NWA-TNA Weekly PPV #23
By Scott Keith on December 21, 2012
air last week. Killings and Russo are rolling around the ring brawling as the
Harris Brothers break it up. They push Russo around a bit and drag him away as
Russo is dropping F-Bombs. Jarrett was standing in the ring, not saying a word.
Your hosts are Don West and Mike Tenay.
The bagpipes play and Roddy Piper eventually comes out. He
signals for the music to be cut off and grabs the mic. He is accompanied by a
young guy with a “Hot Rod” shirt. Tenay mentions how he is on a book tour as
Piper introduces himself to the crowd. He says TNA is the last place that Russo
has
not killed. Piper says Russo grew up to be a 300lbs “hump of thing”
dreaming to become a wrestler. Piper said he failed but became a sports
entertainer. Piper says that he will kill the dreams of the younger wrestlers
in the locker room. The crowd chants as he shows a photo of himself as a young
wrestler from his book. He tells Russo he will “shoot” and says that Russo is
the Bin Laden of pro wrestling, not the anti-Christ as he claimed last week. He
then brings up how Russo was responsible for Owen Hart’s death. Yes, he really
said that. He says that he is Owen’s cousin (They are both Canadian and Piper
was trained by Stu but they were not blood related) and that goes over the
heads of the audience. He takes off his coat as the crowd chants. He has ten
dead wrestlers listed on his back and a black armband. He says unless you’re
idea of a good time is a 325 lbs Samoan in a thong rubbing his ass on someone’s
face, then Russo must be stopped. He
calls out Russo, who sneaks in from behind. Russo backs into the corner and
Piper asks him if he killed Owen Hart. He then asks him how he bankrupted WCW
so quickly and Russo stick up for himself and orders Piper away. Piper won’t
back down and this goes on too long and is getting into some really
uncomfortable territory. Piper says that he sent Russo a tape to turn around
WCW then tells him that he is killing wrestling and needs to go away. The
Harris Twins come out and tell Russo to leave. Piper teases him as the Harris’
hold him back. Piper says the shoot interview is coming Friday night and leaves
the ring. Piper was unscripted here and had to deliver a formal apology after the
show as these comments were not cleared by TNA management. This entire segment
just left a really bad taste in your mouth.
double elimination match
vs. Siaki match is postponed due to Lynn
suffering an injury. The crowd is starting a “Russo Sucks” chant.
vs. Divine Storm w/Trinity
looking stuff as Tenay puts over Trinity’s work as a stuntwoman. Storm and Jose
then engage in an over-choreographed spot where they both try the same move on
each other and miss. Devine and Storm tag in and trade off some stuff until Jose
grabs the advantage with an ugly looking rana. He gets in some shots and they
do a rollup reversal that leads with Divine going over the ropes. Jose gets
elevated by Joel and hits Divine with a somersault tope. Storm flip dives onto
the SAT’s then Trinity hits a moonsault onto Joel. In the ring, the SAT’s
double team Devine. The SAT’s then do a double submission hold onto Quiet Storm
in a contrived looking spot that has the fans applauding. Joel chops Devine as
Tenay is still in shock over Piper. Slingshot legdrop by Jose gets two. Devine
comes back with a baseball slide and hits a Fisherman’s Neckbreaker for two.
Storm tags and he and Joel end up colliding nutsack-first when they attempt to
dropkick each other. Never seen that one before. Joel hits Storm with a missile
dropkick. He gets two off a powerslam on Devine. Storm lands on his feet off a
German suplex attempt but gets caught in the Maximo Overdrive (Backbreaker into
a Pedigree) which is broken up by Devine. He hits Joel with a DVD that Jose
breaks up. Storm runs into the elbow of Jose but catches him and hits the Storm
Cradle Driver and gets two after Joel breaks that up. Storm heads up top but
the SAT’s cut him off. They set up for the Spanish Fly but Trinity knocks Jose
off and Devine rolls him up for the win (7:33) *1/4.
other numerous times, they showed nothing here. It didn’t help matters any that
this all seemed extremely choreographed. Also, Chris Divine is terrible. He
screws up a lot of stuff in the ring. Trinity is the main focus of Divine Storm
and her dives look good anyway but the team itself is rather unimpressive..
to manage him is at $1,000.
comes in and tells Harris he has no problem with him and that he is here to
help. Russo brings up Piper, stating he is not stupid and will not get sued for
defamation of character. He tells Piper he will go straight to hell for
mentioning Owen Hart to sell his book. Russo tells the crowd the NWA does not
give a “Shit” about them because they are old. A “Russo Sucks” chant breaks out
and Russo threatens Jeremy Borash, who responds with a middle finger. Russo
says the crowd wants violence, blood, vulgar language, smut, nudity, and sex.
