Who (not Neidhart) is Kurt Angle involved with?

Angle & Graves
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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Admittedly I've been half-assing my mainstream wrestling, ahem, sports entertainment following in recent weeks. I did, however, catch the most recent episode of Raw, which ended with Kurt Angle on the phone. He was involved in a very deep conversation with someone who has been presumably texting Corey Graves during Raw broadcasts. There's plenty of speculation about who is on the other end and in a few days, we'll allegedly find out who it is.

So here are my 1-2-3 cents on who this mystery "lover" could be. I put the word lover in quotes because the conversation ends with Kurt saying, "I love you." That's lead many to assume it's an affair that will come to light and ruin Angle's life. But it could be a family member, even a so-called love child for the Olympic Hero.

Kurt & Steph
Courtesy: WWE

I've seen plenty of names brought up for who this person could be. Most are speculating it's Stephanie McMahon. That's where my money is right now too. With rumors of a Kurt Angle-Triple H match coming up at SummerSlam it would make sense. Angle and Steph have a long history too. Part of me hopes it's not Steph because honestly, I've enjoyed the break. 

Angle & Dixie
Courtesy: TNA Impact Wrestling 

Dixie Carter's name has been mentioned a lot too. The former TNA owner was part of the recent Network special on Kurt. While I'm not opposed to seeing her on WWE programming, I'm not convinced it's her. Her character work on Impact was horrible, but maybe WWE has worked with her. A plus to it being her is she would be fresh for what many consider stale WWE programming.

Courtesy: WWE

Corey Graves has been put into the mix. I'm not against this idea either, but in my 1-2-3 cents, WWE won't do the angle justice. It's an interesting premise and would explain why he's been involved in the storyline. But I am not going to put any money on that idea. 

Vince, Kurt and Hunter
Courtesy: WWE

The child conspiracy theory has lead to Chad Gable of American Alpha. I've also seen a few people suggest Gable's partner Jason Jordan. Vince McMahon's name has been dropped as a father figure "I love you." So as you can see it can be anyone. There are all kinds of theories. As long as it's not Katie Vick or Claire Lynch, I'll be happy.

We're Number 1! We're Number 1!

Vince McMahon
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

Disclaimer:  Other than a couple years working as a commentator, ring crew member, and one time wrestler, I have no real experience in business aspect of professional wrestling.  I'm just a fan of more than 30 years with an opinion and what I think are good ideas.  I'm writing this post after one of my readers suggested the topic.  Thanks, Pokerface.

My initial thought is at this point: I don't see another company taking that top spot from the WWE.  Sure, sometime down the road it could happen, but for more than 50 years the WWE/F has had (pardon the pun) a strangle hold on the business.  Vince McMahon has completely revolutionized things and for the last 13 years really hasn't had any competition.

That's not to say there aren't plenty of talented wrestlers and performers in TNA, ROH, and the soon-to-be-returning Chikara.  But I just don't see any of these companies knocking Vince from atop the mountain, or even making him budge a little.  As long as Vince is making the day to day decisions and continues to control his company, I think WWE will always be number one.

WWE goes pink
Photo courtesy: WWE

In my opinion the hardest part for another company to dethrone the WWE would be defining their purpose.  The WWE isn't just a wrestling company and it's really not even just sports entertainment anymore.  Vince McMahon and his employees have created something bigger than wrestling itself.  I'm having trouble properly articulating this, but I look at what WWE has done with wrestling and changed it.

Now the Network is coming along in a matter of weeks, and I can't imagine it being anything but a success.  The company has done a number of movies, books, and toys which has put WWE in a league of its own.  Then you add the public service efforts like Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Be a Star, and the Wrestlemania Reading Challenge and you can see it's about much more than the wrestling.

Don't get me wrong though, I believe a company can come along and compete with WWE in terms of wrestling.  There are so many great talents out there, not just in the companies I mentioned above, but in other independent companies.  I think to make a run at it, a company needs to have someone with a lot of money and a lot of patience.  Creating a top notch wrestling organization isn't going to happen overnight.  You can't use a bunch of ex-WWE and WCW stars and expect to build something solid either.  I'm not saying disregard these superstars, but they can't be the focus of the company.  Stars like Hulk Hogan, Sting, Kurt Angle, and Jeff Hardy weren't able to pull TNA very far in the ratings.

Eric Bischoff & Hulk Hogan
Photo courtesy: TNA 

Fresh talent, creative storytelling, and likable characters are just a few of the ingredients in this formula. There is a lot of speculation that Jeff Jarrett is working on developing a wrestling company.  If it's true,  I hope he's serious about it.  No one who is entering this business should have the mindset that they're going to put Vince McMahon out of business.  I think that's where Eric Bischoff failed with WCW and I think that's part of Dixie Carter's problem in TNA.  The 80's and 90's proved there is room for more than one "big time" promotion.  I miss the days when the AWA, NWA, WWF, MidSouth, and World Class Championship Wrestling all had weekly programs on, featuring great action and entertainment.

In wrapping up, I believe it's possible to create some legitimate competition for the WWE, but I think it's going to take a lot of staying power, money, and talent to take that number one spot.  At this point in time, I'd be happy with a solid number two that's focused on doing its own thing.  I'm really glad that Chikara will be returning in May, and while they'll likely never end up on cable or have their own network, it's great wrestling with excellent storytelling that has turned me into a fan.  Plus, we do have plenty of great independent wrestling out there, so if you haven't already, I'd encourage you to support those efforts too.

