8-16-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 16, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Austin Aries coming to the ring. He says that since he became World Champion he’s had to listen to Roode and countless others call him a fluke. He says he heard so often he started believing it. But when he beat Roode at Hardcore Justice he erased any doubt in Roode’s, the fan’s and his mind. He says he is the face of TNA going forward and no one will tell him what to do. He tells Aces and eights that this company will not be held hostage. He talks about the BFG Series. He says no matter who’s behind Aces & Eights, no matter who wins the BFG Series he will walk out World Champion. Then Jeff Hardy comes out. Aries says Jeff must have something important he wants to say. Jeff says he’s been chasing the World Title for the last year. He says he will win the series and he & Aries will tear it up. Aries agrees. Jeff says that Aces & 8s cost him 20 points and he calls them out. Cue Bully Ray’s music and he comes out. He says that Jeff really is stupid. Ray says he will say this really slowly. James Storm is behind the Aces & 8s. He says that he always knew that Matt was smarter than Jeff. Rays says when Aces & 8s hit the ring they attacked him because Storm super kicked him in the jaw. Then he says that a bit later in the match Jeff had Storm in peril. Ray says that he got lucky when he put Jeff through a table. Ray says he will go on to BFG and become World Champion. Then Aries looks at Ray’s calves and rags on him about that. Aries mentions that he made Ray tap. Aries says maybe Ray is behind Aces & 8s. Aries says he’s been doing things that people told him are impossible. Ray says Storm’s behind the stable. Aries says that no matter who is behind Aces & 8s and no matter who wins the BFG Series they have to go through him. Then Aces & 8s show up on the Tron. The guy says that tonight they will make their presents felt in a very big way. This was a good opening segment.

They show a video package recapping the BFG Series matches from Hardcore Justice.

Magnus is backstage. He says he’s been preparing for his match with Joe since before he came to TNA. He says he knows everything about Joe and Joe knows everything about him. Magnus says he doesn’t just know Joe the wrestler, he knows Joe the man and he will get inside Joe’s head. Good promo from Magnus.

Magnus vs. Samoa Joe in a Bound For Glory Series match. Joe gets the pin for 7 more points. This was a good match. Afterwards Magnus hits Joe with a chair and as Joe blocked the shot he got hit in the arm.

Madison Rayne says that she beat Tessmacher on her own, then some guy comes by and says that Brooke Hogan wants to see her in the ring. Madison says this must be her celebration.

Madison Rayne comes to the ring. She says that Brooke Hogan has made a special request to see her. She says that the queen has regained her throne. She says thanks to her girl Brooke they’re gonna party tonight. But first, behind every great woman stands a strong referee. She says that she wouldn’t be Champion now if it weren’t for Earl Hebner. She has him come to the ring. They hug and then Brooke Hogan comes out. She says this is the kind stuff she was talking about. Brooke says she’s known Earl her whole life. She tells him that he won’t referee anymore Knockouts matches. Brooke then says that Tessmacher has her rematch against Madison tonight. Brooke then says that there will be a special referee. Madison says Brooke is using the Hogan name (can’t argue with that). She tells Brooke to come in the ring and make these new changes. Brooke hits the ring & Madison bails. Aces & 8s show up behind Brooke. They back her into a corner. Then Aries, Jeff Hardy, Ray & Angle come out and run them off. James Storm came out too but of course after Aces & 8s bailed. This segment was weak. I thought Madison saying Brooke using the Hogan name was a good line though. Also, why wasn’t Earl Hebner yanked from refereeing Madison’s matches BEFORE the PPV?

Back to the show and Sting is in the ring. He says that they learned a lot about Aces & 8s character. He says they stepped over the line. They put their words into action and got in Brooke’s face. He says that they have their own pack tonight also. He then says that next week is Open Fight Night and he tells Aces & 8s to bring it next Thursday. This was a solid promo.

Kazarian & Daniels are backstage and Daniels has a comic book with them on the back of it. Then Kazarian says that AJ is still denying everything with Claire. Then AJ comes by and he says that he had to be drugged to sleep with Claire. AJ tells Daniels that if he wins he will accept he’s the dad. But when he wins he will get a paternity test. This was idiotic. I’m beyond tired of this storyline. Why would AJ go along with being the dad if he loses to Daniels?

Before the AJ-Daniels match happens, Brian Hebner sends Kazarian to the back.

AJ Styles vs. Christopher Daniels in a Bound For Glory Series match. AJ gets the pin. Kazarian was hiding outside the ring. AJ went to suplex Daniels back into the ring but Kazarian grabbed AJ’s leg & Daniels got the pin but the referee saw that Kazarian held AJ’s foot. Afterwards AJ gives Daniels the Styles Clash. This was a good match too.

Hulk Hogan is on the phone with Sting. Hulk says he will be at Impact next week. He says he’s not ready to fight but he has to. Sting says it’s show time.

Jeff Hardy tells James Storm that he doesn’t care what people are saying. What he cares about is Aces & 8s costing him 20 points and that they helped Storm twice. Then he gets skeptical of Storm too. Storm says that he’s tired of everyone accusing of being behind this stable and is surprised that Jeff would think it too. Storm then says that he will be at ringside for the Jeff-Ray match just to make sure Aces & 8s don’t show up.

They have a video package recapping the Aries-Roode match from Hardcore Justice.

Bobby Roode comes to the ring. He says that at Hardcore Justice he had a chance to come out and right the wrong and prove to the world that was he’d been saying was true. That Aries’ win over him was a fluke. He says he did prove that Aries is a fluke because he beat Aries in the middle of the ring when the assigned referee for the match counted to 3 and raised his hands. Then he says that Earl came out and restarted the match that he’d already won and as a result he stands in the ring tonight empty handed. He says that he should be standing in the ring as World Champion. Then he mentions that while Aries is champion he doesn’t get another rematch. Then he says that the title meant everything to him. He says that when people think of Bobby Roode they think World Champion. He says he had a chance to look right in the mirror and realized that there’s 1 person to blame for this. Actually more than 1. Aries, Sting, the referees and the fans. He says that he gives everything he has but the fans disrespect him and call him a loser. He says that he’s faced with the question of what he’s gonna do now. He has a hard time figuring out what he will do. Then he drops the mic and walks out of the ring. This was a really good promo. 

They show a video package for the next Gut Check contestant. He talks about his background. He says that he grew up in a bad area in Mississippi. He mentions that his brother got shot and that he is dedicating his career to him. Then he says there’s a lot riding for him on the Gut Check. I’m not sure why they never said what this guy’s name is.  

Before the next match Brooke Hogan comes out to introduce the female guest referee. Out comes Taryn Terrell (formerly Tiffany). That was kind of underwhelming. I thought this was a strange way to debut someone.

Brooke Tessmacher vs. Knockouts Champion Madison Rayne for the Title. Tessmacher gets the pin to regain the Title. This was a decent match. Madison kept trying to cheat and the referee caught her every time. Madison argued with the ref. Then Brooke gave Madison her finisher for the win.

Aces & 8s are backstage. The guy says this is the invitation they’ve been waiting for. The guy says that Sting had better watch what he asks for because they will be there next week in full force. Then some other guy asks if they have other business tonight. The first guy says they do.

Jeff Hardy vs. Bully Ray in a Bound For Glory Series match. Jeff gets the pin for 7 points. 2 Aces & 8s guys hit the ring. Then Aries, AJ, Angle & Sting come out and rung the guys off. Ray was distracted and Jeff got the roll up for the pin. This was also a good match. Afterwards Ray nails Jeff. Then Ray gets his chain and yells at Storm. Storm gets in the ring and he & Ray argue. Then Storm hits Jeff with the Last Call. Ray walks out. Then the Aces & 8s guys come back out. They applaud Storm and then they attack him to end the show.

I thought this was a decent to solid show overall. There were only 4 matches on the show. The BFG Series matches were good and the Knockouts Title match was decent. I’m not sure why they brought in the former Tiffany though. The Aces & 8s storyline has been good so far and I hope they continue making it interesting. The opening segment with Aries, Jeff & Ray was good too. I also thought Roode did a good job with his promo. Magnus turning heel was sort of surprising but he’s good in that role. On the whole I thought they did a decent job with this week’s show.

8-13-12 Raw results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 13, 2012 episode of Raw

The show starts with CM Punk vs. Big Show. Punk wins by DQ when Daniel Bryan comes in. Daniel Bryan’s music hit and he came out. He got in Cole’s & King’s faces and said he deserves to be in the WWE Title match at SummerSlam. This match was ok. I knew neither was gonna get the clean win over the other.

Then Daniel got in the ring and clotheslined Punk which led to the DQ. Then he locks Punk in the No Lock. Then Big Show elbows Punk. Then John Cena comes out and clans house on Show & Daniel. Then he & Punk face off but then AJ skips to the ring. AJ says that Daniel might have ruined this match but he will make up for it later when he teams with Big Show to face Cena & Punk. This was predictable. It was the usual guys going at it/facing off in the ring and then GM comes in and makes a match for later bit that the shows usually start with. At least the show didn’t start with a long winded promo segment.

