Pruett's Pause: TNA Impact Wrestling - Bobby Roode defeats James Storm to become number one contender, A.J. Styles speaks, Turning Point fallout

By Will Pruett

- It was nice to see James Storm kick off Impact. He has star potential and TNA seems to be starting and stopping with him a lot. Storm is one of the few wrestlers today that can talk for twenty minutes in an opening promo and not bore me.

- Bobby Roode and James Storm have excellent chemistry on the mic. This was an interesting segment that was ultimately frustrating. Both men did their jobs well, but it makes Storm look extremely dumb to give up the shot he worked for a year for.

- The interviews about A.J. Styles treading water or not excelling from Dixie Carter and Hulk Hogan were slight nonsensical. How exactly was Styles not moving forward all year? Why didn't they mention this before he lost this match? This was TNA attempting to make up a story instead of telling it from the beginning.

- Kid Kash really earned that X Division Championship by losing to Chavo and Hernandez a few months ago and not appearing since.

- Rob Van Dam vs. Kid Kash actually featured some fun commentary from the three man booth. Mike Tenay seems to be settling into his "Professor" role from WCW. It isn't perfect and I believe the wrong man is leading the booth, but it is an improvement over what Tenay and Taz have been doing.

- Is Jeremy Borash now permanently off of commentary? That would be a poor choice.

- Why is Kurt Angle such great friends with Wes Brisco and Garett Bischoff? Did he start a club for rookies? Why doesn't he have other friends?

- Color me impressed with Jesse in the ring. His comedy act will get stale soon, but I expected a former reality TV star to be far worse at actually wrestling. I'm glad he isn't.

- I love Joseph Park matches, so I hope he doesn't learn to wrestle too well. Break out the Abyss persona when actual wrestling is required. Don't mess with Joseph Park's brilliance.

- Magnus getting jumped by Aces and Eights makes their invasion suddenly look like a roster-splitting story instead of a heel group invading. I don't know that this was the best way to go.

- Is Magnus taking off for an extended absence? He is a great character that can't quite seem to catch on. Some extended exposure to the audience would help, but long absences hurt him.

- Austin Aries and Jeff Hardy had a nice segment backstage. We rarely see champions and former challengers confronting each other after the match has already happened (without a rematch being made). This was a nice, realistic touch from TNA.

- That realism was squashed when Hardy's internal monologue took over. I still don't understand why we can hear his thoughts and no one else's? Is his special belt giving him super powers?

- This show is the best argument for TNA to be live. Their creative team can't seem to write a few shows in a row and retain passable quality. This show was written by a burnt out crew and it shows in so many places.

- Kurt Angle and his little buddy fought Aces and Eights. Nothing really happened.

- Bully Ray is hooking up with Brooke Hogan. I'm intrigued.

- I'm happy to see Mickie James back and her health no longer at risk. I'm not happy to see her still dressed like Pocahontas instead of an actual wrestler. Hardcore country isn't anywhere near as entertaining as a real wrestler.

- How many people do you have to almost cripple with a hammer to get into a biker gang? DOC proved that the answer is three. Now, go out and act accordingly.

- I really enjoyed the disappointed and discouraged A.J. Styles character tonight. Wrestling doesn't tend to dwell on disappointments or tell stories about what loss means and this story with Styles seems determined to do that. A.J. acted his part well and I'm looking forward to seeing where this leads.

- Christopher Daniels vs. A.J. Styles again doesn't exactly excite me, but as a part of this story, it could play out really well. At least we know they will have a great match.

- We haven't seen any Gut Check winners appear on television, but now they are all coming back for one show. I'm glad I'll be camping next week and will likely miss the gem of a show TNA plans to put on for Thanksgiving.

- Bobby Roode and James Storm had a good match that didn't match the intensity of their past encounters. I was worried about that going in and they just couldn't live up to what they've been able to do in the past.

- Why did James Storm win his match at Turning Point? Did the creative forces in TNA wake up on Monday morning and suddenly realize that the wrong guy went over? Would it have been the worst thing to follow through with Storm vs. Hardy in December, then go to Roode? This is a creative mess.

I strongly dislike this show. It was a creative failure in almost every way. Was the creative burnt out by having to write more than one show at a time? Did they not plan for this? We're there no logical stories to tell? I don't know what happened, but this was like an Impact episode from 2007, not 2012.

A five year regression in TNA creative took place before our very eyes on TV. Hopefully a King of the Mountain match doesn't follow.

Did you enjoy TNA not quite live? Am I way off? Feel free to email me at itswilltime@gmail.com or to follow me and chat me up on twitter at twitter.com/itswilltime.