By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Impact Wrestling TV
Taped in Nashville, Tennessee at Skyway Studios
Aired September 8, 2020 on AXS TV
[Hour One] Impact opened with a video package that recapped last week’s episode… The Impact opening aired… The broadcast team was Josh Mathews and Madison Rayne…
New Impact World Champion Eric Young was introduced by ring announcer Dave Penzer. Young boasted that he’s a world class man, a world class professional wrestler, and a world class maniac. He said he had to take immediate action when Rich Swann pinned him at Slammiversary. He said Swann got the ball rolling and it rolled right over Swann and Eddie Edwards.
Alisha Edwards made her entrance while Mathews questioned her judgement when it came to enter the ring with Young. Edwards said Young is the world champion, but he’s nothing but a coward to her. She said he injured Swann and then made his way to her husband. Alisha said Eddie will come back and take what belongs to him.
Alisha said she’s seen it all. She recalled Eddie being struck by a baseball bat during his feud with Sami Callihan and nearly losing an eye, and said a “douchebag” (Ace Austin) tried to end their marriage. Alisha said Eddie will return to whoop Young’s ass and take the title from him. Alisha said they have “a little one” at home that Eddie can’t even hold at the moment.
Young leaned down to get back to face with Alisha. “I don’t care,” Young told her. Alisha slapped Young, who smirked and nodded, then grabbed Aisha and set her up for a piledriver. Tommy Dreamer ran out and hit Young from behind with a kendo stick to run him off. Young yelled at Dreamer to stay out of his business.
Dreamer said he would be a hypocrite given that he’s performed piledrivers on women during his career. He said Young doesn’t know the ramifications or what it’s like to wake up next to someone who has pain because of something he did. Dreamer said Alisha is like family to him. He said that when Young left the company, there were men and women who decided to stay and gave him place for him to come back to.
Dreamer said Young is a hell of a wrestler, but he’s a piece of shit (censored) scumbag who wants to take people out and end their livelihoods. Dreamer dared Young to take him out and end his career. Dreamer said he had stroke with the company. He challenged him to any type of match that he wants and said it’s not about the title. Young yelled that Dreamer made his last mistake. Young called Dreamer, Edwards, and Swann punks and confirmed the match for later in the show…
Powell’s POV: A solid opening segment. I was hoping to hear more from Young, but Alisha’s interruption was logical. Alisha’s character always seems to be angry, but in this case that angry approach fit the theme. Dreamer’s promo was solid and set the table for whatever they want to call his latest hardcore style match.
The broadcast team spoke in front of the Impact backdrop and spoke about the Young vs. Dreamer match. They also hyped Chris Bey vs. TJP, Locker Room Talk with Kylie Rae and Susie, and the Impact Tag Title match. They also set up footage of Moose boarding a plane to go in search of EC3… [C]
An Impact Plus ad aired…
Backstage, Rosemary asked Taya Valkyrie if she was really okay with her relationship with John E Bravo. Valkyrie said it’s true love and she’s excited about it. Rosemary spoke about the Demon Wedding and how the person qualified to officiate it is dead. Valkyrie told Rosemary that her wedding would be perfect. Rosemary teleported (ugh) away. Valkyrie told Bravo about some over the top ideas for the wedding…
1. Chris Bey vs. TJP. X Division Champion Rohit Raju walked to ringside early in the match and acted like he was rooting for Bey. After some back and forth action, Bey hit TJP with a clothesline heading into a break. [C]
Late in the match, Bey picked up a near fall off a TKO style move. Rayne dismissed herself from the broadcast team for her Locker Room Talk segment. In the ring, Bey went for a slingshot sunset flip, but TJP remained on his feet and rolled TJP into a pin. Mathews wondered if TJP passed Bey in contention for an X Division Title shot…
TJP defeated Chris Bey.
Powell’s POV: My guess is that they are working toward a Triple Threat for the X Division Title. They already stated that Bey had a rematch clause, so it wouldn’t make any sense to pull that from him based on the result of this match.
