Impact Wrestling
Date: October 25, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

This show is still in a bit of a strange place as we’re less than two weeks removed from Bound For Glory, meaning there aren’t many major stories going on at the moment. There is however a World Title match tonight in the form of Fenix challenging for the World Title against Johnny Impact. That and I’m sure something else about Tommy Dreamer. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video recaps last week’s events.

Opening sequence.

Scarlett Bordeaux comes out to scout talent.

Sami Callihan vs. Trevor Lee

Sami jumps him to start as Callis drools over Scarlett (fair enough). Trevor gets sent into the ropes so Dave Crist can kick him in the back. A kick to the back of the head staggers Sami but he’s right back with a Death Valley Driver for two. The chinlock goes on for a bit until Callihan grabs a neckbreaker out of the corner. With almost everyone looking at Scarlett, she takes a walk as Trevor elbows Sami down and dives onto the Crist Brothers. Jake is up in time to shove him off the top though and the Cactus Piledriver finishes Lee at 5:50.

Rating: C-. I wouldn’t have believed it possible but Sami has completely turned around for me. When you get him away from wrestling regular matches and let him be the far more naturally violent brawler, he can be entertaining. The lack of shouting about Ohio all the time does wonders for him too.

Post match Cage comes out and wrecks OVE. Sami’s bat shot is swatted away and Cage offers him a free shot. That’s blocked as well and the Crists save Sami from the Drill Claw.

King yells about not being able to touch Konnan. He has an idea of how to get around the bosses though and the OGz are with him.

Rohit Raju helps Gama Singh warm up before their match tonight. Sweet goodness put ANYTHING ELSE on this show.

Preview for the rest of the show.

Eli Drake invades the commentary booth and threatens Callis for bringing up the lawsuit Drake is filing.

Heavenly Bodies vs. LAX

Non-title. The Bodies are Desirable Dustin and Gigolo Justin. Santana chops away at we’ll say Dustin as the match is ignored to talk about the lawsuit. Ortiz lets Santana springboard off of him for a moonsault but the Bodies come back and knock Ortiz into the corner to take over. A missed charge allows the hot tag to Santana as Drake tries to remember wrestling on a show with the Bodies.

Everything breaks down and a reverse DDT/powerbomb combination gets two on Justin but a Michinoku Driver into a top rope splash gets the same on Santana. The Bodies put Santana on top but Ortiz powerbombs one of the down, leaving Dustin to take the Street Sweeper for the pin at 5:57.

Rating: C. Totally watchable match here as the Bodies may come off like a rather old school team but if they work like this, they could be regulars around here. The tag division is almost non-existent at this point so even having an average team added to the roster would do it some good. Drake was really entertaining on commentary here, even if he talked about the match for about thirty seconds.

Tessa Blanchard comes into Taya Valkyrie’s locker room and yells at her for the things she’s been saying. Blanchard is even willing to put the title on the line next week. Taya says see you next week then.

Matt Sydal and Ethan Page come up to LAX with Sydal not liking the way he’s treating his boys. Konnan doesn’t seem to care.

Moose is ready to beat up Fallah Bahh. Killer Kross says KM and Bahh are like two dogs chasing a car. Tonight, they’re both his. Kross: “Good talk. Tick tock.”

Video on Fenix, talking about his rise in the American wrestling scene, including his time in Lucha Underground.

Rich Swann and Willie Mack are glad to be here and Mack wants him to be his opponent for his debut match next week. Swann is cool with that.

Gama Singh vs. Rohit Raju

Singh introduces himself and lists off his resume. Gama shoves him away as the fans already start chanting YOU STILL GOT IT. A rake to the eyes has Raju in trouble and Gama slaps him for good measure. Cue someone from the back for a fireman’s carry gutbuster on Raju for the DQ at 1:50.

Post match Singh and the new guy beat Raju down but they all pose together because this seems to be the new Desi Hit Squad. I’m so thrilled.

