PWTORCH.COM
VIP SIGN-UP JUMP TO VIP
CONTACT US VISIT MMA TORCH




Select Next Article by Category





TAKE PWTORCH
WITH YOU!

PWTORCH IPHONE APP
Get our iPhone App (FREE!): Click Here
Or enter "PWTorch.com" on your Blackberry or other Smart Phone browser for mobile-version of PWTorch.


The Specialists
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE - 6/18 TNA IMPACT: Kong is still a heel, James Storm's hilarious math, numbers back up TNA's tag team dominance
Jun 19, 2009 - 1:45:49 AM


By Curtis Shanks, Torch specialist

Welcome to the TNA Impact edition of Under the Microscope. We're here to review all those little observations and tidbits you may have missed. This is not a detailed recap of the show, but a review for those of you that saw the show but didn't actually "watch" it.

After last week's show, we know that Booker T had some internal bleeding, Shane Douglas ran out of spray-on tanner, and ODB & Cody Deaner are just not that funny. But what else is there to notice? Let's see what we can spot. Cue the opening pyro.

We get some King of the Mountain hype right off the bat this week, as Foley calls out his four challengers to add to the cluster-mess already in the ring. As A.J. Styles makes his entrance, Mike Tenay touts the fact that Styles has more KOM experience than any other participant, Jeff Jarrett included. This Sunday will be the fourth KOM match Styles has competed in, breaking his tie with Christian Cage for the top spot in KOM experience.

Jarrett will compete in his third KOM match this Sunday, but has earned the KOM moniker by winning the first two he was in. If he can persevere at Slammiversary, he will have three wins in the match while nobody else will even have two. Along with Styles, Cage, and Jarrett, Samoa Joe will join the three-plus club this Sunday. Joe was an unsuccessful challenger in 2007, but followed it up in 2008 by becoming the first man to retain the title in a KOM match.

Matt Morgan is still adamant about earning a spot in the MEM and calls out the Mafia's godfather, Sting. Sting's reason for excluding Morgan from the stable is because of the fact that he has never been a World Champion. Morgan argues that the only reason that is the case is because he has never had the opportunity. Well, Matt, you're right. Since his TNA debut in August 2007 there have been a total of 27 World Title matches in TNA - none of them involving Matt Morgan.

Morgan doesn't have a World Title on his resume, but there should be plenty of room if he ever needs to add one. Since his TV debut almost six years ago in WWE, Morgan has not held a single title in either promotion he has wrestled for. He did taste success before his national TV debut, as he is a two time OVW Hvt. champion, defeating Nick Dinsmore (Eugene) and Elijah Burke for his two reigns.

We looked at the TNA face/heel entrance tunnel system last week, and a few of the interesting conundrums such as Mick Foley and his new personal security. But there was another interesting instance this week. Awesome Kong was the dominant, remorseless heel when she debuted in the company, but has strayed from that character since her battles with the Beautiful People. Kong has been heavily cheered, tagged with the faces, and feuded with the heels. But Kong still makes her entrance from the right tunnel - the heel side.

Raven and Daffney will face off against Abyss and Taylor Wilde this Sunday in a Monster's Ball match. The match is not suitable for airing on Impact, but not because of the level of violence that may occur. Spike TV still has their ban on man-on-woman violence, so a match of this sort would be hard to book for television. This rule has been enforced since TNA debuted on Spike, but an interesting question has arisen because of a recent WWE storyline.

What about Santina in a match? If the character was on Spike TV rather than USA, would they allow her/him to perform a move on a female wrestler? It's obvious to everyone but the announcers the character is actually a male, Santino Marella, but the persona is still portrayed as a female. Makes me wonder if fake woman-on-real woman violence would be a loop-hole that would get past the Spike TV censors. Looking at the males on TNA's roster, it's a question I hope we never have to answer.

One thing missing from wrestling promotions these days is recognition of the past. It can be a good thing, as you don't want to remind the fans of a face run of a heel wrestler you are trying to get over. But it is nice when the past is recognized rather than simply forgotten. It was a great touch by TNA to acknowledge the past between So Cal Val and Jay Lethal during their backstage segment. Something as serious as an engagement would not be forgotten by them in less than a year. The man Val chose over Lethal was not mentioned for obvious reasons, as Sonjay Dutt is now an ex-TNA employee who has since made his return to ROH.

