It’s the second show in New York and the main story is whether or not Austin Aries is going to cash in the X-Division Title for a shot at the World Title next week. Does TNA think that the fans believe he might keep the midcard title instead of going after the big one using an idea he created? Other than that I’m sure Bully will be chasing Dixie around the arena with a table in hand again. Let’s get to it.

Austin Aries arrives.

We look back at the end of last week’s show where Ray almost put Dixie through a table.

MVP vs. Bobby Roode

Falls count anywhere. There’s no MVP so we go to the back where Angle orders MVP, still on crutches, to the ring. Roode runs to the back and goes after MVP before ramming him into various hard objects. They head back to the arena and fight in the crowd. There hasn’t been a bell yet. MVP throws a beer at Roode and hits him in the ribs with chair but misses a running kick to the face.

They get back to ringside and MVP knocks him down for some two counts. I didn’t hear a bell but I guess that doesn’t matter in a brawl like this. Roode suplexes him on the ramp for two as Kenny King makes a save. Eric Young jumps King from behind and chases him off as Roode is sent into the steps. Back in and MVP nails Roode in the back with a chair over and over. He tries a running boot to drive Roode’s head into the chair but Bobby moves and kicks out the bad knee. Now it’s Roode with the chair and hammers away at the knee before putting on a bad looking Sharpshooter for the submission at approximately 8:00.

Rating: C. This was nothing too great but at least Roode comes out looking strong. It really would have hurt him if he had lost to a one legged boss, and TNA is NEVER known for having their top face get treated like a loser. Good enough match here though and it’s nice to see a match open the show for a change.

Video on Hardy vs. Lashley last week.

We’re finally to the New York tapings which are a prety big deal for the company. The company will be here for five weeks plus however many they tape at an upcoming set of tapings. The main story at this show will be Bobby Lashley defending the World Title against Jeff Hardy, who won a battle royal last week to earn the shot. Let’s get to it.

We open with a video on Hardy vs. Lashley, focusing on how Lashley is a destroyer and Hardy can be insane when need be.

Kurt Angle is in the crowd and welcomes us to the show. He shows us the six sided ring which makes its return tonight.

Taz is also in the balcony and compares TNA to ECW because their locker rooms have the same look in their eyes. He throws in his ECW catchphrases.

Here are Bully Ray and Tommy Dreamer to get things going. They talk about how they helped get ECW on the map back in 1997 and this place feels like ECW did when it took the world by storm. Ethan Carter III and Rhyno break things up with Ethan saying that Bully will not be putting his aunt through a table here, just like he couldn’t in Texas or Pennsylvania. The fans chant YOU CAN’T WRESTLE, but Carter responds with “YES I CAN” and “I’M VERY GOOD!” Dreamer says Carter doesn’t know where he is and the brawl is on.

Rhino/Ethan Carter III vs. Bully Ray/Tommy Dreamer

Joined in progress after a break. Ray drops Carter with a neckbreaker for two. The camera seems to be lower than usual this week. It’s quickly off to Rhino to stomp away but Dreamer elbows him in the jaw. Carter comes in again and is easily dispatched by a double elbow to the jaw. Ray brings Rhino in as everything breaks down.

Spud comes out in a bright orange jacket for a distraction and Carter takes over on Dreamer in the corner. Rhino plants Tommy with a spinebuster for two but Carter gets sent face first into the middle buckle, allowing for the hot tag to Bully. Ray beats up both villains on his own and everything breaks down again with Rhino taking over. Dreamer grabs Spud in but gets rolled up by Carter for the pin at 6:40.

Rating: C-. The match was fine but I’m over these attempts to bring ECW back from the grave every few years. Yeah the live crowds like it, but it makes the company look like it’s desperate to get whatever blood they can out of ECW’s corpse. The match was ok, but does pinning Tommy Dreamer really help Ethan?

The trio arrives.

Kurt Angle puts Austin Aries in a gauntlet match with the X-Division Title on the line and Aries gets to start.

James Storm slaps Sanada and dares him to fight, but says Sanada just does what Great Muta tells him. He calls Sanada a choke artist and leaves.

X-Division Title: Gauntlet Match

This is over the top elimination until there are two left and it becomes a singles match. There are eight men in this with 90 second intervals and it’s champion Austin Aries vs. Eddie Edwards to start. Feeling out process to start until Aries takes him down by the leg and goes into the corner. That goes nowhere as Manik is in at #3. Aries is knocked to the floor through the ropes meaning he’s still in as Manik speeds things up. He goes to the middle rope but Gets caught by Eddie, only to have Aries run in and dropkick Manik in the face.

Aries misses an elbow drop and it’s Davey Richards in at #4. The Wolves of course team up with Davey taking Aries down with a backbreaker and Eddie adds a top rope knee to the chest. Aries and Manik are in trouble as DJZ is in at #5. Edwards nails DJZ, Aries elbows Edwards, Richards drops Aries and Manik dropkicks Edwards. A top rope hurricanrana from Manik takes DJZ out but Manik is eliminated as well as we take a break.

Back with Tigre Uno and Crazzy Steve added to the match and no one else having been eliminated. Sanada is in at #8 to complete the field and he cleans house to take over. Crazzy Steve starts spraying silly string and the blinded Tigre Uno is eliminated. Edwards dumps Steve but Sanada puts out both Wolves to give us a rematch from last week with Aries vs. Sanada in a regular singles match for the title.

Austin sends Sanada to the floor and hits a huge suicide dive to take him out. A slingshot hilo back inside sets up the Last Chancery but Sanada makes it to the ropes. Aries can’t suplex him over the ropes and back inside and Sanada shoulders him in the ribs and hits a springboard chop to the head. Sanada’s tiger suplex gets two but he misses the moonsault. Two discus forearms and the corner dropkick set up the brainbuster to retain Aries’ title at 16:45.

Rating: C+. The match was fine but Aries cleaning out the division before he’s likely dropping the title for a title shot doesn’t do anything for the belt. All it does is set up another tournament between people who didn’t beat the champion to get the belt. That’s the same thing that happens to the title every year and is a major problem with Option C.

Aries helps Sanada back to his feet.

Eric Young and Bobby Roode have formed an alliance and want to get their hands on MVP.

James Storm calls Sanada a loser and beats the tar out of him. Sanada is left laying and Storm calls Muta a fraud.

MVP/Kenny King vs. Eric Young/Bobby Roode

MVP can’t walk and says he has half a leg but is going to wrestle under protest. Eric starts and takes King into the corner for some right hands to the jaw. It’s quickly off to Roode who doesn’t have such great luck as King takes over. King tags in MVP who immediately bails to the floor when Roode gets to his feet.

MVP gets in and tags out to King so the match can continue. Young is taken down and MVP comes in for some actual contact with an elbow drop and something resembling a flapjack. Back to King for a legdrop but Young avoids an elbow drop. A quick cross body allows for the tag off to Roode, who dares MVP to come in. Everything breaks down and MVP hits Roode with a crutch for the DQ at 6:25.

Rating: D+. This was more about filling in time before we get to the big showdown between Roode and MVP, likely at Bound For Glory. The match was nothing special, though I’m not crazy on the idea of two former world champions getting beaten down by a one legged man and Kenny King.

MVP and King destroy both guys with the crutches.

Brittany vs. Madison Rayne

No DQ and no countouts. They slug it out to start until Madison goes to the corner, only to get caught in an armbreaker over the ropes. Thankfully the referee doesn’t count or ask her to break it up. The fight goes outside with Brittany backdropping Madison on the ramp and kicking her in the ribs.

Back in and Brittany rams Madison’s head into the mat before getting two off a Russian legsweep. Madison is thrown back to the floor as the fans chant for Christy Hemme. Brittany tries a reverse DDT on the floor but gets suplexed instead. Back in and Madison hits a package DDT (think a fisherman’s DDT but with Madison not going backwards at all) for the pin at 6:40.

Rating: C. This was more aggressive than usual but I’m really not caring about these two. Brittany was something different when she had a crush on Madison but now she’s just another heel who doesn’t win a lot of matches. At the end of the day, it’s impossible to crack through into the top level of Knockouts and it’s stopping Brittany, just like it has everyone else.

Dixie Carter says Bully is all bark but she’s all bite.

Austin Aries tells Angle that he created Option C for the respect he has for the X-Division Title. Next week he gets to turn in the title for a future shot.

TNA World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Jeff Hardy

Lashley is defending. Hardy tries to hammer away to start but realizes he has to speed things up. He sends Lashley out to the floor and hits a big dive, only to have Lashley trip him up on the steps and send Jeff face first into the steel as we take a break. Back with Lashley in control and choking Jeff on the middle rope. He puts Hardy in a torture rack but some right hands get Jeff free.

A running forearm drops Lashley and a dropkick does the same as the fans chant for CM Punk. Hardy’s headscissors out of the corner is caught in the powerslam but Jeff comes back with a Twisting Stunner and Twist of Fate. The Swanton get two and Jeff takes it back to the floor and rams Lashley’s head into the steps. Hardy goes up for a Swanton to the floor but lands on the steps. Jeff is done and the spear retains Lashley’s title at 12:45.

Rating: C+. This was a win that Lashley needed to get as Jeff Hardy is the guy that is always hanging around the main event and could take the title at any time. They’re actually building Lashley up as a major force and he’s coming off like a monster instead of a guy just keeping the title warm for MVP. That Swanton the steps was insane too.

Kurt Angle says Lashley is the man but stops Dixie from going to the ring. She says let go of her so she can go talk to her people.

