Who Needs Hulkamania? A short-form TNA 2010

[Leon TrotSky]

Bound for Glory 2011
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Liacouras Center - Philadelphia, PA​

Live from a packed Liacouras Center! On pay-per-view! Simulcast in over 100 movie theatres across the world! With an extra hour because it's that big! This is Bound for Glory!

Xplosion:
Athena d. Miss Tessmacher. Tara looks on disapprovingly as her trainee does OK but is ultimately defeated in short order by a Michinoku Driver II.
6-Person Mixed Tag Team Match - Roode/Sarita/Wilde d. Young/Blossom Twins. A face vs. face affair on the men's side, though it may strike some as odd that Roode is on the nominal "heel" team... Match is perfectly clean though. I really do have most people on the card, huh.

YouTube Exclusive:
Generation Me d. Jon Moxley/Doug Williams. Two guys who think they're better than having to sink to the Bucks' level get superkicked again, and again, and again. I should really get some mileage out of there being so many guys with superkicks on my roster (Storm, Bucks, Adam Cole...)

1. X Division Championship Number 1 Contender's Match - D'Angelo Dinero d. Jack Evans d. Tony Nese d. Low Ki d. Amazing Red. Let Pope hang with these guys, it'll be fun.
2. No Holds Barred - Madison Rayne d. Velvet Sky. They just... start attacking each other. Steel chairs, brass knuckles, Velvet's riding crop... and there's not one bit of mercy shown by either side. Madison at this point is showing her Killer Queen edge in a tweenery sort of way, which leads to mixed chants.
3. El Generico d. Kazarian. Kaz playing the classic heel. Cole and O'Reilly at ringside to herd him back in, Olé chants! Yep it's Generico time. I think this is his first PPV win since Destination X 2010... Wow.
4. International Showcase Match - Team USA (WGTT) d. Team Mexico (Aero Star/Drago) d. Team Japan (Hiromu Takahashi/Kyosuke Mikami). This does what it does, it strengthens links, it keeps the crowd hot, it gives Hiromu some international experience, and something for Impact to put on their YouTube channel when he gets big. Jeff Jarrett makes a surprise appearance, in his capacity as "Mexican Heavyweight Champion" and cuts a promo for his team. Anyway, Team USA win because This Is America.
5. Last Man Standing - AJ Styles d. Daniels. Think the match we got at Destination X 2012, with a similar ending (a Styles Clash through a table means Styles is the only one who can stand.)
6. Jeff Hardy d. Rob Terry. Crowd-pleasing squash, which is inserted as a cool-down match to spread out these big hardcore matches.
7. Knockouts Championship (Special Referee: Gail Kim) - Daffney d. Katarina (c). Gail Kim cares about the Knockouts Division, y'all. She is not about to take the shit from Katarina's team, and is judicious in her judgement. Daff-Knees to win it, to the shock of Mickie and Angelina! They run, in, looking like they're about to beat on Daffney... and then attack Katarina instead! The hold is finally broken!
8. Television Championship Monster's Ball - Bully Ray d. Abyss (c). Classic hardcore. Classic. Let them commit murder. Finish is probably something batshit like Abyss eating a Bully Bomb through a table on to thumbtacks.
9. X Division Championship - Roderick Strong d. Austin Aries (c). And Strong takes it back, in one of the longest matches of the night. Let them show off their athletic ability to the point that they're getting dueling chants! These guys are the future of TNA! End of Heartache to win it!
10. Tag Team Championship Elimination Match - Lethal Consequences (c) d. Latin-American Xchange d. Motor City Machine Guns d. Rock and Rave Infection. This is getting sandwiched between the two big matches of the night, and it's kind of sad, but hey, it's a bit of fast-paced tag team fun! Jimmy Rave, Alex Shelley, and Hernandez (in that order) eat the falls.
11. World Heavyweight Championship - James Storm d. Mr. Anderson (c). This has got it all. Mic Check teases, cocky bastard heels getting their shit kicked in, A-Holes United being neutralised by Roode at ringside. Storm's partner is the one to raise his hand when the Last Call finally takes it. Is all well in the world of Beer Money? Doesn't matter! We get our happy ending!

(but you can tell exactly what will happen at Turning Point.)

 

[Chris]

Roddy/Aries MOTN EASILY

Also thank fuck Anderson isn't champion anymore

 

[Leon TrotSky]

Impact - After the Glory
Thursday, October 15, 2011
Impact Zone - Orlando, FL​

I'm posting a card for the fallout of BFG again, not because I'm writing a lot of people off (though at least one of these people will be written out) but because there's a few things that happen.

• James Storm announces the first defense of his title will be given to his partner, Robert Roode! This will end well, surely.
• Generation Me demand a title shot, simply because their egos can't handle not getting title shots. They get into a Number 1 contender's match with LAX. That's on this show.
• Bully Ray's going to defend his TV title on TV. This is mostly I want to give more people a chance at holding gold. I'm genuinely considering giving the TV title a pseudo 24/7 stip (in which it is constantly defended but only during Impact/Xplosion broadcasts and PPVs) for that reason. The first defense is also on this show.
• Gail Kim comes out to congratulate Daffney... and attacks her! She cares about the Knockouts division, you see, and the division she built is not about stupid "zombie hot" gimmicks! She will out-wrestle Daffney at Turning Point and take her title, she knows it!
• And there are some matches.

