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Arcademan:
TNA Impact! Results: 12-4-08

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 -- Legends champion BOOKER T (w/Sharmell) vs. SAMOA JOE -- Legends Title match -- Street fight

Tenay and West took us back to Victory Road in July when the Joe vs. Booker main event led to the start of Sting's quest to beat respect into the Frontline. Yes, the worst-ever main event ending to a show I've ever seen live in person. In any event, the action quickly spilled to the floor where Joe nailed a series of chops before they cut to a break.

Back to action where they traded control until Booker caught Joe flush in the face with a leaping leg whip for a two count. Suddenly, we have Sharmell running interference on the apron distracting the ref. Joe ducked the axe kick and slapped on the rear naked choke, which Booker tapped out, but the Beautiful People ran down to ringside and sprayed their spray in Joe's eyes. Joe ran around in the ring covering his eyes, but then he settled right into position for Booker to nail the axe kick for the pin and the win.

WINNER: Booker in 9:00 to retain the Legends Title. Just the usual TNA "main event" TV match with plenty of interference and ref incompetence. (*)

2 -- SCOTT STEINER & Knockouts champion AWESOME KONG (w/Raisha Saeed and Rhaka Khan) vs. CHRISTY HEMME & A.J. STYLES

A bit rough early on between Steiner and Styles, then Steiner knocked down Styles with a straight right hand to the face. Styles then ducked a punch and nailed the leaping dropkick that sent Steiner to his corner. Kong then entered the ring and Styles accepted a chop before wanting to punch Kong, but ref Slick Johnson held him back per the rules of man on man only. Styles then knocked Steiner to the floor and he wanted a splash on Steiner, but Kong yanked him down hard on the apron. Back in the ring, Steiner took control as they cut to break.

Back to action where Kong and Hemme battled with Hemme slapping on a chokehold until Steiner tried to get involved. Styles then got involved and knocked Steiner off the apron to the floor before nailing a slingshot plancha. Back in the ring, Kong stalked Hemme to give her a beating. She then turned her attention to Styles and nailed a big splash. Kong tried the Awesomebomb on Hemme, but Hemme slipped out. Styles then helped Hemme get in position for a big tornado DDT on Kong and she connected while Styles held off Steiner to give Hemme the pin on Kong for the win.

WINNERS: Hemme & Styles in 8:00. Fine match to put Hemme in position as a threat to Kong at the PPV. Styles and Steiner didn't seem to fit into the scenario, but it was fine. (*)

3 -- JIMMY RAVE & SONJAY DUTT (w/So Cal Val) & X Division champion SHEIK ABDUL BASHIR vs. CONSEQUENCES CREED & ERIC YOUNG & JAY LETHAL

Referee Shane is back to refereeing, so the focus of the match was Shane and Bashir, who decided to duck out of the ring and point at Mike Tenay. He asked for a headset. Now. Bashir said he's not in a match with ref Shane or Eric Young because it ain't fair. He said this isn't his time or place. In the ring, the match was set up for Creed's hot tag and house-of-fire entry before he ran into a big boot from Jimmy Rave. Creed then came back on Rave with a fallaway TKO from the fireman's carry position for the pin and the win.

Post-match: Sheik bolted from the broadcast position and attacked Young, but Young fought back on Sheik on the floor. The cameras had a tough time keeping up with the action, then Sheik backed down on the entranceramp to escape Young, who stole the X Division Title and entered the ring to hold it up with Creed and Lethal.

WINNERS: Team Creed in 4:00. Standard X Division throw-it-at-the-wall match before the post-match set up a PPV match. (*)

4 -- TNA World Hvt. champion STING vs. RHINO -- non-title match

The action predictably moved to the floor in the opening minute, then Rhino wanted a Gore into the guardrail, but Sting moved and Rhino ate the guardrail head-first. He then came up bleeding from the forehead with a glazed-over look in his eyes as they cut to break.

