Jules: Hello once again, fine friends and noted thespians, it is us, The J-Team, back atcha once again with another review of a recent pay per view extravaganza, this time around being TNA Turning Point 2009 featuring a rematch of what many call the greatest match TNA history. Did it live up to the hype? Was this event worth your money? Should you seek out the DVD when it hits the stores? What is meaning of life? You have questions, we might have some answers. Jimmy, say something why don’t ya? You’re making me feel awkward up here all by my lonesome. *chews fingernails*
Jimmy: Imagine you have a cat. A teeny, tiny cat that fits in the palm of your hand. You also have a poisonous sardine in your hand. Now you close your hand and when you open it back up there are two possibilities: 1) The cat eats the sardine and dies or 2) The cat does not eat the sardine and lives. However until you open your hand, Quantum Superpositions says that both occurrences have happened and it's up to the observer to decide. If we apply this logic to this particular wrestling PPV, it is up to us to decide the true outcome of the Samoa Joe/AJ Styles/Daniels main event: 1) The cat didn't eat the sardine and the match was a great success or 2) The cat did eat the sardine and it was a disappointing flop which proves that TNA cannot return to it's former glory. Until then though, for all we know, both possibilities have already happened.
Jules: Hey, who’s he pointing at? Moi? Somebody oughta teach that guy some manners.
Amazing Red (c) vs. Homicide for the X-Division Championship
Jimmy: I was not too happy to see Don West accompanying Amazing Red to the ring but even he didn't drag the match down that far. Homicide and Red put on a solid performance tonight and Red (who I think is, ironically enough, still very green [in terms of character and personality of course]) is a more than capable in ring worker. In fact, most of the offense that was very crisp and flowing throughout the match came from Amazing Red. I'm not saying by any means that he carried Homicide through this match, but he really (as Capt. Falcon would say) showed us his moves. There wasn't really any detection of a botch with the exception of the moonsault into a cutter but even that wasn't incredibly off. In any case, I was entertained for a lot of this fast paced match and my only real critique here is Homicide kind of doing the same "boo me" tactics in the first few minutes. The blown up middle finger was pretty lollerific though.
J Rating: J-J-J ¼
Jules: Red green huh? There’s a million different Sanford and Son jokes I could do here, but I will leave them aside for now. In any event Red didn’t look too green to me here. I think it’s just because of his natural boyish good looks that he always gives that impression of inexperience. In any event, he’s been an active pro-wrestler now for at least the better part of seven years so he ought not to be green in the least. I am also much happier to see Don West in his current managerial/promoter role on the outside of the ring, than I was with hearing him in the announce booth. I’ve found Tazz to be a massive upgrade in that regard, and West was just born to be one of those full of shit motivational speaker type guys. I think it’s literally why he was placed on this earth, well, that and selling stuff on the home shopping network. But anyway, this match was fairly good. It did not blow me away by any stretch of the imagination, and, for what they did, it could’ve probably been a little shorter. Red’s still got plenty of speed, but he moves like a snail compared to say, Yoshino, or even Evan Bourne on a good night although compared to say, me for instance, he’s still a cheetah. There were some cool spots, such as the rana off the apron and a few sloppy parts as well. It’s probably been done before without me seeing it, but ever since I was a kid I’ve always imagined what it would look like if someone countered a moonsault with a diamond cutter, and well, now I know. If that spot would’ve came together smoother and it would’ve been the finish with Homicide winning the X Division championship, I’d give this match an extra half J just for that, but as it is, I’ll hand it a solid and respectable three J rating.