1. Knockouts Tag Team Championship - The New Beautiful People d. Kong/Hamada (c) d. Blossom Twins d. Tara/Tessmacher. Title change! I said Kong/Hamada would be transitional. Jessie McKay can be her obnoxious self with the belt while Velvet acts as the brains of the outfit. This may or may not be the setup for a face turn as Jessie's so endearing.
2. Tag Team Championship Number 1 Contender's Match - Generation Me d. Latin-American Xchange (Double Pinfall). I'm guessing Homicide does something to get the referee bumped, a second ref comes out, and so double pinfall happens like double pinfalls usually do. Three-way set for Turning Point.
3. Television Championship - Bully Ray (c) d. Rob Terry. And here's the write-off! Sorry, Big Rob. I always thought you had the look and the gravitas, if not the talent.
4. Beer Money, Inc. d. A-Holes United (Anderson/Morgan). TV main event, where Storm and Roode get one more bit of happy times before the Turning Point match.

Rest of the build to TP coming soon.

 

[Leon TrotSky]

From Bound for Glory to Turning Point​

• So yeah, we've got three more Impacts before Turning Point. We already know the of the matches - Storm vs. Roode, Lethal Consequences vs. Generation Me vs. LAX, and Daffney vs. Kim.
• A big match on the go-home Impact is Gail Kim vs. Taryn Terrell. Kim is really harsh, based on her status as an ex-"Diva", and squashes her.
• TV championship defences: Bully Ray beats Lance Hoyt, Kyle O'Reilly, and Doug Williams. The match for Turning Point is set as the rematch against Abyss. Let's have one last go at treating the TV title as a decent belt.
• As for the Knockouts Tag Team Championship? Athena and Madison Rayne seem to get along well together, let's have them team together. They beat Sarita/Wilde and Tara/Tessmacher (remember that's still happening) in a 2v2v2. We can play up the fact that Velvet Sky refuses to get out of Madison's life even after those victories...
• Roderick Strong is out to please the crowd, and he's going to give us a face vs. face match. He's handing out a title shot at TP like Storm was, but El Generico is far less likely to betray him.
• Oh yeah, and Pope gets his X title shot on TV. He loses, but it's close.
• Let's give Low Ki and Austin Aries a program! They're trying their hardest to out-cocky each other.
• Jon Moxley has not had a good run recently, and he's more than happy to let everyone on Impact know his grievances. AJ Styles never quite recovered from his title loss against Mr. Anderson. Jeff Hardy has missed opportunity after opportunity. Eric Young also feels he deserves better. The solution? A Turning Point Four-Way! I'm basically stealing the Turning Point match idea from real life 2012, but much less limiting from a booking standpoint: winner of the fall gets a World Title shot at Final Resolution, loser can't challenge for the World Title again while the current holder (as of the end of TP) holds it.

Turning Point 2011
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Impact Zone - Orlando, FL​

Xplosion:
A-Holes United d. Rock and Rave Infection/Adam Cole. Adam Cole could easily fit in with RnRI. He says "baybay" a lot, we could parlay that into a gimmick that works well with the loudmouth rock wannabes. This is heel vs. less heel.
Wilde/Sarita d. Blossom Twins. We've had 2 heel wins in a row for Xplosion, but Wilde and Sarita are good enough that no one will mind, surely.

1. Tag Team Championship - Generation Me d. Lethal Consequences (c) d. Latin-American Xchange. Superkick party! Superkick party! Fast-paced multi-man to open this one up. The finishers are delivered largely on LAX, making Generation Me get a face reaction for now.
2. Knockouts Tag Team Championship - The New Beautiful People (c) d. Madison/Athena. Match ends up as Athena/Jessie as Velvet and Madison start to brawl to the back by the end, and a distracted referee + hairspray shot (a former trademark of TBP returns!) = the beauties retain.
3. Austin Aries d. Low Ki. One of the stronger matches of the night. Two guys who are unbearable to be around but back it up with solid wrestling that you can't boo. Brainbuster takes it.
4. Television Championship - Bully Ray (c) d. Abyss. The Monster's being written off for now as he's going to India. Let these two big guys just beat on each other. After the match Bully pulls a chain and gets colour because that's the good shit.
5. Knockouts Championship - Gail Kim d. Daffney (c). And the timeline starts to converge with ours, as the popular babyface who claimed the title from Katarina (who was controlling Angelina Love) loses it to Gail Kim at the next PPV. The difference is no Karen Jarrett, no Madison Rayne (she's still a face) and Gail Kim on a "no gimmicks, all skill" crusade.
6. X Division Championship - Roderick Strong (c) d. El Generico. Friends and worthy opponents. Dueling chants all night. This is pretty clearly the match of the night.
7. Daniels/Kazarian d. Jack Evans/Kyle O'Reilly. I don't know if this match gets long, but it shows off the skills of two young guys and builds up Daniels/Kazarian as a team.
8. Turning Point Match - AJ Styles d. Jeff Hardy d. Jon Moxley d. Eric Young. That's right, Hardy's frozen out of the title scene! I have a plan for this, but I'm not sure the BTB will last that long (I reckon it ends at Lockdown 2012 like the actual Immortal years did).
9. World Heavyweight Championship - Robert Roode d. James Storm (c). You know exactly how this goes. Beer bottle shot, betrayal, Roode winning the title. The It Factor is here, deal with it.

