Just to Show Something

[Guest MikeSC]

Here ya go, the positives of TNA. Quite legit feelings here:

 

1) They have a wealth of young talent. And with all of the other NWA affiliates and their present OTHER independent bookings, the youngsters get ring time to improve without having all of the stumbles on TV that plagued the WCW rookies in 2000. Heck, Chris Sabin is excellent and has only worked, what, 3 years?

 

Although, they'd be wise to re-start that "Open Door Policy" they had for the X Division. Heck, it gave them Sabin --- that alone should show it's worth.

 

2) They do try to keep the smarks happy. I can argue that they beat the X Cup concept into the ground, but I can't argue what it WAS --- a blatant attempt to please the smarks. They DO want our support. They might not always make the best choices, but the ATTEMPT is always there. They will try and throw "workrate only" shows out there every so often --- which is good.

 

3) They have given me a reason to care about Kash. I didn't like Kid Kash AT ALL in ECW --- but he's grown on me in a MAJOR way in TNA. They found that the guy is just a swank heel. He's REAL good at getting heat. They should ride him until he breaks down. Not many people, that I see, can generate his level of heel heat in the WWE, much less in TNA.

 

4) They don't look bush league. They aren't the WWE --- but lord, after watching NWA-FL's DVD, they sure as HECK don't look bush-league. They look professional, just small. That is definitely not a bad thing at all.

 

5) They are trying to re-develop the ME scene. The Hogan fiasco did a pretty good job of destroying the ME scene for a while. They have worked overtime correcting that and have done a pretty good job in the process. They have Raven in position again, which is a good choice. They have Harris as a solid, part-time challenger (I doubt they'll split up AMW, but Harris appears to be somebody they can use in a pinch at any point). They are using Ron Killings in the way they should have always used him. I do worry about JJ's unwillingness to do a clean job --- but hopefully, he'll do the right thing. AJ Styles and Abyss BOTH seem ready to enter (or re-enter) the ME scene as well.

 

6) XXX is the best tag team in the world. I can honestly state that I can't think of a bad match involving them.

 

7) They HAVE toned down the backstage stuff. I don't like backstage stuff, for the most part. WWE doesn't do it particularly well, but they did it better than TNA. TNA appears to have learned a lesson and are definitely doing far less of it. Good idea.

 

8) They really do have kick-ass DVD's. They should be in Best Buy because they are excellent discs (well, two of them. I hate bloody brawls, so I didn't order that one, obviously).

 

9) Announce team is rather good. Don West grows on you after a while. Mike Tenay is good --- and they have stopped trying to use him in angles, which only helps things. Definitely better than RAW in that regard.

 

10) Honestly, if they moved elsewhere, a better crowd would only help the product. Workers work harder when the crowd is hot (my experience, anyway). The product itself isn't fundamentally weak.

 

11) Few World Title defenses DO make them mean more. Yeah, I'd like to see more title shots --- but the fact that Jeff does so few of them does make all of the ones he DOES do considerably more important.

 

Honestly, TNA doesn't have nearly as many problems as WWE does --- they just have a more burning need to address them (seeing as how they don't make money). Get JJ to job and you have a huge benefit there. Go back to bringing in indy talent and it will only help. Cut some of the dead weight and the few dead matches will be cut down. And, please, keep Russo off-camera. Be DIFFERENT and don't DO the cliched "Powers that Be"-type angle. And, dear God, STOP WITH THE SCREWJOB FINISHES. A clean finish shouldn't be so rare.

-=Mike

...Able to be positive

[Mecha Mummy 0]

Right now, I'm at this crossroads with Don West. His actual announcing's getting much better and he's much better at explaining why someone would do something than most of the WWE guys, but his voice seems to be getting rather gravelly at times which annoys me. Of course, the last I saw of him were a couple matches from two weeks ago, but still.

