Burning Hammer Tape Review #11
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NWA: Total Nonstop Action #22
November 27, 2002
--Taped from Nashville, TN
--Your hosts are Don West & Mike Tenay
--Briscoes V. Divine Storm (W/Trinity). Briscoes are real life brothers Jay & Mark, and Divine Storm consist of Chris Divine & Quiet Storm, who were both trained by Mikey Whipwreck. Nice mat wrestling by all four men starts things out. Springboard Diamond Cutter by Mark on Storm gets a 2 count. Storm gets the pin on Jay at 6:06 with a Storm Cradle Driver. ** Some good action, but during the middle portion all four guys seemed to be on different pages, and the match got a little sloppy. Trinity also got involved at various points during the match, and despite what TNA & its fans may claim, she is such a Lita clone that it's not even funny.
--America's Most Wanted V. Hot Shots. AMW are Chris Harris & James Storm, while the Shots are Cassidy O' Reilly & Chase Stevens. Shots hit a nice double-team Superkick on Harris for 2. AMW hit the Death Sentence on Stevens, which is a SWEET~ Spinebuster/Guillotine Legdrop combination. Shots win the match at 5:17 by count-out when AMW get distracted by Father James Mitchell. * By the numbers match.
--NWA Tag Team Championship Match: BG James, Curt Hennig V. Disciples Of The New Church (W/Father James Mitchell & Belladonna). James is the former Road Dogg from the WWF, albeit with about forty extra pounds of fat. The New Church in this match are Brian Lee, & Slash, who some might know as Wolfie D from PG-13. Mitchell spent some time in ECW as the Sinister Minister, and in WCW as James Vandenberg. I've heard rumors that Belladonna is Daffney from WCW, but I can't really tell based on the way Belladonna looks. New Church win the match by disqualification at 10:34 when AMW come down to the ring and attack them. *1/2 This match gave off a "buying time for the run-in" vibe.
--Alex Winters V. EZ Money. I have no idea who Alex Winters is, but I remember Money from his stint in ECW. Money hits a nice Slingshot Clothesline. Money gets the pin at 3:20 with an Orange Crush (Flip Suplex). 3/4* Squash match.
--Crimson Dragon V. Sonny Siaki. Dragon is Chris Hamrick under a mask. Dragon hits a nice Canadian Cutter. Siaki hits a good looking Avalanche Overhead Belly-To-Belly Suplex. Siaki gets the pin at 5:18 with a Siakalypse (Swinging Neckbreaker). 3/4* An extended squash match.
--NWA X Championship Match: AJ Styles (W/Mortimer Plumtree) V. Jerry Lynn. Styles pulls up the padding outside the ring, exposing the concrete, and gives Lynn a DDT onto the exposed concrete. Styles tries a Hurricanrana off the apron, but Lynn catches him and throws him into the steel railing in a vicious fashion. Lynn is busted open and bleeding all over the place from the previous DDT on the concrete. Plumtree keeps on going after Lynn's busted open forehead with a pair of brass knuckles every chance he gets. SWEET~ spot as Styles reverses a Lynn Powerslam into a Scorpion Deathdrop for 2. Lyger Bomb by Lynn gets 2. Lynn hits a middle-rope Gordbuster to knock both guys out. Lynn gets the pin at 12:35 after Plumtree inadvertently tossed him the brass knuckles & he nailed Styles in the head with them. ***1/2 Another good match-up between these two, but a bad ending to a good match, and too much interference from Plumtree.
--NWA Heavyweight Championship Match: Truth V. Jeff Jarrett. Truth is also known as Ron Killings, and wrestled in the WWF as K-Kwik. Good sequence with Jarrett catching a Truth Axekick & applying a Figure Four Leglock, which Truth reverses right away so that Jarrett has to get to the ropes for the break. Frog Splash by Truth gets 2. Truth catches Jarrett during a leapfrog & turns it into a Lyger Bomb for 2. Match is a count-out at 11:08, but Bob Armstrong, NWA official & looking to be about 90 years old here, says the match must have a finish, so he restarts the match. Jarrett hits a trio of Strokes for the pin at 14:10. **1/2 Actual wrestling was good, but neither guy looked particularly good when they went into a brawling segment in the middle of the match.
