TNA: IMPACT WRESTLING November 15, 2012

[SpecialFNK]

According to PWTorch, TNA Impact on Thursday, November 15 scored a 1.07 rating, which was up slightly from a 1.03 rating last week. The taped show was tied for the highest rating in 11 weeks (August 30).

Impact averaged 1.35 million viewers, which was up six percent from last week. It was the most viewers in eight weeks dating back to mid-September.

First Hour Break Down

Q1: Impact opened with a 0.99 rating for the immediate PPV fall-out featuring James Storm's victory speech interrupted by Bobby Roode and one commercial. By comparison, the Impact following TNA's biggest PPV of the year, Bound for Glory, scored a 0.94 rating in Q1 for immediate PPV fall-out. (up 13% vs. live summer run Q1 average)

Q2: Impact increased slightly to a 1.02 rating for RVD vs. Kid Kash in an unannounced X Division Tile match, one commercial, and various backstage segments. (up 12% vs. live summer run Q2 average)

Q3: Impact decreased slightly to a 1.00 rating for Jesse vs. Eric Young, one commercial, Joseph Park and Hulk Hogan in Hogan's office, and Aces & Eights taking out Magnus before a scheduled TV Title match. (up 7% vs. live summer run Q3 average)

Q4: Impact was about the same with a 1.01 rating for follow-up on Magnus's beat down, Austin Aries and Jeff Hardy backstage, ring intros for the main event, and two full commercial breaks. (up 8% vs. live summer run Q4 average)

Second Hour Break Down

Q5: Impact increased to a show-high 1.18 rating for Kurt Angle & Garett Bischoff vs. Aces & Eights, backstage segments, and ring intros for the Knockouts battle royal before one commercial at the very end of the quarter-hour. (up 10% vs. live summer run Q5 average)

Q6: Impact stayed at a show-high 1.18 rating for the Knockouts battle royal, one commercial, backstage segments, and A.J. Styles coming to the ring for a speech. (up 14% vs. live summer run Q6 average)

Q7: Impact dipped to a 1.11 rating for Styles's speech interrupted by Daniels and Kazarian, one commercial, various backstage or video segments, and ring intros for the main event. (up 8% vs. live summer run Q7 average)

Q8: Impact dipped slightly to a second-hour-low 1.08 rating for the Roode vs. Storm main event and one commercial in the middle of the match. (up 1% vs. live summer run Q8 average)

I'm surprised the rating was this good considering it was taped.

[Mbellz3o8]

back into the 1.07 better then .8/9 but next week IM expect no higher then .8s soo

[Jack_Gordon]

I dont disagree with you on that, I don't think there is a lot of star quality in TNA. I think they are doing a great job with B talent. Thats not meant as an insult to tna fans, and I'm not trying to insult anyone thats a Storm fan either. I just don't "buy' him at all.

I don't like Hardy, but he has "it". Roode, AJ. I feel like Joe should be the face of TNA, put the belt on him and let him have a long run, make him look invincible. Give him a heel stable if that needs to happen in order to keep the belt on him storyline wise.

The obvious ones are there too, Sting, Angle. I was open to the idea of testing Aries at the "star level" and I'm not sure I've seen his best to judge him yet. I don't like what I see there though either. He seems like an innovator, but also seems way too scripted.

I think they are on to something with Morgan/Ryan and I'm interested to see where that goes. On that note, RVD had star power but he's completely done as a star.

Magnus could be a star but they failed him much like you see failure in Storms handling.

I don't disagree with the idea that theyve handled Storm wrong. If they are ever going to sway fans like me into buying Storm, well they've done a terrible job at that.

I just think Storm is a run of the mill, easy to find wrestler. There is nothing unique about him. Again, not meant as an insult to Storm fans. I'd rather see Roode get over.

I think Ray and Devon had a great gimmick and that made them stars, but I don't buy into either of them as stars now. They had momentum with Ray, he had catapulted himself into stardom with his mic work and carried tna for a short while there, but I think they dropped the ball on that too. I was tuning in to see what he would say when he was getting main event mic time on thursdays, as a heel. Started to lose their way when they put him against Park and now he just a lost tweener in my eyes.

I dont think they did enough with AJ when his star was shining, not its fading a bit and hes getting into that "tired of seeing him" phase with Daniels and Kaz. AJ should be in the icon phase of his career and hes still just a guy on the roster.

It does seem like almost every time theres a wrestler who has momentum going, they find a way to blow it. Not just Storm, but its happened as well with Ray now, and Morgan and Anderson in the past. I remember back when Morgan was doing the concussion angle that he was gaining a ton of steam quickly and getting great reactions...and then he just jobbed to Hardy 2 or 3 times and kinda fell off the map with how they used him. I think they shouldve pulled the trigger with him back then and see what came of it. They have a chance for redemption now with him but i cant say im too confident. Anderson, when he first came in and was feuding with Angle, was doing great as the legit a-hole heel. Then they got all corny and nauseating with the a-hole crap and turned him face....and hes sucked since and i could care less if he was let go. Joe has also been pushed and de-pushed countless times.

