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TNA - The Next WCW
October 18, 2005 by John Edwards

In the mind of most internet wrestling fans and most who write columns for this website WWE can do nothing right and TNA can do nothing wrong. (Don�t even get me started on the high spot , boring grappling and zero ring psychology promotion called Ring of Honor. That�s right I went against one of the internet wrestling commandments thou shalt not say anything negative about ROH.) I understand why people have this view about TNA they are the new kid on the block. Frankly, everyone was so sad when ECW left and fans have been craving something different for so long, that monkey�s wrestling in a pool would be welcomed.

But I saw a poll on a website to which more than 40 per cent of the people who responded thought iMPACT would garner a 2.0 rating for their premier episode. Anyone who believes that TNA has a chance of dethroning WWE is delusional and living in a fantasy world. In my opinion, unless they change their mindset, TNA is heading down the road of... WCW.

First off, there is plenty of talent in TNA. AJ Styles, Petey Williams, Chris Sabin, Christopher Daniels ( the most talented of them all) Abyss and Monty Brown are some of the best young wrestlers in the business. But it takes more than just great matches to become a superstar see Superstar Billy Graham. With the exception of Monty Brown most of these guys are average on the microphone. Mic skills are a must in competing with WWE.

Second, a lot of the X-Division lack crowd psychology. When I watch their matches so many of them do move after move after move, but don�t wait for the reaction. Everyone of these young performers should buy the Jake the Snake Roberts DVD and watch the best ring psychologist ever, at work.

Another reason why TNA is heading down the same road as WCW, is the constant run-ins. How many run-ins have there been in the first three weeks of iMPACT" That was one of WCW�s problems, they never finished a match.

There is the obvious point of Kevin Nash and Jeff Jarrett main-eventing the biggest pay per view of the year for the company. On a side note, this is one thing that bothers me about the internet fans, they are so quick to knock Triple H for using his influence, but no one says a word about Jarrett. In Trips defense, he has put over numerous guys Eugene, Shelton Benjamin, (he made) Batista, Jim Ross, Chris Benoit and he helped enhance the careers of Earl Hebner and The Hurricane. Who has Jarrett helped make a star" AJ Styles, that�s it.

There are two differences between Jarrett and Triple H; Hunter cares more about what is good for business. He obviously he has some personal motivation, but he�s in the family so what is good for business is good for him, while Jarrett only cares about himself. Secondly, Triple H has talent and Jarrett doesn't.

TNA should care less about what WWE is doing and focus on their own product. This was WCW's problem. They worried so much about beating WWF that they didn�t focus on pushing their own talent. What happened" Saturn, Malenko, Benoit and Guerrerro all left.

I know the WWE isn't perfect, far from it. But when you mention wrestling to the average person, they generally respond by saying WWE. They are synonymous with professional wrestling. TNA will never get to this point, so they should find their niche and grow a company from there.

by John Edwards (from Wasaga Beach .. (dramatic pause), Ontario Canada)..

Will Gonzalez wrote:
After reading this article, I have to say that you obvious have no real idea what you are talking about.

The little comment about nobody saying anything about Jarrett is what screams "load of crap". Where the hell have you been" Everywhere I go I see people complaining about Jeff Jarrett. Maybe you never hear anyone say a word, but if that's the case you need to talk to more than just the typical internet sheep. While it's true he does hog the title, he is not much worse than Triple H in what he does.

But the little crack about Triple H having talent and Jarrett not is another thing that screams "internet sheep". Jarrett is one of the most underrated wrestlers by internet fans. People see him hogging the NWA title and then just start saying he sucks. The truth is he's a solid wrestler and can still do well. Triple H" Nowadays he's just slow and boring in the ring.

Another thing is the thing about Saturn, Malenko, Benoit and Guerrero. While yes, they were all good workers. However, did WCW really need any of them" Other than Benoit, who had won the WCW title before he left, none of them would really do them much good with anyone other than internet fans who hate anything other than Cruiserweights, technical wrestlers and Kane. And those four didn't exactly put WCW out of business when they were with the WWE. It wasn't until years later that Benoit and Guerrero became big in WWE, and Saturn and Malenko went nowhere.

This whole article was extremely biased against TNA. With more time on TV, I'm sure TNA will grow. And if by being the next WCW, you mean that they have the potential to become big, then yes. But if you're going to start insulting TNA, try making real points instead of just saying "I hate TNA" and adding innacurate or stupid reasons.

-Flagg wrote:
I really can't say I find much in your article to disagree with. Personally, I'm sick of WWE, and have enjoyed the few TNA shows I've watched.

