The Katz Files – Arnie Katz
My Weekly TNA Notebook
The Kingfish Arnie Katz wrestles with some of the major issues raise by the 9/17 episode of TNA’s weekly TV show.
The Knockout Tag Tournament
The trouble with the Knockout Championship arose due to TNA’s policy of taping several shows at a time instead of working live like WWE does with RAW.
There are good reasons for doing it that way, mostly financial, but there is also a big disadvantage. Right now, TNA is experiencing that downside; they’ve pushed The Beautiful People through the tournament – this time they beat Tara and Christy Hemme – when Angelina Love’s exile to Canada makes it impossible for that duo to work No Surrender.
Had TMA known that If TNA had known that Love wouldn’t be available, the finals at No Surrender might well have been Tara & Christy Hemme versus Awesome Kong and Raisha Saeed. The babyfaces would likely win the belts to lose them to a reconstituted Beautiful People.
What I think TNA will do, as opposed to what I think they should do, is that Madison Rayne will team with Velvet Sky in the finals. This is one time when a TNA flaw, lack of story continuity, actually helps overcome the disadvantages caused by taping groups of shows.
The End of LAX
It’s always a problem for a promotion when one half of a tag team is a rising star who needs to concentrate on singles matches. That’s what’s happening to the former LAX and TNA has gone the fairly standard route of having the partners feud.
TNA’s version of this has two important features: there will be a match between former teammates, but TNA is not really building to that and the feud has a larger context due to the Hernandez-World Elite plot.
Overall, TNA is handling the LAX split pretty well. The whole World Elite concept doesn’t excite fans much, but it does give Homicide something to do in his post-LAX career. I’d probably have him sour on the group and turn against it.
What’s Next for Suicide
TNA has a knack, a positive genius, for deflating the star power of its top wrestlers. Currently getting pulled back to the pack is Suicide.
Using him to put over D’Angelo Dinero on the 9/17 iMPACT sure didn’t do much for the Masked Man’s standing.
Before this process goes any further, before the fans stop caring completely, isn’t it time for Suicide to have a major run and then, at the peak of victory, unmask?
The problem with a lot of unmaskings in North American wrestling is that, when the hood comes off, no one cares. The usual reason is that no one recognizes the man under the mask.
That would obviously not be the case for Suicide, who is a well-known wrestler. This is a chance to give fans a really exciting moment. So far, TNA appears to be blowing it in a misguided effort to push D’Angelo Dinero.
That’s all for now. I’ll be back Sunday with a fresh installment of the Internet’s fastest-rising pro wrestling column. I hope you’ll join me then and, please, bring your friends.
— Arnie Katz
Executive Editor
Crossfire4@cox.net
(9/19/09)