Congratulations, I think...

It's the talk of the internet wrestling world, mostly because nothing else is going on. That's right ladies and gentlemen, I'm talking about the "Exodus" of workers leaving TNA and heading to New York. There is a "flood" of talent leaving TNA. I use quotations to emphasize my sarcasm, if you didn't know. In reality, there are three talents leaving TNA at the moment: "Wildcat" Chris Harris, Ron "The Truth" Killings, and "Senshi" (Low-Ki). Not exactly an exodus of Biblical proportions, I know, but it's something worth talking about. Especially since these three were pivotal talents for TNA several years ago.
"Wildcat" Chris Harris is signed to a deal to go straight to the main roster(s), according to several sites. I congratulate him on this. Since I first tuned in to TNA long ago, back in the $10 Wednesday PPV days, I always felt that he and James Storm were better suited for the WWE. Their punch and kick focus, with wrestling moves on the side, didn't really fit in with what TNA was becoming known for at the time (X Division action, before it became Nash & 3D burial fodder). I felt that WWE would handle both Harris and Storm a bit better in the booking, and allow their style to grow properly, whereas TNA was bound to book them clumsily and stunt their growth as wrestlers. I feel that the assessment was accurate, even if TNA would ALWAYS give AMW the tag titles when they changed networks. I know if I were in TNA tag division, I would have REALLY resented AMW every time the TV situation changed. Jarrett and Styles, too. After AMW split for the final time, it soon became obvious that TNA had more planned for Storm than for Harris. Sad really, even though I prefer Storm myself, I still say Harris has LOADS of potential. I hope Vince uses it properly.
During his initial time in TNA, Ron "The Truth" Killings quickly established himself as a rising star, partially due to his attitude about being released by WWE. Killings, first as K-Krush, then as "The Truth" and finally as Ron "The Truth" Killings, would capture the NWA title twice, and the NWA Tag Titles as part of the 3 Live Krew. The Krew became one of TNA's most popular acts, despite Killings dancing in the ring before every match. Despite their popularity, the Krew would eventually split, partially due to the arrival of Kip James. Since then, Killings has been on the backburner in TNA, and fairly honest about his unhappiness. He's been one of the few to make allegations of racism, along with his 3LK partner Konnan, and actually left the company before. In fact, the only reason he's been in TNA recently is because they needed a partner for Adam "Pacman" Jones. Which doesn't really help the racism allegations, if you ask me.
The departure of Senshi isn't surprising. Senshi, like Killings, was one of the first stars of TNA. He helped establish the X Division with Jerry Lynn and AJ Styles, and even helped establish the tag team division as one third of XXX (Christopher Daniels and (uggh) Elix Skipper being the other two thirds). Though Ki was already making a name for himself, having won the ECWA Super 8 tournament in 2001, TNA was his first real national exposure outside of a few episodes of Jakked in which he played jobber to Crash Holly, Essa Rios, and the Radicalz (Malenko & Saturn, specifically). (Side note: After seeing one of these episodes, I was sure that WWE would sign Ki. My logic was "He's like a young Rob Van Dam." Shows you what I knew then, huh?) Ki did a great job of establishing the "X Division Style" with Jerry Lynn, and AJ Styles. Ki would make his mark known in early TNA, winning the X Division title and Tag Titles. He hasn't always been TNA oriented, though, as he was gone for nearly two years to work ROH and Japan. Upon resigning, TNA dubbed him "Senshi" and won the X Division Title from Samoa Joe in a 3 way with Sonjay Dutt. After that, Senshi became just another one of the X Division wrestlers. He was supposedly the only one that was willing to take Dixie Carter's offer the day she made it, and has actually gotten more TV time SINCE asking for his release than he did before that. Interesting scenario.
That's 3 talents, all pivotal to the early days of TNA, who are stepping out. This wouldn't be such a big deal if the buyrates were going up, or the ratings were going up, or if the company was successful. But this comes at a time in which TNA is loaded full of talent who had nothing to do with it getting where it is, with most of those talents getting TV time. It's a telling sign that guys who were there at the beginning are wanting out. Especially Harris. But will the WWE, in Killings and Harris' case, or the rest of the wrestling world, in Low Ki's case, make for greener pastures? Either way, good luck guys. You may need it.

