What would/did make you watch TNA?

[HBK-aholic]

Now, we have very many threads based around all the things TNA could do in order for them to compete with the WWE in terms of ratings, but often we never discuss this in a personal view. Things such as ‘they should alleviate their talent’ etc. But forget about what’s good for the company for a second, what could they do to pull YOU in? Would it be your favourite wrestler moving there? How about a certain match you’ve always wanted to see? We all have something like this, something maybe you've missed in the WWE recently?

If you do already watch the show, what made you start? Did you just see a show randomly one day and become hooked?

 

[NSL]

Two words: Jerry Lynn

Back when TNA still had a four-sided ring, I had a friend tell me I needed to see this match. He pulled up a video of Lynn v. Styles v. Low-Ki, and the rest is history. There were times I got busy, and couldn't watch regularly, if not at all, but I always went back. I caught pieces of shows from friends when they had weekly PPVs, and then caught a few episodes of Impact. I started watching a little more regularly when Jeff Hardy arrived, and then was hooked for good when Christian got there...

I was so mad that he didn't get the title in WWE at that time. I don't foresee anything stopping me from watching in the near future either. WWE goes through some very boring phases for me, and that has never happened with TNA.

 

[The Dewbliners]

The first thing that pulled me in, was the opportunity to see some of my buddies from the local promotion on tv, even if I did have to pay the ten bucks. Guys like Chad Collyer, Matt "Unibrow" Stryker, and yes, even Shark Boy. Come to think of it, the idea of wrestling promotion available only on ppv was intriguing as hell. They had the ability to get away with spots that no network would allow. From the language (one highlight was Russo, pre-salvation, calling his own son a "little shit"), to the out-and-out objectification of women, nothing was off limits.

As for what would make me watch more regularly (i.e., DVR it and watch everyday for a week) would be bringing in some indie guys, like the old days. Either that, or them figuring out a way to bring in the re-animated zombie corpse of Brian Pillman.

 

[burnout4200]

I started watching because of Sting and quickly became addicted. Sting is my all time favorite and I'd probably watch the christian channel if he was on it. From there I became a huge AJ Styles fan and most recently an MCMG fan. If I wasn't watching right now I'd have to say hearing news about RVD showing up would get me into TNA. He's definitely the wrestler I miss the most.

 

[TNA cross the line]

For me it was the "OLD JOE" i was always aware of tna and watched impact every week when they came to spike but it wasnt till may 2006 Sacrafice my first TNA ppv i ever ordered the main event was a tag match Jeff Jarrett & Scott Stiener vs Sting & Samoa Joe then after the match Jarret and Stiener gave Sting a beat down when Joe was walkin up the ramp then looks back see what jarrett and stiener are doing and it looks as if joe is gonna make the save then turns right around and walks out ever since i have been hooked and im sure alot of my other TNA marks miss that Samoa Joe aswell

 

[Freddy4190]

X-Division. Cruiserweights was one of my favorite things in the WWE, when they killed it off. Oh man. It sucked. These were guys i've never heard of. Samoa Joe, A.J Styles, etc etc. Yeah, I had no clue who they were. Plus it was different, the whole promotion was a breath of fresh air from the WWE. It was wrestling, they weren't fueled was much by entertainment as the E was. Shame the X-Division isn't as prominent as it was back in the day. I'd like to see a resurgence.

 

[Slifer90]

First time I saw TNA I was flicking through the channels and caught BG and Kip who were one of my favourite tag teams in the WWF and also caught a glimpse of Kevin Nash. First match I saw the following week after searching for TNA on the TV guide was a match with Abyss in a weekly PPV which was brutal (Thumbtacks, shattered glass, barbed wire). Suppose what pulled me in was seeing familiar faces and have been watching ever since.

 

[BladeRunner]

It really came down to, I wanted to watch wrestling on a thursday night, and TNA just happened to be on then. Once I started watching I haven't stopped since. I really hate missing an episode. What keeps me watching is all the crazy random backstage stuff, great stuff in the ring too, and I like a few hardcore matches here and there.

