Impact Wrestling
Date: June 22, 2023
Location: Ohio Expo Center, Columbus, Ohio
Commentators: Matthew Rehwoldt, Tom Hannifan

Things took a turn last week when #1 contender Nick Aldis laid out World Champion Alex Shelley. This adds quite the wrinkle to their upcoming Slammiversary title match and I’m curious to see how all of that goes. Other than that, Scott D’Amore is ready to get his hands on Bully Ray next month. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

OVE vs. Good Hands/Brian Myers

Before the match, Skyler says OVE stands for Ohio vs. Everything. Well he’ll take everything from tooth decay to an IRS audit over Ohio. Crist kicks Skyler down to start and hands it off to Callihan for a double spinebuster. Fulton comes in for a double chokeslam/World’s Strongest Slam combination (that was cool) to take the villains down.

A Myers distraction takes Crist down though and the Good Hands drop a double elbow for two. Myers comes in with a suplex for one and we hit the chinlock. Crist fights up so Skyler comes back in for a slam to cut it off again. A forearm finally gives Crist a breather and he nips up for the tag off to Callihan. Cue Moose to crotch Crist on top so Callihan and Fulton go after him. The distraction lets Myers hit the Roster Cut for the pin at 5:40.

Rating: C+. Rather formula based match here and the ending helps establish Moose and Myers as a team who could be something down the line. OVE feels almost like a blast from the past but they’re good enough for a spot like this. As long as they’re away from the Design, it’s kind of hard to complain that much.

Eddie Edwards comes up to talk to Frankie Kazarian and says Frankie can trust him tonight in their tag match. Kazarian doesn’t quite buy that so Eddie asks what he has to do. Eddie doesn’t need to worry about it but he swears on the grave of Killer Kowalski that he won’t do anything to Kazarian. That’s enough for Frankie, but he doesn’t seem completely convinced.

Sami Callihan is livid when Rich Swann comes up to him in the back. Callihan wants to know where Swann was and Swann says he was busy at Against All Odds. From now on, Swann has his back as his top priority. Callihan approves.

Here is Dirty Dango for a chat. Dango: “Man do I hate professional wrestling.” And that’s it before his match.

Dirty Dango vs. Bhupinder Gujjar

Dango shoulders him over to start and dances a bit, allowing Gujjar to come back up with a shoulder. Some dropkicks put Dango on the floor for a slingshot dive but the Gargoyle spear misses back inside. Dango hits a layout reverse DDT for the pin at 2:00.

Post match Dango grabs a phone and says something we can’t hear. Cue Santino Marella, with Gujjar sending Dango inside for the Cobra.

The Death Dollz run into the returning Nevaeh and aren’t sure if they should trust her. They don’t have much of a choice though, and it’s time to learn the parts of the story they don’t know. Courtney Rush loves an origin story….so the Dollz runs off without her.

Zicky Dice passes his test to become an official referee. The referee giving him his test treats it as a serious deal but Johnny Swinger gets rid of him. Swinger flat out says this is so he can cheat to get his fifty wins.

Mike Bailey/Jonathan Gresham vs. The Design

Gresham comes in off a very early blind tag to dropkick Angels in the back, allowing Bailey to kick him in the face. Kon comes in to wreck both of them though and Angels adds a half and half suplex. We take a break and come back with Gresham getting away to bring Bailey back in for the kicks to Kon. The bouncing kicks set up the kick to the head and a missile dropkick puts Kon down instead.

Kon is fine enough to muscle Bailey up from the mat for a slam though and the Design takes right back over. That doesn’t last long as Gresham comes in for the save, allowing Bailey to armbreaker Angels. With that broken up, Bailey moonsaults onto Kon on the floor. Back in and Bailey gets caught in a super Spanish Fly, but Deaner stops to yell at Angels. The distraction causes Angels to miss his frog splash, allowing Bailey to hit the tornado kick. The Ultimate Weapon finishes Angels at 9:28.

Rating: C+. This match did one important thing and that is getting us closer to the destruction of the Design. The team has LONG outlived its usefulness (which wasn’t much in the first place) and now they finally seem to be going away. Gresham and Bailey were good enough as a team, but I don’t need them becoming the next dream team to go after the titles.

Flashback Moment Of The Week: Magnus (Nick Aldis) beats Jeff Hardy in the Dixieland match to win the World Title on December 18, 2013.

Gisele Shaw and Gail Kim are going to be on the Amazing Race: Canada. We don’t have any clips or anything similar to hype it up, but it’s true.

Trinity isn’t happy with Gisele Shaw getting a Knockouts Title shot on the upcoming Australian tour but she’s fine with the Slammiversary match being a triple threat if it has to be. For now though, she’ll beat up Jai Vidal next week instead.

Nick Aldis has sent in a statement saying he won’t be here tonight due to fear of his own safety. Alex Shelley comes in and doesn’t buy it, saying he wants Aldis here. Aldis will be here next week so Shelley leaves, only to come back with a superkick when interviewer Jimmy Jacobs runs his mouth too much.

Taylor Wilde vs. Killer Kelly

Feeling out process to start and Kelly seems pleased with the thought of violence. A shot to the throat and a pump kick give Kelly two and a running kick to the chest drops Wilde again. King low bridges Kelly to the floor though and Wilde gets to kick away back inside. The surfboard goes on but is broken up just as fast, allowing Kelly to suplex her into the corner. They fight over a rollup for two each until Kelly pulls her into the Killer Klutch. That’s broken up as well so Kelly grabs a rollup for the pin at 5:08.

Rating: C. Nice back and forth match with Kelly getting a win for a change. I could go for her getting a stronger push as she has felt like someone who could go a lot higher rather quickly. For now at least she is getting a win and if she can find a partner, we could have some fresh challengers for the Knockouts Tag Team Titles. They certainly could use some new challengers so that’s certainly an idea.

Post match the beatdown is on but Masha Slamovich comes in to save Kelly. The villains bail and Kelly seems to approve.

We recap Scott D’Amore attacking Bully Ray last week, setting up the tag match with PCO and Steve Maclin at Slammiversary.

D’Amore says he is no longer the president so he takes off the fancy stuff before saying he isn’t what he once was. His prime, if he had one, wasn’t as good as Ray or Maclin, but he coached a lot of people over the years and is a five time Canadian Heavyweight Champion. He’ll break any rule or cross any line, and since he brought Ray into this company, it’s time he took him out. The sleeves are rolled up and now he’s ready for war. Good promo here, as D’Amore sounds like a man who has to do something.

Here is Joe Hendry to say….extraterrestrials have made contact with Earth. It makes sense to do it now because he is Digital Media Champion. Those aliens are trying to say the two most important words: WE BELIEVE.

Digital Media Title: Joe Hendry vs. Yuya Uemura

Hendry is defending and here are Kenny King and Sheldon Jean to interrupt. The former sits in on commentary as Hendry works on a headlock. Some armdrags have Hendry down, causing him to bow in respect. We take a break and come back with the camera on King before looking at Uemura fighting out of a chinlock. A belly to back suplex gives Uemura two but Hendry is back up to strike it out. Hendry rolls through a high crossbody and it’s the Standing Ovation to retain the title at 9:07.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to get very far as the break and then the camera sitting on King didn’t do it any favors. King vs. Hendry is fine for a likely title feud and it wouldn’t shock me to see King get the title. At some point he has to win something new and the Digital Media Title would work well. As for Uemura, he continues to be a completely fine hand in the ring, though he needs to actually win a few matches at some point before the impact fades.

Slammiversary and Australian shows rundown.

Bully Ray/Steve Maclin vs. Frankie Kazarian/Eddie Edwards

Alisha Edwards is here with Kazarian/Eddie. Maclin and Eddie start things off with Maclin dropping him off a running elbow. Eddie is fine enough to pull him over for a slingshot legdrop from Kazarian. Maclin sends him into the corner where Ray crotches Kazarian against the post and we take a break.

Back with Kazarian being knocked into the corner again as the slow being is on. A suplex gives Maclin two and we hit the reverse chinlock. With that broken up, Eddie comes back in to chop away and a double suplex drops Ray. Eddie’s suicide dive hits Ray and Kazarian’s slingshot hurricanrana takes Maclin down on the floor. Back in and Maclin knocks Eddie to the floor where Ray grabs a chair. Instead Ray chases Alisha off and it’s Maclin chinlocking Eddie again.

An Irish Curse gives Maclin two and Ray comes back in to punch him down. Eddie gets up and crossbodies Maclin for a double knockdown. The tag brings in Kazarian to pick up the pace as everything breaks down. Kazarian drops Maclin for two as Eddie and Ray come in (sans tags) to rake each others’ eyes. Ray shoves Eddie into Kazarian, who is right back with the chickenwing. Eddie is back up and accidentally superkicks Kazarian, allowing Maclin and Ray to hit a belly to back neckbreaker for the pin at 15:31.

Rating: B-. Nice enough main event here, and I kind of like having the teams who don’t like each other not being able to win their first match against each a team of former World Champions. Eddie vs. Kazarian should be a fun match at Slammiversary assuming that is the way they go. Other than that, we had a back and forth match with the action doing well, though it never quite got to that next level.

The winners are happy and the losers aren’t to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. The main event helped but this show wasn’t quite up to the standards of the usual stuff they do around here. Slammiversary is about three weeks away and you can see a lot of the card from here, though that doesn’t make it the most interesting. The lack of Aldis after last week’s big turn didn’t help either and it wasn’t the most interesting offering as a result. It’s not bad, but more of a skippable show than usual this week.

Results
Brian Myers/Good Hands b. OVE – Roster Cut to Crist
Dirty Dango b. Bhupinder Gujjar – Layout reverse DDT
Jonathan Gresham/Mike Bailey b. The Design – Ultimate Weapon to Angels
Killer Kelly b. Taylor Wilde – Rollup
Joe Hendry b. Yuya Uemura – Standing Ovation
Bully Ray/Steve Maclin b. Frankie Kazarian/Eddie Edwards – Belly to back neckbreaker to Kazarian

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Impact Wrestling
Date: April 8, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

It’s the first show on a new night as Impact is back on Thursdays. As a result it is time for a stacked card, including the first ever Kenny Omega match around here. Throw in the fact that we are less than three weeks away from Rebellion and it is time to start setting up the card. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Jordynne Grace/Havok/Rosemary vs. Tenille Dashwood/Nevaeh/Alisha Edwards

There are all kinds of people at ringside. Grace drives Alisha into the corner to start but she is right back with a quick Downward Spiral for two. A Jackhammer gets two on Alisha and it’s off to Rosemary to scary Dashwood out to the floor. The chase lets Havok knock Dashwood down but Kaleb With A K gets her off the table. Grace hits a big dive onto Kaleb but gets taken into the corner for some rapid fire stomping.

Dashwood charges into some boots though and Grace rolls over for the tag off to Rosemary. House is cleaned in a hurry and Rosemary catches Alisha in the Upside Down. Alisha is back up as everything breaks down again. Nevaeh Russian legsweeps Havok off the apron and through the table at ringside, leaving Rosemary to hit the Red Wedding to finish Alisha at 7:49.

Rating: C-. As usual, there is only so much you can do when you have this many people involved in a match, especially including everyone on the floor. The match wasn’t bad by any means, but it is just a preview of the Hardcore Justice match. Thankfully they didn’t stay out there too long, as I’ve rarely gotten the idea behind seeing people wrestle on one show to get to see them wrestle on another show later in the week.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Matt Cardona wants Brian Myers but tonight he’ll settle for Jake Something.

Coming soon: Let’s Get WILDE.

Susan seems to have some Su Yung flashbacks.

Matt Cardona vs. Jake Something

Cardona’s headlock doesn’t last long so Jake powers him out to the floor for a running shoulder. A basement dropkick puts Jake outside again but he’s right back in to run through Cardona without much trouble. Cardona flips out of a suplex and grabs a neckbreaker for a breather and hits a quick faceplant to rock him again. Radio Silence is countered into a sitout powerbomb for two and they crash out to the floor over the top. Cue Brian Myers to jump both of them at the same time for the DQ at 4:59.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to get very far but it was nice to see Cardona being treated as someone who is just being himself instead of some former WWE star. He is starting to fit in around here and that is a great thing for a change. Hopefully we are getting something better with the Myers feud though, because it isn’t exactly thrilling stuff so far. Jake continues to just be there, probably because his last name is Something.

Post match Myers hits Cardona in the face with the steps, possibly taking out Cardona’s eye. Sure he’ll fight Cardona at Hardcore Justice.

XXXL laughs at Trey Miguel but he isn’t teaming with Sami Callihan. More insulting seems to make Miguel think about it though.

Eric Young blames Deaner for last week’s loss but worry not, because Deaner can make up for it tonight.

XXXL vs. Sami Callihan/Trey Miguel

Well in theory at least because there is no Miguel. Actually scratch that as yes there is, and he charges into the ring to go after both monsters on his own. Trey sends them to the floor and loads up a dive but Sami tags himself in and we take a break. Back with Acey planting Trey with a side slam. XXXL picks Trey up and drops him down for a crash but Sami comes in for the save. Trey tags himself back in and they glare at each other, setting up the stereo dives. Back in and Trey grabs the Hourglass to make Larry tap at 7:47.

Rating: D+. Yeah we’re going with this story again because it is something that just cannot go away forever. I’m not sure why people find this interesting, but for some reason the tag partners who hate each other keeps coming up over and over. Now it’s Sami and Trey, because there was nothing else that could be done with them and this is as good as we can get because reasons. Nothing match of course, because this is all about the tired idea that we’ve forever, because of course it is.

Chris Harris and James Storm have a good time at Swinger’s Palace.

