IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

We’re back to the old stomping grounds for Impact Wrestling with a show at the Asylum. Thankfully they don’t seem to be trying anything like a One Night Stand show because egads a flashback night for this company could be a very scary sight. Basically it’s just about the venue and getting back on pay per view, which isn’t the worst thing in the world. Now if only the show can be that good. Let’s get to it.

Willie Mack vs. Sami Callihan

This was added to the show after the go home show and that’s not the worst thing in the world. At least the match was set up on the TV show and it’s not exactly something wedged in. I’m not sure what to think of this one as Callihan is a big heel but Mack has a special kind of charisma that could make him a special deal and I’m not sure you want him to lose a high profile match like this.

I’ll take Callihan though as he’s already a star while Mack is still waiting to get there. Those are two different things and a loss to a prospect instead of someone already established isn’t the best idea for Callihan. Mack can get a lot from the match though and a few weapon shots are likely going to be involved. Callihan wins, but Mack looks good in his big defeat.

Jordynne Grace/Kiera Hogan vs. Su Yung/Allie

Here’s the second match added to the show since Impact and again, it was set up on TV. Hogan is outgunned against Yung and Allie and Grace is someone who was brought in without much to do. I’m not sure how much of a reason she has to be involved in the story but it’s as good as anything else for her. Hogan clearly needs some help here and it’s certainly not the direction I was expecting them to take with the story.

That being said, there’s not much of a reason for Allie and Yung to lose here. That seems to be a long term story instead of anything that can be wrapped up here and they shouldn’t be taking a loss to someone brought into the story this fast. Grace can dominate and Hogan can take the fall, but Yung and Allie need to win to keep Allie hot as a heel. There are several places this story can go and I don’t want to see them getting taken out so soon.

Abyss vs. Eli Drake

This is Monster’s Ball and the story that has made my head hurt since the beginning. Tommy Dreamer was involved early on but then Raven made an appearance on Impact, because again we can’t have a story involving hardcore wrestling without throwing in the ECW tribute again. It’s not like there are hardcore wrestlers from Impact’s past to use in that spot instead, but I’ll cut myself off there.

Normally I would say that Drake has to win here, but you never can tell with something like this. If there’s one thing that Impact Wrestling likes to do, it’s pay tribute to its past. Giving Abyss one last moment of glory here wouldn’t shock me whatsoever, especially if Dreamer and Raven can get in there to help him. Drake is a former World Champion and could be on that level again at the drop of a hat, but he’s been stuck in this story for months now. Just let him win, which is about the bare minimum that he can get from the whole thing.

X-Division Title: Ethan Page vs. Jake Crist vs. Rich Swann vs. Trey Miguel

The title is vacant coming in (because it’s treated like a gift certificate instead of something worth keeping) and this is Ultimate X for old times’ sake. The match is almost guaranteed to be a fun spot fest, though as someone with a fear of heights I’m not exactly looking forward to seeing it come back. There isn’t exactly a clear favorite here as none of them are the biggest stars in the world, but that can make things more interesting.

I don’t see how this can be anyone but Swann, who is the biggest star in the match by a long stretch. Crist is part of a (talented) lackey team and there’s no reason to put him a long way ahead of his brother. Page is still just a guy and I really don’t want to have another reason for Matt Sydal to talk on TV. That leaves Miguel as another option and while I like what I see from him so far, they still need to do a little more with him to make him champion. I wouldn’t lose it if he won the title, but Swann is the safer and smarter pick.

Eddie Edwards vs. Moose

Falls Count Anywhere here, which makes enough sense. This would be the second story involving Raven for some reason. There’s a long backstory here as Moose and Edwards were friends but Moose claims that Edwards didn’t care when he got hurt. Moose came back and turned on Edwards, sending him even further over the edge and into a mental hospital. Edwards got out (with the help of Raven for some reason) and is ready to fight for revenge and the sake of violence.

In theory, Edwards has to win, as the Eddie Is Insane story can only go so much further. It’s been done at this point and Moose is the kind of guy who can absorb a loss. Edwards could be someone who could head back to the top of the card in a hurry as he has all the tools to go there, including the history. It should be a heck of a brawl, but Edwards should (and needs to) come out with the win.

Knockouts Title: Tessa Blanchard(c) vs. Taya Valkyrie

I think I know where this is going and while it’s not surprising, that doesn’t make it any better. Gail Kim is special guest referee here for the sake of her being Gail Kim and there’s a good chance that’s going to play a big role in the finish. Valkyrie has been chasing the title for several months now and Blanchard has escaped with it every time. Blanchard is one of the best stars the division has seen in a long time and while I don’t think it’s time to take the title off of her, something needs to change here.

I’m going with Blanchard retaining here, though through some shenanigans. Either way, I fully expect Kim to show up again and somehow get a title match out of this, as it’s been a long time since we’ve seen her in the title picture. All she did was retire as champion after all and that’s no reason to not make her the focus of the division. The division needs some fresh blood, but as soon as Kim came back in you had to have an idea where things were going. The match should be good, but I’m not thrilled with having Kim there (if that wasn’t clear).

Tag Team Titles: LAX(c) vs. Lucha Bros

This is easily the best looking match on the show and has had a lot of fans drooling for weeks now. The key here has been Konnan, who didn’t want LAX to take the match and has disappeared since. I’m not sure what he’s going to do on Sunday but you have to believe he’s going to show up and do something important in the match. Either way, it’s going to be awesome, which is what matters most.

The Lucha Bros get the titles here, due to a combination of the story going in that direction and LAX being out of teams to fight. They’ve held the titles since June and there’s not much of a reason to keep the belts on them much longer. The Lucha Bros are a big deal right now and have the credibility to win them easily. The big thing here though is seeing an awesome match, which these teams have delivered for months. I’m looking forward to this one and it should be the best on the show.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Johnny Impact(c) vs. Brian Cage

They did what they could to set this up on the go home show and came about as close as possible to making it work. If there’s one thing that this company has never quite been able to pull off, it’s the emotional World Title match and this has been no exception. Impact winning the title was cool but it hasn’t exactly changed anything. There’s something that worries me though and I have a feeling it’s where things are going.

I’m thinking Impact retains, albeit with help from Killer Kross, who has been running around for weeks, offering Impact his help in retaining. Impact has seen Cage’s power up close now and might thing he needs the help, which would be one of the dumbest things they could do. They don’t need to turn Impact heel but the signs seem to be there. Since he’s already beaten Kross in a title match, there’s not much of a point in setting up another match. Kross could help Cage win the match, but does he exactly need the help? I think they’ll go with the ill advised heel turn here, just for the sake of tradition.

Overall Thoughts

Like I said, there’s some potential for some fun here but you never can tell. This hasn’t been the most thrilling build in the world, though the two weeks off for the sake of the Best Of shows didn’t help things. The card looks pretty good and the big matches have been built well. I’m expecting a strong show, though again nothing that is going to make my overall opinion of Impact go up that much. Still though, I’ll take what I can get.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: January 3, 2019
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

It’s the go home show for Homecoming and since the last two weeks have been Best Of shows, they have a lot to do in one night. This week they have to build things up but also catch you up on the storylines. Now the question is how much time they’ll waste on stuff that doesn’t matter. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at every story going on, which is a very smart idea, especially when they can do it in such a short time.

Opening sequence.

Willie Mack/Rich Swann/Rascalz vs. Ethan Page/Matt Sydal/OVE/Sami Callihan

Always nice to pack a few feuds into one match. Jake Crist and Trey Miguel get things going but Xavier comes in off a very early blind tag for a sliding dropkick to the head. Callihan comes in and some rapid fire Rascalz offense in the corner puts him in trouble. The rapid fire tags continue with Swann and Mack getting in some shots of their own as Sami can’t get anything going.

All ten come in for the big brawl until Sami is left alone to clothesline the heck out of Miguel. That’s fine with Trey, who hurricanranas Callihan on the floor, setting up the series of dives. Sydal blocks Dezmond’s dive with a kick to the head so Wentz used Dezmond as a launchpad to take everyone down instead. Jake and Trey head up top and it’s a super cutter to bring Trey onto the pile for the huge crash. Back from a break with Sami holding Trey in a chinlock and handing it off to Dave for some stomping.

Page adds some stomping from the apron as the villains get their revenge for Sami’s beatdown earlier. Sydal comes in for a side slam but an enziguri to Page allows the diving tag to Swann so house can be cleaned. The low superkick into the middle rope 450 gets two on Page and everything breaks down again. The parade of shots to the face ends with Page hitting a scoop brainbuster for two on Swann. Some people are knocked off the top but Mack saves himself and hits a super Stunner on Dave for the pin at 15:23.

Rating: B. This was the indy style insane tag match to the letter and that’s all it needed to be. They were flying around and had a quick heat segment on Trey that lead to the finish. I don’t know what else you could hope for here, as the people involved are going to be in an insane match at Homecoming, so there wasn’t much of a point in doing anything more than a spotfest. It worked perfectly well and I had a good time with it so well done for a long opener.

Post match Sami hits Willie with a ball bat and the All Seeing Eye puts Mack through a table. Swann gets back in to save Mack from a bat shot to the head.

Preview of the rest of the show.

Video on Eddie Edwards vs. Moose. They used to be friends but Moose claimed that Eddie didn’t care when he got hurt. Moose returned and turned on Eddie, sending Eddie completely over the edge and into a mental hospital. Eddie escaped with the help of a random Raven cameo and is swearing revenge on Sunday.

Here’s Eli Drake, carrying an oar, for a chat. Drake talks about all the people he’s gotten rid of, including Joseph Park, Abyss and Tommy Dreamer. Then he has to show up at Homecoming for a Monster’s Ball match, even though there’s no chance Abyss will be there. If Abyss somehow does show up though, it’ll be a few wacks with old paddy and he’ll go away again. Drake is that good and he is hardcore.

Cue Dreamer with a chair to beat Drake down but before he can Pillmanize the neck, the lights go out and Raven appears. Drake tells them to fight but Raven and Dreamer beat him down instead. Callis: “Only in Impact Wrestling will you see these two standing together, even for a moment!” They were Tag Team Champions at one point dude. Also, I have no idea what the point of this was other than to make Dreamer and Raven look good, which seems pretty counterproductive.

