The Good, The Bad, The In-The-Middle: Live Reaction To TNA Hard Justice 2008

 

 

TNA Hard Justice 2008 hailed from Trenton, NJ on August 10

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling made its first stop in New Jersey this past weekend, with Asbury Park hosting a house show on August 8 and the Hard Justice Pay-Per-View taking place inside the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton. As someone who likes to go to the bigger, more important shows, I didn’t hesitate to purchase tickets for Hard Justice. And last night, I wasn’t disappointed, despite some minor bumps in the road.

The Good

Jersey Street Fight delivers:

It was tough to imagine exactly how Team 3D and the team of Christian Cage and Rhino could top what they’ve done over the past couple of weeks between some heavy duty brawls and even the introduction of the glass table. What could these duos possible offer in the Jersey Street Fight at Hard Justice that could even compare or do better than what we’ve seen before? Well, how about taking the fight into the crowd and mixing some hardcore beatdowns with comedy when inside the ring for one of the best matches of the night? As four veterans of the game, these competitors know how to make things exciting an elicit a genuine crowd reaction. And from a personal perspective, it was great seeing Cage and Brother Ray brawl literally right in front of me in good ’ol section 106. They made sure to accentuate the hardcore element of the match and added in some good wrestling moves to keep it a little more than just a brawl. In the end, they really delivered something different and didn’t need a glass table for show, which I think is something we all kind of expected to see.

AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle a hot match:

This was one of TNA’s highlight feuds going into Hard Justice and perhaps one of the only promising exhibitions of wrestling going into an event filled with gimmick matches focused on being hardcore. In this Last Man Standing Match, a lot of great wrestling took place with both wrestlers playing their roles to perfection. Angle was the saavy veteran looking to outsmart AJ at every turn. Styles, on the other hand, had vengeance in his heart and was eager to take it to Angle regardless of the cost. Both wrestlers had their time to shine in the match and it was even cool to see Angle tap out to his own Ankle Lock and Styles foil Angle’s plans on delivering his own Styles Clash to him. Angle took a sick bump as he landed on his neck following a suplex off the ropes at the hands of Styles. It was enough for a pin and a referee 10-count for the win. Following the match, Styles attacked Angle while he was being placed on a stretcher board just for good measure (or to put over an injury to Angle so he can take some much needed time off). Overall, this was a terrific match to lead into the main event and finally, Styles gets the last laugh. Well, sort of …

Sting attacks … AJ Styles:

It seemed apparent that when Sting made his presence felt at Hard Justice, it would be in the main event. That wasn’t the case, though, when the lights went out as AJ Styles walked up the ramp following his beating on Kurt Angle. When the lights went on, there was Sting with Styles hooked in for a Scorpion Death Drop. I’m not sure where TNA is going with this exactly. But, being able to see the legend that is Sting live had me excited. Plus, getting him out of the main event allowed for another top TNA star to make an impact, even if he wasn’t in the building …

Guitar shot signals return of Jeff Jarrett:

Samoa Joe retaining the TNA World Heavyweight Championship at Hard Justice wasn’t a surprise. He faced Booker T. in a Six Sides of Steel Match with weapons inside, and walked out with his title in hand. But with interference from Sting very much expected, it wasn’t Steve Borden who made an impact when the lights went out and subsequently returned in the Sovereign Bank Arena. Instead, Samoa Joe had a guitar in hand and delivered a shot to Booker T.’s head that lead to a win for the champ. This wasn’t just any guitar. It was a silver and black guitar, which is a trademark of Mr. Jeff Jarrett. With Bound For Glory just two months away, I’m sure we’ll building up for the return of Jarrett at some point in the near future. The only question now is who will TNA match him against for their version of WrestleMania. Based on the events of last night, I’d think we’re going to get Jarrett vs. Booker T. at BFG. It’s a little too WCW-ish, but it is new to TNA and can be dealt with in a different fashion. Regardless of how that turns out, it’s safe to say Jarrett is making his triumphant return and the swerve used by TNA to make that happen was very nicely done.

