# The 2013 MOTYC Thread



## Noah Mark

I'll start it off:

Trauma I & Trauma II vs Fabi/Mari Apache-Perros Del Mal 1/1/2013. The video was only for the 1st 2 falls but it was still great. Both Trauma's did some really nice leg work. The Apache sisters always look good in their matches.


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## Ham and Egger

I haven't watched anything yet but Wrestle Kingdom VII this weekend will give me an early candidate for the new year! :bryan


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## Bubz

Oh shit. WK this weekend! Never usually seems that early into the year.

Cactus, I stole your STARZ~! And your idea. Sorry bro. Anyway, this'll be where I keep my list this year so people can see it whenever they want if they're looking for ratings etc...



Spoiler: MOTYC's 2013



★★★★★

★★★★ ¾
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7)

★★★★ ½
Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro (WWE NXT 22/8)
Antonio Cesaro vs William Regal (WWE NXT 25/12)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack 7/4)
CM Punk vs The Undertaker (WWE Wrestlemania 29)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (NJPW G1 Day 8)
Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW G1 Day 4)

★★★★ ¼
Daniel Bryan vs John Cena (WWE Summerslam)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW G1 day 2)
CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar (WWE Summerslam)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi (NJPW G1 Day 4)
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tetsuya Naito vs Kazuchika Okada & Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW 23/12)
The Rhodes Family vs The Shield (WWE RAW 14/10)
The Rhodes Family vs The Shield (WWE Battleground)
Killer Elite Squad vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 4/5)

★★★★
Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton (WWE RAW 16/12)
Daniel Bryan vs Antonio Cesaro (WWE RAW 22/7)
Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW King Of Pro Wrestling)
Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs Manabu Soya & Takao Omori (AJPW 17/03)
Minoru Suzuki vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW Kizuna Road Akita)
Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler (WWE Payback)
John Cena vs CM Punk (WWE RAW 25/2)
Christian vs Alberto Del Rio (WWE Summerslam) 
Hiroshi Tsnahashi vs Karl Anderson (NJPW The New Beginning)
Kevin Steen & El Generico vs The Young Bucks (PWG DDT4)
John Cena, Goldust & Cody Rhodes vs Damien Sandow & The Real Americans (WWE RAW 4/11)
Sami Zayn vs Jack Swagger (WWE NXT 4/9)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7)
Minoru Suzuki vs Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW G1 Day 2)
The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (WWE RAW 20/5)
John Cena, Goldust & Cody Rhodes vs Damien Sandow & The Real Americans (WWE Smackdown 1/11)
The Shield vs John Cena, Sheamus & Ryback (WWE Elimination Chamber)
Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7)
Bryan Danielson, Usos, Dolph Ziggler, Kofi Kingston, R Truth, RVD, Prime Time Players, Justin Gabriel & Zack Ryder vs The Shield (WWE RAW 23/9)
William Regal vs. Kassius Ohno (WWE NXT 10/4)
Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton - Street Fight (WWE Raw 24/6)
Alex Shelley vs Prince Devitt (NJPW 4/5)
Kazuchika Okada vs Lance Archer (NJPW 11/3)
Antonio Cesaro vs. Kofi Kingston (WWE Main Event 1/5)
Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7)


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## Nervosa

Running MOTY list

*****
Okada vs. Tanahashi 10/14

****3/4
Sakuraba vs. Nakamura 1/4
Okada vs. Tanahashi 4/7
Tanahashi vs. Ishii 8/2
Ishii vs. Shibata 8/4

****1/2
Killer Elite Squad vs. Nakamura/Ishii 4/5
Okada, Gedo, Nakamura, Ishii vs. Suzuki, benjamin, Taichi, TAKA 4/21/2013
Nakamura vs. Smith Jr. 4/7

****1/4
Okada vs. Tanahashi 1/4
Suzuki vs. Nagata 1/4
Punk vs. Undertaker 4/7
Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Ibushi 1/4
Funaki vs. Suwama 3/17
Okada vs. Makabe 6/22
Okada vs. Devitt 7/20
Kojima vs. Shibata 8/2
Nakamura vs. Ibushi 8/4
Okada vs. Tanahashi 8/10
Okada vs. Kojima 9/29

****
Anderson vs. Tanahashi 2/10
Archer vs. Okada 3/11
Ishii vs. Kojima 3/11
Yano vs. Okada 3/23
CHAOS vs. suzuki-gun Elimination 3/3
Bryan vs. Cesaro 7/22
Burning vs. Get Wild 3/17
Regal vs. Ohno 4/10
Okada vs. Suzuki 5/3
Time Splitters vs. Forever Hooligans 6/22
Ishii/nakamura vs. banjamin/Suzuki 6/22
Nagata vs. Suzuki 8/1
Smith vs. Shibata 8/1
Nakamura vs. Suzuki 8/2
Nagata vs. Ibushi 8/6
Nagata vs. Nakamura 8/7
Yano vs. Suzuki 8/11
Anderson vs. Okada 11/9


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## Bubz

If I can get a stream I'll definitely watch it live.


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## DOPA

can't wait for WK


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## Zatiel

Nervosa said:


> Anyone besides me watching it live?


Depends on my work schedule, but I'm seriously considering it. It has an incredible card.


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## Chismo

This is the post where I'm gonna list my ****+ stuff for 2013, hopefully, ala what Cactus did for 2012.

*******

- Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 ~EVOLUTION~)
- The Unbreakable Fucking Machines (Michael Elgin & Brian Cage) & Kevin Steen vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (Ricochet & Rich Swann) & AR Fox (PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 2)
- Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack)


*****3/4*

- Masakatsu Funaki vs. Suwama (AJPW Pro-Wrestling Love in Ryogoku 2013 ~Basic & Dynamic~)


*****1/2*

- Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW Road to The New Beginning 2013 – Day 2)
- Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki, TAKA Michinoku, Davey Boy Smith Jr. & Kengo Mashimo) vs. CHAOS (Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Jado & Gedo) (NJPW 41st Anniversary)
- The Inner City Machine Guns (Ricochet & Rich Swann) vs. AR Fox & Samuray Del Sol (PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 1)
- Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant (Chikara Battle Not With Monsters)
- Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW Summer Action Series 2013 - Day 1)


*****1/4*

- Burning (Jun Akiyama, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki) vs. GET WILD (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW Excite Series 2013 - Day 2)
- Jun Kasai vs. Jaki Numazawa (BJW 3/1/2013)
- Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW New Japan Cup 2013 - Day 2)
- GET WILD (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) vs. Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki (AJPW Pro-Wrestling Love in Ryogoku 2013 ~Basic & Dynamic~)
- Ryuji Ito vs. Isami Kodaka (BJW 4/10/2013)
- Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW Dominion 2013)


******

- Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) vs. Team 246 (Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi) (AJPW New Year 2013 – Day 2)
- Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 ~EVOLUTION~)
- Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 ~EVOLUTION~)
- The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (Ricochet & Rich Swann) (PWG DDT4 2013)
- The Unbreakable Fucking Machines (Michael Elgin & Brian Cage) vs. The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) (PWG DDT4 2013)
- Shinsuke Nakamura vs. La Sombra (NJPW/CMLL Fantasticamania 2013 - Day 2)
- CHAOS (Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada & Gedo) vs. Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki, Kengo Mashimo & Hiro Tonai) (NJPW Road to The New Beginning 2013 – Day 2)
- Mark Angelosetti vs. Saturyne (Chikara While the Dawn Is Breaking)
- Shuji Ishikawa, Shadow WX & Takashi Sasaki vs. Ryuji Ito, Yuko Miyamoto & Isami Kodaka (BJW 2/8/2013)
- Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (NJPW The New Beginning 2013)
- Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW The New Beginning 2013)
- Kenny Omega vs. HARASHIMA (DDT Into the Fight 2013)
- Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (NJPW 41st Anniversary)
- Toru Yano vs. Minoru Suzuki (NJPW New Japan Cup 2013 - Day 2)
- Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (AJPW Pro-Wrestling Love in Ryogoku 2013 ~Basic & Dynamic~)
- Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW New Japan Cup 2013 - Final)
- Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 1)
- The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) vs. The Dojo Bros (Roderick Strong & Eddie Edwards) (PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 2)
- Killer Elite Squad (Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr.) vs. CHAOS Invincible (Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii) (NJPW Road to Invasion Attack)
- Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (NJPW Invasion Attack)
- CHAOS (Kazuchika Okada, Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii & Gedo) vs. Suzuki-gun (Minoru Suzuki, Shelton Benjamin, TAKA Michinoku & Taichi) (NJPW Road to Wrestling Dontaku 2013 – Day 3)
- 045 Junkies (Jun Kasai & Jaki Numazawa) & The Brahmans (Shu & Kei) vs. Yoshihito Sasaki, Shinya Ishikawa, Ryuichi Kawakami & Shinobu (BJW 4/28/2013)
- Daisuke Sekimoto & Yuji Okabayashi vs. Takao Omori & Yasufumi Nakanoueno (BJW 4/28/2013)
- Pieces of Hate (Jigsaw & The Shard) vs. The Colony (Fire Ant & AssailANT) (Chikara The Ghost of You Clings)
- Scotty Vortekz vs. Danny Havoc (CZW Tournament of Death 12)
- Prince Devitt vs. Gedo (NJPW Kizuna Road 2013 – Day 1)
- Masato Tanaka vs. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW Kizuna Road 2013 – Day 9)​


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## Ten410

Nervosa said:


> Anyone besides me watching it live?


I'm gonna try, $35 is not that bad for a for a iPPV. You'll think they'll put the title back on Okada?


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## djmathers1207

Where can you stream it?


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## Ten410

djmathers1207 said:


> Where can you stream it?


Ustream, the account name is njpw1972.


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## Nervosa

Ten410 said:


> I'm gonna try, $35 is not that bad for a for a iPPV. You'll think they'll put the title back on Okada?


If Okada doesn't win I am going to cry. It's that simple. There's no way J+G can make such a huge mistake.


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## Obfuscation

WRESTLE KINGDOM!

Ok, now I have a chance to be on top of most of the goodness from this year. Should be one fun journey.


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## Ten410

Nervosa said:


> If Okada doesn't win I am going to cry. It's that simple. There's no way J+G can make such a huge mistake.


LOL, I'm right there with you, the time is now. Who would be next in line if Okada wins or Tanahashi retains?


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## MF83

Someone (I'm guessing Shibata) will challenge the winner after the match.


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## mk92071

How long do you think it will take for this to end up on youtube or XWT?


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## bigbuxxx

prob be on xwt 3-5 hours after it's over considering it's going to be a 4-5 hour event.


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## The Rainmaker.

It'll be on dailymotion (and/or youbube) by the time we wake up (for those not staying up to watch it live). Should be a helluva way to kick off the new year.i


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## joebro2000

bigbuxxx said:


> prob be on xwt 3-5 hours after it's over considering it's going to be a 4-5 hour event.


Do you really think so...XWT hasn't really been that quick to have Puro shows in the last few weeks.


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## bigbuxxx

i assume more people will buy this ppv than the last ppv (which took a week to show up) so it will be d'l'ed by more and upped quicker.


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## Bubz

Right. I'm not looking in here now until I've seen the show!


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## Nervosa

Nagata vs. Suzuki ****
Devitt vs. Low-Ki vs. Ibushi ****1/4
Sakuraba vs. Nakamura ****1/2
Tanahashi vs. Okada ****1/4


Full Review coming in the Puro thread soon.


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## EmbassyForever

Nagata and Suzuki doing it again. Wouldn't mind seeing them wrestling each other every night. Can't wait to watch the show, sounds amazing.

BTW you can post full review in the spoiler thread?


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## Kiz

can't wait to watch this so i can keep up with all the top wrestling this year. want to watch more puro and this seems the perfect place to start


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## Cactus

*Cactus's MOTYC's for 2013*

★★★★★

★★★★ ¾

★★★★ ½
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba (NJPW; 01/04)(86%)
John Cena vs CM Punk (WWE Raw; 02/25)(85%)

★★★★ ¼
Masato Tanaka vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW; 02/03)(84%)
Tomohiro Ishii vs Hirooki Goto (NJPW; 03/17) (83%)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson (NJPW; 02/10)(83%)
Pólvora vs Titán (CMLL; 01/01)(82%)

★★★★
Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite (ASW; 02/22)(81%)
Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita (IWRG; 2013/02/18)(81%)
Minoru Suzuki vs Yuji Nagata (NJPW; 01/04)(80%)
Benham Ali & Zack Sabre Jr. vs Prince Devitt & Owen Phoenix (4FW; 01/12)(80%)​


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## EmbassyForever

Here's a link for Okada vs Tanahasi: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DdH7MijbW8
Don't have the full show, yet.


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## MarkL316

Is the full show available anywhere yet? Im determined to make 2013 the first year I keep up to date with everything.


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## EmbassyForever

No, but Jahmale Hepburn will upload it in few hours


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## geraldinhio

Gonna make more of an attempt to follow New Japan as much as I can this year. DDT4 should throw out a few MOTYC too hopefully. :mark:


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## EmbassyForever

http://xtremewrestlingtorrents.net/details.php?id=99393
Fuck yeah


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## asdf0501

WOW that was fast


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## antoniomare007

Okada vs Tanahashi III was your "formula" Tanahashi title match. And to me, that's always a good thing (although I get why some people aren't into this kind of match). Probably the best I've seen from Tana in the Dome, Okada is everything he promised to be in 09' and more.

Don't think this will be high in anybody's list when it's December. But it's still great and a must watch.


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## MTheBehemoth

WK7
Okada vs Tanahashi - ****1/4


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## The Rainmaker.

*Rainmaker's MOTYC's for 2013

★★★★★

★★★★ ¾

★★★★ ½
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba NJPW 1.04.13 

★★★★ ¼
Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi NJPW 1.04.13
Minoru Suzuki vs Yuji Nagata NJPW 1.04.13

★★★★
Kota Ibushi vs Low Ki vs Prince Devitt NJPW 1.04.13
Polvora vs Titan CMLL 1.01.13 *​


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## The Rainmaker.

Waiting for the rest of WK to be uploaded onto Youtube/Dailymotion. Does anybody have a link if it's already uploaded?


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## Nervosa

Guys, don't just assume Tanahashi/Okada is the best match on the show. It wasn't. Make sure you watch Shinskay/Saku.


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## MF83

Yeah, no shit. It wasn't great at all. 

1. Nakamura vs. Sakuraba - MOTY. Similar yet superior to Brock/Cena in my opinion. I was worried after the initial dry rolling but boy oh boy, doubters be damned. Don't want to spoil it so see for yourself. ****3/4

2. Suzuki vs Nagata - Refreshing counters, good limb work, Nagata's best performance in years, Suzuki at his best, expression as they played to the camera like two years ago but I prefer this to that match. ****1/4+

3. Makabe vs Shibata - A best case scenario for this pairing. It was fast, furious and arguably the best performance of Makabe's career. A great moment when they both decide to take it back inside. I'm shocked by just how smoothly it all worked. ****-****1/4

The rest of WK:

4. Juniors 

5. BATT vs TenCozy

6. Main

7. KES vs. S&G

8. Opener

___

somewhere near the the bottom of the barrel: Shelton/Tanaka


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## Nervosa

I cant understand how anyone could have liked that plodding, miserable Makabe match, but then again, I loved the juniors match a lot more than you, so to each their own, I guess.

I only made the comment about the main event because its the only one people reviewed so far.


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## MF83

Oh, I was agreeing with you. I'm reading what I wrote now and sorry if it sounded confrontational. :lol

Plodding, slow, what? They brawled fast and heavy, Shibata's offense was such that it made Makabe's comebacks huge, great counters and transitions, they went hard and it ended when it should have. The ideal match for them when it could have been horrible.


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## Nervosa

I guess Makabe looked too dominant for me to really enjoy it. shibata never got anything going, and the match ended really suddenly. Honestly, the match ended before it looked like Shibata had any chance to win. I don't even remember a point where it seemed like Shibata even ALMOST won. Sure, they brawled, but it was really empty and void of all the heat from the tag matches.


----------



## MF83

Shibata dominated most of the match! I love, love, loved Makabe's playing possum on the PK when he just fell over, only to grab the kick for the short lariat. Again, the "let's finish this inside" floor spot ruled. Good counters, pacing and transitions. A perfectly good under 10 minute match. Rewatch it?


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

I also really liked Makabe vs Shibata. Shibata gave him the works (but thankfully didn't give him a PK kick), and Makabe's selling was on point. I agree with MF83, that was totally the best case scenario.

I liked the main more than most, though yeah, it was slightly worse than the other two matches. The end though... I'll continue to trust NJPW's booking, but I can't say I'm happy about it.


But to me, Sakuraba vs Nakamura was the best match, though props to Low Ki for wrestling in a three piece, lol.


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## BKKsoulcity

I liked Okada and Tanahashi (****1/4) better than Shinskay and Sakuraba (****). The one moment after the rolling around though when Sakuraba started slapping the shit out of Shinskay was a game changer though and gave a whole new flavor to the match.


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## DOPA

Tanahashi vs Okada: **** 1/4

great match but not too happy about the booking, going to watch the rest of wrestle kingdom later.


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## DMC6162

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0YtK5fzFYo


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## antoniomare007

Yeah, I enjoyed Nakamura vs Sakuraba the most, although it wasn't that much better than the main event. It brought me back to good ol' days of New Japan being the "King of Sports".

Makabe/Shibata was fun but not MOTYC worthy. I'm fine with that though, not every match has to be an epic.


----------



## Manu_Styles

Wrestle Kingdom 7

Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata: ****
*IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title 3-Way Match:* Prince Devitt(c) vs. Kota Ibushi vs. Low Ki: ****
*IWGP Intercontinental Title:* Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs. Kazushi Sakuraba: ****1/2


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## Nervosa

MF83 said:


> Shibata dominated most of the match! I love, love, loved Makabe's playing possum on the PK when he just fell over, only to grab the kick for the short lariat. Again, the "let's finish this inside" floor spot ruled. Good counters, pacing and transitions. A perfectly good under 10 minute match. Rewatch it?


Yeah, I just did and I feel the same. When I mean Toki Dominited, I mean about the last several minutes. Shibata had early control, but at the end, he never really looked like he had a chance to win. As I result, the finish was kinda out of nowhere. It seemed like Shibata hadn't even gotten warmed up, and you never really thought Makabe was in serious trouble.

Makabe just really bores me right now. It was discussed many pages back, but I just can't get into the way he structures matches, and a one-sided finishing stretch is just one example.


----------



## Ten410

Wrestle Kingdom 7

Yuji Nagata Vs. Minoru Suzuki 

Prince Devitt Vs. Low Ki Vs. Kota Ibushi 

Kazuchika Okada Vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi

Great way to start off the year!!!!


----------



## Ham and Egger

Tanahashi/Okada III gets my early pick for match of the year. Great drama, reversals, selling, and finish. I wasn't to pleased about the outcome but I won't let that hinder a great match they had together.


----------



## Concrete

*WK7*
*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchiko Okada:****
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba:****1/2*

I don't feel like going too heavy into my thoughts but Okada/Tanahashi was great yet not at the caliber of their DOMINION match. When you get 30 minutes of these two talented guys the odds are that its gonna be good. Not the classic I was hoping for but I suppose I'll live. Nakamura/Sakuraba... :mark I loved it. We get solid grappling and then the match hits a new gear with a slap. 

Had like 3 other matches at ***3/4 so as a whole this show was really good. Not quite as good as DOMINION in my eyes but still really good.


----------



## EmbassyForever

So...

Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - ****1/4
Low Ki vs Prince Devitt vs Kota Ibushi - ***3/4+
Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata - ***3/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - ****1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - ****1/4

Yep. This show was amazing.


----------



## bigbuxxx

Guess I'm in the minority because this guy said exactly how I feel about the Tana/Okada match:



> Tanahashi/Okada III gets my early pick for match of the year. Great drama, reversals, selling, and finish. I wasn't to pleased about the outcome but I won't let that hinder a great match they had together.


I'm a sucker for drama and this match had it in spades. Tana had some leg work but it didn't feel like a mailed in performance on the leg like it has in other matches so I didn't mind it. Okada's neck work obviously makes a lot of sense given his finisher. I thought it was better than their Dominion match.

I was shocked with MiSu/Nagata. Not that they had a great match but because they had a great 20 minute match. Really well structured match. I give that a solid ****-****1/4.


----------



## darkclaudio

Wrestle Kingdom VII

-Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki ***1/4
-Jr Heavyweight Championship Match ***1/4


----------



## Nervosa

Maybe I need to try to remove all the disappointment of the result. I guess its possible that Okada/Tanahashi is better than I originally rated it. I just felt like Tanahashi sold the neck more at Dominion, and Okada looked a lot stronger. This match just never really had a single moment where it seemed like Okada was going to win, which hurts it big for me.


----------



## mk92071

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba 



Spoiler: possible spoilers



First off I'd like to point out I've only seen a couple Nakamura matches (and none recently) and I've never seen Kazushi wrestle going into this. I'm not usually a shoot style fan. Fucking hated Cena/Lesnar too, btw. 

Few mental notes I made (may contain spoilers). Sakuraba's rage after getting slapped was awesome. Same with DAT knee to Nakamura. DAT knee to the back of the head. Amazing counters and sequences. Only qualm was the finish. I didn't like how Sakuraba almost kicked out. Should've been more decisive. ****1/4



Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada



Spoiler: possible spoilers



Going into this I expected a lot since I really liked there first two matches. This was a great match but I had a few qualms with this. I didn't like Tanahashi doing the tombstone, since Okada was at least doing it to work the neck. Tanahashi should've gone for a cover after or gone straight to the splash. Wasn't a huge fan of Tanahashi's leg work either since it didn't produce any believable near falls. The worst of their trilogy. ****


----------



## ywall2breakerj

****1/2 for Okada-Tanahashi. Had that last Rainmaker attempt been sucessful I might've gone *****. Tanahashi's last control segment was just painful to watch and the transition that lead to it was plain stupid, it no sold everything. More time means there were no lazy transitions and they were bulding up to everything. Also NEARFALL of the year. 

Same rating for Nakamura-Sakuraba. Can't belive it was only 11 minutes long. I felt like a 25+ minute epic. GREAT MATWORK :mark: + STIFFNESS :mark: ,very good selling, Nakamura's subtle trolling, EPIC callback.....everything you'd want from a pro wrestling match.


----------



## Nervosa

ywall2breakerj said:


> ****1/2 for Okada-Tanahashi. Had that last Rainmaker attempt been sucessful I might've gone *****. Tanahashi's last control segment was just painful to watch and the transition that lead to it was plain stupid, it no sold everything


Tanahashi's selling has always been my major problem with him, and why I have pretty much trolled him for years. And after he got so much better in the last year, I thought he was over it. But he largely seemed to ignore most of the damage here in this match. Just completely forgot all of the neck work in the last 10 minutes. Didn't even really come off as injured a lot of the time.


----------



## Bubz

*NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7: Evolution

Yuji Nagata vs. Minoru Suzuki*
Great match with Suzuki wearing Nagata down with submissions and strikes. By the time Nagata was in the sleeper and had passed out, it really felt like a great match and then they went into the strike exchange, and for me it actually elevated the match and made it feel like a mini ‘epic‘ with the two exchanging trash talk throughout etc. The struggle for the piledriver was great, that has to be the most protected move in wrestling right now. Nagata going back to the arm he went after briefly at the start was nice to see, even if it didn’t play into the finish, but it didn’t really need to. Nagata eventually got the better of MiSu in the strike department and was able to hit that final blow that Suzuki wasn’t able to hit.
******

*Togi Makabe vs. Katsuyori Shibata*
Short(ish) but incredibly sweet. Loved the structure of this and it had two great performances. Shibata being the cocky outsider who’s always had the advantage over Makabe, and Makabe as the home company baby face fighting for the pride of not only himself but the company. Loved the start, had a big fight feel and they really lay it in. Shibata in control is great and Makabe sells the beating really well. Loved his brief comeback spots only for Shibata to put him on his ass again. Crowd being solidly behind Makabe obviously helped it, but his comeback was great and like any good Makabe match, it’s his lariats that are the turning point. Table spot was an ace redemption spot, like everything in the angle had been leading to that spot and the final minutes of this match. Great stuff, and proof that sometimes simpler is much better.
******

*IWGP Intercontinental Title: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Kazushi Sakuraba*
This was amazing. Kind of trying to collect my thoughts on this still as I’m writing this, but man, can’t remember the last time I was properly on the edge of my seat with my heart racing watching wrestling, not even MITB in ’11. SHINSKAY SWAG turned up to 11, and I NEED a gif of him dancing on his entrance. Awesome. Anyway, the wrestling for the first portion of the match was great and un-co operational looking. Nakamura’s clean breaks were so good, just strutting away cockily and then on the third or so break slapping Sakuraba only for Sakuraba to beat the piss out of him. Seriously, some of the shit in this was so stiff. At one point he literally tries to JUMP ON HIS HEAD! Like, with both feet he just jumps onto his face. I was the one saying that Sakuraba didn’t look like he could hang in a singles match, but give him this style of match and yeah, he can. Nakamura getting battered had me seriously kind of stunned at one point. He takes all sorts of palm strikes to the face, and a couple look like they legit smack him in the eye and head and you hear the noise and everything. Nasty stuff. Nakamura getting his comebacks in had me on the edge of my seat and SO behind him. The tease of the Bome-Ye was great because you really want to see him hit it and win this one for the company and so he can get the hell out of dodge. The struggles for the submissions were genuinely incredible towards the end, and Nakamura breaking out of it and kneeing Sakuraba in the CHIN was disgusting and I almost jumped out of my seat, oh man that had me marking out like nothing you’ve seen. The finish was amazingly satisfying too. Absolutely loved this match. Nakamura’s performance was amazing, probably his best ever, from trying to fend for himself against this brutal bastard, to his amazing drunken, wobbling around selling. The crowd being so behind him was ace and they were molten by the end of this, probably all down to his performance. I was almost in awe of this at times similar to the Brock/Cena match last year, and I probably liked it even more than that match. Wow.
*****3/4*

*IWGP Heavyweight Title: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada*
Another brilliant match. Whereas the previous match was completely unpredictable, you know what you’re getting with these two, and they didn’t disappoint at all. Although at times it felt a little long winded, it felt epic too. Wasn’t that into the chain wrestling at the start which went a tad too long, but once Okada had control it got great, and Tanahashi in return had a great control segment. Love Okada’s submissions, and his dropkicks are still amazing. He’s great in control and I really like how he shows desperation even in control of a match. Tanahashi does his usual leg work and Okada does his usual great selling, but it’s the finishing run that sets this apart from their other matches. Okada kicking out of the HFF was an amazing moment, can’t remember the last time that happened. Some great transitions and counters and struggles as you’d expect from a NJ main event, but the way they REALLY sold the fatigue and effects of the match was great and something we’ve not seen from the two before. I’d agree that there wasn’t a big moment to tease Okada winning which was strange, in-fact the final minutes were pretty much dominated by Tanahashi. I didn’t mind it, because it got me really behind Okada, and my heart was in my mouth when he was in that Cloverleaf, I really thought that was it. Of course I would have rather Okada win, but that didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the match itself. Really great stuff with tons of drama (despite the lack of a big Okada near fall), great transitions and structuring. Not quite on the level of the previous match on the show or the previous match these two had together, but that was a hard act to follow on both accounts.
*****1/4*

Btw, if Nakamura/Sakuraba falls out of my top 5 for the year, it'll be an amazing year. Seriously liked that more than anything from last year too.


----------



## cablegeddon

Main event was full of great spots and some awesome submission stuff. The storytelling worked for the better part of the match. They messed up the psychology in the final 10-15 mintues with all the reversals, kick-outs and finishing movies. It became more of a boring Punk/Bryan match than something I expect from NJPW. Tanahashi also performed a piledriver towards the end of the match and it didn't look good at all. That was weak. 

Tanahashi - Suzuki at King of pro-wrestling was a better all around experience for me.


----------



## bigbuxxx

ywall2breakerj said:


> ****1/2 for Okada-Tanahashi. Had that last Rainmaker attempt been sucessful I might've gone *****.


Had he have hit the RM and won I'd put this at 5* and not budge on this for MOTY of 2013.

I'm on the other end of Nakamura/Sakuraba to. I think it was a great match at ****. I'm a huge fan of Nakamura to (who isn't?). Have watched it twice and while I'll remember it at the end of the year because I love matches where hate shows I don't think it was epic.


----------



## Corey

Noticed *Bubz *said over in the indy thread that he posted his thoughts on the big matches in the MOTYC thread. I go over into the 2012 thread and was like wtf? No posts. COMPLETELY forgot it's a new year  But hey, looks like Wrestle Kingdom has already won show of the year, right?


----------



## Nervosa

Bubz, it would appear from your rating in the other thread that you didn't like the juniors spotfest. I thought it was excellent, and was much better than the Shibata match outright. what were your problems with the juniors match?


----------



## The Rainmaker.

cablegeddon said:


> They messed up the psychology in the final 10-15 mintues with all the reversals, kick-outs and finishing movies.


LOLWUT?!!?? Because GOD FORBID if they decided to make the finishing sequence dramatic....


----------



## Nervosa

The Rainmaker said:


> LOLWUT?!!?? Because GOD FORBID if they decided to make the finishing sequence dramatic....


He also said punk/Bryan was bad. Ignore the troll.


----------



## Concrete

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Noticed *Bubz *said over in the indy thread that he posted his thoughts on the big matches in the MOTYC thread. I go over into the 2012 thread and was like wtf? No posts. COMPLETELY forgot it's a new year  But hey, looks like Wrestle Kingdom has already won show of the year, right?


I don't think this will end up being show of the year but that's because I think NJPW or PWG can possibly trump it. Maybe that's wishful thinking though.I only had 2 matches at ****+, even if I did end up thinking there were a few more really good matches in the tag title match which I'm pretty sure I enjoyed more than anyone, Makabe/Shibata,and Nagata/Suzuki.Some people are calling this the Best Wrestling Event Ever. That's HIGH praise. Far too high. I would put 2012's DOMINION in front of WK7 and that's less than a year ago. Maybe if I rewatch things later this year I'll feel differently about feeling confident that it really could/should end the year as SOTY. If nothing else WK7 certainly put forward an early front-runner for MOTY. An actual legit candidate, not just a placeholder since we are so early into the year in Sakuraba/Nakamura.


----------



## Nervosa

enlightenedone9 said:


> I don't think this will end up being show of the year but that's because I think NJPW or PWG can possibly trump it. Maybe that's wishful thinking though.I only had 2 matches at ****+, even if I did end up thinking there were a few more really good matches in the tag title match which I'm pretty sure I enjoyed more than anyone, Makabe/Shibata,and Nagata/Suzuki.Some people are calling this the Best Wrestling Event Ever. That's HIGH praise. Far too high. I would put 2012's DOMINION in front of WK7 and that's less than a year ago. Maybe if I rewatch things later this year I'll feel differently about feeling confident that it really could/should end the year as SOTY. If nothing else WK7 certainly put forward an early front-runner for MOTY. An actual legit candidate, not just a placeholder since we are so early into the year in Sakuraba/Nakamura.


It's interesting you compare this to Dominion because I did the exact same thing, I honestly think besides the main event WK7 was better in pretty much every way. 

suzuki/Makabe, and both main events were all 4 stars plus.

Different people have given both the juniors match and Makabe/Shibata 4 stars as well. (my own opinion withstanding) 

Maybe it was just me, but I really think the Tag Title match wasn't too far off from 4 either.

The dream tag, while certainly not a classic, had the crowd going nuts.

That's 7 matches that are at least very good, and up to five that many could legitimately call 'great.' For me, Dominion had two great matches, and maybe 2 more that were good. Dominion had a better undercard, but to me, solid little undercards aren't nearly as memorable as putting together as many incredible matches as I feel WK7 had. I'm not even dissing Dominion, its probably my favorite from last year, but this was outstanding.


----------



## Ham and Egger

I really need to rewatch Sakurba/Nakamura. I though it was okay due to Nakamura but I don' get the booking behind them fighting each other. I know he's an MMA guy but he didn't look like a threat imo.


----------



## Bubz

Nervosa said:


> Bubz, it would appear from your rating in the other thread that you didn't like the juniors spotfest. I thought it was excellent, and was much better than the Shibata match outright. what were your problems with the juniors match?


I did enjoy the Jr's match a lot. ***1/2 is still a rather good rating. Just not the style I can get into these days as much as I used to. The spots were good and there were some brilliant sequences, but overall it just felt like a match to show off three guys doing their moves (in a similar vein as the TNA Unbreakable 05 3-way match which I don't care for anywhere near as much as I used to), which isn't really a bad thing when it's done right like this one was. Just wasn't enough in it to warrant a higher rating for me. Ki wrestling as Hitman was fucking awesome though. Came off as a character straight out of a John Woo movie or something.


----------



## Nervosa

Bubz said:


> I did enjoy the Jr's match a lot. ***1/2 is still a rather good rating. Just not the style I can get into these days as much as I used to. The spots were good and there were some brilliant sequences, but overall it just felt like a match to show off three guys doing their moves (in a similar vein as the TNA Unbreakable 05 3-way match which I don't care for anywhere near as much as I used to), which isn't really a bad thing when it's done right like this one was. Just wasn't enough in it to warrant a higher rating for me. Ki wrestling as Hitman was fucking awesome though. Came off as a character straight out of a John Woo movie or something.


On this we can agree! The suit was so boss. That's one bad man.

Good points on the junior match. I have no problem with that kind of flash in a three way. If it was like that in singles, I can understand it, but I think that's good triple threat psychology: you have to go out guns blazing because most strategies fall apart when a third person is involved. Your argument makes a lot of sense though, espeically comparing it to Unbreakable '05.


----------



## DOPA

Yuji Nagata vs. Minoru Suzuki: ****
Devitt vs Low Ki vs Ibushi: **** 1/4
Nakamura vs Sakuraba: **** 1/2 - **** 3/4 (this was absolutely amazing, maybe the 2nd best match under 15 mins I've ever seen)

I don't get why the Makabe/Shibata is praised so highly. It doesn't get above *** 1/4 for me. I preferred special tag match before it tbh and a lot of people didn't seem to enjoy it that much. The Makabe match was very enjoyable whilst it lasted but it was cut way too short and felt anti-climatic to me at the end. I dunno, maybe its because I don't know the history of their feud leading into it.


----------



## Nervosa

Crusade said:


> Yuji Nagata vs. Minoru Suzuki: ****
> Devitt vs Low Ki vs Ibushi: **** 1/4
> Nakamura vs Sakuraba: **** 1/2 - **** 3/4 (this was absolutely amazing, maybe the 2nd best match under 15 mins I've ever seen)
> 
> I don't get why the Makabe/Shibata is praised so highly. It doesn't get above *** 1/4 for me. I preferred special tag match before it tbh and a lot of people didn't seem to enjoy it that much. The Makabe match was very enjoyable whilst it lasted but it was cut way too short and felt anti-climatic to me at the end. I dunno, maybe its because I don't know the history of their feud leading into it.


Agree with all of this. Upon rewatch I have decided Shibata/Makabe was technically a squash match. You should have seen their brawls in the past couple months: they were intense and hate filled. But this? Shibata got like a solid 2 minutes of offense, and then Makabe crushed him like a bug for 5 minutes (over half the match) and won.


----------



## Bubz

Nervosa said:


> On this we can agree! The suit was so boss. That's one bad man.
> 
> Good points on the junior match. I have no problem with that kind of flash in a three way. If it was like that in singles, I can understand it, but I think that's good triple threat psychology: you have to go out guns blazing because most strategies fall apart when a third person is involved. Your argument makes a lot of sense though, espeically comparing it to Unbreakable '05.


I've come to expect it from most 3-ways now, sometimes it's done really well and sometimes it isn't, this one was the former imo. Ki taking a German suplex only to bounce up and double stomp Ibushi was a sick spot. tbh Ki could have done anything in that match and I would have thought it was awesome just because of the suit. He should totally take up the gimmick of a 'wrestling hitman' and just always wrestle like that.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba, New Japan (1/4/13)*

This didn't strike me as good as Lesnar/Cena, mainly because I think the length hindered the Nakamura comeback from being built to and completed as well as Cena's was, but in many respects I preferred a shorter and more compact match here than a 20 minute match as Sakuraba's offence and technique is better suited to creating a frantic pace where you expect a submission to win instantly, rather than him working a regular control segment where the submissions don't feel as impactful. The matwork to begin was never going to reach the heights Sakuraba is capable of, but it served to introduce the theme of Nakamura being capable in defending himself but still outmatched by Sakuraba and having to fight for every hold. Everything after Nakamura's cocky slap really progressed the match into another gear. Sakuraba is just amazing to watch controlling someone on the mat and him working a pseudo PRIDE esque fight in grounding and mercilessly massacring Nakamura was brilliant and yes his trademark double stomp to the face was horrificly violent and astounding.

Thought the way Nakamura managed to overcome the onslaught and gradually seize control was smartly done. It was kept brisk and based on his striking instead of an extended comeback which might have felt out of place given the tone of the match. The desperation knee to the face to break up the submission before hitting the Boma Ye was the perfect finish, like Cena/Lesnar he found an opening and exploited it before his opponent could react. Sakuraba's counters throughout were timed and executed beautifully and really sold his dominance and Nakamura's peril remarkably well. I did smirk prior to the match with people fearing Sakuraba would fail, guessing most were saying this having never seen his RINGS or UWFI work. He's not the guy you'd have working a match against Tanahashi, but put him in a setting where he establishes himself as the dominant grappler and put someone capable of selling their plight well enough and with good enough striking to make an engaging comeback and the bloke will not let you down.


----------



## Concrete

You aren't the only one who thought the Tag Title match wasn't from ****, have it at ***3/4 myself. I looked at other reviews though and I was sad to see that not many people felt the same as I.


----------



## Nervosa

Bubz said:


> I've come to expect it from most 3-ways now, sometimes it's done really well and sometimes it isn't, this one was the former imo. Ki taking a German suplex only to bounce up and double stomp Ibushi was a sick spot. tbh Ki could have done anything in that match and I would have thought it was awesome just because of the suit. He should totally take up the gimmick of a 'wrestling hitman' and just always wrestle like that.


When he came out in it I thought it would be like Claudio's suits that he would take off before the match started. Then the bell rang and when they did that first fast exchange it turned into some kind of anime combat scene. If anyone has seen akabane in Get Backers, thats what it was like. (I'm sure this reference will totally fail) But for me, this was just as good as it gets. If he keeps wearing the suit it will be the awesomest thing ever.



enlightenedone9 said:


> You aren't the only one who thought the Tag Title match wasn't from ****, have it at ***3/4 myself. I looked at other reviews though and I was sad to see that not many people felt the same as I.


I think the match perfectly hid Goto's weaknesses, and played to Archer and Anderson's strengths as well. And as I said in my review, I really think Smith took it to another level here.


----------



## Bubz

Archer was fantastic in the tag match. I was never a fan before this KES stuff, but the last few matches he's looked like a beast. I loved how they let him control most of the match on his own. Dude looks scary intimidating too.

Also, I can't believe Nakamura/Sakuraba was that short! It felt so epic and a lot longer than I've read it was (in a good way obviously).


----------



## DOPA

It almost benefited from being that short and made it even more epic. I went absolutely fucking crazy at the end and I haven't done that in a while.


----------



## Concrete

I'm not sure if there is much of a point in Archer telling the fans F*CK YOU. He sure did look like a beast.

I think that's gonna be the thoughts of a lot of people Bubz haha. It felt like this epic match but in actuality it was simply an 11 minute classic  I always hear when people say a match felt a lot shorter than it was and that was a good thing, but I always felt that match could feel long yet be short ,like this match, and be unbelievably awesome.


----------



## DOPA

Rewatched Nakamura vs Sakuraba and I think it definitely deserves **** 3/4. Simply amazing match.


----------



## MF83

Fans of Sakuraba/Nakamura should watch Shinsuke/MiSu from 2011. Both are similar and I can't tell which is better right now.


----------



## Concrete

WEIRD! I just watched Nakamura vs. Misu probably an hour ago. I was thinking about how it was similar to Nakamura/Sakuraba but I wouldn't say it was as good.


----------



## bigbuxxx

date or link? i assume from the G-1 sometime last year.


----------



## Nervosa

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xnt0nx_shinsuke-nakamura-vs-minoru-suzuki-njpw_sport#.UOjyNaxdCSo


----------



## dk4life

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - ****1/2

Haven't watched much puro before, but freaking loved this, when Nakamura slaps Sakuraba, its on, then that knee! Thought that legit knocked out Nakamura, loved the ground work and some brutal strikes. Only watched the Triple threat and the above match, will keep a closer eye on New Japan this year, going to watch the rest of it now.


----------



## MarkL316

This will actually be the first New Japan show I watch apart from a few matches here and there but I feel like I should watch some older shows to really appreciate it. What would you recommend as a starting point?


----------



## Chismo

http://www.wrestlingforum.com/12449812-post9.html


----------



## DOPA

holy crap 5 stars for Tanahashi/Okada?


----------



## Bubz

Nakamura/Sakuraba is a lot better than the MiSu match imo, but I did love that match too.


----------



## geraldinhio

New Japan Noob here. Gonna try keep up as much in 2013, just barely kept up with the pimped matches from 2013.

Just watched Nakamura/Sakuraba and the Ki/Devitt/Ibushi match so far and was very impressed.

*Low Ki vs Prince Devitt (c)vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7: Evolution*

You know exactly what to expect from this. Jaw dropping, fast paced action from three great wrestlers. Ki looked like a boss , don't care what anyone says. Ibushi is amazing to watch as always and never disappoints and Devitt is Devitt. Just an awesome wrestler who is insanely over. Great little match , lots of fun with some breathtaking sequences. The right person went over the right wrestler.

***3/4-****

*
Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Kazushi Sakuraba- NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7: Evolution*

So here's where it gets interesting for a New Japan Noob. I'm relatively familiar with Nakamura but sadly think this is one of ,if not the first Sakuraba match I've seen. For every wrestler trying to work a good shoot style and authentic pseudo-MMA match look no further. 

Gripping mat work at the start that didn't drag and kept my interest throughout. Starting dropping bombs and strikes at the right time and some of the strikes were just gruesome. Them knees:mark:Finishing stretch was really good back and forward action and Nakamura's comeback was good( could of been delayed longer IMO,not a major complaint. Sakuraba is a ruthless S.O.B. I can see how people relate it to Brock/Cena. Its hard to believe how much went down in just ELEVEN MINUTES. Really good match.

****1/4+. Maybe ****1/2 I'll re-watch soon I'd say.

Next up Nagata/Suzuki and Tanahashi/Okada.


----------



## Chismo

Crusade said:


> holy crap 5 stars for Tanahashi/Okada?


Yep... I think you can't tell the _"we're equals"_ story better than that. It was a fantastic strategic war.


----------



## GothicBohemian

I just finished watching Nakamura/Sakuraba. I haven't seen the whole show yet (plan to sometime this week, hopefully sooner rather than later), but hunted that one match down right away just because of this thread. Glad I did. Really looking forward to watching the rest now.


----------



## Cactus

*NJPW Wrestlekingdom 7 in the Tokyo Dome*

*Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki*
I don't care how many times these two have faced each other; it'll never get old. This match was mostly about one-manship and features many back-and-forth strike exchanges but these two know how to do them right and they do new stuff to make them not feel too similar to their other encounters. Nagata's comeback during the sleeper was awesome and highly-charismatic. His selling gets a tad selective in the final minutes, but it didn't hurt the match too much.
★★★★

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba*
We are only 6 days into the year and I can comfortably say that this is definitely going to be a top 5 match of the year. Saku dominates Nakamura for most of the match and Nakamura is just awesome at busting out the desperation moves. I also marked big for the Landslide and Nakamura eating a knee in the same way he did from Takayama from years before. All-in-all, this was a great match that made Nakamura look like a true champion, made the title look very important and also kept Saku looking pretty dangerous himself, despite his loss. I hope both Sakuraba and Shibata stick around as they could really freshen up the main event scene.
★★★★½


----------



## cablegeddon

The Rainmaker said:


> LOLWUT?!!?? Because GOD FORBID if they decided to make the finishing sequence dramatic....


Well
1. It didn't work because it wasn't dramatic to me
2. IMO it was too many reversals and kick-outs. Is there any point in your opinion when there is too many reversals after finishing moves? It just goes back and forth?`

The first 20 minutes were perfect but they were trying to do too much at the end of the match.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

cablegeddon said:


> Well
> 1. It didn't work because it wasn't dramatic to me
> 2. IMO it was too many reversals and kick-outs. Is there any point in your opinion when there is too many reversals after finishing moves? It just goes back and forth?`
> 
> The first 20 minutes were perfect but they were trying to do too much at the end of the match.


Well, that's too bad. I know I was completely losing my shit in the last few minutes. But, you said they 'ruined the psychology' because they went into second gear? By far the dumbest thing I've ever read on any pro wrestling forum (oh, and trust me, I've read MANY, MANY, MAAANY dumb things). How the hell do you want them to end the match? With a rest hold? The stupidity has reached a peak when one frowns upon dramatic, heart racing finishes. I quite frankly don't care how you reacted towards it, because I know I bought into everything they did. Woah, sorry for the long rant. But... yeeaah.


----------



## Bubz

There wasn't tons of kick-outs at all in that match. the major kick out came from the HFF which was a great near fall, and apart from that is was a struggle for them to hit their finishers. I agree with Cactus that the first quarter of the match almost completely lost me, but once Okada started his control segment I was in to it right until the finish. It definitely felt like they were going for EPIC, and they almost achieved it (and without tons of kick-outs or overkill either) imo.


----------



## MF83

Why I NO voted the main on puroresu.tv...



> Unlike the first and my favourite of their matches (my second favourite IWGP match last year under vs. MiSu II), which was laid out brilliantly to build and put over Okada like the superstar he would become, all while protecting his weaknesses and shocking the world in the finest of ways, this was about as far from original as it comes. They forced "epic" and spent way too much time taking things slow when the match didn't call for it. They went through their spots so predictably and in lesser ways than their other matches. At least the Dominion match was paced well, and this match seemed to be a slowed down, poorly mutated replica of it. They gave me no reason beyond the hype to care, and the KUSHIDA led seconds had to rile the crowd up because they didn't care either. Okada's worst performance in a big match but Tanahashi actually looked great to me, and for the first time I really got the vibe of "older, wise veteran" from him.
> 
> 
> Spoiler: spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I don't dismiss matches on booking either, so I don't care that Okada lost in the case of calling this a MOTYC.
> 
> 
> In short, it was a lesser version of their second match, slowed down and with minimal originality to qualify it as great, and without an even "pretty good" Okada performance.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Why the fuck are there people that are complaining about a chain wrestling portion in a beginning of a pro wrestling match? Even if the said chain wrestling isn't the greatest thing ever it's crucial for match layout of 99% "epic" pro wrestling matches AND for workers planing what they'll do later on in the match. It gives the live crowd a little rest without boring them to death and allows the high end stuff in the match to stand out. Maybe you'd have liked it if Okada and Tanahashi oversold headlocks in a Shawn Michaels-esque way with horrible acting.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

I really don't understand what some people want a pro wrestling match to be these days.


----------



## darkclaudio

Wrestle Kingdom VII

-IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match ***3/4
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match ****


----------



## Bubz

ywall2breakerj said:


> Why the fuck are there people that are complaining about a chain wrestling portion in a beginning of a pro wrestling match? Even if the said chain wrestling isn't the greatest thing ever it's crucial for match layout of 99% "epic" pro wrestling matches AND for workers planing what they'll do later on in the match. It gives the live crowd a little rest without boring them to death and allows the high end stuff in the match to stand out. Maybe you'd have liked it if Okada and Tanahashi oversold headlocks in a Shawn Michaels-esque way with horrible acting.


Pretty sure nobody complained about having chain wrestling at the start of a match. More the way in which it was obviously slowed down to go a long time and didn't achieve anything in the long run.


----------



## asdf0501

ywall2breakerj said:


> Why the fuck are there people that are complaining about a chain wrestling portion in a beginning of a pro wrestling match? Even if the said chain wrestling isn't the greatest thing ever it's crucial for match layout of 99% "epic" pro wrestling matches AND for workers planing what they'll do later on in the match. It gives the live crowd a little rest without boring them to death and allows the high end stuff in the match to stand out. Maybe you'd have liked it if Okada and Tanahashi oversold headlocks in a Shawn Michaels-esque way with horrible acting.



People don't complain about chain wrestling for being chain wrestling. People complain about chain wrestling being used for an opening secuence just because "sound logic" and for chain wrestling secuences that lead to nothing in the later portions of a match meaning nothing in the end


----------



## Shotakan

****1/4
Sakuraba vs. Nakamura

What a fantastic match; I always love seeing Nakamura in that rare position where he can be out-grappled by his opponent, and Old Man Sakuraba presenting a quiet yet dangerous threat was well done and absolutely great.

****
Nagata vs. Suzuki

It's these two beating the piss out of each other; you know what you are getting.


----------



## Nervosa

I'm shocked people are complaining about the first half of Okada/Tanahashi. That was the half where Tanahashi actually sold properly.

The problematic half is the one that Tanahashi no-sells so much that Okada never even feels like he could possibly win.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

@Bubz & asdf0501

Well sorry, you must hate every Misawa-Kobashi singles match ever then cause it was way worse there. For a random example, the Cena-Punk matches have the same "problem". They were fighting for control. It's always been a part of "epicly" structured puroresu matches and it isn't going away. Complaining about something so basic is laughable.


----------



## Chismo

I seriously call bullshit on people giving Tana/Okada ANYTHING less than ****. It was a beautiful match, it was what WWF style used to be, spectacle style over everything else. The best Dome main event in fucking years.


----------



## Bubz

ywall2breakerj said:


> @Bubz & asdf0501
> 
> Well sorry, you must hate every Misawa-Kobashi singles match ever then cause it was way worse there. For a random example, the Cena-Punk matches have the same "problem". They were fighting for control. It's always been a part of "epicly" structured puroresu matches and it isn't going away. Complaining about something so basic is laughable.


I completely agree, wrestling for control. The thing is in Okada/Tanahashi, they lost me with it within the first few minutes. It's purely a personal thing, I would have rather that portion went shorter, and I wasn't 'in to it'. Put it down to the mood I was in after just watching Nakamura/Sakuraba or just in general. I'll re-watch it within the next few days because even as I was watching it I thought 'man, this'll need a re-watch'.


----------



## Nervosa

JoeRulz said:


> I seriously call bullshit on people giving Tana/Okada ANYTHING less than ****. It was a beautiful match, it was what WWF style used to be, spectacle style over everything else. The best Dome main event in fucking years.


Yeah, but some people dont like old WWF style and REALLY dont like everything else suffering just for spectacle style. I can't say I'm a huge fan of either of those things.

I'd love to call bullshit on anyone saying it was better than the DOMINION match, but to each their own. I still give it ****1/4 but I can see enough problems with it to make some give it less than four. I could even see a case for this being the weakest of their three matches, although I certainly wouldn't agree with that, either.


----------



## Nervosa

Double post, please delete, sorry


----------



## Chismo

Nervosa said:


> Yeah, but some people dont like old WWF style and REALLY dont like everything else suffering just for spectacle style. I can't say I'm a huge fan of either of those things.
> 
> I'd love to call bullshit on anyone saying it was better than the DOMINION match, but to each their own. I still give it ****1/4 but I can see enough problems with it to make some give it less than four. I could even see a case for this being the weakest of their three matches, although I certainly wouldn't agree with that, either.


Maybe. The WWF style is definitely not my favorite. But I'll take STORY over STYLE every damn time. It's just right thing to do.


----------



## asdf0501

ywall2breakerj said:


> Well sorry, you must hate every Misawa-Kobashi singles match ever then cause it was way worse there. For a random example, the Cena-Punk matches have the same "problem". They were fighting for control. It's always been a part of "epicly" structured puroresu matches and it isn't going away. Complaining about something so basic is laughable.


If someone is fighting for control the normal thing is fight until someone gain control, no mantain things in "status quo" and then pass to the other stage of the match. This is one of the problems in current puroresu, there are secuences in many matches that seems just filler until the portion of the match in wich the wrestlers begin to throw the bombs.

Is the same thing with the strikes secuences. Every current puroresu match seems to have a mandatory one when the majority of time one or the two wrestlers have awful strikes and at the end doesn't mean anything in the match context

That is the reason why in the Cena-Punk match the chain wrestling at the begining is a good thing, yes they fight for control and Cena get the best because he wrestles like the veteran who is focus only in a victory. Same with the Kobashi-Misawa matches but yes i have no problem saying for example that the 2003 NOAH match between them is heavily flawed


----------



## Nervosa

JoeRulz said:


> Maybe. The WWF style is definitely not my favorite. But I'll take STORY over STYLE every damn time. It's just right thing to do.


See its interesting you say that considering I think the story in the latest okada/tanahashi match really suffered because they went for style instead, especially when you compare it to the great story of the dominion match. I'm really glad you enjoyed it so much, though. Even if I don't exactly agree.


----------



## Cactus

JoeRulz said:


> I seriously call bullshit on people giving Tana/Okada ANYTHING less than ****. It was a beautiful match, it was what WWF style used to be, spectacle style over everything else. The best Dome main event in fucking years.


I gave it *** and I thought it was pretty boring for the most part. It felt like they went the distance for the hell of it and both men really don't know how to work an interesting control segment. The only way I can see it getting ****+ from me if they swapped that long and droney opening 20 minute period for a fun 5 minute sprint that could of established everything they did in the actual match. 

I thought the ending was pretty decent and did feel much more of a spectacle than your typical NJPW main event. It felt like a good Wrestlemania main event; it's just the mind numbingly boring opening that brings it down. 

Whenever, I rewatch a NJPW main event or see one that I know the result of, I find it very hard to rate it ****+ and I think there's good reason for that. I believe people get sucked into the actual result of a match and really do overrate these NJPW main events. I do think in 5 years, people will look back and think how they overrated NJPW's main events. I don't believe the actual ring-work is anything too special and people just get sucked into the near-falls.


----------



## cablegeddon

JoeRulz said:


> I seriously call bullshit on people giving Tana/Okada ANYTHING less than ****. It was a beautiful match, it was what WWF style used to be, spectacle style over everything else. The best Dome main event in fucking years.


I give it 4 stars but I thought Suzuki-Tanahasi at King of Pro wrestling was better and I liked Kurt Angle's match against Nagata at Wrestlekingdom 2 better as well.


----------



## ddog121

WrestleKingdom VII
Yuji Nagata v. Minoru Suzuki ****
Prince Devitt v. Low Ki V. Kota Ibushi ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi v. Kazuchika Okada ****1/2

Entire Show was amazing, I have Nakamura V. Sakuraba at ***3/4.


----------



## Nervosa

Rewatched Okada/Tanahashi and I'm sticking with ****1/4. I could be talked into lowering it, but certainly no higher. 

Really confused by people who were saying Tanahashi looked better and that he was the reason this match was good. Every great thing in this match for me was done by Okada and every complaint I have is with Tanahashi.

Whats the best thing in the match? The Cloverleaf. Why? Because Okada sells it like death, and times his escape to perfectly pop the crowd.

Whats the worst thing? Tanahashi shrugs off every bit of neckwork that Okada painstakingly applies, and its almost forgotten by the end of the match. Tanahashi's poor selling, a problem years ago, but greatly improved in the past year, rears its ugly head. Okada's tombstone is meant to feel like a deathblow. It was in the dominion match. Here, because Tanahashi makes the crowd forget the neckwork, it takes a whole lot of air out of that nearfall, and as a result, the whole match feels like Okada was never really that close to winning.

But that's the problem, isn't it? Tanahashi has just gotta be superman every time.

The booking of this match is just devastating. Granted, I think I have removed that bias from my rating. The Dominion match was #3 on my MOTY list last year, and I'm not too much more disappointed here than I was then. But it has to be said...what a dreadful decision. Okada was the hottest thing in wrestling, with more Buzz than I have seen around one japanese wrestler in at least 6 years. And you snuff him out so your stale ace can have more played-out, overdone, routine title matches. This match should have made Tanahashi's win at Dominion look like a fluke: instead, they have made Okada look like a fluke. 

To paraphase some guy:
_"I don't hate you, (Tanahashi), I don't even dislike you. I like you a hell out of a lot more than I like (most wrestlers)
I hate this idea that you're the best."_

That's my problem, ultimately, with Tanahashi. I'm tired of the 5th best heavyweight in the company beating all the guys who are better than him over and over. I just wish he was booked the way the 5th best heavyweight should be booked. 

But what the hell do I know? He draws, right? That's all that matters I guess. Money talks. But there was finally a guy who was not only a better wrestler but seemed to have the same marketability as Tanahashi, and they just completely derailed all the work they put into him for the last year. It's not even that I'm so mad about the Wrestle Kingdom Result: its that Okada winning at Wrestle Kingdom is the only way Tnahashi winning at Dominion even made sense.


----------



## bigbuxxx

tbf to new japan they may have just been protecting their asset because okada could be moving on. it's not like they randomly said "let's blow this and have tanahashi beat the hottest wrestler in japan atm". if they did say that then i am disappoint but i'd like to think that's not the case.

i wouldn't have minded seeing Okada win and then drop it in feb or april just for the epic dome moment and because he'll draw huge in his first defense but i understand not wanting him to have it if he's leaving.


----------



## cablegeddon

Nervosa said:


> Okada's tombstone is meant to feel like a deathblow. It was in the dominion match.


I talked about that lackluster piledriver pages back and you called me a troll. Look who's talking now.


----------



## Nervosa

cablegeddon said:


> I talked about that lackluster piledriver pages back and you called me a troll. Look who's talking now.


Get your facts right. You dissed Tanahashi's piledriver, which I have no problem with. I dissed Okada's piledriver.

And even you have to admit that post was sheer trolling.


----------



## MTheBehemoth

Prince Devitt v. Low Ki V. Kota Ibushi - ***3/4

Nakamura V. Sakuraba - ****1/4


----------



## Noah Mark

I gotta go with Tanahashi vs Okada-****1/2. I thought this was a classic! I still cant understand why it's not getting enough praise.


----------



## Obfuscation

*NJPW Wrestle Kingdom VII*

Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki ~ ****1/4


_IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship_ - _Three Way Match_
Prince Devitt(c) vs Low Ki vs Kota Ibushi ~ ****1/4


Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata ~ ****


_IWGP Intercontinental Championship_
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs Kazushi Sakuraba ~ ****1/2​

So, this is already a contender for Show of the Year & has my current number pick for MOTY in Nakamura/Sakuraba. It only took New Japan 4 days in the new year to take a comfortible lead. Insanity.

I'll get onto seeing Tanahashi vs Okada later tonight. Can't wait.


----------



## Kenny

Ill definitely get around to watching this show.


----------



## Obfuscation

Please. It's stellar. For me, only one match was under ***. Rest was at that level or well above.

I have to get around to watching this week's RAW & Main Event too. TLC + Sheamus vs DOLPH.


----------



## Kenny

DOLPH. :mark:

TLC is also :mark: :mark:


----------



## Obfuscation

YES @ knowing TLC worked.


----------



## Kenny

Punk/Ryback is a very enjoyable TLC match. 

Cena/DOLPH is about *** too


----------



## Obfuscation

Right on. I'll get on it soon enough.

Might not have enough time to slam through Impact tonight with Main Event on tap too. I'll see if I feel like staying up.


----------



## Kenny

From what I seen of Impact, there's not much to watch really.


----------



## Obfuscation

I have to see BRIAN CAGE's match at least. Might not be anything MOTYC worthy, but I'll give it a watch like I always do. 

 @ Impact seeming to be shitty at the start of 2013.


----------



## Kenny

It's all about Hogan/MARK(BULLY)/Brooke. :kobe3


----------



## Obfuscation

BULLY.

this better lead to a world championship run or else it's TRASH.


----------



## Bubz

BULLY should definitely get the belt, not like I've watched TNA for months, but BULLY is awesome.


----------



## Obfuscation

Sadly, they have lost quite a bit of steam lately. All of the awesome guys remain, only it's been a pretty trashy program.

-----------

*Monday Night RAW 1/7/13*: _WWE Championship_ - _Tables, Ladders, & Chairs Match_
CM Punk(c) vs Ryback ~ ***1/2

~ TLC was a ton of fun. I bought into it. Perhaps more than some others. Perhaps less than some others. Punk was a bumping machine and speaking of machines, my word Ryback was filthy with his destruction during the match. Decimating Punker any and all chance he could find. All of those months of frustration seemed to culminate every chance Ryback got to slam Punk through a table or crush him on a ladder. Punk displayed flashes of brilliance too in a mist of being the one who was clobbered _(Ben Grimm seems to fit Ryback a hair more considering aesthetic appearances. I digress)_ Punk's display of intelligence to maneuver his way around the brute rocked. Dodging the steel steps only to leap off of them to drive the high knee into Ryback's face + evading Ryback by rolling out of the ring to lure him into diving into a table. Awesome. I appreciated and more importantly enjoyed the psychology of the match. It was painfully obvious Punk would win, yet that didn't come into play once in the match. The drama was still there even with the Rock championship shot looming for the Rumble. Another Shield screw job on Ryback makes me ponder if Ryback will even win the Rumble match now. I could honestly see Ryback vs The Shield at WrestleMania. If not in a handicap then in another 6 man capacity. I had tons of fun with this match. It isn't a full on MOTYC, or at least not a HIGH one, but it's the current WWE MOTY atm. 10 days in, big whoop I know. It's gonna be mentioned for the rest of the year. No doubt. It had that memorable factor to it. Plenty of entertainment to go around. Thankfully the debut RAW gave us a match worth discussing. Hoping the trend continues tenfold throughout the rest of the year. If not one match on RAW per week, but a few. 3 hours a week. They can afford to give us 3-4 quality bouts.​


----------



## Kiz

STILL havent finished wk7. and to think there's a HOYTAMANIA match next. something's wrong with me


----------



## Obfuscation

Wait till you see Archer's entrance too. Myself being an Undertaker mark, well, I approved. That's all I'll say.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah, Archer is a BEAST in the match.

Cody, just watched Punk/Ryback TLC and echo your thoughts exactly. LOVED Punk using Rybacks mistakes to get some offense in, especially the knee off the stairs spot you mentioned. Punk just has a great mind for working shit like that into matches, and yet you still get people claiming he's overrated, when that couldn't be further from the truth imo, he's such a smart wrestler in that ring, especially as a heel.


----------



## BehindYou

Where is Archer currently performing?


----------



## GothicBohemian

Hailsabin said:


> I have to see BRIAN CAGE's match at least. Might not be anything MOTYC worthy, but I'll give it a watch like I always do.
> 
> @ Impact seeming to be shitty at the start of 2013.


It's short and nothing special, though folks in the TNA live thread who were unfamiliar with the guys seemed impressed. More so by Bradley, who came off looking pretty decent, but most everyone was enthusiastic about both of them. More time and build up would have been great, but it was fine for what it was – an under four minute tv match. 

Impact improved a bit this week but it's still no loss to skip it. Still, I've got hopes for something good from the x-division and tag specials they're taping.


----------



## KingCrash

Hailsabin said:


> I have to see BRIAN CAGE's match at least. Might not be anything MOTYC worthy, but I'll give it a watch like I always do.
> 
> @ Impact seeming to be shitty at the start of 2013.


Honestly I thought Cage was basically a non-entity in that match while Bradley pretty much got over who he was. 

And that last half hour. Holy shit.


----------



## djmathers1207

Brian Cage lost unfortunately


----------



## Chismo

It's not BULLY, it's MARK.


----------



## topper1

I can't believe the hype for Nakamura/Sakuraba I'm sorry but I can't help but lol at ****3/4 for the match. Maybe the fact that I haven't really been watching much wrestling and the fact that I'm a huge MMA fan hurt the match for me. ***3/4 I find it insulting that Sakuraba had an arm bar on Nakamura and he was able to escape.


----------



## Corey

BehindYou said:


> Where is Archer currently performing?


New Japan. He's one half of the IWGP Tag Team Champions with Davey Boy Smith Jr.


----------



## Chismo

topper1 said:


> I can't believe the hype for Nakamura/Sakuraba I'm sorry but I can't help but lol at ****3/4 for the match. Maybe the fact that I haven't really been watching much wrestling and the fact that I'm a huge MMA fan hurt the match for me. ***3/4 I find it insulting that Sakuraba had an arm bar on Nakamura and he was able to escape.


Agreed. But I don't agree with your reasoning. It's a damn good match, but I wouldn't call it great or something. I guess people are mesmerized with the (semi) shoot style they worked, but it doesn't touch some old NJPW vs. UWF/UWFi classics, IMO.


----------



## Bubz

topper1 said:


> I can't believe the hype for Nakamura/Sakuraba I'm sorry but I can't help but lol at ****3/4 for the match. Maybe the fact that I haven't really been watching much wrestling and the fact that I'm a huge MMA fan hurt the match for me. ***3/4 *I find it insulting that Sakuraba had an arm bar on Nakamura and he was able to escape.*


C'mon man, it's pro wrestling. That's literally one of the worst criticisms of a match I've seen for ages.

The match had so much drama. I've seen my share of shoot style stuff too, it's got nothing to do with that.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

topper1 said:


> I find it insulting that Sakuraba had an arm bar on Nakamura and he was able to escape.



You are a complete utter moron. Stop watching Pro Wrestling, right now. Thanks. XoXo.


----------



## seabs

*I'll post more in depth reviews tomorrow but for now, ***3/4 at the 3 way and Makabe/Shibata, **** at Okada/Tanahashi and ****+ at Nakamura/Sakuraba.*


----------



## Obfuscation

Bubz said:


> Yeah, Archer is a BEAST in the match.
> 
> Cody, just watched Punk/Ryback TLC and echo your thoughts exactly. LOVED Punk using Rybacks mistakes to get some offense in, especially the knee off the stairs spot you mentioned. Punk just has a great mind for working shit like that into matches, and yet you still get people claiming he's overrated, when that couldn't be further from the truth imo, he's such a smart wrestler in that ring, especially as a heel.


Someone always has to complain about him. It never fails. I scoff it off and wonder what fans of wrestling would want instead of Punk working as a smart heel over of a terrible, run of the mill cowardly/cheap heel.



GothicBohemian said:


> It's short and nothing special, though folks in the TNA live thread who were unfamiliar with the guys seemed impressed. More so by Bradley, who came off looking pretty decent, but most everyone was enthusiastic about both of them. More time and build up would have been great, but it was fine for what it was – an under four minute tv match.
> 
> Impact improved a bit this week but it's still no loss to skip it. Still, I've got hopes for something good from the x-division and tag specials they're taping.





KingCrash said:


> Honestly I thought Cage was basically a non-entity in that match while Bradley pretty much got over who he was.
> 
> And that last half hour. Holy shit.


Can't say I'm surprised to hear Bradley got the rub more considering the company has shown some interest in him. Cage appearing will the worthwhile moment for me. Always hope he could return too. Staying in PWG is always a win too. I'm happy about the situation as a whole.

Last half hour = holy shit, you say? I'm gonna either jump on wondering if that's "holy shit awesome" or "holy shit bad". Either way, you peaked my interest.


----------



## djmathers1207

Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio- ****
Great match even though WWE spoiled it Tuesday on their site


----------



## Rickey

Yeah I enjoyed that Last Man Standing match too.


----------



## EmbassyForever

WWE Smackdown: Alberto Del Rio vs Big Show - ****1/4+
Holy shit awesome match, so much drama and probably the best the LMS match I remember. Incrdible, ADR looks so strong after this match.


----------



## Caponex75

Am I the only one that notices that Cage is average?


----------



## Srdjan99

The match between Titan and Polvora for the CMLL Welterweight Title is definetely a MOTY candidate. It had everything and it was one of the best lucha matches i can remember. ***** for it


----------



## Obfuscation

Caponex75 said:


> Am I the only one that notices that Cage is average?


I think he's much better than average. Certainly benefits when working vs a superior talent of course. He has potential to become collectively great overall.


----------



## KingKicks

Hopefully I can get Wrestle Kingdom VII watched before going back to university. Haven't had as much time as I'd like to watch wrestling the past few months, aside from Raw/SD/Impact.


----------



## Obfuscation

Find 5 free hours and then CRAM it. It's worth the long haul.


----------



## seabs

Caponex75 said:


> Am I the only one that notices that Cage is average?


*He needs to be carried to get the most out of him but he's got potential and charisma.

Smirking at all the people in here vowing to watch more wrestling in 2013. Happens every year, enjoy this thread for January and then we'll see you again next January.*

*Prince Devitt vs Low Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW 04.01.2012*
_Fun juniors match but little more. Thought Ki was awesome in this and not just for wrestling in that outfit. Best he's looked in ages and first time in years I've got excited about Low Ki. Absolutely hated Devitt's top rope stomp to break a pin up. Horrible mistimed and the definition of doing a spot for the sake of a spot. At least like springboard in to show a sense or urgency rather than just climbing the top rope and hoping the ref slows his count down for your spot._

****3/4*

*Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 04.01.2012*
_Great little war. Spot where they both decide to take it back into the ring was magnificent. Initially hated Shibata's no selling but it makes it a bigger deal when he does sell for someone. Was into the control segment, shame it was brief though. Thought Makabe was brilliant in this. Makabe's kinda one dimensional but this is his dimension where he excels and he fucking excelled here. Table spot ruled. My only gripe with the match was how bad they killed Shibata at the end. I get it if he's done with them now which it seems like but the match would have been a lot better for Makabe not just doing the table spot and then killing him before putting him down. Give the match a bit longer, put Shibata in control of the match for a bit longer and have a more competitive finish. Other than this was really good with the potential to have been even better._

****3/4*

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW 04.01.2012*
_Didn't reach the dizzy heights that it seemed to with some people but I still thought this was MOTN and really great. First few minutes had me worried because I feared before hand that this was gonna be full of slow matwork but it developed into exactly what I wanted it to be. Stiff and tension filled. Everything they fought for after that slap was intense and investing. The struggle in the key lock spot was tremendous. THAT knee. Nakamura's first knee to the back of the head out of desperation to stay alive. Awesome stuff. Thought it needed a bit depth to be a heavy MOTYC come the end of the year though but for what it was it was awesome. _

*****+*

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 04.01.2012*
_Thought this was really good but honestly, it was the least I'd expect from them. I just never got really invested in it and that's not something that's happened for any of Okada's big matches bar vs Goto. I'm starting to fear for how much longer I can watch New Japan main events follow the same formula with the limb work that may or not get sold long term before a great finishing run. Maybe it's just because they didn't do it as effectively here. The intial neck work from Okada was good but Tanahashi really made it all redundant by not selling any of it and I think that kinda took me out of it a little. Neither limb work really benefited from a strong control segment here. Okada sold the leg really well like he always will but it felt like something they just threw to make it past 30 minutes rather than the focus of the match at any point. The whole match was a bit too much consisting of brief control segments with little depth to them. New Japan finishes are normally the absolute best because of how the early parts get you invested in the match and then play around with you during the finish. Here I wasn't really invested in the match so they weren't messing around me like I wanted them to. High Fly Flow kickout was great and benefited from finishers being really well protected in New Japan. Part of me wanted to care more about something that I've been waiting a long time for though. Cloverleaf spot was tremendous thanks to Okada selling the life out of the desperation to get to the ropes and not be forced to submit in his big moment. And for Okada's big moment he really didn't look like much of a star. Finish aside he looked pretty meh and that's due to the match not really having a clear control segment for him to establish himself with. For me, Tanahashi always looked in control of the match and Okada was nearly always lagging behind struggling to keep up with Tanahashi in this race. That's a mighty shame as well because I really enjoy Okada in control and I really enjoyed him here in his brief spell on top. He's got that feel about him that works so well when he's in control of a match. He wrestles the match his way, at his pace and looks like he's in complete control of every aspect of the match, not just the offence at that one time. I did like this tbf and I'm only sounding off on the negatives because they brought the match down past the standard that these could and really should have achieved. _

******


----------



## Nervosa

Everything you said about the main event is spot on. It's sad that you're not sure you can watch NJPW Main events...but please try to remember that most of the things you don't like about them are Tanahashi's fault. which is why him going over is even more stupid.

Okada's limbwork always leads to his finisher. He sells perhaps better than anyone right now. There are very few things he does for no reason at all. It seems to me most of your problems with NJPW main events are actually problems with Tanahashi.


----------



## Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

Did i miss something watching Show/Del Rio?

It was okay, no where near a great match

***** at best.


----------



## Bubz

Del Rio/Show was really good I thought. Some great stuff in it like Del Rio rolling off the apron on to his feet to break up the count after the punch. Del Rio seems to be better as a babyface because he can make good comebacks and shows intensity instead of plodding around the ring doing moves to the arm without any emotion. Show is great in control as usual, and fuck me he's so underrated still. As a babyface he's sometimes unbearable, but as a monster heel he's so good. Nothing that would make me call it a MOTYC or anything like that, but very good. ***1/2


----------



## Kiz

Seabs said:


> *Smirking at all the people in here vowing to watch more wrestling in 2013. Happens every year, enjoy this thread for January and then we'll see you again next January.*


i can guarantee you i will.

wouldn't be hard though.


----------



## GOON

I downloaded Wrestle Kingdom VII after hearing all of the buzz about it being GOAT. I watched Low Ki/Devitt/Ibushi and I found it to be just fantastic. I'd probably go ****1/4-****1/2 for it and it was great fun for its entire fifteen minute or so duration. 

It's going to be hard for me to get into this show (and Japanese wrestling as a whole) seeing as I have no idea who the vast majority of the people are and no idea what the storylines are either.


----------



## Bubz

Well, it's really great seeing New Japan getting all of these new viewers. WK seems to have drawn in a ton of new fans, the funny thing is it's not even near the quality of some of the shows they put on last year or the year before despite it being great.


----------



## seabs

Nervosa said:


> Everything you said about the main event is spot on. *It's sad that you're not sure you can watch NJPW Main events*...but please try to remember that most of the things you don't like about them are Tanahashi's fault. which is why him going over is even more stupid.
> 
> Okada's limbwork always leads to his finisher. He sells perhaps better than anyone right now. There are very few things he does for no reason at all. It seems to me most of your problems with NJPW main events are actually problems with Tanahashi.


*Bolded part is excessive. It's more of a fear that very soon that formula will ware very dry on me than a realisation that it already has. That also comes with the same guy main event every show bar a couple for year on year on year. I still think Tanahashi is great at what he does in that role but this wasn't his best showing. The layout of the match didn't help either like I mentioned.*


93.20 said:


> i can guarantee you i will.
> 
> wouldn't be hard though.


*there's usually a couple who pull through but loads who make the same promise and don't have the staying power.*

*Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - Last Man Standing - Smackdown 11.01.2013*
_Really strong contender for TV MOTY that I'm not sure will be beaten. Two great individual performances on top of a really well worked gimmick. Really liked how they just got right to the bulk of the match with the hardcore spots and Show dominating. Made Del Rio's uphill battle feel more sympathetic and desperate. Show's an awesome monster in control when he gets the chance. Wonderful intimidating presence in control. IT'S GONNA BE A LONG NIGHT PEDRO. Del Rio's babyface performance was equally as great. Got over the uphill battle and the miracle of winning perfectly. The 10 count being stopped by falling out of the ring onto his feet was brilliant. The armbar over the top rope was brilliant too, both as a visual and in setting up the shoulder as Show's weak spot to go after later. Show's subtle sell of the arm after the barricade spot was great too just to remind people of the ***** in his armour. Comeback itself is brilliant too coming off the fortunate opening. Thought it was a wonderful slaying the dragon type finish with Del Rio just going all out to topple the giant and take his one opportunity. Encapsulated the story of the match so well and was such a fitting finish with the relentless shots at the arm and toppling the table over to finish the monster off once and for all. Ricardo's awesome during this too playing cheerleader. Feels like a really big feel good moment when it finishes too. Fantastic way to get Del Rio over as a babyface. Managed to steer away from the obvious drawbacks of LMS matches too by not having too many long breaks during the ten counts and turning into spot - count - spot. Show's reactions to when Del Rio would make it back up were really great as well._

******


----------



## The Rainmaker.

GOON The Legend said:


> I downloaded Wrestle Kingdom VII after hearing all of the buzz about it being GOAT. I watched Low Ki/Devitt/Ibushi and I found it to be just fantastic. I'd probably go ****1/4-****1/2 for it and it was great fun for its entire fifteen minute or so duration.
> 
> It's going to be hard for me to get into this show (and Japanese wrestling as a whole) seeing as I have no idea who the vast majority of the people are and no idea what the storylines are either.


You'll learn as you continue to watch.


----------



## wildpegasus

I caught some of Smackdown and just wanted to give out some love for da main even of Del Rio and Show. I just looooooved this. This was about the most emotional I have ever gotten for a WWF/WWE title switch. Del Rio has long been one of my favs of the new generation of WWE stars so this was terrific.

And Ricardo is one of my favs too. I really like their dynamic and am glad they didn't go the Virgil/Dibiase route (which was the right way for them to go back than) but yet solidified their friendship. Ricardo did a great job here as well and was a signifigant part of what made this match so terrific for me.

And Del RIo sliding outside of the ring onto his feet after being knocked out was one of the best moments I have ever seen in wrestling. And I have seen a lot of wrestling. A looot. The announce booth, the struggle and the drama all around that was aces too. I wish I never knew that Rio had won before this. I envy those who didn't know. It was also nice to see Rio celebrating in the crowd.

I had heard there were two punches by show but only one shown? Does anyone know the story about that?


----------



## bigbuxxx

GOON The Legend said:


> It's going to be hard for me to get into this show (and Japanese wrestling as a whole) seeing as I have no idea who the vast majority of the people are and no idea what the storylines are either.


Gotta start somewhere if you want to get into it. Watch past ppvs and you're pretty much up to speed. There aren't many story lines in NJPW, just matches. The main events don't usually have story lines. The next defense vs. Anderson is a filler defense (ofc everybody said that last feb and Okada won it so surprising stuff happens to).


----------



## Rah

Srdjan99 said:


> The match between Titan and Polvora for the CMLL Welterweight Title is definetely a MOTY candidate. It had everything and it was one of the best lucha matches i can remember. ***** for it


*Titan vs Polvora (CMLL Welterweight Title)*
LINK (01/01/2013)​There was an argument made against opening matwork earlier in this thread (and its boredom), but sometimes extended mat-based chain-wrestling can crucially pen the beginning of a phenomenal story (without its consequences reiterating themselves later on in the match). Such a take was evident here, with its game of one-upmanship being just that; two luchadores trying to prove who was the better technician.

The first two falls helped to build their tension but at a price of being all too reliant on one another to fit in their spots. They were meant to be crisp, flashy albeit short affairs to build the crowd while getting the two wrestlers at a round each. The trouble, however, is that it managed to succeed at doing the latter with complete disregard for the former. Titan takes the first fall after what looked like a botched front-flip, seated stunner into a modified La Escalera for the quick submission. The second fall takes an interesting turn with Titan successfully luring Polvora to the outside in his bid to ground his opponent via a nice monkey flip to the hard entrance ramp. This is, however, Polvora's round and it's not long before the tables turn and Titan secedes to Polvora's own submission. While I must say that I liked the strategy employed here, and the overall feel of the moments outside of the ring, I still felt as if it did not go anywhere once the fall was completed. Admittedly, most of what these two wrestlers did here felt underwhelming in the greater scheme of things; almost as if depth was sacrificed purely to throw together the required ingredients for a great lucha match. But following a recipe to perfection does not always guarantee a perfect result.







It looks good, doesn't it? But it loses its appeal all too quickly when you realise it came moments after a vicious abdominal stretch that should perhaps have had Titan's centre of balance (core muscles) at least somewhat shaken.

The finish comes off of Polvora capitalising on Titan's mistakes with a sick Rubik's Cube staying somewhat true-to-form in the story they were going for here - it's almost a shame, though, that the form of their one-upmanship just wasn't that up to par. No matter how great the finish, this match was too long and seemingly too pointless for what it actually should have been.

Seemingly despite these criticisms, this match has received some stellar reviews amongst many fans (with Srdjan's rating being the second 5-star I've seen being awarded) leaving myself in the minority. Perhaps I'm starting to miss the point of lucha libre but, in an already contrived environment, such co-operative spots do nothing for me, especially when they lack the essence of depth that other noteworthy matches have to them. Not to be that guy who reiterates an already stale cliche, but if this was assisted ballet, their interpretive dance piece would have possibly succeeded in what they were aiming to portray. It's just too bad that "this ain't ballet".
*Rating:* 3.5+


----------



## mk92071

Srdjan99 said:


> The match between Titan and Polvora for the CMLL Welterweight Title is definetely a MOTY candidate. It had everything and it was one of the best lucha matches i can remember. ***** for it


I just watched this and it was a great match. The first two falls were both short, but the first was very technically sound. The whole match was crazy non stop action. There wasn't much of a story to it from what I saw, except for Titan showing off a bit and mocking Polvora a little. This is still high up on my list so far. I'd give it ****. Might give this a rewatch soon.


----------



## Obfuscation

Favorited Titan vs Polvora. Any backstory to the match I should know before heading in? I'd like to appreciate as much nuances to the story as I can. Unless it's a pretty straight forward Lucha bout.


----------



## mk92071

Hailsabin said:


> Favorited Titan vs Polvora. Any backstory to the match I should know before heading in? I'd like to appreciate as much nuances to the story as I can. Unless it's a pretty straight forward Lucha bout.


I didn't know about any history, and I don't regular watch Lucha. It was still great.


----------



## Rah

mk92071 said:


> I didn't know about any history, and I don't regular watch Lucha. It was still great.


So it's only me that had an issue with none of their moves having an end to the means (the submission onto Polvora's left leg not being sold or factored in later) or bored to shit by the "middle" part of the match? 

Perhaps I'll rewatch this, but Fantastica Mania is looking rather too promising in delivering better matches than what I got from this.



Hailsabin said:


> Favorited Titan vs Polvora. Any backstory to the match I should know before heading in? I'd like to appreciate as much nuances to the story as I can. Unless it's a pretty straight forward Lucha bout.


They have a tiny bit of history that I am aware of (I'm probably missing a good portion to this). Titan went on to win the En Busca de un Ídolo tourney in 2011, capturing the National Welterweight Championship from Polvora. Having now captured the World Welterweight title, Polvora was set not to let the National champion one-up him again.

I'm sure someone more in the know on their lucha could shed some light.


----------



## Punkhead

Titan vs Polvora was a really great match. I'd give it *****3/4.


----------



## CHAMPviaDQ

Bubz said:


> Well, it's really great seeing New Japan getting all of these new viewers. WK seems to have drawn in a ton of new fans, the funny thing is it's not even near the quality of some of the shows they put on last year or the year before despite it being great.


I'm one of those people, WK7 was the first full NJPW Show I've watched. Shinsuke Nakamura is probably my favourite wrestler right now. I am getting my brother hooked into it and I've recommended WK7 to a couple of friends, just waiting on the feedback. I found the Low-Ki/Devitt/Ibushi match is a good way to pull in people who aren't in familiar with NJPW. That's how I got my brother interested, then hit him with the brilliance of the Nakamura/Sakuraba match. Having known Gaijins in the card was another way I got to keep his attention, as proven when I got him to watch some of WK5. I'm trying to check out as much as I can, will be keeping an eye on this and the Puro thread so I can get the latest.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> They have a tiny bit of history that I am aware of (I'm probably missing a good portion to this). Titan went on to win the En Busca de un Ídolo tourney in 2011, capturing the National Welterweight Championship from Polvora. Having now captured the World Welterweight title, Polvora was set not to let the National champion one-up him again.
> 
> I'm sure someone more in the know on their lucha could shed some light.


(Y)

At least I got some bit of backstory behind their history.



CHAMPviaDQ said:


> I'm one of those people, WK7 was the first full NJPW Show I've watched. *Shinsuke Nakamura is probably my favourite wrestler right now*. I am getting my brother hooked into it and I've recommended WK7 to a couple of friends, just waiting on the feedback. I found the Low-Ki/Devitt/Ibushi match is a good way to pull in people who aren't in familiar with NJPW. That's how I got my brother interested, then hit him with the brilliance of the Nakamura/Sakuraba match. Having known Gaijins in the card was another way I got to keep his attention, as proven when I got him to watch some of WK5. I'm trying to check out as much as I can, will be keeping an eye on this and the Puro thread so I can get the latest.


You're a wise man, headless ponch.

I got my brother to view the PPV too. I'm always marking out about NJPW and he's always lost pardon the Gaijins, so giving him a brief history lesson + witnessing the event has actually made him aware of what NJPW is all about. Finally nice to have someone know what Nakamura SWAG is when I do it around my house and on the town. SWAG.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

*Titan vs Polvora for the CMLL World Welterweight Championship 1.01.13*
_Very fun match here. Started off with a nice pace and for the most part they kept that exciting pace throughout the match. They pretty much hit everything to near perfection, as I don't recall any screw ups, which is impressive considering some of the stuff these two were busting out. Hot crowd for this too. The ref is awful, though. Took forever to count and sucked all the drama out of any near falls. Still a great match._
******


----------



## Cactus

*4FW 2013/01/12*

*Benham Ali & Zack Sabre Jr. vs Owen Phoenix & Prince Devitt*
Insane Michinoku-Pro flavored tag epic with plenty of sick matwork. I was a tad disappointed at ZSJ not working babyface but he's absolutely fantastic at keeping a control segment entertaining with the slick WOS-style stretching he does. The match turns into an all-out war when Devitt finally gets hot tagged in. My only complaints here were I wish the Devitt/ZSJ interactions were more predominant and that the finish felt a bit weak in comparison to the rest of the match.
★★★★


----------



## The Rainmaker.

Cactus said:


> *4FW 2013/01/12*
> *Benham Ali & Zack Sabre Jr. vs Owen Phoenix & Prince Devitt*
> 
> Insane Michinoku-Pro flavored tag epic with plenty of sick matwork. I was a tad disappointed at ZSJ not working babyface but he's absolutely fantastic at keeping a control segment entertaining with the slick WOS-style stretching he does. The match turns into an all-out war when Devitt finally gets hot tagged in. My only complaints here were I wish the Devitt/ZSJ interactions were more predominant and that the finish felt a bit weak in comparison to the rest of the match.
> 
> ★★★★


Link?


----------



## seabs

*He watched it live. DVD will probably be out in a few months.*


----------



## Noah Mark

Leono/Tiger Blanco vs Bobby Zavala/Disturbio-CMLL 1/1/13. Match had some great dives by Leono and Tiger Blanco.****

The Hot Rodz vs Steve Miller/Jag Hartley Jackson-Snakepit Adelaide Pro Wrestling 1/9/13. This was a really good match. The Hot Rodz do an almost Rock N Roll Express gimmick but they are heels. It was a southern style tag match as the Hot Rodz kept working over Miller until he made the hot tag to Jag.***3/4.


----------



## DOPA

*Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - Smackdown 1/11/2013*

Was really surprised by how good this match was. I'm not a big fan of either man in general, I'm a fan of Del Rio's in ring work but I've never really bought into his character or persona as a heel. This match however as a face was different. Del Rio came across as a very believable face despite the little build this was given. Great facial expressions and comebacks that were done in a mostly believable way (the beginning I felt like he got a bit too much offense in for what they were going for). This told a really simple but good story with Del Rio constantly having to fight an uphill battle against an unstoppable giant. What I really liked however was that Del Rio did not get a superman comeback ala Cena or Sheamus but had to outsmart Big Show and think on his feet in order to gain the victory. Proposes a much different type of face and one that I personally can get much more behind. Back to the match, this had some great psychology and storytelling all around. This had a few big spots here and there but this was a match centered around the story which delivered excellently. Great TV match, very good match overall. Early contender for TV match of the year.

**** 1/2*


----------



## Obfuscation

*CMLL 1/1*

*CMLL World Welterweight Championship* - *Two Out of Three Falls*

Polvora(c) vs Titan ~ ***1/2​

While I didn't think it was as good as some others in the thread, I legitimately enjoyed it. Which has been a hard thing for me to say from a lot of lucha of the last few years. Only major complaint here was the awful slow ref. How does he have a job? Rest was quality. Good stuff with some nutty bumps tossed in. Really good match and I'm glad I gave it a watch. Finish ruled when Polvora killed Titan with the RUBIX CUBE/Joker Driver. Titan's hand stand move was SLICK. Totally marked for it. Wanted him to win only b/c he busted it out haha.


----------



## Jeff Hardy Hater

Austin Aries Vs. Bobby Roode Vs. Jeff Hardy - Genesis 2013 Impact Wrestling

****

I'm not into downgrading matches because I hated the ending, but this was overall a great match. Very good near-falls, honestly did the best to keep me on the edge of my seat knowing Jeff was gonna win the whole time. Overall, very good match.


----------



## Rah

With regards to the slow ref count, in Lucha even the referees have a face/heel dynamic to them (some are paid-out by wrestlers while others are just dicks). Even the good guys have their downfalls, though, as some are just senile in their counts much to the frustration of a hot crowd. Counts can either come quickly or exasperatedly slow but it always has a purpose as to why. It's quite a nice novelty factor to lucha over other forms of wrestling, imo. It realises how truly one-dimensional the referee character is when, in reality, that shouldn't be the case. I realise the argument against this in terms of keeping the medium as close to a genuine sport feel as possible, but in the wacky world of wrasslin' it just makes more sense.

However, if it personally hurt the match for you then it should reflect in your rating. That's how this works, right? 



Noah Mark said:


> Leono/Tiger Blanco vs Bobby Zavala/Disturbio-CMLL 1/1/13. Match had some great dives by Leono and Tiger Blanco.****


Good match here, but I wouldn't rank it higher than Polvora/Titan nor against the term MotY. It was just too standard an apuestas match to be either memorable or great.




*IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship - Three Way Match*
Prince Devitt(c) vs Low Ki vs Kota Ibushi​As a fan of the Hitman franchise, seeing Low Ki wrestle in full cosplay was a true treat to watch. I'm a mark for entrances, especially their opening moment, and this wholly stole the fandom which I usually reserve for Devitt.

This was a better-than-good juniours match (as one comes to expect from WK) that did not stray too far into Ibushi's OTT mannerisms while, at the same time, did not undervalue itself in terms of great spots. I'm somewhat more interested in Apollo 55 Vs Time Splitters matches than I am in Taguchi/Devitt, however. But I won't say no to either.
*Rating:* 3.75

*IWGP Intercontinental Championship*
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs Kazushi Sakuraba​Admittedly, at the time, I was less sold on the "weak" beginning than those who loved this match but thinking back on it, their tentative mannerisms underpinned the respect/threat dynamic that made this great. A lot shorter than the Lesnar/Cena match from last year yet this was nearly just as good. If this drops out of my top five, then we would have been sweetly treated in 2013. Here's hoping.
*Rating:* 4.5

Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki​This is what I love about puroresu. You had two guys with a simple-as-hell match strategy yet it delivered. It's always a treat to watch these two as they modify their exchanges enough to prevent their bouts from being stale yet, at the same time, without losing the magic of their previous encounters. It wasn't without Nagata's speculative selling-issues, but MiSu sold that arm almost enough to have it mitigated. I wouldn't specifically go out of my way for this, but it is definitely worth a watch if you have time for it.
*Rating:* 4

*IWGP World Championship*
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs Kazuchika Okada​I read everyone's reviews before watching this show and, notably, I can see argument for either side. From a purist perspective, this had questionable issues with regard to selling and pacing, its iffy transitions/moments and seemingly pointless work-overs but, from an entertainment perspective, this had DRAMA~!

From the usual (counters) to the special (Okada/Hashi clawing themselves to their feet together) right down to the finishing moments, this match painted one of the best portrayals of two equals that I've seen in a long time. For me, the finish wasn't about whether the right man won, _it was about cementing both men as equals in the crowd's and, more importantly, in each other's eyes_.

Someone mentioned how Hashi's piledriver spot amounted to nothing and felt done for the sake of it. I disagree - that spot was perhaps the exclamation mark in their story. To put Okada away, Tanahashi had to use his own opponent's move against him purely because his weren't as effective. Tanahashi knew this, that's why he stalled on the pin following the driver. Going for the pinfall would cement this fact so it was in Tanahashi's interest to follow it with his usual High Fly Flow shtick. The thought stalled him, giving Okada time to make a last-ditched (yet futile) attempt at a comeback before Tanahashi's final HFF could seal the victory.

So, then, where does one draw a rating? Is a rating an objective opinion based purely on the quality of work the wrestlers put in (at the expense of one's subjective pull) or does it also take heed of the story it tells (where subjectivity is inherently ascribed)? A little bit of both would be my answer, I suppose. For those who can see/wish for its story elements, this match will probably hold up highly come the end of the year. For those not sold on their physical work, it'll be a sourly distant memory as a dome main event that just did not hold justice for either man. 

In hindsight, this match reminds me so strongly of the Polvora/Titan match that I disliked (comparatively to others). Both _do_ try too hard in their attempt to attain "epic" status. The difference, however, is that while the CMLL match was almost void of drama (personally), this delivered it in spades.
*Rating:* 4.25


----------



## Obfuscation

*NJPW Wrestle Kingdom VII​*
*IWGP World Championship*

Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs Kazuchika Okada ~ ****​
Yep, loved another bout from them yet again. I don't see where the negatives come from, but hey, that's me. Great match with some great work per usual. Always love whenever Okada loses it's b/c he NEVER gets to connect with Rainmaker. Keeps that move sooooooo legit. One and done. Always. _(well, sometimes.)_


----------


*TNA Genesis 2013*

Joseph Park vs Devon Hughes ~ ***1/2​
I know, I know. A Devon match in here? gtfo. It's a low MOTYC atm, but my cut off for some recs is ***1/2 and thanks to a certain individual this character display was fan-friggin-tastic. No, it wasn't on Devon. It was thanks to the glorious, wonderful, magical Lawyer gone wrestler - you know who he is - he's my man, JOSEPH PARK. Seriously, he's amazing in this role. You couldn't remove the smile from my face during the entire time it was on. arks


*TNA World Championship* - *Three Way Elimination Match*
Jeff Hardy(c) vs Robert Roode vs Austin Aries ~ ***1/2​
Pretty :mark: on some parts. Good flow, good psychology, good story backing Hardy's resilience. Just all around...GOOD. Really good, quite frankly. Ending wasn't quite as strong as I would have preferred, but it worked. No complaints and these guys worked hard to give us something to say Genesis was actually worth seeing for a part of it. Even people who dislike Hardy can't be ignorant to how he's working hard within the company right now. It could be bumped up a 1/4* on a re-watch. It's damn close to that level as it is.


----------



## Rah

Like other users, I'll keep this post as a quick go-to for my running MotY listing. For every match I'll also hot link to its particular write-up just so you can get a feel of what I thought about it.

★★★★★

★★★★ ¾

★★★★ ½
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) Vs Kazushi Sakuraba (05/01/2013 NJPW)
Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)
Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (06/10/2013 CMLL)
William Regal Vs Antonio Cesaro (25/12/2013 WWE)
The Undertaker Vs CM Punk (07/04/2013 WWE)
CM Punk Vs John Cena (25/02/2013 WWE)


★★★★ ¼
Charles Lucero Vs Rey Hechicero (04/08/2013 Fighters NICE)
Rhodes Dynasty Vs The Shield (14/10/2013 WWE) 
Jun Akiyama Vs KAI (29/04/2013 AJPW)
Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA Par-K (02/06/2013 TxT)
Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata (04/08/2013 NJPW)
Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)
HHH Vs Brock Lesnar (19/05/2013 WWE)
Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (21/03/2013 WWE)
Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis Vs Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (16/08/2013 CMLL)
Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Kazuchika Okada (07/04/2013 NJPW)
Mark Henry Vs John Cena (14/07/2013 WWE)
Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro (21/08/2013 WWE)
Oficial 911 Vs Trauma II Vs El Angel (03/03/2013 IWRG)
Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. Vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (15/03/2013 CMLL)
Jun Akiyama/Go Shiozaki Vs Manabu Soya/Takao Omori (17/03/2013 AJPW)
The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (20/05/2013 WWE)
Jay Briscoe Vs Kevin Steen (05/04/2013 RoH)
Rush Vs El Terrible (26/01/2013 CMLL)
Tomohiro Ishii Vs Hirooki Goto (17/03/2013 NJPW)
Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera Vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita (18/02/2013 IWRG)
Sami Callihan Vs Drake Younger (22/03/2013 PWG)
***** Casas(c) Vs Valiente (11/02/2013 CMLL)
Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. Vs Nakamura Shinsuke & Ishii Tomohiro (05/04/2013 NJPW)
Volador Jr Vs Rey Escorpión (02/02/2013 CMLL)
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) Vs Kazuchika Okada (05/01/2013 NJPW)

★★★★
Antonio Cesaro Vs Sheamus (05/06/2013 WWE)
Las Traumas Vs Valiente y Virus (25/08/2013 Chilanga Mask)
Kyle Matthews Vs Mike Cruz (30/05/2013 Rampage Pro)
The Shield Vs John Cena, Ryback & Sheamus (17/02/2013 WWE)
Sami Callihan Vs Shane Hollister (17/05/2013 AAW)
Alberto Del Rio Vs Dolph Ziggler (16/06/2013)
CM Punk Vs Brock Lesnar (18/08/2013 WWE)
Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (16/02/2013 LPN)
Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (29/03/2013 DSCW)
Shinsuke Nakamura Vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. (07/04/2013 NJPW)
Dean Allmark & Leon Shah Vs Robbie Dynamite & Rampage Brown (10/04/2013 ASW:UK)
Namajague Vs Rey Cometa (26/04/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas, Stuka Jr. & Valiente Vs Fuego, Vangellys & Virus (14/06/2013 CMLL)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Sami Zayn (12/06/2013 WWE NXT)
Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite (22/02/2013 ASW)
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) Vs Karl Anderson (10/02/2013 NJPW)
Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox Vs The Inner-City Machine Guns (22/03/2013 PWG)
Rampage Brown Vs Dean Allmark (16/03/2013 ASW)
Shingo Vs Ricochet (25/05/2013 2013 Dragon Gate)
Vordell Walker Vs Mike Cruz (04/05/2013 SCGW)
Yuji Nagata Vs Minoru Suzuki (05/01/2013 NJPW)
Yuji Nagata & Hirooki Goto Vs Kazushi Sakuraba & Katsuyori Shibata (07/04/2013 NJPW)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Kofi Kingston (01/05/2013 WWE)
Green Ant Vs Eddie Kingston (09/02/2013 Chikara)
Kyle Matthews Vs Anthony Henry (24/08/2013 LPW)
La Sombra Vs Shinsuke Nakamura (31/05/2013 CMLL)
Archibald Peck Vs Mark Angelosetti (09/02/2013 Chikara)
Masato Tanaka Vs Tomohiro Ishii (03/02/2013 NJPW)



Spoiler: relegated matches



Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra Vs Mr. Aguila, Psicosis II and Volador Jr. (02/02/2013 CMLL)




All matches are ranked IN ORDER.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

*Big Show (c) vs Alberto Del Rio, Last Man Standing, Smackdown (1/11/13)*

Man, I thought this was a legit great match and this is coming from someone terribly apathetic to recent WWE LMS matches. Unlike a lot of WWE LMS matches, this felt fresher and a more creative/unique approach went into the story and there wasn't an abundance of overly elaborate spots but instead a more thoughtful and smart layout building to the bigger and more impactful moments in the match wonderfully. Show was great as the monster heel. Controlled the pace suitably with a more sadistic and methodical toying of Del Rio and he emoted and sold all the big Del Rio hope spots in a really great manner that it made him look beatable without sacrificing his dominance and still making Del Rio feel like a genuine underdog. LOVED how he sold the arm work throughout especially after spots where he had to use every part of his body, such as the spear through the barricade. It came off as a hinderance which could be exploited and the fact Del Rio targeted it with the steel steps shots was such a smart payoff to the injury angle.

Del Rio himself put in a really stellar performance and impressed me far more than he ever did working heel. Loved how he was made to be a more vicious yet resilient and intelligent wrestler using any opening he could to usurp Show's dominance as evidenced by the great transition into the armbar in the ropes after Show initially blocked the armbar. He bumped and sold well throughout, always appearing in discomfort and in agony even when he was on offence and the way he overcame the KO blow by rolling onto his feet on the floor was such a brilliant spot to show his toughness without compromising Show's finisher. Ricardo was great in between all the big spots, serving as a great manager showing concern for his friend and aiding Del Rio's growing sympathy appeal. Show also had some tremendous facial expressions as the match wore on and especially after Del Rio's escape from the KO punch. Finishing run was sublime with Del Rio selling the struggle in lifting and using the steel steps progressively more and more with each blow, the shoulder he used earlier to contain Show was the focus of the attacks and the build to Show collapsing and Del Rio scrambling to push the table on top of him was marvellous. Smartly structured, great build and pacing to the bigger spots, two great performances from both men and a genuinly enjoyable finish and post match celebration. Everything a LMS match should be.


----------



## Obfuscation

I wished I thought the same about that LMS match. Only thing I liked was Big Show's work, but it was coupled with a non-believable & ABRUPT comeback by Del Rio that I washed my hands with it and was done. It's decent at best, but Show worked hard with it. I like Del Rio - plenty as a face too - only I can't say I was engrossed by his comeback or enthusiasm to make me care. Partially b/c I went in expecting a non-finish and I got a random World Championship change.

Simply put, it wasn't for me. Which I almost hate to say as a guy who loves to appreciate work from Big Show.


----------



## darkclaudio

TNA Genesis 2013:

-TNA World Tag Team Championship Match: Chavo Guerrero & Hernandez (c) vs Matt Morgan & Joey Ryan **1/4
-Mr Anderson vs Samoa Joe **
-Christian York vs Kenny King **1/4
-X-Division Championship Match: Rob Van Dam (c) vs Christian York *1/2
-Devon vs Joseph Park **1/4
-Gauntlet Match: Miss Tessmacher vs Gail Kim vs ODB vs Mickie James vs Velvet Sky *1/4
-Christopher Daniels vs James Storm **3/4
-Sting vs D.O.C *1/4
-TNA World Heavyweight Championship - Triple Threat Elimination Match: Jeff Hardy (c) vs Bobby Roode vs Austin Aries ***1/4


----------



## EmbassyForever

TNA Genesis 2013:

Bobby Roode vs Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy - ***3/4+

Really great stuff. I approve Hardy as champion, gotta admit that he's damn good since BFG.


----------



## darkclaudio

BJW 2/01

-BJW World Strong Heavyweight Championship Match: Yoshihito Sasaki (c) vs Manabu Soya **3/4
-BJW Tag Team Championship Match: Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto (c) vs Tommy End & Michael Dante ***1/4
-BJW Deathmatch Heavyweight Championship Match: Abdullah Kobayashi (c) vs Shuji Ishikawa **1/2


----------



## DOPA

*Titan vs Polvora CMLL World Welterweight Championship 1.01.13*

I must be the only person on this forum that cannot see what is so great about this match. I really did not like this match much whatsoever and had a number of problems with it. First of all the first two quick falls added literally nothing to the match and felt like complete filler as the rest of the match bared no resemblance to the beginning 6-8 mins whatsoever. The beginning mat work and one upping by both men was pretty good to start with but once again felt absolutely meaningless on the grand scale of things and ultimately led to nowhere. There was literally no story behind this match whatsoever which doesn't have to be a huge problem for me as I enjoyed the fuck out of Ibushi/Devitt/Ki and that didn't have much of a story behind it either but at least that match had a little bit of in ring psychology to it, was exciting and felt like a wrestling match. This match however didn't have any of that for me. The middle section of this match bored me to tears and dragged on and on, the spots didn't feel like they had any meaning behind them and that they were thrown out there for the sake of it. Despite this I could have enjoyed this but there was one massive glaring issue I have; the biggest complaint with this match is more so than even most lucha libre matches I've seen this match felt so contrived and planned. It did not feel like two men having a staged wrestling competition to see who was the better man. It felt like a dance routine and you could tell that certain spots were so obviously planned that I could not get sucked into this match whatsoever (the headscissors from the back from the top rope to the floor is a big example of what I'm talking about because it was obvious). I could not suspend belief for a single second because all I could think about is how staged and fake this match felt and as a wrestling fan that feels so strange to say but its exactly how I felt. I could not feel excited in this match whatsoever till the final few mins which despite still having the problems I've been describing still was a good final few mins to the match when both men kicked it up a gear. But even then because of how much the match seemed to drag the ending for me seemed to have come too short and felt anti-climatic. I think another massive problem that has caused this is the performance of the referee. I swear every person who watches this match will start to appreciate the role of the referee in wrestling about ten times more than they did previously because this referee sucked the life and the drama out of this match with his consistently super slow counting. It felt like the match was never going to end and you couldn't for a second believe when a cover was made that one of the wrestlers was going to win. It took so much away from the match and stopped any chance of me getting invested into the match or any of the wrestlers. It was so painful to watch.

To give this match some positives: aside from a couple of botches both wrestlers did have clean performances and looked smooth in the ring. And both definitely worked hard to make the match as good as they possibly could but this did absolutely nothing for me. For a minute I questioned whether lucha libre was the problem for me and that I simply didn't like the style. But then even with my inexperience of watching it, surely I've seen better lucha matches than this.

****


----------



## Srdjan99

Well if you're not familiar with the lucha style, it won't seem like a good match to you


----------



## Rah

Srdjan99 said:


> Well if you're not familiar with the lucha style, it won't seem like a good match to you


I don't like the wording of that comment.

I'll be the first to admit that my knowledge on Lucha is not the greatest but I wouldn't say I'm not familiar with the style. Far from it actually. This is what was posted on Segunda Caida's blog about the match:


> Not really my kind of lucha, as this was pretty much just young guys throwing out all of there spots. Still this was a singles match which got some time, and some of the spots were pretty crazy. All the second caida stuff around the ramp was nuts, as was Titan's tope to Polvora's back. CMLL is going have this kind of match and this isn't a bad version of it.


While both Segunda and myself don't go to Crusade's length in hating it, you cannot for one second question Segunda's own knowledge on the sport. That's just ludicrous.

As for *Crusade*'s personal take on the _style_, that is a different story and perhaps will not be changed. Like any style of wrestling, Lucha has its protractors and detractors. Some will love it and others will criticise it for being "too co-operative". Those type of people will say they cannot suspend their disbelief long-enough to enjoy those bouts. Yet, in a real fight, how legitimate is any wrestling move actually? We've just grown-up to prefer a certain style (most probably American/standard) and its hardwiring within our belief-structure makes it harder to accept more blatantly fake performances. Even though, ultimately, it's all still pseudo-realism (just at different degrees).

I'm actually curious as to how both of you felt about wrestling when you realised it was scripted. Perhaps that might shed some light on this, because it did for me. I couldn't accept the sport at all, my passion had almost died. I had to "relearn" my love for wrestling, but in doing so I learnt to enjoy much more to it. It was no longer just about the drama, knowing it was fake enabled me to appreciate the work-rate and psychology behind the matches. Something I'm almost sure no one not "in the know" will be able to appreciate. 

And this sense of renewal was something I had to do (admittedly, in varying degrees) for new styles not that close to the WWE product - especially so for Lucha. At a surface reading, I'd guess Crusade to be more at home with MMA/shoot-wrestling or Puroresu (those seemingly are the two styles accustomed to people with those critiques on Lucha) and if he cannot get used to Lucha (which would require understanding _why the referee counts slowly_ and the CMLL three-fall booking style [which I will say is lazy and something beginning to get stale in early 2010] amongst other things) then perhaps, for his own sake, it shouldn't be pursued but the door for criticism should always be open as this is a forum. It's ultimately like deathmatch wrestling (to use a more black/white benchmark). You're either going to love it (and praise it accordingly) or not "get it" and lambaste it with a lower rating.

*TL;DR* I agree that, perhaps, Crusade "doesn't get it" (for lack of a much better term) but that:
A) Isn't a bad thing
B) _Doesn't mean the match was that great, because it wasn't_.

I went on a bit of a tangent there...


----------



## DOPA

Rah said:


> I'm actually curious as to how both of you felt about wrestling when you realised it was scripted. Perhaps that might shed some light on this, because it did for me. I couldn't accept the sport at all, my passion had almost died. I had to "relearn" my love for wrestling, but in doing so I learnt to enjoy much more to it. It was no longer just about the drama, knowing it was fake enabled me to appreciate the work-rate and psychology behind the matches. Something I'm almost sure no one not "in the know" will be able to appreciate.


The previous post is a wrong assumption. I don't claim to be really knowledgable but I am familiar with Lucha Libre. The match in question just did absolutely nothing for me.

But to answer your question: It didn't really effect my enjoyment whatsoever. Though I did take a break from watching wrestling completely from 2005 to the middle of 2011. I didn't really appreciate everything that went behind what goes into a wrestling show, the matches, the feuds, the storylines, the promos etc. until I got back into wrestling in 2011. So I guess you can say my love for wrestling never really died away despite taking a break from it.

By the way I do actually like the three booking system which I think is quite a different way of booking matches. I don't think it was used as well as it could have been in that though. I don't think I'll ever like the ref counting if in CMLL the ref counting is like that *every single match.*


----------



## Obfuscation

If you didn't like that match, then you'll HATE the vast majority within the rest of current Lucha. I can see not digging that match while not being too vastly knowledgeable/familiar with some Lucha goodness -> IE not expecting the short falls to start for one example. I think I was into it b/c it wasn't a steaming pile of crap. _(which I personally think a lot is, sadly)_


----------



## mk92071

International Jr. Heavyweight Title and NWA World Jr. Heavyweight Title: Takuya Sugawara (c) vs Ikuto Hidaka (1/1)
This was a great little match. About 13 minutes I think. I really enjoyed the way that they made Hidaka's kicks look deadly and how they built up the Brainbuster as an automatic finish if he could hit it. The counters were great and the consistent drama around the brainbuster was there in the second half of the match. My qualms are the early on leg work that was really just filler, and the kickout at 1 by Hidaka down the stretch. Sugawara has a nasty finisher. ***3/4
Link: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xwqe61_takuya-sugawara-c-vs-ikuto-hidaka-zero1_sport#.UPY_TndTGuJ


----------



## Obfuscation

Watched. Very meh.

All I really have to say on it. Fun enough to kill some time, but that's about it.


----------



## obby

darkclaudio said:


> TNA Genesis 2013:
> 
> -TNA World Tag Team Championship Match: Chavo Guerrero & Hernandez (c) vs Matt Morgan & Joey Ryan **1/4
> -Mr Anderson vs Samoa Joe **
> -Christian York vs Kenny King **1/4
> -X-Division Championship Match: Rob Van Dam (c) vs Christian York *1/2
> -Devon vs Joseph Park **1/4
> -Gauntlet Match: Miss Tessmacher vs Gail Kim vs ODB vs Mickie James vs Velvet Sky *1/4
> -Christopher Daniels vs James Storm **3/4
> -Sting vs D.O.C *1/4
> -TNA World Heavyweight Championship - Triple Threat Elimination Match: Jeff Hardy (c) vs Bobby Roode vs Austin Aries ***1/4


both of York's matches from that PPV were *

Sting vs DOC was a DUD


----------



## Obfuscation

Nearly everything on Genesis was a DUD.


----------



## obby

Yeah scratch that, York vs Van Dam was zero stars too.

How can you rank one guy taunting another guy on the ground for four minutes *1/2/**** as a wrestling match? It's just a bad promo.


----------



## Obfuscation

b/c of the story it tried to convey about York almost winning with the odds against him. the roll up near fall owned b/c of how close it was, but the match was pretty poorly done sadly. didn't help when they botched the set up on the ropes either.


----------



## Chismo

Sting/DOC was decent. **1/2 with ease. And why are we talking about Genesis in the MOTYC thread? Smh...


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm more blown away by your thoughts on the match quite frankly. It's no different than what made Cena/Dolph on the first RAW of the year terrible. Shit booking that resulted in a burial type finish. Fuck that type of shit.

Cena vs Dolph was actually a MUCH better match too when taking out the crap booking to only add to the irony.


----------



## Chismo

Sting/DOC was solid. MY OPINION IS BETTER.


----------



## Obfuscation

Not on this day. wens


----------



## Chismo

Hailsabin said:


> Not on this day. wens


----------



## Obfuscation

:kane


----------



## sharkboy22

Man fuck that Tanahashi/Okada from WK. Maybe I expected way too much going in but the match just didn't live up to expectations. I couldn't get into it at all. I started off great then it quickly just turned into a steaming pile of shit. The limb work was nothing but filler. There was no long-term consequences for either guy's limb work and I know this may seem like rare complaint, but the match was just too back and forth my taste. 

Maybe I was expecting Tanahashi/Suzuki level of greatness going in but this match just isn't good imo. I mean it has its moments, in particularly Okada awesomeness at selling but for every great Okada selling moment or just working like a boss, we had Tanahashi not giving a fuck and flying over ropes 20 minutes into the match as if nothing ever happened. 

★★


----------



## darkclaudio

Zero-1 1/01

-International Jr. Heavyweight Championship & NWA World Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Takuya Sugawara (c) vs Ikuto Hidaka ***
-Shinjiro Otani & Masato Tanaka vs Daisuke Sekimoto & James Raideen ***3/4


----------



## flag sabbath

Hmmmm.... didn't think Otani & Tanaka vs Sekimoto & Raideen was close to that level. The crowd was tepid & Raideen was piss poor, selling nothing.


----------



## Nervosa

sharkboy22 said:


> Man fuck that Tanahashi/Okada from WK. Maybe I expected way too much going in but the match just didn't live up to expectations. I couldn't get into it at all. I started off great then it quickly just turned into a steaming pile of shit. The limb work was nothing but filler. There was no long-term consequences for either guy's limb work and I know this may seem like rare complaint, but the match was just too back and forth my taste.
> 
> Maybe I was expecting Tanahashi/Suzuki level of greatness going in but this match just isn't good imo. I mean it has its moments, in particularly Okada awesomeness at selling but for every great Okada selling moment or just working like a boss, we had Tanahashi not giving a fuck and flying over ropes 20 minutes into the match as if nothing ever happened.
> 
> ★★


I didn't dislike the match as much as you, but I am glad other people are seeing my complaints.


----------



## Obfuscation

Don't see the negatives to Tanahashi vs Okada at all. It's such a polarizing match. It's interesting to say the least.


----------



## Cactus

flag sabbath said:


> Hmmmm.... didn't think Otani & Tanaka vs Sekimoto & Raideen was close to that level. The crowd was tepid & Raideen was piss poor, selling nothing.


I wasn't too high on it either. The first portion of the match is filled with uninteresting matwork and forgettable strike exchanges. The match takes a while to get going and it's basically the Otani show. The Tanaka/Sekimoto interactions were fun but felt more for the live crowd and I can't say it added much to the match. Decent match overall.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

sharkboy22 said:


> Man fuck that Tanahashi/Okada from WK. Maybe I expected way too much going in but the match just didn't live up to expectations. I couldn't get into it at all. I started off great then it quickly just turned into a steaming pile of shit. The limb work was nothing but filler. There was no long-term consequences for either guy's limb work and I know this may seem like rare complaint, but the match was just too back and forth my taste.
> 
> Maybe I was expecting Tanahashi/Suzuki level of greatness going in but this match just isn't good imo. I mean it has its moments, in particularly Okada awesomeness at selling but for every great Okada selling moment or just working like a boss, we had Tanahashi not giving a fuck and flying over ropes 20 minutes into the match as if nothing ever happened.
> 
> ★★


oh aight then


----------



## KingKicks

*NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7*

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (IWGP Intercontinental Title) *****¼*
_Loved every bit of this. Tremendous mat-work as expected, stiff as hell and a hot crowd to boot._

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (IWGP Title) ******
_Amazingly this was the first time I have ever seen Okada wrestle (due to being out of the loop with Puro the last year) and bloody hell, he was fucking great. Everything he did was fantastic especially his work on Tanahashi's neck...which if sold better would have lead to me going higher. Great match no doubt but damn it, I was almost shouting at my TV for Tanahashi to sell his neck more._


----------



## Scavo

Thus far:

*****1/2* for Tanahashi-Okada WK7
****** for MiSu-Nagata WK7
***3/4 for Sakuraba/Nakamura WK7
***1/2+ for Aries-Hardy-Roode Genesis
***1/2 for Low Ki-Devitt-Ibushi WK7
***1/2 for Storm vs. Daniels Genesis


----------



## Noah Mark

2013 Pequeno Reyes del Aire-CMLL 1/6/13****1/4. People were raving about the Titan/Polvora match. I thought this was better. Lots of great flying by the minis.


----------



## Rah

Wait, that wasn't an airing of the 2012 match? I thought it was and skipped it.

FUCK.


----------



## Obfuscation

High flying minis match? Oh joy!


----------



## seancarleton77

Del Rio vs. Show ***3/4
Cena vs. Ziggler (from RAW last Monday) ***1/2
Sakuraba Kazushi vs. Nakamura Shinsuke (WK 7) *****
Suzuki vs. Nagata (WK7) ****1/4


----------



## Srdjan99

Wow was Cena/ Ziggler from the past Monday that good? I have watched it live, but it didnt seem to be as good as Show/Del Rio


----------



## Scavo

Srdjan99 said:


> Wow was Cena/ Ziggler from the past Monday that good?


Yeah, it was pretty good.... For a *DUD*.


----------



## Saint Dick

Cena/Ziggler was a joke of a match. Eve v Kaitlyn was worked better.


----------



## Cactus

Saint Dick said:


> Cena/Ziggler was a joke of a match. Eve v Kaitlyn was worked better.


That's sadly true. The Cena/Ziggler cage match was a total clusterfuck and I never once was tricked into thinking Ziggler had a chance. I like Ziggler, but when he's busted out his entire arsenal out on the bigger main eventers in regular TV matches, it's hard to feel like they have a chance at beating any of them clean.


----------



## NO!

Sure the match was booked poorly, but as a match on it's own I had fun watching Ziggler vs. Cena. Especially for a free match on television.


----------



## Saint Dick

I didn't. Absolutely zero long term selling, not much short term selling either. Couldn't take it seriously. One of the worst examples of Super Cena in recent years.


----------



## Cactus

NO! said:


> Sure the match was booked poorly, but as a match on it's own I had fun watching Ziggler vs. Cena. Especially for a free match on television.


I usually wouldn't complain about getting a free TV match featuring two elite workers, but they've done it so many times in the last two months I find it hard to care and they really are running out of ideas how to keep it fresh. In 6 weeks, we've had 4 Cena vs Ziggler single matches.


----------



## Cactus

NO! said:


> Sure the match was booked poorly, but as a match on it's own I had fun watching Ziggler vs. Cena. Especially for a free match on television.


I usually wouldn't complain about getting a free TV match featuring two elite workers, but they've done it so many times in the last two months I find it hard to care and they really are running out of ideas how to keep it fresh. In 6 weeks, we've had 4 Cena vs Ziggler single matches.


----------



## EmbassyForever

PWG DDT4 2013 Preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uImu2kiSzjk


----------



## Flux

EmbassyForever said:


> PWG DDT4 2013 Preview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uImu2kiSzjk


:mark: :mark: :mark:


----------



## geraldinhio

FluxCapacitor said:


> :mark: :mark: :mark:


I second this post.

I should of went unspoiled but it's almost damn impossible.


----------



## Obfuscation

I didn't even attempt to avoid spoilers for PWG. WAY too hard when I'm online having to wait for months on end. I know I'd stumble upon it sooner or later. Can't wait for that to drop.

Oh and yeah, don't bother with the Cena vs Dolph cage match. Strip away the awful booking and it's VERRRRRRY decent at best. I stretch decent for that claim too.


----------



## topper1

seancarleton77 said:


> Sakuraba Kazushi vs. Nakamura Shinsuke (WK 7) *****


I'm sorry but lol


----------



## darkclaudio

AJPW 2/01

-Keiji Muto, Kaz Hayashi & Masanochu Fuchi vs Minoru Suzuki, Taiyo Kea & MAZADA ***1/4
-AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship Match: Manabu Soya & Takao Omori (c) vs Masakatsu Funaki & Masayuki Kono ***1/2
-GHC Jr Heavyweight Championship - AJPW Jr Heavyweight Championship Match: Shuji Kondo (c) vs Hiroshi Yamato (c) ***1/2


----------



## flag sabbath

Pretty much agree with darkclaudio's AJPW ratings (ie. nothing mentioned is a MOTYC). This on the other hand....

*Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 3/1/13):* Great dynamic between these four with uber-vet Kanemoto doing his utmost to protect injured underdog Tanaka from the beastly Kondo & ruthless Hayashi. Loads of slick exchanges & a barrage of dramatic near falls had Korakuen bubbling ******

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xw...z-hayashi-shuji-kondo-ajpw_sport#.UQATuifF-So


----------



## DOPA

GHC Jr Heavyweight Championship - AJPW Jr Heavyweight Championship Match: Shuji Kondo (c) vs Hiroshi Yamato (c): *** 3/4

Really good match. Gotta watch the rest of the AJPW Shining Series shows.


----------



## darkclaudio

AJPW 3/01

-Keiji Muto, Masakatsu Funaki, Taiyo Kea, Masanobu Fuchi & TAKA Michinoku vs Suwama, Takao Omori, Manabu Soya, Ryota Hama & Hiroshi Yamato ***1/4
-AJPW All Asia Tag Team Championship Match: Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka (c) vs Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo ****
-AJPW Gaora TV Championship Match: Seiya Sanada (c) vs Tomoaki Honma ***1/4


----------



## Concrete

*Mike Cruz vs. Vordell Walker-Vintage Wrestling(1/19/13):***3/4*
_This was the powerful Vordell Walker versus the tinier Mike Cruz. Watched a few matches of Vordell in 2012 and I enjoyed the heck out of those primarily his matches with 2 Cold Scorpio and Jon Davis, throw in Cruz which I've heard some good things about and I was thoroughly intrigued when this popped up on my YouTube page. It was with reason. They both play their roles to a tee here. Vordell throws Cruz around like a rag doll and it’s awesome. Cruz is for the majority of the match finding himself getting destroyed but when he finds an opening he goes for Vordell’s leg with loud kicks and it’s great. Cruz’s short bursts of attacking the leg play a large part into the match such as when Vordell catches Cruz off a springboard, it looks like Cruz is about to be thrown in the air again but NAY Vordell’s leg gives out for a little bit so when he goes for another move Cruz is not as caught off guard and can counter it.I feel like I should say though I came out of this match liking Vordell's selling of the leg more than Cruz's attacking of it. Really liked this match. For me everything made sense which you don’t seem to get a ton of in the world and I got a solid ending to 11 minutes of action which is a real joy. _​


----------



## Obfuscation

I've had a pretty deep seeded hate for Vordell Walker since 2005. Guy sucks. I'm willing to give him one more chance. Maybe 8 years later he'll have a match I enjoy.


----------



## Concrete

Hailsabin said:


> I've had a pretty deep seeded hate for Vordell Walker since 2005. Guy sucks. I'm willing to give him one more chance. Maybe 8 years later he'll have a match I enjoy.


If you hate it then fuck you I guess  But its only 11 minutes so you're not wasting that much time if that's the case.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'll get it done later. Along with the Hayashi/Kondo vs Tanaka/Kanemoto tag, & two lucha matches posted by Rah.

Still have Main Event on tap (lol no MOTYC I know) and whenever I can find that damn link to watch ROH 1/19.


----------



## Rah

enlightenedone9 said:


> *Mike Cruz vs. Vordell Walker-Vintage Wrestling(1/19/13):***3/4*
> _This was the powerful Vordell Walker versus the tinier Mike Cruz. Watched a few matches of Vordell in 2012 and I enjoyed the heck out of those primarily his matches with 2 Cold Scorpio and Jon Davis, throw in Cruz which I've heard some good things about and I was thoroughly intrigued when this popped up on my YouTube page. It was with reason. They both play their roles to a tee here. Vordell throws Cruz around like a rag doll and it’s awesome. Cruz is for the majority of the match finding himself getting destroyed but when he finds an opening he goes for Vordell’s leg with loud kicks and it’s great. Cruz’s short bursts of attacking the leg play a large part into the match such as when Vordell catches Cruz off a springboard, it looks like Cruz is about to be thrown in the air again but NAY Vordell’s leg gives out for a little bit so when he goes for another move Cruz is not as caught off guard and can counter it.*I feel like I should say though I came out of this match liking Vordell's selling of the leg more than Cruz's attacking of it*. Really liked this match. For me everything made sense which you don’t seem to get a ton of in the world and I got a solid ending to 11 minutes of action which is a real joy. _​


Because Cruz started targeting the wrong knee with his drop-kicks before being prompted by Vordell, amirite? :brees

I kid. Vordell's not particularly proficient in selling his own offence, but I stopped giving a shit once that leg came into play. His selling was pretty much perfect here, and I loved how it made this match work. I had no belief at all that Cruz stood a chance in beating Vordell (and I still don't) but the dynamic of Cruz knowing this, working in "hope" pins after even the most basic of his moves, and the piranha-like relentlessness on Vordell's knee made the outcome so believable.
*Rating:* 3.75+



Hailsabin said:


> I'll get it done later. Along with the Hayashi/Kondo vs Tanaka/Kanemoto tag, *& two lucha matches posted by Rah.*
> 
> Still have Main Event on tap (lol no MOTYC I know) and whenever I can find that damn link to watch ROH 1/19.


