Really great PPV.
Johnny Mundo vs Fenix vs Taiji Ishimori vs Petey Williams - I was a little upset to find out that Swann had been injured and wouldn't be in the match, but Petey made a fine replacement and added to the international angle the match had. I would have enjoyed seeing DJZ or someone else as Petey was in that feud with Killer Kross, but being in Canada, it makes sense to have Petey show up. The match was exciting and everything you would expect from an X division style matchup. After the match, I thought there was no way for the other matches to live up to it.
Tessa Blanchard vs Allie - pretty good match. As much as I like Allie, Tessa really needed this. Especially with her recent signing a long-term deal with Impact, she should become a major force in the division (deservingly so, because she is a great wrestler).
Eddie Edwards vs Tommy Dreamer - This was one of the most interesting developments going into this PPV. Eddie snapping was so interesting. The match itself was decent. Impact does need to take a tip from the tv industry in that if you introduce a gun (or in this case a flaming table) you eventually use it. The crowd was really hot and wanted that. Personally, I didn't need to see, but they shouldn't have teased it then. The post-match stuff I'm a little torn on. I like the whole "passing of the torch" moment but did Eddie just forget his issues? Did he stop thinking that Tommy was with his wife and all that crazy stuff he had in his head beforehand?
Matt Sydal vs Brian Cage - I had it in my mind that Sydal would be losing this match before it even started, but I was still holding on to that tiny possibility that he would retain. Not that I don't like Cage, because I honestly like him, but lately, Sydal has been the most interesting I've ever seen him in his career. Either way, it will be interesting to see where things go forward from here. I would love to see Johnny Impact mix it up with Sydal or Cage in the X division for a little while.
Su Yung vs Madison Rayne - I'll be honest and say that my hopes weren't too high for this match, so it didn't disappoint. It wasn't too amazing, but an average match. It may have been better, but I had no investment in Madison Rayne as I assumed she was only here short term, and I Su Yung is still too similar to Rosemary (whom I prefer) for my liking. I'm curious to see who will go after Su Yung next.
LAX vs OGz - This was an exciting matchup and really picked the PPV back up. LAX always knows how to work a streetfight, so this civil war within the group was sure to make the most of the match type. I was very pleased and thought this tied with the first matchup of the night.
Pentagon Jr vs Sami Callihan - Man oh man, this match was amazing. MOTN for me for sure. This was intense, they told a great story, and played well off the buildup. I had a good feeling that Pentagon was winning but they had me going back and forth in the match. There were some insane spots especially the Fear Factor through the chairs. I was really hoping that oVe wouldn't be involved in the match, but they were neutralized quickly so their harm to the match was minimalized. After watching Lucha Underground, I was really hoping that Impact wouldn't drop the ball with Pentagon when they brought him in, and they have been doing some great stuff with him. Can't wait to see where he goes next. If they don't have anything, I wouldn't mind him and his brother tagging for a while and taking out the tag division.
Austin Aries vs Moose - I must say, I was for sure that they were going to be crowning Moose here. It seemed like the setup was all for Moose to overcome and prove that he belonged in the wrestling ring. I'm not upset with Aries being world champion though, as he is a great worker. The match itself was better than I expected. I was really worried that wouldn't be able to follow up the previous match, and while it wasn't as good, it definitely held its own. I really wonder where they take moose after this.
Other notes - Interesting camera angles. Not sure what I thought of them yet, but they definitely caught my eye as something different. Back when TNA was on spike they had interesting camera angles, and I thought they were interesting. Gave it a new feel. The arena was pretty cool too. Overall, the PPV was probably around an 8-8.5, but I gave it the bump up to a 9 for the hot crowd who really added to the night. Hope they will be this hot for the upcoming tv tapings there as well.
