
Hello and welcome to another edition
of Seanomaniac Wrestling Reviews, the only wrestling review series on the
internet that totally forgot about Clash of Champions! I am back to review TNA,
we have TNA’s Against All Odds 2006. This show is headlined by Jeff Jarrett vs
Christian for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, I am not ready to watch
Jarrett in the main event scene again, there is nothing more frustrating than
watching that man attempt to wrestle. Despite my thoughts, these TNA pay per
views are more often fun than not so let’s sink our teeth into this TNA pay per
view.
Opening Promo
This is a pretty heavy promo which Jarrett running down the
list of people he has beaten while holding that championship, Jarrett calls
Christian a mid-card comedy act and we are going balls to the walls as this is
Christian’s chance to prove himself as the man and shake off that tag as
someone who never could be the man.
Austin Aries/Roderick Strong vs The Naturals
Fuck me, I would have preferred that Strong and Aries murder
one another, we have vanilla team The Naturals who were only turned babyface
after the passing of their manager Candido. The Naturals clear the ring after
the heels from ROH tried to jump the tag team, Stevens and Aries are in the
ring. Aries is pinballed by the two, Douglas tags into the match. Right hands,
Aries meets the turnbuckle. Tag to Stevens, neckbreaker for two as Strong
breaks up the pin. Multiple backbreakers and a complete shot by Stevens for
two, tag to Douglas. Facebuster and neckbreaker combination, Strong saves
Aries.
Strong nails Stevens from the apron, Stevens waffles Strong.
Aries is sent into Strong, Aries takes out Douglas by sweeping his legs off the
apron, Stevens nails a shooting star press onto Strong & Aries, Aries goes
down clutching his leg this does not look good. In the ring, Strong chops and
knees Stevens. Aries wipes out Stevens on one leg with his heatseeker missile
suicide dive. Two for Aries in the ring, Strong tags into the match. Double
mounted punches, backbreaker by Strong for two. Tag to Aries, Stevens fights
out of the corner before Aries trips Stevens. Strong tags in and delivers an
elbow, reverse chinlock by Strong.
Jawbreaker by Stevens, Aries knocks Douglas off the apron.
Corner forearm and dropkick by Strong & Aries, bottom rope elbow by Aries
for two. Tag to Strong, splash for two. Tag to Aries, Stevens crotches Aries.
Strong is smacked in the face, Stevens yanks Aries off the top rope. Tag to
Douglas, right hands to both. High knee by Douglas on Strong, back drop for
Aries. Aries is sent into Strong, top rope hurricanrana with Strong landing on
Aries, two for Douglas. Douglas tries a powerbomb on Aries, chop block by
Strong. Aries gets two, lariat/German supple combination for two.
Gutbuster/Forearm/Sick Kick for two, Stevens throws Strong to the floor saving
Douglas. Natural Disaster is blocked, Aries cannot roll-up Stevens due to the
referee seeing Aries using the ropes. Irish whip by Douglas on Aries and
Natural Disaster for the win.
That was a fine opening match, not a huge fan of The Naturals
which I have said before. I thought they were bland as heels, more bland as
babyfaces with a forced turn. Too good looking kids but it was just not
clicking as a top team, Aries and Strong were loved by the crowd I would prefer
to have them two on my roster. On this night, we had a fun opener though, no
complaints from me for this match.
Winners:
The Naturals over Team ROH via Natural Disaster!
Alex Shelley vs Petey Williams vs Matt Bentley W/ Traci Jay
Lethal
Here is a flippy X-Division match that I thought would open
the show, the division had a lot of entertaining wrestlers at the time but with
a dominant champion in Samoa Joe and wrestlers like AJ Styles and Christopher
Daniels, it was going to be very hard to be noticed. Williams and Bentley
begin, back drop and suplex by Bentley. Scoop slam and knee to the chest for
two, Williams begs for mercy. Williams pulls Bentley into the turnbuckle, Bentley
is placed in the tree of woe. Traci teases Williams, Bentley saves Traci.
Missile dropkick by Bentley, Shelley tags into the match. Arm-drag by Bentley,
Lethal tags into the match. Nice wrestling from Shelley and Lethal, stand-off
from the two. Chops by Lethal, dropkick to the back of the neck, two for
Lethal.
