Diatribe on NWA:TNA's One Year Anniversary Show

[Guest TSMAdmin]

The Dames’ Diatribe on NWA:TNA’s One Year Anniversary Show

 

 

Tonight is a very big night for the NWA:TNA promotion. Tonight is a night than almost all of their naysayers didn’t think they’d make it to. This is their big show, not unlike WWE’s Wrestlemania or WCW’s Starrcade. Tonight is the One Year Anniversary of the first NWA:TNA broadcast.

 

I hope I’ve got your attention now, if I don’t already, just in time for this cheap plug. For those of you who still haven’t read my review of Sunday’s Bad Blood PPV or even last week’s show, which was written up pretty late, I’m going to be the 4th selectable recapper in EWR 4.0, scheduled to be released some time later this year. Yep, me, Damian Gonzalez aka The Dames, no shit. Same structure as these reports and all that. This is the last time I’ll mention it until the game comes out, I swear!

 

Last week, Vince Russo caused Jeff Jarrett to lose the NWA Title to AJ Styles in a triple threat match, completely swerving everyone who believed Jarrett would lose the title at the big show. Not only is he not walking in as the champion, but the main event is a tag team match where STING will be making his TNA debut.

 

Let’s get right to it.

 

The show starts out with a highlight reel of the past year’s events, highlighting the X Division and some of the top feuds in the company.

 

A white stretch limo pulls into the Asylum and the announcers assume that it’s Sting…but Shane Douglas emerges instead, laughing maniacally and threatening ready to “make some noise”.

 

The building is VISIBLY sold out as the first match is about to begin. The first thing that you notice right off the bat is that a brand new stage set has been put up and has a nice futuristic look to it. Oddly enough, the first wrestlers to come out of the stage are members of Sports Entertainment Extreme (S.E.X.), who haven’t used the stage for months now, opting to come straight from their dressing room in the back.

 

Sonny Siaki, David Young & Don Harris vs. Frankie “The Future” Kazarian, Sandman and D’Lo Brown

 

Match Background: Sandman has been feuding with Sonny Siaki, who is usually seconded by David Young. D’Lo Brown has had his problems with SEX in the past. I’m not exactly sure why Ron Harris is in this match, but according to the announcers, Frankie Kazarian (who is a DEAD RINGER for Antonio Banderas to me) impressed D’Lo Brown and The Sandman so much that they asked to team with him for tonight’s match.

 

The Match: D’Lo and Kazarian charge the ring (as Sandman continues to make his way through the crowd with his drunken entrance) and duck a pair of clotheslines and take advantage early. It ends up with Kazarian in the ring with Siaki and Kazarian nails a springboard back elbow and a swinging neckbreaker for two. D’Lo comes in and Siaki tags out after tagging D’Lo in the chin with a hard uppercut. Don Harris comes in and bumps all over the place for D’Lo for a sec, but recovers with a big boot and a Bossman slam. David Young comes in and gets clotheslined, allowing Kazarian to come in with a slingshot legdrop. With Sandman STILL on the outside entertaining the fans, Kazarian hits a modified Electric Chair Drop which he calls Back to the Future for a two count. Kazarian bounces off the ropes, but Siaki knees him in the back (which he doesn’t sell) allowing David Young to get his SNAP SPINEBUSTER~! for a broken up two count. Kazarian is now in with Sonny Siaki, who suplexes The Future and holds on to perform a T-Bone Suplex which almost landed him on his DOME for two. Siaki goes for Siakalypse NOW, but Kazarian flips out of it and kicks him down. Both men tag out and D’Lo Brown is a HOUSE…EN…FUEGO~! He hits the Sudden Impact on David Young, but Siaki breaks it up as The Sandman comes back to planet Earth and begins brawling with Don Harris on the floor. D’Lo and Siaki end up tumbling to the floor and Kazarian nails his Reverse Russian Leg Sweep (The Wave of the Future) onto Young…and D’Lo twists in mid air to land the Lo Down on him for the pin!

 

Winners: D’Lo Brown, Frankie Kazarian and The Sandman

 

After the match, the winners start drinking some Bud, but are attacked by the sore losers they just defeated. Siaki canes the Sandman and DDT’s him…and Don Harris and Mike Sanders come on down and lay an extra beating on Sandman for beating’s sake. All of a sudden, STING~! comes down the rampway with his jacket on and his baseball bat, followed by Jeff Jarrett sporting a guitar and he nails everyone with the bat! He points at David Young, who literally says “Oh, fuck this!” and starts to walk away…but gets a guitar shot from Jarrett instead. The crowd pops HUGE for Sting (and keep in mind they don’t cheer much) as we cut to the announcers.