Chris Sabin vs. Deaner

Sabin starts fast with some rollups for two each before working on the arm. Deaner gets more serious by choking away in the corner but Sabin is back with a dragon screw legwhip. A running boot in the corner sets up a fisherman’s driver for two. Deaner’s rollup gets two as Sabin’s foot is underneath the rope so he sends Sabin into the corner instead. A pull out into a sitout powerbomb gets two but Deaner’s rollup with feet on the ropes only gets two. Sabin is right back with the Cradle Shock for the pin at 5:35.

Rating: C-. Another match which was designed to continue the story of one of the weaker stables going on at the moment. I’m still not getting into Violent By Design and Young’s brainwashing of a guy who was a redneck pest about three months ago. Sabin is still good for almost anything though and it is nice to see him back in the ring on his own for a change.

Post match Eric Young pops up on screen and Chris Harris has been attacked. Rhino comes in and Gores Sabin as Young shouts again like he does every single week.

Josh Alexander tells Ace Austin about a triple threat match for the X-Division Title. TJP comes in and is rather happy about it as well but here’s Tommy Dreamer to make a hardcore triple threat tag match for Hardcore Justice with TJP, Austin and Alexander getting to pick a partner.

Post break, Eric Young comes up to Tommy Dreamer and doesn’t like him being in charge at Hardcore Justice. Dreamer says he’ll get some friends and fight Violent By Design at Hardcore Justice too.

Video on Jazz’s career and how she went everywhere in the industry.

Deonna Purrazzo is ready for Jazz, because she is ready to take over the foundation that Jazz has built. She is even willing to face Jazz on her own.

Tommy Dreamer catches up with Brian Myers and makes it Myers vs. Cardona a hardcore blindfold match.

Here’s what’s coming at Hardcore Justice.

Willie Mack/Rich Swann/Eddie Edwards vs. Kenny Omega/Good Brothers

Don Callis handles Omega’s entrance. It’s a brawl to start with Swann and Omega being left alone. Omega tries a dive to the floor but takes out the Good Brothers by mistake. Swann and company hit their own dives and we take a break. Back with Anderson getting triple teamed, including a flipping legdrop to the back of the neck getting two. Gallows comes in to drive Edwards into the corner as Striker thinks the Good Brothers are bad role models.

Omega drives Edwards’ face into the mat and it’s back to Gallows for a chinlock. This lets Striker talk about how great Omega is and saying if you don’t like him, there is more than enough wrestling around. So yeah, if you don’t like what you’re seeing here, change the channel. Edwards gets up and brings in Mack to clean house The standing moonsault hits Anderson and Omega at the same time but Gallows takes him down and hammers away.

We take another break and come back again with Omega dropping an elbow on Mack before handing it off to Anderson, who misses a charge. Striker talks about how obnoxious it gets to have Omega and the Brothers praising Japan all the time. Yeah imagine a wrestler trying to sound smarter and cooler than everyone else. And imagine them getting to do commentary for two hours a week.

A chinlock keeps Mack in trouble but Omega falls down on a slam attempt. Mack hits a double clothesline to Anderson and Omega, allowing the hot tag to Swann. A double bulldog gets two on Omega and everything breaks down. Omega drops Edwards and it’s time for the parade of people hitting each other in the face. The V Trigger drops Mack and a triple splash (with Striker pointing out that they did it in Japan) gets two on Edwards with Swann making the save.

The tag brings in Swann and for the slugout with Omega, who tries the quick One Winged Angel. Swann escapes, with Striker saying that means Swann can escape the One Winged Angel. Swann’s 450 gets two and Callis has to break up the pin. No matter as the Boston Knee Party to Anderson sets up the Phoenix splash for the pin at 22:26.

Rating: B-. It was an entertaining enough match and they did a nice job of making Swann seem like a bit more of a threat to Omega. Now granted this might have raised his chances of winning from zero percent up to about a third of a single percent because Omega is absolutely walking out with another title, but at least they tried. The other people were just kind of there, but Edwards vs. Omega could be interesting.

Overall Rating: C. This is one of the better Impacts in a bit, mainly because they were doing a rapid fire build towards Hardcore Justice and couldn’t waste a bunch of time. I’m still not wild on a lot of the things that they are doing at the moment, but at least they have something to do and that is more than you can say about them for the last few….well months probably.

Results

Rosemary/Jordynne Grace/Havok b. Tenille Dashwood/Nevaeh/Alisha Edwards – Red Wedding to Edwards

Matt Cardona vs. Jake Something went to a double DQ when Brian Myers interfered

Trey Miguel/Sami Callihan b. XXXL – Hourglass to Larry D.

Chris Sabin b. Deaner – Cradle Shock

Rich Swann/Willie Mack/Eddie Edwards b. Kenny Omega/Good Brothers – Phoenix splash to Anderson

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: March 30, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Matt Striker

We’re coming up on Hardcore Justice and that means a lot more Tommy Dreamer. It fits a bit better this time around but that doesn’t exactly make things all the more interesting. I’m not entirely sure what we are going to get for the show, but until then we are in for a lot more Kenny Omega as the harvesting of Impact continues. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Havok/Nevaeh vs. Fire N Flava

Non-title and Havok/Nevaeh seem to be fine after some recent issues. Kiera talks a lot of trash to Havok to start and is launched across the ring. A backbreaker gets two on Kiera and it’s off to Nevaeh. That means a trip into the corner so Nevaeh can hit a Hennig necksnap for two.

Havok comes back in and gets sent into the corner, setting up a running boot to the face. The chinlock doesn’t last long so Kiera goes up, only to be pulled out of the air for a slam. The hot tag brings in Nevaeh as everything breaks down. Havok’s sitout powerbomb (where she didn’t get Kiera that far up) gets two but Tasha is back with a cutter. A frog splash finishes Havok at 7:18.

Rating: C-. This is another match we’ve seen over and over again so any of the impact that it could have is long gone. There are only so many times you can do this and we reached that point a good while ago. The women’s tag division has such little depth that there is pretty much one team to go after the titles. Now that they have lost over and over, I’m not sure what is left for the belts.

Post match Nevaeh turns on Havok and beats her down to end the team.

James Storm is ready for his 1000^th match in Impact tonight. Storm talks about how Bob Ryder kept saying Storm and Chris Harris had something special and made sure they were on TV. Tonight Storm is ready for Eric Young and has some friends. Chris Sabin comes in and he has a surprise: Harris is here too, and it’s time for a nice reunion.

Deonna Purrazzo and Susan hate Jazz did to Kimber Lee and swear revenge. Jazz runs in to beat them both down.

Sami Callihan vs. Larry D

Acey Romero is here with Larry. Sami goes straight at him to start and knocks Larry out to the floor. A dive is cut off and Sami is sent into the apron so we can take a break. Back with Larry knocking Sami outside again and sending him into the post. They go back inside with Larry hitting a hard clothesline, causing Striker to ask “is there a cover in Larry D?”, because Striker has to make everything sound weird.

Sami gets up and catches Larry on top, meaning it’s a Death Valley Driver for two. They head to the apron where Larry blocks a piledriver so Sami slips back inside to rake the eyes with a bit of fiendish gleaming. Sami hits MJF’s Heatseeker (a jumping hanging piledriver) for the pin at 8:44.

Rating: C-. There is only so much someone of Sami’s average size can do against a monster like Larry and that was on display here. They did their thing about as well as could be expected here and the big story is probably coming after the match because there wasn’t much in the match itself.

Post match XXXL beats Sami down but Trey Miguel doesn’t make the save. Sami seems pleased, as this story must continue.

Video on FinJuice taking the Tag Team Titles to New Japan.

Kenny Omega, Don Callis and the Good Brothers are not happy with FinJuice. They’re about to watch the One Winged Angel video again, but Omega and Callis have an idea for the Brothers.

Sami Callihan talks to Trey Miguel about pushing him to his limit. Trey needs to use his anger to put himself on a new level. Sami claims credit for Trey’s success and wants them to team up against XXXL next week. That’s a no, but Sami says think about it work a week.

Brian Myers vs. Suicide

Suicide grabs the arm to start and we’re in a quickly broken Octopus. Myers slips out and hits him in the throat, followed by a Falcon Arrow for two. A Rock Bottom sets up the Roster Cut to finish Suicide at 2:53.

Post match Myers talks about Matt Cardona’s challenge to a match, which isn’t going to happen because this is Myers’ place, not Cardona’s.

Jazz comes up to Tommy Dreamer and wants to face Deonna Purrazzo. Dreamer brings up ECW’s Ultimate Jeopardy match, which we can bring back with a title vs. career match at Hardcore Justice. Works for Jazz.

Tony Schiavone and Tony Khan preview this week’s edition of AEW Dynamite. Khan rants about how annoying Kenny Omega is but makes sure to hype up his six man tag this week. This sends Khan sailing into a rant about how he is the professional wrestling world and the Forbidden Door. With the insanity still rolling, Khan talks about some more of the card, with Schiavone wrapping it up.

We go to Swinger’s Palace, where Johnny Swinger won’t let John E. Bravo use the restroom. Don Callis and Kenny Omega come in to ask about some action on Omega vs. Rich Swann. They even show the One Winged Angel video, which is enough to sway the odds. Callis puts down a $20,000 bet on Omega.

TJP/Josh Alexander vs. Madman Fulton/Ace Austin

Alexander and TJP argue over who gets to start with Fulton, who eventually throws Alexander around to get going. Austin comes in for all of a few seconds before Fulton comes in so Alexander can grab a headlock. That’s broken up so Alexander hits a top rope shoulder to drop the monster again. It’s back to Austin, with Alexander taking him down in a hurry. Everything breaks down just as fast with Alexander getting mad at TJP for helping him. That’s fine with TJP, who tags himself in and gets taken down into Austin’s chinlock.

Fulton adds a middle rope choke and we hit the chinlock again. TJP breaks that up in a hurry and we hear more of Striker’s nonsense designed to sound smart. The hot tag brings in Alexander to clean house as everything breaks down again. Alexander seems to take a shot to the eye though and splashes TJP in the corner by mistake. Austin kicks Alexander in the face for two but he’s right back with a Regal Roll. TJP tags himself in again and hits the Mamba Splash but they fight over the cover. During the confusion, TJP gets rolled up for the pin at 9:12.

Rating: C. So to recap, in a match after we tease tag team partners who don’t get along, we get tag team partners who don’t get along. Alexander vs. TJP should be a good one, but seeing them go this route to get there takes a lot of the fun out of whatever they are going to do. It’s such a tired plot device but we keep seeing it over and over, even twice on a show in this case.

Don Callis comes up to Willie Mack and talks about bringing Mack into the company. He shows Mack the One Winged Angel video but Rich Swann comes in. Callis: “Kenny loves your finishing move and can’t wait to kick out of it.” Swann talks about his heart and says he would slap Callis’ glasses off if Callis wasn’t his boss. That’s fine with Callis, who isn’t his boss for the next ten minutes. Cue Kenny Omega and the Good Brothers for the beatdown but Eddie Edwards and Mack make the save to clear the room.

Coming soon: something that doesn’t have all of the letters in its name.

Rohit Raju comes up to Hernandez and suggests the team name Indian Latin Xchange. Hernandez just cares about money and tells Raju to go get some.

Violent By Design is ready to beat James Storm in his 1000^th match tonight. They have all been cleansed by the violent water of change.

Tommy Dreamer has a talent meeting for Hardcore Justice. Deonna Purrazzo is ready for Jazz and leaves, but Dreamer talks to Susan about Su. She has no idea what he means and Purrazzo pulls Susan out. Dreamer announces a multi-woman Knockouts scramble where anything goes for a title shot at Rebellion. Some of the women are more pleased than others.

Here’s what’s coming next week and at Hardcore Justice.

Eric Young vs. James Storm

This is Storm’s 1000^th Impact match and Violent By Design, Chris Harris, Jake Something and Chris Sabin are all here. Feeling out process to start as Striker says Storm is the best tag team wrestler in Impact history. Striker: “There. I said it!” Who else would it possibly be? The guy has more reigns (15) and more days (over 1,600) as champion (between NWA/Impact) than anyone so that’s not much of a bold declaration there. Storm hammers away and elbows him into the ropes but Young knocks him outside.

We take a break and come back with Young getting two as Storm has to grab the rope. Young chokes on the rope as Striker lists off the names on the ringside, again showing how bad Something is as a wrestling name. Storm fights up with some shots to the face and a running neckbreaker for two as they’re both down.

Eye of the Storm and the Last Call are broken up but the second Eye of the Storm works just fine. Young is back with his own neckbreaker into a top rope elbow for two more. A superkick gives Young two and Storm is sent outside, meaning it’s time to start the big brawl. Young goes after Chris Harris, who knocks him silly with a left hand. Back in and the Last Call (which commentary says means Closing Time, which is Storm’s Codebreaker) gives Storm the pin at 13:58.

Rating: C. This is the definition of a fun match for a feel good moment and that is what we got. Storm winning with his old partner’s help was a fine way to go and it helps to have Young get kicked in the face every time. Now unfortunately there is some bad news, as Young tore his ACL in there somewhere and, aside from some previously taped matches, this is going to be it for Young for probably the rest of the year.

Overall Rating: C-. The main event helped a lot here so there is only so much that you can complain about here. At the end of the day, this was all about a one off celebration of James Storm and hyping up Omega and pals getting in the ring next week. Oh and tag partners who hate each other, but the less I have to think about that, the better. Not much of a show, but the main point worked out well enough.

