The Official TNA / Impact / GFW Discussion Thread

[Fleisch]

The TNA title hasn't been around 11 years. Jarrett held the NWA title for 11 months back in 2004 - the top TNA title at the time. The TNA title has only been around since May 2007 (I think). So just over 5 years... mind you they have had 22 World Title changes and 12 different champions since May 2007 - which pretty much craps on any prestige the belt has.

 

As for the Joseph Park thing, of course we all know he's Abyss - the storyline is that he doesn't know he's Abyss, and personally I think it's a good story (providing the pay-off is good). As we've seen a few times, shades of Abyss start to manifest when he bleeds, then blanks out. As far as Park (in storyline) is concerned he is Joseph Park, attorney not Abyss. I can see peoples point on him being made to look stupid though, especially in the match with Morgan because unless they are going to use Morgan as the man that finally makes Park snap back into Abyss, I can't see what point the match had for either mens story development.

 

I'm not too keen on the X-Division changes. They seem to change the rules every 6 months and it's starting to get annoying. The title should never have been put on anyone over 225lb and should have been used the way it was back in the earlier TNA years. This 230lb limit won't be adhered to and in a few months the rules will suddenly be "forgotten" by the writers and it will be the same old mess.

 

Aces & Eights is still a good storyline, and with Bully Ray as president it gives the group credibility. I saw on other sites people who were literally ripping the guys in the group apart calling them nobodies and WWE rejects... pretty sure Steve Austin, Triple H and Mick Foley were WCW rejects but look what WWE done with them! One companies reject is another companies next potential superstar. Personally I think the group has the right balance. Bully, Devon & Anderson as the veterans of the group if you like and then Knox & DOC the muscle (still both better than Kevin Nash) and then Garrett/Brisco the young up and coming duo who don't want to pay their dues and want an easy ride to the top. The group works. It works a whole lot better than I would have expected it to. I mean I don't expect everyone to like the guys who were unmasked, but I personally feel each and every member has done their job and has a role to play. I can see Knox & DOC or Garrett & Brisco as future tag team Champions if this continues the way it's going. I do however think Brisco needs to get better on the mic, or just not speak at all - he looks lost when trying to sound like a bad ass - but does have the look.

 

Jesus I've rambled on enough... guess that's what happens when I come into the post once in a blue moon!

[bigtplaystew]

Aces & Eights is still a good storyline, and with Bully Ray as president it gives the group credibility. I saw on other sites people who were literally ripping the guys in the group apart calling them nobodies and WWE rejects... pretty sure Steve Austin, Triple H and Mick Foley were WCW rejects but look what WWE done with them! One companies reject is another companies next potential superstar.

 

See, for me, this is a key statement right here. What I personally want to see is TNA build some new superstars out of Aces and Eights. And in a way, they already have. Garret Bischoff is far more over as this heel character than he was as the babyface. And Wes Brisco couldn't get over in FCW let alone on a network wrestling TV show. So they're getting there.

 

I feel the payoffs have been kinda good. They did well with what they've had to work with. They get compared to the nWo and all, but if you think about it Aces and 8s could never live up to those "Holy crap!" moments where guys were jumping ship from WWF and all that good stuff. That world doesn't exist anymore. So they've had to tell stories to give you those surprising moments. Now I'm not saying every payoff has been a 100% success. But I feel this storyline is as over as it's ever been and it's what? 10 months old? WWE hasn't told a year-long story each week for as long as I can remember.

[Derek B]

I really do love that the vignettes have people realising that TNA has been doing good, this pleases me. At this point, it looks like Bully is going to be champion until Bound For Glory too, which should be fun. He'll do whatever it takes to keep a hold of the title for a while, then we'll get to the Bound For Glory series and that should be awesome this year as people kick the ever loving crap out of each other to get the chance to fight for the title. I love the BFG series, it gives TNA reasons to put any combination of their top guys in the ring against each other and it make sense, which is something that can be really hard to do otherwise. It gives so many matches on TV that we want to see, which makes Impact even better to watch and it gives people a reason to go to the house shows as some of the matches there will genuinely have an effect on the on-screen product.

 

Of course, that's still a few months away. In the meantime we've got a new heel champion who is gold on the microphone and can be awesome in the ring who is leading the way against a bunch of talented performers... the future of TNA is bright, and whoever has been writing for the company has been doing some great things that I think some people are only just now starting to realise.

[Rone Rivendale]

Didn't Bobby Roode hold the World Title for a year before Aries beat him?

[Fleisch]

Didn't Bobby Roode hold the World Title for a year before Aries beat him?

