Week in Review 8/24 to 8/30

The final week of August proved a good one for the WWE and TNA, both started off weak and finished strong.

In the case of the WWE, they were coming off a few weeks of subpar programing (Raw and Smackdown). In the last two weeks, the WWE has begun to turn the ship around and do what we know they can do, produce good wrestling shows.

In the case of TNA two good shows back to back to wrap up August is a mini miracle. They have been so bad for such a long time that only Die Hard wrestling fans like myself kept tuning in. The last time they did anything of any value was Last Year’s Bound for Glory tournament.

I wrote in the State of TNA, that they seem lost as if no one cares. For these last two broadcasts, someone opened there eyes. If TNA can focus and put on more shows like this, that could fix a lot of their problems.

Better shows will lead to better ratings (or at least some fans who tuned out may tune backed in) and that leads to more $$$.

Final Thoughts: Summerslam turned things around for the WWE. They have set storylines and are leading up to Night of Champions.

TNA might have a vision of where they are going, and I hope they do. The next few weeks will be pivotal leading into Bound for Glory.

Match of the Week: TNA Six-man X Division Match

Wrestler of the Week: Jack Swagger. Yes, he came out on the losing end of both match, but how good was he in those matches?

Impact of the Week: TIE

• Impact 1: Brock Lesnar’s promo on Monday Night, best of his career.
• Impact 2: EC3 decimating Rhino. Again. The beat down of Rhino the week before proved to not be a fluke.

Ace's Answer: SMACKDOWN 8/292014

Welcome to RAW, JR! Excuse me, I mean Smackdown.

However, it should be RAW, JR because for the last few months a big chunk of Smackdown has been replaying events from RAW. It does make it faster viewing when watching on DVR.

Smackdown lays an egg right off the bat with a painful match between Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns. Reigns is still green and needs some polishing, he tried his best to carry this match, but it just didn’t work.

Reign won by DQ when Rowan and Harper interjected themselves into the match, which brought out Mark Henry and The Big Show, who ran the Wyatt Family off.

The sad fact is, I am not even a fan of Roman Reigns, but I think he is better than this.

Seth Rollins versus RVD in a match hyped as unfinished business between the two. Even a short match between these two is good, and this one was. Both of these guys are highly athletic and talented. I have never been a big RVD fan for some reason, but I can’t deny how good he is.

Good match to follow up the poor opener.

Whose idea was it to put Emma into a match with Paige? It was a great match in that it was short and Paige squashed her. Following the match AJ Lee presented Paige with a valentine gift of chocolates?? Paige ate one of the chocolates at the urging of AJ, only to spit it back into the heart box and skip off.

This is getting weird, sensual and awesome. I love what these two our doing.
Can we get rid of Emma though? She is Emmannoying and Emmabaoring. I would rather watch varnish dry on a flat board.

I have loved the series of matches between Rusev and Swagger, with no one truly coming out on top. This night’s match may be the best yet – except it was spoiled by Bo Dallas! Who the Hell made that call? It looks like we are going to get a Dallas/Swagger program. Will it be a feud? Or will Swagger become a BOliever? Personally, I want Swagger to knock the BOshit out of Bo Dallas.

Jimmy Uso, with Jay, goes one-on-one with Stardust, accompanied by Goldust. This feud is just getting started, and the Usos are looking for payback.

Oddly, Gold and Stardust come out to a face response. Before the match Goldust apologized for the attack on Monday Night Raw, saying he and Stardust lost their heads because they want the titles so much.

The match is over quickly when Jimmy rolls up Stardust for a quick pin. Jimmy is celebrating when Goldie attacks and the Dusts beat down the Usos again.

Once again, oddly I didn’t hear the Dusts being booed.

It was originally announced as The Moneymaker versus Sheamus. At the start of the match, The Miz announced that his stunt double from Raw, “The Method Man” Damian Mizdow, will face Sheamus tonight.

Mizdow started out strong and vicious, but ended up on the losing end very quick. After Sheamus won, The Miz (real deal) did a hit and run and tried to escape, only to be cut off by Dolph Ziggler. The Miz was able to escape, letting Mizdow take a Brogue Kick, while he smiled his way off camera.

This was okay, and a far better use of The Mizdow idea than Monday Night. I wonder if this will be an ongoing thing, like Alex Riley.

Okay, our main event for the show grew out of the pour opening match between Bray Wyatt and Roman Reigns. It is now the Wyatt Family versus Roman, Big Show and Mark Henry. At least Harper is involved.

I was pleasantly surprised with this main event. It was far better than I thought it would be. Rowan and Harper did the heaving lifting for the Wyatt’s and rightly so. Both of them are far better in the ring than Bray Wyatt.

The flow of this match went back and forth, with both sides dominating the match at different points. The finale of the match was nice, with Harper going for the spinning clothesline, only to be speared by Reigns for the win.

Final thoughts: Over all this was an average broadcast of Smackdown, filled with matches and lots of Raw Recaps. Lots. Smackdown was a little disappointing, consider how good Raw has been the last two weeks and last week’s Smackdown.

Rating: 5.5

Match of the Night: Rusev versus Swagger – even with Bo Dallas’s interference.
Wrestler of the Night: The Big Show – he looked great in the main event.
Impact of the Night: There wasn’t one.

Impact Stress Test - 8/27/2014 - PASSED

Impact opened up strong with a three-way promo that leads into our first match.

Angle opens the show, addresses the camera from in the crowd (nice by the way), announcing a grudge match between EC3 and Rhino, the 3D, Hardys and Wolves main event and that he will figure out who the number one contender is.

Cue, MVP, King and Lashley. MVP cut a promo degrading New York and New Yorkers, which brought out Tommy Dreamer. Dreamer came walking out without music, which was nice. That made it seem more real and spur of the moment.

After some choice words by Dreamer and a scuffle with Kenny King, Angle sets up our first match: Dreamer versus Lashley in a New York Street Fight.

Except for a brief trash can flurry from Dreamer, this street fight was dominated by Lashley. This was just a match designed to put over how dominate Lashley can be. Tenay and Taz put over Dreamer’s toughness and how this was ‘Dreamer’s match,’ however it turned into Lashley’s match.

Madison Rayne is on her way out, and says it is time for Taryn to learn why she is the Queen of the Knockouts.

Taryn pinned Madison is a match I am not used to seeing from the knockouts: a sloppy, poorly executed match. I am used to see much better matches from the knockouts, not sloppy clotheslines, poor kicks and both women looking like they are lost. This was more akin to a Diva’s match.

Granted, I think Taryn may have hurt herself when she took a fall to the outside, which probably affected her performance in the match. Still, she isn’t up to the level of Madison or Gail Kim.

Are the first cracks in the relationship between Gunner and Samuel Shaw starting to show? Gunner and Shaw shared a hotel room, after stepping out for a minute, Gunner returns to find Shaw wearing Gunner’s marine uniform. A pissed Gunner tells him to take it off, or ‘I Will.”

Low Ki gets the pin on Manic in a frantic, exciting, hard to follow athletic six-man tag team match between Tigre Uno, Crazy Steve and Low Ki versus Homicide, DJ Z and Manic. Excellent match between these six and a welcome step up from the poor knockouts match.

Hey, is this Crazy Steve’s first taste of victory in TNA?

After a closed door meeting with Angle, Roode and Young, a public announcement will be made as to how the controversy over the number one contender ship will be handled.

Rhino promises to send EC3 to hell with a GORE, GORE, GORE!

TEAR THE ROOF OF OFF THIS SONOFABITCH! Bobby Roode announces that next week, he and Eric Young will have a match to determine who the number one contender will be. He then cuts a promo about Eric being his best friend and calls Eric out.

Eric said that Roode is the best wrestler in the world, but he is just a good. They both showed mutual respect, love for each other and the fans.

I am looking forward to a great match. I would love it to remain a match between friends, no matter who wins, but I see some sort of turn happening.

Did I just see EC3 dismantle Rhino? Again. Granted, Spud interfered in the match twice and Rhino won by DQ when EC3 used a chair, but EC3 was the winner here. Last week he turned a corner, this week he walked down the street. Watch out TNA, EC3 is unleashed.

James storm comes out and announces that he is the leader of a new revolution of men who need a rebirth, starting with ‘The GREAT Sanada.’ Sanada comes out and reveal a new look with ‘Muta’ like face paint. Sanada goes on to defeat Austin Aries in a decent but short match that included Storm interfering and Sanada using green Asian mist!

The point that needs to be taken from here isn’t Sanada’s victory; it was Storm saying that Sanada was ‘the first of many.’

When I first heard that TNA signed an amputee, the first thing that came to mind was Zack Gowan. I had no idea the amputee was a solider and member of the wounded warrior project, Sergeant Chris Melendez. They showed a video package of Melendez pulling off some nice moves with only one leg. Angle, Anderson, Bully Ray and Devon all talked about him and welcomed him to TNA.

I am a military brat. My dad was a 25-year military vet and a sergeant, so I was into this. Good luck, Sarge.

With Team 3D already in the ring, this leads right into our main event, Team 3d versus the Hardys versus the TNA World Tag Team Champions, the Wolves. This is the first in a series of three-way matches between these three teams, the first to win two matches wins the series, the tag titles and the title of greatest . . . This is where I am confused, are they talking about being the greatest tag team in the world today, or of all time. They haven’t been clear on that. The Wolves are nowhere near the hunt for great of all time.

This was a good match, which Team 3D won. However, I am probably in the minority here, I was disappointed. We know what these teams can do, and all they did was deliver on what was expected. With all the hype and importance put on this series, they needed to step it up more.

TNA has deliberately compared this to the series of three matches that involved the Hardy and Dudleys in the WWE (without mentioning the WWE); those matches also included Christian and Edge. If this series is to live up to what they want it to be, and live up to THAT series, then they need to do much, much more. Good just won’t cut it.

One sad fact here, people who don’t know, might actually believe that the matches the Hardys and Team 3D were taking about took place in TNA, especially newer and younger fans that never saw the matches.

Final Thoughts – Another good broadcast of Impact. Hooray for TNA putting together good back-to-back broadcasts. First time they have done this in a long time. This broadcast was on par with last week, and there are some interesting things coming out it.

EC3 has dealt with Rhino. Who is next? If he keeps up this intensity and violence, who can stop him? Certainly not Spud.

