WNS Fans View: Wild's War Cry - Will Aces N 8's Be Remembered Well?

Wilds’ War Cry: Dead Man’s Hand

  I had high hopes for the Aces & Eights faction in TNA. I know it was just their biker version of The Nexus plotline that worked so well for WWE, but I decided to put a little faith in TNA Creative, a poor decision I have been making more frequently as of late. The group came onto the scene much in the same way, starting at the top by attacking Sting and leaving an episode of unanswered questions in between. That builds anticipation. That is how it’s done.

  Sadly, things only went downhill from there; not immediately, but looking back the idea of the masks and anonymity were just a safety net until creative could finish shaping their plans for who they wanted in the faction. The internet is full of spoilers and thusly had already ruined several of the group’s members, but listening to who the big names were going to be, who was in charge, that was the fun part. I don’t just mean speculations from fans either, but names that the company had put up to head the faction that later just didn’t work.

  One example being the promo that Eric Bischoff was in when Sting and Hogan were abducted by the group, but Eric Bischoff has yet to be revealed and now states that he is finished being an on-air talent. Jeff Jarrett was also being seriously considered for the presidential role in the club, but I am guessing backstage politics got in the way of that. Devon being revealed as the Sergeant at Arms is another example, as he wasn’t a part of the original group, but the company wanted to throw him back in after re-signing him. I was also one of the few fans of Taz’s involvement with the group, though many made fun of it.

   One of the bigger reveals that really could have been cool, and was handled decently on television, was the heel turns of Garett Bischoff and Wes Brisco. Sadly, people like me who keep up with it already knew that they were under the masks, but for the storyline it worked. Those two particular stars just didn’t have enough behind their names to draw more people in. Finally there was the Bully Ray turn that everyone saw coming from a mile away. That is not saying it was a bad thing. That moment made for some great television and Bully is one of the best heels working at the moment, but I believe that fans built it up more than it actually was, thinking that there would be a real huge surprise. I don’t mean the outlandish ideas proposed by some: like that Batista or Goldberg was going to be behind it all. I was thinking realistically.

   I do like that the faction gave some good workers another shot, like former WWE talents Luke Gallows (D.O.C.) and Mike Knox (Knux), but here we are looking at what is probably the beginning of the end for this group and it seems to be ending with a whimper, not a bang. I loved Ken Anderson being involved, even if it didn’t make much sense and their method for bringing him in seemed lazy. Everyone could tell he was going to be the breakaway to go against Bully, and will probably benefit the most from this entire ordeal.

  But overall, if the end is coming for Aces & Eights, I have to say it has been a disappointing one. I expected more. My hope is that TNA will learn from this though, no need to rehash old groups, leave the NWO and MEM alone. Do something new and do it better, even if they are copying someone else, it is new to many of their fans. The key in any case is to make it memorable, something that this group has not done much of. Unless something happens soon though, Aces & Eights will be an easily dismissed memory of wrestling.