Hunter's Torn Quad

They don't have to be all squashes, just convincing and decisive wins. It can be done. Just look at Joe.

They should book Goldberg like they booked Samoa Joe. Same deal if they were to somehow get Lesnar. Have Goldberg/Lesnar beat all the heels, but not necessarily destroy them, and do the same with Joe against the faces, all the while teasing a Goldberg/Lesnar vs. Joe match. Then, when they've beaten everyone but each other, build towards the big showdown between the two monsters.

Who do you think could pull it off?

I think Shawn has said that he and Hunter didn't talk for a long time after that, but Shawn didn't blame Hunter. And I think if anything Hunter was happier about doing the job clean, because it made him look like more of a good solider.

The peak in ratings was in 1999, but their best finanical year was 2000-1.

There was a messed up spot in their Summerslam match, which saw Shawn throw a mid-ring fit. I'm guessing Shawn was still angry over that. Shawn was incredibly immature that year.

Maybe it's more the dynamic of Cena vs. Edge that keeps people tuned in. When the dynamic shifts to Cena vs. Hunter is when things could get interesting.

I guess you don't buy him single handily bringing the wwe back to the #1 position then in 1998 and 1999 He was part of that success, no doubt about that. The key word is 'part'. In his recent WOL appearance, Russo tried to take credit for WWE getting super hot in 2000-1.

Russo claims a lot of things.

Russo wasn't intentionally being that crap.

A promotion can be built around a concept or a brand name. When WWE was doing record house show business, a lot of the time no card would be announced and it was all down to the WWE name being enough to draw people in. Of course, that's long since changed with things being focused on one or two select people and everyone else treated as afterthoughts. A national promotion can do that if they can do a good job of associating their promotion with the kind of action that a large enough fan base, not only want to see, but also want to pay to see. If, for example, the fans know that a card from this mythical promotion will see them get a lot of good matches and hot angles, then they'll want to see it, and, if hot enough, will also be willing to pay to see it. The key is getting over the concept while at the same time getting top guys over while not reducing everyone to secondary status. I don't know if going a more credible route would get UFC fans to pay for the PPV's, but they're not going to gain any ground as long as they keep looking like WWE-lite. They can't beat Vince at his own game, so they need to go the opposite route and do what Vince cannot or will not do, and that's put out a product that is athletic orientated, not entertainment orientated. They need to be like the NWA was during it's peak; emphasis the in-ring action, build up heated rivalries based on issues the people can relate to, and keep SE-style nonsense to an absolute minimum. They also need to eliminate the contrived SE/Dusty-esque finishes, like the one we saw in the NWA tag title match at the last PPV. That kind of thing just does not belong in a promotion that is touting itself as an alternative to WWE. TNA fans don't want screwjobs, even mildly creative ones, in top matches. They get enough of that in Jeff Jarrett's matches. It won't change with Jeff in charge. He's stuck in that Memphis mindset of interference and shortcuts, because that's what he grew up with, and he can't change. It's a crutch that he needs to get rid of. The problem is that Jarrett, and I think deep down he knows this, just cannot get by on talent alone when it comes to producing the kind of excitement and match quality that TNA, primarily through the X-Division, which is its greatest asset, has come to make its hallmark. Jarrett is good enough to be a valuable member of the crew, but he does not have the talent to be the top guy in TNA. That he deep down knows this, along with his jealousy over making sure he stays the top guy, means that what TNA can do to improve and grow to where they'll be a true alternative to WWE won't be done, because it will mean Jeff being fully exposed as not being anywhere near the level he thinks he is and where others want him to be.

I was expecting someone looking a little more...manly.

I think that was also discounted when the "Hawk34 is Choken" question was brought up.

Dragon had a lot of say in his own stuff in ROH, and his idea was for the first two falls to go the full 60:00 and then for Aries to win the last one at about the 55:00 minute mark.

With WM X-7 selling out the Astrodome and getting just over 1 million buys, a level of buys WM XV didn't come close to, I'd say the 'mania' peaked there.

Hawk34 That one has been discounted by people who would know for sure.

A lot of that 1.1 was down the the UFC audience sticking around that week for the first quarter. With that UFC audience taken away by the PPV, it's logical for iMPACT not to get that UFC boost.

Considering that ratings hit their highest levels later that year and WWE had their best year finanically in 2000-1, I'd say the peak was WM X-7.

Re: Shawn-Hunter-Undertaker at WM X-7 The original plan was Hunter losing due to Shawn interfering but that was changed when Shawn showed up at the taping to start the angle in 'no condition to perform'. Re: Vader getting bumped in favor of Sid That was done at the request/demand of Shawn.

And why are you having cornflakes?

For the ROH audience, William Regal would be huge, especially against Danielson.

SD is still on Thursdays in Canada.

No, but you can bet Jarrett will use that as reasoning to not drop the NWA title.

Julius Smokes would be terrible in TNA, just as he's terrible in ROH.

DH has gone on a short vacation. We'll give them a chance to calm down when they return. If they don't, then they'll be going for a much longer vacation.