Quick note, I've watched them and my expectations outweighed my final thoughts. The trio-tag is a pretty fun, solid match that certainly is a good time killer but that Pequenos Del Aires is definitely proof of just how advanced AAA's minis are ahead of CMLL.

I wrote a pretty lengthy write-up but scrapped it, as I'm thinking of rewatching this match, as well as Polvora/Titan, come the end of February. I have a feeling that my lower ratings are more inherently related to myself than the matches as I've been slightly jaded by wrestling for the past few months. Cubsfan should have his recaps up by then, too, and I'll read through them to see what he particularly liked about each match, first.

Anyway, *3.75* for the *Pequeno Reyes del Aire* match is about right, for now. The dynamic between the last two wrestlers was psychologically sound and there were a few good moments, nonetheless. Pequeno Universo just should not have been in this. What a clunky performance.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm still going to give them a look for the fun of it. I've decided to make you the unofficial Lucha guy for me to keep up with it on a decent level for 2013. So chances are whatever you pimp or give notice too, I'll check out. Whenever I seem to do it, I always witness GARBAGE from AAA and don't ever want to bother with current Lucha. So...I'll let you weed out the good gems.


----------



## tbp82

Hailsabin said:


> I've had a pretty deep seeded hate for Vordell Walker since 2005. Guy sucks. I'm willing to give him one more chance. Maybe 8 years later he'll have a match I enjoy.


Good match between two solid talents there. If you don't mind me asking why do you have a deep seeded hatred for Vordell Walker?


----------



## The Rainmaker.

enlightenedone9 said:


> *Mike Cruz vs. Vordell Walker-Vintage Wrestling(1/19/13):***3/4*
> _This was the powerful Vordell Walker versus the tinier Mike Cruz. Watched a few matches of Vordell in 2012 and I enjoyed the heck out of those primarily his matches with 2 Cold Scorpio and Jon Davis, throw in Cruz which I've heard some good things about and I was thoroughly intrigued when this popped up on my YouTube page. It was with reason. They both play their roles to a tee here. Vordell throws Cruz around like a rag doll and it’s awesome. Cruz is for the majority of the match finding himself getting destroyed but when he finds an opening he goes for Vordell’s leg with loud kicks and it’s great. Cruz’s short bursts of attacking the leg play a large part into the match such as when Vordell catches Cruz off a springboard, it looks like Cruz is about to be thrown in the air again but NAY Vordell’s leg gives out for a little bit so when he goes for another move Cruz is not as caught off guard and can counter it.I feel like I should say though I came out of this match liking Vordell's selling of the leg more than Cruz's attacking of it. Really liked this match. For me everything made sense which you don’t seem to get a ton of in the world and I got a solid ending to 11 minutes of action which is a real joy. _​


Boring, slow, clunky, dead crowd. ** 1/4 at most. Sorry,


----------



## The Rainmaker.

Yeah, Vordell is every bit as bad as he was in 2005. Nothing exciting about him at all.


----------



## DOPA

(AJPW 1/3) Asia Tag Championship Match: “Junior Stars” Minoru Tanaka & Koji Kanemoto vs.“Team 246″ Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo: **** 1/4

Awesome match, great story told throughout the match, a lot of great spots and drama especially at the end of the match. I would do a full review but I'm not really in the mood for it. But definitely one of the best matches so far this year. And probably the best tag match of the year thus far.


----------



## Yeah1993

I haven't watched much, but what I saw from Vordell in 2012, he was pretty good. Not one of my favourites, not a terribly stand out guy, but I'd be willing to watch more of his stuff.


----------



## Cactus

*Vintage Wrestling 1/19/2013*

*Mike Cruz vs Vordell Walker*
Man, get Walker to the WWE ASAP. Seriously, he's a big powerhouse who's very fast on his feet and can sell very well. What's not to like about him? His opponent isn't no slough either; Cruz is just mostly here to sell the threat of Walker by bumping in an Evan Bourne-like fashion and busting out the desperation moves when necessary. Walker's the star of the show though; his selling of the leg is brilliant and I love how it stopped him from hitting the big moves during the finishing stretch. A damn fine 11 minute match. 
★★★½


----------



## Concrete

The Rainmaker said:


> Boring, slow, clunky, dead crowd. ** 1/4 at most. Sorry,


I'm sorry you didn't like it. Not every match can be everyone's cup of tee. I can't say I was expected something under *** but too each his own I suppose.


----------



## rzombie1988

Here's my list so far. It will always be updated at the link given but I'm not sure if I'll be on here to keep updating it or not.

ProWresBlog's Best of 2013:
http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-best-matches-of-2013.html

*January 2013*
Polvora vs Titan - CMLL 1/1/2013 - Rating:*****
Meiko Satomura vs Yuhi - Zero-1 1/1/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs Great Khali - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013- Rating:**1/2
Justin Gabriel vs Wade Barrett - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013 - Rating:***
Cage Match - Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe vs Ace's and 8's - TNA Impact Wrestling 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
The Uso's vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Superstars 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Davey Boy Smith Jr and Lance Archer vs Sword and Guns - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Prince Devitt vs Low-Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Katsuyori Shibata vs Togi Makabe - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada- NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Pequeno Reyes Del Aire - CMLL 1/6/2013 - Rating****
Mistico II, Mascara Dorada and Titan vs Averno, Mephisto and Ephesto - CMLL 1/8/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 1/9/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Falls Count Anywhere - Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Smackdown 1/11/2013 - Rating:****1/2
Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Genesis 1/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Cage Match - John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Natalya vs Alicia Fox - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 1/19/2013 - Rating:**3/4
Estrellita, Luna Mágica, Silueta vs Amapola, Tiffany, Zeuxis - CMLL on Televisa 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
Wade Barrett vs Sheamus - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 1/25/2013 - Rating:***


----------



## Obfuscation

tbp82 said:


> Good match between two solid talents there. If you don't mind me asking why do you have a deep seeded hatred for Vordell Walker?


Found his work to be awful. No appeal whatsoever. Everything to the nines to make me not enjoy his work. His promos about being the most underrated guy on the indie scene years ago were laughable.


----------



## Concrete

Not sure if I agree with some of the ratings but I do like the idea of breaking it down by month *rzombie1988*. Even if a match isn't a MOTYC it would be interesting to see how each company/wrestler is doing from a month to month basis. Probably would be nice to do it that way to look back at it in retrospect.


----------



## obby

rzombie1988 said:


> Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Genesis 1/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Cage Match - John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2


No way those matches were on the same level, IMO. The cage match was mediocre, and the triple threat was good.


----------



## Obfuscation

enlightenedone9 said:


> Not sure if I agree with some of the ratings but I do like the idea of breaking it down by month *rzombie1988*. Even if a match isn't a MOTYC it would be interesting to see how each company/wrestler is doing from a month to month basis. Probably would be nice to do it that way to look back at it in retrospect.


Indeed. My cut off for my MOTYC is ***1/2, but any honorable mentions deserve a plug here and there too. Luckily I've had a good hold of January right now. Only things left for me are some of the more obscure matches instead of from companies I religiously follow.


----------



## rzombie1988

obby said:


> No way those matches were on the same level, IMO. The cage match was mediocre, and the triple threat was good.


I liked both but I liked the Triple Threat more.


----------



## Concrete

I think it'd be cool if at the end of each month or the end of the year we could have Top 10s for each month as well as are Top 25s or something for the year. I think that'd highlight some matches that wouldn't be at the top of our lists maybe but are definitely worth a look. I probably cut my posts for this thread at ***3/4 but if a match was a real joy and caught you by surprise I think then a ***1/2 match would be perfectly fine to plug here in my opinion. I haven't watched a lot of stuff from this month but obviously I've got WK7 under my belt, a few indy matches that caught my eye, a disappointing BJW strong style title match, some WWE watching, and that's about it. Trying to watch a little more than I did last year.


----------



## rzombie1988

enlightenedone9 said:


> Not sure if I agree with some of the ratings but I do like the idea of breaking it down by month *rzombie1988*. Even if a match isn't a MOTYC it would be interesting to see how each company/wrestler is doing from a month to month basis. Probably would be nice to do it that way to look back at it in retrospect.


Well, we like what we like. Just different tastes and opinions. I'm not the final answer on anything, but hopefully the list helps out some people. As long as everyone is respectful, it's all good  

I think month by month is totally the way to go. Promotion by Promotion requires too much jumping around and I end up getting lost in those lists. The final list (if I make it to the end of the year) is going to be ugly though. I can totally see 300+ matches on it.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm working in both lists of month by month and promotion by promotion. As well as the overall run of top MOTYC in general. Best way to slice it among the cream of the crop imo and the fun matches worth a mention, even if they weren't one of the "best overall matches of the year" sort of deal.

Like Joseph Park vs Devon Hughes from Genesis. I loved it. Is it the best of the year? Certainly not. Ranks up at ***1/2 for me, however I'd be hard pressed to say it isn't one of my favorite already just due to shear enjoyment.


----------



## darkclaudio

January 2013:

*****1/4*
IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 4/01
******
AJPW All Asia Tag Team Championship Match: Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka (c) vs Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo - AJPW 3/01
****3/4*
IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW 4/01
****1/2*
GHC Jr Heavyweight Championship - AJPW Jr Heavyweight Championship Match: Shuji Kondo (c) vs Hiroshi Yamato (c) - AJPW 2/01
Shinjiro Otani & Masato Tanaka vs Daisuke Sekimoto & James Raideen - Zero-1 1/01
AJPW Unified World Tag Team Championship Match: Manabu Soya & Takao Omori (c) vs Masakatsu Funaki & Masayuki Kono - AJPW 2/01
****1/4*
TNA World Heavyweight Championship - Triple Threat Elimination Match: Jeff Hardy (c) vs Bobby Roode vs Austin Aries - TNA 13/01
Keiji Muto, Masakatsu Funaki, Taiyo Kea, Masanobu Fuchi & TAKA Michinoku vs Suwama, Takao Omori, Manabu Soya, Ryota Hama & Hiroshi Yamato - AJPW 3/01
BJW Tag Team Championship Match: Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto (c) vs Tommy End & Michael Dante - BJW 2/01
IWGP Jr Heavyweight Championship Match: Prince Devitt (c) vs Low Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW 4/01
Keiji Muto, Kaz Hayashi & Masanochu Fuchi vs Minoru Suzuki, Taiyo Kea & MAZADA - AJPW 2/01
AJPW Gaora TV Championship Match: Seiya Sanada (c) vs Tomoaki Honma - AJPW 3/01
Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW 4/01
*****
Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 4/01
Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima vs Keiji Muto & Shinjiro Otani - NJPW 4/01


----------



## Obfuscation

Watched Walker vs Cruz - not for me. Walker still comes off as bad and I can't ever get emotionally invested in his work. Got a kick out of him losing though. So, I guess that made the 11 minutes worth something.


----------



## Last Chancery

AAW Chaos Theory: Heritage Tournament First Round -- ACH vs. Prince Ali

This was not a very good show from AAW, though the effort certainly was there. Unfortunately, much of the talent was not. Irish Airborne, the tag champs involved in the evening's most broadcasted match (they don the poster), no-showed due to snow in Ohio. Sami, who's usually involved in at least a semi-main event, wasn't there either. Colt, another recent company mainstay, left out as well. So somebody had to shine, and it just happened to be a much-talked-about, highly touted, rarely seen local. While ACH was crisp in this 16-minute bout, Prince Ali was a bit crisper. I've never seen Ali before, either; my friend, who once took a training seminar with him several years back, says Ali took several years off and is now making his return. I still didn't know what to believe, so I let my eyes do the watching. And what I witnessed was a truly great matchup, perhaps not in technical showcase, but in character dynamic, and star-making performance.

ACH is already a known name in AAW, but Prince Ali? Some have heard of him, others, like myself, not so much. I can't find much of him on Google, and though he's from Chicago, same as me, I've personally never heard of him. Maybe it's time I should. He does a lot of flippy shit, I will say that, but it's calculated in a manner so that he doesn't look sloppy or rushed in doing it. And it's strange to see him doing so many high-flying moves, what, being an extreme heel and all. Of all the bad guys, Ali worked the crowd the hardest -- even once screaming at a young boy to get himself heat. And it worked. Ali was over as a heel, and ACH picked up the position of beloved, sympathy-grabbing babyface. For every boo-hiss taunt sent the crowd's way by Ali, ACH responded with a clap or a pop-inducing taunt of his own.

The pacing was a little slow, but there were some big spots spaced well throughout. Ali is a madman. There are at least two humongous bumps to the wood floor he took that need to be seen to be believed. And to top it off, he does a reverse 450? That's pretty damn cool. I'm not trying to homer for the guy, either, I'm a huge ACH mark. But something about these two, and this match, had people talking after it happened. Perhaps it was because so much of the rest of the card was disappointing, or missing, but this match easily earns a ****+ from me. Hot crowd throughout, and a clear character dynamic between the two men make that rating a no-brainer.


----------



## seabs

*Ali looked a good prospect a few years ago. Only ever really saw him in spotty matches but he looked good and crisp in them. Always stoked for a pimped ACH match.*


----------



## Concrete

darkclaudio said:


> Best Match of CZW Ascension:
> 
> -CZW Wire Championship Match: AR Fox (c) vs tHURTeen **1/2


In this case you don't need to post that here. If it was at least a star higher than more justifiable but a **1/2 match that hasn't been brought up by anyone or a match people had high hopes for doesn't really belong here. You don't need to least the best match on every show you watch if the match isn't any good. You probably don't know this thus I thought I'd tell you.


----------



## seabs

*Yeah in all seriousness all these posts for average matches just clog this thread up and the strong recommendations are more likely to be lost in the shuffle. *


----------



## Punkhead

The Pequeno Reyes del Aire from CMLL 01/06/13 was a great match. I'd give it ***3/4 or ****.


----------



## Srdjan99

Silas Young vs Adam Page from last night's ROH. It was a fun match, i'll give it a ***1/2


----------



## Nervosa

CM Punk worked an absolute miracle with a clearly exhausted Rock and horrible booking to haul 'The great one' all the way to ***1/2 stars. Seeing rock actually work a limb for the first time in his career was a nice change, but then of course he ignored the rib work and ruined it. 

rumble was awful. Jericho was the only worthwhile thing in it. How boring the WWE is now that Punk isn't champion.


----------



## Ali Dia

Don't think anything was worth ***1/2.

Rock/Punk at best was decent at worst poor. Limb work meant nothing. Just a painfully unexciting match.


----------



## antoniomare007

Hate to be that guy, but shouldn't all those reviews go in the Official DVD/Match/Show Discussion Thread? It's not like any match at the Rumble was a MOTYC...anyway, I guess my point is moot because I have nothing to add to this thread


----------



## Chismo

This thread needs a serious overhaul. SEABS, I'm looking at you!


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah, nothing from Rumble was even past **1/2. Not worth listing in this thread.


----------



## Chismo

Also, after every Raw and SmackDown you have jabronies coming in here to pimp some high quality ** matches.


----------



## Obfuscation

Indeed. Merely save it for the specific discussion threads to talk about the weekly matches that weren't too special, if not fun for the time given. Not so much in here.

Thread title here is pretty clear.


----------



## Chismo

And as Saebs has mentioned, some really good/great matches get lost in the shuffle then.


----------



## Obfuscation

True true. You'd think after his post yesterday _(or two days ago? fuck it)_ it would have died down. Guess not.


----------



## flag sabbath

Snowflakes-wise, the general rule of thumb around here used to be recommendations of ***3/4+, the obvious exception being when you thought something had been overrated by another poster. 

And that's not me being elitist or prescriptivist - like others have already mentioned, I don't come here to find out about a bunch of ** & *** matches.


----------



## Kiz

motyc thread

rate ** matches.

the fuck


----------



## Obfuscation

flag sabbath said:


> Snowflakes-wise, the general rule of thumb around here used to be recommendations of ***3/4+, the obvious exception being when you thought something had been overrated by another poster.
> 
> And that's not me being elitist or prescriptivist - like others have already mentioned, I don't come here to find out about a bunch of ** & *** matches.


I've made my cut-off ***1/2. Agreed, nonetheless.


----------



## Ali Dia

JoeRulz said:


> Also, after every Raw and SmackDown you have jabronies coming in here to pimp some high quality ** matches.


I don't think anything annoys me more than this in this thread.


----------



## topper1

HayleySabin said:


> I've made my cut-off ***1/2. Agreed, nonetheless.


I think even that is to low this is a MOTYC thread anything below **** is not a MOTYC.


----------



## Yeah1993

What did everyone think of Kofi Kingston v JTG from Superstars? At least *1/4 IMO.


----------



## Concrete

flag sabbath said:


> Snowflakes-wise, the general rule of thumb around here used to be recommendations of ***3/4+, the obvious exception being when you thought something had been overrated by another poster.
> 
> And that's not me being elitist or prescriptivist - like others have already mentioned, I don't come here to find out about a bunch of ** & *** matches.


This right here. Everyone should probably start following this. Every major show doesn't deserve a list of best matches if none of them were that good. I know I said the month by month rating but maybe after you've seen all of what you'll see from a month give a top 10 or something for it in a new thread.


----------



## Cactus

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xwqban_meiko-satomura-vs-yuhi-zero1_sport#.UQacbWcWlSk

*Meiko Satomura vs Yuhi (ZERO1; 2013/01/01) *
Yuhi is quickly becoming one to watch for. She is only 17 but can get me more emotionally invested into one of those super intense ankle lock spots much more than Davey Richards or Kurt Angle ever could. Yuhi plays the spunky underdog who looks to take down the crafty veteran Satomura. Both women have quite an interesting and flashy moveset which made things quite interesting despite a few awkward moments. Definitely worth a watch.
★★★½


----------



## seabs

*Ok it's getting annoying now. Especially after my last post. General rule of thumb, ***3/4 upwards or your equivalent. There's no need to just post ** for every WWE/TNA PPV match. Otherwise use the WWE/TNA/Indy/Puro DVD Threads. Normally dies out as the year goes on but let it die out now please.*


----------



## Cactus

Not sure if that's directed at me but I'd consider a ***1/2 match to be a puro MOTYC.


----------



## seabs

*It wasn't. It's at the plebs who post "**" in here unless it's a rebuttal to a match someone nominated.*


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah, I'm sticking with ***1/2, granted the general cutoff is ideal. That's where I had it, but I had to lower my expectations with recently recently so...

although a Joe Park match in that range _is_ worth seeing.


----------



## kwjr86

WWE Royal Rumble 2013
CM Punk vs. The Rock - ****


----------



## djmathers1207

I've seen a lot of mixed reviews for Punk/Rock and some are either underrating it or overrating it. I felt that the match could have been a little bit better and they should have stayed with the original ending or have Punk keep the belt cleanly.


----------



## DOPA

For me Punk/Rock might have hit *** 1/2 but its not any higher than that.


----------



## Saint Dick

I thought it sucked:

*CM Punk v The Rock - Royal Rumble (1/27/13)*
I thought this could have been great, at the very least good. It was not. Off the top of my head I can't think of a more disappointing big time main event since HHH/Orton at Wrestlemania 25. It failed on so many levels. For long stretches it's slow and boring. No idea how someone can dislike HHH/Lesnar and then appreciate the injury work and selling in this. Trips/Brock is a far better example of two guys focusing on weaknesses and selling them well, and that match also had a lot more intensity and a better finish. This was sloppy at times, the table break (not their fault I know but still) ruined what was supposed to be the biggest spot in the match, and the finishing stretch was straight up garbage. It's more understandable now that I know they're having a rematch at Elimination Chamber but still, this could have and should have been so much better. My favorite part was Punk's expressions and acting after the lights out attack. Punk sold his knee injury well as you'd expect but why did he keep going for high risk offense? And he kind of blew off the selling after the restart. Didn't think there was anyway they'd have a worse match than Rock/Cena, but they did. Bad.


----------



## Bubz

Rock/Punk was decent imo, but only because of Punk. He was brilliant for the most part, good in control, subtly selling his injury until it got fully exposed after he went high risk, great character stuff as usual etc. The guy is great. Rock is where the match failed. He was gassed out, offense looked really bad, didn't offer anything to the match at all. He still bumps like crazy which was cool to see though. But yeah, the match isn't anywhere near past the ***1/2 range, probably not even that. If I could rate it on Punk getting the best he could out of a situation it would be higher, but unfortunately it needed something from Rocky and he didn't deliver in the slightest. It was going swell until Rock got on offense and then it fell apart, and then the finishing run was terrible which obviously didn't help. A spinebuster and elbow drop and that's it? That's what ends the title reign? Jesus. Punk deserved more imo, whether that be actually winning or even just looking stronger in defeat.


----------



## dk4life

Punk vs. Rock was pretty bad...a 400+ day title run ended with the peoples elbow, and Rock looked pretty bad in this match, and made CM Punk look just as bad, really slow and boring, some limb work, that didn't really matter, a 5 minute pause that served no purpose besides to give "the great one" a rest, and I was surprised he could even stand after how gassed he looked/was...so not even close to being a MOTYC...but onto an actual MOTYC, re-watch from the Dome show.

NJPW - Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Kazushi Sakuraba - ****1/4

I loved how the preshow promo really put over how stiff Sakuraba works, well I think that's what was going on, Liger seemed pretty upset(was the promo before the previous match)...but how can you not love Nakamura, he became my fave in a few seconds.

Anyway into the match, starts off with both of them feeling each other out, until Nakamura slaps Sakuraba, and the whole match changes, the mat work was awesome, strikes were cool, I think there was a triangle choke that I didn't like because Nakamura was right next to the rope and didn't go for it, but dat knee!!!! thought Nakamura was legit knocked out, shit I think I could go on about this match for ages.

The whole event was awesome, but only consider the above match a true MOTYC, (main event just didn't pull me in) I think I might be watching alot New Japan this year, TNA haven't given anything this year, and WWE got me excited but failed to deliver with the same old shit at the rumble, didn't even bother with RAW last night because of their booking, watched the hockey instead.


----------



## Rah

Watching Punk's Best in the World DVD a day or two before Royal Rumble really put me in a sour mood watching him lose.

In the DVD you had him show how he's always been passed off as a champion who was given prestige by the belt, not someone who gave prestige to it (HHH's words, I believe). Punk commented how angry he was at the fact that he was relegated to something unworthy of his talents while The Miz ME'd Wrestlemania. That he clawed his way up every time only to be given a pat on the back or a MitB win with a lacklustre run stemming from it. Then what happens? He gets fucked again, this time so Rock/Cena can headline Wrestlemania.

Now maybe I'm being selfish (because I'm sure Cena/Rock will be a draw) but, _when it comes to who deserves it_, Punk shouldn't have been passed up yet again. And, as Bubz said, by ONE FUCKING ELBOW. What happened to The Rock that could barely catch his breath, let alone move himself back into the ring, when he said he would take the belt in a restart? One desperation spinebuster in (after Punk's signatures, I might add) and Rock's delivering the elbow like he has a still hot deep-fried Twinkie shoved up his ass. Absolutely no continuity in his selling and a slop of a performance throughout the match.

Call me disgruntled, hell, bitter-as-fuck even, but I cannot stand The Rock that's come back. On the one hand you've got Punk throwing creative promos at Rock (yes, his boxing with God line might have been cribbed but I stand by my point) and what does he get in return? Some Hollywood wannabe screaming "Snagglepuss". Rock vilified Cena for being kid-friendly and immature, but that's exactly everything that is wrong with The Rock, himself. He doesn't throw around good promos and nor does he make up for it with his wrestling. All he is is just that teenager that still giggles whenever someone says "tits" or anything remotely edgy and that's how he works his promos. The crowd eat it up because it's a knee-jerk reaction - "He said THAT on PG? Hehe!". It isn't clever, and it most certainly isn't fresh when he rehashes his insults every week. I can't help but think that we wouldn't accept it from anyone else but we do from him simply because he's The Rock. He's like the Kim Kardashian of wrestling, really. Pushed for his name and not for his (lack of) talent.

Where does that leave Punk? Relegated to some insignificant mid to upper card feud so WWE can sell their Wrestlemania and act like their product and stock value isn't falling? Maybe he'll win it from Cena later in the year when things lull over but for what point? I don't see him winning his rematch purely because of how Rock was booked here (Rock did not look believably beatable until The Shield interfered) and the fact that Cena won the Royal Rumble match and almost slipped up on Raw in saying he's facing Rock at WM instead of the champion. 

This entire angle just felt like a big fuck you to Punk. He got everyone talking about WWE after his Pipebomb Moment and now when things simmer down they'll toss him to the side, again. That's their record with him (if you're going to argue its too soon to comment). Build him up with the longest reign of the modern era then flatline it with the most anti-climactic end in recent history. But it's okay because Rocky did it. A big name excuses everything else.

I'm sorry if this is wildly off-topic but seeing that match nominated as a MotYC pisses me off. The entire PPV was just typical WWE fuckery. If I removed my emotion surrounding the match and its finish, I can't see myself giving more than ★★★, anyway. It's totally not deserving of anything remotely near the title of MotY. It wasn't even the best match on the card. While Show/ADR may not be MotYC either (and wasn't even their best encounter) it was, at least, fun to watch. Something you couldn't make me say about Punk/Rock with a gun to my head.


----------



## Saint Dick

^agreed. Del Rio/Show was the best thing on a really bad PPV, and that match wasn't even anything more than 'good'.


----------



## Ali Dia

I think Punk/Rock was **3/4 max. Lacked flow, limb work went no where, wasn't exciting before the mess at the end.


----------



## Violent By Design

I'm disappointed that CM Punk's title reign is over. But I'm not mad that it was at least taken by The Rock, in hyped match on a big PPV. The match itself was very meh, thought it was better than Rock vs Cena, but still like 3 star territory. 

I also agree with Rah on The Rock as a performer. I've always thought his promos were lame because he could never be serious or stay away from his jokes and catch phrases. Ever since he's "come back", he's become a parody of himself. When The Rock makes the crowd laugh by making cheesy jokes, using light swear words and comparing people to food products, it really highlights how low brow the entertainment really is. (snobby post of the day).

The promo about The Rock's mom having cancer and him trying to do his best Dusty Rhodes "Hard Times" impersonation before the main event on Sunday was cringe worthy. 

The feud between him and Cena was utterly terrible. I've never been so turned off to a match that I used to dream about. Two grown men insulting each other with playground insults. People arguing who got the best of each other as if it is a freestyle battle (coincidentally, people thought Cena was super awesome just because his insults would rhyme on some nights)instead of getting in heated confrontations, or even just fighting each other. 

I have to say, I really haven't enjoyed Rock's come back at all. I still look forward to seeing him wrestle since it could be a spectacle, but someone like Brock Lesnar has been a lot more entertaining in his two come back matches.


----------



## Obfuscation

Punk vs Rock got mentioned in here? Yikes. 

It was a really bad match. Rock being gassed didn't even turn me off. It was the fact you heard him call every spot in the match that made me say "fuck it". Piss poor booking & lack of anything noteworthy throughout was merely the icing on the cake.


----------



## Rah

*Rush Vs Terrible (CMLL 26/01/2013)
CMLL World Heavyweight Championship match*





Rush comes out to Pitbull's lyrics:


> I know you want me, want me. You know I want cha, want cha


And I cannot help but express that those are my exact feelings over a Rush match. As breathtakingly beautiful as the CMLL ring-girls are, they need to GTFO whenever Rush comes out so the cameraman isn't distracted by tits and ass.

Don't be perturbed by the weak shoulder blocks in the first caida, the match is as personal as it gets. This is easily my favourite feud bar Casas/Panther and it's all due to Rush. Terrible may not live up to his namesake but, comparatively, he just is not on Rush's level. Hell, who actually is? At 24, he's reached a point many won't in their entire career. It's an absolute treat to watch his cocky performances and the douchebag mannerisms he has towards his opponents. As an example, an arrogant Rush (fresh from a pinfall victory in the primera caida) double stomps the living shit out Terrible before symbolically ripping his opponent's head off, placing it in the middle of the ring, and kicking it out the stadium before mockingly saluting the crowd. FUCKING BEAUTIFUL.

Another thing that stood out here, for me, is that the falls actually got distance to them, which is a fresh breath of air from the typical CMLL booking I end up seeing. It had that Polvora/Titan feel in that the first two falls were about pinning each wrestler on the same level but as this match went on it developed into a much greater story. Terrible grew more and more desperate, slowly bringing out the heel mannerisms in the hopes of retaining his title. Rush's work here, despite being the tecnico, just elevates your sympathy for (the rudo) Terrible over that. 

Sure, Rush's Toque de Espaldas (his hammerlock into the pin during the primera caida) isn't too great here but that's the only real issue I can see in his work. Aside from that, if you aren't a fan of slow counts then you'll hate this one. But, and I stand by this, the count adds to the match dynamic. Simply contrast the final pin to the ones before it. They all either built your hopes for Terrible to kick-out or, inversely, agitated you in knowing Terrible just couldn't get the pin on Rush. Seriously, heel geriatric referees are THE BEST.

I'm not going to divulge further into this, I think it might just hurt the match as I cannot convey it accurately enough in words (nor do I wish to spoil the end, as it fits the storyline so well). I implore you to watch it, it's my Lucha MotY by a country mile.
*Rating:* 4.25+


----------



## Cactus

*CMLL 01/01/2013*

*Pólvora vs Titán*
A fantastic match based around one-upmanship. It manages to avoid the usual flaws these kind of matches usually have like the cheesy and cliche stare-off after the opening exchanges. Best moments of the match probably has to either the intense strike-off at the beginning of the second or how they made the finishing stretch of the final fall feel like a big deal. It's stuff like that makes this better than your typical back-and-forth indy spotfest.
★★★★¼


----------



## Srdjan99

Polvora vs Titan really looks as the MOTY at the moment


----------



## Bubz

Damn you all for making me want to watch even more wrestling. Especially since I dont have the time these days . I'll try to get into lucha again at some point.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

Rah said:


> *Rush Vs Terrible (CMLL 26/01/2013)
> CMLL World Heavyweight Championship match*
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Rush comes out to Pitbull's lyrics:
> 
> And I cannot help but express that those are my exact feelings over a Rush match. As breathtakingly beautiful as the CMLL ring-girls are, they need to GTFO whenever Rush comes out so the cameraman isn't distracted by tits and ass.
> 
> Don't be perturbed by the weak shoulder blocks in the first caida, the match is as personal as it gets. This is easily my favourite feud bar Casas/Panther and it's all due to Rush. Terrible may not live up to his namesake but, comparatively, he just is not on Rush's level. Hell, who actually is? At 24, he's reached a point many won't in their entire career. It's an absolute treat to watch his cocky performances and the douchebag mannerisms he has towards his opponents. As an example, an arrogant Rush (fresh from a pinfall victory in the primera caida) double stomps the living shit out Terrible before symbolically ripping his opponent's head off, placing it in the middle of the ring, and kicking it out the stadium before mockingly saluting the crowd. FUCKING BEAUTIFUL.
> 
> Another thing that stood out here, for me, is that the falls actually got distance to them, which is a fresh breath of air from the typical CMLL booking I end up seeing. It had that Polvora/Titan feel in that the first two falls were about pinning each wrestler on the same level but as this match went on it developed into a much greater story. Terrible grew more and more desperate, slowly bringing out the heel mannerisms in the hopes of retaining his title. Rush's work here, despite being the tecnico, just elevates your sympathy for (the rudo) Terrible over that.
> 
> Sure, Rush's Toque de Espaldas (his hammerlock into the pin during the primera caida) isn't too great here but that's the only real issue I can see in his work. Aside from that, if you aren't a fan of slow counts then you'll hate this one. But, and I stand by this, the count adds to the match dynamic. Simply contrast the final pin to the ones before it. They all either built your hopes for Terrible to kick-out or, inversely, agitated you in knowing Terrible just couldn't get the pin on Rush. Seriously, heel geriatric referees are THE BEST.
> 
> I'm not going to divulge further into this, I think it might just hurt the match as I cannot convey it accurately enough in words (nor do I wish to spoil the end, as it fits the storyline so well). I implore you to watch it, it's my Lucha MotY by a country mile.
> *Rating:* 4.25+


Alright, dude. Thanks for the suggestion but did you really have to write AN ENTIRE ARTICLE about one match?


----------



## bigbuxxx

Lots of people do that. I do wonder if you've ever said anything positive to anybody in your entire life after seeing the majority of your posts. You reek of bitterness. Your life must really suck.


----------



## Nervosa

What kind of moron actually disses long posts in a match analysis thread?

It's a good thing he hadn't seen my stuff from 08-10.He would have been freaking enraged. I would still post like that if I thought anyone would read it. Kudos to Rah for the writeup.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

bigbuxxx said:


> Lots of people do that. I do wonder if you've ever said anything positive to anybody in your entire life after seeing the majority of your posts. You reek of bitterness. Your life must really suck.


Yeah, it does. I must slit my wrist. Now.


----------



## The Rainmaker.

Nah, but I just hate people who overanalyze pro wrestling. Like, itt's alright if you're writing about the build up and how much the match means to you, but fucking writing about every little detail and getting legitmately frustrated about stupid shit like selling instead of enjoying pro wrestling for what it is. That takes the fun away. Sorry for disagreeing.


----------



## Concrete

Rah was talking about the match not anything that wasn't a part of the match. I'd rather read a post about the match that goes into detail than see that person that goes "Wrestler A vs. Wrestler B:****" or even just adding "awesome match. Great work done by both men" doesn't help me. The review I read was awesome.

And about that review, I saw somewhere else Rush vs. Terrible being talked about and I knew I needed to see it based on how much I enjoyed the other match of theirs I saw and to see that you thought this match was better :mark:


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah writes up a great review on a match he thoroughly enjoyed. Gets a negative response for it.

What?

Anyways...I'll watch. Lukewarm on Rush b/c I didn't care for his work in New Japan. Perhaps he was out of his element over there.


----------



## topper1

The Rainmaker said:


> Nah, but I just hate people who overanalyze pro wrestling. Like, itt's alright if you're writing about the build up and how much the match means to you, but fucking writing about every little detail and getting legitmately frustrated about stupid shit like selling instead of enjoying pro wrestling for what it is. That takes the fun away. Sorry for disagreeing.


You could just skip the write up and look at the star rating.


----------



## Cactus

*CMLL 01/26/2013*

*Rush vs Terrible*
One thing I can take from this viewing is that Rush can be pretty good, which surprised me as he's utter garbage from what I've seen from him in NJPW. He's great at playing a cocky little shithead and was just full of charisma. My main gripe of this match was the face/heel dynamic. They tried to work the match with both guys working heel and it didn't sit well with me. There were times when a wrestler would build for a comeback only to blasted with boos from the crowd and when he got that comeback, he'd start his own heelish control segment. It's all very odd to me. Both guys can work very well; their timing during some of the spots and sequences was impeccable, but I just think the face/heel dynamic was just too much to pull off. I wasn't quite as high on this as Rah. but it was overall a very enjoyable match. Oh, I also loved the whole schtick with the heel referee turning on Rush.
★★★½


----------



## Yeah1993

The Rainmaker said:


> Nah, but I just hate people who overanalyze pro wrestling. Like, itt's alright if you're writing about the build up and how much the match means to you, but fucking writing about every little detail and getting legitmately frustrated about *stupid shit like selling instead of enjoying pro wrestling for what it is*. That takes the fun away. Sorry for disagreeing.


Oh for fuck's sake. People enjoy selling. I enjoy selling. There is no reason not to and pointing fingers at someone for liking "stupid shit like" selling is way stupider than being picky about a wrestling match. I read this shit so much that I shouldn't be surprised any more, but there is almost nothing more annoying than the 'stop over-analyzing (which we aren't) wrestling and just sit back and watch it' crowd. We do sit back and watch it, we do enjoy it. We enjoy selling. Someone people don't care about selling - fine, I don't care about that; enjoy what you want, but I seriously think there is nothing more important in a match than good selling and will enjoy it and I have no fucking clue how anybody could say any of that takes the fun of wrestling away.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

The Rainmaker said:


> Nah, but I just hate people who overanalyze pro wrestling. Like, itt's alright if you're writing about the build up and how much the match means to you, but fucking writing about every little detail and getting legitmately frustrated about stupid shit like selling instead of enjoying pro wrestling for what it is. That takes the fun away. Sorry for disagreeing.


Well, then you are in the wrong thread.


----------



## DOPA

*Terrible vs Rush for the CMLL World Heavyweight Championship*

Great match here. Definitely so much better than Titan vs Polvora and I know I'm going to be in the minority with this one but that's how I honestly feel. I really enjoyed the story told overall for this match, all the falls were built up to well and made sense in context with each other unlike Titan vs Polvora where none of the falls built up to anything greater and where I felt the first two falls were not built up to at all and therefore had no greater impact building towards the third. If you want my other complaints about the Titan match just look through the thread and you'll see my review of it. This match however actually told a much larger story and benefitted from the selling by both men. I really loved how much of an arrogant douchebag Rush was towards terrible and how he dominated significant sections of the match which forced Terrible to resort to more desperate heel tactics to get the win. The jumping after the first fall and the fake kicking off the head into the crowd was especially brilliant. The big spots were built up to well and felt important in context to the whole match itself which is rare for me to feel that way these days when it comes to high flying and big aerial moves. Even though Terrible was clearly the heel as he tried holding the ropes twice and kicked Rush in the nuts you kinda felt sorry for him because of how arrogant Rush was towards him during the match. Repeatedly slapping him and ramming him into the barricade to soften up the shoulder. Whilst it didn't really work in terms of crowd reaction because inevidently both men got booed it was a story I actually quite enjoyed and felt was pretty different from what I've normally seen. The ref counts still annoyed me a little but at least I could clearly see that the ref counts were part of the story this time as the ref was biased towards Terrible who was the heel, allowing him to get away with his feet on the ropes and also fast counting his falls. Best CMLL match I've seen from this year.

******


----------



## Bubz

Yeah1993 said:


> Oh for fuck's sake. People enjoy selling. I enjoy selling. There is no reason not to and pointing fingers at someone for liking "stupid shit like" selling is way stupider than being picky about a wrestling match. I read this shit so much that I shouldn't be surprised any more, but there is almost nothing more annoying than the 'stop over-analyzing (which we aren't) wrestling and just sit back and watch it' crowd. We do sit back and watch it, we do enjoy it. We enjoy selling. Someone people don't care about selling - fine, I don't care about that; enjoy what you want, but I seriously think there is nothing more important in a match than good selling and will enjoy it and I have no fucking clue how anybody could say any of that takes the fun of wrestling away.


Yeah1993

But seriously, this saves me from typing this out pretty much exactly.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*ROH Hunt For The Gold 2013:* 

- Jimmy Jacobs vs Adam Cole: ***3/4
- American Wolves vs The Briscoes: ****


----------



## B-Boy21

The Rainmaker said:


> Nah, but I just hate people who overanalyze pro wrestling. Like, itt's alright if you're writing about the build up and how much the match means to you, but fucking writing about every little detail and getting legitmately frustrated about stupid shit like selling instead of enjoying pro wrestling for what it is. That takes the fun away. Sorry for disagreeing.





Great post. Why over think wrestling?


----------



## EmbassyForever

*ROH Defy Or Deny 2013:* 

- Briscoes and Lethal vs SCUM of Jacobs, Rhino and Corino - ***1/2
- Kyle O'Reilly vs Davey Richards - ****
- Defy Or Deny match: Kevin Steen vs Eddie Edwards vs Roderick Strong vs Michael Elgin - ****1/4-****1/2


----------



## Bubz

B-Boy21 said:


> Great post. Why over think wrestling?


It isn't over-thinking it.


----------



## Yeah1993

How ironic that all of this 'you're over-thinking wrestling' talk is just people over-thinking what the accused 'over-thinking' are thinking.

Makes sense somewhere, I'm sure.


----------



## seabs

*Well you're all over thinking if it because he's banned.

:bigirimana*


----------



## Obfuscation

Seabs said:


> *Well you're all over thinking if it because he's banned.
> 
> :bigirimana*


(Y)

Things will be less asinine now.


----------



## Scavo

*Kurt Angle vs. Mr. Anderson* - IMPACT in the UK: Steel Cage Match

Really awesome match, plenty of entertaining counters and back and forth stuff. Not on the level of their epic Lockdown 2010 encounter of course, but this is my early TNA TV MOTY thus far. 

****1/2*


----------



## Obfuscation

That match was so bad.


----------



## duttanized

AJ Styles vs Austin Aries will be the first ever *******, and yes I know their ROH match way back when wasn't that good but there were a fair amount of issues before they even got in the ring.


----------



## DOPA

Adam Cole vs Jimmy Jacobs (ROH The Hunt for Gold): *** 3/4


----------



## Ali Dia

duttanized said:


> AJ Styles vs Austin Aries will be the first ever *******, and yes I know their ROH match way back when wasn't that good but there were a fair amount of issues before they even got in the ring.


I almost don't want this match to happen again because I know it will be a let down.


----------



## Flux

So we go from *** matches to matches that haven't even happened yet? Sigh.

*ROH Hunt For The Gold 2013*
Adam Cole vs. Jimmy Jacobs - ****


----------



## duttanized

R.Scorpio said:


> I'm almost don't want this match to happen again because I know it will be a let down.


Same, especially since there last one was ***3/4 for me. Expected way more, but then I heard something along the lines of Styles calling it a day with ROH and Aries being injured. Both of them are more than capable of putting on ***** matches given the right time and TNA's done a good job keeping them away from each other for the most part so it could be something fresh. I was hoping AJ would win the BFG Series and we'd see Styles-Aries for the title at BFG.


----------



## obby

no doubt in my mind that Styles - Aries will likely be the (North American at least) match of the year when(if?) it happens.


----------



## Obfuscation

*ROH The Hunt For Gold - 1/18​*
*Proving Ground Match*
Jimmy Jacobs vs Adam Cole ~ ***3/4​
~ Woah. A really really good match on this show? It's about time. YES at this. I was excited the moment Cole vs Jacobs was signed and I was equally excited the moment it finished. Loved it. Loved the competitive nature behind the match. That was the story - pure competition. Even with a member of S.C.U.M. involved. All 3 on commentary _(Corino being the third - he was hilarious per usual)_ plugged how Jimmy was on the backburner in a singles capacity for about a year in ROH and how this match he was proving how he can jump right back in the scene with the best of them. _(tbhayley, he IS one of the best currently employeed by the company. I'd say next to Cole & Steen, that is the top 3. Easily)_ Cole was his usual awesome self. That man can seemingly do no wrong. His consistent string of good - great matches rolls on here. If ROH put these guys in the ring every few shows I won't complain. In fact I'm wanting Delirious to do so right now. Best of 7 series it asap. This was fun. A lot of fun. It could hold up as my favorite match from ROH in 2013 at this rate. If you like SUPERKICKS, you'll like the finish.


----------



## Bubz

If Aries vs styles is good it'll be purely down to Aries. Styles hasn't impressed in a singles mmatch that didn't have a gimmick attached for ages.

Also, good to see seabs using his godly powers.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Bubz said:


> If Aries vs styles is good it'll be purely down to Aries. Styles hasn't impressed in a singles mmatch that didn't have a gimmick attached for ages.
> 
> Also, good to see seabs using his godly powers.


His matches with Roode, Angle, Daniels and Storm were all great


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah, match vs Roode last year was. His best match in years.


----------



## Chismo

Bubz said:


> If Aries vs styles is good *it'll be purely down to Aries*. Styles hasn't impressed in a singles mmatch that didn't have a gimmick attached for ages.
> 
> Also, good to see seabs using his godly powers.


Ugh, let's not get carried away. 

Did people even watch Styles in 2012?


----------



## Bubz

Alright, maybe I exagerated slightly, but nothing I've seen from Styles for a few years has done anything for me bar the Bully/Daniels LMS matches. Just sayin'. Just a bit silly that people are probably already overrating the match before it's happened.


----------



## Obfuscation

Who's to say Styles vs Aries will even happen this year


----------



## obby

It's likely TNA will make the dream match for the TNA Title at Bound For Glory


----------



## topper1

obby said:


> no doubt in my mind that Styles - Aries will likely be the (North American at least) match of the year when(if?) it happens.


Really cause it sucked ass at This Means War 

It's also just wishful thinking on your part that it will be booked as the ME of the biggest show of the year for them.


----------



## USAUSA1

Styles vs Aries is a dream match? Lmao, I rather see Jarrett vs Aries, that would be a better match


----------



## Bubz

HayleySabin said:


> Who's to say Styles vs Aries will even happen this year


I assumed it was already booked or something. Haven't watched TNA this year tbhaley.


----------



## flag sabbath

They'll get three-and-a-half minutes on Impact - can we move on please?


----------



## Obfuscation

Bubz said:


> I assumed it was already booked or something. Haven't watched TNA this year tbhaley.


Styles hasn't even been on an Impact this year. So the delusion here is :lmao


----------



## djmathers1207

Raw

CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho ***3/4-****

Early Raw MOTY for 2013

Honorable mention
Daniel Bryan vs. Rey Mysterio ***1/2-***1/4


----------



## Last Chancery

I'd give Punk/Jericho an easy ****, really solid for a TV match. Just wish that commercial didn't cut through the middle of it, or it would've gotten an extra halfie.

"Oh, first I'm overrated? Sit down, marks!"


----------



## Obfuscation

It was pretty good for the time given. Nothing I'd put in the mix here, but since it was given praise I thought I'd concur on putting it over as a good match. DANIELSON.

You know what match kind of deserves to be here? *Team Hell No vs Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara from Smackdown 2/1/13*. I'm going to give it another go around for some fun, but it stuck out at around ***1/2 back on Friday. Really, really swell tag work done by all. Even Sin Cara was used well enough during it. Thankfully.


----------



## Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

Punker/Jericho is MOTY so far.

#2 Sheamus/Ziggles from Main Event 
#3 Ryback/Punker

It's a shame because i was hoping to see Rock/Punk at the top but that was awful.


----------



## Obfuscation

*Top WWE MOTYC for 2013*_ (so far)_

1) CM Punk vs Ryback ~ ***1/2 _(1/7)_

2) CM Punk vs Chris Jericho ~ ***1/2 _(2/4)_

3) Team Hell No vs Rey Mysterio & Sin Cara ~ ***1/2 _(2/1)_

4) Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler ~ ***1/2 _(1/9)_​
That's the end of the cutoff for my listings. Sheamus vs Sandow tables match deserves a plug b/c it's really quite good. _(***1/4)_ but that's more of a mention in general to see a fun match like Danielson/Mysterio from RAW last night.


----------



## Cactus

I wish I could echo the love for Jericho/Punk because I'm a big Punk fan and Jericho's alright at times but I could only see myself giving it *** on a good day. Personally, I found Punk to come off as really sloppy in that match and just made some of the sequences look terrible, especially during the transition to the Anaconda Vice. The dead crowd didn't help matters either.

Current WWE MOTY has the be the first Show/Del Rio LMS. I also expect Del Rio to my WOTY come December. He's just too good as a face. It makes you wonder why he was a heel in the first place.


----------



## darkclaudio

ROH The Hunt for Gold 2013:

ROH TV World Championship Match: Adam Cole (c) vs Jimmy Jacobs ***3/4
ROH World Tag Team Championship Match: The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) (c) vs American Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) ***3/4


----------



## Obfuscation

Man, I really didn't see the appeal of the first LMS match between Show & Del Rio. I know some did, but it just came off pretty meh for the majority. If Show wasn't his bossy self I doubt I would have cared.

Del Rio as a face is good. I like his incorporation of new moves and his more flashy style, but I loathe WWE for making me want to punch him when he talks now. Having to do that awful minority pandering. Oh, WWE and their way of making people dislike their faces. It's quite amazing. Not all of them of course, but some.


----------



## Bubz

Only we match I've seen this year that I'd consider for this thread would be that del Rio/show match tbh. Didn't see sheamus/ziggler though.


----------



## Obfuscation

*CMLL 1/25/13​*

Máscara Dorada, La Sombra, & Titán vs Psicosis, Mr. Águila, & Volador Jr. ~ ****​

~ OH what fun this was. Maybe I got caught up in the bossy second & eventual third falls of the match thanks to the epic Technicos, but I really dug this. Even with Volador Jr still sucking it rocked. Titan continues to impress me. I've seen a few matches from him this year and he's left both smelling like a rose. I look forward to his career during this year and years after. It didn't hurt knowing I was familiar with everyone involved here. Aguila still looks to be in great shape and was performing on a high level. In fact most in the match were incredibly crisp when the action came on. The first fall's slow phase was so unusual and you can tell these guys (or most in the whole of Lucha) are much more comfortable when the volume is turned up. Some of the transitions in the start did look a bit lazy. Nothing major only it was a process of building as the match rolled on. Boy did it ever when the segunda caida commenced. Rudos took the opening fall, so the techicos were behind the 8 ball early. What better way to isolate them by having Dorada get LAUNCHED OVER THE TOP ROPE ONTO THE RAMP WAY IN WHAT LEGIT LOOKED LIKE 10 FEET. Brilliant bump. Dorada man. Dorada. Rudo beat down wasn't pretty until they decided to do some triple team efforts. Techicos get a jump on the rudos finally after DORADA leaps over the top rope into the prettiest transition of a hurricanrana ever. I was marking so much. Pulse pounding pace all throughout now. Sombra pins Volador following a double jump quebrada. More legit action. Third fall begins and it's about 6 minutes of non-stop action till it ends. I loved the dynamic here and it's prevalent more often than not of the rudos working the slower pace and busting out the flashy moves here and there, while the technicos got all of their offense when they were able to pick up the pace and land some truly beautiful moves. Including the INCREDIBLY orgasmic timed double plancha + moonsault to the outside - IN FREAKIN STEREO. Finish would could when Titan tries to get fancy with his glorious handstand offense. He would be crushed by both Psicosis & Aguila. Dorada attempts a save only to land on his fallen comrade. In comes a candian destroyer by Aguila & a package powerbomb by Psicosis and that's all she wrote. That was a rush of pure FUN.


----------



## DOPA

Considering I hated Titan vs Polvora but loved Rush vs Terrible, would I like that CMLL match HayleySabin?


----------



## Obfuscation

I'll go out on a limb and say it is well worth your time. I gave it a second watch and bumped it up to ****. So my personal enjoyment of it is _very_ high.

The work by Dorada must be seen.


----------



## Concrete

I REALLY disliked that first fall but the 2nd and 3rd fall were awesome. I had a little trouble rating it because of it but settled on ***3/4. Might write up a little review at some point.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's why I pointed out how the first fall was used to build up to the raucous end of the match. It was based as a feeling out process and a way for the Rudos to establish their dominance once the second fall began. I had no major complaints on the grand scope of the match. Most times the first falls are usually a over in a flash as it is.


----------



## DOPA

*Takeshi Morishima (c) vs KENTA (NOAH 1/27)*

Not a match filled with big spots (although there are a few) but this was a great match with fantastic psychology and storytelling throughout. This told a great story with KENTA trying to overcome the size and strength of Morishima by using his quickness, strikes and also grounding him with submissions. Morishimas offense was smart as not only he used his size and strength to ground and over power KENTA but also had bursts of quickness which caught KENTA off guard. The work on the back of KENTA was the selling point of the match which KENTA sold beautifully throughout. This match had a good structure with the feeling out process between both men, Morishima taking control working on the back using heel like tactics such as slamming KENTA on the concrete and choking him under the bottom rope. KENTA had some flurries of comebacks that were believable, going back to what was working with the strikes and the submission hold to the head with Morishima cutting him off on each corner. KENTA working underneath in this match was a joy to watch. KENTA finally saw an opening and took advantage. That jumping foot stomp to the outside was crazy and it was a long way from the top rope to get to Morishima. Match picked up with KENTA increasing to a blistering pace to try and put Morishima. The teases of the game over and especially the go to sleep were done well with KENTA still selling the back not being able to lift Morishima up and also not wearing Morishima enough to put the game over on. The head kicks to soften up the head of Morishima were beautiful and brutal. The dips near the end of the match by Morishima were perfectly timed and got the crowd even more behind KENTA than they already were. The finish was excellent and really exciting with Morishima trying to destroy KENTA with a series of back suplexes before KENTA finally caught him off guard countering into the game over which forced the submission. Ended on a really high note and was played out beautifully.

KENTA botched one of the DDT's on the outside and the first GTS was not very clean but it doesn't taken much away from a great title match here. 

******

*Máscara Dorada, La Sombra, & Titán vs Psicosis, Mr. Águila, & Volador Jr. (CMLL 2/2)*

Thankfully this was definitely worth watching. I really enjoyed the slower first fall. The sequences were crisp and there was a definite feeling out process/one upmanship psychology behind it. The first fall ending was absolutely devastating and was built in beautifully to the second with the Psicosis's team isolating their opponents triple teaming them to get the advantage whilst the other two were on the outside recuperating. Excellent divide and conquer feel to it. The first guy (I'm only familiar with Titan and Psicosis unfortunately) took such a sick bump being hip tossed over the top rope on to the stage. Fucking awesome looking bump. The second guy came in and again Psicosis's team isolated him and took advantage of the situation. Really good storytelling up until this point. Then they take advantage until Titan's team begin the comeback. Some fancy aerial moves before the guy who took the huge outside bump comes back and does the sickest hurricanrana leaping over the top rope. Sick spot. Whoever that is, Dorada or Sombra, that guy has won me over as a fan already. This leads into a conclusive second fall before going into a blistering pace for the third. I will say that I feel as though that the second fall could have benefitted from better selling overall by all six men. Especially the guy who took the huge bump as he was back in only a matter of a minute flying around. The match from here was insanely fast, a lot of big spots. The double plancha/springboard moonsault to the outside spot was absolutely perfect. Amazing. By this point they seem to have lost me with the amount of spots but brought it back with Titan doing his fancy walking on hands thing which works the first time but he gets caught out the second time which leads to the third fall. They thankfully brought back in some substance and psychology near the end before completely losing me. It didn't make the third fall that less fun to watch. Some absolutely awesome moments for sure.

I reckon as I said this match could have benefitted from a bit more selling + it did get into a bit of a spotfest towards the end. A few of the spots were a bit too contrived and staged for my liking but at least the ref counts were good this time. I don't rate it as high as Mr. HayleySabin but it was still a very good match. FUN.

**** 1/2 - *** 3/4*


----------



## Obfuscation

Forgot I need to check out that NOAH match. I'll be heartbroken come the finish, but it's something I'm willing to see.

While I did like the first fall of the match for what it was, that's the part that felt the most contrived for me. The transitions when made to look like a slow pace can look very choreographed. Luckily they panned away from that stuff in no time and the rest of it was a total blast.


----------



## Cactus

Can't say I'm as high on the CMLL trios match as Cody. It's a fun spotfest and nothing more. I thought that the ending goes way too over-the-top for my tastes.


----------



## Obfuscation

Somehow I knew I'd be a mark for all of the zaniness more than others. 

btw, did you ever see the Hell No vs Mysterio/Cara match, Cactus?


----------



## DOPA

My favourite fall was definitely the second in that match, it was done beautifully overall. The first was good opener to set the stage and build into the second which was done well and the third was what was really. No need to go over that. I can see what you mean by the first fall tbh Hayley but it didn't feel as contrived and staged as a lot of the titan/polvora match (I know we'll disagree on that, it is what it is).

NOAH title match is definitely worth watching even if you didn't like the result. Morishima is made to look like a beast and only really lost because KENTA caught him off guard at the end.


----------



## Obfuscation

Crusade said:


> My favourite fall was definitely the second in that match, it was done beautifully overall. The first was good opener to set the stage and build into the second which was done well and the third was what was really. No need to go over that. I can see what you mean by the first fall tbh Hayley but it didn't feel as contrived and staged as a lot of the titan/polvora match (I know we'll disagree on that, it is what it is).
> 
> NOAH title match is definitely worth watching even if you didn't like the result. Morishima is made to look like a beast and only really lost because KENTA caught him off guard at the end.


Second fall could be argued as the one with the most traditional substance. First was feeling out/early advantage for rudos. Second was rudos control segments/technico blitzkrieg comeback. Third was the balls to the wall final stretch by both. (Y)

I'll give it a go. You download it or find it via a streaming site?

I'll keep my fingers crossed b/c the last match I watched with them from 2007 rocked so hard. It was a hell of a sub-10 minute match. I'll hope for a tiny bit of that to come across here. It's all how KENTA performs for me. I like him, but redundant has a bit of re-occurrence for him in some matches. I know some could say "all" of his matches. If Shima is his normal beast like self, I should have a fun time watching at least.


----------



## DOPA

Its on youtube on ProWrestlingAARK's channel.


----------



## Obfuscation

(Y)


----------



## Chismo

I refuse to watch anything from NOAH in 2013, because:

- of the way they're handling the Kobashi situation
- Akiyama & Co. left that cesspit
- it has turned into a KENTAfuji circle jerk ass munching clan
- it has a shitty roster
- it's a matter of principle

I'm just gonna watch TAKAYAMA's matches, because he's my favorite Puro 'rassler. Has TAK/Marufuji hit the webz yet?


----------



## Obfuscation

You notice how Morishima got none of the negatives there?

Yeah, I'm watching for that cat.


----------



## Cactus

HayleySabin said:


> Somehow I knew I'd be a mark for all of the zaniness more than others.
> 
> btw, did you ever see the Hell No vs Mysterio/Cara match, Cactus?


Can't say I got around to that match yet, but I will definitely try to watch it tonight. I did see ADR/Ziggler from the same show and that's worth a watch.


----------



## DOPA

I still really like KENTA but maybe it's because I haven't followed too much NOAH recently.


----------



## Cactus

So yeah. Mysterio/Cara vs Team Hell No was pretty fun stuff. Not a MOTYC in any sense but it's refreshing to see WWE put out a good tag match every now and then. Both teams being faces really helped the match. If we got more matches like this on TV, then I may actually give a shit about the tag division.


----------



## DOPA

Shuji Kondo (c) vs Taiji Ishimori (NOAH 1/27): ****

Loved this match and this is the 3rd match featuring Kondo so far this year that is worth a mention. He's had a very good start to the year.

Naomichi Marufuji & Takashi Sugiura (c) vs Maybach Taniguchi & Yoshihiro Takayama (NOAH 1/27): *** 1/2


----------



## Bubz

Think I'll check out these NOAH matches next tbh.


----------



## Bruce L

Crusade said:


> Shuji Kondo (c) vs Taiji Ishimori (NOAH 1/27): ****
> 
> Loved this match and this is the 3rd match featuring Kondo so far this year that is worth a mention. He's had a very good start to the year.
> 
> Naomichi Marufuji & Takashi Sugiura (c) vs Maybach Taniguchi & Yoshihiro Takayama (NOAH 1/27): *** 1/2


Happy to hear on both counts. I'll be checking out both of these soon.


----------



## EmbassyForever

TAKAYAMA :mark:


----------



## higgins4131

My top matches from January 2013 so far: (In-Order)

4.25 Stars:
Nakamura vs. Sakuraba - NJPW - IWGP Intercontinental Championship - 1/4
Tanahashi vs. Okada - NJPW - IWGP Heavyweight Championship - 1/4

4 Stars:
Kanemaru & Tanaka vs. Kondo & Hayashi - AJPW - All Asia Tag Championship - 1/3
Devitt vs. Low-Ki vs. Ibushi - NJPW - IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship - 1/4
Suzuki vs. Nagata - NJPW - 1/4


Morishima vs. KENTA from 1/27 was good but not a MOTY. Probably 3.5-3.75 stars.
I enjoyed Rush vs. Terrible but I wouldn't call it a MOTY either. Same with the Titan vs. Polvora. I'd rate them both around 3.5 stars. 

I still need to watch Kondo vs. Ishimori & Marufuji/Sugiura vs. Takayama/Taniguchi from NOAH's 1/27 show because I've heard good things about those matches.

Nothing from the States should be mentioned in this thread so far.


----------



## Rah

*Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra Vs Mr. Aguila, Psicosis II and Volador Jr.*
*CMLL 02/02/2013*





It's quite interesting that those who favoured Polvora/Titan disliked this match while those who didn't preferred this. It had good pacing (sensible booking), spectacular dives, Mije being tossed like a ragdoll and DORADA! When it comes to trio-tags in CMLL this is the kind of match I love watching.

I'm not going to go into length on this (I'm tired from a long birthday involving the debauchery of university ) but rzombie1988 had a nice write-up on his blog that I'll quote verbatim.


Spoiler: rzombie1988's review



1st fall - Mr Aguila is wearing the most ridiculous face paint I've ever seen. He's like half-giraffe today. Sombra did a huge moonsault to enter the ring after the match started. Sombra tried to do the stopping thing and Volador just went through him. The faces hit double splashes and Aguila did a flipping tope while Volador did a swinging Canadian Destroyer to get the first fall for the rudos. Pretty fast and exciting finish.

2nd fall - La Sombra was holding his neck in-between falls which I hope is just selling. He and his crew were all down as the 2nd began. Masacara Dorada took a nasty hiptoss onto the stage where he bounced quite high. The rudos then did a really cool T-Gimmick-like move where Volador came in-between and flipped Titan over from under. Doarada hit an awesome over the top roe hurricarana from the stage. The technicos then did dives with a huge moonsault from Dorada. Sombra did Kota Ibushi's fake moonsault into a moonsault move for the win. Heck of a fall here with some awesome dives. The timing was awesome here.

3rd Fall - Volador took off his shirt to a loud pop and both him and Titan did cartwheel rebounds into the ropes then backflips before Volador hit a superkick. Dorada hit a high missile dropkick then did a jump over the top and springboard off the 2nd middle rope. He then took a Jerry Bump all the way to the floor. Titan did an awesome limbo escape on a clothesline and Volador took a rough fall to the outside. The faces did a triple dive which was freaking awesome with a Titan moonsault in the middle. God this match is awesome. Titan did his handstand escape into a moonsault and head scissors then ate a grea high spin kick before a Dorada sling blade. Mije came in to kick Sombra before getting tossed. and Volador kicked Sombra through the ropes before hitting a moonsault to the floor. titan did an armdrag and another handstand before the heels dropkicked him. Dorada came in and dove on his partner on accident before getting hit with a canadian destroyer and a Psicosis powerbomb on Titan for the win.

This match was awesome. Super sick dives, some stiff moves and a great pace. This is the kind of lucha libre I love! Rating:****



I must admit that this had me rethink my comments on Leono/Tiger Blanco Vs Bobby Zavala/Disturbio. I still think it wasn't as memorable as I'd have hoped an apuestas to be (or perhaps that feeling is rather due to only looking for and downloading great matches) but, on a rewatch, it falls just shy of a _Lucha_ MotYC. That said, I wouldn't go too much higher here but, suffice to say, I think this will make my end of year list. Though it probably will not be as memorable as say Rush/Terrible come December.

*Rating:* 4-


----------



## rzombie1988

This is where I am at now. Look, I have some non-MOTYC's here but does it really hurt anything? I apologize if it really offends someone on here but I think it does more good than harm.

ProWresBlog's Best of 2013:
http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-best-matches-of-2013.html

*January 2013*
_*Polvora vs Titan - CMLL 1/1/2013 - Rating:***** - Best Match of January 2013*_
Meiko Satomura vs Yuhi - Zero-1 1/1/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Shuji Kondo vs Hiroshi Yamato - AJPW 1/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs Great Khali - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013- Rating:**1/2
Justin Gabriel vs Wade Barrett - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013 - Rating:***
Cage Match - Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe vs Ace's and 8's - TNA Impact Wrestling 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
The Uso's vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Superstars 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Davey Boy Smith Jr and Lance Archer vs Sword and Guns - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Prince Devitt vs Low-Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Katsuyori Shibata vs Togi Makabe - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada- NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Pequeno Reyes Del Aire - CMLL 1/6/2013 - Rating****
Mistico II, Mascara Dorada and Titan vs Averno, Mephisto and Ephesto - CMLL 1/8/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 1/9/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Falls Count Anywhere - Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Smackdown 1/11/2013 - Rating:****1/2
TLC - Apolo vs El Mesias Ricky Banderas - WWC 1/13/2013 - Rating:***
Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Genesis 1/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Cage Match - John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Natalya vs Alicia Fox - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 1/19/2013 - Rating:**3/4
Estrellita, Luna Mágica, Silueta vs Amapola, Tiffany, Zeuxis - CMLL on Televisa 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
Wade Barrett vs Sheamus - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 1/25/2013 - Rating:***
Adam Page vs Silas Young - ROH TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Torneo Cibernetico - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
Rush vs Terrible - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Last Man Standing - The Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 Rating:***1/2
The Rock vs CM Punk - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 - Rating:***
Marco Corleone, Titan and Valiente vs Averno, Dragon Rojo Jr. and ***** Casas - CMLL Guadalajara TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
_*January Wrestler of the Month - Titan (CMLL)*_

*February 2012*
Team Hell No vs Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 2/1/2013 - Rating:***
Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra vs Volador Jr., Mr. Aguila and Psicosis II - CMLL on Galavision 2/2/2013 - Rating:****
Tag Team Gauntlet - ROH TV 2/2/2012 - Rating:***1/4
Volador Jr. vs Rey Escorpion - CMLL on CadenaTres 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Guerrero Maya Jr., Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Namajague - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Savio Vega vs Ray Fenix - WWC TV 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Polvora vs Valiente - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Diamante, Máscara Dorada, Super Porky vs Ephesto, Misterioso Jr., Puma - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Daniel Bryan vs Rey Mysterio - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
CM Punk vs Chris Jericho - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***

I still have to watch the Tanaka/Kanemoto vs Kondo/Hayashi tag, the new STARDOM show, some of the NJPW/CMLL stuff and Kenta/Morishima, but there's only so many hours in the day.


----------



## Obfuscation

Cactus said:


> So yeah. Mysterio/Cara vs Team Hell No was pretty fun stuff. Not a MOTYC in any sense but it's refreshing to see WWE put out a good tag match every now and then. Both teams being faces really helped the match. If we got more matches like this on TV, then I may actually give a shit about the tag division.


(Y)

Match was kind of a blessing after all of the shite Usos tag matches I've had to stomach this year.



Crusade said:


> Shuji Kondo (c) vs Taiji Ishimori (NOAH 1/27): ****
> 
> Loved this match and this is the 3rd match featuring Kondo so far this year that is worth a mention. He's had a very good start to the year.
> 
> Naomichi Marufuji & Takashi Sugiura (c) vs Maybach Taniguchi & Yoshihiro Takayama (NOAH 1/27): *** 1/2


ISHIMORI.

Might as well plug away at the majority of the NOAH show by the looks of it.

Still need to watch the Pequeno Reyes Del Aire match tonight too. Seems like outside of WWE Main Event my plate is going to be filled with some Lucha/Puro goodness.


----------



## Yeah1993

rzombie1988 said:


> This is where I am at now. Look, I have some non-MOTYC's here but does it really hurt anything? I apologize if it really offends someone on here but I think it does more good than harm.


You're posting an enormous list with tons of stuff you think is great. I won't speak for everyone, but I don't think adding some *** matches is doing any harm. It's just those that come in here to rate the notable matches of a PPV when not even the poster posting thought they were very good. Coming in here and giving every match from the Royal Rumble **3/4 is really the kind of thing that set it off. At the very least you called it a "best matches of 2013" and not just "mah ratings for the royal rumble".


----------



## Obfuscation

He's elaborated that he decided to do his list based off by month as it is. So, without trying to speak for him of course, it looks like he's going to play his list off of every match from 2013 he found to be noteworthy month by month rather with a specific ratings cutoff like how I or some others are doing it.

Not a bad plan even if all of the matches on it won't exactly fit under the criteria in which the thread is originally meant for. I did a little plug for Sheamus vs Sandow tables match for example. I thought it earned that for being good, despite not falling under a "MOTYC".


----------



## flag sabbath

My favourite matches of 2013 thus far:

*1) Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7)*
_- So it's not quite as good as their previous encounters & the result pissed everyone off. This is still the standard by which all other heavyweight title matches will be judged this year._*****1/4*

*2) Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 3/1)*
_- Loved this even more on second viewing. Classic edge-of-the-seat tag team action with Tanaka giving great peril._*****1/4*

*3) Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW WRestleKingdom 7)*
_- There's zero wasted movement here. Two ultra-confident, bad-ass veterans smack the tar out of each other & every little gesture, expression & exchange is loaded with significance._******

*4) Mascara Dorada, Titan & La Sombra vs. Volador Jr., Mr Aguila & Psicosis (CMLL 25/1)*
_- I haven't watched lucha regularly since the early '90s, so this was a shock to the system reminiscent of seeing the Dragon Gate guys for the first time. So much jaw-dropping speed, creativity & precision, and not entirely at the expense match structure._****3/4*

*5) Titan vs. Polvora (CMLL 1/1)*
_- Again, I had no real point of reference here, but this had a fantastic big match feel & the deciding fall was really well put together._****3/4*

*6) Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio (Last Man Standing, SmackDown 18/1)*
_- There are some things the WWE still does really well - a simple stick-&-move size mismatch, a gimmick match based around key OMG! moments, and using commentary to reinforce a story & heighten the drama._****3/4*

*7) Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (NOAH, 27/1)*
_- It's the oldest story in wrestling - Ishimori uses speed & spirit to fight for his life against the monstrous Kondo._****3/4*

*8) Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7)*
_- Mainly a spectacular blur, but with enough standout moments to elevate it out of videogame spotfest territory._****3/4*

*9) Jimmy Jacobs vs. Adam Cole (ROH Hunt For The Gold)*
_- Ten minutes in I was starting to wonder what all the fuss was about, especially with the horrendously dated commentary & criminal waste of talent that is Adam Cole as a babyface. Anyway, I should have had more faith in the perennially reliable Jacobs because this one builds & build to a cracking finish._****3/4*


----------



## DOPA

Jeff Hardy(c) vs. Austin Aries vs. Bobby Roode (TNA 1/10): **** 1/2*

Just got round to watching this, very good match with a very good story behind it. Great psychology and storytelling throughout. Some really unique spots including the whisper in the wind knocking Aries off of Roode's shoulders and the pinning combination to eliminate Roode. My only complaint is that the time between both falls were really short and it felt like the final fall was rushed to its conclusion rather than built properly. Match could have been better because of that but still a very good match overall.


----------



## Saint Dick

Seeing as this has been getting a lot of praise:

*Chris Jericho v CM Punk - Raw (2/4/13)*
I might be the only person who doesn't think this is a great match. I enjoyed it live but watching it again I don't think I'd add it to my list. Up until they started teasing finishers and going back and forth down the stretch the match was just kind of there and the crowd being SHIT didn't help it one bit. Overall it's still a good match and I liked some of the stuff they did. Thought they did a good job building to Jericho getting the Walls on Punk, and Punk being unable to lift Jericho for the GTS after being in the Walls was a neat little touch that I appreciated. Also thought Punk's counter to the Walls which led to the finish was good. It tends to look contrived at times but it didn't here. I'll probably give this another re-watch somewhere down the line to see if I like it more but for now it's in the 'good not great' category and lacking that little bit extra to make it onto my list.

1. Dolph Ziggler v Sheamus - Main Event (1/9/13)
2. CM Punk v Ryback - Raw (1/7/13)


----------



## Obfuscation

I have a feeling it won't hold up for me if I give it a rewatch. So I'll probably never do so to keep the myth alive. Yay.

Although I was highly into the match. So much considering I didn't even notice the dead fans. I usually notice that immediately and it often takes me out of the bouts.


----------



## MF83

Crowd-o-meter rating is lame. Dead crowds happen and you're only cheating yourself if you base a match's success on crowd responses.


----------



## Obfuscation

Depends with me. If the match isn't excited and the crowd is equally as droll, if not more, it kind of sucks my life to care. If the match is quality and the fans are dead, then it's more of a personal complaint but doesn't have any effect on how the match works for me. IE Generico vs Callihan 2/3 Falls. Might be the best match I've seen worked in front of 100 corpses.


----------



## billyhaha

rock vs punk **** solid match ending took away a star


----------



## EmbassyForever

*Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii - ****1/4*

WHAT A WAR :damn we need a third match

Anderson/Devitt vs Tanahashi/Taguchi from the same show was great. Around ***1/2, if the crowd was more into it the rating could've been higher, Anderson/Tanahashi will be awesome.


----------



## Srdjan99

*Dinastía & Octagoncito vs Mini Abismo ***** & Mini Charly Manson-*****

*Drago, Fénix, Octagón vs Daga, Pentagón Jr., Silver King
*- ***


----------



## flag sabbath

*Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 3/2):* http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xxdw0v_masato-tanaka-c-vs-tomohiro-ishii-njpw_sport#.URYfR6XF-Sp
_- This is the antidote to the Callihan vs. Younger bullshit in that these two actually take the time to look like they've been battered senseless. Ishii is supreme as the hard-bumping little tank who simply doesn't know when he's beaten._******

Also enjoyed Tanahashi & Taguchi vs. Anderson & Devitt, but like Embassy said the crowd knocks it down a notch. And the Okada vs. Suzuki six-man is worth a look for their ppv-hyping exchanges.


----------



## Bubz

Really liked Punk/Jericho. Those guys have great chemistry together and that was clear here. Finishing run really put the match over. Loved Jericho subtly selling his arm off the lionsault to make the Vice seem more dangerous. Submissions exchanges were cool, crowd getting into it at the end helped too. Two of the best workers in the company doing their thing, yeah, this is good. ****3/4+*


----------



## antoniomare007

*Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii - 3/2/13*

Like this was going to be anything but a good, fun brawl. Yeah's it's a Tanaka formula match and at this point his schtick is "meh", but when he has a good opponent, that formula works. Thankfully, he was wrestling Ishii and you know damn well he's gonna steal the show and have Korakuen Hall in the palm of his hand.



Spoiler: match winner



Man, if Ishii would've won this could've been a legit MOTYC. Korakuen was ready to explode and make another magical title change moment


----------



## topper1

billyhaha said:


> rock vs punk **** solid match ending took away a star


It was a 5 star match before the ending? :lol


----------



## DOPA

*Masato Tanaka (c) vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 2/3)*: ******

Wow. What a fight this was. Two bulls going at each other trying to take each others heads off with neither man refusing to give in until they had nothing left. Crowd loved it, I loved it. I think Ishii winning might have bumped my rating a little higher considering what they were building to. First reaction was *** 3/4+ but decided to bump it up to a 4. Great match. NJPW keep bringing it at the moment with these great matches.


----------



## seabs

*Masato Tanaka vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW 03.02.2012*
_Man I wish Ishii would get singles matches with good workers. Pushing my luck I guess because a Ishii singles match at this point is still a novelty but after having great matches with Goto and Tanaka (x2 btw) just imagine if he got paired with someone who's actually a good worker. Even Makabe isn't the easiest of guys to have a great match with and he managed that. Ishii's great in this and makes it absolutely everything that it is but unfortunately Tanaka is the dirt worst in every way so there's only so high Ishii can raise the level to with Tanaka working a 20+ minute Masato Tanaka formula singles match. At 10 minutes it works with his style. Double that and not so much. Strike sequences felt more forced in their placement here than in the first match. 10 minute match you can get away with going all out from the get go with strike sequences. Once again Ishii's selling made them worthwhile though. Ishii's selling made every spot of any significance worthwhile actually. If I ever see Tanaka do that table spot then it'll be too soon. Tanaka kicking out at 1 was totally pointless because he's not in the role in this match to do that spot and then it totally ruined the following spot when Ishii kicked straight out. Fucking shitbag. Picks up at the end when Ishii turns it full on and Korakuen turns it full on with him. I love how only Ishii can find a believable way of setting up his position for the sliding D's. Really good but I wouldn't say great or something I'd put on my excessive MOTYC List come the end of the year. Ishii showing why Ishii in G1 would be the greatest thing ever again though. I hope they do a 3rd match in Korakuen which goes 15 minutes and Ishii wins the belt. The belt is totally pointless but if Ishii wins then it's still Ishii with a singles belt which automatically means Ishii singles matches and greatness._


----------



## Bubz

Lol'd at you calling Tanaka a shitbag. Think I've only seen one singles performance from Tanaka that I thought was great and that was against Hashimoto in like, 2003 or something.


----------



## Yeah1993

He had two really great matches against Hash where he looked good. Thought was a neat worker in FMW in the some of the 90s I've seen, but I don't really dig Tanaka overall either.


----------



## Noah Mark

rzombie1988 said:


> This is where I am at now. Look, I have some non-MOTYC's here but does it really hurt anything? I apologize if it really offends someone on here but I think it does more good than harm.
> 
> ProWresBlog's Best of 2013:
> http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-best-matches-of-2013.html
> 
> *January 2013*
> _*Polvora vs Titan - CMLL 1/1/2013 - Rating:***** - Best Match of January 2013*_
> Meiko Satomura vs Yuhi - Zero-1 1/1/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Shuji Kondo vs Hiroshi Yamato - AJPW 1/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Antonio Cesaro vs Great Khali - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013- Rating:**1/2
> Justin Gabriel vs Wade Barrett - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013 - Rating:***
> Cage Match - Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe vs Ace's and 8's - TNA Impact Wrestling 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
> The Uso's vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Superstars 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/4
> Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
> Davey Boy Smith Jr and Lance Archer vs Sword and Guns - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
> Prince Devitt vs Low-Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Katsuyori Shibata vs Togi Makabe - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
> Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada- NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***3/4
> Pequeno Reyes Del Aire - CMLL 1/6/2013 - Rating****
> Mistico II, Mascara Dorada and Titan vs Averno, Mephisto and Ephesto - CMLL 1/8/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 1/9/2013 - Rating:***1/4
> Falls Count Anywhere - Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Smackdown 1/11/2013 - Rating:****1/2
> TLC - Apolo vs El Mesias Ricky Banderas - WWC 1/13/2013 - Rating:***
> Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Genesis 1/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Cage Match - John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Natalya vs Alicia Fox - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 1/19/2013 - Rating:**3/4
> Estrellita, Luna Mágica, Silueta vs Amapola, Tiffany, Zeuxis - CMLL on Televisa 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
> Wade Barrett vs Sheamus - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 1/25/2013 - Rating:***
> Adam Page vs Silas Young - ROH TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
> Torneo Cibernetico - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
> Rush vs Terrible - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
> Last Man Standing - The Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 Rating:***1/2
> The Rock vs CM Punk - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 - Rating:***
> Marco Corleone, Titan and Valiente vs Averno, Dragon Rojo Jr. and ***** Casas - CMLL Guadalajara TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
> _*January Wrestler of the Month - Titan (CMLL)*_
> 
> *February 2012*
> Team Hell No vs Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 2/1/2013 - Rating:***
> Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra vs Volador Jr., Mr. Aguila and Psicosis II - CMLL on Galavision 2/2/2013 - Rating:****
> Tag Team Gauntlet - ROH TV 2/2/2012 - Rating:***1/4
> Volador Jr. vs Rey Escorpion - CMLL on CadenaTres 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
> Guerrero Maya Jr., Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Namajague - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
> Savio Vega vs Ray Fenix - WWC TV 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
> Polvora vs Valiente - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
> Diamante, Máscara Dorada, Super Porky vs Ephesto, Misterioso Jr., Puma - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
> Daniel Bryan vs Rey Mysterio - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
> CM Punk vs Chris Jericho - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
> 
> I still have to watch the Tanaka/Kanemoto vs Kondo/Hayashi tag, the new STARDOM show, some of the NJPW/CMLL stuff and Kenta/Morishima, but there's only so many hours in the day.


I havent seen Kenta/Morishima show up online yet.


----------



## Noah Mark

Can anybody post the links to the Noah matches from 1/27/13 because I havent seen them show up online yet.


----------



## Saint Dick

MF83 said:


> Crowd-o-meter rating is lame. Dead crowds happen and you're only cheating yourself if you base a match's success on crowd responses.


It's not like I said oh the crowd was dead so it's not a good match, only said the crowd being shit didn't help.


----------



## Noah Mark

Nevermind my post about the Noah matches I did find them.


----------



## antoniomare007

I have no problem with Tanaka's formula as long as it's a sprint or he's working with a guy who matches up well with his style. I love his dumb ass "let's just collide against each others" matches with Daisuke and I think Ishii makes his style work too.

I agree that most of his spots just come off like generic bullshit rather than meaningful stuff though. I'm just not that bothered by them because the kind of match he had against Ishii don't suffer that much because of them.



Seabs said:


> *Masato Tanaka vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW 03.02.2012*
> _Man I wish Ishii would get singles matches with good workers. Pushing my luck I guess because a Ishii singles match at this point is still a novelty but after having great matches with Goto and Tanaka (x2 btw) just imagine if he got paired with someone who's actually a good worker. Even Makabe isn't the easiest of guys to have a great match with and he managed that. _


Fuck all that rambling Seabs. Ishii had a near classic with Wataru *fucking* Inoue. And he did it TWICE.


----------



## Obfuscation

*NJPW Road To The New Beginning 2/3​*
*NEVER Openweight Championship​*:
Masato Tanaka(c) vs Tomohiro Ishii ~ ***1/2​
War. That's all it was. For that, it was worth a watch. To be completely honest, it began to wear thin on me towards the end. I would have been just as satisfied if it ended at around 16 minutes or something. The crowd made the match for me. On account of Ishii's charisma getting them to love him tremendously the entire bout. I'm not even one of the guys on here who loathes Tanaka or anything, but his work fell flat for me during the latter half of the match. It was pretty continuous _(tbf I guess a lot of the match was since it only had one direction - flat out punishment until one couldn't go anymore)_ and didn't come off as exactly impressive. All in all it was a straightforward match and one you'll probably have a good time viewing if you like a real bang em up slugfest. A top MOTYC? Not really. It's going to be a universally liked match. Not a universally loved match, imo. NJPW might as well push Ishii as the next NEVER champ. It might not have the importance or credibility like the other singles championships have, however if Ishii will never get his chance in singles with those divisions he might as well be used to elevate the status of the new gold and get a pretty deserving run out of it. Guy is good and the crowd loves him. Seems like the right factors to push a guy. Especially when the only competition atm is Masato Tanaka & the championship can be used to try something new.


----------



## Rah

Srdjan99 said:


> *Dinastía & Octagoncito vs Mini Abismo ***** & Mini Charly Manson-*****


I didn't dig this as much as I'd have hoped. Some okay to good dives but it was neither well-produced nor spotty enough to make it truly great. The ending was such an obvious botch, too, but I'm glad Dinastía attempted to save it by acting as if his flip was more of a taunt than an attack.

Watch the minis match from last year. Three of the four guys from this match are there, and they're putting on a much better show. Still, this was almost like a house show in a way. Not critically good but it made you laugh/smile as it went along.

Rating: ★★★

________
*Masato Tanaka Vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 03/02/2013)*​
Outside of the lacklustre period that involved the table spot (and general tomfoolery out of the ring) this was a novel little match-up. Well, perhaps little wasn't quite the right wording but you get the gist. 

There really isn't much to mention as nothing truly stands out or hasn't been said before aside from the JYD headbutts. I'm really not a fan of them but I'll secede that it worked within the story and that the moments leading up to it and after it were pretty great viewing. I swear I've seen this ending a myriad of times before this but no matter. The story here has been done a myriad more times yet it still hasn't lost its charm.

Nothing strong here but I wouldn't shrug it off as something below nomination level. I can see merit in HayleySabin and Seabs not thinking akin to that but I don't believe keeping it as a low nomination does a disservice to any other MotY contenders and because of that I'll put it in my list.
*Rating:* ★★★★


----------



## djmathers1207

Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii ****1/4

Takeshi Morishima vs. KENTA ****1/2- ****1/4

They are on YouTube and Dailymotion


----------



## Srdjan99

Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler- Main Event ****

Definetely MOTM. It was almost as good as the first Del Rio/Show LMS match


----------



## EmbassyForever

Yep very good match. ***3/4+


----------



## Cactus

I prefer Ziggler/Del Rio's Smackdown match over their Main Event match by a considerable margin. The Main Event match felt like a rehashed and dragged-out version of the Smackdown but with awkward pacing. 

Ziggler's really nothing special in my opinion. He can put on good matches, but rarely has any great performances. He does nothing that makes him stick out and only really flourishes when he's with a guy that does. That's I rank guys like Del Rio, Cena, Punk, Mysterio, Bryan, Sheamus and Henry above him.


----------



## antoniomare007

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson - "New Beginning 2013"*

AN-DAH-SON! AN-DAH-SON!. This was better than I expected and although I felt Tanahashi was more SuperTana-like than usual, I still enjoyed the fuck out of those last 10 minutes. At least Tana built his comeback more slowly than he usually does. But still, the star of this match was Anderson no doubt about it. He was over when the match started and halfway in the crowd was going crazy for him and wanted a title change, badly. 

This is gonna sound weird/insane but in some ways, Tana's legwork is being used kinda like Misawa's elbow in the sense that he uses it as a way to control the pace of the match AND is his main tool when mounting a comeback. Yeah, it's not *nearly* as deadly and established as the elbow but at this point I "get" why he keeps going back to it even though it doesn't pay off in the finish.


----------



## Obfuscation

I know what is on tap for me today. :mark:


----------



## Cactus

Anyone have any idea where I can the rest of the NJPW iPPV?

EDIT: Forget it. Found it.


----------



## DOPA

Minoru Suzuki vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW 2/3): *****1/4*

Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW 2/3): *****1/2*

Some may feel I'm overrating Suzuki/Okada but I absolutely loved the story of that match and how the Suzukigun/CHAOS feud was integrated into it. Tanahashi/Anderson was just AWESOME. Better than Tanahashi/Okada in my opinion and is my second favourite match of the year so far. Another great iPPV from NJPW overall.


----------



## seabs

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson - NJPW 03.02.2012*
_Anderson's the fucking man. I don't want to say this was great ALL due to Anderson but it was A LOT due to Anderson. Tanahashi was fine but I never really felt like he added anything to the match. Fortunately this wasn't a match that he needed to a lot to though. So chuffed that Anderson made the most of his main event slot. Crowd was molten for him from start to finish. Soooooooo badly wanted him to win, both me and the crowd. Place would have erupted if he'd won. They've got a handful of guys right now that will blow the roof off if the take the title from Tanahashi soon. Nakamura, Okada, Anderson and Naito for sure. Leg work I thought was really good here for what it was because they didn't fill the middle stretch out with leg work and it felt more like a sub story of the entire match rather than the full story of part of the match that is quickly forgotten. Anderson's selling did it justice without selling too much for the work done on it and Tanahashi went too it enough without a workover for it to feel like an advantage that he could exploit given an opening. Love to see Anderson get more chances to work over 15 minutes in Japan._

*****1/4*


----------



## BKKsoulcity

Only down to give Suzuki vs. Okada ***3/4. Really felt like a build up match to something better coming compared to the epicness it could of been if it was a blow off match.


----------



## Obfuscation

*NJPW Fantastica Mania Night Two - 1/19/13*


*IWGP Intercontinental Championship*
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs La Sombra ~ ***3/4​

Forgot about this one. As if I needed another reminder why Nakamura is the greatest guy going today, they show a pre-match interview where he proceeds to refer to Sombra, or possibly every Luchador, as a "moco". For those of you who need to brush up on their Spanish, that term translates into English as "snot" or "booger". That's what the SWAG of Nakamura happens to think of Luchadores challenging him for his Championship. As for the match itself - it was good. Really good in fact. I would call this match a styles clash as much as a styles blend. The "strong style"/MMA work of Nakamura fused with the lucha goodness of Sombra worked out to give us a darn good match. Only minor complaint I had was Sombra not selling the mid-section after Nakamura did a bit of work on it. It seems my complaint was rectified as every single time Nakamura would get the upper hand to swing the momentum back into his favor, he would drive a knee right into the sore mid-section. Worked every time. So I guess the work wasn't totally forgotten by Sombra. Sombra deserves credit here. Guy looked strong. So crisp, so fluid. A moonsault to the outside from the top rope WITHOUT LOOKING. Brilliant. In delivery too. Just flawless execution. Finishing stretch was one of my favorites of the year. It culminated with Nakamura attempting the Boma Ye -> Sombra evades into a school boy only to channel Bob Backlund by holding on and lifting Nakamura into the air. Sombra wasn't finished. He proceeded the lift by falling backwards and turning the school boy deadlift into a BRIDGING PIN. Unbelievable. Literally I can't believe I saw such a thing. It was glorious. After that and a series of other flashy nearfalls, Sombra shoves down the ref in frustration. That proved to be his downfall. Nakamura grabs Sombra from behind, attempts the released belly to back suplex. Sombra lands on his feet. Nakamura charges - qubradora counter...nope. Nakamura lands on his feet. Go behind into a lungblower. Belly to back release suplex by Nakamura. Which was in turn the prelude to the Boma Ye. KNEE TO THE FACE connects. 3 count, wrap a bow and ship it out. This one is finished. Better than Tanaka/Ishii and yet I know most won't check it out. Heck, even I let it fall into the back of my mind. You can't do that. This has to be seen. The best non-Wrestle Kingdom match from NJPW so far for this year. Two Championship defenses down for Nakamura in 2013. Both completely different from the last. I hope the trend continues. He's making this Championship mean quite a bit right now.


----------



## Rah

^


----------



## Obfuscation

(Y)

I doubt anything tops Nakamura vs Sombra, yet I'm going to try and zip through the rest of Fantastica Mania come the weekend. Should be all kinds of fun.


----------



## Chismo

Downloaded all 3 FMs, gonna try to watch them this weekend. 

Btw, FMs are not just NJPW shows, they're under NJPW and CMLL banner together.


----------



## Obfuscation

In Japan, they're getting grouped with NJPW for me. Not gonna let specifics hinder things here.


----------



## EmbassyForever

TNA Impact Wrestling:

Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle - ***1/2+
Austin Aries vs Bobby Roode - ***************************************************************


----------



## Rah

Just finished watching Tanahashi/Anderson and if Seabs won't say it, I will. ANDERSON MADE THIS. His selling throughout was superb while Hashi just didn't bring anything to the table aside from the usual. I'd have hoped for more from the neck-work done by Anderson but Tanahashi would have none of it. I'll do a proper write-up once I've finished with Okada/Suzuki tomorrow but there really shouldn't be any need to sell this to anyone. Great performance from Anderson, even if the ending was awful.

~ ★★★★ 1/4



EmbassyForever said:


> TNA Impact Wrestling:
> 
> Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle - ***1/2+
> Austin Aries vs Bobby Roode - ***************************************************************


Not sure if serious.


----------



## Groovemachine

I enjoyed Tanahashi/Anderson...but it didn't feel all that special to me. I'd probably put it around the ***3/4 mark, although considering everyone else's praise, it maybe worth a re-watch. Anderson has some nice near falls, and his selling was good, but nothing ever came of it, Tanahashi didn't particularly focus all his efforts on the knee. Very solidly wrestled, but it was just lacking something, can't quite put my finger on it. Emotion? Maybe despite the nearfalls I never bought Anderson winning, and it looked like Tanahashi was just biding his time until the inevitable Super-Hashi comeback.


----------



## DOPA

*Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler (WWE 2/13): *** 1/2*

Feel this is well worth mentioning. This was another TV MOTYC featuring Del Rio this time on Main Event. Very good TV match between these two which comes highly recommended.

*Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. La Sombra (NJPW & CMLL 1/19): *** 3/4*

Absolutely loved this. The fusion of strong style and lucha in this one was superb. This just proves once again how great Nakamura is and how much of a versatile performer he can be. Sombra was also very good in this one and showed he also work strong style in portions of the match to a very respectable degree. Great story of style clashes right here. Yet another match well worth mentioning coming from NJPW.


----------



## Saint Dick

*Alberto Del Rio v Dolph Ziggler - Main Event (2/13/13)*
Really good back and forth match with a nice pace to it. Similar in style to their Smackdown match but longer and better. They busted out some dope spots and sequences, notably Del Rio charging Ziggler only for Ziggler to toss him over the top rope causing him to land face first on the steel steps and a sweet inverted superplex from ADR. Their normal offense seemed to have a little extra something to it as well (Dolph's DDT stuck out to me as being BIG) due to the athleticism and bumping of both guys. Ricardo was great as the ringside cheerleader and had a good comedy moment with Big E. Lots to enjoy about this. So yeah, strong TV match. Might be my WWE MOTY so far.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Not sure if serious.


I hope he's not calling it a MOTYC, but the Roode vs Aries match was highly entertaining. Just finished it. Angle vs Joe was bleh. Can't imagine how anyone found it to be good.

Ziggler vs Del Rio was an easy to watch match. Anything noteworthy? Hardly, imo. I'll take their sub 10 minute match from Smackdown over it.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*NJPW New Begining 2013:* 

Lance Archer and Davey Boy Smith Jr.(c) vs. Ten-Koji - ***3/4
Minoru Suzuki vs. Kazuchika Okada: ***3/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs. Karl Anderson: ****1/4

HM: Devitt/Taguchi: ***1/2+, Shibata&Sakuraba/Inoue&Goto: ***1/2,


----------



## Punkhead

JoeRulz said:


> Downloaded all 3 FMs, gonna try to watch them this weekend.
> 
> Btw, FMs are not just NJPW shows, they're under NJPW and CMLL banner together.


Just curious, where did you download them? I want to watch it too.


----------



## seancarleton77

TomasThunder619 said:


> Just curious, where did you download them? I want to watch it too.


You can buy the NJPW iPPV's on uStream.


----------



## Chismo

YouTube, there are two channels with those shows, PM me if you can't find.



seancarleton77 said:


> You can buy the NJPW PPV's on uStream.


FMs were not PPVs, they're not on ustream.


----------



## dk4life

I watched mine of youtube, here are all 3 days, hope its alright for me to post these

Fantasticamania Day 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb3QwREGSVs

Fantasticamania Day 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2mI-HcEFJo

Fantasticamania Day 3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpa_LunwFUE

I downloaded mine from youtube so got them to watch tonight


----------



## seabs

*They're on XWT in one of the January packs fyi. Probably in our media section by now too.*


----------



## DOPA

*Kevin Steen vs. Michael Elgin vs. Eddie Edwards vs. Roderick Strong (ROH 1/19): **** 1/4*

Awesome main event right here and sold the theme of the show perfectly. This match was really worked and booked smartly in a way where all four men came out looking really strong. Elgin looking like a beast with his feats of strength and having it take all three men to gang up on him to eliminate him. In fact, there was an extended story surrounding just that throughout the first portion of the match which was told really well. Roderick was made to look badass in defeat as he would not give up to the Achilles lock before Steen did a somersault leg drop causing him to pass out. He didn't tap. Finally it took Steen a low blow and two package piledrivers including one on the apron to finally pin Eddie for the win. And of course Steen survived all three men in a strong victory for the champion. Long term storyline implications with Eddie not being able to challenge for the title as long as Steen is the champion as well so this was a very very well booked match in both how the match was worked and also in making it a match that meant something. Definitely the ROH match of the year so far.


----------



## Obfuscation

Why was Strong the guy to not get the Championship shot if Eddie was the final guy in the match? As if I wasn't confused by the match concept already.


----------



## DOPA

HayleySabin said:


> Why was Strong the guy to not get the Championship shot if Eddie was the final guy in the match? As if I wasn't confused by the match concept already.


I meant Eddie, my bad. I didn't realize what I typed.


----------



## Obfuscation

Got ya.


----------



## Chismo

ROH is gay anyway.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm giving it a chance this year. 8*D

Not every promotion can be New Japan pro wrestling and pump out good matches on their "lesser" shows from K-Hall.


----------



## Chismo

But ROH can't pump out good matches on their big shows either anymore.


----------



## Obfuscation

Have to watch Defy or Deny, but I'm not expecting too much from it. If the majority ends up being DUDs like The Hunt For Gold than I might be inclined to throttle back. Idk. I got time for them atm. It's no harm done. Except to myself. :$

Cole vs Jacobs was worth it...In a sense.


----------



## seancarleton77

JoeRulz said:


> ROH is gay anyway.


Isn't that a compliment for Ring of Honor? ROH has not been interesting enough to keep my attention for 10 minutes lately. Although, I believe I have grown as a fan and as a person since I was a spot mark and an ROH/NOAH/PWG fanboy.

At this point, NJPW and WWE are putting on the majority of great matches in 2013. Not that there are a lot right now. Expect Elimination Chamber to have two or three contenders. Who knows, maybe even The Rock will show up and try this time.


----------



## Obfuscation

*NJPW 2/3/13​*
Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Kengo Mashimo, & Hiro Tonai ~ ***1/2​
The tension mounts. Oh how does that tension mounts. The x-factors here for the now established CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun program were planted in full. And very well. That's where the beauty of this 6 man came from. All of the factors that combined together such as Nakamura/Mashimo wanting to slaughter each other from the start & Suzuki/Okada teasing their eventual _(and great)_ square off. What I really loved about this was the way both major angles of the match were working on different parallels. Nakamura/Mashimo didn't hold anything back. It was a knock down drag out from the very start. Stiff strikes a plenty. Where as Suzuki & Okada were much more hesitant. Working that ol "tease" for whenever they finally would work one on one. Which only aided in the truly wonderful finishing stretch for this match. b/c Suzuki & Okada eventually decided to drop all teasing exchanges and went all out on each other for a tiny bit. The flashes of brilliance were astounding. I still can't believe how well booked this match was in terms of building towards a bigger picture. That's what made this so good. Until I see otherwise this could hold up as my favorite multiman tag from New Japan for quite awhile. Lots of good gems throughout this affair.


----------



## Bubz

*NJPW The New Beginning

Kazuchika Okada vs Minoru Suzuki*
Really liked this match but that isn't surprising, look at the two names involved. This wasn't amazing since they clearly weren't going for 'epic' here, this was to build the feud up, but it was pretty damn great anyway. Good comebacks from Okada helped this, but the real backbone of the match was MiSu's strikes being clearly superior and the real deal breaker. loved the simple but effective finishing stretch, almost felt similar to the '05 (?) Kobashi/MiSu finishing run but obviously toned down a lot and with Suzuki in the Kobashi/veteran role. Okada gradually fading and weakening due to the strikes but still trying to fight was great and could be something _really_ good if they play up on that in their eventual re-match/matches. Really enjoyed this, falls just short of being a proper MOTYC for me, but well worth everyone's time for sure. Okada fans will also mark for how fucking over he is. Proof that this guy needs to be the 'ace' someday because the crowd eat out of his hand and he comes across once again as a proper superstar. That's taking nothing away from MiSu who was also great and has another great match under his belt with this one. 
****3/4*

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson*
Thought this was great, I have quite a few problems with it, but there was enough greatness in there for this to be considered a MOTYC imo. That greatness mostly came from Anderson, but it was mentioned earlier in another review that Tana's leg work does indeed work as a way to create a weakness he can use to gain advantage of a match with when he's in trouble. I've been fine with it for ages now and I never see it as the problem with Tana's matches anymore like I used to. It's even better when the other guy sells the leg work so that it looks more effective and important when he does go for that weakness, and Anderson's selling was great. In-fact absolutely everything Anderson did was great in this match, he looked like he belonged in the main event spot for sure. Favourite part of the match was Anderson's control segment in the middle because he made everything seem important and subtly sold his leg at the same time throughout. That kick on the apron was SICK. The crowd was great in this, Anderson is so over it's crazy and it's all down to him. I was almost begging him to win here, especially after that video package before the match. He had some brilliant nearfalls and I honestly bought him winning off the second super powerbomb move he hit. But at the same time that's where my problem was. To me Tana was really bad in the finishing run, like, really terrible. He kicked out of three of Anderson's finishers, THREE! It was ridiculous and it really did feel to me like overkill, especially after the move I just mentioned. It was worse than the Okada match imo. But that wasn't enough to take that much away from everything else that came before it and a very good finishing run despite Tana deciding not to sell anything and being super-duper Tanahashi. If it had ended after the second nearfall and then had Tana's comeback it would have been fine for me. Overall it's a really great match though with a big time feel, and Anderson is absolutely superb.
*****+*


----------



## Rah

NWA World Welterweight Championship
****** Casas Vs Valiente (CMLL 11/02/2013)*
*LINK*​_I'm surprised at how this was met with luke-warm reviews from other members in the Lucha thread, as this was an excellent bout from two fine performers. Even in his mid-50s Casas continues to make a grab at worker of the year, and pushing out MotYCs whenever he's given the chance. Not to be outdone, Valiente tries eagerly to disprove this notion by out wrestling the wily vet forcing Casas to change-up his approach in this match from out-performing his opponent to continually kicking Valiente's injured knee in a bid to keep him down and maintain control.

I loved Valiente's selling, too, as he made it as believable an injury as you could possibly hope for. I loved Vordell Walker's work from earlier this year but Valiente certainly outclassed him, too. Everything had purpose and, for Valiente, symbolised hope in the adversity.

Outside of its otherwise clean execution, the botches also added to the masterpiece. Why? Because life isn't perfect. While it's true that noticeable botches hurt a match, when its worked into it, and given meaning, it can also elevate the match and this was exampilic of that. Watching the two get caught up in the ropes and changing the moment into an opportunity in which a struggle for submission ensues was but a treat to behold and shows the quality of talent here.

Don't be put off by its "simple" nature and rather focus, in detail, on every perfect moment because that's where the match rewards you._
*Rating:* ★★★★ 1/4

IWGP World Heavyweight Championship
*Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Karl Anderson (NJPW 10/02/2013)*
LINK​_My first thoughts on this was that I loved Anderson but I hated Tanahashi. Now, after a rewatch, I'm beginning to think the Tanahashi appeal has run its course. The more I seemingly watch of him, the less I find myself impressed. 

While I could get around the issues in the wrestling side to Tanahashi/Okada from WK7 due to its phenomenal story-telling, there isn't truly anything to lean on here. His going through the motions approach really hurt Anderson's moment. I do think he's a good wrestler when he wishes to be, but it was almost as if he brought to the table what he needed to keep this a credible NJPW main event without having to push the envelope in creating an epic. Which I think is quite sad, as this could have been a blowaway if this match had equal input from both men and did not end so anti-climatically.

Still, Anderson truly cemented himself here, and showed he could step up to the plate when given the bat. The crowd most certainly bought that because they were electric whenever he showed promise of pinning 'Hashi. And I suppose that is what matters, at the end of the day. A top-tier division filled with superstars that the crowd are 100% behind and fully invested in. It's just a shame that 'Hashi didn't give Anderson his best in exchange for not giving him his belt._
*Rating:* ★★★★



Oh, and returning to EmbassyForever's post


EmbassyForever said:


> TNA Impact Wrestling:
> Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle - ***1/2+
> Austin Aries vs Bobby Roode - ***************************************************************


Aries/Roode needs more STARZ. Right now they're well above Team Hell No in terms of comedic entertainment.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Man, that Tanahashi-Anderson match is getting REALLY overrated. Haven't seen their G1 bout yet but their New Japan Cup match was better and actually convinced me Anderson could win. This was just a rehash of it with Anderson busting out his entire move-set and two cool Gun Stun variations in front of a hotter crowd. The only time I thought he could've had him was the Crucifix Powerbomb because I didn't remember him busting it out and they set it up really good.



> He kicked out of three of Anderson's finishers, THREE!


Incorrect. He kicked out of ZERO finishers. Zero. The top rope Fireman's Carry Gun Stun has already been kicked out of twice at least (in the already mentioned New Japan Cup match and at Wrestle Kingdom). He's never actually beaten anyone with the Bernard Driver except.....someone in the NEVER tournament and outside of me and the people in the arena like 3 people saw that match. I have no idea what you are referring to as the third one.


----------



## Rah

If it makes it any better, I don't remember watching their previous matches so this was completely new to me.

*shrugs*


----------



## bigbuxxx

I think the Tanahashi/Anderson match was very entertaining but as far as stars go, it's just not that great. It's ***3/4 tops. This is not what I would consider a great match and a 4* match is a "great" match imo. Fun back and forth action but lack of any real control segment and Tana not really doing anything killed it for quality.


----------



## Corey

*WWE Elimination Chamber

**World Title #1 Contender's Elimination Chamber Match
*Daniel Bryan vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kane vs. Jack Swagger vs. Randy Orton vs. Mark Henry

Great, great match here. Zeb's promo for Swagger was great beforehand & the teased(then eventual) dissension between Team Hell No was a lot of fun. Bryan made the match entertaining in the early going (did you hear the pop he got??), along with Swagger's new found intensity and viciousness. Things picked up big time when Orton came in and I fucking LOVED the story of everyone being laid out while a stirring, pissed off monster named Mark Henry is waiting for that countdown clock to strike zero and CLEAN HOUSE, and that's exactly what he did. Disappointed to see Bryan go down so quickly but what the hell, it was HENRY. Everything from that point on was pure gold. Henry's dominance and eventual demise, then he re-entry to cause shit tons of damage was the best way to book it if he wasn't gonna win the whole thing. The triple threat match in the last several minutes was off the charts good. Counters for a counter into a reversal into a double team this into a nifty spot here and another one there, just a ton of fun. Finish was a HUGE surprise. Top 5 Chamber match for sure and my current Match of the Year. *****+

The Shield vs. John Cena, Ryback, & Sheamus

*If you haven't taken notice of a guy named Roman Reigns, watch this match right now. Wow, incredible intensity and SPEARS!~ Loved the formula with Shield constantly attacking Cena like a pack of wolves & cutting him off from making the tag on several occasions. The last few minutes are just batshit crazy and the finish was again a huge surprise. The Shield's being booked REALLY, REALLY strong. Great stuff. **** 3/4*


----------



## higgins4131

Jack Evans 187 said:


> *WWE Elimination Chamber
> 
> **World Title #1 Contender's Elimination Chamber Match
> *Daniel Bryan vs. Chris Jericho vs. Kane vs. Jack Swagger vs. Randy Orton vs. Mark Henry
> 
> *****+
> 
> The Shield vs. John Cena, Ryback, & Sheamus
> 
> * **** 3/4*


The best match of the night was the Chamber match and I would rate it at about ***1/2. Maybe ***3/4 because the finish surprised me. I had the 6-man tag at about ***. I'm glad The Shield won but I was a bit underwhelmed at the finish. Good steps toward Wrestlemania but the wrestling wasn't anything to consider for MOTY and nothing we will be remembering in December when we look back on the year.


----------



## Bubz

ywall2breakerj said:


> Incorrect. He kicked out of ZERO finishers. Zero. The top rope Fireman's Carry Gun Stun has already been kicked out of twice at least (in the already mentioned New Japan Cup match and at Wrestle Kingdom). He's never actually beaten anyone with the Bernard Driver except.....someone in the NEVER tournament and outside of me and the people in the arena like 3 people saw that match. I have no idea what you are referring to as the third one.


The Liger Bomb, Bernard Driver, Gun Stun and Black Tiger Bomb could all count as finishers for Anderson. Yeah the Gun Stun always gets kicked out of, but if those others don't count as his finishers (the BTB seemed like an ultimate match killing move the way he built it up), then please tell me what does?


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm far too tired to write up a mini review on it atm but I got to make this known:

*WWE Elimination Chamber 2013*

John Cena, Sheamus, & Ryback vs The Shield ~ ****​
I. LOVED. THIS. MATCH.

Chamber was fun at best. Henry was a beast and Swagger totally did it. It gets props from me, but was far, far from being anything near great. Not even close.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Bubz said:


> The Liger Bomb, Bernard Driver, Gun Stun and Black Tiger Bomb could all count as finishers for Anderson. Yeah the Gun Stun always gets kicked out of, but if those others don't count as his finishers (the BTB seemed like an ultimate match killing move the way he built it up), then please tell me what does?


The regular Gun Stun is the only move he ever wins with. Marufuji kicked out of a top rope version of his Sitout Powerbomb. Everyone kicked out of his Bernard Driver. I don't remember his using the Black Tiger Bomb before hence I actually treated it like a nearfall.


----------



## Punkhead

Hey, anybody who watches lucha, could you suggest anything for this list I am putting on at LuchaWiki?


----------



## darkclaudio

Elimination Chamber 2013:

-Elimination Chamber Match: Jack Swagger vs Randy Orton vs Chris Jericho vs Mark Henry vs Kane vs Daniel Bryan ***1/2


----------



## Rah

TomasThunder619 said:


> Hey, anybody who watches lucha, could you suggest anything for this list I am putting on at LuchaWiki?


The only noticeable exceptions I see are Rush/Terrible and Leono/Blanco Vs Zavala/Disturbio. I don't think anyone recommended anything else.

I wouldn't have the Pequeno Reyes del Aire in the list, let alone second from top, but to each their own.


----------



## seabs

*The only move enough credible enough to be a finisher for Anderson is the Gun Stun. Everything else is just a signature move. The top rope flying gun stun is a 2 count every single time to the point where it actually annoys me how he never wins with that move. Bernard Driver he's never won with I don't think. Certainly not a significant match. It's Bernard's finisher, not Anderson's. Any other moves are just big weapons that he has. Gun Stun is his only "finisher".*


----------



## DOPA

*Daniel Bryan vs. Chris Jericho vs. Jack Swagger vs. Kane vs. Randy Orton vs. Mark Henry (WWE 2/17): ****+*


----------



## seabs

_*Don't get the Chamber love. Outside of Henry's brilliant run it was really poor with nothing of much note happening. Lack of a big finish or start didn't help either.*_


----------



## KingCrash

I thought the Chamber was decent but not great. Henry coming in was the highlight and the Swagger/Orton/Jericho segment at the end was fine but it was nothing much before then. Honestly liked the six-man tag more then anything (***1/2). Shield played their parts perfectly as the cohesive team of jackals trying to take apart the three superstars.


----------



## Chismo

Loved Okada/MiSu and Tanahashi/Anderson from The New Beginning.

*Okada/Suzuki* was a human chess game, slow paced tactical and mental war. Okada wasn't in his normal BITW mode here, his selling was questionable at times, but that's why Minoru was absolutely fucking fantastic. His facial expressions, body language, immense selling, sense for compelling pace, crafty ways of using defense and ofense, execution... He's Top 5 in the world right now, almost no one tops him when he's motivated. Great match. MOTN. ******

*Tanahashi/Anderson* was another excellent match, exactly what I expected. Dynamic and vivid pace, good and interesting workovers, they let us believe Anderson could win, he looked very strong in defeat, he had the crowd behind him. The finishing stretch was good, but not great. One or two kickouts too much. I actually prefered the first 2/3 of the match, the work was really great. ******


****+ list updated: http://www.wrestlingforum.com/12449812-post9.html


----------



## seancarleton77

Chamber match = ****+
Ambrose, Regins, & Rollins vs. Cena, Sheamus, The Ryback = ***3/4


----------



## Rah

The chamber match may well have simply been a straight fight because outside of Henry's little sequence they hardly made use of the structure as a weapon OR went for eliminations. The pacing was terrible, it lacked any big impact moves, had poor execution and selling and didn't really do much for anyone but Henry and Swagger. Even then, for Swagger, his victory was a hollow one considering the roll-up. His entire spiel about lowlifes looking for handouts, opportunities and preying off the work of others kinda bit him in the ass here. Chalk it up to taking advantage of a situation given to you but he needed more of a decisive win to legitimise himself, in my opinion. But I guess it wasn't the worst booking of the night, that goes down to Rock/Punk for one of the most anger-inducing five minutes of recent memory. It was so fucking stupid. What with Jeff Garrett being name-dropped and Dutch Mantell returning, I wouldn't be surprised if Russo has returned as head booker now, too.

The only good match here was the 6-man tag and, even then, it wasn't truly much to write home about other than Cena & Friends going down clean. A lesser copy of their first match but still in every way entertaining. Here's hoping the matches they've laid out for Wrestlemania deliver better than what was offered here and ADR/Swagger isn't a badly emulated version of JBL/Eddie Guerrero.

Ein volk, ein reich, ein Swagger.


----------



## Obfuscation

Did I see a completely different Elimination Chamber match night or what?

Where was the appeal outside of Henry?


----------



## Yeah1993

Yeah I'm with Cody. Chamber was ass-boring and standard without Mark killing dudes. And foolish shit like Orton not even trying to pin Kane when DDt'ing him on the steel stuff. Or Orton breaking up a submission because dumbass forgot the rules were elimination or something.


----------



## Corey

Nah, disagree with you fellas. Had a hella fun time watching the Chamber match all the way through. Sure they didn't put the chamber to much use but it came off more natural that way and the spots we did get were pretty great imo. Double suplex to Henry was sick (sold that & the codebreaker like a fucking champ) and obviously Orton getting thrown through the pod was nice. Didn't notice little things Orton did that *Yeah* mentioned. Triple Threat match at the end was really really great for me. Really had no clue what was gonna go down. That crowd was fuckin HYPED for Orton, been a while since I've seen him get a reaction like that or so that much charisma.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

WWE Elimination Chamber 2013

Shield vs. Ryback/Cena/Sheamus - ****

Really enjoyed this match.


----------



## Obfuscation

Orton finally showed life, sure. Wouldn't say it attributed itself to making the match anything special. It was no different than the WWE Championship elimination chamber from 2010. Really long and nothing that stuck out. It was merely "there".

Shield's 6 man on RAW tonight has it beat by miles too.


----------



## Yeah1993

Henry definitely sold the codebreaker better than anyone in history. Most will fly backwards like they're being blown up. Mark just jump-falls towards Jericho's knee and manages to sell the shit out of it while still being on his feet to take the RKO like a champ as well. Fuck's sake did HAVE to lose that match? 

I was too mad at Orton to be too impressed with anything he did.


----------



## Obfuscation

I wouldn't say what Orton did was impressive. Only that he decided to show life. It was the same ol stuff over again. This time he managed to not stand there as if he was waiting for an enema and decide to put some zip into his actions.


----------



## Rah

I disliked that spot.

I'm really not a fan of wrestlers taking finishers and standing back up but there might be room to concede if Henry is meant to be utterly dominant. I'm just not sold on how he pushed up with his own strength so quickly afterwards, it needed a stall of some kind. Still, better than most have sold it before, though, and not anything close to being the reason why I disliked the match.


----------



## Yeah1993

I didn't really LOVE the fact he had to stand up either, but he had to take Orton's move and sold it well enough so Jericho's shitty finisher was made to look good. Plus he fell down amazingly when actually physically taking Jericho's move.


----------



## Bubz

*The Shield vs John Cena, Sheamus & Ryback (WWE Elimination Chamber)*
Oh yeah, this was great. The Shield are being booked far beyond what I thought they would. They're really building them as this destructive unstoppable force when they're together and it's awesome. It helps that each one of them shows intensity and fire when they're in the ring and they have this great aura surrounding them. Cena was great in this as the FIP though. Great workover and really good comeback spots from Cena. Absolutely loved the spot with Cena getting a shot in, running the ropes and then Ambrose running right after him and fucking him up with a knee and a DDT. Sick spot. Ambrose fucking ruled in this imo, he's just great. Reigns being this powerhouse enforcer type guy is a great role for him especially in this kind of match when Ambrose and Rollins can do the majority of stuff while Reigns still looks boss coming in every now and then. Really am pumped with how these guys have been booked and thrust right into the main event with the top stars and look absolutely at home there. Cena launching Ambrose over the ropes and then selling the exhaustion and getting the hot tag to Ryback was ace, and this is where a guy like Ryback can be so good, because he really did look great here and in the TLC match as a beast that one on one could man handle every guy. His power moves definitely are pretty boss in this situation. Barricade spot ruled despite them doing it all the time it seems, because it was unpredictable and Lilian almost got killed. Sheamus didn't do much at all here, but his one spot near the start when he caught Dean with the Brogue kick out of desperation to tag in Cena was brilliant. The finish was really well done imo, everything got across that these guys are an unstoppable pack of wolves that have the best team mentality ever. Yeah, I really liked this a lot.
*****+*


----------



## Obfuscation

^^^:mark:


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Bubz said:


> Lilian almost got killed.




I honestly think that made the spot more awesome. She has quick reflexes.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'd say the opposite. She should know to zoom out of the way for a spot like that by now.


----------



## DOPA

Definitely do not agree with the criticisms of the EC match. The Shield's match was very good but I definitely do not see it as a 4 star match, more like **** 1/2*. I think you are overrating it slightly. Oh well, different strokes for different folks I suppose.


----------



## Obfuscation

Psychology behind it was tremendous. Something the chamber desperately lacked.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Spoiler: PWG DDT4 2013 



PWG DDT4 2013

The Inner City Machine Guns (Ricochet and Rich Swann) vs. Young Bucks - ****

Started out as a comedy match but picked up. I saw some crazy shit I've never seen before (like in every other PWG show basically) and it was a perfect blend of comedy and action. Great opener and MOTN.


----------



## Russian Hooligan

Match of the year in WWE:

Jack Swagger vs Randy Orton vs Chris Jericho vs Mark Henry vs Kane vs Daniel Bryan (WWE 2/17): ***3/4

P.S. The Shield vs Skynet was most boring match in a show, I almost fell asleep. Del Rio vs Big Show was better than this shit, seriously. I don't understand how it can like.


----------



## sharkboy22

Elimination Chamber 2013 

Chamber match ***1/2

The Shield vs John Cena vs Sheamus vs Ryback ***1/2

MOTY for me so far is definitely Shield vs Sheamus, Ryback and Jericho. Awesome psychology and the match was just brilliantly worked from start to finish. ****


----------



## Obfuscation

*Top 3 of the year (so far)​*
1) Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba ~ ****1/2 _(NJPW 1/4)_

2) Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki ~ ****1/4 _(NJPW 1/4)_

3) Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson ~ ****1/4 _(NJPW 2/10)_​
No surprise New Japan is reigning supreme right now. I'll see things hold up after I finish DDT4. Judging by the reviews so far, it doesn't seem to be PWG's best effort. I suppose that's the norm with their January shows.


----------



## Rah

Anyone see the Sekimoto/Ishii tag match from 13/01 Legend Pro show?

I know I should probably watch it myself but I'm feeling terribly unmotivated to do so unless it's good. What with DDT4 and Cubsfan updating his channel, I've got far too much already.


----------



## Obfuscation

If there is a link I'll give it a watch today. Been meaning to ask around if there are any specific AJPW (bring it up thanks to the site name dropping said promotion) matches to watch. I tried watching a full show of their's an hour ago and it wasn't anything I found to be engrossing.


----------



## Rah

Legend Pro tag match. Thanks (Y)

As for AJPW, the best match I've seen, so far, was probably the 03/01 tag. The Kondo match as well as the Get Wild tag from 02/01 were both okay while Suwama/Omori from 13/01 wasn't bad but bored me. Nothing else of true value, I don't think.

The Kimura/Takahashi title bout from Stardom is also apparently a good joshi match. I'll watch that tomorrow, too.


----------



## Obfuscation

Excellent work. I can expect to jump on the Ishii tag in a bit. That's the plan for this moment, at least.

Finally - a top flight Joshi match from 2013. Their work has been in the dark till right now.


----------



## rzombie1988

HayleySabin said:


> Excellent work. I can expect to jump on the Ishii tag in a bit. That's the plan for this moment, at least.
> 
> Finally - a top flight Joshi match from 2013. Their work has been in the dark till right now.


I thought Hojo/Aikawa from the same show was better.

There haven't been any other Joshi shows available besides the Stardom show in 2013 since most promotions had their year end shows near the end of December. The only joshi that gets aired regularly is Oz Academy. Stardom releases DVD's and has a few aired shows a year and JWP only gets on TV twice a year. JWP does do DVD's but the delays on those are always long. Ice Ribbon gets on TV infrequently and WAVE will only get on TV if they have a Korakuen show. REINA and Kyoko Inoue's promotion(which is so insignificant I can't even remember the name) have infrequent DVD releases as well.


----------



## Obfuscation

rzombie1988 said:


> I thought Hojo/Aikawa from the same show was better.
> 
> There haven't been any other Joshi shows available besides the Stardom show in 2013 since most promotions had their year end shows near the end of December. The only joshi that gets aired regularly is Oz Academy. Stardom releases DVD's and has a few aired shows a year and JWP only gets on TV twice a year. JWP does do DVD's but the delays on those are always long. Ice Ribbon gets on TV infrequently and WAVE will only get on TV if they have a Korakuen show. REINA and Kyoko Inoue's promotion(which is so insignificant I can't even remember the name) have infrequent DVD releases as well.


Oz Academy seems to never have any standout matches considering all of the goofy shenanigans that go on in their matches. Perhaps I've only had poor luck with the lot I've seen. It's plenty entertaining, nothing to "go out of your way" to check out type stuff.

Ice Ribbon clips too many of their matches. It's heartbreaking.

----------

*NJPW New Beginning 2013​*
*IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship*
Time Splitters(c) vs Forever Hooligans ~ ***1/2​
~ I know I dug this a tad bit more than some others. In the start it was fine. Hadn't quite found their stride yet. Once the momentum was found things got cooking. Definition of blitzkrieg. Absolute non-stop action. By the time the announcer mentioned the bout reached the 10 minute mark if felt as if it was on forever _(in a good way)_ due to all of the rapid fire offense going throughout. Out of their trilogy this would fall into the category of 2nd place. Their first from King of Pro Wrestling was the topper and the injury marred rematch from Power Struggle 2012 left us wanting more. The series has finally culminated with Time Splitters walking away with the straps. A choice I am A OK with. Good match!

----------

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kengo Mashimo ~ ***1/2​
~ Nakamura and Mashimo pick up right where they left off from the CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun trios matches a week prior. It's hot and heavy from the outset. Match is rather straight forward. I don't have much to add outside of it. If you enjoy higher paced blends of grappling & dudes hitting each other hard, you'll dig this. Nakamura commits a rare foul and manages to slip a tad off the middle rope during the final sequence. To his ever grand SWAG, he shrugged it off like nothing and proceeded to lock in a flying knee to the face of Mashino which sent him for a loop. One Boma Ye later and the leader of CHAOS stakes his claim. I knew I was going to dig this.

----------

Minoru Suzuki vs Kazuchika Okada ~ ****​
~ Suzuki is on a roll of a lifetime. This match was driven by the age old story of "Young vs Old". "Experience vs Youth". "Veteran vs Rookie". Roles which were played to a tee by both men involved. Suzuki is such a bad ass. It was clear the dynamic here was Suzuki is the give no fucks heel of heels with Suzuki-Gun, meanwhile CHAOS member & hot prospect Okada was willing to play by the rules, The naivety of the lad showed very early on by giving Suzuki a clean break. As Okada was backing out MiSu strikes him directly in the face. Threw the kid for a loop. It would be the common theme for the remainder of the bout. From there on out MiSu was relentless. Demolishing Okada from the inside to the outside with a mix of gnarly yakuza kicks & any foreign objects he could get his hands on by the announcer's position. Taichi was great in his sidekick role yet again. Doing exactly what MiSu was doing and using every chance he had to get in a cheap shot or do some damage while the ref wasn't looking. Suzuki-Gun is putting their heel work on a top notch level early on. Okada has his flashes of brilliance. Being the spunky underdog trying to stop the swarming force that was the grizzled vet in MiSu. No go on the majority. Following each flurry, he'd be stopped by a strike of greater value. It would be back to square one for the wunderkind. Suzuki's force was growing. Okada doesn't have much left. He gets one more final attempt to make an impact, relying on the seemingly most legit finisher in the whole of NJPW - Rainmaker lariat. A few attempts become a bust. With MiSu countering with the final brutal strike combo to the face. The shots are echoing in the arena. To imagine that sort of pain...I couldn't dream. Okada's eyes are glossed over. Gotch/cradle piledriver later and it's done. MiSu came, saw, & conquered here. Great match. This is a must see.

----------

*IWGP World Championship*
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs Karl Anderson ~ ****1/4​
~ Tanahashi vs Anderson. My heaven's what a match and what a story to boot. The Anderson hype video not only conveyed the emotion the man has for wanting to reach the status of being IWGP World Champion, but it had the believable nature to go hand in hand. It didn't feel as if it was any form of a filler match to add another notch on Tanahashi's current championship reign. Formula here was similar for Tanahashi, yet always brilliant. Feeling out process to start. Both men jocking for their position in this all important match. As it trails on Tanahashi would focus his assault on the knee with pinpoint accuracy. It wouldn't reach the levels of a psycho surgeon it once reached back at King of Pro Wrestling vs Suzuki, though it shouldn't go unnoticed. Anderson's knee was semi gone from the early outside. With the drive of a would-be champion Anderson fights through the pain; managing to turn the tide towards his favor. Anderson's selling is impeccable at this point. You feel the pain on every move he makes. Anderson's incorporation of using the Stun Gun onto both the top rope & guardrail were prime. Excellent mega momentum shifters to showing us where his attack on Tanahashi will be focused on. Finishing stretch was arguably one of the most thrilling a main event has pumped out since...well, a good while. Even WITH the consideration of all the great championship bouts of 2012. I knew the result yet I was still, that's right, still sucked into thinking Anderson could do it. Far too much I was left saying "Tanahashi can't survive this." I was partially correct. He managed to evade as opposite to rising above. Portrayed the skills and smarts of the champ. Appreciated that bit of psychology/storytelling as much as the rest. Anderson was sooooooooo amazing in this though. Absolute grand performance. He was very over with the crowd too. Split the entire bout. Among the finish were some fabulous highlights such as: the sickest kick of possible ever with Anderson moving in slow-motion till he connected with Tanahashi's face on the apron - it was something out of Viewtiful Joe. High Fly Flow countered by Anderson getting his knees up --> eventual lead to some more wonderful selling of the damaged knee. Tanahashi stealing the Stun Gun & Anderson connecting with a Bernard Driver to get the two top near (and I'm talking very) near falls. Bernard Driver was about as close as you can get without the ref slapping the mat. Stun Gun on Anderson was followed up by a High Fly Flow crossbody - that of which Anderson tried to leap up and counter, but had no success with and ultimately became his downfall - and finally a traditional High Fly Flow which sealed Machine Gun's fate. Dashing his hopes & dreams in the process. The Tanahashi era continues to live on. Terrific, terrific match.