J-Rating: J-J-J
One Dirty Bitch (c), Sarita, & Taylor Wilde (c) vs. The Beautiful People (Lacey Von Erich, Madison Rayne, & Velvet Sky) in a Six Person Tag Match for the TNA Knockout Championship and the Knockout Tag Team Championships
Jimmy: I'm not too certain how to react to this match. On one hand, nothing was blown, Lacey Von Erich had limited ring time, the cameraman gave us gratuitous shots of the Beautiful People's derrieres, there was this hilarious "you can't wrestle" chant, and we don't have to endure a reign by Lacey Von Erich as the TNA Knockout Champion. On the other hand, I severely miss Angelina Love, The Beautiful People aren't recovering from her absence anytime in the foreseeable future, there were no wardrobe malfunctions of any sort (I hate this PG era), and the match didn't have much drama at all. It was kind of like a festivity of random spots sprinkled into a match (who ever thought of this idea?) and kind of got me excited but nowhere near as excited as other girls on the internet makes me. Umm... Yeah... I think I should get to my rating already. This wasn't bad by any means but the lack of drama made it seem less like a PPV match (especially for TNA) and more like a regular old TNA match. Sorry girls but this did not make me believe for one minute that a Lacey Von Erich championship reign would come of this.
J Rating: J-J ¼
Jules: The highlight of this match for me happened before and after the opening bell rang. Before of course when I got to see once again the greatest entrance in wrestling history bar none, (Melina’s is now a distant second) and after when, Velvet (I think it was Velvet anyway..) stuffed one of ODB’s long blonde hair extensions down the front of her tights and started dancing like a complete fool. I may be the only one, but I had a good cackle at that. Other than that though, this match just simply was what it was; not horrible, but not particularly good either. Before I saw Sarita and Taylor come out with the matching tights and belts I had forgotten there even was such a thing as the TNA Knockouts Division Tag Team Championship, and I’m sure it won’t be that long until I’ve forgotten that little factoid once again. These women worked this match about as smart as they could, keeping Lacey Von Erich (or Lacey Von Botch as one creative fan deemed her in an awesome sign) in for only the briefest of appearances, during which she still managed to look absolutely horrible, ( her ‘wrestling’ did I mean… she still looked great. I’ll get my story straight sooner or later.) The Beautiful People got the heat on the Sarita and Taylor for the majority of the match and then ODB came in and cleaned house. In the end this was a somewhat respectable little contest, that easily could have been a hell of a lot worse, although that could have in turn made it more entertaining too… So, perhaps it’s a glass half empty/half full type of deal right there… In any event, it was hot chicks (and ODB) rolling around on top of one another. What right have I to complain about that?
J-Rating: J-J
The British Invasion (B. Magnus & D. Williams) (c) vs. Beer Money, Inc. (J. Storm & R. Roode) vs. Motor City Machine Guns (A. Shelley & C. Sabin) in a Three Way Tag Team Match for the TNA Tag Team Championships
Jimmy: Hooray! A chopfest! I love chopfests. The Guns did really well in this match, quickening up the pace and giving the fans (who were vehemently behind them) their money's worth. I loved the double team moves pulled off during this match and that spot where Beer Money and MCMG started layin' the smackdown on Brutus in the corner with one man after the other (no homo?) It was preceded by this similarly homo spot where the MCMG pulled Magnus' groin right into his partner's (who was in the Tree of Woe at the time) face. I was enjoying it right to the point where Eric Young and Kevin Nash showed up where I was just in a complete WTF moment. Somehow Kevin Nash felt the need to arbitrarily interrupt the match, help out the stable which is run by the guy who now has his title, and ruin it for Beer Money for what's sure to be an overcomplicated reason. That little gripe aside, I think this match was assisted by the fact that it was being contested by real teams that have been the the ring with each other and know each other so well. It's good to see some actual tag team wrestling instead of what we get in the mainstream nowadays. I would've liked to see a less screwy finish here but that's what happens when we're dealing with TNA. Oh well.
