11-8-12 Impact results and thoughts

Coverage and thoughts on the November 8, 2012 episode of Impact

The show starts with Aces & 8s in their clubhouse. The Vice President chews out Luke Gallows for losing his mask. Gallows has 1 week to show them why he should be in Aces & 8s. Devon says that Hogan booked Sting & Kurt Angle vs. 2 Aces & 8 guys. Devon says that he & Gallows should face Sting & Angle tonight. Gallows says he will make this right. This was lame.

James Storm comes out for commentary.

AJ Styles vs. Bobby Roode. Roode gets the pin. This was a really good match. Bobby Roode got a chair. James Storm took his head set off to stop Roode. The referee held him back. There also looked to be tension with Styles & Storm.    

Austin Aries runs into Hulk Hogan backstage. Hulk tells Aries to quit walking around like he is the champion because he isn’t. Aries says that he wants the ladder Match called off. He’s a wrestler, not an acrobat. Hulk says that Aries also isn’t the GM. Hulk tells Aries to handover the title and if Aries doesn’t want to face Jeff, Hulk can find some one who does. Hulk walks off & Aries says that Hulk is drinking the Jeff Hardy Kool-Aid. This was a decent bit. Aries was good here as usual.

Kurt Angle & Wes Briscoe are backstage. Angle tells him timing is everything. Sting comes in and tells Wes to have eyes in the back of his head. Tonight is show time.

Joseph Park is in the ring. He says it’s been a trying week. After the act that was perpetrated by Aces & 8s. He realized 2 things. The human body isn’t meant to go through tables. 2 it felt great to rip Gallows’ mask off even it wasn’t intentional. Then he says that as a man he wants his match with Aces & 8s. Hulk Hogan is the guy who can make it happen. Joseph begs Hulk to give him the match. He’s stood by Hulk since he came to TNA. Now he’s asking Hulk to stand by him. Cue Hulk’s music and out comes the Hulkster. Hulk says that he is proud of him for helping give TNA momentum in the war with Aces & 8s. Hulk tells him that it’s better to be lucky than good. Joseph was lucky but isn’t a wrestler and shouldn’t be in the ring. Hulk says that he can’t have TNA liable for what would happen to Park if he got hurt in the ring. Then Bully Ray comes to the ring. Ray says he didn’t want to come out but he did because he knows Hulk is about to tell Joseph no. Ray knows that because Hulk has been saying no to him for 2 months. Ray is sticking up for Park. Ray says that Park fought him and also has a lot to prove against Aces & 8s. Ray then mentions Park being kidnapped. Ray believes in Park. Hulk says he’s running TNA. Ray says he believes in Joseph and the fans do too. The fans cheer. Ray says these are Hulk’s fans. His Hulkamaniacs. Ray asks Hulk why say no when it feels so damn good to just say yes? Joseph says he’s ready for this. Hulk says just this 1 time. This was solid. Ray & Joseph were both good here.

Tara & Jessie are backstage. Jessie brags about finishing off ODB. ODB comes in and says that he got her with a school girl. Eric Young & ODB are the only TNA power couple. Eric isn’t there but she wants to face both Tara & Jessie in a handicap match. This was idiotic. This Jessie guy is awful.

AJ Styles is screaming at the cameraman about James Storm scouting his match. James Storm comes in and says that he & AJ have both been in TNA for the same amount of time but AJ is the face of TNA. Then he asks AJ how it will look when the face of TNA gets kicked in. I was ok with this bit.

Knockout Tag Team Champion ODB vs. Tara & Jessie. ODB wins when she pins Tara. This was a comedy match. Afterwards Jessie goes to hit ODB from behind but ODB turns around. Then Tara hits ODB from behind with the flask. Then Tara gives her the Widow’s Peak. Then Tara pours the liquid courage on ODB and then she & Jessie make out. Can they please end this Tara-Jessie crap?

ODB is on the phone yelling at EY. She flips out about her liquid courage being poured on her. She tells Eric to be there Sunday.

They show Bruce, Al & Taz. They talk about the fate of Christian York. Taz mentions he didn’t watch the match because he has no power. Taz says it’s a no-brainer. Al says that he was attached someone and that other guy took the spot light. Bruce asks if York can be a singles guy. Al brings up Beer Money. Taz doesn’t care if he was a tag guy. Taz says York is a wrestler. Taz says they’ll make the right decision. Taz says that he always does. Then Taz & Bruce comment on Al’s jacket. This was a typical pre Gut Check segment.