Angle comes in and yells at MVP before putting him in a falls count anywhere match with Roode next week.

Here are Dixie, Spud, Ethan and Rhino so Dixie can make fun of the New York fans. She goes on and on about how she humiliated Tommy Dreamer and how embarrassed she is for the people that cheer Bully Ray. She’s going to keep putting Ray through table after table until he understands that this is her company. Cue Bully and Dreamer with a table and Dixie’s cronies are quickly cleared out of the ring. The fans chant YES but Ethan hits Bully low for the save. Rhino and Spud get Dixie into the crowd but D-Von returns to help beat down Ethan. What’s Up sets up a 3D through the table to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The show was entertaining for the most part though there were some flaws. The ECW stuff is something they need to cut out as fast as they can. It’s pure nostalgia, but do you really want to have your company looking like it’s all about dragging ECW out of its grave? As long as it’s limited to guys like the Dudleys, Rhino and Dreamer it won’t be horrible, but it doesn’t need to happen.

Other than that the show was actually good stuff with the main event scene starting to take shape as Lashley has main event players lined up for him to run over. It’s probably setting up a showdown at Bound For Glory with…..well you would think Roode but MVP might be getting that spot. Either way the show did its job and that’s a good thing.

Results
Ethan Carter III/Rhino b. Bully Ray/Tommy Dreamer – Rollup to Dreamer
Austin Aries won a gauntlet match – Brainbuster to Sanada
Eric Young/Bobby Roode b. MVP/Kenny King via DQ when MVP used a crutch
Madison Rayne b. Brittany – Package DDT
Bobby Lashley b. Jeff Hardy – Spear

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Survivor Series at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

It’s the last night in Bethlehem, meaning we’re heading for New York next week. Tonight Kurt Angle has scheduled a series of title matches with only the World Title not being on the line. However, there will be a twenty man battle royal with the winner getting a World Title shot at some point in the future. Let’s get to it.

We open with a video about how so many titles are on the line this week. Most of them were last week as well but it’s nice to see matches that matter twice in a row.

Here’s Kurt Angle to declare this the Championship Showcase, meaning every match has championship ramifications. He runs down the card before asking Willow to come out here. Kurt says Jeff Hardy became Willow because of the dark place that Dixie Carter had put him in. Now it’s just Kurt Angle, and Kurt needs the most competitive wrestler in the world, and that’s Jeff Hardy. Kurt isn’t asking Willow to go away forever, but just for tonight.

Austin Aries says he’ll win the X-Division Title tonight.

Tag Team Titles: Wolves vs. Bram/Magnus

The Wolves are defending and it’s Davey vs. Magnus to get things going. A rolling enziguri puts Magnus down and the champions double team him in the corner. Bram comes in as well and gets kicked down just as quickly. It’s off to Bram legally but Davey rams him head first into Eddie ala the British Bulldogs. Magnus gets in a cheap shot from the apron to take over before getting Eddie off the apron so there’s no one for Davey to tag. The challengers take over and Magnus avoids a quick enziguri.

Another kick to the head connects and Bram can’t make a fast enough save. Edwards comes in with fast chops to cleans house before a top rope hurricanrana gets two on Bram. The Wolves sends the Brits to the floor for a double suicide dive. Back in and Davey misses the top rope double stomp but escapes a powerbomb into a backslide. The legal Eddie runs in and grabs Bram’s legs in a rollup for the pin at 7:17.

Rating: C. Nice match here but again, the Wolves need challengers to be built up to challenge them, not for them to beat week in and week out. They don’t need to prove how awesome they are and the division is already weak enough. It was entertaining stuff though and I’m fine with the Wolves like this. Just keep them away from fighting each other for awhile.

Bobby Roode is fired up.

Speaking of Roode, here he is in the arena. He talks about wanting something so much that you need it. For months, Dixie Carter made him sit at home and then MVP did the same. MVP sees him as a threat, but now this threat is in the middle of the ring. He wants to get his hands on MVP and doesn’t care about a doctor’s note. If MVP isn’t here by a count of ten, Roode is coming to the back and ripping MVP apart.

MVP’s music hits at about five and he comes out in a wheelchair and says Roode has made his knee injury even worse. It’s swollen so big that he can’t even get an MRI. He’s so upset that he won’t stand for this. Roode comes up the ramp anyway but has to dispatch Kenny King. MVP is sent down to the ring but King nails Roode with a chair. Eric Young comes out for the save but Lashley runs out to spear him down.

James Storm sits down with Sanada in the back and says Sanada will disgrace Japan and the Great Muta if he loses the title. Storm says Muta controls Sanada through the title, but Storm likes what he sees in Sanada. Interesting indeed.

We see the Angle and Willow segment again.

Angle says he thinks he got to Hardy, and that was his goal.

X-Divison Title: Sanada vs. Austin Aries

Sanada is defending and quickly spins out of a wristlock into a headlock on the mat but Aries pops right out of it. A dropkick nails Aries but he’s right on his feet again for a standoff. They head to the mat for the Last Chancery from Aries but Sanada is quickly in the ropes. Sanada puts on a rolling cradle for two and Aries is dizzy. A running clothesline puts him on the floor and but he slides in before Sanada can dive. Back in and Aries shoves him off the top to break up a springboard attempt, allowing him to hit a top rope ax handle to the floor.

Back in and Aries goes up, only to get dropkicked out of the air. Sanada sends him to the floor for a running dive off the apron but Aries counters the tiger suplex. The running dropkick in the corner sets up the brainbuster but Sanada flips out and gets the tiger suplex for two. The moonsault connects for two but an Aries avoids a second. The brainbuster gets two and the 450 gives Aries the pin at 8:26.

Rating: B. The match was awesome, but this basically makes Sanada’s entire reign totally pointless. It’s going to hurt the title even more when the belt is vacated and we have to have yet another tournament for the title and no big name enters it because there’s no reason to care about the X-Division Title until next July. Option C might be the worst thing ever for the division.

Ray doesn’t want to talk about Rhino and we go to a break very abruptly. We get the full version of the interview after we get back, with Ray shouting at the interviewer about how he’s going to talk to Rhino face to face.

Ethan Carter III says Rhino is going to reveal the real Bully.

Bully comes out to the ring and says when he was starting out, Bam Bam Bigelow gave him some advice: by the time he was established, he could count the number of true friends he had on one hand. That brings Ray to Rhino, who he wants out here right now, face to face. He gets Rhino but also gets Spud and Ethan Carter III. Bully demands answers from Rhino but Rhino says this is about the two of them. When Rhino was watching Team 3D being announced for the Hall of Fame, Rhino realized that Bully was a con man.

Ray has conned Paul Heyman and Dixie Carter. Bully says that’s a cop out and says Rhino has been brainwashed. This is just jealousy and Ray is in the Hall of Fame because the people say he should be. Rhino is responsible for his own career and is the only reason he got fired from WWE and TNA. He was hardcore at one point but now he’s just a coward. Ethan says he paid off Rhino because Rhino needs the money. Ray says he’s going to rip Carter apart but gets Gored. The beatdown ensues but Tommy Dreamer makes the save with a kendo stick. You know what the chant is.

The Beautiful People complain about how their flirting didn’t get them anywhere. Angelina says she’s going to win the title back tonight.

Knux says the Menagerie should win tonight because they’re tailor made for a battle royal.

Knockouts Title: Angelina Love vs. Gail Kim vs. Brittany vs. Madison Rayne

Gail is defending. Brittany jumps Madison on the way to the ring but Gail comes out for the save. Things settle down with Gail faceplanting Madison but Angelina pulls the champion out to the floor. Angelina and Brittany double team Madison with Love playing on Brittany’s inexperience to get a quick near fall. Madison hits a kind of suplex jawbreaker to put Brittany down but walks into the Botox Injection from Angelina. Eat Defeat to Love is enough to retain Gail’s title at 5:35.

Rating: D+. I can’t count how many times I’ve seen a match that was almost identical to this one between the Knockouts. They’ve been doing the exact same kind of multi girl matches for years now and, just like the people in them, they’re only slightly different than the last one. These get old and pretty easy to predict very fast.

Austin Aries says he always seems to have the X-Division Title around this time of the year. The title is the key for a title shot and everyone thinks he’s going to cash the title in for a title shot in New York City but he likes to mix things up. He says the division is important again.

Video on Destination X, three weeks from tonight.

Bobby Roode doesn’t care about MVP and the trio, but he’ll be back for them later.

MVP talks about how Lashley is a franchise player. We see Lashley working out wearing the title belt.

Battle Royal

Knux, Crazy Steve, The Freak, Bobby Roode, Eric Young, Ethan Carter III, Rockstar Spud, Manik, DJZ, Bram, Sanada, Magnus, Jesse Godderz, Bully Ray, Jeff Hardy, Mr. Anderson, Kenny King, Gunner, James Storm, Tigre Uno

The winner gets a title shot next week. Roode is now in long tights. Hardy comes out as Jeff Hardy for the first time in a few months. I think I’ve got everyone in the match but it’s always hard to tell. Jesse quickly dropkicks Crazy Steve out for the first elimination but the Freak puts him out a few seconds later. DJZ goes after the two remaining members of the Menagerie and is quickly eliminated. Bram and Magnus put the Freak out and Knux misses a big boot, allowing them to dump him as well. Storm knocks Hardy to the apron and bites Hardy’s fingers but can’t get an elimination.

