IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: September 8, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

We’re in a new world around here as Eric Young is the World Champion again. That would seem to set up a big showdown against Rich Swann at Bound For Glory, which hopefully means this doesn’t last too long. Other than that, we have the Motor City Machine Guns defending the Tag Team Titles against the Rascalz and the continuing mind games between EC3 and Moose. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Eric Young for his first interview as champion. Young talks about how world class he is with everything and then he rolled over everyone to become World Champion. Cue Alisha Edwards to call Young a coward for injuring people. Eddie Edwards is going to come back and take Young out because he’ll fight anyone. She isn’t afraid of Young and it’s because of Young that Eddie can’t hold their child. Young: “I don’t care.”

Alisha slaps him so Young loads up a piledriver but Tommy Dreamer (oh no) comes in for the save. Dreamer talks about how the Edwards and Rich Swann are family and he isn’t letting this happen. If Young wants to be some monster, come end his career tonight. We’ll make it Extreme Rules, Old School Rules, Hardcore or whatever. Young says he’ll see Dreamer tonight. Can I see something in a mallet to the head?

The announcers run down the card.

Moose gets on a plane (where you can be followed by a camera crew) to go get his TNA World Title back.

Rosemary, John E. Bravo and Taya Valkyrie are wedding planning, with Rosemary saying she doesn’t know many people who can officiate a demon wedding. Taya says she has this so Rosemary teleports away, leaving Taya to make some rather big plans (a twenty layer cake is mentioned).

TJP vs. Chris Bey

They starts fast with TJP slugging away and hitting a big backdrop. Bey slips out of an armbar attempt and here’s Rohit Raju to watch from ringside. A headscissors out of the corner sends Bey to the floor for the Wrecking Ball dropkick and it’s time to work on Bey’s arm. The good arm hits TJP with a clothesline though and we take a break. Back with Bey in control but having to glare at a cheering Raju. The Gory Stretch is countered into a rollup though and TJP slaps on a quickly broken Muta Lock.

Bey kicks him in the back of the head and puts on an abdominal stretch. That’s broken up with a belly to back suplex and some rolling single underhook suplexes keep Bey down. Bey’s springboard kick to the face is countered into a rollup for two as Madison leaves to do Locker Room Talk. Bey tries a rollup but TJP reverses into a sunset flip for the quick pin at 10:37.

Rating: B-. They kept things moving at a very fast pace here and that’s what they needed to do. I’m not sure where they’re going with the Bound For Glory title match here but you can almost guarantee that there will be a lot of people involved. That isn’t a bad thing in this case, but I could go for a match like this on the big stage instead of some big mess.

It’s time for Locker Room Talk and Johnny Swinger has a new jacket. He insists that Wrestle House wants him back, which Rayne says makes it sound like jail. The guests this week are Kylie Rae and Susie, with Madison accusing Rae of trying to hide from Deonna Purrazzo. Madison tries to bring up Susie being Su Yung but here are Purrazzo and Kimber Lee, with Purrazzo complaining about the interruption last week. Tag match next week.

John E. Bravo is trying to find an elephant but Tasha Steelz and Kiera Hogan come in to ask about their invitations. They want him to be a man and stand up to Taya but Taya wouldn’t like that. The two of them are going to be his groomspeople and teach him how to be a man.

Here’s Brian Myers to talk about getting off on the wrong foot with Willie Mack. He has been around the world and wrestled in all fifty states. There is nothing to be ashamed about to lose to him but Mack wouldn’t go with the time honored tradition of shaking his hand. Mack needs to come out here and do it now, so here’s Mack to say he isn’t here to shake hands. He would rather put his hands around Myers’ throat and shake that. They’re having a rematch right now, but Myers isn’t ready. Mack: “Didn’t they tell you to always bring your gear if you’re a professional?”

Willie Mack vs. Brian Myers

Mack elbows him to the floor to start and follows with a dive. Myers sends him face first into the apron a few times though and takes it back inside to yell and stomp. A suplex gives Myers two and we hit the chinlock. Mack fights up with the swinging slam into a legdrop for two of his own. The standing moonsault gets the same but the Stunner is broken up with a rake to the face. Mack hits a standing Sky High but Myers gets in a low blow, setting up an implant DDT for the pin at 5:26.

Rating: C-. I still don’t quite see the star power in Myers but he used to be in WWE and has a podcast so I guess he’s worth pushing. Mack continues to look and feel like a star and I could go for more of him, but hopefully he winds up getting some kind of a win here. The handshake deal is fine, though back to back losses aren’t the most encouraging.

Jordynne Grace doesn’t get why Tenille Dashwood just showed up and thinks she gets a title shot. Grace goes to find her but gets Dashwood’s personal photographer (Caleb Konley), who says she is too busy.

Taya yells at Tasha and Kiera for getting in someone else’s business. They yell back and both sides are called Boo Boo, making me lose any and all interest in the whole thing.

Tag Team Titles: Rascalz vs. Motor City Machine Guns

The Rascalz are challenging and dropkick the Guns off the apron to start fast. That means stereo dives to take them down again and it’s time to take it back inside for some running charges to Sabin in the corner. The rapid fire kicks get two and a running kick to the chest gives Wentz two. Shelley comes in to take over on Wentz’s leg though and he can’t even be whipped across the ring. The Guns take turns kicking at the knee in the corner and Sabin drives the knee into the mat. Sabin cuts off the comeback in the corner and Shelley knees the knee again.

We go old school with a spinning toehold from Shelley as Sabin grabs an Octopus Hold on Dez. Shelley tries a Figure Four instead as Dez escapes and makes the save. An enziguri allows the hot tag to Dez, who kicks Sabin in the back of the head to take over. More kicks in the corner get two as everything breaks down. Wentz’ middle rope Meteora onto Dez’s knees gets two and it’s a jumping knee to Sabin’s face. The Guns are back in with the Dream Sequence to Dez and the ASCS Rush to Wentz. The double Death Valley Driver retains the titles at 8:38.

Rating: B. Yeah this worked and that is hardly a surprise. They actually did something else before getting to the fast paced and high intensity offense, which is works the best for all of these guys. I’m not sure why we can’t get that more often in a match like this and it worked well here. Good stuff and I could go for another.

Post match the North runs in and beat down both teams. Ace Austin and Madman Fulton run in for the staredown but the Good Brothers come in for the real save. The Rascalz dive onto the villains and it’s a three way staredown.

Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes are rather happy because next week, it’s the Whole F’N Talk Show. Just what we need.

Sami Callihan says this is 2020 for him: he won the match and then got beaten up again last week. Katie Forbes messed things up for him so maybe she is just too much for him. Next week there is a new talk show though and Sami promises to hack it. Well at least he’s an honest hacker.

Tasha Steelz vs. Taya Valkyrie

Kiera Hogan and John E. Bravo are here. The yelling turns into the slugout to start and Taya hits a running basement dropkick for two. Kiera gets a trip from the floor so Tasha can take over as Bravo is wedding planning on his phone. Taya hits a sitout powerbomb and a knee to the chest gets two. A spear into the Road to Valhalla finishes Tasha at 3:39.

Rating: C-. They kept things fast here and that was a good thing given how Steelz isn’t the best in the ring most of the time. The Bravo distraction is going to be interesting and I’m curious to see where they go when they finally have him stand up to Taya, assuming he actually does.

Post match Kiera jumps Taya, which is enough to get Bravo off the phone for the late save.

Moose winds up at I believe his high school football coach’s office and asks if has seen EC3. That’s a no, but the coach tells him to control his narrative. Some guys in EC3 gear appear and Moose runs.

Flashback Moment of the Week: EC3/Eddie Edwards b. Mike Bennett/Moose on August 11, 2016.

Heath and Rhino meet up in the parking lot but Heath is in trouble with management. The ads are going to continue but they are expensive. Rhino knows where he can get money though.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Eric Young vs. Tommy Dreamer

Non-title and anything goes. Dreamer slams him down to start but misses the kendo stick shot. They head outside with Dreamer being sent into the steps, followed by a chain over his eyes. That earns Dreamer a posting and it’s time to peel back the ring mats. Dreamer comes back with some weapons shots and they head back inside. Young bites his way out of a superplex attempt and the catapult sends Dreamer throat first into the bottom rope. A middle rope elbow with a chair is blocked with a raised boot and Dreamer grabs the cutter.

They slug it out from their knees but Young goes after the leg to take him down again. Young gets sent into the trashcan in the corner and Dreamer’s DDT gets two. It’s table time but Young gets in a low blow. Dreamer crotches him on top, only to have Young hit him in the head with the hockey mask. The piledriver finishes Dreamer at 10:08.

Rating: D+. So that’s how Young’s first match as the World Champion goes: fighting Tommy Dreamer for ten minutes and needing to survive because Dreamer needed to hang in there for that long against the World Champion. I’m not sure who thought this was a good idea but I’m sure Dreamer cried about it a bit. Not a good match of course, but how often can Dreamer do anything above this level anyway?

Post match Young wraps a chair around the leg and beats on it with the kendo stick. Rich Swann limps out with the crutch to make the save. Young yells at Swann to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This was up and down all show with some good stuff being dragged down by a lot of negatives. In other words, Eric Young vs. Tommy Dreamer is not a main event I need to see. It was far from a bad show and it seems that we are going to be seeing Swann getting the World Title shot at Bound For Glory. That works well enough, assuming I can take that much of hearing about Young’s greatness.

Results

TJP b. Chris Bey – Sunset flip

Brian Myers b. Willie Mack – Implant DDT

Motor City Machine Guns b. Rascalz – Double Death Valley Driver to Wentz

Taya Valkyrie b. Tasha Steelz – Road to Valhalla

Eric Young b. Tommy Dreamer – Piledriver

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 18, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

It’s time for the next big special show and this one is going on for two weeks. The show is called Emergence, which seems like they came up with the name by looking at shows on network TV which has nothing to do with wrestling. This week’s big match is the Good Brothers vs. Ace Austin/Madman Fulton, which doesn’t seem to have the most drama. Let’s get to it.

The opening video suggests a new beginning for everything and runs down the bigger matches.

Opening sequence.

X-Division Title: Rohit Raju vs. TJP vs. Chris Bey

Bey is defending and has Raju in his back pocket so Fallah Bahh is here with TJP to even things up a bit. TJP dives onto both of them to start fast with only Raju joining him inside. A headscissors sends Raju outside so Bey takes his place to send TJP to the apron. Bey hits a springboard elbow to the back and it’s Raju coming in again to start the double teaming. TJP counters a whip to the apron and gets the leglock on Bey and the Octopus on Raju at the same time.

Raju escapes so TJP suplexes him for two without letting go of Bey. TJP has to fight out of another double team, this time grabbing the Gory Stretch/Billy Goat’s Curse combination. With that rather complex hold broken up, Raju jumps TJP from behind and the double teaming is on again. TJP ducks a shot so Bey knocks Raju to the floor and walks into a Tombstone. Raju is back up so TJP has to cut him off on top and grabs a superplex. The Octopus has Bey in trouble and he puts the same thing on Raju at the same time (ok we get the point).

A suplex drops Raju and they’re all down for a second. Raju is sent outside again so Bey kicks TJP in the face a few times. An over the shoulder backbreaker spun into a DDT gets two on TJP but he’s right back with the double chickenwing gutbuster. Raju makes the save so TJP grabs an armbar on Bey, with Raju blocking the tap. Bey gets caught in the ropes, with TJP going up after him. That’s broken up by Raju, with Bey falling into the Tree of Woe. Raju shoves TJP down…. hits the Alberto double stomp on Bey for the pin and the title at 10:47.

Rating: B-. I like the ending as it was the first time that Raju has shown…well anything of note in his time in Impact. It makes sense and sends them to a few different options in the future, including TJP getting another shot. Bey will be fine and can get back into the title hunt immediately so there isn’t much of a worry there. If nothing else, nice job on trying someone new as a star, which is certainly a good idea given all of the current situations.

And now, Wrestle House.

A puppet dog (who seems to be voiced by Father James Mitchell) and a stuffed monkey talk about Taya Valkyrie vs. Kylie Rae later tonight. The monkey agrees to cheer for Taya…and the dog leaves, revealing John E. Bravo as the voice (vs. the monkey as played by Crazzy Steve).

Steve thinks people are losing their minds from being stuck in here and he loves it.

Larry D. has cologne made of ring rust and Acey Romero doesn’t like his changes. Oh and it’s LAWRENCE D. now.

The Good Brothers say Ace Austin and Madman Fulton have their attention. They’ve lit a fire in them and tonight, they can thank the Brothers for making them famous.

