Who should be the "FACE" of the company?

[ramblinroy68]

With AJ Styles in the middle of a heel run, who should be the Good Guy leading the charge for the company? Personally, I don't buy Abyss as a mainstream face who the crowd will get behind, so who should it be?

Pope? I like the character, but I just don't see him as a legitimate world champion that could bring in the ratings and the crowd to compete with the WWE.

Angle? I think is the best in the world, but I think he is past his prime and not the guy to build on at this point?

Joe? Maybe, but he needs to get in better shape and I think that his character is too one dimensional. I would like to see him back in his old tights or a singlet like Taz or Rhino to hide his gut. 4 years ago, I thought he was going to be the new face of wrestling but he really has flatlined.

Hardy? He definitely has a ton of star power, but he has too many issues to bank on him as your guy. You just can't count on him to not get into trouble.

Does TNA currently have a guy that can fill this role?

 

[Mitch Henessey]

First of all I hope that the whole Abyss becoming the next Hogan thing is a HUGE swerve. I seriously can't picture him wearing the red and yellow, and doing Hogan's poses...I just can't.

We still don't know when Jeff Hardy is going to even be in TNA, but when he does debut and becomes a part of TNA, I don't think it would be a wise choice to have him as the #1 good guy of the company. Yeah, Hardy is extremely popular, and would probably sell merchandise like crazy,but this man has TONS of trouble outside of the ring. WWE has plenty of big name guys they can fall back on, so even if Hardy did get in trouble, there would be someone else who could take his #1 spot.

Kurt Angle might be getting up there in age, but the man can still go in the ring. His recent feuds with Desmond Wolfe and Aj Styles prove that. The only thing is, Angle has already held world titles many times before in TNA, and he's past the point as where he can look like the face of the company. Plus, Angle is pretty banged up at the moment, and I don't think It would be a good idea to put that amount of stress on him.

Samoa Joe could be the face of the company. His physique can become a question mark because when you're talking about being #1 in the company, most guys in any promotion have a rock solid build. Joe brings a great amount of intensity in the ring and in his promos, so he would definitely be a worthy candidate.

I think the Pope is the most logical choice. While I don't think he's as great some people are making him out to be, the guy has been on fire ever since he came to TNA. Elijah Burke was VERY boring in WWE, but The Pope character is something refreshing, and exciting. His promos are pretty good, and he is something "different". He already has a pinfall victory over AJ, and he won the 8 card stud tournament, so I think the Pope could be the face of TNA.

 

[Papa Shango]

Pope seems to be the guy they're leaning towards. Personally I think its too soon, and its also too obvious that they want him to be their version of The Rock. Abyss is not a long term #1 face kind of guy. He's of course they're version of Mankind.

Kurt Angle is a big star, but he's getting old and burnt out, and TNA seems to want to try and focus on younger stars.

Joe seems to be their version of Taz. He doesn't have that perfect champion look, so they're treating him like shit.

Seriously, I can't look at a single rising you TNA star without seeing some resemblance to an older, more popular star/gimmick.

What they should do, is have a face turn, and push... MIIIIISSSSSTTTEEEERRRRR... KEEENNNE--

FUCK!!!


ANDEERRRSSOOON!


ANDERRRRSOOOOONNNNN!!!!!


Seriously, it's the most entertaining feud they could possibly do. AJ's passable on the stick, but he's got Flair, and that makes any promo or segment they do pure gold. And Anderson is THE MIC GUY!!! Considering TNA wants to build young stars, how could they not make their best talker the no. 1 guy?!


Cuz there's a bunch of fucking idiots running the Impact Zone, that's how.


ANDERRRSSSOOOONNNNN!!!!!!

 

[shattered dreams]

If they get Jeff Hardy they would be insane not to book him as a face at least for a while and he obviously should be one of the top ones. I mean he just spent about a year being one of the top faces in WWE. Mid-carding him would be ******ed and unless they got a really good foolproof plan a heel run for him, especially out of the gate could be disasterous. Almost anything you could say bad about Hardy would have been true about Angle when he came over. That "gamble" seemed to turn out pretty good. If they are that scared of Hardy's "habits" then I imagine the face is lurking in the rafters. Although if they are that scared I do not know why they would sign him to begin with. Kurt Angle could definitely do it but I think they like him as the star maker right now, opposed to top face.

