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Recently on Da Wrestling Board there was a discussion about what makes a 5 star match.
To me, a 5 star match is determined by my overall enjoyment of the match. That's it. Other things factor in (psychology, crowd heat, etc.), but those things are what formulate my enjoyment. That's the best way I can explain it.
Anyway, I then went on to make up a list of all the matches I have ever seen that I consider to be ***** matches. Here is that list:
WWF/WWE:
Randy Savage vs. Ricky Steamboat - Wrestlemania III
Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart - Wrestlemania X
Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin - Wrestlemania XIII
Steve Austin vs. The Rock - Wrestlemania X7
NWA/WCW:
Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat - Clash of the Champions VI
Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat - Wrestlewar '89
Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio Jr. - Halloween Havoc '97
Puroresu/Joshi Puroresu:
Akira Hokuto vs. Shinobu Kandori - 4/2/93
Toyota/Yamada vs. Ozaki/Kansai - 4/11/93
Stan Hansen vs. Kenta Kobashi - 7/29/93
Wild Pegasus vs. The Great Sasuke - 4/16/94
Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada - 6/3/94
Misawa/Kobashi vs. Kawada/Taue - 6/9/95
Misawa/Akiyama vs. Kawada/Taue - 12/6/96
Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Kenta Kobashi - 1/20/97
Next week some time, I'm gonna try and order all of those matches to determine my rankings for them. They're all 5 stars, but which is the best, and which is the "worst"? You'll have to wait and find out.
OTHER NEWS: I'm still planning on doing my Top 10 Matches of 2005 list, hopefully soon. I'm still waiting for ROH's Final Battle to come out on DVD, as I have a feeling KENTA/Ki from that show might make the list.
Real F'n Show |
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God I love TiVo.
Benoit vs. Orton - 1/13/06 Smackdown
Really good stuff here for a TV match, with a finish it would have worked well on PPV. Awesome matwork to start which they didn't rush through at all. Benoit brings the moveset (which he often does against Orton), including a fisherman suplex bridge, which was really cool. Orton played his role well in this, including bumping his ass off when Benoit headbutted him off the top turnbuckle to the outside. Orton's glazed over look from that was great, as was his evil grin after avoiding the the flying headbutt. The best Orton singles match I've seen other than the Foley match from Backlash 2004, but that was based solely on gimmick bumps, so this is probably the better match. Once again, the finish hurt this the most, but this is WWE so I've grown used to finishes like this. ***1/4
Angle vs. Michaels - 1/16/06 Raw
Another great TV match here, as these two have developed quite the chemistry with one another. There matches always remind me of AJ Styles vs. Chris Daniels matches for some reason, and this was no different. Really if you replace Shawn with AJ and Kurt with Daniels you'd have about the same match if you think about it. Anyhow, this sort of felt like the beginning of a match, along with a hot finishing sequence, and a no middle section that their PPV matches have had. The playing off of spots from their previous matches and cool reversals show the chemistry I was talking about, and these reversals have become a lot cleaner. WWE finish aside, this is pretty damn good for Raw. ***
Flair vs. Edge - 1/16/06 Raw
Two good TV matches on one Raw? Very strange, indeed. This wasn't as good as Michaels vs. Angle, but it's Ric Flair in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, and for that I say this is about the best they could do. I wasn't really sure what to expect at first, but this was surprisingly good. They didn't go overkill aside from the three main bumps that the match was based around (splash off ladder through table on the outside, superplex off the ladder, and Edge falling off the ladder through the table), and filled the rest in with Flair's usual stuff with added weapon shots and Lita interference. Flair is still fucking nutso for taking a superplex off a ladder, though. Finish was going well and was very dramatic with Flair's daughter at ringside crying, but it ended up being really anti-climatic with one punch knocking Flair off the ladder. Still a decent/pretty good match. **3/4
Finlay vs. Hardy - 1/20/06 Smackdown
Smackdown just got ten times more awesome. Now they need Malenko to return and we're set. I'm really glad WWE is going the "he likes to fight" route with Finlay too, instead of the bisexual irish cheerleader with a third nipple route or something. This was really fun with Finlay bringing the eurocuts and a cool jumping butt splash. Hardy got in his stuff too, but this match was all about Fit Finlay. In the coolest thing I had seen in a long time, Finlay PULLED THE APRON UP as Hardy attempted a baseball slide, trapping him. That's just genius. He then proceeded to beat the tar out of Hardy, including some brutal crossfaces back in the ring. The first two hit flush, too, before Hardy started putting his hands up to block on the third one. Good stuff. **
Mysterio vs. Henry - 1/20/06 Smackdown
This was a really good "big guy vs. little guy" match. Definately no Takayama/KENTA, but still really good. With Eddie gone, Rey's easily the second best worker in the company. The story here was really basic, but of course Rey makes it work, like he's done so many times before and is so goddamn good at. Henry looked the best he ever has in there, too. The three 619's didn't hit me at all as overkill here, considering the way they went about it. The way they were set up made the move seem legit, especially with Henry's size. Finish was awesome as well, a rarity in WWE these days it seems. Rey hit the frogsplash for two, with Henry actually picking Rey up on the kickout, doing a backwards roll, and delivering the slam out of it for the three. The finish made Henry look awesome without taking too much away from Rey. It will be interesting to see what Angle can do with the World's Strongest Man. **1/2
Michaels vs. Benjamin - 1/23/06 Raw
These two had some kind of match to live up to, and they didn't disappoint in my opinion. The pace was a little slower than their previous Raw match, but the work was just as strong. Shelton playing the heel role made this better character-wise than their other face versus face match, and Shelton's momma wasn't too much of a distraction until the typical finish that everyone was expecting. The body of the match though was great. I thought the playing off of their previous match was a nice touch, with Shelton springboarding in and then catching Shawn's attempted superkick this time, before nailing a sick kick to the head of his own. I also really liked the teasing of HBK's elbow drop, the build to which was great. Shelton stopped it twice with two awesome spots, including a run-up-the-ropes no-handed enziguri sending Michaels to the outside, and a run-up superplex as well. If this had been say on PPV I may have been a bit disappointed, but on free TV this was great. *** |
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After a short hiatus I'm back for probably the last time until New Years.