Bound for Glory 2013: I Give Up

AJ Styles wins
Photo from TNA Wrestling

By Chad Smart

@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

I want to start this off with a disclaimer. I hate being negative about wrestling. I hate being negative in life in general. I’ve tried to have a positive outlook, especially over the last year. I’ve been a fan of TNA since day 1. Longtime readers of the blog may remember my live recap of last year’s Bound For Glory weekend where I said the weekend was a better experience than Wrestlemania weekend. With that said, what I’m about to write is very disappointing and frustrating.

After watching Bound For Glory 2013, I can no longer tolerate TNA/Impact wrestling. I’ve felt this year has seen TNA regress from the positive strides they made during 2012. The Chris Saban World Title win seemed like something that TNA had to do to make Destination X feel important instead of something that happened organically.  Aces and Eights started falling apart with no one in the gang having moved up the pecking order in the TNA roster. Bringing in Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz only to have them removed from television a few weeks later. And then there was the release of several underutilized wrestlers that when asked about the cuts, Dixie Carter had this to say: “I think part of our problem is that we didn’t turn the roster often enough. … We have to be able to do that to where we can shift and make talent appear fresh ….I know that our competitor lets people go constantly. We had not done it in a long time, and I think because we had not done it in a long time, that it raised some eyebrows. … It’s time for us to bring in some new faces… It’ll freshen things up somewhat.” How bringing in new Jobbers (which is essentially how the cut talent had been portrayed) to wrestle the same core group of guys who have been the focus of TNA for the past 7-10 years freshens up TNA, I don’t know. Maybe I should tweet #AskDixie and she’ll let me know.

Giving all the steps back, my interest in TNA has dwindled over the past six months or so. Initially I was excited for BFG to be taking place in San Diego and was going to once again take part in the weekend festivities. However, I wanted to wait until the show got closer before buying a ticket, as I was afraid the main event could end up as Bully Ray vs. Hulk Hogan. I have zero interest in ever seeing Hulk Hogan wrestle another match. As the months went by and the likelihood of the Bully/Hogan match seemed less and less likely, I found myself overall not caring about anything that could take place on the show. So instead I opted to stay home and watch instead of making the two-hour drive to San Diego.

Gail Kim & Lei'D Tapa
Photo by TNA Wrestling

If I had started this blog off by saying I watched a wrestling show last night and on the show I saw a women’s champion winning with assistance from a muscular female of Southern Pacific heritage, the owner of the company trying to prevent the fan favorite from winning the title and that wrestler winning the World title even though he doesn’t have a contract, would you think I was watching a TNA show or a WWE show?  For some reason TNA can’t comprehend the idea of presenting a different wrestling product than what WWE is doing.

If I watch RAW on Monday, why would I want to see the same thing on Thursday? I don’t even watch Smackdown because I feel it’s more of the same of what happens on RAW.  TNA has a roster full of talent that could go out and wrestler amazing match after amazing match yet bad writing is overshadowing the wrestlers.  With Hulk Hogan’s contract expiring and TNA making budget cuts, there was hope that the focus could be taken off the General Manager and put on the people actually doing the physical part of the job. I forgot that we live in a post-Montreal Screw job era and wrestling shows can only operate under the direction where the person who owns the company and has the power to fire people must instead make life miserable for the wrestlers fans cheer. So instead of simply phasing Hogan out, we get the unnecessary heel turn of Dixie Carter. To be fair, I have also stopped watching RAW on a regular basis because I don’t enjoy seeing Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. 

AJ & Dixie (not at BFG)
Photo by TNA Wrestling

I can’t think of anything that happened at Bound For Glory that has me looking forward to what’s going to come next in TNA.  With AJ Styles winning the World Title, even though he “doesn’t have a contract” makes me fear we’re going to get more Dixie Carter trying to get the title off of AJ. Again, it comes down to do you want to see Stephanie McMahon torment Daniel Bryan or do you want to watch Dixie Carter harass AJ Styles. For my time, I’ll pass on both.

Sorry TNA wrestlers. You are extremely talented and I wish it were still 2004 when I could see you on Indie shows. Unfortunately it’s 2013 and I don’t want to sit through Community Theater retelling of WWE stories. 

I’ll continue to monitor what happens in TNA and will hope they right the ship and finally after 12-years will create their own identity. However, given the track record of the last 11-years, I don’t see TNA management learning from their mistakes. Or more accurately, I don’t think TNA management sees their mistakes.

When will Chikara rise from the ashes and bring entertainment back to wrestling? 

TNA is on a Rampage

Rampage Jackson

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

Last week, Dixie Carter tweeted TNA had signed a BIG free agent. Today it was announced that free agent Quinton “Rampage” Jackson had signed a dual contract with Bellator and TNA. I haven’t read the details of the contract so I don’t know which company is going to be the main focus of Rampage’s career but given his MMA background, I’m going to guess he will spend more time fighting for Bellator than wrestling for TNA.

If you go back a year ago, Dixie Carter announced the signing of King Mo. Mo has a similar Bellator/TNA contract. Outside of being the special enforcer in the James Storm vs. Bobby Roode match at Bound for Glory, and some highlights from OVW, King Mo hasn’t been seen in TNA.

While I have no real opinion on Rampage Jackson other than I thought he was good in the A-Team movie, I question why TNA would sign guys to dual contracts. Maybe there are some behind the scenes dealing with Spike that aren’t public knowledge. TNA does promote Bellator during Impact more than Impact gets promoted on Spike from what I’ve seen.

As a fan, this signing really doesn’t move my give a darn meter in the slightest. Mainly because I’m not an MMA fan in the slightest so seeing an MMA fighter in a wrestling ring doesn’t interest me. For TNA’s sake, I hope I’m in the minority. 

Will 2013 Be a Breakout Year for TNA?