J Rating: J-J-J ¼
Jules: This match showcased both the very best and the very worst of Total Nonstop Action wrestling. I’ll start with the positive stuff in order to be fair and balanced, that being that the match itself was pretty damn good. You had fluid action all the way through with plenty of very unique double team spots that were all executed excellently as you’d expect from guys like Sabin and Shelley being involved in them. The crowd was into everything, chanting for Beer Money, the Machine Guns, and even coming up with a creative ‘bloody wankers’ chant for the British Invasion which made me laugh. On the merits of what went down in the ring and nothing else, this was, so far, the best match of the night, and a bout I happened to be enjoying very much, but then, we got us some bullshit folks. Near the finish of the match Eric Young, the leader of the World Elite faction, of which both members of the British Invasion are currently a part of, came down to ringside and got into an altercation with James Storm. Then out comes Kevin Nash, who has been feuding with Eric Young recently (can’t imagine the brilliant mind who envisioned a program between those two guys) so Nash grabs the Legends/Global title from Young and then, of course, this being TNA, wallops James Storm in the back of the head with it, knocking him out cold. Back in the ring the Brutus Magnus and Doug Williams hit Robert Roode with their double team finisher, and that’s that. So basically, this was an above average three way tag team match that will in the weeks to come be remembered by me purely for the Russo-esqe crapola that unfortunately marred it at the finish line. And that my friends, is a damn shame.
J Rating: J-J-J
Awesome Kong vs. Tara in a Six Sides of Steel Match
Jimmy: I thought this was a pretty good match that showed off the strength of Kong and the determination of Tara. I'm not really sure why they had a Six Sides of Steel match when Lockdown is on it's way (and I guess that shows the folly of having themed PPVs *looks in direction of audience*) but I guess this riveting encounter was too much for the TNA booking staff to hold off until the spring. However I was well pleased with the match but I felt that it should have been Kong to go over her opponent. From what I heard, they just rebuilt Kong's credibility as a badass monster heel that she lost when Taylor Wilde got a pair of fluke wins over her. Why build Kong up just to knock her down again? Now I know that Tara is no Taylor Wilde but it just doesn't make sense to me why Kong did the J-O-B here. That aside this was a well worked match in my estimation and I hardly ever say that about women's matches (not being sexist but that's just the way it tends to be these days.)
J Rating: J-J-J
Jules: Don’t ask me why this match had to be contested inside a steel cage, it just had to be. These two women definitely knew how to get as much usage out of the six sides of steel as possible though, and their two characters looked right home behind those dark chain links I must say. Some of the better spots in this match included a flying dropkick from Kong and a running Kong splash into a helpless Tara who was sandwiched between the ring ropes and the steel mesh of the cage, an electric chair spot, as well as a giant swing deal where Kong just whipped Tara into the cage by her legs in a quick and jerky manner. All of these maneuvers made Awesome Kong look like quite the menacing and imposing little monster heel. Tara to her credit also had some good moments here in this match including a very nicely sold powerbomb out of the corner onto Kong, followed by a flying body press off the top of the cage that in the end turned out to be more of a flying Thesz Press, which then lead to the pinfall victory for her. I’ve seen better women’s matches I suppose, but all in all, this was nothing to thumb one’s nose at. Both ladies worked pretty hard, and put together a nice old school style cage match, that, while not getting a heck of a lot of time and being a little slow in parts not involving the big spots, still managed to establish itself fairly well. The only thing I can think of that would’ve made this even better was if the TNA Knockout’s title had been on the line, but for whatever reason that little trinket happens to be residing around the waist of one Miss OBD. Oh well, in the end I’ll just say that this still was a perfectly acceptable battle between two of the toughest gals in all of Orlando, and I’d be more than happy to see them lock up again in some other kind of gimmicky encounter.
