Roundtable: Impact Wrestling

In this edition of The Wrestling Estate roundtable, the staff reminisce on the history of Impact Wrestling and analyzes the company’s current situation.

What’s your earliest memory of Impact Wrestling?

David Gibb: When I started watching wrestling again in ’06, I asked my pal Daron Jackson (now of WWE) where Jeff Hardy was.

John Corrigan: I was browsing the online dirtsheetz and WrestleZone mentioned that a new company called NWA: TNA was launching a weekly pay-per-view for 10 bucks. After convincing my parents to shell out more money on top of the $30-$35 for WWE, I checked out Jeff Jarrett’s cast of characters. I was hooked, but couldn’t order every week, so it was a Godsend when IMPACT came to Fox Sports.

Jack Goodwillie: I may have told this story on The Wrestling Estate Podcast, but back in 2005 my friends and I were having a sleepover and were just channel-surfing when I came across TNA iMPACT on the old, generic Fox Sports network. My mind was blown. “There’s more wrestling on television other than WWE?” I think the match we were watching was Raven and Abyss against DDP and X-Pac perhaps? It was the Against All Odds 2005 go-home show. Regardless, the six-sided ring and clear difference in presentation and in-ring style immediately had me interested and I would say TNA had me as a loyal follower for the next six years or so after that.

Did you like the six-sided ring?

Gibb: I like it for the X-Division (more corners, tighter ropes, etc.), but I think it can also overcomplicate things in matches with full-sized heavyweights. (“Good old wishy-washy Charlie Brown.”)

Corrigan: Yeah, it was certainly different and provided an alternative to WWE. However, I have to admit that I love the current all-blue, four-sided ring presentation of #IMPACTonPOP. Reminds me of WCW Thunder mixed with early days of Smackdown.

Goodwillie: I did. Like I said, it made things feel different and not necessarily “minor leagues” as a lot of people like to say. Eventually, my eyes sort of got used to it. I did not like, however, when they tried to bring it back to spark “nostalgia.” Such endeavors rarely work in wrestling because as Jim Cornette likes to say, “You can’t put glue back into the glue gun.”

Why did you lose interest/stop following?

Gibb: Shortly after the Slammiversary XI show in Boston (which I went to and wrote about in a voice that now makes me cringe), the Aces & Eights storyline (of which I had originally been a fan) was dead on the table and they just refused to stop trying to shock it back to life.

Corrigan: Moving Impact to go head-to-head with Raw made me take sides. Even though I watched the first episode and loved all the appearances and Sting’s heel turn, I couldn’t miss Bret Hart’s return to WWE and ongoing saga with Vinnie Mac. I returned as a loyal viewer in 2015, though, because I enjoy shows that most people don’t. (Glory Daze, Vinyl, Men of a Certain Age, etc.)

Goodwillie: It’s almost like this roundtable was made for me (laughs). Going away to college in 2011 definitely played a factor, but I still caught Bound For Glory live at Temple University. While it was cool to be there, it was also the most disappointing live wrestling show I’ve ever seen, as my expectations were sky high, particularly for the Roode-Angle main event and the AJ Styles-Christopher Daniels I Quit match. The former match put over the wrong guy and the latter match had a bizarre finish that left me feeling empty inside. From there, my interest in the product went down the toilet.

How do you feel about the new era with Don Callis and Scott D’Amore?

Gibb: They’re both extremely smart guys who know pro wrestling. I’d say if ownership wanted fresh voices who know what’s hip in wrestling in 2018 outside the WWE-o-sphere, they got the right folks. That said, it takes more than really smart wrestling minds doing good work to be successful at promoting wrestling, and the company needs a break or two to really take back off.

Corrigan: So far, so good. The overall presentation has improved, starting off every show with a match has been refreshing and the commentary team of Sonjay Dutt and Josh Matthews is a fun combination. Now if only we could get more Fallah Baah…

Goodwillie: I love it. Don Callis’ TNA run slightly predates the time I was watching, but D’Amore was on TV managing Team Canada. Both guys are very shrewd wrestling people and that’s what the company has needed all along, and no, Dixie Carer and her Vince Russo fetish do not qualify. I’m not expecting any shenanigans. I am expecting TNA to get back to basics, presenting a refreshing and entertaining product in its purest form.

Who was your favorite TNA star?

Gibb: AJ Styles. Even if he’d never gotten to the WWE, he would’ve been the greatest wrestler of his generation, in my eyes. (Honorable mention: Christopher Daniels, who doesn’t get enough credit for innovating the “fast-paced, super athletic, main event match” style that Styles, Rollins, Balor, etc. work.)

Corrigan: Monty Brown. Now barely a footnote in wrestling history, the Alpha Male could have been the face of the company (much like Moose could be today). He had the look, the charisma, the entrance, the gimmick, the badass finisher and the catchphrase: POOOOOUUUNCE…period.

Goodwillie: Shark Boy? Hulk Hogan? Curry Man? Seriously, it’s AJ Styles. As a fan of the WWE Cruiserweight division of the mid-2000s, I always thought AJ could walk in the door and be every bit as good as Rey Mysterio was at the time. AJ’s fresh face ultimately kept me a fan for as long as I was, and he delivered memorable feuds with Jeff Jarrett, Christopher Daniels and Kurt Angle. It’s too bad they broke him down only to build him back up as much as they did, as he could have achieved super stardom that much quicker otherwise. Now he’s the best worker in the world, and I’m none the bit surprised.