TNA Stars at the Hall of Fame Ceremony
Photo by: My 1-2-3 Cents

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

I’ll admit that Kevin and I don’t give TNA the fair amount of coverage we should on the blog. Part of the reason is because most of the feedback we get from readers centers on WWE. That is understandable since WWE is the number one wrestling promotion and most casual fans associate all wrestling as being WWE wrestling. The other main reason for the lack of TNA coverage is when we talk about other wrestling promotions; Kevin usually talks about Pro Wrestling Collision because he’s associated with the company while I usually discuss Chikara because that’s my favorite promotion. I often feel bad we don’t write about more companies, but then I watch cat videos on YouTube* and forget about writing anything for a few days.

Most of the blogs I write are based around concepts I think will get at least two or three comments. That’s another reason why I tend to write about something that is popular or mainstream. However, if I would write more about happenings in the wrestling world that excite or interest me, I would write ten blogs about TNA to every one blog about WWE. 

Honestly, while there are certain aspects to WWE programming I like at the moment, I haven’t been able to watch a full episode of RAW in over a month. On the other channel, while not a perfect show, I am more intrigued about what will happen on Impact on a weekly basis.

Recently, TNA President, Dixie Carter made some announcements that change the landscape of TNA Wrestling. Personally, I think these changes are long overdue but at the same time I’m curious to see if they’ll pay off in the long run.

The first dramatic change was going from 12 pay per views a year to only four live shows.  TNA has taped three shows for future PPV airings, and plan to tape either three or four more in March. These taped shows will run during months that don’t have a live show and will be more or less stand-alone shows.   This is a move I have been waiting to happen for at least five years. I wish WWE would also follow suit. Twelve pay per views is too many. By going back to four main shows this should allow TNA writers to build storylines and feuds to the point of wanting to see the match instead of rushing something together in 2-3 weeks. Also it should mean no last minute or unannounced matches added to the pay per view. As an old school fan who remembers when there was only the Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania, SummerSlam and Survivor Series in WWF and Starrcade, SuperBrawl, Great American Bash and Halloween Havoc in WCW, I gladly welcome TNA scaling back to just Genesis, Lockdown, Slammiversary and Bound For Glory. I’ll also admit that I am more likely to order these shows as shelling out $40 every 3-4 months is a lot easier on the wallet than paying every month.

In the last day or two there has been rumors that Lockdown (the next TNA PPV) will only feature the top matches inside a cage instead of having the entire show take place inside the cage as has been the norm since Lockdown’s inception. Again, this is something I’ve been wishing for since the first Lockdown. There was a time when cage matches had meaning. The cage was used as an ender to a violet feud or was used to keep people from interfering. Now cage matches are used as props on a roulette wheel or as an excuse to see a wrestler perform jaw dropping aerial move. In addition to not understanding why guys who weren’t even feuding were placed into a cage match, having every match in the cage took away the prestige of the Lethal Lockdown match. If this is the direction TNA is going with this year’s Lockdown, I fully support them.

Perhaps the biggest news of the last two weeks was Impact leaving the Impact Zone and taking the show on the road. My biggest fear is TNA management will think they can sell more seats than they actually will and thus book large arenas. In my perfect world, TNA would be content to think of themselves as a modern day ECW and book smaller, more intimate arenas. My favorite ECW arena was the Madhouse of Extreme in Queens, NY. If TNA could find someplace like that and realize a rabid, raucous crowd of 1000-1500 fans can make for a better show than a 20,000-seat arena full of fans that only care about the World Champion.

Chad & Jeff Hardy
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

Will these changes help TNA? Will the audience grow over the course of the year? I don’t know. If TNA keeps on the path they’ve been on for the past 8 months or so, if fans would watch with open eyes and leave their blind hatred based on something that happened eight years ago aside, I would think business should grow. TNA isn’t perfect.  Aces and Eights haven’t won a meaningful match. The Knockout Tag Titles are still in limbo. Hulk Hogan is still scaring fans away by saying he wants to be TNA World Champion and the X-Division is treated like a red-headed stepchild. Overlooking those flaws, which could easily be fixed, there is a lot of good wrestling, good characters and freshness in TNA. I will gladly take Jeff Hardy as champion over David Arquette 2k13 headlining Wrestlemania any day. Changing venues will make Impact seem fresher, but the writers and wrestlers still have to deliver. Hopefully they’re up for the task.

What are you thoughts? Will these changes help TNA? Are you more inclined to watch TNA because of the changes or will you be watching Community?

*I don’t actually watch cat videos. 

Dixie Carter's Big Announcement

Dixie Carter & Chad
Photo courtesy: My 1-2-3 Cents

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents

Dixie Carter, President of TNA IMPACT WRESTLING, tweeted the following this afternoon.

Dixie Carter @TNADixie
I will be making a major announcement on IMPACT tomorrow (8/7c) This will change everything for our wrestlers, company & YOU our audience!

I have not heard what this announcement is or if it has to do with Impact the show, Impact the Zone or the fabled Lucha star, Impact the Indestructible. But since I didn’t have anything else on my mind to blog about, I thought I’d throw out a few ideas of what Dixie will announce.

Goldberg will turn heel: The last time I recall the head of a wrestling organization make a statement like this it was Eric Bischoff claiming there was going to be something to big even Vince McMahon couldn’t stop it. Then on a PPV (I forget which one and since this blog isn’t serious, I don’t care to look it up) Goldberg half-assed a heel turn that if memory serves me right, was dropped within a couple of week. I know Goldberg isn’t on the TNA roster, but when has a wrestler not been on the roster stopped TNA from promoting said wrestler. (Corey Graves just tweeted from the NXT locker room he’s still hoping for votes in the Gut Check Challenge contest)

Jeff Hardy & Hulk Hogan
Photo courtesy: TNA

Hulk Hogan will challenge Jeff Hardy at Lockdown: Hogan recently claimed he wants to be TNA Champion in 2013 so why not put him in a cage match with Jeff at the next pay per view?

