Total Non-Stop Action presents Xplosion
Date: 4/5/2003
From: Nashville, TN
MATCH #1: BRIAN LEE VS. PITBULL GARY WOLFE
NOTE: Wolfe comes out to what would eventually be the music for Abyss, fun fact.
FINISH: Lee spikes Wolfe with a tombstone to pickup the win.
Bob’s Take: I don’t think I was ever expecting to see Gary Wolfe appear in TNA and certainly not randomly on Xplosion. Tenay commented on Wolfe’s return to wrestling after suffering a broken neck back in ECW and how remarkable it is for Wolfe to be back wrestling at a high level. There were zero elements of extreme here, which may be seen as a disappointment. Lee using a tombstone is a callback to being the fake Undertaker. I wouldn’t consider this a good enhancement match.
Match Rating: *
MATCH #2: DAVID FLAIR VS. HORACE THE PSYCHOPATH
NOTE: David Flair comes out to a knockoff version of Ric Flair’s music, and it’s not the worst thing I’ve ever heard.
FINISH: Flair slams Horace off the top rope with in a sit out variance to win the match.
Bob’s Take: At first, I was hoping that this was going to be Horace from WCW, but it is not Horace from WCW. Horace controls a good portion of the match, which tends to be the formula for any Flair match whether it be Ric or David, really. David does nothing for me and his best work was in WCW when he was crazy or the nepotism with his father.
Match Rating: *
MATCH #3: SLASH VS. BRIGHAM BEAU
FINISH: Slash wins following a neckbreaker. After the match, Eddie G tries to confront Slash, and that does not go well for him. Slash delivers a piledriver, which Eddie took well.
Bob’s Take: I have zero idea who this Brigham Beau is, but he’s managed by Eddie G, who seems to be a mainstay on Xplosion having managed others before this. Slash is a crazy man, and I dig it. At one point, Slash delivered a Michinoku Driver on the ramp. Beau got limited offense in, but notably hit a springboard blockbuster. I honestly like Slash quite a bit and he held my interest.
Match Rating: *1/2
MAIN EVENT: JAMES STORM VS. BJ PAYNE
FINISH: Storm wins following the Eight Second Ride.
Bob’s Take: BJ Payne has been competing with OVW on regular basis for several years at this point, and after this outing his tenure with OVW suddenly came to an end a few weeks later. There wasn’t much going on here. There was an extended spot where they traded rollups, and that’s always a tough spot to pull off when there’s no heat to the match and nobody cares about BJ Payne. I didn’t enjoy this.
Match Rating: *
Final Thoughts:
I think the only enjoyable segment on the show was Slash. Everything else on the show that was original and not video package focused basically sucked. Skippable episode.
Thanks for reading.