By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
TNA Impact (Episode 1,059)
Taped in Nashville, Tennessee at Skyway Studios
Aired October 24, 2024 on AXS TV
Highlights from last week’s TNA Impact aired…
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Jade Chung was the ring announcer…
Sani Callihan got a televised entrance for the opening match with everyone else already in the ring…
1. Sami Callihan vs. Jake Something vs. AJ Francis vs. Jason Hotch vs. Laredo Kid vs. Frankie Kazarian to become the final entrant in the TNA Call Your Shot Battle Royal (where the person who gets pin becomes the first entrant). Kazarian tried to get Jade Chung to call him the King of TNA, but Laredo Kid attacked him from behind and dumped him to ringside. Kid hit Hotch with a armdrag and huracanrana.
Jake hit Kid with a leaping hip check. Francis used his power to toss everyone around. Francis teased doing a flip dive but then faked the fans out. Callihan dumped Francis to ringside. Hotch hit a pile of wrestlers at ringside with a flip dive. Callihan went for a dive, but Something hit him with a hip attack. Something hit Kid with a pop up right hook.
Something hit a pile of wrestlers with a rope clearing dive. Callihan dumped Kid to the pile of wrestlers wiht a power bomb to ringside. Something hit AJ with a right hook. Callihan, Something, and Hotch teamed up for a few punches and a Shield Bomb on the larger AJ. Kid hit Callihan with a dropkick. Hotch hit Something with a Tornado DDT. Hotch hit Callihan with a enzuigiri. Kazarian caught Hotch off the slingshot into a Cutter for a nearfall.
Kid dropkicked Kazarian to prevent him from hitting Hotch with the Deadeye. Something took down Hotch with a clothesline. Callihan dodged Something’s Stinger Splash and hit him with a Stunner. Callihan hit Kazarian with the Cactus Driver. Francis broke up Callihan’s pin. Francis then pinned Kazarian to win the match.
AJ Francis defeated Frankie Kazarian, Sami Callihan, Jake Something, Jason Hotch, and Laredo Kid via pinfall in 6:58 to become the last entrant in the Call Your Shot Battle Royal. Frankie Kazarian will be the first entrant in Call Your Shot.
AJ Francis and KC Navarro celebrated AJ’s win after the match. Tom Hannifan noted that the Call Your Shot match will occur on Bound for Glory’s pre-show…
John’s Thoughts: Good match while it lasted. I thought Jason Hotch actually made the most of his minutes by looking credible and not being the punching bag. The finish did surprise me a bit. AJ winning is fine, I don’t expect him to win the whole thing anyway. I’m surprised that Kazarian was the one pinned. Usually, a workhorse babyface is the the one who uses the number 1 spot to tell a underdog story. Kazarian is a heel, and with them shoehorning him in the main event picture last week, it almost looked like they telegraphed him winning the not-Money-in-the-Bank. I still expect Kaz to be the favorite, possibly just staying away from the action most of the match. If the dude can work two matches that night, I also wouldn’t mind if Matt Cardona were a dark horse option to win the trophy. Side note again, poor Jake Something. Every time they tease a push, he gets pushed back down the card.
Gia Miller interviewed “regular” Jonathan Gresham. Gia asked him how he felt about facing Josh Alexander later on because this is a different Josh Alexander then we’ve seen in the past. Gresham said the last two years, his bad days have outnumbered his good days. He said he’s been depressed and miserable, until he remembered “who the F*ck I am!”. Gresham said he’s the best pure professional wrestler in the world.
He said he’s driven again, to reclaim everything he’s lost. He said he doesn’t give a damn about what Josh is doing in TNA these days because it’s all about two men facing each other for the first time in the ring. Two men, who spent two decades to earn their reputation. Two men, who are the best professional wrestlers in the world today. Gresham said it starts with Josh, the comeback, and this is personal. Gresham walked away…
John’s Thoughts: Did Gresham drop the whole Black Great Muta thing? I kinda hope this is more Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde, because I kinda liked that new look and the cinematic vignettes they used to build up to it. What pissed me off, was for some reason they pivoted to turning him into a walking contagion that gets people “sick”, along with Kushida somehow being a genus scientist trying to find “a cure”. Ugh. Take that clownshoes stuff away. Other than that, I think that Black Muta look looks straight up fire.
Shots of New York were shown as a vignette aired for Mike Santana. Santana talked about how when people think of NYC, people usually think of Time Square, The Empire State Building, or Central Park. Santana said he’s here to show everyone a different side of New York City. Santana talked about being born in the lower east side. He said this environment showed him how to survive this thing we all call life. He said he’s learned that a life in the street will lead you to two paths: in jail or in a body bag.
He said he’s seen it all and lived it, and that surviving is what’s been part of his motivation to move forward. He said the significance of his hood played a huge part in his life. Santana talked about his elders immigrating to New York from Puerto Rico and establish Santana’s family in that said hood. Santana talked about runnin’ the streets searching for something he’ll never find: Love and stability. Santana said that taught him that anger can be channeled in the wrong direction.
All that said, Santana said he did what he had to do to maneuver and survive. Santana said there’s a lot he’s not proud of, but it is what it is. Santana said the most important thing is that he learned from all that. Santana said you can take the man out of the lower east side, but you can’t take the lower east side out of the man. Santana said he assumes Moose already knows this, and if Moose doesn’t, Mike Santana will make Moose find out…
John’s Thoughts: Awesome promo by Santana. I like how they are building him up. Not rushing him to the title picture. And pivoting The System to serve as his character development conduit. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with a well thought out character arc. I like that Santana feels different, and more real than a lot of the roster. He’s very relatable and you feel like he’s speaking from the heart during his promos. If HBK and Gabe Sapolsky are seeing what he’s doing, I wouldn’t be surprised if WWE brings him in sooner rather than later.
At ringside, a table was set up with candelabras and champagne in punch bowls. The wine bottles had Ash by Elegance’s picture on it. Ash by Elegance and The Personal Concierge made their entrance. The Concierge welcomed everyone to the “Launch party of Elegance”. He said they were about to reveal their masterpiece. He talked about taking Heather Reckless in and giving her a rigorous makeover.
The Concierge said that they spared no expense. He said they taught Heather to walk, to talk, to dress, to eat. He said they took a lump of coal and turned it into a diamond. The Concierge then introduced “Heather by Elegance”. Heather Reckless made her entrance looking slightly glam’d up. The crowd started a “Basic white girl” chant (Ok, that cracked me up).
