Impact Wrestling
Date: October 25, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Jeremy Borash, Todd Kenely, Mike Tenay, Taz

It’s Championship Night or whatever the latest gimmick show these guys have going on is called. I’m not a big fan of having I think three title matches less than two weeks after BFG, but since the shows themselves aren’t worth watching, they need a gimmick to draw in fans. There’s a world title match tonight with an opponent for Hardy to be announced. Let’s get to it.

We open with Hogan and Hardy in the back. Hogan is picking Hardy’s first challenger tonight and Hardy is ready for anyone. Hardy leaves and we get a really stupid voiceover from Hardy, talking about all of his potential opponents. He doesn’t care who he faces here.

X-Division Title: Rob Van Dam vs. Zema Ion

We’ve got split announcers tonight, with Kenely (not sure who he is) and JB doing the first hour and the usual boys doing the second. Ion tries a quick rollup for two but it’s a standoff. Rob gets a gorilla press of all thigns and a pair of moonsaults for two. Ion heads to the floor and Rob is sent into the barricade when he follows. Ion charges into a kick in the ring but Rob misses a dive to the floor. Zema hits a flip dive over the top to take the champ out. Back in and Ion misses a majorly flippy dive so Rob kicks him in the face and hits Rolling Thunder for no cover. The Five Star retains the title at 4:33.

Rating: C-. Van Dam is a good pick for the title because you’re going to get at least a watchable match out of him and a win over him will mean something. Thankfully this should get him past Ion who was champion because….I’m not sure why he was champion, but it might be because he’s still around when everyone else from the X-Division revival

As Van Dam celebrates, Matt Morgan takes his head off with the Carbon Footprint. Joey Ryan has the X Title and poses with it. Morgan says this is what Hogan wanted.

Austin Aries is listening to the people trying to get the title match. The options are Angle, Anderson, Storm and Ray. Aries gets a shot anyway so he doesn’t care. We get some good jabs at Hogan’s “acting” and Aries says he’s going to use these guys for his personal amusement once they’re eliminated.

Here are Daniels and Kaz who don’t like the lack of tricks they’ve been getting for all the tricks they’ve been through. Daniels was left alone last week because Hogan screwed with Kaz’s travel. Kaz thinks the new champions are here in this country illegally. Daniels takes the mic from him and says that it’s not really Championship Thursday is it Suburban Commando? It’s a crime that everyone else is getting a shot but not them.

Daniels accuses Dixie of pandering to a Latino audience and says they should wear sombreros and drink tequila. Maybe they should call themselves Dos Stereotipicos. Daniels has a petition to get another title match. Well that’s better than the auto rematch clause. Cue the champions who say they’ll help with the petition. Hernandez has his title wrapped a chain around his neck. The brawl is on and the champs clear the ring in about a second. I think we have a rematch made. Kaz: “GIVE ME THAT CLIPBOARD BACK! THAT’S AN EXPENSIVE PEN!”

Hogan eliminates Anderson for nothing having enough fire. Aries tries to interview him. “Was it not taking enough vitamins? Not saying enough BROTHERS?” Aries says Anderson would be an easy opponent than him and throws a drink in Anderson’s face. The fight is on and Aries is down off a WICKED PAPER POSTER SHOT TO THE HEAD! A match is made and Anderson laughs. Then, to further the stupidity, we hear the director yell CUT. I mean…..really?

D-Von is with Aces and 8’s. The President has said no masks can come off. There are some women here to entertain them apparently, but first they have to take someone out. A member throws a dart at a bunch of pictures of wrestlers but we don’t see who it hit.

TV Title: Robbie T vs. Samoa Joe

Geez enough with the Robs getting title shots! Joe pounds away in the corner to start but T comes back with a spin kick to take him down. Joe puts on the Clutch and after a meaningless Robbie E distraction, Joe puts the hold on again while jumping on T’s back. Terry falls back on him but in an AWESOME moment, Joe sits up and with an INSANE look on his face, puts the hold back on and gets the tap at 2:28. Look up that ending. It looked great.

We recap Tara taking the title from Tessmacher along with Jesse from Big Brother. Did I mention I can’t stand reality TV?

Back to Hogan’s office and Ray apparently isn’t focused enough. He’s going to find D-Von and take care of him, basically eliminating himself.

Anderson yells at a guy in a headset and apparently it’s Anderson vs. Aries next. I know this because the announcer said it’s Anderson vs. Aries next.

Mr. Anderson vs. Austin Aries

They start immediately and Anderson yells mean things at Austin. Anderson takes his shirt off as Aries chills on the floor. A fireman’s carry goes nowhere and things slow down. Aries puts brass knuckles in Anderson’s tights but the referee takes them away. That was kind of odd. The fans chant cheater and Anderson pounds him into the corner again. Anderson gets sent to the floor and there’s the suicide dive as we take a break.

Back with Aries still in control but the fans are cheering for the cheater now. Anderson tries to fight back with some elbows and a clothesline that spins Aries inside out. Anderson’s spinning neckbreaker takes Aries down but the Regal Roll is countered again. The double rotation kick sends Aries to the floor and Anderson adds a plancha.

The fireman’s carry is loaded up again but Aries takes out the referee. Aries steals the knuckles from Aries and Anderson gets them. The referee takes them away and Aries knocks him cold with another pair. Aries pulls Anderson on top of him to feign a pin attempt before putting on the Last Chancery for the pin at 11:49.

Rating: C-. This was an awkward match, likely because Anderson is so unorthodox in the ring. Not a horrible match but it was missing by a half beat. Aries is doing some cool stuff and I like him way better as a heel. I like Anderson way better off my TV, but I guess he’s better in this role than another, but it’s not like it’s a great improvement.

Brooke and Tara/Jesse do their usual stuff. Brooke tells Jesse that ODB has an eye on him. Isn’t ODB married?

Tenay and Taz take over in what is supposed to be a big deal I think. We recap the show up to this point.

Knockouts Title: Miss Tessmacher vs. Tara

Tara is defending and gets jumped before she can get in the ring. After more of a beating, a Jesse distraction lets Tara take over with some cheap shots. Tara slams Tessmacher’s face into the mat a few times but stops for a kiss. From Jesse unfortunately. More kissing occurs and Tara misses her slingshot somersault legdrop. Tessmacher comes back and hits her Stinkface before hitting an X Factor out of the corner. Tara grabs Terrell and Jesse lowbridges Tessmacher. Widow’s Peak retains the title at 3:57.

Rating: D+. Annoying non-celebrity aside, Tessmacher contines to do nothing at all for me. She’s just there and is exactly the same character she was a year ago. Also she’s just not that good in the ring, period. Her looks are great but mix up the outfits a bit already. Tara continues to be annoying with Jesse so it’s a success on that front. Hopefully this feud is done now.

Post match more making out occurs until Brooke comes out to shake her head. Apparently ODB is calling out Jesse next week on Open Fight Night.

Joseph Park goes in to talk to Hogan about fighting Aces and 8’s. Hogan says Park has had one match (he’s had two) and also he’s worried about Park’s liability. Park has a piece of paper. Hogan: “What’s that?” Park: “It’s a piece of paper.” He goes on to say it’s a letter of indemnification which means if he gets hurt fighting Aces and 8’s, it’s no one’s fault but Park’s and there’s no legal responsibility for anyone else.

Here’s Ray who again thanks Sting for letting him be his partner. Not much shocks Ray anymore, but the D-Von reveal did. Ray wants an explanation from D-Von but gets the whole group instead. They get in the ring and D-Von says they’re not friends or a team or anything anymore. D-Von says this has nothing to do with Ray anymore and it’s all about Hogan. Apparently this is because Hogan said that he wanted D-Von re-signed to the company, but Hogan and Dixie never called. In other words, if you don’t follow TNA online and follow Hogan on Twitter, this whole story makes VERY little sense.

D-Von says it’s over but Ray says it’s over when he says it’s over. Ray says D-Von is lying and he talks about the Guns coming back from 3D like two years ago and how they should have retired as champions. Years ago D-Von said they’re rich so screw the fans. D-Von says yeah he said it, so Ray wants to fight one on one right now. D-Von says it’s on his time but Ray says he’ll call him out next week on Open Fight Night.

Ryan says he wants the X Title and Morgan says Hogan started this.

It’s also Gut Check next week. The wrestler is Christian York. He wrestled on the first TNA show and in ECW.

Hogan says he’s got something big planned for Storm in the future but tonight Angle has the title shot.

TNA World Title: Kurt Angle vs. Jeff Hardy

Jeff has two belts here: the vanity belt around his waist and the real one over his shoulder. We get some big match intros and we’re ready to go. Jeff takes him down with an armbar followed by the slingshot dropkick in the corner. Jeff goes to the corner but gets shoved out to the floor as we take a break. Back with Hardy escaping a chinlock and they clothesline each other.

Hardy starts speeding things up and kicks Angle to the floor. There’s a big clothesline off the apron and back inside for Whisper in the Wind for two. Angle comes back with Rolling Germans for two. The Slam is countered into the Twisting Stunner for no cover. Hardy goes up for the Swanton but Angle throws him off the top for two. Angle busts out a powerbomb for two and puts on a quick ankle lock, but Jeff kicks him off. The same kick puts Angle down but the Swanton misses.

The Angle Slam gets two so Jeff hits two straight Twists and the Swanton for just two. Jeff charges at Kurt and gets backdropped to the floor. Angle is spitting up blood. There go the straps as Hardy is thrown back in. Another Slam is countered into a rollup for the pin at 14:29 to keep the belt on Hardy.

Rating: B. When you need a solid match, call Kurt Angle. He’s great in spots like this where you need a main event and have no one else to throw in there. His resume is good enough to buy as a challenger no matter what he’s been doing lately. Either way, good stuff here and a very solid TV main event.

Post match Aries jumps Hardy and says the rematch is at Turning Point. Aries is so confident he’ll win that he takes the belt with him. The original, not the stupid one.

We cut to the back to see Angle getting destroyed by Aces and 8’s to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. I liked the show, but man alive was it exhausting. There’s WAY too much stuff going on here between all of the title matches and the backstage stuff and the reality show stuff with Hogan and it’s all just too much. TNA is the opposite of WWE in that respect as while WWE has too much time on their hands, TNA doesn’t have enough and you get shows like this where there’s so much stuff going on that you can’t get a chance to breathe.

Still though, this was WAY better than last week and I feel better about where they’re going now. One more note: slow down on the gimmick shows. We’re going from Championship Thursday to Open Fight Night next week. Space them out or cut one. Back to back is too much, and there’s likely another gimmick that I can’t think of.

Results

Rob Van Dam b. Zema Ion – Five Star Frog Splash

Samoa Joe b. Robbie T – Koquina Clutch

Austin Aries b. Mr. Anderson – Last Chancery

Tara b. Miss Tessmacher – Widow’s Peak

Jeff Hardy b. Kurt Angle – Swanton Bomb

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: October 11, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

It’s the final show before BFG and I can’t say I’m chomping at the bit to see the show on Sunday. Bound For Glory is mainly focused on Sting/Ray vs. Aces and 8’s, whoever they are. The world title match is mixed in there somewhere but it’s way beneath the tag match as far as importance. As for tonight, I wouldn’t expect a lot of matches as the focus will likely be on building up what’s already there through a lot of promos. Hopefully there’s less King Mo tonight too. Let’s get to it.

After the recaps, we’re told that it’s Storm vs. Aries and Roode vs. Hardy. Those should be good.

James Storm vs. Austin Aries

We don’t have to wait long to see if they’re good I guess. Non-title here of course. Feeling out process to start and Storm armdrags Aries to the floor. Back in and Storm pounds away before he skins the cat. Aries tries to slide beneath the Cowboy as he pulls himself back in, but Storm dives at the champ. Aries slides back in and hits the suicide dive to take over in a sweet sequence.

After a quick chinlock from the champ, they chop it out in the corner. A dropkick from the middle rope to the back of a seated Storm gets two. James is all fired up now and he pounds away in the corner. Another ten punches hit Aries in the other corner but he comes back with five punches of his own. Storm shoves him off but the Eye of the Storm is escaped and Storm gets guillotined on the top rope.

The champ misses a missile dropkick but the Codebreaker is escaped. Brainbuster doesn’t work for Aries and they roll through an O’Connor Roll. Aries flips him over and they hit head to head. Roode runs out and posts Storm which I’m not sure Aries saw. The brainbuster finishes Storm at 7:20.

Rating: B. This was a fast paced opener and it worked really well. Storm has grown up so much in the last year it’s unreal. I really hope they haven’t screwed him up to the point where he can’t get near the world title again. This match could set up a post BFG feud if Aries retains, but if Hardy wins then it’s Bully Ray getting the first feud I’d assume. Still though, very good opener.

Wes Brisco asks Angle if he can go to Phoenix. Angle says ok and that can’t end well. AJ comes in and says Angle needs to get his head in the game and leaves.

Sting’s 4^th or so BFG Moment is the Hogan face turn from last year.

Here are Sting and Hogan to the arena. Hogan and Sting don’t like having to play by Aces and 8’s rules and Hulk says it feels like they made a deal with the devil. This brings out Daniels and Kaz, saying that they’re the angels that can fix this problem. Hogan made the wrong move by picking Ray, because instead of Sting/Ray, it should be the two of them fighting Aces and 8’s.

