As you know, Hulk made his TNA pay per view debut last night with TNA's 'Genesis' show. The reaction to the show, as you may have guessed, has been mixed. Some say he's killing off TNA's identity with the changes. Some say they're happy to see TNA take on a more traditional feel.
The night started with Hulk and Bischoff talking to the crowd about the new four-sided ring. This turned out badly, as Hogan went from a nice ovation to receiving heavy boos as he told the fans that the six-sided ring only got them but so far.
The "major" acquisition was revealed to be Ken "Mr. Anderson" Anderson. Some feel that it was a bit of a disappointment, considering how much Hogan hyped him up. Although, anybody with common sense knew it wasn't going to be an actual "major" guy.
Longtime TNA backstage announcer Jeremy Borash was "removed from TV" by Eric Bischoff due to his mishandling of the Mick Foley situation. Hogan associate Bubba The Love Sponge is being rumored as his replacement, causing a little disappointment within TNA loyalists.
More Hogan influence was seen as Sean Morley debuted on pay per view and actually beat The Fallen Angel Christopher Daniels with the Money Shot. The crowd was very audible with their displeasure - and its a bad look for Hogan, as Morley is one of his guys.
The nWo, now known as "The Band," had a messy night as well. Scott Hall, who was advertised to wrestle in a tag match with longtime friend and partner Kevin Nash, was subtracted from the card due to apparent discomfort with how he looked in his ring attire. Sean "Syxx Pac" Waltman replaced Hall after they had a backstage segment in which he beat Hall in a classic game of paper, rock, scissors. This was met with "boring" chants. Their appearance was capped off with a loss to Beer Money Inc. after Scott Hall "attacked" a planted fan, causing a distraction. Sadly, fans who paid to see a little Outsiders nostalgia didn't get their money's worth.
The night was capped off when AJ Styles completed a heel turn after using some of his advisor Ric Flair's dirty tricks. After Flair removed referee Earl Hebner from the ring to prevent Styles from tapping out to Kurt Angle's ankle lock, AJ Styles hit Angle with the world title that was thrown to him by Flair. When Hebner came to, he counted 1-2-3, AJ retained his belt and sealed a new partnership with the Nature Boy. This match is generally being called the high point of the pay per view.
With all that said, there's a long road to travel for Hulk and Bischoff. They have their work cut out for them. While some of the changes they're making may be good over the long haul - TNA loyalists are not going to pop for Hogan coming in and changing elements of TNA's identity. And they need to be careful how they handle this. People tuning in to see Hogan on PPV last night saw him draw boos, which isn't good for business. Yes, change is necessary, but they need to be careful about how far they go.
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