Desi Hit Squad vs. Fallah Bahh/KM

Gama Singh dedicates this match to Scarlett Bordeaux so here’s Scarlett to watch. The Squad jumps the distracted Bahh and KM from behind to start but Bahh isn’t having any of this being punched in the head thing. Singh manages to drive him back into the corner for the tag to Raju, allowing some choking in the corner. Scarlett seems impressed as Bahh gets covered for two but doesn’t like Singh attempting a slam and having Bahh fall on him. KM comes in for the roll over the Squad but a jumping knee into a neckbreaker puts KM in trouble. Bahh crossbodies both of them though and sits on Singh’s chest for the pin at 4:51.

Rating: D. It feels like these teams have been fighting for months now. The Bordeaux thing has gone on long enough and she needs to just debut whatever surprise talent she has and be done with it. Her doing those stupid email segments and watching the same people fight over and over has lost its charm and they need to move on already. Oh and fire the Squad. It’s just not going to happen.

The Lucha Bros say LAX aren’t ready to be a real team without Konnan. It won’t be a friendly match on Sunday because it’s going to be about respect and honor.

Allie vs. Kiera Hogan

Why isn’t this at the pay per view? Hogan goes straight at her and stomps away in the corner, followed by a running dropkick to make it even worse. A suicide dive takes out Su Yung but the distraction lets Allie take Hogan down and hammer away. Allie gets to stomp her down in the corner for a change and cuts Kiera down with a clothesline. A big boot gives Kiera two and she kicks Allie in the head again for the same. Allie is right back with the Codebreaker for the fast pin at 4:34.

Rating: D+. This was too short to mean much and I’m not sure if Allie should be beating Kiera clean so soon. I’m not sure where this story actually goes but it could be interesting to see over the next few weeks. Allie is really working as a heel though and while that’s not the biggest surprise in the world, I’m impressed with it given how great she was as a face for so long.

Post match Allie and Su beat up Kiera even more until Jordynne Grace of all people makes the save and wrecks both of them.

Video on Taya Valkyrie vs. Tessa Blanchard, which has gotten Gail Kim involved despite the complete lack of her being needed.

Earlier today, Trevor Lee ranted to Don Callis and Scott D’Amore (not shown) about not being on the show and got a match for his efforts.

LAX always wanted to be pro wrestlers and overcame everything thrown against them over the years. They’re like brothers and the one time Konnan wasn’t in their corner, they lost everything. Now they need to prove that Konnan isn’t the only reason they win. They’re going to make history at Homecoming because they have to prove their worth to themselves and their family. Good fired up promo from the champs.

Trevor Lee vs. Killer Kross

Kross headlocks him to start and Lee’s efforts at a wristlock have no effect. Some kicks just annoy Kross, who stomps Lee down with no effort. The Saito suplex sets up the Krossjacket choke to give Kross the win at 2:34. Total squash.

Post match Kross wishes Johnny Impact luck against Brian Cage on Sunday, even though he feels like he can’t get through to him. He asks if Impact would like to see what happens when diplomacy fails. Kross grabs the timekeeper and pulls out a cinder block of all things. The timekeeper puts the block on Lee’s head in the corner and Kross breaks it with a right hand. That’s it for Lee in the company, and thank goodness they squashed a guy who has been misused in his entire run with the company. There’s your nice sendoff Lee and have fun in AEW.

Homecoming rundown.

GWN Flashback Moment of the Week: Jerry Lynn vs. Sean Waltman from Sacrifice 2005.

Lucha Bros vs. Brian Cage/Johnny Impact

Works for me. Cage shoulders Fenix down to start and catches a handspring without much effort. Pentagon comes in instead and gets caught in a hard German suplex as there’s no answer for Cage so far. It’s off to Impact for a kick to the head from the apron but Pentagon is right back with a Sling Blade. The Backstabber out of the corner keeps Impact down and there’s the big chop in the corner. Fenix comes back in with a missile dropkick for two but Cage knocks him down. A rolling cutter finally stops Cage and Pentagon adds a running flip dive.

Impact is right behind him with an Asai moonsault but Fenix dives onto everyone as we take a break. Back with Impact kicking the Bros down and getting two off a super Spanish Fly to Fenix. The Pentagon Driver plants Johnny and it’s time for the exchange of superkicks and other assorted kicks to the head. Cage discus lariats Impact down by mistake and gets double superkicked to the floor. The spike Fear Factor finishes Impact at 10:34.

Rating: C. This was more storyline than anything else and that’s perfectly fine. Cage and Impact don’t exactly have a great reason to be fighting other than cashing in the title shot so this was as good of an idea as they were going to have. The Lucha Bros winning is fine and it’s not like Impact got pinned clean or anything. Fine from a storyline standpoint and I’ll take a last minute build rather than nothing at all.

Post match Impact and Cage stare each other down. Cage goes to leave but Impact stops him and the fight is on. Referees and security can’t do much so some of the locker room comes out, only to have Johnny walk the ropes for a flip dive onto Cage. They’re finally separated to wrap things up.

A long video on Homecoming, featuring clips from the old days of TNA, ends the show.

Unless I missed something quick, there was no mention of the move to the Pursuit Channel next week.

Overall Rating: C. Pretty good go home show here with the bigger matches getting either a match or a promo to build them up. There are a few things that could have been done better but at least they hit the high points and reminded you what’s coming on Sunday. Homecoming should be another run of the mill Impact pay per view: an entertaining three hours but nothing that is going to stick with you long term because this company doesn’t do stuff that has a lot of staying power.

Results

Willie Mack/Rich Swann/Rascalz b. OVE/Sami Callihan/Ethan Page/Matt Sydal – Super Stunner to Dave Crist

KM/Fallah Bahh b. Desi Hit Squad – Banzai Drop to Singh

Allie b. Kiera Hogan – Codebreaker

Killer Kross b. Trevor Lee – Krossjacket choke

Lucha Bros b. Brian Cage/Johnny Impact – Spike Fear Factor to Impact

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-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: December 27, 2018
Host: Josh Matthews

It’s the second half of the Best of 2018 after last week’s show was about as easy of a sit as you could find. There’s enough stuff from the year to fill in four hours but I didn’t see anything all that great last week. There’s enough solid stuff to fill out the card though and that’s enough for something like this. Let’s get to it.

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

As usual I’ll be posting the full versions of the matches.

Opening sequence.

Josh welcomes us to the show and promised the top matches of the year tonight, as voted on by the fans.

Fenix talks about being considered the best in the world and how he can’t wait to face LAX at Homecoming.

From Impact, July 5.

Rich Swann vs. Fenix

This could be good. Feeling out process to start with Swann doing about eight nipups in a row to get out of a wristlock. That’s fine with Fenix who bounces on the top rope to send Swann outside. You wouldn’t be able to do that. The fans chant for both these guys as they miss kicks and trade forearms for a standoff. Swann gets kicked to the floor but avoids a dive, setting up a dropkick off the apron to put Fenix down.

Back in and Fenix gets caught on top, banging up his knee in the process. The knee is fine enough to moonsault into an armdrag though as these two just don’t stop. There’s the big flip dive to the floor but Fenix misses a moonsault back inside. Of course he keeps backflipping though and cutters Swann for another close two.

Fenix’s Lethal Injection is countered with Swann standing on his hands (of course) so Fenix has to try it again, this time connecting for a double knockdown. Back from a break with a chop off until Swann gets two off a fisherman’s buster and a middle rope 450. Fenix is right back with an over the shoulder sitout Tombstone for two of his own, followed by a Muscle Buster spinning into a driver for the pin at 13:30.

Rating: B. Well that was awesome. They didn’t try to do anything else here other than taking two high fliers and have them throw out one cool move after another. Fenix is as good as anyone right now and Swann could hang with him, making this a very entertaining match. The four way at Slammiversary should be a blast.

Video on LAX vs. the OGz.

LAX can’t believe how far they went against each in the street fight.

From Impact, August 16.

LAX and the OGz meet in the actual streets (or maybe a parking lot) with a bunch of people behind both teams. Konnan and King agree that just the wrestlers themselves fight and the OGz lay the belts down. Since this isn’t an actual match, I’m assuming the belts aren’t on the line. Hernandez gets sent into a fence and beaten with a plastic sign by Ortiz but King sends one of the unnamed goons in with a fork.

Homicide and Santana fight with the fork but Santana gets out of a Gringo Killer on the concrete. Ortiz breaks a broom over Hernandez’s back and Santana hits Homicide with something King accidentally throws him. Hernandez comes back in with what might have been a bottle and Border Tosses Santana onto the pile of people.

King throws in a rope to hang Ortiz but Santana is back in with some kind of club and LAX takes their belts back. With the OGz down, King gets in Konnan’s face and shouts that he’s leading LAX down the wrong path. He yells about Konnan doing something to him fifteen years ago and begs Konnan to knock him out. Konnan swears and does exactly what King requests to end the show.

Tessa Blanchard isn’t taking anything else from Taya Valkyrie. Taya may be a lot of things, but she’s nothing more than Johnny Impact’s wife.

Now we get to the Top 5 Matches of the year with #5 from Bound For Glory.

Knockouts Title: Tessa Blanchard vs. Taya Valkyrie

Taya is challenging and has new gear, making her look like an old school Natalya cosplayer. Tessa works on a wristlock to start and the fans are behind the champ. A headscissors takes Tessa down and Taya kicks her in the head in the corner. Taya gets in a not great spear to put Tessa on the floor but a neckbreaker onto the apron has Taya in trouble. Back in and a Codebreaker out of the corner gives Tessa two but it’s way too early for the Buzzsaw DDT.

Taya is right back with some Spanish shouting and running knees in the corner. A guillotine choke with a bodyscissors has to be broken up by a Tessa dead lift and the fans chant something in Spanish that is completely ignored. They slug it out and the Buzzsaw DDT is broken up again but Taya can’t hit Road to Valhalla. Instead Taya chokeslams her down to set up a moonsault.

