Impact Wrestling: Where The Bad Guys Play…
Impact Wrestling has been a good place to ply your trade as a heel recently. The Impact Zone has become THE PLACE THE BAD GUYS PLAY. But what’s happened to all the heroes?
The creative direction of Impact Wrestling 2018 has been a joy to behold. The emphasis on logical stories, athletic, stiff in-ring action and a more adult environment in which this can take place, has given the company a distinct identity and clear focus.
This more adult approach, a place of bloodletting, extreme violence and salty language, has been a bad guy paradise. A hive of scum bags and the villainous, Impact Wrestling is the place to be for the reprehensible hordes. But in a world where low blows, foreign objects and clandestine chair shots succeed, are Impact creative failing their babyface roster?
Austin Aries is a Grade-A slice of scum. The Greatest Man That Ever Lived, self-proclaimed, is as good a heel as you can get in 2018. Supremely confident, endlessly arrogant and not afraid to shout out about his accomplishments, Impact Wrestling made a mistake when Aries debuted as a face.
Walking into the Impact Zone with his multiple titles won across the globe, the braggadocious champion was primed to be booed. With the help of a distracted referee, a nut shot and a brain buster, Aries path to the dark side was set in motion at the Under Pressure special. Since that day, Aries has reigned supreme as the obnoxious veteran who always finds a way to succeed. Aries is definitely more suited to the ways of the Sith.
Currently paired with Aries is The Walking Psychopath, Killer Kross. A strong contender for the best introduction to a character in Impact Wrestling this year, Kross was revealed as the mystery attacker who left a trail of battered bodies in his wake. With a gnarly, tattooed visage, an intensely evil promo style, KK is here to establish his own chaos-driven world order.
Still establishing himself as an in-ring competitor, the short, sharp shocks that have made up his matches, have shown a physicality that complements his persona perfectly. 2019 could be a very good year for the unhinged, Faust-incarnate.
courtesy of impactwrestling.com
Eli Drake has recently re-signed a long-term contract and will be looking to re-establish his worth as a main event contender. Having had a good run with the top strap in 2017 and early 2018, Eli is The Rock- levels of entertaining. Circa 1998/1999, The Rock took good ring skills and married them with a cocksure and interactive heel personality and phenomenal promo skills to become one of the few who could hang with Stone Cold.
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Eli has that same potential. I don’t think we’ve seen Drake’s best work yet. And given the new regimes creative daring do, I think the full force, re-energised and unstoppable Eli Drake is about to be unleashed.
And then there’s Sami Callihan…I’ve written at length about the OVE leader before.
The hatred-spitting, vitriol-spewing, demented Sami, is Impact Wrestling’s premier performer. Nasty, mean and always looking for a way to make you hate him, Sami Callihan is this companies Voldemort, Darth Vader and Negan all rolled into one despicable ball of rage. I’ve got to believe that 2019 will be his year to shine as Impact World Champion.
It was whilst watching Callihan that I realised just how strong the heel stable was within Impact.
The creative minds of Don Callis and Scott D’Amore have built up an impressive top line of bad guys. With strong heel work from Matt Sydal, Kongo Kong and Jimmy Jacobs and more circling the shark infested waters of the top spot, Impact Wrestling has money to be made in seeing these guys beaten, bloodied and overcome.
But who gets to administer the beating?
Brian Cage is a special performer. A heavyweight who can move like a cruiserweight. A competitor who can adapt to different sizes, shapes and styles of pro wrestling. Just look at his matches with Matt Sydal and Kongo Kong for proof. But other than being strong and silent, what is Cage’s character? What makes him tick? What drives The Machine? Impact have yet to start telling the story behind the man.
Credit: @IMPACTWRESTLING via Twitter
Eddie Edwards inhabits a tweener role at present. While the unhinged narrative of Edwards has been compelling television, his character will need some major rehabilitation to re-enter the competition for ‘face that runs the place’.
Pentagon Jr and Fenix are massively over with every crowd. As much as I love both competitors, it is their innovative offence and daredevil antics that have delivered viewer satisfaction. As an audience, what do we really know about each man’s journey to the top of the wrestling industry?
Credit: Impact Wrestling On Twitter
As long as Johnny Impact declares himself The Mayor of Slamtown, he will lack that edge of character needed for a wider viewership to take him seriously as The Man.
Then, there’s the man called, Moose. In the lead up to Slammiversary, Impact did a tremendous job of showing who Moose was and why the title would mean the world to him. He looked to make his family proud. He sought vindication. He wanted to become the torch-bearer for the Impact brand. On the road to Slammiversary, we were told the story of the man behind the character.
Moose came up short in his quest for gold.
Maybe a heart breaking loss will be the motivation for Moose to come back harder. Stronger. Hungrier. Perhaps the broken dream will ignite this good guy to beat the Greatest Man?
The rogues gallery is running rampant through Impact Wrestling. A healthy dose of the rotten and the rancid is good for the company. A wrestling company needs strong heels for the hero to rise up, to overcome the odds, to slay the fire-breathing Dragon. Creative have used the first half of 2018 to construct a horde of the manic, the monstrous and the misguided. As we drive down the road to Bound for Glory, it’s time for the heroes story to be told.
It's Only A Matter Of Time Before Killer Kross Turns On Austin Aries. dark. Next
Who will rise from the ashes to claim the throne? Who will look to build their legacy? Whose journey will right the good versus evil balance for Impact Wrestling?
And who will wipe that s**t eating grin off Austin Aries face?
It’s put up or shut up time for the good guys.