Back from break, Rhino and Sting traded control until Kurt Angle stormed ringside to cheer on Sting. A.J. Styles then came down to ringside to take a closer look at the action in Rhino's corner. Angle jumped on the apron, but Rhino knocked him off. Rhino then backed into a clothesline from Rhino. Sting had the Scorpion on Rhino, but Angle and Styles battled on the floor to distract Sting. Sting then turned around and took the Gore from Rhino and Rhino made the pin for the win. Afterward, Angle put his hands on his head and told Sting he's sorry, man. Frontline then celebrated with a blood-soaked Rhino to close the show.

WINNER: Rhino in 6:00. Well, more seeds planted for dissension in the Mafia involving Sting, as Angle essentially cost him the match there. Match wasn't much; just the typical TNA fare leading to a PPV with tons of people involved and plenty of interference. (*)

Arcademan:
WWE Smackdown Results: 12-5-08

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Keller's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 -- EDGE vs. FUNANKI

Edge walked to the ring with Vickie Guerrero. Ross said "WWE higher ups" intervened and put both Hardy and Triple into the title match at Armageddon. Funaki jump-started the match and even hit a big DDT off the second rope for an early pin attempt. He scored two more two counts with leverage pins before Edge was able to gain his composure. Funaki hit a crane kick and scored another two count. Edge had enough and nailed Funaki with a boot to the face, then finished him with a spear. Ross said regarding Edge: "The eyes of that man tell a very dangerous, complex story."

WINNER: Edge in 2:00.

2 -- MICHELLE MCCOOL vs. MARIA

Maria took a bump by doing the splits mid-ring. Ross said, "That hurt me just looking at it." McCool applied a bodyscissors and sleeper mid-ring at 2:00. Maria fought out of it within 20 seconds and delivered a jaw-jacker. She elbowed McCool as she charged her, then clotheslined her twice. Her clotheslines do not look good. Maria ducked a McCool round kick and schoolgirled her for the win.

WINNER: Maria in 3:00.

3 -- MVP vs. HURRICANE HELMS

Helms has a new entrance song. He's grown his hair out. Ross said it's been a year since we've seen him in the ring. He said he had serious neck surgery. His new look includes a much less cut physique. Tazz observed that MVP seemed a lot less confident and cocky than before. The crowd chanted, "I'm just saying." Well, I should say about five or six fans near a ring mic. It didn't catch on. Helms hit a deep armdrag and then applied a cross armbreaker. MVP grabbed the top rope right away to force a break. MVP came back with a big boot to the head. Then he applied a cool mat hold where he wrapped up Hurrican'es arms with his legs and then applied a headlock. The back and forth action continued for a minute with Helms hitting MVP on the back with his spin round kick. Tazz pointed out he wasn't even sure where he caught him because it didn't look good. Helms pointed to the sky afterward, surely a signal to his mom and step-mom, both of whom died in the last year. He seemed to get a bit choked out. In all honesty, not an impressive return for him. His timing didn't seem right and the flabby belly is something that doesn't go over well with Vince McMahon.

WINNER: Helms in 4:00.

4a -- TRIPLE H & JEFF HARDY vs. ZACH RYDER & CURT HAWKINS

Ryder and Hawkins are still with the promotion? Man, did they drop off the face of the promotion. Ross noted again that WWE higher-ups intervened in last week's controversy and forced the three-way match at Armageddon. Triple H tagged himself in. Hardy didn't like that. Ryder jumped Triple H right away, but Triple H gave him a spinebuster seconds later. He then gave him a Pedigree for the apparent win. Hardy, though, dove off the top rope with a Swanton. Triple H had to move. Hardy landed on Ryder. Hardy got up and had a brief staredown with Triple H. Hawkins ran into the ring, so Hardy cut him off as Triple H went for the pin. They shoved each other, but the music of Miz & John Morrison began.

WINNERS: Triple H & Hardy in 2:00.