A stomp sets up the STF but Tessa is too close to the ropes. The referee stops to FIX THE RING SKIRT, meaning there’s no count off the Road to Valhalla. It’s a delayed two, meaning Tessa is right back up with the Buzzsaw DDT for two of her own. Taya is back up again so Tessa sends her face first into the middle buckle, setting up Magnum to retain the title at 10:44.

Rating: C+. Nice power brawl here with Tessa finally having someone who can go move for move with her. The ending was the only way to go as Taya hasn’t been around in the better part of six months so changing the title was almost out of the question. Now you can build someone else up to challenge Tessa for the title, because the division has been all but cleaned out at the moment.

#4. From Redemption.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Austin Aries vs. Pentagon Jr. vs. Fenix

Aries is defending. We hit the trash talk to start (well duh) and it’s Aries starting fast with a bunch of chops all around. Remembering that they’re brothers, Fenix and Pentagon send him outside but Pentagon is right back up with a Sling Blade. Aries is back in and getting kicked in the face soon thereafter, followed by a jumping cutter to Pentagon.

A smart Aries steals the near fall and grabs the Last Chancery, only to have Fenix springboard in with a missile dropkick for the save. Pentagon heads outside and it’s Fenix chopping the heck out of Aries. For a change of pace, Aries chops the head out of Fenix. Aries gets two off a forearm as it sounds like one of the announcers is opening a can. Pentagon comes back in and gets bulldogged for two, followed by the Last Chancery with Fenix making another fast save.

That sends Pentagon outside so Fenix throws Aries at him, earning his brother a hurricanrana. Fenix isn’t about to be shown up though and busts out a corkscrew plancha to the floor to drop them both again. Back in again and Fenix drops a Swanton for two on Pentagon, who pops up to German suplex both guys. He can’t quite break Aries’ arm though as Fenix makes a save. Now why wouldn’t he want the World Champion taken out?

Pentagon beaks up Aries’ running corner dropkick and Backstabs his brother for two. This time it’s Fenix getting back up with a superkick to Aries but Pentagon’s Fear Factor (package piledriver) gets two with Aries making another save. Pentagon is fine enough to block a suicide dive so Aries sends him into the crowd instead.

Back in (again) and the 450 hits both challengers, including Pentagon taking some hard knees. That’s enough for the two of them and it’s time for the brother double teaming, including a double superkick. Pentagon lays Fenix out though and snaps Aries’ arm. The Fear Factor gives Pentagon the pin on Aries and the title at 16:15.

Rating: B. Good match here and that’s all you can ask for in a big time main event. The surprise title change isn’t shocking enough to be too far and you can probably pencil in Pentagon dropping it no later than Slammiversary. That being said, it’s really cool to see Pentagon getting some more exposure like this as he’s been a gem to watch down in Lucha Underground. Strong main event here.

LAX wants to go back to the hallowed grounds for Homecoming to face the Lucha Bros.

#3. From Slammiversary.

Tag Team Titles: OGz vs. LAX

Street fight and LAX is defending, though I thought this was non-title. LAX comes through the crowd and Konnan meets them on the ramp to say go to it. Hernandez shrugs off the beating but can’t hit the Border Toss to the floor. Instead Santana dropkicks Homicide off the apron and it’s some dives (with the camera missing one) to drop the OGz. A pair of tables are set up in the corner while Homicide puts up one on the floor against the barricade.

Hernandez starts cleaning house and Ortiz gets choked with a chain. The big dive over the top has Santana rocked as Hernandez flashes back to the SuperMex days. More metal shots to the head put Hernandez down and Homicide actually walks into a suplex. Yes that was in fact a wrestling move. The OGz take over again without much effort but Santana superkicks his way out of trouble.

Back in and Hernandez pulls Santana out of the air, followed by a heck of a sitout powerbomb for two. Ortiz is back up with the trashcan lids to the head and it’s ladder time. A flip dive into a Lionsault onto Hernandez onto the ladder has Hernandez down and the Street Sweeper gets two on Homicide. Santana hits a big flip dive to put Homicide through a table at ringside but they’re not done.

Back in and a running Death Valley Driver puts Homicide through a table. It works so well that Ortiz loads it up but Hernandez gives him a Border Toss through the other table. Santana is back up this time with a superkick as Konnan goes after King. Homicide loads up the Gringo Killer but stops to spit at Konnan. The distraction lets Konnan throw a bag of tacks to Santana, who THROWS THEM AT HOMICIDE for what could be a terrifying result. A slam and frog splash put Homicide away at 13:55.

Rating: B. This was exactly the kind of match it should have been, meaning it was barely wrestling and was instead the wild weapons brawl that showed off the violent hatred. You can almost guarantee a rematch and the OGz getting the titles at one point, as they certainly should. I liked the match a lot, though it didn’t hit the level I was hoping it would reach.

Johnny Impact wants to beat up Brian Cage in Nashville. As usual, this company doesn’t know how to make World Title matches personal.

#2. From Bound For Glory.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Johnny Impact vs. Austin Aries

Aries is defending, Taya, Moose (in the King outfit again) and Killer Kross are here and we get Big Match Intros. Johnny goes for a takedown but gets caught in a guillotine choke with Aries grabbing the ropes for some illogical reason. Aries gets taken down by a choke as well and the fans chant 205. Impact changes plans by slugging away and knocks him to the floor with a dive to follow.

Back up and Aries tries to whip him into the barricade but Johnny jumps up with one foot on the barricade and the other on the apron for a moonsault. You know, because he can just do that. They head back in with Aries pounding away and glaring over at Taya. That earns him a rolling slap to the face but Aries knocks him down again and lays on the top rope. Some hard knees in the corner look to set up the Flying Chuck, only to have Aries knock him out to the floor. A springboard corkscrew crossbody gives Impact two but Aries is right back up with a Last Chancery attempt.

That doesn’t work either so Impact hits the Flying Chuck for two more. Impact takes him up top but gets shoved down, setting up a middle rope hurricanrana. The neckbreaker over the middle rope connects but Aries takes way too long going up (out of character for him) and gets caught in a super Spanish Fly.

The Countdown to Impact misses (Does it ever hit?) so they fight to the apron with Aries hitting a Death Valley Driver for a sick crash. Aries’ 450 gets two so it’s time to yell at the ref. A superkick sets up Starship Pain for two as Aries has to grab the rope. The roaring elbow sets up the corner dropkick and the brainbuster to knock Impact silly but he’s still fine enough to get a boot on the ropes.

Taya celebrates so Aries yells at her, allowing Impact to grab a backslide for two. The Last Chancery is broken up and they slug it out until Aries hits a suicide dive to send Taya into the barricade. That’s too far and Impact kicks Aries in the head (with the camera on Moose laughing) and gives him a brainbuster of his own. Starship Pain is good for the pin and the title at 21:00.

Rating: B. The ending was the right call and they beat the heck out of each other, making this a rather strong main event. Now the problem here is the Taya stuff, which while making it feel personal, came off as forced. It was like they didn’t have enough in the story to make it work so they wedged that in there at the last second, almost like Aries’ heel turn against Jeff Hardy in 2012. It worked for the match, but it would have been better as part of the build over a few weeks, not a few days.

Sami Callihan knew his match would be #1 and then he’ll do it again at Homecoming.

#1. From Slammiversary.

Sami Callihan vs. Pentagon Jr.

After some yelling, they get to the kicking each other in the face. Pentagon scores with a Sling Blade for the first real offense and it’s time for the chops. Sami opens his vest and wants the best shot. The ensuing chop brings Callihan to his knees and a face that says how bad of an idea that was. He’s fine enough to take it outside for a water bottle to the head but they both chop the post.

Pentagon slaps him down as the announcers mention that this has relaxed rules. I know that’s expected and understood, but it’s nice to be officially told. Callihan posts out some spikes of all things and starts gouging at the head, drawing some much needed blood (just kind of necessary in a match like this). That’s fine with Pentagon, who knocks a spike back into Callihan’s head. With nothing else working, both guys grab a chair and beat the fire out of each other, earning a FIGHT FOREVER chant.

There is blood everywhere and Pentagon chairs him down again. The armbreaker is broken up so Pentagon chairs him down for the second time in a few seconds. Cue the Crists to take a shot each, allowing Callihan to throw some powder. Pentagon breaks the ref’s arm instead so there’s no one to count the Pentagon Driver.

Rating: B-. This needed to be a few minutes shorter but it also needed to be a little away from the previous match as having two violent brawls in a row wasn’t the best idea. Pentagon winning was really the only call here given how big of a star he is on the indy scene at the moment so it’s hard to argue with the ending. Give Sami something to bring him back to earth and OVE can go insane again.

Overall Rating: B. That was #1? Really? The match wasn’t all that great and the fans think that it’s the best of the year? There were some odd choices on this show but there’s only so much complaining you can do about something like this. The wrestling was good and the LAX vs. OGz stuff is as good as it got all year and the Homecoming card looks great. Hopefully they can get in a good go home show, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they don’t quite make it. Anyway, good 2018, though it wasn’t as good as it could have been.

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-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 29, 2018
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

We’re getting closer and closer to Homecoming and that could mean some interesting build as the final few weeks remain. Considering the last two episodes of the year are going to be Best Of shows, there’s only so much time remaining to really make things going. Hopefully the company figures that out and starts pushing things. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap looks at a little bit of everything around here, which is something that they do very well. It makes extra sense after last week’s nothing show too.

Opening sequence.

Willie Mack/Rich Swann vs. Lucha Bros

Swann and Fenix start things off and go with some grappling, only to have the flip into a standoff. Fenix flips across the ring but Swann flips over him for the second standoff in a row. With nothing having happened, we’ll go off to Mack vs. Pentagon for some Lucha Underground flavor. Pentagon throws up CERO MIEDO but Mack gets in his face too. We finally get to some offense as they slug it out but a four way knockdown ensues without much effort.

Mack kicks Pentagon in the face again and snaps off a hurricanrana. A Samoan drop into the standing moonsault set up Swann’s middle rope 450 but Fenix is right back with a double Lethal Injection. Pentagon follows that up with a pair of Sling Blades and it’s the What’s Up Double stomp to Swann, which still looks painful. Swann is fine enough to break up Fenix’s springboard, leaving Mack to Pounce Pentagon to the floor. The running flip dive has Pentagon in more trouble but it’s time for Swann and Fenix to hit their own dives.