JTG is backstage with Kaitlyn. JTG says that he not having a match on a 3 hour Raw is crazy. Then AJ shows up and asks him if he thinks she’s not doing a good job as GM. She tells him to get to the ring and she will find an opponent for him. JTG walks off. Then AJ says to Kaitlyn that she knows they’ve had their differences and she asks Kaitlyn if she think she’s unstable. Kaitlyn says there are many words to describe AJ but unstable isn’t one of them. This was weak. It looks like they’re going to have someone says the word crazy every week and AJ will flip out over it. That will get old real fast. I also had a feeling they’d turn JTG’s tweet rant into a storyline.

Ryback vs. JTG. Ryback gets the pin. This was a pointless squash.

They announce that Piper will be hosting Piper’s Pit later in the show and the fans get to decide who his guest will be. Chris Jericho, Dolph Ziggler, or The Miz.

Then they announce that Santino Marella will defend the U.S. Title against Antonio Cesaro on the SummerSlam youtube pre show.

Roddy Piper is backstage saying he doesn’t know who his guest on Piper’s Pit will be. He wants to know who the fans are picking who will be on his show. Then he asks if the other guy in the room is picking. The camera turns to Shawn Michaels. Piper says he would be intimated too if he had to deal with Brock. Michaels is on the phone asking him where Triple H is. Shawn says this isn’t his fight.

Heath Slater is in the ring and says that he’s about to turn everything around. Then R-Truth comes to the ring.

WWE Tag Team Champion R-Truth vs. Health Slater. Truth gets the pin. This was a short and meaningless match. Afterwards The Primetime Players come out. They hit the ring and Truth fights them off but they eventually get the upper hand. Darren picks up Truth and Titus gives him Clash of the Titus. This was ok for what it was.

They show a Mark Henry TOUT from London. This was the best TOUT they’ve had.

They recap the stuff that happened with Sheamus & Alberto Del Rio last week.

Then they go to a Booker T interview from wwe.com. Booker says that Alberto crossed the line on Smackdown. Then he says that the World Title match is off.

Then they show Del Rio’s TOUT response. He says that he has a contract for the title match.

Then they mention that the fans can TOUT what they think about Booker T’s decision.

Sin Cara vs. Tensai. Cara gets the pin. This was short and kind of pointless too. Afterwards Tensai Baldo Bombs Sakamoto then gives him a Senton Splash.

Shawn Michaels asks some guy if he’s seen “him.” The guy says he hasn’t. Michaels tells the guy to let him know if he does see him.

Time for Piper’s Pit. Piper & Jerry Lawler are in the ring. Piper mentions Dolph having MITB and saying that Jericho can’t win the big one, Miz made a movie and now the fans get to pick who’s on Piper’s Pit. Piper’s confused and then he & Lawler check the Tron. Chris Jericho got the votes. He comes to the ring. Piper says that last time he saw Jericho Mickie Rourke punched his lights out. Jericho says that last time he saw Piper he was punching his lights out right before that when he fought the 3 Hall of Famers at Mania. Then he thanks the fans for being on Piper’s Pit. Piper says they have something in common. Piper says that when he fought Mr. T. the fans cheered for him and now the fans are cheering Jericho. Piper says he doesn’t care what Dolph or Miz has to say. What the boy in the red shirt says matters. Then Vickie Guerrero comes out and does the excuse me bit and Piper’s talking at the same time. Vickie brings out Dolph. Dolph asks Piper how long he’s been doing the same old bit. He says it’s not fun, ground breaking or nostalgic. It’s just sad. Dolph says this isn’t about Piper. Then he asks Jericho how many come backs it will take till he realizes he can’t win the big one. Then Dolph says that after SummerSlam Jericho can hang up his light bright jacket because his career will be finished. Vickie chimes in and Jericho tells her to shut up. Then he says that he hasn’t forgotten Vickie slapping him on Smackdown. Jericho says that he will beat Dolph at SummerSlam and that is a guarantee that he will never eeeeeverr go back on. Then The Miz comes out. He does his really bit. Then he says that he & Dolph can actually win the big ones. Dolph won MITB and Miz won in the main event at WrestleMania 27 and 3 weeks ago he won the Intercontinental Title. Miz says he’s taking over the show and says Dolph can be his guest. Then he says Piper & Jericho can get out of the ring. Piper tells Miz no. Then Jericho tosses Miz out of the ring and then he clotheslines Dolph out. This was a weird segment. Piper sounded like he had no idea what was going on. Jericho was decent here and Dolph was too. Miz saying he can win the big one, well he hasn’t been winning anything lately.

Chris Jericho vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Intercontinental Champion The Miz. Dolph wins when he pins Jericho. This was a really good match. Jericho had Miz in the Walls and Miz tapped but Vickie distracted the referee. Then Dolph gave Jericho the Zig Zag for the 3 count. This was the highlight of the show so far!

CM Punk is backstage and Eve shows up. She congratulates Punk on “the new CM Punk.” Punk says there’s no new him. He’s the same he’s always been. He says he is fighting for the respect he deserves. Eve says that no one believes that especially Cena. Punk says he will tell Cena that himself. Not a bad backstage segment.

They show Shawn Michaels walking backstage. John Cena comes by. Michaels says he’s distracted and walks off. Then Punk comes by. Cena asks if Punk will stab him in the back. Punk mentions that he’s not “that guy” that Cena accused him of being. Punk says he won’t stab anyone in the back. He will do what he can to make sure that Cena or Show don’t walk out of the PPV Champion. Punk says that it will be all about him.

A Wade Barrett video package is shown to hype up his return. These have been well done.

Divas Champion Layla & Kaitlyn vs. Eve Torres & Beth Phoenix. Layla & Kaitlyn win when Kaitlyn pins Beth. This wasn’t much.

Time to recap the Triple H-Brock Lesnar rivalry.

They show the parking garage and Lawler says Triple H will show up.

WWE Champion CM Punk & John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan & Big Show. Punk & Cena win when Cena pins Daniel. This was a good match but I wasn’t crazy about Cena getting the clean pin on Daniel for the second week in a row. Both teams had friction. Show sat at ringside. Then Punk stood by the ramp. Daniel got a roll up for a 2 count then Cena hit the AA for the pin. Afterwards Big Show slides back in the ring and then Punk hits Big Show with the belt. Then Punk offers Cena his hand. Cena doesn’t shake it and Punk walks to the back.

Punk is backstage and Josh Mathews asks if Punk has any explanation. Punk says Cena went into business for himself. He mentions that Cena didn’t shake his hand and that is a sign of disrespect. Then he says that at SummerSlam he will teach Cena & everyone about respect. Good promo from Punk.

Brock Lesnar & Paul Heyman are backstage.

Christian vs. Damien Sandow. Sandow gets the pin. Brodus Clay came out and Christian got a roll up on Sandow for a near fall. Then Sandow hit the Neck Breaker for the win. This was a solid match. I had a feeling Brodus would come out.

Shawn Michaels is still walking backstage and he bumps into Brock. Brock stares him down and Michaels walks off.  

Brock Lesnar & Paul Heyman come out for the contract signing. Heyman says that he stands before everyone with great humility as Brock’s advocate. Heyman mentions that Hunter had a flight delay and Lesnar believes that story. That’s because no one wants this match more than Triple H. Heyman says Hunter needs this match because it is the most personal fight of his career. He says that Hunter’s dignity is on the line when he faces a fighter with ultimate credentials Brock Lesnar. He thanks the fans for their irrelevant opinion. He shows some document saying they won’t be responsible for what happens to Hunter. Heyman says that on Sunday this won’t be a wrestling match. This will be a merciless beating at the hands of Brock. Heyman says that Shawn Michaels didn’t take Heyman’s word for it. Heyman asks if HBK is in the arena. Brock says he is. Then Heyman says that if Michaels still thinks Triple H can beat Lesnar he is welcome to come out and tell them. Heyman says HBK isn’t coming out and Heyman doesn’t blame him because there is no shame in being afraid of Brock. Then Michaels’ music plays and he comes out. Heyman says he will accept Shawn’s signature. Shawn looks at Brock & Heyman as the fans chant let’s go Texas. Then Triple H’s music hits and he comes out. Triple H & Brock intently stare at each other. Then Hunter signs the contract. Heyman tells Brock this is just a contract signing. Than Brock signs it. Then he & Heyman walk out of the ring. Brock taunts Triple H as he goes up the ramp. This was good. Heyman was great with his promo as usual. I like that this contract signing wasn’t a lot of back and forth talking that follows up with a brawl like these segment usually wind up being.

Time for some TOUTS from the fans about Booker T calling off the Sheamus-Del Rio World Title match. The first likes Booker’s decision. The second guy says the match should happen. The third guy agrees with Booker. Then the final video had 2 guys. One guy agrees with Booker and the other guy doesn’t. This TOUTING is really idiotic.

