AEW Dark | |
---|---|
Genre | Professional wrestling |
Created by | Tony Khan |
Starring | AEW roster |
Opening theme | "Facedown" by Mikey Rukus (November 17, 2020 – April 25, 2023) "Falling From Grace" by No One Hero [1] (October 8, 2019 – November 10, 2020) |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 3 |
No. of episodes | 193 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Camera setup | Multicamera setup |
Running time | 60–120 minutes |
Production company | All Elite Wrestling |
Release | |
Original network | YouTube |
Original release | October 8, 2019 – April 25, 2023 |
Related | |
AEW Dark, or simply Dark, is an American professional wrestling streaming television program that was produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW), running from October 8, 2019, to April 25, 2023, on AEW's YouTube channel. The program featured matches taped either before or after the preceding episode of Rampage (if it was live), a pay-per-view, or at Soundstage 21 in Universal Studios Florida, which served as the main location for the tapings of Dark's weekly episodes. [2] Prior to this, it was taped before and after the preceding episode of AEW's flagship program, Dynamite , and had featured segments highlighting the previous week's Dynamite and interviews with AEW personalities. The show was originally hosted by Tony Schiavone and Dasha Gonzalez in a studio called the "AEW Control Center". Both Dark and its spin-off, Elevation , were canceled due to the addition of AEW's television program, Collision .
On October 2, 2019, All Elite Wrestling's (AEW) flagship program, Dynamite , premiered on TNT. During the event, there were four dark matches, two before and two after the live broadcast. [3] During the media scrum following this event, AEW President and Chief Executive Officer Tony Khan stated that the dark matches would become available to view on video in some form. On October 5, then-AEW Executive Vice President and wrestler Cody Rhodes announced a sister program to Dynamite called AEW Dark, which would be the home of AEW's dark matches. On October 8, the program began airing on Tuesdays at 8pm Eastern Time (ET) on AEW's YouTube channel. During the week of a pay-per-view (PPV), however, Dark would air on Friday as the go-home show; this continued until May 2021 for that year's Double or Nothing PPV. Unlike the dark matches of other wrestling promotions, which generally do not affect storylines, these matches on Dark were part of AEW's storylines and counted towards the wrestlers' match statistics. [4] [5] [6]
During the November 5 episode, Tony Schiavone announced AEW Spanish commentator Dasha Gonzalez would be his co-host going forward. [7] Schiavone and Gonzalez hosted segments on Dark from the "AEW Control Center," highlighting matches and storylines within AEW. [8] [9] On December 31, AEW aired a special episode called AEW Dark – 2019 Year in Review, featuring highlights of the show from the past year. [10]
On February 24, 2021, AEW announced that a new spinoff of Dark would premiere on Monday, March 15 titled Dark: Elevation . This was the promotion's third program, after Dynamite and Dark, and aired on Monday nights at 7pm ET, also on AEW's YouTube channel. [11] [12] With the premiere of Rampage in August 2021, Khan said that Dynamite and Rampage would be AEW's core properties, while their YouTube shows, Dark and Elevation, would be their peripheral properties, essentially their developmental shows. [13] With Rampage airing in the 10pm ET slot on Fridays, it replaced Dark as the go-home show for pay-per-views. [14]
On August 27, 2021, it was revealed that Dark would begin being taped at its own set within Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida at Soundstage 21—the same studio which previously hosted weekly episodes of TNA Impact! —while Elevation would continue to be taped in conjunction with Dynamite. [2] [15] The first set of tapings for Dark at Universal Studios occurred on September 11, 2021. AEW taped Dark episodes about once a month, recording four shows per taping with each show lasting about 90 minutes. During the weeks that Rampage or Battle of the Belts aired live, AEW taped Dark in conjunction with that program. [16] AEW had also occasionally taped Dark in conjunction with Elevation, notably in December 2021.
Dark aired its last episode on April 25, 2023. Both it and Elevation were canceled in preparation for the addition of AEW's television program, Collision , which premiered on TNT in June 2023. This was due to an amended deal with AEW's broadcast partner Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), in which all of AEW's programs would air exclusively on WBD's channels. [17] [18] It was also reported that Rampage would begin showcasing younger wrestlers, essentially becoming what Dark and Elevation were for the company. [19]
The wrestlers featured on All Elite Wrestling take part in scripted feuds and storylines. Wrestlers are portrayed as heroes, villains, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that build tension and culminate in a wrestling match or series of matches. AEW Dark features both AEW contracted wrestlers and various independent wrestlers.
