wrestling / Video Reviews
Views from the Hawke’s Nest: Enigma – The Best of Jeff Hardy – Disc 1
Loading...So, I picked up this set for cheap and on a lark because I am such a huge Jeff Hardy fan. I heard all the horror stories about his first run there, but I thought there MUST be some hidden gems. I was 100% wrong, and I unquestionably come off more and more miserable as I get through the set. If you don’t want to read me being sad because I’m watching bad wrestling, just click away now.
Slammiversary
June 23, 2004
AJ Styles(c) vs. Jeff Hardy [X-Division Championship]
This was for AJ’s X-Division Championship. Jeff Hardy was a mystery opponent.
AJ was in control early. Jeff came back with his spinning kick and then a pescado. Jeff had some momentum in the ring. Jeff hit Whisper in the Wind. TNA cut to a replay and that was when Kid Kash and Dallas interfered to end the match.
Jeff ran them off after a chairshot to Kash. AJ then hit Dallas with a chair. Jeff gave Dallas a swanton.
This felt like a nothing match throughout, and then it had an awful ending. There’s no reason to watch this one.
Match Rating: *
You can watch this match here if you truly have nothing better to do.
July 21, 2004
Dusty Rhodes came out. He brought out Jeff Hardy. Dusty announced that the contract stipulated that Jeff Hardy was guaranteed a NWA World Championship match. Before Jeff could sign, Monty Brown interrupted the proceedings. He was not happy about not having the next title shot. Jeff Jarrett then came. He was not happy. He mentioned all the stars that came to TNA but then left soon after. He said Jeff would be just like them. He slapped Hardy who then destroyed Jarrett. Hardy hit Jarrett with a Swanton. Brown then hit Hardy with a Pounce. Hardy came back on Monty. Jarrett hit Hardy with a guitar. Brown chased Jarrett away. What a fucking mess of a segment.
August 25, 2004
Jeff Hardy, AJ Styles, & Ron Killings vs. Monty Brown, Kid Kash, & Dallas
Kash and AJ, who were apparently in the middle of a feud, started the match out for less than twenty seconds. The babyfaces hit stereo pescados. The babyfaces then worked over Kash. Killings then got worked over. AJ made a hot tag. Dallas cut him off though, and the heels then worked AJ over. AJ escaped the beatdown after a while, and Jeff made the proper hot tag. The match broke down. The babyfaces had all the momentum. Jeff eventually finished Dallas with a Swanton Bomb.
Jeff Jarrett attacked Hardy after the match. Jeff made his own comeback, but Brown helped Jarrett take him out. Monty Brown working with Jarrett seems like a major miscalculation without the context of watching at the time.
I thought this was solid enough for a television match. The action was not overly compelling, but nothing about the match was particularly bad or anything like that. It was just not exciting tag team wrestling when you would think these six would be capable of just that.
Match Rating: **3/4
September 8, 2004
Jeff Jarrett(c) vs. Jeff Hardy [NWA World Heavyweight Championship]
They did this weird deal where security kept splitting up Jarrett and Hardy because they wouldn’t stop brawling long enough for JB to get through the introductions. Jarrett was busted open before the match even officially started.
The officials gave up, and the match just started. Monty Brown watched the match from the ramp. Jarrett and Hardy had no chemistry, and the match had no spark. Hardy did a dive into the crowd. Abyss was shown watching the match, as Hardy and Jarrett went into the crowd. They got back to the ring. Jarrett kicked out of the Swanton. Hardy kicked out of the Stroke. We then saw Raven watching the match. Jarrett tried to escape, but Dusty Rhodes put him back into the ring. Hardy applied the Spine Line. Jarrett got to the ropes. Dusty attacked Jarrett. Vince Russo ran down. He gave Jarrett a bat and then argued with Dusty. Hardy missed a Swanton. Jarrett hit him with the guitar: 1…2…3
This was awful. These two had zero chemistry, and nothing about the match was interesting or exciting.
Match Rating: 1/2*
October 15, 2004
Jeff Hardy vs. The Alpha Male
Brown dominated Jeff for a while. After a commercial break, Jeff was now shown to be competitive in the match. Brown appeared to cut him off, but Jeff caught him with the Twist of Fate. Ref bump. Swanton got Jeff a phantom pinfall. Abyss ran in. Black Hole Slam. POUNCE to Abyss. Raven ran in. DDT to Brown. Twist of Fate: 1…2…3? It appeared that Brown kicked out.
This was not good before the interference. Then it got bad. Monty Brown is interesting to go back and watch though. It’s a shame he never ended up having a strong career. There was a compelling quality to him that most wrestlers do not have.
Match Rating: *
October 22, 2004
Jeff Hardy, AJ Styles, & The Truth vs. Team Canada (Eric Young, Bobby Roode, & Ruffy Silverstein) (w/ Scott D’Amore)
Team Canada got the heat on AJ. Jeff made the briefest of hot tags. The match broke down. Truth and AJ did stereo pescados. Jeff eventually hit Ruffy with a Twist of Fate for the victory.
Team Canada attacked the victors after the match. BG James and Konnan made the save. Jeff gave D’Amore the downward spiral and a swanton off a ladder. Jeff Jarrett attacked Hardy with a guitar. Jarrett told Hardy they will have a ladder match for the title at Victory Road.
This was neither good, nor bad. Sadly, that is progress for this particular DVD. The post-match segment was Crash TV at its most mundane.
Match Rating: **
Victory Road
2004
Jeff Jarrett(c) vs. Jeff Hardy [Ladder Match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship]
Hardy ran through Jarrett for a while, but Jarrett of course cut him off eventually. Hardy made a comeback after Jarrett got close to grabbing the belt. Scott Hall, looking in poor shape, ran in and gave Hardy a Razor’s Edge off the ladder to save the title for Jarrett. Hardy came back yet again and was closing to winning. Hall interfered again, but Hardy again fended that off. The Jeffs ended up climbing a ladder on the floor. They tipped it over and crashed onto Hall and the floor. The setup for that spot was so lazy and terrible. The Jeffs returned to the ring and botched a sunset flip powerbomb. Hall interfered yet again to save the title for Jarrett. Jarrett was close to getting the title, but Kevin Nash showed up with two guitars. It was all a swerve though, as all three goofs hit Hardy with the guitars. Jarrett got the belt.
The action was okay if uninspired most of the time. The overbooking is the real issue with the match though. Hall and Nash’s involvement was way too much and completely killed my interest in the match. That’s just not the kind of story I want from pro wrestling.
Match Rating: *
November 12, 2004
Jeff Hardy & AJ Styles vs. The Naturals (Andy Douglas & Chase Stevens)
AJ and Hardy ran through the Naturals for a bit before AJ got cut off and worked over. Hardy made the hot tag. There was some sloppiness as the match broke down. AJ and Hardy eventually finished the Naturals though after Hardy sent Stevens into a Styles Clash.
For the time they had, they worked a fun match. The rushing of heat segments in short television tag matches do no one any favors though.
Match Rating: **1/2
Watch Jeff Hardy matches for free!
The Hardy Boys vs. The Young Bucks II
The Hardy Boys vs. The Young Bucks I
The Hardy Boys vs. The Briscoes [Fantastic Match]
Jeff Hardy vs. Chris Sabin [Full Metal Mayhem]
Jeff Hardy vs. Sabu vs. Rhyno vs. Abyss [Monster’s Ball]
Jeff Hardy & RVD vs. Kane vs. Christian & Chris Jericho vs. Spike & Bubba Dudley
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