--Final Flash: Nothing outright bad, but nothing really great either, and Styles & Lynn have had many matches together that were just as good if not better than this meeting, so there's no real reason to seek out this episode of TNA.
Not Recommended
WWE: Raw
December 03, 2002
--Taped from Austin, TX
--Your hosts are JR & King
--Dudley Boyz V. 3 Minute Warning (W/Rico). 3MW consist of a couple of Samoans, Jamal & Rosey. 3MW hit a nice double-team Backdrop Driver on Bubba. Nice Bossman Slam by Bubba on Rosey gets 2. Bubba gets the pin on Rosey at 7:55 after the Dudleys hit a 3D on him. **1/4 Standard tag match. Post-match Chris Jericho & Christian lay out the Dudleys & Spike Dudley.
--Trish Stratus V. Ivory. Trish gets the pin at 4:12 with a Springboard Bulldog. 3/4* Standard WWE women's match.
--Jeff Hardy, Tommy Dreamer V. William Regal, Lance Storm. Hardy was in the middle of a caravan of tag team partners at this point, teaming with a different person almost every Raw. Storm gets the pin on Dreamer at 3:30 after ramming him face first into an exposed turnbuckle. 3/4* Pointless match.
--Batista (W/Ric Flair) V. Hurricane. Batista had a stint in OVW, Ohio Valley Wrestling, as Leviathan, and has never really been used as good as he was while in OVW. Hurricane wrestled for years in the Indies and in WCW as Shane Helms before the WWE changed him into this comedy gimmick. Batista gets the pin at 0:51 with a Demon Bomb. DUD Squash Match.
--Booker T V. Chris Jericho. Some good back & forth action early on in the match. Superplex by Booker takes both guys out. Booker tries a Pump Rollup out of the corner, but Jericho reverses to a Boston Crab, but he's too close to the ropes as Booker reaches the ropes easily. Chief Morley comes out and declares the match a no-contest at 7:57. **3/4 Nice little match-up between these two, and it leads right toÉ
--WWE Tag Team Championship Match: Booker T, Goldust V. Chris Jericho, Christian. When Morley declared the previous match a no-contest, he started this match in its place. Goldust gets a SWEET~ Snap Powerslam on Jericho for 2. Jericho gets the pin on Booker at 6:37 after knocking Booker out with a shot to the head with a tag belt. **3/4 Another nice little match-up, but one has to wonder about the decision to job out the local favorites, because the crowd is dead for the rest of the night after being raucous all throughout the night up until the end of this match.
--Jacqueline V. Victoria. Jacqueline gets the pin at 2:37 with a Spin Kick. 1/2* Basic Jacqueline match.
--Triple H (W/Ric Flair) V. Rob Van Dam. Shawn Michaels is the special guest referee, & he tosses Flair from ringside before the match can get under way. RVD inadvertently takes out Michaels with a Spin Kick, which allows Triple H to nail RVD in the head with a chairshot and the groggy Michaels counts the pin at 6:30. * Tedious, overbooked match.
--Final Flash: Standard Raw, with some decent tuff, and some not so good stuff, but nothing that's good enough to stand on its own.
Not Recommended
--NWA: Total Nonstop Action #23
December 05, 2002
--Taped from Nashville, TN
--Your hosts are Don West & Mike Tenay
--S.A.T.s V. Divine Storm (W/Trinity). S.A.T.s stands for the Spanish Announce Team, and they're represented in this match by the Maximo Brothers, Joel & Jose. Storm & Jose go through about fifty different variations of the Armdrag to start things off, which culminates in a neat spot where both guys go for an Armdrag at the same time, and a stalemate in the middle of the ring results. Storm Cradle Driver by Storm on Joel only gets 2. Divine gets the pin on Jose at 7:34 with a Rollup after Trinity interfered and hit him with a Low Blow. **1/2 Fun match, but it was too spotty from the middle parts till the end.
--Chris Harris (W/James Storm) V. Brian Lee (W/Slash, Father James Mitchell, & Belladonna). Harris gets the pin at 5:13 with a Spear. *1/2 Basic wrestling.
