What is up wrestling fans, I am the WrestlingNerd bringing you another written review. Today, we take a look at TNA Slammiversary. The card and buildup going into this showing was a bit iffy, so would TNA be able to deliver or would they recreate that poopy mountain from Conker's Bad Fur Day? Well, let's take a look and start the review.
Match #1: James Storm and Alex Shelley vs British Invasion for the Tag Team Championships
We open the show with a match. Robert Roode was on commentary for this match. I have been wondering lately if the Brits are heels or faces? I don't think it was ever established what they are, so it is almost up in the air. For the most part, this was a pretty decent match to open up the show. Just good old fashion tag team wrestling....if only there was a lot more of this during this current era of pro wrestling. A couple of near falls in this match. There was a spot where Storm hit a Backstabber on both Brits and Shelley hit the Warrior's Way, but only managed a two count. There was also Storm setting up for the beer spit, but accidently shots the beer at Shelley. Since Shelley couldn't see, he Super Kicks Storm and you would think the match is over, but Storm manages to kick out at two. Finally, Gun Money (Which sounds like an invention for Tony Montana) works together. Storm hits the Super Kick, and Shelley follows up with the Sliced Bread for the clean win. This was a decent way to open up the show, but the strange thing was the slight tease of the Brits winning the match during the beer spit. It seemed kinda odd and it seemed like it was mainly for dramatic effect, but outside of that, this was still a solid match. See, now THIS is a little more like Wrestling Matters.
Winner via pinfall and still tag team champs: Beer Money and Alex Shelley.....er......or Gun Money.......you figure it out....
Quick backstage interview with Scott Steiner. Good Lord, how many times do I have to hear Steiner butcher the english language? Apu from the Simpsons is easier to understand than Scott. Anyway, he says the typical stuff like beating Morgan's ass. Well, at least he is still following the formula for a Steiner promo. Blah, blah, blah, beat/kick/rape/ his ass......blah, blah, blah.....something about wife or girlfriend.....blah, blah. Seriously, can TNA management buy Steiner a Dictionary so he can expand his vocabulary?
Match #2: Scott Steiner vs Matt Morgan
Two minutes into this match, and there is already a ref bump. This allows for Steiner to sneak a low blow and gain the upper hand of the match, because it was all Morgan up to this point. This low blow served no purpose for the rest of the match, so why write a ref bump and low blow if it didn't add up to anything? The match was pretty boring and it dragged, but it was expected considering these are both big guys. There was a flashy move here and there like when Steiner pulled off a rollthrough, but overall, you weren't missing very much. Still, I gotta be fair and based on their size, this was a fair match.....even if it was loaded with punches, kicks, and chops. The finish comes when Morgan hits the Carbon Footprint and wins the match cleanly. This most likely ends this feud for the two, and hopefully Morgan can move on to bigger things since he has really taking a bunch of steps backward compared to when he was fighting for the world title earlier in the year.
Winner via pinfall: Matt Morgan
Match #3: Abyss vs Kaz vs Brian Kendrick for the X Division Championship
There was a Jeff Jarrett interview prior to this match, but it was the generic stuff towards Angle. I had an idea for this match. If Kaz and Kendrick are fighting for the X Division and don't want Abyss to win, why doesn't one of them just take a dive to pin the other one in order to steal the title? Of course, greed and pride (Fullmetal Alchemist?) would get in the way of that based on how this match went. Also, it would never work if you think about it, but something I thought of while I was watching this match. For the early going, Kaz and Kendrick were double teaming the monster....who is smart enough to read. The monster can read, but a steroid freak can't? Who would have known? Eventually, greed gets in the way for both faces and they eventually start fighting one another (Wario & Waluigi would have been proud to watch this match). As you would have thought, both Kaz and Kendrick care more about the actual title than trying to save the division. Then again, can you really blame them? The finish comes when Kendrick hits a Thrust Kick. Abyss is on the outside and tosses Kendrick out of the ring. Abyss runs over to pin Kaz and simply just picks up the bones to retain the title. I am fine with Abyss doing the heelish thing and stealing the victory from Kendrick since he was about to win. It also makes sense for Kaz to take the pinfall since they seem prime on pushing Kendrick instead of Kaz. I just wish Kendrick would have hit a better finisher because a thrust kick seems more like a set up move as opposed to a finishing move. This was a pretty decent match for what it was worth. I gotta be fair and say so far the PPV isn't too bad, but nothing is really standing out about the showing as well. Then again, maybe TNA should be shooting for average since that is at least a positive compared to how they normally do things.
Winner via pinfall and still X Division Champion: Abyss
Match #4: Crimson vs Samoa Joe
Thanks TNA for showing that awful cell phone filmed brawl between these two. I think the audience needs night vision goggles to know what the hell was going on during that brawl. Does anyone else wonder if Crimson is a fan of Edge? He uses the Spear and does the Edgucution during this match. Either that or it is a coinsidence. This was a pretty fair showing. There was a lot of submission style holds and ground based wrestling going around here. In fact, it was during this match were I noticed traces of the old Joe that we really haven't seen in a while. Seriously, it was like old school Joe resurrected himself for one night. Where has he been all this time? Even though this match was going well, the finish seemed like both guys were winded and tired. I guess they didn't take their 5 Hour Energy before the match? Crimson was kinda dragging a bit in this match. If Crimson wants to be a big time player in TNA, he is going to have to work lenghty matches. This was probably Crimson's longest match to date and it really showed that he needs more work in this department. He is still new and I still see a bright future for him if he can keep improving. Almost hard to belive he is around 25-26 years old. The finish comes when Crimson finally hits the Sky High Powerbomb for the clean win. Based on the performance here, I would like to see these two lock up again, because this was a pretty good match. After the match, Joe decides to lend his hand out for a handshake. They handshake, but Joe pulls him in and mouths to him that he wants another shot down the road. I hope based on this that we do get to see this again. If Joe can keep putting matches like this, maybe he can get himself out of midcard hell?
Winner via pinfall: Crimson
Backstage with....Winter and Love. More forced Lesbianism. Winter talks about how everything will come together when Love becomes the champ while Love is still Mrs. No Personality. The scene ends with Winter telling Love to "take her medicine", but Love refuses it and says she doesn't need that anymore because she fully understands what Winter is talking about. What? She understands what Winter is talking about? Damn, those must be some powerful drugs because NO ONE has ANY idea what the hell Winter is talking about. I wonder if those are the same drugs the TNA creative staff takes on a weekly basis? This whole storyline is just a mess.
Match #5: Mickie James vs Angelina Love for the KO Championship
Love is a lot more active than she has normally been since she is "no longer" on the influence of drugs based on the kayfabe going on here. Then again, I still wouldn't be shocked if Love is still on some illegal substance since she is still going for the Ronald McDonald look with all of that makeup. I also noticed that during the entrance walk for his match, that we are at the 1 hour and 15 minute mark. Which basically means the final three matches are going to end up being a half hour each. The idea of Sting trying to do a half hour match these days is enough to make me sick and depressed. Anyway, this was hands down the worst match of the night. It just wasn't very well done, and even the ending was horrible. Winter kept interfering during this match and it ended when Mickie hit the Delayed DDT.....at least that is what Tazz and Mike Tenay are trying to tell you. This DDT came off really bad on tv and I am not sure who's fault it was for turning out so bad. Clearly, there was some miscommunication between Love and Mickie. I guess that is what happens when you work a wrestling match with a zombie? After the match, Love and Winter attack Mickie and they leave the ring standing tall. This basically ensures there will be a rematch at somepoint. Hooray for the Winter/Love storyline continuing? Dammit.
Winner via sh**** finisher and still KO Champs: Mickie James
Match #6: Bully Ray vs AJ Styles in a Last Man Standing Match
Ok, line of the night as to go to Bully during his interview. He said that he is in the best shape in over 20 years. To be fair, he is looking a lot better compared to how he used to look but.....I am sure someone else was laughing when they heard this statement. Oh, I can be mean sometimes. The match stared off pretty slow, but it would definitely pick up. I was surprised in how well this matchup turned out. Styles was pulling a Tommy Dreamer by requesting Bully to land some free shots on him. Eventually, Bully got busted open. I thought they would have gone overboard with the weapons for this match, but they actually kept them to a minimum. It just proves that you can make a decent hardcore style match and not have an orgy of weapons and blood to make it good. They eventually fight all the way up the entrance ramp. The finish comes when Bully is on top of a table and Styles is debating how high he wants to do the high risk move. He starts to climb up one of the steel pillers on the entrance ramp and hits a flying elbow on Bully (possibly paying omage to the Macho Man right here) through the table. The ref has started his ten count and both guys are down. Styles is up on his feet midway during the count, but Bully kicks him with his free leg and Styles ends up going through the wooded stage ramp, where Styles isn't moving anymore. Oh no, not another murder on tv? Anyway, Bully stands up for a second and the ref has declared Bully the winner. After the match, the fans are chanting bulls*** while the medics are tending to both Bully and Styles. Well, at least Styles is moving here, so I guess there isn't a killing on two showings in a row.....yet. This was probably the best match of the night. It had a good mixture of the no rules stipluation, but also didn't go overboard with it since TNA tends to throw in a lot of blood and weapons with these things. The finish was a bit odd. So, your telling me that Bully can survive an elbow drop from 30-40 feet in the air, but Styles can't survive a kick through some thin wooding? Also, something about the ref counting during this sequence was off as well. The ref is counting both guys down, but when Styles gets back up, only for Bully to kick him back down, the ref is still counting as if Styles never stood up. Based on the rules to this match, the ref should have restared his count for Styles while the current count still applies to Bully since he is still down. Yeah, so now I understand why the audience was calling bs, because the referee fu**** up with the count. You can also argue that Bully really didn't stand on his feet long enough to be declared the winner. All I know is that if WWE was officiating this match, it would have been more conclusive as opposed to these minor screw ups. Despite the awkard ten count by the ref, this was still a pretty good match and my personal vote for match of the night. At the end of the day, this was the match that will make you remember Slam because there was some pretty neat stuff going around. There was even a Springboard 450 Splash by Styles. Yeah, he has done it before, but it still looks cool. This also opens the door for the feud to continue. The rivalry is still pretty fresh and I wouldn't mind seeing another match between these two. Just as long as we don't have another Angle/Jarrett fisaco on our hands. Bully Ray for match of the night? I don't think we have said that about Bully or Bubba since his WWE days in tag team wrestling. Bully for Most Improved of this year? Almost kinda scary to think about....
Winner: Bully Ray
Match #7: Sting vs Mr. Anderson for the World Title
Anderson had an interview backstage. My gosh....HE LIVES!!! Well....wasn't it written on the third day, he would rise again? Ok, I don't think I can add any more blasphemy if I tried. Anderson is on his mic at the entrance ramp until Sting attacks him from behind. Sting seems to be sporting the Heath Ledger Joker look tonight since he almost plastered the paint on his face and not actually detail it like he normally does. I guess this was his "war" paint face? They brawl for a while, get in the ring very quickly so the match can officially start. Immediatlely, they leave the ring and start brawling up in the audience. I always like those spots in pro wrestling when they climb up the stairs to brawl only to climb back down the stairs immediately. I guess they both just watched Rocky or something and just wanted to climb some stairs? Anyway, they eventually head back into the ring. This match wasn't really done that well. I felt it dragged quite a bit and further proves that Sting should not be champion if he is putting these kind of matches on a weekly basis. During the match, Eric Bischoff came out and interfereced twice. I guess Hulk Hogan and Bischoff lied on last week's Impact since they claimed there would be no shenengians. Anway, after a couple of finishers and near falls, Sting finally hits SDD on Anderson. This was kinda strange and not sure if I can explain this one. Basically, the ref was making the three count. Just as he counted to one, Bischoff stuck his hand in there to make a sound on the mat, thus registering to Sting's ears that was the two count (Sting is looking the other way during this entire process). The ref waves off Bischoff and finally the ref registers the second count. Since Sting heard three slams on the mat, he assumes that was the three count and breaks the pinfall. He then gets back up, only for the ref to tell him he only made a two count. The strange thing in all of this is that it SOMEHOW makes sense since Sting was playing the pinfall by ear. TNA and somewhat making sense? Yikes!!! Still, seems a little stupid, but it is somewhat creative and sneaky so I got to give them credit for at least making this work on live tv since something liked this would have been botched in the past. Still, in a lot of ways, this may come off as a botch since the ref could clearly see the Anderson low blow, which would follow afterwords. If I was writing this scene, I would have had the ref make the count, Bischoff slam the mat, thus this starts an argument with the ref and Bischoff. While Sting gets involved in all of this, that is when Anderson sneaks the low blow since there is no way the ref could see it since he is discussing with both Sting and Bischoff. That might have come off a little better, but instead, we got something with more twist and turns. Anyway, while Sting is trying to figure out what happened, Anderson hits a low blow on Sting, hits MC, and we have a new world champion. Well, this does two things. This pretty much adds fuel to Hogan/Sting/Bischoff deal since Sting is claiming that Bischoff is the cancer. This also gets the belt off of Sting and puts it on the hands of someone who isn't an old man and is one of TNA's bigger stars in Anderson. In alot of ways, this match did more for Sting/Hogan than it did for Anderson. Heck, even the championship itself is almost an afterthought here. Still, Anderson was the better choice out of the two to be champion at this moment.
Winner via pinfall and NEW TNA World Champion: Mr. Anderson
Match #8: Kurt Angle vs Jeff Jarrett winner is the #1 Contender for the World Title
Karen did a short interview via satellite. She blames Kurt for the injury and says Jeff will take everything from Angle tonight. If you watch this segment, do you really buy that Karen was at home? It looked like this was filmed backstage or something and comes off as bad. Oh, and in case your wondering, Karen did not show up during the match. The match did start off a bit slow, but they eventually picked up the pace. There was a lot of counters, locks, holds, and suplexs during this match. Most people would say this was the match of the night, but I would say it was the second best match of the night. Still, this was a pretty good wrestling match. There was a ref bump during this match. Damn, there was a lot of ref bumps going around tonight. Almost makes me want to bring back the Ref Bump Counter I was doing last year. He brings out the guitar and smashes Angle with it. Since the ref hasn't gotten back up, it is time for Earl Hebner to make his way to the ring to fill in as the ref for the rest of this match. Jarrett can only muster up a two count with the guitar shot. The finish comes when Jarrett has Angle in the Ankle Lock (Jarrett, you can't do that since that is Angle's move, blah, blah, blah....what was he thinking?). It seems like Kurt is in trouble, but with a glimer of hope, and the USA chant from the audience, it allows Kurt to summon enough power to counter the Ankle Lock, lock one of his own, and finally Jarrett is tapping out. Damn, who would have figured the USA chant is the ultimate ass kicking weapon? My God, imagine if John Cena finds out about this? Plus, isn't Jarrett American as well? Anyway, so it FINALLY appears this feud is over and Angle finally got his clean match and victory over Jarrett. I guess this sets up a new rivalry where it will be Angle vs Anderson.....which is what TNA did last year. Well, maybe it will be different this time around. The show ends with Angle celebrating.
Winner via submission and NEW #1 Contender: Kurt Angle
Overall Impression:
I gotta be honest. This was not a bad showing by TNA whatsoever. In fact, it was pretty decent. There was some decent matches out there tonight and two out of the last three matches really stick out and made the PPV shine. There is some things that could have made Slam better. For one, it should not have taken place in the Impact Zone. Slam is generally looked as their version of Survivor Series or Royal Rumble since like the WWE has their Big Four while TNA has its Big Three with Bound for Glory, LD, and Slam. I think this PPV would have shined a lot better if it was filmed somewhere else. And it was nice for TNA to actually hold true to their slogan of Wrestling Matters. They should change it to Wrestling Matters.....Only on PPV since they tend to have bad free tv matches, but PPV tends to fair out better in terms of quality matches. This was definitely better than Sacrifice and probably the best PPV I have seen out of TNA in a while. Really, only Genesis back in January stuck out as a good PPV for TNA, but Slam definitely joins the list and might even be better than Genesis. TNA can use some improvement, like with some of these finishes, but overall they had some good wrestling matches and actually entertained you for once. See, if TNA keeps doing things like they did tonight, then there is hope for this company. Then again, this company tends to take steps backwords after doing something good, but we will wait and see. On a scale of 1-10 and 5 being average on my show (Angry Joe rankings, and none of that decimal point garbage), I would have to give this PPV a 6 out of 10. This was a slightly above average showing. Even though this was one of TNA's better PPVs for this year, I have seen the WWE do slightly above average the majority the time (with the exceptions of Over the Limit since that was a bad showing and Extreme Rules since that was the best PPV I have seen all year). Then again, let's be fair since this is three PPVs in a row by TNA where they are showing improvements. Yeah, seems like even since the Jeff Hardy debacle back at Victory Road, TNA is improving on the quality of their PPVs slowly, so that is at least something. Still, what gets the turnout for a PPV is what they can produce on tv, and this is something TNA needs to improve on. As I have been saying for the last month, the buildup to this PPV wasn't done very well and what registers PPV buys is how well you can get the audience into certain rivalries and storylines. This is something TNA definitely needs to improve on since I would venture a guess that most people passed up on this PPV because of the buildup. Well, that is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's showing. Three Hour Raw for Monday, so six hours of wrestling I need to cover in two days, damn. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
WrestlingNerd Presents: TNA Slammiversary Rundown
What is up wrestling fans, I am the WrestlingNerd bringing you another PPV rundown. Today, we do a rundown of TNA Slammiversary. It has been a while since I have done one of these, so I will give you an idea on how I do things on here. I will rundown every match that is on the PPV card and also break it down into who should win, who creative will pick, and I will finally throw in my final prediction for the match, but my predictions generally don't mean anything. The buildup to Slam has been there, but there has also been some awkard buildup to the show as well based on the storylines that TNA has going around. Well, let's begin the rundown.
