If You Had Free Roam on the Leader of A&E, Who Would it Be?

[TheBadGuy92]

Well if WWE had any creative input on it, Hornswoggle would be the big reveal. If I could pick anyone it would be Nick Hogan cause why not have all the Hogans on air? Nick: the rebellious child who opposes his father.

Now i gotta change my pick!! Lol

Why not Shane'O Mac?? Trying to destroy daddys competition from the inside. Or even since its a bunch of the E rejects have the leader be Triple H, have the group be a set up long in the process to help his father in law and his future business??

 

[minoru808]

Sting. period.

 

[willross]

You have been given free roam to pick whoever you want and you are not picking Vince McMahon to be the Aces and Eights Leader? You are telling me if you had a room full of everyone in wrestling to be the Leader of the group trying to kill TNA.....you would pick Kevin Steen? ARE YOU FUCKING HIGH???

The right answer is Vince McMahon, and yes there is a right or wrong answer. The answer is Vince McMahon.

 

[Papa Pillman]

The right answer is Vince McMahon, and yes there is a right or wrong answer. The answer is Vince McMahon.

No actually Vince is the worst possible answer. That would mean that WWE had purchased TNA and that is the absolute worst thing that could happen for all wrestling fans. Sure it may please WWE fanboys, but i said "wrestling fans", in other words, WWE fanboys not included.

But thanks for proving your ignorance and stupidity so succintly.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

UT, Austin, Punk, Jesus Christ, Lech Walesa and Metta World Peace are all great choices but I am going with someone who is a little bit more unrealistically realistic.

The only common denominator in all of Aces and Eights actions is that they are trying to make TNA look like shit. They don't seem to have any vendetta against one wrestler or any intention of taking over. They just seem to kind of want to make TNA fail.

For that reason I think it would make the most sense to reveal someone that has a personal vendetta against someone like Dixie or Hulk. Someone who wants to make trouble. For me, although maybe unrealistic, the perfect reveal for the leader would be to reveal Hulk's ex-wife, Linda.

It makes sense. She can play a character that took all of Hulk's money and now wants to take his livelihood. She can't do it on her own since she is not a wrestler, so she took Hulk's money and financed a group of some of the toughest men in and out of the business to make his life a living hell so TNA will fail and Hogan will have no where left to go.

Again, this is incredibly unrealistic. Linda Hogan is no actress (although that is not stopping Brooke) and probably doesn't have a good enough relationship with Hulk to work together but this angle stopped making sense months ago and this is the only explanation that would pull it together for me.

On top of this all they could throw Bully in the group and reveal that Bully was sleeping with Linda all along and this was just an opportunity for Linda to get rvenge on her daughter as well for siding with Hulk.

But I'll take Austin as well.

 

[scomvp316]

I am sorry Steen is a better wrestler than 95% of the WWE wrestlers. Sorry he doesn't look like a steroid using bodybuilder but if you were to ask wrestling fans I guarantee other than CM Punk Steen would be the best choice of a wrestler compared to the WWE Roster

 

[Jerichoholic8894]

The right answer is Vince McMahon, and yes there is a right or wrong answer. The answer is Vince McMahon.

For the record, I had also picked McMahon. I guess we are the only two on that ship.

 

[farquat1]

Anyone?...

I'd have to go with the original diva, SUNNY! Sunny and Damien running Aces and Eights would make for AMAZNG TV. She could say that the real reason she is back is because she is tired of everyone caling her a pill poppin ****e. Then in a mr socko like gesture shows off her wedding ring!!! She could then tease a suprise member that was there all along and really fooled everyone.... A drugged up Jeff Hardy! He could come out withdrawing from drugs and shes the one who got him back on the wagon. She could pull out the pills, give them to him and he starts "hulking up". Then proceeds to bury TNA and puts over OXYCONTIN. Ken Kennedy comes out and cuts a promo saying "I like drugs, they have a place in wrestling!" Aces and EightBalls ae gonna prove that you can be high and perform at a top lovel in this and any business!

Hulk Hogan comes out saying no they dont and this is wrong, they proceed to beat the hell out of him. Then Kennedy pulls out a jar of coke pours it on Hogans Back and the members start ripping lines and we fade to black.

