Post by himfan2007 on Jul 14, 2008 16:21:47 GMT -5
Richard Reacts To One Of The Worst PPVs Of The Year
Date Added: July 14, 2008
Story By: Richard Gray
Before I start this review I want to make it well known that I am not a writer that is bitter on the business. You can read through my blog archive and see that I try to find the positives in every wrestling show because I know how frustrating it is reading writers that always post negative work. However, TNA marks beware, because I am about to rip into the company for last night's Victory Road pay-per-view which took place from the Reliant Arena in Houston, Texas. It's become pretty clear even in the TNA locker room that the company has been putting on lackluster television week in and week out with booking that could irritate even the most diehard TNA fan. To be honest the past few weeks of Impact for me have consisted of covering the shows as they are taped and not even bothering to watch on television. I was seriously considering not even ordering Victory Road but because I wanted to see Samoa Joe vs. Booker T in Houston I decided to take the risk and cover the event. Boy did I ever make a mistake.
I do not know how the crowd came off live in the arena but as soon as the pay-per-view came on it felt like that the crowd was already dead. There were no loud, out of control "get me on TV" chants, just Mike Tenay's dry voice welcoming us to yet another TNA pay-per-view. They cut to a shot outside with Jeremy Borash talking to more enthusiastic fans only to go back to the dead arena where BG James made what TNA is calling his "broadcast debut". BG James was just like the rest of the event - awful. His attempts to pump up the crowd sounded forced and he tried to grab the microphone from Lauren before she even said her opening line.
The first match of the night was the 12 Man Elimination Tag Match which I felt was a good fast paced match. It was nothing overly special but perfect for an opener. The problem with it was, while I know who guys like Milano Collection A.T., Rey Bucanero, and Tyson Dux are - most casual wrestling fans do not. I understand that the World X Cup is a once a year thing and it is a change of pace but the decision to showcase wrestlers from other promotions on pay-per-view is not the smartest decision from a business perspective. Nonetheless I had no problems with this opening match; it was good for what it was.
After the match, TNA aired the first of a four part series of videos where they showcased Booker T coming to his hometown of Houston, Texas. The first segment featured Booker T at his house which was identical to a segment on MTV Cribs. I guess it was neat seeing his house but it didn't exactly get me pumped up to see him face Joe later in the night. After that, TNA kept the MTV influence by running a promotional video on the Gail Kim/Angelina Love feud which looked more like the "confessions cam" on an episode of Real World. Corny would be putting it nicely.
The match between Gail Kim vs. Angelina Love was not really bad - it was a basic TNA Knockout match that included the expected interference from Velvet Sky. In the end, Gail Kim went over and escaped the "brown bag" treatment. The match would have been better for an episode of Impact but like I said there really isn't much to criticize about it because there was not that much to it.
Jay Lethal's grudge match with Sonjay Dutt was another basic - mediocre - match. I felt that Sonjay outworked Lethal in the match which is something that I do not say often about Lethal. Dutt hit an awesome standing moonsault that showed off his versatility and was one of the spots of the contest. The match was really a storyline advancer as SoCal Val looked confused and ended up costing Lethal the win when she distracted him and Sonjay snuck in for a roll-up. Three matches into the pay-per-view and there was nothing that I would consider worth paying for so expectations were definitely starting to build on the show's main event.
Prior to the Beer Money vs. TNA Tag Team Champions LAX match there was another "what the hell" TNA creative moment when Roode and Storm cut these huge heel promos only for Jacqueline to refuse to go to ringside because of the fans with lashes. I thought the heel team was supposed to come out cocky and arrogant - especially after the promos cut by Roode and Storm. Oh well. The match with Robert Roode & James Storm tagging against Homicide & Hernandez was just as a lackluster as the entire event. The fans would strap Storm and Roode every time they went to the outside and finally Roode ate an LAX double team to get pinned and look like a jobber. Roode has a tremendous upside and a lot of potential but TNA made him look very insignificant last night. I don't know if anyone even broke a sweat in this match as the work rate seemed down.
Awesome Kong vs. TNA Knockout Women's Champion Taylor Wilde for the title was up next. This match was a nightmare. Not only was TNA creative unable to convince me or anyone else in the arena that Taylor could possibly have a competitive match with Kong - they had Kong dominate the entire contest only for Wilde to steal the win a roll-up. It was eye rolling for me to see Kong get pinned clean, especially when she has been booked since her TNA debut to be unstoppable. They tried to soften the blow by having Raisha Saeed and Kong work over Taylor after the match but then it was time for another "what the hell" TNA creative moment. Abyss hit the ring - yes - Ayss hit the ring and made the save. He ended up giving Saeed the Black Hole slam in which Tenay said that Jim Cornette is not going to be happy about. Abyss - yes - Abyss carried Taylor Wilde to the back. Do I even have to say anything to criticize that? Abyss!
