TNA Impact Report for June 17 – Flair and Lethal Steal Show
Slammiversary is in the books, and
TNA is kicking off its eighth year with another exciting episode of
Impact! In lieu of the regular opening video package, we get a music
video recapping Slammiversary’s highlights: Tommy Dreamer made a
surprise
appearance, Kurt Angle took his first step up the rankings system
ladder,
Jeff Hardy and Mister Anderson proved their compatibility as a team
and Rob Van Dam retained his World Heavyweight title against Sting,
with help from the returning Jeff Jarrett. Tonight’s episode- “Anderson’s
Agenda”. Ominous!
Instead of going straight to the ring,
the show proper begins with Eric Bischoff sitting at his desk in the
back. In a matter-of-fact style, Bischoff says that anyone who works
for TNA should considers it an honour and a privilege to be a part of
the company. That’s even more true for the TNA’s World Champions, but
that honour brings with it a responsibility to conduct oneself properly,
in and out of the ring. With that said, Bischoff announces that due
to actions outside the ring, Scott Hall has been released by TNA, and
The Band have been stripped of the TNA World Tag Team Championships.
Bischoff announces that a four team tournament will be held over the
next two weeks, with the winning team going on to face the Motor City
Machine Guns for the vacant titles at Victory Road next month. Guess
what? That tournament starts right freaking now, baby!
The Band (Kevin Nash and Eric Young)
vs. Ink Inc. (Shannon Moore and Jesse Neal) (Tag Team Tournament Match)
Nash and Young jump the faces before
the opening bell, and Nash makes sure Moore doesn’t even make it into
the ring. Young goes to work on Neal, ramming his face into the
turnbuckle
and choking him with his foot. Young hits a Scoop Slam and a Diving
Front Elbow Drop off the second rope for two. Young rams Neal’s face
into Nash’s outstretched boot, and Nash tags in. He punished Neal in
the corner with Knee Strikes and Back Elbow Strikes, before choking
him with his foot. Young catches Neal with a cheap Clothesline from
the apron then tags himself back in. Young gets two off a Lariat, as
Moore makes it up to the apron. Neal tries to fight off Young with some
right hands and a headbutt, but Young cuts him off with a Back Elbow
that gets another two count. Young nails Neal with a few hard punches
in the corner, then blatantly stands on his neck.
Young hits another Scoop Slam, followed
by a picture perfect Diving Elbow Drop for another near fall. He sets
Neal up in the corner and charges, but Neal cuts him off with an elbow
and a haymaker to the jaw. Crawling to his corner, Neal makes the hot
tag to Moore who comes in with a Lariat, a Dropkick and a Spinning Wheel
Kick. Moore keeps rolling with an Inverted Atomic Drop and a second
Spinning Wheel Kick for two. Young is whipped into the corner and slings
over to the apron, Ric Flair style, as Moore takes a moment to deliver
a cheap shot to Nash. Young heads up top, but Moore meets him there
and hits a nice Super Frankensteiner. He covers, but Nash just barely
breaks things up. Nash grabs Moore and signals for the Jackknife, but
turns around into a Spear from Neal. Neal hoists Young up into a
Fireman’s
Carry, and Ink Inc. take him out with a combination Samoan Drop/Diving
Flip Neckbreaker and Moore covers Young for the win.
Winners- Ink Inc. (Shannon Moore
over Eric Young by pinfall)
Next week, Ink Inc. will apparently
face the winners of a match between Beer Money and Team 3D later
tonight.
Why would Beer Money get a spot in the tournament after losing on
Sunday?
Why, that’s just silly.
Some quick clips of Rob Van Dam, Jay
Lethal and Kurt Angle celebrating after their matches on Sunday are
aired, as well as a clip of Tommy Dreamer showing up in the crowd.
Tonight,
we get the newly updated top ten in the TNA Ranking System, with the
three top slots determined by a three-way match between Jeff Hardy,
Abyss and Mister Anderson, the winner of which will receive a World
Title shot at Victory Road.