Russo says that today is the birth of Sports Enterainment Extreme. He says they
will appreciate him as they do not know what they want and he will give it to
them. He brings attention to all of the signs for Athena. He then asks why we
do not get to see Athena if signs are all over the place on a weekly basis. She
was the girl who would take the wrestlers jackets and costumes back to the
locker room Athena comes into the ring and is over with the crowd. Russo asks
Athena how she feels about the signs every week, but he cuts her off as the
crowd starts a “Show your tits” chants. Russo tells Athena to show her tits to
the crowd and she refuses. Russo says he sees bigger tits on Dusty Rhodes and
calls her a wench. Athena slaps him and Russo grabs her, calling her a whore.
Russo slaps her around lightly and the Harris Twins comes out and separate the
two. He calls the Harris’s “Glorified Bouncers” who are now office help. Russo
orders Ron to speak his mind, calling TNA a “piece of shit” company who is sick
of the “old man in his ivory tower” running the company. The Harris’s then hit
Athena with the H Bomb a few times until security clears the ring. This show
did not need another long-winded segment, especially one that showed a woman
getting bullied and destroyed.
over contract issues as they will face Jeff Jarrett & Ron Killings tonight.
Bob brings up the snake and the grass story and tells it in typical Southern
fashion as Ron calls it “NWA Bullshit.” There has already been way too much of
the Harris brothers tonight and the show isn’t even at the halfway point.
Guess that it’s the word of the day. Tenay says that this is what Russo does as
the camera zooms in on his scowl.
Harris vs. Brian Lee w/New Church
be in the Bullrope match later on in the show with Father James Mitchell. Lee
and Harris brawl on the ramp when the lights come back. Lee suplexes Harris
then they brawl near the table Harris almost knocks down Tenay after lunging at
Lee. Harris with some really hard chops but Lee rolls him in the ring. Suplex
by Harris gets two. Lee regains control and drops a knee. Slash cheapshots
Harris as Lee chokes him out with his foot.
Lee hits a pair of awful looking
elbow drops and flips of James Storm, who came down to the ring. Lee goes up
top but misses a kneedrop. Thesz press by Harris and he follows that with a
clothesline. Bulldog by Harris and Belladonna and Mitchell jump on the apron.
Harris tries to hit Belladonna with the catatonic but Lee breaks that up with a
big boot, getting two. The ref is stil distracted and as Lee looks for the
spike, Harris hits him with a spear for the win (5:12) ½*.
he seems to be getting skinnier by the week. So far it is Harris against
Mitchell in the Bullrope match.
getting a shot at Russo. Armstrong says that the road to Russo is getting to
the Harris Boys and asks him to team with Jarrett against them tonight.
w/New Church
Storm. Storm gets an enziguiri then two off of a powerslam. Storm escapes from
the Helicopter Slam but runs into a boot. Slash stomps him in the corner and
hits a suplex, getting two. He gets a back elbow smash and tosses him to the
floor. Lee flings him into the guardrail. He rolls him back inside and Slash
covers, getting two. Storm escapes from a chinlock. He runs into an elbow but
breaks up an Eye of the Hurricane attempt and gets a superkick. After both men
are down, Storm gets tossed but skins the cat and comes back with flying
headscissors. Russian leg sweep gets two. Belladonna breaks up a swinging noose
attempt and distracts the ref, allowing Slash to throw Powder into the eyes of
Storm. Neckbreaker gets two as the New Church can’t believe that Storm has
kicked out. Slash rolls through a crossbody attempt getting two. Belladonna
slides a chair into the ring but Storm blocks a move and hits the Swinging
Noose on the chair, getting two. Lee tries to come in but Harris hits him with
a spear. Slash gets two off of a beltshot. Storm gets floatover and AMW gets
the Death Sentence behind the refs back and Storm covers getting the win.
