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They did something like this the night Hardy debuted (~which I was there for~), which contributed to his HUGE pop that night IMO. IIRC, in between the matches, they had a guy talking about what wrestling would be like in the year 2020, future, blah, blah. Then before Hardy's entrance, he said something about fast forwarding to the future and the DixieTron flashed Jeff Hardy's name in white letters on a black backdrop. The music hit and the crowd went crazy (it was more from the name than the music, because his TNA music sounds nothing like his WWE music). If they could recreate that here with Christian, they'd be in business methinks. I can either see them doing something like that or something like they did with Raven (or DDP for that matter), having him attack through the crowd, pose long enough to be recognized and then having Tenay and West cream themselves wondering what he's doing. I gotta be honest though, I'd prefer the Y2J/Hardy type treatment.

The blanks here are: AJ Styles defeated Frankie Kazarian on the first Wed PPV after Impact debuted on FSN. The title was then held up after Kazarian and Shane both pulled the belt down during an Ultimate X match with AJ Styles. Petey Williams won a 10 man (I think) Gauntlet for the Gold sometime in August 2004 to win the belt. AJ Styles defeated Petey Williams and Chris Sabin at Final Resolution this January in an Ultimate X match.

PWI posted this a little while ago: I think it's great that TNA is considering branching out into house show, and considering that they've picked up quite a few ROH regulars, I think they'll be better received in Philly now than say 2 years ago. I think they should target the northeast and the midwest with their shows though, so I'd say that's a good start. Thoughts?

TNA has posted the official preview for Thursday's show, so I figured I'd go ahead and start the OAO thread, ~SPOILER FREE of course. This is probably the biggest show ever for TNA. It's probably a testament to there growth that seems like they have one of those every six months (first FSN show, Victory Road, BDSSP specials, first Spike show, BFG and now this). Etiher way, it's a golden opportunity for TNA to impress the network and an larger audience, and they've stacked the show accordingly. Here's the preview: I think having a title match and an UX match are good moves, making the show seem like a big deal. I think they should have given it a name, a la Clash of the Champions or SNME, so that when you here the name, you know automatically that it's a huge thing, but otherwise, they've done a great job with this on short notice. I'm glad they didn't OD the hotshotting and put a cage match too. Save that for the next special. As far as the line-up, we've pretty much got everyone covered. We get two kickass XD matches, the heavyweights in two matches and a big tag match. I'm sure that UX will be the "first hour ME" and the title match will close the show. I'm pumped for it, but I was pumped for the Spike debut, so I'm probably not the best judge of TNA's effectiveness with this. Anyway, keep your pre-show thoughts in here and during and after here as well. Enjoy!

I'm disappointed in the number, and I'm sure TNA and Spike are too, though they probably won't say so publically. My positive spin is similiar to Savage's, in that TNA's core audience stuck with them, and didn't get bored as the show passed the normal length. I don't think that this means we'll never see TNA in primetime (who knows how the next 3 specials will do?), but if it delays that from happening, then maybe at the very least, we could see TNA use that fact to convince Spike that they could benefit from expanding Impact on Saturdays, and maybe go from 10-12. I personally think they have to get the 2 hour format before going to primetime anyway. It's just logically the next step.

The good news keeps on coming for TNA. That means that between now and February, they'll have three opportunities to prove to Spike that they deserve a better timeslot or at least another hour on Saturdays. And they get some kickass exposure on New Year's Eve as well. I never dreamed that TNA would be such an enviable position when they walked out on the WGN deal. Now we know what Dixie was thinking...

Yeah, it seems like those who missed it just caught the replay, but I'd think their basic audience is a little higher than .9 because you have the .8 who've regularly been watching on Saturday and the .5 who've regularly been watching on Monday. There's no way to know if those are unique viewers (I'm sure there are some who watch both), but I don't think the entire .5 is watching on Saturday's too. Hell, I usually watch the show on Saturday, tape it and watch it a few times during the week if I enjoyed it, but I have yet to make myself watch the entire Monday replay. Even when i came across it and said I was going to, I invariably end up changing the channel. So anyway, I'd say the basic TNA audience is somewhere between .8 and 1.3.

