So, its been a while since I've posted here, but I figured if I going to return, I'll do it in style with a HUGE POST!
Kash/Gunner vs. Guerrero/Hernandez: Good tag match with more or less the expected result. Hernandez doing a suicide dive still astounds me (given his size) but other than that I can’t help but notice that he’s slowed down noticeably (he is 39) since I started watching. Guerrero getting the pin off of the frog splash was definitely the right thing to do, but the finish with him tagging Hernandez in mid-air was a bad call, since it was pretty hard to actually see. Other than that, Guerrero looks to be in good shape. As for Kash and Gunner, to be honest, we didn’t see them do much. Yes, they dominated most of the match, but they didn’t do much with it, other than some typical heel shenanigans. Still a good match and a good choice for an opener. Score: 3/5.
RVD (vs. Dinero) vs. Magnus vs. Anderson, 20 pts in BFG series: Disappointing. First of all, the Pope was taken out by Aces & 8’s before the match started. While no one thought he was going to win, he could have added a lot to the match itself. Then RVD missed most of the match selling injuries. The finish came from a Van Daminator on the stage, which was…well somehow not as much as I expected. Don’t get me wrong, this was still a good match, but, as far as I’m concerned, the match never quite flowed they way it should have. Extra points though, for not brawling through the crowd, like I’m used to seeing from every single Falls Count Anywhere match. Score: 3.5/5.
Kazarian vs. Devon, Television Championship: As good as expected given the competitors. Kazarian and Devon seem to have chemistry together as they worked well with each other. Not much to say with this other than to note that Kazarian showed some nice strength getting Devon up for the Fade to Black (although it was countered). Also, when did a plastic water bottle become a legitimate weapon in a match? First R-Truth, now Devon. Score: 3.5/5.
Rayne vs. Tessmacher, Knockout’s Championship: I just realized that Tessmacher and Eve (WWE) look a bit like each other. Yeesh. Look, I have no problem with Rayne, the superior in-ring talent, being KO champ. What I have a problem with is this storyline. Why in the world would TNA management allow Earl Hebner to referee this match (kayfabe)? The storyline breaks down there. Anyway, the match itself was pretty standard stuff from the KO’s and made for decent entertainment. Tessmacher really has improved by leaps and bounds since she first arrived, and Rayne herself has evolved into a very strong competitor. Score: 3/5.
Robbie E. vs. Bully Ray vs. Jeff Hardy vs. James Storm, 20 points in BFG Series: Yeah this was awesome. The Aces & 8’s storyline was worked into this well, without being distracting, and the psychology, of not only trying to put your opponents through a table but also trying to stop the others from putting them through a table made for some exciting moments. I will say that it would have made more sense as an elimination match, as Tenay and Taz were debating from time to time who would have gotten the points if someone had gone through a table on a sequence of moves, but, even if it made less sense, the “one fall” style match made for amore entertaining match. Score: 4/5.
Ion vs. King, X Division Championship: Superb. Great back and forth and a perfect example of what a good X-Division match is. Both King and Ion showed great athleticism throughout the match and allowed the match to flow between spots so that, while there were a lot of big spots, it didn’t feel like a spotfest. One complaint however: at one point in the match Kenny King had Ion in a single leg Boston Crab for a good length of time. Ion barely sold the damage to his leg afterwards. It may seem like a small point, but for some reason it stuck out to me. Score: 4/5.
Styles vs. Daniels vs. Joe vs. Angle, 20 points in BFG Series: I have never seen an object taken down from a ladder that quickly. Now that we’re done with that…YES. This was a great ladder match, a great match all around, and…poor Daniels! Seriously, I think he took two thirds of the offense in this match. A tremendous job to all four men, although I thought it was particularly awesome that AJ Styles won. Hey, I’m an AJ Styles mark. Score: 4.5/5.
Roode vs. Aries, World Championship: The wrestling in this match was every bit the main event it needed to be, and then some. Sadly, that’s not all we got. We also got a mess of an overbooked finish, twice over, and while Aries suicide diving his way into the title made for a nice visual, that doesn’t excuse the fact that this match did not need a controversial finish and, I would argue, would have been better without it. What this match should have had was a stipulation (after all, shouldn’t the main event to a PPV called Hardcore Justice have a stipulation?) and it could have elevated the match. A last man standing stipulation, for instance, could have played to the desperation of both competitors nicely. Still, I can’t come down too hardly on this match. The wrestling portion was excellent; sadly, the booking didn’t live up to it. Score: 3.5/5
Overall: A strong PPV, held together by the BFG Series matches, and the rest of the matches definitely hit the mark as well. Overall: 8.5/10.
Match of the Night: Styles vs. Daniels vs. Joe vs. Angle – Good booking, a surprising finish and a thoroughly enjoyable match made this a tremendous match.
Wrestler of the Night: Austin Aries – I went back and forth between Aries and Joe on this one, but went for Aries. Aries sold every move to perfection, and executed each of his own moves excellently.
Dud of the Night: Rayne vs. Tessmacher – This was not a bad match. This was, however an overbooked match, with a stupid storyline, and the wrestling did not stand out. On a night of excellent matches, this was enough.
Worst wrestler of the night: Gunner – Not an easy choice for me (I was tempted to go with Dinero, simply because he didn’t show up). But of all the performances of the night, Gunner’s stands out the least for me.