--James Storm (W/Chris Harris) V. Slash (W/Brian Lee, Father James Mitchell, & Belladonna). Storm gets the pin at 6:26 after he & Harris hit the Death Sentence on Slash while the ref is distracted. 3/4* Ref distractions & run-ins galore don't hide the fact that this wasn't good wrestling.
--4 Way Double Elimination Match: EZ Money V. Kid Kash V. AJ Styles (W/Mortimer Plumtree) V. Joel Maximo. Rules are that two guys start the match in the ring, and when someone loses a fall one of the wrestlers from the outside comes in to take the defeated wrestlers place, and the process repeats itself until three wrestlers have lost twice, leaving the remaining wrestler as the winner. Amazing Red was originally supposed to be in the match, but Styles attacked him before the match and gave him a Styles Clash on the entrance stage, so Maximo was named as Red's replacement. Maximo & Kash start off the match, and Maximo gets the pin on Kash at 2:37 with a German Suplex Hold to give Kash one loss. Styles takes Kash's place so that it's now Styles & Maximo in the ring. Styles gets the pin at 4:15 with a Kryptonite Krunch to give Maximo one loss, and Money enters the ring to take his place. Money only gets a 2 count when he reverses a Styles Clash into a Crown's Gate. Money gets the pin to give Styles one loss at 6:20 with an Orange Crush, as Kash comes in to take Styles place. Kash fucks up a Hurricanrana, and he and Money crash into the ropes. Kash gets 2 with a Cradlebreaker. Avalanche Hurricanrana by Kash only gets 2. Money gets the pin to eliminate Kash at 9:24 with a Small Package after Styles kicked Kash in the back, and Styles replaces Kash in the ring, and gets a very quick pin on Money to give him one loss at 9:46 with a Styles Clash. Maximo replaces Money in the ring. Maximo gets the pin to eliminate Styles at 18:00 with a School Boy Rollup, which leaves Maximo & Money as the final two combatants. Money gets the pin to win the match & eliminate Maximo at 20:34 with an EZ Driver (Powerbomb into a Piledriver). * Disjointed spotfest that was made even worse when it turned into a head-drop fest in the middle.
--3 Way Bullrope Match: Chris Harris V. James Storm V. Father James Mitchell. The winners of the two previous matches between AMW & The New Church won the right to be in this match with Mitchell, where all three men are tied by the wrist to a bullrope, and the first pinfall or submission wins the match. Obviously, even though Storm & Harris are supposed to be against each other here, that's not going to happen since Mitchell was their main antagonist at this time. Harris & Storm are laid out when the match begins due to a pre-match beating from the New Church. Match is a no-contest at 3:36 when Storm pins Belladonna who had taken the place of Mitchell midway through the match. DUD Pointless crap.
--Handicap Match: Harris Boys V. Jeff Jarrett. Harris' are longtime rednecks and real life brothers Don & Ron. This was originally supposed to be a tag match involving Truth, but he was taken out by the Harris'. It was then switched to a tag match involving BG James, but he too was taken out by the Harris', albeit off-camera, and with that much crap going on & Vince Russo being involved, more than likely someone is going to pull a huge swerve and join up with Russo's group. Jarrett gets the pin on Don at 5:14 with the Stroke. 1/4* Nothing but punching & kicking, followed by a ridiculous Superman comeback by Jarrett. Post-match Truth comes out and the Harris' and Russo beat him down until it looks like James come out to make the save, only to complete the shocking swerve that everyone saw from a mile away by turning on Truth and nailing him with a chair.
--Final Flash: More Russo crap, a lot of which I didn't go into in the review since I only review the matches, and not the various twenty minute snoozefests that Russo was having on every episode of TNA around this time. That, and a bunch of completely pointless matches make this episode of TNA well worth passing up.
Not Recommended
WWE: Smackdown
December 06, 2002
--Taped from Dallas, TX
--Your hosts are Tazz & Michael Cole
--Rey Mysterio Jr. V. Albert. Just as a quick aside, I'm willing to go along with the butchered spelling that most American promotions give to Luchadores, but if they are a Jr., like Rey Mysterio Jr., and Chavo Guerrero Jr., I'm going to call them by that no matter what, because I'm not willing to disregard the original holders of the names, unlike some American promoters. It's a small thing that most of you don't care about, I know, but I just thought I'd let you know so there wasn't any confusion with the names I use. Albert gets the pin at 2:52 with a Canadian Backbreaker. * Post-match Albert attacks Rey and works over his knee, which would put Rey on the shelf for a couple of months since he was already going in for knee surgery. This would be the last match for Albert, as he changed his name to A-Train right after this, and apparently found his lost wrestling ability with the name change, becoming a much more sound wrestler that he ever was as Albert.