----------



## Nervosa

I gotta express how painfully disappointed I am with Mashimo/Nakamura. Mashimo is so crazy good and just NONE of it showed in that match. Nakamura with a rare botch didn't help either. 

For the Suzukigun CHAOS feud to work, Suzukigun needs one more elite singles worker. It kinda has to be Mashimo, which, for me, means this match had to be better.


----------



## Chismo

I liked Shinskay/Kengo, it was a miniature version of Okada/MiSu. #HumanChessGame

Hopefully they continue booking Kengo, I really love the guy.


MOTYC list updated with two DDT4 matches [SPOILERS]: http://www.wrestlingforum.com/12449812-post9.html


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Legend Pro tag match. Thanks (Y)
> 
> As for AJPW, the best match I've seen, so far, was probably the 03/01 tag. The Kondo match as well as the Get Wild tag from 02/01 were both okay while Suwama/Omori from 13/01 wasn't bad but bored me. Nothing else of true value, I don't think.
> 
> The Kimura/Takahashi title bout from Stardom is also apparently a good joshi match. I'll watch that tomorrow, too.


Heads up for you Rah: the Joshi match is solid overall with a tremendous effort put forth. Only drawback is some very poor, inconsistent selling to Takahashi's right arm. I mean so bad, it became an oversight for me. Not going to rule out a watch for you, only it isn't going to be a MOTYC, imo.


----------



## DOPA

Spoiler: PWG MOTYC



*Young Bucks vs Unbreakable F'n Machines (PWG 1/13): ***3/4+
Young Bucks vs Steenerico (PWG 1/13): *****


----------



## Saint Dick

WWE MOTY list:

1. John Cena, Ryback & Sheamus v The Shield - Elimination Chamber (2/17/13)
2. Chris Jericho, Ryback & Sheamus v The Shield - Raw (2/18/13)
3. Alberto Del Rio v Dolph Ziggler - Main Event (2/13/13)
4. Dolph Ziggler v Sheamus - Main Event (1/9/13)
5. CM Punk v Ryback - Raw (1/7/13)

Thought Jericho/Punk and Del Rio/Show LMS were good but not great.


----------



## Obfuscation

British Ambition vs Kassius Ohno & Leo Kruger - NXT 2/6
British Ambition vs Luke Harper & Erick Rowan - NXT 2/13

View those if you haven't, Ownage. Trumps most singles matches this year. Bit of a surprise WWE's best matches so far are all tags or trios. I'm loving it though.


----------



## Rah

The British Ambition match for the title was class.



HayleySabin said:


> Heads up for you Rah: the Joshi match is solid overall with a tremendous effort put forth. Only drawback is some very poor, inconsistent selling to Takahashi's right arm. I mean so bad, it became an oversight for me. Not going to rule out a watch for you, only it isn't going to be a MOTYC, imo.


Ta. (Y)


----------



## flag sabbath

Anyone got links for the British Ambition matches please?


----------



## Rah

flag sabbath said:


> Anyone got links for the British Ambition matches please?


British Ambition vs Kassius Ohno & Leo Kruger (NXT 06/02) at 02:25
British Ambition vs Luke Harper & Erick Rowan (NXT 13/02) is at 24:00

Not MotYC's but still fun.

Edit: is there any way to hotlink Dailymotion videos so it plays from a specific point? I know it's possible with Youtube, but I've never found a way for Dailymotion.


----------



## Bubz

*PWG DDT 4*
*The Young Bucks vs ICMG*
Everything you'd want from an opener. So much fun. Ricochet and The Bucks are just top top workers right now. Great sequences, some comedy, good nearfalls without going overkill. Swann has really impressed me thus far in PWG. It was obvious to me he wasn't on the level as Ricochet though watching this. Not as much fluidity and crispness to his moves, but it's fucking Ricochet, so that isn't really a knock, just something I noticed. Buck's rule. ****3/4
*

*Kevin Steen & El Generico vs The Young Bucks*
Great stuff here. Storyline of Steenerico is brilliant imo. First there's Bucks being dicks and a great control segment on Generico. HOT TAG~! Commence greatness stage 2. This is where the storytelling really came into play. Steen despising the Bucks, Generico not going down because this is his last show and fuck if he's losing this, Bucks and Knox storyline continued, all tied in with the Steen/Generico conclusion to their entire indy run which was fucking amazing. Seriously, I don't want to ruin this for anyone who hasn't seen it yet, but there's a moment that really is amazing towards the end (think Seabs talked about it in his review). The finish was awesome too. The match lacked something to make it a high end MOTYC contender for me, but this was classic PWG booking and combined with it being Generico's last match and the conclusion of an epic rivalry/partnership, this is absolutely must see. ******


----------



## Rah

If there was any way to remove that one section of goofiness Generico's match would be one of the greatest things going this year.


----------



## DOPA

Bubz said:


> *Kevin Steen & El Generico vs The Young Bucks*
> Great stuff here. Storyline of Steenerico is brilliant imo. First there's Bucks being dicks and a great control segment on Generico. HOT TAG~! Commence greatness stage 2. This is where the storytelling really came into play. Steen despising the Bucks, Generico not going down because this is his last show and fuck if he's losing this, Bucks and Knox storyline continued, all tied in with the Steen/Generico conclusion to their entire indy run which was fucking amazing. Seriously, I don't want to ruin this for anyone who hasn't seen it yet, but there's a moment that really is amazing towards the end (think Seabs talked about it in his review). The finish was awesome too. The match lacked something to make it a high end MOTYC contender for me, but this was classic PWG booking and combined with it being Generico's last match and the conclusion of an epic rivalry/partnership, this is absolutely must see. ******


Completely agreed with all of this.

Young Bucks are still the best tag team around in my opinion. All of their matches on the PWG DDT4 show were at least very good.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*ROH Honor vs Evil:*

ACH vs Roderick Strong - ****1/4
SCUM of Jacobs, Corino and Steen vs Adam Cole, Davey Richards and Michael Elgin - ****


----------



## Chismo

*AJPW Excite Series 2013 - Day 2*

Burning (Jun Akiyama, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki) vs. GET WILD (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) & Kaz Hayashi

_Burning's first fully televised match. This was great. And wow, the Burning guys seem so... fresh. They looked motivated as hell, and you could tell they're happy campers now. Fuck NOAH, seriously. Everybody had a story here: Omori giving Akiyama a nice warm welcome with stiff forearms, because they have a legitimate beef dating from the 90s, Manabu Soya trying to hang with those two, and trying to justify his pertnership with Omori, then there's Hayashi defending the honor of the Junior division, Kotaro and Kanemaru trying to send a message to the Juniors backstage, etc. Kotaro/Hayashi will be a gem down the road. Plus, the crowd was hot. Great match. Too bad this is the only fully televised Burning tag from the tour, but at least AJPW has uploaded clipped shows on their YT channel._

*****1/4*​


----------



## Adam_Cole

EmbassyForever said:


> *ROH Honor vs Evil:*
> 
> ACH vs Roderick Strong - ****1/4
> SCUM of Jacobs, Corino and Steen vs Adam Cole, Davey Richards and Michael Elgin - ****


Where are you watch this?


----------



## EmbassyForever

Adam_Cole said:


> Where are you watch this?


http://www.rohwrestling.com/ippv


----------



## Adam_Cole

Thanks man!


----------



## Rah

JoeRulz said:


> *AJPW Excite Series 2013 - Day 2*
> 
> Burning (Jun Akiyama, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki) vs. GET WILD (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) & Kaz Hayashi
> 
> _Burning's first fully televised match. This was great. And wow, the Burning guys seem so... fresh. They looked motivated as hell, and you could tell they're happy campers now. Fuck NOAH, seriously. Everybody had a story here: Omori giving Akiyama a nice warm welcome with stiff forearms, because they have a legitimate beef dating from the 90s, Manabu Soya trying to hang with those two, and trying to justify his pertnership with Omori, then there's Hayashi defending the honor of the Junior division, Kotaro and Kanemaru trying to send a message to the Juniors backstage, etc. Kotaro/Hayashi will be a gem down the road. Plus, the crowd was hot. Great match. Too bad this is the only fully televised Burning tag from the tour, but at least AJPW has uploaded clipped shows on their YT channel._
> 
> *****1/4*​


I'm guessing this from the 10/02/2013 show? Anything else of note from it? The main looks like it could have been a standout.


----------



## flag sabbath

Rah said:


> I'm guessing this from the 10/02/2013 show? Anything else of note from it? The main looks like it could have been a standout.


I watched Kanemoto & Tanaka vs. Yamato & Sato. It's noteworthy for the challengers turning up barefoot & ready to ground & pound, but it goes a little too long & the crowd only really gets involved for the closing moments ****1/2*


----------



## Rah

Thanks, man. I'll avoid it, then.


----------



## flag sabbath

Rah said:


> Thanks, man. I'll avoid it, then.


Btw, cheers for the NXT links - I'll rep you when it lets me again...


----------



## Chismo

Rah said:


> I'm guessing this from the 10/02/2013 show? Anything else of note from it? The main looks like it could have been a standout.


Yep, and that's the only match I caught thus far. Can't find the whole show in one part to download.


----------



## antoniomare007

*John Cena vs CM Punk - RAW 25/2*

Juanito's hilarious stop-and-go selling and the most unnecessary hurracarana I've ever seen in a non-spotfest didn't stop this from being fun as fuck to watch. It's gonna be hard to get a better RAW match this year.


----------



## Corey

*Winner Faces The Rock at Wrestlemania
*John Cena vs. CM Punk (_RAW 2/25)_

Holy FUCK, do these two know how to make magic or what? What an incredible big match feel this had. Cena looks so nervous at the start, he clearly knows he has everything to lose. Punk? Yeah, he's focused as shit. Some really great chain wrestling & counters in the beginning, Cena looks on point. Then we get fucked in the ass by TWO commercial breaks, thus missing just about all of Punk's control segment. Whatever, we come back from the 2nd break and it's time to take it to another level. Like 10 straight minutes of marking out with nearfalls & close calls. Punk looks like the fucking GOAT by countering nearly all of Cena's signature moves, making it look pretty/easy in the process. Hits some KILLER knees in the corner too. Cena on the other hand stepped up big time by busting out the Batista Bomb & a hurracanrana (looked rough but credit still goes out). I'm probably just rambling at this point but what the fuck, I'm all marked out right now. I felt like a little kid. The countout spot was off the charts close & the piledriver near the end was straight brutal. Match of the year so far, and we didn't even see most of the first half! Booking wise, Cena comes out REALLY strong... but what the hell does Punk do now??? He's lost 3 in a row...

***** 1/4*


----------



## Rickey

*John Cena vs. CM Punk -RAW 2/25/12*
TV Match of the year for me.


----------



## Saint Dick

*CM Punk v John Cena - Raw (2/25/13)*
WWE match of the year so far. Loved how they went the extra mile and busted out new/different stuff to try to beat each other. Cena's rana looked like shit but whatever, it was still cool to see, and the powerbomb, piledriver and Crossface were great. Aside from one awkward moment during the middle I thought it was awesome and a good example of how to work WWE's main event style. It doesn't compare to the show they put on at MitB '11 but it's just a notch below their Summerslam and Night of Champions matches.


----------



## asdf0501

Even with the rana being shitty i give Cena the props because at least he and Punk still try to pull new secuences of their asses after they had traded finishers at least 400 times, so being shitty and all that Rana seems a really desperate spot to confuse Punk and set up the AA fine. And they doesn't go to "well we know how to do this so trade finishers for 20 minutes again"

Plus mark out for the Liger bomb and the Piledriver.


----------



## Caponex75

So I caught the Cena vs. Punk and I was expecting something great but not something this great. I almost feels like a complete asshole for being broke and not being able to see this live. This was light years better than their NOC match(Which I hated). The story of Punk being Cena's perfect enemy and absolutely stopping Cena's comeback at every turn. Every part of Cena's usual comeback had to be worked in different moments because Punk would catch on BECAUSE he knows Cena so much. Get hit with a shoulder block? Well prepare for the next shoulder block. Hit with the blue thunder bomb? Well I already know this is followed by that damn taunt! Amazing in keeping a consistent but intriguing story through out the whole match. Oh and the Powerbomb was the freaking best.

Reason that got a gigantic mark out from me is because after both guys try their Finishing move and none can quite get it in, Cena resorts to a move that he has never fucking used. I thought one of the guys would end up doing a fancy reversal after both guys couldn't get in their finishers but it instead took a way better turn. Resorting in something the opponent never sees coming like that Big Dick Powerbomb. It made sense from a storytelling perspective as well since that wasn't a move Punk was ever familiar of Cena ever doing so he didn't have a counter for that situation. Same with Cena and the piledriver. It's brilliant yet simple storytelling. 

One of big pet peeves about the match would be the Cenaranna which I have a little of issue with(Rather he just Clothesline Punk out of his tights) but I understand it as it made sense with the story. Cena busting out with a Ranna against Punk made sense due to the fact he has never used it against him and he has only busted it on one occasion(Against Ziggler at TLC). So while I'm not to high on him using it, it did make sense. This has to be the second best match that they have ever had outside of the MITB one and may be one of the best Raw matches *EVER*. MOTYC for sure. Far better than anything I've seen this year.


----------



## 777

I just can't agree. Wasn't a horrible match or anything but all the fun in the world couldn't make me ignore its flaws. Half the action was lost to commercial time and the finish left me wanting more. The botched huracanrana alone should take it out of the race unless we're talking comedy spots, which it wasn't meant to be.


----------



## septurum

Cena vs Punk (RAW 2/25/13)- ****


----------



## Obfuscation

Huracanrana was fine. So it wasn't pretty. Big deal. While I'll defend that portion, this doesn't average out to being a top WWE match for me. Have 5 tag matches I prefer over it + Punk vs Ryback TLC. Hell of an atmosphere behind it. Always good to see/hear such a thing.

It's amazing how much people forget the entire first half of the match being useless filler till all of the big moves started being hit. Piledriver & Liger bomb were nice touches. Rest didn't stick out to me much. Vintage Punker/Cena - a fun time, definitely. Not MOTYC worthy.


----------



## EmbassyForever

HayleySabin said:


> Huracanrana was fine. So it wasn't pretty. Big deal. While I'll defend that portion, this doesn't average out to being a top WWE match for me. Have 5 tag matches I prefer over it + Punk vs Ryback TLC. Hell of an atmosphere behind it. Always good to see/hear such a thing.
> 
> It's amazing how much people forget the entire first half of the match being useless filler till all of the big moves started being hit. Piledriver & Liger bomb were nice touches. Rest didn't stick out to me much. Vintage Punker/Cena - a fun time, definitely. Not MOTYC worthy.


Agreed. I was surprised to see that people here liked this match because the selling wasn't good (Huracanrana after Piledriver is an example). I personally really enjoyed it tho but I wonder if the wrestlers were Elgin, Richards or Tanahashi the commonts were the same.


----------



## Obfuscation

Not going down that road. Richard & Elgin matches are a different ball park. Tanahashi's gripe from some seems to be how he has a set formula for his matches. Outside of Wrestle Kingdom vs Okada being polarizing I don't think most mind it.


----------



## Chismo

Tanahashi's formula is awesome - work a "normal" back-and-forth match, and if your opponent gets carried away, just attack his fucking legs, it'll slow him down significantly, and then... enter High Fly Flow! I love Tanahashi.

Elgin deserves some credt, especially for fucking awesome finishing combos.


----------



## Obfuscation

Elgin deserves no credit. Only a slap upside the head for being a shit worker.


----------



## kwjr86

CM Punk vs. John Cena - ****1/2


----------



## djmathers1207

Raw

CM Punk vs. John Cena ****1/2-****1/4

Raw Match Of The Year for sure


----------



## Corey

I'm not agreeing with your sentiments here, Mr. Sabin. What do you mean by useless filler in the first half? We only saw like 5 minutes of the match with the commercial breaks. The first part was back and forths chain wrestling where Cena gets the upperhand so Punk takes a breather. When they came back they showed a nice counter (a ddt maybe? idr) and then Punk hits the suicide dive to the outside. I'm assuming what we actually missed was a control segment from Punk. No problems with that.


----------



## obby

So -

John Cena vs CM Punk 25/02/2013 **** 

WWE MOTY thusfar


----------



## asdf0501

JoeRulz said:


> Tanahashi's formula is awesome - work a "normal" back-and-forth match, and if your opponent gets carried away, just attack his fucking legs, it'll slow him down significantly, and then... enter High Fly Flow! I love Tanahashi.


And even then almost no one in the roster sells the job he usually does to the leg, making it seem just filler so i don't understand why he still insist in it


----------



## DOPA

JoeRulz said:


> Tanahashi's formula is awesome - work a "normal" back-and-forth match, and if your opponent gets carried away, just attack his fucking legs, it'll slow him down significantly, and then... enter High Fly Flow! I love Tanahashi.
> 
> Elgin deserves some credt, especially for fucking awesome finishing combos.


Agreed with everything here. Tanahashi may have a formula but he is a really fucking smart worker. I do love his style. Elgin rocks.

Anyway my thoughts on Cena/Punk number infinity:

*John Cena vs CM Punk (WWE 2/25)*

This match was not perfect by any means. The beginning sections of the match did not have any correlation to the rest of the match and was at times sloppy, particularly from Cena. However after the 1st commercial break that's when the match really started getting into gear. This had a very HBK/Taker feel to it in the fact they both traded their biggest guns back and forth whilst also pulling out a few surprises. Basically Cena and Punk told a story that they both do best whilst working with each other since MITB 2011: both of them knowing each other so well as past adversaries that they ended up pulling out counter after counter on each other which meant that they had to both pull out surprises in order to try and gain the victory. There were a lot of great great moments in this match that have typically been accustomed to Cena/Punk matches, in particular Punk's counter to the spin out powerbomb into the vice, the sit out powerbomb from Cena and pulling out the piledriver near the end which was a nice surprise. Cena should really stop trying to the hurricanrana though, that was a really embarrassing attempt and took away from the ending. Really good match however, 2nd best match of the year for WWE so far despite the flaws. This had a lot of tension and drama and big fight feel which really helped this match deliver. It felt hugely important which WWE tends to fail at delivering unless its a big PPV. But then again, it is close to mania.

**** 3/4*


----------



## Groovemachine

John Cena vs CM Punk - WWE Raw 02/25/2013 - ****1/2

Absolutely tremendous. These guys know each other so well at this point, so it makes sense that we got a match filled with counters and reversals of all their usual big moves. Particularly loved Punk diving to the mat to avoid Cena's shoulder tackle, leaving Cena to throw himself on the floor. Gotta give credit to Cena...that was a pretty sexy Liger Bomb. A genius move for them to bust out some new stuff bearing in mind all the counters - great touch for Punk to use the piledriver; a classic 'finishing' move, and his subsequent look of shock when Cena kicked out really sold it. It's for that same reason I was fine with the 'ugly' hurracanrana; in the context of the match, Cena was trying something new, something he's not used to doing, not to mention the fact that at this point he's taken a Go 2 Sleep and a piledriver and therefore isn't performing at his best. His almost reflex-like AA was the exclamation point and enough to put Punk away for the 3. 

Top notch wrestling from these two; my current MOTY.


----------



## DOPA

*Burning (Jun Akiyama, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki) vs. GET WILD (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 2/10): *****


----------



## seabs

> Main event was really great I thought. Was pretty average until they started trading submission finishes and from that point on it was really awesome. Watching unspoiled helped. Really dug them throwing new stuff out to play off their long history and the high stakes. Cena's sit down powerbomb looked great. Punk's piledriver looked alright but it was a bossy spot to pull out. Better than flopping a moonsault out. Cena's hurracanranas and monkey flips always look abysmal but I dug the idea behind him pulling it out after all else failed to set the finish up. First AA kickout was great. On PPV with these two it's a given but I at least had some doubt with it being TV. GTS kickout was a given after though. Loved the teased count out finish too. Extremely believable and I thought for sure the lights were going out at 9. I guess next week Punk moans again and Taker comes out. This finishing stretch smoked NOC last year though because they want more for a frantic pace with reversals galore rather than 2.9's galore and long downtimes between spots. Crowd was super hot for it too which only made it better. ****, maybe even ****1/4. Might just edge ADR/Show out as TV MOTY but they're so different it's hard to compare.


*^*


----------



## Bubz

*John Cena vs CM Punk (WWE RAW 25/2)*
Well shit, I absolutely loved this. Starts out like all the other Punk/Cena matches have done with chain wrestling and each guy struggling for the advantage. Cena gets the advantage, but Punk has his number, and that's the story of the first half of the match. Punk cutting Cena off every time was great, the shoulder block dodge, the kick during the 5 Knuckle Shuffle, the DDT etc. All great counter spots from Punk, and a story that these guys have absolutely mastered imo. Then they go into the submission exchange and from that point on it's just brilliant. The counters are superbly done, and the story continues with both guys having the others number, and Punk being Cena's ultimate opponent. Cena busting out the Liger Bomb was an awesome spot, not only did it look fucking great, but it was so perfect for the story these guys tell in the ring. He's never hit that before, never even attempted it, and it showed Cenas wrestling smarts as well as desperation to go for a move he knew would catch Punk off guard and that he wouldn't have a counter for. Same for Punk and the Piledriver which absolutely ruled, and seemed like the ultimate death blow. This is a move we haven't seen in WWE for years and Punk busts it out and the commentators and crowd react accordingly. Awesome. Seabs mentioned the countout tease, and yeah that was really good too despite me knowing the result beforehand. The Rana from Cena concluded the story of the match absolutely perfectly, and yeah it didn't look very good, but it was a brilliant idea and a brilliant way to show Cena thinking on his feet and that on this night, it was him that eventually had Punk's number. The finishing run was just so much fun and this was their best match since Summerslam in 2011. Loved it, great stuff.
*****1/4*


----------



## septurum

Rewatched Cena vs Punk and I have to bump my score up a bit to 4 1/4. It really was an awesome match. Small botch off the hurricanrana but no big deal. Truly the best WWE match of 2013, TV or PPV.


----------



## Cactus

*NJPW The New Beginning 2013*

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson*
Karl Anderson, where you been all my life? Has Anderson also been capable of churning out a performance like this? Great seller and was awesome at handing out the desperation flying big boots. Tanahashi was also good; he looks to of found his niche in playing the seasoned veteran. His performance here was reminiscent of his first match with Okada. Let's hope Tanahashi continues to work in this position and maybe we can start seeing some great matches like this on a more consistent basis that don't fall victim to your typical Tanahashi flaws.
★★★★¼

*WWE Raw 02/25/2013*

*John Cena vs CM Punk*
Only a slight step behind their MITB classic, this match is one of the few matches from this year that I think will give Nakamura/Sakuraba a run for their money. Basically, this felt quite similar to their Night of Champions match but executed much better and without the pointless finisher trading and crappy anti-climatic finish. The narrative remains the same; both men are equals and can see each others' signature spots coming from a mile a way and eventually they have to start pulling out some new moves out the bag in an attempt to confuse the other man. Cena really shined in this particularly; his bumping and selling was top notch. An excellent match with believable near-falls in front of an appreciative super-hot crowd. 
★★★★ ½


----------



## blink_41sum_182

WWE Raw 02/25/2013

John Cena vs CM Punk - ****

Started off slow and it sucks they had 2 commercial breaks during it, but the last 10 minutes were great. Powerbomb? Piledriver? The back and forth was awesome. I don't even care that Cena won. That was way better than their Night of Champions match and both Rock/Punk matches (even though I liked them more than most people).


----------



## Chismo

On Punk/Cena:


> *Punk/Cena* was good... and that's it. Not even close to greatness. The crowd was awesome. Punk was awesome too, he really sold the importance of the match, you could feel he wrestled for the WM main event spot. Cena, on the other hand, fuck him. The worst seller in the industry, worse than fucking Teddy Hart. It's sad, because Cena is a guy capable of having five star matches. When he's motivated. Too bad he's motivated only once-twice every year. He no-sold Punk's few signature moves, including the Running Knee, and not once, but TWICE! Same people who bash indy wrestling for "no sell bitch" doctrine, they praise Cena. Nice. Because, Cena's much worse. And the finishing stretch was just a collection of moves and kickouts. I repeat, Punk was great in the match, but Cena was awful.
> 
> *****


----------



## Cactus

How can Cena be capable of a 5 star match _and_ be the 'The worst seller in the industry'? Cena's selling in the match was great and was more comparable to Kenta Kobashi than Davey Richards. He'd no-sell the move for a split second in a short burst of adrenaline, hit his move and then feel the effect of Punk's offense shortly after. 

I totally disagree with the finishing stretch being 'just a collection of moves and kickouts'. The finisher attempts were all logically and made it feel like they needed to bust out newer moves to try and put each other away.


----------



## 777

Subjectively, you see great selling, I see Cena's hokey facial expressions. The finishing stretch was rushed for some reason, they easily could have taken half a second to execute the moves cleanly and it would have felt just as pressing. It seemed to me to be the same reason why the rana failed, because he didn't take the time to execute the move properly. In fairness they may have been trying to fit the tv time restraint, but it was rushed regardless.

Edit: Also just remembered, thank you Michael Cole for distracting me by screaming "STF" for what was clearly a crossface, you jackass.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

I really don't get the hate on the hurricarana. It adds to the match to show how desperate Cena was to prove himself by pulling out a bullshit move that he never does. The only problem I have though was that it was a finishing spot which is kind of a joke.


----------



## 777

I don't understand how a highspot that obviously takes as much effort from your opponent to pull off can sell desperation. Then to flub it and for Punk to still sell totally took away from any realism. Maybe if they had switched the Liger Bomb and huracanrana spots I'd see it differently. Power move would have made more sense in that finishing stretch.


----------



## Obfuscation

Cactus said:


> How can Cena be capable of a 5 star match _and_ be the 'The worst seller in the industry'? Cena's selling in the match was great and was more comparable to Kenta Kobashi than Davey Richards. He'd no-sell the move for a split second in a short burst of adrenaline, hit his move and then feel the effect of Punk's offense shortly after.
> 
> I totally disagree with the finishing stretch being 'just a collection of moves and kickouts'. The finisher attempts were all logically and made it feel like they needed to bust out newer moves to try and put each other away.


Bingo.

I swear I think the lack of wanting to put Cena over here is blinding to some folks.


----------



## Chismo

Cactus said:


> *How can Cena be capable of a 5 star match and be the 'The worst seller in the industry'?* Cena's selling in the match was great and was more comparable to Kenta Kobashi than Davey Richards. He'd no-sell the move for a split second in a short burst of adrenaline, hit his move and then feel the effect of Punk's offense shortly after.
> 
> I totally disagree with the finishing stretch being 'just a collection of moves and kickouts'. The finisher attempts were all logically and made it feel like they needed to bust out newer moves to try and put each other away.


That part belongs in my "when he's motivated" remark. He can be a great seller sometimes, but more than often - he's worse than CZW rookies.



HayleySabin said:


> Bingo.
> 
> I swear I think the lack of wanting to put Cena over here is blinding to some folks.


Well, one man's trash is another man's treasure. That being said, I give Cena plenty of credit where credit is due. This match didn't even touch their MITB and SummerSlam bouts.


----------



## Obfuscation

Didn't touch their August 2011 RAW match either. Point being, all the "gripes" I'm seeing come across more like snide remarks to Cena more than it was towards any unfavorable turns in the match.


----------



## Chismo

Well, Punk was awesome in the match. Who else is left?


----------



## EmbassyForever

JoeRulz said:


> He no-sold Punk's few signature moves, including the Running Knee, and not once, but TWICE! Same people who bash indy wrestling for "no sell bitch" doctrine, they praise Cena. Nice.


This fucking this.


----------



## Obfuscation

JoeRulz said:


> Well, Punk was awesome in the match. Who else is left?


Cena.

----------






This video has the action that was cut away from the commercial break. If you were one of those who had a problem with the cutaways (regardless if it effected your outlook on the match or not) than I certainly recommend viewing.


*WWE Monday Night RAW 2/25/13​*
John Cena vs CM Punk ~ ****​
I was a knucklehead. I enjoyed this match on the first go. Upon a second time I now love this match. Maybe I focused a bit more or something, but all previous "flaws" were put to rest. _(only one; thinking the weardown phases was meaningless when it 100% wasn't. Great use of the headlock/focusing the attack on the head & neck area of Cena.)_ Story was completely in tact here. I know it is hard to buy Cena as an underdog. Which is perfectly understandable. However, vs Punk in a big match situation it does fit. That's been the story of their main event feud. Punk always survived. Cena never could figure him out. Only time he had was via interference. Never by his own forces. And John knows the facts. I can't quite add anything too fresh that hasn't been said by so many already so I'll try and scrape what I can atm. Influx of new moves was gold. I always appreciated the trait of keeping their matches fresh. Liger Bomb by Cena. What?! Wonderful. PILEDRIVER by Punker? Excellent! Real "mark out" moments for me. Huracanrana spot was top notch. Not the execution of course. The point behind it. Cena busted out something he's used about once in his career. He finally threw Punk off his game. Cena capitalized and finally thwarted Punk in a big match situation all on his own. Now, on the point of selling. There was absolutely zero negatives with anything form of selling by Cena. Not once. His head & neck was the damaged point. Nowhere else was sore. He takes two brutal knees to the face. Ate them completely. What some didn't seem to notice was how each time he countered following them, were used as a rapid bust of adrenaline to hit something out of desperation. It wasn't a blatant attempt at no-selling because he's "SUPER CENA". Not at all. I can't even see the logic behind that mindset. Both men were great in this. I made the point last night and it still stands after the second watch: Punk & Cena both always make these matches. They're always constantly back and forth. Feed off the ebb & flow of every encounter. A drop in the bucket here. Only with something different to separate it from the pack. That's the sign of a great series of matches. A great, awesome chemistry among these guys. It hasn't failed yet. Nor would I ever think it will. Stellar match. Not for TV. In general. That's what you want to see when a match is billed as "big".


----------



## Kiz

i dont watch wwe. first time i've seen their new sets. clean. nice. shame their product sucks.

this match doesnt though. builds nicely. liked the part with punk ducking and dodging cena. worked at a good pace, not too slow, not too fast. moves make sense, done in a nice sequence, building up to the bigger, funner moves. sick ddt on cena. vice/neckbreaker sequence was really slick. stf into the vice was even nicer. CROSSFACE. BENOIT. BENOIT. loved the lyger bomb, love powerbombs. count out spot was LEGIT. stf counter was pretty cool but loved the piledriver even more than the lyger bomb. not much tops a good piledriver tbh. lotta trust between the two there. i liked the hurricanrana. it got across how drained cena was. **** imo.

hilarious tho that this match happened on raw and you're gonna get gassed roidy vs cena. better hope cena have his big boy carry boots on.


----------



## Obfuscation

I would say Cena carrying Rock would be impossible. To his credit, the one match last year with Rock blew away the crapfests that were Punk vs Rock so maybe the Mania match might be decent enough. Still going in thinking it's gonna suck considering Rock is involved.


----------



## DOPA

*After rewatching the full match with no commercials:

John Cena vs CM Punk (WWE 2/25): **** 1/4*

I loved this second run through and definitely watching the full match helped a lot more with the enjoyment of this thing. A lot of the flaws I saw initially watching this with the Raw commercials were hardly an issue in the context of the full match. This was amazing to rewatch. Current WWE MOTY.


----------



## seabs

Cactus said:


> *NJPW The New Beginning 2013*
> 
> *Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson*
> Karl Anderson, where you been all my life? Has Anderson also been capable of churning out a performance like this?


*He's been doing it for a year or two now. Had a legit really good sprint with Shelton Benjamin of all people last year.*


JoeRulz said:


> That part belongs in my "when he's motivated" remark. He can be a great seller sometimes, but more than often - he's worse than CZW rookies.


*I really hope this is just hyperbole to make your point. Are you bipolar or is there to two people using your account? It's a genuine question that I've discussed with others too. You seem to have stretches where everything you say makes sense and then suddenly you spout a load of stuff that makes zero sense in a short time frame. Swear I've seen you stand up for Cena as a great worker in other threads before. I hope you realise how the ridiculous the CZW rookies line sounds when you read it back.

Didn't have a problem with Cena's selling personally. Took me back a little when he totally shrugged the knees off but he sold it after he made sure he got one more move in before he needed recovery time. There's a difference between delayed selling so the other guy goes down while you go down and just not selling at all so you can do more moves. 

The Cena hate and criticism is nothing new though. I doubt people would be as critical of him if his character didn't cut such annoying babyface promos or if his execution of moves was perfection. Punk's execution of moves is lousy a lot of the time too don't forget.

Lovin Kiz's five word sentence reviews. To the fucking point.*


----------



## Corey

So Hayley comes around on the match, admits he's a knucklehead, and provides us with a link that has the match IN FULL? :mark: :mark: :mark:

That describes my feelings right now. So gonna watch this again after the gym.


----------



## Rah

I often still confuse Bubz with JoeRulz. fpalm

I have no idea why, but I attribute their sigs to other poster. Though both Michael Imperioli and Tom Hardy are epicness.


----------



## Obfuscation

Jack Evans 187 said:


> So Hayley comes around on the match, admits he's a knucklehead, and provides us with a link that has the match IN FULL? :mark: :mark: :mark:
> 
> That describes my feelings right now. So gonna watch this again after the gym.


I always try and make amends for a past transgression.

WWE to post more matches with the "RAW Active" app in use please. :mark:


----------



## Corey

HayleySabin said:


> I always try and make amends for a past transgression.
> 
> WWE to post more matches with the "RAW Active" app in use please. :mark:


:yes :yes :yes

Not only that, when the RAW/SD Best of 2013 dvd comes out, toss us a full length match every now and then. Like this one!


----------



## Obfuscation

It would be stellar. Part of me never quite understood why the live matches never got put in full on discs. If the commentary was the two casually yapping, I suppose it could be cut out for the 3 minutes the match was "on break".

Wasn't the entire Brock vs Angle Iron Man shown in full thanks to a recent WWE DVD set? iirc The Greatest Stars of the 21st Century set.


----------



## Corey

HayleySabin said:


> It would be stellar. Part of me never quite understood why the live matches never got put in full on discs. If the commentary was the two casually yapping, I suppose it could be cut out for the 3 minutes the match was "on break".
> 
> Wasn't the entire Brock vs Angle Iron Man shown in full thanks to a recent WWE DVD set? iirc *The Greatest Stars of the 21st Century *set.


Yep, one of the few reasons one would go out and buy that, since it's basically some repeats with some forgettable TV matches.

EDIT: I take that back since I haven't seen half the matches.


----------



## Obfuscation

Thought so. Wonder if there is any way to nab it via a download. :hmm:


----------



## Chismo

Seabs said:


> *I really hope this is just hyperbole to make your point. Are you bipolar or is there to two people using your account? It's a genuine question that I've discussed with others too. You seem to have stretches where everything you say makes sense and then suddenly you spout a load of stuff that makes zero sense in a short time frame. Swear I've seen you stand up for Cena as a great worker in other threads before. I hope you realise how the ridiculous the CZW rookies line sounds when you read it back.*


I can't call someone a great worker if that someone is motivated maybe twice every year. I like his immense potential to be a world class main eventer, but that's about it. He wasn't good in the Punk match. He was awful in the recent Ziggler trilogy. But I give him massive credit where credit's due, and I've already mentioned that (strange you're forgetting that point) on many, many occasions. For example, a month ago I watched Cena/Umaga and rated it five stars. Huh. Also, the paradox - I dislike Punk, but I'm glad he lost, although his performance was excellent... and Cena was shite, but I'm glad he finally defeated Punk.


----------



## Rah

Quick Q: why are they marketing it as Cena hasn't beat Punk when, well, he beat him in November?


----------



## Caponex75

Rah said:


> Quick Q: why are they marketing it as Cena hasn't beat Punk when, well, he beat him in November?


He never beat him in a big match since MITB. This would be the first time Cena hasn't fumbled since fighting Punk with everything on the line.


----------



## djmathers1207

How was it without the commercials?


----------



## seabs

*I don't follow finer details like that but I'm pretty sure the build was Cena's never beat Punk when it really matters. Their next title match, the build will be Cena's never beat Punk with the title on the line. I hope they keep that gimmick going for years actually. There aren't many obstacles that Cena has to overcome but by somewhat of a fluke they've built that obstacle up really well and it actually makes Punk a legit nemesis for Cena's character. Cena's holding the belt for most of 2013 though and I'd be surprised if he doesn't go over Punk in a title match this year. 

Cena having his flaws in that match I can understand. Disagree on most of the "flaws" raised by people but I can understand where they'd originate from. Saying he was "shite" and "unmotivated" is totally baffling and short sighted though. Especially from someone who has multiple Chuck Taylor matches rated higher.*


----------



## Rah

I guess I can look at it like that (especially with the future prediction Seabs has given - that sounds swell).

Edit:

Match for Cena's Wrestlemania Opportunity
*CM Punk Vs John Cena (WWE Raw 25/02/2013)*​_I'm almost sure it was JoeRulz who penned Okada/Tanahashi at the Dome as a 5-star match purely because of wrestling being storytelling first and foremost. I'm thusly also surprised at him not liking this as Cena/Punk, for me, was the very story of the Dome match with wrestling that blew Okada/Tanahashi out of the water.

Right from the get go you could feel the nerves from Cena (not casually kissing his dog chains as he usually does but, rather, adding a prayer to his routine) and the newfound levels of cockiness oozing off the usually brass Punk. Everything leading up to this point, everything that this watch was riding on, was perfectly cemented by the behaviours of both wrestlers before the match even began. The face of adversity also seemingly changed Cena's approach within wrestling. Normally he relies on his dogmatically lawful/good nature yet knowing what was at stake made him stray from his tennets. Exampilic of this was in how desperation had made Cena hold on to a submission despite the rope-break being called by the referee and only relinquished the hold in the sight of a disqualification.

I've noted the criticisms over Cena's selling, his Frankensteiner and the dubious near count-out yet I cannot find a case for any of them. Sure, the 9-count was certainly not the best application of that spot but, granted, it still popped the crowd and did its job. As for his selling, outside of the sequence that involved the dodged shoulder tackle (when Cena was still relatively fresh), there really and truly is nothing to fault - especially when issues in the matches from DDT4 are glossed over. Watch Cena try lift Punk onto his shoulders after that point, he feigns a struggle in doing so. Yet he was the guy who lifted Brock Lesnar with one frikken arm. Lastly, that Frankensteiner? Beautifully poignant and succinct to the flow of the match and its story. 

You've got to understand this was a desperation move for Cena, he isn't used to delivering it and will, naturally, be rusty in its execution. Now add in to that fact that he had endured Punk's signatures, submissions and finisher as well as a vicious piledriver only moments before. Then couple in the fact of physical exhaustion and a "lazy" take on the move isn't at all hard to forgive or even admire as an additive to the narrative. It made perfect sense to be placed here, noting the cover for Cena's rustiness in its use, as opposed to switching it with the Liger Bomb as Woolcock had proposed. It wasn't done to inflict extra damage in ensuring the subsequent AA was successful, it was entirely about taking Punk by surprise with a move he wouldn't expect and allowing Cena the opportunity to apply the AA.

This was a big time match held in front of a big time crowd for a chance at a big time opportunity - all on free TV. Yeah, this was larger than life._
*Rating:* ★★★★ 1/2


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Punk-Cena was fantastic. So much for someone other than Punk being WWE 2013 WOTY, unless Bryan gets a long title reign out of nowhere or PHIL gets injured. ****+ (have yet to see the full version).


----------



## Obfuscation

djmathers1207 said:


> How was it without the commercials?


Added a bit more to the ground work by Punker on Cena's neck. I think it can help with some who were bothered by the breaks.


----------



## darkclaudio

WWE RAW 25/02

-John Cena vs CM Punk ****+


----------



## Nervosa

cena vs. Punk
***3/4

Once again I am left to feel I am missing something. seriously ****1/2, people?

A great finishing stretch, and not much else. Early part was really blah. could have fast forwarded and missed nothing. Then Cena just diminishes pretty much all of Punk's strikes into oblivion. 

The finish sucked. Yes, I get that the huricurana was for disorientation and desperation. I still think even if he had hit it clean, its way to athletic of a spot for that kind of wrestling at that point in the match. It just was so random and out of place and didn't make a whole lot of sense for me. 

and that's if he hit it clean. He didn't, of course, and it looked like he took more damage than Punk did from that move. If Brock at Wrestlemania 19 is how to a do a self piledriver, this was how to do a self powerbomb. 

I really don't think I have ever liked a match between these two. I guess the Summerslam match was the one I'm ok with. Everything else I just don't see stories: I see spots. Some people like back and forth with no story (Okada/Tanahashi from the dome) but I just need a little more before we get to a finisher fest.


----------



## asdf0501

Nervosa said:


> cena vs. Punk
> ***3/4
> 
> Once again I am left to feel I am missing something. seriously ****1/2, people?
> 
> A great finishing stretch, and not much else. Early part was really blah. could have fast forwarded and missed nothing. Then Cena just diminishes pretty much all of Punk's strikes into oblivion.
> 
> The finish sucked. Yes, I get that the huricurana was for disorientation and desperation. I still think even if he had hit it clean, its way to athletic of a spot for that kind of wrestling at that point in the match.* It just was so random and out of place and didn't make a whole lot of sense for me. *
> 
> and that's if he hit it clean. He didn't, of course, and it looked like he took more damage than Punk did from that move. If Brock at Wrestlemania 19 is how to a do a self piledriver, this was how to do a self powerbomb.
> 
> I really don't think I have ever liked a match between these two. I guess the Summerslam match was the one I'm ok with. Everything else I just don't see stories:* I see spots. Some people like back and forth with no story (Okada/Tanahashi from the dome) but I just need a little more before we get to a finisher fest.*


But that's the whole point, they are not trading finishers because is cool in a Davey Richards way, they're trading finishers because at this point they had been battle so many times and know each others so well that they know that one finisher isn't enough and they need to trade bombs.

That is the reason also for the early work, is work for domination, they are setting up the moment to begin to throw the bombs. Early part of matches doesn't need always to be limbwork, specially in this kind of matches were people need desperately a victory, they just want to desimate his oponent to get their main event spot in the most important event of the year. And sincerely i prefer this kind of early work, than limbwork that is useless at the finishing stretch

Same with the Rana, Cena can't do shit He never has done in a match with this level of importance, and the Rana is a spot he has do it two or three times now. So even looking too much athletic it works because it's not out of his style but is innovative enough to confuse Punk

I will not called it a **** 1/2 match, because Punk and Cena are almost screaming the spots and there is too much awkwardness in the execution. But no story? i get that this is subjective but if you saw the previous matches between them i think is pretty obvious the kind of match they're working

edit: Another problem i had was the fast kickout of the piledriver but that is just a nitpick of me because i marked out for that


----------



## Nervosa

I'm not even saying it has to be limb work. It can be pacing work, or some kind of sustained control. I didn't see any of that here. 'Just setting up to begin to throw the bombs,' can be pretty much anything rendering the early part of the match entirely skippable.


----------



## asdf0501

Well, not because they're struggling for being the man who dominate until the point in wich both said "screw this i will fucking finish you once and for all". That's the main point, they're struggling and you get that emergency and necessity, same necessity wich lead them to began the bombs, is a natural consecuence. They are not setting everything in an obviously way (if you can't forget when they call spots) you get the feeling that every secuence is battle. And this is something that is more needed in current wrestling were early work is almost too cooperative and there is where seems filler, because is portrayed more like a athletic exhibition than a match


----------



## Obfuscation

See, I had the original mindset as Nervosa on my first watch. After I gave it another chance, I'm siding with asdf here. There was a purpose towards it leading up to the eventual hot finish. It was a smarter to not incorporate any limb damage. Choosing the head/neck area to be the place to soften up was logical. More-so when the first wave into the throwing bombs portion was Punk locking in the Anaconda Lock. A submission that focuses on the sore area of Cena in the first half of the match.


----------



## Ham and Egger

Punk/Cena RAW 2/25/2013- **** 

Amazing match. Both guys conveyed a sense of desperation throughout the match which really upped the match.


----------



## Caponex75

Just to acknowledge a few things that are starting to agitate me:

#1 Stop saying "trading finishers like Davey Richards". It's annoying and hilariously untrue. Yeah, Richards does take them but it's part of the story and this is breaded in part to where he finally gets his. Now be aware that I have dropped being a Richards fan since 2011(When he honestly began to rot) and the only match I have downright praised of his has been against Elgin about this time last year. Ironically what annoys me more about this "Trading finishers" issue is that Cena is one of the worst abusers of this. I can probably name about 10 matches where he and another wrestler hit each other with their finishers in about a minute. So seriously shut that shit up. It's annoying.

#2 People need to stop saying matches have no story and that it is just moves. It isn't true and that is also really fucking annoying. Sure, there are some cool fucking moves in there and probably some reversals but that doesn't mean there isn't no story or meaning behind them. I wasn't shitting myself over Elgin vs. Steen or Tanahashi vs. Okada but that doesn't mean there is nothing behind any of the efforts that were had in the match. Elgin has been getting crapped on allot lately even though he is one of the big guys that honestly understands that he is a fucking big guy(Unlike Brian Cage who forgets he isn't a cruiserweight at some points). So please people, stop unneeded crapping on and save it for the real matches that need to be shat on. Like Younger vs. B-boy......what a gigantic pile of shit that was.

As for the Punk vs. Cena match, it's amazing. To tackle a few points Nervosa made, the Cenaranna is suppose to be a move that Punk doesn't recognize coming from Cena the same way Cena wouldn't see a move like the Piledriver coming from Punk. The main point of the match was that both of them were hip to the other's person game so much that one little thing of their offense would give away their next. For instance, Punk's shining wizard in the corner(Which Cena made look devasting). It's usually followed by ether a bulldog or a short arm clothesline and when Punk tried to do his usual schtick, it blew up in his face big time on the two occasions he did it. Same with Cena. His usual Five moves of Doom wouldn't cut it against Punk. If Punk was hit with one of them, he immediately countered the other which was pivotal into truly feeding the story of the match. Hence why we saw the Big Dick Powerbomb and the Piledriver. The ongoing theme is Punk being THE ultimate rival to John Cena which was driven home to us from a story point and a storyline point(Cena mentioning he can't beat Punk when it counts). It honestly is one of the best fucking matches that this year has had thus far.


----------



## Obfuscation

All gripes towards Michael Elgin lately have been fitting. b/c his matches have all been bad or unmemorable outside of the PWG match vs Eddie Edwards last year. This includes the jerk-fest vs Richards.


----------



## Caponex75

Even in PWG, Elgin had a great match with Ricochet and a solid bout with Mack that was really good. His match with Strong in ROH last year was also a extremely solid contest and that is coming from a guy that doesn't even watch Elgin like that. The only real offensive match I have seen from Elgin is his second bout with Richards in BOLA and even that wasn't terrible.


----------



## Bubz

I can't be bothered to type a lot because I'm on my phone and it takes the piss, but I will say that Cena/Punk definitely had a swell story. Everything made sense. I will also say that the piledriver will probably be the best fucking spot all year. Seriously, nobody expected that.


----------



## Obfuscation

Caponex75 said:


> Even in PWG, Elgin had a great match with Ricochet and a solid bout with Mack that was really good. His match with Strong in ROH last year was also a extremely solid contest and that is coming from a guy that doesn't even watch Elgin like that. The only real offensive match I have seen from Elgin is his second bout with Richards in BOLA and even that wasn't terrible.


Ricochet match was decent. Rest I didn't care for. Hated the match vs Mack actually. Mack is terrible himself too.


----------



## Rah

asdf0501 said:


> because Punk and Cena are almost screaming the spots


I had it on my television at a pretty loud volume and only caught them doing this ONCE and that was only because the camera was right up in their grill. They weren't shouting out moves, they kept it pretty damn covert (within the restholds). 

Besides, it's such a small gripe in the greater scheme of things. You could process the same conclusion (in breaking kayfabe) from most of the moves they did.


----------



## Obfuscation

I heard it once. Following it subsided. Got a bit nervous there. Wasn't sure if it would be another Punk/Rock fiasco where you see & hear the spots clearly.


----------



## Nervosa

Everytime a match with no real story has a ton of counters, people end up playing it off like the counters are the story. If you can skip the first ten minutes without the match losing anyhting, there is a story problem.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Pro wrestling "story" doesn't really mean much. Punk and Cena are fighting for a WRESTLEMANIA main event. That's the story. The fake fighting quality is what determines how good of a fake fighting match are they going to have. Pro wrestling is a shitty storytelling medium. When the "narrative" is the strongest point of the match the said match rarely turns out to be as good as those that actually focus on the fake fighting. I'm trying to think of recent examples of a match where the narrative WAS the strongest point of the match and the match turned out to be really good, there's Tanahashi vs Yano............and yep that's it. I enjoy counters and don't see why there's anything wrong with that or why I should try to make up a story that wasn't there for my opinion to be taken seriously. It would just make me look foolish for trying to notice something that doesn't exist.


----------



## MF83

Oh, Mr. y2j, just link it. Storytelling?

I've barely seen anything from 2013 this year so everybody give me top 10s on the year after two months... please?


----------



## Nervosa

I can understand your point breakerj, but I really see a lot more story in many MOTYCs, and I truly think is indeed intentional. To me, when limbwork is done, that is genuinely why: there is a purpose to everything that is being done in the match. It doesn't have to be limbwork but that is one example. For a lot of what I consider truly great recent matches, a purpose behind the moves is what tells a story. Its why not every big spotfest is necessarily a match of the year for me. You said that Pro Wrestling is a shitty storytelling medium, and I understand why you said that, but call me crazy; I honestly think Pro Wrestling is a great storytelling medium. Its just one that requires a lot of effort and creativity to pull of correctly. 

I just think its interesting in what context 'just throwing bombs' is ok and in what context it isn't. So this match was for a Mania titleshot, and they wrestled each other before, so tons of counters and bombs with no buildup and/or purpose behind them is fine? Ok, well, what about MITB two years, which was a rather early encounter in their history. Still a lot of counters in that match, but pretty much the entire match was a bunch of stalling and then a bunch of counters and bombs. Did Monday's match really have all that much more 'they know each other so well' counters than Money in the bank did? I think both matches came off at a very equal level of 'familiarity' if you ignore Cole's insipid commentary about it on Monday.

I don't know, it just feels like hypocrisy to me. I see tons of indy matches, even in the past year, that crumble into 'two guys throwing bombs.' The X Division from 6 years ago also comes to mind. These matches are almost universally panned, nowadays. But then a match like this happens and people love the counters and bombs so much that they are somehow excusable here but not with other matches doing the exact same thing. And honestly I do not see the difference. Sometimes I think the spectacle of it gets in the way. I mean, if you guys just gave it that rating for big match feel, I guess it makes sense, but I have seen this formula a million times and the first ten minutes, whether its WWE or shitsplat indy, ends up coming off as completely empty, and only there to waste time until both guys can start swinging for the fences. I like a good powerful series of moves as much as the next guy, but that's all this really seemed to be. And if a good/great finishing stretch makes the early part of the match superfluous, why didn't they just start throwing bombs from the opening bell?


----------



## blink_41sum_182

HayleySabin said:


> All gripes towards Michael Elgin lately have been fitting. b/c his matches have all been bad or unmemorable outside of the PWG match vs Eddie Edwards last year. This includes the jerk-fest vs Richards.


I never saw anyone rate that match that high until Seabs said it was **** 1/2 and suddenly everyone agrees with him.


----------



## seabs

*^ That's the effect I have :robben2

I'm pretty sure Cody watched it before me and had it around ****. Most people had it around that mark actually. Can only recall Alan4L loving it as much as I did in terms of a rating. The general acceptance of the match was that it was ***3/4-****.*


----------



## blink_41sum_182

I love Elgin so I'm not sure what point I'm trying to make but I'm tired. 

Time to sleep.


----------



## Corey

MF83 said:


> Oh, Mr. y2j, just link it. Storytelling?
> 
> I've barely seen anything from 2013 this year so everybody give me top 10s on the year after two months... please?


WWE & TNA only.

1. John Cena vs. CM Punk (_RAW 2/25_)
2. Elimination Chamber Match (_WWE Elimination Chamber_)
3. The Shield vs. Cena, Ryback, & Sheamus (_WWE Elimination Chamber_)

Honorable Mentions:

- CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (_RAW 2/4)
_- Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (_Main Event_ _1/9_)
- Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (_Main Event 2/13_)
- The Shield vs. Jericho, Ryback & Sheamus (_RAW 2/18_)

I should've just said WWE since TNA has nothing.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Jack Evans 187 said:


> WWE & TNA only.
> 
> 1. John Cena vs. CM Punk (_RAW 2/25_)
> 2. Elimination Chamber Match (_WWE Elimination Chamber_)
> 3. The Shield vs. Cena, Ryback, & Sheamus (_WWE Elimination Chamber_)
> 
> Honorable Mentions:
> 
> - CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (_RAW 2/4)
> _- Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (_Main Event_ _1/9_)
> - Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (_Main Event 2/13_)
> - The Shield vs. Jericho, Ryback & Sheamus (_RAW 2/18_)
> 
> I should've just said WWE since TNA has nothing.


Daniels vs Hardy, Hardy vs Roode vs Aries, ARIES VS ROODE all were great matches.


----------



## seabs

*Elgin most of the time isn't very good. I wouldn't say bad but just not all that good. Sometimes when it all clicks he's great though. All the bad performances don't make it him a WOTYC just because he has the odd great match and/or performance.*


----------



## Corey

EmbassyForever said:


> Daniels vs Hardy, Hardy vs Roode vs Aries, ARIES VS ROODE all were great matches.


Never saw Daniels vs. Hardy, didn't think the Genesis 3-way was anything special, & never saw Aries vs. Roode. Heard it was a lot of fun but can't imagine anything making into a MOTYC thread. That's how this thread gets ridiculous; when we start posting ridiculous lists with every match that's worth watching from companies.

Unfortunately due to the awful looking card for Lockdown, can't imagine anything from TNA hitting a **** level anytime soon.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Never saw Daniels vs. Hardy, didn't think the Genesis 3-way was anything special, & never saw Aries vs. Roode. Heard it was a lot of fun but can't imagine anything making into a MOTYC thread. That's how this thread gets ridiculous; when we start posting ridiculous lists with every match that's worth watching from companies.
> 
> Unfortunately due to the awful looking card for Lockdown, can't imagine anything from TNA hitting a **** level anytime soon.


The thing with Aries and Roode that it wasn't only a comedy match, they had good minutes of wrestling. These matches (well in my opinion at least) should be at the HM section of course. You thought that Punk vs Jericho, Shield vs Jericho, Ryback and Sheamus & Ziggler vs Sheamus were over ***1/2?


----------



## Corey

EmbassyForever said:


> The thing with Aries and Roode that it wasn't only a comedy match, they had good minutes of wrestling. These matches (well in my opinion at least) should be at the HM section of course. You thought that Punk vs Jericho, Shield vs Jericho, Ryback and Sheamus & Ziggler vs Sheamus were over ***1/2?


Yeah, Punk/Jericho & Sheamus/Ziggler at *** 3/4 and the RAW 6 man at *** 1/2. Frankly they won't be making it onto any lists at the end of the year but he wanted a top ten list so I threw the honorable mentions in there. The first 3 matches are my actual MOTYC list.

I wasn't directing my comment towards posting everything watchable to you, it's just a general statement. If you enjoyed those TNA matches and think they should be in here, go for it.


----------



## antoniomare007

I get if people don't like what Punk and Cena did, it's a very polarizing style really (the same happens with most Tanahashi matches). But I don't get what's the point on trying to categorize every match like that as if it's all the same. 

I don't buy for 1 second that anyone thinks what Punk and Cena did is the same as some random heatless indy match. The fact that there is great heat and there's a big match feel make it a completely different thing. How is it so hard to understand that?



Caponex75 said:


> #2 People need to stop saying matches have no story and that it is just moves. It isn't true and that is also really fucking annoying.


This I agree 100%. I fucking hate when people start with "It had no story blah blah blah". Every match has a story, the key is how the wrestlers are able to tell it, the structure they give to it and how they execute. 

Even if it's a spotfest it just means the story and structure was lousy...but sometimes it can still be a great match if the spots build to some kind of climax, the crowd is into it and the execution doesn't suck ass.


----------



## djmathers1207

WWE

1. John Cena vs. CM Punk- Raw 2/25/13
2. Elimination Chamber match- Elimination Chamber
3. The Rock vs. CM Punk- Elimination Chamber

TNA

1. Jeff Hardy vs. Austin Aries vs. Bobby Roode- Genesis

Honorable mentions

Chris Jericho vs. Daniel Bryan- Raw 2/11/13
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho- Raw 2/3/13
Alberto Del Rio vs. Big Show- Smackdown 1/11/13
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler- Main Event 2/13/13
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler- 2/1/13
John Cena vs. Dolph Ziggler- Raw 1/7/13
CM Punk vs. Ryback- Raw 1/7/13


----------



## Rah

> If you can skip the first ten minutes without the match losing anyhting, there is a story problem.


Yet most people claim to have appreciated the match more _once they watched that link without the commercial breaks_. For me, the story wasn't started in the match, the last chapter was written. The premise is that Cena hasn't beaten Punk at every big turn. Yet they've faced each other countless times before and have learnt how the other wrestles/drives a control sequence. Do I think their familiarity has heightened since MitB? Of course it has. You may argue that they've faced off many times before MitB 2011 yet the determination to win and the premise was different. Punk hadn't bested Cena to this extent before, and each encounter since forced the other to step up their game to not be caught lacking.

___________________________
Right, so it's catchup time. Man, I wish you guys would keep your MotY lists updated, it'd save me the hasssle in scouring this entire thread!


Nervosa said:


> Anyone besides me watching it live?
> 
> EDIT: Like Cactus and Bubs, I'll use this for my running list for the year.


:heyman


Vacated CMLL World Light Heavyweight Championship
*Volador Jr Vs Rey Escorpión*
Link (CMLL 02/02/2013)​I honestly wish I had seen this sooner, when 777 had mentioned it, because this was stellar. I totally didn't see Rey picking up the win but the narrative in doing so made me a firm believer in this match's outcome.

It was a novel treat to witness a tope from earlier on in the match (which Rey bumped like a champ for) played on throughout. What with the terrible landing proving an early undoing for Volador. It was now Rey who was in control, making every opportunity to taunt towards the crowd as if he was mockingly saying "where's your big man, now?!" (a play on their crowd-interaction from before the match in which everyone screamed for Volador). It was great to see a desperate Volador lay in a great dive off the stage while Rey was distracted by his own cockiness - a move that would underpin a slow descent within Rey's control. Volador's pinfall in the second round was notable, too, as it was the very move that Rey had countered in getting his victory in the first.

Obviously, as the match went on, Volador would slowly gain ground on the weakening Rey (which may, however, be seen as 'your turn'/'my turn' spam). But it wasn't enough. Volador was just too badly injured to pull out a victory here, and post-match had to be stretchered out of the arena. Unable to have captured the title, but no one here could deny he never gave his all.
*Rating:* ★★★★ 1/4 -


*The Shield Vs John Cena, Ryback & Sheamus (WWE Elimination Chamber)​*Oh, man, am I fan of the booking here.

On the one side you have three newbies, on the other, you have "The Three Pillars" of WWE - a trio of the most dominant singles competitors in the company today. But that's just it, _singles competitors_. The cohesive dynamic of The Shield would prove to be their detriment. You have the calculated grappler (Rollins), the maniacal leader who called the action (Ambrose) and the powerhouse (Roman) who could stand toe-to-toe with their opponents, physically.

Bubz wrote up a great review, so I'm not going to add much to this as it'll simply be a rehash of what's been noted countless times already.


Spoiler: Bubz' review



Oh yeah, this was great. The Shield are being booked far beyond what I thought they would. They're really building them as this destructive unstoppable force when they're together and it's awesome. It helps that each one of them shows intensity and fire when they're in the ring and they have this great aura surrounding them. Cena was great in this as the FIP though. Great workover and really good comeback spots from Cena. Absolutely loved the spot with Cena getting a shot in, running the ropes and then Ambrose running right after him and fucking him up with a knee and a DDT. Sick spot. Ambrose fucking ruled in this imo, he's just great. Reigns being this powerhouse enforcer type guy is a great role for him especially in this kind of match when Ambrose and Rollins can do the majority of stuff while Reigns still looks boss coming in every now and then. Really am pumped with how these guys have been booked and thrust right into the main event with the top stars and look absolutely at home there. Cena launching Ambrose over the ropes and then selling the exhaustion and getting the hot tag to Ryback was ace, and this is where a guy like Ryback can be so good, because he really did look great here and in the TLC match as a beast that one on one could man handle every guy. His power moves definitely are pretty boss in this situation. Barricade spot ruled despite them doing it all the time it seems, because it was unpredictable and Lilian almost got killed. Sheamus didn't do much at all here, but his one spot near the start when he caught Dean with the Brogue kick out of desperation to tag in Cena was brilliant. The finish was really well done imo, everything got across that these guys are an unstoppable pack of wolves that have the best team mentality ever. Yeah, I really liked this a lot.


*Rating:* ★★★★


*Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera Vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita*
LINK (IWRG 18/02/2013)​This was the very embodiment of what Mexican wrestling is all about; high-flying, technical mastery and LOADS OF VIOLENCE! Mark-out central. No more words are needed.
*Rating:* ★★★★ 1/4+


Wasn't too sold on the AJPW trios tag from 10/02 (though, admittedly, I was half-watching) nor the Sekimoto/Ishii tag from LegendPro 13/01.


----------



## flag sabbath

My favourite matches of 2013 thus far:

*****3/4*
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack, 7/4)

*****1/2*
Best of the Super Juniors Final (NJPW, 9/6)

*****1/4*
Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 3/1)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7, 4/1)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW New Beginning, 10/2)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hirooki Goto (NJPW 17/2)
Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs. Takao Omori & Manabu Soya (AJPW 17/3)
Ricochet & Rich Swann vs. Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox (PWG ASW9, 22/3)
CM Punk vs. The Undertaker (WWE WrestleMania, 7/4)

******
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7, 4/1)
Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 2/2)
John Cena vs. CM Punk (WWE Raw 25/2)
Chaos vs. Suzuki Gun (Elimination, NJPW 41st Anniversary, 3/3)
Masakatsu Funaki vs. Suwama (AJPW 17/3)
Young Bucks vs. Chuck Taylor & Johnny Gargano (PWG ASW9 22/3)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hirooki Goto (NJPW 23/3)
Killer Elite Squad vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 5/4)
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW 18/4)
Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW 21/4)
Go Shiozaki vs. Kai (AJPW, 29/4)
Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW 29/4)
Kenta Kobashi, Keiji Muto, Jun Akiyama & Kensuke Sasaki vs. Kenta, Go Shiozaki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Maybach Taniguchi (Final Burning, 11/5)
Kenta vs. Takashi Suguira (NOAH, 12/5)
Sami Callihan vs. Shane Hollister (AAW, 17/5)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. La Sombra (CMLL, 31/5)
Kris Travis vs. Chris Masters (PCW 1/6)
Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs. Suwama & Joe Doering (AJPW, 2/6)
***** Casas, Valiente & Stuka Jr. vs. Fuego, Virus & Vangellys (CMLL, 14/6)
Forever Hooligans vs. Time Splitters (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)

****3/4*
Titan vs. Polvora (CMLL 1/1)
Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7, 4/1)
Young Bucks vs. Inner City Machineguns (PWG DDT4, 13/1)
Young Bucks vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico (PWG DDT4, 13/1)
Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio (Last Man Standing, SmackDown 18/1)
Jimmy Jacobs vs. Adam Cole (ROH Hunt For The Gold, 18/1)
Mascara Dorada, Titan & La Sombra vs. Volador Jr., Mr Aguila & Psicosis (CMLL 25/1)
Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (NOAH 27/1)
Volador Jr vs. Rey Escorpion (CMLL 29/1)
Ryuji Ito, Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto vs. Shadow WX, Shuji Ishikawa & Takashi Sasaki (Lighttubes, BJW 8/2)
Jun Akiyama, Kotaro Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Takao Omori, Manabu Soya & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 10/2)
The Shield vs. John Cena, Sheamus & Ryback (WWE Elimination Chamber, 17/2)
Shuji Kondo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (AJPW 23/2)
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Lethal (ROH 11YA, 2/3)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (NJPW 41st Anniversary, 3/3)
Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (AJPW 17/3)
Paul London vs. Kevin Steen (PWG ASW9, 22/3)
Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (Guerilla Warfare, PWG ASW9, 22/3)
Young Bucks vs. Dojo Bros (PWG ASW9, 23/3)
Ricochet vs. Samuray Del Sol (King of Flight, 24/3)
Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Masato Tanaka & Yujiro Takahashi (NJPW Invasion Attack, 7/4)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (NJPW Invasion Attack, 7/4)
William Regal vs. Kassius Ohno (NXT, 11/4)
Kevin Steen vs. John Hennigan (2CW Living on the Edge VIII, 20/4)
Chaos vs. Suzuki-gun (Elimination, NJPW 21/4)
Kevin Steen vs. Kris Travis (PCW Spring Slam, 26/4)
Rey Cometa vs. Namajague (Hair vs. Mask, CMLL 26/4)
Koji Kanemoto, Minoru Tanaka & Hiroshi Yamato vs. Kotaro Suzuki, Atsushi Aoki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (AJPW 29/4)
Antonio Cesaro vs. Kofi Kingston (WWE Main Event, 1/5)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW Dontaku, 3/5)
Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant (Chikara, 3/5)
Shingo Takagi vs. BxB Hulk (Dragon Gate, 10/5)
The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (WWE Raw, 20/5)
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (NJPW, 24/5)
Ricochet vs. Shingo Takagi (Dragon Gate, 25/5)
Naruki Doi, Rich Swann & Shachihoko Boy vs. Masaaki Mochizuki, Jimmy Susumu & K-Ness (Dragon Gate, 5/6)
Kenny Omega vs. Kushida (NJPW, 6/6)
Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki & Shelton Benjamin (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)


----------



## Chismo

Elgin has quite large collection of awesome matches for someone who is "shit".


----------



## Bubz

@Rah, my list is updated I think, maybe not punk/cena I cant remember. But everything I'd have ****+ is there.

Also Elgin has maybe 3 matches that I cared for. I haven't liked anything he's done in PWG apart from his tag against the bucks at ddt4 and the Edwards match. I'd go as far as to say I hated most of them. Really, he isn't very good at all. Plus he always tries to do that running to the opponent when they pull the rope down and he goes flying over it spot all the time and always fucks it up. Annoying. The reason he was good in the tag is the same reason Ryback is good in the shield matches.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Nervosa said:


> I can understand your point breakerj, but I really see a lot more story in many MOTYCs, and I truly think is indeed intentional. To me, when limbwork is done, that is genuinely why: there is a purpose to everything that is being done in the match. It doesn't have to be limbwork but that is one example. For a lot of what I consider truly great recent matches, a purpose behind the moves is what tells a story. Its why not every big spotfest is necessarily a match of the year for me. You said that Pro Wrestling is a shitty storytelling medium, and I understand why you said that, but call me crazy; I honestly think Pro Wrestling is a great storytelling medium. Its just one that requires a lot of effort and creativity to pull of correctly.
> 
> I just think its interesting in what context 'just throwing bombs' is ok and in what context it isn't. So this match was for a Mania titleshot, and they wrestled each other before, so tons of counters and bombs with no buildup and/or purpose behind them is fine? Ok, well, what about MITB two years, which was a rather early encounter in their history. Still a lot of counters in that match, but pretty much the entire match was a bunch of stalling and then a bunch of counters and bombs. Did Monday's match really have all that much more 'they know each other so well' counters than Money in the bank did? I think both matches came off at a very equal level of 'familiarity' if you ignore Cole's insipid commentary about it on Monday.
> 
> I don't know, it just feels like hypocrisy to me. I see tons of indy matches, even in the past year, that crumble into 'two guys throwing bombs.' The X Division from 6 years ago also comes to mind. These matches are almost universally panned, nowadays. But then a match like this happens and people love the counters and bombs so much that they are somehow excusable here but not with other matches doing the exact same thing. And honestly I do not see the difference. Sometimes I think the spectacle of it gets in the way. I mean, if you guys just gave it that rating for big match feel, I guess it makes sense, but I have seen this formula a million times and the first ten minutes, whether its WWE or shitsplat indy, ends up coming off as completely empty, and only there to waste time until both guys can start swinging for the fences. I like a good powerful series of moves as much as the next guy, but that's all this really seemed to be. And if a good/great finishing stretch makes the early part of the match superfluous, why didn't they just start throwing bombs from the opening bell?


None of what you mention is storytelling. Selling a limb the right way is not storytelling is any way, shape or form. It's selling. And selling, toghether with a lot of other factors, are a part of the ring psychology workers use. Name me examples of matches that tell great stories. I don't want 1-2, you're a pro wrestling fan, you should've seen enough to name like......50. Come on, try. I'm geniunly interested in your explanations. Punk vs Cena I enjoyed very much because it had a lot of elements of pro wrestling I enjoy (counters, sequences, big spots, matwork) done the right way structured into a logicall pro wrestling match. There WAS no-selling in Punk vs Cena. That's a fair point to complain about......but I won't since they DID in fact sell, they'd just do so after a painful hold or a big move, which is realistic and what any non-retarded human being would do in a real fight. The storytelling in Punk-Cena is no different than in any high profile Okada match you enjoyed.



Akiyama-Kobashi 24.7.1998. is my favourite match ever. I could talk about it for hours. Here's the story it tells: Kobashi is the champion. Akiyama is the challenger. They put on a fantastic match. Kobashi wins.


That's it. That's the _story_ of the said match. Now, if you want to know why that match worked even thought it had some elements you'd find in a Davey Richards match (not kidding), I'll gladly elaborate.




> This I agree 100%. I fucking hate when people start with "It had no story blah blah blah". Every match has a story, the key is how the wrestlers are able to tell it, the structure they give to it and how they execute.


Every match does, indeed have a story. Two wrestlers fight. One wins. The end. Wrestlers can, and by all means should, interpret simple and effective stories in their matches. Jumbo Tsuruta did, but Misawa didn't get over because of Jumbo's GREAT STORIES~!, he got over because Jumbo sold for him. In fact Jumbo didn't tell great stories, but he did interpet normal stories into kick-ass pro wrestling matches. That's my argument. Storytelling doesn't make great pro wrestling matches. I'm not saying it's Satan's creation, it's just vastly overrated in pro wrestling match analysis.


----------



## Chismo

Yeah, storytelling was fine in Punk/Cena, and I never complained about that, my biggest gripe was Cena's shitty performing.

Re-watched the Active version of the match, btw, and still have it at ***. Good match, but Punk/Jericho was better.


----------



## asdf0501

Caponex75 said:


> Just to acknowledge a few things that are starting to agitate me:
> 
> #1 Stop saying "trading finishers like Davey Richards". It's annoying and hilariously untrue. Yeah, Richards does take them but it's part of the story and this is breaded in part to where he finally gets his. Now be aware that I have dropped being a Richards fan since 2011(When he honestly began to rot) and the only match I have downright praised of his has been against Elgin about this time last year. Ironically what annoys me more about this "Trading finishers" issue is that Cena is one of the worst abusers of this. I can probably name about 10 matches where he and another wrestler hit each other with their finishers in about a minute. So seriously shut that shit up. It's annoying.





Nervosa said:


> I don't know, it just feels like hypocrisy to me. I see tons of indy matches, even in the past year, that crumble into 'two guys throwing bombs.' The X Division from 6 years ago also comes to mind. These matches are almost universally panned, nowadays. But then a match like this happens and people love the counters and bombs so much that they are somehow excusable here but not with other matches doing the exact same thing. And honestly I do not see the difference. Sometimes I think the spectacle of it gets in the way. I mean, if you guys just gave it that rating for big match feel, I guess it makes sense, but I have seen this formula a million times and the first ten minutes, whether its WWE or shitsplat indy, ends up coming off as completely empty, and only there to waste time until both guys can start swinging for the fences. I like a good powerful series of moves as much as the next guy, but that's all this really seemed to be. And if a good/great finishing stretch makes the early part of the match superfluous, why didn't they just start throwing bombs from the opening bell?


I will adrees both points together because is almost the same

The point is, basically context. Is not hipocresy because here it really feel special and the context of the matches give the wrestler a real reason to throw bombs. You get wrestlers throwing the bombs in WWE main event style for almost the last 10 years and it works because you see this kind of matches when matters, so it put over the scenary where is happen and the moment and at the same time give to the wreslters their imagery of fighting for their spots and how important are for them, wich is a story in itself and the thing almost all can see here. You will never will see Cena throwing bombs in a tag or in a 5 minutes gallery or a standard match. Wich is the point.

Then this structure can have his failures, for example HHH vs Taker in WM but that is to the wrestler and how they work this structure.

The difference between this and "davey Richards throwing bombs" or indy style is that this trowing bombs is a standard match there so you never get the idea behind doing it in that way, wich obliviate any story behind doing it in that way. every main event match in ROH today feel the same because is just had always the same structure, so when you are telling the "Davey Richards is frustrated" all is trowing bombs and when you need the "Elgin is a underdog fighting for get to the main event level" again is all trowing bombs. Obviously the first times works because you feel that is innovative but when all the matches resort to the same it lose more significance each and every time 

Same with the Spotfests and X Division matches, where the work is too much cooperative for moments so you can't fell a match more than an exhibition, when they Instead can build for the spots moment and increasing the difficult of them, like you see in some Luchas matches or the Kaientai multi tags

This is the same reason why a piledriver or a wrestler bleeding feel so special in a WWE match and is great, you see that kind of things so few times that when it happens it's feel special and really express the reasons why is happening. But when you see Davey Richards breaking a two count after a death valley driver it feel meaningless


----------



## 777

ywall2breakerj said:


> None of what you mention is storytelling. Selling a limb the right way is not storytelling is any way, shape or form. It's selling. And selling, toghether with a lot of other factors, are a part of the ring psychology workers use. Name me examples of matches that tell great stories. I don't want 1-2, you're a pro wrestling fan, you should've seen enough to name like......50. Come on, try. I'm geniunly interested in your explanations. Punk vs Cena I enjoyed very much because it had a lot of elements of pro wrestling I enjoy (counters, sequences, big spots, matwork) done the right way structured into a logicall pro wrestling match. There WAS no-selling in Punk vs Cena. That's a fair point to complain about......but I won't since they DID in fact sell, they'd just do so after a painful hold or a big move, which is realistic and what any non-retarded human being would do in a real fight. The storytelling in Punk-Cena is no different than in any high profile Okada match you enjoyed.
> 
> 
> 
> Akiyama-Kobashi 24.7.1998. is my favourite match ever. I could talk about it for hours. Here's the story it tells: Kobashi is the champion. Akiyama is the challenger. They put on a fantastic match. Kobashi wins.
> 
> 
> That's it. That's the _story_ of the said match. Now, if you want to know why that match worked even thought it had some elements you'd find in a Davey Richards match (not kidding), I'll gladly elaborate.
> 
> 
> 
> Every match does, indeed have a story. Two wrestlers fight. One wins. The end. Wrestlers can, and by all means should, interpret simple and effective stories in their matches. Jumbo Tsuruta did, but Misawa didn't get over because of Jumbo's GREAT STORIES~!, he got over because Jumbo sold for him. In fact Jumbo didn't tell great stories, but he did interpet normal stories into kick-ass pro wrestling matches. That's my argument. Storytelling doesn't make great pro wrestling matches. I'm not saying it's Satan's creation, it's just vastly overrated in pro wrestling match analysis.


I think you're oversimplifying. Think of it like subplot. Within the confines of the bigger story of Wrestler A vs Wrestler B for Reason C, there's the match itself and selling is the acting which attempts to convey to the audience what should be a logical progression of the actions in the ring. 
Wearing down an opponent, working a limb, changing strategies etc., these are all tools at the performers' disposal and really great psychology will have the in-ring mesh with the overlying arc. However, there 'is' supposed to be a story told through their actions that can work beyond that storyline and should be able to stand alone. 

I miss the old-school feeling-out process and collar-and-elbow tie ups.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

> there's the match itself and selling is the acting which attempts to convey to the audience what should be a logical progression of the actions in the ring.
> Wearing down an opponent, working a limb, changing strategies etc., these are all tools at the performers' disposal and really great psychology will have the in-ring mesh with the overlying arc. However, there 'is' supposed to be a story told through their actions that can work beyond that storyline and should be able to stand alone.


Here's the thing though-pro wrestling matches aren't good stories. I think Cena-Lesnar is a fantastic match. It's an awesome spectacle of violence and anyone who's seen it will agree. "Cena overcomes the odd yet again after getting his ass kicked for the majority of the match" is, however, the story absolutely no one likes. But I didn't see anyone with a half of brain disliking it because of "shit storytelling". I'm not saying that a narrative in a pro wrestling match *doesn't* exist-it absolutely does. In 99% of the matches it's just not something that stands out particularly and a number of folks act like it does.


----------



## Rah

ywall2breakerj said:


> I think Cena-Lesnar is a fantastic match. It's an awesome spectacle of violence *and anyone who's seen it will agree.*


Some among us would seemingly disagree. :angry:

*goes back to lurking through this discussion*



Bubz said:


> @Rah, my list is updated I think, maybe not punk/cena I cant remember. But everything I'd have ****+ is there.


Yep, I think you only missed the Cena/Punk match. Mostly with regard to Seabs (I'm almost sure he had a list-post) and Nervosa who hasn't even updated his at all.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Y U NO LIKE NO SHOOT STRIKING!?


Corner. Sit.


----------



## Rah

Not me, though I won't mention any names.


----------



## 777

ywall2breakerj said:


> *Here's the thing though-pro wrestling matches aren't good stories.* I think Cena-Lesnar is a fantastic match. It's an awesome spectacle of violence and anyone who's seen it will agree. "Cena overcomes the odd yet again after getting his ass kicked for the majority of the match" is, however, the story absolutely no one likes. But I didn't see anyone with a half of brain disliking it because of "shit storytelling". I'm not saying that a narrative in a pro wrestling match *doesn't* exist-it absolutely does. In 99% of the matches it's just not something that stands out particularly and a number of folks act like it does.


Bolded is debatable, depending on the viewer. The in-ring story is supposed to mimic actual violence/wrestling, thus great in-ring psychology and storytelling go hand in hand in trying to make the work as true to life as possible.

I personally wasn't overly impressed with Brock/Cena mostly based on Cena's performance which I can't stand in any circumstance. Other than the spectacle of the thing and the displayed toughness, the work itself wasn't particularly exceptional. 

Towards your last point, I think you'd be surprised at how much in-ring storytelling affects the audience whether they are actively aware of it or not. It works best on a subliminal level. Things that make no sense jar people out of their state of suspended disbelief.


----------



## Obfuscation

JoeRulz said:


> Elgin has quite large collection of awesome matches for someone who is "shit".


So does John Cena.



Jack Evans 187 said:


> WWE & TNA only.
> 
> 1. John Cena vs. CM Punk (_RAW 2/25_)
> 2. Elimination Chamber Match (_WWE Elimination Chamber_)
> 3. The Shield vs. Cena, Ryback, & Sheamus (_WWE Elimination Chamber_)
> 
> Honorable Mentions:
> 
> - CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (_RAW 2/4)
> _- Sheamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (_Main Event_ _1/9_)
> - Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (_Main Event 2/13_)
> - The Shield vs. Jericho, Ryback & Sheamus (_RAW 2/18_)
> 
> I should've just said WWE since TNA has nothing.


Joseph Park vs Devon Hughes from Genesis :side:

Some of the biggest amount of FUN I've had this year.


----------



## seabs

Rah said:


> Yep, I think you only missed the Cena/Punk match. Mostly with regard to Seabs (I'm almost sure he had a list-post) and Nervosa who hasn't even updated his at all.


*Pretty sure I never made one of them. Shit, I don't have a notepad file yet. Still finishing off 2012 

From what I've watched so far my legit MOTYC's would be Nakamura/Sakuraba, Tanahashi/Anderson, ADR/Show, Bucks/Steenerico and Cena/Punk.*


----------



## Obfuscation

I got 10 "legit" MOTYC so far. Implied ****+ territory. A good bunch are in the close honorable mentions list. _(British Ambition tags, Nakamura/Sombra, etc)_

Screw it. I need to see the main event from Defy or Deny 2013. It's gotten some good praise from a few so what the hell. DDT4 might come after it. At least the opener. So I can experience the hoopla for myself.


----------



## Nervosa

You said that selling as limb doesn't count as a story, but I think a limb being worked in definitely a story. It establishes and weakness and sets the table for a comeback. If you want me to really name 50 matches that have a limb workover and a comeback I can give them to you. That is more than just Wrestler A vs. Wrestler B and A wins. The selling tells a story. Wrestler A has to overcome Wrestler B's neckwork. that is an extra story than 'just a match'. 

Even you cena/Lesnar example, for me, has a story. Cena surviving due to getting lucky after Brock's arrogance cost him the match. Cena surviving is what made that match different and speical for me. That, for me is a story.

I'm sorry if I classify stories differently than you, breaker. Maybe I'm wrong. To me, spots for the sake of spots does tell the story of 'wrestler B beats Wrestler A.' I totally agree on that. For a match to be great in my book, I need more to a story than that, and for me, Cena/Punk did not have anything more. Is that a fair way for me to say that?


----------



## Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

WWE MOTYC PPV:

Shield/Cena, Sheamus & Ryback- EC 13 ******
Elimination Chamber- EC 13 ****1/2*

From Raw however
Cena/Punk: ******
Shield/Jericho, Sheamus & Ryback: ****3/4*
Jericho/Punk: ****1/2*


----------



## MF83

Matty defines "storytelling" to settle this once and for all: 

_The subjectively measured, combined breadth and depth of recurring and/or developing psychological elements with regards to the progression of layout within a professional wrestling match, match series and/or angle._ 

Thanks all for your lists.


----------



## Corey

HayleySabin said:


> Joseph Park vs Devon Hughes from Genesis :side:
> 
> Some of the biggest amount of FUN I've had this year.


Yeah, you plugged that one to me in the TNA thread. Still haven't watched.


----------



## Obfuscation

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Yeah, you plugged that one to me in the TNA thread. Still haven't watched.


I'm persistent.

arks


----------



## asdf0501

ywall2breakerj said:


> Here's the thing though-pro wrestling matches aren't good stories. I think Cena-Lesnar is a fantastic match.* It's an awesome spectacle of violence and anyone who's seen it will agree. "Cena overcomes the odd yet again after getting his ass kicked for the majority of the match" is, however, the story absolutely no one likes. But I didn't see anyone with a half of brain disliking it because of "shit storytelling"*. I'm not saying that a narrative in a pro wrestling match *doesn't* exist-it absolutely does. In 99% of the matches it's just not something that stands out particularly and a number of folks act like it does.



Explain to me why then the match begins with the normal 50/50 Cena reaction and by the end all the people is cheering for his comeback?. 

It's not that the objective of pro-wrestling? invest people in a story, wich goes beyond wrestler A fighting wrestler B. Even more, is not that the reason to have a Heel/Face dynamic: to create diferent reactions in the crowd?. If the thing was so simply, why wrestling is scripted, then it should be a legit sport. Your argument make no sense to me

Maybe people want to believe in a underdog, even if it's unconciously?


----------



## rzombie1988

With February 2013 over in a few hours, here's the updated best matches list from:
http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-best-matches-of-2013.html

*January 2013*
*Polvora vs Titan - CMLL 1/1/2013 - Rating:***** - Best Match of January 2013*
Meiko Satomura vs Yuhi - Zero-1 1/1/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Shuji Kondo vs Hiroshi Yamato - AJPW 1/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs Great Khali - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013- Rating:**1/2
Justin Gabriel vs Wade Barrett - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013 - Rating:***
Cage Match - Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe vs Ace's and 8's - TNA Impact Wrestling 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
The Uso's vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Superstars 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Davey Boy Smith Jr and Lance Archer vs Sword and Guns - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Prince Devitt vs Low-Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Katsuyori Shibata vs Togi Makabe - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada- NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Pequeno Reyes Del Aire - CMLL 1/6/2013 - Rating****
Mistico II, Mascara Dorada and Titan vs Averno, Mephisto and Ephesto - CMLL 1/8/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 1/9/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Falls Count Anywhere - Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Smackdown 1/11/2013 - Rating:****1/2
TLC - Apolo vs El Mesias Ricky Banderas - WWC 1/13/2013 - Rating:***
Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Genesis 1/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Cage Match - John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Yuzuki Aikawa vs Kairi Hojo - Stardom 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
La Sombra vs Shinsuke Nakamura - NJPW Fantasicamania 1/18/2013 - Rating:***1/2
KENTA vs Colt Cabana - NOAH 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
Natalya vs Alicia Fox - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 1/19/2013 - Rating:**3/4
Estrellita, Luna Mágica, Silueta vs Amapola, Tiffany, Zeuxis - CMLL on Televisa 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
Wade Barrett vs Sheamus - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 1/25/2013 - Rating:***
Adam Page vs Silas Young - ROH TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Torneo Cibernetico - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
Rush vs Terrible - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
KENTA vs Takeshi Morishima - NOAH 1/27/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Last Man Standing - The Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 Rating:***1/2
The Rock vs CM Punk - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 - Rating:***
Kota Ibushi vs Konosuke Takeshita 1/27/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Marco Corleone, Titan and Valiente vs Averno, Dragon Rojo Jr. and ***** Casas - CMLL Guadalajara TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
*Best Wrestler of January 2013 - Titan (CMLL)*


*February 2013*
Team Hell No vs Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 2/1/2013 - Rating:***
Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra vs Volador Jr., Mr. Aguila and Psicosis II - CMLL on Galavision 2/2/2013 - Rating:****
Tag Team Gauntlet - ROH TV 2/2/2012 - Rating:***1/4
Guerrero Maya Jr., Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Namajague - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Volador Jr. vs Rey Escorpion - CMLL on CadenaTres 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Dinastia and Octagoncito vs Mini Abismo ***** and Mini Charly Manson - AAA on Televisa 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Drago, Fenix and Octagon vs Daga, Pentagon Jr. and Silver King - AAA on Televisa 2/2/2013 - Rating:***
Savio Vega vs Ray Fenix - WWC TV 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Polvora vs Valiente - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Diamante, Máscara Dorada, Super Porky vs Ephesto, Misterioso Jr., Puma - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Daniel Bryan vs Rey Mysterio - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
CM Punk vs Chris Jericho - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
ACH vs Matt Taven - ROH TV 2/9/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Jay Vélez and Xavant vs. Barrabás Jr. and El Colonel - WWC TV 2/16/2013 -Rating:***1/4
Titan vs Dragon Rojo Jr. - CMLL Guadalajara 2/9/2013 - Rating:***
Mr. Niebla vs La Sombra - CMLL on CadenaTres 2/9/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Reyes Del Aire, Block A Cibernetico - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/9/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Fuego, Hombre Bala Jr., Super Halcón Jr. vs Arkángel de la Muerte, Nitro, Skándalo - CMLL on Televisa 2/9/2013 - Rating:***
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kengo Mashimo - NJPW The New Beginning 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW The New Beginning 2/10/2013 - Rating:***
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson - NJPW The New Beginning 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Bat on a Pole Match - Savio Vega vs Ray Gonzalez - WWC 2/10/2013 TV - Rating:***
Carlos Colon vs Savio Vega - WWC 2/10/2013 TV - Rating:***
Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 2/13/2012 - Rating:****
Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Marty Scrull and The Blossom Twins vs Gail Kim, Jesse and Tara - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Austin Aries vs Bobby Roode - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/14/2013 - Rating:***
Reyes Del Aire Block B - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/16/2013 -Rating:***1/4
Astral, Bam Bam, Fantasy vs Demus 3:16, Pequeño Olímpico, Pequeño Violencia - CMLL on Televisa 2/16/2013 - Rating: ***1/2
Hijo del Fantasma, Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Misterioso Jr., Namajague, Shigeo Okumura - CMLL on Televisa 2/16/2013 - Rating:***
Heath Slater vs Justin Gabriel - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 2/16/2013 - Rating:***
Matt Taven vs Silas Young - ROH TV 2/17/2013 - Rating:***
Eddie Edwards vs Giger vs XL - XNL Titanes Del Ring 2/17/2013 - Rating:***
Kaiser vs KENTA - XNL Titanes Del Ring 2/17/2013 - Rating:***
Sheamus vs Damien Sandow - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 2/22/2013 - Rating:***
Drew McIntyre vs Sin Cara - WWE Superstars 2/22/2013 - Rating:***
The Funkadactyl's vs Alicia Fox and Natalya - WWE Superstars 2/22/2013 - Rating:***1/2
La Sombra vs Volador Jr. - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/23/2013 - Rating:****
Hijo del Fantasma vs Dragon Rojo Jr - CMLL on Televisa 2/23/2013 - Rating:***
*John Cena vs CM Punk - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/25/2013 - Rating:**** - Best Match of February 2013*
Austin Aries vs Hernandez - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/28/2013 - Rating:***
*Best Wrestler of February 2013 - Savio Vega (WWC) *


----------



## Chismo

Watched Fantasticamania - Day 2, and it's very entertaining show. *Nakamura/Sombra* was amazing. ******

Also, watched *Nakamura/Sakuraba* for the 3rd time, and I'm bumping it to ******, I felt like a prick for giving it ***1/2 "only", heh.




HayleySabin said:


> So does John Cena.


*Except* there's general consensus Cena's not shite all the time, and that he can be in the BITW mode when he's very motivated.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

In my opinion, you can't truly enjoy a good match without trying to figure out the story within it. Limb targeting though is NOT the only way to convey what storytelling is in a match which a lot of people tend to believe, there is way more to it than that. So when talking about the Cena and Punk match, the whole idea of them knowing everything about each other was executed well which led to desperation seen in the Piledriver, Ligerbomb, and Hurricarana. If the match did have a little bit of limb work psychology then obviously it could of been a bit better but it was still a great match. 

Anyways, this version of Cena and Punk from RAW will get ***** 1/4* from me because it's awfully similar to their NOC encounter and I gave that match **** 1/4 which made it pretty easy to figure out the rating for the RAW one.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

> Explain to me why then the match begins with the normal 50/50 Cena reaction and by the end all the people is cheering for his comeback?.


First of all-Cena wasn't getting epic Misawa esque chants, the crowd was actually pretty silent for the most of the match. They weren't dead, they were shocked something that seemed so real was happening right in front of them. Cena was getting cheered by his regular fanbase, I see no suprise in that. Brock beats up Cena, is, in fact, a story, but the brutality of the violence actually had something to do with how the crowd reacted. The story of the match did not.




> It's not that the objective of pro-wrestling? invest people in a story, wich goes beyond wrestler A fighting wrestler B. Even more, is not that the reason to have a Heel/Face dynamic: to create diferent reactions in the crowd?. If the thing was so simply, why wrestling is scripted, then it should be a legit sport. Your argument make no sense to me


No. The objective of investing people in pro wrestling IS to make people care about wrestler A fighting wrestler B. Heel/Face dynamics are one way to do so. Don't forget-what does every WWE melodramatic promo and video package lead to? A WRESTLING MATCH on PPV. I don't understand the bit about wrestling's pre-determination. Real fights are often boring, and the fact that pro wrestling, is, in fact, scripted allows the workers to be much more creative than just stand with their guard up and wait for their opponent to make a mistake.



Will reply to others later.


----------



## Srdjan99

Top 5 Matches of February in your opinion. Those are mine:

1. John Cena vs CM Punk- RAW
2. Shield vs Sheamus/Ryback/Jericho- RAW
3. Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler- Main Event
4. Shield vs Super Friends- Elimination Chamber
5. CM Punk vs Chris Jericho- RAW.


----------



## flag sabbath

JoeRulz said:


> Watched Fantasticamania - Day 2, and it's very entertaining show. *Nakamura/Sombra* was amazing. ******
> 
> Also, watched *Nakamura/Sakuraba* for the 3rd time, and I'm bumping it to ******, I felt like a prick for giving it ***1/2 "only", heh.


I obviously need to rewatch those 'cos I have both at a dickish ****1/2*


----------



## Chismo

*Nakamura/Sakuraba* - well, the biggest gripe used to be the plodding and kinda sloppy opening parts, where they had open chances to hit each other silly (which is fitting for a semi-shoot style they chose) but they didn't. However, the post-bitchslap stuff is just amazing, it makes me deal with the opening session easier.

*Nakamura/Sombra* - that was awesome, I think. Majestic performance by Nakamura, and Sombra wasn't too much behind, tbh. But Nakamura is the wrestling mentalist.


----------



## Obfuscation

JoeRulz said:


> *Except* there's general consensus Cena's not shite all the time, and that he can be in the BITW mode when he's very motivated.


Don't quite know where you're going with this. Sounds you like it's been stated that everyone knows - personal gripes aside - Cena is a great worker and that Michael Elgin is useless barring the one occasional stand out match.


----------



## Caponex75

Is this Michael Elgin hate a effect of the Nigel McGuinness syndrome? Last year, there was a good couple of matches that everyone was praising of his(Such as a match against Hero and Silas Young) and I have a hard time believing people didn't like his match with Ricochet which was the best match BOLA had. Heck, while I like Cena as a wrestler, Elgin had a far better year than Cena did in 2012. This "shit" worker thing is really getting out of hand for a guy that is incredibly solid.


----------



## Obfuscation

Not really. Guy sucks. That's all there is to it here. I think I liked only two matches from Elgin last year. Both were in PWG. Only one was pretty "great" at that.


----------



## obby

Comparing Michael Elign and John Cena? What a bizarre combo :hmm:


----------



## Caponex75

But he really doesn't. Elgin had a great great match with Richards, made the match with Adam Cole at Border Wars, supposedly had a strong performance with Hero that year, fucking nutty match with Ricochet that year, had a match with Silas Young that got a LOT of praise, match with Eddie in PWG that was pretty solid, and his entire PWG run has just been to good to great matches. Heck, he even got a decent match out of Brian Cage who is a okay wrestler at best. His final match last year with Strong was very fun as well. This is coming from a guy who barely catches anything outside of PWG. What the fuck do you want him to do? Do a Shooting Star Powerbomb?


----------



## Obfuscation

No, I want him to engage me. Be more than a one trick pony. Oh look he's super strong. Wow. Ok, give me something else. He doesn't. I find his work to be very flawed. It takes me out of every performance he has. Match vs Davey I found to be terrible. And it was his match vs Brian Cage where I felt the complete opposite and thought Cage was the only good portion of the match. But, you can go ahead and assume I want the guy to bust out a completely unrealistic move to justify the reason why I personally don't enjoy his work.


----------



## Caponex75

Cage is okay and obviously didn't make that match good. Who hits a neck breaker in the hot finishing stretch of a match like he was against Elgin? Overcomplicated wrestler who is getting better though. As for Elgin being Super Strong, that's because he is Super Strong. You don't criticize Mark Henry for being super strong because he is super fucking strong do you? He is a shark in a pond of fishes. Any wrestler with a brain would take advantage of that. In fact, most wrestlers with a brain has(Show, Andre, Claudio, Shima and Mysterio as far playing to his size). He's suppose to throw people around and use that overwhelming strength he has to get himself out of situations. Guy is a monster playing a monster. It only makes sense.


----------



## Obfuscation

I like the term of "obviously didn't make the match good" when it thwarts my opinion completely and only elevates yours. Why should I take the rest of this rebuttal seriously now? No matter how I feel about Elgin and list my reasons behind the disapproval they're going to be scoffed off in a weak attempt of "my opinion > your's and that's that." The clear definition is you like Elgin, I don't, and for some reason this is upsetting to you. I love Sami Callihan. Absolutely a huge fan/mark of the guy. When I see some negative feedback towards him I can't say I care a single bit. It is what it is. For those gripes I have my perception and the others have their's. It's a big case of "who cares" in my eyes.

I also don't critize Mark Henry for being super strong b/c he adds elements to them. Nuances. Life, personality, something in the form of an x-factor to make the domination stick out. Elgin's offense is so frenzied _(not in a positive way)_ to where everything becomes diluted. Watered down to where I can't get emotionally involved or find a reason to care. He dead lift german suplexes Kevin Steen. Ultra impressive show of strength. What else does he do the rest of the match? Nothing of note that sticks out. Goes back to his traditional route of piling on the strikes & "cool looking" power moves. I like substance with wrestling. For my money, Michael Elgin is severely lacking in that department. I've gotten to the point of calling him the Canadian Daisuke Sekimoto, only without the talent.


----------



## Chismo

HayleySabin said:


> Don't quite know where you're going with this. Sounds you like it's been stated that everyone knows - personal gripes aside - Cena is a great worker and that Michael Elgin is useless barring the one occasional stand out match.


Where am *I* going? I was talking about Elgin, and you interjected the futile Cena remark.


----------



## Obfuscation

Then you made that point about Cena which left me for a loop b/c you basically pointed out that most gripes towards John-boy seem to be loosely based on a personal disdain rather than any outlook towards the man's in ring work. Even though your previous gripes towards Cena tried to disprove said fact. Wasn't sure where you were going considering both sides of the fence got put over.


----------



## Chismo

I rest my case.


----------



## Obfuscation

So you're going to put over and bash Cena every single time now?

Well, at least I'm prepared for it.


----------



## Chismo

Correct. Not just Cena, but everyone hopefully.


----------



## Obfuscation

Except for Nakamura & Generico.


----------



## Chismo

And TAKA & Taichi.


----------



## Obfuscation

Sure. Taichi and his lifelike Anime character goodness.


----------



## seabs

Caponex75 said:


> What the fuck do you want him to do? Do a Shooting Star Powerbomb?


*And here lies the problem? Being good isn't about what moves you can do. Doing moves is such a minimal aspect of being a great wrestler in reality. Sure Elgin does some cool spots but what else does he do? He's a terrible bumper, I've never seen anything to say he's a good seller, never seen him work a crowd, absolutely zero charisma and so often he looks totally lost in between spots. Never seen anything from him that says he's a strong worker. Worker, not wrestler. He's very good at doing wrestling moves. Working is the stuff in between moves that make the moves matter. 

The 2 best Elgin matches by far are the ones where there's some sort of story to them. Eddie match was really well structured for an Eddie Edwards vs Michael Elgin match. It was well structured by any means but especially for them 2. Made what they were doing mean something. The Davey match worked thanks to the molten crowd and Elgin working like he had something to prove. The Davey match is a rare case of that style of match just working. They tried the same in PWG and it fell completely flat.

Listing good matches from someone doesn't automatically mean they're good either. I can list a few good Khali matches. Doesn't make him good. For every good Elgin match you listed there's probably 3 just from 2012 that were bad. 

Elgin isn't shit. I wouldn't go that far but he's by no means good. At times he can have a great match when everything clicks and I mean EVERYTHING. In the Davey match EVERYTHING clicked. He doesn't know how to really control a match though and apply anything other than spots to a match. Sadly with the guys on the Indy scene that he's facing right now that isn't likely to improve because they all have a similar problem as long as they keep facing each other they won't improve. The matches he had with Generico. Powerful guy with good spots facing El Generico. Only had good matches with him. EL GENERICO. He isn't shit. He isn't great. He' so so and often ranges from atrocious to sometimes very good.*


----------



## ywall2breakerj

> Bolded is debatable


No it is not. 99 % of pro wrestling matches are not great stories. That statement can be made by someone who watches little to no pro wrestling only and therefor doesn't even have the slightest understading of it.....or has a distorted perception.



> depending on the viewer


Indeed....if the said viewer is seven years old. Lets not kidd ourselves, pro wrestling stories, are, esentially, created in a manner that seven year olds, even the dumbest ones, can understand them. And that's what has made something so bizarre as two grown men pretending to fight successful.



> You said that selling as limb doesn't count as a story, but I think a limb being worked in definitely a story. It establishes and weakness and sets the table for a comeback. If you want me to really name 50 matches that have a limb workover and a comeback I can give them to you. That is more than just Wrestler A vs. Wrestler B and A wins. The selling tells a story. Wrestler A has to overcome Wrestler B's neckwork. that is an extra story than 'just a match'.


I didn't say I wanted you to name 50 matches that tell a story. I wanted matches with GREAT stories. There's a big difference cause I am not arguing that storytelling in pro wrestling doesn't exist.

Here's the thing (oh how I love chanelling my inner Triple H-perhaps it is because I loathe him?) though, selling a limb doesn't establish a weakness per se. You need good SELLING. Without good SELLING, you won't perceive a weakness, you'll perceive shitty SELLING. And, if the SELLING is good, it will affect your enjoyment of the match. So, is it fair to give STORYTELLING credit if it is SELLING that is affecting your enjoyment of a certain match?


But, even if there IS good selling, are you honestly expecting me to belive that just because there is a weakness established and one fighter has to overcome it that it is, in fact, a great story? Really?



Here's my problem with thy use of storytelling (I'm using a random match by example and don't remember what were your thoughts on it btw.)


"Tanahashi vs Okada-WK 7 edition had flawed storytelling"-is a statement that gives me no idea what you're talking about.

"Tanahashi vs Okada-WK 7 edition had flawed selling"-ok. You name a few examples of the "flawed selling". Now there is a factual argument to which I can properply reply to.




> To me, spots for the sake of spots does tell the story of 'wrestler B beats Wrestler A.' I totally agree on that. For a match to be great in my book, I need more to a story than that, and for me, Cena/Punk did not have anything more. Is that a fair way for me to say that?


I just think there is a more precise way to put it. Like, fo instance, if you were to complain about Cena countering a Go 2 Sleep into an STF just seconds after eating a Go 2 Sleep and selling just after Punk had already crawdled to the ropes saying it felt "cheap", I'd get it. You're complaining about a transition with, in your opinion, flawed selling. I'd reply that the selling was actually appropriate, as it sold the importance of the match without devaluating the moves, and was actually quite realistic. But that's just a random example. I just find your point of view very confusing. Like, Tanahashi does legwork all the time. You don't seem to be very high on him. Legwork is "something more" so why aren't you? I don't like Tanahashi at all, just asking. I hope I've made myself clear enough.


----------



## 777

ywall2breakerj said:


> No it is not. 99 % of pro wrestling matches are not great stories. That statement can be made by someone who watches little to no pro wrestling only and therefor doesn't even have the slightest understading of it.....or has a distorted perception.
> 
> 
> Indeed....if the said viewer is seven years old. Lets not kidd ourselves, pro wrestling stories, are, esentially, created in a manner that seven year olds, even the dumbest ones, can understand them. And that's what has made something so bizarre as two grown men pretending to fight successful.


Ok, and now's when we go from light-hearted wrestling discussion to you being a pretentious douchebag. If you can't see great storytelling in two or more individuals attempting to make a worked event as exciting and yet simultaneously realistic as possible then that's YP not MP. 
Are there elements of camp, silliness or sheer stupidity within the art form? Absolutely, but implying that only children can enjoy it is not only archaic thinking, but flat out wrong.

Your last post automatically negates any other posts you subsequently add to this thread, where I come to learn about/discuss what constitutes great wrestling and/or wrestling matches, because according to you there's no such thing.


----------



## Caponex75

Haley said:


> *I like the term of "obviously didn't make the match good" when it thwarts my opinion completely and only elevates yours. Why should I take the rest of this rebuttal seriously now?*


>Says this despite me giving a example in the same post. Golly, why should I take the rest of this rebuttal seriously now? Please keep trying to play the victim card.



> No matter how I feel about Elgin and list my reasons behind the disapproval they're going to be scoffed off in a weak attempt of "my opinion > your's and that's that."


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tdsL4kvp_I



> The clear definition is you like Elgin, I don't, and for some reason this is upsetting to you. I love Sami Callihan. Absolutely a huge fan/mark of the guy. When I see some negative feedback towards him I can't say I care a single bit. It is what it is. For those gripes I have my perception and the others have their's. It's a big case of "who cares" in my eyes.


I read Seabs post, actually replied to it, before this and honestly was expecting more. So your excuse is "I shouldn't discuss a wrestler on a wrestling forum". Got ya. As for the latter half, I think I covered the points in my post with Seabs.



Seabs said:


> *And here lies the problem? Being good isn't about what moves you can do*.


Are you really going to pull that card *ON ME*? No fucking shit cool moves don't matter. I written damn near articles *on here* about how great the *storytelling* was in a match. I put that as a *over exaggeration* and even then it wasn't meant to be taken serious towards Hailey. Can't believe you even tried to play that.





> He's a terrible bumper, I've never seen anything to say he's a good seller, never seen him work a crowd, absolutely zero charisma and so often he looks totally lost in between spots. Never seen anything from him that says he's a strong worker. Worker, not wrestler. He's very good at doing wrestling moves. Working is the stuff in between moves that make the moves matter.


Correction, being a good wrestler or a good worker is putting things in the proper place in a logical sense. That is why many people don't like the Cena Hurcanranna spot because it seems random in a match where both guys are terribly exhausted. Being a good seller is making your opponent looking believable which Elgin happens to do even though he looks like a tank compared to anyone in the indy circuit. I'll give two great examples of a great Elgin sell. 1. Before Ricochet dives over the ring poll to hurt Elgin, Elgin sells a kick as if it dazes the shit out of him. Excab makes a note of this and makes a believable transition to Ricochet having to dive cross country just to hit him. 

That kinda spot needs the proper selling to make it look believable that it isn't just a spot. It makes it look believable that Elgin had to get himself some distance from Ricochet due to him getting his bell rung. It makes the crowd believe Elgin may actually be in some trouble thus not only putting Ricochet as a actual threat(Which is remarkable due to the huge size difference) *BUT~!* slowly transitions the crowd unknowingly into a spot they can't see coming. Sure, Elgin didn't sell like Ziggler. However, it doesn't make it not a good sell or make him a good seller. 

Another example of a great sell or even work of a crowd, biting your hand to focus on a greater pain. This happened in his match with Richards and was during the finishing stretch. Elgin, in a attempt to make the crowd buy a regular Ankle Lock, screams, claws, and showing effort to put over the maneuver. In order to put over this maneuver even more, he makes it seem he tries to to focusing on a greater pain while biting his hand and then motions as if he is going to tap. You know what happens? The crowd totally buys it. Sure you might want to give the credit to the Ankle Lock making the moment but it wasn't. I think Jericho's Walls of Jericho is one of the most over moves in the business but if you got a guy(Victim) to work it like Elgin did the Ankle Lock, it makes the move 20x more believable. The move is already going to be believable in itself but it takes the taker to make it look that much better(Nigel was also great at this).

As for no charisma and looking lost between spots, I say Elgin looks legitimate as a monster in the indy circuit. He, as I said, is a big guy and carries that Aura of a big guy. Doesn't smile, gets extremely angry and makes it seem as if he is actually there to destroy the opponent. As oppose to a guy like Cage who has great strong spots but seems like he is there to have fun. Looking lost may just you on that hand. I can't help that.




> The 2 best Elgin matches by far are the ones where there's some sort of story to them. Eddie match was really well structured for an Eddie Edwards vs Michael Elgin match. It was well structured by any means but especially for them 2. Made what they were doing mean something. The Davey match worked thanks to the molten crowd and Elgin working like he had something to prove. The Davey match is a rare case of that style of match just working. They tried the same in PWG and it fell completely flat.


I don't really care for the Edwards match so I'll just take your word for it(Just naming it in my post as a match people here praised). I think it's a "good but never watch again" match for me that didn't do anything for me. The Richards match didn't work because a molten lava crowd however. Crowd was pretty meh during the beginning of the match but it was a match that worked because the story of it was actually very good and how that went upon it. I do not give a flying fuck about their PWG match because it was like the match I was expecting on Showdown in ROH. In the ROH match, it had great storytelling.

Richards wanting to hurt Elgin(His pacing before the match even started gave it away) and that actually leading up to Elgin's work over section when Richards wanted to Tornado DDT him out on the floor. What made Elgin's work over section good was because he was not only dominating Richards but was cutting over Richards come backs every time. I use to hate the Turnbuckle no sell comeback until it actually realized it made sense. Richards was finally getting momentum only for Elgin to cut him off again by slamming him into the turnbuckle and thus leading to Richards having to refute him with a kick. It wasn't the best storytelling comeback(Hence why I gave it the border rating for that and many little reasons) but it was logical. Then you have Richards constantly selling his back, the ongoing theme of actually selling the Powerbomb as a legit match ender, and Elgin monster moments against Richards(Which worked perfectly thanks to Richards body language & facial expressions).

The PWG match didn't have that and worked like a dream match. That's why you saw hardly no one praise it including I. 





> Listing good matches from someone doesn't automatically mean they're good either. I can list a few good Khali matches. Doesn't make him good. For every good Elgin match you listed there's probably 3 just from 2012 that were bad.


I'll listen reasons, examples, and give you details as to why Elgin is good. It wasn't no coincedence that Elgin happened to be on in a good or great match most of the time. Now I'm not saying Elgin is God's gift to mankind but there has been crappy reps spit on him for what seems like randomly to me. And please, name me quality Khali 2012 performances that stack up with Elgin's.

Don't care for the rest so I'll just snip it.


----------



## antoniomare007

Caponex75 said:


> As for no charisma and looking lost between spots, I say Elgin looks legitimate as a monster in the indy circuit. He, as I said, is a big guy and carries that Aura of a big guy. Doesn't smile, gets extremely angry and makes it seem as if he is actually there to destroy the opponent. As oppose to a guy like Cage who has great strong spots but seems like he is there to have fun. Looking lost may just you on that hand. I can't help that.


I'm on the "looking lost" camp too. Now, I haven't watched much of Elgin but I've never gotten the feeling of a guy who's there to destroy his opponent but rather a guy who is strong as fuck and does impressive shit in the ring. Never got an Aura of anything with the guy.

I might be missing something but this reminds me of when Seabs was loving Sanada's work and I was only seeing blandness.


----------



## Caponex75

antoniomare007 said:


> I'm on the "looking lost" camp too. Now, I haven't watched much of Elgin but I've never gotten the feeling of a guy who's there to destroy his opponent but rather a guy who is strong as fuck and does impressive shit in the ring. Never got an Aura of anything with the guy.
> 
> I might be missing something but this reminds me of when Seabs was loving Sanada's work and I was only seeing blandness.


Probably just what I see him. I take Elgin as opposing while someone may not. I guess that would be completely subjective.


----------



## Obfuscation

Caponex75 said:


> >Says this despite me giving a example in the same post. Golly, why should I take the rest of this rebuttal seriously now? Please keep trying to play the victim card.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tdsL4kvp_I
> 
> I read Seabs post, actually replied to it, before this and honestly was expecting more. So your excuse is "I shouldn't discuss a wrestler on a wrestling forum". Got ya. As for the latter half, I think I covered the points in my post with Seabs.


I said he 'sucks' and gave my reasons for it. You used no examples as to why you feel Elgin is undeserving of said complaints and threw in some lousy post about moves that was apparently "not" to be taken seriously. Skip the sarcastic crap and get down to brass tacks and nothing would be lost. Throwing in matches that "apparently tore the house down" doesn't count as good examples, fyi. Same point could be used for anybody at anytime.

Youtube video is rather sad. Wonderful rebuttal. The butthurt vibe is really stemming now.

Ok lets jump to conclusions about not discussing a wrestler on a wrestling forum is what I implied by that. Obviously I meant get some thick skin for when someone you enjoy receives negative reviews, kid. Oh no Michael Elgin is not being putting over, I have to make a big stink out of it. That's what is being said here. It makes even less sense considering I have no problem discussing Elgin. Doesn't matter what the connotation is, I'll discuss him plenty. Turns out most of the time it is elaborating on why I disliked his work in his matches.


----------



## Caponex75

HayleySabin said:


> I said he 'sucks' and gave my reasons for it. *You used no examples as to why you feel Elgin is undeserving of said complaints* and threw in some lousy post about moves that was apparently "not" to be taken seriously.


Besides listing matches and explaining that a strong man should play a strong man? If you took the Shooting Star Powerbomb seriously then that is your own fault. Even reading the name is suppose to give off a glaring wink. 




> Skip the sarcastic crap and get down to brass tacks and nothing would be lost. Throwing in matches that "apparently tore the house down" doesn't count as good examples, fyi. Same point could be used for anybody at anytime.


Except it can't. There aren't that many great Yone matches in two years that can take up two hands and listing matches are a _example_ as they can be evidence to someone not sucking. You sound incredibly salty when discussing a _wrestler_ on a site called _Wrestling Forum_.



> Youtube video is rather sad. Wonderful rebuttal. The butthurt vibe is really stemming now.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tdsL4kvp_I



> Ok lets jump to conclusions about not discussing a wrestler on a wrestling forum is what I implied by that. Obviously I meant get some thick skin for when someone you enjoy receives negative reviews, kid. Oh no Michael Elgin is not being putting over, I have to make a big stink out of it. That's what is being said here. It makes even less sense considering I have no problem discussing Elgin. Doesn't matter what the connotation is, I'll discuss him plenty. Turns out most of the time it is elaborating on why I disliked his work in his matches.


I'm sorry I discuss wrestlers on a wrestling forum. Surely this place wasn't meant to talk about the positives or negatives about wrestlers or their matches. Please forgive me, lady. I mean no harm.


----------



## mk92071

Watched the last 2 matches from Primal Gate (Infinity 283)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsgbda3AG3Y

Shingo vs. Kenichiro Arai (YEAH I'M AS SURPRISED AS YOU ARE)
Sweet jesus was I shocked by the awesomeness contained in this match. It starts off with Arai getting a little work on Shingo's arm, but Shingo comes back and has a control angle on Arai. I thought this was going to be a basic match with a little back and forth with Shingo winning. Arai gets some offense in that makes him seem like a LEGIT threat instead of the comedy wrestler he usually is. Good limb work over the arm of Shingo. Shingo hits a few big moves to Arai down the stretch, but Arai continues to use the headbutt as an equalizer throughout the whole bout. After Arai kicks out of Made In Japan I was legit shocked. Arai starts to come back and hits some crazy near falls. Don't wanna spoil the ending, go watch this. Low end MOTYC for me, but I was caught off guard so hard. ***3/4 

2013 New Year Big Battle 4-Way Match: CIMA, Masaaki Mochizuki & Dragon Kid vs Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino & Ricochet vs Akira Tozawa, BxB Hulk & Fake Naoki Tanizaki vs Ryo 'Jimmy' Saito, Jimmy Kanda & Genki Horiguchi H.A.Gee.Mee!!
Was this great or what. Starts off with a bit of brawling around the crowd. Turns into a FUN match in general like you'd expect from a huge DG tag. Lots of multi man spots early on that were great. A couple of control angles in the middle that were alright, but nothing spectacular and almost dragged a little bit. The last 8-12 minutes were BALLS TO THE WALLS action. Crazy, crazy stuff with amazing sequences left and right. Let me just say that Speed O Muscle should never EVER break up. They worked so well together and every single thing they did was so crisp. They have amazing chemistry as a team. I don't want to spoil anything but this was amazing. The only qualm is this match is a half an hour and it feels like a half an hour. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it doesn't fly by. I could see people saying this feels very contrived, but those people generally say that for most DG matches. ****


----------



## Obfuscation

Caponex75 said:


> Besides listing matches and explaining that a strong man should play a strong man? If you took the Shooting Star Powerbomb seriously then that is your own fault. Even reading the name is suppose to give off a glaring wink.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Except it can't. There aren't that many great Yone matches in two years that can take up two hands and listing matches are a _example_ as they can be evidence to someone not sucking. You sound incredibly salty when discussing a _wrestler_ on a site called _Wrestling Forum_.
> 
> 
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tdsL4kvp_I
> 
> 
> 
> I'm sorry I discuss wrestlers on a wrestling forum. Surely this place wasn't meant to talk about the positives or negatives about wrestlers or their matches. Please forgive me, lady. I mean no harm.


Listing matches you "heard" were great doesn't count. Nor does listing matches off hand without any substance behind them either. It's back to the point Seabs made about naming off random Khali matches that could be considered "good". I even stated why it lacked in definition via my last post. Strong man point wore off when I made note that all he has is strength. And, imo, he doesn't use it to suck you into his matches. He throws people around. I can see that from any number of strong/power workers in the game today. Hence the Daisuke Sekimoto comment by me.

Sure it can. Whole point of this debate here is subjective and our perception of the man Michael Elgin. If I found matches by anyone I thought should be listed _(in the capacity of fitting up to or past both hand)_ I'll plug them away regardless if one person would feel the same. If someone will question why I thought so highly, I'd explain it following. Simple. You seem to be fixated on matches needing universal love or something by the sound of it. Once again I'll reiterate, who cares what others think. Put over what you feel/see/think is worth talking about.

I..I don't have a single clue at what you're talking about here. I'm talking about Michael Elgin. Meaning I am talking about a wrestler on here. All b/c you take the point of me saying "you're complaining" as an excuse to tell you to not blab about a wrestler - ON A WRESTLING FORUM can't forget this - it isn't. It reverts all back to the point I've made in the beginning. Who gives a damn what others think. You disagree. You state your claim. Bada boom, bada bing. That's as far as it is going to go. It's not going to resolve itself by way of a magical upturn where one caves and decides "he's bad" or "he's good" now. We're going to stick with our perceptions and thoughts on Elgin.


----------



## Nervosa

ywall2breakerj said:


> I didn't say I wanted you to name 50 matches that tell a story. I wanted matches with GREAT stories. There's a big difference cause I am not arguing that storytelling in pro wrestling doesn't exist.
> 
> Here's the thing (oh how I love chanelling my inner Triple H-perhaps it is because I loathe him?) though, selling a limb doesn't establish a weakness per se. You need good SELLING. Without good SELLING, you won't perceive a weakness, you'll perceive shitty SELLING. And, if the SELLING is good, it will affect your enjoyment of the match. So, is it fair to give STORYTELLING credit if it is SELLING that is affecting your enjoyment of a certain match?


First off, thanks for clarifying this stuff. Sorry if I got your point confused, but I appreciate the effort in clarifying, here.

I guess I feel like good selling happens pretty often for me. I feel like a lot of the main events from Danielson's title reign, and NOAH's good period, and the like work really well. To me, that's where good selling gets a lot across and tells a great story. I feel its rarer now than it used to, but still certainly happens, like with Nait/Okada last year standing out with its selling and limb focus putting the match over big time, for me.



ywall2breakerj said:


> But, even if there IS good selling, are you honestly expecting me to belive that just because there is a weakness established and one fighter has to overcome it that it is, in fact, a great story? Really?


I kinda, do, yeah. because it is imitating sport, and I feel sport has strategies competing against each other, which, in turn, creates a story. Wrestling imitating that strategy-weakness-comeback structure to me creates a story that evokes greater response.




ywall2breakerj said:


> Here's my problem with thy use of storytelling (I'm using a random match by example and don't remember what were your thoughts on it btw.)
> 
> 
> "Tanahashi vs Okada-WK 7 edition had flawed storytelling"-is a statement that gives me no idea what you're talking about.
> 
> "Tanahashi vs Okada-WK 7 edition had flawed selling"-ok. You name a few examples of the "flawed selling". Now there is a factual argument to which I can properply reply to.


Ok, I understand you're point better now. What if I give examples of specific incidents, that, to me, express poor storytelling? Is that acceptable for giving room to respond?



ywall2breakerj said:


> I just think there is a more precise way to put it. Like, fo instance, if you were to complain about Cena countering a Go 2 Sleep into an STF just seconds after eating a Go 2 Sleep and selling just after Punk had already crawdled to the ropes saying it felt "cheap", I'd get it. You're complaining about a transition with, in your opinion, flawed selling. I'd reply that the selling was actually appropriate, as it sold the importance of the match without devaluating the moves, and was actually quite realistic. But that's just a random example. I just find your point of view very confusing. Like, Tanahashi does legwork all the time. You don't seem to be very high on him. Legwork is "something more" so why aren't you? I don't like Tanahashi at all, just asking. I hope I've made myself clear enough.


I understand what you mean better now, I think. Giving specific examples, and insulting something specific like selling rather than something vague like storytelling is vastly preferable. 

Here is my specific objections to Cena/Punk from Monday: I thought the early protion of the match seemed pointless in that it did not in any way seem to relate in the late part at all, either to Cena's comeback (if you can call it that) or the finishing stretch. I have never EVER liked matches that can be described as 'back-and-forth,' mostly because I think matches need one guy dominating a while in order to make the comeback mean something. This is why I hate everything Eddie Edwards does. The moves do not mean much to me when the whole match is just two guys trading. That, for me, was a problem with Cena/Punk. I think the entire match was too back and forth for me to feel like there's was any coherent storytelling from one spot to the next. I did not like the huricurana, but I felt it didn't make sense, looked like it hurt Cena more than Punk, and kinda seemed more confusing than awesome. The action, itself, with the bombs and the counters, I loved. ***3/4 is stil la good rating. I just don't see how it is a classic when I think there was very little done in order to make anything but the last 8 minutes meaningful. I felt like you could miss the first ten minutes and not miss anything important to the match.

I am rather down on Tanahashi, but not because I think he's bad, but just because he is champion when there are a lot of better guys on the roster. 

I actually have never complained about his legwork. It has become rather serviceable now, and he rarely does anything with it that fails to make any sense. It makes a whole lot of his good matches even better, like against Suzuiki and the Dominion match which clearly benefited because of the legwork. 

Most of my problems with his matches are his selling and how he acts when he is being worked over, which I think can desperately ruin some matches, as I feel it did at WK7.


----------



## THECHAMPION

Nervosa said:


> I did not like the huricurana, but I felt it didn't make sense, looked like it hurt Cena more than Punk, and kinda seemed more confusing than awesome.


The point of the hurricanrana was to be confusing.

Punk clearly had a counter for all of Cena's regular spots.

Cena threw something that took Punk off his game allowing him to quickly go for the kill.

That was it's point in the story of the match.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

I think sometimes, the focus of body parts as a strategy/in ring story is over-analyzed. I understand why, because it's rarer to see it these days and selling of course matters, but I don't think that is the only great story that can be told.

As an example, I use a match that isn't exactly praised but I personally loved it. Makabe vs Suzuki in Dominion. The story wasn't that complex; Suzuki was for the most part kicking Makabe's ass (though yes he did target Makabe's taped up leg a bit, he only did that so he could regain control), Makabe found a move that helped him turn the tide (lariats), and he abused it in order to set up for two King Kong Knees.

It doesn't really have to be about one guy aims for the neck, the other aims for the legs, and whoever deviates from the strategy loses (see Okada vs Naito).


----------



## antoniomare007

THECHAMPION said:


> The point of the hurricanrana was to be confusing.
> 
> Punk clearly had a counter for all of Cena's regular spots.
> 
> Cena threw something that took Punk off his game allowing him to quickly go for the kill.
> 
> That was it's point in the story of the match.


But Cena had already hit the AA on Punk before so it wasn't as if he needed something completely out of left field to hit his finisher. Still, I *get* the theory behind the hurracarana, but to me it just came of as a "look this move I can pull off!" kind of thing more than anything else. I guess the fact that he went for the AA and pin so quickly after that spot threw me off. I laughed my ass off as it happened.

The 'rana didn't affect my enjoyment of the match one bit though, I just think it was unnecessary *shrugs*


----------



## Nervosa

antoniomare007 said:


> But Cena had already hit the AA on Punk before so it wasn't as if he needed something completely out of left field to hit his finisher. Still, I *get* the theory behind the hurracarana, but to me it just came of as a "look this move I can pull off!" kind of thing more than anything else. I guess the fact that he went for the AA and pin so quickly after that spot threw me off. I laughed my ass off as it happened.


That's exactly how I felt, except it did affect my enjoyment a lot. There's not much point to 'look this move I can pull off' when you can't pull it off without looking like you gave yourself a concussion.

To me, it was an entire match of 'look what I can pull off,' which for me is a problem in the first place.


----------



## Rah

I was completely enjoying the debate here until it kinda went sour in parts. No matter.



Caponex75 said:


> What the fuck do you want Elgin to do? Do a Shooting Star Powerbomb?