J Rating: J-J-J
Team 3D (Brother Ray & Brother D-Von) & Rhinoceros vs. 'The Pope' Deangelo Dinero, 'The Blueprint' Matt Morgan, & 'Super Mex' Hernandez
Jimmy: When are The Dudley Boyz or Rhino going to retire? It's not that I don't like them (with the exception of Rhino) but it's that I really don't see what's left for them to do anymore. When you're the most decorated tag team of all time, where do you go from there? I can hear the cries of "they'll help younger talent get over" already but the outcome of this match really left me scratching my head for that claim. However, I'm going to be perfectly honest and say that I haven't seen the last few weeks (maybe months) of TNA so maybe I'm missing a part of the big picture. This was a nice match for what it was but I couldn't help but yawn whenever Rhino and/or one of the Dudleys stepped into the ring. I've just seen so much of them and their prehistoric careers that there's nothing they do that truly excites me anymore. On the other hand, I was super happy to see Hernandez and Pope do their thing in this match. Good for them. There wasn't anything too noteworthy or OMG about this match however so sadly for the young folk, I'm gonna half to split it down the middle.
J Rating: J-J ½
Jules: So the storyline going into this match was that TNA management (LOL, TNA has management?) is supposedly one hundred percent behind the young guys and one hundred percent against the older stars, which really translates to: TNA management has so little faith in the current crop of young wrestlers that they have ordered their officials to give them underhanded victories, which would be fine, if say, the young guys were supposed to be the heels, but of course they’re not, so it’s just another case of TNA shooting themselves in the foot with their plot hole filled writing. All that out of the way, Deangelo Dinero is definitely my favorite character in all of TNA. His entrance, his promos, and overall presence just scream star in the making. I really hope they don’t drop the ball with him, but I’m also not going to get my hopes up on that account either. The Pope did get to shine pretty bright in this match early on though, and after he got cut off from his team mates he had to do the obligatory heat spot as well which makes up the majority of most any basically booked pro-wrestling tag team match. Matt Morgan got to make the hot comeback and hit some unimpressive looking clotheslines followed by a few other standard big man spots. He basically seems to be a younger version of Kevin Nash, although with a bit more agility, and way less charisma. Hernandez then got into the mix and broke out a really nice running plancha over the top rope onto Brother Ray, Brother Devon, and Brother Rhino, (guess they can always adopt him..) which must’ve made for a safe and soft landing target. The finish saw Bubba distract the ref while Devon waffled Super Mex with a chair setting up the Gore which then led to the pinfall. This was not a match that I’d recommend one rush out and see by any means, but if you’re not pressed for time or in a hurry to see Angle and Wolfe, this was by all means a very watchable six man tag team match that did what it had to do and didn’t overstay its welcome.
J Rating: J-J ¾
'The Boss' Bruce Spring... err, Bobby Lashley vs. 'Big Poppa Pump' Scott Steiner in a Falls Count Anywhere match
Jimmy: Goodness, ever since I can remember, TNA has been using that stupid "Wrestler A stalks Wrestler B's wife/family" angle. I remember seeing it with Christian's wife, Sting's family, Jarrett's daughters, Angle's wife, and now Bobby Lashley's wife seems to be the latest victim in the ever growing list of stalked family members. This makes TNA look like the lousiest run company when it comes to taking care of stalkers. Doesn't the state of Florida have laws against stalking a person? Jeez TNA, you are proving time and time again to be one of the worst run wrestling companies in recent memory... in regard to stalkers. This match was really, really slow paced and Scott Steiner looked like he was about to die while delivering his Frankensteiner. Bobby Lashley, a former ECW Champion, still doesn't know how to swing a steel chair or suplex a man on top of a table. Oh, and he almost lost when he ran into a fleet of cardboard boxes. This match ended quite abruptly but I didn't really care as I could've actually been happier with this match being five minutes shorter.
