The first TNA Impact on AMC: A quick review

Like I’ve said before, I’ve been a TNA fan since the weekly PPV years. The only time I stopped watching was during that weird Global Force Wrestling-to-Impact Wrestling era, when it was clear that the people in charge didn’t know what they were doing. I came back to watching the company during the pandemic and have watched almost every week since, outside of the period when they had a partnership with AEW—which, once again, was an awful era for the company and hurt it more than it helped.

So last night, they kicked off a brand-new era. While it wasn’t perfect—and it clearly didn’t please the IWC if you base your opinion on Cagematch ratings—I actually liked the show overall. It did what it needed to do: first, hype the PPV on Saturday, and second, illustrate what the company is all about for people who have never watched a TNA show before.

I’ll start with the negatives. TNA really needs to invest in new cameras. While I liked the way the show was shot when it was on AXS and Fight Network, it looked very indie on a major network, especially when compared to WWE and AEW.

Also, the whole celebrity presentation was cringe-worthy. Having them seated in a section where nobody else was sitting made the arena feel empty during that portion of the show.

As for everything else, I honestly don’t have much negative to say. Starting the show with AJ Styles helped get the crowd hot and loud right away. The opening match was strong, and the post-match angle was well done, effectively hyping the tag team title match at Genesis.

All of the video packages—from the X Division to the Knockouts, and later the World Title—were very well done and helped illustrate what the company is all about for newer fans.

All of Santino’s interventions made sense, given that they had to quickly rebook some matches for Genesis. Bringing in Sonya Deville and Cora Jade will also breathe new life into the company.

The Knockouts Tag Team Title match was decent and clearly designed to take the belts off The IInspiration, whose contracts are up. We all knew they were leaving TNA after dropping the titles.

I also liked The System’s quick promo segment, as it gave JDC a chance to cut one last promo before his retirement match on Saturday.

The main event was really strong, and the crowd was fully invested. While I would have preferred Santana to win the title at Genesis, I think it was ultimately the right call to do it on this show. Let’s just hope he doesn’t drop it again on Saturday.

Bringing out Dixie Carter before the title match was a fun surprise. Love her or hate her, she was a huge part of the company. If it weren’t for her and her family, TNA probably wouldn’t exist today, so it was a nice touch to have her appear.

In the end, it wasn’t a perfect show, but it did exactly what it needed to do for a first episode. The show started hot, ended hot, and the middle was solid while educating fans who may not know much about the company.

If they can fix the presentation issues—especially things like placing celebrities on the empty side of the arena—then they’ve got something really good here that could help the company grow in the long run.