 

[Leon TrotSky]

From Turning Point to Final Resolution​

• The great thing about having number 1 contender's matches is that the program for the next PPV is already set. Roode vs. AJ. We can play up the Originals history, let Roode bring out his resentment about AJ being considered the Ace of TNA over him just because he did a few flips. "This may be the house that AJ Styles built, to you, but this is the house that Robert Roode RUNS! I am the It Factor of Professional Wrestling, and at Final Resolution, I won't let you forget it!"
• Of course, this means Storm doesn't get his rematch. But he does get a match that is practically custom-designed to get heated, as he faces the unhinged Jon Moxley. While Mox is heel at the moment, he brings up some really good points about how Storm never used to abhor dirty play like beer bottle shots... until it got used against him.
• The Tag Team Championship is pretty much set too, with Generation Me vs. Lethal Consequences in a rematch clause shot that we've never seen before, actually...
• Jeff Hardy's got pretty much nothing to do, but we're building to something. The plan is for his heart to grow darker as a result of being unable to challenge at the very top. So let's have a face return of RVD! Because you've got to have the big names. Hardy/RVD will be a popular match if not an excellent one.
• On one Impact we have an X Division Gauntlet for the Gold (just a battle royal but the last two have to work an actual match, no reverse battle royal dumb shit). The last 2 are Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly (remember that feud?), and once again cheap heel tactics win the day. Strong has his allies, and Fish has his allies, so a stipulation is created: four cages at four different corners of the ring. El Generico and KOR in two of them, and Mr. Anderson and Matt Morgan in the other two! This also gives them more things to jump off.
• Also, Desmond Wolfe's commentating more X Division matches on Impact... I wonder what that's for? Maybe one last match? For Genesis? To make a big moment and complete what is an effective "Big Four" PPV for TNA? Nah, can't be anything fancy like that.
• The other men's championship... the Television Championship. This is going to be fun. So, Bully Ray is on the fallout show, and he is confident as a result of defending and defending and defending. He says he'll defend this championship any time, anywhere. It doesn't have to be in the ring - in fact, that benefits him, because he's an extreme brawler. Just bring a TNA referee, try to pin him... regret it because he's better than you. He fends off multiple backstage attacks that episode until a brass knuckle shot by... who else but Mr. Anderson? We have to give at least some legitimacy to this joke belt after all.
• TV title changes: Bully Ray -> Mr. Anderson -> El Generico -> Kazarian (brass knuckle shot as Generico is trying to book a flight to Tijuana) -> Tony Nese -> Alex Shelley -> Tony Nese -> Chris Sabin -> Tony Nese (these last few were on the house show circuit). Nese is the champ going into Final Resolution...
• Which has the potential to cause some more chaos, because he's set to compete in the fabled FEAST OR FIRED! Four poles, three title shots, one pink slip, and more guys that aren't booked otherwise than you'll ever believe.
• Oh yeah, Knockouts! Gail Kim's trying to mow through dumb gimmicks, and next on her radar is ODB (who hasn't been seen in too long). Acting trashy is no match for a champion's attitude, says Gail.
• Taylor Wilde and Sarita have been on a trail of wins, and the fans' reaction is turning them face. So why not give them a program vs. TBP for the Knockouts Tag Team titles?

 

[Leon TrotSky]

Final Resolution 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Impact Zone - Orlando, FL​

Xplosion:
Daffney/Mickie/Angelina/Madison d. Blossom Twins/Taryn/Athena. Multi-Knockout delight to please the PPV-going crowd, as the relative rookies go up against the industry vets (if not the Knockouts division vets, in Mickie's case). A chain of finishers between the two sides ends with the final blow being Daff-Knees to Athena. Don't worry, she'll recover.
Samoa Joe/Eric Young d. The Rock & Rave Infection. Two Originals guys reunite to shut up a pair of loudmouths. Muscle Buster into elbow drop on Jimmy Rave.