Shawn Michaels & Triple H are backstage. Michaels says that he has something to get off his chest. He says that he has been in the ring with some of the toughest guys like Triple H & Undertaker but Brock is on another level. Hunter asks if Shawn thinks Hunter can’t beat Brock. Michaels says that he will be in Triple H’s corner but Triple H has to beat him. Triple H says he’s got this. Michaels isn’t sure and walks off.

Matt Striker asks Big Show how the match will be affected at SummerSlam. Show says that Punk took a cheap shot and we’ll see what will happen Sunday.

Then a horn honks. It’ Michaels honking at Heyman. Then Brock pulls Michaels out of the car through the door window. The screen goes to black as Brock “attacks” Shawn and Shawn groans. This was good too. I like how they had the screen go to black. Good touch there.

Back to the show and AJ, referees & other wrestlers are at the sight of the attack. The windshield is shattered. Triple H asks AJ where Michaels is. AJ says Brock took him.

Brock comes to the ring carrying Michaels on his shoulders. He throws Michaels in the ring. Then he gives Michaels the F5. Michaels tries to get up and then Lesnar locks the arm breaker on Michaels. Then Triple H runs out but Heyman tells him that if he takes 1 more step Lesnar will break Michaels’ arm. Hunter is torn about what to do. Brock then “breaks” Michaels’ arm. Then Hunter hits the ring and Brock runs off. Michaels lies on the mat selling the injury and tells the medics not to touch his arm. Then Brock & Heyman come back out on the stage. Triple H rips his shirt off and tells Brock they don’t have to wait. Brock stands on the stage with a smirk to end the show. This was really good. They did a great job here building up to the Triple H-Lesnar match! Michaels was great selling the “broken arm” too. This was the other highlight of the show.

I thought this week’s show was decent overall. They did a great job with the final hype for the Triple H-Brock Lesnar SummerSlam match. Michaels, Triple, Lesnar & Hunter were all really good here. The Punk-Show match at the start was ok but I knew there wasn’t going to be a clean finish. Then having Cena come out and then AJ announcing the tag match was predictable. Punk & Cena vs. Daniel & Show was good. I wasn’t surprised that Cena & Punk and Daniel & Big Show had friction during the match. I wasn’t crazy about Cena pinning Daniel clean for the second week in a row. Ryback-JTG, Sin Cara-Tensai, Truth-Slater & the Divas tag match were all pointless. Christian-Sandow was solid. The Piper’s pit segment was weird. Piper sounded like he had no idea what was going on. Jericho & Dolph were good here tough. Miz was ok also but I wasn’t really into this bit. The Triple Threat match however was really good. Jericho took the pin to further the story that he can’t win the big one. I thought they did a decent job building to the Jericho-Ziggler match and the build for the WWE Title match was solid too. I’m hoping they don’t yank Sheamus-Del Rio off the PPV. The TOUTS from the fans about that were idiotic. They also announced Kofi Kingston & R-Truth vs. The Primetime Players for the WWE Tag Team Title at SummerSlam. On the whole I thought this was a decent show.

8-10-12 Smackdown results and thoughts

     Coverage and thoughts on the August 10, 2012 episode of Smackdown

The show starts with GM Booker T coming to the ring. He does a Spinnarooni. “WHAT’S UP HUSTON!?” He says that it feels good to be in his home town. He says this is second week as GM and, “Huston we have a problem.” He says he wants to talk about what happened on Raw. They reshow Sheamus taking Del Rio’s ride. Booker says that watching Alberto freak out made him smile, but what Sheamus did was wrong. He says that Sheamus crossed the line and right now he wants Sheamus to come out and apologize in front of the fans and to Del Rio. Sheamus comes to the ring. Sheamus mentions that last week Del Rio stood in the ring and said that because of where Sheamus comes from, how he grew up and how he conducts himself that Sheamus wasn’t worthy of being World Champion. Sheamus says that Alberto tried to take away his dignity. So he decided to take Del Rio’s car. He says that he had a fun time driving around San Antonio, meeting all the locals, checking out the sights, going to the Alamo, singing songs about Texas and stuffing his face with a giant burrito that landed on the hood of Alberto’s car. Then Sheamus says that today is a new day and he has to face reality. He says if he’s gonna do the crime then he has to do the time. So right now he would like to apologize first to Booker and the fans and also to Alberto. He says he’s sorry for taking Del Rio’s car. Booker shakes Sheamus’ hand. Then Booker says they put this behind them now. He says they’re gonna move on and start…before he can say more Del Rio’s music hits and he & Ricardo come out. Del Rio says that they’re not just leaving this behind them. Then Del Rio gets in the ring. He tells Sheamus that he is not a champion. He’s just a peasant, a thief, a thug and a criminal. Then Alberto says that he filed a report with the San Antonio cops and Sheamus is gonna pay for this. Then Booker chimes in and tells Del Rio that he knows if he files legal ramifications Sheamus will not be able to defend his title. Booker says the title will be put up. Del Rio says that he doesn’t care. Everyone saw what Sheamus did to his car Monday. Then Del Rio says that when a World Champion acts like a common hooligan it reflects on Booker since he is the GM. Del Rio tells Booker that he better do something and he better do it right now. Del Rio says he is very close to taking this matter into his own hands. Then Sheamus says Del Rio is getting all uptight. Sheamus says that he can Alberto’s upset with this situation. Then Sheamus says that he’s been thinking about this all day and he has a solution. Sheamus asks Booker that if it’s ok with him, Sheamus says they shouldn’t wait till SummerSlam. Sheamus says that he & Del Rio should have a World Title match tonight. Booker asks Alberto what he has to say. Del Rio says that everything in his head is telling him to wait, to train and to be ready for SummerSlam. Then Del Rio says to hell with everything. “Let’s do this tonight.” Then Booker says that he has just on thing to say about this. “Now can you dig that? SUCKA!?” This was a long and idiotic segment. Why are they having the World Title match that is going to happen in 3 nights on PPV happen on free TV first? Also the whole thing with the car was idiotic. Sheamus did steel Del Rio’s ride, so should Alberto do? Filing a report with the cops makes sense to me! This came off totally illogical.

Before the next match starts Cody Rhodes comes out with a mic. He says that he is no stranger to wearing a mask and he’s not above telling the fans why Sin Cara wears one. Because he’s ugly. He says that Cara is cockeyed and one ear is bigger than the other. Then Cody says that’s not the only reason Cara wears a mask. Cody says that the real reason for the mask is because without it, underneath it there is nothing special about him. That was pointless.  

Sin Cara vs. Cody Rhodes. Cara gets the pin. This was a solid match. Cody kept trying to pull Cara’s mask off and Cara got the inside cradle for the win. I’m hoping they eventually ditch the Sin Cara lighting during his matches. That’s gotten old.

Daniel Bryan is backstage screaming no to everyone.

The show the Wade Barrett video package that they showed Monday.

They show a video package recapping Daniel Bryan losing his mind.

Daniel Bryan comes to the ring. He gets the mic and screams no and the fans scream yes. He tells the fans to stop chanting yes. The chant continues. He asks the fans if they think that he is nothing more than a catchphrase. He says he is a former World Champion. He says that he deserves to be in the WWE Title match at SummerSlam. He then says that instead of being in the title match, the woman who callously left him at the Alter has not only ruined his reputation by labeling him as psychologically unstable, but she has also put him in a match at SummerSlam with Kane. He asks the fans if he deserves that. The answer is no. He says that deserves more than to stand there and be insulted by the fans as they chant yes in his face. He says that he deserves better than to be walked all over by some skipping broad in a power suit and her overgrown Frankenstein boy toy. Than Kane’s pyro goes off and he comes out. Kane gets in the ring and stare down Daniel. Then AJ’s music plays and she comes out. Daniel goes to leave the ring and AJ tells him not to even think about doing that. She says that she feels like Daniel is a little shocked to see her on Smackdown but this is the show where they first met. She says that she is there because Booker T asked her to be a special guest. Then she says that neither she nor Booker like what they’re seeing right now. She says that she made the Kane-Daniel match for SummerSlam because they’re both incredibly gifted athletes. Then she says that they can’t have them coming out and attacking the fans or each other every week. The fans chant yes again. She says to Kane that she knows they haven’t had a chance to talk since she became GM but it’s really good to see him again. She says that she never had the chance to tell Kane how much she appreciates how sweet he was to her and how understanding he was when other people treated her miserably. Then she turns to Daniel. She tells him she doesn’t want the fact that he’s always been jealous of the friendship between her and Kane, or the fact that Daniel literally never managed to pin Kane in a singles match to drive Daniel’s rage. She then says that if Daniel is as mentally stable and as psychologically healthy as he says he is then he should prove it. She tells Daniel to prove to her and the fans that he doesn’t have anger management issues. Then she says that he can do that starting tonight. She says that Daniel can show that he is a good sportsman before going into SummerSlam by shaking Kane’s hand. He screams no again as the fans chant yes. AJ says that she wants a clean fight at SummerSlam. Daniel screams no into the mic. She tells Daniel to shake on it now. Daniel puts his hand out and AJ grins and walks out of the ring. Daniels screams at Kane to shake his hand. It looked like AJ gave Kane a wink symbol and then Kane hits Daniel in the throat. AJ walks up the ramp as they go at it. Kane goes for a choke slam but Daniel counters it attempts the no lock. Kane shoves him off and gives him a big boot. Then Daniel rolls out of the ring. Kane goes after him but Daniel escapes through the crowed. AJ stood on the stage laughing about the whole thing. Then she says, “That was great.” Then Kane signals for his pyro. This went on WAY too long! The AJ character has now been overdone! Her being GM has really devalued the character! I’m not into her causing the friction between Kane & Daniel! Also the yes-no chants are starting to get old too. Daniel Bryan still does a good job but this as well as AJ’s gimmick has been buried into the ground!