The Concierge told Heather to not listen to them because she’s beautiful He then held a mirror in front of Heather and Heather acted excited. The Concierge said it was time to celebrate over champagne because they can afford it and the fans can’t. Heather and Ash did a cheers. Xia Brookside made her entrance. Brookside talked about there being excitement in the air, but it also feels as fake as Ash and Heather.
Xia talked about Ash acting like she didn’t humiliate Brinley Reece last week. Xia said karma will catch up with Ash and she better watch her back. Brinley Reece showed up and gave Ash a baseball slide. Ash stopped on a dime, as to not fall into the champagne bowl. Brinley shoved Heather into Ash. Xia and Brinley then put Ash and Heather into the champagne bowls. Ash cried and said that Xia ruined her makeup. Brinley and Xia then laughed and headed up the ramp…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Eh, a typical “Sports entertainment” style segment. I’m not the biggest fan of what they’ve been doing with Ash after she lost to Jordynne Grace. She coming off as very campy, almost NXT 2.0. levels of cartoony. The Concierge is solid at his job, but he also eats too much of the scenery away from Ash. This wasn’t gawd awful, we’ve seen worse, but it was kinda, just there. I do like that TNA is allowing NXT wrestlers to get TV time and experience away from NXT. TNA gets a expanded Knockouts division, and NXT doesn’t have to shoehorn a bunch of random developmental wrestlers on the CW show (which was a problem pre-TNA Partnership, where every week it felt like we got a ton of no name, no character developmental women showing up left and right). NXT’s main show has been cleaner and more concise after they started shipping developmental wrestlers to TNA.
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan also plugged a donation URL to donate money to United Way to help with their Hurricane Elene relief efforts…
2. Josh Alexander (w/Judas Icarus, Travis Williams) vs. (regular mode) Jonathan Gresham. Hannifan noted that Gresham wanted to start the match with his usual Code of Honor handshake, but Josh didn’t accept it. Gresham circled Alexander while sizing Alexander up. Both men traded standing switches and ended in a stalemate. Both men then started a back and forth wristhold segment. Gresham went for a Monkey Flip, but Josh kept the wristhold hooked in.
Gresham escaped with a few armdrags which sent Josh into retreat. Josh caught Gresham off the Plancha. Josh slammed Gresham into the ringpost heading into picture-in-picture.[c]
Gresham rallied back with forearms and no sold a right hand to give Josh a dropkick. Gresham gave Josh’s calf a dropkick. Gresham did a backflip into an armdrag on Josh. Gresham hit Josh with four Suicide Dives. Josh sidestepped the fifth, but Gresham adjusted and hit Josh with a Triangle Moonsault. Gresham knocked down Icarus and Williams at ringside. Gresham put Josh in an Octopus Hold.
Williams distracted the referee and Gresham by standing on the apron. Gresham hit Josh with a Lionsault. Gresham hit Williams with a Suicide Dive. Gresham slipped and fell off a Slingshot attempt. Gresham got a two count off a Victory Roll counter. Both men traded fighting spirit forearms in the center of the ring.
Gresham rolled up Josh for a two count. Josh countered an enzuigiri into an Ankle Lock. Gresham used his legs to whip Josh into the turnbuckle to break the hold. Josh tossed his headgear to the referee, who turned around to put it at ringside. Josh then pulled a foreign object from his kneepad and hit Gresham in the head with it. Josh hit Gresham with the C4 Spike for the win.
Josh Alexander defeated Jonathan Gresham via pinfall in 12:49.
All three Northern Armory members put the boots to Gresham. Steve Maclin ran to the ring with a chair. The number’s advantage got the better of Maclin which allowed Josh to take the chair and jab him with it. Josh then zip tied Maclin to the 2nd rope. Security Guards ran out, but Icarus made sure to keep them put of the ring. Maclin was seething while The Northern Armory continued to taunt him.
ACE STEEL SIGHTING! Ace Steel, Sami Callihan, and Cody Deaner ran out to chase off The Northern Armory. Josh said that Maclin is not in his league. The Northern Armory calmly walked to the back…
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good match while it lasted. It didn’t have to go long, because the end goal was to continue to add heat to the newly turned Josh Alexander. I wouldn’t mind seeing these men run this back with a cleaner finish down the road because these are two of the best technical-style wrestlers in the world. If it were my call, I’d have Josh Alexander go over at Bound for Glory to continue to build up the Ethos of the Northern Armory, which is off to a good start. I have the sinking feeling though that they might want to go with more of a happy ending by putting Maclin over.
The show cut back to the Mike Santana vignette. Santana said he was now in the Bronx, a place he calls home. Santana said this hood breeds toughness because in that environment, you are brought up in a constant “survival mode”. Santana was shown shopping in the bodgea. He talked about how people were taught to survive by any means necessary there. He said honest ways of living were few and far in between.
Santana talked about living through abuse and how that meant he shouldn’t be here today. He said he was truly on the path of being dead or put into jail. Santana said Moose sees where he came from, exactly what Santana has been through. Santana brought up Moose ditching where he came from in favor of a lavish lifestyle. Santana said unlike Moose, he’s here to stay true to the people and the places that made Santana who he is.
Santana said every time he steps to Moose, he can see the fear in Moose’s eyes. He said at Bound for Glory when Moose enters the ropes and the bell rings, Moose will have no choice but to go face to face with his fears. He said Moose will have to go face to face with the thing he’s been running from his entire life. Santana said at Bound for Glory, he’s gonna eat Moose alive. Santana said he be bringin’ the fire, and will Moose be ready for that heat. Santana said he’ll put Moose to rest…
John’s Thoughts: Another great chapter of the Santana vignette. I said that he should be on WWE’s radar, but I also kinda hope he gets a run as a top babyface in TNA before having any possibility of crossing the line. You have your entertaining babyfaces, like Trick Williams or Joe Hendry; but Santana offers something different, a little something I saw a few years ago when he and Ortiz were cutting those fire promos when Konnan was out. This man is so relatable, strengths and flaws, and if people really got to see what this man can do, sky’s the limit.
