IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: February 18, 2020
Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

We’re off to a different taping cycle now and things are getting interesting around here. Last week’s show without a bunch of the luchador guest stars was an improvement and if they can keep that up, we might be in a good place. If nothing else it’s the go home show for Sacrifice, so maybe things can get more interesting in a hurry. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh Alexander vs. TJP

This should be good and Ethan Page/Fallah Bahh are the respective seconds. They grapple to start and it’s a voiceover, which sounds as unnatural as you can get, about how Ethan Page’s promotion will soon be airing on the Impact Wrestling network. TJP hits a dropkick and snaps off a headscissors but Alexander runs him over again. With the striking not working, TJP grabs a quickly broken Octopus Hold as Alexander tosses him down without much effort.

Some arm cranking lets Alexander hammer away as the commentators make fun of the TNA name that they are bringing back for Wrestlemania weekend. A Regal Roll out of the corner is countered into a crucifix to give TJP two as he can’t keep any momentum. TJP spins him down into a cross armbreaker but gets stacked up for a near fall and the break. A slingshot dive to the floor sets up the slingshot dropkick as Alexander is in trouble for the first time.

Alexander slaps on a swinging sleeper but TJP slips out for a suplex and they’re both down. It’s Alexander up first with a spinning torture rack slam for two more, meaning frustration is setting in. TJP spinwheel kicks him into the ropes but walks into a German suplex. That just earns Alexander a hurricanrana into a cross armbreaker, which is broken up with a quick Project Ciampa for two more. The kneebar sends Alexander over to the rope so he grabs a sleeper, only to have TJP backflip into the cover for the pin at 14:49.

Rating: B. These two worked very well together and got to showcase themselves in a heck of a back and forth match. The Tag Team Title match should be fun, with Bahh offering a weird face monster vibe and TJP being one of the best technicians in the company at the moment. Put them in there against the best tag team in the company and we should be in for heck of a tag match.

Willie Mack is talking to someone backstage when Johnny Swinger comes in to ask if this is a trio. That’s not the case so Swinger thinks he and Mack need to work on their chemistry with some riz-eps.

Michael Elgin is ready to beat Eddie Edwards again if that’s what it takes to teach him a lesson.

Announcers preview for the rest of the show.

Willie Mack vs. Johnny Swinger

Swinger is surprised by this being a singles match instead of the two teaming together. The offer of a handshake earns Swinger a pair of atomic drops, followed by a right hand out of a headlock. Swinger snaps him throat first across the top and the falling headbutt into the low blow has Mack down. Back up and Mack punches him out of the air and it’s the Samoan drop into the standing moonsault. The Stunner sets up the Six Star frog splash to give Mack the pin at 4:17.

Rating: D+. Nothing much to see here but they kept it short and didn’t do anything wacky here so I can’t complain. Mack continues to roll and Swann’s ankle will be healed up soon enough, though I’m not sure if there is a need to continue the team if Mack keeps going this strong. Swinger continues to be someone amusing enough, as long as he stays at the bottom of the card like this.

We look back at Jordynne Grace finally winning the Knockouts Title last week.

Here’s Madison Rayne to complain about Grace not belonging in the #1 contenders match in the first place. But that’s enough about Grace, because a legend like Madison needs to advance the legacy of the Knockouts. She is starting an open challenge series and here’s the first opponent.

Madison Rayne vs. Mazzerati

Rayne shoves her in the face to start so Mazzerati grabs three straight rollups for one each. A dropkick sends Rayne into the ropes but she’s right back with a northern lights suplex and some knees to the face. Mazzerati forearms her in the corner but walks into a cutter for two. Cross Rayne finishes Mazzerati at 3:16.

Rating: D. Just a step above a squash here as Rayne never felt in danger once. I know Rayne has been surpassed by a lot of the division but she can still have a decent enough match against the right opponent. The problem is she didn’t have one here and the match was little more than filler.

Jordynne Grace is proud of everything she has done and will be a fighting champion, starting against Jessika Havok at Sacrifice. John E. Bravo comes in after Grace leaves and praises Taya Valkyrie, even giving us a highlight video on her Knockouts Title reign.

Post break, Taya yells at Bravo over the video and promises to get the title back.

Flashback Moment of the Week: D’Angelo Dinero beats Mr. Anderson to become #1 contender at Against All Odds 2010.

Rob Van Dam has to calm down Katie Forbes over fans’ comments. Daga comes in and wants a fight so they’ll do it next week.

Tommy Dreamer, Trey Miguel and Tessa Blanchard are ready to win tonight, with Dreamer managing to reference ECW. Tessa says may the better man win at Sacrifice, even if it’s a woman.

Eddie Edwards vs. Michael Elgin

Match #3 in a Best of Five series with Elgin up 2-0. Eddie starts fast with a suplex to the floor and a suicide dive. Back in and a sunset flip gives Eddie two but Elgin suplexes him over with ease. A sliding lariat puts both of them down and Elgin hits a Death Valley Driver onto the apron.

Back in and Elgin hits Eddie so hard that it seems to hurt his own shoulder. Eddie makes the comeback with some strikes, only to get hit in the face for his efforts. They head outside again and Elgin cuts off a comeback bid with a heck of a clothesline but the powerbomb on the ramp is countered into a hurricanrana. The Boston Knee Party rocks Elgin again but they both beat the count back in.

A top rope double stomp to the back gives Eddie two, followed by Elgin grabbing a Falcon Arrow for the same. The Crossface doesn’t work so Eddie settles for a running knee to the head to put Elgin down again. Another clothesline gives Elgin another two and he grabs a superbomb off the top. Instead of covering though, Elgin tries another powerbomb, allowing Edwards to small package him for the pin at 12:53.

Rating: B. These two just work well together and that’s all they needed to do here. The story has some more legs to it and they are pretty clearly setting up a fifth match. That’s what makes the most sense, though for some reason I wouldn’t be stunned to see Elgin wrap it up next time. Either way, at least they did more rather good stuff here and that’s all you should expect from them.

Rhino vs. Dave Crist

Moose is on commentary. Rhino charges into the corner to start but gets choked on the rope for his effort. Crist misses a middle rope backsplash though and Rhino slugs away. A Jake Crist distraction doesn’t work and Rhino Gores Dave down for the pin at 2:28.

Jessika Havok arrives and Susie pops up behind her, only to disappear. Havok sees a sign that says “your time has come”. Well in some different spelling but you get the idea.

Chris Bey has signed. Good for him and good for Impact.

Sacrifice rundown.

The same weird feed ICU/Realityislost deal interrupts the backstage interviewer.

Tommy Dreamer/Trey Miguel/Tessa Blanchard vs. Ace Austin/Reno Scum

Thornstowe and Miguel start things off, meaning it’s an armdrag to put Thornstowe down in a hurry. Tessa comes in with a hurricanrana before it’s off to Dreamer for a shot to the arm. Ace and Miguel come in so Ace is right back to the corner for the tag off to Luster. That means a showdown with Dreamer who…..yeah no one has ever wanted to see this.

Everything breaks down and it’s a triple Bionic elbow to send the villains outside. Back from a break with a cheap shot from the apron letting Luster clothesline Dreamer. That means it’s Dreamer getting caught in the corner, including a Pit Stop. The chinlock goes on but Luster misses the middle rope headbutt. Trey comes back in and gets pulled into the corner, meaning it’s off to a chinlock.

Ace holds Trey down so Luster can stomp on him but Trey bulldogs his way out of trouble. The hot tag brings in Tessa to forearm away and a tornado DDT plants Luster. Ace gets caught between Tessa and Trey, with the latter kicking him into a cutter from Tessa. Austin kicks Tessa down and Trey hits a big corkscrew dive onto almost everyone else. On the way back in, Ace kicks the rope into a low blow on Trey, setting up the Fold for the pin at 16:34.

Rating: C. What a relief that they had Trey take the fall instead of Dreamer. This did what it needed to do without having Tessa take a fall so I can’t complain all that much. It just wasn’t a very good match and felt like a lot of multi person tags that you would see in such a spot. Not a bad match by any means, but really just a match to set up another one.

Overall Rating: B-. The opener and Elgin vs. Edwards more than carry this show and it was a rather nice week of TV as a result. Sacrifice is looking pretty good on paper, though I’m not sure what they are going to be doing after that. It seems early to build towards Rebellion, but we can worry about that later. Good show this week as the company is starting to get something going.

Results

TJP b. Josh Alexander – Rollup

Willie Mack b. Johnny Swinger – Six Star frog splash

Madison Rayne b. Mazzerati – Cross Rayne

Eddie Edwards b. Michael Elgin – Small package

Rhino b. Dave Crist – Gore

Ace Austin/Reno Scum b. Tommy Dreamer/Trey Miguel/Tessa Blanchard – Fold to Miguel

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: February 11, 2020
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We continue our trip in Mexico as well as the road to Sacrifice, which is turning into an In Your House style show. That’s a good idea for Impact given how infrequently they do regular pay per views around here. The big deal this time around is Jordynne Grace challenging Taya Valkyrie for the Knockouts Title. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Michael Elgin vs. Eddie Edwards

Match #2 in a Best of Five series with Elgin leading 1-0. Elgin slugs away to start and gets two off a belly to back suplex. Eddie’s rolling German suplex doesn’t work so well so he grabs a crucifix for two instead. What looked to be a top rope hurricanrana attempt is countered into a sitout powerbomb for another near fall. Edwards gets dropped back first onto the apron and Elgin tells him to bring it on. A hard clothesline gets two on Eddie but he counters a failed superplex attempt into a failed sunset bomb attempt.

The Elgin Bomb is countered as well so Elgin forearms him in the face. Eddie is right back with a tiger bomb for two so Elgin rolls outside, with Eddie hitting a suicide dive. Back in and Eddie gets two off a super hurricanrana but Elgin takes him down by the arm. The Crossface is countered and Eddie snaps off a German suplex, only to miss the Boston Knee Party. The buckle bomb into the Elgin Bomb finishes Eddie at 10:47.

