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By Curtis Shanks, PWTorch Specialist

Welcome to the TNA Impact edition of Under the Microscope. 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. We're here to point out those little tidbits you may have missed, make some random observations, or use a little research to dig deeper into what was on the show. Cue the opening pyro.

All hands on deck

Great start to this week's show, as we get a behind the scenes look at Dixie Carter leading a company meeting concerning the forthcoming changes within the company. I'm a fan of wrestling shows adding a sense of realism to the product without compromising kayfabe, and this segment did just that. It was a good way to show that TNA's wrestlers are just human beings at a job trying to entertain fans, rather than a bunch of outlandish characters living out a real life circus on our TV screens.

The wrestlers could have shown a bit more personality in the segment, though. I know that the subject matter was of a serious nature, but the fact that it was a company meeting with nothing but somber faces had me drawing comparisons to the cast of The Office. I see those same looks every time they are dragged into the conference room by Michael Scott. Although I had a hard time noticing anyone shooting "Jim looks" in the camera's direction.

Bueller...Bueller...Bueller

The company meeting also gave us the rare opportunity to see most of the TNA roster on the same screen. Well, we've seen it before in the weekly brawls, but this time we got a chance to get a good look at the talents not draped by guys with Security shirts. Not all of the TNA roster was present, though. I didn't spot talents like Kurt Angle, Scott Steiner, Awesome Kong, or...Jethro Holiday. But there were other things I noticed when eyeing over the roster.

Jesse Neal is still part of the roster, as he was shown on-camera a couple times. Team 3D have been a tag team for almost 15 years, but they we're not sitting anywhere near each other. They must be the good friends who are class clowns and need to be separated during all gatherings. I've got a friend like that at my work, unfortunately for my boss.

I also noticed some names not seen on TV each week. New backstage agents Simon Diamond and Scott D'Amore could be seen behind Dixie Carter. I was not able to spot the third name in the new agent trio - D'Lo Brown. It was hard to tell who everyone was since there were many individuals in the shadows, but there were two individuals present who were no doubt hanging on Dixie's every word. Over her right shoulder, you could vaguely make out creative writers Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara. I can hear Russo's thoughts now - "Damn meeting taking up my TV time! We gotta go 100 mph and overbook everything! C'mon!"

Hey, jealousy

Did Daniels attack A.J. from behind the last two weeks? He seemed to have motive. Daniels's jealousy shined through this week, as he told Styles: "You've been pampered. You've been coddled. And yeah, you're a little bit spoiled A.J. You've always gotten special treatment." Daniels and Styles have been with TNA for the same duration, and it does seem A.J. has gotten more of the opportunities.

In the history of the TNA Heavyweight title, we all know that A.J. has four reigns to Daniels's zero, but how many shots have they had? Styles has been the challenger in twelve different World Title matches in his TNA career. Daniels is far behind, as he has only one - a three-on-one gauntlet match on the January 22, 2003 weekly PPV.

Wonder if he owns any Depeche Mode?

Say what you want, but Duran Duran has had some catchy songs during their lengthy career. Even Desmond Wolf agrees in a way. He just missed quoting a famous Duran Duran song during his promo, saying he was "hungry like a wolf." The Duran Duran song in question is of course "Hungry Like the Wolf," but I'm hoping Desmond wasn't referencing the song based on it's lyrics. "Mouth is alive, with juices like wine?" I hope that's not where this storyline is heading. If Wolf can work "Rio" or "The Reflex" into his future promos, that would be impressive, though.

I'm Robbie!

We haven't seen much of the Highlanders since they were released by WWE, but I'm glad to see Robbie McAllister continuing to get work. We saw him during the infamous crowd shot during WrestleMania weekend, but he's found a new way to appear on TV. Castrol Motor Oil needed a new spokesperson, and Robbie answered the call. "Quit thinkin' with your dipstick!" Still not as fun as "I'm Robbie!," but at least he's finding work.

No disagreement here

TNA has added some new nameplate graphics recently, and they've been mixing it up for each wrestler. Height, weight, years pro, finishers, nicknames - they've all been shown on the screen. But a new one was added to the list during Madison Rayne's entrance this week. Rather than biographical info, her graphic just read "She's beautiful, and you're not!" I won't disagree at all - I'm not beautiful. But I only say that because I'm a dude. Madison's nameplate was slightly amusing, so maybe we should keep the trend going with other TNA wrestlers in the future.

Traci Brooks - She floats in water, and you don't!
Hulk Hogan - He gets TV hype, title matches don't!
Shark Boy - Yep, I'm still officially employed here!
Cody Deaner - Yep, I'm still officially employed here...unfortunately.

Numbers crunch - Only a few (hundred) select guys are worthy

If you've read past numbers crunches, you no doubt know that I love title histories and the numbers that go along with them. We've looked at titles by company, by individual title, and for select individuals. But what about overall title reigns by individual? This week we'll look at every single individual in the big four (WWE, WCW, TNA, and ECW) to hold a title since 1990. We'll exclude the Hardcore Title since there were literally dozens of reigns every month. (Darn Hardcore Title skewing my number crunches!) Aside from that, we'll look at every single title and every single person to win it in the last 20 years.

It seems like there have been hundreds of guys to hold titles in those companies. Well, there has been - 327 guys to be exact. That's not even counting the 33 different females who have won a title during that time. The amount of stats and numbers you could look at comparing all 327 male individuals is endless, but here's a few I came up with.

Held one of the promotion's World Titles - 82 (25 percent)
Have five or more title reigns - 91 (27 percent)
Have ten or more title reigns - 45 (13 percent)
Only have one career title reign - 114 (34 percent)
Won five different titles - 36 (11 percent)
Held a title in more than one promotion - 70 (21 percent)
Only won titles in WWE - 110
Only won titles in TNA - 37
Only won titles in WCW - 74
Only won titles in ECW - 36

Looking at the 45 individuals with ten-plus reigns since 1990, it's interesting to note that 13 of them have never held a World Title. Daniels, The Dudleys, Scott Hall, X-Pac, William Regal, James Storm, Lance Storm, Kip James, Billy Kidman, Dean Malenko, Stevie Ray, and Rick Steiner all fall into that category.

Those listed who are still active should keep their fingers crossed, as it's still a possibility. Some of the individuals who have had ten title reigns in major promotions before ever winning a World Title include Rey Mysterio, Booker T, Edge, Christian, RVD, Scott Steiner, the Hardys, Jeff Jarrett, Eddie Guerrero, and Chris Jericho.

Curtis Shanks is a self-described wrestling nerd who, contrary to popular belief, does have a social life. Feedback is welcome as comments, suggestions and questions can be sent to Curtis at curtisshanks.torch@gmail.com.

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