TNA Sacrifice Review - April 27, 2014

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Wolves def. The Bro-Mans in a 3-on-2 Handicap No Disqualification Match to Win the TNA World Tag Team Championships

After weeks of getting disqualified and count-outed, why were The Bro-Mans given the advantage in this match with the odds being in their favor? Granted, the no DQ stipulation benefited The Wolves, but why wasn't that stipulation added prior to tonight? Regardless, the two teams delivered a very good matchup with tons of fun action from start to finish. As much as I despise the gimmick, The Bro-Mans can go in the ring and The Wolves were awesome per usual. I was glad to see The Wolves finally win the belts, though it probably would have meant more had they not held those same straps for a week last month.


Mr. Anderson def. Samuel Shaw in a Committed Match

This feud has had its moments over the last two months, but it desperately needs to end. This match wasn't necessarily bad, but it wasn't anything special and the stipulation was stupid to begin with. The biggest head scratcher in this match was why Christy Hemme was at ringside when it's very possible that Shaw might get to her. Anderson going over gives me hope that this rivalry is finally over and that he can move on to bigger and better things. As for Shaw, I don't look forward to seeing footage of him in the mental hospital in coming weeks on Impact.

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Kurt Angle and Willow def. Ethan Carter III and Rockstar Spud

First off, the fact this match even happened made zero sense. Willow beat both EC3 and Spud in a Handicap match not too long ago on Impact, so fans had no incentive to believe the heel team would win here. Spud is always entertaining and the match was well wrestled, but its only purpose was furthering the feud between EC3 and Angle. I expect them to face off at Slammiverary, so this felt like filler more like anything else. On a side note, and this probably goes without saying, but I've officially soured on the Willow character.


X-Division Champion Sanada def. Tigre Uno

I appreciate the effort TNA put into introducing viewers to Sanada and his background, but we simply don't know enough about either guy to care about them or their series of matches. This was probably their best bout against each other so far, but that's not saying much. Their were some nice spots here and there and the finishing sequence was well done, but fans had no reason to care about the possibility of Tigre Uno winning the title. The X-Division has never meant less. TNA always pushes to make it mean more each summer by bringing in old and new talent, but they're never consistent with it and it goes back to being neglected. Having the two newest members of the roster feud probably wasn't the best idea, either.


Gunner def. James Storm in an "I Quit" Match

This is another feud that desperately needs to end. I mean, six months? Really? Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed the rivalry, especially in the last two months, but it's time for both guys to move forward. The only reason I've tolerated the feud for so long is because their brutal matches, such as this one. The action was intense and the blood Gunner shed definitely enhanced the contest. The crowd was into everything they did, but the finish was lame. Didn't AJ Styles and Tommy Dreamer (as well as Styles and Daniels) do something similar a few years back? "I Quit" matches are always odd in TNA. I didn't like how Storm lost yet again, but it was logical for Gunner to go over if this was indeed the blow-off match.


Angelina Love def. Madison Rayne to Win the Knockouts Championship

Both Love and Rayne are good workers and two of the better women's wrestlers in TNA right now, but the crowd wasn't invested in the action at all. The match had the storyline support and the right players, but this whole feud just isn't clicking right now. The crowd was flat for the title change and it's hard to blame them. I'm hoping the division heats up again with a Taryn Terrell return in the near future.


Bobby Roode def. Bully Ray in a Tables Match

As expected, Roode and Ray worked a solid match. Tables matches aren't always the most exciting, but there was some suspenseful spots here and there and they made the most of it. The bout took a turn for the worst after the referee bump, and the crowd was dead for everything that followed. It was so blatantly obvious the person who interfered was Dixie Carter in disguise, though the live crowd might not have gotten a good look at her, so that'd explain why it took them a few minutes to react. Even still, would it kill TNA to keep Dixie off one show, especially a pay-per-view? I couldn't care less about her apparent feud with Ray, and isn't she supposed to be fired? Why is she still making appearances? Ridiculous.


TNA World Heavyweight Champion Eric Young def. Magnus

The drama wasn't there early on in the match probably due to the sheer predictability of it. They had a good match, but it didn't capture my attention until down the stretch when Magnus kicked out of the first piledriver. It took quite a bit for Young to finally put away Magnus, so at least the England native looked strong in defeat. Saving Young's big title win for this event might have been better, but it is what it is. If they want people to take him seriously as champion, they need to have him build up credibility by winning his title defenses on his own, which is exactly what he did here, so it was a step in the right direction. The biggest plus coming out of this match was that Abyss didn't interfere or even appear, so I'm glad TNA opted to end one of their pay-per-views on a high note without an overbooked finish for once.


Overall Show

I didn't have high hopes coming into this event, but I was at least looking forward to it slightly more than Lockdown last month. That being said, it met my expectations of being a pretty decent show. Most of the match outcomes were predictable, but they were also logical, so no complaints there. The show was noteworthy with the two title changes and I'll admit that I enjoyed this event more than I did Lockdown, though that isn't saying much. Gunner vs. Storm was great and the opener was fun, but everything else was forgettable for the most. They might have cost themselves some pay-per-view buys with the lackluster build, so I hope they do a better job of making June's Slammiversary (their second biggest show of the year) feel more special.