(6:23) **1/4.
easily the best worker of the New Church team. This feud is really the only one
of note going on right now. AMW will
take on Mitchell in the Bullrope Match tonight and Mitchell doesn’t seem too
worried.
between AMW and James Mitchell.
Breast Cancer Awareness. You can win a date with him as his first wife died of
breast cancer and he would like to raise money for awareness. Poor guy.
together for the good of the company. Jarrett is still silent as no one knows
where he stands. He tells Killings to be ready for the fight of his life. The
whole angle about where Jarrett’s allegiance lies
Match
vs. AJ Styles vs. Joel Maximo
the Styles Clash so Joel Maximo was named as a substitute. Joel and Kash start
off. They do some counters and Kash hits a springboard sunset flip then
baseball slides Joel to the floor. Kash slingshots out and hits a rana but AJ
nails him with a forearm. He rolls both men into the ring and Joel covers Kash,
getting two. Kash hits a gutbuster and stretches Joel out across his knees.
Moonsault block gets two. Joel comes back with a German suplex and gets the pin
(2:38). AJ comes in and roughs up Joel. He gets an enziguiri and goes for the
Styles Clash but Joel fights it off. AJ hits the Phenomenon and that gets two.
Joel lands on the apron off a backdrop but AJ blocks his sunset flip attempt
and hits the Kryptonite Krunch for the pin (4:10). EZ comes in and him and AJ
do an awesome reversal sequence that ends with EZ catching a spinning heel kick
attempt and turning it into a sitout powerbomb, getting two. German suplex by
EZ and Styles is in the corner. AJ escapes the running basement dropkick and EZ
falls to the floor. EZ flips into the ring but is met with a dropkick. EZ
blocks the Styles Clash and gets the Money in the Bank (Sunset Driver) for two.
I love that move. EZ then hits the Cha-ching for the pin (6:02). Kash runs in
and gets a few armdrags. EZ gets two off a spin kick then Kash comes back and
royally fucks up a double springboard rana. Bank Roll gets two. EZ catches Kash
in a wheelbarrow and hits a full nelson bomb, getting two. EZ looks tired out
there. He heads up top but is crotched by Kash, who also climbs up top. EZ goes
for a super powerbomb but Kash reverses that into a rana in midair and that
only gets two. Kash shoves the ref, who shoves him back. They go to a replay as
AJ kicks Kash as he comes off the ropes and EZ covers for the pin, eliminating
Kash (8:51). AJ shoves Joel off the apron and hits EZ with the Styles Clash for
the pin (9:01). Joel comes in and stomps AJ. He chops him against the ropes and
an Irish whip sequence ends with a nice looking dropkick from AJ. Brainbuster
gets two. AJ goes for the deathlock as the crowd starts a “Nerd” chant directed
towards Plumtree. AJ chops Joel hard in the corner as West is pissed that
Amazing Red is not in this match. Joel ducks a corner charge and hits a back
suplex, getting two. Joel gets tossed to the floor and Plumtree gets in a few
stomps. AJ beats on Joel outside of the ring and rolls him inside. Tope con Hilo gets two. They
engage in a chopping battle and Joel loses that. AJ gets caught in a sitout
powerbomb, which gets two. Suplex by Joel gets two. Figure Four necklock by
Joel as the announcers mention how EZ is getting a long rest. AJ comes back
with a spinning heel kick and that gets two. Facebuster gets two. Out of
nowhere, Joel fights back and turns a tilt-a-whirl into a rollup for the pin,
eliminating Styles (17:11). EZ comes in and they do a rollup reversal sequence.
Superkick by EZ gets two. Joel runs into a clothesline and EZ gets a frogsplash
from the top rope, getting two. Joel tosses EZ from the top rope and hits a
moonsault as the ref is busy with Styles and Plumtree. Basement dropkick by
Joel but AJ hits him on the back with a chair and that allows EZ to hit the EZ
Driver for the win (19:15) ***.
lengthy Joel/AJ portion. They gave Joel a bit of a push here, letting him
eliminate AJ and last until the end. EZ winning seemed predictable at the end
and he looked fine. This should put him in the title hunt, although this was
not billed as a #1 contender’s match.
TNA auction.
to team up with Killings tonight. West says that it is fantastic. Sure, West isn’t
the greatest, but at least he is enthusiastic.
matter when he faces Lynn,
as he is beating him for the X Division Title. Siaki is really not getting over
at all.
torn pectoral muscle. The match against Siaki will take place next week. Lynn
says they have unfinished business as the camera shows the Harris brothers bringing
a table through the crowd into the ring. They have Bill Behrens on the table as
Lynn runs down.
