Thoughts concerning TNA and WWE

[Carbomb]

To expand upon a point I made in another thread (can't remember which one it is), I've come to the conclusion that TNA are a TV promotion, whereas WWE are a PPV promotion.

 

To clarify, I enjoy watching Impact on a regular basis. It has a number of storylines which you can get into, and almost everybody is doing something. It makes the TV programme very enjoyable to watch, even if it doesn't always make sense. If you go through every name on the TNA roster, you can say what each one is doing, or, at least, you can say that for most of them.

 

However, this has a downside - it seems to generate very little interest in PPVs. Maybe it's to do with their choice of the Impact Zone as a venue for half of them, maybe it's to do with their storylines being "over-exposed" to the point where they make the PPV match seem like just a small part of the feud, or maybe it is to do with the hit-and-miss booking. Either way, I find myself uninterested in almost all TNA PPV matches, with the exception of the main event (and sometimes not even then). TNA PPVs just don't feel "momentous" or "big-time" - the feuds feel like they end with a whimper, rather than a shout. In relation to the feud progressions on TV, this is bad - as they say in Mauritius: "Well shat, but badly wiped."

 

 

WWE, on the other hand, have the exact inverse of this, IMHOtep. They are a PPV company, i.e. they usually have only one BIG storyline going into most PPVs, and the entire feud/storyline is booked towards making the PPV match as big-time as possible. They are geared towards generating interest for the PPV, and as a result, you feel like you're witnessing something important in wrestling. As WWE have demonstrated so many times in the past, this is something they are exceptional at doing.

 

But their downside is that the TV becomes a bit meh too often. They have far too many "nothing" matches which have no storyline beyond competitive rivalry or just bog-standard, mutual dislike which never ventures beyond mere fighting. Some of the roster have very distinct and identifiable gimmicks, but most don't, and sometimes even the ones who do, like Cody Rhodes or Drew McIntyre, for example, end up with their gimmicks losing potency because they get stuck in these heat-killing series. Just as problematic, the TV programmes end up feeling like they're largely filler (good though the matches might be), and a few minutes of a really interesting, hot angle to generate PPV interest.

 

 

The effect it's had on my wrestling viewing habits is that I regularly watch Impact, but am not so bothered about the PPVs, whereas with WWE, it's probably a little worse: I don't watch any WWE until I hear reports of a fresh, hot storyline, and then I'll download a few episodes of RAW or SD (usually RAW), skip most of the programme and just watch the relevant matches and angles, and then download the PPV. That's been the case with the Punk/Cena stuff recently.

 

 

What are your thoughts on this? Obviously, there are those who exclusively watch one promotion or the other, so how does this idea match up with your view? Those who watch both, would you agree or do you have perhaps another perspective?

[Michael_3165]

You highlighted exactly why TNA will never be WWE in terms of size. TV ratings are all nice and fine but PPV should be your money. Unless you are hittin over a 6.0 weekly, the advertisers aren't going to pay the big money to advertise in between your segments.

[Dirty Eddie]

I watch both promotions main shows and PPVs.

 

Most months I seem to look at the TNA PPV line-up and wonder why there are so many people featured who i don't like, and many favourites who are not there. They have a pretty solid roster, but sometimes they miss out on people who deserve PPV time in favour of dullards like Morgan, Abyss and Mexican America who end up on most of them.

 

There was a time where I found TNA PPVs far more entertaining than the WWE ones, but those days are gone. It used to be that while WWE had a strong main event, the undercard would be the usual rinse-and-repeat stuff I'd seen a thousand times, where as TNA used to feature very strong undercards, with talent going all out.

 

I have to say that in my opinion the TNA main event scene is all wrong, with the horrendously boring Anderson always there or there-abouts. hopefully they'll put the belt on Angle and let Bobby Roode win the BFG Series.

 

I agree that TNA don't seem to end feuds properly, but I'd aim the same concern at WWE really too.

[King Pitcos]

I can rarely sit through an entire episode of TNA. I don't know if it's the characters or production style or what, but it just doesn't grab me. Although I watched one episode last year that I thought was great, it might have been the one after Immortal/They formed.

 

I'd largely agree about WWE. The only thing for me is that a lot of the midcard stuff puts me off the pay-per-views. I've no interest at all in Kofi vs Del Rio III (this month) at SummerSlam, and I'm a huge fan of both wrestlers. The writing, or lack of, for nearly everything below the main event is appalling. A pay-per-view matchup shouldn't be the third or fourth televised matchup between that combo that month. And whilst the Raw main event storyline is currently extremely interesting, I'm not on the edge of my seat waiting for Christian-Orton XVII.

 

I have actually enjoyed quite a bit of midcard and lower card stuff lately, though. Miz vs Riley was good fun for the first three weeks or so, and I usually enjoy Santino and Ryder. I'm really looking forward to the next instalment in Barrett vs Bryan, as well. I've not read spoilers, but I wouldn't be surprised if WWE does kill my interest in that rivalry by having them fight tonight on Smackdown, then again next week, then again at SummerSlam.

[simonworden]

I see exactly what you mean. Although I find that with TNA I watch all but the main events normally. for some reason the TNA midcard appeals to me as do the knockouts but Anderson, Sting, Even Angle jsut bore be in the ring alot. Angle not so much but I have decided not to watch a main event IMPACT with him on.

 

RAW is the opposite I will skip 99% of the show and watch the main events and big angles if interesting. Funnily enough SMACKDOWN is more like TNA for me.

 

in regard to PPVs I dont watch many of either only the TNA as I can watch on challenge but when they wernt on I didnt go out of my way very often

 

I see exactly what you mean. Although I find that with TNA I watch all but the main events normally. for some reason the TNA midcard appeals to me as do the knockouts but Anderson, Sting, Even Angle jsut bore be in the ring alot. Angle not so much but I have decided not to watch a main event IMPACT with him on.

 

RAW is the opposite I will skip 99% of the show and watch the main events and big angles if interesting. Funnily enough SMACKDOWN is more like TNA for me.

 

in regard to PPVs I dont watch many of either only the TNA as I can watch on challenge but when they wernt on I didnt go out of my way very often

[Magnum]

I see exactly what you mean. Although I find that with TNA I watch all but the main events normally. for some reason the TNA midcard appeals to me as do the knockouts but Anderson, Sting, Even Angle jsut bore be in the ring alot. Angle not so much but I have decided not to watch a main event IMPACT with him on.

 

RAW is the opposite I will skip 99% of the show and watch the main events and big angles if interesting. Funnily enough SMACKDOWN is more like TNA for me.

 

Pretty much exactly the same for me. For most of the year, TNA's main events have featured people I have no interest in like RVD and Anderson - I really wish they'd have pushed Jeff Jarrett into the world title scene for a couple of months while his heat was at its peak. But, as is one of Russo's strengths, just about everyone on the show has an angle or storyline going on, so there's usually at least two or three things in any given show that keep me watching.

 

For RAW, I find it best to tape the show and fast forward through most of it, because they almost always lose my interest after the opening segment. If I was watching live, I'd tune out after the opening bit, flick back at the top of the second hour to see if anything was happening, but if not I'd only tune back in for the last 20 minutes. If they want to keep pushing CM Punk as a maverick character, they should have him causing havoc throughout the show, like when the nWo hijacked the production truck in WCW - at least that might convince people to stay tuned during the umpteenth Ziggler/Kingston match or Divas battle royal in case they miss a character they're actually interested in.

[The Genius]

I see exactly what you mean. Although I find that with TNA I watch all but the main events normally. for some reason the TNA midcard appeals to me as do the knockouts but Anderson, Sting, Even Angle jsut bore be in the ring alot. Angle not so much but I have decided not to watch a main event IMPACT with him on.

 

RAW is the opposite I will skip 99% of the show and watch the main events and big angles if interesting. Funnily enough SMACKDOWN is more like TNA for me.

 

in regard to PPVs I dont watch many of either only the TNA as I can watch on challenge but when they wernt on I didnt go out of my way very often

 

I see exactly what you mean. Although I find that with TNA I watch all but the main events normally. for some reason the TNA midcard appeals to me as do the knockouts but Anderson, Sting, Even Angle jsut bore be in the ring alot. Angle not so much but I have decided not to watch a main event IMPACT with him on.

 

RAW is the opposite I will skip 99% of the show and watch the main events and big angles if interesting. Funnily enough SMACKDOWN is more like TNA for me.

 

in regard to PPVs I dont watch many of either only the TNA as I can watch on challenge but when they wernt on I didnt go out of my way very often

It's odd how TNA seem to think we want to watch the guys we watched ten years ago (and before) especially as many of them peaked ten years ago but yet it's actually the new and exciting guys is what people are actually wanting to watch.

 

I mean the X-divison matches are usually full of OMG moments where as watching someone held together only by steel pins and pain killers lumber through a match doing the same things we got bored of seeing ten years ago is always going to be just plain dull.

 

Raw seems to be designed around some formula of doing just enough to keep people from turning over but yet doing little enough so that the PPVs will seem interesting.

[Duke]

It's odd how TNA seem to think we want to watch the guys we watched ten years ago (and before) especially as many of them peaked ten years ago but yet it's actually the new and exciting guys is what people are actually wanting to watch.

That's a massive generalisation.

 

Destination X did 8,000 buys.