While WWE is building the future, TNA is stuck in the past

[Saritafan]

WWE may be crappy at times but one of the things I've liked is that they're building new stars for the future. John morrison, Sheamus R-truth, Miz, Zigglor, and many more have all been built strong to one day take over WWE. Their NXT show is all about making new stars and man, theirs plenty of it on that show. I recently went on WWE's development show website(FCW) and man, it looks like they picked up some more talent. Not all of them will last but some of them will and they'll go on to become huge stars in the WWE. once triple H, Micheals, Taker, Kane, jericho, and Batista retire, these guys will be the future

now what is TNA doing, they're going the opposite direction. Instead of hiring young fresh new talent that are looking for their huge breaks from the indies, TNA is hiring old farts and WWE rejects. I mean seriously, how is hiring Orlando Jordan and the Nasty boys going to help anyone, it's embarassing. Most of TNA's mid-card talent are in their 30's which means most of them don't have many good years left. TNA needs to wake up already and realize that what they're doing is not going to pay of in the future. The day TNA decides they want young talent, they'll see all the good ones are gone because WWE took them

For example, who will replace AJ styles and Kurt Angle. If these guys retired tomorrow, TNA would be fucked big time because they lost their jewels, they need to start building new stars. Either Alex shelly or Chris Sabin could easily replace AJ styles but these guys are barely seen for weeks at time, thats just stupid. In WWE, i bet these guys would used every week(well WWE has 4 shows so odds are you know they will be)

anyone else agree???

 

[BatistrioFlyPunt]

You couldn't be any more right. But I am worried about WWE's rising stars because some of them have the talent but either doesn't have the work ethic or WWE isn't pushing them like they should. Only a handful of people will be in the main event. And as soon as Batista, Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H retires they will probably struggle to push talent because of the lack of main eventers.

On the other hand TNA will completely fail. The reason I say that is because they are trying to compete with the WWE by getting people who know about the WWE to help with the storylines and concepts. They are pushing Jeff up there but he will be in prison if he is guilty which is probably inevitable.

 

[InfoWarlord]

Why is it so bad that TNA's mid-carders are in their 30's? Pro Wrestling is a business where many big name stars can and do wrestle well into their 50's or even beyond. It's always been that way, but now your early 30's is considered the twilight of ones wrestling career?

 

[pwdrfngr]

I amy not be the first to say this, but the whole TNA thing makes me think of just three letters - W C W.

TNA was in far better shape before Hogan and his cronies came on board. They should be focussing on younger, underrated talent like Matt Morgan, Hernandez, Eric Young, even Samoa Joe. Other than AJ Styles and Abyss there seems to be very few pushes for wrestlers who are not ex-WWE/WCW.

By relying so heavily on WWE cast-offs and has-beens they are making themselves look horrible - a pale imitation of WWE in days gone by.

The Nasty Boys have no place in any major wrestling organisation. They were a joke even when at they're supposed prime. Now it just looks like jobs for the boys.

RVD might have had an initial impact had he returned to WWE. But he would have soon returned to mid-card. TNA seems to be pitching him as main event talent.

If TNA want to compete with WWE then they need their own identity. WWE may still be relatively reliant on HHH, Undertaker, Michaels et al, but at least they can still cut it in the ring. Hogan, Nash, Hall, Nasty Boys, Sting and so many others are too far past their best. It's like taking the worst bits of WWE and emphasising them.

I really wish TNA is successful. WWE needs competition, they've become too complacent. But they're going about it totally the wrong way. Focus on youth - Samoa Joe, Desmond Wolfe, Kazarian, Hernandez, Beer Money, Daniels, MCMG. Provide an adult friendly show - most TNA storylines seem to have been thought up in the schoolyard.

If TNA worked things well the competition between WWE & TNA could lead to a great era in wrestling. I just can't see it happening. TNA will only make wrestling more conservative, more predictable and play into the WWE's hands.

The rant ends here.

