By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
Impact Wrestling TV
Taped in Nashville, Tennessee at Skyway Studios
Aired October 20, 2020 on AXS TV
Highlights from last week’s Impact Wrestling show aired. The video was followed by the Impact opening theme…
Josh Mathews and Madison Rayne were on commentary…
1. Heath [Slater] vs. Cousin Jake vs. Shawn Hernandez vs. Alisha Edwards vs. Rhino for the 20th spot in the “Call Your Shot” Battle Royal. Josh reminded viewers that Rhino put his career on the line at Bound for Glory in order to get Heath a shot in the CYS battle royal. Alisha Edwards did her signature move to everyone, yell at them. Hernandez put her on the top rope and pet her hed. The men in the match paired up and brawled. Alisha Edwards tried to choke Heath, but Jake punched Heath into the corner, which forced Alisha to break the hold. Heath caught Jake with a leaping kick.
Rhino and Hernandez brawled. Rhino took down Hernandez with a shoulder tackle. Alisha got a two count on Hernandez while Rhino was distracted saying “who’s the man”. Alisha caught all of her opponents with a dive to ringside. Jake tripped up Alisha, but then apologized for attacking a woman. Jake and Hernandez cornered Rhino and gave him punches. Heath took control of Hernandez with punches. Hernandez dumped Heath to ringside with a lariat. Alisha yelled at Hernandez. Jake prevented Hernandez from hitting Alisha with a Border Toss. Alisha slapped Hernandez. Rhino accidentally Gore’d Alisha after Hernandez sidestepped him. Hernandez rolled up a concerned and distracted Rhino for the win.
Hernandez defeated Rhino, Alisha Edwards, Heath, and Cousin Jake via pinfall in 4:45 to win the 20th spot in the Call Your Shot Battle Royal.
Josh Mathews teased Rhino’s Impact career possibly ending on Saturday…
John’s Thoughts: A time filler match. It was odd that this match was built around male wrestlers wrestling around Alisha Edwards. Not sure how this hypes things up Sunday? I remember last year Eddie Edwards was pinned in this match meaning he was the 1st entrant. So are they having Rhino come in at 1?
Josh Mathews and Madison Rayne checked in from their commentary set. Josh hyped up Bound For Glory. Madison Rayne confirmed that Rhino will now be the number one entrant via getting pinned. The commentators ran through the upcoming segments as well as the BFG card…
A highlight package aired of the EC3 and Moose feud. Josh Mathews said that Moose was going to be interviewed by Jimmy Jacobs after the break…[c]
Jimmy Jacobs introduced Moose as his interview guest. Jimmy asked Moose about how happy he was to get his TNA belt back. Moose simply said “I’m fine”. Jacobs said Moose didn’t sound fine. Moose then went off, yelling at everyone. Moose then stormed off the set. Suddenly Jimmy Jacobs was kidnapped by Retribu… err… I mean… EC3’s hooded followers. They threw him in the back of a SUV…
John E Bravo was yelling at his groomsmen, saying that they’re dropping the ball one week before the wedding. Cousin Jake revealed that he hired Kaleb Konley as the wedding photographer. Kaleb was distracted, taking pictures of Tenille Dashwood. Taya Valkyrie walked into the scene. Taya was worried that the wedding planning wasn’t going well. John E stormed off ranting to himself…
A Deonna Purrazo promo aired where Deonna hyped up her Knockouts title match on Sunday. Deonna talked about wanting to be the greatest Knockouts Champion of all time. She said with her elegance and ability, she rises to pressure. Deonna said that Kylie’s happy demeanor is not a strategy and that having emotions just makes you emotional. Deonna said Kylie is becoming unhinged. Deonna said Kylie can’t win and Kylie knows it…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Another strong promo from Deonna Purrazzo who kills it every time she is given mic time. This also struck me as the first promo she’s cut in a while. Why not just give her a mic every other week because she’s so good at selling upcoming matches.
2. Rosemary vs. Jessika Havok. Havok overpowered Rosemary’s hand early on and took down Rosemary with a shoulder tackle. Rosemary dodged a leg drop and got a two count rollup on Havok. Havok hit Rosemary with a backbreaker followed by a lariat. Rosemary escaped a Samoan Drop, but Havok regained control with clotheslines. Rosemary caught Havok with a reverse DDT for a two count. Havok countered Rosemary with a Gutwrench Suplex. Havok hit Rosemary in the corner with a face wash kick.
Rosemary sidestepped Havok and hit the staggered Havok with a crossbody. Rosemary got a two count. Rosemary ran the ropes and hit Havok with two spears.
