WRESTLING REVIEW: IMPACT! HARD TO KILL III

Charolette Flair’s announcement of Mickie James attending this year’s upcoming Royal Rumble was the gateway drug. Many like myself decided to take the pill. Enter the rabbit hole that was Impact Wrestling’s first PPV of 2022 : Hard To Kill. And Impact proved themselves once again to be just that, years removed from rising from the ashes that once was TNA. As a viewer used to the pristine presentation that WWE likes to display, I was taken aback by the indie arena feel once Steelz, Green, Rosemary, and the other competitors I had yet to recognize, made their way into the ring for the inaugural Knockouts Ultimate X match.

I was confused as to why Steelz was not applauded on her standout entrance. Having known her from her social media presence, and having yet to see her wrestle I had thought she deserved a standing ovation. I took note of the silence not hidden by audio recordings of larger crowds than what Dalls’ Bomb Factory could hold then Jordynne Green started making her presence known by throwing her weight around and scaling the rope; showcasing her strength by not only reaching the X in the early moments of the competition, but by supporting her opponents weight while dangling from the rope as well, without breaking a sweat.

The spectacle ensued with both Frost and Edwards doing amazing things off the steel scaffoldings erecting the rope. Dive after dive, these women deserved the “Hardcore” cheers that erupted fron the crowd as at any moment these competitors (especially Frost) could have broken their necks as they tumbled onto the other women below. Chelsea Green looked like the armchair favorite as she constantly scaled the rope and ended up coming inches away from victory. She’d been on bigger promotions and is in a romantic relationship with a high-profile wrestler in the men’s division. Regardless of these selling points, Tasha Steelz somehow became the little heel that could. Constantly getting knocked on her ass or face it seemed like there was no way that this woman out of her weight class could succeed against her taller and heavier competitors. Steelz was savvy enough to use her miniature frame to her advantage as she used Green as something of a booster , knocked her down and snatched not only the X and the victory but the opportunity to challenge the Knockouts Champion as number one contender.

The big red X in the middle of the ring looked so tacky, in comparison to being used to seeing belts and briefcases suspended from midair coming from WWE. But before the middle of the match, I became fully invested in the importance of the X and the opportunity it represented. Whether Tasha was taking a bump or was successfully dealing out damage, she commanded attention on screen and fully exuded a must watch persona. Cockily pushing her face in front of the cameras after her victory, walking away with a member of her entourage who looks like she herself can deliver a compelling story, a belt is begging to be fitted on to Steelz’ waist and this was the win to prove that she deserves just that.

The main event got a well deserved buzz from WWE’s semi-crossover announcement. James and Purazzo struck while the iron was hot and delivered in Dallas during their Texas Death Match.
Essentially the match for WWE-familiar was a No DQ, Falls Count Anywhere mixed with a Last Man Standing stipulation. Purazzo and James did more than throw epithets and middle fingers at each other. Chairs were thrown into the ring until exhaustion, but this was no WWE match, so the fires could not be put out with a under the mat fire extinguisher. Mickie ended up getting hit with a golf club, eventually getting her forehead busted while Purazzo eventually got to show some color while getting rammed head first into a table. Cowbells and tacks were thrown into the mix, and James got the brunt end of the latter spending half of the match going through the paces of what looked like a Mankind highlight reel.

Purazzo was a pure beast, absorbing punishment and dealing it out in equal measure. James’ looked as if her age was finally catching up to her quicker than she could get up, as it appeared that Purazzo was trying to end Mickie’s career at the most, and at the least have her walking into the Royal Rumble with more than a knee brace. But this story was written from the first pinfall Mickie scored playfully at the start of the match as the machinations came full circle and the “Mick Kick” Master retained, meaning that she will be the first female to walk into WWE with another promotions championship when Royal Rumble rolls around, and her and Steelz now have a date that may not be as steamy as Mickie’s past interactions with Trish, but a date set in stone nonetheless.

With all the releases WWE has made making bigger headlines in pro-wrestling news this week (bigger than their actual competitions which just featured two special events), the alley-oop that WWE shot Impact with their Royal Rumble announcement (to stave off doubts if they even had enough contestants) really shot themselves in the foot : because not only are released wrestlers being scooped up by promotions like Impact to produce another program at this level, but curious viewers like myself have been pushed to check out events like “Hard To Kill”, and be damned if this is not mighty fine wrestling. So what if the venue is small and the presentation was not the highest of quality ? This is pro-wrestling, this sport has a pass to be a little sloppy. What mattered at “Hard To Kill” was the basics of what makes any wrestling fan smile : hot chicks who don’t care about looking pretty and show that from their actions, unhinged violence, and watching a young upstarts’ stars rise, while a legend continues to cement her legacy …

Relying on points like those , with a spaced out schedule (Impact’s next pay-per-view is in April ) used to build story will continue to give Impact! an edge in putting asses in seats, especially with starting off the year in this fashion, blowing all competing brands out the water with the performance here at this year’s “Hard To Kill”.

Score : 5/5

(PPV) event produced by Impact Wrestling. It took place on January 8, 2022 at The Bomb Factory in Dallas, Texas