By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
TNA Impact Hits
Brian Myers and Eddie Edwards vs. Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy for the TNA Tag Team Titles: The Hardys run in AEW was disappointing. Granted, a lot of that was self inflicted due to Jeff’s struggles in his personal life. And while I wasn’t crazy about the return of the Broken Matt character with no explantation, something about the Hardys teaming up in TNA feels right. This match was entertaining and the live crowd was fully invested. The DQ finish was logical, as I prefer the idea of keeping the Hardys in chase mode as opposed to them winning the titles on night one. The post match attack that led to Jeff being stretchered out put good heat on the heels and logically wrote him out temporarily because he won’t be at Slammiversary or the tapings that follow due to his legal issues.
JDC vs. Mike Santana: This was the pleasant surprise of the night. Santana typically overdelivers, but it’s still feels fresh to see JDC working aggressively after he spent years in more of a mid-card comedy role. JDC received a nice boost from going toe-to-toe with Santana. While back-to-back DQ finishes was pushing it, it was another logical move in that neither wrestler should have lost clean.
“No Quarter Catch Crew” Charlie Dempsey, Myles Borne, and Tavion Heights vs. Trey Miguel, Zachary Wentz, and Kushida: A good six-man match with the NXT team getting the win, which set up The Rascalz reunion in TNA for Slammiversary. The finish of the match was nicely done with the NQCC trio hitting big moves on Wentz, who did a great job of looking disoriented while he was pinned by Dempsey. As much as I found most of the That ’70s Show smoke circles segments to be groaners back in the day, it was fun to see the band back together (minus the bad smoke effects) for one more “treehouse” session.
Mustafa Ali and Mike Bailey: The gimmick of Ali requiring Bailey to win a “Secret Service Gauntlet” actually felt timely even though it was unintentional given that this show was taped a few weeks ago. Bailey plowing through Ali’s personal security with ease was solid. The final spot with Ali dressing up as a security guard dressed in riot gear and then attacking Ali was nicely done, as it didn’t seem like the live crowd figured out that it Ali in disguise. It was good to see Santino Marella ditch the comedy and get fired up while telling Ali that the X Division Title match will still take place despite Ali pinning Bailey at the end of the gauntlet match. The Ali vs. Bailey match at Slammiversary looks great on paper.
Jordynne Grace sit-down interview hosted by Tom Hannifan: They did a nice job of recapping Grace’s WWE and NXT crossover appearances while also setting the table for her Knockouts Title defense against Ash By Elegance at Slammiversary.
Contract signing for the TNA World Championship match at Slammiversary: It started as a pretty basic contract signing segment involving Moose, Joe Hendry, Josh Alexander, Frankie Kazarian, and Steve Maclin. Nic Nemeth appearing via Skype (or something) and stating that he tore his labrum yet then announcing that he will be able to compete was a nice touch. I cringed when AJ Francis and Rich Swann came out, but Francis came through with some really good mic work and I also got a kick out of Santino Marella finding a way to work in a “hawk tuah” reference.
Xia Brookside vs. Alisha Edwards: An in the middle rather than a Hit or a Miss. It was tough to go from the fun of the NXT crossover trios match to what felt like a throwaway match. The ring work was fine and Edwards did a nice job of garnering heat from the live crowd. The spot with Jody Threat and Dani Luna attacking Masha Slamovich when she tried to interfere helped Brookside get the win and gave a final push the Knockouts Tag Team Title feud.
TNA Impact Misses
None: This was a quality go-home show for the Slammiversary pay-per-view.
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