After a beat down on 3D last week, Beer Money failed to return the favor and make the save on the team they supposedly share mutual respect with. 3D demand an explanation for their whereabouts, and get a simple explanation. Beer Money had just won $100,000 for winning the tag tournament, so they were celebrating. James Storm responds with a hilarious quote. "You know how much $100,000 will buy? 43,126 bottles of beer, three strippers, two bottles of whiskey, and a midget."

I can't do the match for you since I am unsure of the price on a couple of those items, but the math is easy to compute for my personal tastes. An 18-bottle case of Coors original runs me $18 even, so I'd be set for life with 100 grand. Of course, if you've attended a professional sporting event, you'll know the math works out a little different there. By my calculations, 100 grand at a sporting event should get you roughly 22 drinks.

Numbers crunched harder than an unprotected chair shot to the head: TNA loves to tout their tag team division. With the 3D tag team tournament, we've heard all sorts of quips from the announcers and the talents themselves about how their tag team division is superior to WWE's. Looking at all the TV matches this year, it is obvious TNA puts more stock into their tag match-ups than WWE does.

So far in 2009, we've seen 117 matches on Impact, 28.2 percent of them a standard two-on-two tag match. Of the 363 matches shown on WWE television this year across their four shows, only 18.7 percent have been a two-on-two contest. With less tag matches, WWE is obviously leading the way in simple one-on-one match-ups. They've given us that 67.2 percent of the time, compared with only 50.4 percent on TNA television.

TNA has clearly backed up their assertion of tag team dominance by giving us more tag matches. But judging by their roster size, it may be their only option in order to keep everyone fresh. There have been 87 different WWE roster members to compete in a match so far this year. With six - and on a few occasions seven - hours of TV to present each week it's been a lot easier to fit guys into a match than it has in TNA. TNA has only two hours of TV a week, but we've already seen 58 different talents compete in a match this year.

Curtis Shanks is a self-described wrestling nerd. Who else understands what Matt Striker is talking about all the time. Feedback is welcome, as comments, suggestions and questions can be sent to Curtis at curtisshanks.torch@gmail.com or in the comments section below.


Send feedback on this article to pwtorch@gmail.com and we'll regularly publish reader feedback in the "Torch Feedback" category on the Main Listing.