James Storm and his revolution. Sanada is just the first of many, per James Storm. Who is next? Since this is about men who need a rebirth, could we see some faces return to TNA? Is there a Storm coming?

Gunner and Shaw . . . Shaw in Gunner’s uniform. Was Anderson right all along?

Rating: 6.5

Match of the Night: Six Man X Division Tag Match
Wrestler of the Night: EC3
Impact of the Night: EC3 over Rhino, again.

Ace's Answer - Raw Report

Is the WWE righting their flagship broadcast? Raw has been circling the drain over the last few weeks. Tonight’s broadcast is second week in a row they have put on a good show, something they haven’t done in a while.

Again, the focus is on in-ring action, building storylines and cutting out the crap. Not everything worked though.

Hall of Fame Forum on Cena versus Lesnar? We open Raw with one of the poorest segments in a long time. Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels discussing whether Cena can defeat Lesnar in his rematch.

This went about the way one would figure: Michaels and Flair saying Cena doesn’t have a chance, Hogan claiming he will rise to the occasion and win. Michaels even hinted that this was Cena’s time to retire.

Cena came out, kissed their asses, then said he was going to Night of Champions not to beat Lesnar, but to beat Lesnar’s ass (isn’t that really the same thing?).

What point did this serve? Hyping up the rematch, I guess. This was a lame promo that was a waste of time. This is what we get when Lesnar doesn’t show up.

Dave Parrish did point out that this was also about elevating Cena to the level of these three.

Fortunately, the first match of the night salvages the show right off the bat. Rusev versus Swagger round three is the best match they have had (televised) to date. Yes, it once again saw Rusev win, with the ref stopping the matching and declaring that Swagger couldn’t continue because of his ribs. Not happy with the call, but understood it.

Is this the end of the feud now?

In the back, Bo Dallas once more told Swagger he needs to BoLieve. Please do not let this lead to Swagger following Dallas. Haven’t they put Swagger through enough?

We dive right into a match for the #1 contender to Sheamus’s US Title. Sheamus was on commentary for a good match that saw Cesaro go over RVD to earn the title shot.

Great choice! We can resume the Cesaro and Sheamus feud without Heyman around.

I was loving this feud and it got cut short. I am looking forward to some hard-hitting matches between these two. Brawl anyone?

Paige beats Nattie! Paige beats Nattie. Finally, Paige beats Nattie without any distraction from AJ, during the match. After the win, AJ’s music hits and she skips during the ring. Nattie takes this time to lay out Paige with a wicked clothesline.

AJ helps Paige up, cuts a promo about how she knows how sincere Paige is about how she feels, but not as sincere as AJ is. AJ than takes Paige’s hand and kisses it, smiling. Paige does nothing, but seems puzzled.

Nice. Simple. Understated. Perfect. This is a great example of less is more. I think this feud just got ramped up.

What if Roman Reigns targets Seth Rollins is a question I have asked since Seth turned on the Shield.

Kane and Rollins held a nice eulogy (aka Promo) for Dean Ambrose. Rollins actual cut a nice promo putting over Ambrose (who is apparently off to film a movie), and himself. When finished, Reigns crashed the party, sending Rollins and Kane backtracking to the stage.

Make no mistake, this promo wasn’t about Ambrose versus Rollins, it was to set up Reigns versus Rollins. Rollins won round one in the Shield revenge feud, now round two begins.

Heel turn for the team of Goldust and Stardust?

I love the Rhodes Brothers as a team. Goldust is the best he has ever been. Cody is truly selling the Stardust character and seems really comfortable and happy.

The Usos defend against Goldust and Stardust, losing by count out. Goldust calls fouls, claiming the Usos got counted out on purpose, losing the match but keeping the titles. Gold and Star snap and wipe the floor with the Usos.

Heel turn is surprising, but not totally unexpected. They showed viciousness we haven’t seen from them as a team, but we know they have in them from their individual pasts. The WWE needs a solid heel tag team to feud with the Usos, now they have one.

Why can’t Brock talk in the ring? Instead, he looks like a lost puppy, hiding behind a fire hydrant, too afraid to come out and searching for his way home. That said, get him in studio and he can talk. Lesnar’s promo tonight? One thought – best of his career. Period.

If Lesnar could cut more promos like this – IN RING – I might give a damn. Of course, pre-taped promos work just as well to, and it is sorta old school.

Damian MisDow?!?!? Really? What did Sandow do to deserve what they are doing to him these last few months? What did we as fans do to deserve to see this? This was a poor segment, poor match and a massive bump in the road for an otherwise really good show. This is right there with being as bad and lame as the Hall of Fame Forum opening.

FAMILY RAGNAROK! Quality time with the Bella Twins! And The King!
Brianna, not Brie, speaks to her sister, she wants to be family again, forgive and forget.

Nikki spews venom and hate with an acid tongue. She also does a great job of calling out the audience and telling them to ‘forget’ their perverted twin fantasy. That may make her more of a heel then turning on Brie. (Pervert Note: I wonder how many women in the audience have the twin fantasy?)

Brie comes with love. Nikki with spite. Lawler with his heart in the right place. Nikki beats the crap of out Brie. Lawler gets slapped silly!

I finally care about the Bella’s! This is shaping up to be a nice feud between the two. Personally, I would love the feud to end with Nikki being right and Brie really being the bad twin.

Kane and Rollins were handicapped in a match with Roman Reigns following his interruption of the eulogy earlier in the night. Nice segment to put over Reigns, but it ruined Rollins. Reigns demolished both Kane and Rollins, leaving Kane lying and Rollins running away in fear.

It makes Reigns looks good, but it kills any good build to the feud. If Rollins can’t last five minutes with Reigns with Kane at his side, how can he handle him one-on-one?

The next two matches aren’t really worth much. Slate and O’Neal lose to Los Matadores. SlaterGator has potential, but what are they going to do with them? I like the duo.

Kofi versus Dallas was a waste, and the Bulldog finisher was massively botched. The best thing here was Swagger laying out Dallas.

The Main Event go home segment made this show! John Cena especially delivered. This was easily the best part of Raw, and I am NOT a Cena fan. His beat down of Bray was awesome and his destroying of the Wyatt family at the end was a great move.

This is the Cena people have been begging for. A truly energized, angry, enraged, edgy and focus Cena.

Is this a Cena who can beat Brock? If Cena goes into Night of Champions like this, then I might look forward to the match.

Final Thoughts – In the end, this was a slightly better show then last right. There were some down, lame moments, but most of the show worked. Cena’s work at the end was great – not something I say about him a lot. Come on Cena; show us more of this fire and emotion.

Rating: 7.5

Match of the Night: Cena versus Bray, into Cena, Henry Big Show versus Wyatt Family, because Cena FINALLY stepped up.
Impact of the Night: Brock Lesnar promo.
Wrestler of the Night: Jack Swagger, yes he lost, but his performance was that good.

CJ's Sight Quick Shots

NXT

-Excellent move bringing in Kevin Steen.  He may not look like the desired prototype wrestler.  However, come August 25th NXT’s best overall wrestler will be Kevin Steen.  Check out his phenomenal work.

- Bringing in KENTA and Prince Devitt are major signings that will improve the product in a large way.

- NXT has consistently put on wrestling’s best beginning to end shows, and it is only getting better.

- NXT Takeover II on September 11th will be a must see show.

WWE

- SummerSlam was an excellent show to watch. Match of the night by far was Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins in the best lumberjack match I have ever seen.

- The Raw follow up to the Ambrose vs. Rollins feud was fantastic. That is must watch material.

- Paul Heyman hit another home run promo during Lesnar’s victory celebration on Raw.

- Please keep Lesnar in that sit down interview style of promo we have been seeing lately, A+ work from the production team with those.

- The Bella Twins need a vacation to Hollywood to receive some much needed acting lessons. I like the story, but the execution has been abysmal.

TNA

- Team 3D and The Hardys put on an excellent match. That took me back in time a few years. I think TNA talking about how it has been so long since those two teams faced each other might have actually sold WWE Network subscriptions.

- Well TNA might have a home on the Velocity Network as a “worst case scenario.” Maybe if they are put on a cheaper budget, they might focus less on giving us bull crap and more on a pure wrestling product.

Independents

- Attended a local independent promotion called the Arizona Wrestling Federation.  For such a low gate price of $7, I will definitely be a part of their fan base. Those performers worked their asses off to give us a good show. They succeeded with flying colors.

- Ring of Honor has been on cruise control giving their fans solid shows.

- Michael Elgin as champ does not seem like it is going as the bookers hoped.

- We will see Adam Cole in WWE very soon hopefully.

Week in Review - 8/17 to 8/23

Okay, here’s the deal. Last week I ended up way behind from watching Summerslam, attending the Smackdown taping Tuesday night and dealing with personal issues (long, stupid story involving getting the run around for approval and setting an appointment for a follow up angiogram I need).

I have done a Summerslam review and a TNA Impact Review. I have made the decision to go ahead, do a Week in Review, and cover last week’s Raw and Smackdown briefly, instead of doing full reviews and only continuing to be behind.

I will have a full review of last night’s Raw tomorrow.

Week in Review

8-17 to 8-23

This past week was a really good week for professional wrestling fans when it comes to TNA and WWE. TNA put on their best broadcast in perhaps a year or more and we got three solid broadcasts from WWE (Summerslam, Raw and Smackdown).

SUMMERSLAM

My full review and thoughts on Summerslam can be read here: http://wrestlementary.blogspot.com/2014/08/summerslam-sizzle.html

MONDAY NIGHT RAW

Last week’s Raw was the best Raw in a long time, months even. This was closer to the Raw we should have had BEFORE Summerslam. Everything clicked, like a puzzle when all the pieces fit together. We had title matches, champions defeated in non-title matches, Mark Henry standing up for America, Sister’s fighting and crying, women acting like scorned lovers and Dean Ambrose’s head put through Cinderblocks! That was my favorite part – in that we saw a glimpse of the old Kane.

Oh, and in a nice segment Lesnar was presented with a brand new WWE title belt. The belt looks nice and with the diamonds and gold reminds me a little of the Million Dollar Belt.

Final Rating: 7

Match of the Night: Seth Rollins versus Dean Ambrose. Even with a non-finish (but what a finish), this was the match of the night.

Impact of the Night: Rollins and Kane putting Ambrose head first through a group of cinderblocks. How could this not be the impact?

