wrestling / Columns

He’s a Carter, and We Need Him: The Case for EC3, TNA Heavyweight Champion

September 13, 2014 | Posted by Dino Zee

Can I let you in on a secret? I think Ethan Carter the III- EC3 to his friends- is the best thing going in TNA right now. Another secret would be that I don’t even think it’s close. From the second he debuted, Carter has grown nearly every single week, improving his delivery, improving in the ring. No, he’s not the greatest wrestler of all time, and he isn’t cutting classic promos. However, he shows an ability to play with the crowd that isn’t seen very often. I recall weeks back, when the fans chanted “You can’t wrestle” at him, and he’d respond during their breaks with “I disagree” and “I’m really good.” It was a very easy way to play with the fans, while allowing them to continue their chanting.

Too often you see a growing sense of displeasure in a wrestler’s face when the fans begin chanting things they don’t particularly like. One of my favorite examples of this was the Big Show vs. Batista match on WWECW back in the day. While Big Show went along and played the heel to the fans chanting “Change the channel,” “you both suck,” and “you can’t wrestle,” you could see Dave’s heart breaking with each chant. Carter has shown, so far at least, that he’s not going to get thrown off by some smarky fans trying to get themselves over. This is a good thing.

Carter has also been placed in a nice position in the company, as the almost-but-not-quite top heel. Obviously, TNA Champion Lashley would hold that spot, and may be followed in second by MVP. Let’s not kid ourselves into thinking that Kenny King is higher than EC3, however. Being third to the current champ and the former Director of Wrestling Operations isn’t the worst position, anyways. In his spot, Carter has been allowed to lead the charge in defending his Aunt Dixie’s honor. This has placed him in feuds with Sting, Kurt Angle, and Bully Ray. It’s allowed him to show off his “extreme” chops in matches with Bully Ray, Tommy Dreamer, and Rhyno, while at the same time allowing him to get wins in these matches, as he’s not the ultimate destination for anyone.

So yeah, to this point, I have absolutely dug Ethan Carter the Third. Even more than I dug Sparky T. Plugg. And while I think TNA has done an incredible job with Lashley as their champion (a move I called for months back), I think it’s time to move on. I think it’s time to go all in. I think it’s time to hotshot the title to EC3.

“Whoa, whoa, no need to rush!” my more conservative fellow fans might say. “He’s not ready yet,” they’ll point out, as if we have a quantifiable way to measure someone’s level of “ready to be champion.” “What about Lashley? You think EC3 can beat Lashley?” That’s a fair question, actually. Let’s talk about that.

What about Lashley? Like I said, he’s been a really fun, dominant TNA champion. There’s been no doubting his wins, as he simply crushes whoever stands in the ring against him. It’s been a very pleasant surprise, as I had assumed MVP and Kenny King would be cheating balls every single time he defended the belt to keep it around his waist. But it seems that someone actually paid attention to Lashley, and realized that his look is absolutely something to promote and push. Still, we should all know by now that nothing lasts forever. Lashley’s going to have to lose eventually. Why not to EC3?

As we saw by the most recent edition of Impact, Bobby Roode is next in line for Lashley. If Roode loses, who does that leave for Lashley to face next? I guess we could give Samoa Joe another shot, but he’s still in need of some rebuilding after years of mistreatment by the TNA booking staff. I know they like to throw him out there sometimes, and have him cut one of his “I’m pissed, I’m a badass, and I’m coming for you!” promos to trick us into believing he’s “back,” but the follow up usually involves him losing the match. We won’t keep falling for it. If not Joe, then who? Eric Young has been handled, as has Jeff Hardy. Bully Ray is reliving the year 2000 with the Hardyz and the Wolves. Who would step up to Lashley?

Why not EC3? Why not take down the Power Trio that helped to remove his Aunt from her position of power initially, and who did nothing to help her while she was being threatened each week by Bully Ray? After throwing Rock Star Spud to the wolves and then taking out Rhyno, why can’t his Revenge Tour include Kenny King first, then MVP, then Lashley?

Switching it up quickly, what if Roode beats Lashley? Well then, what’s the harm of having EC3 decide that he wants a crack at that belt now? Yes, I know, lots of questions. That’s the fun with wrestling- until the show airs/is recorded, we just don’t know what’s going to happen.

To me, who Carter goes after to win the belt is, quite frankly, irrelevant. TNA is in a weird position right now. As we know, there’s been roughly (by last tally) a million billion columns that have been written that were dancing on TNA’s grave, because people read a report and reacted to it. What dummies, right? In all seriousness, TNA feels like it could be on the cusp of something, and I feel that they need to make a statement of who they are going forward. Are they the company that allows old WWE wrestlers to show up and get pushed to the moon? Or are they the company that’s going to push young talent? I know all you literalists will probably take this time to point out that EC3 is also a WWE castoff. I’d just hope you can tell the difference between someone who made a name for themselves in WWE, and a guy who was there for a little while. EC3, as he is now, has completely invented his star in TNA. As far as I’m concerned, he’s all TNA.

I think an Impact that starts with all sorts of chaos, and ends with Ethan Carter holding the TNA title is the move to make. Whether he’s screwing over a heel or a face doesn’t matter to me. This would be a bold move that tells its fans “Hey, we’re not going anywhere, and we have big plans.” Right now, while the shows have been fun and the matches have delivered, TNA feels like it’s simply treading water. We have a series of matches between three teams, but there’s no real closure because each team keeps winning. The World Champion is now splitting time with Bellator. If you watched his Bellator fight, there’s probably no reason to worry that he’s going to leave for a full time MMA gig again, but you have to wonder how long they can expect Lashley to be the frontrunner of the company if he’s not all in.

Storyline wise, it would be the perfect way for Dixie to get “her” company back. EC3 wins the belt, goes on a huge power crusade, and Dixie shows up one night, proud of her family for avenging her. It feels like (not “exactly the same,” but rather, “like”) when the WWF was losing their stars to WCW, and had to go with some unproven guys to carry their main event. TNA feels like it’s in this same place, and I can’t think of a better candidate to carry the ball for the next few months.

Moving Carter up the card (and away from feuds with guys like Rhyno) can help legitimize Carter himself, and the company as a whole. If hotshotting the belt isn’t in the cards, having him step up to Lashley (after Lashley has disposed of everyone else) would be quite the moment for him as well. He is so good at walking the line between cowardly prick and legitimate threat that wins when you think he won’t, that there might actually be some interest in a feud between the two. Who would cheat the most? Would Rock Star Spud be involved? What about the ECW guys?

Bottom line is, eventually the Lashley run is going to lose momentum. I think using Lashley’s momentum to help build EC3 even more is the way to go. I know that EC3 as TNA Champion would be the way to show the fans that they are still committed to growing, changing, and showcasing the future of wrestling. Having your (arguably) most entertaining guy sitting around in second-tier feuds can only last so long. He’s been brought along slowly enough. Now’s the time to capitalize on all of that planning.


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Dino Zee