Oracle of Delphi
Bruce BostwickTNA Impact Wrap Up 5-22-08
May 23rd 2008 12:18
The Phenomenal AJ Styles
TNA Impact from The Impact Zone 5-22-08
The show started with Team 3D talking to someone we don't see. They say they have his back, and he has their back, and that's how it is.
In the wake of Team 3Ds attack on Hector Guerrero at the end of last week's show which left him laying on the ground bloody, Homicide wanted a match with Brother Ray.
Brother Ray vs. Homicide
This match went back and forth a bit until Brother Ray climbed the ropes (and we all know from history that Dudleys other than Spike don't fly so well.) He said, "Hector Guerrero this is for you." before he jumped from the ropes and hit nothing but canvas. At this point Homicide took over the match, that is until Brother Devon hit the ring with a kendo stick and slammed it across his back. Devon got the table setup in the ring. Homicide's Latin American Xchange partner Hernandez rushed to the ring to aide his partner. Hernandez took control of things momentarily. Then we found out who Team 3D made their deal with earlier, Booker T came in and hit Hernandez with a super kick to turn things around. Team 3D smashed the kendo stick and Tag Team belt into Homicide and Hernandez's skulls. Both members of LAX were now bloodied. Brother Ray then put Homicide through the table.
Winner: Homicide via Disqualification
To JB in the back where Karen Angle is arriving where she tells JB to, "Expect the unexpected". Then in came Awesome Kong and Raisha Saeed who handed him a note and told him to read it and they'd be back later. JB mumbled something about $25,000 to wrestle a fan.
Back from the break where ODB talked about her match with Angelina Love coming up next. It included her normal groping of herself, but this time it included her having the interviewer Lauren grab hold to show her that hers are real.
ODB vs. Angelina Love accompanied by Velvet Sky
This match started with ODB spitting whatever is in that flask of hers into Love's face. Love then turned it right around with a boot to the face and distracted the ref while Velvet Sky worked ODB over with a choke hold. She then held ODB to the mat with a sleeper-like hold, until she stood up with Love on her back and rammed her into the corner till she let go. ODB then hit the fallaway slam. The match then came to an end when ODB got too close to the ropes and Velvet Sky hit her in the head with her flask, followed by the pin.
Winner: Angelina Love
The Beautiful People picked up a pair of clippers to give ODB a new hairdo, but before they could Roxie Laveaux charged the ring and saved ODB from the haircut. She was then ready to clip Angelina Love's hair when TNA Senior Referee Rudy Charles took the clippers away. Roxie was not happy and kicked Charles, and then hit him with her Voo-Doo Drop.
After the break...
Samoa Joe and Kevin Nash came to the ring to announce Joe's four picks for the wrestlers to be in the qualifying round of the King of the Mountain. Joe's first pick, The Phenomenal One A. J. Styles. Next two picks, as he grouped them together, The War Machine Rhyno, and The Instant Classic Christian Cage. His fourth and final pick, Booker T. After his last pick Kevin Nash looked shocked and grabbed the microphone. He wanted to know how he is supposed to have his back if he isn't in the match. After a bit of back and forth banter, Nash says he hates when someone doesn't do what he's told to do, and when that happens the machine breaks down, and he won't allow that. He then left the ring without Joe.
To JB in the back, with Kurt Angle and MMA Fighter Frank Trigg headed into the bathroom and chatting.
Back from break...
More interviews with Lauren. This time she has So. Cal. Val, Black Machismo Jay Lethal, and Sonjay Dutt talking about their pending nuptials coming up at the King of the Mountain pay-per-view. Val points out that the Rock N Rave Infection has asked if they can audition to play the wedding. After a bad and luckily short bit of music playing in the background while the RnR pretended to play and sing, Sonjay Dutt said he got American Idol Finalist Ace Young to play at the wedding. He went on to say that Young would be in The Impact Zone next week.
Now onto another disturbing video of Abyss in a straightjacket and padded room. Which he ends by saying it is time to go home.
After the break...
Lauren with Robert Roode talking about his match with Matt Morgan coming up. It was just Roode saying how it is about time that the powers-that-be realized his potential.
King of the Mountain Qualifying Match
Robert Roode vs. Matt Morgan
Morgan controlled this match from the start, until Roode hit him with a chop block and then started working on his leg. Morgan would comeback soon after while absorbing shot after shot from Roode. Morgan would hold Roode in the corner choking him with referee Earl Hebner trying to get him to break the hold. When Morgan did break he turned and grabbed Hebner and threw him down. When he turned back to Roode he was knocked off his feet. Roode would then pin him while putting his feet on the rope for leverage.
Winner: Robert Roode
Back from break again...
Time to catch up with Eric Young who is in Memphis. He was just roaming the streets looking for Elvis, while talking to locals to try and get clues as to where he could be.
