Views from the Hawke’s Nest: TNA’s Best of 2009

Knockouts Match of the Year
TNA Impact – 7/16/09
Sarita vs. Alissa Flash
Flash is better known by independent wrestling fans as Cheerleader Melissa. She also played the Raisha Saeed character in TNA, but that was obviously not acknowledged here. I believe that Sarita is still in TNA, but frankly I just don’t care enough to go to Wikipedia. Feel free to yell at me in the comments about that. I deserve it.

Sarita pulled off some nifty lucha to start the match, and then she hit an awesome suicide dive. Don’t see that every day. Flash shoved Sarita into a post and then slammed her on the floor. Flash started to get the heat after that. Sarita came back with some kicks and a rolling cross-armbreaker. Flash escaped and hit a curb stomp: 1…2…NO! Flash then hit a wheelbarrow German suplex into the turnbuckle. Out of nowhere, Sarita managed to do a Victory Roll: 1…2…3!

This was better than almost every WWE Divas match that I have seen in the last year (at least). It’s amazing to me that Flash did not get a big push after this performance.
Match Rating: **3/4

IMPACT TV Match of the Year
TNA Impact (Tables Match) – 1/22/09
AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle
These guys have feuded multiple times since Angle joined the company. All of their matches have been varying degrees of good, with some being quite great.

They started out the match by doing a lot of grappling. Always seemed like a strange stategy for tables matches to me. Styles managed to send Angle to the floor and hit a diving forearm off the ring apron. Styles pulled out a table, but Angle rolled back into the ring. After a commercial break, we come back to them in the ring with Angle hitting a big belly to belly suplex and then brought the table into the ring. The table ended up on its side, and then Style crotched Angle on the edge of the table. Styles hit a springboard forearm and set up the table again. Angle avoided a Styles Clash and then Styles avoided an ankle lock and hit the Pele Kick (“OH IT JUST COMES OUT OF NOWHERE MIKE TENAY!”). Styles placed Angle on the table. Styles went for a diving splash, but Angle rolled away, causing Style to hit the table with his head. Angle then hit the Drunk Slam through the table, giving Angle the win. Angle Pilmanized Styles’s ankle after the match and then put on the Ankle Lock.

A tables match is a gimmick that mostly holds back wrestlers, but these guys are so talented that they can still have a fun match. I don’t remember if this was really the best TV match from TNA’s 2009, but it was definitely a good match.
Match Rating: ***1/2

Grudge Match of the Year
TNA Impact (Empty Arena Match) – 2/19/09
Sting vs. Kurt Angle
The great Jeremy Borash, sans cardigan, gets some thoughts from the Wrestling Creatures of the Impact Zone. They like Sting. Is this the infamous Empty Arena match that ends in a ‘No Contest?’

Sting sends Angle to the outside and then screams that he will kill Kurt. These guys are in the same stable by the way. They do a lot of crowd brawling…just without the crowd. Sting sent Angle from the stands onto the concrete floor. It was a stupid spot, but they did it as safely as possible. They get near the ring and Angle begs off. Kevin Nash and Scott Steiner just walk up…in an empty arena match. Angle then asks Sting to hit him, but Nash takes away the chair. Nash then cuts his acting reel promo showing his angry face. Sting and Angle talk it out and shake hands. Angle spits at him and they go at it again. End Scene.

Why the fuck was this on a “Best of” DVD? This match was OK for the gimmick, but that finish was ungodly terrible. Avoid this match even if you acquire this DVD.
Match Rating: *

The last five matches are promoted as the top five matches of 2009 by TNA.

TNA Genesis 1/11/09
Kurt Angle vs. Jeff Jarrett [No Disqualification]
This is the PPV that also has an awesome Sabin vs. Shelley match.

They start brawling in the ring right away. Jarrett gets the advantage first, and he sends Angle to the floor to do more damage. Angle cut him off by sending him into the steel barricade. Back in the ring, Angle held Jarrett down with a chinlock. Jarrett got to his feet, but he ran into an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. Jarrett back body dropped Angle to the floor, and Angle managed to make it seem like an incredible spot, while still doing it safely. Jarrett then hit a running, no-hands dive. Jarrett caught his foot on the ropes, so he and Angle knocked heads on the way down. Angle recovered and hit Jarrett in the face with the ringbell. Jarrett hit Angle with a DDT on the metal stage. They battled on the entrance ramp until Angle gave him the Drunk Slam off the stage and through a table. They managed to crawl back to the ring on their hands and knees. They stumbled to their feet slugged it out. Jarrett hit a pedigree: 1…2…NO! Jarrett went for the Stroke, but Angle reversed it into the Ankle Lock! Jarrett’s face was covered in blood by this point. Jarrett rolled through. Angle grabbed a chair, but Jarrett dropkicked it in Angle’s face. STROKE: 1…2…NO! Angle came back with a missile dropkick and a Drunk Slam: 1…2…NO! Jarrett avoided a charge in the corner and pulled out his guitar. Angle kicked him in the balls though. Angle picked up the guitar and then picked up a chair. He asked the crowd which one he should use. Weird heel-work there. Angle whacked Jarrett in the head with a chair: 1…2…NO! Angle avoids an enzugiri and gets the ankle lock again! Jarrett refused to tap. Jarrett rolled through and got a roll up: 1…2…NO! Angle went for the Drunk Slam, but Jarrett reversed it into a DDT! Jarrett grabbed the chair and gave Angle a protected shot to the head. Jarrett crawls to pin him, but he gets caught with a crucifix pin: 1…2…3!

