411mania.com: Wrestling - Wrestling’s 4R’s Friday Edition 3.12.10: Raw, Impact and NXT Reviewed!

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By: Jeremy Thomas

Raw 03.08.10:

QUICK RESULTS:
Eve, Triple K & Gail Kim d. Maryse, Katie Lea Burchill and Alicia Fox [*]
John Morrison & R-Truth went to a no-contest with Show Miz [DUD]
Legacy d. Randy Orton [* ¾]
Evan Bourne d. William Regal [¾*]
Vince McMahon and Everything But The Kitchen Sink d. John Cena [* ¾]

THE RIGHT:

RAISING THE STAKES: Raw kicked off in my hometown of Portland, Oregon with the ominous sounds and smoke-filled entrance of the Dead Man. Sadly, by the time he was done there was only ten minutes left of the show. Seriously though, this was actually a pretty quick entrance for Taker as he hit the ring and got on the mic. He talked about what happened last week with Shawn losing for DX and how it was a symptom of what had happened to Shawn since he lost at 'Mania XXV. Taker stumbled a little early on in the promo, which of course I'm never happy to see, but he recovered quickly and talked about how this year there would be no celebration and no victory, but a dark cloud that would hang over him for the rest of his life. Before he could get the full "Rest in Peace" out though, Shawn came down to the right in serious mode and said Taker hadn't earned the right to finish his line. Shawn said that after last week, the cloud was gone because he'd had an epiphany. He did what he had to do at the Chamber, but what Taker did, he didn't have to. That proved to Shawn that the Dead Man had fear. Taker warned Shawn to choose his next words carefully, and Shawn busted out with "Fear!" I like how Shawn's playing the unafraid guy, the guy who's been revitalized by his obsession. He talked about proving how nothing last forever this year, and Taker questioned the confidence, asking whether it was desperation. This led into them setting a stipulation: No Countout, No Disqualification. I like this, because it means that most of the ways for them to cheat the ending are done and that definitely raises the stakes. Of course, it also means that outside interference could come into play. Outside of the Dead Man's early gaffe, this was another great promo from the two of them. They both showed intensity—Taker was more animated and more passionate than I've heard him be in a while, and Shawn was his usual awesome self. Neither man really got one over on the other man here and the bar remained even between them, but it was certainly raised. Did this top last week's promo? No, not at all. But it was still very well-done and kept things building nicely to 'Mania. That's all I ask for.

SHOW MIZ vs. JOHN MORRISON & R-TRUTH: This match was coming on the heels of Truth and Morrison getting the shot at Show Miz's tag titles for 'Mania last week on SmackDown. We mercifully got very little of the terrible mashed-up Show Miz theme before Miz got on the mic and ran down the challengers in awesome fashion. Come on, you had to love him calling them the worst tag team title contenders since the Allied Powers. I did, at least. Miz said he'd rather face the Bushwhackers who were at least a "real team." Nice touch of hypocrisy there. The crowd was solidly behind the challengers as usual, before we settled into the match and Morrison came out of nowhere while Truth and Miz were in in order to basement dropkick Show off the apron. This wasn't a match, really; it was an opportunity for Morrison and Truth to get some credibility as a team so there was some actual heat to the 'Mania match. If I were rating this in terms of wrestling, it would obviously be a wRong, but this built heat and credibility, and did it in the ring instead of via promos and the like. This was just what the feud needed and I'm okay with that.

SHORT & SWEET: Midway through the first hour, Josh Matthews was backstage with John Cena and mentioned that for the first time in his career, someone left him speechless last week. Cena said it was because Big Dave was correct; John can't beat him. Or at least, he hasn't. Cena ran down the broken neck and the other ways Big Dave has had his number, and said the only thing he could do is go out there and beat him. Josh asked if Cena anticipated Big Dave getting involved tonight, and Cena said he was counting on it. I really appreciated this promo from John and wanted to let it stand on its own, because it was a very different promo than we usually hear from the champ. Cena typically has two speaking modes: joking around or super-intense yelling. This was a different Cena. He was quieter and calmer…almost reserved and unsure. It really sold the story of this feud, that Cena hasn't beaten Big Dave yet and doesn't know if he can. This, of course, means that the Champ is becoming the champ at 'Mania, because that's how the story should play out, but it's helping make the build interesting. I appreciate that.

THE GAME AND THE CELTIC WARRIOR FACE OFF: So we've been shaping up the 'Mania card since the night after the Chamber ended, and this appears to be one of the last major pieces to fully fall into place. We got a recap of Sheamus punking out 'H last week during the H-Man's entrance, and then Hunter got on the mic to address the issue. 'H said he kind of respected what Sheamus did last week because if someone had humiliated and put him down, he'd want to make a statement too. That's all he got before the Red-and-White made his way down to the ring. Sheamus got into the right and we had the traditional and necessary stare down before Sheamus took the microphone.

Aww, they're holding hands. Sheamus said something about how he was going to make a statement off the Game at 'Mania, and question the H-Man's guts. Hunter then gave props to Sheamus for having one of the best years ever, but reminded Sheamus he hasn't been to the Dance yet which means he's accomplished nothing. Um…okay. The WWE Championship says hello, Hunts. Hunter then talked about how he was undefeated until he got reamed by the Ultimate Warrior (okay, he didn't mention him by name, but we know who he meant). Hunter talked about the few who have beaten the Game at 'Mania and have become something great, and the many who have lost and became nothing. Basically, this was about Hunter daring Sheamus to take the chance, and Sheamus answering back without fear. This was an important thing to do, because Sheamus does need that little extra thing to make him WrestleMania-worthy. Being unafraid of the kind of stakes that Hunter put up was that very thing, and I appreciated how it played out. Now, it wasn't the greatest promo in the world, by either men. I don't like Hunter putting down Sheamus's accomplishments, and Sheamus didn't have a lot to say here. But it accomplished what it needed to and I'm happy with that.

PURGATORY:

SIX-DIVA TAG TEAM MATCH: Our opening match after the Taker/Shawn promo had Eve, Triple K and Gail Kim taking on Maryse, Katie Lea Burchill and Alicia Fox. The poor heels didn't even get their entrance shown. Gail started out the match with Alicia and controlled the match until a distraction from Katie Lea let her take control, upon which Maryse came in. We learned from Vintage Cole that Eve is a Rubik's Cube expert and likes salsa dancing. What is this, the prep work for a new Playboy spread? As a Butterfly Division match, this was actually not bad at all. The Divas were mostly on their game here and outside of Alicia botching a shoulder to the gut early on, nothing was botched. Sadly, with the Raw ladies "only one botched move" makes for a pretty good match by comparison. In all honestly this was far from great but I can happily give it a pass because it got a new face in contention for the title in Eve, who is probably the best choice in terms of in-ring work besides Gail who just lost her shot. This was certainly not great and really not even good, but it put Eve over pretty well so I can go with that and give this a pass.