Bram forearms Tigre Uno out as the ring is clearing a bit. Sanada is tossed as well before Roode clotheslines Magnus to the floor. Storm does the same to Anderson and tosses Gunner as well. Hardy gets rid of Bram, bringing out Abyss to hammer Bram to the back. Kenny King misses a charge at Manik and is able to eliminate him from the apron. Roode and Storm have the required showdown as we go to a break.

Back with Roode dumping Storm, getting us down to a final group of Spud, Carter, Ray, Young, King, Hardy and Roode. Spud tries to chop Ray and gets grabbed low for his efforts.
Ray knocks out Spud and Ethan but eliminates himself in the process. Down to four now. Young is down in the corner as Roode spinebusts King, only to have MVP get in a cheap shot to Bobby with his crutch for an elimination.

Young dumps King and we’re down to Hardy vs. Eric. They shake hands and we’re ready to go. A quick belly to belly attempt sends Hardy to the apron but he comes back in with a jawbreaker. Young is sent over the corner for a Flair Flip so of course he struts along the apron. Hardy is nice enough to not nail him but a dropkick knocks Young out for the at 16:00.

Rating: C+. This was a decent enough battle royal as they kept things moving fast enough that it didn’t get boring. Hardy winning the title shot was pretty obvious the second his music hit but he’s one of the best choices. I have no idea where Samoa Joe was, but I’m assuming this is setting up Joe vs. Angle down the line.

Jeff says he won, bad hair and all. He’s the next World Champion and is doing it for the creatures. Lashley comes out and holds up the belt to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. I actually liked tonight’s show for the most part, but the X-Division stuff gets on my nerves. It’s such a waste of potential for the division and comes off too much like Money in the Bank. Other than that though we had two good matches and a decent enough battle royal to set up a big main event next week. The show did its job and wasn’t terrible so it works well enough for me.

Results
Wolves b. Bram/Magnus – Rollup to Bram
Austin Aries b. Sanada – 450 Splash
Gail Kim b. Madison Rayne, Angelina Love and Brittany – Eat Defeat to Love
Jeff Hardy won a battle royal last eliminating Eric Young

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Survivor Series at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

As usual, things are changing in TNA. After last week, Kurt Angle is the new TNA boss, which means it’s Angle vs. Dixie now which is far better than Dixie vs. MVP. That being said, MVP still has power due to owning part of the company but he doesn’t have onscreen authority. In other words, things are overcomplicated and another version of the exact same idea TNA has been trying for years. Also Lashley defends against Eric Young tonight. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Angle becoming the new boss last week.

Here’s Angle to open things up. He welcomes us to the Red White and Blue Throwdown, but first of all he has a special announcement. Kurt invites Earl Hebner out here and reinstates him to right one of MVP’s wrongs. Angle reads the card off a piece of paper before Samoa Joe cuts him off.

Joe says that Angle is here to save us with his honor but Joe doesn’t buy it. When is Angle going to give himself a title match? Joe thinks it’s when the knee is healed. Angle claims that Joe has been lazy lately but Joe goes on a rant about paying his dues while Angle was in learjets and limousines. If Angle hasn’t heard, Joe is pro wrestling and Angle should be careful what he wishes for.

Kenny King beats up Bobby Roode in the back.

After a break, Angle checks on Roode. Bobby isn’t mad at Angle because he wouldn’t be here without Kurt. Roode wants a match with MVP after this. Angle says come with him.

Tag Team Titles: Menagerie vs. Wolves vs. BroMans

The Wolves are defending and the Menagerie is the Freak and Knux. It’s a brawl to start with the Menagerie cleaning house. They LAUNCH DJZ over the top onto everyone else at ringside. Back in and the Freak suplexes both Wolves at the same time but Jesse tags himself in to work on Eddie. Jesse works on the arm before bringing in DJZ for a Hart Attack. DJZ is no Robbie though as it only gets two, allowing Eddie to hurricanrana both of them down at the same time. A hot tag brings in Davey who sends the Menagerie into each other. Davey throws Jesse into the kick from Eddie for the pin to retain at 4:18.

Rating: C. Nice and fun match here with all three teams looking decent. The Freak as the mindless muscle is the right idea for him as his singles pushes haven’t worked at all. The Wolves need opponents so putting them against two teams at once isn’t the best idea in the world. Still though, not bad.

Roode yells at MVP but MVP can’t fight due to the knee injury. Kenny King is there and gets yelled at as well, but Angle says it’s in the ring in a street fight.

Bobby Roode vs. Kenny King

MVP tries to come out but Angle ejects him. Roode, sporting a bad shoulder from the earlier attack, jumps King in the aisle before the bell. They fight into the stands and then backstage with Roode being sent into a wall and covered in garbage. King is thrown off a low balcony before coming back as they head down to ringside. Roode backdrops King over the barricade and into ringside. King nails him with a chair and throws him inside for a cover as the bell rings. A snap suplex gets two more and King hammers away, but Roode comes back with the Roode Bomb onto the chair for the pin at 1:58.

Ethan Carter III says there is no way Bully Ray will put him or his aunt through a table.

Roode says Angle gave him exactly what he needed, but MVP and Lashley are next.

Austin Aries is with Angle and asks him for a rematch for the X Division Title. Angle grants the request even though he knows it’s for Option C at Destination X. Kurt wants to face Aries some day and Austin likes the idea.

Brittany, clad in red white and blue, calls out Madison to settle all this. Madison says she’ll fight if need be but Brittany wants to apologize instead. She’s sorry this got so out of hand and that she just respects Madison. Rayne says she’s glad Brittany learned something and knows how hard it can be to navigate the locker room as the new girl. They shake hands and Brittany says never meet your heroes because they’ll always disappoint you. She lays Madison out and sends her into the post before hitting a reverse DDT on the floor.

Bully Ray yells about Ethan Carter needing a bunch of help to win the Texas Death match. Tonight, Ethan goes through a table.

MVP says Eric Young’s heart won’t help him against Lashley.

Bully Ray vs. Ethan Carter III

Tables match. Ray hammers away to start and takes it to the floor where he rams Ethan into various objects. Back in and Bully does the Flip Flop and Fly before calling for a table. He takes his sweet time though, allowing Ethan to nail him with a clothesline. Carter hammers away and gets in some shots with Ray’s chain. He drives in right hands in the corner but Ray grabs him for a powerbomb. Spud comes in for a low blow and some double teaming, but Rhyno returns and Gores….Bully, allowing Ethan to chokeslam Ray through the table for the win at 7:08.

Rating: C-. This was all for the angle instead of the match and there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a sign of the return of the ECW guys because a company that went out of business thirteen years ago certainly needs another reunion right? I’m always liked Rhyno though so this isn’t the worst thing in the world. Dixie’s team needed another member anyway.

Eric Young tells Roode he doesn’t care about what the paper says. He’s ready for Lashley.

We recap the Samuel Shaw story. He’s been released to Gunner’s supervision. Shaw is back at the arena and sounds nervous but sane. They run into Anderson and Ken isn’t pleased. Gunner says give him another chance and goes into his story about his friend with PTSD, because TNA thinks post traumatic stress disorder and being an insane stalker are the same thing. Anderson says if Shaw has changed, he can talk to someone else. They go find Christy and Shaw apologizes. Christy and Anderson don’t seem convinced, even though Shaw sounded both sincere and sane.

Velvet is all over referee Stiffler who will be refereeing Angelina’s match tonight. Sex is implied if he calls things her way.

Angle tells Stiffler that he isn’t refereeing because it makes TNA look bad.

Knux tells the Menagerie that this is wrestling and not the carnival. Someone wants their money. Knux and Rebel look worried.

Knockouts Title: Angelina Love vs. Gail Kim

Love is defending but Brian Hebner is refereeing. They quickly head outside where Angelina distracts the referee so Sky can post Gail. A hard clothesline gives the champion a near fall and Kim is tied up in the Tree of Woe. Velvet snaps Gail’s throat across the top rope, earning her an ejection. Gail comes back with elbows and shoulders followed by a missile dropkick for two. Kim goes up but gets caught with a Botox Injection to knock her out to the floor. Love breaks up the count because she wants a pin but Kim is up at two. Eat Defeat out of nowhere gives Gail the title back at 6:02.

Rating: D+. So Gail is champion again. How exactly does this change anything at all? It feels like these two have traded the title about a dozen times now and each reign is less interesting than the previous one. This division is so creatively bankrupt and they just need something, ANYTHING, new at this point.

Angle makes a 20 man battle royal for the #1 contendership to the World Title for next week.

TNA World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Eric Young

Lashley is defending. MVP is at ringside so Roode comes out to even the odds. MVP gets caught interfering almost right at the bell so he and Roode are both ejected. Lashley runs Young over and absorbs some right hands before knocking Eric to the floor. Young is holding his ankle and the champion goes after the injury like a smart villain should. Back in and we get a half crab followed by a DDT on the ankle. Eric comes back with a dropkick and, after fighting Lashley off, drops the top rope elbow for two. The leg goes out on a piledriver attempt and there’s the Dominator powerslam. A spear retains Lashley’s title at 7:00.

Rating: C-. This was fine for what it was. It knocks Young out of the main event scene after a decent and surprising run as Lashley gets a clean and dominant win. It would seem like we’re headed towards Lashley vs. Roode at Bound For Glory and there’s nothing wrong with that. Not a great match but for a title rematch it did its job.

Overall Rating: C. This wasn’t too bad. Nothing on here really stands out but it did a good enough job of advancing the stories. The New York tapings seem like the real treat coming up but this was a nice episode to bridge the gap. Nothing really significant happened, but the lack of Dixie or any heel authority figure for that matter is such a nice break. The show wasn’t great but more importantly it wasn’t infuriating. That’s a big step in the right direction.

