TNA: TKO Ep. #16

Welcome to TKO, the fictional, one hour a week, Knockout exclusive iMPACT spinoff.

ROSTER: Angelina Love, Brooke Tessmacher, Daffney, Jennifer Blade (Jennifer Blake), Madison Rayne, Mickie James, Sarita, Serafina (Christina Von Eerie), Tara, Trina Diaz (Divina Fly/Rosita), Velvet Sky, Winter

BROADCAST TEAM: Jeremy Borash & Don West

RING ANNOUNCER: SoCal Val

INTERVIEWER: Christy Hemme

DIRECTOR OF AUTHORITY: Traci Brooks

ASSISTANT TO THE DIRECTOR OF AUTHORITY: Cookie

TKO abides by one rule: Absolutely nothing happens on the show that could not conceivably happen if it existed in real life.

Here's what happened last time: Setting the Stage, Ep. #1, Ep. #2, Ep. #3, Ep. #4, Ep. #5, Ep. #6, Ep. #7, Ep. #8, Ep. #9, Ep. #10, Ep. #11, Ep. #12, Ep. #13, Ep. #14, Ep. #15
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COLD OPEN: A caption on the screen reads 'Earlier today'. Mickie James sits in a doctor's office. The doctor is going over the injuries she suffered in her feud with Daffney one last time. Mickie says they've already been over this, but the doctor just wants to make sure she isn't taking any of it lightly. He says that once he signs this release form on the desk she will be cleared to wrestle. She's passed all the physicals and he can't stop from living her life, but he strongly urges her to take at least a few more weeks off before she returns to the ring.

"Noted," Mickie says.

The doctor signs the release.


OPENING VIDEO: The usual video is replaced with a Queen of the Mountain hype video.


iMPACT ZONE: JB & West welcome us to the show. They hype up the QOTM tonight.


BACKSTAGE: We see a quick series of shots of all 6 competitors preparing for the match. JB reiterates that the Knockouts have never competed in a match like this before. West says there are 6 very anxious women backstage right now and tensions are running high.


iMPACT ZONE: JB says that before they get to QOTM they have a bonus match to do, and he sends it to the ring where Terryn Shane & Haley Vaughn (Serena Deeb & Leva Bates) are prepped and ready. This week Haley is wearing purple tights and green body paint -- an homage to the Incredible Hulk. The bell rings and the match begins.


TERRYN SHANE vs. HALEY VAUGHN

JB explains that these 2 have been here for a few weeks now, trying to earn TNA contracts. They've shown what they can do in tag team and singles matches, and this is the last leg of their evaluation process.

Terryn controls most of the match, with Haley getting various hope spots -- one of which makes the announcers laugh out loud when she 'Hulks up'.

WINNER: Terryn Shane in 7:46

The 2 women hug after the match. JB says they've done everything they can, and now the decision of whether or not they get contracts is in the hands of Traci Brooks and company management.

They switch gears, discussing the situation with the Beautiful People and how Velvet Sky turned on Angelina Love, and then last week she had some very disturbing things to say about her now former friend.

They air a video package showing how Velvet abandoned Angelina in the tag title match a few weeks ago, turning on her, and a narration plays of Velvet's message to Angelina last week about how Angelina always tried to keep Velvet in her shadow, and she refuses to be held down anymore.

JB says they have to go backstage, as he's being told there's some kind of disturbance going on.


BACKSTAGE: Christy Hemme is hurrying toward the Beautiful People's dressing room, from which we hear sounds of a huge ruckus. She enters the room and gasps. The entire place is wrecked! The furniture has been destroyed, the mirror is shattered into a million pieces, makeup is littered all over the floor, Beautiful People t-shirts have been cut to ribbons, even a few holes have been punched in the walls.

Angelina, now completely disheveled -- no makeup, hair a mess -- sits on the floor in a corner of the room, looking dark and despondent.

Christy asks Angelina what in the world happened here.

Angelina responds with just one word... "Therapy."


COMMERCIALS


iMPACT ZONE: Traci and Cookie come out to the stage. Traci says that tonight is a huge night for them, but next week is going to be even bigger. Next week is the TKO season finale and they're saving the best for last. Traci has some things up her sleeve and promises it's going to be a night of great moments, big reveals and a few surprises, too. She says the fans aren't going to want to miss this and asks them to show up and support the wrestlers who have been busting their asses all season long, as well as the champion, "...whoever that might be by then."

Just like she did a few weeks ago, Traci says that, ultimately, it will be the fans who decide if TKO gets a second season or not. She's done everything she can think of to make this the best show she could possibly make it, but in 7 days it will be out of her hands. If the fans want a season 2, Traci directs them to a page on the SpikeTV website that has been set up and urges them to let the network know how they feel.

As Traci's promo ends, JB says she doesn't seem to think Mickie has much of a chance of retaining the title in QOTM tonight. West adds that he thinks Traci is looking forward to seeing the title change hands. He admits he wasn't really buying Mickie's suspicions of Traci at first, but a lot of things that have happened in the last few months just haven't added up and he thinks Mickie may have been onto something from the beginning.


BACKSTAGE: Serafina & Trina Diaz are waiting outside Traci's office. Traci and Cookie show up, and they say they want a tag title shot on the season finale next week. Trying to make their case, they point out that they won that 6-person tag a few weeks ago, pinning the former champion Madison Rayne when no one was giving them much of a chance, Serafina holds a win over Winter, they both have unfinished business with Sarita, and unless it's escaped Traci's notice, they are the only other tag team on the roster right now.

