Impact Wrestling
Date: July 1, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Josh Matthews

We are less than three weeks away from Slammiversary and things are starting to pick up. The main event is already set with Sami Callihan vs. Kenny Omega, but there is still time to change things up. That is still a possibility this time around as Callihan faces Moose, with the chance to make the match a triple threat. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Eddie Edwards vs. Satoshi Kojima

They’re cool with each other but Edwards wanted to face Kojima before he went back to Japan. Hold on though as here is W. Morrissey to say that Kojima is alone, just like Edwards was when Morrissey jumped him in the parking lot. Cue Brian Myers with Sam Beale, who Myers refers to as his young boy. Myers says Beale can’t learn anything from Kojima and calls out Jake something, but Kojima doesn’t care for that. The beatdown is on with Something running out for the save. The tag match is on.

Jake Something/Satoshi Kojima vs. Sam Beale/Brian Myers

Jake runs Something over to start and sends him flying off a toss suplex. Myers comes in and gets hit with a jumping knee to the face. A knee puts Something down as well and it’s back to Beale for some driving shoulders in the corner. The chinlock doesn’t last long so Beale hits a short clothesline for two. That means another chinlock for a bit, followed by Myers hitting a suplex for two of his own.

With that out of the way, the chinlock goes on again, setting up some forearms to the face. Something flips out of a belly to back suplex and hits a double clothesline, allowing the hot tag off to Kojima. House is cleaned in a hurry, including the top rope elbow for two on Beale. A DDT connects but Myers breaks up the Koji Cutter. Something takes care of Myers though and the Koji Cutter into the lariat finishes Beale at 9:25.

Rating: D+. The chinlocks didn’t make this better, much like the Kojima/Something pairing feeling like a Battlebowl reject. Beale taking the fall to a legend like Kojima isn’t going to hurt him and Myers has actually done a nice job of establishing himself as a midcard villain. Not a great one mind you, but he’s there.

Scott D’Amore can’t talk about Tommy Dreamer because he has to go answer a phone call. Decay pops in to say they should get a Knockouts Tag Team Title shot. D’Amore is too busy for that right now and says to talk to him normally next time.

Tenille Dashwood vs. Rachael Ellering

Kaleb With A K and Jazz are the seconds. Dashwood jumps her at the bell but gets taken down by a running shoulder. A backsplash gives Ellering two but she has to kick Kaleb With A K off the apron. We take a break and come back with Dashwood choking on the ropes and getting two off a suplex.

A clothesline gets the same and Dashwood is already getting frustrated. Hair pulling around the ropes ensues and a butterfly suplex gives Dashwood two. Ellering comes back with a Sling Blade but a neckbreaker over the ropes cuts her off again. Dashwood goes up for a middle rope sunset flip but Ellering sits down on it for the pin at 10:23.

Rating: C-. Another match that was just kind of there, but neither of these two have had the greatest spark in most of their matches. It was a good example of a match that was just kind of there without really doing anything different. Certainly not awful, but they didn’t do anything that is going to leave much of an, pun intended, impact.

Post match the beatdown is on with Jazz running in for the save. Jordynne Grace makes the real save though and we get a big reunion, as this team has now formed, split and reunited in less than ten weeks.

Chris Bey is sick of hearing about the X-Division war when the villains come in to suggest he join up.

TJP/Fallah Bahh vs. Willie Mack/Rich Swann

A lot of dancing ensues before the match until Swann and TJP start things off. Everything breaks down in a hurry and we get a four way staredown and it’s off to Mack vs. Bahh. The big slugout is on with neither being able to hit their finisher. Swann and TJP come back in with Swann clearing the ring but here is Violent By Design for the double DQ at 1:50.

The big beatdown is on with Violent By Design standing tall.

Fire N Flava want Rosemary and Havok to earn their shot and are off to talk to Scott D’Amore again. D’Amore agrees so they can have a #1 contenders match next week. This isn’t what the champs want.

Tommy Dreamer talks about how he and Raven worked well together despite hating each other. That’s how Team Dreamer will be tonight against the Elite.

Chris Bey vs. Petey Williams

Williams snaps off a headscissors to start and there’s a running dropkick to the back for an early two. Bey gets tied in the Tree of Woe for O Canada but comes back with a kick to the face. A clothesline gives Bey two and it’s off to the Figure Four necklock. Williams is back with a snap German suplex into a running knee to the face. That’s fine with Bey, who grabs a torture rack neckbreaker for two of his own.

The Art of Finesse is countered into the spinning Russian legsweep but it’s too early for the Canadian Destroyer. Williams settles for the Sharpshooter, with Bey making it over to the rope in a hurry. They go to a pinfall reversal sequence with the Canadian Destroyer being countered again. Bey grabs a cutter though and the Art of Finesse is good for the pin at 7:43.

Rating: C+. Williams is fine as a nostalgia act who can still go well enough and he put Bey over rather well here. That’s all a match like this is supposed to do, though it is all going to be thrown out the window for the sake of Ultimate X at Slammiversary. Bey would seem to be the likely winner, but you never can tell with that kind of a match.

Post match here are the X-Division villains and Williams gets beaten down in the corner. Bey walks off but Trey Miguel and Josh Alexander run in for the save. Bey finally comes in to help the good guys clean house.

Deonna Purrazzo beat Kimber Lee on Before The Impact.

Susan is freaking out over Purrazzo beating her and Kimber Lee but Lee has two ideas: the Tag Team Titles and Su Yung.

Jake Something doesn’t like Brian Myers making fun of his name but it’s worse to make fun of him. The challenge is on and the loser admits the winner is a professional.

Steve Maclin vs. Manny Smith

Maclin takes him down with a front facelock, followed by a quick facebuster. Smith gets tied in the Tree of Woe for a running spear. Some right hands in the corner set up some heavy elbows to the chest. The sitout reverse implant DDT finishes Smith at 3:43.

Rating: C-. Total and complete squash here as Maclin continues to look like quite the force. He has a long way to go to get anywhere, but it is nice to have someone getting a chance in a new place after WWE didn’t do anything with him. He’ll need to go somewhere eventually, but it is working well enough for now.

Brian Myers accepts Jake Something’s challenge so Sam Beale can see success up close.

Slammiversary rundown.

Kenny Omega/Good Brothers vs. Chris Sabin/Moose/Sami Callihan

That would be Team Tommy Dreamer, because of course it’s Tommy Dreamer. Don Callis handles Omega’s entrance as he validates his paycheck. Sabin crucifixes Anderson to start and it’s a very early standoff. An annoyed tag brings Moose in but Callihan comes in to scare Omega off as we take a break.

Back with the good guys working on Anderson’s arm but Moose and Sabin stop to jaw at each other again. The distraction lets Anderson send Sabin outside to start the stomping and now Omega is willing to come in and hammer away. It’s already off to Gallows for those weird punches to the ribs in the corner and the triple splash gets two on Sabin. Anderson grabs a chinlock, followed by another from Gallows.

Sabin gets away and rolls over to Moose, who isn’t interested in a tag. Instead it’s off to Callihan to clean house but Anderson punches him low. Sabin tags himself in and avoids some charges in the corner. A Shining Wizard connects with Omega but NOW Moose will tag himself in….and pulls Sabin back in, which counts as another tag. Sabin and Moose brawl on the ramp before Sabin comes in again, earning himself a snapdragon. The Magic Killer finishes Sabin at 15:12.

Rating: C. This was following a formula we’ve seen for years and that is not the best thing. Above all else, the action was just kind of there as we waited around for the ending. I wasn’t wild on what we got here for the most part, though I’m curious about where they go for Slammiversary with these guys. Moose vs. Sabin would seem likely, but I’m sure Tommy Dreamer, who added nothing here, winds up getting a match of some kind.

Overall Rating: C-. The show had its moments but it still wasn’t exactly what I would consider a very good one. Slammiversary is coming up and there are only a handful of matches set. I’m sure you can guess a few more of them, but it would be nice to have some of them actually announced. What we got here was decent, but so much of it still feels like a low level promotion. Even though that is pretty much the case for Impact, it would be nice to find some way around it.

Results
Jake Something/Satoshi Kojima b. Sam Beale/Brian Myers – Lariat to Beale
Rachael Ellering b. Tenille Dashwood – Cradle
TJP/Fallah Bahh vs. Willie Mack/Rich Swann went to a double DQ when Violent By Design interfered
Chris Bey b. Petey Williams – Art of Finesse
Steve Maclin b. Manny Smith – Reverse sitout implant DDT
Kenny Omega/Good Brothers b. Chris Sabin/Moose/Sami Callihan – Magic Killer to Sabin

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Impact Wrestling
Date: June 17, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Lo Brown

We are done with Against All Odds and the big story is Kenny Omega retaining the World Title over Moose, with Sami Callihan appearing after the match. Don Callis fired Callihan, which seems like it could be quite the story on the road to Slammiversary. There is about a month to go before the show and that means there is time to set things up. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at Don Callis and Kenny Omega taking over the company (yes, a story about someone taking over Impact Wrestling) and people getting worried about it. Omega retained the title over Moose at Against All Odds but almost got taken out by Sami Callihan. Callis interrupted it and fired Callihan, sending things even further into chaos.

Moose comes up to Scott D’Amore and says he got screwed out of the title at Against All Odds and wants a rematch. D’Amore is too worried about an Anthem representation showing up here to deal with things, because that has never been done before. It’s going to be Tommy Dreamer isn’t it? Anyway Moose promises to make D’Amore pay attention.

TJP vs. Black Taurus

Fallah Bahh and Decay are here too. TJP avoids a charge in the corner to start and snaps off some armdrags into an early standoff. A headbutt puts TJP down for a change and the chinlock goes on in a hurry. Taurus hits a pumphandle backbreaker for two and it’s time to crank on both arms for a bit.

Something like a torture rack dropped into a backbreaker gets two as Josh rapid fires the results from Against All Odds. TJP manages a hurricanrana into an atomic drop as the pace picks up, including a running boot in the corner to rock Taurus again. There’s a tornado DDT to send Taurus bailing to the floor, allowing TJP to hit the dive (which knocks Bahh down as well). Back in and the Mamba Splash finishes Taurus at 6:04.

Rating: C. I like both guys so this was a fun match to see, though it’s kind of sad to see Taurus fall down pretty hard in a hurry. He wasn’t exactly a main eventer, but he also wasn’t a guy losing in a six minute opener on TV. TJP winning is nice to see though, as he gets to rebound after the Iron Man loss.

Post match Moose grabs a chair and says this show is being hijacked until Scott D’Amore makes time for him. Security guards come out but Moose says none of them are Scott. Cue the returning Chris Sabin to clear Moose (who injured him) out and Moose bails. That was a pretty lame hijacking.

Rohit Raju rants to Ace Austin and Madman Fulton about Ultimate X returning at Slammiversary. An alliance seems to be made.

Chris Sabin doesn’t like Moose and the challenge is on for Slammiversary.

Commentary recaps Callis/Callihan/D’Amore/Anthem.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Madman Fulton vs. Josh Alexander

Non-title and Ace Austin is in Fulton’s corner. Fulton powers Alexander around to start and hits the early toss suplex. Alexander gets pulled outside for a drop onto the apron and a big boot as we take a break. Back with Fulton hitting Snake Eyes to set up a claw STO for two. Austin gets in a cheap shot on the apron but Alexander stops a charging Fulton with a boot to the face. A middle rope knee to the knee to the head sets up a roaring elbow to rock Fulton again. The Jay Driller gives Alexander the pin at 9:36.

Rating: C+. Alexander continues to look good in almost everything he does and it would not surprise me to see him drop the title in Ultimate X so he can move up towards the main event. I’m not sure if that is a move that needs to happen immediately or not, but Alexander seems like he is ready for at least some kind of an upgrade. Fulton is still good as the monster, but he can’t take too many losses like this one. It’s just not good monster behavior.

Post match Ace Austin comes in for the beatdown but Petey Williams makes the save. Rohit Raju, Trey Miguel and Shera come out in a row, with Shera cleaning house so the villains can stand tall.

Deonna Purrazzo yells at Kimber Lee and Susan because they keep failing. Susan says she wouldn’t be champion without them so Purrazzo walks off. Susan: “Ungrateful degenerate millennial!”

W. Morrissey thinks everyone around here is dumb enough to think they have friends. Everyone will stab you in the back and the only person you can trust is yourself.