Rating: B-. These two always work well together and this should set up three more matches between the two of them. Seeing Eddie as the underdog against the monster should be fun as they have some chemistry. Hopefully we get some better stuff out of them, though this one was quite good in its own right.

Video on Taya Valkyrie vs. Jordynne Grace.

Taya says she’s ready and she’s used to having no one believing in her.

Man Man Fulton vs. Daga

Daga starts fast with the kicks to the head before avoiding some stomps. Fulton shouts at him and blocks a hurricanrana but gets sent to the floor anyway. The suicide dive connects and we take an early break. Back with Daga getting choked on the mat and ropes, followed by Fulton’s release German suplex to drop him on his head. Daga Hulks Up though and hammers away before snapping Fulton’s throat across the top.

A running double stomp gets two on Fulton but he’s right back with a swinging chokeslam. Fulton doesn’t let go and hits a regular chokeslam, only to have Daga pop up with a Death Valley Driver. Cue the Crists so Daga hits a running corkscrew dive but the distraction lets Fulton get back up. Daga’s springboard DDT is countered into a northern lights suplex with Daga landing on his head (that looked bad) for the pin at 12:04.

Rating: C. Daga is someone who can do his thing very well while Fulton is starting to gel as the monster. That being said, the ending was downright nasty looking and it wouldn’t shock me if they wrapped it up early. Hopefully Daga is ok because he’s getting better around here and a feud with OVE could be interesting.

Moose is getting a massage and wants some work on his, ahem, lower back because Rhino is a bad pain down there. Rhino takes the masseuse’s place and beats Moose up.

Fallah Bahh vs. Ethan Page

TJP and Josh Alexander are here as well. Fans: “GOO GOO GAGA!” Bahh busts out some cartwheels to start and hits a running splash in the corner as Page wasn’t quite ready for this much athleticism. Alexander offers a distraction though and Page kicks Bahh out to the floor. Back in and Bahh shrugs off the shots to the head, meaning it’s Page being sent into the corner for the running hip attack. Alexander breaks up the Banzai Drop so TJP flip dives onto him, leaving Bahh to small package Page for the pin at 3:56.

Rating: C-. Bahh continues to surprise me as there is no reason for him to be able to do something like that. He pulled it off here though and that was one of the bigger surprises that you could have imagined here. The North vs. TJP/Bahh should be a fun little match too as TJP and Bahh have some shockingly good chemistry together.

James Mitchell wants Jessika Havok to help him find Su Yung. They find Susie and Mitchell is very happy, saying the family is reunited and everything can be better now. Susie follows them but seems to morph into Su.

Rob Van Dam vs. Joey Ryan

Katie Forbes is here with Rob and let’s get this over with as fast as possible. Ryan oils up and tells Rob to touch it but Rob poses and shoves him instead. We get a staredown but hang on because Katie needs to come in for kisses and dancing. The jiggling distracts Joey and Rob kicks him down, with commentary calling out the lack of wrestling for the first three minutes.

Rob kicks him down but won’t use Rolling Thunder so Joey is up with a dropkick to the floor. Back in and Rob pokes him in the eyes and puts him on the middle of the top rope for a jumping kick to the face. Rob loads up Rolling Thunder again but goes outside to see Katie again. That means a dive from Ryan before they head back inside where Ryan makes him touch it. The Plex is countered though as Rob kicks him in the head, setting up the Five Star for the pin at 7:26.

Rating: D-. I’d still like to emphasize that this is the best thing they can do with Rob Van Dam, the biggest star this company has. The Joey Ryan stuff has its place and I don’t think it’s on this show. The problem is the same thing you get with most comedy stuff: how many times can he do the same shtick? We’ve covered this so many times before and it’s not like anything new (or good) is added. If you have to do this, find someone else besides Van Dam.

Su Yung is dragging Mitchell by the neck with a noose. Mitchell blacks out and wakes up in….I think h***?

From Sacrifice 2014: Eric Young retains the World Title over Magnus (Nick Aldis). Yeah remember when THAT was a thing? They showed a lot more of the match here than usual.

Johnny Swinger has all of his cheating weapons ready to help Willie Mack against Shera. Mack tells him to stay right there.

Willie Mack vs. Shera

Gama and Rohit Raju are here. They chop it out in the corner but Raju comes in for the DQ at 47 seconds.

Swinger, save, tag match.

Willie Mack/Johnny Swinger vs. Desi Hit Squad

Swinger gets taken into the corner to start and it’s Shera pounding him down. That’s it for the offense though as Swinger gets over for the tag off to Mack as the fans don’t seem thrilled. A Samoan drop into the standing moonsault crushes Raju and Shera gets double teamed in the corner. Mack doesn’t like the idea of a double clothesline with Swinger so Gama pulls Mack to the floor. That leaves Shera to Sky High Swinger at 3:20.

Rating: D. See, notice what they did here: the whole thing, including the first match, was about as long as the Van Dam vs. Ryan match, including a commercial. Breaking it up like that was a bit of a help, plus Swinger is more entertaining than Ryan. They kept it short and didn’t waste the top guy in the company while keeping Mack busy despite Rich Swann being injured. It’s still not good, but it’s also not as annoying so upgrade….maybe?

Tessa Blanchard isn’t worried about her (non-title….for some reason) match with Ace Austin. Ace comes in to say Tessa is never going to earn daddy’s approval, but he likes women with daddy issues. Tessa beats him up.

Next week: Ace Austin/Reno Scum vs. Tessa Blanchard/Trey Miguel/Tommy Dreamer. They’re trolling us, right?

The announcers are cut off by another Realityislost video, though they acknowledge this one.

Knockouts Title: Taya Valkyrie vs. Jordynne Grace

Taya is defending and has John E Bravo with her. Grace gets jumped at the bell and there’s the running hip attack in the corner. Bravo chokes Grace with the stuffed dog and we take an early break. Back with more of the same but this time Grace gets in a suplex to put Taya on the floor. That means the required suicide dive but Bravo shoves Grace off the top. Somehow the referee is oblivious to this, with commentary pointing out how bad that really is.

Bravo chokes even more, with commentary comparing it to the Houston Astros sign stealing ordeal. Grace is back up with a clothesline and some slams look to set up the Grace Driver. It’s too early for that though as Taya heads to the apron and manages to powerbomb Grace onto the steps (strategically placed by Bravo).

Taya takes her to the stage for Road To Valhalla as Grace is looking a bit done. That’s only good for a nine count as Grace staggers back in to beat the count. Grace is fine enough to Muscle Buster Taya for two but Taya grabs a Bubba Bomb into a cross armbreaker of all things. That’s reversed into a Crossface (minus the arm trap, making it more of a Bank Statement) but Bravo pulls Taya to the rope.

A Vader Bomb gets two with Bravo pulling the referee so Grace pulls Bravo in. Taya spears him by mistake but Bravo gets on top of her to block the top rope backsplash. It turns out that means very little as it just crushes Taya even worse, setting up the Grace Driver to end Taya’s reign at 17:17.

Rating: B-. I can’t complain about the interference too much as Grace won (as she should have) and it’s a case of living by the sword and dying by the sword for Taya, who kept the title because of all the cheating in the first place. It makes sense to put the title on Grace here as Taya was completely out of challengers. Good match too, as the Bravo stuff was the right way to go and they got the ending right, which is what matters most.

Overall Rating: C+. Pretty good show this week as they focused more on their own people instead of all of the guest stars. They needed a show to move some stories forward and that’s what we got here. I liked the main event for the feel good title change and Eddie vs. Elgin (probably) three more times sounds good. Just get rid of the Ryan vs. Van Dam stuff and give us more of the good and we might have something around here.

Results

Michael Elgin b. Eddie Edwards – Elgin Bomb

Mad Man Fulton b. Daga – Northern lights suplex

Fallah Bahh b. Ethan Page – Small package

Rob Van Dam b. Joey Ryan – Five Star Frog Splash

Willie Mack b. Shera via DQ when Rohit Raju interfered

Desi Hit Squad b. Willie Mack/Johnny Swinger – Sky High to Swinger

Jordynne Grace b. Taya Valkyrie – Grace Driver

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: WWE

Impact Wrestling
Date: February 4, 2020
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

The Mexico run continues and that’s not a bad thing. Some of the local talent has done rather well with a few of them being big standouts. Other than that, we seem to be setting up for Tessa Blanchard vs. Ace Austin, possibly at Sacrifice. If nothing else, maybe we can get some more Eddie Edwards vs. Michael Elgin. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Tessa Blanchard to open the show, with commentary confirming the title match against Austin. Tessa says she isn’t hard to find and she’s a little impatient so here’s a challenge in Spanish. Cue Austin with Reno Scum and we have a surprise match.

Tessa Blanchard vs. Adam Thornstowe

Non-title. Tessa can’t get very far with a waistlock to start so she sends him into the interfering Luster the Legend on the apron. A headscissors puts Thornstowe on the floor but Luster blocks a suicide dive. Back in and Thornstowe rubs his armpit on Tessa’s face and the neck crank goes on.

Thornstowe chokes on the ropes and gets two off a slam. A standing moonsault misses though and Tessa is right back with a running hurricanrana. Tessa superkicks him off the apron onto Ace and Luster, setting up back to back suicide dives and a flip dive off the top. Back in and a cutter gives Tessa two, followed by the Buzzsaw DDT for the pin at 7:59.

Rating: C-. Just a match here for the most part with Tessa never feeling like she was in danger. What mattered more than anything else here though was they never went too far beyond the suspension of disbelief. You can only go so far with a one on one match without it being a bit ridiculous and Tessa is getting better and better at that every time.

Post match, Ace distracts Tessa so Luster can come in and start the beatdown. Tommy Dreamer runs in for the save. Of course he does.

Kiera Hogan and Madison Rayne are arguing when Taya Valkyrie interrupts to complain about facing Jordynne Grace next week. They don’t like how she talks to them and won’t be helping her in the title match.

During the break, Dreamer challenged Ace for a hardcore match tonight.