 

[The Gribbler]

I started watching mainly to see the youth of the company, fresh faces that I didn't know from years of WWE.

An alternative with some great matches was the greatest draw.

Although credit must be given to an KoTM match that I saw where Raven one the strap. I marked the fuck out @ seeing someone who would never have recieved a legit shot in WWE win a strap in another company.

J M O

 

[Tyler44]

If i was to watch TNA on a daily basis, the person who would make me want to watch would be The Rock if he was on the show with the same exact personality he had in wwe. I've always just loved watching him and he would be the one to make me want to watch it.

Now before you guys say anything about The Rock not ever going to be in TNA, remember the name of the thread is what did/would make you watch TNA, not tell me why the Rock is never going to be in TNA.

 

[gers09]

i watch it now and again i wouldnt say am hooked i am more hooked on wwe but that because i grew up on wwe. to make me watch it more stop this over using former wwe stars like nash stennier 3d and that and use the tna orginaels aj daniels joe and that more they are the future of wrestling get them in the spot light and more importantly get rid of hogan he will ruin tna

 

[sammysrh]

I started watching it because Ive always heard that TNA was a good wrestling product and it wasnt just entertainment like wwe. Its actual wrestling and believe it or not the fueds are great! I just started watching it two weeks ago... Im giving it a month chance to prove itself to me and so far im most likely going to watch it everyweek.. Tonight will be my third week watching tna.. I also watched it because i am tired of Raw being so stale.


___________________________________________________________________
Without legends a legend wouldn't be in the making. - RKO

 

[blair4107]

It was 2002, WWE was still working on their post-invasion transition and the product was getting pretty stale. I had been awaiting the XWF making it to television, especially to see guys like A.J. Styles, who at the time I had only heard of, but that never panned out. Then I heard about a new promotion that I could actually access in NWA-TNA. I knew NWA had had their hands in both WWF/E and WCW so I had confidence that the show would be good. I was 15 so paying $9.99 every week wasn't happening but I did catch the show whenever I could. The product was more exciting, I was seeing wrestlers that I hadn't seen in years (B.G. James, Glenn Gilberti, Jeff Jarrett, etc), and overall I was just happy to have any alternative to WWE.

Then came news that NWA-TNA would be moving to cable, to say the least I was excited. Unfortunately the move was to FSN which of course gave it a terrible time slot and in general acted like they were ashamed of it. Still I watched matches with A.J. Styles, "Babybear" Alex Shelley, and many others, even if it was only an hour show.

Finally WWE went back to USA after USA realized what they had lost in RAW's ratings. Spike was still somewhat a fresh network, after the rebranding from the former TNN. The channel was all about male viewership so TNA was a perfect choice. Spike gave them a more generous time slot, even if it did still suck (late night Saturday). TNA dropped NWA but retained the NWA World Title (which I still find more prestigious but I digress) for a while.

If nothing else - TNA is good for wrestling. Options are necessary, when it was just RAW and Smackdown things were going downhill fast. Hell, if RoH could get a channel in which I wouldn't have to pay $15 extra per month for I'd watch that too; we need variety. Whether we ever view these companies as equals or not, competition or not, the very fact that we, as viewers and wrestlers, as employees, have choices.

 

[Nature Boy]

Well, I was, and still am an NWA/WCW devotee.

After the WWF bought WCW, I was pretty mortified.

Then the XWF came along and I really enjoyed it, short lived as it was.

Then I some of the WWA and thought that was really good as well.

What I really enjoyed was the mix of people I loved such as Sting, Bret Hart, Sabu and Jeff Jarrett as well as new guys.

Then, came ROH. I loved ROH from the moment I saw it. It seemed real. The action was awsome!

Then, Finally in 2002 I read the Jeff Jarrett was starting starting a new promotion and teaming with the NWA.

I was very intrigued, and was waiting with baited breath just hoping it would be a success.

I of course started watching the weekly PPV's and net casts and Xplosion.

What I loved about TNA, was again the familiar faces I had watched previously, and also guys I had either never heard of, or had followed in other promotions such as ROH and WWA.

