Final Resolution may be in the books but unfinished business is in the air on this week’s Impact Wrestling. Bobby Roode thought he made a safe investment by paying the Ace’s and Eights to take out Jeff Hardy prior to the PPV, but on the night their distraction cost Roode the title and they didn’t think twice about about kicking him when he was down.

Also whether you call it business or a personal distraction, Hulk Hogan certainly has unfinished issues with Austin Aries and Bully Ray. Capitalizing on the scandal (or some might say fomenting it) the master manipulator pulled Brooke Hogan in to his match with Ray at the PPV and used the commotion to get the win. But what’s really going on between Bully and Brooke, and how is the General Manager going to clear up the mess?

Bobby Roode wants answers:
The self-professed It Factor kicked of this week’s Impact wanting answers from the Aces & Eights. He made a deal! But in the world of an outlaw motorcycle club, money ranks above loyalty.

From one businessman to another, Devon revealed that a better deal was offered to the club and they refuse to reveal who paid the money.

Jeff Hardy and James Storm hit the ring. They’re not here to play detective; they’re here to fight. A brawl erupts, but the dirty dealers back off before any serious damage is inflicted.

The hook is set…who paid for the hit on Booby Roode?

Velvet Sky is focused, Mickie James is upset:
Hot off her return to Impact Wrestling Velvet Sky says she’s more focused than ever, and that the pigeons have gotten a little antsy since her time away. It’s time to let them loose!

Mickie James on the other hand is not so positive. She feels she let herself and everyone else down at Final Resolution when she lost to Tara.

Velvet Sky def. Madison Rayne:
The history between Velvet and Rayne goes back a long way and the match starts off intense. Sky gets the immediate upper-hand forcing Madison to eat the turnbuckle several times. She follows up with a Rolling Neckbreaker and a Dropkick, but it’s too early to keep Rayne down. She fires back with a clothesline, before standing on Sky’s hair and yanking her up by the arms.

The crowd are firmly behind Velvet, yet Madison refuses to be distracted as she chokes her former partner on the ropes. After a vicious knee she goes for the cover, but only gets a 2 count. Frustrated with the referee Madison loses her focus and Sky uses the opening to chop, knee and clothesline her way back in to the driver’s seat. The big Bulldog could not put Raybe away, but the Underhook Facebuster does the job. Your winner Velvet Sky.

Although she is perhaps more entertaining as a heel, Sky is over with the fans and no doubt on her way to facing Tara for the Knockout’s title. Somebody has to be that stepping stone and this time it was Rayne. It may now be worth re-defining Rayne’s character because the Tiara shtick is very gimmicky and she’s lost a lot of the heat she once had.

Angle promotes 5 hour energy:
Kurt Angle is supposed to be a grizzled veteran trying to coach Wes Brisco and Garrett Bischoff to success. However one has to question his advice when he hands over two cans of 5 Hour Energy to the rookies. That sh*t will give you a heart attack!

Kaz & Daniels interrogated:
Backstage TNA’s roving reporter tries to pin the hit on Bobby Roode on Bad Influence, but the duo claim to be friends with the It Factor. They tell the guy to take a look at AJ Styles; he’s the one with nothing to lose right now.

Wes Brisco & Garrett Bischoff def. Robbie E & Robbie T:
Big Robbie T doesn’t wait around, immediately scooping Wes Brisco up for a impressive Powerslam. Terry then backs Brisco in to the corner and tag’s in Robbie E, who counties the onslaught with a choke.

Brisco tries to fight back but is outperformed with a Drop Toe Hold. As Garrett accidentally distracts the referee the Jersey Shore wannabe and the British bodybuilder get some double-team stomps in for good measure. The big man then scoops Wes up in the Bear Hug.

It looks like Brisco sees an opening, but he doesn’t have the strength. Robbie T launches him back in to the corner and tags in Robbie E. The smaller of the team risks their momentum by going up top, but scouts Brisco’s counter. Luck is on the rookie’s side however as Robbie E misses the follow-up elbow.

