By Jeff Hamlin (jhamlin@vilcom.com)

The Big News: Jeff Jarrett made his long-awaited return and Mick Foley made a brief on-screen cameo debut during a 20-minute interview segment that was the highlight of the show. Best of all, Jarrett’s inclusion into the Styles/Joe group made sense because the interview segment was very good.

Samoa Joe came out for an in-ring interview after his victory over Christian Cage and Kurt Angle at No Surrender. He had a nasty black left eye. He put over Cage and Angle, then ran down Sting for sitting at home in his palatial estate everyone else in TNA was busting their ass. Crowd was somewhat behind him, but you can tell they still want to like Sting.

Earlier in the day, Jeff Jarrett pulled up where Jeremy Borash met him. Shockingly, Borash didn’t carry his bags. Jarrett said he had something to say and he hopes Sting is listening.

Kurt Angle interrupted Mike Tenay and Don West and came out in a three-piece suit. That reminds me, if Dave start the “Least Surprising Wrestling News Story” in this year’s Observer Awards, Kurt and Karen win hands down. He said he would cross paths with Jarrett tonight, and called out A.J. Styles demanding his gold medals. The Motor City Machine Guns made their entrance as security sent Angle to the back.

1. Christian Cage and A.J. Styles defeated the Motor City Machine Guns. Guns worked more of a heel style. Styles came out without Angle’s gold medal. Styles and Chris Sabin did fabulous chain wrestling early. Alex Shelley got some boos upon his entrance. Cage slowed down Shelley with a rib breaker. Guns did baseball slides into Cage, who was tied to the tree of woe. Sabin accidentally gave Shelley an enzugiri, and Cage hit Sabin with a reverse DDT, allowing Styles to get the hot tag. Styles entered with a springboard drop kick on both guns. Styles did a cool roll into a cross armbreaker before Shelley made the save. Real good finish with Styles escaping Sabin’s cradle shock and getting the pin with a styles clash. Postmatch, both Sabin and Shelley shook Styles hand, but both of them flipped off Cage, leading to a pull apart. ***1/4

Booker T and Sharmell were backstage with Borash. Booker still has the fancy dressing room, despite losing to Joe twice now. brought up how Jay Lethal disrespects Randy Savage by doing an impersonation of him every week. Sharmell teased a confrontation with Jeff Jarrett. Booker had a briefcase that he wouldn’t let Borash touch.

The Steel Asylum will return at Bound for Glory.

Sheik Abdul Bashir did his first promo since winning the X Division title. Bashir mentioned the recent stock market trauma, and demanded to know what John McCain and Barack Obama could do for him.

2. Super Eric, Curry Man and Shark Boy defeated Petey Williams, Johnny Devine and Jimmy Rave. Shane Sewell was the referee, and they played up the comeback he made two weeks ago against Bashir. Curry now has a sleeveless outfit. Rave gave Curry the STO on the apron. Eric got the hot tag. Williams did the float over Russian leg sweep. After Devine and Rave accidentally gave Williams a clothesline, Eric pinned Williams with a crossbody block. Devine and Rave then got in Williams face and put the boots to him. Lance Rock pushed Sewell down, and Sewell made the comeback for Williams by laying out Rave, Rock and Devine. Crowd was hot for Sewell, who had this look on his face after he got shoved down like he was the 98-pound weakling who couldn’t take anymore. Williams got involved, and the two teamed to rid the ring of the heels. Earl Hebner ran in to calm Sewell down again. **

Sting made his way to the rafters and said he would be listening to Jarrett tonight.

They showed tape from a TNA press conference, and man was it lame. The company’s idea for a press conference is to put up a podium with no one in attendance visible. Supposedly, Matt Morgan will have his DNA digitized to be sent to the international space station. It’s called Operation Immortality.

They cut to Morgan and Abyss doing an interview. Morgan admitted his was wrong and said he went back and watched the tape. That’s when he learned Brother Ray hit him, not Abyss. Can you imagine how many awful programs this company would have cut off at the seams if everything was that simple? Abyss and Morgan are now in a tag team invitational tournament at Bound for Glory. Team 3-D ran in with security separating them. Brother Ray claimed he tore his groin doing 4,000 pound hack squats the night before the match, and Dvon was shacked up with a 300 pound white girl. It ended with a brawl.

Jacqueline was shown walking to the LAX locker room. She went out and slapped Hector Guerrero, who was doing commentary. Beer Money came out and beat him up. Haven’t we seen this angle before? LAX came out for the save. Traci Brooks came out and ordered Jacqueline and Guerrero in Cornette’s office.

Roxxi is the latest subject of Rough Cut. Her gimmick is the “hardcore knockout.”

Sting was shown coming down from the raptors. Why was he shown going up the raptors earlier if he was going to go right back down the next segment? Guess he needed the cardio.

Guerrero and Jacqueline were in Cornette’s office. Hector has a cover bun with the Mexican flag on it. Brooks announced Beer Money and Jacqueline will face LAX and Hector, with the loser losing their manager for good.