Christopher Daniels, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Shark Boy, Eric Young, Robert Roode, Abyss, Ron Killings, AWM.

I was amazed.

Then of course came iMPACT. I have watched that start, grow and develop into my favorite Wrestling Broadcast.

I love it just about as much as I did Nitro, and that's saying a lot!

I loved the fact that the Wrestlers were different, the action was different and the overall style was different.

It was such a refreshing change to the WWE, which I still think is by in large awful.

TNA, is a company I have grown to really love with a passion over the past 7 years.

Do they get everything right? No, but what company has/does?

Have they made mistakes? Yes, of course, and no doubt they will again. They are Human beings after all.

But TNA does it for me.

Whatever loyalty I have as a Wrestling fan of over 20 years is firmly behind TNA!

I can't wait to see what 2010 and beyond will bring for TNA.

I hope they grow and grow, they are awesome!

 

[SK]

I first tuned into TNA to see what all the fuss about AJ Styles was, needless to say I was impressed. The signings of Angle and Christian kept me relatively interested, but I wouldn't say I've ever been a huge fan. The problem for me is that TNA has such low production quality. It feels cheap, it looks cheap, the music and entrances sound and look bad, just unmemorable. They have commercials at crucial times, their interviewers sound bad and basically the whole show feels like WCW 2.0.

I would tune into TNA a lot more frequently if production value was increased, I really enjoy the action, but it just feels so cheap. Oh and they could really do with getting rid of the six-sided ring... we get it, your trying to be different, the ring just looks ridiculous.

 

[Moonsault360]

The WWE product has become very boring and predictable. The PG rating is really making it weak. Wrestlemania 26 will be the first Wrestlemania i will not order unless they have some fresh storylines . I enjoy TNA its what wwe was before the PG rating. And i look forward to see what goes on with Hogan. ( Not a hogan fan). You know Beefcake, The Nasty boys, Jimmy Hart and all his other buddies will come in and kill styles, Beer Money, Hernandez ....and the other young talent.

 

[King Patrick Star]

I’m one of those fans that try to catch as much Wrestling on TV as possible. When MLW was around, I watched the majority of the episodes. As soon as Impact was on Thursdays on Spike, it became a habit for me to watch. To me, it didn’t matter who was there, I was going to watch it. I must admit, one Superstar I did want to see was Sting. Being that Sting in the WWE is as crazy as Cena and Undertaker in TNA (never say never), I decided to give it a shot. I’ve been watching TNA ever since.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

The garbage WWE was putting out made me watch TNA.

My buddy Mark and I were the only two guys left (regionally speaking) who watched wrestling where I lived at the time, among friends who used to watch, and he told me TNA was getting a television deal. I had become so frustrated with the WWE, that I had stopped watching, and subsequently stopped reading as well.

I've never missed an episode of iMPACT! since. I had no idea Jarrett had his own company, or who half the roster was (guys like Eric Young, Robert Roode, James Storm, Chris Harris, etc.), and the both the six-sided ring and the X-Division matches I saw with guys like Sabin, Jerry Lynn, etc. got me hooked.

 

[Bilawal]

Hulk Hogan got me interested but when I actually watched an episode the wrestling was boring and I kept drfiting off everytime I saw it.

What would make me, some good ass storylines. The WWE storylines aren't the best but they are better than TNA, TNA need some kick ass storylines, the Desmond Wolf one sounds kinda interesting but I dunno.

 

[Storm4life]

Was flipping channels one night and came across Impact. Was trying to figure out who the hell the old man was next to the ring, turns out it was Nash. Sat there trying to figure out what the hell happened to him and got hooked on Beer Money, LAX and Angle, been watching ever since.

 

[Trill Co$by]

I was living in Tennessee when TNA first came about. I had just left a Smackdown taping in Nashville when I saw Athena and Brian Christopher handing out free tickets for their first show. And at the time, they had the NWA banner attached to them. So my family and I, being huge NWA fans, decided that we would go and see the first show. It was amazing. With people like Low-Ki, AJ Styles, Sonny Siaki, The Spanish Fly, and Amazing Red to catch my eye in the X-Division was amazing. And to this day, I watch TNA in rememberance of what it once was. A great promotion that put young talent over the legends, and now I just sit back and watch as Hulk Hogan comes in and destroys it.