The Ultimate X Match was up next and after a delay in setting up the structure which featured Tenay looking nervously at the ring as he and West kept repeating the same lines over and over - it started. The match itself was solid with some very cool spots. Kaz delivered a breath taking leg drop from the top of the structure and Volador Jr. hit an awesome backwards moonsault to the outside. Volador Jr. ended up getting the win for Team Mexico after everyone else had been incapacitated. As for the wrestling of the match, it was probably the second best of the night next to the opener, but it isn't going to make casual wrestling fans happy seeing people that they have never heard of going over on pay-per-view. Wrestling diehards love stuff like this but I'm not so sure that your average fan is going to feel like paying $30 to watch Daivari, Volador Jr., and Naruki Doi battle it out. Kaz is the exception as I feel that he is at least a draw to mainstream American fans but the match lacked star power.
The Six Man Tag War ended up being a Full Metal Mayhem match that the fans voted on at TNAWrestling.com. Now we're watching Cyber Sunday. I don't know if it's just me but it seems like TNA tries to put as many stipulations and match alterations in their events as possible to try and prove to their fans that they can outdo WWE in pay-per-view quality. Nonetheless, Team 3D and Kurt Angle teamed together to take on Christian Cage, A.J. Styles, and Rhino. Styles looked great during the match and Christian had an insane dive off the top of the scaffolding from the Ultimate X match but other than that - this match was more of the same. Angle had a limited role and Team 3D was Team 3D with all of the tables and ladders. Real gimmicky stuff but TNA made sure to make it even more gimmicky with interference from Johnny Devine and Frank Trigg. Five on three and Angle finally put Styles through a table for the three count.
Leading into the main event I knew that Booker T and Samoa Joe had to have a spectacular match for me to feel that I got my money's worth. Not only did the match not deliver with a work rate that looked like it was more suited for a holiday edition of Impact, the match had one of the most bizarre and dumb endings that I have ever seen. All of the sudden Samoa Joe (who had been bleeding throughout the majority of the match) started to go crazy on Booker T. With the referee knocked out, Sharmell, who was sitting at ringside, began to plead with Joe to stop as she even slapped him in the face. Without ringing the bell or anything - more TNA officials hit the ring trying to stop Joe, then security, and finally Sting. Prior to Sting coming out, Joe took out everyone in his path. After Sting came out, he and Joe had this "what the hell" confrontation that resulted in Joe flipping off Sting; in retaliation, Sting took Joe out with his baseball bat. Just to make sure that the entire match did not make one bit of sense - they had Sharmell (who was billed as a spectator mind you) make the three count and leave ringside with Booker and the TNA Championship belt. Booker was a one night babyface in his hometown of Houston but the main event came off so bad that the crowd was BOOING as their hometown hero retreated to the back with the title. Is Booker T the TNA Champion? Is Samoa Joe a heel? What about Sting? The only thing that could have been worse would have been if Kevin Nash would have come out.
Before I conclude, I wanted to make mention of the Booker T homecoming videos. After part one that looked like an episode of MTV Cribs and part two where they showcased his wrestling school, the videos went from out of place to downright embarrassing. In a segment highlighting Booker T on the golf course, one person said that Booker was as good of a golfer as Tiger Woods - I guess trying to play him up as a heel. It was stupid to try and push Booker as a heel in Houston but that is what they did. Although I am not completely sure I know what TNA creative did on this pay-per-view.
With the exception of TNA Sacrifice I have watched every WWE and TNA pay-per-view of the year and this was the worst yet. It was a night full of eye-rolling booking, questionable creative calls, and an ending that made the conclusion of the Sopranos look pleasing. The in-ring work was not very spectacular and despite a couple of good spots here and there and two good X Division matches - they could not save the pay-per-view. Victory Road was a complete waste of time and money. I can't help but think of World Championship Wrestling back in the late 90s when I think of this pay-per-view. Some heads in upper management need to roll over this event because it is not fair to all of the wrestlers on the TNA roster to produce something this lackluster. If the company does not make some changes and get someone in there that knows how to book a wrestling show I'm afraid that they will have the same fate as WCW. The TNA creative team is running the company in the ground and I just hope that someone with some pull notices before it's too late.