Back to the Impact Zone for the continuing saga of How The Angles Turn. Kurt comes out and introduces Karen, down she comes with her own mic. The crowd chants Karen Styles repeatedly while Kurt begins sucking up. Then says that now that she knows her place as a wife, and that the TNA Title comes first. this all leads up to Karen asking for a divorce. It turns to him asking if she is seeing someone, like A.J.. After she says they are just friends Kurt drops to his knees to beg her not to do it. She just dropped the mic and walked away, while he sit in the ring breaking down.
After the break...
To JB in the back again with Kong and Saeed again. JB saying how she can't fight a fan. Saeed hands him the waiver the fan signed. He refuses to be a part of it. Saeed says if he doesn't be part of it that Kong will take care of him instead.
Again we go to Lauren, this time with A.J. Styles. She asks about the Karen situation, he confirms they are just friends. Points out how Tomko is upset about A.J. picking a tag team partner while he was injured in Japan, and asks about the pressure on him in his match against Booker T later in the show. Out comes Tomko to confront him. A.J. stands up to him, and Tomko tells him he can be his own man...but by himself, and walks away.
Back from another break...
We start with part two of Mike Tenay's interview with The Icon Sting. Their topic, Jeff Jarrett.
Then we go to the ring for an explanation of King of the Mountain from JB, this turns into the introduction for the second qualifying match of the night. JB however is interrupted by Kong's music. They force JB to make the $25,000 challenge while Saeed holds a briefcase full of money. He then asks the crowd for a volunteer female who is 18 years or older who would like to challenge Kong for $25,000. A skinny scared looking blonde raises her hand and comes walking down. Her name is Melissa and she is from Erie, Pennsylvania.
Melissa vs. Awesome Kong
It takes about 15 seconds for Kong to get a hold of Melissa. She then tosses her around by her hair, she beats on her a bit and then hits her with the Awesome Bomb. It didn't look like Melissa landed quite right. Her head hit the canvas hard, and her knee came up and hit herself in the face. They called for help.
To Lauren in the back again, this time with Team 3D. Where they said tonight was payback for being screwed out of the titles. They then turn to Booker T who talks about the lack of respect he gets. He then starts throwing stuff around the locker room that isn't up to his standards.
Booker T vs. The Phenomenal One A.J. Styles
This match was back and forth and surprisingly the crowd was behind A.J.. It seemed that each time Styles tried to mount an offense Booker cut him off with a kick or chop of some sort. Then A.J. hit him with a dropkick and then a flying forearm from the top rope. Tomko was now at ringside. Styles thought he had Booker right where he wanted him and went for another top rope move, this time he was pushed from behind by Tomko. Styles crash to the mat, Booker T hit the Bookend, and got the three count.
Winner: Booker T
Tomko then came into the ring. Styles shoved him. When they came back from commercial they are fighting in the ring. Down came Team 3D. Styles was fighting them off for a bit, then Booker T came back in and the numbers were too much. They began beating him down, Tomko hit him with a chain which busted him wide open. The beating continued until Karen Angle came to the ring. she shielded him with her body till Brother Ray pulled her up and she then slapped him, and they intimidated her out of the ring. Karen ran to the back, and the beating continued. Out came Kurt Angle with a chair. . . to save Styles? That was his intention originally, till he saw Karen attending to him. This is when he turned and grabbed her by the hair and they yelled back and forth while the rest of them stood outside the ring trying to escalate the argument. Kurt then turned and hit an already extremely bloodied A.J. in the head with a chair. The show ended with Kurt yelling "This is your fault, Karen!" while holding Styles up to make her look at him.
I still love TNA on the whole. However, their two hour weekly show has gone way downhill, at least it has this week. They need to realize the reason the whole thing worked was because they were DIFFERENT than the WWE. In order to grow and get better the answer is not to be more like the rival organization, but to remain a bit different and make your own way.
Stats:
2 Hour Show
4 Matches (Five if you count the ridiculousness of the Awesome Kong segment.)
There were two different ties in the show where a segment entirely full of interviews and talk was followed by another right after the commercial break.
When Impact was an hour long show they came out and wrestled and fit some talk in. They also used to get four matches in the hour. The two hour show seems to have less content than even the WWE shows. Plus they were more exciting matches than some that they have had recently. Storylines are great, sure, just find the happy medium between the two extremes, and maybe get a few better writers. WCW might still be around today if they didn't try to emulate the competition so much.
Now I must say that the talent is still usually exciting, LAX is a fun team to watch, and it is great to see Matt Morgan finally being able to wrestle without having to stutter his way through interviews and matches. You have more talent in the back every week, so why not bring them out for some matches and get close to six or seven matches in the two hour show. Whatever happened to the X-Division matches on Impact? They would be prefect filler.
Tune in tomorrow for the Smackdown Wrap Up.
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