Not-So-Instant Feedback: That Sucked Hardcore

I finally caught up with Impact from this past week on my DVR, and let me say, I wasn't impressed at all. Coming off the heels of the most critically acclaimed PPV in the company's recent history, I thought I was in for a treat. Yeah, well that treat didn't come until there were ten minutes left in the show, when there was a decent tag match between Christopher Daniels and Desmond "Nigel" Wolfe, and Kurt Angle and AJ Styles. To be expected, those are four great workers in a setting where they could shine.

Up to that... well, the wrestling was boring at best and horrendous at worst. I don't see where the love for Sarita and Alissa Flash comes from, unless I just watched a rare bad match, because it was terrible. Both women telegraphed spots. I felt like I was watching something fake instead of watching something that was staged (big difference). Oh, and by the way, that run in at the end from Traci Brooks... her punches are so bad they make Shane McMahon look like fucking Floyd Mayweather, Jr. The same kind of unbelievably bad move-botching was present with the six-man rematch. It moved so slow and the action looked so unbelievable that I had to fast forward through it. I mean, those trash-can lid shots D'Angelo Dinero threw at Bubba Ray? Weaker than the weakest weaksauce I've seen in the worst of the watered down 24/7 Hardcore Title days shots. That was just embarrassing. It's clear that the Dudz can't keep up anymore, and I've never really been a fan of Rhino. Hamada/Wilde was okay, but people were pimping it as a match of the week type deal. It just looked like a bunch of spots thrown together. I mean, that's not bad in and of itself, but there was no flow.

Also... who's fucking idea was the ODB interview segment? If I wasn't watching that by myself, I would have been embarrassed to be a wrestling fan. Homicide deserves better, and I suppose ODB does too. Sadly, that was the most memorable backstage segment, other than all the Hogan hype, which I predict will wear thin sooner rather than later. Hogan needs to get his ass there. I don't care if they have a launch date set up. TNA is just not good enough at creating a sustained buzz.

I want to like TNA, and I want it to do well, but they're just not giving me anything to latch onto. Shoddy presentation will do that. The bush-league atmosphere is TNA's biggest problem, and that filters down to the wrestling. If they gave a shit about how they looked appearance wise, then maybe they'd have road agents who cared more about getting matches down pat. It's just a picture of malaise.

I mean for one, the announcers don't know how to get anything over. All the "Titantrons" (for lack of a better term) are bland and repetitive in a bad way. The theme songs don't stick out. The camera work is terrible. I got a more professional vibe watching ECW back in the '90s, and those production values suuuuuucked.

It's just so frustrating to have the one company that could give the WWE a run for its money be so bad. Still, I guess it's worth following for the few good matches and the flashes of brilliance they have every once in a while. I guess.