Wrestling With Perfection
I've been watching old TNA DVD's lately, and one thing that sticks out is how great this feud was. The Phenomenal AJ Styles, The Fallen Angel Christopher Daniels, and The Samoan Submission Machine Samoa Joe. This is easily the best feud in the history of TNA, and better than most of the feuds WWE have had in the last 10 years. AJ, for my money, was the best worker in the world in '05. If you don't believe me watch any TNA or ROH show from the year. Joe and Daniels are probably tied for second. Daniels had a little stronger year in TNA, but Joe was stronger in ROH.
Not only did this series of matches consist of the 3 of the best workers, but the booking was phenomenal. Sure there is a pun there, but the strangest part is that TNA has never been known for solid booking; even without Russo it could be shaky at times. TNA is more known for the matches, and everything that happens outside of the two bells, you had to take with a grain of salt.
The whole year (2005) is without question the best in TNA history, and these matches are a big part of the reason why. The following is a recap of the epic feud for anyone who never experienced it as it happened, or just for people like me who are nostalgic.
August:
Joe debuted in June, and had been an unstoppable monster from the moment he set foot in the six-sided ring. Most opponents could barely get much offense in. So it's not much of a surprise that he steamrolled his way through the competition to the finals of the Super X Cup.
AJ was dominating in his own way, already holding the X Title and Heavyweight Championship earlier in the year. He lost the belt to Daniels in March, and was looking for retribution, and the X Cup was the way to go about it.
Daniels was in the process of having the longest X Division Championship reign in history, (and still to this day) and was the breakout singles performer of the year thus far. TNA had an online vote to see who his opponent would be at the Sacrifice PPV. The winner was Austin Aries, and the two had a solid match with Daniels coming out the victor. He then did color commentary for the AJ vs. Joe finals.
Joe and AJ had a fantastic match. After a ref bump, Daniels interfered, taking out AJ, and Joe picking up the win. AJ came out of the match looking strong; he took it to Joe like no one had previously. And of course Joe remains undefeated, and gets a X Title shot.
It was a forgone conclusion that Joe would walk out of the Unbreakable PPV with the X-Division title. AJ was added to the match because of him getting shafted in the Super X Cup finals. Now you have the three best wrestlers in the world going at it, but still you know that Joe will be the victor in the end. Either way expectations were high, and everyone was looking forward to the showdown.
Going into the matchup the buildup was neat because Joe was billed as the unstoppable monster. Daniels was billed as the longest reigning X-Champ ever. And AJ was billed as the most dominant man in the X-Division with 4 previous title reigns. So on paper, they all looked equal in their odds of winning.
On paper or not, they worked equal in the match. If any match lives up to the company title of "total nonstop action" it's this match. From bell to bell, it's a nonstop roller coaster ride. It was full of amazing spots and sequences, but it never feels like a spotfest. Everything makes sense when they were doing it, and why they were doing it. It wasn't like, "Ok big move, then another big move, now you hit a big move." The psychology was spot-on, and the crowd was rabid! "THIS IS AWESOME!"
I didn't watch it live, but I remember being shocked when I looked on the Internet the next day to see the results. AJ had won the match, of course he pinned Daniels so Joe remained undefeated. (The reason for AJ winning was that TNA was joining Spike TV in October, and they wanted AJ to represent the X-Division for its premiere, since he was the face of the division.) Naturally Joe was pissed off for not getting the title that he coveted, but that would come at a later date. The buzz for this match was incredible though. TNA has a bad habit of saying that every match is "the most amazing," or "incredible" use what adjective you like, the point is they say it a lot. (Don West anyone?) This match was different though. The internet crowd was practically glowing about this one. The only other comparison, at least in TNA, is after the AMW vs. Triple X match when Skipper walking across the top of the cage. (Minor rant: this is the highlight of Skipper's career. Yes it was very impressive, and he is a freak athlete, but as a professional wrestling he isn't very good. Very sloppy, and spotty, and you can tell Daniels carried Triple X.)
