TNA Slammiversary VIII
From: The iMPACT! Zone
Kazarian vs. Kurt Angle
Odd how Kurt Angle is suddenly in the opening match of a PPV. It either means they don’t think he is full back yet, or the show is so jam packed with great matches that they wanted to start off big and stay that way. Regardless, it is great to see Angle back in the ring.
Kazarian has let things with Ric Flair go to his head too much. He showboated a bit and wasted a lot of time repeatedly that kept giving Angle a chance to recuperate. At one point he raised his leg backwards to deliver a low blow. The referee was about to disqualify him, but Angle convinced him to let the match go on because he didn’t want to win like that.Wow, this was such a good match. If this is a sign of how the rest of the show is going to go then it might turn into the PPV of the year. They battled back and forth again and again. Kaz managed to block every attempt at the Olympic Slam and the Ankle Lock. The thing it, it only takes Angle locking it on once. He did indeed lock in the Ankle Lock and kept Kaz away from the ropes long enough to make him tap out. Welcome back Kurt Angle!
X-Division Championship Match
Champion Doug Williams vs. Brian Kendrick
Well they can’t ALL be top of the line matches like Angle-Kazarian. All in all it was a decent match. Williams retains his title after hitting a Tornado DDT from the middle rope and getting the pin.
During the first two matches of the night I saw so many suplexes that I began to wish that The Human Suplex Machine could put on his orange and black and get in the ring rather than just call the matches.
TNA Knockouts Championship Match
Champion Madison Rayne vs. Roxxi
After Madison talked way too long she asked Roxxi to put her career on the line if she were to lose the match. As Roxxi was agreeing Madison hit her in the head with the mic. It busted her wide open. Roxxi is almost as big a bleeder as Ric Flair is! the blood was just pouring from her forehead. Roxxi was controlling most of the match, but then Rayne got a quick three count to win the match. This apparently put an end to Roxxi’s TNA career…unless of course we suddenly see a masked knockout make her debut.
Jesse Neal vs. Brother Ray
Before the match started Ray decided to call it all off and apologize to everyone. As they walked back up the ramp together he turned and attacked Neal and threw him into the ring. the match would go on after Ray had the ref send Devon to the back. Ray had everything under control until all of a sudden in the crowd was an old friend. It was The Innovator of Violence, Tommy Dreamer! It provided enough of a distraction that Neal was able to get the upper hand and pin Brother Ray for the win.
It is great to see Dreamer coming to TNA. If given the chance we will see that “He’s Still Got It!” Just be prepared, things are probably about to get a little more bloodier in TNA. It is strange because it was just a few hours before I watched this PPV that I was wondering if anyone from ECW would wind up in TNA since the WWE killed off the brand again. Dreamer joins quite a few other ECW alum in TNA. I just hope they let them be extreme again. With RVD in the company they could probably convince Sabu to come back too. Imagine a Fatal 4-Way Barbed Wire match with RVD, Sabu, Dreamer, and maybe Abyss if Mick Foley or Taz can’t be involved.
When it was time for the Matt Morgan – Hernandez match out came Morgan with a doctor’s note and a neck brace saying he couldn’t compete tonight. Before he got back up the ramp though, out came Hernandez to attack and drag him back to the ring. After the ref continually tried to get Super Mex to stop choking Morgan with a shirt, Hernandez lost his temper and grabbed the ref and tossed him across the ring. The match ended with him being disqualified. He went right back after Morgan outside the ring. He set up Morgan’s head against the ring post and was about to land a kick on his head, Morgan pulled referee Brian Hebner into the way and he took the full brunt of the kick right to his ribs. Morgan then ran off, and Hernandez followed back up the ramp. Other refs rushed out to help Hebner.
