Main Event Mafia sticks it to Mick Foley on TNA Impact
There were quite a few intense segments on Thursday’s entertaining episode of TNA Impact, including the Main Event Mafia’s attack on Mick Foley at the end of the show. Foley being wrapped up in barbed wire while being struck with a barbed wire baseball bat was an effective visual.
The lengths that Foley is willing to go to entertain the fans at this stage of his career is either admirable or crazy, I’m not sure which. A weapons match between Foley and Abyss has to happen at some point. That could make the Necro Butcher-Randy “The Ram” Robinson match in The Wrestler look like one of those WWE divas pillow fights.
Speaking of Abyss, he was involved in an intense scene as well. Stevie Richards, who has been doing a great job as Dr. Stevie, spiked Abyss’ water with a drug that induces temporary paralysis and then slapped him around and smashed a glass over his head. They say it’s hard to do anything in wrestling that hasn’t been done before, but I think that’s a new one. At least it’s better than when Billy Kidman took Viagra – during a Viagra on a Pole match, of course – when Vince Russo had the book in WCW in 2000.
In other brutal attacks on the program: Matt Morgan smashed Daniels’ ankle in a chair; Samoa Joe choked out Sting with what looked to be a nightstick; and The British Invasion, Sheik Abdul Bashir and Kiyoshi destroyed Team 3D.
On the microphone, Sting got in Joe’s face and cut an awesome promo. Joe also played his role well, as he remained calm because he said his mystery adviser ordered him to. Speaking of the man behind the curtain, wouldn’t it be something if TNA pulled a swerve and it wasn’t Taz?
Other thoughts on Thursday’s show:
Foley got a huge babyface reaction when he came out for a promo to open the show. The fans weren’t nearly as enthusiastic about Jeff Jarrett, and they even chanted Foley’s name while Jarrett was speaking. Foley was very entertaining as a heel, but it makes sense for him to turn babyface now that he is in a program with Kurt Angle. ...
When Foley and Jarrett made a truce in the opening segment, I wrote in my notes: “They will be fighting again at the end of the show.” And that was before they were booked in a triple threat match with Angle. I guess it would have been difficult to get heat on Angle with two babyfaces ganging up on him, but I figured Eric Young as guest referee and the inevitable outside interference from the MEM would even up the sides. Speaking of Young, I was happy to see him in the mix in the main event. ...
I couldn’t believe it when Sting told Samoa Joe that it was because of him that “wrestling is as bad as it is right now” and “this company is as bad as it is right now.” I don’t know if that line was scripted for Sting or if he came up with it on his own, but it’s incredibly stupid to bury your own company like that, and it’s especially bad coming from a babyface, because they’re supposed to tell the truth. A WWE babyface would never be allowed to say something like that. ...
It was funny how Lauren started screaming “Leave him alone” in the parking lot before Joe even laid a hand on Sting. ...
TNA did a nice job in putting over Tara, as she not only defeated Angelina Love for the women’s title, but she did it immediately following a win over Velvet Sky. ...
We saw the first bit of tension between Love and Sky, and with Love losing the title after accepting the match to spare Sky from Tara’s tarantula, we’re probably going to see more. A feud between Love and Sky would mean something because they have always gotten along since teaming up over a year ago. Usually in TNA, there is dissension among allies almost from the moment they join forces. ...
When Don West said that Love had Sky’s back, I thought for sure he was going to follow it up by saying that he’d like to have Sky’s back – and her front, too. By the way, what was with the cameraman trying to grope Sky as she was entering the ring?
Morgan looked good during the tag match in which he teamed with Kevin Nash against Daniels and A.J. Styles. It was good that Morgan, who was pinned by Styles, got his heat back after the match, but it seemed like he recovered too quickly after taking a moonsault by Daniels followed by a splash off the top by Styles. ...
After hearing Suicide cut a promo, I think I know who’s really under the mask. It’s Ole Anderson, aka The Black Scorpion. ...
