TNA owning the rights to the BROKEN gimmick makes total sense in a world where TNA had its shit together. Its how working for creative companies typically work. Its how WWE works too.
BUT I wouldnt be shocked if the Hardys are telling the truth that TNA didnt have it anywhere in the contract.
I hate TNA as much as the next person but its gonna be interesting to see how it works out.
From a layman perspective it is like being a character on a TV show, leaving and then being that exact character again on another TV show and I dont know how a jury would side in that kind of argument.
yeah but the whole scripted drama comparison is just a VERY rough approximation that has arisen primarily as a response to 'why the fuck do you watch that fake bullshit' rather than it being an accurate comparison to make.
there are situations where it is the creative idea behind the gimmick which is the driving force - i'd say the undertaker and kane are good examples of this. mark calaway was the right man for the job, obviously, but those kinds of gimmicks and stories are more 'find a body to fit this gimmick'. you could argue that it would've been very unfair for mark calaway to jump to WCW and attempt to use the undertaker gimmick.
then you've got other things like broken matt hardy where it is something that he was - if we believe what the hardys say, and i do - the primary creative force behind, and his particular performance of it being what makes it a draw. it really isn't something anybody else could do. this is not analagous to scripted tv drama in any real way, so it shouldn't be treated that way legally.
it's a smaller scale version of people like stone cold and the rock - those aren't just the usual kinds of interchangable gimmicks, they are entire performance personas that are unique to the individuals responsible for them. sure they all have plenty of help along the way, but the performer themselves should be able to negotiate ownership of either elements of or the entirety of that persona both within and without the company where they performed.
basically, matt owns this crap and tna should fuck off.
