[Rumor] Major Changes to TNA's Product & Identity Being Discussed Internally

[Zeven_Zion]

Source: PWTorch

PWTorch learned last week there are internal discussions at a high level in TNA about considering re-branding the company or taking a different approach to the product.

Even a change to the company's name is "at least being considered" during this round of discussions aimed at giving TNA's product a recognizable identity.

As ratings have trended downward long-term and short-term, notably the males 18-34 demographic for last Thursday's show hitting a one-year low, there have been talks about taking a new approach to the product to make it "clearly different" from WWE.

Any proposed changes are currently at the discussion stage, but some major changes could be coming sooner rather than later if the talks turn into action.

Another element of this story is the Spike TV aspect. Initial ratings for the new season of UFC's Ultimate Fighter have been below average despite Brock Lesnar starring as one of the coaches. TNA's decline in key demo ratings, along with UFC's disappointing ratings, could prompt Spike TV to make changes or push TNA to make changes. The downward trends are not going unnoticed.

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Thoughts? Concerns? Do you agree with it? Are you afraid that a potential change might hurt the product? Change is not always a good thing.

Personally, this smells fishy. I'm all for re-branding the product if it's gonna be better than before, but if they learned about this last week then why are they reporting it now? Also, it just seems like a mirrored image of the IWC's constant pleading to make TNA "different". Still, it's a fun topic to discuss and it should attract many a TNA haters.

 

[GrandSword]

TNA needs to stop worrying about their name (after 8 years it's an internationally known brand name now), and start worrying about their booking and how they use their roster. Their roster is far superior to WWE's and yet due to their constant terrible booking of that roster people are turning off. It seems the TNA name is the scapegoat in all this. First it was the six sided ring and now it's the name.

I would rather see Hogan gone and TNA get back to its original vision of being a wrestling company and not a sports entertainment company. Hiring big names has proved time and time again as a failure. Jst get back to solid and simple storylines with easily defined faces and heels, makes sure everything they do pushes the talent and in doing so pushes the company.

TNA's highest bought ppv was Angle vs. Joe because booking had built Joe up so well that casuals bought the show. The same needs to happen again and concentrate on wrestling and not convaluted comapny takeover storylines that Bischoff is so fond of.

Get RVD, Sting, AJ, Joe, pope, Beer Money and push them hard and market them hard. The fans want to see these guys, put them on every show give them wins and ratings will come.

The company is already has a recognised brand, but fan are tired of segments Angle vs. Jarrett with no real wrestling Jarrett talking for what seems like forever and Angle attacking a wedding with an axe.. it's cringeworthy and people stop watching after being exposed to it for months on end.

 

[Rayne]

We play the "if this were true" game, of course.

If this were true, I have a massive, throbbing erection. I have not been a fan of how TNA has become a very WWEesque promotion over the past year, selling the same material to a target age group a decade older.

First, the initials "TNA" are stupid. We, as wrestling fans familiar with TNA's product, have learned to accept them; however, the first thing someone thinks when they haven't heard of the product or haven't watched much, if any of it, is of course "Tits and Ass". TNA needs to brand themselves as their own wrestling product, not make coy word play with their initials.

Second, this isn't a "six sides" issue. The shape of the ring has nothing to do with the product within it. No one's brought it up yet, but believe me, people will. It honestly doesn't matter if TNA uses four sides, six sides, or a giant circle with a sand floor and lions that come out of the floor; it's what takes place within those confines that's important. (I would probably watch a lot more TNA if fucking lions jumped out of the floor and tried to maul Orlando Jordan. Just saying.)

Third, and I'll say this yet again because it's incredibly obvious- TNA needs to focus on appealing to as many people as possible; they are in a growth phase, and it is difficult for people to get invested in the product when they are walking into the middle of convoluted year-long storylines with swerves every month. It rewards the regular viewer while alienating the casual, and you aren't going to grow your product that way.

