TNA Impact Wrestling Review - September 15, 2016

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

​TNA World Heavyweight Champion Lashley and Moose Brawled

Who ever thought that Lashley would be considered the top talker in all of TNA? I don't know if he's the best, but he's most definitely the most entertaining. He cut another excellent promo here and showed awesome intensity. In other news, I completely forgotten Grado was even still part of the roster. That said, he was the perfect person for Lashley to annihilate before brawling with Moose, setting the stage for their segment later on in the evening. I'm actually surprised they're going to this match so soon because it might be better saved until after Bound for Glory.

​
Aron Rex def. Trevor Lee in an Impact Grand Championship Quarterfinal Match

I almost wish Rex didn't debut in such a silly stipulation match and instead worked a standard singles match. I realize it works for MMA, but not so much for pro wrestling. The separate rounds interrupt the flow of a match, so they're unable to consistently tell a story throughout. On the bright side, Lee is a really good wrestler, so they had a nice little match stupid stipulation aside. But is there a point in doing a tournament when it's already obvious who it's coming down to?

---

Gail Kim Confronted Knockouts Champion Maria

It amazes me that TNA has been able to keep this feud going since the start of the year. For all the flack they get, they deserve credit for their long-term storytelling with this program between Kim and Maria. Perhaps they would have blown it off at Slammiversary had Maria not gotten injured, but either way, it has worked out for the better. This was a solid segment with good mic work from them and Allie was once again entertaining with her adorable antics. This telegraphed the finish to the Battle Royal later in the night, but it was predictable anyway, so whatever.


Braxton Sutter def. Rockstar Spud in an Empty Arena Match

I remember this feud was teased a few months back when Sutter initially arrived in TNA, but have they really followed it up on it since then? They've been involved in a few of the same matches, but that's about it. That said, I don't know if this needed an Empty Arena gimmick, but it was certainly unique and they made the most of it. It felt like a real fight, but Sutter definitely came across as the heel in the final few minutes as he was on offense for the most part and appeared to be taking pleasure in brutalizing Spud. Hopefully they're building to a double turn of some sort because otherwise it made little sense.


Decay Interrupted "Broken" Matt Hardy and Brother Nero

The Hardy Boyz vs. Decay has been every bit as enjoyable as I expected it to be. Naturally, Matt and Jeff have become babyfaces again because their act is so damn... well, delightful. They have had superb chemistry with Decay thus far, too. I feared that the blow-off would be a regular tag match at Bound for Glory, which would have been underwhelming compared to what we've seen up to this point, but the talk of a "Great War" gives me hope they have something special in mind.


Gail Kim def. Laurel Vanness, Jade, Sienna, Marti Bell, Raquel and Madison Rayne in a No. 1 Contender's Gauntlet Battle Royal For the Knockouts Championship

For those unfamiliar, Vanness is the former Chelsea Green from the 2015 season of Tough Enough. I don't know how seasoned or experienced she is in the ring, but she looked just fine here. This was a weird place to debut her because she was overshadowed by the rest of the women, but I'd assume she'll be facing Allie at Bound for Glory. This was your typically rushed TNA Gauntlet Battle Royal, but there wasn't anything technically wrong with it. Kim winning, as previously noted, could be seen coming from a mile away, but it needed to happen in order to set up the Bound for Glory match with Maria.


Eddie Edwards def. Mahabali Shera in an Impact Grand Championship Quarterfinal Match

Rex and Lee worked well together in their match earlier, but this was just a flat-out mess. The rules are already confusing as is, but then you throw the awful Shera in there and the match is a total train wreck. On the bright side, Edwards won and although he isn't winning the title, I hope he has meaningful direction heading into the pending pay-per-view given all he's accomplished this year in TNA.


TNA World Heavyweight Champion Lashley and Moose Brawled

It would have been stupid to give away this match on free TV so close to Bound for Glory because it's best saved until afterward, so I'm actually kind of glad it didn't come to fruition on this show. The brawl we received instead was all right and they were wise to not give too much away between Moose and Lashley. Additionally, their current feuds with Mike Bennett and Ethan Carter III were furthered nicely.


Overall Show

TNA has had a strong television product for the better part of 2016 and I'm glad that's reflecting in the build to Bound for Glory. The stuff with The Hardy Boyz is still far and away the best thing going in TNA right now, but the rest of the rivalries are logical and have had solid storyline progression in recent weeks. Here's hoping Bound for Glory can meet my expectations and not be as disappointing as June's Slammiversary event was.