1. Tag Team Championship - Generation Me (c) d. Lethal Consequences. Fun fast-paced opener. Consequences Creed is the one who gets superkicked and More Bang For Your Buck'd, after a miscommunication with Lethal leads to the champs retaining. After the match, the two challengers are left in the ring... until Lethal removes the Macho Man bandana (oh yeah, he has that!) stares daggers in Creed's face and attacks him! Lethal Combination to Creed! The former champs explode!
2. Knockouts Tag Team Championship No Disqualification Match - Wilde/Sarita d. The New Beautiful People (c). This initially ended in a disqualification (after a riding crop shot hit the referee instead of Taylor Wilde), but Mick Foley came out to declare it No DQ! Sarita hits a spinning mule kick on Jessie to get the win and the titles!
3. Jon Moxley d. James Storm. This isn't even a match. Moxley goes where he can get paid best to cause the most agony, and it's strongly implied that he's taken a bribe from Roode to absolutely murder Storm. Several minutes while Mox beats his ass and his bloodied face all the way to the ring, where one Paradigm Shift ends it. Storm's stretchered off. This will write him off until just the right moment. Apparently, they need to fill in time, because the determined time limits for each match will leave a good while free and that means the PPV watchers won't get their money's worth, and so we get this impromptu match:
4. Tara d. Hamada. Fairly short match. Finish involves Tessmacher interfering on Tara's behalf. I'm leading up to something here.
5. X Division Championship Shark Cage Rampage - Roderick Strong (c) d. Bobby Fish. This is one of the more chaotic X Division matches you'll see, and is necessarily no DQ and no count-out. Shark cage based spots including: throwing guys into the cage, jumping off the cage to the floor, and at several points Anderson and Morgan holding Strong through the cage so Fish can beat on him. Let's have a fun, batshit finish. KOR's cage comes loose and is unlocked. Bobby Fish is about to jump off KOR's cage on to a prone Strong until KOR climbs his cage, they fight for a bit, then KOR pushes Fish off... so his back can meet Strong's knees for the End of Heartache! Pin, retain!
6. Knockouts Championship - Gail Kim (c) d. ODB. We give this some real time and let ODB show off her skills. She's not just a comedy figure, you know, she's one of the primary powerhouses in the Knockouts! But she ultimately falls to Eat Defeat. After the match, Gail keeps beating on ODB until... Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. AWESOME KONG's music hits! We haven't seen her since the BFG fallout!
7. Feast or Fired - Austin Aries (World), Kazarian (Tag Team), Chris Sabin (X Division), Hernandez (Fired) d. Daniels d. Bully Ray d. D'Angelo Dinero d. Douglas Williams d. Shelton Benjamin d. Charlie Haas d. Homicide d. Alex Shelley d. Adam Cole d. Jack Evans d. Low Ki d. Tony Nese. This match tells me that I have a lot of guys that I would love to use, but never find the opportunity. Title shot winners are mostly the most interesting ones, and Hernandez being fired is because I really don't want to use the unsafe roid-hound anymore. And now what you've been waiting for, the TV title changes: Tony Nese -> Shelton Benjamin -> Douglas Williams -> Adam Cole -> Hernandez -> Shelton Benjamin -> Bully Ray. See, what goes around...
8. Rob Van Dam d. Jeff Hardy. The Whole F'n Show gets the win after a slip from a Swanton attempt gets RVD the win with the Rolling Thunder. He doesn't even need the Frog Splash. Hardy looks bewildered after the pin... What happened... How could he lose?
9. World Heavyweight Championship - Robert Roode (c) d. AJ Styles. Two ex-Originals fighting it out. This is going to be a super good match that seems end-to-end at all times. AJ can at one point be heard shouting "What happened to you, man?!" while delivering punches. Finish entails bumped ref, title belt shot, fisherman suplex, pin. The It Factor goes on...

 

[Leon TrotSky]

From Final Resolution to Genesis​

• In 2012, we're taking 4 major PPVs on the road. Lockdown in Nashville, TN; Slammiversary in Arlington, TX; Bound for Glory in Phoenix, AZ; and in January, Genesis is at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois.
• Opening segment on the fallout of Final Resolution is dominated by two men: Bobby Roode and Austin Aries. Each man calls the other a coward: Roode because Aries won't fight him fair and will grab an opportunity with that briefcase of his, and Aries because Roode is scared to defend whenever, wherever.
• A World Title Number 1 Contender's series between four major contenders (Samoa Joe, Mr. Anderson, The Pope, Daniels) is contended on a couple of Impacts, Joe beating Anderson in the final.
• Joe gets a chance to promo, and he's really good at it. He's being a badass with attitude, and a face on top of that.
• X Division contention sees Roderick Strong able to pick out a challenger. He chooses Jack Evans... but Evans doesn't show. Because he's being choked out by Douglas Williams backstage. "Roddy boy... If you're truly a champion, you won't rely on flips and tricks. You'll face me on the mat."
• A couple of weeks pass without Bully Ray losing his TV title, but when he's caught out on the go-home show by a backstage attack from Jon Moxley, all hell breaks loose with 4 more title changes in one night in a hellish brawl with multiple referees keeping track: Moxley -> Consequences Creed -> Jay Lethal -> Tony Nese -> The Pope. Security come in to break up the brawl, and escort Pope to the ring (where by coincidence, his scheduled opponent in Homicide was laid out in the brawl, so that match is off). Mick Foley shows up to announce for Genesis, a six-sided, $50,000 Television Championship Scramble! 15 minutes between the six men that held the title tonight, as many pins as you can, the one with the title at the end takes home the big cash prize.
• Tag Team Championship contention sees the Motor City Machine Guns finally get their due. Chris Sabin is on a bit of a high: he could be a double champion soon enough!
• Knockouts exist too! And the first thing I want to highlight is Tara and her trainee vs. Hamada and her manager. See, Hamada and Thea Trinidad are not happy with how the Final Resolution match went. Thea wants a piece of Tessmacher for herself, which appears on Impact and goes to a double DQ after they get caught up in Tara and Hamada also brawling on the outside. You know what that means: TAG TEAM MATCH PLAYA! At Genesis!
• Also set up on FR: Gail Kim vs. Awesome Kong! Gail reveals that she could never stand this woman, acting like a monster to hide the fact that she could never wrestle for herself. "Even the name Kong isn't yours! You stole that too!" Maybe Kong wants Gail's title... but Gail wants to RETIRE Kong. Hence, it's Title vs. Career!
• Back on the subject of Knockouts tag teams, face Wilde and Sarita have to face new heels, right? All we've got in the Knockouts heel department apart from TBP is Katarina, and she's sitting off TV moping about her lost mind-slaves. So, no more division, right? We've got to shake things up. Athena turns into an intense, dark heel and attacks Taylor Wilde, putting her out injured and forcing the title to be vacated. Genesis will open with a Knockouts Battle Royal, where the final two will become the new Knockouts Tag Team Champions. This will hopefully create a nice new set of pairings.
• Also, we get a Bobby Fish/Kyle O'Reilly rematch because that flame has been restoked by the Final Resolution result. See you in Chicago!