I will say I'm not as concerned about ring psychology as many seem to be. Certainly it has its place, but if 2 guys can go full-blast for 20 minutes, high spot after high spot, let them run with it. I have never heard a wrestling fan say "That time when Joe Blow slid out of the ring-that was the best part of the match". No thanks, I'd rather watch action.

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the non-physical aspects as well, if done by the right people. Some guys excel on the mic, others should have a manager/mouthpiece handle that stuff-that's the way it's been since I started watching Georgia Championship Wrestling on a pre-Superstation WTCG almost 30 years ago, and it will be that way 30 years from now.

I do wish to disagree with one point you made-when you compared HHH to Jeff Jarrett. The difference between the two is very minimal. You say Hunter cares more about the business than JJ-that's crap. I can run off a list of people HHH has screwed in the WWE protecting his spot, and so could anyone who pays attention. And the part about HHH "being in the family"-I could have sworn Jerry Jarrett (the man who co-founded TNA with Jeff) was Jeff's father. And JJ has more to do with the day-to-day running of TNA than HHH does. So, if anything, Jarrett deserves more props than HHH. As for Toucan Sam having talent and JJ not-I wouldn't say either of them is among the best pure wrestlers today, or any day. Neither one floats my boat in the ring, and both are equally long-winded and less-than-entertaining on the mic. The only difference I see between them is chemically-induced (and substituting a sledgehammer for a guitar). WWE and TNA would both be far better off if those two would step aside and let someone else run with the ball for a while-as in permanently.

Justin Bush wrote:
I'm certainly not going to disagree with your basic assessment of TNA. I also beieve they are following the same path that WCW followed to their own demise, in fact I'm surprised they are still in business much less have a TV deal.

However, I found many flaws in your arguments that I'd like to address:

Firstly, ROH: Now I'll admit I was born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia so I have a soft spot for ROH and one for ECW before it. I am admittedly biased towards both promotions, so I won't spend too much time on this subject. The only argument I will put forth is this: ROH like ECW before it caters to a live audience, seeing it on video does not give you the sameexperience as being there live. I know you could make the argument that this is true for any promotion; I disagree. I've been to live shows for dozens of promotions and the aura of a ROH show is very, very different. If you have not been to one Ihighly recomend it.

Now onto TNA.

Your first argument was a lack of promo ability in some of their stars. I'll grant you that AJ Styles, Chris Sabin and Petey Williams lack mic skills and that Monty Brown is amazingly entertaining when he talks. The two names on your list I have a problem with are Chris Daniels and Abyss. I've always found that Daniels has the best creepy/intense promo style much like Jake Roberts in his glory years. Part of Abyss' gimmick is that HE DOES NOT TALK, so including him in this list is rather absurd. You may say that a worker can't get over if he doesn't talk. Undertaker was a world champion before he uttered anything more then "Rest in Peace" and that was because he had Paul Bearer to do the talking for him, much like Abyss now has James Mitchell.

Next you question the psycology of the X-division. To which my response is: are we talking about the same x-division here" Sure there are spot monkeys in this division, but guys like Chris Daniels, Elix Skipper, AJ Styles, Jerry Lynn, Chris Sabin, Petey Williams, Austin Aries or Michael Shane (Matt Bently, or whatever he calls himself now) are all capable of working a well-paced pcycological match. I wonder if you are basing your argument soley on Impact. If so that isn't really fair. These guys are given a very short period of time for their matches and it is near impossible to tell a good story in the ring in such a short time.

Now, in your comparison of Jeff Jarret and Triple HHH:

Triple H cares more about the business then JJ, because he's in the McMahon family that owns WWE: Uh, Jerry Jarret, Jeff's father, is an owner of TNA.

Triple H has talent JJ doesn't: ok, I'll agree to that one

Triple H puts more people over: I'll go by each person

Eugene: How the hell did HHH put Eugene over" Every match they had H beat the hell out of him and won with seemingly little effort.

Shelton Benjamin: Sure he let Benjamin win a few times, but they were all booked as fluke's and when it really mattered (HHH tune-up match before WM 21), HHH won.

Batista: Ok, the build to HHH Batista was great, no doubt. Yes, Batista won all three times they wrestled. Batista's gimmick is an unstoppable monster, HHH made him look like a green rookie who got lucky.

Jim Ross: He's an announcer for God's sake, he has no business being in the ring in the first place, winning a match does nothing to put anyone over. Plus the only reason he won is Batista's interference.

