IMPACT! Wrestling Review - February 11, 2020

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Michel Elgin def. Eddie Edwards in Match #2 in the Best of 5 Series

Edwards and Elgin have proven with their series of matches over the last month and a half that their chemistry is second to none and this was yet another example of that. Part of me loved the idea for this to be positioned as the opener because of how it kicked off the night on a high note. On the flip side, nothing else on the show came close to topping it. Nonetheless, this was was very well wrestled and excellent all around. Elgin leads the series 2-0. I think it's safe to assume Edwards will bounce back to even it up in the next two matchups.

Madman Fulton def. Daga

Fulton has slowly but surely been coming into his own as a performer lately, which has been nice to see. IMPACT doesn't have many true monsters, so he fills that role well. I wasn't high on how he lost decisively to Ken Shamrock at Hard to Kill, but this was effective in re-establishing him as a dominant force. He and Daga produced a perfectly solid match where the right man went over.

Fallah Bahh def. Impact World Tag Team Champion Ethan Page

TJP and Bahh are back together and the world is right again. It looks like Bahh and TJP are headed for an opportunity at the Impact World Tag Team Championship based off Bahh's victory here, which I think is a great idea. The North have already beaten everyone else in the division, so a mini feud with Bahh and TJP could be fun. This was too short to be anything remarkable, but it was fine while it lasted.

Rob Van Dam def. Joey Ryan

As refreshing as RVD has been as a heel, the excessive amount of interference of Katie Forbes ruins most matches he has. It doesn't help that I'm not a fan of Ryan's act, so you could only imagine how little I enjoyed this outing. It contained way too much crap and none of it stuck. Ryan's penis shtick got old years ago and I'm shocked IMPACT thinks it's still relevant enough to feature on their programming. This sucked.

Desi Hit Squad def. Johnny Swinger and Willie Mack

I'm a simple man: Once I hear Desi Hit Squad's entrance music, I immediately lose interest. I can't believe they're still on the show as much as they are. They have no redeeming qualities and their matches are almost always a chore to sit through. This was no exception. I'm a fan of Mack, but even he couldn't salvage this, especially since Swinger was in there for most of the three minutes. A Mack vs. Swinger feud does nothing for me.

Jordynne Grace def. Taya Valkyrie to Win the Impact Knockouts Championship

These two have had a handful of matches against each other over the past year, but if my memory serves me correctly, all of them were bogged down by shenanigans. Sadly, that was what happened here as well, but at least the drama and suspense were there with the title being up for grabs and it being the main event. Valkyrie is a better heel than she is a face, but her matches have been way worse as champion than they were when she was chasing the title. Hopefully Grace's reign is better because she's terrific. I'm glad she finally got her moment.

Overall Show

Valkyrie losing her title after a year-long reign was the most newsworthy thing on this show, and not even that match is worth seeking out in my opinion. The only must-see match on this edition of IMPACT! Wrestling was Edwards vs. Elgin, as everything was either decent or below average. As I've said before, this taping from Mexico has not been entertaining at all. I'm ready for things to pick back up once it's over. Any momentum IMPACT gained from the Hard to Kill pay-per-view is long done.