Kaz: “Listen Thunderlips…” Ok Kaz is awesome. Kaz tries to get out of the title match and suggests that Angle is put in Ray’s place in the tag match. Here’s Ray who says Angle is a great choice for a wrestling match, but this is going to be a fight. Ray says he doesn’t have to be Sting’s friend because he has a unified goal in getting rid of Aces and 8’s. Hogan isn’t convinced and makes the tag champs vs. Ray/Sting. The champs PANIC.

Hernandez vs. AJ Styles

AJ takes him down to start and escapes a choke hold with a Pele. Styles keeps yelling at Chavo instead of following it up, which allows SuperMex to avoid a charge in the corner. Off to a bearhug for a few moments before AJ escapes and speeds things up. The drop down/kick sets up another dropkick to send Hernandez to the floor. Styles yells at Chavo AGAIN and Hernandez gets up again. Back in and Hernandez hits something like a Monty Brown Pounce for the pin at 3:53.

Rating: C. This wasn’t great but they were telling a good story with AJ being distracted by the numbers game but without Angle out there to even the numbers, AJ lost in an upset. They’ve built up the title match very well and I’m really not sure who is going to win, which is the right idea for a match. It should be awesome too.

Aces and 8’s feed Joseph Park and imply that tonight they’ll determine if they’ve been locked out or if everyone else is locked in.

Here’s Zema Ion who complains about not having a title match on Sunday because he’s injured everyone in the division. This brings out…..Rob Van Dam? He says Hogan has told him he can fight anybody he wants at BFG, and instead of picking Aries and Hardy in the world title match, he picks Ion. Rob kicks Zema to the floor and that’s the match setup.

Ray comes in and asks Sting if he’s ready but Hogan isn’t pleased. Ray asks why Hogan doesn’t trust him and they get in an argument. Sting snaps and says Ray can be trusted. If there is anyone you want to trust the instincts of, it’s Sting.

Brooke and Teryn are talking when Tara comes up with a list of stuff she has to do once she’s champion. Brooke rips it up and says no green room for the boyfriend on Sunday.

Christopher Daniels/Kazarian vs. Sting/Bully Ray

Ray and Daniels start with Ray hitting a BIG chop in the corner. Another one has Daniels screaming and Kaz gets scared off the apron. Sting takes over on both champions and it’s off to Ray vs. Kaz. Ray gets two off a belly to back suplex and it’s off to Sting. Off to Ray for another suplex as Sting and Ray are tagging very fast. Sting hits the first splash in the corner but Daniels pulls Kaz away from the second one.

Sting gets crotched on the post and sent into the barricade as the champions take over. Ray chases Daniels off with a chair and it’s off to Kaz for a chinlock on Sting. Back to Daniels who pounds away some more but they clothesline each other, allowing for the double tag to bring in Ray and Kaz.

Bully cleans house and everything breaks down. Daniels tries to hit Sting with a belt but Ray kicks him down. Sting saves Ray from a top rope double ax from Kaz and the unlikely partners shake hands. Sting says Bully Get The Tables. Great way to stop the D-Von chants there guys. Ray powerbombs Daniels throug a table for the DQ at 10:09.

Rating: C. So the tag team champions just got slaughtered by a makeshift team that is likely going to split up due to Ray being himself on Sunday. That’s TNA logic for you, and if a team going into the third biggest match on the card has to be sacrificed along the way so be it. At least it wasn’t a pin.

Video on Aries vs. Hardy with Aries still being jealous of Jeff.

We get a video recapping Aces and 8’s.

Video recapping Snow vs. Ryan.

Joe and Magnus get in an argument in the back about the match on Sunday. Magnus says he’s a businessman and Joe hides behind politics. As Magnus is leaving he says “Bound For Glory….or at least I am.” Good line.

Gail Kim vs. Miss Tessmacher

Non-title of course. Tessmacher takes over to start but Gail avoids the Stinkface. Gail takes over with a guillotine on the top rope and starts choking away before hitting a backbreaker for two. Tessmacher comes back with a slingshot and some shots in the corner followed by that sitout legsweep of hers. Tessmacher goes up and gets crotched before countering a fireman’s carry into a sloppy rollup. Gail counters a rana into a powerbomb for two and Tessmacher hits a bad looking release mat slam which I can’t remember the name of for the pin at 5:31.

Rating: D. This was another uninteresting and pretty sloppy Knockouts match. The move is called the Tesshocker apparently. Good to know. Tessmacher is doing nothing for me as champion as she’s the exact same person she was months ago and that’s not a good sign. Tara is someone that can help her but the whole division is just there anymore.

Tara comes out for a beatdown but Tessmacher beats her down and hits the Tesshocker.

Roode is talking in the back when Storm comes in and says he knows it was Roode that attacked him earlier. Storm chokes Roode and a fight starts before King Mo, the real star of the match Sunday, breaks it up and says save it for Sunday.

Sting’s Hall of Fame video.

We run down the BFG card.

Bobby Roode vs. Jeff Hardy

Roode jumps Hardy as Jeff is slapping hands at ringside. They head inside for the opening bell with Roode in full control. Hardy makes a brief comeback with his seated dropkick and they slug it out in the corner. A clothesline puts Roode on the floor and Hardy hits a big old plancha to take Roode out. Back in and Roode clotheslines him down and we head back to the floor. Hardy hits a suplex on the outside and we take a break.

Back with Roode holding Hardy in a front facelock and keeping control. Hardy fights up but gets put in a sleeper for his efforts. That gets two arm drops but Hardy finally breaks the hold. Hardy rams him into the buckle and hits Whisper in the Wind for no cover as he’s too far down. Hardy fires off right hands and hits a middle rope splash for two.

Roode comes back with a spinebuster for a near fall of his own and Jeff goes up, only to get caught in a superplex attempt. Hardy knocks him off but misses the Swanton. A spear puts Jeff down for two and the fisherman’s suplex is countered into a Twisting Stunner. Another Twist is loaded up but Roode this Hardy low for the DQ at 16:18.

Rating: C. Not bad here but it wasn’t ever going to hit an epic level given the ending they had to do. Hardy is likely going to win the title on Sunday but that doesn’t really make it a huge moment. The title match’s build is only so good at best and it doesn’t really make me care about it or the PPV as a whole. The match will be good but they’re approaching WM 18 area with the Aces and 8’s match as related to the world title. Gee and it’s Hogan again. Shocking.

Anyway post match Hardy runs Roode off and here’s Aries. Aries is tired of being told to the fans and it’s not true that he’s jealous of Hardy. He’s not jealous of the rap sheet Hardy has or of Hardy being so crippled he can barely play with his little girl. He’s tired of Hardy getting special treatment while he can’t even get the new music and the new entrance he wants. Aries says he does his best when it’s him against the world.

The only failure at BFG is Hardy because until Hardy beats Aries, he’s still a failure. Hardy is a lot taller than Aries. Jeff’s response: “Austin, my nuts hurt.” He says he’ll win on Sunday and Aries asks Jeff to leave so he can bask in the fans’ glory. Hardy goes to leave but Aries kicks him low and loads up the brainbuster which lays Hardy out. No Aces and 8’s tonight.

Overall Rating: C-. This didn’t do much for me, but the point of the show wasn’t to blow the doors off the place. The idea of this show was to set up the PPV and they did that for the most part. Adding RVD and the X Title to the card was a good idea as both should be on the biggest show of the year. This wasn’t a thrilling show but they have the PPV ready to go, although I’m not wild on where they’re going with it.

Results

Austin Aries b. James Storm – Brainbuster

Hernandez b. AJ Styles – Running Body Attack

Christopher Daniels/Kazarian b. Sting/Bully Ray via DQ when Ray powerbombed Daniels through a table

Miss Tessmacher b. Gail Kim – Tesshocker

Jeff Hardy b. Bobby Roode via DQ when Roode hit Hardy low

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: October 4, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

We’re closing in on Bound For Glory with this show and then one more next week before the biggest show of the year. Last week Hogan and Sting agreed to a tag team match against two Aces and 8’s guys at the PPV and it’ll be Sting and someone else, possibly RVD, to face the bikers. However, the deal is nothing else happens from Aces and 8’s until the PPV, so it’s not likely that’s what we’re going to be discussing tonight. Let’s get to it.

Normal recaps open things up.

Hogan and Sting are in Hogan’s office but Hogan can’t be with Sting at the PPV. Sting is going to watch every match tonight to determine who his partner is going to be at BFG.

Mr. Anderson vs. Gunner

Anderson says he wants to be Sting’s partner and to watch him do his thing here. Gunner immediately jumps Anderson to take over. Anderson knocks him to the floor but Gunner takes over back inside. A quick chinlock doesn’t really get Gunner anywhere so he whips Anderson into the corner only to miss a charge. Mic Check gets the pin at 2:28.

Post match Kid Kash comes in to beat on Anderson but gets Mic Checked as well.

Tara is on the phone with her boyfriend when Gail comes up. They have a tag match later and Tara insults Gail’s cable TV star husband, who is a TV chef I think.

Gail Kim/Tara vs. Miss Tessmacher/ODB

ODB and Gail start things off with the bigger chick throwing Gail into the corner. The beating continues with ODB in complete control. Off to Tess for a Stink Face because that’s what she’s good for. ODB comes back in and misses the Bronco Buster but saves herself before pain hits her crotch. Off to Tara who can’t get out of the way of the Bronco Buster but a Gail distraction allows the heels to take over.

Tara and Gail keep having issues as Tara wants to come in and get the glory after Gail does the work. Tara’s standing moonsault hits ODB’s knee and it’s off to Tessmacher to very little reaction. A headscissors takes Tara down as does a faceplant out of the corner. ODB gets a shot from the flask and spears Gail down but Gail comes back in and is shoved by Tara into Tessmacher. The Widow’s Peak pins Tessmacher at 4:44.

Rating: C. The Knockouts are a shell of what they used to be but there’s an angle here which is tried and true over time (teacher vs. student) and it’s hard to screw up. On top of that we have the mystery of Tara’s boyfriend which could wind up being something interesting. Either that or it’s Jason Hervey which would just be stupid.

Bruce Pritchard is showing Al Snow something on a contract and Snow says he’ll get it done.

We recap Al Snow vs. Joey Ryan over the months.

Here’s Snow and he brings out Joey Ryan with something to say to him. Snow says that several months ago he did something he shouldn’t have and put himself and TNA in a bad position. He offers an apology to Ryan but that’s not good enough for Joey, who wants it more personalized. Ryan says tonight he’s in control and wants to hear about the other legal agreement they’ve come to. Snow pulls out a contract for Ryan but Joey wants to sign it on Snow’s back. There’s a catch though: Ryan has a match with Snow for BFG and it’s win and get a full time contract.

Angle wants to pull a double at BFG but Sting will only think about it. Kaz and Daniels are seen in the back hoping that Sting says yes. Angle leaves but Ray steps in and says he should be in the world title match, but he’ll take a spot on Sting’s team instead. Sting says go be a bully and prove your worth.

TV Title: Samoa Joe vs. Rob Van Dam

Joe won the title last week and it’s his first defense. That’s a different belt than the one he held last week too. Joe takes him down to start but Van Dam comes back with a few forearms. Those get him nowhere as Joe clotheslines him down and hits an enziguri in the corner. Van Dam tries his rolling roll up but Joe catches the leg and puts on an STF. They head to the floor and Van Dam dropkicks the leg out before trying to drape the wide load over the barricade.

That fails due to the laws of gravity and RVD gets rammed into the steps for his efforts. Back inside and Van Dam hits a middle rope cross body to put Joe down but he goes up top WAY too fast. Joe pulls him off the top and the MuscleBuster is enough to retain the title at 4:27. I miss that move.

Rating: C+. This didn’t have any time to get going but it worked while it lasted. Joe being all dominant and tough again is a good thing as he’s one of the guys that is hard to screw up when he’s booked right. RVD continues to be kind of there in TNA. He doesn’t really do anything but he’s a big enough deal that he can be thrown into whatever story and fit. Match was short but it was decent while it lasted.

Everyone in the tag team triple threat but Angle gets in an argument about last week and Chavo losing the match because of interference.

Dixie talks about her BFG memories.

Aries talked to Hardy earlier today about their tag match last week where Hardy stole the pin after Aries did the work. Ray comes up and says he’s not going to punch either of them right now, but he’ll punch one of them later. It’s to prove himself to Sting by beating Hardy. Aries takes offense to this and wants to fight Ray instead. They argue so Hardy suggests a triple threat. Ray is cool with that.

Chavo Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle

No Kazarian? I would have thought it would be another triple threat like last week but this is a nice surprise. Feeling out process to start with Chavo hooking a headlock that can’t be broken by an Angle suplex. That’s quite the headlock. Angle takes him into the corner and stomps away but Chavo comes back with some uppercuts. Angle finally gets Chavo on the mat with a go behind grip and a kind of slam gets two.

Back up and Chavo dropkicks Kurt down and literally rolls onto him for two. A release belly to belly puts Chavo down but he escapes the Angle Slam and hits a quick rana for two. It’s time for Three Amigos but Angle blocks the third and rolls some Germans. The ankle lock is countered and there are the Three Amigos in full. The Frog Splash misses and there’s the Angle Slam. Hernandez looks at Angle and the distraction is enough for Chavo to roll up Kurt for the pin at 6:42.