Commentators | Dates |
---|---|
Jim Ross and Excalibur | October 8, 2019 – October 15, 2019 October 29, 2019 |
Excalibur and Taz | October 22, 2019 January 21, 2020 February 4, 2020 – March 24, 2020 April 7, 2020 May 12, 2020 – April 25, 2023 |
Excalibur and MJF | November 5, 2019 |
Excalibur, Goldenboy, Arn Anderson, and Chuck Taylor | November 8, 2019 |
Excalibur and Dustin Rhodes | November 19, 2019 |
Excalibur and Shawn Spears | November 26, 2019 |
Excalibur and Nyla Rose | December 3, 2019 |
Excalibur, Chuck Taylor, Orange Cassidy, and Britt Baker | December 10, 2019 |
Excalibur, Vickie Guerrero, and Joey Janela | December 17, 2019 |
Excalibur and Colt Cabana | December 24, 2019 |
Excalibur and Chuck Taylor | January 7, 2020 |
Excalibur and Dave Brown | January 14, 2020 |
Jim Ross, Excalibur, and Tony Schiavone | January 28, 2020 |
Tony Schiavone and Cody | March 31, 2020 – May 5, 2020 |
Tony Schiavone and Jimmy Havoc | April 7, 2020 |
Tony Schiavone and Taz | August 4, 2020 – August 11, 2020 September 14, 2021 |
Tony Schiavone, Taz, and Veda Scott | August 18, 2020 – August 25, 2020 |
Excalibur, Taz, and Veda Scott | September 15, 2020 – September 22, 2020 |
Excalibur, Taz, and Ricky Starks | September 29, 2020 – October 20, 2020 January 19, 2021 – January 26, 2021 |
Excalibur, Taz, and Anthony Ogogo | October 27, 2020 – November 6, 2020 November 24, 2020 – December 15, 2020 January 12, 2021 February 2, 2021 – March 9, 2021 |
Ring announcers | Dates |
---|---|
Justin Roberts | October 8, 2019 – March 17, 2020 June 16, 2020 – March 4, 2023 Live AEW event-based shows. |
Dasha Gonzalez | December 3, 2019 March 24, 2020 – June 9, 2020 August 17, 2021 September 14, 2021 – April 25, 2023 Studio-based shows. |
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. AEW is owned by Shahid Khan and run by his son, Tony. Its headquarters is at EverBank Stadium, the home of the National Football League's Jacksonville Jaguars, a team also owned by Shahid Khan. CBS Sports described AEW as "the first company with major financial backing to take a swing at beginning to compete with WWE on a major level in nearly two decades".
Olivia Hasler is an American professional wrestler better known by the ring name Penelope Ford. She is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). She is also known for her work in Combat Zone Wrestling and GTS Wrestling.
AEW Dynamite, also known as Wednesday Night Dynamite or simply Dynamite, is an American professional wrestling television program produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It airs every Wednesday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on TBS and, with some exceptions, episodes air live. The show was originally broadcast on TBS's sister channel, TNT, from October 2, 2019, to December 29, 2021, before moving to TBS beginning January 5, 2022. Before its time on TBS, major sporting events would cause some episodes to air at a later time or on other nights. It is considered AEW's flagship program, and is one of the company's three weekly programs, along with its second main program, Saturday Night Collision, and Friday Night Rampage, which focuses on younger wrestlers in the company. Dynamite is the first professional wrestling program to air on TBS since the final episode of WCW Thunder on March 21, 2001.
The 2020 Holiday Bash was the inaugural Holiday Bash professional wrestling Christmas television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The event took place at Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida on December 17, 2020, and aired on tape delay on December 23. It was broadcast on TNT as a special episode of AEW's weekly television program, Dynamite. It aired immediately following the NBA on TNT broadcast of the Celtics vs Bucks game.
Max Caster is an American professional wrestler and rapper, currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he competes in a tag team with Anthony Bowens as The Acclaimed. He is one third of the current AEW World Trios Champions with Bowens and Billy Gunn in their first reign. With Bowens, he is also a former one-time AEW World Tag Team Champion.
AEW Dark: Elevation, also known as Dark: Elevation or simply Elevation, is an American professional wrestling streaming television program that was produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW), running from March 15, 2021, to April 24, 2023, on AEW's YouTube channel. The program was a spinoff of Dark that featured matches taped before and after the preceding episode of AEW's flagship program, Dynamite, with a focus on up and rising talent on the AEW roster, as well as wrestlers from the independent circuit. Both Dark and Elevation were canceled due to the addition of AEW's television program, Collision.
AEW Rampage, also known as Friday Night Rampage or simply Rampage, is an American professional wrestling television program produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It airs every Friday at 10 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on TNT in the United States, although major sporting events occasionally move it to an earlier or later time slot the same day or the next day as a special Saturday Night Rampage. The show premiered on August 13, 2021, and is positioned behind AEW's two main programs, Wednesday Night Dynamite and Saturday Collision, and focuses on AEW's younger wrestlers and independent wrestlers.
The 2021 Grand Slam was the inaugural Grand Slam professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It was held on September 22, 2021, at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York. The two-part event was broadcast on TNT as special episodes of AEW's weekly television programs, Wednesday Night Dynamite and Friday Night Rampage—Dynamite aired live while Rampage aired on tape delay on September 24. A total of 14 matches were contested. Five aired live on Dynamite while six aired on Rampage, which was expanded to two hours for the Grand Slam special. Three dark matches also occurred before the live event, which were shown on AEW's YouTube show, Elevation, on September 27.
