This week we're going to start off with something that amazes me. Last Sunday TNA held its annual version of Wrestlemania, surprisingly not called "Wrestlefest" or "Wrestlevania", in Philadelphia. That's right; someone decided that Hogan/Sting III needed to be held in the heartland of hardcore. Bound for Glory has come and Bound for Glory has gone. Bobby Roode has become a hot property. Hogan has done interviews with people about who is and who isn't ready...he has also wrestled. After the past few weeks of positive outlooks on TNA I wonder what the WWI Forums had to say about the show.

The Green Teabagger

You paid for this? Hope you have some of RVD's or Jeff Hardy's stash

TXL

No PPV is worth $40 - $60, but I like to order 1 every year. First two matches have been very good... no buyer's remorse yet.

Reactions of people ringside and in the first row were hilarious when Crimson walked by them after he won. Instead of the cheers one would normally expect when a good guy wins a big match, people just kind of gave him the same type of quick head nod you'd give a coworker in the hallway

The Green Teabagger

Hogan actually does the job and STILL finds a way to get himself over everyone else out there.

TXL

Besides the Dixie Carter shots at ringside, this was good for what it was. People will complain that Hogan overshadowed everything, as usual, but both he and Sting made the crowd happy here.

James Guttman

Not an awful show but not a great show. Just a show.

Mike Johns

For TNA, that can be quite the feat sometimes. Believe me.

TXL

Ok, I almost always try to find a positive spin on TNA stuff, or at the very least try not to take it too seriously, but what a SHITTY ending to your biggest PPV of the year. It's not the fact that Angle won, it's the fact that everything ended on such a complete whimper. Even the announcers made it seem like it wasn't over yet, like something else was supposed to happen. That would be a great ending for Impact, but not for your biggest PPV of the year.

It was a pretty good match up until then, but it was unfortunately rushed a bit due to time constraints.

James Guttman

They were trying to sell something with the ref doing the X. I'm sure there'll be some sort of explanation tomorrow. I hate how TNA PPVs always require a post-show explanation.

Mike Johns

on the plus, tonight's tweeting's got me talking with a local fan. of the female variety. Who follows a lot of the same stuff I do. and writes for DDS. Yeah... good night

PeterDawson

You know, I remember when shows like Wrestlemania, Starrcade and Bound for Glory were supposed to more or less be culminations of feuds. It only really feels like one feud ended tonight. I think that's still one more than Wrestlemania 27 though...

T-Dog

There's only so many big mistake a wrestling company can do.

Roode not winning the title tonight was a big mistake.

PeterDawson

Didn't help that Hulk Hogan insisted like a week ago Roode wasn't ready. Hogan buries yet another viable champion...

Canadian Bulldog

I actually came REALLY close to buying this one (or at least finding a feed somewhere) because I figured there was no way -- NO WAY -- they could screw up Angle/Roode. I would have been so pissed had I invested time, let alone money, into this.

Nice knowing you TNA, last one out turn the lights off.

Aaron Wood

Indeed, if PWI's free news section is to be believed, Roode was set to win the title last night when your top babyface and mine, Hulk Hogan put the kibosh on the idea, saying he wasn't ready.

I kinda like the reading of the show and, if I remember when it airs in the UK, I'll actually watch it, but the thing that stuck out at me was that it was funny how Hogan made sure he was the big star of the night when all was said and done.

I'm almost amazed he didn't end up Mania 9'ing his way to the title afterwards.

Exx

I'm trying to hold out hope that maybe they changed their mind and decided to put it on Storm instead.

Thought it was a decent show aside from the main event finish and that russorific knockouts match.

Hogan/Sting was better than it had any right to be. Given the two guys involved and the fact that Hogan probably shouldn't even be in a ring with his back problems, I don't think that match could have possibly went any beter than it did.

Aj/Daniels was good until Daniels turned into a comic book villian.

Aries/Kendrick was really good.

Somehow Bully Ray managed to get a decent match out of Anderson.

James Bullock

I can't believe I'm about to write this, but I hope everyone gives TNA a little slack on the whole Roode losing thing. Following ROH as long as I have, I've seen so many guys lose their "sure" title wins, only for them to find redemption and pull it off. The scary part is if Roode will get the chance that Tyler Black, Nigel McGuinness, and Davey Richards got. And if he does, will he suffer the same fate as Black and Nigel that saw the fans turn on them shortly after winning because they got sick of their respective chases. Or will Roode be another Pope - who flirted with the main event scene only to fall back to the depths from where he came - thanks to Hogan's influence.

Aaron Wood

I would give them slack on Roode not winning it. Your analogy is spot on with ROH guy nopt winning when it seemed liek the sure (and right) thing to do. However, TNA has something that ROH doesn't have that will likely mean that even if I give them slack, it'll be for nought.