Garrett finally gets in the match and unleashes the offense. He hits a Flapjack but is clotheslined from behind before he can make a cover. Garrett turns his attention to the big man and hits a Jaw Breaker, then out of nowhere Wes Brisco hits a top-rope Flying Crossbody for the victory.

Nonetheless the celebration is short live as a masked Aces & Eights member attacks Kurt Angle who’d emerged on the outside. He clips his knee with a the hammer and escapes like a drive-by shooter.

Joseph Park enrolls at OVW:
Although General Manager Hulk Hogan may not have been serious when he suggested Abyss’ lawyer brother Joseph Park should train to wrestle, the lovable underdog took it to heart and has now enrolled with TNA’s developmental territory OVW. Before he can even acquire some ring gear, the suited big man is thrown in the ring with Danny Davis and ends up puking in a trash can after only being able to pull off one sit-up. He has a long road ahead, but Joseph Park might just have the heart to overcome this great hurdle.

Tara & Brooke Hogan confrontation:
Tara and Jesse who indirectly exposed this whole mess between Bully Ray and Brooke Hogan, find their way back in Brooke’s office, but this time they knocked first! Tara says tonight their boyfriends are wrestling each other, but Brooke brushes off the insinuation that she’s dating Bully.

In a poor attempt at sucking up Tara asks Brooke if she can reveal her Championship Thursday opponent for next week early. The Hulkster’s daughter is having none of it, sending the TMZ wannabes packing.

This segment was particularly ironic as Brooke mocked the celebrity driven ego of Tara and Jesse; the very lifestyle she leads in real life and which fans resent her and her family for. The Hogan’s could do so much more if they embraced the hate for their z-list antics, but instead they have to passively project it on to others, and pretend that they’re the good guy heroes.

Kenny King Interview:
Kenny King is in the locker room preparing for his non-title rematch against RVD. He says that you can learn more from losses than wins and vows to take out RVD tonight.

Jeff Hardy & James Storm def. Doc & Masked Member of Aces & Eights:
The Cowboy starts off the match fast and intense against Doc and Hardy is soon tagged in, hitting an Axehandle in the process. Doc manages to tag in the big masked member of Aces & 8s, but he’s soon outpaced and sent to the floor by Hardy. As they regroup Hardy dives to the outside.

Back in the ring the Masked Man’s power shines through and he takes Jeff down with a stiff Clothesline. Aces & Eights capitalize on the advantage and work like a veteran team, keeping Hardy from making the tag. For the majority of the match the pair keep Jeff in their corner, tagging in and out only to exchange boots and chokes.

Doc holds on to a Chinlock as the crowd fire Hardy up, he manages to escape and hit the Whisper In The Wind, but he’s caught at the last minute before he can make the tag. In a last desperate attempt he gets the tag the second time around!

Storm flies in to the ring and cleans house. He goes up top and hits a Crossbody but only gets a 2. He takes a risk and tags Hardy back in, but the pair connect with a smooth Poetry In Motion, making it all worth while. They then plant Doc with a Double Suplex, but out of nowhere comes the rest of Aces & Eights.

With luck and momentum on their side Storm & Hardy manage to clean house and get the win with a tandem Superkick and Twist of Fate.

Aces & Eights reveal that it was none other than Austin Aries he paid for the hit on Bobby Roode.

AJ Styles addresses the fans:
A depressed and bitter looking AJ Styles makes his way to the ring to address his loss to Daniels at Final Resolution. The fans try to show him support by chanting “you’ve still go it”, but he brushes them off and reminds them that although he doesn’t know what’s next, he isn’t hanging up the boots. Styles said he doesn’t care what the fans want, what Dixie Carter wants or what’s best for Impact Wrestling. He said he’s tired off being the corporate janitor, always cleaning up the mess. Instead he’s going to do what’s best for AJ Styles!

It looks like the Phenomenal One refocused his energy and it’s on himself.

After the break AJ walks past Dixie Carter, who screams “who are you?” He hands her his Impact shirt and suggests that he doesn’t know who he is.

Elsewhere in the Impact Zone Daniels and Kaz mock Styles and take pleasure in the fact that he’s walking off. Kaz then says he has a Christmas present for Daniels, but we don’t get to see what it is this week.

