Downfall Of A Cowboy

[ABMorales787]

In 2011 James Storm shocked wrestling fans late in the year by becoming TNA World Champion. On the Impact following Bound For Glory James defeated Kurt Angle in about 30 seconds with his signature Last Call Superkick. 2 weeks later he lost the title to Bobby Roode in the start of one of TNA's most memorable feuds as well as the seeming catalyst to turn James Storm into the flagship star of TNA. A country music video, endless support and major build for his rematch seemed to point to him winning the title. But it seems that just as various twists of fate led him to being TNA Champion, other twists of fate would cripple his chances to the top.

When he first became champion it was because Kurt Angle was injured and needed time off. At the same time there was very little faith in a babyface Bobby Roode working out. Therefor Storm was used as the bridge for Bobby's heel turn as well as start off the breakup of Beer Money. Storm caught on in 2 weeks. Like REALLY caught on. He came off as a very likeable and reliable babyface with his gimmick being a throwback to Stone Cold Steve Austin. In those 2 weeks he clicked enough to inspire heavy dislike in the fact that he was a transitional champion. For now.

As I said, all signs pointed to Storm winning the title off Bobby Roode at early as Lockdown 2012. But then two more things threw things off. Storm both needed and got foot surgery as well as delivered his son. Bobby Roode made it public knowledge that James Storm lost his father and brother so it's no shock that he may have put family first. Add the surgery had just gotten and the end result was the bitter ending at Lockdown. Well, that's OK. There's always Bound For Glory, right? Well it seems like it was the plan. Following a great return at Slammiversary X, James Storm went on to completely dominate the BFG Series. But along the way something else happened. Austin Aries. The Greatest Man That Ever lived had debuted around the same time as James and Roode rose to prominence and in a year's worth of time showed he was above the crop of talent he was with. The end result was TNA deciding to trade one major blow off to various small ones. Aries won the title, which led to Hardy's Redemption while Roode and Storm was just a blood feud without the title. Storm has not sniffed the World title ever since.

The sad fact is that it's more than TNA dropping the ball with him. Lots of unexpected things stopped James Storm from getting to the top and now he finds himself as enhancement for rising midcarders. Putting over Daniels, Gunner and the repackaged AJ Styles. He's also shown to be injury prone. Very injury prone. At least once a year since his rise, ironically, he's been sidelined for an injury. It's no Magnum T.A. story, but the pieces show Storm was on his way to major things before the stars were re-alligned and he found himself in a crowded area. What are your thoughts on the Cowboy? Do you believe he was destined for greatness? Or just lucky to be under a good circumstance once?
​

 

[Lowdown]

I think Storm would've made a good champ for a few months. The aforementioned circumstances would hinder a push to championship status, but I can't say he's fallen from grace to far. He is a tag team champ again, and he has had good singles matches, particularly against Roode. His career is far from over, so some good things could be ahead for him.

 

[klunderbunker]

I totally bought into Storm and the guy had what it took to be a big time player. To tihs day I think he's better than Roode and I like him more than Bobby any day.

The Lockdown loss killed him though. I mean it stopped him dead in his tracks and he never came close again. Storm is looked at as a guy who chokes in the big matches and hit a fluke superkick to win the world title. He lost the title to Roode then he lost the rematch then he lost the BFG Series. He beat Roode in a meaningless match (where the focus was on the useless King Mo) and hasn't done a thing since.

The problem with the Lockdown loss was everything being set up perfectly for Storm to win. he had the momentum, he had the story, he was in Tennessee, but he lost. It would be like Austin losing at Wrestlemania 14. The line from TNA backers was you can build him up for a bigger match down the line. The problem with that theory is it's not so easy. Sometimes you can't keep waiting for a bigger moment because there might not be one.

Storm's moment should have been at Lockdown and you can worry about the injuries etc later. Even if he loses the title a few weeks later (and remember he was back in June for Slammiversary so he wasn't out that long), you have the big moment and worry about the rest later. Look at Mick Foley. He lost the title like two weeks after he won it, but people remember the big win, not the loss. Storm never had the big win so the loss is al people can remember.