For more BREAKING NEWS on WWE, TNA!
VISIT OUR AFFILIATE - PROWRESTLING.NET


For UFC & MMA NEWS & BLOGS:
VISIT OUR SISTER SITE - MMATORCH.COM

Upgrade to PWTORCH VIP: DETAILS & SIGN-UP INFO


MORE "The Specialists" ARTICLES
11/19 WWE Superstars Hits & Misses: Rosa Mendes, Eric Escobar, Lackluster Show
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE - TNA Impact 11/19: Forgotten history between A.J. and Angle, TNA's new cameras, Pope gets referee assist, Numbers - The Rock a horrible tag champ
HITS & MISSES - TNA IMPACT 11/12: Review of last week's show before tonight's Impact - Wolfe-Angle build-up, Lethal loses to Niedhart
11/17 WWE ECW Hits & Misses: Intensity, Hurricane vs. Burchill, Regal & Punk vs. Christian & Truth
11/16 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Miz vs. MVP, Piper - McMahon, Kingston's Moment, Survivor Series Hype, JeriShow vs. DX vs. Cena & Taker
ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - WWE Raw: Kofi's Boom Drop In The Garden, Triple H Fears Hornswoggle, Piper To Star In John Carpenter's "They Bald" Starring Hulk Hogan
ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - TNA Turning Point: Rewarding Main Events, Nash And "The Fingerpoke of Doom" Incident, Why Jay Lethal Should Be A TNA Cameraman
11/13 WWE Smackdown Hits & Misses: Punk vs. Truth, Lame DQ, Ziggler vs. Morrison, Jericho vs. Undertaker
PARKS BLOG: A Mind-Boggling, Legendary Loss for Jay Lethal on Impact
GARDNER'S KEY MOMENT OF THE WEEK: Where the Survivor Series build-up has fallen short
ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - WWE Smackdown: Chris Jericho vs. Undertaker For The First-Time Ever, Batista Wants To Snap His Friend's Neck, Jim Neidhart Squashes Evan Bourne
WILKENFELD'S TNA Turning Point 2009 PPV Preview
11/12 WWE Superstars Hits & Misses: Hardy vs. Smith, MVP vs. DiBiase
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE - TNA Impact 11/12: Jay Lethal's ridiculous Impact losing streak, More 1980s music quotes, What else does STF mean?, Numbers - top and bottom title averages
PARKS BLOG: WWE could learn something about character development from Food Network's WWE-themed show
11/10 WWE ECW Hits & Misses: Abraham Washington, Ryder's Fantasy, Christian vs. Regal
11/9 WWE Raw Hits & Misses: Miz - Swagger, Guerrero vs. Hatton, VIP Lounge, Cena vs. Triple H vs. Michaels Hype
ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - WWE Raw: Trust Funds Babies vs. Ex-Cons, Two Things for C.M. Punk Fans To Look Out For, DX and Cena To Break Sensational Record
ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - TNA Impact: "Do Not Undermine Mother TNA, Comrades. TNAism Will Crush The Weak And Corrupt North!"
ABSURDITY OF IT ALL - Greed Is Good For PPV Business (Just Not For You), Jericho vs. Undertaker, Punk vs. Scott Armstrong, Batista vs. My Boredom

(c) 1999-2009 TDH Communications Inc. - All rights reserved.

Current Top Ten Staff Picks
Staff Picks
TORCH TALK DAILY with Eric Bischoff: In-depth look at why Vince McMahon is marketing the WWE product as PG family-friendly
WWE News: TOP STORY - "The Rock" Dwayne Johnson working with WWE on a TV project beyond guest-hosting Raw
WWE News: Linda McMahon reveals the McMahon Family's vast wealth in Senate campaign filing
WWE News: Raw TV ratings are in - Did Raw rebound from the 2009 year-low?
WWE News: WWE announces guest hosts for the next four weeks of Raw, including two new names
Hogan News: Watch VIDEO of the Hulkamania Press Conference breaking down into a staged fight (w/VIDEO)
TNA News: SPOILERS - first two matches announced for TNA's December PPV
MOJO MITCHELL'S WWE RAW 11/16: Stream of Piper In The Back, Hornswoggle Stabbed in the Back, An MSG Look Back, Mr. McMahon Backs Out, Kofi Kingston Backs Randy Orton Up
CALDWELL'S WWE RAW REPORT 11/16: Complete coverage of Roddy Piper hosting, DX vs. Cena & Taker vs. Jericho & Show
TNA News: Kurt Angle suffers back injury at Sunday's Turning Point PPV


TORCH QUICK-CLICK REFERENCE LIST
-CLICK TO FOLLOW PWTORCH ON TWITTER!
-CLICK FOR OUR FREE PWTORCH IPHONE APP

-CLICK FOR OUR FREE PODCAST (#1 in iTunes!)
-CLICK TO GET INFO ON BECOMING A VIP MEMBER
-CLICK TO VISIT MMATORCH.COM
-CLICK TO VISIT PROWRESTLING.NET

-CLICK TO EMAIL PWTORCH EDITORS




PWTORCH READER POLL

SMACKDOWN POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/20 Smackdown if you saw the show?
The Undertaker
Kane
Chris Jericho
Big Show
Batista
Rey Mysterio
Matt Hardy
Tyson Kidd
John Morrison
Dolph Ziggler
C.M. Punk
R-Truth
Drew McIntyre
Finlay
Mickie James
Layla
Eric Escobar
Vince McMahon
Teddy Long
Vickie Guerrero
  

VOTE IN OR SEE RESULTS OF PREVIOUS POLLS

ARE YOU VIP? SIGN UP NOW FOR $7.50 A MONTH FOR INSTANT ACCESS TO AD-FREE, BENEFIT-PACKED VIP VERSION OF PWTORCH.COM (see screen capture)
PWTORCH VIP HOME PAGE

