Impact Wrestling
Date: June 1, 2023
Location: Western Fair District Agriplex, London, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Tom Hannifan, Matthew Rehwoldt

It’s the first show after Under Siege and a lot of things took place at the show. First and foremost, Steve Maclin retained the World Title by defending PCO but Bully Ray attacked Scott D’Amore to end the show, even putting him through a flaming table. Other than that, we have a new #1 contender in the form of Alex Shelley, who will get a World Title shot at Against All Odds. Let’s get to it.

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

Under Siege recap.

Here is Bully Ray to get things going and no one is happy to see him. He has been putting people through tables throughout his career and no one is better at it in wrestling history. We hear about some of the people who he has put through them over the years, but the really bad ones are the people he puts through flaming tables. That’s what he did to Scott D’Amore and there is no one here to stop him.

Now it is on to Against All Odds, where he can become #1 contender and then to Slammiversary to win the World Title. Cue World Champion Steve Maclin to interrupt to say he liked what happened to D’Amore. What Bully needs to understand though is Maclin allowed Ray to hurt D’Amore like that. Ray tells him to shut up and says no one tells him what he can do….but then backtracks and says Maclin is the World Champion and can do what he wants. Maclin proposes a partnership, but he’s also cool with the idea of beating Ray at Slammiversary if he has to.

Cue the Motor City Machine Guns to interrupt, with Alex Shelley saying he’s leaving Against All Odds with the World Title. Ray says that usually he would rip Shelley apart on the might but the reality is that Shelley is one of the best in the world. He has seen wrestlers in the locker room watching Shelley matches, but Shelley must be bothered by never winning the big one.

Chris Sabin brings up beating Ray for the World Title but Maclin cuts him off to yell at Shelley for the lack of respect. Shelley says “yep” when asked if he thinks he can win the title but Maclin asks why it will be different this time. Shelley says it’s because Maclin is no Josh Alexander, which makes Ray laugh. That doesn’t make sense to Shelley, because Alexander beat Ray too. We finally get the challenge for the tag match tonight and Ray likes the idea….but not tonight.

Cue Subculture (Mark Andrews/Flash Morgan Webster/Dani Luna, formerly of NXT UK) as this segment is somehow still going. Subculture wants to face the Guns tonight and that match is on. This was nearly twenty minutes long and felt WAY out of place on an Impact show, especially when the only match made was from people who popped up at the end. I know they don’t have much time before Against All Odds but please don’t let this WWE style segment become normal around here.

Nick Aldis feels dangerous when he is in a nice suit like this but he feels all the more dangerous when he has momentum behind him. He praises Kenny King for a great match at Under Siege and King will be even more ready whenever they face off again. As for Against All Odds, Aldis is ready for the 8-4-1 match (starts off as an eight man tag, with the winning team immediately having a four way to crown a new #1 contender) because he’ll have to adapt, which is what he does best. Then he’s winning the World Title.

Eddie Edwards vs. Yuya Uemura

Alisha Edwards is here with Eddie. Feeling out process to start with Uemura grabbing an armdrag into an armbar. Back up and Eddie takes him into the corner for some chops, only to have a forearm knock Eddie outside. The slingshot dive drops Eddie again though and we take a break. Back with Uemura fighting out of a chinlock but getting taken right back down.

This time Uemura fights up with a running clothesline and a belly to back suplex gets two. Edwards tries a double underhook but gets backdropped away, only to have Alisha distract Uemura on the top. That means a superplex can bring Uemura back down but Uemura cuts off the Boston Knee Party with a dropkick. The swinging Rock Bottom sets up a high crossbody, which is kneed out of the air. The tiger driver gives Edwards two and the Boston Knee Party finally finishes Uemura at 13:30.

Rating: B. They had a good match here as Uemura continues to get better and better every week. Commentary is right when they say that he needs a big win, but I’m not sure how much longer he is going to be here on excursion in the first place. If that’s the case, just how far does Impact want to push him? For now, I guess they’ll have to settle for a good hand who can work well with anyone.

Post match Eddie teases respect but pulls away from the handshake. Cue Frankie Kazarian to say that isn’t how we do this around here and the fight is on, with Eddie being dropped. Alisha tries to jump on Frankie and is dropped as well, allowing Kazarian to leave.

Decay vs. Sami Callihan/Jake Crist

Crist bites Steve to start and hands it off to Callihan, only to have Taurus come in and clear the ring. That’s not enough for Taurus, who throws Steve over the top onto both of them. Back in and Crist starts firing off superkicks for a breather, followed by putting Steve on Taurus’ shoulders. Callihan puts Crist on his own shoulders for a cutter to Steve and the pin at 1:35. Cool finisher and dang that went fast.

Post match here is the Design to lay out Crist and Callihan. Rich Swann makes the save.

Post break, Swann, Crist and Callihan are ready for Against All Odds….but Swann already has a spot in the 8-4-1 match. Callihan and Crist understand so they can find someone else. Callihan says the doctor is going to have to call the fox.

Trinity vs. Savannah Evans

Jai Vidal and Gisele Shaw are here with Evans. Trinity grabs a waistlock to start and gets backed into the corner for her efforts. A headlock takeover doesn’t work for Trinity so she forearms away in the corner. Evans plants her with a powerbomb for two and Trinity is in trouble. Back in and Trinity gets smart by hitting a springboard kick to the face to put Evans down. A side slam cuts Trinity off but she pulls Evans into the reverse Rings of Saturn for the tap at 4:33.

Rating: C+. Evans continues to work as a monster but that is only going to have so much impact if she keeps losing all the time. Trinity is someone who is probably going to wind up being near the top of the division sooner rather than later so her winning here makes all of the sense. They went back and forth here for a few minutes but ultimately, Trinity winning was the only option.

Post match Trinity gets the mic and says she wants the Knockouts Title. Cue Deonna Purrazzo to say ask her to her face. Trinity issues the challenge for Slammiversary and Purrazzo is in. Shaw, Evans and Vidal are up for the beatdown though, only to have Jordynne Grace come in for the save. That doesn’t exactly work though as she is beaten down as well, setting up a pair of knees from Shaw.

Dani Luna vs. Jody Threat

Dani Luna is part of Subculture, who are here with her. Threat headlocks her over to start but Luna does the exact same. Luna powers her into the corner but gets sunset flipped for two. Threat knocks her back down and scores with a heck of a Cactus Clothesline. Threat’s running flip dive off the apron, followed by the running knee to the back. Luna has had it with this and hits a powerbomb for two and a hard lariat gets the same. Threat snaps off a German suplex and hits a reverse F5 (the F Bomb) for the pin at 7:05.

Rating: B-. This was a hard hitting fight and it worked well with what they were doing. Impact has done a nice job of turning Threat into…well, a threat, and that’s what they need to do every so often. Threat is someone who feels like she has been built from the ground up and could become something around here. On the other hand you have Luna, who could do well as a powerhouse with a unique look.

Santino Marella and Joe Hendry are talking about Dirty Dango when Sheldon Jean and Kenny King come in. King thinks Jean should get a match with Hendry, so Santino makes it for next week. As for Against All Odds, Hendry can defend his Digital Media Title against Dango. Works for Hendry.

We look at Killer Kelly and Masha Slamovich brawling at Under Siege. A chain was involved.

Kelly wants a dog collar match with Slamovich. Her talk about giving in to your natural instinct is designed to make various suggestions.

Here is what’s coming on various shows.

Subculture vs. Motor City Machine Guns

Shelley and Andrews get things going with Shelley’s armdrag not getting him very far. Sabin comes in to headlock Webster to little avail as Webster grabs an armdrag of his own. Everything breaks down and the Guns send Andrews outside to kick Webster down. Back in and Andrews gets kicked down as well, allowing Shelley to grab a cross arm choke on Webster.

Back up and Webster gets Shelley into the corner for a quick dropkick to the leg. Subculture hits back to back flips onto Sabin to send him outside as well, setting up the stereo suicide dives. Back in and the Guns hit some clotheslines to take over and we take a break. We come back with Andrews being caught in a surfboard for a bulldog from Sabin. The chinlock goes on for a bit but Andrews fights up, allowing the tag off to Webster. Everything breaks down again and Webster hits a springboard moonsault to drop both Guns.

Webster hits a big dive onto Sabin and a double Falcon Arrow (that’s a new one) gets two back inside. Shelley comes back in for the save and house is cleaned, including a Death Valley Driver/running neckbreaker combination (that’s a new one too). A Magic Killer (that’s not a new one) gets two on Andrews but he pops up off a Doomsday dropkick.

Shelley is knocked outside, leaving Sabin to clothesline both of them inside out. Cradle Shock is countered into a Stundog Millionaire (sweet) but Webster misses a 450. Sabin grabs a cutter on Webster and the Dream Sequence hits Andrews. The Dirt Bomb finishes Webster off at 16:13.

Rating: B+. There are certain matches that are designed to have talented stars letting it all hang out and hitting one big move after another until someone finally gets pinned. That is what you had here and this was an awesome TV main event. The Guns can still hang with anyone and if Subculture wants a job in Impact, there is a good chance that they got one here. Great stuff here and worth a look if you have time.

Overall Rating: B. I find myself looking forward to Impact more and more each week and that was the case again here. The opener and main event (especially the latter) are both rather awesome TV matches and the rapid fire build to Against All Odds wasn’t bad at all. Cut down on the way too long opening segment and this show is probably the best TV show of the week. Awesome stuff here, as I’m starting to wonder if it’s still fair to say Impact is on a roll, as this has been going on for a long time now.

Results
Eddie Edwards b. Yuya Uemura – Boston Knee Party
Sami Callihan/Jake Crist b. Decay – Elevated cutter to Steve
Trinity b. Savannah Evans – Reverse Rings of Saturn
Jody Threat b. Dani Luna – F Bomb
Motor City Machine Guns b. Subculture – Dirt Bomb to Webster

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

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

AND

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AAW Epic 2017: The 13th Anniversary Show
Date: April 8, 2017
Location: Joe’s Live, Rosemont, Illinois
Commentators: Phil Colvin, Tyler Volz

As the name might suggest, this is AAW, a pretty nice independent promotion from around Chicago. There are a lot of names you are going to recognize on here and that should make for a pretty nice card. Making it to thirteen years is impressive enough and in theory the show should work out as a result. Let’s get to it.

The commentators are in the ring to welcome us to the show and hype things up a bit.

Opening video.

Besties In The World vs. Stephen Wolf/Trey Miguel

The Besties (Davey Vega/Kyle Fitchett) come out to Savage Garden’s Truly Madly Deeply and yes they have a dance routine to it, because they’re that awesome. They start fast with Fitchett hitting a double Pele but the Besties are sent outside. Wolf dives onto Fitchett and Miguel hits Vega as the Besties are in early trouble.

We settle down to Wolf hitting a very springboardy hurricanrana to Vega and it’s off to Miguel for some dropkicks in the corner. Vega is back up with a kick to the face and it’s back to Fitchett for a suplex on Miguel. A wind up poke to the eye rocks Miguel again, even though Vega isn’t happy with Fitchett’s cheating.

The neck crank goes on for a bit, followed by Fitchett hitting a Ho Train of all things for two. Miguel manages something like a cutter and the hot tag brings in Wolf….who slips off the ropes in a springboard attempt but spears Fitchett anyway. Everything breaks down and Miguel elbows Vega in the face, setting up a top rope Meteora which needs a save from Fitchett.

Vega and Miguel wind up holding Fitchett up, allowing Wolf to come in with a springboard double stomp to the ribs. Miguel Rolls the Dice into a standing shooting star press for two on Vega, who is back up without much trouble. A powerbomb drops Wolf onto Miguel, setting up a brainbuster onto the knee/running boot from Fitchett combination for the pin at 9:28.

Rating: B-. They went with the fast paced tag match to start here and that is how a show should get going. Sometimes you need to do something fun to get the show going and that is what they did here. The Besties In The World have been a fun team every time I have seen them and this was no exception, though that might be due to the Savage Garden influence.

Trevor Lee says he isn’t dancing anymore because all it got him was a lame Tag Team Titles. Then his partner got hurt and he was stripped of the titles even though he never lost. He is the biggest star around and Chuck Taylor is still on the indies for a reason. Lee wants to be the first star in the arena because after him, there is no show. Tonight, he’s taking Taylor out.

ACH vs. Shane Strickland

If nothing else we get Ain’t Nobody for Swerve’s entrance and sweet goodness that is an awesome setup. ACH goes outside and lays on a section labeled KEEP OFF, giving us a HOLY S*** chant before the bell. To even things out, Strickland loads up ACH’s shirt but then drops it instead. ACH isn’t happy with that and sends him to the apron, where a dropkick to the leg takes him down.

The REALLY hard running kick from the apron has Strickland in a lot of trouble but he gets a boot up to stop a charge. Back in and Strickland misses a legsweep and enziguri but manages a dropkick to rock ACH again. Strickland takes him into the corner for a VERY loud chop, with ACH cringing even harder. Back up and ACH hits his own loud chop, earning him a glare from Strickland.

We get the very long wind up before ACH’s next chop….and then he points over there and hits Strickland low. Some neckbreakers give ACH two and we’re off to the Figure Four necklock. With that broken up, ACH ties up the leg, points to the crowd a bit, and then turns it into a Muta Lock. A Ted DiBiase fist drop has Swerve in more trouble, setting up an Aleister Black dragon sleeper.

Strickland fights up and hits the House Call for a breather, which has the fans waking up a bit. That sweet rolling cutter gives Swerve two (with commentary being STUNNED by the kickout). The Swerve Stomp misses though and a fireman’s carry backbreaker gives ACH two of his own. Back up and Strickland charges into a boot in the corner, setting up a middle rope Codebreaker for two.

The brainbuster is blocked so ACH chops him into the corner instead. Strickland isn’t having that and hits a running boot in the corner, setting up the Swerve Stomp for the big near fall. The JML Driver is blocked so they trade kicks to the face until another House Call sets up….something that ACH reverses into the brainbuster for the pin at 12:41.

Rating: B. This was the kind of fast paced and hard hitting match that had me wondering who was going to win by the end. The finish was a very nice curve too as I wouldn’t have bet on that kind of a fast switch from ACH. Strickland continues to be someone who should be ready to become a top star somewhere, but for some reason that hasn’t quite happened outside of the old MLW. Good stuff here though and I could go for more from them, even if ACH is a bit wacky.

Post match ACH wants a handshake but then drops the mic and walks off instead, like a true villain.

Chuck Taylor isn’t sure how this singles match thing is going to work but if Trevor Lee doesn’t want to dance, maybe he will. Or maybe not. Either way, he wraps it up with a “f*** you buddy” to Lee.

Trevor Lee vs. Chuck Taylor

We get a F*** THAT OWL chant as Lee is an Impact Wrestling star and that is not a good idea a lot of the time. They stare at each other to start…and some dance music starts. Actually hang on again though as Lee grabs a headlock instead. That stays on for a bit until Taylor rolls him into the corner and stomps away, leaving Lee looking a bit stunned.

With Lee down, Taylor goes all the way to the entrance and gets a running start before landing on apron and waving at Lee. The slow motion hilo hits Lee, who is right back up with a whip into the barricade. A belly to back drop onto the apron has Taylor in more trouble, allowing Lee to pose a bit. Back in and Lee hits a running tackle to a downed Taylor, sending him back to the floor. Some choking on the barricade sets up a rolling, uh, cover, for two back inside.

A release German suplex drops Lee though and it’s Taylor striking away at the face. Lee charges into an overhead belly to belly, sending him hard into the corner for two more. Taylor gets caught in a bridging German suplex for two more and Lee hits a Superman Punch. Lee’s suplex is countered into the Falcon Arrow for another near fall but Taylor misses a moonsault (of all things). The miss lets Lee hit the Cave In but Taylor counters the fireman’s buster into a small package for two. That’s fine with Lee, who rolls him up with tights for the pin at 9:43.

Rating: C+. Another pretty good one here, with both guys fitting in rather well. It didn’t feel quite as intense, but Lee and Taylor aren’t exactly known for being the most serious guys. They got things going near the end though and I was thinking Taylor might have pulled off the upset. It was a bit of a step down from the first two matches, but if this is the bad stuff, we’re in for a pretty awesome show.