Results
Wolves b. Menagerie and BroMans – Kick to the chest to Jesse
Bobby Roode b. Kenny King – Roode Bomb
Ethan Carter III b. Bully Ray – Chokeslam through the table
Gail Kim b. Angelina Love – Eat Defeat
Bobby Lashley b. Eric Young – Spear

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Survivor Series at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

We’re still in Pennsylvania for the second of about ten straight taped shows. The big story coming off last week is Lashley winning the World Title from Eric Young to give the trio even more control. MVP was very abusive with his power though so the mighty hand of the invisible Board of Directors might be in play tonight. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s main event.

The trio is in the back and MVP says they’re ready to fight tonight.

Beautiful People vs. Gail Kim/Terryn Terrell

Angelina and Gail get things going with Love missing an early splash in the corner, allowing Gail to hammer with forearms to the jaw. Off to Terryn who hammers away for a bit but gets caught by the double team on the floor. A double elbow drop gets two for Velvet followed by some forearms to the head. A running neckbreaker gets two and we hit the chinlock. Terryn finally escapes to make the hot tag as everything breaks down. Terrell hits a cross body to put both Beautiful People down, allowing Gail to hit Eat Defeat on Angelina for the pin at 6:45.

Rating: D+. Standard Knockouts tag here to set up the latest title match between Gail and Angelina because we haven’t seen them fight enough times already. Again, can we please get some fresh ideas in this division? I can’t remember the last new story we had for the girls, and it’s getting really tiresome.

Bound For Glory is in Tokyo. That’s going to be interesting.

Dixie Carter says it’s a good night to be Dixie Carter.

Here are King and MVP with something to say. There’s a table with champagne set up behind them and three good looking women to make the view a bit better. MVP brings out Lashley and says they conquered last week, just like they promised they would, and now they own the world. Eric Young is going to be asking for his release after the beating they gave him last week. This brings out Eric with his arm in a sling. He knows you can’t fight city hall but he only wants to fight them. Young charges to the ring and gets beaten down by the two healthy guys. Bobby Roode jumps the barricade to make another save.

Back from a break with Roode talking about signing his contract on the same day as Eric Young and how they both have TNA in their blood. Eric Young has spent the last seven years fighting for the love of wrestling and Roode says they both want the title. They want their company back, because that’s what TNA originals say to heel stables on this show. Roode is back to fight for what he loves and doesn’t care what MVP does.

MVP asks to get in the ring and be civilized. The boss says every action has a reaction and Roode’s actions have earned a reaction from MVP. In his capacity as the boss, Roode is officially….interrupted by a guy in a suit. His name is Mr. Armstrong and he’s a member of the board of directors. In a Texas accent, he says MVP is no longer Director of Wrestling Operations and his replacement will be here tonight. Roode nails MVP.

The Menagerie gets a phone call. Apparently they have to win a title or the family business is going under. Crazy Steve is going to win the X-Division Title tonight. The Bro Mans come in and say they’re getting the shot because they speak strong style. An unmasked Manik comes in and says he’s getting the shot. He puts on the mask and says Steve has something on his face.

Spud and Dixie think she gets power back tonight.

X-Division Title: Sanada vs. Crazy Steve vs. Manik vs. DJZ

Sanada had the choice of opponent and picked all of them. Fast pace to start with Sanada getting a quick rollup but DJZ trips him to the floor. Steve bites DJZ’s head and fingers but Sanada sunset flips both of them, sending both guys flying. A missile dropkick puts both guys down but Manik puts the champion in an Indian Deathlock. Manik hits a huge dive to take out all three challengers on the floor. Back in and DJZ hits a tornado DDT on Steve but we get a Tower of Doom to send both guys down. A quick tiger suplex from Sanada is enough for the pin on DJZ at 3:26.

Rating: C. Some nice high spots but that’s really about it. It’s nice to see them finally pay attention to the title a few weeks before Destination X, even though it’s not going to mean a thing after July or whenever the special airs. Sanada isn’t going into the show as champion, which makes the last few months of his reign fairly pointless.

MVP says no one takes anything from him.

Magnus and Bram say a Monster’s Ball match sounds like an old Friday night to them.

Here are Dixie and Spud to gloat. Fan: “NO ONE CARES! YOU SUCK!” She says she’s always put faith in wrestlers and they keep screwing her over. There’s a table behind her for no apparent reason. Dixie laughs at the fans for buying into MVP’s nonsense and promises to give the fans what they want: More Dixie!

She brings out the lawyer or whatever he is from earlier and offers him a toast. He says there’s been a misunderstanding because Dixie isn’t the new Director. The champagne goes into her face and says this isn’t happening over her dead body. This brings out Bully Ray who drinks some of the champagne and threatens to put them both through a table. Dixie offers $200,000 for him to let her go but he wants the table. Ethan Carter runs out and is easily dispatched and Spud gets the same treatment. Dixie is lited up but Spud moves the table for the save.

Dixie is panicking and Ray says he was that close.

Mr. Anderson vs. James Storm

It’s a brawl on the floor to start as the announcers speculate about who the new boss might be. They fight into the ring and the swinging neckbreaker puts Storm down but Anderson might have hurt his shoulder. Closing Time and a Backstabber get two for Storm but he misses the Last Call. The Mic Check is countered by a grabbed rope and the Last Call gives Storm the pin at 2:19.

Gunner has gotten Samuel Shaw out of the asylum under his care. Shaw shakes his hand.

James Storm asks Sanada if he’s ready for the pressure of Destination X and implies that he’s coming for the title.

Tommy Dreamer jumps Ethan Carter and they brawl in the back. The fight spills into the arena with Dreamer hitting Ethan with a trashcan but getting hit low and slammed on the ramp. Dreamer suplexes him onto the floor but gets whipped into the steps. Ethan goes into the steps as well and they head inside where Dreamer keeps hammering away. Security breaks it up and the fans say let them fight.

Willow and Abyss are ready for Monster’s Ball.

The trio goes to wait on the new boss. After a break they attack the driver when he won’t say who he’s driving.

Bram/Magnus vs. Abyss/Willow

Monster’s Ball meaning anything goes and weapons are encouraged. Abyss hammers on Bram to start and knocks him out to the floor, leaving the other two in the ring to brawl. Abyss sets up a barbed wire board between the ring and barricade but stops to throw weapons into the ring. The Brits hammer away with trashcans but Willow comes back with a double clothesline. Whisper in the Wind drops Magnus and a trashcan to the head puts Bram down. The Swanton misses but Abyss finds Janice. As usual though it gets stuck in the turnbuckle before any murder can take place.

Bram is busted open but he’s able to handcuff Abyss to the barricade. The double teaming ensues on Willow but Abyss breaks the cuffs and makes a save. Magnus lays him out with a trashcan, only to have Willow makes the save with a kendo stick and Twists of Fate all around. Magnus throws the chair to knocks Willow off the top and through the barbed wire in a big crash. Abyss has thumbtacks and, after avoiding a shot from Janice, chokeslams Magnus down onto them. Bram nails Abyss in the ribs with Janice for the pin at 9:00.

Rating: C. This had all the standard spots for a Monster’s Ball match but the violence was solid enough to make the whole thing work. TNA overuses this gimmick a bit, though at least it’s not as bad as some of the stuff WWE does. This was good enough and put over Bram and Magnus which was the whole point. Good enough.

The lawyer comes out and announces Kurt Angle as the new Director because….well who else was it going to be? Angle says it’s time for him to give back but here’s the trio to interrupt. MVP can’t believe that this is his replacement and violence is threatened, but Angle shouts that HE’S THE FREAKING BOSS. Angle makes Lashley vs. Young II for next week and reinstates Bobby Roode. The brawl is on to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was MUCH better than last week as they actually had some other stuff going on besides the one main story. The show wasn’t great or anything but after last week I would have given anything a better rating. The big surprise at the end wasn’t really a surprise at all but at least it’s back to a face vs. a heel on top of the company. Given that this is TNA I’d be stunned if Angle didn’t walk into Tokyo as a heel though. They’re taking a major risk by taping so many weeks of shows in advance but this was at least a good second step.

Results
Gail Kim/Terryn Terrell b. Beautiful People – Eat Defeat to Love
Sanada b. Crazy Steve, Manik and DJZ – Tiger suplex to DJZ
James Storm b. Mr. Anderson – Last Call
Bram/Magnus b. Willow/Abyss – Bram pinned Abyss after hitting him with Janice

We’re out of Slammiversary and Eric Young is still World Champion. However, there is something new tonight to keep our minds off of him: TOMMY DREAMER! Yes, the man who used to be in a big time indy promotion about thirteen years ago and now runs another promotion which sounds like a tribute to ECW (I know there’s more to it than that) is back because of some angle involving Bully Ray at a recent House of Hardcore show. Apparently Dixie has invited Dreamer to the Impact Zone for a confrontation, because Dixie being at war with two groups just isn’t enough Dixie. Let’s get to it.

We open with a package on Slammiversary, highlighting Young pinning Aries to retain the title.

Here’s the Trio to open the show. MVP looks upset and says he’ll get straight to the point: no he can’t wrestle and he’s still disgusted by what happened last Sunday. Dixie cried to the board of directors and probably threw around some money, earning him an official reprimand. He doesn’t care to hear from some stuffed shirt in Dallas because he’s been making this company the best he can. The show is directed by and starring MVP with his great supporting cast.