INFO ON SUBSCRIPTION TO AD-FREE VIP SITE

INCREDIBLE BENEFITS!
Over 50 full-length audio updates per month (iPod compatible)... New weekly award-winning Pro Wrestling Torch Newsletter (text and printable pdf versions) with latest exclusive insider news, new Torch Talks, great columns, Keller's cover story, much more... Hundreds of full-length back issues of PWTorch Newsletter from late-'80s to today... Ad-free access to PWTorch.com's Main Listing... VIP Forum with interaction with other subscribers and Torch staff... Torch Talk Library with text and audio of hundreds of interview installments from last 20 years... Great layout... Deepest archives on pro wrestling history anywhere... Keller's PWTorch Today PDF Bulletins with email alerts... VIP Email reports on major PPVs and TV shows... Staff Roundtable Reviews (text and audio) followiing major events... The best staff of writers and world class reporting since 1987... We'd love for you to join us and experience the most entertaining, authoritative, experienced staff of professional reporters and commentators in the business...

SIGN ME UP NOW!

Compare the value of four or five months of PWTorch VIP content to the price of just one PPV. Can you cut 25 cents a day from your budget to make room for PWTorch VIP?

AND NEW FOR 2009!
Monthly "Vintage Audio Torch Talks." We are releasing for the first time ever audio versions of our text Torch Talk updates, the historical first series of insider interviews ever. Wade Keller's newsmaking in-depth interviews with wrestling's biggest names are now being made available exclusively to VIP members. But you must be a member each month, as these are not archived, so they are replaced with a new one each month! This debuted in January 2009 with a 68 minute interview with the late "British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith. Who's next? Hulk Hogan? Eric Bischoff? The Rock? Goldberg? Jeff Hardy?

SIGN ME UP NOW!


