Sunday, March 17, 2013

Week in Review (TNA Lockdown 2013)

TNA Lockdown 2013 (3/10/13):

Kenny King took a nasty bump after botching what I think would be a moonsault onto Christian York. King wanted to use Zema Ion as a springboard (I assume) and just looked bad from the start. Kenny finished the match just fine, so just a scare there. Zema Ion with a hurricanrana to King -- and Ion basically does a moonsault-to-pin attempt on Christian York at the same time. Now that's awesome. Tower of Doom spot. York powerbomb to King, who did a fallaway slam on Ion. Multiple great spots. A kickass X-Division triple threat. I'd say another 3-4 minutes of this and it's easily over four stars. ***3/4

Joseph Park's gimmick is over with the crowd, but putting him in a match with Joey Ryan isn't what I had in mind. A comedic filler match.

Another reason why the Knockouts Division is a zillion times better than WWE's Divas. Gail Kim is a part of another great match. Listen to that crowd when Taryn Terrell speared Gail. Yup. I'd give that Knockouts match at least **1/2.

To me, the match between the Robbies was a snoozer. Just couldn't get into it.

Triple threat tag title match = win. Fun spot early with Chavo's multiple suplexes (a zillion amigos, I guess). Impressive double backbreaker by Hernandez. I loved the finish with Roode tagging himself in at the last second as Chavo hits the frog splash. Roode gets the pin to retain the titles. I hope the contract dispute has been taken care of, because Roode is gonna remain a huge factor in TNA. Another tremendous match. ***3/4

Predictable screwjob finish to get Wes Brisco his win over Kurt Angle. Gotta credit Angle for helping the new guys.

Good Lethal Lockdown match. Sting was the last guy in, and he brought the weapons. From there, it was basically Team TNA getting redemption. Nice big spot from Eric Young, doing the elbow drop from the top of the cage. Giving that around ***. At the time, it seemed like a big A&E loss for their momentum. But it turns out that didn't hurt the stable's momentum at all...

...because then the World Title match happened. Once the Hogans came down to ringside, that all but sealed the Bully Ray heel turn. I'm still not agreeing with doing that turn so quickly. Yes, a ton of people could see it coming a million miles away. Yes, Bully is way better as a heel. But why not hold off on it some more and gain even more guys in the A&E stable in the meantime? I for one would have loved to see someone like Brooke Hogan or Joseph Park in A&E before Bully joined. ***1/4 for the title match.

It felt like WCW and the nWo all over again when the beer bottles came flying into the ring. For the wrestler's safety, I wouldn't condone that.

As one saw from the PPV, not all matches were contested inside a steel cage. Excellent move. I thought the PPV was great overall, probably around ***1/2. Quality over quantity in PPVs is a damn good thing for TNA.

RAW (3/11/13):
Another awesome match from Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler. Not surprised there. ***3/4 for it.

Lesnar takes out the New Age Outlaws because of their ties to HHH. Great promo by Heyman to further the storyline. HHH now has to agree to accept a match with Lesnar and sign a contract, and only then will Lesnar announce his stipulations. Of course, HHH is accepting no matter what. Whatever the stipulation really is, it promises to be a war.

Nice to see the Bella Twins back on RAW. An interesting twist in the Cody Rhodes-Kaitlyn storyline that I didn't see coming. And Kaitlyn snorts on her laughing. Wonderful.

WWE's committed to a storyline between Mark Henry and Ryback. I'm not sure of this one. Matches between two non-agile big men generally haven't fared well.

Wade Barrett and Miz continue their feud over being movie stars. Yay...

Brad Maddox is one of the frontrunners for for worst promo of the year. Scripted like that or not, that was brutal. Just say Miz and Jericho have a match, winner faces Barrett for the IC Title next week. Moron.

And of course, Miz and Jericho didn't have a winner because of Barrett's interference. I like the triple threat match possibilities.

Awesome stuff between Halle Berry and Kane to promote The Call (movie comes out on Friday).