Mickie James vs Angelina Love for the KO Championship
Some of the worse buildup I have even seen to a match, and to a storyline that makes no sense. You would figure with Winter brainwashing Love that she would use her as a bodyguard to do her bidding, but instead it's the zombie chick who is getting the title shot and not the mastermind of the whole thing. As I wrote in one of my Impact reviews, that would be like Frankenstein's monster controlling and telling Dr. Frankenstein what to do, which would be the total opposite. Since the creative staff wrote for Love to get the title shot, this is basically TNA's way of telling Winter she is not championship material and they have no faith in her to carry the KO division if she won the title. While I will admit her ability isn't up there with that of Tara or Mickie, she is decent enough to make it work. I also don't really see the appeal with Love that much, especially when she has more make up on her face than Bozo the Clown. Don't get me wrong, she is a decent talent, but it just seems like she is always getting championship and title shots every so often. Also something I have mentioned in my Impact reviews, I don't really care for this whole storyline between Winter and Love since it is overly silly and really just comes off as stupid. Come on, she is brainwashed and not ONE person in that company can find a cure or send her to the hospital for help? Yeah I know, more wrestling logic. Not only that, but it also doesn't seem that Mickie cares she has a match coming up against Love. Definitely one of more lazier ideas put together for the PPV and a match I really can't get invested into.
Who should win:
Imagine Love holding the title while still acting like a statue? Looks and sounds stupid right? I think Mickie should win the match.
Who creative will pick:
Creative will either kill the zombie storyline or keep letting it grow. Based on how THIS creative staff does things, I would assume they will continue this storyline and thus Love ends up taking the title.
My final pick:
It isn't really set in stone as who will win this match. Since I cannot stand this zombie storyline, I am going to hope Mickie wins and then she uses a Harry Potter magic wand to reverse the spell on Love and then she attacks Winter. Again, sounds stupid right? Well, that is only because it is.
Crimson vs Samoa Joe
Well, at least there is actually a story with this match and it actually makes sense. Basically, it seems that Joe has become a little jealous of Crimson because he has been labeled the blue chipper and there was a point where he was asked to be that guy and.......well needless to say, Joe certainly has had his ups and downs with the company since. Joe also wants to be the guy who ends the "winning streak" (I write it like that because Crimson has probably only had like ten matches since debuting with the company) because Crimson is trying to chase something Joe acomplished back in the day. I really like this Crimson because he really has a good look that can go pretty far in professional wrestling. He has all the tools, grea look, decent in ring ability, good size, and just seems to have the "It" factor. It really depends if he can cut a decent promo, and if he can do that, he could be the next big thing in pro wrestling. So, it kinda seems like TNA is on the right track with Crimson by having him go over midcard talent (Joe fans, your going to have to come to grips that Joe is basically a midcard player and not a main eventer anymore) and building him up slowly but also making sure people are taking notice. The rivalry hasn't been built up in the best possible way, but it's easy to follow and I think people have a little bit of interest in this match.
Who should win:
Crimson needs to win to keep up the momentium.
Who creative will pick:
I don't think TNA will keep this rivalry going after the PPV, so Crimson is probably on their minds.
My final pick:
I have to pick Crimson to win this match since everything seems to point his way at the moment.
James Storm and Alex Shelley vs British Invasion for the Tag Team Championships
I know I said this earlier in the rundown, but one of the worst buildups to a title match I have ever seen. The Brits made one appearance, and it was via commentary. Do they even care they are getting a title shot? When did they get a title shot? Heck, do they even KNOW they are getting a title shot? Yeah, needless to say, the continuity for this one is all over the place. I have no idea where they are going with all of this at the moment and I even wonder if the Robert Roode injury is legit or just kayfabe. This could be an opportunity for Shelley to turn on Beer Money and maybe start a program with them, but that would be odd since it would become a two on one deal. I am sure the quality of this match will be decent, but don't you think you would be more interested in this match if the Brits actually showed up to confront the challengers? Damn, Eric Bischoff has so much of an ego that he has wrote himself into the X Division feud and also this deal between himself and BM, because as you all know, Bischoff appearing on tv equals ratings.... I almost wondering if TNA just flips the ratings chart upside down just to make themselves believe they are doing well?
Who should win:
I am not even sure who should win or not. This buildup to this match is about as productive as the Virtual Boy.
Who creative will pick:
I think creative has something up their sleeve for this match, at least that is what I am hoping for or else it would make this whole match a complete waste of time.
My final pick:
This one can go eitherway. I just flipped a coin and it appears that I am going with the Brits to win this match.
Matt Morgan vs Scott Steiner
You know what is strange about this feud? When the feud started, it was about trying to determine who deserved a title shot more between the two, but since Angle and Jarrett get the #1 Contender match, it almost makes this possible title confrontation to just a regular feud. Did Morgan and Steiner just forget about the world title? Anyway, this rivalry has almost become just a regular good guy/bad guy feud or really just a feud for Morgan to show he can hang with Steiner since he has been critizing him a lot. I am not sure about this one. This match would have been better if it was at the last PPV because the buildup at that point was decent, but TNA hasn't put enough time nor energy to make people care about this feud one month later. In other words, this feud as almost become a stick of bubble gum after you have chewed it for a while, it has just lost its flavor compared to what it originally was. Now, to be fair, the rumor going around is TNA and Steiner have been at a standstill in terms of contract/money talks, which is why this feud's stock has fallen. Still, it doesn't change the fact that the majority of people have probably lost their interest in this little rivalry.
Who should win:
Morgan is the up and comer while Steiner is the vet, so the vet should help put over the young talent....
Who creative will pick:
However, in TNA Land, they feel the need to have the veterans always win. Come on, this company's champion is 52 years old. That is just crap.
My final pick:
It is hard to tell if this is the blow off feud or if this will be a lenghty feud. I am going to pick Morgan for the time being since it would be kinda ridiculous to keept his feud going.
Abyss vs Kaz vs Brian Kendrick for the X Division Championship
Well, I have to admit this is one of those storylines that is at least keeping me interested in Impact. Basically, Bischoff was trying to rid the X Division and sent in the monster (who is a smart enough monster to read the Art of War, which is odd and cool) to take over the division and destroy it. I know most people don't like this storyline since it is crapping all over the X Division, but at the same time, the X Division hasn't done anything to get me interested in what they bring to the table for a while. With Abyss running a muck, I have become curious to see how this is played out. Both Kaz and Kendrick have decided to be the two main guys to fight for the division. The storyline is still in the early stages, so Abyss needs to win this match. If anyone else wins this match, it instantly ends the storyline and the X Division goes back to being an after thought in TNA.
Who should win:
Abyss needs to win to continue the storyline since this storyline is still fresh.
Who creative will pick:
This creative staff is stupid enough to have one of the other two guys win to kill this storyline.
My final pick:
I am going to pick Abyss to win, and hopefully TNA can find a way to make this storyline more interesting.....I hope.
AJ Styles vs Bully Ray in a Last Man Standing Match
This sadly might be the best feud going on in TNA. The world title feud hasn't had good buildup this month while Kurt and Jarrett has been going on since the dawn of time. This feud is also simple and it is mainly about revenge and respect. Bully took Styles off of tv and now Styles is trying to get back at him, that's all. Why can't TNA have more storylines that are easy to follow and not overcomplicate them? Heck, this feud is also featured some decent dialogue between the two, and I think it is the feud in TNA that I am the most interested in at the moment. Even though I have slammed Bully in the past, who the hell would have thought you would be seeing Bully near the main event? If you would have told me that was the plan, I would have called you insane, but Bully has done well with the gimmick. The gimmick is pretty basic, but yet refreshing in pro wrestling because he is a bully. I like the concept of the character, but I am still not big on Bubba playing the character and it should be used on somebody who didn't perform during the 90s. I am not sure how the quality of the match will go since it is a LMS match and those are either hit and miss.
Who should win:
Really, it can go either way, but since this is most likely the blow off feud, Styles should get the win.
Who creative will pick:
There is a chance this fued will go on afterwords. And yes, this creative staff is stupid enough to possible have this feud going into 2012 and ending in 2013. Let's hope that isn't the case.
My final pick:
This is a tough one since it can go eitherway, so time to flip another coin. I guess I am picking Styles to win this match.
Kurt Angle vs Jeff Jarrett in a #1 Contender's Match
Oh, Jesus tap dancing on a pogostick Christ, do I REALLY have to rundown this match again? You know what, f*** it. I am NOT going into detail on this match again because I have talked about this rivalry enough in the past. To sum it up, Angle and Jarrett have been feuding since October of last year and the feud as gotten so stupid that is has involved MMA, Karen Jarrett, a former wrestler and now a current pornstar in Chyna, custody papers, and s*** falling from the sky. Even the Looney Toons would say you have crossed the line with the slapstick going on with this garbage. TNA is billing this as the Final Battle. Well, I really hope it is because I am sick to death of this feud and it needs to die. Angle's gold medal is on the line for this match, yeah?
Who should win:
Please.....PLEASE let Angle win the blow off feud and just move on.
Who creative will pick:
If creative makes Jarrett win via cheating to continue this crap, then I am personally going to have to make a trip to Orlando and tell the staff how I REALLY feel about their product.
My final pick:
I am picking Angle to win just so this ends the feud. If TNA values the sanity of wrestling fans, they will hold true to calling this the Final Battle.
Sting vs Mr. Anderson for the TNA World Championship
Back a few months during the buildup for the LD PPV match, Sting and Anderson were really at each other's throats. The rivalry was really there, which is why at the time I felt the buildup to that match was done decently because you can sense the tension between Sting and Anderson. Fast forward two months later and clearly something has changed. The tension between the two doesn't really seem to be there and it's turning into more of a cartoon more than anything else. Think about it. Instead of Anderson attacking Sting or insulting him, all he is doing to fuel this rivalry is to dress up like old school Sting. Last I checked Anderson, but simply pretending it's Halloween isn't going to completely build up the tension. This is supposed to be for the world title and thus it should be the main focus of the show, but instead it is taking a backseat and you almost forget Anderson and Sting are fighting for the world title. Plus, it really isn't doing any favors when Eric Young of all people is looking more threatening than anyone else during this whole confrontation. This is more of an example of TNA being lazy and not showing any creatitivity since they are having Anderson doing the same thing by doing the old school Sting look. It would be BEYOND stupid if TNA actually had Anderson compete in this match with the Sting get up. Sometimes, TNA needs to really grow up. At least the buildup to this match was done better in the last episode of Impact, but that show ended with Sting murdering Anderson. THERE IS A MURDERER RUNNING AROUND IN TNA!!! Anyway, I am also not expecting much out of the match considering that Sting has looked really bad in some of his title defenses and just seems to be pulling a John Cena by winning in the final minute of the match. To be fair, Sting is battered after years of competition, but that is even more of a reason that Sting shouldn't be a full time performer and should be a part time wrestler.
Who should win:
I would much rather see Anderson with the hardware than Sting since it is almost getting sad to see Sting perform at the level he has been lately.
Who creative will pick:
The winner to the Angle/Jarrett match will effect who will win this match and hopefully the creative staff is actually thinking ahead for once. It also seems TNA is preping Sting/Hogan, which should get a wonder turnout in the Springfield Retirement Home.
My final pick:
I am going to pick Anderson to win the title. I think they need a change at the top of the helm and I think Anderson getting the title is the best route to go in. I love what Sting back in the day, but seeing him out there is almost kinda sad. Of course, your probably wondering how Anderson will win if he is dead? Well, I am sure TNA will pull something out of their ass. I mean, they have done that in the past.
And that is going to do it for the rundown and I hope you enjoyed it. Overall, the card has potentional, but some of these matches didn't have good buildup and I wouldn't be shocked to see this PPV drag or suck. TNA pulled in about average work with their last PPV, and if they can do that with this card, it will at least be a step in the right direction. Then again, everytime this company takes a step in the right direction, they take like 4-5 steps back. Tell me what you thought of my rundown and what YOU think will happen at the PPV. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time.
Mickie James vs Angelina Love for the KO Championship
Some of the worse buildup I have even seen to a match, and to a storyline that makes no sense. You would figure with Winter brainwashing Love that she would use her as a bodyguard to do her bidding, but instead it's the zombie chick who is getting the title shot and not the mastermind of the whole thing. As I wrote in one of my Impact reviews, that would be like Frankenstein's monster controlling and telling Dr. Frankenstein what to do, which would be the total opposite. Since the creative staff wrote for Love to get the title shot, this is basically TNA's way of telling Winter she is not championship material and they have no faith in her to carry the KO division if she won the title. While I will admit her ability isn't up there with that of Tara or Mickie, she is decent enough to make it work. I also don't really see the appeal with Love that much, especially when she has more make up on her face than Bozo the Clown. Don't get me wrong, she is a decent talent, but it just seems like she is always getting championship and title shots every so often. Also something I have mentioned in my Impact reviews, I don't really care for this whole storyline between Winter and Love since it is overly silly and really just comes off as stupid. Come on, she is brainwashed and not ONE person in that company can find a cure or send her to the hospital for help? Yeah I know, more wrestling logic. Not only that, but it also doesn't seem that Mickie cares she has a match coming up against Love. Definitely one of more lazier ideas put together for the PPV and a match I really can't get invested into.
Who should win:
Imagine Love holding the title while still acting like a statue? Looks and sounds stupid right? I think Mickie should win the match.
Who creative will pick:
Creative will either kill the zombie storyline or keep letting it grow. Based on how THIS creative staff does things, I would assume they will continue this storyline and thus Love ends up taking the title.
My final pick:
It isn't really set in stone as who will win this match. Since I cannot stand this zombie storyline, I am going to hope Mickie wins and then she uses a Harry Potter magic wand to reverse the spell on Love and then she attacks Winter. Again, sounds stupid right? Well, that is only because it is.
Crimson vs Samoa Joe
Well, at least there is actually a story with this match and it actually makes sense. Basically, it seems that Joe has become a little jealous of Crimson because he has been labeled the blue chipper and there was a point where he was asked to be that guy and.......well needless to say, Joe certainly has had his ups and downs with the company since. Joe also wants to be the guy who ends the "winning streak" (I write it like that because Crimson has probably only had like ten matches since debuting with the company) because Crimson is trying to chase something Joe acomplished back in the day. I really like this Crimson because he really has a good look that can go pretty far in professional wrestling. He has all the tools, grea look, decent in ring ability, good size, and just seems to have the "It" factor. It really depends if he can cut a decent promo, and if he can do that, he could be the next big thing in pro wrestling. So, it kinda seems like TNA is on the right track with Crimson by having him go over midcard talent (Joe fans, your going to have to come to grips that Joe is basically a midcard player and not a main eventer anymore) and building him up slowly but also making sure people are taking notice. The rivalry hasn't been built up in the best possible way, but it's easy to follow and I think people have a little bit of interest in this match.
Who should win:
Crimson needs to win to keep up the momentium.
Who creative will pick:
I don't think TNA will keep this rivalry going after the PPV, so Crimson is probably on their minds.
My final pick:
I have to pick Crimson to win this match since everything seems to point his way at the moment.
James Storm and Alex Shelley vs British Invasion for the Tag Team Championships
I know I said this earlier in the rundown, but one of the worst buildups to a title match I have ever seen. The Brits made one appearance, and it was via commentary. Do they even care they are getting a title shot? When did they get a title shot? Heck, do they even KNOW they are getting a title shot? Yeah, needless to say, the continuity for this one is all over the place. I have no idea where they are going with all of this at the moment and I even wonder if the Robert Roode injury is legit or just kayfabe. This could be an opportunity for Shelley to turn on Beer Money and maybe start a program with them, but that would be odd since it would become a two on one deal. I am sure the quality of this match will be decent, but don't you think you would be more interested in this match if the Brits actually showed up to confront the challengers? Damn, Eric Bischoff has so much of an ego that he has wrote himself into the X Division feud and also this deal between himself and BM, because as you all know, Bischoff appearing on tv equals ratings.... I almost wondering if TNA just flips the ratings chart upside down just to make themselves believe they are doing well?
Who should win:
I am not even sure who should win or not. This buildup to this match is about as productive as the Virtual Boy.
Who creative will pick:
I think creative has something up their sleeve for this match, at least that is what I am hoping for or else it would make this whole match a complete waste of time.
My final pick:
This one can go eitherway. I just flipped a coin and it appears that I am going with the Brits to win this match.
Matt Morgan vs Scott Steiner
You know what is strange about this feud? When the feud started, it was about trying to determine who deserved a title shot more between the two, but since Angle and Jarrett get the #1 Contender match, it almost makes this possible title confrontation to just a regular feud. Did Morgan and Steiner just forget about the world title? Anyway, this rivalry has almost become just a regular good guy/bad guy feud or really just a feud for Morgan to show he can hang with Steiner since he has been critizing him a lot. I am not sure about this one. This match would have been better if it was at the last PPV because the buildup at that point was decent, but TNA hasn't put enough time nor energy to make people care about this feud one month later. In other words, this feud as almost become a stick of bubble gum after you have chewed it for a while, it has just lost its flavor compared to what it originally was. Now, to be fair, the rumor going around is TNA and Steiner have been at a standstill in terms of contract/money talks, which is why this feud's stock has fallen. Still, it doesn't change the fact that the majority of people have probably lost their interest in this little rivalry.