Rating: B-. Another pretty good but short match here. I don’t know what the deal is with that unless Angle is still hurt and can’t go at full speed yet. His thigh is taped up so maybe there’s something not quite healed yet. They’ve done a good job with the three way feud and I’m digging the idea of the match at the PPV. Pretty good stuff here.

Hernandez and AJ get in for a staredown as the tag champs stand on the stage.

X-Division Title: Douglas Williams vs. Zema Ion

Williams starts out fast and clotheslines Ion to the floor. Ion is defending in case you had forgotten this title existed. Back in and Ion cranks on the arm with a hold and Williams taps almost immediately at 1:19.

Ion won’t let go and the decision is reversed. He says he’s on the top of Sting’s list but he wants off it, because his looks aren’t worth the risk.

We look at King Mo, an MMA guy who is coming to TNA and will be guest referee for Storm vs. Roode because that match needs a guest referee for some reason.

Pritchard and Brown are looking at a video of Matt Morgan running in at a house show and beating up a referee. Pritchard yells at Brown for letting this happen.

Here’s Storm to talk about the match with Roode a bit more. Ten days from now this war with Roode started and at BFG, it’s not about proving that Storm is a better fighter or a better wrestler. It’s about being a better man. Hogan doesn’t like the referees being pushed around so he’s brought in King Mo to be the guest referee. Cue Roode for the interruption.

Roode accuses Storm of riding his coattails and being jealous of Roode for years. Bobby promises that this isn’t just a match, but it’s going to be a fight. He’s not going to stop at BFG until he knows Storm’s career is over. It’s going to be a bloodbath and Roode doesn’t care about King Mo, because no one is going to stop him at the PPV. If Mo were here, Roode would say it to his face. Mo comes out in a glittery silver robe, MMA gloves, a big freaking medallion and a crown and shoves Roode down. Mo gets in the ring in Storm’s face and they share a beer.

Hogan has picked his guy and has it written down, because he can’t say it to Sting who is right next to him. Sting likes the idea but wants to see Bully first.

Aces and 8’s tortures Joseph Park a bit more. He’s been kidnapped for three weeks now. WHY HAS NO ONE CALLED THE COPS??? They tear Park’s shirt off and apparently are going to attack car battery clamps to his nipples. We’re going to find out who their two guys are tonight to face Sting and whoever it is.

Joe vs. Magnus at BFG. That was obvious and that’s the right call for sure.

Bully Ray vs. Jeff Hardy vs. Austin Aries

Non-title here. This is joined in progress after a break with Ray knocking down Hardy in the ring. Aries is on the floor I presume but he pops back in as Hardy is sent to the floor. Aries and Hardy start working together with some Poetry in Motion with Aries playing Matt. The legdrop between the legs and a low dropkick set up a Twisting Stunner to Ray and Jeff goes up. There’s the Swanton but Aries makes the save. Aries hooks the Last Chancery but Hardy makes the save this time.

Hardy is sent to the floor and Ray backdrops Aries onto Jeff in a good looking crash. Back in and Aries says he doesn’t need anyone, which is pretty solidly heel of him. He hits the running dropkick to Ray but Bully blocks the brainbuster. He goes to look for his chain but settles for the title belt instead. Hardy back in now and Ray sends Jeff into the champ. Bubba Bomb to Hardy gets the pin at 4:10 shown. Yeah less than five minutes.

Rating: C. This is the night of the short matches. Ray winning is one way they could have gone although I’m not sure it’s the right one. It’s also not the wrong move but they put themselves in an awkward place here. Ray winning is probably the best possible outcome they could have gone with, but this likely wasn’t the best match for them to pick.

Here are Hogan and Sting to announce Sting’s partner for the match. Hogan talks about how Aces and 8’s are running wild around here and now it’s getting personal. Really? Just NOW it’s getting personal? Hogan says he needs a real partner for Sting and it’s going to be….Anderson. Yes, apparently beating Gunner is more impressive than beating the world champion and the number 1 contender. And never mind as Anderson is beaten down by Aces and 8’s in the back.

Ray runs out and says it should be him now for sure. He gives a great speech about going to war (ruined by the fans chanting for D-Von) and sticks his hand out to Hogan. Sting likes the idea and Hogan waits before shaking his hands. The fans boo of course because nothing makes these people happy. Ray is ready to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This show was…..understandable. It certainly isn’t a good show but they built up the PPV. This is the funky period before a major PPV where the card is mostly set and now you’re filling in the stories before you get there. It happens every year before Wrestlemania and it happens every year before BFG. It’s not fun but it has to happen. Nothing on here was terrible, but nothing on it was great either. They’re not even trying to hide that Aces and 8’s is the real main event and I’m actually hoping it goes on last so we don’t get the same thing Roode and Angle got last year where no one cared. Slow, but not awful show.

Results

Mr. Anderson b. Gunner – Mic Check

Gail Kim/Tara b. ODB/Miss Tessmacher – Widow’s Peak to Tessmacher

Samoa Joe b. Rob Van Dam – MuscleBuster

Chavo Guerrero b. Kurt Angle – Rollup

Douglas Williams b. Zema Ion via DQ when Ion wouldn’t release his hold

Bully Ray b. Jeff Hardy and Austin Aries – Bully Bomb to Hardy

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: September 13, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Tazz

Well we’re past No Surrender and it looks like we have two of our three main matches for the biggest show of the year. Hardy won the BFG Series in what can only be called a surprise given that he did almost nothing until the last few weeks. I mean, the guy lost to Robbie E. Also it looks like we’re having Roode vs. Storm in the likely blowoff to their nearly year long feud. That just leaves the Aces and 8’s match which will probably be Lethal Lockdown. We’re headed to Phoenix now so let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of the PPV with the voiceover guy.

Here’s the champ to open things up. He holds up the title and talks about how important it is, and how it makes the company go around. It’s also why Aces and 8’s have been all over him. On Sunday he didn’t unmask anyone but he got a piece of one of them. That brings us to Bound For Glory and his opponent at Bound For Glory: Jeff Hardy. The champ asks Hardy to come out here so here’s the painted one.

Aries congratulates Hardy for winning the Series, especially given how much he went through on Sunday. Hardy is a man of few words, but the fans love him. The fans cheer for Aries as well, and at Bound For Glory, it seems like Aries has something Hardy wants. Aries sees it as Hardy has something Aries wants.

Before he can elaborate on that, here’s Bully Ray to tell both of them that they’re lucky. Aries is lucky that Ray isn’t getting the shot and Hardy is lucky that Ray felt badly for him for one second when Aces and 8’s took out Hardy’s shoulder. Ray goes on a rant about how many times he’s beaten Hardy and now he screwed it up. Aries cuts Ray off and says maybe Ray and Hardy should fight again. Apparently it’s on for later.

X-Division Title: Zema Ion vs. Sonjay Dutt

Didn’t we see this match on Sunday? Dutt immediately takes him to the floor and hits a moonsault and headscissors to take the champion down. Back in the ring and a rana gets two. Ion tries to hit a charge in the corner but gets caught with a pendulum kick. Another rana takes Ion down but Dutt misses a standing moonsault and Ion hooks a Rings of Saturn. Dutt escapes and slams Ion down for the moonsault double stomp. That move is still insane. Dutt goes up again but gets crotched and rolled up for the pin by Ion to retain at 3:30.

Rating: C-. Ion had ONE offensive move the whole match and that’s the rollup. I’m not a fan of the idea of the champ getting beaten down until he pulls off a miracle win at the end. Dutt continues to look awesome here and is probably the best X-Division guy to never be X-Division Champion.

Post match Ion cranks Dutt’s arm back.

Hogan walks in on Daniels and Kaz imitating him in a funny bit. We get an overly complicated deal for later: Daniels is going to face either Chavo or Hernandez while Kaz is going to face either AJ or Angle. If both of them win, they don’t have to defend against either team again. If either of them lose, they have to face the member of the team that beat them. Assuming both guys lose, they have to face both teams.

Angle and Styles talk about who gets to face Kaz. Apparently it’ll be AJ. Styles leaves to get ready when Wes Brisco comes up and says nothing of note to Angle.

We recap Roode and Storm from Sunday.

Here’s Roode to the ring. He says he’s back and talks about getting screwed against Aries at Hardcore Justice. He can’t get another rematch with Aries during this reign so he left. So then he shifted his views to James Storm, who made a living off Roode for years. Roode made sure Storm wasn’t getting the world title shot either…..and here’s the Cowboy.

It’s on immediately and Storm takes him down to the floor and up the aisle. Storm rams him into the stage and puts a dent in the thing. They head to the back and some equipment is knocked over and we go to a break.

We get a clip from BFG 09 where AJ beat Sting to retain the title. The tagline of Memories Are Waiting is great.

Kazarian vs. AJ Styles

AJ snaps off some armdrags to start and a big right hand takes Kaz to the floor. The drop down/kick takes Kaz down and Kaz heads to the floor where he gets pounded on even more. We take a break and come back with AJ hitting a backbreaker to stop Kaz’s momentum. AJ heads to the apron and blocks a suplex back in before DDTing (kind of) Kaz on the apron. AJ tries to go after Kaz but gets caught in a monkey flip on the floor. Back in and Kaz gets three quick two’s but AJ pops up and tries the Clash. That doesn’t work so he settles for the springboard forearm for two. Kaz gets a rollup with feet on the ropes for two but he walks into the Pele and the Clash for the clean pin at 10:10.

Rating: C+. This was somewhat sloppy but the match worked well enough. At the end of the day you can’t mess up Styles in a match when he can fly around the ring. Decent match here and a good way to set up at least one set of challengers for the tag champions. I sense a triple threat for BFG though, because what would a PPV be without one of those?

Hogan is in the back with Brooke and says he doesn’t want her going anywhere around here without two bodyguards. Joseph Park comes in and after some legalese, he says that his key piece of evidence is coming next week. Hogan tells Park to guard Brooke until further notice. Hulk leaves and Park givers her his legal pitch which goes nowhere.

Ray yells at Hardy in the back and asks for tonight’s match to be for the title shot at BFG. Hardy doesn’t say anything but eventually he opens his eyes and says sure.

After a quick package from Sunday about Aces and 8’s, here’s Hogan to the ring. He praises all 12 guys in the BFG Series but Hardy came out on top. Hardy is from another solar system and it’s cool with Hulk if the title is on the line tonight. Hogan talks about how Sunday at No Surrender was a game changer with the lockdown and all that. The Impact Zone is going to be locked down forever.

This brings Aces and 8’s to the monitor. The leader says that it’s not that they’re locked out. It’s that they’re locked in. From this moment on, Hogan will never have any idea who is working against him. Hogan looks scared. Well he might be hungry. With his acting abilities you never can tell.

Christopher Daniels vs. Chavo Guerrero Jr.

Feeling out process to start with Guerrero hooking a headlock and an over the shoulder backbreaker for two. Daniels heads to the floor and avoids a kick but gets taken out by a running flip attack off the apron. Back in and Daniels takes over and works on the ribs of Chavo a bit. A backbreaker puts Chavo down but he pops back up and starts his comeback. Daniels gets hiptossed to the floor and grabs his belt but the swing with it misses. Chavo rolls some suplexes and the Frog Splash gets the pin at 6:30.

Rating: C. This wasn’t as good as the first match but it was fine. Chavo is fine in the role he’s in but I really can’t see him moving up at all. The triple threat match should be fine and I could see the newest team pull off a surprise win with the other two canceling each other out. This was fine.

Aaron Markopoulis is the next Gut Check guy.

Storm wants more of Roode and he’s getting it next week at Open Fight Night.

Gail Kim talks about winning the first Knockouts Title.

Here’s Tara for a chat. She asks Tessmacher to come out here and says that on Sunday, the student beat the teacher. Tara asks to put the belt on Tessmacher (a rare sight with that belt) and after awhile there’s the obvious heel turn. Widow’s Peak leaves the champ laying.

Another video from Sunday and the main event.

Dixie yells at the people in charge of TNA (agents/Hogans) about Aces and 8’s so Hogan talks about how this is war. Dixie is worried about everyone because there must be someone inside. They’re going to look Aces and 8’s in the eye instead of running.

Bully Ray vs. Jeff Hardy

Winner gets the shot at BFG. Ray jumps Hardy during his posing on the ropes to get us on fast. Hardy sends him to the floor and hits a plancha as we take a break. Back with Ray dropping an elbow for two and backdropping Hardy. A splash gets two as well but Jeff tries the Twist. Bully shoves him shoulder first into the post and Jeff is in trouble. Hardy rolls in to break the count but it ticks Ray off even more and he drops a forearm on the back from the apron.

Back in and Ray goes for the chops in the corner. Dang those are loud considering Jeff has a top on. A corner splash from Ray hits but Jeff counters the second and hits Whisper in the Wind. They slug it out from their knees with Jeff taking over with an atomic drop and the legdrop between the legs to set up the basement dropkick for two. Twist of Fate is countered into a Bubba Bomb for two

An attempt at a second Bomb is countered into a DDT for two and Jeff is going up. Ray dives to crotch him and there’s a superplex for two. A Vader bomb misses but the Swanton does as well. Another Bubba Bomb hits for two and we’ve got like 30 seconds left of air time. The Twisting Stunner sets up the Twist of Fate which sets up the Swanton to cement Hardy in the title shot at BFG at 14:35.