4b -- TRIPLE H & JEFF HARDY vs. MIZ & JOHN MORRISON

The match was joined in progress with Hardy beating up Miz. The fact that wrestlers trust each other to just lie there as their opponent drops a knee toward their forehead is one of the most amazing aspects of being a pro wrestler. It cost Bret Hart against Goldberg, and Steve Austin against Owen Hart, and Droz against D-Lo Brown among other screw-ups, but it's relatively rare. After a couple minutes without disputes between Triple H and Hardy, Ross said we shouldn't get a false sense of security about their ability to continue to coexist peacefully. Miz and Morrison were able to double-team Triple H for several minutes, tagging in and out while isolating Hunter. Hardy didn't seem bothered by Hunter being on defense for so long.

At 8:00 Hunter hot-tagged Hardy. He cleaned house on both heels. Ross wondered aloud how things would have gone at Survivor Series had Hardy participated as scheduled. Four-way action broke out. Hardy launched himself onto all three others on the floor, taking both opponents and his partner down to the floor hard. Hunter recovered and attacked Hardy. He threw him into the steel steps and then the ringside barrier. Several referees came out from the back to try to restore order. Hardy reversed Hunter into the steps. The referees pulled them apart. Several security members joined in.

WINNERS: Miz & Morrison via countout at 10:00.

STAR RATING: *1/2 -- Solid action. The heels were just extras as the real purpose of this match was to build tension between Hunter and Hardy - which it did with success. Well done segment, and it's nice to see Miz & Morrison not sacrificed for Triple H. When Triple H is given a chance to plow through several tag teams, he usually seizes the opportunity.

5 -- CHAVO GUERRERO vs. MATT HARDY

Ross said regarding Hardy, "Of course, we see him on Tuesday nights." That's about as far as WWE goes these days in acknowledging the soft brand split that sorta still exists but barely. They ought to just have ten exclusives with each brand and then let everyone else float from brand-to-brand. It'd at least explain why some wrestlers appear on multiple shows despite "belonging" to a single specific brand. Hardy hit an early bulldog for a one count. One counts are nice because they make two counts more dramatic. Ross began talking about Randy Orton vs. Batista. He said he can't wait to see that match, years in the making. Too bad it's a supporting match when it finally happens rather than the centerpiece main event for a world title. At 3:00 the reason for this oddly pointless match existing became clear as Vladimir Kozlov charged into the ring and gave Hardy a boot to the face. He knocked Chavo out of the ring, then tied Hardy's arms in the ropes. He headbutted him viciously and then trash-talked him in Russian. Several zebras entered the ring and magically talked Kozlov into leaving in peace. Kozlov returned to the back. They showed Hardy pointing at his chest and gasping for breath as medics tended to him.

WINNER: No contest in 3:00.

6 -- THE BIG SHOW vs. UNDERTAKER -- Cage Match

This was the least hyped mega-match ever on Smackdown. They just didn't do a good job providing the proper sense of this being a big deal during the show. Other than that Show soundbite earlier, you'd hardly know it was scheduled. When Taker entered the ring after his elaborate ring entrance, Show smiled and looked as eager to play as Kevin Garnett just before tipoff. Show powered Taker into the corner as soon as the bell rang and pounded him with headbutts and body blows. This started with 18 minutes left in the show, plenty of time for a memorable TV main event if they're up for it and booked for it. Show set up Taker for a corner swing splash. Taker moved, although Show's legs still caught Taker. Show struggled to get up. Taker recovered and got to his feet at the same time. Taker punched Show against the cage. Then he tested the strength of the cage walls by taking running starts with a body check and a big boot. On the third charge, Show caught him with an elbow. Show threw Taker into the side of the cage.

