RedJed

One thing I forgot to mention is that I thought, but I may be incorrect, that Russo had, for a month or two, damn near full and unfiltered booking power of TNA, and this was where I was thinking early 2003 came into mind and I thought that is what led to Jerry getting back into the writing more (in March or April of that year), as he took a break of sorts when he was more booking things from TNA's inception until October of 2002 and then had Russo do more after that time. I could be off though. As has been discussed already, when he has full control of things, its usually not as good as it could be which brings the point if he really is THAT good of a booker or not. I'm still unsure about him to this day.

Yeah I guess thats the point I was also trying to make - Russo and Jerry as a team wrote some tremendous stuff when one or the other would bounce ideas off each other or moreless Russo would be filtered, but in a fair way. I also wish it would go back to them too, but maybe if Jerry can work hand in hand with Rhodes, that may do something. Time will tell. If you have time, try and get that journal book from Jerry Jarrett, (I think they have it at HighSpots) which covers all of 2002 in trying to develop TNA from basically a day to day process. It shows that, while I feel he (at the time) needed some dose of reality in that the wrestling scene is different than it was once was, that Jerry Jarrett does actually know his shit, and especially when it comes to his son and how to use him. It also shows how much of a deer in the headlights Jeff can be with alot of the business stuff, which is one of many reasons why TNA hasnt succeeded. It's too bad that Russo and Jerry wont work again together since Jerry is basically the reason why Russo left (from his scathing comments about him in his book). But I still hope now that Jerry is trying to get himself back in the fold and take control of the sinking ship to get a new and positive direction formed. The company, though, sounds way too political right now, according to the last reports of Jeff and Dutch still damn near having full control of the book even though Rhodes is supposedly heading it. I dont get it...Jerry needs to (and I think he is currently trying this) sweet charm the Carters to allow him to fully run TNA with his business desicions overpowering everything else. This goes beyond the book (which he can still just give to Rhodes until he blows it) but covers such things as possibly getting all of these egos in check and not allowing plans of action to be compromised. I can't imagine the friendship, or lack thereof, that the two Jarretts have these days from all of this. Pretty sad.

Yeah, I hear ya. I already have inquired about it and the cable company here kind of put it to me that it would take awhile to get anything new since they add new channels, as a rule of thumb, only every 6 months, and usually they do it at least 6 months in advance! Nice way to lose a customer if you ask me by acknowledging their lack of upgrades. Also, to show how behind the times they are, we only have 2 HD channels, and no future with On Demand Services, due to "a lack of local technology." Actually what I hope occurs is that either Dish Network or DirecTV gets this service soon. I'm just about to move into a new place myself and am probably going to go the dish route v. digital cable.

Hashimoto just closed it down, but they found someone to finance it and bring it back in no time flat. Its called something else now, cant remember what.

Yeah the whole TNA-ROH thing is contradictory due to how they are treating one wrestler over another with it. I think TNA needs to seriously consider letting any sort of previous disillusion over things subside now that the Feinstein thing is basically over and done with. In fact I think they should embrace each other's product more and co-promote each other to take it a step further, maybe even run promotion v. promotion in due time.

Eh, thats debatable - when did Russo have full control of the book? TNA had a nice run about 2 months after their initial debut til around the end of that year - a few really stupid things like the Dupp Cup and Lenny and whatshisfuck - Kweewee under the new more homo gimmick. I felt the start of 2003 (where I am thinking he had more control of booking) was up and down depending on the week. Remember the week where we had "The Russo Army" angle all show long? UGH! For what its worth, I think from about March 2003 through the summer (with the X tournament) was pretty good. If memory serves me right, I remember some shows that Jerry Jarrett and Russo booked together, and those seemed pretty good to me. One thing is for sure though - that when Mantel came in, he built more long term (which is good) but he is/was horribly uncreative and predictable in his booking style. And Jeff Jarrett reallly should have had no input ever in booking since he never really booked before TNA and it showed.