It has Hulk Hogan dictating to the people in charge who he thinks is ready and who should be pushed as such. It's not just Roode this weekend, remember. Hogan essentially called out all the "TNA Originals" saying they couldn't get it done.

We can cut TNA slack, but with Hogan there, they themselves aren't giving any slack out to be cut.

James Guttman

Oh wow. But I thought Bruce Prichard decided "direction" now...

Haha. For those who didn't read my posts or hear my audio last week, I'm being sarcastic.

Big issue for me wasn't so much the winner (although I think they left money on the table with Roode losing last night) but the way it was done. A disjointed finish that resembled more of the Montreal screwjob than a normal match finish. Just a bizarre and unsatisfying way to end the show given all the hype they had going into it. There were a million other ways to close things out than the way they did and have it not seem so ho-hum.

RDLee

What's the big deal about Bobby Roode? I mean, he is a talented wrestler and all but I honestly don't see what is so special about him to the IWC?

Can any of you imagine buying a Bobby Roode T-Shirt that isn't BEER MONEY influenced? I doubt it.

The Green Teabagger

It's not so much Bobby Roode as the well-done build to it, and apparently now finding out that Hulk fuck-ass Hogan called it off. TNA made you believe.

TNA made you invest time and emotion into Bobby Roode.
TNA made you want to see Roode beat Angle.
TNA made you want to see Bobby Roode break the proverbial glass ceiling that plagues TNA and become the new TNA World Heavyweight Champion.
Then the fuckers did this.
Bulldog nailed it right on the head.
It would have been very very hard for TNA to fuck this up, and they managed to find a way to do so.

Canadian Bulldog

To me, the point isn't whether Roode could sell a T-shirt or not (and there's no reason he couldn't sell one.... eventually). The point is that TNA could have done the right thing for a change and once again screwed it up.

When you a do a storyline like this, there are only two possible satisfactory endings: the face wins against tremendous odds or the heel employs major cheating to win, making him seen even more like a jerk and having people salivating for the inevitable rematch.

Neither thing (really) happened, so why would I want to see that match again now? Or more to the point, why do I want to see ANYBODY against Kurt Angle now?

By feeding us the classic 'underdog makes good' story, TNA was implying, if not assuring, us that Roode would be made into a star. He won't now -- or at least, I can't see how they do that.

You can argue that WWE did the exact same thing with the CM Punk angle, and I wouldn't necessarily dispute that, but the difference is WWE still has tons of goodwill. Even after a decade of providing below-par action (for the most part), people keep coming back to the product.

TNA doesn't have that goodwill. In cases like this, they can't afford to go with the controversial decision just because it isn't "what people expect". In my mind, they had to deliver a clear cut, easy to understand story here, and they didn't.

Might they reverse that and have Roode win the belt at the next PPV? Sure, and maybe some people will cut them slack. But I don't think many will. This was a real turning point for TNA (pun kind of intended) and they didn't pass the test. That's how significant I think this is.

RDLee

Blame Hogan, Blame Russo, Blame Jarrett, Blame Dixie, Blame whoever you want... but the bottom line is that it doesn't seem to matter who is in charge there they are destined to blow whatever momentum they get for the rest of time. It's really quite simple... while the talent is mostly outstanding, the company itself is doomed.

Mike Johns

You guys remember the end of the Family Guy 2-parter where Stewie finally Killed Lois? How it all ended up being nothing but a simulation?

Stewie is TNA, thinking the ride was worth the journey, and the folks bitching about Roode losing is Brian, telling Stewie that this simulation BS is just going to piss a lot of people off.

I'm the Sopranos' sudden ending joke that cuts Stewie off.

James Bullock

The distressing part is Hogan's involvement. If it's true that he had the outcome changed (esspecially with the crappy ending that seemed like either an error similar to the Starrcade '97 Ref Gate, or the ref was a really good actor by wrestling referee standards). I just have a bad feeling that Roode's going to be another Pope, and all the hard work to build someone up that could make money down the line, or at least keep those fickle fans happy wouldn't mean a thing.

So we went from last week's optimism all the way to being back to normal with TNA. Sure some people are giving them the benefit of the doubt and waiting awhile but others are throwing them under the bus. Is that really the right course of action? Well, I don't really know. I think that is really up to each individual wrestling fan at this point. The way I see it; we all love wrestling if we're visiting this site and you're reading this article. We can complain about it all but we all love wrestling, we'll come back to this anytime they tease us with a fantastic match-up.

James Guttman decided to test our sanity this past week by creating a polldaddy.com quiz. http://2928277.polldaddy.com/s/quiz-10-19-11

Insert your own Candice Michelle joke here because I don't have anything that wouldn't be considered mean or offensive to her. Since JG hasn't gotten an interview with her to this point, I don't believe, I don't want to be the one messing that up.