The Beer Money-Motor City Machine Guns match wasn’t quite as good as I thought it would be. I’d love to see these two teams in a program together rather than in a five-minute, throwaway television match. ...
Booker T.’s constant gibberish during the Beer Money-MCMG match was excruciating. ...
It looks as if Awesome Kong and Raisha Saeed are heels again, although I suppose they never really were babyfaces. Kong needs to be a heel for her inevitable program with Tara. ...
It has been reported that Raven and Shane Douglas were only brought back for the Slammiversary pay-per-view. That’s too bad, especially in Raven’s case. There’s a lot of potential in a Raven-Stevie-Daffney heel group. ...
I don’t get TNA’s new slogan, “I will become.” Become what?
Comments
I loved the emotion from Tara after the match. It actually seemed that the title, being in TNA and finally being accepted really meant alot to her. It is great to see winning the title mean something.
Joe's turn makes even less sense now. An advisor told him to attack the MEM and then to join them and now he is still listening to the advisor? I don't get it. I actually thought they were going to just drop the advisor thing.
Mick has been very engaging in everything that he does. I enjoy every skit and match that he is in.
The briefcase match made no sense. Why would Homicide have to fight for something he already won. I hadn't heard about LAX in such a long time that I thought they were fired.
Posted by: Jay | July 11, 2009 12:45 AM
Booker T has to stop. Everytime he shows up on my screen, it's at best the Mute button and at worst changing the channel. And running a close second is Don West, who has gone from entertainingly annoying to unbearably bland and droll
Posted by: Matilda | July 11, 2009 12:51 AM
I am not going to criticize any storyline or in match action.
What I am going to criticize is freaking Booker T on commentary, TNA should know everytime that guy gets on commentary, I TURN THE CHANNEL, and the other night I didn't turn back.
Its not novel, its not funny, its not clever, its just plain awful!!!!!
Posted by: Micheal Deff | July 11, 2009 4:01 AM
Foley needs to be a face. At this point in his career, even fans who aren't necessarily "smart" know his story, and it's just not believable for him to be a heel. He's too damn lovable.
Sting burying TNA reminded me of the time in WCW when Scott Steiner was shooting on Flair, and said something about the fans turning to WWF to watch Stone Cold. If memory serves, he said something like, "You suck, and WCW sucks."
I don't know what that cameraman thing was all about, I just know that I don't want to see it again.
I went to the kitchen just before Booker and Steiner came out, and when I returned I honestly thought they had a non-English speaker doing commentary. I sat for several minutes wondering who it was, thinking perhaps it was some guy from New Japan. Eventually I caught a few words that were recognizable and, well...I hope TNA learned its lesson there.
Posted by: Michael in Virginia | July 11, 2009 4:55 AM
Why do they let Booker do commentary in his crazy voices it is awful at the very least. i was surprised that tara won the Champoionship so quickly and kind of upsets me to see everything the did to build up TBP for the last 6 mo.s to a year and for it to go so wrong in 30 days no interference to get Love DQ'ed or anything, really no sneak attacks after she beat sky last week, no hair cutting on tara when you even got Longs hair. i hope there not splitting up the group theive been their together for about 4 years now as a team if you wanna drop madison fine but they are the reason to watch the Knockout division. Kev i also think if you watch the Sting/Joe parking lot seg. he had his blade again choking out Sting with that unless im blind because i was wondering why is Sting not bleeding. i really couldn't get to much into the Abyss/Stevie Seg especially with powerful drugs paralizing Abyss made me think about the MJ tragedy. The main event outcome was almost predictable i thought that it would be Jarrett who got pinned or submitted because Eric has heat with him not Foley so much.