 

[Leon TrotSky]

Genesis 2012
Sunday, January 8, 2012
UIC Pavilion - Chicago, IL​

Xplosion:
Daniels/Kazarian d. Wrestling's Greatest Tag Team. If you're not fighting for a title. you're probably putting on great matches on Xplosion when PPV day comes around. This is elevating Xplosion rather than burying the non-contender guys.
Elimination Match - Jack Evans d. Lance Hoyt d. Adam Cole d. Jimmy Rave. By the way, let's just say Amazing Red went to India to film Ring Ka King.

YouTube PreShow:
Aries/Young/RVD d. Anderson/Morgan/Low Ki. Simple face vs. heel. We have Morgan take a Brainbuster (because those look cool when you do them on tall guys), elbow drop, and 5-Star Frog Splash.

1. Knockouts Tag Team Championship Strange Alliances Battle Royal - Madison Rayne, Angelina Love d. Velvet d. Jessie d. Daffney d. Mickie d. ODB d. Athena d. Taryn d. Sarita d. Katarina d. Hannah Blossom d. Holly Blossom. United by being ex-TBP members who hate Velvet Sky now. The next feud writes itself.
2. Kyle O'Reilly d. Bobby Fish. O'Reilly gets his win back!
3. $50,000 Television Championship Scramble - Jay Lethal d. D'Angelo Dinero (c) d. Consequences Creed d. Bully Ray d. Jon Moxley d. Tony Nese. Title changes: Pope -> Mox -> Creed -> Bully -> Nese -> Bully -> Creed -> Lethal. Lethal with a nutshot to deny Creed in the final seconds. Another feud that writes itself.
4. Tara/Tessmacher d. Hamada/Trinidad. Finish sees Hamada getting attacked from the outside by Tess, stopping her from breaking up a pin after the Widow's Peak. We're transitioning TnT into the championship scene eventually, but as heels. Just like real life! But as heels.
5. Tag Team Championship - Generation Me (c) vs. Motor City Machine Guns (Double Pinfall). This is going where you hope it is going.
6. X Division Championship - Roderick Strong (c) d. Douglas Williams. We let Strong show off a bit of mat chops. Impress us. End of Heartache for the win. And because I forgot I was doing this: Desmond Wolfe comes out from the commentary booth! Big pop! He wants Roddy, he wants him on a special Impact, filmed in London (oh yeah, they started filming the Maximum Impact tour this year). He reveals his health troubles over the past year, and wants to retire a champion. Roddy accepts!
7. Knockouts Championship Title vs. Career - Gail Kim (c) d. Awesome Kong. Because, let's be honest. Kong's career is winding down, even without the unfortunate miscarriage. We give her a sendoff on the grand stage with the one that started it all.
8. World Heavyweight Championship - Robert Roode (c) d. Samoa Joe. They're going to leave it all in the ring for the Chicago crowd. Strikes turn into submissions. Eventually, a discreet beer bottle shot knocks Joe out and Roode only has to lock in the Payoff Crossface for the referee to call this match in his favour. The It Factor rolls on...

 

[Chris]

Damn you retired Kong that's cold

 

[Leon TrotSky]

From Genesis to Unbreakable​

• This is going to be fairly short as I'm doing two Impact writeups, which is unusual. They are set to tape two shows from London's Wembley Arena, in front of a red-hot crowd. Unbreakable from the Impact Zone will look pretty sad by comparison, in all honesty.
• We're running out of face world title contenders. A Number 1 Contender's four way is set to be held on the first London Impact.
• Jeff Hardy's next match is set early, because he can't go on the UK tour. Anyway, he's blaming himself for not getting on the Genesis card, and Daniels is there to remind him that he does, indeed, only have himself to blame. He's wasted so many opportunities after all. Hardy is surprisingly quick to rile up, making a match for Unbreakable.
• Another big non-title match for Unbreakable is Jay Lethal vs. Consequences Creed. He wants so badly to get back at his former partner for the wrong he's done recently...
• As for the Tag Team Championship - the belts are being held up after the finish of the match at Genesis, and ever the crowd-pleasers and showboaters, MCMG and Gen.Me mutually decide the way to settle this is a multi-stipulation Best of Five series! Yes, we're doing the Beer Money vs. MCMG series from 2010, but over a longer period and flippier. The stipulations are in this order: Street Fight - Steel Cage - Ladder (Unbreakable) - 2/3 Falls - Ultimate X (Impact: Victory Road). The Street Fight goes MCMG's way.
• It's decided by a Battle Royal: After facing Desmond Wolfe, Roderick Strong's next challenger at Unbreakable will be Jack Evans after all!
• TV Title changes: Jay Lethal -> Charlie Haas -> Lance Hoyt -> Shelton Benjamin -> Jimmy Rave -> Jay Lethal -> Bully Ray.