Impact is leaving Spike: With news coming out about the WWE Network possibly launching as a YouTube channel, and given TNA’s track record of trying to be like WWE, Dixie will announce Impact will now be seen exclusively on Ustream.

Entrance into the Impact Zone will require a ticket into Universal Studios: If I’m correct, currently people in the Universal theme park get priority access to the Impact Zone while fans can wait outside the studio in CityWalk and hope to get inside if seats are available. Starting at the next tapings, fans will only be allowed into the Zone once they’ve bought a ticket to the theme park. Also, wrestlers and staff will also have to purchase tickets to enter since Universal is revoking their worker access due to Hogan’s insistence of driving his Hulk Monster Truck to each show.

All WWE Divas will now be on Impact: Even though still under a WWE contract, Natalya Neidhart, Layla, Kaitlyn and the other WWE Divas will appear on Impact. This is not a sign of a working relationship between WWE and TNA. Simply put, Vince McMahon doesn’t care about the diva’s division and doesn’t even recognize WWE female wrestlers when he sees them. Dixie offered the Divas a chance to actually wrestle and they said yes.

TNA has bought the NWA: Going back to their roots, TNA is bringing back the NWA affiliation. The NWA territories will be rebranded as TNA shows after Panda Energy bought the rights to the organizations for $93 and two annual Universal Studios passes.

Impact will air in 3D: Fans will be able to get closer to the action as the stars of Impact Wrestling leap out of the TV screen in stunning 3D. Tazz will now appear life sized.

Impact is leaving the Impact Zone: This is the one I hope to see happen sooner rather than later. With the recent announcement of cutting back on PPVs and not holding any of the live PPVs in the Impact Zone, hopefully this means Impact on the road will soon follow.

In all seriousness, I don’t know what Dixie’s announcement will be or if I should get excited since her track record for big announcements isn’t that great. I do know TNA has been making great strides to get better and between TNA and WWE, I am more interested in what happens on Impact than I am for what happens on RAW or Smackdown. Just wish they’d strengthen then tag division and the Knockout Division. Also, either properly use the Knockout Tag Titles or get rid of them.

Anyway, I’m curious to hear what Dixie has to say. What do you think will be the big announcement? Give your thoughts on our Facebook page.

Making An Impact With Less Pay Per Views

Dixie Carter & Chad at Bound for Glory weekend
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

Last week TNA President Dixie Carter announced a change in TNA’s schedule for the 2013 pay per view calendar. Instead of doing 12 live monthly shows, TNA was scaling back to 4 live big pay per views and 7 taped themed shows for the year. The live shows are Genesis in January, Lockdown in March, Slammiversary in June and Bound For Glory in October. TNA taped the first two themed shows on January 12. One of the shows was called Joker’s Wild Tag Team Tournament and featured a tournament where wrestlers were paired together by drawing names from a hat. The second show was an X-Division spotlight show. Future shows will include an all Knockouts show, a return of the ECW Hardcore Justice concept (this one I’m really not excited about as I think it’s time to let ECW rest in peace) and a return of the World Cup tournament, which was a staple in TNA’s early days. The taped pay per views will carry a price tag of only $14.99. If I were a cynical, jaded wrestling fan, I’d think someone within TNA finally replaced the 1997 calendar hanging in the office with one for 2013.

On a serious note, with the changes I’ve seen in TNA over the past year, I hope fans will finally let go of their preconceived bias against TNA and give them a new fresh look. A few weeks ago we unveiled the winners of the Centies Awards. We didn’t do a promotion of the year, but if we had, TNA would have been my pick. I have been impressed with their focus on more long-term storytelling as well as starting to let homegrown (or at least non-WWE made) stars shine. Not saying they’re perfect and there is still some room for growth, but compared to the first 9 years of TNA, it seems they’re finally starting to give the fans what they want to see in an alternative to WWE.

Samoa Joe in action
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

I hope the move to only four major pay per views will help strengthen storylines and TNA builds the shows as must see events. I have been saying for at least the last five years there are too many pay per views. With monthly shows, a lot of matches get thrown on at the last minute with no build as a way to fill out the show and there are usually rematches on several shows which, as a fan I hate paying to see the same matches over and over. Even though I applaud the decision to cut back on pay per views, there is one change I hope to see coincide with less shows.

BETTER USE OF THE ROSTER

One of my biggest complaints with the current mainstream wrestling product is the same wrestlers are on TV usually going through the same motions week after week. Part of the reason is because when you’re building to a pay per view in 3-4 weeks, the wrestlers facing each other have to be focused in order to try and sell the show. Now that TNA will have 8, 13, and 18 weeks between pay per views; this should give them time to showcase more than the top 10 guys and the latest challengers to the secondary titles.

At the tapings for the Jokers Wild Tag Tournament and X-Division shows, several talents that hadn’t been on TV for months were used. Hopefully this is a sign that we may see some new/old talents appear on Impact in the coming months. One issue I find to be hindering the major wrestling promotions these days is the hierarchy of talent. It seems there are Main Eventers and then everyone else. TNA has the chance now to really establish the stars of tomorrow. Will they utilize this opportunity or will we continue to get the same old same old from week to week?

