By Jon Mezzera, Torch Specialist

IMPACT HITS

Christian vs. Kaz: This was a very good match to start Impact. It was a good length and had very good action. The action never slowed down and went back and forth as both Kaz and Christian Cage got in a ton of offense. If this was some type of test to see what Kaz can do in an important singles match, then he definitely passed the test. However, the match suffered from having a very predictable ending. Nobody could have believed that Kaz was going to win, which took away all the drama from what could have been very dramatic near falls. Clearly the match was going to be a no contest to set up a Ladder Match at Genesis. This was very predictable. But, they could have gone about it other than having the usual TNA run-ins, followed by a decision reversal by an authority figure. Who thinks Matt Morgan should be making matches? At least he watches the matches unlike Jim Cornette. But where was he to reverse the decision after Christian cheated to beat Chris Harris last week? I have gotten off track as I am often distracted by TNA’s poor booking decisions. I want to make it clear that while the ending and reversal were not good, the match itself was very good and very Hit worthy.

AJ Styles: I love AJ Styles. I have said all along that I will enjoy the ride as he plays this character even though it is likely detrimental to his growth as a performer in the long run. I still stand by that statement. He could be used in a more serious, more high-profile way. But as long as he’s doing goofy comedy, at least it is funny goofy comedy. I enjoyed his promo after being declared Christian’s #1. His comparison of his collegiate wrestling career to Scott Steiner’s was very amusing. His amateur style wrestling gear for the take down challenge was as well. I even liked his dirty tactics in the challenge and his celebrations between take downs. It is too bad that TNA is throwing this match together at the last minute without a proper build. The take down challenge does not count as proper build to a Tag Team Championship match at the PPV. Plus, it is amazing that even an amateur wrestling challenge ended with outside interference!

Main Event: With a few reservations, the Main Event was a good six man tag match. While not as good as the opening contest, it still delivered some good action. It had some nice teases between Kurt Angle and Sting, and Samoa Joe and Robert Roode, and was a pretty good way to hype those PPV matches. It was a good tag team match. But why were Eric Young and James Storm involved? They aren’t feuding. In fact, they’ve become beer buddies. The behind the scenes answer is that TNA needed someone like Young to take the prolonged beating without having it be Sting or Joe. And they needed someone like Storm to take the loss without it being Angle or Roode. If this match had been two on two, it would have been even better than it was.

IMPACT MISSES

#1 Contenders: The ridiculous and never ending Fight for the Right Tournament is made worse when you consider that none of the #1 Contenders for any of the four TNA Titles have earned their shot at Genesis. You can argue that as the former World Champion, Sting deserves a rematch, but what have Kevin Nash or Mystery Partner done to deserve this chance? Kaz was in a reverse battle royale, had three singles matches, and a Ladder Match still to come to earn what Nash was given for free. The other titles are just as bad. LAX won Ultimate X at Bound For Glory to get a shot at the Tag Team Titles, but instead of waiting for Genesis they had the match on Impact. Then, before the smoke could clear from that match, the Steiner Brothers were the new #1 Contenders, without earning it. Three women are #1 Contenders for Gail Kim’s Women’s Championship. None earned it. Since Roxxi Leaveux was the last one in the Gauntlet match at Bound For Glory, a case could have been made that she was #1 Contender, and a program between her and Kim would have made sense. But, she didn’t earn anything, and neither did the other two women in the match, neither of whom has ever won a match in TNA! And with no challenge, storyline, or build up, Sanjay Dutt has been randomly named as Jay Lethal’s opponent for his X-Division title. If having an X-Division Title Match is so important for the PPV, then why not take some time to build to it? The title situations are jokes.

Bigger = Better: That was the underlying message of Impact this week. Matt Morgan is bigger than Christian and was able to intimidate him. Scott Hall is bigger than Kurt Angle and got the better of him. The announcers said size matters in amateur wrestling which is why they have weight classes, ignoring how Angle won an Olympic Gold Medal by wrestling up a weight class to take advantage of his speed and quickness over bigger opponents. Clearly the bigger and stronger Scott Steiner was able to easily fend off the smaller and weaker AJ Styles. The match that epitomized this attitude was Team 3D vs. Lethal & Abyss. This match was so bad I should be giving it a Miss on its own. Why are Lethal and Abyss teaming in the first place? The match was boring. And big surprise, Team 3D were dominant over the smaller Lethal. And Abyss was dominant over the smaller Team 3D. The biggest guy in the ring had control over most of the match. Black Reign jumped Abyss from behind, but since Abyss is bigger, he quickly got control in their brawl. The message was loud and clear from TNA this week.

“This is Awesome”: Please, Impact Zone fans, stop chanting “This is Awesome!” Or at the very least, stop chanting it unless something is truly awesome. A headlock in a match is not awesome. Nothing that Gail Kim or Alexa Jade did in their match was awesome and yet the crowd chanted it twice! The chant has become totally meaningless and needs to stop.

Angles, Hall and Nash: I can’t be the only one who got sick of seeing Kurt and Karen Angle, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash on my t.v. this week. It is nothing new to have the Angles and Nash over exposed, but none of it was entertaining this week. There was not a single moment with the Angles that made me happy to be watching. Hall had some amusing lines about the dress code and dying his hair. But, his appearance meant nothing. He reunited with Nash, but who cares? It was a total waste of time. When Mike Tenay has to tell the fans that “Hey Yo” is Hall’s catch phrase, you know that TNA has to be aware that many fans aren’t aware of Hall’s past. I would not bring him in under any circumstance. He is going to take away time from the underutilized guys already on the roster. How about a Sanjay Dutt promo after being named #1 Contender? Nope, because we have to have several scenes with Hall, Nash and the Angles. Hall’s presence was a huge Miss, and Sting coming out at the end and not talking was stupid.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's Hitlist Specialist, providing his point of view in the Torch's hitlist format for Raw, Smackdown, ECW, and TNA Impact each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.

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