Rating: C+. I liked this one more than the main event on Sunday as the fans were more into it and things didn’t get ridiculous with the kicking out of finishers. If you do it over and over again, the kickouts stop meaning anything at all. Here they only did it like twice and you got a better match out of it. Good stuff.

Overall Rating: B-. For the first of the last five shows before Bound for Glory, this was perfectly acceptable. The main event hopefully is set in stone now and the whole mole idea is interesting for the eventual Aces and 8’s match. Other than that we’ve got a blood feud with Roode vs. Storm where the blowoff is going to rock. I’m a lot more excited for this show than I am for anything WWE has coming up and that’s a good sign.

Results

Zema Ion b. Sonjay Dutt – Rollup

AJ Styles b. Kazarian – Styles Clash

Chavo Guerrero b. Christopher Daniels – Frog Splash

Jeff Hardy b. Bully Ray – Swanton Bomb

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

No Surrender 2012
Date: September 9, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

We’re back in Orlando for a PPV and it’s a month before the biggest show of the year in Phoenix with Bound for Glory. Since we’re a month away from it we need a main event. That’s where tonight comes in as the BFG Series ends tonight with the final four being Joe, Hardy, Bully Ray and Storm. It really could be any of those four which is what makes this a fun show. The rest of the card doesn’t really matter other than Aries vs. a member of Aces and 8’s. Let’s get to it.

The opening video is exactly what you would expect: all about the BFG Series. I think the song is that Taproot one they’ve been playing on Impact every week.

Bound For Glory Series: Samoa Joe vs. Jeff Hardy

The points are no longer a factor as this is winner advances and loser is done. Jeff grabs a headlock to start but Joe shrugs him off with ease. Hardy is sent to the floor and holds his arm as things slow down almost immediately. Back in and Jeff hits a quick headscissors to send Joe to the floor but the fat man is just getting mad now. Hardy hits a running attack on the floor but back inside the fat power man offense runs over Hardy with the backsplash getting two.

Joe puts on a nerve hold and an elbow to take Hardy down when Jeff tries a comeback. As always, Hardy looks like he’s dead. Off to a chinlock followed by the snap powerslam for no cover by Joe. Hardy is sent to the floor and taken out by a suicide elbow as Joe continues to dominate. Back in and Hardy gets punched in the corner a few times before starting his comeback. The legdrop between the legs sets up a clothesline to put both guys down.

The low dropkick gets two for Hardy but the Twist of Fate is countered. Whisper in the Wind gets two but Joe gets up first. Joe is still having issues with his arm from Thursday so he can’t hit the MuscleBuster. Hardy grabs a Twist of Fate out of nowhere but Joe crotches him before the Swanton can be launched. A sunset flip gets two for Hardy and it’s back to the armbar that he won the match with on Thursday. Joe counters into a rollup but Jeff counters into a crucifix for the pin at 12:45.

Rating: B-. Good opener here with a pretty good ending. Joe trying to counter the submission into a pin which was against his nature and being countered was a nice idea, but the arm stuff didn’t quite get brought in until the end. This was a surprise though and it was a better match than they had three days ago so no complaints here.

Storm says he’ll right the wrong of last year and beat Bully Ray.

Bound For Glory Series: Bully Ray vs. James Storm

Ray stalls to start and heads to the floor to beat up a sign. After two minutes of stalling, Ray slaps Storm in the chest and gets slapped in the face for his efforts. Storm goes after him and Ray heads to the floor again, tripping a bit on his way down. We’re four minutes into this so far and they’ve barely touched each other. Back in and Ray takes it to the corner but Storm has had enough and pounds the Bully repeatedly in the head.

Storm pounds away some more but the Last Call misses and Ray hits him in the leg to take over. Ray throws on a bearhug which is quickly broken but a big boot takes Storm’s head off for two. Ray gets in Hebner’s face but is shoved away in the signature Earl bit. Instead, Bully splashes Storm in the corner and pounds him down some more from the middle rope. Storm crotches him and a powerbomb gets two.

They slug it out from their knees and Ray misses a charge in the corner. A top rope cross body gets two for Storm as does a sidewalk slam for Ray. Storm charges into the referee and walks into the Bubba Bomb for two from a new referee. Ray misses the middle rope backsplash (duh) and Storm fires a forearm, taking out referee #2. Last Call hits but there’s no referee. Bobby Roode comes out with a beer bottle to Storm’s head and Ray gets the pin to advance at 14:08.

Rating: C+. This was a different kind of a match and not everyone is going to like it. This was based on entertainment rather than wrestling with Ray hiding every chance he could get. The problem with matches like this one is there’s limited action and a lot of standing around. It’s entertaining but not necessarily good if that makes sense.

Tessmacher says exactly what you would expect her to say.

Knockouts Title: Tara vs. Miss Tessmacher

Tara is her mentor and beat the champ on Impact a few weeks ago and that’s it. They fight over the arm to start with Tara controlling with a top wristlock. Tara keeps taking over with power and outmaneuvering Tessmacher. A backslide gets two for the challenger but Tessmacher tries a rolling cradle, only to get tangled in the ropes. As they come back in Tara gets two off a rollup and the champ grabs the arm to take over.

Tara finally slaps her to start the brawl with Tessmacher taking over. A cradle sends Tara into the mat and things speed up. Tara’s spinning side slam gets two as does the floatover suplex that got Tara the pin on Impact a few weeks back. Widow’s Peak is countered into a rollup for the pin by Tessmacher to retain at 6:39.

Rating: C-. For a Knockouts match this wasn’t bad but man alive no one cared at all. Granted there was a one night build to this match so it’s not like anyone had any reason to care. Tessmacher hit a wall with the Earl Hebner storyline and losing the title for a few days. It didn’t help anyone and it stopped Tess’ momentum cold.

Hogan tells Roode that he’s arrested when Storm comes up and beats Roode up. Storm is thrown out too.

We recap Aces and 8’s vs. Aries and the breaking of the world champion’s arm. Tonight it’s the first real match for the group as Aries gets to fight the armbreaker. There was a torture session involved as well.

Austin Aries vs. Arm Breaker

This is non-title of course and Aries is in workout clothes instead of trunks. Before the match, Aries talks about this being a war which is fine with him, because Aries is the God of War. Aries calls out the big man but he won’t let the masked man in. He does the HBK laying on the top rope to sucker the Arm Breaker in. The champ pounds the guy down and hits the suicide dive.

Back inside Aries pounds away some more but gets crotched to give the Arm Breaker the advantage. The Arm Breaker keeps pounding away and takes over even more on the champ. This isn’t a match mind you as there’s no referee and the bell never rang. A clothesline spins Aries around and the Arm Breaker loads up a powerbomb but Aries throws powder in his face. A dropkick sends the Arm Breaker to the floor and Aries dives out onto him.

The Arm Breaker gets in a shot and grabs a chair, but back in the ring Aries hits him with a roll of coins and the brainbuster. Aries goes for the mask but here comes the gang. The locker room empties out and it’s a big brawl. In case you care, the fight ran just under ten minutes or so.

Aces and 8’s get run off and Hogan comes out. He gets in the ring with the ball bat and Hardy is down on the floor for some reason. Apparently he’s hurt his shoulder. Hogan tells the security to lock the place down as Hardy is taken to the back. Ray seemed to come out a bit later than everyone else so maybe he’s the lead suspect now. We get a clip from the brawl of Hardy having his shoulder rammed into the post by a masked guy.

They actually try to give us a package on Dutt vs. Ion. That’s just amusing. In short, there is no story as this match was added on to fill in time on the card.

X-Division Title: Sonjay Dutt vs. Zema Ion

Ion is defending. Feeling out process to start with Sonjay taking over. Taz praises him and they head to the floor with Sonjay hitting a slick roll across the apron into a rana on the floor. Back in and Ion takes over with some basic stuff and puts on a chinlock. We cut to the back where cops are coming to lock down the building. Sonjay makes his comeback with a headscissors and then another. He goes up but gets stopped by Zema, only for the champ to get release suplexed out to the floor.

A middle rope moonsault to the outside puts the champ down and back inside Sonjay gets two. Ion counters a rana into a powerbomb on the bad arm Sonjay came in with and it’s Rings of Saturn time. Dutt makes the rope and takes the champ down again, only to miss the moonsault into the double stomp. We get a pinfall reversal sequence resulting in a backslide into a Gory Bomb from Ion to retain at 11:38.

Rating: C. The match was fine but it was dead on arrival all around after the segment before it. Having the match thrown onto the card did it no favors either as there was no story to it at all and no reason to believe the champ was ever in any danger. This just didn’t do anything for me at all but the match was fine technically.

BFG video.

Hogan talks to the cops about the lockdown.

Hardy is getting his shoulder looked at. Magnus pops up and says Hardy is suffering from a lack of common sense.

Rob Van Dam vs. Magnus

Another thrown on match but at least this has a story behind it: Magnus got in RVD’s business at a promo on Impact and the match was made as a result. Simple but it works I guess. Magnus plays the cowardly heel to start and they go to the mat with Van Dam sitting out on Magnus to frustrate him again. Some kicks knock Magnus to the floor The spinning kick to the back while Magnus is on the barricade misses and the knee hits the steel.

Back in and Magnus takes over by stomping away like a British heel. A Texas Cloverleaf keeps RVD down even longer as Magnus stays on the leg. A sleeper is quickly broken by Rob and a spinwheel kick puts Magnus down. Van Dam speeds things up and goes after Magnus’ knee before hitting Rolling Thunder for two. Magnus gets in a shot to take over but spends too much time on top, allowing Van Dam to take over again. Rob tries the monkey flip out of the corner but Magnus kills him dead with a clothesline for two. Not that it really matters as Van Dan kicks him down and hits the Five Star for the pin at 10:05.

Rating: C. The match was ok but why in the world does Rob need to win here? The guy is a legit main eventer and it looked like Magnus was going to become a big deal. Instead he’s jobbing here in about ten minutes on PPV. What’s the point in the mini push like that then when a guy like RVD gets the win he doesn’t need?

Kaz and Daniels say they should have called the cops because of the injustice they’ve gone through.

We get a recap of the whole Daniels/Kaz vs. Angle/Styles. This is just the last few weeks because the whole thing would be longer than the whole PPV tonight.

Tag Titles: Kurt Angle/AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels/Kazarian

Angle is legit hurt so we’re looking at more of a handicap match here. Daniels (one of the champions) starts with Angle so maybe he’s not that badly hurt. Daniels pounds him into the corner and the announcers talk about how Angle is hurt. Angle and AJ ping pong Daniels between the two of them and it’s off to Styles. That goes nowhere so Angle comes back in and helps launch Kaz into the air before Kurt comes in legally.

Kurt goes after Daniels and tags AJ back in before the champs take over for the first time in the match so far. Since this is a TNA PPV, we get Daniels vs. AJ for awhile with the former in control. Kaz puts on a double arm chinlock but AJ comes back with right hands. A clothesline gets two for Kaz and it’s back to Daniels for a chinlock.

AJ fights out and makes the hot tag to Angle who cleans house as only he can. Well ok so a lot of people probably could but he does it quite well. It’s suplexes all around, including the Rolling Germans to Kaz. Kurt turns his attention to Daniels and after suplexing him down, Angle turns around into a slingshot DDT from Kaz to give the champions control. A slingshot elbow from Daniels and a slingshot legdrop from Kaz get two and it’s cravate time from Kaz.

Kaz goes up but Angle runs the ropes and hits a freaky kind of Olympic Slam off the top to put both guys down. Hot tag #2 brings in AJ who beats on Daniels after the champions tag as well. The moonsault into the reverse DDT gets two but Kaz hits a big dropkick to send AJ into the corner. Angle tags himself in again and hits a top rope splash to Daniels for two. It’s Angle Slams for both guys but the cover on Daniels only gets two. Ankle lock to Daniels is broken up by an enziguri from Kaz and AJ tags himself in again.

The springboard forearm takes Daniels down and a Pele gets two on Kaz. Now this is cranking up again. The springboard 450 gets a VERY close two on Kaz so AJ goes up. Kaz follows him up for a top rope C4 (backflip Rock Bottom) for another close two. Angle and Daniels go to the floor with Angle grabbing his injured areas. AJ loads up the Clash but Daniels throws the appletini in his face so Kaz can roll him up for the pin to retain at 19:37.

Rating: B+. Yep this was great again. This wasn’t quite as good as the Slammiversary match because it took awhile to get going, but it was still excellent stuff. I don’t think anyone thought the titles were changing here and that really didn’t mean a thing at all. These four just work together and you can’t argue that at all.

We recap the events of the main event stuff earlier tonight.

Hogan gives the cops another lecture.

There’s no update on Hardy.

Ray says he would have beaten Hardy anyway so this doesn’t mean much. You have to respect him and he’s reinvented himself. Jeff is on the tracks and Ray is the locomotive. Everyone may be bound for glory, but he’s destined for greatness. Great promo here.

Cops surround the ring.