The match between Punk and Taker is really on now. I'm sure WWE would have brought Paul Bearer into the mix anyway, but Bearer's passing has made it even more of a big deal. Talk about real life and storyline meshing together. Great heel stuff from Punk as usual.

With my busy schedule this week, I didn't get to watch NXT, Main Event, Impact, Superstars, and Smackdown. I heard Impact had a good match between Sting and Austin Aries.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Week in Review (3/4 to 3/10; RIP Paul Bearer)

NOTE: TNA Lockdown takes place on March 10, but I'll try to recap that at another time. I'll be out of town for St. Patrick's Day weekend, so I probably won't get to watch everything anyway.

OK, trying out a week in review thing that I'll post on weekends, if possible. I still watch the shows briefly, so the recaps may be lengthy. Let's see how this one goes.

The big news this week was the passing of Paul Bearer, probably best known for being affiliated with the Undertaker. It made headlines on various news websites, and a lot of past and present WWE stars paid their respects. He'll be sorely missed.

Old School RAW (3/4/13):
Nice start with Undertaker's cameo and a "sign" that he'll be competing at WM 29. CM Punk went off on his vow to break the Streak, with Randy Orton, Big Show, and Sheamus all stating their claim to take on the Dead Man.

Funny how Cole and Lawler were mentioning how Ryback is one of the strongest guys in WWE when Cesaro is probably the strongest pound-for-pound guy in the company. Not to mention he made Ryback look real good. I loved the finish with Cesaro unable to get the Neutralizer on Ryback and Ryback counters into Shellshocked for three.

Interesting staredown between Ryback and Mark Henry. Probably will be a WM 29 match? Henry squashed poor Zack Ryder.

Ric Flair was at RAW, of course. Fittingly, Miz gets Dolph Ziggler to tap to the Figure Four. I think it's a match worth watching.

Rock was at RAW. Of course, John Cena has to get in his words, and he just wants redemption. Cena vowed to beat Rock last year and failed. Yeah, Cena will win this time. I get it. And who woulda thunk Cena would quote Mike Tyson? But hey, isn't Tyson in the WWE Hall of Fame? Has to mean something now!

Jack Swagger gets to beat up three WWE Legends that stand for what America seems to be: a common man, a military guy, and a guy with a 2x4 saying "HOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Nice to see the Million Dollar Man at RAW. Fitting pairing with the Primetime Players. Millions of Dollars! D-Young ate the pinfall again and DiBiase stuffed a $100 bill in his mouth. So much for that managerial idea. Not like it was gonna happen at this time anyway.

Tensai now completely matches Brodus Clay's dancing gear. Transformation complete for Sweet T? The match was a joke. Really. And vintage Honky Tonk Man guitar shot to Heath Slater.

What a surprise: Fandango won't wrestle until someone says his name properly.

No surprise again: HHH calls out Lesnar and they'll have another fight at WM 29. I love bloody wars!

Alberto Del Rio defeats Wade Barrett while Swagger looks on. Both guys in the World Title match are getting booked strongly, as they should be.

Nice to see the New Age Outlaws can still wrestle. But seriously, Primo and Epico deserve better than to lose to these guys. Did they do something to get buried like this?

Fatal Four Way was awesome. Loved seeing Punk try to steal the pin several times. Show KOs Punk but Sheamus goes after Show because first fall wins. Excellent finish. Sheamus Brogue Kicks Show, Orton RKOs Sheamus, then Punk with the GTS to Orton for three. ***

Undertaker comes out for the epic staredown spot with Punk. Like it would have been any other way. Will Punk break the Streak? Nah. Taker should win that and go to 21-0.

Main Event (3/6/13)
Was torn on watching much of this one, but I did enjoy the match between Randy Orton and Wade Barrett. Orton was over huge with the fans this week. Great crowd and Orton wins with an RKO. Solid finish. ***1/4

Zack Ryder lost again. Might as well turn him heel eventually.

Awesome spot in the match between Sin Cara and Antonio Cesaro. Cara flipped onto Cesaro's shoulders and into a sunset flip powerbomb for two. To me, it's more Cesaro being a huge asset to WWE for being able to work with a lot of people and help bring something new to each match he has. Amazing finish.

