Impact Wrestling
Date: February 9, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

It’s the go home show for No Surrender and that means we are almost out of the Tommy Dreamer Main Eventer phase. It hasn’t been the worst stretch in the world but it also hasn’t been thrilling television either. Odds are that this is going to be the biggest push of them all that could make for a rough stretch. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh Alexander/Suicide/Trey Miguel/Willie Mack vs. Blake Christian/Ace Austin/Daivari/Chris Bey

These eight will be in a Triple Threat Revolver Match (basically a gauntlet) at No Surrender for the #1 contendership to the X-Division Title. Alexander top wristlocks Christian down to start and hits a slam for a bonus. Austin comes in to increase the competition a bit so Alexander drops Trey onto him for two. It’s off to Bey as the pace picks up but things start to break down a bit with Austin missing a dive onto Bey.

Mack’s attempt at a dive onto both of them is broken up and Daivari unloads on Mack in the corner. That just earns him a Samoan drop into the standing moonsault, which only lands on Daivari’s knees. Bey comes back in for two off an elbow to the back and it’s time for the rotating heel beatdowns. Christian hits a dropkick to the back of the head for two and Daivari grabs a chinlock with a knee in the back.

That’s broken up in a hurry and it’s back to Miguel, who kicks Blake down in a hurry. Miguel grabs a Muta Lock but pulls up on his knees instead of bridging back. Bey breaks that up so Alexander comes in for a bunch of northern lights suplexes. The ankle lock has Austin in trouble but Christian makes the save with a 450. Mack’s standing moonsault hits Christian but it’s off to Bey and Austin to beat on Suicide. That’s broken up as Suicide dropkicks Bey to the floor, only to accidentally get knocked outside by Miguel. With Suicide down, Miguel pulls Christian into the Hourglass for the tap at 11:57.

Rating: C+. Take eight people, have them fly all over the place and let them do their thing. This was a nice preview for Saturday, even if the concept sounds a little weird (not necessarily a bad thing). I can always go for such an all over the place match like this and it worked out well enough here.

Post match Sami Callihan pops up on screen to ask how fast Trey is going to leave after things start going badly again. Threats are implied.

Various wrestlers wish Tommy Dreamer a Happy Birthday, including Gail Kim. There’s even a graphic.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Kimber Lee vs. ODB

Deonna Purrazzo and Susan are here with Lee. The bell rings and Lee bails to the floor for the conference, with the advice leading her to….puff up her chest and bounce off of ODB. Lee is knocked down and kicked in the face, followed by a hard chop in the corner. ODB’s Dirty Dozen is broken up (good) and Lee grabs a full nelson with her legs. ODB fights up but gets sent into the corner over and over as we take a break.

Back with ODB hammering away and hitting a splash in the corner. There’s the Cannonball for two and now the Dirty Dozen works. A middle rope Thesz press gets two but Lee kicks her in the head. ODB slams her off the ropes but Purrazzo and Susan get on the apron. Cue Jordynne Grace and Jazz for the brawl, allowing ODB to dive off of the apron to take out Susan and Purrazzo. Lee is right back up with a rollup for the pin at 12:01.

Rating: C-. I have never been an ODB fan and I don’t see that changing anytime soon, but she did her thing well enough here to get by. You can probably set up the six woman tag for No Surrender (assuming it hasn’t already been booked) and that will work out fine. ODB hasn’t been the focus here so it’s not the worst thing, but just don’t have her become the main point of the feud.

We go to Swinger’s Palace where Fallah Bahh is out of money. His offer of a slightly used cookie is turned down and he is thrown out, leaving Swinger to hit on Alisha Edwards. Swinger: “I’m Terry Taylor!” He also has the wad of money, because money is something to be held for months on end instead of, you know, used for money things.

Susan rants to Purrazzo and Lee about what just happened and it’s time to set up the six woman tag.

Here’s Cousin Jake for a chat. He thought that things were going great around here for the Deaners but now things have fallen apart. Cue Violent By Design to get an answer on their offer from last week. Eric Young tells him to be the best version of himself but Jake says he’s going to stand for….something. The beatdown is on and the Pillmanizing is on but Cody says hang on. Eric says ok, because it can be Jake vs. Cody at No Surrender.