Rosemary defeated Jessika Havok via pinfall in 3:29.
John’s Thoughts: A surprisingly short match, but at the same time, even since Rosemary’s injuries, she’s been limited to short matches or limited action in tag matches. I wonder if she’s still suffering from the injuries that kept her out of action for so long? As for the story here, I guess they’re bringing back James Mitchell for Bound for Glory. I’m not sure anyone thought he was gone from storylines anyway. On the other side, Havok has been working long matches, but they have her taking a lot more losses than you’d expect any monster wrestler to be taking.
A highlight package aired which spotlighted the tag teams facing off for the tag team titles at Bound for Glory…
An Impact Plus ad aired…
An ad aired for the Good Brothers Talk’n Shop special, which aired after Impact Wrestling. This show looks like it’s also featuring characters from Southpaw Regional Wrestling…
A Kylie Rae promo aired where Kylie talked about facing Deonna Purrazzo on Sunday. Kylie said the thing that hurt her most was being forced to watch Deonna break the arm of Susie Yung. Kylie said she apologizes for exploding emotionally the last few weeks on Deonna and Kimber. Kylie said she things that Deonna has ulterior motives, more than just the title…
They cut to the EC3 followers dragging Jimmy Jacobs out of their vehiecle to a warehouse. They had Jimmy’s head covered with a black hood as they took him to EC3’s brick wall set. EC3 then sat in front of Jimmy saying “there’s nowhere to go, just you and me”…[c]
Jimmy asked EC3 where they were now? EC3 said they are prisoners of their own mind and they are in “their narrative”. EC3 said Jimmy is in EC3’s narrative. Jimmy asked EC3 what that narrative was? EC3 said the narrative has changed. Jimmy pointed out EC3’s black eye. EC3 said his mind, body, and soul are wounded. EC3 talked about getting catharsis on the bridge because he saw the Moose that Moose should have been. EC3 yelled that Moose is a false idol, he then calmed down and said tha the saw what Moose could be.
EC3 said the Moose that beat him down on the bridge is a Moose that can control his narrative. EC3 said on Saturday, Moose is going to learn what he can become at EC3’s hands. EC3 said he fights for control, purpose, and himself. EC3 said he’s going to destroy his past. EC3 said he’s going to take the TNA Title and burn it to ashes. Jimmy asked EC3 what would happen when EC3 beats Moose and takes the TNA title. EC3 said he had the title in his hands and could have burned it at any moment, but he also wanted to lure Moose. EC3 said Moose is slowly becoming who he’s supposed to be, and Moose has been warned…
John’s Thoughts: I do like that EC3 is exhibiting some of the good parts of cinematic wrestling that Lucha Underground perfected back in the day, but at the same time his promos are starting to seep into that “pretentious” realm. His delivery and performance is still top-notch, but the “narrative” thing is starting to move away from being thought provoking.
3. Sami Callihan vs. Eddie Edwards. Eddie caught Sami with an atomic drop. Sami then poked the eye of Eddie. Eddie shoved Sami outside and then gave Sami a suicide dive. Josh Mathews reminded viewers of the time that Sami hit Eddie in the eye with a baseball bat. Sami reversed Eddie with an Exploder suplex at ringside. Sami gave Eddie an eye rake and Brainbuster in the ring for a two count.
Sami dominated Eddie for a stretch. Eddie and Sami took each other out with strikes. They then traded strong style forearms and chops. Sami went right for the eyes to end the sequence. Eddie caught Sami’s boot and came back with a forearm. Eddie hit Sami with a Tiger Driver for a two count. Eddie was about to hit Sami with the Boston Knee Party, but Sami then stopped Eddie in his tracks after he picked up his smartphone. Sami then pressed a button and the lights went out. The lights came on and Ken Shamrock was on the apron. Eddie went after Shamrock but was rolled up with a hand full of tights by Sami for the win.
Sami Callihan defeated Eddie Edwards via pinfall in 8:35.
Eddie put the boots to Sami after the match. Shamrock came in the ring and gave Eddie a Belly to Belly. Shamrock then put Eddie in the ankle lock. Eddie was then writing in pain while Sami and Ken stood tall over him…
John’s Thoughts: I don’t get this feud. I don’t get what they’re fighting over or any of it. I also think Sami needs to drop the hacker gimmick because he’s making WWE look like they were in the right for scrapping it on the cutting room floor.