Steve Maclin vs. Jason Page

Maclin is formerly known as Steve Cutler. Chops and a back elbow have Page in early trouble and Maclin drops him stomach first across the top rope. Page’s right hands just earn him a clothesline and some elbows keep him in trouble. A reverse sitout Edgecution (cool) finishes Page at 1:54. Total squash and Maclin was fairly impressive.

Rachael Ellering talks to Jordynne Grace about how rough things have been as of late. Grace doesn’t want to hear it though and the team seems to be done. This is the latest example of a common problem in tag team wrestling: trying to make it a big deal when a team who hasn’t even been together for two months splits up. These two had their first match together on April 25. If they’re done, it really isn’t a big deal whatsoever.

Don Callis explains that he and Scott D’Amore are like brothers who happen to fight from time to time. He had to do the heavy lifting that D’Amore can’t do, like firing Callihan. They’ve talked about doing it a hundred times but D’Amore couldn’t bring himself to do it. Callis expects the Anthem representative to bring gifts because he did what should have been done a long time ago.

Tenille Dashwood vs. Rachael Ellering

Kaleb With A K is here with Dashwood, who offers Ellering a shirt with the two of them together. That’s tossed to the floor and we’re ready to go. Ellering works on a wristlock to start and puts Dashwood on the mat to stay on the arm. A front facelock keeps Dashwood down and it’s right back to the armbar. Dashwood switches into a headscissors, which is countered straight into a chinlock.

Back up and a running shoulder drops Dashwood and a running clothesline hits her in the corner. Kaleb With A K grabs the foot though and Dashwood finally gets in a few shots of her own. Dashwood sends her outside for a chop, with Kaleb With A K getting in a quick photo. A hard whip sends Ellering into the barricade and a high crossbody gives Dashwood two back inside.

Ellering manages a suplex into a Sling Blade to start the comeback and there’s a backsplash for two. Dashwood hits a heck of a clothesline for two more but Ellering plants her with a spinebuster. Back up and Dashwood talks a bit too much trash, causing Ellering to hammer her into the corner. A middle rope spinning legdrop connects but Kaleb With A K offers a distraction, allowing Dashwood to crucifix her for the pin at 15:21.

Rating: C. This was a bit longer than it needed to be but they were hardly having a bad match. Dashwood winning off of the distraction makes sense as Ellering doesn’t have anyone watching her back with Grace gone. Neither of them are exactly on fire at the moment but Dashwood is at least starting to string some wins together. I’m sure we’ll get more on Grace vs. Ellering though, all those weeks after they teamed up in the first place.

TJP and Fallah Bahh try to talk to Scott D’Amore but Decay interrupt. They aren’t happy with the result from earlier so a tag match is set up.

Fire N Flava brag about retaining the Knockouts Tag Team Titles and go ask a janitor if he knows who they are. This doesn’t go well for the janitor so they go off to a guy pushing a big barrel of trash bags. Rosemary comes up to get on them for being mean and here is Havok to throw Kiera Hogan inside. One of the black trash bags says MICKIE and I think we have foreshadowing.

Flashback Moment Of The Week: Chris Sabin b. Bully Ray to win the World Title at Destination X 2013.

Satoshi Kojima vs. Rhino

If Kojima wins, he and Eddie Edwards get a Tag Team Title match. Therefore, Violent By Design and Edwards are here too. Rhino shoves him down to start and a shoulder drops Kojima again. Back up and Kojima’s forearms don’t have much effect as Rhino puts him down with another shoulder. Another set of forearms into an elbow finally put Rhino down and we take an early break.

Back with Rhino knocking him down again and getting two off an elbow to the face. The neck crank goes on but Kojima fights up to send Rhino into the corner. A running forearm gives Kojima two and a DDT drops Rhino again. The Koji Cutter is countered into a belly to belly but Kojima is right back up. Now the Koji Cutter can connect and the lariat is enough to finish Rhino at 10:43.

Rating: C-. This was a lot of hitting each other in the face and that wasn’t exactly the most interesting deal. Kojima picked it up a bit near the end but the lack of drama didn’t help things either. I’ve seen Kojima have some good matches so it isn’t him, but there is only so much that you can do under these circumstances.

Commentary goes for their preview for next week but here is Sami Callihan in the ring to demand Don Callis and Scott D’Amore get out here right now. Post break, security is trying to get rid of him but D’Amore comes out to say he is here to fix things. The Anthem representative is here and can do something about it, but Sami is kind of proving Callis’ point. Callihan storms off and here is Callis to say he fired Callihan for D’Amore. They are too smart to be wrestling anymore and Callis fired Callihan because D’Amore wouldn’t do it.

D’Amore loses it……and it really is Tommy freaking Dreamer. You know…..it’s not even a joke anymore. D’Amore and Callis say this isn’t a good time but Dreamer says that he’s here on Anthem’s behalf. Callihan is back and someone else has to be fired. D’Amore freaks out but Callis is the one being fired. Callis goes on a crazed rant and calls D’Amore a Bruce Prichard stooge. Dreamer: “There’s a trash bag in the back waiting on you.”

Callis goes to the back and runs into Callihan, who promises to bash Kenny Omega’s head in.

Overall Rating: C-. Not much of a show here other than the big ending, which more or less erased the big angle from Against All Odds and got rid of Callis. Throw in Tommy Dreamer actually being the representative at the end, which had me pausing the video and rubbing my eyes, and this wasn’t exactly a huge show. Slammiversary is coming though, including the arrivals of a bunch of people, including the Mickie James tease. Things are going to pick up in the future, but this was just kind of there for the most part.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: June 18, 2021
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Tony Schiavone, Excalibur, Jim Ross, Taz

The Friday series continues with a special match inside an MMA cage. That may or may not be your taste, but it is certainly something different, which you have to do at some point. This time around it is Jake Hager vs. Wardlow, which is about as logical of a move as you can get. Let’s get to it.

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

Jake Hager vs. Wardlow

Chris Jericho and Shawn Spears are the seconds here and it is a full octagon, complete with cage. Justin Roberts does his best Bruce Buffer impression, which makes me scared to hear his worst. Wardlow makes sure to turn his back on Hager during the intros, just to show off a bit more. We have three five minute rounds here and you can only win by submission or knockout (no judges).

They circle each other for a bit to start until Hager starts going with the striking. Wardlow doesn’t seem to know what to do with him here as Hager hits a few shots and then walks off to let Wardlow think about it. Hager’s attempt at a double leg gets him tossed away with raw power so Hager tries it again, this time with more success.

Wardlow blocks a kick to the ribs and hits him in the face, followed by a double leg takedown. Some right hands on the mat have Hager a bit more woken up but Wardlow easily wins a slugout. A Superman punch off the cage has Hager rocked and Warlow unloads on him until the round ends.

We start the second round with Hager in big trouble so he tries the grappling. That earns him another trip to the mat with Wardlow hammering away. A cross armbreaker is broken up so Hager floats over into a cover for some right hands to the face. Now Hager’s cross armbreaker is blocked but he grabs a triangle to put Wardlow in more trouble. That’s broken up so Hager grabs an ankle lock, which is broken up with a kick to the chest.

Back up and Wardlow powerbombs him into the cage, followed by a running hurricanrana. A spear lets Wardlow hammer away but Hager pulls him into the head and arm choke. Wardlow powers up but it’s a Rock Bottom right back into the hold in the middle of the ring. Hager cranks away as Wardlow flips off Jericho and passes out at 4:00 into the second round (10:00 total).

Rating: B-. I’m really not sure what to call something like this as it was a wrestling/MMA hybrid. It helps that they had someone who knows how to do that style in the face place and didn’t bother going far too long with the thing. Keep something like this relatively short and go with more wrestling than MMA and it will work out, which is what they did here.

Post match respect is teased but Spears comes in to jump Hager. Jericho comes in but the beatdown is on, with MJF coming in to put Jericho in the Salt of the Earth. Cue Dean Malenko for the save so MJF hits him as well. Now it’s Sammy Guevara coming in for the real save to clear the cage.

Frankie Kazarian, Penta and Eddie Kingston are ready for the Elite tonight, with Kazarian quoting the Bible about letting God take care of vengeance. He doesn’t quite agree with that because it is time to take out the Elite tonight. Kingston says pray to your God to take your souls because your a**** belong to them. Penta: “Cero miedo!”.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Team Taz, minus Brian Cage, knows there are issues with the team but let’s focus on Hangman Page. He won a handicap match last week so let’s have Page vs. Powerhouse Hobbs next week.

Men Of The Year vs. Darby Allin

Allin has asked Sting to not be here. Ethan Page starts for the team and gets taken down with an early springboard armdrag. Allin takes him down again but a cheap shot puts him down. A hard toss sends Allin into the corner and it’s off to Sky as we take a break. Back with Sky hitting a backbreaker but Allin grabs a rollup for two. Page taunts Allin over having no one to tag but Allin manages a Scorpion Death Drop. It’s back to Sky as Allin tags himself and hits a Code Red for two.

The referee doesn’t like the double teaming so Allin whips out a zip tie to tie up Page’s legs. Some rollups get two on Sky and the flipping Stunner is good for the same, with Page making the save. Page finds a tool box to cut himself free and there’s a hard posting to knock Allin silly. Back in and Page takes him up top but Allin bites the hand to escape. That earns him a crotching from Sky, setting up the Ego’s Edge to finish Allin at 11:58.

Rating: C. The zip tie was clever but I can’t bring myself to get into Page and Sky. They’re the definition of just there for me and that makes for some pretty weak appearances. That being said, they needed the win here and are the kind of team who should be bragging about winning a handicap match. Allin looked stupid for taking the match, but he has never been presented as the brightest guy.

Cezar Bononi vs. Orange Cassidy

The Wingmen and the Best Friends are all at ringside. Bononi throws Cassidy into the corner to start and forces Cassidy’s hands into his pockets. Cassidy gets tossed outside so the Wingmen can spray tan him. Back in and Bononi throws him outside again, where they mess with Cassidy’s hair and put him in Ryan Nemeth’s HUNK jacket.

Bononi joins him for a change and this time Cassidy jumps onto him, only to get caught. The Best Friends finally get involved and put Cassidy’s glasses on him, setting up the huge toss dive (with the Wingmen standing there while it is being set up). Back in and the Orange Punch finishes Bononi at 5:14.

Rating: D-. Yeah I know I’m old and don’t know how to have fun but this was absolutely not for me. The idea of Peter Avalon having a stable is an even bigger stretch than QT Marshall and this was just a mess. Way too many people running around and the Wingmen standing there for ten seconds while the Best Friends set something up made it even worse. I know a lot of people love Cassidy and that’s all well and good, but this really did not work for me.

Kenny Omega and Don Callis run into Jungle Boy, with Omega saying that Boy tarnished his image last week. Omega doesn’t like being disrespected and is ready to fight right now. Boy gets ready but Michael Nakazawa gets in a cheap shot from behind. Boy fights back so the villains run to their golf cart, with Omega kicking Nakazawa off and shouting he’ll get Boy next week. Omega: “NEXT WEEK!!!” Eh points for a Dr. Claw moment.

The Hardy Family Office thinks there might have been some people working together in the Casino Battle Royal. Matt Hardy doesn’t like Christian Cage, who pops up to try and go after him. Cage gets locked in….well in a cage actually, with Hardy offering him a deal to stop this, but Cage doesn’t seem interested.

Brock Anderson/Cody Rhodes vs. Aaron Solow/QT Marshall

This is Brock (Arn’s son) debut and he does not exactly have the most impressive physique. He takes Solow down to start so Marshall comes in instead. Brock grabs Marshall by the arm so it’s right back to Solow, with Cody diving onto Marshall. Back in and Cody can’t grab an armdrag so Solow takes him into the corner. That doesn’t last long so Brock comes back in for some gutwrench suplexes, only to walk into Marshall’s spinebuster.

We take a break and come back with Brock getting out of the corner and diving over to Cody. Solow is smart enough to offer a distraction though, meaning the referee doesn’t see it. A belly to back suplex/neckbreaker combination gets two on Brock but he avoids a charge and gets over to Cody for the hot tag. House is cleaned in a hurry as everything breaks down. Cody takes Marshall out to the ramp and Brock jacknife rolls Solow up for the pin at 10:01.

Rating: C-. This is a tricky one as it was Brock’s debut and it’s not quite fair to grade him like a seasoned veteran. That being said, if he wasn’t Arn’s son, he would be laughed out of most tryouts. He had no physique to speak of and was as generic of a guy in trunks as you could ask for. The match wasn’t bad due to how fast paced they kept things, but Brock needs to be a one off for the time being.