Now I'm going to watch every match of his wishing that would happen but it won't. Ever. :sad:



flag sabbath said:


> I obviously need to rewatch those 'cos I have both at a dickish ****1/2*


With regards to Nakamura/Sakuraba, it's really quite a weird one.

I honestly wouldn't find it odd if someone doesn't completely see the brilliance in it, as I would with regards to something else. That said, go into it with the belief that it's a shoot-fight rather than a wrestling match and your rating might improve.



mk92071 said:


> Watched the last 2 matches from Primal Gate (Infinity 283)
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsgbda3AG3Y
> 
> *snip*


I'll definitely watch those now.

I kinda need some good wrestling to take my mind off having to read and then reply to some of the cuntingly delusional remarks made in that thread on South Africa within the Anything section. I always wondered if there was another poster from my country on here, and now that I know there is and he's a massive racist I feel somewhat let down.


----------



## flag sabbath

Rah said:


> I honestly wouldn't find it odd if someone doesn't completely see the brilliance in it, as I would with regards to something else. That said, go into it with the belief that it's a shoot-fight rather than a wrestling match and your rating might improve.


You're right inasmuch as watching as if it could finish at any moment increases the sense of drama. My main gripe with it was that Sakuraba recovers far too quickly from Nakamura's first big revenge knee. That & I hate kick-out-on-three finishes. I'm sure I've seen better examples of the style, but please don't ask me to name them 'cos it'll have been over 15 years ago.


----------



## Caponex75

HayleySabin said:


> Listing matches you "heard" were great doesn't count. Nor does listing matches off hand without any substance behind them either. It's back to the point Seabs made about naming off random Khali matches that could be considered "good". I even stated why it lacked in definition via my last post. Strong man point wore off when I made note that all he has is strength. And, imo, he doesn't use it to suck you into his matches. He throws people around. I can see that from any number of strong/power workers in the game today. Hence the Daisuke Sekimoto comment by me.


Many of those matches I named I had actually watched. Naming two matches that the rest of you praised hardly make it a null and void situation. And Seabs point really wasn't that good to begin with. It really wasn't that good when considering I drew a comparison of Elgin being better than Cena last year and gave a list to explain why. Wrestling is about logic and if it is a guy being strong as fuck then it is about a guy being strong as fuck. Hence why I named Mysterio. He is a guy that is small as hell in the WWE and he makes it overly apparent by his style. He could probably wrestle like Danielson does but he is aware of his obvious gap and takes advantage of it. Elgin does the same which makes him a good and logical wrestler. 

I don't find it hard to get into his matches when his opponent has to find away past the beast without getting destroyed every turn. Plus when his opponents do get the advantage, it makes for a great display when you see Elgin get all pissed off. There are some straight strong workers but not all are really that apparent. You put a Sekimoto against a Suwama and it's obvious Sekimoto just a dude wrestling another strong dude(Not that the matches aren't good, mind you). You put Elgin against a Steen and he still makes the gimmick apparent because it promotes consistentcy(sp?). It makes for much more interesting dynamic and very fun as well. 





> Sure it can. *Whole point of this debate here is subjective and our perception of the man Michael Elgin. *If I found matches by anyone I thought should be listed _(in the capacity of fitting up to or past both hand)_ I'll plug them away regardless if one person would feel the same. If someone will question why I thought so highly, I'd explain it following. Simple. You seem to be fixated on matches needing universal love or something by the sound of it. Once again I'll reiterate, who cares what others think. Put over what you feel/see/think is worth talking about.


As far as Elgin comes off, yes that is subjective but him actually being a good worker isn't. For instance, I really really dislike Sami Callihan. He looks like a ****** pirate hooker and he use of the middle finger almost devalues the point of throwing the eagle. The fact anyone can like him boggles my mind and go to see him just seems crazy. However, I still give Callihan credit because he does have good matches and is a good wrestler. I'm not going to let my bias or perception of how a wrestler looks deceive my brain of enjoying some his matches.....or giving him the credit. It's not a fact that he is a good wrestler but depriving him of good work when it is there seems ignorant.






> I..I don't have a single clue at what you're talking about here. I'm talking about Michael Elgin. Meaning I am talking about a wrestler on here. All b/c you take the point of me saying "you're complaining" as an excuse to tell you to not blab about a wrestler - ON A WRESTLING FORUM can't forget this - it isn't. It reverts all back to the point I've made in the beginning. Who gives a damn what others think. You disagree. You state your claim. Bada boom, bada bing. That's as far as it is going to go. It's not going to resolve itself by way of a magical upturn where one caves and decides "he's bad" or "he's good" now. We're going to stick with our perceptions and thoughts on Elgin.


Do you even read your own post sometimes?



antoniomare007 said:


> But Cena had already hit the AA on Punk before so it wasn't as if he needed something completely out of left field to hit his finisher. Still, I *get* the theory behind the hurracarana, but to me it just came of as a "look this move I can pull off!" kind of thing more than anything else. I guess the fact that he went for the AA and pin so quickly after that spot threw me off. I laughed my ass off as it happened.
> 
> The 'rana didn't affect my enjoyment of the match one bit though, I just think it was unnecessary *shrugs*


Well, he actually hit a AA on a counter to Punk's own move(Shining Wizard/clothesline combo). Every time he tried to just hit the move, Punk would simply just counter it. That's why it was a big deal with the Ranna. Sure he could of just went for it but maybe it was already in the back of Punk's mind that he should reverse it. Then BAM! Ranna! "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?! HE NEVER DOES THAT MOVE!" which is followed by accidentally walking into a AA. So yes, both times he caught Punk were actually completely out of left field for Punk.


----------



## DOPA

Could have sworn someone mentioned a CMLL title match in their MOTY posts, a multi man lucha as well as mentioning the Legend Pro tag match with Sekimoto but now I can't find it and therefore can't find the matches :/.


----------



## DOPA

*Daisuke Sekimoto & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Akitoshi Saito & Tatsuhito Takaiwa (Legend 1/13): *** 3/4*

Really good match, loved this thing. Had an old school pacing which really sat well with me. The story of Sekimoto and Ishii not getting along as partners with Ishii half way through the match trying to direct traffic whilst Sekimoto could really care less and does anything to win the match including suplexing his own partner! was really well done. In fact this match is awesome because of Sekimoto and Ishii alone.


----------



## Nervosa

Honestly, a huricurana should not be that surprising from Cena, he just did one against Ziggler like 2 months ago. It was equally horrible.


----------



## Obfuscation

Caponex75 said:


> As far as Elgin comes off, yes that is subjective but him actually being a good worker isn't. For instance, I really really dislike Sami Callihan. He looks like a ****** pirate hooker and he use of the middle finger almost devalues the point of throwing the eagle. The fact anyone can like him boggles my mind and go to see him just seems crazy. However, I still give Callihan credit because he does have good matches and is a good wrestler. I'm not going to let my bias or perception of how a wrestler looks deceive my brain of enjoying some his matches.....or giving him the credit. It's not a fact that he is a good wrestler but depriving him of good work when it is there seems ignorant.
> 
> Do you even read your own post sometimes?


And I'll give Elgin credit when he happens to deserve it. Much like I did in the match vs Edwards in PWG.

Of course I do. It just appears you and I are off on two different wavelengths and can't quite get at what the other is going for.

@Crusade - I didn't quite think the Legend the Pro Wrestling tag was as good as yourself. Lots of fun though. 15 minutes of heavy hitters throwing bombs. Not to mention the tension among Ishii & Sekimoto during the entire bout. Match begins following Ishii chucking Sekimoto out of the ring. Now who wouldn't find fun in that?


----------



## MTheBehemoth

Cena vs Punk - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/25/2013 - ***3/4

Finally watched it. 't was good. Finally some meaning/story behind all these false finishes. But it was still extremely predictable. Anyone actually believed in Punk's win for at least a second? No? Then we have a huge f'n problem. 'The Cena problem' is still there and it hurt the match. There was also nothing really new about this match. They do these solid main event matches from time to time but the structure and, most importantly, the end result is always the same ('CENAWINSLOL', 'SHEAMUSWINSLOL', etc).
Also, [email protected] some people bumping up a rating for stuff like 'piledrivers'. Get the fuk outta here.


----------



## Rah

Call me delusional but I went into Raw thinking Punk would win and Cena/Rock would be next year. I didn't see any other reason for Rock coming back next year if Cena won (Punk/Rock can FOAD).



Crusade said:


> Could have sworn someone mentioned a CMLL title match in their MOTY posts, a multi man lucha as well as mentioning the Legend Pro tag match with Sekimoto but now I can't find it and therefore can't find the matches :/.


My post?

Loved the Ishii/Seki segments in that LegendPro tag, too. Lots of great power displays but I was pretty burnt out by the time I got to it (an entire day of individual matches will probably do that to you).


----------



## Obfuscation

It's an easy to watch match. Similar to the Diamond Ring 2/11 main event tag with Sasaki/Sugiura vs Otani/Nakajima. Nothing to rave over in here in my personal opinion, yet certainly worth a watch if in the mood. Has the element of fun behind it. Always a solid quality.


----------



## DOPA

*Volador Jr Vs Rey Escorpión (CMLL 1/29): **** 1/4*

Damn was this good. The first fall really was the key for me in this match. Volador took a nasty bump diving on the outside to Rey early on which really shook him up allowing Rey to get back into the ring first. This lead to the first fall which was beautifully done with Volador going for the hurricanrana which Rey reversed into a well executed sit out powerbomb for the first fall. This really set the stage for the rest of the match and every fall fell in sequence almost perfectly. Really well told story. If there was ever a match which fits Nigel Mcguinness's definition of wrestling as the game of human chess this is it. Both men trying to call each other's bluff with Volador going back to the hurricanrana several times trying to make Rey guess whilst Rey was on the counter trying to catch Volador off guard and play into his mistakes. Rey takes control after the first fall and has a little control segment before Volador does a reckless but fantastic high cross body off the stage on to Rey. Volador later on goes for the hurricanrana again but this time catches Rey off guard rolling him up for the second fall. Excellently done playing off the first fall doing what a lot of other Lucha matches of this kind fail to do: actually connect the falls to a greater match story arc. The third fall was an awesome 10-15 min closing part of the match, Volador now becoming more and more reckless and desperate. Trying more and more risque moves, top rope hurricanrana's to the outside, to the ring etc. as well as becoming more vicious with the strikes and especially those devastating kicks. Rey at the same point is playing off the counter and using more power moves to put away Volador. Eventually Volador's risk taking and earlier injury catches up with him. The finish was fantastic and really story book with Rey finishing Volador off with the spinning package piledriver on to Volador's head which he landed on with the beginning dive on the outside. Whole working of this match as a whole was just excellent. This is lucha libre done right for me. Definitely the CMLL match of the year so far.


----------



## Caponex75

Nervosa said:


> Honestly, a huricurana should not be that surprising from Cena, he just did one against Ziggler like 2 months ago. It was equally horrible.


You answered why it should be surprising. He only used the move ONCE 2 months ago and it was against Ziggler, not Punk. It isn't a move that you could say was in his repertoire and may of just been a one to time thing. It is rather surprising.


----------



## Nervosa

Caponex75 said:


> You answered why it should be surprising. He only used the move ONCE 2 months ago and it was against Ziggler, not Punk. It isn't a move that you could say was in his repertoire and may of just been a one to time thing. It is rather surprising.


Yeah, but the point everyone has kept saying is 'how well they know each other.' If he knew Cena that well, the hurricane shouldn't surprise him very much. If Cena used it once like 6 years ago, sure, but two months? That literally would have been one of the first matches you'd have expected Punk to scout.


----------



## antoniomare007

*Suzuki Gun vs CHAOS - New Japan Anniversary show, Elimination Tag*

Well, I think this match deserves a mention here but it's not a high end MOTYC or anything close to that. It just a really fun match to watch. Suzuki Gun did a hell of a job heeling it up and at least Okada and my boy Ishii did a good job as the faces defending their turf. I thought everyone did a good job playing their respective roles, but at the end of the day, this match lacked drama. It was a shame because I felt they set it up perfectly for Ishii/Mashimo and then Okada/MiSu but it all kinda fell flat. An entertaining tag that could have been much more. I want a rematch!

Will watch Nakamura/Archer and Tanahashi/Devitt tomorrow.


----------



## flag sabbath

^Did you watch this via jahmale hepburn on dailymotion? The reason I ask is I'm having problems watching his videos (wrong aspect ratio, audio out of synch) & was wondering if the problem is with his uploads or my computer / player.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

Prince Devitt vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi ***3/4 but probably could get the 4 stars on a rewatch (NJPW 3/2/13)


----------



## Rah

I did notice some audio/video syncing issues with a few videos, as well. Though that might be due to playing it off my PC and streaming it onto the TV (a friend hasn't noticed this).

I don't think I've had wrong aspect ratios, however. That you can just modify via the video player, anyway.


----------



## flag sabbath

I just downloaded the Suzuki Gun vs. Chaos match & while VLC player fixes the aspect ratio, the audio is out by like 8 seconds, which seems to be too much for it to deal with. Guess I'll wait for a torrent / full show on youtube.


----------



## Rah

You can correct sync delays within VLC. The lengthy way or in small increments via keyboard shortcut.

What are you downloading the video with, btw?


----------



## flag sabbath

http://keepvid.com/


----------



## antoniomare007

I downloaded the show via XWT and had zero audio problems.


----------



## DOPA

No need to worry guys, this might help: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GswVKh5SCA


----------



## Stardust Genius

Spoiler:  wXw 16 Carat 2013



*Johnny Moss vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (wXw 16 Carat Night 1) ****-****1/4* 
Classic "dominant heel-weak babyface" match with a lot of mat wrestling. Moss worked the arm of Zack whereby he could escape out of the armbar multiple times. Zack on the other hand survived nine german suplexes in a row.

*Axel Tischer vs. Big Van Walter (wXw 16 Carat Night 2) ***3/4-***** 
Heavyweigth match in japanese style with a slow buildup. Finish came a bit out of nowhere and the referee stopped to quickly. 

*Chuck Taylor & Ricochet vs. Los Mexitosos (wXw 16 Carat Night 3) ***3/4-*****
Very good spot match with an insane moonsault by Super Crazy from the balcony.
*
Tommy End vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (wXw 16 Carat Night 3) ****-****1/4*
Worthy finale with nonstop action from the beginning, some great spots and counters.


----------



## aivaz

Crusade said:


> No need to worry guys, this might help:


480p :tak god bless

Nice to know I'm not the only one who downloads these off youtube, JDownloader will download 1.5GB off YT in like 10 minutes it's phenomenal.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

aivaz said:


> 480p :tak god bless
> 
> Nice to know I'm not the only one who downloads these off youtube, JDownloader will download 1.5GB off YT in like 10 minutes it's phenomenal.


JDownloader rules. I tell all my friends to download but they never listen. 

I download matches from Youtube and Daiymotion using it all the time, but it's not always that fast if you have a shitty internet connection.


----------



## flag sabbath

antoniomare007 said:


> *Suzuki Gun vs CHAOS - New Japan Anniversary show, Elimination Tag*
> 
> Well, I think this match deserves a mention here but it's not a high end MOTYC or anything close to that. It just a really fun match to watch. Suzuki Gun did a hell of a job heeling it up and at least Okada and my boy Ishii did a good job as the faces defending their turf. I thought everyone did a good job playing their respective roles, but at the end of the day, this match lacked drama. It was a shame because I felt they set it up perfectly for Ishii/Mashimo and then Okada/MiSu but it all kinda fell flat. An entertaining tag that could have been much more. I want a rematch!


I thought this match was laid out brilliantly & once they got down to the last four, it was non-stop excitement. Maybe it was a tad predictable & yes it left you wanting more, but the latter isn't necessarily a bad thing. On first viewing I'd go ******

Worth noting that I much preferred this to the DG four-trios elimination match from 17/1. I'm not sure how 30+ mins of high-end athleticism can come across as so stale & boring, but it did. Other than Cima's wind-ups at Saito's expense, it was completely skipable.

Also watched Volador Jr vs. Rey Escorpion & while it definitely had its epic qualities I found it impossible to ignore its glaring flaws (repeated no-selling of big moments & amateur-hour transitions). Maybe ****3/4*


----------



## Bubz

Wouldn't say there's anything motyc worthy on the NJ Anniversary show so far (haven't seen Tan a/Devitt yet). Nakamura/Archer was very good until the finishing stretch which was just very odd. The ref bump and Smith interfering led to absolutely nothing and fell flat on it's face. Archer is great in control though and Nakamura sold amazingly for him. Shame about the strange booking in the last few minutes.


----------



## Obfuscation

CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun & Tanahashi vs Devitt were excellent. Nakamura vs Archer was quite good. Read Bubz post as to why it wasn't "great", but certainly good stuff.

I'd say the elimination match had lots of drama in it. Crowd was insane for it, it captured the story behind the feud in a near genius capacity. Wonderful, loved it.


----------



## antoniomare007

Crowd wasn't insane for it (not for Korakuen standards), come on now lol. Maybe lacking drama isn't the right expression, the spots were there and they had the right intention but they didn't do much for me. They were more like good ideas than didn't pan out as great as they should imo.


----------



## Obfuscation

They weren't insane for it? Yeah right.

Ishii was treated like a STAR per usual and they ate up everything the match pumped out.


----------



## antoniomare007

They were hotter for Ishii in the Tanaka match. I'm not saying there wasn't any heat or that Okada/Ishii/MiSu weren't over, but it didn't have the crazy atmosphere Korakuen has from time to time so I can't say they were going insane in that match.


----------



## flag sabbath

Really enjoyed the All Japan vs. Burning 5 match series from 23/2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8egOV7p4oD0

Only the main event, with Kondo defending the Jr strap against Kanemaru, is MOTYC calibre, but it's well worth watching the full series, as it lends context to the ringside mayhem that explodes during the final scrap. The matches are all relatively short with a fantastic go-for-the-kill urgency which keeps Korakuen simmering.

1) Yamato vs. Aoki ***1/4
2) Hayashi vs. Suzuki ***1/2
3) Soya vs. Shiozaki **
4) Omori vs. Akiyama ***
5) Kondo vs. Kanemaru ***3/4


----------



## DOPA

*Suzuki Gun vs CHAOS (NJPW 3/3)*

I loved this. This was so so fun to watch. Another very good story driven match between SuzukiGun and CHAOS which left you screaming MORE MORE MORE which is a *great* thing in my mind. This was laid out excellently in my opinion, each fall seemed to mean something. Davey Boy Smith Jr was booked really strong eliminating two men and Ishii was also booked as a strong face in this one and was really over with the crowd (second to Okada). The Ishii/Mashimo and Okada/Suzuki pairings in the match were both played out really well. I disagree with whoever said this match lacked drama, in my opinion this had a lot of drama and tension which was due to how over Ishii and Okada were and how well this match was executed especially at the end. Really tense finish. The finish was predictable and left you wanting more but that can only be a good thing. Smart booking in my opinion to let SuzukiGun continue to have the upper hand, it will be a matter of time before Okada and Ishii get their redemption. This was the only match on the anniversary show I feel is worth mentioning in regards to MOTYC matches.

**** 3/4*


*Tanahashi vs Devitt* was very good as well but could have been a bit better in my opinion. I couldn't buy Devitt as a serious threat which hurt the match slightly. Very interesting how over Devitt was and how Tanahashi was booed by quite a large section of the audience. I give that match around **** 1/4 - *** 1/2.*

*Nakamura vs Archer* was very disappointing. I expected a lot more from these two and they certainly can deliver a lot lot better. The booking was baffling having the ref bump and Smith interfere as it essentially led to nothing. The finish was really flat and the match suffered because of both those issues. But even taking that into consideration, not enough was brought to the table and it felt like filler. *** 3/4*


----------



## DOPA

*The Briscoe Brothers(c) vs. reDRagon (ROH 2/3): *****

Really surprised by how great this was. This had very good storytelling throughout, Jay sold well, O'Reilly actually showed a bit of psychology (shocker!), Mark bumped like crazy making reDRagon look fantastic and the finish was AWESOME. Surprise of the Anniversary show in terms of quality.

*Kevin Steen(c) vs. Jay Lethal (ROH 2/3): *** 3/4*


----------



## Rah

I liked the *Briscoes/ReDRagon* match until the hot tag to Mark. The ******* karate gimmick is totally kayfabe breaking for me. Why, when the commentators are directly plugging O'Reilly as a well-disciplined fighter, have the hot-tag build be completely over-ridden by Mark's asinine shtick that, even in the fake world of wrestling, is not doing anything to Kyle other than being annoying?

If O'Reilly really is that well-trained, why does he not level Mark with something? It isn't as if Jay is stiffing him at all, anyway. The knee work on Jay was hampered, too, by that hot tag. It just had no purpose once he tagged his brother in. Why work on something for so long if no one is going to highlight it later on? Yeah, fine, they needed a means to debilitate him in keeping their control but many tag matches make use of something actually fitting. Throwing in a myriad of dragon screws and submissions should result in some form of restriction on Jay from there on out (_OR A FUCKING SUBMISSION_), yet it didn't. No one thought wise to dropkick his knee once he had gained control, again.

And as for the to-the-floor spots, yeah... it felt as if it was there to rather pop the crowd than add any logical coherence to where the work was being taken. The first time, admittedly, was brutalishly sick but the second was just unnecessary.

Overall, though, it was good (and better than what I'd have expected) yet still not a MotYC. Same goes for the *NJPW Anniversary* matches.




Elimination (losers advance) aspuestas match
*Oficial 911 Vs Trauma II Vs El Angel*
Trio match || Loser's Hair Match (with missing finish) || Handheld with finish​
Firstly, just a clarification on how to approach the match and to understand what's going on. I've incorporated both bouts into one match, as that seems the logical progression here noting how they set things up. The stipulation dictates that the first fall will be contested under standard threeway conditions, however the winner of the match will be eliminated. The remaining two wrestlers will move into the second fall which is under a mask Vs mask stipulation. As for watching the videos go, in order, from left to right as I've laid them out here. The first two cut nicely into each other, however the ending of the mascara y mascara match was not only cut but was also over-written by the TV Channel's logo. I'm not sure why, as this match seemingly had a chance to reach the annuls of absolute greatness but no matter. The handheld does go over a few minutes that you have seen before in the official video yet watch it anyway. It offers a better angle on the crowd brawling as well as the bottle angle.

As for the match, if you can get past the first few minutes of seemingly perfunctory action, you will be rewarded in troves. Yes, Trauma's dive from the ringpost was a bit botchy. Yes, the Oficial/Angel segment was not the greatest but when this match clicked it damn well did so. I honestly cannot think of anything that comes to mind in terms of how perfectly executed a lot of the threeway action was delivered. It was completely on point and never seemingly needed much awareness of their surroundings - they were always just in the right place to take the counters or add their twist to the sequence.

I was pretty adamant in the Lucha thread in hoping Angel would rather remain on the sidelines but I'm gladly eating my words here. He certainly made the second fall if you weren't already sold on him in the first. I truly loved how Angel returned the favour to Trauma after Trauma tore his mask apart - ferociously ripping at Trauma's own mask, and gnawing into the mask and forehead of his opponent in rabid aggression.

It was perhaps an obvious win for Oficial, yet I still don't mind having had the threeway. If we're to rely on hypothetical situations then, perhaps, I'd be inclined to be in favour of only the second fall in a longer timeframe. From the goodness here it wouldn't be foolish in thinking that match could stick as one of the first go-to aspuestas matches of the 2010's. Yet, we don't live in a hypothetical world. That said, what we had here was still bordering on epic. 

The beer bottle to Trauma's head was the definite highlight amongst the brawling of the second fall (I'm pretty sure it wasn't staged, too). It was also a nifty counter-response to Trauma delivering a vicious DDT moments before. Could Angel out-wrestle Trauma? No. Could Angel out-brawl Trauma, though? Yes and, effectively, that's how they came into and ended this. Trauma managing to get a lucky Fujiwara on Angel while trying to swing a second beer bottle shot and transitioning it into the finishing submission seemingly denoted the old saying that brains will always beat pure brawn. Watch this.
*Rating:* ★★★★1/4+


----------



## Mr.Guerrilla

Crusade said:


> *The Briscoe Brothers(c) vs. reDRagon (ROH 2/3): *****
> 
> Really surprised by how great this was. This had very good storytelling throughout, Jay sold well, O'Reilly actually showed a bit of psychology (shocker!), Mark bumped like crazy making reDRagon look fantastic and the finish was AWESOME. Surprise of the Anniversary show in terms of quality.
> 
> *Kevin Steen(c) vs. Jay Lethal (ROH 2/3): *** 3/4*


Totally agree with Briscoes-ReDRagon review.

But, IMO Steen-Lethal wasn't so good. It was okay I guess, but didn't really like it so much. ***1/4 for that match.


----------



## darkclaudio

Dragon Gate Infinity 285 

Name vs Loser Leaves Town: Mr. Que Que Toyonaka Dolphin vs Fake Naoki Tanizaki ***3/4 - ****

Dragon Gate Infinity 286

Masaaki Mochizuki, Don Fuji & Dragon Kid vs Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino & Ricochet ****


----------



## Cactus

*NJPW 02/03/2013*

*Masato Tanaka vs Tomohiro Ishii*
I'm not usually a fan of these matches where the two wrestlers just basically see who can take the hardest shot, but this was something I thought was fantastic. The strikes exchanges helped put the crowd behind Ishii and the match never felt like it had no direction or structure; something these kind of matches sometimes struggle with. The highlight of the match would have to be both men removing their elbow pads before the final strike exchange. It's little things like that which made me love this.
★★★★¼


----------



## Last Chancery

Rah, Mark's the one with the ******* kung-fu shtick, not Jay. Good reviews, though, regardless. Appreciate the thoroughness.


----------



## darkclaudio

TNA Lockdown 2013:

TNA World Tag Team Championship ***3/4
Lethal Lockdown ***1/4 - ***1/2
Jeff Hardy vs Bully Ray ***1/4 - ***1/2


----------



## Shepard

I thought the world title match and Lethal Lockdown sucked personally. Nothing really MOTYC from Lockdown but Joe Park had a fun match as always.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Nothing was MOTYC but I thought the ME was very good..


----------



## Kiz

3 way tag was good. lethal lockdown was absolutely brutal to watch and the mainevent was okay. ending saved it though.


----------



## stryker360

Chikara All the Agents and Super Human Crew

Someone will say I've over rated this but... Mr. Touchdown vs Archibald Peck (in his many forms) ***3/4 - ****


----------



## Rah

Last Chancery said:


> Rah, Mark's the one with the ******* kung-fu shtick, not Jay. Good reviews, though, regardless. Appreciate the thoroughness.


And all this time I thought Jay was the younger brother. :side:


----------



## Obfuscation

Shepard said:


> I thought the world title match and Lethal Lockdown sucked personally. Nothing really MOTYC from Lockdown but Joe Park had a fun match as always.





93.20 said:


> 3 way tag was good. lethal lockdown was absolutely brutal to watch and the mainevent was okay. ending saved it though.


Lethal Lockdown raped the tag team championship if you ask me. LL & Park/Joey were the only matches that garnered any fun while the rest were throwaways. Main Event's finish worked of course.

Finished the ROH Anniversary show today too and man, Steen vs Lethal was awful. Broke my heart.


----------



## Kenny

someone give me PACKS to download of 2013 matches 8*D


----------



## Obfuscation

Just nab everything from NJPW. It's the stuff worth seeing from 2013 so far.


----------



## Concrete

stryker360 said:


> Chikara All the Agents and Super Human Crew
> 
> Someone will say I've over rated this but... Mr. Touchdown vs Archibald Peck (in his many forms) ***3/4 - ****


I don't find that to be overrating it at all. If one hadn't seen the other matches and events in the feud it probably wouldn't be nearly as enjoyable for someone but there are a ton of callbacks to other points in the feud. It may be a little overbooked but the zanyness was great in my opinion and I myself have it around ***3/4. Really good match to end Chikara's first show of the year. Hopefully getting a little farther in event #2 tonight or tomorrow.


----------



## djmathers1207

Lockdown 2013


3-Way tag match [probably will rewatch this before I give it a rating]
Jeff Hardy vs. Bully Ray ***1/2 [needed to be a street fight]
Lethal Lockdown ***1/4 [could have been a little better]
X-Division 3-Way ***1/4 [would have been ***3/4 if it had gone 5 more minutes]

11th Anniversary Show


American Wolves vs. Forever Hooligans ****
Briscoes vs. reDRagon- ****
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Lethal ****1/4 [loved the aftermath] SCUM is WAY better than Aces & 0.8s
Roderick Strong vs. Michael Elgin ****


----------



## seabs

*Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Jado & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Kengo Mashimo & TAKA Michinoku - NJPW 03.03.2013*
_Really fun with more than enough greatness thrown in to make this a MOTYC for me. Juniors shtick is great. It's always great with them 3. TAKA bumping when Archer or Smith bodyslam someone and he's standing on the apron is the greatest spot ever. It's almost better when the camera barely catches it and you just see TAKA bump off the apron to the floor when it happens. Need more multi mans with TAKA and Taichi tagging with Archer and/or Smith so they can recreate the greatest spot ever when they both bump off the apron like total lunatics over and over again when the big men do consecutive bodyslams. Goon TAKA isn't far behind M-Pro TAKA and that TAKA was the fucking best. Match really picks up into great territory when Ishii gets his run and does what Ishii does best. Okada/Suzuki final run was good and I dug the finish. If I was nitpicking I'd fault Mashimo for being pretty bad and Okada for looking lost at times. I guess I just did. Nitpicking though. I can't remember the last time I actually watched Okada do his rainmaker pose. Everytime he does I immediately look for Gedo doing his version of it._

******

*Nakamura/Archer was kinda bad I thought. Ref bump nonsense just killed the match flat as soon as they were building momentum. Match was very so so before that though. Devitt/Tanahashi I liked and thought was good but just below MOTYC status.*


----------



## geraldinhio

I'm falling so far behind lately because of my thesis. Didn't even get to see DDT4 yet. I'll be done with it on Friday. Anyone wanna give me a list of matches from the last month or so to get me back on track? Last MOTYC I've seen is probably the Shield match at Elimination Chamber.


----------



## flag sabbath

geraldinhio said:


> I'm falling so far behind lately because of my thesis. Didn't even get to see DDT4 yet. I'll be done with it on Friday. Anyone wanna give me a list of matches from the last month or so to get me back on track? Last MOTYC I've seen is probably the Shield match at Elimination Chamber.


My Top 20 for 2013 is here http://www.wrestlingforum.com/14713121-post599.html


----------



## geraldinhio

Appreciate that. I've seen only three matches of them.  Heard nothing blow away from DDT4 but can't wait to see three Young Buck's matches on one card. :mark:


----------



## Corey

geraldinhio said:


> I'm falling so far behind lately because of my thesis. Didn't even get to see DDT4 yet. I'll be done with it on Friday. Anyone wanna give me a list of matches from the last month or so to get me back on track? Last MOTYC I've seen is probably the Shield match at Elimination Chamber.


Cena vs. Punk from RAW 2/25. MOTY to this point for me.


----------



## Rah

geraldinhio said:


> I'm falling so far behind lately because of my thesis. Didn't even get to see DDT4 yet. I'll be done with it on Friday. Anyone wanna give me a list of matches from the last month or so to get me back on track? Last MOTYC I've seen is probably the Shield match at Elimination Chamber.


My MotY list is in my signature (shameless plug). Each match in the post links to its write-up so you can see what I thought on it. I also don't think I've missed anything (DDT4 didn't do anything for me), if it isn't on the list then I didn't think it worthy. I do have a couple Mid-Atlantic Indy matches to go through, though.



darkclaudio said:


> TNA Lockdown 2013:
> 
> TNA World Tag Team Championship ***3/4
> Lethal Lockdown ***1/4 - ***1/2
> Jeff Hardy vs Bully Ray ***1/4 - ***1/2





djmathers1207 said:


> Lockdown 2013
> 
> 3-Way tag match [probably will rewatch this before I give it a rating]
> Jeff Hardy vs. Bully Ray ***1/2 [needed to be a street fight]
> Lethal Lockdown ***1/4 [could have been a little better]


Lethal Lockdown was a blithering mess. I loved how Taz would play up the fact they had a man advantage yet it took A&8's so long to get into the ring they had already lost at least half their time. Add in taking turns in beating their opponent, instead of pack-mauling (I'm looking at you Knox), and this match was just illogical. Wrestling was okayish, otherwise. The massive superplex was death.

Bully/Hardy was average-good, too. I had to watch it late into the early morning so I was half-asleep for it, though. The shenanigans I hated, frankly. Why not let Bully win clean before the reveal? He's worked his ass off for this spot, give it to him properly. It just felt so Hogan'ish at the end of the day and I'm not sure if the fans were angry at the stupidity or because they got worked well. I'd say the latter because the swerve was pretty obvious (especially since Hogan made him #1 contender). By the by, that isn't a dig at TNA but rather having experience in knowing how wrestling stories usually go. A heel Bully is phenomenal so I'm anticipating his reign, however.

3-way Tag Title match was pretty great. Bad Influence/Champs had some awesome sequences and Hernandez did his shtick right. It was all about playing to the Texas crowd.

As for the X-Div match; yeah, worst match I've seen all year. Fucking abysmal. Reks 2.0 has no business anywhere near a ring. MINUS STARS.


Aside: anyone else notice the lack of blood? I don't think I've seen anyone complain about it on this website. Hopefully we can get past the mentality that "blood = everything", especially when Lockdown is meant to be TNA's most dangerous PPV.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Jado & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Kengo Mashimo & TAKA Michinoku - ****1/4*

Brillant match with great drama. The Ishii/Kengo exchange was fantastic. I will watch the rest of the show later.

EDIT: Hiroshai Tanahashi vs Prince Devitt - ***3/4


----------



## seancarleton77

Seabs said:


> *Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Jado & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Kengo Mashimo & TAKA Michinoku - NJPW 03.03.2013*
> _Really fun with more than enough greatness thrown in to make this a MOTYC for me. Juniors shtick is great. It's always great with them 3. TAKA bumping when Archer or Smith bodyslam someone and he's standing on the apron is the greatest spot ever. It's almost better when the camera barely catches it and you just see TAKA bump off the apron to the floor when it happens. Need more multi mans with TAKA and Taichi tagging with Archer and/or Smith so they can recreate the greatest spot ever when they both bump off the apron like total lunatics over and over again when the big men do consecutive bodyslams. Goon TAKA isn't far behind M-Pro TAKA and that TAKA was the fucking best. Match really picks up into great territory when Ishii gets his run and does what Ishii does best. Okada/Suzuki final run was good and I dug the finish. If I was nitpicking I'd fault Mashimo for being pretty bad and Okada for looking lost at times. I guess I just did. Nitpicking though. I can't remember the last time I actually watched Okada do his rainmaker pose. Everytime he does I immediately look for Gedo doing his version of it._
> 
> ******
> 
> *Nakamura/Archer was kinda bad I thought. Ref bump nonsense just killed the match flat as soon as they were building momentum. Match was very so so before that though. Devitt/Tanahashi I liked and thought was good but just below MOTYC status.*


THIS. ****


----------



## darkclaudio

Elimination Match: Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Jado & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Davey Boy Smith Jr., Kengo Mashimo & TAKA Michinoku ***3/4


----------



## Obfuscation

geraldinhio said:


> I'm falling so far behind lately because of my thesis. Didn't even get to see DDT4 yet. I'll be done with it on Friday. Anyone wanna give me a list of matches from the last month or so to get me back on track? Last MOTYC I've seen is probably the Shield match at Elimination Chamber.


CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun & Tanahashi vs Devitt were must see matches from the 3/2 show.

Nakamura vs Archer seems to have earned a bit of a mixed reaction thanks to the wild booking involved. I felt it was pretty awesome for the majority. Worth a watch too.

Speaking of DDT4, I have to watch it myself. Don't know why it's been getting put off so long by me. Generico's final PWG matches. Should have been watched asap.


----------



## DOPA

*Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs Shuji Kondo (AJPW 23/2): *** 3/4*

Loved this match for the time it got, finishing stretch was very dramatic. Kondo continues to put on great performances this year.


----------



## seabs

*Kazuchika Okada vs Lance Archer - NJPW 11.03.2013*
_LANCE VANCE. This was great and largely down to Archer rather than Okada. Chuffed he got to have this showing after the Nakamura match didn't reach this level. Archer's moveset is really great and this was him plowing through his highlight reel in the best way possible. Benefits a ton from Okada not feeling the need to get his own moves in every other minute so Archer gets to just kill Okada continuously and it all pays off at the climax. Peak was Archer just squatting Okada's dropkick away. Loved the little size touches in the match with Archer not selling any of Okada's strikes and dominating any strike battles and just laughing off Okada's tombstone attempt. Finish fell flat because a) Okada's submission finish isn't very good and b) he hasn't used it enough yet to get it over. Other than thought this ruled for the time it got._

******


----------



## Mr.Guerrilla

3-way Tag team match was Lockdown's MOTN. ***1/2 for the match. PPV was fun and entertaining, but nothing special. Main event was solid but I didn't really liked it.


----------



## Obfuscation

*Chikara - All The Agents & Superhuman Crew*


*No Disqualification Match*

Archibald Peck vs Mark Angelosetti ~ ****​
~ Perhaps I'm in the minority of those who loved Peck vs Touchdown. All good. Felt this was worked really, really well. To the point where I can call it great. Quite comfortably, tbhayley. Sometimes guys in Chikara try to strike and the strikes come off as so weak it is hard to get into things. Not here. Peck & Touchdown both really went at it; which only further pushed the No DQ environment. All sorts of comebacks are brought into play here - standard Chikara fare relying on some strong on point storytelling to help bring out the best nature of a match. I know the one major story development will be too wacky for some. For me, I bought into it. I know how Chikara is and I've come to expect everything, no matter how over the top it may be when you look at it from outside of the context that is implied. A bit silly for a match that was worked with a more serious tone throughout (not like I'M GONNA KILL YOU SERIOUS, but serious enough to buy things, you know?) yet fitting when this was a program ender. And as that - a feud ender - this was probably the most satisfying of them all. Great match. Right from the outset this worked. Only complaint I could find was Touchdown fiddled with one of his gimmicks a touch too long before hitting a move...that's it. Minor gripe. Rest, oh yeah. Too much fun.


----------



## Rah

Any link to the match and not the entire show?


----------



## EmbassyForever

Rah said:


> Any link to the match and not the entire show?


Watch Ant vs Kingston as well. IMO it's just as good. Plus, Kevin Steen in Chikara, you can't go wrong.


----------



## Rah

I'll give it a watch for Gran Akuma/Young Bucks, rather.


----------



## Obfuscation

But Steen was so awesome in the match too. STEEN.


----------



## Bubz

*Kazuchika Okada vs Lance Archer (NJPW 11/3)*
Great match. Oh so simple, but oh so sweet. Archer is boss here, dominating from the bell until Okada's comeback and then the short but great finishing stretch. Loved Archer cutting Okada off especially the spots where he just grabbed him by the throat and threw him over the top rope and the swatting the dropkick away like it was nothing. Okada's comeback was really well done and I loved the turning point being the moonsault attempt. Counter from the powerbomb into the air raid crash neckbreaker was awesome, chokeslam was a great nearfall, and the crowd reaction after was testament to that. Really dug the small package by Okada when the Rainmaker kept failing. That's a move that never fails to generate great counter sequences. I actually really liked the finish despite the move looking kind of lame, but I don't mind it. Let's face it, if I can buy into Cena's STF I can buy into this too tbh. Basically just loved how simple and to the point this was with two really good performances. ******


----------



## Rah

Rah said:


> Any link to the match and not the entire show?


Screw you, asshole. You would have missed a good show if the people here were helpful to your desires. :no:


Chikara - All The Agents & Superhuman Crew (09/02/2013)

First Time Ever!
*Green Ant Vs Eddie Kingston*
★★★★
_I didn't buy Green Ant having a chance here right until Kingston tweaked his knee off the dive. Even then the Steen "interference" certainly added plausibility in the victory, too. That's not to say Green Ant never made himself here, though, as he most certainly sold himself as the underdog that could out-wrestle the champion with his submission arsenal. Both wrestlers playing off of their characters (Kingston the powerhouse; Green Ant the submission expert)
most certainly added depth to this and had me buy into its goodness. Green Ant, instead of going for the easily in-reach ropebreak, rather turns Kingston's stomach claw into a sub on the arm. Now while Kingston was also easily able to get the rope-break it wasn't about having the champion submit, it was about showing Kingston that Green Ant was dangerous if the match swayed even marginally from Kingston's powerhouse offence. Throw in great selling as well as Green Ant taking Kingston's strikes like a champ and you have me sold, again, on Chikara. Even if it's just for one or two matches on the card._

No Disqualification Match!
*Archibald Peck Vs Mark Angelosetti*
★★★★
_This was a completely different beast to the Kingston/Ant match. While the previous match was more wrestling-heavy this was all about their gimmicks and the storyline. Ultimately it was everything Chikara is about. Any mention to over-reliance on gimmicks is negated purely due to backstory and Peck's final, triumphant return. It just made complete sense. This is not for those who want a great matchup as its stalls and comedy segments will most probably drive you into hating it but if you like Chikara, if you love comedic commentary (hell, even if you're like me who doesn't) GET ON THIS. I cannot think of a better way in which they could have done this. Perfection._​


----------



## DOPA

Link to the Chikara show?


----------



## Rah

It's in the Indy media section.


----------



## Cactus

*IWRG 02/18/2013*

*Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita*
I loved how the match greatly contrasts itself stylistically even in the first fall. The first part of the match shows the first two babyfaces owning the first two heels on the mat. Then when it's time for each team to tag in their third man, the match smoothly changes direction into a balls-to-the-wall brawl. The matwork is insane, flashy but rarely over-the-top and the brawling is violent and stiff. Every man involved in this was great and it always felt like every man had his own rival in this potential lucha MOTYC.
*★★★★*


----------



## vanishrap

there are a couple MOTY Candidates from me:
Tanahashi vs Anderson at New Beginning
Cena vs Punk at Raw
CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun at 41st Anniversary
Drake Younger vs Sami Callihan at DDT4


----------



## Nervosa

Finally saw NJ Cup Night 1

Ishii/Kojima is a MOTYC at **** for me. The middle lagged a bit right after the out-of-ring strike stuff but man was that finishing stretch amazing. Ishii is a true hero in Korakuen, and in our little corner of the internet. I am utterly kerfuffed at the fact that Ishii lost to a worthless piece of shit like Goto in the second round.

they could have had an Ishii/Suzuki match............just think about that for a second.

I didn't enjoy Archer/Okada as much as some of you did. Archer's control was truly incredible, but the comeback was way to quick, and the series of counters seemed to have no heat at all from the crowd. This was punctuated by a finish that fell completely flat in every way. Thank God the Rainmaker isn't actually gone: the Red Mist experiment has failed poorly. All 3 variations of the DID are more believable finishes than that stupid move. I can see why people liked it, it was just very incomplete in my eyes.


----------



## Groovemachine

Nervosa said:


> Finally saw NJ Cup Night 1
> 
> Ishii/Kojima is a MOTYC at **** for me. The middle lagged a bit right after the out-of-ring strike stuff but man was that finishing stretch amazing. Ishii is a true hero in Korakuen, and in our little corner of the internet. *I am utterly kerfuffed at the fact that Ishii lost to a worthless piece of shit like Goto* in the second round.
> 
> they could have had an Ishii/Suzuki match............just think about that for a second.



 Can we keep NJ Cup spoilers out of this thread until the shows have been available online for at least a few days? I'm trying to go spoiler free for the tournament. Cheers.

On that note, Day 2 has just been uploaded to Dailymotion so I checked out said Goto/Ishii match. Great stuff once again from these two, my favourite match from this year's cup so far at ***3/4. Michael Elgin should watch purely to see how Ishii does a 'kick out at 1' spot and make it mean something. Ishii looked really good here and was put over very well. Crowd seemed to be pretty firmly on his side too, which is good for him.


----------



## Obfuscation

Fuck a spoiler. Yes, please use spoiler tags next time.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Spoiler: NJC - Day 2



Ishii vs Goto - ****+


..


----------



## Alden Heathcliffe

EmbassyForever said:


> Spoiler: NJC - Day 2
> 
> 
> 
> Ishii vs Goto - ****+
> 
> 
> ..


Yeah, I'll go with that. One of the best matches I've seen this year. Everything about it was excellent.


----------



## MF83

Traditional strong style even? Hm... Challenge accepted. Brb.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

MF83 said:


> Traditional strong style even? Hm... Challenge accepted. Brb.


It's not. It's kind of like the Goto/Ishii match from last year, but with better selling. Still heavily based around strike exchanges.

Guys, strong style veers a little more into shoot territory in that it looks more like a fight or a human chess match. In that sense, the Laughter7 matches are more similar to Strong Style more than anything.


----------



## MF83

Traditional strong style, in a short sentence, means expecting the unexpected. These 2004 Kensuke Sasaki comeback tour inspired strike-for-strike mirror-matches are pretty well the opposite of that, but if you meant thoroughly good wrestling without the kayfabe killing cooperation; sure. 

This featured the first good Goto performance since, like, 2011, and an extraordinary Ishii performance void of what was making his formerly _underrated_ self comparatively _overrated_ as of late. Off that alone, this was great. The early-middle of these matches tend to be a chore to get through but not here. Goto was fiery, expressive, intense, and did not stall or lag for again, the first time in a good couple years. There was much less waiting around than usual and they pulled this style of match off believably, smoothly and entertainingly. These things are usually so fucking cooperative that it can be painful but they made managed to give this the legitimate struggle feel and gave nothing away for free. Stiff without stupidity, mirroring without copying, transcending to epic and throroughly satisfying. Hell yeah. More consistent, if less spectacular, than Tanaka/Ishii makes this the second or third best New Japan match this year (depending on which Ishii match you prefer) under Shinsuke/Sakuraba. 

****1/4-****1/2


----------



## Chismo

New Japan was, is, and will always remain STRONG STYLE, simply because that's how New Japan calls their heavyweight wrestlers (like... WWE "Superstars"). The Strong Style term has nothing to do with a certain wrestling style per se, it's just a phrase. And people identified Strong Style with old school, (semi) shoot style back then. And they still do that, unfortunately. Stylistically, New Japan's present style of wrestling is what could be called the "Spectacle Style", something like WWE Style done right, something like old WWF style.

Anyway:

- Goto/Ishii ****1/2
- Yano/MiSu ****


----------



## DOPA

*The Young Bucks(c) vs. 3.0 (Chikara 10/2): *****
*Green Ant vs. Eddie Kingston (Chikara 9/2): *****
*Mr. Touchdown vs. Archibald Peck (Chikara 9/2): ***3/4*

From the two Chikara shows so far this year.


----------



## DOPA

*Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 17/3): **** 1/2*

Holy mother of god was this amazing. I loved loved loved this match so much. Easily the best match of the NJPW cup and I doubt anything else is going to get close. This slots into my top 3 matches of the year.


----------



## Nervosa

I'm sorry for the spoilers.....but I was under the impression spoilers were allowed on this thread. I mean, finishes certainly pertain to match analysis.

If someone wants to avoid spoilers, can't they just, I don't know....use the Puro discussion thread with the 'No Spoiler' sign in it?


----------



## seabs

*You started talking about Night 1 and then just dropped a Night 2 spoiler out of nowhere that nobody could possibly avoid. People probably saw Night 1, wanted to read your thoughts and found a Night 2 spoiler in the middle of it when it had only just surfaced online. If you're posting a review for a match someone hasn't seen then people should be smart enough not to read the review. At least give some sort of warning you might spoil the result, especially for a show that had only just been uploaded. Just be careful that the show you're spoiling has been available for people to watch for a few days first before posting such a direct spoiler.*


----------



## Nervosa

Allright, I understand, sorry to everyone. I seriously thought any thread without 'No Spoiler' in the title was fine, and that people avoiding spoilers would just avoid all other threads. Won't happen again.


----------



## Cactus

*NJPW New Japan Cup - Day 2*

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Hirooki Goto*
Do you really want a review? It's an Ishii match and it delivers and then some. Go see it now. Goto wastes no time trying to work down Ishii and tries to take him out quickly but Ishii is tougher than Goto thinks. I really loved the mirrored striking sequences and I don't think I've been sucked into the drama of a wrestling match for a long time and this match got me on the end of my set; especially during one of the dueling clothesline sequences. My only complaint here would probably be that I felt that this went on a tad too long and that Goto added in a few near-falls for the hell of it.
★★★★¼


----------



## Concrete

Everytime I'm about to post on this thread I just back out for no reason but I'm actually going to dish out some ratings and give like a sentence. Most probably people won't agree with but whatever. 

*Zack Sabre Jr./Marty Scurll vs. Jonathan Gresham/Mark Haskins:****1/4*
Rah mentioned this match in the British Wrestling thread and while he thought it was fun, I thought it was fun and great. This is the best I have ever seen Haskins out of my limited viewing of him. His character work was spot on and he looked the part to boot. Gresham has improved considerably in Europe to me. Why not quite on Haskins level of character in this one I think he did a little bit that added to this match. LDRS are really good. ZSJ is so slick its silly.

*Terrible vs. Rush:*****
I didn't like this match as much as their hair vs. hair match last year but I seem to be the only one. Thought it was great though. Don't watch enough lucha to know if Rush does that goal kick taunt thing in other matches but it was pretty cool.

*Akiyama/Suzuki/Kanemuru vs. Soya/Omori/Kaz Hayashi:****1/4*
With JoeRulez on this one. Loved the moment that piledriver was hit on the outside and things became a blur of chaos.

*Jun Akiyama/Go Shiozaki vs. Manabu Soya/Takao Omori:****3/4*
This match was incredible. From bell to bell its intense. Soya took a beating like a man. Seemed like Akiyama and Shiozaki's goal was to deliver enough blows to the head that Soya would get concussions galore. I don't know why Soya felt the need to drape his head onto the guardrail TWICE but he did. Crazy bastard. Akiyama looked like an unstoppable force. He pretty much forced Soya to hit him and then he murdered him. Akiyama lands the nastiest headbutt sequence I've seen in AWHILE. The finishing stretch may have gone on too long for some but by gosh the crowd was nuclear for it. Dead crowd and it wouldn't have been nearly as impactful. My current MOTY. Didn't see this match being THIS amazing. Some might not be as high on it as I but for it was bliss.


----------



## Rah

I also have one or two matches I've backed out from writing matches up for, that British match being one. I'm not sure if I'd go as high as yours but I don't see any injustice in throwing that rating at it. It'd definitely fit in my MotY list, at any rate.

As for Rush/Terrible, I cannot remember my rating for their hair match but both were great and heightened by Rush's nuclear hatred from the crowd. Forget TNA's plants, Rush was getting trash thrown at him left, right and centre from angry fans. I know the tecnico status can confuse some but Rush is doing brilliantly well at a situation that Panico forced him in to. Never seen him perform the goal kick, again, but I don't watch his trios matches. Those pairings leave a lot to be desired.

That Akiyama/Go match, is it the 17/03 tag? I managed to get a few minutes in before Dailymotion went down on me. It ended just after I saw Soya get executed with a neckdrop onto that guardrail. So legit even Dailymotion sold the move and died.


----------



## Chismo

I'm adding Angelosetti/Saturyne from While the Dawn is Breaking to my list. A phenomenal match.

I'm downloading NJC D3 currently, gonna watch it, and then up to AJPW Basic & Dynamic from Ryogoku. :mark:

BURNING


----------



## seabs

*Kazuchika Okada vs Toru Yano - NJPW 23.03.2013*
_Stating the obvious but don't read on if you don't want to know who makes it to the Final. If you're in two minds then watch this one unspoiled and you'll be thankful you did. Pairing was a bit perplexing with Smith in the other Semi but I knew this would be fun. Only hoped it would fun AND great. This was FUN and GREAT. Yano's shtick is fantastic and regardless of the direction of the match makes the pre finish parts to a match interesting which is something a lot of guys struggle with. On top of that he's pretty reliable at delivering really fun finish stretches to with a top opponents. Don't get how someone can watch this and/or the Yano/Tanahashi match from 2011 G1 and say Yano's trash. Unless you want everyone to work like a ROH wrestler I guess. Gedo's face when Yano tries to roll out the ring again to Punk Okada but rolls right into Gedo was the best. Gedo's amazing in this role as Okada's mentor at ringside and the early parts played off the CHAOS vs CHAOS dynamic perfectly. Naturally Okada isn't as cunning as Yano is at bending the rules so the middle sees him fall prey to Yano's cheating shtick. Pays off really nicely with the exposed buckle being the catalyst for Yano losing the momentum at the end. They have a really great finishing run too and there's 3 near falls that actually convinced me Yano might be winning. The powerbomb near fall especially got me and that's a credit to what protecting finishers at any level of the card does. Red Ink finish just isn't as hot for Okada but I dig the thinking behind it. It just needs to be secondary to the lariat in the same way that Tanahashi has the Cloverleaf he pulls out from time to time. Liked how Okada realised Yano had the Rainmaker scouted and covered so resorted to the submission finish instead._

******

*Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii & Jado vs Minoru Suzuki, Lance Archer & TAKA Michinoku - NJPW 23.03.2013*
_CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun feud delivers again. Pre heat segment on Jado absolutely rules. Suzuki cheap shotting Nakamura while he's strutting along the ropes was such a great start to set the heat and the tone for the match. Ishii/Archer segment ruled the earth. That's the Ishii that I love when he's working from the bottom up making his task seem impossible for ever more likely. Screw that working as equals trading lariats two minutes into a match bullshit. Archer keeps on getting better and better and he's at the point where he's constantly delivering now and being one of the stand out performers on New Japan cards. Ishii's fight to knock Archer of his feet was wonderful and played perfectly into Archer's size dynamic. Dug how Ishii never got him down but got hi big suplex in later in the match. Wish they'd had another extended battle at the end where Ishii finally took Archer down with his lariat though. I absolutely adore Ishii's shtick of if a guy won't fall of my lariat then I'll brainbuster him. That spot never gets old when he pulls it out on guys like Akebono and Archer. TAKA's on another level to everyone else so naturally he pulls the same trick out on Ishii to the same result of course. God I loved that spot so much. Jado/TAKA portion is naturally tons of fun because it's Jado and TAKA and what else is the end outcome gonna be. Jado fighting the flop for once ruled the earth. There was a lot that ruled the earth at the start of this. Heat segment on Jado was good. Finish went a little long and fell a little flat in parts. For some reason Nakamura/Archer just falls flat and the crowd realise it. Straight into a finish off the hot tag rather than doing another set of individual battles would have made it a serious contender for MOTY with Tanahashi/Anderson for me right now. Finish was still good mind, just up and down. Nakamura/Ishii vs Archer/Smith in Korakuen should rule the earth too. I might need a new term if Ishii and Archer have a singles match in front of a hot Korakuen crowd._

******


----------



## darkclaudio

-AJPW World Tag Team Championship Match: Get Wild (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) (c) vs Burning (Go Shiozaki & Jun Akiyama) - AJPW 17/03 ****1/4


----------



## seancarleton77

"Get Wild" vs. "Burning" tag title match = ****1/2


----------



## Last Chancery

Some quickie live star ratings/recaps from AAW's EPIC event.

Prince Ali vs. Juntai Miller
Rating: ***1/2
Recap: Not a MOTYC but I'm including it anyway, since that's the way I do things. Solid 14-minute contest between these two relative no-names. Crowd was dead but these guys poured out their hearts and souls for them anyway. Ali's offense is dangerous-but-crisp in a way the Briscoes are when they're on, and some of the stuff he attempts falls into borderline Teddy Hart territory. My heart stopped twice in this one (figuratively, of course) -- once when Ali went for a reverse 450 and missed it, again when he attempted a reverse hurricanrana to the apron, botched it (obviously, how could he not), and ended up tossing Miller to the floor hard. Won't spoil the winner, for those who even care, but it's a neat little sleeper for those who do.

Shane Hollister vs. Jimmy Jacobs
Rating: ****1/4-****1/2
Recap: Some are calling this Jacobs' (and Shane's) best match of 2013, some of his career. Can't really argue with some of those claims, though I dispute others. In either respect, this is Jimmy's match, and it's one structured around the Undertaker/Michaels match at WrestleMania 25. With Jimmy playing Taker, strange as it sounds. This particular match also featured a gruesome dive to the outside, although this one busted the man open. The two played off Jacobs' bleeding and head trauma, and there were several suplexes from Shane that looked too brutal not to have been done out of spite. They laid waste to each other for over 20 minutes, and this will long be remembered as the match where Jacobs made Hollister, at least for AAW. Oh, and SUPER BONUS? Scarlett's outfit. HOLY SHIT indeed. Google it. Match of the night, surprisingly.

Davey Richards vs. ACH
Rating: ***3/4-****
Recap: These two mesh up well, and with Davey playing the ultimate cocky shithead heel, the dynamic here is clear-cut and fantastic. It plays like a new vet/old rookie kind of thing, with Richards at first not respecting ACH and just taking liberties with him during his control segment(s). Seriously, watching Davey stretch the kid into bodily positions I never imagined possible, going a little stiff with him, playing up the fact that he's the real Best in the World and his title match with Elgin next month, it was great. He did the Davey Thrust. My favorite spot of the match, no joke, was when he had ACH on the outside and hunched over a little. Boom, kicks him hard as fuck in the chest, ACH flies backward into the steel guard rail at a hundred miles an hour, nearly breaks the rail and a fan or two (the same fans he incidentally posed with earlier)... that was tight. But then my section, the camera side, starts chanting "over here." Davey hears us, he obliges. "Over there?" Big pop. He brings over ACH, jibes with the fans a little more, then says nope. Smiles. Rolls back into the ring. Fans go nuts. Won't spoil who wins, though the results are out there. It's a good half-hour of ACH's selling being put on display. Davey's offense + ACH's selling = gravy train a mile long, partner. But the finishing stretch was long, leading to what I thought was an obvious finish. Still good to great action and incredible drama in between, hoooly balls.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Yes I'll def check out these matches. Heard great stuff about Hollister vs Jacobs on Twitter, really liked Hollister from what I've seen and hopefully he'll show up at SCOH like I think he would. Jacobs having another awesome match this year is great news after last year that he basically did nothing thanks to Cornette.

Davey vs ACH in a 30 minutes match screams overkill to me but I have exceptions for this one after reading that Davey was a heel.

It seems like Prince Ali is very good. Looking forward to watch his match with ACH last month.


----------



## geraldinhio

Ya, I like Hollister too. Always hyped to hear of a great Jacobs match too. :mark: If ROH had any sense he'd be the one to take the belt off Steen and not Elgin. About time he got a reign, belt should of been put on him when AOTF were shit hot. That's just my opinion though. 

Love me some dick head Davey and ACH continues to shine so I'll defo check this out. AAW does really have some gems that are usually overlooked. Thankfully Last Chancery pimps them.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*Rush vs El Terrible - ***3/4
*Well, it's the first time I watched CMLL/Lucha Libra in general. Honestly I'm not a fan of the crowd reactions and these weird commercials during the match. Anyway, the firts minutes of the match were really strange, I mean Rush pinned Terrible two minutes in the match and after a minute or whatever Terrible got the pin. But thankfully after this the match really picked up, so far from what I've seen from Rush in NJPW he seemed to me like a good wrestler that is bland but he was awesome heel. With his look he looks like a perfect cocky heel. Very good match here and I loved the ending. I need to see more of CMLL's Rush, recommendation please? 

*Jun Akiyama/Go Shiozaki vs. Manabu Soya/Takao Omori - ****1/2
*Totally loved it. I'm not a follower of AJPW and I believe that this was the first time I saw Get Wild, but whoever it was he played a great FIP in the control segment of Akiyama who btw looked like a complete motherfucker in this match. Shozaki looked awesome as well, he looks much different than I rememberd (in his ROH days) and better in-ring. The last 10 minutes were insane with some amazing near-falls. Overall awesome match, is Funaki/Suwama from the same show worth watching too? it looks like a long-ass match..


----------



## Nervosa

Yano vs. Okada
****

Yano isn't for everyone. I think he is freaking incredible at what he does. Great same-stable drama from the beginning with Yano's style being somehting Okada clearly doesn't deal with much considering he mostly wrestles babyfaces. It caused Okada to make adjustments into an incredible finishing stretch.


----------



## seabs

*Davey and ACH had an awesome match in St. Louis Anarchy in 2011 so I can buy that match being great.*


----------



## leglock

EmbassyForever said:


> *Jun Akiyama/Go Shiozaki vs. Manabu Soya/Takao Omori - ****1/2
> *Totally loved it. I'm not a follower of AJPW and I believe that this was the first time I saw Get Wild, but whoever it was he played a great FIP in the control segment of Akiyama who btw looked like a complete motherfucker in this match. Shozaki looked awesome as well, he looks much different than I rememberd (in his ROH days) and better in-ring. The last 10 minutes were insane with some amazing near-falls. Overall awesome match, is Funaki/Suwama from the same show worth watching too? it looks like a long-ass match..


When you've seen the lead up to that tag match, Soya's role in there makes so much sense; especially when Akiyama told him that he had heart at the end.

Funaki vs. Suwama is not for everyone. I thought that they worked a four star match. Funaki's strikes are great these days, and Suwama is still a BAMF. There was, however, 15 minutes of matwork, which is not for everyone. Until the last minutes, it was a chess match more than a war.


----------



## seabs

*Kazuchika Okada & Shinsuke Nakamura vs Minoru Suzuki & Kengo Mashimo - NJPW 11.02.2013*
_Really good tag. Nothing particularly deep to it but it's these 4 and duh it's really good when all 4 are on and just doing their thing. There's the most hilarious spot ever when Taichi's doing his shtick with his crutch (I just love how he took the injury as another form of heel shtick) and Suzuzki throws the rail but it hits Taichi and Taichi just does the greatest flop to the floor off it in an instant. Suzuki doesn't give a single fuck that he took Taichi out either. Okada's drumming up an insane list of great matches already this year._

******


----------



## Rah

*Tomohiro Ishii Vs Hirooki Goto*
★★★★ 1/4
This was like watching two massive bulls colliding - stiff and unforgiving. You want to grow hairs on your chest? Watch this.


*Jun Akiyama/Go Shiozaki Vs Manabu Soya/Takao Omori (17/03/2013)*
★★★★ 1/4+
While Shiraishi may look to have gone off his rocker in acting as if we're in 1980s kayfabe, there's no denying the kayfabe inducing realness that these guys are putting into their matches. Their hatred and violence just feels as if they're shooting on each other and I'd hate to be Soya the next day noting the damage his neck probably took in this. While the Go/Omori sequence toward the middle (superkicks) was a bit perfunctory and the moonsault missed they're but minor gripes to an otherwise superb match. I might not be completely high on Soya's comeback/fighting spirit towards the end yet that finishing stretch was blazing. 


*Masakatsu Funaki Vs Suwama (17/03/2013)*
~★★★★ 1/2
Leglock equating this to a chess match is pretty apt, so if that turns you off its best you skip this. The clinch/matwork segments were pretty drat good, giving the feel of both men trying to gain early advantages with their pawns before using their bigger pieces when openings became clear. Both guys are very good wrestlers so it's no surprise the execution of their matwork (and peppered brawling) is not only crisp but keeps you invested despite the much slower pace. Suwama playing possum was a novel treat but the stretch to the end afterwards, however, left a bit to be desired. Here's to, hopefully, another long Suwama reign with great matches aplenty.

*Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (LPN 16/02/2013)*
LINK
~★★★★
I've been hesitant in nominating this for about a month now, but the more Kyle Matthews I watch the more I think he needs praise. He's had some phenomenal performances this year with Vordell Walker, Mike Cruz, Tommy Penirelli and Jimmy Rave with his ongoing feud against Tempers providing novel matches just about everywhere they go. None more so than this match. Tempers is great here offering first class selling in response to Kyle's on-point offence and riling the crowd when he gets his feel moves in. This was a dead simple match in its execution but the addage "less is more" immediately springs to mind. Neither wrestler took the match beyond what was required from the fans and it fitted the event perfectly. In not forcing some "epic" they managed to retain the crowd yet still put on a match that I'd call my Indy MotY thus far. Throw both names, with the likes of Chase Owens, in your scout-list whenever you're trawling through Youtube. The indy scene isn't dead.​


EmbassyForever said:


> *Rush vs El Terrible - ***3/4
> *Well, it's the first time I watched CMLL/Lucha Libra in general. Honestly I'm not a fan of the crowd reactions and these weird commercials during the match. Anyway, *the firts minutes of the match were really strange [1]*, I mean Rush pinned Terrible two minutes in the match and after a minute or whatever Terrible got the pin. But thankfully after this the match really picked up, so far from what I've seen from Rush in NJPW he seemed to me like a good wrestler that is bland but he was awesome heel. With his look he looks like a perfect cocky heel. Very good match here and I loved the ending. *I need to see more of CMLL's Rush, recommendation please?[2]*


*[1]* Welcome to the wonderful world of Panico's CMLL. Sometimes wrestlers can pull the short falls off right, sometimes (even rarer) it doesn't happen, but that's more often than not your staple. I dislike it, too.

*[2]* RUUUUUUUSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHH~!
Rush vs Terrible: cabellera y cabellera
Try get into the Rush/Terrible feud, it's been pretty damn solid. Cubsfan's links are seemingly down for the rest but Youtube should help. Enjoy!


----------



## EmbassyForever

*AJPW Excite Series 2013 - Day 2: Burning (Jun Akiyama, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Kotaro Suzuki) vs. GET WILD (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) & Kaz Hayashi - *****
Great match, if I was more into the characters I'm pretty sure I would enjoy this as much as JoeRulez. This just was a really good match and that Juniors exchange at the end was tremendous. 

*CMLL 11/02/2013: ***** Casas(c) Vs Valiente - ***3/4*
It's so hard to believe that ***** is 53 years old. I wasn't a fan of his performance at NJPW Power Struggle IIRC but he was absolutely awesome here. First time I saw Valiente and he was damn impressive outside of the botch in the ending (and in the begining but they covered it up greatly with a submission so I didn't mind). The ending kinda disappointed me but still very good match and again, ***** is phenomenal.

*IWRG 03/03/2013: Oficial 911 Vs Trauma II Vs El Angel - N/R*
Not sure how to rate this because from Rah's post on here it seems like I'm missing a part of the match (the second link is removed and I couldn't find another one) which is a shame because I really loved the match . The threeway was great, loved the tension between Trauma II and Angel with the masks ripping. Enjoyed Oficial 911 work as well. The mask vs mask (?) "match" was awesome, I put "" because it's only 5 minutes but it had a great heat and a lot of drama. The beer bottle smash was nasty, loved the ending with the out of nowhere Fujiwara and the crowd loved it and so did I. Overall I really enjoyed this match but with a missing link and a potential cut link it's really messy and hard to rate.


----------



## DOPA

Kazuchika Okada vs. Toru Yano (NJPW 3/23):******

Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW 3/23):*****1/4*

_Considering how awful Yano's performances were against Nakanishi and Suzuki it was a pleasant surprise for him to get it right against Okada and prove me wrong about him at least on this occasion._


----------



## EmbassyForever

*AJPW Pro Wreslting Love In Ryogoku: Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) © vs. Burning (Atsushi Aoki & Kotaro Suzuki) - ****1/4*
What an outstanding undercard match. Really perfect for it was and perfect for it's place on the card. The last 5 minutes were absolutely awesome. Burning are seriously great.

*AJPW Pro Wreslting Love In Ryogoku: Masakatsu Funaki (c) vs Suwama - ****1/2*
JoeRulez already said my exact thought on other thread. Just an overall fantastic match. What a war.



Spoiler: for the result



I guess they are doing Suwama vs Akiyama/Shiozaki which should be fucking awesome


. 

Think I might start following AJPW regulary.

*CMLL World Welterweight Championship: Pólvora vs Titán - ****
*Even if it's not on Rah's MOTYC list I still rememberd some hype around this match so I watched it. It was very good. Great pace, no screw-ups (which is amazing considering the moves they pulled off there) and just a really fun match. And for the first time the crowd was hot and they reacted like they should do in the spots, lol. Finish was brutal.


----------



## Bubz

I watched Ishii/Goto and didn't dig it as much as most. Just felt too empty to me. Two guys hitting eachother hard is fine, but I wanted more than that considering one of these guys is a main eventer and the other is down the card slightly. Could have done more like Seabs said with that story. Pretty much ended up in overkill territory by the end and at times felt like I was watching a Davey Richards match, albeit a kind of good one. Having complained though there was some great sequences in here, good nearfalls and a hot crowd that added to it. Both guys were showing fire and both guys had some great expressions throughout. Some no-selling that really annoyed me towards the end but then there were other moments when they sold the effects really well, so a mixed bag really. Not a MOTYC for me, but I see it's appeal I guess.

*Okada/Yano* was really good. Simple and fun. Yano was swell here, his reaction to the Rain Maker pose at the start was priceless. Liked his heel schtick more than I have done recently too. Okada was fine, but one of his lesser performances I thought, but it didn't need to be anything special and he played his role exactly how it needed to be. This was the best his submission finisher has looked too imo, but it's still pretty terrible. ****1/2*

*Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs Manabu Soya & Takao Omori (17/03)*
Now this is fantastic. Culmination I guess to the feud between AJ and Burning and it delivers big time. Only watched a hand full of matches from the feud, but I've seen and heard enough to understand the story going in. Go and Akiyama have looked so good from what I've seen, and Go especially seems motivated and fired up like I haven't seen him for ages. Soya is the underdog and he's the guy Go and Akiyama bully around. They do a great. great workover segment working on his head and neck and there's some brutal stuff that Soya takes. They really lay it in. Loved Soya laying in punches to Akiyama and Akiyama responding with ridiculous headbutts like it wasn't shit. I love Akiyama. I'd go as far as to say I'm the biggest fan of his on here. Anyway, I likes Soya managing to hit the suplex as the transition and only the suplex before selling the damage and making the tag, instead of making an extended comeback making the work over mean less. Saying that I thought he could have sold it better in the final stretch, but the last quarter was so good I didn't notice it that much. Really great finishing run imo, some sick exchanges, and unlike Rah, I liked the exchange between Go and Omori that led to Soya being brought back in after having gotten some life back on the outside. Didn't go into overkill even despite Soya's fighting spirit that actually came off well unlike in the Ishii/Goto match I talked about earlier because it fit Soya's role in the match and put his character in the fued over. Really great tag match. *****1/4*


----------



## Rah

EmbassyForever said:


> *CMLL World Welterweight Championship: Pólvora vs Titán - ****
> *Even if it's not on Rah's MOTYC list I still rememberd some hype around this match so I watched it. It was very good. Great pace, no screw-ups (which is amazing considering the moves they pulled off there) and just a really fun match. And for the first time the crowd was hot and they reacted like they should do in the spots, lol. Finish was brutal.


I think only Hayley, Crusade and myself didn't like it. Perhaps you should try the Tigre Blanco aspuestas tag. That was pimped by someone, and a lot closer to **** than Titan/Polvora. It just wasn't memorable enough as an asquestas match.

But I'm glad there's someone giving Lucha a try.


----------



## DOPA

I didn't like Titan vs Polvora either.


----------



## darkclaudio

AJPW All Asia Tag Team Championship: Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) (c) vs Burning (Atsushi Aoki & Kotaro Suzuki) - AJPW 17/03 ****


----------



## EmbassyForever

*IWRG 18/02/2013: Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera Vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita - ***3/4
*I don't know, I'm always having hard time getting into IWRG's matches. Not sure why, the production, the crowd or it's style. Chico Che (I'm pretty sure he was the fat dude) completly ruled and stole the show, he's someone I want to see more in the future. It was nice to see EITA who I knew him from Dragon Gate and he was pretty good here. The match was great but as I said I wasn't 100% into it. I'll give IWRG another chance because they do have great matches and hopefully I will get used to the attmphosere there.

*CMLL 02/02/2013: Volador Jr Vs Rey Escorpión - ****1/4+
*First things first, am I the only one who really likes the very-slow count of the ref? I mean, it always adds drama and when the wrestler kicks-out it gets a better rection from me than the usual count. Anyway, this match really OWNED. I knew Volador from NJPW and it seems like he's quickly becoming one of my Lucha favourites. Fantastic match in my opinion, really dramatic with some awesome awesome near-falls. Really want to bump this to ****1/2 but I felt like there was a little overkill near the end. I had But still super match and atm my Lucha MOTY so far.


----------



## Rah

Nah, I'm probably the biggest Tirantes mark on the planet. CMLL's referees are Rick Knox leveled awesome.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*Ángel de Oro, La Sombra, Máscara Dorada vs Mr. Águila, Psicosis, Volador Jr. - ***3/4-*****






Really good match in my opinion, I'm just amazed seeing these guys doing unbelievable moves that I have never seen before with absolutely zero screw-ups. DAT Hurricanrana from outside was unreal, how the he did it? lol. Loved the Volador/Sombra exchanges, I assume they are feuding? a match between them sounds very good based on what I saw from both. Finish felt a little flat but still really great match. Oh, and of course, THIS thing happend during the match:










EDIT: After watching the Volador/Sombra match I love this match even more because this match had a lot of throwback spots between them. Awesome stuff.

*CMLL Reyes del Aire Final: La Sombra vs Volador Jr. - ****
*





Really great match, everything you'd expect from such an awesome wrestlers like Volador and Sombra. Volador played a really good Rudo here, loved his antics in the match. I really wish that the finish means a future mask vs mask match which would be insane. Great match.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> I think only Hayley, Crusade and myself didn't like it. Perhaps you should try the Tigre Blanco aspuestas tag. That was pimped by someone, and a lot closer to **** than Titan/Polvora. It just wasn't memorable enough as an asquestas match.
> 
> But I'm glad there's someone giving Lucha a try.


I have Titan vs Polvora at ***3/4 these days. I like it despite not claiming it to be the best Lucha match of the year.


----------



## DOPA

Here's some more puro I've pimped out, a lot that's already been talked about but I might as well throw my two cents in:

*Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) © vs. Jonetsu Hentai Baka (Hiroshi Yamato & Hikaru Sato) (AJPW 1/26):*****3/4*

_Junior Stars have been the tag team of 2013 thus far and there is no doubt in my mind. They've been consistently great as of late and this another very good match to add to their 2013 collection. Thoroughly deserve the run they are on._

*Alexander Otsuka, Fujita Hayato & Jinsei Shinzaki vs Asura & GAINA (Michinoku Pro 3/3):* ****3/4*

_I can't remember who it was who recommended this match but I wouldn't be surprised if it was Rah. Anyway, super match from Michinoku Pro. A really really fun 6 man tag with a lot of goodness right here. My only slight complaint is I felt this match overstayed its welcome a bit too long and would have benefited from finishing sooner. It would have been even better in mind with a conclusive finish about 5 mins or so before it actually did. Doesn't effect the rating much though, tonnes of fun._

*Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) © vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (AJPW 3/17):* *****+*

_Burning for me stole the show at AJPW's last big show (which was great btw so check it out if some reason you've neglected it) and this is one of the matches where this is shown. Add in some Junior Stars greatness and it would be hard not to get a great match of this. This was fantastic._

*Get Wild (Manabu Soya & Takao Omori) (c) vs. Burning (Go Shiozaki & Jun Akiyama) (AJPW 3/17):* *****1/2*

_Speaking of greatness. Oh my god. This was an all out war from the get go. This was my match of the night for the AJPW show and a match of the year contender easily. The finishing stretch of this match was one of the most dramatic this year. This match built up perfectly and produced a few really believable near falls. It put over Get Wild and especially Soya in a huge way whilst putting the belts on Burning who I feel deserve it. This was amazing._

*Masakatsu Funaki (c) vs. Suwama (AJPW 3/17):* *****1/4*

_Finally the main event of the show that's been talked about a lot here. This was an excellent match and a pretty unique one I feel as I haven't seen a match like this in a long while. As some people have already said, this had a real old school feel to it and was like a game of chess. Both men trying to out think and work each other targetting body parts in order to wear the other one down. This had very few big spots but it benefited from not having too many big spots as it told a brilliant story of the war of attrition these two put each other through. Very worthy main event._

I need to watch more Lucha myself.


----------



## Obfuscation

And the apparent goodness of AJPW continues to pile up. I see it getting good praise, yet whenever I watch it hardly ever clicks for me. Although I've yet to witness the Burning matches like I said I would. I'll get on those soon enough. I have 8 months left in the year.


----------



## flag sabbath

All Japan vs Burning is well worth your time. I had each of those 17/3 matches 1/4* lower than Crusade, but I completely echo his sentiments.

Can't say the same for Volador vs. Sombra, though. However spectacular some of the moves were, they basically spent 20 mins taking turns, which took me right out of the match. Maybe ***.


----------



## seabs

*The All Japan juniors matches aren't for me. If you're not crazy about modern day Juniors matches then you won't love them either Cody. Still to watch the Jun/Go Tag but I'm sceptical.*


----------



## Bubz

Yeah not the biggest fan of the Jr's matches either. The Go/Akiyama tag is great though and a MOTYC. Still want to see Suwama/Funaki.


----------



## Nervosa

Goto vs. Okada
***3/4

This was weird. the crowd was so hot for the whole show and just totally shut down here. Usually when Okada does his top rope dropkick the crowd loses its shit, but here, they were out of it. I blame the black hole of blah known as Goto, of course, but that's just me. They got the crowd back a little bit after Okada hit his regular big dropkick and then went for the Red Mist. The whole spot when Goto was fighting for the ropes while Okada was trying to apply the Mist was awesome. But then Goto got a counter, grabbed his armbar...........and completely lost the crowd again. It was really disappointing.

To give proper credit, everything following that hold slowly won the crowd back, and Goto deserves credit for that, for sure. Okada just sells so damn well every single time. All of Goto's neck/back stuff near the end looked excruciating due to Okada's facials. Crowd loved Okada's counter of the Gotoshiki and loved Goto's headbutt out of the rainmaker even more. Good little finish but the crowd just wasn't into most of this.

Burning vs. Get wild
****

I mean, the finishing stuff is awesome, for sure. I love dueling superkicks in japan. Americans need to accept that they just aren't finishers over there. The headbutts were awesome, the double teams were great. The last 10 minutes were a lot of fun.

But there are too many problems for me to push this into MOTY territory. Most of it is the fact that Get wild is just boring when in control. Omori seriously added absolutely fucking nothing to this. I also would have liked some semblance of selling from Soya after that huge workover. Hated the moonsault, too. This was a very exciting match with a lot of flaws. A low 4 stars, I guess.

My MOTY list on page 1 has also been updated.
http://www.wrestlingforum.com/other-wrestling/649042-2013-motyc-thread.html#post12448757


----------



## Obfuscation

Seabs said:


> *The All Japan juniors matches aren't for me. If you're not crazy about modern day Juniors matches then you won't love them either Cody. Still to watch the Jun/Go Tag but I'm sceptical.*





Bubz said:


> Yeah not the biggest fan of the Jr's matches either. The Go/Akiyama tag is great though and a MOTYC. Still want to see Suwama/Funaki.


I'll probably take the pass on the juniors matches then. I watch one of them and found it completely average. So, it was already leaning into the territory that wasn't my cup of tea.

All of the Burning matches have been met with great praise. At least some of the six mans and this recent tag have. Heard the singles matches were all solid affairs.


----------



## Nervosa

Funaki vs. Suwama
****1/4

I am truly shocked how much I enjoyed this. I'm usually not a fan of Suwama (at all) but damn it if Funaki doesn't bring out the very best in him. All the early mat work was so awesome it made me miss Danielson in ROH. Suwama sold his neck pretty well until the last rush by Funaki. Funaki's arm selling was fantastic, especially the way his blocking posture changed through the match. I loved the callbacks to their last match and the finish was freaking great.


----------



## Bubz

Looking forward to watching that. Suwama is by far my favourite guy in All Japan and I've not seen a lot of Funaki besides his Nagata feud last year (which didn't really play out that well iirc), and his TC win against Akiyama.


----------



## Nervosa

Mat work and build can be tedious, but its really fun when done right, and it was done right for Suwama/Funaki. Part of what made it work is the legit feeling that any moment could end the match because of Funaki's strikes and armbars. I can see why some wouldn't like it, and the match does have a lot of flaws, but its also really fun if you like that kind of thing.


----------



## seabs

*Did you like their first match? Is it along the same lines? I'm not sure I can watch a Funaki match that long. I'll give it a go at some point though probably along with the Burning/Get Wild tag. I'm not really going into either with any hopes though.*


----------



## Obfuscation

Same. Funaki's championship reign has done nothing to garner a single bit of interest from me. Good to know he's not working vs the like of Akebono or Joe Doering in a lengthy environment.

ah screw it. Watching it now. If this rules, well that'll be swell.


----------



## Bubz

Watched Suwama/Funaki. It was good and everything, but I don't think I cared enough to get properly invested in anything they were doing, until they started beating the piss out of each other in the finishing stretch. The final 5 minutes or whatever I really, really liked. Maybe I wasn't in the right mood for the first 20 minutes or however long it was, think I'll re-watch it at some point.


----------



## Obfuscation

Have to say I damn near echo the thoughts of Bubz. Unsure if a second watch would contain my interest though. Mat work & picking apart the arm of Funaki by Suwama was fine, but nothing popped out. Even the finishing stretch was only "good" at the heart of it for me.


----------



## Nervosa

HayleySabin said:


> Have to say I damn near echo the thoughts of Bubz. Unsure if a second watch would contain my interest though. Mat work & picking apart the arm of Funaki by Suwama was fine, but nothing popped out. Even the finishing stretch was only "good" at the heart of it for me.


I understand. I think I just miss Bryan Danielson, and this reminded me of him in ROH. Maybe I overranked it as a result. I could see my rating going down on a rewatch. I was still way into the finishing stretch and I think the workover paid off, but I can see why it wouldn't be universally liked.



Seabs said:


> *Did you like their first match? Is it along the same lines? I'm not sure I can watch a Funaki match that long. I'll give it a go at some point though probably along with the Burning/Get Wild tag. I'm not really going into either with any hopes though.*


I hated their first match, but honestly I hate suwama 90% of the time. 

I actually like the funaki/Suwama even more then the Get Wild Tag, which will be a bit rare on here, I think. Then again I get the feeling I like funaki more than most.

In all honesty, I could see you hating both, though.


----------



## Obfuscation

Nervosa said:


> I understand. I think I just miss Bryan Danielson, and this reminded me of him in ROH. Maybe I overranked it as a result. I could see my rating going down on a rewatch. I was still way into the finishing stretch and I think the workover paid off, but I can see why it wouldn't be universally liked.


Perhaps. Or it could always hold up for you. The correlation you made with Danielson to the mat work will probably remain whenever you take the time to view it again. It seemed to find an x-factor with you. Which is what it happened to lack for me.


----------



## Chismo

Funaki/Suwama was freakin' amazing, watched it two times, and wasn't bored for a second.

Also, Funaki/Akebono from 1/26 was surprisingly good.


----------



## stryker360

Chikara - Just Shadows in the Fog

Dev Corp vs 3.0 ***1/2 - ***3/4 

Not the greatest match, but it was surprisingly good. I wasn't the biggest fan of the match originally but after a second watch I found the heel tactics of the Dev Corp to be especially enjoyable and devious.


----------



## Rah

*Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite (ASW 22/02/2013)*
★★★★
LINK

_I love great Southern-style wrestling and this was a much needed respite from the lul in matches making it online from Frankie Tucker and the Memphis crew. I'm not sure how I missed this in my original go through of Dean's playlist but this is even better than the ladder match I pimped in the British thread.

A much slower match, perhaps, than you'd expect from the British All-Stars but they still relied on their faster execution to dominate the first half of the match, working down Brown's arm of which Brown sold superbly well. After the "hot-tag" to Robbie the match takes on a new life and catapults itself into MotYC regions of awesomeness. Rampage Brown is a great wrestler, Dynamite has great character traits, the crowd is deafening and Allmark is on his way to solidifying himself as one of the darkhorse workers of the year. There's a lot to love here._

*Rampage Brown Vs Dean Allmark (ASW 16/03/2013)*
★★★★
LINK
_
If you hate ref-bump finishes in title matches then you should avoid this, otherwise, enjoy the next stop in the Allmark train!

Speed/Powerhouse mash-ups are always a treat to witness, especially when the little guy can bump. This was surprisingly vicious as compared to their other match-pairings but it really enhanced the meaning of their title fight. A few botches stopped this from being as good as the above match but it never once hindered the over-all feel too much, especially considering the ambitious nature of Allmark's moves to the outside. As a normal hater of excessive superkicks, this I couldn't flaw. As opposed to Jacobs/Cole, the first kick didn't get shrugged off and rather had Brown fall backward into the ropes, limply, with Allmark finishing him off with a second. Though, that said, I could honestly watch Brown take superkicks all day if he keeps his phenomenal selling up._​


----------



## seabs

*God damn exams. I sense an Allmark binge coming up once they're done. The extra Mason popping up with him is a pleasant joy too.*


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> *Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite (ASW 22/02/2013)*
> ★★★★
> LINK
> 
> _I love great Southern-style wrestling and this was a much needed respite from the lul in matches making it online from Frankie Tucker and the Memphis crew. I'm not sure how I missed this in my original go through of Dean's playlist but this is even better than the ladder match I pimped in the British thread.
> 
> A much slower match, perhaps, than you'd expect from the British All-Stars but they still relied on their faster execution to dominate the first half of the match, working down Brown's arm of which Brown sold superbly well. After the "hot-tag" to Robbie the match takes on a new life and catapults itself into MotYC regions of awesomeness. Rampage Brown is a great wrestler, Dynamite has great character traits, the crowd is deafening and Allmark is on his way to solidifying himself as one of the darkhorse workers of the year. There's a lot to love here._
> 
> *Rampage Brown Vs Dean Allmark (ASW 16/03/2013)*
> ★★★★
> LINK
> _
> If you hate ref-bump finishes in title matches then you should avoid this, otherwise, enjoy the next stop in the Allmark train!
> 
> Speed/Powerhouse mash-ups are always a treat to witness, especially when the little guy can bump. This was surprisingly vicious as compared to their other match-pairings but it really enhanced the meaning of their title fight. A few botches stopped this from being as good as the above match but it never once hindered the over-all feel too much, especially considering the ambitious nature of Allmark's moves to the outside. As a normal hater of excessive superkicks, this I couldn't flaw. As opposed to Jacobs/Cole, the first kick didn't get shrugged off and rather had Brown fall backward into the ropes, limply, with Allmark finishing him off with a second. Though, that said, I could honestly watch Brown take superkicks all day if he keeps his phenomenal selling up._​


Really glad I am not the only one who has seen that tag and thought it was awesome. I've got it at **** as well. Thought the ladder match was quite good but not as good. British All-Stars are incredible. I need to see EVERY match they have this year. Allmark's channel will hopefully burst at the seams later this year  Haven't seen Rampage vs. Allmark yet but it certainly is on my to-watch-list. Glad to know it won't disappoint. 

*Laughter7 vs. Yuuji Nagata/Manabu Nakanishi(3/17/13):*****
_Loved this. Laughter7 looked awesome again. Nakanishi looked like this giant monster compared to them. They are legit MMA fighters so it gives credence to them being able to topple the behemoth. Really good stuff in a short amount of time. That's all I really want in live._

*Rey Cometa/Stuka Jr. vs. Namajague/Okumura(3/15)Mask vs. Hair:*****
_This was pretty spotty stuff so I'll understand if this wasn't up everyone's alley but Cometa is capable of some insane stuff and Namajague is Mr.Bump City. If it weren't for Namajague taking some of the nutty bumps that he did I honestly probably wouldn't have rated this nearly as high. But he did, and it was awesome so we have a MOTYC for me._


----------



## seabs

*My Allmark pimping is finally paying off :mark: That or people ignore me and listen to Rah 


There's loads of great stuff on there from 2012. A couple of Mason tags too which rule. Watch the Allmark/Mason matches from 2011 that are on there. Them 2 at their very best.*


----------



## Concrete

Seabs said:


> *My Allmark pimping is finally paying off :mark: That or people ignore me and listen to Rah
> 
> 
> There's loads of great stuff on there from 2012. A couple of Mason tags too which rule. Watch the Allmark/Mason matches from 2011 that are on there. Them 2 at their very best.*


Seabs, I wouldn't have even knew he existed without you. Honestly the stuff you pimped last year wasn't my favorite but I subscribed to his YouTube channel so whenever something pops up BOOM I am met with some goodness. Now I feel like I need to watch some of them from 2011.


----------



## Bubz

Seabs when you start BSG that's when I'll watch an Allmark match .


----------



## Obfuscation

^:lmao

I'll get on Allmark matches..."soon." Seabs will hate me b/c I'm delaying the UK indie scene for the 2013 American indie scene.


----------



## Rah

HayleySabin said:


> ^:lmao
> 
> I'll get on Allmark matches..."soon." Seabs will hate me b/c I'm delaying the UK indie scene *for the 2013 American indie scene*.


Lies! I see no mention of Empire Wrestling, CWF Mid-Atlantic, DSCW or the goodness that is Kyle Matthews or Vordell Walker D anywhere in your posts. The major promotions have all been let downs and should be encouragement enough to go watch Allmark, dammit.


----------



## Obfuscation

Vordell Walker. Yeah, a mini-rant on him right now would be too expected. I'm better than that...:side:

he sucks

Can't say I'm too crazy about CWF Mid-Atlantic myself outside of Chiva Kid and his impressive aerial arsenal. Why he didn't look that good in Chikara during his few matches, I'll never know.

did you see the Chikara events from Florida, yet? Believe it or not 3.0 had a good match. One that I'd give a plug to in this thread as a lower tier candidate enough for a _"check it out"_ mention. The dynamic of Devastation Corporation certainly carried them to this, but credit is credit. Good match either way.


----------



## Rah

HayleySabin said:


> did you see the Chikara events from Florida, yet?


I can't say that I have. I saw the card for one of the shows and really couldn't be bothered to rush into it. They're sitting on the back-burner, so I'll try get to them over the weekend, provided nothing else tickles my fancy.


----------



## Cactus

*ASW 02/22/2013*

*Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite*
All 4 guys made every transition feel like a huge deal in this fantastic Southern-style tag match. The match starts with a great section which saw the faces toy with the heels until to the heels manages to find a way into taking control of the match. The heels were great with their stooge-like offense, some of which was really creative. One cool spot saw one of the heels having the babyface in a crab while the illegal partner push down his partner with his foot while the referee is distracted. The match hits boiling point when Allmark gets the hot tag to Mason and the place just erupts. I love Mason rushing through his opponents and marked big for that crazy flip he did to evade the heels. A great old-school tag in front of a molten-hot crowd. 
★★★★


----------



## DOPA

Prince Devitt (c) vs Alex Shelley (NJPW 4/5): ******

Killer Elite Squad (c) vs Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 4/5): *****1/4*

Unsurprisingly, the two really stand out matches from the road to invasion attack show. Most of the rest of the show was disappointing to be honest.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Alex Shelley vs Prince Devitt - ***3/4
KES vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii: ****1/4


----------



## Rah

*Kyle Matthews vs. Shaun Tempers (DSCW 29/03/2013)*
★★★★-

_So, Kyle's been listed as a TNA Gutcheck contestant and, in the hopes of your vote, here's a match to whet your appetite.

The chemistry between both wrestlers is off the charts, and this match almost seemed to fulfill that role as a sequel to the previous matching. The finger-stomps, cocky demeanors, great use of the heel character and the simply structured formula all made their comebacks here. It's hard to decide on which of the two matches I favour, especially noting how well paced this match was and its first-class selling but I think Tempers performance in the first narrowly edges itself out as the better contender. Still, it's not as if the second best Indy match is a place to be sneezed at. While Allmark is trying to narrow himself down as a darkhorse worker of the year contender, Kyle Matthews will most likely take it for me (and we're only in April!). There is not a single bad moment in any of the matches I've seen him in. I just wish more people would see his work, and that he hopefully gets a chance at winning The Gutcheck Challenge. Outside of Gregory Irons, there is no other wrestler more deserving._​


----------



## Chismo

Killer Elite Squad vs. CHAOS Invincible ******

Super fun match, Ishii was a perfect underdog, he's the hero of Korakuen. Archer and DBSJ are crazy good right now.


----------



## Nervosa

KES vs. CHAOS Invincible
****1/2

Ishii is King of Korakuen. This match was bananas. Ishii is so crazy over from the moment he steps in. His early brainbuster attempt is always hilariously amazing. The finishing stretch was something really special. I love how everything breaks down after the first Bomb attempt. At the end, Ishii is forced to dig deep and fight two on one, and everything they do after Shinskay takes the bomb is incredible. What an awesome story there at the end. Top 3 matches for me so far this year.


----------



## Rah

*Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. Vs Nakamura Shinsuke & Ishii Tomohiro (05/04/2013 NJPW)*
★★★★ 1/4

_I'm almost double-taking after this match. As a vocal hater of KES, I must admit that both members looked like they deserved their main event placing. Especially Davey Boy, whose facial expressions and annoyed vulgarity proved to be the shining factors here. I also really enjoyed the build of Ishii as the sole under-dog within the match, as it made all of his moments, as well as CHAOS Invincible's control portions, just that much more satisfying. Much akin to a tenacious Jack Russel that never backs down in the dogfight from the much stronger pitbulls, Ishii would never let go of his dogged determination to win right to the last moment. Everyone brought their best performances and it ruled because of it._​


----------



## Mattyb2266

Tozawa vs. Ricochet - ****1/2

Such am amazing match, I don't want to go to in depth and spoil it for anyone but you all need to watch this match. Match of the weekend so far.

Gargano vs. Shingo - ****3/4

So close to perfect.


----------



## Bubz

*Alex Shelley vs Prince Devitt (NJPW 4/5)*
I really liked this. Super fun Jr's match imo, and Shelley especially was really good. Huge Shelley fan though so I might be bias. Loved him going to pinning variations in the finishing run because his big offense didn't work. Devitt was good too getting frustrated at Shelley out wrestling him on the mat at the start. They worked pretty stiff too, and I didn't see when Devitt's nose got busted but it looked nasty. Really good finishing stretch in this one with some ace near falls. Going in I definitely didn't think Shelley would win but towards the end I genuinely bought it. ******

*Killer Elite Squad vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii*
Great match. Sometimes I think people can overrate Ishii, but sometimes I think he deserves the praise he gets and this was one of those times because he completely fucking ruled in this. Seriously fantastic underdog performance. Opening section with Nakamura and Davey Boy didn't do anything for me, but once Ishii and Archer got in there the story of the entire match kicked off and it was amazing. Ishii wearing Archer down with lariat attempts etc in their first exchange was so good, especially Archer's reaction and slowly fading. Control segment was swell, and KES looked legit during it. Loved the transition into Ishii getting the tag. Nakamura was great coming in off the tag as he usually is, and there was an awesome sequence leading to a double team on Smith that absolutely ruled. But this was the Ishii show right here, and the finishing run was genuinely brilliant from a character and story stand point. Ishii fighting and fighting against these two bulls was immense, and the commentator going bat shit for him as well as the crowd really made for something memorable. That sequence where he hits that ridiculous headbutt was insane, and the way he kept avoiding KES's finisher and fighting back only to keep getting trapped by the two was so good. Fantastic match. *****1/4*


----------



## DOPA

*Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite (ASW 22/02/2013): ***3/4*

I didn't like this as much as some people have but boy was this a damn good match. I don't think I can add much more to what other people have been saying. I felt as though the heels played a fantastic role in this getting their heat segments in. Really classic old school heel work which got the babyfaces really over with the crowd. I enjoyed some of the double team work from Allmark and Mason who reminded me a little of the Rocker's style especially with the double hip tosses. The selling throughout was really good, especially again from Brown and Dynamite when their arms were being worked on and they bumped well for the faces come back making them look great.

The finish was good but could have benefited from a bit more drama and could have been drawn out a bit longer. It just hit that next level for me and then it ended. The only thing that annoyed me was the amount that faces were force feeding chants to the crowd. I understand that its a classic 101 face tactic to get the crowd behind them but this was done literally every single minute which became a pain to watch and made me roll my eyes. But that's a minor gripe on a very good tag match.


----------



## DOPA

*Rampage Brown Vs Dean Allmark (ASW 16/03/2013): *****

This was a great match, I enjoyed the living hell out of this. Great story told, Brown's selling was great. Allmark's ambition to win the title to the point of doing this big high risk moves I thought was well done despite a few slip ups and the finish was executed perfectly. I actually thought the ref bump was really well done and added a lot to the match as well.


----------



## Corey

Mattyb2266 said:


> Tozawa vs. Ricochet - ****1/2
> 
> Such am amazing match, I don't want to go to in depth and spoil it for anyone but you all need to watch this match. Match of the weekend so far.
> 
> Gargano vs. Shingo - ****3/4
> 
> So close to perfect.


Awesome! Can't wait to see the show around Wrestlemania time next year.


----------



## Mattyb2266

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Awesome! Can't wait to see the show around Wrestlemania time next year.


That's gonna be the only thing holding this show back really. The crowd was large/hot for the show, and as far as quality goes, easily the best DG:USA or Evolve show in a long time, if not ever.


----------



## The Comedian

*Hello. I am new here to the forums. I just wanted to let everyone who regularly contributes to this thread know that I have decided to join this website as a result of the awesome recommendations in this thread. I read the entire thread and found a lot of awesome matches. Thanks a lot to everybody for recommending awesome matches to me, that I would not have otherwise watched. I hope to begin contributing to this thread in the future.*


----------



## Ten410

*Rey Escorpion Vs. Mascara Dorada CMLL*

This match really caught my attention, especially Dorada. I see him as a future megastar in CMLL. He was just on point hitting his high spots, plus it doesn’t hurt to have a vet like Escorpion selling and having a hot crowd with the match.


----------



## seancarleton77

NJPW "INVASION ATTACK" ratings

Davey Boy Smith Jr. vs. Nakamura = ****1/2

Yano vs. Suzuki ****1/4

Shibata & Sakuraba vs. Goto & Nagata = ***3/4 (would probably have been ****1/2 had it not been for the horrific injury)

Tanahashi vs. Okada = ***3/4

Show of the year. WrestleMania better be amazing to top this.


----------



## Rah

Mascara Dorada Vs Casas
Mascara Dorada Vs Escorpion

:mark::mark::mark:



seancarleton77 said:


> NJPW "INVASION ATTACK" ratings
> 
> Davey Boy Smith Jr. vs. Nakamura = ****1/2
> 
> Yano vs. Suzuki ****1/4
> 
> Shibata & Sakuraba vs. Goto & Nagata = ***3/4 (would probably have been ****1/2 had it not been for the horrific injury)
> 
> Tanahashi vs. Okada = ***3/4
> 
> Show of the year. WrestleMania better be amazing to top this.


Wow.

so much for Tana/Okada being "best match ever" according to some


----------



## seancarleton77

Worst match on "Invasion Attack" was probably ***. Nothing, and I mean nothing, was bad. Tanahashi vs. Okada was about 7 or 8 minutes too long, so the middle of that match is about the only boring thing from that 3 hour plus show.


----------



## PERFECTSHOW

From "Invasion Attack"

Shinsuke Nakamura © vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. - IWGP Intercontinental Championship (****1/4)

- Nakamura is such a fantastic performer. Davey-Boy Jr. has come such a long way since his run in WWE. Just a fantastic match from both, really enjoyed it!

Hiroshi Tanahashi © vs. Kazuchika Okada - IWGP Heavyweight Championship (****3/4 - *****)

- I didn't have any issue w/ the length of this one. It told a great story & maybe I'm overrating this one, but I thought this was just awesome. My MOTY at this point. Will give a 2nd watch to see if I'm missing something. But personally, I thought this was much better then even the Wrestle Kingdom match.


----------



## Defrost

Tanahashi vs Okada 4/7 (*****)

I am in love with this match. The way it played off their previous matches where they have counters to counters. Tanahashi is never able to go after the legs, not one Dragon Screw, because of this. Tanahashi destroying Okada's arm so he can't do the rainmaker. Okada selling of the arm. Okada's reaction to one wonky spot. Tanahashi heeling it up. The subtle use of the elbow pad by Okada. The amazing finishing stretch with amazing false finishes and counters. I love this match so much.


----------



## Corey

Mattyb2266 said:


> That's gonna be the only thing holding this show back really. The crowd was large/hot for the show, and as far as quality goes, easily the best DG:USA or Evolve show in a long time, if not ever.


That's really great to hear, man. Crowds have been pretty shit for them over the past year or two. A review I read from the show on 411Mania had both matches at **** 1/2 and the Tag Title match at *** 3/4.


----------



## darkclaudio

The Undertaker vs CM Punk **** - Wrestlemania 29


----------



## ywall2breakerj

darkclaudio said:


> The Undertaker vs CM Punk **** - Wrestlemania 29


Agreed. Fantastic match.


----------



## Corey

*WWE Wrestlemania 29

**The Undertaker vs. CM Punk

*
KICKASS performance for Punk's theme song, no joke. Holy shit, anyone see Punk's reaction when Taker's music hit? This guy is amped and ready. Bell rings, Punk ducks some punches and... slaps the Undertaker!? Are you fucking NUTS!? This is gonna be good. I'm not gonna lie, I thought Punk legit made this match. His facial expressions, body language, taunts and gestures were all just amazing and brought life to a crowd watching with wide eyes. The dualing chants of CM PUNK & UNDERTAKER were so awesome and it really shows how the fanbase is sort of changing. Despite the announce table not breaking, the elbow spot is always amazing & looked REALLY painful on Punk's end. The picture where Taker sits up while he's in the Anaconda Vice & they're staring eye to eye is incredible, such a piece of art. The sequence where it was GTS into the rebound tombstone (which was of course a nearfall) was breathtaking. Thought it was legit over there. They managed to top themselves with the nearfall on the urn spot, that was even more amazing. Great back-and-forth sequence to end the match too. Punk just looked so good in this. Beautiful stuff.

***** 1/4*


----------



## B-Boy21

darkclaudio said:


> The Undertaker vs CM Punk **** - Wrestlemania 29



I don't Know. I thought it was pretty Good. Maybe around *** to ***1/4.

Cena vs Rock- ****1/4 to ****1/2

and

Lesnar vs HHH- ****1/4

Also the six man tag to start the show was really GOOD.


----------



## Nervosa

Punk vs. Undertaker ****1/4
This was so good after how horrible taker's mania matches have been in the past two years. Punk is just an incredible worker all around. The botched rollover from the Hell's Gate is probably the only thing that hurt the match, although I think its pretty clear Punk was legit hurt after the elbow.

Everything else on the show was pretty awful. I'm really surprised anyone thought anything else on the show was a MOTYC. I guess cena/Rock was maybe ***1/2, but HHH/Brock was just terrible. I only mention these because they were actually mentioned as MOTYCs on this thread.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

CM Punk vs. Undertaker is **** in my books. Punk should of just transitioned into an Anaconda Vice from the Hells Gates instead of that botched pin attempt. 

The ending sequence with HHH using the kimura and etc. was a good call in my opinion


----------



## septurum

Punk vs Taker- ****

HHH vs Brock- *** 3/4 (good but dead crowd hurt it)

Main event was pretty good but probably not worth mentioning here. I'm so sick of Cena that it's not even funny.


----------



## Mattyb2266

Tozawa vs. Shingo - ****1/4

CM Punk vs. Undertaker - ****


----------



## stryker360

CM Punk vs Undertaker ***3/4

HHH vs Brock Lesnar ****1/4

Rock vs Cena ***3/4


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Punk/Taker - **** 1/4

MOTN by far.


----------



## 777

Taker/Punk as WWE MOTY so far. Some pretty epic stuff.


----------



## Ali Dia

CM Punk vs. Undertaker: ***3/4
Elements of this were tremendous, other parts were just there. Overall enjoyable and about what I expected. Actually I expected more finisher spamming so in that regard I'm glad it didn't devolve too much.

Enjoyed Rock/Cena, liked some of the call backs. They legit had me at one stage where I was sure it was over (the reverse finish to last year).

Brock/HHH, meh. Brock's aura is gone. He is just another guy now unfortunately because I loved that match with Cena last year. I wanted that Brock all the time.


----------



## Nervosa

R.Scorpio said:


> Brock/HHH, meh. Brock's aura is gone. He is just another guy now unfortunately because I loved that match with Cena last year. I wanted that Brock all the time.


Don't blame Brock too much. He did all he could with such an awful opponent.


----------



## DOPA

*Undertaker vs CM Punk (WWE 4/7): *****

Easily the MOTN of Mania this year. Taker steals the show once again.


----------



## seancarleton77

The Undertaker vs. CM Punk was phenomenal, pardon the pun. ****1/4 - ****1/2

I give Brock vs. Triple H ***3/4. There were a couple hiccups, but a great match.

The Rock needs to retire. He embarrassed himself last night. Cena vs. Rock was a clusterf*ck. Cena's bad attitude was nice to see. I just wish we didn't have to sit through 15 minutes of chin locks and 67 false finishes. I don't see how I can even rate a match such as this. N/A


----------



## Nervosa

seancarleton77 said:


> The Undertaker vs. CM Punk was phenomenal, pardon the pun. ****1/4 - ****1/2
> 
> I give Brock vs. Triple H ***3/4. There were a couple hiccups, but a great match.
> 
> The Rock needs to retire. He embarrassed himself last night. Cena vs. Rock was a clusterf*ck. Cena's bad attitude was nice to see. I just wish we didn't have to sit through 15 minutes of chin locks and 67 false finishes. I don't see how I can even rate a match such as this. N/A


I totally agree on everything you said about rock/Cena, but I think most of that applies to Triple H as well, especially last night. All the recent Triple H matches are the same. Weapon spot, then lie around, then weapon spot, then lie around. He and Rock both are just so plodding and dull now.


----------



## Ten410

seancarleton77 said:


> The Undertaker vs. CM Punk was phenomenal, pardon the pun. ****1/4 - ****1/2
> 
> I give Brock vs. Triple H ***3/4. There were a couple hiccups, but a great match.
> 
> The Rock needs to retire. He embarrassed himself last night. Cena vs. Rock was a clusterf*ck. Cena's bad attitude was nice to see. I just wish we didn't have to sit through 15 minutes of chin locks and 67 false finishes. I don't see how I can even rate a match such as this. N/A


I don't think he needs to retire, it's just that Rock/Cena just have zero chemistry with each other.


----------



## Corey

Ten410 said:


> I don't think he needs to retire, it's just that Rock/Cena just have zero chemistry with each other.


But Rock isn't gonna have chemistry with anyone, tbh. He can't work a match at all anymore, not to mention his awful comeback attempts that are just filled with the same punches over and over (see Rock/Punk II). He truly only has 5-6 moves in his arsenal, many of which aren't even used that often.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Punk vs Taker - ****-****1/4

Other sucked. Hated the double-main events. Lesnar/HHH was just as heartless as their SS match and the crowd was completly dead. Rock vs Cena was just a ten minutes of bear hug and 15 minutes of finishers-fest. Thanks god for Punk/Taker - awesome match.


----------



## seancarleton77

Jack Evans 187 said:


> But Rock isn't gonna have chemistry with anyone, tbh. He can't work a match at all anymore, not to mention his awful comeback attempts that are just filled with the same punches over and over (see Rock/Punk II). He truly only has 5-6 moves in his arsenal, many of which aren't even used that often.


CM Punk was putting on 4-5 star matches consistently for at least two years, then he runs into The Rock and has two forgettable matches, only one of them being good. All of Punk's matches since have been 4 stars or higher. Strange, I don't remember Rock having a good match since WrestleMania XIX, and even then, he was in the ring with his greatest opponent ever.


----------



## Ten410

Jack Evans 187 said:


> But Rock isn't gonna have chemistry with anyone, tbh. He can't work a match at all anymore, not to mention his awful comeback attempts that are just filled with the same punches over and over (see Rock/Punk II). He truly only has 5-6 moves in his arsenal, many of which aren't even used that often.


Damn I forgot about those Rock/Punk matches, my bad lol. I guess we'll have to wait in august to see if his work rate improves.


----------



## Bubz

I thought *Punk/Taker* was brilliant, not going to lie. Punk was down right fantastic in it. From his stuff during Taker's entrance, to his stuff during his control segment to his stuff during the finishing run. Everything he did was great, and that's not just me being a big Punk fan talking, he was legit awesome in it. Punk and Taker are two guys who just know what they're doing in terms of controlling a crowd in the ring through their performances, and while Punk was the star, Taker was great too. Loved Punk being a fighting dickhead and not a chickenshit dickhead, that's exactly how he should be booked. He wasn't scared, he acted like he didn't give a toss and it ruled, usually that might be annoying but Punk makes it work here through his mannerisms and expressions. I absolutely adored the Old School spot, again Punk came off as a guy who knew what he was doing against Taker, he was the champion for over a year, he beat everyone, so he's going to be a threat to Taker kayfabe wise no matter his size because of his tenacity and skill in the ring and he played that role to perfection. I honestly thought the GTS no sell into the Tombstone was ridiculously awesome and I flipped my lid for it. This isn't anyone no selling the GTS, this is The Undertaker at Wrestlemania with his streak on the line avenging his dead father and fighting a guy he's learned through the course of the match is actually really fucking good and might have the win if he lets up for a second. The way he stumbled on to the ropes and then came off as almost possessed and threw Punk up like a child was just really cool to me. Plus I bought that near fall like anybody's business and Punk kicking out was awesome because I legit thought that was it unlike the HHH Tombstones the two previous years. I know people have kicked out of that move before at Mania (recently anyway), but that was HBK, Undertaker's greatest rival, and Triple H who'll obviously make himself look super human, I honestly didn't think they'd have Punk kick out of it. Table spot looked nasty on Punk's end and was the only slight blip in the match for me, it didn't look good for either guy. I really liked the Urn spot, played into the build up and even though that build was awful at least in didn't come off as completely pointless. Taker sitting up in the Vice was another super cool spot, and so was the tombstone reversals and Punk doing Taker's pose, once again coming off as a guy with no fear which is the exact way he needed to be booked in this match for anyone to believe he was a threat. Final Tombstone looked sick too. So glad it didn't turn in to a finisher fest in the slightest, Punk didn't get a nearfall with the GTS either and I didn't mind that, It wasn't really needed to get Punk over because he did that himself through his performance. Having a crowd vocally cheer for him at least 50/50 with Taker is testament to that. Yeah, I thought this was brill. *****1/2*

As for other stuff from Mania, HHH/Bork was bad, Rock/Cena was pretty ridiculous but I didn't actually hate it. probably all down to Cena being fucking great in it with his expressions and mannerisms and slight heel tease stuff. The spot where he punked out the rock with the Peoples Elbow and stopped at the ropes and gave him that 'Bitch, please' look was legit amazing.


----------



## 777

Great review Bubz.

The only thing I'll differ on is the table bump. Though it wasn't pretty, it was pretty violent, and whether Punk was in fact really hurt or not, I legit was worried about his well being. Watching him continue to fight through also hooked me some, not knowing how much was selling and how much wasn't. Old-school feelings.


----------



## Nervosa

I actually think the table bump made the match better. My only major problem is Punk's roll up from the Hell's gate being shitty. 

thank god there are all these people pointing out what an awful worker the Rock is.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Ten410 said:


> *Rey Escorpion Vs. Mascara Dorada CMLL*
> 
> This match really caught my attention, especially Dorada. I see him as a future megastar in CMLL. He was just on point hitting his high spots, plus it doesn’t hurt to have a vet like Escorpion selling and having a hot crowd with the match.


Link?


----------



## Ten410

EmbassyForever said:


> Link?


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DUwdP5jM5U starts at 19:30


----------



## Rah

Escorpion/Dorada wouldn't be anything I'd call MotY.

Great style, and Dorada is immaculate in his spots but that's ultimately what it was - a lightning match that allowed Dorada to just go out there and pop the crowd. I absolutely loathe stage dives at this point. They're over-used and contrived in how the other luchadore simply stands and waits to be bombed. I can only imagine comparing this to a "Top 10 Moves Of ...." video off of Youtube just in match form.

Perhaps deserves a watch to get oneself into Dorada, and I'll add this post to the one in the Lucha thread, but this really isn't a nomination-worthy match. A complete and utter spotfest but Dorada spotfests are, at least, extremely fun. Here's still hoping ***** Casas/Mascara Dorada lives up to my expectations.


----------



## Groovemachine

Kinda surprised by the positive reviews for HHH/Lesnar. I thought it was really slow and plodding and it bored me on numerous occasions. A big disappointment in my eyes.

Loved Taker/Punk, think it just about gets a ****1/4 rating from me. I was a bit ticked off about Taker's no sell of the GTS (I could understand 'delayed selling' but to basically totally shrug it off was a bit much for my liking), but my God that Urn spot was just about the best nearfall I've seen in years. The way they set it up was PERFECT and for a split second I thought they'd pulled the trigger and Punk was gonna end the streak. Epic stuff right there. And I couldn't help but crack into a massive grin when Punk did Taker's top rope walk, that was joyous.

Don't really get all the hate on Cena/Rock. I was a big fan of the call backs to last year, especially the complete reverse of last year's finish, with Rock getting cocky and going for the Five Knuckle Shuffle. Genius, and I'm so glad Cena cut him off in the same way; that was another tremendous nearfall. Finisher spamming was a bit overkill, especially when they'd done such a good job of employing creative counters earlier in the match. Apart from that I had no real issues. Although seriously guys...can you try and hide the fact that you're both calling spots a little better? Every frickin' submission you could see them yabbering away to each other...


----------



## Ten410

Rah said:


> Escorpion/Dorada wouldn't be anything I'd call MotY.
> 
> Great style, and Dorada is immaculate in his spots but that's ultimately what it was - a lightning match that allowed Dorada to just go out there and pop the crowd. I absolutely loathe stage dives at this point. They're over-used and contrived in how the other luchadore simply stands and waits to be bombed. I can only imagine comparing this to a "Top 10 Moves Of ...." video off of Youtube just in match form.
> 
> Perhaps deserves a watch to get oneself into Dorada, and I'll add this post to the one in the Lucha thread, but this really isn't a nomination-worthy match. A complete and utter spotfest but Dorada spotfests are, at least, extremely fun. Here's still hoping ***** Casas/Mascara Dorada lives up to my expectations.


You caught my attention with ***** Casas/Mascara Dorada, when is that going to happen?


----------



## flag sabbath

Nervosa with the big fuck-off spoiler again!


----------



## Rah

Ten410 said:


> You caught my attention with ***** Casas/Mascara Dorada, when is that going to happen?


Happened on Sunday (for Casas' title). I guess now we wait.


----------



## darkclaudio

Matches 2013:

****1/4
-AJPW World Tag Team Championship Match: Get Wild (Takao Omori & Manabu Soya) (c) vs Burning (Go Shiozaki & Jun Akiyama) - AJPW 17/03
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 4/01
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Karl Anderson - NJPW 10/02 


****
-All Asia Tag Team Championship Match: Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka (c) vs Kaz Hayashi & Shuji Kondo - AJPW 3/01
-John Cena vs CM Punk - WWE Raw 25/02
-The Undertaker vs CM Punk - Wrestlemania 29 7/04/2013
-Masaaki Mochizuki, Don Fuji & Dragon Kid vs Naruki Doi, Masato Yoshino & Ricochet - Dragon Gate 7/02
-AJPW All Asia Tag Team Championship: Junior Stars (Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka) (c) vs Burning (Atsushi Aoki & Kotaro Suzuki) - AJPW 17/03


----------



## Nervosa

flag sabbath said:


> Nervosa with the big fuck-off spoiler again!


Sorry, man. I didn't think that one through.


----------



## flag sabbath

Nervosa said:


> Sorry, man. I didn't think that one through.


Apology accepted! (I can understand your excitement)


----------



## seabs

*You weren't the first to do it so most already had it spoiled by someone else's sig in here. Sigh. I'm gonna have to start handing bans out for repeat offenders so just be extra careful in the future if you've been warned already. Especially with New Japan iPPVs. Leave it a week or so or make sure it's online for the masses to watch.*


----------



## Bubz

Seabs if I spoiled BSG would you ban me?  Did you watch any of the road to invasion attack yet?


----------



## flag sabbath

Just grabbed Tanahashi vs. Okada from XWT (no sign of the full show yet). It's a thing of beauty & my new MOTY. Okada in particular is magnificent selling his decimated right arm with screams of agony every time he uses it & by shifting his elbow support from left to right. Tanahashi is better than usual with playing up the long-term effects of Okada's neck work & there's an incredibly dramatic sequence involving Okada's new submission. The finishing sequence is red-hot as you'd expect - can't wait to see the rest of the show. ****1/2


----------



## Groovemachine

Can someone alert us all here the MINUTE Okada/Tanahashi is found on Youtube or Dailymotion? I don't want to miss out on single second of viewing opportunity!


----------



## Nervosa

Softy-Pants McHuggable said:


> *You weren't the first to do it so most already had it spoiled by someone else's sig in here. Sigh. I'm gonna have to start handing bans out for repeat offenders so just be extra careful in the future if you've been warned already. Especially with New Japan iPPVs. Leave it a week or so or make sure it's online for the masses to watch.*


I apologize once again. If it isn't too much trouble, would it also be too difficult to put "No spoilers" in the title of the thread? Half the time I just honestly forget.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi - ****3/4
:mark: loved every second


----------



## seabs

Bubz said:


> Seabs if I spoiled BSG would you ban me?  Did you watch any of the road to invasion attack yet?


*I'd feed your insides to my dog. And I don't even have a fucking dog.

No not yet. I'm gonna be playing catch up until I've at least got some assignments out of the way and I'm not behind schedule on everything. I can probably hold off a little longer on Okada/Tanahashi now I know the result (not nervosa's fault).

I won't add it to the title thread because it'll just confuse people even more and probably prevent people from posting good reviews. Just don't blatantly mention the result of a New Japan match that has only just happened and not hit the piracy walls yet (that sounds so sleazy) or have a spoilery sig so soon after. *


----------



## DOPA

Softy-Pants McHuggable said:


> *You weren't the first to do it so most already had it spoiled by someone else's sig in here. Sigh. I'm gonna have to start handing bans out for repeat offenders so just be extra careful in the future if you've been warned already. Especially with New Japan iPPVs. Leave it a week or so or make sure it's online for the masses to watch.*


Yeah that was me. I apologize. I didn't think really.

Can't wait to finally view Invasion Attack and Supercard of Honor VII when they come out and I get round to watching.


----------



## bigbuxxx

Glad I missed the spoiler itt because that match was so fucking fantastic without knowing who won. So so good. MOTY for sure, doubt anything can top it.


----------



## leglock

Do spoiler rules apply to WWE, TNA, and ROH iPPVs?


----------



## Obfuscation

Softy-Pants McHuggable said:


> *You weren't the first to do it so most already had it spoiled by someone else's sig in here. Sigh. I'm gonna have to start handing bans out for repeat offenders so just be extra careful in the future if you've been warned already. Especially with New Japan iPPVs. Leave it a week or so or make sure it's online for the masses to watch.*


Please, please, & please again.


----------



## flag sabbath

Groovemachine said:


> Can someone alert us all here the MINUTE Okada/Tanahashi is found on Youtube or Dailymotion? I don't want to miss out on single second of viewing opportunity!


Individual matches from Invasion Attack are up on dailymotion courtesy of Jahmale Hepburn. He actually posted them 3 days ago, but they've only gone public this morning - anyone know why this is (I seem to remember a similar thing happening with New Beginning)?


----------



## aivaz

flag sabbath said:


> Individual matches from Invasion Attack are up on dailymotion courtesy of Jahmale Hepburn. He actually posted them 3 days ago, but they've only gone public this morning - anyone know why this is (I seem to remember a similar thing happening with New Beginning)?


Some of the convoluted shit that happened last year makes me think the show might have come from a paid source and he/she didn't want to be the first to upload it for free, so he waited until it was up on XWT before making it public... maybe


----------



## Rah

Cassius Ohno (Hero) Vs William Regal is on Hulu, right now! CANNOT WAIT for it to make it to Youtube. SQUEEEEEEEE.



leglock said:


> Do spoiler rules apply to WWE, TNA, and ROH iPPVs?


I don't get the spoiler thing, to be honest. This is a 2013 MotY thread. Go ahead and review matches because that's kind of how this thread works. If you honestly don't wish to be spoilered then why come into the thread? Many people do write-ups the night of/day after the PPV. Of course a bolded title for the review is necessary so if I do come into the thread I can skip the post, but I'm not sure why, within a review, that we can't write-about a match.

Unless I've completely missed how the spoiler was done? Like a signature post, yeah, that I agree with. Signatures are visible in every post, so you're going to get spoilered. I completely avoid the forum if I really want to watch a PPV, now, as signatures and the top post of each section always end up spoiling a show for me.


----------



## flag sabbath

Yeah, it was a sig.


----------



## Chismo

OOOORRRR... people can just use the fucking spoiler tags in this thread. Duh!


----------



## Obfuscation

I get Rah's defense, but if going to harp on the result portion of the match in a review at least split the difference and cover up that portion. If not stick the entire review in spoiler tags to begin with. It saves a lot of grief from those who stumble upon it without seeing. Viewing the thread is a gamble. We all know this. We like to check it maybe to see what happens to be pimped by some on the hope, or better to say expectation, that the matches wouldn't be spoiled in the process.


----------



## DOPA

Nah I fucked up by putting a picture which spoiled the main event of the Invasion Attack show. Not gonna defend myself, I didn't think and it was stupid of me to do. I take full responsibilities for my actions, it won't happen again.


----------



## flag sabbath

Anyway, it turns out it's not really possible to 'spoil' Tanahashi vs Okada because it's that damn good.


----------



## Obfuscation

Excitement proved to be the better part of judgment here.

Luckily the common result so far is the spoiler known hasn't made watching the match any less of a grand experience. Well, that cheers me up. Really, it does. b/c if I had to be spoiled, well while it is DEEPLY frustrating, I'm glad I can keep hope in loving the match despite not being on the edge of my seat when the near falls come flying in. Or maybe I will by proxy of being sucked into the match. It's been getting some praise worthy nods atm. Which is a glorious step up from where their last match match was considered. _(which I still thought was great, personally.)_

^I wrote all of that in vague fashion due to those who have avoided a spoiler so far.


----------



## flag sabbath

From Invasion Attack:

*Makabe & Honma vs. Takahashi & Tanaka:* I'm probably overrating this one, but it caught my low expectations completely off-guard. Really exciting from bell-to-bell with a super-enthusiastic crowd ****3/4*

*Nakamura vs. Smith Jr:* A slow-burner with a very strong finish. Not quite four stars, but as close as it gets. ****3/4*

*Tanahashi vs. Okada:* See previous posts. Easily the best match I've seen this year. *****3/4*

Elsewhere, Suzuki vs. Yano was short, wild & thoroughly enjoyable, maybe ***1/2, and Goto & Nagata vs. Laughter 7 was well on its way to being something special when disaster struck (look away if you're squeamish). Overall, another supremely entertaining event from the best promotion in the world.

Here's everything I've rated **** & over this year:

1) Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack) ****3/4
2) Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hirooki Goto NJPW 17/2) ****1/4
3) Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7) ****1/4
4) CM Punk vs. The Undertaker (WWE WrestleMania) ****1/4
5) Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs. Takao Omori & Manabu Soya (AJPW 17/3) ****1/4
6) Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW New Beginning) ****1/4
7) Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 3/1) ****1/4
8) Kazuchika Okada vs. Hirooki Goto (NJPW 23/3) ****
9) Killer Elite Squad vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 5/4) ****
10) Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7) ****
11) Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 2/2) ****
12) Masakatsu Funaki vs. Suwama (AJPW 17/3) ****
13) John Cena vs. CM Punk (WWE Raw 25/2) ****
14) Chaos vs. Suzuki Gun (Elimination, NJPW 41st Anniversary) ****
15) Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW, 18/4) ****


----------



## Groovemachine

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW Invasion Attack - ****1/2*

Oh wow. The result was spoiled for me but honestly it didn't detract from the contest; this was superb from the get go. Tanahashi's arm work is SO good, and Okada sold it like a champ, best example being him going for his trademark pose and only being able to lift one arm up. Speaking of Okada, he was on absolute top form here, acting a wee bit cocky in the early going, and he kept the mannerisms up right the way through. 

It's just a joy to watch, I don't really want to say too much more at this time as I don't want to ruin anything for those who haven't seen it yet. I think I still have Cena/Punk as my MOTY, also at ****1/2, but this is a very close second. Certainly the best Okada/Tanahashi match I've seen and miles better than the admittedly pretty great Wrestle Kingdom encounter.


----------



## darkclaudio

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada IV ****1/2


----------



## Rah

*N.B.: In case someone hasn't seen Invasion, I suggest stop reading.*



HayleySabin said:


> *I get Rah's defense, but if going to harp on the result portion of the match in a review at least split the difference and cover up that portion.* If not stick the entire review in spoiler tags to begin with. It saves a lot of grief from those who stumble upon it without seeing. Viewing the thread is a gamble. We all know this. We like to check it maybe to see what happens to be pimped by some on the hope, or better to say expectation, that the matches wouldn't be spoiled in the process.


