TNA One Night Only - Hardcore Justice 2 Review

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

LAX def. New Church in a Street Fight

It's been at least four years since we last saw LAX team together, so this was certainly a treat. I always thought Homicide was the best partner Hernandez ever had, so it's a shame this was a one-off appearance by Homicide. The match itself was rather disappointing and wasn't as action-packed as I expected. There were some cool spots with the weapons at ringside, but not enough actual tag team wrestling. New Church was more favored by the crowd than LAX at one point, which was strange. Then again, this was taped in the Impact Zone, so I not all that surprised.


ODB def. Jackie Moore in a Hardcore Knockouts Match

Going into this match, I completely forgot that ODB and Jackie used to be allies in 2011, so thanks to the commentators for bringing that to light. We haven't see much of ODB in the ring in recent months now that she's the referee for the Knockouts division, so this felt fresh. I was never a fan of Jackie, but I can understand why she was brought in to do this match against ODB. I've always found ODB's offensive antics to be very entertaining, so her language and use of weapons over the course of the contest was fun. However, the finish felt like it came out of nowhere.

---

Bad Influence def. Generation Me in a Ladder Match for $20,000

It was nice to see Bad Influence build up Generation Me as a credible team prior to the match, making their eventual win over them mean that much more. I always enjoyed Generation Me's high-flying offense, so I was glad to see them back against Daniels and Kazarian. The two teams had excellent chemistry and executed a handful of exciting Ladder matches. The somersault from the top rope to the outside was very well done and made for an awesome visual. Bad Influence picking up the win and the cash was logical given the fact they're still with the company and it only adds to their accolades. Not only that, but they remain undefeated in Ladder matches as well.


Shark Boy Won a Hardcore Gauntlet Battle Royal

It was cool to see Nunzio (an ECW Original), Funaki and Shark Boy make appearances, but the rest of the entrants were random and felt like filler. Sam Shaw served stuck out like a sore thumb, Crimson recently got released, and there's nothing hardcore about Gunner. However, I will admit that they made the most out of the weapons they were allowed to use and there were some fun moments. Shark Boy was the most over guy in the match, so having him win only made sense.


James Storm, Magnus and Hardcore Holly def. D.O.C., Knux and Wes Brisco in a Hardcore Six-Man Elimination Tag Team Match

While the match was well wrestled, I had a hard time believing that the heels would be going over. Bully Ray and Devon are the only significant members of Aces and Eights. Everyone else in the group is simply filler and haven't been built up enough to feel like a threat to anyone. I wasn't even aware the match was under elimination rules until the first elimination took place. I would have rather seen the elimination spaced out a bit more instead of happening at a rapid fire pace. Nonetheless, it was a good win for Storm and Magnus while Holly looked good in his first televised match in nearly five years.


Joesph Park def. Judas Mesias in a Monster's Ball Match

I'm sure this wasn't the gruesome Monster's Ball match many people expected, but it was a fun bout. They've been brutally bloody in the past, so I can see why some would be disappointed. Just look at Abyss' past battles with Mesias from 2008. Nonetheless, Park had a nice showing against Mesias despite the fact it was predictable. Long time fans probably appreciated seeing this match one more time given the bad blood between the two competitors.


Jeff Hardy and Brother Runt def. Team 3D in a Tables Tag Team Match

It's cool to see Bully Ray and Devon team up on occasion despite being singles competitors. It was also cool to see Ray bring up the fact that Runt was one of the people attacked by the Aces and Eights at the wedding from a few months ago. Unfortunately, that was all I liked about this match. The action was slow, plodding and was over within the blink of an eye. There barely any table spots and the finish looked especially sloppy. I don't think enough fans cared about Runt for him to earn a spot in the main event on this show.


Overall Show

This was the first One Night Only pay-per-view I've watched in its entirety and in all honesty, it felt like a complete waste of time. Nothing on this show was truly terrible, but most of the matches were mediocre and underwhelming. It didn't help that it was taped at the Impact Zone, the most obnoxious arena in all of wrestling. I wouldn't reccomend buying this pay-per-view, but if anything, I would highly suggest checking out the tag team Ladder match, which easily stole the show. Aside from that, this was an event that wasn't worth watching and I hope next month's TNA 10 pay-per-view ultimately delivers.