JOHN CENA vs. VINCE McMAHON (& VLADIMIR KOZLOV, DREW McINTYRE, JACK SWAGGER, MARK HENRY & BATISTA): Just a nice, normal one-on-one match in the main event…you know how it is. This was coming off last week's promise by Vince that he was going to beat Bret Hart's biggest fan in John Cena in the middle of the ring, and that's exactly what we got. Of course, he had just a wee bit of help. Criss Angel did the ring announcing, and did a piss-poor job of it, sounding like the sixteen-year-old lead singer of a no-talent garage band, complete with his voice breaking. After Vince got the mic and Angel split, the Boss made fun of Bret and told him to watch as Vince beat Cena, non-illusory, right in the ring. And to do that, out came the Rogue's Gallery. First was Kozlov, who started off strong against Cena before he tagged in Vince and the Boss got a two-count. I liked that they actually put the Koz over strongly, because he could have been buried here but took it to Cena nicely. McIntyre was next and he got his moment to do the same; again the Champ wouldn't go down. Vince got pissed and called down Swagger, who didn't fare quite as well. By the time we came back from commercial, Cena was in control and Swagger had to battle back and take over. Of course, that wasn't enough so it was Mizark's turn, who probably could have beat John but wasn't feeling it and stopped Vince from using the ring bell. That brought out Big Dave, who got involved after promising not to. That brought out Kofi and he took it to Dave before he got flattened, and Cena fought back before the Manmal and Vince proved too much and Vince got the pin.

So, there was a lot I liked about this. I appreciated that they put over the undercard guys that fought Cena. Kozlov looked good, Drew looked good (if for only a brief appearance), and Swagger came back from break weakly but fought back. These guys would be crushed most of the time against a guy like Cena, even in a gauntlet match. Here, they looked—well, not like main eventers, but hardly weak either. On the other hand, I hated them teasing that the Manimal wasn't getting involved when we all knew he was. You have to convince us that something isn't going to happen for it to be shocking. The 'E didn't even make an effort at it here. Some people will bitch about Vince beating Cena, but come on. That was neither an attempt to recapture the Stone Cold/Vince era, nor was it an attempt to say Vince could beat a main eventer. It was a heat-building segment and it did exactly that. I didn't love this one bit, because as a match it was too start-stop and didn't really do anything and the booking was middle of the road. But I didn't hate it either.

THE WRONG:

LEGACY vs. RANDY ORTON: Yes, all of you people who have been complaining about me calling them "Priceless" can rest easy…at least for this week. We'll see how my mood changes next week, they may just become Flabberscnackle. This week Ted and Cody were taking on their mentor in a handicap match, and Orton got smart by coming from behind to attack them during their entrance. I liked this because it fit's Orton's character nicely as a guy who doesn't play by the rules—face or not—but also gives him a chance to even the odds just a bit. Once the match came, we had a typical handicap match. The hero fights the odds and starts to lose ground due to the numbers, but always makes the comeback. Now see, this is the problem with the WWE and their use of handicap matches. They're great for squash matches in order to build someone up. If they wanted to have Batista wipe the mat with Kung Fu Naki and Jimmy Wang Yang, I'd have no issue with it. But if you use it in a feud, you're not doing it any favors. Because the whole point of a handicap match is to put the face over for battling the odds. That will make the heels look like bitches, guaranteed, and that's what happened here. Legacy beat Orton, but only because it was a two-on-one fight. Clearly, they can't beat him otherwise, and so no one wants to see a one-on-one match. Why would they? Of course, it didn't help that the match was dull as dishwater, with Ted and Cody going at half-speed and Orton giving it a decent go but failing to make the match interesting enough on his own. What's worse, we still don't know where this is going—or hell, if it's even going anywhere at this point.

EVAN BOURNE vs. WILLIAM REGAL: Christian and Heath Slater were at commentary while Evan Bourne took on William Regal for the "last" Money in the Bank shot. The crowd was actually kind of dead for Bourne as he came to the ring, and Regal had a moderate reaction at best. Christian did a good job on commentary as can be expected while the two locked it up in the ring…for less than two minutes before Bourne got the win. The story of match was basically Regal beating on Bourne until the big two-move comeback for the pinfall. Frankly, there was nothing to this match and like those of Swagger and MVP's, it should have gotten SOME time. I'm sure Angel could have made himself disappear long enough to add some time here, but alas.

THE RIDICULOUS:

DID YOU KNOW?: Nope. And, as always, I don't care.

MINDFREAK: Okay, I will get my bias out of the way right here and now. I hate Criss Angel. I think that he's not all that talented of an illusionist, and I think he's a world-class douche on top of it. He comes across to me like the Pussycat Doll of stage magic: all style, no substance. So needless to say, I was not looking forward to his appearance on the show and people who may be fans of his will probably disagree heavily with my thoughts here. Basically, he spent most of the night doing silly magic tricks backstage like pulling a string though his mouth and out his eye, and slurping his way along with it. Yeah, that's what I look for when I want to see a wrestling segment. That brought in Jillian Hall who wanted to sing his introduction when he came out, and he made her lose her voice. Okay, I will definitely give him credit for that one. He did have a little more involvement in a kayfabe standpoint than Cheech and Chong did last week, as he apparently gave Bourne and Regal their shots in the Money in the Bank match; on the down side, it meant that Bourne got promo time. I'm sorry but I cringe whenever he tries to speak. Skip Sheffield then acted like a moron and got insulted by Regal, and then Angel played "guess the number." Yeah, because that's remotely exciting on a scripted show…especially when he was basically cold reading like that douche "medium" John Edwards does, except Angel did it blatantly. And then he did a cup magic trick with Santino that went on for way too long. Yeah, I can't see how anyone is going to defend this whole thing. It was stupid and Angel is still a douche. Only this time, he's a douche that took up far too much time on Raw.

The 411

Honestly, this wasn't one of my favorite Raws at all as of late. The wrestling was crap and the segments didn't build to 'Mania as well as they have lately. But by the same token, they got things done. Hunter vs. Sheamus is now officially set, and Truth and Morrison look credible as a tag team and challengers to the titles. Taker and Shawn is coming along nicely and the rest…well, I could have done without it. Yes, especially the Mindfreak. This was purely a middle of the road Raw and I can't give it a solid recommendation.

SHOW RATING: 6.0

No comment responses this time around due to an impromptu covering of NXT as Michael Bauer was tied up at work. They'll be back next week though!

By: Chad Nevett

iMpact! 03.08.10:

QUICK RESULTS
Hulk Hogan & Abyss wrestled Ric Flair & AJ Styles to a no contest [1/2*]
Doug Williams (C) defeated Kazarian, and Daniels for the TNA X-Division Championship [***1/4]
Velvet Sky & Madison Rayne defeated Sarita & Taylor Wilde , and Tara & Angelina Love for the TNA Knockouts Tag Team Championship [*1/4]
Rob Van Dam defeated Sting [DUD]
Eric Young defeated Syxx-Pac [*]
Beer Money, Inc. defeated Jeff Jarrett in a handicap match [*1/2]
- Hulk Hogan & Abyss defeated Ric Flair & AJ Styles in a no disqualification match [**]

THE RIGHT:

DOUG WILLIAMS (C) vs. KAZARIAN vs. DANIELS FOR THE TNA X-DIVISION CHAMPIONSHIP: This began with a lackluster promo wherein Kazarian talked about making the X-Division great, Daniels continued his ‘I've been doing awesome shit forever and people need to remember that' character, and Doug Williams was sort of there before Eric Bischoff put over the X-Division big time as the engine that keeps TNA running (hoping we'd forget that these guys have been lucky to get four minutes a week for cramped, rushed matches) and booked the three in a match for the X-Division title. Ignoring that, which was passable, this segment turned out to be the best part of the show with a good match. It began a little cutesy with the repeated roll-up attempts, but took off from there. As the match progressed, the spots looked smoother and more organic, and less like everyone working together to make a high spot look cool, which is good. I love the X-Division style, but only when it doesn't look too rehearsed and after the first minute or so, not much in this match looked that way. Doug Williams was a bit of the odd man out, but that worked with the story. In three-way matches, there are always periods where one guy is on the outside, allowing the other two to work together in a far more manageable way. Williams seemed to get sidelined a lot more than the other two, which is odd since he's the champ, but it played into the rivalry of Daniels and Kaz, and allowed them to do some quicker, more aerobatic stuff. Williams is a bit more grounded, so isn't ideal in that ‘let's show off the X-Division style' sort of match despite working well as the champ, if only because his differing style leads to more interesting matches. Williams retaining was the smart move, but the Shannon Moore run-in and subsequent title shot was really stupid. Moore got no reaction and has earned nothing. I liked his work in the WWE fine, but let's see him prove himself a bit before getting a title shot at a PPV. After all, they did the same thing with Brian Kendrick and that didn't exactly set the world on fire. Otherwise, the best match of the night and the best thing about the show.