The big one, however- if TNA wants to grow, a simple rebranding isn't going to have to do it. Growth requires hard cash; cash to buy talent with, and I don't mean wrestlers who can't make wellness checks in the WWE, I mean hard cash with which to poach big name stars like Ortons, Punks, or Edges. (Regardless of what any wrestler has said online, they all work for the money. If the price is right, anyone would jump ship.) I mean cash to pay for huge advertising campaigns, not the campaign which started across Viacom and is now reduced to fifteen-second bumps on SpikeTV. I mean cash to do the live Impacts that they know they've needed to do for a long time now. Kevin Nash said it best; TNA is trying to buy a luxury sportscar at a Kia price. Their apparent plan right now is to spend as little as possible while securing a few cheap big names, has its merits; they aren't going to sink into a WCW style financial quagmire. But it's not a way for rapid growth that they still seem to be chasing. That's going to require cash on the barrelhead.

 

[The Suplexer Perfecter]

Remember when TNA would say "We Are Wrestling"? They could do that again since WWE has now gotten rid of "wrestling" in their name.

They could indeed embrace the idea of "pro wrestling" as a contrast to WWE.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

TNA needs to stop worrying about their name (after 8 years it's an internationally known brand name now), and start worrying about their booking and how they use their roster. Their roster is far superior to WWE's and yet due to their constant terrible booking of that roster people are turning off. It seems the TNA name is the scapegoat in all this. First it was the six sided ring and now it's the name.

The booking has its flaws - that's crystal clear, but ... what's so horrible about it right now?

1. Sting vs Anderson vs RVD - Sting comes back to fight Hogan but is distracted by RVD and Anderson who both want their shots, and they never got them. RVD never lost the belt, Anderson never got a fair rematch. Booking wise, the only issue here is that Sting came back to stop Hogan but he's fighting those two guys. He can't do two things at once. It's not a horrible thing, it doesn't make the product unwatchable, and it made for a great build up for Lockdown. Sting has made the title mean more than it used to in the hands of Hardy and Anderson - it's a good thing, it's a good storyline.

2. Jeff Jarrett and Kurt Angle - some would say it's the best SL in TNA and I'll have to agree. Angle didn't contribute as much as Double J did, however. But overall it's a great storyline with a touch of realism and tons of tension. There was comedy, there was drama and in 7 days we'll see a brutal match to close it. What more do you need? Booking wise - nearly perfect. I don't see a flaw.

3. Fourtune and Immortal - Fourtune turns on Immortal, they're sick of playing second fiddle. Immortal picks 4 guys, Fourtune has 4 guys. Everything seems right. Bully Ray injures Styles, Fourtune has even more reasons to hang him from cage at Lockdown. Shock factor - Daniels returns. Now it's Fourtune avenging Styles vs Immortal who are trying to stay on top. Great storyline, both sides are looking strong going into Lockdown, plus you have the mystery factor - Daniels.

4. Winter, Angelina and Velvet - I was never a fan of unrealistic storylines so this bothers me a bit. I like Winter, she's very different and unlike any other diva/knockout out there, but the whole "spell" thing is not tickling my fancy. Still, booking wise, it's great. Winter has Angelina under her "spell", Velvet doesn't know what the fuck's going on, we'll see what happens at Lockdown.

5. Pope and Joe - sloppiest feud in TNA right now. I know Joe and Pope have been at eachother's throats for a LONG time, but this is where bad booking shines. Pope turned heel for no reason. Pope was with Nash and Sting to fight Immortal, and then he just forgot about it. Joe hires some asian dude to expose Pope for the fraud he is - cool, but was he like that ALL the time? It's just such a clusterfuck, and it could've been a good thing because both of them are good wrestlers.

6. Gen Me Splits - again, booking wise, it's perfect. Max always says it's Generation ME, Jeremy's the goodie two shoes, Max's ego grows, he wants the X-Division title, pushes his brother around, yada yada yada, he lays him out, we'll see what happens at Lockdown.