Rohit Raju says he and Mahabali Shera have been friends for a long time and at No Surrender, Raju is getting the X-Division Title back.

Tony Schiavone and Tony Khan talk about the Forbidden Door being opened up, with Khan realizing that he was the Forbidden Door. Who knows who is going to show up next??? We run down this week’s Dynamite card. Khan will even be back in Nashville soon enough to mess with Impact some more.

The Good Brothers know Chris Sabin/James Storm are great but they’re not the Good Brothers. Tonight it’s a Magic Killer and a Too Sweet.

Kiera Hogan vs. Nevaeh

Tasha Steelz and Havok are here too. Nevaeh wins a slugout to start and hits a Hennig necksnap into a sliding lariat for two. A clothesline gets the same as commentary tries to figure out what kind of shoes Kiera is wearing. Kiera slugs away but gets caught with a belly to back faceplant, setting up a side slam for two more. Hogan tries another slugout and gets kicked in the head for two more, followed by an STO to put her down again. With nothing else working, Steelz comes in for a Codebreaker on Nevaeh and the DQ at 5:46.

Rating: D. Well that wasn’t much. They have pretty clearly established the story already as the champs can’t beat Havok and Nevaeh in a fair fight so they keep finding ways to get out like this. That works out well enough, but it doesn’t exactly make for some interesting television. I’m not sure when we’ll be getting to the title match, but I’m also not sure how interesting it is going to be.

AEW stars wish Tommy Dreamer a Happy Birthday. These aren’t quite as polite.

Fire N Flava yell at Scott D’Amore about the referee costing them their singles matches against Havok and Nevaeh. D’Amore has a solution: a different referee for their No DQ title defense at No Surrender. He shuts the door on them and the screaming continues anyway.

Here are XXXL, Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb With A K for a chat. They’re ready for their No Surrender tag match with Decay and that’s why Dashwood is here: she can beat up Rosemary for them! Dashwood doesn’t understand what kind of a name Decay is because that sounds like they need a dentist. Kaleb With A K issues a challenge to any member of Decay, which really doesn’t seem like the best idea. Cue Decay, with Rosemary saying they have found someone new to play with them.

Black Taurus vs. Kaleb With A K

Taurus is a monster in a bull mask from AAA and fits in rather well with the team. Kaleb gets tossed into the corner and it’s a pop up Samoan drop to crush him again. Something like a fisherman’s suplex spun into a powerslam finishes for Taurus at 58 seconds. I’ve been impressed by Taurus before and he looked great here.

Brian Myers pays off Hernandez, who wants to get paid up front before their No Surrender tag match. Fallah Bahh sees the money being exchanged and seems to have an idea.

Tag Team Titles: Good Brothers vs. James Storm/Chris Sabin

Storm/Sabin are challenging. Sabin grabs Anderson’s arm to start and armdrags him into an armbar. Storm comes in to hammer away in the corner and the rapid tags continue with the Boys being sent outside. We take a break and come back with Sabin kicking Anderson in the back of the head to give Storm two. Sabin comes back in but the tag brings in Gallows to put the champs in control for the first time.

Some shots to the ribs have Sabin in trouble in the corner and it’s back to Anderson for a chinlock. Gallows puts on his own chinlock as Private Party and Matt Hardy come out to watch. That’s enough of a distraction for Sabin to get over to Storm for the tag as as everything breaks down. Storm hits a Backstabber on Anderson but Private Party runs in for the DQ at 10:47.

Rating: C. This only had so much time to get anything going and the ending didn’t help things, but Sabin and Storm felt like they could have had a chance at taking the titles. Granted it might not have been the biggest chance because of the No Surrender title match coming up, but it’s better than nothing. I’m not sure how much of a future the team has though, as Alex Shelley being back would seem to get rid of their future. Still though, not too bad here.

Post break, Matt Hardy promises Private Party a bonus if they win the titles. Scott D’Amore comes in to say there’s a problem so the title match on Sunday is now a triple threat with Chris Sabin/James Storm added in. Matt freaks out.

We run down No Surrender, which seems like it has had about 15 matches added.

