headlock. The takeover takes Chanel over but the threat of Dirty Dancing sends her bailing to the floor. Back in and Swole hits a kick to the head on the apron but Chanel grabs a swinging neckbreaker for two. We hit the seated armbar and then a reverse chinlock as Britt Baker rolls out to watch. Swole fights back with some clotheslines but stops to glare at Baker. A spinning powerbomb sets up Dirty Dancing and a kick to the face finishes Chanel at 7:23.
Rating: C-. Chanel didn’t look all that great here but Swole is starting to figure things out. She has a good energy to her and that is the kind of thing that can make her into a star. There is a solid charisma and seeing her face Baker when she is finally healthy should be a fun match.
We get a sitdown interview with Allie and Brandi Rhodes, who argue about who is responsible for their success. Dustin Rhodes comes in to say he knows Allie is going to turn on QT Marshall and wants her to stay away from his family. The women want to be a team.
Frankie Kazarian vs. Luther
Excalibur thinks Kazarian’s 19-10 record is 19-1, which Taz doesn’t notice and calls a “good observation”. Luther powers him into the corner to start so Kazarian snaps off some armdrags and cranks on the arm. Back up and Luther hits a spinwheel kick of all things, allowing him to rake the face in the corner. A hard clothesline gives Luther one but Kazarian fights back with some shots to the head. The slingshot Oklahoma roll gets two and a victory roll gives Kazarian the pin at 6:45.
Rating: C. Luther has been surprisingly acceptable and that’s all I could have asked of him. There was no reason to believe that he was ever going to be anything special and seems to be there as nothing more than a favor to Jericho. There are worse ways to get a job and he has done better with it than I ever would have guessed.
Butcher and Blade/Lucha Bros vs. Faboo Andre/Brady Pierce/Joe Alonzo/Tony Donati
Pentagon tells Tony that there is CERO MIEDO so it’s a big chop to the chest. Fenix comes in so the Bros can tie Donati up. A kick to the chest and an assisted chop allow the tag to Alonzo, who is knocked down in a hurry. Everything breaks down and it’s a superkick/brainbuster combination to Pierce. Butcher suplexes Alonzo into a powerbomb onto Blade’s knees, with Fenix adding a springboard missile dropkick for the pin at 3:15.
Rating: D+. That’s how this should have gone with the team in a big match wrecking people instead of doing anything resembling selling. These were four goons going against two bigger teams and there was no reason for it to be anything more than a squash. I can go for some complete dominance and that is what we got here, as we should have.
Will Hobbs vs. Orange Cassidy
A missed charge lets Cassidy hit a Superman Punch for the pin at 12 seconds.
Michael Nakazawa vs. Shawn Dean
Dean grabs a hammerlock into a waistlock so it’s the oil squeezing for the escape. Nakazawa hits a running shoulder so Dean is back with a dropkick. A clothesline gives Dean two but Aubrey Edwards has to take away Nakazawa’s baby oil. Nakazawa goes with a tackle and then a top rope shoulder gets two. With nothing else working, Nakazawa pulls out his own underwear but gets caught in a TKO Stunner. A Backstabber gives Dean two but Nakazawa puts the underwear on Dean’s face like a claw for the win at 5:45.
Rating: F. See, Luther being around for the sake of being Jericho’s friend has been a good thing. Nakazawa being around for the sake of being Kenny Omega’s friend is HORRIBLE as he is one of the dumbest things I’ve seen in a long time. It’s the same joke over and over and feels like something that belongs in comedy written by a five year old. Moving on to ANYTHING else.
Serpentico vs. Scorpio Sky
Sky takes him down to start but gets reversed into a quickly broken headlock. A Russian legsweep gives Sky two and a backbreaker lets him bend Serpentico over the knee. Serpentico sends him outside though and it’s a ram into the barricade. A legdrop on the apron keeps Sky in trouble and there’s a stomp to the face for a delayed two. As Taz discussed bird watching, Serpentico gets two off a one footed dropkick.
The armbar doesn’t last long but Sky blocks a suplex attempt. Instead Sky snaps off a brainbuster and gets two off a neckbreaker. Serpentico is sent to the apron and comes back in with a kick to the head, followed by a slingshot double stomp. A short DDT gives Serpentico two more but Sky is back with a good looking dropkick for the double knockdown. The TKO is countered and Serpentico hits a knee to the face. The followup takes too long though and now the TKO gives Sky the pin at 9:58.
Rating: C+. Sky is the definition of smooth as he can look good against anyone. He wrestles a very universal style but makes it look good every time he’s in the ring. This was a nice showing for Serpentico as well though and hopefully they both get another chance to showcase themselves in the future.
Dark Order vs. Brandon Cutler/Peter Avalon
For a couple of losers, Cutler and Avalon (with Leva Bates of course) get to main event a lot of shows. A lot of the Dark Order is here with Stu Grayson and Evil Uno. Taz talks about how Avalon and Cutler suck as individual wrestlers. Excalibur: “Taz, I will have you know, they sucked as a team too.” Ok point for a funny line. Avalon offers to lay down for Uno but manages to grab a small package for two.
Grayson comes in and gets kicked in the head by Cutler, who comes in off a quick tag. Cutler gets slammed down by Grayson though and a running shoulder in the corner keeps him in trouble. A backbreaker sends Cutler to the apron and a running knee gives Uno two. The brainbuster gets the same but Cutler pulls himself to the top for a high crossbody and immediately rolls over for the hot tag to Avalon.
House is cleaned and an Arabian moonsault gives Avalon two. Grayson goes after Bates so Avalon makes a diving save, followed by a big springboard dive from Cutler. Grayson kicks both of them in the head and gets two off a sitout powerbomb to Avalon. The Knightfall finishes Avalon at 7:26, as Uno seems to be favoring his wrist and shoulder.
Rating: C. I never would have bet on having Avalon and Cutler work as faces but they did here….kind of. It was a fun match and they were getting somewhere with the Avalon comeback. They might have something with those two FINALLY winning a match of some sort, but I’m not sure when were’ going to get there, or if it’s going to matter in the end.
A Fyter Fest rundown ends the show.
Overall Rating: D+. This was a rougher one to sit through, mainly because of the Nakazawa match being as welcome as a stapler to the face. They didn’t have the star power going this week and it made for a tougher sit than usual. It wasn’t the worst show but there were a lot of times where I was wondering how much longer it could go. Not their best effort this week.
Results
Shawn Spears b. Brian Pillman Jr. – C4
Big Swole b. Rache Chanel – Dirty Dancing
Frankie Kazarian b. Luther – Victory roll
Orange Cassidy b. Will Hobbs – Superman Punch
Michael Nakazawa b. Shawn Dean – Claw
Butcher and Blade/Lucha Bros b. Tony Donati/Joe Alonzo/Faboo Andre/Brady Pierce – Springboard missile dropkick to Alonzo
Scorpio Sky b. Serpentico – TKO
Dark Order b. Peter Avalon/Brandon Cutler – Knightfall to Avalon
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