Chris Benoit: Putting over Benoit is like puitting over Shawn Michaels, you don't lose a thing.

Enhanced the careers of Earl Hebner and Hurricane: an unemployed ref and a midcard joke, yeah HHH did great things for them.

Finally, Jeff Jarret made AJ Styles a star: That my friend is like saying that Triple H made Benoit a star. Styles was already a star, everybody knew he deserved to be world champion, he is the reason TNA is still in business.

I know everything stated above is just my opnion, but I hope if nothing else it gets you to take a closer look at some of the things you've criticized.

Keith Gaustad wrote:
I have to agree with the idea that TNA is heading down the road that WCW is on in terms of not pushing the right people. The thing is I can't stand Monty Brown. His move 'The pounce' aside from looking utterly ridiculous might just have the weakest name I've ever heard. As for his promos as of right now he hurts my ears. Now to be fair the more I watch the more of a chance there is that he might grow on me but to be honest the first time I watched impact I kept waiting for some American Gladiators to come out and shoot down everyone with nerf cannons. It looks that bad. The whole six sided ring thing is a fine novelty item and it should be used as such. SQUARES RULE! As far as I'm concerned I'll shell out what I can to help my local AWA promotion or heck I'll wait for state fairs to see local boys go at it because TV is getting weaker all around. Except of course for Ken Kennedy....Kennedy.

Stephen Fogarty wrote:
I have always thought that WCW and TNA were very much alike, but I find it rather stupid that fans treat TNA as if it was a 'Global' promotion, as in they travel around the world with thier shows, but they don't and TNA cannot compete with WWE, they have thier shows in one place, whereas WWE focus on North America and frequently europe and Japan...

Another similarity that the author mentioned is that TNA does have a lot of in-ring talent just like WCW, but TNA have pushed one prime example being AJ Styles... he has amazing in-ring ability and has earned TNA gold, and same goes for Christopher Daniels,

But right now, TNA seems to focus on taking shots at WWE using former stars, and should try and look at WCW's downfall and learn from it, and finally, TNA are not as big as WCW ever was, and fans need to remember that

TNA are purely 'the next best thing' to WWE, and that's still nowhere good enough

Mr. Taylor (pause)(pause) TAYLOR! wrote:
1st off, Im totally agreeing with you on TNA going down the wrong path of WCW. however, I thing you failed to realize is this.... (Im not going to bash you but just showing what I think TNA is doing)

1st: "Squash Jobbers, Build Icons!"
----Monty Brown, Abyss, Jeff Hardy, Samoa Joe, etc are all of TNA's top talent that Im sure WWE is craving for right about now. TNA is doing the right thing in allowing squash matches for these men (along with a few others). This allows these guys to look great on TV and makes them look dominant. Its the same way WWE built up "Brock Lesnar" and the way WCW made "Goldberg". The more hardcore fan thinks this approach is very low and shallow but TNA,being such a small company, has to pull every string possible to get recognized in this industry. By letting Monty Brown "Pounce" jobbers each week and Abyss "Black Hole Slam" jobbers each week, sooner or later, It will dawn upon a casual fan that "Hey, these big guy whoop butt each week and Im starting to really like it"

2nd: "Exclude the negative, Illud the positive"
---You are right about TNA and their young guys, Their mic skills are below average and flat out....STINK. However, TNA is an alternative to WWE and should do everything that WWE isn't doing and make it look great. Seeing how WWE currently is all about Storylines and building a "manly soap opera" with limited matches each week, TNA should propel in having great matches on iMPACT showing off the talents of "No-named wrestlers" (Sabin, Dutt, Team Canada, etc.). I love tuning into TNA and just watching a bunch of young guys put it all on the line just for recognition out of their Orlando crowd. Aslong as these young guys can continue to keep putting on great matches (whether their 7 mins or less) on iMPACT! it will make the fans more interested and sooner or later, their wrestling skills will make fans interested enough to hear what these young guys have to say on the mic once their charisma builds up.

3rd: "Old Stars and WWE rejects are welcome on TNA's roster"
--- For some reason, seeing Kevin Nash, Jeff Jarrett, Jeff Hardy, Sabu, Rhino, Team 3D, and many other old wrestlers in TNA doesn't bother me at all. TNA and Old Stars go hand-and-hand....For Example: Sabu is too "washed up" for WWE yet he can come into TNA and still show he can jump off a balcony onto some poor guy on a table and TNA profits because they are milking ratings off of all these old stars previous success and popularity. Im sure a lot of people are going to tune into TNA more just to see probably the only GREAT legendary tag team still around....THE DUDLEY BO.......oops I don't want Vince to sue me... "Team 3D." Now if only TNA can get Charlie Haas and give him a great gimmick, I can see him being the next big star for TNA and replacing Jeff Jarrett. I don't know why but every time I think of Charlie Haas in TNA....I think of a NEW "Shane Douglas" and with Jackie Gayda....a NEW "Francine" geez, if he gets that kind of push, you heard it here from me.

