TNA Genesis Review - January 13, 2013

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Fine opening match with Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez defeating Joey Ryan and Matt Morgan to successfully retain the World Tag Team Championships. I wasn't interested in this feud at all going into it, so the outcome was pretty predictable. However, the two teams worked well together despite the fact Ryan was nearly seriously injured during the finish. Here's hoping this is the end of the Ryan and Morgan partnership, as both guys could have much brighter futures as singles competitors.

Good match with Mr. Anderson defeating Samoa Joe. Granted, it was added to the card at the last minute and wasn't given enough time to build, but it was still a solid contest nonetheless. The finish was well done in having one of the Aces and 8s members distracting Joe to allow Anderson to pick up the victory.

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Nice match with Christian York defeating Kenny King to become the new number one contender to the X-Division Championship. Kenny has improved immensely since his TNA arrival last year and it's only a matter of time before he's wearing gold around his waist. York's victory over King was a pleasant surprise and had an underdog feel to it.

Fun match with Rob Van Dam defeating Christian York to successfully retain his X-Division Championship. Most of the near-falls were very believable and I had a feeling that York might just win the title. While that wasn't ultimately the case, York had an impressive showing against RVD. York had an out for losing with King attacking him after the match, which allows that feud to continue. My only complaint about this bout was the fact that it happened directly after York vs. King. How is that considered fair if both RVD and York are faces?

Entertaining match with Television Champion Devon defeating Joseph Park. Park continues to be one of the most enjoyable acts in all of the company with his comedic character. Obviously, there wasn't much of a match, but it's fun to see Abyss (who plays Park) act green when he's in the ring. Devon winning made sense and gave him the much-needed victory he's been overdue for.

Decent Knockouts Gauntlet match with Velvet Sky defeating Gail Kim, Mickie James, ODB and Miss Tessmacher to become the new number one contender to the Knockouts Championship. The match was well wrestled and I was surprised to see Kim eliminate three consecutive Knockouts. Sky's time in the ring was limited, which was probably for the best seeing how she isn't the best worker. Her upcoming title feud with Tara is fresh and makes her return to TNA feel meaningless. However, I don't understand the point in protecting Kim with her foot under the rope when the count was made.

Great match with Daniels defeating James Storm to become the new number contender to the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. These two have excellent chemistry with each other and it made for some awesome action. I'm glad to see Daniels finally getting a push into the World title picture, as he's definitely deserving of it. I'm equally as intrigued to see where Storm goes from here.

Meaningless promo from Bully Ray and Brooke Hogan. Sure, it promoted their upcoming wedding on Impact Wrestling, but it was brief and didn't seem to serve a purpose. Of course, this was merely filler that was used to kill time in between matches.

Forgettable match with Sting defeating D.O.C. The match was barely even five minutes and it made D.O.C. (as well as the entire Aces and 8s faction) look weak. There wasn't anything wrong with the wrestling itself, but this was bad booking all around. The Aces and 8s stable is hopeless at this point, and Sting's return to TNA continues to disappoint.

Strong main event match with Jeff Hardy successfully defending his TNA World Heavyweight Championship against Bobby Roode and Austin Aries in a Triple Threat. I throughly enjoyed the non-stop pace and there were many unique spots that kept the crowd alive. It received great time, but I felt as if the elimination of Aries was too rushed after Roode's. Nonetheless, this was a fantastic match where the predictable outcome didn't hinder the bout in the slightest.

Overall, a pretty good show that provided some solid action throughout the action and logical results. This felt like a B-show and understandably so given the lack of the build-up this event received in preceding weeks. While the Impact Zone is usually an overexposed environment, they were a fun crowd on this show. I didn't have high expectations going into Genesis, so those who bought it basically got what they paid for.