Chad & the Hogans
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

TNA isn’t perfect but they have been making strides to be better. Sure I’d like to see the Bully Ray/Brooke Hogan relationship angle quietly fade away and never be mentioned again. That is only one aspect of the company though. There is far more good than bad on a normal episode of Impact. I am curious to see where they go this year and have the feeling if I end up going to Bound For Glory again this year as I am planning, I will walk out of the show feeling it was a better show than Wrestlemania. That’s a big statement, I know. Given the direction WWE and TNA are headed though, I feel I can safely make the statement without having to worry about eating my words. We’ll find out in October.

What do you think of TNA’s decision to cut back on the number of live pay per views? Does the decision make you more likely to check out a pay per view? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.

Bound for Glory: Fan Fest & Hall of Fame

Austin Aries at Fan Fest
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

By Chad Smart

@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

I have attended six WWE Wrestlemania weekends. The first two I attended (22 in Chicago, 24 in Orlando) featured private autograph sessions for fans that purchased the travel packages. At Wrestlemania 25, WWE re-introduced the Fan Axxess event. Axxess is a giant showroom with memorabilia on display as well as stations for fans to get autographs or photos with WWE wrestlers.  This year I had the pleasure of attending TNA’s version over the Bound For Glory weekend in Phoenix.  

As I was mentally planning this blog, I was thinking how much smoother and quicker lines moved at the TNA event than the WWE one and I wondered if it would be fair to compare an event that brings in 60-70,000 fans versus an event that had maybe 3-5,000.  When debating those numbers, I wanted to make sure to stress while TNA’s crowds may be smaller, that is actually a plus for events of this type.

At WWE Axxess it’s not unheard of to wait in line for over an hour to get one autograph or photo. At TNA Fan Fest, they had two sessions with nine autograph stations where fans could get both an autograph and photo (at Axxess you get one or the other depending on if the wrestler is at an autograph table or standing for photos) of the wrestler.  Even with long lines for the top stars (Rob Van Dam for the first session, Jeff Hardy for the second.) fans had plenty of time to get through all of the lines and even get some of the other TNA office personnel walking the floor.

Dixie Carter
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

My understanding is the wrestlers would take one photo and sign one item. The wrestlers had 8x10 photos at their tables to sign for fans that didn’t bring anything to be signed. Either the wrestlers didn’t know how much they were supposed to sign or didn’t care. I walked up to most of the tables with the TNA 10-Year Anniversary book and a DVD to be signed. The wrestlers would sign the DVD then sign the program and throw in an 8x10 for good measure. When I told Tara I was going to put the 8x10s in a charity auction for the American Cancer Society at the AAPW show on October 20, she was impressed and signed three extra photos.

Miss Tessmacher
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

At Axxess (again, I understand there is a difference in the amount of people) most of the wrestlers who give a half-hearted hi or thanks and you’re quickly moved through the line. At Fan Fest, with the except of Kurt Angle, Bully Ray (who I saw right at the beginning of his shift) and Bobby Roode (who I saw right at the end of his shift) everyone was very personable and took time to talk to fans. Fans were treated as if they actually mattered and the talent was genuinely thankful for the fans being there. It’s a little thing in the grand scheme of things but that type of interaction goes a long way in getting fans to come back the next time you hold an event like this. The first wrestler I talked to was Miss Tessmacher. I relayed the story of Kevin mentioning he thought she was “delicious” on the previous episode of From the Rafter’s Radio. I don’t know what Kevin meant, but Miss Tessmacher laughed and asked if that meant he wanted to eat her up. Thankfully she didn’t call security over to have me removed from the building.

Hulk & Brooke Hogan
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

Even Hulk Hogan, who only signed for fans who had bought the travel package or VIP pass, spent time making sure every fan had a good experience. I think I saw the security guy tell Hulk on 3 or 4 occasions he needed to take less time with people as they only had a certain amount of time and had to get everyone through the line. The level of appreciation from everyone in TNA, which also includes TNA President Dixie Carter, is something you don’t get from a lot of wrestling promotions. Hopefully the good will from the company rubbed off on the fans that will now go home and tell their friends about the good time they had and will get more people to attend the next time TNA is in the area or holds something big like Bound For Glory.

Hall of Fame set up
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

After the Fan Fest was over there was about a three-hour gap until the first TNA Hall of Fame Ceremony.  Before the ceremony, I was still thinking TNA was foolish for having a Hall of Fame and should have done an awards ceremony similar to the old WWF Slammy Awards. Only they should have been taken serious unlike the last two Slammy ceremonies. After the ceremony was over, I understand why TNA did what they did. I’m curious if they’ll do Hall of Fame next year or wait and make the ceremonies more sparse and prestigious.  Before I lay out my reason for the change of mind, lets talk about the set up and event itself.

Unlike the WWE Hall of Fame, which is held in a large venue, the TNA Hall of Fame was in an intimate room. In fact it was in the same room the autograph sessions took place earlier in the afternoon. My one complaint with the event was the lack of assigned seating.  Each table seated ten people. There were 8-9 fans at a table and then a wrestler or wrestler and significant other. I was one of the last fans to enter and had to go around to four different tables before I found a place to sit.  I don’t know if it would be feasible to get the names of every ticket holder, or one name and the number of people in the party, and then do assigned seating like a wedding banquet or not but that is something I’d recommend TNA look into if they do this again next year.

Once all the fans were seated, SoCal Val greeted everyone and then introduced the TNA talent in attendance. After they were introduced, the wrestlers would take their spot at their table. I was at a table with Chavo Guerrero and his wife. Hernandez was at the table behind Chavo. Zema Ion was at the table behind me while Christopher Daniels, his wife and kids, and Kazarian and Traci Brooks were one table over.  Both Chavo and his wife were gracious table hosts answering any questions fans had and engaging is simple small talk. I overhead Zema Ion talking to the people at his table but the standout had to be Bully Ray. Not only did he seem to be entertaining his table, he walked around to a few other tables and at one point called Bruce Pritchard over to say hi to some fans. Once again, I applaud TNA’s effort to give the fans a unique experience and the wrestlers for not being standoffish.

