Walk the Line

[Chansanity]

Welcome. The name is Chansanity. I’m sure you’ve seen me lurking around the various forums chiming in my opinion from time to time. Truth be told I’ve always wanted to have my hand at writing a column, there just hasn’t been any time to do so. With this current winter break from school and nothing going on in my life, now seemed like the perfect time to give it a go. This will most likely be a one off, but if I feel this goes well and the free time comes up, I’ll give it another go or two.

Let’s get to know each other shall we?

Since I am on this site and writing this, I am obviously a wrestling fan. I have been since I was a young child. I still remember what peaked my interest way back in the day. It was a Sunday morning and my family was getting ready to head to church. I was flipping through the channels when I came across a WWF show (it may have been the old Superstars) and they were doing a feature on Gangrel. Seeing this vampire and his whole package with his awesome fire entrance and goblet, I was instantly drawn to watch more wrestling. Now this wasn’t my first introduction to wrestling, but it was the moment I got hooked for life. I got caught up in the Monday Night Wars. I always watched WCW more but it mostly had to do with them having the one hour head start, also those cruiserweights kicked ass. Every time a commercial came up I instantly switched to the other show to see what was going on over there. I’ve always known wrestling was fake, but I allowed myself to get caught up in the kayfabe, something I wish I was able to do a little more today.

Get inside my mind

Every wrestling fan on the planet is fully aware of the upcoming battle on January 4th. Those of you who are aware of my posting history know that I am a fan of both the WWE and TNA. I feel they both bring there own aspects to the business. WWE is the timeless classic that has proven that it can deliver time and time again. Although, we have all seen a lag in the product lately and we have made our opinions known about it. I won’t elaborate too much on WWE because you are all aware of what it brings to the table. Instead I’ll sell you on why TNA should be given the chance to not necessarily beat WWE but run side by side with them for some good ol’ competition. TNA is kind of like that new kid on the block. He’s got these cool, new ideas and a different look than we are used to. We look at him and find him different and don’t accept him. He then tries to alter himself, when in the end all we want is for him to be himself. TNA, seeing that we just don’t care because we aren’t familiar with it, brings in all these “old timers” and “rejects” so it can say “Look at me. You recognize me now don’t you?” We here in the IWC then talk about how unoriginal TNA is and they are just trying to be a WWE 2.0. In reality they are trying to be because we are making them.

TNA has the homegrown stars they need to bring their own identity to the show. The obvious stars like A.J., Daniels, Joe, Abyss, and Hernandez all have the all-around skills to be as big of house names as Cena, HHH, Randy Orton, and etc. They have even successfully built up some of the WWE rejects into big time superstars like Matt Morgan and D’Angelo Dinero A.K.A. Elijah Burke. The problem is the casual fan doesn’t give a crap about these people because they don’t know who they are. This is why they have to bring in these old stars to grab these fans’ attention. It is an effective strategy because I’ve been watching TNA at home and a friend or parent will walk by and say “Oh hey, isn’t that Sting? Kevin Nash still wrestles?” They recognize these wrestlers and they may sit down to watch it for old time’s sake. This is the window TNA is looking for to get these short term viewers to get familiar with the product and invest interest with TNA’s unknown stars.

Are you insane?

Alright, alright. So what does that have to do with January 4th? I mentioned in the Raw thread that I will be tuned in to TNA when the fateful day comes while everyone else mentioned that there is no way in hell they will do the same. The same people who, along with me, have complained about the recent product being thrown at us by the juggernaut known as the WWE. Now I know there is no way TNA is going to win in ratings. What I would like to see is TNA get around the 2.0 range or something like that; wishful thinking I know. As for the WWE, I’m hoping for a rating around the 3.0 range. This should give a scare to the WWE since they threw in the biggest possible draw with the controversial “Hitman” returning. This scare could revitalize the WWE and bring a refreshed product with better storylines, which is still possible even in the PG era. I mean, do you really want to see more things like “The Little People’s Court?”