Here’s what to expect on the show.

TNA World Title: Moose vs. Trey Miguel

Trey is challenging after Moose thought he was Suicide last week. After the Big Match Intros, Trey tries the chops and is knocked down in a hurry. We take a break thirty seconds in (erg) and come back with Moose hitting a running uppercut in the corner. Trey tries a very springboardy wristdrag but gets stopped with straight power. A dropkick puts Trey on the floor and Moose drops him face first onto the apron.

Back in and Moose sends him flying with a toss into the corner and there’s a fall away slam into a nipup. Moose grabs the ear and throws Trey down again. Trey can barely even breathe but manages some chops, only to be run over with a hard shoulder. A rip at the face has Trey in even more trouble, allowing Moose to shout that this was supposed to be Suicide.

Trey gets in a superkick and a dropkick to the back puts Moose down for the first time. Moose pops up and tries a delayed suplex but Trey reverses into a DDT. That’s enough to send Moose outside, where he catches the flip dive and swings Trey into the barricade. A powerbomb onto the apron gives Moose a nine count but the spear (now called Lights Out) finishes Trey to retain at 12:15.

Rating: C+. Good stuff here, but at some point Trey has to actually win something. He keeps getting these big singles matches and loses all of them. It’s fine to put him out there because he’s good enough to make it work, but he never even won the X-Division title. Granted maybe that’s just me being a big Rascalz fan and wanting them to win SOMETHING but it is eventually going to take away any hope of seeing him win.

Post match EC3 runs out and drops Moose with a reverse DDT. EC3 steals the title to crank things up.

Reno Scum gives Hernandez his money back and he gives them their cut. He has more work for them later so come see him again.

Eric Young talks about how he’s done everything around here and this is his purest form. He won’t be pushed aside or swept under the rug. It takes more than two years of non-existence to get rid of him. Not another “WWE didn’t use me right so let me show you what I can do!” character.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Eric Young b. Kurt Angle in a stretcher match from Impact, May 11, 2015. That was around the time when I never needed to see Young again so thanks for that people.

Willie Mack isn’t cool with Eric Young retiring Rich Swann. Brian Myers comes in and steals interviewer Jimmy Jacobs for his own sitdown interview. Myers is sick of being told he’s just a good hand and having his career in the hands of a seventy year old man who sits in on production meetings. Mack, not happy with having his interview stolen, jumps Myers and the camera falls down. As I said a minute ago: Not another “WWE didn’t use me right so let me show you what I can do!” character.

Heath doesn’t like Joe Biden picking his running mate on a Tuesday because that’s Impact Wrestling day. Now let’s get Heath4Impact trending so he can help Rhino. He needs some more time to fill in his promo so he reminds us that he does still have kids. At least this and EC3’s “we’re not in the bad WWE anymore” characters are being done a little better. Or at least differently.

Good Brothers vs. Ace Austin/Madman Fulton

Anderson elbows Austin in the head to start and fights out of the corner without much effort. Gallows comes in and drives an elbow in Austin’s face in the corner before handing it right back to Anderson. This time Austin drags him over for the tag to Fulton and the choking is on in a hurry. A corner dropkick gives Austin two so Anderson drags him over for the tag back to Gallows.

It’s off to Fulton as well and we get the monster showdown. They slug it out with Gallows getting the better of it (of course) until Fulton brings Austin in again. A single right hand puts Austin into the corner for the flying kick from Anderson. Fulton offers a distraction though and Anderson gets hit in the back of the head to put him in trouble for a change. Fulton suplexes Anderson onto Austin’s raised knees and we hit the armbar. That’s not enough for Austin as he cuts the fingers with the card, which is a good signature move.

What isn’t the best signature is the suplex onto the raised knees as Fulton does it again, but the third attempt is escaped so Gallows can come back in. House is cleaned and Fulton is sent outside. He’s back in to save Austin from the Magic Killer though, plus to pull Gallows outside for a posting. Austin sits on the top so Fulton can send Anderson face first into the knees (they REALLY like that idea). Fulton pulls Gallows off the apron but gets sent over the barricade. That’s enough for the hot tag to Gallows and the Magic Killer finishes Austin at 10:47.

Rating: C. This was your get to know you win for the Brothers, who haven’t had the big win yet. That being said, it might be better to keep them out of the ring except for more important matches as they lose a lot of their star power once they’re done talking. They’re good in the ring, but you can only get so much out of a team who is obsessed with sending people onto Austin’s knees for some reason. It’s a fine match, but who are the Brothers supposed to face in big matches?

The Deaners’ beer has been stolen and it’s time for a whodunit. Johnny Swinger insists that he is straightedge….before admitting that he’s just on probation. Acey comes up to go into the refrigerator so the Deaners accuse him. A fight is imminent but Susie reminds them of their truth. Rosemary hits on Lawrence, much to Bravo’s dismay. Jake and Susie still seem to appreciate each other.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Kylie Rae

Rosemary is referee. Kylie offers a friendly handshake but gets shoved down instead. Taya gets taken down and Kylie is rather pleased, only to get sent into the corner. The threat of a superkick sends Taya into the corner but she comes back with a kick to the head of her own. Kylie is sent into the corner again and Taya even bites her finger a bit.

Choking ensues on the ropes and Taya mocks her for being #1 contender. Kylie is right back with an armdrag into a low superkick for two but Taya suplexes her down for the same. The kickout has Taya screaming but she almost runs into Rosemary. Kylie hits the superkick for the pin at 4:49.

Rating: C-. I think we’ve established that Rae is the better of the two here but there isn’t much else that they can do with this setup. The idea still works on its own but there does come a point where they need to be back in the arena for actual matches. I’m sure they’ll have some way to get them out of this, though I’m just not sure how long it is going to take.

Post match Rosemary tells Lawrence she’ll see him next week. Lawrence tells Acey he can borrow some ring rust. Steve says that he’s blind but even he can see that Bravo is blowing it. The Deaners still want their beer back.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Tag Team Titles: The North vs. Motor City Machine Guns

The Guns are defending in the North’s rematch after losing the titles a few weeks back. Josh Alexander and Chris Sabin start things off with the former running him over without much effort. Sabin is right back up with shots to the head and avoids Ethan Page’s cheap shot from the apron. Everything breaks down though and Page hits a tilt-a-whirl faceplant on Sabin.

We settle down to Sabin getting sent face first into the corner and punched in the face by Page. Sabin fights out of some double teaming though and brings in Alex Shelley to clean house. Shelley dropkicks Alexander’s knee and Sabin kicks him into a DDT so the champs are dominating as we take a break.

Back with Shelley kicking Alexander down again and grabbing a half crab to stay on the leg. Alexander kicks him away though and Page gets in a heck of a right hand from the floor. It’s back to Page for some knees between the shoulders as Shelley is in trouble for a change. Now it’s Alexander’s chance to crank on the leg but they can’t get the hand off suplex as Shelley knees his way to freedom.

Shelley sends Alexander to the apron so Sabin can drop him face first. Sabin comes in off the hot tag and kicks Alexander from the apron, followed by a springboard missile dropkick to Page. Everything breaks down and it’s another missile dropkick into a Downward Spiral to plant Page again. The assisted double Sliced Bread gets two on Page but Alexander breaks up the ASCS Rush so Page can get a rather cocky two.

Sabin rolls Page up for two with Alexander not being able to make the save in a callback to how they won the titles. Everyone is down until Page superkicks Shelley, only to have Sabin come in with the tornado DDT to Page. The Dream Sequence puts Alexander on the floor and it’s the Skull and Bones to finish Page at 17:11.

Rating: B. Another good match between two good teams here and that is hardly a surprise. I’m not sure where the North goes from here other than either splitting up or facing the Good Brothers in a match that would take some work to set up. The Guns are going to need someone to face too and right now, the tag division isn’t all that deep, at least not in the way things have been put together as of late. Then again the Rascalz vs. the Guns has me rather interested so that would work just fine.

Overall Rating: B-. As usual, Impact is better when they have something more down to earth going on, which is where Wrestle House held it back a bit. They can’t exactly make this feel like an important show with the usual shenanigans going on, but at the same time I’m assuming the Wrestle House stuff exists so their in-arena material can last that much longer. Anyway, pretty good show, but not a great one.

Results

Rohit Raju b. Chris Bey and TJP – Top rope double stomp to Bey

Moose b. Trey Miguel – Lights Out

Good Brothers b. Ace Austin/Madman Fulton – Magic Killer to Austin

Kylie Rae b. Taya Valkyrie – Superkick

Motor City Machine Guns b. The North – Skull and Bones to Page

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 4, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

Things got turned around in a big way last week with the premiere of Wrestle House, which became the major focal point of the show. That may or may not be to your liking, but there were enough good moments that made me willing to try another show built around it. Other than that, we have the continuing adventured of Eddie Edwards as World Champion. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

TNA World Title: Heath vs. Moose

Moose is defending. Moose powers him into the corner to start but Heath comes out slugging away. They head outside as Josh hypes up Heath’s WWE career, though he doesn’t think much of the 24/7 Title. Then why mention it if you’re trying to build him up? Heath fights back on the floor and sends Moose into the barricade before taking it inside again. A hot shot drops Heath again and the choking begins.

Heath gets in a few right hands until Moose dropkicks his head off for two. There’s a pump kick to Moose and more right hands but Heath blocks a kick to the face. The comeback is on with some forearms and a side kick for two. No Jackhammer Needed only hits the buckle but the ref gets bumped. The Wake Up Call (Zig Zag) connects but Heath has to check on the referee. That means a low blow into a rollup with tights can finish Heath at 8:55.

Rating: D+. They were in a bad spot here as Heath was only going to win on some kind of a fluke at best and that wasn’t likely when you have EC3 waiting in the wings for Moose. Heath is fine for a midcard guy and it doesn’t seem like they are going to be pushing him as anything but that, which is a nice relief. Not the worst or anything, but there was no drama and it was mostly a squash anyway. Also, they hyped up the Wake Up Call as Heath’s signature move. I don’t think I can remember him using it before.

Show preview.

Willie Mack doesn’t like what Eric Young did to Rich Swann and doesn’t know what Rich’s big announcement is tonight. He’ll be there for Rich though.

EC3 talks about being punished by everyone from his employers to himself and now he needs to reset things. He’s coming for the TNA World Title so he can burn it to the ground.

Jimmy Jacobs brings out the Motor City Machine Guns for a chat. Shelley talks about the effort that they have put in over the years, but now they are back to show they can do it again. That includes Sabin coming back after his third torn ACL. The two of them were training to get Sabin back in the ring and then they realized that they still had the magic in the ring. They talk about the current teams in the company including the North, who come out to cut them off.

Alexander isn’t happy with the Guns getting this chance to tell their story after the North had more than a year as champions but never got that opportunity. Page freaks out over the idea that the Guns beat them, because the Guns didn’t beat the real North. The Guns laugh it off because the North sounds like they were going to die as champions. They’ll give them their rematch right now, but the North would rather wait for Emergence. As they should, since the Guns are apparently cheaters who would fight when the North is in street clothes.

Kimber Lee comes in to see Deonna Purrazzo after seeing Jordynne Grace take Purrazzo out. Lee offers to take care of Grace for a shot at the title. Deal.

And now, Wrestle House, complete with intro sequence. Taya Valkyrie has everyone come into the living room and says it’s time to deal with the hygiene issues, including the horrible BO around here. Johnny Swinger: “Bob Orton is here? Sweet!” That’s not what Taya has in mind, and hands out some personal grooming kits.

Kylie Rae wants to know when they are getting back to the Impact Zone because she is #1 contender. That goes nowhere so Alisha Edwards teaches Rosemary how to seduce a man. Swinger says he isn’t hard to get, but Alisha says not only is she married, but Swinger couldn’t handle her. Swinger knows he can handle both of them. Cue Tommy Dreamer and it’s MATCH TIME!

Johnny Swinger vs. Alisha Edwards/Susie

Cody Deaner is referee and Alisha shouts that she is intense. Swinger hits the double bicep pose and asks if they have ever seen a set like these. That earns him a double legsweep, but he thought he was supposed to sweep them off their feet. Now Swinger wants to hook up so the beatdown is on, including another double legsweep. The women make a wish (Swinger: “Stretch me! Like Sherri Martel!”) and Swinger doesn’t seem pleased. A double splash finishes Swinger at 1:48.