The announcers talk about the show but the feed is interrupted with a graphic for “realityislost.com”. They don’t seem to notice and preview everything else going on tonight, plus a few matches for Sacrifice on February 22.

Rhino vs. Taurus

Rhino shoves him away to start but his running shoulder has no effect. Another works a lot better but Taurus is right back with one of his own. They go to the floor with Taurus going face first into the apron. That doesn’t seem to matter as Taurus sends him shoulder first into the post and cranks away on the arm back inside.

A Codebreaker to the arm gets two and Taurus scores with a Shining Wizard for the same. Rhino avoids a twisting Swanton though and they’re both down for a bit. Taurus gets sent into the corner for a belly to belly but he’s right back with a running elbow for two. The spinebuster puts Taurus down again but here’s Moose to jump Rhino for the DQ at 6:45.

Rating: C. The ending makes sense given the story that they have been telling and the fact that we are coming up on Moose vs. Rhino at Sacrifice. They were beating each other up here and I liked what I saw rather well. You can always go with two big guys beating each other up in a power match and they did it well enough here.

Post match Moose goes after Taurus and walks into a Gore from Rhino to send him outside.

Michael Elgin is ready to go up 2-0 on Eddie Edwards next week and then win the series the week after.

Johnny Swinger challenges the Desi Hit Squad on behalf of himself and Willie Mack, but it winds up being Shera vs. Mack.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Motor City Machine Guns b. Team 3D and Beer Money at Sacrifice 2010.

Taya tries to get Rosemary’s help next week but Rosemary is too busy attacking James Mitchell and Havok, both of whom she locks in a room.

Rosemary vs. Susie

Susie offers a handshake but Rosemary puts the hand on her throat. Susie: “NO! THAT’S BAD!” Rosemary demands Susie hit her but Susie begs off in the corner instead. The bloodied glove to Susie’s face is enough to make her snap though and Rosemary seems pleased. Rosemary fights out of the Mandible Claw and they fight up the ramp for the double countout at 3:06.

Rating: D+. I almost gave this an N/A as it was an angle instead of a match and that’s ok. This story does keep going places but I’m not sure how much longer they can keep doing things. It seems like they have no idea where this is going to wind up, though Rosemary trying to bring Su Yung back is certainly a goal and that’s better than nothing.

Post match they fight in the back with Rosemary getting the better of it. She grabs the noose that was used to hang Su in this building and wraps it around her neck but security stops her. It’s too late though as Susie has become Su Yung again, complete with flashbacks to being hung.

Post break a distraught James Mitchell staggers out and finds a laughing Rosemary. Congratulations, because they’re all dead.

TJP vs. Vikingo

Fallah Bahh is here with TJP. They go technical to start with TJP taking him down and working on the arm before switching to a headlock. That goes nowhere so it’s an anklescissors to take Vikingo down instead. A Boston crab doesn’t work so they tie their legs together and stand on their heads for a slap off. Stereo nipups give us a standoff until another anklescissors sends Vikingo down. He’s right back with a headscissors to the floor and a shooting star press off the apron crushes TJP.

Back in and TJP hits a double chickenwing gutbuster to set up the slingshot hilo for two. A double underhook arm crank has Vikingo in trouble but he reverses into a….I’m not sure what you call that but he had TJP’s limbs behind him and bent TJP around a lot. Back up and they trade some kicks to the arm until Vikingo pulls him down into a cross armbreaker. That’s broken up and TJP grabs a Muta Lock, plus an arm crank at the same time, to put Vikingo in serious trouble.

TJP can only hold it for so long until they head to the floor for a chase, capped off by Vikingo hitting a dropkick through the ropes. That means a big flip dive over the top to take TJP down again, with the fans deeming it awesome. TJP gets tied up in the ropes for a top rope legdrop but he’s right back with a Tombstone into a frog splash for two.

Vikingo’s running knees in the corner give him two of his own, with the fans wanting them to fight forever. Now it’s TJP back with a superplex into an Octopus Hold but Vikingo is straight out. Back up and TJP loads up the Detonation kick but Vikingo slips out, only to get pulled into a Regal Stretch for the tap at 13:41.

Rating: B+. Yeah this was great as Vikingo is probably going to get himself a job outside of AAA if he wants/can have one. TJP is one of the best talents this company has and the two of them both looked great in everything they did here. This was one of the best matches I’ve seen from Impact in a good while and I could go for more from both of them.

Post match TJP shows respect but here’s the North to beat both of them down.

Katie Forbes tells Joey Ryan that he doesn’t want to touch it. Joey says he’s not interested but Rob Van Dam jumps him from behind. They’ll fight next week.

OVE vs. Daga/Dr. Wagner Jr.

Wagner’s son is with him. Dave and Wagner start things off and take their time to start until they trade some waistlocks. A running kick to the head lets Wagner pose so Jake comes in, only to get punched into the corner. Wagner hits a middle rope cutter for one (?) so it’s Daga coming in and getting caught with a Death Valley Driver. Daga is right back up and sends Jake to the floor for a baseball slide.

Back in and Wagner comes in to clean house again, including a German suplex for Dave. With Josh’s voice giving out, Daga gets two off a brainbuster to Jake. A spike Tombstone gets two on Daga and everything breaks down off the save. Wagner flips onto Jake and Daga’s Jay Driller is good for the pin on Dave at 8:15.

Rating: C. This was a pretty formula based match and they did things well enough to keep my interest. The problem is they didn’t do enough to make me care that much beyond the basics and that’s fine enough for a TV match. It’s good to see Daga get the pin here as Wagner doesn’t need the rub that comes from a win. OVE has fallen a good bit, but they’re still good for a match like this.

Post match Madman Fulton comes in to wreck Daga and Wagner.

Swinger tells Mack that he has heat with Shera so they’ll have a match next week. Mack can handle this on his own.

Preview of next week’s show.

Tommy Dreamer vs. Ace Austin

Non-title falls count anywhere street fight (or hardcore, which ever you prefer). Ace brings the card at Dreamer but gets sent outside for his efforts. A suplex on the ramp lets Dreamer grab a bunch of weapons to throw at Ace. Tommy puts on the sombrero and dances with a crutch before brawling up to the stage. They go into the crowd instead with Dreamer sending him into the chairs as we take a break.

Back with Dreamer posing but getting kicked off the balcony (about a four foot drop) so Ace can dive onto him. Dreamer blocks some kicks on the apron and pulls Ace down, setting up a Conchairto on the arm. Back in and Ace sends him into the post, setting up the paper cut with the card, this time to the head to bust Dreamer open. Ace chairs him down a few times and now it’s time for a table.

Dreamer gets in a shove off the ropes though and they slug it out with Dreamer getting the better of it. A running kendo stick shot in the corner misses though and Ace hits a top rope spinning Fameasser for two. Dreamer shrugs off some stick shots and hits a White Russian legsweep as the ECW tributes continue. Ace kicks him in the face so Dreamer grabs him low, setting up a DDT for two. A running powerslam through the table gives Dreamer two more and it’s time for a ladder, which winds up on the middle rope. Dreamer takes him up top but gets crotched, setting up a super Fold to give Austin the pin at 19:53.

Rating: D. Are they serious? The World Champion gets eight minutes, Dr. Wagner Jr. gets eight and that great TJP vs. Vikingo match gets thirteen, but TOMMY DREAMER gets twenty. You’re in a foreign country and have a ton of options for new and fresh names to put out there (heck make the Wagner match a singles and put Daga in there) but no no, the solution is TOMMY DREAMER. Ace, a champion, needed twenty minutes to beat Dreamer, who turns 49 next week and hasn’t won an important match in forever. What a great way to present your #1 contender as a star. Just….enough already.

Overall Rating: C+. That TJP vs. Vikingo match kept this show from being pretty awful and I’ll take that every week. I like that they’re setting up a big show with Sacrifice as you can’t go from January until April without having something. There are some interesting things going on here and I like where it’s going, but then they have stupid stuff like wasting Van Dam on Joey Ryan and Dreamer getting a twenty minute main event. If they can get rid of the awful stuff and bad ideas, they’re on a roll. As it is, they’re the same Impact that they’ve been for the last year or two: just there, with an occasional good show.

Results

Tessa Blanchard b. Adam Thornstowe – Buzzsaw DDT

Rhino b. Taurus via DQ when Moose interfered

Rosemary vs. Susie went to a double countout

TJP b. Vikingo – Regal Stretch

Daga/Dr. Wagner Jr. b. OVE – Jay Driller to Dave

Ace Austin b. Tommy Dreamer – Super Fold

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 28, 2020
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We’re still in Mexico and that means we should be in for a lot of guest stars. The big question though is what will Sami Callihan be up to, because you know he isn’t going to let the World Title go without a fight. He might have to wait for Taya Valkyrie and Ace Austin though, which could be interesting….maybe. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh Alexander vs. Vikingo

Ethan Page is here with Alexander. The smaller Vikingo gets shoved down to start so Vikingo nips right back up. A spinebuster puts Vikingo down again but he hits a quick Trouble in Paradise. Alexander gets knocked outside so Vikingo misses a suicide dive, only to roll through and land just fine. A running elbow takes Vikingo down again on the floor and it’s time to head back in. This time Vikingo counters what looked to be a chokeslam into an armbar but Alexander shoves him into the corner again.

That just earns him a springboard missile dropkick and they go to the floor again so Vikingo can jump from the barricade into the crowd for a moonsault onto Alexander. Back in and Vikingo spins out of a Boston crab attempt and dropkicks Alexander in the corner. A 450 gives Vikingo two but another hurricanrana attempt is countered into a powerbomb breaker. They go to a pinfall reversal sequence until Alexander tries another powerbomb, only to get countered into a hurricanrana for the pin at 9:45.

Rating: B-. Yeah this worked rather well and Vikingo looked awesome out there. Alexander is someone with a lot of potential despite not having much that makes him stand out. This was a good showdown and both guys were solid. I liked this one more than I ever would have guessed and we’ll call this a very nice surprise.

The fans throw money at Vikingo but Page and Alexander chase him off.