 

[SpecialFNK]

maybe 5-10 % of your general/casual viewers even know who Steen is.
bad choice.
it doesn't matter how he wrestles, he's not the type you want to bring in to lead a group. he would be more the type to bring in using Gut Check.

this is probably going to sounds stupid to most. but if we can say anyone, then IMO a celebrity bad ass would make more sense than a relatively unknown wrestler. Impact Wrestling is a TV show, where wres, I mean where ratings matter.
I don't know who that could be since I don't really pay attention to male actors. but I think Charlie Sheen would be better than Kevin Steen.

how about Lance Armstrong. he's a biker.

Vince McMahon might have been a good choice back when he was in better shape to run a wrestling company, and maybe if he would actually run TNA separate than WWE and not shut down TNA.

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

From a pure fantasy standpoint i'd make the higher power be CM Punk and the VP be Austin Aries. TNA's top heel right now (well him or Roode it's a toss up) and the hottest thing in wrestling right now joining forces to lead the stable would be cool. Obviously Punk fits the biker look.

From a realistic stand point? I'd make John Hennigan (Morrison) the VP of Aces & Eights cause I always wanted to see him join up with TNA and think one day it will happen. And the higher power would be Raven. He fits the biker look and both guys would be huge additions for the group and would even add a ton of star power to the group.

 

[thegoldensheath88]

The leader should be Abyss. Or Bully Ray. Devon and Bubba run over the old geezers and take over. Or Abyss and Joesph Park story is main story on impact.

 

[barleybear]

I hate to say it but what about Brooke Hogan. Tired of living in daddys shoes. Its not a crazy name that brings down the house but it would be kind of shocking. I mean no one beat her up. And it would be very wrestling like to have daughter or maybe even son (nick) destroy what daddy has tried to build.

 

[LODemolition]

The guy who might have more legitimate heat with Hogan than anyone in wrestling, The Ultimate Warrior.

The guy comes back and says "I bet you never thought you'd see me again, but I'm here to burn TNA to the ground and rid the wrestling world of you once and for all." That's if he could put a promo together where we could understand what he's saying for all of 10 seconds.

 

[scomvp316]

I know most recently Steen had mentioned he would never go to WWE as it is now because of the politics. I don't know what his feelings are towards EB and TNA but WWE loyalists need to get out of that glass bubble. You talked about the casual fan and look at all the casual viewers WWE has lost just when they announced the purchase of WCW. I do think the industry is still in a holding pattern of attracting casual viewers. You mentioned that only 5-10% of casual viewers know who Steen is but I bet 90% of wrestling fans know who Steen is. Steen would never agree to Gut Check because Kenny King came from ROH and he wasn't part of Gut Check.

 

[SpecialFNK]

You mentioned that only 5-10% of casual viewers know who Steen is but I bet 90% of wrestling fans know who Steen is. Steen would never agree to Gut Check because Kenny King came from ROH and he wasn't part of Gut Check.

and how man "wrestling" fans are watching the TV show that is Impact Wrestling?
IMO a majority of your audience is not watching to see great wrestling, they're watching to be entertained, and wrestling is a part of that.
people want drama too. that's why the wedding for Brooke and Bully had such a high rating.
wrestling is a soap opera.
Steen is in ROH. I wouldn't be surprised if most of your casual/general viewers don't even know what ROH is. why would they? IMO most of your audience isn't coming on the internet to check out wrestling sites for news and information.
I wouldn't expect many members of wrestling sites to agree with me, because most people who check out wrestling sites and forums are knowledgeable about all wrestling. the 2 most recent shows of Impact got 1.57 and 1.60 million viewers. of all those people, how many of them are coming online to look at wrestling sites? I would think not that many. and if they're not coming online to spend time on wrestling sites, how would they know what ROH is.
before Kenny King came to TNA, I had no idea who he was. once he showed up I would read that people say he was really good. but even after coming in so far he hasn't been pushed that hard. when Austin Aries came in back in 2011, he wasn't pushed hard right away. Aries came back in June, and then won the cruis, I mean X division title in September.
I would think if Kevin Steen was coming in he would come into the mid card and have to be built up there even before being around the top of the mid card.
if Steen came in with Aces/Eights, he would be less known than DOC and Knox, who were both with WWE and seen by more people.
I've personally never seen Steen other than just doing a google image search to see what he looks like.