The results were in, and Meltzer gave this match 5 stars. The first time ever in TNA. This is a big deal because most matches don't get 5 stars from Meltzer. Especially not matches in the U.S. (Ironically, Joe got a 5 star match with CM Punk a year before, the first in the U.S. since '97, and would get one a month later against Kenta Kobashi in ROH.) So we just watched the best match in TNA history, so where do we go from here? Fortunately, things were about to get a lot more interesting.
TNA was now on Spike, and was as red-hot as it has ever been. This month they completed their first full year of Sunday 3 hour PPV's, and was coming up on their biggest show ever, Bound for Glory. Essentially, they were calling it their "WrestleMania" without actually saying that of course.
Joe was booked in a dream match against Jushin Liger. I personally think the match was average at best, and I must be right because no one talks about this match. Either way it didn't matter, it looks good in hindsight to see a big Japanese draw on their biggest show of the year, against their newest attraction.
Christopher Daniels was getting his mandatory rematch against AJ Styles for the X-Division Championship in an Iron Man match. This is a rematch from the February PPV Against All Odds, when they had their first Iron Man showdown.
I believe most people prefer Iron Man I, but I think Iron Man II is superior. Amazing battle between two warriors, and AJ gets the first and only fall with only two seconds left in the matchup, showing their rivalry isn't even close to be settled. This is three straight bona fide match of the year candidates for AJ, and he also had more at the beginning of the year, thus the reason why I say he was the best in the world in '05.
Petey Williams is the number one contender for the X-Division Championship, and he and AJ have a great match at Genesis. AJ gets the win, but it isn't the last time you see him that night.
I'm sure TNA did this on purpose, so since it's November, they have a Survivor Series-style elimination match with all X-division wrestlers, and call it the Elimination X match. And I'm not complaining. The heel team was Daniels, Joe, Alex Shelley, and Roderick Strong vs. the faces Austin Aries, Chris Sabin, Matt Bentley, and Sonjay Dutt. (For my money, this is the strongest the X-Division ever was, and probably ever will be.)
Daniels is calling "his" team the "Ministry" and trying to get Joe to follow his lead. Of course he just blows him off like a dumbass, and does his own thing. These are subtle little things that TNA was doing right at the time, (at least for this feud anyway) to make these feuds work, last a long time, and not have people get bored. Daniels and Joe were the survivors, and Daniels got the pin on Sabin after Joe had hit him with the Muscle Buster. Joe got pissed that Daniels stole his thunder and beat him to a bloody pulp. AJ came out to help his fellow X-Divisioner and disgraced Joe as renegade. Meanwhile Daniels was gone for a month.
AJ would go on to talk about the "code" of the division, saying how you do your best, and if you get beat, big deal, you don't try to put your opponent in the hospital. This was kind of weird at the time because this code had never been mentioned before. AJ and Daniels both admitted to thinking it was silly in a shoot interview for that very same reason. However in hindsight, I think it works ok. It gives the storyline more depth, and doesn't hurt it at all.
December:
AJ issues a challenge to Joe for the Turning Point PPV. They proceed to have another spectacular match, which was totally different from their August matchup. AJ comes out more aggressive than he probably has ever been, and takes it to Joe. In the end Joe wins, AJ still looks strong, and Daniels (now a face) returns at the end of the match, to save AJ from getting destroyed by Joe like he did a month prior.
April:
Joe got his rematch on an Impact special. He won the match, (better than their Final Resolution match) and became X champ for the second time. The match was an extra-long TV match, ending with Joe using the Island Driver off the top rope, which he had never used in TNA before, and ended the greatest feud ever in TNA.
In the end, we all knew how special that time was. The wrestlers have since had matchups with each other, but nothing like that 8 month time period. Joe, Daniels, and AJ all won one triple threat match. I think that was perfect to show how evenly matched they were. Naturally all the one on one matchups were just the icing on the cake.
If you have any of these matches, I'm sure like me, you love to watch them. Or you at least YouTube them from time to time. This was the pinnacle of TNA, and it may never be seen again. (Definitely not with Russo in charge.)
AJ was dominating in his own way, already holding the X Title and Heavyweight Championship earlier in the year. He lost the belt to Daniels in March, and was looking for retribution, and the X Cup was the way to go about it.