and you tna mark say this was a good ppv
Date Added: July 14, 2008
Story By: Richard Gray
Before I start this review I want to make it well known that I am not a writer that is bitter on the business. You can read through my blog archive and see that I try to find the positives in every wrestling show because I know how frustrating it is reading writers that always post negative work. However, TNA marks beware, because I am about to rip into the company for last night's Victory Road pay-per-view which took place from the Reliant Arena in Houston, Texas. It's become pretty clear even in the TNA locker room that the company has been putting on lackluster television week in and week out with booking that could irritate even the most diehard TNA fan. To be honest the past few weeks of Impact for me have consisted of covering the shows as they are taped and not even bothering to watch on television. I was seriously considering not even ordering Victory Road but because I wanted to see Samoa Joe vs. Booker T in Houston I decided to take the risk and cover the event. Boy did I ever make a mistake.
I do not know how the crowd came off live in the arena but as soon as the pay-per-view came on it felt like that the crowd was already dead. There were no loud, out of control "get me on TV" chants, just Mike Tenay's dry voice welcoming us to yet another TNA pay-per-view. They cut to a shot outside with Jeremy Borash talking to more enthusiastic fans only to go back to the dead arena where BG James made what TNA is calling his "broadcast debut". BG James was just like the rest of the event - awful. His attempts to pump up the crowd sounded forced and he tried to grab the microphone from Lauren before she even said her opening line.
The first match of the night was the 12 Man Elimination Tag Match which I felt was a good fast paced match. It was nothing overly special but perfect for an opener. The problem with it was, while I know who guys like Milano Collection A.T., Rey Bucanero, and Tyson Dux are - most casual wrestling fans do not. I understand that the World X Cup is a once a year thing and it is a change of pace but the decision to showcase wrestlers from other promotions on pay-per-view is not the smartest decision from a business perspective. Nonetheless I had no problems with this opening match; it was good for what it was.
After the match, TNA aired the first of a four part series of videos where they showcased Booker T coming to his hometown of Houston, Texas. The first segment featured Booker T at his house which was identical to a segment on MTV Cribs. I guess it was neat seeing his house but it didn't exactly get me pumped up to see him face Joe later in the night. After that, TNA kept the MTV influence by running a promotional video on the Gail Kim/Angelina Love feud which looked more like the "confessions cam" on an episode of Real World. Corny would be putting it nicely.
The match between Gail Kim vs. Angelina Love was not really bad - it was a basic TNA Knockout match that included the expected interference from Velvet Sky. In the end, Gail Kim went over and escaped the "brown bag" treatment. The match would have been better for an episode of Impact but like I said there really isn't much to criticize about it because there was not that much to it.
Jay Lethal's grudge match with Sonjay Dutt was another basic - mediocre - match. I felt that Sonjay outworked Lethal in the match which is something that I do not say often about Lethal. Dutt hit an awesome standing moonsault that showed off his versatility and was one of the spots of the contest. The match was really a storyline advancer as SoCal Val looked confused and ended up costing Lethal the win when she distracted him and Sonjay snuck in for a roll-up. Three matches into the pay-per-view and there was nothing that I would consider worth paying for so expectations were definitely starting to build on the show's main event.
Prior to the Beer Money vs. TNA Tag Team Champions LAX match there was another "what the hell" TNA creative moment when Roode and Storm cut these huge heel promos only for Jacqueline to refuse to go to ringside because of the fans with lashes. I thought the heel team was supposed to come out cocky and arrogant - especially after the promos cut by Roode and Storm. Oh well. The match with Robert Roode & James Storm tagging against Homicide & Hernandez was just as a lackluster as the entire event. The fans would strap Storm and Roode every time they went to the outside and finally Roode ate an LAX double team to get pinned and look like a jobber. Roode has a tremendous upside and a lot of potential but TNA made him look very insignificant last night. I don't know if anyone even broke a sweat in this match as the work rate seemed down.
Awesome Kong vs. TNA Knockout Women's Champion Taylor Wilde for the title was up next. This match was a nightmare. Not only was TNA creative unable to convince me or anyone else in the arena that Taylor could possibly have a competitive match with Kong - they had Kong dominate the entire contest only for Wilde to steal the win a roll-up. It was eye rolling for me to see Kong get pinned clean, especially when she has been booked since her TNA debut to be unstoppable. They tried to soften the blow by having Raisha Saeed and Kong work over Taylor after the match but then it was time for another "what the hell" TNA creative moment. Abyss hit the ring - yes - Ayss hit the ring and made the save. He ended up giving Saeed the Black Hole slam in which Tenay said that Jim Cornette is not going to be happy about. Abyss - yes - Abyss carried Taylor Wilde to the back. Do I even have to say anything to criticize that? Abyss!