 

My Opinion: This was just a match to warm up the crowd and there wasn’t much substance to it at all. At first, I thought they were going to have the babyfaces job and blame it on Sandman spending most of the time out of the ring, but they probably did the best thing for the match itself and kept him out of the ring the entire time. It looks like Kazarian is here to stay and TNA did the smart thing and brought Sting out early to keep the crowd’s interest from waning early. *1/4.

 

West and Tenay introduce the Spanish Announce Team (NOT Joel and Jose Maximo) who will be calling the matches in Spanish if you press the SAP button on your remote. The team consists of Konnan and Armado Quintero. Next week….DIATRIBE EN ESPANOL~! Just kidding….West and Tenay run down the card and tell us that they’ll be showing highlights of the past year through out the show.

 

Our first TNA Flashback segment is a montage consisting of the controversial Roddy Piper segment where he confronted Russo, followed by Jarrett’s stand against Vince Russo and S.E.X and Dusty Rhodes confronting Vince Russo. Sadly, this does nothing for me because it’s all INTERVIEW SEGMENTS WITH VINCE RUSSO! Hopefully, the Flashbacks are themed and this one isn’t just Russo-centric for the sake of being so.

 

That segues right into…a segment with Vince Russo as he walks to the ring with a mic in his hand, coming out of the new entranceway I might add. His new music is a ripoff of System of a Down’s “Toxicity” by the way.

 

For SOME REASON, the crowd starts a “Russo” chant and he just soaks it up! Jarrett must REALLY have pissed off the crowd for them to side with Vince. Russo is sporting a weird 80’s perm hairstyle…which he says costs more than all of their trailers to turn him heel again. He says that he went home and took care of his children, finally, but his 8 year old daughter told him to come back. He says that it breaks down to North and South as he says the North has money and power, while the South has kissing cousins and “willing barnyard animals.” I’ll admit, that got a chuckle out of me. He says that the South is also about a lack of loyalty, as he pimps Jeff Jarrett to the crowd. He blames the crowd for booing Jeff Jarrett…and now he’s back! He says that he’s not doing it alone this time though…he will stand side by side with someone who is better than HBK, Bret Hart and Sting at his age…the NWA Champion, AJ STYLES~! The crowd actually pops for AJ as he gets his cool new entrance and he walks down the ramp with the NWA Title.

 

The crowd could care less that AJ is with Russo, but Mike Tenay is playing up his disappointment. He gets a HUGE “AJ” chant as he takes THE STICK~!, but he tells them to shut up. He says that Russo was the missing piece to AJ’s Puzzle and he’s the reason why he has the NWA Title.

 

Mike Tenay comes into the ring and Vince Russo says something in his ear. Whatever it was, Tenay doesn’t look happy. AJ starts ripping on the crowd stating that he’s not like them because he doesn’t date his own sister and has a successful job. Russo grabs the mic and says that the fans are the reasons why he’s taking him to New York. Tenay interrupts and starts preaching the Evils of Vince Russo to Styles for a pop. He says that Styles used to do things the right way, but now his accomplishments mean nothing. Russo interrupts and tells Tenay that Jeff Jarrett did things the right way and he was booed for it. Russo says that it’s all about “screwing”, and who you have to screw to get to the top.

 

D’Lo Brown’s comes down after hearing that and grabs the mic. He confronts Russo and told him that they were friends once and they created the D’Lo characters. He says that Russo was the one who awarded him a shot, so D’Lo owes him everything, but he doesn’t know him anymore. He then reiterates the same point to Styles as they were a successful tag team and shared his knowledge, but Styles took a shortcut to win the belt. He claims that HE was screwed when Styles took the shortcut. Styles tells him that he only did what D’Lo taught him and he was going to ask him to be his partner tonight. D’Lo calls Russo a piece of shit…and Russo then interrupts and claims FULL responsibility for the D’Lo character. Now, Russo says that he has a new role for D’Lo. “Would you like to play the role of my little bitch?”

 

That prompts D’Lo to attack Russo, of course and AJ Styles starts attacking D’Lo to pull him off. Raven hits the ring and attacks Styles! He goes for the Raven Effect, but is interrupted by Russo. Raven turns his attention to him, but Shane Douglas comes down the ramp and hits the belly to belly on him, prompting TSM Forums member Zack Malibu to scream like a little school girl in gym! The crowd chants “Triple Threat” at Douglas, but security come out and pull him off.

