By Ryan Kester

Austin Aries and Bobby Roode

I still enjoy the dynamic between Aries and Roode on the mic. They just play off of each other well. They did a good job during the contract signing turned handshake session and it had me looking forward to their match on Sunday.

Unfortunately, this was one of the few segments that were actually designed to get viewers to buy the PPV this Sunday and it took until the second to last quarter hour for TNA to get there.

James Storm vs. Bully Ray

This was the best match of the night for me, even if the rest of the card wasn't providing much competition. Storm and Ray simple work well together and they produced one hell of a TV main event.

I am still disappointed in TNA's determined efforts to undermine Storm's integrity. I understand the story they are going for, but I wish they wouldn't have made it so easy for Storm's former comrades to just decide me must be guilty.

Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles

This was a very solid match. I grow a bit tired of the repeated use of Angle's finisher fest, but it was done well last night and TNA was wise enough to keep it out of the main event slot. If they kept having the same match in the main event it would only serve to make the formula feel more and more stale. I do wish that Angle would shake things up from time to time.

I hope that TNA has a plan to get out of the Claire storyline sometime soon. Lord help us all if they keeps this crap story going until Bound For Glory.

Aces and Eights

While I am still enjoying this group, I can't say I am thrilled about the hype to have them paired with an existing act. This stable is getting over as its own entity and I'd rather not see them play backup to someone else. Not every group needs to have an established leader, especially when there really isn't a guy that would blend well with the dynamic the stable has going for it.

Overall Show

Last night's show missed the mark. TNA has been producing a lot of entertaining television recently, but this wasn't one of their better outings. Between throwaway matches and an overreliance on recaps rather than final sells, this show failed to sell me on Hardcore Justice.

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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