Let's Be Honest: How Often Do You Watch TNA?

[Danger Burger]

Hey guys!

I'll start... I dont watch TNA weekly, several reasons, the main being that i dont have a TV... Other then that, i dont often have the time for ANOTHER two hours of wrestling (on top of RAW, Smackdown and NXT). I do however always get around to watching the PPV events every month and its not terrible!

It bugs me to see all the nonsensical bashing going on the whole time on wrestlezone on both sides of the fence! So theres two reasons for the poll... One, i want to actually grasp how many of you guys actually watch it, and to what extent, and two, to find out whats stopping you if you are not! So please be honest and dont resort to argueing and jibs, cause we all like wrestling and yada yada yada!

 

[waylon p]

I have been watching wrestling since before hulk hogan was ever champ of anything.
I watch TNA because I do not care for Vince's product lately, and TNA is the only promotion that plays on my tv that Vince does not control. No, wait. That is why I watch TNA and not WWE. I would watch both if I enjoyed them both. Now I only watch if I expect to see Jericho or Christian. So I tune in occasionally. Hard too watch two hours of it.

It is also hard to watch two hours of TNA, but wwe has absolutely no excuse. They have the best wrestlers, the highest paid writers, and the largest stage in the business. It hurts to see how little quality programming we get out of a promotion that holds all the cards.

 

[asiatic7]

I've tried watching it, when Angle debuted and again when Booker T. There was nothing to keep me interested in it. I tried watching when Hogan debuted and was dissapointed when Bishchoff tagged along un-announced. It seem like They were re-hashing old WCW ideas. I gave them the benefit of the doubt and stayed on board, I wasn't to impressed at anything, I even went to the first house show they hosted in the MCU ballpark in Brooklyn. But I think I had enough of TNA when they started pushing Bubba (Bully) Ray as a main eventer... But I gave them the BOTD again and out walks some Jabroni ref turned wrestler... Garret Bishchoff. I knew his dad was behind this and decided I was'nt going to get force fed this crap When guys like Matt Morgan and AJ styles (my two personal faves) were being wasted when they should have been the focal point of the show. The only thing I found interesting in the last two years on impact, was Jay Lethals two encounters with Ric Flair.

 

[LegendKiller716]

I watch RAW, Impact, and Smackdown every week. I'm a huge wrestling fan and I'll always take the bad with the good. I always have ideas that I think would make things better, but so does everybody else. I don't really come on here and talk negatively about either promotion, but I can see why some people do. Although they take it way over the top.

My biggest problem with TNA is their production quality. While it's better than ROH, it's still not great. They kinda took on the Spike TV look, if that makes sense. Other than that and a little inconsistency, I think Impact puts out a good product.

 

[DrWilsonIPersume]

i really enjoy TNAs top stars :

Aries, Roode, Storm, Styles, Hardy, Angle, MCMG, Crimson

compare that to the E when anyone other than Jericho, Miz, Punk, Bryan, Del Rio, Rhodes, Johnny L. and Ziggler are on, i change the channel.

i CANNOT STAND to watch Sheamus, Big Show, Kane, Orton, Ryder, Santino, and could probe name a lot more if i took the time...

ok, ill add Kofi, Borne, Clay, Hornswaggle, Khali, Tensai, Mysterio to the list of channel changers...

 

[jobesukulele]

Yeah, I watch it. It could be better.

Personally I'd like to see the money spent on old people instead spent on production values, and I'd like TNA's veterans to have preference over the veterans picked up from WWE.

That's all ideals though. For the most part I'm fine with how it is.

 

[Edge=GOD]

I watch what I can download, I don't get the channel it's shown on over here ( England ) .. Due to lack of uploads I can't follow it weekly and tend to only get the PPVs and if I'm lucky one or two shows between PPVs .. What I've seen hasn't been ass lickingly good like alot of TNA fans make it out to be, then again it hasn't exactly been poor.

For me it just seems really corny compared to WWE, I'd happily watch it once a week if I could though, I can't stand Hogan and from what I read from time to time it appears he's on the show a fair bit so I might be put off :S

Also when I see the ex-WWE talent, I feel like I've seen it all before - You know what I mean? Kind of ironic because at the same time whilst I dislike the Miz, Ziggler, Orton ect .. I'd rather watch those guys now that the guys who made it what it once was are over the hill and still going .. I guess I mean it's actually a breathe of fresh air, whilst not as good as the old air we used to breathe and loved .. hope that made sense xD

@The dude who changes the channel when Wrestler X is on, You forgot Cena .. In all seriousness I tend to turn it off and go to sleep when he comes on.