Neckbreaker and butterfly suplex for two, Williams tags in
off Shelley’s leg. Backbreaker by Williams for two, Shelley tags into the
match. Nice submission by Shelley, low dropkick by Williams. Scoop slam and
slingshot hilo by Shelley for two, Shelley tags Williams. Dropkick to the back
by Williams for two, camel clutch from Williams. Shelley and Williams have
words over Lethal, Bentley tags into the match. Chops for Williams, back body
drop by Bentley. Williams crotches Bentley on the top rope, Shelley comes in
and wants a powerbomb on Williams. Lethal German suplexes Shelley but Bentley
elbow drops Lethal.
Lethal forearms Williams, Williams blocks a suplex for a
neckbreaker. Bentley is elevated to the floor, Dragon Suplex by Lethal. Shelley
dives into a dropkick, leaping calf kick on Shelley. Drop toehold by Shelley,
slingshot DDT by Shelley. Bentley is back in, right hands by Bentley. Complete
shot by Bentley, tilt-a-whirl Russian legsweep by Williams. Jackie Gayda is
here, Shelley is shitting bricks. Slap by Jackie, Williams is distracted.
Bentley back drops Williams which leads to Lethal jacknifing Williams for the
pin.
Fun match but the end goal could have been achieved in a
better fashion everyone was in love with Lethal who was tearing it up inside
the ring. However, the focus was on Jackie Gayda who had something with a
sextape and blackmailing and I have no fucking clue like what does that have to
do with wrestling? What does that have to do with a pay-off? Or a match?
Pointless really!
Winner: Jay
Lethal over Everyone Else via Jacknife Cover!
LAX W/ Konnan vs The James Gang
Konnan turned on BG after months of this group trying to come
together, Konnan is a great mouthpiece and TNA finally realized it as K-Dawg is
the mouthpiece for this villainous faction. No idea who Machete is, did not
know Apolo was in LAX. Hernandez was the perfect fit so I imagine poor Machete
does not last very long. In the midst of this, Ron Killings is conflicted as
Killings was a fan of both men and a friend of both BG and Konnan. Machete,
Konnan and Homicide jump The James Gang. The James Gang take control and send
LAX to the floor, Konnan regroups with LAX.
Homicide and Kip start, stare-down between the two. Kip
pushes Homicide down, military press slam. Neckbreaker on Machete, side
headlock by Homicide. Powerbomb by Kip, right hand by Kip and a tag to BG. Eye
poke by Homicide, in comes Machete. Right hands by BG, knee drop and a two for
BG. Snapmare and a boot by BG, tag to Kip. Machete chops Kip, clothesline by
Kip. Homicide stops the one and only, Kip is stomped to the floor. Konnan
smashes Kip off the guard rail, Kip boots Homicide in the ring but Homicide
avoids a stinger splash. Konnan attacks Kip while Homicide distracts BG,
Machete is in and stomps Kip.
Homicide misses his splash, in comes BG. Boot for Machete,
Homicide saves the match. Kip and Homicide brawl to the floor, BG nails Machete
with The Pumphandle Slam and that’s all she wrote. Konnan attacks BG with his
slapjakck, Bullet Bob Armstrong is in the ring and taking off his jacket.
Konnan runs away from a sixty-six year old man.
More of an angle than a match really, I am surprised that The
James Gang walked away with the win, way to build the great new heel faction.
Kind of sucks the life out of the feud when the good guys have already triumphed
over the heels at the first attempt.
Winners:
The James Gang over LAX via Pumphandle Slam!
(NWA Tag Team Championship Match) AMW © W/ Gail Kim vs Chris
Sabin & Sonjay Dutt
The makeshift team of Sabin and Dutt won a tournament to face
the heel champions in AMW, Sabin’s ankle is not 100% which should be the story
of the match. Storm and Sabin begin, Storm shoots for the ankle twice before
Sabin tags in Dutt, a hint of how Sabin’s ankle is feeling. Side headlock by
Storm, shoulder block by Storm. Armdrag and headscissors by Dutt, crossbody for
two. Tag to Sabin, drop toehold and elbow combination for two. Dropkick to the
back of the head for two, Harris trips Sabin and smashes Sabin’s ankle off the
ring apron and ringpost. Harris tags into the match and works the ankle, Sabin
screams out in pain.
Harris rips at Sabin’s boot and cranks at the ankle, Sabin
fires up but Harris tackles Sabin down. Storm drops a knee on the ankle,
reverse chinlock by Storm. Backstabber by Storm, Storm continues working the
ankle. Referee asks if Sabin can continue, Sabin plans to continue. Sabin limps
towards Dutt but Storm cuts off Sabin, uppercut by Storm. Sabin kicks off
Storm, tag to Dutt. Right hands, enzuigiri and hurricanranas, low dropkick to
Storm for two. Springboard dropkick to AMW, middle rope moonsault. Sabin nails
a missile dropkick on Harris, Salida Del Sol by Dutt on Storm for two. Harris
tries a catatonic but Dutt reverses for a crucifix for two.