Jake Roberts says Lance Archer couldn’t be a doctor because he has no patience.

Earlier today, JR sat down with Andrade El Idolo and asked him why he’s here in AEW. Andrade says that he deserves an opportunity at the top titles around here. JR brings up Vickie Guerrero, with Andrade saying they’re perfect together because they both come from big wrestling families. But wait, because they have a surprise.

The Dark Order is happy because John Silver’s shoulder is healed. Hangman Page doesn’t want to talk about the World Title, but he would like to praise Evil Uno for his work last week.

Julia Hart vs. Penelope Ford

Haven’t seen Ford in a bit. Hart gets headlocked down to start and sent to the apron for a slingshot knee drop. We take an early break and come back with Hart hitting her clotheslines but she misses a running version in the corner. Ford tries a flipping clothesline but gets caught in a sunset flip for two. Ford’s next clothesline connects for two and she catches Hart’s kick to the ribs. A slap sets up a fireman’s carry gutbuster but Ford misses a moonsault. Hart misses a split legged moonsault though and it’s a Muta Lock to give Ford the win at 7:08.

Rating: D+. Not much to see here and that sequence in the corner was nearly brutal. Ford hasn’t been around for a bit but she is still a big enough deal to beat Hart, who has mainly been a manager. This wasn’t exactly good, but it was a fair enough way to bring Ford back onto the show.

Post match the hold stays on so the Varsity Blondes make the save. Miro runs in to go after Brian Pillman Jr. and they have to be held apart. I could go for this.

Vickie Guerrero interrupts Britt Baker and Reba to say they smell bad and like cheeseburgers. She has done them a favor and set up the two of them against Nyla Rose and herself next week. Britt certainly approves.

Video on FTR vs. Santana/Ortiz. They come from different parts of the country and both of them know how tough they are. FTR brags about having accomplished more in six months than Santana and Ortiz have in two years, so their next win will be another notch in their legacy. No date is given, but FTR not having a regular tag match on Dynamite since February needs to be fixed soon.

Mark Sterling and Jade Cargill have a deal with a hotel in Toronto so her opponents can have a place to recover. She is going to continue her winning streak because she is that b****.

Matt Jackson/Good Brothers vs. Frankie Kazarian/Eddie Kingston/Penta El Zero Miedo

Don Callis joins commentary as the Nick Jackson and Brandon Cutler are at ringside. Matt takes Kazarian down to start so it’s off to Penta to clean a bit of house. Kingston comes in to brawl to the floor with Gallows as everything breaks down. We take a break and come back with Kingston hitting a release belly to belly on Matt for a breather.

The hot tag brings in Penta to wreck things, including a kick to put Anderson on the floor and a big flip dive onto both Brothers. Everything breaks down with Matt getting hit with something from everyone, capped off by Angel’s Wings from Kazarian with Gallows making the save. The Magic Killer is broken up but Anderson kicks Penta in the face. The Backstabber out of the corner drops Anderson but Nick Jackson sprays the cold stuff into Penta’s eyes. A top rope neckbreaker gives Anderson the pin on Penta at 14:02.

Rating: C-. These Buck matches are getting rougher and rougher, as they continue to survive against everyone while getting the last laugh. It’s ok to give up something at some point, especially in a match where the team isn’t even together. The match was also all over the place and never stopped moving, which was a bit much here. It’s ok to slow things down a bit, but that was never going to be the case for these guys.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t one of their better shows but the energy remained high and there was enough good stuff in there to carry it. You still get the feeling that these shows are a little less important than others, but again, what are you expecting from a show ending at midnight on a Friday in the middle of June? AEW is just riding this time out and that makes sense given the situation they’re in at the moment.

With all that being said, this show really, really needs to cut down on the amount of people they include every week. There are just WAY too many people on this show, with most of them in factions. You had six groups (Inner Circle, Pinnacle, Best Friends, Wingmen, Nightmare Family, Nightmare Factory) featured in the first four matches. It’s overwhelming and having so many people out there distracts from the ones who are supposed to be featured. Just cool it down a bit and let the people with the star power shine instead of having an entourage for everyone.

Results
Jake Hager b. Wardlow – Head and arm choke
Men of the Year b. Darby Allin – Ego’s Edge
Orange Cassidy b. Cezar Bononi – Orange Punch
Brock Anderson/Cody Rhodes b. Aaron Solow/QT Marshall – Jackknife rollup to Solow
Penelope Ford b. Julia Hart – Muta Lock
Good Brothers/Matt Jackson b. Frankie Kazarian/Eddie Kingston/Penta El Zero Miedo – Top rope neckbreaker to Penta

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Impact Wrestling
Date: June 10, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Lo Brown

It’s the go home show for Against All Odds and that means it is time to focus on Moose vs. Kenny Omega for the World Title. Other than that though, we could use some build for the rest of the car. The rest of the card could use some attention of its own and odds are we might get that this week. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Scott D’Amore is in the ring and brings in AEW owner Tony Khan. Tony thanks him for the welcome but here is Don Callis to join them with the smug starting fast. Callis knows that Kenny Omega is the greatest investment in Khan’s portfolio but there has been talk of Sami Callihan being involved in the title match with Moose. Callihan is blackballed all over this country but D’Amore brings up the Good Brothers interfering and causing chaos all over the place too.

Callis doesn’t go for it, instead talking about how Callihan is such a problem for the wrestling business. D’Amore says Moose vs. Omega will headline Against All Odds and Khan says they can have the match at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, Florida. That’s cool with Callis, but D’Amore says that the winner can face Callihan at Slammiversary. This is NOT cool with Callis but the music is already playing. They got the point over here pretty clearly so well done.

Commentary goes over what we just heard.

Here is what is coming tonight and at Against All Odds.

The Elite isn’t happy so they talk about putting a bounty on Sami Callihan. Scott D’Amore comes in to say instead of that, we can have the Good Brothers vs. Callihan/any partner in a street fight at Against All Odds (it’s going to be Tommy Dreamer). Callis mentions murder as a solution.

Brian Myers teaches Sam Beale about how to cut a promo. This turns into Beale praising Matt Cardona in a mock promo but Myers yells at him a lot.

Sami Callihan interrupts Scott D’Amore to rant about the tag match. He doesn’t know who he’ll get as a partner…and here’s Tommy Dreamer. I WASN’T BEING SERIOUS PEOPLE!!! Dreamer has been against all odds his entire career and since they both hate Don Callis, he’ll be the partner. And yeah Callihan will probably turn on him because everyone else does. Callihan says deal and promises to beat Dreamer up if he messes things up. D’Amore reminds Dreamer that he is his boss, but Dreamer doesn’t seem too impressed.

Rosemary vs. Havok

If Havok wins, she is added to the Against All Odds Knockouts Title match. Rosemary wastes no time in hitting a pair of spears for two. Some right hands have Havok in more trouble and something like a Last Chancery makes it worse. Havok finally gets up and powers her into the corner, setting up the hip attack. We take a break and come back with Havok grabbing a full nelson. That’s broken up in a hurry and Rosemary nails a spear for two. Back up and Havok misses a big swing, allowing Rosemary to hit a fourth spear for the pin at 4:17.

Rating: D+. Well that happened. This was little more than a squash outside of that full nelson. Rosemary shrugged off what Havok did to her and hit four spears for the pin. The stipulation was a bit unnecessary but it did a nice job of making Rosemary look like a bigger threat to Purrazzo before their title match.

Post match Rosemary and Havok look at each other but Deonna Purrazzo, Kimber Lee and Susan come out to beat both of them down. Purrazzo and Lee grab holds so Susan grabs the mic….and wants Tasha Steelz out here to face Lee RIGHT NOW. Sure.

Tasha Steelz vs. Kimber Lee

Kiera Hogan is here in Steelz’s corner. Steelz starts fast with a dropkick into the corner but a springboard hurricanrana is countered into a buckle bomb. Lee hammers away on the mat and we hit the reverse chinlock. Some choking in the corner keeps Steelz down and Lee tosses her outside in a heap. Back in and Lee grabs a side slam for two as Hogan starts yelling again. Some rolling suplexes into a delayed suplex gets two on Steelz but a Swanton only hits knees. Lee misses a spinwheel kick and gets caught in a spinning Falcon Arrow for the pin at 5:46.

Rating: C-. Lee got to showcase herself a bit here and the match was fine enough considering the circumstances. Fire N Flava are desperately in need of challengers and at least Lee and Susan are a fresh team. I’m not exactly expecting a title change, but it should be a good enough match given who is in there.

Another brawl breaks out post match, with Rosemary and Havok coming in to clean house. Hogan, after being caught by Rosemary: “H*** no!” Hogan, after turning around to see Havok: “D***!” A double chokeslam leaves Hogan laying and a triple threat seems likely.

Steve Maclin talks about everything he has gone through and his back is against the wall again. I’m moderately intrigued by this.

Josh Alexander waited for sixteen years to have a chance like he had last week. Now he’s looking forward to the five way #1 contenders match but here are Ace Austin and Madman Fulton to interrupt. Austin says watch the tag match tonight, but he is the only person Alexander has to watch out for.

Petey Williams/Trey Miguel vs. Chris Bey/Rohit Raju

Williams fights out of a headlock to start and hits a dropkick to the back. The Sharpshooter goes on in a hurry but Raju is in the ropes just as fast. Bey and Trey come in to pick up the pace, but neither can actually hit anything. Miguel kicks him in the ropes so it’s back to Williams for two off a double backbreaker. Bey offers a distraction though and Raju knocks Williams outside. A sitout gordbuster gets two on Williams and it’s back to Bey for a knee in the corner.

Williams can’t fight out of the corner as Raju cuts him off with a belly to back suplex. Bey gets shoved into Raju and the hot tag brings in Miguel to pick up the pace all over again. An Indian Deathlock has Bey down and Miguel adds a northern lights suplex for two on Raju at the same time. A snap German suplex drops Raju again as Williams and Bey fight to the floor. That leaves Miguel to kick away at Raju, who comes back with a jumping knee to the face. Williams is back in with his slingshot Codebreaker though and the Hourglass makes Raju tap at 7:24.

Rating: B-. This is what you’re looking for in the X-Division and it worked here too. They didn’t bother trying to build anything up and the whole match was all about one spot after another. There was a nice section in the middle with Williams having to fight his way out of the corner but this was all about the fast pace and it worked well.

Post match here are Ace Austin and Madman Fulton to wreck Miguel and Williams. Josh Alexander comes in and it’s a huge brawl, with Williams hitting a super Canadian Destroyer to knock Fulton silly (ok that was cool).

Willie Mack is ready to beat up W. Morrissey in a No DQ match tonight. Rich Swann wants Swann to save a piece for him on Sunday. Mack says cool, but he wants to do this on his own tonight, which is cool with Swann.

It’s time for All About Me with Tenille Dashwood, with Rachael Ellering getting to ask the questions this week. Jordynne Grace is here too though because she is Ellering’s partner and they do things together. Kaleb With A K pulls out a shirt, which Grace doesn’t approve of, but it’s for Tenille instead. Rachael is getting a bit sick of this because it’s disrespectful to the two of them. Grace challenges Tenille for Against All Odds and is off to get the match made before she can give an answer.

We look at Crazzy Steve beating Deaner on Before The Impact.

Violent By Design is ready for the Tag Team Title match at Against All Odds. Eric Young tells Deaner to not disappoint him and Deaner looks scared. Tonight, Joe Doering is ready for Eddie Edwards because he wants to take out Impact’s heart.

Joe Doering vs. Eddie Edwards

Violent By Design is here with Doering but Eddie is on his own. Doering shoves him down without much trouble to start and then hits a hard running shoulder. The neck crank goes on early and Doering elbows Eddie in the face for two. Eddie manages to muscle Doering up for a suplex and a low bridge puts the monster on the floor. That’s enough though as Deaner comes in for the DQ at 3:47.

Rating: C-. I could go for watching Eddie every week but Doering is just a boring monster. He plays his role well enough but it’s not like we’ve ever been given anything to make us care about him. The stable needs someone like him though and having him dominate a legend like Eddie made sense. Keeping it short was a good idea, but it wasn’t exactly much to see.

Post match the beating is on but Satoshi Kojima comes in for the brawl with Doering. The good guys clear the ring to stand tall.

Video on Moose vs. Kenny Omega, focusing on Moose wanting the elusive World Title.

The announcers talk about the World Title match.

Against All Odds rundown.