Daniels was in the process of having the longest X Division Championship reign in history, (and still to this day) and was the breakout singles performer of the year thus far. TNA had an online vote to see who his opponent would be at the Sacrifice PPV. The winner was Austin Aries, and the two had a solid match with Daniels coming out the victor. He then did color commentary for the AJ vs. Joe finals.
Joe and AJ had a fantastic match. After a ref bump, Daniels interfered, taking out AJ, and Joe picking up the win. AJ came out of the match looking strong; he took it to Joe like no one had previously. And of course Joe remains undefeated, and gets a X Title shot.
September:
It was a forgone conclusion that Joe would walk out of the Unbreakable PPV with the X-Division title. AJ was added to the match because of him getting shafted in the Super X Cup finals. Now you have the three best wrestlers in the world going at it, but still you know that Joe will be the victor in the end. Either way expectations were high, and everyone was looking forward to the showdown.
Going into the matchup the buildup was neat because Joe was billed as the unstoppable monster. Daniels was billed as the longest reigning X-Champ ever. And AJ was billed as the most dominant man in the X-Division with 4 previous title reigns. So on paper, they all looked equal in their odds of winning.
On paper or not, they worked equal in the match. If any match lives up to the company title of "total nonstop action" it's this match. From bell to bell, it's a nonstop roller coaster ride. It was full of amazing spots and sequences, but it never feels like a spotfest. Everything makes sense when they were doing it, and why they were doing it. It wasn't like, "Ok big move, then another big move, now you hit a big move." The psychology was spot-on, and the crowd was rabid! "THIS IS AWESOME!"
I didn't watch it live, but I remember being shocked when I looked on the Internet the next day to see the results. AJ had won the match, of course he pinned Daniels so Joe remained undefeated. (The reason for AJ winning was that TNA was joining Spike TV in October, and they wanted AJ to represent the X-Division for its premiere, since he was the face of the division.) Naturally Joe was pissed off for not getting the title that he coveted, but that would come at a later date. The buzz for this match was incredible though. TNA has a bad habit of saying that every match is "the most amazing," or "incredible" use what adjective you like, the point is they say it a lot. (Don West anyone?) This match was different though. The internet crowd was practically glowing about this one. The only other comparison, at least in TNA, is after the AMW vs. Triple X match when Skipper walking across the top of the cage. (Minor rant: this is the highlight of Skipper's career. Yes it was very impressive, and he is a freak athlete, but as a professional wrestling he isn't very good. Very sloppy, and spotty, and you can tell Daniels carried Triple X.)
The results were in, and Meltzer gave this match 5 stars. The first time ever in TNA. This is a big deal because most matches don't get 5 stars from Meltzer. Especially not matches in the U.S. (Ironically, Joe got a 5 star match with CM Punk a year before, the first in the U.S. since '97, and would get one a month later against Kenta Kobashi in ROH.) So we just watched the best match in TNA history, so where do we go from here? Fortunately, things were about to get a lot more interesting.
October:
TNA was now on Spike, and was as red-hot as it has ever been. This month they completed their first full year of Sunday 3 hour PPV's, and was coming up on their biggest show ever, Bound for Glory. Essentially, they were calling it their "WrestleMania" without actually saying that of course.
Joe was booked in a dream match against Jushin Liger. I personally think the match was average at best, and I must be right because no one talks about this match. Either way it didn't matter, it looks good in hindsight to see a big Japanese draw on their biggest show of the year, against their newest attraction.
Christopher Daniels was getting his mandatory rematch against AJ Styles for the X-Division Championship in an Iron Man match. This is a rematch from the February PPV Against All Odds, when they had their first Iron Man showdown.
I believe most people prefer Iron Man I, but I think Iron Man II is superior. Amazing battle between two warriors, and AJ gets the first and only fall with only two seconds left in the matchup, showing their rivalry isn't even close to be settled. This is three straight bona fide match of the year candidates for AJ, and he also had more at the beginning of the year, thus the reason why I say he was the best in the world in '05.
November:
Petey Williams is the number one contender for the X-Division Championship, and he and AJ have a great match at Genesis. AJ gets the win, but it isn't the last time you see him that night.