I've been working on organizing a "Top 10" of sorts for my Match of the Year. Yeah, I know this is played, but whatever.
Having trouble ordering it, but the following have all recieved consideration:
Kobashi/Shiosaki vs. Sasaki/Nakajima - NOAH 11/5
Perro Aguayo Jr. vs. Mistico - CMLL
Joe vs. Daniels vs. Styles - TNA Unbreakable
Joe vs. Kobashi - ROH
Kobashi vs. Sasaki - NOAH 7/18
KENTA vs. Kanemaru - NOAH 7/18
Guerrero vs. Mysterio - Smackdown 6/23
Kawada vs. Kojima - 2/16
Joe vs. Styles - TNA Turning Point 12/11
KENTA/Marufuji vs. Hidaka/Fujita - Differ Cup Finals
Michaels vs. Angle - Wrestlemania
Danielson vs. Gibson - ROH
Gibson vs. Strong - ROH Unforgettable
Still have yet to see Danielson/Strong II or KENTA/Low Ki, both of which will probably make it on here. Once I've seen those two, I think I'm set. Expect the list sometime early next year. |
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"Good men must die, but death cannot kill their names."
~The Bible
I woke up this morning and got on the computer, expecting to read about Christian Cage making his much anticipated debut tonight at TNA's "Genesis" PPV. What I found was not this, but horrible, horrible news.
On DVDVR, I saw a thread titled "Eddie Guerrero Tribute Thread". "Yeah," I thought, "Eddie's awesome, he deserves a tribute." I proceeded into the wrestling folder where I saw a thread called "Eddie Guerrero Passes Away". I could not believe my eyes. This was some kind of sick joke. "Please, let it be a joke," I thought to myself as I clicked on the thread.
Eddie Guerrero passes away
Nov. 13, 2005
WWE is deeply saddened by the news that Eddie Guerrero has passed away. He was found dead this morning in his hotel room in Minneapolis. Eddie is survived by his wife Vickie and his two daughters.
No. I'm still sleeping. This is a nightmare. I quickly went over to WWE.com, where it was confirmed. I started to cry. "Eddie Guerrero 1967-2005" the banner said. 38 years old. Much too young. Why did Eddie have to die?
I still don't think the reality has completely set in, and it probably won't until Raw is Eddie tomorrow night.
I watched Eddie matches all day today. Classics with Liger, Benoit, Ohtani, Mysterio, Lesnar, I had never cried when watching these matches before. Until now. The image of Eddie clutching the WWE Title after defeating Brock Lesnar at No Way Out 2004 still sits in my head. I can't believe he is gone...
Rest in Peace, esse, you're one of the best ever. |
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Rest in peace, Eddie Guerrero.
One of the greatest of all time.Current Mood:  sad |
| » I've watch Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi twice now. |
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I was worried that people on the introweb were overhyping the hell out of this, sometimes that kills a match for me, when it's hyped so much, and then doesn't live up to the hype, despite being a VERY good match. This is not the case here.
Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi from Ring of Honor completely lived up to the hype, and then some. The crowd is nuked, the chops are brutal, everything just flows so well, it's unreal. I'm not going to go into detail, but you NEED this match.
I'll have to watch it about once or twice more, to see where it fits into my MOTY list, but right now I'm thinking:
1.) KENTA vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru 7/18 NOAH
2.) Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi October ROH
3.) Kenta Kobashi vs. Kensuke Sasaki 7/18 NOAH
4.) Eddie Guerrero vs. Rey Mysterio June Smackdown
5.) Toshiaki Kawada vs. Satoshi Kojima 2/16 AJPW
Again, I need to watch Joe/Kobashi again, and also Ultimo Guerrero/Mistico once more, as well as some ROH I'm behind on.
Real F'n Show
Nov. 9th, 2005 @ 11:46 am
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| » Thinking Positive |
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Yeah, my Wrestlemania tickets came in the mail yesterday. Me and three friends are making the trip to Chicago for WM Weekend and hopefully Ring of Honor as well, and I've never been more pumped.
Also really looking forward to the TNA Primetime Special tonight. UX is sure to be a blast, considering they're "making it up to us", and there's also Joe/Shelley/Daniels vs. Styles/Aries/Sonjay which is sure to be good fun. This show could go a long way in determining whether they decide to put TNA head to head with Raw. So that mean's it's your duty to watch!
I'm really forward to the new Smackdown vs. Raw 2006 videogame that comes out for the PS2 later this month. I always have a blast with these games, and this one should be no different. The General Manager mode, a sort of wrestling simulator where you book the feuds, matches, angles, etc. against another GM is sure to be great. New improved CAWs with 3D CLOTHING this time looks really good too, as well as the ability to defend title belts in exhibition matches.
Christian left the WWE. Good for him, but bad for the peeps, unless he shows up in TNA. Imagine an Outsiders-esque duo of Jericho and Christian showing up on a TNA PPV and destroying Jarrett. How cool would that be?
WWE seems to be having a really bad week. To top it off, the Raw ratings were apparently the lowest they've been since moving to USA, which isn't good for them, considering TNA's remain on the rise. It's always good for us wrestling fans though, so that's a positive.
