THC Mailbag: Impact Criticism

I got an e-mail from a reader this morning who questioned why I am so critical of TNA during my Impact reviews week after week, especially since their in-ring product is better than that of WWE’s. I replied to his e-mail and decided to provide my response here as well for others to read who may feel the same way. As a matter of fact, this may become a regular feature here at The Hexagon Circle, so feel free to send in any questions, comments or criticisms to starman@inlinefusion.com.

Q: Why are you critical of TNA Impact week after week when TNA’s in-ring product is better than WWE’s?

A: In my show recaps, I get to walk a fine line between being a fan and providing an objective opinion. At times I may seem over critical of TNA’s product, but I am trying to provide an unbiased viewpoint of their shows. As a fan, I want them to succeed and it pains me to see some of the blunders they do on a regular basis, but I have to call it as I see it in my reviews.

You said yourself that their in-ring product is 10 times better than WWE’s. I won’t argue that, but a casual fan wouldn’t be able to see that when we are only given three minute matches during a two-hour television broadcast. Last night’s main event between Christian Cage and Tomko was a good example of what they should be doing. These two went out and had a great match that was given time to develop and even had a clean finish. I applauded that in my review of the show last night.

If TNA were to do that on a consistent basis, ratings would more than likely go up. If they stick with their current formula, though, the ratings will continue to stay stagnant at 1.0 or go down like they have been in the past few weeks. Once viewers become accustomed to the standard three or four minute matches that end with some sort of interference, they will stop tuning in, and some already have, as the ratings have shown.

In fact, the majority of matches on Impact put more focus on what happens after the match than what actually happened during the match, thus diluting the in-ring product. A good example of that was last night’s match between the Rock n’ Rave Infection and Jay Lethal & Sonjay Dutt. The RnR Infection attacked Lethal & Dutt backstage a week ago, but the segment cut away so quickly that in the end it didn’t mean anything. There wasn’t any mention of it later on in the show and last night they were put in a match against each other that was there for no other reason than to promote a song and a video from a former American Idol contestant. Not the winner or even a runner up, but a contestant who ended up in seventh place.

So, yes, I can tend to be over critical of their product, but it is not because I hate TNA, it is because I am a fan of TNA. Impact draws ratings that are almost equal or lower than the WWE’s worst show and that shouldn’t be with the amounts of great talent they have on their roster.