NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #50

Your hosts are Don West and Mike Tenay

The show starts with a video package on last week’s show, focusing on AJ Styles, Russo, and the main event.

We get another video package of the feud between America’s Most Wanted and XXX, hyping up tonight’s cage match, which will be the first cage match in TNA history.

Tenay brings up the classic NWA cage match between Sgt Slaughter & Don Kerondle vs. Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood. Also, Tenay told us that since Russo trademarked SEX, the group can no longer wear the shirts. Both men start brawling, with XXX gaining the upper hand. Tenay puts over the fact that this is not a “climbing contest,” asn the winner will be determined by pinfall. XXX throws Harris into the cage then Skipper takes over the assault by himself. Harris is bleeding buckets as Skipper stomps away. Skipper gets two off a double springboard moonsault then tags Daniels. XXX uses some more double-team maneuvers but Harris clotheslines Skipper and makes the tag. Storm runs wild then sends Skipper into the cage with an inverted suplex in a painful looking spot. The crowd is jacked as Storm gets two off a powerslam. Daniels knees Storm in the back of the head. XXX busts up Storm before hitting a Rocker-plex. Skipper nearly slipped when he climbed up top but recovered nicely. He and Storm then collide at full speed and Storm makes the tag first. Harris backdrops Skipper into the cage then picks up Daniels and rams his head into the cage then runs across the ring and tosses him head first into the cage. Daniels is busted open then gets planted with a full nelson slam. Daniels blocks the catatonic and hits the Angel Wings but Harris is able to kick out. Storm clotheslines Daniels but the swinging noose is blocked. Both men are walking across the top rope then Daniels hits a Downward Spiral as both men are down. Skipper hits Harris with a belly-to-belly before ramming him into the cage. Harris is wearing a crimson mask at this point. Storm follows Skipper up the cage and takes him down with a powerbomb. Storm takes a while to cover and that allows Skipper to kick out. The mat is blood stained as both teams try to score quick pinfalls. Harris sits Daniels on the top rope. Both men are standing on top and as Daniels walks across the rope, Harris takes him down with a spear. Man, this match is the tits. Skipper climbs to the top of the cage and hits a picture-perfect crossbody on Storm. He sells his ribs and can only get two on Storm. Skipper climbs up to the top again but Harris pushes him to the floor. AMW now has the advantage as Daniels frantically tries to open the door for Skipper but he climbs and Harris kicks him down. Daniels then walks into a vicious super kick from Storm and Harris goes to the top rope but hits a half-assed death sentence for two. Skipper is on the top of the cage but Harris knocks him down again. He then climbs to the top of the cage and Storm gets Daniels in position for the Death Sentence. He connects perfectly and Storm covers for the win and the belts (17:49) ****1/2.

Thoughts: That was an incredible match. The crowd was way into this and the ending was perfect as XXX couldn’t use the extra man advantage here and AMW won by keeping Skipper out of the cage. After months of nearly killing off all of AMW’s popularity, the finally got them back over in a big way. Excellent effort from all involved.

West runs down the rest of the show, which includes:

Sonny Siaki vs. Sandman in the Hard Ten semi-finals

Kid Kash vs. Erik Watts

Justin Credible vs. Jerry Lynn in a non-sanctioned match

D’Lo Brown comes into the cage and runs down AJ Styles. He blames himself for getting sidetracked on his quest for the title and wants AJ to come out why he chose to align with Vince Russo. AJ comes out by himself and into the cage. D’Lo attacks him and sends him into the ropes with an alley oop. He slugs away as the announcers debate  whether or not this is a match. AJ is on the outside of the cage then D’Lo rams him off as AJ splats o on the floor. D’Lo hits an overhead suplex and throws him back into the ring. A referee runs in and we now have a match

AJ kicks D’Lo, who was going for a chairshot. AJ busts open D’Lo by placing a chair on D’Lo’s face and dropping a knee. AJ bashes D’Lo with the cage door then punches away. D’Lo fights back and tosses AJ into the cage. Catatonic gets two. D’Lo climbs to the top of the cage, which looks like it is about to collapse, but Russo climbs in and waves his bat. He shoves the ref then AJ throws a chair at D’Lo for the DQ (4:55) *1/2. AJ beats on D’Lo with a chair then Jarrett comes out with a guitar but is stopped by the red-shirt security. Russo yells at D’Lo that he will never get a title shot as AJ hits a Styles Clash on a chair. Russo demands the ref to count to three then walks off after slamming down the mic.

Thoughts: This turned out to be an effective segment. Russo actually made a good manager, although he dwarfs AJ when they stand together and that isn’t the look you want for your Heavyweight Champion. D’Lo came off well and more than a WWE reject too.

