Willow is Coming to TNA

[UFOcalling]

Last night on iMPACT, we were treated to a short vignette touting Willow's arrival in TNA. Obviously this is Jeff Hardy in a mask, contact lenses and face paint. Although I never watched OMEGA wrestling, I have seen this character (or a version of it, at least) on youtube.

Willow cut a creepy, albeit a short promo in the middle of the woods - complete with a full-length black coat, twirling an umbrella in some of the shots, speaking in riddles, and laughing like a maniacal hyena.

[YOUTUBE]BasP6plMlZU[/YOUTUBE]

Personally, I love it. Jeff Hardy has been "Jeff Hardy" on TV for long enough, and I believe it's waaaay past the time for him to reinvent himself. With Sting's recent departure, I think this is the perfect time for him to debut on iMPACT as Willow. The character could be a total disaster, but at least he's trying something different than just being "himself". This is a way to bring Hardy back, but make it feel different than before. He may have to "start over" on the card, but is that really such a bad thing?

What do you think about Willow's impending arrival to iMPACT Wrestling? Will he arrive as a heel, or face? Just based on this first promo, are you excited to see Jeff try something new? Will Jeff return to Lockdown as Willow, or "Jeff Hardy"? Does Willow return before Lockdown, since it was Jeff Hardy that was promised to return then? Will Hardy pull double-duty on future TNA shows playing both characters (similar to Abyss/Joseph Park), or do you think Willow will be his main priority?

 

[It's Damn Real!]

I was pretty pumped seeing the promo on IMPACT last night, but this all depends on how he's used. This can be a home run or a total dud, and it's all going to center on how he's booked.

I'm a Hardy fan, but even I'd admit that it's not like he's been doing much to note recently, so this might just be a nice healthy break for him to try something totally out there, that you know he's into (as it's his character creation), that doesn't have to center around another Jeff Hardy comeback story.

Personally, I'd love to have him injected right into the X Division, which has already gotten a bit of a shot in the arm with Sabin's reemergence, and might be getting another with Kenny King returning as well. Having Hardy/Willow, Sabin, King and Aries, as well as a returning Manik (Lockdown) would go a long way into rebuilding it's credibility.

 

[UFOcalling]

...this all depends on how he's used. This can be a home run or a total dud, and it's all going to center on how he's booked.

You're completely right, as usual! I think that Willow will probably be booked better than an average indie guy, though...just because of who is behind the mask. If this was "Joe Schmo: indie superstar" debuting as Willow (or a reasonable facsimile), the character might not be booked to look very strong. TNA wants to keep Hardy happy, I'd assume, so they'll probably (there's that word again) give him more stroke than they would to someone who couldn't just bounce to WWE immediately if they wanted to. Another thing I'm curious to see is if Taz and/or Tenay blatantly say that Willow is Hardy, and they go with a "crazy" multiple personalities angle (ie: Black Reign)...or if Willow is treated as a brand new wrestler (ie: Suicide).

My thought was that the character will most likely be a heel, at least at first. I also thought the same thing you did, IDR, that Willow would be a welcome addition to the X-Division. The thought of Hardy getting "cut loose" from his WWE persona is pretty exciting in itself, at least from a promo standpoint. One thing that worries me a bit though is how deep Jeff's moveset is, and if he'll be able to make Willow different than Jeff Hardy (at least in the ring). Like I said, I never watched OMEGA...I'd assume Jeff is smart enough (or was at least "smartened up" by another veteran) to drastically change his in-ring style for a new character, but you never know. This could just end up as a bastardization of Hardy's "antichrist" character. Even though Jeff Hardy as a heel with Immortal felt somewhat fresh at the time, it never seemed to blossom as much as it could have. Willow could become a more complete version of that character, or it could just end up as Immortal Hardy in a mask. Again, you never know.

Thank you for adding the youtube video as well, that's something I neglected to do in the OP.

 

[MINISTRYrising]

Personally I think this is just what Jeff Hardy Needs at this point. For the Last 15 plus years Hardy has been playing the same character and it will be nice to see Hardy do something different as his character has become a little stail over the last couple of years and I think it could very well Give Hardy a new less of life like Sting and the Undertaker received after they underwent major character changes later on in there careers.

