We open up the show with the new TNA World Champion, James Storm. He talks about his father and how he appreciates the fans that have stood by him for all these years. He calls out 4Tune so he can talk to them. He only talked to Robert Roode in this scene, so it made no sense for AJ Styles or Kaz to be there. I guess these guys get paid per appearance? Yeah, they're in the same stable, but it's still pretty silly for them to be out there. Storm talks about how Roode got screwed over at BFG and wants to give him the first title shot. Roode accepts until Samoa Joe interrupts. Joe starts in on a conspiracy in which Storm would only give title shots to his 4Tune members and thinks they are another Immortal in the works. Since his thought process makes no sense, he throws his hat into getting a title shot. Storm says Joe hasn't done anything to deserve a title shot (Nice to see SOMEONE is actually paying attention to the rest of the show) and his window has been shut for a long time. Sting shows up and claims both guys make a great argument (Roode does, but Joe doesn't. Who cares, we need an excuse for a wrestling match) and it will be Roode vs Joe in a #1 Contender's match, where the winner gets a title shot on next week's show (By the way: next week's show has been taped and I asked that you DON'T POST SPOILERS!!! I am aware they are out there, but I don't tolerate spoilers on this show). What makes no sense in this scene is Joe. He has no purpose or argument to get a title match. What has Joe done in the last year to deserve a title shot? Heck, I'll go a step further. What has Joe done in the last two years to get a title shot? What did he do to get a title shot, win a pie eating contest? What's hilarious about all of this is if you watched BFG, I recall Mike Tenay saying the winner of that Triple Threat match has a strong claim in getting a future title shot. Well, Crimson won, so logic shows Joe would get a title shot. That makes perfect sense....ugh. Other than Joe being involved in this scene, nothing else was wrong with it and it was a tolerable opening. I guess if Joe gets a title shot, I guess that means Shark Boy is a shoe in for future world champion.
Match #1: RVD vs Christopher Daniels
Well, at least TNA put more than 8 minutes of wrestling for this week, so that's a positive. Styles joins Tenay and Tazz on commentary for this match. The match was okay, but nothing about it stands out. The finish comes with Daniels pulls a Home Improvement and uses a tool box on RVD, which causes a DQ. Come on, we established that water bottles are the ultimate weapon in pro wrestling. A tool box is for pussies. After the match, Daniels takes a screwdriver out of the tool box and is about to use it on RVD. Hooray for attempted murder!!! Styles runs in for the save and Daniels runs away. After BFG, the Daniels/Styles rivalry didn't end, so I guess we get more build up for this rivalry. Oh, goodie!!!
Winner via DQ: RVD
Back in the ring where Gail Kim is with Karen Jarrett, Madison Rayne and Traci Brooks, which is probably every TNA fan's wet dream. Gail cuts a heel promo in which she says she is tired of getting stepped on and it's her time to shine. I just have a hard time buying Gail as a heel. She has played the role before, but it's very generic. I personally think Madison is a much more marketable talent, but TNA loves those WWE rejects. Anyway, Karen rewards Gail with a title match against Velvet Sky at Turning Point. Oh no, Karen just called the KOs prostitutes once again. She needs some new comebacks. As I said last week, why haven't Dixie Carter or Sting bothered to do anything to stop Karen's treatment? This is wrestling logic if I ever saw it. Then again, maybe they just don't care.
Match #2: Gail Kim vs Tara
Not sure if I agree with sending Tara out there as Gail's first opponent. I would have sent out there Tessmacher since it wasn't really wise to make Tara look this weak. Then again, this also shows what Gail brings to the table and how dominate she is, so that's a step in the right direction in terms of establishing a new character. I still think Gail leaving WWE and showing up in TNA isn't that big of a deal. She is talented at what she does, but isn't going to turn that many heads with her presences. Gail wins this match with a move that looked like the Code Breaker, but done with her legs as opposed to her knees. I bet someone out there knows the name to this move. Hey, maybe Gail can reestablish her relationship with Bischoff? Anyone remember that back in their WWE days? Giggity, giggity.
Winner via pinfall: Gail Kim
Match #3: Eric Young vs Robbie E for the TV Title
They should start calling it the Worthless Championship because this title is nothing more than a sideshow act. The match didn't last long and Eric wins the match with a roll up. I wasn't fond of the move, but considering what would happen next, I suppose it makes sense to end the match like this. Robbie is just not appealing and is really a poor man's Zack Ryder. Woo woo woo, you know it. After the match, Rob Terry attacks. They are about to leave until Young gets back up and announces that Ronnie from Jersey Shore will be on next week's show. My first question is who the f*** is Ronnie? As I have stated many times, I don't watch JS and consider it the worst source of entertainment possible. How in the world does TNA keep bringing in these Jersey Jackoffs? Well, I guess I should be somewhat positive in TNA bringing in some media attention. Then again, TNA has done this before and it really hasn't helped.
Winner via pinfall and still TV Champ: Eric Young
A wave of backstage scenes. Daniels on the phone. He wants a title shot because of his RVD attack until Kaz walks in and tells him he and AJ need to end this. I guess this will be addressed on a future episode. Bully Ray cuts a promo on Jeff Hardy, who he will be facing later tonight. There was even something on Garrett Bischoff. If you don't care about Garrett, chances are you are going to hate the rest of this show. You will see what I mean in a moment.
Eric Bischoff is in the ring and calls out his son in Darth Vader fashion. He talks about how he wanted his son to follow in his footsteps, but he disappointed him along the way. Eric claims Garrett has disgraced the Bischoff name (Oh yeah, and Eric had nothing to do with disgracing the Bischoff name already?). He wants Garrett to apologize, but his son does nothing. He finally tells him to think about apologizing to him, or he will kick his ass. That's Parenting 101 for you. After a commercial break, Garrett is confronted by Ric Flair backstage. He says he isn't man enough to face his father and tells him to do the right thing, or else he will have to deal with God. By the way, did anyone catch the line where Flair said this business needs young men? You know what, that's too easy.
