By David Miller, Torch Team Contributor

NWA-TNA LXXXVIX
Live from the TNA Asylum
Nashville, Tennessee
March 31, 2004

TNA has had two really solid live shows in a row now. Tonight seems like it should be no exception. We have the second round of the NWA tag title tournament, plus a fatal four way that looks like it could be a real barn burner. Wouldn�t it be nice if the X title match featuring Amazing Red would be given a top priority tonight instead of jerking the curtain? Will Jonny Fairplay be there and if so will he do anything of importance? Will Scott D�Amore tell us why he�s on television? Only one way to find out. Let�s all tune in to TNA and give thanks to the wrestling gods that we won�t have to hear the chant �ICP, ICP, ICP.�

�Wildcat� Chris Harris gave the obligatory cable theft speech.

Highlights from last week were shown.

The new TNA intro ran and Mike Tenay welcomed us to the Asylum.

(1) Christopher Daniels & Low-Ki beat The Naturals (Chase Stevens & Andy Douglas) at 12:09 to advance to the finals of the NWA tag team title tournament. Don West reminded us that this was not XXX, they have not reunited. Toward the end of the match, Douglas went for the powder, but Ki kicked it into his face. He and Daniels then used a nifty looking finisher on Chase for the pin. Ki shook Daniels� hand afterwards. The match was long enough, but it just wasn�t very interesting.

Kid Kash and his big, green buddy, Dallas, were in the back with Scott Hudson. Kash mouthed off about Johnny Swinger while Dallas stood there and did his Diesel imitation by saying nothing when spoken to.

(2) Kid Kash & Dallas defeated Slash & Sinn at 8:46 to advance to the finals of the NWA tag team title tournament. Kash spent the majority of the match in the ring, as expected. Big Daddy Green only tagged in long enough to execute a couple of boots to the head. The big kid did use a nice looking powerbomb variation to finish off Sinn. Not a good match.

Mike Tenay and Don West talked about the footage of Jarrett in Mexico.

Footage was shown of Jeff Jarrett�s recent appearance on a AAA card in Mexico City, Mexico. Not much to it, but I like stuff like this. It makes TNA seem like a world-class organization. Jarrett then cut a promo about the four-way match tonight.

In the ring, Mike Tenay introduced America�s Most Wanted. As they were walking to the ring, Jarrett ran out and clocked James Storm over the head with a guitar. He and Chris Harris began brawling in the ring. Harris went for the other guitar Jarrett had brought with him, but Raven came out and gave him a DDT. Raven and Jarrett then got nose to nose and looked like they were going to throw down, but A.J. Styles came out and started thumping on Raven. Jarrett picked up his other guitar and wrapped it around Chris Harris� neck. Security then came out to stop everything.

Scott Hudson was in the back with Monte Brown. Brown compared himself to a hunter and his opponents as game. Really funny promo. The guy just has this comic sense to him while still being intimidating.

(3) Monte Brown vs. Sabu was declared a no-contest at 10:37. Brown and Sabu fought in the ring for awhile before taking it to the outside. The brawled from the floor to the rafters and refused to return to the ring, so the referee just stopped the match. This was an okay brawl, but nothing we haven�t seen before.

Scott Hudson was in the back with Glenn Gilberti & David Young. Hudson brought up Young�s losing streak of 0-17 since last October. Young said that can�t be true, but Gilberti went off and told him this was his last chance. Hudson then interviewed The New Franchise. Shane Douglas cut one of those horrid 80's cartoon promos where he overacts ridiculously. He said there was no dissension within the family.

