Total Nonsense Again

What originally started out as a criticism of the re-launch of Impact has now morphed into a general criticism of TNA’s approach to basically everything. If this veers into an unintelligible rant a lá Ric Flair I apologise, but it’s hard to stay focused when discussing this shambles of a company.

Mick Foley has recently published an apology of sorts for leaving Impact, and in effect, killing the whole angle of the re branding. But to be honest, as much as it hurts to say this Mick, you’re wrong. Sure it would have been better to leave either before this nonsense began, or after Destination X, but in all honesty none of that matters. The good that Mick sees in TNA isn’t related to the product at all, it’s that it was “a very good place to work, full of good people, who treated me and my family very well.”

On the Legitimacy of External Criticism

"You're not in the business, kid."

When conversing with anyone within the wrestling business, no matter how tenuously connected, this phrase is likely to ring out with all of the predictability of a bowel movement. Whether it is the terribly dim and thoroughly mediocre talent Al Snow, mouthing off on an internet radio show, or the otherwise intelligent Kevin Nash using false analogies - "Would you tell a chef how to cook his meals?" - this will surely be the go-to retort to any perceived criticism. This storyline makes no sense. "You're not in the business, kid." This promo is boring and unfunny. "You're not in the business kid." This is offensive on every conceivable level; to my intellect, to my emotional substance, to my support of professional wrestling for two decades. "You're not in the business, kid." I'm here to suggest, not only why this is a childish, babyish response to descent, but how it is keeping professional wrestling from genuine progression.

Jeff Hardy: Where does TNA go from here?

The Jeff Hardy situation at Victory Road has thrown a spotlight on TNA, and it's hardly the one they would have hoped for. With WWE currently engaging Twitter fans with a war of words between The Rock, John Cena and The Miz, the only thing being discussed about TNA is how Jeff Hardy ever made it to the ring.

To be frank, that the decision to cut short the match appeared to take place only after both Hardy and Sting had made their way to the ring was nothing short of ludicrous, showing a stark contrast in levels of professionalism between TNA and the WWE. Does anyone believe that if Jerry Lawler had turned up clearly unfit to compete that he would ever have made it out for his match against The Miz at Elimination Chamber last month? It's unthinkable. Chances are he'd never have left the dressing room. Yet when this situation occurs in TNA, it took until Hardy's entrance music hitting for anyone to realise there was a serious problem.

Falling: The Shameful Tragedy of Jeff Hardy

This past Sunday saw the latest in a long stretch of incidents of Jeff Hardy's personal life conflicting with his professional one. Seeing that Jeff Hardy was in no state to work a main event match, Eric Bischoff altered the finish, live on Pay Per View, leading to a disgraceful ninety second long conclusion to TNA's Victory Road. One would be tempted to suggest that this is a failure that should not be laid on TNA's slender shoulders - Jeff Hardy failed to meet his most basic obligations, after all - until of course the realisation that it was TNA's limp reaction to substance abuse within professional wrestling that was key in luring Hardy from WWE. That Hardy is facing the  impending fallout from his plea bargain, following charges of drug trafficking, and that he has proven yet again that he is incapable of keeping his self-destruction in check, shows how much we and Hardy have lost.