In conclusion, I think TNA will prosper but if TNA every really becomes a legitimate threat, I think Vince McMahon will change up his ways of doing business for WWE and counter and beginning a new generation of "Monday Night Wars"....Looking forward to it.

John Asplund from Finland wrote:
Well, well. That was just about the most ridiculous stuff I've read for a while. How long have you been watching TNA lately" Tell me it's more than one episode of Impact" I agree with you on few things though. I thought also that TNA was going WCW's way when they had the Kings of Wrestling angle which in my oppinion was nothing but a remake-nWo. But they didn't make it last too long, so new things came.

Let me remind you that AJ Styles isn't the only one Jarrett made over. What about the guy who never really got to shine in WWE, Raven. This guy may have slowed down a bit during years but he is great on mic and his matches do have psychology. Nowdays I admit that Jarrett has been trying to be TNA's Hunter Hobo Helmsley, but he still isn't cutting those 20 minute promos every show, like HHH is doing. Do you know Jarrett personally" How about HHH" From what I've heard about Triple H, some guys have left WWE because of him, including Pat Patterson. Sure, Triple H is married to the owners daughter and Jarrett himself is a co-owner of TNA, so it's no wonder that both guys get the titles almost whenever they want.Also run-ins add psychology to the match and are part of storylines as well. Same goes with the high-spots. And tell me, how many times have you heard the fans screaming "This is awesome" or "Best match ever" in the WWE" They've done it in many X-division matches on TNA, so is that a lack of psychology"

You say that TNA isn't pushing talent. What about Christopher Daniels, what about the "boring grapplers" they've been bringing in from ROH. You must be a slow-brawler-liking guy. Otherwise you'd have to admit that Benoit, Angle and Jericho are also doing nothing but boring grappling. There are guys like Alex Shelley, Austin Aries, Roderick Strong and Samoa Joe who do bust their asses in the ring. And they are young so they still have time to improve their mic skills.

About ROH. You're simply provoking by calling it a boring grappling and highspot. What else can you expect from a small independent promotion which does almost everything to attract people. Still they don't imitate, they innovate like their motto goes. Sure they're wrestlers don't have the greatest entrances but they do have psychology, for example look at Steve Corino. Unlike WWE, they don't bash the cruiserweights.

Bottom line. TNA needs to improve in many things if it's going to match WWE. I don't say that it isn't possible some day, but it will take a lot of time and money as well. And to you Mr. Edwards I have an advice: If you're so stuck to the WWE and can't stand watching TNA or ROH, simply don't watch. It's still useless to whine about it here.

Matthew Arabis wrote:
I agree and dissgree with some parts of your article Mr. Edwards. I (and many other wrestling fans) truly believe that TNA has a shot at dethroning WWE. I dissagree with the mic-skills. That is exacly what we are trying to get away from. I'd rather watch a high-flying X-division match than listen to a 20 long minute promo. TNA is all about "non-stop action," not non-stop blah, blah, blah. I agree with you on the run-ins but in defense of TNA they are building for a pay-per-view and only have a hour to do so. But I agree with you most on Jerret. Jerret will be the down-fall of TNA if he keeps hogging the belt and I thought it was unfair that he took the belt from Raven just like that. And I had to restrain myself when I heard he was taking on one of the 4 wrestling demons (Nash) instead of Raven. But with a killer X-division they still have a chance...as long as they get a primetime TV slot.

JAKE RAYNOR! wrote:
A lot of things rubbed me the wrong way about reading that piece. First of all, the main problem with WCW was that they had an enormous reserve of young, under-utilized talent, and the older guys wouldnt step down off their "top guy in the industry" mountains and let some of these newer guys come up. TNA has no problem using their talent. Look at all the stars they're creating. With Styles, Daniels, Matt Bentley, Petey Williams, Naturals, AMW, 3LK, Abyss, Monty, the list goes on and on. And how about Austin Aries coming in a couple of weeks ago and getting a big time push" H'es a new guy, and nobody had that old, "Im not letting him steal my limelight" WCW approach.