 

[JaylisJayP]

I went through a few on-and-off phases of watching it, but I haven't DVR'd it or watched it in more than a year.

One of the reasons is that I just can't stand listening to Bubba Ray Dudley talk. So when I heard he became an ever larger part of the product, that was all the reason I needed to stay away.

Other than that, even when I did DVR it I couldn't get through 30 minutes. It's just like comparing a college basketball team to an NBA team. Watching an NBA game might get boring sometimes, but at least (usually) everyone belongs there. Watching TNA is like watching college basketball, you've got a few guys that'll make it (or were) at the pro level, but mostly a bunch of guys that have hit their ceiling and aren't very fun to watch.

 

[Headman]

Hey guys!

I'll start... I dont watch TNA weekly, several reasons, the main being that i dont have a TV... Other then that, i dont often have the time for ANOTHER two hours of wrestling (on top of RAW, Smackdown and NXT). I do however always get around to watching the PPV events every month and its not terrible!

It bugs me to see all the nonsensical bashing going on the whole time on wrestlezone on both sides of the fence! So theres two reasons for the poll... One, i want to actually grasp how many of you guys actually watch it, and to what extent, and two, to find out whats stopping you if you are not! So please be honest and dont resort to argueing and jibs, cause we all like wrestling and yada yada yada!

I don't watch it often, but I'm watching it right now. I've got to admit it's pretty hard to watch. The opening segment with Hogan and Flair was terrible. The knockouts match was boring, no more so than a Diva match but atleast Diva matches only last 40 or so seconds. Honestly I haven't enjoyed anything about this show. I've got my wife sitting here who is not a wrestling fan but keeps saying how "Corny" this is compared to WWE. She also asked if this was "Wrestling for trailor park people.". I told her that was offensive to people living in trailor parks, but I got her point.

 

[[cL]]

I blame Vince, for making the WWE incomparable.
I blame Hogan/Bischoff/Carter, for not realizing that.

The empire that WWE has become changed the game so vastly since the days of the territories that its hard, if not dang near impossible to compete. If TNA would get the revelation that if they do THEM, and stop trying to beat WWE they'd be doing a whole lot better.
I used to watch, and was actually excited because I thought for a glimmering second that maybe TNA would be the next big thing. I was convinced as some people are, that if they made the right moves, EVENTUALLY they'd start to make Vince notice and thereby make him step up HIS game. Notice I didnt say, they'd take over, I said, make Vince take notice. Thats all they needed to do. They didn't have to beat him in the ratings, they didn't have to have better ppv buys nothing like that. Not that those things aren't goals to strive for, because they are, but you're not and the ROCK MEANS NOT going to overwhelm the WWE. Not this soon. All they had to do was make moves that would build their brand and their fanbase. All they had to do was BUILD TNA, their ideas and their homegrown talent. But they decided that rather than make Vince raise an eyebrow eventually, it would be better to try and upend him all at once. And as we all know thats like shooting a BB at a tank. They don't get it and thats why I stopped watching.
The more I watched the more disappointed I got. The recycling of storylines, the released WWE talent that they'd make main event stars...i mean seriously, why would Vince take you seriously if the person you're trying to push is the same person he fired a couple weeks ago?
WWE has no competition right now. The only people who DON'T realize that are the people running TNA.

 

[#heel420]

I use to watch Impact every week from 2005 till about 2009. Now I might watch a few minutes then change the channel. Turn it back on, then change the channel again. It's just not compelling. The majority of the story lines are stupid, pointless, and lead no where any way. TNA doesn't make me want to watch there product, therefore I don't anymore.

 

[Rockyfolifebo!!!]

I watch occasionally. Back when Hardy and Hogan and Flair came back, I thought the company was on the verge of competing with WWE. Nothing has really changed. It's WCW 2.0, really. I want to watch it, I want to be a fan, but nothing is drawing me in. Mostly it's just Hogan. Not bashing him, just tired of all his "monster ideas" and "master plans" to "turn this company around, brother". I remember he used to say that every week, and I'd think he was going to take the show on the road, or do something to revolutionize the company. They have an impressive pool of talent, and some cool characters. It's just the idea of Hogan's influence over the company and that they're still in the Impact Zone that's hindering my enjoyment of the overall program.

