After already saying goodbye to one of their own founders, Stu Grayson, earlier this year, the Dark Order is down one member more after Alan Angels, the occasional masked fifth member of the unit, has failed to secure a new, long-term contract with AEW according to Will Washington of Fightful.
Though Angels was reportedly offered a per-appearance deal, which is the same contract both Rush and Peter Avalon have signed with the promotion, the 24-year-old ultimately turned it down, as he instead favors an independent run where he can prove his mettle against the best performers the world has to offer.
Alan Angels' explanation for turning down the offer to continue in AEW is a really solid one.
He really did sign before he truly got his legs under him as an indie talent, and that was probably the right call during the pandemic, but now is his opportunity to make a real name.
— Will Washington (@WilliamRBR) June 29, 2022
Hey, you have to give it to Angels, going it alone away from his established faction is certainly an admirable decision, even if it puts the immediate future of the group into disarray.
Since debuting in the promotion pre-Dark Order on March 8th, 2020, Angels has wrestled in 86 matches, most of them losses, on his way to a 32-54 record. While he's been more productive as a tag team wrestler than in singles action, with 26 of his wins coming either in a tag team or as part of a trio, Angel's win-loss record will go down as having one of the lowest win percentages in the promotion's history, right up there with Brandon Cutler and Shawn Dean.
Will it work? Will Angels blaze a trail for himself on the indies and return to television, be that AEW, Impact, or even WWE, as a new man – a regular millennial Drew McIntyre, if you will? Or will he instead struggle to find a footing outside of the safety of his faction? I guess fans will see soon enough.
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