So the X division title match was "crap?" You're out of your mind....hell, both openers for each ppv were about the same, middle ground at best at ** 1/2. The rest of the bouts other than the six man tag with Savage and the NYC tag were solid bouts at Turning Point, IMO. The lineup from last night's ppv was weak on paper, and they didnt make that lineup any better from delivery. Matches like Cena-Jesus were one sided squashes that didnt really push the street fight concept as much as it could have, and a match like the handicap tag just was pointless to even be on ppv. Hell, even the Tough Enough boxing bout was boring! And the Turning Point main event blew away the Armageddon main event. The only redeeming quality of the main event at last night's WWE ppv was Eddy busting his ass and holding his own against Taker. Other than that, that match went too long and didnt accomplish anything but more JBL nonsense, Guererro-Booker contuning to be held down, and Taker-Heidenreich feuding again. All bad things. Most WWE ppv main events were better than that. Saying one was better than another, especially if you havent seen Armageddon, doesnt hold much merit. I sat through the ppv last night and it was just about what was expected - nothing really substantial match by match, as little thought was put into the undercard which made for one of the more dead crowds I've heard in a WWE ppv EVER as well as workrate which seemed apathetic at best. It left you feeling after the ppv that it was even a waste of time to watch if it was on free TV. Sure, Funaki won (and that was one of few positive things from the show to me) but it was after sitting through a slow, plotting match with ZERO heat. The only nice spot of that match was a double stomp to Spike from the top role to Spike, who was hanging upside down on the top turnbuckle. I'm not sure what reports you heard but by seeing it last night myself, all of the matches were boring with the main event barely cracking ***. I just wanted it to END. That does not determine anything even CLOSE to what Turning Point did. The expectations were very low for me and they didnt even meet THOSE. After this ppv, dare I say that the Smackdown brand is looking dangerously shittier than ever. They've made it clear JBL isnt going to lose the belt anytime soon (and they are now going to go with a Show-JBL feud, NOOOOOO!) and there is not one single storyline or feud that shows potential or interest on the show. Angle is floundering at best, the people who should be pushed to main event levels (Cena, Eddy, Booker, etc) have no credible heels to face to even elevate them at all and the titles on the show have no direction. Ok I'll shut up now. The closest thing I've seen WWE do recently to the level of that TNA ppv was probably Backlash (with two **** + matches on the card). Even Mania was worse than Turning Point, IMO.

I have every TNA they did for the weekly ppvs, email me if interested - [email protected]

Yeah....I've been a fan of his column, but he regularly belittles TNA and his site lacks and sort of real coverage of anything that's not WWE. It's not that I mind that he rips on TNA so much as he is just not informed about them and the operations - also seems apparent he doesnt even watch them, which always is annoying to then hear someone tear them up and spit them out when they dont even know how good/bad the company really is.

I agree - they have to take these ppvs out of Orlando. Its getting stale as far as the look of the shows when they ALL take place at the same arena, much like the Nashville setting got week after week on ppv. Ironically, it might not be a bad idea to have the next ppv at the same place I was just being critical about, as I'm not too sure the advance OR walkup business would be good enough at this point to go to a native location to TNA for the next ppv. The Nashville Fairgrounds could probably sell out pretty fast for Final Encounter if done right, AND it would likely guarantee a hot crowd since they havent had any TNA shows since September. Moving to a whole new area is something they should probably build for a few months in a certain location, so maybe work towards a location like Chicago, Atlanta, Minneapolis, or something soon and announce it way ahead of time so there is plenty of time to promote the area to get a lot of ticket sales (I'm thinking very soon to build to the 2/13 ppv). I wonder if they could get some sort of indication/research based on buyrates/ratings which area of the US is more TNA friendly at far as viewership goes?

Giving him a new finisher would be career suicide - I would think THAT would be the obvious point! The move, be it a joke or not, is OVER as is the character behind it. How can you figure that fans are cheering a move just because its funny or as you say, "mocked"? I'm curious how this occurs.... If anything the finisher is UNIQUE (not necessarily awesome) but it does still hold credibility as well since I dont believe anyone has kicked out of it yet (I think).

I'm not even following what his point is - who cares what version of the story was that sent Savage packing? I'm not seeing where the masses demand "what really happened" with Savage - more than anything the masses are happy he's gone, however it happened. I sure am. One thing I also have to take up with him is that TNA did in fact try hard as hell to get Sting in, ironically in the place that Savage ended up taking. They even promised him a world title run (which was supposed to start at Turning Point or the next ppv) and a healthy salary and he still balked at the proposal. Hell, I wonder if Luger showing up the week before the first ppv in that Best Damn show had something to do with their attempts to get him in. So for him to rip TNA a new one because he feels they didnt try to get Sting kind of blows. They have bent over backwards to get him, but Sting just isnt interested. If you can tell, never been a fan of this guy.