 

[Midnite Express 2009]

TNA is WWE-light. The main event of the FIRST real Monday night show they had was two men over the age of 55 bloodingly each other, one man who has probably one of the worse gimmicks ever and A.J.Styles, TNA's answer to a would-be Shawn Michaels. The WWE on the other hand, had (on the same night) a very interesting main event between John Cena and Vince McMahon where we saw some (not all) of the WWE's rising stars (okay let's take Mark Henry out of the equation). TNA WILL and has to fail for its own good and its own fault. It's not putting in ratings and it shot itself in the foot by even going on Monday nights. What can it do now? Retreat and go back to Thursday? They not only need the ratings to stay on Spike but have to compete with the WWE, and having a main event LIKE THAT will only serve to further discussions about how long it'll take before that crap hole of a wrestling company completely dies.

 

[holdingholder]

I think your jumping the gun on this one. What about Pope what about Wolfe, Young Bucks, Morgan, Anderson? There is only so much you can do in two hours of tv time per week. Wwe has six hours per week to showcase talent, on top of that they have like 8 bonafide superstars which you need to create new stars for the most part. TNA is trying its best to mix it up they just don't have the resources.

 

[TellMeWhy]

What a ridiculous thread. Look at Wrestlemania's lineup. John Cena, Batista, Chris Jericho, Edge, and Undertaker and freaking Shawn Michaels. How long have those 6 names been on top in that company? They rotate the same guys over and over. They push Sheamus but yet no one cares for him meanwhile guys like Kofi, MVP, Carlito, Bourne, Christian, Swagger, Cryme Tyme, and so much more are taking backseats and getting less tv time than Hornswoggle.

In the past year, TNA has built up Beer Money, Hernandez, Matt Morgan, they're rebuilding Abyss, they've pushed AJ Styles, Eric Young, The Pope, Desmond Wolfe, British Invasion. Lower card guys in TNA even get opportunity like Amazing Red, Daniels, and now Frankie Kazarian, and now Generation Me. And then you've got your Andersons and Samoa Joes. WWE pushes guys and then completely halts it. Look what happened to Swagger, Bourne, and Kingston. WWE only pushed about 2 new young guys in 2009 to main event and that was CM Punk and Sheamus and from the lower end you've got R-Truth and Miz. That's only about 4 people when TNA has pushed tons of young talent.

And lol at 30 not being "young" You must not realize that 4 out of 6 main eventers in WrestleMania are in their 40s. Batista, HHH, HBK, and Undertaker. Guys wrestle until their mid-50's until their 60s, so I don't know why u are complaining. TNA is doing fine building their talent.

 

[The Scarred One]

There's no question that one thing that the WWE is good at is making new stars.

Even back during the Monday Night War, they churned them out and made for excellent television. Austin, Rock, Triple H, Michaels, Foley, Edge, Christian, the Hardys, Angle and Kane are just some of them. Hell, Cena, Batista and Orton are the three biggest stars that came up through the WWE's farm league and achieved superstardom.

Saritafan is right in the sense that WWE can create stars with the likes of Morrison, Miz, McIntyre, DiBiase, Sheamus, MVP, Swagger, Ryder and Ziggler, not to mention the guys from NXT. They all have potential but BatistrioFlyPunt is also right in the sense that WWE needs to be smart in how they build these guys up.

 

[Mark0820]

Wow, I can't believe people can't get this. I'm not a TNA fan, but what they are doing is what needs to be done. They were going no where focusing on their own talent. They needed a shot in the arm, the problem they are having right now is going head to head with WWE a few weeks from WM. They had no shot going in now. Both are building towards the future using stars that we all know.

 

[mikeyboy]

this is kind of silly tna's roster is maid up mostly of young talent! aj ,red, beer money, eric young, samoa joe, wolfe, ect ect. the list goes on and on ,the older wrestlers that are there are mainly to draw in the casual fan with name recognition and they help push the young guys,im jeez aj is the champion, his one of the young guys. LETEMKNOW said it, look at the main events of wrestlemania its the same guys over and over for years and years,every monday,every ppv its the same people.
i wish people would quit hateing on tna without giving it a chance, half of the stuff you guys complain about proves you obviously dont watch the shows. ive never been a huge fan of wwe/f but i still watch the shows,as a wrestling fan i can still find value, insted of craping all over everything thats not wwe maybee you could do the same.

 

[ZeroVX]

Yeah, no.