Results

Fire N Flava b. Havok/Nevaeh – Frog splash to Havok

Sami Callihan b. Larry D. – Hanging jumping piledriver

Brian Myers b. Suicide – Roster Cut

Ace Austin/Madman Fulton b. TJP/Josh Alexander – Rollup to TJP

James Storm b. Eric Young – Last Call

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: March 16, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Matt Striker

We’re done with Sacrifice and that means it is time to start getting ready for the next major pay per view with Rebellion. Rich Swann is now the sole World Champion and gets to move on to face Kenny Omega at the pay per view. By face I mean be sacrificed to, as AEW begins its march to taking over every other promotion not named WWE because….I’m not sure why that’s what we’re doing but it seems likely. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

FinJuice vs. XXXL

Non-title as FinJuice won the Tag Team Titles at Sacrifice. Larry D. drives Robinson into the corner with the straight power but Robinson is back with a dropkick. Finlay comes in off the top with an elbow to the arm but Acey Romero shrugs off a double bulldog attempt. A running crossbody to Robinson’s back crushes him again but everything breaks down in a hurry. Acey gets double dropkicked out to the floor and the Acid Drop finishes Larry at 3:32.

Rating: C-. That’s all this should have been as the new champs shouldn’t have a problem against a team like XXXL. FinJuice works well together and that kind of chemistry is always going to work. It was fun to see them pick apart the monsters because that is something that can be done for quite a while without losing its appeal.

Post match here are the Good Brothers with Anderson blaming Gallows for the loss. Gallows: “You got pinned.” Anderson: “Beside the point.” They have been busy lately so the loss really wasn’t fair. The champs are willing to give them a rematch, but they’ll have to wait until a Japan trip is over. Ok young boys (Japan reference!)? The brawl is on and FinJuice bail in a hurry.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Sami Callihan is here to expose Trey Miguel’s lack of passion. Miguel thinks anger is the same thing as passion and it was on display last week when he beat up his student Sam Beale. Tonight, Sami is going to embarrass Miguel over his lack of passion.

The Good Brothers complain about FinJuice taking the titles back to Japan without them but Scott D’Amore gives them their rematch at Rebellion.

The Good Brothers leave and Tommy Dreamer comes in to say that not having Tag Team Titles is a problem. D’Amore goes on a rant about how we can’t just team up with Paul E. and run a company into the ground. Hardcore Justice is next month so Dreamer can book it himself. Dreamer has actually already done that so D’Amore says Dreamer is in charge that night. Great, but at least it makes a bit of sense this time. I’m going to hope that Hardcore Justice is a requirement because having that show the same month as Rebellion seems a bit nuts.

Rhino vs. Jake Something

Violent By Design, Chris Sabin and James Storm are all here too. They slug it out to start with Rhino getting the better of things and slamming Jake down by the hair. The people on the floor get in a brawl and Rhino uses the distraction to hit the Gore for the pin at 2:08.

Post match Violent By Design beats Something/Storm/Sabin down.

Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb With A K fire up their team for a 12 woman Knockouts match later. Most of the rest of the team thinks they should be in charge instead and a lot of bickering ensues.

Rohit Raju vs. Mahabali Shera

Raju knocks him into the corner to start and hammers away, only to get rocked by straight power. A shot to the leg takes Shera down and Raju rakes the eyes before starting in on the arm. That just makes Shera mad but he gets kicked in the face. A jumping knee to the head sets up a Cannonball in the corner but Shera is right back with a chokebreaker. Shera misses a charge into the post though and Raju grabs a rollup with feet on the ropes for the pin at 4:05.

Rating: D+. I’m sorry what now? Impact has been building Shera up as this unstoppable monster for weeks now and then he loses to Raju in four minutes? After being beaten down for most of the match? I have no idea what they were going for here but I was much more confused than anything else. Raju has come a LONG way in the last few months, but what was the point in having him almost squash Shera?

Willie Mack comes up to Rich Swann and congratulates him for his win. They need to celebrate this but Swann has something to do first.

Here’s Rich Swann for a chat, carrying both belts. He can’t hold these titles up because the gold is weighing him down. Last Saturday, he and Moose worked hard and Swann was the one on the higher horse. Now he is a double World Champion and that is unthinkable. Swann has partied every day since then but now he has to get serious about the monkey on his back that is Kenny Omega. Now it all comes back around on April 24 as he gets a chance to make up for January. It’s one on one at Rebellion and we will see who the real World Champion really is.

Cue Don Callis to hug Swann and say something to him that we can’t hear. Callis talks about how much he loves history and wants Swann to stop him if he says anything untrue. He has been a Swann guy for a long time now and has fought for him for years. Callis was the one wanted him to have a chance and made sure he was paid every two weeks while he was recovering from a broken leg. Swann nods to acknowledge that this is all true, including that Callis fought for him to get into the Bound For Glory main event.

Swann was the shiny toy but now Callis has moved on to someone else in Kenny Omega. Sure Swann had a great moment at Sacrifice, but maybe he can’t stop thinking about that One Winged Angel at Hard To Kill. Swann is a once in a decade talent, but Omega is a god of professional wrestling. Callis has been there for all of Omega’s greatest moments and he’ll be there shouting ONE WINGED ANGEL on commentary at Rebellion when Omega walks out with both titles. This was great stuff from Callis and he played the mastermind well.

It’s time for Tony Schiavone/Tony Khan to give their weekly Dynamite plug. We run down the card, with Forbidden Door being mentioned three times in the first thirty seconds. There wasn’t much in the way of funny this time.

Eddie Edwards and Matt Cardona are glad to have each others’ backs when Brian Myers comes in. Edwards leaves and Myers says he doesn’t want Cardona here for once. Cardona doesn’t seem phased.

Tenille Dashwood/Fire N Flava/Kimber Lee/Deonna Purrazzo/Susan vs. Jazz/ODB/Jordynne Grace/Havok/Nevaeh/Alisha

Kaleb With A K is here with Dashwood and company. Alisha goes after Dashwood to start but gets dropped with a forearm. Dashwood misses a charge into the corner though and it’s a running hip attack to keep her down. ODB hits the Bronco Buster and it’s off to Susan, who gets caught in the wrong corner by Nevaeh.

Therefore Kimber comes in instead and gets double teamed down by Havok and Nevaeh for an early two. Havok throws Kiera into the corner and we get a Jazz vs. Purrazzo showdown. Everything breaks down in a hurry for the parade of shots to the face until Steelz and Grace slug it out. The two of them hit the big dives and we take a break.

Back with Purrazzo clotheslining Alisha for two but Susan gets dropped with a clothesline. The hot tag brings in Grace to start cleaning house, including a powerslam for a pair of twos on Lee. Everything breaks down again for the parade of secondary finishers until we’re down to Jazz vs. Lee. An STF misses and Jazz pulls her into the STF for the tap at 13:07.

Rating: C. You’re only going to be able to get so much out of twelve people in there at once. It was fine enough while it lasted and Jazz does get a rub out of the pin (Jazz vs. Deonna for the title could work well as an Impact Plus showdown), but nothing really got a chance to shine with so many people in there at the same time.

Ace Austin is rather happy with his win at Sacrifice, even if he told us so. Chris Bey comes in to bring up beating Austin last week, but here is Josh Alexander to say he won at No Surrender. Ace isn’t pleased but here’s TJP, who gets his rematch for the title next week.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Sami Callihan vs. Trey Miguel

Trey slugs away to start fast but Sami runs him over with a clothesline. They fight to the floor in a hurry and then up to the stage, where Miguel slips out of a powerbomb attempt. Sami gets in a Boston crab on the floor as we take a break. Back with Sami kicking away and sending him outside in another heap. Miguel’s leg is tied around the post and kicked hard, followed by the Junkyard Dog headbutts back inside.

The leg cranking is on but Miguel kicks him away for the breather. Sami goes up top, where he counters a super hurricanrana into a Boston crab while still on the middle rope. That’s broken up so Trey tries a springboard, only to have his leg give out. Trey is fine enough to knock him down for a double stomp and we take another break.

Back with again the chop off until Trey uses the good leg for a Codebreaker. Miguel tries another top rope double stomp and bangs up the knee again, allowing Sami to hit another clothesline. A grab of the leg is broken up by Sami biting Miguel and an STF has Trey in more trouble. Make the a Crossface with Miguel in even more trouble until a rope is grabbed.

Sami chops him up against the barricade but Miguel manages to run the steps for a springboard cutter onto the floor. Back in and Trey gets two off a neckbreaker, with the kickout having Miguel a little screwed up. Trey goes up but the referee gets in the way to check on Callihan, allowing Sami to crotch Trey on top. The package piledriver finishes Miguel at 23:52.

Rating: B. This worked out well with both guys beating on each other for a long time until the screwy finish. I’m not sure where this is going but as long as it doesn’t end up with the two of them as wacky tag team partners, everything should wind up working out. Miguel was working hard here and Sami was a great villain, making this a heck of a match.

Overall Rating: C. Not too bad here but the stories continue to not be the most thrilling in the world. Above all else, it feels like we’re just waiting around while the World Title is kept warm for Kenny Omega, who will….probably not be around here very often. At the same time, you have New Japan holding the Tag Team Titles because we need to show how awesome it is when other companies are here. This leaves Impact with part time World and Tag Team Champions (or probably just one once we get done with Rebellion where the Good Brothers get the titles back) because….uh, guest stars! Not an awful show, but not inspiring.

Results

FinJuice b. XXXL – Acid drop to Larry D.

Rhino b. Jake Something – Gore

Rohit Raju b. Mahabali Shera – Rollup with feet on the ropes

ODB/Jazz/Nevaeh/Havok/Alisha/Jordynne Grace b. Fire N Flava/Kimber Lee/Susan/Deonna Purrazzo/Kimber Lee – STF to Lee

Sami Callihan b. Trey Miguel – Package piledriver

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

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Impact Wrestling
Date: February 16, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: D’Lo Brown, Matt Striker

We’re done with No Surrender and that means it’s time to get moving towards Rebellion. There weren’t a ton of changes coming out of No Surrender but one of the more interesting ones saw Josh Alexander becoming the new #1 contender to the X-Division Title. The question for tonight is seeing what we’ll be seeing from AEW next. And what is up with Tommy Dreamer. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a No Surrender recap.

David Finlay and Juice Robinson, better known as FinJuice, are coming from New Japan. Well that’s an upgrade.

Opening sequence.

X-Division Title: Josh Alexander vs. TJP

TJP is defending and they’re starting fast this week. Commentary hypes the heck out of the guys and the title so well done so far. They go to the mat to start and the threat of an ankle lock sends TJP straight to the ropes. Back up and an abdominal stretch has Alexander in some trouble but that’s broken up. An anklescissors takes Alexander down but he grabs an ankle lock. STRIKER: “STAND UP AND APPLAUD!” No.

Alexander takes him down and works on the ankle some more before switching to some leg cranking. A surfboard has TJP in even more trouble but he slips out and grabs a triangle choke. That’s broken up with a powerbomb backbreaker but TJP slaps it on again. This time Alexander takes him into the corner and catapults him into the middle buckle for a clever counter. Alexander puts a knee in the back and cranks on both arms, only to have TJP flip forward….and not break a thing. Well they can’t all work.

Back up and the abdominal stretch is broken up so TJP climbs on his back and tries a full nelson but can’t get the hands locked. Alexander reverses into another ankle lock but this time it’s rolled out to the floor. The slingshot dropkick knocks Alexander silly and the tornado DDT gives TJP two back inside. Alexander dumps him outside in a heap but TJP dropkicks him out of the air for a double knockdown. It’s the ankle lock going on again so TJP counters again (the ankle lock isn’t working at all here), this time with an enziguri.

TJP goes up top but gets kicked in the head but can’t hit a super Divine Intervention. Instead TJP shoves him off the top and the Mamba Splash…hits raised knees. Another ankle lock, this time with the grapevine, has Striker getting WAY too excited as TJP escapes again. Another Divine Intervention is countered into the Octopus, which is countered into, say it with me, the ankle lock. Say it with me again: TJP counters, this time with a slap to the face into a suplex. Josh’s big boot is countered into the Detonation Kick and the Mamba Splash retains at 11:23.

Rating: B. They were going nuts with the counters here, though Alexander’s ankle locking felt like spamming a finisher in a game. That being said, it was a heck of a match here and I wanted to see who was going to win. Granted not as much as it is going to take to validate Striker losing his mind about how awesome the match was after it’s over, but it was very good indeed.

Tommy Dreamer (before the first break) isn’t happy with what Moose did to Rich Swann on Saturday. Tonight, Moose is getting some sense beaten into him in an Old School Rules match.

Brian Myers runs into Hernandez and gives him the rest of his pay for the win at No Surrender. It worked on Saturday so let’s do the same thing again tonight, with Hernandez getting paid again if he beats Matt Cardona. Fallah Bahh comes up to say he has been looking for Hernandez. This isn’t happening again but Bahh says he is here as an investor. If Bahh gives him $20, he’ll bring him $40. Hernandez says we’ll see if he can turn $10 into $20 first. This doesn’t seem like it is going to end well.

The announcers talk about FinJuice, who are here tonight. Well that’s fast. They talk about the rest of the show as well.

Willie Mack vs. Daivari vs. Suicide vs. Trey Miguel

Daivari jumps Mack to start but gets double dropkicked to the floor for his efforts. Trey and Suicide miss some strikes and neither can snap off a Japanese armdrag. Mack is back up with a double flying shoulder to put them both down but misses a charge and crashes to the floor. Suicide backdrops Miguel outside as well but Daivari shoves him off the top for a crash.

Back up and Daivari charges into an elbow, leaving Mack to nail him with a sitout powerbomb. Mack’s Samoan drop plants Suicide and then Miguel gets the same, setting up the standing moonsault to both of them. Daivari gets in a shot on Mack but gets sent outside, leaving Miguel to hit a top rope Meteora to finish Suicide at 4:50.

