By Jason Powell

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TNA Genesis
Aired live on pay-per-view
Orlando, Florida at the Impact Zone

The show opened with footage from earlier of the day of Bobby Roode arriving at the building. Mike Tenay and Taz were on commentary. Additional footage aired of Jeff Hardy's arrival from earlier in the day. The announcers spoke about the show until the introductions for the opening match started...

Powell's POV: Of all the shows for TNA to skip the opening video package that normally kicks off TNA pay-per-views. Normally, I'm all for skipping the videos, but there's a playoff football game in overtime, dammit!

1. Austin Aries defeated Kid Kash, Jesse Sorensen, and Zema Ion in a four-way elimination match to retain the X Division Title in 10:50. Rapid fire action to start with all four men in the ring at once. Ion performed a top rope 360 splash on Kash and pinned him at 6:05 to eliminate him from the match. Aries performed the same move on Sorensen just seconds later, but Sorensen kicked out of the pin attempt, drawing a "Jesse" chant.

Sorensen pinned Ion with an inside cradle a short time later. Ion stuck around and complained. Aries caught Sorensen in a small package, but Ion bickered with the referee to distract him. Sorensen came back with a neckbreaker and went for the cover. Ion dropped off the apron and the ref counted a near fall.

Late in the match, Sorensen went to the ropes, where Ion tripped him up. Aries performed a running dropkick on Sorensen, who was still hanging on the ropes. Aries followed up with a brainbuster from the middle rope and scored the pin. The announcers narrated highlights of the match afterwards...

Powell's POV: A good opener. The elimination aspect definitely added something to the match and the wrestlers maintained the fast pace from bell to bell. The finish wasn't as brutal as it may seem on paper. Aries protected Sorensen to the point that it was like a glorified superplex because he landed on his back rather than his head. It was good to hear the crowd get behind Sorensen with frequent "Jesse" chants throughout the match. Granted, he was the only true babyface in the match, but it looks like he's starting to catch on.

Backstage, Jeremy Borash interviewed Devon's sons. They yapped until The Pope showed up and delivered the real mic work. Pope said they won't have to deal with Devon's "black behind again." He put his arms around Devon's sons and said, "Daddy has spoken"... A highlight package recapped the Devon and Pope feud...

2. Devon defeated The Pope (w/Terrence and Terrell) in 10:15. Devon went after Pope aggressively to start the match, but he ended up doing a lot of selling. There were dueling chants for Pope and Devon. The Devon supporters won. At 6:00, Pope positioned Devon's head in front of the ring post. He threw a kick near Devon's head that missed, though Devon did flinch a bit.

Later, Pope called for Devon's sons to join him in the ring and told them to attack their father. They hesitated a bit, but Pope was persistent. He got upset when they continued to hesitate and attacked one of them. The remaining brother took issue with it, and then Pope punched him out.

Meanwhile, Devon, well, Hulked up and went on the offensive. Pope made a comeback and spit on one of Devon's sons. Devon ended up making a comeback of his own and hit his finisher (Saving Grace?) and scored the clean pin. After the match, Devon's sons entered the ring. He looked apprehensive, but eventually held out his arms, which led to a big hug...

Powell's POV: So Devon's sons didn't mind turning on their father and hitting him with chairs, but they suddenly had a change of heart when Pope asked them to put the boots to their father? Whatever. Just please make the Devon family soap opera stop once and for all.

Backstage, Jeremy Borash spoke about Jeff Hardy's road to redemption. He was interrupted by Velvet Sky. Sting entered the picture and Velvet said she needed to talk to him. Velvet lobbied for the Knockouts VP role. He tried to respond, but Velvet started ranting about Madison Rayne.

Sting tried to talk again, but she interrupted to suggest her plan for occupying Madison Rayne during the title match. Sting said he liked the idea, but he said the crew couldn't make it happen on short notice. She said she thought he'd like it, so she had them take care of it for her. Sting endorsed Velvet's plan, and she headed off.

Borash asked Sting about Jeff Hardy. Sting said he didn't give Hardy the chance. Rather, Sting said Hardy rebuilt the bridge of trust one brick at a time. Sting also vented about Bobby Roode being a thorn in his side...

