Wrestling’s 4Rs: The Right, Wrong and Ridiculous of TNA Impact & WWE Smackdown

How the 4Rs of wRestling Work!
Here is a quick explanation of the 4R’s. The column will run TWO times a week. We will group our feelings on the shows in various categories: The Right, the wRong and the Ridiculous. The Right is stuff that worked very well: a great promo, a great match and so on. PuRgatoRy is a section between the right and wrong. It shows equal traits from both sides that cannot be ignored and needs discussed. It is not a bad place per say, as things can get remedied or go the wrong way the very next week. The wRong is what it sounds like: bad matches, bad or boring promos and so on. The Ridiculous is stuff that had no right on TV: Stupid angles and so on. And there is always a possibility of a 5th R, which is as bad as they come. This column is supposed to be analytical, and at the right time very critical of the shows, it was the whole reason it was created. This is not a “mark” column, nor a “smark” column, our goal is to analyze the show from many different fronts, reward the good and call out the bad. We will not apologize for our opinions, they are as they are, whether positive or negative.

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By: Jericho Ricardi
IMPACT 11.12.14:
QUICK MATCH RESULTS:
* James Storm and Abyss def. The Wolves in 3:00 to become NEW tag team champions (Storm pins Edwards off a Black Hole Slam)
* Taryn Terrell def. Madison Rayne at 7:00 via pin (Taryn’s version of an RKO… does this thing have a name yet or what?)
* Crazy Steve, Rebel, and Knux def. The BroMans and The Beautiful People in an elimination match at 7:00 via pin (Tornado DDT to Jessie from Crazy Steve)
* Eric Young def. Tyrus at 5:00 via pin (Flying Elbow)
* Gunner def. Samuel Shaw at 9:00 via pin (F5 onto a pile of chairs) (MATCH OF THE NIGHT)
* Bobby Lashley and Austin Aries fought to a double countout at 14:00

THE RIGHT:
Gunner, Samuel, and the Shrieking Banshee: The Gunner/Shaw feud came to a head tonight somewhat unexpectedly. I figured this match was yet another thing they’re building towards for the UK tapings in January, so it was quite surprising to see this match. I figured it would quickly end in a schmozz, but that was not the case. Instead, we got a match that didn’t just exceed expectations, it took expectations and F5’d them on a pile of chairs. This was about as rough as a match can get without blood, with both guys really giving 100% to the cause of removing each other from the face of the Earth. Gunner showed some weakness early on by not really being committed (heh) to Shaw’s destruction, but that hesitation faded as Shaw proved to be completely remorseless towards him. Brittany added a lot to the match with her insane taunting, pushing Shaw to do his worst to his former bro. It’s really cool to see all three of these characters finally find their niche in a good storyline. Gunner went over in a very strong way once he cast aside his reluctance to fight, and at this point I wouldn’t mind seeing him be first in line to dethrone the next heel champion we get. Gunner has improved by leaps and bounds in a fairly short time, and I hope for big things from him in the future regardless of where he ends up. Great job to everyone involved here.

Main event draw: Another great match, and the fact that one could also call this match of the night says a lot. This was an unofficial #1 contender’s match of sorts, and it was a good call to have both guys fight to what was essentially a draw. With the post match beat down Lashley definitely emerged looking more like the victor, but it leaves Aries on a similar level for when he inevitably challenges Roode. I’d have preferred if this had gone to a time limit draw instead of a double countout (since Lashley could have beaten the count and ends up looking like either he doesn’t care or is a goof). Either way, it was a great match. Lashley has been the best-booked champion in wrestling in 2014, and Aries has just been super well booked for the past three years.

The Revolution starts things with a bang: James Storm opening the show with a tirade is exactly what he needed to do to establish some kind of dominance. I have issue with the fact that we still don’t know WHAT exactly his purpose is; is it to help his minions achieve enlightenment, or is it purely selfish (i.e. his minions are nothing more than fodder to help him)? As I asked in a previous edition of the 4Rs, is he leading Aum Shinrikyo or the Cobra Kai? What is happening? I also feel that he and Abyss dismantling the Wolves like this actually took a ton of heat from the Wolves. They had a lot from their series with Team 3D and the Hardys, but now they nearly look like jobbers. This could have certainly been more competitive and less of a mugging. Regardless, it puts Storm over strong, which is something he needs right now if he’s going to be a main event threat in the near future – which I suspect is the goal. Also, very eventful way to start the show, so ultimately this ends up in the plus column.

Taryn gets some traction: Good to see Taryn get past this Madison Rayne thing. It might have been better to have Gail and Taryn challenge Havok in the ring rather than appealing to a beleaguered Kurt Angle backstage, and I also think the money right now is in Taryn Vs. Havok one-on-one. Gail lost twice, and at this point she’s coming across as whiny much the same way Bobby Roode did after he lost to Lashley the first time. Regardless, the fact that we got to Taryn Vs. Havok one way or another and have Taryn looking strong going in makes me happy.