Wrestler of the Night: Goldust and Stardust. Massive victory over the Usos.

SMACKDOWN

I was at Smackdown live Tuesday along with Dave Parrish; we sat five rows behind Michael Cole and were on camera a few times. This may skew my opinion a bit, but Smackdown was an awesome show. It delivered on everything it had to and furthered the storylines. Seeing wrestling in person is truly something different then on TV.

Each match and segment had a purpose. Even the promos you saw on the television broadcast were actually aired on the titantron during the live event, which was kind of odd.
Before Smackdown, they taped Main Event, which aired that evening. It was odd seeing Seth Rollins and Jack Swagger go face to face where Swagger challenged Rollins to a match tonight (Tuesday), only to have Rollins say no, but he would fight Swagger on Friday.

That match took place an hour later on Tuesday!

Final Rating: 7 – On par with Raw.

Match of the Night: Seth Rollins versus Jack Swagger
Wrestler of the Night: Seth Rollins
Impact of the Night: There wasn’t one.

IMPACT

My full review and thoughts on Impact can be read here: http://wrestlementary.blogspot.com/2014/08/impact-stress-test-passed-this.html

Final thoughts – best week for Wrestling in a while, and TNA put out their best this year if not longer.

Match of the Week: Ambrose versus Rollins lumberjack match (Summerslam)
Wrestler of the Week: Gail Kim
Impact of the Week: EC3 beat down of Rhino. It’s something EC3 needed and what no one would have thought he could do.

Summerslam Sizzle

Summerslam 2014 sizzled.

Yes, I know this review should have been up last week. I’m playing catch up, okay.

Let’s get right down to business, Summerslam sizzled. It was easily the best PPV (or Special Event) the WWE has produced this year. Yes, even better than that below average Wrestlemania so many people have convinced themselves was the best Mania ever.

The focus of Summerslam was on in-ring action (as I constantly bemoan it should be) and did it deliver, with some exceptions. The most glaring exception is the horrendous main event between Lesnar and Cena, which turned into the exact waste of time that I predicted it would be.

I really had a bad feeling about the show when it opened up with Hulk Hogan (that was bad enough) and he cut a WWE Network promo. Fortunately, his presence and the promo were short – then the action began.

What a roller coaster of action we had, starting out with crowning a new Intercontinental champion in Dolph Ziggler. The Miz versus Ziggler match was a good opener and set the stage for the night.

Then we had a nice vicious catfight, in a match that finally lived up to the potential between AJ and Paige, which saw Paige come away as Top Diva. A Paige win is better for this feud; we now have a ‘chase.’

Two matches in and two title changes, Summerslam proves that if it could happen, it would.

Rusev beat Swagger because Swagger passed out. Think about that, Swagger passed out. He refused to submit to the Accolade (Camel Clutch). This was a nice finish, and old school. It put over Swagger’s toughness, protected him and gave Rusev a win. But since Swagger didn’t tap and wasn’t pinned, it still keep the question open, can Rusev beat Swagger? Can Swagger beat Rusev?

It is going to be interesting to see what route they go with Zeb after having Rusev knock him out with a kick.

Now is the match of the night and an easy match of the year candidate: Ambrose versus Rollins in a lumberjack match. Despite my reservations about the Lumberjack stip, and it did break down into a brawl as predicted, this was a great match and both guys delivered. Seth Rollins got the pin, the first victory in this feud so far for either guy.

Here is where we start having a few problems with Summerslam. After this match, it seemed like the crowd just checked out.

If I rated Summerslam to this point, about the hour-fifteen mark, I would give it a 9, but there is an hour-and-a-half-left.

Jericho versus Wyatt was the first crack in the foundation and a major let down. Scratch that, considering Wyatt was involved, let down is actually the average for him. This match should have been more, harder hitting, more vicious, more Jericho winning.

Instead, we got a letdown that saw Jericho carry the match again. Wyatt looked lost and bewildered and without a clue as to what to do. Their Battleground match was far better.

Brie Bella versus Stephanitrix. That will be my only comment on Stephanie’s outfit for Summerslam, but she did look good. Stephanie also looked good in the ring for not having a match in a decade or so. Brie also had a great match, perhaps the best of her career.

In all honesty, this was a good match between the two, with Stephanie winning. However, the match was overshadowed by the sudden, unexpected and shocking betrayal of Nikki, who turned on Brie.

I loved the spot, and Chris Rose called in it his predictions. I think it’s a great move to continue this feud with more venom and emotion. Now it really is personal.

This was better than Jericho versus Wyatt.

Orton versus Reigns was a really good match. The best match Reigns has ever had and his biggest win to date. This was hard-hitting, pounding, smash mouth type of match I wanted from these two. The second best match of the night that highlighted the strengths of both men.

It was on the right spot on the card, the last match before the main event. Even with the Reigns win, I don’t think this feud is over.

Time for the German Suplex Exhibition. I mean the massive let down of the night. I mean . . . that was the main event?

Brock Lesnar versus John Cena. I wrote in my preview this was my least looked forward to match of the night, and it turned into the waste of time I thought it would be.

Point Blank: This was the worst PPV Main Event I have ever seen. (And before someone comments, I have seen every PPV Event from WCW, WWE, TNA, ROH and most Japanese promotions).

I know why they did it, to put Lensar over big time and to make Cena look good when he eventually comes back and defeats Brock.

This would have been a fine match on Raw, but not a PPV. As for the worst beating of Cena’s career, not even close. How often has he been laid out? Plus, both Khali and Big Show have squashed Cena in less time during their feuds.

Overall, Summerslam was a good show. For the first half, Summerslam was a great show. It was on cruise control, which went off road after the Ambrose/Rollins match. It came to a dead stop when it hit the Main Event.

I can’t stress enough how terrible the main event was. I am not looking forward to the rematch.

If I could take out Jericho/Wyatt and Lesnar/Cena I would rate the show close to a 9, but I can’t. You either take the show as a whole, or you take nothing.

Final Rating: 6.5

Summerslam could have been great. As it was it Sizzled, then Fizzled in the end.

Ace Masters

Impact Stress Test

PASSED

This commentary is late because of some personal issues, but here it is.

Last Week I renamed the Impact Review the Impact Stress Test and it failed the stress test. This week’s Impact broadcast was different – quiet different and this week Impact PASSED the Stress Test.

Like about half-a-million other people, it slipped my mind that Impact was broadcast on Wednesday now. In fact, when I saw my DVR recording something this past Wednesday, I was wondering what it was, but never checked.

To get straight to the point, this Impact (The so-called Hardcore Justice broadcast) is easily the Impact broadcast of the year. Maybe even the best broadcast they have done in over a year or longer. Why?

Easy, for this broadcast they lived up to the TNA name. (For those who don’t know, TNA stands for Total Non-Stop Action). The focus was on in-ring action with limited promos. Everything on this broadcast served a purpose.

The two major promos were well done. Dixie’s interview was restrained, somewhat remorseful, but put the thought out there that this isn’t over yet. She may be focusing on business outside the ring for now, but expected something big from Dixie. This was the best work Dixie has ever done, for the first time in years I believed what she said, and she actually had a hint of true menace to her at the end.

EC3’s promo was really impactful; he turned a major corner with his threat to Bully Ray. EC3’s beat down of Rhino was unexpected, but welcome. With this promo and beat down, he has finally arrived. It is an edge his character badly needed. He is no longer the former WWE Derrick Bateman, he is NOW EC3.

If he can do this on a regular basis, he’s the only Carter we need.

The matches were loaded on this card: Bram versus Abyss, Samoa Joe versus Low Ki, I Quit match, Gail Kim versus Angelina Love and the Six Sides of Steel with Austin Aries, Gunner, James Storm, Bobby Roode, Magnus, and Eric Young.

Bram beat Abyss in a pretty decent match Stairway to Janice match for the ownership of Janice. Bram has won three times in a row now, and I think this feud is over.

Joe got by Low Ki in the match of the night. Anytime these to get together it is good.

Kennedy made Shaw say 'I Quit' with Gunner looking on.

Gail Kim proved she is the best and toughest by winning a Last Knockout Standing Match beating Angelina Love, and Velvet Sky, even if Velvet wasn’t officially part of the match. This match was good, but could have been great if it wasn’t spoiled by the overdone interference of Velvet Sky.

The Six Sides of Steel match was really good, with some nice spots. The ‘draw’ ending was a little much though. Roode and Young escaping at the same time and the refs arguing over who won. I would have liked to see a clear-cut winner, but I get that this adds some drama.

Where are they going to go? Three way for the title? Or Roode versus Young for the title shot?

Of course, I have to cover the big announcement: the Three Way Series of matches between the Hardy, Team 3D and the Wolves. These should be great, but I am not as high on this as many people seem to be. This is more WWE lite, and copycat syndrome.

With this TNA is trying to recreate The Hardys versus The Dudleys versus Edge and Christian. It isn’t going to work. With all due respect to the Wolves (perhaps the best tag team today), they are not Edge and Christian. They don’t have the persona, personality or presence of Edge and Christian, nor do I think they have shown the edge and violence E&C were willing to go to.

Overall, the best of the year so far.

Rating: 6.5

Match of the Night: Samoa Joe versus Low Ki
Wrestler of the Night: Gail Kim
Impact of the Night: EC3’s beat down of Rhino.

- Ace Masters

The Diva Dish - Summerslam and Beyond

In my first Diva Dish two weeks ago, I wrote about how vast improvements in WWE's Diva Division have come amidst uneven booking decisions. The AJ Lee/Paige feud exemplifies both.

(Love, hate, championship gold-credit: WWE.com)

The champ AJ regained her title putting the upstart in her place and the head games began with the "frienemies" angle. What made this fun was Paige's sly delivery and AJ's eye rolling congeniality that showed neither woman bought this for one minute – and the audience shouldn't either. Within the storyline, both women hated each other with a passion. To Paige, AJ was the force that was trying to destroy her career and take what she earned just as she got it. To AJ, Paige was a cheeky upstart who baited a trap her ego blinded her to.

Paige and AJ worked an oddly sloppy match at Battleground, which was disappointing, considering Paige is the first WWE Diva in the last 15 years to have so much technical skill at the age of 22. Also, AJ's been able to make vastly inferior workers like the Bellas, Eva Marie and Cameron look good, so their lack of in-ring chemistry has been a head scratcher as I watch a match that was so good at storytelling while at the same time riddled with speed bumps in the action. After that match, the feud continued to build, the "frienemy" snark and rhetoric was even more venomous and there was no real intention anymore to hide the anger building in both women.

