A BFG recap video shows Rex winning the Grand Championship via the judges’ decision. Gail’s HOF induction and KOs title win are shown, as is Cody’s fight with Bennett. The Great War is shown in stills, as is the World title match. Lashley says he’s the realest man in wrestling and the greatest wrestler in the world, before Aron Rex comes down. He says that he is the Grand Champion, and since he used to be smart, that means he’s the man. Lashley says that title is meaningless. Well, he’s not wrong. Josh goes off on how insulting this is to Rex. Yup – be careful Mr. Badass MMA Fighter, you might piss off Damien Sandow. Gail says her title is the most important and that women are changing wrestling. Then Broken Matt does creepy things. Maxel has his cheering section, and Hardy Jacket too. DJZ talks about how there’s a ring full of champions, and it’s a night of change with Team X Gold. Yup, that’s what TNA needs – more new things that mean nothing beyond just the Grand Championship. Billy Corgan comes out dressed like a tablecloth and accompanied by Aiden ‘O Shea.
Rex is being heelish putting “Grand” in front of every time Corgan brings up champions – so that almost justifies this goofy title. Corgan hypes up every title but the X Title being on the line, because of Team X Gold. Then he says Team X Gold is next. EXPLAIN WHAT TEAM X GOLD IS DAMMIT! Mandrews, DJZ, and Braxton Sutter team up against the Helms Dynasty and Marshe Rockett. Team X Gold is apparently a series of trios matches, but with STRICT RULES. If you tag out and aren’t out by 5, you’ll be DQed. So logically, why can’t the rules be enforced in other matches?
Lee dominates Mandrews with punches – shouldn’t he be chastised by the referee for that? Josh says that the teams here will stick together. Okay, so it this a tournament? Sutter powrebombs Everett and Mandrews pins him with an SSP to win and…I think move on in the tournament? The Hardys face Decay tonight in a Wolf Creek Cage match – which will BE EXPLAINED LATER. Wonderful. Time for Eli’s talk show after a break.
But first, BFG’s replay is hyped up and JB meets with another of Lashley’s potential opponents – Moose, who is at least slightly more over as a babyface. Eli has a new set and quite a bit of grey in his beard. He calls EC3 a choke artist and EC3 mocks his beard and tells him to not worry about a button and to focus on being World Champion. Eli says he came to TNA as a part of The Rising, with Drew and some guy named Micah’s who’s gone. Eli says that EC3 has had everything handed to him and Eli stumbles a bit to say that he’s scratched and clawed to get where he’s at.
Maria, Sienna, and Laurel Van Ness stand around Allie and Maria mocks her. Maria threatens to sue her or better yet, fire her. The goons convince Maria to not fire her because she’s good at holding bags. Sienna faces Gail for the title and threatens Allie. McKenzee interviews Eddie, who could face Lashley. Eddie says that Lashley views him as an easy opponent while a fan yells for people to vote for Trump. We get an extended replay of Gail’s hall of fame induction before Sienna vs. Gail.
Madison joins Josh and Pope on commentary because she is…married to Josh and can offer insight into this match? Okay then. Allie gets tossed into Gail, who gets bullied into the post back-first several times. Josh cuts Pope off to talk about how badass the women on Pop are, and he shills Wolf Creek – well, that probably means the Tag Title match tonight is just a product placement-plugging match then. Gail avoids the Pounce and wins with an O’Connor roll. Sienna jumps her before LVN and Maria come in too. Sienna Pounces Gail and Maria says she gets her rematch, and it’s no DQ. Why? Didn’t Dixie take her power away? Madison is offended by all of this and yet does nothing to stop it.
EC3 says that he doesn’t expect Lashley to pick him, but if he does, he’ll win it. Josh says that the Six Sides of Steel has been rearranged to be a torture chamber akin to what is on Wolf Creek. So they’re apparently big on trash can lids in Wolf Creek. Nero debuts a new neon green-base for his gear. Poetry in Motion to Abyss in the corner. Nero staples Abyss’s ass. Crazzy Steve grabs a grappling hook and uses it on Matt’s mouth – well, that’s new. Hardys double suplex Steve, and now fans are chanting for the chainsaw.