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan noted that Dani Luna couldn’t make it to Impact this week due to “personal issues”. Hannifan said he sends his best wishes to Dani Luna…
4. Wendy Choo (w/Rosemary) vs. Jody Threat. Threat shrugged off a Standing Switch, causing Choo to do a creepy crawl around the ring. Threat hit Choo with a shoulder tackle and series of short lariats in the corner. Threat hit Choo with a Belly to Belly and Wrecking Ball kick. Choo escaped a suplex at ringside. Threat punched Rosemary. The distraction allowed Choo to send Threat into the ringpost.
Choo hit Threat with a front flip into a clothesline, leading to a nearfall. Threat went to the top rope, but Choo slammed her off the top rope to the mat for another nearfall. Choo put Threat in the Tree of Woe and then hit her with a Shotgun Dropkick. Choo got a two count. Threat fought her way out of a cravate with a snapmare. Threat and Choo took each other out with crossbodies.
Both women made their way to their feet. Both women then traded Fighting Spirit Forearms. Threat got the upper hand and then draped Threat on the ropes with a pump kick. Threat gave Choo a draping Meteora to the back followed by a German Suplex. Threat hit Choo with a clothesline for a nearfall. Choo got a two count off a backslide. Threat climbed to the top rope after the boot and gave Choo a top rope cannonball.
Threat went for an F5, but was distracted when Rosemary threw Wendy Choo’s body pillow in the ring. While the referee was distracted putting the pillow away, Rosemary hit Threat with a cheap shot to the face. Choo hit Threat with a Book End for the victory.
Wendy Choo defeated Jody Threat via pinfall in 6:56.
John’s Thoughts: Your standard “tag team wrestlers have singles matches to set up a tag title match” kind of match. As I been pointing out since No Mercy, the crowd sits on their hands for Wendy Choo. She’s essentially a less cool Su Yung because she has zero character development in WWE. Choo is a veteran wrestler and deserves better. Despite the effort they put into building Spitfire, Lars Frederickson and all, it also seems like they aren’t clicking as well. If I were TNA, and got permission from WWE, I’d put the belts on Rosemary and Choo. It gives TNA two strong veteran Knockouts for the Knockouts division. It also gives NXT some tag titles they can compete for, which will also give TNA some exposure on the CW network.
The System were standing and cutting a promo backstage. Eddie Edwards said this week’s tag team match is just the beginning, a taste of what The System will do the the Hardys and ABC at Bound for Glory. Brian Myers hyped up Bound for Glory being TNA’s biggest show of the year. JDC talked about how he’s been calling his shot for 20 years in this business. Moose addressed Mike Santana, and said that there’s a thin line between bravery and stupidity.
Moose said Santana thinks he’s courageous, but he’ll look mighty foolish if he fails. Moose said at Bound for Glory he’s going to make Mike look like a damn dumbass. Moose talked about how both he and Santana came from the streets, but Santana is still in the streets while Moose found his way out. Moose said that led to him being the face of any franchise. Moose said he’s not only going to beat the hell out of Mike, but he’s going to make Mike “Trust the F*cking System”…
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Again, I give TNA credit these days. They stopped force feeding The System down our throats, and now they are both palatable and integral to TNA stories (in that they are serving as the conduit for Mike Santana’s character arc and development). Strong assists too, to Alisha Edwards and Johnny Dango Curtis, who have added solid mic work and freshness to the fledgling stable.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. Hannifan plugged Bound for Glory on PPV. He also noted that the show was being billed with a “triple main event” of Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich, Full Metal Mayhem, and Nic Nemeth vs. Joe Hendry. Rehwoldt hyped up Mike Bailey vs. El Hijo Del Vikingo as a “Dream Match”. PCO vs. Matt Cardona was announced as a Monster’s Ball match.
They also ran through the rest of the advertised card. Hannifan then plugged the Hall of Fame ceremony where Rhino and the late and longtime TNA executive Bob Ryder were being inducted. Hannifan then announced that Ash by Elegance and Heather Reckless will be facing Xia Brookside and Brinley Reece at Bound for Glory…
John’s Thoughts: On paper, that BFG card actually looks really good. I’ll be doing live coverage for that show along with the audio review for Dot Net Members and Patreon Patrons. Only downside is I felt like TNA didn’t really do a great job presenting BFG as the end-all-be-all biggest show of the year. Slammiversary’s presentation outshined BFG (and this has happened on occasion in the past where they push Slammiversary better than BFG sometimes).
Entrances for the main event match took place…
5. “The System” Moose, JDC, Brian Myers, and Eddie Edwards (w/Alisha Edwards) vs. Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Chris Bey, and Ace Austin. Moose and Bey started the match. Bey dodged a tackle in the corner and hit Moose with a dropkick. The faces traded quick tags to get all four men in the ring. Jeff hit Edwards and Myers with Poetry in Motion. Both ABC members followed up with their own Poetry in Motion on Myers and Edwards.
Matt took out JDC and Moose at ringside. Ace hit them with a Plancha. Bey hit Edwards and Myers with a plancha. The show cut to regular commercial.[c]
The heels cut the ring in half on Jeff, with Alisha getting her cheap shots in while the referee was distracted. Jeff got a window of opportunity after a suplex on Eddie, but Myers tagged in and cut Jeff off at the pass. Myers worked on Jeff with methodical offense. Jeff hit Myers with a double jawbreaker.
Matt caught the hot tag and rallied with clotheslines on Myers. Matt slammed Myers and Eddie’s heads into the buckles. Bey tagged in and worked tandem offense on Myers. Alishia pulled down the top rope to dump Jeff to ringside heading into Picture-in-Picture.[c]
Ace geined the advantage and hit JDC with a leg drop. Ace caught Moose with a PK from the apron. Ace then took down JDC and Edwards with a Missile Dropkick. Moose dumped Ace to ringside. Matt caught Moose with a Twist of Fate. Myers caught Matt with a Roster Cut. Jeff caught Myers and Edwards with a Whisper of the Wind.
Jeff hit Curtis with a Twist of Fate. Jeff hit Moose with a dive to ringside. Bey hit Curtis with an assisted Cutter. Ace hit Curtis with The Fold and picked up the pinfall win for his team.
Ace Austin, Chris Bey, Matt Hardy, and Jeff Hardy defeated The System via pinfall in 12:10 of on-air time.
The System took down and put the boots to the babyface team after the match. Mike Santana ran out with a chain wrapped around his fist. He punched out JDC, Edwards, and Myers at ringside and approached Moose in the ring. Alisha hit Santana in the back with “Kendra” the Kendo Stick.