Madison Rayne hosted Locker Room Talk with the returning co-host Johnny Swinger, who said they loved him at Wrestle House. Kylie Rae and Susie were the guests. Rayne wondered if Rae stayed in Wrestle House because she was trying to dodge Deonna Purrazzo or to return just in time to spoil her black tie affair. Rae denied it.
Deonna Purrazzo and Kimber Lee showed up. Purrazzo said she was interrupting Locker Room Talk just like Rae interrupted the black tie affair. Swinger called it a catfight. Purrazzo said it was uncivilized. Purrazzo challenged Rae and Susie to face her and Lee in a tag match next week. Rae and Susie agreed. Rayne dismissed her guests. Swinger moved over next to Rayne, who ended the show…
Mathews and Rayne hyped upcoming segments… [C]
Powell’s POV: It’s harmless, yet kinda funny that they cared enough about the timing of things to have Rayne dismiss herself from calling a match due to her Locker Room Talk commitment, yet she was right back on commentary immediately afterward to plug the upcoming segments.
A Bound For Glory ad aired for the October 24 pay-per-view…
John E Bravo was on the phone inquiring about renting elephants, horses, and an ice sculpture. Kiera Hogan and Tasha Steelz showed up and ended his call. They wanted to know if they were on the guest list for the wedding. He said Valkyrie was in charge of the list. Hogan and Steelz told him that he needed to be a man. They offered to be his “best groomsmen.” He said Valkyrie would never go for that. Hogan said that to be a good husband, you have to learn how to be a good man…
Brian Myers came to the ring and boasted about wrestling in all 50 states and going across the world 27 times. He said he paved the way for people like Willie Mack, who should have no problem coming out and shaking his hand after losing their match last week. Mack came out and declined the handshake while challenging Myers to a match…
2. Brian Myers vs. Willie Mack. Myers worked the match in his street clothes. Mack avoided a cheap shot attempt to start the match. Later, Mack hit a twisting slam and a legdrop that led to a two count. Mack hit a standing moonsault, then followed up with a Sky-High. Mack pulled Myers’ shirt off and threw it for reasons that only make sense for the finish, then Myers low-blowed Mack while the referee was distracted by the flying t-shirt. Myers pinned Mack…
Brian Myers pinned Willie Mack.
Powell’s POV: Yes, the referee was distracted by a flying t-shirt and he actually felt the need to clear it from the ring. Pro wrestling referees are idiots.
Gia Miller interviewed Jordynne Grace and noted that Grace showed up to congratulate Deonna Purrazzo rather than ruin her black tie affair. Grace said it’s important to be graceful in defeat. She said she wanted to know where Tanille Dashwood had been. Miller said she would find out the next time she interviews Dashwood.
Grace said they could find out now. Grace had the camera person follow her as she knocked on Dashwood’s locker room door. A man named Kaleb answered the door and identified himself as her personal photographer. Grace asked if Dashwood was inside. Kaleb said she had way more important things to do. A brief video montage of Dashwood photos was shown with a graphic that listed her return for next week… [C]
Taya Valkyrie approached Kiera Hogan and Tasha Steelz and barked at them about staying out of the wedding. Valkyrie acted like she didn’t know Steelz, who said she’s the Baricua Badass. Valkyrie referred to Hogan and Steelz as Chihuahua 1 and 2, and said she would face Steelz…
3. “The Motor City Machine Guns” Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin vs. “The Rascalz” Dez and Wentz for the Impact Tag Titles. Dez and Wentz attacked the Guns while both teams were still wearing their ring jackets. Mathews said he thought they would see some sportsmanship from the teams, but it didn’t go that way.
[Hour Two] Mathews touted the tag division, but also noted that The North had not been seen since they lost the rematch for the tag titles. The Guns battled back and targeted the knees of Wentz with various moves and holds. The broadcast team noted that Dez had yet to tag into the match.
