AEW Dark recap (Sep. 4, 2020): Darby Allin’s knee damaged

Episode 50 of AEW Dark featured Peter Avalon challenging Brandon Cutler, Darby Allin damaging his knee, and the Natural Nightmares picking up momentum on the eve of the All Out PPV.

Here’s the lineup with ratings (watch, solid, okay, pass) on which matches are worth your time toward All Out:

• Faboo Andre & D3 vs Butcher & Blade (okay)
• Allie vs Red Velvet (okay)
• Colt Cabana vs Zack Clayton (okay)
• Ryzin & Angel Perez vs Lucha Bros (okay)
• Ivelisse vs KiLynn King (okay)
• Shawn Dean & Brandon Bullock vs Alex Reynolds & John Silver (okay)
• Luther vs Darby Allin (solid)
• 5 & 10 vs Natural Nightmares (solid)

The final two bouts were the best. Luther vs Darby Allin was my personal favorite of the bunch. It was fun to see those oddball personalities clash. There were also promos to set up Peter Avalon vs Brandon Cutler at a later date and Eddie Kingston flapping his gums.

Watch the show here.

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Excalibur teamed with Taz to call the action. Justin Roberts was the ring announcer.

Faboo Andre & D3 vs Butcher & Blade

Eddie Kingston was ringside. Butcher and Blade roughhoused their opponents. They finished with a train of combo moves on a back drop/chokeslam to D3, powerbomb/neckbreaker to Andre, then suplex/lungblower to D3 for the win.

Allie vs Red Velvet

QT Marshall was ringside. Brandi Rhodes and Lil Bran Bran headed over to commentary. Brandi threw Allie under the bus for their loss in The Deadly Draw women’s tag team tournament. Brandi claimed Allie was taking singles matches to get more experience and learn how to kick out of pins. Brandi criticized Allie the whole time like a demanding coach. It was an arrogant delivery from Brandi, but it came across as wanting to see Allie improve.

Also of note, Allie was nicer to QT this time. Other than having him hold his phone so she could fix her hair, there was no manipulation.

Red Velvet was feisty, but Allie took over in the end. Allie won with her Rabbit Hole elbow drop.

Colt Cabana vs Zack Clayton

Dark Order observed on the stage for support. Stu Grayson and Evil Uno wanted Colt to be more vicious. John Silver and Alex Reynolds tried to help Colt, but it backfired into a roll-up. Colt eventually did become more aggressive and hammered Clayton with blows. 5 and 10 provided a timely distraction as Clayton was on the turnbuckles so Cabana could hit the Chicago Skyline. Uno instructed Colt to finish it with a discus clothesline. Colt followed instruction and blasted Clayton for the win.

The Initiative is dunzo

Peter Avalon declared the experiment with Brandon Cutler to be over. Leva Bates was disappointed. Avalon said it is time to shine on his own. He is more than just enhancement talent. Avalon issued a one-on-one challenge to Cutler. One of the losers must win. Avalon is going to prove he is not the worst wrestler in AEW. Cutler is.

Ryzin & Angel Perez vs Lucha Bros

The underdogs got a little bit of offense, but Fenix and Pentagon did their thing as only they can. In the end, Pentagon stepped off Fenix’s back for a Mexican Destroyer to Ryzin. The Lucha Bros followed up with a teamwork piledriver on Perez to win.

After the match, Eddie Kingston and Butcher & Blade came to the ring. Kingston cut a promo about his crew dominating the Casino Battle Royale at All Out. One of them will win. Butcher stepped forward. This caused bickering between the tag teams. Kingston called for a group hug to mellow everyone out. Again, Kingston winked to the camera.

Ivelisse vs KiLynn King

Diamante was ringside. Big moves were a DDT and running knee strike from Ivelisse and a release German suplex from King. When King had momentum, Diamante hopped onto the apron as a distraction. Ivelisse closed it out with a Flatliner, scorpion kick, and a Code Red to win.

Shawn Dean & Brandon Bullock vs Alex Reynolds & John Silver

Dark Order escorted their boys then exited before the opening bell. Reynolds and Silver had a few close calls, but they overcame with a variety of teamwork maneuvers and won with a tandem flipping DDT.

Challenge accepted

Leva Bates wanted more time to talk sense to Peter Avalon. Brandon Cutler was informed by Dasha Gonzalez of Avalon’s challenge. Cutler accepted. The dragon is going to burn the librarian.

Luther vs Darby Allin

Luther immediately attacked Allin’s knee and never let up. He dominated until Allin outsmarted him. Luther had Allin hung in the corner. He charged forward for a cannonball, but Allin used his core strength to pull himself up. Allin capitalized with a Coffin Drop on the floor then a Coffin Drop in the ring to win. Allin was in serious pain after the match.

5 & 10 vs Natural Nightmares

Dark Order came out again then exited prior to the match. Allie was ringside. Dustin Rhodes and QT Marshall attacked before the opening bell. Once the match settled down, the Dark Order worked on QT. That led to a hot tag for Dustin. 5 and 10 fought back and had Dustin in trouble. QT woke up for surprise cutter to 10, while Dustin pounced with Final Reckoning on 5 to win.

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Despite this show being showcase bouts, there were still a few ripples of story leading into All Out. John Silver & Alex Reynolds earned up a nice win for momentum when they wrestle Private Party on the pre-show. Colt Cabana picked up a mean streak. He’ll need that when the Dark Order battles the Natural Nightmares, Scorpio Sky, and Matt Cardona. Dustin Rhodes and QT Marshall showed that they will be taking no prisoners.

There were cracks in the cohesiveness of Eddie Kingston’s crew. He may think he has control, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Fenix, Pentagon, Butcher, and Blade all turned on him in the Casino Battle Royale. That will be an interesting angle to keep on an eye during that match.

The biggest wrinkle is if Darby Allin’s knee will affect his performance in the Casino Battle Royale. He sold the heck out of that assault from Luther. Allin had a serious look of pain on his face after the match.

Speaking of Luther, he was the star of this episode. I loved his focused attack on Darby Allin’s knee. Hanging Allin in the Tree of Woe then punching his joint was a stroke of evil genius. Luther also unloaded a cool back drop driver.

Share your thoughts on Dark. Who stood out most for episode 50?

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