 

[CrayzChris]

I DVR TNA every week, and most of the time, when I sit down to watch it, I find myself fast forwarding through the entire show. It honestly doesn't make sense, because I am a big fan of 90% of the roster. It's just that the acting in TNA is horrible, and the storylines are ridiculous. Even their best storylines come off as cheesy and hokey because the acting is terrible. ALSO, I hate seeing Hogan, Flair and Bischoff on television. Once upon a time, Hogan and Flair were the best in the business. NOW, they are not. Their promos are non-sensical, and seeing larger than life personas that I grew up looking up to, hobbling around ringside still talking about how great they "are" is just sad, and certainly not anything I would want to tune in to see. BUT my biggest issue with TNA is that they are constantly putting themselves down. TNA is constantly acknowledging that they aren't good enough...YET. They are always on the verge of greatness. It's always their next signing, or their next big idea that is going to "put TNA on the map". TNA needs to stop putting themselves down, and start treating their product like it's number one. If the people who run TNA, and the announcers and the wrestlers on TV don't believe in their product, and don't honestly believe they are the best, then why should I? And why should I honestly care about a bunch of people who think they are second rate?

 

[Peaky1969]

I'm a big fan like everybody else, earliest memory of wrestling, (I think) was before WM2....Muraco holding Hogan's arms, while Bundy spalshed him......I try to watch RAW every week, tho plans don't always work out that way....and the same with Impact....I couldn't tell you the last time I watched smackdown...a year or 2...maybe....I'be made an effort to start downloading some ROH stuff, and I like what they do

 

[Skairipa Matrix]

the only time i have missed a episode of impact sense i started watching (which was when christian cage was rolling as the instant classic a little before angle showed up) was when i didnt have power for a week but i never miss a episode of impact its a pretty entertaining 2 hour block of wrestling even if im busy i just tape it and watch it the next day.

 

[DirtyD79]

I used to watch it but when they started the Main Event Mafia it's all just been downhill. I've tried to watch it a few times since then but it still sucks. The whole company just looks exactly like the final years of WCW and not in a good way.

 

[Azane]

The quality is a roller coaster since Hogan/Bischoff came in, I saw some really good angles, and I saw Jeff Hardy fuck the company, then come back and get pushed to the moon again.

I dunno, the quality has overall been fine, but crap like that's turned me off as I don't want to be disappointed as bad as Victory Road again.

Russo gone has encouraged me to watch some more, but now I'm seeing Garret Bischoff getting pushed, which looks so ridiculous it's turned me off the product again.

I'm between the "occasional" and "Bad quality" points for this reason, I don't feel satisfied after a ppv very often with TNA, so I watch it less and less. WWE's last few have been stellar, with Extreme Rules being the only one that had some disappointments.

Edit;
also if I have to see 1 more Hogan promo that promises that TNA will be the best thing in the world soon...
Not to mention their constant "Shots" at WWE that have the Tony Schiavonie effect tied to them.

 

[ヒュー　G.　レックション]

I watch TNA weekly, although here in the UK Impact is not shown until Sunday, and PPV's are shown Wednesday.

I was a regular WWE watcher but I had gone off it. Haven't watched regularly in a very long time, but I watch the odd PPV with friends and I watched every raw Rock was on the show.

 

[steve_smith]

I don't watch it often, but I'm watching it right now. I've got to admit it's pretty hard to watch. The opening segment with Hogan and Flair was terrible. The knockouts match was boring, no more so than a Diva match but atleast Diva matches only last 40 or so seconds. Honestly I haven't enjoyed anything about this show. I've got my wife sitting here who is not a wrestling fan but keeps saying how "Corny" this is compared to WWE. She also asked if this was "Wrestling for trailor park people.". I told her that was offensive to people living in trailor parks, but I got her point.

WWE is WAY more cornier than TNA. They've got a ******ed looking giant and a leprechaun midget featured regularly. Not to mention all the stupid guest hosts and the anonymous gm debacle (whatever happened to that). TNA is not that good but to call it "Corny" compared to WWE, yeah right.

 

[steve_smith]

. .

It is also hard to watch two hours of TNA, but wwe has absolutely no excuse. They have the best wrestlers, the highest paid writers, and the largest stage in the business. It hurts to see how little quality programming we get out of a promotion that holds all the cards.

I agree with this completely.

 

[itssoeasy123]

I used to watch TNA every week. But, ever since Hogan and Bischoff came the whole show turned into a debacle, just a mess. "Murders," guy's blading on the camera, Hogan 20 minute promo every week with Immortal, the constant shots at WWE. Than there was the ECW reunion, Victory Road debacle, and the "Wrestling Matter" rebranding.

I still don't watch it. It just doesn't entertain me anymore.

