Why the Jarretts were "fired", Ryder at Foley show, Questions on TNA heel turns, Cena, and Melina, more Tribute notes, Maria interview, Kane added to house shows (on Raw brand), Punk/Rock make "guys we wish we were" list, Ryder talks 2011, more TNA and former WWE names confirmed for India, Austin lays down condition for theoretical return match, Hart interview, Miz on USA show, TNA developmental talent debuts in OVW, celebrity at FCW, and Dixie talks Jarrett firings

Jeff Jarrett was written out of TNA storylines so he can head their new Indian venture (which will require a number of trips there). He's also working on TNA's All Wheels Wrestling project. He's got a good deal on his plate, so I think they made the right move here.

Zack Ryder appeared at Mick Foley's comedy show in (where else?) Long Island.

PWInsider.com has some new questions up. Here's my take on them:
1 and 2 are pretty straightforward. If a decision is reversed, it's effectively erased from the record books. I would argue that if you win the title, you're champion for however long it is until they reverse the decision, but officially it's considered to have never happened.

3. I remember that a number of those turns were head-scratchers when they happened, so I wouldn't say it was all predictable. Either way, I agree that the Creative end of the company has been really lacking these past two years. BUT I will give them credit for the last 2 months or so (post-BFG) being a lot more focused and coherent. Unsurprisingly, that timeframe coincides with a change in who's heading up the Creative team (which I doubt Hogan and Bischoff had anything to do with).

After the break, I go into the rest of the day's questions and news, starting with Cena heel turn question #9007.
4. Cena's character has definitely changed since 2004. Different catch-phrases and mottos, etc.. There's still a lot of interest in Cena, and a lot of people buying Cena merchandise. I don't think the decline in PPV buys can be solely attributed to Cena. It takes time and effort to build stars who will draw money, and there aren't many people the company will get behind enough for that to happen like it should. Creative could use a boost as well. Who would Cena feud with if he turned heel anyway? He plays well off of Del Rio, Miz, and R-Truth and they're all heels (unless Truth turns when he comes back, which would be kind of weird). Other than Punk, there really aren't any high-level babyfaces for him to go up against on Raw.

5. Still no word on the Melina-TNA front. She hasn't signed and there's no guarantee that she will.

In the latest batch of Tribute to the Troops news, John Cena, Wade Barrett, and Alicia Fox are featured in a story on the army's website.

Update: Cody Rhodes and George Wallace talked more about the experience.

Former WWE Diva Maria talked about a number of WWE (and TNA) topics. I agree that the company stifles creativity at times but hopefully that's changing now.

Kane has been officially added to an upcoming Raw house show tour, presumably confirming he's a member of that brand's roster now.

C.M. Punk and The Rock made Guyism's list of guys they wish they were.

Zack Ryder talked about the Ryder Revolution and the year he's had. As someone who watched the ECW brand, I was familiar with his work as a heel version of the character before 2011. It was very entertaining then, too. Either way, he's really stumbled onto something with the social media thing. I'd like more performers to think outside of the box with ways to get over. Obviously, the company needs to be paying attention to what they're doing. If they get enough people behind them (and buy their merchandise), though, the company won't have much of a choice but to push them if they want to make money.

Magnus will be part of TNA's still-unnamed Indian project. Not sure what that means for the British Invasion here in the States.

Update: Scott Steiner, Abyss, Trevor Murdoch, and Chavo Guerrero have all been confirmed as being a part of the tapings. They will tape this month and in January. I wonder if the latter two will end up in TNA down the line.

Jesse Neal made a number of comments about TNA and his future.

Steve Austin tweeted that he would want JR announcing if he ever stepped back in the ring. That should go without saying! I hope that happens next year, with Punk as the opponent.

Bret Hart was interviewed. Creative could indeed do a lot better for the performers. I think they overthink things and micromanage when that could very well be the opposite of what they need to do.

The Miz will be on "Psych" sometime next year. Cool.

JR has a new blog looking at a multitude of topics.

"Mr. Pec-tacular" Jessie Godderz worked a dark match at the most recent OVW tapings. No word on when he'll end up on the main TNA roster.

Pee Wee Herman visited at FCW recently. Didn't expect to type that one. Hope he enjoyed it.

Finally, Dixie Carter tweeted about the firing of the Jarretts.

That's all for Thursday's news. More to come later. Thanks for reading!