The Intro
Nothing I care about happened on free TV this week, so I’m going to go ahead and use my Intro ramble to talk about Dragon Gate USA, and specifically the company’s second PPV, Untouchable. From what I’ve read, it wasn’t received with quite the same enthusiasm as Enter The Dragon, but Danielson/Doi and Richards/Shingo have apparently both been mentally added to the year-end lists of many fans.

Honestly, I felt Danielson and Doi was the only match on the card that really deserved those accolades. There were some really nice moments in the Richards/Shingo clash, and it’s certainly a match-up I wouldn’t mind seeing again, but it lacked…well…Bryan Danielson, to be frank.

If anyone can adapt to WWE’s own peculiar approach to the art of wrestling and the way it should be performed when the kiddies are watching and nobody’s allowed to get injured anymore, it’s the man known to many fans as the Best In The World. Still, I think it’s safe to say that the Doi match represents the last time we will see Bryan Danielson in his element for a while, and that’s a genuinely sad thought for anyone who truly appreciates professional wrestling.

For his part, Doi was magnificent at Untouchable. Having main-evented Enter The Dragon in what was essentially a face vs. face clash, the subtle shift in character he elicited in response to the crowd’s painting him as the heel in the early going here made for fun viewing. There was no raking of the eyes or holding the tights or anything else as obvious as Brian Kendrick’s antics in the underwhelming match that followed. No, Doi simply made more use of the ring than he usually does, breaking at a count of four whenever Danielson made the ropes, and at one point even using them to try and call a time-out.

The story of the match, though, was Danielson making Doi look like a million bucks. The American Dragon seems determined to leave the right legacy in his wake as he departs the independent scene for his new home in the big leagues, and he put the champion over decisively here, painting Doi as the kind of wrestler who can hang technically with the Best In The World and legitimizing his status as the Ace of the company by going down cleanly to the Muscular Bomb.

As a standalone match, Shingo vs. Richards was good, but it could hardly hope to follow that. Richards is carrying a heavy load these days, what with his status as both indie-darling elect and The Next Dynamite Kid (which is still, after all that has happened, apparently a desirable thing to aspire to), and you can see how badly he wants it in the way he works. He’s still a very young man in this business (twenty-six years old, as is Shingo), and he already has a more dynamic moveset than the men he most resembles (Dynamite and – of course – Benoit). Above and beyond that, though, he seems to have a keen eye for the little things that make great ring psychologists. Late on in the match at Untouchable, long after Shingo had opened by working over his left leg, Richards led with this foot as he made to climb the turnbuckles, then winced and led with the right instead. So simple and yet so telling.

It’s clear that Richards isn’t yet the finished article, but it’s also clear that he’s going to go a long way in the wrestling business. He has the talent, the desire, the following, and all the ingredients for everything else.

The rest of the card seemed sloppier than Enter The Dragon, with several matches falling a little flatter than expected (Dragon Kid and Yoshino couldn’t touch their performance at the last PPV, Jigsaw’s injury clearly disrupted the Chikara crossover match, Kendrick and CIMA were untidy and apparently clipped short) and the wrong main event. I enjoy the Young Bucks, but this was a disjointed effort, despite Saito and Horiguchi taking this year’s award for Most OTT Cartoon Heel Performance. The Bucks definitely need to learn to put more between the amazing spots they do before they start main-evening PPVs.

Of course, the really stunning thing is just how much time – barring unforeseen circumstances – many members of Dragon Gate’s already very talented roster has to get better. Most are in their late twenties and early thirties. Matt Jackson is twenty-four. Nick? He’s twenty. And like its performers, Dragon Gate USA has time and space to improve. They’ve put on two PPVs, one great and one decent. Now they need to focus on the vast improvements they need to make to the dramatic side of the promotion (production quality comes with money, but the one offstage segment they did during Untouchable was such a mess that I didn’t even understand it was a confrontation between Yoshino and Dragon Kid until Lenny Leonard told me so), and what they’re going to do to show they have more than exhibition matches. Amongst the grumbling about this PPV, I caught the phrase ‘angry gymnastics’, which I think perfectly sums up DGUSA’s shortcomings.

With all that said, I’d rather watch the product Dragon Gate USA is currently presenting than I would WWE and – to bring us on to this week’s Poll Position topic – TNA.