WWE is not doing well in building new stars at all. The only ones who have any credibility right now are ones who are already established. Whenever WWE tries to build someone new, they eventually fall off to the side. Look at Kofi Kingston. Had a long run with the US Title, put on some great matches, and had a good push into a feud with Randy Orton. Now, he's not even in MITB this year. MVP was supposed to do the same, but is now stuck in a tag team with Mark Henry. And speaking of Henry, remember when he came over from ECW, turned face, and went over Orton in his debut match? Yeah, what happened there? Jack Swagger didn't even get the US Title yet, even though he's a former ECW champion and looked to be going places. And Evan Bourne has been reduced to permanent jobber status. And this is just on RAW.

On Smackdown, there's the Hart Dynasty. These guys were supposed to be the next big thing that would revive the tag team division in WWE. Now, they're jobbing to Cryme Tyme and the mashed-up team of Morrison and R-Truth. Bull and shit. Also, speaking of Morrison, remember in the summer, when Smackdown was good, and Morrison actually challenged for the World title? Yeah, that went nowhere. He won the IC Title again, stealing the thunder away from Ziggler, who was looking really good for a while in his own right, and then lost it to Drew McIntyre. And really, I've already said my piece on McIntyre.

Then there's NXT. It is really hard for me to get behind some of these guys. Gabriel will probably be another Evan Bourne jobber, Otunga is god-awful in the ring, Young has no personality, I have no clue what Slater can do, Tarver's blander than Young, Sheffield's annoying, and Barrett's only SLIGHTLY better than Otunga. SLIGHTLY. The only one who could do well out of that group is Bryan, and I seriously doubt the writing staff of WWE WON'T fuck that up.

And that's the whole problem here. The writing staff cannot plan ahead. Neither can Vince McMahon either. They just recycle things and worry more about next week than next year. They put almost zero effort into what they're doing and just shill out whatever worked before, without considering that people are tired of it. Look at the Cena/Orton feud from last fall. Before then, Cena and Orton never really finished their previous feud due to Cena's injury. I thought they could properly pick up where they left off. But no, they just have them fight for no reason and promote the matches they're in instead. That's just lazy.

As for TNA, whether you like it or not, they need the older guys. They're trying to attract not only new viewers, but former wrestling fans who are tired of what WWE is doing. They can't do that with just "the TNA Originals". They need established names. You can deny that all you like, but if you ask a casual fan about A.J. Styles, they'll most likely say "who?".

But then again, it's unlikely you guys even want TNA to succeed in the first place.

 

[Rasha]

Hey "LetEmKnow"

Your pretty much being a biased fan by saying that TNA is doing "fine" if they were they wouldn't have to resort to WWE rejects and has beens.

Ah yes, and I'm sure yours a completely objective viewpoint free from any pro-WWE bias. Side note; could you provide me a transcript of at least one promo where Batista didn't sound like an idiot?

It continues to amuse me that WWE marks keep bashing TNA's use of Hogan and Flair at the exact same time that Wrestlemania is being headlined by Vince McMahon vs. Bret Hart. Or how about HBK vs. Undertaker; a shameful waste of an opportunity for either guy to give a up-and-comer a rub. At least Cena vs. Batisita is a fresh, new angle... oh wait.

Everyone keeps comparing TNA to WCW. What most of you seem to forget is that while WCW's demise did have a lot to do with failing to create (and keep) new stars, they initially overtook the WWF doing basically what TNA is doing now; debuting recognized names and trying to keep you guessing. They have to hook an audience before they can maintain one, and it makes a lot more since to hook the fans of the 90s with nostalgia, or former TRUE ECW fans, or the many people who (for some reason I can't figure out) seem to love Jeff Hardy. These are the people who the WWE has left behind with their current product, so it's only logical that TNA is going after them.

 

[BatistrioFlyPunt]

Did I call you biased? No. I didn't personally address you so it's most respectful to mind your business until the other person responds. And calling me a WWE mark isn't necessary because you obviously are a TNA mark.

 

[TellMeWhy]

Did I call you biased? No. I didn't personally address you so it's most respectful to mind your business until the other person responds. And calling me a WWE mark isn't necessary because you obviously are a TNA mark.