Who should win:
Morgan is the up and comer while Steiner is the vet, so the vet should help put over the young talent....
Who creative will pick:
However, in TNA Land, they feel the need to have the veterans always win. Come on, this company's champion is 52 years old. That is just crap.
My final pick:
It is hard to tell if this is the blow off feud or if this will be a lenghty feud. I am going to pick Morgan for the time being since it would be kinda ridiculous to keept his feud going.
Abyss vs Kaz vs Brian Kendrick for the X Division Championship
Well, I have to admit this is one of those storylines that is at least keeping me interested in Impact. Basically, Bischoff was trying to rid the X Division and sent in the monster (who is a smart enough monster to read the Art of War, which is odd and cool) to take over the division and destroy it. I know most people don't like this storyline since it is crapping all over the X Division, but at the same time, the X Division hasn't done anything to get me interested in what they bring to the table for a while. With Abyss running a muck, I have become curious to see how this is played out. Both Kaz and Kendrick have decided to be the two main guys to fight for the division. The storyline is still in the early stages, so Abyss needs to win this match. If anyone else wins this match, it instantly ends the storyline and the X Division goes back to being an after thought in TNA.
Who should win:
Abyss needs to win to continue the storyline since this storyline is still fresh.
Who creative will pick:
This creative staff is stupid enough to have one of the other two guys win to kill this storyline.
My final pick:
I am going to pick Abyss to win, and hopefully TNA can find a way to make this storyline more interesting.....I hope.
AJ Styles vs Bully Ray in a Last Man Standing Match
This sadly might be the best feud going on in TNA. The world title feud hasn't had good buildup this month while Kurt and Jarrett has been going on since the dawn of time. This feud is also simple and it is mainly about revenge and respect. Bully took Styles off of tv and now Styles is trying to get back at him, that's all. Why can't TNA have more storylines that are easy to follow and not overcomplicate them? Heck, this feud is also featured some decent dialogue between the two, and I think it is the feud in TNA that I am the most interested in at the moment. Even though I have slammed Bully in the past, who the hell would have thought you would be seeing Bully near the main event? If you would have told me that was the plan, I would have called you insane, but Bully has done well with the gimmick. The gimmick is pretty basic, but yet refreshing in pro wrestling because he is a bully. I like the concept of the character, but I am still not big on Bubba playing the character and it should be used on somebody who didn't perform during the 90s. I am not sure how the quality of the match will go since it is a LMS match and those are either hit and miss.
Who should win:
Really, it can go either way, but since this is most likely the blow off feud, Styles should get the win.
Who creative will pick:
There is a chance this fued will go on afterwords. And yes, this creative staff is stupid enough to possible have this feud going into 2012 and ending in 2013. Let's hope that isn't the case.
My final pick:
This is a tough one since it can go eitherway, so time to flip another coin. I guess I am picking Styles to win this match.
Kurt Angle vs Jeff Jarrett in a #1 Contender's Match
Oh, Jesus tap dancing on a pogostick Christ, do I REALLY have to rundown this match again? You know what, f*** it. I am NOT going into detail on this match again because I have talked about this rivalry enough in the past. To sum it up, Angle and Jarrett have been feuding since October of last year and the feud as gotten so stupid that is has involved MMA, Karen Jarrett, a former wrestler and now a current pornstar in Chyna, custody papers, and s*** falling from the sky. Even the Looney Toons would say you have crossed the line with the slapstick going on with this garbage. TNA is billing this as the Final Battle. Well, I really hope it is because I am sick to death of this feud and it needs to die. Angle's gold medal is on the line for this match, yeah?
Who should win:
Please.....PLEASE let Angle win the blow off feud and just move on.
Who creative will pick:
If creative makes Jarrett win via cheating to continue this crap, then I am personally going to have to make a trip to Orlando and tell the staff how I REALLY feel about their product.
My final pick:
I am picking Angle to win just so this ends the feud. If TNA values the sanity of wrestling fans, they will hold true to calling this the Final Battle.
Sting vs Mr. Anderson for the TNA World Championship
Back a few months during the buildup for the LD PPV match, Sting and Anderson were really at each other's throats. The rivalry was really there, which is why at the time I felt the buildup to that match was done decently because you can sense the tension between Sting and Anderson. Fast forward two months later and clearly something has changed. The tension between the two doesn't really seem to be there and it's turning into more of a cartoon more than anything else. Think about it. Instead of Anderson attacking Sting or insulting him, all he is doing to fuel this rivalry is to dress up like old school Sting. Last I checked Anderson, but simply pretending it's Halloween isn't going to completely build up the tension. This is supposed to be for the world title and thus it should be the main focus of the show, but instead it is taking a backseat and you almost forget Anderson and Sting are fighting for the world title. Plus, it really isn't doing any favors when Eric Young of all people is looking more threatening than anyone else during this whole confrontation. This is more of an example of TNA being lazy and not showing any creatitivity since they are having Anderson doing the same thing by doing the old school Sting look. It would be BEYOND stupid if TNA actually had Anderson compete in this match with the Sting get up. Sometimes, TNA needs to really grow up. At least the buildup to this match was done better in the last episode of Impact, but that show ended with Sting murdering Anderson. THERE IS A MURDERER RUNNING AROUND IN TNA!!! Anyway, I am also not expecting much out of the match considering that Sting has looked really bad in some of his title defenses and just seems to be pulling a John Cena by winning in the final minute of the match. To be fair, Sting is battered after years of competition, but that is even more of a reason that Sting shouldn't be a full time performer and should be a part time wrestler.
Who should win:
I would much rather see Anderson with the hardware than Sting since it is almost getting sad to see Sting perform at the level he has been lately.
Who creative will pick:
The winner to the Angle/Jarrett match will effect who will win this match and hopefully the creative staff is actually thinking ahead for once. It also seems TNA is preping Sting/Hogan, which should get a wonder turnout in the Springfield Retirement Home.
My final pick:
I am going to pick Anderson to win the title. I think they need a change at the top of the helm and I think Anderson getting the title is the best route to go in. I love what Sting back in the day, but seeing him out there is almost kinda sad. Of course, your probably wondering how Anderson will win if he is dead? Well, I am sure TNA will pull something out of their ass. I mean, they have done that in the past.
And that is going to do it for the rundown and I hope you enjoyed it. Overall, the card has potentional, but some of these matches didn't have good buildup and I wouldn't be shocked to see this PPV drag or suck. TNA pulled in about average work with their last PPV, and if they can do that with this card, it will at least be a step in the right direction. Then again, everytime this company takes a step in the right direction, they take like 4-5 steps back. Tell me what you thought of my rundown and what YOU think will happen at the PPV. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time.
Friday, June 10, 2011
WrestlingNerd Presents: TNA Impact Wrestling Review 6/9/11
What is up wrestling fans, I am the WrestlingNerd bringing you another written review. Today, we take a look at TNA Impact Wrestling on 6/9/11. With the Slam PPV coming up this Sunday, how would TNA hype it up on the go home edition of Impact? Well, let's find out and start the review.
We open up the show with Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff. Before I get into that, they showed highlights of last week's events. I probably should have brought this up last week, but what kind of executive in a business suit tells their client "You got served"? Is this a wrestling show or a music video? Oh, that's right, wrestling matters here follks....Anyway, Hogan gloats about the fact that Mick Foley is fired. Both Hogan and Bischoff state they want to make things fair in TNA since they are aware that "The Network" can get involved again and Hogan vows things will be fair (Anyone else calling bs on this statement?). They call out both Mr. Anderson and Sting. Both guys come out, and luckly Anderson has stopped with the whole Sting get up. Hogan informs both guys their title match will be fair because there won't be any shenangians or interference and it will be a clean match (wink, wink?). Anderson says he has be acting like Sting so he can mock him. He also says Sting is a lier and a joke. Sting retialiates by saying he won't lose to Anderson because he cannot afford to lose because he is under the impression that him being champion keeps Hogan and Bischoff at bay (You could probably argue if Hogan and Bischoff had this much of a problem with Sting, they should just fire him. Of course, that is when "The Network" will probably come back and we are back to where we started.). Sting also confronts Hogan and tells him this little war between the two of them will end in two ways. Either H & B will continue down their path and Sting will be there to confront them, or Hogan becomes a good guy again (are they doing a shoot promo now?). Sting ends the scene by saying Bischoff is a cancer and Hogan should cut him off. Overall, a strange way to open up the show. I guess people are wondering when Foley will appear on tv again, and you might not want to hold your breath. It was reported during the weekend that Foley asked for his release from TNA and it appears he is no longer associated with the company. So, I guess when I was writing last week's review that I was correct to assume that Foley was indeed done with the company. See, it is this type of thing that keeps TNA from becoming a major factor in pro wrestling when they keep doing stuff a second or third rate company would do by putting a guy in a big roll with the company who had no intentions of resigning another contract to stay. I guess with the opening that the whole idea of "The Network" is kinda dead, but I guess it can come about again if Hogan gets a little out of control with power in TNA.....either that or TNA actually gets their thumbs out of their asses and actually lays out all of their options for the next rep of "The Network" this time around. It's things like this that almost show why TNA isn't ready to be a big factor in pro wrestling when there is so much more they need to fix in order to be considered a threat. It was finally satisfying to see Anderson ACT like Anderson and not do the Sting deal anymore. They built up the world title match in a fair way....until Sting completely changed his focus to Hogan again. Thanks TNA for reminding me old guys only think about themselves in this company and don't care about younger or in their prime talent. Come on, nobody wants to see Sting and Hogan do their rivalry again. Lord knows that Sting can barely perform at this point and Hogan can barely walk down the ramp these days. At this point, I really can't see the direction the company is going in because of the whole mess with Foley asking to leave the company and it also appears that the creative staff is still thinking of some ideas. Well, we better move on with the rest of the review or else we could be on this topic and how it doesn't make any sense all day long. By the way, did anyone else find it funny when Hogan mentioned the only thing about the company that has changed is the name? He is right because it is still the same stuff. Same creative staff, same wrestlers, same confusing storylines, stuff that makes no sense, and plotholes up the ass. Well, at least he is self aware.
Match #1: Winter and Angelina Love vs Mickie James and Tara
The match was fair, for KO standards, but still nothing worth watching. The finish comes when Madison Rayne takes out Tara during the match. With the slight hestitation from Mickie, this allows Love to hit a finisher on her for the clean win. This company's slogan should be, where wrestling matters, and so do zombie chicks. Has anyone else been noticing Impact opening up with a KO match the majority of the time? Just something i've been noticing lately.
Winner via pinfall: Winter and Angelina Love
There was a quick backstage scene with Beer Money and Alex Shelley where Robert Roode was giving them a pep talk. Another backstage scene where Mexican America (Yes, they still work here. Seriously, how many times does TNA just have people disappear for weeks or months and then they just show up out of nowhere and act like everything is normal?) say they deserve a tag title shot and aren't getting anything because they are Mexican. You know what is strange? They actually have a argument. They actually competed at the last PPV and beat a tag team while British Invasion has been a ghost for the last two months and all of the sudden get a title shot? Clearly, something got mixed up in the script. Oh, and now for some of the worst camera shots in the world. In some random bar in God knows where (Thanks TNA for telling the audience where this actually took place. I guess we are to assume it took place in Orlando), a brawl breaks out between Samoa Joe and Crimson. This was some of the worst brawling and camera work I have ever seen. I realize TNA was going for a modern day reaction since they are "claiming" that some random guy posted this on the internet, but I really don't buy that since it seems more like a work that TNA did. I realize it was suppose to be a cell phone, but couldn't they get a better phone with better quality? Not only that, but was this filmed during an thunderstorm? Seriously, 90% of the brawl was in total darkness. If this was actually some random fan, then I suppose it is ok, but if this is TNA's work, this just further proves how lazy this company is. How many times in pro wrestling have you seen on location scenes with some good lighting and camera work? Well, TNA doesn't belive it that since they want to go with more of a "real" image, but it just comes off as crap. This does add fuel to the feud, but make sure next time people can actually see the feud, because when you see this video, it just comes off as half assed. By the way, that is how they continue to buildup to this rivalry for this week. We never once hear from Joe or Crimson and they never make an appearance tonight. What a load. I guess we had to make room for backstage scene #190864290 instead of getting a follow up.
Match #2: Mexican America vs James Storm and Alex Shelley
Seriously, Anarquia has been watching way too many Cheech & Chong movies. The Brits are on commentary and......WOW....the Brits actually show up? I guess they finally got out of the Impact Witness Protection Program. Magnus was on the headset while Douglas Williams was just watching the action. Magnus was actually kinda funny on the headset and added something that has really been missing when Tazz and Tenay are calling the action. There was some miscommunication between Shelley and Storm since they both have different wrestling backgrounds. This kind of thing would have been nice to see if they decide to make this match around a month ago. That way, we get the proper buildup between the contrasting differences between Storm and Shelley. Instead, TNA is having to put this in fast forward mode and isn't getting the buildup that it should. Storm had the match when he hit the Backstabber, but Sarita and Rosita distract the ref and thus the match continues. The finish comes when shenangians are coming from left and right, and finally Shelley attempts a Super Kick on a Mex American member, but hits Storm and Mex American takes out Shelley and picks up the bones to win the match. The match was nothing special, and I think the only thing resembeling entertainment so far was Magnus on commentary. I just thought of something. Why wouldn't BM select Daniels since he is a member of 4Tune? Do they not trust their own stable anymore?
Winner via pinfall: Mexican America
Backstage scene where Anderson and Gunner talk about taking out Sting. Can we have Gunner say more than five words? Seriously, this guy has a good look and I want to see if he can cut a promo or not. We also get a very strange backstage scene where Mexican America confront Hogan in wanting a title shot. Hogan tells them to shut up and let him do things his own way. Mex America walk away, but are clearly not happy about Hogan's response. Ok, so this doesn't make any sense. Why would Hogan, who has been playing a heel for quite a while, start acting like a good guy and deny the heels in this case? I guess Hogan is trying to keep true to his words in trying to make this a fair show so he can avoid dealing with "The Network", but it still doesn't add up. This looks like a scene that was written for Foley instead of Hogan. This was definitely one of the stranger scenes that I saw tonight. Ok, after more Kurt Angle/Jeff Jarrett buildup by the production staff, we are joined by both of them in the ring for a verbal debate. Jarrett talks about how he stepped aside to let Angle be the star of the company way back when he signed him to TNA, but claims that Angle grew a massive ego and became a jackass since he started embarassing Jarrett as a performer. Jarrett figured to do everything in his power to make Angle lose everything and become a better wrestler than him. Angle says all he ever wanted was a 1 on 1 match and claimed even though he feels bad for Karen, it is Jeff's fault because she should have never been involved. This was actually a pretty decent promo by both guys. See, why couldn't this whole rivalry be just about these two guys and not add stupid s*** like MMA, custody papers, Karen, and pornstars? Just shows when you break it down, this could have been a good feud. Only if TNA didn't add so much bulls*** to this rivalry.
Bully Ray comes out and issues an open challenge. He also critizes AJ Styles. He says he will accept any challenge.....OTHER than Devon. We hear the worst entrance music in the world, meaning RVD has accepted the challenge.
Match #3: RVD vs Bully Ray
The audience was almost dead for this match. Bully was completely in control for this match. Wow, was RVD having to job to Bully? Have to admit, I never thought I would be seeing that. The finish comes when we notice that Styles is in the audience. Bully notices this and is distracted by Styles. This allows for RVD to get a breather and he eventually hits like two moves. Seriously, two strikes and a Frogsplash later, RVD has one the match. The match was very short and it almost didn't make any sense considering that RVD had so much difficulty against Bully. I guess it is understandable since the rivalry is between Styles and Bully and RVD has nothing to do with it.
Winner via pinfall: RVD
Backstage scene where Kaz and Brian Kendrick are searching for Abyss and are carrying Janice with them. They find Abyss and this makes him quote more Art of War crap. Remember, because this is where Wrestling Matters. He also says the X Division is dead and claims the belt is called the Extreme Championship (Can Vince McMahon sue for something like this?). He issues a Three Way match for the belt at Slam and I guess we are to assume that Kaz and Kendrick accepted the challenge. Once Abyss leaves, Kaz calls Abyss an idiot for putting himself in a disadvantage while Kendrick claims he is a poet. There are times where Kendrick is straight forward, but also times where he says some really stupid stuff. Why would he be praising Abyss? This guy is the one responsible for your division being in life support and your praising him? That would be like Kirby saying thanks to King Dedede for stealing all of the food. Makes no sense right? Well, that is because it doesn't.
Match #4: ODB vs Velvet Sky
Tenay informs the people watching that ODB doesn't have a contract. This just blows my mind since you would have figured "The Network" or Hogan would seem to have a problem with random people walking in and demanding matches. I know, more wrestling logic since in reality, she probably has a contract. Then again, knowing TNA, I wouldn't be shocked she is just getting paid for every appearance. Before the match started, Sky attacked ODB on the entrance ramp. It appears Sky has the advantage, but ODB eventually takes control. After awhile, they are finally in the ring and the match has started. This match SUUUCCCKKKKEEEDDD!!! I think it was the longest match of the night and it really dragged. Yeah, wrestling matters so much that the KOs make the longest matches. Not only that, but the early going of this match was just nothing but punching, more of that please? The ending to this match was completely stupid. ODB has this match in control, but Sky sneaks a DDT and wins the match. Does TNA even know how to book a feud? It would have made more sense for ODB to win to continue the feud, but with Sky magically pulling this out of her ass, it almost makes this feud over. Not to mention that ODB has just been destroying Sky, but can't handle a DDT? Plus, Sky has shown no fight with ODB, but somehow wins the match? I really have no idea what TNA is trying to do here. Maybe we should start calling her Velvet Cena based on tonight's performance.