Back in the house, Kylie Rae introduces herself to John E. Bravo (again). Kylie was talking to Rosemary and heard that they can’t leave until Bravo, ahem, takes the hint. Bravo will do that when he is ready, but Kylie seems impatient.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Sami Callihan wins the World Title from Brian Cage on Impact, October 29, 2019.

The Good Brothers find their car door open and their beers poured out. Cops come up and say that looks like an open container in the car. Ace Austin and Madman Fulton comes up to laugh so Gallows grabs him by the throat. Gallows is arrested.

Brian Myers is coming soon.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan

Eddie is defending….or at least he would be if Rob Van Dam didn’t jump Sami on the stage as Katie Forbes bounces. Sami gets up and heads to the ring anyway, where he slaps Eddie to say he’s ready to go. Eddie hits a tiger driver in the first five seconds for a near fall and drops some knees to the head. Josh goes over the history between these two and asks if Madison had a rival like this. Madison: “Probably.”

Sami sends him outside for a hard suicide dive into the barricade and sends Eddie back inside. That’s fine with Eddie, who hits his own suicide dive. They go to the apron with Sami raking the eyes and hitting a quick piledriver, only to realize that he has to throw Eddie back inside. Sami sends him into the barricade instead of into the ring, setting up the running chop. Back in and Sami gets two off a running elbow and we hit the chinlock. Eddie fights up and hits a clothesline and they’re both down again.

Some chops in the corner set up Eddie’s Blue Thunder Bomb for two but Sami is right back up with a brainbuster for the same. Sami’s running forearm gets two more so Eddie forearms him right back. The tiger driver gets two on Sami, who pops back up with a piledriver for two with Eddie’s foot making the rope. Sami grabs a chair for some illogical reason but walks into the Boston Knee Party. Another into the back of the head retains the title at 11:54.

Rating: C+. This was a fine enough match and the two of them have always worked well together. I’m not entirely crazy about the World Title being defended every week, but it is far too early to write off something like this. If nothing else, Eddie is one of the most consistent people in all of the promotion and can pull it off.

Back to Wrestle House, where Bravo walks away from a distressed Kylie. Taya and Rosemary ask Kylie where he went but Bravo has left. Match time!

Rosemary vs. Kylie Rae

Taya is referee and distracts Kylie so Rosemary can jump her. Someone at ringside: “RING PSYCHOLOGY!” Kylie reverses into a headlock, which is reversed into a headscissors. Rosemary’s legs are tied up and she can’t slap Kylie, causing her to ask what sorcery is this. Rosemary insists that Kylie is a liar and tries to jump her but has to settle with sending Kylie face first into the mat instead.

A missed charge in the corner lets Kylie hit an uppercut and Taya counts a very slow two. Back up and Rosemary hits a spear for a rather fast two. Some of the other wrestlers cheer for Rosemary though, allowing Kylie to hit a superkick for the very slow three at 4:26, much to Taya’s annoyance.

Rating: D+. Well you knew they weren’t going to have Kylie lose to anyone while she is still #1 contender. Taya and Rosemary as the oddball friends is still an interesting idea, though Kylie is someone who can be a star in the division for a good while. Not a great match, but Kylie getting a come from behind win is a good idea.

Post match Bravo checks on Rosemary while Kylie celebrates. Bravo knows what is going on and likes Rosemary a lot, with Rosemary suggesting that Taya doesn’t have to know everything. Taya comes over to yell at Bravo and sends him away. Rosemary: “As long as it takes.”

Back in the arena, Anderson is trying to get Gallows out of jail. Ace Austin comes up and gets popped in the jaw, so here’s Madman Fulton to jump Anderson from behind.

Hernandez recruits Reno Scum to get his money back from Rhino. Why is this still going?

Chris Bey/Rohit Raju vs. TJP/Fallah Bahh

TJP takes Bey down by the arm to start and they fight over wrist control, as so many people do these days. Back up and they run the ropes, with TJP grabbing the ropes to annoy Bey. It’s off to Raju, but not before Bey gets taken down by the arm. Bahh comes in and cleans house as we take a break.

We come back with Raju breaking up a double splash and Bey taking TJP down for two. Raju’s low superkick gets two on TJP and there’s a running knee to the face for the same. Bey grabs the double arm kick but TJP kicks his way to freedom. A tornado DDT plants Bey and the hot tag brings in Bahh to clean house. Raju knees Bahh in the face and everything breaks down. TJP suplexes Bey down a few times but Bahh is sent outside. Bey loads up a springboard cutter but gets pulled into TJP’s cross armbreaker for the tap at 10:49.

Rating: C. This was all about setting up the likely title shot and based on that, mission accomplished. There wasn’t much of a spark though as it felt like a means to an end for the most part. I like Bey quite a bit and having Raju as a lackey is a step up from Swinger….I think. Maybe.

Preview for next week.

Here’s Rich Swann on crutches for a major announcement. Swann talks about how far he came through hard work and dedication. He became a professional wrestler and proved the doubters wrong. Then in January, he destroyed his ankle and leg and was told to expect a limp for the rest of his life. That meant no more wrestling so he worked as hard as he could to get back here. He started getting better and was given a clean bill of health so he was back at Slammiversary.

That’s where he pinned Eric Young and was ready to face Eddie Edwards and Ace Austin to win the title. Then Young got jealous and stomped his leg with a steel chair. Now he’s back where he was seven months ago and the doctor said it’s different. If Swann gets back in the ring, he won’t live a normal life. Swann has to think about his family and therefore, he has to retire. He thanks everyone and hopes he has made a positive impact.

Cue the locker room to surround the ring and slap the mat in Swann’s honor. The Rascalz hold the ropes open for him and help him get to the floor. Swann gets to the stage….and here’s Young to take the crutch and hit him in the leg again. Everyone (minus Swann that is) chases Young off to end the show. This was REALLY good as Swann sold the heck out of everything and I can even live with it being about Young.

Overall Rating: B-. The ending segment helped a lot but the Wrestle House stuff continues to be in a completely different world. I’m not sure where that is all going but it is certainly a different way to go with things. The rest of the show is good enough and this was a little better than last week’s, so maybe they can start getting back on the right track.

Results

Moose b. Heath – Rollup with tights

Alisha Edwards/Susie b. Johnny Swinger – Double splash

Eddie Edwards b. Sami Callihan – Boston Knee Party

Kylie Rae b. Rosemary – Superkick

TJP/Fallah Bahh b. Chris Bey/Rohit Raju – Cross armbreaker to Bey

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: July 21, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

We’re done with a decent enough Slammiversary and the big story is all of the new people around here. I’m not sure what that is going to mean going forward but they have enough momentum that having just a so so pay per view isn’t going to derail them. We have about four months before Bound For Glory so there is a lot to get through before then. Let’s get to it.

Here is Slammiversary if you need a recap.

EC3 tells us how we have been controlled for our whole lives, either by corporations, politicians, those that love us or someone else. Are we going to fight back? Control your narrative, like he is going to do. You have been warned.

New opening sequence.

X-Division Title: Willie Mack vs. Chris Bey

Bey is defending in a rematch from Slammiversary, which rarely works well for the former champion. Bey wastes no time in hitting a running dropkick in the corner before hammering away on the mat. Madison talks about losing on Saturday because she wanted to live a day in the life of Josh Matthews. Egads. Mack fights back with a right hand but gets sent throat first into the bottom rope.

That’s enough to send him to the floor but he pulls a slingshot dive out of the air and slams him down hard. Back in and Mack elbows away in the corner, only to miss a charge. Bey’s neckbreaker out of the corner gets two and we hit the chinlock. A double stomp to the back lets Bey rap a bit, only to miss a standing moonsault. Mack doesn’t like Bey trying his move and hits a pop up right hand. The Six Star misses though and the Art of Finesse retains the title at 5:35.

Rating: C. They kept this moving here and while it wasn’t great, the action was fast enough for a start. I’m not sure what is next for Mack, but losing twice in three days, including clean here, isn’t the best look for his future. Bey is quite good as well though and has several challengers lined up, all of whom could have some awesome matches with him.

Slammiversary recap/show preview. This includes saying that Rich Swann’s night turned into “the ultimate horror story.” Do you REALLY want to reference that show?

Here are the good brothers, with Karl Anderson getting in a Scott Hall “Hey yo.” Anderson: “I’ve always wanted to say that.” After talking about how big “The Big LG” Doc Gallows looks, Anderson talks about how they took over Slammiversary and how they’re the best in the world. They are here to take over and dominate everyone, which is why their shirts have sold out and why Slammiversary was trending #1 worldwide.

They’re ready for some beers but here are Ace Austin and Madman Fulton to interrupt. The Good Brothers showed up and came straight after the top guys, because the best in the business is looking right at them. Austin slaps the beer out of Anderson’s hand and the fight is on, with the Brothers cleaning house with all of no effort.

Heath (Heath: “I’ve got a last name. I just can’t use it anymore.”) can’t get into the building.

Rhino and Hernandez agree to a match for all of the arm wrestling money. Didn’t they do that last week?

Bey and his two handlers are having some champagne when Rohit Raju comes in and takes the glass to give a toast to the new champ. He offers his services to watch Bey’s back, insisting that he is better than Johnny Swinger. Bey will keep that in mind.

Kiera Hogan/Tasha Steelz vs. Nevaeh/Havok

Steelz and Nevaeh start things off with Steelz getting suplexed down and crucifixed for two. Havok comes in for a backbreaker into a sliding clothesline, meaning it’s off to Hogan. That earns her a big boot from Havok and a Hennig necksnap from Nevaeh. Hogan gets in a cheap shot from behind to put Nevaeh in the corner though and the stomping is on.

Nevaeh blasts Steelz with a clothesline and elbow to the face, allowing the unseen tag to Havok. A swinging neckbreaker is enough for the seen tag to Havok meaning it’s some running hip attacks in the corner. Everything breaks down and Steelz hits Havok with a chair for the DQ at 6:05.

Rating: C-. It feels like we see these teams fighting every week or so anymore and that makes things feel rather repetitive. Commentary was talking about bringing back the Knockouts Tag Team Titles and while the division is getting some more depth, that doesn’t mean it needs another pair of titles running around. Develop it first, because right now you have these four and maybe a few other makeshift teams. That’s not enough for titles.

Post match Havok Tombstones Hogan.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Eddie Edwards b. Bobby Lashley to win the World Title on Impact, October 6, 2018.

Sami Callihan blames Ken Shamrock for the loss on Sunday. Shamrock says talk to him last week.

Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes are back and Forbes is tired of wearing clothes. Next week, everyone gets a free preview.

Hernandez vs. Rhino

They hand the money to the referee and Rhino hits a Gore for the pin at 19 seconds.

The North wants to know when they get their celebration. They have dominated tag team wrestling for a year but then the Motor City Machine Guns show up and get treated like royalty in one night. If the Guns want the celebration, come take the titles.

Brian Myers (Curt Hawkins) is coming.

We get some rapid fire promos from everyone who won on Sunday. They’re all happy and proud and looking forward to the future.

Deonna Purrazzo talks about proving herself on Sunday when Kylie Rae comes in. She’s the next challenger so Deonna goes for the armbar but Rae slips out and the brawl is on.

Here’s Eddie Edwards for his first comments as champion. Eddie talks about the journey to get here and now it is time for a new journey to begin. He wants to be the kind of champion that you can believe in and things are about to change. There has not been a title defense in five months so he is going to change that by defending it every week. He is living proof that anything is possible and he wants to give the title credibility.

Cue Eric Young but Eddie cuts him off, saying Young deserves a beating for what he did to Rich Swann. Eric says Eddie is lucky that it was Rich in his cross hairs instead of Edwards. None of this has anything to do with Eddie because Eric made all of this. The fight is on and referees break it up, allowing Young to get in a cheap shot. Hopefully we can get Young out of the way sooner than later.

Moose isn’t putting up his title every week like Eddie because this title is too prestigious. He isn’t worried about EC3 but he’ll face Fallah Bahh tonight.

Eddie isn’t worried about Eric Young but here’s Trey, who requests and is granted a title shot next week.

TNA World Title: Fallah Bahh vs. Moose

Moose is defending and TJP is here with Bahh. Moose shoves him away to start so Bahh fires off some chops in the corner. A running boot to the face rocks Bahh though and a shoulder drops him. There’s a boot across Bahh’s face but Bahh is back up with a running elbow in the corner. The Samoan drop is broken up with a rake to the face and No Jackhammer Needed retains the title at 3:38.

Rating: D+. This is an idea that is going to work for the time being as Moose can spear half the roster until he gets to face someone noteworthy (and by that I mean EC3). It’s a funny gag and they can drop the TNA deal whenever it’s done so it isn’t a big deal going forward. Bahh is still big but you can really tell how much weight he has lost, which is quite impressive.

