The Official TNA / Impact / GFW Discussion Thread

[GatorBait19]

to me TNA has gone away from what made it big

 

using smaller names to build the company (AJ, Jay Lethal, Shelly, Sabin) and gone to more hey we need the big names to survive this

 

They got rid of the 6 sided ring which I always thought if they were going to compete with WWE it would make a difference (some many fans are use to the 4 sided ring, 6 was something new to them)

 

finally Vince Russo doesn't seem like a man who kills companies, it's truly Bischoff lol sorry had to

 

 

Also one other thing I have always liked about the WWE is that they create their own starts (sure their guys might start in a smaller company) but they have always been able to find talent no one else wanted

 

Austin (WCW did want him) Triple H, Cena, HBK, Taker.

 

And they also have been able to push guys other companies can't

 

Rey, Eddie, Chris B, Chris Jericho, etc

[justtxyank]

 

Austin (WCW did want him) Triple H, Cena, HBK, Taker.

 

And they also have been able to push guys other companies can't

 

Rey, Eddie, Chris B, Chris Jericho, etc

 

This is completely bogus.

 

There was really only WWE when Cena came around so there was nobody else to NOT want him. WCW wanted HBK when he left the AWA and tried to get him from the WWF on multiple occassions. WCW liked Mark Callous and wanted to keep him, but they never thought about the Undertaker gimmick which is obviously a very gimmicky niche gimmick.

 

As for Rey, he was huge in WCW. Benoit really never got any more run in the WWF than he did in WCW, Eddie didn't get to the top in the E for years after jumping ship.

 

Edit: The E has been better at creating stars because they have more brand power and better production values than the other companies. They've also been incredibly lucky with gimmicks sticking.

[Bigpapa42]

Well let's be honest here. Hogan has made a fundamental mistake. His run in the E was awesome when he returned, largely because he was given in limited doses. WCW taught us that Hogan was played out as a heel and a face. He just couldn't carry a show anymore. He still had relevance and people still liked him, they just didn't care to see him as their focus. I foolishly believed that HOgan was going to come to TNA and play an authority role and limit himself. Instead he's been the entire focus of the company, involved in nearly every storyline. That makes it hard to get any enjoyment out of the show. It makes the RVD vs Sting storyline that is about to happen worthless to me because it's going to be all about Hogan.

 

UGH!

 

That's what I was worried about as soon as I heard Hogan was joining TNA. Fans talked about him being a great promoter, but he's really only been a self-promoter. Hogan has had a great career and done a fantastic job of keeping himself relevant and at the front of the line. That's not meant as a critism - it just is. So having Hogan all over everything, a ridiculous amount of needless patronage for his buddies and family... none of it should really be surprising.

[Melanieshaman]

That's what I was worried about as soon as I heard Hogan was joining TNA. Fans talked about him being a great promoter, but he's really only been a self-promoter. Hogan has had a great career and done a fantastic job of keeping himself relevant and at the front of the line. That's not meant as a criticism - it just is. So having Hogan all over everything, a ridiculous amount of needless patronage for his buddies and family... none of it should really be surprising.

 

 

I agree. While I like Hogan as an authority figure, he needs to back it off a bit. I hate that they are devoting so much time to Waltman and Hall. Leave them out, they are not needed, Hall is a decade past his prime if not more. Let go of the past PLEASE! Personally, i think Bischoff spends too much time in everyone's business as well as Hogan. I didn't watch any wrestling for some time, what's the deal with Double J and Bischoff anyway?

 

I wish they would go back to the younger guys being more of a focus, and possibly need to reinvigorate the tag division. I don't get AJ as a heel..AT ALL... They tried that before and it didn't work for me, just because Flair is with him, that's supposed to get him over as heel? Personally he needs to drop the belt, and blame Flair for it, and turn face again.

 

And while i'm at it, Daniels?! come on! face turn to Fallen Angel again PLEASE! He's one of my favs in TNA, but i can't stomach him atm. Anyway, that's just a few things i needed to get off my chest. OH, also...please leave Jeff Hardy out of the title hunt, he's poison. I can't stand him!

[jesterx7769]

I agree Hogan is a huge problem. For anyone new (or old) who has checked them out at either the January 4th show or last monday has grown sick of seeing him so much. it isnt even him though, what if WWE used John Cena in every storyline and was on tv for 45 minutes out of the two hours? people would get sick of that too. and really, does Hogan even have drawing power anymore? Last monday, were old WCW/ECW or casual WWE fans really excited that Hogan was wrestling or on tv? their first reaction was probably the same as most of ours, "isn't he almost 60?"