DESMOND WOLFE TAKES OUT THE POPE: In preparation for their scheduled match, the Pope looked ready to cut another good promo on Ruffie... er, Desmond Wolfe, but it was cut short when Wolfe attacked the Pope, targeting his injured ankle and effectively canceling the match in the process. A short segment that made Wolfe finally look as dangerous as he's said he is in his promos like a month or so back when he talked about injuring his opponents in matches given the chance. With the Pope needing a feud of some kind to hold him over until his title shot at Lethal Lockdown, continuing the antagonism between him and Wolfe is a smart move, especially with Wolfe being an unofficial ally of sorts to Styles and Flair.

PURGATORY:

THE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE vs. SARITA & TAYLOR WILDE vs. TARA & ANGELINA LOVE FOR THE TNA KNOCKOUTS TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP: So, the belts have been stripped off of Awesome Kong and Hamada for failure to defend in 30 days. I think it's probably been quite a bit longer than just 30 days, but whatever. The real reason is Awesome Kong's problems backstage that may or may not have led to her release (which may or may not have been at her own request). Of course, this leaves Hamada out in the cold, which is a shame because she's great in the ring and practically carried the New Year's Eve tournament. My biggest complaint here is that I would have liked to see them give Hamada a chance to win the belts with a new partner at the very least. Gee, if only Alyssa Flash was still with the company... Put the belts on the Beautiful People by all means, but seeing Hamada in the mix would have been great. The match as it was wasn't anything special. Daffney's interference made sense, but it comes off as a little lame that even with Lacey on the outside, the Beautiful People needed even more outside interference to win. Advancing the Daffney/Tara feud was a solid decision. And I imagine it will be another two months before we see Sarita and Taylor Wilde again, sadly.

ERIC YOUNG vs. SYXX-PAC: I'm somewhat surprised at how well this worked with Kevin Nash and Eric Young calling out Scott Hall and Syxx-Pac (why isn't he just Sean Waltman?) and setting up a Destination X match where, if Nash and Young win, Hall and Pac are gone, but, if Pac and Hall win, they get TNA contracts. This led to Nash and Hall shaking hands, Young extending his hand and Pac slapping him. The ensuing brawl was broken up by security, but Bischoff came on the screen and told security to get Nash and Hall out of the ring, and he gave Young a "license to kill" and told him to "Slap that punk upside his bitch head." The match was brief and not much of one, but Pac showed that he can still pull off some moves, while Young was nothing but rage and brutality, making him look like a million bucks. They chose the two guys wisely and teased the eventual full-length match well. Extra points for the "Hall is wasted" chants.

THE WRONG:

HULK HOGAN & ABYSS vs. RIC FLAIR & AJ STYLES TAKE 1: After hyping the first five minutes of the show, promising that something unbelievable was going to happen, that we just couldn't miss the first five minutes of Impact, what we got was Hogan and Abyss coming out, basking in the cheers of the Impact Zone, and Hogan droning on with a promo that, once again, talked about how TNA is fantastic, how it's a historic Impact, how people are talking, and basically saying nothing of any value or consequence. You don't say how great you are, you show it, and, for the past two months, TNA has been much more tell than show. Having the Hogan & Abyss vs. Flair & Styles match kick things off was an interesting choice that was really just a tease as was evident from the match itself were, within a minute or two, all four men were in the ring, brawling... a great way to have Flair and Hogan return to ring, don't you think? Then, the lights went down and there was Sting! Sting! STING! And... oh, he turned heel, because what the episode was lacking was a nonsensical swerve to kick things off. Considering that Styles and Flair had the upper hand, the point of Sting jumping in to help them eludes me. Styles and Flair did more damage before retreating and Hogan booked the match to restart later that night as a no disqualification match. The only thing that I liked about this was the promo Styles and Flair cut after the match where both men made the match restarting not seem like a big deal, because they just kicked Hogan and Abyss's asses. An awful way to begin the show, so, of course, it's also how the show would end...

KURT ANGLE AND SOME SOLDIERS BEAT UP MR. ANDERSON: Kurt Angle came out with a bunch of soldiers (or people dressed up as soldiers) and cut a rather cheap promo about Anderson spitting on the soldiers. This story wasn't too bad, but bringing out soldiers took it over the top into cheesy territory. Anderson's interruption was thankfully brief, leading to a brawl where he gained the upper hand and took off, only to be stopped on the ramp by some of the soldiers. I didn't mind that, because it was keeping things between Angle and Anderson, but the ensuing beat-downs of Anderson by the soldiers after Angle kept tossing him out of the ring were awful. Really? Having US soldiers (or stand-ins for them) beating up an already injured man over and over again? Is that the image of the troops you want to project? I know what the goal was here, but they went too far in trying to achieve it.

BEER MONEY, INC. vs. JEFF JARRETT IN A HANDICAP MATCH: And here's a ‘let's throw a bunch of unrelated stories into one match and hope it works out okay' while also turning Beer Money heel apparently. Eric Bischoff and Jeff Jarrett's problems lead to a handicap match against Beer Money with Foley as the referee? Why Foley? Beer Money's heel turn kind of makes sense, playing off of their promo two weeks back about being tired of being overlooked and underappreciated. It makes sense they'd want to go out and show that they can kick some ass, but volunteering for a handicap match with Jarrett seems excessive. The match itself was a wreck, mostly because Jarrett kept gaining the upper hand. Since it was a match where both Storm and Roode were in the ring at the same time, it needed to be quick. A token bit of offense that lasts ten seconds from Jarrett would have been enough to maintain his credibility, but by dragging it out, the number one contenders for the tag belts and, supposedly, one of the top tag teams in the business couldn't put away a guy who's still trying to recover after seven months on the bench? If ever there's an excuse for a squash match, it's this. But, no, Jarrett came back a few times until Foley decided to bring out the barb wire baseball bat as if that means anything anymore. Thankfully, Beer Money got the win after hitting DWI, but... yeesh.