You can tell JJ what you think about the departures here

Discuss TNA and their wrestlers leaving here

4 things to help TNA

Somehow, unintentionally, this is becoming a TNA oriented blog. That hasn't been my intention. But, like good ole WCW, TNA gives me so much to say about what they're doing wrong that I can't really help talking about it. I'm going to try and be positive and give TNA 4 solid ideas on improving their show and their ratings.
My first idea is really simple: Re-establish Kurt Angle as a wrestling machine. At this moment in time, the TNA title doesn't really have what we like to call "prestige." It's a vanity plate, basically. It doesn't mean anything. That can change, and it can change quickly by making Kurt a crazed man obsessed with out performing his opponent. It wouldn't take much, either. Just have Kurt take on someone in the next main event, looks like either Petey Williams or Scott Steiner, and nearly lose. Let him win because AJ or Tomko helped him. Then have him determined to prove that he is better than the other wrestler, and take to training behind closed doors. Let Tomko guard the door, while Kurt and AJ (Since he was such a great amateur in Region 3) train. Have AJ scream like he's being stretched by Stu Hart, and even let him get a sprain or "broken bone." For the next PPV, show how much Kurt has improved. Then let him go on a "Killing Spree," choking out or making others tap out with some new MMA style submission holds. Keep this up for months, and you have a credible titleholder and a belt with "prestige."
The next idea is in a similar vein, and that is for TNA to take their time before Booker T gets a title shot. Have Cornette offer Booker a chance at the title, and have Cornette say it's because the management want to increase the buyrate for the next Pay Per View. Then Booker T comments on how he wants to be a champion because he's earned his spot, not because he's a famous name. He wants to respect those who have been in TNA longer than he has and let them have their chance. Then have someone like Robert Roode mock Booker for considering himself famous. Let them feud for a while, and hopefully they are both elevated by the feud, even though Booker T comes out on top. THEN give Booker a title shot. Don't let him win it the first time, though. Make the crowd get on their knees and beg for Booker to win. THEN give it to them. We like it like that.
The third idea is to re-establish the X Division title as a wrestling belt. For too long it's been based around gimmicks. It has been especially bad since the Jackass angles. Let the guys wrestle Jr. Heavyweight matches that blow the socks off of the fans. Have a few TV matches with time limits, and let the guys just get going when the time runs out. Then give them tons of time on the PPV's to just wrestle. The fans will buy the PPV just to see what they can do without a short time limit. Then you've also shown that the guys in the X Division can go just as good as the Heavyweights, just at their own speed and with their own style.
Finally, and this is a good one: Let the fans think Joe is going to leave. This is the hardest to do without hurting the company, but it's a rewarding one. Since Joe did his "shoot" promo Sunday night, let him keep going with the idea that he's unsatisfied. Let him establish that he loves the TNA fans, and that he doesn't want to offend them, but he's losing his passion for wrestling because of guys like Kevin Nash and Team 3D. Have Cornette tell him to "Lead, Follow, or Get out of the way." Joe decides that he really doesn't know what he wants to do, and ask for a few weeks to go home and think it over. Before he leaves, let Booker T say something heartfelt about getting from the business what you want. In the following weeks, continue the Team 3D feud with the X Division. Have 3D boasting that they dominate the midgets in the X Division, and that there isn't anyone who can take the X Division belt from them. Have them set up a match at the PPV with Team 3D vs Any two X Division stars who think they can take the belt. Introduce the first, Eric Young. Already having jumped Lethal, Shelley and Sabin, have 3D ask for his partner. Young says that he couldn't get Lethal, Sabin or Shelley because Team 3D demolished them. So he had to call in a favor. Is it Sharkboy? No. It's Joe. Not the Samoa Joe we've been seeing, but the Samoa Joe that held the ROH title for 2 years. The Joe that held the X Division title for so long. The Joe that doesn't back down from Bubba Ray or Devon. The crowd goes banana!