Storm can come back, but he needs to be rebuilt as a singles star which takes time and a faith that TNA doesn't seem to have in him.

 

[Alex]

I think James Storm's catchphrase 'Sorry about your damn luck' pretty much sums it up.

The guy was on the way to being a major main event talent. I'd even go so far as to say possibly the face of TNA. But with injuries family stuff and the rise of other superstars its just been bad timing on Storm's part.

I mean after he came back from Lockdown 2012 it looked as if he'd win the title of Roode at Bound For Glory, but Austin Aries was so white hot at the time and Storm unfortunately wasn't (red hot at best) that TNA decided to capitalise on Aries in the way the way they probably would have with Storm at Lockdown. Then Jeff Hardy had his redemption angle and there's nothing more feel good than a guy reaching the top after falling so low (and Hardy had fallen to the bottom) face vs face wouldn't really have worked so they threw Roode in for a bit. Then Bully Ray turns up merging with the Aces & 8s angle that TNA had put a lot of stock into. That's good Storm could be seen as the saviour of TNA from Aces & 8s. But AJ Styles is doing his lone wolf thing which is something else that TNA have been putting a lot of stock into and it looks like Styles will be the saviour so Storm gets shafted again. THEN Sabin returns from career threatening injuries and again TNA want to capitalise on a feel good moment (the guy coming back and beating the odds) so they do that.

One break from wrestling has set Storm back one or two years. And apparently injured again now so he might need to take time off again setting him back again.

Storm was (and I still believed is) destined for main event greatness. It's just bad timing has set the catalyst of that greatness back somewhat.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Strom is the classic example of "Transitional Champ"... they wanted Roode to have the belt but needed a way to get it on him that people would care about, so they used his tag partner as the stepping stone.

Storm has zero to complain about, as he goes down as a champion, albiet a 3 week one... He got better than Christian, who had held the same belt got as well as countless other "big boy" belts did for his first WWE title...

Ultimately Storm was one of those guys that needed to get out of TNA (Roode the same) so TNA pushed them to keep them... Now I can imagine the horror story of the name etc but WWE would actually have kept Storm and Roode pretty much as they were gimmick wise had they jumped when they had the chance... Storm would never have been world champ there, Roode possibly but ultimately James Storm is the cautionary tale that Chris Sabin needs to be looking at... in a year, no one will care about him either...

 

[ABMorales787]

I totally bought into Storm and the guy had what it took to be a big time player. To tihs day I think he's better than Roode and I like him more than Bobby any day.

The Lockdown loss killed him though. I mean it stopped him dead in his tracks and he never came close again. Storm is looked at as a guy who chokes in the big matches and hit a fluke superkick to win the world title. He lost the title to Roode then he lost the rematch then he lost the BFG Series. He beat Roode in a meaningless match (where the focus was on the useless King Mo) and hasn't done a thing since.

The problem with the Lockdown loss was everything being set up perfectly for Storm to win. he had the momentum, he had the story, he was in Tennessee, but he lost. It would be like Austin losing at Wrestlemania 14. The line from TNA backers was you can build him up for a bigger match down the line. The problem with that theory is it's not so easy. Sometimes you can't keep waiting for a bigger moment because there might not be one.

Storm's moment should have been at Lockdown and you can worry about the injuries etc later. Even if he loses the title a few weeks later (and remember he was back in June for Slammiversary so he wasn't out that long), you have the big moment and worry about the rest later. Look at Mick Foley. He lost the title like two weeks after he won it, but people remember the big win, not the loss. Storm never had the big win so the loss is al people can remember.

Storm can come back, but he needs to be rebuilt as a singles star which takes time and a faith that TNA doesn't seem to have in him.