Impact from London
Saturday, January 28, 2012 (aired Thursday, February 2 and 9, 2012)
Wembley Arena - London, United Kingdom​

Part 1
Two shows hosted by Mick Foley, who's way over in foreign lands apparently. We add a few things to give some British appeal: a Desmond Wolfe promo where he's treated like an uber face, talking about having his last ever match in London; a rare Douglas Williams win (see below); and a promo package seen by the crowd as well as the TV watchers, hyping the arrival of none other than Davey Boy Smith Jr.! You see, Jeff Jarrett was off in India making Ring Ka King, featuring written-off characters like Abyss and Devon as well as some Indian and international superstars, and seeing the thinning of the TNA roster, he's brought quite a few of them over. The tapings of the last RKK are less than a week removed from the UK tour, so it'd be cruel to have any of them appear yet, but rest assured there will be a few arrivals in the coming months.

1. Knockouts Tag Team Championship - Love/Rayne (c) d. The New Beautiful People (DQ). Brits love Velvet Sky. We get an extended shot of her giving Angelina a riding-crop beating after Jessie brings out hairspray and it's spotted by the referee, ending the match early. The Blossom Twins run in to make the save, because yay British wrestlers!
2. Television Championship - Bully Ray (c) d. Mark Haskins. He's around, let's bring him in as a "local talent" to lose to Bully. After the match, Bully grabs a FUCKING MIC and rants about how all British wrestlers suck. Chorus of boos. Mick Foley comes out, argues with Bully for a while... then gives him Socko, pins him with his foot...
3. Television Championship - Mick Foley d. Bully Ray (c). The GM is the new TV Champion?!
4. Douglas Williams d. Consequences Creed. Effectively face vs. face due to Williams being a representative of British Catch Wrestling. Distraction by Jay Lethal gives an opening for the Chaos Theory rolling suplexes for the win. On the next show, it will later be revealed that Creed wants to make this a First Blood match!!
5. Sarita d. Gail Kim. We pull the classic "shock the champion in non-title action -> get a title shot" move. That's set for Unbreakable.
6. World Heavyweight Championship Number 1 Contender's Match - D'Angelo Dinero d. Jon Moxley d. Austin Aries d. Mr. Anderson. Pope pins Anderson to get the title shot.

Part 2
A dark match after the show features Sting and Kurt Angle, who haven't been seen in months on TV, teaming up to fight Daniels and Kazarian and pop the UK crowd even more.

1. O'Reilly/Generico d. A-Holes United (Morgan/Fish). Hopefully the trio gets the message and leaves KOR and co. alone.
2. Tara/Tessmacher d. The Blossom Twins. Make them uber heels for doing this. Extended beatdown, Love/Rayne make the save, Foley comes out with his belt like "you know what this means? Four-way match at Unbreakable! No DQ, No Count-Out!"
3. Television Championship - Tony Nese d. Mick Foley (c). ... and then Nese comes out, gives him a nutshot on the entrance ramp, pins him, and runs away with the belt. It was fun to have Mick Foley as the champion for a couple of precious, precious hours.
4. Tag Team Championship Best of 5 Series Six Sides of Steel Match - Generation Me [1] d. Motor City Machine Guns [1]. Aw, shit yeah. You've got to have a steel cage in the UK, we pop hard for that kind of thing.
5. X Division Championship - Roderick Strong (c) d. Desmond Wolfe. The X Division Championship main events Impact, because you've got a British star wrestling his final match in London, you're probably not going to be able to follow that with anything TV worthy. They put on a superb TV match. End of Heartache is the end of Wolfe's career. Strong raises his opponent's arm afterward to "Thank you Desmond" chants.

 

[Leon TrotSky]

Unbreakable 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Impact Zone - Orlando, FL​

First I wanted to mention that even though this isn't Against All Odds, it keeps the theme that Against All Odds had.

Xplosion
The Bollywood Boyz d. The Rock & Rave Infection. Here's one of the first additions from Ring Ka King. Jeff Jarrett shows up to introduce Gurv and Harv and they get a win, Jimmy Rave eating the pin as usual.
Taryn Terrell d. Katarina. Katarina's back and looking to recruit again, but it fails as Hamada comes out and prevents her from using a sufficiently spooky foreign object. Taryn takes it with a Diamond Cutter.