Jackie Gayda has signed with TNA. I could see TNA using her as the "Beulah" in this angle with Raven. Maybe even bring in Charlie Haas to play Tommy Dreamer? Man, TNA's been kicking ass.
Thank god for alternatives. If it weren't for Ring of Honor, TNA, and Puro, I probably wouldn't be watching wrestling today. Just thought I'd like to throw that out there. I'm really pulling for TNA.
That's it for now, I may go in-depth in a later post, but for now, I'm done.
Real F'n Show
Nov. 3rd, 2005 @ 04:51 pm
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| » Catching up; BFG, other random thoughts |
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The preshow fourway, Alex Shelley vs. Roderick Strong vs. Austin Aries vs. Sonjay Dutt, was all kinds of fun. They gave it about 12-15 minutes, basically non-stop spots. Shelley got to show off his matwork, Sonjay got to show off his flying (including a dragonrana that would make Dragon Kid proud), Aries got to show off his explosive (somewhat contrived) spots, and Strong got to show off his, uh...backbreakers. My friends were not familiar with most of these guys, but were clearly won over in the in. It's amazing how much Sonjay has improved since his CZW days of blowing spots left and right, but I guess Japan will do that to you. Shelley busted out at least one submission move I had never seen before, and they did a cool fourway submission spot. Well technically I think Sonjay wasn't giving anyone a submission, but taking all three. Great, great stuff. ***1/4
Joe vs. Liger was pretty disappointing, but you've probably read enough about that on the internet. Obviously they needed to cut some time, but really, they could have just cut the Diamonds in the Rough tag, and I doubt anyone would have cared. TNA should have known better to cut THIS match short, especially when catering to the internet crowd, many of whom probably ordered the show based on this match alone. It was decent while it lasted at least, if a little bit slower paced than I expected. Liger used a nice frogsplash at one point, and Joe came out looking like a monster, so that's good I guess. Finish was pretty anti-climatic, and this only got about 9 minutes. At least they didn't go out there and try to cram 20 minutes worth of stuff into the match. **
Diamonds in the Rough vs. The JOB Squad was probably better than anyone expected, but it definitely didn't need to go as long, especially with the last match being cut short. Apollo busted out a somersault plancha at one point. Kinda just there, but it wasn't bad or anything. *3/4
Hoyt vs. Monty Brown was better than it should of been, partially thanks to a hot crowd. I don't notice Hoyt's terrible punches as much as others, but usually I drift in and out of his matches. Brown is so fucking charismatic. Nothing bad so far. **
Team Canada vs. 3 Live Kru was a match straight out of iMPACT!, but it furthered the Kip James storyline, so whatever. Bobby Roode is easily the best of the Canada guys, which isn't saying much. Killings looked good here, Road Dogg was Road Dogg, and Konnan threw shoes. Yep. *1/2
Ultimate X started off well until the X fell down. They should really only do these for belts, it seems the X falls down too easily. I felt bad for all three, as they were clearly out there to bust there asses and put on a hell of match. The powerbomb from the ropes was sick. You could tell this was not the match they wanted to have, obviously, and their reactions were strong. Finish was most likely improvised due to the X falling again. Would have pissed the crowd off even more to take the time to hang it again, but they really should have restarted it again, as you could tell they had tons of great spots planned. At least we get a rematch on free TV. **1/4
AMW vs. The Naturals was a good brawl. Both teams have really grown on me. I liked the iMPACT! match better, but this was perfectly fine. AMW could use some work on playing better heels. There using basically the same spots, with little to no heelish acts thrown in during the actual body of the match. At one point James Storm got powerbombed into the guardrail in a sick spot. Still, these teams could do better, but again, this was perfectly acceptable. **1/2
Monster's Ball 2 was crazy. Jeff Hardy is insane. They worked this style perfectly, and matched Hardy and Abyss up while Sabu and Rhino paired off, which I think worked out well. The swanton spot probably topped the WM2000 one. How Jeff's spine isn't protruding from the top of his skull is beyond me, as he landed ass-first. Just crazy stuff from bell to bell. Sabu was bleeding from the eye at one point I believe. I think they teased thumbtacks at one point, as well, but never ended up using them. Rhino piledrove Jeff Hardy off the second rope for the win. Crazy, crazy match. ***1/2
The iron man was easily the best match on the show, though the crowd was worn out for the first half. Daniels and AJ smartly worked the mat for the first half as they knew the crowd would be that way. Slower than most of their encounters, but they worked it that way just fine. AJ smacked his calf on the ring steps at one point. I didn't like this as much as their first match, mainly because Daniels didn't use as much psychology, where as in the first match he was relentless going after AJ's ribs. Still a very good match with the crowd getting into it in the end, and a good move not to go to overtime when they were already running behind. Styles Clash with 2 seconds to go finishes. ***3/4
The Battle Royal was decent. They did a good job of keeping Joe looking good by having him be eliminated by the much larger Abyss from behind while he had the choke on AJ. I was surprised Monty was eliminated so early, but whatever. No Raven either, in a surprise. Nothing fancy, with Rhino picking up the victory, last eliminating Abyss. **
Rhino vs. Jarrett was short, but alright. I was expecting Raven in the casket. Odd that they kept him off the show. Rhino didn't get much offense, but ended up winning, leading to a brawl and celebration. The usual mindless stuff, but it worked. Obviously the title change was used to make up for a Nash-less main event, but what can you do. I don't watch TNA for the main event scene anyway. *1/2
Overall, this was decent, although I was disappointed in Joe/Liger and Ultimate X. The iron man and Monster's Ball matches definately made up for it though, and the pre-show match was also fantastic. Nothing bad, but nothing to go out of your way for, except maybe Hardy's swanton. Daniels/AJ was the usual good stuff that you've seen before. Not as good as good overall as Sacrifice, and no blow away matches like Joe/Daniels/AJ, but this was still a damn fine effort from TNA, and all these guys busted there asses.