Peggy: Kenny King continues to be a total slime ball heel. At some point Chris Melendez is going to have to move on from this feud, but until then, Kenny King is a great foil for him. Their wrestling styles mesh very well, and this storyline is working on a fundamental crowd reaction level. Though, again, I hope they have something laid out for Sarge once this feud runs dry.

All things Bram: Don’t sleep on Bram, folks. All he did this week was cut a backstage promo, but what a promo it was. This guy has “future main event heel” written all over him.

puRgatoRy:
Eric Young Vs. Tyrus: Good match, showing what Tyrus is capable of when booked as a monster while at the same time giving EY a big win. However, is it just me or is EY totally stealing Spud’s heat right now? Spud was on a roll as a newly christened threat, and in my view HE should have been the one battling the odds against Tyrus here. Instead, we have EY stepping in to fight his battles all of a sudden? It just seems like Spud has been derailed a bit.

Samoa Joe’s departure: Samoa Joe with a tremendous promo for the second week in a row, delivering on all cylinders. My issue here isn’t with him so much as the booking. If Impact is really drawing to a close, or if Joe is going to be out a while, why not have Low Ki pin him at BFG to pass the torch? They could have easily done that, since BFG took place post-injury. Now, if the injury is short-term and he’s better now (he seemed better as of BFG), and if Impact is continuing into next year, then the booking makes some degree of sense. Joe can come back as the guy who never lost and challenge Low Ki in a feud that writes itself. That usually works well as a storyline. Thus, this ends up in neutral.

Mahabali Shera: Continues to not really DO anything. When is this guy going to, you know, wrestle? It’s one thing to have hype videos promoting someone’s arrival for a while, but in this case it feels like he already arrived and simply hasn’t done anything besides dodder around backstage and get flirted with by Manik. Also, like I said last week, teasing him going to the dark side by joining The Revolution can only mean anything if we’ve already seen any sign that he’s on the side of good now. All we’ve gotten for character development is that he’s just a guy. All of that said, if his finisher ends up being a modified RKO or Stunner type move called the “Cal-Cutter”, I’ll take back all of this.

THE wRong:
Intergender Catastrophe: So, are the Beautiful People/BroMans going to feud with The Menagerie forever? Is it even a feud? They don’t seem to have any particular issues with each other. Do they just not have anyone else to fight? It’d be one thing if the matches were lighting the world on fire, but these are consistently some of the worst matches on Impact. They usually end up just being a vehicle for us to get the Crazy Steve Sexual Assault Hour, which continues to not be particularly humorous. Nothing against the people involved because I like the BroMans a lot and I think Knux and Steve have potential, but this matchup on loop needs to stop.

Taz: This guy was having a real off-night; from talking about Tenay wanting Brittany to lick his face, to talking about how much free time he has to pretend he’s Madison Rayne at home, I suspect he may have been hitting the bottle during this taping. He was a bit better for the main event, at least, giving us a lesson in how center of gravity has an effect on throws.

THE RIDICULOUS:
NOTHING

The 411:
The show has the same “holding pattern” vibe that the shows had this past Spring, before they went to NYC. I’m guessing they’re building towards the UK shows, but at this point who is to say whether they’ll still be on the air by then? I’m hoping for an awesome show next week just in case they’re not. This particular show was fairly exciting, with two great matches (Aries/Lashley and Gunner/Shaw), some shocking angle development (The Revolution destroying The Wolves), and more great work from guys on the come-up like EC3 and Bram. I’m cautiously optimistic that The Wolves haven’t been thrown under the bus, but we’ll see.

Looking at the upcoming UK shows, if they wanted to they could make quite a PPV-quality event out of one or two of them. Big matches that are on tap and could easily be set into motion: Spud Vs. EC3, Bram Vs. Magnus, MVP Vs. Kurt Angle, Gunner Vs. Samuel Shaw (unless the feud is truly over), Kenny King Vs. Chris Melendez in a feud-ender, The Hardys Vs. James Storm’s Revolution, Taryn Vs. Havok one-on-one, a returning Samoa Joe Vs. Low Ki for the X-Division title, and Roode/Lashley III for the world title. Add in Eric Young and Austin Aries to bring their usual awesomeness in some form, and we’re in for a great set of shows.

Cheap plug time; support this site and this column by sharing it with your homies. Also, support my site Coronajumper.com by reading my recent posts on wrestling videogames, including TNA Impact. Featuring gratuitous Rebel.

