TNA Destination X 2012 Review

-I can’t even remember the last time there was a TNA review on this here website. Well, here goes nothing.

-Taped from Orlando, Florida

-Your hosts are Mike Tenay and Jeremy Borash

-Last Chance Qualifier: Mason Andrews vs. Rubix vs. Dakota Darsow vs. Lars Only

Match in Five Words or Less: Sort Of Right Guy Wins

Match Highlights: Of course Jigsaw being on this show is one of the reasons I’d give it a shot. Ditto for one Scorpio Sky. Darsow gets sent outside right away. Rubix uses Lucha to gain the advantage. O’Connor roll into a roll-up by Andrews. Dropkick by Rubix. Only grabs a waistlock. Headscissors by Only on Rubix. Armdrags on Darsow into an armbar. Twisting slam and Rubix sent back down to the floor. Elbow followed by a legdrop. Andrews sent to the floor. Paint brushes in the corner. Only up and over with a roll-up for two. Rubix hits a beautiful cross body for two. Darsow sends him up and down. Sloppy looking falcon arrow does not do the deal as Only breaks the count. Andrews dropkicks Darsow to break up a potential submission. Only collides with Darsow. That was ugly. Andrews with a clubbering blow on Rubix. TOPE CON HELO on the other two men. Rubix hits a dive of his own. Wow. Sky hooks in a fujiwara armbar on Rubix. Kid Kash is shown watching in the back. Only hits moves on all three men to no reaction. Covers on each man gets nothing. Shot on Darsow. He gets tossed outside. Darsow is dangerous. Boot on Andrews. Only crotched on the apron. Sky with a stiff leg kick. A second one. Andrews meets Only. Darsow powerbombs both men. Rubix hits a criss cross dropkick on Darsow into the corner. Crowd is clearly behind him. All four men slowly rise. Exchange of strikes. Darsow hits a neckbreaker on Andrews. Kick to the side of the head by Rubix. Face plant with his feet executed by Only. Andrews hits a high knee and TKO into Only. Cover for three.

Match Analysis: The crowd was clearly behind Rubix, but if nothing else, Andrews winning wasn’t completely out of bounds since he looked crisp for the most part. Maybe I’m biased, but Rubix looked the best of the four men. Only is a fine indy wrestler under his other name of Johnny Yuma, but he really looked sloppy on the big stage. Darsow is borderline dangerous and not someone TNA should consider bringing back without a lot of seasoning. A fine exhibition and good start to the show regardless.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Mason Andrews/8:22/***

-X Division Semifinal: Mason Andrews vs. Kid Kash

Match in Five Words or Less: Reaching For The Sky

Match Highlights: Kash runs out immediately to attack Andrews. Match is on. Andrews sent to the outside and into the ring post. Back in the ring. One foot cover gets two. Right hands and another cover for two. Chop and back rake. Clothesline misses. Andrews with a pair of dropkicks. Crucifix pin gets two. Kash guillotines Andrews across the top rope. Kick to the gut and a chop to the back. Forearms while Andrews is on the middle rope. Suplex but Kash doesn’t fall with him. Backbreaker. Double sledge off the middle rope. Bodyslam. Kash taunts Andrews and gets two. Clubbering blow to the head. Clothesline ends a brief comeback for Andrews. Solid kicks to the chest. Key lock. Andrews out but Kash hits an elbow. Open hand chop. Bodyslam. Twisting moonsault met with double knees. Strikes. Andrews hits a leaping back elbow followed by a clothesline and dropkick. Whip in the corner. Sky hits a headscissors. Missile dropkick gets two. Bicycle knee. 1-2-NO! Sunset flip by Kash. Andrews bridges over for two. Backslide immediately slides through. Andrews gets a roll-up out of nowhere for three.