 

Roode held it from end of October 2011 until July 2012 when he lost it at Destination X.

[Jaysin]

109 days short of a year.

[Stennick]

So who is positioned as the top face in TNA right now? It seems like the last year has focused on Bobby Roode, Austin Aries and Bully Ray not that I'm complaining I'm just not sure who is going to "rise above" and defeat Ace and 8's . Is it Jeff Hardy? Aj Styles, James Storm?

[20LEgend]

So who is positioned as the top face in TNA right now? It seems like the last year has focused on Bobby Roode, Austin Aries and Bully Ray not that I'm complaining I'm just not sure who is going to "rise above" and defeat Ace and 8's . Is it Jeff Hardy? Aj Styles, James Storm?

 

http://mimg.ugo.com/200912/34487/cuts/hulk1_288x288.jpg

 

[Teh_Showtime]

So who is positioned as the top face in TNA right now? It seems like the last year has focused on Bobby Roode, Austin Aries and Bully Ray not that I'm complaining I'm just not sure who is going to "rise above" and defeat Ace and 8's . Is it Jeff Hardy? Aj Styles, James Storm?

 

Jeff Hardy is the top face but AJ Styles will probably win the title from Bully once he can challenge for the title again (at BFG).

 

Pretty sure Storm's ship has sailed, he has just seemed so irrelevant since the middle of last year.

[Stennick]

I thought Hogan was a huge fan of Storm's? Talking about his ability to be marketed to the crowd that they mostly draw on and what not? He's always been a good talker and a decent worker what exactly derailed him?

[Hive]

Aces & Eights would have been far better had they been able to bring in better-known ex-WWE guys than Mike Knox and Luke Gallows. Why have TNA not signed John Morrison yet? Or MVP? Harry Smith would have been an asset as well, compared to a guy like Bischoff Jr.

[Rickymex]

I believe John Morrison is planning to return to the WWE or was planning to return when the angle started.

 

MVP was enjoying his dream of wrestling in Japan.

 

Harry could have join since he was dong RPW and other indies since this was before the K.E.S.

[Rone Rivendale]

Aces & Eights would have been far better had they been able to bring in better-known ex-WWE guys than Mike Knox and Luke Gallows. Why have TNA not signed John Morrison yet? Or MVP? Harry Smith would have been an asset as well, compared to a guy like Bischoff Jr.

 

It's better that Knox and Gallows are lesser known, it's better that they have been gone from WWE for a while too. The majority of ppl would have crapped on it if it had been Morrison, MVP, or Smith because they would be "WWE's rejects". But someone like Gallows who has been gone from WWE for over a year and Knox who has been gone multiple years, they can still be developed into a "TNA" talent.

 

Think of it this way. Chavo is a WWE reject. Anderson is a TNA guy. The difference is the time served and the time away.

 

This isn't my personal opinion btw, this is just what 90% of ppl on this very forum say all the time.

[BHK1978]

I still say that Jeff Jarrett would have been the better choice to be the leader of Aces & Eights. To me it just would make more sense seeing how he was the founder of the company and now he is back to destroy it from the inside.

 

That being said, I do think that Bubba is making it work so I have no problems with him running it, I just would have rather had Jarrett in that spot.

[Travis]

It would've been amazing if Jeff Jarrett returned as Aces & Eights president. Still a bit peeved he wasn't on the TNA Ten PPV they recorded a week ago or so. I used to be annoyed whenever he was on tv because I wasn't a big fan of him, but I think he has enough staying power to still be relevant, even in an angle like Aces and Eights. I think it was kinda obvious from the get-go Bully Ray was the leader, but I don't want to be one of those guys...lol

[Blackman]

I still say that Jeff Jarrett would have been the better choice to be the leader of Aces & Eights. To me it just would make more sense seeing how he was the founder of the company and now he is back to destroy it from the inside.

 

Just my opinion, but I'm sick of Jarrett. He's been one of the TNA main guys from the get-go. Enough please.

 

I'm not yet ick of 'singles' Bubba though.

[TakerNGN74]

I still say that Jeff Jarrett would have been the better choice to be the leader of Aces & Eights. To me it just would make more sense seeing how he was the founder of the company and now he is back to destroy it from the inside.

 

That being said, I do think that Bubba is making it work so I have no problems with him running it, I just would have rather had Jarrett in that spot.

 

I hate to agree with this but fact is that it would have made a lot of sense to have Jarrett as you said try to kill the company that he created. I don't mind that Bully Ray is the leader but I think that there could have been a lot more mileage with the storyline had Jarrett be the one that was revealed as the leader. I get what Blackman says as Jarrett was crammed down our throats when TNA first started but I believe that enough time has passed so that people might forget that stuff like that even happened.

