TNA Impact Review – December 12, 2024
TNA Impact featured a six-person tag team match in the main event as they put together the lineup for their next monthly special, Final Resolution
TNA Impact 12/12/24 from Winston-Salem, North Carolina
The opening video package focused on last week’s challenge from AJ Francis to Nic Nemeth for the TNA World Championship, as well as The Hardys beating The System by DQ which set up a Tables match for Final Resolution on Friday night.
Moose Wants to Speak
Moose’s theme seemed to have a longer introduction before the music hit, which was cool. Or maybe I just haven’t noticed. He does have one of the best themes in wrestling, though. Moose got into the ring and grabbed a microphone. The fans gave him the WHAT treatment. That was started literally 23 years ago and fans are still doing it. Damn it, Austin! Moose said he was sick of everyone asking what he was going to do with the X-Division Championship and if he was going to cash his title in for a shot at Nic Nemeth. Moose ran down the faces in TNA. He trashed Joe Hendry for not having a title and said no one cares about The Hardys because the fans just chant for Moose. Moose said he would go down as the greatest X-champ of all time. He was interrupted by Deaner who got no reaction. Deaner sucked up to the fans and told Moose to shut up. He said a few months ago, Deaner lost his way. Since he put his career in the hands of the fans, it’s the most fun he’s had in his career. Deaner said he loves wrestling again. The fans liked that. Moose trashed Deaner for not even winning a match since he returned. Deaner said with the people behind him, he can win a match. He said he could even win the title from Moose. Moose laughed at that. So did I. Moose pump kicked Deaner in the face and called for a referee.
Match #1: TNA X-Division Championship: Moose (c) vs Cody Deaner
Moose hit another big kick. He still had the microphone and did some mock chants for Cody. Moose stomped on Deaner all around the ring. He told the fans he had dinner plans so it was time to finish the match. Moose missed a spear and Deaner sent him to the outside. He tossed Moose into the steel ring post. Moose rolled back into the ring and Deaner tried a move from the top but Moose caught him. Deaner slipped off Moose’s shoulders and rolled him up for a 2 count. Deaner tried a backslide and got another nearfall. Moose tried a suplex but Deaner turned it into a small package for 2. Moose swatted Deaner in the face with a right hand. He whipped Deaner with his jacket. Deaner avoided a powerbomb and hit the Sliced Bread. Moose fell backwards so slowly it looked like he was a tree falling in the forest. Deaner got another close nearfall. Moose avoided a DDT and hit the Uranage. He speared Deaner to retain the title after 3 minutes.
Winner by pinfall and STILL TNA X-Division Champion: Moose
Analysis: ** It was a different way to open the show, so I didn’t mind it. There was no chance Moose was going to lose so it was very predictable, but Deaner did get the crowd going with a few nearfalls. No interaction between Moose and Kushida so the title match has no heat at all.
Gia Miller was backstage with Tasha Steelz and First Class. They will team up tonight against Joe Hendry, Nic Nemeth and Masha Slamovich. KC Navarro said he was very confident standing next to two future champions. Steelz said tonight would be a small taste of tomorrow night at Final Resolution. AJ Francis said this is his time. He has proved a lot of people wrong in his TNA journey. Francis said tonight and tomorrow night at Final Resolution he is going to chokeslam Nic Nemeth on the way to becoming TNA World Champion.
Analysis: That was a cocky promo from the challengers from Final Resolution. I don’t think they stand a chance but at least they’ve made something of this short turnaround between shows.
Mike Santana was interrupted by the Northern Armory. Santana called them stupid. Josh Alexander got in his face. He told Santana he was the guy that sent his tag team packing. It got a bit heated. He told Icarus and Williams to back off. Alexander said he can put Santana down anytime he wants.
Analysis: That would be a good singles match in the future if Alexander is hanging around. They’ve made this #1 Contender match look like a big deal which I am happy about.