UPCOMING EVENTS LISTING

Articles Grouped by Category
Torch Today
WWE RAW 11/16: Place Your Bets on tonight's Raw - Week 12 featuring Roddy Piper
WWE RAW 11/2: "Place your Bets" Scoreboard after Week 11 - Review the previous scores before tonight's Raw PYB contest
TORCH MONTHLY AWARDS: List of the 2009 Torch Monthly Award winners through October
WWE News
WWE News: What's on Smackdown tonight - Taker & Kane vs. Big Show & Jericho
WWE News: Jim Ross comments on possible WrestleMania 26 return, current WWE contract status
TORCH TALK DAILY with Eric Bischoff: In-depth look at why Vince McMahon is marketing the WWE product as PG family-friendly
TNA News
TNA News: TNA Impact ratings break down - Inside the numbers on TNA's recent ratings trends
TNA News: Impact rating is in - how did post Turning Point episode fare?
TNA News: Details on Chris Sabin re-injuring his neck at this week's Impact tapings
ROH News
ROH News: ROH Title match signed for Final Battle; Air dates for McGuinness and Danielson's Farewell speeches
ROH News: Ring of Honor announces details on Austin Aries's next ROH Title defense
ROH News: Tonight is Bryan Danielson's final ROH match - details on tonight's special ROH TV episode (w/VIDEO)
Other News
PWG News: First round matches for tonight's Battle of Los Angeles tournament - Aries vs. Kendrick; Cabana, Shelley, Strong in action
Hogan News: Hulkamania Tour secures TV deal in Australia, Notes on Hogan & Flair arriving at the airport to begin the tour
Austin News: Steve Austin to appear in new season of NBC's "Chuck" show
PPV Reports
CALDWELL'S TNA TURNING POINT PPV REPORT 11/15: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of A.J. Styles vs. Samoa Joe vs. Daniels
RADICAN'S DGUSA "Untouchable" PPV review - Doi vs. Danielson, Shingo vs. Richards
10/25 WWE Bragging Rights Results: KELLER'S detailed match-by-match PPV report - Cena vs. Orton Iron Man match
TV Reports
PARKS' WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 11/20: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of the show, including Jericho & Show vs. Undertaker & Kane
CALDWELL'S WWE SUPERSTARS TV REPORT 11/19: Complete coverage of Henry vs. Rhodes on WGN
PARKS' TNA IMPACT REPORT 11/19: Ongoing "virtual time" coverage of the post-Turning Point show
Arena Reports
11/14 TNA in Scranton, Pa.: Second Report - Styles vs. Joe vs. Daniels, Chris Sabin vs. Suicide, Amazing Red vs. Homicide
11/14 WWE in Dublin: The Undertaker very limited in the ring vs. C.M. Punk, Rey vs. Dolph, Very interesting John Morrison vs. Matt Hardy match, No Jericho
11/14 TNA in Scranton, Pa.: Home of "The Office" delivers Styles vs. Joe vs. Daniels and Amazing Red vs. Homicide PPV warm-up matches
MMA / UFC Coverage
MMA News: Update on Brock Lesnar's health - how long Lesnar had been dealing with health problems, expected return to UFC
MMA News: Brock Lesnar health update - UFC president much more optimistic than this weekend
MMA News: Brock Lesnar released from the hospital tonight; Lesnar's UFC future in doubt
KELLER'S TAKE
KELLER BLOG: WrestleMania goes up to $55, all other PPVs $45 - let the pirate feed frenzy begin
KELLER BLOG: Dixie Carter asks wrestlers to step it up, but what does that mean? Shouldn't their goal to be winning matches and nothing else?
KELLER FLASHBACK: Review of Hulk Hogan's first autobiography - Hogan's political maneuvers evident in who he protects and buries
MITCHELL'S TAKE
MITCHELL FLASHBACK (Dec. 1994): C.M. Punk's character is the latest Vince McMahon creation responding to criticism of his WWE product
MOJO MITCHELL'S WWE RAW 11/16: Stream of Piper In The Back, Hornswoggle Stabbed in the Back, An MSG Look Back, Mr. McMahon Backs Out, Kofi Kingston Backs Randy Orton Up
MOJO MITCHELL'S RAW 11/2: Stream of My Fourth Grade Hero and The Mid-Card Kicks Main Event Ass
MCNEILL'S TAKE
The Night They Drove Ol' Dixie Down: McNEILL previews TNA Turning Point 2009!
McNEILL BLOG: The Big Questions About Hulk Hogan in TNA
Fight For Your Right to Bragging: McNEILL Previews WWE Bragging Rights!
CALDWELL'S TAKE
CALDWELL'S PPV/DVD REVIEW: Dragon Gate USA's "Open the Historic Gate" debut event - Review of whether following DGUSA is worth your time and money
CALDWELL'S TUESDAY CHAT w/GREG PARKS: Raw, Smackdown, TNA PPV discussion - MSG crowd, Survivor Series hype, Kofi breaks out, CSI:Miami vs. 30 Rock
