Pulse Wrestling Note: We’ve decided to just call all of my columns The People’s Column. I hope you guys don’t mind the change.
Welcome everyone to another hearty portion of random thoughts. This week has been rather eventful, especially on the TNA side of things. I’ll talk about all of that and more here!
Let’s just dive in, shall we?
– I seem to remember there being more hype centered around Bound for Glory last year than ere was this year. Even with a two-month tournament going into it, where has the hype been?
– Why was TNA Reaction not used completely as a hype show for Bound for Glory as opposed to it’s normal function?
– Shouldn’t hype be the focus of all wrestling shows today? PPVs are the bread and butter of the industry (at least for now) and they should not just be random events every month, but well build shows worth at least $30.
– So now Dixie Carter signs papers she doesn’t know she’s signing. I now know why Orlando Jordan and Eric Young have jobs.
– Speaking of EY, why is he in a team with Orlando Jordan? I was just fine having neither of those men on TV.
– A lot of TNA’s current lost momentum may actually be due to their taping schedule. Their interested fan base has a high percentage of internet savvy fans that look up spoilers. By taping shows three weeks in advance, they create the impression that nothing happens for three weeks.
– Kevin Nash is finishing up with TNA. The true lost opportunity here is not having him do more with creative while he was not a part of the product. He may have made some poor choices in WCW, but I don’t know if many people in wrestling are smarter than him.
– If Kevin Nash and Sting are supposed to be the good guys in the “They” saga, what will happen now that Nash is leaving. Could it be possible that between Nash leaving and Hulk Hogan being extremely injured the “They” payoff will be changed from the original plan?
– If the plan is changed, will that be the last time TNA books in advance?
– Mickie James’ TNA debut was a little anticlimactic. Why show her backstage? Even if everyone knew that she would be there, why not make it a surprise when she appeared in front of the live crowd for the first time?
– Speaking of anticlimactic, remember when Gail Kim returned to WWE? Yeah, I don’t either. I just know that it happened.
– Mick Foley and Ric Flair had a pretty good match. They took a ton of shortcuts, but it was not the embarrassing display we’ve seen from Foley in the past.
– I finished reading Foley’s “Countdown to Lockdown” book this week. I’ll post a full review soon, but let me say that if you like Foley books, this one will satisfy you.
– I’m happy to see Wade Barrett getting a one on one championship match. Sure, the story is about John Cena, but Barrett is playing his role so well that he can completely steal the focus.
– How long until Mike McGuilicutty and Husky Harris are officially Nexus members? Since the group now seems to be down to four plus Cena, it should be soon.
– Does anyone actually care about the teased Hart Dynasty breakup?
– Is the Diva’s division now completely on every brand? With Natalya on Smackdown, it sure looks that way.
– Jack Swagger and the eagle are a funny duo, but is it really helping Swagger? Sometimes WWE decides to give their heels comedy heat, where people laugh at them and boo instead of building their credibility and making them long-term threats.
– Ted Dibiase falls into the above thought.
– Sheamus is a guy who has avoided most of the comedy that WWE throws out there. Is it a coincidence that he is one of the few acts to breakthrough to the main event scene and look legitimate there in the last few years?
– Alberto Del Rio seems to be on the Sheamus route with his victories over Rey Mysterio and Christian.
– MVP is not a bad idea for an Intercontinental Championship program, but is he really fit to step up and be one of the top faces on Smackdown?
– What is Kofi Kingston to do at this moment? Who on Smackdown could he even feud with?
– Edge on Smackdown could be just what the doctor ordered for the blue brand. It seems that his “Crusade against Stupidity” could actually be turning him into a babyface. Can he become the top face on the brand after failing so much at that earlier this year?
TNA Bound for Glory Predictions
– Team 3D’s Announcement: If it isn’t retirement, it’s not worth getting excited about. They are a team I don’t need to see on my TV anymore.
– Eric Young and Orlando Jordan vs Ink Inc: This match is only on the card so TNA creative doesn’t feel like they’ve failed at pushing Jordan and Young. EY and OJ win.
– TNA Knockout’s Championship: Angelina Love vs Velvet Sky vs Madison Rayne vs Tara: Mickie James is the guest referee for this one and I see her somehow getting the belt back to Rayne. Rayne is the top heel of the KO Division and will be a nice foil for James as she assumes the role of top face.
– X Division Championship: Douglas Williams vs Jay Lethal: Lethal is a great worker and a quality guy on the mic. Williams is the same. Why these two have not been given more time on TV to hype this feud and make it seem like both personal and professional pride was on the line is beyond me. This is a rematch form Impact a few weeks ago when Lethal won the title without buildup. I see another title change here that won’t matter in two weeks. Williams wins.
– Sting, Kevin Nash and The Pope vs Samoa Joe and Jeff Jarrett: Hulk Hogan was originally supposed to be the sixth man in this match. If he can walk, I expect him to interfere in this one and throw some punches. Nash is done with the company soon. It would not surprise me to see Sting leave as well. Jeff Jarrett is a valuable commodity in the ring when he is pushed properly. Samoa Joe should be on his way to being the new monster in TNA. The Pope does not belong in this match, but did not fit anywhere else on this show. Who wins? Well, the “They” saga may make Hogan and Jarrett heels, so Nash, Sting and Pope go over. In the moment it will look like heels went over and everyone will be confused.
– TNA Tag Team Championship: Motor City Machine Guns vs Generation Me: The Machine Guns were built up big in the series with Beer Money and I don’t see them losing this soon. MCMG wins a great match.
– Lethal Lockdown: Fortune vs EV2.0: Lethal Lockdown is often all of the bad of WarGames without the good. The match always features someone escaping the cage. The one-ring setup is too small for eight or ten guys to actively wrestle in, so it looks like a Battle Royal. The weapons coming down on the lid are an interesting idea, but they have never done much to enhance the match. It’s still an exciting contest to watch though. I’m sure AJ Styles will do something insane. Sabu will botch some spots. Tommy Dreamer will bleed. Ric Flair will get involved, as will Mick Foley. The ending will most likely be some sort of Fortune screwjob that blows off this feud. The more interesting thought: if there is going to be a new heel group in TNA, what will that make Fortune?
– Monster’s Ball: Rob Van Dam vs Abyss: Abyss always has a Monster’s Ball match at Bound for Glory. I think he may be the only wrestler in the world with a signature type of match to have at one event. What if Triple H always had to compete in a cage at Survivor Series? Wouldn’t that be weird? Also, wasn’t the gimmick of the Moster’s Ball match that the wrestlers were kept in solitary confinement and not allowed to eat for 24 hours beforehand? Does that still happen? Anyways, this feud has always been about RVD and tonight will be no different. I’ll pick RVD to win this bloody match.
– TNA World Championship: Kurt Angle vs Jeff Hardy vs Mr Anderson: One of these things is not like the other, one of these things doesn’t belong. Last month we saw that Hardy and Angle can pull out an amazing PPV match. Of course, that could not be the first truly epic TNA Bound for Glory main event, it had to have a non finish at the throwaway show before BFG. Mr Anderson does not have the in-ring chops to be in this match and will be carried by Angle and Hardy. This match will include the reveal of “They” when Eric Bischoff and Kurt Angle turn out to be working together. Angle wins the match and saves his career, then reveals that he authorized the assault on RVD. Hopefully this will be the high quality match Angle is promising. Kurt Angle as the lead of a new heel group is a little too Main Event Mafia to me, but we’ll see how is works. Kurt Angle pins Mr Anderson, which allows them to go back to Angle vs Hardy in the future.
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