Credit: PWInsider.com Thoughts?

FYI...Meltz reported that the replay pulled a .6 this week, up from the usual .5 it had been doing. So they lost .1 point from last week on Saturday but picked it back up on Monday. Good for them!

Mike Johnson added this: IIRC, this thursday's special was original just a pre-emption for UFC and TNA was originally going to air at 11 PM on Thursday, but because Spike has been happy with what TNA is drawing. So I guess we'll know how they feel about Thursday's show by whether or not they get the 9-10 hour on 12/8 too. And the fact that they are really advertising the show is really good. It shows that they are committed to TNA, unlike the treat ECW got.

PWI posted this about Thursday's show: That should certainly help the rating. It's good to see that Spike isn't just throwing them out there and expecting them to succeed on there own. I think it bodes well for the TNA/Spike relationship and like Fro, I'm expecting at least a number equaling the combined Saturday/Monday audience, maybe even exceeding it a bit.

In defense of Dutt, I think his memorable TNA showing was the Turning Point six man that shocked everyone. Dutt was THE reason that match worked, and displayed an understand of mixing pyschology with the highspots that most of the X-D don't get to exhibit. I have always liked the guy and am glad to see him get a little push. I think he's most been the opening match spot monkey because that's where TNA placed him. Other than a forgettable feud with Kazarian and Red over the X Title right before they started on FSN and a feud with Kash that had potential before it was dropped, TNA hasn't done much with him other than go send him out to do flips and dives (like a lot of guys). With that said, also, having never seen RoH, Aries and Strong have not really impressed me so far. They've hit a couple of moves that have made me go "wow," but I still have a hard time telling them apart. Shelley has grown on me though. I love the way he interacts with the crowd and I thought him kicking dirt this week was awesome. I think he could get over big time if they let him talk.

I'm not sure if he has a no-compete or not, but if he doesn't, Christian showing up on the Special would have been great for TNA. It's a shame this didn't happen last week, though I suppose they could have him appear in a vignette in the special. Maybe just somthing as simple as him walking into Larry's office to "negiotate" before a match. Or a promo saying he's coming, a la Trytan. If they are going to bring him in, they need to mention it somehow in front of their biggest audience today, but they should do it unless they've got a deal worked out, so they don't plug him and not deliver like when Jarrett namedropped Matt Hardy only for him to not show up. Just a thought...

TNA's released the official preview for this week's Impact, so I decided to go ahead and create the OAO thread, ~SPOILER FREE of course. Here's the preview: credit: TNAWrestling.com I think this is a pretty good line-up for Impact. This is the first time we don't get an ~OMG HIGHSPOTS!~ match-up, but I don't think that'll hurt this show. The six man should be fun times, Joe's going to wow us in killing Skipper, and AMW/Naturals have yet to have a bad match IMO (the surreal atmosphere right after Candido's death did hurt the Hard Justice match, but that was through no fault of the workers). I'd say that's a pretty amazing feat, considering that even AMW and XXX, who worked probably the 2 of the top 5 matches in the history of the company had an off night at Victory Road. And call me crazy, but I think Truth and Roode can deliver a solid 5-8 minute match. The crowd will be into it, that's for sure. All in all, should make for a good show. Thoughts?

I like that match, but IMO, the one from this year with AJ, Petey Williams and Chris Sabin was even better. So that'd make at least two really good ones. And IIRC, there was nothing wrong with the AJ/Michael Shane/Frankie Kazarian one either, other than the non-finish. No technical screw ups though.

Thoughts?