Storm distracts the referee, Harris has a chair. Sabin DDTs
Harris on the chair, standing shooting star press by Dutt for two. Dutt has
Harris down, Phoenix Splash does not connect. Superkick by Storm, Death
Sentence by AMW and the champions retain their titles.
It was fine, Sabin sold the leg well throughout the match. I
thought the desperation was a bit lacking at times but I could not fault Sabin’s
selling throughout the match. Dutt was something of a strange one when it came
to TNA, everyone recognized his talent but he was the ultimate choke artist
always failing to win the big one. AMW were revitalised by the heel turn, they
need quality babyface teams to work with, it is a step in the right direction.
Winners:
AMW over Sabin & Dutt via Death Sentence!
(Falls Count Anywhere Match) Abyss W/ James Mitchell vs Rhino
The rubber match between the two, neither man were doing
particularly well at this point in their TNA career with Abyss pulling out the
same hardcore match night after night and Rhino having a less than memorable
run with the championship. Rhino sprints down to the ring and pummels Abyss,
Abyss is knocked into the crowd. Rhino botches diving into the crowd, Rhino has
to take a second attempt at it. Crowd brawling, Abyss sends Rhino into a wall.
Back ringside, Rhino pulls a trash can of weapons including the Super X trophy?
Abyss beats down Rhino before Rhino grabs a kendo stick and waffles Abyss.
Trash can is blocked by Abyss, Abyss cracks Rhino in the head.
Kendo stick to the head by Abyss, Rhino is bleeding. Rhino
cracks Abyss with a sign, Rhino grabs a baseball bat and whacks the super x
trophy into Abyss’ balls. Abyss suplexes Rhino on the ramp, Rhino is smacked
with the baseball bat. Abyss sets up four tables by the ramp, Abyss walks into
Rhino. They trade blows, Abyss wants a powerbomb but Rhino counters and sends
Abyss into the entrance way. Rhino wanted a gore but Abyss boots Rhino off the
stage, the two end up outside the impact zone.
Rhino is bounced off a car, Abyss has a baseball bat. Rhino
ducks the shot, Abyss does not duck. They battle down to the ring, Rhino pulls
out a table. Abyss is handed a staple gun and poor Rhino has his head messed
up. Abyss brings in another table, belly to belly suplex by Rhino. Rhino tries
a gore but Abyss counters for a chokeslam through a table, two for Abyss. Abyss
grabs his thumbtacks, Rhino Gores Abyss through a table in the corner, two for
Rhino. Rhino wants another gore, Mitchell grabs Rhino’s leg. Rhino chases Mitchell,
the two end up in the crowd. Rhino Gores Abyss who falls from the stands
through the four tables that the monster set up originally.
While the finish may have been a cool finish, it is hard to
separate the rest of the match from any Abyss has had since I began covering
TNA pay per views. It is the same thing, Abyss is an idiot and it ends up
costing Abyss the match. Abyss must have chairs, Abyss must have tables and
Abyss must have thumbtacks. The mystique of the monster is gone by this stage,
I have seen all there is to see from Abyss.
Winner:
Rhino over Abyss via Gore to The Floor!
(TNA X-Division Championship Match) Samoa Joe © vs AJ Styles vs
Christopher Daniels
The continuation of the feud that could have been handle
better in my eyes, we have another match between these three. Daniels and
Styles are the babyfaces while Joe is a killer, plain and simple. Joe grabs a
headlock on Styles, shoulder block by Joe on Daniels. Styles and Daniels fight,
leaping calf kick by Daniels. Joe flattens Daniels with kicks and a senton,
Styles slams Joe and nails a knee drop. Styles dropkicks Joe and Daniels,
backbreaker by Styles on Daniels. Joe front suplexes Styles, Daniels monkey
flips Styles into a Boston crab from Joe. High knee by Daniels on Joe, Joe is
on the floor. Back elbow by Styles, Styles is knocked off the apron by Daniels.
Daniels tries a suicide dive but Joe slaps Daniels down. Joe is sent hurdling
into the guard rail by Styles.
Vertical suplex by Styles, Muta Lock by Styles. Joe kicks
Styles to end that, STF by Joe on Styles. Koji clutch by Daniels on Joe,
everyone breaks up holds. Scoop slam and slingshot elbow by Daniels on Styles
for two, Daniels misses a knee on Joe. High knee by Joe, facewash from Joe.
