By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

- A.J. Styles was asked on the Live Audio Wrestling show why he thinks some of his independent show appearances have drawn more fans than recent TNA house shows.

"I don’t quite understand why this is, but almost every show I’ve been at has drawn that kind of number. I’m not saying it’s me, I’m saying the promoters know what they’re doing. That’s what’s so crazy about this, I’m having so much fun and I’m going, wow, for somebody to say that I wasn’t worth the money, there sure are a lot of people showing up at these independent shows to see exactly what I do. It’s confusing, to say the least, but I’m very excited about the fact that I’m able to work in front of all these people and I’m able to give them their money’s worth," Styles said.

I'll examine Styles's comments from the TNA side of the ledger, as I've had a blog in my head for several months about this topic. Essentially, TNA is too big to be local, but too small to be national.

TNA is stuck somewhere in the middle where they lack national brand awareness and identity, and they do not have the local presence of an independent promotion in the markets they tour.

It doesn't help that TNA has yet to solve one of their biggest modern-era question - is it TNA? Impact Wrestling? TNA Impact? Something else?

When TNA tours a market, they lack the resources to blitz local wrestling fans with information about the show. And, the "TNA" name and Spike TV cable clearance is not enough to get Average Joe wrestling fan out to the local venue. Especially when TNA does not have a signature, #1 star to build around for the house shows, like WWE has with John Cena and Daniel Bryan.

Whereas, independent promotions have local ties to the community, run regularly in the same venues every few months, and have built a following based on the promotion and local wrestlers bonding with the fans.

Bringing in an A.J. Styles or another top name only sweetens the deal and makes a regular happening a bigger event. TNA does not have this.

TNA's most impressive audience in recent history was the Alamodome for Lockdown last March. The company had some momentum leading into road TV tapings, it was a first-time market, and they went big, touring the largest venue in the market.

Putting a show in the Alamodome signaled to local fans that this was a big-time event. Sure, the Lockdown "arena" was dropped in one endzone of the football stadium, with 75 percent of the dome tarped off, but they actually drew a healthy number for an identity-less brand centered on Hulk Hogan...kind of doing something.

One year later, TNA is struggling to draw 500 people to small-time venues across the country and they have retreated to the Impact Zone for television.

TNA is stuck. They lack local ties to the communities they tour, the novelty of seeing a non-WWE national promotion come to town has worn off for the most part, a stripped-down roster has reduced star power below many independent promotions, and their national identity is still shrouded in mystery.

What is TNA? Who is TNA? What is TNA's purpose in the marketplace? What audience is TNA serving - former WCW fans, disgruntled WWE fans, average wrestling fans who just want to see a consistent, good product?

Both for house show purposes and big-picture purposes, these questions need to be answered if TNA is going to make something of the 12 years invested in this company.

[Torch art credit Cory Gould (c) PWTorch.com]

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