W. Morrissey vs. Willie Mack

No DQ. Morrissey powers him into the corner for a variety of choking to start and a knee to the ribs. Brown calls it a kitchen sink and actually EXPLAINS THE NAME OF THE MOVE, saying it’s like everything has been thrown at you, even the kitchen sink. Fair enough. Mack gets knocked down again and we take an early break. Back with Morrissey choking on the floor but Mack sends him into the steps.

Mack finds a chain for a shot to the leg and ribs, followed by a chair to the back. They head inside with Mack hitting a running splash in the corner, setting up the Cannonball. Morrissey is right back up with a big boot and it’s time to chair Mack in the back a few times. The chain is wrapped around Mack’s eyes and then underneath his nose to make it….worse? Maybe?

Some more chair shots to the back have Mack down again and Morrissey uses said chair to choke him in the corner. A big splash misses though and Mack kicks him in the head. There’s the standing moonsault for two and Mack gets in his own chair shots to the back. The Six Star only hits chair but so does Morrissey’s elbow. Back up and Morrissey kicks the chair into Mack’s face for the pin at 14:09.

Rating: C. This was a good way to make Morrissey look like a monster but it wasn’t exactly getting to a higher level. Instead, we got a bunch of chair shots and some chain stuff, which was only so interesting. Morrissey taking out Mack again does set him up for Rich Swann though, and that’s the idea here. Just fine a more interesting way to do it.

Post match Morrissey goes after Mack again but Swann runs in for the save. Security keeps them apart but Swann manages a chair shot to send him outside. A lot of staring ends as Josh rapid fire plugs Against All Odds to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. The wrestling itself ranged from pretty good to not so great, but they accomplished their goal of setting up Against All Odds. That’s actually a heck of a trick given how it feels like little more than a stepping stone on the way to Slammiversary. We got a nice enough go home show here though, even if you don’t really need to see anything here.

Results

Rosemary b. Havok – Spear

Tasha Steelz b. Kimber Lee – Spinning Falcon Arrow

Trey Miguel/Petey Williams b. Rohit Raju/Chris Bey – Hourglass to Raju

Eddie Edwards b. Joe Doering via DQ when Deaner interfered

W. Morrissey b. Willie Mack – Big boot into a chair

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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Dynamite
Date: June 11, 2021
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Jim Ross, Excalibur, Tony Schiavone

The Friday night escapades continue as we move towards the return of fans in a little over a month. That means we could be in for a big card tonight but there is always something interesting going on around here. I’m not sure what to expect and that can often be a good thing with AEW. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

The Hardy Family Office is in the ring to get things going. Matt Hardy rants about how Christian Cage is jealous over Matt making more money in his career so tonight, Angelico is going to give Christian such a beating that he will never financially recover.

Angelico vs. Christian Cage

They fight over arm control to start so Angelico offers him his leg to keep things interesting. Christian doesn’t fall for that and hits Angelico in the face instead. Some right hands in the corner stagger Angelico even more but he is right back up to pull Christian off the top. Angelico stomps on the arm and sends Christian hard into the corner.

The arm is wrapped around the rope and Angelico adds a PK to the shoulder. Something like a short armscissors goes on with Christian having to get to the ropes. Christian starts the comeback but gets pulled down by the arms again. Angelico goes up but dives into raised boots and it’s a small package to give Christian two. A collision puts both of them down and they get up in opposite corners. Christian is over this and grabs the Killswitch for the pin at 9:24.

Rating: C. Not a bad opener but Christian still hasn’t quite caught fire around here. He’s perfectly solid and in no way looking horrible, but at the same time, he isn’t exactly great so far. The idea of Matt Hardy vs. Christian in 2021 doesn’t do much for me, though Christian doesn’t need to go any higher than that whatsoever.

Post match Jack Evans runs in to lay out Christian, allowing Matt to hit another Twist of Fate.

Here’s the July schedule:

July 7 – Road Rager
July 14 – Fyter Fest Night One
July 21 – Fyter Fest Night Two
July 28 – Fight For The Fallen

They’re really pushing this return.

Tony Schiavone is here for a chat, but first he has an announcement: next week it’s QT Mar-Shall (as it was pronounced in Ring Of Honor)/Aaron Solow vs. Cody Rhodes and…..Brock Anderson, the son of Arn Anderson. Here are Cody, Brock and Arn, with Cody talking about how Brock is going to prove that he wasn’t born on third base. Cue QT Marshall to say he’s tired of all of Cody’s vanity projects (preach it).

Cody has been ducking the up and coming stars but the people who are really behind Cody are the fans. Marshall: “Not the IWC. The real paying fans.” Marshall wants to end this with Cody in a South Beach Strap match when all of the fans are back. Cody is ready to do it right now but Marshall decks Arn and Brock jumps him until referees pull him off.

Pac/Penta El Zero Miedo/Eddie Kingston vs. Young Bucks/Brandon Cutler

Don Callis joins commentary as Pac sends Cutler (in a mask to protect his injured face) into the corner to start and kicks him down. Penta comes in to kick him down and chop the skin off of Cutler’s chest. Kingston comes in for a double stomp and Pac kicks him even more, meaning he wants the Bucks for a change. Matt comes in and gets dropped, allowing Pac to mock the Bucks’ pose. Nick trips over the rope getting inside so Pac knocks him to the floor again. Matt is back up to kick Pac in the face and we take a break.

Back with Pac fighting his way out of the corner so Kingston can come in to clean house. Penta comes in with a high crossbody and kicks Cutler in the mask. Matt gets dropped and Nick kicks Cutler in the face by mistake. The Backstabber drops Nick and the Pentagon Driver gets two with Cutler making the save.

A series of kicks in the corner look to set up the Black Arrow but Cutler’s distraction breaks it up. Kingston cleans house and takes Nick to the floor as Penta dives onto Cutler. Pac hits the 450 into the Brutalizer on Matt but Nick…can’t break it up despite kicking Pac in the head. Kingston and Pac hit dives onto Nick and Cutler, leaving Matt to roll Pac up with trunks for two. Pac gets buckle bombed into a pair of kicks, but Cutler misses a springboard elbow. Kingston hits the spinning backfist to give Pac the pin on Cutler at 13:06.

Rating: C+. It was certainly fast paced, though the ending wasn’t the biggest surprise. You know the Bucks aren’t losing, like ever, including when Pac had the Brutalizer. Cutler was there to take the fall so that worked out fine, though building up Pac/Penta for a title shot is not quite as thrilling when the Bucks already beat them.

Post match the Bucks are on Penta and Pac a mere five seconds after the bell (that’s our Bucks), with the Good Brothers coming in to help with the beatdown. Kazarian comes in for the save and Cutler is left alone, with Kazarian planting him with a clothesline.

We get a Don Callis/Kenny Omega produced video on the Double Or Nothing World Title match, complete with some questionable subtitles.

Here is the Pinnacle for their first comments since Double Or Nothing. Dax Harwood talks about how Stadium Stampede did not go as well as they hoped, but FTR doesn’t want to hear about Santana and Ortiz. Harwood has a family to take care of and is going to take money out of Santana and Ortiz’s pockets. How have they not won the Tag Team Titles in two years?

Shawn Spears says he is the hero instead of Sammy Guevara and they aren’t done. Wardlow thinks that Jake Hager is obsessed with him and needs him around. Is that because Hager brings out the best in him? Next week, they can meet in an octagon, where Wardlow will show that everywhere is his world.

MJF says he’s getting a little tired because he was the best so soon. No one here can relate to that, because they won’t be the best at anything. That brings him to Chris Jericho, with MJF watching every match and listening to every promo. MJF was at the Double Or Nothing Rally in 2019 and spoke on the stage. Then he saw Chris Jericho, his idol. MJF couldn’t believe it because he was going to get the chance to work with Jericho, but that isn’t how it went.

One night it hit him: he had spent all of this time idolizing a false god. Jericho is not even remotely on his level so he has nothing to prove to the fans. The match request is denied, so MJF is moving on to Sammy Guevara. Sammy can’t compete in the talking department because he has the verbal skills of Helen Keller. MJF is better than Sammy and he knows it, but here is Chris Jericho on the screen.

The Pinnacle can walk home, because the Inner Circle is destroying the Pinnacle’s limo. Tires are slashed, windows are broken, spray paint is applied, and I lose count of how many cars or vehicles have been used in this company’s history. Cue Jake Hager with a forklift to crush the limo all over again, including lifting it into the air and dropping it down. Jericho thinks the Pinnacle is going to need an Uber and Sammy is ready to fight anytime. MJF’s promo was good, but a feud should probably be done after WarGames and Stadium Stampede.

Darby Allin wants Sting to stay home for his handicap match with Ethan Page and Shawn Spears. Sting says Allin has nothing to prove because he was the TNT Champion when Sting got here. Allin: “It’s not about that. Just stay home this one time please.” Sting agrees and they bump fists because everything is cool.

Evil Uno talks about what Brodie Lee meant to the Dark Order. He wants to bring the TNT Title back to the Dark Order to honor Lee again.

TNT Title: Miro vs. Evil Uno

Uno is challenging and has some of the Dark Order with him. Miro slams him down in a hurry but Uno chops him out to the floor. That’s fine with Miro, but he punches a post and gets taken down with a flip dive from the apron. Back in and Miro off the ropes and into a Saito suplex as we take a break.

Back with Uno being knocked outside in a heap but the Dark Order’s pep talk gets him back inside. That earns the Order a beating and Miro rips the turnbuckle pad off. Uno gets in some shots to the face, including a running big boot. A Swanton connects and the rest of the Dark Order comes out to cheer Uno on. Miro can’t hit a spinout Rock Bottom and gets kicked into the exposed buckle for two. A hard clothesline drops Uno though and it’s Game Over to retain the title at 9:36.

Rating: C+. This was a match that had no business being good and they made it work anyway. I was getting into the idea of wanting Uno to win the title in Lee’s memory, though Miro should not be losing for a good while to come. Good stuff here, as they turned what should have been just a quick match into enough of a story to pull me in. Nice job.

Video on Andrade El Idolo, who seems rather rich and is billed as the Face of Latinos.

Here are Kenny Omega and Don Callis for a chat. Callis talks about the AEW conspiracy to get the title off of Kenny Omega, so Jungle Boy did a good job at becoming the #1 contender. But to Callis, Jungle Boy is just like the band that sings his theme song: a one hit wonder. Omega talks about how he is supposed to sell the match but he can’t bring himself to say anything bad about Jungle Boy.

When he looks at Boy’s long hair and underwear model body, Omega sees a bit of himself. There is something missing though, and Callis thinks it is the guts. Cue Jungle Boy, with Omega saying he has never heard Boy talk. Omega doesn’t think this will be the battle of wits or the greatest promo of all time.

If he has anything to say, he has five five second to say it because Omega is getting tired of this. Boy says Omega talks to much so Omega swings, only to get punched up against the ropes. Omega gets pulled into the Snare Trap but the Young Bucks run in to clear Boy out. This was good once Boy came in, but Omega talking is not the best thing.

Jade Cargill and Mark Sterling are rather happy that their monetization plan has been a success. Next up: marketing the catchphrase, because Cargill is that b****.

Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky aren’t impressed with Darby Allin but they are going to take him out again. They are going to chop him down, step on his body and move up, because it is all up from here for the Men Of The Year. What an odd name for a team.

Lance Archer vs. Chandler Hopkins

Archer jumps him to start but Hopkins actually gets out of the chokeslam. Archer knocks Hopkins out of the air and this the big chokeslam. The Blackout finishes for Archer at 52 seconds.

Archer storms out of the arena immediately after the win.

The Wingmen offer Orange Cassidy a chance to get his wardrobe upgrade, or Cesar Bononi will mess up his face.

Nyla Rose vs. Leyla Hirsch

Vickie Guerrero is here with Rose. Leyla chases Vickie out to start and gets slammed for her efforts. That doesn’t seem to cause much trouble though as a cross armbreaker has Rose in trouble. A dropkick puts Rose on the floor but the suicide dive is cut off, with Leyla being driven into the apron. Back in and Rose drops a knee for two, setting up a neck crank to send us to a break.

We come back with Leyla hitting a slingshot dropkick in the corner for two, setting up a release German suplex. A running knee rocks Rose again and a rope walk moonsault (with barely a cover) gets two. Leyla can’t suplex her, with Rose draping her over the top instead. The top rope knee drop is broken up though and Leyla goes up, only to get super Beast Bombed back down to give Rose the pin at 8:45.

