Impact Wrestling Review - March 23, 2017

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Davey Richards def. Suicide

While I honestly couldn't care less about the Suicide character returning, it was weird for him to lose his first two matches back. That said, I don't desire to see him get pushed, so he's fine in an enhancement role. He was able to incorporate a few of his signature spots, but the match was all about Richards as it should have been. He has done well with his new heel character thus far and I enjoy his pairing with Angelina Love. They do a great job of making fans hate them.

Shera, Laredo Kid and Garza Jr def. Idris Abraham, Fallah Bahh and Mario Bokara

I was initially skeptical about how well this match would go over when three of the combatants were total unknowns and two of the other three just debuted last week, but this turned into a really fun match. Abraham, Bahh and Bokara all impressed in their own way and each of them were given time to shine. Shera does zero for me, but Kid and Garza are great and Garza is especially entertaining to watch. The simultaneous moonsaults at the end were crazy cool. They're a part of the tag team title chase, so it was logical for their team to go over.

Reno Scum def. Decay

Reno Scum haven't stood out in a major way for me yet, but the finisher they used in this match was sweet. Other than that, the match was decent. I just don't understand why Decay are being cast aside for Reno Scum. I appreciate the influx of fresh faces, but it should not come at the expense of the current talent. Decay are an excellent act, and if the idea is to split them up, that would be the worst possible thing they can do.

Impact Grand Champion Moose vs. Eli Drake Went to a No Contest

Moose might have been on that list Cody put out on his Twitter last year following his WWE release of people he wanted to work with, so it's great they're finally feuding in Impact Wrestling. It's been built up extremely well so far with Cody effectively eliciting boos from the crowd by attacking Moose from behind, making fans want to see the match that much more. As for Drake, it's a shame he has come across as an afterthought so far since the new management took over. He deserves a lot better than that because he has plenty of potential.

LAX def. The DCC

I've been digging this new incarnation of LAX with a mix of old and new blood in it. While the match wasn't anything out of the ordinary, it was successful in establishing the stable and the fans were behind them throughout. As for The DCC, it was high time the group went their separate ways because they haven't clicked from the moment they came together. James Storm is way better off on his own as a singles babyface and thankfully that appears to be the direction they're headed in.

Bruce Prichard Interviewed Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Lashley

Anyone who still thinks Lashley can't speak needs to check out this interview because he was amazingly well-spoken here. What he said about the Olympics and everything else was also moving and made me question whether he was turning babyface. He was booked to look like a heel in the subsequent squash match, so I'm not sure what this interview was supposed to accomplish. In fact, fans know a lot less about Prichard than they do Lashley, so why isn't he being profiled the same way?

Impact Wrestling World Heavyweight Champion Lashley def. JAke Holmes (Non-title)

Holmes never stood a chance. This was a straightforward squash match for the champion, and again, Lashley was definitely a heel here by how he wanted to continue the contest even when it was clear that Holmes was down and out. Alberto El Patron was nowhere to be seen on this show, but I assume the title rematch will take place at some point in the near future.

Ethan Carter III and Josh Mathews Interrupted Karen Jarrett

I personally don't need to see Karen Jarrett back as a regular on TV, but I'd be lying if I said she didn't receive a star-level reaction from the fans here, so that was pleasantly surprising. She's also apparently a babyface, and she is considerably more tolerable in that role than she is as a heel. Hopefully it stays that way. Mathews getting in her face was whatever, but EC3's promo was wonderful. He's obviously turning heel soon and I'm interested to see whether he will blame the Jarretts for pushing his "aunt" out of power.

Overall Show

There wasn't a single match on this show that I thought was great, but the in-ring action on the whole was damn good. With more tag team matches than usual, they built toward next week's tag team title match, and the sit-down interview with Lashley was a refreshing change of pace. Additionally, Karen Jarrett's return made this a newsworthy night, and there are a few different storylines that are piquing my interest at the moment. The reboot episode two weeks back was a disappointment, but the last two shows have been a step in the right direction for the company.