wrestling / TV Reports
Jeremy’s Impact Wrestling Review 10.20.20
Loading...Greetings Impact Wrestling viewers! It’s Tuesday and that means it’s time for another episode of Impact Wrestling. But not just any Impact; no, this is the go-home show for Bound For Glory. I’m Jeremy, and y’all know how this works. It’s time for the hard sell for this weekend’s PPV (and don’t forget, we’ll have live coverage right here!), so let’s just get right into it.
As a reminder, the GoFundMe for Larry’s daughters is still active and if you can make a donation, that would be awesome. Thank you so much to everyone who’s done so thus far.
* Previously on Impact: Eric Young demands answers about Rich Swann’s Bound For Glory status and when he gets the news his match is still on, he doesn’t like it and attacks Scott D’Amore until Swann comes out and attacks. Meanwhile, Moose finds EC3 and beats him blood in order to retrieve the TNA World Title.
WE OWN THE NIGHT! (AKA Title Sequence!)
Heath vs. Rhino vs. Hernandez vs. Cousin Jake vs. Alisha Edwards
Okay, so we’re starting with this right off the bat. Hoping it’s better than last week because if not…OOF. Rhino says that Alisha should be gotten out of the ring and she’s not happy about that, giving him a shove and then getting in Cousin Jake’s face and shoving him. Heath is next, and now Hernandez. Hernandez picks her up and sets her on the top rope, and the brawl begins! Rhino and Hernandez go to the outside as Cousin Jake takes it to Heath. Heath gets backed into Alisha, who locks in a sleeper! Heath backs her into the corner and Cousin Jake hits a clothesline that takes them both down. Heath is incredulous but Jake with a punch and an Irish whip, reversed by Heath who hits a leaping side kick to the face. Heath and Jake are out while Rhino and Hernandez are back in, trading shots. Rhino comes off the ropes with a shoulder tackle and Alisha tries to steal a pin on Hernandez but only gets two. Rhino sends Hernandez through the ropes and follows, so all four guys are on the outside as Alisha climbs to the top. She dives down onto Rhino, Heath, and Jake! Alisha picks up Rhino while Hernandez works Jake against the guardrail. Alisha off the ropes but Jake trips her, then pulls her out of the ring while he’s saying sorry. Rhino hits Hernandez and rolls him into the ring, chops, and punches in the corner as Jake slams Heath into the apron and rolls in. Jake with a shot to Rhino and he teams with Hernandez for a double boot choke to Jake against the bottom turnbuckle. They get Rhino up and start striking against him in the corner. Jake holds him and Hernandez charges in with a leaping splash, but Heath is in now and takes it to Hernandez while Rhino and Jake trade shots. Hernandez clotheslines Heath out of the ring and runs into the ropes but Alisha is in and stops him! He shoves her, Hernandez with a kick to the gut and he goes for the Razor’s Edge but Jake pulls her out of it and gets her to safety. He turns around and begs off Hernandez, but Heath pulls him off and Alisha slaps Hernandez! Rhino goes to spear Hernandez but he dodges and Alisha eats the Gore! Hernandez rolls Rhino up and gets the pin!
Winner: Hernandez (4:45)
Rating: * 1/2
Thoughts: This was a perfectly fine match, nothing special about it as it was mostly played around the story of Alisha trying to be involved and how much the guys would treat her like an opponent. It was miles better than last week’s match and while I won’t say it got me particularly excited for the Call Your Shot Gauntlet Match, the story was okay.
* Josh and Madison hype up Bound For Glory and break down tonight’s show including:
– Eddie Edwards vs. Sami Callihan
– Chris Bey, Rohit Raju & Jordynne Grace vs. TJP, Trey Miguel & Willie Mack
– The North vs. The Good Brothers
– Gia Miller interviews Eric Young
– Jimmy Jacobs interviews Moose
* We get a video package looking at the rivalry between Moose and EC3, which covers Moose’s TNA World Title reign and EC3 stealing the TNA World Title to fulfill his ambitions of destroying the title to control his narrative, as well as all of EC3’s mind games as they drive Moose to the brink. All of which led us to last week when Moose met EC3 on the bridge and they shouted at each other before brawling, which ultimately saw Moose walk away with bloodied knuckles and the title belt. Moose’s interview is up next.
* Jimmy Jacobs is here with Moose to talk about his Bound For Glory match with EC3. He asks if he’s happy to get his title back and Moose unenthusiastically says he’s happy. When Jimmy points out he doesn’t seem happy, Moose goes on a rant and says one person who won’t be happy is EC3 at Bound For Glory and storms off. Then a bunch of EC3 devotees show up and kidnap Jimmy, drag him outside and put him into a car.