Winner via pinfall: Velvet Sky
Backstage scene of Sting trying to get Eric Young on the same page, but he continues with the comedy routine. Sting gets angry and tells him to ditch the comedy and actually get serious. I guess Sting wasn't paying attention when Young got the concussion, since based on the kayfabe of this show, Young is acting goofy because of the concussion. Damn, you would have figured the concussion would have gone away at this point? Then again, more wrestling logic. How else can you explain Goldust still stuttering when talking for years in the WWE? Oh, and they showed more highlights of Devon and Pope continuing their rivalry over on Explosion. Wow......what an exciting concept. What a cheap method to get people to check out your online show when nobody cares about these two anymore. Seriously, you might as well grant Pope his release if your going to be showcasing him what is TNA's version of WWE Superstars.
Match #5: Mr. Anderson and Gunner vs Sting and Eric Young
What a disappointing match. I looked at the clock and figured this would be a 15 minute match, but I think the damn introductions by Jeremy Borash took longer than the actual match. Thanks for pulling another Jeff Hardy, Impact. The finish comes when Young gets pushed into Sting by Gunner, which forces a tag. Gunner takes advantage of this and hits his finisher and wins the match. Wow, so Gunner can beat Sting, but can't be Young? Ain't that a bitch? I was really disappointed with this match because there was still 10 minutes on the clock, and this was supposed to be the main event? This was almost false advertising by TNA.
Winner via pinfall: Mr. Anderson and Gunner
After the match, you can see Young celebrating like an idiot. He actually runs over to Sting to celebrate, but Sting is angry and pushes him. Well, at least they seem to be holding true to the kayfabe storyline of Young having a concussion, because if they ditched it and started having Young act normal, it really wouldn't have made any sense. After a commercial and because Wrestling Matters, we are now having a round of reactions for people over tonight's event. Sting and Young are backstage and Sting continues to tell Young to stop with the comedy while Young is confused thinking they won the match. Sting leaves him and heads towards his locker room and picked up some face paint and seems to be on a quest. We see reactions between Styles and Bully as well. Also stuff with Anderson gloating about the fact Sting just lost to Gunner. During this interview, you see screen shots of Sting on the pursuit of Anderson. Finally, Sting has found Anderson and he runs into his trailor. Sting gets in there and it appears that Anderson has the upper hand, but Sting fights back and takes him down. He grabs the face paint and proceeds to give himself a Joker face with the red lips, while pouring red face paint all over Anderson. Sting then proceeds to choke out Hellboy and the show ends with Anderson down on the ground. Did Sting just kill Anderson? Seriously, Anderson isn't moving. Sting killed him. STING KILLED HIM!!! There is a murderer running around on tv!!! Ok, joking aside, I wasn't a big fan of how the show ended. I really don't like these interviews to end the show. It might have worked in the original ECW, but this just comes off as half assed since this company is saying wrestling matters, but doesn't seem to show enough of it. I wouldn't be surprised if the entire wrestling time for Impact this week was shorter than Raw's two longest matches this week.
Overall Impression:
Not a good showing by Impact this week, but it's somehow awesome compared to last week's Impact. There was not one match that really stuck out as a decent wrestling match. It is almost embarassing to say the best match was probably the Mex American match, and that one was a mess. There was a couple of moments that I enjoyed, like when Magnus was on commentary or the promo between Angle and Jarrett. Heck, I would go even further to say this show needed more Magnus on commentary because his commentary was almost a breath of fresh air compared to what was going around. Plus, I think it would have been awesome to hear his thoughts about all of the other crap that is going around on Impact. This was not a good edition for Impact heading into their PPV. They did build up the card, but not in the most apporpriate way possible. We had one more match announced for the PPV in the Triple Theat for the X Divisoin title, but why couldn't they have a in ring conflict as opposed to a crappy backstage scene? After tonight's showing, I don't think anyone is excited for Slam based on the buildup and the actual card, but I will dig into that more on the Rundown. Just a lot of examples tonight as to why TNA still needs a lot of work before we can start to think of them as a competator to the WWE. I almost wonder if Impact is climbing a mountain they will never be able to reach? Well, that is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's show. I am going to try to watch SD this week, but a SD review won't happen since I got a lot on my plate for the upcoming weekend. The Slam Rundown is almost complete, so that should be coming out. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time, and let's have Optimus sum up my feelings of this week's show....
We open up the show with Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff. Before I get into that, they showed highlights of last week's events. I probably should have brought this up last week, but what kind of executive in a business suit tells their client "You got served"? Is this a wrestling show or a music video? Oh, that's right, wrestling matters here follks....Anyway, Hogan gloats about the fact that Mick Foley is fired. Both Hogan and Bischoff state they want to make things fair in TNA since they are aware that "The Network" can get involved again and Hogan vows things will be fair (Anyone else calling bs on this statement?). They call out both Mr. Anderson and Sting. Both guys come out, and luckly Anderson has stopped with the whole Sting get up. Hogan informs both guys their title match will be fair because there won't be any shenangians or interference and it will be a clean match (wink, wink?). Anderson says he has be acting like Sting so he can mock him. He also says Sting is a lier and a joke. Sting retialiates by saying he won't lose to Anderson because he cannot afford to lose because he is under the impression that him being champion keeps Hogan and Bischoff at bay (You could probably argue if Hogan and Bischoff had this much of a problem with Sting, they should just fire him. Of course, that is when "The Network" will probably come back and we are back to where we started.). Sting also confronts Hogan and tells him this little war between the two of them will end in two ways. Either H & B will continue down their path and Sting will be there to confront them, or Hogan becomes a good guy again (are they doing a shoot promo now?). Sting ends the scene by saying Bischoff is a cancer and Hogan should cut him off. Overall, a strange way to open up the show. I guess people are wondering when Foley will appear on tv again, and you might not want to hold your breath. It was reported during the weekend that Foley asked for his release from TNA and it appears he is no longer associated with the company. So, I guess when I was writing last week's review that I was correct to assume that Foley was indeed done with the company. See, it is this type of thing that keeps TNA from becoming a major factor in pro wrestling when they keep doing stuff a second or third rate company would do by putting a guy in a big roll with the company who had no intentions of resigning another contract to stay. I guess with the opening that the whole idea of "The Network" is kinda dead, but I guess it can come about again if Hogan gets a little out of control with power in TNA.....either that or TNA actually gets their thumbs out of their asses and actually lays out all of their options for the next rep of "The Network" this time around. It's things like this that almost show why TNA isn't ready to be a big factor in pro wrestling when there is so much more they need to fix in order to be considered a threat. It was finally satisfying to see Anderson ACT like Anderson and not do the Sting deal anymore. They built up the world title match in a fair way....until Sting completely changed his focus to Hogan again. Thanks TNA for reminding me old guys only think about themselves in this company and don't care about younger or in their prime talent. Come on, nobody wants to see Sting and Hogan do their rivalry again. Lord knows that Sting can barely perform at this point and Hogan can barely walk down the ramp these days. At this point, I really can't see the direction the company is going in because of the whole mess with Foley asking to leave the company and it also appears that the creative staff is still thinking of some ideas. Well, we better move on with the rest of the review or else we could be on this topic and how it doesn't make any sense all day long. By the way, did anyone else find it funny when Hogan mentioned the only thing about the company that has changed is the name? He is right because it is still the same stuff. Same creative staff, same wrestlers, same confusing storylines, stuff that makes no sense, and plotholes up the ass. Well, at least he is self aware.
Match #1: Winter and Angelina Love vs Mickie James and Tara
The match was fair, for KO standards, but still nothing worth watching. The finish comes when Madison Rayne takes out Tara during the match. With the slight hestitation from Mickie, this allows Love to hit a finisher on her for the clean win. This company's slogan should be, where wrestling matters, and so do zombie chicks. Has anyone else been noticing Impact opening up with a KO match the majority of the time? Just something i've been noticing lately.
Winner via pinfall: Winter and Angelina Love
There was a quick backstage scene with Beer Money and Alex Shelley where Robert Roode was giving them a pep talk. Another backstage scene where Mexican America (Yes, they still work here. Seriously, how many times does TNA just have people disappear for weeks or months and then they just show up out of nowhere and act like everything is normal?) say they deserve a tag title shot and aren't getting anything because they are Mexican. You know what is strange? They actually have a argument. They actually competed at the last PPV and beat a tag team while British Invasion has been a ghost for the last two months and all of the sudden get a title shot? Clearly, something got mixed up in the script. Oh, and now for some of the worst camera shots in the world. In some random bar in God knows where (Thanks TNA for telling the audience where this actually took place. I guess we are to assume it took place in Orlando), a brawl breaks out between Samoa Joe and Crimson. This was some of the worst brawling and camera work I have ever seen. I realize TNA was going for a modern day reaction since they are "claiming" that some random guy posted this on the internet, but I really don't buy that since it seems more like a work that TNA did. I realize it was suppose to be a cell phone, but couldn't they get a better phone with better quality? Not only that, but was this filmed during an thunderstorm? Seriously, 90% of the brawl was in total darkness. If this was actually some random fan, then I suppose it is ok, but if this is TNA's work, this just further proves how lazy this company is. How many times in pro wrestling have you seen on location scenes with some good lighting and camera work? Well, TNA doesn't belive it that since they want to go with more of a "real" image, but it just comes off as crap. This does add fuel to the feud, but make sure next time people can actually see the feud, because when you see this video, it just comes off as half assed. By the way, that is how they continue to buildup to this rivalry for this week. We never once hear from Joe or Crimson and they never make an appearance tonight. What a load. I guess we had to make room for backstage scene #190864290 instead of getting a follow up.
Match #2: Mexican America vs James Storm and Alex Shelley
Seriously, Anarquia has been watching way too many Cheech & Chong movies. The Brits are on commentary and......WOW....the Brits actually show up? I guess they finally got out of the Impact Witness Protection Program. Magnus was on the headset while Douglas Williams was just watching the action. Magnus was actually kinda funny on the headset and added something that has really been missing when Tazz and Tenay are calling the action. There was some miscommunication between Shelley and Storm since they both have different wrestling backgrounds. This kind of thing would have been nice to see if they decide to make this match around a month ago. That way, we get the proper buildup between the contrasting differences between Storm and Shelley. Instead, TNA is having to put this in fast forward mode and isn't getting the buildup that it should. Storm had the match when he hit the Backstabber, but Sarita and Rosita distract the ref and thus the match continues. The finish comes when shenangians are coming from left and right, and finally Shelley attempts a Super Kick on a Mex American member, but hits Storm and Mex American takes out Shelley and picks up the bones to win the match. The match was nothing special, and I think the only thing resembeling entertainment so far was Magnus on commentary. I just thought of something. Why wouldn't BM select Daniels since he is a member of 4Tune? Do they not trust their own stable anymore?
Winner via pinfall: Mexican America
Backstage scene where Anderson and Gunner talk about taking out Sting. Can we have Gunner say more than five words? Seriously, this guy has a good look and I want to see if he can cut a promo or not. We also get a very strange backstage scene where Mexican America confront Hogan in wanting a title shot. Hogan tells them to shut up and let him do things his own way. Mex America walk away, but are clearly not happy about Hogan's response. Ok, so this doesn't make any sense. Why would Hogan, who has been playing a heel for quite a while, start acting like a good guy and deny the heels in this case? I guess Hogan is trying to keep true to his words in trying to make this a fair show so he can avoid dealing with "The Network", but it still doesn't add up. This looks like a scene that was written for Foley instead of Hogan. This was definitely one of the stranger scenes that I saw tonight. Ok, after more Kurt Angle/Jeff Jarrett buildup by the production staff, we are joined by both of them in the ring for a verbal debate. Jarrett talks about how he stepped aside to let Angle be the star of the company way back when he signed him to TNA, but claims that Angle grew a massive ego and became a jackass since he started embarassing Jarrett as a performer. Jarrett figured to do everything in his power to make Angle lose everything and become a better wrestler than him. Angle says all he ever wanted was a 1 on 1 match and claimed even though he feels bad for Karen, it is Jeff's fault because she should have never been involved. This was actually a pretty decent promo by both guys. See, why couldn't this whole rivalry be just about these two guys and not add stupid s*** like MMA, custody papers, Karen, and pornstars? Just shows when you break it down, this could have been a good feud. Only if TNA didn't add so much bulls*** to this rivalry.
Bully Ray comes out and issues an open challenge. He also critizes AJ Styles. He says he will accept any challenge.....OTHER than Devon. We hear the worst entrance music in the world, meaning RVD has accepted the challenge.
Match #3: RVD vs Bully Ray
The audience was almost dead for this match. Bully was completely in control for this match. Wow, was RVD having to job to Bully? Have to admit, I never thought I would be seeing that. The finish comes when we notice that Styles is in the audience. Bully notices this and is distracted by Styles. This allows for RVD to get a breather and he eventually hits like two moves. Seriously, two strikes and a Frogsplash later, RVD has one the match. The match was very short and it almost didn't make any sense considering that RVD had so much difficulty against Bully. I guess it is understandable since the rivalry is between Styles and Bully and RVD has nothing to do with it.
Winner via pinfall: RVD
Backstage scene where Kaz and Brian Kendrick are searching for Abyss and are carrying Janice with them. They find Abyss and this makes him quote more Art of War crap. Remember, because this is where Wrestling Matters. He also says the X Division is dead and claims the belt is called the Extreme Championship (Can Vince McMahon sue for something like this?). He issues a Three Way match for the belt at Slam and I guess we are to assume that Kaz and Kendrick accepted the challenge. Once Abyss leaves, Kaz calls Abyss an idiot for putting himself in a disadvantage while Kendrick claims he is a poet. There are times where Kendrick is straight forward, but also times where he says some really stupid stuff. Why would he be praising Abyss? This guy is the one responsible for your division being in life support and your praising him? That would be like Kirby saying thanks to King Dedede for stealing all of the food. Makes no sense right? Well, that is because it doesn't.
Match #4: ODB vs Velvet Sky
Tenay informs the people watching that ODB doesn't have a contract. This just blows my mind since you would have figured "The Network" or Hogan would seem to have a problem with random people walking in and demanding matches. I know, more wrestling logic since in reality, she probably has a contract. Then again, knowing TNA, I wouldn't be shocked she is just getting paid for every appearance. Before the match started, Sky attacked ODB on the entrance ramp. It appears Sky has the advantage, but ODB eventually takes control. After awhile, they are finally in the ring and the match has started. This match SUUUCCCKKKKEEEDDD!!! I think it was the longest match of the night and it really dragged. Yeah, wrestling matters so much that the KOs make the longest matches. Not only that, but the early going of this match was just nothing but punching, more of that please? The ending to this match was completely stupid. ODB has this match in control, but Sky sneaks a DDT and wins the match. Does TNA even know how to book a feud? It would have made more sense for ODB to win to continue the feud, but with Sky magically pulling this out of her ass, it almost makes this feud over. Not to mention that ODB has just been destroying Sky, but can't handle a DDT? Plus, Sky has shown no fight with ODB, but somehow wins the match? I really have no idea what TNA is trying to do here. Maybe we should start calling her Velvet Cena based on tonight's performance.
Winner via pinfall: Velvet Sky
Backstage scene of Sting trying to get Eric Young on the same page, but he continues with the comedy routine. Sting gets angry and tells him to ditch the comedy and actually get serious. I guess Sting wasn't paying attention when Young got the concussion, since based on the kayfabe of this show, Young is acting goofy because of the concussion. Damn, you would have figured the concussion would have gone away at this point? Then again, more wrestling logic. How else can you explain Goldust still stuttering when talking for years in the WWE? Oh, and they showed more highlights of Devon and Pope continuing their rivalry over on Explosion. Wow......what an exciting concept. What a cheap method to get people to check out your online show when nobody cares about these two anymore. Seriously, you might as well grant Pope his release if your going to be showcasing him what is TNA's version of WWE Superstars.
Match #5: Mr. Anderson and Gunner vs Sting and Eric Young
What a disappointing match. I looked at the clock and figured this would be a 15 minute match, but I think the damn introductions by Jeremy Borash took longer than the actual match. Thanks for pulling another Jeff Hardy, Impact. The finish comes when Young gets pushed into Sting by Gunner, which forces a tag. Gunner takes advantage of this and hits his finisher and wins the match. Wow, so Gunner can beat Sting, but can't be Young? Ain't that a bitch? I was really disappointed with this match because there was still 10 minutes on the clock, and this was supposed to be the main event? This was almost false advertising by TNA.