Johnny Impact praises Fenix, who he says is like family. Some families fight though and tonight they’ll fight for the World Title. May the best man win.

Scarlett is in a bath to watch fan submitted applications for her talent search. They’re as bad as you would expect.

Killer Kross/Moose vs. Fallah Bahh/KM

KM and Moose start things off with KM shouldering him down in a bit of a surprise. Some right hands keep Moose in trouble but it’s off to Kross, who is a bit more skilled on the mat. KM actually takes him down as well, allowing Bahh to hit a corner splash. Moose comes back in and puts a People’s….foot on the face for your comedy of the match. It’s back to Kross, who just gets angry at being clotheslined. The beatdown is on with Bahh in trouble, mainly due to Moose not liking having toes in his mouth.

A lot of yelling ensues, with Moose calling Bahh fat. You don’t do that to Bahh, who hammers away and hits a crossbody. Kross will have none of that and starts dropping knees on Bahh to take over. Moose slugs away and Bahh shouts a lot, setting up a belly to belly suplex to cut him down. A Samoan drop takes Kross down as well but here’s Eddie Edwards to choke Moose with a kendo stick. As they fight to the back, Kross chokes KM out at 9:23.

Rating: C-. Remember how I said the tag division was basically non-existent? That’s even more frustrating when you consider how many teams there could be at the moment. Would you be interested in seeing Kross and Moose vs. LAX in a long brawl? You even have KM and Bahh as the resident comedy goofs. There’s a division there, if it was actually put together.

Post match Moose and Eddie fight all the way up to the roof with Eddie being tossed into the wall. Eddie gets in a stick shot to save himself from flying over the edge.

Classic Clip of the Week: Samoa Joe and AJ Styles vs. Sting and Kevin Nash from Impact in 2008. It’s very nice that they’ve cut these down to short clips instead of almost full matches.

Jordynne Grace is coming.

Eddie talks to his stick when Alisha comes in, panicking over what just happened. He kisses her and says she drives him crazy before leaving.

Kiera Hogan vs. Su Yung

Kiera goes straight at her on the ramp and hits a sliding kick to the face in the corner. A hurricanrana out of the corner gives Kiera two but Yung snaps her across the top rope by the hair. Kiera gets caught in the Tree of Woe so Yung charges, only to have Kiera sit up. That’s fine with Yung, who takes her down with a neckbreaker in a sweet counter.

The Mandible Claw is loaded up but Kiera gets a powerbomb where she nearly drops Yung. They fight onto the apron but here’s Allie to save Kiera from a Panic Switch on the ramp. Allie says she can’t help Kiera now though and leaves, only to have Yung hit a hanging Pedigree. The Panic Switch finishes Hogan at 4:52.

Rating: C-. This was energetic while it lasted and I’m wondering where the Allie story is going. A lot of it is built on the return of Rosemary, which could take some time and therefore allow this story to build up properly for a change. Hogan is becoming a star by association and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Next week: LAX vs. Sydal/Page for the Tag Team Titles and Blanchard vs. Valkyrie for the Knockouts Title.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Johnny Impact vs. Fenix

Impact is defending. Feeling out process to start as they exchange a few grapples. Fenix’s big kick misses but Impact’s doesn’t, only to have them flip into a standoff. They’re certainly nailing the battle of athleticism so far. Fenix grabs a nip up but Impact nips out of it for a second standoff. Impact tries a springboard inside but Fenix dives underneath it and lands on the ramp.

They both run for the same buckle but it’s Fenix shoving Impact off, setting up a spring springboard into a spinning crossbody for two, even though he nearly overshot Impact. A Russian legsweep takes Fenix down and the Flying Chuck takes us to a break. Back with Impact putting on a crossface (with the other arm pinned down for a little change of pace) but Fenix slips out.

