Hola Knockout fans and welcome to this week’s Impact Write-Up! I’d like to take a quick moment to confess that while I didn’t tune in to Impact at its regular scheduled time last night, was viewing the Shine 24 show at the time and ironically it did tie into some of TNA (more on that later), I was able to catch the show’s instant replay courtesy of Destination America. Despite the network being smaller than TNA’s previous TV partner Spike, they have already proven to be more beneficial to TNA when it comes to more air time. Onto last night’s show, TNA’s annual Feast or Fired match is back this week and for the first time, a Knockout walks away with a case. We are also treated to a match between Gail Kim and Havok, with Awesome Kong watching close by! Let’s jump right into it!
TNA opens this week’s show with the heavily promoted Feast or Fired match, a match where twelve of TNA’s superstars battle each other out to retrieve one of four cases surrounding the ring containing either a feast prize of a World Heavyweight, X-Division or Tag Team title shot or one fired pink slip. The video I found isn’t embeddable, so click here to watch the match.
For the participating BroMans, they are putting their faith in their lady luck girlfriends The Beautiful People to help them through this match. For Robbie E, onscreen girlfriend Velvet Sky proves to more than luck as she manages to grab case labeled number two after distracting an already infatuated Crazzy Steve with her assets and a blow of a kiss. After successfully grabbing their case, the pair runs backstage with Steve chasing behind. Fellow Beautiful Bro members, Angelina Love, Jessie Godderz and DJ Z aren’t as lucky though as the other three cases are retrieved by Rockstar Spud, Magnus and Austin Aries. The results of these cases will all be revealed later in the evening.
While we wait for the fall out of the Feast or Fired briefcases, we turn our attention to the Knockouts match of the night featuring old rivals of Havok and Gail Kim against each other. Before the match, we are treated to an awesome video package of Awesome Kong, showcasing the destructive and driving force that Kong was during the early days of the Knockouts division and looking to reclaim her throne.
Already having made her entrance, Havok wastes little time going after Gail, going straight towards to her before she can even get to the ring. Gail anticipates this and dodges an oncoming Havok, landing a series of forearms and kicks her larger foe off the ramp to a barricade all while still saluting and giving high fives to fans. Bless Gail’s heart. From the ring apron, Gail lands a cross body onto Havok and directs her opponent to the ring to land yet another cross body from the top turnbuckle as the bell rings to officially start the match. Gail continues to rely on her agility and races from one side of the ring to other, throwing her body to Havok who catches her and dropping Gail on to her knee.
The punishment to Gail doesn’t stop there, as Havok begins to want to take Gail out in whatever way possible, choking Gail using the ropes before having to break her hold before the ref’s count for a DQ and even using her entrance cape to strangle Gail before having it confiscated. A spinebuster later, Havok goes for a pin but Gail manages to get her shoulder up in time. Never one to give up in a match, Gail finds a way to fight back, landing blows to Havok but it is short lived when Havok runs a driving knee to Gail’s eye socket! OUCH! Literally blindsided, Gail has no idea of what Havok has planned for her next, which looks to be a blow from the ring bell sitting on the table close by. Brian Stiffler throws his authority towards Havok, barking at Havok to get back in the ring but only gets shoved by an uncooperative Havok. (Props to Stiffler for that selling) Having put her hands on the ref, Stiffler calls for the bell and Gail wins the match via DQ.
With the match now over, Havok follows through with harming Gail, planting her over her shoulders and dropping her onto the bell as initially planned. Havok tosses the unconscious Gail back into the ring with the idea of landing a Harlot Slayer choke slam but is saved when the lights go out. As with the last two weeks, when the lights return, Awesome Kong comes face to face with Havok and now for the time things get physical! Havok landing the first blow to which Kong blows off and counters with a shoulder block and clothesline, sending Havok out of the ring and retreating to the back while having an intense stare down with the woman still standing in the ring Kong.
We close the night with the results of the Feast or Fired reveal with our honorary hostess Christy Hemme. Welcome back Christy!
Our winners all meet up with Christy and decide that for this year’s Feast or Fired reveal, we would open up the cases in descending numerical order. Holder of case number four Rockstar Spud opens his case to reveal his feast of a future X-Division title shot! Does this mean we won’t see anymore of Rockstar Spud vs. ECIII? With the pink slip still lurking in one of the cases, we continue with case number three and its holder Magnus. Will the first TNA English Heavyweight Champion get another shot soon? Not necessarily, as Magnus opens his case to reveal the case holding the Tag Team title shots. I recommend Bram to make up with Magnus should he want to be part of Magnus’ future tag team partner.
With now there being one in two chances of being fired, a troubled Robbie begins to worry that he may hold the case containing the fired case. Suddenly, Robbie recalls that it was Velvet who grabbed the case and that it should be her to face whatever lies in the case. Any bets as to whether Velvet would be getting a World Heavyweight title shot? Case number proves to indeed hold the fired case and Velvet has just been fired in place of Robbie. Unlike Velvet What does a guy like Robbie do in these situations? By taking a selfie with the help of the trusty Selfie stick of course! This leaves the only case left for Austin Aries, who has been as cool as a cucumber this entire segment, with the World Heavyweight title and suddenly I hear the Hallelujah chorus playing in my head.
Thoughts: What a night full of surprises and after questions.
Let’s start with the Knockouts match. I thought Gail and Havok showed a lot of aggression this week. Havok’s knee shot to Gail’s eye looked brutal but I can’t help to think this should’ve been the time for Havok to get her title rematch against Taryn Terell. The match ended in DQ, so Taryn would have retained with Havok still getting her rematch clause. Havok has yet to get her title rematch since losing it last year, unless you count that battle royal as her title rematch, so it does make me wonder if that is being put to the side in favor of the Awesome Kong and Havok feud that continues to brew. Speaking of their feud, I was hoping that by now we would have some kind of backstage segment or promo from either of these titan Knockouts explaining exactly why they’re feuding. It seems to be the missing factor in this feud as there really isn’t a motive as to why Awesome Kong has set her eyes on Havok since returning, aside from the assumption that Kong is looking to reclaim her title as the most dominant Knockout on the roster.
Speaking of Havok, she made a very shocking and surprising return to Shine this weekend, making the save for Mia Yim after Valkyrie attempts a sneak attack. Now, I only bring this up because of the concern it may bring regarding Havok’s TNA status and their rules regarding talents appearing on iPPVs. She isn’t scheduled for TNA’s upcoming UK Tour so perhaps this is TNA’s way of allowing Havok continue to work close to home.
One Knockout name that has been circulating has been Velvet Sky’s and the aftermath of this Feast or Fired. Though her name has been removed from TNA’s roster page, she isn’t listed under TNA alumni’s section or has been removed from TNA’s Knockouts website yet. Like Havok, Velvet isn’t scheduled for TNA’s UK tour and so this may simply be the way TNA have written off Velvet as opposed to it being the real deal but only time will tell.
Until then, keep an eye and ear open Knockout fans.
