TNA Slammiversary X - June 11, 2012
1. Austin Aries vs. Samoa Joe for the TNA X Division Championship - Prior to this match, Hogan came out and played to the crowd for just a bit before announcing that the Aries/Joe match would be for the title. As for the match itself, a strong effort put out from both men. They worked very well together and the fact that TNA had one of the hottest crowds they've ever had at a ppv only helped to enhance the match. Joe looked better than he's looked in forever it seems and Aries continues to be one of the brightest stars on the TNA roster. The end comes just a bit before the 12 minute mark with Aries hitting the Brainbuster for the clean win. What would've made this match better would've been a longer time and, most importantly, an actual story & build to go with it. Starting a feud over being squirted with water by Aries is about as lame as it gets and it gave the match a feeling of more than an afterthought. With a real story, the match would've been even better but the strong performance from both men was able to make up for that. ***1/4
2. Hernandez vs. Kid Kash - Pretty bland stuff all in all, but it served it's purpose as a buffer match and to give fans a bit of a chance to calm down after the X Division title match. Kash looked sloppy in several spots in the match, some of his high flying offense were damn near botches all around. I didn't really get a feeling of good chemistry from these guys but they did their best. Hernandez gets the clean win via a splash from the top a bit before the 6 minute mark. *1/4
3. Devon & Garett Bischoff vs. Robbie E & Rob Terry - I can't say that I cared much for this. The match was generally ok for what it was, but there's generally not one guy involved that I give a shit about. The live crowd was hot for Devon but I don't think could've cared less for Bischoff, not that I can blame them. Devon & Bischoff get the win around the 6 minute mark when he hits Robbie E with a shoulder tackle. I definitely could've done without the dance number they did post match. The fact that Madison Rayne was out there and seems to have her sights set on either Devon or Bischoff, probably Bischoff, makes me cringe because I just see a lousy angle coming from it. 3/4*
4. Jeff Hardy vs. Mr. Anderson vs. Rob Van Dam - Good solid match all in all that the crowd was hot for. The match was kind of a spotfest, but I think that helped drum up some excitement for this match as did the fact that the winner faces the champ this Thursday on IW. The ending of the match was done well with Hardy hitting Whisper in the Wind on RVD for a close 2 count, then landing the Twist of Fate before hitting the Swanton Bomb. Basically, he hit RVD with his biggest moves in succession. Anderson breaks up the count before taking out Hardy. He then lands the Mic Check on RVD for the win at the 11.5 minute mark. **3/4
5. Cowboy James Storm vs. Crimson - Not really much to say. It was a good surprise return for James Storm and I knew that when he came out, Crimson's streak was over. Storm makes quick work of Crimson and gets the win a little past the two minute mark with Last Call. N/A
TNA Hall of Fame Inductee Announced - This was a well done moment overall and I like that pretty much the whole roster was out there. Dixie did well in her role, though I can't help but wonder why they decided to put the potential affair angle on the backburner. Not that it's not a good thing, however. Dixie shows a video presentation of Sting's first appearance and Sting is the first inductee. Sting sells his reaction well and the live crowd eats it up. Thumbs Up
6. Gail Kim vs. Miss Tessmacher for the TNA Women's Knockout Championship - This match didn't do anything for me, especially the ending. There was some decent action all in all with Kim sort of overplaying her role a bit I thought. It pretty much foreshadowed that she was going to lose, which she does at the 7 minute mark via a quick roll up from Tessmacher. Tessmacher is the new Knockout Champion. In my view, she's not nearly ready for this. I know she's hot and all but aside from that, she just doesn't have the overall ability that most of the other Knockouts have. *1/2
7. Joseph Park vs. Bully Ray - The match told a good story but that doesn't really mean much if you're not all that interested in the story to begin with. For the most part, it was Ray spending the first 8 minutes or so beating up Park with Park getting slight, occassional bouts of offense due mostly to Ray making arrogant mistakes. The ending was kind of predictable as we knew that Abyss would somehow make an appearance. Park crawls under the ring only for Abyss to pop up from under the ring a bit later, with his hood pulled up. He comes up behind Ray and chokeslams him through a table before scurrying back underneath the ring. Park emerged a bit later and sold shock, not understanding what happened. He stumbled into the ring and got the win on Bully Ray. I have a feeling this angle is going to stick around for longer than it needs to.
