wrestling / Columns

Three Reasons to Give TNA a Chance

March 21, 2015 | Posted by Brian St. Denis

It’s time to give TNA iMPACT Wrestling another chance on Friday nights. I know what some of you are going to say, “they’ve burned us so many times in the past, I’m never going back.” I’ll be the first to admit, I can’t blame you for feeling that way. However, there are a few things you should know about TNA these days. They might just change your mind. Also, don’t be completely ignorant, watching a two-hour TV show isn’t going to kill you. Who cares what they’ve done in the past. Does it matter? If you watch it and still do not like it, then at least you could say you tried. Why hold something against the current product for something a previous version did? I’ll answer: you shouldn’t. If you need an alternative, TNA is a good choice.

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Dixie Carter is MIA

Dixie Carter hasn’t been on TV in a longtime. The last time she was, Bubba dumped her through a table. I will admit that it is refreshing not having Dixie on TV. I’ve never had a problem with Dixie but I know a lot on the Internet have. I’m done with the heel authority figure in wrestling. It’s been done ad nauseam by WWE & TNA. The formula doesn’t change and it’s repetitive. She doesn’t need to be on TV. The product is just fine without her or a heel boss.

Wrestling is the Focus

There doesn’t seem to be many “sports entertainment” aspects in TNA. The storylines, angles, promos are not as mind numbing as some of the shenanigans you see on Monday. There are no little bulls running around or people dressed in a bunny costume. There are back-stories to the fights, but the ultimate fight is the fight in the ring. That doesn’t always seem to be the case with the show on Monday nights. The matches on Friday nights are the most important part of the show. Not the promo. Not the backstage vignette. Not the guest host. The matches. It’s also refreshing to have wins matter. The top five list and such put an emphasis on winning.

Is it perfect? No. Are there loopholes in some of their storylines? Yes. If you go through it with a fine toothcomb, you would catch issues in a lot of shows on TV, not just pro wrestling. I do believe there’s an effort from Lagana & Co. to tie up loose ends. That show on Monday wants you to just forget that it ever happened, which is insulting. Period. That’s where I sometimes think they get that attitude of “its just wrestling”. I don’t think that’s something that Vince Russo made up. I believe that thought process is actually used backstage at WWE, at times.

The WWE is very comic book like with their characters. Yeah, not all the WWE characters are but there is more comic book than real life. In TNA that isn’t the case. Their characters are more like actual people. Which in turn makes the matches seem more like ACTUAL competitions. I feel less insulted. I know it’s a work, I know it’s fake, but you do not have to insult me. The best pro wrestling is when disbelief is suspended. How many times can you do that with the current WWE product? Not many.

I watched a two-hour iMPACT last week where the show started with a match, a good one, with a purpose. Mind blown. I can’t even remember when that last happened on RAW. Usually the first match doesn’t come until we are forty minutes in. In fact, every match on the card last week had a reason, a story, a grudge, a purpose. Now, was the show perfect? No. It included an inter-gender match that I thought we could’ve done without. I know it was more of a comedic way to breakup all the seriousness. However, it wasn’t a bunny doing superkicks.

The main-event of that show last week featured the use of blood to help sell the war that was going on in the ring. Remember when blood was used to show signs of a FIGHT, a BATTLE? TNA does and they still use it to tell the story.

That main-event also featured the next reason…

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EC3

Ethan Carter III, a WWE “reject” as I’m sure he’s been called, turned STAR. EC3 is the number one heel in ALL of wrestling. I will give TNA credit when it comes to making heels; they know how to do it. It wasn’t that long ago that Bully Ray was the number one heel in all of pro wrestling. The case can be made that EC3 is today. It would be hard to argue against the idea there might be one better. Seth Rollins would be close, but EC3 gets the nod. Ethan is one of those instances where ending up in TNA has been the absolute best thing that could’ve ever happened to him. TNA doesn’t have to be the place where careers go to die. EC3 is living proof.

By the end of 2015, EC3 will have become TNA World Champion.

Upgrade if you must

I understand that not everyone has Destination America in their TV package but if you can get it, upgrade to it. Of course, if you can afford to do the upgrade, it’ll be worth it. If you want entertaining matches, with believable characters, a product that won’t insult your intelligence, then TNA is now an option. I could put TNA on the TV with some non-wrestling fan friends and not be embarrassed. I have to constantly defend “pro wrestling” with people because they think the WWE is the definition.

“No, WWE is sports-entertainment, when pro wrestling is done right, there isn’t a better art form on the planet.”

I believe that. TNA does too.

(Note: I do also enjoy the camera angles & the overall way TNA is presented on TV. It’s very different from RAW. Also, I know TNA isn’t the ONLY alternative.)

(As always, feel free to tweet me your thoughts @BDenny411. I have tried in the past to respond to all the comments below, anything after the first couple hours, I’ll miss. So tweeting is the best option for debate.)