AEW Rampage: The First Dance was a professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It was held on August 20, 2021, at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, and was broadcast on TNT as a special episode of AEW's weekly television program, Rampage; the second episode of the series overall, having premiered the previous week on August 13. Three matches were contested at the event, and in the main event, Jon Moxley defeated Daniel Garcia.
The December 2021 New Year's Smash was the second New Year's Smash professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It took place on December 29, 2021, at Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida. The two-part event was broadcast on TNT as special episodes of AEW's weekly television programs, Wednesday Night Dynamite and Friday Night Rampage. Dynamite aired live while Rampage aired on tape delay on December 31. It was the second New Year's Smash event to be held in 2021, after the first took place in January. The Dynamite broadcast was the show's final episode on TNT as Dynamite moved to TNT's sister channel TBS on January 5, 2022.
The 2021 Winter Is Coming was the second annual Winter Is Coming professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The event took place on December 15, 2021, at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, Texas. It was broadcast live on TNT as a special episode of AEW's weekly television program, Wednesday Night Dynamite.
AEW New Year's Smash is a professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established by the promotion in 2021, the event is held annually around New Year's as a two-part event. The original January 2021 event aired as two back-to-back special episodes of AEW's flagship program, Wednesday Night Dynamite, while the second event, which aired in December 2021, occurred during the same week, first as an episode of Dynamite, then as a special episode of Friday Night Rampage, with future events retaining this format. The Dynamite broadcast for the second event was notable for being the final Dynamite to air on TNT before the show moved to TNT's sister channel TBS; Rampage remained on TNT.
AEW Battle of the Belts is a series of professional wrestling television specials produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The one-hour specials are broadcast on TNT in the United States and air quarterly throughout the year. The series currently airs on select Saturday nights at 10 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) immediately after AEW's regular Saturday program, Collision; the series originally aired on select Saturday nights at 8 p.m. ET, but was moved to Fridays at 11 p.m. ET beginning with the fourth episode before its move back to Saturdays with the seventh episode. Battle of the Belts premiered with a live episode on January 8, 2022. The seventh and most recent special aired live on July 15, 2023.
The 2021 Holiday Bash was the second annual Holiday Bash professional wrestling Christmas television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It took place on December 22, 2021, at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina. The two-part event was broadcast on TNT as special episodes of AEW's weekly television programs, Wednesday Night Dynamite and Friday Night Rampage. Dynamite aired live while Rampage aired on tape delay on December 25 at 9pm ET as a special Saturday night episode, which was moved back from its usual Friday night 10pm ET slot because of TNT's traditional holiday marathon showing of A Christmas Story.
AEW Beach Break was an annual professional wrestling television special produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established in 2021, the inaugural event aired as a special episode of the promotion's flagship weekly television program, Wednesday Night Dynamite. In 2022, it was expanded to a two-part event, with the second part airing as a special episode of Friday Night Rampage. It was named after one of AEW wrestler Orange Cassidy's finishing moves, the Beach Break. The event replaced Bash at the Beach as the promotion's beach-themed event held in January. The 2022 event would be the final Beach Break as an event was not held in 2023.
AEW Grand Slam is an annual professional wrestling television special produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Established in 2021, the event airs in two parts, first as a special episode of the promotion's flagship weekly television program, Wednesday Night Dynamite, then as a special episode of their secondary weekly program, Friday Night Rampage. The show is distributed by Warner Bros. Discovery, which AEW's broadcast partners, TBS and TNT, are also part of. The event is held annually at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York in late September. The inaugural event was also AEW's first event to take place entirely within a stadium as well as the promotion's first event held in New York City.
The 2022 Blood & Guts was the second annual Blood & Guts professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It was held on June 29, 2022, at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The event aired as a special episode of AEW's primary weekly television program, Wednesday Night Dynamite, which aired live on TBS. The July 1 episode of Friday Night Rampage on TNT, which was a special episode titled Royal Rampage and was the inaugural Royal Rampage, was also taped the same night immediately after the live broadcast of Blood & Guts.
The 2022 Grand Slam was the second annual Grand Slam professional wrestling television special produced by All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It took place on September 21, 2022, at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in the Queens borough of New York City. The two-part event was broadcast as special episodes of AEW's weekly television programs, Wednesday Night Dynamite and Friday Night Rampage. Dynamite aired live on TBS while Rampage aired on tape delay on September 23 on TNT and was expanded to two hours for the Grand Slam special.
AEW Collision, also known as Saturday Night Collision or simply Collision, is an American professional wrestling television program produced by the American promotion All Elite Wrestling (AEW). It airs live every Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern Time on TNT, with some exceptions. The show premiered on June 17, 2023, and is positioned as their second main program behind Wednesday Night Dynamite, and third overall weekly program with Friday Night Rampage, which focuses on younger wrestlers in the company.