Wrestling’s 4R’s 5.20.13: TNA Impact Reviewed

THE RIGHT:
Bully Ray and Sting contract signing: This segment was electric. Bully Ray agreeing to the stipulation on the basis that Sting can never wrestle for the TNA World Championship again was a nice touch. While I fear that this may lead to Sting winning the belt, this segment was fantastic and did a great job of adding hype to their match at Slammiversary. With fewer pay-per-views, it is critical that their main-events feel important, and these two helped accomplish that here.

D-Lo Brown vs. Joseph Park/post-match: I’ve gotten more annoyed with the Joseph Park character than most as of late, and I can’t stand to see him in the ring. That said, this was one of his best matches in a long time. D-Lo had his working boots on, busting out a Shining Wizard and a Sliding D. Joseph Park Abyssing-up and doing the pose post-match before coming to was great. This may have marked a critical point in the evolution of the Joseph Park character.

X-Division build and Kenny King vs. Chris Sabin vs. Petey Williams: TNA made a smart move by using some television time to hype up this match. Sabin and King were great when talking, and they made this match seem important. The match itself was fun and crisp. Kenny King actually getting the win with his finisher was good, and it made him look stronger than he did in his other recent outings. Taking Petey out of the mix was the right move, and I think adding Suicide into the picture is probably the most interesting thing they could do to add to the King/Sabin dynamic.

Jay Bradley vs. Christian York and the Gut-Check hype segments: While the Gutcheck hasn’t been a phenomenal success, York and Bradley’s segments made it seem important. That match itself was okay, but Bradley getting the win moves it into the right. We’ve seen what York has to offer; he carries himself well, but his offense is slow and awkward. Having Bradley advance to Slammiversary creates a much more refreshing scenario. With that in mind, I think it would be advantageous of TNA to keep Bradley on television more so that we can get a better idea of what his character is. He came off as likable during his vignette, but acted more heelish in the ring. It will be hard for Bradley to excel unless there is more clarity about him in the eyes of the fans.

Kurt Angle calls out AJ Styles, Anderson interrupts: According to Anderson, AJ Styles will be joining Aces and Eights next week. However, after AJ took Angle out with a kick to the head, Anderson left through the crowd, and AJ walked up the ramp. This little touch added more intrigue to how things will go next week. They managed to hype the AJ/Angle match at Slammiversary and draw questions as to whether AJ is actually joining Aces and Eights or not.

Gail Kim vs. Velvet Sky: TNA has the right idea with Gail Kim, which is to build her up as a woman who maims her opponents. The way that she targeted the leg of Velvet Sky during their match was compelling, and set up her post-match attack even better. However, during her run of taking out the other TNA Knockouts, she has been losing. A lot. Like I said, TNA has the right idea. That said, the execution has been lacking. The only way Gail Kim can seem truly dangerous is if she can take out her opponents during matches as well.

Bobby Roode vs. Chavo Guerrero: There isn’t much to say about this match beyond “it happened” and “it never got going.”

The opening segment: One of the best ways to start a wrestling show is to announce a match that entices fans to stay tuned for the rest of it. TNA used this valuable segment to set up a match between a comedy character and a career-long midcarder; Joseph Park vs. D-Lo Brown. While the match ended up being alright, I think that they could have set it up differently and gotten better use out of the opening segment.