Impact Wrestling Review - May 18, 2017

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Impact Wrestling World Tag Team Champions LAX def. Laredo Kid and Garza Jr in a GFW World Tag Team Championship Tournament First Round Match (Non-title)

It was a refreshing change of pace to have a match kick off the show, and a good one at that. These two teams work well together, so well that I wish they didn't face off in the first round of this tournament. LAX should have won this because they're title holders, but Kid and Garza could have gone a little further in the tourney as well. Nevertheless, this was an enjoyable outing and I hope we see more of them against each other down the road. By the way, who the cares about having GFW World Tag Team Champions when we already have Impact Wrestling World Tag Team Champions? Is there really a need to have two sets of tag titles?

Kongo Kong def. Braxton Sutter

Of course, Sutter was Kong's most notable opponent to date, but I liked how it actually wasn't a competitive contest. I don't think Sutter lost anything in coming up short as quickly as he did, and if anything, it made Kong look more like a monster. This was best kept brief and Kong benefited from the decisive victory. Plus, they set up a tag team match afterward for next week with Mahabali Shera and Sutter teaming up to take on KM and Kong.

James storm def. Ethan Carter III by Disqualification

Although this was a solid match, it was weird to go from EC3 brutally battering Storm last week to having a standard singles match this week. Where was the fire? The non-finish was fine to keep the feud alive and it's possible they're holding off until a grudge match at some point, but it looks like they're headed in a different direction with Magnus and Storm. Either way, Bruce Prichard announced a three-way match for next week with Magnus, Storm and EC3.

GFW Women's Championship Sienna def. ODB

Similar to how Marshe Rockett randomly received a shot at the Impact Grand Championship last week, what the hell did ODB do to deserve a GFW Women's Championship match? They should really do a better job of explaining these things. ODB, as a character, is a guilty pleasure mine, but she's barely average in the ring and thus it was wise to have this match last only a few minutes.

Jeremy Borash Reintroduced Joseph Park as His Attorney

Surprise surprise, the never-ending Borash vs. Josh Mathews feud continues, and I still couldn't care less about it. On the bright side, Joseph Park is back for the first time in years, so he could be a treat. I loved his work from five years ago, so we'll see how that translates to this program. I don't think it will make Borash vs. Mathews any more bearable, but it's an effective use of Abyss now that Crazzy Steve is gone from the company and Decay is no more.

X-Division Champion Low Ki def. Trevor Lee and Andrew Everett in a Three-Way Ultimate X Match

I criticized the decision last week to hold an Ultimate X match because it feels forced at this point, but I'm glad they didn't add any unnecessary competitors per usual. It was perfect with just Low Ki, Lee and Everett and they put together an excellent match with solid storytelling from Low Ki selling his hand injury to the bad blood between Lee and Everett. Even Shane Gregory Helms played his small role well. Low Ki can be a real difference maker in this division, so him retaining the title was logical.

Overall Show

The last few editions of Impact Wrestling didn't light the world on fire, but this was a pretty entertaining episode in my opinion, especially because of the opening and closing matches, which you should check out. Granted, the Borash and Mathews garbage is still the worst thing on the show, but hey, at least Joseph Park has returned! I should also commend Impact Wrestling for confirming three marquee matches for next week's episode, something they did exceptionally well last year.