I'm sure TNA did this on purpose, so since it's November, they have a Survivor Series-style elimination match with all X-division wrestlers, and call it the Elimination X match. And I'm not complaining. The heel team was Daniels, Joe, Alex Shelley, and Roderick Strong vs. the faces Austin Aries, Chris Sabin, Matt Bentley, and Sonjay Dutt. (For my money, this is the strongest the X-Division ever was, and probably ever will be.)
Daniels is calling "his" team the "Ministry" and trying to get Joe to follow his lead. Of course he just blows him off like a dumbass, and does his own thing. These are subtle little things that TNA was doing right at the time, (at least for this feud anyway) to make these feuds work, last a long time, and not have people get bored. Daniels and Joe were the survivors, and Daniels got the pin on Sabin after Joe had hit him with the Muscle Buster. Joe got pissed that Daniels stole his thunder and beat him to a bloody pulp. AJ came out to help his fellow X-Divisioner and disgraced Joe as renegade. Meanwhile Daniels was gone for a month.
AJ would go on to talk about the "code" of the division, saying how you do your best, and if you get beat, big deal, you don't try to put your opponent in the hospital. This was kind of weird at the time because this code had never been mentioned before. AJ and Daniels both admitted to thinking it was silly in a shoot interview for that very same reason. However in hindsight, I think it works ok. It gives the storyline more depth, and doesn't hurt it at all.
AJ issues a challenge to Joe for the Turning Point PPV. They proceed to have another spectacular match, which was totally different from their August matchup. AJ comes out more aggressive than he probably has ever been, and takes it to Joe. In the end Joe wins, AJ still looks strong, and Daniels (now a face) returns at the end of the match, to save AJ from getting destroyed by Joe like he did a month prior.
January:
AJ faced Japanese wrestler Tanahashi at Final Resolution, and I think it's AJ's worst PPV one on one matchup. It's not terrible, but not phenomenal by any means. Luckily, this had nothing to do with his current feud, and again it wouldn't be the last time we see him this evening.
Christopher Daniels was hell-bent on revenge against Samoa Joe in their X-Title match. This was the weakest of all the matchups between the three men, but still a really good match. Daniels was portrayed as still having a concussion, and shouldn't be wrestling. So Joe worked his head the whole match, and started to administer a beating like at Genesis, but AJ comes out and throws the towel in for the Fallen Angel.
At the time, I thought this was dumb, and made Daniels look weak. I guess it still does to an extent, but again in hindsight, it just adds more layers to the rivalry to keep it going.
February:
Daniels was pissed at AJ for "costing" him the match at Final Resolution. So he threw in the towel during one of AJ's matches, even though he wasn't in dire straight at all, just to show him how it feels. It was announced that at Against All Odds there would be the triple threat rematch we all had been waiting for. Joe was as confident as ever, and since AJ and Daniels were feuding with each other he thought they would "cancel each other out" and he would still be the undefeated X-Division champ. He was right. They had another great matchup, not as good as the original, but hey what is? (Sorry I can't find the video.)
March:
The annual Destination X PPV always contains an Ultimate X match. That means Joe would be defending against whom? AJ and Daniels? That's right and why not? The angle going in was that Joe may not be able to shimmy across the cables to win.
The match of course was top notch, Joe couldn't hold on to the cables due to his massive frame, and the Fallen Angel won, giving him his second X Championship. AJ shook his hand at the end, telling him he was the better man, and left the X-Division for quite a while. Joe meanwhile, still hadn't been pinned, so in the wrestling world he was still undefeated, and wanting his rematch.
Joe got his rematch on an Impact special. He won the match, (better than their Final Resolution match) and became X champ for the second time. The match was an extra-long TV match, ending with Joe using the Island Driver off the top rope, which he had never used in TNA before, and ended the greatest feud ever in TNA.
In the end, we all knew how special that time was. The wrestlers have since had matchups with each other, but nothing like that 8 month time period. Joe, Daniels, and AJ all won one triple threat match. I think that was perfect to show how evenly matched they were. Naturally all the one on one matchups were just the icing on the cake.
If you have any of these matches, I'm sure like me, you love to watch them. Or you at least YouTube them from time to time. This was the pinnacle of TNA, and it may never be seen again. (Definitely not with Russo in charge.)
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