And as far as Jarrett not putting guys over, ARE YOU CRAZY" Jarrett did a wonderful job of putting over Styles, which as you said was the only guy, but he also recently put over Raven didn't he. And I know youre saying that Jarrett used his political pull to make sure he was the champ when TNA debuted on Spike, but, being the huge Raven fan that I am, I think that having Jarrett as champ going into Spike was the best choice. TNA is trying to build Jarrett up as their unstoppable, super heel guy, and honestly, I think he was the best figure head for the company going into national TV. In my opinion, Raven will be NWA Heavyweight Champion again, and I want to say right now that I commend Raven for being a team player and going through with dropping the belt on a non-telvevised event, and then doing all of this getting thrown out of the building crap every week on impact.

And as far as the NWA Heavweight Title goes, it has only been defended in TNA for a little over 3 years now. If tose three years saw the title flying all over the place then it wouldve became very watered down. Putting it on Jarrett and having him play the character hes playing on TV makes the guy who does take it away a star, and it puts him on a level of a true champion. Right now, whoever can knock off Jarrett as title holder truly deserves the belt, and that is the way it should be.

AND as for the thing about guys not being good on the mic- Abyss doesnt talk, moron. His manager James Mitchell is his mouth picece, nad Abyss not takling makes him seem more like the monster he is. Monty Brown IS good on the mic, Chris Daniels IS good on the mic. Sure, everyone has room for imrovement, but youre talking like tese guys are terrible at promos. Theyre not. Maybe not everyone in the company is a great speaker, but you know what, you dont have to be when your actions in the ring speak louder than your words.

SO, to sum it up, I think your wrong in many ways. As Ive said a million times, I am not a diehard WWE of TNA fan, I am a diehard wrestling fan. And TNA gives us diehard wrestling fans a pretty good place to be on saturday nights right now

Goat scott wrote:
I just wanna say that I don't understand how you can knock ROH. How is seeing a guy get kicked in the head for real not entertaining" Have you really sat down and watched there video's" Low-ki and Samoa Joe that's all I really gotta say. How are 60min matches bad" How is for the most part clean wins for matches bad" The WWE is to big and its just gonna crumble under its own weight. I don't turn on my TV to watch Vinnie Mac or the sad sacks of crap he calls a family come out and waste my time ranting in the ring. Who cares if Linda is a heel, whats she gonna do half ass sell a move again. I mean come on the WWE is decaying.

Last time I checked they were NWA TNA, and NWA is wrestling. I think maybe you forgot that, or it could be that you never knew of the National wretling Association... I admit that TNA isn't ready to really compete with the WWF, and for right now they are doing a great job at putting on shows. By no means are they stellar and so great that Vince is gonna start to worry. But weren't the same things said about ECW"

You bash Jarret which I think is fine, cause yes he sucks and he's always sucked. And I think maybe you've missed an article or 2 on here but I swear people have slammed Jarret for being just as bad as trips... and to be honest I don't care for either one of them. They both suck, they both conduct promos that make ya eyes go heavy, and or the channel switch... But thats just how I see it

Kenny Warren wrote:
First of all, in TNA people actually wrestle. There are no stupid gimmicks and weddings and repetitive matches. Most of the WWE fans don't watch it anymore because you already know what is gonna happen before it does. You say run ins..every match in the WWE (EVERY ONE) ends with someone running in or cheating. Anyone can be a superstar in WWE. All you have to do is punch, kick, and chop. You are way off base in this and TNA is not the next WCW. TNA is the future. TO EVERYBODY OUT THERE IF YOU WANT TO SEE REAL WRESTLING TUNE IN TO SPIKE TV SLAMMIN SATURDAY NIGHT

