Rich retains, Rohit’s reign ruined at Final Resolution

Bob Kapur

Rich retains, Rohit’s reign ruined at Final Resolution

Impact Wrestling’s special monthly events, that air on the company’s subscription streaming service, are kind of a strange animal. The main events are often marquee matches, and because they are uninterrupted with commercials, and are usually really strong, it feels like you’re watching a Pay-Per-View event. But then there are undercard matches featuring storylines that are fine for weekly TV, but don’t feel special enough, or impactful enough to the storyline in question, to warrant being included on a special event.

Final Resolution, which aired on Saturday night, is a good example. The matches involving the champions were all strong and delivered in spades. But most of the undercard matches – even when they were good quality matches – still felt like they should have stayed on TV. Which didn’t make it a bad show… it was overall good. But perhaps cutting it down by a third would have made it even better.

Match 1: Tommy Dreamer vs. Larry D – Old School Rules match

If Dreamer wins, Larry D will go to jail for shooting and trying to kill John E. Bravo. But if Larry wins, he goes free. There were various weapons placed on the floor around the ring, but nobody was smart enough to grab one during their introduction and start with weapon in hand. This was way too tame for a hardcore match. One of the weapons used was a cardboard box containing coffee stirrers and sugar packets, so that should be some kind of indication. After a few shots on Larry with his own weight belt, and a Tree of Woe dropkick, Dreamer went for the tables. Larry’s tag team partner Acey Romero attacked him, and it became a 2-on-1, until John E. Bravo ran in to help Dreamer. That didn’t quite work out the way he planned, and he got Karachi Krunched. As Larry turned around after dispatching Bravo, Dreamer hit him with a low blow and pinned him after a DDT. After the match, Dreamer handcuffed Larry D to take him to the police.

This was a pretty lackluster hardcore match. The weapons were too tame for this to be treated seriously. And Dreamer looked awkward trying to rile up the non-existent crowd, which he did a few times. It would be better to not acknowledge the empty arena at all, because playing to an empty room at that emotional level looks a bit silly. By all rights, this should end the dead horse that is the Bravo saga, but unfortunately you know it won’t.

Winner: Tommy Dreamer

Josh Mathews and Madison Rayne started to run down the rest of the card, but they got distracted by the news that Kenny Omega’s tour bus was in front of the Impact Zone.

Match 2: The Sea Stars vs. Havok and Nevaeh

The Sea Stars started off well, trying to counter the size of their opponents with their technical prowess and speed. But eventually they got caught, and Delmi Exo got trapped in the wrong corner. She felt the pain of a number of power moves, including a nice suplex by Nevaeh, but then she slipped over the top of a Havok powerslam attempt and got the tag. Ashley Vox came in hot, but cooled down quickly when she went for a flying dive on the floor and Havok caught her. Havok then raged up and the Sea Stars were soon seeing stars. A wheelbarrow-cutter double-team move by Havok and Neveah put Exo down for three. Weirdly, Mathews called the ending of the match even before the ref started the pinfall count.

Like the first match, this one could have easily taken place on TV and felt fine there. This was pretty much a showcase for Havok and Nevaeh, to show them as a big threat in the Knockouts Tag Team Championship tournament. The poor Sea Stars haven’t made much of an impact since joining the company. Which is too bad, since they’re actually a pretty good team.

Winners: Havok and Nevaeh

Backstage, Tasha Steelz and Kiera Hogan schemed on how they could keep the wad of stolen cash that prompted tonight’s match between Hernandez and Fallah Bahh.

Match 3: Kaleb and Tenille Dashwood vs. Eddie and Alisha Edwards

They did some comedy early on, with Kaleb hurting his hand every time he hit Eddie, and then having trouble taking off his own t-shirt. The story here was that Dashwood and Kaleb would take cheap shots from the outside to help each other, which got Alisha so mad that she tried to fight either of them, instead of tagging out to Eddie whenever Kaleb was in there. At one point, Kaleb was going to take advantage and flatten a downed Alisha with a top rope move, but Alisha got her boot up into his face, and crawled over for the tag. In a funny moment, Eddie trapped Tenille in the corner with Kaleb’s body, then chopped Kaleb whose head whiplashed into Tenille’s face repeatedly. Things went hectic then with Tenille and Kaleb sent to the floor. Alisha climbed to the top turnbuckle to try an aerial assault, but before she could, the lights flickered on and off and Sami Callihan’s music played for a bit. Alisha looked around for him, and as she did, Tenilled whipped her hard off the top sending her crashing to the mat hard, and prone for the pin.

After the match, Eddie checked on Alisha. Sami came out from under the ring, and corked Eddie with a baseball bat to the face. He hit Eddie with a Package Piledriver, and was going to do the same to Alisha, but a bunch of security guards hit the ring and stopped him.

This had some fun moments. I hope that Dashwood’s in-ring blasé style is just part of her playing the character – because it works well. The post-match attack was fine to help reinforce the feud between Sami and Eddie. But after the big attack on TV this past week, it seemed like they were actually going down a notch in terms of the intensity and violence. Hopefully they can do something to stoke the flames higher before they actually have a match.