* John E. Bravo is in full Groomzilla mode and rants at Steve for not having a proper altar. Swinger says it’s stiff and laughs. Bravo says everyone’s dropping the ball, and Steve covers his monkey’s ears. Bravo asks if Cousin Jake got the photographer, and he says he got Kaleb. Kaleb and Tenille are there, but Kaleb is more interested in getting photos of Tenille. John E. goes off a bit more and Taya walks in, saying that this isn’t the wedding video, is it? Bravo snaps and Taya doesn’t get where his being bitchy is from because it’s certainly not from her! Bravo says he’s stressed and the wedding is going to hell, he doesn’t know if it’s even going to happen and stalks off.
* Deonna talks about how BFG is Impact’s biggest event, and the Knockouts Title is the company’s most prestigious title. She breaks down the importance of the title’s legacy in Impact and says that she has a lot of pressure going into the PPV. She says that she has class, she’s sophisticated and she has elegance; can she rise to the pressure? She says that’s obvious, but the same can’t be said for Kylie. Smiling and being happy isn’t a game plan; it makes you emotional and you make mistakes. She points out that Kylie has been snapping and is unhinged after Susie got her arm broken. She she’s victorious after their match, she won’t just be celebrating her win; she’ll be delighted that Kylie Rae lost. She says Kylie can’t win and she knows it.
* Up next: Havoc vs. Rosemary
Havok vs. Rosemary
This is to determine if Father James Mitchell will come back for their wedding next week. Rosemary offers a shake and Havok takes it, then squeezes Rosemary’s hand. Rosemary fights back and comes off the ropes but gets knocked down by a body check. Havok stomps on Rosemary and comes off the ropes for a sit-down splash but Rosemary moves and gets a two-count. Rosemary charges in but eats a backbreaker and a slam to the mat for two. Rosemary up on Havok’s shoulders but fights out, she locks in an inverted facelock but Havok out and into a back elbow and clothesline, which Rosemary ducks and hits an inverted DDT for two. Rosemary has Havok up and has a front facelock sleeper. Havok tries to shake Rosemary out of it and does so, hitting a suplex throw. She tells at the ref to move and charges into hip slam Rosemary in the corner. She moves out, goes to charge in but Rosemary slides through the ropes. She goes up top, leaps into a crossbody and pins for two. Rosemary is frustrated and yells, she picks Havok up but Havok starts firing off with forearms and comes off the ropes, Rosemary follows and spears Havok! A second spear and a pin gets three!
Winner: Rosemary (3:37)
Rating: * 1/2
Thoughts: Another okay match, but one that could have probably used a bit more time. There wasn’t a ton of story here, it was mostly just a sequence of moves that were admittedly executed crisply. There’s a lot going on on Impact this week so I get the shortened time but do wish we could have seen more as these two deserve it.
After the match, Rosemary is ecstatic and Havok is upset that she has to help bring Mitchell back. Rosemary taunts her a bit about it and then backs away, leading Havok to the back to presumably do some resurrection magic.
* We get a recap of the feud between The Good Brothers, the Machine Guns, The North, and Fulton & Austin that is leading us into the Impact Tag Team Championship match at Bound For Glory.
* We’re back from break with the Impact! Plus ad, and a promo for the Talk’n Shop Full Keg including a sneak peek of the show. Looks like it’s gonna be very on brand for them.
* We get Kylie’s side of the video package promoting the Knockouts Title match. Kylie says Deonna is the self-proclaimed best technical women’s wrestler and she gets that, but they won’t know who the best is until they step in the ring. Deonna is more interested in people thinking she’s the best; she wants to know. She wants to be an inspiration for future generations. She notes that seeing Susie’s arm get broken and looking into Deonna’s eyes was hard for her, and she knows Deonna has plans to try and throw her off. And she’s going to keep coming with them, but she’ll keep finding alternative routes. She apologizes for her snapping and says she always tries to be nice; she wouldn’t intentionally hurt anyone. She says Deonna made it so this isn’t just about the title; it’s personal now. And Kylie’s motivation isn’t revenge even if it will feel like that to Deonna.
* EC3’s minions pull their Jeep up to an undisclosed location and take a hooded Jacobs out. They take him into a warehouse where he’s set down into a chair and EC3 sits next to him. EC3 says it’s just them and Jimmy looks disturbed as we go to break.