 

[Papa Pillman]

and how man "wrestling" fans are watching the TV show that is Impact Wrestling?
IMO a majority of your audience is not watching to see great wrestling, they're watching to be entertained, and wrestling is a part of that.
people want drama too. that's why the wedding for Brooke and Bully had such a high rating.
wrestling is a soap opera.
Steen is in ROH. I wouldn't be surprised if most of your casual/general viewers don't even know what ROH is. why would they? IMO most of your audience isn't coming on the internet to check out wrestling sites for news and information.
I wouldn't expect many members of wrestling sites to agree with me, because most people who check out wrestling sites and forums are knowledgeable about all wrestling. the 2 most recent shows of Impact got 1.57 and 1.60 million viewers. of all those people, how many of them are coming online to look at wrestling sites? I would think not that many. and if they're not coming online to spend time on wrestling sites, how would they know what ROH is.
before Kenny King came to TNA, I had no idea who he was. once he showed up I would read that people say he was really good. but even after coming in so far he hasn't been pushed that hard. when Austin Aries came in back in 2011, he wasn't pushed hard right away. Aries came back in June, and then won the cruis, I mean X division title in September.
I would think if Kevin Steen was coming in he would come into the mid card and have to be built up there even before being around the top of the mid card.
if Steen came in with Aces/Eights, he would be less known than DOC and Knox, who were both with WWE and seen by more people.
I've personally never seen Steen other than just doing a google image search to see what he looks like.

Alot of what you're saying here SpecialFNK is completely true.

I do think you underestimate exactly what percentage of the TNA viewing audience are knowledgable, devout wrestling fans. I'd guess that of the people who watch Impact the first million are your more informed wrestling fans. They are the ones who will tune in every week to watch no matter what is happening on the show simply because they love pro wrestling. They are the ones who go on wrestling news site, read or even post on message boards like this one, etc. Those fans will know Steen. You do have to recognize that ROH's syndication deal puts them in more homes than WWE or TNA because you don't need cable to watch their product, Sinclair stations are mostly Fox, ABC, NBC, and MyNetworkTV so there are millions that have the product at their disposable(recognize I'm not asserting millions actually watch or that more watch ROH than the big 2, just pointing out the widespread exposure that ROH's program has available). So yes alot of the "core fanbase" will know Steen, more than you are leading us to believe.

But where you're right- It is not the "splash" move. Impact needs more than the "million fans" I discussed a moment ago to be a success. How successful they actually are is determined by how many viewers they can bring in each week over and above that gauranteed core audience. So if you're looking for the reveal of the Aces and Eights leader to be the kind of huge splash move that spikes(no pun intended) bigger viewership instantly just based off who it is, then no, Steen clearly isn't that guy. But neither are any of the likely choices in the vein of EB or double-J either.

I guess my point was one of realism. Would CM Punk, or the Undertaker, or Steve Austin instantly pop a huge number and a crazy boom in interest? Of fucking course it would. But those things simply can't happen. I would prefer even when tossing out fantasy options to address things that, while longshots, are still within the realm of possibility. I think using that criteria Steen is a great choice. Not because he is the splash move, but because he is ultimately the one who would produce the best addition to the product in the role.

Steen in that role would not make the world stop and take notice instantly, but as soon as anyone gives him a chance they will be hooked and he would make a huge difference gradually. Do more people by sheer number know Festus and Knox than Steen? I'm sure they do. But that doesn't mean people care about them. Whether people know Steen or not now, after they hear one promo and watch one high profile match, they will care. They will be hooked. He is that good. The guy is a bonefied star. He is every bit the talent of the most talented guys that the big two have brought in from the indy's recently. He is every bit the talent that Jon Moxley(Dean Ambrose) is. He is every bit the talent that Austin Aries is. Weight and knee problems are the one thing that has kept a major company from offering him the world. You say people want to be entertained and they want drama. Steen is the guy who would prove to deliver those things. And if you familiarized yourself with his work, I am confident you would understand why I feel that way.

But ultimately I'm wasting my time talking about this because it will never happen. Steen is the king of indy wrestling right now. TNA wouldn't match the money he makes, and he wouldn't leave his current freedoms behind to risk being misused by TNA.

 

[MINISTRYrising]

James Mitchell. The guy was the Paul Hayman Of TNA, everything he did just made you want to hate him. Mitchell was just awsome on the mic and would easily help put aces and eights over. and given how his last stay with TNA ended, it would make sence that he would have some unfinished buissness with sting.

 

[scomvp316]

I think most fans regardless of their favorite promotion that follows more than WWE would say the two hottest stars right now are Steen and Punk. Steen does really well in ROH under a PG format and his talent in a format that is a tad bit edgier would showcase even more. I know TNA is TV-14 but the material is more like PG-13. Anyone that doesn't know Steen can just go to YouTube and see his promos over the last couple of years. I would think if Steen was revealed as the leader of A&8 he would get a bigger pop than any Sting return and much higher than Angle's initial appearance in 2006

 

[JackRabbitt]

Mark Calloway is the only choice that has a chance at making the payoff both worthwhile, and make sense.