TNA's first Hall of Famer: Sting
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

As for the induction of Sting into the TNA Hall of Fame, with the exception of the WWE induction of Ric Flair and the Four Horsemen, this was probably my favorite Hall of Fame induction.  Mike Tenay started the induction ceremony by sharing a brief run down of Sting’s career. AJ Styles spoke about working security at a WCW show. AJ told a story about being at catering when Sting and Lex Lugar sat down at the table with him and how he couldn’t stop staring at them due to being star struck. Then how excited AJ was when Sting came to TNA and AJ got to face him in Sting’s first match.  Lex Lugar followed AJ and recounted stories to stress how loyal a friend Sting has been over the last almost 30 years. After Lugar, Hulk Hogan echoed the sentiments of Sting being loyal by talking about how Hulk had tried to get Vince McMahon to bring Sting to WWF and how Sting wouldn’t jump from WCW. Dixie Carter was the last to speak. She talked about getting Sting to come to TNA and having to convince to stick around each year after his contract was about to expire. She stressed, as did Mike Tenay and AJ Styles that had Sting not come to TNA, TNA probably wouldn’t be in existence today. 

Sting naturally spoke last. The most telling aspect of the whole event was when it was over I didn’t think Sting had been inducted, it felt like Steve Borden had been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Maybe it was the fact Steve came out without face paint or sunglasses. This was the first time I can ever recall seeing him without either.  While several points in the speeches touched on Sting’s career and specific matches, there was just as much, if not more, talk about the person behind the face paint and the character of the character. This is why, on the ten-year anniversary of TNA, I understand why it was important to induct Sting into the TNA Hall of Fame. I hope TNA includes the ceremony on the Bound For Glory DVD and encourage all fans to watch it.

After the ceremony
Bound for Glory '12
Photo by My 1-2-3 Cents

Outside of TNA, I have to give credit to the fans in attendance as well. One of my biggest annoyances of WWE Hall of Fame ceremonies is the jackass fans that feel the need to yell and scream catcalls.  The Hall of Fame inductions are not the same as a wrestling event and therefore the code of conduct shouldn’t be the same. The fans in attendance at TNA’s event were all courteous and respectful of the people talking. My only complaint is the number of fans I heard talking during the afternoon that were upset they weren’t allowed to wear shorts and had to make special trips to the store to buy dress pants. Seriously, what is wrong with these people? There were a handful of fans in attendance wearing jeans and t-shirts. Then again, Hulk Hogan showed up in jeans and a Bound For Glory t-shirt so you can’t really blame the fans.

Overall, I had a great time on Saturday and depending on where Bound For Glory is held at next year, I would be interested in going if TNA had similar events. Next I’ll take a look at Bound For Glory itself. Could the show cap off a great weekend or would it fall under the hype?

For pictures from the Bound for Glory weekend, check out our Facebook page or click here, and follow us on Twitter for meaningful tweets.  

Slammiversary X & Roddy Piper

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

I didn’t get a chance to see TNA’s Slammiversary show on Sunday. Instead, I opted to go to a screening of the John Carpenter “classic” They Live that was followed by a Q&A with “Rowdy” Roddy Piper. I did read reports and reactions to Slammiversary after I got home.

From all reports it appears TNA hit a grand slam with the show. I am curious to see the show, as it doesn’t sound like there was really a bad match on the entire card. My one issue would be the ending to Crimson’s undefeated streak. While I think the streak needed to end as TNA hasn’t shown any intention to push Crimson into challenging for any title so there really is no point to Crimson being undefeated. However, I don’t know if losing in just under three minutes to a returning James Storm was the proper way to go. Given we’re talking about TNA, I will admit this is one of the few items where even if I don’t agree with it, it’s not a major complaint.

Now, I do have to address the Hall of Fame announcement and the use of Christian (Cage) on the show. While I think Sting is a worthy inductee into the TNA Hall of Fame, I still feel this is being done as a way to beat WWE to the punch. TNA doesn’t need a Hall of Fame. Since Sting has been in TNA for the better part of the last nine years it does make since for him to be in a TNA Hall of Fame than the WWE Hall of Fame. I personally simply don’t see the need for TNA to go there this soon.

Now onto Christian, After Dixie Carter tweeted Christian would be at the show, myself and the rest of the Internet Wrestling Community lashed out with several different scenarios of what Christian would do on the show. Would he be the Hall of Fame inductee? Would he answer’s Crimson’s open challenge? Would he attack Sting backstage and take his spot in the main event and win the title? From the reports I read it seems all he did was come out and verbally put over TNA. One of the one hand, there was nothing wrong with the segment and getting a WWE talent (and current champion no less) to come on your show and say fans should be watching TNA is a positive. On the other hand, what purpose did Christian serve? He was telling fans that bought tickets to a TNA show, or who were watching at home, they should be watching TNA. It’s not like he went on Raw and said to watch Impact. So I still don’t think this was any type of major coup by TNA in return for letting Ric Flair appear at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony.