Michael Sears wrote:
Sorry John I have to disagree with you. TNA has already made one smart move by initially broadcasting Impact on Saturday's instead of head-to-head with the WWE. They are not backed by a billionaire, therefore they do not have endless resources at their disposal to waste. To make a note about ROH, they do perform many high spots to appease the fans. But they also have great chain wrestling, submission holds, and a nice ebb and flow to the action. That in itself is interesting. The route TNA taking is quite unlike WCW in several ways. They have exposure with some big names (i.e. Nash, Jarrett, the Dudleys) and a TV deal. But they combine that with the great wrestling developed in ROH, namely by bringing an many ROH stars. Another good point about ROH is they allow their stars to compete in other feds, giving them experience and an opportunity to showcase their company to other star. When was the last time anyone in WWE wrestled OUTSIDE of the company for another promotion" Jarrett does use his influence to stay on top in TNA, but every company has it's constant star (Flair in the NWA, Sting in WCW, Hogan in the 1980's WWF, even Verne Gagne in AWA are all good examples of this.) He is a cornerstone for TNA, albeit talented or not. He has paid his dues in this business so I can't hate him for that. WWE has fallen off lately, namely by listening more the to the internet fans, resulting in lack of predictability. If they do what everyone wants, who will be surprised"" In the internet age, surprises are far and few between anymore when it comes to wrestling. TNA has put on more quality matches this year than WWE has. Aside from the Angle-Michaels series, and Angle-Benjamin on RAW, what else has qualified" You might even throw Hogan-Michaels in there, but that's a whole other article there. TNA even strives to be innovative as well, with the six-sided ring, Ultimate X matches, and King of the Mountain. I have yet to see an old woman giving birth to a hand in TNA, or sex with corpses, or a "Kiss My Ass club". They aim to please their own audience, and offer a fresh alternative, not to steal WWE's viewers. Anyone turning to TNA has simply been alienated by WWE. I for one enjoy having a choice, rather than being force-fed what WWE has to offer simply because they are the only option. If anything, TNA can light a fire under WWE's ass and get them to dramatically improve their product. As we all know from past experience, competition is good for the business.

The Masked Opinionater wrote:
First off I would like to say one thing about the WWE, they make some good business decisions but some times the things they do are really repetitive. So you can say that they are the better brand but I really think they need some new talent and open it up internationally insted of just using the talent that has been there for 7 or 8 years. Sure some of them are really good but some of the new guys they have coming in really don't have that much talent any ways. And you are wrong, about WWE coming to mind when some one mentions Pro Wrestling. The first promotion that comes to my mind is definately TNA. And that is because they actually concentrate more on their talent than the WWE and they don't care so much about the flapping of the jaws like WWE does. And you statement about Ring of Honor is totally untrue. You really need to think be for you speak. You say you want inteligent statements on here and you made one huge ignorant post. Have you ever been to a Ring of Honor show" My guess is probably not. Because if you have been to one you would know it is far better than the WWE that is why WWE is signing talent from them.

Now you say Jarret hasn't help push any one besides AJ Styles. But that is untrue. He has done a lot for TNA. Besides the fact that his father Jerry Jarret owns TNA Jarret has talent. I am not saying Triple H doesn't but he is getting a little boring. I mean every time he cuts a promo he says the exact same thing. No one really cares any more. Half of the WWE audience probably only watches to see the Diva's division. Atleast when you watch a TNA show you don't have horrible storylines and matches that totally suck. So you can say what ever you want but it looks to me like 80% of the people who have replied to this post disagree with you. So my opinion is that you are completely wrong.

Chris Pinheiro wrote:
Okay, first off, I must say everyone is comparing apples to oranges. ------ WCW & TNA are almost nothing alike.

TNA has new talent (Killings, Styles, Brown, Abyss, Hoyt) mixed with old (Jarrett, Raven, Sabu, Rhino) WCW had 1 new guy (Goldberg) with the rest (Flair, Nash, Sting, DDP, Hogan, Savage, etc.)

And then there's in-ring action... run-ins are everywhere (except ROH) ever since ECW. The whole "Attitude Era" and the Vince Russo-style bookings are straight from ECW and the mind of Dusty Rhodes (The Dusty Finish).

He did, however, correctly state that MOST of the X-Division has no psychology. Petey Williams gets his ass handed to him, and then wins with a hockey-stick shot. How does that show a man trying to physically wear his opponent down for his finishing maneuver" Kurt Angle works on his opponent's legs, as does Ric Flair and (mostly) Chris Jericho. Triple H (I know, groan) uses a slow, methodical pace to try and wear an opponent down. Benoit works on the shoulders, head, and neck. Batista destroys people with high-impact after high-impact power move. THIS is psychology! The only people that come close in the X-Division are Styles, Daniels, Lynn (when he wrestles), and Matt Bentley. Even Sonjay Dutt is just a spot man.

As for mic work, well all I can say is get off the scripts. Let the people with charisma show it. Cena's best stuff is his unscripted raps. The Rock is at his best when he can just cut loose. So are Foley and Flair. Sure, A.J. Styles sounds like a redneck, but he's from Georgia. It adds character. People with the charisma should be aloud the mic time, and people without (i.e. Abyss, Rhino (mostly) and Chris Sabin) should have managers doing their talking. Back in the 1980's (yes, that's when I started watching wrestling), managers told the story before the match (except for Warrior, Hogan, and Savage) and the wrestlers did it during the match. What was so wrong with that" Nothing! Scott D'Amore plays this role to perfection. We need more of this in wrestling everywhere.