* Back from break, EC3 wants Jimmy to ask a question. Jimmy asks where they are, and EC3 says they’re prisoners of their own mind. Right now, Jimmy is in EC3’s narrative. Jimmy asks what the EC3 narrative is, and he says it’s what it always is: control, freedom, purpose. But the narrative has changed a bit because the adversary he’s waiting for has emerged. Jimmy points out EC3’s black eye and EC3 says every part of him is wounded: body, soul, and mind. EC3 says Jimmy doesn’t know where he’s been but he does, and he’s lived with that every day. He says he was euphoric on the bridge because he found the Moose that always should have been. He says Moose’s claims of being a wrestling god are false but he has potential and EC3 saw the potential when Moose was beating on him. But it’s not Moose’s narrative to control; it’s EC3’s. On Saturday, they fight inside the narrative. Moose has to learn what he has to become but he must also learn at EC3’s hand and he’s going to return that beating many times over. EC3 says he fights for himself and he forgot it long ago because he let the past get in his way. The whole purpose of this exercise is to burn his past to the ground and destroy the TNA title. He says any victory earned has to be earned the right way, and he can do so only by defeating Moose inside the narrative. Jimmy happens what happens Saturday; what’s it about? EC3 stands up and says he had the TNA Title; he could have burned it at any moment. But he chose to lure Moose into the narrative. He says at BFG, the only Glory Moose will find is when EC3 takes the title’s legacy and burns it into dust. He says Moose is becoming who he needs to be, but he has been warned.
Sami Callihan vs. Eddie Edwards
Callihan is out here without Shamrock, so I’m sure Shamrock will show up sometime mid-match. Edwards charges in to attack as the bell rings, and Callihan locks in a headlock, gets whipped into the ropes and knocks Eddie down with a shoulder block. Eddie comes off, slides under Sami’s legs, inverted atomic drop and he goes for a belly-to-belly but Sami rakes the eyes. Callihan drives to dive at Eddie but Eddie sends Sami through the ropes and charges for a dive through the ropes and takes Sami down. He goes after the eyes with his thumbs and then picks Callihan up, rolling him into the ring. Eddie follows but Sami back outside, Eddie dives over the ropes but Sami dodges. Callihan with an Exploder suplex onto the stage! Callihan yells at the ref to count and climbs in the ring, Eddie starts to get up so Sami rolls out and chops Eddie. He rolls Edwards in and follows, and shoves Eddie with his foot. He lets Eddie get up and takes a chop, rakes the eyes, and hits a suplex for two. Callihan chokes Eddie against the bottom turnbuckle and snapmares him into a sitting headlock. Eddie gets to his feet and fires back, Sami cuts him off and then whips him hard into the turnbuckle. Sami slaps Eddie and backs him into the corner, knife-edge chop and then Eddie staggers to another corner where Sami chokes him. They trade slaps and Sami whips Eddie into the opposite turnbuckle, Eddie comes out hot and takes it to Callihan with chops! Eddie whips, Sami reverses, Eddie baseball slides, Sami goes into the corner and clips to the top, Eddie with a step-up kick and goes up, rana off the top rope! Eddie with a Blue Thunder Bomb that leads into a near fall. Sami grabs the knees but Eddie beats on him and goes for the double underhook, he can’t get it so he comes off the ropes but eats a boot. Eddie fires back, Sami with a clothesline and a power bomb for two! Both men down, Sami with a headbutt from his knees and Eddie with one of his own. They trade punches and get to their feet, Eddie with a chop and he yells “COME ON!” Sami with a chop, and they’re just trading shots at this point. Eddie takes control, the elbow pad comes off but Sami grabs Eddie’s face to go after the eyes. He comes off the ropes with a boot, Eddie off the ropes into a midsection kick. Sami spins for a kick but Eddie catches the boot, hard forearm to the face, Eddie off the ropes with a shot and he goes for the Tiger Driver and gets NO! It’s two! Eddie crawls into the corner, pulls the kneepad down for Boston Knee Party. Sami grabs his phone and Eddie stops to wonder what’s going on? Sami hits a button and the show glitches out. When it comes back, Shamrock is there and he provides the distraction for Sami to get the roll-up win!
Winner: Sami Callihan (8:41)
Rating: ** 1/4
Thoughts: This was a good match until the stupid ending. I’m on board with a lot of the goofy stuff that goes on in Impact but why would Eddie just sit there and let Sami, a guy who uses that phone for this exact kind of thing, screw him over? The equivalent would be if somebody saw Asuka prepping her green mist and she asked for a moment, and they paused to allow it to happen. Anyway, this was one of the better Callihan matches in a bit; we all know he works well with Eddie. Issues with the ending aside, it was decent.
