It is undeniable that IMPACT Wrestling has been a destination for, and a creator of, incredible wrestling talent since its foundation in 2002, and recent TNA nostalgia has allowed fans to look back and relish in those memories. But, whilst many's bodies of work in TNA have been celebrated for their innovation and genuine quality, and rightfully so, some are inevitably going get a little overlooked. Though he may not be the first name that pops into someone's head when thinking of TNA, there is no arguing that Abyss is an indelible icon of the company.
Perhaps the best deathmatch wrestler to not be labeled as a 'deathmatch wrestler', Abyss was an ever-present force on the TNA roster, a formidable foe for anyone to overcome. Appearing on the very first TNA weekly pay-per-view and remaining a company fixture up until 2019, few had as much longevity as "The Monster" Abyss. Possessing an extreme versatility as well, Abyss could do it all, and he did just that at TNA, making him one of the greatest to step through their doors.
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Unleashing A Monster In TNA
Appearing on TNA's first show under the name 'Justice', the Abyss character would be later born in Puerto Rico. A territory historically known for its violent slant on wrestling, the gimmick was given to him by Dutch Mantel, also known as Zeb Colter of Real Americans fame. Returning to TNA in 2003, Abyss was quick to assert himself as a terrifying threat. Ultimately, it is Abyss' brutality that will be the center jewel in his crown as a TNA legend. A year after returning as the masked monster, Abyss had a gimmick match created just for him, the Monster's Ball.
The first Monster's Ball is quite a high-concept idea, with the premise being that Abyss and his opponents, Monty Brown and Raven, had been locked in a pitch-black room without food or water for 24 hours before the match, making them ravenous upon the ring of the bell. Whilst that idea faded pretty quickly, the violence of the stipulation did not wane at all. Monster's Balls have seen the likes of chains, thumbtacks, barbed wire boards and even fire all used in the name of dealing damage. As his preferred match, Abyss has wrestled in over 50 Monster's Ball matches in TNA, and adding in independent appearances of the Monster's Ball takes the total into triple figures.
Even outside of the Monster's Ball, Abyss was putting on chaotic hardcore matches and committing brutally memorable acts against his fellow TNA stars. Abyss' feud with Christian Cage saw him attack Cage in his own home, holding him beneath the water of his own swimming pool. Plus, there was the introduction of Janice, a wooden board filled with nails that Abyss terrorized the locker room with. When TNA looked to get violent, Abyss was the first port of call.
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Abyss Was A Versatile Beast
Though hardcore matches were Abyss' barbed-wire bread-and-butter, he built up a much more diverse body of work over the years at TNA. His size and power lent to thrilling encounters even without a weapon in his hand or a cage around the ring. From forming teams with Matt Morgan and within The Decay stable in later years, to even a genius idea where Abyss took advantage of the X-Division's 'no limits' and rampaged through smaller opponents. Wherever a spot needed to be filled on the card, Abyss could pull it off.
Abyss also excelled as a character, weaving this tale of the damaged mind of Chris Park and the various people that influenced his psyche over the years. His early years under the control of "The Sinister Minister" James Mitchell incorporated deep family secrets and lore of what made Abyss turn to such savagery, with later stories like Stevie Richards as an abusive therapist. Years of drama led to the appearance of the mild-mannered Joseph Park at the Impact Zone, a man claiming to be Abyss' brother, much like how Ezekiel is Elias' brother. Whilst his TNA storylines definitely included some headscratchers - like that time Hulk Hogan's WWE Hall of Fame ring made him unstoppable - but the throughline of what made Chris Park into Abyss, and Abyss into Joseph Park, was the best kind of goofiness wrestling has to offer.
In October 2018, Abyss was inducted into the IMPACT Hall of Fame, joining the likes of Sting, Kurt Angle, Jeff Jarrett, Gail Kim, and Team 3-D. Abyss would then leave IMPACT the following January, putting a nearly two-decade run with the company to rest and then becoming a producer for the WWE. Whilst he hasn't gotten physical, Joseph Park did appear as an on-screen statistician for AJ Styles, a man who encountered Abyss many times in TNA. Though Abyss has certainly gotten his flowers with that Hall of Fame induction, he deserves so much more recognition as a TNA icon, a monster that gave his body to the fans and left a catalog of great matches, moments, and broken bodies in his wake.
