It’s Dark before New Year’s Smash!

Before AEW celebrates New Year’s Eve on Dynamite, Dark has ten more for 2021! Sonny Kiss and Joey Janela throw away the rulebook to settle the score!

OFFICIAL RESULTS

• Anna Jay w/ Tay Conti VS Reka Tehaka; Jay wins.
• The Blade w/ The Bunny VS Toa Liona; The Blade wins.
• Wardlow VS Casanova; Wardlow wins.
• Diamante VS Shawna Reed; Diamante wins.
• Tony Nese VS Anthony Greene; Nese wins.
• The Bunny w/ The Blade VS KiLynn King; The Bunny wins.
• Bear Country VS The Acclaimed; The Acclaimed win.
• Skye Blue VS Ashley D’Amboise; Skye wins.
• Orange Cassidy & Wheeler Yuta VS Peter Avalon & Cezar Bononi; Cassidy & Yuta win.
• No Holds Barred: Joey Janela w/ Kayla Rossi VS Sonny Kiss; Janela wins.

QUICK NOTES

That No Holds Barred is going to be one to watch for sure. I might even bring back Play By Play just for that one… Bear Country VS The Acclaimed is going to be a good one, and I like that we’re getting a 205 Live/NXT rematch in Nese and Greene.

AFTER WATCHING

Just an hour for this show, so more quick matches again. Spears interrupts Wardlow’s interview promo to further the way The Pinnacle is criticizing how Wardlow conducts his matches. The accountabilibuddy thing is definitely a way to push Wardlow towards turning on the faction without it having to all be on MJF. And just as Wardlow promised, he gave Casanova the Powerbomb Symphony. Nese VS Greene was good but still about on par with what they gave us in WWE given the time constraints. Maybe being in AEW, these guys can give us even more than WWE would ever let them. But at least Dark gave the main event time to breathe, as Sonny VS Janela deserves. Speaking of…

PLAY BY PLAY

No Holds Barred: Joey Janela w/ Kayla Rossi VS Sonny Kiss!

This has been a long time coming for the Bad Boy and Concrete Rose. Tag team partners turned bitter enemies is a tale as old as time, but who writes how the story of Jersey’s Finest ends?

Sonny goes to a trash can full of items as he makes his entrance, and empties the can to bring it in with him! Janela wants Sonny to take it easy, but the bell rings and Sonny storms over. Janela points out he has a bad leg, so Sonny BODIES Kayla with the can! Sonny fires off forearms on Janela and keeps after him in the corner! Fans fire up as Sonny fires off hands from all angles! Janela throws body shots back, then ROCKS Sonny with a forearm. Janela bumps Sonny off buckles, stands him up and CHOPS him down! Fans boo but Janela soaks up the heat. Janela throws hands, whips Sonny to ropes, and CLOBBERS Sonny with a clothesline!

Fans boo more but Janela soaks it all up. Janela runs in but Sonny CLOBBERS Janela back! Janela bails out, fans rally up and Sonny slingshots to FLYING RANA! Janela tumbles away and Sonny stalks him. Sonny AX KICKS Janela down, then brings Janela around the way to RAM into railing! Sonny smacks Janela off the apron, then rams him back into the railing! Fans fire up and want Sonny to bring Janela “Over Here! Over Here!” Instead, Sonny STOMPS Janela into the railing! Sonny drags Janela to the steps and goes up, reels Janela in, but Janela holds the post to resist. Sonny and Janela brawl, Janela headbutts Sonny away! Sonny UPPERCUTS Janela back!

Sonny handspring HEADSCISSORS Janela off the steps! Janela crashes down and fans fire up for “A E DUB!” Sonny puts the trash can lid on Janela’s back to STOMP it in! Sonny then climbs the steps, and MOONSAULTS but FLOPS as Janela dodges! Janela calls to Kayla, then he drags the steel steps away from the corner. Kayla heads over that way, Janela drags Sonny up, and Janela helps Kayla get Sonny up for a POWERBOMB to the steps! Sonny writhes to the floor and Janela breaks the wood plank into two. Janela CLUBS Sonny down with them, then SMACKS Sonny with the trash can lid! Janela looks under the ring, and he brings out a chair!

Janela keeps searching, he finds more chairs, and he puts those all in the ring. Sonny crawls, Janela goes out and puts Sonny in. Janela has a wild look in his eyes as he drags Sonny up and bumps him off buckles. Janela hoists Sonny up top, fans anticipate what’s coming as he tucks Sonny in, but Sonny clubs away on the legs! Sonny shoves Janela down and Janela CRASHES onto the chair pile! Janela staggers up, Sonny reels him in, TORNADO DDT to the chair pile!! Fans lose their minds while both men are down! The ref checks on Sonny, Kayla checks on Janela. Fans rally up for Sonny as he forces himself to get up.

Janela is bleeding from the forehead, Sonny SUPERKICKS him down! Janela sits up, Sonny drags him up to show off that crimson mask, and has blood on his heads. Sonny wipes it off on his own chest to then fire off haymaker after haymaker! Sonny then fireman’s carries Janela for a SPLIT-LEG TKO! Janela flounders out of the ring and Kayla is there. Sonny builds speed, fans fire up, Sonny DIVES and takes out Janela! The ref checks on them both, they’re both okay to continue. Janela gets Sonny for a SNAP BRAINBUSTER to the floor! Janela has Kayla fetch something from backstage while Janela brings out a TABLE! Kayla returns with a LADDER!

The table and ladder are put in the ring, this No Holds Barred just went TLC! Sonny flounders as he drags himself up, and Janela sets up the ladder. Kayla helps with the table, and then Janela drags Sonny in through the ropes. Janela says he’s gonna elbow Sonny straight to hell! But Sonny ROUNDHOUSES first! Kayla hurries back in with the trash can, but Sonny goes Matrix to avoid it! And then KICKS the can into Kayla! ROLLING ELBOW for Janela! SCREW HIGH KICK for Kayla! Fans fire up for Sonny and he drags Janela to the table. Sonny puts Janela on the wood, but then adds Kayla to it! Sonny goes to the ladder and fans fire up as he climbs!

Sonny goes up and up, almost to the top!  SUPER SPLASH through the table!! Sonny almost takes a header, he jumped so high! Fans lose their minds, Sonny drags Janela from the wreckage, TWO!! The Bad Boy survives and “This is Awesome!” Sonny goes out, and drags another table out from under the ring! Janela crawls away to the ramp while Sonny sets the table up. Janela BLINDSIDE SUPERKICKS Sonny down! Janela takes the table and moves it near the stage. Janela drags Sonny up to the stage and SMACKS him off the stage floor. Janela lines up the shot, brings Sonny over, but Sonny SCREW HIGH KICKS first! Sonny then gets Janela up, but Janela resists the lift!

Janela trips Sonny up, mule kicks Sonny down, and then drags Sonny up! Janela says this will be the execution of Sonny Kiss! PILEDRIVER THROUGH THE TABLE!!! Fans lose their minds all over again and the ref is at a loss for words! Janela gets himself out of the wreckage, drags Sonny back into the ring, covers, Janela wins!

Winner: Joey Janela, by pinfall

The Bad Boy brutally puts the past behind him! Is he going to leave Sonny in the dust and finally go towards some gold?