 

[Detroitsandman]

Jeff Hardy as a HEEL was awesome. It was fresh and he was the face of the faction. Bring that Jeff back. Take a few young HEELS under his wing and run rapid.

 

[roipdh123]

For me it would be great if he will have a double personality wrestling in matches as Jeff Hardy {of course as a face and with Team MVP} as well as Willow {as a heel - with Team Dixie}.
This could be a really interesting thing to watch.

Meanwhile I think it will be great to have him back already because as of now he is TNA's most valuable star {he and Angle are the only with a really big star power - of course because of their WWE careers}.

 

[Broski_of_the_week]

For those that don't know, this is Jeff Hardy's original gimmick, he started in OMEGA as Willow The Wisp, the get-up wasn't quite so expensive but it was still the same gimmick. He even brought it back with the reforming of OMEGA this year in a run in appearance (I think a video was even posted on this site).

As for the gimmick, although I don't watch TNA so I won't even see/care about it anyway really, I do think its a good idea for him to change gimmick. He's been the same character for faaarrr too long, and it seems to be a trend with big stars these days where companies are afraid to turn them or change their gimmick (John Cena I'm Looking At You!) so for TNA to go this route with him shows some balls which I give them credit for. Considering the entire roster upheaval they have had in the past 6 months I think it only opens more doors and opportunities for everyone there to have him re-debut as this character, it means he can work with all the old guys hes faced a million times before but in fresh feeling feuds, and also give the rub to the new incoming youngsters, as long as the fans have enough awareness that it is Jeff under the mask, but not to the extent where everyone is chanting his name/announcers mocking it type of degree.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

It's certainly strange, but I'm all for a long-time veteran branching out and trying something "new". The Willow character is technically pre-WWE, but it's never been done on network television, and it will be new for more people than it is a rehash.

What will be interesting is that Jeff Hardy was already confirmed to be at Lockdown. That's non-spoiler, as they announced it online earlier this week. So I wonder if they'll have him come out at Lockdown as Willow, or if he'll be doing something similar to the Abyss/Joseph Park situation. My guess is the first. Jeff is a weird dude, but he's not insane. I give TNA enough credit not to run the same angle literally the same week they blow off the original.

Either way, like I said I like seeing a veteran bring something different to the table. I'm not all that convinced it will be vastly different, but time will tell. Bully Ray reinvented himself a couple years back, and it was the best thing he ever did.

 

[Logisticalbooker86]

The first promo is fucking genius. It is a very smart move to reinvent Hardy, who was growing stale as day old bread. I envision the character as a hybrid of Crow Sting and Bray Wyatt. This character could reignite my interest in TNA if it is executed logically by the parties involved.

With that said, Hardy's past makes me leery of whether he can pull this character off and remain sober. He strikes me as a method actor, so hopefully he can be avant-garde without going over the edge.

He should continue to be a main event level attraction but he can compete in the X-Division as long as it does not hurt his stock. He can take a page from Chris Jericho and work where he is needed. I really hope this character is a long-term change for Jeff Hardy.

 

[Slash-LN]

I'm in favor of it.
Like IDR said it will depend on the booking but it has potential to be really interesting.
It can't really hurt him too much I wouldn't think.
The main page made the statement of it not being clear yet if Willow is going to be Jeff's only character or if they're going to do an Abyss/Joseph Park thing where he portrays both characters. If they went that route I don't really know how I'd feel about it. The Park/Abyss thing was going well for a while and then got boring and now is kind of picking up again.
I'm not sure what they would do with Jeff if he's doing a dual character thing.

No matter what though I'm interested in it. Honestly it can't be any worse than Jeff's inner monologue that they were doing for a while.

 

[Chrome]

I'm all in favor of this, its fresh and new for Hardy.. I hope he's a manipulator heel character since it seems like Bobby Roode could turn babyface soon.. if he's heel then he could be a perfect addition to the Abyss "Going to find someone who understands me" scenrio... this could be utterly brilliant if played out correctly!

I am reading that extreme tiger is close to signing a TNA deal and maybe he could join this along with Manik, I can see so much potential here if they're aligned with Willow.

Imagine a huge storyline once Willow gets stale and someone comes back to TNA to remind Willow that he's Jeff Hardy and whoops him till he realizes it! Imagine CM Punk returns to Impact confronts Willow!!! (Hey I can dream right)

 

[Zeven_Zion]

If Joker Sting worked, this might as well.