I'm used to the lot of us writing decent-length reviews for great matches. If the review is centred, the title is bolded and it isn't a single line of text I, honestly, have no issue with someone typing "RAAINNNAMAAKKAAAAA~!" as their final sentence. Your eyes can discern the difference between the star rating and the entire body of text as well as your ability to realise the review is about a specific match you haven't seen. However if all it is is "Okada VS Tanahashi - great, great match, fixed the WK7 booking fuck-up" then I can get your point in that you might haphazardly read the spoiler as opposed to the match title. It's easier to do so as opposed to a lengthier post that you should be reading from the top to get its gist. You don't see a book on the library shelf and open it to its centre in the hopes of getting an idea the story.

I'm talking in general, of course, and not in relation to what has happened recently. I just find spoiler-tagging our reviews is clunky and off-point if the review is adequately written. I am against minimally written reviews making use of the outcome, as I've outlined, though I'm against minimally written reviews in general. That said, I do not mind following what the majority wishes. If we're to use spoiler-tags I shall do so happily. Though, maybe, a better compromise is to make use of the puroresu review thread for our star ratings and smaller, more mark-out comments such as "good stuff, must watch". Of course spoilers are to completely avoided, but, at least, it offers a summative blurb to the book.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> *In case someone hasn't seen Invasion, I suggest stop reading.*
> 
> 
> 
> I'm used to the lot of us writing decent-length reviews for great matches. If the review is centred, the title is bolded and it isn't a single line of text I, honestly, have no issue with someone typing "RAAINNNAMAAKKAAAAA~!" as their final sentence. Your eyes can discern the difference between the star rating and the entire body of text as well as your ability to realise the review is about a specific match you haven't seen. However if all it is is "Okada VS Tanahashi - great, great match, fixed the WK7 booking fuck-up" then I can sort of get your point in that you might haphazardly read the spoiler as opposed to the match title. It's easier to do so as opposed to a lengthier post that you should be reading from the top to get its gist.
> 
> I'm talking in general, of course, and not in relation to what has happened recently. I just find spoiler-tagging our reviews is clunky and off-point if the review is adequately written. I am against minimally written reviews making use of the outcome, as I've outlined, though I'm against minimally written reviews in general.


S'all about the content really. You can be descriptive in a review while avoiding on treading the waters of giving away the result. That's that I'll say in defense of one not wanting to use spoiler tags while reviewing.

Got no gripes against spoiler tags myself. Even for a review. It's a simple click if you wished to view one's thoughts and knowing it holds potential results inside.


----------



## Rah

Edited my post and HayleySabin ninjas it. I really should only post my final draft of my thoughts.


----------



## MTheBehemoth

Open The Ultimate Gate 2013
Tozawa/Ricochet - ****
Gargano/Shingo - ****1/2

TNA Xtravaganza 
Joe/Aries - ***3/4+

WM 29
Punk/Taker - ****1/4


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Edited my post and HayleySabin ninjas it. I really should only post my final draft of my thoughts.


I read the edit job. It's all square now. :hayley3

As for the compromise, I tend to post reviews in the Non-Spoiler thread for Puro. While occasionally coming in here for a pimp job, brief or moderate level. This is the thread I use to gush about recent matches. That's where I like to separate my thought process at. Beats only posting snowflakes and not leaving any comment with 'em.


----------



## Rah

Ah, looks like I'm in the minority for a good few things this week. The extended high-quality of product throughout Wrestlemania, the greatness of the latter half of Xtravaganza (Aries/Joe!) and now this.

I really should watch NJPW's show. Actually, I'll do that now considering how pumped all these posts have made me. I'll follow suit of the lazy Honours graduand meme for today and just not go to Uni. Okada > everything.


----------



## seabs

Rah said:


> Cassius Ohno (Hero) Vs William Regal is on Hulu, right now! CANNOT WAIT for it to make it to Youtube. SQUEEEEEEEE.
> 
> 
> 
> I don't get the spoiler thing, to be honest. This is a 2013 MotY thread. Go ahead and review matches because that's kind of how this thread works. If you honestly don't wish to be spoilered then why come into the thread? Many people do write-ups the night of/day after the PPV. Of course a bolded title for the review is necessary so if I do come into the thread I can skip the post, but I'm not sure why, within a review, that we can't write-about a match.
> 
> Unless I've completely missed how the spoiler was done? Like a signature post, yeah, that I agree with. Signatures are visible in every post, so you're going to get spoilered. I completely avoid the forum if I really want to watch a PPV, now, as signatures and the top post of each section always end up spoiling a show for me.





leglock said:


> Do spoiler rules apply to WWE, TNA, and ROH iPPVs?


*It's mostly an issue with big puro shows that take maybe up to a week to become available for everyone to see. If you're writing a review for a match and it's pretty clear what you're talking about then there's gonna be spoilers so you'd have to be a fuckwit to read the review and not want to know the outcome. Stuff like spoiling a result without any warning when you're talking about something else or in a signature sucks because nobody can avoid that or know to avoid that. It's all kinda common sense. If the show isn't on XWT yet then don't make the outcomes obvious. Either use spoiler tags, use the spoilers thread or make it clear you're writing a review for a match which people are avoiding spoilers for. New Japan iPPVs are the big one to be wary of. There's nothing wrong in posting something like "Tanahashi vs Okada 4/7 - ****1/2". Just don't start talking about Okada/Goto NJ Cup Final for example and then randomly drop the result of the title match in there. Or post a picture which clearly gives away the outcome. If in doubt spoiler tag it and give people a week to watch it unspoiled after it's hit XWT. 

I just want to point out again that I'm in no way discouraging posting reviews or even ratings for matches that have only just happened and not everyone has seen yet. Quite the opposite. Just be wary of writing something like XX beat YY for the title without appropriate warning that reading on might spoil the result if you're avoiding it.

Clear? If in doubt spoiler tag your reviews up if you know it gives the result away.*


----------



## bigbuxxx

Rah said:


> Unless I've completely missed how the spoiler was done? Like a signature post, yeah, that I agree with. Signatures are visible in every post, so you're going to get spoilered. I completely avoid the forum if I really want to watch a PPV, now, as signatures and the top post of each section always end up spoiling a show for me.


you can also turn signatures off. that is why i was not spoiled for the match. signatures are completely retarded for the most part.


----------



## DOPA

*Jay Lethal vs Michael Elgin (ROH 4/5): ***3/4*

*Kevin Steen vs Jay Briscoe (ROH 4/5): ****1/4*

Loved the main event, the story behind it, the involvement of SCUM and the ROH roster coming out and fighting them to make sure they wouldn't get involved. The work of Jay's arm and his selling was great, the backstory of Jay always being the bridesmaid in the past. All the little things such as Veda Scott stopping Compton from getting involved playing off the recent TV taping where Compton grabbed a hold of her. Hardy getting involved trying to twist of fate Jay with Steen throwing him out wanting to win fairly by himself. All of these things added to a really excellent and dramatic match. Maybe the ROH match of the year thus far.

*Yuji Nagata & Hirooki Goto Vs Kazushi Sakuraba & Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW 4/7): ***3/4*

Shame that it ended the way it did because this could have been an amazing match overall. It was still awesome for the time it got.

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Davey Boy Smith Jr . (NJPW 4/7): ***3/4+*

*Kazuchika Okada Vs Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW 4/7): ******

Match of the Year so far without a doubt for me, incredible from start to finish. No reason in my mind why this isn't a 5 star match.


----------



## kwjr86

_*Wrestlemania 29*_
The Undertaker vs. CM Punk - ***** 1/2*
John Cena vs. The Rock - ***** 1/4*


----------



## WOOLCOCK

*William Regal vs Kassius Ohno, NXT (4/11/13)*

Absolutely brilliant match with a great performance by Ohno but an absolute demonstration by Regal that he is still one of the best workers going today when he puts on his boots and steps into the ring. Match is the definition out of working very basic but letting the story and selling of both men add so much more into each exchange and smartly pacing between each transition and into the finish, which is absolutely stellar. Regal smartly decimates Ohno's hand and fingers throughout in such a beautifully violent and sadistic manner and the payoff is wonderful with Ohno later struggling twice to lock on a cravate with his left hand and later Regal being able to transition out of the cravate because Ohno can't control him in the hold. There's also a great close up of Ohno looking in shock at his fingers and trying to pop them back into place in the corner and he sells being continually grounded by Regal and slowly tortured really well. Sadly the brunt of Hero's control segment goes missing in the commercial break, but the setup is great with a stiff baseball slide to Regal's skull & whilst Ohno is relegated mainly to strikes we have Regal amazingly teasing a possible concussion after Ohno kicks him in the head whilst he's against the ringpost out of revenge for Regal's finger manipulation.

Regal's facial expressions from here on out as well as his body mannerisms just get over Ohno's strikes wonderfully. He nearly collapses the minute he starts to move in a forward motion, struggles to turn his body full circle on the mat as Ohno circles him in motion, has this brilliant almost dead eyed expression after a stiff Ohno boot and there's one inspired bit of selling where Regal tries to move forward before pausing mid motion and nearly tumbling to the mat. In between all of this Regal also busts out a truly wonderful half nelson escape by using his leg for leverage and they really play up how he uses his veteran instincts and ring awareness to keep ahead of Ohno despite Ohno being younger & fitter. Mule kicks in the corner right in Ohno's face as Regal casually chats with the ref about the count was such a subtle but brilliant spot that showcased Regal's intelligence and the final couple of minutes are incredible. Ohno hits this great boot that Regal bumps brilliantly for to the extent you think he's legit concussed before a desperation counter and immediate strike for the win. 



Spoiler: finish



Ohno goes for the rolling elbow but Regal despite staggering catches him plum with a desperation elbow before composing himself long enough to hit the knee trembler and literally collapse aimlessly onto Ohno's prone body and eventually roll him over for the pin.



Hard to compare it to Punk/Taker in terms of WWE MOTYCs, but I'd say it surpasses Del Rio/Show LMS from Smackdown and I'd probably call it a better bell to bell match than Punk/Taker, but wouldn't begrudge anyone who thinks the opposite. Christ on a rewatch I might prefer Punk/Taker. Regal's performance was brilliant though.


----------



## Bubz

Can't wait to see that. Not watched much of Ohno since he started on NXT, but I'm guessing this is the best thing he's done there so far. Always been a huge Hero fan so I'm looking forward to seeing him pull out something great in a different environment.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Yeah shep's said he's been largely subdued in NXT and not really done much and definitely not taken to the sub 10 minute TV format as well as Cesaro has. Still, he was really good in the match. Used mainly strikes but between his execution and Regal's bumping and selling for each one it really put over the work from Ohno and he sold the frustration and anger in Regal torturing him on the mat superbly. His subtle but long term committment in selling the damaged fingers was also one of the best things about the match.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Really disappointed by Okada-Tanahashi. The armwork killed it for me. Worst Okada's looked since his return.


----------



## DOPA

ywall2breakerj said:


> Really disappointed by Okada-Tanahashi. The armwork killed it for me. Worst Okada's looked since his return.


You can't be serious? If anything the armwork made the match and added so much more drama to it. Oh well, opinions...


----------



## Defrost

Meltzer gave Tanahashi vs Okada from Invasion Attack *****


----------



## EmbassyForever

Defrost said:


> Meltzer gave Tanahashi vs Okada from Invasion Attack *****


Can't wait to see 100 ppls that have never seen NJPW, Okada or Tanahashi in the past giving this FIVE STARZ because of Big Dave hype. :cool2


----------



## Corey

EDIT: Never mind, went with Hulu Plus. (Y)


----------



## DOPA

EmbassyForever said:


> Can't wait to see 100 ppls that have never seen NJPW, Okada or Tanahashi in the past giving this FIVE STARZ because of Big Dave hype. :cool2


I'm sure that will happen haha.

But I'm a huge NJPW fan and gave the match 5 stars too so


----------



## Obfuscation

Regal vs Hero was worked under ten minutes? I was hoping it would have gotten enough time the level of Regal vs Ambrose. Just to capture the vicious juxtaposition that is Regal's villainous ways while picking apart Hero. Suppose I can't complain considering some of Regal's best matches have been in a sub-10 minute format. _(vs Finlay x3, Goldust, etc)_


----------



## Chismo

Defrost said:


> Meltzer gave Tanahashi vs Okada from Invasion Attack *****


Well, I have their Dome match at *****, and people say this one's even better, so I can easily see myself enjoying the match immensely.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

At first I didn't like the armwork. Then came the awesome double elbow pad spot followed by a "botched" pose and I thought they might turn it around. They didn't. Okada's arm hurts. Then it's fine. Then it hurts again. Then it's fine and then it hurts again and then it heals but then it starts hurting again and then it magically heals and by the end it was just a big clusterfuck. That's not good selling. I liked their _ideas_, but the way they realised them was not satisfying. I'd give it, like, ***3/4, so I don't think it was a bad match, I just couldn't get into the finishing stretch because of bad selling that made the armwork pointless. I just hope they give up on the obligatory limbwork formula because this match would've been SO much better without it.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

HayleySabin said:


> Regal vs Hero was worked under ten minutes? I was hoping it would have gotten enough time the level of Regal vs Ambrose. Just to capture the vicious juxtaposition that is Regal's villainous ways while picking apart Hero. Suppose I can't complain considering some of Regal's best matches have been in a sub-10 minute format. _(vs Finlay x3, Goldust, etc)_


Nah, 15 minutes or there abouts  . I was saying that according to shep Hero had struggled in transitioning to mostly sub ten minute matches on TV under the WWE style, but that here he excelled and put in likely his best performance as part of the WWE.


----------



## Rah

ywall2breakerj said:


> At first I didn't like the armwork. Then came the awesome double elbow pad spot followed by a "botched" pose and I thought they might turn it around. They didn't. Okada's arm hurts. Then it's fine. Then it hurts again. Then it's fine and then it hurts again and then it heals but then it starts hurting again and then it magically heals and by the end it was just a big clusterfuck. That's not good selling. I liked their _ideas_, but the way they realised them was not satisfying. I'd give it, like, ***3/4, so I don't think it was a bad match, I just couldn't get into the finishing stretch because of bad selling that made the armwork pointless. I just hope they give up on* the obligatory limbwork formula because this match would've been SO much better without it.*












Seriously, though, I thought it would have been so much worse. Now stop watching Okada matches, which I will always see you hating, and watch that Jeff Hardy/Taker match, dammit.


----------



## Obfuscation

WOOLCOCK said:


> Nah, 15 minutes or there abouts  . I was saying that according to shep Hero had struggled in transitioning to mostly sub ten minute matches on TV under the WWE style, but that here he excelled and put in likely his best performance as part of the WWE.




Shep wasn't incorrect either. Pardon some tags this year, Hero hasn't quite gotten a chance to shine through in a shorter, WWE format yet. _(both tags were actually past ten minutes, so hell they don't even count here.)_


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Shut up Rah. Okada will be back to awesome once he starts wrestling [Wrestle Kingdom video game fangirl chant] SHIIIINSKE~!, MiSu and MAKABE or watches a Fujinami tape or two.


----------



## bigbuxxx

JoeRulz said:


> Well, I have their Dome match at *****, and people say this one's even better, so I can easily see myself enjoying the match immensely.


I loved their WK match but didn't bother with a rating or nitpicking it on my first watch and I haven't watched it since. I thought the Invasion Attack match was miles better though and absolutely 5*. I'm a sucker for arm work though. It worked when people did it to Hansen in the 80's and the most recent one I can think of that was great was Takayama vs Shiozaki on 9/19(?)/11.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

ywall2breakerj said:


> At first I didn't like the armwork. Then came the awesome double elbow pad spot followed by a "botched" pose and I thought they might turn it around. They didn't. Okada's arm hurts. Then it's fine. Then it hurts again. Then it's fine and then it hurts again and then it heals but then it starts hurting again and then it magically heals and by the end it was just a big clusterfuck. That's not good selling. I liked their _ideas_, but the way they realised them was not satisfying. I'd give it, like, ***3/4, so I don't think it was a bad match, I just couldn't get into the finishing stretch because of bad selling that made the armwork pointless. I just hope they give up on the obligatory limbwork formula because this match would've been SO much better without it.


Working through the pain?


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Working through the pain is a good enough excuse sometimes. As is healing. Here it was pretty clear Okada had no idea what was he going for and it transferred onto my viewing enjoyment. If you're gonna take the working through the pain route, don't be a fucking pussy and go all OUCH AAAAA AAAAWW every time anything involving your right arm happens. I can't take cartoonish selling seriously in an IWGP Heavyweight Championship match. If he was more subtle about it the eventual payoff to his arm giving out would've been a much bigger deal. But that's not the only way they could've worked it. After all-he's got TWO arms. It wouldn't have killed him if he used his left one, would it? I mean strategy wise if you're not giving up on your big moves involving your right arm why whore it out earlier to the point you can't capitalise? That doesn't seem very complicated to me.


----------



## Rah

*Minoru Suzuki Vs Toru Yano (07/04/2013 NJPW)*
★★★ 3/4-
_MiSu is such the perfect heel that whatever he touches turns to gold. I never liked this as much as seancarleton77 but there is no denying that Suzuki was on another level here with his facial expressions and badass demeanour. The crutch-strikes from Misu's second were unncessary in the believability of his win against Yano, considering I didn't feel he needed help, but it really does add depth to the teamwork within his stable and their characteristics.

A bit too short, and one-sided, to throw in a MotYC label yet it was all completely on point and a must-see just for MiSu._


*Yuji Nagata & Hirooki Goto Vs Kazushi Sakuraba & Katsuyori Shibata (07/04/2013 NJPW)*
★★★★
_It's a damn shame that this ended as it did as what we got before it was breathtakingly great and every bit as good as you would expect from the names in here. While Sakuraba did look a bit "lost" a point or two, his segment with Nagata infinitely surpasses it with their chemistry. Frustration is not even the right word in how I feel. This really could have been a strong nomination come the end of the year._


*Shinsuke Nakamura Vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. (07/04/2013 NJPW)*
★★★★
_This was all about Davey Boy and his domination of the champion. He looked like a million bucks throwing Nakamura around, posing and insulting the fans even though he got a bit comedic towards the end in his selling of disbelief towards Shinsuke. I was quite honestly expecting him to pull the win, here, but the manner in which this was booked his stock only improved in defeat, considering Nakamura's winning Boma-Ye only came after a lucky flurry of kicks to Davey's face. He's going to be a very big deal one day, and all I will have to say for it is that I was stupid to hate him at first._


*Jay Briscoe Vs Kevin Steen (05/04/2013 RoH)*
★★★★ 1/4
_Both men took their main event match as seriously as possible - no jui-jitsu wankery, no Steen goofballing - and, because of it, helped mould one of the better main event matches in a very long time for the promotion. Briscoe's showing of determination to win was equally matched in his quality of selling. Every move made clear he was wrestling injured and was at a massive disadvantage to the "unbeatable" champion who kept his offense centred on the shoulder. Briscoe injuring his shoulder further by Steen blocking an Irish Whip (in holding onto the ropes) was tantamount to the depth that Briscoe brought into his performance.

The brawl surrounding the finish was neither here nor there for me. I was slightly perplexed at why the referee would care about the brawl on the entrance ramp more so than the title fight he was officiating. I'm glad, though, that Steen kicked out of the Jay Driller after the interference as it really enhanced Jay's win as more than just the result of circumstance. Great match and a good propellant for the SCUM storyline. Thumbs way up._


*Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Kazuchika Okada (07/04/2013 NJPW)*
★★★★ 1/4
_And finally the sloppiness of the previous match's wrestling is corrected. Okada isn't awkward and Tanahashi isn't shrugging his damage off, that much, or finisher spamming as he is prone to do. Despite having been beaten at every point on the road before, Okada's cockiness in knowing he has Tanahashi's number was brilliant. So, too, was Okada's elbow injury angle. While I don't think it was as greatly performed an angle as it was in Briscoe/Steen, most notably because Tanahashi didn't solidify his attack solely onto the elbow, Okada still must be commended on the manner in which he sold his elbow and offense.

Perfect for the most part, it unfortunately derailed itself after Okada attempted his second Red Ink. I found the attempted piledriver preceding the Red Ink application somewhat trivial with the submission-desperation sequence too lengthy in its application. Noting the time-frame, it felt more akin to a standard submission than to a wrestler's fresh signature/finisher. The structure and pacing seemingly fell apart afterwards but thank goodness it wasn't too long a wait until Okada hits his piledriver and Rainmaker for the decsisve win._


*The Undertaker Vs CM Punk (07/04/2013 WWE)*
★★★★ 1/2+


> And during the few moments that we have left, we want to talk right down to earth in a language that everybody here can easily understand​


_The opening line to Living Colour's "Cult of Personality" echoes true a metaphor for the majestic spectacle that stole the show in Metlife Stadium. Two wrestling gods graced our presence with a match that solidifies exactly why we all love professional wrestling. The message, itself, was simple. This match would be an affirmation for Punk; he believes he is the best in the world and this match, he anticipated, would prove it. Contrary to opinion, the greatest accolade in sports today isn't The Streak, it's a so far unattained one - beating the streak. It would be that victory that would cement Punk as the greatest to have ever lived. 

I loved Punk roaring as 'Taker's music hits. This is a level of determination he hasn't shown before - not even in his match against Cena for the main event spot at Wrestlemania - a dream he has oft shared as his greatest goal within wrestling. Yet cracks within his bravado showed early on that a good portion of it to likely be a facade, akin to make-up covering the blemish of reality in that deep down he knew how unattainable a win would be. Coupled to this, in terms of 'Taker's deficiencies, was The Deadman's age and his ever increasing ring-rust. Wrestling only once a year had seemingly taken a toll on Undertaker, going for his signature move in Old-School he hesitated and seemingly felt out of control of his own balance. It was a sight that conflicts with the Undertaker you know you'd see at Wrestlemania. These moments, though, would be the material needed for Punk to stitch together the holes in his confidence yet, ironically, too, offer moments, such as the failure to secure a second Old School, in which his cockiness would over-ride his logic at the detriment of maintaining control. For what it is worth, I thought Heyman played the perfect managerial role, adding guidance to Punk's offence and insight into what his own eyes couldn't see. Going so far as to even sacrifice himself, it would seem yet another factor lured the possibility of victory away from 'Taker.

Punk botching his GTS was almost imperative to creating belief in 'Taker coming back with his tombstone, something that would otherwise be blatant in its no-selling. It was a pity, though, that commentary would bring up Punk missing only for production to offer a view from behind Punk forcing them to legitimise its impact. The tombstone made for an immeasurably spectacular nearfall, however, as did Punk's shot with the urn - a nearfall that was symbolic in its irony. The very entity that gave power to 'Taker almost took it all from him. If I was to honestly fault anything within this match, it would only be two, albeit minor, instances. The first was my disbelief in Punk's savate high kick being damaging enough to incapacitate The Deadman for as long as it took to hit the elbow. Secondly, and to a lesser extent, as the botched transition from Hell's Gate to a pin by Punk. Not only had Punk suffered a legitimate injury from his dive to the announce table, but he played it off in the match, too. Punk kicked off with only his left foot, struggling, at first, to generate enough power to flip his exhausted body only to nail it a second time as he visibly fights through the pain.

It's here that the match returns full-circle to the lyrics. Just as the song ends with the quote "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself" so, too, does the match's narrative. While the rest of us saw the death of 'Taker's closest friend and the mindgames of Punk as the biggest threat, yet, to his streak, our fears were solely ours. For fear is The Phenom's own power to control and inflict on his opponents. Punk's surity in winning was truly with merit, even within the final minutes, but he fell just as so many have done before. He may be the best in the world, but there is no better in the devil's playground than 'Taker._







​


----------



## 777

Regal/Ohno. MOTYC without a doubt.


----------



## MF83

Gotta disagree with you El Croatia. 


Nakamura/DBS Jr.

At the conclusion I lay there shaking my head, giggling in disbelief at that finishing stretch. This had Smith's WWE influence keeping the pacing together, which maintained the formula without being overly formulaic, if that makes any sense. Minimal legitimate nearfalls without incessant spamming of 2.9s made this shockingly epic. Terrific babyface performance from Shinksay. Yeah, dig it! ★★★★+ 

Tanahashi/Okada

Loved, loved, loved this. Tanahashi's all around best performance in... fuck, potentially ever. Of course it would be this match that he works the arm so soundly. Okada's selling was actively good I thought. I enjoyed how it prevented effective use of both of his finishers, the tombstone, and especially a damn elbow-off in the middle. That's what this match lacked: elbow-offs. That's probably why I love it so. I enjoyed it down the closing stretch, I enjoyed Okada utterly butchering the OG Cattle Mutilation but somehow charming his way out of it, and I enjoyed the bulk of the match. The one thing I strongly disliked was after nearly tapping his foe, Okada starts back elbow thrusting Tanahashi in the corner... because that makes sense. Sure, they needed Tanahashi to get propped up top, but that was just terrible. Loved this overall. ★★★★½+


----------



## MF83

Regal vs. Ohno

_Completely_ satisfied with what they did here. They went out and had an honest to goodness wrestling match which was chock full of psychology, selling, expression, stiffness, pacing, and originality. It all fit together so snugly and the finger work was brilliant. Not sure I'm in love with Ohno pretending to snap his fingers back into place but then again, why not? I appreciate the idea. Great, great match. *83%*


----------



## Rah

> Not sure I'm in love with Ohno pretending to snap his fingers back into place but then again


This reminds me a lot of Ambrose ramming his shoulder into the ring post during his match against Regal. Sigh, that was a beautifully vicious spot.


----------



## seancarleton77

How about some more of dat Regal/Ohno love. That was a phenomenal war.


----------



## Rah

*Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (21/03/2013 WWE)*​I much prefer the Ambrose/Regal pairing to this, noting the back and forth nature and the chemistry that really highlighted Ambrose's maniacal character, but this was still a drat fine match that satiated my hunger for Ohno's brilliant wrestling. Regal's matches are well and truly unique within the promotion, as a whole, and come ever so rarely that appreciation for and of them are high. 

Beautiful psychology, vindictive offense and immaculate selling (especially Regal's possible concussion/loss of balance throughout) help create yet another WWE contender, and what a strong contender it is.
*Rating:* 4.25+


----------



## Bubz

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Davey Boy Smith Jr (NJPW 7/4)*
Thought it was bloody great, with two really strong performances. Smith plays a good heel and he's very good in control with his power stuff. Nakamura is a fantastic babyface, his stuff was immense in this, especially in the finishing stretch. Good transitions in to the comebacks and control segments, with a great crowd and a sick finishing run and comeback from Nakamura. The guy is just swell. ******

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (NJPW 7/4)*
Fantastic match. I'll have to re-watch this soon because I was a little tired while watching it, but there was so much stuff I absolutely loved. Okada bossing it in the opening stretch, acting cocky and smug and giving little winks to the camera, really looked like he was loving it out there. Someone else said it but Okada botching that ridiculous submission early on only to completely make up for it by acting so proud of himself and laughing it off when he did get it locked in was so great. The guy was on the charm offensive here and I loved it. They didn't piddle around with dull and dragging mat work at the start (WK match), they got right into the story of the match. Arm work was great I thought, Okada's selling was brilliant for the most part. Yeah, there were a few times when he didn't hold his arm, but I don't remember anything where he actively did stuff with it and didn't sell it. He held it after every strike and move iirc. Even trying to do he Rainmaker pose but only managing to do it with one arm was awesome. Wasn't too sure about the elbow drop spot but it didn't bother me enough to stop my enjoyment. I thought Tanahashi going back to the arm was really good, especially Okada going for the Rainmakers only to get his arm beaten on some more. Loved the first Rainmaker hitting but being significantly weaker because of the arm, and Okada taking a while to go for the pin. Once again Okada focuses on the neck, and I thought his Red Ink submissions worked well here for the first time ever, and actually got a crowd reaction which made it better. High Fly Flow to the outside was sick from Tana. Tana was really good in this I thought with some of his offense, changing up his usual leg moves only to do the same moves to the arm instead was kind of cool. I didn't think the first half of the finishing run matched up to the quality of the first half of the match, but once they started going for the Tombstone reversals it got great. I absolutely loved Tanahashi running out of ideas and so constantly holding on to the arm to look for something but was almost stumped as to what to do and so Okada was able to take advantage of that. I knew the result, so the nearfalls maybe didn't have the effect on me as they did on others, but I'd imagine watching this unspoiled would have been absolutely insane. I'll have to watch this again because I was kind of tired, but these are my thoughts right now, don't think it was quite as good as Dominion last year, but like I said, I'm dying to re-watch it. *****1/2*


----------



## Corey

So I've rewatched everything and got my list in a Top 5 Order. It's everything on the year I have at ****+ and differentiating between my 1 and 2 was QUITE difficult. I've included my original and updated thoughts on all the matches in spoiler tags. Keep in mind I don't follow Puro (far too much to keep up with) or ROH (completely lost interest in the product) so my list is essentially only going to be WWE, TNA, & PWG. This definitely took some time and effort, so enjoy:

*# 5* - The Shield vs. John Cena, Sheamus, & Ryback (_WWE Elimination Chamber_) - ******


Spoiler: Thoughts



*ORIGINAL:* If you haven't taken notice of a guy named Roman Reigns, watch this match right now. Wow, incredible intensity and SPEARS!~ Loved the formula with Shield constantly attacking Cena like a pack of wolves & cutting him off from making the tag on several occasions. The last few minutes are just batshit crazy and the finish was again a huge surprise. The Shield's being booked REALLY, REALLY strong. Great stuff.

*UPDATED: *This was even better on the 2nd viewing on I upped my rating from the original *** 3/4. Exact reasons stated in the above paragraph made it excellent. REIGNS



*# 4 *- *#1 Contender's Elimination Chamber Match: *Daniel Bryan vs. Chris Jericho vs. Jack Swagger vs. Kane vs. Randy Orton vs. Mark Henry (_WWE Elimination Chamber_) *- ****
*


Spoiler: Thoughts



*ORIGINAL: *Great, great match here. Zeb's promo for Swagger was great beforehand & the teased(then eventual) dissension between Team Hell No was a lot of fun. Bryan made the match entertaining in the early going (did you hear the pop he got??), along with Swagger's new found intensity and viciousness. Things picked up big time when Orton came in and I fucking LOVED the story of everyone being laid out while a stirring, pissed off monster named Mark Henry is waiting for that countdown clock to strike zero and CLEAN HOUSE, and that's exactly what he did. Disappointed to see Bryan go down so quickly but what the hell, it was HENRY. Everything from that point on was pure gold. Henry's dominance and eventual demise, then he re-entry to cause shit tons of damage was the best way to book it if he wasn't gonna win the whole thing. The triple threat match in the last several minutes was off the charts good. Counters for a counter into a reversal into a double team this into a nifty spot here and another one there, just a ton of fun. Finish was a HUGE surprise. Top 5 Chamber match for sure.

*UPDATED: *I still don't understand why everyone doesn't LOVE this match. I guess they're just butthurt because Henry didn't win.  The action is fantastic in this and the story with Henry is even better. Triple Threat at the end is so much fun. Excellent.



*# 3 - No Holds Barred Career Threatening Match: *Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H (_WWE Wrestlemania XXIX_) - *****
*


Spoiler: Thoughts



*ORIGINAL: *Lesnar looks ridiculously lean here, guy is a BEAST. Really have no expectations for this match cause I wasn't the biggest fan of their Summerslam encounter. Better outing here, but what the hell's up with these guys and repetitiveness in their matches? Lesnar's entire offense was belly-to-back or german suplexes, like 5 of them. I was about to get SERIOUSLY pissed if they had Brock tapout, but luckily he didn't. That sequence was really great... until they repeated it another 2 or 3 times. I was actually pretty surprised by the finish & honestly idk why Triple H won unless he's actually gonna start wrestling again... but whatever. Brock has gone downhill since the Cena match. I don't think he's familiar with timing and pacing in matches anymore, he just does whatever the fuck he wants. haha. *** 1/2

*UPDATED: *Triple H vs. Lesnar was A LOT better on the 2nd watch. I retract all of my original statements about Brock's offense being repetitive. When you're a monster like he is and you have an amateur wrestling & UFC background, I can understand the amount of suplexes you're gonna use, especially when you only wrestle 2 or 3 times a year. The primal screams throughout the match are FUCKING AWESOME (see sig) & I think both Heyman & Shawn's involvement only made the match more exciting. I really don't have a problem with the kimura spots on the steps anymore, just shows how INSANELY STRONG Brock is and puts him over as a true monster. The only real down part of the match is when Brock locks in the Kimura in the corner & the crowd has no reaction cause it didn't come off well & it kept repeating itself. This time around I really bought into it being an all out war and the crowd wasn't really that bad, they came alive when they needed to. Fantastic encounter that was miles ahead of their Summerslam match, imo. I still think Brock should've won though, have him duck the last sledgehammer shot, hit an F5, sell the punishment on his arm before letting out a primal scream and hitting another F5 (maybe off the steel steps or onto them?) to get the win. Either way I love the match & this now makes 4 OF US! (Cody, TLK, Saint Dick) ****



*#2 - #1 Contender's Match: *John Cena vs. CM Punk (_WWE RAW 2/25_) - ***** 1/4*


Spoiler: Thoughts



*ORIGINAL: *Holy FUCK, do these two know how to make magic or what? What an incredible big match feel this had. Cena looks so nervous at the start, he clearly knows he has everything to lose. Punk? Yeah, he's focused as shit. Some really great chain wrestling & counters in the beginning, Cena looks on point. Then we get fucked in the ass by TWO commercial breaks, thus missing just about all of Punk's control segment. Whatever, we come back from the 2nd break and it's time to take it to another level. Like 10 straight minutes of marking out with nearfalls & close calls. Punk looks like the fucking GOAT by countering nearly all of Cena's signature moves, making it look pretty/easy in the process. Hits some KILLER knees in the corner too. Cena on the other hand stepped up big time by busting out the Batista Bomb & a hurracanrana (looked rough but credit still goes out). I'm probably just rambling at this point but what the fuck, I'm all marked out right now. I felt like a little kid. The countout spot was off the charts close & the piledriver near the end was straight brutal. Match of the year so far, and we didn't even see most of the first half! Booking wise, Cena comes out REALLY strong... but what the hell does Punk do now??? He's lost 3 in a row...

*UPDATED: *On the 2nd viewing a lot of that "really great chain wrestling" sort of seemed like rest holds to me, but at the same time I believe Punk WAS working on the head & neck area which softened Cena up for all the knees, the GTS, & THAT FUCKING PILEDRIVER. God I loved that spot so much. The back half of the match is still amazing and it's soooo close to being my #1, but it's just edged out.



*#1 - *The Undertaker vs. CM Punk (_WWE Wrestlemania XXIX_) - ***** 1/4*


Spoiler: Thoughts



KICKASS performance for Punk's theme song, no joke. Holy shit, anyone see Punk's reaction when Taker's music hit? This guy is amped and ready. Bell rings, Punk ducks some punches and... slaps the Undertaker!? Are you fucking NUTS!? This is gonna be good. I'm not gonna lie, I thought Punk legit made this match. His facial expressions, body language, taunts and gestures were all just amazing and brought life to a crowd watching with wide eyes. The dualing chants of CM PUNK & UNDERTAKER were so awesome and it really shows how the fanbase is sort of changing. Despite the announce table not breaking, the elbow spot is always amazing & looked REALLY painful on Punk's end. The picture where Taker sits up while he's in the Anaconda Vice & they're staring eye to eye is incredible, such a piece of art. The sequence where it was GTS into the rebound tombstone (which was of course a nearfall) was breathtaking. Thought it was legit over there. They managed to top themselves with the nearfall on the urn spot, that was even more amazing. Great back-and-forth sequence to end the match too. Punk just looked so good in this. Beautiful stuff.



I won't do any kind of runner-up list either cause I've given a pretty big handful of matches *** 3/4 this year and it's unnecessary to post, unless someone asks.


----------



## Obfuscation

William Regal vs Kassius Ohno = WWE MOTY... (w/Undertaker vs Punker)

Tremendous rugged war. Included all of the vicious, gnarly, cringe-worthy manly sequences/strikes one would figure when these two would lock up. NXT has given us a slew of good/near great matches this year, but this completely blew all of 'em out of the water. WWE hasn't had to many peak matches this year so having this in the bunch is a needed aid. Arguable to say this is around my second/third favorite match of the whole year. Only behind Nakamura vs Sakuraba from Wrestle Kingdom.

Trying to piece together all of the matches from WWE I've liked so far _(well, more in a MOTYC type capacity. Sure as hell not going to name drop Cesaro vs Miz from Elimination Chamber in here, despite thinking it was a good match.)_

Punk vs Ryback ~ TLC Match (RAW)
Sheamus vs Ziggler (Main Event)
Hell No vs Mysterio & Cara (Smackdown)
Punk vs Jericho (RAW)
British Ambition vs Ohno & Kruger (NXT)
British Ambition vs Wyatt Family (NXT)
Shield vs Cena, Sheamus, & Ryback (Elimination Chamber)
Shield vs Jericho, Sheamus, & Ryback (RAW)
Cena vs Punk (RAW)
Shield vs Big Show, Sheamus, & Orton (WrestleMania 29)
Undertaker vs Punk (WrestleMania 29)
Brock vs Triple H ~ No Holds Barred (WrestleMania 29)
Regal vs Ohno (NXT)

Thirteen matches. Decent number, I suppose. Kind of bad though when three PPVs deep and only four matches come off of them as anything incredibly noteworthy. None of which were the "final" match on the show either. Hopefully with Cena in the picture things can change for the better. Nearly half of the field is tag team/six man matches too. Interesting.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*NJPW Invasion Attack:
*
Yuji Nagata & Hirooki Goto Vs Kazushi Sakuraba & Katsuyori Shibata: ***3/4
Masato Tanaka & Yujiro Takahashi Vs Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma: ****
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Davey Boy Smith Jr.: ****1/2 
Kazuchika Okada Vs Hiroshi Tanahashi: ****3/4


----------



## Rah

*Dean Allmark & Leon Shah Vs Robbie Dynamite & Rampage Brown (10/04/2013 ASW:UK)*
★★★★
LINK

_I think this is the first time I'm seeing Leon Shah but he totally looks like he could fill the part of a main eventer in any promotion.

As for the match, I'm usually pretty disillusioned when it comes to escape-style tag cage matches but I thought the booking in this was absolutely clever. Deano getting planted via a swinging something off the ropes (I honestly do not know what you'd call it; flat-level Rock-Bottom?) and then holding on for dear life as Rampage attempts to make the escape was brilliant. Things get into high gear soon after, with the heels planting Deano with an assisted sitout piledriver, looking to have the win solidified, only to attempt a second assisted piledriver on Leon for a lucky counter. A great flurry of comeback offense from Leon leads to the first escape of the match, and where my enjoyment piqued. Thinking Deano would make his escape soon after, Leon quickly realises the full extent that the piledriver had on his partner, who's still barely moving on the mat, and the mistake he's made in leaving his partner at the hands of two rabid opponents. I'm not going to write further on the final few minutes as it's too great to watch spoiled. Despite the small ring, of which I had my doubts in them being able to work efficiently in, these guys put on a hell of a performance Sigh, Rampage Brown, you beauty._​


----------



## DOPA

another ASW match :mark: gotta get on that at some point with Regal vs Ohno.


----------



## Rah

Seabs/flag_sabbath, do either of you know why Rampage Brown was let go by WWE? He is fucking gold.



Crusade said:


> another ASW match :mark: gotta get on that at some point with Regal vs Ohno.


Saw you posting in the Battle Rap thread (yeah, it's taken me this long to realise WF has one) and didn't pinpoint you as a fan of Between the Buried and Me. Nice. bama


----------



## DOPA

Rah said:


> Saw you posting in the Battle Rap thread (yeah, it's taken me this long to realise WF has one) and didn't pinpoint you as a fan of Between the Buried and Me. Nice. bama


Haha yeah, I'm a pretty big music nerd in general. BTBAM is my favourite band


----------



## DOPA

*Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (WWE 3/21): **** 1/4*

Brilliant match here. This was vicious and brutal from a psychology standpoint. Brilliant storytelling, psychology and selling all around. This was on another level than most WWE matches this year and if it went a little longer would definitely be WWE MOTY. I'm torn between this and Punk/Cena from Raw a month or two ago. Still, excellent match here.


----------



## seabs

*I don't know Rah. It turned out for the best though. He's not quite there in the ring yet as a finished article but he will be soon. *

*William Regal vs Kassius Ohno - NXT 10.04.2013*
_Total Regal formula so not in the least bit surprising that it delivered. Thought Ohno delivered a ton to the match too though and it's no surprise either that Hero shines more as he gets to work a longer match rather than a sub 10 minute TV match. That format just doesn't suit Hero and he's a guy who looks better the longer his matches go. Story is brilliantly executed and everything Regal does looks nasty as fuck. I love how Regal will just pop up in the ring every full moon and deliver matches on this level. Without fail. Tons of slick little spots like Regal's back heels in the corner, Ohno just climbing up the ropes when Regal drapes his neck over the top rope and everything with the fingers. On par with Del Rio vs Show for my WWE MOTY right now._

*****+*


----------



## Concrete

You quick bastard *Rah*. I go to bed after watching Dean Allmark/Tony Teeside vs.Robbie Dynamite/Rampage Brown essentially as it was being put on YouTube and yet if I had just stayed up a mere three hours (granted that'd be 3 A.M. my time) I could have caught the cage match. I honestly saw it was up this morning before I saw your review but wasn't sure about Shah. Allmark+Random UK worker vs. Dynamite/Brown matches have been fun but nothing I'd put on MOTYC level. I was actually just thinking how I'd like a Allmark/Mason vs. Dynamite/Brown cage match this year. Glad to hear Shah is a capable replacement. Consider that added to the to do list tomorrow. 

And why isn't Casas vs. Dorada up yet ARRRRGH!


----------



## Mr.Guerrilla

Thanks for Regal-Ohno reviews, can't wait to see the whole match.

Okada-Tanahashi was awesome, I wasn't very happy with NJPW bookers forcing Okada-Tana match again, but this one was the best of them all! I'm gonna watch it again before I give the final grade but the match was really really great.:clap


----------



## Bubz

Echo the thoughts on Regal/Ohno. Great match. Tons of lovely brutal psychology on show here. Regal owned again as the veteran trying to show he's still as brutal as ever, and Ohno was also fantastic as the younger guy trying to prove a point. Sick little touches from Regal always go a long way such as his dirty tactics and relentless attacks. Ohno has always been great in these type of matches, so put him in there with a master like Regal and you've got one hell of a match on your hands. Ohno's boots looked ridiculously awesome here I thought. I loved Regal cutting off the strikes to hit one of his own that really changed the momentum in the match. Stiff and nasty, just the way we like it. ***** *


----------



## Nervosa

Full review for Invasion Attack in the other thread, but here’s reviews for the top 5 matches

Makabe and Honma vs. Yujiro and Tanaka
***3/4

Ok, so coming into this match, I liked Tanaka, hated Makabe and was pretty ambivalent towards Honma and Yujiro. But Honma was freaking incredible here. They played to the strengths of both teams, having most of the action be between Honma and Tanaka, which is surprising since those two are just kinda extra’s for the Makabe/yujiro program. I know a lot of you like Makabe, but I just don’t see it. He was very dull, here. I mean, great lariats, for sure, but not much else. Yuijro has seriously shown NOTHING from what made him so watchable at times last year. But that’s being negative….let’s be positive here. Honma was a freaking house of fire in this. He took a beating well, he was captivating, and the crowd went nuts for this. Tanaka showed how much he has been missed in CHAOS tags. This was a surprisingly great midcard treat.

Yano vs. Suzuki
***3/4
Yeap, awesome. Misu is back to being Misu with incredible heel heat. The beginning of the match was priceless though, with Yano going straight out of the ring and assaulting Taichi before the match even started. Suzuki chases him off, and rolls back in the ring…..so Yano rolls back out and beats up Taichi again. Hilarious. Yano working as the ‘eddie-style’ babyface who cheats is awesome. I just love Yano’s work all year this year. If CHAOS splits into a heel half and a face half, I kinda hope yano has a cheating face push, because the little one he has had lately has been so fun.



Spoiler: option



I totally bought Yano’s roll-up at the end of the match as a legit nearfall, since that was the finish of their NJ cup match. Misu dominated this match, which makes sense, honestly. The whole story here was on Misu’s frustration that he could beat Okada but not toru Fucking Yano. He kinda needed to dominate the match to the end the mini-feud the right way. Even when being dominated, Yano was great.



Laughter7 vs. Goto and Nagata
***1/2

Goto is totally watchable in a midcard role. As soon as he gets pushed, or gets placed in singles matches, he starts sucking, but here, him and Shibata’s stuff was great. Man that submission sequence with Sakuraba and Nagata was freaking amazing. I really desire to see a Nagata in a title match soon, because I think he has another great singles match in his. 

Obviously, I echo all previous thoughts that the injury really hurt what would have been a great match. I don’t think this was on its way to being a top MOTYC, but what was here was great nonetheless. Get well soon, Sakuraba, for sure.

Nakamura vs. Smith Jr.
****

All this time, I thought Archer was the true talent of the team. Turns out BOTH KES members are awesome. Smith was amazing here, and his power workover was just awesome. He came off as so dominant and so problematic for shinskay, as if Nakamura simply hadn’t wrestled this kind of power before. The other thing I was really impressed with was Jr’s ability to work the crowd, which helped them really pop during Nakamura reversals. Nakamura has become great at timing his false comebacks, and Smith using power to halt each and every one was great.



Spoiler: option



DBSJ’s lariat out of nowhere really popped the crowd big and was an amazing nearfall. I love the look on Smith’s face when Shinskay kicks out of the powerbomb. So what does he do….he pulls out a tiger suplex that I’ve never even seen him do before, and even THAT isn’t enough. Best spot for sure though was Nakamura’s crazy fucking spider climb in the ropes to hit the knee strike. After that the crowd was molten for Boma Ye time. No one in the world has the diverse and amazing strike repertoire that shinskay has. Amazing match and a career maker for DBSJ.




Okada vs. Tanahashi
****3/4

Best match these two have ever had, and made up for their incredibly disappointing match at Wrestle Kingdom. Tanahashi going straight into the arm work was a great way to start the match, but what I liked even more was Okada countering all of Tanahashi’s ‘early’ spots. This kept Tanahashi from getting into a rhythm, and also made it so his arm strategy eventually became the only moves that were working, which played great into the story. I kinda hated Okada’s dumb botch submission. Yes, he played it off like a boss, and his thumb’s up after was hilarious, but it was hard to forget how silly and unnecessary it was. For some reason, it doesn’t bother me as that kind of this usually does much but definitely keeps the match from being perfect, for me. 

But yeah, the armwork was awesome, especially Okada’s selling. Honestly, this is how I like selling. Some people said it was overdone, and then disappeared, but I just don’t agree. I think it was present in everything he was doing. He sold it when he was winning and when he wasn’t. Even when he used it for moves, you never ever forgot how much pain he was in. If you are mad at Okada’s selling here, you have to hate Suzuki/Tanahashi from King of Pro Wrestling even more. Suzuki basically did the exact same thing in that match, selling the leg and then hitting a dropkick, selling again ,and then kicking off the leg. If you hate both, fine, I can see why selling needs to be all the way one way or the other for you. But for me I have no problem at all with how Okada did this, and I wish all wrestlers worldwide would sell this way, because to me this is what it should look like when a limb in injured.

The selling was at its best with the elbow pad switch before his big elbow. This spot is ALWAYS what leads into Okada’s first Rainmaker attempt. Okada insisting on using his right arm is his way of making sure its ready for his finisher. To me, it would have made even LESS sense for him to switch arms, even with the injury. 

I kinda felt like the crowd seemed really quiet, even when the action picked up and Okada started getting nearfalls. Anyone else feel this way? Even When Okada hit the first rainmaker, the crowd didn’t seem to buy it as a nearfall. That said, the delay to the pin and the kickout was really awesome.

Shortly after, the crowd finally got into it. And you know what it was that did it? What stupid Submission move. I have never liked Red Mist, but when it got finally got locked in after the first rainmaker, and Tanahashi looked like he was passing out, the crowd started going nuts. Okada yelling at the ref to check Tanahashi and insisting that he was KO’d was immense. Okada, in general, has the best facials in the world besides Toru Yano.

Okada followed the awesome submission stuff with some back elbows in the corner. MF83 discussed back elbows in corner. I can see why he didn’t like it, but again, I see this as Okada knowing the end is near, and knowing he better make sure his arm is ok before he goes for the finish again. At this point, he knows he is risking the arm and being vulnerable for the rest of the match if the next rainmaker doesn’t end it, so he has to be sure its strong enough. To me, it seemed like Okada was testing the arm to get feeling back more than anything else. 



Spoiler: option



After Tanahashi countered, he did some really incredible moves to the arm to re-assert control. The dragon arm screw in the ropes was particularly powerful. Then he went into his normal match finish formula, which has become so familiar that the crowd is into every element. That whole portion was really exciting and set the table perfect for the finish. The best thing is that they got the crowd to pop at their highest at the perfect moment. The final rainmaker punctuated the match perfectly.



In case anyone cares, here’s how I would rank the Okada/tanahashi matches:

1.	Invasion Attack 2013
2.	Dominion 2012
3.	New beginning 2012
4.	Wrestle Kingdom 2013

Overall, I would call this show of the year. The top 4 matches here are not as good as the top 4 matches at Wrestle Kingdom, but this show had a way better main event and undercard. Plus, this had more Yano. Plus, Ishii was actually on the maincard. 

Anyway, yeah, show of the year.


----------



## Last Chancery

Davey Richards vs. Michael Elgin, AAW Heavyweight Championship - ****1/2 (AAW Point of No Return 2013)

I tend to rate things a little highly but this blew me away. They add and a little to each match of theirs, taking away only what doesn't work -- in this case, the continual no-selling and hulking up. There was a little "fighting spirit" shown by both in this match (think Elgin even did the kickout at 1), but it's about 5-8 minutes shorter than the first ROH match, and just as good. Really killer that it takes place in a small bingo hall with a raucous crowd, among the best I've ever been apart of.

Also recommended from the same show:
-Shane Hollister vs. Sami Callihan ****1/4
-Jimmy Jacobs vs. Silas Young ****


----------



## Mattyb2266

Sami Callihan vs. Adam Cole (CZW BOTB 12) - **** - ****1/4

Awesome match, for me, on par with their Night of Infamy match.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

Adam Cole vs. Sami Callihan (best of the best 2013) ***3/4
Jay briscoe vs. Kevin Steen (c) (Supercard of Honor 2013) ****


----------



## Saint Dick

I'm right there with everyone else singing the praises of Ohno v Regal. Excellent match, top 3 for WWE this year along with Punk/Taker and Punk/Cena. Ohno was good, very good actually, but Regal was just masterful.


----------



## Nervosa

Regal vs. Ohno
****

Everything that could be said has been said. Wish for my life this could have been longer.


----------



## DOPA

*Dean Allmark & Leon Shah Vs Robbie Dynamite & Rampage Brown (ASW 4/10): ***3/4*

Rah's review pretty much nails it on the head. I will add one more thing which is although I don't like Allmark's character he was absolutely brilliant in this match. Really good stuff.


----------



## bigbuxxx

Mr.Guerrilla said:


> Okada-Tanahashi was awesome, I wasn't very happy with NJPW bookers forcing Okada-Tana match again


I think it makes it kind of awesome. They know they made a blunder by not signing Okada before WK and then letting him fall. Then they made up for it. It's kind of like when Jericho was going to win the Rumble in 2012 but didn't because Vince realized it was so obvious. Here NJPW has the balls to correct the mistake even by making it super obvious by who was going to win.

I will say though that my favorite part of the match was Okada finally hitting the Rainmaker but not being able to cover and when he finally did Tanahashi kicked out. I thought he could lose on the excuse of a hurt arm and Tanahashi being lucky to kick out because of it. I would like to see a rematch in Sept or Oct (anything but Dec) with Okada going over, cementing him as the man.



> 1. Invasion Attack 2013
> 2. Dominion 2012
> 3. New beginning 2012
> 4. Wrestle Kingdom 2013


I'd switch New Beginning and WK. I watched their NB match a couple days ago and liked it a ton. I did think it was weird that Okada was on offense 85% of the match and Tanahashi just bumped around for him. ****1/4 for that (some of the rating is for creating a monster and . ****1/4-****1/2 for WK, ***** for Dominion, and GOAT/***** for IA.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Okada/Tanahashi at Invasion Attack is now my MOTY tied with Taker Punk - both at **** 1/4


----------



## sharkboy22

Adam Cole vs Sami Callihan BOTB 12 ***3/4

Trying to catch up on some indy/puro stuff (I'm always behind ) Gonna check out Okada/Tanahashi asap. Huge fan of Okada for his selling. So I should enjoy the hell out of that match. Also, I'm gonna ask a stupid question but it's because I'm stupid when it comes to Other Wrestling. Is NJPW like the WWE of Japan in terms of its style? I realize matches like Okada/Naito, Tanahashi/Suzuki (One of my MOTY for 2012) feature a lot of the WWe style story telling and selling where as the other companies like BJW focus more on the strong style. I mean NJPW does have its strong style workers but guys like Okada and Tanahashi are far from it. 

So yeah, I know it sounds stupid but I would like to know.


----------



## MF83

Yeah, New Japan would be the WWE to TNA's All Japan, ROH's NOAH, CZW's BJW, Dragon Gate's Dragon Gate USA, PWG's DDT... damn, I haven't watched indies in years, this analogy is losing its legs. 

I don't want to make the same damn post I always do about this only to have JoeRulz give me the same damn Lukie response so let's just say Strong Style is the New Japan stylistic term. :lol What do you think strong style means?


----------



## EmbassyForever

*ROH TV Episode 85:*
Kyle O'Reilly vs Davey Richards - ****1/4

Elgin/Anderson from the same episode was really good as well. ***1/2. Def worth the 1.99$.


----------



## duttanized

TNA X-Travaganza
Chavo Guerrero vs Robbie E w/ Joseph Park as Special Referee - *****

Everything Park did was so perfect, might have even elevated this match to one of my top five all time!


----------



## Obfuscation

Going to predict I dislike the rematch about as much as I disliked their match from Defy or Deny. As long as it doesn't go 19 minutes, I'll be happy.

The Anderson match gives me something to look out for.


----------



## EmbassyForever

HayleySabin said:


> Going to predict I dislike the rematch about as much as I disliked their match from Defy or Deny. As long as it doesn't go 19 minutes, I'll be happy.
> 
> The Anderson match gives me something to look out for.


Have you seen Fish/Edwards from this week? another good match.


----------



## Obfuscation

Not yet. Looking forward to it ever since Kelly dropped it back at Supercard of Honor.


----------



## Rah

Anyone have a link to Davey/O'Reilly? I'm watching Eddie/Fish, right now.


edit: The face crusher and siperkick are no longer valid moves in RoH. Not a bad match until they went to the outside. Then it just became terrible.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW Champion Carnival, 18/4):* http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xz5rqw_07-suwama-vs-go-shiozaki-ajpw-04-18-13_sport#.UXJsHrV32So

This is an old-fashioned, methodical slugfest which builds slowly & pays off strong. They kick it into high gear around 20 mins and it's all bombs & drama from there on out. The fighting spirit might get a bit overblown for some towards the end, but it fits the context of both men being desperate to bag the points. ******


----------



## EmbassyForever

*NOAH GREAT VOYAGE 2013 in OSAKA*
GHC Jr. Heavyweight Title: Taiji Ishimori vs Shuji Kondo - ****1/4


----------



## Lane

AAW Epic
Shane Hollister vs Jimmy Jacobs
****3/4


----------



## Obfuscation

^^AAW show is available on XWT. I'm sooooooooo getting it just for Jacobs vs Hollister.


----------



## Last Chancery

Lane said:


> AAW Epic
> Shane Hollister vs Jimmy Jacobs
> ****3/4


Is this up anywhere else online? I saw it live and gave it ****1/2 but I'd like to give it another go.


----------



## KingCrash

Last Chancery said:


> Is this up anywhere else online? I saw it live and gave it ****1/2 but I'd like to give it another go.


It was posted in the Indy media section. Dying to watch it but I want to watch the two shows before Epic first.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*AAW Epic:*

Shane Hollister vs Jimmy Jacobs - ****1/4 (Awesome match, kinda reminds me of the old Morishima/Danielson matches only with more flashy moves, Shane was fantastic here and worked over Jimmy's early bleeding greatly)

ACH vs Davey Richards - ***1/2 (Good match but went way too long, loved Davey's heel work)


----------



## DOPA

*Suwama vs Go Shiozaki (AJPW 4/18): *** 3/4*


----------



## Saint Dick

Not exactly a MOTYC but it's a match I feel more people need to see so I'm pimping it in here.

*Alberto Del Rio v Jack Swagger - Smackdown (4/19/13)*
Wow. I loved this. Story of the match is built around Swagger's injured arm and his ankle lock, and Del Rio's injured leg and his cross-armbreaker. They work it brilliantly with constant limb work, great selling, neat counters and sequences involving the injured body parts, and a good pace. They both know each other's weakness and look for openings to take advantage of that over and over again. Some of the spots are really great too. One that stuck out to me was Swagger clattering into Del Rio's bad leg when ADR went airborne. The ankle lock/armbreaker transitions were smooth and the finish was good. Despite all the limb work neither man was able to gain control and apply the killer hold so a roll up was an appropriate end. I liked their Wrestlemania match but this was on a completely different level. Great match.


----------



## Corey

*2CW - Living on the Edge VIII*​ 
Matt Hardy vs. Sami Callihan - ****​Oh yeah, this was damn good. Structured almost perfectly with Sami not going to let Hardy waltz into his house & get all his usual shit in, so he just beats the piss out of him and INSISTS on winning by countout, which in turn gives us some seriously close calls from both guys getting counted. Hardy plays a great underdog babyface & really doesn't get all that much offense in but makes it count when he does. Sami puts a couple really awesome touches on things throughout the match like spitting on his hand and watching it drip off when going for a chop & then completely removing Hardy's boot and stomping the shit out of his ankle late in the match. Matt's selling is on point throughout the entire match & the finish legitimately surprised me. Really, really great stuff.

-------------------------​
You can watch the match and this entire show for free on here: http://www.livesportsvideo.com/goli...013638&s=mp4&adds=&m=guestfree&listgca=Circle

There's also a really good main event in Kevin Steen vs. John Morrison, but the above match stole the show for sure.


----------



## Groovemachine

I watched Davey Richards vs Kyle O'Reilly from the 5/4/13 ROH TV episode after hearing all the love it got, and all I can say is, man, some people are gonna HATE it when it eventually airs next weekend. 



Spoiler: Thoughts



So in the early going Davey actually sells the leg work pretty well. O'Reilly's strikes look like shit, but his holds are pretty good, and he does a good job of focusing on Richard's legs. Fine. Down the line, Davey's selling becomes sporadic, which I can maybe forgive...but then fuck me, not only does he apply a hanging arm bar to Kyle (with his legs wrapped over the top rope taking all the pressure), he follows that up with a top rope double stomp to Kyle through a table on the outside. He holds his knee in pain afterwards but I'm sorry, that's ridiculous. And then in the finishing stretch he hits his usual quick-fire kicks and all of a sudden the knee is miraculously healed. FML.

Couple that with Kyle completely whiffing a few strikes on numerous occasions, and I ended up being pretty disappointed. I think Davey is still capable of great matches, so it's not like I actively dislike him at all. But after all the praise that had been heaped upon the match thus far, I thought I was guaranteed somewhat of a classic. No such luck.


----------



## DOPA

*Kevin Steen vs. John Morrison (2CW 4/20): *** 3/4*

*Matt Hardy vs. Sami Callihan (2CW 4/20): *****

Absolutely loved this match, great story behind it, tremendous psychology throughout. Really surprisingly strong babyface performance by Hardy, by far his best match in the indies.


----------



## flag sabbath

Loved the first half of Callihan vs. Hardy. The table spot setting up a significant control segment was refreshing & the repeated countout attempts were really effective, but they wound up going into standard indie back-and-forth mode & the finish only reinforced how meaningless the last few minutes of big moves had been. ***1/2

Thoroughly enjoyed Steen vs. Hennigan. Steen's envious assault on the abs made perfect sense & the finishing sequence was really well put together. ***3/4

Completely underwhelmed by Jacobs vs. Hollister. Just loads of fancy moves in front of a disinterested crowd. First time I've seen Hollister & he's might as well have 'Vanilla Midget' embroidered on his trunks - a flabby Gargano with low charisma & scant connection with the audience. ***


----------



## Rah

Groovemachine said:


> I watched Davey Richards vs Kyle O'Reilly from the 5/4/13 ROH TV episode after hearing all the love it got, and all I can say is, man, some people are gonna HATE it when it eventually airs next weekend.


I love how he sells the knee well when the match is at a lul yet during the action his kicks are not affected nor are any of his moves. You'd think a leg that you can barely walk on would give out if you're using only that as a crutch while delivering a dime-a-dozen knees in the corner. Throw in him no-selling a vicious Sliced Bread DDT and scooping O'Reilly into a Falcon Arrow-Crossbreaker combo and this match is already laughably ridiculous from Davey's side alone not even 10 minutes in.

I honestly didn't mind the double stomp through the table as it was a fine desperation move. O'Reilly taking a tombstone early in the match and Richards taking a brainbuster over the ropes to the outside (~!), both to no end, grated me immensely, though. O'Reilly is a shoe-in for worst elbows in wrestling (I'm sure I gave this award to someone earlier this year but Kyle's got it beat).



HayleySabin said:


> Going to predict I dislike the rematch about as much as I disliked their match from Defy or Deny. As long as it doesn't go 19 minutes, I'll be happy.
> 
> The Anderson match gives me something to look out for.


Here's the link. ~16minutes, so it didn't go 19 minutes and, by your own words, you must now be happy.


----------



## Concrete

Matt Hardy vs. Sami Callihan: YES!
I'm not actually going to rate it since I was there live and haven't gotten around to watching the replay but I absolutely loved Sami trying to get the countout victory by taking Hardy to planet Voltron. So awesome.


----------



## Yeah1993

Jack Evans 187 said:


> You can watch the match and this entire show for free on here: http://www.livesportsvideo.com/goli...013638&s=mp4&adds=&m=guestfree&listgca=Circle


I can't get this to work. Is it just me?

EDIT - There we go. Got it.


----------



## Obfuscation

Groovemachine said:


> I watched Davey Richards vs Kyle O'Reilly from the 5/4/13 ROH TV episode after hearing all the love it got, and all I can say is, man, some people are gonna HATE it when it eventually airs next weekend.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler: Thoughts
> 
> 
> 
> So in the early going Davey actually sells the leg work pretty well. O'Reilly's strikes look like shit, but his holds are pretty good, and he does a good job of focusing on Richard's legs. Fine. Down the line, Davey's selling becomes sporadic, which I can maybe forgive...but then fuck me, not only does he apply a hanging arm bar to Kyle (with his legs wrapped over the top rope taking all the pressure), he follows that up with a top rope double stomp to Kyle through a table on the outside. He holds his knee in pain afterwards but I'm sorry, that's ridiculous. And then in the finishing stretch he hits his usual quick-fire kicks and all of a sudden the knee is miraculously healed. FML.
> 
> Couple that with Kyle completely whiffing a few strikes on numerous occasions, and I ended up being pretty disappointed. I think Davey is still capable of great matches, so it's not like I actively dislike him at all. But after all the praise that had been heaped upon the match thus far, I thought I was guaranteed somewhat of a classic. No such luck.


:lmao

oh lord I sense my displeasure already.



Rah said:


> I love how he sells the knee well when the match is at a lul yet during the action his kicks are not affected nor are any of his moves. You'd think a leg that you can barely walk on would give out if you're using only that as a crutch while delivering a dime-a-dozen knees in the corner. Throw in him no-selling a vicious Sliced Bread DDT and scooping O'Reilly into a Falcon Arrow-Crossbreaker combo and this match is already laughably ridiculous from Davey's side alone not even 10 minutes in.
> 
> I honestly didn't mind the double stomp through the table as it was a fine desperation move. O'Reilly taking a tombstone early in the match and Richards taking a brainbuster over the ropes to the outside (~!), both to no end, grated me immensely, though. O'Reilly is a shoe-in for worst elbows in wrestling (I'm sure I gave this award to someone earlier this year but Kyle's got it beat).
> 
> 
> 
> Here's the link. ~16minutes, so it didn't go 19 minutes and, by your own words, you must now be happy.


Honestly thinking of skipping it tbhayley. Edwards/Fish wasn't even good. My faith is at an all time low.

Oh and...

2013 Match of the Year so far: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada _(Invasion Attack)_ ~ *******

Yep.


----------



## Last Chancery

I have that Okada/Tanahashi match downloaded, I'll give it a peep today.


----------



## Ten410

Last Chancery said:


> I have that Okada/Tanahashi match downloaded, I'll give it a peep today.


Watch it, you will not be disappointed!!!


----------



## Obfuscation

Not at all. Brilliant match on all levels. Tanahashi changing up his attack from knee/leg damage to destroying the Rainmaker lariat arm was soooooooo good. The counters, the selling, the finishing stretch, nearfalls, the whole she-bang. Top notch. My favorite match out of the four. Managed to top Dominion last year. Which I thought was stellar.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Yeah1993 said:


> I can't get this to work. Is it just me?
> 
> EDIT - There we go. Got it.


Not working for me.

Nvm...working now. Lol.


----------



## sharkboy22

Got Callihan/Hardy downloading.

I honestly expect nothing from Davey Richards. It's been almost 10 years into his career and the guy still can't fucking sell a taco to a Mexican if he tried his hardest to. Just a complete fucking terrible wrestler who should just retire already. What a disgrace to this business is Richards with his Mr. Intensity bullshit. I can't say I hate him as a person but as a performer, oh, I fucking hate this guy.


----------



## Nervosa

Okada, Gedo, Nakamura, Ishii vs. Suzuki, benjamin, Taichi, TAKA
elimination match 4/21/2013
****1/4

This was a way awesomer version of the first elimination match earlier this year. Match had an incredible, fun, flowing story, using tiny victories for each side to turn the tide and create a great overarching story. Its hard to give detailed thoughts without spoilers, but I'll try.

-Shelton Benjamin gets a lot of shit on this board. I will be the first to say he deserves every bit of it. that said, he was AWESOME in this match. Not just good....he was great. He in every way fit in with the awesome workers he was surrounded with. He did this awesome takedown on Shinskay and then did his 'amateur spiral' over Shinsuke's back, but then stopped midway to pose for cameras. It sounds stupid but it totally worked and was hilarious. His strikes were crisp, the crowd dug all of his offense, and everything he did made sense. I know it sounds crazy, but trust me, he was seriously one of the best things in this match.

-One of the best things in this match is how both teams came up with creature quadruple team spots. CHAOS modified the Pick-Up-Ishii triple kick into an awesome new combo. Suzuki-gun used a great corner combo, which shelton punctuated perfectly.

-The Shelton/Shinskay interactions were awesome. They had some great spots that I almost wish they had saved for their singles match. I am now officially excited for their match.

-They waited a REALLY long time to eliminate someone, which was great, because it helped build the two big singles matches, and everyone felt like they got their stuff in. No one was forgettable.

-Ishii and suzuki have some AMAZING strike exchanges and some really intense shouting matches. It kinda feels like they are building to an eventual singles match between the two which will be AMAZING. I think Suzuki plays perfectly into Ishii's underdog strengths. Ishii's 'big moment' in this match is also probably my favorite part.

-Taichi and taka's shit is just awesome. I love Time Splitter but when its time for new Jr. Tag champions, it needs to be these two clowns.

-Taichi used a Gedo clutch in the match just to piss off Gedo, which was awesome

-Taichi SOMEHOW does his pants removal spot THROUGH his knee brace

-Are we understanding how fun Taichi is, here?

-allright Okada..............lets talk here. You are on top of the world right now. Almost everything you do in the ring turns to gold. You are my favorite wrestler in the world. 

But Bro.....you should be embarrassed with how bad the setup for Red Mist is. Its just laughably sloppy and stupid now. I really think I've only seen you do it without messing up like, twice. And this.....this was hands down the worst execution of the move so far, and that says a lot. Just cross the guys leg and step forward: stop this backstep spin bullshit you keep trying. Its not working. 

-Finishing stretch could be considered anticlimactic, and that with the red Mist brings this down, but man this match is just crazy amounts of fun. Its a nice, long, enjoyable match. Everyone needs to see this.


----------



## Mattyb2266

Shane Hollister vs. Jimmy Jacobs - ****1/4

Never paid much attention to Hollister until he was announced for Best of the Best, then I checked out a few of his AAW matches, all of which are very promising, with this match being his best yet. (That I've seen)


----------



## seabs

*I've got an awesome run of New Japan shows lined up to catch up on a couple of weeks :mark:

People should make time to see Cesaro/Neville from NXT. Quality quality match. They work like a Cesaro/PAC match on the Indies and end before it turns into an Indy match. Plenty of the spots you'd want from these 2. Finish is great with Cesaro making himself an opening and being clinical enough to capitalise on it for the win. Perfect finish actually. Main roster champ comes to developmental, takes a ton of offence from developmental guy but finds a way somehow to get out. Makes the developmental guy look so legit and it doesn't hurt Cesaro to give up as much as he did in this context. Not on the level of Regal/Ohno but it's a super sprint with these two doing exactly what you want them to do.*


----------



## Nervosa

You're gonna love the Elimination match, Seabs. Prepare to fall in love with Ishii again, and to fall in love with Shelton for the first time.


----------



## Jumbo

MOTY so far for me is Nakamura/Sakuraba which I rate as 4 1/4 stars (I may bump it up to 1/2 on further analysis). I can't think of anything that matches it, perhaps maybe Ishii/Goto and Ishii/Tanako. Haven't watched much Lucha in 2013, but then again I've been told there's nothing of note so far.


----------



## Obfuscation

Seabs said:


> *I've got an awesome run of New Japan shows lined up to catch up on a couple of weeks :mark:
> 
> People should make time to see Cesaro/Neville from NXT. Quality quality match. They work like a Cesaro/PAC match on the Indies and end before it turns into an Indy match. Plenty of the spots you'd want from these 2. Finish is great with Cesaro making himself an opening and being clinical enough to capitalise on it for the win. Perfect finish actually. Main roster champ comes to developmental, takes a ton of offence from developmental guy but finds a way somehow to get out. Makes the developmental guy look so legit and it doesn't hurt Cesaro to give up as much as he did in this context. Not on the level of Regal/Ohno but it's a super sprint with these two doing exactly what you want them to do.*


Invasion Attack :mark:

Plan on watching Cesaro vs Neville today. If I get a callback to one of their matches from the indies I'll go ape.



Jumbo said:


> MOTY so far for me is Nakamura/Sakuraba which I rate as 4 1/4 stars (I may bump it up to 1/2 on further analysis). I can't think of anything that matches it, perhaps maybe Ishii/Goto and Ishii/Tanako. Haven't watched much Lucha in 2013, but then again I've been told there's nothing of note so far.


That was my pick for number one until something finally gave it a run for its money in Tanahashi/Okada. Two completely different types of singles encounters though. Can say love differs on which style worked you dug more. Both are the two best of the year, imo. Without a doubt. Regal vs Ohno & Undertaker vs Punk aren't far behind in their own right.


----------



## dk4life

Jumbo said:


> MOTY so far for me is Nakamura/Sakuraba which I rate as 4 1/4 stars (I may bump it up to 1/2 on further analysis). I can't think of anything that matches it, perhaps maybe Ishii/Goto and Ishii/Tanako. Haven't watched much Lucha in 2013, but then again I've been told there's nothing of note so far.


This is my current MOTY aswell, loved this match, but going over some of Punks work, have Cena vs Punk as number 2, and Punk vs taker as number 3, I have a lot more New japan to watch thou, really starting to get into Puro this year


----------



## Jumbo

HayleySabin said:


> Invasion Attack :mark:
> 
> Plan on watching Cesaro vs Neville today. If I get a callback to one of their matches from the indies I'll go ape.
> 
> 
> 
> That was my pick for number one until something finally gave it a run for its money in Tanahashi/Okada. Two completely different types of singles encounters though. Can say love differs on which style worked you dug more. Both are the two best of the year, imo. Without a doubt. Regal vs Ohno & Undertaker vs Punk aren't far behind in their own right.


Never really cared for either Tanahashi nor Okada, and certainly not when they're working together. Their 4 series of match are good at best with some outings being painfully average, the Invasion Attack match is probably their best (but I'd only give it ***1/2 at the most).
Ohno/Regal was also good, but I felt they were massively constrained by the WWE style, however, Regal did very good in proving some brutality in such a restricting environment. My only problem with it was that there wasn't a lot of participation with Ohno, it just felt like Regal was purely the one guiding the match.


----------



## Last Chancery

Grudge Match: Sami Callihan vs. Shane Hollister (with Markus Crane and Scarlett)
AAW Point of No Return
Rating: ****3/4

This one blew my mind out of my skull when I caught it live two weeks ago and it did the same on DVD just now. Everything in this one is crisp as it could be, which you would expect from a guy about to head to WWE and someone considered by many AAW's next Heavyweight Champ. You could feel the hatred, the heat, the, shit, I don't know, but these two have put on one of the best blowoffs to a lengthy feud I've seen in some time. The feud wasn't too good but it ultimately elevated Hollister back into one-on-one title contention. He had a shot last December against Elgin and Sami but no person to person shots in a while.

Hot crowd, very stiff, unprotected strikes, bumps aplenty, and story! There's a little overbooking at the very end, in the last maybe two minutes, but it's well-placed if you've followed everything up to this point. If you do not like Sami Callihan before this match, I have a feeling you will after it. Ditto Hollister, who is just getting better and better each and every time out there.

This show, by the way, is my show of the year from any promotion. Top to bottom fantastic.


----------



## Rah

Jumbo said:


> Haven't watched much Lucha in 2013, but then again I've been told there's nothing of note so far.


Whoever told you that really isn't investing their time into Lucha.


----------



## Jumbo

Rah said:


> Whoever told you that really isn't investing their time into Lucha.


Really? What matches would you recommend?


----------



## flag sabbath

The Chaos vs. Suzuki-gun 8-man from Road to Dontaku did a great job of setting up the ppv title matches without giving too much away. Like Nervosa mentioned, Benjamin really upped his game here, and I loved Ishii's role as his team's enforcer, letting Suzuki know that Okada has some serious backup. Taka & Taichi were ace too - like a junior Yano & Iizuka. ***3/4


----------



## Rah

Jumbo said:


> Really? What matches would you recommend?


Check my sig. Might also want to add the Villano IV "retirement" match to that, too, as others seemingly liked it. The Namajague aspuestas tag is another I've yet to do a write-up for that should be worth a watch.


----------



## Groovemachine

Really enjoyed Cesaro/Neville from NXT 4/25. Cesaro using the old Castagnoli 'Heeeeeey!' gimmick was fab, and it caught on so well with the Full Sail crowd. He should totally replace the yodelling gimmick with it, I could see it being as big as the Yes chant.

Loved the pacing of the match; we saw quite a few highspots from Neville, but they were all spaced out and it felt like they built to them. Hopefully this is a blueprint for how Neville matches could look like when Pac's called up to the main roster. Finish was AWESOME, Cesaro deadlifting Neville from the turnbuckle into the Neutralizer just looked so cool.

It's a low-end MOTYC for me, but well worth checking out. And it's just another notch on the 'Cesaro vs high-flyer = greatness' bedpost.


----------



## aivaz

Rah said:


> Check my sig. Might also want to add the Villano IV "retirement" match to that, too, as others seemingly liked it.


Have Youy watched it?


----------



## Rah

I watched it, wasn't a personal fan of it but I've seen people praise it enough to consider I'm just being a numpty.


----------



## Nervosa

I honestly don't hate the move itself. Its a little boring, and I think all three DID variations are more believable 'finisher' submissions, but Red Ink is fine in itself.

My only objection is how he insists on setting it up. There are like 3 ways I can think of that would be easier to set up that move than how he chooses every single time. They aren't as flashy as his way, but at least it would keep him from butchering it every single time.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah it's the set up that's ridiculous. If the move gets over as a finisher I'm absolutely fine with the move itself, he needs to just stop pissing around with that set up. It's super pretentious and I usually like Okada's flashy set ups and submissions because they fit his style and character. He uses about three submissions that look just as good and the set ups are far better too.


----------



## Nervosa

I just rewatched Smith Jr. vs. Nakamura, and I am bumping it up to ****1/2. The crowd is just molten for it, especially at the end, and Smith's heel stuff just makes Nakamura's comebacks even more amazing. I like Okada/Tanahashi much more, but if I'm honest, I think the crowd was way more into this match's finishing stretch.


----------



## rafz

A little bit late, but here's my last views of PW this year:

NJPW Invasion Attack 07/04
_Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada_
Fantastic, first match that I gave 5* since Taker/HBK II in 2010.
*******


WWE Wrestlemania XXIX
_CM Punk vs. The Undertaker_
Awesome match, much better than the last two Taker's match in WM. Also, great year so far by Punk, btw.
*****1/2*


----------



## FITZ

$5 Wrestling: Straight Out of Compton 
_
Falls Count Anywhere Street Fight:_
*Big Donnie vs. "Mr. 1859" Cliff Compton*

This was amazing. There was some serious heat between these two. Cliff starts the match out by just straight up bitch slapping Big Donnie as hard as he could. In fact the opening portion of this match was just Compton just beating the shit out of Burke County's own Big Donnie. Seriously he just beat the shit out of him for about 4 minutes. He whipped him with his belt, kicked him in the gunt (figure out what that means) insanely hard, and just did his best to kill him. 

However one wrong move from Compton sent him flying into the wall, which someone cut open his head. And he bled buckets. Seriously he was wearing the Crimson Mask and he was at the mercy of Big Donnie. Donnie had some issues reentering the ring, they really need to raise that bottom rope, but once he got back into the ring we saw one of the most magical comebacks in wrestling history. Compton was trapped in a Bear Hug so he took out a pair of brass knucks and legit punched Donnie in the face with them. Then he went back to the gunt shots. However the proved to have no effect on the Burke County Behemoth. He got pissed and flipped Compton off in the ring.

What followed is a moment that I will never forget. The crowd was hushed as they realized their hero was outmatched. However Compton still had something up his sleeves. He took a step back and hit one of the most amazing moves I've ever seen. He did a Karate Kid style Crane Kick to the gunt of Big Donnie. The magic doesn't end there though. Compton wasn't finished just yet. He regained his composure and delivered an awe inspiring chokeslam to Big Donnie. The crowd erupted as Cliff Compton was victorious in the fight of his life.

I don't see how anything this year will top this match. It had everything. Compton is a mad man and he nearly sacrificed his life to get the win. Big Donnie is one of the best monster heels I've ever seen. Everything clicked and they delivered a match that was truly a classic.
*****3/4*


----------



## Lane

If you thought Donnie vs Compton was magic wait until you see $5 Live 4 with Freight Train vs the mystery guy


----------



## FITZ

Lane said:


> If you thought Donnie vs Compton was magic wait until you see $5 Live 4 with Freight Train vs the mystery guy


I was there for it. Aside from Ziggler winning the title I marked out more for that match than just about anything that weekend.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

My current MOTYCs

Okada vs. Tanahashi - ****3/4
Undertaker vs. Punk - ****1/4
Nakamura vs. Smith Jr - ****1/4
Cena vs. Punk - ****
Nakamura vs. Sakuraba - ****


----------



## DOPA

*CHAOS vs Suzuki-Gun (NJPW 4/21): *****

Another stellar CHAOS/Suzuki-Gun match. If you loved the previous ones then you have no reason not to check this one out too.


----------



## Chismo

Fucking hell, I'm 3 TV shows behind on New Japan. I have two Road to Dontaku shows downloaded, but I just can't find the proper Invasion Attack version. The one from XWT is 10GB big (good luck with that), and the other one from YouTube is heavily flawed in terms of pic and sound especially.


----------



## flag sabbath

I downloaded Invasion Attack matches from dailymotion (either from Jahmale Hepburn or Senor Lariato) using keepvid.com & quality was fine.


----------



## Chismo

Well, the match-by-match system is my last resort, and I was trying to avoid it, but fuck, whatcha gonna do...


----------



## seabs

*IVP has the PPV version up for download. I'm pretty certain there was a smaller version uploaded to XWT too after the 10GB upload.*


----------



## Obfuscation

I had to resort to dailymotion to watch Invasion Attack too. It wasn't bad as far as spoilers went.

How many TV shows/events has there been since Invasion Attack? I have the first one downloaded, but checking sites with all of their shows they seemed to have pumped out like 5-6 more since then. Dunno which ones were actually shown 8*D


----------



## bigbuxxx

4/20 and 4/21 were the only taped ones. 4/20 isn't out yet.


----------



## Obfuscation

(Y)


----------



## flag sabbath

bigbuxxx said:


> 4/20 and 4/21 were the only taped ones. 4/20 isn't out yet.


Erm, yes it is - it's been on XWT & dailymotion for over a week.


----------



## Obfuscation

Just realized 4/20 is the show I've had downloaded for like a week 8*D

So maybe he meant 4/21?


----------



## flag sabbath

Nope, that's up too - it's the one with the 8-man Elimination.

Also wtf happened to Joe Rulz? We need that guy up in here.


----------



## Obfuscation

Only two shows behind then. Glad I got that cleared up.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Ito, Miyamoto & Kodaka vs. Ishikawa, Sasaki & WX (Lighttubes & shit, BJW 8/2):*

Joe Rulz pimped this in the Puro thread & rightly so - by deathmatch standards, it's gold. Kodaka is the star of the horror show, taking some unholy abuse & sporting the old crimson backpack, before wigging out & using a spanner to hammer thumbtacks into Sasaki's skull. There are no dull moments & some great near-falls punctuate the carnage. ****3/4*


*Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW 21/4):*

Much like Kai's Champion Carnival outing with Funaki, Akiyama is in the driver's seat here dominating proceedings, with Kai giving everything he's got to try to engineer the upset. The final few minutes are really dramatic & had me rooting for Kai to get the 'W'. ******


----------



## Rah

flag sabbath said:


> Also wtf happened to Joe Rulz? We need that guy up in here.


This.

Any idea why he got humbled?


----------



## seabs

*For breaking the rules. Duh! He'll be back.*


----------



## VINT

*NXT 05-01-13 - Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho*

Not really sure If this match is MOTYC worthy, I may be biased a bit since I'm both a Wyatt mark and a Y2J mark, but anyways.

The match was very neat and nicely done. Wyatt cut a very good promo before the beginning of the match which gave it somewhat of a story behind the match even though It was just put together randomly. Great, great match. Must watch.


----------



## Rah

flag sabbath said:


> *Ito, Miyamoto & Kodaka vs. Ishikawa, Sasaki & WX (Lighttubes & shit, BJW 8/2):*
> 
> Joe Rulz pimped this in the Puro thread & rightly so - by deathmatch standards, it's gold. Kodaka is the star of the horror show, taking some unholy abuse & sporting the old crimson backpack, before wigging out & using a spanner to hammer thumbtacks into Sasaki's skull. There are no dull moments & some great near-falls punctuate the carnage. ****3/4*
> 
> 
> *Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW 21/4):*
> 
> Much like Kai's Champion Carnival outing with Funaki, Akiyama is in the driver's seat here dominating proceedings, with Kai giving everything he's got to try to engineer the upset. The final few minutes are really dramatic & had me rooting for Kai to get the 'W'. ******


Weirdly, I wasn't at all a fan of the Sasaki/Kodaka segment. I won't deny it's brutality, but it made little sense to me psychology-wise. If your partner is being brutalised to such an extent, surely a run-in is not only called for but logically required? Throw in how co-operative that stuff was and I'm not buying it as a MotYC. Fine match, regardless.

Akiyama/KAI was good, however.


----------



## Caponex75

*WWE - Kofi Kingston vs. Antonio Cesaro for the United States Championship*

Somewhere around 4 stars. Awesome and I mean awesome match. Cesaro looked like a total badass with that hat and sunglasses.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Caponex75 said:


> *WWE - Kofi Kingston vs. Antonio Cesaro for the United States Championship*
> 
> Somewhere around 4 stars. Awesome and I mean awesome match. Cesaro looked like a total badass with that hat and sunglasses.


Ah. It was pretty good thanks to Cesaro but the match felt like a 16 minutes of squash. I don't like Cesaro new look, he looks dumb in my opinion.


----------



## Caponex75

You talking about the Beret and the badass sunglasses? I disagree. I think he would come across as a big deal if he came out like that more often.


----------



## Rickey

Yeah Kofi vs. Cesaro was good man. Another good Cesaro match this week was against Del Rio on Raw. Similarly Kofi had a good one on Raw with Ziggler.

Kofi vs. Cesaro!


----------



## EmbassyForever

Rewatched the match now, yeah it's better than the first time, Cesaro was brillant and while the match still felt too one-sided for me and I wasn't a fan of the finish it's still obviously very good. ***1/2.


----------



## Rah

*Antonio Cesaro Vs Kofi Kingston (WWE 01/05/2013)*
★★★★
_What a carry job by Cesaro. Once again this was a match where Cesaro shows off why he is simply the greatest wrestler in WWE, making yet another poor performing opponent come across as competent. 

They plugged Cesaro huge here, and certainly allowed for him to get himself over in a big way. Whether it'll work or not, remains to be seen but I'm sure there will not be a single person not impressed by what he brought here. His strength is second-to-none, perhaps. The focus on Kofi's knee was really well done (even if Kofi would be very flippant in his selling) and it allowed for Cesaro to believably remain in control throughout without weakening Kofi's credibility. I thought the finish was a bit iffy, admittedly I'm not a fan of Kofi picking up the win, but it's more personal preference than an objective fault.

Fifth greatest match so far from the WWE collective, and its fifth MotYC. Jaw-dropping when you realise this is on a "throw-away" C-show._​


Caponex75 said:


> You talking about the Beret and the badass sunglasses? I disagree. I think he would come across as a big deal if he came out like that more often.


Agreed, his promo before the match and the new look certainly solidified him as a man not to be messed with.


----------



## Saint Dick

Surprised some of you guys liked Kofi/Cesaro so much. I thought it was a good showcase for Cesaro who put in a great individual performance but Kofi offered absolutely nothing and kept it from being anything more than good. I'll probably give it another watch and see what I think.


----------



## Lane

DreamWave Anniversary IV
Tables, Ladders & Chairs: Marshe Rockett vs. Prince Mustafa Ali
******

This match was crazy. Not a lot more to be said than two young dudes going balls out to finish off a feud. At one point they set a table up in the middle of the ring, Ali hopped over Rockett and onto the table, jumped off the table, hit the ropes, did a handstand flip off the table, caught Rockett in a rana and sent him headfirst into a chair wedged between the ropes. Another spot was Ali hitting a swanton off a huge ladder onto Rockett who was laid out on a table on the outside. Lots of sick ladder bumps and chair spots aswell. Check it out.


----------



## Obfuscation

I wouldn't go more than **** snowflakes on the Cesaro vs Kofi match, tbhayley. Cesaro was the man, but I can't get into a match when it's nothing more than a impressive squash match for Cesaro & Kofi added zilch to his role. Not only from an offensive portion, but also from being an effective babyface. He wasn't one. Didn't help it was one of his poorest performances than usual.


----------



## Rah

Two is vastly under-rating it, even for what you're criticising, imo.

Kofi was poor, sure, but Cesaro was grand in this and his leg-work was stellar. Lived up to his role, covered Kofi's botches and kept things tidy. I could understand not loving it but below average it wasn't.


----------



## djmathers1207

Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback *** 3/4

Ryback's best match since coming to WWE


----------



## Zatiel

Cesaro/Kingston was a blast. One of Cesaro's best performances since coming to WWE, seemed like a total threat to anyone. And I thought Kingston was fine, bumping well for all the spots. Hoping Cesaro goes far.


----------



## EmbassyForever

djmathers1207 said:


> Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback *** 3/4
> 
> Ryback's best match since coming to WWE


Just watched it, great match, ***1/2. Best Bryan's performance in a long ti and best Ryback's match yet.


----------



## Saint Dick

Bryan/Ryback > Kofi/Cesaro. Comfortably.


----------



## Rickey

Thought it was good yeah, think I liked Kofi vs. Cesaro more though.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Excited for Bryan/Ryback if it's getting that much praise.


----------



## xdoomsayerx

Seriously Bryan/ryback wasn't THAT special. A decent tv match. **3/4


----------



## Caponex75

Cesaro vs. Kingston was far better. Bryan/Ryback would be my definition of a carry job.


----------



## Saint Dick

Caponex75 said:


> Cesaro vs. Kingston was far better. Bryan/Ryback would be my definition of a carry job.


Wait what? Bryan/Ryback is a carry job but Cesaro/Kingston isn't?


----------



## Nervosa

Both matches are carry jobs. Bryan gets bonus points for having a more useless opponent.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

Wrestling Dontaku... Wasn't exactly awesome. Even Nakamura vs Benjamin had a few stuff that messed it up.

If any of the matches are MOTYCs, the only clear one is Okada vs Suzuki, as expected. The questionables are Tana/Anderson (the match was fine, but I've seen better from them), and Goto/Shibata (the ending was iffy).

The only must see match IMO, was Okada vs Suzuki though.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Two is vastly under-rating it, even for what you're criticising, imo.
> 
> Kofi was poor, sure, but Cesaro was grand in this and his leg-work was stellar. Lived up to his role, covered Kofi's botches and kept things tidy. I could understand not loving it but below average it wasn't.


Re-watched it. Upped my thoughts on it thanks to Cesaro's obvious continuously brilliance. Still wouldn't call it great as a whole; _(Cesaro's work certainly was, I did notice your point of how when Kofi botched, Cesaro was there to sort of turn it around to his advantage. Which contained the match of quality means.)_ I'll say it was good. If only Kofi added SOMETHING to this - I would have loved it. That's asking for too much with that pile of crap, tbf. Cesaro with perhaps the most impressive carry job I've seen since Bret Hart vs Davey Smith from SummerSlam '92.

Yet, I call that match great. Weird? I guess. Point being: a great carry job is a great carry job not matter which way you slice it.


----------



## Yeah1993

I thought Kofi's botches kind of added a little. I really liked how he slipped up a couple of times because the theme of the match was his wheel had been damaged. I'd be surprised if he did that on purpose, but yeah, he failed to jump on the rope properly because Cesaro was roughing up his leg. 

Depends on which botches, I guess. Which ones were the worst? I don't remember any really REALLLY bad ones but could be forgetting.


----------



## Rah

That is a good point. The final Trouble in Paradise was a bit iffy but considering the damage on his knee it felt justifiable.


----------



## Yeah1993

I didn't notice anything about the final hit, but maybe it was the camera angle which can kind hide Kofi's Kofiness every now and then. Cesaro also sells that move like a friggin' champ; not many wrestlers make being knocked out on their feet look good and realistic.


----------



## Obfuscation

Except for Miz; when it actually happens.


----------



## Saint Dick

I want to watch it again. I thought it was good to begin with, but nowhere near the praise it's been getting. I don't know, I felt like it lacked any real structure or flow. Kofi was pretty useless playing face in peril and none of his comebacks were built to or timed particularly well. At least that's what I got from it on the first watch. Cesaro was all kinds of awesome but on the whole I liked Bryan/Ryback a bunch more.


----------



## Obfuscation

We're in the same boat, Ownage. It's all about the Cesaro show for me. I won't go any higher than that. Isn't a MOTYC in the slightest for me.

I really got to get Smackdown right now to see Danielson vs Ryback. Need to formulate my top ten from WWE atm too for some fun.


----------



## THECHAMPION

I always get so disappointed when I see people raving about a Kingston/Cesaro match.

Because for a second in my head I always think they mean Eddie.


----------



## Goku

Hiroshi Tanahashi vss Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack): ******

Pretty amazing match. I dug the 'cartoony' selling tbh and Okada never really had a point where he flat out refused to sell Tanahashi's offence. I could say _stuff_ about this match, but reading back, most of everything's been covered already.

Tied for MOTY with Punk/Taker, although this is probably slightly better.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

Hopefully this doesn't need spoiler tags since I'm just throwing out ratings?

Random matches from the weekend ...

Okada vs. Suzuki (DONTAKU 13) ***3/4
Young bucks vs. DoJo bros (ASW Night 2) ****
Unbreakable F'n Steen Machines vs. Inner City Machine Guns and AR Fox (ASW Night 2) ***1/2
Eddie Edwards vs. Ishimori Taiji (border Wars 2013) ****


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah, Danielson vs Ryback needs a plug in here from myself.

That. Was. Awesome.

Great match. I prefer it heads and shoulders over Cesaro vs Kofi.


----------



## Goku

Cesaro/Kofi was weak as anything. Surprising seeing so much praise.


----------



## Obfuscation

Same. I'm not exactly on board myself pardon the putting over of Cesaro. It can only go so far.


----------



## DOPA

*Johnny Gargano & Chuck Taylor vs. The Young Bucks (PWG 22/3): *****

*AR Fox & Samuray Del Sol vs.The Inner City Machine Guns (PWG 22/3): ****1/4*

Fantastic tag matches on PWG's ASW 9.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

PWG All Star Weekend 9 

AR Fox and Samurai Del Sol vs. Inner City Machine Guns - **** (Match of the Weekend)
Unbreakable Fucking Steen Machines vs. Fox/Richchet/Swann - ****


----------



## Goku

Any recommendations on other NJPW stuff I should check out? Genuine MOTYC only plz.


----------



## flag sabbath

Just updated my motyc list - there are 14 New Japan matches in there, several of which have been rated higher by other posters. There are also a few 'glaring omissions' according to popular opinion: http://www.wrestlingforum.com/14713121-post599.html


----------



## Obfuscation

Hohenheim of Light said:


> Any recommendations on other NJPW stuff I should check out? Genuine MOTYC only plz.





Spoiler: My NJPW 2013 MOTYC



IWGP Tag Team Championship
1) Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr.(c) vs Karl Anderson & Hirooki Goto - ***1/2 ( Wrestle Kingdom VII - 1/4)

2) Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - ****1/4 (Wrestle Kingdom VII - 1/4)

3) IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship - Three Way Match
Prince Devitt(c) vs Low Ki vs Kota Ibushi - **** (Wrestle Kingdom VII - 1/4)

4) Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata - **** (Wrestle Kingdom VII - 1/4)

5) IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs Kazushi Sakuraba - ****1/2 (Wrestle Kingdom VII - 1/4)

6) IWGP World Championship
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs Kazuchika Okada - ***1/2 (Wrestle Kingdom VII - 1/4)

7) Mascara Dorada & Diamante vs OKUMURA & Mephisto - ***1/2 (Fantastica Mania Night Two - 1/19)

8) IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs La Sombra - ***3/4 (Fantastica Mania Night Two - 1/19)

9) Cibernetico Match
Jushin Liger, Tiger Mask IV, BUSHI, Mascara Dorada, Diamante, & Titan vs Tomohiro Ishii, Jado, Gedo, YOSHI-HASHI, OKAMURA, & Misterioso Jr - ***1/2 (Fantastica Mania Night Three - 1/20

10) Shinsuke Nakamura, Kazuchika Okada, & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Kengo Mashimo, & Hiro Tonai - ***3/4 (Road To The New Beginning 2/3)

11) NEVER Openweight Championship
Masato Tanaka(c) vs Tomohiro Ishii - ***1/2 ( Road To The New Beginning 2/3)

12) IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship
Alex Shelley & KUSHIDA(c) vs Rocky Romero & Alex Koslov - ***1/2 (The New Beginning 2013 - 2/10)

13) Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kengo Mashimo - ***1/2 (The New Beginning 2013 - 2/10)

14) Minoru Suzuki vs Kazuchika Okada - **** (The New Beginning 2013 - 2/10)

15) IWGP World Championship
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs Karl Anderson - ****1/4 (The New Beginning 2013 - 2/10)

16) Elimination Match
Kazuchika Okada, Tomohiro Ishii, Jado, & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Davey-Boy Smith Jr, Taka Michinoku, & Kengo Mashimo - **** (41st Anniversary Show - 3/3)

17) IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs Lance Archer - ***1/2 (41st Anniversary Show - 3/3)

18) Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Prince Devitt - **** (41st Anniversary Show - 3/3)

19) New Japan Cup First Round Match
Tomohiro Ishii vs Satoshi Kojima - ***1/2 (New Japan Cup 2013 Night One - 3/11)

20) New Japan Cup First Round Match
Minoru Suzuki vs Yuji Nagata - ***3/4 (New Japan Cup 2013 Night One - 3/11)

21) New Japan Cup First Round Match
Kazuchika Okada vs Lance Archer - **** (New Japan Cup 2013 Night One - 3/11)

22) New Japan Cup First Round Match
Davey-Boy Smith Jr vs Shinsuke Nakamura - ***1/2 (New Japan Cup 2013 Night One - 3/11)

23) New Japan Cup Second Round Match
Hirooki Goto vs Tomohiro Ishii - ****1/4 (New Japan Cup 2013 Night Two - 3/17)

24) Katsuyori Shibata & Kazushi Sakuraba vs Yuji Nagata & Manabu Nakanishi - **** (New Japan Cup Night Two - 3/17)

25) New Japan Cup Semi-Finals Match
Kazuchika Okada vs Toru Yano - ***3/4 (New Japan Cup 2013 Finals - 3/23)

26) Shinsuke Nakamura, Tomohiro Ishii, & Gedo vs Minoru Suzuki, Lance Archer, & Taka Michinoku - ***1/2 (New Japan Cup 2013 Finals - 3/23)

27) Karl Anderson, Prince Devitt, Ryusuke Taguchi, & Tama Tonga vs Hiroshi Tanahashi, Alex Shelley, KUSHIDA, & Captain New Japan - ***1/2 (New Japan Cup 2013 Finals - 3/23)

28) IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship
Prince Devitt(c) vs Alex Shelley - **** (Road To Invasion Attack - 4/5)

29) IWGP Tag Team Championship
Lance Archer & Davey-Boy Smith Jr vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii - ****1/4 (Road To Invasion Attack - 4/5)

30) Masato Tanaka & Yujiro Takahashi vs Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma - ***3/4 (Invasion Attack - 4/7)

31) Minoru Suzuki vs Toru Yano - ***3/4 (Invasion Attack - 4/7)

32) Yuji Nagata & Hirooki Goto vs Katsuyori Shibata & Kazushi Sakuraba - ***1/2 (Invasion Attack - 4/7)

33) IWGP Intercontinental Championship
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) vs Davey-Boy Smith Jr - **** (Invasion Attack - 4/7)

34) IWGP World Championship
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) vs Kazuchika Okada - ***** (Invasion Attack - 4/7)



Filling the cut off from ***1/2 - ***** level. Pick and choose which you feel like you want to check out. If not all.


----------



## Rah

Calling Cesaro/Kofi "weak" is unnecessary hyperbole.

_____
Anyway, from PWG's All Star Weekend:

*Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox Vs The Inner-City Machine Guns*
★★★★


Spoiler: review



_Hey, Octagon Jr., Titan wants his handstand sequence back!

Samuray is easily the best thing in this match, but in saying that its saying he's easily one of the best high-fliers in the entire world because no one else in this is a slouch, either. Fox had a showing match in a trios tag with Willie Mack down in AAA last month which he can tie with this as good performances from the current year into his resume while the Inner-City Machine Guns maintain their level of awesomeness. Richochet's leaping ability is something that needs to be seen to be believed. Holy fuck, this was awesome._



*Sami Callihan Vs Drake Younger*
★★★★ 1/4


Spoiler: review



_Easily match of the entire weekend. Simply a phenomenal deathmatch that blows the others I've seen from 2013 clear out of the water.

For a good portion of thi Callihan had Younger's number. Just toying with him as he beats the smaller guy down. Callihan hasn't technically lost to Younger, and he wasn't going to let Younger off easily here, noting the anger over the outcome of their last match. Younger took Sami's brutality, however, and threw in his own offence, relying on his body's resistance thanks to his run-ins with the likes of Kasai and Masada (as Steen alluded to) in finally being able to pick up the deserved win over his PWG rival.

People will probably hate on the violence they brought here but, quite honestly, it never went into overkill at all and could be labelled rather tame as compared to what you'd expect from CZW or BJW. It's a guerrilla warfare match, after all; thumbtacks, chairs and weapon-spots are to be expected as staples, by now._


----------



## Groovemachine

Paul London vs Davey Richards - ROH Border Wars - ***3/4

COCKY HEEL DAVEY FTW!! He's so much more tolerable when he tones down all the intensity bullshit and he seems a lot more comfortable in the douchebag asshole role. A lot more grounded than I expected, and that's a good thing. They wrestled a smart, mat-based opening before kicking it into a higher gear. The little smattering of no-selling with the superkicks/dragon suplex was a tad annoying but apart from that they did very little wrong. Botched double stomp was sick and I felt really added to the climax of the match. London climbing to the top rope for the London Calling while having a visible (?) concussion made me cringe and really hooked me in to the closing moments. More London in ROH please, and more heel Davey, kthxbye.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*PWG ASW:*
Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox Vs The Inner-City Machine Guns - ****

*ROH Border Wars 2013:*
Eddie Edwards vs Taiji Ishimori - ****
Davey Richards vs Paul London - **** (I know I'm overrating this but this match was awesome, Davey was the heel so you know that he was great and London's fighting spirit totally had me hooked, can't wait to London's return)


----------



## flag sabbath

But did Davey actually _wrestle_ like a heel? He played the dick heel against Elgin in AAW, but still did a bunch of mega-face comebacks.


----------



## EmbassyForever

flag sabbath said:


> But did Davey actually _wrestle_ like a heel? He played the dick heel against Elgin in AAW, but still did a bunch of mega-face comebacks.


Yes


----------



## flag sabbath

Cool, thanks - I'll give that a look.


----------



## Bubz

Intrigued by heel Davey, since that's what got me to like him back in 2009. definitely going to check out Eddie/Ishimori too because I find Eddie to be extremely likeable even if I'm not fond of his in-ring stuff most of the time. If an Eddie match gets pimped I'm more likely to want to see it than a Davey match, unless it's like this instance where Davey being a heel sounds promising especially against London who can play an ace babyface.

I'm going into PWG's show with lower expectations than normal, and especially low expectations for Callihan/Younger. Looking forward to seeing Gargano and Del Sol because I've heard a lot of good about them but don't watch DGUSA.


----------



## BKKsoulcity

Anyone who watched the Steen/Davey shoot understood why Davey was doing what he was doing in Toronto ..


----------



## Obfuscation

Davey vs London was good. Nothing MOTYC level but good. Davey was VERY toned down so that made things about 100x better than usual. London was the man. I enjoyed it. Eddie vs Ishimori was really good. As was Cole vs Briscoe. Both of those reached ****1/2* for me so they deserve a bit of a plug in here for making that cut-off.

Watched about half of All Star Weekend 9 Night One. Yeah, I'm not very keen on Inner City Machine Guns vs Del Sol & Fox at all. About five minutes in I was sick of all the god damn flips, tbhayley. Ricochet is amazing though. But sheesh. It was more over-saturated than Young Bucks and their superkicks. Still, fuck flips; give me kicks.


----------



## Rah

Flips are their offense, though. It isn't exactly move-spam when they know their punches/kicks aren't as effective as dropping their body off of things onto their opponents. Meh, passable.


----------



## Obfuscation

Doesn't matter. I didn't care much for it. Don't care to watch the match ever again.


----------



## Rah

I guess you'll hate the Young Bucks tag that's lined up at the next PWG event, too, then. </3


----------



## Obfuscation

Young Bucks rarely fail for me. I LOVED the match vs Gargano & Taylor.


----------



## duttanized

Young Bucks/Dojo Bros from PWG ASW 9....very enjoyable. I don't really give star ratings to matches as I don't like the system but that match was very enjoyable!


----------



## Bruce L

*CHIKARA, All the Agents and Superhuman Crew (2/9)*

• Archibald Peck vs. Mr. Touchdown (★★★★)

• Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant (★★★¾)

• Kevin Steen & the Young Bucks vs. 3.0 & Gran Akuma (★★★½)


*CHIKARA, On the Shoulder of Pallas (4/6)*

• Mike Quackenbush & Jushin "Thunder" Liger vs. Jigsaw & the Shard (★★★★¼)

• 3.0, Gran Akuma, & Marty Jannetty vs. F.I.S.T. (★★★½)


*PWG, All-Star Weekend Night 1 (3/22)*

• Ricochet & Rich Swann vs. A.R. Fox & Samuray del Sol (★★★★½)

• Future Shock vs. the Unbreakable F'n Machines (★★★½)

• Eddie Edwards vs. Jay Lethal (★★★½)


*PWG, All-Star Weekend Night 1 (3/23)*

• Kevin Steen, Michael Elgin, & Brian Cage vs. Ricochet, Rich Swann, & A.R. Fox (★★★★¼)

• The Young Bucks vs. Roderick Strong & Eddie Edwards (★★★¾)


----------



## geraldinhio

*Daniel Bryan vs Ryback Smackdown*

Nice little match right here. Bryan was fantastic in this and carried Ryback to by far and away his best match. He made Ryback look like a complete monster. The deadlift powerbomb near the finish looked brutal. Thez press transition into the half crab looked fantastic too. Would of been a tad better if Ryback sold the leg more maybe, still a really good match none the less. ****1/2-****3/4* sounds about right. 

I'll be finished exams tomorrow so ASW will be on the top of my to do list during the weekend. Hearing really mixed reviews. I know I'm gonna love Inner City Machine Guns vs Del Sol and Fox. Didn't know so many people hate Fox, I find him tolerable. Gonna watch Sami and Drake with an opened mind despite despising their previous matches. I can see my self enjoying a good old deatmatch in front of the Reseda crowd.


----------



## Rah

Fox can be good when he isn't allowed to bump like he wants to die. He was definitely a fine addition to that tag.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Loved how Taylor pointed everytime Fox landed on his neck. And it happens a lot. Too much.

But yeah I like Fox as well, he's very good at what he does but I don't found him in the same league of guys like Swann and Ricochet


----------



## geraldinhio

Usually when I see him he's in multi-man matches and tags so that's maybe why I'm saying it. I can imagine him being good in the tag on Night 2. Thinking of it I haven't seen many singles matches from Fox. Well, not that I can remember anyway. Was it Evolve he wrestled Sami in a no DQ match? Because I enjoyed the hell out of that.


----------



## EmbassyForever

geraldinhio said:


> Usually when I see him he's in multi-man matches and tags so that's maybe why I'm saying it. I can imagine him being good in the tag on Night 2. Thinking of it I haven't seen many singles matches from Fox. Well, not that I can remember anyway. Was it Evolve he wrestled Sami in a no DQ match? Because I enjoyed the hell out of that.


Well they had an "Evolution's End" match in EVOLVE but they also he had an awesome 9 brawl minutes with Calliahn in DGUSA's first iPPV of 2012. If you want to watch it - check out the whole show, it was one of the better shows from DGUSA.


----------



## flag sabbath

I love how actually ordering the ASW DVDs makes me the last one to see 'em - where's that fuckin' postie?


----------



## geraldinhio

Evolutions end is pretty much Evolves equivalent to a guerrilla warfare? Just a no DQ match to end a feud I assume? Never thought of Fox as much of a brawler. I would be probably lying if I said I'd check it out.  I've both ASW shows to watch, On The Shoulder Of Pallas, numerous pimped MOTYC. Hell, I haven't even seen Wrestlemania this year. Final year of College is balls. 

Stumbled across Liger vs Morrison the last day on youtube. Was so close to watching but then Nore Dam vs Zack Sabre JR popped up in suggestions. Dam was only 18 in the match. What a fantastic prospect and Zabre still continues to be easily one of the best workers that isn't getting showcased as much as he should be.


----------



## Groovemachine

geraldinhio said:


> Evolutions end is pretty much Evolves equivalent to a guerrilla warfare? Just a no DQ match to end a feud I assume?


Almost, but the rules are that it's only No DQ outside the ring; inside you still have all the usual restrictions of a normal match. Seemed like Gabe clutching at straws to get some sort of specialty gimmick for the company, but then again Fox/Callihan gave us some pretty cool stuff as it forced them to be a little bit more creative.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Groovemachine said:


> Almost, but the rules are that it's only No DQ outside the ring; inside you still have all the usual restrictions of a normal match. Seemed like Gabe clutching at straws to get some sort of specialty gimmick for the company, but then again Fox/Callihan gave us some pretty cool stuff as it forced them to be a little bit more creative.


LOL I didn't watched EVOLVE 12 so I had no idea the stip is so stupid. Reminds me of the legendry Reverse Battle Royal (~!) match for some reason.


----------



## Chismo

MOTYC lis updated: http://www.wrestlingforum.com/12449812-post9.html

Few copy/paste MOTYC reviews:


*PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 1*

The Inner City Machine Guns (Ricochet & Rich Swann) vs. AR Fox & Samuray Del Sol

_Chuck Taylor’s “He’s too stupid to feel pain” and Excalibur’s “I can’t do any of this shit” lines pretty much describe this match perfectly, just a ridiculously insane stuff all around, they even caught me off guard, and I watch these guys almost on a regular basis. This was mindblowing, and even if you hate what you see, I bet some part of you is perverse enough to enjoy it._

*****3/4*


*PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 1*

GUERRILLA WARFARE - *No. 1 Cont. for the PWG World Championship*: Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger

_Ladies and gentleman, PWGmaniacs, this how it feels when good old CZ-DUB visits SoCal to dance with Grim Reaper. Love him or hate him, you gotta respect Drake for being a ridiculously tough skinny crazy white trash._

******


*PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 2*

The Unbreakable Fucking Machines (Michael Elgin & Brian Cage) & Kevin Steen vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (Ricochet & Rich Swann) & AR Fox

_Honestly, I won’t even bother with reviewing this match, because it was – perfect. One of the greatest U.S. matches I’ve ever seen, and I’m not ashamed to say that._

*******


*PWG All-Star Weekend 9 – Night 2*

*PWG World Tag Team Championship*: The Young Bucks (Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson) (c) vs. The Dojo Bros (Roderick Strong & Eddie Edwards)

_Three words: 1) Nick, 2) FUCKING, 3) Jackson!_

******


*BJW 2/8/2013*

LIGHTTUBE SETSUBUN DEATHMATCH: Shuji Ishikawa, Shadow WX & Takashi Sasaki vs. Ryuji Ito, Yuko Miyamoto & Isami Kodaka

_Amazing stuff, my current DMOTY (not anymore). Kodaka took a beating, even more than usual, and that speaks volumes._

******


*BJW 3/1/2013*

RAZORBOARD & WOODEN PLANK CANVAS DEATHMATCH: Jun Kasai vs. Jaki Numazawa

_Okay, first time when I watched this, though it was really good, but now I think it’s bloody great. The match was an emotional rollercoaster, especially for us who are familiar with the history of these two. Of course, they also delivered in terms of barbarism, blood and horrific violence. Some really sick spots and bumps occurred, this was a dance of death. Jun and Jaki are the deathmatch gods, and Korakuen was red hot for them. The post-match stuff was really nice, although I have no idea what they were talking about, I only know they reformed the Junkies.  My new DMOTY, and definitely one of my favorite matches this year._
*
****1/4*​


----------



## Bruce L

EmbassyForever said:


> LOL I didn't watched EVOLVE 12 so I had no idea the stip is so stupid. Reminds me of the legendry Reverse Battle Royal (~!) match for some reason.


It's nowhere near as convoluted in execution as it sounds on paper.


----------



## Bubz

Inner City Machine Guns vs Fox & Del Sol from PWG ASW 9 Night 1 I thought was very fun. The opening sequence was ridiculous but man it looked cool, I'm not going to lie. Not seen anything like that before. A match to sit back and marvel at the athleticism of all four guys rather than look for any kind of deep storytelling, although I absolutely didn't think this was a spotfest. Just four super high flyers going at it the best way they know how. I want more form my wrestling than this usually, and I don't think it's a proper MOTYC, but I'd say everyone should at least see it and see what they think. Ricochet is amazing btw. Can't stress that enough. He had some great little cocky mannerisms and spots where he just looked like a dick that were awesome. He just gets how to add some character to all the spectacular shit he does. Swann is also great. First time seeing the other two and didn't think much of either but all four had some super slick sequences throughout. That thing Ricochet does where he jumps literally half way across the ring and hits a dropkick in the corner is fucking insanity.


----------



## Obfuscation

Ricochet is reaching god like status in my book. He was the only captivating portion of the match for me. I dig Swann a lot too. Thought he didn't get to shine as much as I would have liked. As long as he continues to return - I'll be more than thrilled.


----------



## flag sabbath

Spoiler: Champion Carnival semi-finalists



*Go Shiozaki vs. Kai (AJPW, 29/4):* These two have been the stars of the series, Shiozaki as the dominant force & Kai as the resilient underdog - and those are the roles they play to perfection here. Shiozaki pulverises Kai for the first 10 minutes until Kai fashions a desperation opening & gets medieval on Go's damaged neck. With a red-hot finish that could go either way, this is the best match of the Carnival so far. ******

The other semi between Akiyama and Sanada follows a similar formula, but with slightly less success because, well, Sanada is just flat out boring. Maybe ***1/2


----------



## Rah

*Namajague Vs Rey Cometa (Aspuestas - CMLL 26/04)* 
★★★★
_Namajague's split-legged powerbomb and spear are amazing visuals. Namajague really gets "it" in terms of what a wrestler should be, as he's putting on an amazing run all of a sudden. Everything here clicked, with the selling from both men being good to great, and each fall felt worthwhile. Namajague might have now lost both his mask and hair in quick succession, but his stock has only but gone up.
_


*Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. Vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (Aspuestas - CMLL 15/03) *
★★★★ 1/4
_Namajague stiff kicking Stuka's head, nonchalantly, in breaking the pin is probably the best metaphor to use in how Namajague's taken to my best worker list. The inner story of Stuka always being there for Rey only for Rey to attempt to be too flashy in his offence leading to many backfires throughout the match was nifty. Really nice visual as Stuka screams for Rey not to try finish the match with a 450 only for Rey to actually make it work. The misses really helped build that final move, however, and the crowd really ate the final pinfall up. Phenomenal match that is easily one of the better lucha matches this year. Watch this, please?_​


----------



## Concrete

*Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. Vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (Aspuestas - CMLL 15/03)*****
-This is finally getting some love. YAY! I really enjoyed this match. Not sure why I have never seen Namajague before this match but I felt like I had committed a cardinal sin after watching this match. Supa Bumpa. 

Still need to see the Aspuestas match that you also reviewed. It is on my watch list on YouTube. So much is on my watch list for YouTube like the trios match with Namajague the week after I think with Virus and Valiente. That sounds so friggin' sweet. Plus I've gotta watch Kasai vs. Numazawa now. I will never truly be caught up. Have ASW9 sitting by me and only have gotten through 3 damn matches DKBSDKG. I hate school right now more than ever. So much damn wrestling.


----------



## Rah

I typed a line on that trio match (I do believe it's the same one) in the Lucha thread. Quite good in parts but it started getting too silly (hint of no-selling, too, perhaps).


----------



## flag sabbath

*Koji Kanemoto, Minoru Tanaka & Hiroshi Yamato vs. Kotaro Suzuki, Atsushi Aoki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (AJPW 29/4):* The Burning juniors have faced Junior All-Stars & friends way too many times already this year & they've had some fairly lackluster outings on this tour, but this was a hi-octane highlight reel where everything clicked. Even Aoki, who has been rotten all Carnival, brought his A game. Some fantastic climactic exhanges between Tanaka & Suzuki and especially Yamato & Kanemaru. ****3/4*


----------



## DOPA

Rah with more CMLL stuff :mark: :mark: :mark:

Been waiting too long for more Lucha goodness. Getting on that.


----------



## flag sabbath

Spoiler: Champion Carnival finalists



*Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW, 29/4):* Akiyama beat Kai in their round robin encounter, but not without a struggle, and Kai just upset Shiozaki, so the dynamic here is great. They play it cautious & methodical for all of three minutes before Akiyama wallops Kai's already tenderised chest & Kai explodes. From there Akiyama gets ruthless, bloodying Kai's chest & bombarding his skull. Kai fires back to earn his first major control segment of the tournament & eventually has the crowd believing he might actually pull this off. They then go back & forth on rubber legs until something finally gives. It's not an epic CC final by any means & it's probably better viewed in the context of the tournament as a whole, but hats off to both for advancing the story from their first match & massive props to Kai for playing such a spirited & backable underdog. ******


----------



## septurum

Cesaro vs Orton (Main Event-5/8)- *** 3/4


----------



## Bruce L

*Davey Richards vs. Kyle O'Reilly — RoH TV (4/5)*
Davey Richards and Kyle O'Reilly had a match that was built around focused limb work that lasted all match. Well I'll be damned. I can't remember Davey doing that since his classic against Shingo Takagi in '09, and I doubt O'Reilly ever has. One of Davey's best singles matches in a while -- I think he's really thriving now that the Wolves are a team again and he doesn't have to worry about being the avatar of the company -- and O'Reilly's best ever. ****+


----------



## Bruce L

*CHIKARA, While the Dawn Is Breaking (2/10)*

• The Young Bucks vs. 3.0 (★★★★)

• Team Frightning vs. Jigsaw, the Shard, & DeviANT (★★★¾)

• Eddie Kingston vs. Kevin Steen (★★★¾)

• Mr. Touchdown vs. Saturyne (★★★½)


----------



## DOPA

Whilst it's not MOTY material I gotta give a mention to *Bryan vs Ambrose* from this weeks smackdown. Really physical and intense battle. Great psychology all around, Ambrose's selling, body language and facial expressions were fantastic all around. Bryan was vicious as hell. First time I've seen Bryan get that physical since his single's main event push in 2011-2012. Very good stuff. Prolly a ****1/4 - ***1/2* match.


----------



## darkclaudio

PWG ASW9 Night One:
AR Fox & Samuray del Sol vs Rich Swann & Ricochet ****


----------



## darkclaudio

-Kenta Kobashi, Jun Akiyama, Keiji Mutoh & Kensuke Sasaki vs KENTA, Go Shiozaki, Maybach Taniguchi & Yoshinobu Kanemaru - NOAH Final Burning In Budokan 11/05 ****


----------



## Nervosa

My reviews of the top matches from the past couple weeks, pretty much copied from the other thread, which includes a full review of Dontaku. 

Forever Hooligans vs. Time splitters 
***3/4
Really loved this, even if it was way too short. Nice action, Romero was especially great. This group has wrestled a lot and this was the best match they've had so far, imo. Really thought this was special, even if I totally disagree with the finish.

Shinsuke vs. Benjamin
****
Ok....this was almost amazing. As is, its the best shelton match I've ever seen. his legwork was incredible, building up to an awesome story. When Nakamura worked his ribs, his facials were awesome. He also added a lot to his moveset that I hadn't seen before. It was just amazing. Shinskay was great through most of the match, and him and shelton were building something really special. then Shinskay botched......badly. then they tried to save it, and it was really sloppy. then they finished it. so yeah, Shinskay ruined the best Shelton performance in 8 years or so. Just....impossible to believe, really. Shinskay is becoming a little sketchy. Maybe wrestling every match dead drunk has its setbacks, after all.

Okada vs. Suzuki
****1/4
Yeah man....I loved it. For me....Better than their first match, better than Anderson/Tanhashi, and probably even better than Tanahashi/okada from WK. Not as good as Invasion attack, of course, but easily top 4 singles matches this year, for me.

I get why people hate it. Its very slow. But honestly, from a storyline standpoint, I get that. Okada wrestles this in a very careful way. He knows Suzuki has his number. He also knows that stringing together power moves, like he did in the first match, isn't going to work. So he decides a slower pace is better. what resulted was a slow workover of the neck while suzuki worked Okada's arm. The counters in the hold-for-hold were amazing. The first Red Mist counter is probably my favorite part of the match. 

Someone said they hated how long Okada was in the last sleeper, but I loved it. Pretty much the same thing happened in the Tanahashi/Suzuki match, and no one complained about that. 

Finishing stretch was really exciting. One of the most exciting spots is the out of nowhere gotch Tombstone. I just this the structure of the match told a really great story.

I think I liked the match most because it was different. Its the way Don Fujii stands out in dragon gate. the pace stood out, and it made the moves mean more. Okada knew he took something different to beat Suzuki. He couldn't wrestle the break-neck racing style that he is used to. The pace made it feel like a chess-match. the crowd, as others have said, is just AWFUL. Put this at Ryogoku or Osaka....MOTYC. Here, it falls off a lot. Still even so, despite all the bad ratings, I can't see much wrong with this. If they did anything wrong, it was how sudden the finish was, but it was still a great match. 


KAI vs. Akiyama
****
Really awesome action, and Akiyama using great heel heat. Kai's comebacks were really exciting and fun as well. Some problems that I can't discuss without spoiling, but it was fun.


Spoiler: option



Only problem was that despite the fun hope spots it never REALLY felt like Kai could win this. I just never bought it, which really brought down an otherwise exciting match. Kai came off looking gutsy, but not really strong.



Kobashi, Sasaki, Mutoh, Akiyama vs. KENTA, MAYBACH, Kanemaru, Shiozaki
***3/4
A full, fun, exciting sendoff. Can't be happier for Kobashi, and this was a great way to say goodbye.


----------



## Rah

@Nervosa (if you haven't watched the final don't read this)


Spoiler: Champion Cup final



is that the final match-up or the 21/04 pairing? If it's the final, did you watch the rest of the matches (especially 21/04 Akiyama/KAI) because they really help drive home KAI as a plucky "nobody" that just won't die. He wasn't truly meant to be anything more than gutsy, I'd say. He survived beatings through the tourney only to get lucky breaks all the way to the final. Him taking punishment from Jun, only to continually kick-out, helped me believe the impossible might just happen again.


----------



## geraldinhio

*Kevin Steen vs Paul London -PWG, All Star Weekend Night 1
* Low grade MOTYC but still, full of some really good stuff. I've heard some people compare this to the PAC/Steen match from eight and I can see the resemblances, two really great fun openers. A match of two halves really with shoulderblocks and dueling consisting of the first half and some great well paced action in the second. Even being spoiled for London's dueling bit I still loved it. Thought London looked really good here and he's timing was bang on. Really loved the finishing bit. Many Indy wrestlers who work a highflying style could take notes from London. Any run of the mill Indy wrestler would of hit that sun set flip and SSP combo in quick succession and with no drama. Steen and London built this to perfection. You think Steens gonna kill London with a Samoan drop and there's a great struggle for London to escape and hit the sun set flip powerbomb (which looked great.) Then instead of just jumping to the top rope and hitting the SSP he really conveys a struggle and I thought Steen was gonna get to his feet when he turned onto his stomach. Anyway I'm rambling. LONDON. ****3/4 *


----------



## Nervosa

For Rah:



Spoiler: option



I was indeed talking about the final! I have not seen the group stage match between Akiyama and Kai, so I'll seek that out, but even before this match, I knew what level both guys were at. The comebacks just never did enough for me to believe Kai could win. I don't know if you ever saw Nakanishi vs. sekimoto from 09, but that match is an example of surprising me into thinking the guy who had no chance of winning just might steal one. To me, Kai just never really looked like he had enough, here. I will watch that first match, though.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Finally watched Kingston/Cesaro 

Me and my uncle both gave it *** 3/4

Best Cesaro match in WWE so far. Really good stuff.


----------



## smitlick

*Chikara - While The Dawn Is Breaking*

Young Bucks vs 3.0
****

*WWE Wrestlemania 29*

The Undertaker vs CM Punk
****


----------



## EmbassyForever

Shield vs Cena, Kane and Bryan was awesome. Bryan's hot tag was great and the last minutes were crazy. ***3/4-****


----------



## Obfuscation

Sami Callihan vs Jessicka Havok deserves a plug in here from me. It had all the small aspects of their tag match from the Anniversary Show this year _(w/Cole & LuFisto)_ only upped with the added emphasis of it being a one on one struggle. God damn that was a fun match. Havok died a few times during this. She's such a boss in the ring. Finish didn't surprise me. Only makes the facts more obvious, actually. Oh Sami. Hoping your future will be bright elsewhere. Indies are going to miss you.

****3/4*


----------



## Ten410

*Kenta Kobashi, Jun Akiyama, Keiji Mutoh, & Kensuke Sasaki Vs. KENTA, Go Shiozaki, Maybach Taniguchi, & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (5/11/13)*

A fun match and a great sendoff to one of the greatest in ring performers of all time. Loved the double machine gun chop spot on Taniguchi with Kobashi in the front and Kensuke Sasaki in the back.


----------



## Bubz

Shield vs Hell No & Cena from Raw 13/5 was so great. Bryan was incredible in it.


