Daily DDT EOY Series: Will TNA Survive on Destination America?
From December 23 through January 2, Daily DDT will be bringing you our “End of the Year” series of posts, which will highlight the biggest topics in professional wrestling from 2014.
In each post, some of our writers will be giving their reaction to these subjects.
In this second post, we will look at TNA’s move to Destination America. Will they be able to survive after only garnering about 1 million views on Spike TV?
Whenever anybody has discussed TNA over the course of 2014, very rarely has it been an entirely positive account. There is good reason for this, as these past twelve months have arguably been the hardest in the company’s 12-year history. Lower ratings and crowd attendances, coupled with some less than compelling angles resulted in the show departing Spike TV, their network since 2005.
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Rubbing the Rock
This was a body blow to devoted fans of the Florida-based company, who have already been winded by a number of others in the past few years. Accusations about the treatment of their roster and the loss of a number of their ‘Originals’ to be replaced with some WWE outcasts left a poor taste in the mouth. In particular the release of former poster-child AJ Styles was a significant hit to the company that he helped carry for over a decade.
The change in format after Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff arrived helped curtail their natural development by trying to speed up the process, and failing miserably. The concept of touring across the world and competing head-to-head on Monday nights were extremely short-sighted. Then to dispatch of PPVs for their One Night Only specials that have been, for the most part, poor and due to being recorded months in advance pay no heed to the current storylines has severely shrunk TNA’s audience and their budget.
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As such, TNA will enter 2015 under a new network, Destination America, a channel with far less notoriety than Spike TV, reaching 59 million households to the predecessor’s 97 million. This has led to numerous fans both of the company and wrestling in general signalling its imminent death, as they continue to shrink in terms of talent and popularity until it is finally gone for good.
But, I would like to take a contrasting point of view and live in hope for the continued future of TNA, and particular Impact Wrestling. There is no doubting that the organization has shrunk to arguably where they were around 2008. But, they maintain a fiercely loyal fan base that recognizes the qualities that their product presents, and will still seek out their action every week.
The roster boasts some of the best performers available, including Bobby Roode, Austin Aries, Jeff Hardy, Magnus, Ethan Carter III and James Storm. Mix those big names with their exciting X-Division that is currently being reborn and their Knockouts that regularly out-perform WWE Divas, there is still enough there to make an exciting show if it is directed correctly.
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I mean, if NXT has demonstrated anything over the past year above all else, it is that you don’t need huge stages and a massive writing team to get fans invested in your show. Impact Wrestling needs to continue to cater towards ‘wrestling fans’, people that love great matches above all else. One of their biggest mistakes was to try and make TNA like WWE in order to compete, but in doing so lost their unique selling point that had fans tuning in that didn’t appreciate the ‘sports entertainment’ package preached in the leading company.
That decision highlighted TNA as a poor man’s WWE, instead of the alternative experience that emphasizes pure, entertaining and high-octane wrestling that got them huge support in the mid-2000’s. If they stick to this mantra and Destination America allows them to push forward in this direction, then even this move will not deter their eager fans from watching.
Yet, even more important in TNA keeping afloat and then stepping up in 2015 will be their international market. Impact Wrestling is extremely popular in the United Kingdom, which is why they developed British Boot Camp as a spin-off series. Their emphasis on excellent wrestling and strong performances really connects with the fans across the Atlantic. And with names like Kurt Angle still under contract, the company retains enough star power to bring casual fans from those nations invested.
Furthermore, the partnership that has been established with Wrestle-1 in Japan has allowed them to develop a following in a passionate wrestling country. This has worked exceptionally well in aiding the growth of Ring of Honor with their alliance with NJPW. Although this resulted in an extremely disappointing Bound for Glory event that was good on wrestling but lacking in any story or excitement, in small doses the adoption of Japanese stars would certainly add an extra dimension to the company, especially in front of hardcore wrestling fans.
Now, I don’t want to simply stare at this situation with rose-tinted glasses, as there is no escaping the shambles TNA has become in the last few years. Frankly, they almost have to restart from the beginning and build their fans back up, which will be no easy feat. They need to concentrate on bringing in prominent young stars from the independent scene to their roster, especially as that has become a significant recruitment policy in WWE. And, they should really can their One Night Only specials and return to actual PPV cards or live specials.
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It will be tough at first, and possibly will be tough throughout all of 2015. However, I am confident that TNA will survive the transition to Destination America, and beyond that will eventually begin to thrive again and grow as an organization. Of course, it will not be challenging WWE and potentially never will be big enough to do so. But, if they spend less time focusing on the juggernauts, and more on what they should be doing to get fans tuning in, they can rise from the ashes.
It will undoubtedly be a long and arduous process, but I would like to hope that the worst is over for TNA for the time being. After the amount of heavy shots they have endured this year, it is about time they came out swinging. And, if their first few Destination America shows demonstrate that they aren’t throwing in the towel just yet, then 2015 could be the start of a fabulous rebirth of Impact Wrestling, rather than merely the beginning of the end.