They lock hands and somehow manage to jump to the middle rope without breaking their grip (geez) until Fenix springboards up into a huge hurricanrana for a near fall of his own. Fans: “THIS IS IMPACT!” Yeah and that’s Fenix. A quick Spanish Fly gives Impact two of his own and he drives Fenix into the corner for some shoulders.

Fenix backflips over him into a German suplex but the running knee into the standing shooting star gives Impact two more. The Countdown to Impact misses (of course) so Impact settles for the flipping neckbreaker instead. A springboard spinning headbutt takes Johnny down for two more but it’s too early for the Black Fire Driver as Johnny reverses into a DDT. Starship Pain retains the title at 14:23.

Rating: B. It’s not great as a technical exchange but you’re missing the point here if that’s what you’re looking for. This was all about an athletic spectacle and there’s nothing wrong with that. Just let two incredibly talented guys going in there and doing cool looking stuff. What more can you want from a fun match like this?

Impact shakes his hand and leaves, allowing the OGz to run in and beat down Fenix. Pentagon makes the save.

Kross talks about being crazy and trying to make change. He leaves, revealing Impact out cold to end the show. It was this or the Tag Team Titles so I’m fine with going here.

Overall Rating: B-. You know, if you cut out a few of the really bad things, you have a heck of a show here. The Desi Hit Squad is horrible and some of the wrestling could have been a lot better but the storytelling is there and I want to see where some of this stuff goes. That’s what matters most as the wrestling can catch up later on. Good show, and I want to see more like this.

Results

Sami Callihan b. Trevor Lee – Cactus Piledriver

LAX b. Heavenly Bodies – Street Sweeper to Dustin

Rohit Raju b. Gama Singh via DQ when an unnamed man interfered

Killer Kross/Moose b. KM/Fallah Bahh – Krossjacket Choke to KM

Su Yung b. Kiera Hogan – Panic Switch

Johnny Impact b. Fenix – Starship Pain

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: October 11, 2018
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

It’s the go home show for Bound For Glory and that means we’re needing to add some stuff to the card. You should probably have more than six matches (with one participant not being announced) set for the show with three days to go. There’s a lot going on at the moment but I’d expect a good deal of talking this time around. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a recap of almost every major feud going on at the moment.

Opening sequence.

Trevor Lee vs. Jack Evans vs. Puma King vs. Petey Williams

Good grief can we have Petey detained at customs next time or something? This is fallout from Scarlett Bordeaux hitting on all four of them last week. They stare at each other to start until everyone goes after Lee. Puma and Petey are left alone in short order with Petey putting him in 619 position for a dropkick to the back.

Petey gets faceplanted as the announcers talk about how he tries the Canadian Destroyer far too often. Thanks for finally catching up on that one guys. Lee gets back in to replace Puma and stomps Petey down in the corner. A whip into the corner gets two as the commentary is far less chatty than usual here. Petey hits a Russian legsweep but the Destroyer is broken up with ease.

Evans comes back in with a dropkick on Puma but the standing moonsault hits Lee’s knees. It’s Puma getting back up to clean house and diving outside onto Evans. That doesn’t last long though as Evans comes back in and cartwheels into a kick to knock Puma off the ropes. The 630 hits Puma but Lee stomps Evans down. Not that it matters as Petey hits the Destroyer for the pin on Lee at 7:02.

Rating: C+. This was perfectly fine, but my goodness I’m completely over seeing Petey in any way, shape or form. He’s one move and I’M CANADIAN, end of anything remotely unique about him. The wrestling was fine but this felt like a way to fill in time on the show where they don’t want the bigger names wrestling. I mean, that’s what it was, but it shouldn’t feel like that.

Rich Swann has a partner: Willie Mack, better known as the Mack from Lucha Underground.