Taya Valkyrie isn’t happy with Jordynne Grace getting involved in the #1 contenders match. She’ll be watching closely.

Moose blames Rhino for the loss last week and promises to get him after taking care of Taurus tonight.

Rascalz vs. Pagano/Murder Clown

Dez and Wentz for the Rascalz here and they look terrified. Clown gorilla presses Wentz to start but misses an elbow, allowing Wentz to strike away. It’s quickly off to Dez for a hurricanrana but Pagano is quickly in to….move around in some weird ways. A slingshot reverse suplex puts Dez down and Pagano strikes away to send him outside.

Pagano’s big suicide dive takes everyone out, setting up a wheelbarrow faceplant/middle rope Fameasser combination for two on Dez. LAX’s old Street Sweeper hits Wentz but Pagano takes too much time going up, allowing the Rascalz to hit a double superplex. Wentz hits a Swanton and Dez adds the Final Flash for the pin at 6:11.

Rating: C. It’s nice to see the Rascalz win for a change as it seems like they lose almost all the time anymore. The match was entertaining enough as well as the monsters were built up well at the beginning but fell in the end. As weird as it was to see the Rascalz as just another team to this crowd, I’m rather glad they won.

Michael Elgin wants Eddie Edwards to be the man he was before so Elgin can beat him at his best. The trophy is his.

Moose vs. Taurus

Moose tries some running shoulders to start but Taurus is right back with a running hurricanrana. A teased chop lets Moose kick him in the ribs so Taurus sends him outside for the running corkscrew dive. Moose chops the post by mistake but manages to knock Taurus down again anyway. Boot choking in the corner ensues and Moose’s cockiness gets cranked up even higher. Another charge gets cut off at the knees though and Taurus hits a 619 for two. They hit stereo headbutts to send Taurus into the corner again, setting up No Jackhammer Needed to give Moose the pin at 6:29.

Rating: C-. I wasn’t feeling this one as much as Taurus didn’t get to show off as much as he did last week. Moose winning is the right call as he could be moving forward to something a lot bigger in the future, though at least Taurus got in a little offense. It was better than last week’s tired triple threat, but still not much to see.

Post match Rhino comes in and Gores Moose.

Eddie Edwards is ready to defend his trophy, now with a smiley face, against Elgin no matter how many times they have to fight.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Kurt Angle beats James Storm at Genesis 2012. This was a lot shorter than most of the regular clips.

Joey Ryan is a little hurt by Rob Van Dam’s comments last week but it comes with the territory for him. Maybe Rob is worried that Katie Forbes wants to touch it.

Jordynne Grace vs. Kiera Hogan vs. Madison Rayne

For the #1 contendership and Taya Valkyrie is on commentary. Grace gets double teamed to start but sends them together with almost no trouble and drops Rayne onto Hogan for an early two. A double clothesline puts them both down again but Rayne is back up to hammer on Grace. Hogan gets in a basement dropkick and Rayne adds a sliding lariat to set up….a chinlock.

That works as well as you would expect as Taya says Grace doesn’t have her number because it’s unlisted. Hogan gets in a sliding dropkick in the corner but Grace suplexes both of them at the same time. Grace goes up top and gets slammed back down, meaning it’s time for the required argument over who gets the pin. A series of kicks put Grace on the floor and it’s a game of Rock, Paper Scissors to determine who goes after her. That takes way too long though and the Grace Driver finishes Hogan at 8:13.

Rating: D+. This was very similar to what happened last week with the men’s triple threat and that’s one of the worst things that could have happened. Hogan and Rayne might as well have been evil unnamed henchmen to try and slow Grace down and that’s not exactly an interesting way to go. This was tired and dull, which is the case with most TV triple threats these days.

Ace Austin gives his case for a World Title shot.

Johnny Swinger says he and Willie Mack need to work on their tag skills but Mack makes it clear that they’re not a team. Swinger: “I was pretty cool back in ECW.”

TJP likes Fallah Bahh’s new gear and faces Vikingo next week. I know he’s still big, but Bahh’s physical transformation is remarkable.

Reno Scum vs. Daga/Dr. Wagner Jr.

Wagner’s son is at ringside. Daga runs Thornstowe over to start and it’s a quick standoff until Luster comes in. Wagner comes in as well and gets shoved down by the much bigger Luster. A falling headbutt gets two but the middle rope version misses. It’s back to Wagner but Scum gets in a few cheap shots to take over.

The neck crank goes on until Daga fights up with his string of strikes. That’s enough for the hot tag to Wagner so house can be cleaned. A Samoan drop hits Thornstowe and Daga hits a big corkscrew dive onto Luster. The Wagner Driver gets two on Thornstowe as everything breaks down. Wagner dives onto Luster and a double underhook gutbuster finishes Thornstowe at 8:06.

Rating: C-. This is something I can always live with as Reno Scum losing never gets old. They’re a team with the slightest bit of name value so losing to a legend in Wagner and someone with some potential like Daga isn’t a bad thing. The match was mainly for the live crowd though and wasn’t anything great in the first place, but at least the right team won.

Post match OVE runs in for the beatdown as Reno Scum makes Wagner’s son watch.

Rosemary appears to Susie and asks if she has found what she is looking for. Maybe it’s out there in the arena itself and maybe Rosemary could be her teacher. That works for Susie, so they’ll have a friendly exhibition next week.

Michael Elgin vs. Eddie Edwards

Match #1 in a Best of Five series. They go to the mat to start and that’s a very early standoff. Eddie gets smart by going after the knee and avoids an enziguri to set up a quickly broken STF. Elgin bails to the floor so Eddie busts out the suicide dive. That’s fine with Elgin, who swings him hard into the barricade and we take a break. Back with Eddie hitting the Blue Thunder Bomb to put both of them down. The Backpack Stunner gives Eddie two and the half crab goes back to the knee.

The STF stays on longer this time but Eddie lets go before the rope can be grabbed. A tiger driver is countered with a backdrop to send Eddie head first into the mat for a scary landing. The rolling German suplexes rock Eddie for two but he’s back up to lose the slugout. Eddie hits a clothesline though and this time the tiger driver connects for two. Elgin is up first and hits a super Death Valley Driver before elbowing the heck out of Eddie’s head. The Crossface goes on and Eddie passes out at 12:43.

Rating: B-. It wasn’t as good as some of their other matches but there’s a good formula between having Eddie’s technical/brawling hybrid style vs. the raw power of Elgin. I’m not sure how good it is to have the series go to five matches but it’s cool to see these two fighting anytime. Just don’t overdo it.

Overall Rating: C+. The wrestling was pretty good here and I liked the show better than a lot of the shows down in Mexico. This one felt like it had more of a point and the one off matches were better than last week’s. They still have a long way to go before their next pay per view but they’re plugging Sacrifice at the end of the month quite a bit so maybe it can be the gap show. The fact that I’ll be there has nothing to do with my excitement over it of course. Anyway, not a bad show here and better than last week.

Results

Vikingo b. Josh Alexander – Hurricanrana

Rascalz b. Pagano/Murder Clown – Final Flash to Pagano

Moose b. Taurus – No Jackhammer Needed

Jordynne Grace b. Kiera Hogan and Madison Rayne – Grace Driver to Hogan

Daga/Dr. Wagner Jr. b. Reno Scum – Double underhook gutbuster to Thornstowe

Michael Elgin b. Eddie Edwards via referee stoppage

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 21, 2020
Location: Fronton Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We’re down in Mexico this week and that means things are going to be a little different. It’s still time for the fallout from Hard To Kill, which could go multiple ways. Hopefully things pick up a bit, though it’s not like last week’s recap show was all that bad. I’m curious to see where things go from here though so let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Here’s Tessa Blanchard to open things up. She’s glad to be aqui en Mexico and knows that it’s the beginning of the journey. There is a target on her back and knows that Sami Callihan is coming. Cue Taya Valkyrie instead and she brings up a great point: she beat Tessa for the title and deserves a title shot of her own. She has beaten Tessa for the AAA Women’s Title but now she wants the World Title.

Cue Ace Austin to say he should be invited to this party. They were all successful at Hard To Kill and Ace even beat Tessa at Bound For Glory. He could come out on top of her again, either in the ring or at the hotel. The fight is on and Trey Miguel runs in for the save to set up a likely tag match.

Opening sequence.

We recap Willie Mack walking away from Rich Swann after losing in a handicap match at Hard To Kill.

Mack isn’t sure what he’s going to do until Swann gets back but tonight, he’ll face Rohit Raju. Johnny Swinger comes in to offer to be his partner but Mack walks away, even from the offer of rizzats.

Taya is talking about wanting a World Title shot when Madison Rayne and Kiera Hogan come in to say they want their title shots. That’s more than Taya can deal with right now but they can fight next week. Whoever wins gets the first title shot and the loser gets the second.

Moose vs. Rhino vs. Taurus

The ECW chants start fast (for once that’s interesting as Rhino was only around ECW for about two years but it’s still the signature time in his career) and Moose drops to the floor. Taurus springboards out of a wristlock as Moose is content to chill on the floor. He does stop to grab Taurus though and Rhino demands that Moose get in. That isn’t happening so far though and we take a break.

Back with Moose still on the floor as Rhino charges into an elbow to the face. Rhino and Taurus go outside to deal with Moose, who slides back in, only to make the mistake of pointing at his head because he’s brilliant. The beatdown is on with Rhino getting annoyed at Taurus for going for a cover.

Moose gets back up and beats them into various corners, including a whip to send Taurus shoulder first into the post. Some running elbows and a short arm clothesline give Rhino two but Taurus is out of the corner with a spinning crossbody for his own two. Rhino suplexes Moose but a quick referee distraction lets Moose kick Rhino low. Taurus comes in for the save so Rhino Gores Moose, only to have Taurus steal the pin at 14:25.

Rating: D+. Just another triple threat match with the same formula that you could imagine for a long time now. They’re all talented people but how many things can you get out of the same formula? There are other ways to do a match like this but for some reason this is what wrestlers like to do in them no matter what.