Angelico and Jack Evans (later known as the Hybrid 2 in AEW) are ready for the Crist Brothers.

Tag Team Titles: OI4K vs. Angelico/Jack Evans

OI4K (that would be Ohio Is 4 Killers, meaning Jake and Dave Crist, with JT Davidson) are defending. Angelico and Evans seem to be debuting here, with Angelico in a Lucha Underground shirt. Jake and Angelico start things off, with Angelico taking him down for an early leg crank. Back up and Jake goes with a headlock on the much taller Angelico, making for a bit of a strange visual.

That’s reversed into something like an Indian Deathlock for some cranking/screaming (I’ll let you figure out which is which) until Jake rakes the eyes to escape. Evans, smoking a cigarette, comes in for some clapping but his dancing results in Jake jumping him from behind. Just to show off, Evans fights back and sends the champs to the floor, all while smoking.

The big dive is cut off by a kick to the head though and we hit the chinlock. Dave is right there to cut Angelico off the apron though and a fist drop gets two on Evans. Back up and Evans hits a springboard moonsault onto both Crists (albeit not at the same time), setting up a Pele so the hot tag can bring Angelico back in. Everything breaks down and Angelico kicks Dave down for two.

Evans’ assisted 450 knees gets two, with Jake making another save. A belly to back suplex/springboard double stomp gets the same, with Dave having to flip Evans onto Angelico to break up a Koji Clutch. There’s a tiger suplex for the same on Evans but Angelico makes the save this time. The Fall From The Heavens drops Jake but Davidson pushes Evans off the top. A twisting DDT and a Tombstone retains the titles at 12:25.

Rating: B-. This was a rather indy style tag match, as they started off with the usual stuff and then broke down into all four of them in there at once for a bunch of saves. That being said, it’s still a completely entertaining match and both teams are quite good. Evans is still more than a bit out there, but his flipping is always worth a look.

Post match Low Ki runs in and takes out OI4K without much trouble. Low Ki says he’s coming for Sami Callihan and tonight he’s coming for Callihan in a tag match. His usual partner, Eddie Kingston, isn’t here tonight but he has a mystery partner. Sounds fun.

Matt Riddle is ready to take out Michael Elgin tonight. He is pretty much exactly the same Riddle he would be in WWE as well.

Michael Elgin vs. Matt Riddle

Riddle tries to go with the grappling to start but Elgin spins him around. That doesn’t work either so Riddle grabs a front facelock, which is reversed into a pretty weird looking Sharpshooter. Elgin switches that over to an STF but Riddle powers out and grabs a headscissors. With that broken up, Riddle wins a slugout and snaps off a good looking German suplex. They head outside, with Elgin dropping him hard onto the apron.

Back in and Elgin BLASTS him with a chop, followed by the very delayed (32 seconds) vertical suplex for two. Riddle gets up and strikes away with shots to the face and ribs, setting up an overhead suplex. The backsplash gets two but some YES Kicks just wake Elgin up and he growls a lot. A Bro To Sleep and another German suplex gives Riddle two more.

Elgin is fine enough to cut him off with a kick to the head though and a German suplex into the corner has Riddle in trouble for a change. Riddle catches him on top so Elgin grabs a middle rope sunset flip of all things, followed by a discus lariat (that’s more like it). One heck of a top rope splash gives Elgin two but the Elgin Bomb (a bomb from Elgin) is countered.

They trade strikes to the head until Elgin hits a HARD clothesline for a double knockdown. A top rope superplex hits Riddle, who pops up to his feet, because FIGHTING SPIRIT is a really stupid concept. Elgin clothesline him down again and then does it again for two. A buckle bomb into a GTS into a tiger bomb gets two more on Riddle, setting up the buckle bomb into an Elgin Bomb for the pin at 14:50.

Rating: B. This was the hard hitting fight that you probably expected, though the FIGHTING SPIRIT stuff can get a little annoying when it happens more than once in a match. Riddle’s kickout got a little annoying but at least he lost in the end. Elgin was a heck of a power guy, though I’m not sure how often you re going to be seeing him after various issues took him out of a good chunk of the industry (as they should have).

Post match, Elgin talks about how he hasn’t been here for all of the thirteen years of AAW, but thanks the fans anyway.

Shane Strickland has lost his first two matches in AAE and doesn’t feel bad about losing to AR Fox and ACH. He’ll be back, better, stronger and faster.

JT Davidson is very happy with OI4K retaining and promises they will take on all comers. They’re ready for whoever is up next on April 22. Dave Crist talks about being a fighter and a killer, even with a pinched nerve in his back.

John Morrison vs Rey Fenix

Bit of a slip up as Morrison’s chyron says Hennigan. The fans don’t think much of Morrison, but that might be due to him not throwing his shirt to the crowd. Morrison grabs a headlock to start but Fenix flips up and they run the ropes. Said running doesn’t include much in the way of contact until Morrison is sent outside. Fenix’s dive is cut off with a kick to the head but he’s fine enough to grab a rolling cutter for two back inside.

A Crossface doesn’t last long for Fenix so Morrison takes him outside and drapes him between the ring and the apron. An ax kick brings Fenix down but hold on as Morrison dives over the barricade and steals a fan’s hat. The hat is put in Morrison’s pants and rubbed in various places before being returned to the fan….who puts it back on. That’s certainly a new one.

Back in and Morrison grabs a chinlock with a bodyscissors, which lasts as long as a chinlock would be expected to last. They head to the apron, where Fenix kicks him down and hits a top rope double stomp to the back of the head. Well it wasn’t the Destroyer I was expecting so I’ll take that as an upgrade. That’s good for two back inside but Morrison grabs a powerslam of all things. A standing shooting star press gets two on Fenix, who comes back with a great looking superkick.

The 450 misses though and Morrison grabs a Spanish Fly for two of his own, leaving them both down. They slug it out until Morrison leg lariats him down again. Back up and Morrison spits in his face and fires off a middle finger, which means he needs to hide behind the referee. That sets up the low blow and Flying Chuck, but Starship Pain doesn’t work. Fenix is back up with a Canadian Destroyer for the pin at 13:32.

Rating: B. If you’ve seen one Fenix match then you’ve seen them all, and as usual it was as exciting of a match as you are going to see on the show. This was another very entertaining match and Fenix continues to somehow be even better on his own than his great work as a tag wrestler. Good stuff here, and the kind of fast paced match you knew you were getting from Fenix. Morrison was his usual self as well, and the heel work continues ot be his strong suit.

Post match the fans throw in money, which Morrison grabs before running off, as expected. Fenix flips him off to even the score a bit.

Riddle, in a different hat than earlier, seems disappointed by his loss but he knows he can beat anyone. I think at least, as he’s kind of hard to understand.

Chuck Taylor wants Alex Daniels on April 22, which happens to be his birthday.

Sami Callihan/Abyss vs. Low Ki/???

JT Davidson handles Callihan and Abyss’ introduction. Low Ki’s partner is….Kongo Kong, a rather large jungle savage monster. It’s a brawl to start with Ki (in his Hitman (game, not Hart) gear) hitting a dropkick to send Callihan outside. Abyss cuts him off but Kong hits a big dive to take everyone down. Callihan is back up with a spitting chop to Ki as Abyss and Kong brawl next to the barricade.

Ki and Callihan fight on the stage, with Kong cutting Callihan off before he can send Ki flying. Back on the floor, Ki hits some running forearms to Callihan but does stop for a quick drink. Kong posts Abyss and takes Callihan inside as they trade off for the first time. Callihan’s shots to the face don’t work as Kong catches him with a spinning slam.

Abyss is back in with a chokeslam to Kong but Ki knocks him down as well. That leaves Ki and Callihan to slug it out until Ki misses a charge into the corner. A running kick in the corner rocks Ki but he’s right back with a shotgun dropkick. With the two of them down, Kong and Abyss slug it out, with Abyss hitting the Black Hole Slam for the pin at 9:32.

Rating: C. This was the weakest match of the night for me as it was a big brawl with no one exactly standing out. I’m not a fan of the Hitman Low Ki phase and it felt like it kept going for far longer than it should have. Abyss is still a good choice for a monster/enforcer, while Callihan does feel like a top heel. Kong as a replacement for Eddie Kingston…didn’t exactly work. Not a bad match, but it didn’t exactly make me want to see more.

Post match, Abyss and Callihan give us a display of middle finger extensions.

Michael Elgin is proud of his win and wants the World Title.

AAW Heritage Title: Penta El Zero M vs. AR Fox

Penta is defending the midcard title. This means nothing though, as Fox comes out to the Space Jam theme, making him the coolest guy named Fox in this match. They start very fast with a double knockdown and the fans are rather appreciative. Or maybe that’s over Penta’s CERO MIEDO thing. Penta knocks him to the floor but the dive is cut off by a kick to the head (popular spot tonight).

Fox gets superkicked out of the air but knocks Penta outside as well. That means the second cut off dive in a row, though Fox is fine enough to hit a hanging Codebreaker. A moonsault off the post hits Penta on the floor and it’s time for the big chop off. Fox puts him on the apron for a top rope legdrop and they head back inside. Penta pops up with a pair of Sling Blades but Fox kicks him down again.

There’s a Swanton for two on Penta, leaving Fox to do the clapping to start getting the fans more into things. A handspring is cut off with a dropkick (cool counter) from Penta for a breather. It’s time to start on the arm but Fox saves himself from a snapping. Penta gets caught on top but comes right back with a Canadian Destroyer for two.

Fox puts him on top for his springboard Spanish Fly, followed straight by the 450 for two more, giving us the stunned kickout face. They head to the apron to strike it out until Fox hits a package piledriver to knock Penta silly. Naturally that is shrugged off and Penta hits a Canadian Destroyer on the apron. The top rope double stomp retains the title at 10:13.

Rating: B. Fox is someone who is almost revered and I do get a bit more out of him when I see him in the ring. That was the case here, as Fox looked good in defeated. Granted it helps when you actually sell big moves for more than a few seconds, as Penta popping up after being dropped on his head on the apron didn’t exactly work. Solid main event, but it didn’t quite feel like the main event of a major show.

Respect is shown post match and Penta poses. A lot. As money is thrown in. Then he leaves.

The Besties In The World want their Tag Team Titles back, but apparently they have a singles match to deal with first. Davey Vega isn’t pleased and leaves.

ACH calls AAW his new wife and wants the World Title.

The Lucha Bros are very happy with their wins but Rey Fenix wants the World Title. Threats to Sami Callihan are made to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. I had a really good time with this one and it felt like a big time independent show. Granted, that’s assuming you consider a promotion that has been around for thirteen years to be independent but that’s a different story. The action was good, it was a basic all star show of wrestlers you probably came to know from their work after this, and nothing was close to bad. It didn’t have that one match that felt bigger than the rest, but what we got here was very good. Check this place out if you get the chance as I’ve seen two shows from them now and had a good time with each.

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

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

AND

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: September 2, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Matt Striker

We’re still on the road to Victory Road and that means more of Ace Austin, which is not a bad thing. Tonight we have Tommy Dreamer vs. Austin with Dreamer possibly being added to the World Title match if he wins. That’s the kind of threat that Impact might actually follow up on, which doesn’t give me much hope. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory of Daffney. That was a really hard one.

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Madison Rayne/Kaleb With A K/Tenille Dashwood vs. Taylor Wilde/Rachael Ellering/Jordynne Grace

Ellering and Kaleb With A K start things off with Rachael wrestling him into the corner without much effort. A release gutwrench suplex drops Kaleb With A K for two and it’s Grace coming in for some standing clotheslines. Rayne gets in a cheap shot though and Dashwood gets to come in and take over. Grace powers out of a chinlock by slamming Rayne backwards but Kaleb With A K cuts off a tag.

A kick to the face cuts that off without much effort though and Wilde comes in to clean house. Wilde’s tornado DDT gets two on Kaleb With A K with Dashwood having to make a save. Back up and Rayne has to grab Kaleb With A K’s hands to block a German suplex, only to have Ellering break it up, meaning the German suplex can give Wilde the pin at 5:04.

Rating: C. This is a good example of how to do intergender wrestling, as Kaleb With A K was a perfect fit to take this kind of a beating. It can be put together well without going too far into being ridiculous and that’s what they pulled off here. That is quite the trick, so well done on making it work.

We look at Deonna Purrazzo retaining the Knockouts Title at NWA Empowerrr and then attacking Mickie James at the 73rd Anniversary Show.

Deonna Purrazzo and Matthew Rehwoldt don’t care for Mickie James or Trey Miguel.

Tommy Dreamer talks about the time he took the ECW World Title from Christian Cage, though Cage pops up to say Dreamer didn’t pin him in that match. That’s true, but Dreamer just wants one chance to be the face of Impact Wrestling. He asks Cage to not get involved tonight because he wants to do it himself. Sure.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Black Taurus/Crazzy Steve vs. No Way/Fallah Bahh

The rest of Decay is here, as is No Way’s Conga Line. Actually hold on as part of the Conga Line attacked Rosemary, because it’s Tasha Steelz in disguise. We come back from a break for the opening bell, with Steve slugging away at Bahh in vain. Bahh throws him down with ease and it’s off to No Way vs. Taurus. A Sling Blade drops No Way and a hard right hand has him in more trouble.

No Way gets in a quick tag to Bahh and sunset flips Taurus, who gets crushed by Bahh’s splash. A belly to belly lets No Way come back in for two and Bahh hits the running hip attack in the corner. Bahh drops No Way down into a legdrop for two on Taurus but a double clothesline gives him a breather. The hot tag brings in Steve to slug away as everything breaks down. Steve bites Bahh in the head and a middle rope DDT is good for the pin at 6:45.

Rating: C-. Totally run of the mill tag match here and that’s about all there is to say. No Way was playing things a bit more heelish here, which is kind of weird when you have him doing the dancing deal before the match. It might be nice to see him doing something else, because right now he’s the same guy he was in WWE but with a different company name at the top of his contract.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Christian Cage b. Sting at Final Resolution 2007.

W. Morrissey doesn’t like Sami Callihan for saving Eddie Edwards. He does have a bit of respect for the two of them for hating each other….and here is Moose to interrupt. Moose agrees with everything Morrissey has said since he got here. Neither of them like Sami Callihan, but Moose is looking for an alliance instead of a friend. Glaring ensues.

Steve Maclin is very intense and wants Petey Williams next week.

Here is Moose for a chat. He doesn’t like that everyone, like Eddie Edwards, wants to be a hero. They have a long history together, but Moose is a different guy now. So get out here so Moose can teach him that the hero doesn’t always save the day. Cue Eddie so the brawl can be on. W. Morrissey runs in for the beatdown and a double powerbomb leaves Eddie laying. No Sami Callihan for the save, as per Eddie’s request.

No Way and Fallah Bahh didn’t know anything about Tasha Steelz attacking Decay. TJP comes in to reform the team with Fallah Bahh and is cool with No Way too. They’ll head to Swinger’s Palace next week.

Eric Young is ready to cure Rhino and chains him up in a prison.

X-Division Title: Josh Alexander vs. Jake Crist

The returning Crist is challenging after Alexander wanted to fight any former X-Division Champion. Alexander drives him into the ropes to start and catches a charging Crist in a powerslam. Crist sends him to the apron so Alexander goes up top, only to be pulled back down for a neckbreaker. The front facelock goes on for a bit and Jake plants him down again. Crist grabs the front facelock again but this time Alexander strikes his way to freedom in a hurry. Alexander rolls some German suplexes to knock Crist silly and Divine Intervention retains the title at 5:36.

Rating: C. Not much to see here, other than Alexander ending Crist with those suplexes. This was little more than a workout for Alexander, who is going to need someone special to take the title from him. That’s kind of a problem, but I’m curious to see where they go with the whole thing.

Post match Alexander is asked why he put the title on the line. That’s because he has to so he is challenging people for the title. Cue Chris Sabin to say he is a big Alexander fan but Alexander is a one time champion, compared to Sabin’s eight title reigns. The challenge is on for Victory Road and Alexander is down for that. Makes as much sense as anything else right now.