Kurt Angle & Sting vs. DOC (Luke Gallows) & Devon. Sting & Angle win by DQ when Devon hit them both with a bat. Angle & Sting take the fight outside the ring before the bell. Angle & Devon go at it while Sting & DOC brawl. Sting throws DOC in the ring and the bell rings. Towards the end, Sting had DOC in the Scorpion Death Lock and then Devon came in with the bat and hit both Angle & Sting. That led to the DQ. After the match Angle was sent shoulder first into the turnbuckle. Then Ray comes out and clotheslines Devon. Then Ray gets a table from under the ring. Ray sets it up but Devon bails. Ray goes after him. Then DOC picks up Sting but Sting punches him. Then Sting was going for a power bomb but more Aces & 8s guys come in. 1 of them hits Sting with a hammer. Then DOC choke slams Sting threw the table. Then DOC hits Sting a few times with the hammer. Finally Samoa Joe, Chavo & Hernandez come out and run Aces & 8s off. EMTs then come in to check on Sting. They help Sting to the back. This was good. Sting did a good job selling the attack.

JB & the Gut Check judges are in the ring. Time to find out if Christian York will get a TNA contract. Christian York comes out. JB says all that stands in York’s way is the decisions from the judges. JB asks York if he felt that he gave it his best effort last week. York says he knows that he did and the fans know it too. Taz goes first. Taz says York looked great and says that York has that “it” factor. Taz votes yes. Next is Bruce. Bruce says York has been a wrestler for 16 years but he hasn’t made it to the big league. He asks York what kept him from making it. Bruce says maybe York hasn’t had a chance. Bruce votes yes. Christian York gets the contract. York says this is what he worked 16 years for. He tells the fans that dreams can come true. I’m glad that he got the contract. This was really good.

Austin Aries is backstage on his phone and he walks by Ray & Brooke Hogan. They’re having words about something but they stop when Aries walks by. Aries tells whoever’s he’s on the phone with to find a loophole. I’m not sure what the Ray-Brooke Hogan bit was about.

Hulk is on the phone asking how badly Sting is hurt because TNA’s in major trouble without him. Then Joey Ryan comes in. Ryan wants Hulk to congratulate him. Hulk says that isn’t happening. He’s not congratulating him on something that hasn’t happened. Hulk then tells Morgan that he won’t be at ringside for Joey Ryan’s match at Turning Point. Morgan says that Hulk still doesn’t know who he’s messing with. Morgan & Ryan walk off and Hulk says to himself that maybe he does know. Thankfully it was short so I was ok with this bit.

TV Champion Samoa Joe and Tag Team Champions Hernandez & Chavo Guerrero, Jr. vs. Magnus, Christopher Daniels & Frankie Kazarian. Magnus, Daniels & Kazarian win when Magnus pins Joe. This was a good match.

Bobby Roode is backstage. He talks about how AJ & Storm were at each other’s throats after the match. Everything’s going his way. He’s 1 step closer to regaining his world title. Good promo from Roode.

A ladder is set up in the ring and out comes Austin Aries. The fans chant we want Hardy. Aries says he does too. Aries says that Jeff is calling himself the best wrestler on Earth. Aries says that’s all well and good but he’s the greatest who ever lived. He says that having to face Jeff in a ladder means that Jeff knows that he can’t beat Aries. Jeff’s career has been defined by the ladder. Jeff is the greatest risk taker in the business. Jeff has climbed to the highest of highs and has taken some of the greatest falls. AT Turning Point this will be the great fall that Jeff doesn’t recover from physically, mentally or emotionally. The fans chant what. Aries says he’s speaking English. Aries will beat Jeff at his own game. He will have both the real title and Jeff’s after Turning Point. Then Aries says that Jeff has Hulk doing his bidding for him. Aries isn’t handing over the title. If Jeff wants it he can come down like a man and take it. Out comes Jeff Hardy. Hardy hits the ring and Aries goes right after him. Aries goes fro a brain buster but Jeff escapes. Then he goes for the Twist of Fate but Aries escapes. Then Jeff takes both belts and has them raised above the ring. Then Jeff climbs the ladder. Then Aries kicks the ladder out from under Jeff. Then he places the ladder over Jeff, climbs the ladder and takes down both belts. Aries stands on the ladder over Jeff to end the show. This was really good. Aries was great on the mic as usual. They did a good job building to their title match at Turning Point.

 I thought this was a good show overall. The opening segment with Aces & 8s in the clubhouse was lame but the Sting & Angle vs. DOC & Devon match/Sting attack was really good. I liked the Jeff Hardy-Austin Aries segment too. They did a really good job building to their title match at Turning Point. Joe, Hernandez & Chavo vs. Magnus, Daniels & Kazarian was really good too. I also enjoyed the AJ Styles-Bobby Roode match. I liked the Gut Check segment too. I’m glad Christian York got the contract. The Ray-Hulk-Joseph Park segment was solid too. I was also ok with Joey Ryan & Matt Morgan in Hulk’s office because it was short. ODB vs. Tara & Jessie wasn’t much. Roode’s promo backstage was good too. I liked that he said, “I love it when a plan comes together.” I guess he was watching the A-Team. I’m not sure what they’re doing with Bully Ray & Brooke Hogan but I liked Aries here too. I also liked the AJ Styles-James Storm bit backstage. So on the whole I thought this was a good show this week. I thought they did a good job for the go home show before Turning Point.