Back from a break with Mack chopping Fenix down and then for a change, Mack chops Fenix down. Fenix goes with a spinning kick to the face but Swann breaks up something off the top. Pentagon isn’t having that though as it’s the spike Fear Factor onto the apron to crush Swann. Back in and a springboard headbutt sets up the wheelbarrow flip splash to finish Mack at 15:41.

Post match here’s LAX minus Konnan to congratulate the Lucha Bros on the win. They’ve already beaten the best teams in the world, but now they want the Lucha Bros. The match is set for Homecoming.

Next week: qualifying matches for Ultimate X at Homecoming.

Video on Brian Cage, who is ready to finally get his chance to be on top.

LAX comes in to see Konnan, who isn’t cool with them making that announcement. He’s worried about the personal issues that have flared up in the past when we try to have dream matches. Konnan has to do something now and leaves.

Katarina vs. Jordynne Grace

They grapple a bit to start with the much bigger Grace winning the power battle. The whip spinebuster gets two but it’s too early for the bearhug. Katarina gets in some shots in the corner and puts on the reverse chinlock to little avail. The fireman’s carry just isn’t happening so Katarina switches to the top rope DDT for two. A heck of a Pounce sends Katarina flying and hits some running knees in the corner. There’s a Vader Bomb and the bearhug makes Katarina tap at 6:10.

Rating: D+. This could have been worse but, again, they don’t seem eager to push Grace as the unstoppable monster that she could be. She’s a different kind of talent but for some reason they won’t let her just go crazy out there. It’s not like Katarina has much going or her, so just let her get beaten up like a ragdoll out there.

KM and Fallah Bahh have lost their money gambling because they’re not all that bright. Scarlett Bordeaux shows up and says a lot of people are trying to get her attention.

Classic Moment of the Week: Low Ki wins Ultimate X last August.

Video on Tessa Blanchard vs. Taya Valkyrie.

A referee comes in to see Tessa and tells her that she can’t beat up referees. Yeah whatever.

Tommy Dreamer, now in a Superstar Billy Graham shirt because he hasn’t paid homage to enough legends yet, talks about how Eli Drake is everything he hates about people today. Drake is an entitled millennial you see and tries to be the Rock and Steve Austin. Yes TOMMY DREAMER just said someone is trying to be someone else. Drake lost the title and has just been mediocre since then and he’s not ending Dreamer’s career. Dreamer is done when he says he is.

Taya Valkyrie vs. Rae Lyn

Rae ducks behind her and dances to start so Taya hits a forearm in the corner. That earns her a middle rope dropkick to give Rae two but Taya is right back with the running hip attack in the corner. Rae slips out of the Road to Valhalla and dances some more, earning herself a curb stomp and a modified STF for the tap at 2:45. Good idea to add a new move to her arsenal as she can only ride the Road to Valhalla for so long.

Post match Tessa runs in and beats Taya down. The referee from earlier comes in for the save and gets punched in the face. More referees come in and get beaten up….so GAIL KIM makes the save, because OF COURSE SHE FREAKING DOES!

Video on Johnny Impact being ready to defend the title against anyone, including Cage.

Killer Kross again offers his assistance to Impact but gets turned down. That’s not cool with Kross.

Rascalz vs. Chris Bey/Mike Sydal

The Rascalz are a trio with Trey Miguel, Dezmond Xavier and Zachary Wentz with Miguel sitting out this time. Dezmond headlocks Sydal to start and flips away from some early shots to the ribs. Sydal has no idea where Dezmond is and it’s off to Wentz for some yelling. Bey comes in and gets yelled at, followed by a Bronco Buster.

Some rapid fire kicks and a double stomp have Sydal in more trouble and there are the stereo suicide dives, which you had to know were coming. Back in and some kicks put Sydal down before Wentz does a standing moonsault….from about a foot away from Sydal’s feet. Not that it matters as Xavier shoves him over so the moonsault hits the chest for the pin at 3:09. That’s certainly a unique finisher and it looked rather cool.

Rating: C. This was a good looking debut for the Rascalz, who had some great chemistry and some sweet offense. You can always have room for another high flying team like this, especially when they’re a little bit different than the Lucha Bros or LAX. Throw in the option of Miguel for a little change of pace later on and you have a good act here.

Kiera Hogan doesn’t believe that Allie is fully evil because Allie didn’t attack her when she had the chance. Allie can fight this.

We look back at Alisha having Eddie committed. Shouldn’t that have come first?

Eli Drake says his issues aren’t with hardcore wrestling. Apparently he touched a nerve in Tommy Dreamer and tonight, Dreamer is going to the retirement home.

Matt Sydal talks to Ethan Page about how his path to success keeps messing up. Page tries to calm him down but Sydal wants to show him the path to the X-Division Title. Next week: they’ll meet in an Ultimate X qualifying match.

Eli Drake vs. Tommy Dreamer

Anyway we’re back with Dreamer spitting water in Drake’s face on the stage. Dreamer grabs the trashcan full of weapons and hits him with a box of donuts, of course stopping for a bite. Drake gets drenched with some water, which only seems to wake him up as he suplexed Dreamer onto the ramp. A catapult sends Dreamer’s throat first into the bottom rope and a jumping neckbreaker gets two. The chair is set up for the drop toehold for two on Dreamer so Drake picks the chair up.

A middle rope chair shot is blocked by a raised boot but the Dreamer DDT is countered with a leg trip to send Dreamer into the chair again. The DDT connects for two a few seconds later but Drake hits him low and nails the Gravy Train….for two? Egads man why is Tommy Dreamer kicking out of a former World Champion’s finisher? With nothing else working, Drake puts a chair around Dreamer’s neck and hits the chair with an oar for the pin at 12:04.

Rating: D-. I’ve complained about Tommy Dreamer wrestling at this level and with the same stories over and over again so we’ll look at Drake here. I still find him to be one of the best and most talented people on the entire roster and he should be doing something other than this. Hopefully he gets to beat Abyss at Homecoming and move on to something more important and better, rather than beating up Dreamer in main events.

Post match Drake goes to the back and finds a present addressed to him. He opens the card and finds a message which freaks him out to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. The show was entertaining enough and the strong opener balanced out the dreadful main event. They’re getting closer to having a solid pay per view card, though again the main event scene isn’t the most thrilling in the world. It often comes off as an afterthought and that gets a little annoying over time. These videos don’t do much and the lack of any kind of personal issue doesn’t help either. The rest of the show is looking fine, but it’s missing that spark. Anyway, fine show this week, but nothing really worth seeing.

Results

Lucha Bros b. Rich Swann/Willie Mack – Wheelbarrow splash to Mack

Jordynne Grace b. Katarina – Bearhug

Taya Valkyrie b. Rae Lyn – STF

Rascalz b. Mike Sydal/Chris Bey – Standing moonsault to Sydal

Eli Drake b. Tommy Dreamer – Drake wrapped a chair around Dreamer’s neck and hit it with an oar

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up the paperback edition of KB’s Complete 1997 Monday Night Raw Reviews (also available as an e-book) from Amazon. Check out the information here:

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/11/20/new-paperback-complete-1997-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 1, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

We’re still in New York and still pretty fresh off of Bound For Glory, with the big story being Killer Kross laying out World Champion Johnny Impact last week. There’s a lot going on at the moment and I’m actually wanting to see where some of it goes. Now if only they can keep that going for a bit and then pay it off. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening recap covers most of last week.

Opening sequence.

Willie Mack vs. Rich Swann

They were partners at Bound For Glory and they’re still cool here as Mack requested his friend for his singles debut. Mack headlocks him to start but Swann speeds things up and starts flipping around. Both guys try dropkicks at the same time so they nip up at the same time, meaning it’s a handshake. Mack picks up the pace with a hard shoulder and some knees to the back to set up a seated Blockbuster. A running vertical suplex gives Mack two and he cuts Swann down again with a spinwheel kick.

Swann gets tied in the Tree of Woe and Mack goes Coast to Coast (not bad, even in a smaller ring). Mack sends him outside for a slingshot down and a pop up Downward Spiral gives Mack two more. A faceplant cuts Mack off though and Swann gets two off a middle rope 450. Mack is right back up with some running shots to the face in the corner and there’s a Samoan drop for good measure. A standing moonsault and Stunner get two each so Mack goes up, only to miss a frog splash. Swann pops up to the top and hits a Phoenix splash for the pin at 9:49.

Rating: C+. This was a great showcase for Mack, though I’m not sure I would have had him lose his singles debut. It’s not like Swann is all that big of a star or anything so having him lose here wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world. Hopefully Mack sticks around because someone with his skills and charisma can be a star in a hurry.

OVE’s feed keeps messing up before they talk about being in Dayton, Ohio to call out Brian Cage for the beating he deserves.

The announcers preview the rest of the show along with talking about next week’s Final Hour show.

Desi Hit Squad vs. Beach Bums

This is the NEW Squad, with Rohit Raju and Gama Singh’s son Raj. Raju clotheslines TJ Crawford down to start and the stomping begins. Raj comes in for a Cannonball in the corner so it’s off to Freddy Ivey, who gets kicked in the face. With Ivey in trouble, Raju pulls him up at two so the Squad can take turns stomping in the corner. A Samoan drop/jumping knee to the head finishes Ivey at 3:21.

Rating: D. They’re new, they’re still not good, and I still want something more than a team who takes turns stomping their opponents for most of the match. I know they think they have something with Gama Singh as the manager, but even if he, he’s still more interesting than either of the three members of the team, it’s not much of an accomplishment. I’m really not sure why this team gets to keep staying around but they don’t seem to be leaving any time soon.

The OGz are ready to take care of Konnan’s friends the Lucha Bros because the war isn’t over.

LAX is drinking in a bar where Konnan doesn’t think much of Matt Sydal and Ethan Page. Why Ortiz is bartender isn’t clear.

Video on Eddie Edwards vs. Moose, who have their big showdown next week (as opposed to Bound For Glory, where we got a Tommy Dreamer match instead). They used to be friends but Moose turned his back on him, saying that Eddie wasn’t a real friend. Eddie has gone insane and it’s time to fight so someone can get hurt.