Grado vs. Maximo

Maximo is rather effeminate and his shirt says KISS ME so I think you know where this is going. They finally lock up after nearly a minute and it’s time for some chest rubbing. Switching places lets Maximo bend over in front of him but Grado blocks a kiss attempt. Grado drops a headbutt for two and snaps off the right hands, only to have Maximo headbutt him in the ribs. Another kiss is blocked so Maximo dropkicks him to the floor for a dive. The Bionic Elbow drops Maximo but he’s back up with a kiss into a cradle for the pin at 5:16.

Rating: D-. This stuff has never been funny to me and that’s not going to change anytime soon. It’s a one note joke and it’s a very bad sign when Grado is the higher level of comedy between the two of them. It’s another match that doesn’t go anywhere for Sunday, but at least they kept it short(ish).

Post match Grado shakes his hand and kisses Maximo. Ok then.

Johnny Impact, Fallah Bahh and Eddie Edwards are ready for Aries, Kross and Moose. Or maybe Bahh is impersonating a sheep.

Video on LAX vs. the OGz. I’m worried about that match not coming close to the hype.

Classic Clip of the Week: Four way Knockouts match from Bound For Glory 2010.

Video on OVE vs. the Lucha Bros/Brian Cage.

Eli Drake isn’t happy with La Parka bringing in a chair last week. That’s why he’s issuing an open challenge to anyone from New York at Bound For Glory. I think I know where this is going and it could be rather interesting.

Gursinder Singh vs. Rohit Raju

The battle to determine the weak link of the team, which you were totally dying to find out. Gama Singh says that the loser is out of the team and has to go back to India. Can we get a three way draw? Raju stomps him down in the corner to start but gets caught with a Backstabber for two.

They fight over some arm holds with no one getting anywhere so Raju smacks him in the head a few times, only to get rolled up for two more. A suplex into a sitout gordbuster gets a third two as I fight to stay conscious. Gama gets Gursinder’s attention and it’s a jumping knee to the face into a jumping Downward Spiral to give Raju the pin at 5:05.

Rating: F. Good for them. I didn’t think they could manage to come up with a match this uninteresting and boring but they managed to pull it off. These guys are making me long for more of Ascension vs. Bobby Roode/Chad Gable, which I thought was the least interesting story that I could have seen. Oh but how I was wrong. I know there’s worse wrestling out there (like in the previous match) but reaching this level of boring and making me care so little about anyone involved is a failure in every sense of the word.

Gama won’t let Raju celebrate. Whatever gets them out of there faster.

Johnny Impact/Fallah Bahh/Eddie Edwards vs. Moose/Austin Aries/Killer Kross

This should be better, just due to the better charisma and bigger star power. Aries and Impact start but let’s go with Kross instead. Kross suplexes him without much effort so it’s off to Bahh, who isn’t about to be suplexed. Instead it’s a shoulder to run him down and let’s hand it off to Moose vs. Edwards for the violent slugout. Eddie opens his shirt to get chopped even harder, but is smart enough to chop Moose while he’s warming up. Now why does it take a semi crazy person to figure that out?

A top rope hurricanrana takes Moose down but he dropkicks Eddie to the floor so the villains can take over. That means a bunch of stomping, because that’s what heels do in spots like this. Aries actually gives up the hot tag off a chop though and it’s off to Bahh for a big belly to belly. Moose crotches him on top though and it’s time to start stomping on Bahh’s rather large legs. It’s off to Kross to drive some knees to the face in the corner and we take a break.

Back with Aries chopping in the corner and taking Bahh down with a drop toehold. Kross goes shoulder first into the post though and a Samoan drop plants Moose. The hot tag brings in Impact for the slugout and a leg lariat sets up the sliding German suplex in the corner. The Countdown to Impact (minus the countdown and the impact) misses, allowing Aries to slap on a quick Last Chancery.

Impact escapes the brainbuster and gets two off a superkick as everything breaks down. Eddie superkicks Moose to the floor and hits a dive but Aries prevents Bahh from doing the same. The Flying Chuck into Starship Pain gets two with Kross making the save. Kross suplexes Impact on the floor and it’s a brainbuster to give Aries the pin at 18:04.