Winner via pinfall: Mr. Anderson and Gunner
After the match, you can see Young celebrating like an idiot. He actually runs over to Sting to celebrate, but Sting is angry and pushes him. Well, at least they seem to be holding true to the kayfabe storyline of Young having a concussion, because if they ditched it and started having Young act normal, it really wouldn't have made any sense. After a commercial and because Wrestling Matters, we are now having a round of reactions for people over tonight's event. Sting and Young are backstage and Sting continues to tell Young to stop with the comedy while Young is confused thinking they won the match. Sting leaves him and heads towards his locker room and picked up some face paint and seems to be on a quest. We see reactions between Styles and Bully as well. Also stuff with Anderson gloating about the fact Sting just lost to Gunner. During this interview, you see screen shots of Sting on the pursuit of Anderson. Finally, Sting has found Anderson and he runs into his trailor. Sting gets in there and it appears that Anderson has the upper hand, but Sting fights back and takes him down. He grabs the face paint and proceeds to give himself a Joker face with the red lips, while pouring red face paint all over Anderson. Sting then proceeds to choke out Hellboy and the show ends with Anderson down on the ground. Did Sting just kill Anderson? Seriously, Anderson isn't moving. Sting killed him. STING KILLED HIM!!! There is a murderer running around on tv!!! Ok, joking aside, I wasn't a big fan of how the show ended. I really don't like these interviews to end the show. It might have worked in the original ECW, but this just comes off as half assed since this company is saying wrestling matters, but doesn't seem to show enough of it. I wouldn't be surprised if the entire wrestling time for Impact this week was shorter than Raw's two longest matches this week.
Overall Impression:
Not a good showing by Impact this week, but it's somehow awesome compared to last week's Impact. There was not one match that really stuck out as a decent wrestling match. It is almost embarassing to say the best match was probably the Mex American match, and that one was a mess. There was a couple of moments that I enjoyed, like when Magnus was on commentary or the promo between Angle and Jarrett. Heck, I would go even further to say this show needed more Magnus on commentary because his commentary was almost a breath of fresh air compared to what was going around. Plus, I think it would have been awesome to hear his thoughts about all of the other crap that is going around on Impact. This was not a good edition for Impact heading into their PPV. They did build up the card, but not in the most apporpriate way possible. We had one more match announced for the PPV in the Triple Theat for the X Divisoin title, but why couldn't they have a in ring conflict as opposed to a crappy backstage scene? After tonight's showing, I don't think anyone is excited for Slam based on the buildup and the actual card, but I will dig into that more on the Rundown. Just a lot of examples tonight as to why TNA still needs a lot of work before we can start to think of them as a competator to the WWE. I almost wonder if Impact is climbing a mountain they will never be able to reach? Well, that is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's show. I am going to try to watch SD this week, but a SD review won't happen since I got a lot on my plate for the upcoming weekend. The Slam Rundown is almost complete, so that should be coming out. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time, and let's have Optimus sum up my feelings of this week's show....
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
WrestlingNerd Presents: WWE Raw Review 6/6/11
What is up wrestling fans, I am the WrestlingNerd bringing you another written review. Today, we take a look at WWE Raw on 6/6/11. With two weeks until the PPV, how would the WWE build up the card? Well, let's find out and start the review.
We open up the show with the finalist of the Tough Enough class, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Vince McMahon already in the ring. After a lot of buildup, it is determined that Andy is the winner of TE. Personally, I cannot give my thoughts on this matter since I never watched a full episode of TE, so have no idea if people believe they made the right choice or not. I will say based on the look, I think Andy was the best choice since he looks like a wrestler while Luke looked too much like a pretty boy and was trying to pull off the Tyson Kidd look. After the high fives for winning the contest, the WWE higher ups greet Andy by having Vince slap him in the face and Austin hitting a Stunner. It is funny how everyone booed when Vince slapped him, but when Austin attacks him, then it's ok. Congrats go out to Andy, but believe me, your journey hasn't even started yet. Once Andy leaves, R-Truth comes out in a confederate uniform and acting like a solider. Yeah...needless to say, but this was really over the top and kinda funny. He informs the audience he needs to apologize for harassing Wayne Brady's less talented brother in order to get his title match. After that, he says that he "secedes" from the WWE Universe while making fun of Virginia (Technically, don't all heels "secede" from the audience since they continue to mock them and seem to enjoy it?). Truth also calls out Vince for this conspiracy of keeping him down. Vince and Austin have a discussion about office hours and junk until the Miz interrupts. He says he should still be the WWE Champion, but it is Alex Riley's fault. A-Ri shows up and says the Miz deserves nothing. Since there are three current wrestlers in the ring, you should have figured who was going to come out next. That is right, John Cena shows up next. He goes to say the Miz screwed up, Riley finally grew a set, and Truth is still insane (I will admit that Cena's line towards Austin is running out of beers was pretty funny). He adds that Truth gets his title shot at CP until the Raw GM interrupts. Michael Cole is about to read the email until Vince tells him to shut up and he will make the matches. He says it will be Truth and Miz vs Cena and Riley, with SCSA as the special guest referee. This finally ends the segment, but I was curious if anyone caught the verbel conflict between Cena and Austin before they went to a commercial? It most likely is nothing, but I thought it was kinda cool. Overall, a long, but interesting opening to the show. There was a lot of stuff and interaction going on, but sometimes, that is ok if you are able to keep people interested. Heck, we even got to go down nostalgia route when Vince and Austin were exchanging words with each other. It is clear that Austin doesn't give a s*** about the PG rating because he is dropping bombs left and right. I think he managed to sneak a bulls*** in there as well. Truth's character is so insane and over the top right now, but it is making himself stand out. Which is why I think the heel turn was the best move for him. It isn't really clear if Truth/Cena is going to be a longterm deal or just a mini-feud, but it will be interesting to see how the match goes and what they decide to do.
Match #1: Santino vs Michael McGillicutty
Kozlov and David Otunga were at ringside for this match. The match was ok for what it was worth. The finish comes when Michael misses his attack...
This allows for Santino to sneak the Cobra in and wins the match. I would normally complain in how this makes the current champs look bad losing to a comedy character, but I suppose they need to have Nexus go over a tag team, and I guess this was the best choice over on Raw. I really wish WWE would put a little more energy into tag team wrestling. I know it really isn't a draw and casual fans don't really care for tag team wrestling, but you can at least make it a little competitive from time to time. I just feel that tag team wrestling has really been dead for over the last decade. Heck, even TNA is guilty of the same thing recently since the main feud for the tag division has to do with a group who isn't even on screen and seems to be more about Eric Bischoff than anything else. Anyway, I wouldn't be surprised to see a tag title match at the PPV between these two teams.
Winner via pinfall: Santino
Match #2: Kelly Kelly and Beth Phoenix vs Bella Twins
The match is about what you would expect. The finish comes when Phoenix hits the Glam Slam on a Bella and wins the match. They seem to be testing Phoenix going after the title. This was probably the best route they could have gone since Phoenix is doing nothing and the Bellas need to drop the title because they aren't very good heels. Still, this division is quickly on life support since Kharma isn't around.
Winner via pinfall: Kelly Kelly and Beth Phoenix
Backstage scene between Booker T and Trish Stratus. Book purposes a new move called the Trish-a-roonie, which sounds like something Quagmire from Family Guy thought of on a Saturday night. They are both about to attempt it (in a small room mind you, which would never work since you would probably end up kicking furniture. Another example of wrestling logic since you had to figure someone was going to interrupt the segment) until Jack Swagger comes in to cut them off. He tells Book he would be a better trainer since everybody would have been tough enough with Swagger as the coach. He challenges Booker to a match later tonight, to which Booker accepts. Yeah, so we have a Booker match later tonight, which is kinda cool.
Match #3: CM Punk vs Rey Mysterio
Prior to this match, Punk cut a promo saying how Rey is weak and how Punk is great because he keeps giving Rey second chances and how he has beat him 600 times, which isn't as epic as....OVER 9000!!! After the commercial, the match is underway. This matchup wasn't as good as last week's match between the two, but it was watchable. I noticed Cole made an error on commentary when he called a certain lock that Punk made the Anaconda Vice. I am absolutly sure that was NOT the Anaconda Vice and just a regular lock. Speaking of which, I really wish WWE would let Punk use that submission move more often. The finish comes when Rey is setting up for the 619, but Mason Ryan gets on the ring apron. Rey decides to pick Punk up and springboard off the opposite ropes and dropkick right into Ryan, and with the momentium of the kick, land a DDT on Punk (It was kinda crazy and me explaining it probably just confused the hell out of you. Go check it out for yourself and you will understand what happened). He then hits the Top Rope Splash for the clean win. This basically evens the odds between Punk and Mysterio and assures there will be another match between the two, probably at the PPV. I am thinking that this is mainly a mini-feud to keep Punk fresh since he can jump in the title bout at any second now, which goes back to the whole deal if Cena/Truth is a short term or long term feud. I really don't see Punk and Mysterio having a long feud and it will probably be over at the end of the month, and hopefully Punk can win the feud this time around since he needs it more than Rey.
Winner via pinfall: Rey Mysterio
More CP buildup, but this time they had Truth asking some "questions" to the President. Truth ends the segment by getting angry when Obama said something about boats. But I am on a boat bitch? Oh, and the WCW Monday Nitro DVD is on sale Tuesday. Say what you will about WCW, but the company did have some positive moments. There will also be a 3 hour Raw next week, and they seem to be going with an All Star theme for the event. All I will say that if the full three hours is the superstars playing the WWE All Star video game, I will be super pissed. Speaking of video games, I know this is completely off topic right now, but go Nintendo at E3.
We are back from commercial and Alberto Del Rio is there. He says once again the attack on Big Show was an accident ans says he would like to "apologize" to Show. He calls him out, but what shows up is Ricardo Rodriguez in a Show get up with crutches and eating food (I didn't even realize it was Rodriguez until he ripped off the bald cap at the end). He reminds Showcardo that he must pay for the damages to his car while he is making grunting noises to mock Show...
He also tells Show to NOT make enemies with him because bad things happen to bad people. Really, this was just more buildup to the future rivalry between Del Rio and Show, so there really isn't anything else to add.
Match #4: Kofi Kingston vs Zack Ryder
What? Ryder actually wrestles on this show? Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero were on commentary for this match. The match didn't last long, but it was ok for the time they were given. The match ended when Kofi hit the TIP for the clean win while Ziggler is claiming he will be the next US Champion. Kinda funny that Ziggler went from going after the WHC to now downgrading to the US title now, but I think midcard is where he belongs. I thought it was very interesting that Cole and Ziggler plugged Ryder's online show. Not sure if this was done intentially to get people to check out Ryder or if it was a mistake by Cole. I personally don't watch Ryder's show and I really don't have any intentions of watching it at this moment, but plans can always change. I am sure I am going to get speeches from the IWC saying how great Ryder. Lately, I have been noticing the IWC really getting behind Ryder for some reason. Personally, I am not really that interested in Ryder because of the stupid gimmick, but I have to give the guy credit for at least trying to roll with the gimmick to get himself a fanbase. He should at least be competing more throughout the week.
Match #5: Jack Swagger vs Booker T
Booker can definitely still go in the ring. I really don't want to see Booker have a big wrestling roll with the company, but it would be nice to see him put on a match every now and then. Anyway, he is pretty much taking Swagger to school until Swagger leaves the ring and decides to give Booker the match and claims he doesn't need this. In other words, Book wins the match via countout. I guess they didn't want to have Booker lose to Swagger cleanly and probably didn't want Booker to make current talent look bad, so I understand the booking in this situation. After the match, Evan Bourne shows up to attack Swagger from behind, which forces him back in the ring. Booker and Bourne double team Swagger. Once Bourne hits Air Bourne on Swagger, the segment ends with both Booker and Bourne doing a double spin-a-roonie. At the moment, the only way I see Bourne winning this feud with Swagger is if it leads towards Swagger going on a losing streak. If that were to happen, it could lead to Swagger changing his ways and thus ends up making a face turn. If that isn't the case, I mainly see Swagger winning this feud for the time being. The match itself was nothing special, but this whole scene was pretty entertaining and I liked it.
Winner via countout: Booker T
Match #6: R-Truth and Miz vs John Cena and Alex Riley
This was not a bad match. Is anyone else a little offput when King and Cole act like decent friends while on commentary but then exchange insults seconds after laughing together? It is just weird is all. The finish comes when everyone is laid out. Cena and Miz are down in the ring and Riley grabs the briefcase. He looks over to see which one to hit, but eventually hits Miz with the case. What was funny is SCSA clearly sees this and doesn't seem to care. Then again, with Austin's character, he would definitely let this slide since he and Miz had a disagreement during the match. The faces continue on the attack as Austin hits the Stunner on Miz, and Cena follows up with AA on Miz (Damn, Miz had a rough night....and possibly even a rougher night ahead based on various reports). Cena pins him and the match is over. Austin now wants to celebrate with some beer. I don't know why, but seeing Cena drink a beer just seems odd. Cena just looks like the guy who really wouldn't be much of a beer drinker. Then again, if he would have refused the beer, Austin would have probably stunned him. It is your choice Cena, beer or stunner? Yeah.....I would probably take the beer as well. During the celebration, the Raw GM interrupts. Cole says that since Austin got involved in the match, he is issuing a DQ to both Cena and Riley, and thus rewards Truth and Miz the victory. He also tells Austin he will be the special guest GM next week. Austin ask the audience if they want him to do so, and once the "Hell Yeahs" make there way out, Austin goes over to Cole. He pushes the laptop to the ground and proceeds to deck Cole in the face. He sends Cole in the ring. Austin then hits a Stunner on Cole, which makes Cole spring up right away and then Cena hits AA on him to end the show. Yeah, I know most people are going to complain towards Cole for doing a sh**** job of selling the Stunner, but it was scripted for Cole to take an attack from Cena as well, so it actually makes sense for Cole to stand back up. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if this gives the internet reason #145692 to hate Cole even more. Personally, I actually like the conclusion of this show.
Winner via laptop computer: R-Truth and Miz
Overall Impression:
I actually enjoyed this week's episode of Raw. Even though the show opened up with a lot of dialogue, there was definitely some decent action to watch tonight. I also felt the promo work for this week's Raw was pretty good as well. Overall, not a category for the best Raw ever, but definitely a watchable show and I recommend you check it out. There are some flaws like the first two matches, but you can't expect the show to be perfect now. I definitely enjoyed the opening and endings to this show. I also like the match between Punk and Mysterio and even enjoyed Booker's moments. Just an entertaining show to go around, at least in my opinion. They also did some buildup for the PPV by announcing that Miz vs Riley will happen and Truth vs Cena for the WWE Championship. Speaking of Miz, it has been reported that he may have gotten injured during the dark match after the show. It was possibly a leg injury and it seemed pretty serious. I have also heard that this report is also false as people are just trying to start a buzz or are just trying to f*** over the IWC. I guess we will find out later in the week if this is true or just some bs, but if it is true, the injury couldn't have come at a worse time. Again, it could be true or just bs, so I guess we will make more out of it once we get more information. I have been getting more updates that the rumor is false and the Miz did not compete in a dark match last night. I guess someone or somebody just wanted to be an asshole. That is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's show. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time.
We open up the show with the finalist of the Tough Enough class, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Vince McMahon already in the ring. After a lot of buildup, it is determined that Andy is the winner of TE. Personally, I cannot give my thoughts on this matter since I never watched a full episode of TE, so have no idea if people believe they made the right choice or not. I will say based on the look, I think Andy was the best choice since he looks like a wrestler while Luke looked too much like a pretty boy and was trying to pull off the Tyson Kidd look. After the high fives for winning the contest, the WWE higher ups greet Andy by having Vince slap him in the face and Austin hitting a Stunner. It is funny how everyone booed when Vince slapped him, but when Austin attacks him, then it's ok. Congrats go out to Andy, but believe me, your journey hasn't even started yet. Once Andy leaves, R-Truth comes out in a confederate uniform and acting like a solider. Yeah...needless to say, but this was really over the top and kinda funny. He informs the audience he needs to apologize for harassing Wayne Brady's less talented brother in order to get his title match. After that, he says that he "secedes" from the WWE Universe while making fun of Virginia (Technically, don't all heels "secede" from the audience since they continue to mock them and seem to enjoy it?). Truth also calls out Vince for this conspiracy of keeping him down. Vince and Austin have a discussion about office hours and junk until the Miz interrupts. He says he should still be the WWE Champion, but it is Alex Riley's fault. A-Ri shows up and says the Miz deserves nothing. Since there are three current wrestlers in the ring, you should have figured who was going to come out next. That is right, John Cena shows up next. He goes to say the Miz screwed up, Riley finally grew a set, and Truth is still insane (I will admit that Cena's line towards Austin is running out of beers was pretty funny). He adds that Truth gets his title shot at CP until the Raw GM interrupts. Michael Cole is about to read the email until Vince tells him to shut up and he will make the matches. He says it will be Truth and Miz vs Cena and Riley, with SCSA as the special guest referee. This finally ends the segment, but I was curious if anyone caught the verbel conflict between Cena and Austin before they went to a commercial? It most likely is nothing, but I thought it was kinda cool. Overall, a long, but interesting opening to the show. There was a lot of stuff and interaction going on, but sometimes, that is ok if you are able to keep people interested. Heck, we even got to go down nostalgia route when Vince and Austin were exchanging words with each other. It is clear that Austin doesn't give a s*** about the PG rating because he is dropping bombs left and right. I think he managed to sneak a bulls*** in there as well. Truth's character is so insane and over the top right now, but it is making himself stand out. Which is why I think the heel turn was the best move for him. It isn't really clear if Truth/Cena is going to be a longterm deal or just a mini-feud, but it will be interesting to see how the match goes and what they decide to do.
Match #1: Santino vs Michael McGillicutty
Kozlov and David Otunga were at ringside for this match. The match was ok for what it was worth. The finish comes when Michael misses his attack...