This was an excellent brawl. The biggest problem with the match is that Jeff Jarrett wasn’t as over as a valiant babyface as I expected/remembered. The finish was also pretty lame. After 20 minutes of violent and bloody brawling, a crucifix pin comes off flat.
Match Rating: ****

TNA Bound For Glory – 10/18/09
Homicide vs. Amazing Red© (w/ Don West) vs. Suicide vs. Alex Shelley vs. Chris Sabin vs. Christopher Daniels (X-Division Title/Ultimate X)
The Pope was supposed to be in this match, but he had a family emergency. So, the Machine Guns defeated Lethal Consequences on the pre-show to qualify for this match. Suicide was Kazarian at this point I believe. Homicide was in Eric Young’s World Elite stable at this point.

The six men paired off at the start. Homicide wiped out Daniels with a tope con hilo. Suicide hit Homicide with a slingshot plancha. Sabin hit Suicide with a suicide dive. Finally, Red gave Daniels a super huricanrana to the competitors to the floor. Homcide and Suicide were both on a cable when Homicide gave him an Ace Crusher to the mat. That must have sucked. The Guns worked together for a bit to get the advantage. Amazing Red managed to beat them down by himself. Homicide went to climb the cable again, but Daniels pulled him down and hit a DVD. Red was climbing the cables, but Suicide took him down with a springboard dropkick. Everybody traded a lot of big moves. That sequence went on for a minute or so until all six men were down. Four of them got to their feet and they did a ridiculously dangerous Tower of Doom spot. Red killed Homicide with a corkscrew moonsault. Suicide killed Sabin with a Flux Capacitor. Suicide, Daniels, and Red climbed the metal structure. Suicide and Daniels met in the middle and teased doing a death suplex to the mat. They both dropped to the cables. One of them did a move to the other that somehow did not kill both of them. The Machine Guns were on the cables, but Red kicked them away and grabbed the belt.

The spot Kaz and Daniels did at the end was really fucking stupid. This was the prototypical spotfest/stunt show that TNA seemingly put on all the time for a while there. It was reckless, but a lot of fun at times. I can see some people loving this, while a lot of other people may hate it. I am somewhere in the middle.
Match Rating: ***1/2

TNA Bound For Glory – 10 /18/09
Sting vs. AJ Styles
Sting had won the world title at the last three Bound For Glory events. I believe Sting was 51 years old at this point.

They went back and forth early, without either man getting a significant advantage. It was all very respectful. Sting sent Styles to the floor, but didn’t attack him. Sting even held the ring ropes open, so Styles could get back in the ring. All right, this respectful thing is being pushed a little too much. Sting hit a couple of bulldogs and a big backdrop. Styles dropkicked Sting who rolled to the floor. Sting then avoided Styles’s diving forearm off the apron, so Styles crashed into the guardrail. Styles then avoided a Stinger Splash from Sting, so that Sting crashed into the guardrail. Styles let Sting collect himself. RESPECT! Styles almost connected with a Tombstone, but Sting reversed it into a Tombstone: 1…2…NO! Styles came back with a springboard forearm. Styles went for his lionsault reverse DDT, but Sting reversed it into the Scorpion Deathdrop. Stinger Splash! Scorpion Deathdrop: 1…2…NO! Sting was slow on the cover. Gotta protect that reverse DDT finish. Sting got the Scorpion Deathlock, but Styles kicked him away. They traded strikes. Sting Stinged up and hit a big lariat: 1…2…NO! They went to the top rope where Styles headbutted Sting down. Styles fell to the apron and hit a Pele Kick. Sting took a Flair Flop. Styles hit a springboard splash: 1…2…3! Taz teased that it was Sting’s last match. He just wrestled in the main events of two 2012 TNA PPVs.

This was the definition of pedestrian for an AJ Styles match. It was fine, but there was nothing really engaging about it beyond the fact that it was the main event of TNA’s biggest PPV of the year. Calling this the third best match of 2009 for TNA seems really silly.
Match Rating: **1/2

TNA Turning Point – 11/15/09
Desmond Wolfe vs. Kurt Angle
The video package before this match actually made me want to see this match more. That is a first for this DVD. Wolfe was of course also known as Nigel McGuinness in Ring of Honor, where he now resides again in the role of color commentator.