On the other side of the table, TNA has really been finding their stride in recent months and have had some very interesting angles and great moments like A.J. winning the big one and the ongoing Wolfe/Angle feud. They have had their share duds, but that just comes with taking chances and seeing where things go. In just about every aspect where WWE is going wrong, TNA is doing right. You’ve got the great Knockout division with several viable contenders and they always have a chance to put on match of the night. Women like Kong, ODB, Tara, Hamada, Flash, and many other Knockouts have the talent to realistically beat some of the men in a match. Could we really say the same for the Divas? Beth maybe, that’s it. The tag team division also has several top notch teams that could take the titles at a moment’s notice. The British Invasion, Beer Money, MCMG, Lethal Consequences and Team 3D are all viable teams to carry their division. How many teams to the WWE even have? If the ratings go somewhere around what I am hoping for, TNA will get a major confidence boost and will be extra motivated to bring their best stuff week in and week out to slay the giant and bring us all the entertainment we strive for. The tools are there, all that is needed is the time to shine.

Why won’t the voices stop?

Couple of quick thoughts.

- Damn Smackdown for trying to bring in that little people division oh so many years ago. Just think, without that dumb idea, we may have never had to suffer the character of Hornswoggle.

-Though it has been teased it before, they need to just pair the Miz and Maryse up on TV. The heat those two could draw together could be magical.

-I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Chris Jericho is the best entertainer of this past decade, if not longer. Who else has put on as top of quality mic and in ring work in the past 10 years?

-Croft and Barreta have the potential to be my favorite tag team ever. If they continue to do what they are doing, they are going to be special.

-Sheamus needs to be the champion going into Wrestlemania. The dude is the shit. Fuck what you’ve heard.

[fenixx]

This column was a really decent debut. The chunky paragraphs put me off a bit at first, but your sentences flowed logically. The insight that was coupled with your facts made this a really enjoyable read.

I haven't watched TNA ever, although I have heard nothing but good things about it. They do seem like a good product from what I hear, but that won't be enough to beat World Wrestling Entertainment or even come close to them. The thing is, the WWE seems to have a great fanbase that is focused around the younger demographic. These kids love John Cena, they worship Triple H and they are entertained by the Hornswoggle segments. When they switch to TNA, they think it's weird that there's a six sided ring with a Main Event Mafia and scarily dominant women in the Women's Division. To me, TNA still seems like that product that is an alternative to the WWE. But, it won't be as popular as the WWE, mainly because they don't have the money, power or presence that the WWE does have. Maybe I'm wrong and that'll build over time, but the true test to find out the winner won't be from the ratings. Ratings suck and don't account for a number of variables. It'll be something subtle and won't be noticeable straight away. Hopefully though, it provides for some interesting TV.

I didn't notice any spelling errors but one thing did confuse me. You say the Cruiserweight Division on WCW kicked ass, but it sucked in the WWE because it brought in Hornswoggle? I mean I hate the guy too, but some of the old Cruiserweight matches in the WWE were pretty damn decent..
Your last section was enjoyable, but seemed a bit brief. I know you said they were quick thoughts but it's kinda interesting to see why you think Sheamus is a kickass champion, even if it is just a brief point.

It'd be sweet if you wrote more often, cos this was a good read.

[MissouriDragon]

Not too shabby there youngster.

*strokes beard Pai Mei-style*

[Chansanity]

Fennix- Thanks for your feedback. The paragraphs did seem a tad large, but initially they were too small and when I went back to beef them up I couldn't figure out how to break them down any more. Better to have too much than not enough. The Hornswoggle talk doesn't have to do with the cruiserweight division. If I remember correctly they were planning on bringing in a bunch of midgets and have them have their own division which is why we were graced with Horny and Lil Boogey. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Missouri- I will take your menacing stoking as a compliment.

[Super Chrisss]

I call you Zack, because you're a Ryder fan. Hope that's alright with you.

You had some very interesting thoughts, and it was good to see you write a full-length column about them. I doubt WWE will go as low as 3.0, but it would be nice to see, even if TNA doesn't pull anything higher than 1.0.

I'm still not sold on Croft and Baretta. They look like the Major Brothers v 2.0. Then again, the Majors gave us Zack Ryder, so I can't complain.

Very solid work.