Ric Flair’s music plays, and the Nature
Boy makes his return to Impact after a one week vacation. He appears
on the entrance ramp with his entire posse of Desmond Wolfe, Beer Money,
AJ Styles and Kazarian in tow. Flair says that he’s about to make an
announcement that will change the face of professional wrestling forever
(as if we haven’t heard that before a million times). He heads down
to the ring as we go to the first break of the evening.
[commercial break]
When we return, we find Chelsea in
the back pleading with Abyss. Chelsea says that she’s been dealing with
Wolfe’s mental abuse for years, and now she wants to leave him for
Abyss,
but the Monster says that she knew the deal, she was his for thirty
days and now that time is up. Abyss tells Chelsea to go back to Wolfe,
and to trust him when he says that she’s not going to want to be around
Abyss after tonight.
Back in the ring, Flair stands with
his troops at attention. He makes his big announcement, which is that
he’s reforming the Four Horsemen! For copyright reasons though, the
stable will now be named Fortune. He promises the group will change
the destiny of TNA and the wrestling industry forever. Flair describes
the original Horsemen as the most dominant group of all time, because
they lived, breathed and died trying to be the best at everything, be
it wrestling, drinking or making love to the ladies. He starts to
compare
his new army to the Horsemen, telling AJ that Arn Anderson would mop
the floor with him. He says that Barry Windham would throw Kazarian
right out of the ring and into the crowd, and Tully Blanchard and Ole
Anderson would eat Beer Money for lunch. He calls Wolfe the Lex Luger
of the original Horsemen, someone who thinks that he’s big time but
was really nothing, though we’ll see what he can achieve moving
forwards.
As for Styles and his match against Jay Lethal last Sunday, Flair says
that it was like committing suicide for Lethal, who he says is nothing
but some pissant from Jersey.
Lethal arrives to interrupt the
festivities,
coming out to his own music but doing his Flair impression. Lethal says
that as far as he’s concerned, it looks like the Horsemen were already
in TNA, took a dump in the ring, and left the guys currently standing
there behind. Flair starts freaking out and rips off his jacket, as
does Lethal. Lethal struts and dances, and drops a big elbow on his
jacket. Flair says that Lethal can never be him, and he’s cutting him
off right now. They both start “Whoo”ing at one another and
Flair says that he’s a kiss stealing, wheeling and dealing son of a
gun who could kiss any girl and make her cry (even the fatty in the
front row). Lethal tells Flair not to be upset that they tore Space
Mountain down, and Flair answers with his classic line that it’s the
oldest ride with the longest line. Flair pulls off his shoes and throws
them at Lethal, as Lethal drops a knee on his jacket.
Flair is flopping around the ring,
then starts doing pelvic thrusts at the girls in the front row. Finally,
Wolfe cuts in and says that he’s not out here to be some cheap imitation
of a legend, he’s here to make a name for himself. Wolfe challenges
Lethal to take his “ghetto booty” off of Space Mountain and
come down to the ring for five seconds later tonight, because Wolfe
is going to kick his ass. Lethal retorts that that’s big talk from
someone
who can’t even control Chelsea, and throws in a crack about being a
sixty minute man. Flair and Lethal continue to argue for a bit, and
Flair tells Wolfe that if he takes care of Lethal tonight, he’ll be
the first member of Fortune, but if he loses, he’s history. Fantastic
segment, Flair was more alive and energetic than he has been in years.
Backstage, we’re treated to a shot
of Lacey getting a massage, with only a towel (and her Knockout Tag
Team title) covering her naughty bits. Apparently, she’s prepping for
a match against the returning Angelina Love tonight.
[commercial break]
When we return, Mister Anderson is
shown backstage, interviewed by a disembodied voice. He’s asked if,
with a shot at the TNA title on the line, we’ll see the real Anderson
tonight in his match, but he elusively responds that it depends on who
we think the real Anderson is.