Now it wouldn’t be right if I didn’t take to task myself and everyone else who jumped on the bandwagon of criticizing TNA before we knew what Christian was going to do on the show. Sometimes we have a tendency to make judgments and go off the deep end when we think we know what wrestling companies are doing when really we don’t have a clue. Instead of simply being fans and waiting to see what happens next we jump on our keyboards or youtube channels and bitch and moan about how companies are doing the wrong thing. As the Wrestling Roommate pointed out on multiple episodes of From the Rafter’s Radio (Thursdays 7pm CST), “everyone can book shows better than the people actually doing the booking.” The appearance of Christian was another example where we should either get all the facts or wait until the show happens before rushing to judgment. Kevin and I have tried from Day 1 of my123cents to not rush to judgment on angles or events. That’s why we try to stay away from behind the scenes rumors or “breaking news” unless the news can be verified through several sources. So loyal readers, I’m going to make another pledge that if I don’t know what I’m talking about, I’m not going to talk.

That’s my thoughts on Slammiversary. Now switching gears to Roddy Piper.

Sunday afternoon, the New Beverly Cinema had a screening of They Live followed by an appearance by the Rowdy one. Unlike a lot of other people in my demographic, I’ve never been a big fan of the movie. I thought maybe seeing it in a sold out show with an appreciative audience I might have a different opinion of the movie. I don’t. I still don’t see myself ever sitting down to watch this when I’m looking for something to watch. However, the Q&A with Piper was awesome. He talked about how he got the role and the fight scene between Keith David and himself, which he claims is the longest fight scene in film. He also made a throwaway comment about doing what he’s told and one time Vince McMahon asked him to paint himself half black. I got video of most of the Q&A and will hopefully have it up on the YouTube page. If you’re interested in it make sure you’re subscribed to either the YouTube page or the my123cents Facebook page. Unfortunately I wasn’t recording when Piper talked about Randy Savage quoting a line from the movie (not the famous kick ass and chew gum line). Piper did a “Macho Man” impersonation then said, “I was lying on the floor of the locker room and Savage was naked shaving his ass with a Norelco.” Oh and he briefly talked about Legends House and mentioned his roommate was “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan. Then he introduced Duggan who was in the audience.

After the Q&A, Piper hung around and signed autographs and took photos with fans. I have to say he was probably one of the top 3 coolest people I’ve seen at Q&A with the way he was interacting with everyone. He took time to engage in brief conversations and seemed genuinely thrilled people were there to see him. Had I not been a Roddy Piper fan before this, I definitely would have been a fan after leaving. In the end, I’m glad I chose meeting the only wrestler who could make me cheer Hulk Hogan over Slammiversary. A once in a lifetime experience vs. a show I can catch on DVD.

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TNA Hall of Fame

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart & @my123cents on Twitter

I haven’t watched Kevin’s video about the first Live Summer Impact so I don’t know if he touched on this subject. I’m guessing he did. Before I watched his video, I wanted to write my thoughts down so this would be my thoughts and not a blending of two ideas.


On Impact, Dixie Carter announced there was going to be a TNA Hall of Fame. I did not see the show so I’m basing my response on a write up of the show. I don’t know if there’s a timeframe for when the first inductee would be announced. Purely based on a hunch, I’d say the inductee might be announced next week and inducted during the Slammiversary pay per view. If I were running TNA that’s when I’d do the announcement.

However, I don’t think TNA should be concerned with a Hall of Fame at this moment for several reasons. First off WWE has made their Hall of Fame ceremony a yearly tradition and, in my opinion, over the last few years has almost become a more anticipated event than Wrestlemania. Since WWE owns 90% off all wrestling produced over the last 50 years, they tend to induct stars that may not have any significant moments in WWF/E but did make a mark on in the wrestling universe. Case in point would be Verne Gagne, the Von Erichs and Gorgeous George. Is TNA planning on inducting former wrestlers who had nothing to do with TNA or are they going to keep their inductions limited to wrestlers who have competed inside their ring? I’ll touch more on this in a moment.

Even though the WWE Hall of Fame has been inducting members for nearly 20 years, there is still no actual Hall of Fame building. Perhaps I’m being nitpicky, but what’s the point of a Hall of Fame if there’s no building. There were rumors a couple years ago WWE was looking at possibly building a HoF at Universal Studios Florida. That would have been interesting since Universal is where TNA tapes/runs Impact and the majority of their Pay Per Views. Maybe TNA will set something up in the soundstage adjacent to the Impact studio and have it be their HoF. WWE has had several memorable moments in their history to fill up a HoF with exhibits other than pictures of wrestlers. Off the top of your head, name one item TNA could put into a HoF? I can’t think of anything.

Long time wrestling fans can point out the fact WCW had a Hall of Fame and would induct members during the Slamboree Pay Per View. The ECW Arena has/had the Ring of Hardcore to honor ECW alumni before the building closed at the end of 2011. I’m going to ignore those for the simple fact both companies are defunct. My blog, my rules.

Getting back to TNA’s HoF, whom will they induct? Off the top of my head the only names I can think of that would be first ballot contenders are Jeff Jarrett, Mike Tenay, Jeremey Borash, AJ Styles and James Storm since they’ve been with the company since the beginning. The case can be made for Sting given the number of TNA titles won and since he’s been with TNA for roughly eight years. Others may vote for Christopher Daniels, Chris Saban, Jeff Hardy and others who have held multiple championships. My argument against that would be due to the number of times the titles changed hands in the last ten years, multiple reigns don’t mean much. My other argument would be all of those guys are still wrestling for TNA so why put them into a Hall of Fame. Kevin and I have talked before about how WWE rushes guys into their Hall shortly after retirement (I.e. Shawn Michaels, Edge) so they have a big name to be the cornerstone for the year. Will TNA rush guys in before their careers are even over?

As of June 1, 2012, these names, again in my opinion, do not belong in a TNA Hall of Fame yet I’m afraid they may be names TNA is considering, Hulk Hogan and Christian. Hogan has done nothing for TNA onscreen. Christian was there for two-three years as nothing more as a way to build his main event credibility before returning to WWE. Yes they are two big names, but their big names in wrestling, not TNA.