Post match EC3 jumps Moose from behind with an inverted DDT.

In the parking lot, Ace Austin and Madman Fulton taunt the Good Brothers. Cue Reno Scum to jump them from behind, allowing Austin and Fulton to escape.

Rosemary and John E. Bravo come into a rather nice house. Rosemary seems to hint at something between them but Bravo doesn’t get it, meaning the frustration is on. Cue Taya Valkyrie, much to Rosemary’s annoyance. Rosemary snaps her fingers and various wrestlers start appearing. Next week: Wrestle House! I’ve heard worse ideas.

Tag Team Titles: The North vs. Motor City Machine Guns

The Guns are challenging. Page and Shelley start thinks off with Shelley cranking on the arm. That’s reversed into a headlock and it’s an early standoff. Sabin comes in but his shoulders bounce off of Alexander. An Octopus hold doesn’t work much better so Sabin goes with the armdrags to take over. It’s already back to Page to pound Shelley but everything breaks down and the champs are sent outside as we take a break.

Back with Shelley striking away at Page in the corner but an Alexander distraction lets Page get in a shot to the face. Alexander holds Shelley so Page can stomp away as the champs take over. Shelley’s elbow to the head just earn him a half nelson backbreaker with Sabin coming in for a save. The handoff suplex puts Shelley down again but Alexander misses a moonsault. There’s the hot tag to Sabin and the pace picks up in a hurry.

The champs are sent into each other and Sabin’s tornado DDT gets two on Page. Sabin dives onto Alexander on the floor and Shelley’s standing Sliced Bread gets another two. Shelley’s spinning Downward Spiral sets up a Gargano Escape on Page, with Sabin grabbing a Texas Cloverleaf on Alexander at the same time.

They’re both broken up at the same time and it’s Sabin slugging it out with Alexander. Everything breaks down again and it’s a cutter into a wheelbarrow suplex to plant Sabin for two more. Shelley is sent outside and Sabin gets kicked in the head, but the Northern Assault is countered into a small package to give the Guns the titles back at 14:14.

Rating: B. This really was the kind of a main event that would have been better off with a crowd there to spice it up. They had a good match, though it didn’t quite hit the level that they were shooting for. The North losing after such a long reign is fine, but having the title match so soon after the Guns’ return didn’t exactly let the title change get the build that it needed.

Jimmy Jacobs leaves but Heath sneaks inside to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. The main event was good but you could tell that some of the fire was missing from the past few weeks. That isn’t the biggest surprise as you could go a long way based on the mystery appearances. The problem though is you then realize that two of the big names were Heath Slater and Eric Young, which doesn’t have the same pop once you get over the surprise. It’s still a fine show, but it wasn’t what it was over the last few weeks.

Results

Chris Bey b. Willie Mack – Art of Finesse

Havok/Nevaeh b. Tasha Steelz/Kiera Hogan via DQ when Steelz used a chair

Rhino b. Hernandez – Gore

Moose b. Fallah Bahh – No Jackhammer Needed

Motor City Machine Guns b. The North – Small package to Page

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Slammiversary XVIII
Date: July 18, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

It’s a big night for Impact and we’re on Saturday for a change. I’m not sure if that’s an improvement or not but in this case the card is looking pretty good. The big question this time around is who comes in from WWE/elsewhere, including who takes the vacant spot in the World Title match. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is all about who will show up from the released wrestlers. The World Title does get a mention, but the mystery wrestlers are the big focus.

Rascalz vs. ???

This is an open challenge and it’s…..the Motor City Machine Guns rather than the Good Brothers, who have been confirmed as signing with the company. Shelley and Wentz fight over a wristlock to start and then go to the mat for a standoff. Even Josh talks about how people were expecting the Good Brothers here, so well done on a bit of a head fake. Dez comes in and flips out of Sabin’s wristlock before hitting a hurricanrana, with Sabin landing on Dez’s back.

It’s back to Shelley, who gets caught in the corner for some quick dropkicks. Sabin gets kicked down over and over, including a dropkick to give Wentz two. Back to back slingshot hilos keep Sabin down but the Guns fight back up and knock Wentz and Dez outside without much effort. Shelley lays on the top and it’s a slugout with Wentz as Shelley gets the better of things.

Stereo enziguris get two on Wentz and Sabin cranks on both arms at once. The rapid fire double teaming keeps Wentz down and Sabin’s kick to the back gets two. Sabin cranks on the fingers, followed by a double forearm to drop Wentz again. Wentz is right back up with a handspring knee to the face, which is enough for the hot tag to Dez to clean house. Shelley gets driven into the corner and Sabin has to make a diving save.

Wentz Codebreakers Sabin but the Swanton hits Shelley’s raised knees. Sabin’s release German suplex drops Dez on his face and the back to back strikes keep him in trouble. The Dominator/sliding cutter combination gets two with Wentz driving Shelley into the cover for the save. Wentz gets caught in the Dream Sequence and it’s the ASCS Rush into the Dirt Bomb to finish Dez at 14:43.

Rating: B-. I’m not the biggest Guns fan (yeah I know) but this was a very good surprise and the team still looked good. What mattered here was keeping the team looking sharp, though seeing the Rascalz lose again makes my soul hurt. They need to win something at some point because this is becoming way too strong of a trend. Anyway, good start here and a solid match for everyone.

The announcers preview the rest of the show.

After a bit of a delay (seemed to be a missed cue), Taya Valkyrie yells at John E. Bravo that winning is all that matter tonight. Bravo doesn’t seem convinced and after Taya leaves, here’s Rosemary to say she needs to win.

We recap Moose vs. Tommy Dreamer for the TNA World Title. Moose claimed the non-existent title and beat up Crazzy Steve. Dreamer didn’t like it and called Moose stupid, along with accusing him of not wrestling for the right reasons. Now it’s time to give Moose a beating and if Dreamer wins the title, so be it.

TNA World Title: Moose vs. Tommy Dreamer

Dreamer, in a Moose Sucks Eggs shirt, is challenging and it’s Old School rules. Moose wastes no time in elbowing him down and out to the floor, meaning it’s time to bring in the weapons. Some trashcan lid shots and choking with a baseball jersey have Moose in trouble but he drops Dreamer hard onto the ramp. Back in and Dreamer gets in a few more shots, only to get dropkicked off the middle rope in a crazy display of athleticism.

They head outside to keep up the weapons with Moose getting the better of things this time around. With Dreamer mostly done inside, Moose throws in a bunch of chairs and plants Dreamer onto them. A standing moonsault onto Dreamer onto the chairs gets two but the middle rope version only hits chairs.

The Dreamer DDT onto the chairs gets two and here is the bag of thumbtacks. Moose low blows his way out of a piledriver and tries to put Dreamer face first into the tacks. A shout of I NEVER WATCHED ECW brings Dreamer back to life so Moose rakes the eyes and sends him into the tacks anyway. No Jackhammer Needed finishes Dreamer at 11:16.

Rating: D+. Yeah can we move on now? Moose destroyed Dreamer as he should have, Dreamer got in his weapons stuff, and ECW still died over twenty years ago while Dreamer continues to be the self appointed defender of legendary wrestlers. I’m not sure why we needed to see this, but apparently Dreamer was the only wrestler in the world available for a pay per view spot.

A Jaguar arrives but it’s Johnny Swinger. He heard the car was for Anderson but Ole wasn’t around so he took it instead. Gia Miller gets to park it, but no dings in the doors.

Knockouts Gauntlet Match

There are eleven women announced so far and the winner gets the next title shot. It’s Royal Rumble rules until the final two have a regular singles match. Tasha Steelz is in at #1 and Kylie Rae is in at #2 with an exchange of armdrags to start. Rae flips out of a springboard hurricanrana attempt but neither can get rid of the other. John E. Bravo, seemingly dressed as Taya Valkyrie, is in at #3 and is out almost immediately in a smart move.

It’s Kimber Lee in at #4 and she kicks Rae in the face. The slow stomping ensues until Kiera Hogan is in at #5 to start a quick alliance with Steelz. Lee tries to dance with them and is knocked down in a hurry. Steelz goes up top but Rae superkicks her out. Katie Forbes is in at #6 and dances quite a bit, with Hogan seeming to approve. Madison Rayne is in at #7 and gets knocked down as well as the intervals are getting very fast here.

Havok is in at #8 and gets to be a monster, including a Boston crab to Rae. Now it’s the real Taya is in at #9 with everyone starting to pair off. Since no one is really close to an elimination, it’s Alisha Edwards in at #10 as Don tells us that Katie was eliminated somewhere in there. Rae tries to gorilla press Edwards but Havok does it for her and throws Edwards onto Kylie.

Nevaeh is in at #11 as the ring is getting WAY too full in a hurry. Rosemary is in at #12 and Susie is out. Rosemary’s music plays again though….and it’s Bravo dressed as Rosemary at #13 as commentary cracks up. Bravo tells Taya and Rosemary to stop fighting over them so Taya decks Rosemary. Havok yells at both of them so Bravo dumps her, followed by Rae getting rid of Bravo. Rae apologizes so Madison beats her up, only to get knocked out. Rae: “I’M SORRY!”

We’re down to Taya, Alisha, Rae, Lee, Nevaeh, Hogan and Rosemary. Nevaeh and Edwards are sent to the apron and get rammed into each other for a double elimination. Rosemary gets rid of Hogan and we’re down to four. Rae clotheslines Lee out and the double teaming is on in a hurry. For some reason Rosemary loads up the Upside Down and is eliminated by Taya because it’s stupid to do anything involving going over the top in a battle royal. That leaves Rae vs. Taya in a singles match for the title shot and it’s a Canadian Destroyer to plant Taya. A superkick gives Rae the pin and the title shot at 19:45.

Rating: C-. This was an entertaining enough match but they had too many people in the ring the entire time. I can go with Rae surviving throughout the whole thing because it’s not like she was running through all kinds of monsters. If nothing else, it was nice to see someone other than Taya getting the shot, which is all you needed here. Good enough match here, with one of the best options winning.

Commentary talks about Rae’s chances at winning the title but Heath (Slater that is) jumps the barricade to say he’ll take the World Title shot tonight, or face the Rascalz. Cue Rohit Raju to jump the barricade, saying Slater is late for the show and missed the Rascalz’s open challenge. Raju is going to take the World Title match anyway because he’s been here for a long time and never gotten a title shot. The fight is on with Heath cleaning house in a hurry.

We recap Chris Bey vs. Willie Mack for the X-Division Title. Bey has won a string of matches and earned a title shot, albeit with a lot of help from Johnny Swinger. Then Bey was overheard talking about how stupid Swinger is, so he’s on his own tonight.

X-Division Title: Willie Mack vs. Chris Bey

Bey is defending and starts fast with a springboard armdrag but Mack sends him outside. The big dive doesn’t get a chance to launch and Bey takes the legs out to put Mack down. Mack catches the slingshot dropkick through the ropes and it’s a neckbreaker onto the apron for a SCARY crash landing. Thankfully Bey can get back up and go inside where Mack hits a standing moonsault for two.

Bey kicks him off the top but Mack kicks him as well, only to have his superplex attempt blocked. A slingshot Sling Blade gives Bey two and it’s a Swinger Neckbreaker for two as Bey tries to make up with Swinger. Bey goes up but dives into a sitout spinebuster for the double knockdown. Mack kicks him in the head to stay on the banged up neck and there’s the reverse Cannonball in the corner.

An exploder suplex sends Bey into the other corner for two and Bey is favoring his neck. Said neck is fine enough to avoid a charge in the corner and hit a running Canadian Destroyer for two. Mack is right back with the Stunner but misses the Six Star. The referee nearly gets bumped so Bey rakes the eyes, setting up the Art of Finesse (springboard cutter) to give Bey the pin and the title at 10:04.

Rating: B-. I like both guys quite a bit so there wasn’t a bad choice for the ending. I’m glad they had Bey win on his own without Swinger as they have a good chemistry but Bey is someone who could be a big deal without the help. Let Swinger come back now that Bey has the gold and go from there, but for now this is a good choice. I’m not sure what Mack does next, but hopefully it’s something other than waiting on Rich Swann to be healthy again.

Heath runs into Rhino in the back and after a brief reunion, it’s Scott D’Amore coming in to join them. D’Amore talks about opportunities and points out that Heath doesn’t work here. It’s a closed set and we can’t have guests so Heath needs to leave. Heath: “At least he was polite about it.” Rhino tells Heath to be at the show on Tuesday and say hi to the kids.