Booker T & Teddy Long are in the GM office. Long tells Booker that he liked how he stood his ground with Del Rio. He then says that a World Title match on Smackdown is huge. Then Tyler Reks & Curt Hawkins come in. Reks says that now that Booker is the GM they were hoping that he can open a few doors for them. Booker says he’s been watching them. He says they might have a great future but he is the GM of Smackdown. Booker says they gotta step it up. Booker then says that he saw what happened on Raw. He says that despite it being 2 on 1 against Ryback they couldn’t get the job done. Booker says that tells him a whole lot. Booker then says that he is looking for A plus talent. Booker walks off camera and Reks tells Hawkins that he can’t go back to his old job. Hawkins says something and Reks says he meant his other job. Hawkins says that might not so bad either. Booker tells them to rise up (I couldn’t really make out what he said) and they walk out. This was idiotic.

They show a Rey Mysterio video package promoting that he will be on the show tonight. I have no idea what the point of this was.

2 unnamed guys vs. Jinder Mahal. Mahal wins by submission. This was a pointless squash. Afterwards Mahal attacks the other guy, places him on top of the guy who’s lying on the mat and locks on a double Camel Clutch. Then Ryback make his way to the ring and Jinder runs off. Then Ryback flattens the other 2 guys. Then he chants feed me more to Jinder, who watched from the stage. This was a waste. Does anybody care about a Ryback-Mahal feud?

Chris Jericho is in the ring for the Highlight Reel. Jericho says that for the first time in almost 2 years he gets to say these words on Smackdown. “Welcome to the Highlight Reel.” Then he says that his guest tonight is a man who 3 weeks ago told…then Vickie Guerrero shouts excuse me and comes out. She tells Jericho that his guest will not be lowering himself to being on his show. Vickie says that since Dolph is her client she is there to speak on his behalf. She says that Dolph can win the big one and is the future World Champion. Jericho says that if he can’t interview Dolph he has no problem interviewing his mom. (Can they ditch that joke?) Jericho tells Vickie that she looks great for a woman of her age. Then they go back and forth with the excuse me bit and Vickie screams. Jericho says there’s no reason for them to be yelling at each other. He says they have known each other for years. He says that they’ve never been in the ring together so this is kind of a cool experience for him. Vickie says that if Jericho insults her 1 more time she is walking off this show and then he will have no guests tonight. Jericho pretends to be upset by that. Then he tells Vickie to get the hell out of there. She goes to leave the ring and he tells her to hold on. He says he’s just playing around. He asks Vickie why she’s angry all the time. He tells her that she needs to take it easy. Then he says that she’s probably miffed over what happened on Raw at the end of Dolph’s match. Then he plays the clip on the JeriTron 6000. Then Jericho mentions that Dolph & Vickie have been saying that Jericho can’t win the big one. Then Jericho says that after Dolph lost to Alex Riley it looks like Dolph can’t even win the little ones. He says that’s nothing against A-Ry but up until Monday he had only won 1 match in 2012. He says that record is worse than Vickie’s dye job (that was lame). Then Vickie says that this is exactly why Dolph doesn’t waste his time with Jericho. Because Jericho doesn’t know the facts. All Jericho has is footage. She says the fact is that Dolph doesn’t think Jericho can’t win the big one, he knows he can’t. She says that Dolph can’t wait to prove that to Jericho and to everyone when the face each other at SummerSlam. Jericho says that he doesn’t have to prove himself to anybody. His legacy stands on its own. But Dolph did say something to Jericho that made him think. Jericho says that he hasn’t won the big ones lately and maybe it is time for Jericho to reevaluate himself and maybe it’s time to bring back Y2J. He says that from this moment on Y2J is back. He accepts Dolph’s challenge for SummerSlam and he will prove to Vickie, “Ziggy” and to every Jericholic that he has not lost his touch and that he NEVER EEEEEEEVVERRRRR WILL AGAIN! Then Dolph come in and goes to hit Jericho with the MITB case. Jericho ducks and punches Dolph in the head for a bit. Then Jericho turns to Vickie and she slaps him. Then Dolph gives Jericho the Zig Zag. Then Dolph picks up the case and waits for Jericho to get up. When he does Dolph hits him the head with it. Then Vickie laughs and says to Jericho, “Who’s your mother now?” This segment was better than the others I thought. I wasn’t into the whole “let’s call Vickie old again” jokes but I thought they did a decent job setting up the Chris Jericho-Dolph Ziggler match for SummerSlam.

Kofi Kingston & R-Truth come out for commentary.

Primo & Epico vs. The Primetime Players to determine the Number One Contenders for the Tag Team Titles. Titus & Darren win by DQ. AW threw water on Kofi & Truth. Then Kofi & Truth hit the ring and went after AW and the Players. That led to the DQ. Kofi & Truth stomp on AW. Then after referees come in Darren & Titus pulled him out of the ring. Primo & Epico got pissed at Kofi & Truth for costing them the match. This wasn’t much of a match. It was all about AW getting his team the DQ win and then the champs having words with Primo & Epico.

Antonio Cesaro & Aksana come to the ring. Cesaro tells Lillian that he would like to speak to the fans in 5 different languages. This bit is idiotic. Aksana gets the mic and he victory in Swiss, Italian, German, French & English. Then he says something in German and says that if the fans didn’t understand that, that’s the point. What is the point of this gimmick?

Christian vs. Antonio Cesaro. Christian gets the pin. This was a solid match. Afterwards Christian was posing on the turnbuckles. Aksana then got on the apron. That distracted Christian and Cesaro pushed him out of the ring. Then Cesaro went outside the ring, picked up Christian and rammed back first into the barrier.

Time for the Rey Mysterio video package again followed by the Raw Rebound.

Eve is in Booker’s office. He comes in and asks what she wants. She asks if there are any positions that have opened up for his administration. Booker says that he hasn’t got any job for her. Then Teddy Long & Kaitlyn come in. Long tells Booker that Kaitlyn has something she wants to talk about. She says that is super psyched that Booker is the new Smackdown GM and she was thinking that he might need an assistant. Booker says that if Teddy referred her then she’s got the job. Eve says that she is way more qualified than Kaitlyn. Eve says that Long is holding a grudge. Eve says that she is being discriminated against and will mention it the Board of Directors or whatever. Booker says he will keep this as fair as possible. He says that next week Kaitlyn will face Eve and the winner will be Booker T’s assistant. They all agree. This was a pointless bit too.

Rey Mysterio, Jr. vs. Intercontinental Champion The Miz. Mysterio gets the pin. This was a solid match.

World Champion Sheamus vs. Alberto Del Rio for the Title. Cops come Del Rio gets the mic The match never starts because cops to down the ramp. Del Rio gets the mic and says that he never filed the report. He tells the cops to get out of there. He says he wants to have his title match. The cops get on the apron and then Del Rio tells them, “Go!” They get in the ring and Sheamus goes after them. Then Sheamus pounds on Del Rio in the corner. Ricardo jumps on Sheamus’ back and the “cops” attack Sheamus. Del Rio then tells them to pick Sheamus up. They guys hold Sheamus and Alberto slaps him. Then Del Rio hits a charging Enziguri. Then the cops walk to the back and Del Rio stands over Sheamus taunting him. Sheamus attempts to get up and then Del Rio locks him in the cross arm breaker. Del Rio poses in the ring while Sheamus lies on the mat selling the attack. This ends the show. This was really good. I thought they did a better job building to their title match here than at the start of the show. The attack was well done.

There was A LOT of talking on this week’s show! The opening segment with Booker, Sheamus & Del Rio was long and made no sense. The Kane-Daniel Bryan-AJ segment was also too long. The AJ character has been devalued in my opinion. Even the whole yes-no bit with him and the fans is getting stale. The Highlight Real segment was a bit better. I thought they did a decent job hyping Jericho-Dolph at SummerSlam. I could have done without the Vickie jokes though. The end when Del Rio and his guys attacked Sheamus was really well booked. I thought they did a better job of building to their title match here. Rey-Mia, Christian-Cesaro & Sin Cara-Cody Rhodes were all solid matches. The Jinder Mahal squash followed by Ryback coming out and flattening the same 2 guys was pointless. The Booker T segments backstage were kinda weak. I wasn’t into the bit with him, Teddy Long, Kaitlyn & Eve. Having Cesaro say stuff in 5 different languages every week is idiotic too. Primo & Epico vs. The Primetime Players wasn’t much. This was about AW getting his team, the DQ win and the champs having words with Primo & Epico. I’m guessing that they’ll do a 3 way for the Tag Titles if they remember to have a Tag Title match at all. I read that Randy Orton beat Jack Swagger but I didn’t see it on the show. So overall I thought this week’s show had 3 long segments and not a lot of wrestling. I thought the highlight of the show was the end. Overall I thought this was a mixed bag show this week.