Show remained on offense after the break, throwing Taker into the cage. At 6:00 Taker showed signs of a comeback. At 8:00 Taker went to the top rope for his walk-the-rope spot, but Show punched out of it and hit a superplex. By 9:00 they both climbed to the top rope and exchanged punches. Taker eventually hit Show with a barrage of short jabs to Show's face. Show was unsteady and teetered for a dramatic few seconds before collapsing to the mat. Taker climbed to the top of the cage, did the cut-throat gesture, and then rolled his eyes backward. Then rather than climb to the floor to win, he went for a top rope legdrop. Show moved. Taker landed with a thud. Show made the cover, but Taker rolled his left shoulder up just before three. A minute later Taker countered a chokeslam attempt with a DDT. He made the cover. Show kicked out just before three. At 13:00 Show went for a chokeslam. Show powered out and chokeslammed Taker. Show fell backward afterward, but then crawled over for the cover. Taker powered out just before three. Taker blocked a right hand megapunch by Show. When e charged at Show seconds later, Show KO'd him with his megapunch. Just as Tazz declared Taker knocked out unconscious, Taker sat up. Show grabbed him by the throat. Taker slipped on his Heaven's Gate submission. Show struggled to escape, but eventually tapped out. Ross called it an amazing confrontation between two rivals. The show ended as Taker celebrated the win.

WINNER: Undertaker in 15:00.

STAR RATING: **1/2 -- Some big spots and good near fall drama, but pretty plodding and slow paced most of the time, so it's neither a must see classic nor a total bomb.

Arcademan:
Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's ongoing report). To view ongoing in-ring results only, go to Neo-Geo Forum: Official WWE Thread Post #8430 and posts thereafter.

1 -- FEAST OR FIRED match
WINNERS: Lethal, Homicide, Hernandez, and Curry Man in 13:00. Okay opener with some highspots, but the usual forgettable spots and guys just going through the motions. (**)

2 -- ROXXI & TAYLOR WILDE & ODB vs. SHARMELL & BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (ANGELINA LOVE & VELVET SKY w/Cute Kip)
WINNERS: Team Taylor in 7:00. Just-there match building toward the ODB vs. Sharmell confrontation ... that never happened in the ring after much teasing. One of those matches with no real sense of rules with Kip running in the ring at will. (*)

3 -- X Division champion SHEIK ABDUL BASHIR vs. ERIC YOUNG -- X Division Title match
WINNER: Young in 8:00 to capture the X Division Title. Good match. Another tainted victory for Young, though. The belt doesn't mean anything anyways since TNA hasn't presented the title seriously in two years and they've recently booked Ref Shane > X Division. (**1/4)

4 -- Knockouts champion AWESOME KONG (w/Raisha Saeed and Rhaka Khan) vs. CHRISTY HEMME -- Knockouts Title match
WINNER: Hemme via DQ in 6:00; Kong retains Knockouts Title. Good post-match to make up for the non-finish. Match was just fine for what it was worth. (*1/4)

5 -- TNA tag team champions BEER MONEY (ROBERT ROODE & JAMES STORM w/Miss Jacqueline) vs. MATT MORGAN & ABYSS -- TNA Tag Title match
WINNERS: Storm & Roode in 11:00 to retain TNA Tag Titles. The same finish we've seen over and over. Just take the TNA tag team formula template and insert Morgan & Abyss as the opposition. Cut and paste. Cut and paste. Slice and dice. Insert here and there. Switch a few things around. Throw in the brass knucks. Boom, there's your match. (**)

6 -- KURT ANGLE vs. RHINO -- Mick Foley as special ringside enforcer
WINNER: Angle in 14:00. Fine match. Angle couldn't get a four-star match out of Rhino like he did Abyss last month, but it was fine. Heavy on storyline and another re-appearance by a former Attitude era wrestler fit the classic TNA over-booked semi-main event match. (***)

7 -- FRONTLINE -- A.J. STYLES & SAMOA JOE & BROTHER RAY & BROTHER DEVON vs. MAIN EVENT MAFIA -- TNA World champ STING & Legends champion BOOKER T & KEVIN NASH & SCOTT STEINER -- Sting's TNA World Title on the line for Styles to win only
WINNERS: Main Event Mafia in 22:00. From last month, they continued the Joe-Nash program of Nash only being able to find himself on a winning side with the dirty tactics on Joe. Match was good. Not memorable, but serviceable in the main event slot heavy on star power. Joe and Styles carried this athletically, then the end of the story was Sting apparently questioning himself for using an "any means to an ends" approach of retaining the title. Pick it up on Impact. (***1/2)

Arcademan:
WWE RAW Results: 12-8-08 including the 2008 WWE Slammy Awards

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). To view condensed in-ring results plus the Slammy winners list, go to Neo-Geo Forum: Official WWE Thread Post #8440.

