TNA AGAINST ALL ODDS: TNA BEGINS TO FIND IT'S VOICE

To begin with, I need to make a few baseline statements.

1) I started this blog mainly because I have been a wrestling fan for nearly 30 years now. I don't know what it was that first drew me into this crazy addiction but whatever it was I have never regretted it nor ben embarassed by it.

2) I grew up with Vince McMahon's WWF, Texas All-Star Wrestling, ECW, WCW (pre and post Ted Turner) and the great old World Class Championship Wrestling from the fallen mecca that was the Sportatorium here in Dallas.

3) Why am I telling you this? Because I want to make it clear I am NOT a "one-fed" hack like a lot of other homers out there who are dyed in the wool WWF diehards and nothing else means anything to them. To me, you gotta take it all in, small independent as well as the BIG feds, in order to appreciate what this pastime really means.

Now that I've got that out of the way, I want to start this blog with what I saw during last night's TNA PPV, "Against All Odds". I must say that I really like TNA. I really do. I feel that some of the hardest working guys and gals out there are part of TNA right now and, although Vince has a more polished show and talent that people recognize, the folks working for TNA have something the WWE hasn't had in a LOOOONNNGGG time: Hunger. The wrestlers at TNA are HUNGRY. They WANT the spotlight and are willing to WORK for it.

This PPV was all about establishing two things: 1) A TNA rating system for it's wrestlers (which is a cool idea) and 2) showcasing TNA talent, new and old, in preparation for the new Monday Night Wars.

I really enjoyed the "8 Card Stud" Tournament and thought all the matches worked well. Of course there were some flubs here and there (Hernandez and Morgan in particular--a little sloppy and slow) but the build up matches to Pope vs. Anderson at the end of the show made up for the missed spots. For one thing, whoever decided to book Anderson as heel was definitely on the right track. Anderson REALLY went over as a GREAT heel with the "dogtag" attack and then the kneel and spit routine after taking it to the GREAT Kurt Angle. I was honestly surprised by the ferocity of Anderson in the match and thought it was a solid way to establish him as a strong heel going forward. The other person who is absolutely SOLID for TNA now is unquestionably "The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero (formerly Elijah Burke). If I'm Vince McMahon, I am finding a wall to slam my head against for letting this guy go. Pope has the mic skills, look, attitude and passion to get over BIG with any crowd and this guy it going to be HUGE. I mean "The Rock" HUGE. The best thing for TNA to do is to let him go and watch him shine. It was EXACTLY the right move to have The Pope win the Title Shot as he is in position to make a HUGE IMPACT (pardon the pun) in the future. TNA has a true star and I am really anxious to see where he goes from here. All in all, I thought Morgan, Anderson, Pope and Angle were the most solid for the night.

On the other hand, Abyss, Foley and even Wolfe were disappointng to me. Don't get me wrong, I like them all but Abyss as a face is getting stale quick. Foley is great but he seems to be just going through the motions now. Their "hardcore" match was hardly that. Even the lame threat of Bischoff "umasking" Abyss was just not necessarily interesting. Both Foley and Abyss just kind of wandered around each other and never really went at it the way we all know they both can when they're on top of their game. I mean, does anybody really care about "Socko" anymore? Does anyone really need the barbed wire bat gimmick? The best thing TNA could do right now is flip Abyss back heel (and I mean MONSTER heel) and give him a James Mitchell type manager again. We are all tired of cuddly Abyss TNA!

As for Wolfe, I have always liked his schtick, his look and his ring skills. However, he just looked like he didn't care last night against Pope. Again, if you're going to make him a heel; LET THE MAN HEEL! No one gives a crap about his valet or his entrance to the ring--it's too campy and it's beneath Nigel (er, I mean Desmond) to continue. Booked properly, Wolfe is a real threat. He should have been the one to go against Abyss, not Foley.

Now, I will spend just a few words in regards to The Nasty Boys vs. Team 3D: STOP IT, STOP IT, FOR GOD'S SAKE STOP IT! Team 3D was doing GREAT recently in heel mode but now we have these two relics (The Nasties) showing up and suddenly flipping 3D into face mode inexplicably. I think I speak for all wrestling fans when I say "Get The Nasty Boys The Hell Out Of TNA". I am all for people making a living but these two guys are laughably past their prime and it shows BADLY. STOP IT NOW HOGAN. PLEASE.

Now onto A.J. vs. Joe. I am a HUGE mark for both these guys and am completely satisfied with them as both either heel or face. I think having Flair as A.J.'s manager is going to pay off BIG TIME; however, STOP IT ALREADY WITH THE "FLAIRIFICATION" OF A.J.STYLES! Let A.J. be heel without all the hair streaking, feather robe wearing bullshit! Just let the man be the BEAST that he is with Flair as his chief counsel and don't add the silly extras! A.J. doesn't need them! Joe was as usual a complete monster. This guy, like Styles, has nothing but passion for raising the bar and taking the fight to WWE and it shows not only in the ring, but in his mic work and the way he carries himself on the show. If ANY of the current WWE roster cared as much as Joe does right now, they would find themselves at the top of the roster. The man is just awesome and gives his all each and every week and show.

So there you have it. All in all a good show (hey, nothing's perfect and there were some truly ugly spots here) and the lead up to Impact and the move to Monday Nights permanently is looking good. If TNA keeps up the heat and doesn't through back to silliness and stuff no one wants to see anymore (i.e, JIMMY HART, SCOTT HALL and X-PAC--please someone come to their senses and let these guy go NOW) they might have a shot. Not to overtake WWE (at least for the next several months) but at least to give Vince a reason to start trying again.