Monster’s Ball Match
Desmond Wolfe accompanied by Chelsea vs. Abyss
This match is bound to end with Chelsea helping Abyss win. Oh! Imagine a Monster’s Ball match instead of the barbed wire match I was hoping for earlier. Shortly after the match started Abyss pulled out a board with barbed wire attached to it. He set it up in the corner where someone would surely be landing later. At one point Wolfe pulled out a teddy bear wrapped in barbed wire. After he used it to hit Abyss with, Abyss knocked Wolfe down. He went and gave the teddy bear to Chelsea. Next he pulled out the bag full of broken glass. Wolfe decided it was time to leave, and held Chelsea in front of him as a shield until he had a chance to grab a Kendo Stick. The fight made its way up to the announce table. As he swung the Kendo Stick again Abyss reached out and grabbed him for a Chokeslam. He slammed him right through the floor in front of the announce table. Then Abyss dragged him back to the ring. This entire time Chelsea was still holding on to the teddy bear. Abyss then retrieved the board with barbed wire on it and laid it on the mat. He hoisted Wolfe onto the corner turnbuckle and attempted to Superplex him onto the board. Wolfe fought him off and hit a sort of Sunset Flip which slammed Abyss down onto the board, entangling him in the barbed wire. He went for a pin, but Abyss got a shoulder up. Abyss’s arms were all bloody again. Wolfe then slammed Abyss face first into the pile of broken glass. He was bleeding profusely now. Wolfe screamed for Chelsea to give her the purse. She did reluctantly, but then there were no Brass Knuckles in it. Then suddenly she tossed them over Wolfe’s head and right to Abyss. He landed a big punch and hit the Black Hole Slam followed by the pin. As I said before the match, Chelsea helped Abyss win the match. Chelsea walked off still clutching the teddy bear. A MUCH better match than I was expecting. Abyss puts his body on the line every time he steps into the ring. It would be nice to have a Monster’s Ball opponent that will do the same and bleed a bit.
A.J. Styles with Ric Flair vs. Jay Lethal
This was a great X-Division type match that was fun to watch. It is great to see the new management using Lethal in the ring again instead of as a Macho Man knockoff. Flair used his jacket to choke Lethal at one point, but other than that it was a classic X-Division match. Something that TNA needs more of! Then Styles poked Lethal in the eye which gave him a chance to slap on the Figure-Four Leglock. Lethal managed to get to the ropes and break the hold. As he went for the Styles Clash Lethal countered with a Half Nelson into a Suplex. He pinned him, but Flair dragged A.J.’s leg under the rope. Lethal then put on a Figure-Four of his own. Styles got to the ropes to break it, but not before the damage was done. As Styles was regaining control he started to climb the ropes but his knee gave out and he fell and smacked his head on the turnbuckle. As A.J. climbed the ropes again and leaped off Lethal caught him and in one single motion hit a Northern Lights Suplex into the pin. Winner Jay Lethal!
Flair was not at all happy. As he started to approach A.J. out came Kazarian to try and stop things from escalating. Flair and Kaz then left the ring with A.J. sitting in the corner all alone.
Beer Money (Robert Roode & James Storm) vs. Mr. Anderson & Jeff Hardy
After battling for a while Storm was about to hit a kick, but Anderson grabbed him from the floor. Hardy hit a Stunner and then a Swanton Bomb on Roode. As referee Slick Johnson was counting Storm dragged him out of the ring and then collapsed to the floor to make it look like it wasn’t him. It was an act that would have made Eddie Guerrero proud. Johnson thought it was Anderson and began yelling at him and walking him back to his corner. This gave Beer Money a chance to double team Hardy. Beer Money kept control of the match from that point, just not allowing Hardy to get the tag to Anderson. Finally there was a small opening where he went for the Whisper in the Wind, but Roode moved out of the way. As Roode lifted him from the mat Hardy hit another Stunner and then got to the corner to make the tag. At this point the match broke down, everyone was flying everywhere. Storm eventually hit the Eye of the Storm on Hardy. They then were trying to hit the Last Call on bloody Anderson, but Hardy pushed Storm out of the ring without Roode noticing. As he hoisted Anderson over Hardy caught him and pushed him back over. Roode had no clue what was going on and turned to look, only to see Hardy standing there. Then Anderson grabbed him and hit The Mic Check and got the pin. Anderson called for his mic to come down. He announced the winner of the match, “Jeffrey Nero Hardy………Hardy”, then Hardy took the mic and announced “and the other winner of the match, Mr. Anderson…..Anderson” He also wished TNA a happy anniversary.