THE RIDICULOUS:

STING vs. ROB VAN DAM: After his interference in the botched main event, Sting was confronted by Dixie Carter, demanding an explanation, so he goozled her and told her that he doesn't owe her anything. As a result, she booked a match featuring a mystery opponent that they kept hinting would be Rob Van Dam. I dislike whenever Carter gets involved, because that's what Hogan and Bischoff are for. Hell, I prefer it when there's one on-screen boss/booker, but two isn't too bad. Three is just... no. As for the match, this was the proper use of Rob Van Dam, oh yeah. I know that in my fantasy booking, my dream is to have him come out, hit two moves, have Sting willingly eat the pin so he can then beat Van Dam with a baseball bat until Hogan decides to come out, make the segment about him, and leave RVD in the ring, gasping for air, injured, and pretty much forgotten. But, hey, at least the surprise arrival of RVD boosted the ratings to a solid 1.07. Seriously, fans have been clamoring for Rob Van Dam to return to the WWE or TNA, for Mr. Monday Night to put on a great show every Monday night, and this is it? Sting versus Rob Van Dam is a never before seen match-up and teasing a real match with a short one is fine, but this was idiotic booking that made the segment about Hogan, not about RVD who should have been at the center of it. Yes, I know, in wrestling, surprise is more important than quality, but you know what's more important than surprise? Money. And advertising the return of Rob Van Dam ahead of time is going to get viewers and that's going to make money. Spike TV had the right idea by confirming his signing with TNA, but this could have been bigger than one quick, cheap pop that fizzled out into a long, dull, boring segment that focused on one guy who they spent the whole show telling us can't wrestle anymore and a guy who didn't even try to. Maybe it will work out with an actual Sting/Van Dam match in the future that will blow our minds, but until then... this was just bad.

HULK HOGAN & ABYSS vs. RIC FLAIR & AJ STYLES TAKE 2: NO DISQUALIFICATION: Main event time featuring a guy who apparently can't wrestle and has the ref on notice to end the match should he not be able to take any more... who then kicked things off by kicking the crap out of Ric Flair in slow motion for the first five minutes of the match. It was a bloody mess (literally) that tried to get across passion and anger, but never did because neither Hogan nor Flair move quickly enough to get those ideas across. They could adapt their styles to suit their limitations, but that didn't happen. That it was a no disqualification match made AJ Styles look like a moron as he stood nearby, hands in the air to show he's not interfering while his apparent mentor was bleeding all over the Impact Zone. It's no DQ! Why wouldn't he attack Hogan? There's no reason not to. Watching Hogan turn around Flair's Irish whip was saddening. The Hulkamaniac inside of me cringed a little and a part of my childhood died. The dual Hulking out (or up or whatever you want to call it) by Abyss and Hulk didn't bother me too much, because that was going to happen and the finish was good. That Black Hole Slam looked harsh and like something that would finish Styles off. The post-match brawl was unnecessary, though it continued the teasing of the Desmond Wolfe/Abyss feud and reminded us that, oh yeah, the Pope has something going on with Styles.

Then, it happened: Jeff Hardy came out. We haven't seen him for two months (and four days), but he's in the Impact Zone for reasons unknown and Spike cut off the feed before he could do his Swanton Bomb off the turnbuckle. It was ‘surprising,' I guess, but in that nonsensical who gives a fuck sort of way. Why not advertise these surprise appearances in actual matches so people will watch to see them? Teasing possible appearances that are nothing more than a spot or two without any real rhyme or reason isn't satisfying or quality. What would you be more inclined to watch: an episode that may feature Jeff Hardy in some unknown way maybe or an episode where you know he's going to wrestle in a match? How can you expect people to tune in for these big names if you're not going to advertise the big names? Fuck!

THE RI-GODDAMN-DICULOUS:

EVERYONE BEGS HOGAN NOT TO WRESTLE... AGAIN: Okay, when a big part of your show is people begging someone in the main event to not wrestle, because he's too old and injured, you're doing something wrong. When a big part of your show is people begging someone in the main event to not wrestle, because he's too old and injured and it's the truth? I don't know what to call that. Every one of these segments worked to kill whatever interest anyone could possibly have in the main event, because no one wants to see Hulk Hogan go out as a feeble wreck and possibly seriously injure himself. What does reminding everyone that that's a serious possibility gain you? It made me want to turn off Impact in case this was the night that Hogan got seriously injured and made a complete fool of himself. It's just sad and pathetic when he's making Earl Hebner promise to stop the match if it looks like he's in over his head. Hogan is a goddamn legend and this is how he's willing to present himself now?

The 411

There's no question that Monday's Impact was an exciting show, but the quality was severely lacking. Surprise appearances and swerves and teases and promises of explanations at a later date and needless turns do not equal quality. This was an episode that had, presumably, the full-time debuts of Jeff Hardy and Rob Van Dam and the closest we came to seeing either in a match was a ten-second two-move piece of shit! Where is the wisdom in relying on surprise than telling people that people they want to see wrestle are going to be wrestling and then putting them in matches? I don't see it... and apparently neither did many people judging by the ratings. Spending most of the episode telling us that you aging legend (and supposed attraction) can't wrestle when he's in the main event is pure fucking stupidity. TNA keeps talking about how great the company is, how historic these shows are, and they deliver crap. Yes, there was excitement, but that quickly dissipated when 90% of the show was total crap and they spent their time building the show around Hogan instead of the fantastic young talent that can deliver stellar matches. When you've got the talent that TNA has, there's no excuse for this.

SHOW RATING: 3.0

By: Jeremy Thomas

NXT 03.09.10:

QUICK RESULTS:
R-Truth & David Otunga d. The Miz and Daniel Bryan [** ½]
Heath Slater d. Carlito [**]
Justin Gabriel d. Wade Barrett [** ¼]

THE RIGHT:

R-TRUTH & DAVID OTUNGA vs. THE MIZ AND DANIEL BRYAN: This match was put together as the "tag team match between the rookies and their pros who don't get along." Wacky feuding tag team partners! Vince Russo would be so proud. Truth and Otunga got their entrance first and the crowd popped for the rap of course, after which we got Striker outlining the voting process about the pros voting for the rookies and such. That brought out Daniel Bryan and the Miz, who obviously weren't getting along by the distance they were keeping from each other; Vintage Cole pointed out that Seattle was Bryan's hometown. This was actually smart booking as a tag match because not only was it the teams who don't get along, as a recap showed it was also coming off John Morrison and Truth's punking out of Show Miz on Raw. Miz got on the mic and gave Bryan a "pep talk," which had the crowd booing hard. He pointed out that Bryan was 0-2 and hadn't proven anything yet. Miz said that if Bryan got pinned tonight, he'd make sure the guy had no future in the WWE and would get him kicked off of NXT. Bryan started off with Truth, and we got Team Truth in control of the former American Dragon. The story here was obviously the tension between Bryan and Miz and the cohesion between Otunga and Bryan. This played out nicely and we had some good stuff from all involved. Bryan looked impressive in there once again, Otunga didn't look bad at all and the pros led the match along nicely. The match saw Bryan look strong, but his team still lost. However, it was Miz who took the pin to Otunga thanks to the team dissention, which worked nicely. I dug this match quite a bit and like where they've got this going.

A LOOK AT: JUSTIN GABRIEL: I like these promos, because they do give the audience a chance to get to know these guys, and it does so in that semi-reality show way that gives this a competition-like feel. This week it was Justin Gabriel, and you know what? Damn if that Adam Lambert comparison wasn't true, he looks a lot like the American Idol near-winner. Gabriel did fine here and came across as a good enough guy, even if it was a bit generic outside of "I'm South African." This probably could have been better, but I felt it did a fine job of letting us get to know Matt's rookie.