[liontamer]

0.87 Flair, Styles, Hardy talk in the ring, Foley and Bischoff talk backstage.

 

0.85 Clip of Nasty Boys beating on Neal, Nasty Boys vs Team 3D, Angelina Love interview backstage, Hall and Pac interview backstage Nash/Young arrive and talk.

 

0.82 Anderson/Wolfe vs Angle/Pope, Hogan/Hardy/RVD/Bischoff talk backstage.

 

0.96 Love vs Daffney with The Beautiful People by the ring Tara gets involved, Hogan in the ring talking and calls out Sting who while coming to the ring gets jumped by RVD.

 

0.93 Ending of the Hogan/Sting/RVD segment in the ring when Bischoff ends it, Hernandez/Jarrett/Bischoff talk backstage, Hall vs Nash with Pac and Young getting involved.

 

0.82 Beer Money interview backstage, Hernandez vs Beer Money with Jarrett refereeing and Morgan on commentary.

 

0.81 Foley/Bischoff haircut segment, Shannon Moore interview backstage, x-division segment in the ring featuring Motor city guns/Generation Me/Amazing Red/Kendrick/Kaz/Daniels.

 

0.72 Abyss interview backstage, Hardy vs Styles with Abyss as enforcer.

 

0.74 Q9 Overrun: Hardy vs Styles, after match Flair swings a chair then Abyss slams Flair throught ramp.

 

 

wohoo, called the overall, althought I still expect that if broken down further the x-division segment lost more viewers than it shows. I'm guessing it elevated for a short time simply because EB and foley were in the ring and then it tanked.

 

Kinda funny that the knockouts in general pull in the most viewers when they are probably among the lowest paid wrestlers on staff.

 

With that in mind I, if I were booker I'd consider putting them 1-2 matches before the ME and see if they still hold their viewers, that might be a way to keep people from tuning out. I watched raw's diva match and it was aweful compared to the general action in knockouts matches (although the after match beatdown had some nice action)

[Hyde Hill]

Hyde..that's a bad assumption. it's not that viewers CHOSE Hart/McMahon over AJ/Hardy it's that that segments leading into the main event didn't give them any reason to stay tuned.

 

And going back..was there any reason to believe that match would be given proper time, or end without some kind of intereference? The one thing WCW proved is that bad booking eventually does drive viewers away.

 

So that even when good stuff happens, no one is willing to have faith and stay tuned.

 

Yeah I know that was just an initial gut reaction. So not thought out at all.

[Hyde Hill]

wohoo, called the overall, althought I still expect that if broken down further the x-division segment lost more viewers than it shows. I'm guessing it elevated for a short time simply because EB and foley were in the ring and then it tanked.

 

Kinda funny that the knockouts in general pull in the most viewers when they are probably among the lowest paid wrestlers on staff.

 

With that in mind I, if I were booker I'd consider putting them 1-2 matches before the ME and see if they still hold their viewers, that might be a way to keep people from tuning out. I watched raw's diva match and it was aweful compared to the general action in knockouts matches (although the after match beatdown had some nice action)

 

Yeah its always hard analyzing ratings as you actually need minute by minutes or at least segment per segment to see what people tuned out to and what made people to keep watching. In the end it doesn't matter that much though as good overall shows without any crap on a consistent basis draw best.

[GatorBait19]

This is completely bogus.

 

There was really only WWE when Cena came around so there was nobody else to NOT want him. WCW wanted HBK when he left the AWA and tried to get him from the WWF on multiple occassions. WCW liked Mark Callous and wanted to keep him, but they never thought about the Undertaker gimmick which is obviously a very gimmicky niche gimmick.

 

As for Rey, he was huge in WCW. Benoit really never got any more run in the WWF than he did in WCW, Eddie didn't get to the top in the E for years after jumping ship.

 

Edit: The E has been better at creating stars because they have more brand power and better production values than the other companies. They've also been incredibly lucky with gimmicks sticking.

 

first let me make a change in that statement, WCW when Eric took over couldn't produce new talent they could push all the way, only two that cam to mind are Big Show and Goldberg

 

but wwe wasn't the best during the War, WCW kicked their butts for two years and while big names jumped (Luger, Hart, Nash) wwf created people

 

the hardy's, Edge and Christian, The Rock, made Austin huge, Mankind became a star, Kane came, D-X

 

Jericho has had great success in the E

 

Eddie whether it took him a while or not had success, Yes Rey was big, but not a big as he was in the E, Benoit had more success in E then he did in WCW

[PeterHilton]

Yeah its always hard analyzing ratings as you actually need minute by minutes or at least segment per segment to see what people tuned out to and what made people to keep watching.

