What if TNA Reinvented Itself Again?

[bioshock]

I use to watch TNA, during their weekly PPV days, and up though most of the Hogan run in TNA, but the one thing I liked with TNA was the 6 sided ring and the way it changed wrestling here in the states that we get to see on TV, yes I knew Mexico had it long ago. But it made some of the gimmick matches TNA did worth watching just to see how it played out.

So with that said, why not reinvent them self again?

No I don't mean to bring back the 6 sided ring and go back to what it use to be.

What if instead they changed to use a double ring, or even a triple ring set up. Like the setup WCW had with War Games, or like they had for World War 3 with the 3 rings.

Like at least 1 fact; we all liked War Games and want it to return, to a point I think most fans liked the concept of World War 3, even if it wasn't the best played out battle royal.

But what we haven't seen is the double ring, or triple ring set up used on a regular basis, or in other gimmick matches. Like for instance if the double ring was used on a regular basis they could book double cages that aren't closed, they could do them closed in, for singles matches, tag matches, team matches, all in the War Games setting, or in a open cage setting.

They would have many options for battle royals, both double elimination style or 2 going on at the same time, hardcore "monsters ball" matches or "king of the hill" matches, ladder matches, and other gimmick matches have never really been done in the double or triple ring setting.

As someone who doesn't care to watch TNA any time soon, if they did something like said above and changed to a double or triple ring format and stuck with it on a weekly and PPV basis, I would make sure to tune in each week just to see what happens in the matches!

Now those are just 2 ideas the double or triple ring as a standard format like the six sides use to be and all the new gimmick matches that had created. So what do you think? Or what do you think is a better way they could reinvent them self?

 

[It's Damn Real!]

It might work in the interim, in trying to gain viewers on a short-term basis, but it's not a long-term solution (at least not a successful one) at all. Two rings means less seats in the already small venues they do run out of (especially the Impact Zone), which means less dollars on ticket sales, and the risk of having to successfully train all their athletes to now perform in a "double" ring would likely lead to an increase in injuries, potentially even catastrophic.

If TNA has any plans of reinventing itself again, it will likely need to be through a complete identity overhaul, which would come by rebranding the entire company for a third time. A very expensive endeavor they've done twice already to no avail, so I'm not sure there's much merit to support the idea that the third time would be the charm.

 

[bioshock]

I wasn't really looking at it towards being a long term change, it could just be something they did for a year or two years. And I don't think the crowd size would be an issue, its viewers on TV that matters, they are usually in small arenas as it is.

 

[Sexcellence of Sexecution]

I honestly don't think there's anything TNA can do to make a meaningful impact (oh my god, I'm hilarious).

As far as the whole two ring idea, I personally wouldn't be that interested because I've never been a fan of the double ring. It's a gimmick that might garner a little bit of interest at first, but on the whole I think it's a pretty lame concept that would lose whatever appeal it might have pretty quickly.

I obviously don't know anything with regards to the financial situation at TNA, so I can't say if they're struggling or possibly going out of business soon. However, to me their booking as of late seems reminiscent of the booking of 2001 in ECW. Magnus and Eric Young feuding over the TNA Title might as well be Justin Credible and Steve Corino feuding for the ECW belt in 2001. It just seems like a company scraping the bottom of the barrel and doing whatever. That fact, combined with the exodus of talent like Chris Sabin and AJ Styles leaving (and reports of Daniels and Kazarian leaving soon) make it seem like a wrestling company on its last legs. To give TNA credit though, people have doubted their ability to survive since Day 1.

Throughout its history TNA has made a string of bad decisions with respect to business, branding and booking, and I don't think they can ever be salvaged and turned into a viable major wrestling promotion. That's not to say that they still can't be a successful independent promotion that caters to a core audience of fans. Had they focused on being that, and not wanted to compete with WWE, I think it would've been a better mentality.

 

[OYDK]

TNA needs to go out and find a billionaire to invest in them, hire somebody who understand the business to run the damn thing, hire JR as talent manager, and completely overhaul their Creative team led by Russo. THIS is how you re-invent yourself as a main player. Sound like WCW? Probably because it would be a carbon copy but who wouldn't want to see a legitimate threat to WWE again?

But if I'm going to be serious here, they need a new face running the company. A young guy (or girl) with a mind for the business and see where she/he can go with it. Can't hurt.

 

[lil steroid meat]

It would be cool to see them with a new color scheme or the return of the six sided ring, or two rings or whatever.

But the bottom line is that they need someone new in charge and they need someone who has a long term plan and vision for the company. Someone who can tell you every Bound For Glory main event for the next five years. Someone who knows what they want TNA's identity to be.

Until then, it won't matter if you have a four sided ring, a six sided ring, two rings, ten rings, or if they wrestle in an upside down ring, the gimmicks won't matter if they don't have an identity they are fulfilling and a long term plan and story they are building to.