Those are the major feuds in TNA right now. All of them are booked well except for Pope and Joe. People can't make a difference between "Bad booking" and "I don't like this". I don't like Angelina/Velvet/WInter that much, but it's booked right.

As far as usage of people goes - again, very subjective. Like you said, TNA has a talented roster. They can't push everybody.

I would rather see Hogan gone and TNA get back to its original vision of being a wrestling company and not a sports entertainment company. Hiring big names has proved time and time again as a failure. Jst get back to solid and simple storylines with easily defined faces and heels, makes sure everything they do pushes the talent and in doing so pushes the company.

I never want to see the "original" version of TNA. It didn't work for them. It pleases the ROH-type fans, but not the casual fan. Now I liked the "wrestling" attitude they had. I liked how much they wrestled and HOW they wrestled. I didn't like the lack of "sports entertainment". You gotta have some of that. Just wrestling doesn't work. A mixture of the storylines today and the wrestling from a few years ago would be ideal.

Get RVD, Sting, AJ, Joe, pope, Beer Money and push them hard and market them hard. The fans want to see these guys, put them on every show give them wins and ratings will come.

Not sure if ratigns will come, but I do agree that all of those guys (except for Joe) must be the faces of the company.

The company is already has a recognised brand, but fan are tired of segments Angle vs. Jarrett with no real wrestling Jarrett talking for what seems like forever and Angle attacking a wedding with an axe.. it's cringeworthy and people stop watching after being exposed to it for months on end.

It's a fine storyline, but it dragged at times and that's a problem that TNA has in all departments, not just this storyline. They need to fix it, it kills the vibe.

 

[tonybones]

I just don"t see how TNA is going to ever be a big as WWE. How can you be involved in a world where Vince sets the standards of wrestling. TNA is like the titanic all going down.

 

[Rayne]

Remember when TNA would say "We Are Wrestling"? They could do that again since WWE has now gotten rid of "wrestling" in their name.

They could indeed embrace the idea of "pro wrestling" as a contrast to WWE.

No! This is I think what TNA's largest problem now, is that everything they do is in contrast to the WWE. They try to do what the WWE doesn't do so much that they let the WWE define what they're going to be.

TNA has to stop comparing themselves to the WWE, because right now that's a race they have no hope of winning. They need to focus on being the best possible promotion they can be; if they start being a threat to the WWE, the Stamford crew won't be able to resist taking a few shots. That's when you'll see your 'Monday Night Wars II' take off.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

No! This is I think what TNA's largest problem now, is that everything they do is in contrast to the WWE. They try to do what the WWE doesn't do so much that they let the WWE define what they're going to be.

TNA has to stop comparing themselves to the WWE, because right now that's a race they have no hope of winning. They need to focus on being the best possible promotion they can be; if they start being a threat to the WWE, the Stamford crew won't be able to resist taking a few shots. That's when you'll see your 'Monday Night Wars II' take off.

Absolutely correct.

What TNA needs to do is do what Vince has been using to keep his company alive all this time. Steal ideas until you drop. Steal ideas, ways, things that work, make them your own and make them better than the other company did. That way it's familiar to the casual fan, and if you really bust your ass to make it better the fan would go "well wait a minute, this is better than what the WWE is feeding me, I'll watch this instead". Yes, it's copying, yes it's imitation, yes it's stealing, but when you put your own twist on it and you really strive to make it your own that's when it starts working. What? Do you think Vince sat in his office one day and came up with The Attitude Era? Fuck no. Do your thing, come up with something original for YOUR brand, and also use something if you're sure it really works.

They need to be a little bit of everything to win this. If McMahon does "entertainment" you do it too, and do it better. If you do wrestling, do it ten times better than he does. So far TNA has been doing things better than the WWE, but it's just one thing. The Tag Division is better, but everything else is either equal or worse. The wrestling was better, but the stories suck. The wrestling was better, but they didn't have stars. Now they have stars, they have storylines, but they have no wrestling. They always miss this one thing.