Paige shoving AJ off the stage was a defining moment, as she sat on the edge, her feet dangling lazily over the stage atop the ramp. "I love you AJ!" and "She's just fine," came out of her mouth, as AJ was stretchered out with whiplash. At this point, Paige was in AJ's head, and her mere presence was enough of a distraction at ringside to cause AJ to lose to Eva Marie twice via surprise rollup. The second time was an underwhelming go-home moment from Smackdown before Summerslam, which in some ways was a good payoff, but too short.

(PG-era blading? Credit: WWE.com)

Both women found the chemistry their Battleground bout was sorely lacking. They only had seven minutes to tell their story but they packed as much passion, anger and smash mouth they could before the coda: Paige embracing AJ's unconscious body in her lap and kissing her cheek--the new Diva's Champion. I simply don't understand why this match couldn't have gotten five more minutes. The buildup was there. The audience has been responding and it would have taken nothing away from anything else on the card. The short but solid bout got a lukewarm follow up on Raw this week.

Maybe I was spoiled by watching Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose follow up a match-of-the-year candidate in their Summerslam lumberjack bout with a Raw main event that was EVEN BETTER! Maybe my expectations can get too high for WWE, but the best they could come up with was a rehash of the "distraction leads to rollup" stuff of the last month. Paige was handily beating Natalya. As she, rather sexily, straddled Nattie before giving a series of trademark head butts, AJ's music played and she skipped down to the ring and--you guessed it, Paige was distracted and lost via surprise rollup. AJ made up for it with some fun mic work, barely containing her anger. I smarked out as she said "I love you Paige... I dedicate my life to you Paige . . ." and her eyes did that little crazy dance that's been making her career since pushed CM Punk and Daniel Bryan through a table. That entire bit sums up the rollercoaster ride of ho-hum interspersed with great bits. Why have the umpteenth surprise rollup? It would have served the story better, and AJ's monologue at the end would have been even more potent if Paige had cleanly won her bout with Natalya, and AJ jumps out of the crowd as Paige walks up the ramp, raising her title revealing in her own hubris. AJ bounces her head off the ramp's cold steel and utters those same words . . . "I love you Paige, I dedicate my life to you" and she leaves the semiconscious champ with a much more compelling wakeup call as she staggers back to her feet.

(It should take more than five minutes to get to this point. Paige locks up Natalya in the PTO on Smackdown-Credit: WWE.com)

Professional wrestling, while narrative in its most simple form, still will fail an audience when monotony sets in. Paige and AJ have something very special here, but WWE's creative(?) team suddenly don't know what else to do beyond the "distracted! lol" thing. Who knows why this otherwise compelling Divas feud is already in a rut when other options could raise the stakes in the allotted timeframe, but it doesn't need to be that way. WWE has to raise their own bar for what constitutes a great Divas feud and let the workers tell the best story possible.

Wes Kozalla

CJ’s Sight NXT Review 08/14/2014

2nd Round Tag Team Tournament
The VaudeVillians defeated Mojo Rawley & Bull Dempsey by pin fall in 3:08

English got the pin on Mojo after a Swanton. No complaints about this match. The right team won, and we see a developing feud. Those two things make up for the lack of ring action.

There was a backstage segment with Sasha Banks talking down to Bayley. Bayley asked Sasha if she needed a hug after getting dumped by Summer Rae and Charlotte, but said she wouldn’t get one. Cute.

Bayley pinned Sasha Banks in 8:13 to become the No. 1 Contender for the NXT Women’s Championship

Fantastic match from the ladies. Honestly, this was the second best women’s match WWE has put on all year. The ladies are in the upper tier for WWE to begin with, and they showed why. There were many near falls, Sasha displayed her submission moves very well, and Bayley opened several eyes to any that have doubted her. If you did not see this match, then make time to do so.

Bayley and Charlotte shook hands at the top of the ramp with a distraught Sasha looking on.

2nd Round NXT Tag Team Tournament
Kalisto and Sin Cara pinned Wesley Blake and Buddy Murphy in 2:46

Kalisto got the pin on Murphy with some sort of flashy move. I’ll have to look up what its name is, but it was nice. Quick rapid-fire match. The Luchas got their moves in. That’s all there is to say about it. I will say that Kalisto and Sin Cara do have excellent chemistry together. I hope to see those two on the main roster as a tag team. That will definitely add an exciting element to a division that’s in rough shape.

Adrian Neville defeats Tyler Breeze by DQ to retain the NXT Championship in about 13:58
The DQ came when Tyson Kidd interfered. I saw that finish coming when Kidd sat down at the announce table. He did do well for his character by not saying anything at the table. The ring action was excellent. A post-match beat of Neville from the hand of Kidd and Breeze ensued. Sami Zayn ran down to make the save to a good pop. Babyface helping out a babyface scaring off the heels, I like that. Even saw the heels go after each other. That did well to set up a fatal four way at NXT Takeover II.

Overall, this was a very good edition of NXT. The right tag teams won their matches, even though they were short. The main even, despite the non-finish, ended up working out well in the long term. I must end this with putting over a fantastic match from Sasha Banks and Bayley. This episode is a ‘must’ for viewing.

Final rating: 7/10

Diva Dish Summerslam Predictions

The Miz (IC Champion) Vs. Dolph Ziggler. Winner: The Miz This feud looks to be just getting started and they've invested too much in the Hollywood Miz persona to have him lose in his first defense.

Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho. Winner: Bray Wyatt. Jericho has made a point of giving a rub to the emerging talent when he returns. Wyatt will be no different. This is more of a makeup win for incorrectly booking Cena over the Eater of Worlds at Wrestlemania.

Flag Match: Rusev vs. Jack Swagger. Winner: Rusev. The Bulgarian Brute has more of a future beyond this feud regardless of the outcome than Swagger at this point. Look for Lana to be an instrumental distraction and Rusev to get the win, but for Swagger to stand tall at the end after the fight extends beyond the final bell.

AJ Lee (Divas Champion) vs. Paige.Winner: AJ Lee Booking hasn't really given any Divas on the main shows enough of a spotlight beyond Paige. Also the psychotic Brit got the upper hand in their smackdown brawl, so look for AJ to squeak by with some trademark sneaky behavior, like a rollup win or a double countout finish to really burn Paige up and raise the stakes in this feud.

Lumberjack Match: Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins. Winner: Seth Rollins.This is the best feud of 2014 so far, as both men continue to define their personas beyond the Shield. It feels too big to be settled in their first match since Rollins joined the Authority. Mr. Money in the Bank  will emerge victorious to drive Ambrose deeper into his own psychosis and give us more to look forward to at Night of Champions and perhaps beyond.

Randy Orton vs. Roman Reigns. Winner: Roman Reigns. It's no secret Reigns is being groomed to be the next monster face in WWE. He will win a seesaw battle against the Viper in his first major 1v1 match on a pay-per-view card as the first step to the top of the main eventer's summit. Also look for  him to exceed some expectations of his capabalities as a power guy, but also to get a pretty clear picture of how far he has to go as Orton will smooth out the program's rough edges.

Stephanie McMahon vs. Brie Bella. Winner :Brie Bella. The storyline demands she gets her job back and given that Stephanie is the Queen Bitch Goddess of the Authority, getting her comeuppance will only open new doors for her to abuse her power, much like her dad in the attitude era.

John Cena (WWE World Hwt. Champion) vs. Brock Lesnar. Winner: Brock Lesnar. The writing has been on the wall since the Beast Incarnate took 2 out of 3 from Triple H, pinned CM Punk clean, beat the crap out of Mark Henry three times, squashed the Big Show and ended the Undertaker's streak in convincing fashion. Even if Daniel Bryan was still champion, Lesnar's eventual win at Summerslam has the look of a long term plan coming to fruition. Cena's actually managed to be engaging in his mic work leading up to this match to people over the age of 12. Dropping the belt in a brutal affair will make him an actual underdog for the rest of the year for the first time in his career. In other words... its best for business.

CJs Sight Summerslam 2014 predictions

Pre-Show

Cesaro vs. Rob Van Dam
RVD is going on his contractual break soon. So I will give this victory to the man who desperately needs one.
Winner by pinfall: Cesaro

Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollins in a lumberjack match
Who has more to gain here? Who can sustain a loss? Those are the questions here. Rollins has the MITB briefcase, and Ambrose has the crowd. Rollins can sustain a loss here, and Ambrose’s ‘anti-hero’ persona can definitely use the win. It will be fun to watch what the lumberjacks do to Ambrose and Rollins as they end up in the herd given the history of The Shield.
Winner by pinfall: Dean Ambrose

WWE Divas Championship: AJ Lee (c) vs. Paige
This is the match that I am having the hardest time predicting. AJ is the one to beat in the division, but she is established, and Paige is the rising star. Since it is the only relevant feud in the entire division, I can see Paige winning the strap and extending this feud.
Winner by submission and new WWE Divas Champion: Paige

Chris Jericho vs. Bray Wyatt
Wyatt has never been in the gutter more than he has now. Y2J always comes back to give the youngster a bit of a rub. This trend will maintain itself. However, since the Usos are not on the card, I wonder if Harper and Rowan will play a part with Usos coming to help Y2J. I can sense an impromptu tag title match taking place.
Winner by DQ: Chris Jericho
Harper and Rowan defeat The Usos to win the Tag Team Championship after the match. The Wyatt Family finally stands tall.