We recap the North vs. Sami Callihan/Ken Shamrock. The North have been Tag Team Champions for over a year and since there are no major opponents left to challenge them, it’s time for the wacky partners who may still hate each other to get the show.

Tag Team Titles: The North vs. Sami Callihan/Ken Shamrock

The North is defending. Shamrock and Alexander go to the mat to start with Shamrock going for various holds. The ankle lock sends Alexander over to the rope while Sami shouts about dangerous men. Callihan comes in and punches Alexander in the face so it’s off to Page for the first time. Page is driven into the corner in a hurry and Shamrock tags himself in this time. That means more punishment of Page and the challengers start tagging regularly to put him in trouble again.

Alexander low bridges Callihan to the floor and the champs finally get to take over. That lasts all of about four seconds as Shamrock sends them together and brings Sami back in for some kicks to the ribs. A brainbuster gets two on Page but another Alexander distraction lets Page hit a dropkick. There’s a running shoulder, allowing Page to pose at Shamrock and talk even more trash.

We hit the chinlock for a bit until Sami jawbreaks his way to freedom. The double tag brings in Shamrock to powerslam Page for two but Callihan gets caught with a double flip slam off the top. Sami sends them into each other again and Shamrock suplexes Alexander to the floor. Shamrock grabs the ankle lock on Page and Alexander does the same to Page, leaving Sami and Page to slap each other while in the holds. That’s broken up and Sami cutters Page so Shamrock locks Alexander’s ankle.

Page shoves Sami into Shamrock for the break and Shamrock doesn’t like Sami hitting him, even by accident. They’re fine enough for Shamrock to kick Alexander into the piledriver for two with Page making another save. Shamrock kicks Sami off the apron by mistake but is fine enough to belly to belly superplex Alexander from the top. A missed dive sends Shamrock crashing onto the floor and it’s the double Neutralizer planting him to retain the titles at 15:58, with Sami not being able to make the save in time.

Rating: C. There were some sloppy points in here but I’m rather relieved that they didn’t go with a pretty questionable title change here. If the Good Brothers and the Guns are around full time, there is little reason to go with something like this when you can have someone else pick up a huge win by ending their reign. It was a fine enough match, but they went with a pretty simple formula with a hottish finish.

Post match the North brags about being the greatest team in Impact history, which brings out the Motor City Machine Guns to interrupt. Shelley talks about how great the North is, but they’re not the best team ever. The Guns are getting their shot on Tuesday.

Gia Miller lets herself into the Good Brothers’ locker room but Rich Swann is inside. He was here to support Willie Mack and see the World Title match. As soon as he’s cleared, he’s coming for whoever wins.

We recap Deonna Purrazzo vs. Jordynne Grace. Purrazzo showed up and has been treated as a major star. She even hurt Grace with the Fujiwara armbar more than once, setting up the title match here.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace vs. Deonna Purrazzo

Purrazzo is challenging and bails to the floor in a hurry. Back in and Grace powers her around without much effort so we need another breather. Purrazzo heads inside again and gets suplexed to the floor, setting up a dive from Grace. Back in again and Grace drops an elbow on the back for two but Purrazzo kicks her into the corner. The arm work begins, with Grace getting a foot on the rope to break the first armbar.

Grace rolls out of a Fujiwara armbar attempt but can’t hit the Grace Driver. Instead Purrazzo tries a cross armbreaker, earning herself a kick to the face. The arm is cranked a little more but Grace escapes, only to get the arm slammed down onto the mat. Grace fights up again though and hits a running backsplash to the back. The rear naked choke with a bodyscissors allows the referee to loudly whisper to them.

They fight up again with Grace sending her into the corner for a bow and arrow around the post. Back in and Grace hits a Michinoku Driver for two, only to get pulled into a triangle choke. Grace breaks out of that with a powerbomb and they’re both down again. They forearm it out with Grace getting the better of things, followed by an exchange of release German suplexes.

Purrazzo hits the Pendulum for two but charges into a boot in the corner. Grace’s running knees to the back set up a Vader Bomb for two more. The Grace Driver is blocked so Grace elbows her in the back of the head over and over. Purrazzo grabs the arm though and a double armbar makes Grace give up at 15:20.

Rating: C+. They kind of had to do the title change here as they set this up for the last few weeks. There wasn’t much else they could do here after Purrazzo had been built up so strong for such a long time. Grace had held the title for a sneaky five months, and now there are several people who could challenge Purrazzo in short order. I like Grace, but this makes sense.

Bound For Glory is October 24.

We recap the World Title match. Tessa Blanchard was released and stripped of the title, followed by Michael Elgin being released over SpeakOut. Therefore, it’s a four way for the vacant title with a mystery opponent.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin vs. Trey vs. ???

The title is vacant coming in, there are elimination rules, Madman Fulton is here with Ace and the mystery challenger is…..Rich Swann. That’s quite the surprise. Hold on though as we have another person here as a fifth entrant.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin vs. Trey vs. Rich Swann vs. Eric Young

Young says he won the World Title at Slammiversary (no he didn’t) so he’s going to do it again here. It’s a brawl to start with Swann flipping over Young and hitting a dropkick. Young is knocked outside so Swann and Trey trade flips, leaving Eddie to take them both down. Fulton chokeslams Eddie onto the apron to put him down….and that’s an ejection. Fulton won’t leave so it’s a threat of Ace being eliminated, which is enough to make him go.

Trey spears Ace down and hammers away before sending Ace inside for a super hurricanrana from Swann. Eddie chops at Young and Swann in the corner but Ace slips out of a backpack Stunner out of the corner. Ace kicks people in the head but gets knocked down. It’s Eddie with a Blue Thunder Bomb to Swann, followed by Young knocking Eddie down as well. Trey kicks Young (now bleeding) down and calls out Austin.

The fight is on with Trey slugging away and kicking Young down as well. Swann is sent outside, leaving Eddie to chop Trey, whose dive at Swann is countered with a planting on the floor. Back in and Austin gutwrench suplexes Young but loses a slugout to Eddie. There’s a tiger driver to Austin but Trey comes off the top with a Meteora to Edwards because only Trey gets to eliminate Austin. Young is back up with a quick piledriver to get rid of Trey at 9:36 but can’t pin anyone else.

A lot of shouting makes me remember why Young gets on my nerves in a hurry and his wheelbarrow neckb….well more like a belly to back suplex gets two on Swann. Young takes Swann up but Swann reverses into a super bulldog to put them both down, with Swann breathing very, very loudly. Everyone winds up on the corner and it’s Eddie and Austin falling off the top and through the timekeeper’s table in a huge crash. That leaves Young to call Swann the letdown of the two surprises, allowing Swann to get a rollup to eliminate Young at 15:36, thank goodness.

Young isn’t done and goes after Swann’s bad knee with a chop block and several Pillmanizing stomps, plus a bunch of chair shots. Swann continues and rolls Austin up a few times before slugging away on one leg. Austin kicks the leg out though and hits the Fold to get rid of Swann at 18:55.

So we’re down to Austin vs. Edwards with Eddie pulling himself back in for a slugout. Eddie gets the better of things and even counters the Fold attempt with an overhead belly to belly. Ace misses a kick in the corner and the Boston Knee Party gives Eddie two. Austin hits the Fold for the same but Eddie hits another Boston Knee Party. The Diehard Flosion (Eddie’s old move) gives Edwards the pin and the title at 24:16.

Rating: C+. It was a good, long match (as it should have been), though seeing Young back is hardly the most thrilling thing. Eddie winning the title feels like a safe pick and there’s nothing wrong with that after everything that has been going on around here as of late. Swann was a nice surprise and Austin came close, but it was probably the right call to end with the most established name who was on the roster coming into the match. Good enough, but nothing great, mainly due to so many people being involved.

Post match Fulton is back to jump Edwards but the Good Brothers come out and, after teasing an alliance with the villains, lay them out with a Gun Stun and the Magic Killer. Eddie and the Good Brothers pose to….not end the show because we get an EC3 vignette to really end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. I’m going to have to think about this one for a bit as while it was far from terrible, it was a good bit underwhelming. There was so much focus on bringing in/back all of the wrestlers (eight in total) that it kind of overwhelmed the show. I’m hoping that it doesn’t turn into the nonsense of nearly begging the former WWE stars to save them from their drek.

Bringing in new/established stars is fine, but Impact has been doing rather well without them lately and they don’t need to act like it’s instantly better because the names are well known. What we had here was good enough, but they need to pick the right path forward, and they have a lot of options available.

Results

Motor City Machine Guns b. Rascalz – Dirt Bomb to Dez

Moose b. Tommy Dreamer – No Jackhammer Needed

Kylie Rae won a gauntlet match last eliminating Taya Valkyrie

Chris Bey b. Willie Mack – Art of Finesse

The North b. Sami Callihan/Ken Shamrock – Double Neutralizer to Shamrock

Deonna Purrazzo b. Jordynne Grace – Double armbar

Eddie Edwards b. Eric Young, Rich Swann, Ace Austin and Trey – Diehard Flosion to Austin

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

I don’t know how to say this but Impact Wrestling is looking pretty good at the moment. They have something going with these recent shows (with no fans, again showing that it can be done) and I’m curious to see if they can make it work on pay per view. The company’s history suggests that they are at their best when they are just focusing on wrestling, which is where they are on Saturday. Now they need to make it work. Let’s get to it.

X-Division Title: Willie Mack(c) vs. Chris Bey

We’ll start off with a match that has a lot of potential as the two of them are both on a roll at the moment. Mack seems like he could be the star of the show in the blink of an eye and Bey looks as smooth in the ring as anyone I can remember in a good while. The main focus of this story has been Johnny Swinger, but Bey insulting him on Tuesday seems to have written that part out. That just leaves the match, and it sounds good.

I’ll go with Mack retaining here, as he seems like someone who could be a rather long term champion. Bey is going to be fine as he really is good at almost anything he does in the ring. This could be a heck of an opening match as a way to get things off to start things off, or one of the bigger matches later on in the show. I’m wanting to see this one and that’s a nice feeling to have.

Knockouts Gauntlet

This is an eleven woman gauntlet to crown a new #1 contender, meaning it could go almost any possible way. That makes for some interesting possibilities, and for a rather hard prediction to make. The important factor here is how much depth the division suddenly has, which has been an issue for the division before. Things seem to be changing, but quantity does not necessarily equal quality.

I’ll go with Rosemary as a somewhat safe pick here, as she is an established name and a win wouldn’t be out of nowhere. Kylie Rae seems to be the name they are building up more than anyone else, but she seems to be getting a little bit too much momentum. Most of the rest of the names are just kind of there, but as usual, this one is going to depend on who leaves the show with the title.

Rascalz vs. ???

Now let’s not beat around the bush here. I know this is going to be the Good Brothers, you know this is going to be the Good Brothers, and the non-existent popcorn vendor in sect….do we actually know where this show is taking place? I’d assume Nashville but I don’t think it’s ever been announced. Anyway, this isn’t a mystery to the people answering the challenge, but it should still be a cool moment.

Since the Rascalz almost never win a match, I’ll take the Good Brothers to win here without much trouble. There’s no reason for this to be anything more than a competitive match ending with a Magic Killer, as Anderson and Gallows are going to be fine enough to put on a good showing and become players in the tag division. That being said, I always feel bad about saying “I’M SURE!” on something like this, but I’m about as sure as I can be here.

TNA World Title: Moose(c) vs. Tommy Dreamer

No matter how many things change, you can count on Dreamer somehow getting a spot somewhere. Moose as the delusional monster champion has been a fun story and the kind of thing that he can pull off. I’m curious to see how long the story goes and who takes it off of him, as it could be a rather nice story with a good payoff.

What won’t be a good payoff is Dreamer winning the title, which won’t be happening here. Moose will probably sell for Dreamer because this is Old School rules (which should probably mean traditional rules but alas) but can come out as champion in the end. Beating Dreamer doesn’t mean much no matter what kind of a match it is but he comes with the territory (any territory) at this point.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace(c) vs. Deonna Purrazzo

This could be an interesting one as Grace is the powerhouse but Purrazzo has gotten the better of her at almost every turn. The problem here is they’ve made Purrazzo into a near killer and I’m not sure how much damage would be done if she loses her first big match. At the same time though, Grace hasn’t even been champion that long. She’s the kind of person who could bounce back from a loss in a hurry, but I’m not sure if that’s what we’re going to be seeing here.