Excluding Hardy and Angle.... Storm, Ray, Roode, and Joe are the guys that to me, have a special quality about them. Possibly Morgan too. I have included Aries in the past but im now im kinda on the fence as far as main event goes. Ive never been one to knock down wrestlers for size but i think he may just be too small...I dont know. Seeing Hardy tower over him kinda changed my perspective a little. Plus turning him face hurt some so it may just take a little while as hes back where he belongs as a heel. Ive attacked AJ alot lately so i wont continue but i think he is missing something. Right now id take Daniels over him in a heartbeat. I think Daniels and Kazarian have moved up to being the best, most consistent act in TNA now that Bully at this point, has been ruined.

We'll just have to agree to disagree on Storm. There was a time when people debated on which one was better, now most everyone would say Roode but thats because of how theyve been handled i think. He needs to join Aces and be their top wrestler, a non-wrestler can be the President that recruits him. That way you can have both Storm and Roode heel, but not on the same side. It would also be pretty hilarious for Roode to be able to tell Hogan "i told you so!!"

[Jack_Gordon]

I think they've been planning on turning him heel all along. He is annoying and beyond stale as a face to me. When he first came back he was squashing everybody. But now it seems they are going the **** you I've been the good guy now Im just going to take everything. He is worthless as a face to me he is a wanna be very less talented HBK/SCSA rip off. Roode is am amazing heel but I feel roode should've been the face and storm the heel instead.

Obviously i completely disagree on how you rate Storm, but agree he needs to go heel. I think he can play face or heel well, but its a turn that has to be forced now cause of how hes been booked. I doubt having him turn heel was their plan all along though,..cause this is all goes back to Lockdown which im sure he originally was planned as the winner. I think for whatever reason, they just changed their mind and kept it on Roode, i dont think it was in their thought process at the time to do so in order for Storm to turn heel at the end of the year though. Its just a story that can be created now...Storm couldnt accomplish what he wanted, so now he joins up with Aces in order to achieve it.

[goalie]

They seem to lose direction or focus of what they have. Whoever is running tna does not know what they have, when they have it.

I am stuck on the fortune thing and usually complain about that. Everyone likes to see successful things from the past brought back. For a very short time it looked like AJ was gonig to be little Natch and that 4 horseman retread stable was goign to work. On top of that they had the perfect Dusty Rhodes in Joe, perfect in everyway. Same shape, same respect and ability. Joe was the perfect Dusty Rhodes to their 4 horseman. Then they had the fake SCSA with Anderson and the ahole thing. They had so much momentum with that and I feel like the blew it.

Its a pattern with them. Start somethign good but never finish it. Start something bad (MEM) and keep forcing it.

To be honest thats why I have no faith in what they do with a&8. For a long time now I was convinced that they had no idea how they would reveal the a&8 angle and they only recently decided who it would be. I think there is that much wcw-style confusion in the booking going on.

I'm not a wwe mark that just hates on tna. I watch them both no matter how bad they are or how terrible their decisions are. I actually havent watched much of either this entire fall. A&8 had me hooked but lost me, the lack of Bully segments got boring too. I was really enjoying his promos and we arent getting that gold anymore. WWE, well thats another story. Everything is so scripted and redundant. They prefected a formula post attitude era, after wcw folded and they had no competition. Its all about promoting the next event and not a care in the world for storyline consistency or anything to keep hardcore fans from ripping their hair out.

Who actually books TNA? Is it Hogan and Bischoff? Or did that end?

[Jack_Gordon]

They seem to lose direction or focus of what they have. Whoever is running tna does not know what they have, when they have it.

I am stuck on the fortune thing and usually complain about that. Everyone likes to see successful things from the past brought back. For a very short time it looked like AJ was gonig to be little Natch and that 4 horseman retread stable was goign to work. On top of that they had the perfect Dusty Rhodes in Joe, perfect in everyway. Same shape, same respect and ability. Joe was the perfect Dusty Rhodes to their 4 horseman. Then they had the fake SCSA with Anderson and the ahole thing. They had so much momentum with that and I feel like the blew it.

Its a pattern with them. Start somethign good but never finish it. Start something bad (MEM) and keep forcing it.

To be honest thats why I have no faith in what they do with a&8. For a long time now I was convinced that they had no idea how they would reveal the a&8 angle and they only recently decided who it would be. I think there is that much wcw-style confusion in the booking going on.