I think by consequence, Storm will be remembered as the perfect example of waiting too much. They decided to play it safe for Lockdown and save it for BFG but things changed the endgame of Storm winning by a lot. It brings a lot of questions. Would ratings be better now that TNA finally had a goldenboy? Would there be bigger attendance for their tapings? How would the main event landscape be these days?

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

I remember the furor when Storm won the title, what Hogan said about Roode and everything; and then Roode won and turned AND HOW! It was all brilliant, Roode then went on a rampage as a dominant champ and did a damn fine job at it, Storm strayed off TV for a while.



When Storm did come back, it was the ultimate chase story and I was hooked. Storm was doing a magnificent job burning under the radar and week after week, you could hear the crowd pop for him a little more. TNA, and Christ's sake TNA's fault, should've NEVER gone with Aries. If you just follow simple logic, like any game, any movie, and would've let your heel champ have the title till the returning face, who is shining brighter than ever, takes it from him on your Top PPV, that shit is tried and tested and gold.



TNA blew it. Storm was loved by the fans, and was there at the right place at the right time for BFG 2012. It was supposed to be his moment and I can't stress enough how disappointing from a fan's perspective it was that they pulled the trigger on Lockdown. NO! It all started at BFG, you've waited long enough, they both haven't crossed paths and are feuding with other wrestlers. Then was the time. Oh and fuck Austin Aries and whosoever that thing 'oh but he was hot so he won'. NO MATTER how hot he was, he will never be the draw that Storm would've been had he had his moment.

 

[RicSpade]

I'm sorry but its not a lack of James Storm momentum being there from all the things halting it, but I think a lot of it is that TNA drops the ball a lot on guys who are or were hot, not that WWE doesn't do the same thing, but I also think James Storm is like an AJ styles he doesn't need a title to be over with fans.

The one thing that does bother me is James Storm just like guys like RVD, who are over are getting depushed due to the fact that these Midcard guys are getting overexposure on TV. I mean seriously how much time did Garrett Bischoff and Wes Brisco really need to get over that their bad guys for Aces and Eights? Please, or What about Hulk Hogan saturating his crap of this guy and this guy and this guy are the faces of wrestlings future. We don't need Hulk Hogans Bi-weekly endorsement on talent, you wouldn't give the rub to guys who deserved it in the 90's so why the hell should I believe you now?

 

[The Eighties]

The first thing that hurt Storm was the rise of Aries which is ironic as they pulled the trigger on Aries as they didn't want to miss the moment, yet you can argue they missed the moment with Storm when they didn't pull the trigger at Lockdown.

However I don't agree on the last part, the way the Lockdown finish was worked it left him primed for winning at BFG. The story where he went away to contemplate his future and they showed him at home with his family on his ranch I think really worked, and made him more than just the beer drinking redneck.

The promo he cut the night he returned was gold, I don't think AJ, Sabin, Magnus, Joe or any other faces TNA can push has that type of promo in them. The problem is when a face tells you he's going to get his redemption and win the title at BFG, then fails again, you damage the character because faces don't keep failing.

Even though Aries getting so over was the catalyst, where TNA really screwed up Storm was in turning everything on it's head to give Hardy the title. Once Aries had beaten Roode you'd gotten the moment and Roode could have won the title back the following month and still headlined BFG with Storm. Instead they shut both Roode and Storm out of the main event of their biggest PPV and then took a guy who was a hugely popular fresh face in Aries and turned him heel, all to facilitate the Hardy title win, which if I'm not mistaken was around the time his contract was about up.

I think TNA have better wrestlers than James Storm but if they'd played things through with him I doubt they'd have a better total package, main event babyface.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I was into Storm and I think he could have been a long term singles star for TNA, for the next several years at least. Generally speaking, I think he's on equal terms with Bobby Roode whether it be in the ring or on the mic. He was someone fans were rallying behind as a babyface and came off as one of the few guys on the roster, who hasn't already been a veteran main eventer for WCW or WWE, as a long term main event guy.