Santana no-sold it, but the distraction was enough for Moose to blindside Santana and put the boots to him. Moose then fishhooked Santana with the chain. Eddie and Myers power bombed Bey on a steel chair. Eddie hit Jeff with a Backpack Stunner. Myers elbow dropped a chair onto Matt. The System stood tall to end the segment…
Tom Hannifan hyped up the two contract signings after the break…[c]
TNA Director of Authority Santino Marella was in the ring. The World Title and Knockouts Title were on a covered table in the center of the ring. Santino welcomed Masha “Slam-a-bitch” (Santino intentionally mispronouncing Masha’s name) to the ring first. Santino then welcomed “Joseph” Hendry. Say his name, and he appears! I believe in Joe Hendry! Clap Clap! Joe Hendry made his entrance.
Santino then welcomed the two champions to the ring. Jordynne Grace came out first and Nic Nemeth right after. Santino said in the ring, was four of the best professional wrestling athletes in the world today. Santino said that’s in any country and company. Santino asked the four wrestlers if they have something to say before signing the contract. Masha took the mic and said she’s said everything she’s had to say (ugh, the damn crowd are giving her that stupid “what” chant).
Masha talked about how three years ago she signed her first TNA contract in Nashville, and now she’s back. Masha said tonight she’s signing a new contract, a contract for the title match where Masha will finally beat Grace. Masha signed the match contract. Grace took the mic and said she’s happy and proud for Masha. Grace talked about how they both know how this is going to play out, which drew “ohhhh’s” from the crowd.
Grace said nothing has changed. She said she’s so sorry that she’s going to have to beat Masha again in order for Masha to understand that. Hendry then took the mic and said that people might think that Hendry is a overnight sentation, but this is actually the culmination of a 11 year journey where Joe did everything he did to get to this point. Hendry talked about how he met Nic Nemeth backstage a few years ago and saw him as a future world champion.
Hendry said what’s interesting, is last time they met backstage, Hendry had a lawyer gimmick (Joe Hendry was Rusev’s Russian lawyer, complete with a Russian accent and love for Vladimir Putin). Hendry said what’s ironic now is that he is sitting in front of a legally binding contract that will change both of their careers. Hendry said back on Raw, nobody knew his name, but now they don’t just know his name, say his name, but they also believe in Joe Hendry.
Hendry said what they believe is there will be a new face of TNA, new world champion, and the entire world will be chanting “we believe”. Hendry signed the contract. Nemeth took the mic and said that Hendry’s story was sweet, and he means that. Nic said the respect is mutual. Nic what he wants Hendry to do is only focus on Hendry.
Nic told Joe to not listen to any of the naysayers or haters that say Joe is overrated or a flash in the pan. Nic said he needs Joe focused on the BFG main event, because when you step in the ring with Nemeth, you’re in the ring with the best. Nic signed the contract. Santino took the contract and said he’s happy this went through without a hitch.
Before Santino could close the segment, Frankie Kazarian made his entrance wearing a Canadian Tuxedo. Kazarian said everyone in the ring is overrated. Kazarian said everyone is wondering how he was granted the guest referee spot at Bound for Glory. Kazarian called the crowd slobs and told them to stop chanting “You suck” so he can tell them about what happened. Kazarian said he completed a full course at the Earl Hebner referee academy.
Kazarian said he got his referee license. He said he went above Santino and spoke with Anthem executives to request the spot. Kazarian said he has something that Santino doesn’t, tenure. He said he’s a god and a king. Kazarian said the Anthem executive couldn’t agree more that the only person that should referee the World Title match is the king Frankie Kazarian.
Kazarian called Masha and Grace broads and said it’s lucky he isn’t involved in their match because he’ll steal their thunder. Masha and Grace stood up to stare down Kazarian. Kazarian called Masha “Nicholai” and told her to sit down. A “kick his ass” chant ensued. Kazarian called Santino a “stooge” and told him to hold his sunglasses. Kazarian said at Bound for Glory, Santino’s toy badge means nothing because Santino isn’t the law, Kazarian is.
Kazarian then addressed Hendry and Nemeth. He said he prides himself off being an honest man. He said you don’t have to worry because he’s calling the match down the middle. Kazarian said at BFG “the right man” is walking out as TNA Champion. Nic and Joe teamed up and slammed Kazarian’s face on the table. Grace held Kazarian in place.
Nic and Joe teased punching him, but then said Santino should have the honors. Kazarian spit in the face of Santino. Santino took out his stupid cobra sock and gave Kazarian The Cobra (That dumb move taught to him by Jon Lovitz that one time on Raw). Masha, Grace, Hendry, and Nemeth all lifted Kazarian up and power bombed him through the table. Nemeth and Grace posed with their titles in front of Hendry and Slamovich. The show closed with Hannifan doing some final hype for Bound for Glory…
John’s Thoughts: A good contract signing segment and different enough to not feel formula. A problem back when Vince was running WWE is the contract signings were so cookie cutter because they were all the same. We see it in WWE and in TNA now where they try to mix things up a bit, like doing “press conferences” or backstage pretapes. Masha and Jordynne are a bit rough on the live mic, but I think last week’s backstage pretape did a good job driving things home and clarifying the motivations behind the match.
I got a kick out of Joe Hendry mentioning his notable WWE Raw segment where he got to cut a promo as the lawyer representative of Vladimir Putin, complete with a fake Russian accent. I’ll post a link to the YouTube video HERE. While not anything all to nuanced, at least they explained that Kazarian went over Santino’s head to get the guest ref spot. I’m actually intrigued as to why they are throwing Kazarian as a walking-talking Checkov’s Gun. They put him there, therefore he’s going to play a meaningful role in the title match.
The reason I mentioned the concept of Checkov’s Gun is because of the slow burn of John Bradshaw Layfield through the Impact Plus shows and Joe Hendry saying he feels nervous of JBL interfering in Nic and Joe’s setup promo. Maybe something with JBL fell through, and that’s why they pivoted to Kazarian. Kazarian is the first entrant in Call Your Shot and his “right man” line almost telegraphs a win. I like that there are several avenues and outcomes that can come from this match. A decent go-home show. I’ll be by on Saturday with my live review of TNA Bound for Glory.
