Following the Knockout’s match was another backstage promo hyping up the main event, this time with “Cowboy” James Storm. I’m continously impressed by Storm’s comfort on the mic, and while it wasn’t his best attempt, I do like that they’re giving each of the challengers time to talk. It adds to the “big fight feel” of Against All Odd’s main event match.
(4) Samoa Joe and Magnus def. Matt Morgan and Crimson to become the NEW TNA World Tag Team Champions! The finish came when Crimson accidentally speared Matt Morgan, allowed “JoeNus” to hit their finishing combo and pick up the victory.
Definitely a step up for Morgan & Crimson in the ring, but a giant step down as a team after losing their titles. I like Joe and Magnus as a team – I don’t LOVE them, but they have great chemistry, are both great ring workers, and surprise me every week. With the state of TNA’s tag team division, this was obviously the best direction for them to go in! Crimson with the huge spear on Morgan will likely lead into their dissension and eventually match at Victory Road and/or Lockdown. Many are asking why they would put these two together, have them lose at Genesis, just to end up winning here at Against All Odds. It’s simple really – in the last month they’ve been able to renew their focus, pick apart the champions, and develop a better following from the fans. They gained a lot of momentum, and their win here meant a lot more than it would have at Gensis. Congrats to the new champions… Rating: B
Following the match we were treated to a Bully Ray promo, during which he verbally assaulted Christy and made his claim for the World Title. By far the best promo of the night, possibly one of Bully Ray’s best quotes as well: “Shut up…don’t talk! No matter how much make-up you put on, and no matter how sleazy you try to dress, you still won’t look good. Give me the microphone and go away, feeble woman!”
(5) Austin Aries def. Alex Shelley to retain his X-Division Championship. A lot of near falls, but the finish came after Aries hit his Brianbuster/submission finisher combo, forcing Shelley to tap out.
I’m going to get a lot of crap for this, but I just don’t think this match was as good as a lot of people are claiming it was. The one thing I will say is that both of them were clearly wrestling with a Ring of Honor mentality. If you don’t watch ROH, or you simply don’t analyze ring psychology and methodology as much as I do, you may not pick up on this… But the amount of times they would leave the ring, fly over the top rope, and ESPECIALLY the quick-count false-finishes made it clear to me where they drew their inspiration from for this match. Unfortunately for Aries, Alex Shelley just isn’t Davey Richards. He over-sold just about every move, flopping around like Shawn Micheals during his match with Hulk Hogan at SummerSlam. Shelly is a good wrestler on the whole, and with Sabin by his side the Guns are fantastic! I just wasn’t overly impressed by his work in this match…
What I did like was their implementation of stiff moves. You normally only see the MMA-style knees to the head in MMA or, if they are done in pro wrestling, in Ring of Honor. I loved the Davey Richards-style stiff kicks to the head at the tail end of the match, and the finish was absolutely fantastic. They really made me feel like in order for one to put the other away, he’d have to do something drastic – and in the last few minutes Aries did just that. I’d describe this venture as an over-rated match with a great finish. My biggest complaint about ROH is the over-use of the false finish, and that none of them are given proper time to build anticipation. That was definitely the case here in this match, but it wasn’t big enough to completely ruin it for me either. Rating: B
Aside: Aries retains in the same night we get new, more athletic tag team champions, while the old champs start their build towards a singles feud. To me that says one thing: Chris Sabin is either fully healed, or he’s really damn close. I wouldn’t be surprised if you see “JoeNus” vs. the Guns at Lockdown!
