Less Talk, More Action

[It's Damn Real!]

This has been a bit of a problem with TNA for the last year, at least, but I was really hoping last night's debut on POP would mean more of a chance in the actual format of the show. I've seen a lot of folks complaining about the style of backstage filming or with music, etc. These are small potatoes to me. Far less important than the actual amount of chatter going on versus wrestling, especially when the chatter is mostly coming from guys who can't talk that well. It's one thing when James Storm explains why he's back. It's quite another when Jesse Godderz is cutting a really poor promo, taking selfies of himself, interrupting Angle and Galloway for no real reason.

Not to shit on Jesse specifically, but if you re-watch last night's episode, nearly every new segment was prefaced with microphone work. Why? Why does everyone need to take five, six minutes of air time to poorly explain who they are, or why they are angry? Often actions are louder than words, so be loud without having to be vocal! Even with the amount of talent they've lost, there's plenty of it left on this TNA roster to carry them through most weeks without relying on the tired old model of talking your way through half the show.

I'm hoping this was just for the "new audience" of POP, and that it was mostly introductory to whatever new eyes (what few there were according to ratings reports) they got to re-introduce some of their lesser known talents. Going forward, more Total Nonstop Action, less Total Nonstop Articulating.

Just a friendly suggestion from a lifelong fan...

 

[jpickens]

My sentiments exactly shut up and wrestle if I want to hear long winded promos I can tune into RAW or SMACKDOWN otherwise wrestle.

 

[TDFG]

I agree, I tend to skip most of TNA's promos/backstage segments.

With the limited TV time TNA is trying to get everyone over but it's a mixture of trying to hard and just diluting their airtime with rubbish.

 

[snoopy]

This has been a bit of a problem with TNA for the last year, at least, but I was really hoping last night's debut on POP would mean more of a chance in the actual format of the show. I've seen a lot of folks complaining about the style of backstage filming or with music, etc. These are small potatoes to me. Far less important than the actual amount of chatter going on versus wrestling, especially when the chatter is mostly coming from guys who can't talk that well. It's one thing when James Storm explains why he's back. It's quite another when Jesse Godderz is cutting a really poor promo, taking selfies of himself, interrupting Angle and Galloway for no real reason.

Not to shit on Jesse specifically, but if you re-watch last night's episode, nearly every new segment was prefaced with microphone work. Why? Why does everyone need to take five, six minutes of air time to poorly explain who they are, or why they are angry? Often actions are louder than words, so be loud without having to be vocal! Even with the amount of talent they've lost, there's plenty of it left on this TNA roster to carry them through most weeks without relying on the tired old model of talking your way through half the show.

I'm hoping this was just for the "new audience" of POP, and that it was mostly introductory to whatever new eyes (what few there were according to ratings reports) they got to re-introduce some of their lesser known talents. Going forward, more Total Nonstop Action, less Total Nonstop Articulating.

Just a friendly suggestion from a lifelong fan...

Get the hell out of here! Nobody wants to see wall to wall wrestling! The viewers proved that, If you want to see all wrestling watch ROH but that's the problem no one watches ROH for that reason. TNA topped off at 2.5 million viewers doing a Rope opera style show and bottomed out doing 200,000 with a wrestling heavy show. You do the math.And Dixie wants to bring in female viewers a wrestling heavy show isn't going to accomplish that. I'm a long time TNA fan as well but wrestling without storylines, promos and intrigue is as boring as watching paint dry. That time of let's wrestle died in the 90's and the soap opera side of wrestling saved the industry.And with the popularity of the UFC that will make two guys in there fake fighting all show long look even more ridiculous. A special show or Pay Per View wrestling focused shows that has been well built through Mic work and Storylines is the model that wrestling /sports entertainment companies should strive to be if they truly want to be successful. Plain and simple .

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Get the hell out of here! Nobody wants to see wall to wall wrestling! The viewers proved that, If you want to see all wrestling watch ROH but that's the problem no one watches ROH for that reason. TNA topped off at 2.5 million viewers doing a Rope opera style show and bottomed out doing 200,000 with a wrestling heavy show. You do the math.And Dixie wants to bring in female viewers a wrestling heavy show isn't going to accomplish that. I'm a long time TNA fan as well but wrestling without storylines, promos and intrigue is as boring as watching paint dry. That time of let's wrestle died in the 90's and the soap opera side of wrestling saved the industry.And with the popularity of the UFC that will make two guys in there fake fighting all show long look even more ridiculous. A special show or Pay Per View wrestling focused shows that has been well built through Mic work and Storylines is the model that wrestling /sports entertainment companies should strive to be if they truly want to be successful. Plain and simple .

You’ve mistaken my position for one where I want talking eliminated. This isn’t true. I want it reduced, specifically on IMPACT, and specifically for talents who can’t talk well. I made direct mention of this in the OP.

I’m all for the right talents talking — guys who can actually do it. And I’m all for the right segments featuring plenty of it. A solid back-and-forth between two guys who can handle themselves on a microphone can be just as entertaining as a 20-minute main event. I firmly believe that. But when someone who isn’t very vocally talented is going on and on, every minute feels like an eternity, which is what large segments of Wednesday’s broadcast felt like. Especially because nearly every segment was prefaced by a shouting match. The Godderz interruption of Galloway/Angle was the prime culprit, compounded by Eli Drake (who is actually good at it) also piling on. This is what I’m targeting, specifically.