These aren't guaranteed, but they're worth a shot. It would help establish a few months of television that would actually satisfy every grouping of fan. Now if I could just move to Nashville and get in on the ground level, I'd work my way up.

You can tell JJ how you think TNA could improve here

Discuss TNA and their booking here

Why TNA's women's division is bad business...

This morning, instead of reading for class, I was reading on "Da Board," specifically in the "TNA comments" thread. There was an interesting discussion going on involving DK and SamoaRowe (who also has a blog on "Da Site") about the TNA Women's Division. It's a great discussion which you should get involved with, and it actually inspired me to write an entry for all my fan. While I agree with both of them, I have to agree more with DK. The problem is that at this moment in time, TNA needs to focus on itself as a business. It needs to MAKE money. How do you do this in wrestling? By putting out a product and MAKING names out of your wrestlers. Wrestling is a competition based industry, but it's still an industry.

I think this is a place where wrestling as a whole needs to learn from MMA. Make young stars in the undercard by putting them in quality matches, while you exploit the names of the older fighters to bring people in to watch. This is actually what WCW did right during the nWo era. The problem is, the older guys wouldn't let the younger guys step up to the next level. The fans then start to catch on that the business is a work because guys like Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit weren't getting title shots in spite of the fact that they were more talented than guys like Randy Savage and Kevin Nash. You stop believing that your guys will make it to the top, and you give up on them. I think that Goldberg actually kept WCW afloat for an extra year or two just because he finally broke through.

Now as for TNA, they've botched this repeatedly. Multiple times with Raven, Rhino & especially Samoa Joe. Instead of saying "Hey, lets take this guy or any other star who really established themselves in TNA and make them a new household name" the way WCW did with Sting, Goldberg, DDP or Booker T, they decide "Hey, lets pay big money for a star from WWE or WCW" like Angle, Nash, Steiner, or Christian. They keep trying to import excitement instead of earn it. Sometimes this works (nWo anyone?), but most of the time it won't. Baseball, Football, Basketball and Hockey understand this, and that's why most of them have minor leagues or rely on College Sports. The guys they draft prove themselves at a lower level before becoming a true star. There are exceptions, but it's generally the rule. There are teams, like the Yankees, who don't have to live by this, but unlike TNA, they have actually MADE money.

Until TNA actually learns this and brings in their own excitement and by that make money, they really can't experiment with something like a women's division. Do you think the NBA would have started the WNBA if it didn't have a strong enough financial base to absorb the initial loss of capital that a new league would bring? No. Would Major League Baseball have welcomed the Marlins and Rockies, or the Devil Rays and Diamondbacks had they not had enough of a fanbase to expand to four new cities? No. TNA adding the women's division is like the NHL expanding to new franchises next year, in spite of the fact that the league can barely make it with what they have right now. It's bad business. It's risk that doesn't show any true sign of reward now or in the future.

I know it's true that SHIMMER is actually doing a decent job of putting on Women's based cards, and they are possibly making money, but what TNA doesn't get is that SHIMMER's success will not necessarily translate to TNA's success. That's like Court Bauer or Ron Black starting hardcore wrestling companies MLW & XPW respectively and expecting a rabid chant happy mutant fan base just because ECW had one. TNA's women's product is not SHIMMER's wrestling product, even with the same workers. It's not guaranteed success. Ask Bauer or Black. They'll tell you.

Honestly, until TNA can actually start creating their own stars consistently, I think they're wasting time and money with a women's division. I'm not saying that their female talent aren't good, because they have a better women's division talent wise than WWE. What I'm saying is, from a business perspective it's an investment that is way too much risk for the little reward it brings at the moment. Ironically, though, you could say that about the company as a whole.


You can tell JJ how you think TNA could improve here

Discuss TNA and their women's division here

Some suggestions for TNA

I spent two hours watching Impact this afternoon, and boy are my eyes tired. Okay, that's not the best way to start a blog entry, but it's something. I actually DVR'ed the show this week and made the effort this afternoon to review it, but I found the job near impossible because I wouldn't be able to write anything that would actually be worth reading. Especially since there wasn't that much worth watching.