And one more thing, as for Jarrett putting over Raven, didn't Jarrett take back the NWA World Heavyweight Title at a non-televised event. How is that putting someone over"" That's like saying Hulk Hogan losing to Jacques Rougeau at his retirement show by pinfall made Rougeau the #1 wrestler in America in the late 1980's. IT DOESN'T COUNT FOR SQUAT!!!

TMALLETT4 wrote:
I have always liked WWE. But i have recently got bored of watching a second rate show like smackdown. I admit Raw isnt bad but it aint good. --- You are right on one thing Jarrett hasnt done much to TNA. The sooner Samoa Joe is NWA champ the better. --- That brings me on to ROH. Have you even see ROH the matches are awesome.--- And if we didnt have ROH we wouldnt have Paul London, James GIbson or Spanky.--- All you seem interested in is watching people talk.....BORING --- TNA is the new Face of Professional Wrestling.

Stuart Busby wrote:
TNA is the next WCW" If anything WWE is turning into the next WCW (and this is coming from a big WWE fan). In your words "TNA should care less about what WWE is doing and focus on their own product". lets have a look. TNA does a king of the mountain match involving the top stars of TNA for the NWA title. What does WWE do" It does a Queen of the mountain thing for their RAW diva search contest. Coincidence I think not. Also at the next TNA PPV Bound for Glory they announced a 30-minute Iron Man match between AJ Styles & Christopher Daniels for the TNA X-division title. All of a sudden WWE pulls out a 30-minute Iron man match between Kurt Angle & Shawn Michaels for RAW's homecoming show. Again Coincidence I think not. Years ago Vince McMahon said something like "concentrate on your own product, not hurt somebody else's " even though he didn't hurt TNA it was still a cheap shot to the company.

Jason Surrett wrote:
Since March 2001, I have heard everyone and their brother burying WCW. I have no problem with that, however, they were burying it after it was dead. I heard internet reporters, magazine reporters and former WCW stars themselves. Ric Flair talked so much smack about WCW on various "WWE" DVDs, but he was crying his eyes out on the final Nitro. I for one miss WCW, I miss ECW, hell I miss competition in the wrestling business.

TNA, the next WCW" Well, if that is true then that means that TNA will damn near put WWE out of business and with the way that WWE has been going lately, it might actually happen. Okay, Vinnie Mac fired Charlie Haas and Jackie Gayda(I understand firing Jackie) right after their honeymoon. The Dudley Boyz after they helped cap off the best WWE pay-per-view of the year(ECW One Night Stand) and fires all of the talented divas aside from Trish Stratus and Victoria. At this rate if TNA ever does give WWE a run for it's money, TNA may do what WCW could not and that is put Vince and Co. out of business. Sounds illogical right" Right up until a few months before it happened no one thought WCW would go under, much less become part of WWE.

Everyone talks about TNA hiring lots of WWE cast-offs, yet it's respectful and a good move when WWE brings in Jimmy Snuka, Roddy Piper, Jake Roberts and so on. At least the guys that TNA brings in can still put on a good match. Team 3-D are still as good as they have been in a long time. Raven and Jerry Lynn became stars in TNA when WWE couldn't find a spot for them. And Rhino, now he's the NWA champ after putting on an incredible performance at Bound For Glory. Let's see any of the WWE legends win a brutal match like Monster's Ball, a battle royal and then a match to win the company's top championship. WWE cast-offs" Maybe. At least Jerry Jarrett and the gang let the wrestlers put their best foot forward and give the fans what they want to see.

So, to everyone that thinks TNA is the new WCW. Think about it like this TNA is the NEW AND IMPROVED WCW. And I will continue to support good athletic WRESTLING before I will support Vince McMahon pulling a bottle of barbeque sauce out of a mannequin's a$$!

Nick Burns,city of Leeds, England wrote:
I think that TNA iis what WWE should be.

I've been a WWE fan for a long time but now in WWE its all about rubbish acting and talking with only a few good story lines now and then. Also the WWE is all a big soap opera when it comes to it. You can even figure out who will win the PPVs by looking at who gets the laugh the show before.

Then there's the X-division...one of the best things TNA has compared to the WWE's joke of a cruiser weight devision. The X-devision is more phycological because the damage there moves do is accurate and they are supposed to be quick and there high flying moves give me a sense of awe that WWE never has.