Winners: Tenille Dashwood and Kaleb

Gia Miller knocked on Kenny’s bus door. Don Callis answered the door. He said that Omega was in there, but was not going to get involved in the show. Gia asked why he was there, and Callis said he was simply there to visit family (i.e. Callis).

Match 4: Hernandez vs. Fallah Bahh

Tasha Steelz was the guest ring announcer for this match, and had some good funny insults about both competitors. Kiera Hogan was the guest referee for this one. This was a pretty fun hoss-fight with both men exchanging big power moves throughout. Bahh hit the first one with a flying crossbody that flattened Hernandez. He went for an Avalanche after that, but Hernandez used Kiera as a human shield, and Bahh stopped short. Hernandez hit a springboard forearm off the apron and then another springboard attack, this time, diving on to Bahh on the floor. Hernandez hit a fugly senton splash where all his weight landed right on Bahh’s belly. Bahh repaid him later by sitting down hard on Hernandez’ chest. He would have won, but Kiera stopped the count. Bahh protested, but in doing so, turned his back on Hernandez, and Hernandez dropped him and then pinned him after a Supermex Splash. After the match, Hernandez demanded Steelz and Hogan return his wad of cash, but they couldn’t find it in their purses or pockets. He pulled out a pair of weapons, and they skedaddled.

This was a good big man battle. Hernandez is a big guy who can do little guy spots, and it’s pretty impressive looking. Steelz and Hogan were great – these two are really charismatic with their trash-talking and brashness. Again, though, this whole angle should really be limited to TV, since nothing really developed to advance the story.

Winner: Hernandez

Gia Miller interviewed Chris Bey who was confident that he will beat Rich Swann tonight to capture the World Championship.

Match 5: Eric Young (w/ Joe Doering) vs. Rhino

The story in this match was Rhino using his power and size advantage to dominate Young, but then Doering on the outside would distract Rhino, and Young would take over. This happened both in and out of the ring, leading to a back-and-forth affair for a while. At one point, Rhino whipped Young into the corner, but the referee was in there and he got squashed and taken out. Doering tried to climb into the ring, but Rhino kicked the rope into his crotchel area. Young went to the corner and grabbed his malevolent hockey mask. He was going to hit Rhino with it from behind, but Cody Deaner and Cousin Jake hit the ring, and Cody yanked the mask out of Young’s hands. He angrily yelled out that he was not a nobody. But instead of taking out Young, he turned and smacked Cousin Jake in the head, laying him out. Cody stared at Young with a crazed look, and then stormed to the back. Young recovered the mask, and clocked Rhino with it for the pin.

The match was good, but ultimately was just a setup for Deaner’s heel turn. That actually was foreshadowed this past Tuesday, so it made sense to pull the trigger here. Hopefully this leads to a character change of sorts for Cody and make him serious, which should allow his talent to shine more than it has been in this comedic role.

Winner: Eric Young

Impact Executive Vice-President Scott D’Amore berated the schlubby security guard and told him he had to do better at making sure nobody used the exit door that led to Omega’s bus. Karl Anderson came up, and he was on the list of people who were allowed to use that exit and see Omega.

Rohit Raju came to the ring for his “Defeat Rohit” Open Challenge for the X-Division Championship. He boasted about his success in 2020 and claimed to be the best X-Division champion of all time.

Manik’s music hit, and while Rohit looked for him to come down the ramp, Manik was shown on the top rope behind him, and jumped down to start the match.

Match 6: Manik vs. Rohit Raju (c) – for the X-Division Championship

Though the wrestler was billed as Manik, it was clear from his tattoos that it was TJP under the mask, trying to “Yellow Dog” his way to the title, since Raju said he was no longer eligible for the challenge. Manik completely dominated early on, hitting Rohit with a flurry of fast moves, and using some trademark TJP submissions. Manik played some mind games on Raju, at one point, disappearing after being kicked to the floor. As Rohit looked for him, Manik came out from under the ring on the opposite side and continued his assault. Rohit was able to take control, and after hitting a move would try to remove Manik’s mask. A good exchange of moves here, with Manik nearly getting the pin after a Springboard DDT, and Rohit hitting a Double Stomp to Manik’s back and, later on, a Flatliner. The ending came after a series of reverals and both men nearly accidentally hitting the ref. Rohit stopped short of colliding with the ref, and Manik rolled him up from behind to capture the gold.

This was really good, other than the closing moments. There were some really good moves throughout, and a good story. But some of the referee stuff at the end felt a bit too contrived. Also, the way Manik won seemed to be a complete reversal of character for both guys. One, Rohit is a weasel, so why would he care about not hitting the ref – in fact, he probably should have deliberately charged the ref to get disqualified and keep the title on a technicality. Two, having Manik get the win from a rollup from behind when his opponent was being sportsmanlike, it makes him look lazy and opportunistic – the opposite of how a babyface should be.