Posted by: frank from dundalk | July 11, 2009 10:55 AM
I read Lauren screaming "leave him alone" as being directed at Sting who was beating on whoever was in the car at the time (I had already read that Joe attacked Sting and watched the show this morning). What about how every punch Morgan took he no sold (as a monster should) but when Nash was hit he sold bigtime, is he supposed to be that old and soft? Not good in the same match within minutes of each punch. Morgan is still a stiff, that uncoordinated drop he took after the Pele' Kick is an example I thought he broke his ankle during that delayed wiggle drop. I think TNA has gotten much better lately. Now if only they would lose Jarret or make him a heel, I just can't buy the sympathetic Jarret, far too many years of his mouth (that were great) they should have him swerve everybody and join the MEM, it would be much better having Sting and Foley as the faces and put Jarret back were he belongs in heel country stealing back the company with the MEM in tow. Just a thought.
Posted by: Mick Fowl | July 11, 2009 11:44 AM
I thought the camera op trying to cop a feel on Velvet was funny.I mean what do you expect after all these weeks of nasty ass-wiggling? If the opposition is that real-life guys will just go around groping every woman in sight,well then we should also be hating on guitar-shots,barb wire baseball bats and (for old timers like me)fire-throwing.Its like my wife who gets physically ill (supposedly) when she hears Howard Stern,it becomes necessary to remind her that ITS JUST A SHOW.I remember myself getting all upset when Jake Roberts put the cobra on Randy Savage and also when Terry Funk tried to kill Flair with a plastic bag.I calmed down pretty quickly tho.
While on that subject,I should notice it looked like Angelina might be developing a little cottage cheese in the buttockal department.
A couple weeks back I thought I understood a couple words that Booker said.But now he's back to the foreign language.I especially hate the "Haahhh" that he stretches out for 30 seconds or so.
Posted by: Bill | July 11, 2009 11:56 AM
I think the fact that Samoa Joe started wearing a towel over his head again is a subtle hint about TAZ.
On a side note, I am dying for another TNA CD. They have a a great set of songs for it: Styles new version by Grits, Samoa Joe's new version, The Beautiful People, and Foley to name a few.
Posted by: Jerry | July 11, 2009 12:43 PM
I think Suicide should form a faction with The Shockmaster.
Posted by: Elevation | July 11, 2009 1:47 PM
No Raven? Well it looks like I'm done with TNA again. It has to be some of the worse booking of any promotion in years and Raven was at least a spark of creativity.
Posted by: Paul | July 12, 2009 1:00 AM
Suicide belongs on lists with The Shockmaster, The Goon, Bastion Booger, etc.
Great show though, except Tara winning the Knockouts title. She's been in TNA for a month and acted like she's been chasing the title for 5 years when she won. Angelina Love is one of TNA's best heels(knockouts or otherwise) and shouldn't have jobbed to some WWFer on Impact. The I Will Become Promos aren't too bad either...just standard little fillers. Also, the Booker T commentary was funny. Couldn't understand much, but what I did..he just talked about goofy stuff and ENTERTAINED...which I enjoyed. Also love the constant references that Scott Steiner can't count to 10....the number of tag titles he's won in his career!
Posted by: Professor Black | July 12, 2009 8:57 AM
I haven't watched tna for a while and this episode reminded me why. I mean am i missing something here? The companys second and third best performers after angle, the Mcmg putting over beer money? Storm must be very tight with jj.
Posted by: Amos | July 12, 2009 8:01 PM
How about Lashley as the advisor? He hasn't been around in a while, and while he may be MMA training he could make appearances as a manager/advisor. Jerry Jarrett would be a good choice to build up a family feud.
Kind of surprised Angelina dropped the belt this soon. I would have thought Tara would have to earn a few stripes before getting the strap. Would have liked to see ODB get it.
Posted by: Flair | July 12, 2009 8:28 PM
I didn't get it when the British Invsion said they came to TNA to top the tag team division, a few weeks after the stole cases giving them singles title matches...
Posted by: Legacy.1 | July 12, 2009 9:40 PM
TNA made it a bit obvious that this week was taped after the week before... Samoa Joe could have cleaned the blood off his chin and neck before his confrontation with Sting!
Posted by: Joe | July 13, 2009 2:45 PM