On Thursday, 13 April 2006, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling shifted their one-hour show “iMPACT!” to a new weekly timeslot, and kicked off a new age in the young company’s history with a bang.
TODAY’S ISSUE: The Thursday night premier of iMPACT! on SpikeTV.
The first thing viewers noticed was a slight tweak to the walls and the entrance area in the Impact Zone, and it seemed the lighting may have been different as well. More importantly, the format was adjusted slightly. Airing only 3 matches in the hour meant that each match was allotted enough time to develop more slowly, allowing the action in the ring enough time to tell a story without the matches feeling rushed. Sometimes it seems WWE is in a hurry to get the match over with, so they can go backstage for more wrestlecrap.
Another new gimmick was that the show began with an X Division championship match already in progress. This had the effect of jump-starting the show, since TNA didn’t waste any of the hour with ring introductions and entrances by the wrestlers. However, I’m not sure I understand the hook of airing the first 4 minutes of the match on YouTube.com. Unless of course, it was to encourage people to log onto the TNA website before the show, which I did.
The three matches on the card were as follows:
X Division Champion “The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. Samoa Joe. What a great way to kick off the first Thursday night! This was a brutal, bloody, aggressive, exciting match. Daniels bled from his forehead for the majority of the match, Samoa Joe showed a wicked chain-wrestling set of three distinct submission holds, and Daniels’ BME (Best Moonsault Ever) was one of the most fabulous executions of that move I’ve ever seen! The rabid Orlando crowd voiced their approval by chanting “this is awesome”. Joe gave us the TNA debut of the ISLAND DRIVER, and I thought for sure the Fallen Angel was dead! I wasn’t too crazy about putting the X belt back on Joe, especially considering the Championship Committee’s recent decision to force Joe to step out of the X Division and into the heavyweight scene, where I feel he belongs. The Sabu tease was right on time, and right according to Booking Formula 101.
The match was outstanding, and very enjoyable. Regarding Samoa Joe’s undefeated streak in TNA, I don’t know who will finally end it or when, but during this match I was trying to talk myself into believing Daniels might overcome the odds and the blood loss to score the first pinfall victory over Joe. Certainly a previously unseen event occurring in the very first match of the new Thursday night era, like Samoa Joe being pinned in a TNA ring, would have been a cool way to make the evening seem more special.
America’s Most Wanted vs. Team 3-D in a street fight. This match had aggression, back-story, and crowd appeal. In a very nice “little thing” moment, Devon held both members of AMW in place in the corner so Brother Ray could hit the double-splash. I love anything like this that adds a little more realism to the action. I’ve been wondering something for years: why do so many wrestlers who normally wear standard tights or trunks sport jeans for a street fight? Anyway, James Storm nailed Devon with a vicious superkick, and the O-town crowd chanted “we want tables”. It must be fun to be in that arena live.
When Team Canada interrupted the action, my first thought was that it was a bad night for such shenanigans, but it did advance the feud heading into LockDown, and remind us that Team 3-D isn’t just feuding with some of Jeff Jarrett’s army, but all of them.
I was pleased to see the gang all back together again, as Spike “Brother Runt” Dudley made his first foray into the TNA universe. Kudos to Professor Mike Tenay for calling his move the “Acid Drop”, which is infinitely superior to WWE’s weak “Dudley Dog” moniker. However, I had to take some points away from TNA regarding Brother Runt’s name. He was not called by any name on Thursday night, which means the company hadn’t decided what to call him yet. That’s a bit lame in my view. If you’re forced to change a wrestler’s more familiar wrestling name from a previous company due to copyright issues, figure out the new name BEFORE he debuts for your promotion! All things considered, he’s still a welcome addition to the roster. Team 3-D needed another ally in their war against Planet Jarrett.
Sting vs. Eric Young offered something new. It was the first time Sting wrestled on national television since the night WCW shut down. This was fun, but I maintain that the Stinger needs to remain a “special attraction” in order to be effective in TNA. He looked slower and heavier than he might want to, but he did work hard in the six-sided ring. I must point out that Coach Scott D’Amore was very effective as always, especially when he blocked a Stinger Splash attempt in classic heel-manager fashion. The Sting’s Bat vs. Jarrett’s Guitar spot after the match was cute as well.
Before the show went off the air, Sting revealed AJ Styles, Rhino and The Truth as his partners in the pseudo-wargames match at LockDown, opting for local talent as opposed to the “surprise teammate” routine. Didn’t Sting mention something about Jarrett not being the only one with speed dial, implying that another WCW reject would join him? I was holding my breath that it would NOT be Lex Luger, so that was a blessing.
Although TNA is not on WWE’s level yet, the competition is just awesome right now. Several WWE cast-offs have flourished in TNA, and the X Division guys shine week in and week out. I’m not saying a new wrestling war is upon us, but certainly TNA has continued to grow and become a viable alternative to WWE in the last four years. Moving to a highly prized tiemslot on a major national cable station highlights their success, and opens the door for further growth and development for the “little promotion that could”.
Congratulations to TNA. I wish them well on the next leg of their journey, and I’ll definitely be tuning in on Thursday nights.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled reality.
p.s. – The word pronoun is a noun, so why isn’t the word proverb a verb?