I'll start with something basic. Build up your champion. TNA failed MISERABLY in that regard in this episode. First off, Kurt's WIFE goes to find out about Scott Hall for him. That's right, his WIFE is doing his dirty work. Not only is his wife doing his dirty work, but she's doing it in segments that make MAD TV look like good acting. Angle now looks as if his wife wears the pants in the relationship, and I'm forced to mention MAD TV in my blog. Thanks a lot, TNA. Then we go to yet MORE backstage segments involving Angle and his wife. Angle's wife propositions Scott Hall. Yeah, right. Then Angle finally gets the marbles to confront Hall, and he gets pinned to the wall by a guy who most casual fans won't remember. This makes me yearn for a Taz-like Champion who kicks tail and takes names. This is TNA, though. The only dominant champ in their history has been Jeff Jarrett. Think about that.

Here's an idea that helped make Nitro and Raw so successful during the Monday Night Wars: Don't run any out of the ring segment over 1 minute. Seriously. This includes the backstage segments, any interviews, and anything that doesn't have wrestling in a ring. Several times during the show I was tempted, nay, encouraged to fast forward my DVR through a segment just to watch some wrestling. Anything non competitive that lasts over a minute encourages people to channel surf and find something MORE interesting on another channel. Not something you want when you're producing a TV show.

One idea that's apparently been pushed by Kurt Angle lately is to make the matches end clean. SEVERAL matches tonight either had screwjobs or run ins. Take it easy. I've heard that they've been better about this lately, but I didn't see it in this episode. Every time I opened my eyes it seemed like someone was running in. AJ Styles, Tomko, 3 different chicks, Black Reign, Team 3D, Tomko AGAIN and Rick Steiner. What a mess. There ARE better ways to book wrestling than the run ins. Seriously, guys.

Finally, I'm going to say one last thing. This has been my greatest complaint about TNA over the past several years, and I'm not about to let up: The commentary is miserable. During the Christian-Kaz match, they talked about the PPV, the Road to Genesis special (Saturday Night on Spike TV), Scott Hall's return, and Sting's partner at the PPV. All that BEFORE the commercial break in the middle of the match. Not halfway through and they already talked about something else. This is unacceptable. You're supposed to sell the action in the ring, and then that action will sell the Pay Per View. No matter how much you remind that there is a Pay Per View this weekend, we're not going to want to purchase it if all you're doing is talking about it.

I'm not saying all this because I don't like TNA. In fact, I want to like TNA more than any other product out there. I just can't get into it because it's so miserable. Just working on these 4 simple things will greatly improve the product, in my opinion. It's just that simple.

You can tell JJ how you think TNA could improve here

Discuss Impact and the Pay Per View here

Well, we're talking...

I can see it now, clear as day. This past week, those great folks at TNA Management(TM Larry Zybysko) were surfing the web and stumbled across my blog. They see "TNA really hasn’t given me anything worth talking about" and then a conversation follows:

TNA Management 1: This douchebag says that there we haven't given him anything to talk about!

TNA Management 2: Ignore it, it's probably just some retarded teenager in his parent's basement.

TNA Management 3: Isn't that basically what HHH has said in the past?

TNA Management 2: Well, I added the retard part. Besides, we borrow both workers and writing style from WWE,(Badly, might I add) why not our insults as well?

TNA Management 1: Since we actually listen to our fans, we need to do something that will get this guy talking.

TNA Management 3: Didn't he say something about how we should get him talking?

TNA Management 2: I didn't read that part. Let's throw away more money by signing someone famous!

TNA Management 3: Shouldn't we do something to further the state of the business instead? Especially after the shocking tragedy involving the Benoit family. Why don't we offer some health insurance to our workers, since Konnan is on National Television telling the world we wouldn't do that for him. Why not save the money and use it for filming Pay Per Views outside of Orlando?

TNA Management 1: That sounds good, but I'd rather hire a celebrity! We'll get a video that doesn't remotely mention anything about who we are on ESPN! It will be great! Who should we hire? How about David Hasselhoff?

TNA Management 2: We need someone with an edge. How about Dennis Rodman?

TNA Management 3: We've already hired Rodman and it didn't work out.

TNA Management 1: I know! Let's hire someone who frequents strip clubs and has constant run ins with the law!

TNA Management 2: New Jack?

TNA Management 1: No, that Football Player that I heard about. The one who's suspended by the NFL.

TNA Management 3: Which one? There commissioner is cleaning up their image. Something we should be doing.

TNA Management 1: That Pac-Man fellow! It'll be great. We'll have him lead his own stable! There will be a tag team dressed in different color sheets. We'll hire a woman everyone considers decent in the ring accompany him to the ring as "Ms. Pac-Man." Our ratings will sky rocket to 1.19!

TNA Management 2: You're a genius!

TNA Management 3: *Head explodes*

Obviously, that's made up, but the way TNA has been going lately, it wouldn't surprise me if that were more accurate than not. It seems ridiculous to me that TNA would hire a high-risk name like Adam "Pac-Man" Jones during a period of time in which Professional Wrestling is under instense scrutiny.

What clearly drives this decision is money. Not that TNA has that much, but they clearly see this as another opportunity to get their footage on ESPN. Which is ridiculous, as ESPN never identifies the company. They read a line like "Pacman Jones is back in action this week, in the wrestling ring. Pacman took on Jeff Jarrett this past weekend on Pay Per View, and won." Great publicity, right? Because people are really going to look into it more than that.

As far as I'm concerned, it's another stunt that carries TNA in the wrong direction. It will probably end up on a "TNA's Greatest 100 Moments" DVD someday, but that will be the only time anyone ever remembers it.

Talk about TNA signing "Pacman", and his multi colored sheet wearing entourage here.

Something to talk about....

At some point last week, I looked at my blog and realized that nearly every single post I’ve made has been WWE oriented. Of course, part of that has to do with the Benoit Tragedy, but that’s not all of it. The majority of the reasoning behind it is that TNA really hasn’t given me anything worth talking about.

I mean, I could go on with the stereotypical Internet Wrestling Nerd rants against Jarrett and co. Throw out a few “OMG Russo is teh sXu0rz!!!” or something about how they won’t last another six months. But that would be redundant, right? I’ll just be saying the same thing we’ve all been saying all along. I hate to just re-hash what has already been said.

Here’s the thing, though: I don’t really have much to say about TNA. Not because I don’t care, but because I DO care. I’ve watched TNA since the beginning. My college roommate and I ordered the first TNA Pay Per View at our apartment. Partly because I earned enough in tips delivering Pizza the Friday night before. I didn’t order every one, so I missed such classics as the infamous “Midget in a trash can” incident, but I did get to see some interesting attempts at establishing a company. I was introduced to Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles and Abyss. I re-discovered Ron “K-Krush” Killings, Low-Ki (who blew my mind in a match on a syndicated WWE show), and Jerry Lynn. I supported TNA in spite of cage dancers on the entrance, wrestling Johnsons, and so much more.

I really got excited for TNA when they gave Raven the title. I watched every week when they were on FSN. I taped a lot of it. It was really good, especially compared to today’s shows. Then TNA landed on Spike, and it hasn’t been the same since. There has been some things I’ve enjoyed: Samoa Joe’s run with the X Division belt, Abyss’ feud with Sabu, and Alex Shelley’s commentary on the Paparazzi Productions videos; but for everything I’ve really liked, there have been lots of things that have irritated me: Everything in the Main Event since Kurt Angle has arrived, Team 3D’s feud with the James Gang (Honestly, pretty much anything involving those two teams in TNA. Which is sad, because I do like both of those teams.), and the most annoying thing of all since TNA came to Spike, Sting’s feud with Abyss & James Mitchell.

So maybe I do have something to say about TNA. The problem is, though, is that everything I have to say about TNA involves the past. Their angles now are so hot-shotted that it’s hard to see where they’re going, and if they’ll ever get there. If they don’t, though, we’ve got plenty of memories to talk about.

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