WrestleRant
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact
Picture

TNA Impact Wrestling Review - January 19, 2016

1/19/2016

0 Comments

 
PictureEC3 takes down Matt Hardy.
By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Tyrus Interrupted The Hardy Boyz

As I've mentioned in the past, Jeff Hardy has never been the strongest mic worker, but he played his role well here, as did Matt and Tyrus. Keeping the interaction between The Hardy Boyz brief was smart as their next face-off should be even more interesting. There was plenty of foreshadowing for what would happen later on in the main event, which I liked. There will those who say it was made to be too obvious, but some of the best things in wrestling and storytelling in general have seeds planted ahead of time.


Jeff Hardy def. Tyrus by Disqualification

I noted last week that Hardy looked to be 100 percent coming off his recent layoff, but this match barely went more than a few minutes before it abruptly ended. At first, I thought the match ended with Hardy falling off the top rope was an accident, but it appeared to be angle based off the backstage segment we got later on with Jeff, Matt and Reby Sky. In that case, Tyrus targeting the leg of Jeff was well done. It's a shame he hasn't been built up to mean more prior to this (his Bound for Glory win notwithstanding), but this was a step in the right direction.

Knockouts Champion Gail Kim def. Awesome Kong

These two have so much history dating back to 2007 and I was glad that was touched upon before the bout. However, what was the rush in giving away this match on TV so soon? Kong became the No. 1 contender a little less than two weeks ago, and unless there's a plan to push someone else toward title contention (and I have zero idea who since the Knockouts roster is limited at the moment), it was a head-scratching decision. That aside, Kim and Kong contested one of their better matches in some time (definitely more enjoyable than their Bound for Glory outing) and the interference from The Dollhouse and The Beautiful People only added to it. I wouldn't have had Kim beat Kong so decisively because I'm not sure how they get to a rematch now.


Beer Money def. Eli Drake and Jessie Godderz

Drake and Godderz were hardly a threat to Beer Money, but I'm invested in whatever Beer Money is involved in because they're such a fun tandem. Drake and Godderz weren't completely squashed and at least they scored some offense before ultimately doing the job. The Wolves vs. Beer Money is a, pardon the pun, a money match and I can't wait for when that eventually comes to fruition. Hopefully they build to it properly.


Lashley Challenged Kurt Angle

There really weren't many people on the current TNA roster that jumped out at me as obvious final opponents for Angle other than maybe Jeff Hardy, but Lashley is a fitting adversary. I really liked how Lashley brought up their series of title matches from last year and even how Angle played a factor in him breaking into the business when he did. He also addressed how he has yet to beat Angle and that has eaten away at him, so that will make their match all the more meaningful. Needless to say, this was one of Lashley's best promos in recent memory.


Mike Bennett def. Pepper Parks

I became a big fan of Bennett's during his time in Ring of Honor and was excited to see him make the jump to TNA. This was a fine first match for him, but I can't say I'm enthralled with the new "miracle" gimmick. I just don't see how fans can get behind it, or boo him, rather. It's very Chris Jericho 2007-esque, and I'm not saying it's a ripoff gimmick, but I don't how well it will work as a heel. Why not go the simple route and have him use Maria, his hot wife, to garner heat? That's what worked for him in the past.


Matt Hardy def. Ethan Carter III in a Title vs. Career Last Man Standing Match to Win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship

I'd have to go back and watch their matches from last summer to compare whether it was the best of the bunch of not, but as a standalone matchup, this was excellent. Not only was the in-ring action entertaining, but the character development and even the commentary were exceptionally executed. EC3 didn't do anything up until the end that made him look sympathetic, but Hardy's minor mannerisms such as getting increasingly more violent and delivering a low blow to EC3 were superb. Could the heel turn have been seen coming? Sure, but that's why I think it was so great (it reminded me of Christian in 2011). I don't know how Hardy paid Tyrus more money than EC3 could have considering the latter is loaded, but maybe that will become clearer in the weeks to come, along with when Tyrus' title shot comes now. Technically, this marked EC3's first singles defeat, but he remains unpinned, so that was a very nice touch. Finally, Hardy's post-match promo was fantastic. It was actually his heel run back in 2009 that endeared him to me as a fan, so I'm excited for what's in store for his reign and will certainly withhold further judgement as to whether it was the right move to make until we see how it plays out.


​Overall Show

I had heard overly negative feedback regarding the main event when it was taped two weeks ago, but it was better than I expected it to be and I'm a fan of the new direction. That said, it's all about the aftermath and only time will tell what will come of it. Meanwhile, the rest of the show held up fairly well with a well-wrestled women's match, a opening match that at first disappointed me but later made sense, a fun tag team squash and a strong talking segment. This was undoubtedly TNA's best show by far since coming to Pop TV, so here's hoping they can keep the momentum going.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.


    Categories

    All
    #AskGSM
    Battle Of The Belts
    Cruiserweight Classic
    Halftime Heat
    Hidden Gems
    Interviews
    Lists/Rankings
    Mae Young Classic
    Mixed Match Challenge
    News
    NJPW
    NWA Shockwave
    NXT PLEs
    Opinion
    Previews
    Retro Reviews
    Reviews
    RJ's Two Cents
    Satire
    Slammy Awards
    SNME
    SummerSlam Recall
    The Deadly Draw
    The World Is A Vampire
    Tribute To The Troops
    Women's Eliminator
    Worlds Collide
    WrestleMania Recall
    WWE Draft
    WWE Network Specials
    WWE PLEs
    WWE Starrcade


    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010

    RSS Feed

©2025 WrestleRant. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • Columnist Corner
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Audio
  • Videos
  • Store
  • About
  • Contact