Pacman Rides the stretcher, Karen Angle predictably truns heel on Samoa Joe as Kurt Angle holds every championship, how many screwjobs on one show?  A strong editorial on why TNA's booking must be called into question.

Welcome to our live coverage of TNA's "Hard Justice" pay per view. As long as the show is on, we'll be updating frequently, and the headline will read LIVE ONGOING COVERAGE.
 
When the show is over, we'll post the headlines, along with COVERAGE OF TNA "HARD JUSTICE."

PPV opening video package is about Kurt Angle's life falling apart because of divorce from Karen. Wanna bet Karen turns on Samoa Joe? Wanna bet it makes Samoa Joe look stupid as all hell?

Pacman arrived in a Hummer. Mike Tenay leads us to a package on Pacman coming to TNA.

1 -- JAY LETHAL &  GURU SONJAY DUTT WON A THREE-WAY OVER. TRIPLE X (CHRISTOPHER DANIELS & SENSHI w/Elix Skipper) and MOTOR CITY MACHINE GUNS (CHRIS SABIN & ALEX SHELLEY)

We see extra security ringside for Pacman, and also there are two reserved ringside seats for Karen Angle and her  guest. Vince Russo ga ga booking 101. Message to Dixie Carter: Your product needs to grow up. Listen to Dave Scherer's editorial on PWInsider Elite: Call Paul Heyman before you make a fool of yourself and your company when you go to 2 hours.  Great sequences in the opening match. Served its purpose.

Backstage, Jeremy Borash busts Karen Angle sipping champagne and being all lovey-dovey with some guy. Warning to Samoa Joe, because every fan can see it from a mile away: Da bitch is gonna turn on you! Come on, Dixie, do you really think making Samoa Joe look this stupid with the same nWo-type fake turn that we've seen since 1997, is going to get people into your product?

Raven on a giant chair for Seratonin's entrance.  Kaz then came out with a Kendo stick. Before the match, Raven took a mic and said he got Kaz's point about wanting to be on his own. He said if Kaz shook his hand, all would be forgiven. Once they shook hands and hugged, Raven held Kaz's hand in the air, and Kaz turned on Raven again and cracked him with the Kendo Stick to start the match. Hey, a turn. Do you think, by the way, if Karen turns on Joe tonight, this just took away from the main event angle? Did I say IF? Does this make sense to anyone at TNA? Does anyone in decision making positions in TNA understand how this waters down your main event angle? 

2 -- KAZ DEFEATS RAVEN (w/Havok and Martyr). There were so many things wrong with this match, such as the referee not calling for a DQ several times with no explanation. It's not a street fight. It's not Extreme Rules. The finish was good, and if they follow up, Kaz got a solid win over Raven. Did I say IF? I would be most interested IF they did. We'll see Thursday. Ms. Carter, if you're reading this, and TNA didn't follow up, that's another example of the bad booking your company is suffering from. How much has Panda lost already? 40 million? 50? Close to 60? Any chance to recoup that investment?
Soap Opera backstage with Kurt Angle all upset about Karen being with another guy at the show. No emphasis on the UFC-like battle of the top two guys. No focus on the titles. Once again, bad booking.


3 -- JAMES STORM (w/Ms. Jackie Moore) DEFEATED RHINO IN A BARROOM BRAWL. These two guys worked their asses off. But no one sees this as a TNA style match. They see it as an ECW style match. The X Division Match was unique, and a TNA original. The whole concept was thrown away for Kurt Angle's push. Now, the titles aren't even the focal point of Kurt's match. Kurt's wife Karen's obvious heel turn is the focus of the match. So why throw away the X Division?


Ron Killings screamed his head off at some new female interviewer about Pacman Jones.

Tenay and Don West recapped the Karen Angle storyline, in case you haven't been following whatsoever.
Booking question: Why not follow up on James Storm's win? Or Kaz's win? Why devote even more time to Karen Angle? Does that storyline really need it?

4 -- VKM (B.G. JAMES & KIP JAMES w/Roxxi LaVeaux) DEFEATED  LAX (HOMICIDE & HERNANDEZ) when Roxxi threw powder at Hernandez and Kip James hit the fameasser. Crowd chanted "DX Rejects" at VKM.

Uh oh. Wait a minute. Hector Guerrero comes out. Tells Earl Hebner about the powder and the screwjob.
We got a re-start!
 
 
LAX DEFEATED VKM in the re-start when Homicide rolled up Kip for the pin.