Slammy Awards Winners List shown below.

1 -- World tag team champion C.M. PUNK vs. JOHN MORRISON -- Final Four match in #1 Contender to IC Title tournament
WINNER: Punk in 8:00 to advance to the finals. Heck of a match. Great finish, starting with the sick top-rope huracanrana, then a couple of really great nearfalls at the end. If Morrison stays on schedule, 2009 will be his year. (**1/4)

2 -- MVP vs. MVCHARLIE
WINNER: MVC in 3:00. Nice, simple match continuing MVP's losing streak. Rollins's involvement was well-done as he wasn't completely over-the-top playing his role. (*)

3 -- JEFF HARDY vs. CHRIS JERICHO
WINNER: Jericho in 6:00 of TV time. That's quite the surprise to see Hardy lose clean to Jericho. I suppose you just wouldn't expect to see two #1 contenders booked in a TV match with a clean finish six days before a PPV. But, it certainly made Jericho look strong heading into the match against Cena. WWE apparently decided a strong heel Jericho was more important than a strong babyface Hardy for selling a PPV. (**)

4 -- SANTINO & Women's champion BETH PHOENIX vs. FINLAY & HORNSWOGGLE
WINNERS: Finlay & Hornswoggle in 2:00. A bit, well, a lot unbelievable with Hornswoggle scoring the pin. But, Santino's greatness in this segment > suspension of disbelief. (n/a)

5 -- World tag team champion KOFI KINGSTON vs. REY MYSTERIO -- Final Four match in #1 Contender to IC Title tournament
WINNER: Rey in 3:00. Surprisingly short match with a surprise finish that caught me off guard. Kofi is still trying to find his groove on Raw where the writers don't seem to know what to do with him. (*)

6 -- TRIPLE H & BATISTA vs. RANDY ORTON & MANU & CODY RHODES
WINNERS: Team Orton in 10:00. Heck of a finish from Orton. They were playing right into the traditional (insert Batista or Hunter) formula match of beating a stacked deck following a furious finish, but WWE pulling the rug out from under the audience with Cody surprisingly competent and Orton picking up the win worked really well. All those stacked-deck wins actually led to something in this match. (**1/4)

7 -- DOLPH ZIGGLER vs. R-TRUTH
WINNER: Dolph Ziggler via countout in 4:00. Tough spot to be in on the card, but Ziggler looked equally-impressive as last week. Crowd was into the character enough to boo him post-match, so that's much better than standard silence. Good development. (*)

8 -- World Hvt. champion JOHN CENA (Raw) vs. WWE champion EDGE (SD) -- non-title champion vs. champion match
WINNER: No Contest in 8:00. Hot finish led to an expected non-finish leading to the PPV. Post-match took precedence here... (**)

SLAMMY WINNERS:

Tag Team of the Year: Morrison and The Miz
Best Finishing Move: Evan Bourne (Shooting Star Press)
Most Extreme Moment: Jeff Hardy (diving from top of TitanTron onto Randy Orton)
Announcers of the Year: Striker & Grisham
Couple of the Year: Edge & Vickie Guerrero
OMG Moment of the Year: C.M. Punk (beating Edge to win the World title)
Match of the Year: Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair from WM 24
Damn! Moment of the Year: Khali Kiss Cam
Superstar of the Year: Chris Jericho
Best WWE.com Exclusive: The Miz & John Morrison present "The Dirt Sheet"
Best Musical Performance: R-Truth's entrance (SmackDown, Sept. 15)
Breakout Star of the Year: Vladimir Kozlov

Arcademan:
ECW on SciFi Results: 12-9-08

Results courtesy of PWTorch.com (direct link to Caldwell's complete report). Condensed here to in-ring results only.