Jordynne Grace thinks she should get a Knockouts Title match so she’s in on the Hogan vs. Rayne match.

Tommy Dreamer, in a sombrero, tells Joey Ryan that he’s back in Wrestler’s Court tonight. Joey says no and leaves.

Joey Ryan vs. Maximo

Maximo is an exotico so we’re in for comedy. Joey gives a fan a lollipop from his trunks and it’s time to tell Maximo to touch it. They trade armdrags instead and some near falls give us a standoff. Maximo slams him down and drops a top rope elbow for two, only to make the mistake of trying an atomic drop. Back up and Maximo kisses him for two but Ryan makes him touch it. The Plex and Sweet Tooth Music finishes Maximo at 3:32.

Rating: F. Yeah I think this one speaks for itself. They were nice enough to keep this short but it’s not exactly something I want to see. It doesn’t help that Ryan does the exact same stuff every single time and almost never changes anything. It wasn’t as long as some of these matches but egads I could go with never seeing this stuff again.

Rob Van Dam says that match makes him embarrassed to be a wrestler. He leaves with Katie Forbes instead of answering a question.

Michael Elgin wants to fight Eddie Edwards again.

Havok vs. Rosemary

Havok has James Mitchell and Susie with her. Rosemary bails to the floor to start and talks to Susie but switches places with Havok, setting up a dive. Rosemary beats her up the ramp but Havok gets in a single shot to knock her back. A suplex drops Rosemary on the ramp and Havok heads inside, only to get taken down with a top rope forearm. The Sling Blade sets up a Last Chancery, with Havok getting out in a hurry. Havok hits a running knee but Rosemary gets in a jawbreaker. Mitchell gets on the apron for a distraction so Rosemary mists him down, allowing Havok to hit a Tombstone for the pin at 6:29.

Rating: D+. This story continues to keep going and I’m still not sure what to expect from where it is going. I’m still not sure if Impact knows what they’re doing with it either, though the Susie stuff does have me a little bit intrigued. The match wasn’t very good either but they had too much going on in a short amount of time.

Post match the blind Mitchell celebrates with Havok but Susie wanders off.

The Desi Hit Squad is ready to continue their winning streak but Shera has sent Raj Singh on a spiritual journey. Gama Singh isn’t happy and slaps Rohit Raju to blow off some steam.

The Rascalz make fun of Trey for teaming with a girl as he might have a bit of a thing for Tessa. Then things get all fuzzy and Murder Clown/Pagano join in their circle, much to the Rascalz’s dismay.

Eddie Edwards will gladly fight Michael Elgin again. Elgin comes in to start the argument and another match seems imminent.

Willie Mack vs. Rohit Raju

Gama Singh and Shera are here. They start fast with Mack snapping off a hurricanrana and hitting the swinging slam for a bonus. A dropkick to the floor makes it worse but Shera offers a distraction so Raju can sweep the leg. Raju hits a double stomp for two but misses a charge, allowing Mack to hit the running boot in the corner. The Samoan drop into the standing moonsault gets two, followed by Raju missing a jumping knee. Mack Stuns him for the pin at 3:49.

Rating: C-. Could have been worse and in theory this was going to be Mack/Swann vs. the Squad. Mack continues to be one of the most entertaining guys on the show and I could go for him getting a singles push. Raju is watchable at times and that was the case here, albeit in a not all that interesting match.

Post match the Squad beats Mack down, drawing out Swinger for the failed save attempt.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Beer Money beats the Motor City Machine Guns for the Tag Team Titles at Genesis 2011.

The North brags about how awesome they are when Vikingo interrupts, likely to set something up.

Starting next week: Eddie Edwards vs. Michael Elgin in the first match of a best of five series. No mention of the trophy being on the line.

Tessa Blanchard/Trey Miguel vs. Taya Valkyrie/Ace Austin

John E. Bravo is here with Taya and Ace. Taya and Tessa get things going with Tessa hitting a quick clothesline to put her on the floor. Ace comes in and gets taken down with a headlock before it’s off to Trey to pick up the pace. A dropkick puts Ace in the ropes and a running hurricanrana sends him outside, only for Taya to block the dive. Tessa kicks her to the floor for the stereo dives and we take a break.

Back with Taya pulling Tessa off the apron to block a tag attempt as Ace has Trey in trouble. Ace drops a leg for two and it’s Taya coming in for the same off a basement dropkick. Another knee gets another two and Trey gets tied in the Tree of Woe for some kicks to the ribs. A belly to back suplex gets two and Ace cuts the finger with the card.

That’s enough to Trey to fight up but Bravo makes sure the referee doesn’t see the tag. Trey backflips over Ace and hits a double stomp to the back and the hot tag brings in Tessa for a high crossbody. There’s a cutter to drop Taya again and a tornado DDT rocks Austin. A running springboard Downward Spiral gets two on Ace and Tessa dives onto Taya. Ace is right back up though and hits the Fold to finish Trey at 16:48.

Rating: C+. Nice match here with Tessa getting the hot tag like a champion should, but then you have Trey lose again. I’m not sure if he is going to be chasing Austin going forward, but how much sense would that make at the moment? The action was good here, but I’m not wild on the booking overall. Still though, best thing on the show.

Overall Rating: D. I really don’t care for these shows in Mexico as they feel like a cross between house shows and regular TV. All of these people show up with little to no introduction and a lot of the wrestling isn’t very good. They had some momentum coming out of Hard To Kill but the last two weeks have really slowed things down. This wasn’t very good and I don’t know how much better that is going to get during this trip.

Results

Taurus b. Moose and Rhino – Gore to Moose

Joey Ryan b. Maximo – Sweet Tooth Music

Havok b. Rosemary – Tombstone

Willie Mack b. Rohit Raju – Stunner

Taya Valkyrie/Ace Austin b. Trey Miguel/Tessa Blanchard – Fold to Miguel

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 14, 2020
Location: Bomb Factory, Dallas, Texas/2300 Arena Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis
Hosts: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

We’re done with Hard To Kill and that means we’ll be moving forward towards Rebellion in April. That’s a long way off though and now it’s time to talk about Tessa Blanchard as the new World Champion. It’s a big deal and something Impact can brag about, which I’m sure they will. Let’s get to it.

Here’s Hard To Kill if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh and Don are in the Nashville studios to talk about how the historic title change.

Rascalz vs. Desi Hit Squad vs. Reno Scum vs. TJP/Daga

One fall to a finish. It’s a brawl to start and the bell rings when we’re down to Desi vs. Wentz. TJP comes in and we hit the parade of missed offense until TJP’s middle rope double dropkick is pulled out of the air. He flips out of that though and gets kicked in the chest a few times, setting up a running double stomp to the back.

They’re replaced by Reno Scum, who double teams Shera, including a running double stomp in the corner. A German suplex into a running double stomp (WAY too popular of a move in this match) gets two on TJP, who gets tied in the Tree of Woe. Daga slips out of a running Razor’s Edge buckle bomb into TJP and kicks Scum down. The Squad is back in to beat up Daga and TJP gets taken down as well.

Now it’s the Rascalz coming in to clean house, including a backbreaker/middle rope double stomp (four of the same move in less than five minutes is unacceptable) for two on Raju. TJP’s slingshot dropkick hits Raju and it’s Wentz being backdropped onto a big pile. Luster adds a big no hands dive, leaving Daga to kick Raju in the head. A sitout powerbomb gets two with Wentz making the save. It’s a short parade of finishers until Shera Sky Highs Wentz for the pin at 7:02.

Rating: C+. This was what you would expect from a wild four way tag with eight people involved. There’s only so much you can do with something like this unless you go to a very special place with it. What we got here was fine for what it was though, and they didn’t stay out there too long to have too many spots crammed in for the sake of cramming them in.

Moose brags about beating Rhino on Sunday. He’s ready to win the X-Division Title tonight in a four way, though the fact that the match was taped in November might make that a bit difficult.

Josh and Don talk about how cool it is that Tessa won the World Title.

We look at Ace Austin retaining the X-Division Title over Trey Miguel. Heck of a match too.

Ace Austin is ready to star in a sequel and has no comment on tonight’s title defense.

We look at Rich Swann injuring his ankle at Bash at the Brewery II.

We look at Willie Mack challenging for the Tag Team Titles on his own on Sunday but coming up short.

Swann tells Mack not to worry about it.

Katie Forbes is ready for a very fun celebration with Rob Van Dam.

Eddie Edwards says Hard To Kill describes him well and now he’ll win the X-Division Title.

We look at Edwards defeating Michael Elgin to retain the Call Your Shot trophy at the pay per view.

Elgin is in Japan and loves everything about it. He wants championships in Impact and he’ll be back.

We look at Rob Van Dam beating up Brian Cage and then beating Daga as a replacement.

Van Dam is in a hotel room in a bath robe with a bunch of rose petals on the bed. It looks like he’s always celebrating but it’s because everything is a party. He beat the big bad machine, but here’s Katie to say he should only be worried about wrestling her. Jiggling ensues and something on Katie’s upper half is blurred out. Katie’s girlfriend, Jennifer, joins them and kisses Rob, who rants about how marks live vicariously through him.

We’re clipped to Rob covered in lipstick prints but the girls, now minus tops but with various things covered in whipped cream, come in and tell him to take the robe off. Jennifer: “Whip out that Rob Van D***.” And we’re out due to technical difficulties. This was completely over the top in a funny way, though I can’t say I’m surprised at Twitch being annoyed at them over it. What else were they expecting from something like this?

Later tonight: an interview with Tessa Blanchard.

Post break, another announcement that later tonight, it will be an interview with Tessa Blanchard. In case you thought plans had changed in three minutes.

Video on Ken Shamrock’s issues with OVE, capped off by him beating Mad Man Fulton in a bit of a surprise.

Shamrock knew Fulton was athletic and strong so he had to fight smart instead. Sami Callihan doesn’t care about Fulton and that isn’t going to change. Shamrock isn’t sure what’s next.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Kurt Angle pins Jeff Jarrett at Genesis 2009.

