The problems are everywhere really, but just looking at the concept of the belts I see flaws. Whether it's booked the right way or not it still doesn't make sense from a business aspect to split one of your most profitable commodities when it's never been done before. Ballsy, yes, but it was a risk they took and it ended up failing.
Though not entirely accurate, let's run with the number we have been of available women in TNA as 12 (10 contracted Knockouts, plus the two you granted me previously). That's one Knockout Champion, and two Knockout Tag Team Champions. That still leaves nine other Knockouts. Even if we limit each to only competing for one title or the other, that can be three other tag teams and three other singles wrestlers; more than enough to carry two undercard belts.
For example, look at what many consider WWE's best tag team era, '99 to '01. The scene was carried by The Dudleys, Edge & Christian, and The Hardyz, with the New Age Outlaws/Degeneration-X usually in the scene with them. These four teams rotated in and out of the title scene, spending the time in between feuding with each other, or with other teams put together with singles wrestlers. Four teams may not sound like much, but when booked correctly four teams can revitalize a tag division.
The reason why I think it failed is because the women's division in wrestling has never been more than a supplement to the product as a whole, TNA tried to take a (for lack of a better term) sideshow and make it the main attraction.
First of all, as I've pointed out above, it wouldn't take much of an update or increase of the Knockouts roster to facilitate enough girls for a singles and tag title. The whole of the Knockouts division would still only need about twenty minutes or so on television each week, something it would usually get until the start of the recent ECW angle. And again, when it has been shown to be one of the few reliable draws in TNA's arsenal, why not try and spice up the product?
Secondly, and this is regarding the bolded text, TNA didn't really try though. Trying is not giving a talented Knockout a tag title, and then taking her off tv for four months. Trying is not forgetting the belts exist until you need a quick pop for some surprise factor on free television, in which case you give away another title change. A four hour Knockout special is not the answer when you've given the fans no reason to care. A four hour Knockout special does not undo months and months of bad booking.
The reason tag divisions work in the men's ranks is because there are enough wrestlers on different levels, mid card, main event, under card, you know where I'm going with this. You don't have that in the KO division, every Knockout is a title contender, I don't know about you but doesn't it take away from the prestige of a championship? I'd say that makes the concept flawed.
Quality over quantity, my friend. I'd say that the number of competitors isn't nearly as important to the prestige of a championship than the quality of the competitors. TNA has had plenty of misses when it comes to female wrestlers, but overall I'd say the Knockout Division is usually more interesting and full of more capable workers than the WWE's counterpart divisions.
That's fair enough to say, but you can't tell me that if this wasn't billed as a Knockouts exclusive show that it would have had a better rating than that. 0.6 is terrible, simple as that, yet this is the division they wanted to split up and take more time away from the parts of the show people actually cared about.
I think it would have stank regardless of the gimmick for the event. It was pre-taped way in advance, and was days before the big 1/4/10 showdown. Nobody cared about this show because even if it was full of nothing but male performers and title shots only, Hogan was coming and was going to change
everything.
I don't agree with the way WWE runs their women's division, having two singles titles for two shows seems like a bit much for my liking. The thing is, yes people will watch women's wrestling, but they want to watch all the best go at it and have different fueds. The main thing I see people complaining about is the product being stale and the same people day in and day out. When you take a division and split it up you get the same girls going for the singles titles, while a bigger portion (at least four) is going for the tag titles. That takes away possibilities for storylines and new fueds. Having thirteen women isn't enough for three belts, that means four people going after each belt at a time, but even that is skewed a bit because the majority would be after the single's title leaving even less ladies to fight for the tag titles.