Hernandez vs. Samoa Joe
Hernandez gets the advantage early
on, muscling Joe into the corner for a clean break. Joe shows his own
power shortly afterwards by sending Hernandez into the corner, but
instead
of breaking Joe follows up with a flurry of jabs, then lays the boots
to Super Mex. Joe hits Hernandez with a Running Back Elbow in the
corner,
followed by a quick Leaping Enzuigiri. The crowd is much hotter than
usual, and firmly behind Joe. Hernandez runs into a Back Elbow and gets
back dropped to the apron, before Joe rams his head into the ring post.
Joe signals for a Suicide Dive, but Hernandez recovers too fast and
catches him coming in with a Slingshot Shoulder Block from the apron.
Hernandez follows up with a Body
Avalanche
in the corner, then takes Joe down with a Lariat. Joe fires back with
jabs and Knife-Edge Chops, but runs into a Standing Shoulder Block that
send shim reeling to the outside. As the referee checks on Joe, Matt
Morgan runs in from out of nowhere and nails Hernandez with a low blow
from behind, before sliding out of the ring and out of sight. Joe rolls
back into the ring and catches a staggered Hernandez with an Exploder
Suplex to pick up the win.
Winner- Samoa Joe by
pinfall.
Outside the ring, Morgan sits laughing
and mugging to the camera. Joe sees the replay on the big screen and
learns of Morgan’s actions for the first time, and is clearly pissed
off. Morgan climbs into the ring and challenges Joe, but when Hernandez
starts to recover, Morgan bails out and skips to the back, laughing
all the way. There’s a quick stare down between Hernandez and Joe before
the Samoa Submission Machine walks off.
Backstage, AJ Styles approaches Desmond
Wolfe backstage. Wolfe tells Styles that tonight he’s going to do what
Styles couldn’t, beat Jay Lethal. Styles responds that taunting Wolfe
with the fact that Chelsea doesn’t seem to want to be with him anymore.
Styles reiterates what Flair said to Wolfe- if can’t beat Lethal, he’s
gone.
[commercial break]
Backstage, Hardy comments on his match
tonight, saying he’s not sure whether or not he can trust his new friend
Mister Anderson. As if on cue- literally- Anderson knocks on Hardy’s
locker room door and says in tonight’s main event, may the best man
win.
In the ring, we find the TNA X Division
champion Douglas Williams. He says that Slammiversary was a celebration
of TNA and all that it has created, including the X Division. Before
we get carried away though, it was also a time of mourning, for the
passing of what the X Division once was. He says that with one
incredible
flying manoeuvre, he rendered all other X Division styles moves
redundant.
Williams says that the X Division as it was is dead, and from now on
it will be synonymous with the ground and pound, mat-based, technical
style he’s famous for. He offers to demonstrate for the crowd with his
opponent tonight, the now completely a jobber Max Buck.
Douglas
Williams vs. Max Buck (non-title match)
Williams opens up with a Snapmare,
but Max quickly pops back up to his feet. Williams gets Buck in an Arm
Wrench, but Buck flips over and reverses into an Arm Wrench of his own.
Williams trips Buck to escape, but Buck catches him with a Back
Handspring
Headscissor Takedown. Williams rolls out of the ring and dodges an
attempted
dive by Buck, but then eats a shoulder to the gut from the apron.
Williams
catches Buck’s attempt at a running Cross Body and delivers a Fall Away
Slam. He follows up with a European Uppercut and a Snapmare into a
Reverse
Chinlock. Williams transitions into an Abdominal Stretch, then releases
Buck only to hit him with a Running Knee Strike in the corner. Williams
hits an Vertical Suplex, maintains the hold to deliver a Gutwrench
Suplex,
followed by an impeccable Exploder Suplex. Williams tries to come off
the second rope but Buck ducks under him and jumps off the ropes
instead,
planting Williams for a two count. Williams hits Buck with a Headbutt
to the stomache and anther European Uppercut, then finishes him off
with a Flying Tornado DDT off the second rope.
Winner- Douglas Williams by
pinfall.