The Gathering are walking to the arena but get jumped by Shane Douglas. He takes them out and hits a belly-to-belly on Julio on the pavement. He then goes to the Raven’s Nest and says how they call him the “Franchise” and tells us that he is here because on August 27th, 1994, he threw away the NWA title and sees Raven trying to resurrect what he wanted to kill. He says that TNA did not return his call and made a deal with the devil (As the cage is being taken away). He said that he will always sell his soul to dance with the devil. Raven runs up and they start brawling. Glenn Gilbertti runs out and boots Raven. CM Punk, continuing his deal of trying to be like Raven, tries to help but Gilbertti boots him down the stairs. Jarrett runs out with a chair as Gilbertti and Douglas bail. The fans seemed into Douglas.

A video hyping a sit down interview with Sting that will take place next week airs.

The lights in the arena go out as it’s time for the unsanctioned match between Credible and Lynn.

This starts out in the parking lot. Credible grinds Lynn’s face against the fence then they brawl in the back of a pickup truck. They are in the back of the arena tossing each other around before making their way near the ring. Lynn takes out Credible with a tope near the ramp. He then rams Credible into the dancers cage, which sends Lollipop flying onto the ramp. Lynn checks on her but Credible attacks from behind. Lynn manages to float over on a tombstone attempt and turned it into a cradle for the finish (3:24) *. Lynn checks on Lollipop but Credible attacks from behind and handcuffs him to the dancers cage. He grabs a chair and beats the shit out of Lynn, who gets busted open.

Thoughts: Very short but at least it was intense. This feud will be continued.

Gilbertti is speaking to the former SEX, or group without a name. So much for the deal about not being able to wear the SEX shirts as Don Harris still has his. Gilbertti closes by saying that he wants Shark Boy’s mask. Nothing much to this segment at all.

This is a non-title match. Sabin starts by working an armbar then they have an awesome fast-paced sequence. Kazarian dropkicks Sabin to the floor then lands on the apron and slingshots in with a DDT. Kazarian hits a facebuster and a dropkick for two. Sabin gets a tornado DDT and several in the crowd start a “Hail Sabin” chant. Sabin flies out of the ring with a running flip dive. He gets two off a springboard clothesline. Legdrop gets two. Dropkick gets two. Sabin grabs a chinlock as the crowd is dead. Kazarian fights back then both men have a nice little pinfall reversal sequence which has the crowd in complete silence. It’s a shame as both men are going all out and having a really good match. Sabin kills Kazarian with an enziguiri then puts on a figure-four neck lock. Kazarian lands on his feet after a backdrop and hits a Yakuza kick for two. Ocean Cyclone Suplex gets two. Kazarian tries a moonsault but Sabin jumps up top and sends Kazarian across the ring with a German suplex in one hell of a spot. The crowd came alive after that move. Kazarian blocks the Future Shock and sends him into the turnbuckle with a Death Valley Driver. He tries the coast-to-coast dropkick but Sabin rolls out to the floor. They do some more counters that leads to Sabin hitting a catatonic backbreaker, which gets two. Sabin crotches himself after missing a baseball slide in the corner. Kazarian dodges the Future Shock but Kazarian hits the Wave of the Future but that only gets two. Sabin hits a suplex and heads up top but Kazarian kicks him in the face and heads up and hits the Flux Capacator (One-man Spanish Fly) for the win (11:55) ***3/4

Thoughts: The best X Division match in several months. They won the crowd over towards the end. Both guys were great in the ring together but lacked personality at this time. With both guys nicknamed “The Future,” they are setting these up for a feud. One would think that Kazarian is now the number one contender.

Goldylocks is with Shane Douglas. He screams about how he is an expert on this business and challenges Raven and Jarrett to a tag match tonight. Douglas did okay but came off a bit too cartoonish. Goldylocks got breast implants and it was quite evident in this interview.  

A video package on the feud between Erik Watts and Kid Kash.

Kash attacks Watts as he enters the ring. Watts catches him in midair and tosses him down. Kash charges and Watts backdrops him to the floor. Kash dodges an attack and comes back with a rana off the steps. Top rope clothesline gets two. Kash works the arm then uses a chinlock. Watts escapes and hits a bicycle kick. Legdrop gets two. Kash gets an eye poke and dropkicks the leg. He grounds Watts and goes back to the chinlock. Watts escapes and throws Kash into the corner. He runs into a boot but powerslams Kash after a crossbody for two. Kash comes back with a DDT but cant get him up for the Moneymaker and gets clotheslined a few times. Kash escapes a powebomb then runs Watts into the corner, knocking down the ref in the process. Watts hits the powerbomb but the masked monster (Abyss) runs out and hits a swinging side slam on Watts and Kash rolls on top for the win (8:28) *3/4.

Thoughts: Watts wrestles in slow-motion but Kash was on his game tonight and held it together well. The masked monster stands out a lot here as he is easily the most menacing character in the promotion.

The Interrogators segment is next but it’s Konnan and Ron Killings asking the questions instead and BG James as Don West being interrogated. He does a funny impression of West, nailing all of his manic behaviors. Highlights of this include picking Juvy over Kid Romeo, saying that he loved his calendar and him trying to sell a Barry Bonds rookie card at the end of the segment. As he was leaving, he started a “Go, Red, go” chant.