Also, my favorite TNA wrestlers of all time are Dylan Kage, TJ Mack, and Kirby Mack... they were used as jobbers essentially, but still they added a nice twist to the X-Division.

 

[Fallen Angel 21.3]

i am all ready watching TNA and i started watching it when they first came on to spike tv on saturdays at 11 and when i first saw the commerical for it looked awesome and they when i watched it i was just amazed at the X-division doing shit that i have never seen in WWE. Then i remember seeing the stars that were on WWE that I liked and thought they had just retired but if i did have to pick a star that would be awesome in TNA it would have to be the whole fuckin show RVD just because he would be awesome in the X-division and maybe Stone Cold Steve Austin just doing some run-ins with Shark Boy, i have always wondered what would happen if those two ever met

 

[CKDaimen]

Ok, fine...apparently my first answer was spamming so here goes...

In all seriousness, Jeff Jarrett falling out of the picture is what made me start watching TNA. I thought he was overpushing himself and overrating himself and it was unbearable to watch him continue to hog TV time, title reigns, and main events. There.

 

[wrestlemaniac]

it started in 03 I would say, I was in 9th grade and came home from school early one friday and was flipping through channels. TNA was on FSN at the time...wrestling at 3pm had me a bit confused. I remember watching an x-division match and at the time wwe cruiser division was going downhill. I remember seeing a segment with america's most wanted (james storm and chris harris) I remember a segment involving gail kim jumping off where i guess the titantron is at onto someone through a table, and I was like...wow, wwe wouln't let divas do this. I was never home from school in time after that, just visited there website as much as I could. When they moved to spike in the 1hr timeslot I started watching on a regular basis. Since then i've missed like 3 or 4 episodes, 1 being by choice. Yea some of what they do is crap but I think it's been better than raw for most of the year. I say raw because well..I haven't watched ecw in like a year, watch some smackdown every now and then...in my opinion from what i've seen the only good shit they have is morrison, zoggler, and jerishow. Them being the unkified tag champs are what keeps me flippin to raw every now and then, don't know what happened with swagger and the miz kinda just went nowhere. I'm waiting for mvp to go heel to actually tune in. Oh and mcmahons vs orton was good for a while but then it just got stale

 

[Suneeboy]

Just started watching this year. WWE started the guest host thing which really upset. The 1st week it was Batista which was good. Then it was Ted Dibiase, which was also good. Then it was Seth Green which was bad, then it was ZZ Top which was so bad I couldn’t even watch. When Santino came out with that stupid beard, and they played their guitars I screeched and ran for the remote. I was done with the WWE. But I love to watch wrestling so I needed something. I was already watching ROH which was holding me over, but they don’t have any stories.

I turned to TNA saying, “Let me watch the WWE copycats do something cheesy”. I was skeptical because the last time I watched TNA it was because I was flipping through the channels and they had a feast or fired bit, and Spicy Hot Chilli Man or whatever his name was, was on the show and it was an awful gimmick and I guess a terrible time for me to switch the channel. I had no intention on watching TNA, but the Main Event Mafia was cutting a promo, and Booker T was just acting a fool and I was just dying laughing because he was just saying stupidness, but at the same time I was entertained by it.

I kept watching every week, but what made me become a fan was the brawl. The brawl was so over the top and it had never been done on that level for that long of a segment. When they had the cops come in to end it, I was just rolling on the floor laughing. Since then it seems like no matter what it is, TNA just seems to read my mind as I watch the program. I actually enjoy the show…so much so that I don’t read spoilers or insider news surrounding TNA. It is untainted to me and it is very enjoyable to watch. I love how they do not treat the viewers as if they are idiots. I appreciate the shoot style promos and announcing. Did I forget to mention the wrestling is awesome as well?

If I could change 2 things I would want them to get a square ring, and do shows outside of the Impact zone. TNA is onto something, and I am glad that I came in at the right time and have the opportunity to experience something big.