Match Analysis: Kash played his role of the bitter veteran quite well in this match. Not a fan of the rather fluky nature of Andrews victory, but at least it was a situation where he was also in the opener. Andrews made a very good accounting of himself, and he’s definitely someone TNA should keep on. Kid Kash as a bitter veteran would also work out well. Good start to the show.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Mason Andrews/8:10/**1/2

-Samoa Joe and his ridiculous mohawk pick Austin Aries to win the world heavyweight title. Onto more important business as Joe sees important business ahead of him. He focuses on Kurt Angle and vows to win later in the evening. Good fire there.

-X Division Semifinal: Kenny King vs. Douglas Williams

Match in Five Words or Less: A Mere Coronation

Match Highlights: This is like an old school Ring of Honor wrestler versus a new school ROH wrestler. Williams manages a headlock takeover. Applied headscissors by King. Williams counters out and grabs the left leg. Exchange of arm holds. Sunset flip by Williams. King takes him down. Williams wraps the legs with his own. Front facelock. Forearms by King in the corner. Williams twists around. King falls down in a nearfall. Backslide gets another two count. Williams offers a handshake. Well, we know that doesn’t mean anything to one of these men. Boot and a headlock. Williams tosses King outside. King hits a slingshot twisting dive on Williams. Short suplex into forearms. Headlock and short right hands by Williams. Shoulder tackle. Drop toehold by King and into a headlock. Armdrags from King into the armbar. Right hand by Williams. Forearms from King. Elbow by Williams. European uppercut off the middle rope. Straight lariat. King rammed head first into the buckle. Roll-up out of the corner gets two for King. Thrusts and an uppercut by Williams. Slap across the face. Whip in the corner followed by the high knee. Snap suplex. Chaos Theory blocked. Atomic drop and an enziguri kick by King. Series of clotheslines by King. Spin kick still doesn’t end it. Leaping kick. Spinebuster. Williams won’t die though. Williams gets a boot out of the corner and avoids a charging King. King meets him at the top rope. Williams headbutts him to the floor. Williams hits a high knee off the top rope. Williams rolls in the ring. King gets in at nine. Cover for two. Forearms from King. Knee to the midsection. King guillotines Williams. Blockbuster gets two. Roll-up by Williams but he puts his feet on the ropes. Whip across and another knee. King shoves Williams. Leapfrog misses. Coronation hits and King pulls out the win.

Match Analysis: Williams was the perfect compliment to King’s athleticism. Regardless of what happened with Ring of Honor, King got to showcase himself as a star on his own. In a way, he also came off as a much bigger deal being on this PPV than at any time in Ring of Honor. Hopefully, these guys can have another match down the road. 3-for-3.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Kenny King/10:35/***

-Christopher Daniels (w/appletini) talks about being AJ Styles lackey. He talks about winning and dominating while also being the new face of Impact wrestling. Daniels knows who he is and also knows who Styles is. Styles would apparently lay down instead of standing up. Daniels has a drink.

-X Division Semifinal: Sonjay Dutt vs. Rashad Cameron

Match in Five Words or Less: Dutt Impresses

Match Highlights: Some early speed shown by both men. Maybe a little too choreographed. Cameron shoves Dutt. Right hands by Dutt. Kick by Cameron. Dropkick from Dutt. Shoulder tackle. Cameron catches Dutt with a dropkick. Tope con helo. Chop in the corner. Whip across. Dutt gets an elbow. Running rana. Sliding dropkick hits Cameron flush. Cameron tears Dutt off a springboard. Dutt sent into the rail hard. Into the ring for a two count. Flapjack. Punch to the back and Cameron rakes Dutt’s face. Knee to the  midsection. Applied body scissors. Strikes in the corner. Dutt reverses a whip. Camerson rolls through. Dutt sends him into the middle turnbuckle and hits a double boot. Springboard leg drop across the back of Cameron. Springboard splash gets two. Leaping sliced bread attempt but he settles for an armdrag. Roll through by Cameron for two. Kicks Dutt away and hits a rana. Roll through into a cross armbreaker. Dutt grabs the bottom rope. Standing sliced bread hits for Dutt. Moonsault foot stomp gets three for Dutt.