NXT (3/6/13):
From what I understand, Oliver Grey has a legit injury. They had the Wyatt Family "injure" him for storyline purposes. Good showing by Adrian Neville in a handicap match.

When was the last time Yoshi Tatsu won a match? I have no idea anymore.

Six-diva tag action on NXT?! Well, at least they'll get more time here than on the two "main shows" (RAW and Smackdown). Naomi with the hot tag again and she gets the win for her team. They actually got somewhere around 4 minutes! Whoa!

Summer Rae is relishing her role as "The First Lady of NXT." She's doing her job well because it makes me want to see Paige's eventual return.

Very good triple threat match to determine the #1 contender for the NXT Title (Conor O'Brian vs. Bo Dallas vs. Corey Graves). Bo and Graves teamed up at times to take down Conor, showing the "strange bedfellows" spots that can occur in these matches. Bray Wyatt slowly makes his way to the ring in the last couple minutes of the match. Graves locks in the 13th Step on Bo, then Conor with an awesome armbar submission on Graves. Bo and Graves had some sloppy work in the last few seconds of the match. Conor steals the win. I thought the lack of crowd reaction hurt this one a bunch; it truly deserved better. Otherwise, not much to complain about.

More seeds planted for Bo's storyline with Bray Wyatt. Conor gets his shot at Big E Langston. Graves gets to wait again, I guess.

TNA Impact (3/7/13):
A nice start to the show with Austin Aries calling out Jeff Hardy and having a match immediately. Aries booked strong here to try and set himself up for a future World Title shot. Aries jawjacks with the ref and we get a full moon shot. Vivid image there. Matt Morgan with the Carbon Footprint to end all that because he wants in the title picture.

Having D'Lo Brown join Aces & Eights as VP works because he is basically "at the core" of TNA management. Really helps drive the point home that anyone could be a part of the group.

So now that Taz is an A&E guy, Danny Davis is a Gut Check judge. Bruce Prichard and Al Snow remain the other two judges. The judges pick Lei'D Tapa over Ivelisse to face Gut Check judging, mainly for the different presence she brings to the ring and potential (second-generation star). Personally woulda picked Ivelisse.

Gail Kim pins Velvet Sky in the six-person mixed tag, so that probably means Velvet Sky retains at Lockdown. Bad Influence probably retains at Lockdown as well.

More drama in the AJ Styles storyline, this time a more physical assault on both his childhood friend and the cameraman for showing up to his house uninvited. Styles will be in Chicago to further this transformation. The new attitude is refreshing, and I like it so far.

Lei'D Tapa comes down to face the judges and the fans already don't like her. That alone makes me want to vote "yes" because I'd rather have a hot crowd than a person with talent who the fans don't give a crap about. Al Snow casts the deciding vote and says "yes," so Tapa gets her contract.

At the same time, this Gut Check process actually makes me question the voting a bit. If the judges had rejected Tapa, neither would get the contract, and that to me just feels like a waste of time overall. A double rejection may eventually happen only because if they plan to keep doing this once a month, TNA would have too many people on the roster for the amount of TV time allotted. Heck, it's already at that point and been so for years.

I'd propose Gut Check be limited to a few times a year, promising just a temporary 3-month developmental contract. The successful candidate would then train in OVW and, if there's improvement and promise after that time, they get the contract renewed for another set period. The ultimate goal basically would be to get to the main roster. This way, we can simply keep getting updates from OVW, give OVW that much more exposure, and we don't lose track of where these people have gone.

Remember all those other Gut Check participants that received their contracts? Yeah, I figured you would need to use Google to remember all of them. Christian York has easily benefited the most, and Joey Ryan (an unsuccessful candidate for a bigger storyline) even has gotten a bunch of screen time. Not lately, though.