 

[Dagger Dias]

That's part of why I don't like Styles as a heel much, he fits better as a face and he was the face of TNA. Now he's just a Flair clone. Abyss probably won't make a good top face, depends on what direction his character goes. Pope could possibly become that top face who becomes the next big thing for TNA.... He's certainly a better choice than Angle because Angle as a face just hasn't felt right in my opinion. Joe had his time as the top face, it didn't go so well. I enjoyed his world title reign, but something felt like it was missing. Certainly not Hardy.... too big a risk of him messing up again. Out of the names that the threadstarter listed, Pope's the best candidate for a new top face since he has a character the fans can get behind and keeps growing in popularity.

 

[thedriffter50]

Certainly not Hardy.... too big a risk of him messing up again. Out of the names that the threadstarter listed,[/QUOTE)



Why do people have such negtivity about Jeff hardy ? When John Cena was injured in 2006 or 7 Jeff hardy was on the top spot...why do people not talk negatively about Sabu? hell he said himself that himself he didn't care for taking drugs you dont go mad over RVD or Sabu why say every mistake Jeff hardy makes ? he is only human

 

[rkodeadman]

I think that Pope's the man for the job. Hes solid in the ring and one of the best(if not the best) on the mic today. Angle's getting older but hes still an unbelievable wrestler. He could easily pull it off but I'd rather see him in a few good feuds( mr anderson, morgan, eric young etc) than have the title again.

Samoa Joe really needs to get back to where he was a few years ago before he can become the top face. Thats why I think it should be Pope. I also don't like the new flair styles character for a.j. He worked better as the top face and doing crazy moves. Hopefully he'll attack flair and he'll come back to being the top face.

 

[Gregory Helms]

It looks like their going for Pope!

However I don't think he has the experience to be the face of a big organisation like TNA, I think if they want a face of the company it should be................. Kurt Angle.
People say he's old but you need someone with the experience who has done it all before with a different company Kurt is the man!

 

[justinept]

Certainly not Hardy.... too big a risk of him messing up again. Out of the names that the threadstarter listed,[/QUOTE)



Why do people have such negtivity about Jeff hardy ? When John Cena was injured in 2006 or 7 Jeff hardy was on the top spot...why do people not talk negatively about Sabu? hell he said himself that himself he didn't care for taking drugs you dont go mad over RVD or Sabu why say every mistake Jeff hardy makes ? he is only human

No one disputes Hardy's talent, and most on this thread agree that he should be one of the top stars if he/when he shows up at TNA. The problem people have with Hardy is that he's always a moment away from a major screw-up that would force the company to completely change directions.

People don't go mad over Sabu or RVD because they were never the face of a major wrestling promotion. As popular as ECW was, it never had the exposure of WWE, WCW or the exposure that TNA is hoping to get. Bottom line with those two guys... if Sabu or RVD screwed up, a few fans were upset - but it didn't come close to the problem that WWE would have had if Austin or The Rock continually messed up.

You can't be one of the biggest wrestling promotions on the planet and have to continually write off the face of your company. That's why Hardy can not be the top star.

 

[Travaje]

It should be A.J. Styles. I'm totally not buying him as a heel, and putting Flair and Hogan in a program with him is not a way to help get A.J. more over, it's a way to keep Flair and Hogan relevant and on top.

There comes a point where you can't get a guy any more over than he already is, and because you want to boost the T.V. rating you can't keep trying to do more. This is a mistake TNA makes time, and time again.

To answer the question though of who is the biggest face in TNA is and who gets the biggest face pops...that's easy, brother.

 

[Holmesy]

i would love to see Desmond Wolfe as THE face, not gonna happen i know, but the guy has charisma, he can talk, and he can wrestle, plus as an english TNA fan i wish just once we had a brit who wasnt a heel, the biggest problem with that is could the american fans accept a brit as a world champ?

 

[Louie Music]

If Hogan and Bischoff were really running the show over there, I think we'd have that face or they'd atleast be working hard on it.

Dixie is still putting herself in too many decisions, that much is obvious since AJ is still getting more of a push than he should be. Funny how alot of people, myself included, found AJ's promos to be a snooze fest until he was coupled with Flair. But that's to be discussed in another thread.

The question I'm asking myself here is, does TNA currently have anyone who can be THE face, the go to good guy.

Maybe they do, but if they do it's s short list.

Sting would be a perfect choice, but we know he'll be retiring soon and when he does come back, it appears he'll be a chaotic who is there to be the sherrif on how he feels things should be.