Other Random thoughts:
The Murdoch/Cade team on Raw is great. Trevor Murdoch looks like how wrestlers should look. Cade plays the pretty boy part of the team well, and something about them just "works". It's nice to see a tag team that will be around for awhile.
I really need to see some Smackdown, but the move to Fridays has thrown my timing off a bit. Maybe I'll catch it tomorrow night or something.
I really need to start watching the Heat and Velocity shows on WWE.com, but with 56k, it could be some kind of task. Luckily high speed internet is not far away.
So far, I've enjoyed all four iMPACT! shows much more than any recent Raws. Maybe it's the drinking game that me and my friends play, but we always have a blast watching it.
That's it for now, thanks for reading.
Real F'n Show
Oct. 27th, 2005 @ 08:32 pm
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| » TNA Drinking Game, 10/8 iMPACT! thoughts |
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The rules:
1 drink for every:
2-count
dropkick
time Don West says something stupid
2 drinks for every:
catchphrase
finisher
top rope move
3 drinks for every:
guitar shot
commercial
time someone bleeds
Thoughts:
Opening tag match was nothing, 3LK is more stale than the Dudleyz at the end of their WWE run.
Daniels/Aries/Bentley was fun, much like last week's three-way. Aries is really over, he needs the Sabin push from like 2 years ago. Bentley does nothing for me, but he held his own. Hopefully he's re-teamed with Kazarian again upon his return, those two make a really good team. Daniels was his usual awesome self, and this had some very fun spots.
3-D vs. AMW was decent. Dudleyz are the same Dudleyz that we last saw in the WWE, although they cut a really good promo to start the show. Gail Kim debuting in a major feud is something I did not expect, but it could be fun to see where they go with this.
Real F'n Show
Oct. 9th, 2005 @ 11:46 am
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| » WWE Homecoming Thoughts |
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Nice intro to start, although I was disappointed they didn't change the opening video or theme song (The Union Underground...ugh).
Piper's Pit was pretty boring, but it did what it was supposed to do, I guess.
The iron man was decent, but I expected more, considering how good their previous two matches were. This wasn't bad by any means, I just thought they'd do more, to "go all out" for the USA debut. Angle throws some good Euro uppercuts, and using the powerbomb into the turnbuckle is a good set-up for the angle slam, but he doesn't really have anything to set up the ankle lock. I guess Angle isn't that big on psychology anyway, so whatever. Disappointing finish that really made Angle look weak, he needed to be put over here. ***1/4
The Austin thing went on forever, and was boring as hell. Thank god there's only 4 McMahons.
I really liked the ladder match. Some very good spots, and they all came off very brutal. Nice finish too, with Lita holding Hardy in the ropes. I'd probably give it ***3/4 or so. Match of the night.
I saw the turn on Flair coming a mile away, and the beatdown lasted forever. Carlito took a really good Pedigree in the match, but there was really no need for Trips to turn on Flair AFTER winning. Should have done it during the match...
Good way to bury Smackdown.
Oct. 5th, 2005 @ 12:51 pm
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| » Thoughts on TNA's Spike debut |
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First off, I watched this with a bunch of marking out friends, so I probably enjoyed it more than I should have.
Was really impressed with the production value. Good way to show the fans this is for real.
Opening with AJ was a great idea, but they really made Strong look like a jobber. Hopefully he's pushed eventually, as he's a great worker, and his arsenal of backbreakers would fit in perfectly with the X-Division. Better yet, they could team him with Aries as Generation Next.
Anyway, the match was disappointing, really. Went about 5 minutes with Strong getting in a camel clutch, kick to the back of the head, and one of his backbreakers, while AJ did the rest, showing off a flip dive, pele kick, and backflip DDT, before ending with the Styles Clash. Not what I was expecting, but still good. **
Somewhere in here, Monty Brown squashed a jobber. Alright.
I thought the three way between Williams/Sabin/Shelley really stole the show. They went at a very fast speed, and had some really cool spots. Pretty much a mindless spotfest, but once again, I'm watching with a few marks and my girlfriend, and they really dug it. Shelley is great and I hope they start using him in something meaningful. At one point Sabin went for an asai moonsault onto Williams but Shelley stopped him and did a tope through Sabin's legs onto Williams. Sabin then followed with a nice asai moonsault onto both. Some other fun stuff as well, that I can't really remember, but it was all good. **1/2
Good way of showing off the Canadian Destroyer after the match, it's over huge.
Rhino/Hardy slowed down the pace, but was still perfectly acceptable. I like Rhino adding a diving headbutt and Shamrock belly-to-belly to his arsenal, but he really needs to work on his strikes. Interference was received as "what the hell is going on?" by my friends. Sabu's appearance made up for it though, I guess. *3/4
Jarrett's segment was decent, I like AMW's new look a lot better too. Kinda reminds me of Evolution with the suits and glasses. Anyway, Dudl...er Team 3-D were over huge and Nash was as well. Good ending to the show.
Anyway, I'm pumped for Raw tonight for the first time in a long while, so expect thoughts on that sometime within the week.