Traci says they've been bugging her for weeks about this. Personally, she's not sure they're ready to get into the title picture, but if they want it that badly, she's going to grant their wish. She makes the match, Serafina/Trina vs. Winter/Sarita for the Knockout tag team titles next week.

From there, we go to a sitdown interview with Christy and Mickie James. Christy asks Mickie for her thoughts on the QOTM match tonight.

Mickie says that when she came back to TNA last year she knew she had a challenge ahead of her, but she never anticipated the challenge would be this big. Since she got here, she's been beaten, manipulated, concussed, hospitalized, and that was just in the last few months. "Traci's thrown everything but the kitchen sink at me, and tonight she's throwing the sink too. And, yeah, I'm not 100% yet, but it doesn't matter. I've always been a fighter, I've always been a survivor, I've made it this far and I'll make it through this."

Christy asks her for her thoughts on her 5 opponents.

Mickie gives her opinions on each woman while footage of them plays over ominous music. "Every one of these women is a different type of challenge. Put them all in the same ring at the same time and I've got my work cut out for me. I've faced Winter before, not in TNA, but I have wrestled her, and beaten her, but she's never made it easy. I've been in the ring with Sarita a couple times now, and I've beaten her too, but that was before. Her and Winter have really become a force since then, plus they're going to be working together. Wrestling Daffney is like wrestling a rabid dog -- I never know what she's going to do, and every time I think I've got her figured out she pulls something different out of her hat. I know what she's capable of now and I've beaten her when it counted, but it definitely took a tole on me. More than anything, I have be mentally strong when I face Daffney or she'll just pick me apart. Even on her worst day, Tara is an absolute beast in the ring. She's been doing this almost as long as I have, she knows all the same tricks I know. I know I can I beat her, but on any given night, she can beat me too. But out of all these women, the one I'm most concerned with is Jennifer Blade. She's the only one I've never been in the ring with, but from what I've seen of her, she's impressed the hell out of me. Tara's the only one who's been able to beat her so far and she's already avenged those losses. She's still a rookie, but she doesn't wrestle like one. All the pieces are there and it's actually a little intimidating to think how good she's going to be when she puts them all together."

Finally, Christy asks Mickie if she has any words for her 5 opponents before the match tonight.

"Yeah, I do." Mickie looks into the camera. "You see this?" She holds up the Knockouts title belt. "This is mine. All of you are good enough to hold this title, but not tonight. Tonight it's coming home with me, even if they have to lay it down next to me in my coffin. Last week, I said I'd go to war with every single one of you if that's what it took, and that's what's going to happen. So put your game faces on, ladies. Let's do this."

Mickie stands up and walks out of the shot.

JB says the QOTM match is coming up next.


COMMERCIALS


They air one last video package spotlighting each of the 6 competitors.


iMPACT ZONE: While explaining the match, JB says the rules have been simplified. You still have to make a pin before you can qualify to win the match and those who get pinned still have to go to the penalty cage, but the "reverse" gimmick has been done away with. The winner is the one who takes the belt down, just like in a normal ladder match.

SoCal Val announces that it's time for QOTM.

Traci and Cookie come out and sit at ringside. Cookie has a big tub of popcorn they're both eating from.

All 6 women make their entrances. Once in the ring, Val runs down each of their stats individually, just like at a UFC PPV.

JB says the match beings after the final commercial break of the night.


COMMERCIALS


The bell rings.


QUEEN OF THE MOUNTAIN
KNOCKOUTS TITLE MATCH
SARITA vs. WINTER vs. DAFFNEY vs. TARA vs. JENNIFER BLADE vs. MICKIE JAMES (c)

Jennifer is the first to qualify to go for the belt by pinning Tara. She's also the only woman who does not get pinned during the match. For a large portion of the bout, she is the only one to qualify, managing to break up numerous pin attempts by the other women. "It looks like Mickie was right to be concerned about Jennifer," says JB. "She might just pull off a win here if she can keep this up."

As the match goes on, Winter, Sarita and Daffney all make pins and qualify, leaving only Tara and Mickie. Eventually, Tara qualifies by pinning Mickie.

Mickie is on the defensive for most of the match, not getting much offense, showing that she's not fully recovered yet and having to push through it. As they approach the end, Mickie finally qualifies by pinning Tara.

Over the next few minutes, everyone is trying to go for the belt, but no one is able to get to it. The end comes down to Mickie, Jennifer and Tara. Mickie jumps off the turnbuckle and splashes onto Winter, Sarita and Daffney outside the ring, taking them out. Meanwhile, Tara and Jennifer are duking it out at the top of the ladder, both of them within reach of the title, and Jennifer is starting to get the better of the exchange. Mickie jumps back into the ring and shoves the ladder in a desperation move. Jennifer falls off, but Tara just barely holds on. Mickie cimbs the ladder as Tara recovers her balance. She and Tara trade blows. Finally, Mickie knocks Tara off the ladder and grabs the title belt.

WINNER AND STILL KNOCKOUTS CHAMPION: Mickie James in 24:36

Pyro goes off. Mickie celebrates, exhausted, but happy.

They show highlights of the match. JB says every one of them killed themselves to get the title, but the real story was Jennifer. West agrees, saying she did everything but win the match.

Mickie climbs the turnbuckle and stares down at Traci on the floor. She holds up the belt defiantly, as if to rub it in Traci's face.

Traci does not look happy.

Traci gestures to Cookie and they head for the back. The camera follows them closely.

"That seals the deal," Traci says. "Mickie wants a war... so we're going to need an army."


FADE OUT