But I do think, regardless of what they do, that they need to change their color scheme. They look like Diet Smackdown now. Also a new tron wouldn't hurt.

 

[TDFG]

Change the entrance videos, almost everyone in TNA has their name flash up on the screen and that's it. Put a bit more content in it i.e. accomplishments, key moves etc.

Look into bringing back the 6 sided ring, the bumps are tougher on the guys, but it is what made TNA different.

The PPV schedule is all over the place, have 6 PPV's, 1 every 2 months & build around them, TNA doesn't have that much air-time so they need longer for the feuds to build and for the roster to be used better.

Lastly, sort the roster out, fair play to them for giving the likes of Magnus a push, but he isn't world title material. Bobby Roode, Austin Aries, James Storm build the World Title around these guys & then look at putting the X division & Tag division back to where they were better than WWE.

 

[GameOver]

Change the entrance videos, almost everyone in TNA has their name flash up on the screen and that's it. Put a bit more content in it i.e. accomplishments, key moves etc.

Look into bringing back the 6 sided ring, the bumps are tougher on the guys, but it is what made TNA different.

The PPV schedule is all over the place, have 6 PPV's, 1 every 2 months & build around them, TNA doesn't have that much air-time so they need longer for the feuds to build and for the roster to be used better.

Lastly, sort the roster out, fair play to them for giving the likes of Magnus a push, but he isn't world title material. Bobby Roode, Austin Aries, James Storm build the World Title around these guys & then look at putting the X division & Tag division back to where they were better than WWE.

NOt a huge fan, well i was 6yrs ago and earlier then it went downhill after that but this is sound logic, TNA was at it's best IMO back in the NWA/TNA days when they had a deep roster, great storytelling, exciting stuff like the world cups and it was different to what WWE was doing with the six sided rings and the XDivision which although most of it is a continuous spotfest it can be fun to watch but overall they had a good mix of Wrestling, Extreme, Cruiserweight and Tag what more could you ask for. Now they have mediocre storylines that are just copies of the others and at the same time aswell, piss poor management, shit PPV's for the past 6 years (not saying WWE's are great either).

 

[roguesquadron1981]

there is only one man who can save tna and make it a success and that man's last name is mcmahon and no im not talking about vince mcmahon,im talking about shane mcmahon..he has the money,wrestling knowledge and business acumen to make tna very successful and if somehow he was able to bring paul heyman and jim ross in as the heads of his creative team for tna then that will really make tna successful...oh and they can keep dixie carter too but just have her be in charge of the knockouts and keep her off tv

 

[rokuma]

TNA certainly needs a new identity: From the inside out. Panda Energy needs to sell it to a different investor or simply pull the plug on Dixie running it, which from reports, they want to sell it, but keep her in charge. How stupid is that? TNA needs someone who understands the wrestling business and someone who wants to put out a wrestling product and not a carbon copy of WWE.

From the outside, the product screams of a WWE rip-off: Huge screen at the entrance way, a blue-themed set which screams Smackdown, announce table at ringside. All this stuff just mirrors WWE. The 6-sided ring was a visual representation of "different" in my opinion and I loved it. From wrestler interviews, I think mostly AJ Styles, he immediately understood the difference we took bumps in a 4-sided ring. It's much easier on the body apparently. My thought is: Find a way to make a unique 6-sided ring that is comparable to the 4-sided ring as far as taking bumps. Be revolutionary and keep it as your identity. It'd be cool and fans love it.

Also, change the color scheme! What was wrong with red and black ropes/turnbuckles? WWE has gone to white for Raw & PPVs. Or even black ropes and blue turnbuckles if you're intent on keeping the blue? Or Black and blue ropes? Something that's different than the WWE! Instead of this enormous set, why not embrace the small arena with a small set, and make it like an old-school WCW Nitro set? That set was awesome and it wasn't enormous. Embrace the old-school feel. Fans would love it.

Move the announce table even. WCW had it at the top of the entrance way. Why not? Try it! It's different. Take chances, be different. Don't just copy WWE at every turn. Build up talent, take care of your homegrown talent like Bobby Roode, AJ Styles, Sabin, Daniels, Kazarian, etc. These guys have MADE this company. They were TNA for a long-time. Take care of those guys because they gave it their all to make TNA succeed.

But like I said, all this changes from the inside-out. If TNA doesn't get bought out, I'm afraid they're done. They are in disarray. I've been a fan of theirs for a while, but the product is just a scramble. They're dumping fan favorites at an alarming rate and could possibly be without a TV deal. Without a TV deal, they will be done, no question. Hopefully, we'll see something good come out of this.

