Total Non-Stop Action presents Xplosion
Date: 5/10/2003
From: Nashville, TN
MATCH #1: JIMMY RAVE VS. JOEY IDOL
NOTE: Joey Idol is better known as Kaos of XPW fame. He has Dangerous Lee Handsome and VJ Love by his side. It’s actually an interesting trio. They are known as Hollywood Incorporated Rave also comes out to what would eventually be the theme music for Abyss.
FINISH: Rave spikes Idol with a reverse hurricanrana to pickup the win.
Bob’s Take: This felt like more of a tryout for Idol than it was an enhancement match. Rave isn’t exactly a major player in TNA, so it was safe to assume this would be far more competitive than we normally see on the show. I’m all for Rave getting some shine as I’ve always enjoyed his work. Hollywood Incorporated is a trio that is a bit interesting and looks to be a unique group. I enjoyed this bout as they made good use of the time given to them.
Match Rating: **1/4
Erik Watts cuts into Jeremy Borash and Bert Prentice promoting the show. Watts suggests that he’s there for the tryouts on commentary. Watts says he’s going to put in a good word for them to stick around. Watts makes a few references to Bert’s sexuality and Prentice kind of looks at the camera bewildered for a moment. Prentice reminds fans to not show up to the building late because they turned away 1,000 fans last week.
MATCH #2: THE HARRIS BROTHERS VS. THE DOBBIN BROTHERS (CHAD & JASON)
FINISH: Harris Brothers plant Jason with an H-Bomb to win the match.
Bob’s Take: Tenay notes that the Dobbins were trained by Dusty Rhodes. They are a larger duo, but not as big as the Harris Brothers in both height and potentially weight. This is a bit bizarre starting off as Ron had a mat wrestling based focused, which is not what anyone would expect nor want from a Harris Brothers match. I have no interest in the Harris Brothers, but I certainly prefer them in a manner where they deliver the H-Bomb and peace out quickly. At one point, Don delivered a chair shot from the floor and the referee had to act completely oblivious to it. The mat wrestling part seemed to be a matter of filling time. This was rather boring.
Match Rating: 1/2*
MAIN EVENT: ERIK WATTS VS. FRANKIE CAPONE
FINISH: Watts hits a cobra clutch flatliner for the win.
Bob’s Take: Part of me wants to not enjoy Watts, but his douche attitude is something I’m finding to be entertaining and I don’t know how to feel about it. Now, it doesn’t appear that they’re moving forward with Watts in a main event feud with Jarrett, which is the right decision. I think there’s value for Watts as an undercard heel and he brings some entertainment to Xpolsion, and it’s harmless.
Match Rating: *
Final Thoughts:
Rave/Idol was a decent match. I will say, Xplosion does a great job at promoting the important stuff on the weekly PPVs. If they had a little bit stronger matches on Xplosion, it would be an even better show than it is now.
Thanks for reading.