Rating: B-. Good main event style match here and a match that this wretched show really needed. The ending would suggest that Impact win the title on Sunday but this company has made some questionable decisions regarding the end of their pay per views. Moose vs. Edwards should be a heck of a fight as well, though I don’t need to see Kross vs. Bahh again.

Pay per view rundown with Su Yung vs. Allie being confirmed.

Father James Mitchell is playing the organ when Allie of all people comes in. She needs help dealing with Su Yung and wants to go to the undead realm. Mitchell realizes that Allie is half body and half soul and needs to leave her soul behind to take care of Yung and save Kiera Hogan. He’s willing to help her, but she’ll owe him. They shake on it.

Tessa Blanchard vs. Keyra

Non-title. They slug it out with forearms to start until a Michinoku Driver into a middle rope moonsault gives Keyra two. Tessa wisely bails to the floor so Keyra kicks her down, only to have a hurricanrana countered into a powerbomb to the post. Back in and an abdominal stretch doesn’t last very long as Keyra slips out and starts chopping in the corner. A running basement dropkick gets two but Tessa is right back with a hanging Downward Spiral. The Buzzsaw DDT is good for the pin on Keyra at 3:58.

Rating: C. It was certainly fun while it lasted as I’ve liked this Tessa vs. Mexico stuff that they’ve done over the last few weeks. There aren’t a lot of women left around here for Tessa to beat up so giving her some more seasoned outside opponents has been a good idea. The Taya match should be good, though I can’t picture a title change.

Here are the OGz and LAX for a big showdown to end the show. King gets in Konnan’s face and says the myth ends on Sunday. Konnan has held him back for years but King wouldn’t stop. Now Konnan is using these young marks and needs to be put down Old Yeller style. That’s why King brought in the original LAX and on Sunday (King: “ORDER IT! ORDER IT!”), it ends in King’s city.

Konnan comes back with some Spanish, that seems to call King an idiot. He’s nice enough to throw in a translation that says the fans will come in here at the drop of a hat to take King down. These teams already had a street fight where the OGz lost. That never happened under Konnan’s leadership so maybe King is the problem. Then here in Mexico City, King burned Konnan’s mask in the ultimate show of disrespect. Konnan was the father that King never had and King knows the bosses are watching. They have a message for King: the ceasefire is over right now. The fight is on and we’re off in just a few seconds.

One last Bound For Glory interview wraps things up, with Aries talking about having to raise the bar one more time, which Johnny Impact has never been able to do.

Overall Rating: D+. This one depends on how you look at it. The wrestling wasn’t much to see here and I kind of like the build to Sunday, but this was quite the mess for the most part. The six man tag saved the show almost on its own but you need something a little more than than in the course of two hours. Sunday’s show could be entertaining, but there’s a good chance that it’s going to be the standard Impact show that keeps the roof firmly on top of the building.

Results

Petey Williams b. Puma King, Jack Evans and Trevor Lee – Canadian Destroyer to Lee

Maximo b. Grado – Rollup

Rohit Raju b. Gursinder Singh – Jumping Downward Spiral

Austin Aries/Killer Kross/Moose b. Johnny Impact/Eddie Edwards/Fallah Bahh – Brainbuster to Impact

Tessa Blanchard b. Keyra – Buzzsaw DDT

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Smackdown Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: September 13, 2018
Location: Rebel Sports Complex, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

The very slow build towards Bound For Glory continues, which should be the case given how far away the show really is. We now have a main event of World Champion Austin Aries defending against Johnny Impact, which was announced in the most low key way possible. You can probably guess what we’ll be getting this week so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Here are Austin Aries, Moose and Killer Kross for a chat, complete with some couches and a small table. Aries says they’re running the show now and everyone who comes up to them is taken down. Cue KM and Fallah Bahh of all people (Aries: “What the heck is this?”) with Aries saying they’re fat, then realizing that he can’t fat shame anyone.