Johnny Swinger doesn’t like the new wrestlers gaming so much so he goes to play some pinball. He hits on a woman playing Galaga and it’s as cheesy as you would guess.

Joey Ryan vs. Johnny Swinger

Ryan gives a fan his lollipop and offers Swinger a chance to touch….it. That’s a no, so Swinger cranks on the arm instead. Joey tries to make him touch it, which is enough to get him out of a waistlock. Swinger teases touching it but punches Ryan in the face instead. An atomic drop just hurts Swinger’s leg, allowing Don to compare the powers of different parts of Ryan’s anatomy. Swinger’s leg is fine enough to choke on the rope and then whip him hard into the corner for two.

The chinlock goes on for a bit before Swinger tries the falling headbutt for a low blow, only to knock himself silly. Back up and Swinger’s rollup with feet on the ropes gets caught, leaving Ryan to make him touch it. The flip takes out Swinger and the referee, allowing Swinger to hit Ryan low, mainly because Swinger never learns. As he holds his hand, Joey puts the lollipop in his mouth and Sweet Tooth Music is good for the pin at 6:40.

Rating: D. I can live with this nonsense a lot more when they keep the comedy guys together, meaning this was nowhere near as bad as usual. It wasn’t too long and they played the hits (I shivered a bit at that concept) but it could have been worse and it was in its own little shell, so fair enough if you just have to do this.

We look at Taya Valkyrie cheating to retain the Knockouts Title thanks to John E. Bravo.

We look at Tessa Blanchard winning the World Title in the main event.

To House Of Hardcore in November in Philadelphia.

X-Division Title: Fallah Bahh vs. Moose vs. Eddie Edwards vs. Ace Austin

Ace is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. They exchange kicks to the face to start until Moose gets to chop Bahh in the corner. Eddie comes back in and suplexes Moose to the floor, only to have to deal with Austin. Moose throws the champ outside and chops it out with Bahh again. A double clothesline puts them both down so it’s Eddie vs. Austin again.

Bahh is back up and splashes Austin in the corner, with Moose landing on both of them so Eddie can chop all three at once. Moose and Austin are sent outside so Bahh hits the huge dive, followed by Eddie diving onto everyone as we take a break. Back with Eddie hitting the backpack Stunner for two on Austin but Bahh splashes the two of them in the corner. Moos is back in with some dropkicks and a top rope superplex puts Bahh down.

Austin steals the near fall and kicks Eddie down for the same. Moose blocks the Fold and it’s an exchange of kicks to the face until Bahh clotheslines Moose for the big group knockdown. We take another break and come back again with Moose and Eddie chopping it out until a discus lariat drops Eddie. Bahh loads up the Banzai Drop on Austin but Moose makes the save. That lets Bahh get down and run Eddie over, only to have Austin counter another Banzai Drop into a super Fold to retain at 18:48.

Rating: C+. There was some good action in here but the telegraphed winner didn’t do a lot of good for this one. At least what we got was fun, especially on a show like this which doesn’t matter all that much in the end. Bahh continues to impress, Moose is a good power monster, Eddie is the jack of all trades and Austin is great as the slimy heel. It’s a nice mixture and they had a good match as a result.

We see some footage from after Hard To Kill with a lot of people, including friends and family, celebrating with Tessa.

Tessa joins us for a sitdown interview. She’s so happy with winning the title and beat Sami in the first chance she had at a fair fight. That doesn’t mean Sami and OVE are gone but she has accomplished the impossible goal. Now she is the hunted one and the face of the company but none of this happens by accident.

Sami pops in on the screen behind her and says he’s heard about history for the last 48 hours. He is the history maker around here and pumped blood into Impact when he arrived two years ago. Then he took his spot as World Champion but now Impact has what they want. Tessa is the champion Impact wants but he is the champion everyone needs (good line). Tessa says anyplace anytime and goes to find Sami. Instead she finds another screen, with Sami saying she’ll never see him coming.

Overall Rating: D+. There wasn’t much to this one as the majority was spent recapping the pay per view and building up the Tessa interview. When that wound up meaning nothing and was just a way to set up the obvious rematch, there wasn’t exactly much value to the show. We’ll be back to the regular stuff neck week, but this wasn’t exactly a great way to follow up on the pay per view.

Results

Desi Hit Squad b. TJP/Daga, Rascalz and Reno Scum – Sky High to Wentz

Joey Ryan b. Johnny Swinger – Sweet Tooth Music

Ace Austin b. Fallah Bahh, Moose and Eddie Edwards – Super Fold to Bahh

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

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

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

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

Some wrestling news this week doesn’t give me hope for the future of some companies.

https://wrestlingrumors.net/tommyhall/kbs-review-enjoy-them-while-you-can/

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

It’s back to the pay per view pile for Impact and in a way, that sounds like a good thing. When Impact Wrestling cuts out all of the other nonsense and focuses on the wrestling alone, they can have a heck of a show and hopefully that is what happens here. Sometimes you don’t need to do anything more than have a bunch of good wrestling and under the right circumstances, this could be quite the show. Let’s get to it.

Ken Shamrock vs. Mad Man Fulton

Unless I missed it before, this was added to the show on Tuesday night. I’m not sure how much more gas Shamrock has in the tank but his intimidating look alone should be worth something. I can’t imagine that he’s going to be around long term but he has enough star power to validate keeping him around for the time being. That being said, Fulton has a lot of potential as a monster and Shamrock could make for a good opponent.

I’ll go with Fulton here because he has a brighter future and there is no reason to put Shamrock over him. Shamrock is already a legend and a former World Champion so putting him over Fulton doesn’t make sense. Then again, if there is one thing this company loves to do it is push older people for no logical reason. I’ll take Fulton, but there is a bit of fear in the back of my head over the whole thing.

Moose vs. Rhino

This is one of those formulas that works almost every time: take two people who can hit each other really hard and see who is left standing. It’s also a battle of the spears, with Rhino’s having more impact but Moose’s having the more clever name. Moose is in need of the big win but I’m not sure how much value there is in putting him over Rhino. That being said, I can’t imagine Rhino getting a big win on this stage.

So yeah of course it’s Moose here, as it should be. Rhino is someone who still has some name recognition and now that they’re getting him away from the ECW tributes, you can see why he’s been around as long as he has. This could be a good ten minute power brawl and Rhino can still bring it in that style. Have some fun and get the right person over and everything works out.

Tag Team Titles: The North(c) vs. Rich Swann/Willie Mack

This was the match that I was looking forward to more than any other on the card as Mack and Swann have turned into a heck of a team against a dark horse contender for the Tag Team Of The Year in 2019 in the North. Then Swann sprained his ankle last night and is unlikely for the match, meaning the whole thing is pretty much forgotten about as Mack is probably wrestling it in a handicap match.

Therefore, the North retains here and we probably get the big title match in SEVERAL weeks on Impact, assuming it happens at all. Given their marathon taping sessions, there is almost no way we’re going to be seeing Swann in the ring for months as far as Impact taping time goes and that’s a shame because he seemed ready to jump way up the ladder in the coming weeks, starting with a title win here. But alas, the North retains here (hardly a bad thing as they’ve been excellent).

Knockouts Title: Taya Valkyrie(c) vs. ODB vs. Jordynne Grace

I was completely sold on Grace ending the record long reign here, but then ODB was added to it and things started trending down (as they tend to do when she is added to almost anything). They now have an out to keep the title on Valkyrie (again: not a bad thing, which seems to be a Canadian trait), even though it is time for someone else to get into the title picture. I think you know where this is going.

I’ll play it safe and say that Valkyrie retains the title, likely by defeating ODB. Maybe they can even throw in a bonus by having Grace hit the Grace Driver so Valkyrie can steal the pin. I’m not entirely sure why ODB needs to be involved in this, though if it’s to give her a hand after her food truck burned down, I can get over my lack of caring for her. Anyway, I’m not thrilled about this one, but Valkyrie is likely retaining to lose to Grace in a singles match later.

Brian Cage vs. Rob Van Dam

I wasn’t big on Van Dam returning as he is way past his prime and has been around for so long that a lot of the luster is gone. However, I’ve dug the heck out of his crazy self-absorbed heel character as he’s selling the heck out of it. While I could go for a little less Katie Forbes, Van Dam’s stuff has been great and I’m enjoying his promos more than I have in years.

As for the match…..dang I’m not sure. This is the kind of thing that should be Cage in a walk but Van Dam has been so awesome in everything he’s done that it could go either way. I think I’ll actually take Van Dam, just for the sake of giving him something else to talk about. Cage shouldn’t be losing again, but they’ve got an intriguing match here, provided they can make the in-ring stuff work.

Call Your Shot Trophy: Eddie Edwards(c) vs. Michael Elgin

This is basically Money In The Bank but for any title, which very well could play a role later in the show. The idea here is that Elgin wants the World Title and is willing to take shortcuts to get there. He already beat Edwards in a rather good match on Impact and now he wants to do it again for the trophy. I like the idea of having to defend the thing, even though it has barely been mentioned since Edwards won the thing.

I’ll take Elgin to win here, even if it’s two big losses in a row for Edwards. The good thing about him is that he’s almost bulletproof in Impact and that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon. Elgin on the other hand seems to be in a place where he needs to win the World Title or find something else to do, and winning the Trophy could get him a big step closer to being champion.

X-Division Title: Ace Austin(c) vs. Trey Miguel

There aren’t many people who have been as bizarre as Austin in recent months. He’s gone from apparently being an adult actor to hitting on Miguel’s mom while also winning the title. I’m not sure which of those is weirder, but here we are with one of the first actual stories about the title in months. That might not be the best story in the world, but at least it’s something for a change.

I’ll go with Austin retaining here, partially because I like him and partially because I want to see Miguel’s mom turn on him. It would be hilarious to see if nothing else, though I do need to see the Rascalz get somewhere sooner or later. This very well may be where it takes place, but I’m not sure if that’s what’s going to happen. Give me Austin to retain, though I’m not very confident in it.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Sami Callihan(c) vs. Tessa Blanchard

And then, as usual, something has to happen to mess everything up around here. In this case it isn’t Impact’s fault, but that never stopped the bad news before. In this case, Blanchard seemed all primed and ready to win the title but then there was yesterday’s Twitter fiasco that might cause some major issues for the company should they give her some big push.