Real F'n Show
Oct. 3rd, 2005 @ 04:26 pm
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| » Real F'n Show's Top 100 Wrestlers |
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Here it is:
1. Chris Benoit
2. Kenta Kobashi
3. Eddie Guerrero
4. Samoa Joe
5. Bryan Danielson
6. Blue Panther
7. Rey Mysterio Jr.
8. Jushin "Thunder" Liger
9. Toshiaki Kawada
10. Ultimo Guerrero
11. Kurt Angle
12. James Gibson
13. Christopher Daniels
14. Mitsuharu Misawa
15. Shawn Michaels
16. Paul London
17. Triple H
18. KENTA
19. Hiroyoshi Tenzan
20. Ric Flair
21. Satoshi Kojima
22. Edge
23. Chris Jericho
24. AJ Styles
25. L.A. Park
26. Val Venis
27. Shelton Benjamin
28. El Hijo del Santo
29. William Regal
30. CM Punk
31. Christian
32. Shinjiro Ohtani
33. Alex Shelley
34. Hiroshi Tanahashi
35. Jun Akiyama
36. Rocky Romero
37. Roderick Strong
38. Ultimo Dragon
39. Charlie Haas
40. Austin Aries
41. Homicide
42. CIMA
43. Stevie Richards
44. TAKA Michinoku
45. Chris Sabin
46. Colt Cabana
47. Rey Bucanero
48. Chavo Guerrero Jr.
49. Kaz Hayashi
50. Nunzio
51. Mike Quackenbush
52. Kensuke Sasaki
53. Shocker
54. Mistico
55. Tajiri
56. Abyss
57. Psicosis
58. Dr. Wagner Jr.
59. Jeff Jarrett
60. CW Anderson
61. Dick Togo
62. Super Crazy
63. Matt Sydal
64. Doug Basham
65. Devon Storm
66. Low Ki
67. The Undertaker
68. Matt Hardy
69. Super Dragon
70. D'Lo Brown
71. Jerry Lynn
72. Ikuto Hidaka
73. Nigel McGuinness
74. Juventud Guerrera
75. Rob Conway
76. Chad Collyer
77. Magnum Tokyo
78. Jimmy Jacobs
79. Kane
80. Randy Orton
81. Raven
82. Ricky Reyes
83. Delirious
84. Rhino
85. Chuck Palumbo
86. Milano Collection AT
87. Chris Hero
88. Spanky
89. Minoru Fujita
90. Jerry Lynn
91. Jay Lethal
92. Arik Cannon
93. Necro Butcher
94. Claudio Castagnoli
95. Sean Waltman
96. JBL
97. Kevin Steen
98. Jerelle Clark
99. Taiyo Kea
100. Brad Bradley
Feel free to leave comments, thoughts, whatever. I'm very interested in opinions.
Real F'n Show
Sep. 30th, 2005 @ 07:30 pm
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| » DWB Top 100 |
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This was a list compiled by a few people on my message board, which can be found under links on the side. Basically it was compiled to get a general idea of our thoughts altogether, and it came out pretty well I think, although the puro love is lacking. The numbers in parentheses indicate the number of first place votes a certain wrestler received:
100. Jay Lethal
99. Ultimo Dragon
98. Jeff Hardy
97. Billy Kidman
96. BG James
95. Jerry Lynn
94. Chase Stevens
93. Jamal
92. Dr. Wagner Jr.
91. Eugene
90. Rob Van Dam
89. Ric Flair
88. Super Crazy
87. Doug Basham
86. Bobby Roode
85. Takishi Rikio
84. Booker T
83. Carlito
82. Sonjay Dutt
81. The Undertaker
80. Doug Williams
79. Shinsuke Nakamura
78. Lance Hoyt
77. Delirious
76. Shinjiro Ohtani
75. Steven Richards
74. Tajiri
73. Big Show
72. Jimmy Yang
71. Rocky Romero
70. Ultimo Guerrero
69. Jimmy Jacobs
68. James Storm
67. Randy Orton
66. Jun Akiyama
65. Mistico
64. LA Park
63. Kid Kash
62. Nigel McGuinness
61. Juventud Guerrera
60. Joey Mercury
59. Kaz Hayashi
58. Kazarian
57. Hiroshi Tanahashi
56. Monty Brown
55. Chris Harris
54. TAKA Michinoku
53. Rob Conway
52. Nunzio
51. Roderick Strong
50. Jeff Jarrett
49. Johnny Nitro
48. Hiroyoshi Tenzan
47. Steve Corino
46. Mitsuhara Misawa
45. Raven
44. Ron Killings
43. Rhino
42. Kensuke Sasaki
41. Val Venis
40. Low Ki
39. Matt Hardy
38. Jushin "Thunder" Liger
37. Spanky
36. KENTA
35. Charlie Haas
34. William Regal
33. Kane
32. Satoshi Kojima (2)
31. JBL
30. Shocker
29. Toshiaki Kawada
28. Chris Sabin
27. Kenta Kobashi
26. John Cena
25. Petey Williams
24. Colt Cabana
23. Homicide
22. CM Punk
21. Sean Waltman
20. Austin Aries
19. Batista
18. Christian
17. Bryan Danielson
16. Alex Shelley
15. James Gibson
14. Edge
13. Abyss
12. Paul London
11. Shelton Benjamin
10. Kurt Angle (1)
9. Triple H
8. Chris Jericho
7. Shawn Michaels
6. Christopher Daniels
5. Rey Mysterio
4. Eddie Guerrero
3. AJ Styles
2. Samoa Joe
1. Chris Benoit (3)
I'll post my own 100 in the next few days...
Sep. 24th, 2005 @ 12:12 pm
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| » What Live Journal? Oh yeah, that. |
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Been busy as hell with classes starting and various other stuff, including work and the girl. Didn't really forget about this, just never really had time to update, and if I did, I really didn't have anything to write about. You know how it goes...