Match Analysis: I don’t think this matched the quality level of the first three bouts, but Dutt looked really motivated in this match. I’ve never been his biggest fan, but this could have turned the corner. The crowd seemed to be behind him the most, which makes sense since he’s someone who’s been with TNA before and has a reputation. Cameron looked awkward in spots and didn’t have as much fluidity as King, Andrews, or Rubix. He wasn’t terrible mind you, but I’m not sure if TNA should be using him at this point. Still, this wasn’t offensive and Dutt got a clean decisive victory. All you can ask for.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Sonjay Dutt/ 7:16/**1/2

-Jesse Sorensen video package as it’s nearly been a year since his horrific neck injury. Sorensen is now completing rehab and will soon be ready to come back to the ring. What an incredible story. You’ve gotta be rooting for this kid.

-Sorensen comes out to a standing ovation from the Impact faithful. He talks about the injury and whether he’d even be able to walk again. He calls himself a professional wrestler and thanks everyone for their support. He turns his attention to Ion and hopes he wins the X division title. Sorensen vows to win the belt and promises to be challenging for the world title at Destination X 2013. Look, they have to make this happen now, right? He is a babyface. Ion walks right by Sorensen and acts like a complete douchebag.

-X Division Semifinal: Zema Ion vs. Flip Cassanova

Match in Five Words or Less: Indy Flippy

Match Highlights: Ion attacks before the bell rings. Hard whip and a lariat. Open hand chop. Cassanova flips. Ion boots him. Another flip and a headscissors. Cassanova dives up and over. Back in the ring. Back elbow by Ion. Legsweep but a moonsault is kicked away. Choke along the middle rope. Double knees to the back. Leg kicks and forearms by Cassanova. Elbow by Ion. Baseball dropkick. Stomp on Cassanova. He sprays the air and his hair. Second rope moonsault met with knees. Atomic drop and enziguri by Cassanova. Springboard twisting moonsault for two. Bodyslam. Shooting star press misses. Ion drives Cassanova down and hits a Gory special for three.

Match Analysis: Amazing to think that a week ago prior, these guys were wrestling at AIW’s Absolution show. Cassanova may never get the chance to be on a national stage again for a number of reasons, but you’ve gotta be happy for him at least getting one chance. Ion has never been one of my favorites, but this angle with Sorensen has definite potential to elevate his standing and get him over as a douche heel. This match felt like something you’d see on the indies and not on a major PPV. Not exactly something for either man to write home about.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Zema Ion/3:55/*1/2

-Kenny King says the others don’t have a chance in the Ultimate X match. Sonjay Dutt and Mason Andrews also talk about winning. Bobby Roode says this is his show because he’s the world champion and basically calls the other three losers.

-Bound for Glory Series: Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle

Match in Five Words or Less: 10 Is Better Than 7

Match Highlights: Feeling out process as the crowd is deeply into this one. Both men go for submissions since they could potentially get ten points by doing that. Right hands by Joe in the corner. Face wash and one more big running kick. More punches and an uppercut. Running kick. Angle hits as back elbow. Joe sends Angle high to the floor. Diving forearm. Angle hits a straight kick on Joe. Kicks in the corner. Joe reverses a whip, hits an elbow, and then an enziguri. Angle hits a headbutt and then a dropkick off the top rope. Chinlock. Elbows from Joe. Angle hits a belly-to-belly suplex. Elbows from Joe out of a chinlock. Right hands by Angle. Whip. Elbow from Joe. Suplex blocked. Joe hits a leg lariat off the top rope. Right hands and a clothesline from Joe. Whip. Elbow by Angle. Joe gets an atomic drop and running boot. Running senton gets two. Angle rakes the eyes. Snap powerslam gets two for Joe. Into a modified armbar. Angle reverses into the anklelock. Joe kicks him away. Rolling German suplexes by Angle. Armdrag counter out of the Drunk Slam. Joe places Angle on the top rope. Sunset flip rolled over into the anklelock. Joe kicks him away. Blind charge met with an STJoe. Angle again placed on the top rope. Musclebuster. Cover for two. Rear naked choke. Angle back into the anklelock. He drags Joe to the center of the ring. Angle rolls through but ends up in the rear naked choke. Angle elbows out. Joe tries holding on. Drunk Slam! 1-2-NO! Straps come down. Joe kicks Angle away. Boot. Drunk slam turned into the rear naked choke. Joe situates his body so Angle won’t counter so easily. Angle is out. Earl Hebner calls for the bell. Joe picks up 10 points.

Match Analysis: If nothing else, the Bound for Glory series makes the dynamic of each match interesting. With submissions being more valuable than pinfalls, it makes a ton of sense for these guys to be going for their respective holds. This was a very good match for its place on the card, maybe not at the level of their 2006 matches but this was still quite excellent. Joe seems to have found new motivation lately, and a battle with Austin Aries at BFG would be a great way to cap off his push.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: Samoa Joe/14:35/***1/2

Last Man Standing: Christopher Daniels (TNA World Tag Team Champion) vs. AJ Styles

Match in Five Words or Less: Ignore The Stupidity

Match Highlights: I’m going to completely the angle that’s surrounding this latest battle and just focus on the fact that these two men have had so many amazing matches over the years. We’re talking countries, companies, and in various connotations. Daniels stalls to start as Styles is anxious to beat him up. Styles gives chase. Daniels spits in his face. Punches from Styles as they go into the corner. Daniels again powders. Clothsline misses. Styles rams Daniels hard into the rail. Daniels with a chop and forearm. Styles responds. Shot to the back by Daniels. Headbutt. Styles responds. Big kneelift. Daniels sent into the rail. Knee in response and an elbow to the back of the head. Boot as Styles heads back in the ring. Headbutt. Styles hits a dropkick. Kicks to various parts of Daniels’s body. Front facelock but Daniels takes Styles into the corner. Suplex into the corner. Kick to the back. Styles hits a bodyslam. Running knee strike misses. Daniels with a forearm. Chops miss. Styles now with some of his own. Whip reversed. Cheap right hand by Daniels. Running punt. Daniels tosses a chair in the ring. Styles sends Daniels in the corner. He uses the chair to launch himself but Daniels ducks. Uranagi sends Styles’s back hard into the chair. Daniels talks trash with some of the fans as he continues beating Styles up. Right hands to Styles’s head as he is now bleeding. Vertical suplex. Styles avoids being sent into the chair. He meets Daniels’s boot. Daniels flattens the chair out. Hard whip into the corner. Styles kicks Daniels in the leg. Springboard clothesline sends the chair into Daniels’s head. Styles sends Daniels head first into the stairs hard. Now Daniels is bleeding. Daniels is now heading up the entrance way. Styles catches him with a right hand. Styles charges. Double clothesline and both men hit their backs on the steel. That was unique. Referee counts both men. Right hand battle. Enziguri by Styles. He tells the referee to not even bother counting. Styles Clash attempt countered with a backdrop. Palm strike. Styles comes off a beam and hits a reverse DDT. Wow. As the referee counts Daniels, Frankie Kazarian shoves Styles all the way down to the floor. Referee counts Styles down. Styles stands at eight. Daniels sends Styles into the rail. Back to ringside for a table. Daniels goes for Angel’s Wings. Styles shoves Daniels into Kazarian. Pele kick. Styles Crash through the table! Official counts both men down. Styles gets up at nine. Daniels stays down.

Match Analysis: It’s amazing how these two men constantly find ways to freshen things up and deliver great match after great match. Much respect to these two men as they had a great brawl. Both men bled and had conducted a lot of their business outside the confines of the ring. Even the interference of Kazarian made sense and fit in within the context of the match. They played their roles to perfection and have had the best match of the night so far.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: AJ Styles/17:41/****1/4

-Austin Aries interview. He wishes everyone luck but says the X Division is behind him. The TNA world heavyweight championship is ahead of him. Aries says he’s going to win with a brainbuster and going to change the course of pro wrestling history.

-Ultimate X- X Division Championship: Zema Ion vs. Kenny King vs. Mason Andrews vs. Sonjay Dutt

Match in Five Words or Less: All About Ion Indeed

Match Highlights: Ion sorays his hair and then immediately goes to climb. He gets torn off the top rope. Elbows on all three men. Triple dropkick in response. King forearms Andrews. Andrews tripped up and taken out. Dutt punches away on King. Running rana. King meets Dutt on the top rope. Ion sends King flying into the rail. Missile dropkick by Andrews. Blind charge misses. Swinging DDT by Ion. King crotches Ion on the top rope. Andrews goes for a DDT, but King suplexes him into the corner. Dutt and King battle on the apron. King with a leaping kick. He springs up o the structure. Dutt dropkicks him down. Running shooting star press and his arm is injured. He even mouths something to the referee. Andrews takes Ion into the corner with forearms. Elbow. Ion jumps on the wire with ease. King and Andrews bring him down. King hits a springboard legdrop. Andrews nails King on the top rope. Back suplex. Ion climbs again. Atomic drop by Andrews. King vertical suplexes him. Twisting corkscrew misses badly for King. Andrews hits a dive on the other two men. King spears Andrews off the wire. Dutt makes his way back to the ring as Ion gets his head stuck in the support beams. Andrews climbs across the wire. King joins him. Neckbreaker by Andrews but both men are taken down. Ion and Dutt crawl across the steel structure, which is even above the wiring. Dutt climbs down. Ion brings out the hair spray and also climbs down. he sprays Dutt’s  face. Dutt falls Ion grabs the belt, and we have a new champion.

Match Analysis: These matches are always tough because of how dangerous they are. I’m not a huge fan because of how risky it is, but if nothing else it was an great way to get four men in the ring competing for a championship. Ion probably has the best character and hook considering a future feud with Jesse Sorensen is in the books. Tough to even rate this but in a more straightforward contest, this would have been much better.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: NEW X Division Champion-Zema Ion/8:50/**1/2

-Ion dedicates the championship to Jesse Sorensen and says he may never have realized how dangerous he was. Ion calls himself the prettiest X Division champion of all time.

-TNA World Heavyweight Championship: Bobby Roode (champion) vs. Austin Aries

Match in Five Words or Less: A Crowning Achievement

Match Highlights: The video package before this is pretty fantastic as it makes this match feel all the more important. These two are the longest reigning champions in their respective divisions…ever.  Shove in the corner by Roode. Aries responds when both men are along the ropes. They stay basic to start.  Roll-up by Aries. Modified STF. Aries  rolls all around and slaps him multiple times. Roode misses a charge. Springboard dive. Running elbow drop. Headlock into an applied headscissors by Roode. Headlock takeover by Aries. Applied headscissors by Roode. Oh no. Roode doesn’t watch tapes, does he? Of course, Aries dropkicks him. Double axehandle to the floor. Missile dropkick misses badly. Running boot by Roode. Series of stomps and choking along the bottom rope. Vertical suplex and a knee drop. Elbows to the midsection. Elbow to the head by Roode. Short bodyslam by Roode. Knee drop misses. Leg kicks from Aries. Atomic drop. Dropkick to the knee. Last Chancery attempt but Roode grabs the bottom rope. Shot to the midsection and elbow strike by Aries. Aries takes Roode up and over. Kick and Roode hits his head on the side of the ring. Heat seeking missile but Aries hits the guard rail. Jesus. Spear. Roode tries applying the sharpshooter. Gordbuster and bodyscissors. Transitions into a waistlock. Forearm by Aries. Knee to the midsection by Roode. Roode rams his challenger into the corner. Another hard whip. Whip across. Aries gets the elbow. Flapjack out of the firemen’s carry position. Back to the waistlock. Roll-up out of the counter gets two. Clothesline for Roode. Roode taunts Aries. Aries comes back with forearms. Exchange. Roode sends Aries into the corner. Chop battle. Intensity really picking up. Discus forearm by Aries. Roodes takes him up and over. Aries comes up and over him. Clothesline. Heat seeking missile. Missile dropkick. Roode catches Aries in a powerslam. Spear attempt but Aries locks in Last Chancery. Roode reverses into a crossface. Aries reapplies his own submission. Roode teases tapping. Rake of the eyes and the hold is broken. Running shoulder block. Stalling superplex but Aries gets a knee strike. 450 splash misses. Roode hits a spinebuster. 1-2-NO! Crossface turned into a roll-up. Roode sends Aries shoulder first into the post. Now the crossface should be even more effective. Aries crawls to the bottom rope. Roode goes for the title belt, but the official takes it away from him. Low blow by Roode. Quick cover and a two count. Roode yells at the ref. Shoving match. Aries hits the running dropkick. Brainbuster countered and Roode shoves Aries into the referee now. Belt shot to the head. Roode goes for the referee. 1-2-NO! Fishermen’s buster turned into a roll-up. Side step. Boot to the head. Brainbuster. NEW CHAMPION!