3. Gunner (w/Ric Flair) defeated Rob Van Dam in 6:40. It didn't take long for Gunner to pull up the pad at ringside, as he's been using the concrete floor to injure his opponents lately. Later, RVD hit a crossbody block off the top rope for a near fall. A short time later, Van Dam hit Rolling Thunder for another near fall that the crowd didn't buy.

Van Dam tried to dive on Gunner at ringside, but Flair pulled him out of the way, causing Van Dam to land where the pads on the floor had been removed. As Flair and the referee argued, Gunner DDT'd Van Dam on the concrete. Gunner rolled Van Dam back inside the ring and got the three count. The referee threw up the X symbol and trainers ran out to help Van Dam to sell the injury angle...

Powell's POV: A predictable outcome. While that's not a bad thing in this case, the live crowd didn't seem to take the injury angle seriously aside from some scattered RVD chants. If I'm ever injured, please don't send the TNA trainers, as they couldn't even put the damn collar on right (or perhaps Van Dam moved it with his hand). Van Dam had to put it back in place as he was stretchered to the back. This will definitely heat up the RVD back to WWE rumors. He would provide some star power, presumably to the Smackdown brand, and it's not like the majority of the WWE fan base has been watched or kept close tabs on his forgettable TNA run.

Backstage, Borash promised updates on RVD's condition throughout the night and on the TNA website. Borash interviewed Jeff Hardy, who was wearing face paint. Hardy said he has a World Title to win...

A video recapped the Gail Kim vs. Mickie James feud... Tenay ran through the tale of the tape, which had nothing to do with height or weight. It's fine if they don't want to go with height and weight, but why in the world do they call it the tale of the tape?...

4. Gail Kim (w/Madison Rayne) beat Mickie James by DQ to retain the TNA Knockouts Title in 6:15. The announcers pointed out a shark cage at ringside and assumed it was part of Velvet Sky's plan. Mickie came out dressed like The Farmer's Daughter from GLOW to continue her ongoing costume party. Velvet Sky came out and threw Madison inside the cage, which had pink and white bars. The cage was raised into the air.

Velvet stayed at ringside. Mickie controlled the majority of the offense during the first five minutes of the match. She hit a Thesz Press off the top rope at 5:30. Madison threw a pair of brass knuckles to the floor. The referee spotted the brass knuckles and grabbed them. Madison threw another pair and this time Mickie ended up with them. Mickie hit Gail with the brass knuckles just as the referee turned to see it for the DQ finish...

Powell's POV: They went through the trouble of painting some bars pink and white for an unadvertised gimmick just to set up the brass knuckles spot? Really? Why can't TNA just give these women ten minutes and a good finish?

Backstage, Borash interviewed Bully Ray, who said he's the king of hardcore style matches. He said guys like Mick Foley and Terry Funk bow down to him. Ray said he would do whatever he has to do to destroy Abyss. He said Abyss would have to kiss the feet of the various members of Immortal once he's forced to rejoin. "You will be Immortal's bitch once again"... A video recapped the Abyss vs. Bully Ray feud...

5. Abyss beat Bully Ray in a Monster's Ball match in 15:30. The weapons at ringside included barbwire tables and a trash can filled with the usual hardcore gear. Bully Ray attacked Abyss early, but he no sold it. Ray pulled out a chain and the crowd, which had been loud, was very quiet. Abyss used a chair and got the better of the exchange.

Abyss emptied the trash can with weapons and threw them inside the ring along with a couple of trash cans. Ray slammed one of the cans on Abyss's head. He no-sold the can and punched it into Ray's head. Abyss pulled out Janice (board with nails) from underneath the ring and the fans cheered.

Abyss swung Janice at Ray in the corner. Shockingly, the weapon (that can't be used because it would kill someone) missed it's mark. Ray said he was leaving. He headed up the ramp. Abyss followed, caught up, and got him back to the ring. Ray ran Abyss into a barbwire board that was set up on one of the ring posts. Abyss came up bleeding from the arm.

Ray slammed the barbwire board over Abyss's head and part of the board landed over the guardrail. Ray pulled it back quickly. At 8:00, Abyss grabbed two bags from underneath the ring and placed them inside the ring. Abyss used a cheese grater on Bully Ray's crotch.

Abyss opened one of the bags he placed in the ring and poured thumb tacks into the ring. Ray hit him with a low blow and continued to sell his own groin area pain. "Motherf---er, my balls," Ray yelled. Abyss made a comeback and chokeslammed Ray through a table in the ring for a near fall at 10:25.