[Guest MikeSC]

Right now, I'm at this crossroads with Don West. His actual announcing's getting much better and he's much better at explaining why someone would do something than most of the WWE guys, but his voice seems to be getting rather gravelly at times which annoys me. Of course, the last I saw of him were a couple matches from two weeks ago, but still.

Honestly, his enthusiasm, at first, was irritating. Almost David Crockett-irritating.

 

But it grew on me. He actually seems like there is nothing in the world he'd rather do than his job and that there is nowhere he'd rather be than in the Asylum. That is always a plus.

 

And he never says "Puppies", which makes him a HUGE improvement to Lawler.

 

And, yes, he and Tenay do a MUCH better job of trying to EXPLAIN the storylines than WWE guys do.

-=Mike

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

I agree that people are much too critical of Don West. He has improved a lot since the early weeks. I appreciate the energy he brings to the show. With Raw these days it seems like JR/King would rather be anywhere else but watching wrestling.

[Masked Man of Mystery 0]

My God, I actually agree with TheMikeSC, Doomsday must be upon us....

[r4g 0]

I agree with all points except calling NWA FL bushleague.

 

That DVD is old and outdated and made by a drug dealer. NWA FL is two years older and now one of the top feds in the southeast and borderline top10 in the nation. So shush.

 

[Guest MikeSC]

I agree with all points except calling NWA FL bushleague.

 

That DVD is old and outdated and made by a drug dealer. NWA FL is two years older and now one of the top feds in the southeast and borderline top10 in the nation. So shush.

 

I can only go by what I saw.

 

I will tell any promotion this: If your ring ropes are loose, you look bush-league.

 

Sorry, but that is my primo pet peeve with wrestling rings.

I agree that people are much too critical of Don West. He has improved a lot since the early weeks. I appreciate the energy he brings to the show. With Raw these days it seems like JR/King would rather be anywhere else but watching wrestling.

West is a majorly improved commentator (improved even more than Cole, who I think will never get credit for improvement) and he'd be a HUGE boon to the WWE broadcasts, honestly. He doesn't go THAT overboard with praise (he does to a degree --- but he has to and that is a part of his charm).

 

If a commentary team lacks humor and enthusiasm, then they do no good. JR & King have passed that point.

-=Mike

[Styles 0]

Wow, I agree with EVERY SINGLE point Mike made. I still love TNA. I have been with them since week 1, and have only missed a few scattered weeks since. I've sat through some really really good and really really bad shows. I especially agree that they should tour to give them some hotter crowds and more regional exposure. The TV deal can't come soon enough. ECW was going along fine until TNN used them as a testing ground to lure WWE. I don't mind ordering the weekly shows, but many do, so I think once they get free TV they will build a larger audience who DO want a wrestling alternative but dont want to pay every week for it. Then if they can produce solid, wrestling oriented show like they've been lately with heavy emphasis on titles and rankings, they WILL get more people to buy their monthly shows.

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

I don't know where else Don West would fit in...but I think he's down right needed next to Mike Tenay. Tenay is a great play by play guy...but he gets worse when he tries to inject false emotion into what he's doing. West already being turned up to 11 lets Tenay keep it for when it's important.

[Vyce 0]

Good post by Mike, although I'm sure it pained him to write it.

 

Don West is not a perfect commentator by any stretch of the imagination, but if you think about what the guy was doing two years ago - schilling baseball cards and shit on a home shopping channel - then you realize how far he's actually come from not really having any experience to becoming a passable color commentator.

[Guest MikeSC]

Good post by Mike, although I'm sure it pained him to write it.

Yeah, Brutally painful it was.

Don West is not a perfect commentator by any stretch of the imagination, but if you think about what the guy was doing two years ago - schilling baseball cards and shit on a home shopping channel - then you realize how far he's actually come from not really having any experience to becoming a passable color commentator.

Passable? He's easily better than Lawler.

-=Mike

...And he's better than that suckbag Jeff Jones. God he was terrible in that NWA-FL DVD.