 

[roguesquadron1981]

my recipe for tna's success:


owner:shane mcmahon....as i said in a previous reply he has the money,business sense and wrestling knowledge to make tna a huge success,bigger than what they are now

heads of creative:jim ross,paul heyman and eric bischoff.....3 of the best mind in wrestling who can help make tna very successful and who can turn tna around

number 1 and number 2 guys:cm punk and aj styles.......tna should be built around these two guys because lets be honest they will be the two top merchandise sellers for tna

gunner:if they cant bring in cm punk then tna needs to legitamize this guy by putting the world title on him because to me he is the future of tna and with the right push he will be the next big star in tna and will be the one selling all the merchandise



more keys to tna's success:

they need to stop trying to be wwe's clone and start doing thier own thing

rebuild thier tag team division by bringing in more tag teams

legitamize the x-divison again by bringing in more x-division stars

tna needs to learn how to build stars better..to me its like they start to build a guy up but once he gets to a certain point they either keep him there or they bring him back down ala wcw

 

[IT Factor]

I don't see any other way for TNA to survive without making major changes. The first of which would see Dixie Carter or the Carter family selling TNA to an owner who knows wrestling and can actually run a company. Dixie has proven she can neither run a company nor does she know anything about wrestling. She was simply a wrestling mark who thought it'd look like fun to bankroll a wrestling show and run it. TNA will also have to make major changes with regards to their "creative" meaning doing innovative matches/storylines that people want to tune into each week to see what happens next. Last but not least, TNA needs a TV deal with a network that will heavily promote them and be invested for the long term. Also, it wouldn't hurt for TNA to bring back the people like Daniels, AJ Styles, and Sabin who all helped build the company in the early years. They are all guys who have recognition within TNA and could make big differences in the product given the correct opportunities in the right roles.

 

[Danny84]

You need the 6 sided ring they need to bring bk the x division roper no bits and bobs I mean revamp it like it first was also where's the king of the mountain match that made tna what it was and where's all the good stables and tag teams gone that's what they need to do to get bk where they once was any one agree

 

[Fenris]

my recipe for tna's success:


owner:shane mcmahon....as i said in a previous reply he has the money,business sense and wrestling knowledge to make tna a huge success,bigger than what they are now

heads of creative:jim ross,paul heyman and eric bischoff.....3 of the best mind in wrestling who can help make tna very successful and who can turn tna around

number 1 and number 2 guys:cm punk and aj styles.......tna should be built around these two guys because lets be honest they will be the two top merchandise sellers for tna

gunner:if they cant bring in cm punk then tna needs to legitamize this guy by putting the world title on him because to me he is the future of tna and with the right push he will be the next big star in tna and will be the one selling all the merchandise



more keys to tna's success:

they need to stop trying to be wwe's clone and start doing thier own thing

rebuild thier tag team division by bringing in more tag teams

legitamize the x-divison again by bringing in more x-division stars

tna needs to learn how to build stars better..to me its like they start to build a guy up but once he gets to a certain point they either keep him there or they bring him back down ala wcw

That reads like a recipe for rapid failure. I don't even really know WERE to begin. I guess take it from the top....

1: Shane will never own TNA. Period, it isn't going to happen.

2: Jim Ross. The WWE's spin doctoring of their #1 asskisser continues to work, I see. Jim Ross is the PERFECT recipe for Bankruptcy, as his actual track record shows. Put the UWF under, nearly put WCW under with his equally clueless buddy Jim Cornette and nearly put the WWF under with his moronic booking and good ole boy politics, until Vince relieved him of that duty and put Vince Russo in his place to fix his screw ups.

I can see it now, between Ross' sexual fetishes for young 2nd generation 'Rasslers and his sexual fetish for every failed football player to come knocking we'd have quite a TNA top tier...

WHC: David Hart Smith
TV Title: Wes "Buh Gawd" Briscoe
X-Division: Dakota Dumbass Darsow
Knockouts: Lacey Von Erich
Tag Team: Terrell Owens and Pacman Jones

Buh Gawd that's a slobberknocker! Slobberknocker! Slobberknockerrrrr!!

3: Now onto Paul Heyman, the overrated shitty Indy booker who created an unearned mythology around himself as innovative, despite merely being a tool regularly ripping off Japan and WCW's original ideas. TNA tried that already, thankfully even Heyman knows he's little more than a con man and continually overprices himself out of booking jobs, a win/win for him. He doesn't get exposed and he can just claim everyone is cheap. This guy is perfect though, I really wish they would hire him so he could kill off the albatross TNA has become. No doubt about it, his booking would destroy TNA. Unfortunately WWE's camera crew won't be there to clean up his dog shit like they have with ECW, making it look better than it is. Trust me, I watched the original ECW each week as it happened. It was horrible. 9 times outa 10 a weekly one hour match with interviews of people whining about ECW or "Dick" Flair or some other lame grudge they had down South.