Moose doesn’t like that this match is taking place because Swann promised him the title match first. Violence is teased but D’Amore cuts Moose off and says he can be gone in a hurry. Moose says he can hurt Swann whenever he wants so they yell at each other until Dreamer tells them both to shut up. He pulls out his phone and reads a text from Moose that he got back in July after their match. Moose said Dreamer still had it and he got it as a result.

They are all in wrestling and love this business, which is why he doesn’t wrestle for money anymore. All Dreamer wants is to help the men and women in the back because somewhere, fifty years ago, a Dreamer was born and now there are a bunch of dreamers in the back. For three hours on Saturday, fans are going to have a chance to forget everything else so Dreamer signs. They hug to end the show as Moose leaves. Dreamer’s promo was great, but it doesn’t get around the idea that Dreamer has been one of the major focuses for the last few weeks.

Overall Rating: C. These Impact Plus specials have been a heck of a bonus for the company as there is really very little that separates them from a regular pay per view. Aside from the main event, No Surrender might as well be a low level pay per view and that’s a nice thing to have. Impact only runs a handful of pay per views in the first place so giving us something to bridge that gap helps a lot.

That being said, I think I’ve made my issues with Dreamer’s continued presence and pushes well known enough over the years so I’ll spare it again. Other than that, the show still has some weak spots, mainly around the women’s division. The talent is completely there but the stories they are telling aren’t exactly working at the moment. Upgrade that and get on to Swann vs. Moose and this show gets a heck of an upgrade in a hurry.

Results

Willie Mack/Suicide/Trey Miguel/Josh Alexander b. Blake Christian/Ace Austin/Daivari/Chris Bey – Hourglass to Christian

Kimber Lee b. ODB – Rollup

Nevaeh b. Kiera Hogan via DQ when Tasha Steelz interfered

Black Taurus b. Kaleb With A K – Spinning powerslam

Chris Sabin/James Storm b. Good Brothers via DQ when Private Party interfered

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Impact Wrestling
Date: January 5, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Madison Rayne

It’s time to get back to the regular shows but we are also on the way to both Genesis and Hard To Kill. That means we could be seeing some good stuff around here, though the idea of building towards two shows at once is rarely something that works out all that well. Maybe they can fix that tonight though as Kenny Omega is here. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Kenny Omega and Don Callis joining forces with the Good Brothers against the Motor City Machine Guns and Rich Swann.

Opening sequence.

Ace Austin vs. Blake Christian vs. KC Navarro vs. Crazzy Steve

Madman Fulton is here with Austin and this is a preview of the Super X Cup at Genesis. Austin chills on the floor to start so the other two rub Steve’s chest. That’s a little too much for Austin, who pulls Steve to the floor so Christian and Navarro start going rather fast. Christian kicks Austin in the face but Austin sends him into the corner. Steve ties Navarro in the upside down Figure Four necklock over the ropes but Navarro is right back with a headscissors.

Navarro takes Austin out, only to have Christian shove him off the top to the floor. Christian’s big flip dive to the floor takes Navarro down but Austin cuts Christian off. That lets Navarro get back inside to dive onto Christian for a change, so Austin flips onto both of them at once. Back in and Navarro hits a running neckbreaker for two on Austin and Christian adds a standing Spanish Fly. Christian’s springboard frog splash gets two on Austin with Steve making the save. Steve Death Valley Drives Navarro into the other two in the corner and a middle rope DDT is enough to give Steve the pin on Navarro at 7:06.

Rating: C+. This was your old school X-Division spot fest, meaning there was almost no way to have anyone stand out and someone won in the end. That being said, it’s also a rather entertaining match because it is non-stop action from bell to bell. They kept things moving and didn’t stay out there too long, which is what matters most in something like this. It’s junk food, but it’s good junk food.

Kenny Omega’s bus is here so make sure you watch the whole show to see what he does!

Here’s what’s coming up tonight.

Sami Callihan hacks the feed and talks about how he is ready for Eddie Edwards. Eddie is trying to say that the good guys win in the end but tonight, Sami is proving the bad guys win. Thumbs up, thumbs down.

