The other shoe finally dropped for Vince Russo right before the Against All Odds PPV, as he was removed from the TNA Uncreative team. It wasn't enough that he was replaced as head writer by Bruce Prichard (Brother Love in WWF in the 80's). With Jeff Jarrett spending most of his time now with the Ring ka King promotion in India, and also defending his AAA title in Mexico, Russo's days had to be numbered, 25 months after Eric Bischoff & Hulk Hogan arrived on the scene.
This was Russo's 3rd, and longest, tour of duty with TNA, and it was clear from the outset that his lack of original ideas, and being out of touch with the modern audience in general, coupled with Jarrett not being around to protect him, finally did him in. Another ex-WWE scribe, Dave Lagana, who'd come over from Ring of Honor to work on Ring ka King, takes Russo's spot, which should help the creative staff immensely. After all, Lagana was a Paul Heyman disciple, and it's the closest TNA will ever get to having Heyman himself on the payroll.
The title of this piece refers to Russo's stint writing a comic strip for WWF Magazine in the 90's, Scoop Sullivan. It wasn't really too bad, and I doubt very seriously Russo could get the rights back to the earlier material so it can be collected in a single volume, but the biggest flaw Russo had was in trying to apply a comic strip (or comic book) style of writing to a television show like Monday Night Raw or Impact. The "crash TV" concept isn't meant to work long term, but it's all Russo understands. The man also has done talk radio in New York, and I believe he also ran a store of some kind back in the day. Let's face it, his days as a writer of any kind are just about done. He wanted to return to WWE a ways back, but couldn't get past being a "consultant". Jarrett called, and, well, the rest, as they say, is history.
For TNA, it's a winning proposition. The last of "Team Jarrett" has been removed from the picture, with Dutch Mantel and Terry Taylor, among others, having left previously. This move, politically, might have been made to keep Hogan & Bischoff from bolting when their contracts expire, but neither of them can really be a major contributor at this point, either. In fact, they're the next to go. The ratings aren't moving, a clear sign that most fans are tired of them, and have been for some time. The Immortal angle got old in a hurry because people could see it was just another NWO rehash, the 2nd in the Hogan-Bischoff era.
Where TNA needs to be as 2012 progresses lies with Lagana and how much he can be allowed to actually contribute to the product. TNA is in a position to help Lucha Libre USA, which has been bum-rushed by Spike's step-sister network, MTV2. Since TNA already has a presence established in Mexico, linking the promotions together should be a snap, but making it happen is left to Dixie Carter and Spike TV's Kevin Kay.
Meanwhile, as news of Russo's departure spreads, fans will be jumping for joy. For now.