James Storm is someone that I think could still be rebuilt into a major singles star for TNA, should they choose to go in that direction with him. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to be a priority right now and, generally speaking, hasn't really been a priority since just after the Turning Point ppv last year. Even prior to that, he'd been losing momentum for quite a while. He beat Roode & Styles in a threeway match to become #1 contender at Turning point but TNA ultimately booked him taking a match against Roode soon after, in which he lost the spot. Since then, Storm has been just floating around without any real rhyme or reason. Even his current run as one half of the TNA World Tag Team Champions feels underwhelming. James Storm is a 12 time World Tag Team Champion in TNA, yet it feels like a big step backward to me. He & Gunner have held the titles for 62 days, yet they haven't been shown very much, if at all, on television during most of that time. It only reinforces the notion of Storm simply not being a priority.

Personally, I think they dropped the ball with Storm. I think that there are some wrestlers in TNA who are better inside the ring, but that's not to say that he's not really good himself. Combine that with the personality he has and the strong promo skills; then you have someone that could bring a really strong overall package into the main event scene.

 

[UFOcalling]

I may be in the minority here, being a TNA/IW fan - but absolutely NOT a fan of James Storm as a singles wrestler. I was never impressed by AMW, and was only a fan of Beer Money because of Roode. I think TNA made the right decision when they took the belt off Storm and put it on Roode, and Roode went on to become the longest reigning TNA WHC. That has to be worded carefully, since Roode isn't the longest reigning World Champion in TNA history, I don't believe (because TNA used to use the NWA Heavyweight Championship as their highest title). That's a discussion for another time, and it falls under the category of semantics anyway.

James Storm has never impressed me on the mic, or in the ring. Like I started out by saying here, I might very well be in the vast minority with this opinion; and I'm expecting that my outlook will somehow be considered "incorrect" by some. I first started watching TNA (on a regular basis) in 2007ish. I remember AMW vaguely, but they came off as jobbers to me. I don't remember seeing them as tag champs, but even if they were (I don't feel like googling it right now) - they didn't have much of an impact on me as a new fan at that time (even if they were "established" by '07ish).

I started to pay attention to both Roode & Storm when Beer Money was formed. Roode seemed like a jobber at first to me as well. It wasn't until Beer Money was having their feud with the Machine Guns that I really started to consider that at least one or two of these four guys could go on to have stellar singles careers. Storm had flashes of brilliance, but then I'd see him on that stupid beer cooler/scooter thing that he rode to the ring...and I would immediately remember what a joke he seemed to be. I understand the flip side of that coin, that cooler-scooter thing could have been what got him over with a lot of the fans. I can see why some (or many) TNA fans see Storm as a main eventer. I just never did, and I don't know if I ever will.

As it's already been stated, Storm's main downfall has been injuries (more so than TNA "dropping the ball" with him). It seemed like every time he would get in a good position for a "real" push, he would get hurt. Storm lost his high profile matches with Roode, and I think that was the "correct" choice to make. If they would have done the WWE thing (letting each guy win, making the feud even-steven), it would have discredited both Roode & Storm. The way it was booked, Roode was made to look extremely strong. I would have made the same decision, I definitely see a lot more in Roode than I do in Storm.

I actually like Storm's catchphrase "Sorry about your damn luck", and it would work well for him as a heel or a face. There's just something about Storm (or, rather that there's not something about Storm) that pulls me in. There never really has been, and I don't see it ever being there. I might just be cynical, however. Who knows? Storm could turn heel, tweak his character slightly, and I could be right there with the rest of the TNA fans seeing him as a legitimate threat to the World Title. As for now, I think Storm is quite complacent with his face character as "Stone Cold Lite"...and I don't think he's going to gamble with a character change, even if it's what he desperately needs.

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

Despite the controversy surrounding Hulk Hogan's comments regarding Bobby Roode not being ready to win the title at BFG 2011, looking back, I have to believe this was hyperbole to build the "It Factor" as a top line heel. The other part was having his partner win the World Title and him screwing him over breaking up TNA's most popular tandem ever in the process.