Rating: C+. Take four people and let them do whatever they can to pop the crowd (or at least the one at home) for a few minutes. I’m surprised at how short it was but at least they didn’t stop while it lasted. Miguel needed the win more than anyone else and hopefully this starts him on the path to something more positive. Good while it lasted, but it didn’t last long enough.

Post match Trey runs into Sami Callihan and doesn’t seem happy. Sami talks about how Trey can’t win when everything matters, like when he lost at No Surrender. Trey storms off without saying anything.

Scott D’Amore congratulates TJP on his title defense when Ace Austin comes in with the Super X Cup. Austin wants the title shot but D’Amore makes a six man tag for next week. The winning team will face off in a triple threat the next week and the winner of that is #1 contender. That’s as Impact of an idea as I’ve heard in a long time.

Hernandez vs. Matt Cardona

Brian Myers is here with Hernandez, who throws Cardona down with ease. Back up and Cardona low bridges him to the floor, setting up the big running flip dive. Myers isn’t having this and offers a distraction, allowing Hernandez to break up Radio Silence with a low blow. Cardona gets knocked outside and we take a break. Back with Cardona fighting out of a bearhug and hitting a faceplant. The middle rope dropkick connects but Hernandez Pounces the heck out of him. The Border Toss is broken up though and Radio Silence gives Cardona the pin at 7:52.

Rating: C-. Just a quick match here and Cardona gets a win to make him look a bit better around here. That’s the kind of thing he hasn’t had yet as it has mainly been him coasting on his reputation. I’m almost getting curious to see him face Myers, though they are going to have to do it right or it isn’t going to do either of them that many favors. Hernandez was fine enough here, but anything is better than having him doing the deal with the money for months on end.

Post match Cardona says he isn’t here to pass a torch, but to ignite his own. Myers gets in the ring to say this is his place and Cardona is just trying to copy him. Cardona asks what’s up with that because they’re best friends when the camera goes off. Hernandez jumps Cardona from behind but Eddie Edwards runs in for the save.

Video on FinJuice.

Tony Schiavone and Tony Khan (in heart shaped sunglasses) hope we had a good Valentine’s Day but Khan didn’t get any gifts. He did give Impact Wrestling what they needed the most: money! It helps that it’s a charitable donation too and yes that was his idea. We run down the Dynamite card and Khan says Eddie Kingston reminds him of Michael Corleone.

Havok comes up to Nevaeh, who is sick of losing and asks where they’re going from here. Should they even be a team? No not really, but almost no Knockouts in this company should be. Tenille Dashwood comes out to suggest that she and Havok be a team but Nevaeh doesn’t like the sound of it so let’s have a match tonight. Dashwood is down.

Reno Scum vs. FinJuice

Striker loses his mind at FinJuice being here, again being far more excited than he ever is about almost anyone in Impact. Finlay and Robinson start in on Thornstowe’s arm and a double bulldog takes him down. Thornstowe is back with a spinebuster to Finlay (Brown: “SIT YOUR A** DOWN!”) and the Pit Stop makes it even worse. A missed charge in the corner allows the tag off to Robinson to clean house. Everything breaks down and there’s a double dropkick to Luster. The PowerPlex finishes Thornstowe at 4:12.

Rating: C+. Not bad for mostly a debut squash and there is nothing wrong with that. Odds are this sets up a title match against the Good Brothers, because they’re both big teams in Japan and that’s the most amazing thing in the world. FinJuice is good, but Impact doesn’t know how to not go over the top with it and that worries me going forward.

Post match here are the Good Brothers to call FinJuice young boys and we hear about the Brothers’ success in Japan. Then they can buy some beers and have a welcome to Impact party, or just go and buy some of their Good Brothers whiskey. FinJuice says cool, but imply Anderson will pass out and lose control of his bodily functions.

At the bar, Rohit Raju blames Mahabali Shera for costing him the X-Division Title. Shera shoves him away and into James Storm, spilling his beer. Raju won’t apologize or accept Storm’s offer of a beer so Storm breaks the bottle over his head. Shera is ready to fight but Chris Sabin intervenes. Johnny Swinger comes in to offer then a night at his palace, which they actually accept. Then Swinger steals the bartender’s tip.

Post break we go to the Palace where beer is consumed and James Storm….starts freestyle rapping (ok rhyming) to impress Alisha Edwards. Fallah Bahh sits down at the Blackjack table and says hit me, so Sabin does jut that. Bahh loses his money again but Edwards says have a heart because Bahh is hurting. Swinger says you don’t know what it’s like to be hurting until Bob Seger’s ex girlfriend gives you crabs. Daddy.

Tenille Dashwood vs. Nevaeh

Kaleb With A K is here but there is no Havok. Dashwood takes her down to start but gets tossed outside as we take an early break. Back with Dashwood in control thanks to some Kaleb With A K cheating, including a neckbreaker over the middle rope for two. A backbreaker gets Nevaeh out of trouble and she strikes away for the comeback.

An STO into a running basement clothesline gets two on Dashwood, as does a belly to back faceplant. Dashwood is right back with a whip into the corner, setting up the Taste of Tenille. The Spotlight Kick connects (with Striker shouting AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE on the count because Matt Striker tries way too hard at his job) to finish Nevaeh at 9:54.

Rating: C-. Dashwood looked fine here but the Knockouts division continues to be pretty lifeless. It’s just people having one match after another without much changing. Havok and Nevaeh splitting isn’t exactly interesting as they’ve been together what? Maybe six months? There are some fine enough parts to the division, but it’s nothing with any kind of spark to be seen.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Moose attacks Tommy Dreamer and Rich Swann at No Surrender. Three days ago.

Violent By Design is ready to take care of Jake Something, with Deaner promising to put Jake through a table to end everything. If not, he will face the consequences because nothing is bigger than this.

Susan wants to take out Jordynne Grace, ODB and Jazz for what they did last week but Deonna Purrazzo says that’s not how champions do things. She flags down Scott D’Amore (who seems to be about three feet away) to ask about a Knockouts Tag Team Titles shot for Kimber Lee and Susan. D’Amore likes the idea so they can have their shot….if they win a #1 contenders match over Jordynne Grace and Jazz next week. Susan seems…..pleased? I think?

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Moose vs. Tommy Dreamer

Old School rules. Dreamer hammers away to start and knocks Moose outside for a rake to the eyes. A reversed whip sends Moose into the steps and Dreamer poses a lot as we take a break. Back with Moose unloading with a trashcan lid as Striker gets all solemn about Dreamer being beaten up too much. Striker: “When do you say enough is enough?” The question people have been asking about Dreamer for years.

They head back inside with Moose hitting a dropkick and standing on Dreamer’s face. Dreamer comes back with a testicular claw and a cutter for one as Moose isn’t having this. A trashcan lid shot to the back rocks Moose a bit and a chair to the back does it again. The Dreamer DDT is countered with a shove onto the chair though and it’s table time.

Dreamer spears Moose through the table in the corner, sending Striker into his biggest RAH RAH speech. Moose isn’t having this and spears Dreamer for the pin at 14:36. Naturally Striker acts like this is Dreamer being shot, because it’s not like THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS EVERY TIME HE HAS A MATCH.

Rating: D+. They used weapons, Dreamer got some hope spots, the other guy won with his finisher, commentary acted like Dreamer was Bruno Sammartino in his last run. I know Dreamer has been around forever and wrestled everywhere but he’s regularly in some spot on TV and he’s regularly getting beaten up. How many times am I supposed to get all emotional about it when that’s what he’s done for his entire career?

Overall Rating: C-. The opener almost singlehandedly saved this show as some of the stories and feuds they’re going with at the moment make me sigh rather heavily. Between treating Japan like the promised land, Tommy Dreamer as the focal point, the never ending saga of that wad of money, whatever the Knockouts are doing this week and having to pretend that Violent By Design is interesting, there is very little to get interested about on here. Throw in Striker making me want to pound a spike into my head and this is a pretty lame show. But hey, maybe AEW can show up again and mock the company one more time.

Results

TJP b. Josh Alexander – Mamba Splash

Trey Miguel b. Suicide, Willie Mack and Daivari – Top rope Meteora to Suicide

Matt Cardona b. Hernandez – Radio Silence

FinJuice b. Reno Scum – PowerPlex to Thornstowe

Tenille Dashwood b. Nevaeh – Spotlight Kick

Moose b. Tommy Dreamer – Spear

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

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AND

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

Impact Wrestling
Date: February 9, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

It’s the go home show for No Surrender and that means we are almost out of the Tommy Dreamer Main Eventer phase. It hasn’t been the worst stretch in the world but it also hasn’t been thrilling television either. Odds are that this is going to be the biggest push of them all that could make for a rough stretch. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Josh Alexander/Suicide/Trey Miguel/Willie Mack vs. Blake Christian/Ace Austin/Daivari/Chris Bey

These eight will be in a Triple Threat Revolver Match (basically a gauntlet) at No Surrender for the #1 contendership to the X-Division Title. Alexander top wristlocks Christian down to start and hits a slam for a bonus. Austin comes in to increase the competition a bit so Alexander drops Trey onto him for two. It’s off to Bey as the pace picks up but things start to break down a bit with Austin missing a dive onto Bey.

Mack’s attempt at a dive onto both of them is broken up and Daivari unloads on Mack in the corner. That just earns him a Samoan drop into the standing moonsault, which only lands on Daivari’s knees. Bey comes back in for two off an elbow to the back and it’s time for the rotating heel beatdowns. Christian hits a dropkick to the back of the head for two and Daivari grabs a chinlock with a knee in the back.

That’s broken up in a hurry and it’s back to Miguel, who kicks Blake down in a hurry. Miguel grabs a Muta Lock but pulls up on his knees instead of bridging back. Bey breaks that up so Alexander comes in for a bunch of northern lights suplexes. The ankle lock has Austin in trouble but Christian makes the save with a 450. Mack’s standing moonsault hits Christian but it’s off to Bey and Austin to beat on Suicide. That’s broken up as Suicide dropkicks Bey to the floor, only to accidentally get knocked outside by Miguel. With Suicide down, Miguel pulls Christian into the Hourglass for the tap at 11:57.

Rating: C+. Take eight people, have them fly all over the place and let them do their thing. This was a nice preview for Saturday, even if the concept sounds a little weird (not necessarily a bad thing). I can always go for such an all over the place match like this and it worked out well enough here.

Post match Sami Callihan pops up on screen to ask how fast Trey is going to leave after things start going badly again. Threats are implied.

Various wrestlers wish Tommy Dreamer a Happy Birthday, including Gail Kim. There’s even a graphic.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

Kimber Lee vs. ODB

Deonna Purrazzo and Susan are here with Lee. The bell rings and Lee bails to the floor for the conference, with the advice leading her to….puff up her chest and bounce off of ODB. Lee is knocked down and kicked in the face, followed by a hard chop in the corner. ODB’s Dirty Dozen is broken up (good) and Lee grabs a full nelson with her legs. ODB fights up but gets sent into the corner over and over as we take a break.

Back with ODB hammering away and hitting a splash in the corner. There’s the Cannonball for two and now the Dirty Dozen works. A middle rope Thesz press gets two but Lee kicks her in the head. ODB slams her off the ropes but Purrazzo and Susan get on the apron. Cue Jordynne Grace and Jazz for the brawl, allowing ODB to dive off of the apron to take out Susan and Purrazzo. Lee is right back up with a rollup for the pin at 12:01.

Rating: C-. I have never been an ODB fan and I don’t see that changing anytime soon, but she did her thing well enough here to get by. You can probably set up the six woman tag for No Surrender (assuming it hasn’t already been booked) and that will work out fine. ODB hasn’t been the focus here so it’s not the worst thing, but just don’t have her become the main point of the feud.

We go to Swinger’s Palace where Fallah Bahh is out of money. His offer of a slightly used cookie is turned down and he is thrown out, leaving Swinger to hit on Alisha Edwards. Swinger: “I’m Terry Taylor!” He also has the wad of money, because money is something to be held for months on end instead of, you know, used for money things.

Susan rants to Purrazzo and Lee about what just happened and it’s time to set up the six woman tag.

Here’s Cousin Jake for a chat. He thought that things were going great around here for the Deaners but now things have fallen apart. Cue Violent By Design to get an answer on their offer from last week. Eric Young tells him to be the best version of himself but Jake says he’s going to stand for….something. The beatdown is on and the Pillmanizing is on but Cody says hang on. Eric says ok, because it can be Jake vs. Cody at No Surrender.

Rohit Raju says he and Mahabali Shera have been friends for a long time and at No Surrender, Raju is getting the X-Division Title back.

Tony Schiavone and Tony Khan talk about the Forbidden Door being opened up, with Khan realizing that he was the Forbidden Door. Who knows who is going to show up next??? We run down this week’s Dynamite card. Khan will even be back in Nashville soon enough to mess with Impact some more.

The Good Brothers know Chris Sabin/James Storm are great but they’re not the Good Brothers. Tonight it’s a Magic Killer and a Too Sweet.

Kiera Hogan vs. Nevaeh

Tasha Steelz and Havok are here too. Nevaeh wins a slugout to start and hits a Hennig necksnap into a sliding lariat for two. A clothesline gets the same as commentary tries to figure out what kind of shoes Kiera is wearing. Kiera slugs away but gets caught with a belly to back faceplant, setting up a side slam for two more. Hogan tries another slugout and gets kicked in the head for two more, followed by an STO to put her down again. With nothing else working, Steelz comes in for a Codebreaker on Nevaeh and the DQ at 5:46.