I’ve been beating up on TNA since I started this column, and I’m going to try and address that here. You see, while there’s plenty of wrong down in Orlando, there are a few things Dixie and her crew are getting right, as well as a few where it’s apparent their intentions are in line with what we want to see, even if the result doesn’t quite match up to the theory. I’m still going to beat up on TNA – hell, I’m going to kick the shit out of it – but we’re also going to look at why they’re number two.

As in number two to WWE, I mean. Not…oh, never mind.

The Results

Looking purely at the options I presented here and the numbers attached to them, it’s tempting to get a little optimistic about the future. After all, having AJ as champion, pushing younger guys, and building a partnership with a brand like Spike are all things we think TNA is on the right track with. They’re also all recent developments. Looked at in that light, you might even say TNA is heading in the right direction. Unfortunately…

The Analysis
Hiring Hogan and Bischoff/Building the company around Kurt Angle – 3%

I know I said last week that I was going to stay away from the Hogan thing, but I can’t. It’s like a loose tooth. I am, it has to be said, already at a loss as to why the company would hang on to Vince Russo and ditch Jim Cornette, but why they would then bring in the other two members of a trio that had a lot to do with the demise of WCW is a staggering development. I’ve read the arguments in favor, and I understand where those people are coming from, but there’s just no way the trade-off they’re proposing here could possibly be worth it in any long-term sense. Hogan will pop a rating or two for TNA, that much is not in question. But it isn’t sustainable. As soon as the novelty wears off, the company is quickly going to find itself with a large, orange albatross around its neck. The Hogan brand is bigger than the TNA brand, and in announcing this as a ‘partnership’ rather than an acquisition, Dixie Carter publicly acknowledged that fact. You have to wonder where that leaves the rest of the TNA roster once Hogan steps between the ropes. After all, they are merely employees. Hulk is a partner, superior by definition.

I was disturbed by the ‘speech’ that was broadcast on Impact last week, and I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. I hope it was a work, but we’re in Russo-World here, so I have to assume that much of what was said had a ring of truth. If that’s so, expect morale to plummet over the coming weeks and months, as Dixie’s words begin to translate to that old WCW refrain: “These guys can’t draw.”

As for Bischoff, I don’t really see why they need him. He’s like Don West after a soul removal operation. Say what you like about Mr. Deal Of The Day, but he seems like he actually has some passion for what he does. Bischoff’s the Richard Nixon of wrestling.

The Hogan thing could work for TNA, it really could, but there’s so much room for error and so many people in positions of power over there who could fuck up getting out of bed in the morning that it doesn’t seem likely. I happened to stumble over an episode of WCW Thunder from Christmas of 1999 the other night (The debut of 3-Count, Goldberg almost severing an artery punching a limo, and – yes – Maestro), and the thought of TNA becoming anything like that is unthinkable. I mean, to do that once was stupid, but to do it twice…surely not.

I’d watch if they rolled out Ed Leslie, though. I wouldn’t be able to stop myself.

The problem with Kurt Angle is a little different. A shadow of the performer he once was due to the cumulative effects of the many injuries he has sustained over the past decade or so, Kurt is nonetheless far more convincing between the ropes than Hogan. He’s been with TNA almost three years now, still carries that air of legitimacy that comes from being an Olympic gold medalist, and is still well capable of putting on a four star match. At the age of forty, and in declining physical (and possibly mental) condition, this is a perfect time for Kurt to really cement his legacy by doing what the much younger Bryan Danielson has no qualms about – putting other performers over.

Unfortunately, Kurt has shown no inclination to do this, and during his TNA tenure has placed significant roadblocks in the paths of both Samoa Joe (he was the first man to beat Joe in TNA, and beat him again soon afterward in that ridiculous storyline where he won all the belts) and AJ Styles (Kurt hurt AJ’s credibility as champion going into this year’s Bound For Glory by not doing the job on the go-home Impact, instead ending the match  with AJ trapped in an ankle-lock from which it appeared he could not escape as the time limit expired). This may be good for Angle’s HHH-esque quest to be considered a wrestling great, but it doesn’t bode well for the TNA that will exist when he retires (or dies, or is jailed, or goes batshit fucking insane).