First of all TNA only grabs former WWE talent for business purposes. They grab them and give them pushes because they know people who worked in WWE have the exposure from WWE and as a business, they want to exploit that and possibly get some of their fans to watch their product and become fans of their show.

If all the "wwe guys" left TNA, TNA would be fine because they have a bunch of guys they've built up on layaway who can carry the company. So like I said, TNA is doing fine. It's the WWE who is rather in trouble and they know that because even internet reports have confirmed that WWE is having trouble building new stars, whereas TNA consistently pushes talent. Once again, TNA is doing real fine building talent!

 

[BatistrioFlyPunt]

Give me 10 examples of people they have had in "layaway" and tell me this......who is one TNA superstar if you will that has been signed to the show that isn't a WWE has-been or reject lately?

 

[Marko Markovic]

TNA is not stucked in the past and WWE is not building the future lately

TNA should be more focused to something else than WWE rejects(aside Elijah Boorke who is good and Jeff Hardy(who could be out of picture soon)).There is a reason why Ken Kennedy and RVD are WWE rejects and why Flair and Hogan are risking their lives so they could wrestle.They should be more focused in giving something new rather than something that was already seen in WWE.Perfect oportunity for that was in Bryan Danielson but I guess that ship has passed

WWE is not building the future lately.If HHH,Michaels,Undertaker,Batista,Cena,Orton,Jericho and Edge step up from throne after wrestlemania there would be huge opening in main event picture and aside few people(Punk,maybe Christian) there would be none to take "the throne".Just look at wrestlemania card.In 4 main draw matches(Cena-Batista, Jericho-Edge, Michaels-Undertaker and Mcmahon-Hart) only Cena and Edge are younger than 40(Jericho turns 40 this year).They need to build up stars soon and everybody that has been given a push are somehow forgotten soon(MVP,Swagger,Kofi) and fade in midcard hell

 

[XgringolocoX]

I was optimistic with Bishoff and Hogan coming into TNA. However, I was fearful that they would bring in some dead weight and focus the show on themselves. Shit, I hate being right some times.
How many segments do you need where it's said over and over that Hogan is saving TNA? What a load of horse shit. Hogan vs. Flair in the main event? Oh, with AJ and Abyss respectively. How the fuck does Dixie not see what is going on?! Why the fuck focus on two guys WAY the fuck past thier primes? THIS DOESN"T SELL!!!!
TNA should be pushing the amazing talent they have. Instead they're digging their own grave. Good thing they're taking their vitemins and saying their prayers

 

[TellMeWhy]

Give me 10 examples of people they have had in "layaway" and tell me this......who is one TNA superstar if you will that has been signed to the show that isn't a WWE has-been or reject lately?

You've got guys who have never been world champ in TNA but are a step close: Hernandez, Morgan, Pope, Wolfe, Anderson, Robert Roode

You've got former world champs in TNA: Samoa Joe, Rhino, Abyss

You've got guys in the lowercard that can easily come to main event: Kaz, Daniels, and Tomko

And then when you add in TNA's current acquisitions in Jeff Hardy & RVD, it ups the playing field even more.

That is 12 superstars total not counting RVD & Hardy that can carry TNA all on waiting on layaway for an opportunity. You can barely find 5 young superstars on RAW who can carry the ball if Cena, Orton, and HHH dropped dead today.

The same issue is on Smackdown: If Batista, Jericho, Undertaker, Edge, and Rey dropped dead, what young guys will carry the ball. You can barely find 5-6 guys to fill in those slots.

You know why? Because WWE books their talent into shitholes.


And cut it out with all the WWE "reject" talk. No one cares. People lose jobs and switch jobs all the time. Welcome to the REAL world kid! Stonecold Steve Austin carried the Attitude Era and by your standards, he was a "WCW reject and castoff" Mic Foley was a world champion during the Attitude Era and was a major player and he can also be defined as a "WCW reject and castoff". Newsflash: NO ONE CARES

 

[Rasha]

Give me 10 examples of people they have had in "layaway" and tell me this......who is one TNA superstar if you will that has been signed to the show that isn't a WWE has-been or reject lately?

I'm sure that in your mind Christian and R-Truth aren't TNA rejects, but rather just WWE originals who finally "came home." Sound about right? Let's just say "we're even" when it comes to the RVD and Hardy signings.

