TNA 9/01/11 The Grim Review: Matt Morgan Gets Got and Hogan Gets More TV Time

Hello once again Reapers and welcome to another Grim Review. I am your host Grim filling you in on my thoughts about this weeks TNA.

(Before I begin let me explain my grading method. I grade every segment and match on a five-point scale, with three being average and five being perfect.

After all this I tally up the numbers and find the average score for the night, then I give it a letter grade. Now realize please that the grade I give a show is not the same as the grade I give a PPV, an A show may be around a C PPV. I hope that clarified any questions you had about how I grade.)

Sting, WHAT 'CHA GONNA DO, BROTHER?

Oh hey look, TNA kicked off with an in-ring segment with Hogan, that's something new.

(Bonus points for anyone that can tell me when the last time TNA kicked off with a match, I think it was Dreamer/Bully Ray vs AJ/Daniels)

So basically Hogan and Flair come out. BROTHER, and talk about Sting vs Flair, BROTHER, and WOOOOOO, BROTHER, and blading, BROTHER, and that's about all I can remember......BROTHER.

In all honesty Hogan and Flair start talking about Flair's stipulation that if Sting beats him, Hogan will have to face Sting at BFG.

It's then announced that Flair vs. Sting will take place on the September 15th episode of Impact (I thank my lucky stars and whatever exists in the great above that this is on free TV and not headlining a PPV).

They then are joined by Angle, who helps announce the main event between him and Sting for the belt with Hogan as the guest enforcer.

Overall this was an okay segment; a few things good, a few things bad; nothing much stood out. I wish they would have announced the main event last week, because that would have helped hype this show a little more, but that's a minor flaw in an overall okay opening.

Overall Segment Rating: 3 out of 5

They then show a few clips about how Roode, Storm and Bully Ray are three of the final four guys in the BFG Series. The problem is that they made it as a passing mention, once again proving to me that the BFG Series has been a complete botch.

For all this build there should have been a little more of an in-depth look, instead we get a passing mention and a match for the final spot.

Match 1. Gunner defeated Rob Van Dam in a Bound For Glory Series match in 4:54

Before the match Samoa Joe tries to get in the ring. Matt Morgan stops him, only to get taken out.

The match itself was below average and terribly booked.

Why bury the BFG Series by throwing Jerry Lynn into it?  It made both Gunner and the series as a whole look a lot weaker.

(And yes it did build up the RVD/Lynn feud, but did that have to be built on top of the BFG Series? Couldn't you have had someone else in this match and the Jerry Lynn interference take place in a different RVD match?)

They took what was shaping into a good match and threw two different storylines into the mix. This is the reason I hate Russo booking; it tries to mash everything into a package and utterly fails.

This match should have headlined and lasted longer than 5 minutes, but instead we throw it behind Flair/Hogan/Sting, Morgan/Joe, and RVD/Lynn, making the Series weaker as a whole.

Terrible.

Overall Match Rating: 2.5 out of 5

Afterwards Mike Tenay and Taz remind us that Gunner just became the final man in the BFG Finals...oh wait no, no they didn't. They reminded us about RVD and Jerry Lynn...keep up the great job focusing on the bigger picture here guys.

Karen Jarrett Knockouts VP

A few weeks ago TNA had a very racist segment with Jeff Jarrett that one of my buddies took offense to.

This week TNA had an extremely sexist segment that my roommates girlfriend took major offense to.

Between the jokes about Tracie putting out for her job, the way he called the Knockouts catty, it just seemed like they were once again appealing to the lowest common denominator.

I'm not saying I that women's wrestlers shouldn't/can't be sexy, but why demean them? Why put down the division as a whole? I know I'm in the minority here, but once again TNA proved why, like the Divas, the Knockouts are there as eye candy and nothing else.

It's an insult to Shimmer and wrestlers like Sara Del Rey that this is what women's wrestling is to us.

Also Karen and her hubby got more camera time. My undying hatred for that man was suppressed only by my hatred of the rest of this segment.