We get another paid advertisement from Tony Khan and Tony Schiavone. They’re here to help those less fortunate, meaning Impact Wrestling. We hear the Dynamite card and Khan goes into a rant against Don Callis, saying that he does everything for AEW except wrestling. Callis is a parasite but Khan is a patron of wrestling. He’ll be back to buy another ad next week because his grandmother gave him $100 in a Christmas card and he wants to spend it on something fun (Schiavone isn’t even trying to hide his laughter at that one).

The Good Brothers and Don Callis think Kenny Omega’s is so big. His belt that is. They’re ready for Hard To Kill because they’re friends with chemistry, which is more than the Guns and Swann have ever had.

Here are Cousin Jake and Rhino, with Jake wanting Cody Deaner back because they’re family.

Cousin Jake/Rhino vs. Cody Deaner/Joe Doering

Before the match, Eric Young says Deaner answers to him these days because Deaner has seen the truth. Cody hammers on Jake to start and seems far more intense than he has ever been before. Doering comes in as we hear about how awesome is he again, mainly because he was in Japan. We take a break and come back with Jake still in trouble in the corner. Jake manages to backflip out of a belly to back though and brings in Rhino to hammer away. The offense lasts about ten seconds before it’s already back to Jake though and Cody hits him low. The Deaner DDT finishes Jake at 7:31.

Rating: D+. There wasn’t much drama to this as you have a new heel able so they aren’t going to lose on their first match together. Doering is still his usual self but I can go with something that gets rid of one of the redneck Deaners. It’s not like the team was anything of value in the first place so this is an improvement. Not much of one, but an improvement.

Post match Jake and Rhino get beaten down even more….until Tommy Dreamer comes out with the kendo sticks for the same. Dreamer issues the challenge for the Old School rules match at Hard To Kill. Eric Young and Tommy Dreamer in the same angle and match. Happy freaking new year.

Matthew Palmer didn’t drive this far to become a security guard so he is here to face Moose. If he lasts three minutes, people will know who Matthew Palmer is.

Acey Romero comes in to see Johnny Swinger, who has his own office. Romero says Crazzy Steve sent him to see Swinger about John E. Bravo being framed. Swinger says go ask the Knockouts.

Here are Deonna Purrazzo and Kimber Lee for a chat. Deonna doesn’t understand why Taya Valkyrie has a problem with them. Taya is blaming them for all of her problems, but what happens when Purrazzo takes her out? Cue Taya and Rosemary, who says she is the longest reigning Knockouts Champion ever, and she hasn’t lost any focus on that title. Deonna says Taya has already lost everything she has and her husband isn’t even here anymore. When will Rosemary turn on her too? The only thing she has left is the record but Taya knows Purrazzo is scared of what is coming at Hard To Kill. Just a quick push towards the match.

Rohit Raju tells Chris Bey that his New Year’s resolution is to forgive, so he forgives Bey for costing him the X-Division Title. Bey isn’t impressed but Raju thinks they need to get together and take Manik out.

Post break Raju and Bey go find TJP, who hasn’t seen Manik. They want a tag match against Manik and TJP but he isn’t interested.

Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb With A K comes up to Rosemary and understands what it’s like to split with a partner like Rosemary is going to split with Taya soon. Rosemary isn’t interested.

Knockouts Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Jazz/Jordynne Grace vs. Havok/Nevaeh

Nevaeh and Grace start things off with Grace working on a headlock to take Nevaeh down. That’s broken up so Havok comes in for the hoss fight, with Grace being knocked into the corner. Jazz comes in to slap Havok and stomp away in the corner. Havok sends her into the corner and hands it off to Nevaeh for the running splash.

That’s broken up in a hurry so Grace comes back in for a double back elbow to the face. Jazz is in just as fast and leaves Grace hanging on a tag (how rude) but suplexes Nevaeh down. The neck crank doesn’t last long as Nevaeh makes the comeback in a hurry. A double tag brings in Havok to powerbomb Grace for two as everything breaks down. The Tombstone finishes Jazz at 9:49 to send Havok and Nevaeh to Hard to Kill.

Rating: C-. This tournament has been ok at best and it isn’t exactly thrilling when the finals wind up being two of the only regular teams in the whole thing. Granted I’d rather have that than two random teams who have no history fighting for some historic titles. Grace continues to look like a star, but this was the right choice.