 

We now go to the back where Goldylocks is with TRACY~! and Nurse Veronica. Goldylocks tells them that she fully supports the women’s movement that they’re trying to make. Tracy doubts her sincerity and informs Goldy that the “sexist NWA Board” declared that they’re no longer allowed to compete with the men. Nurse Veronica says that they can sue, but “us girls at BitchSlap, we handle things our own way.” Bitch Slap???

 

Erik Watts comes into the picture to talk to Goldy as the two girls walk away. He asks Goldy if she “took care of what we talked about last night.” She says no and that she’ll be interviewing Kid Kash later on…but Erik says that’ll happen over his dead body.

 

We now go to the outside where Julio and Alexis are scared that Raven is going to come looking for them. All of a sudden, CM PUNK asks if they’ve told Raven that he wants to join the Gathering…but Julio says now is not the time. Alexis makes sure to tell him that Raven can be an asshole when he’s upset…and right now, he’s upset and there may not even be a Gathering soon…but CM Punk says that there will ALWAYS be a Gathering.

 

CM Punk and Raven have worked together in the Ring of Honor promotion and has the look for Raven’s Gathering, so I think it’s a good idea. I think this was the first time that Julio said more than two words on camera as well. He didn’t sound too bad.

 

Another TNA Flashback shows AJ Styles first X Title win prior to tonight’s X Division Title match.

 

Chris Sabin vs. Paul London

 

Match Background: Chris Sabin should have defended against Paul London prior to tonight, but London was in Japan last week. Paul London became the number one contender in a 4 way X Division match not too long ago. His first and only title defense was last week against Shark Boy.

 

The Match: They lock up and the crowd chants for London as things get a little more heated between the two. Sabin gets a NICE armdrag and hurancanrana, but London gives him a rana of his own and a flipping dropkick. They both end up on the ring apron with Paul London shoving Sabin into the ring post and falling down to the floor. London runs off the apron and lands a RUNNING SHOOTING STAR PRESS~! for a “Holy Shit” chant! London throws him back in for a two count, but Sabin takes control with an eye poke. He tosses London over and he tries to skin the cat back in…but Sabin kicks him SQUARE in the face and London falls to the floor, prompting a “Hail Sabin” chant from the crowd. Sabin comes over the top with a twisting plancha and tosses London into the guard rail. Sabin then slingshots London into the guardrail again. Back in the ring now, London connects with some forearms and leaps off the top with a cross body attempt…but Sabin puts his knee down to make it a gut buster for two! LOUD “TNA” chant as Sabin puts on an abdominal stretch. London fights his way out of it and ends up in the corner. Sabin charges and London hooks his legs around Sabin’s head…and almost PLANTS Sabin into the mat with a reverse head scissors! I’ve NEVER seen that before! Both men are down and the crowd is pretty into this. London gets a spin wheel kick and another flipping dropkick before nipping up to his feet. Sabin once again cheats to get the advantage, but London recovers and gets a reverse powerbomb for two! London begins selling the ribs and after a reversal, Sabin hits his swinging Rock Bottom over the knee…REVERSED so the knee connects with London’s ribs! That was EXCELLENT! The crowd chants “Pepsi” as CM Punk comes to ringside. He gets into the ring and starts sitting in the corner, ala Raven, while Sabin attempts the Future Shock off the top rope. London fights it off, but Sabin comes running back with a forearm smash to the face! He tries a top rope rana…but London just throws him down, powerbomb style! LONDON CALLING SSP~!!! The crowd goes CRAZY but London can’t make the pinfall due to the injured ribs! He looks at CM Punk…and turns his back on him to go grab Sabin, but Punk gets out of the corner and Raven Effect DDT’s him! He walks out of the ring with his arms extended ala Raven and Sabin hits the FUTURE SHOCK~! for the pinfall and the win…

 

Winner: Chris Sabin

 

My Opinion: This was definitely Paul London’s best singles outing in TNA so far and the crowd was REALLY behind him. The workers worked well and London told a great story with the injured ribs and wasn’t able to make the pinfall after the London Calling because of it. The interference did take this match down a notch, but I had a feeling that Sabin wasn’t going to lose the title so quickly. He’s a good worker, as is London and CM Punk and hopefully, they’ll have more matches together. I’m already interested where CM Punk’s storyline is going. **1/2

 

Goldylocks is in the back with New Jack. She asks him if he’s looking past Mike Sanders tonight in the Hard 10 semi-finals. New Jack: “I don’t give a SHIT about Mike Sanders.” You just gotta love that wacky New Jack. “Boy, I’m going to stick my fingers down your eye sockets and rip your heat out!” Shark Boy interrupts (without saying a word) and New Jack tells him to go away because he’s got Mike Sanders tonight…and he’s beat him in every game that they’ve played. Hilarious moment as New Jack looks at Shark Boy and tells him to stop smiling. HIS MASK IS DRAWN THAT WAY!