I actually think his promos are one of his strong points. Sometimes they are so off the wall they actually work, reminds me of Jimmy Snuka back in the day. The Impact match with Jarrett was actually one of his better performances, and I dont really think it was because of a carry job by Jarrett. He played the indestructable force role pretty well near the finish there. His last two ppvs matches as well havent been THAT bad either. I dont agree with you at all about the finisher in terms of how you feel the fans percieve it. I see it as a unique finisher (be it stupid orthat has gotten fans behind him because of it. That is how they connect with the wrestler - one of the few guys in the company who does such! I just fear that if they wait too long (and they cant wait any longer, get the belt off Jarrett NOW) on Brown, they may expose him for his weaknesses (which there are) and the chance may never happen. This is the closest thing that TNA has had as a legitimate new star in the company since the Raven-Jarrett feud that they blew. They cant blow it again and not capitalize on the match they did last week on Impact - while it's still fresh in the fan's minds, they should get a rematch lined up NOW.

1) Even in "putting over" other talent, Hogan has the magic somehow to overshadow them in a loss (see match v. Warrior and match v. Rock) - so it would have to be a well laid out situation. I thought that when Hogan took on Lesnar, that was damn near about the best sort of job Hogan could do, but with that said, he probably wouldnt do it that well again. 2) I agree totally, and that was one of the things Hogan demanded per that meeting at Victory Road. I think a fair compromise would be have in the contract a title run for x number of months, and perhaps even he has creative control leading to the title win, but following the allotted month run, then its TNA's desicion what to do. Thats even pushing it!

I don't think Warrior would have demanded the belt. You never know. Rumors are that when he was asked to join ECW, he would agree only if he got to have a shoot fight with one of the wrestlers, and if he was standing after 30 seconds he'd get ownership of the compnany. Back on topic though...I have to wonder if Hogan coming in to replace Savage is really that bad of an option now... ...that's scary to think of...NWA World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan. ...course, back in the late 80's/early 90's...WWF Champion "Nature Boy" Ric Flair would have been just as bizarre until it happened. Actually bringing in Hogan might not be a bad idea IF the company can rebound and do 5-6 months of ppvs like last Sundays and in due time, get a better timeslot or network for Impact. I think word of mouth about the top notch ppv from Sunday will help if they can keep those up, and then in turn that will sooner or later lead to a better rating for Impact and an upgrade. Signing any big names would be ridiculous though for anytime soon since they cant afford it and having big names on a show not many even watch or know about (due to piss poor PR and advertising on TNA's part) would be pointless. This should have been the rule of thumb for signing up guys like Hall, Nash, and Savage too - since they (assuming) come with large price tags they shouldnt have bothered with them until they got on solid ground by themselves without the big names and found a better timeslot/location, as well as a better way to promote the product.

Yeah thats the problem with only an one hour show. They actually do have a lot of decent talent right now, but with only an hour of week, its tough to push them all, especially if you decide to run a match or interview in the right that goes over 5-10 minutes. One thing they could do to give themselves more time though is eliminate all the damn ppv promo vignettes in between segments! Good to see Dustin in, but I dont want to see him anywhere near the world title since Rhodes is booker and its bullshit. Scary to see I could have seen this coming with having Dustin brought in, but I didnt think it would be this quick. Plus he came into TNA for a short while sometime earlier this year and wasnt impressive at all, and even did have a world title match with Jarrett already IIRC. Anyway the shows look pretty good, good to see Garza get a rather sizable push here!

Show was very good, best ppv TNA has done ever, including all of those weekly shows from the past. The opening match, the pointless NYC tag, and Savage's role in the one match were the only negatives. Everything else was well done and the X division title match and the cage bout were easy MOTY candidates to me.