We go to Rockstar Pro Wrestling in Dayton, Ohio where OVE (VERY popular here) calls out Cage. They get a fake Cage, complete with a fake title belt. Sami makes fun of his size and the fake Cage does the claps, but the beatdown is on. Callihan gets a pin with Dave Crist putting on a referee shirt to count the three.

Eli Drake goes to a law office….and it’s a broom closet with Joseph Park eating lunch. Park offers to represent Drake’s lawsuit against Impact Wrestling because they could own the company. Drake seems to agree before leaving.

Gama Singh (ERG) praises the new Hit Squad but run into Scarlett Bordeaux. Gama hits on her and speaks his language. Raju says that means he’s been married 45 years and is a happily married man.

Knockouts Title: Taya Valkyrie vs. Tessa Blanchard

Tessa is defending in a Bound For Glory rematch. Taya runs her over to start and sends her into the corner but Tessa is out of the way before the running hip attack can hit. Instead Tessa drops her on the floor and that means a suicide dive to knock the barricade all over the place. Back from a break with Tessa cranking on both arms and putting a boot on the back of Taya’s head. Tessa kicks her in the ribs to cut Taya down again and there’s a running knee to the back for two more.

Magnum misses though and Taya takes her into the corner for a kick to the head. Taya gets two off a spear and a suplex is good for two more. A cutter out of nowhere drops Taya but she’s right back with a curb stomp. The moonsault hits perfectly for two and Tessa bails to the floor. Taya takes her down with a high crossbody so Tessa punches the referee for the DQ to save the title at 13:41.

Rating: C+. These two were hitting each other hard and that’s what you want from something like this. Tessa and Taya can bring in some physicality and that’s how you get an entertaining match from the two of them. Both of them look like they could be champion at the drop of a hat, which makes for some entertaining matches between the two of them. I’m certainly down for a third match between them, which is a nice situation to be in.

Video on Johnny Impact vs. Killer Kross for the World Title next week. Impact knows Kross is a different kind of challenger because he seems more interested in hurting people than anything else. It’s going to be harder for Kross when Johnny is staring him in the face though. Kross’ eyes bugging out is a great visual.

Jordynne Grace is coming.

Classic Moment of the Week: Candice LeRae vs. Gail Kim on Impact in 2013. They actually show the finish for once.

The Lucha Bros aren’t scared of the OGz. Cero miedo you see.

Cage says he never got an invitation to Ohio but he’ll come next week and bring the real X-Division Title.

Final Hour rundown.

Tag Team Titles: LAX vs. Matt Sydal/Ethan Page

Page and Sydal are challenging. Ortiz starts with Sydal and that means a lot of talking/shouting at each other. It’s time to get violent though so Ortiz throws him into the corner for some stomping and brings in Santana for the assisted moonsault. Page comes in and gets armdragged down but catches Santana with a gutwrench faceplant. It’s off to Sydal to talk about showing LAX the way and stare at Konnan. The trash talk is enough for a running flip dive from the apron from Santana to take out both challengers as we take a break.

Back with Santana in trouble as Page holds him for a knee to the ribs from Sydal. Page gets smart by knocking Ortiz off the apron but takes too long, allowing Santana to send him into the corner and dive over for the hot tag. Everything breaks down and Ortiz hits a rolling clothesline (shades of Konnan) on Page, followed by a northern lights suplex for two. The challengers hit stereo kicks to Ortiz’s head for two but it’s a suplex/backbreaker combination (started like a Magic Killer but Ortiz shoved Sydal up and Santana suplexed him onto Ortiz’s knee) for the pin to retain at 13:11.

Rating: B-. LAX is just solid and there’s no other way to put it. I don’t remember the last time they had a bad match and they’re capable of having a good performance against anyone out there. Sydal and Page are a new team and looked fine out there, making this an entertaining match between two pretty solid teams. Good stuff here.

Allie’s reflection if flickering when she stops to apologize to Kiera Hogan for snapping last week. Kiera doesn’t believe there’s nothing wrong with her and a mini argument breaks out. Allie finally admits that there is something wrong because she’s been losing it since they went to the undead realm. Kiera assures her that they’re together until the end. This would have been more effective without the introductions of the Knockouts Title match being heard in the background.

Homicide vs. Pentagon Jr.

I don’t think there was a bell but Pentagon knocks him to the floor to start anyway. Back in and some more kicks have Homicide in more trouble until he snaps off some clotheslines. A Backstabber out of the corner sends Homicide outside and there’s the superkick from the apron. Homicide is fine enough to run back inside for a flip dive into the apron and there’s a middle finger to the crowd.

A tornado DDT gives Homicide two but Pentagon slips out of a superplex attempt and ties Homicide in the Tree of Woe. That means the Alberto double stomp, followed by more kicks to rock Homicide. Back up and Homicide tries the Gringo Killer but gets reversed into a rollup for the pin at 5:51.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to go anywhere and it’s not like a single rollup is going to end the upcoming Lucha Bros vs. OGz feud. There’s also the chance of seeing where they might go with issues between the Bros and Konnan, who seem to be pretty close. That’s a good example of setting things up for the future and another example of good storytelling around here.

Post match the big beatdown is on with Hernandez running in, followed by Fenix and King to leave the Lucha Bros laying.

Killer Kross promises to bring about Impact’s final hour next week.

Overall Rating: B-. I don’t know what happened but at some point, Impact got downright decent. There are stories that I want to see progress and mostly good wrestling (Desi Hit Squad aside). I’m not sure where things are going from here and that makes for an interesting show. Keep doing stuff like this and things are going to stay good for a long time to come.

Results

Rich Swann b. Willie Mack – Phoenix splash

Desi Hit Squad b. Beach Bums – Samoan drop/jumping knee combination to Ivey

Taya Valkyrie b. Tessa Blanchard via DQ when Blanchard punched the referee

LAX b. Matt Sydal/Ethan Page – Suplex/backbreaker combination to Sydal

Pentagon Jr. b. Homicide – Rollup

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

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

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

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

The opening video recaps last week’s events.

Opening sequence.

Scarlett Bordeaux comes out to scout talent.

Sami Callihan vs. Trevor Lee

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

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

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

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

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

Preview for the rest of the show.

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

Heavenly Bodies vs. LAX

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Gama Singh vs. Rohit Raju

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

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

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

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

Killer Kross/Moose vs. Fallah Bahh/KM

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

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

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

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

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

Jordynne Grace is coming.

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

Kiera Hogan vs. Su Yung

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

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

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

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

Impact Wrestling World Title: Johnny Impact vs. Fenix

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Results

Sami Callihan b. Trevor Lee – Cactus Piledriver

LAX b. Heavenly Bodies – Street Sweeper to Dustin

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

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

Su Yung b. Kiera Hogan – Panic Switch

Johnny Impact b. Fenix – Starship Pain

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Bound For Glory 2018
Date: October 14, 2018
Location: Melrose Ballroom, New York City, New York
Commentators: Don Callis, Josh Matthews

It’s the biggest night of the year and the card is looking pretty good this time around. The main event is fairly lackluster with Johnny Impact challenging Austin Aries for the World Title, but the better built match is LAX vs. the OGz, in a match that could go either way. You never can tell with this company though so let’s get to it.

The opening video shows shots of the streets of New York with the pictures of the matches on walls and clips of the build towards the matches. LAX walks the streets, talking about how this is a reload instead of a rebuild.

The camera is facing the entrance and the ring looks a bit smaller than usual.

Willie Mack/Rich Swann vs. Ethan Page/Matt Sydal

Interesting choice for an opener. Swann strikes away to start and it’s Sydal telling him to open his third eye. Instead it’s off to the Mack for a heavy flying tackle to drop Sydal, meaning Page comes in to try his luck. Swann headscissors him down but a backdrop gives us a 450, sending Swann face first into the mat. Sydal comes back in to start on the arm, including a Fujiwara armbar.

A big boot from Page and a kick to the face from Sydal send Swann outside, where there is barely any room between the ring and the barricade. It doesn’t seem to bother Mack, who cannonballs down onto the other three. That’s still not enough for the hot tag though as Sydal cranks on something like a cobra clutch back inside. A side slam cuts Swann off again but he rolls over and brings in Mack to clean house. That means a Cannonball in the corner and a German suplex to set up a standing moonsault on Page.

Swann comes back in for a flapjack/bulldog combination before taking Page to the top. That’s not the best idea, as Page slams him down and hits a Swan Dive for two more. Sydal knees Mack in the face and hurricanranas Swann off the top, only to have him land in a hurricanrana to send Page flying instead for a cool spot. Everything breaks down and it’s a series of kicks to the face to put everyone down. Page kicks Sydal by mistake and takes a Stunner, leaving Swann to hit a Lethal Injection. The Phoenix splash is good for the pin on Sydal at 12:34.

Rating: C+. Good choice for an opener here with the fans loving Mack and Swann being his usual charismatic self. IT makes sense to have Sydal take the pin as well with Page being the newcomer and full of potential. As usual, Sydal is much easier to watch when he’s in the ring instead of talking about the third eye stuff. Just stick to what you do best.

Post match the fans seem to like Mack, who grabs a mic and says there are two empty seats in the front row. Therefore, whoever cheers the loudest is getting an upgrade courtesy of the show’s sponsor. Nothing wrong with that.

The announcers plug swag from the sponsor.

Earlier this week Johnny Impact and Taya Valkyrie were on TMZ because Austin Aries made some jokes about Taya’s size. This led to a near fight at Abyss’ Hall of Fame induction.

Konnan has been attacked. LAX comes in and Konnan says it was some of King’s guys.

This does NOT go over well with the fans starting a DELETE chant. Ellsworth tries to suck up to New York but Drake points out that he’s not even from New York. That’s true, but he did date a girl from Staten Island (ERG) and lived in her basement for a bit. Fans: “PIZZA!” They also have some very mean things to say about Ellsworth so let’s do this, though after a Sweet Chin Music joke.