They stop him and Ron powerbombs Lynn
through the table. Killings comes down and fights the Harris Brothers. This
fight goes on for a while and spills into the crowd. The Harris’ then
continuosly kick a chair into the face of Killings then drag him up the stairs
and toss him off the balcony and through a table. Trainers and security head
out to check on Killings.
day with Jarrett at his lake house.
asks BG to put aside his differences with Jarrett and fight against Russo. BG
calls him “dad” and goes to put on his gear. Looks like he will fill in for
Killings.
his personal physician, Jack Kevorkian, told him he has double pneumonia and
does not have medical clearance to go tonight but will have Belladonna fill in
tonight. Storm shoves Belladonna down and go towards Mitchell but get attacked
by Slash and Lee. They roll AMW back in the ring as Slash beats Storm with the
cowbell. The ref clears the ring of Lee and Slash as AMW are laid out. Mitchell
goes in the ring and says he is feeling a little bit better.
of AMW. He chokes out Storm with the rope then gauges the eyes of Harris. He
beats on them with the cowbell then grabs the mic and invites Belladonna in the
ring to finish the job. Belladonna goes to the top rope but Harris yanks her
off and she goes flying, landing on her knee. That looked very painful. Storm
hits the Eight Second ride and AMW knock Slash and Lee off the apron. The crowd
is just about dead as Harris hits the Catatonic then they get the Death
Sentence for the win (4:22) DUD. AMW then chase Mitchell up the ramp.
and the crowd, which has been hot for this feud, was quiet during this segment.
tells Tenay he is the greatest athlete to come from Minnesota. Tenay brings up Sports
Entertainment and asks his opinion about Russo. Curt says that Russo gave him a
chance in WCW but he put the belt on an actor. Curt says that Jarrett is good,
but not great and that he is great. Curt says that he is in the greatest shape
of his life and brings up how he took down Lesnar on the plane. He then says
that he is 35 years old and if he was a betting man, he would bet on himself. I
don’t even know why they bothered pushing Hennig again as he has been a huge
bust in TNA. Then again, the heavyweight division depth is extremely shallow.
the backstage area where BG is on the ground with a few chairs on top of him.
Jeff Jarrett & BG James
some more as the crowd starts chanting for Jarrett. He comes back with a few
chair shots but gets taken right back down. Ron tosses Jarrett into a row of
chairs then Don bounces one off of his head. Jarrett’s second comeback is stopped
short as they head towards the ring. They make it ringside and roll Jarrett
inside. Sideslam by Ron and Don gets the big boot. Jarrett escapes from an
H-Bomb attempt but runs into a double clothesline. Jarrett once again escapes
an H-Bomb attempt and hits a double clothesline. The Truth is hobbling down the
ramp with his ribs taped as Jarrett is using a chair on the Harris’. He gets
taken off the apron as Jarrett hits the Stroke on Don for the win (5:11) ¼*.
Jarrett tries to get Killings to come with him up the ramp as he is now asking
for a mic. Killings says he wants Russo out here “Right damnit now” then he
gets attacked by the Harris’. They bring him in the ring and hit the H-Bomb.
Tenay begs for help from the back as Russo hops the guardrail and goes into the
ring as Killings gets hit again with the H-Bomb. BG James runs out with a chair
and Russo goes to the corner. He helps up Killings then hits him with a chair
then catches Russo as he jumps into his arms. The camera then shows Percy
Pringle (Paul Bearer) on the ramp as West actually refers to him as “The Paul
Bearer.” Tenay is screaming as the show goes off the air.
reasons. The Piper interview was uncomfortable to watch. Also, the segments
with Athena and Belladonna getting beat up by men was a little much for one
show. The crowd did not react to those segments. Speaking of the crowd, you can
tell the crowd was burned out halfway through the show. There was way too much
of the Harris Brothers and a stable including them, Vince Russo, and BG James
as an nWo-style rip-off is just sad. The company has no direction other than
attempts at shock value. The Jarrett storyline just seems dumb. He doesn’t talk
when others ask him questions so I am supposed to be in suspense as to where
his allegiance lies? The X Division 4 way was good, which was easily the
highlight of this show.
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