After the match, Williams traps Buck
in a Cravat, refusing to break the hold for the referee. Brian Kendrick
runs out to make the save, quickly trapping Williams in a Cobra Clutch
on the ground. Williams taps out, but Kendrick maintains the hold and
chokes Williams out. As the crowd loudly chants Kendrick’s name, Mike
Tenay points out the irony of Kendrick beating Williams at his own
wrestling
game.
From there, we throw to a video on
the Jeff Jarrett/Sting feud. Tonight, Jarrett has promised to call out
Sting. Again.
[commercial break]
We return with a video of a recent
TNA press conference, unveiling the new action figure line from JAKKS
Pacific. Which will suck, by the way, all JAKKS figures do. The old
Toy Biz TNA toys were awesome though, I have about a dozen kicking
around
my apartment, including one of Christopher Daniels that currently being
held up in a Delayed Vertical Suplex by the Buddy Christ from Dogma
on top of my TV.
In the ring, Angelina Love has a
microphone.
She says that while sitting on the sidelines with an injury for the
past six weeks, she has come to realize that a wrestler’s career is
finite, and could end at any time without warning. She’s resolved not
to waste another moment in getting her revenge on the Beautiful People.
Tonight she faces Lacey Von Erich, next week it’s Velvet Sky, and at
Victory Road she promises to reclaim her Knockouts title from Madison
Rain. Love orders Lacey to get her happy ending, roll her butt off the
massage table and get down to the ring.
Angelina
Love vs. Lacey Von Erich
Taz says that Lacey looks loose after
her massage, and Mike Tenay is briefly at a loss for words. Love meets
Lacey coming into the ring with a Clothesline, then rams her face into
the turnbuckle. She hits Lacey with a few knees to the gut, then
unceremoniously
throws her down to the mat. Love delivers some kicks to the midsection
in the corner, then climbs up on the bottom rope to choke Lacey with
her boot. Lacey avoids a charge by back flipping over Love, then takes
Love down with a messy Drop Toe Hold. Lacey seems to hesitate in
attacking
Love- of forgets the next spot, it’s hard to tell which- and Love
responds
with a hard elbow to the face.
At this point, Tenay and Taz start
advertising Dixie Carter’s Facebook and Twitter stream. You should check
them out, since she spends far more time and effort tweeting than she
does actually running the company. Lacey gets back in control and goes
for the ten punch in the corner, but Love counters with an ugly
Powerbomb.
Love climbs out of the ring and shoves So Cal Val to the ground- and
no, I have no idea why Val was there- stealing the chair she was sitting
on and bringing it back into the ring. At the referee’s insistence,
Love tosses the chair down onto the mat, but then plants Lacey with
a DDT onto the steel, leading the referee to call for the bell.
Winner-
Lacey Von Erich by disqualification.
In a backstage pre-taped segment, Hulk
Hogan is hanging out in his office with Jay Lethal. Lethal puts over
how amazing it is to share a locker room with guys he grew up watching
on TNA. Hogan says that Andre the Giant would have loved Lethal, and
says that as funny as his imitations are, they’re just the icing on
the cake. Hogan says that he was interested in Lethal because he saw
something special in him, and knew that if Lethal was given a chance
to rise to a main event level, he had the passion and talent to stay
there. Hogan says that it just gets more intense from here on out,
because
now there’s a target on Lethal’s back, and he needs to hold on tight
to keep his spot.
[commercial break]
Backstage, Jeff Hardy is with Christy
Hemme. Hardy says that he’d love nothing more than to face Rob Van Dam
at Victory Road. Hemme asks if Hardy can trust Anderson, and once again
that’s Anderson’s cue to make an appearance. Anderson says that people
have been trying to stir the pot, to raise doubts in Hardy’s mind. He
asks Hardy how many times he and his brother got into fist fights as
kids, then made up after the dust had settled. Anderson says that the
only difference this time is that a World Title shot is on the line.
He says that he and Hardy should both do what they came to TNA to do,
and at the end of the night still be able to look each other in the
eyes and know that they did it as real men, regardless of the naysayers
might think.