HEATH SLATER vs. CARLITO: This played off the bit last week where Carlito spit the apple in Heath Slater's face. Slater's promo was…not so much. It was okay and didn't suck or anything, I just didn't feel it all that much. But that's the point of NXT, is to get these guys those kind of skills so I'm okay with that. Before the match, Carlito got on the mic and told Slater he should be honored he got spat on. This was nice stuff by Carlito to get the crowd behind Slater a bit here. Slater and Carlito did some pretty decent work here; it wasn't as good as the opening match by any stretch, but they were proficient and worked fairly well against each other. One of the things I like about NXT is that the matches are told in a different manner than SmackDown and Raw, they're given more time to develop the talent and build a story to the match. On Raw, these guys would have been given two, two and a half minutes maximum but they got almost seven minutes and did well with it. The win by Slater gets him a bit of credibility and that's what they should be doing. Good stuff here.

WADE BARRETT vs. JUSTIN GABRIEL: Earlier in the show we had a little promo segment where Matt put Gabriel over for being the first rookie to beat a pro. Gabriel sounded a bit unpolished, like he was reading lines, but it wasn't terrible work. That brought in Chris Jericho and Wade Barrett. Y2J put Gabriel's win last week over but said he was going down this week to Barrett. Good enough stuff, though hardly fantastic. I thought Barrett was very nice in terms of his promo work and I do think there's a big upside to him.

These two battled in the main event of the evening, and they had an opportunity to make the most out of it. For the most part, I felt they did that. Barrett and Gabriel are two of the guys with the most potential and they shone here. I loved Jericho shouting at the announcers early on. The crowd was into this match and deservedly so as they worked well in there and put on a very good match. It was flashy but not just a spotfest, and was plotted out very well to boot. I have a feeling that these guys will have to tone things down a little bit when they transition to one of the other shows, but they'll cross that bridge when they come to it. Gabriel won with the 450 before Jericho attacked him and Barrett got some heat to end the show. This match was a bit more rushed than the other two but it made up for it with flash, and I enjoyed it as a show finisher.

PURGATORY:

A LOOK AT: DARREN YOUNG: I'll be honest, I'm not digging on Darren Young as much as I am some of the other guys. He's got a lot of style and a unique look—if you get past the Cena lookalike thing. But he seems to be more stilted than the other guys here. A persona and a look only does so far, and I think he needs a bit more than that. After that, we got a little backstage segment where Young asked why he can't live his own lifestyle, and Punk preached about Straight Edge and said Young had a choice to make. The segment was all right, the focus video seemed a bit lacking. Young's certainly not a lost cause, but he could easily get lost in the pack and this didn't convince me otherwise.

THE WRONG:

NOTHING

The 411

This was a great episode of NXT to really help get the talent over. We had three very good matches that pretty much blew what Raw had to offer out of the water in terms of pure in-ring wrestling. Obviously, Raw had a lot of other things to accomplish but I found myself enjoying this show a lot more. The 'E has chosen their first class of rookies well and if this show was any indicator, we're going to see some good things from each of them.

SHOW RATING: 8.0

Until Monday, keep on kickin' it!

~453~

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Comments (70)

iMPACT was its usual mish mash of 'picking names out of a hat' booking, if you ask me.

Bunch of pointless heel/face turns.

Short matches with PPV potential.

Overshadowing originals for the lastest 'ex WWE' signing.

TNA: We Hate Money

Posted By: Hindu Friend (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:08 PM

raw has been on a roll since january. great booking to mania, and i can easily see a big wm buyrate coming.

Posted By: perez (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:09 PM

So, basically Sting turning was like Joe's 'great and shocking' turn at Slammiversary last year that turned out so well.

Yeah, it shocked us all, but that doesn't make it a good swerve. It makes it bullshit with no direction.

Posted By: Industry (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:10 PM

The whole Legacy/Orton fiasco has only two logical possible outcomes for Mania:
- Kofi teams with Orton
- Triple Threat match

Either way, I don't see Legacy having a chance of winning what-so-ever with Orton as the face. It's just not gonna happen.

On the flip side, if Sheamus loses to Triple H, his career will be DONE. He hasn't had a legitimate win since he won the title and if he loses here, there's no going back up.

Posted By: SHADE (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:14 PM

Another stacked Raw this week. Can't miss for any wrestling fan.

Plus rumor has it Stone Cold will make Stu Hart go into the Hall of Fame and because of Vince 'changing the rules' this week against Cena, Austin will appoint himself guest referee at Mania for Vince/Bret.

Posted By: Lance Storm said so (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:21 PM

Dude, lighten up with all the Criss Angel praise. We get it - the guy's awesome and talented. Frankly I myself think him to be one of the great entertainers of our time. But let's try and focus here.

Posted By: Sarcasm Gets Me Hot (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:24 PM

If Jillian didn't get her voice back, than Criss Angel is a saint.

Posted By: Guest#8673 (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:44 PM

RAW
SHOW RATING: 6.0

Impact
SHOW RATING: 3.0
----------------

Okay. I realize these two are not written by the same person, but Jesus Christ. I'm no TNA fan, but to imply that Monday's Raw was THAT much better than Impact is RI-GODDAMN-DICULOUS. While there were definitely some bad segments, Impact featured really the only good wrestling match of the night and plenty of (arguably) exciting moments. There should be some sort of quality control for this column.

Posted By: AsoTamaki (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:50 PM

Impact was so much better than Raw was as the fans voted and TNA just had the better show which was on www.sescoops.com Impact was the better show according to the fans.Ratings wise yes Raw was the big winner 3.4, but Impact just had a better show hands down! TNA just has to keep on the move and business will surely pick up.

Posted By: Sorry Bout ur Damn Luck (Guest) on March 11, 2010 at 11:53 PM

HEATH SLATER absolutely sucks!!! Typically WWE drones love him because he's so goddamn generic and dull. He acts and looks like a high school douche. Danielson's the only genuine thing on NXT.

Posted By: Damninater (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:18 AM

I actually like the orton thing they got going. And big surprise. Larry gave impact a low score. Big surprise.

Posted By: Guest#1760 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:28 AM

It's sad what all-time new lows TNA has reached. Rather contradictory how Dixie Carter went on about TNA going to make history, when they can't not look like WCW version 2.0! Honestly, this poor an episode deserved an equally poor TV rating (as it did).

Posted By: Tyra (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:39 AM

2 weeks ago Impact got a 1
last week a 2
this week a 3

I swear TNA can't do anything right. I'll admit I don't watch TNA. Never did because of its crap but its amazing how terrible the show is CONSTANTLY. How it made it past 2007 is beyond me.

Posted By: Guest#9551 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:42 AM

I heard that 'SD Special Delivery Jones' will get the nod for the HOF. Now that would be so awesome.

Posted By: facemaker (Registered) on March 12, 2010 at 12:52 AM

Wow. That's a ton of wrestling you just covered there. I don't envy you. Keep up the good work.

P.S. I loved the Allied Powers when I was a kid.

Posted By: Justin Weinblatt (Registered) on March 12, 2010 at 01:09 AM

"I hate Criss Angel. I think that he's not all that talented of an illusionist, and I think he's a world-class douche on top of it. He comes across to me like the Pussycat Doll of stage magic: all style, no substance"

This comment is in the Right for me! Dead on my friend!

Posted By: Guest#9268 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 01:34 AM

I actually like the orton thing they got going. And big surprise. Larry gave impact a low score. Big surprise.

Posted By: Guest#1760 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:28 AM

Unless Chad also goes by Larry on the weekends, you look kind of foolish referring to a writer by the name of a writer that hasnt been on this column in months

Posted By: Guest#1828 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 01:55 AM

Raw was okay and average to me and the main event was not that great. The promos were solid but that's about it. You're absolutely wrong about Impact it was a better show overall. The best way to make people to boo Sting is by having him kill Rob Van Dam. Plus Abyss over AJ Styles was the right decision to make. As far as NXT goes, I watched it, and they still really haven't given me a reason to care about the characters except for Daniel Bryan as of yet. I give this column a 4.