Kenny King def. RVD:
The match begins in a chain-wrestling stalemate, but King shows his mean side by cheap shotting the X-Division champ while he’s interacting with the fans. RVD careers out of the ring and King follows up with a Corkscrew Plancha. He rolls the ECW Original back in, but can only get a 2 count. The rookie is firmly in control and continues to dominate with an athletic Suplex, which he rolls through in to the mounted position, before pummeling RVD with his fist. King then hits a big elbow in the corner, but can still only manage a 2 count.

King attempts the same elbow but the veteran notices the rookie mistake and speeds out of the way. RVD appears to turn things around with a Spin Kick and Top Rope Leg Drop, but the rookie ups-the-ante, racing over the top rope and snapping RVD’s neck in the process. As Van Dam staggers, Kenny executes a Springboard Neckbreaker, proving that he can be just as flashy as the veteran.

However once again King misses a corner maneuver and RVD attempts to capitalize with a Split-Legged-Moonsault….however the veteran misses, but doesn’t lose momentum, plating King with a Northern Lights Suplex. Only a 2 count.

As RVD goes to the top rope, King springs to action and prevents the high risk move, yet RVD comes out on top of the tussle and King winds up on his back. The Champ soars through the air and hits a Crossbody, but the leverage puts King in a pinning position. Before RVD can power out the rookie cheats and hooks his feet on the ropes to secure a victory. Kenny obviously cant take the loss at Final Resolution and steals one back, but in the process he’s shown his true colors.

It’s encouraging to see TNA now developing the character of Kenny King. His match at the PPV seemed too soon, but now they’re starting to get something out of it.

Bully Ray Confronts Hulk Hogan:
In Hulk’s office Bully Ray asks the GM if he has a different opinion of the situation after what went down at Final Resolution. Hulk has not changed his tune, blaming Bully Ray for putting Brooke in harms way. Bully suggests nothing is going on between the two and that when they were on the couch together Brooke was actually apologizing for the way Hogan had been treating him. Bully says Hulk has no respect and that regardless of what is or isn’t going on, Brooke is a grown woman and can make her own decisions.

Bully Ray def. Jesse:
He may have a mean streak but Jesse has bitten off more than he can chew with a pissed off Bully. The King of Calves brawls the poor rookie all over the ring, pausing only to slap his chest raw or to welt up his cheek.

In the middle of the bout Tara hits the ring but is caught by Ray. He pretends to slap her and as she cowers he slaps her ass instead. This causes Jesse to snap and fire off a series of punches and dropkicks, but it’s not enough to defeat the tough veteran. Jesse miscalculates a leg drop and ends up walking in to a Bully Cutter. Ray gets the win.

Aries admits he paid Aces & Eights:
Austin Aries admits that he offered a better deal to Aces & Eights and got Bobby Roode beaten down in the process. He said if anyone should understand business it’s Roode.

In Aries’ mind he had good reason to do what he did. After all he never got paid when Hulk forced him to face Aces & Eights and then dropped him to jump on the Jeff Hardy bandwagon. Aries said he’s going to continue to press all the right buttons until he gets another title shot.

Jeff Hardy interrupted the tirade and called Aries pathetic. He said if he wanted another title shot all he had to do was act like a man and ask for it. Aries balked at the idea. “What am I going to have to climb another Ladder? How about we put a moat around the ring and have a Dragon’s Lair match?”

Aries said he doesn’t do what the fans or what Hardy wants. Hardy responded by saying he always gives the fans what they wan. With that he attacked Aries and hits the Twist of Fate to close the show.

Conclusion:
People like to hate on the Bully Ray/Brooke Hogan storyline because it seems goofy, but at no point have they actually admitted to dating each other; rather Aries is the one stirring the pot to his advantage, which has resulted in some strong development of the Aries character.

As for Aces & Eights, the storyline is starting to run out of steam. Nobody particularly exciting has been revealed and their matches are nothing to write home about. If more reveals or swerves don’t start to happen fans are gonna get sick of it.