New TNA: 5 Things That Work (And 5 That Don't)

By Chris Quicksilver /

4. Darkened Arenas

With the lights down low, home audiences can€™t see if the arenas are empty or not, which means that even if TNA€™s live attendance figures continue to drop under the new regime, we€™ll never know it at home. Far from annexing the home viewer from the live fan reaction however, this new, €˜darkened arena€™ look creates a hive of disembodied voices, which actually presents a more united front as the action takes place. With the lights down, TNA shows can present a more theatrical feel to their events, without having to worry about the more opinionated fans squinting like they just smelled a giant fart when something they don€™t approve of happens. Also, from a psychological vantage point, this enables the crowds to become louder, as they are effectively shouting in the dark, with no way to connect the noise back to them €“ the fan response at the most recent TNA shows has actually been very healthy and it seems likely that this is partly why. Besides, if they don€™t shout, cheer, or boo the wrestling on display, then it€™s also much easier to dub crowd noise over a darkened audience, something that, before you rush to criticise, even the mighty WWE has a long, sad history of doing.