Uranage by Joe on Styles, Daniels is smacked off the apron by Joe. Styles dives
over Joe and onto Daniels, Joe suicide dives onto both Styles and Daniels.
Styles and Daniels combine to send Joe to the floor, O’Connor roll by Styles
for two. Joe is caught in a side headlock by Daniels, Styles and Joe combine
for a lariat backdrop driver. Joe
waffles Styles with a shining wizard. Joe pins Daniels for two, inverted atomic
drop and running high kick by Joe. Senton for two, Daniels is barely hanging on
in this match.
Styles eats a kick to the face, powerslam and cross
armbreaker by Joe on Daniels. Daniels reaches the ropes, Joe chops Daniels all
over the place. Styles enzuigiris Joe, Daniels forearms Styles. Complete
Shot/running kick combination by Joe and Daniels on Styles, Koji clutch from
Daniels. Joe drops a knee across Daniels’ throat, Joe elbows Daniels. German
suplex by Daniels on Joe, Uranage by Daniels. BME connects with Joe kicking
out, Daniels calls for the end.
Styles attempts a clash on Daniels, Daniels avoids it but
eats a clothesline from Joe for two. Styles escapes a muscle buster, enzuigiri
to Joe. Gutbuster on Daniels, Styles gets two. Torture rack by Styles,
transition to a powerbomb with Joe saving his championship. Styles plants Joe
with his springboard reverse DDT for two, Daniels knocks down Styles and Joe.
Corner clothesline by Styles, Joe elevates Styles to the apron. Daniels and
Styles combine for a springboard forearm/death valley driver on Joe. Styles
throws Daniels to the floor, Daniels holds onto Styles’ foot. Joe boots Daniels
to the floor, Muscle Buster on Styles and Joe retains his championship.
Not the classic from 2005 but a very good match from these
two, everyone got a chance to shine in this match. Joe killed everyone, Styles
showed off his athleticism while Daniels showcased his cunning and skill inside
the ring. These three had fantastic chemistry with one another, they could have
a great match in their sleeps. I want to see more but I really should not, Joe
has mopped the floor with Styles and Daniels, we need something new for
everyone. Where will we go from here? Personally, I cannot wait to see what
happens next!
Winner:
Samoa Joe over Everyone Else via Muscle Buster!
Team 3D VS Team Canada W/ Scott D’Amore
Team Canada cost Team 3D the opportunity to be tag team
champions, Team 3D want revenge and if I wasn’t so worn out when it comes to
Team Canada, I would be really looking forward to this match. Team 3D jump Team
Canada to begin the match, D-Von pummels Young while Bubba manhandles Roode. Bubba
has Roode in the ring, knee across the back. Huge chest slap by Bubba, Roode
eats a German suplex. Young is yanked off the top rope, tag to D-Von. Sidewalk
slam/leg drop combination for two, scoop slam by D-Von. Elbow drop, D-Von clubs
down Young. Spinning reverse elbow by D-Von, Roode takes a punch from entering
illegally. Corner clothesline on Young, D’Amore is on the apron. Young saves D’Amore,
shoulder block by D-Von.
Roode lowbridges D-Von, Bubba is with the referee. D-Von is
sent into the steel steps, D-Von is bleeding again. Roode foot chokes D-Von, D’Amore
attacks D-Von with the plaque. Double suplex by Team Canada for two, right
hands by Roode to the cut. Reverse chinlock by Roode, D-Von escapes for a
roll-up, two for D-Von. Roode takes down D-Von with a clothesline, tag to
Young. Camel clutch by Young, Roode tags in for a big knee drop. Elbow drop by
Young for two, Roode is legal now. Roode applies the camel clutch, Roode tags
in D-Von. More camel clutches, D-Von escapes thanks to a rather low shot.
Enzuigiri on an interfering Roode, tag to Bubba.
Bubba nails a crossbody on both, clotheslines all around. Hiptoss
for Roode, back body drop on Young. Sidewalk slams, Roode breaks up a pin on
Young. Double flapjack by Team Canada for two, Roode is whipped into Young who
was on the top rope. German suplex on Roode by Bubba, Bubba superplexes Young.
Roode saves Young, D’Amore distracts the referee. Low blow by Roode, hockey
stick to the back of the head for two, Young misses a moonsault. Roode
clotheslines Young by mistake, Roode is sent to the floor. 3D on Young and this
match is over.
