NWA-TNA "An eye full of TNA" review
September 25, 2002
Live from Nashville, Tenn.
By Mike Sempervive, Torch Team Contributor

I'm going to take a new approach with the review tonight. I'll save most of my obnoxious, smart-assed comments for my Lounge column on Sunday. I know you can't wait....

Mike Tenay intros the show but gets interrupted by action in the back where Jerry Lynn is shown brawling with Sonny Siaki in the back, getting some revenge for Siaki costing him the NWA title last week. Lynn dominates most of the fight until it gets broken up by security head Don Harris (who did not seem to be wearing anything offensive tonight).

(1) Sonny Siaki defeated Amazing Red with the Money Clip. Siaki came out selling the left wrist injury he suffered in the fight with Lynn. After an early attack by Red including a Red Star Press from the ring apron to the floor, Siaki goes to a slower, power-based offense throwing Red around inside and outside the ring and gaining several two counts. Tenay & West notice that Siaki is not wearing his Flying Elvis attire. Mortimer Plumtree - who hasn't appeared on PPV's since week 3 - is shown peaking out of the curtain taking notes on the match. Red makes somewhat of a comeback including a sunset flip powerbomb and a spin kick. West makes the observation that Red is just too light to hold Siaki down. (I hate admitting that West has improved dramatically in a short period of time) Red misses a top rope dive and Siaki hits his Money Clip for the win.

After the match, Jorge Estrada comes out to tell Siaki that he and Jimmy Yang are done with Siaki and by the end of the night he'll strip him of his Elvis outfit all the way down to his "blue suede shoes."

As Red goes through the curtain in the back, he is jumped by an amped-up Ron Killings. Killings walks into GoldyLocks and screams "I get 'em before they get me!"

(2) Wildcat Chris Harris & Tennessee Cowboy James Storm defeated Ron Harris & Brain Lee in a tables match to retain the NWA World tag team titles when Storm springs off of Chris Harris knocking Lee off the ring apron into a table on the floor. West announces that this is the rematch he has been waiting for. (I was just beginning to like you too, West) A pretty slow and predictable match with Ron & Lee getting most of the offense. After the match Ron Harris attacks the champions with a title belt and powerbombs Storm through a table. Security then tries to stop Ron but gets thrown around for their efforts. Don Harris then comes out to pull Ron Harris away, and the two have a staredown.

The ticker is shown at the bottom of screen hyping the upcoming NWA shows with special attention being given to the SAT's coming to NWA Midwest on Saturday.

Footage is shown from earlier today of Goldy interviewing Bruce as he arrives in the parking lot. He steals someone's parking space. He is then verbally harrassed by an old lady holding a broom. The lady asks him if his mother taught him any respect and asked how the broom would look crammed up his ass. They have a little push and shove before the old lady smacks him in the face and they are broken up by security. (Great, no Maximo brothers but an old lady vs. Bruce)

NWA champion Ron Killings comes out to cut an in-ring promo. Killings insults the Nashville crowd and then rolls into a promo about what is was like having rats in his house when he was 5 years old. Killings cuts a promo about how he isn't getting the respect he deserves because he is a minority. Bitches about how he doesn't have his own locker room like Ken Shamrock did, and reminds everyone that Ricky Steamboat hasn't been seen since he granted Killings a title shot. He also says it's not fair that all the lumberjacks in tonight's match are all X division wrestlers. B.G. James then comes out to confront Killings the two go back and forth about who helped who in their WWE days with Killings saying he needed the "suntanned superman, the great black hope" to pick up his slack. The crowd then uses "what?" chants to piss off Killings. James tries to interject but is cutoff by The Truth. Killings says last week that he tried to extend his hand to James but was ignored by James. James then has enough when Killings calls him his bitch and clears him from the ring.

After the promo, Tenay & West defend Killings racially laced comments by saying that they can't relate to his situation. (Thank you so much Vince Russo for continuing your long history of race baiting storylines)

GoldyLocks interviews Brain Lawler who is standing with his girlfriend April. Lawler says he has straightened her out. April then begins to say that she "did what she had to do to find comfort." Lawler then cuts the promo short screaming that their personal business will stay personal. It was almost impossible to hear the promo as Jeremy Borash's in-ring announcement about Scott Hall and Syxx almost completely drown out what was being said.

(3) In a best 2 out of 3 falls match to determine the #1 contender to the X title, A.J. Styles defeated Lo-Ki. As a result Lo-Ki drops to the bottom of the X division rankings. The match begins with back and forth mat work before Lo-Ki sends Styles outside with a stiff kick and follows up with a running plancha off the ring apron. Lo-Ki rolls Styles back into the ring where Styles takes back over. A very slow and deliberate pace to the first fall. Lo-Ki hits a beautiful springboard spin kick and then clinches the first fall with a very painful looking Dragon Clutch. Styles recovers enough to begin the second fall on the offensive. Again, the second fall is back and forth and at a relatively slow pace for these two. Styles reverses a Lo-Ki top rope hurricanrana attempt into a pin for the win. Styles begins the third fall by reversing a top rope rana attempt by Lo-Ki into a shin breaker. Styles then cranks on several spinning toe holds, the last of which is reversed into a small package for a 2 count. Styles then goes back to the left leg and goes for a powerbomb which is reversed into a rana by Lo-Ki. Styles goes for a pin with his feet on the ropes after a low blow but only gets two. Styles then goes for a Styles Clash and gets the pin. Good and solid, but a little disappointing considering where these two have placed the bar for their matches.

Goldy interviews Jeff Jarrett in the back about how disappointing his tenure has been in TNA thus far. Jarrett cuts a very short and solid promo about eliminating the obstacles (Hall, Syxx, & James) in his way to the NWA title.