--Jamie Noble (W/Nidia) V. Crash. Maybe he lost the Holly on one of the many drunken binges he had during his run in the WWF/E. Crash gets the pin at 2:03 with a Styles Clash. 3/4* Too short to be worth anything.
--Funaki V. Bill DeMott. This was right after Tough Enough III, so the WWE thought the fans would respond to a push for DeMott, but they were wrong. DeMott gets the pin at 2:31 with a Moonsault Press. DUD Squash city.
--WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match: Chavo Guerrero Jr. V. Billy Kidman. Fireman's Carry Neckbreaker by Kidman gets 2. Chavo hits a nice Springboard Swinging DDT for 2. Shooting Star Press attempt by Kidman misses, and Chavo immediately connects with a Gory Bomb, but he hits it to close to the ropes, and Kidman gets his foot on the ropes after a 2 count. They fight while Chavo's on the apron & Kidman's in the ring, and Kidman brings Chavo back into the ring with a Curtain Call, which leaves Chavo in perfect position for a Shooting Star Press by Kidman that gets the pin at 7:43. *** Good match between both guys, Kidman sold really good for Chavo's offense, and Chavo made Kidman look like a very tough champion by pulling out all the stops and still not being able to beat him.
--Fatal 4 Way Elimination Match: Edge V. Eddie Guerrero V. Chris Benoit V. Kurt Angle. Rules here are that all four men are in the ring at the same time, so no tags are needed. Edge gets attacked by Albert during his entrance, he gets taken backstage, but before the opening bell can sound he makes his way back to the ring, but this time with a noticeable limp. The looks on the other three guys faces when they notice the limp are priceless, and smartly they all gang up on Edge the moment the match starts, and target his knee, but Edge manages to fight them all off. Guerrero SWANKLY~ counters an Angle Slam by Angle with an Armdrag, and then hits a Frog Splash, but it only gets 2, Benoit gets Guerrero with a Kamikaze Headbutt, but it only gets 2, then Edge hits an Implant DDT on Benoit that only gets 2 in a really good sequence. Benoit eliminates Guerrero by getting him to submit to the Crossface at 5:25 aired after Edge hit Guerrero with a Spear. Accidental ref bump allows Guerrero to sneak back in and clock Benoit in the back of the head with a tag belt, and Edge follows up with a Spear at 7:10 aired to eliminate Benoit. Angle and Edge are the only two remaining, and Angle goes to work on Edge, including ramming him headfirst into the steel steps, which opens up a gash on Edge's forehead. Edge gives Angle some of his own medicine with an Overhead Belly-To-Belly Suplex, but Edge is so drained that he can't capitalize on the advantage. Edge gets an Edge-O-Matic for 2. Rolling Germans by Angle, but Edge counters the third one into a Victory Roll for 2. Spear by Edge, but it only gets 2. Implant DDT by Edge gets a really close 2 count. Angle Slam by Angle only gets 2. Angle goes to the Anklelock a couple of times but Edge keeps on reversing, and when Angle tries it a third time Edge makes the ropes so that Angle has to break. Angle Slam by Edge gets another really close 2 count. Angle gets the pin to eliminate Edge and win the match at 18:36 aired with an Avalanche Angle Slam. ****1/4 Awesome match, the only drawbacks were the quick eliminations of Benoit & Guerrero, but that allowed Angle & Edge a longer time to tell their story so it all balanced out. Angle & Edge did tell a great story, with Edge battling to stay in the match & Angle unable to put him away no matter what he tried until the very end when he had to pull out the Avalanche Angle Slam to finally put the valiant Edge away.
--Final Flash: Last two matches aside, this was not a good Smackdown. Get the 4 Way somewhere else, but otherwise avoid this Smackdown.
Not Recommended
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