By John Moore, ProWrestling.net Staffer (@liljohnm)
TNA Impact (Episode 1,059)
Taped in Nashville, Tennessee at Skyway Studios
Aired October 24, 2024 on AXS TV
Highlights from last week’s TNA Impact aired…
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt were on commentary. Jade Chung was the ring announcer…
Sani Callihan got a televised entrance for the opening match with everyone else already in the ring…
1. Sami Callihan vs. Jake Something vs. AJ Francis vs. Jason Hotch vs. Laredo Kid vs. Frankie Kazarian to become the final entrant in the TNA Call Your Shot Battle Royal (where the person who gets pin becomes the first entrant). Kazarian tried to get Jade Chung to call him the King of TNA, but Laredo Kid attacked him from behind and dumped him to ringside. Kid hit Hotch with a armdrag and huracanrana.
Jake hit Kid with a leaping hip check. Francis used his power to toss everyone around. Francis teased doing a flip dive but then faked the fans out. Callihan dumped Francis to ringside. Hotch hit a pile of wrestlers at ringside with a flip dive. Callihan went for a dive, but Something hit him with a hip attack. Something hit Kid with a pop up right hook.
Something hit a pile of wrestlers with a rope clearing dive. Callihan dumped Kid to the pile of wrestlers wiht a power bomb to ringside. Something hit AJ with a right hook. Callihan, Something, and Hotch teamed up for a few punches and a Shield Bomb on the larger AJ. Kid hit Callihan with a dropkick. Hotch hit Something with a Tornado DDT. Hotch hit Callihan with a enzuigiri. Kazarian caught Hotch off the slingshot into a Cutter for a nearfall.
Kid dropkicked Kazarian to prevent him from hitting Hotch with the Deadeye. Something took down Hotch with a clothesline. Callihan dodged Something’s Stinger Splash and hit him with a Stunner. Callihan hit Kazarian with the Cactus Driver. Francis broke up Callihan’s pin. Francis then pinned Kazarian to win the match.
AJ Francis defeated Frankie Kazarian, Sami Callihan, Jake Something, Jason Hotch, and Laredo Kid via pinfall in 6:58 to become the last entrant in the Call Your Shot Battle Royal. Frankie Kazarian will be the first entrant in Call Your Shot.
AJ Francis and KC Navarro celebrated AJ’s win after the match. Tom Hannifan noted that the Call Your Shot match will occur on Bound for Glory’s pre-show…
John’s Thoughts: Good match while it lasted. I thought Jason Hotch actually made the most of his minutes by looking credible and not being the punching bag. The finish did surprise me a bit. AJ winning is fine, I don’t expect him to win the whole thing anyway. I’m surprised that Kazarian was the one pinned. Usually, a workhorse babyface is the the one who uses the number 1 spot to tell a underdog story. Kazarian is a heel, and with them shoehorning him in the main event picture last week, it almost looked like they telegraphed him winning the not-Money-in-the-Bank. I still expect Kaz to be the favorite, possibly just staying away from the action most of the match. If the dude can work two matches that night, I also wouldn’t mind if Matt Cardona were a dark horse option to win the trophy. Side note again, poor Jake Something. Every time they tease a push, he gets pushed back down the card.
Gia Miller interviewed “regular” Jonathan Gresham. Gia asked him how he felt about facing Josh Alexander later on because this is a different Josh Alexander then we’ve seen in the past. Gresham said the last two years, his bad days have outnumbered his good days. He said he’s been depressed and miserable, until he remembered “who the F*ck I am!”. Gresham said he’s the best pure professional wrestler in the world.
He said he’s driven again, to reclaim everything he’s lost. He said he doesn’t give a damn about what Josh is doing in TNA these days because it’s all about two men facing each other for the first time in the ring. Two men, who spent two decades to earn their reputation. Two men, who are the best professional wrestlers in the world today. Gresham said it starts with Josh, the comeback, and this is personal. Gresham walked away…
John’s Thoughts: Did Gresham drop the whole Black Great Muta thing? I kinda hope this is more Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde, because I kinda liked that new look and the cinematic vignettes they used to build up to it. What pissed me off, was for some reason they pivoted to turning him into a walking contagion that gets people “sick”, along with Kushida somehow being a genus scientist trying to find “a cure”. Ugh. Take that clownshoes stuff away, and I think that Black Muta look looks kinda fire.
Shots of New York were shown as a vignette aired for Mike Santana. Santana talked about how when people think of NYC, people usually think of Time Square, The Empire State Building, or Central Park. Santana said he’s here to show everyone a different side of New York City. Santana talked about being born in the lower east side. He said this environment showed him how to survive this thing we all call life. He said he’s learned that a life in the street will lead you to two paths: in jail or in a body bag.
He said he’s seen it all and lived it, and that surviving is what’s been part of his motivation to move forward. He said the significance of his hood played a huge part in his life. Santana talked about his elders immigrating to New York from Puerto Rico and establish Santana’s family in that said hood. Santana talked about runnin’ the streets searching for something he’ll never find: Love and stability. Santana said that taught him that anger can be channeled in the wrong direction.
All that said, Santana said he did what he had to do to maneuver and survive. Santana said there’s a lot he’s not proud of, but it is what it is. Santana said the most important thing is that he learned from all that. Santana said you can take the man out of the lower east side, but you can’t take the lower east side out of the man. Santana said he assumes Moose already knows this, and if Moose doesn’t, Mike Santana will make Moose find out…
John’s Thoughts: Awesome promo by Santana. I like how they are building him up. Not rushing him to the title picture. And pivoting The System to serve as his character development conduit. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with a well thought out character arc. I like that Santana feels different, and more real than a lot of the roster. He’s very relatable and you feel like he’s speaking from the heart during his promos. If HBK and Gabe Sapolsky are seeing what he’s doing, I wouldn’t be surprised if WWE brings him in sooner rather than later.
At ringside, a table was set up with candelabras and champagne in punch bowls. The wine bottles had Ash by Elegance’s picture on it. Ash by Elegance and The Personal Concierge made their entrance. The Concierge welcomed everyone to the “Launch party of Elegance”. He said they were about to reveal their masterpiece. He talked about taking Heather Reckless in and giving her a rigorous makeover.
The Concierge said that they spared no expense. He said they taught Heather to walk, to talk, to dress, to eat. He said they took a lump of coal and turned it into a diamond. The Concierge then introduced “Heather by Elegance”. Heather Reckless made her entrance looking slightly glam’d up. The crowd started a “Basic white girl” chant (Ok, that cracked me up).