Sam Beale is offering Brian Myers’ offer to find a new wingman and we see some applications. One of them looks like David Arquette.

The applicants are here and Brian Myers isn’t impressed. He makes a few random cuts, including one who likes Mojo Rawley. We get down to two, with one of them being Zicky Dice of minor NWA fame. The two of them (Dice and Manny Lemons) will be back next week.

Rohit Raju/Shera vs. Matt Cardona/Chelsea Green

Raju and Cardona start things off but it’s quickly off to Shera to run Cardona over instead. The big elbow crushes Cardona and it’s back to Raju, who is quickly slammed down. Green comes in to work on Raju’s arm before kicking some non-existent dirt into his face. A headscissors sets up a slap to Raju, who brings in Shera. That’s fine with Green as she slaps Shera into Radio Silence from Cardona. Raju posts Cardona though and a jumping knee finishes Green at 3:33.

Rating: C-. Just a quick match here but you’re only going to be able to get so much out of Green working on the arm and slapping the heels in the face. This feud has been going on for a little while now and it isn’t all that interesting, but at least they are doing a few things to keep it fresh. Now just find a way to keep it from being so dull and we might get somewhere.

Su Yung and Kimber Lee have turned Brandi Lauren into one of them. Maniacal laughter ensues but Yung doesn’t seem pleased.

Here are the Good Brothers for a chat because we can’t escape them for a week. Karl Anderson tells the fans to sit down and shut their fat mouths. He knows the fans feel like they are seeing some rock stars but be quiet for a bit. They aren’t happy with Rich Swann and Willie Mack stealing a pin on them last week but Mack got powerbombed through a table for what he did. Mack is in traction right now so now his name is Willie Lack The Ability To Walk. Cue Rich Swann with a chair but referees are out there in a hurry to break it up.

Post break, Rich Swann has to be held back again so Scott D’Amore gives Swann a Bunkhouse Brawl with Karl Anderson next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Ace Austin vs. Tommy Dreamer

If Dreamer wins, he’s in the World Title match at Victory Road and Madman Fulton is here with Austin. Dreamer is wrestling in a Dusty Rhodes mask because reasons. Austin takes him down for a kick to the back to start so the mask comes off to make things serious. A Cactus Clothesline puts them on the floor and Dreamer posts him hard. Fulton saves Austin from going into the barricade though and Austin kicks Dreamer in the face.

Back in and a powerbomb gives Austin two but Dreamer crotches him on top. A neckbreaker out of the corner gives Dreamer a breather and the slugout is on. Dreamer hammers away in the corner and bites Austin’s head, setting up a powerslam for two. An enziguri drops Austin again but he’s right back up with a springboard Fameasser for the same. Back up and Austin charges into a cutter but Fulton breaks up the cover. Dreamer posts Fulton but gets caught with the Fold for the pin at 7:44.

Rating: C. It probably isn’t a good sign when I have a sigh of relief that the good guy loses. This was your usual Dreamer match, as he doesn’t do much outside of his hits. Dreamer is fine enough in the ring and can do his usual stuff, but it is a good idea to keep him limited. Now if they can keep him limited from talking too, we should be in better shape.

Overall Rating: C-. Pretty run of the mill show here without much of anything standing out. They did a nice enough job of building Victory Road, but there was nothing that really grabbed me. What makes me a little more hopeful though is the fact that this feels like a one off instead of a new normal. Impact has actually built up some good will in recent months and that is rather nice to see.

Results
Jordynne Grace/Rachael Ellering/Taylor Wilde b. Kaleb With A K/Tenille Dashwood/Madison Rayne – German suplex to Kaleb With A K
Black Taurus/Crazzy Steve b. No Way/Fallah Bahh – Middle rope DDT to Bahh
Josh Alexander b. Jake Crist – Divine Intervention
Rohit Raju/Shera b. Matt Cardona/Chelsea Green – Jumping knee to Green
Ace Austin b. Tommy Dreamer – Fold

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

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AND

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ICW No Holds Barred Volume 11: Then And Now
Date: April 8, 2021
Location: 81Bay Brewing Company, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: The Struggles, Ron Niemi

This is another promotion where I don’t know anything about it coming in but this seems to be a more violent promotion, which is not likely to be in my wheelhouse. I’m not sure what to expect coming in and I’m not sure about who all is on the card. Hopefully it is going to be a bit better than what I’m picturing so let’s get to it.

Opening sequence, which advertises No DQ, No Submissions and No Rules. Oh geez please don’t be a deathmatch promotion. Why am I doing this to myself again?

The ring announcer welcomes us to the show….and the ropes are chains.

Tony Deppen vs. Daniel Garcia

They circle each other for a bit to start until Deppen goes for the leg. That means a trip to the mat with both of them trying to tie up the legs. Deppen gets the legs crossed and cranks on Garcia’s arms at the same time. With that broken up, Garcia sends him to the floor for a breather. Back in and they go to the mat for more grappling with Garcia getting in some elbows to the back of the head.

Deppen slips out of that and bites Garcia’s bare toes, which has Garcia bailing underneath the ropes in a smart move. It’s Deppen getting on top for a slap off on the mat until some heavy forearms rock Garcia. You don’t do that to him though as he grabs a German suplex and starts stomping away rather fiercely. Something like a Crossface goes on, followed by a bodyscissors over the chain to make it worse.

Back up and they slap it out until Deppen is thrown into the chains for two. What looks like a Gotch style piledriver is broken up though and Deppen stomps on the bare feet. Garcia doesn’t mind and stomps on Deppen’s head but Deppen kicks him low. A running knee to the head finishes Garcia at 8:33.

Rating: C. Not much to see here and it did feel a bit more like a fight instead of a match. Deppen has come a long way in the last year or so and that is a very good thing. At the same time, Garcia has popped up a few times over this weekend and I haven’t seen much about him to get my excited. Not awful here, but it was a fine way to start off the show.

Here’s a guy named Scoot Andrews, who is billed as the Black Nature Boy. Andrews lists off all of his credentials on the independent circuit and…..I think he is here to introduce Lee Moriarty. Or maybe to find someone to beat him. The audio isn’t exactly the best around here.

Lee Moriarty vs. Steve Madison

Moriarty’s IWTV Title isn’t on the line. Madison, the hometown boy, comes out to Hearts On Fire from Rocky IV so we have a favorite. They go to the grappling to start with Moriarty working on the arm but getting taken down into a headlock. That goes into an early standoff and it’s Madison taking him down by the arm again. Moriarty flips out again and they stop to stare at each other again. More mat grappling goes to Madison but Moriarty is back up with an armdrag into an armbar.

Madison gets smart by snapping Moriarty’s throat across the chain and the chinlock goes on. That’s broken up and Moriarty slides over to hit a double stomp to the throat. Madison is right back up with a shot of his own and the Sharpshooter goes on. Moriarty turns that back around and grabs Madison’s fingers for a little snap. A Russian legsweep gives Moriarty two but Madison is right back with a backdrop driver. Moriarty enziguris him and hits a suplex into a Downward Spiral (that’s a new one but it worked) for the pin at 7:46.

Rating: C+. Moriarty continues to impress over the weekend and that has been very nice to see. This was another good wrestling match between two guys who were completely able technicians. Madison isn’t someone I’ve seen before (and commentary said he doesn’t wrestle often) but he seemed like a steady hand. Good match here, and that is becoming the norm for Moriarty.

Post match Andrews comes in to show respect….and then pulls Moriarty into a Fire Thunder Driver. Andrews drops the IWTV Title onto Moriarty’s chest, which commentary thinks means a seed has been planted.

So far so good at thirty minutes in.

We look at the history between Justin Kyle and Bruce Santee. They had some Super Fights, which seem to be them punching each other quite a bit. The first two fights were split so I think you know where this is going.

Justin Kyle vs. Bruce Santee

Good luck on telling them apart as they’re both big bald biker looking guys. Kyle starts swinging to drive him into the corner early but Bruce shoves him away, only to come up favoring his wrist. More rights and lefts have Bruce down on his knee but a Superman Punch is countered into something like a World’s Strongest Slam (not that this is a wrestling match in any way).

They fight on the mat for a bit before getting back up, where a right hand sends Santee outside. Santee beats up the chairs so Kyle hits a BIG dive to take him down. Chair shots to the back rock Santee again and Kyle is rather fired up. Back in and Santee hammers away but Kyle kicks him back, meaning it’s time for the big slugout in the middle. Kyle rocks him with a right hand so Santee says bring it so Kyle kicks him in the head for the knockout at 4:40.

Rating: B. I have no idea what to call this as a wrestling match but that isn’t what they were going for here. This was about two big bruisers beating each other down and that’s what we got here. I’ve never heard of either guy but it makes sense to have them do something like this. Good, fun brawl here and exactly as advertised.

Post match Santee grabs the mic and seems to show respect. Then he a drink.

The ring announcer tells the fans to stay away from the ring. I think.

Jon Davis vs. Dominic Garrini

Garrini has Kevin Ku with him. They go straight to the slugging it out in the middle with Garrini needing a second off some chops tot he bare chest. After about two minutes of chopping, Garrini kicks him in the chest instead so Davis does some of his own. Garrini finally starts a series of strikes to take over but Davis snaps off a suplex to send him flying

Some shots to the face and a few slams give Davis two but Garrini snaps off some strikes to the chest. A German suplex sends Davis flying and a running knee gets two. Back up and they trade elbows to the face until Davis STOs him down. The Shining Wizard gives Davis two and a powerbomb gives Garrini the same. Davis is right back with a heck of a lariat into a piledriver for the pin at 8:35.

Rating: C. This took some time to get going and they spent a lot of time hitting each other rather hard, which is about as interesting as something like this is going to be. Both of these guys have been around quite a bit over the weekend and they have gotten a bit of an upgrade. I’ve only seen Garrini from MLW and mainly in a tag team, while Davis has not been around for a bit but is making a nice showing for himself as the grumpy power guy.

Brandon Kirk vs. Danny Demanto

There are a bunch of weapons around the ring so here we go. Brandon has Kasey Kirk with him and they do not seem to be popular. Demanto seems to be more of a hit with the fans, though he might be a bit loopy. He also has a rather energetic guy named Mittens in his corner, because of course he does.

Kasey handles Brandon’s (her husband) introduction and the fans REALLY do not like her. Granted I can barely understand her but that seems to be the right conclusion. Demanto on the other hand is the “Tom Brady Of Banging Your Lady”, which is about as clever of a nickname as I’ve heard in the last four minutes. Kirk jumps him before the bell for two but Demanto reverses a whip to send Kirk outside. A bunch of chair shots have Kirk staggering around the ring and Demanto puts him on a table.

That means a top rope elbow to drive him through and they’re both down at ringside. Demanto hits him in the ribs and back with a baseball bat (after not being able to break it over his knee) and there’s a hard whip through a bunch of chairs. Now it’s time to get extra violent as Demanto takes some kind of spiked plate and elbows it into Kirk’s head, where it gets stuck.

That opens up the head so let’s pour some hot sauce in there for a bonus. Back in and it’s time to pour in some salt and lemons to go with the hot sauce. Demanto picks up a kendo stick but has to stop and swing at Kasey, allowing Brandon to get in a thumb tack wiffle bat shot. Another spike plate goes into Demanto’s head for a change and Kirk puts a keg between his legs.

With Demanto stuck, Kirk crushes said keg with a baseball bat for two. Both of them escape fireman’s carries until Kirk sends him over the top and through a table with what looks to be a bunch of cut open cans stuck to the top. We now pause because THAT WAS REALLY STUPID and Demanto can’t get up. Kirk helps him as well so Demanto hits him in the face, with commentary praising Demanto for being a piece of garbage. Kirk is laid on a door and a powerbomb/piledriver sends Kasey through Kirk through the door.

Instead of covering, Demanto flips off the camera as Kirk pulls himself back in. Demanto picks up a baseball bad with an empty water cooler container on the end and here’s Mittens to hold Kirk. The big shot hits Mittens by mistake though and Kirk’s lariat gets two. They fight over a suplex until Kirk grabs a small package for two. It’s time to slap it out from their knees but Kasey hits Demanto with….something to give Kirk the pin at 14:24.

Rating: D. This started off fun with Demanto having a bunch of charisma but then went rather weird with Demanto almost having a heel turn in the middle. The Kirks seem like a pretty despicable team and the fans really didn’t like them, but it was still not much to see with all of the hardcore and violence. More hardcore nonsense, but you had to know something like that was coming around here.

Post match Demanto grabs the mic and says he lost everything two years ago. He knows that he can always press the restart button and burn this place to the ground. So he wants everyone here who has ever been told no or who has lost someone to put up a middle finger. We get the ICDUB chant and he seems happy about something. Upon further investigation, Demanto is the owner of the company. That makes….a bit more sense I guess.

The ring announcer says they don’t have any hot food here so if you’re hungry, you’ll have to Door Dash it. Ok then.

Calvin Tankman vs. Dan Maff

These guys are rather large. They go nose to nose to start with Tankman talking trash. The chop off fires both of them up even more until Tankman knocks him outside. Tankman follows him out and gets sent through some chairs for the big crash. That’s fine with Tankman, who is right back to send Maff through some chairs as well. A chair to the back, as opposed to a back to the chair, keeps Maff in trouble, but another one just wakes him up.

Maff kicks him away and it’s time to set up a door. They hammer away at each other’s heads until they stagger around to opposite sides of the ring. Back in (for once) and they forearm it out with Tankman getting the better of things. A lariat is countered into a half and half suplex to drop Tankman though and a backsplash connects. Maff hits a lariat into a backbreaker but Tankman is back with a lariat of his own for a close two. It’s time to bring in a door and a couple of chairs to bridge it over, which can never go well.

A spinebuster puts Maff through the door for two more so Tankman needs some more chairs. Some fans throw one in, earning a warning from the ring announcer (“Please hand the chairs to the competitors.” That isn’t something you hear in your usual matches and that might be a good thing.). A bunch of chairs are stacked up and a powerslam onto said pile gets two on Maff.

With Maff out on the floor, Tankman hits a heck of a suicide dive to send him through another door for another two. Maff is back up and catches Tankman on top, only to get knocked back down. Tankman’s frog splash onto Maff onto the chairs…..gets two, as this has gone from beyond ridiculous to completely stupid. Maff slips out of a superplex attempt and hits something resembling a Cheeky Nandos kick. The Burning Hammer in the vicinity of the chairs finishes Tankman at 20:13.

Rating: D. Nope. This was a match that started off well as a good battle of the big men but then went WAY too far, to the point where it was so ridiculous. They had a bunch of big spots and the kickouts stopped being interesting and started being a joke about how the thing was never going to end. I was getting annoyed at this one and that should not be the case with a match that started off fun. They went about twice as long as they should have and it was a big miss as a result.

Post match they stare at each other and trade more chops as a show of respect. That might make up for a bit of the match. Tankman leaves and here’s Bruce Santee, in a “F*CK JOE BIDEN” shirt, to yell at Maff before their match in an upcoming one night tournament.

Weapons are loaded into the ring for the next match. Oh boy here we go.

The ring announcer requests that fans keep their masks up.

Jake Crist vs. Nolan Edward

This is Crist’s debut with the company and he kicks Nolan outside at the bell, setting up a suicide dive in the first seven seconds. They move some chairs around with Edward managing to kick him in the face and throw some chairs inside. Back in and Crist scores with a high crossbody and some kicks to the face get two. Edward is back with something like a McGillicutter into a Gory Stretch.

Crist is sent face first into one of the chains but kicks him in the ribs to break up a Bionic Elbow. A swinging belly to back fisherman’s suplex sends Crist through a door for two but he’s right back with a Death Valley Driver through another door for another two. Crist gets two off a spinning brainbuster so Nolan is back with a snapmare into some fast knee drops. A Stunner drops Nolan again and this time Crist pelts a chair at his face. Then he does it two more times for a bonus and Nolan is down again.

Crist puts him on top for a superplex onto a chair so it’s time to put a barbed wire board over a pair of chairs. Nolan gets caught on top and there’s a super cutter through the barbed wire board for two (and a very limited reaction). Another barbed wire board is loaded up over the chairs and, after pelting a chair at Nolan’s head, Crist….gets butterfly suplexed through the board instead, giving Nolan the pin at 12:03.