Hardy is a great choice, but at the same time you want someone who has a fairly clean image outside the ring as well. Hardy can pull it off, but what if TNA were to invest so much into him only to for him to return to the WWE if Vince comes calling with a bigger pay check? Something to consider as well.

Samoa Joe? No, not hardly. You want the average viewer to accept your main face, and he's not it. He's too one dimiensional charisma wise.

Mr. Anderson? Quite possibley the best wrestler and talent to be signed to TNA since Angle. Problem there is, would he leave in the middle of it all if Vince came calling again? Even if not, he's too good at playing both sides of the fence, just like Angle. So neither of them should be the main face since they're too good at playing both.

Desmond Wolfe? I have to strongly disagree with Holmesy here because back in the day we in Texas strongly supported Chris Adams and stood behind him until he turned heel. Fans here felt betrayed by him, he made a great face and really played the English gentleman card to perfection. I have a feeling Desmond could do that as well, and pull it off with ease if given the chance and the right angle. He has so much talent and charisma, my vote would be for him.

My next choice will probably cause a stir, but next to Desmond I feel Consiquences Creed. He has charisma, a positive vibe about him at all times, and the crowd reacts very well to him. I'm not sure if he can pull off as being the main go to good guy, but he can come close if not.

 

[jaxx]

Well without a doubt the face of the company has always been aj and still should be aj, but the problem is no one decided to pull him aside and help him with promos which is his only weak spot. So instead they turn him heel and partner him with flair. I'm not going to criticize this move until I see where its headed. Now if aj is going to be the major heel, which doesn't fit him at all, Pope is clearly the number one face.

The guy can wrestle, he's good on the mic, and he has an interesting character who's over with the fans. A lot of people want Mr. Anderson to be this excellent wrestler, but I just don't see it. Joe and Wolffe are miles ahead of this guy talent wise. Anderson's promos are long and horrible. The only problem i have with joe is that he needs to get in shape and I don't mean he needs to look like matt morgan.

Joe needs to lose some weight, because if you look at his matches lately you'll notice that he can't jump as high as he use to when he does his kicks to the head and he moves a lot slower. I would also like to see Morgan pushed as a monster heel.

 

[Holmesy]

i like that people seem to like the idea of wolfe as i want to have a face british guy for a change,

i think tho its going to be Angle, they are already doing the patriot thing, so he will always be cheered, he is probably the best wrestler on the TNA roster and he is always their for the fans, i have seen him live a few times dating back to his wwe days and he put on a great show then and did the 3 times i have seen him here with TNA and his rapport with the fans is second to none, he has everyones respect now, he has reached a level very few reach and that is even if he is face or heel he has total respect from the fans and they cheer him accordingly,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7AY2HIZRMg
i was their for this and you can see the reaction angle gets, this video doesnt do him justice tho he spoke for awhile and the crowd chanted it was great,

so its going to be angle in my opinion, but i would love it to be wolfe,

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

I think for now, it should be Kurt Angle. He is probably the best in-ring performer in pro wrestling today. Is he a bit past his prime? Sure. But a bit past his prime is still a hell of a lot better than any other face they have...right now.

I would say in a few years, it will be AJ Styles (yes, he will eventually turn back to being a face) and/or Jeff Hardy. Jeff might have some trouble with his legal issues, and that might hault his wrestling career. AJ is a great talent, and will be their top face for a long time when he eventually makes the turn. So, I definitely see AJ being their top face, and if Jeff can get his legal issues under control, he should be right there with him, going forward.

 

[NthDegree23]

It's hard. Jeff Hardy is too erratic, Joe's too much of an acquired taste, Wolfe is sorta ugly (he's also just about the best anything ever, but he doesn't look like a hero), AJ is secretly the most charismatic, articulate performer in the history of wrestling - but he'll never show it (think Mr. Ed), and Anderson, who I love far past any appropriate level, is a tad fragile.

That leaves Kurt Angle. I don't see Angle ever becoming a Austin, Rock, or Hogan type. He's more of an HBK type, who is best when he's got someone strong to work with. Nobody cared that The Rock was wrestling Mr. Ass in a Kiss Mine Match, because it was The Rock, and he did crazy stuff like licking the eyebrow and arching his air. Angle's great, but I still think he would need a strong heel opposing him to be THE face.

 

[Notorious718]

Good thread. I'll break down your post bit by bit and give my thoughts as well.