Rating: C. They made a bit of a go with it here, though I’m not sure how much I could buy Rose being in danger here. What worked was having Leyla show off with some power and technique, which really do make her look legit. Rose is on her way to another title shot (because of course) and a win over someone with some credibility will help her get there.

Britt Baker doesn’t like Nyla Rose making fun of Leyla Hirsch’s height but let’s get back to her. Baker has endorsement deals flying in left and right, which was never the case when Rose was champion. That’s cool with Baker though, because she’ll add Rose to the list of jealous b****** in the back. Rose needs the title because it makes her, but Baker is making the title.

Here is what’s coming next week.

Hangman Page/10 vs. Brian Cage/Powerhouse Hobbs

Page, who has lost all sense of time, gets driven into the corner to start so Cage can drive shoulders into the corner. Some forearms get Page out of trouble for a bit but his sliding lariat is countered. Cage misses a basement dropkick though and Page hits a standing shooting star press for two. 10 comes in but walks into an assisted powerbomb from Hobbs, who starts getting a bit cocky. A running knee to the ribs drops 10 and we take a break.

Back with 10 hitting a pump kick each to Hobbs and Cage, allowing Page to come in for a running boot to Cage. They head outside with Page posting Cage, setting up a moonsault press for two on Hobbs. A crossbody gives Hobbs two on Page but Cage is back in with a 619 to knock 10 silly.

Page is back in with a springboard shot to Cage’s face and 10 busts Hobbs spine. Cage comes back with a running clothesline in the corner and a sloppy high/low gets two on 10. Ricky Starks throws Cage the FTW Title but Cage throws it away, earning a slap from Starks. Cage chases Starks off so Hobbs buts a spinebuster for two on 10. A ripcord cutter drops Hobbs though and the Buckshot Lariat is enough to give Page the pin at 10:18.

Rating: C+. There was a lot going on here, with the continuing split of Team Taz being the biggest story. Cage vs. Starks will be good, though they are going to have to stretch things out a lot due to Starks’ injury. Hobbs vs. Cage will do for the time being though, assuming that is the way they go. At the same time, it is a good sign to see Page being treated as a big deal again, as he should have been for a long time now.

The Dark Order comes out to celebrate with some beers to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was another week where they kind of took the night off, but it wasn’t as bad as last time. Right now they are building towards the June 26 show with the World Title match, though I’m not sure what else is going to be seen as a big deal on that show. This was a completely watchable show with some good action, as they got me to care about matches that weren’t all that interesting in the first place. Nice job here, though it’s another skippable show.

Results
Christian Cage b. Angelico – Killswitch
Pac/Penta El Zero Miedo/Eddie Kingston b. Brandon Cutler/Young Bucks – Spinning backfist to Cutler
Miro b. Evil Uno – Game Archer
Lance Archer b. Chandler Hopkins – Blackout
Nyla Rose b. Leyla Hirsch – Super Beast Bomb
10/Hangman Page b. Brian Cage/Powerhouse Hobbs – Buckshot Lariat to Hobbs

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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

AND

Remember to check out Wrestlingrumors.net for all of your wrestling headline needs.

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 27, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Lo Brown

We’re on the way to Against All Odds and that means we are going to be seeing more of Moose vs. Kenny Omega as they set up their World Title match. I’m kind of curious to see the match, even though I don’t quite see a ton of drama involved. Hopefully they can live up to the hype and we can get some more matches set up this week. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at Heath being involved in the Call Your Shot gauntlet match at Bound For Glory, with Rhino ultimately winning. Then last week, Rhino cashed in the contract to win the Tag Team Titles with Violent By Design.

Eric Young says that the change was foretold and last week it came to pass. Now they prove that it is real.

Opening sequence.

Here is Sami Callihan to have a seat in the ring for a chat. Callihan isn’t happy with what Kenny Omega has done around here because Omega and the Good Brothers have ruined this place. You can’t plan for someone like Callihan and Don Callis knows it. Let’s lay this to rest right now, so Omega can come out here right now. Cue Moose to say that no one cares about Callihan, because he didn’t win at Under Siege.

Callihan knows that Moose is a physical specimen but he isn’t dangerous. Cue the Good Brothers to say praise the Lord a lot and say they are on Moose’s side here. Maybe Callihan needs to stay out of Moose’s way, but Moose doesn’t want them on his side. The brawl is on and the Brothers are cleared out in a hurry. Anything that involves them talking less is a good thing.

The Good Brothers go to the back, where Don Callis makes the tag match.

Post break Callis is asked if he is allowed to make a match. Of course he can, though Scott D’Amore comes up to express his shock.

Commentary talks about what is coming tonight, plus the issues between Callis and D’Amore.

Petey Williams/Josh Alexander vs. TJP/Fallah Bahh

TJP has paid off Bahh’s debts at Swinger’s Palace so the team is back. Bahh shoves Alexander into the corner to start and we hit the front facelock. Alexander gets punched in the face but goes after the leg and grabs a front facelock of his own. TJP comes in for the Paisan elbow but Bahh can’t quite nip up.

A double splash gets two but Williams comes back in to slow Bahh down. Alexander adds a top rope shoulder and we take a break. Back with Alexander driving shoulders into Bahh’s ribs in the corner. Alexander comes back in for a kick to the ribs but makes the mistake of hitting Bahh in the head.

Bahh brings TJP back in to pick up the pace, including the Facewashes to Williams in the corner. The TJP vs. Alexander slugout goes to the former but it’s a double knockdown to set up another double tag. TJP counters the Canadian Destroyer from Williams, who is crushed by Bahh’s crossbody. A Samoan drop crushes Alexander and the Mamba Splash gives TJP the pin at 11:08.

Rating: C. It’s kind of nice to have the oddball team back together again as they have always worked well together. TJP pinning Alexander is a fine way to set up their title match at….well whenever the match takes place. Williams’ employment continues to confuse me a bit, though he is perfectly serviceable for a spot like this.

We get a sitdown interview with W. Morrissey, who mocks everyone for being so happy to your face and then stab you in the back. Some may call him bitter and people have kicked him while he was down. They even recorded him having a seizure instead of calling 911. People didn’t talk to him in years but once he came back to wrestling, they were right there telling him how happy they were for him. He mocks the idea of Rich Swann and Willie Mack being friends and asks who is laughing now. Cue Swann to jump him for the brawl.

Video on the Knockouts, which feels like an ad you would see when watching another channel.

Tenille Dashwood needs a replacement for a Knockouts tag and Rachael Ellering suggests Jordynne Grace. Dashwood isn’t sure but Grace comes up, saying she doesn’t want to be a substitute. Ellering talks her into it.

Fire N Flava/Kimber Lee/Deonna Purrazzo/Susan vs. Rachael Ellering/Havok/Jordynne Grace/Rosemary/Tenille Dashwood

Kaleb With A K is in the latter’s corner and Grace is replacing Taylor Wilde who is missing due to…..well in theory we’ll find out in a bit. Lee charges into Havok’s boot to start so Susan comes in to get kicked down as well. Hogan comes in and gets caught in Ellering’s release gutwrench suplex. A backsplash connects but Hogan gets over for the tag to Steelz. That’s fine for Ellering, who hits a sliding kick to the side of the head.

Dashwood tags herself in and takes Steelz down, much to Ellering’s annoyance. It’s quickly off to Grace, with the referee actually getting rid of Ellering because she was in the ring too long. The distraction lets Steelz snap Grace’s neck across the top and we take a break. Back with Steelz dropping an elbow on Grace to cut off a hot tag attempt. Grace jumps over Hogan in the corner though, allowing her to backflip over into the corner for the tag off to Rosemary.

The Upside Down is broken up in a hurry and some double teaming puts Rosemary in trouble for a change. Susan takes Rosemary up and bites her head, only to have Havok turn it into a Tower of Doom. Purrazzo comes in and gets dropped by Ellering as everything breaks down. Susan throws her shoe at Havok to little success so Rosemary hits As Above So Below to finish Purrazzo at 12:42.

Rating: C. These things are really hard to pull off as there is only so much that can be done with so many people in there at once. Rosemary will be a fine challenger for the title as she is one of the more established names in the division. This did its job, but you would think they could have done about the same with four or so fewer women included.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Eric Young beats Bobby Roode to become King of the Mountain Champion.

Josh Alexander is ready for all challengers so here are TJP and Fallah Bahh to interrupt. Scott D’Amore comes in to make a sixty minute Iron Man match for the title next week on Before The Impact. Well that’s certainly a way to get people interested.

Video on the history between Rohit Raju and Jake Something…..which apparently exists. They were friends for years and Raju doesn’t know why Impact has treated Something as such a star. Something says this isn’t the Raju he has known for years. A showdown seems to be looming. It’s a bit of a random feud to give a story but points for doing anything with a midcard feud.

Here is Violent By Design to brag about their win last week. Eric Young talks about how scary violence is to everyone else but to them, it is a tool. He needed people who knew the sickness existed and that it needed to be removed. Joe Doering was his first choice and his vision is clear.

Then you have Deaner, who needed a guide and now is the most diabolical and violent version of himself. Finally you have Rhino, who is back as the War Machine. They did everything to set up last week by design. FinJuice is back in Japan and can’t use their rematch….by design. Cue Satoshi Kojima to stare Doering down and then issue the challenge for Against All Odds. And then he leaves.

We look at Brian Myers laying out Matt Cardona last week, including sending him face first into a camera.

The Impact doctor says Cardona is out for twelve weeks when Myers comes in to laugh. Sam Beale interrupts and a match is made for later.

Joe Doering accepts Satoshi Kojima’s challenge for Against All Odds. Decay interrupts and talks about Deaner still being in the shadows. Deaner doesn’t like that and I think we have a title match impending.

Decay vs. Johnny Swinger/Hernandez

Alisha is here with Swinger and Hernandez. Swinger’s hammerlock doesn’t last long on Crazzy Steve so Black Taurus comes in for a double back elbow. A backsplash gets two and it’s back to Steve for an armbar. That’s broken up in a hurry and it’s off to Hernandez for something like a reverse Samoan drop. Swinger climbs onto Hernandez’s shoulders but then drops down and hits a standing splash for two instead.

That doesn’t last long either so it’s back to Taurus to clean house. Steve backdrops out of a piledriver and goes up for the middle rope DDT….which is botched so badly that I had to rewind it a few times to see what happened. Steve jumped right but Swinger didn’t fall down, instead standing there until Steve hit the mat and then falling onto his back. As bad as that is, it’s good enough for to give Steve the pin at 3:58.

Rating: D. The match was your usual TV match but that ending was so bad I had to rewind it a few times and put it in slow motion to figure out what the heck happened. I’m not sure how you can have that kind of miscommunication but they pulled it off here. How hard can it be to fall on your face when someone hits a big move off the top? Nothing match, but that ending was memorable in all the wrong ways.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Don Callis gives the Good Brothers a pep talk.

Slammiversary ad, featuring teases of debuts.

Good Brothers vs. Sami Callihan/Moose

Callihan jumps Anderson to start and snapmares him down in a hurry. Some clawing at the head has Anderson screaming and Moose comes in for a slam. The Brothers take a breather on the floor and we take a break. Back with Callihan working on Anderson’s arm but Moose tags himself in. Callihan does that right back so it’s off to Gallows for the weird punching in the corner. After a trip to the floor, Callihan tells Gallows to punch him more so Gallows takes him down for a chinlock.

Back up and Callihan jawbreaks his way to freedom and it’s a double tag so Moose can beat up Anderson. The spear is loaded up but Callihan tags himself in. Callihan loads up the Cactus Special, only to have Moose kick him in the face. Anderson rolls him up for two so Callihan kicks Moose off the apron. Anderson uses the distraction to hit a spinebuster into the Magic Killer for the pin at 9:01.

Rating: C-. This was a storyline match with the Good Brothers happening to be there too. Moose vs. Callihan would be a good warmup match for Moose before his title shot, assuming they don’t turn it into a three way. The match was fine enough and advanced the biggest story on the show, but it wasn’t exactly must see.

Moose spears Callihan to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. Not their best show, but they did some stuff to set up Against All Odds. There wasn’t much to see here in the way of wrestling though and it wasn’t the most thrilling two hours. Violent By Design’s segment didn’t exactly go very far, though at least they did some stuff with the main event. All in all, a skippable week this time.