(4) D-Lo Brown & Apolo beat Simon Diamond & Sonny Siaki and The New Franchise (Shane Douglas & Michael Shane) and Glenn Gilberti & David Young at 9:52 in a four corners match to become the number one contenders to the NWA tag team titles. Brown came out with �El Leon�, who unmasked to reveal himself as (gasp) Apolo! The announcers, to their credit, confirmed that everyone knew who it was all along. Young tagged in Brown late in the match, then got a comical deer in the headlights look as he realized he�d just tagged the enemy. The New Franchise got into it, with Traci playing the role of peacekeeper this week. Johnny Swinger ran in on Diamond, allowing Young to cover, but Siaki broke it up. Apolo then delivered a TKO to Young and got the pin. Not bad, but Young�s involvement in a match is an instant spoiler that his team will lose.

Scott Hudson was walking through a dark storage area where he said he knew Abyss likes to hang out. Instead of finding Abyss, he encountered a completely made-over Goldylocks. She was dressed in black, had short, black hair, narrow glasses, and spoke with a slight accent. She said Abyss was preparing for his match and couldn�t be disturbed. Hudson feigned ignorance over the woman�s identity.

An Amazing Red video aired.

Chris Sabin, on crutches and wearing the X-Division title belt, came to ringside and relinquished his belt to the referee after being stripped of the title due to his injury.

(5) Frankie Kazarian pinned Amazing Red at 9:52 to win the X-Division title. Sabin sat at ringside as Tenay put his integrity over by talking about how he had the guts to bring the belt back in person instead of by Fed-Ex. Red received a Jeff Hardy-like reaction from the girls in the crowd. Red connected with a code red, but missed his red star press, allowing Kazarian to roll him up for the pin. Afterwards, he attacked Sabin at ringside. The rest of Team NWA ran out to his defense and thumped on Kazarian until he fled.

Scott Hudson was in the back with 3 Live Kru. Ron Killings talked about his upcoming match.

David Taylor came out to introduce Team U.K., but instead he just talked about how great they were and never really introduced them.

Scott Hudson was in the back with Sting, who said it was showtime and looked as if he had already been in a scuffle.

A video was shown of the circumstances leading up to tonight�s main event.

(6) Raven defeated A.J. Styles & Ron Killings & Abyss at 11:15 in a �final four way� match to win a match with Chris Harris to determine the number one contender to the NWA heavyweight champion. Sting came out for his role in this match as �special enforcer�. Tenay mentioned that Sting�s face paint was smeared because he had been in an altercation with Jeff Jarrett earlier. It wasn�t on camera, so I wonder what the real excuse is. Vince Russo came out with a towel over his shoulder (is he going to barber school, or what?) and sat at the announcers table. Pretty good stuff from all four men. A.J. hit the Styles clash on Raven, but Jeff Jarrett ran out to distract the referee. Sting grabbed Jarrett, but Jarrett fought him off. Russo then confronted Jarrett. The champ grabbed the towel from Russo�s shoulder and threw it in the ring just as A.J. was preparing to give another Styles clash to Raven. Styles was distracted by the towel long enough to allow Raven to hit the evenflow DDT for the pin. Afterwards, Styles stared at Russo, thinking he was the one who threw the towel in the ring. Good match to end the show with, but it could have used another five minutes.

Random Thoughts: Anyone else think Andy Douglas looks like a smaller version of Chris Harris, who looks like a bigger version of Bret Hart?..........Why does Konnan always dress like he�s preparing to rob a bank?..........The absence of Jonny Fairplay wouldn�t bother me except for the fact that means Lollipop wasn�t there either..........Goldylocks� new look is interesting, let�s see where they go with it..........What happened to Terry Taylor?..........Does TNA think anyone cares to see Dallas, the Jolly Green Giant?

Final Analysis: Not one of TNA�s better offerings. The last two matches were only good, not great, and the undercard pretty much reeked. Nothing clicked at all tonight. Dallas is an atrocious worker who looks like he�s lost in the ring. He�s not ICP-repulsive, but he just looks like he belongs on a National Guard Armory wrestling card, not a TNA PPV. The rest of the show just lacked any electricity or excitement. TNA has got to start developing their characters much better. I�d care a lot more about Low Ki and Christopher Daniels if I knew who they were and what they were all about. This one is an easy call...save your ten bucks for another time.

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