A highlight package aired to spotlight the X Division title picture…
4. Willie Mack, TJ Perkins, and Trey Miguel vs. Chris Bey, Jordynne Grace, and Rohit Raju. Rohit trash talked Perkins while facing off with Mack. Rohit then quickly tagged in Bey to work on Perkins. Perkins caught Bey with a huracanrana. He then tagged in Mack who hit Bey with a leg drop for a two count. Mack dragged Bey to his corner to tag in Perkins. Raju ended up tripping up Perkins during a handspring move.
This allowed Grace to tag in. Grace hit Perkins with lariats. Grace and Bey then traded quick tags with each other for tandem offense. Bey and Grace then reluctantly tagged in Raju. Perkins caught a flying Rohit with a dropkick. Grace missed a Vader Bomb on Perkins. Perkins hit Bey with a Tornado DDT. He tagged in Trey Miguel for the hot tag. Miguel hit Rohit with a basement dropkick and spin kick for a two count. Perkins caught Bey with a Rolling Sobat, that Bey no sold into a kick. Both teams took turns hitting their signature moves on each other.
Rohit hit Miguel with a high knee, which gave the legal man Chris Bey a two count. Bey hit Miguel with a springboard stunner, but Rohit blind tagged himself in. Bey and Rohit then argued over the blind tag. Rohit punched Bey. Bey responded with a sprinboard RKO. Trey hit Bey with a superkick to get him out of the picture. Trey pinned Rohit for the victory.
Trey Miguel, Willie Mack, and TJP defeated Rohit Raju, Chris Bey, and Jordynne Grace via pinfall in 5:26.
Josh Mathews hyped Gia Miller interviewing Eric Young after the break…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Another time filler match, but I thought this filler was pretty entertaining. This one had a bit of a purpose and it continued to showcase Rohit Raju’s cocky heel persona. I kinda hope he escapes Bound For Glory as X Division Champion because I feel like we’re just scratching the surface of what this character can do. I would also like to see some more mic time from him because he was coming into his own on the mic in recent promo segments.
An Eric Young Bound For Glory commercial aired…
A highlight package aired to spotlight the Eric Young and Rich Swann feud…
Gia Miller interviewed Eric Young backstage. Eric Young reiterated his claims that what will happen on Sunday will be on Rich Swann and Scott D’Amore’s hands. Rich Swann cut off the interview by pouncing on Young. Young and Swann brawled to the Skyway Studios parking lot. They then ran into the “camera” and the feed cut out…
Josh Mathews and Madison Rayne ran through the following matches on the BFG card: The Call Your Shot Battle Royal, Eddie Edwards vs. Ken Shamrock, The X Division Six Way Scramble Match, Moose vs. EC3 in an Undisclosed Location, Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kylie Rae for the Knockouts Championship, Eric Young vs. Rich Swann for the Impact Championship, and the Motor City Machine Guns vs. Good Brothers vs. Ace and Fulton vs. The North for the Tag Team Championships…
Entrances for the main event tag match took place…[c]
5. “The North” All Ego Ethan Page vs. “The Good Brothers” Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson. The Good Brothers dominated and kept Alexander under control in their corner with quick tags and corner strikes. Alexander ended up dragging Anderson to his corner so that he and Page could isolate Anderson. The North then cut the ring in half on Anderson, with Page providing trash talk. Josh Mathews noted that Josh Alexander once had a broken neck that threatened his wrestling career.
Alexander tagged in Page and both North guys gave Anderson back-to-knee backbreakers. The North continued their methodical offense on The Brothers. Anderson managed to get a window of opportunity after a big boot and spinebuster to Alexander. Gallows and Page tagged in with Gallows cleaning house. Gallows caught Page with a back elbow and big boot. Alexander prevented the Brothers from hitting a Magic Killer on Page. The referee called for the bell when nobody would get to their corners.
The Good Brothers vs. The North ended in a no-contest in 6:49.
Ace Austin and Madman Fulton ran out to join the brawl. Sabin and Shelly also joined the brawl. The babyfaces, Good Brothers and Machine Guns, cleared the heels from the ring. The Brothers then asked The Guns for a handshake. Shelley accepted the handshake, but Anderson gave Shelley a Gun Stun (Diamond Cutter). The Good Brothers gave Sabin a Magic Killer. The Good Brothers stood tall with their theme playing to close the show…
John’s Thoughts: Yet another time filler match, but that’s what you should probably expect for the end of the tapings leading into BFG. As much as it didn’t mean much in terms of being must-see, it was a decent preview as to what the North can add to the tag team match on Sunday. That said, the Tag Team match on BFG should be one of the best matches this Saturday based off talent alone. Overall, the in-ring stuff was missable, but the other video packages were good refreshers for the matches happening on Saturday.
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