Afterward, Eddie attacks but the numbers advantage eventually overwhelms him, and he ends up in the ankle lock as Sami taunts him. Shamrock eventually lets go and the two stand over Eddie as Sami does the Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down gesture.
* We get a video package hyping the Six-Person Scramble for the X-Division title, looking at Trey earning a shot at Rohit only to get screwed in the immediate match that followed. Rohit then barely survives Willie Mack by pretending to be hurt on the outside and retaining his belt by countout loss, then has to face Jordynne Grace and loses but Rohit manages to retroactively make the match not a title match. We then see D’Amore having made the title match for Bound For Glory.
Chris Bey, Rohit Raju & Jordynne Grace vs. TJP, Trey Miguel & Willie Mack
Rohit starts off against Mack and they circle, with Rohit mocking TJP and getting him into the ring briefly. Rohit then suddenly tags Bey in as TJP charges and runs around the ring until Bey blindsides TJP. Bey with a European uppercut to TJP and sends him into the ropes, TJP slides under and hits a rana, then tags in Mack. Bey charges in but Mack knocks him down, comes off the ropes and leaps over with an armdrag. Spinning bodyslam by Mack, he comes off the ropes with a big legdrop for two. Mack with a hard shot to Bey, then he slams Bey into the hostile turnbuckle and tags in TJP. Bey gets sent into another turnbuckle and TJP with a kick. Whip across the ring, Bey reverses and TJP handstands in the corner. Rohit goes over and helps Bey by grabbing TJP, blocking the rana and TJP falls groin-first into Bey’s knees. Grace gets tagged in and she clubs across the back of TJP’s neck, then the front. She batters TJP to the ground and gives Rohit a glare before going for the pin that gets one. She slams TJP into the corner and tags in Bey, who takes over by battering TJP. Grace tagged back in and Rohit is calling for the tag. Grace finally tags him in, Grace and Bey hold him but they let go at the last minute as Rohit goes off the ropes right into a TJP dropkick. Grace goes for a big bomb in the corner but TJP moves, she rolls out as TJP with a Tornado DDT to Bey! He goes for the tag and tags in Trey, who clotheslines Rohit twice and then whips him, Rohit counters and swings but Trey dodges again and again. Trey with a spinning kick and the pin is broken up by Grace and Bey. Everyone’s in now, and Bey sends Mack to the outside but eats a spinning kick by TJP. Bey comes off the ropes with a discus clothesline, then turns into a push-up uppercut by Mack. Grace with a big spinebuster to Grace! Trey with the Combination to Grace! And Rohit with a big flying knee to Trey, he goes for the pin but Bey shoves him off and goes for the pin, being the legal man — Trey kicks out at two! Bey with a springboard cutter and Rohit made the tag, he goes for the pinfall and BEY PULLS ROHIT OFF! Bey and Rohit start yelling at each other and Rohit decks Bey! He turns around and waits for Trey but Bey comes off the ropes: springboard cutter to Rohit! Trey with a big kick to Bey and he pins Rohit!
Winner: Trey Miguel, TJP, and Willie Mack (5:24)
Rating: ** 1/2
Thoughts: For the time this got, it was great. We had a ton of good action in the ring and solid storytelling to boot, hitting both of the important elements. I wasn’t sure how well Grace would play on a team with Rohit and Bey, being the babyface among the two heels, but it worked well in part two to her power style and just the fact that no one likes Rohit in this story. It was chaotic but clean without any sloppiness, and that’s all you can ask from a five and a half minute six-person tag match.
* NEXT: Gia Miller sits down with Eric Young.
* We come back with the Bound For Glory promo with the many Eric Youngs.
* We get a hype video for Young/Swann looking at Swann’s promo after Slammiversary as well as Young’s post-match assaults on Eddie Edwards and Tommy Dreamer. Swann says the ring’s his home and we see Swann attacking Young, as well as Swann demanding the Bound For Glory match and then Young’s rampage against the Deaners and Edwards, Swann’s rescue of Eddie at Victory Road and Young’s attack on Swann a couple of weeks ago. And finally, D’Amore announcing last week that the match is on, leading to Young attacking D’Amore and Swann coming out to make the save and attack Young.