Match #2: Rosemary vs Xia Brookside
I think they’re just making up Rosemary’s story on the fly. Her booking is all over the place. It’s hard to take her as a serious threat but she’s up against Jordynne Grace at Final Resolution so it’s probably a given that she’s winning this. Xia Brookside can’t really break out from the Ash-by-Elegance feud and take that next step to be a serious title challenger. There was a bit of push and shove early on. Brookside tried for a head scissors but Rosemary blocked it and slammed her down hard for a 2 count. Rosemary locked in a sleeper and grounded Xia to the mat. Xia worked through it and made it to her feet and broke free. Rosemary whipped her into the corner but she leap-frogged over the top. Xia hit a crossbody from the middle rope and a clothesline. They exchanged right hands. Xia hit a few clotheslines and a running head scissors. Rosemary landed a bit clumsily. Xia hit Broken Wings in the corner and a Russian Legsweep for 2. Xia transitioned into the crossface but Rosemary rolled over and almost scored a 3 count. Xia hit a running knee in the corner and went for the Brooksy Bomb but Rosemary blocked it and locked in the Upside Down in the ropes. Rosemary went for a spear but Xia rolled her up for 2. Xia blocked a corner attack with an elbow. She tried a bridging pin but Rosemary locked in the sleeper. Xia used all her strength to flip back over into a pin for 2. Rosemary got up quicker and hit As Above So Below for the win after 6 ½ minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Rosemary
Analysis: **1/2 It was a competitive match that the crowd was into. Xia is good but her screaming before her offense is so unnecessary.
Rosemary continued the beat down on Xia post-match until Jordynne Grace made the save.
Gia Miller informed Trent Seven that he has a match against Ace Austin at Final Resolution. Seven was annoyed because he’s already pinned Austin. Austin interrupted him and reminded Seven that he’s a cheat. He called Seven disgusting for what he did to Mike Bailey. They got in each other’s faces.
Analysis: I got excited for a return of singles action for Austin until I remembered why he’s not in tag team action. Gia’s facial expressions for her man, Austin, were funny because they don’t acknowledge them as a couple on TNA.
Match #3: Leon Slater & Laredo Kid vs The Rascalz
This could be fun. It’s Slater and Wentz starting off. Wentz tried a backslide for a 2 count early. They pretended they were in AEW for about 30 seconds and went back to wrestling. I’m kidding. I like AEW; their fans are just so easily triggered. There was a stalemate so Kid and Miguel tagged in to try their luck. All 4 men tried a dropkick to no avail. They all kipped up. I would love to be able to do that, just randomly at work or the shops. Imagine the pop! Kid took down Miguel with a clothesline. They both tagged out. Slater was sent into the ropes but hit a handspring elbow. Wentz sent him to the outside. Slater tried to pull Wentz through the ropes to the outside, but Wentz held his arm and rammed him into the ring post. Wentz dragged Slater to his corner and tagged Miguel. Slater blocked the Irish Whip but Miguel took him down by the arm. He used an arm bar and floated over to a pin for 2. Miguel held out his foot so Wentz could tag in, which was unique. He held Slater and Wentz flew through the air with an elbow strike for a 2 count. Wentz trapped Slater to the mat with an arm ringer. He stretched both shoulders out but Slater got to his feet. Slater ran into an Atomic Drop and Wentz grounded him to the mat again with the arm bar. Slater used his legs to stretch out and put his feet on the rope to break the hold. Wentz tagged in. Slater avoided some double team moves and hit a crazy spinning cutter on Miguel who sold it ridiculously. Kid tagged in and hit a forearm smash on Wentz. He nailed a twisting senton from the middle rope. Kid repeated the dose for a 