Rating: C-. This is one of the more frustrating shows in a long time as it’s the kind of thing that should make me mad but they’re keeping the violence at just a low enough level to keep the anger levels down with it. I’ve seen Nolan twice this weekend and haven’t been interested, though Crist is someone who can do some good things. He’s better with his brother, but his brother is kind of horrible outside of the ring and should have been dropped.

A lot of respect is shown post match.

After an ad break, Edward is still in the ring and has a seat while holding the microphone. Edward has been told that there is no such thing as a draw in wrestling anymore. That means a challenge to…..Sami Callihan. This would have been a bit better if the fans hadn’t chanted Edward’s nickname: No Flinch.

More weapons are loaded in for the main event, with the ring announcer again telling fans to get their masks up.

Neil Diamond Cutter/The Rejects vs. Carnage Crew/???

The Rejects (John Wayne Murdoch/Reed Bentley) and the Crew (DeVito/Loc) are….not important enough to individually name to start, meaning the video’s graphic has to help me out. The brawl is on at ringside without the Crew’s partner being out here yet. I also don’t think there was a bell but I can’t imagine it matters. Cutter hits Loc in the head and Murdoch bites him as commentary mentions the Crew’s partner (who I’ll save for a bit of a surprise). Cutter gets sent through a board in the corner and Loc hits a basement clothesline for two.

The brawling continues around ringside, including Loc stapling a dollar to Cutter’s tongue. Bentley puts DeVito through a door and we get a parade of weapons shows with no particular rhyme or reason. Loc takes Murdoch inside for a belly to back suplex and Bentley’s swinging Russian legsweep gets two on Cutter. Something like a Magic Killer gets two on Loc…..and we’ve got NEW JACK as the partner. The trashcan full of weapons goes into the ring, including the guitar over Cutter’s head to give DeVito the pin at 6:35.

Rating: D. As you might have guessed, this wasn’t about the wrestling or anything outside of the brawling as we waited on New Jack as the big special moment. Granted it might have been better had he been a mystery partner, but knowing who it is going to be and having then showing up in the end works as well. This was more of the hardcore match I was expecting but they kept it short so it’s hard to get overly annoyed. Totally not my thing, but you had to have a match like this from a promotion called NO HOLDS BARRED.

Celebrating ensues post match, with New Jack being about six inches taller than DeVito and Loc. The Rejects grab the mic and says this was about the violence as the Rejects faced the Carnage Crew for the first time ever. Bentley challenges them to a two on two match in the future but New Jack answers, saying he came here from North Carolina. I think he says he has been drinking all day, so you censored censored censoreds and various other censoring. The Crew accepts the challenge and New Jack throws a trashcan at the Rejects. New Jack’s theme music ends the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This show started off well enough and was even a nice surprise to get things going, but then it descended down into a lot more of what I was expecting. What surprised me here was that it never got all the way down into where some of these shows tend to go. There was even some good wrestling earlier in the show and that is always going to help things. The show certainly isn’t great and there isn’t much on it worth seeing, but I was expecting a deathmatch nightmare and got a fairly average show with some hardcore thrown in near the end. If that’s as bad as it gets, I can live with this.

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

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

AND

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

IWTV Family Reunion 2021 Part 1
Date: April 8, 2021
Location: 81Bay Brewing, Tampa, Florida
Commentators: Various

We’ll start the marathon wrestling weekend with this, part of the Showcase of the Independents. I watched the Family Reunion show two years ago and had a good enough time with it to try another version. IWTV is a wrestling streaming service with all kinds of indy promotions available and this is kind of a sampler of some of their bigger names and promotions. Let’s get to it.

I do not follow any of these promotions so I am coming into this completely blind on all angles and stories.

As you might have expected, the show doesn’t start on time, kicking off about ten minutes late.

The show is dedicated to Shannon Place, a member of the TV crew, who passed away yesterday.

A Very Good Professional Wrestling Team vs. Boomer Hatfield/Boar/Erica Leigh

This is from Camp Leapfrog (which is apparently some offshoot of Chikara) under lucha rules and the trio is Matt Makowski/Travis Huckabee/A Very Good Professional Wrestler. In a clever/annoying idea, the former team comes out to Foo Fighter’s Best Of You but it stays on THE BEST, which repeats on a loop. Hatfield and Very Good start things off and apparently are father and son, meaning Very Good would seem to be the unmasked Dasher Hatfield of Chikara fame.

Feeling out process to start with the expected technical exchange. Hatfield gets in an armdrag into an armbar, which doesn’t sit well with Very Good. The brawling begins so it’s off to Erica vs. Huckabee with Erica booting him out to the floor. Makowski and the rather large Boar come in with Makowski reversing a fireman’s carry into a cross armbreaker. Erica comes back in and gets knocked away from trying to whip Makowski in, allowing Huckabee to come back in and work on the arm.

A not great looking running knee in the corner hits Erica’s arm again and Makowski adds a slam for two. Makowski’s butterfly suplex can’t set up an armbar so Boomer goes up top, gets the tag from there, and comes in with a high crossbody. House is cleaned until Very Good is left to German suplex Hatfield. Another running knee in the corner gets two but Hatfield grabs a rather spinning armdrag to put Very Good down. Hatfield has to get out of a reverse chinlock and hits some running elbows in the corner.

Very Good catches one such charge and Gory Bombs him into the buckle for two. They both flip to their feet and Hatfield hits a Saito suplex, allowing the hot tag off to Boar. Everything breaks down and Boar tosses Huckabee onto the other two. Boar hits a rather impressive no hands dive over the top, leaving Erica to roll Very Good up for two.

Hatfield is back in with a tornado DDT on Very Good but Huckabee plants Hatfield with a swinging cutter. Total Elimination drops Boar for two but Hatfield is back in with a top rope Meteora on Huckabee. Very Good plants Hatfield but Boar tosses a few people at them for the save. Boar hits something like a Bitter End to finish Huckabee at 17:12.

Rating: C. This went a bit longer than it should have but what we got was good enough, with everyone flying around and doing their thing as well as they could have. The idea here is a Showcase and that is exactly what we got, with six people who have done this for a bit getting to do their thing. Of course it was a bit messy, but what else are you expecting from a Boar fighting in a brewery?

Daniel Makabe vs. Jaden Newman

From Scenic City Invitational and Makabe won their most recent big tournament. They go technical to start (makes sense for Makabe, who is billed as the Wrestling Genius) with Newman grabbing a cravate to little effect. A sunset flip doesn’t work for Newman as he has to bail to the ropes to escape an STF. Makabe can’t get Cattle Mutilation so he settles for two off a German suplex instead.

Newman is right back with a powerslam into a chinlock, followed by a heck of a left hand to the ear. A northern lights suplex gives Newman two as Makabe is bleeding from the….somewhere. Newman hits a cravate driver for two and the cravate goes on again. Makabe is back up to lay him over the middle rope for some choking. That earns him a ram into the buckle though and Newman cravates him over the rope for a change.

That’s broken up and Makabe hits a running kick to the face, setting up a superplex for the double knockdown. It’s Makabe up first with a tiger driver for two but Newman pulls him into a hangman’s clutch (STF with a cravate) but Makabe slips out. Instead Newman elbows him in the head, only to get pulled into a rear naked choke. That’s broken up as well so Makabe snaps off a dragon screw legwhip. The Fujiwara armbar makes Newman tap at 9:53.

Rating: C+. This was a little bit more my speed as Makabe picked him apart with Newman focusing on the cravate a bit too much. Sometimes you need a good technical exchange and that’s what you got here. Both guys looked fairly good here and I could go for more of both of them, so well done throughout.

Will Wrestle vs. Judge Hugo Lexington Black

From Olde Wrestling, which is designed to be out of the 1800s or whatever other era you picture as being rather old. I’ve heard about this promotion before and it did sound a bit fun. Before the match, (Rickey Shane Page as a corrupt judge) says he doesn’t want to wrestle and hates all of the fans. He would rather sit on the beach and drink some sweet tea because….well that’s what a southern man does. Will is a panhandler who would do a headlock for a handout.

We get started with Will, who only has one shoe, being rather pleased with being given a dollar. Then Black takes it away so Will wrestles him around and gets it again. The bill is tucked away so Black grabs a spinning release slam to take over. A stomp to the socked foot has Will in trouble but he manages to get his dollar back.

Black suplexes him down and stomps on the foot again, which certainly does make sense. After a bite of the foot, we hit the spinning toehold but Will steals Page’s shoe to put it on the other foot. Will pops up with a tornado DDT and goes up but Black throws more money for a distraction. A sunset flip doesn’t work for Will, but he reaches into Black’s pocket to pull out a five dollar bill. The shock is enough to pin Black at 6:21.

Rating: C. I thought it was fun and I’ve been wanting to see a full show from this promotion for awhile now. That’s the point of a show like this so I’ll check one of their full things out later. Good little match here with a funny story throughout. They didn’t overstay their welcome and were entertaining as well, which is as good as you can get.

Wheeler Yuta vs. Adam Priest

The winner gets an Independent Wrestling TV Title shot. Yuta bails to the floor to start but comes back in to take Priest down with a waistlock. Priest slips out but Yuta gets two off a sunset flip. A right hand rocks Priest but seems to wake him up, meaning it’s a gutwrench suplex for two. They trade some loud chops with Priest getting the better of it and tying the leg up into the strange cousin of a Tequila Sunrise.

Priest can’t switch it into a Sharpshooter as Yuta grabs the ear for a break. A trip sends Yuta outside for a loud chop off until Yuta sends his shoulder into the post. Back in and Yuta hits a slam into a top rope splash for two, with Priest going into the corner to favor his shoulder. Yuta is smart enough to go after the arm, including the rather nasty stomp. The armbar goes on (makes sense) for a bit, followed by a German suplex for two on Priest.

Another German suplex gets two on Yuta and another German suplex gets another two on Yuta. Priest grabs a brainbuster for two more but he still can’t get a Sharpshooter. Yuta is back up with a backfist into a nasty looking middle rope DDT to the arm. The Fujiwara armbar has Priest in trouble but Yuta lets go and kicks the arm. Zack Sabre Jr.’s European Clutch pins Priest at 10:04.

Rating: C+. Another nice match with Yuta being the more polished of the two. Working on the arm is something that is always going to work and it went fine here. Priest looked like someone who could go somewhere in the future with some more seasoning and having matches with slightly bigger stars like Yuta is a good idea. Good stuff here and Yuta continues to grow.

Robert Martyr vs. Dominic Garrini

From Paradigm Pro Wrestling and under UWFI rules, with Garrini being billed as the UWFIcon. This match has a points system with both wrestlers starting with fifteen points. If you run out of points, it’s an automatic loss, though you can also lose by submission or knockout. Garrini goes for the arm to start and Martyr goes to the rope to lose a point. The attempted triangle choke sends him to the ropes again so it’s already 15-13 (assuming commentary knows what they’re talking about, as we aren’t getting any announcements). Garrini snaps off a German suplex, which seems to be another point off for Martyr.

Garrini’s Kimura attempt is blocked and Martyr fires off elbows to the head. Martyr has to slip out of a guillotine choke so Garrini grabs a cross armbreaker, meaning it’s another Martyr rope break. Back up and Garrini blasts him in the head but Martyr is back up with a crossface chickenwing, sending Garrini to the ropes for a change. A slap off goes to Garrini but Martyr suplexes him down, which apparently is points off too (we need a scoreboard or something). Garrini pulls him into a Crossface for the tap at 4:44.

Rating: C-. This is just not my style and the points system was more confusing than anything else. Garrini is someone I’ve seen a few times in MLW and he is fine enough for what he does, but I don’t usually care for this kind of stuff. Martyr was decent in a short match here, but this was all about Garrini and it showed.

Funny Bone/Nurse Ratchet/Super Beast vs. D-Rogue/James C/Willow Nightingale

This is from Hoodslam, meaning the wrestlers are going to be about as gimmicky as you can get. Beast brings Ratchet to the ring in a body bag for some extra flavor. Nightingale seems rather happy to be here, which seems to be the case with a lot of wrestlers these days. Beast offers Nightingale a spot in said body bag but she’ll pass for now. Ratchet, who staggers around like a zombie, starts with Nightingale, who is a bit terrified.

A test of strength is teased but Ratchet grabs her by the throat. Nightingale headbutts her way out but seems scared to follow up. There’s a slam to put Ratchet down but she does an Undertaker sit up. Another slam lets her do the Bray Wyatt spider walk, meaning it’s off to the much bigger C. Eat Defeat knocks Ratchet….almost off her feet but not quite. Ratchet goes up for Old School and walks around the corner before coming down on the arm.

Bone (in a skull mask) comes in to work on the arm, setting up an exchange of middle fingers. A cross between a neckbreaker/Backstabber puts Bone down and it’s off to Rogue. Bone blasts him with some jumping knees and Rogue goes into a rather slow motion fall. The rather muscular Beast comes in to send Rogue flying, setting up some running strikes in the corner.

Rogue manages to send him outside so Ratchet comes back in with a high crossbody. That’s pulled out of the air and countered into a slam, allowing Rogue to dive onto Beast and Bone. Back in and Nightingale Rock Bottoms Ratchet but misses a moonsault. James slips in with a pumphandle piledriver on Ratchet but Beast plants him with a powerslam. Bone adds a top rope elbow for the pin at 8:08.

Rating: C. Oh yeah this was heavy on the gimmicks, which worked out well enough. Hoodslam is not exactly my taste (though I do want to see Drugs Bunny) but you could get the idea of the weird trio here. They didn’t hide who was going to win here and that is ok for something like this. Again, it’s meant to be a showcase and I got a bit of an idea of what I would get out of these people, which is how it is supposed to go.

IWA-Mid South Title: Jake Crist vs. John Wayne Murdoch

Crist is defending and there are no rules (you knew they would get something like this in). The bell rings and Crist throws a door at Murdoch’s face. A high crossbody connects and Crist fires off the kicks to the head for two. They head outside with Crist being sent face first into the bar to put him in some trouble. It’s time to sit in some chairs and hit each other in the face, which is always a bit of an odd visual.

Back in and Murdoch chairs him between the shoulders, setting up a neckbreaker for two. We hit the chinlock early on but Crist is back up, only to get kneed in the ribs. Crist is back up with some chops into a Death Valley Driver for two of his own. A powerslam into a chair in the corner gets two on Murdoch so Crist bridges a door between two chairs.

They go up top and Crist hits a super cutter through the door, setting up a backslide for two. Murdoch is back with a Canadian Destroyer but Crist backslides him again for two more. A brainbuster gives Murdoch his own two and it’s time to bridge another door over the chairs. Murdoch hits a super Canadian Destroyer through the door for the pin and the title at 7:35.

Rating: D+. They flew through this and it felt like it was clipped a bit on time. Much like the UWFI stuff, this is totally not my style but at least they didn’t go into the full hardcore nonsense. I mean, yeah they were breaking doors and such but there is a big difference between that and the blood and such, which is just annoying instead of something with some value.

Independent Wrestling TV Title: Edith Surreal vs. Lee Moriarty

Moriarty is defending and Surreal is better known as Still Life With Apricots And Pears, meaning we have a bunch of paintings set up around the ring (if you’re not familiar, don’t bother trying to figure it out because this is one of the weirdest gimmicks you’ll see). They go technical to start with Moriarty working on the arm. A quick trip to the mat doesn’t go anywhere so it’s time for another exchange of arm control. Surreal switches over to the leg but Moriarty slips out in a hurry.

Back up and Surreal cranks on the arm, setting up a crucifix for two, with Moriarty bouncing out, which seems to hurt Surreal’s ribs. They run the ropes until Surreal snaps off a hurricanrana into an elbow to the face for two more. Moriarty gets in a shot to the ribs and puts on a bodyscissors, complete with an arm crank for a bonus. That’s broken up so Moriarty shouts at her a lot as frustration is setting in.