James Ellsworth vs. Eli Drake

Ellsworth tries a cheap shot but gets caught in a flapjack as the fans are all behind Drake. Sweet Chin Music is countered with a spinebuster, which earns a thank you from the crowd. Ellsworth loads up a Styles Clash but gets countered into the Gravy Train. The fans want one more so Drake obliges before the pin at 2:12. Just….push Drake to the moon as a huge face already. Please. It’s WAY overdue, even as a former World Champion. And keep Ellsworth out. That felt like the old days of TNA and that’s not a good thing.

Post match Drake says he wants better competition so here’s Abyss to destroy him. A Black Hole Slam sets up a chokeslam through a table for Abyss’ Hall of Fame moment. Nothing wrong with that, but he couldn’t beat up someone other than Drake?

Earlier today, Tessa Blanchard said she’s the real wrestling royalty.

We recap Blanchard vs. Valkyrie. Basically Blanchard was out of challengers so Valkyrie is back to come after the title. It does at least tie into Blanchard facing a bunch of luchadoras and Taya saying she’s lucha royalty.

Knockouts Title: Tessa Blanchard vs. Taya Valkyrie

Taya is challenging and has new gear, making her look like an old school Natalya cosplayer. Tessa works on a wristlock to start and the fans are behind the champ. A headscissors takes Tessa down and Taya kicks her in the head in the corner. Taya gets in a not great spear to put Tessa on the floor but a neckbreaker onto the apron has Taya in trouble. Back in and a Codebreaker out of the corner gives Tessa two but it’s way too early for the Buzzsaw DDT.

Taya is right back with some Spanish shouting and running knees in the corner. A guillotine choke with a bodyscissors has to be broken up by a Tessa dead lift and the fans chant something in Spanish that is completely ignored. They slug it out and the Buzzsaw DDT is broken up again but Taya can’t hit Road to Valhalla. Instead Taya chokeslams her down to set up a moonsault.

A stomp sets up the STF but Tessa is too close to the ropes. The referee stops to FIX THE RING SKIRT, meaning there’s no count off the Road to Valhalla. It’s a delayed two, meaning Tessa is right back up with the Buzzsaw DDT for two of her own. Taya is back up again so Tessa sends her face first into the middle buckle, setting up Magnum to retain the title at 10:44.

Rating: C+. Nice power brawl here with Tessa finally having someone who can go move for move with her. The ending was the only way to go as Taya hasn’t been around in the better part of six months so changing the title was almost out of the question. Now you can build someone else up to challenge Tessa for the title, because the division has been all but cleaned out at the moment.

Earlier today Moose, wearing what looks like an African king outfit, says he’ll show why he’s a legend.

We recap Moose vs. Eddie Edwards. Moose was put on the shelf with a concussion but came back and joined forces with Austin Aries. This includes helping to beat down Edwards, who never even visited him in the hospital. Moose is now part of the evil trio along with Aries and Killer Kross, so Edwards is out for revenge due to a series of beatdowns.

Eddie Edwards vs. Moose

Post match Tommy Dreamer runs in for the save so let’s have a No DQ tag match. BECAUSE WE NEEDED TOMMY FREAKING DREAMER ON THE SHOW!

Tommy Dreamer/Eddie Edwards vs. Moose/Killer Kross

No DQ and it’s a brawl to start (of course) with Dreamer spitting something into Kross’ eyes. That’s not enough though as he takes another drink, spits it into Edwards’ mouth, and then has Edwards spit it into Moose’s eyes. That’s a visual I really didn’t need. Moose and Dreamer slug it out inside with Moose shouldering him down but missing the backsplash. The fans chant for Low Ki (fair enough) as Kross makes the save, only to get elbowed down.

Dreamer pulls back the padding on the floor, leaving Moose to dropkick Eddie off the middle rope. Moose follows him out and hits a running….I have no idea actually as the camera switched angles. Or did Eddie do something to him? Either way it’s bad camera work and Eddie comes back in to chop Kross. A middle rope hurricanrana drops Kross but Moose hits the Game Changer on Dreamer.

Moose and Eddie chop it out with Eddie hanging in there until he can hit the Blue Thunder Bomb. Dreamer cutters Kross and grabs the kendo stick, only to get caught with the Doomsday Saito. A clothesline puts Kross on the floor and Moose gives Eddie a pop up powerbomb. It’s time to get the stick again, but Eddie rolls Moose up for the pin at 8:41.

Rating: D+. I’m split on this one as there was no need to put Dreamer on the show, but there was a need to put Kross on there. That being said, if you want to do the tag match, just announce it as a tag match. Advertising Moose vs. Edwards as a featured match on the card and then switching things up is rather annoying and something that shouldn’t be happening. On top of that, it wasn’t even a very good brawl as Dreamer should NOT be going move for move with either of these monsters. At least the ending went well enough.

Post match Kross and Moose wreck Edwards, including an assisted apron bomb.

OVE is ready to take a bite of the Big Apple and spit it in the Machine’s face. They’re the ratings draws and are going to put Ohio on the map.

We recap OVE vs. Brian Cage/Lucha Bros. Sami Callihan and Pentagon have been feuding for months and since Sami has the Crist Brothers, Pentagon brought in his brother Fenix and then Cage just joined in as a bonus. You have to get Cage on the show so this makes logical sense. I’d certainly take that over a nothing X-Division Title defense.

OVE vs. Lucha Bros/Brian Cage

OVE rules, meaning anything goes, for the second match in a row. Fenix is introduced as “The Mexican”. Cage has a taped up leg coming in so he might need some repairs. Everyone else is cleared out in a hurry and it’s Pentagon vs. Callihan in the big showdown. They trade shots to the face until Pentagon scores with the Sling Blades to take over. Cage comes back in but gets sent shoulder first into the post.

Fenix replaces him and speeds things up but a tiger suplex takes him down as well. Callihan kicks away at various people and Jake posts Cage head first. The Bros are back up with Pentagon holding the ropes open for a dive from Fenix, leaving Cage to toss Jake over the top off a fall away slam. The dead lift superplex gets two on Callihan and everyone is back in. Double superkicks get two on Dave and the Alberto double stomp gets two. Callihan has to save Jake from the Drill Claw but Callihan sends Cage outside.

That means Fenix runs down the ramp for a diving cutter for two more on Callihan. The Pentagon Driver gets the same on Dave and it’s time for a parade of people knocking each other down. Cage throws Callihan into the corner to set up the spike Fear Factor but the Crists make the save. The fall away slam/Samoan drop combination takes Jake and Dave down, followed by a Codebreaker to Dave.

Fenix gets on Pentagon’s shoulders but it’s Jake springboarding in for the All Seeing Eye. Ok so he slipped a bit but it still looked good enough. Callihan piledrives Pentagon on the apron but Cage is all fired up again. House is cleaned but a series of kicks rock Cage. The All Seeing Eye only makes him adder so OVE kicks him in the face about a dozen times, setting up the Cactus Piledriver for the pin on Cage at 13:28.

Rating: B. Easily the match of the night so far and the ending was a nice surprise. It also sets up Callihan as the next challenger to the X-Division Title, which is hopefully turning into the midcard title that it should have been a long time ago. Cage got to stay strong in defeat, as it took three people unloading on him at once to finally put him away. That doesn’t hurt him in the slightest and this was an entertaining fight throughout.

Aries came back to this company to turn it into something special. Impact shows up when he has time and that’s not cool with the champ. Now that Impact’s reality show is airing, he’s back to make something out of it. Impact has Boone the Bounty Hunter and all the last names in the world. Aries says after last night at the press conference, his boys will be at ringside wit him. More good stuff from a recently inspired Aries here.

King says LAX can learn what they grew up with because it’s 3-2.

We recap the OGz vs. LAX. The teams have been warring for months now but their bosses have ordered a ceasefire. That ends tonight, with the OGz wanting to show LAX what it really means to fight in the streets.

LAX vs. OGz

Non-title. This is a Concrete Jungle Death Match, meaning all turnbuckle pads are off and the mat itself has been removed, leaving only the boards. It’s also a handicap match to start with King teaming with the OGz but Konnan being laid out. A band plays LAX to the ring and says this is for Konnan. You do know he was awake and talking after being attacked earlier right? LAX starts swinging trashcan lids to start and Hernandez is busted open less than thirty seconds in.

King breaks up a dive and Rock Bottoms Santana onto the wood as the referee tries to keep the boards together. Ortiz is back in with another lid shot but the numbers game takes him down, allowing Homicide to bash his head in with lid shots of his own. Some painted tables are sent in but Santana is sent outside. King dives out onto him but slams face first into the barricade for a bad looking crash.

Rating: C+. It was good, but they’ve done these violent brawls multiple times now. This time around, the OGz even had an advantage for most of the match and were even at best until Konnan came in. Once the old guy who can barely move came in, he beat the trio up almost on his own. There is zero reason for this feud to continue, though I have no idea who is supposed to take the titles from LAX anymore.

We look back at Allie making a deal with James Mitchell to go into the Undead Realm to save Kiera Hogan.

Allie, looking like she’s a Buffy the Vampire Slayer cosplayer (I think we have a theme tonight), walks into a room and shuts herself inside a coffin. The Bray Wyatt freaky images montage comes up and she gets out, with Mitchell waiting on her. Allie can go up to the chapel to find Kiera, but her soul stays here. Carrying a hatchet, Allie is attacked by an undead bridesmaid, who is HACKED TO DEATH, complete with blood splattering up onto Allie’s face. Well this just got a little more serious.

Another bridesmaid attacks and gets hacked (in the neck this time) but Allie finds a third….which is her with black eye shadow and lipstick. Allie walks away and finds the chapel, which has another coffin. Kiera is inside but here’s Su Yung with an ax for another fight. The ax is dropped so Su hits her a few times with a ball bat and knocks her out with the Mandible Claw.

Allie pops back up though and hatchets her in the neck. She runs over and awakens Kiera but can’t open the casket they used to get in the first place. A laughing Mitchell appears and says he never promised them a way out. Su is back and Allie and Kiera are surrounded so here’s the returning Rosemary (Rosemary: “Hi buddy!”) to punch the villains in the face.

They pry the coffin open but here’s Su with energy balls coming out of her hands. Rosemary has lightning coming out of hers, but the Bridesmaids pull her down as Allie and Kiera escape. Back in the real world, Kiera is happy to escape but Allie, sounding like a demon, says that was NOT ok.