Other – 9%
The Knockouts were mentioned (Dhaise again), and though I’ve already covered the subject in some detail here, it’s worth noting once again that the ladies draw higher ratings than everything else on Impact on a regular basis. Now, my feeling was that the reason for this was the mixture of sexy young females, decent storylines, and comparatively strong in-ring performances, but TNA begs to differ. Since that article was written, the performers have clearly been told to get a little raunchier. The Beautiful People’s ring entrance now borders on softcore porn, we have a Firecrotch Legdrop (Christy Hemme) to go with the Implant Buster (Awesome Kong) on the list of finishers with shitty, demeaning names, and Tazz and Tenay drop double-entendres all over every Knockout match. We also have the stupendously bad Lacey Von Erich, who viewers of last week’s Impact saw deliver a chokeslam of such ineptitude that I literally hid my face, embarrassed for the poor girl.

But never mind that. She’s tall and blonde and she has big tits. Bye bye, entertaining Knockouts division. We enjoyed you while you lasted.

The X Division was also mentioned by several people. What an innovative title that once was. What a great fucking idea. Seriously. At first we didn’t know if it was a Cruiserweight belt or something, but then we realized that TNA had essentially created a title just for guys that can wrestle. I mean, nobody ever said it out loud, but that’s what it was.

Somewhere along the line, though, the X Division stopped being a division and the belt became just another secondary championship, essentially meaningless when compared to the Heavyweight title. This is typical TNA. They have a good idea – in this case a great idea – and they somehow manage to fuck it up.

Let’s go into fantasy booking mode for a minute. If I was running TNA, I’d have Styles go over Daniels and Joe at the PPV, and then Joe win the X Division title back on the following Impact. I’d then let things simmer for a few weeks before doing a backstage segment where Joe walks past AJ, carrying the X Division title. He smiles and nods at Styles, then continues on his way. AJ reacts to this, all, “A few weeks ago, you were dying to get this title off me, now you don’t care?”

Joe responds with a speech about what the X Division title means to him, what it used to mean to AJ and the guys who were around right at the start of TNA, like Sabin and Kazarian, how the revolution didn’t come from the Jarretts and the Shamrocks and the Ravens, it came from the guys who were busting their asses and putting on the match of the night every night. “I don’t know what that title means to you, AJ, but I know what this one means to me. I don’t need to be world champ, I’ve got the only belt that matters.”

The objective of the storyline wouldn’t be to devalue the world title, so even though I would have Joe go over when the two champions eventually met with only pride on the line, I’d also use the story as a way of salvaging AJ’s title reign by having him figure out what it means to be champion and represent the company. Of which more in a short while.

Building a long-term partnership with Spike TV – 26%
I’d argue that this is far more important than the Hogan thing. TNA has stable ratings, reasonable PPV buys, and they’re not hemorrhaging money. They’ve worked hard to get to this point, and while it’s important that they keep up the effort, it’s even more important that they learn from the mistakes of others (come on in, ECW) and build a foundation before they start trying to go head-to-head with Vince. That was probably my biggest concern with Dixie’s speech on Impact; she made it sound as if they were all going to rally behind Hogan and go take down the competition.

TNA simply isn’t ready for such a move. The smart thing would be to build a plateau here, work on those young stars some more, continue to work on a partnership with Spike TV that represents the single most effective piece of business they’ve done, and then move when they’re ready to. Problem is, the Hogan thing forces their hand, and many of the noises being made in these press conferences are ominous.

Putting the belt on AJ – 29%
AJ Styles as TNA World Heavyweight Champion is great in theory. However, rumor has it that even the usually placid Styles is upset about the way he has been booked as champ. I think anyone would be. Styles has busted his ass representing TNA since day one. He has the talent to go anywhere in the world and make a good living, and there are places where he’d be a massive star and make a huge amount of money. But AJ has stayed with TNA. Through all the politics and the changes in leadership and the bullshit, Styles has continued to both bring it between the ropes and work hard on his shortcomings. He’s a supremely talented athlete, a model professional, and the brightest of TNA’s ‘homegrown’ stars. Yet his big title win, apparently representing a new beginning for TNA (and boy, nobody does those new beginnings like Russo, do they?), was booked in such a way that it appeared Sting handed AJ the belt. This indignity was then followed by the aforementioned Impact match where the man he pinned for the belt had him wrapped up in an inescapable ankle-lock as the time limit expired, thereby apparently saving him from a clean submission loss. He then went on to a confusing and underwhelming main event victory over Sting at Bound For Glory, an event that should have been AJ’s coming out party as TNA’s leading light and ended up being all about a man who may not even wrestle for the company again.