Some shoulders to the ribs in the corner and an arm snap have Surreal in more trouble, followed by an abdominal stretch. That’s broken up and Surreal ties up the limbs into a rollup for two. They trade some rollups for two each until Surreal knocks him down again. A guillotine legdrop gets two on Moriarty and it’s time to go back to the rollups, with Moriarty trapping the legs and kicking the ribs to retain at 10:37.

Rating: C+. This was another rather entertaining, back and forth exchange with both of them getting to shine. Surreal is someone who is about as unique as you can get today and that is always worth a look. Then you have Moriarty, who is a lot more traditional of a star but is rather good at the technical stuff. You can never see enough of that and Moriarty got to stand out rather well here.

Post match they shake hands but a masked man comes in to chair them both down. It’s Wheeler Yuta of course and we’re off the air in a hurry.

Overall Rating: C+. You have to consider what they were going for here and that was a nice success. This was about looking at a little bit of all kinds of wrestling from different places while also setting up something for tomorrow. It was a completely watchable show and ran about two hours flat, which is hardly wasting time. If you haven’t seen that much indy stuff, you might want to check this out and see what they have to pick from, because there were a lot of choices here.

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IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Sacrifice
Date: February 22, 2020
Location: Davis Arena, Louisville, Kentucky
Commentators: Josh Matthews, D’Lo Brown

It’s a special event as we are in one of the most famous arenas in all of wrestling. This is the home of Ohio Valley Wrestling and this time around we are going to be seeing a co-promoted show between OVW and Impact Wrestling. The main event is X-Division Champion Ace Austin vs. World Champion Tessa Blanchard in a non-title match, which is kind of a weird way to go. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: AJ Daniels vs. D’Mone Solavino

Solavino has big black wings and AJ, who has no music, is from the Outer Space District. Some shoulders put Daniels down to start but he’s back up with leapfrogs and a dropkick. Solavino’s suplex is countered into a small package for two but he’s back with a backbreaker. A belly to back suplex gets two but Daniels kicks him in the face and hits a slingshot corkscrew splash for two. An Angle Slam gets two on Daniels but he knocks Solavino off the top, setting up a 450 for the pin at 5:23.

Rating: C-. This was a good example of two young guys getting to go out there and fly around the ring for a little bit. It wasn’t exactly high quality but the 450 looked good and it’s nice to see two younger guys getting a chance like this. They were probably both on the biggest show of their career to this point so it was completely acceptable for what it was.

Pre-Show: Max The Impaler vs. Cali Young

Cali is a rather ditsy blonde who is running for President (along with her campaign manager DL3) and LOVES AMERICA. On the other hand, Max seems inspired by her Mad namesake. Cali ducks some clotheslines to start and then bounces off of Max. A running shoulder in the corner crushes Cali again, meaning it’s time for a DL3 distraction.

This goes as badly as you would expect as Cali’s jumping choke is flipped over without much effort. Another distraction lets Cali get in a chop block but the good leg kicks her away. DL3 chokes from the floor but Max easily suplexes Cali down. Max beats up DL3 again and hits a spear for the pin at 4:14.

Rating: D+. Just a squash here as Cali didn’t get to go into her full shtick with the patriotism. She got to do it last night though and that got her some extra attention as well. Max felt your local monster, which is fine enough but it’s not something that is exactly breaking the mold.

The opening video is a pretty standard series of shots of people involved.

Rohit Raju vs. Corey Storm

Storm is an OVW regular. Raju takes him into the corner to start but runs into an atomic drop. There’s a dropkick to put Raju in the corner and a springboard kick to the face gets two. Back up and Raju slugs away, setting up a quick fisherman’s buster for two of his own. We hit the chinlock but Storm jawbreaks his way to freedom and kicks him down for two. Something like a springboard Codebreaker, followed by a basement superkick. Raju knees him in the face though and nails a Cannonball in the corner. A top rope double stomp to the back finishes Storm at 6:29.

Rating: C. Completely competent match here and a fine enough way to set things up for the rest of the night. Storm is someone with some potential and while I’m not big on Raju in the slightest, he is a lot better when he’s not doing the Desi Hit Squad stuff. Just have him out there as a wrestler in trunks and let him do his thing. It works a lot better that way, as it did here.

Impact Tag Team Titles: Rascalz vs. The North

The Rascalz (Trey and Wentz) are challenging here. Alexander sends Trey into the corner to start so it’s off to Wentz, who takes Alexander down. That doesn’t go anywhere for him as Alexander hits a quick toss as the Rascalz can’t get anything going. Some chops in the corner work a bit better for Wentz and a running dropkick gets two. Page gets in a cheap shot from the apron though and it’s Wentz in trouble again.

Trey grabs a neckbreaker and the hot tag brings in Wentz to clean house. Wentz’s slingshot Codebreaker gets two on Page as everything breaks down. Alexander throws Trey into Wentz for two and Page is stunned by the kickout. Wentz fights back but gets caught in a tilt-a-whirl faceplant. He’s back up with a Canadian Destroyer for two on Alexander.

The champs are sent into each other and it’s back to Trey, who gets caught with a double crucifix bomb for two. A Backstabber into a Swanton hits Page but Alexander is up to cut Wentz off. The referee is bumped and it’s a 619 in the corner to Alexander. Cue Rohit Raju to shove Trey off the top though, setting up the Northern Assault for the pin to retain at 20:20.

Rating: B. This took some time to get going but they were rolling by the end. The teams have some great chemistry together but the Rascalz have lost to the champs so many times now that it’s becoming hard to believe that they are a real threat. It might be time for them to move on, but at least the matches are still good.

Ace Austin has an interview in the back where he interviews the Steiner Math promo. Well at least in theory he does, as the audio keeps cutting in and out.

Rae Lyn vs. Kiera Hogan

Hogan takes her into the corner to start but Lyn switches places and slaps Hogan on the chest. They fight over wrist control until an exchange of shoulders has no effect. Dropkicks have the same result and it’s time for a pose/dance off. Lyn armdrags her down a few times so Hogan hits an elbow to the face. Choking in the ropes ensues and we hit the chinlock to slow things down again.

Back up and they trade kicks to the head for a double knockdown. Lyn’s legsweep gets two and a missile dropkick is good for the same. A spinning kick to the face gets two more, followed by the fisherman’s suplex for the fourth two in a row. They slug it out until Hogan kicks her in the face and finishes with a fisherman’s neckbreaker at 11:05.

Rating: C-. Just a match here and there is nothing wrong with an Impact wrestler defeating someone who hasn’t been around OVW very long. It wasn’t anything great and they went with a little too much silliness, but at least they had a passable match with both women getting in some time. Lyn has potential but needs some more ring time and something to get people to pay attention.

Johnny Swinger still tries to get Willie Mack on his side and is shut down again. Swinger can’t even give him a VHS.

Jay Bradley vs. Willie Mack

Bradley jumps him before the bell but Mack is up and slugging away. That earns him a beatdown into the corner but a Vader Bomb elbow misses. A dropkick puts Bradley on the floor and that means a big dive to take him down again. Back in and Bradley hits a running boot in the corner for two while shouting about this being his house. Forearms to the chest put Mack down again and we hit the chinlock. Mack fights up again and strikes away, setting up the standing moonsault for two. Back to back Stunners set up the Six Star for the pin at 6:33.

Rating: C. Totally acceptable wrestling here with Mack getting to survive a monster like Bradley and come out with a win. Mack is someone they’re ready to push to the moon as soon as they get a chance. On the other hand you have Bradley, who was in Impact for a little while and then wound up back here. I can understand that as while he is good, he’s not exactly doing anything that hasn’t been done better before.

OVE is ready to destroy Acey Romeo and Larry D.

OVE vs. Larry D./Acey Romero

It’s Mad Man Fulton/Dave Crist with Jake Crist in their corner here. Hold on though as Dave gets caught with some brass knuckles so we need a delay before we get started. Fulton headlocks Larry to start and gets clotheslined to the floor in a hurry. Dave comes in and gets headbutted into the corner, setting up a big running dropkick to make it worse. It’s off to Acey to sit on Dave’s chest but Fulton sweeps the leg to take over.

A hard clothesline drops Acey again and the stomping begins. Dave adds a running shot to the knee in the corner to put Acey in even more trouble. Acey tries to fight out of the corner and gets forearmed down in a hurry. An exchange of clotheslines doesn’t get Acey or Fulton very far until Acey hits him in the back of the head and dives over for the tag to Larry. Everything breaks down as Larry beats up Dave, including a sitout powerbomb for two.

Fulton gets crushed in the middle and a Rock Bottom puts him down as well. Acey’s big elbow gets two more and Fulton is knocked to the floor. That means the huge dive from Acey, who then goes up for a moonsault. Thankfully Dave breaks that up so Fulton tries a Samoan drop, which is broken up by Larry. The big right hand from Larry sets up the Pounce from Acey to finish Dave at 13:45.

Rating: D+. I get the idea of Acey and Larry but they’re not exactly thrilling so far. It’s one of those things where they lose a lot of steam after you watch it once, meaning there isn’t much else to see. OVE losing again isn’t going to make that much of a difference for them, but if Acey and Larry are going to mean anything they have to win something like this every now and then.

Post match OVE jumps the two of them but Daga runs in for the save. As luck would have it, this is next.

Daga vs. Jake Crist

They strike it out in a hurry until Jake is sent into the corner. A crossbody puts Jake on the floor and Daga drops him with a suicide dive for a bonus. The cannonball off the apron takes Jake down again but he superkicks Daga out of the air for two. What looked like a keylock has Daga in trouble and Jake bends the arm around the shoulder for a bonus.

A chop puts Daga down but he nips up and kicks Jake in the face. That just earns Daga another armbar, followed by a flipped over hammerlock (I can always appreciate mixing up the holds). Jake rakes the eyes and bends the arm around the rope before taking it outside. Daga grabs a DDT on the floor and it’s a high crossbody for two back inside. A gutwrench powerbomb gives Daga two more but Jake is right back with a super sunset bomb for the same.

They slug it out from their knees until Daga grabs a German suplex for two more. A belly to belly suplex sends Daga into the corner, followed by an exchange of kicks to the head, headbutts and clotheslines to knock them both down. Daga is up first and heads to the top, only to dive into a cutter for two. Crist is frustrated and pie faces him, earning himself a hurricanrana into the Tiger Driver 98 for the pin at 16:42.

Rating: B. This was a battle of two guys trading moves for sixteen moves and that was an entertaining use of time. It was a fun match and exactly what it should have been as both guys got to show off. The Crists continue to be one of the most talented teams in the company and Daga can have a good match against anyone. Good showcase for both guys here, as it should have been.

Moose is ready to destroy Rhino.

Johnny Swinger vs. Joey Ryan

Hold on though as we need to do the lollipop and oil deals before we’re ready to go. Swinger grabs the mic and says they’ve done this before and he’s not facing the love child of Freddie Mercury and Animal Steele. He has that videotape from earlier and is willing to give it to Ryan (including the match against Ray Stevens with a 23 minute and 17 second airplane spin) if Joey will lay down. Joey puts the tape in his trunks and lays down, allowing the bell to ring so he can small package Swinger for two.

The staredown is on and they shake hands, with Joey trying to make him touch it. That doesn’t work so Swinger tries an atomic drop, giving him the required knee pain. Ryan’s atomic drop works just fine and it’s Swinger getting caught in the ropes for some right hands. A cheap shot lets Swinger hit a middle rope ax handle for two and we hit a headscissor choke (Swinger: “YEAH DADDY!”).

Swinger grabs the sleeper for two arm drops but Ryan fights up for a collision. With Ryan down, Swinger falls head first onto it, allowing Ryan to hit a spinebuster for two. Ryan pulls out the lollipop but it goes into the referee’s mouth. That lets Swinger hit him with the tape for two but the Swinger Neckbreaker is countered, allowing Ryan to make him touch It. Sweet Tooth Music finishes Swinger at 7:29.

Rating: D+. This could have been worse as Swinger has gone from someone who made my eyes roll to one of the more entertaining people around here. Above all else, they’ve kept him firmly at the comedy level and that makes him a lot more tolerable. Not a good match or anything, but it served its purpose.

We look at Jordynne Grace winning the Knockouts Title.

Knockouts Title: Havok vs. Jordynne Grace

Grace is defending and gets driven straight into the corner to start. Some corner splashes make it worse and Havok screams a lot. Grace fights back with a quickly broken sleeper but she fights out of a suplex out of the corner. A Vader Bomb gives Grace two and there’s a hanging DDT to plant Havok again. The champ is back with another sleeper, which has about as much success as the first. A chokeslam gives Havok two but she has to break a third sleeper by falling back. Graces grabs it again and wraps the legs, which is enough to knock Havok out to retain at 5:37.

Rating: C. It was short but I liked the story here as it wasn’t something you would expect from a powerhouse like Grace. They had a little something with Grace going after the sleeper over and over and FINALLY winning with it, which isn’t what you usually see. Not a great match or anything but good storytelling.

Tessa Blanchard says she’ll win tonight and then she’s taking the X-Division Title.

Chris Harris is here.

Moose vs. Rhino

They slug it out to start until Rhino plants him down with a spinebuster. Moose bails to the floor and is ready to walk out but Rhino drags him back through the entrance. Back in and Moose hits him low for the DQ at 2:33. I’m thinking we’re not done here.

Indeed Rhino wants it to be No DQ.

Moose vs. Rhino

No DQ and Moose slowly stomps him down before grabbing the chair. That winds up bouncing off of the top rope and onto Moose’s head so they go outside. Moose yells at Chris Harris but goes for a lap around the ring, earning himself a trashcan lid to the head. Back in and Moose hits another low blow so it’s staple gun time. That earns him a staple to the crotch but Moose is fine enough to hit a running dropkick in the corner.

With the staple not working, it’s time for a hammer, but Rhino spinebusters him to avoid a bad case of death. A hammer shot to the foot puts Rhino down again so Moose throws in a bunch of chairs to unload. He takes too long going up though and gets superplexed down onto the chairs. The fans request and receive their table but a discus lariat blocks the Gore attempt. Moose charges into a chair in the corner but it’s No Jackhammer Needed through the table to finish Rhino at 11:48.

Rating: D. I’m so tired of seeing this same match over and over again. How many times can you see the same hardcore brawl? The hammer to the foot was the only fresh spot in there and it’s not like it was some game changer. Just something they’ve done far too many times lately (or not lately for that matter) and I don’t need to see it ever again.

ICU graphic.

Ace Austin vs. Tessa Blanchard

Non-title. Ace stalls a bit by adjusting his gear for a good bit both before and after the bell. They stare each other down for over a minute to start until Austin dances a bit. That earns him a heck of a slap to the face but Tessa charges into a hiptoss into the corner. A dragon sleeper slows Tessa down and Ace puts a knee on the back of her neck for a bonus. Some stomps to the back set up a half crab but the rope is reached.

Tessa gets in a running knee but a kick to the head puts her outside in a hurry. Ace follows her outside and shrugs off the forearms to the head so he can kick Tessa in the face. The dive off the apron is blocked but so is Tessa’s suicide dive as she just can’t get anything going so far. A hanging swinging neckbreaker gives Ace two and we hit a seated armbar. That lets Ace slice the fingers with the playing card for two which is quite the painful way to go.

Ace goes up but gets pulled down with Magnum from the middle rope so Tessa can snap off a hurricanrana with a bunch of screaming included. A cutter sends Ace outside and the triple suicide dives connect. Back in and the Buzzsaw DDT is countered into a northern lights suplex. Tessa snaps off a standing Sliced Bread #2 but still can’t hit the DDT. Instead she goes up, only to dive into a spinning kick to the face for two.

A springboard spinning Fameasser gets two more, meaning Tessa can scream again. Tessa snaps off a tornado DDT and a Code Red for her own two but Magnum is blocked. Ace can’t superplex her but Tessa can’t super DDT him. Instead she hits the Buzzsaw onto the turnbuckle (El Generico would be proud) for the pin at 18:31.

Rating: B. They built this up as a big match and it felt like one, so they hit the important idea. Tessa’s screams were a bit much but it was a nice story with Tessa never giving up and trying to hit one of her big moves to get the win. Ace isn’t going to be hurt by losing to the World Champion and Tessa gets an important win. Good stuff here, and it felt like an important main event.

