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| Is this really the best option? Photo Credit: ImpactWrestling.com |
Styles started off reminiscing about the "good ol' days" of TNA when they used to be at The Asylum in the Nashville Fairgrounds. He talked about what a great show that they used to have and some of the names that had moved on from the promotion. He dropped some big names like Low Ki and Alex Shelley, something that you almost never see in this day of copyrights and brand recognition.
AJ then pulled off quite possibly the most shocking thing that I have seen since the original pipe bomb when he called out Dixie Carter for not only getting rid of the stars of the past, but for dumping them for MMA fighters. If ever there was a promo that was molded specifically for an Internet Impact fan, this line damn near pulled their heart out by the strings.
Now, the fanboy in me hopes that perhaps TNA has really realized what they have been doing to slowly kill their business and this promo is their way of apologizing and trying to right the ship. However, the skeptical, disbelieving TNA reviewer in me just saw it as a way to get a dig in at Bellator for pulling Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz off their programming while also making Style's promo seem that much more unscripted. I guess that will remain to be seen.
As the guy that criticized Styles a couple of weeks ago after his first attempt at the pipe bomb, I must now take the time to applaud him. Absolutely everything that he said was not only spot on, but it flowed perfectly, as if he he was legitimately speaking his mind. I have not been that happy with a promo, especially in TNA, for quite some time.
Then, they brought out Carter...
Look, I get it. No one else could combat Styles on this. If this is REALLY them recoginizing their mistakes and this is step one to correcting their issues, Carter had to be the one that went toe-to-toe with him. The unfortunate thing for TNA is that Carter belongs on television almost as much as the MMA guys do. Honestly, I kinda got behind her for a minute, even though it wasn't great, but then, she did the worst swerve job of all time.
I'm not sure where they're going with her heel turn. I thought they realized around the Claire Lynch thing that Carter didn't belong on TV, but apparently we're still not there yet. She is so unbelievably transparent that you know what her segments are about seconds into her grabbing the microphone. But now, it looks like we're heading into Styles vs. Carter now intertwining with the Bound For Glory main event. It really sounds like a way to de-value that match at the biggest show of the year, but that's just me thinking out loud.
I think that TNA can salvage this while still maintaining the integrity of the storyline they had just started. Unfortunately, that would mean that Hogan turns heel to back Carter. The downside to that is that as a heel, it becomes difficult for him to combat Aces and Eights while we head into not only the same show, but the same match.
This whole thing would've made more sense after Styles wins the title at BFG. Then, the company is rid of the Aces and Eights, and the focus of "management" can be on the new Champion. Just let Styles say what he wants to say until BFG, and then Carter can come in with her rebuttal. Then, we can start Austin-McMahon version whatever. Overall, I give Styles a gigantic pat on the back, but they need to ensure that they find a better way than Carter to further this storyline.