Confusing backstage segment with too much going on as we get a Robert Roode vs Eric Young package, followed by the announcement they will wrestle in a Humiliation Match. Of course, no explanation of the rules. So how, as a fan, should I get into the match, when I don't understand what it is? Dear Dixie, I beg of you, please listen to Scherer's hotline about Paul Heyman. Bring in anyone. This is just insulting. It's why your company can't break through the next set of barriers. What is a 2 hour show going to do except cost more money to produce if you can't take advantage of the opportunity? How do you announce a match and then not explain it, especially when no one ever heard of the match before? Borash interviews Young, and tries to straighten Young out. Kurt Angle comes into the picture but Young tells Kurt that he saw Karen and the guy she's with backstage, which of course disturbs Kurt.
 
Does Kurt mention Samoa Joe, put him over, sing his praises, build him up as a champion? Does Kurt sell the match? Does Kurt do anything to make me, as a fan, get interested in this main event? Does Kurt get anything over except his storyline with his own wife? Bad booking. .

5 -- ROBERT ROODE (w/Ms. Brooks) DEFEATED ERIC YOUNG in a HUMILIATION MATCH.
Brooks is wearing a shirt that's so tight, she has to be glued or heavily taped into it or we're going to have a wardrobe malfunction. So what's a Humiliation Match? I don't know. It still hasn't been explained to me. Why should it? Why should I have to understand a match? It's inconsequential because TNA makes it inconsequential. Folks, this is simply called Bad Booking. It's Lazy Storytelling. There's no excuse for it. Please, someone just think about it. They do an entire match and never explain what the match means.
 
So after the match comes the angle where Roode gets on the mic and Roode and Brooks are going to tar and feather Young. How early 80s Memphis wrestling. Does that play on a national level in 2007? So Gail Kim runs out, and covers Young. Roode calls her a bitch and Brooks jumps on her. Roode throws a punch at Gail, but Brooks take the shot. Roode then chokes out Gail. Young kicked Roode low from behind. Young then said he was going to tar and feather Brooks. Anyone confused yet? Young and Gail Kim tar and feathered Brooks while Roode abandoned her. Booking question for Dixie Carter: More male-female strife to interfere with your main event angle? Tar and feathering in 2007? Actually, the big question,
 
Video package on Dustin Rhodes.
 
The new interviewer (whose name is Kristal) interviews Chris Harris. This was a good interview by Harris.


6 -- CHRIS HARRIS vs. BLACK REIGN DUSTIN RHODES ended in all sorts of confusion. Not good confusion, or something controversial. Just the "I don't understand" type of confusing. Black Reign shoved the referee into the railing, but there's no call by the ref. Is this Extreme Rules? Or No DQ? Or a street fight? Doesn't matter. No explanation. All sorts of ref bumps, but no one can keep up with it. The security that was there to protect the fans from Pacman Jones jump in but get tossed. Black Reign pulls out a spike and Abdullah The Butcher's Harris. Wrestlers come out, Black Reign stands off with everyone. The world's toughest heel. Dear Dixie. Do you realize how stupid this looked? Sonjay Dutt was openly laughing at the entire chaotic scene while being a part of the job squad that ran to the ring to get punked out by Rhodes.
The words bad, stupid, lame, and terrible don't accurately describe this. Bad booking. Recurring theme.


Kristal interviews the Steiners.
 
Borash interviewed Team 3D. Strong heel promo by the former Dudleys.

7 -- STEINERS DEFEAT TEAM 3D. Fans chanted "Same old shit" at both teams. I have a lot of respect for Scott Steiner for coming back from that injury. 3D works hard, but they don't do anything new. All 4 wanted to have a really good match. But the fans were right. It is the same old shit, and it's time for everyone in the match to update their performances.

Angle backstage with Dr. Kevin Nash. More Karen Angle discussion.
 
Mike Tenay introduces Pacman Jones. Tenay offered a handshake, Pacman declined. Pacman said he grew up up a wrestling fan. He said he picked TNA because it's the trendsetter. Pacman called himself the greatest team player ever. Rob Killings interrupted. Killings warned Pacman about individuals in the wrestling business. Killings yelled that wrestling is about who's going to screw who first, that no one has back or front. Killings stated Pacman got himself in trouble with his NFL contract where he can't touch or be touched. The fans chanted, "He's a bitch" while Pacman stared at Killings, who told Pacman to watch his ass in the ring, at home, in the showers, and in the picnic. Killings approached Pacman, but security tackled Killings and dragged him up the ramp.