I’m going to go on a limb and say Purrazzo wins here, though it’s my least confident pick on the entire show. This could be a good power vs. technical skills match, and while I could see Grace countering the armbar into a Grace Driver to retain, I think Purrazzo gets the title here. She could be a killer champion for a good while, and I’m not sure her losing early on would leave that possible.

Tag Team Titles: The North(c) vs. Ken Shamrock/Sami Callihan

I’m not usually a fan of a thrown together team getting a title shot, but it’s not like there are any other teams in the company who deserve a shot at the moment. The tag division has been one of the weaker points as of late, as there certainly are teams but none of them really stand out all that well. The North has held the titles for over a year now and have to lose to someone, but is that going to be here?

I think I’ve talked myself into saying yes actually, so we’ll go with new champs. Shamrock has been treated as a big deal since he got back (he even got to face Joey Ryan) and Callihan is a former World Champion. It’s not like the North needs to hold the titles any longer, though I would assume the Good Brothers are waiting on whoever comes out with the titles. I’m oddly curious about this, but that might be due to how good the North has been.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Ace Austin vs. Eddie Edwards vs. Trey vs. ???

Now here we have an interesting one, as the mystery opponent could be multiple people. The company only had so many ways to go to set something up here and given the circumstances, this is about as good as they could do. I’m curious to see who the mystery opponent is and who leaves with the title, so missions accomplished so far. Now just have a good match and they should be fine.

In theory, this is EC3’s spot and title to win, but I’m not entirely convinced for some reason. Bully Ray springs to mind as a possibility, which would be about as lame as you can get. I’m just hoping that when they say “World Champion” they aren’t going to pull something like they’ve done before with “World TAG TEAM Champion”, but I think that’s far enough in the past for the company. As for a winner, I’ll take Austin, who I’ve liked since he debuted. I’m curious to see where it goes though, and that’s what matters most.

Overall Thoughts

I can’t believe I’m saying this but I want to watch the show, which hasn’t been the case for a long time now. Impact has been one of the best things going in recent weeks and if they nail this show, we could be in for a heck of a night. It’s almost weird to be excited over a non-AEW/NXT show these days but they’re making it work here. It’s hard to say, but don’t let me down Impact.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: June 30, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Madison Rayne

The Slammiversary shakeup continues as we need to find another replacement now that Michael Elgin is gone. This comes after World Champion Tessa Blanchard was released from the company, meaning the main event is looking quite a bit different than it did just two weeks ago. We should be getting some updates on what is happening here so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh and Madison welcome us to the show and get straight to the big story: Slammiversary’s main event will now be a four way for the vacant World Title with Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin vs. Trey vs. a mystery opponent. Nicely done on not wasting time with what matters.

Chris Bey vs. Suicide

Johnny Swinger is here with Bey, who knocks Suicide into the corner to start. Bey is sent to the apron but slingshots in and hits some dancing. They run the ropes until Suicide snaps off an armdrag and does some dancing of his own. A dropkick sets up a Lionsault but Bey gets his knees up. Bey clotheslines him down for two but Suicide is right back with a modified Octopus.

That’s broken up so Bey ties him in the ropes for a spinning kick to the head. The middle rope moonsault only hits mat though and Suicide dropkicks him into the corner. A running kick to the face connects and Bey is sent outside, with Suicide trust falling onto Bey and Swinger. Back in and Suicide’s belly to back faceplant connects, but Swinger shoves Suicide off the top. The springboard Fameasser gives Bey the pin at 8:53.

Rating: C. The more I see of Bey, the more I like him. The guy is just good at everything he does and looks smooth every time he’s in the ring. I wasn’t feeling the Swinger pairing to start but having Swinger as the goofy lackey is a good fit for him. Suicide worked well here too and it was a nice match all around.

Josh and Madison preview the show.

Moose doesn’t like Crazzy Steve’s fun and games so tonight he’ll show him what being serious has gotten him.

Swinger volunteers to pay the referee off at Slammiversary but the referee comes in and says he’ll make sure Swinger is banned from ringside.

Reno Scum vs. TJP/Fallah Bahh

Scum jumps them from behind to start but Bahh runs them over, knocking Luster into a rollup from TJP. A double splash gets two on Luster but TJP misses the slingshot dropkick. That lets Luster get in a Pit Stop and TJP gets stomped down a bit. An old school Battering Ram connects but TJP manages an anklescissors to get in the hot tag to Bahh. Everything breaks down with TJP kneeing his way out of a suplex. Now the slingshot dropkick connects and Bahh adds a spinning belly to belly to Luster. A Samoan drop into a frog splash finishes Thornstowe at 4:50.

Rating: C-. TJP and Bahh are figuring out the formula for a team like the two of them and that’s cool to see. I could see them getting somewhere in the future, either short term or long term, and that’s a good thing to see. Reno Scum on the other hand are not such a nice thing to see but that has been the case for a long time.

It’s time for Locker Room Talk, with Johnny Swinger still annoyed at the referee. The guest is John E. Bravo, who has a devil dog and doesn’t seem to get the idea that Rosemary is after him. Rosemary pops up as the second guest and Swinger explains the idea. He seems to think that the chemistry is between himself and Rosemary though, because he likes the heavy makeup (including Aja Kong in the 90s). An argument breaks out, with Swinger dropping a Frenchy Martin reference. Rosemary wants them to kill each other but here’s Taya Valkyrie to offer Rosemary a tag team. She’s down and Taya is pleased.

Video on Deonna Purrazzo vs. Jordynne Grace.

Here’s the North for a chat. Last week they jumped Ken Shamrock, who will never have a tag team partner or a friend because of his rage issues. If Ethan Page was his friend, he would get Shamrock professional help. Cue Shamrock….and here’s Sami Callihan to say who needs friends when you have an enemy. The fight is n with the North bailing but then Sami vanishes. I think I could go for this. Maybe.

Post break, Scott D’Amore is on the phone with some “good brothers” when the North comes in to complain about what just happened. Therefore, it’s a title match against Sami and Shamrock at Slammiversary.

Your Flashback Moment of the Week: Eric Young wins the World Title.

Trey is ready to take out Madman Fulton.

TNA World Title: Moose vs. Crazzy Steve

Moose is defending and insists that we need to hear his ring introductions several times. Steve gets shoved down to start so he strikes away for some more success. It’s enough to pus Moose on the floor but his dive is pulled out of the air for a drop onto the apron. Moose swings him into the steps to draw some blood from the mouth. Forearms to the ribs set up a drop across the top rope to keep Steve in trouble.

A knee to the ribs cuts off a comeback attempt and we hit the abdominal stretch. Moose gets caught grabbing the rope so he puts Steve on top, only to get sunset bombed down. Steve slugs away and grabs a rollup for two. A dropkick to the knee puts Moose down again but he counters a high crossbody into a fall away slam. No Jackhammer Needed retains the title at 8:14.

Rating: C. This was better than I would have ever bet on. The quality wasn’t great or anything, but they set up the spear with all of the rib work earlier in the match. Steve could have been almost anyone here as his offense didn’t really matter, but that’s the point of the story they’re doing with Moose.

Post match the beatdown is on until Tommy Dreamer and some medics come down. Moose kicks Dreamer in the head and hammers away before leaving. Post break, a bleeding Dreamer says he’s been in this business for thirty years (here we go) and has fought thousands of wrestlers. Almost none of them have Moose’s talents but Dreamer knows Moose is in wrestling for a paycheck. Just like Moose didn’t listen to his coaches in the NFL, he isn’t listening to people around here.

Moose created his own title here and that’s not how it works. Dreamer has been beaten up by better over the years. His idol was Dusty Rhodes, who talked about Hard Times. We’re in the hardest times in the world but professional wrestling hasn’t stopped. Moose is the only person who has complained and he has been whining about catering. Dreamer quotes Hard Times and promises to make Moose a footnote in wrestling, just like he was a footnote in the NFL.

It was more fired up than your usual Dreamer promo and it was emotional, but my eyes rolled as soon as he was out there. I’m really not sure who designated Dreamer as the defender of professional wrestling, but hearing him say something similar so many times and then getting beaten up like he has done for his entire career quite interest me. At least the promo was good though.

Hernandez arm wrestles the Deaners for money and has no trouble, despite some slightly cinematic camera angles.

Kiera Hogan vs. Havok

Tasha Steelz and Nevaeh are here at ringside. Hogan hammers away to start but gets thrown down so Havok can scream. A delayed slam drops Hogan again but Havok has to get rid of Steelz. The distraction lets Hogan hammer away and we take a break. Back with Havok breaking a sleeper by driving Hogan into the corner.

A charge hits boot though and it’s time to choke with the long hair. Havok hits a backbreaker and a running knee to the face, followed by running boots in the corner. Steelz jumps up on the rope with Havok’s gas mask though and tosses it in to Hogan. A shot to the face sets up a kick to Havok’s head for the pin at 8:51.

Rating: D+. So what was the point of having Nevaeh out there if she isn’t going to do anything to save Havok in a situation like this? These four have been going back and forth for a few weeks now and it isn’t the most thrilling stuff. Part of that is due to the wrestling, which has only been ok at best.

Moose is ready to sue Dreamer over what he just said.

Slammiversary rundown.

Trey vs. Madman Fulton

Ace Austin is here with Fulton. Trey slides in and avoids Fulton before heading straight outside to jump Austin. Back in and Trey’s enziguri just seems to annoy Fulton but he gets dropkicked into the corner. That just means a chokeslam to Trey and a one handed gorilla press puts him down again. A reverse suplex drops Trey on his ribs but he fires off some shots to the face.

That works for what must have been a good two seconds before Fulton tosses him back into the corner. Trey tries a moonsault and winds up on Fulton’s back with a sleeper. Fulton is right back with a side slam but Trey grabs it again from the mat. That’s broken up as well so Trey hits a middle rope neckbreaker. Some kicks to the head look to set up a springboard tornado DDT but Fulton easily counters with a northern lights suplex. Fulton chokes on the ropes but Trey finds a metal stick and hits Fulton in the head for the DQ at 8:16.

Rating: C+. This was a good David vs. Goliath match and that’s what they should have done. Fulton continues to be one of the best monsters around here in a good while, to the point where storyline wise he should be in the World Title match himself. I’m sure we’ll get some company legend in there instead, but Fulton has now beaten two of the participants in the match. Hopefully that is remembered sooner rather than later.

Post match Trey grabs a chair and beats Fulton down.

We get a quick Super Eric teaser to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. They’re doing a good job of not having anything terrible on these shows and that’s a good sign. There’s nothing on here that is going to blow your mind but I’m moderately curious about who is going to be the fourth man in the World Title match. The show is perfectly competent and that’s more than several other promotions can say at the moment.

Results

Chris Bey b. Suicide – Springboard Fameasser

TJP/Fallah Bahh b. Reno Scum – Frog splash to Thornstowe

Moose b. Crazzy Steve – No Jackhammer Needed

Kiera Hogan b. Havok – Kick to the head

Madman Fulton b. Trey via DQ when Trey used a metal stick

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: June 23, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Madison Rayne

Then, as they tend to do in this company for one reason or another, things got complicated in a hurry as Michael Elgin was suspended from the company over SpeakOut allegations. At the same time, Joey Ryan was fired outright, leaving some good sized holes in this show. That means this show is going to be hacked to pieces, which could make for some different viewing. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Nevaeh vs. Tasha Steelz

Havok is with Nevaeh and Kiera Hogan is with Steelz. The trash talk is on to start so Nevaeh pushes her down and hits a Hennig necksnap. That means a trip to the floor so Hogan can offer some advice, which seems to be knee Nevaeh in the chest. Some snap jabs give Steelz two and a headbutt gets the same.

The chinlock goes on but doesn’t last long as Nevaeh fights up, only to get kicked right back down. A neckbreaker gives Steelz another two but she misses a charge into the post. An STO into a release German suplex gives Nevaeh a delayed two and draws Steelz up to the apron. The rollup with trunks give Steelz the pin at 6:06.

Rating: D+. I know I’ve had a lot of good things to say about the division developing and having multiple stories, but the wrestling hasn’t been great for the most part. This was a good example, as they just went through the motions and had a match until Hogan got involved in the finish. We also don’t really know anything about Nevaeh, but at least I’ve learned how to spell her name.

We see a clip of Deonna Purrazzo on Busted Open Radio (there’s your Tommy Dreamer cameo) with Purrazzo talking about being ready to start fast around here. Jordynne Grace pops in on the call and promises to “f****** crush” Purrazzo, who calls this disrespectful. Purrazzo declares herself the face of the Knockouts division and guarantees to win the title in her first shot. That’s it for the interview.