8-9-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 9, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Bully Ray coming to the ring. He has So Cal Val come in the ring and hand him the mic. Then he tells her to beat it. He says he’s the leader of the bully nation. He says that his phone is his fire breathing twitter machine and he doesn’t go anywhere without it. He says that he learned from Joseph Park that if there’s enough evidence stacked against somebody they must be guilty. He says that he will prove Storm is the leader of Aces and 8s. Then he says he will beat Storm tonight for 7 points, or maybe make him tap and get 10. Then he says he will win at Hardcore Justice for 20 points. He says there are so many facts about Storm’s connection to Aces and 8s. Cue James Storm’s music and he comes to the ring. Storm says that all Ray has done was bore the fans and that he didn’t hear 1 fact come out of Ray’s mouth. He says he tired of people not believing him and he is also tired of being sick and tired. Storm says he is more worried about winning the BFG series and winning the World Title. Storm tells Ray that he’s got him worked up. Then Storm says that he’s gonna draw a line right in center of the ring and give Ray to the count of 3. Then he says he will bust Ray up. Ray tells him to start counting. Storm counts to 3 and Ray backs out. Storm says that anyone who doesn’t believe him can come out and fight him. Then they show Aces and 8s on the Tron backstage. One of them says that Sting gave them an invitation to show up tonight. The guy says that’s a risky thing to do but they will be there and do things on their terms. Ray then screams at Storm saying that the guy on the Tron was him.

Pope is backstage. H says the BFG series hasn’t gone the way he wanted. He says that at Hardcore Justice he will win his match and get 2o points. He says that if he makes it to the final 4, he will go to Bound for Glory and bring the Title home to the Congregation.  

Ken Anderson is on commentary for the first match.

Rob Van Dam vs. Magnus in a Bound for Glory Series Match. RVD gets the pin for 7 more points. This was a solid match.   

Backstage Bobby Roode says there might not be any contract signing tonight because there’s some language in the contract that he and his lawyers aren’t too thrilled with. He says that they might not let him face Aries this Sunday. Good promo from Roode.  

Garrett Bischoff & TV Champion Devon vs. TNA World Tag Team Champions Frankie Kazarian & Christopher Daniels for the Titles. Kazarian & Daniels win when Kazarian pins Devon after hitting with the belt. This was solid too. Daniels brought the belt in the ring. Earl Hebner caught him. Then Garrett went after Daniels and Daniels tossed him out of the ring. Then Kazarian hit Devon with the belt and of course Hebner missed it.

Sting says that he promised to take care of Brooke Hogan and the best way he can do that is for Brooke to not be at the show tonight. Then he says that he called Aces and 8s last week and they no showed. He calls them out again to show up tonight.

Robbie E & Rob Terry are in the ring. Robbie E says that he knows no one thinks he has a chance at winning the BFG Series but he has 5 points. He says that after he wins his tables match he will have 20 more points and the fans will say that Robbie E is going right to Bound for Glory. Then he says that the guy he puts through the table will be the guy that he beat to get the 5 points, Jeff Hardy. They replay that match and Robbie E says there are 5 different reasons why Jeff isn’t on his level. He says one and then Jeff Hardy comes to the ring. Robbie E tells him to join the party and keeps bragging that he beat Jeff for 5 points. Jeff goes after Rob Terry. Then he goes to Robbie E and he says he was only joking. Jeff hits him the head. Then Rob Terry comes back in and powerbombs Jeff through the table. Then Robbie E stands over Jeff saying he will get 20 points at Hardcore Justice. I’m not a Robbie E fan. Having him brag constantly that he beat Jeff for 5 points was annoying. Jeff Hardy coming out was ok and having Rob Terry powerbomb him through the table was alright too.   

Backstage the camera guy goes up to AJ Styles. AJ says that he would’ve remembered if he and Claire had anything going on since he doesn’t drink. Then he says that he is jet lagged and wants to focus on his match with Kurt Angle. This storyline HAS to end!!

Samoa Joe comes to the announce table and he says that it seems like everyone is coming out to what they’ll do in the BFG series. Then he says that Kurt Angle & AJ Styles are about to face each other. Then Joe says that this weekend he will beat Kurt, AJ & Daniels. He says that he’s been dueling for the top spot since the series began. Then he says that he will get 20 points This Sunday. Good intense promo.

Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles in a Bound for Glory Series match. Angle gets the pin for 7 more points. This was a really good back and forth match. AJ went for a Springboard 450 splash but Angle got his knees up. Then he gave AJ the Olympic Slam for the win. Then as AJ was walking up the ramp Claire was supporting him. He walked off and Claire was upset.

Back to Aces and 8s. He says that everyone they’ve gone after has been dealt the dead man’s hand and tonight we’ll find out who will be the next victim.

Ken Anderson goes up to James Storm. Anderson says that every time Aces and 8s attack someone it always benefits Storm. Then Anderson says that if he happens to be the next victim and he finds out that Storm is behind they will have a different discussion and it won’t be like this one.

Austin Aries is on his phone saying that Roode can threaten all he wants. The camera guy asks what’s happening. Aries says tonight he & Roode will handle this like men and sign the contract later.

Knockouts Champion Brooke Tessmacher vs. Gail Kim. Tessmacher gets the pin. This was a solid match. Then Madison Rayne comes to the ring all smiles. She stares down Brooke then plants one on Earl Hebner. Whatever.

Joseph Park is backstage. He says everyone has been asking him about the Aries-Roode contract signing. He says this is what he tried to warn Sting about last week. Joseph says this can be intense. Then he sees a “potential client” off camera and walks off.

They show a Kenny King video package. Kenny talks about how coming to TNA was the biggest risk of his career. He also says that he thinks about what if will feel like to that title in his hand.

Time for the TNA World Title contract signing. Sting comes to the ring. He says that he promised Aces and 8s no just air but also ring time. Then he says that they need to have a contract signing for the World Title match. He asks Aries & Roode to come to the ring. Roode comes out first. Then Aries. Sting asks what’s up with Roode’s attitude. Roode says that the contract is his problem because it says that if Roode loses the Title match he doesn’t get another Title match as long as Aries is champion. Roode says he’s not signing anything and that Sting had had a problem with Roode ever since he became champion. He says that Sting keeps trying to stick it to Roode and 1 up him. Roode says now he will 1 up Sting. He says that if that stip isn’t taken out of the contract there will be no title match. Aries tells Roode to quit whining. Aries says that for someone who thought Aries winning was fluke that he seems concerned about the contract. That’s because everyone knows Aries has Roode’s number. Aries says that when he beats Roode Sunday Roode won’t get another title match against him. However, if Roode wins back the Title Aries will forfeit his rematch clause. Sting asks if this is a verbal agreement and he tell Roode to shake Aries hand. He does. Sting then says that 1 guy will walk out champion and the other will never get a rematch. Then Aries & Roode scream at each other. Then Roode offers his hand to Aries. Aries picks up the belt & Roode throws water at him. Then Aries goes after Roode, knocking over the table. Roode rolls out of the ring up the ramp. This was a good segment. I thought both Roode & Aries were really good here.

They show Hernandez & Chavo Guerrero and Kid Kash & Gunner talking about their match Sunday. Chavo says he & Hernandez will get some gold. Kash says Chavo’s a cheater.

James Storm vs. Bully Ray in a Bound for Glory Series match. Ray gets the pin for 7 more points. This was a good match. Then Ray asks Storm where “his” Aces and 8s are. The crew shows up on the Tron. The guy tells Ray that he will be seeing a lot more of them Sunday. Ray says that Storm’s got his guys coming for him Sunday. Ray says everyone knows it’s Storm. This ends the show.

I thought this was a decent show overall. I thought they did a solid build for this Sunday’s PPV. The opening segment was a bit long but it was good. The Storm-Ray match was good too. I was ok with the Aces and 8s promos on the Tron too. The contract signing was good too. I thought both Roode & Aries cut their usual great promos. The Jeff Hardy-Robbies E & T segment was ok but Robbie E bragging about his 5 points got to me after a bit. The Kenny King video package was well done. Brooke Tessmacher vs. Gail Kim and Devon & Garrett vs. Kazarian & Daniels were solid. I thought RVD & Magnus had a good match also. The Kurt Angle-AJ Styles match was the highlight of the show. The match was awesome. On the whole I thought this was a decent show.