TNA is WAY better without him, as I couldnt believe how horrible he was (and looked) in that six man at the ppv. There would be no way he could even carry his own in a singles match, but then much yet be put in a position to headline a ppv? I can see intitially why TNA wanted to do Jarrett-Savage, thinking it MIGHT be a draw, but I dont think it would at all, and even if it was, once anyone who would order that next ppv and see that match would have been turned off from TNA more than it would have helped them long term. It may have literally killed the company to have Savage in for another 6 weeks and have it lead to what would certainly be a shitter of a match only to put over Jarrett again (which is a bad idea, Jarrett needs to give that title off ASAP) and against one of most washed up hasbeen workers in modern history. Talk about a bad mix. Seriously, if you didnt see the ppv, Savage looked THAT bad. So after that last ppv, the verdict is in on Savage's value to the company and it unquestionably is NONE. So this was probably the best thing that could have happened right now with Savage walking out again, as it would have cost the company more overhead to pay for his worthless ass, and hopefully now it will lead to the original plan for this time period of Monte Brown getting the title (the other option was to Sting, who was who TNA was trying to get in Savage's place for Victory Road when he showed up). Thats the best thing for business, no doubt about it. Honestly, with all of this talk about TNA having to turn the company around, this may have been the biggest blessing in disguise to happen, if it forces their hand to give the belt to Monte Brown at the next show, and that just might assist a potential turnaround in the organization. I just hope they dont have Dustin Rhodes v. Jarrett instead!

At this point, I think that is unlikely to happen. Panda has dumped loads of money into the promotion with the hope/belief that TNA would start turning a profit at some point. They are looking to make money through TNA. They are NOT looking for it to simply stay alive, which is all that dramatic cost cuts would do. Spending more money where its needed in advertising (and if they need to, cut costs to offset that) would help bring new potential viewers to the shows and especially the ppvs. IE an attempt to finally make some money off this company. Now if the booking and planning ahead is solid enough when/if they would push out a better PR/advertising plan to the masses, then we might see an upswing with the company, probably a last ditch effort though. I just read in the Observer about Savage's ridiculous demands to have him resign after that Hogan crap. Limo service paid by TNA to and from his home in Tampa to Orlando, $1000 each week to Ron Harris and Brian Adams seperately, etc, etc. I dont think there was any mention of how big his actual contract is either, but he's in guaranteed for 8 weeks, which may really bleed the company even more at this rate. As much as I think if done right, Savage could help the company, with the lack of promotion they have right now, timeslot, etc - it's just a no-brainer - Savage isnt going to help the company long term since most people dont even know he's in TNA due to a horrible nonentity of advertising from this company to the masses. They should have figured this out a long time ago - same with Hall, Nash, etc.