Apparently Scarlett Bordeaux has them to always speak their mind so KM calls Aries rotten and a horrible World Champion. The monsters get up but Aries tells them to take their seats. Aries offers them a peace offering. Aries: “Not a piece of pie.” Bahh can have a title shot tonight and the deal is made.

Lucha Bros vs. Cult of Lee

Pentagon and Lee start things off and everything breaks down in a hurry with the Cult being dropkicked to the floor as we take a break. Back with Fenix kicking Lee in the face but getting dropped throat first across the top rope. Pentagon gets knocked down as well and it’s Fenix getting double teamed as the fans chant for LUCHA LIBRE. Some chops give Fenix a quick breather but Lee stomps him down in the corner for his efforts.

A double Lethal Injection really gets Fenix out of trouble and the hot tag brings in Pentagon as everything breaks down again. Pentagon flips Fenix into a splash for two on Konley and it’s time for the skin ripping chop in the corner. A spike Fear Factor is broken up and Trevor gets two off the assisted top rope double stomp. Pentagon superkicks Konley to the floor and it’s a dive from Fenix to follow. Now the spike Fear Factor can finish Lee at 12:31.

Rating: C+. The Lucha Bros are just fun to watch and the two of them seem to get better and better every single time they’re out there. You know they’re going to wind up in WWE one day so enjoy their stuff outside the big company while it lasts. The Cult isn’t great but they’re more than good enough for something like this and that’s not a bad place to be.

Post match OVE pops up on screen to say they sell tickets and they’re ready for one more match against the Lucha Bros and Brian Cage at Bound For Glory. Of note: Sami did all of the talking here, but Jake Crist was over his shoulder, mimicking every word he said.

Bahh isn’t sure so KM gives him a pep talk. They need advice from former champions.

Post break Bahh and KM find Eli Drake and ask what he thinks they should do. Drake talks about their clothes and mocks the Mexican fans before next week’s show in Mexico.

Classic Clip of the Week: the Von Erichs at Slammiversary 2014.

Allie and Kiera Hogan don’t like Tessa Blanchard but Allie isn’t going to let what Su Yung did to everyone else happen to her.

Tessa didn’t need Allie’s help. She’ll prove that she’s undeniable in Mexico City.

Alisha vs. Katarina

The bell rings and here are Grado and Joe Hendry to interrupt. Hendry talks about how depressed Grado is. He can’t even eat anymore so Hendry has put together a custom music video to express his feelings. The song talks about access being denied and even references the aborted incest angle between Katarina and her storyline brother Paul Burchill from WWE. Alisha rolls her up for the pin at 2:40 in the only wrestling of the match.

Scarlett Bordeaux rubs Bahh’s stomach and tells him to win the title.

Earlier this week, Josh had a Skype interview with Johnny Impact. After seeing Impact getting laid out last week, Johnny says he registers his injuries as setbacks instead of pain. He knows Moose and Kross are going to get involved at Bound For Glory but Aries needing that much backup tells him that Aries is insecure.

LAX vs. The Fraternity

Non-title and the Fraternity are Channing Decker and Trent Gibson playing college frat boys with a combined SAT score of 2000. Ortiz wastes no time in beating Decker with a flip flop so Decker cartwheels into a clothesline to the back of the head. A belly to belly into a top rope elbow gets two so Santana comes in to clean house.

Santana gets taken down as well for a double headbutt as the Fraternity aren’t looking too shabby. Ortiz sends them back into each other though and uses Decker for half of a Magic Killer on Gibson. Back up and Decker tries a charge down the ramp, only to run into a chokeslam. LAX throws Gibson into Decker in the corner for a Cannonball and the Street Sweeper finishes Decker at 4:16.

Rating: C. For a match where a squash should have been expected, this was a heck of a surprise with the Fraternity, which sounds like a nothing gimmick, getting a lot. You knew there wasn’t going to be an upset (save for through OGz interference) but it’s always nice to see a team do better than expected. Not bad at all here.