Basically, the Cowboy was Roode's stepping stone. As is usually the case when one tag team screws over his partner, it was pretty much guaranteed that vengeance would be sought... but this is were things began to get complicated. I firmly believe that TNA was taken by surprise by fan support for Storm, so they started pushing a slow burn storyline. Then A Double returned and fans went mad AND at the same time, Jeff Hardy not only returned from his sabbatical but returned hot! As much as TNA fans might love the former Beer Money members, it makes more sense for a Jeff Hardy to headline the biggest PPV because him main eventing is an easier sell to people not familiar with IW - putting him against someone who had great momentum was a no brainer... and anyway, Storm still needed to get his revenge at the event.

Since that time, I believe he has struggled because Roode isn't the champion and because Bully Ray became the character he is now. Injuries have also hampered him but I believe that factors have just conspired against him.

However - James himself, Bobby, Austin, Bully and now Chris all point towards the Cowboy getting another opportunity down the line - criticize TNA all you want but they cannot be accused in recent times of not pulling the trigger on the giving the deserving their day in the sun.

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

I still to this day think, that instead of Hogan coming down to even the odds when Aces n 8s are running amok, if the music hits and its 'Johnny Cash listennnnnnnnnnnnnnaaaaaaaaing', the crowd would erupt every time.


Storm just has that IT. He is the cavalry, the hero, the man. TNA sould've waited with baited breath to give this guy his moment. His whole persona, look, mannerism scream babyface.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I still to this day think, that instead of Hogan coming down to even the odds when Aces n 8s are running amok, if the music hits and its 'Johnny Cash listennnnnnnnnnnnnnaaaaaaaaing', the crowd would erupt every time.

Storm just has that IT. He is the cavalry, the hero, the man. TNA sould've waited with baited breath to give this guy his moment. His whole persona, look, mannerism scream babyface.

Yup. Not only that, but let's not forget the last beer drinkin' red neck got over pretty fuckin' big when he finally got the shot at the top. Storm's no Austin, but he has what it takes to play that role in TNA — he just needs to be given the opportunity again.

TNA is a predominantly southern "territory" anyway, and do the vast majority of their touring and live events within the Bible belt. He's shown little difficulty in the past in getting the fans to buy into him, so I see no reason there'd be any hurdles this time around. He just needs a shot.

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

Yup. Not only that, but let's not forget the last beer drinkin' red neck got over pretty fuckin' big when he finally got the shot at the top. Storm's no Austin, but he has what it takes to play that role in TNA — he just needs to be given the opportunity again.

TNA is a predominantly southern "territory" anyway, and do the vast majority of their touring and live events within the Bible belt. He's shown little difficulty in the past in getting the fans to buy into him, so I see no reason there'd be any hurdles this time around. He just needs a shot.

That southern belt still love them some 'rasslin. And James Storm, and for the life of me TNA I don't get it, could be your biggest cash cow. And you know the best part? He would be home grown and you're own who rose to the top. Those fans absolutely adore James Storm plus, he looks like a superstar.


When Bobby Roode beat him and Storm was home and they were doing those vignettes, that was the time I was most invested in TNA. I loved the turn and I was a HUGE Roode fan. Storm, won me over. Storm surpassed Roode in terms of 'who had the BIGGER potential to be THE guy'. And Roode was brilliant as a heel, absolutely brilliant. TNA had done such a good job keeping these two at bay and slowly you could see that their worlds were colliding by the summer of 2012.

And then TNA gave the title to Aries.


This is why I hate Sabin getting the title too. Flat out, he doesn't deserve it. Flat out, it makes no sense to me even if Bully Ray massacres him at Hardcore Justice to take it from him. You've killed a huge chunk of momentum. How would it be if Triple H lost the title on his way to WM 21 when he was supposed to square off with Batista? How would it be if JBL lost the strap months before Mania 21 when the torch was to be passed to Cena?


