TNA… Cross the Line again

[HarmonicGenerator]

3 hours ago, Chili said:

I'll probably post longer about it one day but TNA 2005 where Raven won the belt up to where Sting beats Jeff Jarrett at Bound for Glory 2006 is my favourite TNA era. A weird combo of WCW, Southern Wrasslin, NWA Wildside, WWE structure tropes, but with a six sided ring and a Memphis cliffhanger. Absolutely love that period. Recorded that entire block on LP VHS tapes back when. Grrrrrrr, great days!

There was a period where they were between TV deals (maybe after Fox Sports Net but before Spike TV) where Impact was a one hour show they put up on their website, and it was genuinely great every week. You’d get some decent backstage skits, some X Division madness, an unexpected return and some main event shenanigans and it never disappointed.

[simonworden]

3 hours ago, HarmonicGenerator said:

There was a period where they were between TV deals (maybe after Fox Sports Net but before Spike TV) where Impact was a one hour show they put up on their website, and it was genuinely great every week. You’d get some decent backstage skits, some X Division madness, an unexpected return and some main event shenanigans and it never disappointed.

That was probably my favorite time in TNA too where you could see they were really trying to put the pieces together for a decent roster and product. From where they binned off/lost Hall, Nash, Waltman, DDP and stopped trying out some of the old WCW mid card to BFG 06 was a wonderful variety show, 60 mins of fast action, nothing dragged too long (excluding Jarrett's title reigns). They had some great PPV main event tag team brawls. I still think they missed a step by not switching the belt to Joe a month before BFG and running Angle/ Joe then as well as non-title Sting/ Jarrett, especially with how quick they flipped the belt onto Abyss. I lost a bit of interest in the months following BFG from the massive, fast reshuffle in the card with a lot of people turning heel (AJ, Daniels, Team 3D, Sabin) and the unusual matches thrown out by Russo. 

 

08-09 - Was my other top TNA time where booking seemed to settle down a bit more, they started using arenas for more PPVs and having a bigger feel around the product. 

[garynysmon]

I remember first seeing TNA on the Wrestling Channel when it first started, but given I was at Uni at the time and only had access to Sky when on term breaks, wasn’t really impressed and a promotion dominated by Jeff Jarrett sounded horiffic at the time.

I didn’t properly get into it until 2006 or so and while it didn’t quite have a modern day Tony Khan-type cash injection, they were clearly growing and it was a bit of a buzz to see Angle, Booker T etc move over.

ROH never appealed to me whatsoever, it was the epitome of two blokes in black trunks doing flips for the sake of it with no storylines. Didn’t give a fuck about workrate.

TNA, meanwhile, was the “new WCW” I and I think a lot of people were clamouring for. 

I personally was all for the Hogan signing and felt it was the natural step if they wanted to make a splash. Obviously hindsight is 20/20 vision but those 2010 episodes felt very much like crash TV and while they were all over the place, I wouldn’t describe them as boring!

There was a sweet spot in 2011-2012 when I most loved the product. It was garnering a huge following in the UK by virtue of being the only wrestling on free TV with the Challenge deal, and still had all the big names before the money dried up.

Look at this first Wembley taping from 2012 ffs. TNA was legitimate competition in some parts of the world anyway.

Its amazing how fast it all unravelled after that. Losing Hogan, Styles, Sting. Even Bobby Roode, Magnus. Basically everyone on big money wasn’t having their contracts renewed.

How do you maintain any credibility then?

Within 18 months they were off Spike, off Destination America and relegated to Pop TV, also lost their Challenge slot and were back in a much darker looking Universal Studios, limping on from taping to taping and scrambling to find the funds.

The drop off between 2014 and 2016 really is something to behold. And while the Impact Zone had always had a lot of stick, I’d do anything to see the 2024 version look anywhere near as good!

I think 2016-2018 is an era, in-ring at least, that’s appreciated a little more fondly now than at the time. You had the Broken Matt stuff, Drew Galloway (McIntyre) and Bobby Lashley on top and Eli Drake (LA Knight) coming through. But as it was a shadow of its former self in all real metrics, visibility just fell through the floor. Most sane people had given up.

Taken in isolation the weekly TV wasn’t too bad though, just understandably overshadowed by financial shenanigans, Arolouxe/Dixie Carter/Billy Corgan and the eventual takeover and very incremental rebuild by Anthem.

Was a very fucked up time.