Rating: D. Well that wasn’t much. They have pretty clearly established the story already as the champs can’t beat Havok and Nevaeh in a fair fight so they keep finding ways to get out like this. That works out well enough, but it doesn’t exactly make for some interesting television. I’m not sure when we’ll be getting to the title match, but I’m also not sure how interesting it is going to be.

AEW stars wish Tommy Dreamer a Happy Birthday. These aren’t quite as polite.

Fire N Flava yell at Scott D’Amore about the referee costing them their singles matches against Havok and Nevaeh. D’Amore has a solution: a different referee for their No DQ title defense at No Surrender. He shuts the door on them and the screaming continues anyway.

Here are XXXL, Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb With A K for a chat. They’re ready for their No Surrender tag match with Decay and that’s why Dashwood is here: she can beat up Rosemary for them! Dashwood doesn’t understand what kind of a name Decay is because that sounds like they need a dentist. Kaleb With A K issues a challenge to any member of Decay, which really doesn’t seem like the best idea. Cue Decay, with Rosemary saying they have found someone new to play with them.

Black Taurus vs. Kaleb With A K

Taurus is a monster in a bull mask from AAA and fits in rather well with the team. Kaleb gets tossed into the corner and it’s a pop up Samoan drop to crush him again. Something like a fisherman’s suplex spun into a powerslam finishes for Taurus at 58 seconds. I’ve been impressed by Taurus before and he looked great here.

Brian Myers pays off Hernandez, who wants to get paid up front before their No Surrender tag match. Fallah Bahh sees the money being exchanged and seems to have an idea.

Tag Team Titles: Good Brothers vs. James Storm/Chris Sabin

Storm/Sabin are challenging. Sabin grabs Anderson’s arm to start and armdrags him into an armbar. Storm comes in to hammer away in the corner and the rapid tags continue with the Boys being sent outside. We take a break and come back with Sabin kicking Anderson in the back of the head to give Storm two. Sabin comes back in but the tag brings in Gallows to put the champs in control for the first time.

Some shots to the ribs have Sabin in trouble in the corner and it’s back to Anderson for a chinlock. Gallows puts on his own chinlock as Private Party and Matt Hardy come out to watch. That’s enough of a distraction for Sabin to get over to Storm for the tag as as everything breaks down. Storm hits a Backstabber on Anderson but Private Party runs in for the DQ at 10:47.

Rating: C. This only had so much time to get anything going and the ending didn’t help things, but Sabin and Storm felt like they could have had a chance at taking the titles. Granted it might not have been the biggest chance because of the No Surrender title match coming up, but it’s better than nothing. I’m not sure how much of a future the team has though, as Alex Shelley being back would seem to get rid of their future. Still though, not too bad here.

Post break, Matt Hardy promises Private Party a bonus if they win the titles. Scott D’Amore comes in to say there’s a problem so the title match on Sunday is now a triple threat with Chris Sabin/James Storm added in. Matt freaks out.

We run down No Surrender, which seems like it has had about 15 matches added.

Moose doesn’t like that this match is taking place because Swann promised him the title match first. Violence is teased but D’Amore cuts Moose off and says he can be gone in a hurry. Moose says he can hurt Swann whenever he wants so they yell at each other until Dreamer tells them both to shut up. He pulls out his phone and reads a text from Moose that he got back in July after their match. Moose said Dreamer still had it and he got it as a result.

They are all in wrestling and love this business, which is why he doesn’t wrestle for money anymore. All Dreamer wants is to help the men and women in the back because somewhere, fifty years ago, a Dreamer was born and now there are a bunch of dreamers in the back. For three hours on Saturday, fans are going to have a chance to forget everything else so Dreamer signs. They hug to end the show as Moose leaves. Dreamer’s promo was great, but it doesn’t get around the idea that Dreamer has been one of the major focuses for the last few weeks.

Overall Rating: C. These Impact Plus specials have been a heck of a bonus for the company as there is really very little that separates them from a regular pay per view. Aside from the main event, No Surrender might as well be a low level pay per view and that’s a nice thing to have. Impact only runs a handful of pay per views in the first place so giving us something to bridge that gap helps a lot.

That being said, I think I’ve made my issues with Dreamer’s continued presence and pushes well known enough over the years so I’ll spare it again. Other than that, the show still has some weak spots, mainly around the women’s division. The talent is completely there but the stories they are telling aren’t exactly working at the moment. Upgrade that and get on to Swann vs. Moose and this show gets a heck of an upgrade in a hurry.

Results

Willie Mack/Suicide/Trey Miguel/Josh Alexander b. Blake Christian/Ace Austin/Daivari/Chris Bey – Hourglass to Christian

Kimber Lee b. ODB – Rollup

Nevaeh b. Kiera Hogan via DQ when Tasha Steelz interfered

Black Taurus b. Kaleb With A K – Spinning powerslam

Chris Sabin/James Storm b. Good Brothers via DQ when Private Party interfered

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

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AND

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Hard To Kill 2021
Date: January 16, 2021
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Matt Striker, D’Lo Brown

We’re back on pay per view with this one and that means it is time to step things up. This time around, the big story is AEW’s Kenny Omega coming in to team with the Good Brothers against Rich Swann/Moose/Chris Sabin (as Alex Shelley is out due to some personal circumstances). The card isn’t looking great but Impact can do some good pay per views. Let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Josh Alexander vs. Brian Myers

Alexander takes him down by the leg to start and then spins out of a wristlock to put Myers down again. They head outside with Myers being driven back first into the apron but Myers shoves him hard off the top. We take a break and come back with Myers grabbing a quickly broken chinlock. Myers trips him down to cut off the comeback and the chinlock goes on again. That’s broken up as well so Myers hits a Downward Spiral for two, sending us to another break.

Back again with a discus forearm putting Myers on the floor. Alexander can’t get a German suplex but he can get the ankle lock, followed by the German suplex for two. Myers catches him with an enziguri on top, setting up the superplex with Alexander tying the legs up into a small package for two more.

A quick Michinoku Driver gives Myers two so Alexander backslides him for the same (with Striker throwing in a Kerry Von Erich vs. Ric Flair reference because he tries way too hard). The ankle lock goes on and Myers can’t roll out, so instead he pulls the headgear around to blind Alexander. That’s enough for the running clothesline to finish Alexander at 10:54.

Rating: C-. Are they kidding? Who in the world looks at Myers and Alexander (especially including their histories and thinks that Myers, as “The Most Professional Wrestler”, is the more interesting choice? I don’t get this one, but I’m hoping they have a better idea than just pushing him because he used to be in WWE. Baffling decision here, and it came after a just ok match.

The opening video looks at how people had to survive a lot over the year but they are hard to kill. This includes a good bit of AEW footage, plus Alex Shelley announcing that he will not be able to be here tonight. Moose is taking his place, which could be a bit better.

Decay vs. Tenille Dashwood/Kaleb With A K

That would be Rosemary/Crazy Steve. The men start things off with Steve headlocking him down and then tripping the leg. Rosemary comes in to crank on the arm and then hands it back to Steve. Kaleb sends him outside but thinks twice about the dive, instead bringing Dashwood in to elbow Rosemary in the face. Some shots to the back have Rosemary in more trouble and we hit the chinlock, complete with Dashwood rubbing Rosemary’s head.

Kaleb takes too much time going up though and Dashwood gets kicked into him for the crotching. Rosemary kicks Dashwood away again and the hot tag brings in Steve to start cleaning house. A rollup out of the corner brings Dashwood in for the save so Steve glares her out to the floor. Kaleb takes over on Steve’s arm, setting up a Russian legsweep for no cover.

Instead Kaleb stops for a photo, meaning Steve can avoid the moonsault. That’s enough for Rosemary to come in and clean house as everything breaks down. Rosemary hits a spear but walks into Kaleb’s superkick. The green mist hits Dashwood and Kaleb backfists Steve down. More mist blinds Kaleb and Steve hits a tornado DDT for the pin at 8:55.

Rating: C. Kind of a weird choice for an opener as the match wasn’t really a big part of the build (I’m not even sure I remember it being mentioned on TV) and it was just ok anyway. Rosemary and Steve work well together and while it’s nice to see Kaleb take the fall, it’s another miss for Dashwood. Not terrible by any means, but not a great match with a weird placement.

We run down the card. Still makes little sense on a pay per view.

We recap (with the video starting before Striker was done talking) Eric Young and company attacking various people around here. That means it’s time for Tommy Dreamer to defend his latest wrestling home, meaning we have a six man Old School tag.

Violent By Design vs. Tommy Dreamer/Rhino/Cousin Jake

Old School (extreme) rules. That would be the name for Eric Young/Deaner/Joe Doering, because every team needs a name now. Striker: “I don’t think there is anyone who has done what Tommy Dreamer has done over the last thirty years at such a high level.” I think we can write that off as the first stupid Striker line of the night and move on. The ring is mostly cleared to start and it’s Jake vs. Deaner n the big showdown.

They’re out on the floor in a hurry as we go to a triple screen (THANK YOU!) until everyone winds up on the same side at ringside. The wild brawling continues until Dreamer brings in the cookie sheet to knock Young down. Back inside and a cutter drops Young again so it’s time for Rhino, Dreamer and Deaner to chair Doering down. That isn’t enough to keep him down as Doering gets up and bites Dreamer’s head.

Deaner throws Jake off the top onto two open chairs….and exactly thirty seconds later, Jake is back up with a suicide dive onto Doering and Young. That leaves Dreamer to crotch Deaner on top and it’s something like a Tower of Doom, with Dreamer getting kicked in the face in the process. Rhino posts Doering on the floor and it’s time for the thumbtacks. Young is backdropped onto said tacks and there’s the Gore to drop Doering. Jake’s Black Hole Slam gets two on Deaner with Young making the save with the hockey mask. The piledriver finishes Deaner at 9:51.

Rating: D+. They brawled, they did the same violent spots they always do, they tried to make Dreamer some kind of legend and Young was treated as the big evil. This was almost everything I don’t like about Impact rolled into one match and I have a bad feeling that it is going to be continuing for a good while to come. Throw in Doering being the latest monster without much of a reason to care about him other than who he associates with, we could be in for a long run with these guys.

Rich Swann fires up Chris Sabin when Moose comes in. Swann doesn’t trust Moose because Willie Mack would be here if Moose hadn’t taken him out. Moose talks about playing football with people he didn’t like but he would die for them once a game began. Tonight, Omega and the Brothers are getting beaten down all night long.

Video on the Knockouts Tag Team Title Tournament.

Knockouts Tag Team Title Tournament: Fire And Flava vs. Havok/Nevaeh

For the vacant titles and that would be Tasha Steelz/Kiera Hogan, because, again, every team needs a name these days. Steelz and Hogan jump them to start with little avail, meaning it’s Steelz and Nevaeh to officially get things going. Havok comes in so Steelz bails out to Hogan, who is promptly backbreakered. A sliding clothesline gives Nevaeh two and it’s back to Havok to wreck both of them.

Havok misses a legdrop so some kicks to the face put her down for two. More running kicks in the corner give Hogan two but Havok drives Steelz into the corner. Havok tosses both of them down at the same time, allowing the tag off to Nevaeh. Steelz DDTs Hogan by mistake (yep still stupid) but Nevaeh gets caught on top.

That’s fine with Havok, who powerbombs both of them out of the corner (after walking a bit to show off). Hogan is back up with a neckbreaker on Havok and a Stunner rocks her again. Havok gets taken to the floor, leaving Hogan to hit a fisherman’s neckbreaker to Nevaeh for the pin and the titles at 8:48.

Rating: C. They aren’t exactly in the mood to give the wrestlers time tonight. This was a fairly rushed match but it’s nice to have one of the established teams win rather than a makeshift pair becoming the champions. I’m not sure what kind of a future the titles have, but it was an acceptable enough start.

Madison Rayne and Gail Kim come out to present the new titles.

Decay comes up to Taya Valkyrie but she, politely says she has this tonight. The women leave and Acey Romero sneaks into the Knockouts locker room.

Here are the unscheduled Ace Austin and Madman Fulton for a chat. Austin does not like being relegated to the pre-show panel because he won the Super X Cup. That means he should be #1 contender to the X-Division Title. So come on Scott D’Amore. Get out here and make the match. Cue D’Amore who agrees Austin needs a match so here is his opponent.

Ace Austin vs. Matt Cardona

Striker: “This is a mark out moment and I’m marking out bro!” Cardona starts fast with a running faceplant to send Austin to the apron. That means Austin can do his gymnastics on the apron until Cardona trips him face first. As Striker talks about “popping the internet”, a swinging neckbreaker drops Austin onto the floor. Fulton’s distraction lets Austin get in a cheap shot but it’s a flapjack to put him down back inside. The running corner clothesline sets up the Reboot (Broski Boot) but Fulton comes in for the DQ at 2:33.

Post match Cardona clears the ring in a hurry.

We recap the X-Division Title match. TJP couldn’t get another title shot so he put on a mask as Manik and won the title. Rohit Raju and Chris Bey want to unmask him and prove everything so we’re having a triple threat title match.

X-Division Title: Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raju vs. Manik

Manik is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. Manik dropkicks Bey to the floor to start and runs the ropes with Raju. Bey is back in and that means a three way standoff. Raju gets knocked down again and Bey uses him as a launchpad to dropkick Manik to the floor this time. That doesn’t last long as Manik and Bey switch places, allowing Raju to counter a headscissors into a reverse sitout powerbomb for two on Manik.