Well TNA has released a preview of this week's Impact, so I figured I'd start the OAO thread. Before Saturday, keep all non-spoiler Impact talk in here and after the show, post yer thoughts. With that said, here's the preview: credit: TNAWrestling.com I gotta say that this show looks good. Daniels' gauntlet is almost guaranteed fun and I think Bentley and Young could have a good little TV match (though the crowd may not be in it because they're both heels). And although the funeral thing has been done a few times, I still kinda want to see how they do this one. It's a good way to keep the AMW/Duds angle going with the Duds in Japan. Thoughts?

Well, having been a fan since 1990 (my first show as WM6), I know all about the epic feel. The first title match I ever saw was Warrior/Hogan. And while TNA has never come close to that, I gotta say the ONLY times in the past three years that they deliver a world title match that felt like THE reason to watch was Jarrett/Raven in April 2003 and Truth/Jarrett in November 2002. TNA was still PPV only, and I was in school with no PPV access, so I missed the entire Jarrett/Raven build. But by the time Borash finished the boxing introductions, you knew something big was going to happen. The match by itself wasn't as good as Jarrett/Truth IMO, but the atmosphere made it the biggest match TNA has ever presented. And I agree with BPS that they totally screwed the pooch by the way. I don't doubt that the match you've suggested would be good, and probably a better worked match with AMW in there to carry everyone. But I don't think that match stands out enough to make this appear to be something other than another Impact. IMO, TNA needs to promote this exactly how WCW did the Clash of the Champions (or even how WWE did the first SD! in April 1999...minus the hotshotting of course). There are plenty of people who are fully aware that TNA exists that don't bother going out of their way to see it "because nothing noteworthy ever happens." And I can see them not giving too much away in their 1 hour a week. But with this being their chance to show Spike they can draw well enough to say move that timeslot, they need to make this special feel "special." And like I said JJ/Raven isn't the only match they have that can do that (AMW/3D for the titles would work perfectly if they had down it 2 weeks ago), but it's one of few that they can do with totally ignoring current storylines IMO.

Shitty finish aside, Raven and Jarrett's first match at Destiny definitely had an epic feel and didn't see it until they released the 'Best of the Title Matches' DVD about a year later. I can only imagine what it felt like watching it live. I remember Dames' putting over the atmosphere in the diatribe though. Although that match had the advantage of being live, considering this match has almost 4 months of build (going back to Jarrett being throw out of KotM) and then declaring TNA wasn't big enough for the both of them a month later, I think they'd could build some drama. And even what's happened so far on Spike, eventually they are going to depend on Jarrett/Raven to headline a big show. Before I read about the special, I'd assumed that was going to be Genesis, after they'd whored Nash to get casual fans. In thinking about it this morning, I think they could get away with doing it at both the special and the PPV since unlike say, Jarrett and Styles, TNA has only broadcasted just 1 one-on-one Raven/Jarrett match (and about 20 secs of clips from the 2nd) and a large part of their fanbase has been clamoring for a rematch. Ordinarily, I'd think the six man would be fine, if they weren't headlining this week's Impact with a similiar. They need a match that screams this isn't a normal Impact, so that someone who is aware of the product, who say usually looks at the spoilers or the line-up for Impact and decides it's not worth their time, will tune in, combined with the 750,000 regular Impact viewers. So I don't think they should throw away existing storylines (and there's no way they could have already had a plan for this show since it didn't exist 24 hrs ago), they can incorporation them into a "Clash of the Champions" type of show instead of an Impact on a different day show. If they were just broadcasting that week's show in the slot, I'd say go with the regular "save everything for the PPV" Impact, but IMO, since this is clearly a test for a future primetime slot, they need to make it special. The best matches they have that can do, IMO, are Jarrett/Raven, AMW/3D, and some combo of Daniels/Styles/Liger/Joe. I just suggested Jarrett/Raven because they've already put AMW/3D on TV once and at some point they have to make people for it. And I think if they do a tag match with the X-D 3 (plus one in this case), they can wow enough people that when they do say Styles/Joe II, people will go out of their way to see it.

