I've been watching on TV and attending every taping at the Impact Zone since the day Hogan came in. My knowledge of TNA prior to that is only from reading about it and YouTube videos. After watching wrestling since I was 8, I stopped when WCW folded. I tuned in the first night Hogan arrived out of curiosity. I was hooked on TNA after that first show. With that in mind, I'd like to give you my untainted first impressions and observations since Hogan and Bischoff arrived.
My first look at the 6 sided ring had me thinking this is gonna be like another Hogan midget wrestling show that will last 3 episodes and be canceled. It just didn't look like a pro wrestling ring, it looked like a ring that would be used on a gimmick show like American Gladiators. I know you hard cores will say that's what made TNA different, but if I were flipping through the channels knowing nothing about TNA and saw a 6 sided ring, I would keep flipping. Switching to the 4 sided ring is the smartest thing Hogan has done to date. When the switch was made AJ said in an interview that it was a lot easier on the body and you got much better spring off the ropes because they were longer. Bottom line: TNA looks like a real pro wrestling promotion to those who haven't seen it before.
What hooked me that first show was the wrestling. A.J. Styles blew me away and the others on the show told me this is something I could get behind. There were no over the top ridiculous gimmicks like WWE is famous for, it was more old school. I liked the look of the Impact Zone, it was intimate like some of the shows from Crockett's NWA studios in Georgia, with the likes of Ric Flair and Dusty Rhodes. Bottom line: Good wrestling overcame my dislike for the 6 sided ring and I haven't missed a show since.
I also felt kind of at home seeing the old WWE & WCW wrestlers to kind of ween me back into wrestling. Knowing the histories of the old guys gave me something to help build my interest in the wrestlers I didn't know. Bottom line: The old guys were beneficial in bringing in new viewers like myself. My current thoughts on the old guys is fact that there are fewer and fewer of them on TV is a good thing and at this point its in TNA's best interest to keep it that way.
When Hogan brought back the 4 sided ring, to me the formula was complete to get me hooked on TNA big time. I went to my first live TNA event when I bought the Victory Road VIP package in July of 2010. I bought the package because there was an autograph session with about 25 of the wrestlers included. My objective wasn't autographs, but to have my picture taken with Ric Flair. As a side note, Jeff Jarrett was signing and welcomed to to my first live event, his sincerity really did make me feel welcome to TNA. I have been to every Impact taping, ppv, and now, live tv show since.
When I first started going to the tapings the audience was awful. The same marks at the same place on the rail every week. The stupid chants. Poor reactions when the audience was packed with tourist or it was raining and the attendance was down. TNA finally wised up and banned some of the total assholes from the rail or from the arena all together. Now they pick who is going to be on the rail to keep things fresh. Yes, there are some fixtures on the rail, but they aren't assholes and generally cheer faces and boo heels like they are supposed to. Also I notice on TV that the noise levels in some segments are louder or quieter than they are in person. Creative audio editing i guess. Bottom line: the audience is 100% better than when Hogan first came in.
I'm have my own business and like any business, including pro wrestling, you try a lot of stuff that works and stuff that doesn't work. Anything new is going to effect what you are doing now, either in a good way or bad way. This can put your business on a roller coaster ride. I think TNA is doing a pretty good job of keeping the good and getting rid of the bad these days.
Fast forward to now. I think that even though there have been highs and lows over the last couple years, the highs outnumber the lows. TNA seems to be on a roll in improving the product in the last 3 months. The second best thing ever is going live. No more spoilers to dissuade people from watching and it makes it exciting because anything can happen. Slamaversery was the best ppv to come out of the company since I started watching. The long title runs of Roode and Aries are another step in the right direction, they are even building a little credibility with Devon. There are always going to be things that you will love and hate, there is no perfect booking. If there was Wrestle Zone would close down its site. As long as there is a lot to like and a just little to shit on, I'm happy. Bottom Line: Hogan and TNA did some stupid shit and they did some brilliant shit. The product is one hell of a lot better now than when I saw that first show.