This allows for Santino to sneak the Cobra in and wins the match. I would normally complain in how this makes the current champs look bad losing to a comedy character, but I suppose they need to have Nexus go over a tag team, and I guess this was the best choice over on Raw. I really wish WWE would put a little more energy into tag team wrestling. I know it really isn't a draw and casual fans don't really care for tag team wrestling, but you can at least make it a little competitive from time to time. I just feel that tag team wrestling has really been dead for over the last decade. Heck, even TNA is guilty of the same thing recently since the main feud for the tag division has to do with a group who isn't even on screen and seems to be more about Eric Bischoff than anything else. Anyway, I wouldn't be surprised to see a tag title match at the PPV between these two teams.
Winner via pinfall: Santino
Match #2: Kelly Kelly and Beth Phoenix vs Bella Twins
The match is about what you would expect. The finish comes when Phoenix hits the Glam Slam on a Bella and wins the match. They seem to be testing Phoenix going after the title. This was probably the best route they could have gone since Phoenix is doing nothing and the Bellas need to drop the title because they aren't very good heels. Still, this division is quickly on life support since Kharma isn't around.
Winner via pinfall: Kelly Kelly and Beth Phoenix
Backstage scene between Booker T and Trish Stratus. Book purposes a new move called the Trish-a-roonie, which sounds like something Quagmire from Family Guy thought of on a Saturday night. They are both about to attempt it (in a small room mind you, which would never work since you would probably end up kicking furniture. Another example of wrestling logic since you had to figure someone was going to interrupt the segment) until Jack Swagger comes in to cut them off. He tells Book he would be a better trainer since everybody would have been tough enough with Swagger as the coach. He challenges Booker to a match later tonight, to which Booker accepts. Yeah, so we have a Booker match later tonight, which is kinda cool.
Match #3: CM Punk vs Rey Mysterio
Prior to this match, Punk cut a promo saying how Rey is weak and how Punk is great because he keeps giving Rey second chances and how he has beat him 600 times, which isn't as epic as....OVER 9000!!! After the commercial, the match is underway. This matchup wasn't as good as last week's match between the two, but it was watchable. I noticed Cole made an error on commentary when he called a certain lock that Punk made the Anaconda Vice. I am absolutly sure that was NOT the Anaconda Vice and just a regular lock. Speaking of which, I really wish WWE would let Punk use that submission move more often. The finish comes when Rey is setting up for the 619, but Mason Ryan gets on the ring apron. Rey decides to pick Punk up and springboard off the opposite ropes and dropkick right into Ryan, and with the momentium of the kick, land a DDT on Punk (It was kinda crazy and me explaining it probably just confused the hell out of you. Go check it out for yourself and you will understand what happened). He then hits the Top Rope Splash for the clean win. This basically evens the odds between Punk and Mysterio and assures there will be another match between the two, probably at the PPV. I am thinking that this is mainly a mini-feud to keep Punk fresh since he can jump in the title bout at any second now, which goes back to the whole deal if Cena/Truth is a short term or long term feud. I really don't see Punk and Mysterio having a long feud and it will probably be over at the end of the month, and hopefully Punk can win the feud this time around since he needs it more than Rey.
Winner via pinfall: Rey Mysterio
More CP buildup, but this time they had Truth asking some "questions" to the President. Truth ends the segment by getting angry when Obama said something about boats. But I am on a boat bitch? Oh, and the WCW Monday Nitro DVD is on sale Tuesday. Say what you will about WCW, but the company did have some positive moments. There will also be a 3 hour Raw next week, and they seem to be going with an All Star theme for the event. All I will say that if the full three hours is the superstars playing the WWE All Star video game, I will be super pissed. Speaking of video games, I know this is completely off topic right now, but go Nintendo at E3.
We are back from commercial and Alberto Del Rio is there. He says once again the attack on Big Show was an accident ans says he would like to "apologize" to Show. He calls him out, but what shows up is Ricardo Rodriguez in a Show get up with crutches and eating food (I didn't even realize it was Rodriguez until he ripped off the bald cap at the end). He reminds Showcardo that he must pay for the damages to his car while he is making grunting noises to mock Show...
He also tells Show to NOT make enemies with him because bad things happen to bad people. Really, this was just more buildup to the future rivalry between Del Rio and Show, so there really isn't anything else to add.
Match #4: Kofi Kingston vs Zack Ryder
What? Ryder actually wrestles on this show? Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero were on commentary for this match. The match didn't last long, but it was ok for the time they were given. The match ended when Kofi hit the TIP for the clean win while Ziggler is claiming he will be the next US Champion. Kinda funny that Ziggler went from going after the WHC to now downgrading to the US title now, but I think midcard is where he belongs. I thought it was very interesting that Cole and Ziggler plugged Ryder's online show. Not sure if this was done intentially to get people to check out Ryder or if it was a mistake by Cole. I personally don't watch Ryder's show and I really don't have any intentions of watching it at this moment, but plans can always change. I am sure I am going to get speeches from the IWC saying how great Ryder. Lately, I have been noticing the IWC really getting behind Ryder for some reason. Personally, I am not really that interested in Ryder because of the stupid gimmick, but I have to give the guy credit for at least trying to roll with the gimmick to get himself a fanbase. He should at least be competing more throughout the week.
Match #5: Jack Swagger vs Booker T
Booker can definitely still go in the ring. I really don't want to see Booker have a big wrestling roll with the company, but it would be nice to see him put on a match every now and then. Anyway, he is pretty much taking Swagger to school until Swagger leaves the ring and decides to give Booker the match and claims he doesn't need this. In other words, Book wins the match via countout. I guess they didn't want to have Booker lose to Swagger cleanly and probably didn't want Booker to make current talent look bad, so I understand the booking in this situation. After the match, Evan Bourne shows up to attack Swagger from behind, which forces him back in the ring. Booker and Bourne double team Swagger. Once Bourne hits Air Bourne on Swagger, the segment ends with both Booker and Bourne doing a double spin-a-roonie. At the moment, the only way I see Bourne winning this feud with Swagger is if it leads towards Swagger going on a losing streak. If that were to happen, it could lead to Swagger changing his ways and thus ends up making a face turn. If that isn't the case, I mainly see Swagger winning this feud for the time being. The match itself was nothing special, but this whole scene was pretty entertaining and I liked it.
Winner via countout: Booker T
Match #6: R-Truth and Miz vs John Cena and Alex Riley
This was not a bad match. Is anyone else a little offput when King and Cole act like decent friends while on commentary but then exchange insults seconds after laughing together? It is just weird is all. The finish comes when everyone is laid out. Cena and Miz are down in the ring and Riley grabs the briefcase. He looks over to see which one to hit, but eventually hits Miz with the case. What was funny is SCSA clearly sees this and doesn't seem to care. Then again, with Austin's character, he would definitely let this slide since he and Miz had a disagreement during the match. The faces continue on the attack as Austin hits the Stunner on Miz, and Cena follows up with AA on Miz (Damn, Miz had a rough night....and possibly even a rougher night ahead based on various reports). Cena pins him and the match is over. Austin now wants to celebrate with some beer. I don't know why, but seeing Cena drink a beer just seems odd. Cena just looks like the guy who really wouldn't be much of a beer drinker. Then again, if he would have refused the beer, Austin would have probably stunned him. It is your choice Cena, beer or stunner? Yeah.....I would probably take the beer as well. During the celebration, the Raw GM interrupts. Cole says that since Austin got involved in the match, he is issuing a DQ to both Cena and Riley, and thus rewards Truth and Miz the victory. He also tells Austin he will be the special guest GM next week. Austin ask the audience if they want him to do so, and once the "Hell Yeahs" make there way out, Austin goes over to Cole. He pushes the laptop to the ground and proceeds to deck Cole in the face. He sends Cole in the ring. Austin then hits a Stunner on Cole, which makes Cole spring up right away and then Cena hits AA on him to end the show. Yeah, I know most people are going to complain towards Cole for doing a sh**** job of selling the Stunner, but it was scripted for Cole to take an attack from Cena as well, so it actually makes sense for Cole to stand back up. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if this gives the internet reason #145692 to hate Cole even more. Personally, I actually like the conclusion of this show.
Winner via laptop computer: R-Truth and Miz
Overall Impression:
I actually enjoyed this week's episode of Raw. Even though the show opened up with a lot of dialogue, there was definitely some decent action to watch tonight. I also felt the promo work for this week's Raw was pretty good as well. Overall, not a category for the best Raw ever, but definitely a watchable show and I recommend you check it out. There are some flaws like the first two matches, but you can't expect the show to be perfect now. I definitely enjoyed the opening and endings to this show. I also like the match between Punk and Mysterio and even enjoyed Booker's moments. Just an entertaining show to go around, at least in my opinion. They also did some buildup for the PPV by announcing that Miz vs Riley will happen and Truth vs Cena for the WWE Championship. Speaking of Miz, it has been reported that he may have gotten injured during the dark match after the show. It was possibly a leg injury and it seemed pretty serious. I have also heard that this report is also false as people are just trying to start a buzz or are just trying to f*** over the IWC. I guess we will find out later in the week if this is true or just some bs, but if it is true, the injury couldn't have come at a worse time. Again, it could be true or just bs, so I guess we will make more out of it once we get more information. I have been getting more updates that the rumor is false and the Miz did not compete in a dark match last night. I guess someone or somebody just wanted to be an asshole. That is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's show. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time.
Friday, June 3, 2011
WrestlingNerd Presents: TNA Impact Wrestling Review 6/2/11
What is up wrestling fans, I am the WrestlingNerd bringing you another written review. Today, we take a look at *glup* TNA Impact Wrestling on 6/2/11. Oh great, the first wrestling show in the mouth of June, so how would TNA f*** it up or will they pull a miracle out of their ass? Well, let's get this over with and start the review.
We open up the show with Eric Bischoff arriving in the parking lot. I am going to be upfront now and say if you hate episodes of Bischoff getting a ton of screen time (and I really mean a ton because it almost seemed like he was in this show every 10 minutes), chances are you are going to hate this show. Anyway, he comes across a guy who represents "The Network" and hands over a letter saying that Bischoff has been sacked, meaning that he is probably fired. Throughout the whole night, we would have these scenes of Bischoff acting like this was his final day on the job and such. It was very vague as to what was going on, but we would get the answers at the end of the show. Oh goodie, I can't wait for Impact Wrestling to disappoint me since they have a history of doing so. Anyway, after that scene, we see ODB and Velvet Sky brawling backstage. They eventually land in the Impact Zone and continue the brawl. Finally the TNA security staff shows up, and knowing this security staff they.......immediately get their asses kicked by ODB. Damn does this secuirty staff suck. Not only is the staff lacking staff members (There was only two guys to represent the security staff, that is just sad), but they can't deal with one pissed off woman? I think Princess Peach has a million times better security staff than freaking TNA, and she is protected by a bunch of mushrooms. I guess the budget for a show that advertises that Wrestling Matters is reaching a boiling point if the secuirty staff is run by two guys. Yeah, I am aware it is an example of wrestling logic so the brawl would continue, but somebody has to point out the stupid moments on this show. Anyway, the brawl ends up in the ring, to which ODB strips Sky down to her bra and panties. Hell, this isn't a brawl, it's a gentlemen's club. I almost expected the audience to toss dollar bills at Sky with what is going on here. Anyway, the scene ends with ODB standing tall. Sky barely stood a chance in this brawl, because she was on defense the whole time. Oh, and Miss Tessmacher shows up in the end.....AFTER ODB has already taken her out and left. What is the point of her showing up? The fight is already over and adds nothing to this scene or storyline....unless plans change. The brawl was nothing exciting and it was boring, but there was some fanservice, so I guess you got what you wanted. Just when you think this opening is over, we hear Sting's entrance music. My God, what kind of opening is this? You have Bischoff arrive in a parking lot, a poor replacement of a stripper, and now Sting? Man, they are literally just cramming this show as much as they can if we have to have three different storylines to open up the show. Anyway, it turns out it is Mr. Anderson in the Sting get up. He says later tonight, he will face off against one of Sting's greatest rivals. Oh, please don't tell me Ric Flair or Hulk Hogan is going to lace up the boots tonight? Since that is probably isn't the case, I am going to expect somebody else....hooray? Overall, this opening was dreadful. There was just too much storylines and stuff going on and it was all crammed together in a matter of 6-8 minutes. I like how Sting is the world champion and his feud is almost meaningless at this point, and that is really a shame because they had something going pretty well between Sting and Anderson months ago. What happened here? Oh, my mistake. TNA seems to think the Jeff Jarrett/Kurt Angle feud is gold, so that is now the main feud on this show. You know what the sad part is? TNA STILL hasn't gone to a commercial break yet. We are backstage yet again where Bischoff is on the phone with a member of "The Network" until Brian Kendrick interrupts. Kendrick wants another shot at Abyss tonight. Bischoff says the X Division isn't too bright since they ask for these types of matches. Finally, Bischoff says that Kaz was going to get a X Division title shot at Slam, but will make a #1 Contenders Match between Kaz and Kendrick and the winner gets the title shot. I would normally talk about how this makes no sense considering that Kaz should have the rematch clause, but Impact doesn't care about rematch clauses, so this shouldn't be too shocking to you. After a commercial, we see that Bischoff is still on the phone with "The Network". Why? Because.....Wrestling Matters, right? Honestly, I forget sometimes.
Bischoff is now in the ring and calls out Beer Money. He tells them that they will not make the 30 day stipulation of defending the titles and should give up the titles. Oh, and Bischoff says that British Invasion gets the title shots....BEST BUILDUP EVER......if this show was written by monkeys (That isn't fair, I think monkeys are smarter than Russo). Robert Roode says injured or not, he will defend the titles. Alex Shelly from Motor City Machine Guns shows up. He informs the audience that MCMG is done for the rest of the year because Chris Sabin has a torn MCL and ACL (Ouch, that is rough and I really feel bad for Sabin) and will not return until next year. He also says that during their war last year with BM, he really grew to respect the tag team and says he would like to team up with James Storm and defend the tag titles on behalf of BM for one night. Bischoff immediately calls bs on this purposal (and really he has a point), but Shelly informs him that "The Network" made it a go, so Bischoff doesn't have a say in the matter. BM seems to be ok with Shelly in the match and it appears we have a match for Slam. The segment ends by Bischoff saying towards Shelly he might have balls, but he is now on his s*** list (No joke, he actually said this). First of all, if the Brits have the title shots, wouldn't it make sense to be out there and confront BM or recieve their tag titles via the 30 day stipulation? Heck, why aren't the Brits out there to begin with? Also, how did the Brits get the next title shots? Was there a match off screen or......oh my God, figuring all of this out is giving me a headache. In other words, TNA, if you make a match or are addressing a storyline, at least explain things....EXPLAIN!!! With them half assing some of these build up and PPV matches, it just shows the overall impression that Impact just doesn't care anymore. I thought this was the show where Wrestling Matters? If that was the case, wouldn't you at least want to have the apporpriate conflict to make people care about the actual wrestling match? As for my thoughts of Shelly being the replacement, I kinda like the idea since it sounds interesting. This overall match for the PPV should be decent to watch, but it would be a lot better if there was some interaction with the Brits, or at least make the Brits care about wanting to get the tag titles. This tag team feud seems to be BM vs Bischoff instead of BM vs the Brits. In fact, when was the last time the Brits were on this show?
Match #1: Matt Hardy vs Crimson
Since this is the show were Wrestling Matters, we are finally getting to the first match.....at the 28 minute mark. Now, to be fair, this was a pretty decent match. I know some people criticize Matt for his in ring ability because of how much he as balloned, but I think he is putting on some decent matches as of late. Once again, I really like this Crimson and he should be appearing on this show every week. TNA should let this guy cut promos just to see if he can be a big time player in pro wrestling. The finish comes when Crimson hits the Sky High Powerbomb on Matt for the clean win. Now, only with someone as much time on my hands as myself would have noticed something like this. Remember when Immortal was unhappy with Rob Terry and Murphy's ability because they kept loosing matches and weren't doing anything right. Well, when was the last time Matt won a match? Based on the logic of Immortal's thinking back then, Matt should be on the hotseat of the group since he isn't getting the job done. Yeah, I know, more wrestling logic. After the match, Samoa Joe tries a sneak attack on Crimson, but Crimson's spider senses tingle and hits a spear on Joe and the tubby guy retreats. So, was there really an explaination of Joe's heelish attitude? Is he a full fledged heel now or just a temp heel until this rivalry is over? Who knows and does anyone really care?
Winner via pinfall: Crimson
Backstage scene with Anderson and Eric Young. He says he wants to "honor" Sting by re-creating one of his historic feuds in having Young play the role of the Great Muta. Young accepts this challenge and we appear to be having a match. Another backstage scene of Winter and Angelina Love. Love is starring off into space while Winter is talking. Love cuts her off and actually talks. She claims to do anything to make sure the two of them are happy. Let me ask a question. Is anyone out there really interested in the Love/Winter deal? Oh, and another backstage scene where Immortal is having a meeting. Bischoff is talking to his members as if it's his last night on the job while the Immortal members don't like the idea of Bischoff getting the pink slip. Why are there so many backstage scenes on this show? Seriously, you think WWE goes out of hand with backstage segments, well take a look at this? Plus, why do I feel that the payoff of this "Bischoff getting fired" isn't going to pay off? By the way, I like how Matt is perfectly fine and not winded or sweaty even though the guy just had a match like 5 minutes ago.
