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Views from the Hawke’s Nest: The Wolves, Hardys, and Team 3D Feud

January 20, 2015 | Posted by TJ Hawke
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Views from the Hawke’s Nest: The Wolves, Hardys, and Team 3D Feud  

I’m not a fan of TNA, but these matches appealed to me and Spike put them up on their website.

 

June 26, 2014

The Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie “Eddie Edwards” Edwards)© vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt Hardy) [TNA World Tag Team Championships]
The Hardys isolated Davey early on. Davey saw Poetry in Motion coming, and gave Jeff a lariat. EEEE then tagged in and made a comeback. EEEE hit a double ‘rana, and the Wolves then hit stereo tope suicidas. The Hardys came back and hit a Poetry in Motion dive onto both Wolves. EEEE ate Poetry in Motion, a Side Effect and a Swanton Bomb. Davey made the save. Matt then hit EEEE with a moonsault, and Davey had to make the save again. Matt then applied the Ice Pick on EEEE. Jeff then did the same thing on Davey. Davey managed to tackle Matt with Jeff still on him. Jeff missed a pescado attempt on Davey. Alarm Clock for Matt. Matt then ate two double stomps: 1…2…NO! The crowd has been red hot for this by the way. EEEE hit Jeff with a tope con hello. Twist of Fate on Davey from Matt: 1…2…NO! EEEE saved Davey from a superplex, and the Wolves hit Matt with the Doomsday Backstabber Device: 1…2…3!

This was a really good tag match, and TNA deserves a ton of credit for putting this matchup and putting it in a position to succeed. Even with the clean finish, it felt like there was more than enough room for a rematch down the line.

The Hardys are not the daredevils that they used to be, but they still know how to put together an effective tag team match. At this stage in their careers, I firmly believe that The Wolves are better off in a TNA or WWE than on the indies. Their style does not work for long matches, and the indies are all about going long for the sake of long these days.
Match Rating: ***1/2

 

June 27, 2014

The Hardys (Jeff & Matt Hardy) vs. Team 3D (Bully Ray & Brother Devon)

Oddly enough, I cannot remember ever watching these two teams have a non-gimmick match before. Obviously, they had a ton of matches together. I just don’t think I saw any of them. Nothing really happened before the first commercial. 3D eventually cut off Jeff and worked him over. When it came time, Matt made a pretty weak hot tag. Matt hit Devon with a moonsault, and then the match broke down. The Hardys hit Devon with a Doomsday Whisper in the Wind. There was a really awkward cut on that move, which makes me think they had to re-tape it. 3D hit Matt with the Doomsday Device: 1…2…NO! They then flapjacked Jeff onto Matt. 3D called for the tables. Jeff took them out with a dive off Matt’s back. Devon then took the Twist of Fate/Swanton Bomb combo: 1…2…NO? Ok. 3D then hit Matt with the 3D: 1…2…3

This was an effective match that was worked smart if in slow motion. The Hardys have had a really great comeback year, but this was not one of their better matches.
Match Rating: ***

 

The three teams were then booked in a series of matches with The Wolves’ TNA Tag Team Championships on the line. The first team to win twice would win the titles.

 

August 5, 2014

The Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie “Eddie Edwards” Edwards) vs. Team 3D (Bully Ray & Brother Devon) vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt Hardy)
3D and Wolves started things off. It was clunky. The first half of the match was Davey getting worked over. I wonder how much of it he will sell (I say that as a Davey apologist). EEEE made a very cold tag. The Wolves hit 3D with stereo topes. The Hardys did Poetry in Motion to the floor. Matt under-rotated on a moonsault to the floor and nearly died. The crowd kind of woke up after that. The teams traded nearfalls and big movez. Team 3D eventually caught EEEE with the 3D: 1…2…3.

Team 3D gets to pick the stipulation of the next match.

Once the dives started, the match picked up big time. The first half of the match was very awkward though with 3D and the Hardys working over Davey. That did not come across well at all.
Match Rating: **3/4

 

August 6, 2014

The Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie “Eddie Edwards” Edwards) vs. Team 3D (Bully Ray & Brother Devon) vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt Hardy) [Tables Match]
Team 3D will become the new TNA World Tag Team Champions if they win this match. This is a “single fall” match.