That being said, I’ll go with Blanchard winning and then Elgin cashing in his newly won trophy for an immediate title shot. Therefore, Blanchard gets her win, a Canadian gets to be World Champion and we can move forward to Blanchard chasing the title again after things have cooled down a bit. It’s not the smartest thing in the world, but it’s the most protection they can have at the moment.

Overall Thoughts

I was looking forward to this show a lot more about thirty six hours ago before the Swann injury and the Blanchard drama but you should know better than to expect something like this to work out well. It really does feel like the company is cursed at times and even when they have been doing so much better as of late, it doesn’t seem like they can ever shake off the curse that follows them everywhere.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 7, 2020
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

We’re back to a regular show and it’s the go home edition before Hard To Kill. The card is mostly set but there is always the chance that something could be added at the last minute. It’s kind of a weird situation as we are coming off back to back Best Of shows, meaning there isn’t much momentum for the pay per view at the moment. Maybe they can get in one last push though. Let’s get to it.

We open with Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards having to be pulled apart at ringside. Eddie is willing to fight him right now and hits a dive.

Opening sequence.

Eddie Edwards vs. Michael Elgin

They’re still fighting on the floor as Eddie has to hurricanrana his way out of a powerbomb attempt. They chop it out until Elgin scores with a superkick and throws it inside for the opening bell. Eddie grabs an atomic drop but an enziguri in the corner sets up a stomp to the chest for two. A German suplex attempt doesn’t work for Eddie as Elgin grabs him by the head and flips him forward with raw power.

Eddie goes technical by countering a suplex into one of his own followed by the Blue Thunder Bomb for two. A Rock Bottom/Boss Man Slam plants Eddie again and the Falcon Arrow gives Elgin two of his own. They strike it out in the corner with some chops and clotheslines before slugging it out in the middle. Elgin snaps off a German suplex but Eddie pops back up for a Boston Knee Party to the back of the head.

We take a break and come back with Eddie hitting another Boston Knee Party to put them both down. Eddie gets two off a tiger bomb and goes up, where he has to sunset bomb his way out of a super White Noise. Elgin blasts him with a clothesline for two more but can’t get a Crossface. Instead he settles for the Buckle Bomb into the Elgin Bomb for the pin at 19:43.

Rating: B. These guys beat the heck out of each other and the story made sense with Elgin using raw power while Eddie stuck and moved by getting in everything he could where he could. They didn’t waste time here and just went at it full blast for the twenty minutes and the match was very entertaining as result. As usual, the talent is strong around here and if they drop the nonsense and have good matches, it’s very entertaining stuff.

Video on the Tag Team Title match with Rich Swann and Willie Mack earning the title shot, leaving the North to try and play mind games to split them up.

Elgin vs. Edwards again on Sunday, this time with Edwards’ Call Your Shot trophy on the line. Oh yeah he has that.

Desi Hit Squad vs. Fallah Bahh/TJP/Daga

Raj kicks away at Daga to start so Daga runs the ropes and hurricanranas him to the floor. Raju comes in and gets dropkicked down for one so it’s off to Bahh and TJP for a double back elbow. TJP nips up and Bahh….well he tried at least. They run the ropes over Raju and Bahh gets rather winded, just in case you didn’t get the joke the first time around. A DDT plants Daga and it’s Shera coming in to powerbomb Raju onto Daga for two.

It’s already back to Raj for a dropkick to the head and a backsplash for two of his own. TJP comes back in for a springboard dropkick as everything breaks down. Daga’s springboard wristdrag/headscissors combination puts Shera and Singh on the floor, setting up the big dive. Bahh’s suicide dive takes them down again but Shera hits his Sky High for the pin on TJP at 7:59.

Rating: C+. The Squad did look better here but there’s no way around how uninteresting they are. Their entire characters are “we’re from India and managed by a legend” and I need a lot more than that to care about someone. The match was pretty good, but give me something else to sink my teeth into with them.

Willie Mack comes in to see Rich Swann and says he might not be healthy for the Tag Team Title match. He doesn’t want to hold Swann back from realizing his full potential but Swann wants to win the titles.

OVE is ready to take over wrestling, starting with Mad Man Fulton beating Ken Shamrock on Sunday and Sami Callihan getting rid of Tessa Blanchard once and for all.

Johnny Swinger spikes Joey Ryan’s drink when Tommy Dreamer comes in and tells him to grow up. If Swinger didn’t do anything to Ryan’s drink, he can drink it himself. I’m sure hilarity will ensue.

Video on the X-Division Title match with Ace Austin hitting on Trey’s mom in a rather creepy way.

Video on Sami Callihan vs. Tessa Blanchard with Sami finally getting the World Title and Tessa trying to make history. This includes interviews from Tessa’s family, who has worked very hard to get here. Sami on the other hand only cared about wrestling and has done everything to get here. He’ll do anything to keep the title too. Sami doesn’t like it, but sometimes dreams don’t come true and Tessa will learn that on Sunday. Very good video, though it did a little too good of a job at making me like Sami, which wasn’t exactly the point.

James Mitchell locks Susie in a locker room so she can’t interfere in Havok’s match.

Havok vs. Rosemary

Rosemary screams and slugs away to start so Havok shoves her down. That just makes Rosemary jump on her back for more right hands before avoiding a charge to low bridge Havok to the floor. Michell’s distraction fails as Havok runs him over by mistake, only to catch Rosemary with a backbreaker inside. Cue Susie, who seems messed up by all of the noise. She winds up on commentary as Havok beats up Rosemary in the corner. A missed splash lets Rosemary get in a few shots but Mitchell gets Susie away from commentary. Havok hits the Tombstone for the pin at 5:11 as Mitchell covers Susie’s eyes.

Rating: D+. This was all angle stuff and that’s fine, though this story feels like it has been going on for years now. Mitchell trying to keep Su Yung from returning is certainly a twist, but I’m almost worried about how long they’re going to drag this whole thing out. It’s not bad and does keep things somewhat interesting, but I’m not sure how much of a goal they have with the thing.

ODB/Tenille Dashwood/Jordynne Grace vs. Kiera Hogan/Madison Rayne/Taya Valkyrie

Dashwood and Rayne start things off as Callis goes into Madison’s insane resume (73 time Knockouts Champion and an honorary Hart). Tenille throws her outside and it’s Grace coming in for two off an Implant Buster. Hogan gets in a cheap shot from the apron though and Taya comes in for an elbow to the face.

A kick to Grace’s back gets two so ODB….rubs her chest. Grace runs Hogna over and dives over for the tag to ODB for a lot more chest based offense. A double Bronco Buster hits Taya and Madison and there’s a TKO to Taya as well. Grace adds a Vader Bomb but since she isn’t legal, ODB throws her outside and gets the pin at 5:16.

Rating: D+. Not much here as they were rushed and could have done this as a tag match without Dashwood and Hogan involved. ODB still feels really, really tacked on to the Knockouts Title match, meaning there is a good chance that Taya escapes before dropping the title to Grace later on.

Grace isn’t happy.

Moose interrupts Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes to make sure he can trust Rob tonight. They leave and Swinger is passed out on a couch. Joey Ryan and Petey Williams come in to draw something on him.

Hard To Kill rundown.

Moose/Rob Van Dam vs. Brian Cage/Rhino

Katie is here with Van Dam and Moose. Van Dam starts with Cage but decides that Moose can do it instead. Cage hits a superkick and spinebuster so it’s off to Rhino for a WOO. Rhino shouts to the crowd a lot and hammers away in the corner as the pace slows a good bit. A clothesline puts Moose on the floor and we take a break.

Back with Moose being sent onto the ramp but Katie breaks up the Gore so the villains can take over. Moose bites Rhino’s head and hammers away but can’t get a suplex. Rhino can hit a suplex of his own though and it’s Cage coming in for the staredown with Van Dam. A German suplex puts Van Dam down but Moose runs Cage over. Everything breaks down and Van Dam kicks Cage in the face for two.

These fans aren’t good enough to see Rolling Thunder so Van Dam is sent outside, leaving Moose to slug it out with Rhino. Cage takes Rhino’s place and hits a tornado DDT to put Moose down. Van Dam kicks Cage in the face but walks into the Gore. A missed charge puts Rhino down as well but Moose misses his own Five Star. The Gore and a discus lariat are enough to finish Moose at 12:23.

Rating: C+. They didn’t waste time here and just had four people hit each other for a somewhat lengthy match. Moose taking the pin makes more sense here and they did a nice job of setting up both matches at once. That’s something that will always work as you get to build two matches while also keeping things fresh. Nicely done here in a bit of a surprisingly good match.

Long video on Hard To Kill wraps us up.

Overall Rating: B-. This was a rather good go home show as they covered everything on Sunday, added another match, and made me want to see the pay per view more than I did coming in. Some of the stuff felt like it could have been cut (that six man and Havok vs. Rosemary could have been on any other show) but overall, it was more good than bad and the opener was rather entertaining. Nice job here, but make sure the pay per view is even better.

Results

Michael Elgin b. Eddie Edwards – Elgin Bomb

Desi Hit Squad b. Fallah Bahh/TJP/Daga – Sky High to TJP

Havok b. Rosemary – Tombstone

ODB/Tenille Dashwood/Jordynne Grace b. Kiera Hogan/Madison Rayne/Taya Valkyrie – Vader Bomb to Rayne

Brian Cage/Rhino b. Moose/Rob Van Dam – Discus lariat to Moose

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 4, 2020
Hosts: Josh Matthews, Scott D’Amore

We continue our trip through the year here with the second half of the Best Of 2019. Given that Hard To Kill is in eight days, I would bet on a high concentration of Tessa Blanchard here, which isn’t the worst thing in the world. Last week’s show flew by in a good way so hopefully that continues here. Let’s get to it.

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

As usual, the matches are going to be clipped on the show but I’ll be putting in the full versions.

