It wouldn't be a Mike Killam column without some random, thrown together thoughts on the current state of TNA Wrestling. Between 2011-12 I kept preaching about how TNA had the superior product every week, because they did. CM Punk was literally the only interesting thing about WWE for an entire year. Before that, they had nothing for a very long time. Cena is only sometimes enjoyable. Now, it's like TNA is trying to go backwards. For every good move they make, it seems like they're intentionally throwing themselves down a flight of stairs. That's probably more harsh than it needs to be, but I'm just so frustrated with the direction and public opinion of that company right now.
-WWE Divas, as a division, are great. It helps that they have their own TV show that does decent ratings. AJ Lee appears a strong champion, and has more challengers than TNA has total Knockouts right now. Actually, there were more people involved in the title match at Night of Champions than TNA has active Knockouts. Mickie James is gone. Madison is gone. Taryn Terrell and Gail Kim were knocking it out of the park this summer; what happened? ODB was a referee last month, and Brooke Tessmacher is nailing Bully Ray. They've got nothing.
-The X-Division is dead. Hulk Hogan can compare Manic to Hulkamania all he wants, but polishing turds just yields more shiny turds. Not to say TJ Perkins is a bad worker. I like him a lot, but he has literally no division. Now that TNA has turned his title into a stepping stone for bigger/better things – one that killed my interest in Chris Sabin, mind you – it means next to nothing. The workers they keep bringing in are only on TV once every 4-5 months, and never heard from again. You can't keep me interested in the X-Division by giving Sonjay Dutt $100 and cab fare every two months.
-I wrote that great column about Impact Wrestling's pass/fail test concerning AJ Styles and Magnus last week. I won't say they failed, but I wouldn't give their effort above a C+ either. Magnus could be the future of the company, if they ever let him win in high profile situations. It's not likely Main Event Mafia is going to do anything for him, as the Aces & Eights barely exist at this point. Everyone geared up for another AJ Styles title run? Ratings!
Maybe TNA needed to make cut backs to finance being on the road, but eventually you have to stop for the sake of the roster, right? When all your talent is gone, and you're paying random workers per appearance, aren't you just an indie promotion?
There's still plenty of potential in TNA right now, they just need to learn to be consistent with what matters, and stick to something for more than a month at a time. There seems to be about six active workers between the Knockouts and the X-Division. If you're not going to take the time and spend the money to make them really great, then don't use them at all. Get rid of them completely. Maybe that's not a popular opinion, but in every real sport, you're not allowed to compete without a full team. You can't get away with spending a ton of money on these One Night Only shows, if you sacrifice your entire roster to make them happen. Honestly, TNA had a real Knockout division for ONE NIGHT ONLY. They weren't kidding. Like I said, business as usual for an indie promotion.