Matt’s back is sliced up from cane shots, and he grabs the chainsaw to no avail since it has no gas. Josh chooses this match involving chainsaws and grappling hooks to talk about Hurricane Matthew. Rosemary comes in and mists Nero’s eyes. Reby pulls her off the cage and has a staff and then the feed on Pop just freezes and they go to ads. Oh God, not this again! Thankfully, we’re spared That ’70s Show ads and get odd ads for Big Brother, a hype video for Gail Kim, another for Jeff Hardy and an ad for the Addiction Network.
We come back and there’s no tag title match – just Cody and Brandi Rhodes. Cody instantly has one of the best themes in the company. Cody says that calling him a game changer is flattering – but inaccurate. He isn’t a game changer, but the game is changing – Gail is a TNA hall of famer, and in the 40 years of his family’s time in wrestling, there has been nothing like the Great War. Cody says he didn’t wait to be kicked out of his last house – he left on his own. He has his list and he got to accomplish some of it at BFG, and Brandi tells him that maybe he shouldn’t have put Bennett on the list – instead, he should’ve put the TNA Title on his list. I just noticed that they’re back to putting all of the lights on in the building – like at BFG, and the show looks so much better now. Cody says that being “the World Champion” is the goal of every wrestler in the world.
Bennett comes out and says that Cody doesn’t deserve a title shot. Cody says okay, they should fight and cheapshots him. They brawl and Bennett avoids Cross Rhodes. Rex defends the Grand Championship against Baron Dax – I think he’s the bald member of the Tribunal. Why can’t the show’s feed die for this match between two men that no one want to see face each other and who have very similar names?
Maria marches to Billy Corgan’s office, but Aiden ‘O Shea calls her toots and they bicker. “The Boss” Billy Corgan didn’t like what she did, but she’ll get to face Gail. If she wins, she’s champion and a loss takes her out of her role as the authority figure of the knockouts. Baron Dax is in fact the bald member of the Tribunal, while Josh says this format really helps him. How? Why would this round system benefit him? What has he ever done in TNA that makes this point clear?
Rex outwrestles Dax to start round one, but Dax lands a neckbreaker. Dax misses a corner charge and eats some stomach punches, but chokes Rex down to the mat. Rabbit lariat by Dax leads to him choking him on the rope and kicking it. Well, he’s easily won round one. Hell of a first match for the new champion and another of TNA’s game-changers. Rex locks on whatever he calls the Edgecucator and wins. Riveting action. Rex says that this win changes the game and the title changes the game and WE ARE CHANGING THE GAME. Well, one woman in the front row clapped for Rex.
Cody vs. Bennett is made for next week, and Lashley comes down to decide who he faces. JB drags this out by giving each possible foe an entrance. Lashley says EC3 has had his chances, and failed. Moose is big, slow, and dumb. Then there’s Eddie – he beat him too! Lashley wants to face Eddie because he’ll be an easy opponent and this whole thing will get maybe 10 minutes after an ad break.
Lashley goes for the flash spear to start, but gets cradled for 2. Eddie goes for a kick, but eats a spinning back elbow and a high German! Lashley lands a series of shoulder charges in the corner before darting at him with a corner tackle. Eddie lands a series of kicks, but a missile dropkick is caught and leads to a powerbomb! Eddie lands a rana off the top, but eats a lariat. Lashley hits the running powerslam, but gets low bridged on a spear. Eddie hits the suicide dive, and then a second one! AND A THIRD MISSES! Lashley goes for the spear, but the Knee Party hits and Eddie wins! He wins the TNA World Title for the first time and is also a TNA Triple Crown winner as well.
Screenshots –
http://www.imagebam.com/gallery/b309zhpkou06f3cx0gqar55aircp25pd