Christian - Christian's return last night felt great and the live crowd popped huge for him. Christian drank things in and several different chants broke out at various points throughout his promo. Christian did a good job of putting TNA over without trying to go overboard or do anything to cause some controversy, which I'm sure some people were probably hoping for. They rolled a video for the #1 moment in TNA history, which was Sting returning to TNA in January 2006 & contronting Jeff Jarrett. All in all, just a classy segment. Thumbs Up
8. Chrisopher Daniels & Kazarian vs. AJ Styles & Kurt Angle - Solid match all in all with good work from all the wrestlers involved. To me, however, Styles & Angle don't have the same chemistry as tag partners as they do when they're opponents. Most of the expected spots were there and all the guys looked crisp. The ending, however, didn't do much for me with Angle forcing Kazarian to tap at the 14.5 minute mark. He & Styles are the new tag champs. As I figured, this match and the tag title scene in general has just been too overshadowed by the affair storyline. I don't see that going away anytime soon, so I don't see why they put the titles onto Angle & Styles just for a feel good moment, especially when Daniels & Kazarian needed it more. **3/4
9. Bobby Roode vs. Sting for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship - This match went about as I figured it would, only with a much much worse ending than I was expecting. Sting beat up Roode for about the first 5 minutes or so before Roode manages to land some offense and briefly take control before Sting slapped on a sleeper. Roode backdropped his way out of it and both sold on the mat. Sting hits a nice superplex not long afterward before locking in the Scorpion Deathlock, which Roode is able to escape from by reaching the ropes. Roode tries to escape but Sting chases him down and brings him back toward the ring. Sting eventually slaps on the Scorpion on top of the announce table, with Roode tapping but it doesn't count of course. Sting releases the hold and for some strange reason, thought he'd won the match. Seriously? It was an idiotic move for TNA to book Sting like that as he's a near 30 year veteran. Sure he knew this wasn't a Falls Count Anywhere match. Roode finds what was left of James Storm's six pack that he brought out for his match and teases a bottle shot. Sting takes it from him and is about to deliver it before the ref takes it from him. Roode pulled out another bottle and popped Sting across the head with it. The ref got back into the ring and ignored the broken bottle in a staggering TNA Referee Incompotence moment. He makes the count, on the broken glass no less, and Roode retains a little past the 10.5 minute mark. The action was solid all in all, but the storytelling wasn't there and the booking was flat shitty. Roode scores yet another weak win and retains. *3/4
Final Thoughts - A friend of mine recorded the show last night and brought it too me saying it wouldn't be a waste of time. All in all, it was a pretty decent show but, to me, it wasn't a great show. The show started off strong with Aries vs. Joe. It was a great match that would've been better had their been an actual build to it. A possible negative from this is that it makes the 220 pound weight limit set on the X Division look even more foolish now that Aries has scored two consecutive ppv wins over men close to 300 pounds. Hernandez vs. Kash was meaningless filler as was Devon & Garett Bischoff vs. Robbie E & Rob Terry. Neither match did anything of note. The #1 contender match between Hardy, Anderson & RVD was a fun, solid match. Cowboy James Storm returned and ended Crimson's streak in about 2 minutes, nothing much to say about that. All the various video packages as well as the TNA HOF induction, including Christian's appearances, were well done and had an overall classy feel about it. The Knockout match was ok but, personally, I don't think Tessmacher has the ability. She has the sex appeal no doubt, but not the ability to be the top female in the company. Bully Ray vs. Joseph Park, in my eyes, was a waste of almost 11 minutes and the ending was more than slightly stupid. The tag title match was also fun, but the ending kinda left me cold. Daniels & Kazarian needed the win here and just giving the fans a feel good moment isn't going to do the tag titles or the tag scene in general any favors. The main event was a huge letdown. The action was pretty decent all in all, about what I expected, but the booked finish was beyond stupid. It was almost as if they were paying homage to all the lousy TNA main event finishes we've seen over the years. Having Sting sell as if he thought he won the match, ignoring almost 30 years of knowledge & experience, with him suddenly forgetting that it was a standard match & titles don't change hands in a standard match when a guy taps on the outside. The finish with the beer bottle was even worse as the ref just ignores bits of "broken glass" all over the place and makes the count. Aries vs. Joe was easily the match of the night, The undercard was generally mediocre, the #1 contender & tag title matches were both solid, the TNA Hall of Fame stuff & videos were done with quality & class and the main event pretty much blew chunks. In my eyes, it wasn't the amazingly epic show that some are saying it was, but it was a good effort on TNA's part. That's saying something when you take into account how many of the matches felt pretty meaningless. Definitely a middle of the road show all in all for me.
Grade: C+