Shelley put Wentz in a leg lock. Dez broke free from Sabin and broke up the hold with a standing shooting star press on Shelley. Dez finally tagged into the match and worked over Sabin. The Rascalz performed a double team move on Sabin that resulted in a good near fall.
Wentz went back to clutching his knee, then tagged in. Dez and Wentz went for their push-off standing moonsault, but Sabin rolled out of the way. Sabin and Shelley rebounded with a series of moves on Wentz, then teamed up for a series of kick. They performed a double slam and Sabin pinned Wentz while Shelley held off Dez.
The Motor City Machine Guns defeated Dez and Wentz to retain the Impact Tag Titles.
After the match, “The North” Josh Alexander and Ethan Page attacked Sabin and Shelley. The Guns turned the tide, but Ace Austin and Madman Fulton ran out and joined the beatdown of the Guns while Dez and Wentz sold at ringside.
Fulton and Alexander were about to go at it, but Page stepped in and said each team could have one of the Guns. The North teamed up on Shelley, while Austin and Fulton roughed up Sabin. “The Good Brothers” Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson ran out and fought off the heel teams.
Dez recovered and went for a flip dive onto the heels, but they caught him. Wentz performed a dive onto the pile to knock the heels down. Dez and Wentz returned to the ring to join the other two babyface teams. There was a little bickering between the babyfaces in the ring, and Austin had to hold back Fulton from going after Alexander again at ringside…
Powell’s POV: A strong tag match. The Guns continue to look great despite their long layoff as a team and Sabin’s long layoff in general. Dez and Wentz looked really good in defeat and I really hope they have taken a permanent turn to being a more serious act. The post match scene was effective in terms of showing off Impact’s strong tag team division.
Rob Van Dam and Katie Forbes delivered a promo. RVD asked her to share the good news. She boasted that they beat the crap out of Sami Callihan. RVD said he was talking about the other good news. Forbes announced The Whole F’n Talkshow, which premieres next week on Impact. RVD and Forbes made out… [C]
A Sami Callihan video aired. Callihan was still in hacker mode and said it’s all about the numbers. He said everything in life is the story of numbers. He recalled going one-on-one with Rob Van Dam and beating him last week. Callihan said he got his ass kicked afterward because of the numbers. He said he’s had a lot of people’s numbers over the years, but he doesn’t like it when someone has his number.
Callihan said Katie Forbes makes him sick. He said she might be too much for him and might be too much in general. Callihan said a little birdie told him that RVD and Forbes will be debuting their own segment next week. Callihan said he will try to hack their show next week because he has other plans, then closed with the thumbs up, thumbs down line…
Powell’s POV: The RVD vs. Callihan feud continues to feel ice cold, so hopefully they can do something to heat things up with whatever they have in mind for next week.
4. Taya Valkyrie (w/John E. Bravo) vs. Tasha Steelz (w/Kiera Hogan). Bravo was on the phone working on his wedding plans during the match. Valkyrie noticed and was not happy. she performed a sit-out powerbomb on Steelz, then barked at Bravo, who continued his phone conversation. In the end, Valkyrie hit her Road to Valhalla finisher and pinned Steelz.
Taya Valkyrie defeated Tasha Steelz.
After the match, Hogan attacked Valkyrie from behind. Steelz and Hogan double teamed Valkyrie until Bravo ran in and stood over Valkyrie…
Powell’s POV: The Rosemary, Bravo, and Valkyrie dynamic is a guilty pleasure that I can enjoy now that Wrestle House and the Undead Realm are finished. This felt like a spot to give Steelz an upset win due to Bravo being distracted, no harm done since Hogan and Steelz are doing more as a tag team than as singles wrestlers these days.