 

Shark Boy unveils his Ace as he brings forth oversized Hulk hands (they look like green oversized boxing gloves) and New Jack is tempted. He tells him that he’ll be done with Sanders in about 5 minutes because: “Mike Sanders, I don’t know wrestling moves, I don’t know wrestling holds, I know whipping yo’ ass! This won’t take long!” New Jack is an incredible interview…just incredible. I’m enjoying this partnership WAY too much.

 

Jack, Shark Boy and Goldylocks walk away…but Kid Kash sneaks into the frame and starts yelling past a cage, looking for the huge guy that attacked Watts last week. He says thanks for watching his back, but he didn’t catch his name… the guy doesn’t respond. Kash asks for his help one more time tonight…and something is thrown at him. Kash takes that as a yes and walks away.

 

Another TNA Flashback is shown with Puppet the Midget Killer caning Don West, Jasmine St. Clair giving Jeremy Borash a lap dance and Chris Rock’s appearance.

 

Mike Sanders vs. New Jack in a Hard 10 Semi-Final match

 

Match Background: Mike Sanders defeated Brian Lee in the first round to advance in this tournament. New Jack defeated Slash and Sanders jumped New Jack last week when he tried to come to the aid of Shark Boy.

 

The Match: Mike Sanders comes to the ring wearing a bullet proof vest, but disappears before New Jack’s entrance. New Jack brings a 2x4 with him…but Sanders attacks from behind with a trashcan lid! He’s awarded the point, although the shot came before the bell, making it 1-0. New Jack gets up and nails Sanders with the lid (1-1)…as SHARK BOY is in the crowd with the Hulk hands cheering New Jack on! I LOVE IT! Sanders goes to the outside and nails three straight shots on New Jack to make it 4-1 and whips him into the corner, into a garbage can…followed by another trashcan shot to make it 6-1. New Jack recovers and sits Mike Sanders in a chair. He runs off the apron and misses Sanders as he moves out of the way on time, crashing into the chair himself. Sanders makes it 7-1 with another trashcan shot, but New Jack is finally able to come back with a cookie sheet and make it 7-2. Jack places the sheet on Sanders’ crotch….and nails it with the 2x4 to make it 7-3. I really don’t like these damned Hard 10 matches. Shark Boy makes it to the front row as the trash can lid shot by New Jack makes it 7-4…which is then made 7-5 with a trash can lid assisted headbutt to the nutz. Jack sends Sanders to the outside and puts him on a table and heads to the top! Shark Boy hopes over the rail and offers him the Hulk hands while he’s on the top. The crowd starts chanting “Use it!” and New Jack accepts after seeking approval from the crowd. He takes it and starts doing Hulk poses in the ring (and throws in the Pee Wee Herman Dance as well) as Sanders gets off the table and onto the apron. Shark Boy distracts Sanders momentarily and New Jack punches him with the Hulk hand, sending him backwards off the apron through the table to make it 10-7 and New Jack moves onto the finals!

 

Winner: New Jack

 

My Opinion: Let me make it clear once again…I DON’T like the Hard 10 concept. While the last two matches in the tournament are good, matches like these are exactly what is wrong with it. They don’t attempt ANY wrestling whatsoever (then again, it’s New Jack) and it just seems like mindless garbage. I am really digging Shark Boy and New Jack together though and New Jack has a strange charisma to him that just appeals to the crowd. The Hulk hands was a cute spot. ¼*

 

We get a Trinity video package, full with footage of her days as a stunt woman. It switches midway from her in ring work to bikini shots…

 

She’s got a great body, but her face leaves something to be desired. And damn that Brooklyn accent. Fore the record, it’s a BROOKLYN accent, not a NY one. There IS a difference.

 

Another TNA flashback with Dusty Rhodes debut, Raven’s debut and D’Lo Brown’s.

 

A video package airs for the Justin Credible/Jerry Lynn match….