----------



## seabs

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. - NJPW 07.04.2013*
_Great match and surprisingly mostly for Smith. I say surprisingly but I've always liked Smith, he just hasn't had a performance on this level before. Nakamura is Nakamura and Nakamura is very good but Smith makes this great. Control segment is great but I wish it went longer. In a wanting more of a good thing sense. For someone who could be very robotic and go through the motions at times, Smith was the total opposite here. Got more heel heat out of the crowd than most guys do in Japan and that wasn't a fluke. Archer's grown into his role so well recently and Smith is on almost the same level now going off this. Looks monstrous, cocky and in total control. Some really great near falls. Missile Boma Ye looked awesome, not just because of the springboard but the connection was as good as he's ever connected off it and Smith took a really great bump off it. Great match, one of the best of the year from what I've seen up to this point which granted is barely anything outside of WWE and New Japan. Tanahashi/Okada still to come tomorrow._

*****1/4*


----------



## Obfuscation

Color me shocked when I watched and Smith vs Nakamura II not only demolished their first match _(which was really good)_ but Nakamura vs Archer. The latter of which I was going into expecting a total strong MOTYC.

Looking forward to seeing what you think of Tanahashi/Okada.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Bubz said:


> Shield vs Hell No & Cena from Raw 13/5 was so great. Bryan was incredible in it.


^ This. The hot tag from Cena to Bryan and the ensuing Bryan onslaught was fucking amazing. That, and he can sell a beating really well.


----------



## Obfuscation

Run off the ropes ducking Rollins to dive onto Reigns outside = :mark:

Crowd was going ape for Danielson.


----------



## Nervosa

I really want to watch Hell No/Cena vs. Shield......but I just can't do it. I read how the match was booked, and it is just too idiotic to comprehend. I'm just doing to get mad and destroy my computer screen if I watch it. Bryan getting pinned while Kane gets a slide with a DQ, along with Cena overcoming a 3-on-1 AGAINST THE ENTIRE SHIELD sounds like the opposite of fun to me. I have no clue why anyone would respect the shield ever again after getting beaten down by one guy. 



Seabs said:


> *Shinsuke Nakamura vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. - NJPW 07.04.2013*
> _Great match and surprisingly mostly for Smith. I say surprisingly but I've always liked Smith, he just hasn't had a performance on this level before. Nakamura is Nakamura and Nakamura is very good but Smith makes this great. Control segment is great but I wish it went longer. In a wanting more of a good thing sense. For someone who could be very robotic and go through the motions at times, Smith was the total opposite here. Got more heel heat out of the crowd than most guys do in Japan and that wasn't a fluke. Archer's grown into his role so well recently and Smith is on almost the same level now going off this. Looks monstrous, cocky and in total control. Some really great near falls. Missile Boma Ye looked awesome, not just because of the springboard but the connection was as good as he's ever connected off it and Smith took a really great bump off it. Great match, one of the best of the year from what I've seen up to this point which granted is barely anything outside of WWE and New Japan. Tanahashi/Okada still to come tomorrow._
> 
> *****1/4*


So glad you loved this! I gave it ****1/2 on the rewatch. An incredible match where we really got to see what Smith can do. Just an awesome story and comeback with great athleticism.

You are going to LOVE Okada/Tanahashi. Enjoy it!


----------



## duttanized

Davey Boy Smith Jr. is unreal, I'm just waiting for TJ to leave WWE and join NJPW as well. Both of these guys tore up the Western Canada scene with Teddy, Davey and Evans.


----------



## Obfuscation

Only guy who got pinned by Cena was Rollins...


----------



## Caponex75

The fact Cena was able to get a pin(BY HIMSELF) on a trio that has remain unbeaten is bad enough. The fact of him having the team defeated by himself was horrible booking. The Shield should of won by shut out or at least had one guy get eliminated in a totally not dumb manner. Cena's selling after getting beat down in the corner was fucking terrible.


----------



## Obfuscation

Dean Ambrose was pinned by The Undertaker weeks before this match. How does Rollins getting pinned mean anything? Cena didn't even "win". Shield was DQ'ed and beat him down.

Overreacting.


----------



## Caponex75

What? Undertaker beat Dean Ambrose in One on One match(Submission btw). Cena got a pin in basically a three on one affair. Nowhere near the same thing. Add the fact Cena was actually about to win....that was just dumb fucking booking.


----------



## Obfuscation

Was it submission? Meh, same thing. A loss is a loss. Cena getting a quick pinfall in the mist of chaos is small potatoes. Rollins is fine. The Shield collectively is fine. Again, overreacting.

Moment Cena has one _tiny_ bit of glory vs The Shield and people lose themselves.


----------



## Ten410

duttanized said:


> Davey Boy Smith Jr. is unreal, I'm just waiting for TJ to leave WWE and join NJPW as well. Both of these guys tore up the Western Canada scene with Teddy, Davey and Evans.


I'm right there with you on Kidd, I could him in the junior heavy title picture in New Japan.


----------



## duttanized

Ten410 said:


> I'm right there with you on Kidd, I could him in the junior heavy title picture in New Japan.


Definitely, he had a stellar run there back in the day.


----------



## Nervosa

Obfuscation said:


> Was it submission? Meh, same thing. A loss is a loss. Cena getting a quick pinfall in the mist of chaos is small potatoes. Rollins is fine. The Shield collectively is fine. Again, overreacting.
> 
> Moment Cena has one _tiny_ bit of glory vs The Shield and people lose themselves.


So the unit that has dominated every combination of 3 wrestlers so far since their debut gets slaughtered by ONE guy and needs to DISQUALIFY themselves TWICE IN A ROW to avoid ultimately LOSING to the one guy...and you call that a 'tiny' bit of glory?

I mean, never mind that its Cena, the guy who needs 'a little bit of glory' like he needs bigger arms. Monday night completely undid all of the work put into the shield. 

the shield got buried, here. They are not fine. I can never see them as dangerous ever again because their entire group got bent over by one dude. Cena didn't just get a quick pin; it wasn't like he rolled Rollins up, here. He cleared house on the ENTIRE GROUP and had time to hit his finisher. he was closer to winning the match on his own than the Shield ever were at all.


----------



## Obfuscation

:lmao

Lunacy.


----------



## duttanized

Well let's be fair here, if anyone would do it it should be Cena. Booking wise, he's way above anybody else.


----------



## Nervosa

The point is that no one should be doing that at all.


----------



## Bubz

Nervosa, do yourself a favour and check it out. I'm sure you'd like it up until the final few minutes. If you're a Bryan fan you'll want to see this.


----------



## Rah

*The match in point form:*
>Shield maintains easy control, isolating D.Bryan
>Bryan makes the desperation hot tag for Kane to clean house. First by throwing in the moves against Ambrose then taking cheap shots at the other two on the corner. Two members rush in before getting caught in a choke. Kane pushes both to the outside.
>Anger drives him to be DQ'd via attacking Shield with a table guard (or whatever the graphic section is)
>Raw returns from break with Cena down
>Cena selling well and unable to get the tag to Bryan despite a lucky suplex
>Rollins starts losing himself afer Cena refuses to go down for a pin (despite no finisher being involved)
>Announcers state that the Shield need to be careful and not lose focus or they may lose
>Cena gets tag while carrying Rollins (who has Cena in a sleeper)
>Cena collapses
>Bryan decimates Shield
>Two on one gets D-Bryan eliminated (Reigns is still down)
>Cena comes in tired/hesitant while making a strong attack to the Shield (who are getting overly cocky)
>The Shield attacks (one by one) Cena to get Rollins out of the AA
>Cena fends off the single attacks
>Eliminates Rollins
>Ref goes for the DQ because Reigns pushed him
>Ambrose gets locked into an STF because Ambrose got cocky
Shield attack Cena for the DQ loss

Yeah, there's nothing destructive to The Shield here. They've never been booked as strong singles wrestlers, and that's how Cena took advantage. Shield decimating Cena to end showed that. If anything, the ref DQ'ing Reigns will further their fight against injustice.

It's also funny Cena gets shat on for doing exactly what Kane/Bryan did earlier on in the match. But anyway.


----------



## Obfuscation

Kane dominates on a hot tag - logical b/c he's a big monster.

Bryan fight off Shield - it's excellent.

Cena does it - burial city.

:hmm:


----------



## djmathers1207

Top 5 Matches of 2013 for now [may have to rewatch these and haven't seen everything up to now]

1. Undertaker vs. CM Punk- Wrestlemania XXVIIII
2. Smackdown Elimination Chamber- Elimination Chamber
3. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada- Wrestle Kingdom VII
4. Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii- Road To The New Beginning
5. Michael Elgin vs. Jay Lethal- Supercard Of Honor VII


----------



## seabs

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 07.04.2013*
_My MOTY right now. Definitely a legit MOTYC but I hope it's not my MOTY come January. Not because it's not great but this would be a pretty low peak for 2013. Much better than Wrestle Kingdom but just below Dominion for me. Ideal length for these New Japan main events is 20-205 minutes. Once they go over that you end up with sequences that you could easily take out and achieve the same effect but with 5 minutes less. DDT off the guard rail and the count out tease for example, added nothing to the match and really came off as time extension. Now to sound positive about a match I'm actually positive about! Thought this was the best Tanahashi has looked in a long time. Arm work was even viscous and it was great to see Tanahashi not be a pansy for once and change his style up a bit. Okada's selling is great too. Some neat little touches too like switching the elbow pad to the injured arm. Really dug Tanahashi's dragon screw to the bad arm too given his use of that move on the leg in all his previous matches as a transition spot. I don't mind wrestlers using an injured body part as long as they sell the pain after. Okada did that perfectly here, emphasising his reliance on the arm but fighting through the pain of it because fuck it this is the fucking title and I'll put up with some pain to win the match. That ruled. Injured arm costing him the match when he wasn't able to capitalise on the Rainmaker was super neat. Couple of spots that sucked. Okada's goofy full nelson thing. The crowd literally ended up laughing at it. Never again. Hopefully Okada cuts the complex submission variations out from now on. Red Ink first time around looked awful. Second time around where they did the big fight for the ropes spot it looked good because you couldn't see the legs and they worked a great segment out of it. Thought this benefited much more from a more to the point finish than Wrestle Kingdom. Tanahashi going for the 2nd High Flow Flow and costing himself was a great way to get out of Okada having to kick out from the spot. Likewise with the Rainmaker spot I mentioned. New Japan finishes work best when they work around who can hit their finisher first and get a pin off it. Wrestle Kingdom fell away from that a bit and the middle never really had anything all that gripping in it unlike here. _

*****1/2*


----------



## Bubz

Glad you dug that match Seabs. Without looking at my list, I think it's no.2 for the year so far for me.


----------



## Obfuscation

#1 for me right now. Didn't think anything would knock off Nakamura/Sakuraba, but it did by the slightest of margins.


----------



## Rah

You guys really need to jump onto the Carnival Cup bandwagon and watch all of the matches. The final is easily in my top 5 for the year (and a write-up I keep delaying).


----------



## seabs

*What's #1 Bubz? Nakamura/Sakuraba?*


----------



## Obfuscation

AJPW will _(hopefully)_ be caught up on in a week or so. I _must_ catch up on NJPW first. That's priority number one. 

Friggin TNA backup last night. And it wasn't even worth watching. Why do I...?


----------



## Rah

Spoiler: Carnival Cup final



*Jun Akiyama Vs KAI (29/04/2013 AJPW)*
★★★★ 1/4
This is probably best viewed after, at least, seeing each man's run up to this (especially their first encounter) purely to get the story they're going for here.

As compared to their QF pairing, Akiyama is more tentative in facing the underdog, not willing to secede a sloppy mistake for KAI to capitalise on. Things get pretty violent when they spill to the outside, but everything Akiyama does is completely calculated and timed to ensure his control is maintained. The focused offence on KAI's neck (and picking at his bloodied chest) was superb, and so, too, was KAI's selling of it. The almost pedigree-styled piledriver and consistent knees to the back of KAI's neck/head were both nasty, and reason why Akiyama is one of the best guys going right now (his stuff just looks incredibly realistic).

KAI is also pretty backable in this, from a fan's standpoint. He's fought his entire way to the final, barely beating his opponents and taking a hell of a thrashing on the way. It's at the end of this, though, that a shimmer of doubt in Akiyama winning crops up. No matter what the vet does, he just cannot put KAI away. The frustration, thusly, almost costs him and gives KAI a good comeback/flurry spot only to be cut off. The great nearfalls are engrossing and when the end finally comes the entire tourney just feels worth the time you've spent watching it.



Yeah, this is my #2 MotY for Japan.


----------



## seabs

*Ricochet, Rich Swann & AR Fox vs Kevin Steen, Michael Elgin & Brian Cage - PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 2*
_Awesome trios pairing with the high flyers and the powerhouses all opposing each other. Best part of all though is that it allows the weaknesses of all 6 guys to be hidden, especially Fox and Elgin. Fox gets to do his few moves and then get killed. I was fine with Fox's involvement in this with how limited it was and Elgin looks best when he's doing powerhouse spots with small flippy guys like Rich Swann. This match was next to the perfect environment for these 6 guys to have a great match in and they did. Could have cut a little bit of the time but I thought that was true for just about every match I watched from that weekend. The difference in Ricochet/Swann and Fox really stands out in this. If you can't see the difference in quality between Ricochet/Swann and the other guy doing flips then you might be blind. Perhaps. This isn't an original opinion from me because I heard someone else talking about it but I agree with it, especially in this match. I think it was Lance Storm but that doesn't matter. When duos/trios/etc do big dives at the same time, what really is the point of doing them at the same time rather than in succession? There's 2 guys who do a risky dive for nothing here in any scenario. What's the point in the risk if it means everyone isn't watching the other 2 risking their body? Just do them one after the other and make the risk somewhat worthwhile. You get the same pop 3 times over too rather than just once. Ricochet's dive over the corner remains something I just can't explain. At all. He lands on his feet like nearly every time off it too. They're weren't many matches on these 2 shows that felt like PWG matches. They were more other guys in Reseda. This certainly felt like vintage PWG though._

*****1/4*

*Young Bucks vs Dojo Bros - PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 2*
_How in the fucking fuck fuck has this been slept on this bad? Fuck you guys. This ruled and I don't mean ruled, I mean RULED. Probably only have Tanahashi/Okada ahead of it right now. Perhaps. Bucks are on another level to everyone else entirely right now. The character's are just perfect and they have them tied down to a tee. Superkick to the ring announcer to start off was amazing and for no good reason. They don't need a good reason to be dicks though. That's what dicks do. Dickish stuff for no good reason at all most of the time. I'm spitballing off the top of my head right now but I can't think of anyone ever that plays this role better than these 2. Ever. Granted it's not the most played role like wrestlers playing Ricky Morton but I doubt too many people would come close even if they tried. They are that good. Control segment on Roddy was great. I wish it'd lasted longer but at no point after did I think it dragged or went too long so fine. Dojo Bros are a really good pairing and an even better pairing against the Young Bucks. Their whole act is making you want to see them get the shit kicked out of them and Roddy and Eddie kick the fucking shit out of them. Or chop the fucking shit out of them to be precise. It's such a great pairing that play off each other's character's and strength's so well. Finishing run is boom boom boom in the best way possible. Tag matches always have the advantage of being able to do longer finishing runs with more stuff because 2 guys can just roll out for a bit to sell and keep the action going. 450 spot on Knox was out of this world amazing, especially combined with Nick's grin after. Sure he could have landed on the pin but he's Nick Jackson and HE'S A FUCKING DICKHEAD AND DICKHEADS GONNA DICKHEAD. Running story of them getting wins out of matches by any means possible is a great running story in all their matches for the past couple of years. I can't believe how slept on this is. I guess this'll end up being my Edwards/Elgin for this year then. _

*****1/2*


----------



## Bubz

Aw shit. I didn't even watch that match. Well, it's download time again.


----------



## Nervosa

Seabs, did you get to see KES vs. Ishii/Nakamura yet?


----------



## seabs

*Yeah. *****


----------



## duttanized

Young Bucks/Dojo Bros is getting slept on so much. I really hope we get to see a 2/3 falls or something epic from them soon!


----------



## flag sabbath

Dear PWG, 

As the last person on here to see ASW9, despite having pre-ordered the dvds weeks ago, I just wanted to forewarn you that I will be joining the masses in stealing your next show.

Yours fuckedoffly,

Rob


----------



## bigbuxxx

duttanized said:


> Young Bucks/Dojo Bros is getting slept on so much.


because it wasn't good. :avit::avit::avit:


----------



## seancarleton77

Saku vs. Nakamura & Bryan vs. Ryback are pretty much untouchable right now.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'll try and watch ASW Night Two tonight.

I already know I'll at least like Bucks vs Dojo Bros. I dig all four involved & the Bucks never miss for me _(unless vs 3.0, ugh)_ sooooo :hb


----------



## Caponex75

Obfuscation said:


> Was it submission? Meh, same thing. A loss is a loss. Cena getting a quick pinfall in the mist of chaos is small potatoes. Rollins is fine. The Shield collectively is fine. Again, overreacting.
> 
> Moment Cena has one _tiny_ bit of glory vs The Shield and people lose themselves.


Not really. Shield as a group only had to take out one guy. It wasn't Ambrose by himself, just two them, or all of them with their hands tied behind their back but all three ready for battle. And they just can't defeat one dude. In fact, in trying to defeat one dude, two of their guys are eliminated(One of their guys incredibly decisively) and the third guy was about to lose had the other two not interfered. How in the hell does not make them look bad? Bryan going ham doesn't deserve a negative reaction because he still lost AND it's hot man tag. He didn't nearly beat each of them by himself but he took it to them. Cena almost beat the whole group by himself and that is why guys like Nervosa & I hate the fuck out of the match. Cena getting a little glory isn't bad or even terrible. Hell, I fucking love Cena vs. Punk and that praised the shit out of that match. This, however, was terrible.


Now to get more positive.

*NOAH - KENTA vs. Maybach Taniguchi for the GHC Heavyweight Championship*
Going into this, I thought this match was going to be horrible. After seeing Maybach's performance in Kobashi's last match, I had no faith in Maybach being any good in this match. Happy to feel proven wrong. The story leading into this was that KENTA's monster turned on him and you can tell things are heated between them because KENTA immediately starts kicking his ass in the beginning. What I like about this is the side story of the ref having to deal with Maybach's shit. Just like you saw in the Kobashi match, Taniguchi doesn't give a fuck. If he is going to choke out KENTA, he is going to stop when he feels like. He is going to bring out a weapon even if the referee doesn't want it. Maybach is a monster who is going to wrestle his match by his rules.

There is this awesome moment where the referee gets him to give his weapons and the crowd fucking jizzes for it. Then Maybach proceeds to murder the poor guy with a chair . I enjoyed that. KENTA does a great job of working around Taniguchi's short comings and doesn't make this a match he would work with a guy like Big Boss. I also like that the Triangle Choke might as well be useless to such a big guy like Taniguchi and the finishing stretch was pretty freaking good. Suggest this match. I only have one problem with this match


Spoiler: My one problem



Did not like the GTS kick out. I understand it's a big match but I rather Taniguchi would go down when he receives one. One of the things I don't like about the NOAH main events now and days.



Besides that one problem, this gave me much faith in KENTA's GHC Heavyweight run.


*NOAH - KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura for the GHC World Heavyweight Championship*

This match was fucking dope. Story was basic. KENTA knows Sugiura as his greatest opponent and Sugiura knows KENTA as the biggest pain in his ass. Unlike Shiozaki, Morishima, Maybach, Akiyama, and anyone else in NOAH, Suguira is one of the guys who can go strike for strike with KENTA if not put him on his ass. In fact, the way Sugiura gets control is slapping the fucking nonsense out of KENTA. Dope. When KENTA tries to comeback, Sugiura just constantly puts him down. Now this isn't saying KENTA doesn't stand a chance against Sugiura because that isn't true. Just that if it gets into a game of fisticuffs, it isn't 100% sure guaranteed that KENTA is going to be putting him on his ass. I absolutely love this match due to the fact it isn't rehashed like their Global League match felt(Outside of those punches). It feels new. 

The problem I had with the GL match was that it was basically their big match they had in 2011 except shorter and it didn't feel like there was that much worked in it. Like it was KENTA would do his thing and then Suggy would do his thing and then maybe change here and there. I thought it was still good but it was the weakest in their whole series of matches. This match did everything I wanted. When I was expecting Sugiura did his running Yakuza Kick, I'd expected KENTA to reply with one of his own and it didn't happen. There was no status quo or doing a formula but actually thinking outside of the box. So I am getting to watch a unique match that isn't paint by numbers and exciting. When KENTA would eat shit, I'd mark the fuck out. When Sugiura find himself in a incredibly shady predicament, I'd be in awe. I really really fucking loved this match. The beginning was great, the middle was fucking good, and the finishing stretch had me guessing.



Spoiler: Continuity Don't read if you haven't seen it



While I don't like finisher kicking out, I absolutely love the deal with Sugiura and Go 2 Sleep. In order to put Sugiura down, KENTA has to smack him with three GTSs EVERY DAMN TIME THEY FACE. It's canon. Anything less will not get KENTA the victory. I love that it isn't a one time thing. The Big Boss is one big tough badass. It's so good. I also like that the Finishes were well built and even though Sugiura has kicked out of those GTS's previously, the way the nearfalls were built made it certain. Especially the second one WHICH WAS A FUCKING CALL BACK TO THE GLOBAL LEAGUE MATCH. Holy shit this match rocked


 My Second MOTY behind Tanahashi vs. Okada 4. These guys have been having fantastic matches since they were freaking juniors.



Spoiler: I also find it funny



That KENTA HAD to get Sugiura in No Mercy. After the war they just had, it be better to have that guy on your side than on the opposing side. Smart man.


----------



## leglock

Caponex75 said:


> *NOAH - KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura for the GHC World Heavyweight Championship*
> 
> This match was fucking dope. Story was basic. KENTA knows Sugiura as his greatest opponent and Sugiura knows KENTA as the biggest pain in his ass. Unlike Shiozaki, Morishima, Maybach, Akiyama, and anyone else in NOAH, Suguira is one of the guys who can go strike for strike with KENTA if not put him on his ass. In fact, the way Sugiura gets control is slapping the fucking nonsense out of KENTA. Dope. When KENTA tries to comeback, Sugiura just constantly puts him down. Now this isn't saying KENTA doesn't stand a chance against Sugiura because that isn't true. Just that if it gets into a game of fisticuffs, it isn't 100% sure guaranteed that KENTA is going to be putting him on his ass. I absolutely love this match due to the fact it isn't rehashed like their Global League match felt(Outside of those punches). It feels new.
> 
> The problem I had with the GL match was that it was basically their big match they had in 2011 except shorter and it didn't feel like there was that much worked in it. Like it was KENTA would do his thing and then Suggy would do his thing and then maybe change here and there. I thought it was still good but it was the weakest in their whole series of matches. This match did everything I wanted. When I was expecting Sugiura did his running Yakuza Kick, I'd expected KENTA to reply with one of his own and it didn't happen. There was no status quo or doing a formula but actually thinking outside of the box. So I am getting to watch a unique match that isn't paint by numbers and exciting. When KENTA would eat shit, I'd mark the fuck out. When Sugiura find himself in a incredibly shady predicament, I'd be in awe. I really really fucking loved this match. The beginning was great, the middle was fucking good, and the finishing stretch had me guessing.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler: Continuity Don't read if you haven't seen it
> 
> 
> 
> While I don't like finisher kicking out, I absolutely love the deal with Sugiura and Go 2 Sleep. In order to put Sugiura down, KENTA has to smack him with three GTSs EVERY DAMN TIME THEY FACE. It's canon. Anything less will not get KENTA the victory. I love that it isn't a one time thing. The Big Boss is one big tough badass. It's so good. I also like that the Finishes were well built and even though Sugiura has kicked out of those GTS's previously, the way the nearfalls were built made it certain. Especially the second one WHICH WAS A FUCKING CALL BACK TO THE GLOBAL LEAGUE MATCH. Holy shit this match rocked
> 
> 
> My Second MOTY behind Tanahashi vs. Okada 4. These guys have been having fantastic matches since they were freaking juniors.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler: I also find it funny
> 
> 
> 
> That KENTA HAD to get Sugiura in No Mercy. After the war they just had, it be better to have that guy on your side than on the opposing side. Smart man.


One of the things that I liked about the match was that it _was_ rehearsed. They wrestled like they laid out the 30 minutes so there wasn't much spot calling in the match. The problem was that they didn't leave room for selling, at least not until the last moments of the match. They just went from one of their planned spot to the next. I don't agree that no one in NOAH (including the ex-NOAH guys) can match KENTA strike vs strike other than Suigura. Morishima's hammers; Shiozaki's chops and forearms; Akiyama's knees and slaps; Takayama's punches and knees; and Kensuke's rabbit punches and chops all look better and look more damaging. I'll give you Taniguchi. KENTA very clearly pulls his kicks and his Rolling Kesagiri chop looks like shit now. Compare his kicks and strikes to Nakajima.


----------



## duttanized

bigbuxxx said:


> because it wasn't good. :avit::avit::avit:


It was the best match on Mystery Vortex and All Star Weekend Night Two so...


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Their match at Mystery Vortex was much, much better IMO.


----------



## Caponex75

leglock said:


> One of the things that I liked about the match was that it _was_ rehearsed. They wrestled like they laid out the 30 minutes so there wasn't much spot calling in the match. The problem was that they didn't leave room for selling, at least not until the last moments of the match. They just went from one of their planned spot to the next. I don't agree that no one in NOAH (including the ex-NOAH guys) can match KENTA strike vs strike other than Suigura. Morishima's hammers; Shiozaki's chops and forearms; Akiyama's knees and slaps; Takayama's punches and knees; and Kensuke's rabbit punches and chops all look better and look more damaging. I'll give you Taniguchi. KENTA very clearly pulls his kicks and his Rolling Kesagiri chop looks like shit now. Compare his kicks and strikes to Nakajima.




You missed the point. Character wise, there is a select few that can put KENTA down going blow for blow. Not what strike looks better(I'd disagree on a few) but when it comes to who is presented as a better striker, KENTA is usually on top. Even back in 2009, KENTA was presented as a heavy hitter. When he and Jun Akiyama wrestled in a Champion vs. Champion match, KENTA was beating Akiyama's ass around the ring as if it was no one's business. Akiyama only stood a chance because the neck payed off for him when he was getting slapped down by K in the last few minutes. Sugiura is presented in the same way even though his is more of a bully fashion. Like Sugiura will make you understand that you are in his world and will beat the idea into your skull physically. There are only a selected few that change the tide of this every now and then. Like Kensuke is a good example. 


Nobody does shit to that guy. He is usually the one boss hogging and beating the ever loving shit out of his opponents. You don't walk in a Kensuke match NOT expecting to get your ass beat. That is why when he and Suggy got into in 2011, it was fucking gnarly. Sugiura try to do him like he usually did Go around that time and Kensuke would knock the shit out of him for it. It's a interesting dynamic. Then there were times where that would get thrown out of the window like KENTA vs. Shiozaki in 2009 where the new & improved Shiozaki's chops were destroying KENTA. KENTA had to change his usually strategy to actually attacking the arm and wrestling like junior. It made for a different setting because he(KENTA) couldn't resort to his usual methods.

That is why when KENTA & Sugiura meet up, it is always a good match because of how they are presented. There was a time where Sugiura use to slap all his enemies down and that goes as far as Takayama to Minoru. It was rather interesting due to the fact that no one would ever win a bitch slapping exchange with him. Then, in 2010(I wanna say) he ran into KENTA. I remember this moment because I thought it was bloody awesome that it happened in one of their weaker single matches. They started the slap exchange and KENTA started putting dem hands on Suggy that he(Suggy) could not contend with. The crowd got into that one moment big _because_ of how it should never happen(Sugiura losing a slap exchange) and how much sense it made(KENTA being presented a top blow for blow guy). Whenever these two meet, it makes complete sense why one doesn't punk the other but it also makes sense why the strike battles are so hard fought.

I could go on and on but yeah, I Sugiura is one of the very very very very very minor few that can mix it up with KENTA in a strike for strike contest. Even Nakajima would find himself having to strategize or dig incredibly deep when dealing with KENTA. 


Here is more of a plug to that awesome Sugiura vs. Kensuke match




Spoiler: Back to KENTA vs. Sugiura



I noticed the thing about the strike exchanges the second time around and how much bigger of a deal they were in this match. It seemed that KENTA and Sugiura would dig in extra deep whenever the other was clearly overstepping their boundaries. I did love the moment when Sugiura was trying to unmercifully beat the life out of KENTA after he kneed him in the face after a Game Over attempt. It made sense from a character point of view because of KENTA still trying to comeback after Suggy hit him with his game winning move. "Well, i'll just demolish his brain then", Sugiura thought before being unexpectingly put in a Game Over


----------



## Last Chancery

From tonight's AAW: Day of Defiance

ACH/Michael Elgin vs. Team Ambition - ****1/4 = So much fun. Elgin did the 60-second suplex, ACH did a 30-second power slam and Davey/Kyle tried attempts of their own. Killer match, such fluid chemistry. Went about 23:58 if I recall, which is perfect for a tagger.

Shane Hollister vs. Sami Callihan - ****1/2 = Insane last man standing match. Can't even really put it into words but this was rough stuff, and I truly hope everybody involved is OK. Went 35 minutes but some of the stuff in this oen was brutal. Clearly a send-off match but very, very good.


----------



## Chismo

duttanized said:


> Young Bucks/Dojo Bros is getting slept on so much. I really hope we get to see a 2/3 falls or something epic from them soon!


It's a great match IMO (****), Nick F'N Jackson himself is responsible for three stars at least, but it doesn't touch the lucha rules trio from the same night. That's the MOTY.


----------



## EmbassyForever

NOAH - KENTA vs. Maybach Taniguchi - ****
NOAH - KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura - ****1/4


----------



## Rah

KENTA/Sugiura was sweet.

They sold perfectly fine for what they were doing (KENTA, especially) throughout the match. It wasn't limb-specific damage so prolonged selling is not as visible. They were fatigued and KENTA looked groggy enough, so what more do you need? Honestly reminds me of Younger/Callihan in that people are just going to scream "no-selling~!" without understanding the workings of it. Sugiura registers KENTA's offence (and he doesn't come off weak because of its ineffectual results) but he's in complete "fuck your shit" mode and wrestles as such.

I wouldn't rate this as highly as Caponex75 or EmbassyForever but it was definitely good.


----------



## Obfuscation

Weird question but I'm so lukewarm on KENTA these days that I have to ask:

If I thought KENTA vs Morishima from this year sucked, should I even bother with KENTA vs Sugiura? b/c I'm not sure I can handle much KENTA being crappy again.


----------



## leglock

Obfuscation said:


> If I thought KENTA vs Morishima from this year sucked, should I even bother with KENTA vs Sugiura? b/c I'm not sure I can handle much KENTA being crappy again.


Watch the match.



Rah said:


> KENTA/Sugiura was sweet.
> 
> They sold perfectly fine for what they were doing (KENTA, especially) throughout the match. It wasn't limb-specific damage so prolonged selling is not as visible. They were fatigued and KENTA looked groggy enough, so what more do you need? Honestly reminds me of Younger/Callihan in that people are just going to scream "no-selling~!" without understanding the workings of it. Sugiura registers KENTA's offence (and he doesn't come off weak because of its ineffectual results) but he's in complete "fuck your shit" mode and wrestles as such.
> 
> I wouldn't rate this as highly as Caponex75 or EmbassyForever but it was definitely good.


I don't think the issue was with KENTA or Sugiura as individuals. I had a problem with the match as a whole. There were a number of times where KENTA or Sugiura could have knocked each other out and should have, but they kept going and going. This is what I wrote on SSS:

_It has nothing to do with this being pro-wrestling and not MMA. When you have Sugiura making it look and feel real and then have KENTA very clearly pulling his kicks, it's bad times. It's the same problem with Okada. It's hard to have suspension of disbelief with both these guys when you have them wrestling guys who are legit shooters (Suzuki/Sugiura) or guys who are clearly the ace (Tanahashi/Shiozaki). Their offense doesn't look good so their opponents look foolish for not being able to capitalize and win. People who bitch about KENTA, but like Okada confuse the shit out of me. At least you're fucking consistent.

I dug the brutality. I dug many of the spots. I loved that they had a game plan. The way they tied everything together (execution) was bad therefore the story was bad. To top it off, there was little selling. I would have no problem if they made it look like KENTA capitalized on a mistake that Suigura made (a la KAI vs. Shiozaki), but they were trading control. KENTA should have had the shit beaten out of him by Sugiura and then escape by the skin of his teeth. They could have used a number of the great spots they put together for this match to lead up to that, but *nope they had to put every spot they imagined and go for a 30 minute epic.*_

And regardless, I gave it a good rating in my original review:

GHC Heavyweight Title: KENTA vs. Suigura (5/12/2013)

_I watched KENTA vs. Sugiura earlier today and it was very underwhelming. I read Enuhito's report on the show and he said it was a MOTY caliber match, but I don't think that's really the case. The biggest hindrance to the match is that no one will believe that KENTA could kick Suigura's ass in a real fight. That and it's not really psychologically sound. 

There were a bunch of cool spots in the match; I enjoyed most of the slap exchanges. Global Tag League Finals was better than this. I guess if you come in with low expectations, you'll enjoy the match due to the hot Korakuen crowd and Sugiura offense. There's not really much of a story behind this. Leaning toward a solid *** rating, most of that for the effort._


----------



## Bubz

The last two KENTA/Sugiura matches weren't very good, especially that last match they had against each other, it was just bad. Is this any better? Because if it isn't then there's no point in me watching it. I'd imagine it's just more of the same.


----------



## Caponex75

By the last two do you mean their Global League match and the one all the one back in 2011? It was leagues better than the GL match but if you are talking about the one that happened in 11, I'd give it a pass over it.


----------



## Bubz

Urm...I think so. Shit, that was in 2011? Jesus. Yeah, didn't like that one and I liked their one last year from GL even less. Maybe I'll watch it, don't want to just outright turn down a match that _might_ be good I suppose.


----------



## Rah

What the fuck is it with people mentioning a "shitty" part to a match and then, randomly, bringing up the comparison to Okada?

I see it everywhere - especially in Puro circles who feign some form of elitist smugness. It's almost fitting in that the other half of fans see Okada as a god that his detractors go about their criticisms in a manner similar to online atheists. "Thread not related to religion? Screw it, it is now. Time to troll me some christians!"



leglock said:


> One of the things that I liked about the match was that it _was_ rehearsed. They wrestled like they laid out the 30 minutes so there wasn't much spot calling in the match. *The problem was that they didn't leave room for selling, at least not until the last moments of the match. They just went from one of their planned spot to the next.* I don't agree that no one in NOAH (including the ex-NOAH guys) can match KENTA strike vs strike other than Suigura. Morishima's hammers; Shiozaki's chops and forearms; Akiyama's knees and slaps; Takayama's punches and knees; and Kensuke's rabbit punches and chops all look better and look more damaging. I'll give you Taniguchi. KENTA very clearly pulls his kicks and his Rolling Kesagiri chop looks like shit now. Compare his kicks and strikes to Nakajima.


That is what I wrote about. 

You're vastly hyperbolising what happened. Like I stated, I did not believe it was as good as the other two posters claimed (thus I will not make the recommendation), but it was still good.


----------



## duttanized

Someone want to make me a good match list that I can watch more of Taiji Ishimori? I've watched some of his matches but I feel like I might be missing out on a lot of his better stuff. Also, can anyone recommend good TMDK matches in Japan also.


----------



## leglock

You're making a point without having read the message board that comment was originally found. Virtually everyone there is a fan of Okada, but for whatever reason hate KENTA and troll every NOAH post. It was a fair and relevant comparison, so I made it. There was no intention of derailing the thread or anything of that sort. The poster's favorite wrestler is KENTA and he has a picture of Okada in his avatar. In his review, he mentioned that this match was in his top three along with Tanahashi vs Okada. 

Perhaps I should have posted my original review with my response to Caponex75. You're misinterpreting the point I was making.


----------



## Rah

I was speaking in general, firstly, and it is a conclusion I've made from other boards. It is a very valid point, because it is how a lot of people act. Secondly, considering I cannot venture onto SSS (nor have any desire to do so) it comes across as a generalised statement and not a reply/debate to anyone else (of which I cannot grasp what they're saying). I cannot tell if they're pro-Okada in that post and "trolling" NOAH or another poster who "takes a middle road".

Your post merely reminded me of how I felt while the part I quoted was in reply to you.


EDIT: I actually found SSS and here are the messages:



NikkySan said:


> KENTA vs Sugiura, HOLY SHIT what a match. Half an hour of sheer brutality. The strike exchanges were great, there were some really brutal spots and the crowd was going nuts for all of it. The only complaint I have with it is that the second GO 2 SLEEP should've been the finish, but it's honestly a small flaw in what I think is a MOTYC. It's currently in my Top 3 matches of 2013 along with Tanahashi vs Okada IV and Omori & Soya vs Akiyama & Shiozaki.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I think the biggest hindrance to the match is that no one will believe that KENTA could kick Suigura's ass in a real fight. That and it's not psychologically sound.
> 
> 
> 
> This is pro wrestling, not MMA. You shouldn't really be expecting NJPW-level psychology when watching NOAH matches, the two promotion's styles are completely different.
Click to expand...




leglock said:


> It has nothing to do with this being pro-wrestling and not MMA. When you have Sugiura making it look and feel real and then have KENTA very clearly pulling his kicks, it's bad times. It's the same problem with Okada. It's hard to have suspension of disbelief with both these guys when you have them wrestling guys who are legit shooters (Suzuki/Sugiura) or guys who are clearly the ace (Tanahashi/Shiozaki). Their offense doesn't look good so their opponents look foolish for not being able to capitalize and win. People who bitch about KENTA, but like Okada confuse the shit out of me. At least you're fucking consistent.
> 
> I dug the brutality. I dug many of the spots. I loved that they had a game plan. The way they tied everything together (execution) was bad therefore the story was bad. To top it off, there was little selling. I would have no problem if they made it look like KENTA capitalized on a mistake that Suigura made (a la KAI vs. Shiozaki), but they were trading control. KENTA should have had the shit beaten out of him by Sugiura and then escape by the skin of his teeth. They could have used a number of the great spots they put together for this match to lead up to that, but nope they had to put every spot they imagined and go for a 30 minute epic.
> 
> And what is NJPW level psychology?


Did you come into wrestling from a shoot background, by any chance?


----------



## leglock

Fair response, Rah. Sorry if I came across as aggressive. I didn't come into wrestling from a shoot background, but I'm a fan.


----------



## seabs

*Ishimori vs Ibushi from DDT 2009. To the guy who asked for Ishimori matches. That's all I can really think of singles wise. He had some good tags with KENTA. That's about it.*


----------



## Obfuscation

Ishimori has had some corkers vs Generico. In Japan & Germany. Speaking of tags I do believe it was KENTA & Ishimori as the team vs Sasaki & Nakajima from early '09 K-Office that was balls to the wall tremendous.

Minority too but I really enjoyed Ishimori vs Kondo this year with the championship switch. It got vs flashy at the end when it drifted away from the story of Kondo simply swarming Ishimori, but nothing in a fashion I'd deem dreadful. I guess it was almost logical considering that's why Kondo wouldn't let Ishimori catch his breath. Once he gets going he's hard to stop.


----------



## darkclaudio

Main Event 1/05
Kofi Kingston (c) vs Antonio Cesaro ***3/4


----------



## Rickey

Ryback vs. John Cena-WWE Extreme Rules 2013

Fun brawl. Surprise of the night for me. Ryback rules.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Rickey said:


> Ryback vs. John Cena-WWE Extreme Rules 2013
> 
> Fun brawl. Surprise of the night for me. Ryback rules.


I enjoyed Orton vs Show as well. But yeah, Ryback vs Cena was very good.


----------



## Rickey

EmbassyForever said:


> I enjoyed Orton vs Show as well. But yeah, Ryback vs Cena was very good.


Yeah I've enjoyed the majority of the show. Like last year, Extreme Rules > Wrestlemania(besides the Taker vs. Punk).


----------



## Corey

Are we watching the same ppv?  It's been BUCKETS of underwhelming.


----------



## Rickey

lol I've enjoyed it Jack.

The last match though...nope(HHH vs. Brock). Not really that part at all.

There's been weak parts but overall I like the show.


----------



## EmbassyForever

First part of the show (everything before Shield tag match) was underwhelming. Second was good to great. Overall I enjoyed the show and I liked the booking (from results standpoint)


----------



## Caponex75

Cena vs. Ryback was terrible. I thought it was going at least good with Ryback dominating but holy shit the no selling and nonexistent storytelling on the ankle was absurd. My enjoyment of that match withered away extremely fast WHEN THEY FUCKING NO SOLD A BARRICADE SPOT. I was willing to go half way on the ankle selling because it's John "lol put over" Cena but holy fucking that match was dumb. No more Hurcanrana's John...you're not doing them right. Really bad match for both men.

Orton vs. Show was good and Triple H vs. Lesnar was really freaking good. Triple H was bumping like a fool for that guy but got to give credit to Lesnar. Funny how Lesnar can sell better than 95% of the pro wrestling universe.


----------



## Obfuscation

With Corey on this front. Show was trash other than Cena vs Ryback which I had fun with.


----------



## Kenny

HHH/Lesanr ruled. I liked Ryback/Cena but ending was meh.


----------



## Obfuscation

No contest was a drag. I would have much preferred to have both get counted down instead of the flat out stoppage of the match. Final spot was rad.

I really didn't like Brock vs Trips other than the fact Brock won. First match was solid, second was great, third was poor, imo.


----------



## djmathers1207

John Cena vs. Ryback ****

Better than I expected it to be considering Ryback is not a phenomenal wrestler. The ending hurt it a little, but they will most likely have a rematch next month.

Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar ****-****1/2

This was a surprisingly great match with a lot of psychology and Brock winning was quite shocking.


----------



## Kenny

What didnt you like about Brock/HHH Cody?


----------



## Obfuscation

Pacing. Story. Overall work of the match. It was just kind of there. Nothing stuck out as particularly original or different to separate it from the pack. Neither guy brought much to the table other than Trips taking a deadly shot to the end to end the match.


----------



## THECHAMPION

I didn't really love any match on the show, but I also didn't hate any match on the show. Solid show but could have used a single blow away match to make it.

I did like The Shield winning and was pleasantly surprised with Ryback/Cena but I probably shouldn't have been. John Cena is the best at carrying people in big matches and Ryback is better than some of the dudes he carried to good matches (late JBL, Lashley, Khali)

But the finish was a huge disappointment. Eventually they are gonna have to either put the title on Ryback or have him lose, they've been playing this game for a long time now.

HHH/Brock was a fine match but I hate them both so I didn't really care. I hope this is the last we see of HHH for a long time. (I swear my fingers just slipped and typoed HHH's name as HGH)


----------



## The Lady Killer

Obfuscation said:


> Pacing. Story. Overall work of the match. It was just kind of there. Nothing stuck out as particularly original or different to separate it from the pack. Neither guy brought much to the table other than Trips taking a deadly shot to the end to end the match.


 Time to edit this.


----------



## Obfuscation

^:lol I was going to right now. Ignore the first watch report. This is the one worth reading and plugging in here:

*WWE Extreme Rules - Steel Cage Match*

Brock Lesnar vs Triple H ~ ******​
~ THAT'S MY MANAGER. Yeah...the biggest change of them all for me on the second watch. This match. This match was WONDERFUL. Storytelling at its finest. On some much of this match. It's brilliant. From Brock's stellar selling of the knee, to Trips return to the Cerebral Assassin; all of it was on point. Best part about it was the total change in characters from both men. Past matches saw Trips the vulnerable man & Brock as the beast at SummerSlam. WrestleMania saw it be a dead heap - both were unleashed that night. Here at Extreme Rules the opposite happened. Brock suffered the knee injury thus making him the vulnerable man in the situation & Trips smelled the blood in the water and morphed into the beast. That's just absolutely fantastic work. Certainly this match was all lead along by Brock. No doubt about it. The character shift did show signs of giving Trips something fresher to do while against Brock. Can't forget about the awesome camouflage sledgehammer too. It's like Silver Surfer's weapon to bludgeon anyone he finds out in space. I adored Heyman's work in this too. From all aspects. As the concerned manager on the outside - to all the times he got in the mix to aid his client. He was fiesty, taking out officials and even suffering a pedigree for Brock. Little did Triple H know that Paul would have the last laugh. I have ZERO problems with Heyman hitting the low blow on Triple H before Brock got the advantage. Brock was wounded. There is no shame in this. It wasn't to "feed the ego" of Triple H. It was to not only have Brock Lesnar win this feud, but Paul Heyman too. Heyman gave Trips the biggest fuck you moment possible and that was by taking his arm and jamming it right into the groin of the COO. The dichotomy between Brock & Heyman has almost never reach a more pinnacle moment than this. It was defined here. Proof positive that they're both in it together. Brock is down; nearly out. Showing signs that he is mortal. Triple H about to finish off Lesnar like a lamb to the slaughter, only for his (Brock's) shining light in the form of his agent being the last push he needed in the right direction. Couple that with the original smoking gun - Triple H's own beloved sledgehammer - & Brock would end this once and for all. Proving he is truly the dominate force in WWE. Triple H tried. He fought well. Only his aid at WrestleMania to get one victory ended up being his ultimate downfall once he went to that well yet again. This was fabulous. Damn near saved the show.


----------



## obby

k that post convinced me. Going to watch it when I have the time.


----------



## Obfuscation

(Y)


----------



## EmbassyForever

Obfuscation said:


> ^:lol I was going to right now. Ignore the first watch report. This is the one worth reading and plugging in here:
> 
> *WWE Extreme Rules - Steel Cage Match*
> 
> Brock Lesnar vs Triple H ~ ******​
> ~ THAT'S MY MANAGER. Yeah...the biggest change of them all for me on the second watch. This match. This match was WONDERFUL. Storytelling at its finest. On some much of this match. It's brilliant. From Brock's stellar selling of the knee, to Trips return to the Cerebral Assassin; all of it was on point. Best part about it was the total change in characters from both men. Past matches saw Trips the vulnerable man & Brock as the beast at SummerSlam. WrestleMania saw it be a dead heap - both were unleashed that night. Here at Extreme Rules the opposite happened. Brock suffered the knee injury thus making him the vulnerable man in the situation & Trips smelled the blood in the water and morphed into the beast. That's just absolutely fantastic work. Certainly this match was all lead along by Brock. No doubt about it. The character shift did show signs of giving Trips something fresher to do while against Brock. Can't forget about the awesome camouflage sledgehammer too. It's like Silver Surfer's weapon to bludgeon anyone he finds out in space. I adored Heyman's work in this too. From all aspects. As the concerned manager on the outside - to all the times he got in the mix to aid his client. He was fiesty, taking out officials and even suffering a pedigree for Brock. Little did Triple H know that Paul would have the last laugh. I have ZERO problems with Heyman hitting the low blow on Triple H before Brock got the advantage. Brock was wounded. There is no shame in this. It wasn't to "feed the ego" of Triple H. It was to not only have Brock Lesnar win this feud, but Paul Heyman too. Heyman gave Trips the biggest fuck you moment possible and that was by taking his arm and jamming it right into the groin of the COO. The dichotomy between Brock & Heyman has almost never reach a more pinnacle moment than this. It was defined here. Proof positive that they're both in it together. Brock is down; nearly out. Showing signs that he is mortal. Triple H about to finish off Lesnar like a lamb to the slaughter, only for his (Brock's) shining light in the form of his agent being the last push he needed in the right direction. Couple that with the original smoking gun - Triple H's own beloved sledgehammer - & Brock would end this once and for all. Proving he is truly the dominate force in WWE. Triple H tried. He fought well. Only his aid at WrestleMania to get one victory ended up being his ultimate downfall once he went to that well yet again. This was fabulous. Damn near saved the show.


Hell yeah. Loved the match too.


----------



## Rah

Spoiler: Cena/Ryback hatred



WHAT THE FUCK WAS THIS AWFUL GOBSHITE?! Zero story, zero psychology, zero logic, zero decent spots (that end was pathetic), zero selling and zero fucks given. The only reason this was not the worst match in forever is because the card before it was so overwhelmingly and catastrophically atrocious.

I absolutely loathed King replying to the audience's Foley chants by stating that feeble tackle was worse than "some of the falls Foley has taken". Really? REALLY?!









FUCK.OFF.



I'll rewatch HHH/Lesnar tomorrow but I thought it was breath-taking (~ ★★★★ 1/4). Though that could fluctuate dramatically on a rewatch noting the rest of the turds could have made this look phenomenal OR King pissed me off so much I under-rated it.


----------



## Lane

I thought Brock vs HHH was terrible. The lack of logic. DEAR, GOD.


----------



## Rah

Explain.


----------



## Lane

Brock choosing to sell the knee when he wanted too.
Brock getting up on the bad leg
The leg all of a sudden not hurting when Brock ran and jumped KNEE first into the cage.
Random ass sledge hammer on top of the cage for no reason.
Paul randomly getting into the cage with no one trying to stop him.


----------



## Obfuscation

Brock didn't begin to sell the knee till he jumped knee first into the cage. That's what began the injury. And the sledgehammer was hardly random. It played into the finish. Trips hid it to sneak it in the match. Heyman was able to get in the ring as he took at Charles Robinson earlier.


----------



## Saint Dick

Lane said:


> Brock choosing to sell the knee when he wanted too.
> Brock getting up on the bad leg
> The leg all of a sudden not hurting when Brock ran and jumped KNEE first into the cage.
> Random ass sledge hammer on top of the cage for no reason.
> Paul randomly getting into the cage with no one trying to stop him.


All of this is wrong. Brock sold the knee beautifully and consistently throughout. Did you even pay attention to the match? The knee first jump into the cage is what caused the injury. The sledgehammer wasn't there for no reason. HHH obviously put it there because it's his great equalizer and the reason he was able to beat Lesnar at Wrestlemania. Having a problem with that seems like nitpicking to me. Same goes for the Heyman thing which Obfuscation explained anyway. I can understand not liking the match or not thinking it's great but questioning the logic of it? Nah.


----------



## Obfuscation

*WWE Monday Night RAW 5/20/13*

The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston ~ *****1/2*​
Top three Shield match. A great front-runner for their best overall match from 2013. This was near perfection. You want to see a match worked unbelievably well; you watch this. Kofi was used justly as the original FIP. The known weaker link of the three faces and it was established ASAP. The moments following the control segments against him _(Kofi)_ were kept minimal and worked smart. He interjected his aerial offense when it should have been added. The double topes was a great spot. Kane was kept in beast mode the entire time. He was a rare commodity in this match. Got in after the first commercial break and kept the offense on his side. He tags out and BOOM. Shield immediately take over, thus putting over the x factor that is Kane's involvement needed to help contain the babyface control. His hot tag in the final stretch was vintage & rad. Tearing all of The Shield up until the madness engulfed Kane yet again. Then there is Danielson. Holy crap, is there Danielson. What can you say about this man's talent? Sheer brilliance. The reaction he garners from both integral aspects to tag team wrestling: FIP & hot tag - are going on a whole different level. He's the most popular guy on this roster. I firmly believe this. Fans LOVE to cheer this guy on once he's on fire. Nobody can stop him when he's rolling. Then you take a look at the other side of the coin and his FIP work is tremendous. Bliss. The love he demands from the fans by his performances comes out in spades. You feel for Danielson. You want him to make the tag and stop the beating. You want to root him on to come from behind. The ability to play both IN THE SAME MATCH to the highest level is...well more adjectives to be added. You get so much depth & character work from him in 20 minutes than you do from most of the WWE roster in an entire year. Legit.

Where is there left to say about how The Shield work their matches? We know the formula and just about 100% of the time it works. Their ultra cohesive, no time wasted assault meshes perfectly for all three. Their blend is their charm. Along with the sense of chaos that always follows behind them. While I thought the commentary at Extreme Rules did more harm than good throughout the night - a big portion of this match that deserves praise is the job done by Cole, King, & JBL all describing what it is that makes The Shield the perfect force they've been since November. Attention to detail. Calling out all points to their personalities fusing into something greater. Different types of men forming a unit that begins to become one man at the end of the day. It's near orgasmic the appreciation that is taken here. Shield's control segments are so interesting too. It's a formula seen about ten times over yet it manages to remain fresh every single time. That's talent. That's something special. The pinpoint accuracy of Rollins, to the unusual psychological format of Ambrose, all finished off with the ultra surprise that is the rogue beast of Reigns. A trifecta of absolution. It's flawless at this rate. From a storytelling/wrestling & kayfabe standpoint. Rollins getting to bust out the buckle bomb spot on Danielson was one of the spots in the match I was left grinning from ear to ear on. As was Rollins nutty bumping all over the match. He stuck out more than usual for me here. Really tried to put all the offense against him very over the top. Love him for that.

This match was tremendous. You must see it. Think this is a lock for my WWE MOTY.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Agreed w/Cody - also need to mention the internal struggle with Danielson being made to believe he's the weak link so he had even 
more to prove tonight. As Cody stated, this character turmoil showed brilliantly both on offense after a hot tag with Danielson defying the naysayers, and also as FIP when even he may have been doubting himself. Brilliant stuff.


----------



## Obfuscation

A glorious point to the match I forgot to plug. 

Spot on. (Y)


----------



## duttanized

Axel vs HHH - *****

Brilliant stuff, reminds me of the collapse angle they did back in the day with HBK and Owen.


----------



## Corey

OMG OMG OMG, this 13 hour work day cannot be over soon, NEED to to watch that 6-man. D-BRY :mark:


----------



## djmathers1207

Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston vs. Shield ****

Best Raw match of the year so far


----------



## Bubz

Fuck can't wait to see this match.


----------



## KeepinItReal

Obfuscation said:


> ^:lol I was going to right now. Ignore the first watch report. This is the one worth reading and plugging in here:
> 
> *WWE Extreme Rules - Steel Cage Match*
> 
> Brock Lesnar vs Triple H ~ ******​
> ~ THAT'S MY MANAGER. Yeah...the biggest change of them all for me on the second watch. This match. This match was WONDERFUL. Storytelling at its finest. On some much of this match. It's brilliant. From Brock's stellar selling of the knee, to Trips return to the Cerebral Assassin; all of it was on point. Best part about it was the total change in characters from both men. Past matches saw Trips the vulnerable man & Brock as the beast at SummerSlam. WrestleMania saw it be a dead heap - both were unleashed that night. Here at Extreme Rules the opposite happened. Brock suffered the knee injury thus making him the vulnerable man in the situation & Trips smelled the blood in the water and morphed into the beast. That's just absolutely fantastic work. Certainly this match was all lead along by Brock. No doubt about it. The character shift did show signs of giving Trips something fresher to do while against Brock. Can't forget about the awesome camouflage sledgehammer too. It's like Silver Surfer's weapon to bludgeon anyone he finds out in space. I adored Heyman's work in this too. From all aspects. As the concerned manager on the outside - to all the times he got in the mix to aid his client. He was fiesty, taking out officials and even suffering a pedigree for Brock. Little did Triple H know that Paul would have the last laugh. I have ZERO problems with Heyman hitting the low blow on Triple H before Brock got the advantage. Brock was wounded. There is no shame in this. It wasn't to "feed the ego" of Triple H. It was to not only have Brock Lesnar win this feud, but Paul Heyman too. Heyman gave Trips the biggest fuck you moment possible and that was by taking his arm and jamming it right into the groin of the COO. The dichotomy between Brock & Heyman has almost never reach a more pinnacle moment than this. It was defined here. Proof positive that they're both in it together. Brock is down; nearly out. Showing signs that he is mortal. Triple H about to finish off Lesnar like a lamb to the slaughter, only for his (Brock's) shining light in the form of his agent being the last push he needed in the right direction. Couple that with the original smoking gun - Triple H's own beloved sledgehammer - & Brock would end this once and for all. Proving he is truly the dominate force in WWE. Triple H tried. He fought well. Only his aid at WrestleMania to get one victory ended up being his ultimate downfall once he went to that well yet again. This was fabulous. Damn near saved the show.


Yeah it was a great match. All these nitpickers trying to find everything wrong with a pro wrestling match...

And Lesnar did sell the knee really well. Can't say I remember people selling an injury better, unless you don't wanna see the injured guy perform any maneuvers after that. I prefer action AND selling, but that's just me...


----------



## Groovemachine

My favourite part of the match was Ambrose squirming like crazy to prevent Bryan from properly locking in the No Lock. That in itself was beautiful...and then as Ambrose gets to the ropes, Rollins and Reigns swoop in, grabbing Dean and totally bailing from the ring to regroup. It massively put over the No Lock and showed just how close they potentially came to defeat. Really neat touch.

Oh, and I was so SO happy to see Rollins bust out the Buckle Bomb. :mark:


----------



## geraldinhio

Why can't I find The Shield match from RAW lastnight anywhere? Anyone care to help?


----------



## flag sabbath

geraldinhio said:


> Why can't I find The Shield match from RAW lastnight anywhere? Anyone care to help?


youtube is a minefield of dweebs doing live commentary & bs links to 'full shows'. It'll be up on dailymotion soon enough - Extreme Rules matches are on there already.


----------



## geraldinhio

Don't forgot the simulation matches from WWE 13. I guess I'll watch Team Hell No vs Rollins/Regins so. :mark: Maybe Brock vs Trips too.


----------



## DOPA

*The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (WWE 5/20): **** 1/4 *

This was an unbelievable TV match from start to finish. 2nd best Shield match behind the TLC match of last year. WWE MOTYC.


----------



## darkclaudio

WWE Extreme Rules 2013:
-John Cena vs Ryback ***1/4+
-Triple H vs Brock Lesnar ***1/4


----------



## geraldinhio

flag sabbath said:


> youtube is a minefield of dweebs doing live commentary & bs links to 'full shows'. It'll be up on dailymotion soon enough - Extreme Rules matches are on there already.


From 5:30 on if you haven't found a link yet. :mark:

http://www.dailymotion.com/desishows19#video=x102kbu


----------



## DOPA

*The Inner City Machine Guns & AR Fox vs. The Unbreakable F'N Steen Machines (PWG 23/3): **** 3/4*(fucking unreal)
*The Young Bucks© vs. DojoBros (PWG 23/3): **** 1/4*
*Sami Callihan vs. Kyle O'Reilly (PWG 23/3): *** 3/4*

PWG ASW Night 2 was stellar.


----------



## septurum

Shield vs Hell No & Kofi (WWE Raw 5/20/12)- ****


----------



## geraldinhio

*The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (WWE 5/20)*

Nice little pre-match promo. Rollins seems a lot more comfortable on the mic, which is a good sign. I really don't get a lot of the Kofi hate, I think he's ok. He has a nice crowd pleasing move set, he's over and makes for a nice face in peril. Like the little back story that Bryans wrestling like hes got something to prove. Wow, Rollins is very vocal during the match. 

When Bryan gets the hot tag he nearly kills Rollins with the clothesline and corner dropkick. Bryan is just so good. Agreed that Ambrose trying to get out of the no lock was pure gold. Love how it looked like Rollins was gonna buckle bomb Bryan at the otherside of the ring but changes it to the Shield's corner. Rollins is still very vocal shouting "You are the weak link" and "How weak can you be?". Love it. Fantastic workover of Bryan, the gang mentality of The Shield and their beatdowns are so good.

Things really pick up after Kane's hot tag and the stereo dives to the floor. You just see bodys flying with Bryan getting suplexed and Kingston getting drilled into the post. I'm usually Kane's wort critic but really enjoyed him here. Finish was very great, the strength in numbers with Ambrose getting cut off with his dive, Reigns getting goozled only for Rollins to fly in out of no where with an awesome looking knee. Reigns spear looks really good. Maybe the Kofi hate is right actually, he didn't add much to the match at all, made a very noticeable botch and gave the most stupid looking uppercut ever. 

Anyway really good match. *****+ *Everything the Shield do is gold, mostly because Bryan is in the majority of their matches. Loving the Shield push. Best thing WWE has done in ages.


----------



## Rah

*HHH Vs Brock Lesnar (19/05/2013 WWE)*
★★★★ 1/4+
_I've seen quite a number of posters stating Brock Lesnar as just another means for HHH to feed his ego. That due to Lesnar's popularity, HHH simply had to interject himself into that popularity for his own gains. That statement cannot be more wrong. Outside of Cena, who else could bring legitimate intensity to a feud against Lesnar? Who could take Lesnar's still stiff offence and return the favour in creating vicious brawls? I can't actually think of anyone. So not only did it keep the rest of the main event card open (the failure of these feuds is not the fault of HHH/Lesnar), but it was also the smartest move to make. Add in the fact that Lesnar beat himself at Wrestlemania, in a sense, and the HHH piss-taking loses any ground it stands on.

It's from here that this match takes its footing. While Heyman's managerial role has been a good commodity in this feud, it never quite took its presence to the level that it was here. Lesnar was never on the ropes, as King stated, but was rather using his manager as an outside observer to help guide himself away from making any key mistakes. It just happened to be a repeat of UFC 87 that would almost cost Lesnar his win. If that flying knee had hit, however, it would have been game over. Unlike Herring, though, The Game managed to capitalise on the injury and the match's focus was layed, allowing for Lesnar to pull off one of the most impressive selling jobs in WWE for a good long while. Add in Heyman's role, that never stepped over the limit in terms of booking, as well as Brock's facial expressions and quips ("that's my manager!" ) and this easily finds itself in the upper echelons of my MotY list. 

I don't feel that it's at the same level as Punk/Taker or Punk/Cena, but I'll be damned if there was any way this could have been done any better. Thusly, they get the stars for that. Bravo._ :clap



*The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (20/05/2013 WWE)*
★★★★ 1/4-
_Come on, weak link!

Weirdly, it's the weakest combination of wrestlers that delivers my favourite Shield match so far and the one with the greatest workrate of them all. Why, though? Because this kept every member in check, and ensured the better wrestlers maintained presence for much of the time allotted. That isn't to say Kofi and Kane never had their chance, because they did, but, rather, that they filtered into the match's narrative at exactly the right moments to feed the crowd's appreciation and control the match's pacing.

It's no secret, though, that this was a Rollins/D-Bryan affair. Both of these guys absolutely brought it in spades here, with Rollins bumping like a freak and Daniel Bryan delivering an offence indicative of why he simply is the best wrestler in North America today. One shouldn't discredit either Ambrose or Reigns, though. Ambrose just gets it in terms of developing his character into his matches and was integral in setting up Kane's hot tag as a nuclear moment. Reigns, well, he's just cementing himself as the future mega-star with these Shield tags; delivering smash-mouth, gutteral performances that I'm sure are making those in the back giddy. While I think he doesn't quite have it yet, he most certainly is becoming my top prospect in this super group._​

WWE are on an absolute role. Three out of my top five are matches off their cards.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Great stuff, Rah. Agreed on the Lesnar/HHH match. It was befitting that, as you said, Heyman's prior role was that of an observer. Heyman would call out advice and attempt to keep his beast out of harm's way. With a cage physically separating him from his client, there was also a psychological disconnect - almost a sense of helplessness - that ensued once Brock made that fatal mistake w/the running knee lift. From that point on, it was Heyman urging on Lesnar while simultaneously pleading with The Game that enchanced both the story and my overall enjoyment of what was taking place. It was almost like "You're on your own, Brock. I can't help you!" When he finally was able to weasel his way into the cage, that's when the tables turned, and facilitated Brock's comeback and soon-to-be-famous "That's my manager." It all came together really well. The more I think about it, the more I love that match.

As for the tag match from last night, I already commented about how great the match - and namely Bryan's performance - was, but you nailed it with your review. Rollins deserves heavy praise as well.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rollins was the man last night. Gosh that match was so well done. Still almost in awe by the work. If WWE gives us the Danielson vs Rollins match in this climate & with the similar given exposure, something very special can be shown on the grand stage of WWE.


----------



## Corey

*The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston *(_RAW 5/20_)

I'm not gonna lie, I feel a little dirty putting a match with Kofi fucking Kingston in the MOTYC thread, but hell, he deserves it. What a great, great match. I've been feeling some of the Shield's matches as of late have been getting overrated due to the fact that we're actually getting _quality _tag matches in the 'E right now and people just aren't used to it, but this one deserves all the praise it gets. Let's start with the obvious in saying how the match was structured almost perfectly. FIP segment with Kofi was highly entertaining (seriously, Reigns is a fucking animal) and the place just went BONKERS when Bryan got the hot tag. "I'm not the weak link!" Great character work from D-Bry as he's always just trying to kick the shit out someone to prove his worth and that little son of a bitch goes 150 mph the entire match. Not only did I love ALL of Rollins' bumping, but did anyone else notice how well he sold going after Bryan in the corner when he does that backflip? That really caught my eye too. Having the face team clean house going to commercial was a great idea.

Come back from commercial, match is still great. Another good FIP segment with Bryan as Shield members are talkin shit to him the whole time. I marked HARD for the Buckle Bomb in the corner, Bryan vs. Rollins needs to happen NOW please. Hot tag to Kofi was legit almost my favorite part of the match. He comes in lookin for nothing but revenge and those punches in the corner + the uppercut to Ambrose were NASTY and he sold it like a champ. Bryan literally running into the corner to set up for the basement dropkick was one hell of a touch. Whole thing breaking down at the end was fantastic, just leaving Reigns and Kane to slug it out. Stereo dives from Bryan & Kofi were awesome and Ambrose & Rollins taking them out was even better (Kofi's selling on that post shot was fucking great), but I honestly wasn't _too _fond of the finish. It just seemed a little flat to me for such a damn great match. I kinda wished Kane would've kicked out of the spear to a roar from the crowd and they would've had to finish him off with the Rollins & Reigns double team or Ambrose's weird looking finisher. Minor gripe really, but I wanted more. 

Regardless of me being iffy on the finish, this was by far the best tag match of the year & Shield's best match of the year thus far too. I was legit shocked by how much I enjoyed Kofi in it, his selling and viciousness were a blast. Bryan was of course the ultimate babyface underdog we know and love, Rollins bumped like a lunatic, & Reigns makes me wanna break something because he's so fucking INTENSE. Damn good match and I feel like I'm rating it too low, but it's just really hard for me to say it was better than Cena/Punk & Taker/Punk since those were on a much more meaningful level & both drew a little more emotion out of me. For now, we'll go with:

***** +*


----------



## Rah

Jack Evans 187 said:


> *The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston *(_RAW 5/20_)
> 
> I'm not gonna lie, I feel a little dirty putting a match with Kofi fucking Kingston in the MOTYC thread, but hell, he deserves it.


I put two. :


----------



## Obfuscation

Don't feel dirty about that hack being in the mix. He did nothing but exactly what he should have. Took a beating and threw in some offense to break up the pinfalls. He was regulated very smartly and he didn't affect the match in a negative _(or positive)_ way. Best Kofi Kingston match is the kind where you can forget he was in it and it still came off brilliantly.


----------



## geraldinhio

What was the other? The Cesaro one? Still haven't seen it. Starting night two of ASW, next match up is the 6 man. :mark:


----------



## Rah

Yep, Cesaro's godly spectacle. As for PWG, I'm honestly confused as to why people are liking that 6-man as much as they are, but I hope you enjoy it just as much, anyway.

No reply from HAYLEY on his thoughts of the show, though. :shock


----------



## Corey

Rah said:


> I put two. :


Wrestler of the year contender!? :lol

Started All Star Weekend last night, off to a damn good start with Steen/London.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Yep, Cesaro's godly spectacle. As for PWG, I'm honestly confused as to why people are liking that 6-man as much as they are, but I hope you enjoy it just as much, anyway.
> 
> No reply from HAYLEY on his thoughts of the show, though. :shock


Haven't watched Night Two yet.


----------



## geraldinhio

I'll get on Cesaro and Kofi soon, after ASW though. I can see me loving it. Love anything in PWG with Inner City Machine Guns. Glad everyone seemed to enjoy Steen/London. Was similar to Steen's match with Pac last year. Starts off fun and all hell breaks down. London is still fantastic. If London has a active year and stays motivated he could easily be WOTY for the Indies.


----------



## Obfuscation

Steen vs London was great. I even got a kick out of London vs Davey from Border Wars.

About as good of a start for London if he remains relevant on the Indies circa 2013.


----------



## Nervosa

Brock vs. Triple H
***1/2
Brock is awesome, and his selling here is amazing. Heyman was also incredible outside of the cage. But.....it still boiled down to a lot of plodding Triple H bullshit. Unless he's holding a weapon....everything he does is meaningless. I'll admit, Brock deserves a lot of credit for getting me to care this much about Hunter. The number one thing I hated is how Heyman takes a Pedigree but recovers immediately to low blow Hunter. I realize its important to the story...but the Pedigree is usually treated like death....you're telling me Heyman recovered in less than a minute from one of the most feared finishers in wrestling? Blah. 

Overall, a nice brutal match with steller selling from Brock. Honestly, I just don't see much more than that, though.

Shield vs. S-O-Hell No
***3/4
They got a lot of really good action in this, and Bryan's story was really great throughout the match. Kane as a house of fire was also entertaining, along with all the garbage talk from Rollins, who has really come into his own with his character. That said....Kofi did nothing for me, and Reigns didn't do much more. I thought the match really downshifted whenever either of them were in there. Finish was also really out of nowhere. I don't feel like the match ended at its climax at all. So yeah, amazing action, and most of the guys advanced their characters/ring style a lot, but there were definitely problems.

I hate to say it, but the Shield are seriously weak to me now ever since Cena dominated them 1-on-3. When the group that got owned 1-on-3 beats another 3 man team, all it does is make the other team look weaker. I don't see how giving them belts that no one has really cared about for 5 years seems to change that. 

I know its all super negative, and I am just starting to think I am unable to get into WWE's 'spectacle style.' It just makes too little sense and focuses way too much on creating moments as opposed to telling stories. I think both are necessary, but WWe just seems to want the former at the expense of the latter. I thought Punk/Taker was good and I loved Brock/Cena from last year, but I just have not liked many of their other MOTYCs. The two matches above along with Punk/Cena have all just made me wonder if I am just missing something with this style.

One last thought.....could Daniel bryan POSSIBLY be more under-utilized than he has been? He is the most over guy with every crowd, every night. His matches are amazing, most of them while wrestling people who have no clue what they are doing in there. I can't ever remember an era where a guy this over was pushed so little. Its certainly not his ring work, so what is it?


----------



## Concrete

*Bonesaw vs. Necro Butcher-PWS "Empire Strikes Back":***3/4*
_I can't really explain why the hell I enjoyed this match so much. I know for a fact that if I had seen this match maybe 2-3 years ago I would would have went BLAH! But in 2013 I could watch this match 5 times in a couple days. I say that since that is what has happened with this match. My self-diagnosed ADD loves short matches with lots of fun stuff these days. Necro Butcher is a prime example of my tastes doing practically a 180. He goes out there and doesn't wait to hurt Bonesaw(a gimmick based on Randy Savage's character in Spiderman)making him go splat. Necro bodyslams Bonesaw with a chair onto the bleachers aka Necro was being Necro. Fans decided to ruin it though by chanting "ECW". We are in 2013 this needs to stop. There is also some Olympic style trash can throwing. Bonesaw didn't look too great to me but he certainly did his part to make things work such as take gnarly bumps. I guess in that respect he actually did pretty good. I liked how when Necro got him in the punch/chop combo he tried curling away only to get met with a bulldog as well as doing his own version of the the punch/chop combo. I also was a sucker for BONESAW since a wrestling reference in a movie, let alone a comic book movie, brought great joy to the young kid version of me. Okay I've rambled on enough so final thought is this is a super fun Necro Butcher match and 2013 seems like it is going to have quite a few of them by the end of the year. _​


----------



## Bruce L

*CHIKARA — Battle Not With Monsters (5/3)*

Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant — ★★★★¼
Kingston's first great title defense since he beat Tadasuke at King of Trios

Amasis vs. the Shard — ★★★★
I love Pieces of Hate as a tag team, but man, Shard singles matches are just the best

UltraMantis Black, Hallowicked, & Frightmare vs. Icarus, Chuck Taylor, & Johnny Gargano — ★★★★
That trios thing Chikara does oh so well, with some interesting storyline advancement for F.I.S.T.

Jigsaw vs. Archibald Peck — ★★★¾
Jigsaw doesn't have matches that aren't good, Archibald Peck doesn't have matches (or appearances, really) that aren't fun, and this one is what you'd expect with that knowledge

Mr. Touchdown vs. Chiva Kid — ★★★½
Chiva Kid is apparently some sort of flying, soccer-playing goat-man, and looked pretty good here, while Touchdown is Touchdown

So five out of eight matches on this show rate between ★★★½ and ★★★★¼ for me, and the three that don't are still chock full of fun Chikara goodness. (Never has comedy in wrestling worked for me as well as it does in Chikara, and never has Chikara made me laugh harder than they are with the Colony: Xtreme Force.) The first half of the show does have kind of a weird vibe, however, thanks to the ongoing antics of "guest ring announcer" Tim Donst and his entourage of misfits, who I think are definitely most effective in small doses. Still, a very strong show from top to bottom.


----------



## Bruce L

*CHIKARA — The Ghost of You Clings (5/4)*

3.0 vs. Obariyon & Kodama — ★★★★¼
Really great Campeones match; bit of a callback to 3.0's challenge against Claudio & Ares from 2010

Eddie Kingston vs. Mr. Touchdown — ★★★★
Bit of a step down from the previous night's Grand Championship match, but still pretty great

UltraMantis Black, Hallowicked, Frightmare, & Green Ant vs. DeviANT & the Colony: Xtreme Force — ★★★½
Just your standard Chikara atomicos fun here


----------



## Corey

*Roderick Strong vs. Taiji Ishimori *(_ROH TV 5/25)_

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...iji-ishimori_sport?search_algo=2#.UZ_y-XbD_IU​Oh this match was all kinds of pretty, and yes the date is correct. It won't be aired on TV until tomorrow night but I stumbled across it on dailymotion and had to give it a watch. Good call on my part. Speed is the name of the game early on as Ishimori tries to run around the ring but Strong is able to keep up with him and even stop him from hitting some signature dives to the outside. Strong hits a back suplex on the apron and it's control segment time. I was rather happy by how long Strong got to be in control as he cut off Ishimori on a couple different occasions and hit his usual backbreakers and gutbusters, which always look great. 

When Ishimori makes his comeback there's one particular counter down the stretch that I won't spoil, but it was very Claudio/Generico like and made me :mark:. Strong gets dropped on his head on more than one occasion and eats some painful looking offense from Ishimori. It's also conveyed very well (Nigel pointed it out too) how normally late in a match Strong is always trying to close the distance and outlast his opponent, but many times in this you can see him having to catch his breath from trying to keep up with the quicker Ishimori. 

I was incredibly pleased with this match as a whole and if you're like me and HATE the current style of ROH where psychology/story/selling/common logic is grossly non-existent almost everywhere you look, you'll be pleased with this like I was. Current fans of ROH will enjoy this just the same. I'd be confident in saying this is the best ROH match that has been put on their tv show since joining SBG, just in front of Davey/Eddie IV, Lethal/Generico I, & Davey/Roddy for the World Title. Great stuff. I've yet to see Ishimori's match with Eddie Edwards, but if this is an indicator of it then I'm in for another treat.

******​


----------



## Obfuscation

I had a ton of fun with that match, but I didn't LOVE it. Nonetheless, I'd agree with putting it over for a watch and def checking it out. Ishimori was a boatload of fun with his two matches he had in ROH. I want him back already. Strong needed that match. He hasn't had much to offer this year from ROH pardon his match vs Anderson & a fun bout vs Grizzly Redwood.

****1/2* for me, btw.


----------



## EmbassyForever

*The Shield vs Orton, Sheamus and Kingston - ***3/4*
Yet another GREAT Shield match. How awesome are they? Reigns is a beast and it was a great TV match.

BTW Jericho vs Show from the same show was good as well but short. Hopefully they'll have a PPV match in the future.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Accidentally rated a match I didn't watch. Thought this was for Eddie/Ishimori. Whoops. Delete.


----------



## Caponex75

Can we get some people talking about KENTA/Sugiura?

Oh and can we get more people shitting on Ryback/Cena?

The Shield praise is about right though.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Caponex75 said:


> Can we get some people talking about KENTA/Sugiura?


Keep in mind I'm a NOAH noob. I've barely seen anything but I watched this. 

Loved the spear through the ropes, thought the stomp over the rail to the outside was amazing, and the german into the turnbuckle was great. Some of the shots were just stiff as fuck and made me cringe. It was great but it was also the problem. So much no selling. I could buy the argument that these guys are just tough motherfuckers but it was kind of ridiculous at points. And the ending sequence with 3 GTS's was overkill. But overall, I really liked the match. Need to watch more NOAH and DDT but I usually watch stuff that gets pimped here and barely anyone pimps either promotion so I need to find another site that reviews their stuff so I can pick and choose the good and bad. 

*** 3/4 for me.


----------



## Bubz

Shield vs Hell No & Kofi was fantastic. Two great heat segments, two great hot tags, Bryan being the absolute greatest and everyone else played their roles brilliantly. Shield are still ace, Reigns is fucking awesome. ****


----------



## Obfuscation

^(Y)

Reigns is the MAN, but I thought on The Shield side of things it was all about Rollins in that one.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

I think I actually enjoyed the Smackdown match with Sheamus/Orton/Kofi better but I wasn't really 100% focused on either match when I was watching Raw and Smackdown.


----------



## rafz

Updating with my last views:

NOAH 10/03
_KENTA vs. Maybach Taniguchi_
******

PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 2
_The Young Bucks vs. DojoBros_
*****1/2*

PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 2
_The Inner City Machine Guns & AR Fox vs. The Unbreakable F'N Steen Machines_
******

NOAH Global League 28/04
_KENTA & Yoshihiro Takayama vs. Kensuke Sasaki & Katsuhiko Nakajima_
*****1/4*

NOAH 12/05
_KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura_
*****1/4*

WWE Extreme Rules
_Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H - Steel Cage Match_
******

WWE RAW 20/05
_The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston_
*****1/4*


----------



## Concrete

*Mike Cruz vs. Vordell Walker-SGCW(5/4/13):*****
_If you don't like Vordell Walker right now, for SHAME! Dude is one of my favorites on the indies. Cruz doesn't get a ton of recognition either but maybe FIP will get them more "mainstream indie" attention. If there is a better term for that inform me cause that seems oxymoron-like. But moving one,you may remember from earlier this year that these two had a match in Florida where Walker was a monster heel and Cruz was sort of a plain face. Here, Walker is the face and Cruz is a chickenshit heel with a manager. This dynamic works even better than the one prior. Cruz did his stuff real well and Walker did his power game.In their prior match Walker's leg was the focus of Cruz's attack but in this one it was the arm. Based on my shitty memory both focuses of attack came about from Cruz finding an opening and then just sticking to it. Walker sells the arm like a champ. Maybe not QUITE as awesomely as he did the leg but that's because he had the nifty spot where his leg gave out a little on him when he was doing a power move. It was still super selling though. Great match even if their is no sound and the video isn't the best quality. Legit, if someone got a video with better video and sound I'd do my best to befriend them._​


----------



## Rah

I tried watching it sometime last week and was put off by the video quality. It's honestly a shame as their match from earlier this year was class. I really should rewatch this ASAP, though, as Vordell Walker is the man.


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> I tried watching it sometime last week and was put off by the video quality. It's honestly a shame as their match from earlier this year was class. I really should rewatch this ASAP, though, as Vordell Walker is the man.


Their match earlier this year was really good. This match I think beat it out though. You really need to watch Rah. The one match I couldn't watch because of quality was ***** vs. Santos off the 92 YB. Blizzard with no sound. ARGHH!

Kenta vs. Sugiura was good, not sure I'd call it great though. Something about both men beating the piss out of each other for 30+ minutes is delightful but it comes a time when I was just like "I GET IT" and not in a "eureka" moment.It is certainly worth a watch just because of the brutality and shizznit.


----------



## Corey

*PWG - All Star Weekend 9: Night Two

*The Unbreakable F'N Steen Machines (Kevin Steen, Brian Cage, & Michael Elgin) vs. AR Fox, Ricochet, & Rich Swann - ****

Idk why but I feel a little dirty putting this on here. It's not a match like structured super well or has any kind of underdog comeback performance or anything like that, it's just plain out FUN. The triple suplex spot where Steen yells "let's hold em up for a long time" and what ensues afterwards is just hilarious. The whole match is really nothing but 20+ minutes of comedy and spots, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't love it. Some of the sequences they put together were pretty damn awesome and the finish is oh so satisfying. Some of you who haven't seen it yet (one person in particular) will absolutely love it.​
--------------------------------------------------------

*PWG World Tag Team Championship
*The Young Bucks (c) vs. Dojo Bros (Eddie Edwards & Roderick Strong) - ****

It's The Young Bucks, how is this match NOT gonna be great? Their whole shtick in this is fantastic, especially the way the match got started (I won't spoil it but Steen & Excalibur on commentary CANNOT contain themselves). Really the whole match is chops from the Dojo Bros, superkicks from the Bucks, then a bunch of really fucking awesome sequences. The way the last few minutes were booked really didn't add any mystery as to who was winning but it still has that PWG touch and makes it even more fun. FUN, that's the name of the game for these two contests.​


----------



## flag sabbath

Decided to watch the NOAH stuff folks have mentioned in here, so I must have seen 500+ no-sold stiff strikes in the last 24hrs....

*Kenta vs. Maybach Taniguchi:* Mixed feelings about this one. They work hard & tell a compelling (albeit far fetched) story, but it's like pulling teeth with this crowd. Their biggest reaction of the match is for the ref standing up to Taniguchi's dated shenanigans. ****1/4*

*Kenta & Takayama vs. Sasaki & Kojima:* Does anyone remember the last time Kensuke sold anything? Thankfully, the oldies are mostly bit part players here & the closing exchanges between Kenta & Kojima are proper dynamic. ****1/2*

*Kenta vs. Suguira:* Now this is great - the match Richard & Edwards (or Elgin) imagine they've had. Sure, they stretch tough guy plausibility to its limits, but the Korakuen faithful buys into it & everything makes sense if you accept the context of two fighting machines taking it on the chin til there's nothing left. ******

Also joining my MOTYC list are the Shield vs. Hell No & Kingston epic from last week's Raw ****3/4* & Shingo vs. BxB Hulk from Infinity 295 ****3/4*


----------



## EmbassyForever

So guess what?

Another awesome Shield match.

Shield vs Team Hell No - ***3/4


----------



## Groovemachine

The Shield vs Team Hell No - WWE Raw 5.27.13 - ****

I liked this just as much as the six-man from last week. All four men brought the goodness, it's that simple. There's so much to love about this one; I don't have all the necessary adjectives to avoid going into hyperbole so I'll just list all the great stuff:


-Bryan's house of fire hot tag. The dropkick to Reigns got such a big pop and Bryan looked so good here.
-Rollins showing his cocky douche side again, stealing the surfboard stretch. Really love his subtle character touches he's introducing.
-Bryan using his strength to get out of the surfboard. He knows his own move very well!
-Bryan using the back superplex...yay! (Although the commercial break after that killed the suspense)
-Reign's frickin awesome shoulder tackle to Bryan; that looked rough.
-Love the story of Daniel needing to prove he's not the weaker link, but at a price. Don't know if it's leading to a Team Hell No split or if Bryan's just gonna go ape-shit on The Shield at some point, but either way it's got me hooked.

Let's just have this match on Raw every week, please. It's a lot more watchable than anything else on the show.


----------



## KingKicks

Going to rewatch the tag match later today but on first watch, ***3/4 feels about right. Bryan performs the best hot tag in wrestling today.


----------



## Wrestlinfan35

Shield match this week wasn't nearly as good as last week's. Still decent. After a second watch, I wouldn't go past ****1/2*. Bryan's performance was killer.


----------



## Rah

I'll do a write-up tomorrow (so I can keep the three matches I have into one post) but that Vordell Walker match is really nice, once you get past the lack of sound and crap video. You really should watch it, especially if you watched their earlier match. It's a bit better.


----------



## seabs

*Shield tag this week was better than the 6 man last week. Around ***3/4 still though. Starts off just there until Bryan gets the hot tag and then oh fuck. Bryan's pretty limited and his moveset is kinda repetitive in this current role working tags vs The Shield but as he does with everything he's in he rules the shit out of it. I don't mean repetitive in a negative sense either. His hot tags rule but god I want to see him work a singles match already. FUCK. Once Kane gets out and the actual talent gets to go at it this stays on a really high level. Bryan's as over as I can remember anyone in WWE being on a week to week basis. It's almost 80's territories esque when he comes in off those hot tags and everyone goes nuts. Heat segment on Bryan is naturally great too. Rollins and Reigns have easily been the most impressive Shield members so far. Ambrose has some great perks to him but he's the one I'm least excited about watching in the ring. Rollins is basically night and day compared to when he left ROH. Trash talking during the FIP spell ruled. Reigns is amazing. Duh. He's showing signs of being a really smart worker too on top of the awesome presence that fits his character just perfectly. Had some awesome tension expressions in this when Bryan wouldn't stay down. Actual finish is kinda tame due to Kane but fuck Reigns catching Bryan's dive more than made up for it. Rollins/Reigns vs Sheamus/Orton with time could be a legit MOTYC.*


----------



## Obfuscation

Shield vs Hell No rematch earns ******

I went into detail elsewhere on why I loved it so, as if the key components aren't obvious. Except Reigns probably had his best performance yet in this one. Have you ever seen anyone kill Danielson like Reigns did with shoulder blocks & clotheslines? Simple offense and this man makes it look like the world's deadliest wrestling moves. Guy is so damn legit. It's scary awesome at how great he'll be in the future. He's already managed to exceed everyone's expectations when being grouped with two partners with a great deal of fanfare behind 'em.


----------



## Rah

I found Reigns' slightly weak here, being off on his one foot. I'd attribute that to his injury but it still didn't seem "right". Guy is groaning and delivering violence-filled "I should main-event this shit" performances in spades, however.

I sincerely hope they go for the singles split in Bryan trying to prove he's not the weak link. D-Bry/Rollins with time would be great. Though noting two landings from this and last week, he's going to break his neck bumping for Daniel.


----------



## Obfuscation

The tender ankle is partial towards why I felt a bit blown away by Reigns' explosive offense more than usual. It didn't appear to hinder his work much (from my perspective) nor did he even allow it to. I like that; a lot. He's working hard in his role right now. Putting so much overt the top - in the best way - and showing the world what he has to offer.

Rollins has always been nut in bumping over the years. I like to say "he knows what he's doing" but that's beyond naive. Bless him for being the maniac in selling Danielson's offense the way he does. As long as he can remain healthy upon doing so, I'll welcome it. Safety first, of course. I bet his mindset is: if I can survive the table bump from TLC, nothing can injury me.


----------



## Rah

Obfuscation said:


> The tender ankle is partial towards why I felt a bit blown away by Reigns' explosive offense more than usual. It didn't appear to hinder his work much (from my perspective) *nor did he even allow it to*. I like that; a lot. He's working hard in his role right now. Putting so much overt the top - in the best way - and showing the world what he has to offer.
> 
> Rollins has always been nut in bumping over the years. I like to say "he knows what he's doing" but that's beyond naive. Bless him for being the maniac in selling Danielson's offense the way he does. As long as he can remain healthy upon doing so, I'll welcome it. Safety first, of course. I bet his mindset is: if I can survive the table bump from TLC, nothing can injury me.


That's what I actually liked about him here. I was worried as to whether he'd play it safe or not but he went in full guns blazing. I'm not sure as to what extent his injury goes, but that's pretty admirable considering.

I really should get on to that TLC match. fpalm


----------



## Obfuscation

You haven't seen the TLC match yet? Drop everything and devote the next thirty minutes to checking it out. At the very least you'll have a fun time watching. Or feel like the majority in thinking it was a splendid showcase for everyone involved - especially Bryan considering his key babyface work. Which at this point is known lore.


----------



## Groovemachine

^ Haha yep, that TLC match is one of the best booked WWE matches in years. Everyone looked so damn good. Talk about a proper debut for The Shield. Dare I say it...perfection.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's near that point. Arguable stances on why it isn't are hard to come by.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Yeah I don't agree with everyone pimping the last few matches on Raw giving it ****+ (while they are good) but the TLC match is **** and their best match. Watch it.


----------



## The Streak

Just watched All Star Weekend Night One, and holy shit. What a show, the first 4 matches were all 4 star plus for me. Didn't like the U f'n M/Futureshock match as much as some on here but it was still good, and worth repeat veiwing. I'd say 3 1/2 to 3 3/4. Trent v Roddy was a bit of a let down, but how could it follow ICMG v Fox/Del Sol? Don't even know what to say about Drake/Sami.....just......fuck.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Yeah the TLC match is one of those matches that gets better every time I watch it. I honestly never get tired of it. I find subtle nuances that I didn't notice before with every viewing. Shield made a ridiculous debut, Ryback looked good in his parts playing the huge brute that the Shield had to eliminate via strength-by-numbers, and as usual Bryan put in a hell of a babyface performance. 

BLACKOUT ON CHAIR~!


----------



## Bruce L

*All Japan, All Asia Tag Titles — Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka (C) vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (3/17)*
Loved this. Reminded me of a great old late '90s-early '00s juniors tag, before they all started going way too long for no damn reason. Lots of people have said this already, but allow me to add my voice to the chorus praising all the BURNING members for how rejuvenated they look in All Japan — and Kotaro and Aoki never struck me as particularly in need of rejuvenation before. Apparently the third match between these two teams is a major letdown, but this one does indeed rule. ★★★★¼

I just got the second match in this trilogy today, and am now very excited to check it out.


----------



## rockdig1228

I don't really worry about giving star ratings to matches, but I look at it from an entertainment value perspective and one of those factors is the live crowd response. That's one of the reasons why Team Hell No vs. The Shield was so much fun to watch for me... that match and the Punk/Cena match on Raw before Mania are my two favorite matches of the year so far on free TV. The six-man tag two weeks ago was good, but there were lulls where the crowd wasn't really into the match - this week though they were in it from the get-go & all the way to the finish.

And honestly, with the state of tag team wrestling in the WWE recently, I'll go ahead & say that match on this week's Raw was the best straight up 2-on-2 match they've had in years. That's just my opinion though and I'm sure others may disagree.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Yeah this is honestly the first time I've been interested in the tag team division in years.


----------



## Bubz

Hell No vs Shield was fantastic. Bryan is legit the greatest ever. Reigns and Rollins both rule. Kane was kept limited so he was fine as usual. A singles match between any of the Shield guys and Bryan would be awesome. Anyway, FIP segment on Bryan ruled and so did his hot tag as usual but fuck me the crowd couldn't be more behind Bryan. When was the last time a wrestler got that reaction from a crowd weekly? Fuck. The best.


----------



## djmathers1207

Review of the Hell No/Shield series

Team Hell No & Ryback vs. The Shield- WWE TLC ****1/4
Team Hell No vs. The Shield- Extreme Rules ***1/4-***3/4
Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston vs. The Shield- Raw 5/20/13 ****
Team Hell No vs. The Shield- Raw 5/27/13 ****


----------



## Obfuscation

No thoughts on the matches with Cena & Undertaker?


----------



## flag sabbath

So the good people at HM Customs finally let me have my ASW9 dvds for a measly 12 fucking quid. Night One is my favourite US show of the year so far, despite Eddie Edwards and Jay Lethal's worst efforts:

Paul London vs. Kevin Steen ****3/4*
Young Bucks vs. Chuck Taylor & Johnny Gargano ******
AR Fox & Samuray Del Sol vs. Inner City Machine-guns *****1/4*
Drake Younger vs. Sami Callihan ****3/4*

Also enjoyed the Rey Cometa vs Namajague hair match from 26/4 (****3/4*), although the CMLL big match formula is tediously predictable.


----------



## rafz

NOAH Final Burning 11/05
_Kenta Kobashi, Akiyama, Mutoh & Sasaki vs. KENTA, Shiozaki, Kanemaru & Maybach Taniguchi_

This match MUST be mentioned. Not just because it was the farewell of a living legend, but for reminding us of the essence and because we learned to love professional wrestling.

For almost 40 minutes a fantastic story is told. The atmosphere was amazing, with a Budokan sold out, hot crowd, amazing entrances from Mutoh, Akiyama and Sasaki, which brings so great memories of the golden years of puroresu and finally comes Kobashi. How can we not remember his return from cancer in 2007 during this final entrance?

The beginning of the match shows the great psychology between Kobashi and his main disciple KENTA , where the disciple as usual of his character, does not accept being down in any situation, with great strikes they remembered their last confrontations years ago. As was we also remembered the rivalry between Shiozaki and Sasaki during some moments, surely one of the great moments in the Go's career.

Each fulfilled their role. Kobashi gave a show to the crowd, showing a lot for your classic moves as the multiple variations chop's to a ending with a beautiful moonsault.

This match had all the essence of professional wrestling needs to have, as it can mess with the excitement and all emotions of the audience, as was the case of the little boy caught crying by the camera. Nearfalls, comebacks, moves, everything was incredible. Everything made by Kobashi, Misawa, among others during the 90s in AJPW, that made ​​me love a professional wrestling until this day.

Puting all this together, sorry guys but I can't help love this match.

*****1/2*


----------



## djmathers1207

TNA Slammiversary

Matches of the night so far

Ultimate X Match
Gail Kim vs. Taryn Terrell
Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles


----------



## darkclaudio

Slammivrsary
Ultimate X ***
Terrel vs Kim ***1/2
Kurt Angle vs AJ Styles ***1/2+


----------



## Ten410

*TNA Slammiversary XI*

*Ultimate X Match for the TNA X Division Championship*
 Kenny King vs. Chris Sabin vs. Suicide

*Last Knockout Standing* 
Gail Kim vs. Taryn Terrell
(This match shocked the shit out of me!!!.)

Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles


----------



## DOPA

*Eddie Edwards vs. Taiji Ishimori (ROH 4/5): *****

*Jay Briscoe(c) vs. Adam Cole (ROH 4/5): ***3/4*

Jay has a lot of potential to have some great matches in his title reign if given the right opponents. If this was given a bit more time it could have been even better. Ishimori/Edwards was a great match, lived up to what I expected.


----------



## djmathers1207

Ultimate X ****
Gail Kim vs. Taryn Terrell **** [this was a surprisingly great match]
Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles ****1/2-****1/4
Sting vs. Bully Ray ***3/4 [Good match and the crowd was into it]
Have to rewatch some of the other matches

Can't wait for Chris Sabin vs. Bully Ray at Destination X, which should be an interesting match.


----------



## Rah

If you thought Ishimori/Edwards was good I suggest watching KENTA/Suigura as it's heaps better. Ishi/Edwards was lifeless and actively bad in parts. Loved how they just sat around waiting for their opponent to finally execute their moves. Edwards standing on the outside for a good five seconds as Ishi just stood on the top turnbuckle was laughable. Still, probably Edwards best match this year, so far.

Nigel is getting annoying, as well. I was particularly happy he just shut up during the match. He sounds like Andy Parsons speaking while holding his nose.


----------



## DOPA

Completely disagree with you Rah But I'll watch the KENTA/Suigura match.

*Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (CMLL 15/3): ****1/4*

*Namajague Vs Rey Cometa(CMLL 26/4): ****1/2 *

So finally got round to watching these. Hyped up Lucha matches this year have been hit and miss for me but these two matches....holy jesus were they were worth watching. It's safe to say Namajague and Rey Cometa both have a new fan. Their singles match especially was stellar. Absolutely phenomenal from start to finish. Definitely my favourite lucha match I've seen all year. Namajague plays a phenomenal heel and Cometa is unbelievably athletic. Some of the spots this guy pulls off....insane. The whole story of the match from Namajague jumping Cometa at the bell to press the early advantage, to his heat segments and the superb come backs from Cometa. Towards the end despite the slow counting which I dislike from CMLL this had some real believable near falls. Something which I've always struggled with when it comes to Lucha. The pinning sequence from these two starting with Namajague desperately trying to put Cometa away by bending and breaking the rules was fantastic especially. Loved it.

*Roderick Strong vs. Taiji Ishimori (ROH 5/25): *****

Better than Ishimori/Edwards.


----------



## Corey

Crusade said:


> *Roderick Strong vs. Taiji Ishimori (ROH 5/25): *****
> 
> Better than Ishimori/Edwards.


:hb

Watch that if you haven't Rah. Much better than Edwards/Ishimori, which was just a display of moves.


----------



## Rickey

Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback: Monday Night Raw, June 3rd 2013.

Rybackrules
Bryanrules


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah Ishimori vs Edwards was a visual display match at best. On the first watch I was like "woah, this is really good." Then the second go around I noticed the flaws. Not a horrible way to kill 15 minutes. Just not a match to go out of your way to see. Strong vs Ishimori has it beat on all aspects.


----------



## Rah

I'll watch the Roddy/Ishi match on one condition; that you guys watch the Namajague matches.


----------



## Obfuscation

Explain.

btw you see Kingston vs Green Ant II yet? Its like the total opposite of a match from what their first one was earlier this year. Of course I mean this in a positive fashion. Good stuff - they beat the tar out of each other. 

oh and Touchdown vs Chiva Kid happened on the same show. Just saying.


----------



## Rah

Obfuscation said:


> Explain.


This:


Spoiler: matches you must watch



*Namajague Vs Rey Cometa (Aspuestas - CMLL 26/04)* 
★★★★
_Namajague's split-legged powerbomb and spear are amazing visuals. Namajague really gets "it" in terms of what a wrestler should be, as he's putting on an amazing run all of a sudden. Everything here clicked, with the selling from both men being good to great, and each fall felt worthwhile. Namajague might have now lost both his mask and hair in quick succession, but his stock has only but gone up.
_


*Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. Vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (Aspuestas - CMLL 15/03) *
★★★★ 1/4
_Namajague stiff kicking Stuka's head, nonchalantly, in breaking the pin is probably the best metaphor to use in how Namajague's taken to my best worker list. The inner story of Stuka always being there for Rey only for Rey to attempt to be too flashy in his offence leading to many backfires throughout the match was nifty. Really nice visual as Stuka screams for Rey not to try finish the match with a 450 only for Rey to actually make it work. The misses really helped build that final move, however, and the crowd really ate the final pinfall up. Phenomenal match that is easily one of the better lucha matches this year. Watch this, please?_



Crusade said:


> *Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (CMLL 15/3): ****1/4*
> 
> *Namajague Vs Rey Cometa(CMLL 26/4): ****1/2 *
> 
> So finally got round to watching these. Hyped up Lucha matches this year have been hit and miss for me but these two matches....holy jesus were they were worth watching. It's safe to say Namajague and Rey Cometa both have a new fan. Their singles match especially was stellar. Absolutely phenomenal from start to finish. Definitely my favourite lucha match I've seen all year. Namajague plays a phenomenal heel and Cometa is unbelievably athletic. Some of the spots this guy pulls off....insane. The whole story of the match from Namajague jumping Cometa at the bell to press the early advantage, to his heat segments and the superb come backs from Cometa. Towards the end despite the slow counting which I dislike from CMLL this had some real believable near falls. Something which I've always struggled with when it comes to Lucha. The pinning sequence from these two starting with Namajague desperately trying to put Cometa away by bending and breaking the rules was fantastic especially. Loved it.








> btw you see Kingston vs Green Ant II yet? Its like the total opposite of a match from what their first one was earlier this year. Of course I mean this in a positive fashion. Good stuff - they beat the tar out of each other.
> 
> oh and Touchdown vs Chiva Kid happened on the same show. Just saying.


Which show is that on? If Ant/Kingston was more of a pumelling than it was technical it may just make me swell with happiness. I've got Saturyne/Touchdown II (well, the entire iPPV from the weekend) listed for a watch this week. But Touchdown/Kid is too ridiculous a match to wait that long for.


----------



## Obfuscation

Battle Not With Monsters 5/3. It certainly was more of a pummeling type affair than it was a technical bout like how they did it back in February. One spot in the match is nuts at how painful it had to be. 5/3 show > 5/4 show, but not to say the 5/4 show _(The Ghost of You Clings...)_ didn't have a match or two worth seeing. Pieces of Hate vs Colony was quite good _(not MOTYC though)_ & Championship winner vs Touchdown was quality. Maybe you know the results, but I figured I'd avoid spoilers.

Dude. I have Never Compromise iPPV downloaded. Only I have to wait b/c I am wanting to watch Tag World Grand Prix first. Chronological order and all that jazz. I HATE having to wait when I know the PPV is waiting to be watching at this very moment. The price of avoiding results for the entire year. Fingers crossed Touchdown vs Saturyne II is on par with their first match.

I won't make any promising on the Lucha viewing b/c I put it on the backburner. My catching up process is going along smoothly so who knows, maybe it'll be much sooner rather than later when I get around to viewing 'em.


----------



## DOPA

I still need to catch up with Chikara and AJPW. What matches are worth watching from the carnival tournament. Anyone?


----------



## Rah

KAI/Akiyama (21/04 and 29/04)
Suwama/KAI

The final is an easy MotYC.



Obfuscation said:


> Battle Not With Monsters 5/3. It certainly was more of a pummeling type affair than it was a technical bout like how they did it back in February. One spot in the match is nuts at how painful it had to be. 5/3 show > 5/4 show, but not to say the 5/4 show _(The Ghost of You Clings...)_ didn't have a match or two worth seeing. Pieces of Hate vs Colony was quite good _(not MOTYC though)_ & Championship winner vs Touchdown was quality. Maybe you know the results, but I figured I'd avoid spoilers.
> 
> Dude. I have Never Compromise iPPV downloaded. Only I have to wait b/c I am wanting to watch Tag World Grand Prix first. Chronological order and all that jazz. I HATE having to wait when I know the PPV is waiting to be watching at this very moment. The price of avoiding results for the entire year. Fingers crossed Touchdown vs Saturyne II is on par with their first match.
> 
> I won't make any promising on the Lucha viewing b/c I put it on the backburner. My catching up process is going along smoothly so who knows, maybe it'll be much sooner rather than later when I get around to viewing 'em.


I IMPLORE you to watch as quickly as you can. Just so we can be the smug hipsters going "yeah, we knew Namajague was good before he returned to Japan".

As for Chikara, I am still unspoiled (I'm honestly not too phased about that, though) but considering I'm a massive fan of Touchdown I probably will not care who he works with. As long as I get to see him wrestle I'd be happy.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> KAI/Akiyama (21/04 and 29/04)
> Suwama/KAI
> 
> The final is an easy MotYC.
> 
> 
> 
> I IMPLORE you to watch as quickly as you can. Just so we can be the smug hipsters going "yeah, we knew Namajague was good before he returned to Japan".
> 
> As for Chikara, I am still unspoiled (I'm honestly not too phased about that, though) but considering I'm a massive fan of Touchdown I probably will not care who he works with. As long as I get to see him wrestle I'd be happy.


KAI stole the tournament, eh? I was looking to Shiozaki as the MVP. I just began my quest to watch every Champions Carnival match. Probably an ill move, yet, I'm going to do so. It started off swell with KENSO having a match that I honestly think may be the best I've ever seen from him.

Well perhaps if I get the itch later tonight among the mass I need to watch as it is. I suppose I can take time out and view two matches for the sake of being a wrestling hipster. Always at the fore-front of who was better before they got popular. JUST LIKE CM PUNK.

Touchdown is still like the MVP of the year. Kingston is creeping up with his Grand Championship defenses, but Touchdown's consistency seems to have the edge right now. The man is a marvel. Stupid friggin TWGP hurry up and be released. I need to see more Touchdown goodness. I don't even know the teams in Tag World, lolz. Only the Heart Throbs b/c they were announced first. Oh and the Grand Championship match that was signed ??? vs Archibald Peck. Which I'm hoping should rule. _(that's not a spoiler, it was announced prior and does nothing to ruin the fun of not knowing prior results._ )


----------



## DOPA

Namajague is such a friggin good heel worker.


----------



## Corey

Bookmarked your post on the Namajague, Rah. Will watch in the future. Along with Roddy/Ishimori you should also check out Matt Hardy vs. Sami Callihan from 2CW. Don't think I remember seeing any thoughts from you on that, just myself, Cody, & Crusade plus one or two others. I can provide you with links to both if needed.


----------



## Obfuscation

Speaking of that, I still have to see Morrison vs Steen. Baby steps. I'm not as far behind atm as I thought.


----------



## Concrete

If Morrison vs. Callihan from 2CW's Living on the Edge 8 Nt.1 pops up online somehow or someway that should be watched. May be better than Hardy vs. Callihan the next night. I enjoyed Steen vs. Morrison live. 

Lets get the Namajague bandwagon started. Can't wait till he goes back to NJPW.


----------



## seabs

*Well if you told me Namajague was New Japan rookie Mikami then I would have been all over them. :leslie*


----------



## Bubz

Bryan vs Ryback from RAW was great. About ***1/2. Bryan is the best babyface since Rey in the mid 00's, easily. He couldn't be more over, the crowd eat out of the palm of his hand and they go fucking bat shit for him. Nobody has been able to get that reaction from a WWE crowd for years. I'm not talking a single pop from an entrance or a pop for a finisher like the RKO (although if anyone comes close to Bryan it's Orton), I'm talking genuinely freaking out when he makes comebacks or hits his stuff, and it's all down to him and the way he plays his character in the ring and his overall performance. It's incredible, I'm at the point now where I'm thinking he's a legit all time great, no question. When he locked in the No Lock here I was almost shouting at my tv for Ryback to tap, and I knew the result. Don't know the last time I was so behind a babyface constantly, it's like I'm 13 years old again or something. He owns this role he's in now, just like he has every role he's been given in the company. His character work here and the last few weeks has been something else completely. I can't name one person in the world that's better at being a pro wrestler.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Agreed w/everything you said. I really hope they keep this character transformation storyline going, and actually have it lead somewhere. Ideally, he'd stay face and pursue and singles run for the title, determined to win the WWE title and prove to everyone, including himself, that he's not the weak link. The emotion culminating in a title victory would be so awesome.


----------



## Obfuscation

Seabs said:


> *Well if you told me Namajague was New Japan rookie Mikami then I would have been all over them. :leslie*


I saw a MIKAMI wrestle in '06. Don't know if it is the same guy. Unsure considering that one I'm speaking of was in DDT & liked to use a ladder during his matches. Meh. I'll watch the Lucha matches and find out myself I guess.



Bubz said:


> Bryan vs Ryback from RAW was great. About ***1/2. Bryan is the best babyface since Rey in the mid 00's, easily. He couldn't be more over, the crowd eat out of the palm of his hand and they go fucking bat shit for him. Nobody has been able to get that reaction from a WWE crowd for years. I'm not talking a single pop from an entrance or a pop for a finisher like the RKO (although if anyone comes close to Bryan it's Orton), I'm talking genuinely freaking out when he makes comebacks or hits his stuff, and it's all down to him and the way he plays his character in the ring and his overall performance. It's incredible, I'm at the point now where I'm thinking he's a legit all time great, no question. When he locked in the No Lock here I was almost shouting at my tv for Ryback to tap, and I knew the result. Don't know the last time I was so behind a babyface constantly, it's like I'm 13 years old again or something. He owns this role he's in now, just like he has every role he's been given in the company. His character work here and the last few weeks has been something else completely. I can't name one person in the world that's better at being a pro wrestler.


:clap

100% spot on.


----------



## obby

Ryback has had a ton of great matches for a talent that I hate :side:


----------



## Rah

Kyosuke Mikami (Namajague)


----------



## Obfuscation

Totally not the same guy, haha.


----------



## geraldinhio

Is it save to post ASW spoilers yet? I should have a review up pretty soon. Finally got around to night 2. I know Haley keeps putting off watching the show.


----------



## Obfuscation

Post away. I'll do my best to skip over it until I watch to avoid who's champ and whatnot. _(that's the only thing about Night Two I'm trying to avoid.)_


----------



## flag sabbath

*Sami Callihan vs. Shane Hollister (Last Man Standing, AAW Day of Defiance, 17/5):* This is soooooooo much better than their previous encounter. Hollister basically takes a pasting for the first 15, then grabs a desperation opening & targets Sami's midsection brilliantly throughout the rest of the match. Interference from Hollister's lackeys is well-timed & kept to a minimum, and they build methodically & believably to a really strong finish. ******


----------



## Chismo

Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant. Jesus Christ, what an awesome match that was.


----------



## Merc_With_A_Mouth

Some quick recommendations from the EVOLVE shows last weekend. Mostly going based off of live perception.

EVOLVE 20
Matt Jackson vs. Johnny Gargano ***1/2
*FRAY ***1/2+
Eita vs. Tomahawk TT ***3/4*
Samuray Del Sol vs. Tony Nese ***1/4 (most seemed to enjoy this one a bit more than I did live, so it may come off differently to others.)
Nick Jackson vs. AR Fox ***1/2

EVOLVE 21
*Jon Davis vs. Chuck Taylor (No DQ Match) ****
Young Bucks vs. Tony Nese & Brian Cage ***1/2 - ***3/4 range
Samuray Del Sol vs. Shane Strickland ***1/2+
AR Fox vs. Eita ***1/2
Johnny Gargano vs. Tomahawk TT ***1/2*

EVOLVE 22
Bravados & Andrew Everett vs. Dos Ben Dejos & Shane Strickland ***1/4 - ***1/2 range.
*AR Fox vs. Lince Dorado ****
Brian Cage vs. Jon Davis ***1/2 - ***3/4+
Johnny Gargano vs. Samuray Del Sol **** - ****1/2 potentially on a re-watch
Young Bucks vs. Tomahawk TT & Eita ***3/4 - *****

Really recommend all three shows quite a bit. Nothing bad really on any of them, the worst match probably being Cage/Chuck on EVOLVE 20 due to some clunkiness. Otherwise, everything else would be considered fine. EVOLVE 21 and 22 especially I thought were substantially the best two EVOLVE shows to date. 20 was good too, but definitely the "first of a three stop weekend" in terms of delivering. With that said, it still delivered more than the usual first stop of a three stop tour.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Spoiler from Gragano vs SDS in this pic - 

http://25.media.tumblr.com/4587f8f7fc827e23bb7ec7fd1e7d87b8/tumblr_mnwng7tDTw1st39kto1_400.gif

I'll finish EVOLVE 20 today after the ROH SA show. Jackson vs Gargano was a great opener and I loved the FRAY match.


----------



## flag sabbath

Spoiler: DG King of Gate Final



*Shingo vs. Ricochet (Dragon Gate, 25/5):* Pretty much what you'd hope for from these two. Shingo's strategy is to cut Ricochet off in mid-flight, ground him, slow things down & pummel away. But of course Ricochet has a wealth of rapid-fire desperation & innovation in his arsenal with which to counterattack. A great set of dramatic struggles sees Ricochet battling to avoid Made In Japan & the subsequent near-falls are really starting to hot up, but a slightly abrupt finish means this falls just short of four-star territory. ****3/4*


----------



## Rah

That .gif is so badass.

Noting that DG final as well as the Evolve shows, I'm going to have a wealth of great matches to jump back in to after exams. <3


----------



## flag sabbath

*Kenny Omega vs. Kushida (NJPW BoSJ, 6/6):* So yeah, this tournament hasn't exactly set the world on fire. The one upside of running so many sub-10 minute matches with simple finishes is that when you finally give a couple of guys proper time & near-falls to play with, the fans lap it up. It also helps that Korakuen loves Omega & Kushida. ****3/4*


----------



## Obfuscation

Oh shoot. KUSHIDA getting another break out match vs the other DDT faithful. Looking forward to that. Really, really liked his Junior Championship match last year vs Ibushi. KUSHIDA never gets much time to show what he has unfortunately.


----------



## Concrete

*Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Johnny Moss(WXW 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 1):***3/4*
_I don't know what it was about this match but I really dug it. Don't think I've seen anyone talk about it which is a bit of a shame I think. I wish there were more ZSJ matches from 2013 lurking on the internet. This match was 20+ minutes and at points certainly felt the length but there was enough good stuff in this match that I had to recommend. Moss looked like a tank of man who used his power to break ZSJ's submissions at points or to pick ZSJ off the ground from an armbar attempt. Moss did that second one quite a bit which was fine. It was the dynamic they had set up. Moss was powerful and could throw around ZSJ but also use the power in the grappling game. ZSJ was an assassin of sorts. He'd take a beating and a half but give him an inch of daylight and he'd either kick your head off or snap your arm in two. That's perfectly sold at one point in particular where Moss has got a clear advantage and ZSJ is on the ground groggy as could be but Moss still walks towards ZSJ as if he is walking towards a honey badger and steps on limbs to make sure those don't come flying at him before going back to grappling. OH, and I'm a big fan of tope sprees by wrestler A ending with wrestler B splatting wrestler A all over the floor. ZSJ goes splat. The very ending is crap which is sad since it was set up well but gets it knocked down a bit in my eyes. And if that doesn't knock it down for others the earlier portions of the match relegated to Moss torturing ZSJ will probably come off boring. _


----------



## geraldinhio

Any ZSJ match has me excited. :mark: Anything else good from the 16 Carat Gold? How was Tommy End/Ricochet?

Random Ricochet rewatch: Ricochet vs Micheal Elgin PWG BOLA 2012 (_Not_ 13, worng thread. Sorry.)

I think I enjoyed this a lot more than anyone else. To me this is a legit MOTYC, liked it far more on second watch. This was just batshit crazy. Like a Davey vs Elgin sprint just far more fun, mostly because of Ricochet. Elgin was good here too, similar to any match vs Davey his execution of his big moves is great. Some of the counters by Elgin were insane, terrific feats of his crazy strength. And Ricochet is just Ricochet. He's just so crisp and flawless its not even funny, dare I say more so than Pac? He just gets better and better. This is defiantly my match of the weekend and one of my favorite PWG matches this year. *****1/4+*


----------



## flag sabbath

geraldinhio said:


> Any ZSJ match has me excited. :mark: Anything else good from the 16 Carat Gold? How was Tommy End/Ricochet?
> 
> Random Ricochet rewatch: Ricochet vs Micheal Elgin PWG BOLA 2013
> 
> I think I enjoyed this a lot more than anyone else. To me this is a legit MOTYC, liked it far more on second watch. This was just batshit crazy. Like a Davey vs Elgin sprint just far more fun, mostly because of Ricochet. Elgin was good here too, similar to any match vs Davey his execution of his big moves is great. Some of the counters by Elgin were insane, terrific feats of his crazy strength. And Ricochet is just Ricochet. He's just so crisp and flawless its not even funny, dare I say more so than Pac? He just gets better and better. This is defiantly my match of the weekend and one of my favorite PWG matches this year. *****1/4+*


Agreed on how great that match was, but it took place last year.


----------



## geraldinhio

flag sabbath said:


> Agreed on how great that match was, but it took place last year.


:hesk3

Knew I posted this in the wrong thread. Apologies.


----------



## Concrete

I actually skipped End vs. Ricochet for the time since I had have paid attention to the match and wanted to go back to it not as fresh. Same with Masada vs. Super Crazy though my gut tells me that it isn't nearly as good. 16 Carat is a goal for today. Let's see if I can actual achieve it haha


----------



## Chismo

geraldinhio said:


> I think I enjoyed this a lot more than anyone else. To me this is a legit MOTYC, liked it far more on second watch. This was just batshit crazy. Like a Davey vs Elgin sprint just far more fun, mostly because of Ricochet. Elgin was good here too, similar to any match vs Davey his execution of his big moves is great. Some of the counters by Elgin were insane, terrific feats of his crazy strength. And Ricochet is just Ricochet. He's just so crisp and flawless its not even funny, dare I say more so than Pac? He just gets better and better. This is defiantly my match of the weekend and one of my favorite PWG matches this year. *****1/4+*


Amazing match.


----------



## Stardust Genius

enlightenedone9 said:


> *Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Johnny Moss(WXW 16 Carat Gold Tournament Night 1):***3/4*
> _I don't know what it was about this match but I really dug it. Don't think I've seen anyone talk about it which is a bit of a shame I think._





geraldinhio said:


> Anything else good from the 16 Carat Gold? How was Tommy End/Ricochet?


http://www.wrestlingforum.com/other-wrestling/649042-2013-motyc-thread-68.html#post14874450

End/Ricochet was good but too short. I liked Masada vs. Super Crazy but I saw the match live and not on DVD.


----------



## Rah

*Antonio Cesaro Vs Sheamus (05/06/2013 WWE)*
★★★★+
_
I'm usually not as high on Sheamus as most but both men were fantastic with Sheamus making Cesaro's offence look potent, while Cesaro bumped well for Sheamus. Cesaro was relentless in his attempts to lock in the chicken-wing on Sheamus' injured shoulder (thanks to a nasty ringpost bump), and managed to counter every signature attempt by Sheamus in this process. That is, though, until The Celtic warrior went for a play out of the norm by reversing, at haste, to drop Cesaro onto the turnbuckle from the White Noise position as Cesaro struggled to undo the arms and pick into the chickenwing, again. I, also, actually wanted to buy into Cesaro winning with his Neutralizer if he hadn't gotten slightly cocky in setting it up.

Right now, there are no wrestlers alive that stand out as worker of the year anywhere near ***** Casas or Antonio Cesaro. I'd still give Casas the one-up, but I've yet to see a performance from either man that isn't, at least, good. Five whole months into the year (as well as counting the number of matches they've put on) and that becomes a truly impressive feat. No matter what WWE do with Cesaro, I can't be disappointed in them not using him in good match-ups, at least. I'd love for a Bryan/Cesaro bout, but it looks like NXT may very well deliver a seperate classic in Sami Zayne/Cesaro.

Oh, WWE, you're so awesome._

*Vordell Walker Vs Mike Cruz (04/05/2013 SCGW)*
LINK
★★★★-

_I barely remember what I had penned in my thoughts, as I had hoped to have posted it with gushing reviews for both the Las Traumas and Casas/Navarro matches from a particular Mexican "dream card" but those were marred by politics. Why can't wrestlers just wrestle?! No matter...

Aside from Cruz now working heel, the basic premises of their earlier encounter play out here. Cruz is a small man and bumps well for Vordell's strength, while Vordell gives such a great sell-job that it would make sharkboy22 give a shit about the indies. The missing audio, as well as the lacking video quality, may make you wish to put this off but I implore that you don't. Do Indy wrestling a favour and witness the goodness of the guys in the lower leagues that bust their ass for a handful of fans. Because it's these guys putting on the great matches at a consistent pace._​


----------



## Concrete

Stardust Genius said:


> http://www.wrestlingforum.com/other-wrestling/649042-2013-motyc-thread-68.html#post14874450
> 
> End/Ricochet was good but too short. I liked Masada vs. Super Crazy but I saw the match live and not on DVD.


Have you had time to watch any of the matches on DVD yet?

*Rah* you've pimped Walker vs. Cruz and now hopefully everyone and there mother will watch it. DO IT PEOPLE!

Are there any *OTHER* candidates out there I need to be on the look for I have Dorada vs. Casas(despite not getting much love here), Wagner vs. LA Park, and Akiyama vs. KAI from CC to watch so far. Then there is the massive stock pile of NJPW and WWE. No TNA. Found Evolve's last weekend on DM.


----------



## Obfuscation

Mascara Dorada vs ***** Casas?

No way.


----------



## Concrete

Obfuscation said:


> Mascara Dorada vs ***** Casas?
> 
> No way.


Yes way http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgBxbS4eljE


----------



## Obfuscation

Holy crap.

:mark:


----------



## Rah

enlightenedone9 said:


> Have you had time to watch any of the matches on DVD yet?
> 
> *Rah* you've pimped Walker vs. Cruz and now hopefully everyone and there mother will watch it. DO IT PEOPLE!


So many matches listed, so few have been looked at. I'm pretty dismayed over this, considered how many worthwhile gems are lurking here.



> Are there any *OTHER* candidates out there I need to be on the look for I have Dorada vs. Casas(despite not getting much love here), Wagner vs. LA Park, and Akiyama vs. KAI from CC to watch so far. Then there is the massive stock pile of NJPW and WWE. No TNA. Found Evolve's last weekend on DM.



I've also got Wagner/Park to go through. Hoping for some nutty violence.

Casas/Valiente, Rush/Terrible, 911/Angel/Trauma II are all matches I cannot remember if you pimped or not. I do remember you being on the Namajague bandwagon a while back so I won't rehash those. I don't think anyone else watched these, and considering Kyle Matthews will be hitting up RoH TV soon, I'll beg you (if no one else will) to watch them:

Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (16/02/2013 LPN)
Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (29/03/2013 DSCW)


----------



## Obfuscation

Watched Casas vs Dorada. But no Namajague match yet.

Sorry Rah.


----------



## Concrete

Two old Mexicans beating the piss out of each other seems like my idea of a good time. 

My spreadsheet says I gave Terrible/Rush(actually didn't like it as much as their hair vs hair match last year), ***** Casas vs. Valiente, and 911/Trauma II/Angel ****. I don't know if I ever actually posted about any of them. I was probably being a lazy schmuck. 

I need to watch Kyle Matthews. I've put it off watching Matthews or Tempers and I don't know why. I need to rectify that. Seems like ROH likes giving quality guys a quick match on TV for no reason these days.


----------



## Yeah1993

Rah said:


> *Antonio Cesaro Vs Sheamus (05/06/2013 WWE)*
> ★★★★+​






Sheamus/Cesaro ruled, yeah. I totally bought that Cesaro might win off of a couple of moves. I haven't watched a ton of WWE between February and now, but Cesaro looked like the best wrestler they had in February and he still looks like the best wrestler they have now. I honestly want to watch every match he's had this year at some point. I love how Sheamus is basically filling a Rey Mysterio gap. He's the babyface who you can plug with any heel and have a good match. With Rey running down, Matt Hardy and Chris Masters gone, and Evan Bourne and Christian either not being popular backstage or smoking weed, that role is REALLY important. Sheamus has been filling it really well.​


----------



## Obfuscation

I don't think you'll get nearly as much satisfaction out of seeing every Cesaro match from this year. Only about five ring true as worth seeing. You've seemed to have seen about four of 'em as it is. Unless you missed the one vs Miz at Elimination Chamber. Hidden one I think that is lost is the awesome extended squash vs Ryder from Superstars.

Bulk of his matches this year haven't been too good. I mean he's been great, but collectively the matches not so much. _(lack of time + shit opponents in the ones that did get a decent bit)_ If only his opponent for two of those long affairs on Main Event weren't Randy Orton. They could have mattered. Wait, I know I liked one of his matches vs Ryback too. The RAW one that wasn't super duper short. Its a weird payoff, that's all I'm driving home at. Good performances; bleh matches.


----------



## Bubz

Cesaro is awesome. He's been pretty fantastic since about 09 (?) when KOW reformed.


----------



## Obfuscation

I've always loved the guy. Chikara 2005 w/Arik Cannon days. Only grown leaps and bounds since then.


----------



## Nervosa

Bubz said:


> Cesaro is awesome. He's been pretty fantastic since about 09 (?) when KOW reformed.


I'd say he's been awesome since 07....because his title match with Morishima is one of the best matches I've ever seen in my life.


----------



## Rah

While I would agree in saying they're not completely worth going out of your way for (aside from noting his good solo performances), they were always better than they had any right to be. That says leaps and bounds.


----------



## Stardust Genius

enlightenedone9 said:


> Have you had time to watch any of the matches on DVD yet?


 Yes, I've watched the remaining matches yesterday and have now seen all matches live and on DVD. MASADA vs. Crazy was live and on DVD a fun match.


----------



## Zatiel

Nervosa said:


> I'd say he's been awesome since 07....because his title match with Morishima is one of the best matches I've ever seen in my life.


That was his breakout match for me, too. It's funny what an incredible babyface he can be, easily forgotten because of years of seeming like a natural heel.


----------



## Bubz

Nervosa said:


> I'd say he's been awesome since 07....because his title match with Morishima is one of the best matches I've ever seen in my life.


Ah yeah, fantastic match. Need to re-watch that soon. Claudio was definitely great, but it seemed that once he got back with Hero he stepped it up even more. I'd say before WWE snatched him up, he'd become the second best guy on the indies, right there behind Generico.


----------



## Obfuscation

Agreed with all stated on Claudio ^.

Man became a marvel. Run with Hero in ROH, domination with BDK in Chikara, reign as World Champion in PWG. You couldn't stop the guy.


----------



## Máscara Dorada

Antonio Cesaro vs Adrian Neville at NXT. ****1/2


----------



## Alan4L

Updated for 6/10 (New additions in bold) 

Including Dec 2012, Observer style. 