Posted By: The Weesel (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 02:45 AM

if anyone thing IMpact did better than a 3 rating ur a fool.. u have to look at the show as a whole to rate it.. and it was horrible.. seriously, the booking on sting/rvd/jeff hardy is so horrible.. u'd think this was the first time these ppl produced a show..

and the worst part of IMpact is hogan.. sadly.. hes so full of himself and has no faith in the show that he has to BOOK HIMSELF AS THE FIRST MATCH OF THE SHOW AND THE LAST MATCH OF THE SHOW...

not only was the matches with hogan and flair so pathetic.. but it was like watching a old school corny WCW match with horrible acting like...

''omg! hogan has his left hand on my head and is winding up to hit me with his left.. the only thing for me to do is just flair my arms and jump up and down and have a big oh no look on my face.."

nigga please..

Posted By: wylu (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 03:23 AM

"I swear TNA can't do anything right. I'll admit I don't watch TNA."

So how the fuck would you know? By reading recaps? Jesus why bother. Go read a book or something instead and leave the wrestling shows to the wresting fans.

Posted By: poffo316 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 03:28 AM

i dont care what you people say, hogan looked really good in the ring. you need to remember he hasnt wrestled in awhile, and has a littler rust, but all in all he held his own.

Posted By: hooks (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 03:45 AM

Looking at the right/wrong breakdown its pretty obvious which show was better. lol.

Posted By: Miz fan (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 04:46 AM

What are you talking about hulk hogan should not be in a wrestling ring?
He should be the tna champion. The problem is they need to get him more involved to get people to tune in.

Posted By: Gerry (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:09 AM

I have a feeling the angle/anderson feud is there just to debut the "No Limit Soldiers" back. Rumor is that it will be led by no other than Ahmed Johnson. There still in talks about Master P making a few apperances.

Posted By: Vic Tomato (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:23 AM

"I hated them teasing that the Manimal wasn't getting involved when we all knew he was."

*****************

No.... they teased that Batista wouldn't INTERFERE. And he DIDN'T. He was the last wrestler in the gauntlet. That's NOT interference.

Posted By: Insider (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:34 AM

the best two segements of tna are under ridiculous?

and about people "begging" hulk not to wrestle. did you hear the hulkamaniacs in the crowd. there would have been a fucking riot if hulk didnt get in there. shit, they should have him win the title from that nobody aj styles, and they would hear the crowd in georgia.

Posted By: 83 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:39 AM

Impact was amuch better show than Raw. What of logic allows someone to say an exciting show is not a good show.

Posted By: Rich (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:39 AM

this column rating: 2.0

Posted By: Guest#2407 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:46 AM

I didn't interpret Batista coming out as the WWE teasing something to swerve us. Rather, I saw it as Batista being a great heel...when can you ever trust the word of a heel? I thought it was great the way he promised he wouldn't get involved, then did it anyway. He's a HEEL...that's what he does.

Also, did you notice how Cena was strong enough to kick out of everyone's finisher, but he couldn't kick out of Batista's? I thought that was subtle but great.

Posted By: DeeRayMoore (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 06:47 AM

Fck Chad Nevett

You are like the typical smark who btch just for the sake for bitching.

Bring back Wilcox.

And the thougth of this live show being worse than January 4th is stupid, and you are clearly a jackass.

Posted By: FckChad Nevett (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 07:12 AM

Come on dude. I get tired of reading people's comments against TNA and can't wait for the columnists to tell them how it really is. Then you give the obviously more entertaining show the lowest rating while giving NXT the highest? Now I see where they get it from. You guys are making all of these comments this way because they just repeat what you say.

Not a single writer can point out RVD is the only person over enough to turn Sting heel? That's still bad for TNA but it's true and obvious. Hogan can't do it because of their past animosity. That debut was the only possible chance to make the super over Sting look like an asshole. He ruined the moment they all wanted to see.

Angle got to get one up on Anderson while also popping a target demographic which is the military and patriotic people. A great face should be able to sick fans on their opponent. Why not? They would have that power. Steal it Russo!

The opening segment had Sting finally confronting Hulk Hogan in an awesome fashion. Sting ruined Hogan's big moment just like Hogan did to WCW all those times. Revenge is sweet. At the same time it teased a possible alliance with AJ and Flair even though Sting didn't directly acknowledge them. I thought the biggest story all along was gonna be Sting's reaction and it was better than expected. He didn't cut a promo. He came out swinging and teased at the same time. The Wrong? I don't get it.

The Ri-GodDamn-Diculous. They're cementing the fact that Hogan physically shouldn't be in the ring anymore and that he's not going to get in the ring anymore. This is needed and I thought everyone would let out a sigh of relief over this. Instead everyones still complaining. You get mad when they don't explain something and you get mad when they do. Perfect explanation by the way. I won't defend Hogan's ability. He has no right to be in a ring. The story is the truth, why not use it?

I know you're a critic but step away from that for a minute. Impact was more fun. Let your column reflect that side of it as well.

Posted By: Burnout (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 08:18 AM

main complaint with TNA is the champion. with some of the talent in that company its hard to see how aj is the best to carry the load. i think they would be better off if sting, angle or hogan was champ.

Posted By: Spike (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 08:25 AM

Eve is in no way the best choice to push for a fresh divas contender. Even the Bella twins, for all the criticism they get, don't botch as many moves as Eve when they have a match, they're also more over than her. Kelly should be pushed as top babyface, she's the most popular.

Posted By: Guest#5191 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 08:31 AM

"Here, they looked—well, not like main eventers, but hardly weak either."

Not for me - I'm a casual WWE fan and after seeing those mid card guys fail to keep 1 single human down for 3 tiny seconds. It just left me thinking 'well why should I care about those guys now? Those guys couldn't keep 1 guy down with everyone elses help... why would i believe they're capable of keeping someone else down on their own now?'.

Posted By: hmmm (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 08:32 AM

Eve is in no way the best choice to push for a fresh divas contender. The Bella twins, for all the criticism they get, don't botch as many moves as Eve when they have a match, they're also more over than her. Kelly should be pushed as top babyface, she seems to be the only one people really care about.

Posted By: Guest#8785 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 08:36 AM

"A persona and a look only does so far..."

We're talking about the WWE here. Thats the two main things they look for. In ring ability takes a back seat and is a plus but nothing special to them.

Posted By: IWC Member #23495867 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 09:00 AM

I thought the 3way for the Knockout tag title and the Young/Waltman stuff was the best part of iMPACT!

TBP should've been the first champions for those belts. Face it, as "good in the ring" as the rest of the Knockouts are praised, they are duller than dishwater. You can't blame that on TNA because if you aren't showing personality in the ring, why would you want to waste a backstage segment? The match it self was very simple. You had the heels who "can't wrestle" going over because they are covering their weakness by doing some cheatin'.

And Waltman vs Young should've been longer. I am not one to complain about match length, but damn they missed the boat on that one. It seems like it has been forever since there was a match in a feud that made sense. They didn't try to do backflips and wristlocks. They FOUGHT. Nothing fancy about it with the only move being the piledriver and it really put over how much those two dudes hate each other.