Something I also wonder if this means Spike is re-evaluating their priorities with regard to the UFC and TNA. TNA's ratings haven't been to far from what UFC is drawing IIRC, in a much worse slots. If they aren't reconsidering that yet, I think a strong showing by TNA would start that discussion. Thoughts?

I see your point, but I'd like to offer the flipside if I may. Since the primary goal of TNA for this special (other than drawing enough for Spike to move them) is to get people to tune in on Saturday or Monday night, IMO featuring guys who aren't going to be heavily featured week after week is counterproductive, though the matches will be great. Through the first 3 weeks, TNA has been establishing their main players, and those are the people that I think they should spotlight on this special because those are the people new viewers have to care enough about to come back to watch again. I think they have to deliver a least a little bit of the ~OMG WORKRATE that the internet era featured, but they have to mix it in with the balance they've been establishing here on Spike. Also, I fully expect one to two PPV level matches (like I said above) to go with Liger's first TV match in forever (if they can work out his schedule). That should be enough to spark interest, and then they can supplement that with a few longer matches for guys that wouldn't normally get the time. BTW, PWInsider is saying that they will tape the post BFG Impact and the special on Tuesday and then tape the rest of the build for Genesis the next night, so as not to mess up the storyline progression. Since originally Liger was working BFG and the Tues taping, it's not out of the realm of possibility to see him and Daniels get 10-15 mins, or they may even do a Styles/Liger v Daniels/Joe thing. I'd say that's the way to go if they want to do something with those four, so they can feature the other X's guys in another segment. Here's the type of lineup I can see them doing: Jarrett/Raven AMW & TC vs 3D & The Naturals Styles/Liger vs Daniels/Joe Hardy/Sabu vs Abyss/Rhino (unless this is on next week's show...haven't read the spoilers yet) Dutt vs Williams vs Bentley vs Primetime 3LK vs Gunn/Brown (or some combo of this feud) It's not quite a PPV, but I'd think that be a darn good 2 hours of TV. I did 6 matches because they used to run about that many on the Wed PPVs (some of which would have been really great in this slot even though they weren't amazing PPVs). Anyway, if they open the show with a 10-15 min four way and put the the X-D tag in the "first hour ME" slot with 15-20 mins, and they'd be in business. And deliver a finish of some sort in the title match, even if it's controversial, to also distinguish this from a normal Impact. So that's my 2 cents/fantasy booking....

I knew that they were going to be on that Thursday because they were pre-empted on Saturday, but I honestly did not think that they would get a primetime chance until the dog show pre-empts Raw in February. In their 3 weeks, TNA has shown they have an audience, and this will be their first real chance to expand (hot angle to draw them back to the next Saturday). I hope Spike pimps the hell out this special like they did with the UFC special against homecoming (which I can totally see them doin gat this point). As far as what to expect, I'm sure we'll get at least one title match (AMW/3D or Jarrett/Raven). I'm inclined to believe that we'll get Jarrett/Raven because they already had AMW/3D on TV and because they seem to be saving Jarrett/Monty. That's a tricky match though, because you can't have Raven lose 3 times in a row to Jarrett or you kill that match dead, and having Jarrett drop it only regain it at Genesis would probably only do more harm than good. But should TNA choose to deliver that match, I could TNA doing just that, with Brown turning face in the process by helping Raven since Jarrett failed to deliver his title shot. But I don't think they should do a six man tag if they want to build this show up as bigger than the normal Impact. In fact, they shouldn't even call it Impact. They should name the special (like Clash of the Champions or Saturday Night Main Event) so they create a brand that when they throw out a special, people know this is can't miss. And then the whole show, they can pimping watching our regular show Impact, blah, blah. Either way, it'll be interesting to watch that show take place as they can't just solely build to that with a PPV 10 days later, but they have enough time to set up some important developments. But I'd like to see Larry give Raven his match on 11/3 on the first show after BFG. They can build it up as a big deal because he's given his "last" chance on national TV in prime time and since TNA hasn't deliver a World Title match on TV in almost a year, it will automatically signal this show as being Impact. I just hope they don't break out UX, but I gotta say I wouldn't be surprised if we get AMW/3D in a cage now. Before they was no way they'd give that away, but you know they're going to want to show off their signature gimmicks (think: FSN specials) and they can't possibly have 2 UX matches in a week and a half, can they? Anyway, that's just food for thought. Here's hoping they pop a big enough rating for Spike to consider giving them the slot permanently. I know that's a long shot, but c'mon, who among us thought that 3 weeks into them debut in a late Saturday slot that we'd be discussing TNA producing a 2 hour prime time show that was not pure fancy? Fun times, fun times....