Team
3D (Brother Devon and Brother Ray) vs. Beer Money Inc. (Robert
Roode and James Storm) (Tag Team Tournament Match)
Team 3D are arguing on their way out
to the ring, apparently Ray has been getting the cold shoulder from
Devon ever since he once again hit Jesse Neal with a cheap shot before
their match last Sunday.
After a brief stare down between the
two teams, Devon and Roode start the action. Devon applies a side
headlock
and hits a Shoulder Block, followed by a Hip Toss. He misses a Running
Leg Drop, allowing Roode to come back with a Rolling Neck Snap. The
crowd chants for Devon as he dodges a charge in the corner and hits
a Flying Shoulder Tackle for two. Devon tags in Ray, and they hit Roode
with a Sidewalk Slam/Running Leg Drop combination that gets Ray a two
count. Ray hits a Scoop Slam, but gets distracted by the crowd chanting
“douche bag” at him, and misses an elbow drop. Roode tags
in Storm, and they take down Ray with a Double Back Body Drop. Storm
rips at Ray’s face with his nail as Ink Inc. come out to join the
announce
team to scout their potential opponents for next week. Devon tags in
an joins his pseudo brother for a Double Hip Toss on Storm, followed
by a Wishbone Split.
Devon covers, but only gets two, misses
a Clothesline and gets caught with a haymaker from Storm. Roode comes
in (illegally) and hits Devon with a Russian Leg Sweep and a Running
Knee Drop for two. Ray inadvertently distracts the referee, allowing
Storm and Roode to hit Devon with the Double Suplex, but Ray comes in
to cut off the Beer Money cheer. All four men start brawling, with Roode
going for the ten punch on Devon. Ray saves his partner, and they take
Roode down with the Doomsday Device, for two. Ray calls for the 3D,
but all of a sudden he spots Ink Inc. at the announce table and forgets
all about the match. Ray charges up the ramp and meets Neal and Moore
near the entrance way, where they immediately start fighting. With the
referee distracted by the goings on up by the announce table, Storm
is able to spit beer into Devon’s eyes, allowing Roode to score the
pin.
Winners- Beer Money Inc. (Robert
Roode over Brother Devon by pinfall).
Backstage, Desmond Wolfe is arguing
with Chelsea. Wolfe says that he’s like a time bomb ready to snap
(mixing
metaphors there, chief), and that he and Chelsea will have a little
talk later about her actions at Slammiversary and what she said to Abyss
earlier tonight. Wolfe tells her that she has one more chance to redeem
herself during his match tonight.
[commercial break]
Desmond Wolfe (with Chelsea) vs.
Jay Lethal
Wolfe attacks Lethal before the bell,
shoving him off the turnbuckle down to the floor. Wolfe takes a moment
to yell at Chelsea, and we see Tommy Dreamer arriving and taking his
place in the crowd. Wolfe rolls Lethal back into the ring and hits him
with an Arm Wrench Snap Down, before going back to arguing with Chelsea.
Wolfe turns around into a hard right hand from Lethal, but recovers
fast with a Hammerlock Takedown. Wolfe orders Chelsea to return to the
back, but she slips and falls on the ramp on her way out. Wolfe heads
over to her to berate her some more, but Lethal follows close behind
and hits him with a flurry of punches and Knife-Edge Chops, as Chelsea
runs to the back. Bringing Wolfe back into the ring, Lethal hits him
with a Clothesline and a Running Calf Kick. He follows up with a great
Springboard Back Elbow and his new Belly to Back Neckbreaker to easily
defeat the clearly distracted Wolfe.
Winner- Jay Lethal by
pinfall.
After the match, Jay Lethal climbs
into the crowd to celebrate, and Dreamer is shown applauding his
performance.
As Lethal hops back over the barricade, he’s ambushed from behind by
Wolfe, who throws him back into the ring. Wolfe hits Lethal with another
Arm Wrench Snap Down, as Ric Flair makes his way down to the ring for
some sweet revenge. Wolfe holds Lethal’s arms back as Flair peppers
his imitator with jabs, Knife-Edge Chops and finally a low blow. Before
Flair and Wolfe can do any more damage, they’re distracted by the
arrival
of Hulk Hogan. Flair is livid, but he and Wolfe retreat to the back
as Hogan walks down to the ring, helps Lethal to his feet and holds
his arm up in victory.
