I don't understand how anyone can give Impact an A this week. The past two weeks I've seen very lackluster and sluggish matches and a show full of mild banter and endless talking. I don't mind the constant interference because that's what heels do, and I'm as positive as I can get because I want TNA to be successful, but some things just aren't clicking now:
- This plan took 9 months? This reminds me of Total Recall: a master plan that is massive complicated but everyone is in on except the hero. Hogan and Flair were on the same side from the start? Could have fooled me. Maybe that was the point, but it does what the Fingerpoke of Doom did, and that's basically erase storylines to convince people that EVERYTHING was a ruse.
- The Knockouts quality of matches has gone way down. Even Mickie James, who still looks painfully hot, looks sloppy. Her kicks weren't on point and looked slower than molasses. I disagree with their choice but I see why the WWE dumped her if she was in danger of working like that. The WWE likes their cookie cutter divas but apparently so does TNA nowadays. I guess the storyline though is that Mickie must get through Tara to get to Madison Rayne. That sounds like it has potential. Meanwhile, the Beautiful People look like they're headed into a feud with Tessmacher and Winter maybe. No Knockout Tag Team Titles in there anywhere?
- Character development? For who? Out of all of the characters on TV the past two weeks, who needs more character? Hogan and Bischoff aren't new to this. Fourtune already had great characters from the start. (...and don't tell me chugging Smirnoff Ice is building character Come on now. Isn't Ric Flair a playa? Isn't Smirnoff Ice a little girly for him?!) Mr. Anderson was already a cocky and tough asshole. Rob Van Dam still sounds laid back even in anger. And wrestlers staring psychotically at downed wrestlers isn't development, it's emotion. The only people making developments is Jeff Hardy from face to heel with his promos and Robbie E. making his debut.
- On the note of Jeff Hardy, what was up with the chair shot? It looked like he was waiting for Anderson to turn around, but nailed him anyway when he didn't. The blood looked fake on the mat but I'm not sure. I HOPE it was fake because he was bleeding pretty bad. If that was the plan Hardy should have just hit him. Anyway, of all things, I'm chomping at the bit to see Jeff Hardy wrestle. I want to see if he changes his wrestling gear and style in-ring. That's a good build-up I'm waiting for.
- Again, no Jay Lethal but the X division title was mentioned. Not Lethal's name mind you but the belt was mentioned. The Motor City Machineguns made it onscreen playing football and flirting with Velvet Sky. Then, probably one of the lamest backstage attacks I've ever seen by Generation ME. The teams looked like they forgot when to hit each other.
At least the TV title was on the line, and maybe we'll see a return match. It shocks me that The Pope has never held a belt in either the WWE or TNA.
- Every match the past two weeks hasn't looked right. They've either been way too short or has looked very off in terms of rhythm. Robbie E.'s debut was very unimpressive. Even his "RKO" looked off, and Amazing Red I figured could have at least made it look better. I noticed that the crowd's reaction to finishers weren't there. No reaction to Abyss's Black Hole Slam, Mickie's kick, Robbie E.'s um...I'll call it the REKO (I would have said the Cookie Cutter but it sounds too corny), or RVD's chair shot. Normally finishers get some kind of ooo or ahhh. (Note: This was RVD's first pinfall loss, by the way. His first loss period.)
- I get the hostile takeover. It's the Immortals of Hulk Hogan, Eric Bischoff, Jeff Hardy, Abyss, and Jeff Jarrett. Then you add in Fourtune with Ric Flair, A.J. Styles, Kazarian, Douglas Williams, Robert Roode, James Storm and Matt Morgan. Plus we need to add Jarrett's two security goons, since they gotten involved twice (four times if you count their involvement with Anderson and Hardy...oh, wait, Hardy was on their side, so never mind) so that makes 14 people on the Immortals, including 10 active wrestlers. The wrestlers in opposition are The Pope, Samoa Joe, Rob Van Dam, Mr. Anderson and Kurt Angle. I get why the 5 of them will work alone until they realize they need to work together (the same way WCW figured it out 6 months into the storyline) so that makes sense. Still, apparently EV2 doesn't care about getting directly involved despite winning at Lockdown, and no other wrestlers think much of it. If you're gonna do a hostile takeover, shouldn't it be company wide? Doesn't it affect every wrestler who works in TNA which people sign their paycheck?
QUOTE - "I guess you'd rather watch Wade Barrett cut scripted promos about bullshit, have John Cena pout like a child, and have the Anonymous GM turn the lights off and speak through Michael Cole, Undertaker shooting lightening at Kane, and Hornswaggle painting his face and kicking COLE out of the announcing booth....yeah, that's much better."
Actually this isn't a good point. Everyone cuts scripted promos in both TNA and WWE and you can't knock Barrett's promos because he is damn crisp for a rookie, plus The Pope pouted like a child to Samoa Joe when he got beat up, and Jeff Hardy's promos involve the lights going out, and hasn't Eric Young been painting his body with fake tattoos and Orlando Jordan with...whatever that stuff is? Plus I care more about the Anonymous GM than I did about THEY because I knew 4\5 of who THEY were in August and I still have no idea who the GM is. But, this isn't the WWE forum, so I digress.
QUOTE - "Why is EV 2.0 still here? I thought they were supposed to be gone a long time ago and now RVD is attacking people who might be turning on him. At this rate, all of EV 2.0 may turn on RVD now."
Same reason why Austin was still in the WWF even though McMahon was in charge. Same reason why Sting and Luger weren't fired when the NWO ruled. When heels are in power somehow faces don't get released from their contracts no matter how powerful they are. It's one of those "unwritten storyline rules."
- Last thing: I know it's been "character development" shows, but I'm not watching TNA to see guys talk about how evil they've become or how dominant they are. I watch TNA for the wrestling. I watch see the Motor City Machineguns tear the house down, and I watch to see wrestlers that have no shot of being featured in the WWE show their stuff on a big stage. TNA can achieve the promos they want to achieve in half the time and still add at two or three 5-minute matches featuring more people. I respect peoples' opinion, but me personally I want more wrestlers in matches than just the Immortals. Remember that the NWO featured the same guys as well and look where that got them, and they at least had cruiserweight matches to start the show.
I would bow down to that company! Anyway...so it looks like TNA is competing with Smackdown! numbers now. Wow...no wonder Vince is pushing the writers to pretend like Smackdown!'s the A-show. But, TNA FINALLY did something RIGHT with a story: they did something NEW! HOLY CRAP! 
Way to GO TNA! I'm seriously impressed with the Hardy heel turn. BUT...you're putting the strap on a guy who, let's face it, can't talk...oh wait, Bischoff and Hogan will be there as mouth pieces you say? Oh, and Ric Flair's crazy ass is there too? Ok...Let the Smackdown! vs Impact! war begin. Impact is closer to Smackdown! name-wise than RAW anyway...so maybe they should've tried going for those ratings first?