That brings MVP to Eric Young, who MVP wants out here right now. Eric says Slammiversary was great but he didn’t get to punch MVP in the face. MVP accuses Eric and Aries of collusion to keep the title, but Young says the fans are in charge around here. He doesn’t want to wait two hours and wants to come beat up MVP right now. Kenny King grabs the mic and wants a title shot right now, which Eric is totally cool with.

TNA World Title: Eric Young vs. Kenny King

Young hammers away to start and nails a quick Thesz press, only to be sent out to the floor in front of Lashley and MVP. This brings out the Wolves, Joe and Aries with chairs to even the odds. King nails a dive onto Young and puts on a chinlock back inside. Eric fights up and makes his comeback but gets punched in the ribs coming off the top. The Royal Flush is quickly countered into a small package though and Eric keeps the title at 3:38.

Rating: D+. Nothing to see here due to a lack of time but the four guys coming to the ring was more interesting. Someone is going to have to join MVP’s team soon as it’s 5-2 at this point, but I’m not sure who it could actually be. Joe and Aries are hot right now so they would be the most likely candidates.

Back from a break and the Trio are yelling at the bell ringer, claiming that Kenny kicked out. Eric Young and his supporters come out to make the save. MVP gets on the mic and yells about being God. He’s making another World Title match tonight with Lashley getting a title shot. The Wolves are going to defend tonight against Aries/Joe and another team that isn’t announced. First though, Earl Hebner needs to get out here FAST. MVP yells at him for counting slowly and fires Earl. Brian Hebner comes out to plead for his dad’s job but it doesn’t work. MVP was acting like he had lost his mind here.

The Carters are here and pleased with what happened on Sunday. Dixie will respond to a keyboard warrior tonight.

Eric promises to defend the belt all night long. What happened with Earl isn’t cool though. He gets a phone call from someone and needs the guy here tonight. Eric leaves his phone and the call was from Kurt Angle.

Tag Team Titles: Austin Aries/Samoa Joe vs. Wolves vs. Willow/Abyss

Aries and Willow get things going and trade some headlocks. Austin takes him down and brings in Joe for a running knee drop. Willow brings in Abyss to splash Joe in the corner followed by Poetry in Motion for good measure. Willow gets caught in the Clutch and Aries puts Abyss in the Last Chancery but the Wolves make the double save. Joe and Aries are sent to the floor but slide in to avoid dives and hit suicide dives of their own. We see Tommy Dreamer arriving and we take a break.

Back with Abyss hammering away on Davey and glaring the referee down to the floor. Eddie comes in and a double dropkick knocks Abyss into the corner for a tag off to Aries. The Wolves quickly take Aries down and Eddie drops a top rope knee drop for two. A loud chop has Aries in more trouble and the champions double team him in the corner. In a nice combo, Eddie German suplexes Aries and Davey rolls him up for a close two. Aries dropkicks Davey down and hits a discus forearm to send him into the corner, but right into Abyss.

Aries rolls away and makes the tag off to Joe as things start to break down. The backsplash and powerslam get two on Abyss followed by a middle rope kick to the chest. Abyss gets over for a tag to Willow as everything breaks down. Aries, Joe and the Wolves wind up on the floor so Willow can hit a huge dive to take everyone down. Back in and Davey blocks the Swanton with knees, setting up a powerbomb from Eddie into the Backstabber from Davey to retain at 13:10.

Rating: B-. Good match here and finall something that got time to develop. That’s one of Impact’s biggest issues anymore: there’s no time for a match like this, meaning nothing can really get going. The Wolves need competition and if makeshift teams of former World Champions are how they get there then so be it.

MVP tells King and Lashley to take care of Angle if need be.

We get the explanation for Tommy Dreamer being here tonight. He runs House of Hardcore, an independent promotion, and received permission to use TNA talent. Dixie intervened and pulled the talent at the last minute and Dreamer is upset. He gets a live mic tonight.

Samoa Joe and Austin Aries are escorted out of the building.

MVP makes the Wolves defend the Titles again tonight against Bram/Magnus.

Here are Dixie and Spud so she can brag about Slammiversary. She tells Bully that she’ll never go through a table and goes on a rant about negative haters telling her how to run her company and hiding behind a keyboard. This brings her to Tommy Dreamer, who gets to talk about why he hates Dixie in person.

Dreamer comes out and Dixie says she’s starting to remember who he is. She rants about him hiding behind 140 characters in his little hardcore promotion and offers to let him talk. Dreamer thanks her for letting him be here but has to stop for an ECW chant. Tommy talks about social media and how they met on Twitter. They sat at her home and watched a football game, then set up Hardcore Justice as a way to give the ECW fans and wrestlers closure.

Now Dreamer watches Impact and is disgusted by what he sees her doing. What happened to the woman that sat in the crowd and then drank beers with the ECW guys in the ring? Now it’s the Dixie Carter Show out here (Spud: “YES!”) and Dreamer can’t handle it. If Dixie wants her own reality show, go to Hollywood and get one. Dreamer does just run a small company but he travels the world and talks to wrestling fans. He talks to fans who are battling cancer and tells them to watch wrestling.

Dreamer was at Slammiversary and saw Dixie be a fan again, so please remember why she fell in love with wrestling in the first place. Dixie nearly breaks down and hugs Dreamer….and hits him low. Spud and Ethan run in and beat Dreamer out to the floor. Not sure what the point of it was but Dreamer’s speech wasn’t bad.

Angle arrives and asks Lashley and King to get him MVP. They don’t seem to approve.

MVP comes up to Angle to tell him that he doesn’t have time to talk.

Tag Team Titles: Wolves vs. Bram/Magnus

The Wolves work over Magnus’ arm to start but Eddie gets sent to the floor and Bram whips him into the barricade. Back in and Eddie kicks Magnus in the face before diving over to make the tag to Davey. Everything breaks down and Magnus basically no sells a bunch of kicks in the corner. Davey does the throw one man into the other and dropkick him into a DDT spot (I can’t stand that thing) but Bram pelts a chair at Davey for the DQ at 4:30.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to go anywhere, much like the entire show tonight. The Wolves need challengers and Bram/Magnus fit the description, but in a show this rushed due to a LONG Dreamer speech, there’s no time to showcase the match at all. Bram wanting to hurt people instead of win is interesting though.

Abyss and Willow save Davey from having his neck Pillmanized.

MVP talks to a crying Brian Hebner and implies that he’s fired if Brian doesn’t screw over Eric.

MVP talks to a crying Brian Hebner and implies that he’s fired if Brian doesn’t screw over Eric.

Magnus and Bram reveal they were paid off to hurt the Wolves. Abyss and Willow attack them.

Gail Kim brings out the returning Terryn Terrell. We get the required “I respect you” speech Terryn says she’s back after having a baby girl but remembers being tied 1-1 with Gail. Therefore, we need a rubber match to determine the best Knockout. This brings out the Beautiful People with Angelina saying Gail doesn’t run this division. Gail and Terryn get jumped but eventually Terrell cleans house and the Beautiful People are sent running. Nothing special here but it was ANYTHING other than MVP/Dixie so I’ll take it.

Speaking of MVP, he goes to see what Angle wants. Angle wants MVP to look inside himself and see what he’s really doing. This goes nowhere as Angle is ejected from the building as well.

Gail and Terryn are sent out for no apparent reason.

JB says he’s never seen anything like this because the backstage area and productions staff is completely gone. MVP pops up because his 198 segments tonight haven’t been enough. He ejects JB and the cameraman for good measure.

TNA World Title: Bobby Lashley vs. Eric Young

Young is on his own while King and MVP are in Lashley’s corner. A clothesline puts Lashley to the floor and a big cross body off the top puts Lashley down again. Back in and Eric’s cross body is caught in mid air but he rolls Lashley up for two. A HUGE backdrop puts the champion down again and Eric is sent to the floor. Back from a break with Eric in trouble and getting suplexed down with one arm.

The champion makes his comeback and gets two off his third cross body of the match. Lashley stomps him in the corner but misses a charge, only to come back with a kick to the ribs. Eric nails the piledriver out of nowhere but King pulls the referee out at two. Lashley nails Kenny by mistake and Eric hits a quick DDT. The top rope elbow misses though and Lashley spears him down for the pin and the title at 8:45.

Rating: D+. This was just a step above a squash for Lashley and WHY DID THIS NOT HAPPEN ON SUNDAY? I’m sure there’s some reason for it but given that it’s TNA I doubt they can explain it to you. Thankfully Young doesn’t come off as a worthless champion, but he’s only a step above transitional.

Results
Eric Young b. Kenny King – Small package
Wolves b. Austin Aries/Samoa Joe and Willow/Abyss – Powerbomb/Backstabber combo to Willow
Wolves b. Bram/Magnus via DQ when Bram used a chair
Bobby Lashley b. Eric Young – Spear

It’s the go home show for Slammiversary and the big story is of course a war between Dixie Carter and MVP because where would we be without the focus being on Dixie? The problem with Impact’s taping schedule rears its head again tonight and this weekend though as MVP is injured and may not be able to go on Sunday, so everything tonight may mean nothing at all. Let’s get to it.

We open with a video narrated by MVP, talking about how he’s risen to power.

Here’s Eric Young in gear to open the show. Young says this Sunday is the biggest match of his career but he wants to say something to the trio in person. MVP comes out and explains that he and Dixie don’t see things the same so Eric has MVP’s undivided attention. Eric is ready for Sunday but MVP says he’s still half man and half amazing, so after he takes the title on Sunday, Eric can go back to fishing.