Finally the Jef Jarret comment is completly wrong i'm sorry to say because Jeff Jarret has slightly more if not the same talent as HHH. HHH acts like he's some mean badass who screws people over...so does Jeff Jarret but Jeff Jarret is convincing in what he does and is everything that HHH should be, which is, a manipulitive and selfish heel who is a master at the human game of chess. I'm not saying HHH is'nt a good heel but he does'nt have that convincing hate factor because i as a fan know he's acting. With Jeff Jarret too he acts but he does it well. Finally on the Jarret/HHH you've been fooled by his good acting and he cares for TNA because his father is a owner of TNA like otheir people perviously mentioned.

I beleive TNA is the future of wrestling because its not a decaying and stagnent buisness like the WWE. It gives the fans what they want to see, which is useally, violence or high flying action. Have you ever listened to the crowds response when someone like Jeff Hardy dives out of the ring and hits multiple people on the outside "

To me TNA is more like ECW with the difference of not bankrupting itself. As for the WCW angle...WCW killed itself because the n.W.o etc. were around for too long and where over used with not enough faces and too many heels. TNA has a balence.

It is my oppinion that TNA constantly changes to please fans like myself and to make sure TNA continues to surprise and make new ground in Wrestling territory and as long as this continues TNA is safe and sound.

Chal Prodenzino wrote:
First and foremost, let me say that The Game IS an awesome wrestler. Though he really hasn't helped anyone's careers except for Evolution. Oh, and he helped HBK with his comeback. But remember RVD" This guy should of at least held the title once! As for that bumbling idiot Double J" He has NO talent. Boring wrestling and comatose mic skills. The only time I liked him was when he would call the audience "Slapnuts"! I've watched TNA on and off since the beggining. Remember Las Vegas" Anyways, as soon as I found out that Jarret was on the show AND that his dad ran it, I almost immediately lost intrest had it not been for Jerry Lynn. I will admit that Game and JJ should step aside and let EVERYONE ELSE have a shot at thier shows respected titles. And the quip about TNA going the path of WCW" Rediculous! They have only been around for a couple of years and arn't even big time. WCW had many years to mold their little hell and the money to do it. TNA gives former ECWites like Rhino (who isn't washed out Steph!) a chance to do what they did in the hoyl ECW. Wait! I think that's the problem here! ECW raised the bar so high that neither WWE or TNA can ever acheive the success they had or want to have. WWE screwed themselves over by ressurecting ECW. It just showed that Vince ripped them off back in the attitude days and that wrestlers now are babies who are more concerned about movie careers than the fans (Yawn Cena!). TNA hired almost every ECW star without a job when they started. Sabu, Sandman, New Jack, Lynn, ect, ect. These guys are legends and make guys like AJ Styles and Chris Sabbian look like posers. But they did do good with Hardy, who was ridiculously under-used in WWE. I loved ECW. It was the BEST wrestling show ever! No crappy storylines, clean finishes, and amazing action. Paul Heyman should just start (he should have the money by now!) his own wrestling show, hire all the boys (and girls) back and destroy Jarret and Vince in one fatal swipe. But that's just my opinion. One more thing: What was Vince thinking when he fired the Dudleys AND took their name. That guys a real asshole!

Tony Bruce wrote:
Okay saying ROH is just a spotfest is rediculous. guys like jack evans n the tag team things like the SAT's sure they are but their tag team wrestling to me seems to resemble the mexican luchadore style which in my opinion is the most exciting way to present a tag devision. all tag team wrestling is about is double team moves thats the only uniqueness of it, oh and the classic bit of psychology 'face gets beat up by heel, tries to tag, cant, (repeat x5) face makes tag! partner kills everyone and good guys win!' which has, obviously, been done to death now by wwe coz there is nothing else you can do with a tag match without spots. other than that, their pure title devision is hardly a spot fest it involves alot of technical mat wrestling with an incredibly innovative twist with the only allowed 3 rope breaks rule. and technical wrestling isnt boring, its the ultimate psychology, a struggle to break free from a painful looking submission hold as the crowd really believes ur about to tap. and as for the rest of the matches, its basically strong style, not spotfests, its like in japan, each wrestler keeps pound on the other one not holding back, u think the next move will win it coz it looked so stiff, but it doesnt n the guy kicks out again. then after stiff move after stiff move they go for their finisher, n u think that must be it, but no they kick out, n the guy ends up winning with a roll up out of the blue which u never see coming. ROH feeds off the crowd, n does what the crowd doesnt expect, thats how wrestling should be.

as for ur views on tna they're clearly misinformed, everyone has already made all the points up there ^^^.

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