 

How about this for analysis?

 

More ratings notes:

 

* Monday's Impact rating of .84 is the lowest rating for Impact since November of 2006. Back then, Impact was airing in a late-night Thursday timeslot, not in prime-time.

 

* Not a single quarter hour segment of Impact reached the 1.0 mark. The highest rated segment was the fourth quarter hour (9:45PM ET-10PM ET) which featured the Beautiful People, Hulk Hogan calling out Sting, and RVD appearing. The segment drew a .96. It's probably worth noting that the Beautiful People were also in one of the highest rated segments of Impact last week.

 

* After the .96 in the fourth quarter hour, every segment dropped in the ratings all the way up to AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy doing a show-low .72. The overrun saw a slight increase up to a .74.

 

* TNA lost 15% of the audience they opened with, going from a .87 opening quarter hour to a .74 for the overrun.

 

I know..it's piling on.

[Stennick]

The thing to remember with ratings is this weeks ratings reflects last week show ( in most cases) you put on a bad show this week, next weeks ratings will reflect that. This show was a ton better than anything they have produced during the Hogan era. The problem is they have spent three months delivering confusing, all over the place, low quality, little wrestling. Last week they went head to head and people tuned in, the show was horrible and this week their starting to tune out. Its not easy to stop the ratings slide, once people tune out it takes twice as much to make them tune in. Negative reactions catch more peoples attention than positive.

[PeterHilton]

Totally agree.

 

TNA is the guy who spends weeks and weeks working up the courage to ask out the hottest girl in class, and then walks up to her, gets nervous, and pukes all over her new sweater.

[Hyde Hill]

How about this for analysis?

 

More ratings notes:

 

* Monday's Impact rating of .84 is the lowest rating for Impact since November of 2006. Back then, Impact was airing in a late-night Thursday timeslot, not in prime-time.

 

* Not a single quarter hour segment of Impact reached the 1.0 mark. The highest rated segment was the fourth quarter hour (9:45PM ET-10PM ET) which featured the Beautiful People, Hulk Hogan calling out Sting, and RVD appearing. The segment drew a .96. It's probably worth noting that the Beautiful People were also in one of the highest rated segments of Impact last week.

 

* After the .96 in the fourth quarter hour, every segment dropped in the ratings all the way up to AJ Styles vs. Jeff Hardy doing a show-low .72. The overrun saw a slight increase up to a .74.

 

* TNA lost 15% of the audience they opened with, going from a .87 opening quarter hour to a .74 for the overrun.

 

I know..it's piling on.

 

That's the same info as the breakdown thats not an analysis that is just facts. It was a very bad rating period.

[Prophet]

Totally agree.

 

TNA is the guy who spends weeks and weeks working up the courage to ask out the hottest girl in class, and then walks up to her, gets nervous, and pukes all over her new sweater.

 

You do something one time, and you're labelled for ...

 

Wait, you're not talking about me? Oh, carry on then.

[Hyde Hill]

Totally agree.

 

TNA is the guy who spends weeks and weeks working up the courage to ask out the hottest girl in class, and then walks up to her, gets nervous, and pukes all over her new sweater.

 

Lol yeah if you want to analyse ratings you should check the quarterlies on Thursday after Jan 4th. They kept going down and even the last Thursday show they started high. They totally pissed away all the goodwill with up and down booking.

 

The analogy I always like to make for TNA is: "the little engine that should."

 

My favorite recent one is comparing it to the restaurant world. (watching too much Hell's kitchen one day). This is the short clear version so bare with me.

 

1. So brand awareness is your advertising for your restaurant in total. Which is low for TNA but one of the things Hogan/EB have improved and one of the main goals of the move to Monday.

 

2. Brand Identity is what your Restaurant is known for. Other then not being the WWE and having an X-Division the general populace doesn't know.

 

3. The production values is the restaurant itself eg the ambiance, lighting, tables etc. Not that horrible but compared to the E terrible. Some small stuff that can easily be improved hasn't been done.

 

4. The talent roster are the ingredients. They have more then enough seriously and that makes some dishes overcomplicated and some great ingredients unused.