Flag Match: Jack Swagger vs. Rusev
WWE has always been known for their ‘feel good’ patriotic moments. This will be one of them. Rusev can sustain a loss with a gimmick match since he does not have to be pinned or made to submit.
Winner: Jack Swagger

Intercontinental Championship: The Miz (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler
Ziggler has more to gain from winning the IC Title. His career has been the drizzling shits since his WHC reign last year. A guy like Ziggler could do more to elevate the IC Championship than Miz could ever hope to. I hope the WWE realizes that.
Winner by pinfall and new Intercontinental Champion: Dolph Ziggler

Roman Reigns vs. Randy Orton
Orton is stagnant. Reigns in the rising star. Too predictable.
Winner by pinfall: Roman Reigns

Brie Bella vs. Stephanie McMahon
I am going with Steph gaining the “W” here. Why? A sister on sister feud is one I do not remember the WWE ever diving into. Brie vs. Nikki would be new. The Authority gets their “Plan B”. Steph walks out with a grin, and Brie has babyface sympathy.
Winner by pinfall off a distraction: Stephanie McMahon

WWE World Heavyweight Championship: John Cena (c) vs. Brock Lesnar
Question. Does the WWE want more Network subscriptions? Yes. Another question. Could they lose subscription from a stale character? Yes. It is simple. Brock Lesnar goes over. People are getting tired of Cena more so than ever. This feud has had solid build up and anticipation. It WILL be the fight of the summer. This match might even venture out of PG land. I do not think it will be a classic by any means though, but the WWE did to a fantastic job of hyping this match. I just do not see how they can justify a Cena win after Lesnar conquered The Undertaker’s undefeated streak.

Winner by pinfall and new WWE World Heavyweight Champion: Brock Lesnar

Those are my picks. I am looking forward to the show.
Thanks for reading along!

WRESTLEMENTARY’S SUMMERSLAM 2014 PREVIEW

Well, here we are one day away from the Hottest event of the Summer!

What can we expect from the second biggest event of the year? The only thing I know for sure is that it is a great steal for only $9.99 a month on the WWE Network (Cheap Plug).

Here’s what I do know, the announced card looks great on paper. For the first time in years, even the Divas matches have garnered interest. This has the potential to be the event of the year, if the WWE can execute it properly.

As of this writing, the following is the announced card:

Lumberjack Match: Dean Ambrose versus Seth Rollins
Divas Championship: AJ Lee defends versus Paige
Chris Jericho versus Bray Wyatt
Flag Match: Jack Swagger versus Rusev
Intercontinental Championship: The Miz defends versus Dolph Ziggler
Roman Reigns versus Randy Orton
Brie Bella versus Stephanie McMahon
World Championship: John Cena defends against Brock Lesnar

Match Breakdowns

Lumberjack Match:

Dean Ambrose versus Seth Rollins

Why? Why a lumberjack match? There were so many better matches that could have been put together. I personally believe this just sets the stage for something screwy to happen. The ring will be surrounded by all the enemies Dean and Seth made as The Shield?

Lumberjack matches are designed to make sure that neither man can get away, but often end in brawls. Who will win, if either man?

Dean has had the upper hand during this entire feud to date. It was also announced this week that Dean will be starring in WWE Studios Lockdown, to start filming next month. That and the fact that Seth is due to get the upper hand in this feud, has me leaning toward a Seth Rollins win.

They could do this: Rollins wins, Dean is ‘injured.’ Dean is gone for weeks, then shows up out of nowhere and costs Rollins his shot at the title reigniting the feud.

My pick: Seth Rollins.

Divas Championship: 

AJ Lee defends versus Paige

Please, can we have some massive violence in this match? These two girls are both supposed to be batshit crazy, but their last match was an utter waste of time. The best part about this feud so far was Paige pushing AJ off the ramp two weeks ago.

These two ladies are talented, good and vicious. We all know they can put on a great match and steal the show, and they should. AJ needs to snap and Paige needs to play her games, and be more vicious.

Paige needs to win this match. Period. If she doesn’t, it could hurt her future. A Paige win is better in the long run and will lead to a longer feud, which is something the Divas need. If Paige wins, then we get the chase, with AJ going after the title.

If AJ wins, what do we get? AJ versus Eva Marie?

My Pick: Paige.

Chris Jericho versus Bray Wyatt

The build up to this match over the last couple of weeks has been okay, but has also pissed me off. The main focus of the buildup has been Jericho beating Rowan and Harper and ensuring they won’t be at ringside, thus making this match one-on-one.

The buildup has also questioned whether Jericho can beat Wyatt one-on-one. Has everyone on the planet forgotten the last Par-Per-View Harper and Rowan were kicked out by the Ref and Jericho beat Bray one-on-one? Lame.

I expect the usual good to great match from Jericho. I expect the usual from Bray, looking lost, out of place and like he doesn’t know what to do.

Jericho should win. But, if he does, that places Bray in a very bad position. Bray needs the win; otherwise, they might have a hard time building him back up again. That said, if Jericho wins, that could send Bray on and out and out rampage – which he needs to do.

My Pick: Chris Jericho

Flag Match: Jack Swagger versus Rusev

Could this match steal the show? Possibly.

This is my sleeper pick for potential best match. The buildup has been good and subtle at times. This match is country versus country, confrontations between both sides, verbal sparring, near wins for Swagger, barely escaping for Rusev all leading to rising action.  

This is the blow off match, pride, patriotism and country honor on the line. Rusev has been built up as so unstoppable that his first lost could derail his career. Not in this case, I think. The build to this match and to Rusev's potential first loss has been long and slow. During this time they have also lit a fire under Swagger and he has been unstoppable.

Two month ago a loss to Swagger would be devastating to Rusev. Now it would just be a setback to overcome.

My Pick: Jack Swagger. WE THE PEOPLE

Intercontinental Championship: The Miz defends versus Dolph Ziggler

These two have had a couple of nice matches lately. The Miz has constantly been a thorn in the side of Ziggler. This match almost feels like an afterthought for Summerslam. They haven’t put the importance on this match they should have.

My pick: The Miz

Roman Reigns versus Randy Orton

With the two guys involved, especially Orton, this should be a hard hitting, violent and fast-paced match. It will be Reigns’ power games versus Orton’s sadistic violence and brains.

The buildup for this match has been really good, and spins out of the Evolution/Shield Feud. It just added fuel to the fire that Hunter pushed Orton on the idea that Reigns cost him the title match at this event.

If Orton can survive Reigns’ power, I see Orton winning with an RKO as Reigns goes for the Superman Punch.

My Pick: Randy Otron

Brie Bella versus Stephanie McMahon

This will easily be the most emotional match of the night. Brie Bella isn’t just fighting for her job, but her sister and the honor of her husband. I expect the crowd to really be behind her.

The build up to this match has been the best of any match on the card. This is truly a good versus evil match. Both sides have gotten physical, both have been arrested, and in true heel fashion, Stephanie has gone for the low blow with Megan (Daniel’s alleged mistress).

Brie is not great in the ring, but she has a lot more ring time then Stephanie. I look for Brie to carry this match. I am expecting a massive swerve in this match. Will there be a ton of outside interference? Will Megan interfere? Will all the Divas do Steph’s bidding and beat down Brie?

Where will Nikki be? And Daniel?

My Pick: Brie will somehow win the match, but Stephanie will come out on top in the end.

World Championship: John Cena defends against Brock Lesnar

I am not a fan of either man here, and this is my least looked forward to match of the card. I haven’t like the build up to this match, which is hampered by the lack of Brock’s presence for so long. A friend did mention to me how this is being built up more like a MMA bout then Pro Wrestling, and he could be right.

Bottom line, lots and lots of hype – and that is all there has been. Cena is the workhorse of the WWE. Brock is the ‘mercenary’ part timer.

I expect a hard-hitting match, but not a very long one. Cena won the last encounter, but that was not for the title.

The WWE sees $$$ in Brock. These is also the thought that Brock’s lack of air time would be an advantage, then when he does show up, people will pay more attention. After all, the champ doesn’t have to be on every broadcast.

My Pick: Brock Lesnar

Final thoughts:

As I wrote above, this card looks great on paper, and I am expecting a good show. I would say great, but the WWE has been a letdown lately. It will really depend on what direction they want to go. Of course, it also depends on the talent involved stepping up.

I believe that Orton versus Reigns has the best match up on paper and could be the match of the night. Concerning Brie Bella, I think she could put in the performance of her career.

The only thing that concerns me is that Summerslam could turn into a three hour commercial for the NETWORK. Don’t push the Network, guys; let a quality Summerslam convince more people to sign up. Stop whoring it out.

Expect a hot and wild time at Summerslam. Let’s hope the WWE delivers.

– Ace Masters

OFFICIAL WRESTLMENATRY PREDICTIONS

Dave Parrish, of DAVE’S BATTLE AXE, predicts:

Lumberjack Match: Seth Rollins defeating Dean Ambrose
Divas Championship: Paige as the new Champ
Chris Jericho overcomes Bray Wyatt
Flag Match: Rusev waves the Flag
Intercontinental Championship: The Miz retains
Roman Reigns wins over Randy Orton
Brie Bella preserves and defeats Stephanie McMahon
World Championship: Brock reigns supreme as new World Champ

Ace Masters predicts (repeated from Above):
Lumberjack Match: Seth Rollins wins
Divas Championship: Paige wins
Chris Jericho wins
Flag Match: Swagger wins
Intercontinental Championship: The Miz wins
Orton wins
Brie Bella wins
World Championship: Brock wins

IMPACT STRESS TEST

Does last night’s IMPACT pass the Stress Test?

Yes, my weekly Impact review has a new name – The Impact Stress Test. Read on to find out how Impact fared in the first Stress Test.

Impact starts with a recap of last week’s big event, Dixie going through a table! (Very Popular moment from what I can tell.)

We go live to Bully Ray in the ring.

Ok, here I have a confession to make. When it was the Dudley Boys and even Team 3D I used to HATE Bully Ray (Bubba, or Buh Buh Ray). I never thought he was any good. I always thought Devon was much better.

When they separated a few years back, I looked forward to Devon getting the push. That didn’t happen. Bully Ray received the push.

Guess what, I was wrong. (I don’t admit that lightly). Since their split Bully Ray has gone on to easily become one of the best wrestlers in the business period. He has been awesome, whether in Immortal, as a Face or the leader of Aces and Eights. Bully Ray had two great World Title runs.

As a Face, he is good. As a Heel, he is better. At anything they have asked him to do, he has been great.

So, anytime IMPACT starts with Bully Ray, is good to me.

Ray, puts over the fans, puts over the Stieners, the Road Warriors and brings out Devon! As Devon starts to talk, he is interrupted by . . .

The Hardys!

Cue decent exchange between Mat and Bully talking about their long feud in the past and their Ladder and Tables Matches (for the WWE). This leads to the much talked about ‘One More Match,’ as both teams agree it’s time for them to steal the show.

Backstage we see Spud, EC3 and Rhyno arrive.

Elsewhere Aries, Roode and Young are talking, the have a six-man match with King, Lashley and MVP. The three agree it’s time to take out the trash.

