Christian Cage: Is there any doubt that Christian is the MVP of TNA? Unlike when TNA has used Kurt Angle in multiple segments throughout an Impact, Christian’s multiple appearances this week were actually good. His opening promo was very strong. It was great how unapologetic he is about being a prick. He clearly wasn’t trying to rally fans behind him. His various attempts at recruiting a tag team partner were also fun, but not all great. The first with Kaz wasn’t particularly good, but he didn’t have much to work with. His attempt to get Kevin Nash suffered from the nWo references, but I have to admit that I loved it when he came into the room humming the nWo music. I know I am being hypocritical in admonishing TNA for the constant references to the past of other organizations, yet praising one of those references for being very funny. But, it was funny. Nash was good in his role, and Christian was also hilarious in his line about Nash being an 11 year old with gray hair. His sly attempt to interrupt Booker T’s interview, along with their interaction was very good. I’m not thrilled with Samoa Joe’s complaints about money (more later), but Christian was good in that scene. He also performed very well in the ring (more later). All in all, it was a very good night for the Instant Classic.
Petey Williams: I still have mixed feelings about giving a smaller X-Division type star a bodybuilder gimmick, but Petey is playing the part well. His interview with Crystal was solid, and it gave him a chance to get some mic time, which he has been lacking for most of his TNA career. The Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonation is terrible, but I think (hope?) it is supposed to be. His mimicking of Scott Steiner’s poses and push-ups during the Feast, Fired or 50 Grand match were fun as well. Even if this isn’t the best idea for a gimmick, it is giving him a chance to work on having a character and delivering promos, which should help him down the line.
Main Event: The handicap match of Christian vs. Angle & Robert Roode was a good t.v. Main Event. It is a shame that there was nobody in the match to actually cheer for, because the match itself featured very good action. They did good giving Christian enough offense so that the match didn’t get too one sided, while keeping him as the underdog so that the two on one situation played out in a realistic way. Angle vs. Christian down the line has potential to be a very good one on one match. The potential was clear in how they wrestled each other in this match. If that match were to happen, there needs to be a babyface to get the crowd involved.
IMPACT MISSES
Feast or Fired Situation: This concept has been one big Miss after another. The “Deal or No Deal” spoof was stupid. The idea that we were supposed to find out the contents of the cases last week, but this week there is another match to change possession of those cases doesn’t make any sense. The fatal four way was a pretty good match, but I was too distracted by the idiotic stipulation to care about the match. There was no reason for Scott Steiner to trade his case for Williams’. Later on, he got mad and said that Petey lied to him and had a cheesy line about there being no lying in wrestling. That was terrible stuff. He vowed to get the case back from Petey which just means that the Feast or Fired case situation is not over yet. Once again, TNA has sold a PPV match on the basis of a stipulation that in the end meant nothing. Sure, Christopher Daniels got fired, but does anyone believe he won’t be back? At the PPV, Steiner won the right to a World Title match. But on Impact two weeks later, he traded that for an X-Division Title match. So, why should I care the next time a PPV has a match with something on the line, when that something has a good chance of changing on free t.v. over the next few weeks?
Mitchell, Abyss and Mecias: Please, make it stop! I know this angle got interrupted by an injury to Judas Mecias, but I didn’t care about it at the time. I certainly don’t care about it now. How many secrets does James Mitchell have on Abyss? How many times are they going to repeat the same storyline? How long will Mitchell and Abyss feud? At the moment, it seems like forever. And, were multiple unprotected chair shots to Abyss’ head really necessary?
Lack of Babyfaces: Who are we supposed to cheer for? The two top stars in TNA right now are Angle and Christian, both heels. Booker T seems to be the top babyface, but he isn’t doing much high profile. Samoa Joe seems to be turning heel, because he is complaining about his contract and money situation. I don’t even know if Scott Steiner is supposed to be a babyface or a heel. Kaz is a babyface and was getting a push, but now it looks like he will be bogged down in a feud with Black Reign. Kevin Nash is popular, but he isn’t going to do much in the ring. By his own admission, he gets paid to sit around and do nothing. Abyss is a babyface who works much better as a heel. With Sting off the air, and with two heels taking up multiple segments and the spots at the very top of the roster, there are no babyfaces to cheer for in important angles at the moment.
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.
INCREDIBLE BENEFITS! Over 50 full-length audio updates per month (iPod compatible)... New weekly award-winning Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter (text and printable pdf versions) with latest exclusive insider news, new Torch Talks, great columns, Keller's cover story, much more... Hundreds of full-length back issues of PWTorch Newsletter from late-'80s to today... Ad-free access to PWTorch.com's Main Listing... VIP Forum with interaction with other subscribers and Torch staff... Torch Talk Library with text and audio of hundreds of interview installments from last 20 years... Great layout... Deepest archives on pro wrestling history anywhere... Keller's PWTorch Today PDF Bulletins with email alerts... VIP Email reports on major PPVs and TV shows... Staff Roundtable Reviews (text and audio) followiing major events... The best staff of writers and world class reporting since 1987... We'd love for you to join us and experience the most entertaining, authoritative, experienced staff of professional reporters and commentators in the business... SIGN ME UP NOW!