I'm all for it. Maybe I'm delusional, but I always thought Hardy has more in the tank than we think. His Antichrist thing had so much potential, I thought it was awesome. Willow the Wisp hasn't been on TV yet and it's better than the usual Hardy so why the hell not?

Jeff seems like a team player now, he does what the company thinks he should and he never complains. At the same time, he's probably a big merch seller and the fans love him. In return, TNA appears to give Jeff plenty of creative freedom in what he does, and I think he really appreciates that. The dude is nowhere near broke I'd imagine, plus it's not like TNA pays him no money at all.

Why not? Let's see where he takes it and it might end up being pretty cool. Or too weird for our mortal minds to comprehend. At least it's different and you never know. I'll take that over regular Hardy coming back and doing regular Hardy things.

 

[Alex]

I love the idea. It's just the sort of thing to freshen him up. Since losing the World Title he's just been there not really doing anything and this could help him get some direction.

Jeff Hardy is just weird through and through, so a crazy, weird gimmick will work easily for him. I'm hoping it's not a Joseph Park/Abyss idea (split personality) or a Christopher Daniels/Curry Man idea (one guy playing two characters with no cross over) I want it to be Jeff being Willow but still being Jeff aka he's snapped and he's acting loopy, knows he's Jeff Hardy nut thinks Willow is his calling or something to that effect

It just depends on the booking (like most things)

 

[GenMe]

First of all the promo "video" was awesome, I love those sick crazy characters/Gimmicks. I really hope that willow makes his debut as a heel wrestler, I dont know if his character will fit in the main event level, but It will sure fit in the x division. Let just hope they don't screw this character up.

 

[lil steroid meat]

Either going to be a home run or a failure. Hardy was never really a promo guy so we'll see how this turns out.

Either way, TNA after Lockdown looks to be some promising television. Presumably no more Dixie Carter on TV and I get to see Jeff Hardy high as balls talking about random shit.

EDIT: I will be mad as shit if this is one of those corny "two characters on TV at the same time" things that TNA has an affinity for.

 

[Crypt Keeper]

I am really looking forward to Willow's debut. The vignette was really creepy and it left me intrigued on what Willow will bring. It'll also be interesting to see Hardy's portrayal of his character in TNA, I personally think he'll do a great job and it's something different for him. He'll be able to expand his acting role as a wrestler and in the process I think he'll be better on the mic as Willow, as I'm assuming he'll cut a good number of promos under the gimmick. I think the character should debut as a heel and carrying the umbrella to the ring would be an eerie, innovative, and nice touch to the show. I don't believe TNA should copy the whole Abyss/Parks alter ego thing as it's been done already and it would seem a bit redundant with how short of a gap it's been between both stories. I think Willow should be his own character for a bit without Hardy's identity being known so that way the character of Willow can develop a fan following of it's own from the people who don't know it's Hardy. The X Division would be a good start for him, but I think a nice solid, non-title feud with Abyss would be nice to see and after he defeats him, move on to the X Division title. Hopefully this brings some entertainment value to TNA and Willow becomes a huge asset. Of course, sooner or later, Hardy's identity will have to be revealed, but it shouldn't be for awhile in my view.

 

[Papa Pillman]

In case anyone was interested in background on the Willow the Wisp character, here is a mini-documentary style video on the character and Jeff's early days portraying it in OMEGA...


Also it is clear that the promo that TNA aired is somewhat of an expansion and a rework of the promo that is shown as an introduction at the start of this video, and features Hardy as a more updated version of Willow than the earlier OMEGA version, complete with similar mask, outfit, woods setting, and the "We love, We hate, We die forever late" catchphrase that were used in TNA's short(and as an aside, that portion of this doc was still filmed roughly five years ago, which should put to bed any talk that's going around on the internet comparing TNA's Willow promo to a Wyatt rip-off).

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

Either way, like I said I like seeing a veteran bring something different to the table. I'm not all that convinced it will be vastly different, but time will tell. Bully Ray reinvented himself a couple years back, and it was the best thing he ever did.