*WWE: *
The Shield vs. Cena/Ryback/Seamus (2/18 ) ****3/4
*The Shield vs. Team Hell No (5/27) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Kingston (5/20) ****1/2*
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Ryback (TLC) (12/16) ****1/2
John Cena vs. CM Punk (2/25) ****1/2
The Undertaker vs. CM Punk (4/7) ****1/2
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/13) ****1/4
Elimination Chamber (2/18 ) ****1/4
Seamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (1/9) ****1/4
*The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan/Kane (6/3) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Seamus/Kingston (5/24) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (4/30) ****1/4
Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (4/30) ****1/4
Kofi Kingston vs. Antonio Cesaro (5/1) ****1/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (6/3) ****
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (Elimination) (5/13) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (5/3) ****
Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (4/30) *****
The Shield vs. The Undertaker/Hell No (4/22) ****
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/1) ****
The Shield vs. Jericho/Ryback/Seamus (2/19) ****

*Puro: *
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (4/7) (NJPW) *****
*Dragon Kid vs. Masato Yoshino (5/5) (DG) ****3/4)*
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (12/23) (DG) ****3/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (1/4) (NJPW) ****3/4
Junior Stars vs. Aoki/Suzuki (3/17) (AJPW) ****3/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (4/7) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (3/17) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (3/23) (NJPW) ****1/2
GET WILD vs. Akiyama/Shiozaki (3/17) (AJPW) ****1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (2/10) (NJPW) ****1/2
Junior Stars vs. Hayashi & Kondo (1/3) (AJPW) ****1/2
Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (2/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/2
El Generico vs. Kenny Omega (12/23) (DDT) ****1/2
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International/CIMA (12/6) (DG) ****1/2
CIMA vs. Shingo Takagi vs. BxB Hulk (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Akira Tozawa vs. YAMATO (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
*Shingo Takagi vs. Ricochet (5/25) (DG) ****1/2
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Junior Stars (5/18) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kenny Omega vs. KUSHIDA (6/6) (NJPW) ****1/2
Masaaki Mochizuki vs. YAMATO (5/10) (DG) ****1/2
KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura (5/12) (NOAH) ****1/2
Jun Akiyama vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Go Shiozaki vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (5/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. Takagi/YAMATO (5/5) (DG) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. RyoSuka (4/19) (DG) ****1/2
Kobashi/Akiyama/Sasaki/Muto vs. Shiozaki/KENTA/Taniguchi/Kanemaru (5/11) (NOAH) ****1/4
CIMA vs. Akira Tozawa (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Team High Tension vs. Team Veteran Returns (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Ricochet vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (5/10) (DG) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/17) (DG) ****1/4*
CIMA vs. K-ness (4/4) (DG) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
Killer Elite Squad vs. Nakamura/Ishii (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Veteran Army (12/28) (DG) ****1/4
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (1/27) (NOAH) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hayato “Jr” Fujita vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (12/12) (M-Pro) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. KAGETORA (12/23) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Team Veteran Returns/Nagata (Elimination) (12/2) (DG) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (2/23) (AJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (3/3) (NJPW) ****1/4
Mr. Quu Quu Toyanaka Dolphin vs. Naoki Tanisaki (1/27) (DG) ****1/4
*Shigehiro Irie vs. Kota Ibushi (5/3) (DDT) ****
Urano/HARASHIMA vs. Ibushi/Omega (1/20) (DDT) ****
KENTA/Takayama vs. Sasaki/Nakajima (4/28) (NOAH) ****
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Manabu Soya (3/1) (BJW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Masayuki Kono (4/21) (AJPW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Ryota Hama (4/27) (AJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (5/3) (NJPW) ****
Kenny Omega vs. Ryusuke Taguchi (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Ricochet (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (5/25) (DG) ****
Kota Ibushi vs. Daichi Hashimoto (4/15) (Z1) *****
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Satoshi Kojima (3/11) (NJPW) ****
Kaz Hayashi vs. Kotaro Suzuki (2/23) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (1/27) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (2/10) (AJPW) ****
World-1 International vs. Team Veteran Returns (2/7) (DG) ****
Mochizuki/Fujii vs. Kanda/Horiguchi (1/27) (DG) ****
Takeshi Morishima vs. Satoshi Kojima (12/9) (NOAH) ****
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (4/18) (AJPW) ****
YAMATO vs. Kenchiro Arai (4/4) (DG) ****
Seiya Sanada vs. Masayuki Kono (3/10) (AJPW) ****
CIMA vs. Masato Yoshino (3/3) (DG) ****

*PWG: *
*Inner City Machine Guns vs. Del Sol/Fox (3/22) ****3/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Taylor/Gargano (3/22) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Dojo Bros (3/23) ****1/2*
The Dojo Bros vs. The Young Buck$ (12/1) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Super Smash Bros (12/1) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (1/12) ****1/4
Cage vs. Mack vs. Perkins vs. B-Boy (12/1) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Adam Cole (Guerrilla Warfare) (12/1) ****1/4
*The Unbreakable Fucking Steen Machines vs. Fox/Swann/Ricochet (3/23) ****1/4
Samuray Del Sol vs. TJ Perkins (3/23) ****
Drake Younger vs. Sami Callihan (Guerrilla Warfare) (3/22) ****
Paul London vs. Kevin Steen (3/22) *****
Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (12/1) ****

*DGUSA/EVOLVE:*
Johnny Gargano vs. Shingo Takagi (4/6) ****3/4
Ricochet vs. Akira Tozawa (4/6) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. CIMA & AR Fox (4/6) ****1/2
The Super Smash Brothers vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (4/6) ****1/4
*AR Fox vs. Nick Jackson (5/30) *****
Chuck Taylor vs. Anthony Nese vs. Jigsaw vs. Fire Ant vs. Arik Cannon vs. Shane Strikland (4/6) **** 


*ROH: *
Kevin Steen vs. El Generico (Ladder War) (12/16) ****3/4
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Briscoe (4/5) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. Jay Lethal (4/5) ****1/4
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (12/16) ****1/4
Adam Cole vs. Jimmy Jacobs (1/18) ****1/4
*Eddie Edwards vs. Taiji Ishimori (5/4) ****1/4
Davey Richards vs. Kyle O’Reilly (4/6) ****1/4*
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (4/5) ****

*wXw:*
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tommy End (3/3) *****
Super Crazy/ Marvin vs. Taylor/Ricochet (3/3) ****1/2
Johnny Moss vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (3/1) ****1/2
Ricky Marvin vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/1) ****1/4
AUTsiders vs. RockSkillet (3/3) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Robert Dreissker (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/2) ****
Bad Bones vs. Yuji Okabayashi (3/3) ****
Taylor/Ricochet vs. Hot & Spicy (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Ricochet (3/1) ****

*Other:*
*Kitsune vs. AR Fox (3/16) (ISW) ****1/2
Ricochet vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/2*
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fujita Jr. Hayato (3/9) (4FW) ****1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kenny Omega (3/8) (4FW) ****1/4
Quackenbush/Liger vs. Jigsaw/The Shard (4/6) (Chikara) ****1/4
*Samuray Del Sol vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Nick Jackson vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Jon Davis vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/15) (FIP) ****1/4
Namajague vs. Rey Cometa (4/26) (CMLL) ****1/4
ACH vs. Mat Fitchett (2/10) (AAW) ****
Namajague/Okumura vs. Stuka Jr./Rey Cometa (3/23) (CMLL) *****


----------



## Corey

*The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Randy Orton* (_RAW 6/3_) - ****

Another Shield 6-man, another MOTYC. This isn't as much about them as it is about DANIEL FUCKING BRYAN. The guy makes the final hot tag and my god it's so glorious to watch him take out all three Shield members completely on his own whilst the numbers game had worked so well on both Orton & Kane in the early going. Orton's standing dropkick to Rollins diving off the top rope was super pretty and it's nice to see how fucking over this guy is right now and he's actually delivering in the ring (in this match at least). The final sequence is fucking brilliant and a perfect way to create even more tension for Bryan's now crazed performance driven character and for the Shield's numbers game to once again get the best of the WWE roster. Bryan sold Ambrose's finisher like an absolute beauty. 3rd best Shield match so far this year imo.


----------



## Kenny

DANIEL FUCKING BRYAN. 

:mark:


----------



## Obfuscation

Not a top Shield match for me, but a drop in the bucket for another MOTYC and tremendous match all around. I loved the finish to that one. Probably my favorite next to the six man from Elimination Chamber where Reigns kills Ryback.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs. La Sombra (2/3 falls IWGP IC title match, CMLL 31/5):* I don't follow Lucha & steer clear of puro spoilers, so I had no idea this had even taken place. It's a notch or two up from their Fantasticamania match, with Shinsuke obviously reveling in playing proper rudo for the partisan fans. Would have been a serious motyc had they gone 5 mins longer & if not for some typically clunky refereeing. ******

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...vs-la-sombra-cmll-05-31-13_sport#.UbWpR_l32So


----------



## Rah

*Shingo Vs Ricochet (25/05/2013 2013)*
★★★★
_I'm not quite sure what happened to the Dragon Gate love that used to dominate this section but it's a pity that so many posters have almost relegated the promotion into the backdrops of their to-watch lists. A pity purely because it doesn't allow me to accurately judge which matches are worthwhile of my time.

Big man/little man matches are always a treat to behold and this is of no exception. For every ounce of muscle that took dedication to build in Shingo, there lies an equitable (reckless) dedication in Ricochet to throw his body around in inflicting damage upon his opponents. Just when I think I've seen everything and that he cannot make my jaw drop, again, Ricochet delivers even more breath-taking moves in spades. He's simply inhuman in how agile he is and that's a really great factor here in allowing for some sweet reversals of each man's signature offence.

I'm not sure if they're built as equals, but (from my latent viewing style) I always assumed Shingo to be a monstrous powerhouse and that didn't sit well with the finishing stretch they tried to sell. It's complete overkill but I think the bulk of the match is so engaging that it almost mitigates such a critique - not to mention I still fell for some of the nearfalls, regardless. The final move is probably the most holy fuck moment I've had watching from anything this year. It's utterly fucking nuts and a true testament to Ricochet's ability.


Spoiler: finish



As Shingo goes for a vicious lariat, Ricochet (like something out of the Matrix) limbo-ducks backwards into a Pele Kick to the back of Shingo's head 8*D


_
*La Sombra Vs Groond XXX Shinsuke Nakamura*
★★★★
_Come now, WF, admit you secretly love CMLL's referees. There's no shame in giving your life to your saviour.








I know this image rests on the wall beside your bed.

If anything, this match proves that no matter how in control you are, if Sombra captures you in a bridging suplex the caida is done. Ehh. There's some really exemplirary lucha-work in this mixed with some pretty lacklustre stuff, too. Even if the finish is completely anti-climactic (admittedly the match was slowly dying on me before this point) this has the same strength in its body as the DG match in being able to carry itself over, regardless. 

Shinsuke's counters and submission executions are godly. Considering NJPW are sending another wrestler down to CMLL later this week, I truly hope the favour is returned by the CMLL talent. Casas/Nakamura is a match that honestly needs to happen before it's too late. Here's hoping the Rush/Nakamura delivers as it should. If Nakamura brings the goodness he's been showing, there's no reason it shouldn't._​


----------



## Bruce L

Rah said:


> I'm not quite sure what happened to the Dragon Gate love that used to dominate this section but it's a pity that so many posters have almost relegated the promotion into the backdrops of their to-watch lists.


I have no idea where anybody is finding Dragon Gate from after the middle of last year.


----------



## Corey

Bruce L said:


> I have no idea where anybody is finding Dragon Gate from after the middle of last year.


Dailymotion and XWT. Just type in Dragon Gate into dailymotion and you'll get most of the big matches from this year's Infinity shows and all of the King of Gate Final show. I haven't seen any PPVs surface though.

I tried to watch a couple matches the other day (Dragon Kid vs. HUB & BxB Hulk vs. Shingo), but the lack of selling really bothered me and I couldn't get into them. May give Shingo/Ricochet a shot sometime considering that's a damn near dream match for me.


----------



## Obfuscation

Nakamura vs Sombra II.

Hot diggitty dog this is a joyous surprise.

-------------

I'll go into greater detail once I finish the event, but my oh my oh my x10 more - The Colony vs Devastation Corporation from Aniversario: Never Compromise is greatest wrestling match ever. I mean it. Mind...._wait for it_....BLOWN.

Holy poop did those guys ever leave with a bang. And that crowd; utter insanity. You could have sat in a chair to eat lunch and they would've been bouncing off the walls.


----------



## Bubz

Is that your MOTY then Cody? Might check it out if you liked it that much.

Btw, hoping that if Bryan is in a singles match with Orton at Payback or one of the Shield guys that we'll get a MOTYC.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's up there. Got to say I think it knocked off Touchdown/Peck No DQ for my favorite Chikara match this year. So there's that. It was such a simple big vs little man formula, which worked, that I ate up like the fans in attendance did. Incredibly hot from start to finish.

Don't know your mindset towards Chikara, but I'll green-light a viewing.


----------



## Chismo

People fucking need to watch Kingston vs. Green Ant, I mean, ASAP. Shit, I like to say it's Chikara's version of ***HUGE GASP*** Jumbo vs. Misawa.











Jack Evans 187 said:


> I tried to watch a couple matches the other day (Dragon Kid vs. HUB & BxB Hulk vs. Shingo), but the lack of selling really bothered me and I couldn't get into them. May give Shingo/Ricochet a shot sometime considering that's a damn near dream match for me.


You gotta perceive Dragon Gate as the anime wrestling. Problems solved.


----------



## Obfuscation

I slightly pimped out Kingston vs Green Ant II. Just to Rah specifically b/c I know he really dug their first match. Rematch was even better. Something about that show and deadly apron/fall to the floor spots. I approved.


----------



## Bubz

Obfuscation said:


> It's up there. Got to say I think it knocked off Touchdown/Peck No DQ for my favorite Chikara match this year. So there's that. It was such a simple big vs little man formula, which worked, that I ate up like the fans in attendance did. Incredibly hot from start to finish.
> 
> Don't know your mindset towards Chikara, but I'll green-light a viewing.


Sometimes I hate it, sometimes it doesn't bother me, but if a match is good then it's good imo, no matter the company it's in. Kingston/Quack from hi-noon was the only Chikara match I watched that year and it was one of my higher end MOTYC's. Fantastic match. And I really don't like Quack.

I'll check out some Kingston matches too probably if they get pimped like the Green Ant one. The ants do absolutely nothing for me and are pretty annoying, but Kingston rules. Also I have enjoyed some of The Colony's matches before despite me thinking their gimmick is irritating.


----------



## Obfuscation

Bubz said:


> Sometimes I hate it, sometimes it doesn't bother me, but if a match is good then it's good imo, no matter the company it's in. Kingston/Quack from hi-noon was the only Chikara match I watched that year and it was one of my higher end MOTYC's. Fantastic match. And I really don't like Quack.
> 
> I'll check out some Kingston matches too probably if they get pimped like the Green Ant one. The ants do absolutely nothing for me and are pretty annoying, but Kingston rules. Also I have enjoyed some of The Colony's matches before despite me thinking their gimmick is irritating.


tbf there weren't any comedy moments in the six man. It was straightforward and kept serious the entire way through. Pardon a jokey line or two on the commentary. Another plug for those who aren't exactly into all the antics seen from the promotion.

Can't go wrong with Kingston in any capacity. You'll certain get a kick out of seeing Green Ant get slapped around if you don't fancy the gimmick. Ironic to me how Kingston's weakest championship defense all year was vs Kevin Steen. It was good, but nothing omg good. I suppose I only find it ironic considering the level Steen is at and then the Chikara regulars end up just meshing better with Kingston on that night.


----------



## Rah

I found that Anniversario PPV on Dailymotion along with CZW's Tourney of Death XII (*CHISMO*!)

Watching it now. There's still something odd about seeing Green Ant without his get-up, though.

It's Icarus. fpalm


----------



## Obfuscation

:lol


----------



## Chismo

Rah said:


> I found that Anniversario PPV on Dailymotion along with CZW's Tourney of Death XII (*CHISMO*!)
> 
> Watching it now. There's still something odd about seeing Green Ant without his get-up, though.
> 
> It's Icarus. fpalm












Got them all.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Rah said:


> *Shingo Vs Ricochet (25/05/2013 2013)*
> ★★★★
> _I'm not quite sure what happened to the Dragon Gate love that used to dominate this section but it's a pity that so many posters have almost relegated the promotion into the backdrops of their to-watch lists. A pity purely because it doesn't allow me to accurately judge which matches are worthwhile of my time.
> 
> Big man/little man matches are always a treat to behold and this is of no exception. For every ounce of muscle that took dedication to build in Shingo, there lies an equitable (reckless) dedication in Ricochet to throw his body around in inflicting damage upon his opponents. Just when I think I've seen everything and that he cannot make my jaw drop, again, Ricochet delivers even more breath-taking moves in spades. He's simply inhuman in how agile he is and that's a really great factor here in allowing for some sweet reversals of each man's signature offence.
> 
> I'm not sure if they're built as equals, but (from my latent viewing style) I always assumed Shingo to be a monstrous powerhouse and that didn't sit well with the finishing stretch they tried to sell. It's complete overkill but I think the bulk of the match is so engaging that it almost mitigates such a critique - not to mention I still fell for some of the nearfalls, regardless. The final move is probably the most holy fuck moment I've had watching from anything this year. It's utterly fucking nuts and a true testament to Ricochet's ability.
> 
> 
> Spoiler: finish
> 
> 
> 
> As Shingo goes for a vicious lariat, Ricochet (like something out of the Matrix) limbo-ducks backwards into a Pele Kick to the back of Shingo's head 8*D
> 
> 
> _​


Link?


----------



## Corey

blink_41sum_182 said:


> Link?


http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...ate-05-25-13_sport?search_algo=2#.UbZp0ZwQNX8


----------



## Lane

If the thrown out decision wasnt the end to Jimmy Jacobs vs Arik Cannon loser leaves AAW it could of gone *****1/4-****3/4* It didnt hurt the match at all either as none of the fans wanted either to leave.


----------



## Bruce L

Kingston/Green Ant and Kingston/Touchdown made me very happy. Reminded me of his best defenses from last year, after the Donst match at _Under the Hood_ underwhelmed in the eyes of many and the Steen and Hallowicked matches this year fell short of the mark.


----------



## THECHAMPION

Bubz said:


> Also I have enjoyed some of The Colony's matches before despite me thinking their gimmick is irritating.


Honest question: What about their gimmick annoys you?

Other than Solider all the Colony Ants are just dudes who dress in colorful masks and don't incorporate the name into the gimmick at all.

Other than maybe Fire being fiery especially compared to his unmasked demeanor, but that barely counts as anything.

Anyway I liked both Kingston/Green Ant matches a lot though I think the first Saturyne/Touchdown match is still my Chikara MOTY. Maybe I'd enjoy it less if I watched it again because some of it was probably the surprise of how good it was.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Jack Evans 187 said:


> http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...ate-05-25-13_sport?search_algo=2#.UbZp0ZwQNX8


Thanks


*Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins* (Raw - 6/10) - *** 3/4

I knew this would rule. Loved how they gave them time to show off what they're capable of before the semi-lame finish. Loved Bryan going crazy like he has recently and all the counters from both guys. I marked out for the Chaos Theory. If this was on a PPV, didn't have a commercial, and didn't end with a roll-up out of nowhere right when it was starting to get awesome, it would have been ****+ with a proper finishing stretch. 

Loved it. One of the best TV matches this year.


----------



## Obfuscation

Danielson vs Rollins was pretty great. It had a lot of different spots shown to keep things fresh for the WWE audience and some callbacks to their matches on the Indies. Better yet Danielson continues to look like Bryan Danielson more and more with all this exposure he's getting atm.

These two do it again.


----------



## Speedy McGee

So for the good portion of this year I took an break from pro wrestling, because I've been focus on a lot of stuff (college, USCG Reserves, ect). I'm just starting to get into it again and I'm catching up on a lot of pro wrestling these past couple of weeks. Give me an couple of weeks and my MOTY list will be all pimped out like you guys . Here's my MOTY list so far, and keep in mind there's still a lot of pro wrestling I need to watch still. 

_***3/4 Matches_

*Royal Rumble Match (WWE Royal Rumble 2013)*
I look forward to the Royal Rumble match every year, because while it might not be an serious MOTY candidate the Rumble matches are always fun! I really enjoyed this year's Rumble match, and it was one of the better Rumble matches from the last couple of years. Chris Jericho and Dolph Ziggler were the perfect two wrestlers too kick off this match. There were a bunch of surprise entrants from this year's Rumble, and the match never really fizzed out. Even though I didn't agree with Cena winning in the end; I was digging Cena and Ryback fighting it out as the final two. An really fun Rumble match this year, and in my opinion really the only match to checkout from an lackluster Royal Rumble event this year .

*The Unbreakable Fucking Machines vs. Future Shock (PWG All Star Weekend Night 1)*
This is definitely not the best match from this card, but I really enjoyed it a lot. It looked like all four men were having fun, and the PWG crowd was red hot like usual. I get an feeling this match is overshadowed by a lot of the other matches from the card. Really good stuff, and while it's not MOTY worthy it's definitely worth an watch.

*Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk (WWE Raw 02/04/13*
I was an huge fan of their Wrestlemania match from last year, and really couldn't get into their Street Fight from Extreme Rules 2012. In my opinion this match is my second favorite these two have had so far. They we're given an actually decent amount of time to work with on TV, and both men ran with it. A lot of great technical wrestling, and many awesome reversals from both men. The crowd was into it throughout, and it was an great TV match. A lot of people should definitely check this match out before their match at Payback. 

*The Shield vs. Team Hell No, and Kofi Kingston (WWE Raw 05/20/13)*
Another great match from Monday Night Raw and another contender for TV MOTY. The Shield has not disappointed me yet since their debut in the WWE, and Team Hell No continues to be nothing but awesome. I actually really think Kane's time working with Daniel Bryan has improved his in ring ability a lot. I haven't seen Kane look this good since the 90's. These guys got more than enough time to work with, and they put on a show!! The crowd ate this match up, and they're were a lot of hot tags. I think a lot of people did overrate this match a lot, but that's just my opinion. Still an great contest, but not what everybody is making it out to be.

*CAGE MATCH-HHH vs. Brock Lesnar (WWE Extreme Rules 2013)*
When I first heard these guy's were wrestling again; I was actually dreading to see this match. Their first match together at Summerslam was nothing special, and their Wrestlemania match blew chunks. That being said I really did enjoy their final match together, and was actually surprised how good the match was. There's just something about seeing Lesnar through HHH into the cage like an rag doll which gives me pleasure. This is about as violent as these two could have went for an PG match, and while blood would have been great we now live in an PG WWE Universe. Both men did an excellent job on selling (especially Brock Lesnar), and I really dug the finish with Lesnar give an unconscious HHH the F5. Great way to put closure on the feud, and while I would have rather have seen somebody else take HHH's spot I'm glad the match actually turned out good this time around. 

_**** Matches_

*The Rock vs. John Cena (WWE Wrestlemania 29)*
Alright I'm going to get a lot of heat for liking this match, but I just enjoyed this match a lot. At the end of the day it's not about work rate, selling, but how much you enjoy an match. This is the kind of match that I was expecting from last year's Wrestlemania (which was an total letdown by the way), and it had that BIG TIME feeling to it. John Cena somehow actually managed to carry The Rock to an great match this year. Both men played off of their match from last year, and their were a lot of close pinfalls that had me on my feet. An surprisingly good match this time around from both men.

*FULL METAL MAYHEM- Bully Ray vs. Jeff Hardy (TNA Impact 04/11/13*
This is my favorite TV match I've seen so far this year. A really good TV match from both men, and their experience with ladder matches really helped this one out. Jeff Hardy bumped around like crazy, and continues to impress me since his road to recovery. You can't deny this is the best Jeff Hardy has looked since his 2009 departure from the WWE. I actually enjoy this match a lot better then their Lockdown match.This match wasn't an total classic, but at the end of the day it served it's purpose. A definitely underrated match by a lot of people, and I think it's worth an watch.

*TJ Perkins vs. Samuray Del Sol (PWG All Star Weekend Night Two)*
Another underrated match that is flying under the radar people!! As to be expected this match delivered in the high flying aspect, but what really surprised me was how great of an technical match these two worked. These two were trading many different unique submission maneuvers throughout the match, and actually worked an really great wrestling match. Don't get me wrong there's a lot of really cool spots, but these two actually didn't just depend on their high flying abilities. I don't understand why people are giving this match such low ratings. I guess people just have different taste in wrestling .

*ELIMINATION CHAMBER MATCH-Mark Henry vs.Chris Jericho vs. Jack Swagger vs. Kane vs. Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan (WWE Elimination Chamber)*
I might have overrated this one just a tad, but I remember seeing this match at Buffalo Wild Wings with my friend and actually enjoying it a lot. Just to start off the match starts off as an really lackluster chamber match, but once Henry enters the match and starts splitting wigs the match turns red hot. I really enjoyed last couple of minutes, and the final exchange during this match. Still nowhere close to the best Chamber match ever, but I still thought it was an great match.

*Jeff Hardy vs. Bobby Roode vs. Austin Aries (TNA Genesis)*
These three men work really great together, and have a lot of matches together under their belt so of course this match is going to be great. All three men are at the top of their game, and had an really good triple threat match together. I really dug Roode and Aries teaming up on Hardy, and foreshadowing their Dirty Heels team. All three men played off of their previous matches together, and the action was good throughout the whole match. My TNA MOTY so far.

*Undertaker vs. CM Punk (WWE Wrestlemania 29)*
In my opinion the most overrated match so far this year. This match just never went to that level that the Taker vs. HBK/Taker vs. HHH matches went. CM Punk was injured, and Undertaker is finally starting to slow down. Their were an couple of near falls but nothing that made me believe that the streak was over.I just couldn't get into this match like other people could. This match just never hit that third gear, and didn't have the epic feeling that a lot of Undertaker's Wrestlemania matches have. Don't get me wrong it's still my WWE MOTY so far, but it's definitely not ****1/2 or even ****1/4 worthy.

*The Young Bucks vs. The Dojo Bros (PWG All Star Weekend Night 2) *
The Young Bucks never cease to disappoint. I heard great things about their match together from last year, but never got the chance to watch it. Great match as to be expected with all four men busting their ass throughout, and pulling off some sweet spots. Nick Jackson was the true star of this match though pulling off some insane shit. I really enjoyed this match a lot, so seeing their 2012 match is definitely on my checklist as of right now.

_****1/4 Matches_

*FIST vs. The Young Bucks (PWG All Star Weekend Night 1)*
Probably two of my favorite teams in Indy wrestling right now, so I knew this was going to be awesome. This was Johnny Gargano's debut in PWG, and wow what an great first PWG match from Gargano. Nonstop action as to be expected, and the final couple of minutes of this match had me marking out like an school girl. Great match from two great teams.

*The Unbreakable Steen Machines vs. Inner City Machine Guns, and AR Fox (PWG All Star Weekend Night 2)*
The only way I can explain this match is nuts. If you like spotfests you'll love this. I'm done talking; just stop listening to me and watch the match.

*****3/4*

*The Inner City Machine Guns vs. Samuray Del Sol and AR Fox (PWG All Star Weekend Night 1)*
My MOTY and this will probably be my MOTY leading all the way up to the end of December. I highly doubt any match is topping this. Never have I ever seen any match like this before. This sequences and counters in the match were just unbelievable, and something you would see from an Hollywood movie. Never have seen such athleticism in an match in my life!! I've been watching wrestling since 2000, and mever have I seen anything like this. If you want to get a preview of some of the crazy sequences in this match just watch the All Star Weekend Night 1 PWG trailer on youtube. Awesome match from all four men, and I was really considering giving this one 5 stars. A must watch for all wrestling fans!

*My MOTY List*
AR Fox and Samuray Del Sol vs. Ricochet and Rich Swann (PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 1) ****3/4
Michael Elgin, Brian Cage, and Kevin Steen vs. Ricochet,AR Fox, and Rich Swan (PWG All star weekend 9 Night 2)****1/4
FIST vs. The Young Bucks (PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 1)****1/4
The Young Bucks vs. The Dojo Bros (PWG All Star Weekend Night 2) ****
Undertaker vs. CM Punk (WWE Wrestlemania 29) ****
Jeff Hardy vs. Bobby Roode vs. Austin Aries (TNA Genesis) ****
ELIMANATION CHAMBER MATCH-Mark Henry vs.Chris Jericho vs. Jack Swagger vs. Kane vs. Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan (WWE Elimination Chamber) ****
TJ Perkins vs. Samuray Del Sol (PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 2) ****
TLC Match- Jeff Hardy vs. Bully Ray (TNA Impact) ****
The Rock vs. John Cena (WWE Wrestlemania 29) ****
CAGE MATCH-HHH vs. Brock Lesnar (WWE Extreme Rules) ***3/4
The Shield vs. Team Hell No and Kofi Kingston (WWE Raw) ***3/4
Chris Jericho vs. CM Punk (WWE Raw) ***3/4`
The Unbreakable Fucking Machines vs. Future Shock (PWG All Star Weekend 9 Night 1) ***3/4
Royal Rumble Match (Royal Rumble) ***3/4


----------



## EmbassyForever

Seth Rollins vs Daniel Bryan was a fantastic TV match, ****


----------



## flag sabbath

I can imagine going into Aniversario with low expectations & having your mind blown by Colony vs. Devastation Corp., but once you've been told it's amazing, it doesn't hold up, particularly towards the end where the Colony takes complete control & Backabella's interference does nothing to slow their roll. I also wanted to choke the life out of Bryce Remsburg every time he screeched like a little girl. I dunno, maybe I just woke up in the wrong mood for this shit 'cos I found Hoyt vs. Masters underwhelming & ruined by annoying commentary too. *****


----------



## Obfuscation

*Chikara - Aniversario: Never Compromise​*

The Colony vs Devastation Corporation ~ *****1/4*



Spoiler: Review



~ Colony vs Dev Corp was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO awesome. All of those guys brought their A-Game and wow did it show. Simple big vs little man formula emphasized by the talents of all men involved. Everything that could have gone well did in this one. Crowd was amazing for all aspects of it too. Perfect confluence of events made this an absolute joy to watch. So much so in that I think it effectively took over as my favorite Chikara match this year. Fire Ant was on - pun intended - FIRE~! during all of this. Max Smashmaster was leaving his feet more times than science should allow. He's a hell of an athlete. Tbf, all of Dev Corp are. Even Fumblecrunch despite this only being my first viewing of his work. He impressed me. Great match. Hot and heavy trios action from start to finish. Everyone should check this out.





*Chikara Grand Championship*
Eddie Kingston(c) vs Icarus ~ ******



Spoiler: Review



~ Kingston vs Icarus was another really great match. Told a wonderful story. Icarus & Kingston's promos for the match was just as wonderful and only contributed to the story the match told. <3333 Icarus' Marty Jannetty attire. I knew going in this was going to be on of those "double turn" type of matches. Icarus in-between of a heel to face shift and Kingston the opposite with a face going heel. This match is why I love Kingston. He's great no matter what role he plays. He makes you love to root him on as a babyface and he makes you want to hate him as a heel. He helped Icarus get so much sympathy while beating him down. Destroying Icarus' back throughout, even bringing the chair into play. Not wanting to lose his darling Grand Championship. He was fed up with being the hero. He's going to do whatever it takes to retain. Icarus only wanted to use his hero to inspire him. It just so happens he had the fans behind him 50% of the way and eventually 100% as the match wore on. Ah, I really did love this. Proof Icarus CAN be good enough to have a match worth seeing too. I've always knew he was. I'm not calling him a great worker or anything like that, but he's fine. He's good when he put his best effort in. I'll firmly stand by it; proven here otherwise. The non-finish was the only thing that marred it. Wow I thought we had ourselves a new champion in Icarus. Chikara special tease was tremendous. Finish was part of a MUCH bigger picture, though. Can't fault 'em for that as it'll mean something more later on. Great match.


----------



## Bubz

THECHAMPION said:


> Honest question: What about their gimmick annoys you?
> 
> Other than Solider all the Colony Ants are just dudes who dress in colorful masks and don't incorporate the name into the gimmick at all.
> 
> Other than maybe Fire being fiery especially compared to his unmasked demeanor, but that barely counts as anything.
> 
> Anyway I liked both Kingston/Green Ant matches a lot though I think the first Saturyne/Touchdown match is still my Chikara MOTY. Maybe I'd enjoy it less if I watched it again because some of it was probably the surprise of how good it was.


The fact that they dress as, and march around like...Ants. Surely you can see how that would irritate some wrestling fans. I don't find it funny, it isn't entertaining and they aren't particularly great in the ring from what I've seen. They're no Chuck Taylor though. That guy is fucking unbearable and he doesn't need to dress up to do it.


----------



## Obfuscation

I wished I could see what there is to hate about Chuck Taylor. Just so I wouldn't be so perplexed by it.


----------



## Lane

^ I'm completely dumbfound.
Edit: SHIT. Obfuscation NB4 Lane


----------



## Bubz

He's bad in the ring, he's annoying, he looks annoying, he isn't funny .


----------



## Lane

We know two different Chuck Taylors then. Also, Ants wrestling as Ants. No need for them to do that at all being dressed as Ants and such.


----------



## Obfuscation

Bubz said:


> He's bad in the ring, he's annoying, he looks annoying, he isn't funny .


Ahhh the old annoying perception. Same reason why I want Kofi Kingston's blood. Fair enough.


----------



## Bubz

Lane said:


> We know two different Chuck Taylors then. Also, Ants wrestling as Ants. No need for them to do that at all being dressed as Ants and such.


No need to dress as ants or wrestle like ants . It's uncalled for.

Nah I'm just being a dick. They don't offend me, I just find the whole thing overly goofy.

I dislike ROH's 'wrestling is so serious' approach, but Chikara is sometimes too much for me. Like I said, it doesn't actively piss me off like it does some people.

That thing I saw where Taylor throws a fake grenade and all the ants run off in slow motion and then one of them pretends to jump on it and explode or something is the absolute worst though imo.


----------



## Obfuscation

I love the grenade spots.

Watched a Fire Ant vs Chuck Taylor match yesterday here Taylor bites the part of the grenade sign and throws it on Fire Ant causing the KA-BOOM.

Yeah, I like that shit. I really do think most people think the promotion as a whole is so much comedy when it honestly isn't. It can be in high demand some shows; not all. Opinions though. All will be different.


----------



## Lane

Bubz said:


> No need to dress as ants or wrestle like ants . It's uncalled for.
> 
> Nah I'm just being a dick. They don't offend me, I just find the whole thing overly goofy.
> 
> I dislike ROH's 'wrestling is so serious' approach, but Chikara is sometimes too much for me. Like I said, it doesn't actively piss me off like it does some people.
> 
> That thing I saw where Taylor throws a fake grenade and all the ants run off in slow motion and then one of them pretends to jump on it and explode or something is the absolute worst though imo.


CHIKARA is goofy as shit. Personally I think its awesome because you know the kids eat that up.
The exploding grenade is a guilty pleasure. 
Check out ISW. Its kinda like CHIKARA but centered towards adults.


----------



## Obfuscation

You mostly see adults in Chikara crowds over the kids.

FIP had WAY more kids in the crowd when it was around. For one unusual example. And I'm almost certain Bubz wouldn't care for ISW at all.


----------



## Yeah1993

I don't feel like I'm watching wrestling when I see Chuck Taylor. I remember last year I saw him v. Sami Callihan and he was yelling like a grandma or some comedy bullshit when Sami was hitting German suplexes. It was like he didn't give a fuck to sell them properly and just wants to come off as funny while doing it. It feels like he does everything to get a chuckle from the audience. I mean there's comedy wrestling and then there's...fucking Chuck Taylor. Being completely frank I pretty much hate his stinking guts. My least favourite wrestler of all time.


If someone wants to show me stuff that shows Chuck Taylor as good then feel free. I'd watch pretty much anything out of curiosity. I'll admit to being wrong if I dig the stuff.


----------



## Obfuscation

Watch Chuck Taylor & Icarus vs The Colony Hair vs Mask from Aniversario: Yang in 2009.

idk don't remember any pointless comedy in there. I could be very wrong, but fuck it. Random plug to give you a challenge to find a match you don't despise with him.


----------



## Bubz

Not heard of ISW. Just googled it and to be honest I don't have time to be watching promotions like that, part of the reason I don't check out Chikara or DG much lately or all of the British stuff Seabs was pimping last year. I would if I had the time but I have to be very picky with my wrestling recently and I've been watching a bunch of stuff for the 00's poll because there's nothing bar NJPW and BRYAN DANIELSON that interests me much in current wrestling aside from checking out the most pimped matches from other companies. Oh, and Punk.


----------



## Obfuscation

Logical, tbhayley. I'm lucky I have the free time that I do to watch all the current wrestling _(and various other years)_ I do during most days.


----------



## lariatooooo!!!

Currently trying to fully getting back into Puro and them Indies. Any suggestions what to see first, top 3 matches that made you mark out in 2013? Preferably the most intense battles, no long-drawn-out stuff (like 45 min.) ...


----------



## seabs

*Chuck Taylor and CHIKARA can go suck a dick. Or maybe they'd be better getting paid to suck a dick. hehe. Taylor sucks. It's like he tries to be a comedy wrestler but he does it in serious matches and just ruins them everytime. I don't think his shtick is all that funny but at least in a comedy setting he's not ruining matches and main eventing. I use the Gargano I Quit match is an example a lot but it's pretty spot on as to why Chuck Taylor shouldn't be in serious matches. I Quit match and within seconds Chuck Taylor is doing the girly scream off chops and putting motorbike helmets on.*


----------



## flag sabbath

lariatooooo!!! said:


> Currently trying to fully getting back into Puro and them Indies. Any suggestions what to see first, top 3 matches that made you mark out in 2013? Preferably the most intense battles, no long-drawn-out stuff (like 45 min.) ...


Okada vs. Tanahashi from Invasion Attack is by far the best match I've seen anywhere this year.

For full-on intensity, take your pick between Goto vs. Ishii (17/2) and Kenta vs. Suguira (12/5).

From the Indies, it has to be Ricochet & Swann vs. Fox & Del Sol (PWG ASW9 N1).


----------



## Rah

Bubz said:


> (1)He's bad in the ring, (2) he's annoying, (3) he looks annoying, (4) he isn't funny .


Is it bad that the first name that came to mind reading this was Chuck Taylor only to see it was about Chuck Taylor?


Points 2 through 4 are obviously subjective arguments, so we cannot objectively disagree or agree there but with regards to point (1) I do agree on an objective ground. I actually do enjoy The Colony but Chuck Taylor is on his own level.

Also that sick, psychotic smile of Bubz added to the end of his sentence is staring into your soul.


----------



## geraldinhio

Chuck Taylor vs Claudio from Evolve is the best I've seen Taylor in any match. Awesome match, given plenty of time and don't recall any wacky Chucky-T antics. 

Also Daniel Bryan vs Seth Rollins. :mark: Four stars sounds perfectly right. Rollins is just getting better and better and Bryans vicious side is just awesome.


----------



## Chismo

Yeah1993 said:


> I don't feel like I'm watching wrestling when I see Chuck Taylor. I remember last year I saw him v. Sami Callihan and he was yelling like a grandma or some comedy bullshit when Sami was hitting German suplexes. It was like he didn't give a fuck to sell them properly and just wants to come off as funny while doing it. It feels like he does everything to get a chuckle from the audience. I mean there's comedy wrestling and then there's...fucking Chuck Taylor. Being completely frank I pretty much hate his stinking guts. My least favourite wrestler of all time.


You make it sound like a bad thing.


----------



## Kenny

so who else loved bryan/rollins?


----------



## Rah

*Eddie Kingston Vs Icarus (02/06/2013 Chikara)*
★★★ 3/4
_Who is that annoying second announcer, Donst? What gimmick is he honestly trying to pull? Because it comes across as an unfunny, brain-drenchingly annoying Bubbles-type character from Trailer Park Boys.

All that is to be said is that Eddie Kingston made it what it was. From his heel mannerisms, to his bumps to his centred and intellectual offence everything of his hit point. He really is that good in creating a match that not only logically flows but also captivates an audience no matter his allegiance to the fans. It's almost the opposite for Icarus, who was exceedingly questionable in this. This really could have been something if a better worker had taken his role or, at least, Icarus sold Kingston's offence like he should have. Sure, he sold the back but nothing more than on a one-dimensional level. Compare, for instance, Kingston's manner of regaining control (an eye poke, for instance) to Icarus' over-reliance on his pedigree. Sure, he was desperate, but I cannot believe Kingston going limp into the pedigree position straight after he misses a big boot to the corner. He isn't groggy, he's just tied up. Those were honestly parts that needed work on but I almost feel bad in disliking this purely because of how great Kingston was here.

I enjoyed the Jennety chair work, for what it's worth, but found the submission cliff-hanger odd in the sense that they just lay there waiting for the run-in rather than fighting against it. Kingston had passed out, the referee had counted him out once then stalled in the count as they all looked to the stage almost as if to collectively say "where the fuck are you?!"._


*Kyle Matthews Vs Mike Cruz (30/05/2013 Rampage Pro)*
HQ LINK || LQ LINK
★★★★+
_It's honestly criminal that both men have now placed in my MotY list three times yet not a single other person is talking about them. I'm honestly not sure what I should do but keep mentioning this fact and start hyperbolising their worth in the hopes that someone bites.

The opening matwork isn't flashy, co-operative bullshit. It's a total scrap for control where Matthews outclasses Cruz into some nifty submissions. As good as Cruz/Walker is, in terms of the Goliath/David feel, there's something more interesting about Cruz/Matthews in that they bring out the best in each other through their grounded matwork. Cruz may come across better as a heel in his matches, too, but I'm glad they kept it to a workable level here and rather focused on just creating a good match. Matthews is quite easily the antithesis to Icarus as the worker I mentioned in the Chikara review. He's just so fucking good at making Cruz' work look lethal. I can't quite imagine how he's going to bump for Elgin if he's crumpling into a limp heap after a dropkick to the face by Cruz.

I quite disliked the finish, and I'm no fan of quick roll-ups (especially when they come across as cheap finishes), but I'd guess they needed a "lucky win" rather than anything decisive. Not that that makes it any less shitty, though._​


----------



## Corey

Hilarious reading all this Chuck Taylor hate. He hasn't been _as_ bad this year since he's gotten in shape but he's still annoying at times.



lariatooooo!!! said:


> Currently trying to fully getting back into Puro and them Indies. Any suggestions what to see first, top 3 matches that made you mark out in 2013? Preferably the most intense battles, no long-drawn-out stuff (like 45 min.) ...


Haven't seen any Puro but my guess is that you'll mark pretty hard for a couple tag matches from PWG All Star Weekend 9. From Night 1 it's AR Fox & Samuray Del Sol vs. Ricochet & Rich Swann (*** 3/4 from me, much higher for most folks) and from Night 2 it's Kevin Steen, Michael Elgin, & Brian Cage vs. AR Fox, Ricochet, & Rich Swann (****).



CHRISTINA HENDRICKS said:


> so who else loved bryan/rollins?


I believe we all were, with a better finish it would've been even better. *** 3/4 for me.

*** 3/4 as well for Masters vs. Hoyt in TCW. *Lane* dropped a link in the Indy DVD Thread.

Need to watch all this Mike Cruz stuff Rah's been droppin... idk who he is at all.


----------



## Rah

*Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA Par-K (02/06/2013 TxT)*
LINK
★★★★ 1/4
_You get Dusty Finishers then you get this. How Wagner's at fault for body-splashing a referee who purposefully held onto Park (and fell under him), I have no idea. I also have no clue as to why the referee reluctantly counted the pin, giving the impression Wagner won only to raise Par-K's hand for the firework-infused victory. That, and Par-K's gassed performane in the third caida are legitimately the only negatives to this chaotic brawl and, even then, you could chalk up his gassed performance to being groggy after bleeding out.

When I say bleeding out I don't mean a little bit of blood. Todo X Todo's logo on the ringmat could have been painted out of Par-K's blood, that's how bad it was. But boy did it cause a great bloodlust in the rabid fans. The crowd scenes were reminiscent of golden-day ECW in how they bayed for someone's death, trying to hand the luchadores weapons and screaming for them to use them and, oh boy, did the luchadores ever. Utterly sick violence that culminated in Wagner cracking Par-K's skull three times with a beer bottle that refused to break only to smash it on the ring-ramp and cause the Muta-esque cut on Par-K's forehead by gauging away at his skin.

The CZW gusset-plate match was one thing, but this just felt more real in its violence. Like both men really did want to kill each other. Crazy._​


----------



## Chismo

Rah said:


> *Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA Par-K (02/06/2013 TxT)*
> LINK
> ★★★★ 1/4
> _You get Dusty Finishers then you get this. How Wagner's at fault for body-splashing a referee who purposefully held onto Park (and fell under him), I have no idea. I also have no clue as to why the referee reluctantly counted the pin, giving the impression Wagner won only to raise Par-K's hand for the firework-infused victory. That, and Par-K's gassed performane in the third caida are legitimately the only negatives to this chaotic brawl and, even then, you could chalk up his gassed performance to being groggy after bleeding out.
> 
> When I say bleeding out I don't mean a little bit of blood. Todo X Todo's logo on the ringmat could have been painted out of Par-K's blood, that's how bad it was. But boy did it cause a great bloodlust in the rabid fans. The crowd scenes were reminiscent of golden-day ECW in how they bayed for someone's death, trying to hand the luchadores weapons and screaming for them to use them and, oh boy, did the luchadores ever. Utterly sick violence that culminated in Wagner cracking Par-K's skull three times with a beer bottle that refused to break only to smash it on the ring-ramp and cause the Muta-esque cut on Par-K's forehead by gauging away at his skin.
> 
> The CZW gusset-plate match was one thing, but this just felt more real in its violence. Like both men really did want to kill each other. Crazy._​


Just watched this, and I think it was really good, the old school pace was very appreciated. 

***1/2 :$


----------



## The Lady Killer

Saw bits and pieces of a CZW gusset-plate match. Why the fuck would anyone sign on for that shit? It's not even wrestling, it's just stupid.


----------



## Concrete

*Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant(5/3/13 CHIKARA):****1/4*
_So this ruled. First match was great. This was even better. I will never get old of Kingston selling his leg. It is always something that gets me to think the other person has a shot even though I know they really don't. Its just super grand. Green Ant was willing to kill himself which doesn't hurt. Kingston is the bestest. That's really all that needed to be said._


----------



## seancarleton77

Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins was probably TV match of the year. And yes, I saw CM Punk vs. John Cena from a little before WrestleMania.


----------



## THECHAMPION

Yeah I'd have to rewatch both but it might have surpassed it.

Bryan/Ryback from last week was also really good.

I wonder what the list is right now in WWE of people Bryan couldn't have a good match with. Hornswaggle and Khali might be the list. And he might be able to get a relatively good match out of Khali (relative to Khali obviously)


----------



## Corey

*PWG - DDT4 2013

**Knockout or Submission Only
*Drake Younger vs. Sami Callihan - ****

I LOVE LOVE LOVED this, guess I'll call it somewhat of a guilty pleasure. It's not exactly loaded with great selling and top notch psychology, but what it lacks in those categories is made up for with sheer violence and two guys beating the piss out of each other til one of them physically can't continue. You look at the stipulation of the match and it's 100% what you get. If they weren't dropping each other all over chairs folded in every direction throughout all of Reseda then they were locking in an incredibly painful looking submission to make the other one look like a little bitch. What I liked so much about this one compared to their eventual Guerrilla Warfare match was that it wasn't so one sided, both guys took their fair share of punishment (Drake of course takes disgusting amounts and keeps fighting back). There's a couple moments of no selling but it's excusable considering the type of threshold these two men have for pain and since most of the occasions it actually played into the context of the match. The finish felt just a tad bit rushed, but otherwise a fucking GREAT match.


*DDT4 Finals - PWG World Tag Team Championship
*The Young Bucks (c) vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico - ****

El Generico WILL. NOT. DIE! God this match ruled so hard. Started out basically like a Guerrilla Warfare with belt shots, chair shots, and tons of brawling in the crowd. When they eventually get back into the ring it reached a whole new level as we saw the GOAT FIP get FIPed while the Bucks constantly kept Steen at bay. The entire last like 5 minutes were complete :mark: from me. Generico eats like 8 superkicks, feeds off the crowd to block one, then gets killed with like 4 more, kicks out, takes more bang for your buck, KICKS OUT, so what do the Bucks do? Just superkick the ref. :lol Motherfucker I love those guys. The finish is sheer brilliance, as was the way the Bucks won every match on this night. Had me grinning ear to ear. Oh and you can't forget about what happens postmatch. Sheer class. (I was gonna put a Generico smiley here... but there isn't one?)​


----------



## Obfuscation

The Lady Killer said:


> Saw bits and pieces of a CZW gusset-plate match. Why the fuck would anyone sign on for that shit? It's not even wrestling, it's just stupid.


We're gonna have to disagree here. I don't mind it if the participants are willing to go balls out. Jun Kasai is the maddest of them all.

As for indie matches you should check out, I'm gonna be the only one who says it but fuck the Ricochet/Swann vs Del So/Fox match. It was pretty awful for the majority. I don't see the appeal behind it in the slightest. Was annoyed during the majority of it. So what I'm saying here is I'd advise watching it; especially if the men involve aren't your cup of tea.


----------



## Rah

If you looked past Unbreakle Steen Machines, Obfuscation, maybe I can look past such silliness. That was worse. Much, much worse.



Chismo said:


> Just watched this, and I think it was really good, the old school pace was very appreciated.
> 
> ***1/2 :$


That's selling it short but eh.


----------



## septurum

Daniel Bryan vs Seth Rollins (WWE Raw-6/10/12): ****


----------



## Bubz

Bryan vs Rollins ruled. Love that Bryan busts out new stuff all the time, using the elbows :mark:. Counter of the jumping kick into the leg submission made me mark when they did that spot in ROH but fuck, here it was otherworldly, seeing the wwe crowd freak out for a move like that absolutely ruled. Crowd just comes alive whenever Bryan is in the ring, it still seems fucking unreal, I can only imagine how that feels for him. Rollins bumps like a maniac for Bryan, and he's so much better and smarter in the ring now. Really liked the finish too actually.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> If you looked past Unbreakle Steen Machines, Obfuscation, maybe I can look past such silliness. That was worse. Much, much worse.


Haven't watched Night Two. You're making me not want to witness that six man if it was worse than the crummy Night One tag.


----------



## Rah

Well, I liked the night one spotfest and others herald that six-man as a legit MotYC. For what it's worth.


----------



## flag sabbath

The ASW9 N2 six-man was almost like an exhibition. It just kind of washed over me & at no point did I give a shit about the outcome. Best thing about it was the commentary. Loved the N1 tag, though. So it goes.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Rewatched some RAW matches

Ryback, Sheamus and Jericho vs Shield -* *****
Chris Jericho vs CM Punk - ****3/4*
Team Hell No and Undertaker vs Shield -* ****1/4*
CM Punk vs John Cena -* ****3/4* (PILEDRIVER!!)
Steel Cage: Dolph Ziggler vs John Cena - ******


----------



## Obfuscation

I forgot all about the Cena vs Ziggler steel cage match.

:lmao


----------



## Rah

*Eddie Kingston Vs Green Ant (03/05/2013 Chikara)*
★★★ 3/4
_Kingston angrily retorting "I know what the belt looks like, let's get it on" before getting mauled by Ants was a hilarious way to start the match. I'll assume Kingston has knee issues in that they become the focal point in every match I've watched. It's not that overkill is a bad thing, however (especially if legitimate), as Green Ant can truly possess an uncanny knack for coming across as a submission "expert" when he wishes to.

I don't think this was as good as the first encounter, though. The first may have had a worse body of work than this, but it didn't suffer from glaringly confusing moments. For instance, what was the point of Green Ant taking a dive and hitting his head on the apron? If Kingston hadn't moved, what did Ant wish to achieve? Alas, the means in which they treated the control-shifts wasn't, at all, my cup of tea. Ant was, also, hit and miss here ranging from delivering a completely lethargic springboard dropkick to a nifty knee-submission pin-attempt (even if the first attempt of the move was the only time he executed it well). I'm not quite sure why a suplex (backdrop driver, the hell?) delivered by Kingston at a specific moment is regarded as a finisher and at, others, is a stock standard move for the Chikara guys. Nice to see it make Green Ant convulse like some epileptic patient, though. That was strange. The Backfist to the Future is pathetic, too. It's isn't a fist, but a weak slap to the face that should not have ended this match. For a wrestler touted for his brawling ability he should be able to make it look more believable._​


----------



## Chismo

Rewatched Cena/Punk, and no way I can give it more than ***. Punk was amazing, but Johnny Boy can go choke on dong. 

And I swear I'm gonna check out The Shield matches soon. One day.


----------



## Bubz

I also rewatched Punk/Cena the other day and still really liked it but not as much. Lowering my rating to **** but a high one.


----------



## Nervosa

Still can't stand Cena/Punk. Just trading spots. Great spots, nothing more.


----------



## DOPA

*Daniel Bryan vs Seth Rollins (WWE 6/10): *****


----------



## djmathers1207

Let's admit it: Raw is a better show to watch right now over Smackdown in terms of wrestling. I wish Smackdown and Main Event were more like Raw. Haven't seen NXT in a long time. BTW: What matches from NXT would you recommend?


----------



## seabs

*Regal vs Ohno
Neville vs Cesaro
Neville/Grey vs Ohno/Kruger
Neville/Gray vs Wyatt Family*


----------



## Corey

djmathers1207 said:


> Let's admit it: Raw is a better show to watch right now over Smackdown in terms of wrestling. I wish Smackdown and Main Event were more like Raw. Haven't seen NXT in a long time. BTW: What matches from NXT would you recommend?


Cesaro vs. Neville (idr the date but I wanna say April) was really good and apparently Cesaro & Sami Zayn (El Generico) just had a great match last night, although I've yet to see it. And jesus how did I forget Ohno vs. Regal? certainly check that one out.

And yes, RAW has been on a roll when it comes to individual matches but you can't argue with the fact that 3 hours is way too fucking long and there's usually a lot of pointless shit thrown in. Smackdown & Main Event have had their share of good stuff as well. Del Rio/Show LMS (for most), Del Rio/Swagger, Ryback/Bryan, Sheamus/Ziggler, Del Rio/Ziggler, Sheamus/Cesaro, etc.


----------



## Goku

Chismo said:


> Rewatched Cena/Punk, and no way I can give it more than ***. Punk was amazing, but Johnny Boy can go choke on dong.





Nervosa said:


> Still can't stand Cena/Punk. Just trading spots. Great spots, nothing more.


I kinda like the match, but agreed with both assessments.


----------



## Rah

Jack Evans 187 said:


> apparently Cesaro & Sami Zayn (El Generico) just had a great match last night, although I've yet to see it.


Get on it!

When you do, let me know if your stream/download wasn't skipping parts. I'd love for a complete match of theirs (and not 99%). Cesaro's best performance, so far, if I'm honest. Absolutely mauls Sami.



Seabs said:


> Neville/Grey vs Ohno/Kruger


What's the date for this?


----------



## DOPA

*Eddie Kingston(c) vs. Green Ant (Chikara 5/3): ****1/2*​
This had A+ pyschology and story telling throughout the entire match. There was absolutely no wasted motion and no wasted moves. From when the bell rang Green Ant going right after the injured leg of Kingston and going for the high impact strikes and high flying moves. Showing how badly he wanted to win this match with the chances he took and the urgency he showed going right after the leg of Kingston trying to put him away as quick as possible. Kingston's selling throughout the match was utterly fantastic. Someone like Drake Younger could learn how to sell properly from watching this match with Kingston. There was not a single move that Kingston did which looked unrealistic due to how Kingston sold his injured leg, regardless if it was a strike, a high impact grappling move or a high flying move, Kingston's selling meant that there wasn't a single moment where you could get frustrated and not suspend your belief that Kingston wasn't actually injured. You could get sucked into the story of the match because of that alone. Green Ant overall is just a fantastic and underrated worker overall. He absolutely gets pro wrestling from a working standpoint, psychology and all. It is the little details about his offense towards Kingston which really makes me appreciate how great he is. From wasting little motion at the start of the match, to going back to the strikes to the head which worked throughout the match to get Kingston off his feet for a pin attempt or to work on the injured leg further. To switching his frog splash to aim right on top of Kingston's legs to set up the cloverleaf and when he aimed at Kingston's other leg when Kingston was on the turnbuckle which made Kingston full off and buckle on his injured leg. Throughout the match EVERY SINGLE PIN Green Ant made he hooked the injured leg and torqued on it to cause even more pressure. Such a simple but yet brilliant little nuance which added so much to this match. Kingston throughout played a great role in getting frustrated throughout the match, trying to nail high impact strikes and moves to take out Green Ant and trying desperately create space so Green Ant could not go after his injury. His desperation getting so much to the point of taking shortcuts and deliberately going out his way to hurt Green Ant, dare I say going a little more heel; raking the eyes of Green Ant and that devastating powerbomb to the outside. The ending was also played out beautifully to which the story of the match progressed. With Green Ant's urgency and will to win, Kingston nailing the backdrop driver but Green Ant refusing to stay down, trying to stand up and get his balance but not being able to retain consciousness whilst staggering desperately not wanting to lose before Kingston nails him with the back fist. This was a stunning stunning match, one of the best I've seen this year. The only thing I could critique this match on is I wish the Cloverleaf was teased a bit longer and was more drawn out as it could have added more drama to the match overall. But that's a minor complaint, this match overall was fantastic.


----------



## Corey

*Chikara - While the Dawn is Breaking*

*Young Lions Cup
*Mr. Touchdown (c) vs. Saturyne - ****

Are you serious right now!? This was FANTASTIC. For those unaware, Saturyne is a woman so this had the simplest story to tell. "Mr. Touchdown" Mark Angelosetti is bigger, stronger, and he's a MAN.  I was gonna say faster but after watching this match I'm not entirely sure if he is. Anyway, like I said this was simple. Touchdown dominates, throws the woman around the ring like a rag doll to the crowd's disapproval, then she makes a comeback here and there with some fancy spin kicks and desperation submissions. What really put this one over the top was that BRILLIANT top rope powerbomb counter that pulled out an incredible nearfall. Touchdown knew he was losing the upper hand so he had to resort to the hot shot on the ropes to gain back the momentum and the eventual victory. Really damn good match that I have no problem saying belongs in here. Low end 4* but still 4*.​


----------



## Obfuscation

Throwing Wyatt Family vs Ohno & Graves into the NXT pile. Another drop in the bucket from the awesome Family tags this year.


----------



## Rah

*Antonio Cesaro Vs Sami Zayn (12/06/2013 WWE NXT)*
★★★★
_Screw it, if I cannot find a decent stream of this then I'll have to settle with this. Not that I mind, though, because Cesaro delivers a phenomenal performance here while, for the most part, Zayne does a great job in bumping for him and getting the crowd to cherish the FIP moments. Someone needs to reward Regal, as well, for his more than stellar performance in not only bringing over both men (and Cesaro's anger) but in covering their botches, too. For instance, Zayne hit his beautiful Tope only to almost sail right over Cesaro. What does Regal do? He plugs it as Zayne using his body to attack Cesaro's head and cause the big man to become dazed. Brilliant.

This is really, and honestly, what you should expect from these two. A large, powerful and proud man hell-bent on making up for his loss throwing his little foe around the ring for a little more than 10 minutes. It may affect some, as it's completely different to what we've been fed before, but Zayne bumps rather uniquely to Cesaro's uppercuts and forearm smashes. Any doubts, though, on how unmasking him may affect his performance are laid to rest here. He's still Generico but with the added difference of being able to emote through his facials. Colour me completely excited for more of his matches, thus.

While the Neutralizer ending may have been "clunky" I found it really did add to the story of Cesaro wishing to hurt Sami in that he didn't make sure his opponent was completely held in this time. As Regal would have us want to view it, "that was nasty!". It's not as good as Regal/Ohno, but this is easily another TV MotYC from WWE. Watch this._​


----------



## Obfuscation

Good. I knew you were going to put that in here ASAP so I ended up being lazy and relied on your review to say what I could have said in either the same eloquent fashion or a much, much lesser version. I don't know and I don't care. That match RULED for only being a sub-11 minute affair. Cesaro is a phenom & Zayn already proves he's cream of the crop while working WWE. I baw gawd love it to death.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Both matches were good but not even close to MOTYCs imo. I wouldn't go higher than *** 1/4 for the 2nd one.


----------



## Groovemachine

Downloading Cesaro/Zayn as we speak. Can't wait! :mark:

Rollins vs Bryan was great, top notch work all round. You know how Austin Aries has the whole 'You can't headscissor Aries' thing? I really hope it becomes a sort of midmatch gimmick that 'You can't surfboard Bryan!' To be honest I like the idea they're playing up that Bryan knows a counter to every submission, so it would be pretty cool if for the next few months NO ONE can lock a submission in on him properly. 
Rollins again showed personality in this; peppering the back of Daniel's head with a couple of slaps before going for the surfboard was a real nice touch, and it's rare you see that kind of 'dickishness' in the WWE these days so props for that.


----------



## Really?

Punk vs Cena Raw No.1 Contenders match

Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Chismo

Crusade said:


> *Eddie Kingston(c) vs. Green Ant (Chikara 5/3): ****1/2*​
> This had A+ pyschology and story telling throughout the entire match. There was absolutely no wasted motion and no wasted moves. From when the bell rang Green Ant going right after the injured leg of Kingston and going for the high impact strikes and high flying moves. Showing how badly he wanted to win this match with the chances he took and the urgency he showed going right after the leg of Kingston trying to put him away as quick as possible. Kingston's selling throughout the match was utterly fantastic. Someone like Drake Younger could learn how to sell properly from watching this match with Kingston. There was not a single move that Kingston did which looked unrealistic due to how Kingston sold his injured leg, regardless if it was a strike, a high impact grappling move or a high flying move, Kingston's selling meant that there wasn't a single moment where you could get frustrated and not suspend your belief that Kingston wasn't actually injured. You could get sucked into the story of the match because of that alone. Green Ant overall is just a fantastic and underrated worker overall. He absolutely gets pro wrestling from a working standpoint, psychology and all. It is the little details about his offense towards Kingston which really makes me appreciate how great he is. From wasting little motion at the start of the match, to going back to the strikes to the head which worked throughout the match to get Kingston off his feet for a pin attempt or to work on the injured leg further. To switching his frog splash to aim right on top of Kingston's legs to set up the cloverleaf and when he aimed at Kingston's other leg when Kingston was on the turnbuckle which made Kingston full off and buckle on his injured leg. Throughout the match EVERY SINGLE PIN Green Ant made he hooked the injured leg and torqued on it to cause even more pressure. Such a simple but yet brilliant little nuance which added so much to this match. Kingston throughout played a great role in getting frustrated throughout the match, trying to nail high impact strikes and moves to take out Green Ant and trying desperately create space so Green Ant could not go after his injury. His desperation getting so much to the point of taking shortcuts and deliberately going out his way to hurt Green Ant, dare I say going a little more heel; raking the eyes of Green Ant and that devastating powerbomb to the outside. The ending was also played out beautifully to which the story of the match progressed. With Green Ant's urgency and will to win, Kingston nailing the backdrop driver but Green Ant refusing to stay down, trying to stand up and get his balance but not being able to retain consciousness whilst staggering desperately not wanting to lose before Kingston nails him with the back fist. This was a stunning stunning match, one of the best I've seen this year. The only thing I could critique this match on is I wish the Cloverleaf was teased a bit longer and was more drawn out as it could have added more drama to the match overall. But that's a minor complaint, this match overall was fantastic.





Jack Evans 187 said:


> *Chikara - While the Dawn is Breaking*
> 
> *Young Lions Cup
> *Mr. Touchdown (c) vs. Saturyne - ****
> 
> Are you serious right now!? This was FANTASTIC. For those unaware, Saturyne is a woman so this had the simplest story to tell. "Mr. Touchdown" Mark Angelosetti is bigger, stronger, and he's a MAN.  I was gonna say faster but after watching this match I'm not entirely sure if he is. Anyway, like I said this was simple. Touchdown dominates, throws the woman around the ring like a rag doll to the crowd's disapproval, then she makes a comeback here and there with some fancy spin kicks and desperation submissions. What really put this one over the top was that BRILLIANT top rope powerbomb counter that pulled out an incredible nearfall. Touchdown knew he was losing the upper hand so he had to resort to the hot shot on the ropes to gain back the momentum and the eventual victory. Really damn good match that I have no problem saying belongs in here. Low end 4* but still 4*.​


Fuckin' A guys, and about damn time more folks recognize those two smashing matches. I rated them exactly the same.


----------



## flag sabbath

Sir Paul's NXT upload on XWT is great quality & glitch-free. Cesaro vs. Zayne is very good & it's great to see Zayne's familiar routine (sin mascara) getting over with the WWE crowd. ****1/2*


----------



## DOPA

*Antonio Cesaro Vs Sami Zayn (WWE 6/12): ***3/4*


----------



## wheelofsteel

Some Ratings For The Dragon Gate Dead Or Alive PPV

Ricochet vs Jimmy Susumu ***3/4

Naaruki Doi, RIch Swann & Shachihoko Boy vs Masaaki Mochizuki, Don Fuji & HUB ****

Dragon Kid vs Masato Yoshino ****1/2 (Best Match Of The Show, These 2 Dudes Never Dissapoint)

BxB Hulk & Uhaa Nation vs Shingo & YAMATO ****1/4

CIMA vs Akira Tozawa ****1/4

I Definitely Recommend This Show As Is One Of The Best Of The Year Specially The Yoshino-Dragon Kid Bout Which Delivered Big Time


----------



## EmbassyForever

The Shield vs Team Hell No and Randy Orton - ****

Cesaro vs Sheamus from the same episode was very good as well, ***1/4-***1/2 I guess.


----------



## djmathers1207

Top 5 Raw matches of 2013 in no particular order

John Cena vs. CM Punk Raw 2/25/13
Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins Raw 6/10/13
The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston Raw 5/20/13
The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Randy Orton Raw 6/4/13
The Shield vs. Team Hell No Raw 5/27/13

There should be a Top 10 Raw matches of 2013 list at the end of the year BTW


----------



## Rah

There's already been more than 10 matches on Raw so, realistically, there's already a Top 10, anyway. :


----------



## Obfuscation

I got twelve from RAW in my MOTYC list atm. Time to trim the fat and make that top ten, as it were. :hmm:


----------



## flag sabbath

Only Cena vs. Punk and Shield vs. Hell No & Kofi make my ***3/4+ cut. Plenty of good stuff just below that, mind.


----------



## septurum

Kurt Angle vs AJ Styles (Impact Wrestling-6/13/12)- *** 3/4

Dangerously close to 4 stars if not for the interference at the end.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

wheelofsteel said:


> Some Ratings For The Dragon Gate Dead Or Alive PPV
> 
> Ricochet vs Jimmy Susumu ***3/4
> 
> Naaruki Doi, RIch Swann & Shachihoko Boy vs Masaaki Mochizuki, Don Fuji & HUB ****
> 
> Dragon Kid vs Masato Yoshino ****1/2 (Best Match Of The Show, These 2 Dudes Never Dissapoint)
> 
> BxB Hulk & Uhaa Nation vs Shingo & YAMATO ****1/4
> 
> CIMA vs Akira Tozawa ****1/4
> 
> I Definitely Recommend This Show As Is One Of The Best Of The Year Specially The Yoshino-Dragon Kid Bout Which Delivered Big Time


Link?


----------



## wheelofsteel

http://www.ustream.tv/dragongate

You Can Watch It On Demand Until June 23rd For Only $20.00. As I Said Before, Totally Worth Watching


----------



## smitlick

*CZW Best of the Best 12*

Adam Cole vs Sami Callihan
****


----------



## flag sabbath

*Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki (c) vs. Suwama & Joe Doering (AJPW 2/6):* Old-school, no-nonsense tag team bliss. Suwama & Doering are HARD-chopping, body-slamming, suplex-throwing, double-teaming monsters & the Burning boys have to fight like crazy to stay alive. The best performance I've seen from Doering & it culminates in a blistering slugfest between Suwama & Shiozaki. ******


----------



## EmbassyForever

WWE Main Event: Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler - ***3/4
The crowd was on fire for this match :mark: Great match but the finish was kinda lame.


----------



## Concrete

*Kyle Matthews Vs Mike Cruz (Rampage Pro 5/30/13):***3/4*
_This was real good. I need to start searching out more Mike Cruz cause this may be the best I've seen him look. Matthews is a guy I've heard so much about but for me I don't think this match did him as much justice as I was hoping. Looked good enough but not quite at the level at which I was expecting. Still need to get to those matches against Tempers.Will say I liked his crumpling even if it came off a little phony. Also that dive was fantastical in my book with him being off a hair. Matwork was really good in this match and much better than a lot of the indy workers today. Cruz did enough heel stuff to create the dynamic but not overdo it. Not the simplest of tasks it seems with too many heels making it a detriment to their matches or a non-existent part of their matches where you don't know whose who. When these two go at it again for the belt I'd certainly be interested in watching. Even if I hate the Rampage Pro streaming of their content._

Oh and Vordell Walker and Damien Wayne had another match last night for the NWA National Heavyweight Championship. If it is a less storyline debacled than their match earlier this year :mark:

*Chris Masters vs. Lance Hoyt(TCW):***3/4*
_This was so much better than I had heard. I don't know if it is because I haven't watched a ton of Masters(shame on me I know) but this match was totally rad. Hoyt is such a good monster heel. Masters plays a great face getting beat up by Hoyt. He gets some nice hope spots in. They created a good dynamic and gave the match a big fight feel which was grand. Could easily see this on a PPV for a bigger company. Hoyt is trying to get his finisher in this match and Masters is of course trying to latch in the Master Lock. Hoyt actually locks in a Master Lock and the struggle for Masters to get out is so nice to watch. Slowly moving towards the ropes with anguish in your eyes can build suspense sometimes but to see Masters struggle forward only to be brought back into the middle by Hoyt who has one foot planted the whole time. I don't know I found it to be a treat. Oh and the finish was set up well. Always a bonus. Second bonus was that this match didn't get spoiled by any shenanigans. GO WATCH THIS!_


----------



## Groovemachine

Johnny Gargano vs Samuray Del Sol - Evolve 22 - ****

~ Yes! This is how you do a sendoff. Del Sol looked great and Gargano just upped his Prick-o-meter by 10 with that brilliant finish. Flashy stuff throughout, they chained reversals together really well and clearly have good chemistry. Narrowly misses my Top 10 for the year.


----------



## Obfuscation

K, I'm getting on Masters vs Hoyt today. No more stalling _(forgetting)_.

Officially excited for Gargano vs Del Sol now. tbf, after the really good Del Sol vs Nese match from EVOLVE 20 and Gargano poking the flames with his commentary, it was already a done deal.


----------



## Bubz

6 man from Smackdown was super fun again. Bryan continues to be the best thing ever.


----------



## Obfuscation

*TCW Night of Champions 4/13/13 - TCW World Championship*

Lance Hoyt(c) vs Chris Adonis ~ ****3/4*​
Ooooooh. You got to love those simple formats to match when the workers in the match are capable of making it work. Gosh this was so good on both men's behalf. Masters rolling along with his now infamous babyface performances & Hoyt rocked him with his rugged, monster swarming work. I knew Hoyt would be great. I loved him in TNA and just knew if you gave him a chance he'd own. I wasn't wrong as proud as it makes me to say. TNA's loss at the end of the day. WWE's too. NJPW & everyone's gain today. Something about Hoyt dominating a match can be very interesting. Of course as I can't find the exact words to use, it's all relative in the positive territory b/c it's so damn fun to watch. Not only with the advent of Masters using the ropes to pull himself up; showing that uncanny sympathy he garners. Hoyt has done this in Japan too. Heck he even did it in WWE. _(seriously, his run there is kind of underrated pardon like one or two bad matches vs Shelton Benjamin)_ Applying the Masterlock _(Hoyt did)_ after demolishing Masters' neck/back towards the latter portion was awesome. Commentary was hilarious as when Masters broke the whole, one of the guys legit flipped out like he won the lottery. I kind of have the similar reaction to Master's comeback string of moves. Loving the shoulder block. It's so good it could finish matches - Ultimate Warrior style. When did Chris get so good? Smooth in all of his transitions and everything. I love you Masters. Finish was right along the same lines as the entire match when Hoyt hits the inverted Outsider's Edge into a flipping slam thingamajig. He did it a few times in TNA. Think Iconoclasm but with no use of the ropes if that paints a better picture. Point being, Hoyt is huge and he threw Masters _(another relatively big guy)_ all the way down with ease. Hoyt putting him away like a true monster. Radical stuff. This legit may have been the easiest match to watch from 2013 so far. Simple, effective, fun.


----------



## Caponex75

I was on the phone but from what I was seeing, Ziggler vs. Del Rio was amazing.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Yeah. Del Rio vs Ziggler had some fantastic storytelling with a great ending.


----------



## darkclaudio

Payback 2013
Dolph Ziggler vs Alberto Del Rio ***
CM Punk vs Chris Jericho ***1/2


----------



## Caponex75

Although Punk/Jericho should of been the main event, Ziggler vs. Rio was my MOTN. Funny considering that match didn't have my full undivided attention.


----------



## Zatiel

Ziggler/Del Rio blew away expectations. Edgy for the current WWE to have the pre-existing babyface work the head of a concussed heel. Of course their story from the outset was turning Ziggler sympathetic, and he bumped and sold like a god, like always, and did an incredible job with his turn. Del Rio remained aggressive, too, and was great in his role, especially in the relish he applied to certain spots, like the Inverted Superplex.

Punk/Jericho was a blast, but Ziggler/Del Rio drew me in more with its story. Both were fun.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

Yeah, Del Rio/Ziggler was definitely match of the night, even though I enjoyed the Diva match as well.

Ziggler's selling actually came to great use instead of just being entertaining, while Del Rio was just being a complete dick. Punting the diva's title, the taunting, straight brutalizing Dolph even while he was being checked up on; he was going for the win or the kill. After all this time of them trying to make Del Rio seem aggressive, this match actually accomplished it.


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah, really now, that double turn was nuts. Didn't know what the hell I was seeing _(in a good way once it became evident why the match was being worked the way it was.)_ Of course Dolph still has to do his share, but that's the road we're heading down.

Def MOTN. Punk vs Jericho wasn't good at all. No contest on this night which match took the show.


----------



## duttanized

I'm guessing they pulled the double turn because Dolph still needs time off.


----------



## USAUSA1

Rob Conway vs Chase Stevens NWA world title match from SAW Gathering of the Champions. It's on YouTube. Old school match, they stay on the mat the whole time.


----------



## DOPA

*Dolph Ziggler vs Alberto Del Rio (WWE 6/16): ****1/2 ​*
This was absolutely phenomenal and a real unique type of match we haven't seen in a long while. The main focus of this match was Del Rio almost from the get go going right after the previously concussed head of Ziggler. The constant attack of the head by Del Rio in the way that he did it was first class psychology. The brutal strikes throughout the match were devastating to watch and became more and more uncomfortable as it went on. And this where Ziggler's absolutely beautiful selling comes into play. People often joke about Ziggler's selling and the quality of it but here instead of Ziggler just selling to make his opponent look good his selling becomes a key factor in how this match played out and was crucial to the storytelling. Not only was his bumping first class but his consistent long term selling drew me into the match and gathered sympathy from this viewer and the fans watching in chicago. The grimace and cries of pain coming out of the mouth of Ziggler really added to the drama. This also changed the way Ziggler approached the match, no longer the cocky show off but becoming increasingly desperate and fighting for his pride and championship, refusing to give up. This is evident on the early goings on the outside where Ziggler brawls with Del Rio and bounces his head off the announce table. A much more physical Ziggler than we are used to seeing.

Del Rio also played a great great role in this. At first he was going after the head just because he knew it was Ziggler's weak spot and it was all about winning the title. The crowd were mostly pro Ziggler as it was Chicago but there were a fair few Del Rio supporters too. But as the match went on he became more vicious and more aggressive, the strikes got more malicious and the moves became more devastating. The move that really took the match to the next level was the reverse suplex off the top rope and from there this match went into another level. Del Rio getting more relentless and desperate to put Ziggler away delivering an absolutely vicious and unmerciful kick right on the forehead of Ziggler and that was when the turn began and the alignments started to switch. The double turn was in place and it was done fantastically well. Del Rio getting more frustrated and disrespectful. Pushing AJ away and kicking her newly won divas title away. From here, the drama increased tenfold. Ziggler's underdog babyface performance in this match was fantastic and is the crowning moment in his career in terms of performance thus far. Showing heart and guts, refusing to call it quits and seek attention against the pleas of AJ and the officials. His comebacks were believable and were desperate but in the end Del Rio's vicious assault was too much, the last superkick signalled the end of Ziggler's extremely short reign but in an incredible and pretty unique match up none the less. From a booking perspective, its a weird one, because I am gutted and pissed Dolph lost the title but at the same time it put him even more over than he already was. The crowd turned completely against Del Rio who cemented his heel turn by coming out after with the microphone. This achieved so much from a booking perspective for both men and in my opinion has produced their best matches and moments in their WWE careers thus far. A true Match of the Year contender for WWE.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Payback:

Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler - ****1/2

Still need to rewatch Punk/Jericho but live I thought it was great. Opener and Shield/RKNO were very good as well.


----------



## DOPA

*CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (WWE 6/16): ***3/4*

Weakest of their three by far but still really good.


----------



## Groovemachine

Well how interesting! I very much enjoyed Ziggler/Del Rio but didn't have it as a MOTYC. Punk/Jericho I have at ****; not as good as their WM28 or Extreme Rules match last year, but still a great encounter, and their familiarity with each other led to some fantastic reversals and counters. Jericho throwing Punk off as he went for his patented corner bulldog, the hurracanrana into the Walls, that was all good stuff and I LOVED Punk literally fighting his way out of the Walls, making Jericho break the hold limb by limb. An emphatic finish really helped this one too. Top notch return for the Best in the World.

Tag title match was fun too, but I think I've been spoilt by all the awesome Daniel Bryan matches on Raw as of late so this one didn't stand out as much.


----------



## djmathers1207

WWE Payback

CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho ****1/4 [equal to their Wrestlemania XXVIII match last year]
John Cena vs. Ryback ***3/4 [not as good as their Extreme Rules match]

Have to rewatch Ziggler/Del Rio in order to give it a rating, but I completely disagree on Ziggler losing the belt. WWE did that on purpose to screw over Ziggler and I think that is nothing but garbage.


----------



## obby

Kid Kamikaze10 said:


> Yeah, Del Rio/Ziggler was definitely match of the night, even though I enjoyed the Diva match as well.


so glad that the diva division is starting to get better

AJ as champ was a long time coming


----------



## funnyfaces1

If anybody is interested, here is my interpretation of the story being told by Punk/Jericho from last night and why it deserves mention for being a MOTYC.



Spoiler: Punk/Jericho III



Contrary to popular belief, I do think that there was an obvious story being told in this match, and a well-executed one at that. The story here is very similar to that of Cena/Jericho from SvS 08 with Punk playing the role that Cena played. After an extended leave due to crushing defeat after crushing defeat, CM Punk is back in his hometown. However, unlike his last two visits where he was oozing with confidence, this time he has to fight the battle of whether or not he is ready to come back to the ring against one of his arch rivals. The embarrassment of losing a return match in your own hometown would be too much for an already downed and deteriorated wrestler to handle. Cena's struggle in his match against Jericho was largely due to his *physical* condition and his return home from a serious surgery, but Punk's was due to his *mental* condition and whether he still truly believes that he is the best in the world. In both matches, we have one of the most manipulative wrestlers of all-time ready to pounce at his opponents' inadequacies in Jericho, who is a man that has never had an issue with lack of confidence.

After a surreal ovation from the Chicago crowd that wasn't sure if he would even show up, Punk (with an unkempt look akin to that either of an old-school Chicago hero or that of a miserable man) comes out looking happier than he did in a long time especially after his mental breakdown. However, as soon as the bell rings, Punk's smile directed to the Chicagoans turns into a serious expression, thus telling us that it's game time. Jericho understands the emotional implications of this match, so he starts the match by pushing Punk's buttons by pushing Punk. Punk wants to turn this beginning into a "feeling out" process as a way to get rid of ring rust. As JBL mentions, Punk's choice to slow down the pace favors him in his return. As he builds up more confidence from chain wrestling with Jericho, he opens up himself to Jericho's counter-attacks and reversals, which is an obvious trait of a man that has been so far away from the ring for an extended period.

In order for Jericho to have a chance at picking up a victory, he has to be as advantageous as he ever was, which is why it makes sense for him to be as heelish as possible. The trade off of this is that Jericho's heelish and opportunistic nature comes with brash arrogance that makes him prone to taking too much time on an opponent, as seen by the way that his springboard dropkick gets countered because he spent too much time taunting the raucous crowd. Another instance of Jericho's trade off manifesting itself is when Punk gives him a spinning neckbreaker after Jericho was too busy shouting "COME ON BABY!" during his mini-control segment.

Punk's first big moment where his lack of confidence showed was when he was going for his springboard lariat. We see Punk gasping for air and second-guessing himself as he jumps up the ropes. This time spent second-guessing himself gives Jericho a chance to take control, once again showing how Punk is still suffering from a lack of confidence. This specific spot reminded me very much of how Cena was unsure of whether or not he could hit his diving leg drop on Jericho in his SvS match which was probably my favorite spot in that match.

Much of what made this match so great was how CM Punk communicated with his hometown crowd whenever he needed that extra boost of confidence to get him through a tribulation. For instance, look at Punk throwing up the horns while in the Walls, signaling to the crowd that he is still alive, but he needs their support to get out of the predicament. This "Lawler-like" motion completely differs from the Punk that we last saw who would signal to the crowd that he is still alive, but also signaling that he wants nothing to do with the fans. Even more importantly, this is a far cry to the "old" CM Punk who would turn to his manager first when he was unsure of himself. This "new" CM Punk now turns to his fans first before making up his mind, which is an excellent bit of foreshadowing that will certainly be in play during the future Heyman/Punk feud.

What is probably agreed on as the best piece of storytelling and the climax of this match is the moment where Punk has Jericho up for the GTS with Heyman on the apron. As Punk sees Heyman standing on the apron, he has a look of shock and confusion that distracts him long enough for Jericho to hit the first Codebreaker. Jericho, frustrated as he ever was, starts throwing a flurry of fists and forearms. As Punk is getting attacked left and right and selling the damage, the crowd vociferously chants his name as he charges up for his big babyface comeback that the audience was waiting for. Slowly but surely Punk's confidence gets higher and higher until he sets up another GTS attempt. However, due to his ring rust, he does not connect fully with his finisher and Jericho kicks out. Punk, now unsure as to what to do from here, looks to the crowd for an answer. Note the fact that Heyman tells Punk that he is not sure what to do at that point. Punk's beautifully done comeback continues thanks to the assistance of the crowd until he gets hit by an awesome Codebreaker from a springboard attempt for a very well-done nearfall. Amazing climax here.

To end this story, we get a really good concluding sequence that begins when Punk starts throwing fists and jabs at Jericho. The assured Punk now goes for a move outside of his normal repertoire (hurricanrana), which gives Jericho his final chance at fending off Punk. While Punk is locked in the Walls once again, he is in the brink of giving up, but his finger-wag that is usually considered a motion of submission turns into a balled fist that tells the crowd that he is still alive. The resourceful Punk hits Jericho with everything he can to get out of the Walls, and now we are certain that Punk has fully regained his lost confidence. Punk summons his inner Kobashi by hitting the GTS twice for the finish to the delight of the crowd.

This match was also not devoid of some great spots as well as storytelling. We got out fair share of call-back spots (Tornado DDT attempt from their earlier match this year) and unique reversals (Walls of Jericho into a standing Anaconda Vice). On top of that, due to the unpredictable feel that this match had from its build-up, we got to see tons of close near-falls that could have ended the match at any moment. More importantly, the crowd bought into every single near-fall, which is often an issue with a WWE-style finisher fest. Let's also not forget about the trash talking that was not only comical ("Vintage Punk!"), but also added heat to the match ("Stay down Punk", Heyman's antics).

Like any great story, the setting has just as much significance as any other piece. Many have said that this match would not have been as good if it took place anywhere else besides Chicago. There is truth to that statement, but it should not take anything away from the match. Not only did the big match atmosphere and hot crowd add to the excitement (I personally gave it an extra 1/4* solely for this reason), but Punk's face turn and gradual shift of his dependence going from Heyman to his fans would not have worked as well anywhere else.

To sum this all up, the story being told in this match is that CM Punk is trying to prove to himself that he still has it in him to be considered the best in the world after his various losses and big meltdown. However, in order to get himself out of this rump, he turns to the same people that he once admonished for assistance instead of the manager that put him in this match. Jericho definitely deserves credit here for giving us a throwback heel performance of his, but the star of this match was Punk and his incredible babyface showing. We are still not exactly sure as to what all of this will lead to, but we are sure of one thing: CM Punk is back.


----------



## Concrete

I'm seriously slacking on my WWE watching. And NJPW. But NJPW isn't killing it for me on a regular basis so that's fine for now. 

*Sami Zayne vs. Antonio Cesaro(NXT 6/12/13):*****
_This is what I wanted. Zayne is such a gosh darn awesome underdog to the point where I just want to stab his opponents to stop them. Probably wouldn't have stopped Cesaro though since he is a man beast. It helps when you've got a guy across the ring that trusts you when you are running full steam ahead with a European Uppercut. Zayne was able to get some super nifty comeback spots in. Perfectly timed stuff. Insane chemistry of course. Cesaro makes a headlock awesome on a normal day but adding in Zayne making the headlock look like he was going to legit pass out right then and there was something else. Can I get a random Zayne vs. Regal match? Well in summation: this is Generico vs Castagnoli but a little shorter than you really hope for. Still great though. _


----------



## Bubz

Ziggler / Del Rio was pretty fantastic. Both guys ruled in it. ****

Punk / Jericho was pretty bad. It's fair enough to do a huge write up saying what the story was, but the match has to have flow and structure and this didn't.


----------



## Obfuscation

I don't know what those two were going for. Random ground work only to mean nothing until they started doing nearfalls and busting out their finishers. Meh. I didn't care for it. Great moment for Punk, that's all it was.


----------



## Rah

I, quite honestly, find the storyline moot in that Punk is now a lot higher up than Jericho. Sure, he lost twice in a row but that's to two bigger than life guys. Considering he's also only been out two months I'm not sure why he should be playing the ring-rust up that much, especially to an opponent who disappears and reappears after much longer periods. The wrestling was even worse. No pacing or structure in the slightest, teasing a finishing stretch only to ebb back into a middle portion for seemingly no reason. Why Jericho needs three GTS's to be put away, too, I will not know. These guys just _do not_ work together. No more. Ever. Please.

Ziggler/ADR was really well done, however. I'll rewatch it before I do a write-up but it really embeds the entertainment element to WWE's product. Character, wrestling and booking meshed into one elegant element, throughout.


----------



## darkclaudio

AJPW World Tag Tag Team Championship Match: Burning (Go Shiozaki & Jun Akiyama) (c) vs Last Revolution (Suwama & Joe Doering) - AJPW 2/06/2013 ****


----------



## Skins

ziggler/del rio payback was incredible and MOTN sunday *****1/2*

Have not been that invested in a match like I was very long time. The storytelling was exceptional and only punk/taker from this year mania comes close to rivaling it in this department. Ziggler as the scrappy underdog face who wont give up and adr the heel that will win at any cost and uses his opponent's weakness against him. The crowd was eating it up as well. *MY WWE MOTY*

Punk/Jericho ***1/2-3/4 range good not great


----------



## geraldinhio

*Dolph Ziggler vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Payback 2013*

Well, this was great. I usually shit all over double turns but this was done to perfection. Such a simple story to get evoked in. Think everyone has said everything that pretty much needed to be said about this match already. I'll just add I loved the evil smile on Del Rio's face when Big E got sent to the back. Ziggler made for an awesome babyface with his fiery comebacks, great selling and nutty bumping. I'll rewatch this for sure, because I'm pretty wrecked and just watched Punk vs Jericho before it. Punk vs Jericho was just meh. Far inferior to their Mania match, don't know why a lot of people are pimping it to be honest. Anyway *****1/4*

Edit~ Just seen Rah's post about the three GTS's. I couldn't agree more.


----------



## djmathers1207

Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio ****-****1/2

Great match despite the way it ended. Del Rio did wrestle a smart match, but selfishly took advantage of Ziggler's injury to win. Hated that WWE took the belt off of Ziggler.


----------



## geraldinhio

I some what disagree disagree about Ziggler losing the belt. To me from a keyfabe sense it makes perfect sense.


----------



## Rah

Well, with the storyline they were going for there was no way Ziggler could ever win.

Picking up a win against ADR at MitB will cement him as being above ADR. Both their encounters have been with one at a disadvantage, and so the rubber match will be under "optimal" conditions.


----------



## flag sabbath

I'm not buying all this 'classic double turn' talk. The crowd was 70-30 pro-Ziggler to begin with & remained that way at the end. They told a simple & dramatic story very well, but it wasn't MOTYC material for me - most probably because I don't watch WWE with any great regularity. Maybe ****1/2*


----------



## Rah

It was pretty easy to see in their mannerisms that ADR turned heel while Ziggler's always been taken as a face by the crowd. ADR shoving off the doctor and saying "he's fine" while attempting to kill Ziggler is no means for a babyface to act.


----------



## geraldinhio

Mark Henry's promo *******

My God that acting.

Hollywood Henry.


----------



## flag sabbath

Rah said:


> It was pretty easy to see in their mannerisms that ADR turned heel while Ziggler's always been taken as a face by the crowd. ADR shoving off the doctor and saying "he's fine" while attempting to kill Ziggler is no means for a babyface to act.


I get all that & don't disagree, but the crowd barely shifted its allegiance - there was still a decent face pop when Del Rio got the three.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Well, with the storyline they were going for there was no way Ziggler could ever win.
> 
> Picking up a win against ADR at MitB will cement him as being above ADR. Both their encounters have been with one at a disadvantage, and so the rubber match will be under "optimal" conditions.


(Y)

Spot on. I personally can't wait for the inevitable clash.


----------



## Nervosa

flag sabbath said:


> I'm not buying all this 'classic double turn' talk. The crowd was 70-30 pro-Ziggler to begin with & remained that way at the end.


The Austin/Hart double turn was the exact same way and everyone acts like that one is perfect.


----------



## Lane

C*4 Domination 2013
Fans bring the keyboards
"Hacker" Scotty O'Shea vs "Speedball" Mike Bailey
****3/4-*****
Yes this was a fans bring the keyboards match and as crazy as it sounds it was tremendous. The story is Mike and Scotty were in a match together and Scotty broke Mkes nose on accident and it caused Mike to have to leave the match. C4 ran with it and on the next few shows Scotty and Bailey were involved in different matches against each other (singles, mulitman, etc)and right before Mike would score the win, Scotty would crack him over the head with the keyboard he brought to the ring. This set up the match and these two went at it. The ring was filled with keyboards. One fan even made a keyboard like bat which had 4 if it not more keyboards on it. Early on Mike bust Scottys nose which adds to the story and through out the match they bleed and develop discoloration from the shots showing how grueling the match is. At one point Mike taped on of the keyboards to his kickpads and hit a chest kick followed up by a trouble in paradise kick to the head of Scotty and then a standing moonsault knee drop. In an awesome moment Scotty goes under the ring and bring in a sack, He lifts it over his head and dumps its contents out showing it to be a baf filled with....computer keys. The finish is great. Do not sleep on this match.


----------



## Obfuscation

If there is a link to it, I'll check it out.


----------



## Lane

I dont know as far as free but smart marks site has it on demand for 9.99


----------



## Obfuscation

Well, that's not going to happen.


----------



## geraldinhio

Just browsing through Dean Allmark's youtube channel and stumbled across this.






*The LDRS vs Mark Haskins/ Jonathan Gresham*

Really nice and simple tag match with clear face and heel dynamics. I could watch Zack Sabre Jr all day. He's just so crisp and everything he does looks perfect. His selling and facial expressions are always top notch. I enjoy Marty, has some good charisma and can get it done when he has too. Haskins made for a very enjoyable heel here and came across as the seasoned veteran. I think I've Gresham wrestle somewhere before, possibly CZW? He was ok, but his heel work was pretty crappy. Pulled out one or two nice spots though. Nothing mind blowing but a real easy watch. Not sure if it's even a MOTYC but maybe a low tier one. I really enjoyed it anyway. ****1/2* It should be an automatic MOTYC for any match wrestled in that tiny ring. My one major gripe with most of British wrestling.

Edit~ Flicking through Allmark's channel still. Didn't know he was in the TNA X-Cup on team UK. Random enough. He gets destroyed by Abismo ***** with some crazy head drop move and then a jumping tombstone. He also had a singles match with Mr.Augiula.


----------



## Obfuscation

Interesting note that you put Gresham wasn't very good in it. I was about to say I'm going to check that out soon, despite my dislike for him. Zack Sabre Jr. though. I was pondering over an underrated wrestlers list/guys I want to watch a ton more from in my head and he was one of the first to come up. What perfect timing.


----------



## geraldinhio

Gresham pulled out a a nice moonsault apron alias Matt Jackson but that's about the only good thing I can remember from him. It probably doesn't belong in the MOTYC thread thinking of it, I should of just posted it the DVD thread as a random review but I enjoyed it. Oh Zack is so underrated it's not even funny. Think he was over NOAH again recently actually. Adam Cole put him over on the Kevin Steen Show saying that he's fantastic and he would be massive if he moved to the states.


----------



## Obfuscation

Well, it's all subjective per usual. My cutoff for the candidates is ****1/2*, so once I check it out and feel the same as you I'll probably give it a plug in here too. If that means anything, idk. We all have our different ways about going about such topics.

I'd love him to show up in the States more. Got my first glimpse of him via working in Chikara in 2011. After that I watched more on him and became a fan from that point on. He's also one of the dudes I do like to check out in NOAH once he's on a tour. Along with Bravados. Another set of lads who are quite underrated in my book.


----------



## geraldinhio

Was it during King Of Trios when Zack first debuted in Chikara in the RDV? All I remember is his epic arm-bar promo. :lmao I got into Zack during his wXw runs. His match with Marty vs Future Shock, vs Dragon and vs Davey automatically made him one of my favorite wrestlers. 

I'm a fan of the Bravado's too. Just don't watch enough of them as I would like. Are they still NOAH? Last of them I heard was on some Chikara show.


----------



## Obfuscation

That's the one. In that stellar four way vs Generico, Pinkie, & Rockett. Considering all of these mini projects & watching 2013 stuff I got going on, one day this week will have to be a Sabre Jr. day where I cram as many of his matches in a row for the fun of it. The "Yeah1993" project as it's been dubbed.

They've been in NOAH all year iirc. With one final appearance on ROH TV early in the year and recently in May for Chikara's Tag World Grand Prix. Oh and on the recent EVOLVE shows _(5/30, 6/1, & 6/2)_ They could be in the States still for all I know.


----------



## Fluze

*Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio (WWE Payback 2013) - WHC Match*










This match told an incredible story, while still being quite constant within the technical zone. The amazing double turn, was a thing of Austin-Bret. Ziggler began the match in heel form, many times of chickening out and escaping the ring were prevalent, when the early segments didn't go The Showoff's way. Later on though, a majestical transformation occurred, reverting each wrestler into opposing character statuses. Good into Evil & Evil into Good. 

The initiation was in regular fashion, with both athletes trading irish whips and basic submission holds in light, back and fourth action. The changing of pace began with Alberto delivering a huge blow to Ziggler, and from then on, this regular forwarding turned into a masterpiece-esquie progression. Alberto decimated Ziggler with various offensive inflicts, with The Showoff only firing back with a few BASIC attacks. The viciousness Alberto expressed within the minutes of this match, turned his good guy persona into a savage demon, he directed his actions of conflict to Ziggler's head, and solely at that. Many spots included the bashing of it, taking in the concussion which Ziggler had suffered, a month earlier. It reached a pinnacle, when Langston, rather acting with heel antics, tried protecting his friend, and eventually got sent backstage, with loud boos to this call, stretching all across the arena. 

I can't grasp enough stomach to say this, but Ziggler's selling was actually top notch, it was so good, that the crowd became sympathetic for him, even I did, not that because I hate the very ground Alberto walks on, but because of the self proclaimed pain Ziggler was in. The audience was definitely in a spilt with what was kayfabe and acted upon, and what was real in a sense. Alberto's facial showings were also a key factor in telling the story. In courageous fashion, Ziggler diminished assistance from the doc and his own girlfriend, with occupence of expressing his role to a perfect peak and the audience's encouragement and wanting of a Ziggler victory. Every shred of reach to triumph by The Showoff, felt extremely important to the progression of the story. Alberto's transformation was aided by his actings of laughing and insulting Ziggler's struggle. The ending came with a Superkick to Ziggler's face and Alberto claimed the win and the WHC, it was executed greatly and fitted the context of the story. 
.
It's unique to see such a simple story, worked in extraordinary fashion, thus escalating that simple state to an incredible state. I didn't have high expectations for this match, however the first has only left me wanting more, the feud itself is watchable, so it's not as sufferable as others, but the matches are the true positives and make the whole program, worth it and the wait.

*****1/2 (My current MOTY)*​


----------



## DOPA

*Jun Akiyama vs. KAI (AJPW 4/29): *****

Great match and tournament final. I watched their other match from the tournament and that was very good too but not MOTYC. Really want to catch up on more puro but I'm sleep deprived .


----------



## Concrete

That LRDS tag I found to be awesome. Glad someone else is at least mentioning it. I think I had it about ****1/4. Feel I'll be alone on that but that's perfectly fine as long as people watch it haha. I thought even Gresham did well in the match, even more so when you compare it to some clunkers he's had in the past.

Honestly though I think he's much better now than he was in his CHIKARA days. If Hieracon started popping up in some Wrestling is promotions I wouldn't be terribly unhappy. 

Oh and ZSJ is indeed the man.


----------



## geraldinhio

Concrete said:


> That LRDS tag I found to be awesome. Glad someone else is at least mentioning it. I think I had it about ****1/4. Feel I'll be alone on that but that's perfectly fine as long as people watch it haha. I thought even Gresham did well in the match, even more so when you compare it to some clunkers he's had in the past.
> 
> Honestly though I think he's much better now than he was in his CHIKARA days. If Hieracon started popping up in some Wrestling is promotions I wouldn't be terribly unhappy.
> 
> Oh and ZSJ is indeed the man.


Wait, Gresham was Hieracon. Now it makes so much sense. :lmao Makes me hate Gresham more.  I just think working as a heel really hurt him. His facial expression were horrible and just seemed bland as hell. As I've said think I've only seen one or two matches from him. Well, more since I found out he was Hieracon. 

Tag match was just missing something for me. The kids in the crowd were annoying as hell too. But I really enjoyed it none the less. I need more ZSJ. 

I'm gonna give ZSJ vs Lewis Girvan a look now. Girvan is supposed to promising and the main event was given plenty of time. Hard to believe Zack has been wrestling for ten years already.


----------



## DOPA

Ricochet vs Shingo (DragonGate 5/25): ***3/4


----------



## geraldinhio

Crusade said:


> Ricochet vs Shingo (DragonGate 5/25): ***3/4


Really liked this too. I'd go a tad higher though maybe *****+.* The finish was immense, Ricochet is so boss and busts out something every match that's jaw dropping. Hard to believe Ricochet was so good even after wrestling a hectic schedule of BOSJ and was nursing a shoulder injury (which is still troubling him I think).


----------



## Concrete

geraldinhio said:


> Wait, Gresham was Hieracon. Now it makes so much sense. :lmao Makes me hate Gresham more.  I just think working as a heel really hurt him. His facial expression were horrible and just seemed bland as hell. As I've said think I've only seen one or two matches from him. Well, more since I found out he was Hieracon.


If the match wasn't so fun I probably would have hated Gresham in the match since his facial expressions were pretty bad but I got such a kick out of them that I just thought it fit with the vibe I was getting. FUN. That fun came at the expense of Gresham's face for part of it but it was still fun haha.
EDIT:
*Rush vs. Shinsuke Nakamura(CMLL 6/9/13):***3/4*
_I managed to walk away from this match feeling like it could have been even better but despite that it was still rad if not criminally short. If this match gets maybe over 15+minutes we'd be talking my lucha MOTY probably. I like to believe that lucha is in the business of killing dreams sometimes. First two Caidas were not much of note going by blisteringly fast more than usual even. Third fall was quality and made me a happy wrestling fan. Rush's dive in this match came off a little poor with Nakamura being a little too far away. Rush lands a superkick in this match that Nakamura makes look like it knocked his boots off. Cover to end the match was piss poor in the context of such a short match. Maybe this was clipped heavily for TV? Probably not. Can we make up a reason for these two to have to go against each other again one-on-one? _


----------



## Obfuscation

Did Nakamura only have the noteworthy singles matches vs Sombra & Rush or are there others? This could have easily been put in the Lucha thread. Oh well.

Also what's the date for the LDRS tag Concrete posted ^?


----------



## Rah

20/02/2013

Nakamura was only in trios tags, as far as I know. I _highly_ doubt he had any others.


*@Concrete*: if that's the version from this week then you watched a massively clipped version (the only version to make it to Youtube). The original airing from Cubsfan (last week's) was missing the finishing stretch, only, and came in at 15 minutes (iirc). I was thinking of splicing the two together, today, but I just lack any motivation to do so. I know I should, as Rush is mah-boi, but ugh.


EDIT: the longer video is merely missing the last minute or so. However, the clipped version's removed any sections where either man is lying down (e.g. where Rush & Nakamura are spent after the suplex, and the part where Rush picks Nakamura up from the Superkick and delivers the Rush Driver). Even if I splice the two videos, it'll still look cut. Not a train smash, though.


----------



## Obfuscation

(Y)

I'll only proceed to check out the singles match then. Unless I see one of the trios bouts and decide to give it a whirl. Going to be more of a 'in the moment' type of viewing.


----------



## seabs

*Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayn - NXT 12.06.2013*
_This was awesome and I feel like it's being pretty undersold on here. Zayn/Generico is naturally really good but this is all Cesaro looking like the best in the world right now. Incredible performance from Cesaro. Everything he does looks super gritty and nasty right from the early attack. That running uppercut looked nasty as fuck. Story behind it is great too. Cesaro got embarrassed last time and will be damned if it happens again but Zayn always has that hope of sneaking another win out of nowhere from the last match. Zayn's body scissors spot looked pretty cool and was something new and worked really well as a transition spot. The uppercut to cut the comeback off was immense. Loved Cesaro's insistence on using the headlock to wear Zayn down and that playing into the finish. Zayn almost falling out of the neutraliser looking like dead weight made the finish look even better. I need to watch Cesaro/Kofi like right now. Cesrao's the best. _

******


----------



## Obfuscation

Well shoot. If this isn't the perfect lead-in for it then idk what is...

*WWE United States Championship - WWE Main Event 5/1*

Kofi Kingston(c) vs Antonio Cesaro ~ ******​
Third time is the charm. That's what they say, right? Anywho, yep yep yep. Cesaro is the best. You know what this match 100% is? The modern day version of Bret Hart vs Davey Smith from SummerSlam '92. Legit. Similarities of the two are so spot on its nuts. You have the sloppy, near dead weight half in Kofi being Smith _(aka the guy who's getting put over)_ & then you have the man who did all the heavy lifting in a fashion that was just about as mind blowing as anything in Cesaro being Hart. Cesaro capitalizing on every sloppy mistake Kofi made in this match made everything come off with that much more emphasis. It's amazing how well Cesaro benefited off Kofi's even weaker than normal performance here. The outlandish feats of strength. The cerebral dissection of the leg of Kofi. Constant displays of taking the ebb and flow of a match and making it all out of thin air when the opponent _(Kofi)_ is literally adding nothing to the situation. It's like Cesaro was the puppet master pulling the strings and working this match by himself. What other match this year had Cesaro making his opponent AND himself looking like a million bucks in it? I can't find one. Something like that doesn't happen every day. Deadlift superplex continues to blow my mind. It's not that I'm unfamiliar with the spot elsewhere in wrestling. It simply amazes me anytime a wrestler busts it out. Something about Cesaro's looks beastly. Probably b/c lifting Kofi in such a way was hardly a challenge for the man. Crowd, JBL, Cole all ate this action up. You think you were watching the greatest back and forth match ever when in reality it was 99% Cesaro and it didn't quite hit you that way. Finish was done in the strongest fashion I could imagine too. Most abrupt element for hitting the Trouble in Paradise to nab the sudden victory. It worked well for Kofi's angle in the match of not being able to quit & Cesaro to leave looking as strong as he did upon entering. Kofi may have gotten the victory, but Cesaro was the true winner here.


----------



## Concrete

Obfuscation said:


> Did Nakamura only have the noteworthy singles matches vs Sombra & Rush or are there others? This could have easily been put in the Lucha thread. Oh well.
> 
> Also what's the date for the LDRS tag Concrete posted ^?


2/20/13 for the tag.

And I should have figured it was clipped. I wanted to imagine it glitched forward more than anything.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> *@Concrete*: if that's the version from this week then you watched a massively clipped version (the only version to make it to Youtube). The original airing from Cubsfan (last week's) was missing the finishing stretch, only, and came in at 15 minutes (iirc). I was thinking of splicing the two together, today, but I just lack any motivation to do so. I know I should, as Rush is mah-boi, but ugh.
> 
> 
> EDIT: the longer video is merely missing the last minute or so. However, the clipped version's removed any sections where either man is lying down (e.g. where Rush & Nakamura are spent after the suplex, and the part where Rush picks Nakamura up from the Superkick and delivers the Rush Driver). Even if I splice the two videos, it'll still look cut. Not a train smash, though.


Will it make any major difference in watching not seeing them down but only acknowledging it was there? b/c if the match is clipped to holy hell by the way it looks I suppose I shouldn't bother.


----------



## Rah

I'll have the full match up in an hour or two.I've been trying to use this new Windows Movie Maker and have just rage-quitted a billion times. Gone are the days of Windows XP level ease-of-use and ability to level sound.

Slapped the two videos together and will upload it now. As for the second match, I've read others saying a good chunk of a fall is missing but I've not watched it. The full match comes to just over 16 minutes in my version.


EDIT: if you mean my version, then you're missing, say, 10 seconds of inaction.


----------



## Obfuscation

Well if yours has the most behind it, then that's the one I shall be viewing.


----------



## Corey

Cody I'm just gonna stop even acknowledging your first rating on a match because the 2nd viewing seems to raise it dramatically.  Cena/Punk, Lesnar/HHH, now Cesaro/Kofi. That is the one you formerly said was an extended squash, all Cesaro, like ** right? Something along those lines.


----------



## Rah




----------



## flag sabbath

I gave Ceasaro vs. Kofi another look & much preferred it the second time around. I can't quite call it four-stars though - the finish is too sudden & it falls flat due to soft execution from Kingston ****3/4*

Also had the distinct pleasure of catching Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant. It reminded me of some of the great NWA World title matches of the '80s, combined with the added stiffness & cutting edge moves of 21st century puro. With an extra five minutes this could have been a modern day classic. As is, I'd say a comfortable ******


----------



## Obfuscation

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Cody I'm just gonna stop even acknowledging your first rating on a match because the 2nd viewing seems to raise it dramatically.  Cena/Punk, Lesnar/HHH, now Cesaro/Kofi. That is the one you formerly said was an extended squash, all Cesaro, like ** right? Something along those lines.


This is why I ALWAYS like to watch a match twice. Although Brock vs Triple H in the Cage I didn't focus on the first time around so that on was in dire need of a reviewing. My first time watching Cesaro vs Kingston I was too busy focusing on how poorly Kofi worked instead of how well Cesaro did. Took the wrong point of view and it was daft of me to do so. Match wasn't about Kingston. It was all about Cesaro. I noticed this more on the second go around and by the third last night it was a done deal.

Cena vs Punk was an odd one. Live it felt good. Rewatch later that evening on youtube with no commercial breaks it came off 10x better. Don't know why, but I'll take it.

Despite my system of watching a match twice to get a full feel of it, I am normally set on my assessments most of the time after a first watch. Payback for example didn't change much the second time around. Knew exactly how I felt after the live viewing.



flag sabbath said:


> Also had the distinct pleasure of catching Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant. It reminded me of some of the great NWA World title matches of the '80s, combined with the added stiffness & cutting edge moves of 21st century puro. With an extra five minutes this could have been a modern day classic. As is, I'd say a comfortable ******


Which one, the first or the second?

Nevermind, you said Championship match. That was the giveaway. Whoops.


----------



## flag sabbath

Yeah, sorry - the Battle Not With Monsters one.


----------



## Obfuscation

****** in my books too. Great match.


----------



## Concrete

Feelin like a fool over that Rush vs. Nakamura match. Oh well. Had this delight to watch and I'll assume it is mostly in full. 
****** Casas/Stuka Jr./Valiente vs. Fuego/Vangellys/Virus(CMLL 6/14/13):*****
_Yeah, this was awesome. The trio of Casas,Stuka, and Valiente sounded like it had potential to be completely cool and it was fur sure. Going in I had no idea of who Fuego or Vangellys were. Fuego doesn't strike me as a real strong worker but he does a misdirection dive that made me lift my butt from my couch watching it. Gotta enjoy a nice misdirection dive. There are actually three of them in this match. Each done really well. Vangellys's eyes. If more wrestlers wore crazy contacts I'd be frightened by that many more wrestlers for seemingly no reason what so ever. Virus is super great. This match sometimes make you feel like a little child with how hard they're going. You may find yourself saying "POW, right in the kissa" at points in this match. This match is a super sprint and probably my favorite CMLL trios of 2013._


----------



## flag sabbath

Rush vs. Nakamura is ***1/2* tops. I'm struggling to find anything to say about it. Shinskay phones it in & Rush is a godawful tecnico & a mediocre luchador. Instantly forgettable.


----------



## Rah

Is Vangellys still playing a Nazi enforcer? Both Virus/Casas or Virus/Valiente could be show-stealing, quite frankly.




flag sabbath said:


> Rush vs. Nakamura is ***1/2* tops. I'm struggling to find anything to say about it. Shinskay phones it in & Rush is a godawful tecnico & a mediocre luchador. Instantly forgettable.


In a world where CMLL insists on Rush being a technico (when he is one of the most hated luchadores), so that he just wings it and doesn't give a fuck about anyone but himself, I think he does fine. Rush is easily one of the most charismatic and entertaining things in Mexico. I won't stand here and say he's a great wrestler, but he does get the job done and isn't terrible by any means.

I find it completely asinine when people derail Rush for a booker's fault, when he completely makes do with what he's given, swings it in his favour and then still captures you with his mannerisms. His taunts and cockiness are second to none, quite frankly. I'd say watch more of his work, especially the Terrible feud stuff, to get what I'm saying. Not that you're the only one, considering Rush is sitting quite low in a few index sites. Which is a crying shame.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Randy Orton vs Daniel Bryna from SD was damn good. ***3/4, IMO. ADR vs Jericho was enjoyable as well but no MOTYC.


----------



## Rah

Drew Mac getting in there, I see, too.

There's a live report over on WKO stating Emma/Paige for the NXT Finals is really, really good. I won't label it as high as the poster had (as it may seem laughable, for now) but I've never seen either wrestler go properly before. So this is could go either way for me. WWE divas being the only female wrestlers featuring in this thread? Who'd have thought!


----------



## flag sabbath

Rah said:


> In a world where CMLL insists on Rush being a technico (when he is one of the most hated luchadores), so that he just wings it and doesn't give a fuck about anyone but himself, I think he does fine. Rush is easily one of the most charismatic and entertaining things in Mexico. I won't stand here and say he's a great wrestler, but he does get the job done and isn't terrible by any means.
> 
> I find it completely asinine when people derail Rush for a booker's fault, when he completely makes do with what he's given, swings it in his favour and then still captures you with his mannerisms. His taunts and cockiness are second to none, quite frankly. I'd say watch more of his work, especially the Terrible feud stuff, to get what I'm saying. Not that you're the only one, considering Rush is sitting quite low in a few index sites. Which is a crying shame.


Fair enough. I'll admit lucha is not a priority, so I've only seen the guy a handful of times & he's yet to make a lasting impression. I don't really keep up with insider stuff at all - I just watch matches. It's a novel approach around here, I know


----------



## 777

I'll admit it took me quite some time to acquire a taste for Rush's work. My initial reluctance was in getting behind an 'Adonis' archetype, but he has definitely won me over. I'm actually quite fond of his technico/rudo stance...it brings a different dynamic to the work.


----------



## Concrete

As far as Vangellys is concerned I couldn't tell if he was a Nazi enforcer. I could say he looked like he could still be playing a Nazi enforcer but I not sure at all. 

As far as either of those Virus matches are concerned, yes and yes.Virus is damn good and both of those men are damn good,Casas more consistently than Valiente.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rush has fallen flat for me on just about each time I've seen him, too.


----------



## seabs

Rah said:


> Drew Mac getting in there, I see, too.
> 
> There's a live report over on WKO stating Emma/Paige for the NXT Finals is really, really good. I won't label it as high as the poster had (as it may seem laughable, for now) but I've never seen either wrestler go properly before. So this is could go either way for me. WWE divas being the only female wrestlers featuring in this thread? Who'd have thought!


*Saw this and it wouldn't shock me. I wouldn't expect it but the potential for that to be really good is there. The Divas Division on NXT is really good btw. Most of them need polishing off but they produce a load of good stuff. Summer/Paige from the other month was really good too. Emma's super over and I imagine she'd be crazy over in that match so there's that too. Emma and Paige can both more than go technical wise in the ring too.*


----------



## Rah

****** Casas, Stuka Jr. & Valiente Vs Fuego, Vangellys & Virus (14/06/2013 CMLL)*
_For a match as fast-paced and balls-to-the-wall as this, I'm surprised not only at how few slip-ups were made but also at how fluid each spot came off. Keeping Vangellys mostly side-lined, along with Fuego as the go-to for certain needed spots, was the best they could have done here in working around their faults. Surprisingly, though, Vangellys had a good opening section with Casas in targeting the forearm that Casas injured during a lariat - even if he did fall off at the end (or forget such a detail each time the pair mixed it up). It would be too close to call in who I favourited most here, but Virus most certainly kept everyone going on par while Valiente dropped a sick misdirection dive. I enjoyed Casas stealing Valiente's opportunity dive against Fuego, as it plays well into their dynamics/end. Not only does it show Casas as the spotlight whore, but works nice enough in confusing Valiente in allowing Virus to gain a sneak attack and Gory Bomb playing up Casas as the part that didn't work. After all, he is the rudo on the tecnico team._​

*Concrete*, you should hit up the Blue Panther & Sagrado Vs Rey Hechicero & Caifan match. Pretty damn fun with Hechicero busting out innovative subs and Caifan owning shit.



Seabs said:


> *Saw this and it wouldn't shock me. I wouldn't expect it but the potential for that to be really good is there. The Divas Division on NXT is really good btw. Most of them need polishing off but they produce a load of good stuff. Summer/Paige from the other month was really good too. Emma's super over and I imagine she'd be crazy over in that match so there's that too. Emma and Paige can both more than go technical wise in the ring too.*


I usually read up on each show via rzombie1988's blog, and he keeps touting these wrestlers as worthwhile. Perhaps I should look past my bias and delve into some matches. If that post is anything to go by, it has heat dripping from it more so than anything else this year. If we can get a women's division that can create crowd reactions without the need for boobs/sexist bullcrap I'm all for it.


----------



## DOPA

Rah said:


> Drew Mac getting in there, I see, too.
> 
> There's a live report over on WKO stating Emma/Paige for the NXT Finals is really, really good. I won't label it as high as the poster had (as it may seem laughable, for now) but I've never seen either wrestler go properly before. So this is could go either way for me. WWE divas being the only female wrestlers featuring in this thread? Who'd have thought!


Emma and Paige was the final? :mark: :mark: :mark: I can't wait for that.

Shinskay/Sombra was ****1/2* tops for me so that isn't a good sign for the match with Rush...


----------



## flag sabbath

That CMLL six-man from 14/6 is superb - rapid-fire, hard hitting & it flows beautifully. I liked how Virus kept going for pins in the second fall. I might be wrong, but it seems as if near-fall drama is all-too-often reserved for the final third in Mexico. And yeah, that Valiente dive is jaw-dropping. Btw, do the tecnicos ever win the first fall?! ******


----------



## Bruce L

*Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio — WWE, Payback (6/16)*
I don't usually think much of matches this one-sided as anything more than segments, but the performances (speaking strictly in terms of character work, maybe the best of either guy's career) and story were absolutely outstanding. ★★★★¼

*C.M. Punk vs. Chris Jericho — WWE, Payback (6/16)*
Not a top-tier MOTYC, but a perfectly well-executed simple story by two guys whose "best in the world" claims are certainly not without merit. My favorite match they've had against each other. ★★★½


----------



## Corey

Bruce L said:


> *C.M. Punk vs. Chris Jericho — WWE, Payback (6/16)*
> My favorite match they've had against each other. ★★★½


Really? Did you like hate their other two matches or something? haha. I thought everyone loved their Mania classic and I've seen mixed thoughts on the Chicago Street Fight, but both are a respective **** 1/4 & **** for me.


----------



## Bruce L

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Really? Did you like hate their other two matches or something? haha. I thought everyone loved their Mania classic and I've seen mixed thoughts on the Chicago Street Fight, but both are a respective **** 1/4 & **** for me.


I liked both matches a bit less than everybody else did. I think both Mania and Payback are three-and-a-half-star affairs; I just happen to prefer this latest one. The street fight didn't do anything for at all, tbh.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> I usually read up on each show via rzombie1988's blog, and he keeps touting these wrestlers as worthwhile. Perhaps I should look past my bias and delve into some matches. If that post is anything to go by, it has heat dripping from it more so than anything else this year. If we can get a women's division that can create crowd reactions without the need for boobs/sexist bullcrap I'm all for it.


At this rate if you check out the Divas scene in NXT you may be sort of blown away by the reactions they garner. Paige & Emma are increasingly over not to mention Summer Rae earns herself a good bit of heat among the fans whenever she shows up too. All three are well worth watching right now. Say what you will about Emma's gimmick _(and I have)_, she's good and earns a reaction. I'm in the minority of course.

Not to mention the other divas down there don't do their fair share either. Focus wise it has all been on these three this year.


----------



## Concrete

*Blue Panther/Sagrado vs Caifan/Rey Hechicero(6/16/13):***3/4*
_Immense amounts of fun were had in the viewing of this match. Blue Panther is always good for some awesome matwork and him and Caifan had really good and fast, early mat section. That was pretty much my favorite Blue Panther bit of the match but it started things off on a good foot. So yeah, I've never seen Caifan or Rey Hechicero before and I feel dirty about that after this match because they were fantastic. They both did wicked cool stuff. SWINGING COBRA CLUTCH DROP SUBMISSION! I have no idea if that was what I saw. We'll say it was so I can continue on. There were a couple of weird points in this match that I accepted such as Sagrado coming to break up a pin(which turned into a submission? maybe reverse that) and he just retreats into the corner when Hechicero starts rolling Panther around on the mat until it stops. THEN the sub got broke up. I like to imagine Sagrado thought "HOLY SHIT! THEY'RE SPINNING AROUND!" One other instance was when Caifan was getting pinned and the ref was superly awkwardly counting it when Hechicero comes up to the ref before counting three and he just stops. Did Hechicero just Jedi mind-fuck the ref???Honestly this match may be a little borderline for those reasons but minus them and there is a butt load of fun stuff with the early matwork and Caifan and Hechicero doing fancy new things to me. _


----------



## flag sabbath

Spoiler: NJPW BoSJ Final



*Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (9/6):* Some folks are gonna hate this match I'm sure, but for me they played it just right. 

The first half sees Devitt's BC lackeys interfering liberally, despite Tanahashi, Cap & Kushida being at ringside to even the odds for Shelley. It eventually breaks down into a wild brawl with the match grinding to a halt & Korakuan going nuts, while the commentator screams about how this shouldn't be happening in a Best of the Super Juniors final (or words to that effect).

Eventually the ref manages to turf everyone out & the match restarts with the crowd rabidly behind Shelley. There's more shenanigans from Devitt & it builds to a bunch of heart-stopping near-falls - all of which combines to make this a memorable (if controversial?) BoSJ final. ******


----------



## Ali Dia

Bruce L said:


> I liked both matches a bit less than everybody else did. I think both Mania and Payback are three-and-a-half-star affairs; I just happen to prefer this latest one. The street fight didn't do anything for at all, tbh.


I recall the Mania match being the one I liked least. Had it at ***1/2 and the Street fight at ***3/4. haven't seen the Payback match yet, or much wrestling period in the last year. Last exam is on Tuesday so hopefully I'll catch up a tad after that.


----------



## flag sabbath

Dominion is a fantastic show....

*Forever Hooligans vs. Timesplitters:* Following the frustrations of all those sub-10 minute Super Juniors matches with conservative finishes, this is an absolute treat. The champs have a great line in repeatedly cutting off the hot tag, but once it comes they go balliastic with the false finishes. Slick & exhilarating stuff ****3/4*

*Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki & Shelton Benjamin:* MiSu OWNS this match plain & simple. Just an incredibly idiosyncratic performance, with Ishii providing his perfect foil. Even some clunkiness from Shelton & Shinskay can't drag this one down ****3/4*

*Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata:* War! ******

*Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe:* I'm not a massive fan of Makabe, but he's marvelous here as the tough bastard who won't stand for any of Okada's shit & pushes the champ right to the limit. It also helps that the deliberate pacing is different to anything else on the show & it builds to a white-hot crescendo ******

Devitt vs. Tanahashi falls just short of MOTYC level at ***1/2 (Bullshit Club's antics are so dated they're almost fresh) & Naito vs. Takahashi is decent too at ***1/4. Everything else is watchable.


----------



## Chismo

DOMINION 6.22:

- Goto/Shibata ****1/4


Not MOTYCs, but still damn good matches:

- Time Splitters/Forever Hooligans ***3/4
- Nakamura & Ishii/Suzuki & Benjamin ***1/2
- Devitt/Tana ***1/2
- Okada/Makabe ***3/4


----------



## Obfuscation

*NJPW Dominion 6/22*​
Goto vs Shibata II was tremendous. Took the show for me. WAR is the perfect term used for it. *****1/4*. The sinister headbutt returned~! Must-see.

Much to where I figured it would have been, Okada vs Makabe worked. Worked very well as a matter of fact. Another great dynamic between Okada and his new challenge where Makabe's "unchained gorilla" tendencies gave him a wallop of a licking. Tri-clothesline sequence for example where Okada's pride to not fall only proved to be a mistake when matching machismo for machismo against the larger brute. Okada in dire pain following the succession. Loved the touch there. Neck work was right along the lines of quality and came into play later on in the match when it should have. Okada's targeted holds where it destroys is some more: his submission _(forgot the name...)_, the Air Raid Crash on the knee, &, of course, the Rainmaker. Great match. I've always liked Makabe. Knew he can pump out a really good performance when it is needed. This crowd was white hot. Gave me chills. ******

Forever Hooligans vs Time Splitters V proved to actually be worth seeing again. Very well time match on all points. The starting phase, heel domination where the hot tag sequence was negated about three times before finally coming through and a heck of a finishing stretch to start the night off (officially) with a bang. The flow of the match was equal to that of a really well thought out movie. You saw the timing fall into place for portions and boom. Quality, quality wrestling match. ****3/4*

Tanahashi vs Devitt was fun with all of the Bullet Club antics coming into play. Dated? Ahh, sure. Always a joy to see when pulled off correctly? You bet. I buy into it. Devitt embraced a much more heel side and that's what was needed so no harm, foul. Tanahashi was his usual good self and it all tied together as a really good match with a neat dynamic of Bullet Club sticking their nose in at every chance they had. The kind of match where if it happened in WWF/WWE when Jim Ross was around, he'd rant on commentary post-match about all of the BS heel nonsense which screwed over Tanahashi. ****1/2*

CHAOS Elite vs Suzuki-Gun...do I need to say any more? You know this song and dance between these two factions, let alone the three tremendous workers in the mix: Nakamura, Suzuki, & Ishii. Toss in a Benjamin who did enough to be noticed, but not drag down the match and it was a hot affair with the right characters standing out. Suzuki & Ishii made this one click. If the match & post-match is any indication it appears we may be getting a singles match down the road. :mark: ****1/2*


----------



## DOPA

*Katsuyori Shibata vs. Hirooki Goto (NJPW 6/22): **** - ****1/4*

*Kazuchika Okada(c) vs. Togi Makabe (NJPW 6/22): *****

*Forever Hooligans(c) vs. Time Splitters (NJPW 6/22): *****

*Minoru Suzuki and Shelton Benjamin vs. Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 6/22): ***3/4*

Dominion was fucking awesome.


----------



## Rah

*Sami Callihan Vs Shane Hollister (17/05/2013 AAW)*
LINK
_This match is nowhere near perfection. The interference is clunky, especially the goofball performance by Cabana and friend which kills the seriousness Hollister/Callihan were going for here. I do understand Colt's appeal isn't for everyone, but this comical bumping for his punches really does not have place in a last man standing match. Scarlett's interference played to the match, and did not require the distraction. Both men also fall foul to Callihan's 2012 self in that spitting becomes Callihan's over-used middle finger taunt approach to the FIP role.

