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Hogan was Right.
Right after TNA Bound for Glory, I reported that Hulk Hogan was the primary person behind the change where Bobby Roode wouldn't win the TNA title from Kurt Angle. This of course came off an appearance for Hogan on Sirius Radio's Busted Open where he extolled the virtues of James Storm as a babyface and Robert Roode as a heel. While TNA changing their plans at the last minute left Roode looking extremely flat after weeks of being built up, two months later, it's hard to argue Hogan was right.
James Storm has been absolutely awesome as a babyface since winning and losing the TNA title, while Roode's promos and work as champion have been a textbook case of someone being placed into a role and finding themselves more and more every week. While I would continue to argue that the rushed, last minute method of how TNA got the former Beer Money into these roles was poorly executed, it's hard to deny that Hogan was right in that they would be awesome in these positions. The ends, so far, justified the means. Now that the chess pieces are in place, hopefully they get the time to shine, because their placement on top of the company has been a great breath of fresh air.
Roode vs. Styles. Roode vs. Hardy. Storm vs. Angle. Storm vs. Roode. I like the sounds of all that.
Kudos Hulk. Now let them do their thing and stay away from their deserved spotlight.
Mic That Damn Place Better, Finally!
I have seen a lot of great wrestling matches and cool angles in the Impact Zone live. Kurt Angle vs. Samoa Joe for the first time. Rhino and Abyss winning NWA titles. The Ultimate X. Hardcore Justice. Fortune beating the piss out of EV2. The Machine Guns vs. Beer Money. The venue, which is really a soundstage, is a great venue for atmosphere and sightlines to watch pro wrestling.
Unfortunately, and this has continued even as TNA has upgraded their production to HD that at times looks better than WWE's broadcast, you don't get that same feeling of being there watching the show on TV as you do live. A big part of that issue that really stood out to me last night is the lack of crowd micing that comes across through your television set.
There were times last night where you could see the crowd was reacting to aspects of the show - James Storm's superkicks, Jarrett vs. Hardy, near falls but could hardly hear it. That isn't the crowd's fault as much as it's TNA's fault. I don't know what more can be done from a production standpoint to enhance the live audio (they can sweeten the taped stuff all they need) but given that they are in a TV soundstage, there has to be a way.
I know TNA wants to do a lot more on the road - and they should - but when they are in Orlando, they should still want to get the most out of the audience's decibels.
Kurt Angle Needs To Be Freshened Up.
Last night's Kurt Angle vs. James Storm match was actually one of the better worked matches on the show, but coming out of it, I couldn't help but feel that it was time for Angle to freshen himself up. We all know his accolades and we all know he's an incredible worker in the ring, but it's at the point where every match is starting to blend together.
Last night, we saw Kurt Angle do the series of German suplexed, take a shoulder-first bump into the ring post, miss a moonsault and do a series of anklelock reversals. Now, every performer has their signature moves but with Angle, it is getting to the point where it's almost the same match and you can just cycle anyone into the bout.
Angle has talked of going to the Olympics and who knows what the reality is these days on that, but I'd like to see Angle try and vary what he's doing in the ring. By doing so, he might come off a little less robotic than he has appeared in recent bouts.
Not Exactly A Final Resolution, but...
I loved the hell out of the AJ Styles vs. Bobby Roode main event and thought that they did an incredible job of building to a rematch where the two can tease a 60 minute match, although to do a 30 Minute Iron Man match where there is no definitive winner is really a goofy way of ending a PPV titled "FINAL Resolution."
There were other ways to close the show, including having them both knocked out from some crazy exchange or move as the bell counts down and the officials ruling that even though it's a draw, so they can't continue - or have Styles pull out a tie-making pinfall at the last second, only to have Roode drill him with the belt and KO him - anything, but the idea of the draw to build a Roode vs. Styles rematch down the line and tease a long classic title bout is fine with me.
Of course, Jeff Hardy just became the top contender for the title, so I have to wonder if TNA will just speed forward and blow off this program (Daniels vs. Styles never got its blowoff either), but one has to think that if TNA wanted to build this as the modern day version of Ric Flair vs. Barry Windham with great matches that go the distance, this was a great first step.
One can hope.
All Hail The New Skyscrapers!
When Crimson and Matt Morgan came out, all I could think of was the Skyscrapers - Sid Vicious and Dan Spivey. For those who didn't live through 1989 WCW, they were monstrous big bad asses who powerbombed the hell out of everyone and killed enhancement talents.
Now, while I wouldn't argue that last night's Tag title bout was a good match, I can easily see the money and the potential in the Crimson/Morgan tandem. It's going to be impossible to make them sympathetic babyfaces who sell and are in dire straights in danger of losing the belt because of their sheer size, but if you flip the coin, the idea of these guys as Road Warriors type beasts who hit the ring and beat the piss out of people is a really appealing idea to me.