[The Ghost of bps21 0]

I always got the feeling that Lawler could be a really good color guy, but he's too busy playing his gimmick...or maybe they're too busy making him play his gimmick.

 

JR, on the other hand, has been laughably bad the last couple of years, unless it's the main event of wrestlemania...the guy just sounds lost half the time.

[Guest Mosaicv2]

I always got the feeling that Lawler could be a really good color guy, but he's too busy playing his gimmick...or maybe they're too busy making him play his gimmick.

 

JR, on the other hand, has been laughably bad the last couple of years, unless it's the main event of wrestlemania...the guy just sounds lost half the time.

you are so right, Lawler is just gettin to me so much that I feel like I want to chance the channel. As far as JR, he just far much WORSER, with his five year old catchphrases & FUCKIN screamin at the end of every show that would make Mike Tenay say "Damn!"

[Guest MikeSC]

I always got the feeling that Lawler could be a really good color guy, but he's too busy playing his gimmick...or maybe they're too busy making him play his gimmick.

 

JR, on the other hand, has been laughably bad the last couple of years, unless it's the main event of wrestlemania...the guy just sounds lost half the time.

At this point, I think Lawler has forgotten how to be a good color man. Man, I miss Heyman on the mic. He was so much better at it.

-=Mike

[Guest Dynamite Kido]

Here ya go, the positives of TNA. Quite legit feelings here:

 

They have a wealth of young talent. And with all of the other NWA affiliates and their present OTHER independent bookings, the youngsters get ring time to improve without having all of the stumbles on TV that plagued the WCW rookies in 2000. Heck, Chris Sabin is excellent and has only worked, what, 3 years?

You hit the nail on the head with this one. TNA's biggest asset is all the young unpolished talent that will only help the company in the long run. Plus it can use the rest of the NWA as it's own personal minor league system which is a total plus for them.

 

 

2) They do try to keep the smarks happy. I can argue that they beat the X Cup concept into the ground, but I can't argue what it WAS --- a blatant attempt to please the smarks. They DO want our support. They might not always make the best choices, but the ATTEMPT is always there. They will try and throw "workrate only" shows out there every so often --- which is good.

I'd like to agree with this one totally but I just can't. They do obviously realize that "smarks" are a large part of their audience, but I don't think that they cater to them. Even though they do base whole shows around workrate, they clearly do things like the Lex Luger situation that are one of the most annoying things in the "smarks" eyes. But I think you were going for something good though on this.....

 

 

3) They have given me a reason to care about Kash. I didn't like Kid Kash AT ALL in ECW --- but he's grown on me in a MAJOR way in TNA. They found that the guy is just a swank heel. He's REAL good at getting heat. They should ride him until he breaks down. Not many people, that I see, can generate his level of heel heat in the WWE, much less in TNA.

 

Right on!!!! Kash is one of if not the best heel in the business right now, and he has grown on me the same way you explained. The thing that is special about him is that he can get MAJOR heat the old fashioned way......by making people hate him. Kudos to them for the way Kash is used......

 

 

4) They don't look bush league. They aren't the WWE --- but lord, after watching NWA-FL's DVD, they sure as HECK don't look bush-league. They look professional, just small. That is definitely not a bad thing at all.

 

The best I can say here is that I agree and disagree. The only reason that I can disagree is that those fed's don't look bush league, they look like straight up shit. Now I know, I don't care as many of you don't what the place looks like just as long as the wrestling is quality. But anyways.....TNA just doesn't look major league. It doesn't look bush league either, this is the major misconception of this though. I honestly do like the smaller and confined buildings as it seems to give it a heavier atmosphere.....thus a good idea IMO.

 

5) They are trying to re-develop the ME scene. The Hogan fiasco did a pretty good job of destroying the ME scene for a while. They have worked overtime correcting that and have done a pretty good job in the process. They have Raven in position again, which is a good choice. They have Harris as a solid, part-time challenger (I doubt they'll split up AMW, but Harris appears to be somebody they can use in a pinch at any point). They are using Ron Killings in the way they should have always used him. I do worry about JJ's unwillingness to do a clean job --- but hopefully, he'll do the right thing. AJ Styles and Abyss BOTH seem ready to enter (or re-enter) the ME scene as well.