As much as this can't happen and most probably won't, i really think it would be good business for both the WWE, TNA, and Calloway if they could figure out a deal and co-promoting angle to make it work. I am choosing to imagine the "Higher Power" as Undertaker from here on out, as it makes the angle more fun for me just by thinking that. Aces and Eights after all is the Dead Man's hand.

Perhaps Sting, Calloway, Vince and TNA have seen the possibility of throwing conventions aside, orchestrating the most anticipated match of the IWC era of professional wrestling, and also attempting to set into motion a third modern wrestling "boom" through unconventional intra-promotional booking and marketing strategies. In effect, 'staging' a kayfabe promotional war.

Whatever happens, I must say I'm intrigued by the aces and eights mystique, even if I am basically skeptical it will have a satisfying pay-off. No doubt it is similar to the nWo in more ways than one, however, it is different in one key way, that to me is very interesting.

It seems as though the shitty, less-consequential members are the ones being revealed first. In the nWo, it was the other way around. You had the big three originals, then some shocking reveals for a few months, basically centered around Sting being in or out, and once he was clearly WCW, the group began more or less inducting mid-low carders hoping to get a rub. Later in the phase, Curt Hennig was the only big surprise that was of any consequence that I can remember for the nWo. Doing it the other way around...I don't know how it will pay off, but at the moment it seems to give these foot soldiers a certain gravitas, an importance to the group's mission that nWo Stevie-Ray/Bryan Adams/Horace Hogan and the likes were never going to attain. From a kayfabe pov, they are integral foot-soldiers there to pave the way for a higher power, rather than after-thought underlings or low-level thugs/muscle/goons.


That was a bit of a tangent, I know. Maybe this is all part of the hype for WM30, Undertaker vs. Sting. TNA gets Undertaker for a few months, WWE gets Sting for the big night. Neither has to officially "jump ship".

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

First of all, while it may seem obvious I don't think we see Eric Bischoff revealed as a part of this group. He's been very vocal in interviews recently, about not going back to TV if he can help it, as he feels he's done every he can do. The only way he would ever want to go back to doing TV is if he had something different to do, and at this point I don't see TNA using him outside of the typical Bischoff heel manager. There's no reason to either.

Jeff Jarrett makes the most sense, from a realistic perspective. He'd be among my top picks no matter what though, just because it maeks so sense and he's been off TV for so long. It wouldn't be difficult to believe that Jeff Jarrett is capable of wooing over guys to form an anti-Hogan stable. He's got some stroke, pun intended.

They missed the ship on Bully Ray. Neither Aries or Roode makes sense no, with their dynamic focused on each other. I don't want to see Sting with a heel turn this late into his career, and he's taken way to my violence from the Eights by this point that is just doesn't make sense. Same goes for Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe. Goldberg is a hilarious long-shot, but he does keep saying he's going to return to the ring, and it won't be with WWE. You never know. And although I'm not sure ow much sense it makes, I could definitely see him being the face behind a biker gang. I think Raven would be an interesting pick. He's always been a character in so many different organizations that I've just not gotten to see enough of. He seems real good though, particularly with his older ECW feuds.

If I'm not limited by realism, and left the question truly up to my imagination...I would have to say...I don't know, I'd probably have Vince McMahon buy out the company and use this to run an invasion storyline. Could explain his firing Mike Knox, Luke Gallows, etc. to sneak in under the radar and take root in Dixie Carter's company. Have the next reveal be somebody new, and currently on the WWE active roster. Somebody like Miz or Wade Barrett. Not too high profile, but recognizable to get the buzz going. Having Cena show up is just too obvious and unbelievable to drop on the first week. Eventually reveal that Jeff Jarrett sold his TNA stock to Vince McMahon, who is now the majority shareholder of the company. That would actually require TNA to have stock, but you get the picture.

I'd really like AJ Styles to be the next reveal. Not as their leader, but as the most high profile grunt. AJ Styles, Ken Anderson, Devon, Brisco, Bischoff, DOC and Mike Knox could actually be a pretty viable team. Add Crimson and Gunner in last for being "mistreated and misused" by TNA. That'd be one hell of a biker gang. And then realistically, have Jeff Jarrett make his return as the leader.