Bound For Glory Series Finals: Bully Ray vs. Jeff Hardy

Hardy’s music hits and Hogan comes out instead. Hogan implies Ray is behind Aces and 8’s but Ray denies it. Ray says if Hardy can’t go, what option is there other than for Ray to win by forefit? Hogan says that the ball is in the GM’s court and asks for four more days for this match to happen on Impact, drawing more booing than in his entire time in Immortal. Ray isn’t cool with that but here’s Hardy anyway so it doesn’t matter. Predictable, but that’s fine in this case as it is in a lot of cases but that’s an argument for another time.

Hardy has one arm so he’s wrestling very tentatively. He tries as well as he can to drive Ray into the corner but Jeff gets knocked to the floor where he holds the arm even more. As he comes back in, Ray pounds away on the bad arm and Jeff bails to the floor again. Ray slams Hardy down and puts on an armbar as Hardy is reeling. Jeff can barely defend himself here. Ray misses a splash and Jeff hits the mule kick. Twisting Stunner sets up the Swanton but it only gets two. That might be Jeff’s one chance.

Ray hits Jeff in the shoulder and the Bubba Bomb gets two. Whisper in the Wind out of nowhere gets two and both guys are down. Another Whisper attempt misses and the Bubba Cutter….only gets two. Another Twisting Stunner hits but the Swanton misses. The second Bubba Cutter only gets two again and the crowd isn’t popping for these kickouts now. Twisting Stunner #3 and #4 hit back to back but he gets crotched going up. Scratch that as he knocks Ray off and hits the Swanton for the pin and the BFG main event spot at 12:42.

Rating: B-. The last five minutes of this were pretty absurd with the repeating finishers and the fans didn’t get into it for the most part. I also hate the ending as Ray has done some of the best stuff of his life tonight but Jeff gets the win anyway. I’m not wild on this and the match wasn’t all that good. Anyway, Hardy vs. Aries will be pretty awesome, but I was hoping Ray won here as he’s earned it this past year.

No Aces and 8’s.

Overall Rating: B. The show here comes down to the idea that the good stuff was good but the dull stuff was dull. Nothing was really bad here but the middle part of the show was painfully boring for the most part. The BFG Series stuff was great here and tonight may be seen as the night where Ray rose to the next level in his career….until they had Hardy win the main event. Aces and 8’s is clearly going to be blown off at the next PPV which is fine, but I’m not sure how. Still though, this was a good show overall but not a masterpiece, about what everyone expected.

Results

Jeff Hardy b. Samoa Joe – Crucifix

Bully Ray b. James Storm – Pin after Bobby Roode hit Storm with a beer bottle

Miss Tessmacher b. Tara – Sunset flip

Zema Ion b. Sonjay Dutt – Gory Bomb

Rob Van Dam b. Magnus – Five Star Frog Splash

Christopher Daniels/Kazarian b. AJ Styles/Kurt Angle – Kazarian pinned Styles after Daniels threw a drink in Styles’ face

Jeff Hardy b. Bully Ray – Swanton

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: September 6, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

It’s the final night of the BFG Series and the final spots this Sunday are up for grabs. Other than that, not a ton matters. I’m sure we’ll hear more about the Aces and 8’s stuff from last week, but it’ll be minor to say the least. Also we’ll probably get more of the card set up for Sunday which is desperately needed at this point. Let’s get to it.

We get videos from everyone still in the running for the spots in the Series.

Bound For Glory Series Leaderboard

James Storm 73

Samoa Joe 68

Rob Van Dam 55

Bully Ray 55

AJ Styles 50

Jeff Hardy 49

Kurt Angle 48

Mr. Anderson 47

Christopher Daniels 33

Magnus 33

Robbie E 12

D’Angelo Dinero 7 (injured)

Bound For Glory Series: Samoa Joe vs. Jeff Hardy

I think Joe has clinched a spot already. Jeff tries to work on the arm to start but gets shoved to the floor with ease. Joe follows out and rams Jeff into the steps, but a charge misses and Jeff dives at him off the steps with Poetry In Motion as we take a break. Back with Joe in control again. Apparently Hardy has to win by pin or submission to make it to the PPV and Joe needs a pin or submission to get the #1 spot and to be able to pick his opponent.

Joe hits his corner enziguri and Jeff sells it like he’s dead as always. That gets two so Joe pounds him down again but still only gets two. The fat man is getting frustrated and here comes Jeff’s comeback. He fires off some clotheslines and the mule kick as Joe can’t keep up with the speed all of a sudden. Jeff hits the legdrop between Joe’s legs and a low dropkick for two.

A jawbreaker looks to set up the Swanton but Joe gets up before it’s launched. Twist of Fate is countered into the Clutch but Jeff rams him into the buckle. The Whisper in the Wind hits Joe’s arm and there’s the Twisting Stunner into an arm trap headlock which gets the tap out for Hardy at 12:00.

Rating: B-. Another good match in the Series here although the ending wasn’t great. I think they were going with the shoulder injury from last week with Joe but they barely mentioned it so it was hard to remember. Good stuff here though and they’re both at the PPV anyway so it’s not like it matters much. I’m digging the end of the Series for one reason: the matches matter. That makes it so much better.

We recap Aces and 8’s attacking Aries lately.

Aries runs into Hogan in the back and is told the small guy that attacked him last week is here tonight. Aries has permission to do whatever he needs to take him out which pleases the champ.

Joe has something to say post match but Magnus interrupts him. Magnus says that as a team they were good but it was Joe’s fault they broke up. Magnus forgives Joe for it though and wishes him the best. He walks away and then jumps Joe from behind.

The candidates to face Daniels/Kaz are in the back for the begging to Hogan portion of our show. We have the Rob’s, Chavo/Hernandez and Gunner/Kid Kash. This is your tag team division in TNA people. After they bicker, AJ comes in and says he deserves a shot. Well he deserves them more than Kash/Gunner who already got beat by Chavo/Hernandez. Hogan eliminates AJ immediately. Ok then.

Brooke Hogan makes Tara vs. Tessmacher for the PPV. Brooke still can’t act at all. Gail comes in to yell at Brooke and we get Tara vs. Gail later.

Gail Kim vs. Tara

Well that was quick. Gail takes over to start with her usual kicks and a running shoulder to the ribs in the corner for two. Tara gets a quick sunset flip for two but Gail kicks her down again. A powerslam puts Kim down for no cover but a floatover suplex gets two for Tara. Gail tries to go up but gets caught in the Widow’s Peak off the top for the pin at 3:38.

Rating: C-. It’s absolutely mind blowing how much better this was than anything the Divas have done in months if not over a year. These chicks know how to wrestle a coherent match without looking like they’re going through a memorized script. They look natural is what I mean, and that’s the most important thing they can do.

We recap Joey Ryan’s Gut Check and attack of Snow.

Here’s Al Snow to call out Joey Ryan. Ryan happens to be here and gets in the ring. Snow says give him a mic then tells Ryan to shut up. Ryan has to go through Gut Check again but without judges. Joey says he has nothing to prove as Snow take his jacket off. Ryan finally accepts it but he has to fight Snow to get his contract. Joey says no one wants to see Snow in spandex anymore. Snow slaps Ryan down and Joey bails.

Bully Ray goes to see Joseph Park to ask what Park has found out about Aces and 8’s. Park can’t say because Sting and Hogan are the ones that hired him. Ray says be careful and that’s it.

A security guard puts a guy in a chair and leaves. Aries comes in and I think this is the guy that hit Aries last week. Aries says the guy better talk soon or else.

Back to Hogan’s office and Gunner/Kash are eliminated. Thank goodness.

Bound For Glory Series: Rob Van Dam vs. Bully Ray

Basically it’s winner gets in and loser is out. Ray takes over to start but they’re going very slowly so as not to make any mistakes. Van Dam starts speeding things up and fires off some kicks for two. Ray heads to the floor so Rob hits a big flip dive to take both guys down. Back in and Rob goes up, only to get crotched. Ray tries to pull him down but Van Dam’s leg gets caught in the ropes. Ray pounds away on it for a bit and it’s off to a a leg lock.

The Bully and Hebner get in an argument, allowing Van Dam to hit a shot out of the corner to take over. He pounds Ray in the head and clotheslines him down a few times before hitting the step over spinwheel kick. Rolling Thunder hits for two and a monkey flip out of the corner puts Ray down. Van Dam tries a kick off the middle rope but Ray avoids it and kicks Rob’s head off for two. A Vader Bomb misses and now Van Dam hits the kick he missed a few seconds ago. Van Dam goes up but dives into the Bubba Cutter for the pin at 8:54. Why would Rob dive with Ray already on his feet?

Rating: C+. Pretty good match here as Ray continues to be solid in the ring most of the time. More than anything else, this was a clean win. Rob isn’t going to lose his reaction from the crowd and Ray isn’t going to be pushed into being a face because of it. He won a match clean and there’s nothing wrong with that. Pay attention WWE.

The four in the Series on Sunday are Storm, Joe, Hardy and Ray.

Back to the interrogation. The guy is named Mike and he’s a freelance grip from New York. Aries wants to know what the boss wants with Aries and the title. He pulls out a pair of pliers and threatens to take Mike’s teeth out but Hogan comes in to stop it. Hogan goes after the guy but gets a call, apparently from Aces and 8’s. They want Mike back but Hogan wants the arm breaker one on one with Austin in a trade later. Aries gets the arm breaker on Sunday in exchange for Mike.

Here’s Storm to announce who he faces at the PPV. Storm talks about how he lost at Lockdown and went home but his friends thought something was missing. Then he came back here and beat Crimson before entering the BFG Series. Now he’s on top of that and he has three potential opponents. He asks the three of them to come out and gets his wish all at once. Storm talks about Hardy and Joe before picking Ray. Ray comes to the ring and Storm says he’s getting even for last year when Ray eliminated him.

Rob is in the back with Christy when Magnus comes up and says he thinks Rob isn’t who he used to be. Rob pops him in the jaw and they brawl a bit.

Tag Titles: Christopher Daniels/Kazarian vs. ???/???

It’s Chavo/Hernandez of course. The champions are run out of the ring very quickly and the challengers take over to start. Hernandez and Daniels start and it’s quickly off to Chavo with a slingshot hilo ala Eddie. Back to Hernandez for a bearhug into a belly to belly suplex. Daniels gets in just enough offense on Chavo to tag in Kaz but a hip toss stops him as well. The challengers are tagging in and out very fast. Apparently their name is Tex Mex. Why not I guess.

Daniels comes back in for a few seconds and gets beaten up as well so it’s back to Kaz who gets caught in the over the shoulder backbreaker. Hernandez does the delayed vertical while Chavo hits the Three Amigos on Daniels at the same time. That was pretty awesome. The champs are reeling and we take a break. Back with Daniels beating on Chavo before tagging in Kaz again. A running flip neckbreaker puts Chavo down and it’s back to Daniels who throws him to the floor.

Kaz hooks a double chickenwing but Chavo fights out of it and rolls into the corner to tag Hernandez. There’s the slingshot shoulder and he runs over both champions with ax handles. He and Sheamus have a few similarities in the ring. Hernandez badly screws up an Alpha Bomb and heads up. Chavo hurricanranas his own partner onto Kaz for two as Daniels makes the save.

Chavo dives onto Kaz on the floor as Daniels hits a palm strike to Hernandez. Daniels heads to the floor and Hernandez hits a HUGE dive to take both of them out. Kaz gets splashed in the corner and Daniels brings in a title belt. Hernandez picks up Kaz for something but a belt shot to the ribs lets Kaz roll up SuperMex for the pin at 14:47.

Rating: B. Good stuff here for a match with all of 20 seconds of notice. Daniels and Kaz are better on the mic than they are in the ring which says a lot given how good they are in the ring. I wasn’t expecting much coming into this and they surprised me which is always something fun to see.

Hulk comes out immediately and makes the tag champs vs. Angle/Styles for Sunday.

We run down the card for the PPV. Ion defends against Dutt, RVD vs. Magnus, the Knockouts, the tag titles, the Knockouts and the BFG stuff.

Here’s Aries with Mike to make the deal. He talks about wanting to fight the guy who broke his arm on Sunday but gets impatient. Instead of making the deal, he’s just going to beat Mike until Mike talks. Mike says he’ll talk but a big guy from Aces and 8’s comes out to save him. The big guy knocks Mike out cold before he can talk and brawls with Aries to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. Another good show here as they managed to build most of a card for Sunday while still building up angles at the same time. Getting Aces and 8’s in the ring on Sunday was the next step they had to take eventually and it not being for the title is fine. Given that there’s nothing on the line on Sunday in that match and I still want to see it is a good sign. I’m impressed by how well they did things tonight and that’s a good sign.

Results
Jeff Hardy b. Samoa Joe – Arm trap headlock

Tara b. Gail Kim – Widow’s Peak

Bully Ray b. Rob Van Dam – Bubba Cutter

Christopher Daniels/Kazarian b. Hernandez/Chavo Guerrero – Rollup after a belt shot to Hernandez

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 30, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

Tonight is likely to be about Aces and 8’s again, but they really need to talk about the PPV. If my math is right, there’s only one match announced, and that’s the finals of the BFG Series, which may or may not be three matches. Other than that though, I don’t think anything is set. Then again it’s a throwaway show anyway. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of last week’s show. This is followed by the ending brawl from last week’s show where Aries’ hand/arm was broken.

