TNA becomes wrestler retirement village
Enter the new TNA which has basically, over the past year, become the retirement home for former WCW stars and WWE castoffs, the new direction killing what was a fresh look for professional wrestling.
Don’t get me wrong, I think Kurt Angle is a legitimate main eventer in any wrestling federation, and even Christian is a talented performer. Both of them traded in their WWE contracts to come to TNA where they are in the main event circle along with Sting, Samoa Joe and Rhino.
However, the TNA’s attempt to become a legitimate competitor to the WWE has seen the Spike TV wrestling show trade in its birthright over the past year, trying to get already established names to be the face of their organization. Examples include the aforementioned Rhino who was basically let go by WWE due to lack of interest; Tyson Tonko who couldn’t even achieve midcard status in WWE; Scott Steiner who can barely wrestle due to his foot problems and his brother Rick Steiner who stays no time with any organization; and Kevin Nash who takes up face time even though he doesn’t even wrestle anymore. These are just a few of the former stars of WCW and WWE who are taking time away from the stars who could be the future of wresting.
Like I said last week, failure to create any original stars is one of the things which helped kill WCW years ago. While I understand TNA’s aim to get the established names as they continue to negotiate for performers like Rob Van Dam and Chris Jericho, their sellout is unfortunate as they were really contributing to sports entertainment by building many solid stars, many of whom have been shoved down to midcard status now given the push to the old timers.
The first name that comes to mind is the Phenomenal A.J. Styles who carried TNA in its early years, making the X-Division the most competitive division in all of professional wrestling. Just a couple of months ago, Styles took a bump worthy of the fall from the cage by Mick Foley years ago as he plummeted from the cage at Lethal Lockdown onto the wrestlers below. However, despite his talent, he has been buried down at the midcard, becoming a lackey for Christian and a jobber for the main eventers.
Same is true for the Fallen Angel Christopher Daniels who has been buried, only recently resurrected for a feud with Sting which he will likely lose against the soon to again-retire former WCW star.
While not buried yet, Samoa Joe, another TNA original, is yet to even have a title run despite his tear through the organization for over two years, making himself the most highly touted wrestler ever created by TNA. The Monster Abyss, another TNA original, while having a title run, has also been subjected to playing a support role for Christian and Sting even though he is a legitimate main eventer who has taken bumps in the ring that make me cringe.
I guess what I’m saying is that the TNA, which sought to set itself apart with things like the six-sided ring and innovative matches, has done a 180 and is now becoming like the federation (WWE) it so desperately wanted to get away from.
Until recently, I argued that TNA had the best product in professional wrestling. But now, with its hastily conceived feuds and shorter matches, I’m not so sure that it hasn’t lowered itself down to the WWE level again. Actually, the best wrestling show you can see here is AAA out of Mexico which can be seen on Saturdays on Channel 23 on Charter Cable.
Perhaps, the second hour which is being planned soon for Thursday night’s Impact show on Spike will help by giving time for both established names and new stars to get face time. However, the direction I’m seeing TNA take right now is disappointing.
With that said I end with a plug for TNA which will hold its live pay-per-view Slamaversary at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville on June 17.