 

Justin Credible vs. Jerry Lynn

 

Match Background: Justin Credible and Jerry Lynn were tag team partners in the Asylum Alliance tournament and had a long pullapart brawl after they lost to Chris Harris and Chris Sabin. Jerry Lynn had Sabin set up for the Cradle Piledriver, but Credible was the legal man and let him know, so Lynn stepped aside, only for Sabin to reverse That’s Incredible into a roll up for the pin. In last week’s Interrogation segment, Jerry Lynn claimed that the only reason why Justin Credible was so successful in ECW, was because of his relationship with Paul Heyman. That lead to another brawl and tonight’s match up. This is definitely not the first time that these two have met in the ring. In ECW, they met several times but the most notable was their last match together where Jerry Lynn won the ECW World Title off of Credible with a Cradle Tombstone Piledriver.

 

The Match: Lynn charges to the ring and lock up with a fury. The ref asks for a break and Lynn piefaces Credible back before locking up again. Credible lands some hard chops in the corner, but Lynn turns him around and shoots off two of his own. Lynn gets a BEAUTIFUL roll up in the corner for two, but Credible gets up and sets him up for That’s Incredible already. Lynn wriggles free and attempts the Cradle Piledriver to no avail. They counter a bunch of stuff and this is going VERY fast. They trade chops again (and Credible is leaning into them like a MAN) before Credible comes off the top with a cross body, which is reversed by Lynn for two! Both men get up and Credible nails a superkick flush on Lynn’s chin for a near fall! A “Justin Asshole” chant starts and Credible sets him up for That’s Incredible again. Jerry rolls him up ala Chris Sabin, but Credible rolls through that…and holds onto the ropes for the pin!

 

Winner: Justin Credible

 

Lynn argues with the ref about the three count and then starts brawling with Credible again. They tumble down to the floor as the fans chant “Bullshit” and they’re pulled apart again.

 

My Opinion: WAY too short! The match looked like it was going to be VERY good as these two know each other very well and were going reversal crazy, but Credible got the duke with the ropes. This 2 minute match was pretty disappointing since it had a lot of promise and got almost NO time. It’s clear that there will be rematches. ¾*

 

We go to a sit down interview between Konnan, Ron “The Truth” Killings and…B.G. James as Mike Tenay!?

 

B.G. James puts over Truth’s NWA Title win early last year, as he was the first black champion in the NWA’s history to hold the title (Ron Simmons was WCW Champion)…so he asks him what his obsession with fried chicken is. Uh oh…

 

Truth actually starts describing how to cook a chicken…but realizes what he’s saying and asks B.G. James what he’s talking about. He’s eaten fried chicken, right!? B.G. responds and Truth says “Yo Momma”. B.G. hilariously defends himself with multiple various of ‘Fo Shizzle My Nizzle.

 

He moves over to Konnan…and mispronounces a bunch of Mexican moves on purpose. He then asks if the Taco Bell dog has allowed success to get to his head. Truth starts joking on B.G. James weight and it becomes a friendly insult contest for the rest of the segment until Konnan says that he’s got some smoke in his pocket. B.G. gets over excited and cuts the feed.

 

I don’t know WHAT in the world that was….but it was FUNNY because it was so damned over the top.

 

Another TNA Flashback shows Dusty Rhodes ripping on “a midget…jackin off in a trash can”…and then they revisit the skit. It seems like all the Flashbacks they’re showing besides the X Title win have been bad segments. NOT the kind of thing you want to present to your audience as TNA highlights.

 

Kenzo Suzuke vs. Perry Saturn

 

Match Background: None. This is Kenzo Suzuke’s first match in TNA…and I know NOTHING about him.

 

The Match: Kenzo Suzuke is Japanese incase you haven’t figured it out by now. He starts the match out with a clothesline on Saturn. Saturn returns with a lariat of his own. Saturn takes advantage in the corner…and hits him in the head with his ass for some reason. Saturn with a go-behind, but Suzuke delivers a mule kick low blow in clear view of the ref, who doesn’t even admonishes him. We start receiving a feed from the Spanish Announce Team as a test and Konnan is putting over Suzuke’s body, while his announce teammate actually calls NWA:TNA the best wrestling in the U.S. Hyperbole much? Susuke suplexes Saturn for a two count and so far, the fans are NOT interested in this match at all. Saturn gets a couple of roll ups for two and BARELY hits him with a springboard dropkick for two. Saturn blocks two Suzuke punches and nails a T-Bone suplex. He scoops Suzuke up…and almost falls on his ass just trying to slam him! He can’t be THAT much bigger than Saturn. Saturn messes up another move as a springboards splash connects on Susuke only with his knees. Suzuke gets a weak spear…and SCREAMS for the crowd approval…but they’re not approving at all. Susuke gets a high knee for a two count and goes for a German suplex, which is reversed by Saturn. Saturn delivers it VERY badly and Suzuke looks like he could have blown out a shoulder there. Saturn spinebusters Suzuke down and nails a top rope elbow and goes for the pin, but Justin Credible runs in and canes him on the top of the head for the DQ!