1. Knockouts Tag Team Championship No Disqualification, No Count-Out Match - Love/Rayne (c) d. The New Beautiful People d. The Blossom Twins d. Tara/Tessmacher. Blossoms and TnT are wiped out pretty early by hairspray shots. Madison is the one who pins Velvet, stealing her riding crop, whipping her, choking her with it, then hitting her with the Rayne Drop. Pretty heelish face win, in all honesty.
2. Television Championship - Bully Ray d. Tony Nese (c). This is just a backstage attack.
3. X Division Championship - Roderick Strong (c) d. Jack Evans. This is understandably lower-key than usual, though Jack Evans flips his heart out. But it's X Division! What's not to love?
4. First Blood - Consequences Creed d. Jay Lethal. Creed gets revenge in a hard-fought match, making his opponent bleed...
5. Knockouts Championship - Gail Kim d. Sarita. A distraction by Athena happens when Sarita could have scored the pin and won... but no. This allows Gail to take control and win with Eat Defeat.
6. Samoa Joe d. Kazarian. Joe and Hardy have aligned themselves the same way a lot recently, haven't they...? Yeah, Coquina Clutch takes it for Joe.
7. Daniels d. Jeff Hardy. Hardy hits a nasty losing streak... and surely it must end somehow. Notably, he's dressing and face-painting himself in a lot more red and black.
8. Tag Team Championship Best of 5 Series Ladder Match - Generation Me [2] d. Motor City Machine Guns [1]. Chaotic stuff. Ladder spots. Flips. Superkicks. Double team moves. This has it all. Max Buck is the one to climb the ladder and grab the big X, making the series theirs to lose...
9. World Heavyweight Championship - Robert Roode d. D'Angelo Dinero. Pope gives it his best, but a title belt shot and the Pay Off finish it. Can anyone stop the It Factor of Professional Wrestling?! Well, someone can, but... Are they able to compete?!

 

[Leon TrotSky]

One final call for advice: any good Knockouts to bring in for Knockouts Knockdown 2012?

 

[Chris]

Sara Del Ray, Cheerleader Melissa, Saraya, Mercedes Martinez

 

[Leon TrotSky]

A look at the new arrivals from Ring Ka King​

• Chris Adonis is the same Chris Masters we know and tolerate, tall, sculpted, intimidating guy with a full nelson that nobody (well, some people) can break. Upper midcard guy, a slightly more face version of Matt Morgan (hey, that's a feud for the future...)
• Davey Boy Smith Jr. is that rarity of rarities, a face Brit (who can also get some easy pops in Canada, but that's neither here nor there). Otherwise he's very much his father's son, even breaking out that trademark running powerslam. Another guy who's getting pushed early. Can be singles or tag with...
• Chavo Guerrero Jr., another guy who's got a famous name. His team with DBS Jr. is even called "Heritage". He'll mostly be used in the midcard or tag team action, and is very much a Guerrero with all the expectations and inherited moveset that carries.
• D.O.C. - wait, no, we're not doing Aces and Eights. The former Luke Gallows is still an outlaw biker-type, but riding solo. He's the heel Director of Chaos, and another guy who's going to be pushed at some point. Maybe he'll challenge for the World Title a couple of times. Maybe not. Who knows?
• Sonjay Dutt is set to pick up where he left off in the X Division, as a heel.
• Joey Ryan and Guido Maritato, who were a team as "Hollywood and Broadway" in RKK, are here. They're going to be managed by Kevin Nash as a face(ish) stable called Studio K. Mainly because those two guys have decent comedy chops and, having rewatched the Paparazzi Championship Series, I want to give Big Sexy something fun to do that doesn't involve him wrestling.
• Sheik Abdul Bashir is back, over two years after being fired at Final Resolution 2009. He'll be joined by his legitimate brother, Sheik Mustafa Bashir. Yes, we're getting an early Ariya Daivari too. They're a heel tag team. On top of that, the manager of the Sheiks from RKK will follow, and it's none other than a returning Raisha Saeed!
• The Bollywood Boyz you've already seen. Faces. They're a Jeff Jarrett project, and he'll be using his promo skills to speak on their behalf, along with...
• Mahabali Shera! Jarrett's found some future stars in India (or so he believes in kayfabe + real life), and he thinks this guy could make it anywhere. He's a face. We're not going with the name "Veera" because it sounds dumb.

From Unbreakable to Knockouts Knockdown​

• In the buildup to Knockouts Knockdown, Taylor Wilde returns once again! She shows up to cost Athena a match against Mickie James, because you know, she's got that grudge against Athena for putting her out of action. At the PPV, we're getting Wilde/Athena with Sarita in her former championship partner's corner.
• Gail Kim has another target. Mickie James. Apparently she's just another Diva who could only ever succeed when her opponents are brainless models, and her history in TNA only justifies that. Which shocks her when Mickie wins a Number 1 Contender match.
• As for the other Knockouts belts, Madison and Angelina are facing off against Tara and Tessmacher, because they earned it or something.
• Every other Knockout on the roster gets a showing on the card somehow.
• Of course, just like last year, there will be the Victory Road special where the men's titles are defended...
• Except Robert Roode's World Heavyweight Championship. He reveals he negotiated the night off - and acts all smug that the fans won't get to see the It Factor that night. Foley's out to rectify that - he announces a 15-man over-the-top-rope gauntlet match that will dominate much of the night, where the winner becomes the challenger for Lockdown! Several main eventers and upper midcarders announce they've entered the gauntlet, but by the end of the March 8th Impact, there's strangely one face missing...
• In the Tag Team Championship Best of 5 series, MCMG win a 2/3 falls match, tying the series up at 2-2... so it all ends with an Ultimate X!
• As for the X Division, Roderick Strong is more of a fighting champion than Roode will ever be. As a result of Low Ki's attack on his good friend Adam Cole (which sees him briefly hold the Television Championship), he agrees to put the title on the line at Victory Road.
• Oh yeah, the Television Championship. Bully Ray -> Eric Young -> Lance Hoyt -> Adam Cole -> Low Ki -> Jeremy Buck -> Chris Adonis -> D'Angelo Dinero -> Tony Nese.
• Jeff Hardy also gets a match, against Kazarian! Joe and Daniels will be in each guy's corner.

