Suicide (character)

Suicide is a fictional character from TNA Impact! the video game. In December 2008, the Suicide character was introduced on television as a real-life wrestler in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. Though having been primarily portrayed by Frankie Kazarian, Christopher Daniels took up the mantle for a time in early 2009 and went on to win the X Division Championship.^[1] In June 2010 Kiyoshi became the third man to portray the character.^[2] In October 2010 the gimmick was dropped, but made a brief return in January 2011, once again being portrayed by Christopher Daniels.^[3]

Video game

Suicide was originally created by Midway Games as an original character for the TNA Impact! video game, released on September 9, 2008.^[4] As an original character, Midway had full license with how to use him, unlike with the other characters, who were either trademarked by TNA or by the respective wrestler. The character is voiced by Senshi, who also did motion capture for the game and appears as himself.^[5]

In the game, Suicide is a professional wrestler moving up the ranks of TNA Wrestling, when, prior to his match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, he is approached by The Latin American Xchange, who tell him to throw the match.^[4][6] Suicide doesn't comply, goes on to win the title and is as a result beaten up beyond recognition by LAX and left for dead in Mexico.^[6] Doctors find him and aid in his recovery, offering free plastic surgery as well. This allows the player to create their own look for Suicide, establishing his new identity in the process.^[4]

From there, Suicide (under his new identity) finds that he has a knack for professional wrestling. After success in Mexico and a U.S. Army Base, Kevin Nash recruits Suicide for the TNA roster.^[6] After conquering the X Division and the tag team division, the latter of which with Eric Young as his partner to form the tag team known collectively as Salty Biscuits, LAX kidnaps Young and orders Suicide to go and win the TNA World Heavyweight Championship from Kurt Angle and then drop the title to Jeff Jarrett.^[6] After regaining the World Heavyweight Championship Suicide remembers his past and finds out that it was Jarrett who called the hit on him.^[6] After Nash and Samoa Joe are able to save Young from LAX, Suicide gains revenge on Jarrett by defeating him in the match for the World Heavyweight Championship.^[6]

Television

During every episode of TNA's primary television program, Impact!, after August 14, 2008, the words "whoissuicide.com" flashed on the screen for less than a second. On the website, it showed that Suicide was being taken from the game to real life television.^[7] At Final Resolution, Suicide made his debut by attacking Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley, the Motor City Machine Guns.^[8] At Destination X, the character, with Christopher Daniels replacing the injured Frankie Kazarian under the mask,^[1] won the X Division Championship in an Ultimate X match.^[9] On the May 14, 2009, episode of TNA, after weeks of accusing Daniels of being Suicide, the Motor City Machine Guns and Lethal Consequences (Jay Lethal and Consequences Creed) looked to remove the mask of Suicide. This prompted Daniels to come out and save Suicide from being exposed.^[10] Suicide wrestled Daniels at the Sacrifice pay-per-view event, in which Suicide retained via time limit draw after Daniels refused a victory assisted by the Motor City Machine Guns.^[11] According to the storyline, this all officially cleared Daniels of having donned the mask.

At Slammiversary, Suicide retained the X Division Championship against Shelley, Sabin, Lethal, and Creed in a King of the Mountain match.^[12] On July 16, Suicide lost his championship to Homicide after he cashed in his "Feast or Fired" briefcase.^[13] After not being seen for a few weeks, Suicide made his return at Hard Justice to compete in the Steel Asylum match, which he lost because of D'Angelo Dinero.^[14] On the August 20 edition of Impact! Suicide attacked Dinero after his match with Consequences Creed.^[15] On the September 17 edition of Impact! Dinero defeated Suicide in a grudge match.^[16] At No Surrender Dinero defeated Suicide again, this time in a Falls Count Anywhere match.^[17] The following week on Impact! Suicide finally defeated Dinero, by doing the Suicide Solution on a trash can in a street fight.^[18] On the October 15 edition of Impact! Homicide stole Suicide's costume and claims to now know his true identity.^[19] On the December 3 edition Impact! Suicide made peace with Dinero and joined him, Matt Morgan and Hernandez in their war with Rhino, Team 3D and Jesse Neal.^[20] At Final Resolution Morgan, Hernandez, Dinero and Suicide defeated Neal, Team 3D and Rhino in an eight-man elimination tag team match.^[21]

On the February 18, 2010, edition of Impact! Kazarian returned to TNA, and would no longer portray Suicide.^[22] The character made its return four months later on June 14, losing to Magnus in a match taped for Xplosion. This time it was portrayed by Japanese wrestler Akira Kawabata, known in TNA as Kiyoshi.^[2][23] At the July 12 tapings of Xplosion, Kawabata picked up his first victory as Suicide, defeating Eric Young.^[24] The character was temporarily retired after a live event in Windsor, Ontario on September 12, 2010, where he was defeated by Kazarian,^[25] which was followed by Kawabata returning to television as Kiyoshi on October 8 and the removal of Suicide's profile from TNA's official website on October 13.^[26] The character made its return at the January 31, 2011, tapings of Xplosion, with Christopher Daniels once again playing the part of Suicide.^[3][27] Suicide made his return to television on the April 7 edition of Impact!, where he, Brian Kendrick and Chris Sabin defeated Jeremy Buck, Max Buck and Robbie E in a six man tag team match.^[28]

In wrestling

• Finishing moves
  • DOA – Dead On Arrival (Leg trap sunset flip powerbomb)^[29] – 2008
  • Rolling moonsault side slam^[30] – 2009
  • Running double high knee to a cornered opponent transitioned into a double knee facebreaker^[31] – 2009
  • Suicide Solution^[32] (Twisting flipping over the shoulder leg hook belly-to-back suplex) – 2008–2009, 2011

• Signature moves
  • Headbutt^[32]
  • Rolling fireman's carry slam^[33]
  • Running front dropkick^[32]
  • Running snapmare driver into the second turnbuckle^[31]
  • Slingshot Oklahoma roll^[34]
  • Springboard back elbow^[35]
  • Swinging Russian legsweep^[36]

• Nicknames
  • "The Dark Savior"^[37]

• Entrance themes
  • "Coming Alive" by Dale Oliver^[38]

Championships and accomplishments

• Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
  • TNA X Division Championship (1 time)^[39]
  • X Division King of the Mountain (2009)^[12]

References

External links

• TNA Wrestling profile
• WhoIsSuicide.com
• TNAGame.com (Official Website of TNA iMPACT!: The Video Game)