A wrestling quiz should be easy right? He just gave us some questions about insanity that has happened through the years. 80% is the passing grade. Pssh, I've been watching wrestling since I can remember this can't be that hard. I'll pre-guess some answers: Tugboat, Dink, Seven Year Itch, TNA, TNA, Impact Wrestling, Katie Vick. Okay, now let's look at this quiz...oh...60%. Well....this was kind of hard. I wonder what everyone else got.

Canadian Bulldog

I got 70 % and I'm not sure which ones were wrong. Possibly Question # 1.

Mike Johns

Yeah, I suck. 60%

There's not enough TNA questions. You guys are so pro-WWE!

Eaglesfn345

10% - I'm like Aaron Wood squared - total unadulterated suckatude

Nelsolo

I got 40%, but there were only two questions where I could say with confidence I actually knew the answer. The other two I probably got lucky.

Aaron Wood

80% bitches!

Nuwanda

Well 50% is not that bad, considering most happened before my debut in wrestling-interest. Got lucky on some though.

Matt Dawgs

9 out of 10!!!

RowdyRodimus

If it matters I got 100% on my first try. I need to get a life it appears.

Take The Quiz

Get The Answers

So with this scoreboard being laid in front of you can you match RowdyRodimus' score? I refuse to believe that only one man can, without finding the answers, get a one-hundred percent on this quiz. Someone out there has got to prove me right and let us know on the message boards.

If you haven't checked out Matt Dawg and Canadian Bulldog's article 10 Gimmicks You See At Virtually Every independent Show http://www.worldwrestlinginsanity.com/am2/publish/CanadianBulldog/Every_Independent_Show.shtml you really should. These two have nailed it right on the head. An indy show is something to behold. There is nothing more intriguing than seeing a two to three hour show that takes place for you and maybe thirty or fifty other people. You'll get every type of wresting that you felt your $5 ticket from the tobacco store down the street was worth.

Mike Johns

You guys actually found an Indy Show that didn't have a Trailer Park Homeboy/Eminem Clone? Have I finally lived to see the day when that gimmick actually died? You mean to tell me that Jack Evans actually managed to be so good at being that big of a douchetard that he ran all the other Shadys off?

FINALLY! It's safe for me to go to an Indy Show live, again!

Canadian Bulldog

Honestly, I've never seen that gimmick. At least at the shows I go to....

Mike Johns

It may be more of an American thing, too. 5 years ago, I couldn't go to a live show or get an Indy DVD that didn't have at least one Shady clone. It may have died off with the 00's

Drewcifer66

WWI is doing Supershows too?

Esequiel

I remember when Kevin Nash headlined a show I went to in Paw Paw WV. Although, I didn't think he was doing it for the reasons you mentioned (he was still working for TNA at the time). It was a show to raise money for the local fire department and to say the least, we were all packed like sardines in a tiny high school gym. It was a good show all around and Kevin was a class act through and through.

TheGreatWhiteDope/@ThisCoreyLetson/Me

@ MattDawgs @ canadianbulldog you forgot indy vet who takes liberties with rookies to "teach'em respect"

Linda McMahon is back on the campaign trail. This of course means fantastic photo opportunities. Is there anything better than taking a photo out of any context and adding your own captions?

CanadianBulldog

"And the sixth reason why I think you guys botched the CM Punk storyline is...."

Kheneth

"Mrs. McMahon, You have some 'grapefruit' juice right here."

Mike Johns

"Are you a Cylon?"

Tharvey1

Mom, how do I tell people that I have the same problem Benjamin Button had? - Shane McMahon

RDLee

"Hmmm... so let me get this straight Mrs. McMahon... if I pledge right now to donate my entire allowance on your next campaign, you'll actually send Kelly Kelly to be my date at the school dance?"

Now you all have one week to give the best captions you can to this fantastic picture:

You can submit yours at the bottom of this article or over on the WWI Message Board in the "Caption This" thread. - http://s14.zetaboards.com/Wrestling_Insanity/topic/6677704/1/#new

With that we've reached the end of Hot Threads for the current week. I only have two pieces of advice for any of you reading this column right now:

1) If you're reading this and have yet to join the World Wrestling Insanity Forums you really need to. You can join a fantastic community of people and also maybe get your thoughts put out on a website. Granted, when you post it on the forums it will be on a website...this would be a .com.

2) While you're on the World Wrestling Insanity Forums why don't you join The WWI Halloween Costume Contest http://s14.zetaboards.com/Wrestling_Insanity/topic/6679474/1/ The rules are simple and it only takes, maybe, 5 minutes out of YOUR MONTH! So go ahead and join for a chance to have fun, and see if you're better at dressing up as something imaginary compared to other people on the internet.

Until next time.....