In 2005, TNA got there biggest "push" yet when they were picked up Spike TV and they would remain on Spike for around 9 years before being canceled. Then Impact was picked up by Destination America almost immediately after being canceled, they would only last a year on Destination America. Since January 2016, the home of TNA Impact Wrestling has been on POP TV which has also been the weekly home of Indy wrestling company of Paragon Pro-Wrestling.
With the limited availability of POP TV from households a lot of fans have lost touch with the goings on in Impact Wrestling. Since their switch to POP I have stopped watching Impact until pretty recently when I actually checked out an episode of Impact on demand. Yes! After all the jokes and negativity to TNA I actually put my money where my mouth is and I watched Impact. The episode I watched was Open Fight Night from a few weeks ago below are my thoughts on the show. - The best part of Open Fight Night's edition of Impact Wrestling from three weeks ago was the Hardy Boys. I still maybe one of the few people to not be the biggest fan of Matt's gimmick, but it's pretty clear to see that the fans love both the Hardy boys in there new gimmicks which is very refreshing. See both Matt & Jeff had gotten to the point where they needed something to give their careers a shot in the arm and make it where they could keep things going for a few more years and this "Broken" gimmick has done exactly that. This by far was the best part of Impact three weeks ago. - Now to something I am indifferent about is the current status of TNA's Knockout division. The division in my opinion is a work in progress with the new faces and fresh talent still finding there footing in the company and getting comfortable in the ring. This is this case for some more than the others. - The worst part of the show was by far the formatting of the show. The show kicked off with the World Title match between Lashley and Jeff Hardy and truthfully went downhill from there with random matches and mostly a flat crowd. Even though the falls count anywhere match between the DCC and Decay was actually really good I feel like that match could have either opened the show or given the show a little more depth to the show. I do understand they wanted to kick the show off with a bang, but the FCA is gimmicked to do that every time. They could've done better with it as that really killed the show and matches that sometimes pop the crowd really feel flat and things could have been done better. But overall the show wasn't that bad and I will likely attempt to continue watching Impact Wrestling for the next few weeks. For the longest time I have always had a tough time coming up with topic to write about for the TNA section, but this "series" type idea will give some consistent things to post about for at least the time being. So let's see how this goes and if you guys like this we will keep things going and show a little love for TNA.
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A few months ago Anthem Sports & Entertainment saved TNA from the brink of collapse and a considerable power struggle within the ranks of the company between Dixie Carter and Billy Corgan. Since they have taken over the company not much has changed and it doesn't seem like they will be changing much if anything about the company. At this point the only thing that seems to have changed is that Anthem has brought back Jeff Jarrett as an executive consultant for the company to help Ed Nordholm transition into his new role as the President of the Anthem department which includes TNA wrestling.
They also brought in recently released WWE talent Zeb Coulter as an advisor for the creative team to help work with certain talent. The man known as "Dirty" Dutch Mantel who has over forty years of experience in the wrestling business from time in Memphis to Smokey Mountain to TNA and ending up with the WWE. Now I don't know if Dutch has actually returned to TNA wrestling or not but I will say that from reports it seems like Dutch has been helping the creative by working with some talent including names like Spud and Aron Rex. This is by far the best thing that Anthem could have done as this could help ease the pressure on not just Anthem but also the current members with TNA. Especially with names like Jarrett & Mantel helping the company not just move forward and build for the future. Recently I have been talking a lot about both the WWE Hall of Fame and also the Wrestling Express Hall of Fame. But I just felt it necessary to also include TNA in the Hall of Fame discussion as they will be inducting someone else into the Hall of Fame this year. With the negative "press" out of the way and now some stability as far as ownership this should allow the company to focus on what matters and that is building for a future. I feel as though part of building for a future is honoring and remembering the past which is why I am a big advocate of the Hall of Fame. With Gail Kim joining four other names in the Hall of Fame last year I have two names in mind that could join the Hall of Fame this year:
Jerry Jarrett: There is no other person out their that can lay claim to having a direct impact on TNA even if it was a short impact for health reasons I still believe it was profound enough. Jerry along with his son Jeff co-founded TNA Wrestling in June of 2002. Jerry would leave the wrestling business due to health concerns which saw him sell his stake in TNA to Carter Family specifically Bob Carter (Dixie's father) this would give the Carter's majority control of the company. However, in many if not for Jerry there would be no TNA and with that being the case I feel like not having Jarrett in the Hall of Fame especially since he and Jeff reconciled there issues after over a decade of not speaking now would be a perfect time. If TNA wants to honor those who helped pave the way for the company then there is nobody better to honor then one of the men responsible for establishing the company in the first place. America's Most Wanted: The other possible inductees this year I think should be AMW aka the biggest tag team in the early days of TNA. Chris Harris and James Storm were in many ways TNA's first success outside of the X-division as they would become two of the most popular names in TNA and would be staples of the company until Wildcat left. Though the road may have been bumpy and a little unexpected that doesn't change the impact that AMW had on the legacy of TNA and the fact that they deserve to be honored and remembered for all their accomplish and just how much of an important part they played in the early days of TNA. |
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January 2022
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