Overall Rating: B+. This was a back and forth show with the good matches being very good but the bad matches bringing them back down. What brings the show up though is how much longer the good stuff was than the bad, and that made this a solid show. For an online special, it was an awesome night and worth checking out, though you might want to fast forward a few things.

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:

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IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: March 17, 2020
Location: Sam’s Town Live, Las Vegas, Nevada
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We’re almost to the last taping cycle from this company for a good while. Last week’s show ended with the announcement that Tessa Blanchard would defend the World Title against both Michael Elgin and Eddie Edwards at Rebellion. That’s kind of a problem now as there is likely no Rebellion, meaning this could be a rather interesting show if they didn’t edit things. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at the end of last week’s show, with Blanchard agreeing to the triple threat match.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Titles: The North vs. TJP/Fallah Bahh

TJP and Bahh are challenging after winning some singles matches and a non-title match to set this up. The brawl is on before the referee can lower the titles, meaning the champions try to hit Bahh in the head for some reason. Alexander gets hit with Poetry In Motion and a belly to belly from Bahh. TJP gets caught in the wrong corner though and a knee drop sets up the chinlock.

The North go with the delayed vertical suplex and pass TJP back and forth, making me wonder if it was either them or Santana/Ortiz who did that first. TJP reverses into a rollup anyway though and sends the champs together. The double chickenwing gutbuster allows Bahh to get the tag and house is quickly cleaned. Everyone crashes out to the floor and we take a break. Back with TJP diving over for another hot tag to Bahh so everyone can be knocked down again.

Bahh no sells Alexander’s German suplex and hits a clothesline before going down as well. The double Neutralizer gives Alexander two but Bahh is back up with a double clothesline. TJP comes back in with the kneebar to Page and switches into the STF. The referee is with Alexander as Page taps so Bahh knocks Alexander to the floor and hits a suicide dive. Back in and TJP sends the champs into each other but the Detonation kick is countered into the toss spinebuster (dubbed the Northern Assault) to retain the titles at 19:04.

Rating: B. The North are as good of a team as this company has had since LAX and that’s some high praise. They’re going to set the record for the longest Tag Team Title reign in company history and that’s something they’ve earned. I could go for a rematch here and odds are we’re going to see one, though I’m not sure we’ll see a title change.

Video Team Edwards vs. Team Elgin at Lockdown, with a “Lockdown is Postponed” graphic. Shame as that could have been interesting. Eddie’s team included himself, Tommy Dreamer, Daga and Tessa Blanchard.

And now, Real Housewives of Slam Town. Taya Valkyrie and her dog are having drinks with her friends when Rosemary comes in. She is ordered to change out of her regular shirt and switches into more normal (for this crowd) looking attire. Drinking ensues and they go to the Alabama Slamtown club, where Rosemary sucks out one of Taya’s friend’s (Holly) soul. Holly is a little loopy after. This was rather fun in a wacky opposite way.

Josh and Callis talk about the recent Realityislost hacks and have guards at the production truck. They also hype up Lockdown, which is looking like a good show.

Chris Bey vs. Damian Drake

This is Bey’s debut. Bey shoulders him down to start and runs the ropes a bit before taking out the leg. A running kick to the head sets up the running flip dive to the floor as it’s all Bey so far. Back in and Bey kicks him in the head, setting up a rolling neckbreaker. Drake hits a right hand, only to get sent into the middle buckle. A jumping knee to the head sets up the Beymasser (springboard Fameasser) finishes Drake at 3:51.

Rating: C. Bey looked good here as this was a pure showcase match for him. He’s fast and smooth and that’s something that could get him rather far around here. I was excited to see him signed as he’s impressed me every time I’ve seen him so far and this was no exception as he looked polished.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Ken Shamrock wins the World Title on the first show.

Alisha Edwards gets a spot on Jordynne Grace’s Lethal Lockdown team and sings a song about it.

Tenille Dashwood video.

Chase Stevens is proud to be back for One Night Only when Moose interrupts and calls him Brett Michaels. Moose mocks him for never being a star so Chase calls him out for never winning a title here. A fight breaks out and Moose gets knocked down.

It’s time for the Gut Check finals and Shogun Jackson Stone wins. Good for him.

Tessa Blanchard is ready to face anyone because she’s a different woman. She’ll face Elgin and Edwards at Rebellion because she’s a fighting champion.

Cancel Culture vs. Deaners

That would be Rob Van Dam and Joey Ryan in glasses and a turtleneck. Ryan introduces the team as three people with extraordinary gifts: Rob’s athleticism, Katie’s curves and Ryan’s…..it. Rob makes fun of the Deaners for drinking before the match because perish the thought of someone wrestling under the influence. Katie is in a big coat and Ryan’s turtleneck comes off to reveal a regular collared shirt.

Cody stomps Joey down in the corner to start until a jawbreaker gets him out of trouble. Van Dam comes in to kick Cody to the floor but won’t let the fans see Rolling Thunder. It’s back to Ryan to tease making Cody touch it but instead lets Cody go, meaning it’s off to Jake. Everything breaks down and Joey superkicks Jake down, setting up the Five Star for the pin at 4:28.

Rating: D. I’m not sure on this. Cancel Culture might have some potential as they’re mocking….something, but I wasn’t big on the story in the first place. That being said, anything that gets us away from the usual Ryan shtick is a good thing so I’ll certainly take what I can get out of this.

Ken Shamrock has an announcement for tonight but won’t say what it is.

Willie Mack runs into Ace Austin, who talks about how much Mack has impressed him. Ace wants them to win the Tag Team Titles together but Mack says no because Rich Swann is his partner. He’ll go for some gold though because he’s in a #1 contenders match for the X-Division Title next week.

Kiera Hogan vs. Lacey Ryan

Ryan impressed last week so hopefully it wasn’t a one off. Kiera jumps her from behind to start and grabs a hurricanrana, only to get muscled over with a German suplex. A few shots to the back put Lacey down in the corner and a running basement dropkick gets two. The bodyscissors goes on until Lacey muscles her up and hits some clotheslines. A slingshot elbow sets up something like a belly to back GTS for no cover. Instead Kiera is back with a kick to the head and the fisherman’s neckbreaker finishes Ryan at 5:29.

Rating: C-. It was nice while it lasted but they didn’t get a ton of time. Ryan did look good again but there is only so much that she can do when she is losing in less than six minutes. If they’re not going to keep her around or push her, there is no reason for her to beat Hogan so the booking makes sense. Not bad though, and Ryan could be a player in the future.

James Mitchell sends Su Yung a letter, ordering her to face Havok in the Undead Realm next week.

Michael Elgin picks Taya Valkyrie and the North for his Lethal Lockdown team.

Jake Crist vs. Daga

Jake shouts OVE a lot to start before they go into the battle over arm control. That’s broken up as Josh makes mention of Rebellion, which is not listed as canceled. I’m not sure how likely that one is but points for false hope. Daga’s crucifix gets two and he kicks away, only to have Jake’s kicks miss. Jake heads outside and sweeps Daga’s leg to send him onto the apron. That means a suicide dive into a DDT to plant Daga and we take a break.

Back with Jake grabbing the reverse Rings of Saturn, sending Daga over to the ropes. A double clothesline puts both of them down and it’s Daga up first with the quick kicks. Daga suplexes him into a powerbomb for two but Jake kicks him in the face for the same. Jake catches a diving Daga in a cutter for two, only to have Daga kick him back. The double underhook gutbuster finishes Jake at 12:23.

Rating: C+. Daga has grown on me quite a bit lately as he’s rather smooth in the ring and can do a lot of different things. I can see why people seem so high on him and why they would want to push him. Nice match here too as Jake gets to show off the talent that he absolutely has.

Security may have caught the Realityislost hacker but it’s really ordained minister Ryan Cage. He’s just looking for his brother. Ok then.

TNA show video.

Here’s Ken Shamrock for his big announcement. Ken loves being here with all of the talented wrestlers and soaks in some WELCOME BACK chants. He doesn’t actually know what the announcement is, but Josh Matthews does: he’s going into the Hall of Fame. We get his career highlight video, complete with WWF footage…..and then the Realityislost video hits.

A man in black shows up in the ring and fireballs Shamrock before taking off his hood to reveal himself as Sami Callihan. Nice callback to what could have been an awesome NXT gimmick there and I could go for more of that as it’s an untapped idea. Medics help Shamrock to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The opener and closing angle were both good and the middle part was fine enough so we’ll call this a pretty good show. It’s a shame that Lockdown isn’t happening as they made me want to see that show in only a handful of vignettes. They head to Atlanta next week and I’m not sure what they have after that, but this was a good show in the meantime.

Results

The North b. TJP/Fallah Bahh – Northern Assault to TJP

Chris Bey b. Damian Drake – Beymesser

Cancel Culture b. Deaners – Five Star Frog Splash to Jake

Kiera Hogan b. Lacey Ryan – Fisherman’s neckbreaker

Daga b. Jake Crist – Double underhook gutbuster

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

Outbreak
Date: February 21, 2020
Location: Ice Center, Lexington, Kentucky
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Josh Matthews

This was a nice little surprise as OVW/Impact Wrestling ran a joint show in Lexington as a setup for Saturday’s Sacrifice in Louisville. For some reason OVW never runs Lexington so hopefully this is the start of a trend. The show was barely advertised locally so it was far from a guaranteed sellout. Let’s get to it.

The venue was rather small, with four rows of chairs on three sides. One good sign: I sat in the fourth row and by the time the show started, they had put out a fifth row of seats behind me. There was a small but invested crowd so it seemed to go fairly well. I was facing the entrance with commentary on my right (you could hear almost every word they said, which is a weird situation when you’re in the arena) and OVW owner Al Snow about eight feet behind me.

Josh Matthews, going solo until the actual show starts, welcomes us to the show and talks about the big upcoming events. It’s fairly clear that he doesn’t have much to say here other than listing off shows so he’s trying to fill time, which is harder than it seems.

Pre-Show: Dimes vs. Corey Storm

Storm grabs a headlock to start but Dimes is out with a sunset flip for two. Dimes shoulders him down as Josh is talking to I believe Twitch users. I know it sounds a bit goofy but can you imagine WWE doing something that direct? Storm fights out of a chinlock and snaps off a German suplex before dropkicking Dimes into the corner. A top rope double stomp to the back gives Storm the pin at 2:56. Entertaining while it lasted and Storm looked decent.

Josh chats some more.

Pre-Show: Rae Lynn vs. Cali Young

Young is a rather bubbly blonde who is running for some unspecified office, complete with her campaign manager DL3 (in an American flag shirt and shorts). I think you get the idea here and while it’s a small indy gimmick, OVW is a relatively small indy. We start with a Pledge of Allegiance but Lynn rolls her up for two. That means a dancing salute from Young but Lynn drops her with a shoulder.

Young can’t nip up so Lynn slams her, only to have DL3 grab her foot. Lynn is fine enough to hit a crossbody for two and a small package gets the same. A snapmare sets up a chinlock on Lynn but she’s back up in a hurry. DL3: “Get her!” Callie: “Okay!” Another chinlock doesn’t last as long so Callie goes with an X Factor for two more. Callie misses a charge and gets kicked in the head, drawing DL3 up to the apron so there’s no count. Lynn knocks them into each other and rolls Callie up for the pin at 6:08.

Rating: D+. There isn’t much to say about this one as it was two women who are neither good nor horrible in the ring with a limited amount of time to work. It’s fine for a warmup match and Callie’s patriotic deal was fine enough for what they’re doing. OVW’s women’s division has never been a strong point but this was far from a disaster. Just kind of there for the most part.

Moose joins commentary and is happy to be going back to Atlanta for some shows. They talk about his time with the Atlanta Falcons and it’s much more of a chat than an interview. Moose is ready to face Jay Bradley and isn’t worried about facing a so called “best big” tonight. He thinks it’s going to be bell, spear bell, and yes, he is Mr. Impact Wrestling. This was really different and in a pretty nice way (once they got the commentary to work).

Opening sequence, complete with the ring announcer telling the fans to get up and make noise.

Trey Wentz vs. Maximus Khan

Khan’s OVW Title isn’t on the line. He has a big helmet and cape to make him quite the intimidating presence. Wentz’s offer of a handshake is slapped away but he gets powered into the corner. That means a top rope hurricanrana to send Khan into the corner for a running dropkick.

Khan is right back with some right hands to the head and Wentz is in trouble in a hurry. The chinlock goes on until Khan switches to a sleeper, sending Wentz over to the rope. This time Wentz grabs a rolling snapmare and kicks him in the chest to send Khan outside. Back in and a springboard Codebreaker gives Wentz two but Khan’s ax kick gets the same. A heck of a spear finishes Wentz at 9:20.

Rating: C. I like both guys and this was a good showcase for Khan. Wentz is part of a trio but he has enough credibility that beating him makes Khan look that much better. It’s not a game changer, but it makes Khan look like a big deal. Good enough choice for an opener here with power vs. speed being as basic of a wrestling story as you’re going to find.

Dave Crist vs. Joey Ryan

So Crist apparently has no idea what Ryan is all about and is rather confused by the whole thing. He does get in a rather funny line during his entrances (though the camera doesn’t pick it up here): “I’m not like you Kentucky hillbillies! We don’t have hills in Ohio!” Josh explains Joey’s shtick in as PG of a way as possible, which gets to what bothers me here: there are a bunch of kids in the audience and Ryan’s deal is far from kid friendly. I’m sure he has a PG version of it, but this was the full on deal and there’s something off about doing that with so many kids in the audience.

We get the full lollipop deal and it’s time to oil up after the bell. Dave: “WHAT IS THAT FOR???” Joey tells him to touch it but Dave has to ask the fans what he needs to touch. Dave does in fact touch it and then asks what that thing is. After teasing getting in a fight with a fan, Dave invites Joey to wrestle the wrestle guy. Joey: “Wrestling’s not really my strong suit but I’ll give it a go.”

They fight over arm control until Ryan takes him down for a leglock. Some armdrags put Dave outside so he comes back in for failed attempts at a low blow and atomic drop. Dave bails to the floor again because of a leg injury but this time he comes back in to work on Ryan’s leg. He dives into a raised boot though and falls face first between Joey’s legs. Joey fires back with clotheslines and a dropkick but Dave gets in a spinebuster. Standing Sliced Bread #2 gives Dave two more but Joey makes him touch It. The Plex sets up Sweet Tooth Music for the pin on Dave at 9:39.

Rating: D. Yeah what else were you expecting here? My guess would be the same stuff that you always get from Ryan, which is one of my biggest problems with him. I’ll give them points for having something unique with Dave being all confused and not knowing what was going on, but the first half was really basic stuff and not very good, which is the other part of what’s wrong with Ryan: his wrestling is rather boring most of the time, hence the need for the shtick.

Johnny Swinger vs. Willie Mack

Hold on though as Swinger says no one wants to see these two fight. They’ve caught on like wildfire so strong that Tommy Rich called him up the other day. Ole is ticked but the fans need to go buy a Mack and Pack shirt for $29.95, cash on delivery. They can have a tag match instead so bring out the ham and eggers. Swinger tries a rollup but the bell hasn’t rung yet, so Mack is rather annoyed. He grabs his own rollup for two as the bell rings and Swinger knows he’s in trouble.

Mack scares him into the ropes where Swinger insults the mizarks, earning himself some atomic drops. Swinger needs a breather but goes with a test of strength to continue the rather dumb ideas. That earns him a double stomp to the hands and Mack hammers away in the corner for a bonus. A cheap shot out of the corner drops Mack and we hit the nerve hold. Swinger pulls at the nose and gets two off a forearm to the face.

We go Orndorff with a bit of a dancing elbow but Mack is back up with a few back rakes. A missed elbow starts up the Mack chants and the fans are even more pleased as Swinger misses his own elbows. The swinging slam into the legdrop sets up the Samoan drop into the standing moonsault as Mack is rolling. There’s the Stunner into the Six Star Frog Splash to finish Swinger at 10:44.