I totall agree, I was really pleased to see this Willow promo as it's something totally different from the Jeff Hardy we have seen for X number of years, it's fresh and very interesting to see where TNA go with this. I've always been a Hardy fan, but he has been stale for a while now, so hopefully this new character brings something new to the table.

Like Killam said about Bully Ray, the reinvention of his character took him to new heights and while Jeff has been World Champion numerous times, a new gimmick could be just what he needs to get back to the top of the card. I was one of the people who really enjoyed Hardy as a heel in Immortal, having never seen him as a "bad guy" before, and I hope Willow is brought in as a heel, after the initial cheering he will undoubtably receive if the fans know it's Hardy under the mask.

Like others have said, I wonder if his ring-style will be any different, or whether he will stick to the Swanton/Twist of Fate to end matches. Has anyone see Hardy as Willow in OMEGA? What was his finisher?

 

[Big E Wangston]

Anyone else fear the smarks in the crowd with trying and ruin this with "Jeff Hardy" chants like they tried with Bray Wyatt & the "Husky Harris" Chants.

 

[ad556]

Its strange Jeff Hardy is advertised to return at Lock-Down, yet they use this character... TNA is doing it again. I bet they will make this flop, so Jeff Hardy returns and how does willow get written off?, really only TNA knows hopefully they do not screw it up.

People comparing this to Bray Wyatt, just because the promo is set in a type of Forrest setting, this is not the same thing at all. I honestly think the Wyatts are horrible compared to willow.

 

[Dirk]

I'm hoping it's not a Joseph Park/Abyss idea (split personality) or a Christopher Daniels/Curry Man idea (one guy playing two characters with no cross over) I want it to be Jeff being Willow but still being Jeff aka he's snapped and he's acting loopy, knows he's Jeff Hardy nut thinks Willow is his calling or something to that effect.

Your idea is better, but you can bet your bottom dollar he's going to pull a Curry Man, at least for the immediate future. Why?

Its strange Jeff Hardy is advertised to return at Lock-Down, yet they use this character... TNA is doing it again.

They won't unmask Willow during his first appearance, so how do you reconcile an advertised star AND his brand new heel persona without unmasking said wrestler?

You pull a Curry Man.

Like others have said, I wonder if his ring-style will be any different, or whether he will stick to the Swanton/Twist of Fate to end matches. Has anyone see Hardy as Willow in OMEGA? What was his finisher?

The moveset issue mentioned could be a problem. Jeff is exciting and athletic, but he is not a man of a thousand holds. Maybe he'll add one or two for this character? As soon as people see him doing that double legdrop onto the midsection of the opponent, the cat's out the bag. I'm under the impression that his finisher as Willow the Wisp is Whisper in the Wind, which he does all the time as himself.

But lots of things could go wrong before that, like his vine-tattoo getting exposed.

All-in-all, it's still a great idea to give him a shot in the arm. Can't wait to see this.

 

[EFWFigureStopMotion]

This character sounds good so far. That promo was brilliant though! I just hope TNA uses Willow like a Bray Wyatt kind of gimmick. If they repackage him well, then I'm good with it.

 

[NtwrestlingMaster]

Willow is certainly intriguing. The only problem is the fact that most of us already know it's Jeff, and he will probably have to do something like Curry Man, where he is both, because I will be really mad if TNA comes up with something where Jeff snapped and became Willow. I don't want to see the Jeff Hardy we know completely disappear. I haven't seen much Omega wrestling, but I do think it's cool that he started on a trampoline, then made his own legit promotion.

 

[Randy Orton's Head Blood]

Can't wait. Willow seems interesting & I'm hoping that we see him play both Willow & Hardy, not just Willow because having Hardy return as Willow as a friend of MVP just doesn't go right.
Yeah, we might get the obvious "WILLOW" chants at Lockdown, but ah well, how can we stop them? We can't.
I'm looking forward to this though, Willow should be pretty good to see, the OMEGA character is pretty cool.

 

[Skyeborne]

I am really happy about this. I am getting really annoyed with the "real" phase wrestling seems to be in with all kinds of first name, last name wrestlers with real guy gimmicks. Makes me feel wrestling companies feel inferior to UFC and are trying to compete instead of just staying unique and different.

I support characters in wrestling and TNA is doing good by bringing in more with Willow and Shaw.