At 12:05, Ray slammed Abyss onto one of the barbwire boards and covered him. Abyss kind of lifted his shoulder at two, though it was technically held down by the barbwire. The ref stopped his count anyways. Ray put another barbwire board on Abyss and performed the Bubba Bomb for a small "holy shit" chant and another near fall.

Ray picked up Janice and tried to hit Abyss with it. Shockingly, the weapon that can't be used without killing someone did not make contact. Rather, Abyss dodged it and chokeslammed Ray onto the thumb tacks for a near fall of his own. Some fans chanted "this is awesome." Um, sure.

Ray grabbed a kendo stick and slammed it on Abyss's back repeatedly. Ray charged toward Abyss, who recovered and hit the Black Hole Slam onto the barbwire board and scored the clean pin...

Powell's POV: This didn't do much for me. It was slow paced and Ray went for comedy more than heat. He didn't go Eric Young or Santino Marella on the bit, but the fans were laughing at him holding his balls after Abyss hit him with the cheese grater. It looked like they used gimmicked barbwire at least in some spots because Ray appeared to leave without a scratch on him. If so, good for them, as the live crowd didn't seem to notice the difference.

Backstage, Borash interviewed Matt Morgan and Crimson. Crimson said destroying lives is what he does. Morgan delivered the bulk of the mic work for his team, which is a good thing...

6. Matt Morgan and Crimson defeated Samoa Joe and Magnus to retain the TNA Tag Titles in 9:25. After five minutes of nondescript action, a shot aired of Bully Ray beating up Abyss backstage. Meanwhile, Crimson made a hot tag to Morgan, who worked over Magnus. In the end, Morgan and Crimson hit a double chokeslam on Magnus and got the win...

Powell's POV: There was nothing really wrong with the match (minus an awkward , but I don't think the fans were all that fired up about watching the tag champs defend their titles against a makeshift heel team.

Backstage, Borash interviewed James Storm, who put his hat and glasses on Borash. Storm pretended that Borash was him briefly. He said the key is that "I believe" he can beat Angle...

Powell's POV: All that "I believe" talk with the Southern drawl just gave me flashbacks to the Blue Collar Comedy Tour.

7. Kurt Angle pinned James Storm in 14:45. TV Chef Robert Irvine (a/k/a the future Mr. Gail Kim) was shown at ringside, but they did not acknowledge his relationship with the Knockouts Champion. Angle stalled early by heading to ringside. They eventually locked up. Storm had an offensive sequence and then it was Angle's turn. A slow start aside from Strom's sequence.

Most of Angle's early offense consisted of headlocks and chinlocks. Taz tried to make the chinlock seem bigger than it was by saying it was a crossface chinlock. Well, at least he tried. The pace picked up eventually and Angle lowered the straps on his singlet to show he meant business.

Late in the match, Storm hit a top rope elbow drop for a near fall. Storm played to the receptive crowd while setting up for the Last Call super kick. He went or the move and Angle pulled the referee in front of him, so Storm stopped. Angle caught Storm with a low blow and then kicked Storm in the head. Angle covered Storm and pinned him to win the match. Tenay said it was a very even matchup until Angle "took the low road"...

Powell's POV: The match didn't live up to my expectations again this month. I expect more from these two. It took too long for them to kick into second gear and there was nothing particularly memorable about it. Storm is the rising babyface star and he needs to step up and deliver in the ring. Working with Angle used to be an automatic recipe for a great match, but that hasn't been the case here. One can only hope the rubber match is better.

Backstage, Bully Ray was asked whether Abyss was since he was shown beating him up earlier. Ray acted like he didn't know... A video package set up the main event...

Backstage, Borash interviewed Bobby Roode, who wisely heeled on the live crowd and Hardy's fans. He said he is the "it factor of professional wrestling." Roode said he will do whatever it takes to stay the World Heavyweight Championship. "Remember that, Jeff, whatever it takes"...

Powell's POV: Maybe it's just because we've seen so many on TNA pay-per-view in the past, but that last line sounded like code for "here comes the cheap finish."

Tenay ran through the tale of the tape, which informed us when Hardy earned the title shot, how Roode survived overtime against A.J. Styles, and questioned whether Hardy can cap off his redemption by winning the title...