Honestly, I do enjoy the ME picture there now as well. I like the fact that they have reestablished Raven as a solid Main Eventer again and is really on track to where he should be and Abyss to go with AJ and all the other ME's can only be a plus.

 

6) XXX is the best tag team in the world. I can honestly state that I can't think of a bad match involving them.

They are easily TNA's best team I'll give you that.....

 

7) They HAVE toned down the backstage stuff. I don't like backstage stuff, for the most part. WWE doesn't do it particularly well, but they did it better than TNA. TNA appears to have learned a lesson and are definitely doing far less of it. Good idea.

 

8) They really do have kick-ass DVD's. They should be in Best Buy because they are excellent discs (well, two of them. I hate bloody brawls, so I didn't order that one, obviously).

Haven't seen them yet, but I wouldn't mind picking up a couple eventually. If they were in stores....I would have them already.

 

9) Announce team is rather good. Don West grows on you after a while. Mike Tenay is good --- and they have stopped trying to use him in angles, which only helps things. Definitely better than RAW in that regard.

IMO, they are better than any team the WWE can put out these days. But I guess that isn't saying too much. I do like Tenay/West though.....

 

 

10) Honestly, if they moved elsewhere, a better crowd would only help the product. Workers work harder when the crowd is hot (my experience, anyway). The product itself isn't fundamentally weak.

I agree. I don't think they should move though, unless they can find a place to run where it wouldn't hurt them financially and were they would have a stronger following than in their current establishment.

 

11) Few World Title defenses DO make them mean more. Yeah, I'd like to see more title shots --- but the fact that Jeff does so few of them does make all of the ones he DOES do considerably more important.

Agreed with the whole post on this one. I think that Jeff should have his role on TV every week, but I don't think the whole show should be filled with him as it helps NOTHING.

 

Get JJ to job and you have a huge benefit there.

I have no doubt that if the feud was done correctly, he WOULD job. And I am in no means standing up for JJ at all.

 

Cut some of the dead weight and the few dead matches will be cut down.

This is their second worst problem in my opinion. Quit wasting money on guys like Duggan and Luger. Quit booking anyone with the last name Harris.

 

And, please, keep Russo off-camera. Be DIFFERENT and don't DO the cliched "Powers that Be"-type angle. And, dear God, STOP WITH THE SCREWJOB FINISHES.

This was the main problem IMO. Luckily Russo hasn't oversaturated their TV with himself......YET. Also I HATE the on air authority figure as its the biggest cliche' in wrestling today. Get rid of it....be innovative....be new and original.....it'll only help the product.

[Guest TDinDC1112]

I'm writing this here because I think it has to do with TNA looking a little bush league, although I do think their production is fine.

 

I've happened to catch Xplsosion the last 3 weeks, and every week this same commerical runs about 5 times during the show. It's an ad for their DVD about bloody brawls. This is the kind of thing that pisses me off to no end, and I can't believe that someone would put this ONTO TV.

 

Across, the top of the TV, with a fire background (they show no clips because the action is "too violent for TV"), the following words appear in large writing:

 

 

TNA's Bloodiest Brawl's

 

 

There is not supposed to be an apostrophe in "brawls." The brawl doesn't own anything! This is something you learn in freaking 3rd or 4th grade (although a ton of people mess this up)! Now you might be saying, what's the big deal? Well, it's not a huge deal (although this exact thing is a major pet peeve of mine), but how can anyone put something onto TV that is spelled incorrectly or grammatically incorrect? When I saw it, I thought to myself, "what a bunch of crap." Now does this kind of thing make people not want to watch their product? No. But every little bit counts. I wonder how Fox Sports would feel about this kind of thing.