Three matches between Team TNA and A&E to see who gets the man advantage for Lethal Lockdown. Devon beats Sting to give A&E a 1-0 lead. Later, Magnus and Samoa Joe defeat DOC and Garett Bischoff to tie things up, 1-1. Finally, Anderson defeats James Storm to give A&E the man advantage. So after things start 1-on-1, A&E will be able to keep sending in guys first to get a one-man advantage for a few minutes.

Show ends with Bully and Hardy in the ring, basically saying "may the best man win." A&E and Team TNA come out, and we get a lovely brawl as the show goes off the air.

Superstars (3/8/13):
Matches were taped at the venue of Old School RAW. Yes, more of Team Rhodes Scholars. Solid tag match between Rhodes Scholars and Usos. Cody with the Disaster Kick for three. I'd consider giving that kick a new name. It worked when Cody had his mask and calling the move "Beautiful Disaster."

Brock Lesnar answers HHH's challenge next week on RAW. He'll accept the challenge at some point. Might not be now just to fool some people.

Layla and Tamina Snuka got about four and a half minutes, which is above average for divas matches. Tamina rolls through and preps Layla for a Samoan drop but Layla counters into a rollup for three. Good stuff here.

Smackdown (3/8/13):
Dolph Ziggler won the fan poll with 51% of the vote to face Alberto Del Rio on Smackdown. Because Ziggler rules. Wade Barrett and Antonio Cesaro got 26% and 23%, respectively.

Ricardo Rodriguez and ADR mock Zeb Colter and Jack Swagger. You know, ADR really looks a lot like Seth Rollins with the wig and facial hair.

Team Hell No gets along this week and defeats 3MB. Slater taps to the NO lock.

If the point of Brad Maddox's character is to be annoying and obnoxious, then he's done very well. JBL, get back from mountain climbing ASAP.

Video footage on Old School  RAW where Shield attacks Big Show and takes him out. Yeah, that'll haunt Shield later.

Match between ADR and Ziggler takes place around the middle of the show. Ricardo tosses water on AJ. YES! Ref ejects AJ. NO! Langston's also ejected but that's fine with me. Add another awesome match to the recommended-watch list. Ziggler and Del Rio are both on a major roll this year. ***3/4

Another winning segment between Daniel Bryan and AJ. OK, so AJ is used to things lasting 18 seconds. ZING!

Yoshi Tatsu loses again! Well, at least he has a job, right?

Kaitlyn and Tamina get a match. Bonus points to Kaitlyn for flying into the second rope and hitting that with her face. Layla tries to get in the ring so the ref has to detain her. Tamina gets the win in a short match. Layla's likely turning heel down the road. I liked the heel Layla (i.e. being part of LayCool). Good stuff between Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow to further the Cody/Kaitlyn courtship.

Real physical match in the main event between Sheamus and Big Show. Brogue Kick to Show, then Shield comes out. Orton arrives to help Sheamus. Shield dominates. Big Show comes back in and nukes the Shield. Show reminds people he's not a face by KOing Sheamus, but then eats an RKO.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Semi-Retirement for Wrestling Blog

Hey everyone, I have recently accepted a full-time job, which means this wrestling blog will finally get sent to the backburner. I know I've said it several times before, but at least for now, I really mean it, especially as my food blog and YouTube channel would otherwise take up my remaining free time.

People might call this a semi-retirement, but I still plan to at least watch pro wrestling when I can. If a good match comes up, I'll try to blog about it here on the weekends, perhaps attempt to do some type of a "Week in Review" thing. I'm not sure how many people even read this dang blog anyway, but it's been awesome doing wrestling ratings for nearly five years (plus a couple of personal posts in 2007).

If you like food or seeing a guy doing crazy stuff, I'll be a bit more active there. Hope to see you around in the future!

3/1/13 Smackdown

Smackdown is in Oklahoma City. Lawler's joining Cole and Josh Mathews for Smackdown. JBL's busy climbing another mountain.

Alberto Del Rio comes out for his match. Sandow criticizes people with bad English. Ricardo has an outdated tuxedo and a spit bucket, eh? ADR says Sandow's mouth stinks. Oh, that's lovely. Now let's have a match.