A Bound For Glory ad aired…
Football footage was shown. A coach was shown sitting behind a desk. Moose showed up and the coach greeted him and pointed the framed Moose photo and autographed football on his cabinet. Moose wondered if the coach had seen EC3. The coach said he hadn’t seen him. The coach told Moose to control his narrative. “You’ve been warned,” the coach added. Moose was taken aback. Moose backed up into three men who were dressed like EC3 and roughed them up while the coach cheered him on…
Powell’s POV: This is the first EC3 related segment that I didn’t care for since he returned to Impact. EC3’s character has been dark and mysterious, whereas this was borderline comedic while also feeling like a really bad Twilight Zone episode.
The Impact Plus Flashback Match Of The Week was a tag match from a 2016 edition of Impact with EC3 and Eddie Edwards vs. Mike Bennett and Moose. Bennett and Moose won the match when Bennett stole the pin from his partner…
Powell’s POV: I assumed this match would play into the history of Moose and EC3. I guess it did to some extent, but it concluded with Mike Bennett going over. They usually air pay-per-view matches in these segments, so the fact that they went with a 2016 Impact tag match probably wasn’t a random choice.
Mathews hyped the Young vs. Dreamer match… [C]
Rhino went out back of the building and hugged Heath. Rhino said he felt the electricity when they were in the ring together last week, but it upset management. Heath spoke about his ad campaign costing him money. Rhino said he knew where to get money…
Mathews wondered if Rhino was talking about the wad of cash that Hernandez carries around with him. Mathews and Rayne announced Deonna Purrazzo and Kimber Lee vs. Kylie Rae and Susie, Brian Myers vs. Willie Mack, Team XXXL vs. Cody Deaner and Cousin Jake, Kiera Hogan vs. Taya Valkyrie, and The North, Ace Austin, and Madman Fulton vs. Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, Dez, and Wentz in an eight-man tag match for next week’s Impact television show…
Entrances for the main event took place… [C]
5. Impact World Champion Eric Young vs. Tommy Dreamer in a non-title, Old School Rules match. Mathews noted that they had taken their final commercial break and would show the match in its entirety. Young’s placed his hockey mask on the ring post. Both wrestlers used weapons throughout the match.
Dreamer set up a table in the corner of the ring, but Young low-blowed him. Mathews reminded viewers of the match type. Young went to the top rope, but Dreamer crotched him by slamming into the ropes. Dreamer set up for a Death Valley Driver, but Young slipped out and hit Dreamer with the hockey mask. Young performed a piledriver on Dreamer and pinned him to win the match…
Impact World Champion Eric Young defeated Tommy Dreamer in a non-title, Old School Rules match.
After the match, Young hit Dreamer with a kendo stick. Young wrapped Dreamer’s leg in a chair, then hit the chair repeatedly with the kendo stick. Rich Swann came out on crutches and with one foot in a walking boot. Young threw one of the crutches at Young. Swann rolled into the ring and hopped on his good foot while hitting Young with the other crutch. Young left the ring and barked that Swann didn’t belong there to close the show…
Powell’s POV: I have a terrible memory, but I feel like Dreamer loses a hardcore match to every new heel champion early in their run. That’s not a bad thing, but I did get a sense of deja vu. The match was fine for its style and played into Young’s maniacal persona. Swann coming out afterward keeps him fresh in the minds of viewers while he sells his injury-related retirement. I assume it will be Young vs. Swann for the Impact World Championship at Bound For Glory if the company shows creative patience.
Overall, this was a decent yet largely missable episode. The main event was logical main event and the tag title match was the highlight. I enjoy Impact the most when it focuses on traditional pro wrestling, and with Wrestle House concluded and no Treehouse segments, this was a mostly straight forward show. Dot Net Members can check out my audio review of this episode right now via the main page. John Moore should be by with the Impact Wrestling Hit List on Wednesday.
“Young threw one of the crutches at Young.”
Impressive.
“Pro wrestling referees are idiots.”
Yes we are (experienced zebra right here) because we are paid to be idiots. *raspberry*
You mean it’s not real?!?