 

[Psykohurricane55]

The format really need to change i think for TNA to succeed. I don'T know who is in charge of TNA creative right now but he makes vince russo look like a genius. They had a really good chance to go and shake thinks up last tuesday but instead they wasted it by going backward. They did a three months tournament to crowd a new champion only to go back to the same match they did at bound for glory and giving the belt to the guy that started to whole thing. Wow.

You bring back James Storm, you pay him alot of money to not go to NXT and you put him in the same spot he's been for most of his career, in a tag team. I really use to love beer money back in the day but now, it's just a waste of both guys talents.

Awesome kong being the new leader of the dollhouse makes no sense and i'm getting really tired of seeing Gail Kim and awesome kong wrestles each other. They're so many talented women wrestlers that could help the knockout division being something good again instead of all theses uninspired reaches feuds with the same girls that have been with the company for most of the existence of the knockout division. Bring in somebody like lufisto, courtney rush, christina von eerie or any other women on the indy scene that WWE hasn'T sign yet. The knockout division is in need of new blood, just like the x-division and the tag division.

TNA is pretty much doing the same mistakes WWE is doing but the difference between WWE and TNA is that WWE can afford to do these mistakes because no matter what mistake they make, you always going to get children and families watching the product so no matter how many hardcore wrestling fan they lose, they won't lose a lot of money like it will TNA. TNA is in direct competition with ROH and lucha underground and can't afford to make those mistakes anymore. TNA need to do a complete overhall of his creative staff, ''Big John need to get release from his talent relation job because the guy doesn't know what he'S doing and Dixie need to go back to nashville and run the company from their by doing what she does best and that's marketing.

That's the only way TNA will be successful, it's not by put more wrestling and less talking segment that the company will get better, that'S what ROH is doing and they're doing around the same ratings as TNA. It's really by getting peoples backstage that knows how to write for wrestling and know how the wrestling business work. Somebody like a gabe sapolsky or jim ross would be a welcome change for the company but until dixie and the rest of the higher ups are still there. You will get the same old crappy Impact wrestling show with storylines that makes no sense and hot shoting that titles change and turns for absolutely nothing.

 

[whoopin' ass]

For some reason, that is wrestling today. They seem to think it is a book and they have to fill you in on what is going to happen in the story. Promos are necessary but they need to add to the product and all most of these promos do is make you want to turn the channel. As long as TNA keeps getting "creative" people from wwe in management, this will continue as that is what they know how to do. Wrestling really isn't that hard to write - everyone's goal is to be champ and you have to fight your way to the top to be champ. Talking for 15 minutes and wrestling for 5 isn't going to accomplish that.

 

[New Hot Fed]

During the World Title Tournament, TNA did a better job at doing this. They had a bunch of matches but the talking segments was well done and well structured. You had finalists talking around a table about how they viewed their opponants, you had pre-taped stuff shown during matches in little boxes and in the case of Hardy and Carter, they had interviews before the shows confronting each other verbally.

It was all better structured and it was a different format than the usual "take mic and yell at each other in the ring". WWE already does this, why do the same thing?

TNA should only have guys doing in-ring promos when it's for the main storyline.

 

[snoopy]

During the World Title Tournament, TNA did a better job at doing this. They had a bunch of matches but the talking segments was well done and well structured. You had finalists talking around a table about how they viewed their opponants, you had pre-taped stuff shown during matches in little boxes and in the case of Hardy and Carter, they had interviews before the shows confronting each other verbally.

It was all better structured and it was a different format than the usual "take mic and yell at each other in the ring". WWE already does this, why do the same thing?

TNA should only have guys doing in-ring promos when it's for the main storyline.

Yeah and the viewership went to shit. Even long time TNA fans stopped watching. So you can try and be ROH and fail or be labelled WWE lite and succeed. What the hell you think they are going to do?

 

[Mustang Sally]

Last night was the first time in years I've been able to sit through an entire 2-hour episode of Impact.

Frankly, I liked it. After having not watched (except in passing) since the Hogan days, it's easy to see that TNA has returned to more of an indy style, without the bells & whistles they used in trying to compete with WWE. They're much better off this way.

I had never seen Ethan Carter III before....and liked him, too. Reminds me a lot of Channing Tatum. He doesn't mail in his promos, that's for sure; he's as intense as you could ever want.

The wrestling action was just fine, especially the Kurt Angle-Drew Galloway main event. Plainly, Angle was keeping the pace of the match slow; I wonder just how much he has left. Still, Galloway cooperated and sold in a crowd-pleasing manner, so the action was fine.

However, as the OP suggests, there was too much time devoted to talking. The ones involving EC3, Beer Money and the Matt Hardy/Ken Anderson segment were interesting at first, but dragged on much too long. I was thinking they could have worked a couple more matches in there....and it was noteworthy that while EC3 kept showing up on the mic, he didn't fight anyone.

Yes, Carter was impressive while talking during his multiple segments last night, especially when addressing Matt Hardy, but TNA would be better served with shorter promos and more ring action.

 

[New Hot Fed]

Yeah and the viewership went to shit. Even long time TNA fans stopped watching. So you can try and be ROH and fail or be labelled WWE lite and succeed. What the hell you think they are going to do?

lol like the viewership is so much better now?

The ratings for TNA have sucked all of 2015. The presentation of promos and talking segments are not why the ratings sucked.

But changing things sometime can be a good thing. Instead of doing the same format over and over.