Tha "iMPACT!" Dispatch: O's and NO's

I found that last night's "iMPACT!" jumped from segment to segment so freely that it would be hard to write a flowing recap of the show. So, with that in mind, I present O's and NO's from last night's "iMPACT!"

THA O'S

Booker T
Most people were critical of Booker T coming to TNA, and then were critical of his role one way or another, but I think TNA has done a great job utilizing him. He is a money heel, and using him in a feud with Samoa Joe will lead to a great match at Victory Road.

Jumping your opponent, as Booker did to BG James last night, is cheap heat, but Booker does it so masterfully. Also worth noting that Victory Road is in July, and the last time Booker T won a world title was in July of 2006. Hmmm...

Samoa Joe and Kevin Nash
Kevin Nash will never be a money main eventer again, but he can still be money to the company and the main event without getting in the ring. The tension between Nash and Joe, while I found it to be irritating at first, is now helping to build more intrigue towards the upcoming Joe vs. Booker match. And I popped for Joe making a reference to Nash's old Oz gimmick.

World X Cup
The X Division, love it or hate it, is part of what got TNA to this point in their company. While that division isn't booked to be as prestigious as it once was, it's still good to see that TNA is keeping with the World X Cup. As I said before, North America is largely oblivious to talent from around the world (and was far moreso than before YouTube), so this is a great chance for wrestling fans to see masters of the craft from around the globe. Plus, it's going to culminate in an Ultimate X Match. How can you not love that?

Tyson Dux
I'm not really feeling the new haircut, but Tyson is a beast in the ring, as the whole world got to see last night in his losing effort along with Daivari to the Motor City Machine Guns. Daivari himself showed that he was no slouch, either, in what was a very entertaining match. I'm hoping that Tyson can get over and possibly be a permanent member of TNA's roster, the man deserves it.

Tha Women
How over is Awesome Kong? So over that, at one of TNA's biggest pay-per-views, she didn't defend her championship, and no one batted an eye because we were all thrilled to see her. Last night, she again had her $250,000 Challenge, which I loved, because it cut off a Jim Cornette promo. Can we have Awesome Kong interrupt every bad promo?

The video package about Gail Kim was excellent as well. Putting over her indy background, as well as mentioning her short run in the E as proof of how good she got quickly. If this is what TNA wanted to do with their "Cross The Line" gimmick, I like it. Most of TNA's fans are smarks anyway, so let them get a backstage peek at what actually happens, and the road to being in the business. Now, if they take Dante's idea and start showing "IF you want to try this at home, here's how to do it safely", I'm going to pop like a motherfucker.

THA NO'S

Tha Main Event
Team 3D has somehow lost their mystique. I'm not sure how or why, but watching them last night, and then watching them at WrestleMania X-7 on the Ladder Match DVD, they just seem like completely different teams. That aside, the ending of this match was overbooked. Another AJ Styles beatdown by Kurt Angle and Frank Trigg, whose obsession with Kurt borders on Mark Madden-esque. The match in and of itself was solid, but the post match beatdown was unnecessary in my mind.

Karen Angle
Yeah, you've got big breasts, who cares, so do the women on the roster who can work. I'm so tired of you on my screen with your horrible acting and your two facial expressions.

The Pink Taco
First of all, who snuck that name past the censors? Secondly, it was obvious that Lethal was not at a restuarant, but backstage. Thirdly, this angle and these gimmicks are played out. A direct parody of Randy Savage can only go so far, and Sonjay Dutt was much more interesting back when he was the high flying "Playa From The Himalaya".

Pulling Away
It continues to be TNA's achilles heel. During a hot match, they pull backstage for something much less interesting. Who backstage thought it was a good idea to say "Yeah, let's pull away from World X Cup action to show Tomko? Because, you know, everybody cares about Tomko". Tomko has his role in TNA, but not he nor anyone should be the reason for moving the camera backstage in the middle of a match.

Tha O's outweighed tha NO's this week, which is a good sign for TNA. TNA is the ultimate high and low company, having periods where their programming is brutal, and then having periods where their programming is top-notch. Right now they're riding one of those high waves, and hopefully it doesn't stop anytime soon.

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