Bey comes back in and Raju misses a charge to the floor, allowing Manik to tie up Bey’s legs. Raju rejoins them for a standing armbar on Manik at the same time as Brown and Striker over if that is TJP or not. The double holds are broken up and Manik sends Raju outside, leaving Bey to hit a springboard kick to the head to catch Manik in the ropes. Bey misses a dive and gets apron bombed down for the mistake. Back in and Raju gets Manik’s mask off to reveal…a painted face.

Manik goes up top for a frog splash but dives into a cutter from Bey. A double Art of Finesse lets Bey cover Manik for two and everyone is down for a second. Raju is up first and ties Bey in the Tree of Woe, meaning Manik can come in with a springboard hurricanrana. The Detonation Kick connects with Bey making the save so he and Manik fight over a Tombstone.

Manik finally plants him but walks into a jumping knee from Raju. A kick to the face gives Raju two on Manik and everyone is down again. Raju is sent to the floor, leaving Manik to hit a springboard DDT on Bey. The frog splash hits Bey and Raju slides back in for two in a callback to what set this up. Raju throws Manik off the top but gets kicked in the head by Bey.

They go up top with Bey getting tied in the Tree of Woe again. Raju pulls Manik into a Crossface (which Striker says is a variation on the Regal Stretch, because, again, Striker tries too hard) until Bey makes the save. Manik rolls to the floor so Raju unloads with shots to Bey’s head, only to have Manik roll Raju up to retain at 13:52.

Rating: B. Now this was good as they were doing all of their spots in a hurry while making the match feel like a frenzy. That’s the kind of match you would want for a pay per view X-Division Title match and the show needed it pretty badly. Manik continues to be one of the best in-ring stars on the roster, but the painted face under the mask is a pretty weak way to keep things going.

Post match, Manik taunts Raju with the win.

Eddie Edwards tells Alisha that she can’t be involved in the Barbed Wire Massacre. She can’t be at risk because Eddie doesn’t know what is happening to him. Alisha promises not to go out there.

We recap Deonna Purrazzo vs. Taya Valkyrie. Purrazzo is the amazing champion, Valkyrie used to be the amazing champion, the title match is on.

Knockouts Title: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Taya Valkyrie

Purrazzo is defending and has Kimber Lee and Susan with her, while Taya has Decay. Taya knocks her into the corner to start and hammers away against the ropes. Purrazzo is knocked outside where Lee gets in a cheap shot and Susan starts recording Steve. The referee gets knocked down so it’s a big group ejection to leave us one on one. Striker is confused about whether the bell rang or not, because he was probably too busy making some reference to Georgia Championship Wrestling in 1983.

Back in and Purrazzo starts on the arm, including a Russian legsweep and a roll through into a Tequila Sunrise. Now it’s off to a kneebar so Taya has to go to the rope again. A DDT on the knee gets two but Taya is back up with chops and a spear for two. Purrazzo dropkicks the knee out but Taya runs her over again without much effort.

There’s a Curb Stomp into something like an STF, which Striker….actually doesn’t screw up (even a bad announcer finds the right move once a match). Back up and Taya can’t hit a tilt-a-whirl slam as Purrazzo takes her down into the Fujiwara Armbar. That’s switches into Cosa Nostra to retain the title at 11:35.

Rating: B-. I can go for watching these two doing their thing for a good while and that is what we got here. Purrazzo being able to pull someone into whatever painful hold she has at the moment and Taya can make almost anything work. This was exactly what it was supposed to be and I had a good time with it throughout. Above all else, it felt like a match that belonged on pay per view, which hasn’t been the case with everything else on the card so far.

Acey Romero comes up to John E. Bravo, who insists that Larry D. shot him. He calls Acey crazy but Acey found some of Larry’s Ring Rust cologne in a Knockouts bag. Bravo is intrigued. Sweet goodness WHY IS THIS STILL GOING???

We recap the fall of Ethan Page, who has gone rather insane and is feuding with his own alter ego, the Karate Man. Now it’s time for Page to fight himself.

Ethan Page vs. Karate Man

We go cinematic (duh) and they fight in front of a green screen, Mortal Kombat style. Page punches and Karate Man kicks as the background keeps changing. Then Karate Man pulls out Page’s heart to end it at we’ll say 2:30. So Page was REALLY unhappy about this online and if this is what they cobbled together after what seems like a lot of work went into it, I can completely get that. This was a waste of time from what could have been an entertaining idea and Page deserved a better way to go out than a segment which is getting as much time as the Wrestle House fallout.

Don Callis comes up to Moose in the back and reminds him that he has a two year contract. Callis suggests that if Moose hurts Kenny Omega, the contract may be ruined. Moose doesn’t want to hear it and says he’s coming for the Impact World Title. And maybe Omega’s too. Callis: “S***.”

We recap Sami Callihan vs. Eddie Edwards in Barbed Wire Massacre. They have feuded on and off for years now and this is the FINAL match, with Callihan having Ken Shamrock in his back pocket. Eddie has no one, as he has ordered his wife to stay away for her own safety.

Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan

There are various barbed wire instruments around the ring, including one side of a cage with barbed wire on top/wrapped around it and various barbed wire weapons hanging from a wire above the top rope. Eddie avoids being driven into a barbed wire board in the corner, which falls over as they lock up. Sami is sent into the barbed wire in the ropes so Eddie whips out a barbed wire ring to press down onto Sami’s head. The board is on the mat but Sami is smart enough to push it out to the floor before he goes face first.

Eddie’s suicide dive (with a bit of a spin) sends him back first through the barbed wire board and Sami drops the Cactus Jack elbow for a bonus. Sami messes with some more barbed wire on the floor and takes it back inside for the slugout. Eddie gets dropped ribs first onto the wire and Sami whips him with a…..Nintendo 64 controller wrapped in barbed wire? I think I can go with this. Sami goes up but Eddie comes out with a backpack Stunner for the breather.

The Blue Thunder Bomb onto a barbed wire chair gets two on Sami but Eddie’s missed charge hits the cage wall. They hit each other in the head with barbed wire for a double knockdown so it’s time for a barbed wire kendo stick vs. the barbed wire bat. It’s better because they have the other’s signature weapon and it’s Sami dropping him onto the barbed wire board. Another barbed wire board is thrown in and Sami (mostly) bridges it between two chairs.

A super piledriver through the barbed wire board only gets two and there wasn’t even any drama on the kickout. I know it’s just a spot these days but can you at least try to have some drama in there? Sami loads up the bat to the chair on the face but Eddie kicks him away and hits the Boston Knee Party into a chair. The Emerald Flosion onto the barbed wire finishes Sami at 18:53.

Rating: B-. This is one where your individual tastes are certainly going to vary and that isn’t a big surprise. There were some completely ridiculous moments here but it felt like two people who hated each other wanting to hurt each other. The piledriver kickout was pretty ridiculous and I’m not a big fan of this kind of match in the first place, but it could have been a lot worse than what we got.

Rebellion is on April 24.

We recap the main event. Impact executive Don Callis brought in AEW World Champion Kenny Omega as part of some big elaborate plan which isn’t quite as epic as they think it is. Impact World Champion Rich Swann didn’t like it so Kenny hooked up with the Good Brothers against Swann and the Motor City Machine Guns. Alex Shelley is out for the six man though and Moose, Swann’s #1 contender and the man who hurt his best friend, is taking his place.

Kenny Omega/Good Brothers vs. Rich Swann/Moose/Chris Sabin

Don Callis is here too and handles Omega’s entrance (which Striker says is a moment fans will be telling their children about). Omega has a Bullet Club shirt (the Halloween edition for some reason) on, because we need to know New Japan history to understand the AEW World Champion’s reference in Impact Wrestling. Anderson drives Sabin into the corner to start and a shot to the face has Sabin in some trouble. An armdrag gets him right back out though and we have a standoff.

Moose and Gallows get in for the big man showdown with Moose knocking him around. Omega comes in, with Striker making both a hockey reference and saying that the Bullet Club reunion on Dynamite reminded us why we all love wrestling. It’s off to Anderson vs. Swann in a hurry with the latter snapping off a headscissors. Gallows and Omega are knocked to the floor and it’s a double dropkick to Anderson.

Moose adds a standing moonsault, with Striker saying that Moose now is the sport, a few seconds after talking about how amazing it was that the two World Champions are in a match together. Sabin gets taken into the corner so the villains can take over, including Omega hitting a backbreaker for two. Striker asks Brown if Omega is the best in the world and Brown seems to think so. There is NO MENTION AT ALL of the Impact Wrestling WORLD CHAMPION, who is in this same match, in case you needed an illustration of why Impact’s benefit from this Omega deal is rather limited.

Anderson grabs a chinlock on Sabin but the comeback sets up a double clothesline, allowing the tag to Omega and Swann (thankfully with Striker bringing Swann’s name in for the best wrestler in the world discussion). Everything breaks down and some assisted DDTs send the Brothers outside. Swann dives onto Omega but the frog splash is blocked back inside. Anderson adds a slam (with Sabin flipping him off), allowing Striker to talk about wrestling being a universal language.

The Kitaro Crusher gets two and a triple splash gets two on Swann. Back up and Swann manages a Pele to Omega and the hot tag brings in Moose. House is cleaned and the Omega BANG is mocked, setting up a triple boot to Omega in the corner. The discus lariat gets two on Omega (Striker: “HISTORY MADE TONIGHT!”) and now it’s Sabin in trouble in the corner for a change. Omega hits a Doctor Bomb for two on Sabin, who is right back up with a missile dropkick to Anderson.

Omega is up with the V Trigger to Swann but Moose catches him on top with a super Spanish Fly. Everyone is down again until Omega gets over for the hot tag to Gallows. The Boot of Doom gets two on Sabin with Swann making the save. Swann and Omega get the double tag for the big slugout with Omega getting the better of it. The other four fight outside until Moose pulls Omega off the top and into an electric chair.

Something close to a Doomsday Device gets two on Omega, with Callis teasing the save. Striker: “Some people think Callis has betrayed Impact Wrestling.” I actually had to sigh at how stupid that was so we’ll move on to Omega hitting the V Trigger on Swann. Some kicks put Omega down and the 450 gets two. The Magic Killer plants Swann and Moose has to make the save. Another V Trigger hits Moose and another V Trigger hits Swann, setting up the One Winged Angel for the pin at 20:26.

Rating: B. The wrestling itself was good, as expected, but it’s rather difficult to care about Impact when their World Champion is being presented as someone lucky enough to have Kenny Omega knee him in the face. Commentary here was a big love letter to AEW, which is being treated as the greatest thing ever as it reaches down to the unwashed masses of Impact. That may be true from a business standpoint, but why in the world is IMPACT acting like that is the case? It’s a good match and I think you know where this is heading, but could we act like Swann is close to Omega’s level? For five minutes maybe?

Omega and pals celebrate to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show started off rather badly but then it picked up a lot of steam just before the halfway point. The big matches worked rather well and completely saved the show, which is often how a show like this tends to go. They had a nice show, but there were some things that hurt it a bit, aside from the completely lackluster first hour or so.

First and foremost, the Omega worship was out of hand to start and is just getting worse. The main event didn’t make me want to see Swann vs. Omega. It made me think that Omega is treating Swann like a practice dummy, which is completely fitting for Omega. What it ISN’T fitting for is the commentary team, who seem to be in awe of Omega and treat their World Champion like a guy who won a contest. I know Omega is a bigger deal, but can we at least act like he might have trouble against the company’s World Champion?

Then you have Striker himself and…..I can’t believe it but he has gotten more annoying. Between acting like everything you see is the greatest thing that has ever happened, trying to turn every move into some brilliant strategy that ties back into some other move and name dropping EVERY SINGLE WRESTLER HE CAN THINK OF, Striker is one of the most irritating things I have ever seen on a wrestling show. It’s great to have someone who knows history, but there is a world of difference between sounding smart and being a distraction, which he was all night long.

Overall, the show did work well, but I’m worried about where this company is going in the future. They didn’t make some of their biggest stars look good in the main event and Striker is going to be as annoying as I could have ever imagined. There are some good things happening here, but if AEW is going to be a bigger presence, I’m going to be having flashbacks to New Japan coming in to Ring of Honor and leaving it as a near wasteland. They had a good show for the most part, but the future isn’t looking so bright.

Results

Decay b. Tenille Dashwood/Kaleb With A K – Tornado DDT to Kaleb With A K

Violent By Design b. Tommy Dreamer/Cousin Jake/Rhino – Piledriver to Deaner

Fire And Flava b. Havok/Nevaeh – Fisherman’s neckbreaker to Nevaeh

Matt Cardona b. Ace Austin via DQ when Madman Fulton interfered

Manik b. Rohit Raju and Chris Bey – Rollup to Raju

Deonna Purrazzo b. Taya Valkyrie – Cosa Nostra

Karate Man b. Ethan Page – Fatality

Eddie Edwards b. Sami Callihan – Emerald Flosion onto a barbed wire board

Kenny Omega/Good Brothers b. Rich Swann/Chris Sabin/Moose – One Winged Angel to Swann

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

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

AND

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

We’re back with another Impact pay per view, even though the point seems to be to make another company’s World Champion look good. This time around the focal point is the invading Kenny Omega, will will team with the Good Brothers against Impact World Champion Rich Swann, Chris Sabin and Moose, after Alex Shelley was forced out of the show for unclear reasons. The rest of the card looks ok so let’s get to it.

Pre-Show: Brian Myers vs. Josh Alexander

This was thrown in this week on Impact since every pay per view needs a pre-show match these days. Myers beat Alexander via DQ and bragged about it so we’re having this for the sake of shutting him up. I’m not sure what Impact sees in Myers but there are far worse places he could be than in the pre-show match. Alexander is going to need a boost soon so we could have something going here.