 

[Cereal Killer]

Bearing in mind that this is a "free roam", I'm going to have to say; Vincent .K. McMahon.

Vince McMahon, arriving at the TNA scene, would revolutionize the business. Considering there's never been an encounter, between the WWE and TNA in such a way, this would be something new-fangled between the two, and would be something worth the wait; as fans have anticipated such a thing for quite a while.

Now McMahon's homegrown stars, such as Kurt Angle and Hulk Hogan, defected the WWE for its viable alternative, TNA. Not only did they leave the company that built them, but they put TNA on the map, impacted their ratings (no pun intended) and made them money. McMahon confronting them, after all these years, would be an appealing display. It would be interesting to hear what he has to say, and it would be interesting to see what he does.

Vince was always the victim, of an "invasion" premeditated by his rival promotions. With McMahon being the one on the attack panel, it would be an attention grabbing prospect. It's something we haven't seen before by him, together with the fact that if he unmasked himself, or was unmasked by someone else; say Hulk Hogan, it would be one of the biggest shockers; in Professional wrestling's history, one of the biggest surprises in TNA, and one of those colossal probing moments. For the most part, because it is Vincent Kennedy McMahon, one of the greatest minds, in Professional Wrestling. Arriving on TNA terrain, attempting to abolish; the company that took his stars away from him, ruined his occasion of no competition, and also, to retaliate to all of the shots, from TNA in their 10 year run.

The other fascination, is that if it were Vince, the other men behind the masks could be some of today's WWE superstars. Because if it was men like Luke Gallows and Mike Knox, it wouldn't make sense because they're not even signed by McMahon, and their reason of attack is because they've been held back in the past (well that's what Devon made it sound like). Vince was somebody that to them. So if it happened to be McMahon, the outline of the group would be much different, and if Dixie could get Vince involved in TNA, I'm sure she could get the WWE superstars, she's done it before and she could do it again.

He could even put his own creative thoughts into the storyline, he has the brain, he has the cooperation of TNA, and a whole batch of TNA and also WWE stars. As unrealistic as it all sounds, Vince would be my choice, and I'm sure the majority here would agree.

 

[clare houghey]

VINCE RUSSO
as the leader and they can use his past feads with hogan too explain it and have a winner takes all match at bound for glory and if not russo id say the jarrets

 

[ToughGuy]

Sting.

Keeping with the playing card gimmick as it first appeared.

They should have revealed the mystery 5th card to be a joker and Sting is that man. Reverse the roles of the NWO. Sting leads a posse to retake TNA from Hogan how Hogan led the NWO to take WCW. Jarrett and Dixie are revealed as the King and Queen who are the brains behind the operation. Dixie realized Hogan was no good for business but he had a rock solid contract. So she contacts Jarrett to bring the whole thing down around Hogan. Jarrett recruits Sting who knows Hogan better than anybody on the roster except for one man. Bischoff is recruited and is the nail in the coffin for the Hogan era. Slowly the A&8s become fan favorites as they recruit TNA originals Styles and Storm. As the tide shifts so does Bischoff's power hungry ways and he begins to make a play for the top leadership role. With Hogan gone, Dixie, Sting, Jarrett, Styles, and Storm leave A&8s behind. Bischoff takes the gang in a more violent direction and once again A&8s are the top heel group.

 

[Stallion123]

No actually Vince is the worst possible answer. That would mean that WWE had purchased TNA and that is the absolute worst thing that could happen for all wrestling fans. Sure it may please WWE fanboys, but i said "wrestling fans", in other words, WWE fanboys not included.

Actually while it might make a good Angle to have Vince the leader, it would be foolish for the WWE to buy tna because actions like that run the risk of ending up like JCP. I remember on the rise and fall of WCW dvd where they said if JCP didn't overspend so much, it may have still been around today.

But Vince, Shane, or Undertaker would be good picks from a storyline perspective imo.

 

[aydentheabyss]

Raven. He was thrown out of TNA with the rest of EV 2.0 which would give him enough of a reason to try and overthrow the company and you cannot forget his look. He has lead his factions before, albeit smaller and has shown he can be a good or at least an interesting leader. I would still have Bischoff as the brains of the operation but I can't see him wanting to get his hands nearly as dirty. He has helped Eric before and it would make just as much sense as anything else suggested. His extreme lifestyle and affinity for violence would make a lot of sense. Not only that, he is known and people are going to tune in for him. Though I'm sure Kevin Steen could prove alright, it's not going to have nearly the shock value or surprise that would follow someone a little higher in the ranks.