J Rating: J-J
Jules: When Bobby Lashley came in, as with all new TNA arrivals from ‘that other place’ he was heralded as the be all end all of talent acquisitions, and it looked like he was going to be a major player on the receiving end of a big Goldberg like push, but now here is, a few months later, just another random geek, being jobbed out to Scott freaking Steiner. Really, there is no point in having a guy like Lashley around if this is how you’re going to use him. He’s a big guy with some good amateur ability, and a great look, so if you were going to give him the Goldberg treatment, it would get over. He has no personality, and negative charisma, but then again, Goldberg went nearly a year into his streak without ever uttering a word besides “Who’s next?” every now and then. Ideally, you have Lashley go on a hot streak and then have the dream program with Kurt Angle and then see how it goes from there. Now though, they’ve completely ruined the Lashley mystique and turned him into just another guy who won’t dry in a single buy, as they do with everybody. If I were Bobby Lashley, I’d get out of this promotion right now and sign with Strikeforce while they still wanted me. The backstory of this match was that Scott Steiner and Bobby Lashley are doing the old Jake Roberts/Rick Rude storyline where Steiner is making scandalous accusations about Bobby Lashley’s epicly hot wife Crystal. Therefore due to the personal nature of the situation, at the last minute, and with no build, this match was made into a falls count anywhere contest. Steiner moves around like an eighty year old man these days, but can still do most of his signature moves like suplexes and top rope Frankensteiners. The match hovered near ringside for a bit and then found its way to the back near the production truck where they had a yawn inducing battle near some conveniently placed plunder. Even the furniture they were using seemed bored by this match as a table almost forgot to break when Lashley lightly suplexed Steiner onto it. After that they both just kind of casually walked back out into the arena and Scotty went up by the Spanish announce position and messed up the TNA logo and grabbed a steel bar which he then bashed upon the head of Bobby Lashley apparently knocking him out cold. A really out of nowhere finish I thought at the time, but I guess they had to save space for the main events, which is fine by me.
J Rating: J-J 1/2
'Your Olympic Hero' Kurt Angle vs. Wolfie McNigelson
Jimmy: I think the crowd put it best when they chanted "This is wrestling!" and "Wrestling... YAY!" We saw all the mat wrestling we've come to expect out of Kurt (and then some) and a ton of creativity out of Wolfe's offense. I haven't seen too much of Wolfe's indy work as I was tuning into RoH during that stretch where he was injured, so seeing this was a real treat for me. With a new name, new haircut, and a new gimmick, Wolfe starts off with a clean slate on the professional scene with an angle (no pun intended) that's been golden since it started. This match was freaking awesome and it displayed great chain wrestling between both men who looked evenly matches throughout. However, I did not like how comically bad Desmond was teasing a tapout to the Ankle Lock and how the announcers labeled his Jawbreaker Lariat (an awesome name btw) as a "clothesline" at one point. Jeez Taz, Mike Tenay corrected you on that! The juji-gatame armbar at the very end was also a very nice touch too. This was a pretty tough act to follow but I had confidence in the next match...
J Rating: J-J-J-J
Jules: This match was a different kind of awesome than I was expecting to be. I don’t know why, but I came into this match expecting a flurry of fast paced high impact moves, with some nice chain wrestling thrown in as the icing on the cake, but instead, what I got, was basically, a stripped down basic old school wrestling match between two solid in ring technicians who knew how to take that kind of an encounter to the next level. There were no holy excrement type moments, but everything still looked nice and crisp, and Kurt Angle made Desmond Wolfe look like a legitimate star who was very much on par with him. The crowd was very hot from the beginning, chanting ‘This is wrestling’ less than two minutes into the match. (note for future reference, at least give the guys a chance to actually do some stuff before you shower them with premature praise...) Desmond expertly worked over Kurt’s shoulder and arm for a long time leading up to a few different variations of a keylock, mixed in with other signature moves of his. Kurt hit his perfunctory rolling German suplex combo, managing to crank out six of them bad boys this time around and also caught Wolfe in the Ankle Lock a few times with Wolfe managing to cleverly escape each time. Finally Kurt Angle caught Wolfe in a sudden side triangle leg choke which led to Desmond tapping out rather rapidly in an unexpected end to a very good match. The only thing that could’ve improved my, and perhaps the live crowd’s enjoyment of it, would be more familiarity with Desmond Wolfe going into this, as there were a few very well built up near falls and near submissions that didn’t garner quite the reactions they should have. Still, that’s a pretty small complaint in an overall very solid match. That right there just established Nigel McWolferson as a man to be reckoned with in the TNA locker room. Now for the love all things decent and holy, do not, I repeat, DO NOT, just throw him into World Elite so he can be another dork in a tracksuit taking orders from Eric Young. I will be insanely pissed if this happens. (which probably means it’s going to..)