 The Bad

Beer Money as new TNA Tag champs:

I unfortunately feel as if I’m in the minority when it comes to hating Beer Money, but I was none too pleased when they managed to take the TNA Tag Team Titles away from perhaps the best tag team in all of wrestling right now, LAX. Bobby Roode is an overrated wrestlers and James Storm is getting pretty stale these days. As a relatively new team with those individual flaws, placing the straps around their waists just kind of irks me. I think the match between LAX and Beer Money was good, but that was mostly thanks to LAX (and to narrow it down even further – Hernandez.) I realize that TNA was determined to make Beer Money champs. But LAX should have scored at least one big victory over them because Beer Money doesn’t even remotely deserve that to just move right past TNA’s legitimate No. 1 tag team.

Lethal and Dutt handicapped by tuxedos and chains:

I was afraid it would happen, and it did. This dumb Black Tie Brawl and Chain Match between “Black Machismo” Jay Lethal and “The Guru” Sonjay Dutt was a disaster, and it had a lot to do with the stipulation getting in the way of things. There were some decent spots and the action picked up toward the end. But for most of the match, Lethal and Dutt tried to play too much to the tuxedo and chain rather than putting on a good wrestling match, which they would be more than capable of doing under different circumstances. Hopefully they will be given an opportunity to redeem themselves is a match that’s either straight one-on-one or more fitting for their style. This match didn’t work and it showed for most of the 13 minutes it took place.

Dark matches work better than cheap pop attemps:

For those who attended Hard Justice live, we had the wonderful pleasure of being bribed for our adoration of TNA rather than being given a match to start the hype for the forthcoming PPV. Prior to going live to the “millions” around the world, Jeremy Borash informed the crowd that the focus would be on us for the evening. And that throughout the night, agents of TNA would be handing out backstage passes to the fans that cheered the louded for their favorite stars and the TNA company. And just so we didn’t think it was a bluff, JB and a TNA worker in the crowd handed out some passes to psycho fans before Hard Justice, with each pass listing a certain time for the holder to actually go backstage. In my opinion, this was a ridiculously cheap way of garnering a crowd reaction. If you want to get fans pumped and ready to go before the event hits the airwaves, give them a nice dark match. TNA had plenty of wrestlers not on the card that could have put on a good 10-12 minute showcase to get the juices flowing. Three seconds with Kurt Angle in the back was not incentive enough for me to join in on this low attempt at audience participation.

If you promise Ice T, deliver:

Okay, I’m far from a big rap fan and really didn’t give a damn about F.I.L.T.H.E.E. and Grandmaster Caz opening the show with their little TNA diddy. However, when you promise what can be considered a music legend, and a star in the best version of Law and Order (SVU), makes sure you deliver on that promise. Now, I don’t know what happened to Ice T. and what the reason was for his absence. But, at the very least, inform the fans ahead of time that he couldn’t make instead of trying to pull a fast one on us. Some random dude posing his muscles isn’t going to make us forget that Ice isn’t there.

The In-The-Middle

Knockouts a nice blend of wrestling & humor:

The six-woman Knockouts match didn’t thrill to beyond belief, but it was a decent show for the second match on the card. The girls did a nice job of putting forth a good ladies wrestling showcase and giving the crowd a few laughs along the way. I’m not sure any scores were settled and I think we’ll see some clashing continue for many weeks to come. But to get the top women in TNA together in one match and have it come out decent is impressive.

Nice X-Division opener:

The X-Division had the tough task of being the opening match on the card, and Consequences Creed and the champ Petey Williams did a nice job. This bout wasn’t entirely enthralling, but there was some good back and forth action between the two wrestlers. Creed continues to grow before out very eyes and had some nice opportunities to put away the champ and take home the strap. In the end, we were blessed with a viewing of the Canadian Destroyer, thanks in large part of interference from Sheik Bashir. But overall, both wrestlers were strong in the opening contest. Now, Williams moves on to take on the next challenge in defending his title while Creed and Bashir do battle in what should be an interesting feud of nationalistic pride.

Closing Thoughts

TNA should be proud of its first New Jersey PPV. It did get off to a bit of a rocky start with cheap pop attemps prior to the show, an Ice T-less musical performance and some good, but not overwhelming action to open the event. However, things really heated up in the second half with the Jersey Street Fight coming off real strong, AJ Styles and Kurt Angle putting on a helluva show and Samoa Joe vs. Booker T. leading to the comeback of Jeff Jarrett. If TNA makes a return to Trenton, there’s a very good chance I’ll be right there to see them again.