I highly suggest reading Alex Shelley's latest update, it's awesome: http://www.livejournal.com/users/alexshelley/21208.html
Anyway, now that I'm pretty much settled in, here's what to look forward to in the coming weeks:
A detailed review of the KENTA/Kanemaru title match from the 7/18 NOAH show. Awesome match, that I've watched four times already.
Some not-so-detailed reviews of some more recent Ring of Honor shows that I just got in the mail. Probably just thoughts on matches, much like the old Raw recaps.
Two lists, one from my message board, as we're currently compiling a DWB 100 list of the top 100 current wrestlers. I'll also be posting my "individual" list to see how it compares to the board's general opinion.
So I guess the four of you have that to look forward to.
Real F'n Show
Sep. 17th, 2005 @ 05:44 pm
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| » Brief TNA Sacrifice Thoughts |
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I may edit this later with more thoughts, but I'm really tired right now.
Opening 6-man was good, although I missed the first 3-4 minutes of it, I think. Skipper really sucks, he blew the rope walk rana again. Still a fun match.
Shelley/Shocker was awesome. Both guys are great on the mat and they just tore it up. This made me wish I had seen their first two matches, because this was really good. Probably the most impressed I've been with Shocker so far.
Hoyt/Abyss was WAY better than expected and was a really good match. No joke.
The 3LK match was time for me to run and pick some more people up.
I liked Aries/Daniels. Thought it was given enough time actually, and Daniels was awesome in it. At one point, Aries just fucking kicked Daniels right in the melon, it was brutal. Good match, and I hope they bring Aries back, he looked really good here and the crowd was way into him as well.
X-Pac/Lynn was very fun as well. Started off slow, but really picked up as Waltman started working the shoulder. Probably the second best match of the night behind Joe/AJ.
8-man was a lot funner than I thought it'd be, although I don't remember much except not hating it, and a very cool spot where one of the Naturals hit a top rope enziguri on one of the Canadians, and the guy took a great bump to the outside.
AJ/Joe was awesome, probably the best of the night. They did a really good underdog story, and worked in AJ trying to kick Joe at first, then take it to the mat, neither of which worked too well. They did the "dizzy" spot with AJ enziguri'ing nothing, my friends got a kick out of that since they have never heard of Bryan Danielson.
Main event was decent. Credit goes to Sabu for being "on" lately. Fun drama at the end with Rhyno getting the pin, as well.
All in all, this definately needs consideration for best card of the year. If they continue to throw out shows like this after they get on Spike, they should be set.
Aug. 15th, 2005 @ 10:46 am
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| » Mysterio vs. Guerrero 6/23/05 Smackdown Thoughts |
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Got around to rewatching this on tape, and I'd put it up there as the best match from WWE this year so far.
The match starts off with each man trying to get an advantage, and Eddie keeping his cool, all the while trying to get at Rey. Eddie gives Rey a clean break three times, which is somewhat surprising judging by the feud these two are involved in.
Rey works over a huge bruise on Eddie's right side from a chairshot the week before, using an abdominal stretch in a nice touch. Eddie continues to keep his cool up until about the 10 minute mark. At this point it looks like Eddie is about to give his fourth clean break in the corner of the match, but instead, he viciously shoves Rey to the floor, losing his cool, and opening up an awesome mean streak.
From there, Eddie repeatedly slams Rey into the announce table, and then slams him spine first into the turnbuckle post, showing us the first sign of his focus, the back. Eddie then starts destroying Rey's back with some great offense, a Gory Special, tilt-a-whirl backbreaker, powerbomb, and camel clutch, with Rey selling great the whole way through.
Eddie continues his domination, with Rey showing signs of a comeback here and there. At one point, Eddie is going for his rolling vertical suplexes, but before he can hit the third one, Rey slips out the back and dropkicks Eddie into the ropes. He then goes for his 619, only for Eddie to duck and hit the third suplex. Eddie then goes for his frogsplash, but Rey moves out of the way, showing signs of life, while still selling his back like death. Rey covers, but Eddie kicks out, and Rey can't believe it, as this means Rey will have to continue to try to put Eddie away, even though his back is killing him.
Rey can't muster much offense at this point with his back in the shape it is, and Eddie once again cuts him off. Eddie goes for yet another powerbomb, a move that was effective in hurting Rey's back earlier in the match, and at this point in the match, could easily put Rey away, but Rey still shows life by countering the powerbomb into a hurricanrana, sending Eddie into the ropes. From here Rey is able to hit the 619, which had been countered twice already in the match, and follow with a springboard legdrop, narrowly escaping with the victory.
There is no way in hell these two could throw out another Halloween Havoc, and these guys knew it, sticking to a slower, more methodical match, which worked just as well. Add to that the story behind the match, and, while not as good as their Havoc '97 match, is still a damn good match, probably their second best. ****1/2
Aug. 12th, 2005 @ 07:21 pm
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| » 8/11 What I've Been Watching |
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Caught a Samoa Joe vs. Alex Shelley match from a recent TNA iMPACT! episode. They rocked the mat for about the first three minutes of this match which was awesome considering who's in there. Story was Shelley frustrating Joe by having a counter to all of Joe's submissions. Joe then resorts to striking which he completely owns Shelley at, and he just starts kicking the shit out of him in the corner. Joe is really over with the TNA fans as a monster, and I really like where they are going with him. Having him come out of the next PPV looking strong to take on Daniels is great. Daniels is really good on commentary here too, putting over both guys big time. Anyway, this was really good for a short TV match, with Joe winning with the muscle buster followed by the choke.