Here’s Aries to open things up. He has a cast on his right hand but he holds the title up with it anyway. Aries talks about Aces and 8’s pulling off something major last week. He isn’t medically cleared to wrestle tonight, but he can fight. Also, they broke his right hand, but he punches with his left. Aries wants the leader to come out here tonight and fight him.

Instead (I hope) here are Hogan and Sting. Hogan rants about Aces and 8’s and thanks Sting for helping while Hogan was gone. Hulk is in charge again and says Aries can have whatever he wants. Aries says he wants the boss of Aces and 8’s again and here they are on the monitor. They seem to be celebrating and the leader says they’ll do things on their own time. They’ll be out here later on.

ODB calls Eric and says that if he doesn’t call back in ten minutes, they’re done. There’s no call and ODB says he has another five minutes. It goes over and hour and it’s still not over. She gives him until next week and wants fried chicken.

Bound For Glory Series Leaderboard

James Storm 66

Samoa Joe 61

Rob Van Dam 55

Bully Ray 55

AJ Styles 50

Kurt Angle 48

Mr. Anderson 47

Jeff Hardy 42

Christopher Daniels 33

Magnus 28

Robbie E 12

D’Angelo Dinero 7

Bound For Glory Series: Rob Van Dam vs. James Storm

Basically if Van Dam wins he clinches a spot in the final four but he still has another shot. Storm is more or less a lock already. Apparently whoever has the most points gets to pick who he faces in the semi-finals at No Surrender. Ok so it’s three matches at the PPV. Feeling out process to start with Storm getting a small advantage via a headlock. A kick from Van Dam and a forearm from Storm get two each.

They both fire away in the corner and no one can get an advantage again. Apparently whoever loses between Angle and Hardy is out of the running. Van Dam sends him to the floor and hits a big dive to take Storm out as we take a break. Back with Storm hitting a clothesline for two. Van Dam kicks him down again and hits Rolling Thunder for another near fall.

A running DDT from Storm gets another two and Eye of the Storm gets the same. Van Dam sends him into the corner and hits a yelling monkey flip to put Storm down. This is good back and forth stuff. Rob tries another monkey flip in the other corner but jumps into the superkick. It hit the chest but it gets the pin for Storm at 11:13.

Rating: B-. Good stuff here although the lack of transitions and the finish bring it down a bit. Still though, these two had good chemistry out there and it basically locks up a spot in the final four for Storm while giving Van Dam a need to win over whoever he faces next week. Good solid match here.

Here’s Madison who says she has her rematch for the title tonight. That’s not what she gets though.

ODB vs. Madison Rayne

ODB spits the liquid courage at Madison and starts very fast. The Bam (TKO) finishes this in 25 seconds.

Post match here’s Eric in a suit with fried chicken. He wants to leave with her but ODB doesn’t like the suit because that’s not the Eric she married. Eric doesn’t like it either so he strips. ODB eats chicken and jumps on him.

AJ says he’s glad the Clair stuff is behind him. Right now though, he’s focusing on the BFG Series.

The judges debate the Gut Check guy from last week. They don’t seem that impressed.

Hogan and Sting debate who gets to do something. Hogan wants a slow buildup to whatever they’re doing. Sting waves in Daniels and Kaz who beg to not be fired. Hogan yells at them a lot and says they’re what’s wrong with this business today. No, not really Hulk. They have to defend the titles sometime soon apparently. Sting scares the appletini out of Daniels’ glass to send the champions away. Hogan and Sting argue over the use of each others’ catchphrases.

Bound For Glory Series: Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles

This should be good. Feeling out process to start but Joe blocks the drop down/kick because he knows AJ that well. AJ bails to the floor for a second before coming back in to continue feeling each other out. A clothesline puts AJ down but he nips up into a headscissors to send Joe into the corner. Joe is too heavy to suplex, but Joe misses a kick and AJ goes for the leg.

Joe kicks AJ off so AJ dropkicks Joe’s head off to send him to the floor. There’s a bit dive but Joe kicks him on the way down. AJ looks like he got snapped by a very wet towel. Back in and the snap powerslam gets two for the Samoan from LA. AJ gets chopped down and there’s an STF from the fat one. That doesn’t work so Joe switches over to the Rings of Saturn. AJ finally gets a rope so Joe kicks his head off.

The backsplash misses so AJ hits the springboard forearm. He Pele’s the arm that Magnus injured with the chair a few weeks back but Joe blocks a cross armbreaker. AJ charges at Joe in the corner, only to get Rock Bottomed down. The Clutch is countered into a pair of rollups for two but the second is countered into the Clutch but it’s not fully on. AJ escapes that and puts on the armbreaker, but Joe rolls on top of him for the pin at 8:10.

Rating: B. These two are good by definition and I really liked this one. Give this another five to eight minutes and it’s a classic. The idea of AJ going for the submission is a logical idea given the points system and Joe being able to counter all of them was the perfect story to go with. See? Psychology isn’t that hard and it works very well.

Time for Gut Check. Lewie says that he gave his best effort but also says he gets better every day. Taz says no. Pritchard says no as well thank goodness. Joey ryan pops up with a megaphone and goes off on Snow before throwing a drink on him. Snow has to be held back. That doesn’t last long and Snow chases Ryan out of the arena.

Joseph Park asks Sting and Hogan if he can investigate Aces and 8’s. Hulk agrees, presumably to get Park to leave him alone.

Bound For Glory Series: Jeff Hardy vs. Kurt Angle

Both guys basically have to win. They have a ton of time too so this should be good. Angle almost immediately takes Hardy to the mat and puts on an armbar. Hardy counters into one of his own but Kurt will have none of that. Jeff headscissors him to the floor and hits a clothesline off the apron to take both guys down. Jeff kicks him in the corner but Kurt comes out with a clothesline as we take a break.

Back with Hardy using his fast paced comeback, including the legdrop between the legs and a low dropkick for two. That just fires Kurt up and it’s rolling Germans time. Hardy comes back with a Twisting Stunner for two followed by the Whisper in the Wind for the same. Angle snaps off a belly to belly and there go the straps.

A big Angle Slam gets two and why is Kurt surprised by that? Seriously, why? Ankle lock is countered into a rollup and a Twist of Fate. Swanton hits perfectly but only gets a very close two. Ankle lock is countered again and the mule kick looks to set up the Swanton again, but Kurt runs the ropes. Jeff shoves him off (good thing too as Angle was in the middle of the ring) and the second Swanton gets the pin at 11:15.

Rating: B. I know Angle does the same formula to almost all of his matches, but dang is it a good formula. This was the second great match of the night which is more than you get in almost any TV show anymore. When Hardy has someone in there to keep him grounded, he’s one of the best there is and that’s what he got here. Very good match.

Angle is eliminated from the Series now.

JB introduces the final five people who could still make No Surrender: Hardy, RVD, Samoa Joe, Bully Ray and James Storm. Next week it’s Hardy vs. Joe and RVD vs. Ray. Storm has already locked in his spot at No Surrender. No word on who has to do what to win.

Here’s Aries to close the show. Instead of the leader of Aces and 8’s, we get Hogan again. I really don’t like the way that seems to be going. The final five are behind Hogan and Sting on the stage. Scratch that as Styles is there too and Ray is next to Sting and Hogan. Hogan wants to see the faces of Aces and 8’s. Aries says he wants the ugly one but they can pick who that is. Aces and 8’s show up in the crowd and Hogan calls them out again. He says their finest is in the ring so Aces and 8’s can send their finest too.

Two smaller guys go to the railing but they’re just opening it for a bigger guy to get in the ring. This is a fight, not a match. The guy is right handed and he slugs Aries down. Aries spears him down and pounds away as the rest of the team gets in. It’s a big brawl on the floor while aries pounds on the guy that was sent into the ring. The running dropkick in the corner takes the big guy down and hee goes for the mask. Someone gets on the apron and puts his mask back on while pulling out a flapjack. He knocks Aries out and the whole team runs off. Apparently the guy that hit Aries wasn’t there at first. Aries is out cold to end the show.

Overall Rating: A. When you have three matches and they all rock like this, what more can you ask for from a free show? That being said, they didn’t do much at all for the PPV. Then again, who freaking cares? TNA has never been about the PPV builds and when you get a show like this, what difference does it make? Next week is going to be huge with the final matches in the Series before the finals three days later. Great show here and one of the best Impacts I can ever remember.

Results

James Storm b. Rob Van Dam – Last Call

ODB b. Madison Rayne – The Bam

Samoa Joe b. AJ Styles – Rollup

Jeff Hardy b. Kurt Angle – Swanton Bomb

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 16, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Tazz

We’re past Hardcore Justice and for the most part things are the same. Aries is the world champion still and Roode has no rematch. The BFG Series is starting to wrap up with the finals being at the next PPV in the form of No Surrender. Tonight we have at least two BFG Series matches as most of the guys don’t have many matches left. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of the end of the show last week with Aces and 8’s not attacking Ray. No mention of the PPV is made at all.

Here’s Aries to open the show. He spells and defines the word fluke which he says he’s proven wrong. The doubters can go fluk (I spelled that right) themselves because he’s now the face of this company. No one is going to tell him what to do or think and this company isn’t going to be held hostages. Aces and 8’s has always been near the world title but he’s going into BFG and keeping the title he walks in with.

This brings out Jeff Hardy who is limping. Jeff, who looks like a tire ran over his face, says he’ll win the Series. Hardy calls out Aces and 8’s but gets Bully Ray instead. He calls Hardy stupid and says Storm is behind Aces and 8’s. Ray references Matt Hardy but he didn’t realize Jeff was that stupid. He talks about how Hardy had Storm in trouble when Aces and 8’s came back. Ray got lucky and won the match, meaning he beat Jeff Hardy and that he’s going to BFG to win the title.

Aries disagrees and talks to Ray’s calves because that’s where the brains are. He says Ray isn’t going to win the title because Aries will be waiting at BFG. Aries suggests Ray is behind Aces and 8’s and the group pops up on the screen. The leader says they’re all about I think luck and commitment. He references Ray getting lucky at the PPV and says sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you get the Dead Man’s Hand. Tonight they’re going to make a big impact. Ray says it’s right in front of Aries’ and Hardy’s face and we cut to commercial in mid sentence. It’s very annoying when they do that.

Back with recaps of the three BFG Series matches on Sunday.

Bound For Glory Series Leaderboard

James Storm 66

Rob Van Dam 55

Samoa Joe 56

Kurt Angle 48

Bully Ray 48

Mr. Anderson 40

AJ Styles 36

Jeff Hardy 35

Christopher Daniels 33

Magnus 28

D’Angelo Dinero 7

Robbie E 5

Magnus talks about how he’s ready for Joe because he knows him better than anyone.

Bound For Glory Series: Samoa Joe vs. Magnus

Joe has three matches left and we’re not told how many the Brit has left. Joe quickly takes Magnus down but misses a backsplash. Magnus misses an elbow but ducks a kick. The idea is that they know each other so well that they keep countering each other. Joe can’t hook a Crossface so Magnus heads to the floor.

A HARD forearm puts Magnus down but he comes back with a kind of scoop brainbuster (think the Snow Plow but starting in a slam position instead of a suplex) for two. Joe takes him into the corner and kicks him in the head but can’t hit the MuscleBuster. Magnus’ middle rope elbow misses and he charges into the release Rock Bottom. The Clutch is escaped but Joe hooks an ugly looking La Majistral for the pin at 3:23.

Rating: C+. I was digging the idea here and Joe goes to second place again with the win. Magnus is fine in the jobber roll in the competition despite having a lot of points of his own. He needs something to do after the competition so hopefully he gets a feud soon. The match was short but they packed a lot into it which is a good idea.

Post match Magnus hits Joe with a chair but it seems to annoy him instead of hurt him.

Madison is summoned to the ring by Brooke Hogan.

Here’s Madison, the new Knockouts Champion, to the ring. With no Brooke here, Madison says we’re going to party tonight. She says there’s a strong referee behind every great woman, so here’s Earl Hebner. Here’s Brooke who says Madison has some shady stuff going on. Earl isn’t going to referee anymore Knockouts matches. Tessmacher gets her rematch tonight and there’s a female guest referee for later.

Madison yells and says this is typical Hogan, as in she’ll talk about everything but is no action. Brooke charges (well as fast as you can in a dress that short) but Madison runs. Aces and 8’s pop up behind Brooke but the locker room empties out to chase them off. Storm comes in behind them after Aces and 8’s are out and we take another abrupt break.

Post break Sting, Angle, Aries and Hardy are in the ring with Sting going on a rant against Aces and 8’s. Next week on Open Fight Night, it’s on at the top of the show.

Kaz and Daniels are apparently in the new issue of Amazing Spider-Man. Kaz says that the Phenomenal Fetus won’t be Amazing. I have to pause for a second to appreciate how awesome of a line that was. Anyway AJ pops up and says if he loses to Daniels tonight, he’ll accept being the father. If he wins though, there’s a paternity test. Kaz: “HE’S GOING MAURY POVITCH ON US!”

Bound For Glory Series: AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels

Kaz is ejected before the match. They quickly head to the floor and back inside, Daniels tries a rollup with feet on the ropes but gets caught. AJ punches him down and then sends him into a few corners to take over. Styles beats Daniels up for a bit, hitting a BIG backdrop to make Daniels beg off. A clothesline puts Daniels down for two.