Josh and Scott welcome us to the show and are rather happy to have a new year, even if Madison Rayne has said they can’t drink.

From Impact, November 19.

Gauntlet Match

Six people, the winner is the #1 contender. Moose is in at #1 and Daga is in at #2 to get things started. Daga picks up the pace to start and dropkicks the leg, setting up the running Downward Spiral. They head to the floor with Daga hitting a moonsault off the apron, only to have Moose throw him around with ease back inside. The Dominator gives Moose one but Daga sends him back into the corner for a running basement dropkick. The spear cuts Daga in half though and Moose moves on at 5:10.

Rich Swann is in at #3 and looks rather nervous about facing the monster. A running hurricanrana has Moose in trouble but he’s right back with a dropkick to send Swann outside. They switch places with Swann’s running hurricanrana off the apron earning himself a bit of a breather. Moose throws him down again though and Swann has to beat the count back in. This time Swann manages a DDT but gets lawn darted face first into the middle buckle for two.

Swann slips out of a powerbomb though and kicks Moose in the head, setting up the Lethal Injection for a VERY close two (good near fall there). The middle rope 450 hits Moose’s knees though and the middle rope chokebomb gives Moose two of his own. A hot shot makes it even worse but Swann jumps into a crucifix to finish Moose at 15:14.

Michael Elgin is in at #4 and Swann knows he’s in trouble. Elgin hits a slingshot elbow to the face and we take a quick break. Back with Swann hitting a dive and sending Elgin back inside for a low superkick. A whip sitout spinebuster gives Elgin two and Swann gets sent hard into the corner to rock him again. Swann gets caught in the Crossface but a foot on the ropes lets Swann get out to the apron.

Elgin snaps off a half nelson suplex to drop Swann on his head and knock him silly. A twisting Swanton misses back inside though and Swann starts kicking away. Elgin dragon suplexes him though and nails a hard clothesline to drop him on his head. A top rope superplex hits Swann but he pops right back up with a reverse hurricanrana for two. That’s quite the recovery time there. Elgin is back up with an apron superplex into a Falcon Arrow for another near fall. Another clothesline takes Elgin down again and it’s time to hammer away in the corner….before shoving the referee for the DQ to send Swann forward at 31:23.

Elgin isn’t done though and hits the Elgin Bomb, drawing out some more referees to get rid of him. We take a break and it’s Brian Cage in at #5 to continue the destruction. Swann can barely stand but manages to kick Cage in the head anyway. That’s only good for one though and Cage throws him down with ease. Swann’s superkicks set up another kick to the head and a running step onto the head puts Cage down again. The 450 gets two and it’s a cutter into Lethal Injection for a delayed two. The Phoenix Splash misses though and it’s Weapon X to get rid of Swann at 41:14.

Tessa Blanchard is in at #6 to complete the field and, after a break with a house show ad, we’re ready to go. Tessa isn’t scared of the monster so he shoves her into the corner. A powerbomb doesn’t work for Cage so Tessa springboard dropkicks him to the floor. Cage hits the F5 onto the apron though and we take another break. Back again with Tessa dropkicking the leg out and scoring with a tornado DDT for two. Another Cage powerbomb attempt is countered with a hurricanrana into the corner.

A top rope splash gives Tessa two but Cage, bleeding from the lip, knocks her away without much effort. Tessa is rocked but hits a superkick into a cutter, setting up the hammerlock DDT for the big near fall. Another hurricanrana sets up Magnum for a rather close two and Tessa can’t believe the kickout. The second Magnum is countered into a buckle bomb but Weapon X is countered into Code Red for the pin and the title shot at 55:17.

Rating: B. This was the Rich Swann Show as he got to stay out there for a long time and get the fans behind him all over again after getting beaten down time after time. The other big deal here is of course Tessa, which you knew was going to be the ending but it doesn’t make things any less special. This match worked on a variety of levels and never felt long, which is pretty impressive for a nearly hour long match. Good stuff here, with the right people doing the right things.

Wrestlers talk about how 2019 went for themselves and Impact.

Wrestlers talk about their favorite match of the year.

Scott says he wants to treat Josh better in 2020. This includes a kiss on the cheek and Josh announces the North as the Tag Team of the Year.

From Impact, November 12.

Tag Team Titles: Eddie Edwards/Naomichi Marufuji vs. The North

North is defending. Eddie and Alexander lock up to start with Eddie taking him down in a headlock. Marufuji comes in but gets headlocked takeovered for his efforts but it’s off to Eddie to work on Page’s arm in a hurry. Some double chops put Page down until Alexander comes back in to send Marufuji into the corner. Everything breaks down though and Eddie hits a dive onto the champs as we take a break.

Back with Page getting chopped some more but he gets in a cheap shot so Alexander can knock Eddie to the floor. A catapult sends Eddie’s throat into the bottom rope and it’s a Rock Bottom backbreaker into a regular backbreaker from Page. Eddie finally gets in a suplex to take Alexander down and it’s Marufuji coming in to clean some house. A kick to Page’s head gets two but he’s back up to strike it out with Marufuji.

The assisted spinebuster doesn’t work so it’s Eddie hitting a Blue Thunder Bomb for two on Alexander. Everything breaks down again until Eddie clotheslines Page for a four way knockdown. Eddie tiger bombs Alexander for two more and the shock on the kickout is real. Page grabs Eddie’s leg so the Boston Knee Party can’t launch. Marufuji gets sent outside and it’s the double Neutralizer for two on Eddie. The assisted spinebuster gives Alexander the retaining pin at 16:43.

Rating: B. This worked, as the North continues to be one of the best things going in Impact, if not the absolute best in the whole company. I don’t remember they didn’t have a very good match, though the problem is they may start running out of opponents. Other than maybe Mack and Swann, who is supposed to challenge them? Maybe we can get a new team eventually, but for now it’s going to be the North for a long time to come.

Scott likes the North.

Wrestlers talk about who had a breakout year.

Tessa Blanchard is the Wrestler of the Year.

Tessa, at home, is very proud to win it and promises to win the World Title.

From Rebellion.

Gail Kim vs. Tessa Blanchard

They stare each other down until Tessa starts slugging, earning herself a stomping in the corner. Tessa is right back with a running hurricanrana to send Gail outside, setting up the big dive. Gail pulls her into the post but gets caught with a Codebreaker out of the corner for two. A powerslam gives Gail two of her own but the Black Widow is countered into a backbreaker.

The trash talk starts rolling, with Tessa even yelling down at Gail’s husband in the crowd. Gail misses a charge and falls out to the floor, setting up a double posting for a double knockdown. Tessa takes her time getting up and gets caught in the Hartbreaker around the post, which still doesn’t make a ton of sense. Back in and Gail fires off forearms to set up a spinning high crossbody.

With the required YOU STILL GOT IT chant going, Tessa shoves Gail to the ramp, where a spinning full nelson faceplant sends her crashing down to the floor. That’s not quite enough for the countout and Tessa is stunned. The slingshot suplex is countered into Eat Defeat for two so Gail goes up. With Tessa following up, she gets caught in a dragon sleeper so it’s a bite to the elbow for the break.

You don’t see that one everyday, which is also the case with the super gorilla press drop to send Gail right back down. Magnum gets two so it’s off to a cobra clutch Crossface for something new. Gail gets her foot on the ropes but that doesn’t count this time as Tessa rolls into the middle of the ring for the clean tap at 16:03.

Rating: B+. Match of the night here with Tessa getting the signature win and continuing to look like the best female wrestler in the world (and one of the best anywhere). They beat each other up here and thankfully they went with the right ending. Tessa is looking like the next megastar though and hopefully Impact knows it.

Post match they hug, as Tessa might be on her way to a face turn. Gail gets the big sign of respect.

Wrestlers on what to expect in 2020.

Wrestlers pick Tessa Blanchard to beat Sami Callihan at Hard To Kill 6-4.

From Slammiversary in the Match of the Year.

Sami Callihan vs. Tessa Blanchard

They both have their own baseball bats. They stare each other down for over a minute before Tessa fires off the forearms to the face. A headscissors puts Sami on the apron and a dropkick sends him to the floor. The suicide dive is countered into a powerbomb though and Sami swings her into the barricade for a thud that made me cringe. A Death Valley Driver on the floor should knock Tessa cold but Sami slams her down instead.

That’s good for an eight count with Sami not even looking at the ring. Back in and Tessa hits a running neckbreaker but Sami runs her over. Tessa rolls up the ramp but she escapes a powerbomb into the crowd. The jumping cutter drops Sami on the ramp and a tornado DDT gives Tessa two back inside.

Sami scores with Get Outta Here and a knee to the face, setting up an STF. Tessa grabs the rope for the break and escapes a super powerbomb, meaning it’s a running Codebreaker out of the corner. The referee gets shoved away though and Sami hits her in the face with the bat for two.

The replacement referee gets knocked down as well and Tessa gets in her own bat shot. Magnum gets two so Tessa switches into a Crossface in the middle of the ring (Callis: “BREAK HIS NECK!”). That’s reversed into a kneeling Tombstone to give Sami two, allowing Tessa to give him thumbs up, thumbs down. The Cactus Special finishes Tessa at 15:01.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure what to think of this one. Tessa didn’t look overwhelmed and her offense was believable against Sami, which was the most important thing. That being said, this wasn’t exactly as epic as the build would have had you believe and it felt weird seeing this in the main event. Tessa fighting men going forward is fine, though they’re going to have to do this carefully to make sure it doesn’t go too far into the unbelievable.

Post match Sami bangs both bats together and hands Tessa hers before leaving.

Tessa promises to win the title at Hard To Kill.

Overall Rating: B+. There’s something interesting about the Match of the Year being the weakest on the show. Anyway, this was almost all about Tessa and that’s what it should have been. The wrestling was the entire point here and that’s what it needed to be. I had a good time watching this and if they can have one awesome go home show, we could be in for a heck of a pay per view next week. Good stuff here as Impact gets to show its better parts, of which there were several last year.

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

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

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

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