The Concierge told Heather to not listen to them because she’s beautiful He then held a mirror in front of Heather and Heather acted excited. The Concierge said it was time to celebrate over champagne because they can afford it and the fans can’t. Heather and Ash did a cheers. Xia Brookside made her entrance. Brookside talked about there being excitement in the air, but it also feels as fake as Ash and Heather.
Xia talked about Ash acting like she didn’t humiliate Brinley Reece last week. Xia said karma will catch up with Ash and she better watch her back. Brinley Reece showed up and gave Ash a baseball slide. Ash stopped on a dime, as to not fall into the champagne bowl. Brinley shoved Heather into Ash. Xia and Brinley then put Ash and Heather into the champagne bowls. Ash cried and said that Xia ruined her makeup. Brinley and Xia then laughed and headed up the ramp…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Eh, a typical “Sports entertainment” style segment. I’m not the biggest fan of what they’ve been doing with Ash after she lost to Jordynne Grace. She coming off as very campy, almost NXT 2.0. levels of cartoony. The Concierge is solid at his job, but he also eats too much of the scenery away from Ash. This wasn’t gawd awful, we’ve seen worse, but it was kinda, just there. I do like that TNA is allowing NXT wrestlers to get TV time and experience away from NXT. TNA gets a expanded Knockouts division, and NXT doesn’t have to shoehorn a bunch of random developmental wrestlers on the CW show (which was a problem pre-TNA Partnership, where every week it felt like we got a ton of no name, no character developmental women showing up left and right). NXT’s main show has been cleaner and more concise after they started shipping developmental wrestlers to TNA.
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan also plugged a donation URL to donate money to United Way to help with their Hurricane Elene relief efforts…
2. Josh Alexander (w/Judas Icarus, Travis Williams) vs. (regular mode) Jonathan Gresham. Hannifan noted that Gresham wanted to start the match with his usual Code of Honor handshake, but Josh didn’t accept it. Gresham circled Alexander while sizing Alexander up. Both men traded standing switches and ended in a stalemate. Both men then started a back and forth wristhold segment. Gresham went for a Monkey Flip, but Josh kept the wristhold hooked in.
Gresham escaped with a few armdrags which sent Josh into retreat. Josh caught Gresham off the Plancha. Josh slammed Gresham into the ringpost heading into picture-in-picture.[c]
Gresham rallied back with forearms and no sold a right hand to give Josh a dropkick. Gresham gave Josh’s calf a dropkick. Gresham did a backflip into an armdrag on Josh. Gresham hit Josh with four Suicide Dives. Josh sidestepped the fifth, but Gresham adjusted and hit Josh with a Triangle Moonsault. Gresham knocked down Icarus and Williams at ringside. Gresham put Josh in an Octopus Hold.
Williams distracted the referee and Gresham by standing on the apron. Gresham hit Josh with a Lionsault. Gresham hit Williams with a Suicide Dive. Gresham slipped and fell off a Slingshot attempt. Gresham got a two count off a Victory Roll counter. Both men traded fighting spirit forearms in the center of the ring.
Gresham rolled up Josh for a two count. Josh countered an enzuigiri into an Ankle Lock. Gresham used his legs to whip Josh into the turnbuckle to break the hold. Josh tossed his headgear to the referee, who turned around to put it at ringside. Josh then pulled a foreign object from his kneepad and hit Gresham in the head with it. Josh hit Gresham with the C4 Spike for the win.
Josh Alexander defeated Jonathan Gresham via pinfall in 12:49.
All three Northern Armory members put the boots to Gresham. Steve Maclin ran to the ring with a chair. The number’s advantage got the better of Maclin which allowed Josh to take the chair and jab him with it. Josh then zip tied Maclin to the 2nd rope. Security Guards ran out, but Icarus made sure to keep them put of the ring. Maclin was seething while The Northern Armory continued to taunt him.
ACE STEEL SIGHTING! Ace Steel, Sami Callihan, and Cody Deaner ran out to chase off The Northern Armory. Josh said that Maclin is not in his league. The Northern Armory calmly walked to the back…
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: A good match while it lasted. It didn’t have to go long, because the end goal was to continue to add heat to the newly turned Josh Alexander. I wouldn’t mind seeing these men run this back with a cleaner finish down the road because these are two of the best technical-style wrestlers in the world. If it were my call, I’d have Josh Alexander go over at Bound for Glory to continue to build up the Ethos of the Northern Armory, which is off to a good start. I have the sinking feeling though that they might want to go with more of a happy ending by putting Maclin over.
The show cut back to the Mike Santana vignette. Santana said he was now in the Bronx, a place he calls home. Santana said this hood breeds toughness because in that environment, you are brought up in a constant “survival mode”. Santana was shown shopping in the bodgea. He talked about how people were taught to survive by any means necessary there. He said honest ways of living were few and far in between.
Santana talked about living through abuse and how that meant he shouldn’t be here today. He said he was truly on the path of being dead or put into jail. Santana said Moose sees where he came from, exactly what Santana has been through. Santana brought up Moose ditching where he came from in favor of a lavish lifestyle. Santana said unlike Moose, he’s here to stay true to the people and the places that made Santana who he is.
Santana said every time he steps to Moose, he can see the fear in Moose’s eyes. He said at Bound for Glory when Moose enters the ropes and the bell rings, Moose will have no choice but to go face to face with his fears. He said Moose will have to go face to face with the thing he’s been running from his entire life. Santana said at Bound for Glory, he’s gonna eat Moose alive. Santana said he be bringin’ the fire, and will Moose be ready for that heat. Santana said he’ll put Moose to rest…
John’s Thoughts: Another great chapter of the Santana vignette. I said that he should be on WWE’s radar, but I also kinda hope he gets a run as a top babyface in TNA before having any possibility of crossing the line. You have your entertaining babyfaces, like Trick Williams or Joe Hendry; but Santana offers something different, a little something I saw a few years ago when he and Ortiz were cutting those fire promos when Konnan was out. This man is so relatable, strengths and flaws, and if people really got to see what this man can do, sky’s the limit.
Entrances for the next match took place. Hannifan noted that Dani Luna couldn’t make it to Impact this week due to “personal issues”. Hannifan said he sends his best wishes to Dani Luna…
4. Wendy Choo (w/Rosemary) vs. Jody Threat. Threat shrugged off a Standing Switch, causing Choo to do a creepy crawl around the ring. Threat hit Choo with a shoulder tackle and series of short lariats in the corner. Threat hit Choo with a Belly to Belly and Wrecking Ball kick. Choo escaped a suplex at ringside. Threat punched Rosemary. The distraction allowed Choo to send Threat into the ringpost.