Rating: C. I know the wrestling wasn’t much to see but Mack is one of the best guys around here and Swinger is so goofily bad that it’s fun (and we’re in on the joke for once). Keeping him WAY down in stuff like this is fine and he’s playing everything perfectly. Just let him stay as a comedy guy and he could stick around for a good while.

Tony Gunn vs. Trey Miguel

Gunn is a former OVW Champion and has yet to show me much of anything in previous appearances. Gunn shoulders him down and says this is the Gunn Show. I’m almost scared to ask how long it took him to think of that. They go to the mat with neither being able to get ahead, meaning it’s a standoff. Back up and they both miss some right hands until Trey kicks him in the face.

Tony takes the leg out as he heads outside, only to get taken down by the suicide dive. Gunn kicks the ropes on the way back in though and Trey has banged up his knee. Back in and Gunn grabs a kneebar, as he certainly should be doing. Now it’s a Brock Lock to mix things up a bit, even lifting Trey up for a bonus.

That’s broken up and Trey manages a kick to the face, setting up a jumping neckbreaker to put both of them down. In a not so bright move, Trey goes up and misses the double knees, though he settles for a double stomp to the back of the head for two. Gunn grabs the Texas Cloverleaf to go back to the knee, only to let it go so Trey can hit the Cheeky Nandos kick in the corner. A 619 into the top rope Meteora finishes Gunn at 11:05.

Rating: C. Another completely watchable match with Wentz fighting back through adversity and hitting his finisher to win, even though there wasn’t much logic in using a knee based move after you knee was banged up. Then again Trey isn’t the most logical guy in the world so maybe it makes sense for him. Not a bad match either, even with Gunn being rather generic in everything he does.

Moose vs. Jay Bradley

Hoss fight. Moose tries the spear at the bell but gets kicked in the face for his efforts. They trade shoulders with Moose going down, only to nip right back up. Moose gets tossed across the ring and that means it’s time for a breather on the floor. Bradley follows him out though and sends Moose into the apron, only to get whipped into the barricade.

The run around the ring clothesline is cut off by an elbow to the face and it’s a chokeslam onto the apron for a bonus. Back in and a Vader Bomb elbow gives Bradley two but Moose hits some running dropkicks to the face. A wind up lariat misses and Bradley headbutts him down for two.

Bradley’s pop up powerbomb gets the same but Moose catches him on top. That means a top rope superplex with one of the loudest landings I can ever remember. Moose’s chokebomb gets two more and they trade big shots to the face. Bradley hits the Boom Stick (hard lariat) for two so he loads up another, only to get No Jackhammer Needed down for the pin at 12:40.

Rating: B. This was easily the match of the night so far as the two of them beat the heck out of each other with one hard hitting power move after another. Bradley is little more than a power guy but he does it quite well and makes for some entertaining matches. When Moose finds a good opponent, he can do some awesome stuff in the ring and that’s what he did here.

The announcers chat for a bit as something (maybe part of the mat that attaches to the ring) has to be repaired.

North vs. Larry D./Acey Romero

Alexander grabs Romero’s foot though and Page kicks him in the head, followed by sending Alexander hard into Romero’s back. As Josh gets his Kentucky geography wrong, Page hammers away and rips at Acey’s face against the ropes. Alexander forearms at the face and hands it back to Page for a knee drop. The wide variety of pounding on Romero continues until the North mixes things up by beating him up at the same time. Romero hits the double Pounce and the hot tag brings in Larry to clean house.

A sitout powerbomb gets two on Alexander, who is right back with a muscular suplex. Romero is already back in as everything breaks down with the big guys getting the better of things. The North pulls Larry off the top and into Romero though, followed by a heck of a German suplex for two on Larry. Romero dropkicks Alexander into Larry for a full nelson slam but Page sends Larry outside. That means a powerbomb out of the corner can finish Romero at 16:03.

Rating: D+. The length is the big problem here as Romero and Larry aren’t exactly guys with a lot of versatility. They can do some good things for their size but sixteen minutes is WAY too long for a big guy like Romero and a very limited guy like Larry. It’s not a horrible match but it just went on WAY too long.

Rhino vs. Madman Fulton

No DQ, or “old school” rules as it’s called here. They drive each other around a few times until a hard shoulder puts Fulton on the floor. The brawling begins with both guys being sent into various things, including Rhino dropping him back first onto the apron. Rhino chairs him in the ribs and gets in a suplex in the aisle. Now it’s a trashcan and a kendo stick as Rhino starts unloading with various shots. He spends too much time hunting for weapons though and that lets Fulton get in his own chair shots.

The trashcan is wedged in the corner but Rhino hiptosses him onto an open chair. Fulton gets sent HARD into the trashcan in the corner, only to come back with a slam onto the folded chair. Rhino is right back up and superplexes him onto a few chairs for two. The Gore is cut off with a trashcan shot and Fulton smashes him with a kendo stick. The referee gets bumped, followed by a Gore and another referee running in for the pin at 13:22.

Rating: D+. If you’ve seen one of these, you’ve seen all of them. There’s nothing to this other than trading shots with weapons and that doesn’t exactly keep me interested in what is going on. Fulton losing to Rhino is far from a stretch but the ECW stuff doesn’t exactly hold up well these days, especially with an ECW guy still in there.

Kiera Hogan vs. Megan Bayne vs. Jessika Havok vs. Jordynne Grace

Non-title and Bayne is a tall/muscular woman from OVW. It’s Bayne vs. Havok in the first of what will likely be several power showdowns. The hit/shove each other a few times until Grace comes in to slug it out with Havok. Hogan comes in and has to escape a Grace Driver attempt, meaning Bayne can come back in to fight Grace.

With Grace being sent outside, Havok comes back in to splash Bayne in the corner. Forearms to the chest keep Bayne down but she avoids a legdrop. Bayne’s crossbody takes Havok down but Hogan and Grace come in for stereo near falls. Bayne knocks both of them down and Samoan drops Havok for two on all three. Havok is back up though and chokebombs Bayne into a Boston crab for the win at 7:02.

Rating: C-. They kept this short as there is only so much that you can do with these four going after each other. The win makes sense as Havok is challenging Grace on Saturday so at least they have some logic. Bayne is someone who could be a nice player once she gets some more experience, because she already has the look and size.

Ace Austin/Jake Crist vs. Tessa Blanchard/Daga

Preview for tomorrow’s Austin vs. Blanchard match. Ace bails from Tessa to start so it’s Jake coming in to trade arm holds with Blanchard. That’s fine with her as she ties up Jake in a leglock to send him to the ropes for a breather. Daga and Ace come in for an exchange of shoulders with Daga getting the better of things. A dropkick keeps Jake down so it’s off to Ace, who again runs from the legal Tessa.

Ace gets in a cheap shot from the apron to drop Daga though and NOW he’ll come in, like any good heel. That means a front facelock, followed by a bow and arrow to keep Daga in trouble. A rather nasty northern lights suplex drops Daga on his head for two and it’s off to the reverse chinlock. The headscissors works on the neck a bit more, with Ace bragging about his legs.

An invading Tessa lets Jake come in sans tag but it’s quickly back to Ace to stomp away even more. Daga fights back but gets pulled into the corner by the leg. A quick flurry of kicks and a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker get Daga out of trouble though, meaning Tessa can come in and clean house….until the referee says he didn’t see it.

I can always go for that and it’s Daga getting taken back into the corner to continue the beatdown. Daga scores with a snap powerslam and NOW the tag to Tessa counts. House is cleaned in a hurry but Magnum misses, allowing Ace to hit a Samoan driver onto the knee. Daga brainbusters Ace though and sends him outside for a dive. The Buzzsaw DDT finishes Jake at 16:50.

Rating: B. Now this was more like it and you can see the talent out there. Tessa really is good and has the fire in her eyes that makes you realize just how good she is. Couple that with a slimy heel like Ace and we should be in for a heck of a fight tomorrow. This was a very nice formula based tag match and the best thing on the show, which is often what a main event should be.

Overall Rating: C. This was perfectly watchable and there were some good matches throughout the card. Not everything is great or even good but Moose vs. Bradley and the main event were solid enough. For $15 flat to sit in the fourth of five rows on a two and a half hour show, I can’t complain much at all. It makes me want to watch Sacrifice and that’s entirely the point of something like this. Above that though, I’d go again so they’ve done something right.

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: November 12, 2019
Location: St. Clair College, Windsor, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

It’s the second week in Canada and we are getting ready for Hard To Kill in January. The build started over the last two weeks with Tessa Blanchard being named #1 contender to Sami Callihan’s Impact World Title. They’re setting themselves up for something historic if that is where they go and I would be interested in seeing them take that route. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at OVE’s celebration last week, capped off by the team losing an eight person tag when Rich Swann pinned Callihan.

Trey vs. Rohit Raju vs. Aiden Prince vs. Brent Banks vs. Willie Mack vs. Petey Williams

One fall to a finish for the #1 contendership to the X-Division Title with champion Ace Austin on commentary. Raju sends Prince and Mack to the floor, followed by the big suicide dive. Trey teases a springboard wristdrag but flip dives onto everyone outside instead. Back in and Petey hits a dropkick to Banks’ back, followed by a slingshot hurricanrana to Trey on the floor.

Mack comes back in and starts headlock takeovering Banks and Williams. A double clothesline takes them down and it’s another flip dive to take everyone out on the floor. Prince and Banks hit stereo crossbodies inside, setting up Banks’ big flip dive of his own. Raju cleans house and sends Trey outside, only to get caught by Petey’s slingshot Codebreaker. The Russian legsweep into a short Downward Spiral gives Petey two and the Sharpshooter goes on FOR CANADA.

Mack is back in for the save and a standing moonsault to Petey so here’s Prince to break that up. The brainbuster plants Banks and it’s Prince hitting a 450 onto Banks and Williams at the same time. Mack gives him a frog splash but Raju makes the save with a top rope double stomp. Petey hits the Canadian Destroyer but Trey runs in and steals the pin at 14:15.

Rating: C+. I’m rarely big on these matches as they’re just complete insanity until someone gets a pin. They’re certainly entertaining though and that is what matters most. The spots were fun and Trey is someone fresh, though they could have easily cut out Prince and/or Banks and Williams and done a tighter match. This division has been about bigger being better for a long time though so the additions aren’t surprising.

Post match Petey raises Trey’s hand and Trey kisses his mom. Ace seems impressed by the mom and I don’t see this going well.

Rich Swann is ready to win the World Title as soon as he gets a shot. He’ll become #1 contender in next week’s five way elimination match.

Michael Elgin says he’ll win the title shot next week.

Madison Rayne vs. Alexia Nicole

Kiera Hogan is here with Madison. Hold on as Madison has to point out the LRL trunks as Callis talks about her being trained in the Dungeon and winning the WWF Title from Ric Flair in Saskatoon. Nicole’s Backstabber out of the corner is blocked and Hogan gets in a cheap shot so the chinlock can go on. Back up and they forearm it out with Nicole hitting a Backstabber. An electric chair gives Nicole two but a Hogan distraction lets Madison get in a catapult into the ropes. CrossRayne finishes Nicole at 5:27.

Rating: D+. This was just above a squash and not a very interesting one. I can appreciate some things that they are doing but there are only so many ways you can present Madison Rayne as the stuck up heel. They’ve been doing it for so long now and it’s not like her work is all that great. She’s passable and that’s about it, which makes these matches not the most thrilling in the world.

Aiden Prince comes up to Johnny Swinger, who declares him his young boy. Petey Williams comes in and doesn’t think much of Swinger. Prince and Williams leave so here’s Ken Shamrock to tell Swinger to take a shower.

Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes are in the hot tub again with Katie gyrating in a swimsuit. He’ll be back in the ring next week.

Daga vs. Jake Crist

They trade kicks to the face to start until Daga snaps off a hurricanrana to the floor. The spinning dive off the middle rope takes Jake down again but it’s a dragon screw legwhip over the ropes back inside. Daga blocks a DDT on the floor and snaps off a belly to belly. Back from a break with Daga fighting out of a chinlock and winning a chop off.

Something like the Last Chancery has Daga in trouble so he elbows Jake in the face for the escape. Some clotheslines set up a backbreaker into a DDT for two but Jake is right back with a Death Valley Driver. Daga’s German suplex gives him two more but Jake suplexes him into the corner. A few kicks to the face have Daga in trouble so Jake puts him on top, only to get hurricanranaed right back down. The double underhook piledriver finishes Jake at 11:31.

Rating: B-. Daga has grown on me in recent weeks and that is the kind of thing that Impact needs to do. They have a few stars who are becoming bigger deals than they had been before and it is starting to give Impact an identity. That has been what has plagued them for most of their existence and if they finally get somewhere with it, they may be on to something.

We get a big, serious video about Joey Ryan vs. Ken Shamrock. Yeah it’s funny and stuff.

The North knows they’ll keep the Tag Team Titles tonight.

Sami Callihan/Madman Fulton vs. Tessa Blanchard/Rich Swann

Tessa charges to the ring and we’re ready to go in a hurry. Sami gets sent to the floor and Tessa tries to choke Fulton to little avail. Instead Swann hits a Phoenix splash to hit Callihan on the floor but Sami is right back in to take over on Tessa. Swann comes in instead for a bunch of clotheslines, only to have Fulton break up the handspring cutter. A hard slam gives Fulton two and Callihan drops an elbow for two.

There’s a splash to give Fulton two more and we hit the bearhug. Swann’s attempts to punch his way out earns himself a suplex and Sami comes in to show off some cockiness. The chinlock goes on for a bit but the Cactus Special attempt lets Swann crawl through the legs and make the tag to Tessa. Everything breaks down and a DDT plants Fulton but he’s back up for a powerslam/running neckbreaker combination. Swann makes a save and brings himself back in to kick Sami down. Sami tries to bring in the bat but gets it taken away, allowing Fulton to throw in the belt and knock Swann out for the pin at 10:57.

Rating: C. That’s a little confusing as you give Swann the pin last week and then have him take the fall here. I’m not sure how logical that is but Sami gets to build himself back up. Now of course we’ll ignore the fact that Sami needs to be built back up just two weeks after winning the title. Tessa is destined to be the big challenger so Swann taking the fall isn’t the worst thing in the world.

Post match Tessa gets beaten down but Brian Cage runs in for the save.

Post break Cage says he’s coming for the World Title.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Ultimate X from Homecoming.

Johnny Swinger brags about relieving himself in Ken Shamrock’s bag, but no one seems impressed.

Taya Valkyrie yells at John E. Bravo when Jordynne Grace comes in to challenge for the title. That won’t be happening so Grace says it can be any match next week. Bravo accepts on Taya’s behalf.

Moose shows that he is a great tennis player by beating a pro named Mikey. The threats of violence may have something to do with the loss. Next week, he’ll become #1 contender.

Jessika Havok vs. Crystal Moon

Havok wastes no time in throwing her around to start and snaps off a German suplex. Some running hip attacks in the corner keep Moon rocked but she avoids a charge into the post. Moon gets in a few shots but jumps into a chokeslam. The Tombstone finishes the destruction at 3:58.

Rating: D+. Havok is being treated like the monster that she should be and that’s a good sign. You need someone like her in the division so she can put someone over on their way to the title (Grace for example) and Impact is building her up well. The Tombstone is a great killer finisher and that’s what they’re going for here.

Post break Susie compliments Havok on her match but Havok walks away. She touches Susie’s shoulder on the way though and we get some Su Yung flashes.

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.

Overall Rating: C+. The last few weeks really have felt different around here and that’s the best thing that could happen. Impact has a bad tendency to go into a funk every now and then so it’s very nice to see them getting into a groove like this. I liked the wrestling more often than not and there wasn’t anything overly stupid. Consistent shows like this could turn them into something, but that has been a problem for them for years. At least we’ve had this nice run though and that’s better than nothing.