CALDWELL'S BLOG: Hitting the hot topics - Raw tonight, Turning Point vs. Survivor Series, Jesse Ventura, Brock Lesnar, Shane McMahon
RADICAN'S TAKE
RADICAN: A list of things wresters and TNA fans can support for Dixie Carter
RADICAN'S SHIMMER Vol. 23 Review - Busic-Melissa, Kong-Martinez, MsChif-Deeb
RADICAN: Daddy's little girl V 2.0 debuts on Impact
The Specialists
11/19 WWE Superstars Hits & Misses: Rosa Mendes, Eric Escobar, Lackluster Show
UNDER THE MICROSCOPE - TNA Impact 11/19: Forgotten history between A.J. and Angle, TNA's new cameras, Pope gets referee assist, Numbers - The Rock a horrible tag champ
HITS & MISSES - TNA IMPACT 11/12: Review of last week's show before tonight's Impact - Wolfe-Angle build-up, Lethal loses to Niedhart
Guest Editorials
GUEST EDITORIAL: Disgruntled TNA fan says he's done with the promotion after today's Impact taping (Contains SPOILERS)
GUEST EDITORIAL: The ultimate irony - Hulk Hogan appears on TNA Impact and pre-taped TV sitcom promoting WWE on the same night
GUEST BOOK REVIEW: Hulk Hogan provides strong defense of his public image in new autobiography
Torch Feedback
ECW TV Reax #1: "C.M. Punk scoring the pin in the main event made Smackdown seem more important than ECW"
WWE Raw Reax #3: "While WWE delivered an above-quality show, they still haven't given viewers a reason to order Survivor Series"
WWE Raw Reax #2: "This was NOT one of the best Raws of 2009, but one of the worst..."
Ask the Editor
Ask the Editor: Wouldn't incorporating MMA-style holds into pro wrestling matches just be trying to be something it's not?
ASK THE EDITOR: Have the Michaels-Batista promos crossed a line with use of insider terms, references to "jobs"?
ASK THE EDITOR: Why do wrestlers in WWE refer to wrestling as "the business" and not "the sport"?
DVDs - VGames - Books
CALDWELL'S PPV/DVD REVIEW: Dragon Gate USA's "Open the Historic Gate" debut event - Review of whether following DGUSA is worth your time and money
RADICAN'S ROH DVD REVIEW SERIES: Death Before Dishonor VII: N2 - Storm-Hero, Ryan-Cabana
RADICAN'S SHIMMER Vol. 23 Review - Busic-Melissa, Kong-Martinez, MsChif-Deeb
Torch Flashbacks
PARKS'S WWE SMACKDOWN REPORT 1 YR. AGO (11-21-08): Final Survivor Series build-up to Undertaker vs. Big Show casket match, Jeff Hardy vs. Triple H, Morrison & Miz
KELLER'S WWE SURVIVOR SERIES PPV REPORT 10 YRS. AGO (11-14-99): Big Show vs. Triple H vs. The Rock, Edge & Christian & Hardys team, Chris Jericho vs. Chyna
KELLER'S WWF SURVIVOR SERIES PPV REPORT 15 YRS. AGO (11-23-94): Bret Hart vs. Bob Backlund, Undertaker vs. Yokozuna, Team Hall & Waltman vs. Team Michaels & Nash
VIP Exclusive Features
11/20 Wade Keller Hotline - Guest Bruce Mitchell: Survivor Series Match by Match Preview & Predictions (20 min.)
11/20 Bruce Mitchell Audio Show: Listener Questions - How Vince McMahon was perceived before he took over, Outlaw Promotions stories, Sting Flips off Bruce, Albano Craziness (45 min.)
PWTorch Newsletter #1117/1118 (31 pages!): Raw at MSG, TNA Victory Road PPV Roundtable, Mitchell on Russo-Hogan, Keller on Dixie Speech, more
Torch Trivia
TORCH TRIVIA 2/28: Which wrestler backed out of a WWA PPV in February 2002?
TORCH TRIVIA 2/27: Who said this quote about Hulk Hogan's athleticism 11 years ago?
TORCH TRIVIA 2/25: What said this quote about WWE's mid-1990s drug testing policy?
Torch Instant Polls
SMACKDOWN POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/20 Smackdown if you saw the show?
TNA IMPACT POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/19 Impact if you saw the show?
ECW MVP POLL: Who was the MVP of the 11/17 ECW TV if you saw the show?
PWTorch Free Podcast
11/4 Nostalgia Audio with Brian Hoops: Format change to the show, new guest host, upcoming shows
FREE FOR ALL: 10/27 Bruce Mitchell Audio Special: Hogan-Bischoff-TNA story from all angles including Monday Night War II possibilities (32 min.)
6/23 Nostalgia Audio with Brian Hoops: Former WCW rapmaster PN News joins Brian Hoops to preview upcoming Midwest shows (10 min.)
Annual Obituaries
SPECIALIST: List of Deceased Wrestlers for 1999 - Muchnick, Rick Rude, Owen Hart, Renegade...
SPECIALIST: List of Deceased Wrestlers for 2000 - Solie, Albright, Duncum, Tsuruta, Blue Demon, Al Costello
SPECIALIST: List of Deceased Wrestlers for 2001: Johnny Valentine, Terry Gordy, Chris Adams, Bertha Faye, Helen Hart