By James Caldwell, PWTorch assistant editor

The quotes from Hulk Hogan and Dixie Carter to media outlets based in New York this week are very telling. And, very consistent with TNA's 10-year company history promising "nice surprises," "big surprises," and "major surprises." There's also a call-to-arms for Impact Wrestling fans to "rally behind the cause" - a page taken from WWE"s playbook - and lay down their concerns/criticisms/qualms in the name of supporting the brand.

TNA just signed a multi-year extension with New York-based Spike TV despite ratings slipping back towards 2007/2008 levels. This, after the January 4, 2010 show, the live Monday night experiment, and the influx of big budget, big-names from past eras who, collectively, have not moved the needle over the long haul.

But, according to Dixie, ratings aren't as important as they once were because technology has changed. Also, according to Dixie, PPVs are a "declining business," so don't pay attention to 7,000 buys (0.5 percent of the TV audience) for the March PPV.

Yet, in the same breath, TNA talks about being a young, maturing company - especially compared to WWE - and still trying to gain mainstream exposure. A company in a growth stage should be able to fight the winds of technology change - perhaps not reaching a 1.3 rating every week, but able to touch 1.1 or 1.2 consistently.

It also comes at a time when Hogan has returned to TV in a prominent role, yet ratings have declined and the show dipped below a 1.0 rating the past three weeks. Overall on the year, Impact is seven percent below the 2011 average.

The answer, of course, is Hogan's Big Idea. (Followed by the "nice ideas" outlined by Hogan on Twitter last weekend about going live and needing more money.)

Yet, Hogan has not proven during his TNA run to be able to apply what got him over, what made him a household name, and what kept him on-top during two completely different wrestling eras into a management role. Like in sports, some of the all-time greatest players have not been able to translate those skills to an executive/front-office/management/coach/teacher role. On the flip side, a baseball player with a .250 career batting average and 20 career home runs may make for the best manager/coach/executive because he understood *the game* rather than relied on overwhelming physical skills/abilities or circumstances to excel at *his game.*

Hogan may be best suited in a "hitting coach" role where he has a specific task - such as helping with promos and being a visible ambassador for TNA - but his Big Idea pitch comes across like the latest dangling carrot to keep the right people in the game and the money flowing.

The over-arching theme is that TNA's front-and-center representatives are still talking about the same things they've been talking about for the past three+plus years (and longer before Hogan arrived at the end of 2009). Why re-visit it now? Why this week? There's a sense of urgency to start lining up explanations and creating demand for artificial needs. TNA doesn't *need* to go live. TNA doesn't *need* to be on the road. TNA doesn't *need* a second or third show. TNA doesn't *need* the next big idea.

TNA has what they need - a very good roster, a cable TV timeslot, a supportive network, a TV studio that has been made to look as professional as possible, etc. TNA simply has not been able to execute on what they have. As a result, TNA often-times comes across like a company that has yet to arrive - and just needs those one or two more toys in the toy chest to get there. But, what if TNA acted like a company that has already arrived? And, presented it as such on TV, rather than resetting the show every six months?

When will the conversation turn into how well or how poorly TNA is executing on what they already have? Or, how well their #1 lead babyface is performing? When the conversation stops being about "getting to the next level" or "the next big idea" or "supporting the brand," TNA will show true maturity - the mark of a company that doesn't need to talk about "the next level" because they've created the perception they're already there.

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