Shark Boy is in a kiddie pool, which is called the “Shark Tank,” playing with toys. New Jack is yelling at him, saying that he needs to scout the upcoming Hard Ten match. He said he won’t play in the pool, because he is black. Jack then begrudgingly jumps in the pool and plays ring toss after Shark Boy keeps staring at him. This works well as a midcard comedy act.  

Siaki attacks Sandman on the ramp to go up 1-0. Siaki starts throwing the weapons in the ring. In the ring, Sandman fights back and cuts the lead to 2-1. He drapes Siaki across the top rope and hits a chair-assisted legdrop, tying the score. Sandman lights up a cigarette then gives it to the ref to hold. Siaki sends Sandman into the corner then takes a drag off the smoke. Siaki goes up 4-2 after hitting Sandman with a trashcan, that sends him on the table outside the ring. Siaki splashes him through the table and goes up 9-2. Sandman fights back, cutting the lead to 9-4 then positions the table across the ring apron and guardrail. Sandman cuts Siaki’s lead to 9-6 then places him on the table. He heads on the top rope and puts Siaki through the table, winning the match 11-9 (4:53) ¾*. After the match, New Jack comes out and calls Sandman “Drunky” then tells the people they will beat the crap out of each other and drink beers together as a mild “ECW” chant breaks out.

Thoughts: At least it was quick. This was also better than most of the Hard Ten matches. Sandman looked absolutely shitfaced too.

Goldylocks is backstage with Jeff Jarrett and Raven. Jarrett says he will not back down from the challenge Shane Douglas made tonight. Raven and Jarrett state that they hate each other personally, but respect their abilities in the ring. After they leave, Siaki wanders in briefly looking for Russo. Nothing like cramming two segments into one.

Backstage in the “Shark Tank,” Mike Sanders attacks Shark Boy and attempts to break his toys.

Another plug for next week’s sit down interview with Sting.

West runs down next week’s show, including:

New Jack vs. Sandman in the Hard Ten Tournament Finals

America’s Most Wanted vs. ???? for the Tag Team Titles

Jerry Lynn vs. Justin Credible in a Russian Chain Match, that was decided after Lynn interrupted West and cut a promo challenging Credible

Erik Watts vs. The “Unnamed Monster” (Abyss)

Backstage, Siaki is telling Goldylocks that changes are coming to TNA. Trinity then comes out and chokes Goldy from behind. One week after airing that great video package, they turn her heel. This company is priceless.

Douglas is certainly looking flabby. He and Gilbertti attack Raven as he makes his way down the ramp. Jarrett comes out to even the score as they are brawling. Raven takes out both men with a plancha but lands awkwardly on his ankle and it was a legit injury. In the ring, Douglas is attacking Jarrett and already looks gassed. Jarrett and Raven regain control and even used some teamwork as they are brawling outside the ring. Raven is limping badly here. Gilbertti and Jarrett are brawling in the crowd and a fan nails Gilbertti with a piece of trash. They continue to brawl and it is not very exciting to be honest. They head back to the ring where Jarrett nails Gilbertti on the head with a chair. In the ring, Jarrett accidentally knocks Raven off the apron after an Irish whip. Raven is selling the ankle on the floor as the heels double team Jarrett. Douglas is on offense and it looks terrible. Jarrett makes the tag but the ref did not see it happen and Jarrett gets destroyed in the corner. Gilbertti locks on a sleeper that Jarrett is able to break up with a jawbreaker. He makes the tag to Raven, who runs wild. He continues to limp around and gets a nearfall on Douglas. Raven Effect on Douglas but Gilbertti breaks up the cover. Jarrett comes in but Gilbertti tosses him to the floor and he sells his ankle. Douglas dropkicks the injured leg of ankle and slides a chain to Gilbertti but Jarrett takes him out from behind with a guitar. Raven covers but that only gets two. Referee Rudy Charles, one of, if not the worst referee in recent memory, made it look like a three count. Jarrett hits Douglas with the Stroke but James Mitchell runs out and watches from ringside. Raven tosses Douglas to the floor and turns his attention to Gilbertti but Mitchell enters the ring. Raven turns around and Mitchell hits him with a fireball for the DQ (11:05) *1/2. The final sequence was mistimed and did not come off well. Tenay is screaming how Douglas made a deal with the devil as the show goes off the air.

Thoughts: Raven was great here, even with the injury. Douglas, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. He came in overweight and blew up quickly. This was a disappointing match and it could have really built to something if Douglas was prepared to actually wrestle.

Final Thoughts: Besides the disappointing main event, I thought this was a fine show. You got two great matches, which was a rarity for a PPV in 2003. Putting the titles back on AMW was a good choice and it told the fans that they were sticking with them as a team after all of the adversity. The alliance between Douglas and Mitchell didn’t work for me here but that could change next week. The comedy act of New Jack & Shark Boy is working and it seems like the beginning of the end for SEX is near, which is a good thing as it has completely ran its course. I will say that the announced lineup for next week looks quite unimpressive.