Instant Reaction - Impact Wrestling 1/12
By Benjamin Tucker, PWTorch TV specialist

Overall Score - 5.0

This past Monday after Raw I was staring at my computer screen, wondering where to start with a show that had a plethora of problems. Tonight, I'm staring at my computer screen with groggy eyes and a longing for sleep. Impact Wrestling tonight was the definition of a boring, average show. Yeah, it had the usual issues. PPV re-matches were given away with little to no extra hype, Sting is the most biased face authority figure ever, and Robert Roode isn't setting himself apart as his own unique type of heel.

Roode cuts decent promos, but what does he bring to the table character-wise that really hasn't been done before? Right now, TNA is presenting him as just a guy who wears suits to the ring and talks about only caring about himself. Seems pretty generic to me. I also love how he's gaining zero credibility as champion because he hasn't won a match clean that I can recall since he turned heel. In speaking of that, how many weeks in a row now has Impact gone off the air with a dirty finish? At least try to be creative, TNA. There are more dirty finishes than clean ones nowadays!

The wrestling tonight was average. The main event had a good pace to it, but everything else was just sort of there. None of the matches were really good, and yet none of them were downright awful. The storylines that played out tonight were a mixed bag as well. Eric Young was... Eric Young, which is both good and bad, but I'm really not getting into the Bischoff feud. The fans still haven't really been given a chance to sympathize with Garett, and he's not connecting with them very well. The story needs to take two weeks off to cool him down and then they can slowly bring him back. But, as of right now, I'm tired of the whole affair.

While the Fortune segment was fine, I can't believe that they're once again going with a Daniels-Styles feud (remember their "last match" at Destination X?). At the same time, it is nice to see Kazarian have something to do, but I'm not sure if his acting skills are up to the task for the feud.

Everything else on this show was... average. Noticing a trend? The tag squash was okay, the backstage segments were okay, and, overall, the show felt flat to me. Not the best (or most exciting) week for TNA after their PPV.

Questions or comments? Follow me on Twitter at BTuckerTorch, or feel free to e-mail me at btuckertorch@aol.com.

[Torch art credit Grant Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

We suggest these recent related articles...

10/5 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Natalya vs. Paige, Owens vs. Cara, Stephanie McMahon, Sasha Banks, Xavier Woods

COLLECTIBLES COLUMN: The History of Foam Hands in Pro Wrestling

9/28 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Kane's Split Personality, Divas Revolution, Heyman & Big Show, Reigns vs. Wyatt