Standard tag team match, nothing special about it at the end
of the day. I thought a large part of the match was very boring, the constant
camel clutches dragged and we had a false finish with the hockey stick that
absolutely nobody bought in the arena due to Young not pinning Bubba before changing
his mind and going for the pin, sucked the life out of me in a match that was
already dragging in my eyes.
Winners:
Team 3D over Team Canada via 3D!
(NWA/TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match) Jeff Jarrett ©
vs Christian Cage
Another WWE star jumping ship to TNA, Christian was arguably
the hottest of the bunch as Christian was in a big feud around the WWE
championship before leaving for TNA as WWE did not want to go all the way with
Christian. Christian had the charisma and now, had the machine behind him.
Christian had to go through the constant thorn in my side, the man who would
dominate TNA whether he had the championship or not, that man is none other
than Jeff Jarrett. Bit of confusion with who would be the referee, we have Earl
Hebnar fresh off being fired by WWE for selling merchandise which he did not
have the permission to do so.
Jarrett starts with punches, side headlock and a drop
toehold. Paintbrushing and slap by Jarrett, tackle and punches by Christian.
Chops by Christian, middle rope sunset flip for two. Christian wants a suplex
to the floor, Jarrett lands on the apron. Both men end up on the apron, falling
reverse DDT by Christian. Jarrett takes control with Christian missing a dive,
Jarrett sends Christian into the guard rail. Jarrett sends Christian into the
announce table, right hands by Jarrett. Christian is catapulted onto the desk,
Christian is rolled into the ring. Dropkick by Double J for two, blue thunder
bomb by Jarrett for two. Reverse chinlock by the champion, Christian escapes
but eats a stungun. Middle rope choke, Hebnar and Jarrett have words and a shoving
contest.
Knee across the back, right hand floors Christian. Diving
hurricanrana by Gail Kim for two, Jarrett had the referee distracted. Jarrett
trash talks Christian, sleeper by Jarrett. Christian reverses for his own
sleeper, powerbomb by Christian. Figure four by Christian, Gail Kim pulls
Jarrett towards the ropes. Enzuigiri by Jarrett, sharpshooter by Jarrett. Christian
reaches the ropes but Jarrett pulls Christian back to the centre of the ring.
Christian reverses and applies the hold to Jarrett. Jarrett kicks off Christian
into the turnbuckle who falls on Jarrett’s nuts. Right hands by Christian,
inverted atomic drop and a clothesline by Christian.
Polish hammer by Christian, swinging DDT by Christian for
two. Hebnar is taken down from an accidental touch from Jarrett. Christian is
on the top rope, Gail Kim interferes. Super Stroke from the top rope, two for
Jarrett. Right hands by Jarrett, Christian is whipped into Hebnar. Unprettier
by Christian with no referee, two as Jarrett kicks out. Low blow by Jarrett on
Christian, the referee gets low blowed too. Jarrett has a chair, Christian
dropkicks the chair into Jarrett’s head. Second visual pin-fall, Gail Kim is
chased by Christian. Jarrett cracks Christian with the guitar, Christian kicks
out of course. Gail Kim is up on the top rope, powerbomb by Christian.
Christian blocks the stroke for the Unprettier, Christian is your new champion.
Like always, the over-booking absolutely takes me out of the
match. Not that they were doing anything special before the garbage kicked in,
I did not feel the struggle or the desperation for Christian to finally win the
championship. On top of that, we had the promise of a clean and decisive finish
but you gave us neither, you gave us the same drivel you always fork out when
Jarrett is involved that being chairs, guitar shots, finishers being made to
look weak and all sorts to just pin the man to the mat. Killed the match for
me, hoping that Jarrett leaves the company sooner rather than later.
Winner: Christian
over Jeff Jarrett via Unprettier!
That was TNA’s Against All Odds 2006 which was a mixed bag
reflecting on the pay per view. So much of what was a stable of TNA was on display
with this pay per view but it’s the same thing that I have seen dozens of times
when reviewing these shows. There is not enough shakeup going on when it comes
to these matches which makes it very difficult to care about the product. The
basic layout of every card is multi-man X Division match, Abyss hardcore match,
Team Canada tag match as they have to be on every show and Jarrett overbooked
nonsense in the main event. The reason I take such large breaks between TNA
reviews is precisely for that, I cannot sit through month after month of the
same thing with the exact same people. You could have swapped any tag team for
the Team Canada match, Christian could have been any ex-WWE superstar, I need
something that is unique and that is an alternative, that’s what made TNA stand
out but I am starting to think that maybe those TNA fans were drinking the kool-aid.
Thanks for reading and remember: There’s always another night!

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