TNA has no "identity"

[Mr. Nerfect]

Originally Posted by SlickyTrickyDamon Smackdown has episode titles they just don't put them on screen. You only see them when you see a Smackdown feed from another country online.

You know, while I think the idea of episode titles are dumb for a main show, I wouldn't mind SmackDown! doing it if they acknowledged things were taped, and/or advertised big main events. SmackDown! has sort differed from RAW in just the way they promote their matches throughout the show. If Jack Swagger was confirmed to be challenging for the World Heavyweight Title, for example, I wouldn't mind the WWE calling that week's show "Night of the Eagle." Where TNA goes wrong is that they seem to title their shows after the "unpredictable" out of ring storylines.

Going simple would be the best way for TNA to go, but they've booked themselves into so many corners. I'd love it if TNA just dropped the whole "Immortal" thing, but that's not going to happen. It's just tidying it up.

It also seems that TNA seems to scrap their plans. The Bound For Glory main event was seemingly all primed to be Rob Van Dam vs. Kurt Angle. Yes, two ex-WWE guys, but also two of the most exciting (still, in the case of Angle, anyway) and over men the company has. Angle should have won the World Heavyweight Title there, and things would be all sweet. Instead we got Jeff Hardy winning the World Title (which could have happened later, screwed over Angle and essentially streamlined the money match to culminate Jeff Hardy's reign as Hardy vs. Angle II). Now I can't tell who the top face is, and cloudiness there makes it hard to get into any sort of title match.

TNA should start thinking about Lockdown, which is usually a pretty big PPV for them -- where feuds end and momentum can be built for the summer months. What matches will TNA run then? While I can't imagine what the World Title match will be, I guess they could have Mr. Anderson, Matt Morgan, Rob Van Dam, "The Pope" D'Angelo Dinero & Douglas Williams (and even Eric Young) to face Immortal, with the stipulation being that the winning team's management representative (Dixie Carter or Eric Bischoff) gets power. Representing Immortal would be Jeff Hardy, Abyss and...fuck. Who else in Immortal is worth a damn? There are the guys in Fortune, but I think they are better suited to their own storylines.

For example, I am hoping that AJ Styles' failure to keep Ric Flair and Eric Bischoff happy leads to a feud with Frankie Kazarian, who does manage to satisfy them, culminating in a match at Lockdown (which you know would be awesome). Provided that Kazarian is the X-Division Champion, the title could also get a boost from that match. And if Flair hasn't truly picked a side yet, he could be the Special Guest Referee for the match.

Samoa Joe has reportedly re-signed with TNA, and it wouldn't make sense to have him return against anyone but Jeff Jarrett, who has schooled him in the past few weeks. But Jarrett will be tied up with Angle. Truthfully, though, I could get into a Three-Way Steel Cage Match between Angle, Jarrett & Joe. Have Angle and Jarrett cancel each other out, and build up Joe to be a contender for the World Heavyweight Title.

Throw in your usual X-Division X-Scape Match and The Queen of the Cage, and you only need to really book a TNA World Tag Team Title Match (Beer Money, Inc. vs. The Motor City Machine Guns vs. Generation Me vs. London Brawling...book it), a Knockout Title Match (Mickie James vs. Tara II?) and you're pretty much set. Give those matches time, and you have clear direction for 2011. It won't happen that way, though.