So…..yeah this happened. The idea they were going for was fine (though it doesn’t work as well when Yung is losing as often as she’s winning) and it fit the Halloween time period, but having these things on an otherwise serious show (like the one with the Mexican mafia bossing people around) makes it stick out very badly. It’s not even a bad idea, but it doesn’t fit with the rest of the show. Now can we have Allie dressed as Buffy more often?

The next pay per view is Homecoming in Nashville on January 6.

Johnny Impact says maybe Aries would have been on TMZ if he wasn’t such a jerk. This isn’t all about Aries so Impact is going to take away what matters most to him.

We recap the World Title match. Aries has been the dominant champion and Impact is the one who has never won the big one. Impact wants to be the wrestler, but Aries thinks Impact doesn’t take anything seriously. Some of the promos for this have been outstanding, with Aries doing some of the best mic work I’ve ever seen from him.

Impact Wrestling World Title: Johnny Impact vs. Austin Aries

Aries is defending, Taya, Moose (in the King outfit again) and Killer Kross are here and we get Big Match Intros. Johnny goes for a takedown but gets caught in a guillotine choke with Aries grabbing the ropes for some illogical reason. Aries gets taken down by a choke as well and the fans chant 205. Impact changes plans by slugging away and knocks him to the floor with a dive to follow.

Back up and Aries tries to whip him into the barricade but Johnny jumps up with one foot on the barricade and the other on the apron for a moonsault. You know, because he can just do that. They head back in with Aries pounding away and glaring over at Taya. That earns him a rolling slap to the face but Aries knocks him down again and lays on the top rope. Some hard knees in the corner look to set up the Flying Chuck, only to have Aries knock him out to the floor. A springboard corkscrew crossbody gives Impact two but Aries is right back up with a Last Chancery attempt.

That doesn’t work either so Impact hits the Flying Chuck for two more. Impact takes him up top but gets shoved down, setting up a middle rope hurricanrana. The neckbreaker over the middle rope connects but Aries takes way too long going up (out of character for him) and gets caught in a super Spanish Fly.

The Countdown to Impact misses (Does it ever hit?) so they fight to the apron with Aries hitting a Death Valley Driver for a sick crash. Aries’ 450 gets two so it’s time to yell at the ref. A superkick sets up Starship Pain for two as Aries has to grab the rope. The roaring elbow sets up the corner dropkick and the brainbuster to knock Impact silly but he’s still fine enough to get a boot on the ropes.

Taya celebrates so Aries yells at her, allowing Impact to grab a backslide for two. The Last Chancery is broken up and they slug it out until Aries hits a suicide dive to send Taya into the barricade. That’s too far and Impact kicks Aries in the head (with the camera on Moose laughing) and gives him a brainbuster of his own. Starship Pain is good for the pin and the title at 21:00.

Rating: B. The ending was the right call and they beat the heck out of each other, making this a rather strong main event. Now the problem here is the Taya stuff, which while making it feel personal, came off as forced. It was like they didn’t have enough in the story to make it work so they wedged that in there at the last second, almost like Aries’ heel turn against Jeff Hardy in 2012. It worked for the match, but it would have been better as part of the build over a few weeks, not a few days.

Aries is on his feet before Impact and flips off the crowd as he leaves. Hopefully that’s just him being a jerk and not some bad angle about the office going with the wrong guy. Impact helps Taya up and celebrates to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Best Bound For Glory in a few years, though that’s really not a high bar to clear. I know it’s their biggest show of the year, but I don’t remember the last time that Slammiversary didn’t beat it. This show was definitely more good than bad and was worth seeing, though it needed a few more tweaks. One of Impact’s biggest issues has always been creating the big moment on the big stage and this show again failed to deliver in that area. The title change just felt like a thing that happened rather than a changing of the guard and that’s been the case for a long time now.

I liked the show well enough and the wrestling was good, but it still just wasn’t anything great. There was no big blow away match or moment and stuff like Ellsworth and Dreamer made me roll my eyes hard. It felt like a show that needed someone to stop them and say “no, we’re not doing that” when their ideas got a little too far out of hand. That being said, I’ll take a show like this over some of their wretched efforts by a mile.

Results

Willie Mack/Rich Swann b. Ethan Page/Matt Sydal – Phoenix splash to Sydal

Eli Drake b. James Ellsworth – Gravy Train

Tessa Blanchard b. Taya Valkyrie – Magnum

Eddie Edwards b. Moose via DQ when Killer Kross interfered

Tommy Dreamer/Eddie Edwards b. Moose/Killer Kross – Rollup to Moose

OVE b. Brian Cage/Lucha Bros – Cactus Piledriver to Cage

LAX b. OGz – Street Sweeper to Homicide

Johnny Impact b. Austin Aries – Starship Pain

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

I had almost forgotten what these things look like. Impact Wrestling doesn’t put on a lot of pay per view events, but in a way that’s a good thing. They’ve turned the events that they have into something special and nothing they do is bigger than Bound For Glory. It really has turned into their WrestleMania and if they do it right, we could be in for a heck of a show. Let’s get to it.

Allie vs. Su Yung

We’ll start things off with an interesting one here as Allie has made a deal with the devil (James Mitchell, close enough) to go into the world of the dead and rescue Kiera Hogan from Yung’s casket. I have no idea what that is going to mean but it could be anywhere between stupid and a lot of fun. Allie has been a very entertaining character over the last few months while Yung….did I mention Allie was cool?

I’ll take Allie here, as there’s little reason to put much into Yung at the moment. She’s not clicking and they’ve had her lose so many times now that it doesn’t mean anything anymore. Just let Allie win and save her friend so she can go on after the Knockouts Title, which she shouldn’t have dropped to Yung in the first place.

Eddie Edwards vs. Moose

This has been an underrated feud as Edwards has toned down the insanity stuff and turned into someone more aggressive, which is what made the character interesting in the first place. Moose is someone who always seems ready to break through to the next level but I’m not sure they’re willing to pull the trigger. Edwards has had the trigger pulled before and is in good standing, but where do they go this time?

I think they go with Edwards winning, perhaps with Alisha helping him as the Johnny Gargano road to redemption story continues. There’s a reason to go with Moose as well and it wouldn’t shock me if they did, but there comes a point where the company needs a big name on top. I don’t know if Edwards is that person (he’s not the most attention grabbing guy in the world) but he’s someone with the experience and credibility to move up so I’ll say him here.

Matt Sydal/Ethan Page vs. Willie Mack/Rich Swann

Egads I don’t care about Sydal. This isn’t a match that has interested me in the slightest but thank goodness they went with the tag match here as I’d much rather watch the other three than Sydal. Mack and Page are making their debuts (Page is for all intent and purpose) so this is as good as you’re going to get for this match. That’s not exactly high praise but I’ll take what I can get.

I’ll go with Mack and Swann for the win here as you can cancel out the two wrestlers who are debuting here, leaving you with Swann and Sydal. For some reason Impact is loving Sydal, no matter how lame the third eye thing really is. Swann is someone with more than enough charisma to carry himself a long way and a win on a show like this is a good idea.

Eli Drake vs. ???

This is the latest Drake Open Challenge and that might not be Drake’s best idea as the previous versions haven’t gone as well as some others. It’s an idea that you can go with for a little while but you need someone special to pay it off on a big stage like this. So what do you do in a situation like Bound For Glory? Well the catch this time around is that the challenger has to be from New York. And who is from New York you may ask?

Well that would be Chris Jericho and I’ll take the chance and say that he answers the challenge. If that’s the case, it would be a heck of a moment, even if it’s just a one off. The idea of Jericho showing up in Impact Wrestling could be fascinating as it would lend them some credibility, even if Jericho is popping up in so many places anymore. With the Jericho Cruise featuring Impact talents though, it’s hard to imagine that there won’t be some kind of appearance just to promote the thing.

LAX vs. OGz

You could make a real case that this is the main event of the show as it’s been one of the better feuds for a long time now. That being said, the idea of a Concrete Jungle match suggests that it might be one of those overly gimmicky matches that could mess with the flow they have going. Putting Konnan and King in there adds a change of pace though and that’s where things should get better.

I’ll take the OGz here as LAX has won coming up to this point and King’s promos have been more than good enough to warrant the big win here. If the OGz are willing to stick around for a little while, they should get the titles pretty soon (like here, which would have made more sense) and there’s not much of a reason to have LAX win every match in the whole feud. I’ll probably be wrong with this, but the OGz deserve this more, assuming they’re sticking around of course.

Knockouts Title: Tessa Blanchard(c) vs. Taya Valkyrie

This is a situation of Blanchard having no one left to beat other than Allie and some others who aren’t ready to challenge at that level yet. Valkyrie has been a big name in the division for a good while now and she has the abilities to make something out of the whole story. It also makes sense to have her be the next person to face Blanchard after the matches in Mexico.

That being said, there’s no reason to take the title off of Blanchard, who is getting better and better every single day. She’s young, she’s good, and she knows she is, which is a heck of a combination. Hopefully the match is entertaining, because there’s little reason for drama in what we’ll be seeing here. They can hit each other rather hard, but Blanchard should retain and go on to fight a challenger who is around more often.

OVE vs. Lucha Bros/Brian Cage

I’m not sure this match needs to happen in this format as we already have a violent six man tag on the card. That being said, I’d rather Cage be involved in something interesting than a nothing X-Division Title match with five other people and one spot after another. The OVE vs. Lucha Bros feud really needs to end though as it’s been going on for months and has already seem matches that could and should have been the blowoffs.

I’ll take the Lucha Bros and Cage to win, as Callihan can cancel one of them out but the Crist Brothers haven’t been viewed as threats in a long time, especially against people on the level of Cage and Pentagon. The match should be really entertaining as the Crists have figured out the balance between the boring characters and the fast paced matches, making them far more fun to watch than they were before. But yeah, too much star power on the other side.

Impact World Title: Austin Aries(c) vs. Johnny Impact

And then there’s this, which is another match that doesn’t feel like the biggest match of the year. That’s been an issue for the company for a very long time now and while the new regime has fixed a lot, it hasn’t fixed this. Impact just coming out and saying the match was on didn’t help things and while Aries’ awesome promo from last week helped, there’s very little fire to this match.