I think you are limiting the booking potential of a hybrid Knockouts division. So you have singles champ in a feud with one, possibly two contenders, and tag team champions feuding with one or two teams at a time. That's still only nine people, out of our working figure of twelve Knockouts. That leaves three singles contenders, or an additional tag team, or a combination of both. Factor in that with resources like SHIMMER, capable and talented performers can be brought in to replace duds or injured girls, and you've got a sustainable pool of workers to keep feuds fresh. And remember that at any time a team can be broken up into two singles wrestlers, and that two singles wrestlers can be put together as a team. I think that's quite enough to keep what you call a "sideshow" varied enough to keep from getting stale.
Anyone they got from another promotion would just end up being a filler anyway, there's usually a reason someone isn't on the big show. Even if they were to call someone up, they wouldn't go directly into the title hunt. Well they might, this is TNA.
Many female performers never get called up to the WWE because they don't have the Barbie doll look that McMahon craves. TNA has a collection of female performers that ranges from typically sexy girls like The Beautiful People to unconventional looking but impressive women like Rosie Lottalove. Being more open to the different types of female performers available gives TNA an edge at scouting new talent from other promotions. And what's wrong with bringing in new talent? Sure, they require time and attention before they can be taken seriously, but isn't that how this business keeps going?
I still can't see how someone thought that adding a women's tag division was a good idea. Men's tag teams aren't even that great, one good thing I will say about the women's version is that you don't have wrestlers getting pegged as tag team specialists and stunting their careers. It's only been a handful of mothes, but it hasn't hurt anyone's career in that aspect so far. Singles matches are what makes the big bucks, gets the best storylines, and makes the most stars. Women's wrestling just isn't strong enough to have tag team titles and suceed. You take two of the most boring aspects of wrestling and put them together and you get women's tag team wrestling.
It's still not going to make any money in the WWE either, it's just a flawed concept. Like I just said, you take two things that aren't very good and you put them together. Two negatives don't make a positive.
Now we're talking about tag team wrestling in general, which is far from the most boring aspect of wrestling. The only thing I find boring in modern tag team wrestling is how each nationally televised promotion seemingly underutilizes their tag divisions. There was a time when the tag team matches were as much a part of the reason why I watched each week as the main event.
I'm with you on that I can't honestly say that I've never enjoyed a women's match, I just can't think of one. Everyone has liked a diva or Knockout, or whatever at one point or another, but I can almost certainly guarentee you that it wasn't because of a tag match.
But you see, you've been open in the past at some point to enjoying a good women's match. You just don't remember it because the story was stupid and/or unimportant. Or maybe because it was a feud played out over months infrequently on television, so you never had a chance to remember it as fresh ever. These are the obstacles I see to a successful Knockouts Tag Team Division, and fortunately they can be cleared by adjusting the support creative gives the Knockouts.
I know it's very early in the belts' lifetime, but I can't see them ever being used as a proper stepping stone to the singles title, for that the championships would need TV time every week and along with the singles title they just aren't ever going to get it. That's a big point to where the concept is flawed, if you can't give something the time to succeed, then why have them at all? Women's wrestling will never be a big enough part in the weekly programming to make these titles somewhat sucsessful.
The tag belts don't have to be a stepping stone only to the singles title. They don't even need to be a stepping stone for everyone at all. That is one use for it, sure, but there's nothing wrong with a few established tag teams. In fact, I think the division could use a time where wrestlers aren't just trying to step up to the Knockout Championship, but instead are dedicated to chasing the Knockout Tag Team Championship. Let a few teams make their name chasing the belts, and watch as that energy give those belts some meaning again.
If the best part of your program is women's singles wrestling why would you want to change that? This is subtraction by addition here, by adding new titles to the women's division they subtracted KOs from one of the most sucsessful parts of the show, women's singles wrestling.
It's not subtraction if it's done right. Sign up two to four girls and there will be plenty enough to go around and feel fresh, while still not taking up a huge part of TNA's payroll or television time. The Knockouts Tag Title are still a great creative idea even if TNA botched it's handling.
Your move, sir.
That's me laughing at the idea of the Knockout Tag Team Championships being a good idea.