Overall Segment Rating: 1 out of 5

Match 2. Jesse Sorensen and Brian Kendrick beat Austin Aries and Kid Kash in 5:07

It's not about no limits, it's about weight limits...and Brian Kendrick's crazy hats.

The match was pretty good, mostly because of Aries (AKA The Best Wrestler In TNA Today). I just have to wonder why TNA isn't giving their matches any time tonight; it just feels rushed.

The Tower of Doom spot in the middle was nice, but why does TNA suddenly have this massive love of all things roll-up. When was the last time a TNA show didn't feature a roll-up win?

Overall Match Rating: 3.5 out of 5

We get a segment where Winter says that she and Love will feast on Mickie's bones tonight or something...whatever.

Match 3. Mickie James defeated Winter to win the TNA Knockouts Title in 6:10

Okay, can anyone explain the logic here?

Winter wins the Knockout's Title at Hardcore Justice.

Mickie James wins a No. 1 contenders match the next week, completely forgetting about the whole rematch clause.

We get two weeks of Winter videos.

And then three weeks after winning it, she gives the belt back to Mickie.

Vince Russo knows how to make belts seem meaningless in the best way: turning them into hot potato substitutes.

The match itself was okay; I just don't see the purpose of giving her the belt in the first place. It just makes no sense.

Overall Match Rating: Originally a 3 out of 5, but the belt switching makes it a 2 out of 5

We then have a very solid Matt Morgan/Samoa Joe segment.

I don't have any thoughts on it, but it was good enough for a rating.

Overall Segment Rating: 4 out of 5

So, Jeff Hardy's coming back. My thoughts?

You know how Scott Hall never won the WCW championship? The reason for that was because he wasn't reliable. Sure he was over, but at the end of the day if you show up to work drunk, you shouldn't be the face of the company. That sums up my thoughts on Jeff Hardy (aka Harvy).

He's a good worker (never a big fan myself, but whatever) who could be a good champion if he could get over his personal demons. Personally I predict us hitting square one again real soon, but if he's really changed, then good for him. I just wouldn't hold my breath.

Match 4. Christopher Daniels defeated A.J. Styles in 7:03

Very solid match. A lot of quick counters and chain wrestling; by far the match of the night.

The finish saw Daniels jump on AJ for a pin after AJ slipped on the ropes.

Afterwards Daniels waved off a hand shake and proceeded to act cocky about his win.

The ending teased the feud to continue and maybe a Daniels heel turn, so overall I'm interested in this feud, if only for the fact that we get Daniels vs. AJ one more time.

(P.S. TNA, find something to do with Daniels that doesn't involve AJ Styles. Also give him a title reign, that is all.)

Overall Match Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Match 5. Kurt Angle defeated Sting to retain the TNA Title with Hulk Hogan as special guest enforcer in 6:31

Where to begin...um, this was an okay match that was flawed by typical TNA booking.

Once again you take a solid match and bury both it and your main belt by: 1) having it go less than 10 minutes, 2) interference by a 60-year-old man to progress a completely different storyline, 3) throwing the sheer number of people in the ring at the end and finally, 4) Anderson, the man that just lost the belt to Sting, making the save on the same Sting that took his belt.

So because they both hate Immortal we're suppose to forget the past and believe that they're friends?

Honestly, how can anyone keep track of the storylines in TNA with them all being thrown together in a blender like this?

It's moments like this I wish I wasn't a damn smark and could watch this and soak in this crash TV style.  At the end of the day I just don't get what's happening.

When you throw so many wrestlers and storylines in the ring together, the entire product gets a bad taste and the show as a whole suffers because this is the main event.

It's the same as what happened at Hardcore Justice.  A good match was ruined by a meaningless storyline between two guys that should have hung up their boots a long time ago (at least Hogan should have).

You make the belt look weak to set up Sting vs. Hogan, which is going to be the main event at BFG because it's the focus of the show right now.

Overall Match Rating: 2 out of 5

My thoughts on this show is that everything TNA does is about Hogan and Sting; that's it.

There were some good things but they were overshadowed slightly by poor booking and crash TV.

Overall I just think this was a below average show.

Overall Rating: C- (Below Average)

Thanks for reading and tell me what you thought.