* Young is with Gia, who mentions the attacks on Swann and D’Amore. She says it’s a level of violence that Impact hasn’t seen before, and all I can think of is Samoa Joe with a knife. Gia asks Young’s plans for BFG, and Young says this is all self-inflicted and not his plan. He showed Rich the path to avoid him, as with D’Amore. He’s been warning people to stay out of his business but no one is learning. He’s not the problem; he set his plan in motion. He set his goals and boundaries, and people want to break those boundaries. That’s fine, but they’ll have to deal with the ramifications just like he has his whole career. He’s taken control of his life and career, and this was all going to happen one way or another. Swann and D’Amore learned things the hard way and the bodies will people up if people keep sticking their nose in his business. Come Bound For Glory, it’s going to be more of the same because now Young is angry, upset, and vindictive, and he has purpose. He knows what has to happen to Rich Swann. He says his actions are now Swann’s responsibility AND SWANN ATTACKS OUT OF NOWHERE! They brawl their way off camera and out of the building. Swann takes control but eats a punch and the camera fuzzes out.
* Josh and Madison break down the Bound For Glory card:
– Call Your Shot Battle Royal
– Eddie Edwards vs. Ken Shamrock
– X-Division Championship Match: Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raji vs. Jordynne Grace vs. TJP vs. Trey Miguel vs. Willie Mack
– EC3 vs. Moose
– Knockouts Championship Match: Deonna Purrazzo vs. Kylie Rae
– Impact World Championship Match: Eric Young vs. Rich Swann
– Impact World Tag Team Championship Match: The Motor City Machine Guns vs. The North vs. The Good Brothers vs. Ace Austin & Madman Fulton
The North vs. The Good Brothers
Anderson & Page start off and lock up, Anderson gets pushed into the corner but trash talking by Page lets Anderson get a kick to the gut. Anderson sends Page outside, Alexander runs in but gets knocked out of the ring by a charging Gallows. And just like that, we’re on break.
We come back with the Good Brothers in control of Alexander, who gets whipped into the ropes and gets kicked in the gut and then the head. Anderson with the pin gets two. Anderson picks Alexander up and slams him into the hostile corner, European uppercut and Gallows is tagged in for a kick to the gut. Snapmare by LG, who comes off the ropes with an elbow. Pin gets two. Gallows with a headbutt that knocks Josh down. He’s pulled up for a measured punch and Karl is in to stomp Josh down in the corner. He showboats a bit and talks some trash to Page, then goes back for an armlock on Alexander. Alexander fights back and backs Anderson into the corner, he’s backed off by the ref and Page with a shot to Anderson! The North pounce on Karl and Alexander chokes him against the second rope for four. Alexander picks Anderson up, forearm to the face and Page is tagged in for a shot to the stomach. Page knocks Karl down with a fist and taunts LG, which lets him get Karl in the corner and double team him with Alexander. Josh in now, he mocks Anderson trying to get to the corner and knocks him down. Club across the back of the neck and he follows Anderson, who starts fighting back with chops but Josh cuts him off with a kick. Shoulder slams in the corner and Anderson falls to the mat. Josh with a half-nelson to work the shoulder, Anderson fights to get to his feet and back elbows Josh a few times but Page tags himself in. Alexander with a full nelson backbreaker and Page picks him up into a backbreaker for a two-count. Chinlock by Page to wear Anderson down, Anderson eventually manages to fight to his feet but gets cut off and thrown into the corner. Alexander tags in and Anderson is trying to fight back but no luck. Snapmare by Josh into a chinlock, and Karl is fading a bit. He comes back to and gets back to his feet, elbows to Alexander but Josh stops Karl again. He charges at Anderson in the corner but Karl with a foot up! Alexander charges but Anderson slips by and hits a spinebuster off the ropes! Anderson now makes the hot tag, Page is in but LG runs wild and takes both men down. Splash on Page in the corner, big boot off the ropes and Magic Killer attempt but Alexander makes the save and we have a full brawl. The referee throws the match out as things descend into chaos.
Winner: No Contest (7:42)
Rating: ** 1/2
Thoughts: Decent match that had a fairly predictable result leading into the four-team brawl. It wasn’t anything super-special but it didn’t need to be; these two teams just needed to work their magic against each other and it came off pretty well.
After the match, the brawl continues, and Fulton and Austin are out to attack the Good Brothers and The North! The Machine Guns come out too and it’s a four-team melee. The North are set out as are Fulton and Austin, leaving the Good Brothers and Guns in the ring. The two teams agree they’re square and Anderson goes for a handshake with Shelley INTO A CUTTER! Sabin attacks but gets double-teamed, MAGIC KILLER! The Good Brothers stand tall as Impact comes to a close.