[BHK1978]

Just my opinion, but I'm sick of Jarrett. He's been one of the TNA main guys from the get-go. Enough please.

 

I'm not yet ick of 'singles' Bubba though.

 

I fully understand where you are coming from. That being said when was the last time Jeff was on air?

 

If it wasn't a year ago, it has to be pretty close to being a year. So he is not being pushed down our throats like he was a few years back.

 

Just looked it up on Wikipedia and it says that he has not been in TNA since 2011. It doesn't seem that long...

[sabataged]

I don't mind Gallows and Knox because they are bigger henchmen guys that look the part of the biker. Wes Brisco and Garrett Bischoff have no right to be on the television. They are horrible in the ring, and horrible personalities. Taz should not be with the team either because he adds absolutely nothing. Pretty much out of the current group the only ones I do think that should be in the group is Bully, Devon, Knox, and Gallows.

 

I understand the concept of needing "bodies" to fill the gang concept but some guys just do not deserve a spot on television. I personally would of liked to of seen Bully announced as the VP (D-Lo story is stupid) and then eventually Jeff Jarrett as the President. I just dont know if Jarrett can pull off the biker gang gimmick which would be my only fear.

 

On a side note I think I would of rather seen the Ink Inc guys in the biker gang then Bischoff/Brisco. Atleast they could of wrestled a little. Matt Morgan is another i think would of been a good addition to the group.

[20LEgend]

Aces & Eights would have been far better had they been able to bring in better-known ex-WWE guys than Mike Knox and Luke Gallows. Why have TNA not signed John Morrison yet? Or MVP? Harry Smith would have been an asset as well, compared to a guy like Bischoff Jr.

 

I don't think it's nearly that easy for TNA to just sign people as it is with WWE. Morrison is not interested in working a full time schedule at the moment as far as I've heard in interviews with him, Harry Smith is in NJPW, as was MVP up until very recently.

[Fleisch]

There's a lot of ragging on Garrett Bischoff and Wes Brisco, and though I do believe Brisco needs a lot more work before he could ever go on a successful singles run, I think 90% of peoples opinion on Garrett is because of who his dad is. I think with time he'll be an asset... providing he doesn't share his fathers ego! For me Garrett Bischoff is a future talent. No he's not brilliant in the ring, but he's 28 and only in his THIRD year as a pro so has plenty of time for improvement. Now that he has joined up with the Aces & Eights he has a good look, is improving his mic skills and with time will get better in the ring as well. Will he be Chris Jericho good? No, but then few ever will be. He's no worse than Miz was when he first broke into the business, and we see how far he has gone. Again Wes Brisco (who I think needs to improve a whole lot) is only a 4 year pro aged 30 so there's still time. How are these guys going to improve if they are never given a chance?

 

Putting them in a group with the Dudleys and Mr Anderson is going to be good for them if they both take notice. Neither are going to be the next "CM Punk" but they'll certainly be better than a lot of other guys who have jobs in the "top" promotion of the business.

 

People also need to stop thinking of TNA as WCW... unfortunately they'll never really rise much above "ECW" stature and as such will never really compete with WWE so shouldn't really try. Best thing for TNA is to concentrate on their business, their company and make it entertaining for their fans and they can't go too far wrong.

 

Of course this is just my opinion on some matters.

[20LEgend]

I think people are more bothered that he was pushed hard early on. He's a poor worker IMO but I don't dislike him, and I'm not writing him off - he's certainly improved in the last year, when he was in a big feud (Lethal Lockdown match) with his dad. He was awful in the ring at that point (again IMO ) but was pushed quite hard. The alliance with Devon helped him, and I think being Bischoff's son he could be a very interesting character in years to come because of that.

[The Final Countdown]

A vengeful Jarrett coming back to try and destroy the company he created may have been a logical story, but I for one am glad they went the route that they did. I'd much rather see Bully in this slot than Jeff.

[Jaysin]

I'm glad Jarrett wasn't the leader. He doesn't need to be in every single heel stable that's ever existed in the company...

 

I'm pretty sure the only one he wasn't apart of was Main Event Mafia.

[alphadraighon]

I don't think he was part of Sports Entertainment Xtreme back in the early days either, but beyond that he does seem to have his fingerprints in just about every stable and group ever.

 

Personally, I'm glad not to see Jarrett at all. Never liked him. And while he may may have done some of his best work in TNA, I could never see him as a legit champion.