Theres been some bad authority figures in wrestling over the past 15 years, and then theres been Dixie Carter. One of the most refreshing things about TNA since its beginning is that the companys owner stayed off of TV for the most part. Over in WWE, Vince and Stephanie McMahon and Triple H ate up TV time like it was an all you can eat buffet. Dixie was a stark contrast. She wasnt an evil woman continually trying to manipulate her own talent. She seemed like a genuinely nice person, and someone whose product you didn't mind financially supporting. This all changed after Hogan and Bischoff joined up. A major storyline saw Dixie have the company stolen from her, and she became an ever increasing TV presence. However, she didnt have the acting chops to support this rash decision. After Hogan and Bischoff left, she remained on TV, and for reasons only known to her, turned heel. It was infuriating to watch. Here was another evil owner who fans were still supposed to support by buying tickets to the shows she runs, and also buying the merchandise from the talent she signs. One of the worst storylines in the history of the company saw her feud with fellow heel authority figure MVP. Fans were left with no one to cheer for, and had to sit through segments with a woman who clearly didnt know good crowd heat from bad crowd heat. If TNA is able to survive, one of the first things they should do is turn her back babyface and only have her show up a couple times a year for big, feel good announcements. Let's close Dixieland for good.
As Rust Cohle from True Detective said "Life's barely long enough to get good at one thing. So be careful what you're good at."
Sadly, I can't solve a murder like Rust...or change a tire, or even tie a tie. But I do know all the lyrics to Hulk Hogan's "Real American" theme song and can easily name every Natural Born Thriller from the dying days of WCW. I was once ranked 21st in the United States in Tetris...on the Playstation 3 version...for about a week.
Follow along @AndrewSoucek and check out my podcast at wrestlingwithfriends.com
