By Wade Keller, PWTorch editor

Now that TNA viewers see Mick Foley as a full-time character and "part-owner" and now that a Main Event Mafia faction has been formed, ratings have ticked up. It's still just a tick upward, but it is a solid sign after last week's live Las Vegas special.

Last night's Impact drew a 1.2 rating (1.16 rounded up). The quarter hours were more steady than usual, with increased ratings in five out of seven quarters.

The first ratings drop came for the tag match featuring the Motor City Machine Guns against Tanaashi & Volador. That quarter also included two commercial breaks. The rating also dropped after the Mick Foley segment when Abyss faced Kurt Angle in the main event. The final quarter, though, was the second-highest rated segment of the show despite dropping from Q7, which was the peak rating - 1.22.

Last week's Impact opened with a 1.07 rating. This week it opened with a 1.14 rating. Last week's Impact peaked with a 1.31 rating (Foley). This week is opened with a 1.22 rating (Foley).

Keller's Analysis: Overall, a good sign for TNA Impact. Hardly a strong enough ratings jump to indicate they've turned a corner, but the last two weeks they have been 20-plus percent above some of their lower ratings in recent weeks. The pieces are in place talent-wise, both in terms of star-power and future-stars and overall speaking and in-ring talent to move up into the 1.5 range with consistently good, disciplined booking. Blaming Spike TV for a lack of promotion is weak. What TNA needs to do is hold their audience throughout a show and this week was one of the best examples of holding the Q1 rating and improving on it pretty much throughout the show. That has not been the norm in the past. Once they please the current audience, new viewers will add to the rating rather than replace lost, frustrated viewers.

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