2 count. He made the tag to Slater again. They tried for a double-team suplex but Wentz slipped out and tagged Miguel. The Rascalz hit stereo hurricanranas which sent their opponents to the outside. They both did running dives through the ropes. The Rascalz were too slow to follow up and Kid hit his own running dive on Miguel to the outside. Slater did his crazy twisting dive over the top turnbuckle to wipe out Wentz. Back in the ring, Slater and Kid hit Miguel with a double team powerbomb for a close nearfall. Slater tried to pick up Miguel but his left arm was still causing him issues. He went for a back suplex but Miguel avoided it. Miguel made the tag to Wentz and sent Kid to the ring apron. Wentz nailed Kid with a superkick on the apron. Miguel set Kid up on the middle rope and Wentz nailed a senton from the top rope. Slater broke up the pin at 2. All 4 men were in the ring now. They all exchanged forearms. Miguel hit Slater’s left arm with a super kick. Wentz hit a running knee on Kid. Slater fought back with a leg lariat on Wentz. Kid tagged Slater in. He went up top for the Swanton 450 but was far too slow climbing. Slater dived off the top and Miguel hit him perfectly with a superkick. That was perfect. Kid made a blind tag but Wentz saw and hit him with a superkick. He hoisted Kid up on his shoulders and Miguel hit a double stomp from the top rope. Wentz covered Kid to win the match after 12 minutes.
Winners by pinfall: The Rascalz
Analysis: ***1/2 That wasn’t as high-octane as I expected but the last few minutes were excellent. The superkick in mid-air off the failed Swanton 450 was a thing of beauty. The timing of that counter and the way Slater sold it (at 20 years old!) was very impressive. I’m not a huge fan of The Rascalz doing submission offense but you can’t go a million miles an hour in every match, I suppose.
It was time for a System promo. Alisha started to talk and I felt my brain beginning to explode. They all talked about walking out of Final Resolution with gold again. JDC was creepy for some reason.
Match #4: Jake Something & Hammerstone vs PCO & Sami Callihan
You should get fired as a ring announcer if you don’t announce the weight and home town of a wrestler. Poor Something got the lamest intro of the night. Things like this matter to people. Or maybe just me. I for one am not a fan of this PCO and Sami duo. Sami almost moves as slow as PCO and their move sets are not conducive to regular tag team matches. Callihan and Something started off. Callihan targeted the left arm of Something and made a quick tag. It’s like they just watched the last match and thought why not copy that offense. Something over-powered PCO and made the tag to Hammerstone. Hammerstone and Something hit a double chokeslam but the commentators didn’t make a fuss over it. Something choked PCO out against the middle rope. He tossed PCO into the ropes, but he just bounced back into a clothesline on Something. Callihan made the tag and went straight for Hammerstone on the apron. He tried chopping Something to no effect, so he started biting his forehead. Callihan hit a double DDT on the heels. He tossed them both to PCO who hit his own double DDT. Callihan clotheslined Hammerstone over the top rope. PCO did a running dive through the ropes to take out Something. Back in the ring, Callihan nailed the stunner on Something. He tagged PCO, who went to the top. Hammerstone popped up on the ring apron and hit PCO in the back with a steel chair for the DQ win after 5 ½ minutes.
Winners by disqualification: PCO & Sami Callihan
Analysis: **1/2 That was okay for a big man match, and the DQ result shows you that TNA still doesn’t know how to book the tag team division. So now they’re throwing these two teams and The Rascalz into a random triple threat tomorrow.
The screen flashed with the creepy ‘23’ symbol again, but this time there was speaking behind it: “It’s just a number”. The mystery continues.