After the plug for Young’s fishing show, Eric asks that Sunday be a fair fight. MVP likes the idea but he can’t guarantee that Lashley and King can control themselves. Young says he has no problem with losing a fair fight, but getting beaten down three on one isn’t wrestling. He’s willing to do anything to make sure it’s even on Sunday and MVP likes the sound of that.

Young can pick the stipulation on Sunday, if Eric can beat all three of them in one night. King says Eric couldn’t beat two of them but Eric is ready to try. MVP is willing to give Eric a break and says Eric can pick the stipulations if he wins 2/3. The deal is made and it’s Lashley up first.

Eric Young vs. Bobby Lashley

Eric hammers away to start but gets drilled with forearms in the corner. A backdrop puts Bobby down but Eric comes back with a running forearm that appeared to mostly miss. Young avoids a charge in the corner but does a Flair Flip into the sliding sunset flip. Lashley will have none of that though and launches Eric to the floor.

Eric is sent into the steps and comes up holding his back. Lashley is no idiot and puts on a torture rack followed by an over the shoulder backbreaker. Young punches his way out and nails a nice dropkick before stopping a charging Bobby with two boots in the corner. He jumps off the corner into the Dominator powerslam though and Lashley gets the pin at 5:11.

Rating: D+. Basic match here and I already don’t like the booking here. Young went from fresh to pinned clean in less than six minutes three days before a PPV title defense. You have Young beat King before this match and then have him lose to Lashley to protect him and get the same result. Why is that so hard?

Lashley goes after Young again but Samoa Joe makes the save.

Willow says he’s bruised but not broken. He’ll turn the tide tonight because patience is on vacation.

Eric Young can’t stand up but says he has to go back out there.

Samoa Joe says this is the latest sign of a problem with MVP.

Here are Bram and Magnus in street clothes with something to say. Bram talks about how Magnus was treated so badly and turned into someone Bram didn’t know. Magnus says he and Bram are unstoppable and they’ve made Jeff Hardy so scared that he’s gotten a new identity. Willow comes out and says he’s from Jeff Hardy’s Imagin-I-Nation and says he goes where Jeff can’t.

Willow vs. Magnus is set for Sunday and Willow says they’ll (as in himself and someone else) will celebrate. Bram: “You and Jeff Hardy? YOU’RE THE SAME BLOODY PERSON!” Willow admits that he’s Hardy and says someone will be in his corner on Sunday. Bram asks who and it’s Abyss, who comes out to clean house.

Ethan Carter III says his aunt isn’t here tonight but he’ll take care of the family business. They’re the Carters after all.

Robbie E. vs. Knux

The comedy story continues as Robbie is terrified of clowns, including Crazy Steve at ringside. Robbie hits on Rebel but The Freak easily chases him off. Robbie’s right hands are stopped by a Steve distraction, allowing Knux to hit a nice running cross body. E. comes back with a nice middle rope clothesline but DJZ and Steve get in a horn off. Knux splashes Robbie in the corner as the Freak takes care of the other Bro Mans. Back in and a nice Sky High pins Robbie at 3:09.

Rating: D+. Not much to see here but that Sky High was really nice, as was Rebel. At the end of the day, the division needs challengers for the Wolves but one of the few teams is being wasted in this comedy feud. To be fair though, the Bro Mans are comedy characters so what else do you expect?

Post match Steve attaches balloons to Robbie’s back to freak him out.

EC3 and Spud are talking in the back when Brooke returns. She doesn’t say anything but she returns.

Ethan and Spud are in the ring with three chairs set up. Ethan brings out Brooke as he plans on exposing the past sins of Bully Ray. He asks Brooke if she was in a relationship with Ray and asks why it’s over. Carter accuses Ray of being an alcoholic and trying to put Brooke through a table but Brooke denies it. Spud says he can’t deal with this anymore because he has the results. Apparently Ray IS the father, even though Brooke hasn’t had a baby. Spud produces pictures of Ray next to an angry looking kid but Ethan is annoyed. He threatens Brooke until Ray comes out and runs them off.

Before he deals with Carter and Spud, Ray wants to apologize to Brooke. He treated her horribly despite her being an amazing girlfriend. Now Ray is in a better place in his life and wants to wish Brooke the best. They hug and Ethan sounds like he’s gagging. Ethan and Ray argue for a bit until Ethan challenges Ray to a tables match on Sunday, because Ray is putting Dixie through a table over Ethan’s dead body. Ray loves the idea of a dead body and starts a chant about it, but he’ll decline the tables match. Instead, since we’ll be in Carter Country in Dallas, let’s make it a Texas death match. Ethan says it’s on.

MVP tells Kenny King to keep focused out there tonight.

Kenny King vs. Eric Young

Second match in Young’s 2/3 challenge tonight. Young gets armdragged down to start and his back is already bothering him. They head to the floor with the champion in even more trouble. Back in and Young shoves him off the top, only to get slammed down for his troubles. Young avoids a springboard Swanton Bomb and nails the piledriver out of nowhere for the pin at 5:12.

Rating: D+. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and the outcome was already completely clear. I still don’t get why this wasn’t in another order, but it’s TNA so this isn’t the biggest problem that they have to deal with. It also doesn’t help that the fans are already sick of seeing the same people over and over again and now they get to see the same guy three times in one night.

Eric says he’ll keep fighting.

Brittany vs. Madison Rayne vs. Gail Kim

Winner gets Angelina on Sunday. Brittany and Madison double team Gail to start but Madison won’t high five her. Gail dropkicks both of them to the floor and does it again through the ropes. Cue the Beautiful People as we take a break. Back with the Beautiful People on commentary and Madison hitting a headsicssors on Gail, followed by a slow motion victory roll for two. Gail puts a leg choke on Brittany but gets caught in a cross armbreaker by Madison.

That makes Gail let go of her hold but she rolls Madison up for two. Kim goes up top but gets caught in a double superplex (with her thankfully kicking off the post to make it easier for them) to put all three down. Madison nails Brittany but gets sent to the floor as a result. Gail puts Brittany in the figure four around the post as the Beautiful People come out to ringside. Kim runs Brittany over as Angelina distracts the referee. Velvet sprays Brittany in the eyes by mistake, allowing Gail to hit Eat Defeat for the pin at 10:09.

Rating: D+. This gives us I believe the 284th title match between Angelina and Gail. That’s the problem with the entire Knockouts division as a whole: it’s the same core group of about five girls having the same feuds and the same matches over and over and over with only occasionally someone jumping into the division, getting a title run, then leaving it back to the core group. Just please find a new direction for the next 8 years so I don’t have to watch the Beautiful People vs. Gail/Madison again.

MVP is talking to Brian Hebner and says it’s going to be a fair main event.

We run down the PPV card. The only added match is King vs. Aries.

MVP vs. Eric Young

If Young wins he gets to pick the stipulation. Lashley and King jump Young in the aisle before the bell and we take a break about five seconds after the match starts. Back with MVP staying on Young’ sback and putting him in a camel clutch before just letting it go so he can get two off an uppercut. A wicked powerbomb gets two and a buckle bomb sets up the running boot to the face in the corner for a close two on the champion. MVP grabs a chair to sit in and talk some trash but Young is starting to get up. Instead MVP picks up the chair to blast Eric in the back for the DQ at 10:14.

Rating: C. The match made sense and at least they didn’t give it a clean finish. MVP being the cocky heel makes sense and going after the back as much as he did makes even more sense, but I’ve over this feud already. MVP almost has to win the title on Sunday, if nothing else to end this over done Eric Young title reign.

MVP says pick whatever stipulation you want and poses with the belt. The trio leaves and Young makes it a cage match to end the show.

Overall Rating: C-. This was significantly better than most of their previous shows but it still had its issues. First and foremost, WAY too much Eric Young, which is another incarnation of the same issue they’ve been having time after time now: too much of the same idea, meaning that if you don’t like that one idea, there’s no need for you to watch the show. The stuff they had wasn’t terible and it set up the payoff at the end well enough, but I don’t really want to see Young for a fourth time in three days.

Other than that, the show wasn’t that bad and they did a good job of setting up the show on Sunday. That’s TNA in a nutshell: the payoff is usually decent, but man alive is it hard to get through the buildup. The wrestling was pretty standard tonight, but a lot of angles were advanced and you can see the logical matches coming on Sunday.

However, a five match card with a comedy match, a Knockouts three way and then three Eric Young matches (including the World Title match three days before the pay per view) doesn’t do it for me, especially when there were so many people (Aries, Anderson and Storm to be exact) that didn’t get any time tonight. Also the X-Division is having a multi man ladder match on Sunday and wasn’t mentioned at all here. That’s TNA for you: they do some ok stuff, but it’s at a bad expense of other stuff.

Results
Bobby Lashley b. Eric Young – Dominator
Knux b. Robbie E. – Sky High
Eric Young b. Kenny King – Piledriver
Gail Kim b. Brittany and Madison Rayne – Eat Defeat to Brittany
Eric Young b. MVP via DQ when MVP used a chair

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Survivor Series at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

We’re only a few weeks away from Slammiversary and the interesting thing is MVP has injured his knee in a match in England. However, everything tonight has been taped in advance, so unless something taped has been added in, it’s going to be interesting to see if he can make the title match or not. As for tonight, I’m sure we’re going to be bombarded with stuff about the trio which still needs a name. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of the Trio’s dominance until Samoa Joe made the save to end last week’s show.

The trio is looking for Samoa Joe.