Results

TJP/Fallah Bahh b. Petey Williams/Josh Alexander – Mamba Splash to Alexander

Rosemary/Jordynne Grace/Rachael Ellering/Havok/Tenille Dashwood b. Fire N Flava/Kimber Lee/Deonna Purrazzo/Susan – As Above So Below to Purrazzo

Decay b. Johnny Swinger/Hernandez – Top rope DDT to Swinger

Good Brothers b. Sami Callihan/Moose – Magic Killer to Callihan

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Impact Wrestling
Date: May 13, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Matt Striker

It is the go home show for Under Siege and we have the lineup for the show’s six way #1 contenders match main event. That leaves tonight as little more than a standard go home show, which means we could be in for a rather fun show. Impact has been holding my interest fairly well lately so hopefully they can keep it up. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Havok vs. Rosemary

The winner gets a Knockouts Title shot against Deonna Purrazzo at Under Siege and the rest of Decay is here with Rosemary. They shake hands and then yell at each other a lot. Rosemary hammers away with forearms but bounces off of Havok. More shouting sets up stereo running boots before Havok sends her face first into the buckle.

There’s a running boot in the corner for two and Havok grabs the camel clutch. That’s broken up and Rosemary counters a charge into the Upside Down to slow Havok down for a change. Rosemary somehow manages a t-bone suplex for two but Havok pulls her up into the Tombstone for the pin out of nowhere at 6:02.

Rating: C-. Rosemary got to show off some surprising power here but Havok winning is another way to go. I can imagine Rosemary getting a title shot of her own in the near future, but they very well may hold off on that until Slammiversary. Havok will do very well for now and it should be a good power vs. technical title match.

Post match here is Deonna Purrazzo to go after Havok but she gets knocked outside. Rosemary throws her back in and Decay cuts off Kimber Lee and Susan. The Tombstone plants Purrazzo.

Here is what is coming tonight and at Under Siege.

The Good Brothers are ready for tonight and Saturday. Kenny Omega says he is the game changer and the reason why the team is back on track. Violence and success are promised, though Omega having all three belts on didn’t help the seriousness.

Petey Williams vs. Ace Austin vs. Acey Romero vs. TJP vs. Rohit Raju vs. El Phantasmo

One fall and the winner gets the X-Division Title shot at Under Siege. Madman Fulton, Mahabali Shera and Larry D. are all at ringside. Romero gets jumped to start but manages to shove them away so we can get down to the usual insanity that these matches bring. Romero pulls Austin off the apron and sends him into the barricade but TJP nails a slingshot dropkick to finally put the monster down.

That gives us TJP vs. Phantasmo with the former snapping off a great running hurricanrana. Phantasmo is back up for a rope walk….but stops to pick up Austin for a Death Valley Driver off the top and onto the pile, because that’s something he can do. We take a break and come back with TJP sending Raju into the corner for some standing/running kicks to the face.

Romero comes back in to sweep Raju’s legs and hit a splash to the back for two. Phantasmo gets to clean a bit of house but Williams hits a slingshot Codebreaker. The Canadian Destroyer gets two on Phantasmo but Austin is back with a running kick to the head. A short string of dives sets up the brawl between the seconds, leaving TJP to hit the Detonation Kick on Phantasmo. The Mamba Splash misses though and Phantasmo hits a top rope splash of his own to TJP. Williams makes the save but walks into Phantasmo’s arm trap Neutralizer for the pin at 10:15.

Rating: C+. The action was good, but I’m not bit on these wild multi person matches. There is no flow or story to them and they are just a bunch of spots until someone gets the pin. The spots were good and some of the stuff was entertaining, but I can only get so into them. Granted Phantasmo vs. Josh Alexander could be incredible.

Susan and Kimber Lee comes in to show Scott D’Amore a clip of Tenille Dashwood on her phone. The result: Susan/Lee vs. Dashwood/Taylor Wilde at Under Siege.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Havok b. Gail Kim for the Knockouts Title on the October 1, 2014 Impact.

Violent By Design says failure will not be tolerated and must be crushed. Eric Young isn’t sure what caused the problem but then he realized that the sickness is the problem. Nothing is guaranteed and change is the only thing you can trust. You’ll be seeing a lot of them.

We go to Swinger’s Palace where Alisha Edwards is now working, presumably to pay off her debts. Ace Austin and Madman Fulton come in to name themselves #1 contenders to the Tag Team Titles but some other teams come in to disagree. TJP knows he could get a title shot with the right partner, so here is Petey Williams (the amount of dirt he has on this company must be astounding) to tease the Scott Steiner promo on the odds of the title change. That is cut off in a hurry, and a multi team match seems likely.

Sam Beale vs. Willie Mack

Mack starts fast with the swinging slam into the standing moonsault for two before hurting his hand on some shots to the face. Beale gets in a kick to the face, followed by a few knees to the ribs. A pop up right hand drops Beale and the frog splash finishes him off at 3:22.

Rating: D+. Just a quick match here to get Mack some momentum going into the Under Siege match against Morrissey. I’m not sure why Mack hasn’t gone a little bit further around here but at least he has a big enough match set up for the show. This was a squash, but Beale has looked decent in his appearances.

Post match here is W. Morrissey to drop Mack again.

David Finlay, with Juice Robinson and Eddie Edwards, is ready for Karl Anderson tonight. The other two are ready for the Under Siege six man tag too. Eddie has even brought back Kenny the Kendo Stick.

Slammiversary ad, featuring various recently released WWE stars and past Impact names.

It’s time for It’s All About Me with Tenille Dashwood and her guest….Kaleb With A K. Taylor Wilde comes in to have a chat of her own, as she doesn’t like Dashwood cheating last week. They couldn’t really talk about it because she doesn’t have Dashwood’s number as they aren’t friends. Under Siege is a one off because they are not friends or partners. Kaleb With A K: “Hashtag awkward.” Dashwood seems cool with it though.

Karl Anderson vs. David Finlay

Doc Gallows, Kenny Omega, Don Callis, Eddie Edwards and Juice Robinson are all here too. Anderson starts hammering away but Finlay pops him in the jaw a few times. Some of the seconds offer trips but Gallows gets in another trip to take over. Finlay is sent outside for some choking against the barricade so commentary can talk about Japan.

Back in and Anderson hammers away before raking away at the eyes. We hit the chinlock for all of five seconds before Anderson blasts him with a clothesline. Another chinlock is countered into a hard belly to back and Finlay slingshot dives onto Omega and Gallows. An Indian Deathlock goes on back inside but Omega comes in for the DQ at 5:50.

Rating: C-. This was another match that didn’t have the time to go anywhere but it wasn’t supposed to be anything more. They previewed Saturday’s six man and while your mileage might vary on the story, what we got here was certainly good enough. If nothing else, it was another week without Omega talking and that’s a good thing.

Post match the brawl is on and Kenny the Kendo Stick is enough to chase the villains off.

Chris Sabin feels bad for not having James Storm’s back in Storm’s qualifying match. He’ll face Moose tonight in a six man tag and we’ll see what happens.

Video on Under Siege.

Earlier tonight on Before The Impact, Tasha Steelz beat Jordynne Grace.

Grace is upset over the loss but Rachael Ellering tells her to save it for Under Siege.

Brian Myers vs. Crazzy Steve

Steve takes him down for a very quick two and Myers is a bit scared in the corner. He even bails to the floor where Black Taurus scares him again, earning an ejection as we take a break. Back with Myers kicking Steve in the head and grabbing a chinlock. That’s broken up but so is Steve’s tornado DDT. Myers grabs a rollup for the pin with feet on the ropes at 7:17. Not enough shown to rate but it keeps the Myers vs. Decay feud going, as odd as it might be.

Post match Black Taurus comes back in to run Myers over and leaves a death card.

Don Callis doesn’t like how this place is being run but here is Scott D’Amore to interrupt. D’Amore remembers Callis messing with Moose’s head last week, which is why James Storm is out of action with an injury. Maybe Callis needs to figure out if he is an AEW manager or an Impact Wrestling executive.

Under Siege rundown.

Chris Sabin/Matt Cardona/Trey Miguel vs. Moose/Sami Callihan/Chris Bey

Callihan takes Sabin into the corner to start but a crucifix gives Sabin a quick two. Cardona comes in but gets taken down by Bey as we see the Elite watching in the back. It’s off to Miguel, who jumps over Cardona for a backsplash onto Bey. The Pendulum has Bey in more trouble but Bey misses a jumping double stomp. Bey kicks Miguel down without much trouble and we take a break.

We come back with Moose hammering on Miguel and handing it off to Callihan for some chops in the corner. Miguel gets two off a sunset flip, earning himself a dropkick from Bey. Moose is back in with a one handed slam and the two handed version puts him down just as quickly. Now it’s Callihan coming back in for a slam into a chinlock. That’s broken up in a hurry and Miguel kicks him in the head, setting up a double clothesline for the double knockdown.

The hot tag brings in Cardona to clean house, with Sabin tagging himself in for a missile dropkick/Downward Spiral combination. Everything breaks down and Miguel counters Moose’s powerbomb into a hurricanrana into the post. Bey forearms Sabin, who counters the package piledriver. Back in and Miguel missile dropkicks Moose back to the floor but Callihan package piledrives Sabin for the pin at 14:37.

Rating: C+. This was the exactly right idea to build up the Under Siege six way and it gives us an interesting twist with Sami getting some momentum. He might be a wild card in the match and that could be what the match needs. Moose would still seem to be the heavy favorite and was treated like a monster here, but there are a good many options (six I believe).

Moose and Callihan get in a shoving match post match.

Callis looks worried to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The point of this show was to make me want to see Under Siege and they did that well enough. It still isn’t a show that means very much with both main events being matches designed to set up things later but they made it fairly interesting here. That’s a tricky thing to do and they did a nice job here, so well done enough.

Results

Havok b. Rosemary – Tombstone

El Phantasmo b. Ace Austin, TJP, Rohit Raju, Petey Williams and Acey Romero – Arm trap faceplant to Williams

Willie Mack b. Sam Beale – Six Star Frog Splash

David Finlay b. Karl Anderson via DQ when Kenny Omega interfered

Brian Myers b. Crazzy Steve – Rollup with a grab of the rope

Sami Callihan/Chris Bey/Moose b. Chris Sabin/Matt Cardona/Trey Miguel – Package piledriver to Sabin

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Impact Wrestling
Date: May 6, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

We’re still in the early days of the Kenny Omega era and we are also on the way to Under Siege. Since Omega isn’t working that show, we need his #1 contender, meaning the six way #1 contenders match at Under Siege needs some more qualifiers. That’s what Impact is for at the moment so let’s get to it.

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

Opening sequence.

Chris Sabin vs. Rhino

James Storm and Violent By Design are here too. They trade arm control to start until Sabin sends him outside. Back in and Rhino hits him in the face before hammering Sabin down in the corner. The neck crank goes on but Sabin fights up and hits a discus forearm. There’s an enziguri to put Rhino on the floor and a rollup gives Sabin two back inside. Deaner offers a distraction though and Rhino pokes him in the eye to take over. Sabin is fine enough to kick out the knee to block the Gore though and la majistral finishes Rhino at 6:46.

Rating: C-. Just a match here as almost anything involving Violent By Design has almost no interest. The team feels like a bunch of people thrown together to give Eric Young something to do, and since Young is injured, the team does not exactly seem like it matters all that much. They aren’t the worst by any means, but Rhino felt like an obstacle rather than a threat, which only kind of worked.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Brian Myers is annoyed at losing to Matt Cardona so he wants another qualifying match. He runs into Rosemary, who says he has no one to blame for his problems but himself. Myers doesn’t buy it, so here is Black Taurus to run him over. Rosemary gives him a card, which seems to suggest that he is having bad luck.

The Elite thinks that was hilarious but Don Callis says they need to focus on winning more matches. That’s why tonight it’s Doc Gallows vs. Juice Robinson.

Susan vs. Taylor Wilde

Kimber Lee is here with Susan. Wilde cartwheels out of a waistlock to start but Susan can’t do the same. Instead Wilde throws her down as Striker talks about all of the styles that Wilde uses. Susan sends her into the corner but misses a legdrop as Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb With A K come out to watch. Wilde’s German suplex sends Susan to the floor, setting up a hurricanrana to take her down again. A quick glare at Dashwood doesn’t change anything, as Wilde hits a bridging German suplex for the pin at 2:28.

Post match Dashwood comes in to pose for a photo with Wilde, who doesn’t seem interested.

Deonna Purrazzo isn’t scared of Taylor Wilde but Susan and Kimber Lee need to earn the right to have her join them at ringside. Decay comes in and, after scaring off the interviewer, seem to threaten Purrazzo. Havok comes in to say she wants a shot as well, so a flustered Purrazzo says they can fight for a title shot.

