I have a confession to make: I didn't understand the Slammiversary pay-per-view name for almost a decade, from when I first discovered TNA in the early 2010s up until watching Hard Justice a couple days ago, when it finally clicked. But yeah, Slammiversary marks the three year anniversary, to the exact day, since the debut of TNA with their first weekly pay-per-view back in 2002. In retrospect, the most notable aspect of this show was the debut of Samoa Joe, who had dominated Ring of Honor for the past couple years, and would go on to one of the most defining stars of TNA's history. It also features the second King of the Mountain match, a very convoluted gimmick match, but one the company turned into an annual Slammiversary tradition for the rest of the 2000s. The card may not have been terribly strong, but the first Slammiversary was a very fun show and more than worthy of a watch.
- Slammiversary '05 comes to you from the Impact Zone, with Mike Tenay and Don West on the call. Look, I get that TNA weren't exactly flush with cash, but it's a bit disappointing to see pretty much the exact same set-up for this show as every other pay-per-view. I don't need some sort of fancy new set or anything, but even an extra banner or something like that could've helped to make this stand out from the pack.
- Opening the show is an X Division six man spotfest, featuring Amazing Red, Delirious, Elix Skipper, Jerrelle Clark, Shark Boy and Zach Gowen. On paper, this has all the potential in the world to be an excellent opener, and there's some really good action to enjoy, but for whatever reason, TNA has only given them six minutes to work. That's not anywhere near enough time to actually build some drama and get the fans invested, leading it to just feel like a highlight reel rather than a match. Shark Boy pins Delirious, the much-maligned ROH booker, with the Dead Sea Drop, so at least one of the big fan favorites got the win to get the live crowd rocking.
- We stay in the X Division for our next bout, as Alex Shelley takes on Shocker. Shelley had a short run in TNA the previous year, and has now returned to kickstart a 7 year run with the company. They're trying to present Shelley as some sort of mat wrestling maestro, a hybrid wrestler who excels at everything. It doesn't really work, as neither man is really prepared to work a more technical match and nothing looks particularly crisp. Shocker gets the win by countering one of Shelley's pins with one of his own, which sort of defeats the point of presenting Shelley as a technician if he's going to immediately be out-wrestled by a luchador.
- The on-going storyline between BG James and The Outlaw has now roped in the entire 3 Live Kru, with Ron Killings substituting in for an absent BG for the tag match last month and has now begun feuding with the former Billy Gunn. They have a match here that is very clumsy, as they don't have much chemistry with each other and neither guy seems interested in trying to make this good. Killings wins with a roll-up, which is quickly over-shadowed by the post-match angle, as Outlaw begins assaulting "The Truth". BG runs in for the save, but even when his former partner gives a free shot with a chair, James hesitates, before Konnan goes after The Outlaw. The match may have been pretty bad, but the storyline remains the best TNA has booked to this point, which isn't really saying anything, but I'm still enjoying it.
- Up next, the NWA tag titles are on the line, as champions The Naturals defend against Team Canada. The majority of this match is an extended heal beatdown on Chase Stevens, as Eric Young and Petey Williams get plenty of assistance from Scott D'Amore and A-1 on the outside. This portion of the match does run a little long at points, but I thought Young and Williams did some good heeling to really make you want that hot tag. Andy Douglas does put together a pretty terrific hot tag, as EY and Petey are sent flying every which way. There's some very cool offense down the stretch, including Petey countering a powerbomb into a swinging DDT, and Young being picked up off the apron straight into the Natural Disaster, that was great. Petey looks for the Canadian Destroyer on Douglas, but Jimmy Hart runs in, tossing his megaphone to Stevens, who nails Williams to retain the belts. I think Hart is a good choice for a manager for The Naturals, who could desperately use one as they seriously lack charisma.
- It's time for the TNA debut of Samoa Joe, which the company has hyped up very well and the crowd is very excited for. He's facing Sonjay Dutt, a great choice for a first opponent as Sonjay makes Joe look like a million bucks. Considering what Joe is capable of, there's nothing terribly impressive in this match, but all of his offense is put over strong and he looks like an absolute killer against his much smaller opponent. The Muscle Buster and Coquina Clutch spell the end for Dutt, setting Joe up for some of the best matches in his career that were to come in the near future.