X-Division Elimination Scramble match! Zemi Ion, Manic, Tigre Uno, Crazy Steve, Homicide (love seeing him back) and Low Ki. This was a decent match, but not great. I thought Crazy, Tigre, Manic and Ion were eliminated to fast, leaving it one-on-one between Homicide and Low Ki, with Low Ki winning.

Low Ki now goes onto face Samoa Joe next week for the Title.

Backstage again, EC3 and band accost some stagehands enjoying the footage of Dixie going through the table as they make their way to the ring.

Hostage takeover! EC3 and band take to the ring where Spud cuts a passionate promo about Queen Dixie Carter and asks for a moment of silence. When he doesn’t get it, he goes ballistic, spews hate toward the crowd, and threatens to knock them all out. Rhyno calms him down while EC3 takes to the mic.

EC3 demands that Bully Ray be fired, and they are not leaving the ring until that happens. Cue the boss, Kurt Angle. Kurt never mentions Bully, but tells EC3 they have two options, wrestle tonight or leave the ring. EC3 refuses to wrestle.

Another Wrestling Arrest! Kurt calls on the Fuzz to drag EC3, Rhyno and Spud out of the ring. But, not before Spud cuts a promo and resists arrest and EC3 throws money at a cop, trying to ‘bribe him.’ According to Tenay and Tazz, EC3 and Spud may not farewell in jail. But, according to Tazz, Rhyno might fit in.

This was an okay segment, but felt very familiar.

In a backstage segment with Gunner and Shaw, Shaw takes the blame for what happened last week. Gunner tells him none of this is his fault. The problems between him, Gunner, and Anderson will be worked put in the ring tonight.

At this point we are 45 minutes into this broadcast, with two long segments and one match. So much for Total Non-Stop Action. We have at least four more matches in what will amount to about one hour of actual broadcast.

There wasn’t much of a match between Gunner and Anderson, a little bit of a fight but not much. Punches thrown, Gunner knocked to the mat and as the Ref check on him, Shaw ran into the ring. Anderson decks Shaw! Shaw takes down Anderson. Gunner pulls Shaw off Anderson. Stare down while Shaw tells Gunner Anderson hit him.

I was not a big fan of the Anderson/Shaw feud, but I like this story. Is it truly about redemption for Shaw, has he changed? Or is Anderson right? Is Shaw just using Gunner?

The match may have been a dud, but it served to further what is going on between the three men.

L2, L3 and a hairline Rib fracture, according to Tenay, Dixie has a broken back due to being put threw the table by Bully Ray last week. This is revealed when they show ‘never before seen footage’ of the aftermath of the event, which includes Bully Ray signing ‘The Wicked Witch is Dead’ and seeing Dixie stretched off.

Next Thursday Tenay will have an exclusive interview with Dixie. Yes, the graphic aired did read NEXT THURSDAY, but didn’t they announce earlier in the night that next week Impact moves to Wednesday? Way to pay attention, guys.

Knockouts! Yeah. Yes, I am lukewarm on the Diva, but I love the knockouts. They are the best thing about TNA. Here we have a four-way match for the Knockouts Title, Gail Kim defending about the Beautiful People and Taryn Tarrell.

A short but good match that sees the BP’s argue amongst each other. Angelina gets upset that Velvet actually tries to win the match! This friction and selfishness by Angelina leads to Gail winning and retaining the title.

The six-man tag between MVP, Lashley and King versus Aries, Roode and Young was a good match, lots of action, and a few good high spots. Lashley gets the pin on Aries after MVP hits Aries with his crutch.

The Wolves cut a promo hyping the Team 3D versus Hardys match, and challenge Team 3D to a match with the titles on the line anytime, anywhere.

How stupid was the segment with Abyss, Bram and Magnus? Very Stupid. They are fighting over Janice, a piece of wood with nails. And everyone is pushing this as if Janice is real. Next week Abyss and Bram will have a stairway to Janice match, for ownership of Janice.

At one point, Bram even said that Janice ‘does it for me.’

They continue to build the Sanada and Storm story. Storm is leading a revolution apparently and tells Sanada, that he, Storm, is his light. I like where this has the potential to go, if it leads to Storm building an army. However, I hope this doesn’t become a Wyatt Family rip off.

12 years! For the first time in 12 years it is the Hardys versus Team 3D. I am tired of hearing the 12 years hype. Yes, it has been, but that was WWE, yet they seem to making it sound like it was in TNA. Newsflash, TNA didn’t exist when the first Hardys versus Dudleys match take place.

The match itself was very, very good. Perhaps the best televised match for TNA all Year. But what would one expect from these two teams? Team 3D won with the Dudley Death Drop (3D), but both teams celebrated in the ring to end the show.

PROGRAMING NOTE: IMPACT is moving to Wednesdays! I don’t know if that is a good thing or not. Don’t forget to reset your DVRs!

Does Impact pass its first Stress Test? NO.

This broadcast laid bare the major issue I brought up in my State of TNA last week: copycat.

It wasn’t? Let me provide some evidence for my argument.

The TNA arrest. There have been two recent arrests on Monday Night RAW, and here TNA follows suite. (yes, I know these were pre-taped) Plus, this segment involved two men who made their names in WWE: Kurt Angle and EC3 (Derrick Bateman). Rhino was also in WWE, after ECW.

TNA Knockouts match. Gail and Taryn made their names in the WWE.

Lashley.

Hardys versus Team 3d. The hype for this match made me feel like I was watching a promo for the WWE Network. All we needed was to hear $9.99

Final Rating: 4.5

IMPACT OF THE NIGHT: None.
MATCH OF THE NIGHT: Hardy versus Team 3d.
WRESTLER OF THE NIGHT: Gail Kim.

The Diva Dish-Summerslam Go-Home Edition

The divas have two major storylines going into Summerslam--Stephanie McMahon's abuse of power over Brie Bella, and Paige's quest for revenge and Divas gold against AJ Lee. This is the first time in the PG era that any Divas activity has been developed on this level leading into a pay-per-view. It shows that WWE is possibly trying to draw in female viewers.

The high stakes involved in the McMahon/Bella feud is reminiscent of the catfights of the rich and powerful on such shows as the 1980's drama "Dynasty," or daytime soap operas for years. The innocent Brie, devoted wife of the injured former champion, who Stephanie McMahon wants to destroy. Brie not only has to fight for him, she has to fight for her career.

(Brie is cuffed six days before Summerslam-Photo credit: WWE.com)

Stephanie has abused her power as any despotic queen would in such a story. She forced Brie's twin sister Nikki into handicap matches and other beat downs. Brie struck back by getting Stephanie arrested for aggravated assault and marched up the ramp in cuffs.

Stephanie hit back as expected on the August 11 Raw. In a shamelessly fabricated masterstroke to push Mrs. Daniel Bryan over the edge, Stephanie calls up Bryan's physical therapist Megan Miller (played by Chelsea Green, aka ECCW wrestler Jaida) to tearfully tell the audience how she had a torrid love affair with him. Brie immediately came down to the ring, bitchslapped Megan and then put Stephanie in a rather sloppy version of the yes lock. Playing right into the Bitch Goddess Stephanie's hands, a match is booked for later in the show, where Brie is then charged with battery, cuffed and walked out in her tights.

(The "Other Woman Megan Miller"-Photo Credit: WWE.com)

Much like soap opera stories and other media targeted at young women, we have a devoted yet empowered wife fighting for her life, husband and family against a powerful vixen archetype hell bent on destroying her at all costs. WWE has also reached into the soap opera bag of tricks with the Divas title feud between Paige and AJ Lee.

Title feuds are generally straightforward. The belt symbolizes the holder is the best. Both competitors want to be number one and in pro wrestling, one usually goes about it in a more ethical fashion than the other. Curiously, Paige and AJ's fight, while following this paradigm to a degree, has been told more like an episode of "Pretty Little Liars," "Gossip Girl," or any other drama targeting young women. The belt is being treated almost like a boy at the heart of a love triangle. Think about it. We know how Paige won the Diva's title, then lost it in June when AJ returned and how it's unfolded from there, with stereotypically female duplicitous barbs intermingled with bursts of violence. If you summarize the feud and replace "Diva's Title" with "boyfriend" it goes like this . . .

(AJ will stop at nothing to keep her man--I mean belt-photo credit: WWE.com)

The new girl in town Paige secretly wants AJ's boyfriend. She's very friendly and tells AJ how lucky she is to have him. AJ senses the venom behind the sugary words and challenges her to try and take him away. Paige does and AJ leaves, shattered for three months. Just as Paige is done defeating all who want to come between her and her new boyfriend, AJ returns and suddenly the relationship doesn't look so solid anymore. AJ makes him realize she was the one all along and steals him back! Paige doesn't get overtly angry, though. She tells AJ how much she respects her and that they can still be friends even during this awkward situation. The story has unfolded with Paige getting in AJ's head and has her always looking over her shoulder, as she will do anything to keep the boy she loves.

(Paige takes delight in the girl snark that preludes the tough bumps in this feud-photo credit: WWE.com)

Granted the cattiness is augmented with violence--more violence than we've generally seen in Diva feuds in the PG era--but switching titles for lovers is how WWE is telling what's regarded in popular media as a story targeted at young women. This marks a seeming change in thought over how women are marketed to in WWE programming.

Before, women were targeted through the sex appeal of their male stars, either by pushing tough guys men could look up to that were attractive to the opposite sex, or through hero types like John Cena that moms could let their kids look up to. Now, with two protracted feuds involving the Divas coming to a head at Summerslam, the company is taking notes from other popular media and using the women themselves to draw in a larger female audience.

Time will tell if WWE is on the mark, or if this the equivalent of selling a pink toolbox at Walmart and calling it "tools for ladies."

Wes Kozalla

AWF REVIEW - OVERDRIVE!!!

AWF! AWF! AWF!

What is the AWF, you ask? The Arizona Wrestling Federation (www.arizonawrestlingfederation.com). After attending two recent events, the A could easily stand for Amazing or Awesome. The first event I attended was back in June. I attended my second event this past Saturday (August 9, 2014).

This event was entitled OVERDRIVE. It was just that. The event was a full throttle Overdrive of professional wrestling – not Sports Entertainment.

Granted the AWF is only a small local promotion and this wasn’t a large arena house show, but the quality of the show they put on easily matches the big boys.