Hogan says that TNA is on fire thanks
to guys like Lethal. He asks, who would ever thought that a fan at home
would grow up to become a main event star? Hogan says that he’s so high
on Lethal, he almost forgot he was a TNA executive, but now he has a
big announcement. Hogan calls Flair back out to the top of the entrance
ramp to hear the news, and Flair reluctantly complies. Hogan accuses
Flair of being a huge thorn in Lethal’s side, and of trying to keep
Lethal down. He says that imitation may normally be the sincerest form
of flattery, but in this case it’s going to bit Flair in the ass,
because the little boy from New Jersey has grown up to be a man who
runs on Flair’s level. Hogan says that he’s going to make dreams come
true, and with that in mind he announces that at Victory Road we’re
going to see Lethal and Flair go one on one. Yes Virginia, there is
a Hulk Hogan.
Backstage, Sting is shown climbing
down from the rafters, as his showdown with Jeff Jarrett is coming up
next.
[commercial break]
When we return, we’re given the new
updated TNA Rankings- Kurt Angle (10), Desmond Wolfe (9), D’Angelo
Dinero
(8), Jay Lethal (7), Samoa Joe (6), Sting (5) and AJ Styles (4). As
stated previously, Jeff Hardy, Mister Anderson and Abyss are in a dead
heat for the top three slots.
Jeff Jarrett is in the ring, and says
that he has something to get off his chest. He calls Sting out to the
ring, and sure enough the Stinger is all too happy to join him. Jarrett
asks Sting to take off his sunglasses to that he can see his eyes and
know what he’s feeling when Jarrett says what he has to say, and the
Sting complies. Jarrett says that he’s not going to ask “Why, Sting,
Why?” again (thank god), because he doesn’t want to hear his reasons
or excuses. Instead, Jarrett reminds Sting that he was the one to bring
Sting to TNA eight years ago (which is incorrect, Sting debuted at the
first anniversary show, which would be seven years ago). Jarrett
says he wanted Sting for his professionalism, his experience and his
true iconic status. He says he made it clear that he didn’t want Sting
to work for him, but with him.
Jarrett says that over the last eight
(seven) years, they’ve both given everything they have to TNA, and
though
they weren’t always on the same side of the fence, every time their
careers crossed paths Sting and Jarrett treated one another with
dignity,
respect and honour. Jarrett says that all came to an end at Sacrifice.
He says that it wasn’t a wrestling match that they had- Sting was
hell-bent
on ending Jarrett’s career. He says the demons possessing Sting drove
him to try to end Jarrett’s livelihood, to destroy everything he’s about
and rob him of his means of providing for his family. Calling Sting
by his real name Steve Borden, Jarrett says that he made one mistake,
and that was leaving Jarrett standing. Sting smiles, but Jarrett
cautions
him that he won’t be smiling next week, when Jarrett gets his rematch.
Jarrett says he knows what this is
really all about, and so does Sting, and Sting is dead wrong about “both
of them” (referring to Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff, one would
presume). Jarrett says that for every minute and hour they’ve been here,
Hogan and Bischoff have given their hearts and souls to TNA, and Hogan
even gave his body, which is too much to ask at this stage of his
career.
Bischoff also gave us the gift of flamenco music, don’t forget that.
Jarrett says that next week, he won’t just be fighting Sting for his
sake and the sake of his family, he’ll also be fighting for Bischoff,
for Hogan, and of course, for the TNA fans. Jarrett puts the microphone
down and walks out of the ring. Sting is at a loss for words, and like
Shawn Michaels before him, he’s lost his smile.
[commercial break]
Mister
Anderson vs. Abyss vs. Hardy (Number One
Contender’s match to the TNA World Heavyweight Championship)
Anderson gets a huge babyface reaction
from the crowd, who sing along as he does his own intro, so they’re
not buying the tease of him turning heel again (or just don’t care).