Powell's POV: Apparently, I really need to stop buying cheap tape measures. The tape measures I buy just have stupid numbers and don't tell stories or ask questions. Stupid Walmart.

8. Jeff Hardy defeated Bobby Roode by disqualification in a TNA Title in 19:30. Jeremy Borash handled the in-ring introductions for the title match. The crowd loved Hardy and Roode got some boos. The wrestlers traded offense to start the match. Hardy had a run of sustained offense. They went to the floor and Hardy got a running start and jumped off the ring steps and crashed into Roode, who was against the guardrail at 5:20.

Roode went back on the offensive and hit a suplex and then followed up with a knee drop off the second rope for a two count. Roode locked in a chinlock. Hardy fired up and the crowd came to life only to have Roode slam him back down to the mat. Roode stood up and heeled it up for the live crowd and didn't get much of a reaction. Roode threw Hardy aggressively under the bottom rope to the floor.

Back inside the ring, Roode locked in the chinlock again. A "Let's go Hardy" chant started again, but Roode cut off Hardy's offensive attempt and the chant stopped. Roode applied the crossface on Hardy, who eventually reached the rope to break the hold.

At 12:35, Roode went to the second rope and hilariously mocked Hardy's dancing. He jumped toward Hardy, who put his feet up. Roode still managed to get to his feet first, but Hardy got the better of a punch exchange and followed up with an offensive flurry. Roode cut off the flurry with a spinebuster for a near fall at 15:00.

Roode brought Hardy to the ropes for a superplex attempt, but Hardy avoided it and was setting up for his finisher when Roode rolled out of the ring. Roode grabbed the TNA Title belt and started to walk up the ramp, but Hardy ran out and caught him with a forearm. Tenay pointed out that Roode would retain the title if he was counted out.

Hardy threw Roode back inside the ring. As Hardy was climbing through the ropes, Roode kicked him and followed up with a fisherman's buster suplex for a good near fall. Hardy came back with the Twist of Fate at 17:15. Hardy went to the ropes and hit the Whisper in the Wind for another two count.

The fans chanted for Hardy as he set up for another Twist of Fate. Roode pushed him off and fled the ring again. Roode grabbed his title belt and tried to leave. Hardy stopped him again with another forearm to the back of the head. Hardy threw Roode back inside the ring. Roode had the title belt with him.

Roode swung the belt at Hardy, who ducked. Hardy went for the Twist of Fate, but the ref actually broke it up by trying to grab the title belt that was between them. Roode rolled up Hardy and put his feet on the ropes, but the referee caught him. Roode begged off at 19:20 and then turned and kicked the referee in the balls for the DQ.

Meanwhile, Hardy hit the Twist of Fate and went for a cover, but referee Brian Hebner had already called for the bell. Taz noted that the the kick was a blatant as can be. The fans loudly chanted, "We want Sting." Borash announced that Hardy had won the match by disqualification.

Hardy took his shirt off and hit the Twist of Fate on Roode. Hardy picked up the title belt and took a lap around the ring with it as Tenay said, "That's the title that Jeff Hardy should have won tonight at Genesis." Hardy dropped the belt on Roode and then headed to ringside to shake hands with the fans...

An ad for the TNA Genesis pay-per-view aired. The show takes place on February 12...

Powell's POV: I expected Roode to win in a cheap manner because main event heels rarely go over clean in TNA (and WWE for that matter), but I was hoping they'd come up with something more creative than that. For the second straight match, TNA left its live crowd waiting for the babyface authority figure to do the right thing.

How can TNA creative not know or care that the fans would expect Sting (or Dixie Carter) to do the right thing? They continue to make the authority figures look incompetent, while also making the referees look like morons. If they want Roode to get over as the top heel, then how about having him actually beat some big names clean? He's essentially being booked liked Jeff Jarrett years ago when it felt like every pay-per-view ended with him hitting someone with a guitar at the end of the match while the referee wasn't looking.


Overall, this was another ho-hum show from TNA. The main event was solid until the expected cheap finish. The opener was entertaining. Nothing else really stood out as memorable. The live crowd was livelier than last month, but the Impact Zone continues to provide a terrible atmosphere for the pay-per-views and television shows. I'll have more to say in Dot Net Members' audio later tonight, and in the TNA Genesis Hitlist on Monday.

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