Back in the ring where Jeff Jarrett talks about how much of an embarrassment Jeff Hardy is. Hardy arrives and the two start to fight. Security shows up in seconds to break it up. Bully arrives and attacks Hardy from behind. The ring clears and the match beings. What was the point of this scene? Why couldn't they just go straight into the match? Especially since they would do the exact same thing after this match. This is just poor planning on TNA's part. Then again, what else is new?
Match #4: Bully Ray vs Jeff Hardy
This actually wasn't too bad of a match. I wouldn't call it good, but I enjoyed it for what it was worth. See, now I'm entertained. The finish comes when Hardy hits Twist of Fate and Swanton Bomb for the clean victory. While I enjoyed the match, I don't think Hardy should've gone up against Bully and probably shouldv'e gone up against a softer opponent (Gunner). You can argue that Bully is the best heel on this show, and this is coming from a guy who hated Team 3D/Dudley Boyz and thought they were completely overrated. After the match, Hardy is doing an interview until Jarrett attacks him....again. Which makes the early scene entirely pointless...
Thank you, Steve Martin. I love that movie. Anyway, they are about to powerbomb Hardy through a table until Mr. Anderson runs out for the save. Kinda odd they didn't have some sort of exchange between Hardy and Anderson since TNA wants to know what everyone is feeling with Hardy's return, but no matter. By the way, anyone else feeling this show is going by really fast tonight?
Winner via pinfall: Jeff Hardy
Match #5: Samoa Joe vs Robert Roode in a #1 Contenders Match
This was a pretty decent match between Roode and Joe. Probably the best match of the night. The finish comes when Roode hits a Fisherman Suplex for the clean victory. I guess there won't be a title match for King Hippo this time around? After the match, Storm is on the entrance ramp looking at his new opponent. Remember back to my BFG review? Well, I advise going back and looking at what I said after Roode lost the title match. It could be an interesting read....
Winner via pinfall and NEW #1 Contender to World Title: Robert Roode
Time for the final segment of the night. Why didn't the match end the show? Does anyone really give a s*** about Garrett Bischoff? This guy makes Jinder Mahal seem interesting. Bischoff talks about how great he is and wanting to patch things up with his son while Garrett isn't saying anything. Oh yeah, dedicating an entire storyline to a guy who can barely talk. That will surely get ratings up. Garrett continues to ignore his father and he slaps his own son. Garrett gets angry and his about to deck his own father until Flair arrives. He orders Garrett to apologize or else he will kick his ass. He continues to push him like he did earlier. Garrett finally has had enough and punches Flair. Garrett is a dumbass. You think he would have learned something from the last year of taking his father's orders. You know Immortal doesn't fight fair, so what the hell did you think was going to happen? As you would've guessed, Garrett gets the crapped kicked out of him, which ends the show. I don't see how the Impact Zone is eating up this kind of stuff. I just don't find Garrett interesting, and this whole thing feels very forced since they sprung that plot twist on you at BFG. Why is TNA wasting their time on Garrett, a guy who goes from a referee to a wrestler? Oh, I know, because Hulk Hogan will probably end up being the saving grace for this scene, and Hogan must always put the attention on himself. I don't know? Maybe I am being too harsh on this scene, but I would rather see them use this time for future talent as opposed to uninteresting people who happen to share a last name. This whole thing would've worked a lot better if we knew more about Garrett Bischoff. All we know is he is Eric's son and worked as a crooked referee for the last year. Yeah, that's the marks of a terrific storyline *can you sense the sarcasm here?*. Then again, it's always possible that Garrett is gifted wrestler, but I wouldn't be surprised if that isn't the case and this is all an excuse to give a man with a destroyed back one more chase to pose with his 24 inch pythons. In order for TNA to go far, Hogan can't be the center of attention. How will the company move forward when they continue to rely on stars from back in the 80s? Reckon, Hogan isn't putting himself in any title matches and just a random throwaway feud, but the fact that THIS got more screen time than your world champion/#1 Contender's Match isn't a good sign. Now, it's always possible this sort of thing can become interesting, but right now, it has zero appeal at the moment unless you crave Hulkamania. Hey, I was a big Hulkamanic back when I was a kid, but that was then and this is now.
Overall Impression:
I'm not sure about this one. This was a huge improvement from last week's show. The show featured a lot more wrestling and featured a lot more balance between promo time and action time. Then again, there is some things that TNA is doing that I am having a hard time getting interested in. I don't really care for this whole Garrett Bischoff deal and Jarrett/Hardy brawling for the one millionth time isn't helping anything. We get it, they hate each other, but try to make me care. Styles/Daniels isn't something I am interested in because it has been done before. Well, I will be fair and say the KOs actually got a little more interesting, but I do get tired of Karen resorting to the same insults. It just shows a lack of creativity. With Roode vs Storm set for next week, it does make for an interesting show. The show is taking place outside the Impact Zone. It's nice to see this company do more shows outside Orlando and take this show on the road. I can't overly recommend this show, but based on TNA's past episodes, this one was very tolerable and you might get an entertainment value out of it. Then again, you will only be as interested in this show as you are with the storylines. Like I said, some of these storylines I don't really care for, but let's give them a chance. Maybe we will find that gold mine storyline.....or another s*** stained one, but we will wait and see. That's going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. Not one of my best reviews, but I kinda just wanted to get this one out of the way. As always, tell me what you thought of my review or tonight's show. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time.
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