It's all a matter of perception. You perceive Hogan vs. Flair the same way I look at Vince vs. Bret. You probably see AJ Styles as an ineffective Main Eventer and I feel the same about John Cena. Much like a sports fan sees his team's players with rose-colored glasses, you and I are rooting for our company of choice and seeing everything with that tainted perspective.

There's really no right and wrong here... not until TNA either succeeds or fails. We can toss out all the theories and guesses and complaints we want, but ultimately it means nothing. WCW's rise didn't happen overnight, and TNA has less going for it now than WCW did in 95/96. It's a challenge, but at least someone finally put together a reasonable attempt to change the wrestling landscape and give the fans who Vince has left behind something to watch.

I quit watching WWE completely around 2005 and didn't watch ANY wrestling until I gave TNA a shot about three years ago. I'm exactly who TNA is after; older fans (27) who grew up with the stars of the 90s, peaked during the NWO era, and prefer the edgier product. I hope they make it, because if TNA fails then I go back to not watching ANY wrestling.

 

[AndyUK]

There's still plenty of guys getting pushes. Look at tonight's PPV. Scott Hall and Kevin Nash are the only ''old'' guys in matches. The rest of the matches are full of young talent. Flair, Hogan and Bischoff are getting a lot of TV time but considering what they've done, they should do. It would be stupid not to include them all in big storylines.

Plus, if WWE's future is Sheamus and Drew McIntyre then I'm not sure I want to see it.

 

[Kenny Powers]

Awesome, another original thread about "WWE Rejects" and old guys in TNA. Yawn. The only thing I agree on is there really is no need for Scott Hall, Nasty Boys, or Orlando Jordan in my opinion. Also, I don't think Hogan or Flair should be in the ring again unless its a final retirement match. Look at the new talent being pushed now. AJ Styles, Beer Money, Abyss, Wolfe, Morgan, Hernandez, X Division stars and even The Knockouts.

The last few months in TNA who has been in the main event? Daniels, Joe, Styles, Abyss, Wolfe, and now The Pope. I don't see anyone complaining about Christian, Gail Kim, or R Truth coming to WWE and calling them rejects. Who has WWE built up? Sheamus for 2 months? The Miz and CM Punk are really the only ones I can think of.

Kofi was a rising star and now he has faded off into obscurity just like Legacy. Nigel went to TNA and within his first month he beat Kurt Angle, Samoa Joe, and The Pope. Look at Danielson in WWE. The man has jobbed 4 times losing his last match to The Great Khali. I rest my case. I can sit through a 2 minute Scott Hall or Nasty Boy match since its just temporary and the new stars are being showcased more. I can't sit through another Triple H/Orton/Cena/Batista feud with no worthy tag teams, divas, or young talent to keep me entertained.

 

[ABMorales787]

Oh please. Tell to my face that you see CM Punk pinning Triple H or John Cena at some point of the future. CM Punk. Was dominant in the Royal Rumble but here comes a real main event superstar in Triple H to take the spotlight. The same case with Kofi/Orton. Great feud but who won every single match in it? The established top heel in WWE. The Cena/Miz feud. The least they could've done is to allow Miz to get one lousy shot in, but not even that. The point is that in WWE you can create as many breakout stars as you want, but in the end its the established guys who get the last word. Case in point, Mr. Kennedy.

Looking at TNA, I really fail to see the problem. The main event is changes consistently. You don't see Joe/AJ for the whole year. Or Angle/Sting. Yet on Raw during the last year it was Orton/Cena/Triple H/Batista.

I'd rather see 2 old guys one month and a different pair the next as opposed to the same 4 guys over and over.

 

[edgar7358]

this is ridicilious.who is tna rising?nobody.all tna is wwe superstars from the past.you dont see wwe take away tna superstars.young wwe superstars are going to rise and be like hhh,hbk,undertaker and john cena. randy orton is curentullly doing it.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Both companies are filled with young, talented wrestlers but neither company really uses the majority of their younger talent to their full potential.