Re-watched an Eddie Guerrero vs. Low Ki match that I'd had on my computer for awhile. This took place in ICW during Eddie's brief stint away from the E after he was released back in 01-02. Anyway, the crowd is way into Eddie, and this was pretty fun. It's nice to see Ki have some respect and work the mat with Eddie instead of throwing off kicks left and right. Eddie really held this together nicely. A really cool spot in here where Eddie has Ki in an STF and just as Ki is about to get the rope, Eddie grabs his arm and pulls it across Ki's own throat, preventing him from grabbing the rope, all the while making the submission more painful. Finish sees Ki go for the phoenix splash, but Eddie rolls out of the way, only for Ki to roll through the move and charge at Eddie with a body scissors roll-through into a cradle for the win. Fun match.
Also found Juventud Guerrera vs. Blitzkrieg from Spring Stampede on my computer. This is a really good spotfest with only one really noticeable botch, which is understandable considering what these guys are pulling off. Blitzkrieg, while green, really showed here he could have been a huge star. It's a shame he didn't stick around, he could be tearing it up in the X-Division right about now. Anyway, some awesome dives in this one, and the crowd is way into it. Finish is sick as hell too, with Juvy grabbing a top rope super Juvy Driver for the victory. Looked nasty.
Next up was a great 6-man tag from CMLL that I hadn't seen before. Habana Brothers (Rocky Romero, Bobby Quance, and PUMA) taking on Ricky Marvin, Virus, and Volador Jr. Anyway, this was another amazing spotfest, which seemed to be moving in fast forward the entire match. No botches either, which is incredible. Lightning speed reversals, dives, armdrags, lots of fun. Ricky Marvin hit a really cool somersault plancha with a twist type move. Quance hit a really nice shooting star press. Romero looked the best here though, his stuff is just so crisp. Nice strikes, submissions, plus he can fly like a luchador. Very good match with the Habana Brothers picking up the win as Romero hits a hurricanrana which he converts directly into a cross armbreaker for the tap out. I hear there's two rematches also, and I'm definately checking those out.
Now to some old Nitro stuff. First, I watched a Mysterio vs. Eddie match. I think the date is 11-10-97, but I could be wrong. Anyway, this was pretty disappointing considering what these guys did a month earlier. Mysterio wasn't "on" and there were quite a few bits of miscommunication. I did like how they plated off the Havoc match with the backflip DDT spot, but unfortunately it wasn't near as smooth as the original and looked messy. Don't get me wrong though, this was still good. Eddie wins the cruiserweight title following the frogsplash after turning a Mysterio springboard hurricanrana into a hotshot.
Next was a Benoit vs. Malenko match from Nitro, although I'm not sure of the date. Shane Douglas and Perry Saturn are at ringside and there is HUGE crowd heat if that helps. Commentary appears to be in German as well. Anyway, really good like you'd expect, they go about 10 minutes. The opening is just really fast rope running and reversals. Malenko with the rollup out of the rolling germans leads to a lot of pinfall reversals. Malenko with a hiptoss directly into a short arm scissors that they work some nearfalls out of. Benoit hits an awesome superplex at one point. Malenko goes for his own later in the match and hits it, but Benoit is able to cradle him upon landing for the victory. More fun stuff.
That's all for now.
Real F'n Show
Aug. 11th, 2005 @ 06:36 pm
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| » 8/10 Update |
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No Raw Thoughts this week for reasons I don't really want to go into detail on. Let's just say I'm tired of watching that crap.
Actually, both shows have been pretty craptastic for quite some time. It's the shitty writing team's fault of course, but it's been particularly bad since the last draft lottery. I really don't care about anything on WWE TV anymore, with the exception of the Rey/Eddie saga, and even that is being crapped-up by the writing team. Luckily Eddie is making it work with his acting, and at least the matches in this feud are good. Everything else is complete shit. I could care less about EVERYTHING on the Summerslam card, no joke. Everything seems so stale and recycled, it's ridiculous. Let' see:
Cena vs. Jericho. I'm still waiting for either guy to give me a reason to care about this feud. Cena does nothing for me, and Jericho's stale as hell. Why SHOULD I be pumped for this match, WWE? You tell me.
Batista vs. JBL. Why? Their last match was a failure, so of course, WWE books a rematch. Does anyone think this will be good? Again, I don't care about either.
Michaels vs. Hogan. More mindless crap that I'm SUPPOSED to care about because WWE wants me to. Sure the build has been good, but will the match deliver? I think not. Hogan sure as hell can't go and Michaels stuff is beyond stale. Crowd heat alone could make this watchable, but will we even get that? Depends where the show is. Just don't expect another Rock/Hogan.
Hardy vs. Edge. Wow, the "shoot" stuff they've been throwing out there is supposed to make me want to watch this? Seriously, this angle is REAL and the WWE writing team STILL can't get me interested. Anyway, should be one of the best matches on the show, but that's not really saying much.
Basically, what I'm saying is, I'm through watching WWE television on a regular basis, at least until the writing gets a hell of a lot better. I may check out a Smackdown match once in awhile if it peaks my interest, but you probably won't see anymore Raw thoughts from me, at least for awhile.
This journal ins't dead though. I still have plenty of material. TNA has been ROLLING, and I'm actually anticipating their Spike debut. The PPV this Sunday looks awesome, probably their best looking show yet. Styles/Joe, Daniels/Aries, Waltman/Lynn could all be good to great matches, and I really like how they're focusing more on the X-Division than the WWE ever would with the cruiserweights. It's really sad too, considering the talent WWE has.
Indies are also a possibility, and I will probably be ordering more and more tapes as my interest in the WWE decreases. ROH, FIP, PWG, IWA-MS, etc. reviews could all be on the way, so look out for those.
