Impact Wrestling Review: The Go-Home Show To Slammiversary
This episode of Impact Wrestling was the second installment at the USF Dome in Tampa, FL. It also was the go-home show to TNA's third major pay-per-view, Slammiversary.
Typical Aces and Eights introduction to the show. Nothing spectacular, and quite overdone. I am intrigued of why D-Lo was chosen to be the dishonorable whipping boy for the group. Not sure if he received a pay raise from being just a backstage agent, but it sure does not seem like it's worth it. Seemingly, with the very little stock D-Lo has these days, there will be no payoff to his weekly abuse.
Sting/Joseph Park vs. Bully Ray/Devon was nothing special. It made sense for Sting to get the win leading to the PPV, but the match was above average at best. The Abyss music used as a tease was a good way to distract Bully, I suppose. Prevents them from labeling it a clean win.
Decent build to bring back Jeff Hardy. The six-man match should be pretty high octane, and has the opportunity to be one of the best of the night. Like I've said many times before, the Joe/Magnus team has excellent chemistry, so that alone adds a great element to the match. Hardy is still a big draw for the company, and that is a good place to put him to get him back in the fold.
The eight man tag match was just a way to further build up Gunner. The match was good, but the ending fell very flat. Hopefully, the tag division experiences an overhaul after the PPV. There are some teams that should temporarily be disbanded to prepare for the Bound for Glory series. Namely, Chavo/Hernandez and Roode/Aries.
The Mickie James promo was rather funny. A heel turn is undoubtedly underway, as she is showing signs of the heel Mickie James from WWE. This should be a good path for the current Knockouts division, as it is in much need of repair. It would have made more sense to make the match a four-way, due to Gail Kim and Taryn Terrell's involvement. That match alone is very insufficient for an event the caliber of Slammiversary.
Sadly, Chris Sabin has lost a ton of momentum due to being out for the better part of two years. The Motor City Machine Guns were one of the hottest teams on the planet at one point in time, but Sabin alone just does not cut it. The mixed tag match was a last ditch effort to give him steam for the PPV, but that was quickly extinguished when Kenny King saved us from an awful promo, and Suicide further saved us from a needless post-match attack.
The AJ Styles vs. Mr. Anderson match was quite odd, but ultimately just a way to give Aces and Eights the one-up before the PPV. Everything about the match seemed lethargic, including the melee afterwards. Even the 3D on Sting seemed like it was in slow motion. I guess it may be due to the taped show exhibiting how tired the wrestlers are. Whatever it is, it sure did not build much excitement leading to Slammiversary this Sunday.
Sound off with your Impact Wrestling thoughts below.