We take a break and come back with AJ escaping a headlock and hitting the drop down/kick for two. AJ puts Daniels in a bridging Indian Deathlock and then off to a half crab. Back to the Deathlock but Daniels bites the fingers to get out of it. That’s a smart move if nothing else. Styles gets hot shotted and Daniels hits kind of a clothesline to the back of his head for two. A back suplex gets two as well. Daniels hits a kind of Eye of the Hurricane for two before trying again with his feet on the ropes.

Styles is thrown to the floor as we’re getting close to a time limit here. Daniels knocks him into the barricade in an attempt at getting a countout but AJ comes back in with a sunset flip but he can’t roll through it into the Clash. Daniels tries a standing Koji Clutch and AJ is in trouble. It breaks down into a regular Clutch but Daniels lets it go for some reason. A suplex gets two and we have two minutes left. Daniels pounds away in the corner but AJ comes out with a running layout powerbomb.

Both guys are down but AJ gets up first, hitting the springboard forearm. A gutbuster and clothesline get two as we have less than thirty seconds. AJ neckbreakers him down but Daniels gets his foot on the rope. No mention has been made yet of the time limit as they slug it out. AJ is sent to the floor as we pass fifteen minutes. They trade places and AJ hits his flip dive over the top to the floor to take Daniels out. AJ gets back in as Kaz comes to ringside. They try the Ultimate Warrior at Mania 5 ending and it works, but the referee sees Kaz and waves it off. AJ Pele’s Daniels for the pin at 16:58.

Rating: B-. This was one of their better matches but the time limit thing bugs me. I know that it’s something petty and stupid, but if you say the match is going to last fifteen minutes, then have it last fifteen minutes. The ending was fine as the Pele is good for a secondary finisher for Styles. Good match here.

Hulk is on the phone and says he’ll be here next week because if we don’t fight, they die. They’re going old school next week.

Hardy confronts Storm about Aces and 8’s. Storm says he’ll be there to fight next week and he’ll be at ringside for the main event too.

Here’s Roode to discuss the main event from Sunday. He talks about how he underestimated Aries but there were some shenanigans that cost him the belt. Roode says he should be world champion but due to people like Aries, the referees, Sting and the fans here, he isn’t. Now he’s faced with the question of “what now”. Roode stutters a bit before dropping the mic and walking away.

Next week’s Gut Check guy talks about his brother getting him into wrestling and then getting shot and killed. His name is never given here so I have no idea what to call him.

Knockouts Title: Madison Rayne vs. Miss Tessmacher

The guest referee is Taryn Terrell, more famous as Tiffany in WWE. The best part: Brooke kneels down for no apparent reason as Tiffany is coming out and falls down. Madison chokes a lot so Tiffany yells at her. Tessmacher gets thrown around but grabs a rollup for two. She misses a charges in the corner and gets rolled up herself but Madison’s tights grabbing is caught. Tiffany and Madison argue a bit more until Tessmacher grabs Madison and hits her release mat slam from behind for the pin and the title at 3:55. What in the world was the point in changing the title in the first place?

Rating: D. The match was mainly Tiffany and Madison arguing so the match didn’t do anything. What in the world was the point of this? They mentioned Tiffany being in the new movie The Campaign but it was mentioned so quickly that a lot of people probably didn’t hear it. This was nothing at all and didn’t do anything for anyone.

Aces and 8’s say they’ll be here next week when the clock strikes 8. They have more business tonight though.

Bound For Glory Series: Jeff Hardy vs. Bully Ray

Before anything of note happens, here’s Storm. Ray goes to the floor and shoves him but Jeff hits a baseball slide to take ray out before anything can happen. We take a break and come back with Ray getting two off something we didn’t see. An elbow drop gets two for Ray and it’s off to a chinlock. An overhead suplex gets two for Ray but he misses a splash.

Hardy makes his comeback and hits the legdrop between the legs for two before walking into a side slam for two for Ray. Bully Bomb is broken up and Jeff hits the slingshot dropkick in the corner. The Swanton only gets two and Ray heads to the floor. Hardy dives over the top but hits Storm by mistake. Back in and Hardy hits the Whisper in the Wind to put both guys down. Aces and 8’s run in but Sting and Angle make the save before any contact is made. Twisting Stunner gets the pin for Hardy at 10:50.

Rating: C+. This is one of those pairings that is hard to screw up due to the familiarity these two have with each other. Hardy is near the top four now but I don’t think he’s quite in it. Ray looked ifne after the possible arm injury from Sunday which is a good thing. Aces and 8’s didn’t mean much here but I think that was the point.

Post match Ray hits Hardy and then yells at Storm, drawing the Cowboy in. Storm superkicks Hardy by mistake and here are Aces and 8’s again. They applaud Storm before taking his head off. Storm gets beaten down as we go off the air.

Overall Rating: C. This was really a placeholder until next week with the big showdown with Aces and 8’s. The more I think about it, the more it looks like Hogan is a candidate. We never saw him get beaten down, the group never attacked Brooke when they had the chance, he’s coming back right in time for the big fight, and he could be jealous of Sting for the attention he got at Slammiversary. There are a lot of candidates for who the boss could be and the more I hear of them, the more I don’t like. The show overall was decent tonight but it felt like it was a building show for next week, which is ok.

Results

Samoa Joe b. Magnus – La Majistral

AJ Styles b. Christopher Daniels – Pele

Miss Tessmacher b. Madison Rayne – Tess Shocker

Jeff Hardy b. Bully Ray – Twist of Fate

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 9, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

It’s the go home show for hardcore Justice and most of the card is set. Last week we had three fatal fourways added which is a pretty quick way of stacking the card. Other than that we’ll get more of a build to Roode vs. Aries, but more interestingly we’ll get more on Aces and 8’s. Another interesting thing is that there’s a chance D-Von won’t be re-signing with the company, so the TV Title may be in danger. Let’s get to it.

Recap to start in the overly dramatic fashion.

Here’s Bully Ray to open the show. He has his Twitter machine but wants to talk about Joseph Park. If there’s enough evidence against someone, they must be guilty. All of the evidence points to James Storm being guilty about being behind Aces and 8’s. Tonight Ray is going to beat up Storm and then he’ll do it again on Sunday in the tables match.

Cue Storm in street clothes. Storm says he’s sick and tired of a lot of things, but the top one of them is that he’s tired of being sick and tired. He says again that he had nothing to do with the attacks because he wants to win the BFG Series and winning back the world title. Storm draws a line in the ring and says Ray has a count of three before Storm punches his way across that line. Ray turns his hat around and says start counting. At three Ray backs off and bails. Storm says anyone can cross the line and fight him tonight.

Cue Aces and 8’s on the screen. Their voices are distorted and it’s hard to understand them. The one that talks says that Sting has invited them here tonight but they’re going to do it on their own terms. The guy talking had the word “prospect” on his jacket. Ray says I TOLD YOU SO and we abruptly cut to commercial.

Pope says he’ll win on Sunday.

Bound For Glory Series Leaderboard:

James Storm 66

Samoa Joe 53

Kurt Angle 41

Mr. Anderson 40

Jeff Hardy 35

Christopher Daniels 33

Rob Van Dam 28

Magnus 21

Bully Ray 21

AJ Styles 16

D’Angelo Dinero 7

Robbie E 5

Bound For Glory Series: Rob Van Dam vs. Magnus

This should be good. Magnus takes over to start and knocks Van Dam to the floor. Back inside and Van Dam gets in a kick to take Magnus down. More kicks take the Brit down again and the Five Star gets the clean pin at 3:22.

Rating: C. My goodness there wasn’t much in this. Still though it’s nice to see a clean win like this for a change as compared to all of the screwy ones you usually get on wrestling TV. Magnus has a great look but he can’t quite get a push rolling. Giving him matches against these eleven guys isn’t a bad thing at all though and will only help him.

Roode says the contract signing tonight might not happen because of some language in the paperwork.

Time for the Clair portion of our show this evening. Ok maybe just a recap.

Tag Titles: D-Von/Garrett Bischoff vs. Kazarian/Christopher Daniels

D-Von and Kaz start things off and the (tag) champ is taken down by a back elbow. Off to Garrett who hiptosses Daniels down and hits a clothesline for two. Back to the TV champ who uses his usual stuff to take over. Soon all is right with the world again as Garrett gets beaten down by both guys, including a sweet standing stomp to the chest off the top by Daniels. Hot tag brings in D-Von who cleans house. Rock Bottom gets two on Kaz and there’s the spinebuster to Daniels, but he isn’t legal. While the referee is putting him out, Kaz hits D-Von with a belt for the pin at 4:08.

Rating: C. Garrett Bischoff is still not a champion, meaning there is still hope for the world. This was just a quick match for the champs which is fine. They’ve had the titles for like a month now and I don’t remember them defending the things. A quick defense like this is fine as it keeps them looking a bit more legit. Also Garrett being attacked is always a good thing.

We recap Brooke being threatened last week.

Sting is in the back and calls out Aces and 8’s again. Brooke isn’t here tonight apparently.

People in the four ways talk about how they need to win.

Robbie E gets promo time. Ok then. He says he’s got five points at the moment and then he’s going to get 20 more on Sunday. Robbie plans to put Jeff Hardy through the table to get the extra points because that’s who he got the five from in the first place. We get a clip of that win which was by countout. Rob lists off five reasons why he’s better than Hardy but only gets through the first one (he wears pink sweaters) before Jeff cuts him off. Jeff cleans house but Robbie T makes the save and powerbombs Jeff through the table.

AJ says he doesn’t remember having sex with Clair, nor does he drink, so he doesn’t know what’s going on.

Joe comes out to commentary and rants about how he’ll win on Sunday.

Bound For Glory Series: AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle

AJ goes behind him to start but gets elbowed in the face. We get the signature drop down/kick sequence from AJ to send Kurt to the floor followed by a big slingshot dive onto Angle. We take a break and come back with AJ getting rammed into the corner before getting his boot up to the face of a charging Angle. Kurt will have none of that and snaps off an overhead belly to belly to take over again.

Kurt hooks a chinlock followed by a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker to a charging AJ, getting two. Back to yon chinlock while Clair is cheering for Styles. She never was a stable person for the most part. AJ gets back up and they clothesline each other down. Apparently AJ has only been in five matches in the Series so far which is why he doesn’t have that many points.

AJ starts a comeback and he hits the FU into a backbreaker for two. Styles tries a springboard but misses and it’s time to roll some Germans. The big one at the end gets two and Angle is frustrated. The Pele out of nowhere gets two as does the Angle Slam. The ankle lock is quickly countered and AJ tries some Germans, only to be quickly countered into the ankle lock again.

That gets broken again and there’s the springboard foearm for two. AJ hits the Clash….for two. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that kicked out of before. Styles goes up but Kurt runs the ropes and hits the belly to belly off the top. THAT gets two so Kurt goes up for the moonsault. Say it with me: it misses. AJ busts out the springboard 450 but it hits knees. Another Angle Slam finally gets the pin at 12:45.

Rating: B. This is another of those pairings that falls under the category of almost impossible to screw up. I don’t ever recall these two not tearing the house down and they did it again here. With guys like these there’s no point in using basic stuff so just having them bust out signature move after signature move is fine. Good stuff here.

As AJ is leaving Clair shouts encouragement to him. He looks at her and he keeps walking.

Aces and 8’s says a lot of people have gotten the Dead Man’s Hand and the next target is revealed tonight.

Anderson goes up to Storm in the back and says he thinks Storm is behind Aces and 8’s. Storm says it’s not him and Anderson says if Storm is lying and Anderson gets attacked, he’ll be coming for the Cowboy.

Austin Aries says the contract will work out tonight.

Gail Kim vs. Miss Tessmacher

Gail tries to jump Tessmacher during the entrance but the champ (this is non-title) avoids the charge. Back inside Gail kicks Tessmacher down and hits a gutbuster for two. After more of the beating it’s off to a bodyscissors by Kim. Tessmacher makes her comeback with some clotheslines and a dropkick followed by another clothesline out of the corner. There’s a Stinkface followed by the belly to back mat slam for the pin for Tessmacher at 3:42.

Rating: C. This wasn’t bad and for the Knockouts this was one of their best matches in a long time. At the end of the day, Gail may be good in the ring but I don’t think anyone cares about her at all. Apparently Tessmacher’s move is call the Tess Shot. That’s certainly better than whatever name I can come up with most of the time.

Post match here’s Madison who kisses Earl Hebner, freaking Tessmacher out.

Joseph Part talks about contract signings.

Video on Kenny King.

Here’s Sting to address Aces and 8’s. Actually he’s here for the Roode and Aries signing but he says Aces and 8’s can come out if they’d like. We get the champ and the challenger Roode doesn’t like the contract because it says that if he loses on Sunday, he doesn’t get another shot while Aries has the belt. Roode goes on a rant against Sting, saying that Sting has had it in for Roode since he won the title.

Aries cuts him off and says enough whining. He says that for someone so convinced that Aries’ win was a fluke, Roode is awfully worried about a rematch clause. Aries says he has Roode’s number and if there’s a clause that’s holding him back, forget the contract. Aries says that if Roode wins on Sunday, he’ll give up his rematch clause, so it’s winner take all and no rematches period. Roode finally shakes on it and we have a deal. They get rady to brawl but Roode sticks his hand out again. Aries shakes it but gets water thrown in his face. Roode bails before the champ can kill him.