Puro and lucha are also there. I've never been an avid fan of either, but I'm really getting into NOAH now, especially after 7/18. I feel I could easily get into CMLL as far as lucha goes too. I've really liked what I've seen from Mistico, Ultimo Guerrero, Averno, etc. on the net, and could end up ordering some tapes.
There's always matches on my computer to review. Right now I have a ton of stuff, some of it that I haven't even watched yet:
* Batista vs. Triple H - Hell in a Cell from Vengeance. Never got around to watching, but will eventually.
* KENTA/Marufuji vs. Sugiura/Kanemaru - not sure on the date, but I haven't watched this yet either. Will soon.
* A tag match with Michaels and Flair up against Bret and Savage from some Coliseum tape I could always review.
* Lots of old Nitro stuff with Benoit, Regal, Eddie, Mysterio, Finlay, Malenko, etc. tearing it up.
* Some CMLL, including Ultimo Guerrero vs. Mistico (which I dug the hell out of) and a Habana Brothers vs. Ricky Marvin, Virus, and Volador Jr. six-man (which I haven't watched yet).
* More puro, including Kawada vs. Kojima (which I loved) that I could review.
Plus I also have some tapes labled "Various WWF TV" Volumes 1 and 2 that I could always turn to.
Sorry for the long update, but I'd also like to plug my message board, Da Wrestling Board, the link can be found on the side. We're looking for more members to increase the wrestling discussion, so take a look and sign up if you want, we don't bite (except Scrooge, he has rabies).
Real F'n Show
Aug. 10th, 2005 @ 07:53 pm
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| » 8/4 Smackdown Thoughts |
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Smackdown was decent tonight, better than Raw for sure.
I'm really liking the Eddie/Rey feud, no matter how over-the-top they're going with it. It beats the hell out of anything else on WWE TV, that's for sure.
Benoit/Booker vs. MNM was a fun tag match with a hot crowd. Benoit maybe isn't where I'd like him on the card, but I'd rather see him wrestling Regal and Eddie on Smackdown than Tomko and Snitsky on Raw. MNM is there usual great self, although it wouldn't kill them to add a few more moves to their arsenal, preferably a couple singles moves and a few more double teams. Seems like they rely on the knee lift/neckbreaker/chinlock offense a little too much, typical OVW. Diva shit distracts from the match, whatever.
JBL/Batista II at Summerslam, because we all know how big of a success the first one was. They're gonna try covering up the shitty wrestling with a gimmick, which has become a trend lately. Too bad they always do it too late. Let's see Batista/Trips had two horrible matches until they decided to give them a Hell in the Cell; Cena/JBL at 'Mania sucked so they gave them an I Quit match, and now this. Sooner or later the fans are gonna catch on and not order a PPV unless the main event is a gimmick match. Just shows how bad the main event scene is, I guess.
By the way, I really don't care for anything on the Summerslam card right now, with the exception of Rey/Eddie if it's added. They really need to make it some kind of gimmick match this time around too, before matches between the two get stale.
Back to Smackdown, Rey/Christian was about 10 times better than anything else on WWE TV this week. Awesome rib work from Christian, including some nifty moves I'd never seen him use before. Rey sells the ribs well throughout, and Christian is really good as "the guy who takes all of the fancy moves". We saw it with Benjamin in their feud, and now with Rey here. With the exception of Venis, no one does it better in the WWE.
Like I said earlier, no matter how stupid this Rey/Eddie feud gets, I'll still enjoy it. No matter how bad the storyline is, everyone involved has played their role perfectly, from Dominik to Eddie's family to of course Rey and Eddie, they've managed to pull it off. I'm looking forward to Smackdown next week, something I can't say about Raw.
Real F'n Show
Aug. 4th, 2005 @ 09:12 pm
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| » 8/1 Raw Thoughts |
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I'll keep it brief as I really don't want to go into too much detail on a show this bad.
This Jericho/Cena feud, which started off a little entertaining, has now completely lost my interest. I really hate Cena, and even Jericho's heel promo's can't get me into this feud. His promo tonight was mediocre and the pull apart was about as generic as they come.
I cry when Tatanka is bringing the workrate to this show. First Jannetty and now Tatanka showing up the Raw roster and outworking them all. Match was decent, and on a brutal show like this, probably the most entertaining.
The worked "shoot" shit is getting annoying really fast. Wow, I called someone by their real name, I'm totally shooting!" won't cut it for me. I could care less about Matt Hardy right now actually. Leave it to WWE to screw up a real life situation as an angle.
Somewhere in here Val Venis and Rob Conway had a good match that the crowd could have cared less about. Conway looks like someone from the Village People with leather trunks and wristbands, it's bad. Val took a nasty sternum first bump on the turnbuckle which looked sick.
Big Show/Shelton vs. Snitsky/Masters was bad. I have no idea why they keep Snitsky around after the Kane thing, but whatever.
The HBK Hogan impersonation started out good but went on way too long, which killed it for me. Totally NOT wanting to see that match right now.
They run the exact same main event from last week, and once again, I don't bother watching. I could care less about everyone involved.
This Raw was BRUTAL. I really don't know why I still watch this show, and probably won't anymore after tonight. Everyone I like is on Smackdown anyway, but both shows suffer from shitty writing right now. Fuck whoever decided to hire these "outside" writers who don't know a thing about wrestling. It's an insult to our intelligence.
Keep an eye out for some reviews of various matches, I have a ton of stuff on my computer that I still have to watch but haven't got around to for whatever reason.
Real F'n Show
Aug. 2nd, 2005 @ 06:19 pm
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