Posted By: Eboney (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 09:01 AM

Im digging NXT. Darren Young does need a new persona and I think they are going to do that. When CM Punk became his pro I could see that happening. He will be converted to the SES. I think it can work in his favor having the awesome CM Punk by his side.

Bryan Daniel..Daniel Bryan...whatever..He looks great out there and is a very polished wrestler. Im looking forward to him getting better promos which is why The Miz is there. Like him or now, Miz can work a mic.

NXT is quickly becoming my favorite wrestling show. It's simplistic wrestling with simple storylines. Exactly what pro wrestling should be. More focus is in the ring then in their 'personal' lives. I like that a lot.

Posted By: RazzleDazzle (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 09:15 AM

Lots of different views of the "monday night wars". To be honest, I think if u watched it as a smark u'll find everything to complain about, but if u watched it as just a fan, u'd actually be able to enjoy urself.

I'll be the first to admit that while I thought impact was the more exciting show, they can't continue to offer surprise debuts. They have to establish a formula of wrestling and entertainment that can consistently be better than wwe in order to succeed.

That being said I thought the Sting return and turn was a good moment. Really set the tone for the rest of the night as the crowd went nutzo for Sting. Sting looked like a badass and I don't think he's necessarily alligned himself with flair and aj. It's something where we'll have to see where it goes. He's definitely not alligned with dixie who tried to get her little bit of revenge by sicking rvd on him. Rvd got a quick pin, the crowd ate it up, I marked, and then sting did what a badass does and proceeded to beat him down. Some peopke hated it, I think it helped sets up for things down the road.

Hogan and flair looked pretty good out there. I'm not clamoring to see them again, but I liked that they had people trying to talk hogan out of fighting. There was a point in the match where I couldn't help but mark out, when hogan had flair on the outside and was giving him rapid fire right hands and they cut to brooke hogan with the "holy shit" look on her face. I think the skits where they had people doubting hogan really played into the emotion of this match.

Posted By: bighustle (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 09:45 AM

"Yes, all of you people who have been complaining about me calling them "Priceless" can rest easy…at least for this week. We'll see how my mood changes next week, they may just become Flabberscnackle."

Nah, lets go with the 'still hilarious when I hear it' name of "double-trouble crap on a stick"

Posted By: The_Mystical_Ninja (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 09:55 AM

Raw two times better than impact? hahaha you're kidding right? Keep your day job you're gonna need it. Can anyone tell me where I can find a wrestling website where the writers aren't pro-wwe and anti-tna? Just give them a freakin chance. Hire me and I am going to write great objective wrestling articles. Sorry about your damn luck!!!

Posted By: dalpe (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 10:01 AM

I was surprised to hear Triple H reference his match with the Ultimate Warrior as I thought that was going to be quietly arrays from history at some point but it worked quite well here. Now if we can only have a repeat of that match with Triple H obliterating Sheamus and sending him back down to FCW until he can actually bring something to the table.

Posted By: Guest#7446 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 10:32 AM

You people are fools.

FIRST - TNA isn't booking for the IWC and that is RIGHT. We are the loud minority but, as has been proven, we don't generate ratings, period. TNA is looking to use it's recognizable names to draw people. That's smart booking, and they just went against Raw this week so sure, the rating wasn't great, but it didn't drop as bad as it could have.

Second - RVD WON. He beat Sting, a man with as good a history as anyone.. and Sting is in a position where that didn't set well so yes, he beat him down. It makes sense - what you people want is for RVD to come in, pin AJ Styles and be the new champ... that's poor booking. This way he has a feud with Sting, BOTH guys looked good (who the hell doesn't get beat down if getting hit with a bat - and Rob sold it perfectly).

You all need to stop taking yourselves so freaking seriously. It's entertainment.

Posted By: Guest#6269 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 10:45 AM

"RVD boosted the ratings to a solid 1.07. Seriously, fans have been clamoring for Rob Van Dam to return to the WWE or TNA, for Mr. Monday Night to put on a great show every Monday night, and this is it?"

Just because the same 10 dudes keep commenting about RVD on this website, it does NOT mean fans are clamoring for anything.

Big picture: Guys like RVD, Booker T, Eddie Guerrero, Arn Anderson, Jeff Jarrett, Owen Hart, William Regal, etc were all very good in the ring but they never popped ratings or earned a ton of money for the company they worked for. Their "popularity" is something created right here on the internet.

Posted By: Just Saying (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 10:54 AM

Here is why TNA fails. From Mike Tenay himself: "We haven't seen Shanoon Moore in several MONTHS. We last saw him in January"...... that was several WEEKS ago. And he does this all the time! Give me Vintage Cole. At least he can use a calendar.

Posted By: RingOtaku (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 11:01 AM

I don't understand why the TNA guys don't get why Sting/RVD was a HUGE waste. For anyone who's followed Sting's career, every time he's had a heel turn it ends poorly. Sting just reads Heel 101, yells a lot, and does Cheap Thing A and Heel Thing B. By having him kill RVD, yes he got heat for the night. But where does that take us a couple months from now? A month? How about two weeks? Sting can't sustain heel heat; history proves that. Why does Sting need to be heel? Why doesn't he just be untrustworty of him and do the whole "watch from the rafters" thing he did on January 4th? By killing RVD, they wasted a perfectly good entrance by a legend who can actually contribute to the company with actual wrestling. TNA has lots of legends, but they don't got many that can still deliver in the ring. Why not have RVD and Hardy trade the X-division title back and forth while taking on other guys and elevating them? Pointless, and indicative of TNA looking for the cheap payoff when the long-term payoff would mean so much more. The only way this could make sense is if Sting is "sticking up for the original TNA" by destroying Hogan and all the guys he's bringing in. Still, even if that is so, there are better ways to go about it. Impact deserved that rating; you always smell shit before you smell roses.

Posted By: ThePants (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 11:15 AM

At least Chad gave TNA a higher rating than it earned in the Neilsons. Zing!!

Posted By: Squid Vicious (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 11:20 AM

Dear Jeremy Thomas,

If you could go ahead and replace the picture on the front page of Vince McMahon holding John Cena's leg with a picture that does not look gay, that would be great.

Thanks.

Your friend,

Chico

Posted By: Chico (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:22 PM

Yeah, Jericho was awesome on NXT. "Did you see that?! That is my influence, right there!!" And then his rookie takes the pinfall. LMAO!

Posted By: JMAC (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 01:17 PM

How is Impact a 3.0? When yourself said that it was an exciting show and it was voted the best show by the fans on Monday night? And Jeremy i think that Chris Angel is a douche bag. But we each have our own opinions. And they need to get rid of Hornswoggle fast. He's not doing anything anymore just stands around.

Posted By: Guest#3450 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 01:38 PM

I love how for all the IWC's self proclaimed intelligence and knowledge of the business, no one seems to get the RVD thing. It wasn't so much about him as it was about getting Sting to be seen as a heel by the fans by destroying the super over face. And then Hogan being a fellow face came out to try and help RVD. Perfectly logical, sensible booking.

Posted By: Guest#1397 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 12:09 AM

Wrong. RVD is a big name and a future attraction who can and should main event TNA shows. The very fact that it "wasn't about him" is the problem...RVD shouldn't be looking like a bitch on his first night in the company and he shouldn't be treated as an afterthought.