I’m going to take Alexander here as there is no reason for this to drag on for another match. As much as he has been featured, Myers isn’t being pushed to the moon so they aren’t likely to give him anything here. The match will likely be on about the same level as a regular TV match and that’s all it needs to be given where they are here. It probably didn’t need to be here, but Alexander can get your attention well enough.

Eric Young/Deaner/Joe Doering vs. Tommy Dreamer/Rhino/Cousin Jake

It isn’t a good sign when my first reaction to a match is “at least they’re keeping it all here” but that’s about as good as I can go with this. We have Dreamer being Dreamer, the epic Deaners split, Doering (he was big in Japan, right up there with Jesse and the Rippers) and Young as some kind of mastermind because this company loves him very much. It’s also Old School rules, because they can’t say Extreme and Dreamer can’t do much else.

I’ll go with Young and company as for some reason this seems to be one of the upcoming big things. Young is tolerable enough in some spots, though the love affair with Doering isn’t exactly doing much for me. Adding in the turned Deaner isn’t going to make things better, but if they can keep all of this stuff crammed into one match, it could be a lot worse than what we’re getting.

Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan

This feud MUST continue and this time it’s Barbed Wire Massacre because when you think Edwards, you need something like this thrown in. I know this is viewed as some legendary rivalry but it feels like they are just warming it up because neither has anything to do. Edwards is able to carry almost anything to at least watchable, but as soon as I heard the barbed wire deal, I could hear Josh Matthews with his machine gun delivery taking away any impact it might have.

Give me Callihan to win, likely thanks to Ken Shamrock because we need another evil alliance to triumph. Shamrock and Callihan are somewhat intriguing, but I don’t need a Barbed Wire Massacre to make it work. The match should be good enough and odds are Alisha will get involved, but I’ve been over this feud for a good while now because it ran out of steam years ago.

Ethan Page vs. Karate Man

We continue with the “why is this a thing” section, but in this case Page has so much charisma that he can manage to face himself and make it work. I’m going to assume this is a cinematic match and Page’s way out of the promotion, but you never know with something like this. The Karate Man stuff alone is always worth a look, but I’m almost scared of what to see here.

Since they’re facing each other, I’ll go with Karate Man to win and get rid of Page once and for all, which should make your head spin at least a little bit. There is a chance that we could be in for some good jokes here and under the right circumstances, this could be one of the best things on the entire show. Page is awesome at his goofy stuff, and hopefully he gets to showcase himself well on the way out.

X-Division Title: Manik(c) vs. Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raju

This is part of one of those stories that works out well almost every time because it’s a classic. Bey and Raju are convinced that Manik is TJP (because Manik is TJP) but can’t beat him or prove it, meaning their frustration factor has increased about 17 fold. Now it’s a free for all for the title, which opens up a few interesting doors as they could go in a few different directions.

I think they’ll play it safe here and have Manik retain the title because there are more places to go with something like this. Manik is someone who can have a good match with anyone and Bey is one of the better young stars around here. Raju has been rather nice as well lately, so we could be in for something good. This might be the match with the most promise on the whole show and I can’t say I’m surprised.

Knockouts Tag Team Titles: Nevaeh/Havok vs. Kiera Hogan/Tasha Steelz

Who would have thought that a tournament for the vacant titles would come down to two of the only regular teams who happened to be feuding for weeks before the tournament started? Hogan and Steelz have done a nice job of being the most annoying heels imaginable, which made Havok and Nevaeh grabbing them by their throats that much better. This was almost a guarantee for the final, so at least they’re doing the logical thing.

I’ll take Havok and Nevaeh to win here as you need some faces to win on this show. It isn’t the most intriguing match on the show but it was the only way to go to get to the tournament finals. I’m not sure how far these titles can go as WWE hasn’t been able to make theirs work for years now. The match will be the same thing that we’ve seen several times between them now but….yay belts?

Rosemary/Crazzy Steve vs. Tenille Dashwood/Kaleb With A K

This seems to have been added near the last minute and I’m still trying to make myself care about Dashwood. The Instagram deal is fine, but it feels like something you would see at a tiny independent promotion because it’s that easy of a story. There is no doubt that the talent is there, but for some reason it isn’t clicking. You can only get so far with something like this though and I think we’ve reached her current limit.

I don’t see a reason for Kaleb With A K and Dashwood to win here, even though they need it a lot more. Rosemary seems to be building up something with Susan, so unless she interferes and costs them the match, I don’t see a reason to have Rosemary and Steve lose here. The match itself should be another TV level match, which is quite the trend for most of this show.

Knockouts Title: Deonna Purrazzo(c) vs. Taya Valkyrie

The Knockouts singles division has done well enough for itself in recent months and Purrazzo is awesome as the technical wizard champion. Valkyrie is almost the old guard in a way, despite her title reign not even feeling all that long ago. While her big reign is over, Valkyrie can go in the ring with anyone and Purrazzo is one of the best things going in the company today.

Purrazzo being one of the best things going today is more than enough to keep the title on her here. Beating Valkyrie is more along the lines of beating a challenger of the month, but she just happens to be a really successful challenger of the month. It means something to beat her though and Purrazzo can continue her reign with another rather nice win added to her list.

Kenny Omega/Good Brothers vs. Rich Swann/Chris Sabin/Moose

This whole invasion (if that’s what you call Omega and Omega alone showing up from AEW) is making me think of Lando Calrissian saying “this deal is getting worse all the time”. So far, the highlight of the feud for Impact is their World Champion escaping with a pin over their Tag Team Champion. Omega and Don Callis have been treated as stars who are gracing Impact with their presence. I know it gives Impact exposure, but this is feeling more like New Japan coming to Ring of Honor every day (and that’s not a good thing).

Of course Omega and the Good Brothers win here, because why would they lose here? I know this is probably heading towards Omega taking the Impact World Title, as that is the best way to continue making Impact look like they don’t compare to AEW in any way. Yes AEW is more important and Omega is a bigger star, but sweet goodness could Impact look much worse so far?

Overall Thoughts

This show looks pretty dreadful on paper as there is nothing of note to look forward to. I’m sure some of the matches will work as Impact tends to shine when they just go to the ring and focus on the wrestling, but nothing on here really jumps out. Hopefully the show winds up working, because this feels like they have almost no reason to do this show other than they have to. It will likely be good enough, but they need to work on spicing things up.

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

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IMG Credit: WWE

Impact Wrestling
Date: November 22, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

We’re done with Turning Point and now things are starting to get a little more interesting. There were two title changes on the show as the Good Brothers and Deonna Purrazzo won the Tag Team and Knockouts Titles (you can figure out which did which). Other than that, the hunt is still on for John E. Bravo’s shooter. Let’s get to it.

Here is Turning Point if you need a recap.

The opening video looks at Turning Point, which did feel like an important show.

Opening sequence.

Moose vs. Willie Mack

Non-title, No DQ and a rematch from Turning Point where Moose won but had the decision overturned for attacking after the bell. They charge at each other to start with Mack hammering away and hitting a dropkick into the corner. There’s the Cannonball to send Moose outside but he tosses Mack over the barricade. Moose whips him into the barricade for a bonus and says this is for Rich Swann. Back in and Moose misses a dropkick but nips right back up.

The second dropkick works and it’s time to stomp away on Mack. There’s a hard whip into the corner but Moose misses a charge into the buckle. The slugout is on with Mack hitting the Samoan drop into the standing moonsault. The Stunner doesn’t work so Mack goes with the swinging slam. Mack misses the Six Star frog splash and Moose nails the spear (now called Lights Out, which is as generic of a name as you can get, as opposed to the good No Jackhammer Needed). Moose hammers away with right hands on the mat until the referee stops it at 10:09.

Rating: C. These two work well together with Moose handing out quite the beating to him in both matches. Mack as the buddy of Swann and taking the beating to set up the title match is a good way to go, though you would expect the bigger guy to be the one waiting after the little buddy was beaten down. Either way, Moose looked great and that’s the point of something like this.

Post match beats on him again. Remember when Eric Young did something like this a few weeks ago and it was nowhere near as effective? Just an observation.

Here’s what’s coming tonight.

We go to the Tree House where the Rascalz are sad about being evicted. They remember when Wentz and Gail Kim went to see the Jonas Brothers. Gail pops in….but it’s just a story apparently as Wentz doesn’t remember that. Then there was the time when Moose popped in and beat all of them up. Then the lights go out because they haven’t paid the light bill. See? It must have been Moose.

The Deaners come in to see Detective Dreamer, who is narrowing down his suspects. Cody suggests that Tommy search Johnny Swinger’s fanny pack (where they found a gun at Turning Point).

Suicide vs. Gio

And never mind as here are Eric Young and Joe Doering (who debuted at Turning Point) to jump Gio for the DQ at 41 seconds.

Post match, Young says this is what he promised and the world belongs to them.

Deonna Purrazzo says her and Kimber Lee’s plan has come together perfectly. Now it’s time to win the Knockouts Tag Team Titles. The lights go out and Su Yung has left a message saying bad things happen next week.

Heath and Rhino are in the back with Heath talking about his contract. Rhino tells him to go make it work and walks out of the room to run into Eric Young and Joe Doering. Rhino says it’s not happening with them here so they beat him down. Heath comes out and Eric points Doering at him, with the two of them going into the room. Pain seems imminent.

Brian Myers vs. Crazzy Steve

Fallout from Steve saving Swoggle at Turning Point. Steve drives him outside to start and then snaps off a headscissors back inside. An upside down Figure Four necklock over the ropes has Myers in more trouble and they fight to the apron as the announcers talk about the Knockouts Tag Team Titles tournament. We take a break and come back with Myers slapping on a chinlock to keep Steve in trouble.

A suplex gets two on Steve and Myers isn’t happy with the kickout. That means we hit another chinlock, followed by a sleeper to mix it up a bit. Steve breaks it up and sends him into the corner for some clotheslines, followed by the running senton for two. A Russian legsweep into something like an Octopus Hold on the mat sends Myers straight to the ropes, as he should be doing. Myers pokes him in the eye to get out of a belly to back suplex though and it’s a running clothesline for the pin at 9:08.

Rating: D+. Myers continues to be just kind of there for the most part but at least he’s doing something other than whining about how he should have been used better in WWE. Granted I’m not entirely sure what that new character is, but he’s getting a chance and that’s better than some others do. Steve is just kind of there, but I’ve seen a lot worse.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Madison Rayne/Gail Kim b. Brooke Tessmacher/Tara to win the Knockouts Tag Team Titles on the November 3, 2011 Impact.

Here are the brackets for the Knockouts Tag Team Titles Tournament:

Tenille Dashwood/Alisha

Havok/Nevaeh

Killer Kelly/Renee Michelle

Jordynne Grace/TBA

Kiera Hogan/Tasha Steelz

Sea Stars

Deonna Purrazzo/Kimber Lee

Taya Valkyrie/Rosemary

Johnny Swinger comes in to see Tommy Dreamer and asks to see what’s in the fanny pack. Swinger: “You mean the pharmacy pack daddy?” It’s a gun, so Dreamer declares him guilty before saying we’re bringing back WRESTLERS’ COURT next week. If he’s guilty, why are they going to court?

Knockouts Tag Team Titles Tournament First Round: Alisha/Tenille Dashwood vs. Nevaeh/Havok

Kaleb With A K is here with Dashwood/Alisha. Nevaeh gets sent into the corner and caught with a running clothesline from Alisha. A double suplex takes Nevaeh down again and it’s Dashwood staying in to kick away at the ribs. Dashwood hits a clothesline into a chinlock, though she does make sure to hit a smile for the photos. Nevaeh fights up and the double tag brings in Alisha, who walks into a spinning release Rock Bottom from Havok.

Alisha gets whipped hard into the corner, though Dashwood is distracted by another photo shoot. Back up and Alisha gets in her own whip into the corner, setting up a sliding clothesline. Everything breaks down and Dashwood is sent outside. Alisha is back up with a middle rope X Factor on Nevaeh but Havok catches her in a wheelbarrow, with Nevaeh adding a cutter for the pin at 6:37.

Rating: C-. The tournament could be a bit of a slog as there are only so many teams, but Nevaeh/Havok should be one of the better options available. You can probably guess the finals from here but there are enough possibilities out there to make it interesting and that’s always a good sign. Dashwood and Alisha shouldn’t have been a threat and they didn’t waste time with anything else, so at least it’s off to a good start.

Jordynne Grace is on the phone with her mystery partner, who was retired but agreed to team with her anyway. That could be interesting.

Hernandez vs. Fallah Bahh

They charge at each other to start until Bahh takes him down with a crossbody. Hernandez gets to the apron and scores with a slingshot shoulder though, sending Bahh outside. That means a big dive to crush Bahh as they’re going with the power stuff so far. Back in and Hernandez hits a big clothesline and we’re off to the neck crank.

That lasts as long as the common neck crank with Bahh fighting up and sending him into the corner for the splash. The running hip attack makes it worse but Hernandez is up at two. The Samoan drop is broken up though and Hernandez knocks him down, setting up the top rope splash for the pin at 3:35.

Rating: D+. Now this really needs to be the end of the feud as it wasn’t interesting in the first place and has dragged on FAR too long. I’m not sure why they went with Hernandez winning here as he isn’t exactly presented as anything important, but he does have a bigger history. Then again Bahh hasn’t had a chance, and this wasn’t much better.

Rohit Raju brags to Scott D’Amore about retaining at Turning Point, making D’Amore long for Austin Aries. Raju leaves and TJP comes up, with D’Amore saying it’s so frustrating that TJP can’t ever have another title shot. All D’Amore can think of is what would Dusty Rhodes do. How would he find a way for ANYONE BUT TJP to get a title shot? TJP gets the hint as D’Amore rides away, like a day as midnight approaches.