With AJ Styles in the middle of a heel run, who should be the Good Guy leading the charge for the company? Personally, I don't buy Abyss as a mainstream face who the crowd will get behind, so who should it be?

Agreed. While I like Abyss and think his character needs some serious revamping, I also don't buy him becoming the face of the company and becoming the next Hulk Hogan. However, I'm not completely opposed to his push right now. It's slowly putting him back in the main event scene which is where I feel he deserves to be.

Pope? I like the character, but I just don't see him as a legitimate world champion that could bring in the ratings and the crowd to compete with the WWE.

I've read articles in which Hulk Hogan states that Pope is getting a big push that will eventually make him TNA's John Cena. I'm a fan of Pope and I would love to see him become one of TNA's biggest names. He's already proven that he's uber over with the crowd, that he's capable in the ring, and that he can hold his own on the mic. I'm sure that he can eventually become TNA's next John Cena but you can't expect him to do that immediately. Maybe in a few years. What got Cena over was his rapper gimmick and the "black pope" gimmick is getting Dinero over right now. In a few years, he more than likely will be the legit world champ you currently don't see him as.

Angle? I think is the best in the world, but I think he is past his prime and not the guy to build on at this point?

Angle is at the stage of his career where he should focus less on being world champion and more on putting over the young talent. And it's pretty obvious that Kurt has absolutely no problem with doing that. He proved it when he brought a good match out of Morgan at Bound for Glory. He proved it when he had those great matches with Wolfe and AJ. Right now, he's feuding with Anderson and will undoubtedly put him over as a future maineventer. Winning the world title at this point will do nothing for his career and Kurt is doing fine at where he is right now.

Joe? Maybe, but he needs to get in better shape and I think that his character is too one dimensional. I would like to see him back in his old tights or a singlet like Taz or Rhino to hide his gut. 4 years ago, I thought he was going to be the new face of wrestling but he really has flatlined.

I only started watching TNA on a regular basis in 2008 so I don't know where Joe was in his career four years ago. However, when I did start watching I figured that TNA was on the verge of making Joe the face of TNA during his feud with the Angle Alliance, feuding with big names like Booker T, and becoming the first successfully defend his championship at King of the Mountain. But he seemed to lose all his momentum after losing to Sting at Bound for Glory that year and it only seemed to get worse when he debuted his Nation of Violence gimmick. Then he joined the Main Event Mafia and then everything just went downhill after that. It didn't help that he lost to (as Kanye South likes to call him) Bobby "my wife has better mic skills that me" Lashley at last year's Bound for Glory. Joe needs to revert back to his original gimmick of a badass who just hurt people because he could. The same Joe that got the whole crowd chanting "Joe is gonna kill you." Maybe lose a couple pounds while he's at it. Then I can take him more seriously as the face of TNA.

Hardy? He definitely has a ton of star power, but he has too many issues to bank on him as your guy. You just can't count on him to not get into trouble.

I never saw Hardy's first TNA run but from what I heard, no one expected him to make a return as many felt he had burned his bridges. I didn't even know Jeff Hardy existed until I saw his return to Raw in 2006. From what I've seen between then and his WWE departure last summer, Hardy has proven to be both an asset and a liability. There's no arguing his immense star power but he does tend to get in trouble with the law and has been known to get suspended for shit. I've heard TNA has a more lenient drug policy than WWE has but I also heard that Hardy no showed many TNA shows and there's no guarentee that it won't happen again. WWE put so much trust into Hardy last time and then he turned his back on the company. Who's to say it won't happen with TNA? It's happened before. Too much risk in making him the face of the company.

Does TNA currently have a guy that can fill this role?

It should've been AJ. The heel turn is interesting but stupid at the same time. AJ was supposed to be the FACE of the company and TNA blew it. So does TNA have anyone who can take his place? Perhaps Matt Morgan although I've heard rumors that he's gonna make another heel turn. Hernandez? He has the tools but he serverely needs to work on his mic skills. IMO, right now Pope is the only one who can fill this role for now until Joe makes his return from his "kidnapping."

 

[jmt225]

I would go with Samoa Joe.

You shoot some vignettes with him in Hawaii, doing this incredible training shit that only Samoans do, and just put over the fact of how much pride he has in his heritage... people will dig that. You also show him at home with his family, show him as the video game nerd he is.... people will dig that also.

Samoa Joe is not this ruthless Samoan, nor should he be displayed as such. Samoans today are now getting recognized as some of the most amazing athletes in the World, with so many of them making it to the NFL, and the domination of BJ Penn in MMA. Samoa Joe needs to be apart of that group, instead of the stereotypical bullshit he's doing now.

