By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Impact Wrestling Hits
The North vs. Motor City Machine Guns for the Impact Tag Titles: The match looked great on paper and lived up to expectations. I was surprised to see Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley win the tag titles in their first title match since returning. There’s nothing wrong with this approach, but I suspected they would go with a longer chase.
Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson: Gallows and Anderson were more entertaining in one promo than they were in their entire WWE run. They were allowed to be themselves and were able to show off the fun chemistry that exists between them. I’m still not crazy about seeing Ace Austin moved into a feud with The Good Brothers when he seemed like the perfect choice to be Impact World Champion, but it was a logical storyline followup coming off his and Madman Fulton’s issues with the duo at the pay-per-view.
Chris Bey vs. Willie Mack for the X Division Title: A hot Slammiversary rematch to open the show. The dynamic with Bey as champion and Mack now in the challenger’s role worked nicely. The only knock against the match is that they could have used more time, but it was entertaining from bell to bell.
Eddie Edwards and Eric Young: Edwards still feels like an odd choice to serve as champion, but he delivered a good babyface promo coming off his title win at Slammiversary. It’s nice to see him back in more of a traditional babyface role and hopefully this means “Crazy Eddie” is a thing of the past. Either way, I like the idea of having him defend the championship on a weekly basis and I suspect that’s also a sign that he’s a transitional champion. Heel Eric Young is off to a strong start. He is the most versatile performer in Impact history given all the roles he’s played, and it’s good to see that his return is more than just a stroll down memory lane. The World Class Maniac persona is solid and I am looking forward to his title match with Edwards.
Overall show: Impact has produced quality television shows throughout most of the pandemic. The missing ingredient was star power. It’s not that they were completely devoid of it, but they definitely needed an influx, particularly in the men’s division. They got just what they needed at Slammiversary and the roster is now filled with a nice mix of veteran and younger talent, not to mention the deepest Knockouts Division in company history. The product feels reinvigorated.
Impact Wrestling Misses
Kiera Hogan and Tasha Steelz vs. Havok and Nevaeh: Based on the DQ finish, I assume that Hogan and Steelz are the heels in this feud. They are versatile enough to play either role, but Havok and Nevaeh strike me as natural heels and have yet to be positioned in a way that would endear them to viewers.
Moose vs. Fallah Bahh for the TNA Title: This was more straight forward than expected and thus we didn’t get to see any of the personality that makes the Bahh character fun. The post match angle with EC3 attacking Moose was entertaining. I just hope that EC3 is out to rid the world of the TNA Title rather than this being a case of him coveting a defunct championship for some strange reason.
Be the first to comment