The Commentary: Total Nonstop Action

Note: Unfortunately, Youtube was giving issues with the video portion of this week’s installment of “The Commentary” so there will be none. Many apologies. Just imagine my voice talking, it will be just as productive and less painful.

Total. Nonstop. Action. Total. Nonstop. Action.

Three words I’ve heard oh so many times before, yet have been let down consistently from a company that I have believed in. But Sunday night’s Slammiversary pay-per-view delivered just that: Total, nonstop action.

It was on May 10, 2002 that TNA Wrestling was officially founded, and 11 years later, it finds itself as arguably the No. 2 wrestling company in the world. It has attracted fans who wanted the alternative to the “McMahon mothership” and provided quality wrestling for all of its viewers.

With that said, it is also impossible to ignore the realities: Nepotism, overhyped promises and skewed booking has harmed the product greatly over the past several years, and low ratings have become nothing short of expected. If there was ever a time that TNA needed to take the step in the right direction, it was going to start on Sunday night.

Slammiversary XI was not just a great night of action, but a great night of storytelling and matches that lived up to their expectations as well.

The decision to make X Division matches involve three competitors is one that paid off greatly. These matches are exciting, and when opportunities are presented with three great performers, the match can be of quality as well. The Ultimate X match between Chris Sabin, Kenny King and Suicide was the perfect opener to get the Boston crowd going, as all three men have excellent ring presence and athleticism to showcase. Ultimate X is still a unique concept despite there having been 30 of them already, and these three brought the house down to start.

There is still a market for cruiserweight wrestling, and this showed it. Here’s to hoping that Chris Sabin receives a quality shot at the TNA title with his victory.

We continued the strong start with a hot promo from Hulk Hogan. When Hogan wants to give the rub to others, he can do so in an effective manner. His pushing of Magnus, Samoa Joe and Jeff Hardy was exactly what this match needed to get a little extra excitement, and all parties delivered. Though the Aces & Eights squad may not have been the most threatening, the match was booked well with each wrestler obtaining the opportunity to showcase their set.

And how about Samoa Joe? Enough praise cannot be said about him. His intensity and athleticism, especially for someone his size, is off the charts. Here’s to hoping he’s back in the main event picture soon.

The Gutcheck match was undoubtedly the low point of the night, but everyone needs a cool-down match. Jay Bradley has potential, but he needs to come off as not being greener than a Granny Smith Apple.

I’ve always been a big fan of the Joseph Park character, even if Devon keeps adding an “s” to the end of his last name. Give all the credit in the world to Chris Parks for being able to reinvent himself in such a manner, playing two characters almost simultaneously. His promos are always entertaining, even if his booking has been redundant.

But I am also hoping Slammiversary was the last we will see of him. Abyss came out to a big pop, and cleaned house on Devon for the Television Championship. This likely means we’ll see Abyss every week now, which is finally the right time. TNA needs a good monster face at this point to help counterbalance Aces & Eights, so this will now be his opportunity to step into that role.

The four-way elimination tag match was exactly what it needed to be. I have often said that one of TNA’s biggest flaws is that they don’t have a reputable midcard title, so with that said, many of the midcard is forced into the tag division. Regardless of whether that is an issue or not, they absolutely made it work last night. Every single one of the men involved in this match are great workers, and can tell a compelling story in the ring.

I don’t get the negativity around Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez. I think Hernandez is a ton of fun to watch, and we know that Guerrero can put on clinics in the ring. Aries and Roode are exactly what we expect, and Bad Influence are incredibly entertaining. Gunner and Storm will be a formidable tag team that could work out to be a strong feud down the line, and I have no complaints about the booking of this whatsoever.

The biggest surprise of the night for me was the Last Knockouts Standing match between Taryn Terrell and Gail Kim. Kim is a consumate professional, and her and Terrell put on one of the most enjoyable female bouts of the last 10 years. ODB seemed a bit lost at times as referee, but it didn’t matter. These two women put on a show, and it got the crowd hot. When was the last time that happened in WWE? One of Impact’s most unique feature is the Knockouts division when booked correctly, and I only hope they continue to do so.

Then there’s Kurt Angle. Angle was my predictions to be this year’s TNA Hall of Fame inductee, and I’m glad that he was. Dixie Carter kept referring to him not being afraid to cross the line at that time, and that is undoubtedly one of the defining qualities of Kurt Angle. He took an incredible risk in leaving a lucrative contract with WWE, and moved to something that could have potentially cost him a reputation. He has been the most consistent thing in TNA over the last seven years, which is pretty amazing that it has even been that long!

He and AJ Styles put on a show. Defensive pressure. Offensive pace. It was fantastic. The two guys know how to work a ring and a crowd better than Bieber knows how to pick up a traffic violation. I hope these two continue their program for a few more weeks, with a little more character development going into Styles’ end. He is at a unique crossroads right now as a tweener. Will he lean to one side?

Then, there was the main event. Bully Ray’s promo before the match really hit home to me. Eleven years ago, as he was floating around WWE following the brand extension, could you have ever imagined Bubba Ray Dudley as the man in a company? His promo was full of intensity, and as I mentioned about CM Punk and John Cena a few months back, the usage of a move so sparingly can make it so much more meaningful. His guarantee of the piledriver made me anticipate it with genuine excitement.

The match was essentially what we expected of it, with Aces & Eights helping Bully Ray pull off the win. Sting will never get a TNA World Heavyweight Championship shot again, and I’m not so sure that’s a bad thing. Nonetheless, the match was, once again, well-paced, and booked in a way to make the face look like he had the odds stacked against him other than the man disadvantage. Bravo TNA, and here’s to hoping that Brooke Hogan is out of the picture by Bound For Glory.

Overall, Slammiversary was one of my favorite wrestling events of 2013 so far. If you didn’t order it, you missed out. And that should be the goal of every company out there. Make the fans regret not ordering it. Make them want to tune in the next week. And guarantee they order the next.

And most importantly, TNA, keep the action going nonstop.

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