That said, the real ‘TNA’ years were circa 2004 to 2010. By 2011 they were already heavily pushing the ‘Impact Wrestling’ brand as Bischoff hated the initials.

Edited October 25, 2023 by garynysmon

[BomberPat]

I've never really been a TNA guy, never watched it regularly, but lack back on it a lot more fondly now - without the frustrations that come from watching a show weekly, being able to go back and cherry-pick the best bits make it seem like a much better promotion in hindsight. Their current output has its ups and downs, but they have a great roster, and seem content with a third place spot that allows for wrestlers coming up from the indies to get more TV ready, and for wrestlers coming out of bigger promotions to have some scope to get creative, reinvent themselves, and try new things, as well as somewhere for guys like PCO to work, which I love. I seriously don't understand why they've gone back to the TNA name, though - Impact Wrestling is better, they don't have to explain what the initials stand for, and it just generally feels more befitting the promotion they are today. 

I wonder when the decision was made, too. It feels weird to have just done a couple of big nostalgia-heavy shows for Impact 1000 and not have used that as the platform from which to bring back the old name. It all feels very sudden.

I can't picture CM Punk working in current day Impact. It wouldn't make them look bigger, it would make him look lesser to be working a televised promotion with their production values and usual crowd sizes. I don't think there's any way he can spin it as anything more than a desperation move. At least if he were working a bigger name indie like GCW, he could spin that as wanting to get back to his roots and be the underground punk rock guy giving back, but nobody would believe that justification for going to Impact after a ton of rumours of being WWE-bound. 

[Merzbow]

I didn't have TWC as I was living at some newly built youth hostel but whenever I was at a mates with Sky I always managed to get it on and TNA was one of the main reasons. I'm pretty sure I saw Victory Road 2004 (i may have actually pirated it on a hostel PC i hacked to use torrents..) first and that opening X-Division 20 man match was the absolute perfect opening for a new company to shine on their first proper PPV, batshit stuff. Shame about the Double J v Hardy match stinking up the main, I think some communication errors fucked that up and the lasting impression might have been lolTNA before it was ever a term.

[The Gaffer]

I'll need to revisit that 2011-2012 period. I always forget it didn't completely drop out after 2010 but instead the whole 1999 redux feel of the thing calmed down a lot and they actually went on the road for Impact at long last. That was the 'blue' Impact period where it was on Challenge every Saturday or Sunday night and they were doing different arenas across the country. It was the peak time for them in hindsight where it felt like a direct alternative, episodic wrestling show and not some crazy experiment/reunion happening on a soundstage. 

 

Edited October 25, 2023 by Gay as FOOK

[garynysmon]

18 minutes ago, BomberPat said:

I seriously don't understand why they've gone back to the TNA name, though - Impact Wrestling is better, they don't have to explain what the initials stand for, and it just generally feels more befitting the promotion they are today. 

I wonder when the decision was made, too. It feels weird to have just done a couple of big nostalgia-heavy shows for Impact 1000 and not have used that as the platform from which to bring back the old name. It all feels very sudden.

Apparently its the polar opposite and an idea that’s been in the works for quite some time, even prior to the pandemic. 

I can see it from both sides. But Scott D’Amore seemed to be around for the rise of TNA but had left by the fall, being brought in again to pick up the pieces so to speak. 

Although I agree on the nostalgia front. I assume they’re going to try and bring in some old names for the relaunch, bit given anyone who’s not under WWE/AEW contract was at Impact 1,000, its going to be Shark Boy, James Storm and the same faces isn’t it.

Kurt Angle is the only one I can think of. He never stopped calling it TNA, god bless him. 

[Loki]

I still fondly recall some chap had "TNA dead by 2004" in their sig, which they proudly kept for years after.

TNA was never the "cool" promotion, the smarks all loved ROH (coughTonyKhancough) and so in the gap left by WCW there was always this resentment that TNA was the more successful new promotion.  

I never really understood, and looking back given the longevity of modern wrestling careers it seems even odder, the resentment amongst fans that TNA used ex-WCW guys so heavily.  I mean, it was a huge international promotion and those stars had serious cachet, why wouldn't you?

In 2002 when TNA was formed - 

• Kevin Nash was 43 years old
• Scott Hall was 44
• Scott Steiner was 40
• Buff Bagwell was 32!!

Are these guys supposed to retire because WWF/E had enough wrestlers on its roster?  WWE is hiring and giving fresh pushes now to guys that age.

Even in the Bischoff/Hogan era the Nasty Boys were in their mid-40s.