The Ultimate X Match was up next and after a delay in setting up the structure which featured Tenay looking nervously at the ring as he and West kept repeating the same lines over and over - it started. The match itself was solid with some very cool spots. Kaz delivered a breath taking leg drop from the top of the structure and Volador Jr. hit an awesome backwards moonsault to the outside. Volador Jr. ended up getting the win for Team Mexico after everyone else had been incapacitated. As for the wrestling of the match, it was probably the second best of the night next to the opener, but it isn't going to make casual wrestling fans happy seeing people that they have never heard of going over on pay-per-view. Wrestling diehards love stuff like this but I'm not so sure that your average fan is going to feel like paying $30 to watch Daivari, Volador Jr., and Naruki Doi battle it out. Kaz is the exception as I feel that he is at least a draw to mainstream American fans but the match lacked star power.
The Six Man Tag War ended up being a Full Metal Mayhem match that the fans voted on at TNAWrestling.com. Now we're watching Cyber Sunday. I don't know if it's just me but it seems like TNA tries to put as many stipulations and match alterations in their events as possible to try and prove to their fans that they can outdo WWE in pay-per-view quality. Nonetheless, Team 3D and Kurt Angle teamed together to take on Christian Cage, A.J. Styles, and Rhino. Styles looked great during the match and Christian had an insane dive off the top of the scaffolding from the Ultimate X match but other than that - this match was more of the same. Angle had a limited role and Team 3D was Team 3D with all of the tables and ladders. Real gimmicky stuff but TNA made sure to make it even more gimmicky with interference from Johnny Devine and Frank Trigg. Five on three and Angle finally put Styles through a table for the three count.
Leading into the main event I knew that Booker T and Samoa Joe had to have a spectacular match for me to feel that I got my money's worth. Not only did the match not deliver with a work rate that looked like it was more suited for a holiday edition of Impact, the match had one of the most bizarre and dumb endings that I have ever seen. All of the sudden Samoa Joe (who had been bleeding throughout the majority of the match) started to go crazy on Booker T. With the referee knocked out, Sharmell, who was sitting at ringside, began to plead with Joe to stop as she even slapped him in the face. Without ringing the bell or anything - more TNA officials hit the ring trying to stop Joe, then security, and finally Sting. Prior to Sting coming out, Joe took out everyone in his path. After Sting came out, he and Joe had this "what the hell" confrontation that resulted in Joe flipping off Sting; in retaliation, Sting took Joe out with his baseball bat. Just to make sure that the entire match did not make one bit of sense - they had Sharmell (who was billed as a spectator mind you) make the three count and leave ringside with Booker and the TNA Championship belt. Booker was a one night babyface in his hometown of Houston but the main event came off so bad that the crowd was BOOING as their hometown hero retreated to the back with the title. Is Booker T the TNA Champion? Is Samoa Joe a heel? What about Sting? The only thing that could have been worse would have been if Kevin Nash would have come out.
Before I conclude, I wanted to make mention of the Booker T homecoming videos. After part one that looked like an episode of MTV Cribs and part two where they showcased his wrestling school, the videos went from out of place to downright embarrassing. In a segment highlighting Booker T on the golf course, one person said that Booker was as good of a golfer as Tiger Woods - I guess trying to play him up as a heel. It was stupid to try and push Booker as a heel in Houston but that is what they did. Although I am not completely sure I know what TNA creative did on this pay-per-view.
With the exception of TNA Sacrifice I have watched every WWE and TNA pay-per-view of the year and this was the worst yet. It was a night full of eye-rolling booking, questionable creative calls, and an ending that made the conclusion of the Sopranos look pleasing. The in-ring work was not very spectacular and despite a couple of good spots here and there and two good X Division matches - they could not save the pay-per-view. Victory Road was a complete waste of time and money. I can't help but think of World Championship Wrestling back in the late 90s when I think of this pay-per-view. Some heads in upper management need to roll over this event because it is not fair to all of the wrestlers on the TNA roster to produce something this lackluster. If the company does not make some changes and get someone in there that knows how to book a wrestling show I'm afraid that they will have the same fate as WCW. The TNA creative team is running the company in the ground and I just hope that someone with some pull notices before it's too late.
and you tna mark say this was a good ppv
is Richard Gray and why should I care what he thinks?