In reading this, it doesnt surprise me, more than anything because of these odvious and not so obvious reasons....and ways they maybe remedy the problem. 1) Booking has been lacking for a long time now with nothing interesting as a long term focus. Jarrett continues to make HHH look like a saint in comparison and in general, people that were, at times, begged by fans to get a better push (Raven, Styles, Hardy, Brown, etc) are left in oblivion. Some weeks of Impact are built up ok, and lead to a long term match on the horizon (which is a good point) but the blowoff is hardly ever satisfying also. The concept of interesting feuds are few and far between, even worse, thats with a relatively small roster. Well the first step is done with Jarrett on the outs, but by how much I am wondering. I am willing to give Rhodes a trial run until I bash on him, but not too sure he's the answer to the problem, unless he stands firm and finds a different role for Jarrett, in the least. If Mantel has a falling out soon with booking (which seems possible from what I've read) that may also help out the situation, perhaps bringing Jerry Jarrett (another variable that may either work or not) into booking power more with Rhodes. 2) They're bleeding themselves more than usual with bringing in bigger names with high $$$ contracts that, MAYBE could draw but again, it goes back to the booking. Having Hall, Nash, Savage, Piper, etc - all potential draws again if (and thats a big if) put in the right position. In general, TNA doesnt get that you can bring in just about anyone but without the proper booking and see number 3 below, it isnt going to matter. Maybe Rhodes can figure out a way to get something out of these guys, but I have my doubts. I hope they didnt sign the big names to anything really long, as if numbers dont pick up here and fast (within the next month to month and 1/2) I'd take some steps back, get rid of them, and work once again on more towards the more inexpensive and less hassle talent in building any future that is left with them as a viable role in the company. I can clearly see them probably starting this way too late though much like WCW tried in late 2000 into 2001. With all of this said, any possibility of having Hogan here I would scrap for a long time until there is a much more reasonable foundation built, as he would probably, even if alot of things clicked, result in the company spending so much on him that they would go belly up. 3) Bad network, bad timeslot. Plain and simple. Any concessions TNA has given or put themselves in with FSN hasnt helped one bit either, such as the Best Damn shows, which were pretty sad altogether, by my opinion. Relating to this, TNA, if they are spending all of this $$$, should have and still could learn to promote their product ALOT better. They dont use the avenues or have the team to present themselves to the masses without really thinking things over long term. I still to this day think that a portion of disenfranchised fans from the fallout of ECW, WCW, or in general, traditional wrestling, might not even know about TNA completely, as in when its on, and where. The first step PERIOD should be to try to get as many people just to tune in to, say Impact, first and foremost, regardless of the product quality (which in itself needs to be there to keep them week after week though). Hell, TNA even hardly promoted the Best Damn events (much less the matches that were attached to the shows like a Hardy-Jarrett rematch and an Ultimate X match), and that was a horrible time for them to be done, at least without much promotion. It seemed that for a make or break chance such as that, wouldnt TNA be promoting those shows for weeks in advance on Impact AND also take out ad space in publications or TV for them? For some reason, unless I just miss it all the time, I see a really horrible PR team (if there is even one) for TNA. Instead of spending $$$ on stupid stuff like improved pyro, buttons and whistles, why not spend it where it NEEDS to be spent first? To take it a step further, why dont they buy out time on local cable systems during Raw and other wrestling shows on cable to put on commercials about themselves in ads? Shit, WWE even does this on FSN sometimes during TNA shows here. Why don't they embrace regional organizations to help each other promote themselves? Why dont they try to get a deal worked out with the UFC to help cross promote? In general, they have to first work to get a better timeslot and without any agreement with Best Damn Show. Having them on Monday nights with a co-promotion with them would turn the product into more of a joke than it is now probably. What this will take is them doing the things mentioned before - spending more on advertising and in the right places, such as other TV stations with commercials during other wrestling shows, perhaps newspapers/magazines, etc. Not like many companies do this anyway though, but instead of fighting the masses and especially the core base they need to gain on the internet, embrace the fans and listen to them! They got nothing else to lose at this point but the downfall of the company. Also, I think cross promotion with other successful avenues of ppv or related genres/organizations would be imperative at this point. Time to stop acting like you are King Shit when you clearly arent. Time to be a little honest with yourself, TNA, and come to terms that you need help to get a large disenfrancised wrestling fan base back to watching it, and that means taking avenues in cross promotion and in general, working with others you felt you were "too good for." These are just general main ideas out of many why it is what it is right now. I thought they had some sensible momentum coming from Victory Road, and the Impact shows the last few weeks were ok, but the Best Damn shows hurt them, and in general, I dont see hardly any momentum or buzz building at all for Turning Point, which is only a week away. TNA needs help NOW and maybe that means Panda taking one last ditch effort, giving them some $$$ to spend on pure advertising, and also giving FSN some more $$$ to force a better timeslot by paying for it. Those are VERY risky chances maybe not worth taking, not sure. When/if some of those ideas can be implimented, can they even remotely have a chance at this point, I think.

I am just watching tonights show now and its pretty lame so far from what I've seen. Didnt like what they put out for the most part last night either, as it was something between some badly booked pseudo introduction of TNA by FSN on a better timeslot (First Impact shows did introducing the product to the masses ALOT better) and generally just a weird way to promote the BSSSP staff. Tom Arnold was beyond annoying commentating on the Ultimate X match and in general all the tie-ins with the Sports Show crew were bad. It didnt help anyone really other than MAYBE allowing TNA to showcase the two special gimmick matches with the six-side cage match and the Ultimate X match as being something different from WWE. Ultimately, the whole tie-in should have been kept to a certain level where it didnt become overdone as it did with both of these shows. It will be interesting if these shows get decent ratings, but it will be even more interesting if that means more viewers for Impact. I think overall these shows might hurt TNA more than not even IF they get a decent rating from it, as if people see TNA for the first time with these shows, they arent probably going to keep watching. For what its worth, and I can't believe TNA did this, but they basically let some of the Sports Show guys book these shows with their background assistance. They covered it in detail in the last Observer, and it's just showing either TNA feels they have to be FSN's bitch to get somewhere and/or these shows werent thought out well enough to come up with something suitable to the masses. I think its pretty sad that at least 3-4 matches that could have been saved for a ppv or a main event of Impact were on these shows ad nauseum with no buildup other than inconsistent promotion for the last week on FSN. These shows should have been organized months, if not at least A MONTH in advance.