Moreover, AJ Styles and Samoa Joe have had countless classics in the past, and I think if you put AJ's current character in the ring with the Samoa Joe I just described, it'd make for some awesome stuff. In fact, dare I say it would be Flair vs. Steamboat level? I think I will...

AJ Styles is the new Ric Flair, and now it's time to make Samoa Joe the new Ricky Steamboat.

 

[ncwriter2908]

Aj is great as the companies top heel. I never thought I would like the low talented mic skills of a southern redneck like Styles or the at best average ring skills, wait I know he tosses in a few flips and high spots to confuse you that his skills are nothing but average. However I like AJ with Flair. I think it sucks they have to do anything with Abyss. If there is one guy who should be fired its Abyss. I think Aj is meaning to be everything the TNA fans dont want. All these post that say they hate AJ as a heel or dont buy him as one then that means its working. He is supposed to be hated. Also traditionally heels are weak. Just watch the mighty Hulkamania and the whole NWO run scared from one man named Sting in WCW..lol Aj is great as a heel.

Now as for the top face? I dont know Mr. Anderson is great but I think he is better as a heel. He is alot like the rock. He adds comedy to his promos but is still serious. (funny when the mic drops from anywhere) Also he has averag ring skills.

Jarret would be good but is to old to be the future. Angle is great the fued with Anderson should be the top of the company right now. Abyss please fire this guy Eric. The Pope isnt really a top guy. I like him and he is good but something is missing for him to lead.

Jeff Hardy--I dont know if the morons of the Impact Zone will ever accept him fully considering he is WWE branded.

RVD--his return would be a welcome but I dont know.

Samoa Joe--oh c'mon he is out of shape sluggish in the ring. He is terrible on the mic. He hasnt been interesting since his streak was lost much like goldberg


As to who should be the next face in TNA? I dont know its the samething I have been trying to say for awhile. I hear push the young guy. Push the young TNA guys. Take time away from the old guys (who provide TNA's top rated segements, aside from the knockouts). Um well the young guys just do not have the interest or talent to considered as leading any type of company that wants to take down Vince and the WWE. Thats why I hate to say it but TNA will loose and ultimately fail.

 

[wushady]

I don't see anyone in TNA right now that could be the face of the company.

Angle is still great, but at the end of his career.
Jarrett is also getting old, I never seen him as a top guy either.
Mr. Anderson is great on the mic but average at best in the ring if he can even stay healthy.
The Pope is not a main eventer yet imo.
Abyss is the biggest joke I've ever seen Hogan is convinced he can make him into the biggest star ever, but there's no way in hell he will be a star.
Jeff Hardy if he don't go to prison and signs with TNA how long will he stay around? I don't think he has desire anymore to be a top guy.
A.J. might be the best one for the job if they stop turning him into Flair 2.0, and let him be himself.

They still have a long way to go, and they need to build there talent until someone steps up and becomes the face of the company. Or hope another star from WWE lets their contract expire and jumps ship. I don't see that happening though.

 

[Miko]

I think it will be difficult for Jeff Hardy (if he ever returns) to not be the top face, not becuase he is booked as such but because he is so popular, look at WWE, John Cena was the top face of RAW, HHH/Undertaker were the top faces of Smackdown! On any given night Hardy could outpop all three of them (especially HHH) and this is including the audible boo's Cena got. WWE had no choice but to listen and push him.

I think the same will go in TNA, Joe, Angle, Pope will all be made to look stronger than him, all be booked as bigger faces than him and they should be, on account of being more reliable. Still at the end of the day popularity will probably win the day. I'll be surprised if it doesnt.

 

[burnout4200]

I think the most overlooked guy on the roster is Alex Shelley. He can wrestle, talk, hes a TNA original, and Kevin Nash is backing him backstage. When it comes to being the face of the company I think it's important they slap the title on a TNA original or someone who didn't have much success in WWE like The Pope. Kurt Angle would be my first pick but he was way too big in The WWE and it just doesn't feel right. No matter what Kurt is gonna continue to be the work horse anyway. To me Alex Shelley is their best all around performer next to Angle. I gotta go with him.

 

[Batman]

Anderson. He's the total package. TNA needs a standout character, and Anderson is the classic Ric Flair heel it needs for both hardcore and casual fans to hate.