Video on the Good Brothers winning the Tag Team Titles.

Ethan Page comes up to Scott D’Amore, with the Good Brothers, demanding a title shot. Karl Anderson suggests that Page face a PHENOMENAL opponent, which is cool with Page, as long as it means a title shot when he wins. D’Amore makes the match and insider lingo abounds.

Here’s what’s coming next week.

Trey Miguel/Rich Swann vs. Dez/Wentz

It’s the Rascalz’ farewell match. The dancing is on before the match as they’re all friends, though Wentz winces a bit when trying to match everyone else in the splits. We take a break and come back with the opening bell, as Wentz drives Trey into the corner. Wentz reverses a wristlock into a headlock and they fight over wrist control again. They both miss some shots to the face and try dropkicks at the same time, setting up stereo nipups into a standoff.

Dez and Swann come in to shove each other away off an exchange of lockups. Both guys stick a few landings, with Trey saying he can’t do that. Swann catches him with a shot to the face and it’s Trey coming in, only to be sent into the corner for some rapid fire double teaming. We take a break and come back with Wentz kicking Trey in the face, followed by a DDT. Trey is fine enough to get over for a hot tag to Swann though and it’s time to clean house.

Everything breaks down and Swann’s standing shooting star press gets two. All four wind up on their knees in the middle of the ring for a circle slugout. Everyone hits a kick to the face and they’re all down again. Dez and Wentz finally take over on Swann with the rapid fire kicks and the Hot Fire Flame connects.

Trey superkicks Dez into the corner for the save though and everyone is down again. Wentz gets caught in the corner for a Cheeky Nandos kick from Trey and Swann adds the frog splash to Dez. That’s broken up by Wentz, who shouts at Swann a lot. Another Hot Fire Flame misses and Trey hits Dez with the top rope Meteora. Swann kicks Wentz in the back of the head for the pin at 15:48.

Rating: B. It was a good and fast paced match and I’m sad to see the team go. I’ve been a fan of them since the day they debuted but at the same time, they have never won a title around here and you can only get so far without picking up some gold. The company is going to need some help to make up for them being gone, but you kind of have to move on at some point and the Rascalz need to do that at the moment.

Post match everyone hugs and cries, with the Rascalz leaving their jackets on the top rope.

The Rascalz and Swann go backstage and hug….but Sami Callihan and Ken Shamrock jump them for the big beatdown. It’s better than the New Day split, though not quite as emotional.

Overall Rating: C+. The main event and post match beatdown worked well but the rest of the show was pretty hit or miss. This week’s show was far from bad and the focus on the Rascalz worked, but other than that it’s a show meant to build towards things later. That doesn’t make for the best show, though at least it feels like a one off rather than a trend. It helps that they have a good angle to go out on so hopefully it picks up next week.

Results

Moose b. Willie Mack via referee stoppage

Gio b. Suicide via DQ when Joe Doering interfered

Brian Myers b. Crazzy Steve – Running clothesline

Nevaeh/Havok b. Alisha/Tenille Dashwood – Wheelbarrow cutter to Alisha

Hernandez b. Fallah Bahh – Top rope splash

Rich Swann/Trey Miguel b. Dez/Wentz – Kick to the back of Wentz’s head

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

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IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: November 10, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Josh Matthews, Madison Rayne

We’re on the way to Turning Point, which is actually looking like a pretty stacked card for an Impact Plus special. That means we still have a long way to Hard To Kill though and they are going to need something big to get us there. Tommy Dreamer in a deerstalker hat and Rich Swann vs. a new evil alliance will have to do. Let’s get to it.

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

Opening recap.

Opening sequence.

Tenille Dashwood/Madison Rayne vs. Havok/Nevaeh

Kaleb With A K handles Dashwood’s intro and Josh is alone on commentary this time. Madison and Nevaeh go with some grappling to start with Madison grabbing some armdrags to little avail. A clothesline gives Nevaeh two so it’s already off to Dashwood for a change. Some standing switches don’t go anywhere so Dashwood sweeps the leg to take over, meaning it’s off to Havok for a change.

Dashwood starts panicking so she goes with the “jump on the giant’s back” strategy, which works as well as usual. It’s back to Madison, who gets caught in a backbreaker/running clothesline combination for two. Madison’s choking fails and the CrossRayne is countered into a Tombstone to give Havok the pin at 5:04.

Rating: D+. You would initially think that Madison and Tenille would have been a heck of a team but this was more designed to make Havok and Nevaeh look dominant. That’s how it should have gone too, as they have history as a team and Dashwood is not likely to be the most caring and selfless person. It makes sense when you think about it and that’s nice to see.

Here’s what’s coming at Turning Point and tonight.

The Good Brothers are ready to win the Tag Team Titles at Turning Point but tonight, Karl Anderson is ready to beat up Josh Alexander. Ethan Page comes in for some northern glaring.

Tommy Dreamer interrogates Larry D. about shooting John E. Bravo but can’t get anywhere, even with his lie detector. Cody Deaner takes Larry’s place and insists that he didn’t shoot Bravo either, despite being rather mad at him. This could take awhile.

X-Division Title: TJP vs. Rohit Raju

TJP is challenging and this is his last shot. They start before the bell with TJP hitting a baseball slide and snapping off a suplex on the ramp. Back in and the bell rings with TJP stomping on the champ’s legs. Raju is back up with some choking in the corner before pulling the referee in front of him for a shield.

That’s enough to take us to a break and we come back with Raju hitting a pair of kicks for two. Raju starts in on the arm before hitting his own suplex for two more. It’s back to the arm as Madison lists off her accomplishments to show she knows what it’s like to be a target. The armbar goes on until TJP blocks a front suplex and grabs a tornado DDT. TJP grabs a surfboard for a bit but Raju catches him on top.

That means it’s time for the Tree of Woe but TJP pulls himself up to throw him back down. Raju can’t get a Crossface so TJP grabs a double chickenwing into a pair of knees to the chest. The Mamba Splash misses though and now the Crossface goes on, only to have TJP quickly reverse into the kneebar. Raju crawls for the corner but settles for the title, which has to be taken away. That’s enough for Raju to hit a low blow and a running knee to the head retains the title at 12:57.

Rating: C. Raju is starting to be a rather pesky champion and that’s a good thing. He came off well here as the champion in way over his head against someone as talented as TJP but then stole the win anyway. Raju is better on the mic and in character stuff, but he’s hanging in there well enough in the ring to make it work.

Fallah Bahh hides Hernandez’s money again when Hernandez comes in to yell at him. Tasha Steelz and Kiera Hogan of all people come in to defend Bahh and Hernandez leaves. Hogan distracts Bahh and Steelz takes the money, replacing it with a roll of tape. The girls leave and Bahh thinks the tape is the money, because he’s not that bright.

We go to the Tree House where the Rascalz have received…..an eviction notice! They haven’t paid rent in two years. Wentz: “IT’S A TREE!” They have to leave in a week, which commentary says means they’re out of Impact Wrestling.

Chris Sabin vs. Acey Romero

Acey jumps him to start and sends Sabin outside for a beating from Larry D. Back in and a hard whip into the corner makes things worse for Sabin and the dropkicks to Acey’s legs don’t do much good. The neck crank doesn’t last long so Acey drives him into the corner again without much trouble. The big elbow misses though and Sabin gets a boot up in the corner for a breather. Sabin hits a dive to the floor to take both of them down, followed by a high crossbody for two back inside. A running enziguri rocks Acey and a second one is good for the pin at 6:21.

Rating: C-. That could have been a lot worse as Sabin is the kind of old pro you need to get something out of a monster like Romero. It was nothing out of the ordinary and points for having the Guns (or at least half of them) trying to make something out of XXXL. The big guys aren’t exactly the kind of team who are going to reinvent the wheel so whatever you can get out of them is a bonus.

Post match Larry comes in for the double team and Sabin is left laying.

Sami Callihan sits next to Chris Bey (Sami: “Can I call you Christopher?” Bey: “Nah.”) and praises all of his talents. Bey is willing to listen.

James Mitchell says he gets that it makes perfect sense for him to attack Bravo, but he wouldn’t waste that pure virgin blood. Dreamer’s lie detector detects lies, but Mitchell says it runs through his veins. Mitchell knows who does it and is willing to tell Dreamer. Couldn’t he have saved himself a lot of trouble by saying this earlier?

Chris Bey vs. Eddie Edwards

Eddie starts with a heck of a chop but Bey flips out of a few things and snaps off a headscissors into a standoff. An atomic drop into a belly to belly has Bey in trouble but Bey kicks the leg out. A running backsplash hits Eddie and there’s a spinwheel kick to give Bey two. Eddie fights back up with the rapid fire chops in the corner but the tiger driver is countered into a hurricanrana. Bey tries a springboard cutter but gets pulled into a rollup for the surprise pin at 4:57.

Rating: C. What we got was good but I was hoping for/expecting a bit more from these two. They seem like they could have a heck of a match if they were given a chance with some more time but maybe this is just a tease. If nothing else, I’d rather see these two again instead of another Eddie vs. Sami Callihan match.

Post match Bey grabs a chair but the lights go out and it’s Sami Callihan jumping Eddie from behind with a baseball bat. Rich Swann runs in for the save. Cue Ken Shamrock to jump Swann though, with Bey chairing Eddie down as well. Sami loads up the chair over Swann’s face but the Rascalz make the save.

Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb With A K ask Jordynne Grace about being partners. Well Kaleb With A K does but Grace wants to hear it from Dashwood herself. She mumbles the offer before finally asking, with the match being set for Turning Point but not for the tournament.

Rich Swann thanks the Rascalz and a match is set for next week with Trey/Swann vs. Dezmond/Wentz in the Rascalz’ farewell.

Flashback Moment of the Week: The British Invasion b. Beer Money and Motor City Machine Guns to retain the Tag Team Titles.

Deonna Purrazzo, in some big sunglasses, is ready for a No DQ match against Su Yung at Turning Point because she’s a virtuosa. That means she will win the Knockouts Title back….and then Kimber Lee disappears. She appears behind a door, with the message “I THINK UR ALONE NOW” written on the window. I’m not entirely sure who said it because there doesn’t seem to be anyone around but I think you get the hint.

James Mitchell tells Dreamer to trust him but Dreamer has to investigate this himself. Havok comes in to take Mitchell’s place, who admits that she didn’t want to bring Mitchell back. That must have made her mad. Maybe mad enough to shoot John E. Bravo. She says Dreamer should be asking Rosemary about this but he asks her instead. And it’s to be continued.

Reno Scum vs. Fallah Bahh/Crazzy Steve

Luster and Bahh grab a headlock to start with Bahh running him over with a crossbody. Thornstowe comes in to dropkick Steve and a standing moonsault gets two. There’s the Pit Stop and even Madison thinks that’s too far. Steve gets over for the hot tag to Bahh without any further issues and it’s time to clean house. A Samoan drop gets two on Thornstowe but Bahh misses the Banzai Drop. Luster comes in for a low superkick and the top rope curb stomp is good for the pin at 3:47.

Rating: D. Insert all of my usual complaints about Reno Scum being boring and that is about all there is to say about them. Bahh and Steve are kind of a random team but it is better than watching the same Bahh Steals Hernandez’s Money stuff deal. The match came and went, which is about as high praise as I’m giving Reno Scum.

Chris Sabin asks someone to be his partner against XXXL. He’ll even throw in a beer. The guy says yes and….it’s James Storm. Well that’s an upgrade. Sabin isn’t sure on the beer though.

Willie Mack has a bruised larynx but he’s cleared to wrestle. Moose runs in for a beatdown but Mack hits him in the throat and says he’ll see him at Turning Point.

Turning Point rundown. I might have to try that one.

Karl Anderson vs. Josh Alexander

Doc Gallows and Ethan Page are the seconds. Alexander takes him down by the leg to start before taking him into the corner. A clothesline puts Alexander on the floor though and we take a break. Back with Alexander being sent to the apron but he sweeps the leg to pull Anderson outside. They head inside again with Alexander slowly stomping and striking away, including some knees to the back.

The chinlock goes on, followed by a belly to back suplex to give Alexander two. We hit the seated abdominal stretch but Anderson is right back up with a neckbreaker. The slugout is on with Anderson getting the better of things, setting up a running backsplash. A spinebuster gets two on Alexander but he’s back with a running boot for his own two. The lifting Pedigree is countered and it’s a harder slugout. Anderson’s clothesline gets two more. Alexander blocks the Gun Stun but Page comes in for the DQ at 14:11.

Rating: C-. I’ve lost count of how many times we’ve seen the Good Brothers in the main event slot and they’re about as fine as you can imagine. I know their big deal is the character stuff but egads man. How many times can we see something like this and still be expected to get overly excited? Anderson can wrestle a singles match well enough and it wasn’t bad, but I wasn’t overly invested at all.

Post match the big brawl is on with referees breaking it up to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. This really didn’t work as I was struggling to find a reason to keep watching. The action was just ok at best and the stories aren’t great. Above all else, the Who Shot Bravo thing has turned into a Tommy Dreamer story and that’s one of the last things I was hoping to see. It isn’t a disaster, but this was a really dull show and hopefully that gets better next time around because this was a tough sit.

Results

Havok/Nevaeh b. Tenille Dashwood/Madison Rayne – Tombstone to Rayne

Rohit Raju b. TJP – Running knee

Chris Sabin b. Acey Romero – Running enziguri

Eddie Edwards b. Chris Bey – Rollup

Reno Scum b. Fallah Bahh/Crazzy Steve – Top rope curb stomp to Bahh

Karl Anderson b. Josh Alexander via DQ when Ethan Page interfered

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

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

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

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