Posted By: Jason (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 06:36 AM

Sorry Jason, you are totally wrong. The person to take the beat down from Sting HAD to be someone like RVD. A Star that people were begging to see and wanted to cheer. Clearly even you will remember who Sting beat down on the first Monday night Impact so it had the effect it was supposed to. And what should have happened? Sting starts beating down RVD after losing to him (Yes RVD GOT THE WIN)and... no one comes out? Why wouldn't Hogan come out? Sting just blasted him with the bat as well. And does the rest of the TNA brass want Hogen to get in the ring to get injured by Sting? No, so make sure he does not get in there. Send security down to protect your big name investment. I thought it made sense. I thought it all made sense and worked for getting everyone (even RVD) over as to their roles. Hogan=face that many in the company want to stay out of the ring/not get hurt. RVD= new baby face who can beat anyone, including a former TNA champ. Sting= big time heal who not only hates Hogan, but will take insult at anyone pinning him to the point of beating them over and over again with his bat. And finally Hardy= someone who can be part of the title scene immediately on his return to TNA.

Posted By: Peter (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 02:26 PM

Eve f'ed on one dropkick (partly Alicia on that too) and the whole world is coming down on her, the Bellas', seriously they've been treated like escorts and not more over than her and Kelly/Maryse has been tried out before last ear, so like it or not Eve is here to stay, I guess Eve should have dyed her hair blonde and look like she belong on Br@zzers.com for everyone to oversee her suckiness (cough*Maryse*cough)

Posted By: What are you talking about (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 03:12 PM

Love how you put "Did You Know?" in the "Wrong" section of RAW every week, exactly where it belongs.

Now that Impact is on Mondays, can you do the same every time Bubba the Hack Mancow Sponge waddles his way on screen?

Posted By: Brad B (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 03:24 PM

this column rating: 2.0

Posted By: Guest#2407 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:46 AM

YEAH! You reading this 411 writers? Some nobody called Guest#2407 rates your column with a 2.0!

OH NOES!

Posted By: A-Ron (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 03:32 PM

X-Division was the highest match rating? Really?
Bottom line is people watch TNA to see Hulk Hogan. Thats it.

Posted By: Volume pilss work (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 04:28 PM

im surprised people actually watched raw this week. impact was the far surperior show. if tna can keep the momentum moving, they should be pulling even by the end of the year. as long as they do what there doing and focus on guys like hogan,flair,angle,rvd,sting,jarrett...you know guys the fans actually can give a fuck about.

Posted By: Guest#2332 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 04:34 PM

Raw sucked this week unless you love old highlights.
Tna used RVD wrong. They should have him win the title from aj. Then have rvd lose it to sting at the ppv. leaving hogan to chase through the spring.

Posted By: nookie b (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 04:43 PM

I've really been liking NXT, but I'm wondering how much of the rookies promos are scripted? I ask because I felt Heath Slater has shown better than he did this week, and it really sounded like he was reading from a card.

Posted By: Cyrith (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 05:34 PM

COLE: Why don't you just join us on commentary?

JERICHO: MAYBE I SHOULD!!!! MAYBE I SHOULD!!!

The only extra thing I could have asked for, was for Y2J to call him "Mitchell" again.

Posted By: JSN (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 07:04 PM

Hi, I never commented before but I had to comment on last Monday's IMPACT. First off, let me say that I have been a long time WWE mark, that being said, last Monday I watched IMPACT more that RAW and really enjoyed it even with all the issues people have commented on. That being said I did find one thing really strange and incomprehensible.

After RVD won and Sting started hitting him with the bat a couple of refs came out to stop him and they ran away (I guess because he hit them also). I understand this much but what I cant understand is why was security holding on to Hogan only. I think there were about 10 security guards holding on to Hogan and stopping him from going to the ring while no one was stopping a guy with a bat hitting an injured unarmed man. Couldn't at least half of the security people gone into the ring to stop Sting.

Even stranger was the fact that the security was actually holding on to Hogan while Sting hit him with the bat not once but twice and nobody stopped him.

I cant quite understand the reason why nobody tried to stop Sting. Wouldn't it have been more interesting if the security had at least tried to stop or hold Sting also......

Posted By: Guest#8939 (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 07:37 PM

todays monday night wars are staring to look like the U.S.A. v.s Grenada in 1982-83. I hate to tell you Brother, but Hulkster has always sucked. But now he's so old when he rips his t-shirt he also shit's his pants and forgets who he is for an hour. All the Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair feud is missing is Roddy Piper and Arn Anderson. Although a Russo swerve involving a stole softener on a pole match could be just what T.N.A. needs to really take the lead in the war. Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker are both getting up there in age as well, but Hulk and Flair need to wake up and smell the prune juice, 1994 was 16 years ago[and the shit was old and tired then]. i would not want to ever deny a part of my childhood a living but seriously guys use A.J. and Abyss as proxy's and get involved vicariously. maybe a slap in the face or a steel post to one of the stand ins would be more than o.k.. Take a page from Fritz Von Erich and verne Gagne or even Dusty Rhodes for that matter. pick fights and have younger dudes do the fighting you know...just like in real life

Posted By: Jeff Albertson (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 08:00 PM

"Flabberscnackle" doesn't really fit.(That caught me off guard. LOL!) I like "The Family Business". What I remember most about RAW were certain performances. Mark Henry was PERFECT in his role. "You owe me a Travis Tritt CD!" made me feel a lot better about Skip Sheffield being good for some laughs. Santino jumping during the "trick" shows just how great he is. Sometimes, it's the small things that get you.

Posted By: The Great Capt. Smooth (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 10:41 PM

Sorry Jason, you are totally wrong. The person to take the beat down from Sting HAD to be someone like RVD. A Star that people were begging to see and wanted to cheer. Clearly even you will remember who Sting beat down on the first Monday night Impact so it had the effect it was supposed to. And what should have happened? Sting starts beating down RVD after losing to him (Yes RVD GOT THE WIN)and... no one comes out? Why wouldn't Hogan come out? Sting just blasted him with the bat as well. And does the rest of the TNA brass want Hogen to get in the ring to get injured by Sting? No, so make sure he does not get in there. Send security down to protect your big name investment. I thought it made sense. I thought it all made sense and worked for getting everyone (even RVD) over as to their roles. Hogan=face that many in the company want to stay out of the ring/not get hurt. RVD= new baby face who can beat anyone, including a former TNA champ. Sting= big time heal who not only hates Hogan, but will take insult at anyone pinning him to the point of beating them over and over again with his bat. And finally Hardy= someone who can be part of the title scene immediately on his return to TNA.

Posted By: Peter (Guest) on March 12, 2010 at 02:26 PM

Again, missing the point. Sting being back is great and all, although it does add another past his prime wrestler to the already bloated roster... And yes, his heel turn is going to be pretty much impossible, since the TNA fans consider him a legend, and therefore he absolutely did need to go piss on the hottest debut of the night to get any heel heat.

The problem is that RVD's debut is/should be a huge deal, and having him get more wrestling time and perhaps picking up a mic, would have made for great entertainment. His appearance was the only thing that really got me excited throughout the show, and the excitement was killed in 15 seconds. IMO, this angle spoiled the debut, and really brought down the entertainment value of the show--I'd boo that too, but from being pissed off at being cheated out of the RVD return, not from Sting returning to a heel swerve.

Posted By: Joe Schmoe (Registered) on March 13, 2010 at 01:50 AM

"the fact that security held back Hogan yet watched on and Sting beat the shit out of RVD with a bat. That's some intelligent writing."

Well yeah, it is - cause the guy had a baseball bat in his hand. Would you try and get in there?!

Posted By: kliq316 (Guest) on March 14, 2010 at 08:54 AM