All three men circle around for a moment before Hardy and Anderson team
up to go after Abyss. Anderson kicks at Abyss’ legs and gives him a
few shots to the ribs. They set Abyss up for Poetry in Motion, but Abyss
catches Hardy mid-move. Anderson saves Hardy with another low kick,
but Abyss fights off the double team. Hardy and Anderson block a Double
Chokeslam attempt and hit a Double Suplex instead. Hardy and Anderson
each try to pin Abyss, with the other breaking up the cover, as their
partnership begins to dissolve. They stare each other down for a moment,
but are cut off by a big Double Spear from Abyss.
Abyss shrugs off some punches from
Anderson and chokes him in the corner. Abyss sets Hardy up in the
opposite
corner and hits Anderson with a Body Avalanche, but when he runs at
Hardy Abyss is cut off by a back elbow. Hardy follows up with a Twisting
Senton that forces Abyss to roll out of the ring for a breather, but
Hardy keeps the pressure on with a Slingshot Dropkick through the ropes.
Anderson teases stalking Hardy from behind, but instead runs right past
him to deliver a Baseball Slide to Abyss. Hardy hits Abyss with a
Vaulting
Body Press, and Anderson follows him out to deliver some mounted punches
to the Monster. All of a sudden, the referee calls for the bell- and
rules the match a triple count out? What a crock!
Result- No Contest via the referee
making up his own rules.
Anderson begins to argue with the
referee
afterward (no surprisingly, it’s Earl Hebnur), which is understandable
since anyone could tell you that there are no count outs in
non-elimination
three-way matches. Abyss attacks Anderson from behind, then clocks Hardy
with a hard right hand. Abyss throws both men back into the ring, then
tosses Hardy right back out, before nailing Anderson with Shock
Treatment.
Abyss pulls a punch out from under the ring, followed by a Singapore
cane, with chich he delivers some stiff shots to Hardy’s ribs and back.
Climbing back into the ring, Abyss dumps out the contents of the bag,
which was filled with shards of broken glass. After delivering a few
more cane shots to Anderson (who does a terrific job selling them, great
visuals), Abyss plants him with a Black Hole Slam into the glass.
For the record, a replay shows
Anderson’s
back for a split second after the impact, and it looks fine, so they
were probably using sugar glass- which is smart and makes sense, but
you never know with TNA, especially after Abyss getting cut up by a
bottle last month. Abyss heads up the ramp where Jeff Hardy is trying
to regain his senses. Hardy tries to fight back, but Abyss easily takes
control and forces him up to the top of the stage. In the ring, trainers
are trying to help Anderson, with TNA’s trademark pre-bloodied towels.
Back at the entrance way, Abyss Chokeslams Hardy off the stage, through
a gimmicked section down at floor level. Hulk Hogan comes out and with
all the emotion of a dead carp confronts Abyss demanding to know- well
really, casually inquiring- what that was all about. The show ends with
Abyss pointing in Hogan’s face and yelling “YOU!” to cap off
yet another pointless and illogical TNA heel turn.
*****
Final Thoughts- This was another decent
show, apart from the awful finish to the main event and the stupidity
afterward. Clearly babyface Abyss was dead in the water for months now,
but I honestly don’t think anything will make such a stale character
interesting at this point, least of all a pointless turn with no
motivation
or foreshadowing.
Finally, a word to Dixie Carter. SIGN BRYAN DANIELSON. I don’t care if his contract demands include
a stock in the company, a pony and a hand-job from Lacey Von Erich,
MAKE IT HAPPEN. We’ve proven that names like Hogan and the Outsiders
aren’t the thing to push TNA to the next level- if anything will, it’s
the wrester who just annihilated the WWE’s biggest star, then got fired
because they couldn’t think of any other way to stop him. This is a
gift from the wrestling gods, like Bischoff firing Steve Austin with
a Fed Ex letter. Take it, run with it, and DON’T FUCK IT UP.
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