IMPACT! Wrestling Review - June 14, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Eddie Edwards Attacked Tommy Dreamer

Grado was scheduled to make an appearance to open the show, but Edwards attacked him and called out Dreamer instead after what happened at the end of last week's episode. I'n not sure if he's a full-fledged heel yet (I wouldn't say so), but he's well on his way because of his obsession with killing Sami Callihan. Few wrestlers in the business can cut a more passionate promo than Dreamer, and Edwards has never been the best talker yet he has become one through this storyline, so I thought this was a strong segment. A Edwards vs. Dreamer match seems inevitable.

Taya Valkyrie def. Rebel

I could have done without Rebel returning to IMPACT, if only because she was never really that good to begin with and apparently hasn't improved much in her time away. That said, I'm fine with this being a one-off for her, being brought in simply to put over Valkyrie, who has been spinning her wheels for a few months now. This was a competent contest and I hope this win gets her back on the right track. Her post-match promo indicated Madison Rayne will be her next rival.

Cult of Lee def. Fallah Bahh and K.M.

It looked like K.M. was using Bahh from the get-go, but they were on the same page here and K.M. was genuinely upset after Bahh inadvertently cost them the victory, so I'm not sure what they're supposed to be going for. Nonetheless, this was a fine little match where Bahh largely went for comedy. Aside from K.M. and Bahh breaking up after only a few weeks, this served no purpose.

Moose def. Eli Drake in an Impact World Championship No. 1 Contender's Match

This was one of those matches that was filmed at a different promotion (this time it was House of Hardcore) and most of it aired. From what we saw, it was a pretty solid match, but it lacked any urgency and hardly felt like a shot at the world title shot at Slammiversary was at stake. It didn't help that the crowd was fairly dead, either, so I wish this was better booked so it could have come across as more important.

Tessa Blanchard def. Kiera Hogan in a No Disqualification Match

We already knew Blanchard was a star, but Hogan hasn't been given much of a chance to shine in her handful of appearances on IMPACT!. Thankfully, she look liked an equal to Blanchard here, scored plenty of offense and had a real strong showing. They also didn't go overboard with the stipulation and did enough to make it matter, which I appreciated. Blanchard needed the victory more following her loss to Madison Rayne at Under Pressure.

El Hijo del Fantasma def. JAke Crist

Fantasma is a fun talent to watch in the ring, but this was a meaningless match that didn't need to happen. As a result of it being so short, this wasn't memorable in the slightest and could have been saved for another show where it could have received more time. The only bright side of this was that Pentagon Jr. came out afterward and went face-to-face to Callihan. That feud has the potential to be awesome.

Impact X-Division Champion Matt Sydal def. Brian Cage by Count-out

I was looking forward to the chemistry these two would have because Sydal attempting to escape Cage would have been a blast and the dynamic would have written itself, but it didn't last long before Kongo Kong walked to ringside and cost Cage the championship. I guess those two are primed to be programmed together, and that doesn't interest me at all. Cage is much better than that, so fingers crossed this isn't the last we've seen of him and Sydal against each other.

Overall Show

After the main event, Bahh was shown laid out backstage and Petey Williams was accused of the crime and "arrested" before being attacked by whoever actually did it, leaving us with a cliffhanger. Anyway, IMPACT tends to do a nice job of producing a logical and entertaining show from week to week, but this episode was especially mediocre for whatever reason. Nothing stood out as special outside of the opening segment, so that was a shame. I'll chalk it up to a bad night because IMPACT has been a treat to watch otherwise in recent months.