Match #5: Heather-by-Elegance w/ Ash & George Iceman vs Dani Luna w/ Jody Threat
These teams have been trading singles wins. At least it’s a new feud in the KO tag division so it’s fine with me. Luna backed Heather into the corner with her strength. She hit a shoulder block and a clothesline in the corner. Heather blocked another clothesline but ran into a Fallaway slam. She escaped to the floor for some respite. Luna ran the ropes but Iceman grabbed her by the leg. The referee ejected him from the ring. That was probably the pop of the night so far. Heather hit a dropkick with Luna in the ropes. She hit a running hurricanrana which spiked Luna on the mat. Heather got a 2 count. Heather went back to targeting the left leg. She distracted the referee so that Ash could attack Luna in the corner. Threat chased Ash off. Luna blocked a corner attack and hit 2 clotheslines. She caught Heather off a springboard attempt and hit a scoop slam. That was awkward because she stood there waiting for a few seconds for Heather to turn around. Luna hit a nice Blue Thunder Bomb off the ropes for 2. They battled on the ring apron and Heather hung Luna off the top rope. She hit a moonsault from the middle rope for 2. Heather tried for a cutter but Luna caught her with a German suplex. She followed up with another one. The fans wanted one more. Luna tried to suplex her from the ring apron. Ash held onto Heather to block the move. Threat ran into the ring and dived through the middle ropes to take Ash out. Heather tried to sneak a win with a roll up for 2. Luna powered up and hit a suplex. She nailed the impressive Luna Landing for the win after 7 minutes.
Winner by pinfall: Dani Luna
Analysis: **3/4 When they weren’t focusing on the shenanigans at ringside, like all Ash/Heather matches, the action was solid. Luna has some of the best offense in the KO’s division. She could be a main event player if they run out of opponents for Slamovich in 2025, which is very likely.
Match #6: Nic Nemeth, Joe Hendry & Masha Slamovich vs First Class & Tasha Steelz
Hendry and KC Navarro began the match. Francis mouthed off to Hendry on the ring apron, which allowed Navarro to get a cheap shot in. Hendry fought back with an upper cut and a stalling suplex. He went to all sides of the arena with Navarro up in the air, to the delight of the crowd. Hendry covered for a 2 count. He tagged in Nemeth. Nemeth tried a quick roll up for 2. He hit a fireman’s carry into a pin for 2 again. Their ring pants were very similar which was bothering me. Navarro sent Nemeth to the mat with a kick. He missed a dive from the top. Navarro ran into a dropkick from Nemeth. Still one of the best in the business. Nemeth nailed another one and the fans wanted one more! They have been quite loud tonight. Nemeth obliged with a third dropkick and tagged in Slamovich. Slamovich wanted to fight KC but he tagged Steelz. Steelz faced up to Slamovich with some forearms. Slamovich bounced back with a clothesline off the ropes. She ran the ropes but Navarro kneed her in the back. Steelz took advantage with a clothesline. She tagged in AJ Francis. AJ tossed Slamovich to the floor. He taunted the fans in the corner, looking for a count-out win. Slamovich made it into the ring back the 10. AJ quickly shoved her over the top rope and into the guard rail. Navarro tagged in and got a nearfall on Slamovich. He hit a running snapmare and a double stomp for 2. Navarro backed Slamovich into the corner and tagged Steelz back in. Steelz stomped away on Masha in the corner. She took too long taunting and missed a corner attack. Slamovich hit a dropkick from the middle rope. Navarro got the tag in and prevented Slamovich from tagging in. She hit a spinning back fist and tagged the champ in. Nemeth hit a neckbreaker on KC. He hit his 10 elbow routine for a 2 count. Nemeth tuned up for the superkick. Steelz got into the ring to distract the referee. Francis pulled Nemeth down to the mat by the hair. He made the tag and choked Nemeth against the middle rope. Francis stretched but Nemeth’s neck against the top rope. He clubbed him across the chest, then tossed Nemeth into the corner. Navarro tagged in again and got a 2 count. He prevented Nemeth from tagging out. Nemeth fought out of a headlock but ran into a dropkick. Navarro got a nearfall and tagged in Francis. Francis whipped KC into Nemeth in the corner. He nailed a big boot on Nemeth for 2. The fans chanted “You can’t wrestle” at AJ. I think he’s improved a lot since he began in TNA. Nemeth blocked a clothesline attempt in the corner. He nailed a jumping DDT. Nemeth made the tag to Hendry and KC Navarro made the tag for his team. KC ran into a big Fallaway slam. Francis ran in but Nemeth caught him with a Fallaway slam too. Wow, that was impressive. Hendry kipped up and the crowd was going crazy. Hendry went for the Standing Ovation on Navarro, but Francis clobbered him from behind to prevent it. Hendry clotheslined Francis over the top rope. Nemeth hit him with a diving forearm from the ring apron. Navarro took out Slamovich with a cheap shot on the apron. He ran right into an Attitude Adjustment from Hendry! Hendry tagged in Nemeth who nailed the Fame Asser for 2. Steelz saved the match up. Slamovich tossed her to the outside then took her out with a twisting senton to the outside. Navarro tried to block the Danger Zone but Nemeth hit it on the second attempt to win the match after 16 minutes.