Results

Trey b. Rohit Raju, Aiden Prince, Brent Banks, Willie Mack and Petey Williams – Rollup to Williams

Madison Rayne b. Alexia Nicole – CrossRayne

Daga b. Jake Crist – Double underhook piledriver

Sami Callihan/Madman Fulton b. Tessa Blanchard/Rich Swann – Belt shot to Swann

Jessika Havok b. Crystal Moon – Tombstone

The North b. Naomichi Marufuji/Eddie Edwards – Assisted spinebuster to Edwards

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

Bound For Glory 2019
Date: October 20, 2019
Location: Odeum Expo Center, Villa Park, Illinois
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

It’s the biggest night of the year and that could mean a lot of things this time around. The main event will see World Champion Brian Cage defending the title against Sami Callihan in a match that was made personal when Callihan attacked Cage’s wife Melissa Santos. In addition, we have Ken Shamrock returning to the ring to face Moose because….star power I guess? Let get to it.

A very small production snafu means we hear applause and cheering for the FBI copyright warning. That intellectual property fan base needs their own wrestling show.

The opening video is a standard set of clips of tonight’s matches. The song has the lyrics “we’re here for the glory” (or something close to it) over and over for a nice touch.

Call Your Shot Gauntlet

Back with Eddie getting stomped down in the corner and Cousin Jake coming in at #4. The pseudo tag match breaks out until Rohit Raju is in at #5. Raju gets to clean house for probably the first time ever….and Joey freaking Ryan is in at #6. I mean, the graphic says Cody Deaner but close enough. He offers Jake and Scum the chance to touch it so everyone beats him up, with Luster trying a low blow knee drop for the expected result. Joey chains them together to to flip everyone at once (just go with it), including a double elimination of Raju and Jake.

Havok is in at #7 and grabs Joey by the throat for a chokeslam. Everyone else gets beaten up for a bonus and it’s Rosemary in at #8. That means Joey needs some oil down his trunks so he can offer both women to touch it. A double clothesline puts him down and it’s Madman Fulton in at #9 to clean house again. Rosemary and Havok are both put out and Thornstowe follows them.

Ryan gives Fulton the lollipop and gets tossed with ease as Cody Deaner is in at #10, giving us Eddie, Luster, Fulton and Deaner. Fulton gets rid of Deaner in a hurry so here’s Cody Deaner at #11, though he stays outside to pose instead of facing Fulton in a smart move. Jordynne Grace is in at #12 and gets to clean house, including a German suplex to Fulton (albeit with the assist of an enziguri from Eddie). Swoggle, who is getting as required as Tommy Dreamer, is in at #13.

Swinger gets in as well and spanks Grace, earning himself a quick ejection. Kiera Hogan is in at #14 as they’re flying through these entrances. Swoggle tries to go behind Kiera and gets danced at, earning herself a quick elimination from Grace. Raj Singh is in at #15 as Luster is eliminated to keep the ring fairly empty. Tommy Dreamer is in at #16 and I begin to sigh. Biting and spitting ensue but Fulton takes him down with choking in the corner. Kylie Rae (hometown girl) debuts (more or less) at #17 and is very happy to be here, as is her custom.

Dreamer throws out Raj, poses, and gets dumped by Fulton. Fallah Bahh is in at #18 and catches a diving Fulton in a Samoan drop. Sabu is in at #19 and brings in a chair so he can slip on Air Sabu for old times’ sake. The chair bounces off of Eddie’s face and the tornado DDT makes it worse. Shera is in at #20 to clean house, giving us a final group of Eddie, Fulton, Grace, Rae, Bahh, Sabu and Shera for quite the motley crew.

Shera gets rid of Rae, Grace and Sabu in a hurry to clear out a lot of the ring and leave Eddie against the three monsters. They pair off with Shera getting rid of Bahh so it’s Shera and Fulton taking turns throwing Eddie around. Eddie gets up for a blindside clothesline to eliminate Fulton as the referee comes down to make it a regular match. Fulton chokeslams Eddie onto the apron for a parting gift, only to have Eddie hit the Boston Knee Party for the fast pin on Shera at 33:02.

Rating: D+. This was thirty minutes of “hi I’m here and now I’m out”, followed by a one on one segment that lasted about thirty seconds. It felt like an excuse to get everyone on the show and really would have been better served as a pre-show match than the first thing on the pay per view. It was one entrance after another with no story to be seen and that’s not a great way to start things off. Eddie winning makes sense and it went by quickly, but not the best choice in an opener.

We run down the card you’ve already paid to see.

Brian cage and Melissa Santos arrived earlier. Cage immediately demanded that the World Title match now be No DQ.

We recap the Knockouts Title match. Taya Valkyrie is the longest reigning Knockouts Champion of all time and Tenille Dashwood is the newest big challenger to come after the title. And that’s about it.

Knockouts Title: Taya Valkyrie vs. Tenille Dashwood

Dashwood is challenging and Taya has John E. Bravo, dressed as the Joker, with her. Taya jumps her to start and we get going in a hurry. A suplex gets Tenille out of trouble but Taya sends her hard into the corner to take over again. Taya misses a charge though and gets neckbreakered over the middle rope, meaning it’s time for a Bravo distraction so Taya can trip Dashwood up.

Back in and Dashwood’s Fujiwara armbar is broken up in a hurry as commentary talks about Taya’s first ever match being against Dashwood. The far too early slugout goes to Dashwood and she gets two off a high crossbody. Taya rolls her up into the corner though and hits the running knees to rock Dashwood again. A sitout powerbomb out of the corner gives Dashwood two more and they head to the apron for the sole purpose of doing a high impact move on the apron.

Taya hits a rather safe looking package piledriver to send Dashwood outside but she’s fine enough to slam Taya off the top. Taste of Tenille connects and sets up the Spotlight kick, only to have Bravo pull them to the ropes. The distraction lets Taya bring in a chain but Dashwood takes it away and throws it into the crowd. Another Spotlight kick misses though and the Road To Valhalla retains the title at 11:50.

Rating: C. That’s about what I expected as they were doing the kind of match that doesn’t exactly have a fire but is technically fine. Taya retaining the title is fine enough as there are several women gunning for the title and Dashwood just kind of showed up and got the big title shot. It’s smart to go with someone else for the title change, though at this point I’m waiting on Gail Kim to show up again.

Rhino and Rob Van Dam are ready to win the Tag Team Titles. A Gore or a Van Daminator is promised.

We recap the Tag Team Title match. Rich Swann/Willie Mack beat LAX in their last match and Rob Van Dam/Rhino aren’t happy that the North got rid of LAX so we’re hitting that triple threat title match.

Tag Team Titles: The North vs. Rich Swann/Willie Mack vs. Rob Van Dam/Rhino

The North is defending. Mack and Alexander start things off with a shoulder taking Mack down. That’s fine with him as he snaps off a hurricanrana so it’s Page and Swann coming in for their turn. A 619 to the ribs into a slingshot neckbreaker into something close to Rolling Thunder gets two on Page, so he flips Swann over by the hair. Rhino comes in instead and takes over on Page in the corner but an Alexander distraction lest the champs take over.

The spinebuster plants Page though and the too early to be a hot tag brings in Van Dam to kick away. The spine legged moonsault hits Page for two and there’s a monkey flip to Alexander. Swann tags himself in and kicks Alexander in the head but another cheap shot from the apron puts Swann in trouble for a change. A backdrop nearly turns Swann into a 450 and it’s back to Alexander for some forearms into the corner.

The assisted spinebuster is countered into a DDT though and Swann snaps off a reverse hurricanrana to Alexander. Now the hot tag can bring in Mack to clean house, including something close to a 3D with Swann playing Bubba for two on Page. Mack frog splashes him for the same and Rob isn’t pleased at the move stealing. A series of kicks to the face set up Alexander’s Regal Roll on Van Dam but Rhino clotheslines Alexander to the floor.

Rating: B-. Pretty bizarre heel turn aside, this was a rather fast paced tag match with the big spots and pretty much what it needed to be throughout. Swann and Mack are a good team and will likely get the titles someday. I’m cool with the North retaining though as they have turned into a treat to watch. Rhino vs. Van Dam doesn’t sound interesting, but it’s better than having two ECW feuds at once….I think.

Ace Austin, in a towel, comes in to see Alisha, who isn’t pleased. He still wants her to celebrate if he wins the title, but she wants him in more clothes.

We recap Naomichi Marufuji vs. Michael Elgin, which is little more than a challenge match because Elgin needed something to do and the show needed a guest star.

Michael Elgin vs. Naomichi Marufuji

Or Marufugi according to the name graphic. Come on with that stuff people. Neither can hit a chop to start so Marufuji misses some chops and kicks to get us to an early standoff. Elgin misses a charge in the corner and gets chopped a bit but he catches a charging Marufuji in a suplex. A missile dropkick sends Marufuji flying for two and the fans aren’t pleased with Elgin being in control. They chop it out with Marufuji knocking him to the floor and hits the big flip dive.

Back in and a running stomp to the head gives Marufuji two but he has to flip out of a German suplex attempt. Elgin sends him into the ropes and snaps off the German suplex this time, setting up a Falcon Arrow for two. They trade kicks to the head and it’s a double knockdown with Marufuji in the better shape of the two. A sunset bomb to the floor is blocked so Marufuji superkicks Elgin in the back of the head instead.

Sliced Bread on the floor gets a nine so it’s a top rope stomp to the back of the head for two (counting in wrestling is weird). There’s a dragon suplex to drop Marufuji and a discus lariat takes his head off. Splash Mountain gets two and the shock is strong. Another Sliced Bread drops Elgin again but Marufuji can’t get him up for a tiger bomb.

Instead it’s time to slug it out again with Marufuji picking up the intensity of the strikes to take over. That’s fine with Elgin, who blocks a kick and powerbombs him down for two. The buckle bomb into the Elgin Bomb gets two and Elgin is STUNNED in a great visual. The Burning Hammer finally puts Marufuji away at 18:04.

Rating: B. Yeah that’s what you should have been expecting here as they beat the fire out of each other for the better part of twenty minutes. Elgin is just such a powerhouse and I’ve liked Marufuji from the times I’ve seen him before. It isn’t the style of wrestling I like most of the time but for a one off, this was very entertaining.

We recap the X-Division Title match. Jake Crist is champion and is defending in a five way ladder match because it’s Bound For Glory.

X-Division Title: Daga vs. Jake Crist vs. Tessa Blanchard vs. Acey Romero vs. Ace Austin

Crist is defending in a ladder match and the debuting Acey weighs about 400lbs. Jake gets stared at to start until Ace and Daga superkick Romero into the corner. Tessa unloads on Crist and hits the suicide dive to the floor to take him out. She does it two more times, only to have Ace dive onto both of them. Romero dropkicks Daga, who corkscrew dives over Romero to take everyone down on the floor.

Tessa is back in with a springboard dropkick to knock Austin outside but Romero Samoan drops her off the ladder. Daga teeter totters the ladder into Romero’s face and then bridges it between the ring and the barricade. Let’s throw in a table for a bonus (and a spot on a Bingo card) but before it gets used, Romero hits a Tower of Doom onto almost everyone else.

A powerbomb sends Austin hard into the ladder and Romero teases to climb, but pulls out another one to climb two at once. Crist breaks that up with a super cutter, leaving us with Tessa and Daga for the double climb. Austin shoves both of them down but gets Death Valley Driven by Daga. That’s not it as Daga hits a running Canadian Destroyer to Crist on the bridged ladder.

Rating: B. This was a lot of fun as they didn’t waste time setting up spots and flew from one thing to another. The selling wasn’t around but when you just ignore it for most of the match, it kind of starts to work in a weird way. That being said, they have to give Tessa the win at some point because you can only tease it so many times before the fans stop caring. They cared here, but I’m not sure how much longer that can happen. Romero did well here, though you can hear Fallah Bahh crying from here.

We recap Moose vs. Ken Shamrock. Moose has started disrespecting so Shamrock (who still looks about 75) is fighting to prove that he’s still a man and to teach Moose some respect. In other words, it’s football vs. MMA.

Moose says he has fought some tough men before and has been trained by Frank Trigg. Frank brags about Moose’s awesomeness and isn’t worried about the match.

Moose vs. Ken Shamrock

Moose has Trigg with him and is rapped to the ring by someone that most fans probably haven’t heard of before. Ok so it’s his brother but that doesn’t make things much better. They stare each other down to start until Shamrock gets in a headscissors. The armbreaker is blocked with raw power but Moose bails to the ropes to get out of the ankle lock. Josh thinks Shamrock isn’t used to rope breaks because Josh isn’t that bright sometimes.

Shamrock is back up with a freaking suicide dive of all things and Moose’s chops just annoy him. A poke to the eye works a bit better but Shamrock backdrops him onto the ramp. Shamrock gets posted though and they’re both already holding their backs. Moose throws him back in but Shamrock is right back with a slingshot dive. Trigg’s distraction lets Moose kick the leg out, allowing Moose to cut off a turnbuckle pad.

Neither guy is going head first into the buckle so Shamrock goes with a belly to belly into the ankle lock. The referee gets bumped (well duh) and Moose gets in a low blow (bigger duh). Moose declares himself the World’s Most Dangerous Man and swings a chair but Shamrock reverses into the ankle lock again. Trigg comes in for the save so Shamrock punches him down and grabs ankle lock. This time Moose rolls him into the exposed buckle and hits the spear for the pin at 10:49.

Rating: C. Given what I was expecting, this was quite the nice surprise. It still wasn’t very good but Shamrock didn’t come close to embarrassing himself and that’s what mattered. Moose winning was the only option they had and they didn’t do anything stupid. Call this the surprise of the show and that’s a good thing.

They’re back on pay per view in January with Hard To Kill.

We recap Sami Callihan vs. Brian Cage for the World Title. Sami has attacked both Cage and Cage’s wife but it isn’t the Sami he wanted the world to see. It’s the one that the world made come out though and he’s going to cripple Cage to win the title. Sami has turned into an awesome guy that you want to see get crushed.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Sami Callihan vs. Brian Cage

Cage (in Wolverine gear) is defending and it’s No DQ. As you might expect, Cage isn’t wasting time and they go straight to it with Callihan spitting in his face for reasons of general insanity. Callihan flips him off and gets taken down for the pummeling. Cage has already busted him open with a bite to the head and it’s time to rake the cut with a Wolverine claw. A springboard clothesline sends Cage outside but he’s right back in for a dive to drop Callihan.

Cage isn’t done and hits a big running flip dive but Callihan blasts him with a chair to the back to take over. That’s shrugged off as well for a toss powerbomb into the post because Cage can do that. Callihan manages to set up two chairs at ringside but gets dropped onto a table. Cage puts part of the barricade onto the chairs, only to get Cactus Specialed through it for his efforts. Fans: “THAT WAS MURDER!”

Back in (for a change) and Sami even mocks the Terminator clap before kneeing/kicking Cage in the face. Cage pops right back up with the apron superplex and there’s a release German suplex. A pumphandle faceplant gets two on Callihan, who is right back up with a suplex for two more. The hanging piledriver gives Callihan the same, only to have Cage snap off an F5.

Rating: B+. I had a great time with this one as they didn’t bother going with a wrestling match, as they certainly didn’t need to. Cage should have been out for blood here and that’s exactly what he did, making the whole thing the violent carnage that it needed to be. They did what they should have done here and that means a lot in a match that was built around pure violence. Cage is a monster when he’s on and that was the case here, which means whoever takes the title is going to look like a giant killer.

Post match Melissa Santos comes out to celebrate with Cage to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Once we got past that opener (and the streaming issues, which were only an issue at the start) and a not that good Knockouts match, this turned into a heck of a show with a little bit of everything. I’m both surprised and not surprised though, as Impact tends to do much better on their pay per views, though the build for this show (outside of the main event) has not been good. They had a big show at the right time and if they can keep that up, AXS TV could bring a lot of positive things. Anyway, very solid show here and worth checking out, especially if you skip the opener.

Results

Eddie Edwards won a gauntlet match last eliminating Shera

Taya Valkyrie b. Tenille Dashwood – Road To Valhalla

The North b. Rich Swann/Willie Mack and Rob Van Dam/Rhino – Assisted spinebuster to Swann

Michael Elgin b. Naomichi Marufuji – Burning Hammer

Ace Austin b. Acey Romero, Tessa Blanchard, Jake Crist and Daga – Austin pulled down the title

Moose b. Ken Shamrock – Spear

Brian Cage b. Sami Callihan – Drill Claw

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