 

5. The headbooker is the one that makes the menu and supervises the cooking. Some dishes are good to great but too many are very bad.

 

6. Creative are the cooks. BAD and inconsistent.

 

7. Service is the pacing of the show etc.

 

So unless you a know the brand b don't mind the ambiance c know which dishes are good and d are lucky enough to get it well prepared you are screwed. Making it a real acquired taste

 

1. Has improved with Hulk/EB.

2. Stayed the same so far. And really needs work.

3. Slight improvement.

4. Too much. improvement in the top line Hardy + RVD, crap added on the bottom.

5. Better in some departments worse in others

6. Same

7. Better but still not good.

 

And the overall net result is again 0.

 

The WWE in very short.

 

1. Excellent.

2. Fine.

3. Excellent

4. Good enough but overuse of certain ingredients and too many similar ones.

5. Mediocre but simple with some good dishes

6. Fine and on occasion good.

7. Slow but a lot off attention.

 

So a simple menu with decent preparation that everyone knows about and knows what to expect.

 

I know its kinda flawed and simplified and it makes TNA to out to be a bit worse then it is but its close.

[TommyDreamerFan]

I sat back to day and thought to myself of all the people TNA brought in, the only one that annoys me is Hall. Get rid of him, not only can he not wrestle he can't draw.

 

Am I the only one who is enjoying the Nasty/Dudley feud? Good god it's the like one of the last dream feuds left. The only other Dudley match I'd want to see is impossible (vs Road Warriors)

 

The rating? Un-****ing-surprising. WWE is heading towards the biggest show IN THE INDUSTRY and they had STEVE AUSTIN. Also bare in mind, people were paying attention to the 1st show because well it was the 1st one. And it was taped... Ect. Largest reason has nothing to do with anything y'all are bitching about, because the defacto reason is TNA has no brand name recognition. Dixie Carter is right, it's going to take time and commitment. So long as TNA has that, it doesn't matter what rating TNA gets for the moment because eventually it'll improve.

 

Is no one deeply troubled by the fact that, apparently, the wrestlers don't draw fans anymore it's the companys that do? It's frightening.

[liontamer]

I sat back to day and thought to myself of all the people TNA brought in, the only one that annoys me is Hall. Get rid of him, not only can he not wrestle he can't draw.

 

Am I the only one who is enjoying the Nasty/Dudley feud? Good god it's the like one of the last dream feuds left. The only other Dudley match I'd want to see is impossible (vs Road Warriors)

 

The rating? Un-****ing-surprising. WWE is heading towards the biggest show IN THE INDUSTRY and they had STEVE AUSTIN. Also bare in mind, people were paying attention to the 1st show because well it was the 1st one. And it was taped... Ect. Largest reason has nothing to do with anything y'all are bitching about, because the defacto reason is TNA has no brand name recognition. Dixie Carter is right, it's going to take time and commitment. So long as TNA has that, it doesn't matter what rating TNA gets for the moment because eventually it'll improve.

 

Is no one deeply troubled by the fact that, apparently, the wrestlers don't draw fans anymore it's the companys that do? It's frightening.

 

 

oh come on now.... they can't get rid of Hall. I mean he's the one that looks like Elvis (just beore he died)

 

and I disagree with the last statement. The wrestlers are still the draws (as you said raw drew more just from having austin the debut with Hogan and EB got a bump), it's just that the top draws pretty much are all in one company right now. If Cena, Orton, Mysterio, HBK, HHH, Taker etc jumped to TNA it would make a difference.

[Self]

Yes. Wrestlers are still draws to an extent. Jeff Hardy is a draw. Rob Van Dam is a draw. Sting is a draw. Time and time again, TNA have gotten their mitts on draws. However, draws aren't magic. You don't automatically gain viewers just by having them appear on your show. You have to promote it. You have to tell people it's going to happen, and you have to tell them it's going to be awesome. Not everyone reads rumors and spoilers. Not everyone follows Dixie Carter on Twitter. They should have been shouting Jeff Hardy vs AJ Styles from the rooftops. TV. Radio. Newspapers. Major internet sites. Advertise! Promote! Holy Christ, Jeff f'n Hardy is in TNA, and he's going to fight our World Heavyweight Champion!!! Only this Monday on Impact! Miss it or miss out (because Jeff might be going to jail)!

 

By not promoting it, they're not only missing out on a ratings bump, but you're saying "this doesn't deserve promoting" "this isn't that big a deal". It makes Jeff Hardy and AJ Styles look bad. Worthless. Just another guy.

