Impact Wrestling – December 21, 2017 (Best of 2017 Part 1): When Your Best Just Isn’t Good Enough
Impact Wrestling
Date: December 21, 2017
Host: Josh Matthews
In a concept that is likely to draw a lot of jokes, this is a Best Of 2017 show with part two to follow next week. In other words there’s nothing new this week and we’ll be looking at a bunch of matches and segments from throughout the year. It’s probably not going to help the already low audiences though, making this a potentially very bad idea. Let’s get to it.
Note that since I’ll be copying and pasting the original versions of these matches, you’ll be seeing the full recaps. The versions that air on the show will likely be heavily clipped.
We get a quick look at the history of the company, basically saying they’re always changing.
From March 9 (with nothing saying the show’s date).
There are new owners and management, which means we have a new name: Impact Wrestling. These new owners are looking for people who have achieved greatness in the past, like Prichard himself. He was around when names like Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin and John Cena got their start so he knows greatness. Now he brings out Lashley, who talks about beating everyone put in front of him.
Again from March 9.
Impact Wrestling World Title: Alberto El Patron vs. Lashley
Video on Alberto vs. Ethan Carter III.
Video on a variety of feuds, including Cody vs. Moose, Allie/Braxton Sutter vs. Laurel Van Ness and LAX vs. everyone.
Konnan and LAX promise violence.
From April 20.
X-Division Title: Trevor Lee vs. Dezmond Xavier vs. Suicide vs. Andrew Everett vs. Sonjay Dutt vs. ???
Dutt moonsaults onto Suicide and Everett before sending Lee face first into the apron. Xavier avoids a Low Ki charge and moonsaults onto the pile as we take a break. Back with Everett taking the standing chest stomp from Lee. Trevor throws everyone out as Dutt seems to have an eye injury.
The announcers bicker again and Pope walks off. JB punches Josh to end the show.
From April 27.
Tag Team Titles: Decay vs. LAX
Video on the India tour, including Dutt vs. Low Ki.
X-Division Title: Sonjay Dutt vs. Low Ki
Sonjay mostly misses a moonsault off the barricade but what looked to be Sliced Bread #2 is countered with a drop onto the steps. Back from a break with Low Ki stomping away and grabbing something like an abdominal stretch/Octopus Hold hybrid. Dutt fights out and Low Ki takes off the jacket, earning himself a great looking superplex.
Low Ki breaks up a sunset flip and snaps off a standing double stomp for two. A tornado DDT drops the champ (who has a bloody eye) and a top rope splash gives Dutt the title at 16:28. The commentary was rather horrible there as they barely reacted to either the setup or the title change.
Some wrestlers come out to celebrate with Dutt, including Shera putting him on his shoulders to end the show.
Josh wraps it up.
Overall Rating: C. I never know how to grade a Best Of show so we’ll go right in the middle. Above all else, the show really just illustrated how much things have changed in the last few months. Look around at what was going on in the first six months and compare it to now. It’s staggering how much different everything is in such a short amount of time.
The lack of a Knockouts match surprised me, but what didn’t surprise me was the company managing to botch something else: when they would jump to matches, many of them were joined in mid-SENTENCE. I know this company has no budget but they can’t even find someone to say “hey, maybe we should add an extra second to this so it doesn’t sound so weird”. At the end of the day, TNA is TNA and there’s no way around it.
Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Volume VI: July – December 1999 in e-book or paperback. Check out the information here:
http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/11/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-and-thunder-reviews-volume-vi/
And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at: