By Ryan Kester

Bobby Roode, Jeff Hardy, and James Storm

Bobby Roode finally abandoned the talking points and sounded authentic on the mic. I have been looking for that type of delivery from him for some time now, and it was refreshing to hear the man speak with the same level of comfort as a heel that he did with his babyface character leading up to last year's Bound For Glory. His brief line at the end of the show was right where it needed to be.

Hardy seems to have finally found his promo niche, and for the second week in a row I was impressed by his delivery. He came off as more subdued and reserved in his delivery, but he also seemed hungry to have a chance to prove himself again. I hold to my opinion that he is better served giving rub to guys at this stage in his career than he is in hunting for the TNA title but if he can keep this type of promo going he may make me change my mind. I hope he does.

James Storm, unfortunately, feels lost in the shuffle due to the way hardy and Roode have stepped up their game. My sentiments seemed to be shared by the Impact crowd, as they consistently cheered Hardy in the main event. It appears that TNA is concerned about the idea of Storm and Roode feuding n their own, so they have Hardy in the picture to keep people invested. That's understandable, but it appears that Storm is the odd man out when he really should be one of the main focuses of the trio.

Austin Aries and Alex Shelley

- Austin Aries took the opportunity he had for air time and he ran with it. For me, his promo about his promo and his subsequent segment with Alex Shelley stole the show. Aries has been underutilized since he cme into TNA, and I hope to see TA give him more opportunities to impress like they did last night.

Alex Shelley held his own on the mic in his segment with Austin Aries. I was scratching my head heading into Bound For Glory as to why these two weren't feuding, but I am glad to see TNA getting around to it. If they keep this type of hype going, then it will be a very entertaining feud for the coming weeks of Impact Wrestling.

Mickie James vs. Madison Rayne

Mickie James and Madison Rayne had an entertaining match that furthered James and Gail Kim's feud by allowing James to take out Kim's henchman. The cage gimmick didn't add a ton to the match, but the two women worked very hard and I appreciate their efforts.

I hope the final showdown between Kim and James is around the corner. There have been some entertaining matches in their series, but I am getting ready for the Knockouts title picture to get shaken up a bit and for TNA to move away from some of the cheap finishes we've received in this feud.

Eric Young and ODB

I still can't bring myself to like Eric Young and ODB's shtick. I can't even put my finger on why, but it just doesn’t strike a chord with this viewer.

That being said, I couldn't help but notice how much the live crowd just loves what these two are doing. It's not for me, but I can understand and respect why TNA features the pair on a regular basis when they have the crowd behind them like they do.

Crimson vs. Magnus

When it comes to Crimson, I get the feeling he just needs to lose and go ballistic. He's trying to ramp up his version of intensity with his body language and facial mannerisms, but it just doesn’t feel like it's working well with his undefeated streak looming over his head.

As for the current feud between Matt Morgan and Crimson vs. Samoa Joe and Magnus, I felt my interests wane a bit. I still enjoy the pairing of Magnus and Joe together, but Crimson's streak makes this feud feel a bit pointless. It's hard to invest in something when there's a clear reason why the team with the titles cannot lose.

Gunner

Gunner seems like he's foundering in his "real bad man" role. He just doesn't seem very believable as a badass character hell-bent on hurting people. I can tell he's trying, but he almost seems to be doing too much with the way he carries himself.

I still think Gunner showed more comfort with the babyface-esque delivery he had when he was feuding with Mr. Anderson last year. His current character feels forced and more than a bit over-the-top, which just makes it difficult to take the threatening persona TNA is giving him seriously.

Garret Bischoff

Garret Bischoff's training video felt ridiculous and stood out like a sore thumb amidst all of the solid promos and good wrestling that took place on this show. I understand TNA desperately wants the promoter's son to get over, but this type of corny video package only serves to highlight the fact that he's getting pushed to the moon, and it could not click with me any less.

Overall Show

Overall, this was a very solid and entertaining edition of impact that delivered strong promo segments and kept the overbooked matches to a minimum. This show felt well-paced and focused and was a welcome break from some of the more hectic editions of Impact lately. I hope TNA adopts the methods used in last night's show and keeps them going for the future.

If you have any questions or comments or just wish to chat with a fellow wrestling fan about whatever, then feel free to email me at ryan.kester@gmail.com, or follow me on Twitter at @TheRyanKester.

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