Alberto Del Rio vs. Damien Sandow: A bit of mat wrestling and basic stuff to start. Competitive match here. I enjoy watching Sandow's aggression in the ring. ADR with the usual comeback because WWE loves to have wrestlers superstars use a specific sequence of moves on that type of spot. Sandow kicks out of that superkick. Swagger and "founding father" Zeb Colter watch in the back. Sandow counters the armbreaker and gets a two-count. ADR kidney punches and backstabber for two. Sandow with a neckbreaker for two. Terminus countered into the cross armbreaker. Sandow taps. Awesome back-and-forth stuff. **3/4

Jim Ross interviews Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter later.

Video package of the epic Cena/Punk match from RAW. Yeah, we know. Rock and Cena again at WM 29.

Team Hell No backstage segment. Rematch against Primetime Players coming up. Daniel Bryan gets to have his arm tied behind his back this time, while Kane is blindfolded. Kane still says he'll be beating PTPs and he doesn't have to look at DB's ugly goat face. Kane wins!

Antonio Cesaro vs. Miz (2 Out of 3 Falls; U.S. Title): So Miz gets ANOTHER crack at the title for whatever reason. Couldn't have elevated some random midcarder? Miz goes for some quick pins on the first fall. Cesaro with good counters and mat wrestling. Miz targets Cesaro's leg. "Miz is awesome" chants from the crowd. Good back-and-forth stuff on the first fall. Cesaro with a unique fireman's carry front slam for two. Miz cradle gets two, then Cesaro hits the Neutralizer out of nowhere for three and the first fall. During the commercial, Miz tied things up. Cesaro tried a dropkick or something from the second rope, and Miz caught him in the figure four for the submission win. Cesaro's knee continues to big him. Again, the third fall is where the two go even more all out to get the win. Miz gets another burst of adrenaline. Double neckbreaker countered and Cesaro hits the alley-oop Euro uppercut for two. Cesaro taunts Miz, then Miz hits the DDT for two. Miz with a ton of punches in the corner and the ref literally pulls Miz away. Running clothesline from Miz, then double axe handle. Figure four from Miz in the center of the ring. Crowd going nuts. Cesaro drags himself to the ropes. Miz figure four attempt again, Cesaro pushes him off. Miz nearly collides with the ref. Cesaro rollup, but Miz counters for two. Cesaro counters that and holds the tights to get three and retain. Excellent match here. ***1/2

Seems like Orton, in his own Viper manner, is thinking about teaming with Sheamus.

Jim Ross to the ring to interview Jack Swagger and Zeb Colter. Jim Ross notes that he recruited Swagger when Jack was still wrestling and playing football at Oklahoma. Way to diss your alma mater in your home state, Jack! Ross mentions the Swagger losing streak and the leave of absence and wants to know what began this resurgence. Colter goes on his preaching again of real Americans and not liking undocumented workers. "We the people!" Colter then with a metaphor of a fruit basket that begins to rot. Smell it or throw it out? ADR is stinky? Um, OK. Ross accuses Colter of brainwashing Swagger, and let the sparks fly! Swagger knocks JR's hat off and calls him a sympathizer. Del Rio comes out and basically calls Swagger a "Real Jack Ass." Oh, that's mature. Good stuff, but weak ending.

I love the heel "Real American" gimmick, and Swagger has probably kept his world title shot mainly because it's WM season. Midcarders would have probably gotten suspended or released by now.

Primetime Players vs. Team Hell No: Kane's blindfolded and gets to wear a hood with a goat face on it. WIN. DB then tells Kane to start the match. The ol' schoolboy trip thing doesn't work, so Titus has to use his whistle instead. DB with kicks and chops. DB pulls off an awesome crucifix with one arm to get two. DB tags Kane back in, so Kane uses the crowd to help find his opponent. Genius! D-Young tags in and Kane catches him with a chokeslam! Woohoo! D-Young moves out of the way so Kane can't find him. Kane ends up grabbing both DB and the ref. OOPS. Kane lets the ref go and finally realizes he also has DB by the beard. Titus rolls DB up for three. Probably the most entertaining match I've seen with one guy wearing a blindfold. *1/2

Kane realizes the goat face hood after the match. No hugging it out tonight! Kane puts the hood on DB and slaps him. Tough love.