If I'm ordering Pizza I'd want it to have all of my favorite stuff in it, not just one or two. And if there's some other pizza out there that has everything that I like but it's not THAT good, I'll most likely order that one. It ain't the best, but at least it has the stuff I like.

 

[The Suplexer Perfecter]

No! This is I think what TNA's largest problem now, is that everything they do is in contrast to the WWE. They try to do what the WWE doesn't do so much that they let the WWE define what they're going to be.

TNA has to stop comparing themselves to the WWE, because right now that's a race they have no hope of winning. They need to focus on being the best possible promotion they can be; if they start being a threat to the WWE, the Stamford crew won't be able to resist taking a few shots. That's when you'll see your 'Monday Night Wars II' take off.

So TNA shouldn't call themselves Pro Wrestling then? This actually makes a ton of sense saying "we are proud of being pro wrestling".

And the "best promotion they can be"? What kind of promotion?

 

[marklouis]

I've thought for a while now that pro wrestling is in a similar state to rock & roll music in the mid-late 1970s. The most popular music (WWE) is big & bloated and just kind of boring. TNA could become the punk music wrestling. Strip everything down, up the intensity. Adopt a brash attitude. Get rid of the current set with the entrance ramp & big video screen, and have the wrestlers entrance be very simple, with no fireworks. Let the fans get up close. And this wouldn't necessarily mean that TNA would need to become "extreme" or have blood in every match. But I think it could be more realistic. The WWE is almost like a fantasy version of pro wrestling (or sports entertainment). TNA needs to go in the completely opposite direction.

 

[Rayne]

So TNA shouldn't call themselves Pro Wrestling then? This actually makes a ton of sense saying "we are proud of being pro wrestling".

And the "best promotion they can be"? What kind of promotion?

No, they shouldn't call themselves pro wrestling just because the WWE is moving away from calling themselves wrestling. When TNA says "we are proud of being pro wrestling", they aren't saying "we are proud of being pro wrestling"; the very obvious message between the lines is "and the WWE isn't".

What I mean by "best promotion they can be" is one that isn't dependent on what their competition is doing. TNA needs to focus on what TNA is doing. Comparing themselves to the WWE is a game TNA can't win right now. Save that for later, when the viewership race is closer.

 

[klunderbunker]

So WWE completely drops wrestling from its name and now TNA wants to change everything also? For some reason the timing does not shock me at all.

Anyway, I think a few things need to be done here so in response to each of the lines:

1. A name change isn't going to help. People know it's TNA. You can call it Sally and people know what it is. It comes on Spike at 9 on Thursdays and is the other wrestling company. I still call WWE WWF half the time even though that's not its name. Everyone knows what I'm talking about though. Makes no difference at all.

2. This sounds like yet another reboot. TNA has had multiple ones of these in the last year or so. Let's see.

They go from being a company focused on the X-Division to focused on the older guys. They go from being focused on the older guys to being focused on AJ and having long main events with younger guys. They go from that to being focused on Hogan/Bischoff. They go from Hogan/Bischoff to WCW cicra 1997. Now they're talking about changing the whole thing again. Pick a style and stick with it.

The problem with the rebooting again is it'll reset the whole company and we'll have to start again from scratch. It doesn't help to keep changing things over and over again because you keep panicking and changing things again. TNA has internal problems they need to address, which I'll get to later.

As for the ratings, there are simple things to make things better. First and foremost, TELL PEOPLE WHAT IS COMING! Bischoff (in character) keeps talking about ratings. Here's the thing: a cage match on Impact might draw in some people. However, giving them an hour's notice isn't going to help. If someone doesn't watch the first 20 minutes of the show for whatever reason, they might not watch the rest because nothing has been established to tell them something is coming. Tell them there's a major match coming a week beforehand and they'll remember and think to themselves "Oh yeah RVD vs. Anderson in a cage is tonight. I'll have to check that out." Simple, yet effective.