I’ll take Impact to win the title as there’s no reason to keep it on Aries at the moment. Impact has been the guy who gets close for way too long now and I think they’ll go with the big crowning moment to end the show. With Aries’ goons not being around, there’s the chance that a new goon debuts or some other form of cheating occurs, but the title change is the right move.

Overall Thoughts

This show has had some time to build but it still feels like they’re throwing some of it together at the last minute. Hopefully we get a good night out of them as the potential is certainly there. If everyone is on their game, we could be in for a heck of a show, though there’s always the chance that it could underwhelm. The path is there, as long as they can actually walk it.

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

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

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

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

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

Opening sequence.

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

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

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

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

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

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

Grado vs. Maximo

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Gursinder Singh vs. Rohit Raju

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Tessa Blanchard vs. Keyra

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

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

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

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

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

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

Results

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

Maximo b. Grado – Rollup

Rohit Raju b. Gursinder Singh – Jumping Downward Spiral

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

Tessa Blanchard b. Keyra – Buzzsaw DDT

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 16, 2018
Location: Rebel Sports Complex, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Don Callis

The main event scene took a surprising turn last week with Killer Kross revealing himself to be working for/with Austin Aries. I’m not sure what the point of that is when Kross has been one of the better villains for a few weeks now and really doesn’t need to be affiliated with Aries. You can imagine Eddie Edwards won’t be happy about what went down last week. Let’s get to it.

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

In Memory Of Jim Neidhart.

The opening video looks at the recent goings on around here, including the LAX war, Kross and the Knockouts.

Sami Callihan vs. Fenix

Sami goes straight at him to start so Fenix gets in a dropkick to the floor, followed by the big flip dive. A Swanton gets two back inside but Jake Crist pulls Fenix’s foot. What looked like a half nelson drop on Fenix’s head gets two and a clothesline takes Fenix’s head off. They head outside with Sami’s spit chop setting up a Russian legsweep into the ropes for two.

Sami ties the arms behind the ropes for a hard forearm to the back of the head as the fans think Ohio suck. Some right hands to the head have Fenix in more trouble and we hit the chinlock. Fenix tries to fight up and goes to the top, only to be shoved off onto the ramp. Sami loads up the Cactus Piledriver but Fenix escapes and hits a Lethal Injection of all things. A springboard twisting cutter (freaking sweet) gets two back inside and we take a break.

Back with Fenix winning a slugout but getting powerbombed for two. It’s off to an STF on Fenix, which is switched into a Crossface as Sami channels his inner Samoa Joe. The hold is broken and as usual, Sami spends too long talking trash, allowing Fenix to run the ropes for a super hurricanrana. Fenix gets the better of an exchange of kicks to the head but OVE gets up on the apron. Cue Pentagon Jr. for the save, allowing Fenix to hit his spinning Muscle Buster driver for the pin at 18:27.

Rating: B. Callihan is starting to grow on me and when he’s putting in the effort, he’s more than capable of putting on a good match. I mean, having Fenix out there with you kind of helps a lot given that he’s one of the hottest stars in the world at the moment. Pentagon is that much better though and he’s giving the story another level of credibility. They were rocking out there and that’s a great way to open a show.

The announcers preview the rest of the night.

Video on LAX vs. the OGz, who already fought in a street fight at Slammiversary where LAX won. Now they’re having another street fight, which is different because….I have no idea actually. Still though it should be great.

Fenix is fired up at getting an X-Division Title shot in two weeks. Cage comes in and holds up the title without saying anything.

Classic moment of the week: the insane 32 man brawl from Impact in 2009.

Allie is ready to fight Su Yung tonight and Kiera Hogan has her back. Tonight is for Madison Rayne and Rosemary.

Jimmy Jacobs vs. Johnny Impact

Before the match, Jimmy says that just because he’s a princess, people think he’s soft. Tonight, he’s the monster. Speaking of the monster, Kongo Kong jumps Impact from behind before the bell and the referee is fine with starting the match. Jacobs gets a quick two but Kong comes in for the DQ at 55 seconds.

Post match Jacobs and Kong load up the steps but Impact DDTs Kong on the ramp. Jacobs tries to bail but Impact flips in front of him. With Impact stalking him, Jacobs trips over the steps and Impact (“Eye for an eye Jimmy!”) blasts him in the face with them. Jacobs is out cold.

Josh: “Up next, Austin Aries and Killer Kross will be in the middle of the ring. But next, Scarlett Bordeaux and the Smoke Show debut!”

KM and Fallah Bahh fight over champagne to try and woo Bordeaux. They run into her and the fight continues. She doesn’t like the champagne but asks them to explain their issues. KM yells at Bahh but she suggests KM try things his way. KM doesn’t buy it but teases kissing her, only to have Scarlett tell him to try things her way. That means matching gear apparently and KM leaves. Bahh says his name and gets slapped, with Scarlett saying that’s disgusting.

I’m not sure on this idea. They’re not hiding what they’re going for with Scarlett and she plays the character well, but I’m not sure what kind of a shelf life this is going to have. She would be great as a manager but just having talking segments in the back like this isn’t going to work for very long. If I just have to have Bordeaux on my screen every week though, so be it.

Here’s Aries to explain last week. It’s a great day to be great but a lot of people have been asking him what’s up with Killer Kross. Well Kross, who Aries refers to as his new insurance policy, can speak for himself so here he is, now in a suit. Kross comes out and says he and Aries see things the same and are both here to change everything. You can like it or not, but the change is being shoved down your throat.

Aries talks about getting rid of Anthony Carelli, who showed how important it is to surround yourself with the right people. That’s why Aries picked the best man possible to have his back. Aries calls out Eddie Edwards for not handling his stick as well as his wife would like, which is why she left him. Cue Eddie so Aries lies across the top rope as Kross isn’t phased by stick shots. A shot to the knee slows him down though and a cutter puts him down. Eddie takes way too long going after Aries though, allowing Kross to get up and choke him out.

During the break, Eddie freaked out about what just happened when his wife Alisha came in to check on him, even though they’re still not good. Eddie yells about everyone thinking he’s crazy.

Eli Drake vs. Joe Hendry

Drake has the Cult of Lee with him and Hendry has Grado/Katarina. Hendry also has a new video, showing him wearing a Drake mask and singing about how Drake is joining the Cult to get his revenge. As usual, the song is hilarious and well done as Hendry has a rather unique set of skills. Hendry wristlocks him down to start but Drake flips out and points at the crowd a lot.

A shoulder puts Drake down but he’s right back with the jumping neckbreaker and right hands to the head. Hendry starts his comeback with clotheslines and a DDT as Grado takes care of Caleb Konley. Unfortunately Grado doesn’t know when to get off the apron and Drake shoves Hendry into him, setting up the rollup pin at 4:25.

Rating: D. Hendry isn’t anything great in the ring, but those videos and songs are going to carry him for as long and far as he wants to go. It’s a special talent and that’s almost a guaranteed job, especially when you throw in a good look. The Grado story seems to be progressing, which is at least a step in the right direction. I still don’t get his appeal (at least not in the US) and the faster he’s gone, the better.

Post match Katarina seems to have nearly had it with Grado.

Matt Sydal meditates on his recent losses until his eyes pop open, seemingly having figured something out. Good for you.

Callihan wants a Mexican Death Match with Pentagon to finish this once and for all.

Su Yung vs. Allie

Non-title with the Undead Bridesmaids and Kiera Hogan at ringside. Yung jumps her to start but Allie slugs right back and sends her throat first into the ropes. For some reason Allie heads outside and gets distracted by the Bridesmaids. Yung takes off the dress and hits a dive onto Allie but gets headbutted in the chest. Allie screams a lot until Yung palm strikes her down. A missed charge sends Yung into the buckle and a dropkick to the back makes it worse. Kiera dives onto the Bridesmaids and the Panic Switch is countered into the Backstabber. Cue Tessa Blanchard to jump Allie for the DQ at 5:36.

Rating: C-. This was more about the big circus of interference but it never became too much to handle. There’s a good chance this sets up a triple threat title match in the near future and that’s what makes sense storyline wise at the moment. They’ve put together a story here where all three are involved instead of having a champion and two challengers. That’s a rare thing and they’ve done it well.

Post match Tessa loads up the hammerlock DDT but gets the Mandible Claw from Yung. Allie superkicks Yung and stands tall.

LAX and the OGz meet in the actual streets (or maybe a parking lot) with a bunch of people behind both teams. Konnan and King agree that just the wrestlers themselves fight and the OGz lay the belts down. Since this isn’t an actual match, I’m assuming the belts aren’t on the line. Hernandez gets sent into a fence and beaten with a plastic sign by Ortiz but King sends one of the unnamed goons in with a fork.

Homicide and Santana fight with the fork but Santana gets out of a Gringo Killer on the concrete. Ortiz breaks a broom over Hernandez’s back and Santana hits Homicide with something King accidentally throws him. Hernandez comes back in with what might have been a bottle and Border Tosses Santana onto the pile of people.

King throws in a rope to hang Ortiz but Santana is back in with some kind of club and LAX takes their belts back. With the OGz down, King gets in Konnan’s face and shouts that he’s leading LAX down the wrong path. He yells about Konnan doing something to him fifteen years ago and begs Konnan to knock him out. Konnan swears and does exactly what King requests to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. Good show here, though I’m still not sure about Kross being Aries’ muscle. The shows and angle are still working for the most part and I’m liking what we’re getting. There hasn’t been a show that has been a chore to sit through in a long time and for Impact, that’s a minor miracle. Another perfectly watchable show and that’s becoming the norm, which is taking some getting used to.

Results

Fenix b. Sami Callihan – Spinning Muscle Buster driver

Johnny Impact b. Jimmy Jacobs via DQ when Kongo Kong interfered

Eli Drake b. Joe Hendry – Rollup

Allie b. Su Yung via DQ when Tessa Blanchard interfered

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

http://kbwrestlingreviews.com/2018/07/23/new-book-kbs-complete-2003-monday-night-raw-reviews/

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

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