J Rating: J-J-J-J 1/4
'The Phenomenal' AJ Styles (c) vs. 'The Samoan Submission Machine' Samoa Joe vs. 'The Fallen Angel' Christopher Daniels for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship
Jimmy: Wow. I think these guys are three of six people (the others being HHH, Michaels, and He Who Must Not Be Named) that work perfectly with each other in a triple threat contest. In "real sports" like boxing and MMA, these contests are impossible to have for the sheer chaos that it would have. I think professional wrestling (and these guys in particular) capture the chaos in a controlled and smooth manner. Now there was plenty of things to love about this match and something in particular was the intensity radiating from each man every time they did a move. There were tons of double team moves, as well as moves putting the hurt on both men, that were a real joy to watch. Not only that but we got to see some teased "stolen finishers" in this match that we didn't get to see in the last one. There was so much in this match that brought back the feeling of the last, like you were watching something truly special and captivating. Now all that praise aside, unfortunately I cannot give it a perfect rating because the last match between these three, in my estimation, was the better match. Now, don't take this as a knock on this one (which was very, very awesome) but think of it more as a compliment to the original match. In any case I would encourage anyone to go to YouTube and find the original to watch and compare it to this match yourself. If anything, it will just prove that these competitors are truly well versed in the Sport of Kings.
J Rating: J-J-J-J ¾
Jules: Now, this match was exactly the kind of awesome I was expecting it to be and then some. I’d have to go back and re-watch the one from four years ago to make a fair comparison, but in my opinion anyway, nothing short of an absolute five star classic could even come close to equaling this mighty effort put forth here on this night. This match was basically the very epitome of a spotfest, and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way at all, as these guys made it all work within the confines of the match and there were absolutely no slow or awkward moments whatsoever. I hate to quote that horrible TNA theme music, but this was definitely an adrenaline rush for sure. I can’t even begin to list all the crazy and unique three way spots these guys came up with and if I even attempted to this one match review would quadruple the length of this entire review column all by itself. Tazz even sounded legitimately impressed on the commentary, like this was the greatest match he’d ever seen in his life. If it was just company schilling, it was very good company schilling nonetheless. Everything was done right here. From the beginning ring introductions by Borash which gave this match that all important big fight feel, to the amazing crowd reaction that was literally on fire throughout, even breaking into some heartfelt chants in the midst of this great match they were witnessing such as “Screw Hulk Hogan” and “Who Needs Hogan”… Hope old Hulk doesn’t catch wind of that, or he’ll probably have these guys all curtain jerking when he shows up. But to conclude, these three guys went out there and put together a simply incredible match that left me gasping for breath when all was said and done, and they did it without anything overly dangerous being tried. The finish came after Daniels hit the Best Moonsault Ever on Joe, and then AJ Styles hit a springboard 450 splash onto Daniels, planting his knees directly in Daniels back, which looked like it sucked to be on the receiving end of, allowing him to cover Samoe Joe for the pinfall victory. Can’t say enough good things about this match.
J Rating: J-J-J-J 3/4
Things We Learned From Watching TNA Turning Point 2009
Jimmy: I learned that it doesn't matter if you're white, black, Super-Mexican, a rhinoceros, or whatever the hell Matt Morgan appears to be... what really matters is if we hold the same religious denominational observances.
I learned that you simply cannot outrun Bobby Lashley. In the promotional videos to the Steiner match, I saw Bobby Lashley come to the aid of his woman in the iMPACT! Zone, backstage of the iMPACT! Zone, and even at a fancy hotel. Yes, that's right folks, Bobby Lashley can go from the TNA production van to his car to a specific hotel to the right hotel room that Steiner and his wife were in all in the span of two, maybe even one and a half hours.