8-6-12 Raw results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 6, 2012 episode of Raw

  The show starts with AJ Lee skipping to the ring. She welcomes everyone to Raw. Then she says she’s is going to announce some blockbuster matches. First Randy Orton vs. Big Show. Second John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan and third…before she can say CM Punk’s music hits and he comes out. He says that he’s a man who lives his life with zero regrets. He’s also man enough to know when he’s made a mistake. He says that last week he did something he isn’t proud of. He says he lost his temper and he apologizes to AJ. He says that he let his emotions get the better of him. He says that the they both shouldn’t be disrespected. He says he knows what that’s like and says he’s sorry. AJ accepts. Punk says hopefully they can be friends. Then he says that AJ might fall flat on her face at times and make some mistakes. Like having him defend the WWE Title in a triple threat match. Then Punk asks her to call off the triple threat match at SummerSlam. The fans chant no. AJ says she is new at this and will make mistakes but making the triple threat match isn’t one of them. Her decision stands. Punk asks if this is her getting back at him for humiliating her when she asked him to marry her. H e tells her not to be the evil GM and stick it to the guy everyone likes. He says he doesn’t mind facing Show or Cena in singles matches. He says she can name a new challenger. Then John Cena comes to the ring. He says Punk has become “one of those guys.” A guy who demands respect. Cena says you come out and earn respect. The dueling “Let’s go Cena/Cena sucks” chants start. Cena says he’s been in WWE 10 years and has been champion and always has to fight for respect. Cena says that Punk got involved in the Cena-Show match last week and now there’s a triple threat match and Punk is upset about it. Punk says he tells it like it is. Punk says that Cena came flying over the commentator’s desk onto him. Punk says he is the WWE Champion and won’t be disrespected by Cena, Show, or anybody. Then Punk says he saved Cena’s life last week because Cena was about to get flattened with a giant on his shoulders. Then Cena says that after SummerSlam Punk won’t be champion. Punk mentions that he beat Cena at SummerSlam last year. Then Big Show comes out. AJ tells everyone she’s not going to let things get out of hand on her show. She tells Show & Cena that they both have matches tonight. Punk says he deserves to be in the main event. AJ says Punk will be in a match tonight. Punk asks who. She says she doesn’t know because it’s up to the fans. She says that he will face either Miz, Kane or Rey Mysterio and the voting starts on Twitter right now because Punk’s match is next. Then AJ skips up the ramp. This was a decent opening segment. Punk cut a good promo as usual. AJ was decent here too. Even Cena wasn’t that hokey here.

Jerry Lawler gets the mic and it’s time to find out who will face Punk. It will be Mysterio. I wasn’t surprised.

Rey Mysterio vs. WWE Champion CM Punk. Punk gets the pin. This was a solid match.

Alberto Del Rio & Ricardo Rodriguez are backstage. Del Rio parks his car. Ricardo says something and Spanish and Del Rio pushes him and tells him to shut up.

They show a video package for Wade Barrett’s return. He says that the Barrett Barrage has just begun.

Alberto & Ricardo come into AJ’s office. Del Rio says she’s doing a great at being GM unlike Booker T. He says that he shouldn’t have to compete till SummerSlam. AJ says she doesn’t have him booked in a match. Alberto then says that she thought she was going to do something crazy. AJ gets bothered by that and then tells Del Rio that he will be in a match next. Decent segment.

Time for a video package recapping the Triple H-Brock Lesnar feud.

Christian is in the ring and will face Alberto Del Rio next.

Ricardo comes out and does his usual introduction for Del Rio.

Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio. Del Rio wins by submission. This was solid too. Christian was on the top rope. Ricardo distracted the referee and Del Rio hit Christian with his boot. Then Del Rio locked on the cross arm breaker.

Then Sheamus shows up on the Tron. He says he’s been thinking about what Del Rio said about Sheamus being beneath him. Then Sheamus says that he is going to class up his act starting with the kind of car he drives. He’s standing in front of Del Rio’s car. He then tells Ricardo not to leave the keys in the car the next time he gets Del Rio’s gear. Then Sheamus gets in and says that he’s taking it on a sight seeing tour of San Antonio. Sheamus says he feels classy already and rides off. This was decent.

Randy Orton vs. Big Show. The match ends in a double count out. This was solid too. I wasn’t surprised this ended with no finish. Afterwards Show tosses Orton back in the ring. He sets Orton up for the Knockout punch but Orton ducks and gives Show and RKO. I’m not sure why they had Show gets flattened since he’s challenging for the WWE Title.

Tyler Reks & Curt Hawkins are in the ring. They will face Ryback in a handicap match AGAIN!

Ryback vs. Tyler Reks & Curt Hawkins. Ryback wins when he pins Hawkins. This was pointless.

Back to the show and Primo & Epico are in the ring. So are AW & The Primetime Players. AW does his bit and they do their “millions of dollars” dance.

Primo & Epico vs. The Primetime Players. Primo & Epico win when Epico pins Darren. The Players were about to head to the back but Kofi & Truth came out. The match continued and Primo hit the back stabber on Darren Young for the pin. This was a decent match. Why’d they play Kofi’s music when he & Truth came out?

Damien Sandow is backstage and Josh Mathews asks him about his attack on Brodus. Sandow says that he is the intellectual savior of the masses and martyr and is here to stop the foolishness. He says that anyone who does anything idiotic like dancing is only contributing to the delinquency of society. Then he says that he will dispose of Brodus Clay for the fans’ benefit. “You’re welcome.” This was decent too.

Brodus Clay comes out and Sandow comes out and attacks him. Sandow went after Brodus’ leg. Then referees come in to break it up. Sandow poses on the stage and says “You’re welcome” as Brodus lays on the floor. Then Sandow screams, “Brodus you did this to yourself.” I was ok with this. Sandow is good at playing the intellectual heel.

AJ & Daniel Bryan are in the GM office. AJ says that the psychologist might have said that Daniel is sane but he has still anger management issues. Daniel says that has something to do with her leaving him at the Alter. HE says he’s calm now and thanks her for giving him the match with Cena. He says that once he beats Cena the WWE Title match at SummerSlam will be a Fatal 4 Way. AJ then tells Daniel that he already has a match at SummerSlam. He asks who he’s facing. She tells him Kane. Then they go back and forth with Daniel saying no and AJ saying yes. This was the usual AJ-Daniel segment.   

Kelly Kelly makes her return (crap!)

Kelly Kelly vs. Eve Torres. Kelly gets the pin with a Hurancanrana. This wasn’t much.

They re show Sheamus taking Del Rio’s car from earlier in the show.

Shawn Michaels comes out. He poses on the turnbuckles. Then he gets the mic. The fans chant HBK. He thanks the fans for allowing him once again to be a part of history. Then he talks about Raw 1000 and the reunion of DX. He says that he’s comfortable watching the world go by on his ranch but when heard that Raw would be in his home town there was no way he would miss it. He says he walked into the locker room and says there are some new faces. Then he says that everyone is talking about the Triple H-Brock Lesnar clash at SummerSlam. He then says people have been asking him for his thoughts. Then out come Brock Lesnar & Paul Heyman. Heyman says it’s not surprising to him that everyone wants to know Shawn’s opinion about the Triple H-Lesnar match. Heyman says everyone should be asking for his opinion because he is the greatest entertainer in WWE history. Heyman says that Brock isn’t showing up at SummerSlam to be an entertainer or a sow stopper. Brock is showing up at SummerSlam to fight Triple H & to prove that he is the baddest dude on the planet today. Shawn says he’s not here dispute Lesnar accomplishments. He says that any other time with any other guy Brock’s Heyman’s man, but Brock made it personal with Triple H. Shawn says he will give his opinion. He says that at SummerSlam he is going with Triple H. He then says that he will be in Triple H’s corner at SummerSlam. Heyman says Shawn left on his own terms but Brock won’t give Triple H that option. Lesnar than says that the only reason Shawn thinks Triple H can beat is because Shawn has never been in the ring with him till now. Then Triple H comes to the ring. Brock says he will see Triple H at SummerSlam and will see Shawn before then. Brock & Heyman head up the ramp. This was really good. Shawn & Heyman both were great on the mic here. This was the highlight of the show so far.

They show Sheamus taking Del Rio’s car AGAIN! Why are they showing this twice!?

Sheamus TOUT saying that he’s loving the car and the sight seeing. Whatever.

Alex Riley is in the ring & Chris Jericho is on commentary.

Alex Riley vs. Dolph Ziggler. A-Ry gets the pin. Jericho stood on the announce table TOUTING. That distracted Dolph and A-Ry got the roll up for the pin. This was a cocky heel dominates most of the match and then loses. 

Michael Cole reads a tweet from AJ saying that Kane will face Miz tonight.

Time for a second TOUT from Sheamus. He spills food on Del Rio’s car. This was idiotic.

Kane vs. Intercontinental Champion The Miz. Kane gets the pin. This was ok. I was a bit surprised that Miz did the clean job.

Sheamus is back and Del Rio’s car is a mess. He says it was a great ride.