BFG is THE PPV still innit? Make stars on that PPV. Give them their moment. Thats what wrestling is and for all the swerves and shocks, nothing is more enthralling to a fan in attendance or sitting at home than seeing a new breakout superstar getting his moment on the biggest stage.


Not for nothing do I read this thread and weep, for more reason than one:

http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=208720&highlight=

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

TNA went with Roode over Storm. It was a good decision.

James Storm is a great talent. I like his ring work, he's one of the few guys that TNA audience really connects with, and he's got some great charisma. Easy guy to place anywhere on the card. A great worker that I"m sure TNA loves having around for any occasion.

I should preface this by saying I like James Storm and Gunner as a tag team. I think they look great together, have good tag team chemistry, and it's great for Gunner. It gives James Storm something to do. Because here's the real problem: Storm isn't a member of the Aces & Eights. He's not a Main Event Mafia member. He's not a Hall of Famer, a MMA or boxing legend. He's not a former WWE world champion, and he's not a major main event level heel.

So basically, he's not what TNA is looking for as a ball-carrier right now. That's nothing against him, they just have a ton of things going on, and the mid-card always gets lost in the shuffle. If they had a real mid-card title that wasn't about the X-Division, he might have something better to do as a singles worker. The Legends/TV title didn't work. Nobody cared. It was never defended or given any reason reason to be special. The titles they do have are only cared about once a month as it is, because there's too much going on in a two hour product, and it's impossible to get everyone over with only one show. Not that they can do two shows; just saying with their current format, not everyone is going to get the ball.

So for now, while there's two big factions, two (technically three) MMA fighters on the roster, an X-Division guy as the world champion, and the Bound for Glory series happening, let me try and make the best of a non-existent tag team division.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Thought I'd go ahead and bump this as it got some good discussion before.

I personally am disappointed with Storm's downfall. TNA screwed up on multiple opportunities with him. The feud with Roode should have made him into a permanent main eventer. Why did he not win at Lockdown? If they wanted to stretch it out until Bound For Glory that's fine, but that ship had sailed by the time they put the World Championship on Austin Aries per Option C. So there went the opportunity for the perfect moment for Storm.... redemption one year later at their biggest show of the year if he defeated Roode for the title in a rematch.

Now he is tag teaming again, but not with a partner like Roode or Harris. Gunner is his tag team partner. GUNNER. Storm has gone from TNA World Champion (no matter how short the reign, he held it) to tag teaming with one of the most useless members of the roster. If that's not a bogus downfall then I don't know what is. Look at his promos and matches, he deserves better than this. I believe he was destined for greatness and still is. TNA need to build Storm back up to take his rightful place among the elite in the federation. He deserves a second TNA World Championship reign, and for it to last a decent amount of time as he has more than earned it.

 

[IT Factor]

I am a big James Storm fan and have been going all the way back to his days in AMW. Both Storm & Roode have been floundering around since their World title feud ended and I cannot understand the logic, to be quite honest. Storm is a damn good all-around performer and he is being horribly misused stuck with a no talent hack like Gunner. I have never liked Gunner at any point in his TNA career and this only brings Storm down being saddled with a sub-standard tag team partner. Storm was great in AMW and Beer Money but how anyone could think Storm & Gunner was a great idea is beyond my capacity to comprehend.

 

[Stinger]

I think Storm is being underused right now, but I don't like him in a main event role right now. I'd really prefer to see him in the upper mid-card and even being in the co-main event of pay-per-views. His match with Roode at BFG last year was awesome and it's a little surprising to see how those two have gone in opposite directions since that day in terms of getting a push.

 

[Jstrike]

storm got just what sabin got this year a lucky title victory
it was for the good of the moment but tna had no expections for either guy there a good wrestler but not what tna wants for a tna champion.
so it was to help build up their opponents. storm had a good run he shouldnt be thrown out just yet he's just at a boring spot but storm can evantally get back to main event someday. cause he is a wrestler and not just a good talker and tna normally treats the good wrestlers good