I learned that Scott Steiner has very explosive hips. Thanks Taz, that was a great tidbit of information that I kept in the recesses of my brain to enhance my match-viewing experience.
I learned that a juji-gatame armbar is the most painful, match-ending move on the planet because, regardless if you worked on the arm at all during the match, if you can lock that baby on, a victory is pretty much a guarantee at that point. I truly wonder why others aren't applying this hold in their matches if it's completely unbeatable.
Jules: I learned that TNA employs a team of five year old uber-geeks to script their wrestler’s promos. Seriously Desmond, “Bow To My Howl”? I had to do a double face palm at that unforgivably lame SHITE right there. Yes, I wrote shite.
In the Kevin Nash interview conducted by Jeremy Borash, Nash kept mentioned this guy named ‘Hulk’… He never mentioned a last name to my knowledge, and I have no memory of any wrestling personality ever using that name, so I’m assuming TNA must have at some point hired Lou Ferrigno.
I learned that Victoria, err, I mean Tara was recently inducted into the sports hall of fame in her hometown. So now whenever I write a match review in which she appears, I must always remember to inject ‘Hall of Famer’ Tara, somehow. To do otherwise would be downright disrespectful to this towering legend in the wrestling business.
Overall Rating
Jimmy: So overall, the first TNA PPV that the (new) J-Team has reviewed has gained a mighty 47 ¾ J's out of a possible 80. For anyone keeping track, that is the most J's we've given to one PPV to date. On it's own it does a respectable 60% but on our famous curve that gives it a nice 66% meaning it's a B. Pretty swell PPV IMO especially with a completely filled, 8-match card (which we haven't reviewed in about 2 months if not more). If you've forgotten our previous grades, here's a reminder:
Extreme Rules: C+ 63%; 39/62(Curved scale) The Bash: D 52%; 37.5/70(Curved scale) Night of Champions: B 69%; 43.25/62(Curved scale) Summerslam: B 69%; 40/58(Curved scale with 7 matches counted) DGUSA: Enter the Dragon: A+ 80%; 40/50(Non-curved scale with 5 matches only) Breaking Point: C 58%; 36/62(Curved scale with 7 matches counted) Hell In A Cell: C+ 63%; 45/70(Curved scale) BraggingRights: A 79%; 30.25/38.25(Curved scale with 5 matches only) DGUSA: Untouchable: A+ 80%; 39.75/50(Non-curved scale with 5 matches only) TNA: Turning Point: B 66%; 47.75/80(Curved scale)
Jules: Well, if only for the last two matches this event was one of the better pay per views of the year I’d say. Everything else besides those two selling points was somewhere in between good and inoffensive, so really, there’s not a lot of reason to not rate this event highly. You have two solid potential match of the year candidates, which, when you add on to the equally amazing Dragon Gate PPV we just saw, leaves Survivor Series with two very tough shows to follow from a match quality standpoint in this humble reviewer’s opinion. In all seriousness though, with all the current hype about Hogan, I hope to be able to look back on this event in the months to come as one of many future similarly great events, and not as the last battle cry of what originally made TNA worth watching in the first place, while I have to sit through the Nasty Boys trade noggin knockers with Brutus Beefcake and King Kong Bundy. Basically, I hope this PPV turns out not to be a Turning Point at all, but rather, a sticking point. Crappy swerve booking aside.
Jimmy: Indeed. DGUSA and TNA have given WWE a tough act to follow (especially with TNA on the triple threat side of things.) Stay tuned for our thoughts on WWE Survivor Series, which took place last weekend, which should be available in the coming days. This is the J-Team bidding a farewell until next time.
Email Jules at pulp_wrestling@yahoo.com
Email Jimmy at j4m354@gmail.com
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