Samoa Joe comes out with something to say. Joe talks about MVP looking for him, so here he is to make things easy for the boss. Cue the trio with King saying he’s tired of Joe trying to be a tough guy. Joe gets right in MVP’s face and tells him what the mouthpiece can do with his mouth. MVP says time is money and Joe is wasting his. Joe calls MVP a scumbag and a liar but MVP yells at him for bailing after losing a gauntlet match. Unlike Joe, MVP did his job. Joe wants to fight all of them tonight but here’s Austin Aries to interrupt. Aries wants in on this fight, so MVP makes Aries vs. Joe for tonight, loser leaving TNA.

Bram is ready for his fight with Willow tonight. However, he doesn’t think Magnus will ever be ready.

Willow vs. Bram

Willow hammers away in the corner to start but Bram takes over on the floor. Back in and an elbow to the jaw puts Willow down for some trash talking stomps. Willow nails three straight dropkicks including the slingshot version in the corner. They head outside again and Willow hits a big dive to take over again. Poetry In Motion off the steps has Bram in trouble but he sends Willow into the steps to put Willow down. Bram rams him into the steps and throws Willow back inside before pulling out that crowbar. Magnus tries to talk him out of it but Magnus blasts Willow with it instead for the DQ at 4:58.

Rating: C. This was more angle than match but the high spots were good. Bram is a solid guy out there and has a great look to him so I can’t complain all that much. Willow isn’t really all that extreme and is pretty much just Jeff Hardy with a stupid looking mask, making the whole thing stupid.

MVP gets in an argument with the Wolves before putting them in a match against each other. If they don’t do it, they lose the belts.

Mr. Anderson is imitating James Storm at some bar.

Davey Richards vs. Eddie Edwards

Richards still has bad ribs. Kenny King is watch the match from the stage and doesn’t seem pleased. The Wolves starts very tentatively as they don’t want to hurt each other but King demands that the Wolves start showing some teeth. They trade modified surfboards followed by a half crab from Edwards. Eddie finally rolls him up for the pin at 4:20.

Rating: D. This wasn’t supposed to be much of a match, but I’m really not sure what it was supposed to accomplish. Given how King was talking you would think he’d get beaten up after the match, but did they really need to fill in six minutes on this whole thing just for that kind of a payoff?

King says that’s not good enough and wants to see someone get beaten up. I think you can figure it out from there, but in case you can’t, King gets taken apart.

Dixie Carter freaks out on MVP for putting Aries and Joe in a contract match. MVP says don’t worry about it.

We recap Brittany telling Madison how she really felt.

Madison tells Brittany to stay out of her title match this week.

Robbie E. is scared of the clown in the Menagerie. Apparently he had a bad experience when he was ten years old and it still freaks him out today.

MVP tells the referee that there must be a winner in Joe vs. Aries.

Joe went home because MVP was another power hungry villain. Aries comes in and says Joe did go home. He says he saw MVP for what he was months ago and got sent home as a result. Tonight they’re both in trouble but only one can win.

The BroMans are in the ring and Robbie is still freaking out over the clowns. This brings out the Menagerie to laugh at the BroMans and scare them to death with the balloons. DJZ and Crazy Steve get in a horn off and the Menagerie cleans house.

Bully and Eric Young tell the referee to do the right thing tonight. Referee Brian Hebner says he has to put food on his table and leaves. Ray says they’ll do what they have to do.

Gunner and Samuel Shaw play Go Fish in the psych ward.

Austin Aries vs. Samoa Joe

Loser is gone. Joe hammers away to start and hits an early Facewash in the corner. Aries fights out of the MuscleBuster and gets two off a rollup but Joe is too big to be taken up in the brainbuster. Instead Joe sends him into the corner for the enziguri but Aries rolls out of the corner Rock Bottom. There’s the Last Chancery but Eric Young comes out to pull Brian Hebner to the floor. He does the same when Joe puts on the Clutch and Bully Ray punches Hebner out. Joe and Aries are ticked off and we’ll call this a no contest at 5:30.

Rating: C-. You can barely grade this due to the ending, which is the biggest problem with the whole thing: this is the second match of the night that hasn’t had enough time to go anywhere and has been about the trio angle instead of anything else. That story is dominating everything and it’s getting annoying in a hurry.

Speaking of which, here’s the trio to say that MVP runs TNA. Ray says MVP has a god complex and should come fight. After some trash talk, we get the following match made for tonight: Bully Ray/Eric Young/Austin Aries/Samoa Joe vs. MVP/Kenny King/Samoa Joe/Bobby Lashley/Ethan Carter III, and let’s make it first blood because why not.

Anderson makes fun of cowboys again.

Now Anderson is in the arena as the most stereotypical cowboy ever. James Storm finally comes out and says he doesn’t take kindly to a man cheating in a drinking contest. Storm wants to fight but not tonight. Anderson comes out and the fight is on with Storm getting the better of it and nailing Last Call. A challenge is made for Slammiversary.

Gunner brings Shaw his sketchbook as part of his therapy. After a break, Gunner looks at drawings of Shaw in Christy’s shadown, Shaw’s house and Shaw’s mom. There’s an unfinished drawing of what looks to be Gunner, who asks Shaw to finish it now.

Knockouts Title: Madison Rayne vs. Angelina Love

Angelina is defending and heads outside at the bell. The chase is on with Angelina chasing after Velvet for some reason until Madison catches the champion in the ring. A Velvet distraction lets Angelina dropkick Rayne to the floor and here’s Brittany to check on her. Back in and Madison nails some clotheslines to take over followed by the mat humper. Not that it matters as Velvet sprays hairspray into Brittany’s eyes to give Love the pin at 4:00.

Rating: D+. Yes believe it or not, this was the exact same thing we’ve seen from the Beautiful People since they reunited. I’m assuming we’re leading towards Brittany being hurt by Madison not wanting her and join the Beautiful People as a result, but it’s not exactly thrilling stuff getting there.

After a break, Madison wants to know why Brittany didn’t help her. Brittany logically points out that she did exactly what Madison told her to do.

Ethan Carter III/MVP/Kenny King/Bobby Lashley vs. Eric Young/Samoa Joe/Bully Ray/Eric Young

First blood for no apparent reason. Aries and King get us going as you have to tag in a match where it’s about blood. A quick Last Chancery is broken up by Ethan so Aries takes him over to the corner for a tag off to Young. Carter runs away from Ray but Bully wants MVP. They slug it out with Ray getting the better of it via a big boot to the face so it’s quickly off to King. Ray catches him in a front facelock and brings in Joe. King runs off as well so we get Lashley vs. Joe in a showdown. That sounds interesting so let’s take a break.

Back with Joe hitting the running enziguri in the corner on Lashley and bringing in the World Champion. Eric gets taken down in the corner and the heels stat their shots to the head. They show some nice thinking by going after the forehead with punches and kicks followed by a hard elbow from MVP. All four villains get in some shots to Young’s head with Ethan asking if Eric is ready to bleed.

Young finally breaks free and makes the tag off to Joe who clans house. Lashley spears him down but gets caught by an Eric missile dropkick. Everything breaks down and we get the secondary finishers a go-go. Aries dives off the top to take out MVP and King but Ethan plants Ray with a spinebuster. Ray grabs the chain and blasts Carter in the head for the blood and the win at 14:45.

Rating: D+. I have no idea why this was a first blood match. It’s not terrible but there was no reason to not have this be a regular match and have Ray pin King. The match didn’t do anything of note though and doesn’t advance the story for the most part. Considering there are only two matches set for Slammiversary, this wasn’t the most logical match.

As the winners celebrate, we cut to the back to see the trio destroying Ethan. Dixie breaks it up and gets in MVP’s face, saying the same blood in Ethan flows through her. MVP doesn’t care so Dixie says if he wants a war, he’s got one. This REALLY felt like something to make us sympathize with the Carters and that’s about as bad of an idea as they could have.

Overall Rating: D+. The more I watch TNA, the more it becomes apparent that this main event scene is a disaster. There are WAY too many people running around in it as you have the eight in the main event tonight, plus the Wolves and Dixie. That’s WAY too much for one angle and it’s bogging things down. It doesn’t help that we have to sit through the long series of segments over and over again every week because almost nothing else gets significant time.

Look at the Wolves for example. Their match was set up in about 30 seconds, it didn’t even last five minutes, and it was never mentioned again. It’s clear that their match wasn’t a priority at all and that they were on the card so we would remember they exist and happen to be champions. The angle needs to split into stand alone stories (Joe vs. Lashley and Ray vs. Carter would work fine) to let the main event breathe a bit.

On top of that, Eric Young feels like he’s just there because he’s World Champion. I know that that’s obvious, but he feels like a supporting character in what’s really Bully and Aries’ fight with the trio. It would make sense to get the title off of Young soon and get the real big names into the feud. Young has been fine in the role, but he’s just not a World Champion caliber guy.

Finally, there is some hope for TNA: the midcard stuff actually has my interest. I’m curious to see where the Gunner/Shaw stuff goes and the Storm vs. Anderson match should be good. Adding Brittany into the Beautiful People stuff is at least something different and Bram/Magnus as a ruthless team is good stuff. There are some solid stories in TNA if you can get past half the roster being in one story.