Yes, let's bring in Heyman. Sadly he cannot bring his choice Vegan pussy with him, Danie Bryan in order to pull off his "genius" Bryberg angle but at least he has EY he can build up into the unbeatable vanilla midget.

4: Eric Bischoff. It's been done and Dixie already blew the hard work Eric and Hogan put in with turning TNA around by handing the book to another overrated IWC darling, Brucey Pritchard. Hence why TNA is in the shape it is now in. Of course it doesn't help Bischoff seemingly struck lightening once but cannot innovate any further than that.


5: Semen Spunk isn't going to TNA.

6: The first RIGHT move Dixie has ever made was letting AJ Styles walk. Too bad it is a decade too late. See that's the problem, has been the problem all along. TNA needed roster turnover for years, but someone told Dixie a decade ago that AJ Styles was the next Steve Austin and that the morbidly obese World of Warcraft nerd Joe was the next Rock, hence her attempt after attempt after attempt after attempt at getting them over. Hint: They're not, they weren't and they never will be. There's a reason AJ Styles is wrestling in high school gymnasiums right now and can't even land a jobber role with the WWE. It's because he is a mediocre, average vanilla midget with a horrible self entitled attitude.

The era of AJ Styles with his $5.99 SuperCuts haircut and $13.99 Wal-Mart leotards is hopefully over. Thank God.

7: The X-Division is a joke outside of the IWC. Always has been. Always will be. Internet nerds cream themselves over talentless spot monkeys, the casual fan turns the damn channel. Sorry, that is just the way it is.

 

[T2KFreeker]

The only way for TNA to make themselves relevant these days anymore is to pick a direction and stick with it. I have been a TNA fan since day one. Has everything they have done been amazing? Nope, but I really do believe they were heading in the right direction right before HH and the Bisch showed up with the Nasty Boys and all the other misfits they brought along to clog up the works. I'm not going to say that there weren't high points to the 2009 - 2013 TNA years either, but they were few and far between. Before HH and Bisch, the Tag Division was white hot and the X-Division was really good too. The Knockouts were kicking ass and storylines like World Elite were actually taking form and making sense. They need to find their way back to that. Solid booking and at least halfway decent storylines. Good wrestling that makes people want to tune in.

In the end, say what you will about Hulk and Easy E, but really, the money TNA spent on those guys was a waste because nothing changed for TNA other than that they don't have the money to pay wrestlers that deserved raises what they should have been paid. AJ walking out of the company alone was a huge blow. It is what it is. The only thing to do now is pick up the pieces and move on as best as you can. Come up with your own stuff and keep trying to put on solid shows. Somewhere, they need to advertise. things seem to be falling into place for them over the last couple of months, but I am unsure if it's too little too late because of so many fans over the last five years that are just irritated with the roller coaster. The last thing TNA needs to do right now is rebrand. Just try and be solid and hopefully things will fall into place where they need to be. Oh, and DON'T lose Samoa Joe. He is your Locker Room leader for crying out loud and deserves to have some respect and good treatment. If not, I feel that if you lose Joe, people will tire of the revolving door and just tune out. It would be like WWF back in the day letting Undertaker leave. Not saying they are of the same caliber, but from what I have seen and read, he has that kind of presence with the talent. They need guys like that.

 

[Weems2k]

my recipe for tna's success:


owner:shane mcmahon....as i said in a previous reply he has the money,business sense and wrestling knowledge to make tna a huge success,bigger than what they are now

heads of creative:jim ross,paul heyman and eric bischoff.....3 of the best mind in wrestling who can help make tna very successful and who can turn tna around

number 1 and number 2 guys:cm punk and aj styles.......tna should be built around these two guys because lets be honest they will be the two top merchandise sellers for tna

gunner:if they cant bring in cm punk then tna needs to legitamize this guy by putting the world title on him because to me he is the future of tna and with the right push he will be the next big star in tna and will be the one selling all the merchandise



more keys to tna's success:

they need to stop trying to be wwe's clone and start doing thier own thing

rebuild thier tag team division by bringing in more tag teams

legitamize the x-divison again by bringing in more x-division stars

tna needs to learn how to build stars better..to me its like they start to build a guy up but once he gets to a certain point they either keep him there or they bring him back down ala wcw

More like a recipe for going out of business.

Shane, from a wrestling perspective may be a good choice, but more than likely not gonna happen. If he were to take control of TNA, there'll always be that lingering question if him, and Vince have some unwritten agreement where TNA will never come close to competing with The E.

JR is really more of a talent scout than booker. Why do you think he was head of Talent Relations for so long?

Paul Heyman is just a fat, bald, representation of the IWC. Everyone jizzes over this guy cause he tries to push wrestlers that only the IWC likes. He ran ECW into bankruptcy all while living in mommy's laundry basement. He's just lucky Brock Lesnar has horrid mic skills.