The match immediately started as a brawl on the floor. 3D went for a table first, but it backfired when the Hardys kicked it in their faces. After a commercial break, the Hardys were in control. They started teasing table spots, but someone always removed the table from the equation to save the match. Jeff went through a table by accident, but he was not eliminated because an opponent has to put you through a table to end the match. The Wolves wiped out everyone with tope suicidas. Jeff Hardy bridged an upside down table between a guardrail and the apron. EEEE saved Davey though with a plancha. The Wolves saved Matt from being put through a table. The Hardys made a comeback. Matt set up EEEE on a table on the floor, and Jeff then put him through the table with a swanton. The Hardys now have a win in the series.

If the Hardys or Team 3D win the next match, they will become the TNA World Tag Team Champions. The Hardys climbed a ladder in the ring and announced the third match in the series will be a ladder match.

This was some chaotic fun. It was a big improvement on the first match due to their willingness to just get right to brawling and big spots instead of doing an obligatory heat segment. Everyone seems to be working hard so far, and this is a very solid series of matches for TNA.
Match Rating: ***1/2

 

August 7, 2014

The Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie “Eddie Edwards” Edwards) vs. Team 3D (Bully Ray & Brother Devon) vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt Hardy) [Ladders Match]
The Hardys and Team 3D will win the titles if they win the match. The Wolves have to win this match or they will lose the titles. Remember when The Wolves debuted in black trench coats as allies of MVP? At least I think that’s what happened.

The Wolves charged into the ring to start the match. They did two stereo tope suicidas spots within the first minute or two. The Wolves were doing damage with a ladder, but Jeff hit the ladder with a Whisper in the Wind to slow down the champs’ momentum. The teams started going back and forth. The ladders were being used for spots more and more as the match went on. It was all done pretty well and definitely getting over with the crowd. After taking out 3D with a moonsault and a Swanton, it looked like The Hardys might win then and there. The Wolves fought back. The Hardys seemed to win that particular exchange though. Team 3D took them out and put Matt on a table. The Wolves used chairs on Team 3D to take them out. Davey then gave Matt a double stomp through the table on the floor. The match is definitely picking up. In a sickening spot that I can’t even properly describe, Davey prevented Jeff from grabbing the belts in a manner that caused Jeff to land awfully on the side of a ladder. EEEE then pulled down the belts.

I’m a bit of a mark for ladder matches so I may have overrated this one a good bit. That’s okay thought as I enjoyed this a great deal. The Hardys and Team 3D obviously know what they’re doing by now in terms of putting together a match like this. The match got progressively more and more chaotic as it went on, and it felt like it ended at the right time. That’s what a lot of indie ladder matches get wrong.
Match Rating: ***1/2

 

September 16, 2014

The Wolves(c) (Davey Richards & Eddie “Eddie Edwards” Edwards) vs. Team 3D (Bully Ray & Brother Devon) vs. The Hardys (Jeff & Matt Hardy) [Full Metal Mayhem Match for the TNA World Tag Team Championships]
The match obviously started as a brawl between all six men. The teams went back and forth the entire time. There were only a few plunder spots early on. The first big one was Bully powerbombing Davey from the ring to a bridged guardrail on the floor. Then there was a sequence with a lot of chair shots. Jeff went to legdrop Bully through a bridged upside down table, but Bully avoided it. Jeff obviously went through the table. Bully, Matt, and EEEE teased grabbing the belts, but they all failed. Matt put Davey through a table with a legdrop off a ladder. Jeff dumped Devon off a turnbuckle and through two tables. EEEE was climbing, but Bully knocked it over and dumped him to the floor. Bully was taking a nap on two tables on the floor. Jeff was climbing a ladder in the ring. Davey pushed the ladder over so that Jeff basically splashed Bully throught the tables. That was labored but cool enough to make up for it. Matt and Davey were climbing. EEEE powerbombed Matt through a table, and Davey got the belts.

The crowd noise awkwardly disappeared when The Wolves won. According to a friend at the show, the crowd was pro-Hardys so TNA was probably editing out some negative reactions to the match result.

This was basically an extended version of the ladder match these three teams had, and that turned out to be a good thing. All of the big spots had time to breathe, and this felt like a proper PPV match (PPV main event really). This was a tremendous effort from all involved, and it was a (very) low-end MOTYC.
Match Rating: ****

 

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7.5
The final score: review Good
The 411
If TNA did more feuds/rivalries like this, I would be more interested in watching the product. Kudos to everyone who had a hand in putting it together.
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article topics :

Team 3D, The Hardys, The Wolves, TNA, TJ Hawke