 

Jerry Lynn runs in immediately and starts brawling with Credible some more. Susuke and Saturn brawl after the match too, but Saturn disposes of him quickly. The ring announcer actually declares this match a no-contest for some reason.

 

My Opinion: VERY poor showing for Kenzo Suzuke. The guy was just boring and didn’t seem very good AT ALL. Saturn being his opponent sure didn’t help and the fans shit all over this. This is actually the first time I’ve ever seen someone from Japan stink the ring up like this. ¼*

 

Goldylocks is in the back with AJ Styles. Styles doesn’t care who his partner will be because he has full trust in him.

 

Another TNA Flashback…back to the 1st show where Jeff Jarrett interrupted Toby Keith’s appearance and was suplexed by Keith later on for it. Hermie Sadler and Sterling Marlin’s run in with The Truth is shown as well as the Tennessee Titans brawl with Jeff Jarrett. So far…nothing good.

 

We head to the ring as Jeremy Borash announces the tag title match is about to take place.

 

We cut to the back as Daniels and Skipper and putting a beatdown on AMW in the back before coming down to the ring!

 

Triple X vs. America’s Most Wanted for the NWA Tag Team Titles

 

Match Background: Americas Most Wanted gets a shot at Triple X and the tag team titles after winning the Asylum Alliance tournament and working out the problems that Storm and Harris were having with each other. This will be the forth time that AMW have faced Triple X in tag team matches and Christopher Daniels stated this little factoid during the AA tourney. Every possible combination of Triple X has defeated Americas Most Wanted. Low-Ki and Elix Skipper defeated AMW in Week 28 to win the titles the first time. Low-Ki and Christopher Daniels then teamed up in Week 35 to win the belts back against AMW in the finals of a tournament when the tag titles were vacated. And finally, the duo with the most success, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper defeated Triple X in Week 41 in a number one contenders match for the Tag Team Titles.

 

The Match: Triple X come out in FULL force tonight as LOW-KI~! walks down the aisle with them with his arm in a sling and both tag titles hanging around his neck. He STILL looks badass hurt.

 

Daniels gets on THE STICK~! and announces that he’ll be going to Japan in a couple of weeks to spread the gospel of S.E.X. You don’t need to preach it to me, brother.

 

AMW come down to the ring and begin brawling with them at ringside, with Storm and Elix coming into the ring. Elix is almost pinned by a cross body, but he Matrixes out of it…only to get kicked in the face by Storm. Elix sets up Storm for Daniels and he takes over promptly. Elix comes back in with a spin kick which he follows with a double underhook suplex for two. The KINGS of Quick Tags, Daniels comes in AGAIN as the crowd chants “Fallen Angel”. Triple X just get PRETTY with their double team moves as Skipper hits a cross body on Storm as he’s being vertically suplexed by Daniels. Harris comes off the top with a double clothesline and a full nelson slam on Daniels! The ref gets him back in the corner, allowing Triple X to take over on Storm again. Miscommunication leads to Daniels nailing Elix in the face with a forearm smash and Storm makes the hot tag to Harris! He’s a HOUSE…EN…FUEGO~! as he nails them all with left arm clotheslines! Elix is the recipient of a powerslam for a two count. Elix sets Harris up for the Play of the Day, but SOMEHOW, Harris reverses into the CATATONIC~! for a broken up two. Daniels comes in and nails the ANGELS WINGS~! on Harris for ONE…TWO…NO! Storm saved it at the last minute! Storm hits a powerslam on Daniels and sets him up in the corner for the Swinging Noose! Daniels fights out of it and goes for a superplex, but Harris attacks from behind and places Daniels on his shoulders. HIGH SWINGING NOOSE~! by Storm gets the ONE…TWO…NO! Skipper DESTROYS Storm with a devastating um…neck toss? Whatever it was…it looked like it KILLED him. Elix and Harris are brawling on the outside as Daniels plants Storm with a Book End and heads to the top for the Double Jump Moonsault! He goes for it and lands on his feet as Storm moves out of the way and gets SPEARED! ONE…TWO…NO! Elix gets a roll up for two…and begins brawling with Harris as Low-Ki hands Daniels one of the tag title belts! Harris clotheslines Elix over the top, but Daniels is lying in wait! Daniels MISSES the belt shot and Storm superkicks him! They set Daniels up for the DEATH SENTENCE~! and they hit it! ONE…TWO…NO! Elix pulled the referee out! Low-Ki gets the officials attention as Elix comes back in and nails Storm in the face with a tag title! Daniels crawls over for the cover….ONE…TWO…THREE!!!

