Recovery
Recently, there was a point where I was very close to not watching TNA anymore. That point is gone now, as I am very entertained with the majority of what’s going on. Last week’s Impact was very engaging, and had me amped up for Lockdown, which is what a go-home show should do. Lockdown was a pretty good PPV with solid, well worked matches. Only grievances I have are Morgan vs. Hernandez, who had a match that I didn’t think was as good as it could have been, the Knockouts Title Shot, which was a squash, and the World Heavyweight Title shot, which was good, but short. Despite two pretty intense botches, Angle and Jarrett had the match of the night.
Ultimately, I’m ready to continue the path to see what happens next. We have the potential for continued feuds and new feuds, we have AJ Styles coming back, and we have an Immortal that’s looking weak again (for a faction in power, they definitely have their ups and downs). Speaking of Immortal…
Immortal’s Next Top Dog
Immortal was conspicuously absent in the ring in the Heavyweight Title match. Hogan tried to make RVD cross the line, but he wasn’t having it. So who would be Immortal’s pick to try and sneak into number one contendership?
It’s hard to say. Abyss is a no-risk pick, as he provides an immediate threat to the title due to simply being Abyss. However, there was a hint that Abyss might feud with Crimson, although it wouldn’t surprise me if that gets completely forgotten for the bigger fish. Bully Ray is my personal favorite for the title shot. He’s loud, he’s obnoxious, and he hits pretty hard. He’s been very entertaining in Immortal, but with AJ Styles back, a feud between them seems rather obvious. The only other viable pick seems to be Matt Hardy. From the moment he’s entered TNA, Matt has worked very solid matches, but I don’t think he commands too much attention on the mic. Of course, maybe Immortal has a surprise in store… don’t they always have a surprise in store?
I Think I Get It
So something about TNA keeps me hooked, even when I felt that Impact was falling short of being a successful show. For a while, I wasn’t sure what it was. Then I read Major Impact #45, and it all made sense. The storyline that has been going on for much too long now has me hooked. But if it has me hooked, has it been going on for much too long? Not at all. Sure, I can admit that certain things, whether it was within or without of TNA’s control, were not executed as well as I would have liked, but I am definitely one of the people that want to see how this all ends. I’ve put in too much to not see how this ends.
As far as fewer PPV’s are concerned, I do think that TNA should go for it. It should allow them to do live editions of TNA more often, as well as get into other arenas for various editions of Impact. It would also make every PPV seem special since they don’t happen that often, as many PPVs simply feel like just another edition of Impact. Now I don’t know about business and money and stuff like that, but I feel like more TNA fans would be more willing to buy four to six PPVs if there are only four to six PPVs.
But yeah… I’ve definitely invested too much in Immortal to give it up now. It seems like WWE’s Nexus and Corre have come and gone, but Immortal is here to stay for at least another six months.
Does Gunner Have Potential?
So Gunner won the TV Title a month ago, but, as far as I know, hasn’t had a title defense. Not only do I think that this is a waste of a belt, but I also believe that this is a waste of Gunner. I honestly didn’t think much of Gunner until he won the title, and there was something about his character that showed a hint of evolution and viciousness. They’ve seemed to continue to hint at this evolution every so often, but ultimately he’s still stuck with goon duties.
I want to see if Gunner can step up to be one of Immortal’s bigger threats. I want to see Gunner have some title defenses. I want to see Gunner have some successful backstage outings where he hurts people. Maybe I’m looking too much into it. Still, I would like it if the TV Title meant something again, like back when AJ Styles held it, or when it was called the Legends Title. The TV Title needs to be defended on a regular basis again.
I can’t say I disagree with any of your thoughts.
On Immortal’s top dog: I too would like to see Bully Ray step up. The guy is golden on the mic with his bully character. He’s sadistically awesome, and belongs in the main event. That said, you’re right, he’s probably not headed there until a feud with AJ plays out. I’m not sure anyone else Immortal has currently can fill Jeff Hardy’s shoes. I would almost suggest a heel-turn from Samoa Joe, but he works too well as a kick-ass babyface (although not so much in his current feud.)
I think the TV Title needs to be retired, along with the Knockouts Tag Titles. If you’re going to have a Television Championship, then it needs to be defended at every television taping, or what’s the point? The championship needs to go away, although I agree that there is something to Gunner.
And I mention the Knockouts Tag Titles simply because there aren’t enough Knockouts in the division anymore to justify having these belts. Either aquire more Knockouts and form some teams, or drop the titles, I say.
I agree on all of Dylan’s reactions to the column. The TV Championship really has become a shame.
The best thing for that belt would be to have it defended every week (like the old school TV Championships from the regional days in the 1980s). If the belt can’t be used the way a TV Championship should be used, then it really has to go. However, if TNA Wrestling wants to start putting some effort behind the TV Championship, then they should start by getting a new piece of hardware because that Legends/Global/TV Championship looks like a cartoon.
I’d like to see a silver belt akin to the one that WWE used for the fake ECW Championship. That would be a bad ass belt for the TNA TV Championship.