Show Rating: 7.5

As a reminder, I will be going by the 411 scale…

0 – 0.9: Torture
1 – 1.9: Extremely Horrendous
2 – 2.9: Very Bad
3 – 3.9: Bad
4 – 4.9: Poor
5 – 5.9: Not So Good
6 – 6.9: Average
7 – 7.9: Good
8 – 8.9:Very Good
9 – 9.9: Amazing
10: Virtually Perfect

By Daniel Clark
Smackdown 11.14.14
QUICK MATCH RESULTS:
* Bray Wyatt def. Sin Cara at 2.15 by pinfall
* Stardust and Goldust def. Adam Rose and the Bunny at 2.02 by pinfall
* Dolph Ziggler def. Tyson Kidd and Cesaro at 18.55 by pinfall to retain the Intercontinental Title
* Natalya def. Layla at 3.55 by submission
* Ryback def. Kane at 11.47 by disqualification

THE RIGHT:
Dolph Ziggler vs. Cesaro vs. Tyson Kidd: This was a fantastic match and the kind of thing that Smackdown should be having each week. I have third on the list of best matches on Smackdown this year – only behind two Shield six-man tags from the start of the year which shows just how good this was and how good the Shield were. The action was exciting and interesting throughout the whole match and there was some incredible action which played to the strengths of all three men involved. What was really good about this as well is that they didn’t do the usual thing in a triple threat of two men fighting while the third is outside the ring – the three of them were involved throughout the contest – and the elimination format helped as well as it changed it up from the constant near falls that were broken up as you felt that any fall could get the win. Ziggler, Cesaro and Kidd are all excellent wrestlers and here they were given nearly 20 minutes to go into the ring and just wrestle and show what they can do. This is the kind of thing that Smackdown should be doing each week. There is no reason why you couldn’t have a match of this length each week that just allows wrestlers to go and wrestle and put on a show for the crowd as there is enough time each week for this to happen. Everyone knows how good Ziggler and Cesaro are but this was a pretty good and breakthrough performance for Kidd as this is possibly his best televised match and how that he has found a gimmick that he is comfortable in and is interesting, he might be able to turn his undoubted talent into at least a midcard role if not better – that said – in kayfabe terms, there was no reason given for why he was suddenly being given a title shot out of nowhere. A great match though and one worth going out of your way to see.

puRgatoRy:
The Highlight Reel: This was a decent plug for the Survivor Series match and a way to show the power of the Authority but it did seem to be a way of getting a Chris Jericho appearance on the show rather than anything substantial. Jericho made a few jokes about what the WWE Universe might do if they were in charge of the show, but HHH laughed them off and said that they will be laughing when they win the match. He did at least show the power that they have with they have with them giving the people what they want by inviting Jericho to do this show but also saying that next time they might not invite Jericho back when he rings them up and could erase him from history, showing what wrestlers who go up against are actually facing. Jericho though slightly no-sold this by starting the goodbye chant which diluted the impact of what he was saying, but did put him into contention to be the fifth man on Team Cena as he is clearly siding with him in this feud. The segment was fine really and adding something new to the Authority/Cena feud, but did seem to exist partly as an excuse for a Jericho appearance as it was filler really.

Bray Wyatt vs. Sin Cara: Bray did exactly he needed to do in the match. He turned up, he squashed Sin Cara, and then moved on. He shouldn’t be wasting any more time that he did on beating the likes of Sin Cara. He then cut a promo on Dean Ambrose saying that he can fix him if Ambrose does embrace him as the light, and once again made reference to his father, which just for whatever does not seem to quite fit the feud and it still feels a little bit forced rather than a natural part of the feud. Ambrose comes off as a lunatic naturally and does not come across a person who would have any need to be fixed on any interest in being fixed and at no stage do you actually think that Bray is going to get properly in Ambrose’s head and convert him which does take away from the feud. His backstage attack later in the show as well is just a little bit boring and dull and out of character – Bray is all about getting in people’s head, so attacking him from behind is a sneak attack that sort of admits his games are failing. The feud is getting better but still doesn’t quite feel right.

Natalya vs. Layla: There was nothing really wrong with this at all other than the lack of any real reason to care about it. The match was technically fine and had a decent structure, while the ending made sense with Natalya taking out Summer Rae and ringside which allowed her to force Layla to tap out. But what this was missing was the emotion and the reason for me to be invested. I can’t think of anything that Natalya has done lately that makes me think of her as a face while Summer and Layla have not really done anything too heelish. This was fine but ultimately lacked any real purpose to it.