I'm not a wwe mark that just hates on tna. I watch them both no matter how bad they are or how terrible their decisions are. I actually havent watched much of either this entire fall. A&8 had me hooked but lost me, the lack of Bully segments got boring too. I was really enjoying his promos and we arent getting that gold anymore. WWE, well thats another story. Everything is so scripted and redundant. They prefected a formula post attitude era, after wcw folded and they had no competition. Its all about promoting the next event and not a care in the world for storyline consistency or anything to keep hardcore fans from ripping their hair out.

Who actually books TNA? Is it Hogan and Bischoff? Or did that end?

As far as I know the lead writer is Dave Lagana, but you still have Hogan, Bishcoff, Pritchard and god knows who else involved so no one really knows whos truly running things. My total guess would be that whatever EB and Hogan says still overrides everything...but this is pure speculation knowing what i know about these guys.

I do think you're right about how they start things and then when it gots hot, seem to go off of it. Like Roode last year in the BFG series, he was hot and had the crowd chanting for him, but then i think they switched last minute to Angle retaining and then turning Bobby heel a few weeks later. I didnt feel like that was their plan all along. Then as ive mentioned, Storm at Lockdown. Story says Storm shouldve won, but then we read that they decided against it last second. Then they just put the belt on Aries out of the blue. I think they do try to plan things long term but then for whatever reason, be it the dirt sheets predicting where they are going or whatever,...they seem to change plans last minute.

[SpecialFNK]

one of the things I've read about in the past is that TNA puts too much into what the ratings are. if they are going with a story and ratings aren't showing good, they decide to change whether the quality of the story was good or not.
I think it's unfortunate that TNA (or anyone) puts so much value into what the ratings are, when that isn't a true value of what the quality is.

[metsbulls1025]

I don't think Storm is ruined. I think what happened was they wanted a face to win the 3 way so they didn't give away their main event. If Roode won right before the main event you would have knew for a fact Hardy was winning. Storm winning put doubts in everyone's mind.

Storm is over and stays over regardless of what happens because he is a likable guy and cuts good promos.

I wouldn't surprise me if we get a 4 way at some point with Storm, Hardy, Roode, and Aries. Storm could maybe pin Aries for the win and that turns into a Storm and Aries feud.

[Jack_Gordon]

I get what youre saying MB but I doubt many people really believed Aries was going to win anyway. I think having the two belts hanging was enough for drama purposes, as a draw was the second most likely scenario to Hardy winning outright. I just dont think it was worth making Storm look like a complete fool again.

[Jack_Gordon]

So any ideas of whats going on with Brooke and Bully?

Oh, and another thing thats bugging me is that Aces and 8s should not be losing matches...its too soon.

[BJBirdy]

So any ideas of whats going on with Brooke and Bully?

Oh, and another thing thats bugging me is that Aces and 8s should not be losing matches...its too soon.

Maybe they're the leaders of the Ace and 8's together. A co-worker of mine suggested that perhaps Brooke was part of the A&8 similar to how Stephanie McMahon turned against her father. I hope he's wrong, however.

[SpecialFNK]

So any ideas of whats going on with Brooke and Bully?

Oh, and another thing thats bugging me is that Aces and 8s should not be losing matches...its too soon.

I have to agree on A&8 losing. they should be looking strong right now and unstoppable. TNA should be fearing them. I also feel like they need a big name to be revealed. Devon was a surprise, but not an OMG not that guy! the mystery of who is behind the masks is nice, but still names matter.

[metsbulls1025]

http://imgbox.com/acokRAGx

[Jack_Gordon]

Maybe they're the leaders of the Ace and 8's together. A co-worker of mine suggested that perhaps Brooke was part of the A&8 similar to how Stephanie McMahon turned against her father. I hope he's wrong, however.

When this angle first began, my worst fear was Brooke...imagining the same Stephanie like angle. I dont know though, didnt a couple weeks ago Bully get "candidly" filmed telling Brooke something about making a promise to her father? If he was just a swerving heel the whole time and one of the leaders, i dont think thats something he would say in what was presented as a private conversation thats wasnt supposed to be filmed. He would just be evil Bully who would never say that. If Brooke is the mastermind, (oh god i hope not), then i think shes just trying to lure him to join up by flirting with him and he hasnt been in on it from the start.

I have to agree on A&8 losing. they should be looking strong right now and unstoppable. TNA should be fearing them. I also feel like they need a big name to be revealed. Devon was a surprise, but not an OMG not that guy! the mystery of who is behind the masks is nice, but still names matter.

Yeah, I just dont get it. When you have a group that so far doesnt have big names, thats all the more reason to make them appear strong because they need to establish credibility. The beatings with the hammer are nice, but these guys need to be winning matches too. (or not even wrestling in them at all if they are just gonna lose)