Video package on the Doomsday Chamber of Blood match.
 
Kristal interviews Christian Cage,AJ  Styles, and Tomko about the Doomsday match.
Tenay and West had an urgent bulletin, so we once again go backstage to see Pacman on the floor holding his neck in pain. Security jumped into the camera shot and pushed the camera back.  Tenay and West talked about those contractual restrictions. Note to TNA: Ever think there's anyone who doesn't know what you're talking about when you say contractual restrictions? 

8 -- CHRISTIAN CAGE & A.J. STYLES & TOMKO vs. ABYSS & STING & THE PUNISHER ANDREW MARTIN (formerly "Test")  -- Doomsday Chamber of Blood match with barbed wire and winner must score a pin, but not before the person to be pinned is bleeding

The heels came out, followed by the babyface Abyss who walked out alone and was promptly jumped on the outside. Punisher's music hit and he came down to ringside. They did the lights off, lights on gimmick (Heyman's groundbreaking 1995 entrance for Sabu in ECW which everyone has now done to death) The fight spilled to the outside.
 
OK, I have to stop here for a moment to once again point something out. Wasn't the whole point of the barbed wire, as the authority figure Jim Cornette said on TV,  was to keep the action in the ring so Christian's team couldn't get out of the match? Nice way to bury Cornette. Think anyone in TNA realizes they just made a mockery of their own authority figure? Of course not.
 
Pacman is loaded onto a stretcher backstage. Christian dumped glass in the middle of the ring. Martin hits Tomko with a chair. Christian decided it was good time to get out of the cage, leaving Styles to take the beating from Tomko. But Abyss gave Styles the Black Hole Slam into the glass and Styles's back was all bloody, leading to Abyss pinning Styles to become #1 contender.
 
Let me take a deep breath. The good action was undermined by the ridiculous booking. Wake up Dixie!
 
Yet another stipulation rendered meaningless, castrating Jim Cornette as an authority figure. There were two points to the match. Someone would be #1 contender. That point was taken care of. Number two point was the cage was there to keep Christian's team inside the cage. First part of the match was a fight outside the cage, and the end of the match was Christian bailing on everyone, walking away from the cage. Goal accomplished? Of course not. Failure in my eyes. The booking is childish, non-sensical, logic-defying, uninteresting, and buries everyone involved. How's that Return on Bob Carter's investment looking with this booking regime in charge?
 
Video package on Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle.
 
Kristal interviews Samoa Joe backstage.
 

9 -- KURT ANGLE DEFEATED SAMOA JOE IN A WINNER TAKE ALL (TNA WORLD TITLE, X DIVISION TITLE, TNA TAG TEAM TITLES, INOKI VERSION OF IWGP TITLE) WHEN KAREN ANGLE TURNED HEEL ON SAMOA JOE.
Karen Angle and her boyfriend, who I swear is Trademarc from the John Cena rap album, comes down to ringside all lovey dovey with some champagne. At one point, Karen threw champagne in Kurt's face. At the end, Angle hit a top rope suplex, but Joe kicked out. Angle screamed at Karen. Angle up for a moonsault, but Joe moved. Joe took Angle up top for the Musclebuster and connected. Joe made the cover, Angle survived.  Joe then went for the rear naked choke. Angle bites to escape, then gets the Ankle Lock. Joe flipped Angle around and got the rear naked choke again. Angle got his foot on the bottom rope. Ref bump. Joe again gets the rear naked choke and Angle tapped out, but the ref was out. . Karen Angle offers a chair to Joe, but pulled it away and handed it to Kurt, who smashed Joe in the face with the chair. Angle made the pin for all the titles as Tenay just screamed at me about the Angles played us all.
 

I want to like TNA, but they're making it really hard for me to do. They piss all over their own stipulations, they kill off the credibility of their commissioner figure at every turn, they make their babyfaces look stupid, they don't explain what matches mean or what the rules are, and then when there are rules, they don't make them mean anything.
 
I don't have any preference who wins or loses. I just want a good, solid, entertaining show. Ga ga is fine, but only when it's good. If you're looking to buy TNA because you want a good product, I am sorry to say that this current booking structure cannot offer you what you're looking for.
 
Wrestling News Desk welcomes Dixie Carter, Jeff Jarrett, Vince Russo, Dutch Mantel, or anyone from TNA writing, booking, or management to discuss the company with us on the record, either on our upcoming internet radio show, or in any forum he, she, or they would choose.
 
You can hide major flaws, but flawed booking stands out above everything else.