Match #2: Miss Tessmacher vs Angelina Love
Yes, where Wrestling Matters, and apparently strippers since that is all Tessmacher seems to do. What is so sad is how Mike Tenay and Tazz were up in anticipation when Tessmacher was setting up for the victory roll, which got me thinking, is THAT her finisher? Seriously, a victory roll as a finisher, are you serious? Who do you think you are, Kelly Kelly? Anyway, the match was a joke and it ended when Love hit a finisher. I missed what the finisher was, but the match was so bad that I don't even care to look back at the replay to see what the actual finisher is. And I bet somebody in the comments is going to say what the finisher was to this match and that might be a bit depressing. Plus, Love went back to acting all lifeless again. If she can talk, why keep up the stupid charade that she is possessed if you showed in a previous scene she was almost a normal person? Who wrote this crap? Maybe it was Fred Fuchs......take it away AVGN cuz I am freakin loosing it.....
Winner via pinfall: Angelina Love
Match #3: Mr. Anderson vs Eric Young
Young actually looks like the Great Muta for this contest. During the match, Anderson was bouncing off the turnbuckles to mock Sting. The match actually went on for a while. How can Anderson be having this much trouble with Young, who is still a comic relief character? The match was nothing special. The finish comes when Gunner comes out and causes a distraction. It appears that Anderson has this match, but Young pulls a Muta and uses the green mist on Anderson and gets a small package to win the match. So, your telling me the #1 Contender for the world title just lost to the comedy wrestler? That would be like the Miz losing to Santino. I don't care if there was shenangians or not, this is not something that should happen since he has a title match coming up at the next PPV and needs to look strong. How does this make Anderson look like a competator going into the title match? If I was Sting, I wouldn't be breaking a sweat since Anderson can't seem to handle comedy wrestlers. So, Anderson can win a 20 man battle royal but can't beat Young in a wrestling match? Thanks TNA for making your #1 Contender for the world title look like an idiot. Oh, and after the match, Gunner and Anderson team up to beat up Young until Sting makes the save (by walking since he isn't running these days) and the heels retreat. We would find out that it will be Young and Sting vs Anderson and Gunner next week.
Winner via pinfall: Eric Young
Match #4: Brian Kendrick vs Kaz winner is the #1 Contender for the X Division Title
Ohhhh, I can play the Impact Wrestling Fantasy Game on their website? Yes, of course, because THIS is what was missing in my life. Sounds stupid right? Well, that is only because it is. Oh, and yes I am aware the WWE tried something similar years ago. Well, based on the fact that WWE canned it, I think that sums up the whole thing. This was a pretty good match and it was probably the best match of the night, but don't get too excited because Impact needs to screw up their best match somehow. The match goes on for 10 minutes and the bell rings. That is when you are wondering what is going on, but you realize that TNA likes to use that stupid time limit in some of their matches to come up with a cheap ending, and thus the match is considered a draw. What is it with TNA and that f****** clock? If this wasn't enough to make you go insane, TNA isn't done yet. After some stalling, it is determined to give the two another five minutes. Seconds into this "overtime", Abyss shows up to lay them both out, thus resulting in a no contest. F***......F****** TNA, are you f****** kidding me? So, you build up all this padding with exceeding the time limit only to....end the match the exact same way you planned it? You probably think I am pissed off about the Abyss interference, but that isn't what got to me. I understand how heels interfere in matches, heck it is common in pro wrestling. My problem is what was the point of exceeding the time limit, mentioning the clock, and doing an overtime if it was scripted for Abyss to interfere? Why not just have Abyss interefere at about 8-9 minutes into this match instead of just going into this deal of this stupid clock? You want to know the answer? Because TNA was intentially trying to waste time. If it was scripted for Abyss to interefere, why not just have him interefere in the early going of this match? Instead, make the match go about as long as possible, come up with some bs about the time limit to waste more time, and then have the run in. I am guessing that TNA didn't have anything else planned for tonight, so they intentially had the X Division guys pad out the time as much as possible to fill out the two hour show. Now I know what your going to say? They planned it like this so they could give some rub on Kendrick. I really don't have a problem with that, but here is how I would have scripted it. Make Kendrick and Kaz go out there and have them put on a clinic to get the audience up on their feet. Heck, they were really into this match towards the end. Then just have Abyss do the attack and thus add more to the storyline and get people tuned in for next week. In other words, if I was writing this show, I wouldn't have stupid crap like the time limit deal because when you include things like that, your basically telling your audience your intentially eating up the two hours because you didn't have anything else planned. Heck, it isn't like you can show....oh I don't know....other wrestling matches since you brag about how Wrestling Matters. Don't just tell the audience your wasting time, make it seem natural and creative. Oh, I forgot, this is Impact where creativity went out the window when Vince Russo walked throught the door. Impact Wrestling: Wrestling Matters so much that we acknowledge the time limits. I know some people like the time limit because it adds excitment, but I was plenty excited with everything I had seen prior to the time limit, and if anything, I got less excited when I heard about the time limit expiring in this matchup. Do you know what the sad part is.....this show isn't over yet. Oh, and just to clarify to anyone who thinks I am a WWE mark, there is plenty of stuff in the WWE that upsets me as well, like the whole Christian/WHC deal. Oh, and after the match, Abyss quotes more Art of War bs.
No Contest, guess we have to wait until next week, unless this week's show has already killed you
We are back in the ring where AJ Styles calls out Bully Ray. I know I would say how we are coming across another promo, but this storyline is actually simple to follow and I don't mind this storyline so much. In fact, this is probably TNA's best storyline because it's short, simple, and easy to follow. If only the creative staff would learn that trick more often. Anyway, Bully tells Styles to not get all excited for 1upping him last week because he beat Tommy Dreamer and NOT Bully. He also says that Dreamer is the worst tag team partner ever, which makes Tazz say "I agree". Aw ha, a little trip down ECW lane....why can't I be watcing that right now? Bully also goes back to his previous argument in how Styles is not a real wrestler because he plays video games and how wrestlers are all about strip clubs, liquor, and lap dances. What does any of those things have to do with pro wrestling? Plus, real men play video games. Styles responds by commenting on the size of Bully's d***. After a bunch of cheap jokes, Styles challenges Bully to a Last Man Standing Match at Slam, and Bully seems ok with it. Well, this can be an interesting match, but chances are TNA will go overboard on the hardcore stuff and it might turn into more garbage style wrestling.
Match #5: Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner vs Kurt Angle and Matt Morgan
You know, it is really bad when you main event has ONE guy who isn't over the age of 40. They did the Karen Jarrett/chair deal again. Yes, because of all the problems of this world, we MUST know where Karen is going to sit? Morons wrote this show, they should have mailed it to the Marx Brothers. After lots of padding, it is determined for Karen to go to the back. Ok, who the hell is buying that Karen will NOT be getting involved in this match? The match was nothing special, but it was basically a filler match, so what did you expect? The finish comes when Kurt and Jarrett brawl towards the entrance ramp, and wouldn't you know it, Karen shows up to get involved. Ok, things would get weirder after this. Kurt forces Karen near the corner of the entrance and the backstage area. Jeff attacks Kurt, in which causes him to push Karen off the screen. We have no idea what is going on until they get a camera crew back there and reveal that Karen has fallen down a flight of stairs while Kurt and Jeff are bickering at one another while the medics are getting on the scene. Did I mention the match is still goin on? TNA did a horrible job at showing the conclusion of the match. All I remember happening was Morgan calling out to his partner, only for Steiner to hit a low blow and then the heels won the match. Gee, bad choreography in Impact, say it ain't so?
Winner via pinfall (I would assume): Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner
After a commercial break, we see the medic crew working on getting Karen to the hospital. Ok, I know it is common in pro wrestling to have these moments to make you feel sorry for the "injured" person, but this scene works a lot better when faces are going away on the ambulance. When you have heels being carted away and your trying to make the audience feel bad for the asshole, it just comes off as weird and doesn't make sense. Oh well, I guess we will FINALLY get that Angle vs Jarrett match without some bs? Ok, FINALLY the last segment of the show. Hogan and Bischoff are now in the ring. Bischoff has some last word before Hogan reads the letter. He says that Mick Foley is a decent talker, but is a sh**** wrestler because all he does is hardcore stuff and talks with a sock (Well, you would figure a guy dubbed the Hardcore Legend would be known for hardcore and not wrestling). Hogan tries to give him an inspirational speech before opening the letter. Finally, Hogan reads the letter and says that Foley has been fired as "The Network" rep. The show ends with Hogan and Bischoff celebrating. Just when you think Impact has aired enough stupid s***, here is one more to top it all off. So, you mean to tell me the guy who was the voice of "The Network" for the last month has already been canned? Ok, there is a couple things to address here. I have heard a couple of issues regarding Foley's contract with TNA. One of the rumors is that Foley's contract was set to expire very soon and he wasn't interested in staying with the company long term. Right now, I have no idea if this rumors is true or bs, but if it is, this just further proves why TNA is a bad business. TNA was building up the fact "The Network" was coming. Instead of putting someone in this role that was committed to TNA and didn't have contract issues, they go ahead and put Foley in this role, and now only a month in, he is already gone? Do you have any idea how bad this comes off? This comes off as just being lazy because TNA creative couldn't think of another voice of "The Network" or hire someone to do the job and instead they give it to a guy who was on the way out. This is something you would never see out of the WWE these days. If WWE knows somebody's contract is coming up, they will either write them off the show in some decent fashion (Yeah, I am aware of how Chris Jericho was written off the show years back when he was crying like a baby.....ugh) and will probably not put a title around the guy (unless it is a way to convince a guy to sign a new deal like when Rey Mysterio was in negoitation last year and WWE gave him the WHC, almost as a bribe to stick around with the company), since that can cause complications and it might come off bad on television. You knew with the way TNA does their storylines, in taking a long time, you needed the voice of "The Network" to be there longterm. Wouldn't it make sense to put a guy out there who was contractually committed and not someone who was on the fence on the whole thing? It really just comes off as bad business and creative planning. Then again, I have to be fair since all of this contract stuff is just rumor and not really fact at the moment. It could be a trick by "The Network" to make Immortal put down their guard only for Foley to return in a matter of weeks. Still, it really comes off as bad storytelling when Immortal has been running a muck for months, only for Foley to show up to be the good guy, and now has to be taken off the show after only a month. It is still possible that TNA can find a way to turn this storyline around and make it interesting. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised for Foley to turn up next week and talk about how Hogan read the letter wrong and blah, blah, blah. Eitherway, still not good storytelling since the continuity has been shot to death. Not only that, but we saw "The Network" still sticking their nose in things based on what Shelly said earlier in the show. It almost feels like this storyline is going backwords, because wasn't it only prior to Foley not showing up where we had various wrestlers say "The Network" said this? In other words, we are back to where this show was prior to Foley not appearing on here, which almost makes Foley's appearances to be a waste of time? Well, I guess I should say this. Even though I think this was kinda stupid, it does get me a little interested as to WHY "The Network" fired Foley and maybe we can get an explaination next week? Oh wait, Impact Wrestling and the word "explain" don't seem to mesh too well, but I will be optismistic.
Overall Impression:
One word to describe this week's episode, stupid. This was not a good presentation by Impact this week. There was just too much stupid, silliness, and bad storytelling to go around. It is a shame too because Impact had two decent matches this week and I actually thought the promo between AJ and Bully was ok, but when you bring in crap like lesbian zombies, comic characters pinning world title contenders, time limits, and firing reps after only a month going around, it just comes off as bad tv. There was some good, but just too much bad stuff going around for this week's showing. I cannot recommend watching this showing, unless you want to make yourself go in the madhouse. One of my most common complaints in my reviews is how I bash TNA. I have said this many times in the past, but I might as well say it again since I am aware that new readers can be checking this out. I don't hate TNA and I am not a WWE mark. I actually want TNA to succeed and I want to find a way to like this show. If they go out there and put on some decent matches and have some good storytelling, then it will bring in more people to watch the show. I have said many times that casual fans is where the money is since the IWC isn't a large enough fanbase and most of the time all they do is complain about everything. If more casual fans are tuning into Impact to the point where it makes the WWE acknowledge them, then it would force the WWE to up its game and do better. Then it would force TNA to do the same and vica versa. Who wins when there is some competative wrestling and decent storylines around? We do, the fans who watch these shows. But when TNA continues to air things that have plotholes, long brawls that eat up the show, overcomplicated storylines, too many backstage segments, long drawn out and boring promos, terrible buildup to rivalries, imaginary time limits, no explainations, and storylines or concepts that make no sense, how is THAT going to get casual fans to tune into Impact on a weekly basis? The ratings are showing that casual fans are not tuning into Impact week by week. That should be a clue to the writers that they are doing something wrong or they need to improve some things. Plus, TNA continues to do false advertising with this whole Wrestling Matters deal. If they really want to make people believe that Impact Wrestling is where Wrestling Matters, then go out there and prove it. So far, I am not seeing anything different with Impact since they are doing all of the same things when they were called TNA Wrestling. What has really changed? It is the same creative staff, same wrestlers, and same storylines. Really, the only thing that has changed is the company name and the color scheme, and I think most people are aware that nothing really hasn't changed with this company because it still feels like TNA. Well, that is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry the review is so long, but some of these TNA episodes feel longer than watching the Ten Commandments since there is so much stuff to explain...or not to explain. I also apologize for swearing more than usual and more anger rants in this review. For some reason, this episode really got to me and I really dug into this episode. As much as I wasn't a fan of last week's show, at least that show was watchable and tolerable while this was......yeah. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's show. SD review is really on the fence for this week. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time and I need some pain reliever medicine, quick....
We open up the show with Eric Bischoff arriving in the parking lot. I am going to be upfront now and say if you hate episodes of Bischoff getting a ton of screen time (and I really mean a ton because it almost seemed like he was in this show every 10 minutes), chances are you are going to hate this show. Anyway, he comes across a guy who represents "The Network" and hands over a letter saying that Bischoff has been sacked, meaning that he is probably fired. Throughout the whole night, we would have these scenes of Bischoff acting like this was his final day on the job and such. It was very vague as to what was going on, but we would get the answers at the end of the show. Oh goodie, I can't wait for Impact Wrestling to disappoint me since they have a history of doing so. Anyway, after that scene, we see ODB and Velvet Sky brawling backstage. They eventually land in the Impact Zone and continue the brawl. Finally the TNA security staff shows up, and knowing this security staff they.......immediately get their asses kicked by ODB. Damn does this secuirty staff suck. Not only is the staff lacking staff members (There was only two guys to represent the security staff, that is just sad), but they can't deal with one pissed off woman? I think Princess Peach has a million times better security staff than freaking TNA, and she is protected by a bunch of mushrooms. I guess the budget for a show that advertises that Wrestling Matters is reaching a boiling point if the secuirty staff is run by two guys. Yeah, I am aware it is an example of wrestling logic so the brawl would continue, but somebody has to point out the stupid moments on this show. Anyway, the brawl ends up in the ring, to which ODB strips Sky down to her bra and panties. Hell, this isn't a brawl, it's a gentlemen's club. I almost expected the audience to toss dollar bills at Sky with what is going on here. Anyway, the scene ends with ODB standing tall. Sky barely stood a chance in this brawl, because she was on defense the whole time. Oh, and Miss Tessmacher shows up in the end.....AFTER ODB has already taken her out and left. What is the point of her showing up? The fight is already over and adds nothing to this scene or storyline....unless plans change. The brawl was nothing exciting and it was boring, but there was some fanservice, so I guess you got what you wanted. Just when you think this opening is over, we hear Sting's entrance music. My God, what kind of opening is this? You have Bischoff arrive in a parking lot, a poor replacement of a stripper, and now Sting? Man, they are literally just cramming this show as much as they can if we have to have three different storylines to open up the show. Anyway, it turns out it is Mr. Anderson in the Sting get up. He says later tonight, he will face off against one of Sting's greatest rivals. Oh, please don't tell me Ric Flair or Hulk Hogan is going to lace up the boots tonight? Since that is probably isn't the case, I am going to expect somebody else....hooray? Overall, this opening was dreadful. There was just too much storylines and stuff going on and it was all crammed together in a matter of 6-8 minutes. I like how Sting is the world champion and his feud is almost meaningless at this point, and that is really a shame because they had something going pretty well between Sting and Anderson months ago. What happened here? Oh, my mistake. TNA seems to think the Jeff Jarrett/Kurt Angle feud is gold, so that is now the main feud on this show. You know what the sad part is? TNA STILL hasn't gone to a commercial break yet. We are backstage yet again where Bischoff is on the phone with a member of "The Network" until Brian Kendrick interrupts. Kendrick wants another shot at Abyss tonight. Bischoff says the X Division isn't too bright since they ask for these types of matches. Finally, Bischoff says that Kaz was going to get a X Division title shot at Slam, but will make a #1 Contenders Match between Kaz and Kendrick and the winner gets the title shot. I would normally talk about how this makes no sense considering that Kaz should have the rematch clause, but Impact doesn't care about rematch clauses, so this shouldn't be too shocking to you. After a commercial, we see that Bischoff is still on the phone with "The Network". Why? Because.....Wrestling Matters, right? Honestly, I forget sometimes.