Putting the belt on AJ is only a good idea if the company is planning on throwing its full weight behind him. The booking he’s suffered in the last six months has continued to portray him as struggling to escape the ever-present shadow of Angle. All they had to do was put him over clean against Kurt one time, preferably on PPV, and he would have been good to go. As it stands, he’s a poor champion, and the politicians of the company are no doubt sharpening their knives.

Getting rid of many of the legends and pushing the likes of Morgan and Hernandez – 31%
This will probably surprise a few people, but I like both Hernandez and especially Matt Morgan. The former has a ways to go before he’s ready to be unleashed on the main event, but Morgan’s pretty much good to go. Had they pushed him a little differently, he could have been a monster of Goldberg proportions, but as it stands, you’re looking at a talented, charismatic big man with a great look and strong promo skills. In this business, that’s like a million dollars walking in the door and asking what you’d like to spend it on.

Morgan is a guy who could benefit from the Hogan rub, and he also looks as though he’s most likely to get it. I don’t think he needs to be a heel at this point, but perhaps they could team based on their prior association on American Gladiators and then let miscommunication take care of the rest, leading to one big payoff match that Morgan wins decisively, resulting in Hogan admitting he’s done and that it’s time he passed the torch to the man who reminds him most of the days when Hulkamania ran wild…

Then we’ll all wake up, Hogan will be champion, and Ed Leslie will be competing in an Ultimate X match where a bag of crack is suspended above the ring.

And winning.

All that aside, TNA is actually doing an admirable job of getting younger guys over. Most of the legends have been pushed to the background since Bound For Glory, and regardless of the fact that I don’t particularly like Eric Young and the World Elite (and don’t understand why that English guy is still called Brutus Magnus), they are, for the most part, young guys trying to get over. Are they the right young guys? That’s probably another argument for another time.

The Position
As those of you who took part in the forum discussion have undoubtedly realized, being nice about TNA is hard. But if anyone from the company happens to read this, know that most of us are just wrestling fans that want to see you succeed, and it’s all the more frustrating that you have a supremely talented roster at your disposal – including several performers superior to those competing in WWE main events – and yet seem so unable to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. Hell, it’s not like I’m stating difficult intellectual truths here. Anybody who watched wrestling between 1997 and 2001 can tell you that you’re rowing towards the rocks. That’s bad news for all of us, as TNA could – with a better creative direction, a period of stability, and a better economy to take risks in – challenge WWE someday. If you go too soon, and behind the wrong generals, the terrorists win.

VINCE! I mean Vince wins.

The Position? TNA has some great young stars. Go check out the roster on their website. It isn’t only the likes of Morgan and Hernandez they should be pushing. They have so much talent available to them it’s almost embarrassing, as well as a crowd of indie stars they could sign and push immediately, without having to brainwash them WWE-style. If I can sit down with a pen and paper and build a roster and five shows worth of angles that would have wrestling fans all over the world tuning in, surely people who actually work in the business could do the same.

In fact…well…let’s do the Pimpage first.

The Pimpage
Glazer says ECW is the best wrestling show on TV, only he’s not so modest about it anymore.

Wheeler schedules a week of programming for a WWE channel. I have no idea why. He also reviews Raw.

The Future
No poll. The column was a little late this week because I had to run this idea by the bosses first. Next week will see the beginning of a series of five columns entitled Poll Position vs. TNA. It will work as follows: I’m going to take the results and roster coming out of this Sunday’s Turning Point PPV, and write the next four episodes of Impact plus Final Resolution as I would book them if I was in charge of TNA creative. I will continue to post the column on Tuesday/Wednesday, so my results will be available at about the same time the results from the real Impact are. I will post my Pay-Per-View card on the evening of December 20th, and I’ll throw a few polls up comparing the two when the smoke clears.

Regular Poll Position service will resume in time for Christmas. Hooray.