In hearing about Savage's tit fit, my first thought was that it actually sucked because, as I stated in another thread, and I know I am in the minority, but the guy MIGHT be able to get some old disinfranchised fans from WCW or oldschool past to check out TNA to see what they will do with him. Thats completely debatable but possible. With all of that said, to defend TNA here (without being, as someone said "a TNA mark" - apparently you cannot say anything about TNA a positive light here without being called a blind mark to the product, BTW) if they dont attempt to figure something out with Savage in bringing him back, they are showing ALOT of ass by having him do a run-in at the end of the ppv that was done to get people talking, and then, much like the Hogan fiasco last year, then not deliver and have him actually be a part of the company, etc. It actually makes TNA look more bush league to not bother trying to figure out how to remedy the problem. Again, I know I'm in the minority, but I was interested to see what they could do with Savage. On another side note, if the Savage shit falls apart, and I hate to say this, but one of the ways to try to offset that loss and general perception to any of the remaining TNA fans is putting Brown v. Jarrett next ppv with Brown getting the title and then signing up Hogan to work a non-title feud with Jarrett going into next year (probably have Hogan appear at Turning Point as well). To have them lose Savage completely, and then not follow up with something rather huge other than (but including) getting the title off Jarrett ASAP will need to happen to keep any pulse of momentum coming off that ppv and into the upcoming months of these monthly ppv experiments. I know alot will argue that neither Savage or Hogan are going to help the company long term, but now Savage unfortunately put them in a bind where I feel one or the other need to be in TNA to avoid any further damage to what credibility the company has.