Choo hit Threat with a front flip into a clothesline, leading to a nearfall. Threat went to the top rope, but Choo slammed her off the top rope to the mat for another nearfall. Choo put Threat in the Tree of Woe and then hit her with a Shotgun Dropkick. Choo got a two count. Threat fought her way out of a cravate with a snapmare. Threat and Choo took each other out with crossbodies.
Both women made their way to their feet. Both women then traded Fighting Spirit Forearms. Threat got the upper hand and then draped Threat on the ropes with a pump kick. Threat gave Choo a draping Meteora to the back followed by a German Suplex. Threat hit Choo with a clothesline for a nearfall. Choo got a two count off a backslide. Threat climbed to the top rope after the boot and gave Choo a top rope cannonball.
Threat went for an F5, but was distracted when Rosemary threw Wendy Choo’s body pillow in the ring. While the referee was distracted putting the pillow away, Rosemary hit Threat with a cheap shot to the face. Choo hit Threat with a Book End for the victory.
Wendy Choo defeated Jody Threat via pinfall in 6:56.
John’s Thoughts: Your standard “tag team wrestlers have singles matches to set up a tag title match” kind of match. As I been pointing out since No Mercy, the crowd sits on their hands for Wendy Choo. She’s essentially a less cool Su Yung because she has zero character development in WWE. Choo is a veteran wrestler and deserves better. Despite the effort they put into building Spitfire, Lars Frederickson and all, it also seems like they aren’t clicking as well. If I were TNA, and got permission from WWE, I’d put the belts on Rosemary and Choo. It gives TNA two strong veteran Knockouts for the Knockouts division. It also gives NXT some tag titles they can compete for, which will also give TNA some exposure on the CW network.
The System were standing and cutting a promo backstage. Eddie Edwards said this week’s tag team match is just the beginning, a taste of what The System will do the the Hardys and ABC at Bound for Glory. Brian Myers hyped up Bound for Glory being TNA’s biggest show of the year. JDC talked about how he’s been calling his shot for 20 years in this business. Moose addressed Mike Santana, and said that there’s a thin line between bravery and stupidity.
Moose said Santana thinks he’s courageous, but he’ll look mighty foolish if he fails. Moose said at Bound for Glory he’s going to make Mike look like a damn dumbass. Moose talked about how both he and Santana came from the streets, but Santana is still in the streets while Moose found his way out. Moose said that led to him being the face of any franchise. Moose said he’s not only going to beat the hell out of Mike, but he’s going to make Mike “Trust the F*cking System”…
Tom Hannifan hyped upcoming segments…[c]
John’s Thoughts: Again, I give TNA credit these days. They stopped force feeding The System down our throats, and now they are both palatable and integral to TNA stories (in that they are serving as the conduit for Mike Santana’s character arc and development). Strong assists too, to Alisha Edwards and Johnny Dango Curtis, who have added solid mic work and freshness to the fledgling stable.
Tom Hannifan and Matthew Rehwoldt checked in from the commentary table. Hannifan plugged Bound for Glory on PPV. He also noted that the show was being billed with a “triple main event” of Jordynne Grace vs. Masha Slamovich, Full Metal Mayhem, and Nic Nemeth vs. Joe Hendry. Rehwoldt hyped up Mike Bailey vs. El Hijo Del Vikingo as a “Dream Match”. PCO vs. Matt Cardona was announced as a Monster’s Ball match.
They also ran through the rest of the advertised card. Hannifan then plugged the Hall of Fame ceremony where Rhino and the late and longtime TNA executive Bob Ryder were being inducted. Hannifan then announced that Ash by Elegance and Heather Reckless will be facing Xia Brookside and Brinley Reece at Bound for Glory…
John’s Thoughts: On paper, that BFG card actually looks really good. I’ll be doing live coverage for that show along with the audio review for Dot Net Members and Patreon Patrons. Only downside is I felt like TNA didn’t really do a great job presenting BFG as the end-all-be-all biggest show of the year. Slammiversary’s presentation outshined BFG (and this has happened on occasion in the past where they push Slammiversary better than BFG sometimes).
Entrances for the main event match took place…
5. “The System” Moose, JDC, Brian Myers, and Eddie Edwards (w/Alisha Edwards) vs. Matt Hardy, Jeff Hardy, Chris Bey, and Ace Austin. Moose and Bey started the match. Bey dodged a tackle in the corner and hit Moose with a dropkick. The faces traded quick tags to get all four men in the ring. Jeff hit Edwards and Myers with Poetry in Motion. Both ABC members followed up with their own Poetry in Motion on Myers and Edwards.
Matt took out JDC and Moose at ringside. Ace hit them with a Plancha. Bey hit Edwards and Myers with a plancha. The show cut to regular commercial.[c]
The heels cut the ring in half on Jeff, with Alisha getting her cheap shots in while the referee was distracted. Jeff got a window of opportunity after a suplex on Eddie, but Myers tagged in and cut Jeff off at the pass. Myers worked on Jeff with methodical offense. Jeff hit Myers with a double jawbreaker.
Matt caught the hot tag and rallied with clotheslines on Myers. Matt slammed Myers and Eddie’s heads into the buckles. Bey tagged in and worked tandem offense on Myers. Alishia pulled down the top rope to dump Jeff to ringside heading into Picture-in-Picture.[c]
Ace geined the advantage and hit JDC with a leg drop. Ace caught Moose with a PK from the apron. Ace then took down JDC and Edwards with a Missile Dropkick. Moose dumped Ace to ringside. Matt caught Moose with a Twist of Fate. Myers caught Matt with a Roster Cut. Jeff caught Myers and Edwards with a Whisper of the Wind.
Jeff hit Curtis with a Twist of Fate. Jeff hit Moose with a dive to ringside. Bey hit Curtis with an assisted Cutter. Ace hit Curtis with The Fold and picked up the pinfall win for his team.
Ace Austin, Chris Bey, Matt Hardy, and Jeff Hardy defeated The System via pinfall in 12:10 of on-air time.