Post match here are King and the OGz to complain about the ceasefire. The only thing he cares about is that the kid they ran over is still breathing. Konnan has to be held back.

Aries says he’s smiling tonight and at the rate he and his buddies are going, there might not be a Bound For Glory.

Bahh is fired up when Rich Swann comes in to give him another pep talk. Swann runs into Matt Sydal, who again offers to show him the way. That’s a big negative so they’ll have a match next week instead.

Next week: the newest inductee into the Hall of Fame announced.

Kongo Kong vs. Brian Cage

Non-title. Kong runs him over to start and catches a diving Cage in midair. Cage knocks Kong to the ramp so Kong forearms him in the face and hits a big fat dive over the ropes for two. The top rope splash misses so Cage settles for two off a powerslam instead. A Lionsault gives Cage two (because of course he can do that) but the 619 is broken up with a clothesline. Kong hammers away in the corner so Cage Batista Bombs him for two. Cage backflips out of a chokeslam (I mean….what?), knees him in the face and hits the discus lariat to turn Kong inside out. The F5 gives Cage the pin at 4:43.

Rating: C. Cage scares me more and more every time I see him because human beings shouldn’t be able to do those kind of things. This was another impressive outing, though some of that entertainment might be due to seeing Kong get destroyed. It wasn’t quite a squash, but it was the kind of fun that I hope for every time Cage is out there.

Post match Cage accepts OVE’s challenge for Bound For Glory.

Bound For Glory rundown.

About thirty people wish Bahh luck.

Impact World Title: Fallah Bahh vs. Austin Aries

Aries is defending as Josh talks about some of the greatest upsets in sports history. As you might expect, Aries has Moose and Kross, both armed with chairs, backing him up. KM is there with Bahh as well. We even get some Big Match Intros with a good sounding announcer. Aries isn’t exactly looking nervous to start and slaps on a headlock to frustrate Bahh early on.

Bahh’s headlock works a bit better as Aries can’t do much with him. Back up and Bahh makes the mistake of running the ropes, leaving him sucking wind on the ropes. We come back from a break with Bahh running Aries over and chopping him down in the corner without needing oxygen. Aries is smart enough to go after the leg but Bahh is right back with more chops. The sitdown splash misses so Aries tries the brainbuster due to reasons of temporary insanity.

Bahh eventually reverses into a suplex and goes back to the chops. The Samoan drop gets two and a belly to belly is good for the same. Bahh tries to roll over Aries but gets reversed into the Last Chancery. That means a foot on the ropes for the break so Aries tries another brainbuster. This one is reversed and a crossbody gives Bahh two but the Banzai drop is broken up again. The Last Chancery goes on for the second time and Bahh taps at 16:22.

Rating: B-. Part of that is due to a surprise as I never would have guessed that this would have been any good and it wound up being rather entertaining. I had a good time watching this, mainly because it wasn’t Bahh doing his annoying comedy. Instead it was a good performance from a guy knowing how to use his size to his advantage. I wonder how much Aries had to do with that, as it was easily the best Bahh performance ever.

Post match KM gets laid out with chairs as the fans still cheer for Moose.

Overall Rating: B-. Solid episode this week though there are a few points that held it back. I mean, Grado in general causes anything to go down and some of the stories aren’t the best, but you can see where they want to take most of them and they’re building up Bound For Glory as a very good blowoff point. That’s a good sign for the biggest show of the year, but there’s still a lot of work to be done.

Results

Lucha Bros b. Cult of Lee – Spike Fear Factor to Lee

Alisha b. Katarina – Rollup

LAX b. The Fraternity – Street Sweeper to Decker

Brian Cage b. Kongo Kong – F5

Austin Aries b. Fallah Bahh – Last Chancery

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 2003 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/09/07/new-book-kbs-complete-smackdown-2003-reviews/

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

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