Sting came out and ran down Joe, saying when Joe was a kid he was going up and down the roads wrestling 340 days a year wrestling for $50 a day on a good day. He said he learned from the greatest, like Magnum T.A., Nikita Koloff (?), Dusty Rhodes (biggest cheer), Tully Blanchard (minor pop), and Ric Flair (huge roar). He said he learned well when disrespect got up in his face. Another fine promo which left the crowd confused again.

For the first time, there was a vignette building up the debut of Suicide, who will apparently sport a red mask.

Cage and Styles did a promo. Styles said he and Cage were on the same page, but Cage didn’t share the same opinion. Cage told him he was the true champion and walked off.

Black Machismo did his first promo after losing So Cal Val to Sonjay Dutt. He basically explained his gimmick wasn’t about dissing Savage. Machismo doesn’t make for a convincing wild-eye babyface.

3. Booker T defeated Black Machismo. Machismo got a surprising amount of offense, but it didn’t look to be as convincing because he look to be half of Booker’s size. Machismo did a springboard dropkick, but Booker blocked Machismo’s flying axehandle with a side kick. Machismo made his comeback with his hip toss/seated dropkick combo. Finish came when Sharmell hooked Machismo leg and Booker hit the ax kick. **1/4

Angelina Love was in tears because she woke up this morning with a pimple on her face. She said she couldn’t go to the ring with Cute Kip and Velvet Sky because she had to see her dermatologist.

4. Taylor Wilde and Rhino defeated Cute Kip and Velvet Sky. Man does Sky’s offense look bad without a magician like Gail Kim in there. They did a near ref bump when Rhino whipped Kip into Mark Johnson, who shaved off his Angel of Death mustache since the last tapings. Sky put hairspray into Rhino’s eye to get the heat. Sky even tagged in to choke Rhino. Wilde got the hot tag and did a northern lights suplex on Sky while Rhino gored Kip. Finish came when Love ran down and gave Sky a steel pipe. Sky tried to hit Wilde right in front of the ref, but Wilde ducked and got the pin with a rolling three-quarter nelson. I’m sure that the first time that term has been used in a knockouts match.

Postmatch, heels laid out Rhino, with Kip doing the famasser on him. Wilde clotheslined Love and Sky. Kip got in her face and they were about to square off before Awesome Kong ran down. Wilde gave Kong a plancha before she could get in the ring. Raisha Saaed interfered, and they started to brawl as they cut to a commercial. When they came back from break, Wilde and Rhino were down. Kip put a bag over Rhino’s head, while Sky put a bag on Wilde’s head. Timing was sloppy here as all we saw of Wilde getting laid out was her getting thrown into the barricade. *

They aired the same package of Jeff Jarrett they’ve put on over the past few weeks. Jeff Jarrett came out for his big return and got a good ovation and welcome back chants. He talked of wanting to start TNA after WCW folded. He was clearly emotional when he spoke of being the founder of TNA wrestling, and was even more emotional when the fans started a “Thank you Jarrett” chant. It was basically a shoot interview about why he started TNA, because he knew better than anyone how hard it is to get a break in wrestling. So he wanted to give younger wrestlers a break. Sorry for being cynical, but in the early days I swear Jarrett started TNA to give Jarrett a break.

He called out Sting. Jarett said his father was the one who started Sting out in the business. Jarrett told him he was full of crap. Jarrett said his vision is being fulfilled by people like Joe and Styles, and every step of the way they showed him respect, just as Jarrett showed them. Then he brought up WCW, and said how that company went out of business because the veterans wouldn’t pass the torch to the younger wrestlers because they were selfish. Well, that’s true, but it’s one of about 100 reasons the company died, though I’m sure it’s a popular theory among certain TNA creative members. Still, a solid promo by Jarrett.

Then Kurt Angle came out for a “shoot.” Angle was mad about what Jarrett did to him at No Surrender. Jarrett cut him off and talked about him leaving wrestling two years ago. He said he picked Angle to replace him. Well, only after the WWE fired him. He said it was the worst decision he ever made. I can think of a few others. Jarrett said he’s lost his wife, his family, his world championship and his gold medal. Angle said Jarrett didn’t have any more heart, and he was a younger, better version of Jarrett. Angle said he carried the company for the past two years, but Jarrett never thanked him. Angle challenged him to a match at Bound for Glory. Jarrett said he had nothing left to prove as a wrestler and started to leave. Angle stopped him and said to get out of his ring and never come back. Jarrett stopped him and pointed to the screen, where Mick Foley appeared and said “It’s real. It’s damn real.”

Then Foley brought back the old “bang, bang” catchphrase, probably because Have a Nice Day is trademarked by the WWE. Then a new Foley logo appeared with a smiley face wrapped in barbed wire as the show went off the air.

SUMMARY: A good show. Foley can breathe life into anything because he’s one of the greatest talkers of all time, so his inclusion into the old school/new school program is welcome. Not to much stupid stuff, and even Cute Kip wasn’t bad on the show. Plus, it wasn’t loaded with angles.