I did notice that Daniels reached for AJ when I reached the show, but PWI says the slip was on purpose. Here's what Mike Johnson wrote:

I thought this was a very good episode of Impact. Here are my random thoughts: Monty looked great in his squash, but Hoyt's challenge kinda feel flat. And their feud came out of absolutely nowhere. The Joe/Lyger footage was good and Joe's debut next week should be great. Having Raven thrown out week after week is getting kinda lame, but at least he got to talk this time and show some anger in being screwed out of the belt. Since they've already announced Brown and Hoyt for BFG, I guess they're setting up Raven to interfere in the Nash/Jarrett match (or attack JJ after his victory) and then have them headline Genesis. If that's the plan, then I'm all for it. I guess after the pop Bentley good at Unbreakable they are trying him as a face, for the first time since a horribly executed try when he first debuted (and we were supposed to cheer for him because he was HBK's cousin). At least this time, we're supposed to cheer for him because he's defending Traci. Anyway, I enjoyed the match with Young. He did an admirable job channeling HBK in all his face glory (maybe too good a job in the marks' eyes). Williams didn't hit the Destroyer as cleanly as he did on the first show, but it was good he got to do it again. But seriously, why the hell is Chris Sabin saving Bentley or Traci? Just because they're faces? A few months ago, Traci double crossed Sabin and he and Bentley were mortal enemies. The lack of continuity really stuck out there for anyone who's paid attention to TNA before 10/1. I guess after a week of hype regarding the funeral segment, I was a lil' letdown, but I think that was just a byproduct of high expectations. It was enjoyable segment, and everyone played theirs roles perfectly. The t-shirts bit, the hockey sticks and Kim and the bubble gum all were brilliant and I'm glad they finally let AMW explain the turn. Rhino and Sabu had a fun little brawl that was much better than Hardy and Rhino's match from the first show. And I'm glad that they had a finish before the schmooz, unlike week 1. Monster's Ball has probably been built the best of all the BFG matches. Daniels' gauntlet was decent, but I think it was hampered by Tenay and West spending so much time in shill mode. Shark Boy avoiding Daniels to kill the clock was great, but Tenay and West totally no-sold it. Dutt's portion really made me want to see a one-on-one match with those too. They worked the bulk of the match and did a good job. I kinda thought Dutt would take him the distance to set up a future feud. I didn't expect AJ to pick himself for the third guy, but as soon as he came in with just a few minutes left, I knew they'd do a time limit. I wonder if he legit blew the plancha or was he supposed to miss as time expired. I'm excited about Iron Man 2, but that's more because Iron Man 1 was so awesome than the built on Impact. It's been decent, but if you don't know what these guys can do, you don't know why this match is such a big deal.

I believe he was talking about Slammiversary, where AJ was the champion scheduled to defend against Abyss, Jarrett, Brown and Waltman in a King of the Mountain match. Jarrett threw a fit about not being booked to win ("to protect his gimmick") and was replaced on the pre-show with Raven, who went on to win the title. It hasn't really been proved how much of that was work and how much was shoot, but people around tended to believe that it pretty much went that way. I'm not so sure though, since we've already established that that entire period was about appealing to the net, who would buy that story 10 times out of 10 times. All we know for sure is that Raven replaced Jarrett in the match after being suspended in storyline terms.