Daniel Bryan comes to the ring for his match with John Cena.

Del Rio & Ricardo come by and see the wrecked car. Del Rio blames Ricardo.

John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan. Cena gets the pin. NO! This was a really good match but having Daniel lose was a mistake.

Then CM Punk came to the ring, got in Cena’s face and held up the belt. Then Cena pushed Punk out of the way because Big Show came out. Cena went after Show. Show was going to choke slam Cena but Cena got him on his shoulders. Then Punk knocked them both down. Then Punk got a headset and he says that maybe Cena’s right that it’s Punk’s fault that he will be defending the WWE Title in a triple threat match. Punk says that he’s been smiling and kissing babies to please the fans. He then says that Raw ends the same way with Punk standing tall holding his title and showing that he is the best in the world. Then he says that anyone else who gets in his way will be lying on the mat just like Cena & Big Show. Punk then gets back in the ring & Big Show hits him with a Knockout punch. Then he gives one to Cena. Then Big Show picked up the title and threw it over his shoulder. He stood over Cena & Punk holding the WWE Title over his head to end the show. I thought this was good too.

I thought this week’s show was decent but for the most part there wasn’t a lot that was memorable. The Shawn Michaels-Triple H-Paul Heyman-Brock Lesnar segment and the Can-Daniel match were the best parts of the show by far! The opening segment was decent too. The rest of the show had some decent to solid matches and ok promos but nothing great. Sheamus taking Del Rio’s car was idiotic. Mysterio-Punk was solid. Kelly-Eve was ok too. Kane-Miz was just there and the Ryback-Hawkins & Reks match was pointless. I thought Sandow attacking Brodus was decent too. Primo & Epico vs. The Primetime Players was alright but not great. Overall I thought this show was weaker than last Monday.

8-3-12 Smackdown results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 3, 2012 episode of Smackdown

 The show starts with Vince McMahon coming to the ring. He says that picking someone for Smackdown GM has been a hard task. He says that he had to find someone that the fans respect. Someone with integrity, character and charisma and someone with experience. Also someone who is authoritative enough to make decisions and back it up. “Here he is your General Manager for Smackdown, Booker T.” Booker comes to the ring. He thanks Vince and the Board of Directors for giving him this opportunity. He then says that Friday Night Smackdown is about to blow up. SO he says lets kick this off right now. He says that the first thing that he’s going to do…then Alberto Del Rio’s music plays and he comes out. He congratulates Booker on being the new Smackdown GM. Del Rio says Booker must be happy because he will be working with him. Because at SummerSlam he will be the…Booker cuts him off and asks him if he’s gonna suck up to the new GM. He tells Del Rio that he will have to it a whole smoother than that “dawg.” He tells Del Rio to make sound like it’s not a bunch of crap. Then Booker says that he saw on Monday night that Alberto had a few words to say about Sheamus. Then Booker mentions that Del Rio said that Sheamus was beneath him. Del Rio then says that Sheamus is beneath him. He says that Sheamus is nothing but a peasant. He says that Sheamus grew up as a fat red headed hooligan (not sure where he got the fat part from). Then Del Rio says that in his DNA he has the blood of a champion. He says that he was bread for greatness. Del Rio tells Booker that he doesn’t have to kiss his rear. Then Sheamus’ music hits and he comes out. He congratulates Booker on becoming the Smackdown GM and hugs him. Then he says that unlike “Bertie” he actually means it. Sheamus then says that Del Rio can mock him and where he grew all he wants but the fact is he is proud of where he comes from and who he is. He says that never had anyone brush his teeth or clean his arse every time he cried but he promises that he won’t take 3 weeks off just because Del Rio is afraid of getting his manicured hands all dirty. He asks if Del Rio really isn’t gonna compete till SummerSlam. Del Rio then says that’s right. Then Booker says both Sheamus & Del Rio will be in action tonight. Del Rio says that he doesn’t care if this is Booker’s first night on the job or not. He also doesn’t care who Booker is. Del Rio then says that he will not compete till SummerSlam. Booker says that Alberto has all the money in the world but it’s obvious that doesn’t make him hear any better. He tells Del Rio that he is the boss and Del Rio will compete tonight. Then Booker tells Del Rio that tonight he will face Randy Orton. Booker tells Del Rio to get ready. Del Rio walks up the ramp saying that Booker can’t do this to him. Then he tells Sheamus that his match will be next. Sheamus will face this man. Cue Tensai’s music and he comes out. This was a good opening segment.

World Champion Sheamus vs. Tensai. Sheamus gets the pin. This was a good match.

Eve is in the GM office. Booker comes in and Eve congratulates him too. Then she says that she wanted to remind him what a valuable asset she was to Johnny Ace. She says that if Booker need any help or if there are any positions open in the administration that she & Booker would make an excellent team. Booker says that if anything comes up he will let her know. Then Teddy Long comes in. He says that Booker has earned his way to the top. Booker says that he has big shoes to fill since Long was such a great GM. Then he offers Long to be his senior advisor. Long takes it. Then he tells Eve that all the jobs are now filled. He says he will get back to her later. Then he asks Long to shoe Eve out. Long puts his arm out but Eve storms off. This was decent.

Antonio Cesaro & Aksana are in the ring. Then Lillian says that he would say hello to the fans in 5 languages. He does in English, French, Italian, Swiss & German. What was the point of this? Then Santino Marella comes out for the match.

U.S. Champion Santino Marella vs. Antonio Cesaro. Cesaro gets the pin. This was short.

Backstage Matt Striker interviews Daniel Bryan. Striker says that it’s been an interesting few weeks for Daniel. Then they recap the psychiatric evaluation from Raw. Then Striker asks Daniel if he has any comments. Daniel says no. Then he says that we will hear him say no a lot more often. He says that he doesn’t want to hear anybody in the crowd chanting yes anymore. Then of course the fans chant yes. Daniel then says that yes is his catchphrase. “Yes I can be the greatest of all time. Yes I can be World Champion. I’m the one who gets to say yes. Not these people. He says that the fans can’t steel his catchphrase and that he doesn’t need another psychiatric evaluation from some hack doctor. Then he repeatedly screams no while the fans chant yes. Then the lights go out for Chris Jericho’s entrance. This was good. Daniel does a great job playing this unstable guy. I thought it was better here than on Monday.

Kane, Chris Jericho & Christian vs. Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler & Intercontinental Champion The Miz. Daniel, Dolph & Miz win when Daniel pins Jericho. Jericho had Daniel in the Walls but Vickie got on the apron and distracted the referee. Then Dolph came in with the MITB case. Jericho gave him a Code Breaker but it looked like he got hit with the case. Then Daniel rolled up Jericho for the pin. This was a good match. Afterwards Daniel gets in the face of a fan in the front row (I’m guessing that guy was a plant). Daniel screams no while the “fan” chants yes. That was funny.

Backstage in the dressing room, Matt Striker interviews Randy Orton. Striker welcomes Orton back and says that he was sorely missed. Then Striker says that the question on everyone’s mind is how has this long “lay off” from the ring affected Orton. Orton says that the WWE is his life. Every moment he’s away from Raw & Smackdown is like a breath sucked out of his lungs. He’s happy to be back and he doesn’t plan on going anywhere any time soon. Then he says that Alberto Del Rio is the number one contender for the World Title. He says that is only because he hasn’t faced Orton. Then Orton says that tonight he plans on celebrating his return to Smackdown by giving the fans something they’re dieing to see. That of course being hitting Del Rio with a perfectly executed RKO. This was a good promo.

Ryback vs. Jinder Mahal. Ryback wins by DQ when Jinder hits him with a mic outside the ring. Then Mahal runs up the ramp. This wasn’t much of a match.

The Primetime Players & AW are backstage. They come across some guy on his laptop. There are also t-shirts on the table. They ask where the Primetime Player shirts are. Darren Young sees a Little Jimmy t-shirt and is in disbelief. Then Titus throws a shirt at the guy and tells him to get some Primetime Player t-shirts. This was stupid. Titus & Darren have been de pushed just like all the other young talent. Sticking them with AW hasn’t done them any favors.

WWE Tag Team Champion R-Truth vs. Darren Young. Darren gets the pin. This was short too. AW & Titus got involved. Kofi clotheslined Titus. Then AW got in Kofi’s face but Kofi ran him off. After Darren won AW came back to ringside. He and the Players celebrated in the ring. AW sucks. I don’t know why they even bother having him on the shows. I’m also tired of the “Little Jimmy” bit. That’s beyond old.

They recap CM Punk’s promo and the Cena-Big Show match from Raw.

Time to see some TOUTS from the fans about Punk’s heel turn and the WWE Title match.