Havent posted here for a long time since 1) there hasnt been a whole hell of a lot to talk about in TNA land and 2) the TNA section of this board has gone way down. Hardy anyone even watches the shows and those who do seem to get bombarded by occasional posters just expressing their opinions on how bad TNA sucks, etc. Not to say they arent top notch right now (as they odviously arent) but it gets monotonous to sit through post after post of essentially the same stuff, that nothing TNA can be made remotely positive to 90 percent of anyone posting in this section. For what its worth, I think Impact, since the move from weekly ppvs has been a mixed bag, with nothing either being really offensively bad or great. It's just kind of there and was building things to the ppv solid but not creating a home run. They have decided to go down a road of more of a traditional and predictable approach with angles and character development, which could be alot worse, but of course, alot better. I think there is alot more thought put towards Impact these days, but ultimately there still is the Jarrett factor which always puts a screw loose in exectution. So basically I look at Impact like this - it's a show that if your old WCW or possibly oldschool fan might enjoy somewhat, but they arent doing enough to get new or "disenfranchised" fans to check into it weekly. With this new crop of established names coming in (while alot can argue cant draw anymore) I think its up to debate whether it will help long term but if the word can get out that these guys are in TNA, I think some old fans will look into the show to see their past favorites for a nostalgic value. If TNA can create interesting feuds with these old stars and better yet, finally truly create some new stars and keep going hard with the X division, they might do something here in the next 3-4 months. I kind of look at this latest direction in TNA with having Hall, Nash, DDP, Savage, Piper, etc in as TNA's last real big push to get people talking. I would imagine that they will take a huge risk and have Hogan in here too for a feud with Jarrett too, since like I said, I think this is their last big push to make something happen here. Booking is going to have to be razor sharp though, which is wishful thinking at best. With all of this said, I think Victory Road was actually a really fun show to watch, as it was something different from the norm and offered a really hot crowd, good flow throughout the show, and in general alot was happening that might make wrestling crowds talk. This event felt way WAY different than the weekly ppvs and with the production top notch too, it seperated itself from its old monikor of the weekly ppv "low rent" format. Everyone worked really hard to make it the best show possible, so you can't fault them for that. And the booking finishes were mostly decent too. One can say there was surprising finishes (see Williams v. Styles) and there was a handful of surprises. Other than a few **** to ***** classics, they pretty much gave me the things I wanted from a ppv. Did they hit a home run? No, but I think this was a solid step ahead to things if they keep up any momentum they have here into these weeks TV shows, which, if a decent amount of people got the ppv (which is debatable), and then will watch the shows this week (which they probably will to at least see what they will do with Savage, Hall and Nash), can put TNA in a better spot on FSN. Intro video was top notch, crowd came real hot with the X division gauntlet. The workers all busted ass (maybe sans Red) to make this one better than any of the others one they have done back in the weekly ppv days (again, distancing themselves from those) as this was easily the best gauntlet match TNA has done. I watched the show with a few TNA "newbies" who were impressed by the moves and action in this one, as this is something you just cant see from WWE at all. Probably the best example of showcasing the advantages of pushing the X division hard here in months from TNA. One of the hottest crowds I've ever seen for ANY match **** 8 man tag was total filler, but was kept relatively short and at least put over the right person. Who thought Dallas could do a moonsault? ** Minis match was horrid but I think only last 3:00 or so. What a lame finish too, but the fans somehow loved it. DUD One could say that it would have been better to eliminate the 8 man and mini's match to give more time to the X title match, and I agree. I think the angle TNA was going for here was to have a little bit of every kind of fan friendly genre on the show, from minis to women to X division to tag team to heavyweight to a few gimmick matches. For an initial "showcase" show to appeal to the masses, I can see why they did this although I dont agree with it. The tag title match was ok, everyone worked hard which is saying alot for a guy like Konnan or James. Obligitory title switch, can see 3LK jobbing these belts to Hall and Nash soon. ** 1/2 Segments with Russo and Rhodes with Hudson doing the lame ass comedy was STUPID. Shit like that should never even be tried. Pipers Pit was the part of the show that was the real letdown. Word was that this was supposed to be DDP in Snuka's role, which means an angle might have been set to have Kid Kash do the coconut to DDP, who knows. The way it came off was just uninteresting since WWE rehashed the coconut thing a year and half ago with Snuka, O Haire and Rikishi. Trying to incorporate the X division at all in this and a re-push of Kash just all came across forced to me. I could care less about a Dutt-Kash feud and certainly have no idea why Shane/Kazarian out there other than to set up a six man with Piper, Snuka, Dutt against Kash, Shane, and Kazarian which just sounds dumb. Trinity v. Jacky was actualy ok for a women's match, and I can see rematch soon. ** 1/2 Hardcore 3 way was done just about right, not exposing anyone. Brown got really over here, so mission accomplished. *** 1/4 X division match was really good and only could have been better with more time. Finish was a surprise for sure. *** 3/4 The last team standing match was just a mess. I guess its hard to hold a match together when you have a guy that has no idea what he's doing. This is something that cant be blamed on the booking since they were given time and shit just happened. I expect the cage match to make up for this * 1/2 Main event was alright by me, although the concept of selling some of the high spots didnt happen, which bugged me. Hardy looked to be working harder than I've seen him work in a while, and actually Jarrett tended to be the one blowing more spots to be honest. The finish was uber predictable though which is a bad way to end a main event match on a show like this. *** The post-match somewhat made up for this with Styles holding his own against the heels and then Savage coming out to end the show, which is, sans all of the internet marks, somewhat big news to the wrestling marks since Savage hasnt been around a wrestling ring for almost 5 years. It left the show at the end with a feeling of something potentially exciting down the road, and gets people to check out future TNA ppvs and more importantly, this week's Impact and BDSSP events. I always thought that (and I know I am in the minority) it would be worth a shot to TNA to sign up Savage for a bit just to see what he could do. He's one of the last big name that has been absent from wrestling for years that can maybe pop interest. He always was able to cut some decent promos, even near the end there, and can either be really green at this stage in the game or in good shape and possibly be back to some some of level he has performed at before. Never say never on Savage, I say, until we see what TNA does with him and how he works in the ring.