Purrazzo says she’ll fight when the title is on the line. Cue Alisha Edwards to challenge her to a match tonight.

Here’s what else is on the show.

The released WWE wrestler is still coming at Slammiversary.

Rich Swann comes in to see Johnny Swinger, who wants him to be a partner in a six man tonight. That’s not happening because Swann is still hurt, plus he’s not facing Willie Mack tonight. Swann is off to tell Mack what happened too, but Swinger needs to find his Rolodex to see who else could be the partner.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Bully Ray calls out D-Von and a big brawl erupts, with Doc Gallows being revealed as a member of Aces and 8’s. This was much longer than usual and their solution to the show having to be edited.

The North doesn’t like Ken Shamrock and make fun of his UFC career. You know where this is going, and it’s Alexander getting to face Shamrock later.

Moose talks to some referees about being in the Pro Bowl. He’s used to being showered with gifts so everyone should do that for the World Champion. Crazzy Steve comes up to sing a song about how fake of a champion Moose is. This earns him a title shot next week.

Deonna Purrazzo vs. Alisha Edwards

They fight over arm control to start until Purrazzo hits a Lethal Combination into a quickly broken Koji Clutch. Purrazzo starts in on the arm with a legdrop into an armbar with the legs. Edwards comes back with some shots to the face but Purrazzo kicks her in the head and snaps on the Fujiwara armbar for the tap at 2:56. Effective debut as it looked like Purrazzo toyed with her until she won when she felt like it.

Post match Grace runs in to chase Purrazzo off. Not her time you see.

Swinger can’t get Suicide to be the partner.

Hernandez agrees to be the partner, if Swinger can beat him at arm wrestling. Swinger is going to need to keep looking. Swinger: “You broke my swing!” He does however get a Rhino Micro Brawler.

Swinger bumps into Taya Valkyrie but can’t get her to say yes either. She’s looking for Bravo. Swinger: “I haven’t seen Dino.”

Ken Shamrock vs. Josh Alexander

Alexander and Ethan Page jump Shamrock before the bell but he fights them off….for about three seconds. Page puts him in the ankle lock and the champs leave Shamrock laying. No match.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Susie

John E. Bravo comes out to be in Taya’s corner, though she’s not happy with him for being late. Madison doesn’t like Susie waving at the empty arena (Madison to Josh: “She’s waving at all of your friends.”). Taya jumps her to start and has to kick out of a rollup for two. A German suplex out of the corner gives Taya two and Bravo gets in some choking from the floor.

Taya slowly kicks away and talks trash before grabbing a reverse chinlock. A grab of the rope breaks that up and Taya charges into an elbow in the corner. Susie hurricanranas her into the corner but Taya is back with a clothesline for two more. Taya misses a charge in the corner and Susie gets in a Thesz press to hammer away. That just earns her a curb stomp from Taya, followed by the Road to Valhalla to give Taya the pin at 8:07.

Rating: C-. Not terrible here but they’re still pushing the idea of Su Yung returning when Susie is pushed too far. That’s an interesting way to go, or at least it was when Bray Wyatt and Mick Foley did it. We could be in for something good when Yung finally come back and seeing Taya as a screaming coward should work well.

Post match Taya stays on Susie but Kylie Rae runs in with a superkick for the save.

Ace Austin isn’t going to let Madman Fulton answer questions about their alliance. This is all about success.

Remember the ex-WWE star coming to Impact? They’re still coming.

Swinger has found a partner: Rohit Raju. Chris Bey: “Why? Why?”

Willie Mack/Deaners vs. Chris Bey/Rohit Raju/Johnny Swinger

Jake and Raju start things off with Raju grabbing a headlock. That’s about it for Raju’s offense to start as the good guys all get in a shot each. Swinger comes in and gets dropkicked into the wrong corner. Everything breaks down and the villains are sent outside as we take a break.

Back with Jake fighting out of the corner until Raju lands a superkick. Bey ties him in the ropes for a kick to the back and a near fall and it’s off to Swinger for a chinlock. That’s broken up in a hurry so Bey comes inf or an abdominal stretch. Jake breaks that up without much trouble and everything breaks down. The parade of finishers is on until Mack Stuns Raju. Bey hits a springboard Fameasser to finish Mack at 11:18.

Rating: C. They did a nice job of setting up the pretty obvious Slammiversary title shot. Mack vs. Bey could be a heck of a match and the setup with Swinger needing to find a partner was funny. Throw in people taking shots at Raju and this was a good enough use of time throughout the night.

Reno Scum comes up to yell at D’Lo Brown but TJP and Fallah Bahh come in to make the match for next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week. In theory at least.

Madman Fulton vs. Eddie Edwards

Ace Austin is here with Fulton. Eddie circles the monster to start and ducks a right hand in the corner. A grab of the hair doesn’t get Eddie very far as Fulton throws him into the corner to take over with the power. Eddie gets in an atomic drop but a belly to belly attempt is easily blocked. A running clothesline sends Fulton to the floor, where he yells at Eddie for thinking about a dive.

We take a break and come back with Fulton throwing him over the top with a chokeshove. Eddie can barely get back to his feet so Fulton sends it back inside for a neckbreaker. A suplex gets Eddie out of trouble and Fulton bails to the floor so the dive can connect. Fulton does a movie monster sit up and Eddie’s chops have no effect.

The Blue Thunder Bomb works a bit better but Fulton sends him hard into the corner. Eddie is fine enough to snap off a super hurricanrana but Fulton gets in a palm strike. The strike off goes to Eddie and he grabs a tiger driver for two. Fulton is right back up with a swinging Downward Spiral to finish Eddie at 14:36.

Rating: B. Match of the night here and that isn’t quite surprising given that Eddie was involved. He’s one of the few names who is almost guaranteed to have a good match and that’s a very valuable thing to have. Fulton is becoming a great monster as well and putting him with Austin could be interesting.

Overall Rating: D+. I do feel bad for them because the show was guaranteed to be a mess given the whole situation, which wasn’t their fault. That being said, this is going to get worse before it gets better and I’m not sure what that is going to mean in the long run. What we got here was a lot of “see you next week” stuff and a good main event. Slammiversary has the potential to be a huge mess but getting rid of people who were just going to cause more problems might make it worth the hassle.

Results

Tasha Steelz b. Nevaeh – Rollup with trunks

Deonna Purrazzo b. Alisha Edwards – Fujiwara armbar

Taya Valkyrie b. Susie – Road to Valhalla

Chris Bey/Rohit Raju/Johnny Swinger b. Willie Mack/Deaners – Springboard Fameasser to Mack

Madman Fulton b. Eddie Edwards – Swinging Downward Spiral

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: June 9, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

It’s a big night as we get to find out the future of the World Title. Last week Ace Austin won the #1 contenders tournament, which was rather odd as he beat someone who wasn’t even entered. Never let it be said that things go as you might expect around here, though that’s not necessarily a good thing. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Don Callis and Scott D’Amore aren’t sure what to do about the World Title situation.

Ken Shamrock vs. Michael Elgin vs. Sami Callihan

Shamrock and Elgin start brawling before Sami shows up, meaning the lights go out so Sami can show up. Sami sends the other two outside but gets pulled out of the air and driven into the apron. Shamrock is back up with a dive onto both of them but Elgin hits a middle rope dropkick back inside.

Elgin sends Shamrock into the post and suplexes Callihan down for two. A hard whip into the corner has Sami in trouble and Elgin tells him to try it. Shamrock is back in to suplex Elgin and it’s time to slug it out with Callihan. Now it’s Elgin coming back in to beat up Callihan, with a running forearm getting two.

Elgin DDTs Shamrock, who pops up twice in a row. The ankle lock has Elgin in trouble and he gets to the corner….where he pulls the buckle pad off without the hold being broken. Sami blocks the tap so Shamrock locks his ankle instead. Callihan breaks that up and hits the Elgin Bomb to finish Shamrock at 8:48.

Rating: C. This was every standard triple threat match you’ve seen before so it’s nothing that you really need to see. Elgin winning makes the most sense as he’s getting the monster push, meaning the World Title shot has to be coming sooner or later. This is the kind of win that lets him look strong, and Elgin knows how to sell the heck out of that.

Post match Shamrock and Callihan stare each other down until the lights go out and Sami disappears.

The announcers preview the show.

Jordynne Grace will know everything is back when she drives Taya Valkyrie straight through the mat.

The Rascalz are ready for their seventeenth shot at the Tag Team Titles when Trey comes in and wants to know who jumped him. The North comes in to promise a beating last week. They accuse Wentz of jumping Trey, who denies everything.

Tasha Steelz vs. Susie

Kiera Hogan is here with Steelz. Tasha slaps her a few times to start and is quickly bulldogged down. That’s enough for Steelz to bail to the floor, where she knocks Susie’s dive out of the air with a forearm. Back in and Steelz stomps away, setting up a neckbreaker for two. A clothesline cuts Susie off but she’s back with a running Thesz press and the right hands. Susie palm strikes her out of the air for two as Hogan is panicking on the floor. That’s enough of a distraction for Steelz to hit a cutter for the pin at 3:47.

Rating: C-. Just a quick match here to keep the people involved in the feud going and that’s not a bad thing. Steelz isn’t the most interesting person in the world but she and Hogan pushing Susie to the brink to bring out Su Yung is going to be a nice payoff. Yeah it’s basically the Fiend, but Yung can make it work.

Ace Austin is late for his interview for some reason before showing up to say he’ll be the new World Champion since Tessa Blanchard isn’t here. Moose comes in to offer to have a special robe for Ace when he comes after the TNA World Title at Slammiversary. Ace doesn’t seem interested and leaves, so here’s Hernandez instead. He’ll fight Moose next week. Moose backs away and says don’t get so close to him.

Slammiversary ad.

Steelz and Hogan celebrate but run into Havok and Nevaeh. A challenge is thrown out but that’s not happening tonight.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Earl Hebner fights back against Mike Kanellis and gets laid out on May 17, 2016.

Rohit Raju comes up to Rhino and wants to know about last week’s Gore. Rhino references having a partner who has kids and tells Raju to get out of here. The brawl is on.

Taya Valkyrie is looking for John E. Bravo.

Johnny Swinger/Chris Bey vs. Willie Mack/Cousin Jake

Mack and Bey start things off with Bey bailing into the corner early on for a tag to Swinger. That’s fine with Mack, who sends Swinger into the corner so Jake can come in to send Swinger into the corner. Bey gets in a cheap shot from the corner though and it’s Mack in trouble for a change. Since it’s just Swinger though, Mack kicks him away without much effort and it’s back to Jake.

Bey gets dropped onto Swinger but Jake misses a charge into the corner to send us to a break. Back with Bey choking Jake on the rope and Swinger getting in some of his own. Jake clotheslines his way to freedom though and it’s back to Mack to clean house. The standing moonsault gets two on Swinger and the Stunner puts him away at 10:43.

Rating: C. Bey continues to come off like a star in the making and Swinger is enough of a goof that you can see him do almost anything you want for the same success. Jake is kind of a random partner but the point is advancing Bey vs. Mack, which they did well. The Slammiversary title match should be a heck of a showcase for both of them too.

Post match the beatdown is on until Cody Deaner makes his return for the save. Jake seems surprised to see him, meaning we’re supposed to believe that that Jake either didn’t come up to see Cody today or that he just got here and happened to run in halfway through the show? That’s a heck of a coincidence.

Rosemary almost gets John E. Bravo to bite her apple but Taya comes in to yell at him. Rosemary doesn’t want to hear it and stands up for Bravo, but Taya says she was just looking out for his own good. Somehow a partnership is formed between the three of them.

Here’s Scott D’Amore to address the World Title situation. He knows that something has to be done and Tessa Blanchard is still not here. Cue Ace Austin to say the World Champion is right here. Before D’Amore can respond, here’s Elgin to say Ace is going to have to deal with him if he wants Elgin’s title. So either get out, or fight. Now it’s Eddie Edwards making his return to say he can beat Elgin to say you have to earn titles around here.

Ace tells D’Amore to get back to awarding him the title. D’Amore tells him to get back for the sake of social distancing. With that done, D’Amore says it’s a five way for the title at Slammiversary. Ace wants to know who the fifth person so D’Amore tells him to turn around. Cue Trey to springboard in with a dropkick and the big brawl is on.

Joseph P. Ryan, with the returning Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes (to absolutely no fanfare) to introduce Jacob Crist, who is here to teach Mentally Unwell Steve a lesson.