During his ring entrance, Brain Lawler covers up his girlfriend April with his jacket and sits her at ringside.

(4) Syxx-Pac & Scott Hall defeated Elix Skipper & Brian Lawler. Match begins with Skipper and Syxx. Skipper uses his Matrix move to force a spin kick miss by Syxx. Syxx then tags out to Hall, and Skipper to Lawler. Before they hook up Lawler goes outside the ring to yell at April who has moved from her seat. Lawler rolls back in, and then out again to scream at April again to not move. When Lawler goes back into the ring, Skipper then jumps in to begin the action with Hall. Hall dominates with power moves until he is double teamed by the heels. Skipper & Lawler crotch Hall against the ring post allowing Skipper and then Lawler some offense. Skipper gets tagged back in and has a kick reversed into a slam by Hall. Lawler is then shown screaming at April. West goes to April's defense making Lawler miss a tag by Skipper. Syxx then gets some offense in before he tags Hall back in. Hall hits a fallaway slam and then a clothesline in the corner. Syxx goes for a bronco buster but misses. Skipper goes for a top rope dive onto Syxx which he reverses into a X-factor for the win. After the match, Jeff Jarrett runs into the ring and gives the Stroke to Syxx, and then hits an enziguri and the Stroke on Hall. Lawler & Jarrett then stomp on the ex-NWOites until Don Harris comes into the ring to stop the attack.

In the most unneeded segment of the night, Miss TNA, Bruce comes out to cut his weekly in-ring promo insulting the women in the audience and Mike Tenay's wife. The old lady with the broom that confronted Bruce outside the arena earlier comes over the ring barrier and falls on top of Borash. She is identified as Sarah, the ticket taking lady. West, Borash, and then Don Harris, who is obviously making up for lost television time by performing Triple H's duties tonight. Harris tells her that he can't let her get into the ring and escorts her to the back.

Tenay hypes the NWA 54th anniversary show on October 26, as the events ticker runs at the bottom of the screen.

(5) Jorge Estrada defeated Kid Kash with the TCB. Mortimer Plumtree is shown again aon the ramp taking notes on the match. Early in the match, Estrada leaps over the top rope and comes up short on a dive. (Yeah, it look like it hurt) Outside the ring Kash takes over and hits a stunning double springboard flip onto which he turns into a 2 count. Kash gets another 2 with a top rope rana. Estrada then hits Kash with an elbow in the corner and follows with a split-legged moonsault for a 2. The two then exchange chops, before Kash nails a DDT. Kash goes for a double springboard rana but is caught in the air by Estrada who powerbombs and springboard sentons Kash for the pin.

After the match, Estrada calls out Siaki. Siaki calls him Buckwheat (good call there) and tells him there must have been a big misunderstanding and he can have his Elvis jumpsuit back, but then says he has given it a proper burial. Siaki then shows a clip on the big screen from earlier in the day where he throws the jumpsuit into a fire in a trash can.

Clips are shown of last week's situation between Lynn & Killings leading up to tonight's match.

(6) In a lumberjack match for the X title, Jerry Lynn defeated NWA World champion Ron "The Truth" Killings with a TKO to retain the title. Unlike traditional lumberjack matches there were only 4 outside the ring. Red, Kash, Lo-Ki, & Jorge. Lynn jumps on Killings to begin the match who tries to take a breather outside and is thrown back in by Lo-Ki. Lynn then hits some fists to the face and hits a bulldog from the second rope. Killings goes outside where he is chucked back in by Red. Killings takes the momentum with a second rope shoulder block. Killings pounds on Lynn and hits a facebuster for a 2. Killings then throws Lynn outside the ring where he is met by stomps by Kash. The other lumberjacks confront Kash who backs off. Styles is thrown at the top of the ramp holding a ladder. Back in the ring, Killings continues the offense mostly with punches and kicks. Killings blocks a suplex, and uses hits a back kick to the groin while the referee was blocked. Estrada & Red get up on the ring apron to argue with the ref. While Scott Armstrong's back is turned Lynn pushes off Killings (who is attempting a Truth or Consequences) into Lo-Ki who pulls his throat down on the top rope giving Lynn the shot for the TKO and the win.

Don West hard sells next week's show. A.J. Styles will face Jerry Lynn in a ladder match for the X division title and not much else as he rhetorically asks what Ron Killings and Jorge Estrada will do next week.

(7) B.G. James defeated Jeff Jarrett by DQ. Instead of "Welcome to the DoggHouse", James comes out and says "Welcome to the baby boy's playpen." (Uh, whatever works). James gets an early 2 with a groinbuster and a shaky legs knee drop. Jarrett gets an enziguri (2 in one night, Jeff?) but is put outside by the "shake, rattle, and roll" punch combo. Outside James hits Jarrett with a chair and throws him into the crowd, where Jarrett nails him with several �chairshots to the back of his own, while screaming James's new "get it, got it, good" catchphrase over and over. Jarrett throws him back into the ring and locks on a sleeper. James fights out of it with a backdrop suplex. James then goes punches on Jarrett in the corner but Jarrett hits the ref to take James' attention. Jarrett goes outside to get a chair and puts it between the ropes. James reverses an attack by Jarrett and slams his head into the chair and gets a 2 count. Elix Skipper & Brian Lawler then run down to interfere but are fought off by James. Jarrett nails James in the head with a chair, stalls before the pin, and only gets a 2. James goes for a pump-handle slam, but is jumped again by Skipper & Lawler. Scott Hall & Syxx run in to try to clear house but are outnumbered when Ron Killings runs in to attack. The four then leave the faces laying to end the show, and for the first time tonight Don Harris & security is no where to be found.

Any comments? Send them to befair2flair@aol.com

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