Another issue, have some more wrestling. I know the talking parts are used to build things, but it's a wrestling show. If people want all drama or comedy or whatever, they'll watch drama or comedy. At the end of the day, a lot of the time the solution to your problems is having good wrestling. It buys you some time and makes things feel better in general. TNA doesn't have that.

A third thing on the ratings (and I'll get back to the other stuff after this) is pick up the pace. Hogan has always had the problem of taking FOREVER to get anywhere in his stories. It's been about six months since 10-10-10 and what is different? Sting is champion and Fourtune is face which they should have been in the first place. Anderson is still a jerk, RVD still hasn't gotten his showdown with Hardy, Hogan and Bischoff still control things. It's pretty clear this storyline is going to go on a lot longer and the fans aren't buying it. However, Hogan and Bischoff keep saying "We need more time!" Well they keep getting it and things keep going down. The big payoff for this isn't coming because by the time it ends, the fans go away. Their high point in the Immortal angle has been a 1.4 a few times. That's what they're suffering all these slowly declining ratings for? Some 1.4s? Really?

And now back to the list.

QUick changes would be an interesting idea. You need to be careful not to just change everything at once because there is a fairly large audience that could leave if you make them mad. I'd say do it more slowly, but I see the argument on the other side.

Spike needs to step in I think. TNA has been on a steady decline in the ratings for awhile now and that's not good, especially given their lead-in stuff.

 

[rondiesel2005]

Source: PWTorch

PWTorch learned last week there are internal discussions at a high level in TNA about considering re-branding the company or taking a different approach to the product.

Even a change to the company's name is "at least being considered" during this round of discussions aimed at giving TNA's product a recognizable identity.

As ratings have trended downward long-term and short-term, notably the males 18-34 demographic for last Thursday's show hitting a one-year low, there have been talks about taking a new approach to the product to make it "clearly different" from WWE.

Any proposed changes are currently at the discussion stage, but some major changes could be coming sooner rather than later if the talks turn into action.

Another element of this story is the Spike TV aspect. Initial ratings for the new season of UFC's Ultimate Fighter have been below average despite Brock Lesnar starring as one of the coaches. TNA's decline in key demo ratings, along with UFC's disappointing ratings, could prompt Spike TV to make changes or push TNA to make changes. The downward trends are not going unnoticed.

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Thoughts? Concerns? Do you agree with it? Are you afraid that a potential change might hurt the product? Change is not always a good thing.

Personally, this smells fishy. I'm all for re-branding the product if it's gonna be better than before, but if they learned about this last week then why are they reporting it now? Also, it just seems like a mirrored image of the IWC's constant pleading to make TNA "different". Still, it's a fun topic to discuss and it should attract many a TNA haters.

They really thought they were going to get the ratings higher by bringing in Hogan and Bischoff and not knowing or paying attention to what happen to TNA from the time they got there till like 4 months later. They waitin a year til they realize something is wrong?? The asnwer is staring at their facing the whole time and they don't see it. Its the Booking and the creative is a problem in that company. As long as they have Vince Russo in charge of booking, we going to see a lot of back and forth heel to babyface and back to heel in that company, meaningless storylines that nobody cares about, Talents that haven't been use correctly or they can't figure out how to use them.

I thought TNA stands for Total Nonstop Action?? what we see is Total Lack of Action every week. They need to focus on what they got instead of bringing in talents and use the talents the correct way instead of sending them home or backstage waiting for creative to give them something to do.

If any body goes on youtube.com and watch a video of why Dixie Carter hasn't fired Russo yet you would think she is not e very smart person because of her limited knowledge of wrestling. And Hulk Hogan how many times has we heard "we taking TNA to the next level" how many times has he said that on Impact, he also another fool that doesn't pay attention to the product that he is in and can't see that they need to make some changes

 

[The CRA1GER]

How many time is TNA going to rebrand itself. A few years ago they showed Dixie's talent meeting on TV. Then they bring in Hogan and Bischoff. Now this. They keep taking steps backwards. WCW tried to overhaul their look when they were in the craps and that didn't turn out to be to successful.