Rich Swann and the Motor City Machine Guns aren’t impressed by Kenny Omega and the Good Brothers. This company was founded on people like the three of them (Swann was 11 years old when the company was founded) and they aren’t letting this happen. Swann talks about how the letters on this title doesn’t say AEW because it says Impact Wrestling World Champion. They’re going to show the three of them that pain is temporary but pride is forever. Shelley is ready to go fight right now so they head to the parking lot.

After walking around security (It took them a month to figure that out?), the trio gets jumped from behind by Omega and the Good Brothers, with Callis shouting a lot. Omega says they were easy to kill and gets in a few more stomps before heading back onto the bus. In other words, Omega and company again look like the smart ones while the good guys are presented as complete morons.

Jazz asks Grace what happened but Grace says it was her fault. Everything is ok and Grace praises Jazz for being awesome. They should face each other at Genesis and the match is on. Grace wasn’t exactly great on the talking here.

Deonna Purrazzo and Kimber Lee ask James Mitchell if he has taken care of Su Yung. Cue…..Susan, who wears glasses and a business suit. Our villains aren’t sure what to do.

Moose vs. Matthew Palmer

Non-title with a three minute time limit. Palmer slugs away to start but gets planted with a standing Rock Bottom (as Josh puts it). The slow beating continues as we’re already down to a minute and a half left. Palmer is tossed around but gets in a jumping knee to the face. Moose kicks him in the face and loads up the spear but here’s Willie Mack for a distraction, allowing the clock to run out at 3:00.

Rating: D. You can only get so much out of something like this and they did a fine enough job of advancing Mack vs. Moose by having Moose humiliated. Palmer was any warm body here and that’s all he needed to be. I’m still not sure what the endgame is with Moose as TNA World Champion and the longer it goes, the more I don’t think Impact knows either.

Ethan Page is on a psychiatrist’s couch but the doctor keeps speaking in what sound like motivational poster cliches. Page thinks everyone around here is out to get him and yells at the doctor for not listening. It’s Karate Man, who calls Page a b****. They argue a bit and the match is made for Hard To Kill.

Here’s what’s coming at Genesis, Hard To Kill and next week.

Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan

They start fighting during the entrances with Sami getting in a few chair shots. Eddie is back with some headbutts but chops the post by mistake. Sami steps over him for a low blow and we take a break before the bell. Back with Eddie getting in his own chair shot as the bell still hasn’t rung. Sami grabs the timekeeper’s hammer and knocks the chair into Eddie’s head.

The chair is thrown at Eddie’s head but Eddie headbutts his way out of a suplex through said chair. Eddie charges into a t-bone suplex through the chair though and they finally head inside for the bell. The slugout is on but Eddie shoves the referee down, allowing Sami to get in some more shots. They rake each others’ eyes and the referee is knocked down again, drawing the double DQ at 1:13.

Post match Eddie grabs Sami’s bat and stalks him but Sami pulls out the hacking phone to show Alisha Edwards trapped in a cage. Eddie goes after her but it’s Ken Shamrock jumping him from behind. Sami comes in and they wrap Eddie in barbed wire for a baseball bat shot to the face. Alisha is blamed as the villains leave to end the show. I really could go with this feud being done for good already as it isn’t quite as epic as Impact thinks it is.

Overall Rating: C-. The AEW addition to the show is rapidly dwindling in value as this show is becoming AEW’s playground. It’s starting to feel like when New Japan would come to Ring of Honor and that’s not a good idea. The rest of the show was the usual hit or miss effort, as there isn’t a big story or feud to point to at the moment. The show is just kind of coming and going most weeks as AEW is treated like this divine intervention that only serves the other company. Not a terrible show, but the sooner Omega and pals are gone, the better it is likely to be.

Results

Crazzy Steve b. KC Navarro, Ace Austin and Blake Christian – Middle rope DDT to Navarro

Cody Deaner/Joe Doering b. Cousin Jake/Rhino – Deaner DDT to Jake

Havok/Nevaeh b. Jazz/Jordynne Grace – Tombstone to Jazz

Matthew Palmer b. Moose – Time expired

Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan went to a double DQ when the referee was knocked down

 

 

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