Matt Striker interviews Big Show. Show wants to make a huge impact by chokeslamming Randy Orton.

Fandango (a.k.a. Johnny Curtis) finally gets a live interview with Striker. Good, passionate promo. Fandango debuts when Striker gets the name right. So we'll never see the debut happen. Way to go, Striker. But you probably saved Zack Ryder from jobbing again. Frankly, if all Lawler wanted to see tonight was Fandango's debut, that's pretty sad.

RAW segment again with Vince/Heyman "fight" -- that really paved the way for HHH/Lesnar.

Big Show vs. Randy Orton: Show dominant early with those big slaps. Orton catches Show with a dropkick but Show gets right back on offense. Show targets Orton's shoulder. Pace is super slow because Show's dominant. Show misses a second-rope elbow and the ring didn't break! Orton with a zillion punches then counters a chokeslam into a DDT for two. Show into the ring post, then the hangman's DDT with Show on the top rope. And here comes the Shield. Ha, a big, older black security guy accompanies Reigns just so Roman can get to the ring safely. Sheamus comes down to help Orton. Shield in the ring and they're brawling. Ref throws the match out, of course. *3/4

Reigns backs into Show, so Show KOs Reigns. OOPS. Ambrose and Rollins are stunned, so they retreat and help Reigns out of there. Show chokeslams Orton and Sheamus with the Brogue Kick to Show. Again, WWE books Sheamus like the next John Cena. Super Sheamus! Ugh.

Saturday, March 2, 2013

3/1/13 Superstars

Brodus Clay & Tensai vs. Primo & Epico: Tensai comes out in a black singlet to match Brodus. New wrestling gear! Nice double suplex from Primo and Epico, but that does nothing to stop momentum early on. "Sweet T" from the fans, which Tensai will eventually grow to accept. Tensai takes too long on the ropes and finally the cousins can take over. Tensai suplexes both opponents and hot tag to Brodus. Tensai with the blind tag and it leads to a Primo sandwich. Double splash and it's over. *1/2

RAW recap of Vince/Heyman leading to Lesnar and HHH brawl. Then Shield promo on RAW where Sheamus then comes out and Orton gets to RKO Seth Rollins.

Kofi Kingston vs. David Otunga: I have to agree with Striker this time. I wish Kofi Kingston would actually get a fresh, angry heel makeover and perhaps get on the road to becoming a main eventer, but alas, he's the fun, high-flying dude that stays in midcard. Kofi uses his quickness to his advantage and mocks Otunga's posing. Otunga crowds Kofi for a bit and works on the left arm. Otrunga misses an elbow drop and Kofi on the comeback. Otunga tries to escape the ring to avoid Trouble in Paradise but Kofi flies onto Otunga, tosses him back in, then hits Trouble in Paradise for three. *3/4

Of course, the show ends with the amazing Cena/Punk match from RAW. Match of the year candidate for sure.

Friday, March 1, 2013

2/28/13 Impact

They're finally back in the Impact Zone after several weeks of tapings in the UK.

Taz isn't at the announcing booth because Bully is pissed at Aces & Eights. Bully Ray to the ring. Bully especially wants to get his hands on Devon. He introduces Jeff Hardy, who didn't make the UK trip to sell the A&E attack (but I'm assuming he couldn't leave the country due to possible ongoing legal issues). Bully wants his shot at the title and calls the TNA Title the most prestigious singles title in pro wrestling today (really?!). Bully plays the humble man and says he doesn't just want the title shot because of nepotism. Kaz and Daniels to the ring to protest. Thunderlips Hulk Hogan reference! Bully Raymond and Jefferson! Daniels' excuse: allergic reaction to Hardy's face paint. Appletini back in Daniels' face. Bully and Hardy send Bad Influence scurrying to the back. Tag match later tonight.