In TNA, the only young or younger guys that are really grabbing my attention are Desmond Wolfe and Ken Anderson. Both of these two have a presence and they've got charisma. Wolfe is great in the ring and he's pretty good on the mic. He's easily among the best heels in TNA right now in my view. Even though Anderson's character is essentially the same as it was in the WWE, he still generates great heel heat. He doesn't really wow me inside the ring, but the man can talk. Of the young talent in TNA, they're really the only ones I look at and can picture as being potentially able to carry the company. Hernandez just doesn't have it, he's a one dimensional big man with a great look but he's just not ready to be on his own. Or, at least give the guy a manager to talk for him. Robert Roode doesn't look like he's going to be "the future" anytime soon because TNA is insistent on keeping Beer Money together despite the fact that Beer Money is pretty stale and have done everything a tag team can do in TNA multiple times already. Matt Morgan has lost a ton of momentum. He went from wrestling for the TNA title to being stuck squarely in the mid-card all within a span of two months and is part of a horrible team with Hernandez in the middle of a lame duck tag title reign. And, of course, TNA is going to have the two of them feud for a while whenever they ultimately wind up breaking up so that's more time for Morgan to waste. Kaz and Daniels are strictly X Division for life, they just don't have it either. Daniels is almost 40 and if he were going to be the future of TNA, it would have happened long ago. Even though Hulk Hogan loves him and insists on shoving him down everyone's throat week after week, I see nothing to overly care about in Abyss. He's awful right now and I don't look for that to change anytime soon. Personally, I think their best bet with him is to just repackage him. Give him a new character or something because I don't know if I can quite buy him as a monster again no matter what TNA tries with him.

As far as the WWE goes, they've taken chances on the likes of Sheamus, Drew McIntyre and The Miz. Whether some want to admit it or not, the risk they took with Sheamus has ultimately paid off as has the chances they took with The Miz. Nobody can deny that 2009 was a stellar year for CM Punk and he's currently among the best heels in wrestling today, especially after SmackDown last week. Anytime you make a 10 year old girl cry, you're a great heel. Dolph Ziggler did have a hand in renewing interest in the IC title last year and the WWE has been hot and cold with him. For a while, it looked like he was being buried and now he's back to getting a bit of a push so, ultimately I dunno. Jack Swagger is a lost cause I think and I'm disappointed in what's happened with Kofi Kingston. He's over with the crowd, worked some quality matches but his push has all but stalled and he looks to be heading back towards obscurity. NXT is an interesting concept and there are several Rookies on the show that could be stars in the WWE. John Morrison will probably be a world champion sometime within the next year. I think Evan Bourne is something of a wasted opportunity, but he's only 27 so there are still a lot of potential possibilities for him in the future but I doubt he'll ever be a world champion.

When I look at TNA and WWE, I do think the WWE has put forth more of an effort into building new stars than TNA has. However, to be fair, TNA has had its focus in other areas for a while. TNA's focus primarily has been working towards increasing the size of their audience and their main strategy has been to bring in older and/or more established wrestlers onto their roster in thee hopes of bringing in viewers. TNA is also relying heavily on the nostalgia factor as well. A lot of tv time is given to some of the older wrestlers in TNA because, quite frankly, virtually none of the homegrown talent in TNA have demonstrated the ability to accomplish the goal of bringing in more viewers.

 

[Meaty]

You can't compare WWE to TNA in terms of hiring talent for the future. WWE has Batista, Cena, Edge, Michaels, Taker, Hemsley, Orton, Jericho, and many more stars to keep ratings up while they build up the future. TNA has...Bubba The Love Sponge? In all seriousness though, the biggest threats TNA have are Kurt Angle, Jeff Hardy, and Hogan. Other than that, who else can threaten the household names of Cena or Orton? Or Michaels? Or any WWE main eventer for that matter. Sure, TNA can push guys like The Motor City Machine Guns or Kazarian to the main event. But the general wrestling population isn't going to give a gorilla's anus about who they are. TNA has the right idea with mixing the new with the old. Putting guys like Anderson up against Angle, or D'Angelo Dinero siding with Hogan. Or Hogan mentoring Abyss and Flair managing Styles. TNA needs to focus on becoming and getting household names right now. WWE has this, and it's why they can put on a shitty show vs. TNA's awesome show and get twice the ratings TNA gets.