The System took down and put the boots to the babyface team after the match. Mike Santana ran out with a chain wrapped around his fist. He punched out JDC, Edwards, and Myers at ringside and approached Moose in the ring. Alisha hit Santana in the back with “Kendra” the Kendo Stick.
Santana no-sold it, but the distraction was enough for Moose to blindside Santana and put the boots to him. Moose then fishhooked Santana with the chain. Eddie and Myers power bombed Bey on a steel chair. Eddie hit Jeff with a Backpack Stunner. Myers elbow dropped a chair onto Matt. The System stood tall to end the segment…
Tom Hannifan hyped up the two contract signings after the break…[c]
TNA Director of Authority Santino Marella was in the ring. The World Title and Knockouts Title were on a covered table in the center of the ring. Santino welcomed Masha “Slam-a-bitch” (Santino intentionally mispronouncing Masha’s name) to the ring first. Santino then welcomed “Joseph” Hendry. Say his name, and he appears! I believe in Joe Hendry! Clap Clap! Joe Hendry made his entrance.
Santino then welcomed the two champions to the ring. Jordynne Grace came out first and Nic Nemeth right after. Santino said in the ring, was four of the best professional wrestling athletes in the world today. Santino said that’s in any country and company. Santino asked the four wrestlers if they have something to say before signing the contract. Masha took the mic and said she’s said everything she’s had to say (ugh, the damn crowd are giving her that stupid “what” chant).
Masha talked about how three years ago she signed her first TNA contract in Nashville, and now she’s back. Masha said tonight she’s signing a new contract, a contract for the title match where Masha will finally beat Grace. Masha signed the match contract. Grace took the mic and said she’s happy and proud for Masha. Grace talked about how they both know how this is going to play out, which drew “ohhhh’s” from the crowd.
Grace said nothing has changed. She said she’s so sorry that she’s going to have to beat Masha again in order for Masha to understand that. Hendry then took the mic and said that people might think that Hendry is a overnight sentation, but this is actually the culmination of a 11 year journey where Joe did everything he did to get to this point. Hendry talked about how he met Nic Nemeth backstage a few years ago and saw him as a future world champion.
Hendry said what’s interesting, is last time they met backstage, Hendry had a lawyer gimmick (Joe Hendry was Rusev’s Russian lawyer, complete with a Russian accent and love for Vladimir Putin). Hendry said what’s ironic now is that he is sitting in front of a legally binding contract that will change both of their careers. Hendry said back on Raw, nobody knew his name, but now they don’t just know his name, say his name, but they also believe in Joe Hendry.
Hendry said what they believe is there will be a new face of TNA, new world champion, and the entire world will be chanting “we believe”. Hendry signed the contract. Nemeth took the mic and said that Hendry’s story was sweet, and he means that. Nic said the respect is mutual. Nic what he wants Hendry to do is only focus on Hendry.
Nic told Joe to not listen to any of the naysayers or haters that say Joe is overrated or a flash in the pan. Nic said he needs Joe focused on the BFG main event, because when you step in the ring with Nemeth, you’re in the ring with the best. Nic signed the contract. Santino took the contract and said he’s happy this went through without a hitch.
Before Santino could close the segment, Frankie Kazarian made his entrance wearing a Canadian Tuxedo. Kazarian said everyone in the ring is overrated. Kazarian said everyone is wondering how he was granted the guest referee spot at Bound for Glory. Kazarian called the crowd slobs and told them to stop chanting “You suck” so he can tell them about what happened. Kazarian said he completed a full course at the Earl Hebner referee academy.
Kazarian said he got his referee license. He said he went above Santino and spoke with Anthem executives to request the spot. Kazarian said he has something that Santino doesn’t, tenure. He said he’s a god and a king. Kazarian said the Anthem executive couldn’t agree more that the only person that should referee the World Title match is the king Frankie Kazarian.
Kazarian called Masha and Grace broads and said it’s lucky he isn’t involved in their match because he’ll steal their thunder. Masha and Grace stood up to stare down Kazarian. Kazarian called Masha “Nicholai” and told her to sit down. A “kick his ass” chant ensued. Kazarian called Santino a “stooge” and told him to hold his sunglasses. Kazarian said at Bound for Glory, Santino’s toy badge means nothing because Santino isn’t the law, Kazarian is.
Kazarian then addressed Hendry and Nemeth. He said he prides himself off being an honest man. He said you don’t have to worry because he’s calling the match down the middle. Kazarian said at BFG “the right man” is walking out as TNA Champion. Nic and Joe teamed up and slammed Kazarian’s face on the table. Grace held Kazarian in place.
Nic and Joe teased punching him, but then said Santino should have the honors. Kazarian spit in the face of Santino. Santino took out his stupid cobra sock and gave Kazarian The Cobra (That dumb move taught to him by Jon Lovitz that one time on Raw). Masha, Grace, Hendry, and Nemeth all lifted Kazarian up and power bombed him through the table. Nemeth and Grace posed with their titles in front of Hendry and Slamovich. The show closed with Hannifan doing some final hype for Bound for Glory…
John’s Thoughts: A good contract signing segment and different enough to not feel formula. A problem back when Vince was running WWE is the contract signings were so cookie cutter because they were all the same. We see it in WWE and in TNA now where they try to mix things up a bit, like doing “press conferences” or backstage pretapes. Masha and Jordynne are a bit rough on the live mic, but I think last week’s backstage pretape did a good job driving things home and clarifying the motivations behind the match.
I got a kick out of Joe Hendry mentioning his notable WWE Raw segment where he got to cut a promo as the lawyer representative of Vladimir Putin, complete with a fake Russian accent. I’ll post a link to the YouTube video HERE. While not anything all to nuanced, at least they explained that Kazarian went over Santino’s head to get the guest ref spot. I’m actually intrigued as to why they are throwing Kazarian as a walking-talking Checkov’s Gun. They put him there, therefore he’s going to play a meaningful role in the title match.
The reason I mentioned the concept of Checkov’s Gun is because of the slow burn of John Bradshaw Layfield through the Impact Plus shows and Joe Hendry saying he feels nervous of JBL interfering in Nic and Joe’s setup promo. Maybe something with JBL fell through, and that’s why they pivoted to Kazarian. Kazarian is the first entrant in Call Your Shot and his “right man” line almost telegraphs a win. I like that there are several avenues and outcomes that can come from this match. A decent go-home show. I’ll be by on Saturday with my live review of TNA Bound for Glory.
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