There is some definate issue with Impact......especially after last week (fucking 3 squash matches?!!), and after reading this week's spoilers, I'm at a loss on what they are doing with that show. I understand they pay for the time and the main crutch is to build the ppvs, but there is a fine line there where it becomes just an informercial or it can be a perfect blend of a full hour of "WOW, this was so good I HAVE to get the ppvs" Ya know what I mean? And at this point, Impact isnt giving that latter vibe off to me. Here are some suggestions to turn up the notch to Impact (in no order mind you) 10. As I said before, limit the vignettes taking about the next week's ppv lineup. Is there a need to waste Tenay and West doing a seperate rundown when you have 4-5 of the same minute long commerical about the rundown anyway, plus the ticker on the bottom of the show? It's fucking overload. 9. One squash match per week MAX. And this should be for a different person each week who they want to get their character and moves over more. I'd have them also have as mandatory, a promo he's cutting on a split screen while he is squashing some jobber. Squash matches can be ok if done in a manner that it isnt overload, as they accomplish a purpose to familiarize people to the character more. 8. Heavier on angles that mean something. I'm not talking about a run-in here and there, a really strong storyline (or storylines) that people tune in every week to Impact (and the ppv) to see. TNA writing consistently struggles with this, and the only real decent angle I've seen on Impact was when Rhodes got the guitar shot from Jarrett and then Killings and him had a brawl to end one of the first shows. 7. Give 10-15 minutes to a main event, no excuses. It may be hard to do in an hour format, but I think it's necessary to give something to promote a week before, or at least on the ppv a few days before it. On that same point... 6. Have the main event mean something. I'd like to see a title defense once in awhile, or contenders match in the least to lead into the next weeks ppv for a title shot. Last weeks main event was an example of a match that was ok, but what was the point there with all of that? 5. Opening match should always be X division and competitive. Period. Quick high impact action that gets the crowd glued right away and with so many guys in the X division now, its worth being competitive here. Maybe start a top 10 X division list on Impact that people consistently fight to either get into or keep their spots or work towards getting closer up the list. 4. Limit number of matches a week to 3, or AT MOST 4. One X division competitive 5-10 minute bout, a squash that lasts a 2-3 minutes, maybe a competitive tag bout, and a top notch main event at 10-15 minutes. In between that, do your ppv hype and angles. BTW, I love the way they end the shows now, total ECW thing that works, especially in this case to hype the matches for the ppvs. 3. Try more cross promotion with other organizations and notables. This can work if done right, but having a guy like Rodman there, for example, did nothing. I think it would be a great idea to work with the UFC in establishing a faction lead by Shamrock that comes into TNA to uproot it. This would help both brands out tremendously. I heard they were going to have a few Olympic wrestlers at Impact this week....another good idea in theory, depending on how they use them. 2. Do their damdest to get out of that time slot and into a better day and time! It's so needed its not even funny. And upgrading to 2 hours, or even an hour and a half would make a HUUUUGE difference. 1. Generally, go back to a formula that this is episodic TV and it should be treated as such, and this goes with BOTH shows. It needs to be more than just matches, although you use good matches as the main formula for success....but they all around stuff happening, even if you have to revert back to a crash TV formula of sorts (mind you without the stupid characters and Russo-driven, they should do it. WWE does this just fine sometimes even to this day (sporatically). This covers the whole spectrum of more interesting storylines, better character development, and surprising happenings. In other words, better writing! I think the ppvs are decent enough now every week, but this needs to be consistent then with Impact. If Impact sucks ass too much, it loses people from even watching THAT show, which should be the number one focus at this point.....to get people to watch Impact so they get the ppvs (of course without losing focus on the ppv quality, but they are doing just fine with that now in featuring about 5 solid matches that are given time, as well as a few segments for promos/angles). Bottom line - the ppvs could be kick ass to the max but without the proper lead-in to them, nobody will care.

****? ****? Jed, are you kidding me here? I WOULD not or COULD not give that match **** if my life depended on it. It was a slow moving, slow building tag match in a six sided cage!!!!! These guys didn't even have be believing that they were bleeding when Tenay first called it. I was like, "They are bleeding! WTF? They haven't done anything to bleed." I really was looking forward to seeing this match and I don't think it would fair to compare it to the AMW/XXX cage match as this one wasn't even half as good as that one. Keep in mind this is coming from someone who thinks many people even overrate the original cage match. I do like the Naturals and AMW is simply "nothing special", but this performance was a poor one on the part of both teams. I found myself thinking after Stevens did the moonsault(or was it Douglas?) off the cage and really noticing how much everyone was bleeding......I kind of felt bad that they were doing highspots and bleeding everywhere...........and the match was still bad. p.s. - Jed, soon as you get that bad boy updated......I'm all for a trade!!!!! WHOO HOO!!!!!! Ok.......so I just watched it again this afternoon and my **** was a little high (my excuse was that I was rather drunk), but I still think *** 1/4 is a fair assessment IMO. The first 5 minutes were REALLY slow and the crowd was dead - maybe because of the on and off (more off, admittngly) stuff they did this week. However, at some point the match really picked up and delivered to me. Very well done nearfalls too. But to each their own! I'll let ya know when I get it updated......did get some more new ROH in lately though, just as an FYI if you're interested.