 

Winners: Triple X!

 

My Opinion: I honestly didn’t think that Triple X would retain the titles! AMW had all of the momentum going for them, plus the fact that they went through a tournament just to get this shot, so Triple X retaining really is a shock to me. This is the “Big Show” and now Triple X are 5-0 on AMW amazingly. The match itself was good as it started at a break neck pace and had a lot of false finishes. You just KNOW they’ll be a rematch though. ***1/4.

 

We go to a pretaped interview between Mike Tenay and Jerry Jarrett, Jeff Jarrett’s father and the owner of TNA (although that isn’t stated by Tenay). His son looks a LOT like him. He says that this is a special occasion as TNA has survived all the bumps and bruises and TNA will be glorious in the future. He says that the NWA is getting stronger and they’ll regain their prominence. He asks him about Vince Russo…and Jerry states that Vince is frustrated because he views his past as failures. He seems to be obsessed with getting Jeff Jarrett back under his control. Tenay and Jerry put each other over and that’s that. He didn’t really have much to say to be honest.

 

Erik Watts is in the ring. Watts: “Well, enough of that boring interview. Now its time for me, Mr. Ratings aka Mr. Xplosion to talk about some serious shit!” He says that the Director of Authority, his main man Eric, is coming soon so the politics will stop. Watts calls out Kid Kash for an interview…and Kash tapes his wrists up as he comes to down the aisle. Watts makes a bunch of short jokes that anger Kash, so he charges at him. They get nose to nose and Watts wants to know why Kash likes to beat women. Kash admits to it…and says “If you want to keep acting like a woman, I’ll show you that you can be MY bitch!” Watts punches Kash down and goes for a Chokeslam…but Goldylocks is shown on the Tron! She’s locked in the cage with the masked man from last week and screaming for Watts! Erik runs over and tries to kick the door down, but can’t! Kash attacks him from behind….and Watts accidentally opens up the locker room door next to him, exposing Perry Saturn in a jock strap. I REALLY didn’t need to see that.

 

They inexplicably cut to a TNA flashback segment while Goldylocks is screaming! The first Styles vs. Jarrett match is shown…as well as the finish to last week’s match.

 

West and Tenay start talking about next week’s card which has, Sonny Siaki vs. The Sandman in a Hard 10 semi final when Chris Harris interrupts and gets on the mic. He says that they’re always screwed by Triple X because of the numbers game, making it 3 on 2. Well, next week…Triple X vs. AMW…IN A STEEL CAGE! That will be TNA’s first Steel Cage match, EVER. Don Harris goes BALLISTIC with the hard sell!

 

Sting & Jeff Jarrett vs. AJ Styles (w/Vince Russo) & ???

 

Match Background: Last week, AJ Styles defeated Jeff Jarrett with Vince Russo’s help to become the NWA World Champion. After the match, Jarrett issued a challenge for a rematch, but Styles declined, saying that he had 30 days to do so. Jarrett then issued a tag team challenge, he and Sting vs. AJ and a partner of his choice. This is Sting’s first match on TNA…and in the U.S. since the final Nitro in March of 2001! He recently wrestled Jeff Jarrett in the WWA promotion in a WWA/NWA unification match, which Jeff Jarrett won due to interference.

 

The Match: Russo gets on the mic to announce Styles’ partner. He calls his partner a scumbag, a degenerate and the scum of the Earth…so he’s a lot like Russo….SYXX-PAC!

 

Well…THAT is a Shock! Sean Waltman quit TNA because of Russo’s involvement! The announcers go ballistic because of this.