Simple fact, I was entertained and didn’t feel that the $10 I spent on my ticket was wasted. I received a lot more then $10 in my professional wrestling entertainment that night.

Overdrive took place at the Peoria, Arizona, Community Center, in the main hall. About 200 or so people attended (to my rough estimate), seated in folding chairs around the ring. A stage area was set up as an entrance ramp, with a portable screen used to project each wrestler’s entrance logo/videos. A second screen was set up to the left of the entrance area.

Each wrestler had their own personalized entrance and theme music.

Speaking of wrestlers, these are who performed that night:
Magod Ali     Awesome Andy      Aydan Colt      Ryan Dean      Chris Evans      Los Fox Stars
Jay Garland      Danny Gee      Bryce Harrison      Adrian Hawkins      Kahmora
Joey Law      The Pali Prince      Allie Parker      The Prophet      Gregory Sharpe
Alex Sinister      Super Chaos

Many of these performed at the last event I attended. Ali, Harrison, Kahmora, Law, Parker and Sinister were new to me.

Onto the show, which start promptly at 6 o’clock, but we saw our first wrestler, Adrian Hawkins before the show began. With little fanfare, Hawkins walked to the ring with a chair and sat down in the middle of the ring. After a few moments, he stood up and started working out in the center of the ring with his workout bands.

Yes, the show officially started with Hawkins doing arm curls in the middle of the ring. Once the announcer announced the show was to begin, Hawkins came to life, grabbed the mic and lit it up. He was in the ring to stay, and there would be no show until he got what he wanted, a title match against the AWF Champion, Chris Evan. He then listed off a litany of reasons why he deserved the match, and wasn’t already champion.

This spurred the champ to make an appearance. Evans didn’t think Hawkins deserved anything, other than the moniker of crybaby. He didn’t seem like he was going to give Hawkins the match, until he gave into Hawkins’ constant berating and the fans encouraging him to face Hawkins.

Bad move. Hawkins was doubly rewarded. He got his title match, and minutes later he was the new champ. Hawkins elation soon turned to anger when the announcer told the crowd that the owner decreed that new champion Hawkins would defend the title in the main event against Awesome Andy.

This was a very good opening to the event, which actually built upon previous events and storylines.

Hawkins would go on to the main event, and eventually defeat Awesome Andy and retain in his first title defense.

Between those two matches were seven other matches.

In my personal down moment of the night, my favorite wrestler from the previous event The Pali Prince lost in a tag match to the extremely popular ‘luchador’ tag team Los Fox Stars. These matches also saw Ryan Dean defeated Joey Law, but Dean’s tag partner Super Chaos came up short against the undefeated The Prophet.

We also saw Aydan Colt in a uniquely funny match defeat Gregory ‘Go’ Sharpe who come out with a jetpack strap to his back and ran around the ring. Yes, I did write that. Yes, it did happen.

We even had the ladies, with Allie Parker out of Vegas losing to Kahmora, who hails from the Far East.

There was even some blood!

Every single match on this card was a solid match. All delivered in some way. The weakest of the matches may have been Jay Garland versus Alex Sinister, and that was still a good match.

The best match of the night was a tossup between the women’s match (Kahmora versus Allie Parker) and the main event (Adrian Hawkins versus Awesome Andy).

I would have to say that Adrian Hawkins stole the night; he wrestled and won two matches, winning the AWF title and successfully defending it.

The event lasted just over two and a half hours.

Besides seeing some of the same wrestlers on this card, I also noticed a lot of the same fans. The AWF definitely has a fan base, and I am one of them now.


Rating: 7.5

Match of the Night: Tie - Kahmora versus Allie Parker and Adrian Hawkins versus Awesome Andy.
Wrestler of the Night: Adrian Hawkins
Impact of the Night: Adrian Hawkins’ title win and defense.

Ace's Answer: Raw 8/11/2014

First, my apologizes for this being late on this Tuesday, there were a few issues beyond my control that delayed this writing and posting.

Okay, onto the main event: Raw.

Raw 8-11-2014

Summerslam Go Home Show

This was the RAW before this weekend’s Summerslam Show, usually known as the GO HOME show where they do the last big build and push to convince people to buy the PPV. Excuse me; sign up for the WWE network – for only $9.99.

My first thought is this: This was the Go Home show for Summerslam? Really?

It is a good thing the WWE Network exists, because I do not see this show doing enough to give people a reason to rush out and buy Summerslam, or subscribe to the WWE Network. Just for disclosure purposes, I do have the Network (I signed up the day it was offered) and I WILL be watching Summerslam.

This broadcast should have been so much more. There have been epic pre-ppv broadcasts in the past that really set up an emotional investment for the following PPV. This broadcast failed to do that.

What? Brock Lesnar staring down Hulk Hogan sets up Summerslam how?

This broadcast was a mix of overly long promos, a few decent matches and the Network shoved down our throats again. They did set up some stuff, but honestly, Summerslam felt like an afterthought on this broadcast.

This felt more like a regular addition of RAW, or a RAW 2 or 3 weeks out from a PPV, not a massive GO HOME show.

The beginning, middle and end of Raw all went toward building up one thing: Brock Lesnar versus John Cena.

The show started out with an overlong promo with Paul Heyman hyping Summerslam and how badass Brock Lesnar. As usual, Brock Lesnar stood there, saying nothing and looking disinterested.

Paul Heyman really loves to talk and the sound of his own voice, doesn’t he? While Heyman can be good, it gets boring and means nothing when he repeats the same stuff over and over. This was an overlong promo that really only did one thing: claim the ring as Brock’s House.

I did like Heyman's rhyme though, can’t really call it a rap.

Of course, this lead to John Cena’s response later in the night. How did John respond? How he normally does, with a passionate, odd mix of anger and humor expressions on his face, over blown, overlong promo that made Heyman’s look short and concise. To the point, Cena says he will one day lose the title, but it won’t be to Brock Lesnar.

Cena did mention that people always ask him when he is going to turn. He promised to turn this weekend, and that we will see a Cena we never have before, one he isn’t proud of.

I would actually like to see that. We all know that a real turn, a heel turn, isn’t going to happen. I also don’t believe this Cena he isn’t proud of is going to appear. During his feud with Bray, he said this Cena didn’t exist, but now it does?

Great contradiction in writing and character there. This is part of what I meant in my State of the WWE column, when I wrote they misuse talent.

In a stupid bit, he than calls Brock Lesnar out – but isn’t Brock supposed to be out to dinner? Cena did mention interrupting Dinner. All this call out did was make Cena look like a punk, who else calls out a man they know isn’t in the building?

The show ended with a brief Hulk Hogan birthday bash, which saw appearances from Ric Flair, Paul Orndorff (yes, Mr. Wonderful!), Roddy Piper, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. This was interrupted by the reappearance of Brock Lesnar, who proceeded to stare down everyone, including Hogan.

Cena ran out, and Lesnar left the ring.

If we listen to the commentators everyone in that ring was afraid of Brock, and apparently, Brock could have taken them all out. I don’t believe that for one second. And I’m going to believe that Piper is afraid? Piper?

These three segments took up a lot of the broadcast, while it did cement the PPV Main Event. I don’t think it added to it.

Roman Reigns versus Ryback was a massive dud of a match, but that was by design. This was just to showcases how tough Reigns is.

By comparison, Randy Orton versus Sheamus was a good match, and put over how much of a thinking man’s wrestler Orton is, and how dangerous he is with the RKO.

These two matches showcased Orton and Reigns, but not much beyond that. I think a better plan would have been to have Reigns cost Orton his match against Sheamus, or have some sort of locker room empting confrontation between the two.

Seth Rollins versus RVD. What a good match this was. These two are so evenly matched and so athletic that the matches they have are usually good to great. Seth won clean, making him look strong going into Summerslam.

After the match Ambrose jumped Rollins again, running him off then announced their match would be a lumberjack match. The ring will be surrounded by all the enemies they made as the shield. I would like to see an actual match between these two, but I don’t think that will happen. Lumberjack matches typical break down into brawls, and that might be the case here.

To me, this is the hottest feud there is in the WWE. This is more of the same between the two heading into Summerslam.

Daniel Bryan is having an affair with his physical therapist Megan! No. No. No!

I loved this segment, even if the whole affair thing is a bit lame.

Steph had some sort of confession to make, but of course that was misleading. She wasn’t making a confession, someone else was. She brought Bryan’s ‘therapist’ into the ring who said that ‘things just happened’ and she was having an affair with Daniel Bryan. Steph called her, Megan, the victim.
Brie came out, attacked both of them leading to Steph to proclaim that this end tonight.

Of course, it didn’t end that night. Instead of a match, Brie was hauled off by police as Megan decided to press charges for assault.

This segment was how you build to match, drama, intrigue, confrontation, unresolved conflict leaving you wanting to see what will happen next.

For the first time in a long while, I am wanting to see a women match in the WWE, and I am interested in a Bella for the first time period.

What a subtle, but near perfect, set up for Swagger versus Rusev at Summerslam. Swagger wins a great match against Cesaro. Zeb does his usually good promo, which in interrupted in a very disrespectful way buy having the Russian flag fall in the background and Rusev makes a token appearance.

Sometimes less IS more.

“I do not believe in Heaven or Hell.” Bray and Jericho’s presences where missing from RAW, but we got an ‘interview’ segment with the two. This really only served to showcase what I have always believed about Bray Wyatt, he is not scary or cool, he’s an idiot.

If you follow his story and listen to what he says, then this promo contradicts his gimmick. He has proclaimed himself a savior in the past, yet this night says he is not one. He has said many times, the Devil made him do it. Yet he doesn’t believe in Heaven or Hell. If he doesn’t believe in Hell, then by extension he can’t believe the Devil. This is piss pour writing on ‘creative’s’ part.

Jericho’s promo was more intense and he came off more dangerous. A good man going bad, that is Jericho’s role here.

Paige distracts AJ with an entrance during her match, causing AJ to be pinned by Eva Marie. That is your build up for AJ versus Paige? What a waste.

Slater wins! Slater wins on two Raws in a row! Granted slated defeated Ziggler by count out because of interference by The Miz, but still Slater wins! Am I the only one who heard the SLATER chants??