Impact: Victory Road
Thursday, March 15th, 2012
Impact Zone - Orlando, FL​

1. X Division Championship - Roderick Strong (c) d. Low Ki. This isn't even the most anticipated X DIvision match of the night, but they put on a good 10 minutes. The rig is already set up for the next match...
2. Tag Team Championship Best of 5 Series Final Ultimate X - Motor City Machine Guns [3] d. Generation Me [2]. I finally put the tag titles on the Guns! Finally! Now it's time for them to have some great fucking matches from now on. This is the match everyone wants to see.
3. Jeff Hardy d. Kazarian (DQ). When Jeff Hardy's the cool down match, it can mean one of two things: either this card is stacked or I'm booking. In this case, it's the second one. But yeah, Hardy wins by DQ after Daniels takes Kaz's briefcase and knocks him off the corner while he's climbing up for the Swanton.
4. World Heavyweight Championship Number 1 Contender's Top Rope Gauntlet - James Storm d. Jon Moxley d. Davey Boy Smith Jr. d. D'Angelo Dinero d. AJ Styles d. Mr. Anderson d. Austin Aries d. Samoa Joe d. Bully Ray d. Chris Adonis d. Matt Morgan d. Mahabali Shera d. Douglas Williams d. D.O.C. d. Adam Cole d. El Generico. Eliminate a guy by tossing him over the top rope, then the next guy replaces him. Storm is the unannounced man. Mox thinks he's won after toppling Davey Boy but forgets to factor in the unannounced participant... when an enraged Storm comes out, beats the hell out of him, and gives him the Last Call Superkick over the top rope! He's got a face covered in focused rage as he stares down the man he'll be facing at Lockdown... his former partner and betrayer, Bobby Roode. Roode/Storm 2. In the Six Sides of Steel. Lockdown. Be there.

 

[Leon TrotSky]

Knockouts Knockdown 2012
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Impact Zone - Orlando, FL​

Okay, we've got a stacked fucking roster as it is, especially on the women's side, so there won't be too many new signings. Probably just enough to replace Tara (who will probably depart and retire when TnT has run its course), Daffney (whose career is probably winding down, even without two of her major injuries), and maybe Taylor Wilde (you'll see why during this PPV.)

Xplosion:
Raisha Saeed d. Epiphany. Epiphany is an OVW woman who's done a grand total of nothing else; we put her with someone that can work just to give her a showing.

1. Taeler Hendrix d. Katarina. We're bringing in the OVW Women's Champion to shock the former Knockouts Champ with a roll-up! Katarina sees red and attacks Taeler, with her fellow former OVW trainees The Blossom Twins making the save!
2. ODB d. Mari Apache. She's just here from the AAA title exchange to have a nice match with seemingly the only woman I couldn't get on the card somehow. What the hey, it's ODB, it's always nice to see her.
3. International Showcase Elimination Match - Daffney (USA) d. KANA (Japan) d. Nicole Matthews (Canada) d. Sexy Star (Mexico). Order they appear in is the order of elimination. When I saw the future Asuka on Shimmer's roster at the time, I had to jump at the chance to have her on, because it only made sense. Sexy Star is AAA Reina de Reinas, but I don't really want people to like her because of her reckless disregard for others' safety so KANA eliminates her early. The final two go toe to toe for a while and the Daff-Knees that win it come after a good 20 minutes total. Matthews is probably getting signed. KANA, who knows. I don't think I'll do it; it feels like cheating.
4. Athena d. Taylor Wilde. Finish comes when Sarita turns heel, attacking Wilde and setting her up for the O-Face (I can't exactly call it the Eclipse as she's not Ember Moon, but... I hate that name for a finisher).
5. Mercedes Martinez d. Taryn Terrell. It's at this point I realised Taryn's just been a jobber for me. She'll have her time, eventually. Hopefully. Maybe. Anyway, yet another of the top indie women gets a look in.
6. Knockouts Tag Team Championship - TnT d. Love/Rayne (c). The first of two heel title wins in this event, as Tessmacher finally comes good to help Tara and win tag team gold!
7. Hamada/Thea d. The New Beautiful People. I feel sad that I've never found an opportunity in this BTB to give Velvet Sky a Knockouts Championship. I can't exactly make her a face and push her against Gail Kim (though that's a tempting prospect). It just seems that she's destined to challenge but never reach the big one. But yeah, let's talk about where Velvet Sky is. She's got good chemistry with Jessie McKay, and she gets to be the apparent brains of the outfit while Jessie is her obnoxious Aussie self. She could get the title but she never quite makes it.
8. Knockouts Championship - Gail Kim (c) d. Mickie James. The main event is surprisingly simple: two really good wrestlers, who don't really think much of each other, squaring off. It's surprisingly even (maybe Mickie gets a future push. Who knows?) but Kim takes it with Eat Defeat.