AEW Dark Episode 172- 11/29/2022/NWA Powerrr Season 11 Episode 3 (Women's Wrestling)

 By Mark Rodriguez

We get two matches this time for AEW Dark as Emi Sakura and Hikaru Shida get some in-ring action. Since we got only 2 matches, I decided to also throw in the latest NWA match with our very own KiLynn King as she faces Baby Doll's daughter Samantha Starr.

Match 1- Hikaru Shida w/ Hagane Shinno vs Layla Luciano

Both women run in to grapple and Layla shoves Hikaru back. They grapple again and Hikaru gets her taller opponent up against the ropes. Hikaru gets her in a headlock and tries to go for the takedown but instead Layla picks up. Hikaru gets back down on her feet and Layla shoves her towards the ropes. Hikaru knocks her down with a dropkick.

Hikaru gets Layla up against the ropes and gets ready to do her ten punches. Before she can land the first one, Layla picks her up in the fireman's carry and spins her around several times before dropping her to the mat. Layla grabs her legs and tries to get ready to spin her around but Hikaru kicks her back.

Hkaru runs at Layla, but she catches her and slams her down. Layla goes for the pin but can't keep the former champ down. Both women trade shots but Layla smacks Hikaru harder, leaving her dazed. Layla goes for the ropes but Hikaru knocks her down with the enzuigiri to the face. With Layla rattled and goes up against the ropes, Hikaru runs at her with a flying knee strike. She then gets on the ropes and this time is able to land the ten punches on her. Hikaru then climbs the ropes and kicks her away. She jumps off the ropes and knocks Layla down with the Meteora. 

Hikaru gets into position and as Layla staggers to her feet, she gets laid out with The Katana. Hikaru pins her and gets the win. Hagane Shinno comes into the ring to celebrate alongside Hikaru who holds up her Regina Di Wave Champiosnhip and her International Ribbon Tag Team Championship.

Match 2- Emi Sakura w/ Baliyan Akki vs Tiara James 

The match starts with Tiara offering a handshake which Emi ignores and runs a hand through her hair instead. Both women grapple but Emi goes for a rear waistlock and then pulls her hair back. As the ref tells Emi to watch the hair, Tiara hits her in the face. Emi grabs her by the hair and does her anime laugh before tossing her across the ring. Emi takes this time to fold her up and sit on her to enjoy some tea with Baliyan.

It's always tea time somewhere whenever Emi Sakura is involved

Emi runs over and stomps on Tiara. Tiara hits her twice, which barely has any affect, and then Emi sends her reeling back with a harsh chop across the chest. Emi eggs her on and Tiara throws several elbow strikes to the face. Emi goes for a chop which Tiara ducks under as she runs for the ropes. Tiara knocks Emi down with a flying lariat. Tiara grabs her opponent in what looks like a spinning neckbreaker, but Emi stops her and backward slams her instead. 

Emi starts the Queen chants and starts throwing chops to the beat of 'We Will Rock You'. She then runs and hit Tiara with the flying crossbody, causing her to topple over the mat. Emi picks up Tiara in a delayed vertical position, taking her time to turn her around in all four directions, before slamming her down with a backbreaker. Emi pins Tiara and gets the win. As the ref goes to raise her arm in victory, Emi kicks one of his legs to make him stumble onto one knee. Emi sits on his knee to pose for her victory.

NWA Powerrr Season 11 Episode 3- KiLynn King VS Samantha Starr

Both women start grappling and Samantha grabs KiLynn in a wristlock. Kilynn reverses it and twists her arm behind her back. Samantha gets her in a headlock and KiLynn tries to punch her way out. Samantha goes to the ropes and bumps into KiLynn but is unable to knock her down. KiLynn gets a chance to run for the ropes and she also can't knock Samantha down. Samantha goes for a handshake and KiLynn goes for it. Both women had the idea to pull each other's arms and Samantha hits her opponent in the face. 

KiLynn goes for the ropes and knocks Samantha down with a dropkick. KiLynn poses for the crowd while Samantha rolls over near her mother for some advise. Samantha raises her hands for a test of strength and KiLynn decides to go along with it. 

Both women try to overpower each other. KiLynn goes for a suplex but can't get her up. Samantha tries the same move and also can't get her up. Both women try to surpass each other until KiLynn finally lands the suplex on Samantha. KiLynn gets her up against the ropes and starts throwing shots.

KiLynn drags her to the other side of the ring to throw more shots but Samantha turns the tables and starts unloading on her. Samantha runs towards KiLynn but the Majesty of Muscle flips over her and gives her a heel kick to the midsection. KiLynn hits her with a high knee lift and a forearm to the face. She then runs towards her but Samantha gets out of the way and she crashes into the ring post. 

Samantha takes this chance to elbow KiLynn in the face and then runs into her with a body splash. She gets KiLynn in a snapmare and kicks her in the spine. She then wraps her legs around her head and starts slamming her face first into the mat. She goes a pin but KiLynn kicks out.

KiLynn hits her with a forearm. She runs into her to knock her down but Samantha hits her with a forearm of her own. Samantha tries to knock her down but she eats a roundhouse kick from KiLynn. KiLynn runs at her and gets hit by a Big Boot to the face. She tries to throw a punch but Samantha blocks and hits her back. Samantha then slams KiLynn down with a bulldog slam. She goes the pin but the Mutha FKN King kicks out.

KiLynn gets up and manages to land a chop across the chest of her opponent. With Samantha up against the ropes, KiLynn hits her with a running lariat. KiLynn grabs her for the Death Valley Driver and goes for the pin. Samantha kicks out. KiLynn tries to get her in the Excali-Buster but Samantha tries to get out of it. KiLynn goes for a Full Nelson but Samantha picks her up for the Samoan Drop. She pins her but somehow KiLynn still kicks out.

With KiLynn dazed, Samantha kicks her in the midsection and tries to get ready for the DDT. KiLynn punches her way out of it. She gets Samantha in a Full Nelson and then picks her up. She slams her down in what she calls The King's Landing and goes for the pin. KiLynn King scores the win!

My thoughts-

The Hikaru match was pretty cool seeing as Layla used her height advantage to turn the tables on her a few times. I've seen so many matches start with the headlock takedown, it's super rare to see someone actually stop it and counter it. Then Shida went for her ten punches spot but Layla surprisingly picks her up instead. Layla got to showcase a lot of her strength and did some cool slams here and there. It looked like she was going to go for the Claudio Spin but Hikaru stopped her. I would have liked to have seen that, I don't remember seeing many women wrestlers do that move. Either way Hikaru got a cool win as she continues to be a fan favorite. 

The Emi match was the usual fun. I think we've seen enough of her antics to know what's coming, but she's always up to making up some more. Poor Tiara didn't stand too much of a chance. I was surprised to see Emi actually end the match with the delayed vertical backbreaker since that's usually one of her regular moves. The little victory pose with the ref was unexpected and funny as Emi Sakura is always entertaining. It's been a while since we've seen her in singles matches. 

It was cool to see KiLynn King in action again. It sounds like she came real close to defeating Kamille for the title in Hard Timez 3 where she actually got her to tap but the ref didn't see it. She also has a new finisher, the King's Landing. It's cool to see her increase her arsenal. 

Samantha Starr showed her skills and went toe to toe with KiLynn, stopping her at every turn and she got some cool moves in. This is her big debut in NWA so we'll see how far she'll go. 

Ring of Honor Last Battle is around the corner and we're definitely getting Athena VS Mercedes Martinez. Ruby Soho has already made her return to AEW and had set her sights on Tay Melo. It's too soon to say if that will be in the PPV since it doesn't really involve Ring of Honor.