W. Morrissey says no one knows him but he knows that all of the fans left him as soon as he started to fall apart. Everyone he thought he knew in this business was a phony but now he has risen from the ashes. At Under Siege, he’s starting with Willie Mack.

Rohit Raju vs. Trey Miguel

Under Siege qualifying match and Shera is here with Raju. They lock up to start with Miguel trying to pull him down so Raju bails outside in a hurry. Back in and they go to a test of strength with Raju taking him down, only to have Miguel nip up. That earns him a takedown and Raju is rather pleased as we take a break. Back with Shera getting in a cheap shot but Miguel strikes away at the face to put him up against the ropes.

What looks like a northern lights suplex is blocked so Raju suplexes him down for two. Raju knocks him to the floor and then takes it back inside to start cranking on the arm. A flying armbar makes it worse but Miguel flips over him and hits a jumping stomp to the back. They slug it out from their knees until Miguel suplexes him into a Kimura. That’s broken up as well until Raju crotches him in the corner and hits a hanging DDT. A Falcon Arrow into a Crossface has Miguel in trouble until he rolls out but gets kneed in the face. Miguel kicks him down again though and grabs the Hourglass for the tap at 11:27.

Rating: B-. Good back and forth match here as I continue to try and get my head around the idea of Raju actually being this entertaining. I know I say that rather often, but he was so terrible as part of the Desi Hit Squad. It’s amazing how much better it is to just have him as a guy instead of a guy there to make a legend look good. Miguel gets another boost here and it wouldn’t stun me to see him get the title shot.

Post match here’s Jake Something to knock Shera down and take out Raju as well. Yeah is name is still Jake Something.

We go to Swinger’s Palace and Alisha Edwards seems to have lost all of her money. Trey Miguel comes in and gets in a bit of an argument with the other people who have qualified for Under Siege over betting odds. James Storm insists he’ll be getting in too but Chris Bey gets in Storm and Chris Sabin’s heads over being tag wrestlers getting into singles matches. Storm doesn’t seem interested.

Doc Gallows vs. Juice Robinson

Kenny Omega, Karl Anderson and David Finlay are here too. Gallows goes straight to the eye to start and hits an uppercut in the corner. Robinson sends him into the corner to even things up and some left hands have Gallows down. Back up and Gallows big boots him out to the floor, followed by the rights and lefts to the ribs.

The chinlock goes on, though Gallows does give him a breather to drive in the elbows to the chest. Robinson fights out of another chinlock and dropkicks the knee out, setting up a running DDT for two. The big left hand drops Gallows but Robinson has to go after Anderson. A bicycle kick into the chokebomb (and a good one at that) finishes Robinson at 7:19.

Rating: C. Gallows still isn’t nearly as good of a big man as he is given credit for but he worked well enough here. This was about Gallows beating up Robinson, who kept trying to fight from underneath. The numbers game catching up with him made sense and it did a nice job with what they were trying. Also, the lack of Omega talking tends to help a lot.

Post match the beatdown is on so Eddie Edwards runs down for a failed save attempt.

Deonna Purrazzo, Susan and Kimber Lee are leaving when Scott D’Amore comes up. Next week: Havok vs. Rosemary for the Under Siege title shot.

VSK vs. El Phantasmo

VSK is an AEW Dark guy and Phantasmo is from New Japan’s Bullet Club. Phantasmo starts fast by jumping over him but VSK hits a dropkick into a backbreaker. A slam into an immediate splash (that’s a new one) gets two but Phantasmo is right back by putting him on the top. Phantasmo pulls him back down for a crash and a Lionsault gets two. VSK is right back with a rollup for two and a fireman’s carry backbreaker connects for the same. That earns him some kicks to the chest and, after possibly loading up the boot, Phantasmo hits a superkick for the pin at 3:13.

Rating: C+. Phantasmo is awesome, but this seemed to be more about building up VSK than anything else. That being said, it isn’t like Phantasmo needs that much of a build as he is the big guest star. VSK did look good in defeat, though it is kind of hard to say how much of that was him when he was in there with such an established name.

Rachael Ellering vs. Kiera Hogan

Jordynne Grace and Tasha Steelz are here too. An early Steelz distraction lets Kiera hit a superkick and it’s already time to stomp Ellering in the corner. A kick to the ribs has Ellering in more trouble but she avoids a charge in the corner. Ellering counters a neckbreaker but gets caught with a running knee to the head for two. The chinlock goes on but they get up and collide so Ellering can get in a kick to the head. There’s a backsplash for two, only to have Ellering miss a charge of her own in the corner and get kicked in the face again. They miss some shots to the face until Ellering hits a swinging Boss Man Slam for the pin at 4:33.

Rating: C-. They didn’t really have a good way to go here as you don’t want either of them losing, though in this case, it makes more sense to go with the person who is still new to the company (yet is somehow a champion). The action was hardly great, though that has never quite been Hogan’s strong suit. It wasn’t exactly great, but it did what it was supposed to do….I think.

Don Callis comes up to Moose in the back and brings up football coach Jimmy Johnson. Callis talks about Johnson saying stars should be treated like stars, which is what Moose certainly is. Why is he in some qualifying match when he is already a star? Moose tells him to shut up, but Moose might be slightly convinced.

Fire N Flava are annoyed at the loss but Jordynne Grace and Rachael Ellering come up. Trash is talked until Grace vs. Steelz is set for next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

James Storm vs. Moose

Final Under Siege qualifying match. Storm’s headlock doesn’t last very long and Moose shoulders him away without much effort. A shot to the face knocks Moose outside though and Storm adds a dropkick through the ropes as we take a break. Back with Storm being sent to the apron, where Moose blocks the enziguri in the corner. Moose dumps him outside without much effort and sends him knee first into the barricade.

The knee is rammed into the floor as well, followed by some stomping back inside. Moose talks a lot of trash but Storm fights up and gets in a few right hands, only to get knocked back down. A running dropkick to the knee connects in the corner and Storm is in even more trouble. The leglock goes on but Moose gets caught holding the rope. That’s fine with Moose, who works on the knee even more with some cranking. Moose misses a charge though and Storm slugs away, including the Thesz press with right hands to the jaw (there’s a Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan joke in there somewhere).

The Codebreaker rocks Moose again and there’s a tornado DDT for two. Moose is back up with a tackle to the knee though and we hit the half crab. That doesn’t last long either so Moose goes up, with Storm pulling him into the Eye of the Storm….but the leg gives out. Storm takes his time getting up but manages a Last Call out of nowhere. The knee is too bad to cover though and Moose hits the spear for the pin at 16:08.

Rating: B. This was close enough to a main event style match to fit in this spot. Moose working on the knee throughout the match and then having it play into the whole thing worked out well. Moose has been primed for the title shot for a long time now and beating Storm feels like something that matters. Good match in the right spot with the right result so that’s a nice job.

Post match Moose Pillmanizes the leg with Chris Sabin running out just a bit too late for the save.

Overall Rating: B-. They had a very streamlined show here to set up a lot of Under Siege in a hurry. It was almost weird having a bunch of singles matches in a row but it was what they needed to do here. The six way could go to multiple people and they set up enough stuff for the coming shows to make this a pretty good use of two hours.

Results

Chris Sabin b. Rhino – La majistral

Taylor Wilde b. Susan – Bridging German suplex

Trey Miguel b. Rohit Raju – Hourglass

Doc Gallows b. Juice Robinson – Chokebomb

El Phantasmo b. VSK – Superkick

Rachael Ellering b. Kiera Hogan – Swinging Boss Man Slam

Moose b. James Storm – Spear

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Impact Wrestling
Date: April 22, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

It’s the go home show for Rebellion and I’m curious to see how they push the rest of the card. The main event is long since set but we need more of the card being built up. We should be in for a good pay per view but some of that is going to be based on a good go home show. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a video on Rich Swann vs. Kenny Omega, including last week’s press conference.

Opening sequence.

Decay vs. Good Brothers

Rosemary is here with Decay. Anderson and Steve start things off with the former firing off some uppercuts. Steve gets smart by grabbing the arm and brings in Taurus to chop away in the corner. Decay takes turns on the arm but Andreson gets Taurus over to the corner so Gallows can hammer away.

A shot to the mask sets up Anderson’s chinlock, followed by Gallows’ elbows to the chest and a chinlock of his own. That’s broken up as well and the hot tag brings in Steve to pick up the pace. A low Downward Spiral gives Steve two and everything breaks down. Taurus is sent outside and Steve gets pulled out of the air for the Magic Killer and the pin at 5:14.

Rating: C-. The wrestling wasn’t great but this was exactly the point they were going for. You wanted the Brothers to look strong going into the title match and beating Decay is a fine enough way to do just that. There was no point in having Decay be any real kind of a threat here and they didn’t bother doing anything ridiculous.

Post match the Brothers thank FinJuice for giving them the motivation and pouring the gasoline on them to make their fire hotter. FinJuice better have enjoyed their shiny titles in Roppongi (because it’s in Japan) because on Sunday, it’s a Magic Killer and new champs.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

We get some predictions on Rich Swann vs. Kenny Omega, with most of the Impact wrestlers predicting Swann walks out with both titles.

Video on Violent By Design vs. James Storm/Chris Sabin/Willie Mack/Eddie Edwards on Sunday. Granted based on the video, you would think it was James Storm vs. Eric Young, but this was more intense than most of their recap packages, which is a good thing.

Susan vs. Tenille Dashwood

Deonna Purrazzo and Kaleb With A K are here too. Susan wins a test of strength to start but gets reversed into a sunset flip for an early near fall. Purrazzo offers a distraction from the floor though and we take a break. Back with Dashwood caught in a full nelson and getting slammed down onto her face. Susan shouts at her about something, with Dashwood seeming confused. A slugout goes to Dashwood, who sends her into the corner for the Taste of Tenille. The Tarantula sets up the Spotlight Kick to finish Susan at 8:07.

Rating: D+. This was little more than a squash to boost Dashwood up a little more before the pay per view. Dashwood looked fine here, but there is nothing here that makes me think we are in for some classic on Sunday. At the same time, what in the world has happened to Su Yung? This Susan stuff is really dull and seems like a horrible waste of her talent. Why would you take someone who was unique and interesting and make them the exact opposite? Find something else for her to do and get rid of this stuff.

Post match Dashwood calls Purrazzo into the ring and says she has done more for women’s wrestling than Purrazzo, who wouldn’t be here without her. So keep the title shiny because Dashwood has a photo shoot ready for it. Purrazzo looks ticked.

Brian Myers isn’t stuck in the past like Matt Cardona, so on Sunday, Myers is taking him out.

More wrestlers make Swann vs. Omega picks.

Video on Swann vs. Omega.

Sami Callihan says Trey Miguel threw everything away. He saw something in Trey and now it is time to make an example out of him. This Sunday it is Last Man Standing as Callihan is going to give him a chance to get back up…..before making sure he can never walk again.

Shera vs. Jake Something

Rohit Raju is here with Shera and I do like the rain looking graphics around the arena during Jake’s entrance. Shera slams him down to start and drops a heavy elbow for two. Back up and Jake slugs away, setting up the discus forearm for a knockdown. Raju offers a distraction though and Shera hits the Sky High to finish Jake at 3:22.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here with Shera getting a random match to give him a push. I’m not going to buy that going anywhere because there is no reason to think it is going to matter, but at least they are trying something with him. Speaking of Something, Jake has fallen through the floor and given his ring name, I’m not at all surprised. It’s the difference between one off indy appearances and a regular national promotion, but that has been lost on today’s generation.

Trey Miguel talks to his fellow trainer at his wrestling school and rants about how he has to prove himself to Sami Callihan for some reason. He’s ready to show who he is on Sunday.

We hit the Trey training montage.

Video on Josh Alexander vs. TJP vs. Ace Austin for the X-Division Title at Rebellion.

Here’s Rich Swann for a chat, with Striker saying that anyone who has ever put a piece of wrist tape on their wrist before a match has something in common with him. As someone who has never wrestled, I feel rather detached from the following segment. Swann talks about how he made a mistake last week when he tried to shake Omega’s hand last week, so get out here right now.

Kenny Omega and Don Callis pop up on screen to talk about how excited they are to have Omega win a third title. He needs a bigger house and another Swiss bank account. Goodbye and good night, bang. They leave….and here’s the returning Moose. He’s here to congratulate Swann because he has had a long time to think about what happened at Sacrifice.