I obviously loved AJ Styles and Samoa Joe but were they really ready to carry a major promotion in 2002-5?  Both were fairly awful talkers at that stage.  AJ only really became fully rounded after his stint in Japan, I'd argue, and Samoa Joe (who is pretty much my favourite wrestler) only became fully rounded after his NXT stint.

All of that to say, much of the joy for me was seeing older wrestlers still able to have good matches.  Scott Steiner's whole run was marvellous, great matches with Angle, Joe, some dream tag matches Steiners v Team 3d, his great tag with Road Warrior Animal.  Sting had possibly the best run of his career, look at the shape he was in when he won the belt in 2006.  And then the miracle of Sting v Hogan.

I'm not sure of the value of bringing back the TNA brand but it undoubtedly has some cachet, and internationally it certainly does.  I'd rename the company to TNA, and keep Impact as the name of the regular tv show, which is what they should have done back in 2012 or whatever.

Edited October 25, 2023 by Loki

[Infinity Land]

37 minutes ago, Loki said:

In 2002 when TNA was formed - 

• Kevin Nash was 43 years old
• Scott Hall was 44
• Scott Steiner was 40
• Buff Bagwell was 32!!

 

That's a strange list.

Hall's problems were never about his age.

Steiner was getting the WWA payday before signing with WWE. He wouldn't pop up in TNA until 2006. He's someone they would have loved to have at launch but couldn't afford. When he did arrive I don't remember too many complaints over it. Other than acknowleding he couldn't really go anymore. Which more injury related and carrying all that muscle.

Nash, they would loved to have had. But he was still picking up the WWE pay cheque and wouldn't arrive until 2004. Even then from 04-07 he wrestled a grand total of 12 times. It wasn't age that was the problem.

Did have Buff in the beginning. Quickly found out he didn't have the stuff anymore. Only made a handful of appearances in the weekly PPV era.

 

[TheScarlettChad]

6 minutes ago, Infinity Land said:

That's a strange list.

Hall's problems were never about his age.

Steiner was getting the WWA payday before signing with WWE. He wouldn't pop up in TNA until 2006. He's someone they would have loved to have at launch but couldn't afford. When he did arrive I don't remember too many complaints over it. Other than acknowleding he couldn't really go anymore. Which more injury related and carrying all that muscle.

Nash, they would loved to have had. But he was still picking up the WWE pay cheque and wouldn't arrive until 2004. Even then from 04-07 he wrestled a grand total of 12 times. It wasn't age that was the problem.

Did have Buff in the beginning. Quickly found out he didn't have the stuff anymore. Only made a handful of appearances in the weekly PPV era.

 

Buff cutting werid promos in 2002 is a highlight. Didn't he say he was going by Marcus from now on? And it never amounted to anything?

[Loki]

22 minutes ago, Infinity Land said:

That's a strange list.

It's just a list of WCW wrestlers off the top of my head whose appearances in TNA are often cited as off-putting.  My point being that none of these guys were THAT old when they signed on with TNA, mid 40s often.  And I disagree about Steiner, I thought he was great, busting out the Screwdriver, the Frankensteiner etc.  He was better than he was in his earlier WWE run I'd say.

Edit: personal preferences etc but for me TNA delivered exactly what I wanted, which was seeing WCW stars passed over by WWE, and young upcoming stars also passed over by WWE.  

 

Edited October 25, 2023 by Loki

[Merzbow]

9 minutes ago, TheScarlettChad said:

Buff cutting werid promos in 2002 is a highlight. Didn't he say he was going by Marcus from now on? And it never amounted to anything?

 

[garynysmon]

The highlight of NWA:TNA

 

[Carbomb]

One of my favourite TNA moments was when the Steiners were due to have a match, and Rick got injured. They run a skit where Steiner goes to the commissioner (Foley?), whispers in his ear, commissioner replies "You got him?" and Steiner goes off to his match.

Steiner comes out, and introduces as his partner Road Warrior Animal, and the crowd goes nuts.

[Jonny Vegas]

I don't really keep up to date with Impact other than through this thread but the news of the return to the TNA name on twitter had me watching the promo for it.

Really hope they bring the 6 sided ring back, I think it's something that really set them apart and would be a nice difference to WWE/AEW now too.

Something that did really stick out to me also was Jordynne Grace's physique and also her voice. I don't remember her speaking like that previously. Am I mis-remembering?

An incredible physique however between that and her voice it was hard not to believe she must be quite a heavy user of steroids.