Bischoff is now in the ring and calls out Beer Money. He tells them that they will not make the 30 day stipulation of defending the titles and should give up the titles. Oh, and Bischoff says that British Invasion gets the title shots....BEST BUILDUP EVER......if this show was written by monkeys (That isn't fair, I think monkeys are smarter than Russo). Robert Roode says injured or not, he will defend the titles. Alex Shelly from Motor City Machine Guns shows up. He informs the audience that MCMG is done for the rest of the year because Chris Sabin has a torn MCL and ACL (Ouch, that is rough and I really feel bad for Sabin) and will not return until next year. He also says that during their war last year with BM, he really grew to respect the tag team and says he would like to team up with James Storm and defend the tag titles on behalf of BM for one night. Bischoff immediately calls bs on this purposal (and really he has a point), but Shelly informs him that "The Network" made it a go, so Bischoff doesn't have a say in the matter. BM seems to be ok with Shelly in the match and it appears we have a match for Slam. The segment ends by Bischoff saying towards Shelly he might have balls, but he is now on his s*** list (No joke, he actually said this). First of all, if the Brits have the title shots, wouldn't it make sense to be out there and confront BM or recieve their tag titles via the 30 day stipulation? Heck, why aren't the Brits out there to begin with? Also, how did the Brits get the next title shots? Was there a match off screen or......oh my God, figuring all of this out is giving me a headache. In other words, TNA, if you make a match or are addressing a storyline, at least explain things....EXPLAIN!!! With them half assing some of these build up and PPV matches, it just shows the overall impression that Impact just doesn't care anymore. I thought this was the show where Wrestling Matters? If that was the case, wouldn't you at least want to have the apporpriate conflict to make people care about the actual wrestling match? As for my thoughts of Shelly being the replacement, I kinda like the idea since it sounds interesting. This overall match for the PPV should be decent to watch, but it would be a lot better if there was some interaction with the Brits, or at least make the Brits care about wanting to get the tag titles. This tag team feud seems to be BM vs Bischoff instead of BM vs the Brits. In fact, when was the last time the Brits were on this show?
Match #1: Matt Hardy vs Crimson
Since this is the show were Wrestling Matters, we are finally getting to the first match.....at the 28 minute mark. Now, to be fair, this was a pretty decent match. I know some people criticize Matt for his in ring ability because of how much he as balloned, but I think he is putting on some decent matches as of late. Once again, I really like this Crimson and he should be appearing on this show every week. TNA should let this guy cut promos just to see if he can be a big time player in pro wrestling. The finish comes when Crimson hits the Sky High Powerbomb on Matt for the clean win. Now, only with someone as much time on my hands as myself would have noticed something like this. Remember when Immortal was unhappy with Rob Terry and Murphy's ability because they kept loosing matches and weren't doing anything right. Well, when was the last time Matt won a match? Based on the logic of Immortal's thinking back then, Matt should be on the hotseat of the group since he isn't getting the job done. Yeah, I know, more wrestling logic. After the match, Samoa Joe tries a sneak attack on Crimson, but Crimson's spider senses tingle and hits a spear on Joe and the tubby guy retreats. So, was there really an explaination of Joe's heelish attitude? Is he a full fledged heel now or just a temp heel until this rivalry is over? Who knows and does anyone really care?
Winner via pinfall: Crimson
Backstage scene with Anderson and Eric Young. He says he wants to "honor" Sting by re-creating one of his historic feuds in having Young play the role of the Great Muta. Young accepts this challenge and we appear to be having a match. Another backstage scene of Winter and Angelina Love. Love is starring off into space while Winter is talking. Love cuts her off and actually talks. She claims to do anything to make sure the two of them are happy. Let me ask a question. Is anyone out there really interested in the Love/Winter deal? Oh, and another backstage scene where Immortal is having a meeting. Bischoff is talking to his members as if it's his last night on the job while the Immortal members don't like the idea of Bischoff getting the pink slip. Why are there so many backstage scenes on this show? Seriously, you think WWE goes out of hand with backstage segments, well take a look at this? Plus, why do I feel that the payoff of this "Bischoff getting fired" isn't going to pay off? By the way, I like how Matt is perfectly fine and not winded or sweaty even though the guy just had a match like 5 minutes ago.
Match #2: Miss Tessmacher vs Angelina Love
Yes, where Wrestling Matters, and apparently strippers since that is all Tessmacher seems to do. What is so sad is how Mike Tenay and Tazz were up in anticipation when Tessmacher was setting up for the victory roll, which got me thinking, is THAT her finisher? Seriously, a victory roll as a finisher, are you serious? Who do you think you are, Kelly Kelly? Anyway, the match was a joke and it ended when Love hit a finisher. I missed what the finisher was, but the match was so bad that I don't even care to look back at the replay to see what the actual finisher is. And I bet somebody in the comments is going to say what the finisher was to this match and that might be a bit depressing. Plus, Love went back to acting all lifeless again. If she can talk, why keep up the stupid charade that she is possessed if you showed in a previous scene she was almost a normal person? Who wrote this crap? Maybe it was Fred Fuchs......take it away AVGN cuz I am freakin loosing it.....
Winner via pinfall: Angelina Love
Match #3: Mr. Anderson vs Eric Young
Young actually looks like the Great Muta for this contest. During the match, Anderson was bouncing off the turnbuckles to mock Sting. The match actually went on for a while. How can Anderson be having this much trouble with Young, who is still a comic relief character? The match was nothing special. The finish comes when Gunner comes out and causes a distraction. It appears that Anderson has this match, but Young pulls a Muta and uses the green mist on Anderson and gets a small package to win the match. So, your telling me the #1 Contender for the world title just lost to the comedy wrestler? That would be like the Miz losing to Santino. I don't care if there was shenangians or not, this is not something that should happen since he has a title match coming up at the next PPV and needs to look strong. How does this make Anderson look like a competator going into the title match? If I was Sting, I wouldn't be breaking a sweat since Anderson can't seem to handle comedy wrestlers. So, Anderson can win a 20 man battle royal but can't beat Young in a wrestling match? Thanks TNA for making your #1 Contender for the world title look like an idiot. Oh, and after the match, Gunner and Anderson team up to beat up Young until Sting makes the save (by walking since he isn't running these days) and the heels retreat. We would find out that it will be Young and Sting vs Anderson and Gunner next week.
Winner via pinfall: Eric Young
Match #4: Brian Kendrick vs Kaz winner is the #1 Contender for the X Division Title
Ohhhh, I can play the Impact Wrestling Fantasy Game on their website? Yes, of course, because THIS is what was missing in my life. Sounds stupid right? Well, that is only because it is. Oh, and yes I am aware the WWE tried something similar years ago. Well, based on the fact that WWE canned it, I think that sums up the whole thing. This was a pretty good match and it was probably the best match of the night, but don't get too excited because Impact needs to screw up their best match somehow. The match goes on for 10 minutes and the bell rings. That is when you are wondering what is going on, but you realize that TNA likes to use that stupid time limit in some of their matches to come up with a cheap ending, and thus the match is considered a draw. What is it with TNA and that f****** clock? If this wasn't enough to make you go insane, TNA isn't done yet. After some stalling, it is determined to give the two another five minutes. Seconds into this "overtime", Abyss shows up to lay them both out, thus resulting in a no contest. F***......F****** TNA, are you f****** kidding me? So, you build up all this padding with exceeding the time limit only to....end the match the exact same way you planned it? You probably think I am pissed off about the Abyss interference, but that isn't what got to me. I understand how heels interfere in matches, heck it is common in pro wrestling. My problem is what was the point of exceeding the time limit, mentioning the clock, and doing an overtime if it was scripted for Abyss to interfere? Why not just have Abyss interefere at about 8-9 minutes into this match instead of just going into this deal of this stupid clock? You want to know the answer? Because TNA was intentially trying to waste time. If it was scripted for Abyss to interefere, why not just have him interefere in the early going of this match? Instead, make the match go about as long as possible, come up with some bs about the time limit to waste more time, and then have the run in. I am guessing that TNA didn't have anything else planned for tonight, so they intentially had the X Division guys pad out the time as much as possible to fill out the two hour show. Now I know what your going to say? They planned it like this so they could give some rub on Kendrick. I really don't have a problem with that, but here is how I would have scripted it. Make Kendrick and Kaz go out there and have them put on a clinic to get the audience up on their feet. Heck, they were really into this match towards the end. Then just have Abyss do the attack and thus add more to the storyline and get people tuned in for next week. In other words, if I was writing this show, I wouldn't have stupid crap like the time limit deal because when you include things like that, your basically telling your audience your intentially eating up the two hours because you didn't have anything else planned. Heck, it isn't like you can show....oh I don't know....other wrestling matches since you brag about how Wrestling Matters. Don't just tell the audience your wasting time, make it seem natural and creative. Oh, I forgot, this is Impact where creativity went out the window when Vince Russo walked throught the door. Impact Wrestling: Wrestling Matters so much that we acknowledge the time limits. I know some people like the time limit because it adds excitment, but I was plenty excited with everything I had seen prior to the time limit, and if anything, I got less excited when I heard about the time limit expiring in this matchup. Do you know what the sad part is.....this show isn't over yet. Oh, and just to clarify to anyone who thinks I am a WWE mark, there is plenty of stuff in the WWE that upsets me as well, like the whole Christian/WHC deal. Oh, and after the match, Abyss quotes more Art of War bs.
No Contest, guess we have to wait until next week, unless this week's show has already killed you
We are back in the ring where AJ Styles calls out Bully Ray. I know I would say how we are coming across another promo, but this storyline is actually simple to follow and I don't mind this storyline so much. In fact, this is probably TNA's best storyline because it's short, simple, and easy to follow. If only the creative staff would learn that trick more often. Anyway, Bully tells Styles to not get all excited for 1upping him last week because he beat Tommy Dreamer and NOT Bully. He also says that Dreamer is the worst tag team partner ever, which makes Tazz say "I agree". Aw ha, a little trip down ECW lane....why can't I be watcing that right now? Bully also goes back to his previous argument in how Styles is not a real wrestler because he plays video games and how wrestlers are all about strip clubs, liquor, and lap dances. What does any of those things have to do with pro wrestling? Plus, real men play video games. Styles responds by commenting on the size of Bully's d***. After a bunch of cheap jokes, Styles challenges Bully to a Last Man Standing Match at Slam, and Bully seems ok with it. Well, this can be an interesting match, but chances are TNA will go overboard on the hardcore stuff and it might turn into more garbage style wrestling.
Match #5: Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner vs Kurt Angle and Matt Morgan
You know, it is really bad when you main event has ONE guy who isn't over the age of 40. They did the Karen Jarrett/chair deal again. Yes, because of all the problems of this world, we MUST know where Karen is going to sit? Morons wrote this show, they should have mailed it to the Marx Brothers. After lots of padding, it is determined for Karen to go to the back. Ok, who the hell is buying that Karen will NOT be getting involved in this match? The match was nothing special, but it was basically a filler match, so what did you expect? The finish comes when Kurt and Jarrett brawl towards the entrance ramp, and wouldn't you know it, Karen shows up to get involved. Ok, things would get weirder after this. Kurt forces Karen near the corner of the entrance and the backstage area. Jeff attacks Kurt, in which causes him to push Karen off the screen. We have no idea what is going on until they get a camera crew back there and reveal that Karen has fallen down a flight of stairs while Kurt and Jeff are bickering at one another while the medics are getting on the scene. Did I mention the match is still goin on? TNA did a horrible job at showing the conclusion of the match. All I remember happening was Morgan calling out to his partner, only for Steiner to hit a low blow and then the heels won the match. Gee, bad choreography in Impact, say it ain't so?
Winner via pinfall (I would assume): Jeff Jarrett and Scott Steiner
After a commercial break, we see the medic crew working on getting Karen to the hospital. Ok, I know it is common in pro wrestling to have these moments to make you feel sorry for the "injured" person, but this scene works a lot better when faces are going away on the ambulance. When you have heels being carted away and your trying to make the audience feel bad for the asshole, it just comes off as weird and doesn't make sense. Oh well, I guess we will FINALLY get that Angle vs Jarrett match without some bs? Ok, FINALLY the last segment of the show. Hogan and Bischoff are now in the ring. Bischoff has some last word before Hogan reads the letter. He says that Mick Foley is a decent talker, but is a sh**** wrestler because all he does is hardcore stuff and talks with a sock (Well, you would figure a guy dubbed the Hardcore Legend would be known for hardcore and not wrestling). Hogan tries to give him an inspirational speech before opening the letter. Finally, Hogan reads the letter and says that Foley has been fired as "The Network" rep. The show ends with Hogan and Bischoff celebrating. Just when you think Impact has aired enough stupid s***, here is one more to top it all off. So, you mean to tell me the guy who was the voice of "The Network" for the last month has already been canned? Ok, there is a couple things to address here. I have heard a couple of issues regarding Foley's contract with TNA. One of the rumors is that Foley's contract was set to expire very soon and he wasn't interested in staying with the company long term. Right now, I have no idea if this rumors is true or bs, but if it is, this just further proves why TNA is a bad business. TNA was building up the fact "The Network" was coming. Instead of putting someone in this role that was committed to TNA and didn't have contract issues, they go ahead and put Foley in this role, and now only a month in, he is already gone? Do you have any idea how bad this comes off? This comes off as just being lazy because TNA creative couldn't think of another voice of "The Network" or hire someone to do the job and instead they give it to a guy who was on the way out. This is something you would never see out of the WWE these days. If WWE knows somebody's contract is coming up, they will either write them off the show in some decent fashion (Yeah, I am aware of how Chris Jericho was written off the show years back when he was crying like a baby.....ugh) and will probably not put a title around the guy (unless it is a way to convince a guy to sign a new deal like when Rey Mysterio was in negoitation last year and WWE gave him the WHC, almost as a bribe to stick around with the company), since that can cause complications and it might come off bad on television. You knew with the way TNA does their storylines, in taking a long time, you needed the voice of "The Network" to be there longterm. Wouldn't it make sense to put a guy out there who was contractually committed and not someone who was on the fence on the whole thing? It really just comes off as bad business and creative planning. Then again, I have to be fair since all of this contract stuff is just rumor and not really fact at the moment. It could be a trick by "The Network" to make Immortal put down their guard only for Foley to return in a matter of weeks. Still, it really comes off as bad storytelling when Immortal has been running a muck for months, only for Foley to show up to be the good guy, and now has to be taken off the show after only a month. It is still possible that TNA can find a way to turn this storyline around and make it interesting. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised for Foley to turn up next week and talk about how Hogan read the letter wrong and blah, blah, blah. Eitherway, still not good storytelling since the continuity has been shot to death. Not only that, but we saw "The Network" still sticking their nose in things based on what Shelly said earlier in the show. It almost feels like this storyline is going backwords, because wasn't it only prior to Foley not showing up where we had various wrestlers say "The Network" said this? In other words, we are back to where this show was prior to Foley not appearing on here, which almost makes Foley's appearances to be a waste of time? Well, I guess I should say this. Even though I think this was kinda stupid, it does get me a little interested as to WHY "The Network" fired Foley and maybe we can get an explaination next week? Oh wait, Impact Wrestling and the word "explain" don't seem to mesh too well, but I will be optismistic.
Overall Impression:
One word to describe this week's episode, stupid. This was not a good presentation by Impact this week. There was just too much stupid, silliness, and bad storytelling to go around. It is a shame too because Impact had two decent matches this week and I actually thought the promo between AJ and Bully was ok, but when you bring in crap like lesbian zombies, comic characters pinning world title contenders, time limits, and firing reps after only a month going around, it just comes off as bad tv. There was some good, but just too much bad stuff going around for this week's showing. I cannot recommend watching this showing, unless you want to make yourself go in the madhouse. One of my most common complaints in my reviews is how I bash TNA. I have said this many times in the past, but I might as well say it again since I am aware that new readers can be checking this out. I don't hate TNA and I am not a WWE mark. I actually want TNA to succeed and I want to find a way to like this show. If they go out there and put on some decent matches and have some good storytelling, then it will bring in more people to watch the show. I have said many times that casual fans is where the money is since the IWC isn't a large enough fanbase and most of the time all they do is complain about everything. If more casual fans are tuning into Impact to the point where it makes the WWE acknowledge them, then it would force the WWE to up its game and do better. Then it would force TNA to do the same and vica versa. Who wins when there is some competative wrestling and decent storylines around? We do, the fans who watch these shows. But when TNA continues to air things that have plotholes, long brawls that eat up the show, overcomplicated storylines, too many backstage segments, long drawn out and boring promos, terrible buildup to rivalries, imaginary time limits, no explainations, and storylines or concepts that make no sense, how is THAT going to get casual fans to tune into Impact on a weekly basis? The ratings are showing that casual fans are not tuning into Impact week by week. That should be a clue to the writers that they are doing something wrong or they need to improve some things. Plus, TNA continues to do false advertising with this whole Wrestling Matters deal. If they really want to make people believe that Impact Wrestling is where Wrestling Matters, then go out there and prove it. So far, I am not seeing anything different with Impact since they are doing all of the same things when they were called TNA Wrestling. What has really changed? It is the same creative staff, same wrestlers, and same storylines. Really, the only thing that has changed is the company name and the color scheme, and I think most people are aware that nothing really hasn't changed with this company because it still feels like TNA. Well, that is going to do it for the review and I hope you enjoyed it. Sorry the review is so long, but some of these TNA episodes feel longer than watching the Ten Commandments since there is so much stuff to explain...or not to explain. I also apologize for swearing more than usual and more anger rants in this review. For some reason, this episode really got to me and I really dug into this episode. As much as I wasn't a fan of last week's show, at least that show was watchable and tolerable while this was......yeah. As always, tell me what you thought of my review and tonight's show. SD review is really on the fence for this week. I will see you guys and girls on the next WrestlingNerd show, see you next time and I need some pain reliever medicine, quick....
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