- Bobby Roode and Lance Hoyt are being positioned as two of the big rising stars of the heavyweights in TNA, given a good platform to show what they can do in a singles match. It's a perfectly acceptable wrestling match but not one that really succeeds in presenting either man as a star. Roode gets a pretty simple win, blindsiding a distracted Hoyt with the Northern Lariat, before Lance gets some revenge after the match, avoiding a moonsault from D'Amore to hit one of his own on Team Canada's coach. This was done to write Scott off TV for a little while, to ease his increased workload as he was just appointed head of the booking team.
- The second tag match of the night is a massive step down from the first, as the 3 Live Kru face America's Most Wanted. Chris Harris and James Storm have been on a losing streak lately, but finally get a win here thanks to interference from The Outlaw, who distracted Konnan. It's a good way to continue the break-up of the 3 Live Kru, but the match was completely forgettable.
- The X Division Championship is on the line in the penultimate match of the night, a 3 way elimination match, with Christopher Daniels defending against Chris Sabin and Michael Shane. Sabin and Shane have been feuding since the swerve last month, with their valets Traci and Trinity getting involved as well. All three men put together a solid enough start to the match, pulling off some impressive choreographed high spots, though I could've done without Don West's Jerry Lawler impression on commentary regarding the attire of the two women. Sabin gets revenge on Shane, eliminating him with the Cradle Shock, but loses his numbers advantage, as Daniels hits the Angel's Wings on Trinity, making it a straight one on one contest. Sabin and Daniels are excellent together, with the biggest highlight coming on Sabin's perfectly executed springboard spike DDT. Daniels manages to retain his title by connecting for a second time with the Angel's Wings, proving just how good of a champion he is by working his way through a very tricky title defense. This was a very good match that balanced all the potential moving parts perfectly, getting everyone involved over and providing a solid resolution to the Traci-Trinity-Sabin-Shane feud.
- Main event time, as AJ Styles defends the NWA Championship against Sean Waltman, Monty Brown, Abyss and Jeff Jarrett in the King of the Mountain match. Earlier in the night on the pre-show, Jarrett got into a confrontation with Raven, who antagonized Jarrett to the point where he assaulted a plant in the crowd and was kayfabe arrested, to be replaced by Raven. The rules of this match are very convoluted, as you have to pin an opponent to be eligible to climb up the ladder and hook the title belt on top, while the man you pinned goes into the "penalty box" for 2 minutes. I don't understand why TNA can't just have a normal ladder match, but maybe there's something I'm just not getting here. Anyway, if you can ignore the strange rules, this match is super fun, featuring some ridiculous spots. AJ is at the heart of most of them, hitting a Spiral Tap through Abyss and a table, and being betrayed by Waltman, who hits the champion with a damn X-Factor off the ladder. Not to be outdone, Brown Pounces Abyss through a table in the corner, as Monty is presented as an absolute destroyer in this one and it definitely looks like he's finally going to become champion. But Raven, who did pretty much nothing in this match which meant he took the least amount of damage, manages to sneak up the ladder and claim his first and only NWA title. Everything that TNA did with Raven on this night was perfect, presenting him as the perfect cunning champion, sneaking into the main event by getting Jarrett arrested, avoiding taking too many big moves before striking at the most opportune moment to fulfill his self-professed prophecy. It's a perfect piece of booking, aided by an extremely chaotic and enthralling main event.
7/10
Most of the wrestling on the undercard wasn't too great, but the in-ring action really picked up near the end. Add to that some pretty interesting on-going storylines featuring the implosion of the 3 Live Kru and Raven's quest to become champion, and this becomes one of the better pay-per-view offerings in spite of the weak card. I think TNA did just enough to help this show stand out, but there would be much better to come.
Next time on Henry's Pay-Per-View Reviews: No Surrender 2005, which features the TNA debut of Rhino. See you soon.
- Henry
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