Kane vs. Ryback: If you take away the fact that Ryback has perhaps been re-pushed a little bit too quickly, the ending of this was perfect. He beats down Kane and gets right up in the face of HHH and stares him down not looking as if he is slightest bit scared of him and looks on the level of someone who only gets involved with those at the very top of the card and it sets him up as a possible opponent for HHH down the line someone if he continues to be against the Authority. But, this only served to highlight the two problems that occurred during the match with Kane. The first was simply that the match was not actually that good and if Ryback is truly going to be a real main event talent he needs to improve in the ring as even though he is superb in brief squash matches, he isn’t quite good enough to carry a 20 minute main event-type match yet. And secondly, why was Kane dominating the majority of the match? It hardly makes Ryback look like this all-conquering hero who can take down anyone when he was on the back foot for the majority of this match with Kane. In the end he looks strong but would have looked much stronger had he not been beaten down by Kane for the best part of 10 minutes.

THE wRong:
Stardust and Goldust vs. Adam Rose and the Bunny: I really don’t want to put this in the wrong but I think on balance I end up having too as there was enough in this that was badly thought out. Firstly, our tag team champions, Stardust and Goldust, would have lost cleanly to Rose and the Bunny inside two minutes if they Bunny had not made a mistake, which is not how the tag team champions should be looking at all as it just makes them look really weak. The commentary on this as well was bad as it was burying the concept of the Bunny by saying that it is clearly not a Bunny but an athlete in a suit. And even though we know that to be true, the best way to treat the Bunny is by going completely over-the-top with at and actually pretending that it is a Bunny and denying any knowledge that it is a person in the suit. It does look as if the Bunny and Rose are going to be going their separate ways which at this stage does not make much sense. If you are doing a gimmick of someone in the Bunny suit then when they are revealed it has to make sense and the crowd have to care – yet – there is no-one who a reveal would make sense for in the context of feuding with Rose, which means it will just be Rose beating up a man in a Bunny suit, which is less interesting. I want to like the Rose/Bunny feud but at the moment I don’t see how it ends well for anyone the way it is being presented.

THE RIDICULOUS:
NOTHING

The 411:
This was a very average and forgettable episode of Smackdown that was highlighted by one outstanding match. The triple threat between Dolph Ziggler, Cesaro and Tyson Kidd was one of the best matches of the year and is a match that falls into the must watch category.

For a while now I have bemoaning the fact that there is a lot of wasted time of Smackdown episodes that could be filled with something productive and the time that is given to endless recaps to be instead given to matches, and it seemed that with the triple threat match getting nearly 20 minutes, it might be happening. It was not just that the match was given a lot of time but what they did with the time that was important, as all three men made the most of the opportunity that they had, with Tyson Kidd putting in a breakout performance, Cesaro securing himself as one of the most reliable workers on the roster and Ziggler doing what he does best in getting the crowd behind and putting himself back in the picture near the main event and continuing to make the title feel important. These three showed what you can do if you are given the time and can make Smackdown the wrestling show again which would make it stand out.

The rest of show was pretty much just there without any real spark – bar the ending with Ryback and HHH going face to face. That was a great moment and has shoved Ryback back in the main event very quickly with already everyone afraid of him, but the fact that Ryback had previously struggled in a match against Kane sort of dampened it slightly as if he struggles against Kane in a 12 minute match where Kane is on the offence for the most part and the match that ends with Kane just hitting with a chair, why are we expected to believe that he is on the same level to go face to face with HHH and why is everyone wanting him on their team? He should have just rolled through Kane like he has everyone else to continue to sell him as a threat.

The opening segment with the Authority on the Highlight Reel did feel like just a way to get Chris Jericho on the show and the segment was absolutely fine without really meaning anything. We did get a bit more of a hint into the power that the Authority have with them threatening not to let Jericho come back in the future but all in all this did seem a bit of a filler segment.

As in truth was the rest of the show. The Bray Wyatt/Dean Ambrose feud continues to move along without really catching fire yet and still seems to be a bit forced, although Bray does slowly appear to be getting inside Ambrose’s head. And the Adam Rose and the Bunny breakup and possible heel turn continues with him again beating down the Bunny, but at the moment, it is hard to see a pay-off for this as nobody would make sense to be revealed as the Bunny.

This really was a one-match show, but that match was a fantastic match and is worth seeing. The rest of show was pretty average though without anything really being that bad. If Smackdown though can have more matches like the triple threat, it would be a better show.

Show Rating: 6.1

As a reminder, I will be going by the 411 scale…

0 – 0.9: Torture
1 – 1.9: Extremely Horrendous
2 – 2.9: Very Bad
3 – 3.9: Bad
4 – 4.9: Poor
5 – 5.9: Not So Good
6 – 6.9: Average
7 – 7.9: Good
8 – 8.9:Very Good
9 – 9.9: Amazing
10: Virtually Perfect

The 940th edition is over…

“I just want to tell you both good luck. We’re all counting on you.”