 

[SpecialFNK]

what is the ultimate goal? matches and feuds on Impact Wrestling that lead to a feud settled at the PPV? or does Impact Wrestling matter more where they're goal is ratings? maybe TNA doesn't know.
I think the TV show should be more important. with how easy it is to stream a PPV for free, how much money are they losing(or not getting) there?
I've never paid for a PPV, nor do I plan on paying for one anytime in the future as long as I can find a free stream.
personally I enjoy the TV show Impact Wrestling more than any PPV anyway as I watch for entertainment and like the drama/promos.

I think there are 2 reasons that come to mind why TNA does not travel outside the Impact Zone. it costs too much money, and what happens if they don't get enough people and the crowd is dead? the crowd early on at Lockdown was terrible!

I think TNA needs something new, something different. what was WCW like before nWo? I never watched WCW much back at that point. I think even when WCW brought in Hogan and Savage I don't think that helped them take off. I don't think it was until Hall/Nash showed up and they started nWo until they started getting a lot of viewers. it was different, it was exciting. I remember every week wondering what was going to happen.

I've watched TNA since 2010 when Hogan/Bischoff came in, and most of the time I've been entertained.

 

[Rayne]

I think the TV show should be more important. with how easy it is to stream a PPV for free, how much money are they losing(or not getting) there?
I've never paid for a PPV, nor do I plan on paying for one anytime in the future as long as I can find a free stream.
personally I enjoy the TV show Impact Wrestling more than any PPV anyway as I watch for entertainment and like the drama/promos.

Right here, you've hit upon the bleak future of the professional wrestling business.

Vince McMahon pioneered the whole monthly PPV model. Have rivalries on a free, weekly TV show, and get people to pay money to see resolution. For a couple decades, this model worked gangbusters. Then along came the internet. Suddenly, it became very easy for fans to watch live re-broadcasts of your PPV, for free.

The UFC is addressing this by viciously going after streaming sites, and they've had decent success. It isn't easy finding a public UFC stream. PPV also makes up much more of their business model. They don't have a weekly product that people watch religiously, like Raw. (TUF doesn't bring in eyeballs anymore; it's a stale product, and the world knows it.) The WWE and TNA/IW don't seem to be addressing this as strongly. Either they don't have the legal resources to go after streaming sites (which is harder than it sounds- despite being large companies, it takes significant cash to hire both the lawyers and the people to root out the streams, all of which has to be done on an at-that-moment basis), or it isn't worth it to them to go after the streaming websites.

TNA/IW's PPV buy rates suck. We'd know if they were better, because we'd be told about how good they are. If Eric Bischoff runs to his Twitter to brag about how Impact beats UFC's "C" show (TUF) for a week, they'll pass on any good news they can. But I'm wondering if PPV buyrates are a part of TNA/IW's gameplan going forward. Do they need to follow the monthly PPV format? There are a lot of people watching the PPV's online that wouldn't pay for them if they had to.

TNA/IW appears to be getting most of their revenue from their TV programming. They don't have much point-of-sale merchandising, and people are far more likely to buy a $25 t-shirt when it's in their face, as opposed to going online. It's not PPV revenue. If TNA/IW views their television contract as a significant part of their revenue going forward, this would explain the panic we seem to be seeing from them regarding their ratings lately.

 

[HBsam31]

I watch Raw, Smackdown, TNA, and ROH weekly. I am a fan of wrestling in every way. TNA isn't always the best, and I do find myself fast forwarding sometimes. I DVR all shows because I work until midnight. I do however TNA gets unfairly criticized for the most part. It's honestly getting better in my opinion. Roode and Bully Ray are definitely reasons i check it out every week, and the in ring action is good to really good most weeks. I will always watch wrestling, but TNA is a good alternative if you are a fan or just tired of just watching WWE.

 

[Iversen]

I watch it occasionally and catch up on anything big that I hear I've missed. Tend to watch the PPVs if they sound good, tend to pick and choose matches though.

I don't watch it weekly because I don't care enough, which I guess suggests they've never given me reason enough to care. I think they have some incredible wrestlers but the storylines rarely grab me. Plus I've seen Hogan and Flair quite a few times in the past I don't feel I miss anything new from them.

I watch ROH and WWE a lot more regularly and they actually give me a reason to watch. TNA doesn't have anything either of them doesn't have. They used to in the X Division and I started watching again when it looked like they were going to go full blown on it but now Austin Aries is feuding with Bully Ray (which I'm fine with to be honest they are probably the best two characters they have) but it's leading to the one thing they had that made them stand out being ignored.