Brace for IMPACT: Emergence review

IMPACT! Emergence review

The latest monthly IMPACT Plus special, Emergence, featured Christian Cage defeating Brian Myers to retain the IMPACT World Heavyweight Championship.

The overall show was decent with a few good matches and one in particular that’s worth going out of your way to see. The show would have been better if they just trimmed the fat a bit and cut out a couple of the comedy matches. 2:15–2:30 with about six matches would have been perfect for these specials. Not everyone needs to be on the card.

The show aired on Friday night up against Smackdown, ROH’s Glory by Honor, and the NFL pre-season—not a great time to have Christian’s first match in the company in over ten years, but the whole weekend was loaded action.

HITS

Christian Cage vs. Brian Myers: Despite the fact that I was vehemently against the booking of the match, the truth is Myers is good and Cage is one of the best ever. This was a fine, three-star, match that ended with Cage hitting the Killswitch for the win.

Josh Alexander vs. Jake Something: Remember when I said there was one match worth going out of your way to see? This was it. Both men looked awesome. Something elevated his stock in defeat and Alexander continues his legendary year with one of his best performances. Go check it out.

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BUT 10 GERMAN SUPLEXES BY @Walking_Weapon! #Emergence pic.twitter.com/7l9U4qkWZ0

— IMPACT (@IMPACTWRESTLING) August 21, 2021

Ace Austin vs. Chris Sabin vs Sami Callihan vs Moose: This was a typical IMPACT multi-person match, but I always enjoy these despite the laziness of the booking. Each man had their time to shine, hitting many big moves. Ace Austin picked up the victory when he secured a rollup on Moose after he was hit in the head with a chair by Callihan. Moose continues his decline unfortunately.

Steve Maclin vs. Petey Williams: A good match with Maclin really shining in it. I really dig what they are doing with him. However, the finish here was a bit weak. Maclin hit a low blow while the ref was distracted and secured the victory with a “Mayhem for All.” I get that heels cheat to win, but a badass like Maclin did not need to cheat to beat Petey.

MISSES

The Good Brothers vs. Swann/Mack vs. Violent By Design:  The match was ok, but I expected much better from these teams, especially following the hot angle from Thursday night between Doering and Gallows. The action was good but the finish seemed a bit early when Anderson secured a rollup on Rhino when he was distracted. Just a lazy finish that resembled the way Austin pinned Moose earlier in the night. Could have been so much better.

Decay vs. No Way, Fallah Bah, Tasha Steelz, and Savannah Evans. A complete waste of time. I know comedy acts like Bah and No Way (and I guess Decay now) are good for the kids and serve as a pallet cleanser, but this wasn’t funny or even interesting. My interest in Decay is decaying rapidly. I think Tasha and Evans are heels now but who the hell even knows. Decay won.

Deonna Purazzo and Matthew Rehwoldt vs. Trey Miguel and Melina: Again, not good. I was interested in Purazzo wrestling at NWA Empower, but not anymore.

Madison Rayne vs. Taylor Wilde: This was the opposite of the women’s revolution. It was filled with distractions and outside interference. Madison won with the rollup. Yes, there were three matches with a distraction-rollup finish.

Ratings slightly rise again

According to Showbuzz Daily, the August 19 episode of IMPACT! on AXS TV averaged 126,000 total viewers, slightly up from last week. The 18–49 demo held strong with a 0.04 rating. I would have expected much better with Christian returning, but the product is a bit cold despite the quality of the show. The show ranked #122 in the top 150.

IMPACT Ratings 2021

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