Winner, and new X-Division Champion: Manik (aka TJP)

Gia Miller interviewed Moose who said that he wasn’t angry on Wednesday, but still managed to put Willie Mack out of commission. He said that was going to take the World Championship from whoever wins the match between Rich Swann and Chris Bey.

Match 7: Deonna Purrazzo (c) (w/ Kimber Lee) vs. Rosemary (w/ Taya Valkyrie) – for the Knockouts Championship

Purrazzo was scared of Rosemary, so tried to avoid locking up. Which led to Rosemary attacking her, and hitting a Spear as the first move of the match, ad following that up with a psycho burst of offense. Things got a big more conventional after that, when Lee interfered, and that let Purrazzo take over. She worked over Rosemsary’s arms for several minutes to set up a submission. Rosemary would keep fighting back with big moves like a Reverse DDT and the Upside Down, and Purrazzo would revert to the arm in order to take back control. Purrazzo eventually locked on an armbar, but Rosemary escaped by picking up the champ and hitting Red Wedding. That would have been it, but Kimber Lee pulled the referee out of the ring. Taya chased Lee around the ring as the referee scolded Lee. And in the confusion, Purrazzo was able to hit Rosemary, and then drop her with the Cosa Nostra Piledriver for the pin.

This was a good match. Purrazzo can really tell a good in-ring story. Rosemary doesn’t get enough credit for her in-ring skills, because she’s often seen as just an over-the-top character – but she can go when given the chance. If this eventually leads to Taya and Purrazzo feuding, that will be a treat, since they are the two best female wrestlers in the company.

Karl Anderson was in the tour bus, reminiscing about Japan with Kenny Omega and Don Callis. He said he wanted to stay, but had to go to the ring and beat Ethan Page. Omega and Callis said that should take him about two minutes if Anderson is still the “Machine Gun” of old. This fired up Anderson who left, determined to beat Page quickly.

Match 8: Karl Anderson vs. Ethan Page (w/ Josh Alexander)

If Page wins, The North will get a Tag Team Championship match against Anderson and Doc Gallows, the Good Brothers. Anderson started off aggressively, at one point early on climbing on top of a felled Page, and ground-and-pounding him with some big fists. Alexander interfered from the floor, and this left Anderson prone for a Draping DDT by Page. Page took over after that, picking Anderson apart by targeting Anderson’s back and neck for several minutes. But the Machine Gun was still firing, and he dropped Page with a big Spinebuster, turning the tide.

Anderson went for the Gun Stun, but Page blocked it and nearly ended things with a Karate Man Kick. Page creatively set up Anderson on the top rope, then forcibly pulled him off, sending him crashing hard to the mat, but Anderson kicked out. Page tried to end things with a Superplex, but Anderson pushed him down, knocked Alexander off the apron to stop the shadiness, and then dropped Page definitively with a Stun Gun to get the clean win.

After the match, Alexander expressed his frustration at Page for losing. Page tried to apologize and reassure Alexander that he had a plan, but Alexander wasn’t hearing it. He removed his North jacket and walked away. Page plaintively pleaded with Josh to hear him out, even making an emotional pitch into the cameras in case Josh was watching backstage.

This was a good back-and-forth match. Hopefully if there is a long-term larger deal in the works between Impact and AEW, the North will stay together long enough to get the dream match against FTR. It will be interesting to see these two on singles paths should that come to pass.

Winner: Karl Anderson

Match 9: Chris Bey vs. Rich Swann (c) – for the World Championship

This one started off at a very deliberate pace, unexpected, given their normal quick-paced high-flying styles. Then, they would have brief spurts of quickness for a few moves, before slowing things down again. The slower pace benefited Swann who had Bey down on the mat quite a bit. But when Swann went for Rolling Thunder, he ate a pair of knees, and then Bey picked up the pace and took over, hitting moves and trying for a pinfall after each one. He whipped Swann into the guardrails when the match went outside, and then continued beating up Swann in the ring, whipping him hard into the corners. Several times, Swann would try to fight back, but Bey would stop him once again. Bey hit a nice running Destroyer for two. They had a nice exchange in the centre of the ring, starting with punches, then escalating up to spin kicks, that put both men down.

A kickout by Swann after Rock-A-Bey frustrated the challenger. He tried to end things with the Art of Finesse, but Swann avoided it, and then kicked Bey in the head. He measured Bey up for another kick and blasted him hard in the face, knocking Bey silly. A Phoenix Splash made sure Bey stayed down for good.

After the match, Moose came into the ring. Swann braced himself for a fight, but Moose simply handed him his title and glared at him defiantly. The match ended with Swann standing alone in the ring with his title.

This was not the type of match you’d expect to see with these two guys, who are known for their dazzling speed and aerials. It would have been nice to see a little more action in the main event, because there wasn’t really anything like that during the show, and the last few matches were similarly-styled. But, that being said, it was very good, and showed a different side to both.

Winner, and still World Champion: Rich Swann

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