What Can TNA Do Now?

[BillAlfonso]

The question I pose is what can TNA do if what happened on Monday Night Raw with the Season 1 NXT rookies actually live up to it's hype? I mean, this has the makings of possibly the greatest storyline I've seen since Austin vs The Rock leading up to Wrestlemania 17 topped only by The Flock vs Sandman. Actually, no, those were more of personal angles, I'd say since the real NWO. So, what can TNA do because the only thing keeping me there is Jay Lethal and Flair, I could watch Jay Lethal do those...you shut your mouth, right now! Now, I could watch Jay Lethal do those Flair impression everyday of the week and two times, two times on Sunday.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Exactly what they've been doing – continue to push young stars while booking the show into PPV's solidly. Let the program sell itself.

If the only thing keeping you there is Jay Lethal & Flair, then the only thing keeping you there is Jay Lethal & Flair – that's in no way a condemnation of the talent held elsewhere on the roster, because when dealing with the primary differences between the WWE and TNA rosters, one single and deafening difference is strongest above all else. Personality. The WWE sorely lacks it, while TNA is chock full of it.

TNA's issue has never been personality, or the development of character – both of which they excel in tremendously. Rather, the issue has been and has always been in how said characters were booked. Perhaps that's what you don't like about the show, but I'd contend that the way TNA has booked their program through to Slammiversary has been much more compelling and much more interesting than anything John Morrison and the rest of the card-carrying members of the DPC have had to offer in the last few months.

To each his own, I suppose.

 

[MisterRob]

If the only thing keeping you there is Jay Lethal & Flair, then the only thing keeping you there is Jay Lethal & Flair – that's in no way a condemnation of the talent held elsewhere on the roster, because when dealing with the primary differences between the WWE and TNA rosters, one single and deafening difference is strongest above all else. Personality. The WWE sorely lacks it, while TNA is chock full of it.

What a completely biased comment.

TNA's issue has never been personality, or the development of character – both of which they excel in tremendously. Rather, the issue has been and has always been in how said characters were booked. Perhaps that's what you don't like about the show, but I'd contend that the way TNA has booked their program through to Slammiversary has been much more compelling and much more interesting than anything John Morrison and the rest of the card-carrying members of the DPC have had to offer in the last few months.

To each his own, I suppose.

I'm pretty sure countless people have claimed the exact opposite of TNA in terms of personality and character development. I think TNA has consistently done a piss poor job of developing characters that anyone cares at all about, which is exactly why they're at the same level as they always have been and can't rise beyond it. But as you said, to each his own.


As for this thread's topic? I really don't understand it at all. Why would anything WWE do with this NXT Invasion storyline have any impact on TNA? TNA isn't competition. TNA hasn't taken any audience from WWE and so nothing WWE does will take the small TNA audience they have now in turn. This NXT Invasion storyline may draw more attention and may draw more of an audience for WWE in the coming weeks and months, who knows, but that still won't have any effect on TNA, because TNA doesn't have that audience. TNA needs to worry about themselves right now and figure out some way to move forward and build more of an audience, because that's TNA's biggest problem.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I don't necessarily see what one has to do with the other. I know that many are still clinging to the idea that the WWE and TNA are legitimate competitors with each other, but it's really time to get over that. The WWE isn't basing in what direction its going to take its product depending on what TNA is doing. It hasn't throughout the course of this year so far and I don't necessarily see why it's going to change.

Also, the old "WWE doesn't have personality" argument is one that's really not holding water anymore. I know that some still like to harp on the PG rating and go on and say that the WWE's audience is mainly children and all that. The arguments don't really hold up I'm afraid. I think that the WWE has proven solidly in 2010 that a "PG" product can be of good quality while TNA has shown that a "PG-13" product can be of distinctly low quality.

 

[Tastycles]

TNA's issue has never been personality, or the development of character – both of which they excel in tremendously. Rather, the issue has been and has always been in how said characters were booked.

Do you even know what character development means? Probably not based on this sentiment. Character development means developming a character, something that TNA is and always has been incredibly bad at. There is absolutely nobody in TNA right now that has a character that is remotely consistant with what they were doing a year ago. That's not development.

Before the inevitable chorus of "what do you expect, no heel turns?", let me give you a little example in what I mean, and what should be obvious to you but apparently isn't. Take the two big turns that the WWE has done in the past year. CM Punk went from being wholesome to being a tosser fairly organically, and slowly, but did it without really changing his character. He had opportunistically taken the title before, and had always been straight edge, but his character developed to be more preachy. Randy Orton is basically exactly the same as he was before, except now he gets put in feuds with heels and he is more accepting of the fans. Again, development.

Take two major turns that TNA has done. Styles has gone from being a wrestler and TNA devotee to the core, to being Ric Flair-lite. The obvious way to turn him heel would be to make him annoyed that other people get promoted above him and that he is the cornerstone of TNA. Instead, TNA have him, totally without any rhyme or reason become best buds with Flair and then become a clone of him. Styles is fairly tame in comparison to some of the shit TNA get up to, take someone like Eric Young. What do we know about him? Absolutely nothing. He hates America, then he seems indifferent to eeryone, then he's a face, getting beaten down by The Band, then he refuses to join them, before accepting their offer a few weeks later, for absolutely no reason. That isn't development, it's the opposite. ******ation if you will. Not only i YOung's character nor progressing with any consistency, he isn't even being allowed to establish a character to develop in the first place.

I'm not a blind TNA basher by any stretch of the imagination, but what TNA really need to do right now is to make episodic television, and not a two hour directionless clusterfuck.