I have no problem with TNA having a Hall of Fame in the future. I simply feel ten years into their existence when 95% of their potential inductees are still wrestling for the company is too soon.

What do you think of Dixie Carter’s announcement? Do you feel TNA should erect a Hall of Fame? Share your thoughts on Facebook and Twitter.

TNA: Russo's Departure

By Chad Smart
@chadsmart on Twitter

The news of Vince Russo leaving TNA is a few days old, I know. I was waiting for more solid information to be released before writing. My123Cents is more of a commentary on wrestling blog than a news blog.  Since Kevin and I have no insider access to WWE or TNA, any news we “report” comes from other more legitimate wrestling web pages. Because of that, we prefer to offer opinions on what’s happening in the wrestling world instead of breaking stories that you can read on any other site. If we simply repeat what we read elsewhere, what’s the point of you reading our blog instead of going directly to the sources we’re copying?  That’s why we do series like Kevin’s on-going Black History Month spotlight or the “What If” posts. So today, I’m not going to simply comment on Russo’s departure and speculate what may have happened behind the scenes. Rather, I’m going to give my take on how his departure is a microcosm of what’s plagued TNA in a viewer’s opinion since TNA began.

I’m no fan of Vince Russo’s. While I feel he was part of the catalyst that triggered the Attitude Era, I’ve felt he’s a legend in his own mind. The opinion I formed of him from reading interviews and his book is he’s a man who is above criticism and fails to accept his limitations when it comes to creative ideas. I have often wondered why Vince was hired by TNA, and how he managed to stay employed for nearly ten years. It’s no secret Vince and Jeff Jarrett are good friends and without Russo going to bat for Double J in both the WWF and WCW, Jarrett probably wouldn’t have become the main event star he was during WCW’s final years. When Jarrett decided to start TNA, it was understandable he’d enlist an old friend to help create an identity for the new company.

After Dixie Carter took over control of TNA, somehow she became a supporter of Vince and has defended him from critics going so far as telling the staff, “the next time I hear a Fire Russo chant, someone else is getting fired.”  (Paraphrased from her YouShoot interview)  

While on one hand I commend Dixie for being loyal to a fault to an employee, her naivety shows a major problem with TNA. Instead of looking at a problem and making changes to fix the problem, TNA has chugged along the same path almost saying to fans, your opinions don’t matter.

In the same video clip, Dixie stated Vince has a polarizing reputation and as a wrestling company that’s what you want in a member of your team. If she honestly believes that and doesn’t understand the difference between a wrestler who fans love or hate, thus evoking a reaction from the crowd, and a writer who fans hate more than they like, then clearly Dixie needs to not be in charge of the company.  Vince Russo is the M. Night Shyamalan of the wrestling world. Vince had a few months of hits because what he was doing was relatively new and different at the time. After that initial success he has relied on the same characters, gimmicks and swerves much like Shyamalan has relied on twists in his film’s plots. The problem is in both cases, the stories being told aren’t good and the swerves and twists are there simply to be there and make little to no sense.  They’re there because they’re trademarks of the writers, and the writers feel they have to be there instead of creating a logical story with a beginning, middle and definite ending. If you’re interested in looking at numerous examples of poor storytelling in TNA, creators of this link have compiled a year by year listing of senseless turns, angles that disappeared and other nonsense over TNA’s first nine years.

Now, is all the bad storytelling solely because of Vince Russo? I don’t know. Maybe he is a better writer than he’s given credit for and all the horribleness is the result of his scripts being tweaked with by management. Either way, my argument here is if TNA truly wants to succeed, Vince Russo should have been shown the door a long time ago.

A company can fail or succeed based on the reputation of the people involved. Vince Russo is probably the most hated person associated with wrestling. That hatred, despite what Dixie may claim, doesn’t entice fans to watch Impact. It has the opposite effect. Over the last nine years, when fans complained about Russo, instead of trying to understand why fans were upset, TNA stuck their fingers in their ears and screamed LA LA LA LA.

With Russo now being gone from the company does that mean TNA will become the best wrestling company on the planet? No.  While TNA has reportedly been on an upswing in terms of storytelling, there are still factors that need to be addressed.  Along with Russo, the hiring of Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan brought about some more fan backlash due to the duos own reputation inside the wrestling world.

In their time with TNA, there has been very little benefit in terms of increased ratings or show attendance.  Whenever Hulk Hogan is doing publicity for any of his other business ventures, rarely if ever does he mention TNA unless directly asked. A few times when he’s been asked about what’s going on in TNA, Hogan has given away upcoming pay per view results. Not exactly a good business strategy. In addition to Impact, Eric Bischoff has a few other TV shows in the works with his BHE company.  If TNA were a bigger company, Bischoff being distracted by other business ventures may not be a big deal, but with TNA having had very little noticeable growth in then years, if it were my company, I’d want someone who was fully dedicated to improving and growing TNA. Not to discredit Eric, as I’m sure he’s a good multi-tasker, simply saying TNA should be staffed by people who are 100 percent committed to TNA.

What does the future hold for TNA? Is the departure of Vince Russo the first step in a positive direction? Time will tell.  Fans on our Facebook page commented that Russo’s being off the creative team would increase their interest in watching TNA. If TNA continues to focus on homegrown talent, put an emphasis of titles and learn to have main events that don’t include ref bumps, I still believe they can become a major player in the wrestling world.

Do you feel Vince Russo’s departure will have a positive or negative effect on how entertaining Impact is in the coming weeks? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.