TNA has already laid the groundwork that these guys enjoyed beating the hell out of each other - so let's unleash them and let them beat the piss out of everyone else. It would be pretty damn entertaining, would set them apart from everyone else in the company and would create an attraction that would be unique in modern day pro wrestling. Doing so would allow Crimson to continue to learn and grow while giving him Morgan, who would probably stand out in such a role, as a partner to help carry the load.
Hell, I'd even book Jim Mitchell as their Mouthpiece.
All hail the new Skyscrapers! Chokeslams for everyone!
Jarrett vs. Hardy was Fun.
The one thing that I took from last night's cage match was that it was the closest thing to fun pro wrestling. Sure there was some silliness on the show and there was some good wrestling but in terms of that good vs. evil fun pro wrestling, this stole the show. You had Jeff Jarrett the villain and his shrew, cackling wife battling the loved hero with Sting keeping the shrew at bay.
The Cage element, even without the blood, made the match mean something and stand out (as opposed to endless WWE cage matches and even Hell in A Cell matches that are worthless beyond the name of the stip) and the near fall with Jarrett nearly getting the pin after Hardy missed a swanton off the top of the cage was pitch-perfect.
While it sucked to see the old Cage Door spot wiping out numerous people and then it not affecting anyone beyond a few seconds, the closing sequence with Karen trying to interfere and hand Jeff the guitar, Sting pulling her away and Hardy nailing the Twist of Fate was perfect good triumphing over evil stuff - and that's what pro wrestling should be.
Fun, entertaining good vs. evil.
James Storm is the Best Promo in Wrestling
While a lot of people will rightfully praise CM Punk's promos as the best of the year, he's lost a bit of that edge in recent months. I instead will propose that from an old school pro wrestling standpoint, Storm's promos are the best of the year. You listen to him and hear the conviction in his voice and you buy that this is a badass redneck guy who is coming for revenge and is coming to kick some ass, as opposed to a guy to is playing Cowboy on TV.
If you aren't watching TNA TV, you are really missing out on some great promos of late. Storm has always been a strong performer but right before our eyes we are watching a talent who knows his time is now and isn't letting it slide on by.
Last night's promo with Jeremy Borash, beyond the silly "Beer" "Drinking" stuff, was damn good. Storm is one of my favorite reasons to watch TNA right now and it's been refreshing to see him get this nod.
RVD Has Never Meant Less
It's amazing, as someone who watched Rob Van Dam's launch to stardom firsthand in ECW see Van Dam working the opening of TNA PPVs after almost a year of not being in contention or chasing the TNA belt that he lost after being "too injured" to defend.
While Van Dam still works hard and obviously has a strong group of fans, there is a world of difference between the fans that would explode for him and point their fingers today in TNA than compared to ECW, WWE and even TNA a year ago, and that's a shame.
I'm not saying the guy should be World champion, but he deserves more than to be just aimlessly there. The Jerry Lynn feud was a nice idea but even that was a one sided affair. It's time for TNA to really give Van Dam a nice back and forth program with strong promos and an end result that makes someone stronger in the end - even if it's not Van Dam. RVD is a hell of an asset and while you can't push everyone at the same time, I hate feeling like he's not being used to the best of his ability.
If it was up to me, I'd program him with Samoa Joe and let those guys do what they do best.
The women want to work.
Gail Kim's pursuit of shoving her WWE run back down the throat of WWE management is apparent every time she gets in the ring in TNA but never more than her match with Mickie James last night. Kim took a number of crazy bumps out of the ring and into the ring posts as she and Mickie showed what they could conceivably do if given the chance. This was a far, far, far better match than the last time they worked in WWE, where it looked to all fall apart.
I could have done without the needless interference from Madison Rayne and I'd like to have seen Kim not jump up so quick from a ringpost shot, but one cannot dispute the work ethic there. While I'd love to see TNA stop booking all the women to be harlequins who call each other whore and skank every week, I don't expect that to stop. Seeing them having good wrestling matches on a regular basis does make that go down a little easier. Last night was a nice step.
Kid Kash is a bitter man.
I have an affinity for the bitter, pissy veterans. I don't know why, but I've always loved the snug pissed off curmudgeons that do their job, kick someone's ass and go home. I am probably the only person who was legitimately happy to see Bob Holly challenge Brock Lesnar for the WWE title years ago. Sure, he had no shot, but just getting in that position made me happy for the guy who never smiled.
There aren't many people like that anymore but Kid Kash plays the role pretty much to perfection. He's been great as the journeyman jerk beating respect into Jesse Sorensen, just because he could. Last night, Kash got a shot at the X-Division title against Austin Aries, who's in the midst of a good run of his own, and it was a blast to watch. Kash is one of the unspoken gems in the company right now - and he lost last night, which gives him more of a reason to be pissed and take it out on people. Can't wait to watch.
There you go. Ten opinions on TNA Final Resolution. Not the best show ever, but certainly one that featured three solid matches on top.
Mike Johnson can be reached at Mike@PWInsider.com.
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