Winners by pinfall: Nic Nemeth, Joe Hendry & Masha Slamovich
Analysis: ***1/4 That was the standard decent multi-person tag match that TNA run about once a month in the main event. TNA backed themselves in the corner because there was really only one person that could’ve been pinned in this match. The other 4 are in big PPV matches and they can’t give them a loss the night before that happens. Some fans aren’t comfortable with the men vs women stuff but if they agree and they’re safe, then it doesn’t bother me. Slamovich is probably built bigger than Navarro anyway so it wasn’t like she was getting beaten up by a 300-pounder. She took it to AJ Francis to show how tough she is. I think Slamovich is nailing the face turn.
Francis attacked Hendry after the match. Steelz jumped on Slamovich in the corner. Nemeth went over to help her, but Francis snuck back in and nailed him with a spear. He picked up Slamovich and wanted the Down Payment but Slamovich bit his hands. Steelz came back with a cutter. Nemeth tried to fight back with a jumping DDT but AJ destroyed him with the Down Payment. Francis got in Nemeth’s face and hit another thunderous Down Payment. He hit a third one as he abused the fans. Impact went off the air with Francis holding up the TNA World Championship over a fallen Nic Nemeth.
Analysis: That was a good post-match beat down to make you think Francis has a chance of winning when in reality he really doesn’t.
Final Rating: 6/10
Last week was certainly a stronger show as they needed to build the Final Resolution card for the most part. Tonight was about adding a layer to those feuds and making them worthy of being on the show. I think they’ve put together a very good card; however, I would be very surprised (shocked really) if any titles change hands. I even think the #1 Contender match should close the show, because then Nemeth and the winner can end the show with a stare down. There wasn’t much to tonight’s show of great note. The first half of the show was uneventful. I think the tag match with The Rascalz vs Slater & Kid was the best match on the show. The Rascalz are being booked oddly of late. Hopefully they can be back in the tag title picture in 2025. They tried to add some interest to the undercard non-title matches, but they’re really just filler. I thin Seven vs Austin is interesting though.
The next TNA monthly show is Final Resolution on Friday, December 13. Here’s the final card with my predictions in bold:
* TNA World Championship: Nic Nemeth (c) vs AJ Francis
* TNA Knockouts World Championship: Masha Slamovich (c) vs Tasha Steelz
* #1 Contender match for the TNA World Championship: Joe Hendry vs Josh Alexander vs Mike Santana vs Steve Maclin
* TNA World Tag Team Championships: Tables Match: The Hardys (c) vs The System
* TNA X-Division Championship: Moose (c) vs Kushida
* Jordynne Grace vs Rosemary
* The Rascalz vs Jake Something & Hammerstone vs PCO & Sami Callihan
* Trent Seven vs Ace Austin
Any feedback or comments are welcome. My email address is kristian.l.thompson@gmail.com in case anybody wants to get in touch with me and my Twitter/X handle is @thomok6 as well. Thanks for reading!