Results
Willow b. Bram via DQ when Magnus interfered
Eddie Edwards b. Davey Richards – Rollup
Austin Aries vs. Samoa Joe went to a no contest
Angelina Love b. Madison Rayne – Rollup
Bully Ray/Eric Young/Samoa Joe/Austin Aries b. Ethan Carter III/Bobby Lashley/MVP/Kenny King – Chain shot to Carter

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Survivor Series at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

After last week, the only hope that I have is that the focus is spread out a little bit, rather than having almost everything being about the new trio. We’re coming up on Slammiversary with Eric Young defending against MVP, but now we also have to deal with Dixie Carter not being ok with MVP’s actions. Let’s get to it.

We open with a video on the trio’s dominance and desire for power with a lot of clips from last week.

Here’s Bully Ray to say that he’s obsessed with six people here in TNA. They all have bullseyes on their backs and he promises to put them all through tables. There are six tables standing up next to the ramp with names on them: Lashley, EC3, Kenny King, MVP, Spud and Dixie Carter. Ray heads to the ring and calls out anybody for a fight right now. He gets MVP in wrestling gear but the boss is walking slow. MVP says this isn’t happening tonight and there’s no fun in coming to the ring for a fight. Well, at least not on his own.

King and Lashley come out as well but EC3 and Spud slide into jump Ray. The trio gets in as well and Ray is in big trouble. EC3 and Spud bring the Spud table to the ring but Eric Young, Austin Aries and the Wolves come in for the save. The heels leave but Spud gets caught. Aries wants a six man tag and Ray wants it next. As a preview, Ray hits a middle rope powerbomb to drive Spud through the table.

MVP/Bobby Lashley/Kenny King vs. Wolves/Austin Aries

This is joined in process in a big brawl on the floor as we come back. It’s Lashley throwing Aries around to get us going legally before choking away. Aries comes back with some kicks to the leg as Edwards and King come inside for brawling as well. Aries escapes the powerslam and low bridges Lashley to the floor. King is sent outside the same way, followed by Richards (with his heavily taped ribs) sending MVP out to join them. The Wolves hit stereo dives and Aries comes off the top to take out Lashley as we take a break.

Back with King in trouble but MVP throws in a kick from the apron to put Edwards in trouble. Lashley comes in off the tag and throws Eddie around with ease. He drives shoulders in the corner before it’s back to MVP for a hard lariat and two. King comes back in but Edwards flips out of a German suplex and makes the tag to Aries.

Austin fights hard but gets caught in a running powerslam from Lashley. Aries escapes the Royal Flush though and nails the brainbuster on King. Back to Richards who goes up and rips the tape off his ribs, only to have the double stomp hit King’s shoulders. Lashley spears him down though and MVP hits a Drive By for the pin on Richards at 14:50.

Rating: C. Not bad but the injury was clearly going to be the focal point of the match. I’m kind of surprised they had this match here instead of swapping some people in for a big match at the pay per view. I’m really hoping Dixie’s team doesn’t hook up with the trio but it certainly looks like we’re heading that way.

Bram tells Magnus to be out there for his match.

EC3 is worried about going through a table but Dixie says don’t worry about it because she has business with MVP.

Tigre Uno vs. Bram

Bram runs Tigre down to start and growls at him with some freaky eyes. Uno fights out of a choke but gets clotheslined down for his efforts. An Impaler DDT gets the pin on Tigre at 2:08.

Post match Magnus has to stop Bram from killing Tigre with the metal rod. Bram says the old Magnus would have ripped the mask off and beaten him senseless. Magnus says maybe Bram needs a better opponent. Maybe someone a little crazy. Maybe a former World Champion. Maybe….it should be Willow.

Anderson asks Gunner what’s up with him and Shaw. Gunner says Anderson knows what it’s like to be in the military and Shaw just needs someone to talk to. They’re a team tonight.

Brittany wants Madison Rayne’s help against the Beautiful People tonight. Madison tells her to not have the match and Brittany reluctantly agrees.

Gunner/Mr. Anderson vs. BroMans

The BroMans jump Gunner and Anderson to start and it’s Gunner in early trouble. Double teaming ensues and Robbie gets two off a middle rope knee drop. Gunner comes back with a bad looking fall away slam and it’s off to Anderson to clean house. Everything breaks down and the Mic Check sets up a top rope headbutt from Gunner for the pin on Robbie at 3:14.

Rating: D. Just a glorified squash here as Anderson vs. Gunner seems to be an upcoming story, even though Anderson vs. Storm was set up over the last few weeks. The BroMans have gone from Tag Team Champions to jobber tag team in just a few weeks, even though there’s almost no one to challenge the Wolves.

Post match the Menagerie comes out to freak out the BroMans. The goofy guys (the BroMans if that’s not clear) get destroyed.

Gail Kim agrees to be Brittany’s partner.

Here are Dixie and Ethan to call out MVP. The trio comes out and Dixie offers some help, but MVP says he’s got power and a title shot, so why does he need the Carters? Dixie threatens to go to Dallas and tell the board what kind of abuse of power MVP has been showing. So the board of directors doesn’t even watch the show? MVP says he has a ton of money, which Dixie calls dirty. MVP says he’d love to play a game of money chicken and see who blinks first.

Eric and Bully come out with weapons but Ray says don’t do it and wait for the time and place. MVP says it won’t go well for the champion and Eric should just lose the title and go fish. Bully wants to go now but Eric stops him. “Time and place. Where were you a few seconds ago when you said that?” MVP makes Ray vs. Eric with EC3 as the referee. Ray says no but MVP threatens to fire him.

Ray says go ahead but Dixie asks who is going to pick up the pieces and fight her and MVP? Eric doesn’t have the ego or stomach to fight this war. Also, isn’t Bully from New York, because New Yorkers don’t quit. Ray says he’ll never quit until Dixie is gone. All the people want Dixie out of here forever and promises to put all five people in the ring through tables.

We look at EC3 injuring Angle’s knee a few weeks back. Earlier today, Angle said the knee rehab is going well even though he’s still in a cast. He thanks the fans for their support.

Beautiful People vs. Brittany/Gail Kim

Brittany comes out and then runs up the ramp to point at Gail during her entrance. Angelina pops Brittany with forearms and a shoulder to start before running shaking her hips a bit. Velvet comes in for some choking in the corner but Brittany trips her up for two. The Beautiful People take her back into the corner for some double teaming before Brittany finally dives over for the tag. Brittany tags herself in and says she has this, only to miss a Tajiri handspring into a moonsault. Angelina kicks her head off with the Botox Injection to give Velvet the pin at 5:40.

Rating: D+. Totally basic match here but the problem is the story. As I’ve been saying for weeks now, this is the same stuff we’ve been seeing forever with the Beautiful People and it hasn’t been interesting in forever. It’s like they’re just completely out of ideas and they’re doing the same stuff over and over again.

Ray says if he beats Eric he’ll be #1 contender. They respect each other though, because that’s just what you do in TNA.

After a break and Brittany is still in the ring. She calls Madison down for a talk and asks her why she wouldn’t team up against the Beautiful People tonight. Madison says this is getting weird for her. The issues with the Beautiful People have been going on for years and there are some things that only her and the Beautiful People know about. She won’t be responsible for Brittany being dragged into that. Brittany says she’ll accept responsibility and only wants to be with Madison.

Madison asks what Brittany just said and Brittany gets close to her and repeats it. Rayne shoves her away and says this just went a bit too far. Brittany needs to keep her distance but that’s too far. Brittany freaks out and asks why Madison doesn’t like her. Cue the Beautiful People who say that’s the real Madison Rayne and they made her that way. Madison says she’s not like either of them and that she’s coming for the Title next week.

The trio wants to do business with EC3 and he’s kind of interested.

Bully Ray vs. Eric Young

Non-title. King is guest ring announcers, EC3 is guest referee, Lashley is guest enforcer and MVP is guest timekeeper because this idea hasn’t been done to death before. Lashley is holding Eric’s title. Ray actually starts with an armdrag but Young nails a pair of his own before dropkicking Ray to the floor. King gets in a cheap shot but Young comes out to stand guard.

Back with the guys still being tentative and not wanting to fight each other while also having to watch the trio on the floor. Ray finally gets tired of dealing with it (and we’re running out of time) and kicks Carter in the face. The trio comes in and beats both guys down for a no contest at roughly 10:00. I’m not going to rate this as a lot of it was during the break and there was barely any wrestling at all.

Samoa Joe returns for the save and does the always awesome side step of a King dive. A MuscleBuster to King ends the show.

Overall Rating: D. Do you remember back in the Aces and 8’s clubhouse when they threw darts to pick out their next targets? TNA feels like they’ve put every old booking idea on a dart board and throw darts to pick what they put on the shows. This week’s show was better than last week’s as they had some other stuff get focus, but at the same time it had the same lack of energy that TNA constantly deals with.

Above all else though, the moment they lost me this week was when Dixie Carter said Ray didn’t have the ability to fight this war. I actually said out loud, “Why does it have to be a war?”. We just got done having a nearly two year war against Aces and 8’s, and now that team’s leader is on the other side of a war? Why do we need to do this same thing again? Between that and the two heel groups seeming to merge or at least have common goals (albeit with issues between the leaders), it feels like we’re doing the same thing that people complained about for over a year. Why would I want to watch that again?

Results
MVP/Kenny King/Bobby Lashley b. Wolves/Austin Aries – Drive By to Richards
Bram b. Tigre Uno – Impaler DDT
Gunner/Mr. Anderson b. BroMans – Flying headbutt to Robbie
Beautiful People b. Brittany/Gail Kim – Sky pinned Brittany after a Botox Injection from Love
Eric Young vs. Bully Ray went to a no contest when Kenny King, Bobby Lashley and MVP interfered

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of Survivor Series at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at: