Impact wrestling thread - It's a Don West tribute thread now!

[Sexy Dad]

Here is what Gunner has to say about a show like that. (Taken from LOP)

 

"It

[ColinBollocks]

It's a shame, really. A couple of years ago it did feel like the company had a bit of momentum and Impact was better than Raw, most weeks.

 

They've squandered everything during that time, though. Hogan & co, The Pope, Roode talking to ducks, Storm being the best babyface in the biz, Aries' title run etc. That was only the last 2/3 years too. I'm sure if somebody can be arsed they can provide a LONG list of everything TNA has ruined.

[PSF]

It's a shame, really. A couple of years ago it did feel like the company had a bit of momentum and Impact was better than Raw, most weeks.

 

They've squandered everything during that time, though. Hogan & co, The Pope, Roode talking to ducks, Storm being the best babyface in the biz, Aries' title run etc. That was only the last 2/3 years too. I'm sure if somebody can be arsed they can provide a LONG list of everything TNA has ruined.

 

Bully Ray Vs Jeff Hardy in the cage at Lockdown was only just over a year ago. That was a great angle too. Bully/Hogan/Brooke being the worlds weirdest three way.

[garynysmon]

It's a shame, really. A couple of years ago it did feel like the company had a bit of momentum and Impact was better than Raw, most weeks.

 

Impact could be better than Raw right now but none of us would know it.

[ColinBollocks]

Bully Ray Vs Jeff Hardy in the cage at Lockdown was only just over a year ago. That was a great angle too. Bully/Hogan/Brooke being the worlds weirdest three way.

True, but that was proceeded and followed by the never ending misery of the Aces & Eights storyline, which essentially killed my weekly interest in the product.

 

Impact could be better than Raw right now but none of us would know it.

Genuinely, I can never remember a time when TNA has been so universally panned. Even back in the day with Russo going crazy, people always had a bit of hope of this lot getting their act together; whether that be folk going "well, the X Division is a breath of fresh air" or "Dutch Mantell is doing a cracking job with the Women" or "the tag division is the best in wrestling" or "the promos are better than WWE" etc. I read none of that now, people have concluded that TNA is a massive waste of their time, as they're truly hopeless.

[Loki]

When TNA felt like it had forward momentum, you could excuse some of the faults. There was a feeling of constantly moving towards something - bigger stars, better venues, live Impact, Hogan, Bischoff.... You could see that the talent thought they were helping to build something, and there was some pride.

 

The moment it became clear that Hogan/Bischoff et al were on their way out, and that the experiment had failed (including Spike's extra support) the product just nosedived. If they had stuck with the gamble of going head-to-head with Raw for a few months, perhaps enough momentum could have been established to propel them into a proper national wrestling slot. But having to crawl back to Thursdays was the moment that momentum turned into atrophy.

[ColinBollocks]

Taking Impact on the road is truly what has done them in, in more ways than one. It was sort of the last card to play, seeing as for years the rats in the Impact Zone were major cunts - Bischoff telling them so before one Impact was tremendous - with most agreeing that doing shows infront of real people always enhanced the show.

 

Of course, what followed was very TNA. Instead of doing shows in smaller buildings, they booked arenas that WWE were reportedly struggling to sell out. With TNA pissing countless millions away, Dixie's Mum came crashing through her room door to give her a smack on the arse for being such a silly moo. Now Ma & Pa have seen what a waste of time the company is and are refusing to invest another dime in the pit. Now we're stuck with Eric Young and Magnus, instead of Sting and Hulk Hogan.

 

With no serious investment and TNA lacking the ability to turn anything into money, it's going to be interesting to see how long they're going to be about for.

Edited June 9, 2014 by ColinBollocks

[Vamp]

All the illusions people had about TNA are shattered. You can't go back. They took the risks and exposed themselves. It's like when you push a midcarder to the main because they look too good to be in the middle of the card and then you reveal all their weaknesses and they're done. There's no where for them to go.

 

Plus New Japan are kind of the hip alternative now. Or were at any rate.

[AshC]

It's frustrating that when they just throw the guys out there with little or no creative, the talent comes up trumps. See that Jokers' Wild PPV from Birmingham, which was a riot. And the house shows are generally well-received still, aren't they? They need to throw out the booking and get back to bare bone basics, if they're to stand any chance. Or just watch NXT Takeover and do that, either way.

[poetofthedeed]

Something happened this week on impact that annoyed me so much I swore I was done with tna forever, but within an hour my mind repressed whatever it was. Now I want to watch it again to know what it is but doing so means watching it again.

[PowerButchi]

It was probably something to do with MVP being an evil authority figure. Most of the show is.

[AshC]

First two things I'd do; no more authority figures, no more stables. It's more old hat than this.

 

[garynysmon]

I gave up when all the proper stars left. Being able to watch Hulk Hogan and Sting etc on a weekly basis was what kept me in, but now even the up-and-comers aren't even as good as those on NXT so I just can't see the point any more. Its genuinely now, the dregs that the WWE doesn't want.

[Duke]

If they had stuck with the gamble of going head-to-head with Raw for a few months, perhaps enough momentum could have been established to propel them into a proper national wrestling slot. But having to crawl back to Thursdays was the moment that momentum turned into atrophy.

I dunno, they were getting absolutely killed on Mondays by the end. They shouldn't have ever done it in the first place.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

If they'd have started out at 8-10pm, they may have kept their audience out of it. Going 9-11 against WWE was madness. Especially during WrestleMania season. They got that big rating on January 4 with the hour lead in. They couldn't have done more things wrong if they tried during that experiment. Impact's second hour these days does ratings comparable to early 2010. They could have retained their 1.0 every week if they were smarter about it.