Okay, so our announced lineup for Summerslam is this:

Intercontinental Championship: The Miz defends against Dolph Ziggler
Stephanie Mc Mahon versus Brie Bella
Chris Jericho versus Bray Wyatt
Lumberjack Match: Dean Ambrose versus Seth Rollins
Randy Orton versus Roman Reigns
Flag Match: Jack Swagger versus Rusev
World Heavyweight Title: John Cena defends against Brock Lesnar

The card looks solid, and each match was touched upon. However, this was nothing more than just an average episode of RAW it should have been more.

On a personal noted, I marked out for Paul Orndorff.

Rating: 5.5

Ace Masters

Match of the Night: Cesaro versus Jack Swagger
Wrestler of the Night: Jack Swagger
Impact of the Night: Heath Slater Win and “Slater!” chant.

CJ's Sight: NXT 8/7/204

#1 Contender 1st Round Tag Team Tournament
Enzo Amore & Colin Cassidy defeat Jason Jordan & Tye Dillinger by pin fall in 5:29

Amore pinned Dillinger after Cassidy hit Jordan with a Big Boot. This was a fair tag team match. All performers played their parts well, but the action felt like a ‘miss’ to me. Plus, the announce team contradicted themselves on a few things. The crowd was into the match though.

Backstage, Renee Young interviewed Sami Zayn about not having a partner for tonight’s 1st round tag team tournament match. Tyson Kidd and Justin Gabriel intervened, and they mocked Sami Zayn about not having a partner. The Exotic Express and Adam Rose appeared and Rose volunteered himself as Zayn’s partner. Zayn accepted the offer saying tonight he is a ‘Rosebud’, then reluctantly accepted Rose’s offered lollypop.

CJ Parker pinned Xavier Woods in 9:50

Parker pinned Woods after a modified version of the Death Valley Driver. This match was well wrestled by both men, but I couldn’t get into it. Woods did hit a splash from a turnbuckle to almost the opposite ropes for a near fall that was a very nice spot. It just felt like there was no flow or story to the match. CJ Parker was the heel, but he was getting babyface chants. This was hopefully the end to this feud.

Tyler Breeze had a video promo declaring he has finally determined when he will face Adrian Neville for the NXT Championship, but he didn’t say when. We know it will happen at NXT Takeover II so I do not know why he didn’t just say it and get it over with.

Bayley pinned Eva Marie in 3:18

Bayley won with the Bayley to Belly. Eva drew massive heat. Crowd chanted things like “you can’t wrestle”, “worse than Batista”, “thank you Bayley” after her win, and there were a few others for Eva. Cena doesn’t receive heat like this in Philly. Well, maybe not that bad, but it was pretty bad. I felt bad for Bayley because Eva is a complete clusterf**k in the ring. That’s the only way I know how to put it. The match was just a way to get Bayley some wins before her inevitable match with Charlotte for the NXT Women’s Championship at NXT Takeover II.

#1 Contender 1st Round Tag Team Tournament
Sami Zayn & Adam Rose defeated Justin Gabriel & Tyson Kidd by pinfall in 10:03

Zayn hit the Helluva Kick on Gabriel for the pin. Adam Rose looks like he hurt himself a bit coming off the top rope onto the ringside floor onto Kidd and Gabriel. This match was well worked, but with the caliber of wrestlers in the ring, they could have done more. This was by no means a bad tag team match though. It’s just that these wrestlers have dropped our jaws so often they set a high bar for themselves.

MEMO TO ALL ANNOUNCERS: Please stop dancing to Adam Rose’s music! (Editor’s Note: Albert/Giant Bernard/Tensai can dance, Riley CAN’T)

Overall, an average episode of NXT. I like how they are getting wheels under their tag team division, and there is definitely going to be more of that during the #1 Contenders tag team tournament. The two singles matches in the middle of the show can be missed. The tag team matches were solid, but underwhelming. The main event storyline was progressed so little that Breeze’s video promo was unnecessary.

Final rating 5/10.In

Thanks for reading,

Chris Rose

STATE OF NXT

If you don’t know what NXT is, the simple explanation is this: it is WWE Development Broadcast. Think of it as AAA Baseball. The NXT weekly, hourly show has been broadcast on HULU for years before the WWE Network.

It is broadcast on HULU and the WWE Network on Thursday nights.

What is the State of NXT? It’s Better than that of the main WWE and better than TNA.
How good is NXT? $9.99 a month.

NXT is filmed at Full Sail University and is basic a Studio Show. What makes NXT so good are 1) The Talent; 2) Tight focus on structure and 3) lack of bullshit.

The Talent: Sami Zayn, Adrian Neville, Tyler Breeze, The Asencion, The Vaudevillians just to name the top talent in NXT. These only scratch the surface. There is talent here that is better than talent on the main roster.

Sami Zayn for instance is an extremely charismatic performer with great presence and good in ring skills. He might not have the muscle mass some in WWE prefer, but on every other level, he excels. The biggest plus for Zayn, is you can tell he loves this.
If nothing else, he will get the crowd involved.

The Asencion is the best tag team in the WWE. They have been NXT Tag Champs for a long time. Their style is almost a throwback to the ‘80’s, two destroyers who can’t be stop. The thing is they wrestle like a tag team, frequent tags, cutting off the ring, not like two single wrestlers thrown together.

Tight Focus on Structure: Structure is something very important in writing and producing.
NXT structure is very simple: In Ring Action, Back Stage Interview, with occasional promos and back stage confrontations. Everything done in NXT has purpose. If something happens, it furthers a feud, character development or storyline.

It’s like a lean steak, with all the fat cut off.

Lack of bullshit: This is self-explanatory. The bullshit skits, comedy segments, Vicki throwing up on Stephanie don’t happen on NXT.

NXT is a streamlined, excellent wrestling broadcast that puts the focus on the talent and in-ring action. Not on shock value.

Grade: $9.99 . . . or A

There is one thing that pisses me off about NXT though. It is what NXT proves.

NXT proves that the WWE can put out a better, wrestling focus product on Smackdown and Raw. If they followed the NXT structure, those shows would undoubtedly improve.

STATE OF TNA

Dixie Carter is still legitimately in charge of TNA. Vince Russo has been working for TNA in secret? (http://rajah.com/node/42469)

Stories swirling that Spike has canceled TNA? Other stories going around that Spike made an offer to buy into TNA, which the Carters turned down? (http://rajah.com/node/42510)
Talent not being paid on time? Or at all?

‘Nuff said.

Grade: Fail.

If only it was that easy – wait, it just might be.

Let’s get the good out of the way first: The Talent. TNA has some great talent. Arguably, the two best wrestlers in the industry work for TNA: Bobby Roode and Austin Aries.

Eric Young has easily been the best World Champion in 2014 (including WWE). He had a short, but memorable run and really helped to elevate the title after the piss pour Magnus run ruined anything the title may have stood for.

Now there is everything else.

Take what I laid out in the intro to this piece, and let it soak in. Think about it for a minute. None of that is good.

Now, take into account their ratings. Impact averages a million viewers or less, not large numbers in TV Land. In the modern landscape, with hundreds of cable channels, the ratings can keep a show on for years – but in decades past – even on cable – Impact’s ratings would have had TNA off the air in seconds.

What can we expect from a copycat company? A company that copies ECW, copies WWE and even worse, plagiarizes itself.

Examples wanted?

TNA Originals: Many years ago, when TNA was doing a ‘save the company’ angle, the TNA Originals rose up. However, they quickly changed that because it was too close to ECW Originals. ECW Originals makes more sense, simply because of the ‘rebirthed’ WWE Version.

TNA has in the past, and are right now, used ECW as fodder for feuds.

Copying the WWE, how about this, Dixieland? Dixieland is the Authority. Only Dixie is more annoying then Stephanie, because Dixie is poor at what she does and Stephanie is good at her role.

How about Eric Young’s rise to world champion? Think about it: Daniel Bryan wins the opening match of Wrestlemania, and goes on to compete for and win the World Title. That same week, Eric Young wins a Battle Royal to open Impact, goes on to compete for, and win the World Title.

At this point, you can just replace Hunter with MVP.

Plagiarizes itself? This is the easy one: How often does TNA do this storyline – A new faction rises to gain control and forces others to work together to fight for TNA?
Um, every Jeff Jarrett faction. Immortal? Aces and Eights? MVP? Main Event Mafia? It seems like this is the only storyline they know how to tell.

Earlier this year, I ripped TNA for their ill thought out MVP investor storyline. I’ll still rip them for what they are doing right now, because none of it is better.

TNA has the in-ring talent to do much better. Let’s face it; TNA has the talent to go head-to-head with the WWE.

What TNA doesn’t have is vision or any idea of what it wants to be. The fact that they polled the fans on the 6-sided ring proves that. Even if the polled was fraudulent, the fact that they lead the fans to believe they influenced the 6-sides return proves they have no vision.

How? Instead of making the decision themselves and showing the can make hard choices, they cover themselves by letting the fans do it. If it fails, they can blame the fans.

For those who don’t know, Panda Energy is the parent company of TNA, Jeff Jarrett still has a small ownership stake. The Carter family is the main force behind Panda Energy and TNA. If it wasn’t for Panda Energy, TNA wouldn’t exist, Jarrett has said so himself.

The problem here is no one seems to know what to do with a wrestling company. At times TNA feels like an afterthought. Unfortunately, too many times TNA feels like Dixie’s play toy.

I have no doubt the Carter family has put money into TNA and want it to succeed, but funding a company doesn’t lead to success, nurturing a company leads to success.

TNA is starting to feel like WCW toward the last years of its life – where no one know what to do, or even cared. The writing is one the wall, TNA could very well Fall.

What do they need to do? First, pull Dixie from the air. Second, end half the feuds they are doing. Third, higher professional wrestling people who know the industry and can put together a show. Hell, give the reigns of TNA to Tommy Dreamer; he’s proven he can put together a good product. Fourth, learn some new storylines – dump the faction crap.

At times TNA makes the massive mistake of believing that being different, equals better = 6-sided ring. At times they also seem like they want to reinvent pro wrestling, yet they don’t exactly have a grasp on what pro wrestling is.

Don’t get me wrong, I like TNA. I want it to succeed. I just want to see it excel and be bigger and better.

GRADE: D

I want to end on this note: a lot of people often comment on ‘thinking outside the box,’ yet they never say how to think outside the box. Here is the thing though, before you can think outside the box, you have to know what the box is.

Ace Masters.