 

[AntiChristDeicide]

Let us wait and see. Its just a rumor at this point and it was published in a dirt-sheet, so i wouldn't put stock in the validity of this being true. If things start to change later this year we will know, until then its just speculation.

 

[PompeyDJ]

clearly different?
they could have a 6 sided ring to look different to other promotions.
they could have a division for smaller guys with great skill who are able to pull off exciting matches and do amazing high flying moves.
they could create their own stars or sign indy wrestlers and push them to the top instead of signing wwe rejects.
they could give the young guys the spotlight instead of giving all the time to older, over-paid wrestlers who should have retired but can't stand not being the centre of attention.
they could have storylines and feuds that are simple enough for everyone to understand but interesting enough that people want to keep watching.
they could not show blood and say "shit" every 5 minutes just because other companies don't/can't.
they could stop taking shots at other, much larger companies and constantly try to compare themselves with them.
they could stop poking old, dead storylines with a stick (ecw, wcw)

or basically, they should just rewind 5 years. 2005/2006 was when TNA was at its best. they knew they weren't close to the level of wwe but they didn't care or try to be.

 

[blockanWo]

THe name needs to stay as is. TNA doesnt have a HUGE following, you dont want to confuse people when you are trying to keep building your fanbase.

I think they do need to be the "alternative" to WWE and thats how they will get their niche. They used to be the alternative, with great in ring action. At the moment they are the same as WWE with asshole being shouted every 5 minutes.

TNA just need to sort out their creative team. Thats where they need to look and thats pretty much all they need to change. Untill they get rid of the old dying men in that company, nothing will change.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

THe name needs to stay as is. TNA doesnt have a HUGE following, you dont want to confuse people when you are trying to keep building your fanbase.

I think they do need to be the "alternative" to WWE and thats how they will get their niche. They used to be the alternative, with great in ring action. At the moment they are the same as WWE with asshole being shouted every 5 minutes.

TNA just need to sort out their creative team. Thats where they need to look and thats pretty much all they need to change. Untill they get rid of the old dying men in that company, nothing will change.

I'd just like to comment on this name thing.

If TNA changes their name, don't think that it will "confuse" somebody. It would, if you have two braincells. When people search TNA in Google for example, I'm pretty sure one of the first links would be the news of TNA having a name change.

TNA is not a big company, and it won't disrupt anything. It's not like a different name will make them invisible.

Have a name change IF you have to and if the company is going to change for good and STICK WITH IT.

 

[The Perfect Max]

Look TNA don't even have "Wrestling" in there name. That shows you something. And, I know WWE have dropped "Wrestling" from there name, well, dropped all of it, but they have the initials to say World Wrestling Entertainment. Why don't Dixie Carter put wrestling in there name. Sorry Dixie, but, Extremely Crappy Wrestling was taken a few years back. Total Never-Going-To-Be-WWE-As-Long-As-Dixie-Carter-Runs-It Action doesn't really advertise anything the way World Wrestling Federation did during the days of pre-wrestlemania.

Next, they need to expand. Having the show 9/10 in Orlando maybe a good idea as you have all those people in Universal Studios, but, take it other places. Every week take it somewhere new. Maybe the arenas (or function rooms) can be the same size as the Impressively-Small Zone but take it all over the place somewhere new every week. And, have the PPV's in a bigger arena (like the ones WWE use for house-shows).

Dixie and Mr Ego has to go. Dixie Carter is just stupid and Mr Ego, well, what was Ted DiBiase's theme, Money, Money, Money. That is the sentance that goes around Hulk Hogan's head. WWE had done all it could and still, it wasn't good enough, so, he bugers off to WCW where the nWo was created and then he came back to WWE, then TNA, then WWE, then a TV show, the WWE, then a break, then WWE, then TNA. Hulk Hogan, just go away and (I quote), "Never, Eeeeeeeeevvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrrrrr return again."

So, from those comments, you can see I'm not the biggest TNA fan in the world.