Magnus said Sting's been there to mentor him and now wants to give back. How nice of him.

Gail Kim on commentary. She faces the winner of the upcoming Knockouts Title match.

Velvet Sky vs. Tara (Knockouts Title): Gail accuses Taryn Terrell of being part of a conspiracy to help Velvet Sky. It's a blonde thing? Oh, and also the jealousy card again. Jesse gets involved right in front of the ref and Taryn ejects him from ringside. You know, she coulda called for the bell right there too. Velvet hits In Yo Face for three. Gail protests that there's a fast count, but Tara looks like she woulda been down for 30. *

Aries on the phone more worried about photo shoots. He says he can beat anyone, so Chavo says Aries will face Hernandez tonight.

Rob Van Dam gives Kenny King yet another shot at the X-Division Title even though Kenny's failed twice in title matches in the past. That simple? Can I get a title shot next? Stipulation is if Kenny loses, no more X-Division, no more title shots against RVD. So Kenny's finally winning so we can move on from all this.

Austin Aries vs. Hernandez: Taz is back on commentary after having business to take care of. Hernandez controls things early, then Aries pulls Hernandez to the outside. Suicide dive from AA. Always impressive to see Hernandez skin the cat and do that slingshot shoulder tackle. Aries tries to leave with his tag title Hernandez grabs Aries and tosses him back in the ring. Hernandez takes the title away. Ref tries to get the title out of the ring. Aries looks like he uses a chain to KO Hernandez and get three. *3/4

Joseph Park eats some delicious ribs in Sting's office. Yup, Park knows what a rib is now. Park wants to be part of Sting's team. Sting says he'll think about it.

Sting gives Matt Morgan a shot to be on Team TNA. Morgan basically says no because Sting and Hulk Hogan are friends. Guilty by association. In other words, Matt Morgan's gonna be stuck in midcard for a while -- if he's even on TV.

Kenny King vs. Rob Van Dam (X-Division Title): Taz likes Kenny King's persistence on going after the title. I at least can understand that take on the situation, but I otherwise call it unoriginal, crappy booking because the talent pool should be a lot deeper. Where's Christian York and Zema Ion in all this? Sucks that Kid Kash left the company. RVD schools KK early on. Kenny misses the slingshot corkscrew to the outside and RVD hits a back kick. RVD twisting legdrop on the barricade. KK gets physical on offense. RVD with the monkey flip but KK lands on his feet -- then gets nuked with an RVD spin kick. Rolling Thunder hits. RVD calls an audible but misses the 450 splash. KK rolls RVD up for an awkward two count. Hebner stopped because RVD's shoulders rolled off the mat, but looked weird since there was no actual kickout. They stagger back to their feet and King hits probably the worst-looking Royal Flush ever for three and the title. Just a horrible-looking last few seconds to an otherwise-decent match. **

Sting shows Kurt Angle the list of participants for Team TNA in Lethal Lockdown. Angle's surprised in particular at one of the picks not mentioned by name. Sting seems to imply that he's picking Joseph Park, but we'll see.

Hulk Hogan has another surgery. Twitter photo of Hulk's knee post-surgery.

A&E to the ring. Devon introduces Team A&E for Lethal Lockdown: Devon, Anderson, Knox, DOC, and Garett Bischoff. Good lineup. I also like that Angle's facing Wes Brisco in a singles match; a chance for the new guy to get over.

Sting to the entrance ramp. He introduces his team: Sting, Samoa Joe, James Storm, Magnus, and...Showtime? ERIC YOUNG'S BACK! Ten guys brawl in the ring and A&E gets sent packing. You know, I love the pick. There may still be a shot that Joseph Park gets involved.

Gut Check this week! TNA is sticking with the format of two contestants compete against each other in a match, then three judges make their decision the following week and decide whether that chosen contestant gets a TNA contract. Here are the participants:

Ivelisse Velez (TNA spells it "Ivelise Felez"). She now has brown-reddish hair. Velez goes into her strained relationship with her mother that's only now starting to get patched back up. Yeah, that's the former Sofia Cortez in WWE. Velez got released from WWE in August 2012 and then competed in Mexico for the AAA promotion. Might be a blessing for her should she get a TNA contract.