[justtxyank]

first let me make a change in that statement, WCW when Eric took over couldn't produce new talent they could push all the way, only two that cam to mind are Big Show and Goldberg

 

Diamond Dallas Page is another one.

 

but wwe wasn't the best during the War, WCW kicked their butts for two years and while big names jumped (Luger, Hart, Nash) wwf created people

 

They still had more brand power. I am a WCW mark, but I can be honest about it. The only time WCW outpaced WWF in the industry is when their shows were headlined by WWF guys. Hogan, Savage, Nash, Hall, Bret Hart...WCW was a growing company in the early 90s, but after Hogan jumped in it was all about WWF branded guys at the top. You look at the list of World Champions from 1995 onward, and you will see a lot of WWF guys. Hogan, Nash, Savage, Sid.

 

the hardy's, Edge and Christian, The Rock, made Austin huge, Mankind became a star, Kane came, D-X

 

The Rock and Steve Austin were both luck for the WWF. Neither was over with what Vince wanted to do with them. As for Mankind and Kane, you are right, both got over with gimmicks that stuck. I give them credit for that. Just like WCW got over Booker T and DDP.

 

Jericho has had great success in the E

 

Absolutely. Jericho is a glaring example of WCW missing the boat on a star's potential. Him moreso than Steve Austin.

 

Eddie whether it took him a while or not had success, Yes Rey was big, but not a big as he was in the E, Benoit had more success in E then he did in WCW

 

Sure, but he had success with WCW as well. He could control his drinking and drugs which undermined him routinely in WCW. And yes, Rey was big in WCW, as big as he's ever been in the WWF. They just didn't make the decision to give him a world title run because they, smartly, didn't think he was a credible world champion. The WWF shared that view because his run was a joke.

 

As for Benoit, he had more success in the WWF due to arriving already at a position on the card. He had one title reign and was pretty always at the upper midcard, just like he was after establishing himself in WCW.

[PeterHilton]

Am I the only one who is enjoying the Nasty/Dudley feud? Good god it's the like one of the last dream feuds left. The only other Dudley match I'd want to see is impossible (vs Road Warriors)

 

 

Yes. For the most part. And you must've been a huge Nastys fan back in the day because I've never considered them on the level of any team where I would consider anything they do ever to be a 'dream match.'

 

The rating? Un-****ing-surprising. WWE is heading towards the biggest show IN THE INDUSTRY and they had STEVE AUSTIN. Also bare in mind, people were paying attention to the 1st show because well it was the 1st one. And it was taped... Ect. Largest reason has nothing to do with anything y'all are bitching about, because the defacto reason is TNA has no brand name recognition. Dixie Carter is right, it's going to take time and commitment. So long as TNA has that, it doesn't matter what rating TNA gets for the moment because eventually it'll improve.

 

 

This might make more sense if it weren't for the fac that TNA's ratings are actually dropping from their own ratings at the Thursday position.

 

And for years - come hell of high water - that number was pretty steady. TNA is losing its own fanbase. And that fanbase was pretty loyal. Which means it probably shouldn't be as affected by counterprogramming.

[mizzou24]

where do you guys find tv ratings.. i have been looking all over as i would like to follow the battle weekly. (well not much of a battle yet..)

[jesterx7769]

Just google 3/15 impact rating

[Fleisch]

I don't know if this has been mentioned (due to how obvious it is I'm guessing it may have been discussed) but anyway, what kind of thought process thinks it's a good bit of business to have your Champion LOSE to a guy not even in the title picture on the last show before a PPV? How does that make any sense, build any kind of heat or interest in AJ Styles? I'm just confused and baffled with the serious lack of direction or focus the company has. It's kind of disappointing seeing the alternative, edgy, high impact wrestling that was TNA slowly turn into the "clone" of WCW. Bad planning, non sensical booking and less focus than a blind man in a blizzard. I cannot see TNA getting anywhere near WWE, in fact the way they are going I can't see them still being in business in a year or 2.

 

Shame Really.

[TheOmniWarrior]

Anyone getting the feeling of WWE names jumping ship to TNA soon?

 

I have a feeling Carlito and Primo might end up there soon

[jesterx7769]

Hopefully not, TNA has enough former WWE midcarders that cannot draw. They either have to hope for a big name to be fed up with WWE like Angle or try to make people care about their people since they're basically WWE's midcard brand.