-NOTICE- Go to WWE, you get to see first-time-ideas before TNA, just like that 2/21/11 which got turned into 3/3/11 -NOTICE-

TNA wil never be WWE and should never believe they can be.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

How many time is TNA going to rebrand itself. A few years ago they showed Dixie's talent meeting on TV. Then they bring in Hogan and Bischoff. Now this. They keep taking steps backwards. WCW tried to overhaul their look when they were in the craps and that didn't turn out to be to successful.

Oh! WCW tried to overhaul their look and that didn't work, so that inevitably means that any other company on God's green Earth will also fail?

Plus, you're blowing this out of propotion. Dixie's meeting was ABOUT the company changing with the coming of Bischoff and Hogan.

And how is THIS a step backwards? Has TNA ever changed so much and produced a product like that? No. Yet people want it to "be like in 2005". THAT'S a step backwards.

 

[Murphy]

I for one like the current TNA product but like everything it isn't perfect. But we don't know what TNA have in mind for these changes, despite the possibility of a name change. So really we can't say this is a good or a bad idea. It all depends on what the outcome is.

 

[TUFFY54]

TNA isn't as terrible as many people try to make it out to be. However, there are a few things that I would like to see them change.

1. The Name - I don't care what people say, to 99.9% of the world, TNA stand for Tit's and Ass. You can't argue that. They need to change their name.
ECW, NWA, AWA, WWF, WWE, WCW all had one thing in common-wrestling was in their name.

2. Get out of the Past - I understand that their are only so many ideas in wrestling, but TNA has to do something fresh. I love Hulk Hogan more than anyone on these forums, but my God he doesn't need to be the focus of the show anymore. In 2011 TNA's main angle is Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff running an evil wrestling company with the help of their hired thugs, while Sting is fighting them. Holly shit, that was done 15 years ago. Immortal seems like a joke compared to the NWO because they are. Sure, the NWO had way to many lackys and D-listers, but they also had some of the biggest names in wrestling: Hogan, Hall, Nash, Savage, Big Show, Scott Steiner, and Mr. Perfect. A group like that could run over everyone. Immortal has Hogan and Flair as the managers of Bully Ray, Matt Hardy, Abyss, Rob Terry, and Gunner and Murphy. See the difference?

3. The drawn out angles - I like Kurt Angle and Jeff Jarrett, but I will blow my head off if I have to see one more segement about their kids and wives. How many home videos and weddings are we going to see on a wrestling show?

Over all I think TNA is doing a lot of things right and has some great talent. Unfortunatly, their show seems to just crawl along at times. They made a great improvement when they moved away from the 6 sided ring and stoped focusing on the car crash, flip floppers of the X division, but they just need to do something to tie the show together more.

 

[scomvp316]

The one good move is that Russo has very little input. Bisch needs to take over the reigns with TNA buying the remainder of Hogan's contract. You could even have Russo as an on-air character. They have to be different than WWE and the way to do it have Bisch run the show loike he did Nitro. Thats the only way PPV Buys will go up if the only show does at least 1.5 consistently. If they want to do a NWO style story have some sort of partnership with ROH. Have ROH invade TNA and start having regular TNA guys at ROH events. If you do that perhaps ROH could get a TV deal with Spike on a seperate night from TNA. Imagine the top ROH guys invading like Hall and Nash and confront Anderson/Sting and say we will show you wrestling. Even go old school and have Cornette back and backstage waffle Bisch in the back with the old loaded tennis racket. I think a main story like that would grab the atttention of the true wrestling fan and may take away some WWE fans in the process. If Bisch could work out an arrangement with the Owner of ROH this could be huge. Maybe if Cornette and Bisch could get along from a creative side that would be good for the business!!!