1 -- THE MIZ & JOHN MORRISON vs. JIMMY WANG YANG & KUNG FU NAKI

The bell sounded and Miz did some mockery karate moves. Funaki tried not to crack up laughing, then Miz gave him a playful shove. Funaki answered with a quick kick to the gut then one below the chin for a two count. Striker with a quick Jumping Bomb Angels reference from old school WWF women's wrestling. Morrison and Yang then took tags and Yang busted out a leg sweep and standing moonsault for a two count.

Funaki re-entered and wanted a dive on the floor on the heels, but Morrison slingshot him throat-first across the top rope. Morrison then went on the attack as they cut to break.

I like Grisham filling in the blanks on Funaki's gimmick change that he didn't feel he was "getting it done" as Smackdown's no. one announcer, so he made the change. Back in the ring, Funaki worked out of a chinlock from Miz, then worked into a sunset flip pin for a two count. Miz then went back on the offensive, knocking Funaki's black belt off his waist before nailing a big running clothesline in the corner. Great double team work from Miz and Morrison with a combo elbow smash while Funaki was on Miz's knees. Morrison then posed in front of Funaki before nailing a running knee smash for another two count.

At 10:00, Morrison grounded Funaki as the fans tried to rally for a hot tag. No dice until 12:00 when Yang finally got the tag and came off the top with a big splash on Morrison. Yang fired up with a clothesline before sweeping Morrison and hitting a leaping back kick. Yang then monkey-flipped Morrison out of the corner and the action completely broke down as the ref tried to gain control. Morrison then wanted the Midnight Drive on Yang, but Yang slipped out and wanted the top rope moonsault, but Morrison ducked. Yang was caught at his knees and Morrison hit his springboard back kick on Yang for the pin and the win.

WINNERS: Miz & Morrison in 13:00. Really nice match. Great athleticism throughout the match and a nice finish giving Morrison more momentum to regain his heat after the loss last night to Punk in a great match. (**1/2)

2 -- THE BOOGEYMAN vs. SCOTT REID

Boogeyman charged Reid in the corner to start things off. Striker described the worms as cold spaghetti mixed with dirt. One fan was chanting, "Reid, Reid, Reid" as the poor guy took a hard whip to the corner. Boogeyman with a lift-up slam on Reid for the win. Afterward, Boogey grabbed his bag of worms and shared with Reid. Grisham said don't invite him to a potluck dinner.

WINNER: Boogeyman in 1:00. Crowd was pretty quiet for this one. Not sure how to react after such a lengthy absence.

3 -- FINLAY & HORNSWOGGLE vs. MARK HENRY & TONY ATLAS

Hornswoggle found himself in peril in the corner and the kids screamed as Henry set up for a Vader Bomb on Horny, but Finlay pulled Horny out of the way just in time before they cut to break.

Back from break, Finlay was a little dizzy as Grisham gave us a definition check on the word underdog. 'preciate it. Henry continued to work on Finlay as Hornswoggle held the tag rope tightly awaiting a tag. Atlas then tagged in setting up a round of in-and-out tags to slow things down working on Finlay. Henry caught Finlay coming off the second rope and he nailed a big boot to make a cover for a two count. Horny was begging for a tag here, but Finlay continued to take a beating until the crowd tried to pump him up at 10:00.

Finlay came to his feet out of a chinlock, then he used a jawbreaker to escape. Finlay avoided a splash, then he stomped on Henry before nailing a half-DDT for a two count. Henry then knocked Finlay out of the ring and he took the chance to grab Hornswoggle and scoop slam him into the ring. Henry then wanted a big splash on Horny, but Finlay took the bullet and shoved his son out of the way to take the splash. Henry then scooped up Finlay and gave him the World's Strongest Slam for the pin and the win. Henry and Atlas celebrated to close the show while Hornswoggle looked on with concern.

WINNERS: Henry & Atlas in 12:00. Slow, plodding match before the somewhat-of-a storyline advancement at the end with Hornswoggle in jeopardy. After watching great athleticism in the opening match, this was a little tougher to sit through. (*1/2)

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