Moose has some advice for Swann, who should be ready for this match because he took the TNA Title from a wrestling god. Swann has been shown what pain really feels like and Moose is bigger, stronger and faster than Omega. The only advantages Omega has are his three stooges, so Swann better not lose those titles.

More predictions.

Taylor Wilde is coming back and we actually see her for a change.

Kiera Hogan vs. Jordynne Grace

Tasha Steelz is here with Hogan. Grace jumps her to start and grabs a quick torture rack. That doesn’t last long so Grace sends her into the corner and comes out with a MuscleBuster, which draws in Steelz for the DQ at 1:55.

Post match the beatdown is on but the debuting Rachael Ellering runs in for the save to be Grace’s partner. Grace: “Rachael Ellering is going to be my partner at Rebellion!” In case you weren’t paying attention.

From Rebellion 2020: Chris Bey wins a four way match.

FinJuice mocks the Good Brothers for their excuses and now it is time for them to lose again.

Video on Omega vs. Swann.

Here’s what’s coming with Wrestle Week.

Commentary runs down the Rebellion card.

Eric Young vs. Eddie Edwards

The rest of Violent By Design, James Storm, Chris Sabin and Willie Mack are all here. Young is wrestling this on a torn ACL, which isn’t mentioned by commentary. They grapple against the ropes to start until Eddie snaps off a headlock takeover. An atomic drop into an overhead belly to belly send Young flying and we take a break.

Back with Edwards working on a front facelock but Young fights up and gets Eddie’s leg tied in the rope. That’s enough for Young to send him outside and it’s time to tease the big brawl. Back in and we hit the chinlock on Eddie for a bit. Young goes up but gets superplexed back down for the big crash. They slug it out with Eddie getting the better of it but Young slips out of the Backpack Stunner.

Instead Eddie hits a Blue Thunder Bomb as Striker thanks everyone for being so nice to him around here. As I try to fathom someone liking Matt Striker’s commentary, Young is back with a Death Valley Driver for two of his own. A tiger driver gives Eddie two more but Young rolls outside before the Boston Knee Party. Everyone gets in a fight on the floor, leaving Young to small package Eddie for the pin at 15:05.

Rating: C+. Pretty good main event here, especially considering Young’s injury. I wouldn’t have bet on them being able to do something this well all things considered but it worked out. Having the ending go the way it did was a surprise and one that I’ve always liked. There is something cool about going with one big move after another and then finishing with a quick cradle. Good match, and Young’s injury makes it more impressive.

The big brawl is on as Striker goes nuts hyping up the pay per view to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. I was hoping for something other than Swann vs. Omega getting the focus here but that’s ALL they did with this show. It is certainly the biggest match on the card but egads it’s kind of hard to get interested in a match that AEW has given all of the focus of a 3:30am infomercial about buying real estate for no money down. The rest of the show was just kind of there, as this was all about the title match. That’s a logical idea, but it wasn’t the most entertaining night in the world.

Results

Good Brothers b. Decay – Magic Killer to Crazzy Steve

Tenille Dashwood b. Susan – Spotlight kick

Shera b. Jake Something – Sky High

Jordynne Grace b. Kiera Hogan via DQ when Tasha Steelz interfered

Eric Young b. Eddie Edwards – Small package

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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Dynamite
Date: April 14, 2021
Location: Daily’s Place, Jacksonville, Florida
Commentators: Excalibur, Tony Schiavone, Jim Ross

It’s time for Dynamite to be on their own on Wednesday nights as the Wednesday Night Wars have come to an end. This is also an interesting time for AEW as the last few shows have seen a slip in their audience and some of their shows have not been quite so well received. AEW has a very good track record of correcting their issues though and maybe they can do it again. Let’s get to it.

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

The Young Bucks talk about how they picked friendship last week. They’re tired of others taking their credit so it is time to bring back the old Young Bucks, which they demonstrate by cutting the tassels off of their gear.

Mike Tyson is ready to be the guest enforcer this week but MJF comes up to say the Pinnacle isn’t happy with him. Tyson thinks MJF is his enemy, even while MJF tries to talk him into thinking it’s Jericho. MJF offers him a blank check but Tyson rips it up….and then eats part of it. That’s too far for MJF, who says he’ll remember that.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Tag Team Titles: Rey Fenix/Pac vs. Young Bucks

The Bucks are defending and Don Callis comes to the ring with them before going to commentary. Pac takes Matt to the ground to start and rides him a bit before it’s off to Fenix vs. Nick. The pace is picked up with neither of them being able to get very far until a shot to Fenix’s back takes him down. A backdrop into a powerbomb doesn’t work as Fenix snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor.

The Bucks are sent outside for the back to back dives, followed by a series of kicks to rock Matt for two. Nick comes back in with the slingshot X Factor to Fenix and a double hiptoss sets up a double dropkick for a very lazy two. It’s back to Pac for a brainbuster on Nick as everything breaks down. The Bucks hit stereo apron powerbombs and then take it back inside for a running knee to Pac. A hyped up back rake keeps Pac down and we take a break.

Back with Pac backdropping Matt out to the floor, where he pulls Fenix off the apron. Pac knocks Matt away though and brings in Fenix to pick up the pace, including a double cutter for two on the Bucks. Everything breaks down and Fenix grabs the Blue Thunder Bomb for two on Matt.

The big flip dive takes Nick down on the floor as Pac grabs a German suplex for two. They head outside again with Fenix and Nick hitting stereo poisonranas. Back in and a top rope superplex drops Matt, setting up the Black Arrow for two with Nick driving Pac into the cover for two. Pac is sent to the floor so the Bucks take off Fenix’s mask and hit a double superkick to retain at 23:23.

Rating: B. The action was good but the mask stealing is a pretty cliched way to deal with a luchador. It didn’t help that there was no drama about a title change whatsoever. Now that the Elite is complete or whatever we’re doing here, it is going to be a long time before the champs actually get beat. Fenix and Pac looked good, but I’m not seeing them getting the titles anytime soon.

Hangman Page goes to get some egg rolls as John Silver and the Dark Order work on physical therapy for Silver’s shoulder injury.

Chris Jericho talks about knowing Mike Tyson for years, even back to when Tyson knocked him out years ago. Now, Jericho knows he needs some help and Tyson was the first person he called. Tonight, Tyson is the enforcer but Tyson says he’ll call it down the line, including knocking Jericho out if he has to.

Jade Cargill vs. Red Velvet

It’s a brawl to start with Velvet slipping out of a powerbomb and kicking Cargill in the face. Cargill gets low bridged to the floor and Velvet hits a big dive. That’s fine with Cargill, who fall away slams Velvet into the wrestlers at ringside. Back in and Cargill slams her again as we take a break. We come back with Cargill missing a charge into the corner but some clotheslines don’t put her down. Velvet finally manages to drop her with a wheelbarrow bulldog into the standing moonsault for two. The moonsault only grazes Cargill’s back so she’s up with Jaded (Glam Slam) for the pin at 7:40.

Rating: C-. They’re keeping this stuff fast and safe and that is a good idea for these two. Cargill still has all of the charisma and ability to play to the camera in the world but she is going to need a lot more ring time. Velvet isn’t the one to carry her that much farther, but they are doing something smart by letting them have such basic matches.

Britt Baker and Rebel give us an update on Baker’s rankings as she marches towards the Women’s Title.

Anthony Ogogo vs. Cole Carter

This is Ogogo’s, a bronze medalist in boxing, in-ring debut. After some quick grappling, Ogogo finishes with a punch to the ribs for the referee stoppage. That seemed rather fast.

Dax Harwood vs. Chris Jericho

Cash Wheeler, Tully Blanchard and Sammy Guevara are here and Mike Tyson is guest enforcer. They go straight to the brawling to start and the fight heads outside. Back in and Harwood nails him with a clothesline before it’s right back to the floor. This time Jericho stabs him in the head with a pen and then does his steal the camera bit. That takes too long so Harwood whips him into a barricade and gets in an argument with Tyson as we take a break.

Back with Jericho hitting a top rope ax handle into a lariat for two. Harwood runs him over again but misses a diving headbutt, allowing Jericho to grab the Walls. That’s broken up so Jericho misses the Judas Effect, allowing Harwood to German suplex him for two. The Codebreaker connects for Jericho but here are the Pinnacle and Inner Circle to fight. Wheeler goes for the bat so Tyson knocks him out. A Guevara distraction lets Jericho hit the Judas Effect for the pin at 13:14.

Rating: C+. This was a fine enough way to continue the build towards Blood & Guts, though it’s kind of a downgrade after they started with the huge brawls. That being said, the brawl on the stage made sense and it would have been weird to not have this wind up being some big mess. Tyson was fine in his role, and leaving it simple for him is the right idea.

Post match Jericho makes Tyson a member of the Inner Circle.

The Elite talks about everything they are doing now. This is the old version of them and that means the gold will follow. Like the gold they already had? Be prepared to be surprised again. And Callis superkicks the camera.

Thunder Rosa wants the NWA Women’s Title.

Kris Statlander vs. Amber Nova

Statlander starts fast with a boop each for Nova and the referee. Schiavone talks about his time being booped and it’s Statlander hitting a running elbow in the corner. The Big Bang Theory finishes Nova at 2:48.

Post match, Statlander and the Best Friends strike the pose.

Team Taz is ready to go get Christian’s response but Taz thinks Ricky Starks should stay backstage. Brian Cage agrees, but Taz tells him to do the same.

Here is Christian for an open challenge but Taz and company interrupt. Taz asks for an answer so Christian says no, sending Taz into a rant about how he never liked Christian or “his friend”. He even accuses Christian of wearing Taz’s colors and promises vengeance. Powerhouse Hobbs comes to the ring and the brawl is on, with Hobbs getting the better of things. Hobbs sends him into the barricade and then drops him onto the steps to leave Christian laying.

Video on Tay Conti vs. Hikaru Shida before their title match next week.

TNT Title: Matt Hardy vs. Darby Allin

Allin is defending and this is Falls Count Anywhere. Matt grabs a chair to knock Allin down to start and they head outside, where Matt sends him face first into the apron over and over. They head back inside with Allin already bleeding from the back. A neckbreaker gives Hardy two and he chairs Allin down again. Allin’s neck is put in the chair but the Twist of Fate is countered with a chair ram into Hardy’s neck.

Some chair shots to the back have Hardy in more trouble….and here is the Hardy Family Office to go after Allin. The Dark Order comes in for the brawl and here is Sting to get in on things. We take a break and come back with Sting and Lancer Archer having a staredown, with Archer going over to give Isaiah Kassidy the Black Out. Allin pounds on Hardy and Sting throws him the bat to make it worse.

A low blow cuts that off though and a Twist of Fate with the chair around Allin’s neck gets two. Not two weeks off the show as it probably should, but a two count. Hardy takes it backstage in front of Tony Khan and BJ Whitmer, with Allin being legdropped through a table for two. Back to the stage, where Allin slips out of a Razor’s Edge for a low blow of his own. Allin gets in a few shots with the bat to knock Hardy onto the announcers’ table. The Coffin Drop puts Hardy through the table to retain at 16:30.

Rating: C. So they started the match, then they did something completely different with Sting/Archer/everyone else, then they got back to the match where Allin survived a lot, hit him with the bat and won with a huge Coffin Drop. This felt like two segments crammed together and it only kind of worked, as I lost track of the match for a long portion. It was energetic and some of the spots were pretty good, but I don’t care about Hardy and the Twist of Fate onto the chair being a minor annoyance for Allin left me rolling my eyes more than anything else.

Overall Rating: B-. This show was all over the place and that might not be the best thing in the world. They did a few things rather well, mainly involving the stuff in the ring, but other than that, this was kind of a crazy one with one thing happening after another. I’ll give them points for not focusing on the Elite as much, but I’m not really sure what the big deal of this show was supposed to be. The Bucks would make the most sense, but they were gone about halfway through the show. It felt like they were just throwing stuff out there and while a good bit of it worked, the show felt tossed together and that isn’t like them.

Results

Young Bucks b. Rey Fenix/Pac – Double superkick to Fenix

Jade Cargill b. Red Velvet – Jaded

Anthony Ogogo b. Cole Carter via referee stoppage

Chris Jericho b. Dax Harwood – Judas Effect

Kris Statlander b. Amber Nova – Big Bang Theory

Darby Allin b. Matt Hardy – Coffin Drop through the announcers’ table

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and head over to my Amazon author page with 30 different cheap wrestling books at:

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AND

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