Jacob Crist vs. Crazzy Steve

Crist jumps him from behind to start as Josh calls Steve an Impact Original. You mean the guy who debuted there all the way back in 2014? Choking on the ropes has Steve in trouble and Jake starts in on the arm. A short armscissors but Steve is right back up with a clothesline. Crist kicks him out of the corner though and a big kick to the head finishes Steve at 3:32.

Rating: D+. You can feel the Right to Censor vibes from these guys, but without Steven Richards to lead them, it doesn’t exactly make things work. Instead it’s Ryan being as dull as possible and making me roll my eyes every time the team comes out. Thankfully they aren’t going anywhere in a hurry, but I’m more confused about Van Dam’s return being treated as nothing. That’s kind of a big deal no?

Slammiversary ad. Again. At least this has the ex-WWE intrigue though and they’re making it seem like a big deal.

Preview for next week’s show.

Knockouts Title: Jordynne Grace vs. Taya Valkyrie

Taya is challenging and has Rosemary and John E. Bravo with her. Grace isn’t waiting to start so Taya bails to the floor, meaning it’s a suicide dive to take out all three of them. Back from a break with Grace firing off shoulders in the corner and getting two off a snap suplex. A belly to belly gets two and a forearm sends Taya outside.

Grace spends too much time to send her back inside though and gets kneed in the face. Taya goes up so Grace knocks her back down to the floor for a crash as we take a break. Back with Grace knocking Taya outside again but she sends Grace into the steps to take over. They head back inside for the running knee to Grace in the corner, setting up the quickly broken chinlock.

Grace counters a superplex into a powerbomb and they’re both down for a bit. It’s Grace up first to send her into the corner for the running forearm and the Vader Bomb gets two. The Grace Driver is broken up though and Taya spears her down for two more. The Road to Valhalla is blocked as well and Grace chokes her out to retain at 18:57.

Rating: B-. They were smart to put these two together as they’re some of the bigger Knockouts and can have a more physical match together. That’s what they had here and it’s nice to see Grace adding something new to her arsenal. The Taya/Rosemary/Bravo grouping could be interesting, but it was Grace’s time to retain here and they went with the logical move.

Post match here’s Deonna Purrazzo, who pulls Grace into a Fujiwara armbar to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. Decent enough show here but nothing that blew the roof off the place. Slammiversary is taking shape in a hurry and that’s a good thing given that we have just over a month before the show. What matters most is there are multiple things I’m curious to see and that is becoming the norm around here. Impact has gone from a joke to a rather decent weekly series and that’s very cool to see. Not a great show, but it worked well enough for what it was supposed to do.

Results

Michael Elgin b. Ken Shamrock and Sami Callihan – Elgin Bomb to Shamrock

Tasha Steelz b. Susie – Cutter

Willie Mack/Cousin Jake b. Johnny Swinger/Chris Bey – Stunner to Swinger

Jacob Crist b. Crazzy Steve – Kick to the head

Jordynne Grace b. Taya Valkyrie – Rear naked choke

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 26, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Madison Rayne

It’s tournament semifinals night as we get closer to finding out the next #1 contender to the World Title. That is of course assuming that the World Champion ever actually shows up again, which might not be the case for a long time to come. I’m not sure what that is going to mean, but it wouldn’t be Impact Wrestling without some kind of a mess. Let’s get to it.

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

In memory of Shad Gaspard and Hana Kimura.

Opening recap.

#1 Contenders Tournament Semifinals: Ace Austin vs. Hernandez

Ace makes the mistake of trying some shoulder blocks for no effect but a springboard kick to the face works a bit better. A sunset flip doesn’t work either so it’s another kick to the face to stagger Hernandez again. Hernandez claps Austin’s ears so Austin kicks the rope for a low blow. Some kicks to the leg put Hernandez down and it’s time to stomp away to keep him in trouble.

The chinlock doesn’t last long so Austin dropkicks the knee out for two. Hernandez fights up without much effort and runs Austin over with some shoulders. The shirt comes off and Hernandez uses it to toss Austin across the ring without much effort. The Border Toss is escaped twice in a row and Austin hurricanranas his way out of a powerbomb attempt. Now it’s a suplex being escaped for another chop block, setting up the Fold to finish Hernandez at 9:43.

Rating: C. There wasn’t a ton of drama here but they played a nice story here and sent Austin forward as they should have. Hernandez feels like a relic of the past but he’s still fine enough as a monster who can throw people all over the place. Not bad at all here as they played it simple and did everything as right as they could have.

A biker drives past Cody Deaner’s compound. Cody tells them to slow down because “this ain’t no boneyard. They all think they’re bad***.” Good grief.

Johnny Swinger is ready to teach Chris Bey and has all of his gimmicks ready whenever they’re needed. Bey says they’ll figure it out in the ring.

The North arrives at the Deaner Compound and are greeted by a rather odd man.

Michael Elgin is ready for Trey in the tournament.

Chris Bey vs. Cousin Jake

Johnny Swinger is here with Bey. The bigger Jake throws Bey down to start and there are some clotheslines to drop him again. Bey bounces up for some dancing so Jake runs him over again. A Swinger distraction lets Bey hit a running kick though and a springboard dropkick staggers Jake as we take a break.

Back with Bey stomping Jake down in the corner Jake says bring it on and the YES Kick brings him back to his feet. That’s fine with Bey, who kicks him right back down. The standing moonsault (a shot at Willie Mack) misses though and Jake hits a hard clothesline. An over the shoulder sitout Tombstone gives Jake two and a sitout powerbomb gets the same. Swinger offers a distraction though and it’s a Fameasser into the Final Finesse to finish Jake at 13:10.

Rating: C. Bey continues to impress and having Swinger as his lackey is fine. They’re making me want to see Bey vs. Mack, which says a lot for the company’s recent work as well as future, as this isn’t the kind of match they have been able to promotion at this level in a good while. It’s not like Jake is hurt by a loss anyway as he’s little more than a comedy guy.

Post match the beatdown is on so here’s Willie Mack for the save.

Rohit Raju is annoyed at having the TNA Originals coming in to take his spot. Chase Stevens comes in and the match is set for next week.

Havok vs. Kimber Lee

Rematch from last week where Lee cheated to win. Lee jumps her at the bell and unloads in the corner, only to get tossed into said corner with raw power. Lee isn’t having any of that and kicks Havok three straight times, setting up the choke. That’s broken up as well and Havok hits a spinebuster into a running knee. Lee rakes the eyes to break up the Samoan drop and grabs the brass knuckles. Cue Nevaeh to jump Lee for the DQ at 3:34.

Rating: D+. This was more about the angle than anything else as I’m not sure if Impact knows what they’re doing with these new women yet. That’s fair enough, and at least they’ve got something going on that they can build from over the next little while. It’s nice to see something fresh in the division though and that’s a good thing to see.

Post match Havok and Nevaeh lay out Lee.

Tasha Steelz, Kiera Hogan and Kylie Rae yell at each other in the back when Susie comes in. Kiera and Tasha jump Kylie and then do the same to Susie. Su Yung flashes on the screen as it seems we have an Impact Fiend.

The Deaners welcome the North to the compound.

Joseph P. Ryan wants OVE at ringside with him for his match with Mentally Unstable Steve next week.

The North comes into the Deaner barn and find a whole bunch of Deaners. Cody Deaner’s partner Wheels isn’t here yet, so the North starts guessing who he is (one incorrect guess is the referee, who is the legless referee who popped up in the early days of AEW). That’s enough for Ethan Page, who is ready to leave and throws a toy car. Cue Wheels, who is rather large, and the bell rings.

Tag Team Titles: Wheels/Cody Deaner vs. The North

The North is defending and we’re in full on cinematic mode (meaning there are several cuts with a lot of action missing) with Wheels sending Page into various things on the floor. We see the weird guy from earlier watching from outside and running off to get something as he sees what is going on. Page throws a bag of golf clubs at Wheels but Cody picks one up to hit Alexander in the ribs.

All four fight outside with Alexander being thrown into the back of a truck. The North double Razor’s Edges Cody out of the back of the truck onto a pile of Deaners. We cut to Cody diving off of a trailer onto everyone and Alexander opening a car truck, allowing the weird guy to run off again. Page throws Wheels through a fence but Cody makes the save and drops Page on top of a car for two.

Alexander and Cody climb a ladder onto a really big truck with Alexander hitting a Tombstone. That means only Alexander can climb down so he and Page can go back into the barn and beat up Wheels in the ring. That’s good for two so they yell at the referee, who beats Page up with a 619. The 450 misses though and here’s Cody to clean house, including with the Deaner DDT to Alexander.

There’s no referee though and the North is back up for the double Neutralizer to put Cody outside. Wheels is back in to grab the champs by the throat but the running guy comes in to hit him low. He’s a referee too now (Page: “I don’t get it but I’ll take it!”) and a double pin with a fast count retains the titles at 7:45.

Rating: D+. Yeah this didn’t work and I can’t say I’m surprised. At the end of the day, this was all about the idea of how insane the Deaners were and while that’s fine, it wasn’t exactly something that was going to be entertaining in the first place. Not very interesting or good in the first place, though there is only so much that you can do with this situation.

Post match the Deaners chase the champs back to civilization.

TJP and Fallah Bahh are ready to get their shot at the titles but the Rascalz come in to say they’ve beaten them before. Next week it’s what sounds like a #1 contenders match.

The Rascalz are in the tree house when Moose comes in to plug the show. Moose recaps the tournament and talks about how Trey might want to come after this World Title. We hear about some World Champions with Trey doing some quick impressions. This was a thing that existed.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Moose vs. Cody on March 30, 2017 with Moose retaining the Grand Championship in a controversial decision.

Deonna Purrazzo is coming. Cool again. She’s rather smart and it lets her wrestle better.

Rosemary talks to John E. Bravo about some deal with a fake healer that almost led to a marriage. Bravo feels like he sold his soul to Taya, which seems to get him a partnership with Rosemary. They’re leaving the bar next week and Rosemary hints that it will be a date.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

#1 Contenders Tournament Semifinals: Michael Elgin vs. Trey

Elgin throws him around with no trouble to start and then rolls out of a wristlock for a bonus. The headscissors goes on to keep Trey down but he comes up with a dropkick. A running shoulder drops Trey again but a hurricanrana sends Elgin outside. Another hurricanrana is blocked and an Asai moonsault is pulled out of the air. Instead, Trey hits a DDT off the apron to actually rock Elgin for the first time.

Back in and a split legged moonsault gives Trey two but Elgin pulls him out of the corner into a gutbuster. The confidence starts to turn up and a big right hand drops Trey again. There’s an elbow to the face into a snap suplex for two on Trey, who is back with a bunch of forearms. A jawbreaker staggers Elgin but he’s right back with an enziguri. Elgin pops him up but Trey lands with a Meteora as we take a break.

Back with Trey picking up the pace to survive a slugout and enziguring Elgin down. Trey goes to the apron but gets pulled into a cutter for two more. Another slugout goes to Elgin but Trey hits a quick Code Red for two. Elgin’s Falcon Arrow is countered into Stundog Millionaire, only to have Elgin BLAST him with a clothesline. Trey is back with three straight superkicks into a springboard cutter for two.

Elgin si back with a superbomb attempt but Trey reverses into a hurricanrana for two more. Trey is gassed but still manages to knee his way out of an apron superplex attempt. Trey’s top rope hurricanrana is countered into a sitout powerbomb and Elgin can’t believe the kickout. The Elgin Bomb is loaded up but Sami Callihan’s ICU pops up on screen. That’s enough for Trey to grab a jackknife pin for the upset at 21:30.

Rating: B. Oh man they were this close to something special until the screwy ending. Instead we just got a very good match where I wanted to see Trey pull off the miracle. Trey winning is rather interesting as this was Elgin’s tournament to win. I could go for another Austin vs. Trey match and they had a good way getting there. Well done here, but it could have been a step better, even if that wouldn’t have made the most sense.

Elgin is LIVID to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. That main event helped a lot but the rest of the show was pretty skippable. That’s the case with a lot of tournament based shows though as you center the show around one idea instead of anything else. Not a terrible show, but that main event is the only thing worth seeing in two hours.

Results

Ace Austin b. Hernandez – The Fold

Chris Bey b. Cousin Jake – Final Finesse

Kimber Lee b. Havok via DQ when Nevaeh interfered

The North b. Wheels/Cody Deaner – Low blow to Wheels

Trey b. Michael Elgin – Jackknife cover

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2004 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2019/08/26/new-book-and-e-book-kbs-complete-2004-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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