Booker T is in his office and is talking to someone on his cell about being the new Smackdown GM. Then Layla comes in and she congratulates Booker. Layla says there’s no more People Power and Booker says that gold digger Eve is gone too. Then Cody Rhodes comes in. Layla walks off. Cody also congratulates Booker. Cody says he thinks it’s good that former super star at his age can still find a purpose. Then Cody says that he hopes the fact that he ended Booker’s career doesn’t affect they’re working relationship going forward. Booker says, “Is that so sucka?” Cody tells Booker not to call him sucker. Booker says that he didn’t call him “sucker”. He called him "sucka”. (like there’s a difference). Then he tells Cody that he will face Sin Cara (AKA the guy who flies with the greatest of ease) next week. Then Booker says, “Now can you dig that? Sucka.” Cody storms off. Then Booker tells Layla he likes this job. Then they talk some more. Layla talks about changing things up. Then they go back to ringside. This was a decent backstage segment.

Randy Orton vs. Alberto Del Rio. Orton wins by DQ when Ricardo comes in. Orton was going for an RKO on Del Rio but Ricardo came in the ring. Afterwards Del Rio attacked Orton’s arm. Then he was going to lock him in the cross arm breaker but Orton countered and shoved Alberto into the turnbuckle. Then Alberto elbowed Orton. Then he jumped up on the ropes but Orton dropkicked him out of the ring. Then as Del Rio & Ricardo were about to walk up the ramp Sheamus came out and threw Del Rio back into the ring. Then Orton gave Alberto an RKO. Orton poses on the ropes to end the show. This was a good match.

I thought this was a good show overall. I was fine with the Booker-Alberto-Sheamus segment and I liked the Orton-Del Rio match. Sheamus-Tensai was good too. The backstage bits with Booker were ok too. I was ok the Teddy Long & Eve one and the bit with Layla & Cody was too. Truth-Darren, Santino-Cesaro & Ryback-Jinder were all short and not much. The 6 man tag was good too. Daniel Bryan actually did a good job playing off the fans’ yes chants. Overall I thought this week’s show was good.

8-2-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the August 2, 2012 episode of Impact

Before the show starts with Kenny King & Austin Aries are brawling backstage and with Zima Ion & Bobby Roode. The actual show starts with all 4 guys coming out on the stage. They make their way to ringside, where the brawl continues. Eventually the bell rings.

TNA World Champion Austin Aries & Kenny King vs. Bobby Roode & X Division Champion Zima Ion. Aries & Kenny win when Kenny pins Ion. This was a really good match and a great way to kick off the show.

Sting is backstage. He says he is giving Storm the benefit of the doubt. He wants to know who’s behind the Aces and Eights stable. Sting says we’ll find out soon.

Sting comes to the ring. He says there are lots of questions about Aces and Eights but no answers. Then he says there’s always someone who has the info and he calls out James Storm. James Storm comes to the ring. Sting says that he didn’t believe Roode’s accusation, but he has some compelling footage that he wants to show. They show the Aces and Eights guys coming in and attacking AJ Styles during the match with him & James Storm. Then they show Storm running to the ring during the Angle-Ray match and ran the Aces and Eights guys off. Sting says that he wants Storm to convince and everyone that he has nothing to do with Aces and Eights. Storm says that what he saw was bunch of cowards who ran when he came to the ring. Storm says he’s never needed anyone’s assistance to fight his battles. Then Storm says that 9 months ago he was jumped from behind by Kurt Angle. He says that he didn’t cry and moan about it. He says that he beat Angle 3 out of 4 times and 1 of those wins was for the TNA World Title and that he didn’t anyone to assist him. Then Kurt Angle comes to the ring. He tells Storm that they’ve been through a lot in the past year but he what he remembers from last week is that he got jumped from behind before he came out for his match (I think he means the match he & Storm were supposed to have 2 weeks ago). Then AJ Styles got jumped and even the referee was knocked out. Then Angle says they never touched Storm. Then he says that Storm benefits from the Aces and Eights attack. He motives how they never went after Storm during the AJ-Storm match or the Angle-Ray match. Then Angle says that if Aces and eights are in the arena he’s begging them to come out for his match. Sting says he hopes they show up too and that he will be at ringside. Angle then tells Storm that he will make him tap out. Storm says we’ll see about that.

They replay Claire showing AJ Styles “The photos” from 2 weeks ago.

Kazarian & Daniels are backstage. Daniels says that they’re gonna throw Claire a baby shower.

Mike Tenay & Taz announce that at Hardcore Justice there will be 3 4 way matches. The winners will each get 20 points in the Bound for Glory Series.

Bully Ray comes to the ring. He says that he heard what James Storm said before. He says he never trusted Storm and that later tonight he will be at ringside for the Kurt Angle-James Storm match.

Robbie E. vs. Bully Ray in a Bound for Glory Series match. Ray gets the pin for 7 points. This was a squash.

Earl Hebner is backstage with Madison Rayne. He got her gifts. Madison says she doesn’t need gifts, just Earl’s affection. Then Gail Kim comes by and asks what’s with the gifts. Madison says that Earl wouldn’t screw over anyone and will call the 4 way Knockouts match down the middle.

Brooke Tessmacher comes out for commentary.

Tara vs. Mickie James vs. Madison Rayne vs. Gail Kim for a Knockouts Title match at Hardcore Justice. Madison wins when she “pins” Tara. Tara had Madison pinned but Hebner raised Madison’s hand. This Earl Hebner-Madison Rayne story is idiotic.

Bobby Roode is backstage. He says that James Storm is the leader of Aces and Eights and now Angle, Sting & Ray believe him. Roode says that since everyone will be at ringside for the Angle-Storm match, he will be too. Then after Roode walks off Austin Aries comes by and says that he will be at ringside also.

They show Brooke Hogan & Sting in the GM office talking about Hulk’s condition. Then Sting says that the Aces and Eights guys have to have an inside guy. Then he asks Brooke if she can still run the Knockouts division. She doesn’t know, but she will try. Then some guy comes in and gives Brooke something. She opens it and it’s a paper with Aces and Eights on it. Brooke then runs off. I wasn’t into this.

Eric Young & ODB are backstage. ODB says that they haven’t defended the Knockouts Tag Titles in 2 months. She says that Brooke has taken exception to that. Then Eric says that he has new show debuting Sunday. This was typical Eric Young-ODB comedy. I wasn’t into it.

Chavo Guerrero, Jr. vs. Kid Kash. Chavo gets the pin. This was a really good match.

Dixie Carter is backstage. The camera guy asks for Dixie’s take on the AJ-Claire story. Dixie says it’s way past time for AJ to set the record straight.

They show Kazarian & Daniels backstage with gifts. They’re heading to the ring next.

Kurt Angle is backstage with Wes Briscoe. Wes says being a pro wrestler is his biggest dream. Then Devon & Garrett come by. Devon tells Kurt that he’s not gonna let the Aces and Eights guys come in outta nowhere. Angle tells them to make sure he can have his match without those guys hitting the ring.

Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian are in the ring. Daniels says that AJ Styles is in Australia probably impregnating somebody. Daniels says they’ve decided to invite Claire to the Impact Zone. Claire gets in the ring. Daniels says they’d like to do what AJ and his redneck family can’t do, throw her a baby shower. Then they place a necklace around her neck. Daniels says that Claire deserves to be surrounded by people that love and support her. He says that AJ is treating her like crap. Daniels says that he & Kazarian got her gifts. They give her AJ Styles figures, pics of Daniels and TNA title replicas. Then Daniels says the best one is next. It’s a doll dressed like AJ Styles. Daniels says that she deserves this and this is all for her. Claire was all happy about them giving her the gifts. Then she looks into the camera and tells AJ to do the right thing. This was painful! I’m really beyond tired of this idiotic storyline!

Joseph Park is backstage on his cell phone. Then he tells the camera guy that he and his “lawyer team” Park, Park and Park will be representing some of the TNA wrestlers. Then Sting shows up and offers his services to Sting. Sting says he’s good. Then Sting asks him about the Black Hole Slam on Ray a few weeks ago. Joseph acts like he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Sting asks if Joseph is kayfabing him. Yes he actually said that. Then Joseph takes a pic on his phone of him and Sting.

Kurt Angle vs. James Storm in a Bound for Glory Series match. Storm gets the pin for 7 points. This was a good match. Sting came to ringside during the match. Then Devon & Garrett came out. Then Bully Ray. Then Bobby Roode. Then Austin Aries came out too. Afterwards Storm and Angle hug and raise each other’s arms. Then Storm gets the mic and says that the game is on hand so Aces and Eights can come out. Storm tells them to come on out. Then Roode gets the mic and says that this a little odd. He says that there’s no Aces and Eights because Storm doesn’t need them. He says that knows Storm better than he knows himself. He says that Storm is the guy behind the attacks. Then Ray attacks Storm and Aries brawled with Roode. This ended the show. The match was good but this whole bit with Roode saying that Storm is the leader of Aces and eights isn’t working for me.

I thought this week’s show was a step back from the past few weeks. The opening tag match was really good and I liked the Angle-Storm match too. The baby shower segment was terrible. Chavo & Kash had a really good match. The 4 Way knockouts match was solid but the finish was dumb. I’m getting tired of this Hebner-Madison story. There were good matches on the show but I thought the booking was weak. So Overall I thought this week’s show was decent.