 

Jarrett and Sting come down to the ring to Jarrett’s music, sans his video package that proclaimed him as World Champion. The battle is on the moment they get into the ring as Styles pairs off with Sting and Jarrett with ‘Pac. Sting and Jarrett whip the heels into each other and it ends up with Sting and Styles in the ring. Sting no sells a couple of Styles’ kicks and hits a back elbow. Styles attempts a high dropkick, but Sting holds onto the ropes and locks on the SCORPION DEATHLOCK~! Styles hurries to get to the ropes ASAP and gets the break. Jarrett and ‘Pac brawl on the outside as Sting hits a plancha to Styles on the rampway while Russo invites himself as the 3rd man on commentary. Jarrett and ‘Pac head back into the ring and ‘Pac misses a Bronco Buster. Sting tosses Styles into the announce table as Jarrett powerbombs ‘Pac down and puts on the Figure Four. Styles gets MAJOR AIR as he NAILS a springboard legdrop onto Jarrett to break up the hold! Styles comes in and connects big time with a knee drop and a STIFF kick to the back. Nice flipping dropkick by Styles as he tags ‘Pac back in. Waltman puts on a sleeper and Sting riles up the crowd, but Jarrett gets put down with a spin kick. Snap running legdrop by ‘Pac gets him a two before Styles comes in and puts on a sleeper of his own. “We Want Sting” chant by the crowd as Jarrett fights to his feet and both men hit each other with clotheslines and are downed. Styles makes it to his corner first and ‘Pac comes in…but Jarrett crawls between his legs and tags Sting in to a big pop! Sting is a HOUSE…EN…FUEGO~! He hits the Stinger Splash on Styles and one on ‘Pac! SCORPION DEATHLOCK on Styles!

 

‘Pac nails him with a baseball bat to the back of the head and Styles puts on a Scorpion Deathlock on his own! Sting powers out and Styles makes the tag to ‘Pac…and then knocks Jarrett off of the apron! Styles and ‘Pac attempt a double team…and get double clotheslined by Sting! This crowd is HOT! I can’t believe it! LOUD “TNA” chant! Sting sets up Styles for the Scorpion Death Drop and ‘Pac for a DDT at the same time and hits it!!! All three men are down in the ring! Sting tags in Jarrett who goes right after Styles with a dropkick and one for ‘Pack as well! Double noggin knocker knocks them both down and Russo leaves the broadcast position. Sting goes for 10 punches in the corner on Waltman as Styles attempts a superkick and ends up nailing the ref! AJ goes for The Stroke on Jarrett…but Jarrett blocks it and hits one on AJ! Styles actually flipped forward on that bump somehow. Jarrett goes for the cover, but Russo comes in and nails him with the bat as Sting is on the outside! Raven runs in and goes after Russo in the corner! Styles tries to save Russo but Raven catches him and goes for the Raven Effect!

 

Shane Douglas comes from behind and brawls with Raven up the ramp! Styles climbs to the top and leaps off…only to land on a Jarrett boot! Jarrett with The Stroke, but STILL no ref! Sting is on the outside nailing ‘Pac with a chair…and the ref is finally up and its only a two count. Jarrett hits The Stroke on Styles off the 2nd rope as Raven and Douglas climb back into the ring! ONE…TWO…THREE!

 

Winners: Sting & Jeff Jarrett

 

After the match, Russo comes in and starts choking Jeff Jarrett with the bat. Sting comes over for the save and Jarrett nails Russo with it! Russo runs away as does Shane Douglas and Styles…and Raven and Jarrett meet face to face in the middle of the ring. Sting separates them…and raises their hands together!

 

My Opinion: The match was fine, although Sting DID look rusty. The crowd wanted to see him in the ring and most people at home paid to see him, so why not let Sting get the pinfall in this one? Jarrett pinning Styles probably pissed off most of the live crowd, although the prospect of Raven and Jarrett on the same side is very interesting. Sean Waltman’s association with Russo needs to be explained as well. Not a bad tag match at all. With all of the people out there in the main event, I figured that D’Lo would be one of them. Oh well. **3/4.

 

Overall: This wasn’t the blow away show that it should have been because there were NO title changes on the show, not even in the tag title match which we figured was a given. Hopefully, this garnered TNA some new viewers, so I don’t blame them for advertising a big match like the cage match on tonight’s show instead of delivering…but at least give us SOMETHING to go home happy with.

 

A lot of the storylines were advanced and TNA really treated tonight like a big deal with the new stage and video packages. Their choices for the best highlights were very interesting as it didn’t highlight most of the wrestling achievements, concentrating more on the segments instead.

 

It’s been an interesting first year for TNA and hopefully, it’ll make it to the second.

 

‘Til next week,

 

The Dames, Damian Gonzalez

 

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