TNA Heavyweight Championship Match
Champion Rob Van Dam vs. Sting
This match wound up outside the ring soon after it started. This seemed to give Sting an advantage for a while. Sting kept control of things when they got back in the ring too. Finally RVD mounted a comeback using his biggest assets, his flexibility and kicks. Earl Hebner accidentally got hit in the eye. This led to hi wandering into harm’s way as RVD came off the top rope with a Flying Cross Body Block. Sting moved and Hebner got laid out. Sting went and grabbed his bat. Then all of a sudden Jeff Jarrett came down the entrance ramp. He took the bat and hit Sting in the face with it. RVD hit a Rolling Thunder and went for the pin, but Sting kicked out at two. After a few missed moves, RVD hit the Five Star Frog Splash and got the three count to retain his title.
This is how a pay-per-view should go! Not even Wrestlemania does a PPV as good as this (mostly). From top to bottom it was one great match after another. The only exception was probably the Doug Williams – Brian Kendrick match. I admit I wandered off to get some chips shortly after that one started. I give them credit though, the part I watched of that match turned out to be decent. I loved how they piled so many Suplexes into the first two matches.
Even the Knockouts match was very good for a second straight PPV, let’s see the WWE do that. The problem with the last two Knockouts Title matches at the PPVs is the reason they were both very good wound up losing the match and their TNA careers in the matches. If TNA keeps letting the Taras who actually do Moonsaults and wrestle in matches, and the Roxxis who will continue on through the profusely bleeding forehead and the Knockouts Division will soon look like The Divas division.
So, in review, even though it was an amazing PPV TNA has to grow from this point to keep things going in the right direction. They need more all out wrestling matches like the Angle-Kazarian match, more Knockouts wrestling and putting it all out there, more exciting X-Division type matches like the A.J. – Lethal match, more people willing to put their bodies on the line like Abyss for a Monster’s Ball match.
Enter Tommy Dreamer, apparently he was the big surprise Dixie Carter Tweeted about earlier in the week. He is the perfect type of wrestler to put into a Monster’s Ball match with Abyss. Unlike Desmond Wolfe he too will get tangled in the barbed wire, land face first in the broken glass…and all the while love every minute of it.
On the horizon is the probably additions of people like Shelton Benjamin (and Charlie Haas on his coattails). Maybe even Mickie James, even though she won’t really fill that void left by Tara and Roxxi.
Also possibly coming soon… How do you make Team 3D relevant again? Well you put them in a battle with The Nasty Boys, of course. No wait, that didn’t work one bit, and everyone should have known it wouldn’t before they did it. Why not try breaking them up for a bit and have them fight one another in the ring? Yep, I am pretty sure we will see Brother Devon and Brother Ray facing off against one another in the middle of the ring at the next PPV.
Tags: a.j. styles, abyss, Ankle Lock, Beer Money, Black Hole Slam, Brian Hebner, Brian Kendrick, brother ray, Chelsea, Chokeslam, Desmond Wolfe, Devon, Dixie Carter, Doug Williams, Earl Hebner, ECW, Eddie Guerrero, Eye of the Storm, Figure-Four Leglock, Five-Star Frog Splash, Hernandez, Human Suplex Machine, Ink Inc., James Storm, Jay Lethal, Jeff Hardy, Jesse Neal, Kazarian, Kendo Stick, Kurt Angle, Last Call, Madison Rayne, Matt Morgan, Mick Foley, Monster's Ball, Mr. Anderson, Olympic Slam, ric flair, Rob Van Dam, Robert Roode, Roxxi, RVD, Sabu, Shanon Moore, slammiversary, Slick Johnson, Sting, Stunner, Super-Mex, Superplex, Swanton Bomb, Tara, Taz, team 3D, The Innovator of Violence, TNA, TNA Knockouts, Tommy Dreamer, Tornado DDT, Wrestlemania, X Division
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