Match Analysis: This is clearly a crowning achievement in the career of Austin Aries as he now has the distinction of having ended the longest ROH and TNA world title reigns. Credit for Bobby Roode for really excelling in a time of transition, but I completely understand the mentality here. Strike while the iron is hot. Aries has a ton of momentum off his X Division title reign. The crowd is behind him big time. Aries is having great matches. Why not give him the title and see if some buzz can be generated out of it? Aries may not have a huge fanbase, but I bet some members of the IWC will now be more inclined to check TNA out now as opposed to even three months ago. The match quality was top notch here even with the ref bump and usual TNA shenanigans. Lots of intensity from both men and both men again played their roles to perfection. If there’s one thing TNA has done well throughout this show, it’s having clearly defined heels and babyfaces. Loved the finish with Aries winning with the very move he said he would earlier in the evening, that being the brainbuster. Cannot say enough good things about this match as you’ve got a clear MOTYC here. Congrats to the new champion, and thank you Bobby Roode for being a force of stability.

Winner (s)/Time/Rating: NEW TNA World Heavyweight Champion-Austin Aries/22:42/****1/2

The Verdict: This could very well be the best PPV of the year, above anything WWE, ROH, or DGUSA/Evolve has put out this year. Top to bottom, this was a breeze to watch. Not everything was perfect, but it all served its purpose and made sense in the end. You’ve got two new champions coming out of this show, and the BFG series seems to have significantly more momentum behind it this year as opposed to last year.

This is the best time in TNA’s history to make a move. WWE has flat-out not been putting out good television ever since Wrestlemania, and there is a general feeling of disgruntlement. With a national television contract and a lot of potential stars on the roster, TNA is in a great position to get traction. However, their focus should not be on trying to be number one or even taking over the world. This promotion needs to focus on putting out good wrestling shows the rest of this year. Build around a core set of guys and keep the stupidity to a minimum. A rotating cast of characters as opposed to having a definitive roster would not even be the worst idea in the world since everyone could be kept fresh.

If TNA puts on very good television and delivers thumbs up shows the rest of 2012, they can position themselves toward exiting the Impact Zone on a regular basis in the second half of 2013. This is going to be a very slow process. I can’t see TNA’s ratings even going up past its usual 1.0 for at least six months. But gaining a good internet and social media buzz on a consistent basis will absolutely help them in this case. I have no idea how they’ll draw in a casual audience, but working with Spike TV and having guys like Sting and Hulk Hogan may actually help them in this case, even if they’re not wrestling (and they should not be by the way).

Destination X was an overall thumbs up show that had a couple great matches and a lot of other fun ones. I have no idea what the follow-up will be. They could easily screw this opportunity up as they have so many others in their ten year existence. Yet there is hope. For the first time since Vince Russo took over the helm and flushed the potential of this company down the toilet back in 2006, there is a chance for TNA to be more than just a punchline.