Chavo/Hernandez/Gunner/Kash talk about the tag match on Sunday.

We run down the PPV card.

Bound For Glory Series: Bully Ray vs. James Storm

Ray says he isn’t going to let anyone jump him so he hides in the ropes a lot. They fight over arm control before Ray sends him to the floor. We take a break and come back with Ray missing an elbow drop. Ray works on the leg a bit but goes back to punches to the face instead. Why try to be fancy I guess. A splash misses though and Storm starts his comeback. He gets sent to the apron and hits an enziguri to Ray’s head but walks into a Rock Bottom for two back in the ring.

Storm elbows him in the face and hits a top rope cross body for two. Storm goes up again and knocks off a Ray superplex attempt but a top rope elbow misses. Bubba Bomb gets two but the backsplash off the middle rope misses for Ray. Codebreaker (didn’t Storm have a name for that?) looks to set up the Last Call but Ray avoids it. Instead Storm rolls him up for two but walks into the Cutter for the pin at 10:49.

Rating: C+. Now that’s a bit of a surprise. At the end of the day though, you have to have Storm lose once in awhile because he’s way ahead in the standings so it’s not like it matters that much anyway. Ray picking up a clean win like that is a good thing too as he doesn’t get that many of them and needs to be kept strong. Decent main event here.

Ray screams WHERE ARE THEY and gets his chain but no one comes out for the second week in a row. Instead Aces and 8’s pop up on screen and say Ray is going to see a lot more of them on Sunday. Ray panics to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. I really liked tonight’s show. Everything seemed like it had a point and we got some solid wrestling on top of that. The Aces and 8’s stuff and the Clair story are likely going to die in the desert at BFG which is ok, but I wouldn’t mind if they had some more interesting stuff to carry us out there. Hardcore Justice is all set up and I really like the idea of the three fourway matches on Sunday each having a different gimmick as four straight matches would get dull. This was a really good show and I was digging it the whole time.

Results

Rob Van Dam b. Magnus – Five Star Frog Splash

Kazarian/Christopher Daniels b. D-Von/Garrett Bischoff – Kazarian pinned D-Von after hitting him with a title belt

Kurt Angle b. AJ Styles – Angle Slam

Miss Tessmacher b. Gail Kim – Tess Shot

Bully Ray b. James Storm – Bully Cutter

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews

Impact Wrestling
Date: August 2, 2012
Location: Impact Zone, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Mike Tenay, Taz

Another trip to Orlando tonight as we’re approaching Hardcore Justice in a week and a half. Tonight we have a big tag match as well as Storm vs. Angle in a BFG Series match. We’re sure to have more from Aces and 8’s as Brooke Hogan is going to say something about her dad, which I’m sure will be riveting. Let’s get to it.

Zema Ion/Bobby Roode vs. Austin Aries/Kenny King

This is a big brawl that was going on when the show started. Roode and Aries were fighting at the top of the stage before coming to the ring to join the other guys. Aries hits a huge dive onto Roode on the floor to take over. There’s the bell and we’re officially going. A double airplane spin puts Ion down and King hits a springboard legdrop for two. King sends Ion into the corner and fires off shoulders to the ribs. Off to Aries for a slingshot corkscrew dive for two. Back to King who gets hit in the back by Roode.

King is sent to the floor and Ion hits a big flip dive to finally give his team the advantage. Roode comes in legally and goes after the leg and ankle of King which was injured somewhere in the match. A knee drop gets two for Roode and it’s back to the X Champion. We take a break and come back with Roode sending King off the topr rope and to the floor with a crash.

King is still in trouble, this time in the corner as Roode stomps away some more. Back to Ion who works on the arm a bit, only to walk into a high cradle suplex to put him down. Aries gets the tag but Roode stepped in for a distraction. Roode, being the heel that he is, comes in without a tag for more stomping. Bobby doesn’t stay in long though as it’s back to Ion again. King punches them both down and everything breaks down. Aries hits a missile dropkick to send Roode to the floor followed by the suicide dive. King hits the reverse F5 on Ion for the pin at 14:48.

Rating: B-. Good fast paced opener here and a good way to get the crowd’s attention to open things up. It’s always cool to see them mix up the played out formula for a change and having King out there isn’t bad either. Ion still does nothing for me and I’m hoping he doesn’t keep the belt until Sorensen is back.

We get the traditional recap from last week.

Sting says he wants to hear it straight from Storm’s mouth.

Here’s Sting who wants Storm out here to say he’s not involved with Aces and 8’s. Cue the Cowboy who wants an explanation. Sting shows him a clip of last week where Aces and 8’s came out but didn’t touch Storm. Storm says he has nothing to do with it and didn’t need them to help him beat Angle a few weeks ago.

Cue Angle who says he’s seen Storm all over the place but he doesn’t get Storm’s motivation. He talks about Aces and 8’s beating up everyone other than Storm. Why would eight grown men run away from one guy? Angle wants Storm to come to his match later, and Sting says he’ll be there for it too because he hopes Aces and 8’s show up. Angle says he’ll make Storm tap out.

AJ Styles was in Australia this week.

We recap the Clair story which has gone on forever it seems.

Daniels and Kaz make fun of AJ while holding their drinks. They’re going to throw Clair a baby shower.

There are going to be three hardcore four ways at Hardcore Justice in the BFG Series, all of which for 20 points:

Daniels vs. Angle vs. Styles vs. Joe in a ladder match

Anderson vs. RVD vs. Dinero vs. Magnus in a last man standing match

Hardy vs. Story vs. Ray vs. Robbie E in a tables match

BFG Leaderboard:

Samoa Joe 47

James Storm 45

Kurt Angle 41

Mr. Anderson 40

Jeff Hardy 28

Rob Van Dam 28

Christopher Daniels 26

Magnus 21

AJ Styles 16

Bully Ray 14

D’Angelo Dinero 7

Robbie E 5

Bound For Glory Series: Bully Ray vs. Robbie E

Ray says he doesn’t trust Storm before the match. Big Rob hits Ray with the list before we get going. Robbie pounds Ray down but some big chops set up a quick Bubba Cutter and we’re done at 90 seconds.

Earl Hebner gives Madison Rayne gifts. She says she cares about him when Gail Kim comes up to complain. Earl leaves and Madison says he’ll call the match right down the middle tonight.

Tara vs. Mickie James vs. Gail Kim vs. Madison Rayne

Winner get Tessmacher at some point in the future. Tessmacher is on commentary here. Tara immediately tries a Tarantula on Gail but gets backdropped to the floor. Mickie is knocked to the floor and it’s heel vs. heel for a bit. Tara comes back in to prevent that from happening, only to get caught in a bad knee to the face from Madison. A neckbreaker puts Tara down and they take turns pounding away. Mickie pulls Gail to the floor but gets sent into the steps for her troubles. The spinning side slam gets two on Madison as Gail breaks it up. Madison chokes Tara and Gail sends Mickie to the floor.

Gail misses a charge in the corner and Mickie is back. Tara heads outside and it’s Mickie vs. Rayne at the moment. Madison is taken down by a neckbreaker but Gail makes the save. Everything breaks down if that’s possible in a fourway. Tara takes over and loads up a moonsault, only to get crotched by Madison. Mickie pulls Madison off the top but Rayne kicks Mickie in the head. Gail superplexes Tara down and everyone is down.

Gail covers Tara but Earl is with Madison. Tessmacher says a superplex like that can only happen with the Knockouts. Bob Orton might want to have a word with you about that. Mickie sends Gail to the floor and fires off clotheslines on Rayne. A flapjack takes Madison down again but Gail sneaks in and sends her to the floor. Widow’s Peak takes Gail down but Madison goes after Tara. Tara rolls her up and gets the pin at 7:30, but, say it with me, Earl gives the win to Madison despite Tara’s shoulder being nowhere near the mat.

Rating: D+. How many times can we have a fourway Knockouts match for the #1 contenders spot? Seriously, I can’t remember how many of these we’ve had recently. The match was just ok and the ending was about as obvious as you could have asked one to be. Madison will likely get the title and few people will care, which is a shame as Tessmacher is a pretty interesting champion.

Roode says Storm is behind it. Aries says he might as well be at ringside too since Roode will be.

Sting is talking to Brooke who says she doesn’t like seeing her dad in pain. She doesn’t know why Aces and 8’s are picking on them. That came off as a really stupid line to me. A messenger comes in with a package for Brooke which has playing cards on it. She bails and Sting is annoyed.

ODB and Eric have a “comedy” segment about how they haven’t defended the titles in months. Apparently it’s not good that Eric is a man. He has a fishing show debuting on Sunday and he thinks that if the belts are always apart, they can’t be stripped of them. Why do these titles exist again?

Chavo Guerrero vs. Kid Kash

Hernandez and Gunner are here to second the respective guys. As if the ending of this wasn’t clear enough already, Grandmama Guerrero is here. Chavo speeds things up quickly and throws on an armbar. Kash escapes and pounds away but gets pulled off by the referee. Kash throws him into the air so Chavo crashes down, followed by a backbreaker for two. A moonsault hits knees and it’s comeback time. Chavo hurricanranas him down and a dropkick gets two. Both seconds get on the apron and Kash hits Chavo in the head. Dead Level is countered and it’s time to roll some suplexes. The Frog Splash pins Kash at 4:41.

Rating: C. This was fine for a debut from Chavo even though it was exactly what you would have expected it to be. Chavo is fine for midcard stuff like this and if he doesn’t rise much higher than this I won’t have many complaints. Nothing much to see here but a decent match that eats up five minutes isn’t a bad thing.

Dixie says it’s time for AJ to step up and set the record straight.

Angle talks to someone’s kid who says that he wants to be a wrestler. It’s Wes Brisco, son of Gerald Brisco. He asks Angle to put in a good word for him and Angle doesn’t seem to be opposed to the idea. Before he can say yes though D-Von and Garrett come in to offer their services to Angle tonight. He says cool.

It’s time for the baby shower. Kaz: “AJ Styles isn’t here tonight. He’s in Australia, promoting Impact Wrestling and possibly impregnating somebody.” Daniels and Kaz invite Clair into the ring and give her a necklace. Daniels talks about how important being pregnant is and says they’ll do what AJ won’t do. The first gift: diapers. The next: a bunch of Impact gear such as toys and t-shirts. The piece de resistance (Daniels: “That means prize piece you idiots. Stay in school.”) is an AJ baby doll. Clair looks into the camera and shouts at AJ to do the right thing.

Joseph Park says he’s been retained by some Impact wrestlers for his legal services. He offers Sting said services but Sting says he’s covered. One thing Sting would like to know though: where did Park learn how to do a Black Hole Slam like that? Park doesn’t have an answer.

Bound For Glory Series: James Storm vs. Kurt Angle

Wes Brisco is at ringside. Weren’t Roode, Sting and Aries supposed to be here too? Feeling out process to start as no one can get an extended advantage. Storm works over the arm which seems to work as well as anything else does for him. Here’s Sting to ringside as well. D-Von and Garrett come out quickly thereafter as Storm hits a facebuster on Angle. Storm is almost sent to the floor but he skins the cat and hits a Thesz Press to pound on Angle some more.

The Last Call is ducked and Angle suplexes him down. Bully Ray is here too. We take a break and come back with Storm hitting an Orton Elevated DDT to put Angle down. Roode and Aries come out as well as Storm hits a hot shot and running forearm. Angle catches him in the corner and hits the Rolling Germans to put Sting down. Angle Slam is countered but Angle kicks Storm in the face for two.

Ankle lock is countered and Storm hits the Angle Slam on Angle for two. Angle takes him into the corner and now the ankle lock goes on. Storm can’t roll through but he won’t tap. Taz is telling Storm to tap out because it isn’t worth it. The hold has been on for a minute or so now. The fans cheer for the Cowboy and he finally rolls onto his back and kicks Angle in the head. Last Call hits out of nowhere for the pin at 13:32.

Rating: B-. This started slow but it got better until the end. For the life of me I don’t get why TNA keeps having these quick endings. The superkick came out of nowhere and it seemed like the perfect time for a kickout. Still though, this was a good match and felt like a big one, which is a good thing for a TV show.

Everyone looks around for Aces and 8’s but Storm grabs the mic. He calls out Aces and 8’s, saying that with everyone here why don’t they come out now. No one comes out so Roode says this is odd isn’t it James? He says Storm doesn’t need them and that’s why they’re not here. Roode says he told everyone and Ray sneaks up on Storm, causing a brawl. Aries and Roode brawl too as we go off the air.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a pretty in the middle show but there was enough good stuff to hold me in for two hours. The Aces and 8’s stuff is starting to roll again, as is the Clair stuff. Both stories have potential to blow up in either a good or bad way at any time, but for the moment they’re both solid enough. There are a lot of questions still, but that’s good enough to bring us back for more. Good show here but nothing great.

Results

Kenny King/Austin Aries b. Bobby Roode/Zema Ion – Reverse F5 to Ion

Bully Ray b. Robbie E – Bubba Cutter

Madison Rayne b. Tara, Mickie James and Gail Kim – Rollup to Tara

Chavo Guerrero b. Kid Kash – Frog Splash

James Storm b. Kurt Angle – Last Call

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews