Following his win over Rhino on Sunday at NO Surrender, "The Monster" Abyss looked into the camera and reaffirmed what he had been saying for months.
"They are coming. 10-10-10." He screamed.
What Abyss is saying is that at Bound For Glory (which is October 10th, 2010), TNA will finally shed some light on their longest running story arch: a pending invasion angle which they've been setting up since mid June. What he's saying, is the "They" that he has been cryptically working for throughout the summer will finally have a face. 10-10-10, they're going to let us know what the fuck is going on. Because really, no one knows whats coming.
That hasn't stopped people from throwing some wild ass theories out there. Over the last three months, the Internet Wrestling Community has ran wild with hypotheses about the identity of "They".
In June, we thought "They are coming" signaled the long anticipated arrival of wrestling guru. Paul Heyman. It was not. In July, the presence of former ECW stars (Tommy Dreamer, Raven, Stevie Richards etc) had us speculating over a Hardcore themed revolution. It wasn't long before we found out they too, were not the "They" Abyss spoke of. In fact Abyss went as far to say that "They" (whoever they were) were not happy about the idea of 'Hardcore Jusitce'.
In August, after Abyss and the newly formed Fortune took out the former ECW stars (now named EV2.0 to avoid legal complications), it was assumed that THEY were who Abyss warned us about. Abyss not only debunked the theory that Fortune was behind everything, he went then announced that the date of arrival for who he was speaking of was 10-10-10 (again, the date for Bound for Glory).
If reading those last couple of paragraphs confused you, and/or left you a little angry... feel free to join the club. We have jackets made up and everything. A little piece of me died each time "They" were failed to be revealed.
TNA has effectively built up the anticipation for this huge storyline, but they have systematically eliminated seemingly all the people capable of delivering a huge payoff. Heyman never showed up, it wasn't Ev2.0, and it's not Fortune. Wild internet theories are now pointing to Hogan and Bischoff (or maybe just one of them) pulling a giant blanket over our eyes and being behind it the whole time (which would tie in Sting's storyline as well, but that is for another day). Which would suck because honestly, it would make no sense. Abyss has explicitly said that Bischoff AND Hogan AS WELL AS President Dixie Carter are all targeted to be "taken out". Also, neither of them need to stage an invasion because they already are presented to hold ultimate authority.
So who could it be? Who or what could be big enough to deliever on a pay off nearly 5 months in the making (which in modern day wrestling is like seven years of storylines)?
Well, Paul Heyman, of course. 
I have thought about it long and hard (to be honest, I have put so much thought in it, it's embarrassing) and the pony tailed creator of ECW is the only one that makes ANY sense.
Of course this is just a theory, but I think it's a damn good one. And if it somehow plays out to be true, then the people responsible should when Pulitzer. If this theory is true that means TNA and Paul Heyman created something thought to be impossible in today's internet age... they would have been able to keep a secret.
This idea becomes less far fetched that they could do this when you break down who we are talking about. On one side of the negotiating table we have Dixie Carter and TNA Wrestling. TNA has long been a head of the pack when it comes to the handling of the internet. They embrace the information super highway. They produce shows intended specifically for the internet, featuring content like bonus matches and interviews. Not to mention most of their wrestlers connect with the public through social media outlets, such as twitter, which they use to hype weekly shows and pay per view events.
Dixie Carter herself is often criticized by her recent use of hyping 'big announcements' through twitter. Multiple times over the summer, Carter mentioned announcements that 'will change TNA forever' that seemed to have never come to fruition. Carter was accused heavily for hyping things that were either not that imortant, or maybe not even official to begin with. Biggest example was before Slammaversary, Dixie promised 'TNA was about to change forever'. Everyone assumed this meant Paul Heyman would be making his debut. It ended up being Tommy Dreamer.
But what if she never meant for it to take place then. She never mentions a date. Is it possible that we have yet to see the results of what she was referring too? Unlikely if you look at the quickness in which storylines are slapped together today. But when you start to think about the other party involved, it becomes a little more plausable.
On the other side of the table, we have Paul Heyman himself. The Mad Genius behind the rise (and fall) of Extreme Championship Wrestling. The mouth piece behind Brock Lesners meteoric rise in the WWE. A man considered by many to possess what TNA needs to save them. If Paul Heyman truly posses the creative ingenuity to take TNA to higher grounds, is it beyond reasoning that he could've orchestrated something like this?
My Theory is simple: I believe Paul Heyman and TNA have agreed to terms and that Paul Heyman will be taking over at Bound For Glory. I believe that it was been planned for months now, and that Paul Heyman has been able to successfully keep the internet in the cold.
Speculation aside, there are things we DO know.
- We know TNA has been able to keep a secret in the past. There were NO hints about the Hogan and Bischoff signing before it happened.
- We do know that when Dixie Cart tweeted "if you guys only knew who I met with today" on July 8th, it was with Paul Heyman.
- We do know that before that meeting Paul Heyman never took TNA's offers seriously.
- We know that Heyman has outlandish demands. Huge payday, complete control etc.
- We know outside of those demands, Paul Heyman is VERY interested in working with the Spike TV network. Possibly on other projects as well.
- We know that talks were reported to be dead by the end of July. Then a report of a phone conference between Spike TV executives and Paul Heyman leaked to the internet.
- We know Spike TV wants Paul Heyman.
- Reportedly, Heyman was said to be close to a deal with Strikeforce (an MMA company-like a low rent UFC). Maybe he is, maybe thats just part of the work. We can go ahead and cross of working with Spike TV if he signs with Strikeforce, they're already work with TNA and UFC.
Hmmm... could the swerve be on? Possibly.
If Paul Heyman were ever to come back to pro wrestling, one would assume it wouldn't be to rehash old storylines. Heyman is an innovator who is always looking to do whats never been done. That was one of the draws behind ECW. He is going to find what the wrestling industry's next big thing is, and be one of the first to exploit it.
Ken Anderson (a current TNA wrestler, and friend of Heyman) during an interview on ESPN 540 Pro Wrestling Report said, "I know Paul Heyman keeps up with pop culture more then any human being I know. He knows whats going on, he knows whats popular. He knows what people are going to bite on".
So what is wresltings next frontier? What would people "bite on." Well, Heyman does know the internet. He runs the popular website, heymanhustle.craveonline.com. Is it unreasonable to think that someone with a track record of creating new and shocking storylines, and has a working experience with the internet (especially with today's emphasis on the information the internet provides), would try and use the internet to sell a storyline?
He has been somewhat outspoken about his dealings with TNA as of late. Even though most of his comments could be considered as critical, it still should raise an eyebrow. During an interview an August on MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Heyman even went as far to say he had 'justified his own interest' in regards to working with TNA and Spike TV. He was quoted to saying, "They're not ready for me, " while discussing whether or not that meant he was going to be joining. TNA being ready or not, it didn't stop him from giving a taste of what to expect if he were to ever gain control, and putting the ever increasing veteran influence on notice, "if you're over 40, then I'd cut your fucking head off."
Which brings me perfectly into why I think he will finally show up with a faction of young superstars at Bound For Glory (just got on record, I believe Christopher Daniels will be apart of it). I believe"They" are coming to begin a crusade to rid TNA of the pay check stealing veterans and talent that can't draw.
They're coming for Hogan, Bishcoff and the people they brought in. They're coming for Ev2.0 (Heyman was openly critical about the reunion show as well). They're coming for the old guys. They're coming for whoever shouldn't be there. They're coming for Dixie Carter for allowing this to happen.
Heyman said he would cut their heads off the old guys and build new stars. What if it wasn't just specualtion. What if he was telling us what he IS going to do?
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