They traded holds to start the match, with Wolfe getting the first advantage. Angle came back with a suplex and a backbreaker. Wolfe cut him off with a Divorce Court. Wolfe went to work on Angle’s injured arm after that. Wolfe hit one running European Uppercut, but he then ran into a belly-to-belly suplex from Angle. Angle then hit six rolling German suplexes. Wolfe avoided one Drunk Slam and hit a lariat: 1…2…NO! Wolfe went for a Tower of London, but Angle avoided it and hit the Drunk Slam. Wolfe got another Divorce Court and then locked in the London Dungeon. Angle escaped and got the ankle lock. Wolfe escape and got an oomaplotta. Angle escaped and got another Ankle Lock! Wolfe just made the ropes. Angle went for a Drunk Slam, but Wolfe reversed it into a nifty DDT. Wolfe then hit the Tower of London: 1…2…NO! Wolfe set up for a lariat, but Angle hit one of his own! Angle went for the Moonsault, but Wolfe avoided it. London Dungeon! Angle got his legs on the ropes. Wolfe went for another Tower of London, but Angle struck him down and hit a frog splash: 1…2…NO! They both try to hit a Tombstone, but Angle gets an Ankle lock in the process!. Wolfe escapes, but Angles gets a side Triangle Choke out of nowhere! Wolfe TAPS OUT!

An excellent match that was only hindered by the fact that Wolfe should have won at the time. He was a super hot character when he debuted, but losing his first two TNA PPV matches stalled his momentum. Then his momentum was killed by Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff coming in, but that is a story for a different article. Easily my favorite TNA match of 2009. Seek this match out.
Match Rating: ****1/4

Turning Point – 11/15/09
AJ Styles(c) vs. Samoa Joe vs. Christopher Daniels [TNA World Title]
Neither Daniels, nor Joe was really built up for this match as a believable challenger. Coming out of Bound for Glory, TNA said they just wanted to do a rematch of the greatest match in company history. TNA was such the shits during this time that most people didn’t complain about the lack of build.

Joe was in his shorts/pants phase of his TNA run. This was not good times for Joe. Daniels suckered punch AJ to start the match. Joe got sent to the floor early, and he then tripped up his opponents from the outside to get the advantage. Styles got a Muta Lock on Joe a couple of minutes into the match, but Daniels broke it up. Daniels then got a Boston Crab on AJ, while simultaneously putting a Camel Clutch on Joe. Joe bit his way out of that. Daniels then ran into STJoe. Joe then gave his opponents some brutal facewashes. They teased a number of dives that didn’t happen until Daniels wiped out Joe with a suicide dive. Styles then wiped out both of them with a Fosbury Flop. Back in the ring, Styles hit a springboard hurricanrana on Daniels. Daniels Monkey Flipped Styles; Joe caught Styles and powerbombed him into Daniels. Joe hit the snap powerslam on Styles: 1…2…NO! Daniels hit a DVD on Styles: 1…2…NO! Styles blocked a Daniels suplex and hit a release suplex neckbreaker. Daniels then got caught with the Pele. All three men were down. Styles hit a slingshot senton onto Joe and then a big discus lariat on Daniels. Springboard forearm to Joe: 1…2…NO! Styles got massive height on that. Hurricanrana to Joe: 1…2…NO! Last Rites on Styles: 1…2…NO! Daniels hit a big German on Joe. Joe crotched Daniels on the ropes and hit a Muscle Buster: 1…2…STYLES MAKES THE SAVE! Styles hit a BIG spinning heel kick on Joe. Daniels broke up a Styles Clash attempt. Daniels had Styles ready for a Styles Clash, but Joe superkicked Daniels! Joe gives them both lariats. They come back with a high/low on Joe. Styles and Daniels were on the top rope until Joe brutally chopped Styles to the floor. Daniels avoided a Muscle Buster. BME! Styles with a springboard 450 on both of them! Styles pins Joe: 1…2…3!!!

This didn’t age nearly as well as I expected. At the time, I thought this match was possibly better than their match at Unbreakable 2005. However, upon a second review, this match was clearly a notch or two below that match. That being said, this match was a great main event, and it was a great way to end this DVD.
Match Rating: ****

The 411: TNA has produced a lot of crap over the years, but every once in a while they will produce some great matches on PPV. Three of those matches are on this DVD. I got this DVD through Netflix, and if you have the opportunity to do so, I suggest you take advantage of it. There is some crap that you shouldn't waste your time with, but this DVD was a breeze to watch and I definitely enjoyed it. If you want to sample TNA for free, head over to the TNA section of FreeProWrestling.com.

Final Score:  8.5   [ Very Good ]