Facing Ivelisse tonight is Lei'D Tapa (first name pronounced "lady"). As you can imagine, she's Polynesian (Tongan). Second-generation star. Her uncle used to wrestle in WWE as the Barbarian. I remember him!

Ivelisse Velez vs. Lei'D Tapa: Todd Keneley notes Tapa's size advantage. Velez counters with several submissions, first a guillotine choke and then a sleeper. Tapa gets out of both with her strength and hits a nice kick. velez uses her quickness to avoid Tapa and hit a tornado DDT. Nice hurricanrana from Velez, but Tapa comes right back with a Samoan Drop for two. Or is it a Tongan Drop? Velez gets the guillotine choke on again, with body scissors. Tapa struggles for a bit, then taps. Very nice Gut Check match here, both with impressive debut showings. *3/4

Aries is pulling for Jeff Hardy tonight because Aries believes Bully is now the golden child after "marrying into" the Hogan family.

AJ Styles update starts with wife Wendy and friend Jay Oliver. AJ Styles comes in, and he's grown facial hair. He tells the camera "you just don't get it" and speeds off on a motorcycle. Looks like a heel makeover for AJ's character.

Video package showing the tension that's developed between Robbie E and Rob Terry. All started with that Open Bro Night and really took off from there. He says he's come to the realization that there's a bigger bro out there and calls Rob Terry to the ring. Robbie E wants one more Bro-Off but Terry doesn't want to do it. Robbie E goes and dances like a weirdo. Terry eventually relents and starts his dance, but Robbie comes back in and hits Terry with that VIP sign. Duh. Robbie celebrates like an idiot and Terry has the best pissed-off face ever. I think Robbie pissed his pants on that one.

Austin Aries tries to butter up to Bully Ray but Bully has none of it. Bully win.

Angle's still on the hunt for A&E.

Jeff Hardy & Bully Ray vs. Christopher Daniels & Kazarian: Bad Influence still loves Gangnam Style dancing, so Bully busts it out as well. Hardy also likes to dance. Good grief. Yeah, there was actually wrestling here too. Good teamwork from Bully and Hardy. Hardy isolated. Bully with the hot tag and he goes nuts on both Bad Influence members. Hardy gets the tag; he goes for the Swanton but Kaz prevents that. STO to Hardy gets two. Bully with a boot to Kaz and a loud slap to Daniels' back. Bully with the electric chair drop and Hardy hits the Swanton for three. **1/4

Back to Kurt Angle. He raids the clubhouse and takes Anderson and Devon out. He then goes after the masked VP of the club. Glass to the face. Angle unmasks the VP and is stunned who it is. We don't see who the VP really is. In that sense of Angle being pissed, it's a take on the whole "higher power" storyline between Vince and Austin many years ago (although it was Vince who revealed himself to Austin). The other A&E guys attack Angle to end the show.

It seems clear to me -- at least initially -- that the VP is Joseph Park. Big dude, deep voice to disguise. I absolutely love the cliffhanger. It will be interesting to see if the VP identity is revealed before the PPV. With two Sundays to go before the PPV, TNA can hold off the identity until the Lethal Lockdown match. Given that the VP is Joseph Park (I don't know right now), it's a perfect way for Park to screw Team TNA at Lethal Lockdown.

Think about this scenario: No mention of the VP identity next week on Impact. Angle can be held off the show to sell A&E beatdown injuries. A guy like Eric Young gets taken out again before the Lethal Lockdown match. Park offers his services to Sting. Sting allows it. With LL basically being War Games rules, Park ends up being the absolute last guy to enter the match. Sting could be one guy standing while Park gets all riled up. A&E acts scared as hell. Then Park levels Sting and the gang beatdown begins. A&E ends up pinning Sting and it's over. Would be an excellent finish, in my opinion. Keeps Aces & Eights momentum going.

And again, I don't read spoilers, so if it's someone different, it'll probably be fine with me.