 

[Devlin Mathis]

I try to watch TNA, I really do. I just feel that every time I switch it on, I feel like I’m at one of the local Indy events that occasionally come around. It has some recognizable faces, and by just looking at the stacked roster, you would assume they could be doing a hell of a lot better than what they’re actually doing. They lack the knowledge of running a “wrestling” promotion. I don’t think anyone who has never been involved with the “sport” could pull off a successful business to compete with WWE. I know there was WCW and ECW, but where are they now? Trademarks owned by WWE.

The fact that we’re all spoon fed by the WWE as to what a “wrestling” show is supposed to look like, has jaded the causal fan from TNA. The name itself can be a turnoff to some, seeing as how I always laughed at for being “tits n ass”. When it first started up, I thought to myself, “wow…lets see how long this lasts.” and surprisingly, 9 years later, it still stands.

The few things that helped shape TNA into what it’s become have pretty much all been lost. There’s no more 6 sided ring, there’s hardly any spectacular matches, and I feel as if the X-Division has been shoved aside for the has beens/never was’. I see the same circle of people who were the top draws of each failing promotion at the top of TNA, 10 years later, and about 15-20 years out of their prime. Instead of repeating history, they should try and make history. Stop living in the past because the future is passing you by. It’s sort of like this: Would you rather attend a small show featuring the worlds best cover band version of your favorite band of all time that plays a note for note recreation of that bands most timeless work, or, see your actual favorite band of all time past it's prime, playing the songs in a lower key and half-assing their way through a set of oldies? That’s how I usually feel trying to watch TNA.

They need to focus on what makes a better company. They need to focus on what business they’re actually in. They’re in the “wrasslin” business, maybe they should start putting on better quality wrestling matches. WWE was storyline, TNA was wrestling. Focus on building stars, not the ones past their prime. No one wants to admit they can’t go anymore, but maybe the time to hang the boots up has come, again for most of the top featured stars. The locker room is full of talent, but instead we always see people like Anderson, Angle, Jarrett, Hardy, RVD, Hogan, Sting, Flair, Bischoff, Foley, Nash, ect, in the top echelon of the program.

People are quick to jump on the booking, which is pretty sloppy, but if we were booking it, would anyone else watch it? Us fans would appreciate it, but the fact that we’re actually online debating a fake sport already shows we’re not the casual fan. They should give reason for people to watch TNA. The “earth shattering, shake the world of professional wrestling forever” BS has failed to deliver every single time. It’s not about shock value, or being risqué, it’s about a better show to attract more viewers. It’s a business first and foremost. It’s about time someone stepped up and ran it like one.

They need to get out of Universal Studios. The Impact Zone is doing nothing for the company. Ticket prices from live events would generate revenue, but then you have to look at how expensive it is to go on the road. The reason they have most of their stars is because of the schedule. Do you think Angle, Hogan, and all the others would have jumped ship if they were on the road 300+ days a year? I highly doubt it. So you’re stuck in a catch 22. If they go on the road, they lose some of their big names, but if they don’t then they’re never going to be looked at as a legit company in my opinion. It wouldn’t be a bad thing, however, to lose some of the bigger stars. Then maybe they’d be able to afford going on the road and create a better alternative to the juggernaut known as the WWE.

Perhaps I’m jaded since I’ve been a fan of pro wrestling for pretty much my entire life, but I just always feel as watching TNA is like watching a terminal cancer patient. I know it’s a very harsh comparison, but hear me out. You know there’s nothing you can do to help them. You don’t want to see them suffer and die, but there just doesn’t seem to be any foreseeable cure at the present time.

 

[bigbootydaddyV]

YES I've been saying this from the get go, TNA desperately needs a name change... The name was barely appropriate when they first started on pay per view and had the dancers in cages and all but even then it was a stupid name. Like an earlier poster noted it is just a cheap play on tits n ass which is only going to hurt their product going further and has done damage as is. It sounds cheap and tawdry and deters potential investors, advertisers, and future viewers. Granted their problems arguably run deeper than just the name, but at least that would be a start to identifying themselves as something better than they currently are perceived. TNA imo has a lot of potential, particularly as a second wrestling company and option for many wrestlers, and don't underestimate the power of a name change.