Outside of these moments, though, you're treated to thirty-five minutes of an absolute war. A war of attrition, rather, as one of the announcers so aptly stated. It's honestly a treat to reminisce on Callihan's career and just see how far he's come in terms of talent. From so-so a few years ago, to a rather ranging pool of performances last year and now to this gem of a performance here, it really makes me hope that Callihan gets all that he deserves when he moves on to the bigger ocean that is WWE. Callihan truly put over this match as not only the rubber match, but as a last man standing match, too. To say that he murdered Hollister here would be selling it a tad short, quite frankly. I honest to goodness loved how Callihan attempted to break Hollister's neck with vicious lariats throughout the match, as if he had realised paralysing his opponent would be the most effective way of keeping him down. The effectiveness of it, as well as its ability to come from nowhere, would allow for the believable reacquisition of control from Hollister. As for Hollister, though, I don't quite think he worked smartly. I'm not quite sure how to describe what I mean, in that I do hold him as decent here but his performance felt a bit jarring from the match's build. Callihan maintains control from the beginning for a good portion of the match, beating down Hollister like the proverbial government mule. However, when Hollister catches a break and gains a chance of control, he stalls, instead, to taunt toward the crowd rather than picking up on the opportunity. Whether that's rather his persona, or his intention, and despite not being sold on this fact, it didn't over-arch across too much of the match to stand out as anything negative. Because, like I say, his performance was decent/good - especially in keeping the knee "sold" as well as continually targeting Callihan's right ribs (the antithesis to Hollister's neck).

I'm, also, not sold on the ending. I do believe that the loser should have been incapacitated rather than struggling to his feet along with the winner (who succeeded in doing so at the last second). The finish did come off of a vicious desperation attack on one of the injured body-parts (a vague statement, but I am trying to keep this unspoiled), so the build-up in their offence throughout the match feels as if it held a manner of importance that climaxed toward a decent enough resolution. I've seen plenty of other matches get the nod here that I do believe are not within this match's league, despite its flaws. Remove the spotty few minutes three-quarters in, the flaws I've noted, as well as rather selling the match as more important than it had and this could have been an epic, quite frankly. Still, it remains something good, regardless, and a testament to Callihan's improvements and abilities._​


----------



## Obfuscation

Too tired to give my full attention to the match tonight. Def finishing the show tomorrow to check that one out. Massively hyped. Looks like I'm not going to be disappointed. Which is tremendous b/c honestly that AAW show is utter trash minus anything Eddie Kingston was involved with.


----------



## Rah

Well, it's the early morning here (sort of) so I'll get on with Dominion. Skipped the opener (despite my Taka love) and found the juniour tag to be quite fun. Moment of the watch was Kozlov singing (terribly) as a means to rile the fans up only to have them clap him.

EDIT: I also skipped MiSu/Benjamin Vs Nakamura/Ishii after about eight minutes. I'll rather watch this when it doesn't poison itself with a Nakamura/Benjamin presence. As I type this I'm at Shibata/Goto trading backdrops as if they're handshakes. Ugh.

EDIT EDIT: This may sound crazy, but I think what's selling this match most is the crowd. Goto wasn't too grand even if Shibata did his hardest. I'll rewatch this at a later date but I'm not too high on this. Around Sugiura/KENTA level, really.


----------



## Obfuscation

:lmao

I had a hysterical bit of bliss following the heel tactics failing on the ever respectful Japanese fans.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton - ***3/4
Marked out so bad in the end. Fucking WOW. Fantastic job by WWE.


----------



## seabs

*They've always clapped him when he does the Russia shtick. It's so odd and he keeps on doing it as heel shtick too. It's fun at least.*


----------



## Groovemachine

Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton - WWE Raw 6.24.13 - ****

Now that's how you do a WWE-style Street Fight. This was so good, and before I copy and paste my 'Daniel Bryan was awesome as usual' thoughts, I've gotta give props to Orton. He was just ON in this one. His use of the kendo stick was BRUTAL; peppering Daniel with little jabs while both of them were on the mat was amazing, and I liked him using it one-handed, kinda like a whip. We saw some 'unique for WWE' interactions, like the chairshot rebuttal to Bryan's suicide dive, and Orton's exploder into the table. I marked out for Bryan's apron powerbomb through the table; that was beastly! And Orton catching Bryan mid-air with a short, sharp powerbomb when Daniel was attempting the missile dropkick was tremendous. 

Also worth noting how good a job Bryan's done of building up his arsenal over the past few months. Because of the small package win over Rollins the other week, he had a fantastic nearfall on Orton with the backslide and the crowd popped, genuinely buying it as a potential finish. His offense is so versatile and it leads the finishes to his matches to be rather unpredictable. Bodes well if he is indeed getting a main event push soon.

Anyway, big fan of this one. Probably still prefer the Shield 6-man from 5/20, but this is up there in terms of TV MOTYC.


----------



## geraldinhio

Daniel Bryan is involved in a MOTYC every week. He's averaging a **** match a week nearly. Even with Ryback.


----------



## Bubz

Bryan does it again. Thought the Smackdown match was great so can't wait to see this.


----------



## DOPA

*Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton (WWE 6/24): *****

Bryan is really starting to make a big claim for worker of the year. Orton also put on a great performance here.


----------



## Obfuscation

Meh. I thought this was the weakest Bryan match that got time and attention seen all year. Already watched it a few times over and don't see anything special behind it. My emotion was hollow throughout - just wanted Danielson to get the win and move on.


----------



## septurum

Randy Orton vs Daniel Bryan (WWE Raw- 6/24/13): *** 3/4

Thought about rating this higher but the crowd sucked and it brought it down a bit. Sick finish btw.


----------



## flag sabbath

It's great to see Bryan in a prominent position putting on consistently strong performances week-in & week-out (and moreover being rewarded for them). That said, the Orton Street Fight was decent at best, maybe ***1/4


----------



## Bubz

I thought Bryan/Orton street fight was a fantastic tv match. Felt big and important, they've done good enough job with Bryan's character to make it feel like big deal even without anything on the line. Spots were really great, even brutal occasionally. Never went overboard, flowed nicely in between spots, good transitions into Orton's dominating stretch and Bryan's comebacks and bursts of offence. Fantastic finish to boot that was so satisfying and hopefully leads to great things. Yeah, loved it. ****


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Been away so catching up with wrestling, found the PPV MOTY in amongst my watching (only Ohno/Regal would be above it and I'm not even sure if I would have it above it if pressed):

*Dolph Ziggler vs Alberto Del Rio, Payback (6/16/13)*

Well this was fucking awesome. Seriously, best PPV match of the year imo and by a fair bit to. Always said Ziggler was better suited to being a babyface as a worker and this match more than foreshadowed his talent. Obviously the nature of the concussion angle garnered natural sympathy that would have been hard to squander, but this was without doubt the best performance of his career. All the things I'd usually never expect to find in a Ziggler match (the intricacies and little touches) were in abundance here: things like Dolph holding his head whilst making a cover, grabbing the ref's ankles to give himself time to breathe, almost screaming in agony, grimacing facials at every opportunity etc. Moment of the match for me that typified this was him transitioning into the sleeper and just having this amazingly desperate and pained expression on his face as he held Del Rio, almost willing the match to be over instantly. There was also this really amazing little moment where he landed a punch flurry and it looked like he nearly fell on his arse whilst trying to run at Del Rio because he was that affected from the attack, just picture perfect babyface selling. Del Rio equally deserves tremendous credit. I felt they really wasted a promising babyface run by nullifying him and basically reducing him to Mr.Mexico and nothing more, but here he was the snivelling and opportunistic bastard that was impossible to root against.

All the attacks at Ziggler's head were scummy and horrifying (that punt kick on the apron, christ on a bendy bus!) and I loved him blatantly using vicious headbutts to the back of the head and the beautiful spot where he did kidney punches before throwing a snide unprotected shot to the back of the head before the backcracker. The spot on the floor with Langston where he goaded Langston into a shoving war and then exaggerated the contant to get Langston kicked out with the glorious shit eating grin on his face was just majestic, as was the dropkick through the ropes just as Ziggler was being attended to on the floor. Thought they timed Ziggler's brief comebacks perfectly to make him look resilient without taking away Del Rio's dominance and Ziggler's plight & the finish was really great with Ziggler pulling this determined and sympathetic face only to be blasted with one kick too many. Brilliant double turn, majestic heel work by Del Rio masquerading as a face, Ziggler bumping and selling his arse off throughout the match, numerous nuances and subtle touches by both men to put over the work and the desired crowd reaction. Amazing match.

Bryan/Ryback II & Bryan/Kane vs Rollins/Reigns 5/27 were the two best of the other matches I've caught up with (mainly every Bryan vs Shield match since the 5/20 6 man on Raw). Will hopefully watch Bryan/Orton II & III, Sheamus/Cesaro x2, Cesaro/Kofi & Cesaro/Zayne II tomorrow.


----------



## Rah

I'm fully expecting you to love Sheamus/Cesaro from Main Event, Woolcock. Just seems right up your alley.


----------



## Obfuscation

All the premiere Cesaro matches will rock his socks off. The man is on another plane with his work.


----------



## Nervosa

Taken from my full review in the puro thread, the top 4 matches from Dominion:

Hooligans vs. time splitters
****
I guess I am the only one never complaining when these teams get booked together. Other than the match where Kozlov was hurt I have loved all of the matches these guys have had, and this was the best. I know four stars seems high for this, but I think this is exactly what this kind of match is meant to be when it is given time. Here's my real controversial statement: I think Kushida is a better partner for shelley than Sabin was. Give me Time splitters over MCMG any day. As great as MCMG's combos are, the ones with Kushida are some of the best tag combos I have seen since 20078 briscoes.

Suzuki/Benjamin vs. Nakamura/Ishii
****
Shinsuke and Ishii are magic when they tag together, and MiSu brought a very great performance in this. But in all honesty, Shelton was awesome again. He has proved all his doubters wrong in this run. He has yet to have a poor showing, and in most showings, he looks strong. he added so much to this match, especially through the finishing stretch.



Shibata vs. Goto
***1/2
I mean, its a good little war I guess, but whats all the fuss about, here? Good striking and Shibata had some really smart stuff now that he has gotten a chance to use more of his moveset, but its the same awful Goto stuff we have seen for a while. This is seriously the only kind of match Goto can wrestle successfully. He is more one dimensional than even Makabe. Plus they did the stupid suplex exchange fighting spirit spot, and basically did it twice. I thought we had all figured out how lame that was in 2009. Its a good brawl, but not a great brawl. 3 better matches on this show, in my opinion.

Okada vs. Makabe
****1/4
I'm with EmbassyRules: match of the show, and everything they did worked. Makabe establishing strength and Okada overtaking him with wits worked really well as a thread throughout the entire match. Crowd ate up everything and were behind Makabe big time. Finishing stretch was awesome, especially everything with the Spider German Suplex. I would have liked Makabe selling his neck just a little with all the focus on it, but it is what it is. Really fun ride and goes by so fast.


----------



## Bubz

Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW DOMINION)
This was pretty badass. Usually two guys going out there and just hitting hard annoys me more than anything, but these two made it work, unlike the Goto/Ishii matches which I really disliked. Because this was mostly strike orientated it allowed for them to just batter each other without it feeling too no-selly (don’t know if that’s a phrase tbh). The part with the trading backdrops was retarded as it always is but the rest was absolutely fine with me. Loved Shibata trying to go for that sitting kick constantly but Goto avoiding it at all costs. Really dug the theme of Goto being able to out power Shibata, but out striking him was a massive no no. Finish absolutely ruled I thought, played into the wtuff with Goto avoiding the kick really well. Crowd was awesome too, and both guys showed intensity and hatred. Good stuff, but I wouldn't call it a MOTYC.

I liked Okada/Makabe, but I wasn't really that fussed by it. Kept zoning in and out and I don;t know whether that was because I wasn't in the mood or because the match failed to hold my attention. Either way the match itself was very good, but I just don't think I cared enough tbh. I'll re-watch it before the years up because there was some great stuff in there for sure.


----------



## flag sabbath

Oh what the heck - it's July already, so here's a list of my favourite matches from Jan to June:

*******
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW 4/8)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW King Of Pro Wrestling, 14/10)

*****3/4*
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack, 7/4)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 2/8)

*****1/2*
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (NJPW 9/6)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW 10/8)

*****1/4*
Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 3/1)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7, 4/1)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW New Beginning, 10/2)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hirooki Goto (NJPW 17/2)
Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs. Takao Omori & Manabu Soya (AJPW 17/3)
Ricochet & Rich Swann vs. Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox (PWG ASW9, 22/3)
CM Punk vs. The Undertaker (WWE WrestleMania, 7/4)
CIMA, Don Fuji, Masaaki Mochizuki, Ryo Jimmy Saito & Uhaa Nation vs. BxB Hulk, Jimmy Susumu, Masato Yoshino, Naruki Doi & YAMATO (Dragon Gate 4/7) 
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (2/3 Falls, AJPW 14/7)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs, Kota Ibushi (NJPW 4/8)
El Ligero vs. Jay Lethal (Infinite Promotions 9/8)
CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar (WWE SummerSlam, 18/8)
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW 25/8)
La Sombra vs. Volador Jr. (Mascara vs. Mascara, CMLL 13/9)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW Power Struggle, 9/11)
Kevin Steen & The Young Bucks vs. Ricochet, Rich Swann & AR Fox (PWG ASWX, 20/12)

******
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7, 4/1)
Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 2/2)
John Cena vs. CM Punk (WWE Raw 25/2)
Chaos vs. Suzuki Gun (Elimination, NJPW 41st Anniversary, 3/3)
Masakatsu Funaki vs. Suwama (AJPW 17/3)
Young Bucks vs. Chuck Taylor & Johnny Gargano (PWG ASW9 22/3)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Hirooki Goto (NJPW 23/3)
Killer Elite Squad vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 5/4)
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW 18/4)
Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW 21/4)
Go Shiozaki vs. Kai (AJPW, 29/4)
Jun Akiyama vs. Kai (AJPW 29/4)
Kenta Kobashi, Keiji Muto, Jun Akiyama & Kensuke Sasaki vs. Kenta, Go Shiozaki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru & Maybach Taniguchi (Final Burning, 11/5)
Kenta vs. Takashi Suguira (NOAH 12/5)
Sami Callihan vs. Shane Hollister (Last Man Standing, AAW 17/5)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. La Sombra (CMLL 31/5)
Kris Travis vs. Chris Masters (PCW 1/6)
Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs. Suwama & Joe Doering (AJPW 2/6)
***** Casas, Valiente & Stuka Jr. vs. Fuego, Virus & Vangellys (CMLL 14/6)
Forever Hooligans vs. Time Splitters (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)
Shuji Ishikawa vs. Masashi Takeda (Glass Deathmatch, BJW 30/6)
Daniel Bryan vs. Antonio Cesaro (WWE Raw, 22/7)
Doug Williams vs. El Ligero (60 Minute Iron Man, PCW 2/8)
Young Bucks vs. Dojo Bros vs. Inner City Machine Guns (Ladder, PWG TEN, 9/8)
Tomohiro Ishii vs Togi Makabe (NJPW 10/8)
Minoru Suzuki vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW, 10/8)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW 11/8)
John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan (WWE SummerSlam, 18/8)
Antonio Cesaro vs. Sami Zayn (2/3 Falls, NXT 21/8)
Sami Zayn vs. Jack Swagger (NXT 4/9)
Daisuke Sekimoto & Yuji Okabayashi vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (Wrestle-1 8/9)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (Lumberjack, NJPW Destruction, 29/9)
Virus vs. Guerrero Maya Jr. (CMLL 6/10)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW King Of Pro Wrestling, 14/10)
Young Bucks vs. Joey Ryan & Candice LaRae (PWG Matt Rushmore, 19/10)
Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly (PWG Matt Rushmore, 19/10)
Akira Tozawa, Shingo & Uhaa Nation vs. BxB Hulk, Yamato & Cyber Kong (Dragon Gate Gate Of Destiny, 3/11)
Masato Yoshino vs. Naruki Doi (Dragon Gate Gate Of Destiny, 3/11)
Young Bucks vs. Forever Hooligans (NJPW 6/11)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW Power Struggle,9/11)
Kevin Steen vs. Dave Mastiff (PCW Supershow 3, 16/11)
Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tetsuya Naito vs. Kazuchika Okada & Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW 23/12)

****3/4*
Titan vs. Polvora (CMLL 1/1)
Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (NJPW WrestleKingdom 7, 4/1)
Young Bucks vs. Inner City Machineguns (PWG DDT4, 13/1)
Young Bucks vs. Kevin Steen & El Generico (PWG DDT4, 13/1)
Big Show vs. Alberto Del Rio (Last Man Standing, WWE SmackDown 18/1)
Jimmy Jacobs vs. Adam Cole (ROH Hunt For The Gold, 18/1)
Mascara Dorada, Titan & La Sombra vs. Volador Jr., Mr Aguila & Psicosis (CMLL 25/1)
Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (NOAH 27/1)
Volador Jr vs. Rey Escorpion (CMLL 29/1)
Ryuji Ito, Isami Kodaka & Yuko Miyamoto vs. Shadow WX, Shuji Ishikawa & Takashi Sasaki (Lighttubes, BJW 8/2)
Jun Akiyama, Kotaro Suzuki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Takao Omori, Manabu Soya & Kaz Hayashi (AJPW 10/2)
The Shield vs. John Cena, Sheamus & Ryback (WWE Elimination Chamber, 17/2)
Shuji Kondo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (AJPW 23/2)
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Lethal (ROH 11YA, 2/3)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (NJPW 41st Anniversary, 3/3)
Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka vs. Kotaro Suzuki & Atsushi Aoki (AJPW 17/3)
Paul London vs. Kevin Steen (PWG ASW9, 22/3)
Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (Guerilla Warfare, PWG ASW9, 22/3)
Young Bucks vs. Dojo Bros (PWG ASW9, 23/3)
Ricochet vs. Samuray Del Sol (King of Flight 24/3)
Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma vs. Masato Tanaka & Yujiro Takahashi (NJPW Invasion Attack, 7/4)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (NJPW Invasion Attack, 7/4)
William Regal vs. Kassius Ohno (NXT 11/4)
Kevin Steen vs. John Hennigan (2CW Living on the Edge VIII, 20/4)
Chaos vs. Suzuki-gun (Elimination, NJPW 21/4)
Kevin Steen vs. Kris Travis (PCW Spring Slam, 26/4)
Rey Cometa vs. Namajague (Hair vs. Mask, CMLL 26/4)
Koji Kanemoto, Minoru Tanaka & Hiroshi Yamato vs. Kotaro Suzuki, Atsushi Aoki & Yoshinobu Kanemaru (AJPW 29/4)
Antonio Cesaro vs. Kofi Kingston (WWE Main Event, 1/5)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW Dontaku, 3/5)
Eddie Kingston vs. Green Ant (Chikara 3/5)
Masato Yoshino vs. Dragon Kid (Dragon Gate Dead Or Alive, 5/5)
BxB Hulk & Uhaa Nation vs. Shingo Takagi & Yamato (Dragon Gate Dead Or Alive, 5/5)
Shingo Takagi vs. BxB Hulk (Dragon Gate 10/5)
The Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (WWE Raw, 20/5)
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (NJPW 24/5)
Ricochet vs. Shingo Takagi (Dragon Gate 25/5)
Naruki Doi, Rich Swann & Shachihoko Boy vs. Masaaki Mochizuki, Jimmy Susumu & K-Ness (Dragon Gate 5/6)
Kenny Omega vs. Kushida (NJPW 6/6)
Young Bucks vs. Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox (PWG 15/6)
Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki & Shelton Benjamin (NJPW Dominion, 22/6)
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Ryuichi Kawakami (BJW 30/6)
Prince Devitt vs. Gedo (NJPW, 13/7)
Shinsuke Nakamura, Masato Tanaka, Toru Yano & Takashi Iizuka vs. La Sombra, Tetsuya Naito, Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima (NJPW 15/7)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Lance Archer (NJPW 1/8)
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Satoshi Kojima (NJPW 1/8)
Satoshi Kojima vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW 2/8)
Kota Ibushi vs. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW 2/8)
Minoru Suzuki vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW 2/8)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (NJPW 4/8)
Kota Ibushi vs. Yuji Nagata (NJPW 6/8)
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (NJPW 7/8)
Willie Mack, B-Boy & Candice LeRae vs. Joey Ryan, Ryan Taylor & Peter Avalon (PWG TEN, 9/8)
Adam Cole vs. Kevin Steen vs. Drake Younger (Guerrilla Warfare, PWG TEN, 9/8)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Tetsuya Naito (NJPW 10/8)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Shelton Benjamin (NJPW 11/8)
Tetsuya Naito vs. Karl Anderson (NJPW 11/8)
Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima (NJPW 11/8)
Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs. Suwama & Takao Omori (AJPW 17/8)
Christian vs. Alberto Del Rio (WWE SummerSlam, 18/8)
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Naomichi Marufuji (NJPW King Of Pro Wrestling, 14/10)
Johnny Gargano vs. Roderick Strong (PWG Matt Rushmore, 19/10)
T-Hawk & Eita vs. Dragon Kid & K-Ness (Dragon Gate Gate Of Destiny, 3/11)
Kevin Steen vs. Kris Travis vs. Joey Hayes vs. Dean Allmark (PCW Supershow 3, 15/11)
Kris Travis vs. Chris Masters (Last Man Standing, PCW Supershow 3, 16/11)
Killer Elite Squad vs. Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 24/11)
Monster Express vs. Mad Blankey (Nagoya-style Elimination, Dragon Gate 1/12)


----------



## rzombie1988

ProWresBlog's Best of 2013:
http://prowresblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/the-best-matches-of-2013.html

January 2013
Polvora vs Titan - CMLL 1/1/2013 - Rating:***** - Best Match of January 2013
Meiko Satomura vs Yuhi - Zero-1 1/1/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Shuji Kondo vs Hiroshi Yamato - AJPW 1/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs Great Khali - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013- Rating:**1/2
Justin Gabriel vs Wade Barrett - WWE Main Event 1/2/2013 - Rating:***
Cage Match - Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe vs Ace's and 8's - TNA Impact Wrestling 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
The Uso's vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Superstars 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Davey Boy Smith Jr and Lance Archer vs Sword and Guns - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Prince Devitt vs Low-Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Katsuyori Shibata vs Togi Makabe - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada- NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 7 1/4/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Pequeno Reyes Del Aire - CMLL 1/6/2013 - Rating****
Mistico II, Mascara Dorada and Titan vs Averno, Mephisto and Ephesto - CMLL 1/8/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Sheamus vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 1/9/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Falls Count Anywhere - Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Smackdown 1/11/2013 - Rating:****1/2
TLC - Apolo vs El Mesias Ricky Banderas - WWC 1/13/2013 - Rating:***
Austin Aries vs Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Genesis 1/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Cage Match - John Cena vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Yuzuki Aikawa vs Kairi Hojo - Stardom 1/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
La Sombra vs Shinsuke Nakamura - NJPW Fantasicamania 1/18/2013 - Rating:***1/2
KENTA vs Colt Cabana - NOAH 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
Natalya vs Alicia Fox - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 1/19/2013 - Rating:**3/4
Estrellita, Luna Mágica, Silueta vs Amapola, Tiffany, Zeuxis - CMLL on Televisa 1/19/2013 - Rating:***
Wade Barrett vs Sheamus - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 1/25/2013 - Rating:***
Adam Page vs Silas Young - ROH TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Torneo Cibernetico - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
Rush vs Terrible - CMLL on Cadena Tres 1/26/2013 - Rating:***1/4
KENTA vs Takeshi Morishima - NOAH 1/27/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Last Man Standing - The Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 Rating:***1/2
The Rock vs CM Punk - Royal Rumble 1/27/2013 - Rating:***
Kota Ibushi vs Konosuke Takeshita 1/27/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Marco Corleone, Titan and Valiente vs Averno, Dragon Rojo Jr. and ***** Casas - CMLL Guadalajara TV 1/26/2013 - Rating:***
January Wrestler of the Month - Titan (CMLL)

February 2012
Team Hell No vs Rey Mysterio and Sin Cara - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 2/1/2013 - Rating:***
Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra vs Volador Jr., Mr. Aguila and Psicosis II - CMLL on Galavision 2/2/2013 - Rating:****
Tag Team Gauntlet - ROH TV 2/2/2012 - Rating:***1/4
Guerrero Maya Jr., Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Ephesto, Mephisto, Namajague - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Volador Jr. vs Rey Escorpion - CMLL on CadenaTres 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Dinastia and Octagoncito vs Mini Abismo ***** and Mini Charly Manson - AAA on Televisa 2/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Drago, Fenix and Octagon vs Daga, Pentagon Jr. and Silver King - AAA on Televisa 2/2/2013 - Rating:***
Savio Vega vs Ray Fenix - WWC TV 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Polvora vs Valiente - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Diamante, Máscara Dorada, Super Porky vs Ephesto, Misterioso Jr., Puma - CMLL on Terra 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Kazuki Hashimoto vs Shinjiro Ohtani - Zero-1 2/3/2013 - Rating:***1/2
KENSO vs Ryouji Sai - Zero-1 2/3/2013 - Rating:***
Daniel Bryan vs Rey Mysterio - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
CM Punk vs Chris Jericho - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/5/2013 - Rating:***
ACH vs Matt Taven - ROH TV 2/9/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Jay Vélez and Xavant vs. Barrabás Jr. and El Colonel - WWC TV 2/16/2013 -Rating:***1/4
Titan vs Dragon Rojo Jr. - CMLL Guadalajara 2/9/2013 - Rating:***
Mr. Niebla vs La Sombra - CMLL on CadenaTres 2/9/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Reyes Del Aire, Block A Cibernetico - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/9/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Fuego, Hombre Bala Jr., Super Halcón Jr. vs Arkángel de la Muerte, Nitro, Skándalo - CMLL on Televisa 2/9/2013 - Rating:***
Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kengo Mashimo - NJPW The New Beginning 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW The New Beginning 2/10/2013 - Rating:***
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Karl Anderson - NJPW The New Beginning 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Bat on a Pole Match - Savio Vega vs Ray Gonzalez - WWC 2/10/2013 TV - Rating:***
Carlos Colon vs Savio Vega - WWC 2/10/2013 TV - Rating:***
FIST vs The Colony - CHIKARA While the Dawn is Breaking 2/10/2013 - Rating:***
Jigsaw, DeviANT and The Shard vs Hallowicked, Frightmare and Mike Quackenbush - CHIKARA While the Dawn is Breaking 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Eddie Kingston vs Kevin Steen - CHIKARA While the Dawn is Breaking 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Young Bucks vs 3.0 - CHIKARA While the Dawn is Breaking 2/10/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 2/13/2012 - Rating:****
Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Marty Scrull and The Blossom Twins vs Gail Kim, Jesse and Tara - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/14/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Austin Aries vs Bobby Roode - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/14/2013 - Rating:***
Reyes Del Aire Block B - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/16/2013 -Rating:***1/4
Astral, Bam Bam, Fantasy vs Demus 3:16, Pequeño Olímpico, Pequeño Violencia - CMLL on Televisa 2/16/2013 - Rating: ***1/2
Hijo del Fantasma, Rey Cometa, Stuka Jr. vs Misterioso Jr., Namajague, Shigeo Okumura - CMLL on Televisa 2/16/2013 - Rating:***
Heath Slater vs Justin Gabriel - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 2/16/2013 - Rating:***
Matt Taven vs Silas Young - ROH TV 2/17/2013 - Rating:***
Eddie Edwards vs Giger vs XL - XNL Titanes Del Ring 2/17/2013 - Rating:***
Kaiser vs KENTA - XNL Titanes Del Ring 2/17/2013 - Rating:***
Sheamus vs Damien Sandow - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 2/22/2013 - Rating:***
Drew McIntyre vs Sin Cara - WWE Superstars 2/22/2013 - Rating:***
The Funkadactyl's vs Alicia Fox and Natalya - WWE Superstars 2/22/2013 - Rating:***1/2
La Sombra vs Volador Jr. - CMLL on Fox Sports Mexico 2/23/2013 - Rating:****
Hijo del Fantasma vs Dragon Rojo Jr - CMLL on Televisa 2/23/2013 - Rating:***
John Cena vs CM Punk - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/25/2013 - Rating:**** - Best Match of February 2013
Austin Aries vs Hernandez - TNA Impact Wrestling 2/28/2013 - Rating:***
Best Wrestler of February 2013 - Savio Vega (WWC)

March 2013
Alberto Del Rio vs Damien Sandow - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 3/1/2013 - Rating:***
2/3 Falls - The Miz vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 3/1/2013 - Rating:***
Glass and Light Tubes - Drake Younger vs Ryuji Ito - BJW 3/1/2013 - Rating:***
Razorboards, No Mat - Jun Kasai vs Jaki Numazawa - BJW 3/1/2013 - Rating:***
Six Man Mayhem - ROH 11th Anniversary 3/2/2013 - Rating:***
SCUM vs C&C - ROH 11th Anniversary 3/2/2013 - Rating:***
2/3 Falls - Roderick Strong vs Michael Elgin - ROH 11th Anniversary 3/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Matt Taven vs Adam Cole - ROH 11th Anniversary 3/2/2013 - Rating:***
Jay Lethal vs Kevin Steen - ROH 11th Anniversary 3/2/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Antonio Cesaro vs Justin Gabriel WWE Saturday Morning Slam 3/3/2013 - Rating:***
Triton vs Misterioso Jr - CMLL on Terra 3/3/2013 - Rating:***
Namajague and Okumura vs Stuka Jr and Fuego - CMLL on Terra 3/3/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Elimination Match - NJPW 41st Anniversary 3/3/2013 - Rating:***
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Prince Devitt - NJPW 41st Anniversary 3/3/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Sin Cara vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Main Event 3/6/2013 - Rating:***
Leo Kruger vs Yoshi Tatsu - NXT 3/7/2013 - Rating:***
Eddie Edwards vs Rhett Titus - ROH TV 3/9/2013 - Rating:***
Matt Borne, Colt Toombs and Patrick Large vs The Blanchard Brothers and Mike Santiago - Portland Wrestling Uncut 3/9/2013 - Rating:***
Mia Yim vs MsChif - ROH TV 3/9/2013 - Rating:***12
Kenny King vs Zema Ion vs Christian York - TNA Lockdown 3/10/2013 - Rating:***
Bad Influence vs Roode and Aries vs Hernandez and Chavo Guerrero - TNA Lockdown 3/10/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Bully Ray vs Jeff Hardy - TNA Lockdown 3/10/2013 - Rating:***
Dolph Ziggler vs Daniel Bryan - WWE Monday Night Raw 3/11/2013 - Rating:***
Satoshi Kojima vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW NJ Cup 3/11/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Kazuchika Okada vs Lance Archer - NJPW NJ Cup 3/11/2013 - Rating:***
Emma vs Summer Rae - NXT 3/14/2013 - Rating:***
Sting vs Austin Aries - TNA Impact Wrestling 3/14/2013 - Rating:***
ACH and Tadarius Thomas vs The American Wolves - ROH TV 3/16/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Daniel Bryan vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 3/16/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Nanae Takahashi vs Alpha Female - STARDOM 3/17/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Yuko Miyamoto vs Shuji Ishikawa - BJW 3/17/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs Cody Rhodes - WWE Monday Night Raw 3/18/2013 - Rating:***1/4
The Uso's vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Main Event 3/20/2013 - Rating:***
Antonio Cesaro vs Zack Ryder - WWE Superstars 3/22/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Michael Elgin vs Silas Young - ROH TV 3/23/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Matt Hardy vs Adam Cole - ROH TV 3/23/2013 - Rating:***
The Miz vs Wade Barrett - WWE Monday Night Raw 3/25/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs Kane - WWE Main Event 3/27/2013 - Rating:***
The Bella Twins vs Naomi and Cameron - WWE Main Event 3/27/2013 - Rating:**3/4
Kaitlyn vs Natalya - WWE NXT 3/27/2013 - Rating:***
Bad Influence vs Chavo Guerrero Jr. and Hernandez - TNA Impact Wrestling 3/28/2013 - Rating:***
Primo vs Kofi Kingston - WWE Superstars 3/29/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Isami Kodaka vs Masashi Takeda -BJW 3/30/2013 - Rating:***
Ryuji Ito vs Yuko Miyamoto - BJW 3/30/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Mike Mondo vs Jimmy Jacobs - ROH TV 3/30/2013 - Rating:***
Match of the Month - Namajague and Okumura vs Stuka Jr and Fuego - CMLL on Terra 3/3/2013 - Rating:***1/4


April 2013
Chris Jericho vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Monday Night Raw 4/1/2013 - Rating:***1/2
CHAOS(Gedo and Kazuchika Okada) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi and BUSHI - NJPW Road to Invasion Attack 4/5/2013 - Rating:***
Alex Shelley vs Prince Devitt - NJPW Road to Invasion Attack 4/5/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Killer Elite Squad vs Shinsuke Nakamura and Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW Road to Invasion Attack 4/5/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW Invasion Attack 4/7/2013- Rating:***1/2
Kid Kash and Douglas Williams vs Anthony Nese and Rashad Cameron - TNA One Night Only - Rating:***1/4
Bad Influence vs Petey Williams and Sonjay Dutt - TNA One Night Only - Rating:***
Rob Van Dam vs Jerry Lynn - TNA One Night Only - Rating:***1/2
Austin Aries vs Samoa Joe - TNA One Night Only - Rating:***
Isami Kodaka vs Ryuji Ito - BJW 4/10/2013 - Rating:***
William Regal vs Kassius Ohno - WWE NXT 4/10/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Full Metal Mayhem - Bully Ray vs Jeff Hardy - TNA Impact Wrestling 4/11/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Mark Briscoe vs Mike Mondo vs BJ Whitmer vs Cedric Alexander vs Caprice Coleman - ROH TV 4/13/2013 - Rating:***
Antonio Cesaro vs Kofi Kingston - WWE Monday Night Raw 4/15/2013 - Rating:***
Wade Barrett vs Justin Gabriel - WWE Main Event 4/17/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Hiroshi Yamato vs Masayuki Kono - AJPW B-Banquet 4/18/2013 - Rating:***
Jun Akiyama vs KENSO - AJPW B-Banquet 4/18/2013 - Rating:***
Kofi Kingston vs Justin Gabriel - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 4/20/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Tamina Snuka vs Natalya - WWE Superstars 4/20/2013 - Rating:***
Antonio Cesaro vs Adrian Neville - NXT 4/25/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Kaitlyn vs AJ Lee - NXT 4/25/2013 - Rating:***
Antonio Cesaro vs Zack Ryder - WWE Saint Petersburg, Russia House Show 4/25/2013 - Rating:***
Dolph Ziggler vs Daniel Bryan - WWE Saint Petersburg, Russia House Show 4/25/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Jimmy Uso vs Michael McGillicutty - WWE Superstars 4/26/2013 - Rating:***
The Rhodes Scholars vs The Uso's - WWE Saturday Morning Slam 4/27/2013 - Rating:***
Rhett Titus vs Jay Lethal - ROH TV 4/27/2013 - Rating:***
The Shield vs The New Age Outlaws - WWE Cologne, Germany 4/28/2013 - Rating:***
Kofi Kingston vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Monday Night Raw 4/29/2013 - Rating:***
Yuhi vs Natsuki Taiyo - Stardom 4/29/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Match of the Month - William Regal vs Kassius Ohno - WWE NXT 4/10/2013 - Rating:***3/4

May 2013
Antonio Cesaro vs Kofi Kingston - WWE Main Event 5/1/2013 - Rating:****
Justin Gabriel vs Heath Slater - WWE Main Event 5/1/2013 - Rating:***
Paige vs Summer Rae - WWE NXT 5/1/2013 - Rating:***
Ryback vs Daniel Bryan - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 5/3/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Dean Ambrose vs Kane - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 5/3/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Tadarius Thomas and ACH vs C&C - ROH Border Wars 5/4/2013- Rating:***1/2
Taiji Ishimori vs Eddie Edwards - ROH Border Wars 5/4/2013 - Rating:***
The Shield vs John Cena and Team Hell No - WWE 5/4/2013 Wheeling, West Virgina House Show - Rating:***
Randy Orton vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Main Event 5/8/2013 - Rating:***
Bad Influence vs Austin Aries and Bobby Roode - TNA Impact 5/9/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Daniel Bryan vs Dean Ambrose - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 5/10/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Ted Dibiase Jr. vs Michael McGillicutty - WWE Superstars 5/11/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Cody Rhodes vs Justin Gabriel - WWE Superstars 5/11/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Tadarius Thomas vs Matt Taven - ROH Pittsburgh 5/11/2013 - Rating:***1/2
ACH vs Michael Elgin - ROH Pittsburgh 5/11/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Adam Cole vs Roderick Strong vs BJ Whitmer - ROH Pittsbugh 5/11/2013 - Rating:***
Jimmy Jacobs vs Jay Lethal - ROH Pittsburgh 5/11/2013 - Rating:***
The Briscoe Brothers vs Red Dragon - ROH Pittsburgh 5/11/2013 - Rating:***
John Cena and Team Hell No vs The Shield - WWE Monday Night Raw 5/13/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Gail Kim vs Velvet Sky - TNA Impact Wrestling 5/16/2013 - Rating:***
Chris Jericho vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Smackdown 5/17/2013 - Rating:***
Jimmy Jacobs vs Jay Lethal - ROH TV 5/18/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Adam Cole vs Kevin Steen - ROH TV 5/18/2013 - Rating:***1/4
I Quit - Alberto Del Rio vs Jack Swagger - WWE Extreme Rules 5/19/2013 - Rating:***
Extreme Rules Match - Randy Orton vs The Big Show - WWE Extreme Rules 5/19/2013 - Rating:***
Last Man Standing - Ryback vs John Cena - WWE Extreme Rules 5/19/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Cage Match - Brock Lesnar vs Triple H - WWE Extreme Rules 5/19/2013 - Rating:****
The Shield vs Team Hell No and Kofi Kingston - WWE Monday Night Raw 5/20/2013 - Rating:***3/4
Randy Orton vs Jack Swagger - WWE Monday Night Raw 5/20/2013 - Rating:***
Alberto Del Rio vs Big E Langston - WWE Main Event 5/22/2013 - Rating:***
Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro - NXT 5/22/2013 - Rating:***
Daniel Bryan vs Jack Swagger - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 5/24/2013 - Rating:***1/4
Dean Ambrose vs Randy Orton - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 5/24/2013 - Rating:***1/2
The Shield vs Team Hell No - WWE Monday Night Raw 5/27/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Wade Barrett vs Sheamus - WWE Main Event 5/29/2013 - Rating:***1/2
Emma vs Audrey Marie - WWE NXT 5/29/2013 - Rating:***
Sin Cara and Justin Gabriel vs The Prime Time Players - WWE Superstars 5/30/2013 - Rating:***

June 2013
C&C vs QT Marshall and Archibald Peck - ROH TV 6/1/13 - Rating:***1/4
Mark Angelosetti vs Saturyne - Chikara Anniversario 6/2/13 - Rating:***1/2
The Colony vs Devastation Corporation - Chikara Anniversario 6/2/13 - Rating:***3/4
3.0 vs Pieces of Hate - Chikara Anniversario 6/2/13 - Rating:***
4-Way Tag - TNA Slammiversary 6/2/13 - Rating:***
Taryn Terrell vs Gail Kim - TNA Slammiversary 6/2/13 - Rating:****
AJ Styles vs Kurt Angle - TNA Slammiversary 6/2/13 - Rating:****
Bully Ray vs Sting - TNA Slammiversary 6/2/13 - Rating:***
Team Hell No and Randy Orton vs The Shield - WWE Raw 6/3/13 - Rating:***1/2
Daniel Bryan vs Ryback - WWE Raw 6/3/13 - Rating:***1/2
No DQ - Curtis Axel vs John Cena - WWE Raw 6/3/13 - Rating:***
Sheamus vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Main Event 6/5/13 - Rating:***1/4
The Uso's vs Team Rhodes Scholars - WWE Main Event 6/5/13 - Rating:***
Kane vs Ryback - WWE Smackdown 6/7/13 - Rating:***
Seth Rollins vs Daniel Bryan - WWE Raw 6/10/13 - Rating:***1/2
The Miz vs Cody Rhodes - WWE Main Event 6/12/13 - Rating:***
Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE NXT 6/13/13 - Rating:***3/4
Alicia Fox vs Bayley - WWE NXT 6/13/13 - Rating:***
AJ Styles vs Kurt Angle - TNA Impact 6/13/13 - Rating:***1/4
Antonio Cesaro vs Sheamus - WWE Smackdown 6/14/13 - Rating:***
Team Hell No and Daniel Bryan vs The Shield - WWE Smackdown 6/14/13 - Rating:***3/4
Jimmy Jacobs vs Kevin Steen - ROH TV 6/15/13 - Rating:***
CM Punk vs Chris Jericho - WWE Payback 6/16/13 - Rating:***1/2
Blue Demon Jr vs Mesias - AAA Triplemania - Rating:***
Sin Cara vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Main Event 6/19/13 - Rating:***
Sasha Banks vs Summer Rae - NXT 6/20/13 - Rating:***
Jay Bradley vs Austin Aries - TNA Impact 6/20/13 - Rating:***
Samoa Joe vs AJ Styles - TNA Impact 6/20/13 - Rating:***1/4
Jeff Hardy vs Bobby Roode - TNA Impact 6/20/13 - Rating:***
Christian vs Drew McIntyre - WWE Smackdown 6/21/13 - Rating:***
Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton - WWE Smackdown 6/21/13 - Rating:***
Hirooki Goto vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW Dominion 6/22/13 - Rating:***1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs Togi Makabe - NJPW Dominion 6/22/13 - Rating:***1/2
Daniel Bryan vs Randy Orton - WWE Raw 6/24/13 - Rating:***1/2
Chris Jericho vs Cody Rhodes - WWE Main Event 6/26/13 - Rating:***1/4
Magnus vs Bobby Roode - TNA Impact 6/27/13 - Rating:***
Christian and The Uso's vs The Shield - WWE Smackdown 6/28/13 - Rating:***
Miz vs Wade Barrett - WWE Superstars 6/28/13 - Rating:***1/4


Top 5 Matches of 2013 so far:
1 - Titan vs Polvora - CMLL 1/1/2013 - Rating:*****
2 - The Big Show vs Alberto Del Rio - WWE Friday Night Smackdown 1/11/2013 - Rating:****1/2
3 - John Cena vs CM Punk - WWE Monday Night Raw 2/25/2013 - Rating:****
4 - Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler - WWE Main Event 2/13/2012 - Rating:****
5 - Mascara Dorada, Titan and La Sombra vs Volador Jr., Mr. Aguila and Psicosis II - CMLL on Galavision 2/2/2013 - Rat


----------



## bigbuxxx

> Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW Invasion Attack 4/7/2013- Rating:***1/2


wow lol.


----------



## Rah

This may sound all sorts of crazy but you guys should hop on Shigehiro Irie Vs Keisuke Ishii.

Yes, you probably don't know who they are. Yes, it's DDT. Yes, they look weird. Yes, this goes on for ~30 minutes. But the neck work is superb!


----------



## Concrete

Saw it get pimped on WKO. Already interested in it. Selling mixed with stiff as hell striking sounds like my cup of tea.


----------



## Ian Zandig Onita

Undertaker vs. Punk on WM29. This was really crazzy stuff )


----------



## darkclaudio

Daisuke Sekimoto, Yuji Okabayashi, Shinobu & Kazuki Hashimoto vs Yoshihito Sasaki, Shinya Ishikawa, Ryuichi Kawakami & Madoka - BJW 27/05/2013 ***1/2


----------



## Groovemachine

I had Okada/Makabe as my MOTN for Dominion; much preferred it to Goto/Shibata. Loved the sequence where Okada took those repeated lariats but just about stayed on his feet. Top notch Okada selling once again. Built to a nice crescendo finish too; Spider German was a great nearfall. And for once the tombstone was used in the finish, rather than as a throwaway transitional move, which pleased me immensely. I really hate it when people kick out of the tombstone like it's a nothing move. So yeah, great match. ****

Goto/Shibata I had at ***3/4; still very good stuff but not as noteworthy as others found it.


----------



## Obfuscation

I adored both. At the point where I'm starting to warm up a hair more towards liking Makabe/Okada over Goto/Shibata. The story behind the match was fascinating and worked out very well. While the other was much more straight forward - yet brilliant all the same on its own merit.

Can't go wrong with either, imo.


----------



## dukenukem3do

Aries vs Sabin vs Manic Impact 7/4 ***1/2 great main event especially in the last ten min


----------



## EmbassyForever

*Chris Sabin vs vs Austin Aries vs Manic - ***3/4-*****
Awesome match and TNA TV MOTY. Some fantastic storytelling with Sabin's ACL injury and a lot of drama. Finish was great too. Came off so much better than I thought, this is how you make a star.


----------



## darkclaudio

NJPW Kizuna Road 7/05/2013
Minoru Suzuki, TAKA Michinoku & Taichi vs. Tomohiro Ishii, Rocky Romero & Alex Koslov ***1/4+
Shinsuke Nakamura, Masato Tanaka & Yujiro Takahashi vs. Tetsuya Naito, La Sombra & Tomoaki Honma ***
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Prince Devitt (c) vs. Gedo ***1/2+


----------



## geraldinhio

EmbassyForever said:


> *Chris Sabin vs vs Austin Aries vs Manic - ***3/4-*****
> Awesome match and TNA TV MOTY. Some fantastic storytelling with Sabin's ACL injury and a lot of drama. Finish was great too. Came off so much better than I thought, this is how you make a star.


Really enjoyed this too. Wouldn't call it fantastic storytelling by any means. Aries went after the leg for a brief few minutes and that was it. Sabin was back up running around doing his thing. That being said it was a great back and forth match. Aries is just so good. That DDV on the apron and the teased count out was great. Just Aries's expression stretched across the top rope. :cool2

It's obvious it's TJP under the mask too. Was confused with them calling him both Suicide and Manic, which is it? I thought they unmasked him? I don't know. Could of done without MEM/A&8's at ringside, more so Sting standing on the apron half the damn match.

Anyway you're rating sounds right. Best TNA match I've seen in ages, even if it hasn't been that many.


----------



## EmbassyForever

geraldinhio said:


> Really enjoyed this too. Wouldn't call it fantastic storytelling by any means. Aries went after the leg for a brief few minutes and that was it. Sabin was back up running around doing his thing. That being said it was a great back and forth match. Aries is just so good. That DDV on the apron and the teased count out was great. Just Aries's expression stretched across the top rope. :cool2
> 
> It's obvious it's TJP under the mask too. Was confused with them calling him both Suicide and Manic, which is it? I thought they unmasked him? I don't know. Could of done without MEM/A&8's at ringside, more so Sting standing on the apron half the damn match.
> 
> Anyway you're rating sounds right. Best TNA match I've seen in ages, even if it hasn't been that many.


Everyone just sold it very good. And the the knee injury was just a part of the whole story of Sabin overcoming the odds. And yes, apparently Hogan decided to change Suicide name to Manic... I think it's dumb too but at least this'll somehow cover TJP's lack of charisma (he was involved in a short segemnt with Bully last week & was really bad).


----------



## geraldinhio

I thought Aries was doing a nice job of working the neck over after the apron spot, but I can obviously understand him going the knee injury. Really looking forward to Sabin vs Bully, if it's anything like Bully/Aries. 

The role really suits TJP.


----------



## TEWA

EmbassyForever said:


> *Chris Sabin vs vs Austin Aries vs Manic - ***3/4-*****
> Awesome match and TNA TV MOTY. Some fantastic storytelling with Sabin's ACL injury and a lot of drama. Finish was great too. Came off so much better than I thought, this is how you make a star.



You've very low standards.


----------



## geraldinhio

Why exactly? I rated it the same. I had a blast watching it and don't see how it couldn't be a low rate MOTYC.


----------



## Bubz

Anyone give me a brief run down of what's happened over the last few months? Who are the champs? Who's feuding etc. Haven't watched that company for so long.


----------



## KingCrash

Main feud is still Aces & Eights with Bully Ray still as world champ vs. TNA with Hogan still trying to keep Brooke away from Bully and Sting reforming the Main Event Mafia (Joe, Angle & Magnus) to get rid of them.

Chris Sabin was the X-Division champ after winning it last show from Austin Aries after Aries won it by stealing Suicide’s suit and putting himself in the match. Sabin cashed it in to get a shot at Bully two weeks from Thurs.

James Storm & Gunner are tag champs, currently doing nothing.

Mickie James is the women’s champ after turning heel, next challenger will be decided in a ladder match between Gail Kim and Taryn Terrell.

Abyss is the tv champ but hasn’t been seen much since he’s still doing the Joseph Park/Abyss split personality gimmick.

The BFG Series Tournament is going on to decide who faces the world champ at the ppv, right now the favorites are Magnus (leads point total), Ken Anderson (Aces rep.), AJ Styles (Doing the Lone Wolf/Tweener gimmick) and either Joe or Austin Aries.


----------



## Chismo

Devitt/Gedo is a low-tier MOTYC, definitely. Gedo was isnanely over in Korakuen, and the cheating nearfalls were ridiculously awesome.

****


----------



## TEWA

geraldinhio said:


> Why exactly? I rated it the same. I had a blast watching it and don't see how it couldn't be a low rate MOTYC.


Just a better version of your modern day clunky TNA X Division. Wouldn't stand out in other promotions or in the TNA of 7 years ago plus.

I know TNA MOYTC are very low on the ground these days but still.


----------



## Bubz

KingCrash said:


> Main feud is still Aces & Eights with Bully Ray still as world champ vs. TNA with Hogan still trying to keep Brooke away from Bully and Sting reforming the Main Event Mafia (Joe, Angle & Magnus) to get rid of them.
> 
> Chris Sabin was the X-Division champ after winning it last show from Austin Aries after Aries won it by stealing Suicide’s suit and putting himself in the match. Sabin cashed it in to get a shot at Bully two weeks from Thurs.
> 
> James Storm & Gunner are tag champs, currently doing nothing.
> 
> Mickie James is the women’s champ after turning heel, next challenger will be decided in a ladder match between Gail Kim and Taryn Terrell.
> 
> Abyss is the tv champ but hasn’t been seen much since he’s still doing the Joseph Park/Abyss split personality gimmick.
> 
> The BFG Series Tournament is going on to decide who faces the world champ at the ppv, right now the favorites are Magnus (leads point total), Ken Anderson (Aces rep.), AJ Styles (Doing the Lone Wolf/Tweener gimmick) and either Joe or Austin Aries.


 Sounds like I'm not missing much then. Can't believe they've fucked Storm over like that after the build they gave him. I swear he was set to become the top guy in that company.


----------



## Chismo

Thank God they've fucked him over, he's painfully mediocre and stale.


----------



## Obfuscation

Agreed.

Although, I still can't believe how much TNA did fuck him over. To be en route to the ultimate high only to be given what feels like a pity win at BFG as his "golden moment".


----------



## Rah

*Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)*
★★★★ ¼
_It's funny how the weaker team compositions deliver the greatest performances. Not only was the Shield tag with Kofi indicative of this, but I think this may just take the title for best example. No matter the match line-up, if I see either Maximo or Shocker listed I will not watch. I've never seen a performance from Shocker that was anything remotely decent and I've completely soured on homophobic comedy acts such as Maximo. Yet, weirdly, Shocker tried his hardest to keep up with the better guys here and finally delivered a good performance while Maximo (outside of his usual shtick) actually had a decent arm-drag spot and comedic moments. Perhaps because of the talent (or lack thereof) the rest of the guys involved worked their ass off in delivering a match entertaining enough for an Arena Mexico main.

I'm probably a little more positive on Escorpion than most yet he definitely delivered his share involved while Terrible did great in seconding to Casas. But great is one thing, both Rush and Casas were out of this world amazing here. If there's any reason as to why I love Rush, it's because this is what he's actually like. Forget his performances with middling Okada and half-assed Nakamura, this is the environ in which he shines. A staggeringly great match to add to the Casas/Rush feud and just even more reason as to why they need a singles match soon. DROOL~!_​


----------



## Groovemachine

KENTA vs Takashi Sugiura - NOAH 12.05.13 - ****

This was a war. These man dished out a total battering to each other, and boy were they stiff. To be honest, in the middle portion of the match it was headed into epic territory but the overkill in the closing minutes turned me off a bit. I also probably would have gone higher had Kenta sold better, as on numerous occasions he just shrugged off some of Sugsy's biggest offense. Also, am I right in thinking it's always taken 3 GTSs to put Sugiura away in the past? In that sense, I like the continuity displayed here but it really kills the GTS as a finisher. This displeases me. (N)

Aside from all that, I can't criticise the match any further. We saw some brutal stuff, like Kenta's double stomp from the top rope all the way to the floor, and Sugiura counters a spear attempt with one of the sickest knees I've seen in recent memory. Not sure if they slightly mistimed it or if he just didn't care about twatting Kenta in the face, but my God it looked SO nasty.

I also adored all the submission work they did. Sugs does an awesome sequence, starting with a dragon screw and gracefully transitioning into the ankle lock. Yep, gracefully! It's a thing of beauty. They traded submissions well, and I also liked the scrappy nature of Kenta reeling off little fists and punches as Sugiura tries to lock in the ankle lock later on, which Kenta desperately tries to avoid as he's already been in the hold for a while prior to that and needs to escape before more damage is done.

As you'd expect, there are plenty of strike exchanges, possibly a few too many and a little too prolonged, but they pepper each other with some hard blows and I was wincing on quite a few occasions. 

Take away those flaws I pointed out, this would have been a bonafide classic. As it is, it's certainly one of the better NOAH matches I've seen this year and a low-end MOTYC with some really neat parts to it. Definitely worth checking out the middle 15 minutes if nothing else.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Because it needs more love:
*Jun Akiyama & Go Shiozaki vs Suwama & Joe Doering-AJPW 2.6.2013.*
I didn't come into this expecting my #3 2013 match so far, but that's what I got. This was easily Doering's career performance, I knew he could do good strike exchanges (see his CC 2008 match against Kensuke) but his power moves looked awesome and his timing was perfect, just like Akiyama's, Shiozaki's and Suwama's was. I have to give credit to Go because he sold for Joe really well in the opening portions and Doering took full advantage of that. Akiyama's staggering selling (trust me, you WILL notice it) was awesome. I wasn't crazy about the simultaneous reversals but they got a good pop and didn't hurt the match much. Kaicho Akiyama is awesome because he gets to murder people with knees, Shiozaki has finally got "it" and Suwama is great when he doesn't hold back. The finishing stretch was great and highly dramatic. WATCH THIS NOW~! 

*****1/2*


----------



## Rah

Go away.

EDIT: I just saw your rating on P.TV for Sugiura/KENTA. Holy hell, nigh on 5 stars? Also, please pimp it here so more people watch it. <3


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Shut mouth. You disliked a match with VADER DEATH GERMAN SUPLEXES. 

It was just a matter of time really since my ratings for their matches gradually improved......except for DAT SPRINT. But DAT SPRINT is probably the greatest 2 minute match ever so yeah......everyone besides TelkEvolon thinks I'm crazy but whatever:

c/p of the review if anyone cares:

*KENTA vs Takashi Sugiura-Pro Wrestling NOAH 12.5.2013.*
Fuck. They did it again. And they did it better than ever. I praised their last year's match for being smart, and really cleverly transitioning from one point to another, as well as having awesome submission sequences and a brutal finishing stretch, as well as the usual stiffness. I praised their 2011 #1 contender's match for being a fucking great epic brawl and their 2011 Global League match for being one of THE great sprints. This match, however, was just on another level. Seriously. The way they played up to a cliche like corner to corner running strikes was fucking mindblowing. Watch that sequence and tell me you wouldn't fuck it up. Even if you do I won't believe you. And, that sequence and what followed are probably the crucial part of the match, because that's when things really picked up. The number of crazy spots done was higher than ever, all of the strike exchanges looked brutal, there was plenty of cool submission battles and convincing submission nearfalls, everything was executed perfectly, and the finishing stretch was fucking fantastic as you'd expect. Seriously. Not only did they do a great job of building up to the big moves, the ways they'd set them up were absolutely fantastic, and a reason why I bit on the nearfalls even though I knew the result. And yes, there was matwork in the beginning and it didn't kill anyone. Awesome stuff.



IIRC Randy said something about KENTA "not looking like a threat" to Sugs. Yeah because in front of someone 4cm (not even 2 inches) higher than him KENTA looked like a total midget :huh:


----------



## Obfuscation

I didn't enjoy the KENTA vs Sugiura match in the slightest. I was wanting it to die about four minutes in. Then it dragged as long as it did. Waste of my time.

Tag Championship match on that same show is the one I really, really got behind. Yano & Iizuka freakin rule & my stars as how beloved the Aussies are. Had that NWA territory type atmosphere to it.


----------



## Rah

I'm not nearly as high as either Capone or ywall2breakerj, but that match had me more invested than Shibata/Goto. Something I wonder why ywalls hated on yet loved that Doering tag.

Even with VAYADAR DEATH SUPLEX~!


----------



## ywall2breakerj

I didn't "hate" Shibata-Goto. I enjoyed it for what it was. I don't get what makes it so special since it didn't pick up untill the double count-out tease. I enjoyed Shibata schooling Goto and hitting him with his own shitty move and the shoot headbutts, but it just seems like company favouritism. Either that or everyone should REALLY REALLY REALLY check out the Manabu Soya vs Yoshihito Sasaki matches because, other than the move stealing bit, they do everything else and do it better.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Dolph Ziggler vs Anotnio Cesaro - ***3/4


----------



## Obfuscation

Yep. Came here to briefly harp about Cesaro vs Ziggler being a candidate by me. Won't dub it Cesaro's best - or Dolph's with Payback being the stronger - however this match right here was certainly head and shoulders my pick for a top personal favorite pumped out by WWE. The brisk nature, the counters, Cesaro's beast like tendencies, my personal interest, etc. It all culminated together into forming a match that very few this year have gotten a reaction out of me from. Slap any rating you like next to it the end game is all the same: I had a total blast. 

This is why I love pro wrestling. An ode to joy.


----------



## Rah

The Miz and his awful commentary were unneeded but I do agree about enjoying it.


----------



## Obfuscation

I was so into the match I legit didn't even hear The Miz speak once.

:hb


----------



## seabs

*Did people watch Cesaro/Bo on NXT last week? Cesaro got a really good match out of Bo freaking Dallas. Dude is a beast right now.*


----------



## Rah

Can we agree that he's the best wrestler in the world, right now? At least in this section, please? Even the Official WWE Match Discussion thread gave me sadness in disregarding him.


----------



## Obfuscation

Cesaro as the best in the world is a foregone conclusion at this point. His stiffest competition comes from WWE too: Danielson & Zayn. Once Zayn gets more chances to cut loose; watch out. He'll be back in no time to where he was on the Indies.

+1 for the Bo Dallas match. I'm certain I put that over in the NXT thread. Or I should have. Wasn't surprised it was really good. It's Cesaro.


----------



## seabs

*I'd maybe have Bryan over him right now. Him or Cesaro. Cesaro's had lesser opponents to work with on the whole though but I think Cesaro has looked more impressive and carried opponents more than Bryan. He's at very worst top 3 in 2013 right now.*


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Rah said:


> Can we agree that he's the best wrestler in the world, right now? At least in this section, please? Even the Official WWE Match Discussion thread gave me sadness in disregarding him.


There's a current contingent in that thread now bar certain exceptions who don't know their arse from their elbow. The old reputation of that thread is certainly suffering.

I've still got to watch Cesaro/Sheamus x2, Cesaro/Zayn II and Cesaro/Bo. Heard good reports about some live event matches from January/February vs The Miz that I'll watch as well. Agreed with Seabs about Cesaro though. He's been served more toss than Bartoli had against Lisicki and has managed to look immense and impeccable in every outing, from short TV sprints to 20 minute showcases on Main Event.

Bryan has been fun as anything in wrestling since May, but he's definitely atm more of a spot worker having energetic matches in generally smart structures as opposed to some of his performances last year. As much as I enjoy his energy in the ring atm I am hoping they allow him to settle down a bit and begin to work more conventional Main Event matches like Bryan can.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah Cesaro from what I've seen is ruling it. Bryan is still my favourite guy to watch in the entire world though, even his short sprint matches. He's been astounding this year in terms of showing how good a performer he can be, and he does it while sticking to the formula he's been given to do which in other hands could be really bad.


----------



## Rah

I think it's solid in saying that Cesaro has made good matches from worthless opponents and great matches from those of talent. That's honestly something Bryan hasn't had to contend with to such an extent. Still, their bookings are going two different ways. On the one hand Cesaro seems to currently be enhancement for NXT and the lower guys in getting them over as credible while Bryan seems to be putting out spot-work as a means to tease and enhance the crowd. I'd assume it's foundation as to ensure more vocal support in his run and that he'll slow-down and focus when the time comes, but he's doing fine, really. Most definitely a fun watch, but nothing truly close to Cesaro's individual performances.

WOOLCOCK, the longer you put off those matches the longer the list of needed Cesaro viewing will be, haha. Though I still have those house shows to watch, too.


----------



## Concrete

He's certainly in my Top 5 and if I scope out some more of Cesaro he'll probably bump himself up. I don't think I'd call anyone an absolute best wrestler of 2013 right now. There are a few guys I think in the running with a strong second half could change the whole conversation. Right now I think I'd probably put Bryan above Cesaro but that's possibly just because I've seen more of him. The only other person outside those two right now is ***** Casas. I've loved so much of his stuff this year. I'm going to watch Casas vs. Dorada at some point. Possibly tonight. Sounded like a few people here didn't like it which was weird since I saw it get play from the WKO crowd as well as the twitter crowd. WF's Other Wrestling section tends to have some stuff from both but rarely a dislike of something both those groups enjoyed.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Dragon Gate Dead or Alive

*
CIMA vs. Akira Tozawa - **** 1/4*

Now in my top 3 matches of the year behind Taker/Punk and Tanahashi/Okada. This ruled. Usually not a fan of limb work but they kept it interesting by adding really cool submissions instead of just kicking each other's arms/legs. Some crazy shit I've never seen before multiple times in this match. Awesome stuff.


----------



## Groovemachine

^Did you see this on U-Stream or has it finally arrived on Youtube/Dailymotion. :mark: I need to see this match!


----------



## Rah

Concrete said:


> I'm going to watch Casas vs. Dorada at some point. Possibly tonight. Sounded like a few people here didn't like it which was weird since I saw it get play from the WKO crowd as well as the twitter crowd. WF's Other Wrestling section tends to have some stuff from both but rarely a dislike of something both those groups enjoyed.


"Good but eh" was how I described it, upon finding my post. Tbf, it seems what the other "boards" noted in their criticisms was less factored into their end-marking than it was for me. I remember Dorada being quite off in that match, for some reason. Though, inversely, perhaps I set my expectations too high and that's why I was harder on it than others. A rematch is in order!


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Groovemachine said:


> ^Did you see this on U-Stream or has it finally arrived on Youtube/Dailymotion. :mark: I need to see this match!


Honestly, I'm a cheap ass and am not super familiar with Dragon Gate (Japan) so I wasn't sure if I would like the show as much as everyone else (and I didn't rate it as high as others) because I don't follow it as much as most people, so I didn't buy it. I googled it and found *one *link and it took a whole day to download. Lol. 

http://www.teluga.com/tv-shows/80796141-dragongate-2013-05-05-dead-alive-ppv-x264-ballbuster.html


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> "Good but eh" was how I described it, upon finding my post. Tbf, it seems what the other "boards" noted in their criticisms was less factored into their end-marking than it was for me. I remember Dorada being quite off in that match, for some reason. Though, inversely, perhaps I set my expectations too high and that's why I was harder on it than others. A rematch is in order!


I'm all for a rematch even if I haven't seen the first haha. Is Casas vs. Virus going to happen this year? Cause it should. If that happened and didn't end up on tape I would be a sad panda.


----------



## smitlick

*PWX Living on the Edge*

The Great Outdoors & Caleb Konley vs The Dojo Bros
****

PWX is like a really fun version of FIP at the moment for ROH.


----------



## Corey

Does the PWX audio annoy the piss out of you though? The commentary is WAY louder than everything else and I hate it.  Tried to watch several of their matches but couldn't stand it.


----------



## Obfuscation

I've never even heard of the promotion. :hayley2

btw, who's the third guy in the Dojo Bros? Please don't tell me it is someone terrible.


----------



## Concrete

I believe DOJO BROS is Cole/Edwards/Strong.


----------



## Obfuscation

OMG.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Cima, Mochizuki, Fuji, Saito & Uhaa vs. Yamato, Hulk, Yoshino, Doi & Susumu (DG,4/7):* If you only watch one Dragon Gate match this year, make it this one. Once you get your head round who's teaming with whom & the madcap confusion it causes, this is slapstick gold. So. Much. Fun. *****1/4*

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...mu-naruki-doi-yamato-masat_sport#.UeJMIkG1GSo


----------



## duttanized

Come on now, how did you not know Cole was the third member of the DojoBros?


----------



## Obfuscation

If it doesn't happen in PWG. It doesn't happen in life.

That's how.


----------



## duttanized

But PWX is cool, other than the commentary anyways.


----------



## Obfuscation

Like I said, I've never heard of it. Unless that is the one promotion in New York where Caleb Konely is a big deal. Then I retract my statement...


----------



## Rah

Concrete said:


> I'm all for a rematch even if I haven't seen the first haha. Is Casas vs. Virus going to happen this year? Cause it should. If that happened and didn't end up on tape I would be a sad panda.


I'm not sure why I stated "rematch" when I meant "rewatch" (something I did, and sadly didn't warm up on it). Though redoing this match with better selling and less missed spots would help it a lot. Hell, it'd be fantastic. I'm not sure if it that match-up would happen, but we got good enough substitutes in Virus/Blue Panther, Valiente/Virus Vs Las Traumas and Casas/Navarro. Swanky matwork as any. Oh, yeah, and this is still to happen:

***** Casas, Atlantis & Blue Panther vs. Solar, Black Terry & ***** Navarro :mark:



Jack Evans 187 said:


> Does the PWX audio annoy the piss out of you though? The commentary is WAY louder than everything else and I hate it.  Tried to watch several of their matches but couldn't stand it.


Annoys the living piss out of me. The last time I watched a match of theirs it came on the Steen/Davey shoot (I believe). "Premiere Wrestling Xperience". :eddie

Never again.



HayleySabin said:


> I've never even heard of the promotion. :hayley2


It's the promotion that High Spots own/co-run/manage/affiliate with. Konely is main eventing against Steen, so it probably is the same promotion, despite it being situated in North Carolina.


----------



## Obfuscation

Hmm. I could be crossing two promotions together. Other one was based out of New York I'm almost certain and was prevalent on High Spots too.


----------



## duttanized

Konley will get better in the upcoming years IMO. Isn't he also interning at HighSpots or something?


----------



## Corey

Rah said:


> Annoys the living piss out of me. The last time I watched a match of theirs it came on the Steen/Davey shoot (I believe). "Premiere Wrestling Xperience". :eddie
> 
> Never again.


:lmao They should really fix that. I'm sure Cole vs. Konley 2/3 Falls was a fine match but I wouldn't know cause I all I could hear was Gregory Helms saying the words fuck and shit every 3 seconds while Kevin Steen is talking about how sexy both of them are.  And then the 3rd guys just started yelling about the action.


----------



## Obfuscation

Helms was on commentary with Steen? Good grief that sounds like...AWESOME on paper.


----------



## Corey

Helms likes to ramble a lot and talk people up immensely. He's definitely one of Steen's biggest fans.


----------



## Obfuscation

I only know him to ramble when he's drunk aka his Highway 2 Helms program. Lets hope that's not why he was so ramble friendly on commentary...


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> I'm not sure why I stated "rematch" when I meant "rewatch" (something I did, and sadly didn't warm up on it). Though redoing this match with better selling and less missed spots would help it a lot. Hell, it'd be fantastic. I'm not sure if it that match-up would happen, but we got good enough substitutes in Virus/Blue Panther, Valiente/Virus Vs Las Traumas and Casas/Navarro. Swanky matwork as any. Oh, yeah, and this is still to happen:
> 
> ***** Casas, Atlantis & Blue Panther vs. Solar, Black Terry & ***** Navarro :mark:


Ummmm...UMMMMMM!

I still need to see 2/3 stated above. Knowing Casas and Navarro doesn't have a tidy ending makes me sad. That trios match will have to be awesome. I don't know how it couldn't be.


----------



## duttanized

I can't stand Helms commentary tbh, it's like wannabe PWG commentary.


----------



## smitlick

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Does the PWX audio annoy the piss out of you though? The commentary is WAY louder than everything else and I hate it.  Tried to watch several of their matches but couldn't stand it.


Not really I watch some pretty awful Indy Wrestling so commentary is easy for me to tune out for. Plus most of the time I'm listening to podcasts as well.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

John Cena vs. Mark Henry (Money In The Bank 2013) - ****1/4

Henry looked great here. His offense to Cena looked very brutal. The portion of the match where Henry tried to cheat was done really well as he looked very desperate. Cena's selling was very good and his comebacks were timed really well. Cena making Henry tap out was a bit contrived. I would rather have Cena pin Henry with the AA.


----------



## darkclaudio

Money In the Bank 2013

Money In The Bank Match: Dean Ambrose vs Fandango vs Antonio Cesaro vs Jack Swagger vs Cody Rhodes vs Damien Sandow vs Wade Barrett **** (MOTN)
*World Heavyweight Championship Match*: Alberto Del Rio (c) vs Dolph Ziggler ***1/4 (Awful finish)
*WWE Championship Match*: John Cena (c) vs Mark Henry **3/4 - ***
Money In The Bank Match: Rob Van Dam vs Randy Orton vs Sheamus vs Christian vs Daniel Bryan vs CM Punk ***1/2 (Awful finish)


----------



## EmbassyForever

MITB SD was fucking awesome. Lost my shit in this match. Don't care that I'm overrating this ****1/4

ADR/Ziggler and Henry/Cena were ***3/4. Really enjoyed Shield/Usos and RAW MITB as well, I guess around ***1/2. Awesome show.


----------



## Corey

Just to throw in my two cents for MITB, I didn't think anything was quite MOTYC level on first watch. Both Cena/Henry and the World Title MITB match were both really damn good though. *** 3/4 worthy. Del Rio/Ziggler gets *** 1/2 for me on first watch, may go up. The main event was ass. Not paced well at all.


----------



## Ten410

*Money In the Bank 2013*

Rob Van Dam Vs. CM Punk Vs. Daniel Bryan Vs. Randy Orton Vs. Sheamus Vs. Christian


----------



## Obfuscation

Main was decent but the rest of the other big time matches worked. Henry vs Cena, Dolph vs Del Rio, & World Championship MITB were really good.

Shield vs Usos wasn't. Don't let a hot crowd fool you; match was nothing more than average with Shield looking fine and Usos doing shit all.


----------



## Groovemachine

I thought MITB 2013 was a really fun show. [Thoughts contain a few SPOILERS if you haven't seen the show yet!]

Preshow was great, Usos looked legit and that was a great nearfall off the superkick/top rope splash. ***1/2

'Rising Stars' Money in the Bank match - ****


Spoiler: Thoughts



~ Star making performance from Cody Rhodes, this was the best he's ever looked and they HAVE to turn him face after this. A lot of great moments in this; Cody's muscle buster on the ladder, Swagger pulling Barrett off the ladder into a Cesaro uppercut, the Real Americans 'hanging' Ambrose with the ladder...and that finishing stretch. It was Cody's moment, they peaked at just the right time as the crowd was rabid, and then Sandow sneaks in. Not sure how I feel about Sandow actually being the MITB holder, but it was a glorious finish to the match.



Alberto Del Rio vs Dolph Ziggler - ***3/4
~ Great match marred by the screwy finish. Ziggler wrestled like a true babyface and looked fantastic. And Del Rio seems so much more comfortable as a heel. They have good chemistry, I'm definitely looking forward to their Summerslam rematch, hopefully with some sort of No DQ stipulation.

All-stars Money in the Bank match had its moments but didn't deliver to my admittedly high expectations. Probably around ***1/2. 


Spoiler: Thoughts



Everyone kinda had their moment but each segment felt short, like they were trying to shoehorn everyone in. The Punk/Heyman storyline was good, and Punk sold it really well, but I think the crowd died after that which made the finish feel a bit flat. We did have some very good parts however; Sheamus' tumble through the ladder at ringside looked nasty (he's gonna be sore today, what with that and the fall off the ladder thanks to RVD) and Orton pulling RVD off the ladder into the RKO was awesome. With the way Bryan has been pushed the last few weeks, I thought he would have had more of a chance to shine, but at least we got a good tease of him winning before Axel came down.



Very enjoyable PPV. Cena/Henry was decent, and with 4 (including the pre-show) matches at ***1/2+ it was certainly a fun watch.


----------



## DOPA

SD MITB was awesome, definitely MOTN. Loved it. *****1/4*

I don't know why people are saying Henry vs Cena was that good, it really wasn't. It was a pretty good match but it weren't nothing special. I'd rate it ***3/4*

Ziggler vs Del Rio was really good up till the finish. I hated that finish in general. I'm torn between ****1/2 - ***3/4* because of it.

Raw All Stars MITB was very good overall, The Heyman swerve was done brilliantly. Hated how Axel came out and beat up Bryan but it gives Bryan good protection I guess. Underrated match so far in reaction. ****3/4*

Very good show overall I think.


----------



## FITZ

I really enjoyed the show a lot but the best two matches were the first two that I saw. 

Shield/Usos and the Smackdown MITB were both probably around the 4* mark I would lean higher on the MITB then the opener but not by much.


----------



## Rah

*Mark Henry Vs John Cena (14/07/2013 WWE)*
★★★★ ¼
_I honestly wish I could have stopped blindly hating on Mark Henry sooner than I did. It simply does not stand to reason that he just suddenly got how to be a terrific big man in 2011, years after apparently being somewhat horrendous. Hell, character-wise mixed in with his nuances and subtleties, I'd see argument that he's (at the very least) the best big man going in contemporary professional wrestling.

The underdog Cena story is, perhaps, a little over-done from a paper perspective yet I'll never tire if this is the narrative we'll be fed as I could buy Henry here. I adored how Henry worked from the top so brashly and slowly. He took Cena to town with his smash-mouthed, heavy-hitting offence all the while interjecting trash-talk and tone-setting facial expressions in enhancing his control segment. Compliments, too, to the WWE production crew in ensuring we were treated to close-ups of Henry at every turn. How can you not love Mark when he so coldly eyes a helpless Cena crawling towards him and grimaces in disgust over how weak his opponent seems? Or appreciate how badass the monster is when he's shouting "get yo' ass up, boy" in his Southern accent? Equally attributable to Henry's talent is his ability to work his structure off of the crowd. Perhaps this is an obvious step in wrestling, but I cannot help but think Henry does this at a more micro level than his other peers. As example to this, Henry's signs of doubt in himself, and lack of focus, started not after Cena continually kicked out but as reactions to the "smark-ridden" audience. Note how Henry stops and listens to those chanting "Sexual Chocolate", seemingly reminisces over the moments in his career that he despises and attempts to waver these memories from his conscious thought by violently shaking his head and shouting "focus" at himself.

As for the second-half of the narrative (Cena's retribution), I felt it could have been done a lot better. I'm not sure if it's simply because it felt too easy but it most certainly did not feel as close in quality to Henry's control segment. Still, I thought there was still some really good moments in it. On a first watch I also didn't warm up to the build of the AA only to be seemingly negated, yet on a second viewing I cannot help but think we're reading it in the wrong light. The AA was Cena's stone to kill Goliath and while he hit Goliath between the eyes it wasn't enough to take him down. If anything, it was to feed Henry even during Cena's comeback segment. As for the STF win, I found it ingenious and a great callback to Henry's story. Not only is it still a legitimate finisher for Cena but going into Wrestlemania Mark Henry legitimately injured his knee on a house show. Following his loss to Sheamus at Extreme Rules, Henry went into hiatus with the first rumours starting to circulate over his retirement. It was in this lul that Henry made dirt sheet news in attacking fans and stating that he has "too much hate" to retire and he's rather healing his (very legitimate) knee injury before returning. Sadly, for Henry and despite holding off for a great length of time, the second application of the STF would prove too much and perhaps re-aggravated his injury. The proud, Southern man hell-bent on destruction was thus forced to call for support from the referee in walking to the back. That particular detail isn't a staple following Cena's STF wins and yet another clue as to why the AA wasn't the deciding factor. Sure, I suppose it could have been built better, yet, like I stated, this entire section could have been done better, as well. Still, it was a good conclusion to a phenomenal match._​


----------



## Bubz

Just saw Cesaro/Sheamus from Main Event and it was great. Not blow away or anything but a low end contender and definitely recommended. Sheamus selling the arm was great and Cesaro is fantastic going after the shoulder and neck to try and constantly go for the Chicken Wing. Nice finishing stretch to boot.

Cesaro/Zayne's second match was great. Exactly what you'd want from a 10 minute match between these two or any big guy/little guy match. Cesaro is amazing in control being ruthless and vicious. Zayne is obviously a great underdog (duh) but this was the Cesaro show really. Such a great worker. This is in the 4* range.


----------



## Skins

*sd mitb*

Not a big spotfest guy at all but this delivers and its MOTN for me by far. I think everyone plays their role perfectly in this one from jack swagger to sandow himself. Swagger,Cesaro,Cody and Ambrose impressed me alot in this one from Ambrose climbing the ladder on cesaro-swagger shoulders to Cody and ambrose stuggle on the top of the ladder. Very innovative and didn't drag at all. All men came out looking match better than before and that's all you can ask in this match.
*****1/2*


----------



## Concrete

Henry vs. Cena above all else needs to pop up online.


----------



## Corey

You should probably read Rah's review if you weren't a fan of Cena/Henry, cause it's pretty damn good. :clap

Never even thought about Henry's legit knee injury coming into play for the finish.


----------



## bigbuxxx

i can't believe i just finished an entire wwe ppv. it would've been good without the bullshit booking, logic issues, botches, and Mark Fucking Henry tapping out. i just can't get over those things. none of the matches would get anything close to MotY for me because i'd never watch them again because of how dumb all of it is.



> from Ambrose climbing the ladder on cesaro-swagger shoulders


i'm sorry this is the most illogical thing ever. there are ladders all around and it's just a stupid contrived spot because nobody buys he can get it. i'd knock at least a star off just for the cringe worthyiness of that. another * for cesaro on swaggers shoulders, good god fuck off with that.


----------



## flag sabbath

Yeah, pretty much what bigbuxxx said. It was a thoroughly enjoyable show, but nothing was MOTYC-worthy. Credit to the SD MitB guys for striving to do something original with a well-trodden format, but some of those set-ups were so convoluted it entered videogame territory ****1/2* Ziggler and Del Rio were having one hell of a match until AJ appeared (with her music playing ffs) ****1/2* Cena vs. Henry was a simple, well-structured David vs. Goliath formula, nothing more ***** And the main was pretty dull until Bryan's incredible flurry *****


----------



## Last Chancery

Yawn.


----------



## FITZ

It's pretty funny to see the love Cena/Henry gets. I enjoyed he match as well but after I thought about for a while I realized that it was a Hulk Hogan match with a more exciting ending.


----------



## Rah

Why so? Henry effing ruled.


----------



## FITZ

Oh, I loved the match, it was one of my favorite matches last night. Great story telling Henry looked like a monster andCena played his role well. It was really well done and it was compelling to watch. That doesn't change the fact that it's just the same structure as a Hulk Hogan match. However the finishing stretch was much better. 

Basically a classic Hogan match could have been wrestled the same exact way but it would have ended when Cena hit the first Attitude Adjustment.


----------



## The 12th Man

I haven't seen any puro or TNA, and very little indy stuff, so right now my MOTY is either the Rumble or Cena vs. Punk.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Just because two matches have similar layouts doesn't mean they are similar in quality as well.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

WHC MITB - ****

Great stuff. Felt like Cody's moment but was ripped out from under him. Good thing I love Sandow too.


----------



## Concrete

****** Casas, Shocker, Terrible vs. Máximo, Rey Escorpión, Rush(CMLL 6/28/13):*****
_Casas and MOTHER FUCKING Rush make this match really must see stuff. ***** “I found the Fountain of Youth and I will murder anyone that goes looking for it” Casas is damn terrific looking like an animal as well as getting mauled. Those two battling it out in a war throughout the match was the clear highlight. Everyone else I thought was serviceable in there for sure. Terrible was looking to kill and wasn’t playing it safe against his nemesis, Rush. (Can I assume the two still don’t like each other one bit?) Maximo is Maximo and 99/100 that is bad. Thought it was still bad here but he didn’t do a whole lot and had a nice dive so he broke even for me. Plus Terrible hit him silly. That was special. Shocker was surprisingly good, looked like he wanted to hurt people even if whiffing on a kick early left a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth. When Escorpion was in I thought he was on. CMLL has been putting on some great trios matches this year and a good chunk of them involve, to no surprise, either Casas or Rush. Sweet 6lb. 8oz. Baby Jesus.
_
Saw that there was ANOTHER awesome trios match with Casas and Rush on opposing sides so...FUCK!

*Mark Henry vs. John Cena(WWE 7/14/13):*****
_This isn’t flashy but SUPER effective. You have Cena vs. a monster heel, yes. The monster heel in this situation isn’t any old scrub, it is MARK HENRY. You don’t mess with Mark Henry. The first part of the match is Henry killing Cena and just making him hate his life I’d have to assume. Cena tried coming back a few times but Henry cut it off like a brick wall. Second part is Cena’s inevitable comeback as the Herculean hero of WWE. Would have bought the AA as a finish even if it would have been a tad premature. Seemed like that would have been the more logical finish with it being fought for by Cena but oh well. _


----------



## Rah

First we had The Shield trios matches on Raw, now we're getting these. 2013 is _the_ year for trios tags.


----------



## Obfuscation

Wait, is a "Hogan match" supposed to be a negative term?

News to me.


----------



## wildpegasus

KENTA vs Marufuji

Absolutely incredible. Watch it yesterday.


----------



## Rah

If I'm not mistaken the background track at the start is Sonata Arctica. <3 :mark:


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> First we had The Shield trios matches on Raw, now we're getting these. 2013 is _the_ year for trios tags.


Too true. So much quality stuff busted out from trios matches this year. 

*Toru Yano/Takashi Iizuka vs. Shane Haste/Mikey Nicholls(NOAH 7/7/13):*****
_I probably liked this a bit more than I should but screw it I enjoyed the heck out of this. Have watched very little of NOAH but saw this pimped somewhere so I thought I’d give it a look and I’m glad I did. Yano and Iizuka were being bastards beating up on TMDK. Iizuka was being nutty, Yano was being a dick, and they used the cheapest tactics around to gain the advantage. Weird seeming the Aussies get bloodied up so bad in the environment but thought it really helped this match stand out as more of a bigger fight than your regular Yano/Iizuka title defense. Iizuka throwing chairs on Nicholls like it was no big deal was GRAND! Yano being Yano was also spectacular. His facial expressions are always top notch. Haste was the star on the other side of the ring. Did I purdy dive to the outside in the early going and did the best type of selling in this type of match. Like he was maybe actually tired and beaten from the match where he was oozing blood. Nicholls looked like a hype man trying to get reactions from the crowd which I found to be completely terrible here. I thought there was a lot to enjoy here with a different feel than most matches anywhere this year. 
_


----------



## flag sabbath

*Kenta vs. Marufuji (Noah, 7/7):* Marufuji is excellent here, but Kenta detracts from the drama by playing superman every time the challenger takes control & he never really looks like a man who's been brainbustered, piledriven & shiranui'd on the apron. The closing stages are a mixed bag of exciting near-falls & messy slip-ups, and over all it goes too long. Not a MOTYC for me ****1/2*


----------



## Obfuscation

Concrete said:


> *Toru Yano/Takashi Iizuka vs. Shane Haste/Mikey Nicholls(NOAH 7/7/13):*****
> _I probably liked this a bit more than I should but screw it I enjoyed the heck out of this. Have watched very little of NOAH but saw this pimped somewhere so I thought I’d give it a look and I’m glad I did. Yano and Iizuka were being bastards beating up on TMDK. Iizuka was being nutty, Yano was being a dick, and they used the cheapest tactics around to gain the advantage. Weird seeming the Aussies get bloodied up so bad in the environment but thought it really helped this match stand out as more of a bigger fight than your regular Yano/Iizuka title defense. Iizuka throwing chairs on Nicholls like it was no big deal was GRAND! Yano being Yano was also spectacular. His facial expressions are always top notch. Haste was the star on the other side of the ring. Did I purdy dive to the outside in the early going and did the best type of selling in this type of match. Like he was maybe actually tired and beaten from the match where he was oozing blood. Nicholls looked like a hype man trying to get reactions from the crowd which I found to be completely terrible here. I thought there was a lot to enjoy here with a different feel than most matches anywhere this year.
> _


omg a rematch, YES. I adored their bout from 5/12. Glad this was plugged - going to jump on it asap. 

Did you download it or is it available on a streaming site?


----------



## flag sabbath




----------



## Obfuscation

:hb

Cheers.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

flag sabbath said:


>


TMDK (Shane Haste and Mikey Nicholls) vs. Chaos (Toru Yano and Takashi Iizuka) NOAH Great Voyage 2013 in Tokyo - ****
Great match. I love the beginning of this match with Haste and Nicholls taking the fight to Yano and Iizuka in the crowd. Yano and Iizuka played great heels here by screwing every rule to pummel Haste and Nicholls into a bloody pulp. Haste's babyface in peril segment was great as he sold really well and timed his comeback well. Finish was very good.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Tenzan, Kojima, Naito & Sombra vs. Yano, Iizuka, Tanaka & Nakamura (NJPW 15/7):* I actually preferred this to the 13/7 10-man elimination match involving the same guys (which Chismo & Jensen pimped & which was really good). Yano & Iizuka have their devious short-cuts routine down to a fine art & are on a roll right now, while Naito vs. Tanaka, and especially Shinskay vs. Sombra were full of fluid exchanges, building up the ppv beautifully. ****3/4*


----------



## smitlick

*EVOLVE 21*

Jon Davis vs Chuck Taylor
****

Sorta weird I honestly never thought I'd see the day where these two produced such a good match together. Especially Davis as I find him to be amazingly irritating in EVOLVE and Chucky T never really fitting in with the whole EVOLVE style they were going for. Personally I think Gabe should rebrand everything as FIP and just run nationally. It would remove a lot of stupid stigma of previously having a go at trying to be a fake MMA brand.


----------



## darkclaudio

NJPW 20/07
IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Prince Devitt ****


----------



## Obfuscation

Yano & Iizuka vs TMDK rematch from 7/7 was really great. Total opposite to where their match on 5/12 was taken. Instead of it being the plucky babyfaces coming in and running the joint with their furious paced offense, CHAOS flipped the whole scenario on its head - bloodying up both Aussies from pillar to post. My stars they were gushing hardcore. Yano's "live dirty or die" mentality was at full force here. Upon any semblance of securing the victory during the long process TMDK took a licking, the hot tag sequence was timed & pulled off very well. It was about as hot as it could be with Nicholls being feverishly cut. He left a pool of blood on the mat where he laid trying to regain his barrings; it was gnarly. Crowd lit up every time it seemed the tide was going the way of the faces. Crowd wasn't nearly on par with that of the 5/12 match thanks to that one being in K-Hall. Which says it all, although this crowd did pop and that's the important thing. Especially in dealing with a Pro Wrestling NOAH event. Strong performances by all four men. Everything was on point, characters couldn't have been worked any better, & fans finally got what they wanted to see. Easy rec here. Although the 5/12 match is still my favorite bout I've seen from NOAH in 2013.


----------



## EmbassyForever

The match just ended, but Daniel Bryan vs Anotnio Cesaro from RAW was awesome. ***3/4-****.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

Kazuchika Okada vs. Prince Devitt *NJPW Kizuna Road 2013 Tag 9* - ****

While outside interference could have ruined this match, the booking of the Bullet Club's interference was done well as they added drama to the match. Even though they interfered several times, it wasn't overdone in my opinion. I loved the spot when Okada used Tope Con Hiro on the entire Bullet Club. One of Bullet Clubs's interference spots led to a great near fall when Devitt used a top rope double stomp onto a steel chair that was on Okada. The finishing stretch was very fun.


Daniel Bryan vs. Antonio Cesaro *Raw 7/22/13* - ****1/4

I like the story of Cesaro's use of the European uppercut. That move has allowed Cesaro to control Bryan at several points in the match. The finish was great as it showed that Cesaro was too dependent of the European uppercut which allowed Daniel Bryan to counter Swiss death into a small package for the win.
*Edit:*I just watched this a second time and I like it slightly better than the first time. Besides Bryan's counter for the Swiss death, I also enjoyed Bryan and Cesaro trying to match each other blow for blow with vicious looking strikes in the finishing stretch.


----------



## Rickey

Yeah Cesaro vs. Bryan was good, I'd recommend the whole gauntlet actually.

That powerbomb on Bryan to the floor was sick at the end(before the table powerbomb.)


----------



## Caponex75

I like how Cesaro doesn't let anyone punk him when it comes to the Uppercut. I remember he had a match against Orton this year where they started exchanging and he won that duel. He flipped his shit against Bryan tonight when he smacked him with about a thousand.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Yeah I wrote it right after Cesaro/Bryan ended. The whole match is **** for me (the 3th match was really good as well).


----------



## Zatiel

On first-viewing, Cesaro/Bryan is in my Top 3 TV matches of the year, along with Orton/Bryan no DQ and Cena/Punk from before Mania. Great stuff, breaking some ground. It's a shame Cesaro's been so devalued. If the crowd had any kayfabe reason to care about him they would have been nuclear by the middle.


----------



## peep4life

Cesaro Bryan was **** great tv match...Cesaro was so impressive, those uppercuts were great


----------



## Bubz

Cesaro vs Bryan? Good god. :mark: MUST WATCH!


----------



## flag sabbath

Last 45mins of Raw:

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...amk-org_shortfilms?search_algo=2#.Ue4pZI1330s


----------



## Rah

I don't suppose we got a commercial free version on the App?


----------



## Obfuscation

Of course I have to give a plug to Danielson vs Cesaro here. That was better than every match I've seen from nearly every promotion this year. Certainly TNA, ROH, CZW, & most of PWG. Probably scratch most, b/c even the Guerilla Warfare match may fall a hair short of this. Those two have to take a year off of wrestling. The level that they're working now is making every single other worker in North American _(and arguably the world)_ look second rate. Life's not fair, but c'mon. I mean it. They're not slowing down; only going faster and faster towards immortality. Unbelievable.

Whole Gauntlet match was good as a matter of fact.


----------



## Ali Dia

Bryan/Cesaro was tremendous


----------



## KingCrash

Of course one of the weeks I decide to watch TNA/CZW dvds instead of Raw and Bryan/Cesaro go nuts.


----------



## Chismo

smitlick said:


> *EVOLVE 21*
> 
> Jon Davis vs Chuck Taylor
> ****
> 
> Sorta weird I honestly never thought I'd see the day where these two produced such a good match together. Especially Davis as I find him to be amazingly irritating in EVOLVE and Chucky T never really fitting in with the whole EVOLVE style they were going for. Personally I think Gabe should rebrand everything as FIP and just run nationally. It would remove a lot of stupid stigma of *previously having a go at trying to be a fake MMA brand.*


Tbh, they were far more interesting back then, with W/L records and short 'n' sweet, semi-shoot style matches. Now they're just another indy promotion.


----------



## Skins

Cesaro/bryan was probably the best match in the wwe outside of ziggler/del rio payback this year, extraordinary match and I have not enjoying watching a wwe match LIVE (didnt see the ziggler match live) that much in a very long time, maybe since hhh/taker wm 28


----------



## geraldinhio

Echo the thoughts on Cesaro/Bryan. Can't wait to see Cesaro's 2/3 falls match with Sami. It airs this week, right?

:lmao At Ryback following Cesaro/Bryan. Crowd shat on him and rightfully so.


----------



## Merc_With_A_Mouth

Cesaro/Zayn doesn't air until around the week of Summerslam if I recall correctly.


----------



## geraldinhio

Here's me getting my hopes up then. I've the three way from last week's episode and Cesaro/Sheamus;s matches to keep me occupied to then I suppose.


----------



## Chismo

Tanaka vs. Naito from Kizuna Road tour ender: ****

Low-tier MOTYC, very exciting and fast paced match.


----------



## Obfuscation

No speaking of Cesaro vs Zayn till it airs, guys. It's painful having to wait. :hayley2


----------



## Skins

is their second match online anywhere ? cant find it


----------



## 777

I hear great things about Shinsuke/Sombra. Combining two of my loves, Shinsuke and lucha, need...to...watch.

Also, quick tout to Cesaro/Bryan. Not MOTY, but it's up there.


----------



## Obfuscation

redskins25 said:


> is their second match online anywhere ? cant find it


Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayn II

This appears to be working.


----------



## Chismo

777 said:


> I hear great things about Shinsuke/Sombra. Combining two of my loves, Shinsuke and lucha, need...to...watch.


Very good match. They were stiffing each other around, cool stuff. La Sombra freakin' rocks, and he's only 23. :avit: 

Not MOTYC, but still very good match. ***3/4


----------



## Rah

Wait, Sombra's 23? What in the actual fuck?!


----------



## darkclaudio

-Daniel Bryan vs Antonio Cesaro ***1/2+ - WWE Raw 22/07


----------



## Concrete

*Daisuke Sekimoto, Yuji Okabayashi, Shinobu & Kazuki Hashimoto vs. Yoshihito Sasaki, Shinya Ishikawa, Ryuichi Kawakami & Madoka(BJW 5/27/13):*****
_I’m getting on a Strong BJ kick and hot damn was this good. Only really two guys in this match that I wasn’t too keen of in Madoka (not too familiar with him) and Shinobu(never a big fan of his offense) which left 6 guys I enjoy. I’ll take that. This match had some straight up stupid forearm exchanges. There was a lot of those but I ate up all of them like a bastard. Loved the early shoulder block war with Yuji and Sasaki with both guys looking like they were not happy about not taking out the other since that meant it was their turn to be ran into like a freight train. Sasaki is never a guy who plays it lightly in the ring but it seemed like he wanted to get his head scrambled more than usual. Hashimoto looked sorta defined as a guy possibly not on a Sasaki level but a notch above Madoka. Up until the ending at least. K-Hash did real well. When he gets knocked silly by Sasaki from a forearm war he gets back on his feet, groggy as hell, to go at war with another. The ending of this match really made me go “Well FUCK that was awesome”. That’s deep right? Okay probably not but it was awesome. So sum this match up, STRONG BJ RASSLERS SMASH and cool stuff. 
_


----------



## Bubz

Bryan/Cesaro was wonderful. There was no way it couldn't be. ****

Bryan Danielson tearing shit up week in and week out and getting this push and being that popular is the greatest thing in history.


----------



## flag sabbath

From Dragon Gate's Dead Or Alive (5/5)....

*Masato Yoshino vs. Dragon Kid:* I might be underrating this, but I couldn't get past the first 15 minutes feeling more like a hi-tech exhibition than a scrap. That said, once the near falls kicked in & the crowd came to life, it was incredibly exciting stuff ****3/4*

*BxB Hulk & Uhaa Nation vs. Shingo & Yamato:* The Mad Blankey boys completely dominated this with their combination of lightning strikes & raw power, while Shingo & Yamato had to fight like crazy to stay in the running. Top notch tag team storytelling ****3/4*


----------



## TheAce

Daniel Bryan vs Swagger/Cesaro/Ryback Gauntlet match - **** 1/2

I havn't been that entertained by a TV wrestling match in forever, maybe ever, actually. Lots of people are just rating the Cesaro match-up but I'm rating the whole thing as one, cause it all felt like one thing to me.

Bryan is undeniable. Despite WWE's creative, the talent on their roster is starting to shine through in a major way. Someone needs to dig up threads from 2006/07 when Punk first got called up to WWE and ROH was still decent. All the talk then about the potential future ceiling for Punk and any ROH guys who would eventually move on was so hilarious....so many people doubting..lol.

Seeing Bryan, Ambrose, Rollins, Cesaro, Neville, Zayne make impressions big and small this year has been great.


----------



## Rah

*Alberto Del Rio Vs Dolph Ziggler (16/06/2013)*
_I'm a little dismayed in Del Rio in that they structured his Raw match against Sheamus similar to this. Instead of the concussion, though, it was for Del Rio to work on the massive bruise that was painted, in constrasting colour, to Sheamus' ghost white leg. The narrative was there, yet Del Rio seemingly found himself side-tracked at times. Thankfully, however, that would not be a painful truth here. Instead, we're laid witness to a valiant, and well executed, hero-story in the face of an enterprising villain. The growth in sympathy, too, is quite astounding when you realise both men were portrayed in completely opposing roles when their feud started. For the hero, the champion's advantage (that Cole plugged heavily throughout Ziggler's entrance) was a coward's way out, and a move the newly reformed Dolph would not take. He knew, as Cole mentioned, that the title could not be lost via count-out, disqualification or even doctor stoppage yet he'd rather die in battle than tuck his tale in retreat. And die he almost did, as Ziggler's tremendous selling would have us believe. While prone to over-selling, Dolph would not stray here. Every detail that he portrayed was methodically crafted and layered beyond what you would normally receive. You could feel every ounce of pain, vicariously, through Ziggler's facials and find yourself arrested in compassion to his plight with the high-pitched screams and baby-like cries as tears rolled down his face. Yeah, this went up tremendously on a second watch._​


----------



## ywall2breakerj

*Kazushi Sakuraba vs Yuji Nagata-NJPW 20.7.2013.*

Maybe it's the UWF mark in me but I thought this was really good. It had the competitive matwork I wanted out of it and every transition had to be fought for and therefore felt meaningful, Sakuraba kept Nagata's annoying shtick to a minimum and I really liked the finish. Plenty of dramatic submission attempts without it ever going overboard and ending exactly when it should've. I wish


Spoiler: spoilerduh



they didn't do the Demon Juji, but at least Sakuraba reacted to it inteligently.


 It may sound like a bizarre match up, but I'd really like to see what Sakuraba would do against a guy like Naito. I'd love for them to do something along the lines of the Saku-Ohtani match. But hey, they can book Saku in matches like this untill his contract expires and I'll be perfectly happy.

******


----------



## LowKi

*Dragon Gate Kobe Festival 2013
Open The Twin Gate: BxB Hulk & Akira Tozawa (c) vs Naruki Doi & Ricochet*

Absolutely totally insane spotfest. Last minutes are crazy as hell.

**** 1/2 - 3/4


----------



## Bruce L

*Dragon Gate, Dead or Alive 2013 (5/5)
BxB Hulk & Uhaa Nation vs. Shingo Takagi & YAMATO*

Great DG-style tag match. Shingo/YAMATO are so good it hurts me to know they've recently been broken up, but Nation was the star of this match. Best he's looked in D-Gate to date, and I've been a fan of his from go. ******


----------



## Chismo

ywall2breakerj said:


> *Kazushi Sakuraba vs Yuji Nagata-NJPW 20.7.2013.*
> 
> Maybe it's the UWF mark in me but I thought this was really good. It had the competitive matwork I wanted out of it and every transition had to be fought for and therefore felt meaningful, Sakuraba kept Nagata's annoying shtick to a minimum and I really liked the finish. Plenty of dramatic submission attempts without it ever going overboard and ending exactly when it should've. I wish
> 
> 
> Spoiler: spoilerduh
> 
> 
> 
> they didn't do the Demon Juji, but at least Sakuraba reacted to it inteligently.
> 
> 
> It may sound like a bizarre match up, but I'd really like to see what Sakuraba would do against a guy like Naito. I'd love for them to do something along the lines of the Saku-Ohtani match. But hey, they can book Saku in matches like this untill his contract expires and I'll be perfectly happy.
> 
> ******


Finally someone on this place who appreciates this match. UWF4LIFE


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Masaaki Mochizuki vs. YAMATO* _Dragon Gate Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival 2013_ - ****
YAMATO looked like a killer here. His work on Mochizuki's left leg looked. He did a good job in attacking that left leg at the right times to shift the momentum in his favor. Mochizuki's selling of his left leg was very good. Mochizuki timed his comebacks really well. I love the striking exchanges between these two. The No DQ stipulation was only used a few times. I wished it was used more. 

*MAD BLANKEY (Akira Tozawa & BxB Hulk) vs. WORLD-1 International (Naruki Doi & Ricochet)* _Dragon Gate Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival 2013_ - ****
This was a well constructed spotfest with great highspots, pacing and timing. Ricochet was the star of the match.


----------



## Alan4L

Updated for 7/27 (New additions in bold) 

Including Dec 2012, Observer style. 

*WWE: *
*Money In The Bank Rising Stars (7/14) ****3/4*
The Shield vs. Cena/Ryback/Seamus (2/18 ) ****3/4
The Shield vs. Team Hell No (5/27) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Kingston (5/20) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Ryback (TLC) (12/16) ****1/2
John Cena vs. CM Punk (2/25) ****1/2
The Undertaker vs. CM Punk (4/7) ****1/2
*Daniel Bryan vs. Antonio Cesaro (7/22) ****1/2
The Shield vs. The Usos (7/14) ****1/4
Money In The Bank All Stars (7/14) ****1/4
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (6/16) ****1/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins (6/10) ****1/4
Bryan/Kane/Orton vs. The Shield (6/14) ****1/4*
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/13) ****1/4
Elimination Chamber (2/18 ) ****1/4
Seamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (1/9) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan/Kane (6/3) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Seamus/Kingston (5/24) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (4/30) ****1/4
Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (4/30) ****1/4
Kofi Kingston vs. Antonio Cesaro (5/1) ****1/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (6/3) ****
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (Elimination) (5/13) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (5/3) ****
Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (4/30) ****
The Shield vs. The Undertaker/Hell No (4/22) ****
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/1) ****
The Shield vs. Jericho/Ryback/Seamus (2/19) ****
*Rob Van Dam vs. Chris Jericho (7/15) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Seamus (7/8) ****
Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio (6/16) ****
The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan (6/16) *****

*Puro: *
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (4/7) (NJPW) *****
Dragon Kid vs. Masato Yoshino (5/5) (DG) ****3/4)
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (12/23) (DG) ****3/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (1/4) (NJPW) ****3/4
Junior Stars vs. Aoki/Suzuki (3/17) (AJPW) ****3/4
*Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Ryuichi Kawakami (6/30) ****3/4
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (6/22) (NJPW) ****3/4
Tozawa/Hulk vs. Ricochet/Doi (7/21) (DG) ****3/4
CIMA vs. Shingo Tagaki (7/21) (DG) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (6/22) (NJPW) ****1/2*
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (4/7) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (3/17) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (3/23) (NJPW) ****1/2
GET WILD vs. Akiyama/Shiozaki (3/17) (AJPW) ****1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (2/10) (NJPW) ****1/2
Junior Stars vs. Hayashi & Kondo (1/3) (AJPW) ****1/2
Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (2/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/2
El Generico vs. Kenny Omega (12/23) (DDT) ****1/2
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International/CIMA (12/6) (DG) ****1/2
CIMA vs. Shingo Takagi vs. BxB Hulk (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Akira Tozawa vs. YAMATO (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Junior Stars (5/18) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kenny Omega vs. KUSHIDA (6/6) (NJPW) ****1/2
Masaaki Mochizuki vs. YAMATO (5/10) (DG) ****1/2
KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura (5/12) (NOAH) ****1/2
Jun Akiyama vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Go Shiozaki vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (5/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. Takagi/YAMATO (5/5) (DG) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. RyoSuka (4/19) (DG) ****1/2
Shingo Takagi vs. Ricochet (5/25) (DG) ****1/4
Kobashi/Akiyama/Sasaki/Muto vs. Shiozaki/KENTA/Taniguchi/Kanemaru (5/11) (NOAH) ****1/4
CIMA vs. Akira Tozawa (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Team High Tension vs. Team Veteran Returns (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Ricochet vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (5/10) (DG) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/17) (DG) ****1/4
CIMA vs. K-ness (4/4) (DG) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
Killer Elite Squad vs. Nakamura/Ishii (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Veteran Army (12/28) (DG) ****1/4
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (1/27) (NOAH) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hayato “Jr” Fujita vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (12/12) (M-Pro) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. KAGETORA (12/23) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Team Veteran Returns/Nagata (Elimination) (12/2) (DG) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (2/23) (AJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (3/3) (NJPW) ****1/4
Mr. Quu Quu Toyanaka Dolphin vs. Naoki Tanisaki (1/27) (DG) ****1/4
*Kazuchika Okada vs. Prince Devitt (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Gedo (7/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
CIMA/Mochizuki/Fujii/Uhaa/Saito vs. YAMATO/Hulk/Yoshino/Doi/Susumu (7/4) (DG) ****1/4
Suwama vs. Jun Akiyama (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Minoru Tanaka (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Kondo/Hayashi (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Akiyama/Shiozaki vs. Suwama/Doering (6/2) (AJPW) ****1/4
Shinjiro Ohtani vs. Masato Tanaka (4/5) (Z1) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (6/9) (NJPW) ****1/4
YAMATO vs. Masaaki Mochizuki (No DQ) (7/21) (DG) ****1/4
Masato Yoshino vs. K-Ness (7/21) (DG) ****1/4
La Sombra vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Masato Tanaka vs. Tetsuya Naito (7/20) (NJPW) ****
Hayato Jr. Fujita vs. Koji Kanemoto (6/9) (M-Pro) ****
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Hiroshi Yamato (6/2) (AJPW) ****
Takagi/YAMATO vs. Fujii/Mochizuki (6/2) (DG) ****
Ishii/Nakamura vs. Suzuki/Benjamin (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Forever Hooligans vs. Timesplitters (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Liger/Titan/Tiger/KUSHIDA/BUSHI vs. Ricochet/Koslov/Romero/Kendrick/Barretta (6/9) (NJPW) *****
Shigehiro Irie vs. Kota Ibushi (5/3) (DDT) ****
Urano/HARASHIMA vs. Ibushi/Omega (1/20) (DDT) ****
KENTA/Takayama vs. Sasaki/Nakajima (4/28) (NOAH) ****
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Manabu Soya (3/1) (BJW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Masayuki Kono (4/21) (AJPW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Ryota Hama (4/27) (AJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (5/3) (NJPW) ****
Kenny Omega vs. Ryusuke Taguchi (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Ricochet (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (5/25) (DG) ****
Kota Ibushi vs. Daichi Hashimoto (4/15) (Z1) ****
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Satoshi Kojima (3/11) (NJPW) ****
Kaz Hayashi vs. Kotaro Suzuki (2/23) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (1/27) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (2/10) (AJPW) ****
World-1 International vs. Team Veteran Returns (2/7) (DG) ****
Mochizuki/Fujii vs. Kanda/Horiguchi (1/27) (DG) ****
Takeshi Morishima vs. Satoshi Kojima (12/9) (NOAH) ****
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (4/18) (AJPW) ****
YAMATO vs. Kenchiro Arai (4/4) (DG) ****
Seiya Sanada vs. Masayuki Kono (3/10) (AJPW) ****
CIMA vs. Masato Yoshino (3/3) (DG) ****

*PWG: *
Inner City Machine Guns vs. Del Sol/Fox (3/22) ****3/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Taylor/Gargano (3/22) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Dojo Bros (3/23) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Young Buck$ (12/1) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Super Smash Bros (12/1) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (1/12) ****1/4
Cage vs. Mack vs. Perkins vs. B-Boy (12/1) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Adam Cole (Guerrilla Warfare) (12/1) ****1/4
The Unbreakable Fucking Steen Machines vs. Fox/Swann/Ricochet (3/23) ****1/4
Samuray Del Sol vs. TJ Perkins (3/23) ****
Drake Younger vs. Sami Callihan (Guerrilla Warfare) (3/22) ****
Paul London vs. Kevin Steen (3/22) ****
Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (12/1) ****

*DGUSA/EVOLVE:*
Johnny Gargano vs. Shingo Takagi (4/6) ****3/4
Ricochet vs. Akira Tozawa (4/6) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. CIMA & AR Fox (4/6) ****1/2
The Super Smash Brothers vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (4/6) ****1/4
*The Young Buck$ vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (6/2) ****1/4
Johnny Gargano vs. Samuray Del Sol (6/2) ****1/4
Bravados/Everett vs. Dos Ben Dejos/Strickland (6/2) *****
AR Fox vs. Nick Jackson (5/30) ****
Chuck Taylor vs. Anthony Nese vs. Jigsaw vs. Fire Ant vs. Arik Cannon vs. Shane Strikland (4/6) **** 


*ROH: *
Kevin Steen vs. El Generico (Ladder War) (12/16) ****3/4
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Briscoe (4/5) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. Jay Lethal (4/5) ****1/4
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (12/16) ****1/4
Adam Cole vs. Jimmy Jacobs (1/18) ****1/4
Eddie Edwards vs. Taiji Ishimori (5/4) ****1/4
Davey Richards vs. Kyle O’Reilly (4/6) ****1/4
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (4/5) ****

*wXw:*
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tommy End (3/3) ****3/4
Super Crazy/ Marvin vs. Taylor/Ricochet (3/3) ****1/2
Johnny Moss vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (3/1) ****1/2
Ricky Marvin vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/1) ****1/4
AUTsiders vs. RockSkillet (3/3) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Robert Dreissker (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/2) ****
Bad Bones vs. Yuji Okabayashi (3/3) ****
Taylor/Ricochet vs. Hot & Spicy (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Ricochet (3/1) ****

*Other:*
*Elgin/ACH vs. Richards/O’Reilly (5/17) (AAW) ****1/2*
Kitsune vs. AR Fox (3/16) (ISW) ****1/2
Ricochet vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fujita Jr. Hayato (3/9) (4FW) ****1/2
Quackenbush/Liger vs. Jigsaw/The Shard (4/6) (Chikara) ****1/4
Samuray Del Sol vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Nick Jackson vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Jon Davis vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/15) (FIP) ****1/4
Namajague vs. Rey Cometa (4/26) (CMLL) ****1/4
*Shane Hollister vs. Jimmy Jacobs (3/23) (AAW) ****1/4
L.A. Park vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. (5/11) (TxT) ****1/4
The Colony vs Devastation Corporation (6/2) (Chikara) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. TJ Perkins (4/19) (QPW) ****1/4*
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kenny Omega (3/8) (4FW) ****
ACH vs. Mat Fitchett (2/10) (AAW) ****
Namajague/Okumura vs. Stuka Jr./Rey Cometa (3/23) (CMLL) ****


----------



## flag sabbath

*Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (Best 2 Out Of 3 Falls, AJPW, 14/7):* Well, here's the perfect antidote to sitting through two Dragon Gate PPVs in quick succession. As you'd expect, it's smash-mouth & there are no frills - everything here is deliberate & effective, and advantages ebb & flow gradually across the falls. It's just a shame to see such a physical, believable match-up unfold in a half-empty Korakuen Hall *****1/4*


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm far from a Suwama fan, yet I think this match has the potential to win me over. That's the Shiozaki fan in me. Plus I always feel like Suwama has potential. Only he falls flat.

Would disliking their thirty minute draw from Champions Carnival mean I wouldn't be big on this rematch?


----------



## Chismo

flag sabbath said:


> *Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (Best 2 Out Of 3 Falls, AJPW, 14/7):* Well, here's the perfect antidote to sitting through two Dragon Gate PPVs in quick succession. As you'd expect, it's smash-mouth & there are no frills - everything here is deliberate & effective, and advantages ebb & flow gradually across the falls. It's just a shame to see such a physical, believable match-up unfold in a half-empty Korakuen Hall *****1/4*


Yeah, I'm downloading this at the moment. Hopefully Go finally displayed something more than being just a forced baby Kobashi.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

My thoughts on it fresh from watching it a few minutes ago:

Shiozaki vs Suwama II is the weirdestest match ever. It's got the stiffness and the exciting strike exchanges I adore but at the same time it feels slow, the transitions are meaningless and selling is an afterthought. Plus they did the most stupid Sleeper spot in the history of pro wrestling. It's the type of match you'd rather watch a highlight video of rather than the full thing. 



I'll also add the finish was awesome and they killed themselves in front of 900 people but it didn't click with me and I like 2013 NOAH epics. Yikes.


----------



## Punkhead

I add Antonio Cesaro vs Daniel Bryan to my MOTYC list. Well, there's no actual 'list', but yeah, whatever.


----------



## Concrete

*Dr. Wagner Jr vs LA Park (5/11/13):****1/2*
_THE VIOLENCE. This match was as insane as they come. This match did not contain two world class athletes but two men who know how to display such incredible emotion in the ring by killing themselves. Wagner and Park displayed more desire to hurt each other through body language and the like than I have seen all year. In the first fall it was Park being the most diabolical person on the planet trying to straight up murder Wagner. It didn’t matter if he had to beat Wagner’s head in with a chair or bodyslam him onto a guardrail, he was going to cause as much pain as possible. Heck before things even got underway Park lit a Wagner shirt on fire that was on a chair. Second fall Wagner gets his time to deal unspeakable punishment to Park. After getting a little more destroyed by Park, Wagner hits a nasty spear onto some chairs in the seated position. Loved when they are in the crowd and Wagner is standing over Park with a chair and the fans are begging him to commit murder right then and there and Wagner getting his turn to beat Park’s brains in. Final fall was very hit or miss. By that I mean there was a lot of miss. At this point Wagner is still looking wrecked but Park looks like a man who just got in a fight with a grizzly bear. This felt much more like a match and less like a fight which it had felt like to this point. Terry being a ref caused all types of shit to go down leading to a screwy finish. BLAH! They clearly won’t do it but BLACK TERRY VS LA PARK VS DR WAGNER JR IN A HAIR VS MASK MATH! Okay. Match is amazing and needs to be seen. This is certainly one of my favorites this year. 
_

I think I've watched more quality wrestling this year than since I don't know when. A bit of it probably goes to that lucha.


----------



## Mattyb2266

DG:USA 7/27/13

Anthony Nese vs. Akira Tozawa - ***3/4 - ****
Great match as expected from these two.

Fox, Tomahawk, & CIMA vs. The Young Bucks & Ricochet - ****1/2
Ricochet and the Young Bucks once again prove why they're the best at what they do. This match was so much fun with some breath taking spots as expected.


----------



## Chismo

Well, Go/Suwama (7/14) was amazing, just a brutal, straight forwarding, hard-hitting, fierce and hard-boiled slugfest. Suwama was amazing in it, was incredible on offense, dominated Go, who had to dig down, very deep down, to fight back.

****1/2


----------



## seabs

*Forever Hooligans vs Time Splitters - NJPW 22.06.2013*
_Most probably the best Junior match I'll see all year. All their matches have been good but I never thought they had THAT match until this one which was definitely THAT match. Crowd makes a very good match great here. On fire and insanely fun. This is like everything I want from a Juniors match and nothing more. Really good little heat segment too. I always dig cut off hot tags but the 2nd one when Koslov pulls KUSHIDA off the apron absolutely ruled. Finish spot absolutely ruled. Could have done without KUSHIDA going through Hooligans' whole finish run and then popping back up not selling it do go through their own finishing stretch. Only complaint. Thought this was MOTN._

******

*Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs Minoru Suzuki & Shelton Benjamin - NJPW 22.06.2013*
_Jesus christ Ishii and Suzuki are just the best right now. This is like all great for them 2 bar maybe a little of Shinsuke. In terms of setting up their singles match it's pretty close to perfect. Benjamin is really a guy who's just there but he's good for a high spot. Finish felt a little off._

****3/4+*

*Didn't think Goto/Shibata, Tanahashi/Devitt and Okada/Makabe were MOTYC's but they're all very good. Goto/Shibata is a lot better than your average Goto match so there's that. Tanahashi/Devitt I thought was really fun until Anderson got chucked. The Bullet Club shtick was great but then Tanahashi suddenly made his comeback and they wrestled like it was a regular even stevens match and disregarded all the Bullet Club shtick before it. Devitt's fake dive and Fale's cut off both ruled though. Okada/Makabe I thought was really good in spells but then uninteresting in other parts. Super hot finishing run though. Not sure why the table spot on Okada was needed other than it being a big Makabe singles match and that's what happens in a big Makabe singles match.*


----------



## Bubz

Seabs appearance, all too scarce in here these days. Convinced me to watch that jr's tag match. I skipped it thinking it wasn't worth it because I'd seen it too much.


----------



## Rah

It's most certainly a fresh breath of air into a division that had become stale. I wouldn't give it that type of praise, but I'd most certainly recommend it due to it being fun.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Spoiler: BOSJ Finals



Prince Devitt vs Alex Shelley - ****1/2
Wow. This match was absolutely awesome. The K.Hall went apeshit and the last minutes were nuts. Must-see match.



EDIT:

- NJPW Kizuna Road [05.07.2013]: Prince Devitt vs. Gedo - ****

There's a great Prince Devitt collection in XWT. Check it out.


----------



## seabs

Bubz said:


> Seabs appearance, all too scarce in here these days. Convinced me to watch that jr's tag match. I skipped it thinking it wasn't worth it because I'd seen it too much.


*Yeah everytime I plan to catch up something else comes up whether it be polls, Uni, sports or life. I still haven't watched a single Allmark match all year :jose

I was thinking about skipping it because I'd seen that pairing so many times too but it feels very fresh considering they'd worked the same spot on the card so much.*


----------



## Bubz

Yeah that's always the way. Life ey.

I still haven't watched one Dean Allmark match in my life .


----------



## Obfuscation

I wasn't going to skip it, but I was eh on seeing yet another Hooligans vs Time Splitters match. Then out comes the best match they ever had. Awesome. Good thing too, their fourth match from Dontaku sucked. Glad they made amends.

Seabs, you're probably going to love Suzuki vs Ishii from Kizuna Road if you loved their work in the tag. I'd say it was MOTN too, tbhayley.


----------



## Bubz

I need to get on Kizuna Road asap. Cody what should I watch from it? A few things that have me interested. Isn't there another GOTO/Shibata match? Because there's no way I fancy that again even though I kind of enjoyed their last match.


----------



## Obfuscation

> 48) IWGP Junior Tag Team Championship
> Rocky Romero & Alex Koslov(c) vs Taka Michinoku & Taichi Ishikari - (Kizuna Road 2013 Akita - 7/20)
> 
> 
> 49) Minoru Suzuki vs Tomohiro Ishii - (Kizuna Road 2013 Akita - 7/20)
> 
> 
> 50) NEVER Openweight Championship
> Masato Tanaka(c) vs Tetsuya Naito - (Kizuna Road 2013 Akita - 7/20)
> 
> 
> 51) IWGP Intercontinental Championship
> La Sombra(c) vs Shinsuke Nakamura - (Kizuna Road 2013 Akita - 7/20)
> 
> 
> 52) Katsuyori Shibata vs Hirooki Goto -(Kizuna Road 2013 Akita - 7/20)
> 
> 
> 53) Kazushi Sakuraba vs Yuji Nagata - (Kizuna Road 2013 Akita - 7/20)


Took that bit from my MOTYC list. So all of those I was really high on. Best being Suzuki vs Ishii or Sakuraba vs Nagata. The latter being worked as more of a "shoot" fight than a wrestling match; loved that aspect. The Junior Tag Team Championship was a real sleeper. Not as strong as the Dominion one, but a close enough runner up for sure. Okada vs Devitt is worth a watch too, even though I didn't feel it was grand. It's still good.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Concrete said:


> *Dr. Wagner Jr vs LA Park (5/11/13):****1/2*
> _THE VIOLENCE. This match was as insane as they come. This match did not contain two world class athletes but two men who know how to display such incredible emotion in the ring by killing themselves. Wagner and Park displayed more desire to hurt each other through body language and the like than I have seen all year. In the first fall it was Park being the most diabolical person on the planet trying to straight up murder Wagner. It didn’t matter if he had to beat Wagner’s head in with a chair or bodyslam him onto a guardrail, he was going to cause as much pain as possible. Heck before things even got underway Park lit a Wagner shirt on fire that was on a chair. Second fall Wagner gets his time to deal unspeakable punishment to Park. After getting a little more destroyed by Park, Wagner hits a nasty spear onto some chairs in the seated position. Loved when they are in the crowd and Wagner is standing over Park with a chair and the fans are begging him to commit murder right then and there and Wagner getting his turn to beat Park’s brains in. Final fall was very hit or miss. By that I mean there was a lot of miss. At this point Wagner is still looking wrecked but Park looks like a man who just got in a fight with a grizzly bear. This felt much more like a match and less like a fight which it had felt like to this point. Terry being a ref caused all types of shit to go down leading to a screwy finish. BLAH! They clearly won’t do it but BLACK TERRY VS LA PARK VS DR WAGNER JR IN A HAIR VS MASK MATH! Okay. Match is amazing and needs to be seen. This is certainly one of my favorites this year.
> _
> 
> I think I've watched more quality wrestling this year than since I don't know when. A bit of it probably goes to that lucha.


Watching this now since La Parka is the fuckin' MAN. So far I'm like 15 minutes in and Wagner hasn't had an ounce of offense. As in, not one move :lmao

Park is killing him. This is brutal. And great.


SPEAR into 4 chairs :mark:

NOW WAGNER IS FUCKIN PISSED :mark: :mark:


----------



## Obfuscation

Greg watching this before me = MIND BLOWN.


----------



## Concrete

The Lady Killer said:


> Watching this now since La Parka is the fuckin' MAN. So far I'm like 15 minutes in and Wagner hasn't had an ounce of offense. As in, not one move :lmao
> 
> Park is killing him. This is brutal. And great.
> 
> 
> SPEAR into 4 chairs :mark:
> 
> NOW WAGNER IS FUCKIN PISSED :mark: :mark:


It drops off in the 3rd but those 1st two falls... :mark: They probably could have had a tea party in the end I would have been "YEP! That was awesome". That's how awesome the they were. Wagner getting nothing in and just getting murdered...


----------



## The Lady Killer

Sweet Jesus La Parka is bleeding like crazy.

edit


----------



## Obfuscation

Well, it's been since early June, but I'll respect the bit of this thread and go forth with spoiler tags much like EF did above ^



Spoiler: BOSJ XX Finals



Devitt vs Shelley killed it here. Truth be told, the best part about it is what made it feel so MEGA at the heart of it. And that was fleshing out Devitt's new found dependence & overall structure to the Bullet Club. Their role in this match was heighten to a far, far larger degree than how they've normally been established prior. Shelley being the big time underdog here won the fans over immediately. We're talking from introduction level jump street. Shelley was loved by Korakuen Hall and Devitt + crew was hated. Perfect formula needed right there. It only got better. Bullet Club continues to stick their nose in the match: saving Devitt, attacking Shelley, and causing Shelley to be distracted. However, on the last point, that one came back to bite the Bullet Club where the sun don't shine. Shelley turns his focus towards all four of the group. Luring Devitt into thinking he has Shelley on his tail, meanwhile Anderson is prancing around and then BOOM~! Shelley takes out Anderson while Devitt is in shock on the opposite side of the ring anticipating Shelley's attack. Bullet Club vs ringside seconds for Shelley _(KUSHIDA, Tanahashi, & Captain New Japan)_ brawl was great to add another new wrinkle to the bout. It was long too. I'm talking like this WAS the match for about 2 1/2 minutes. Shelley & Devitt scraped here and there but they were nearly out of the picture. Someone may think that took away from the match at hand and I would strongly disagree. This upped the drama level to eleven. It went over in a massive way. Brawl was so out of hand that the ref had to get on the mic and eject all six from ringside. Bullet Club was hesitant, until the ref grabbed the bell hammer and threatened to ring it thus giving Shelley the win. Ha, that spot was terrific. Following that it was just the two finalists. Going tooth and nail after being haggered from the match itself + their two trying contests about an hour prior. Finishing stretch was everything you would have wanted from the two. Only it had the heightened absurdity that was K-Hall going ballistic for Shelley and wanting him to put out the big time victory. Double stomps, nearfalls, slice bread - Bloody Sunday counters, the whole she-bang. It was glorious. Drama, the storytelling, the booking, the execution, the work, it all came off like a million bucks here. This is high in my book. Not only from New Japan, but the whole of 2013.


----------



## Rah

Not even the most confusing booking in Lucha could ruin Wagner/Park. It's just mindblowingly violent. So, so great.

I'm glad more people are hopping on it. Especially with the tease of Santo/Park/Wagner aspuestas, which Santo insists will pack a 100k crowd. :lol:


----------



## WOOLCOCK

The Lady Killer said:


> Watching this now since La Parka is the fuckin' MAN. So far I'm like 15 minutes in and Wagner hasn't had an ounce of offense. As in, not one move :lmao
> 
> Park is killing him. This is brutal. And great.
> 
> 
> SPEAR into 4 chairs :mark:
> 
> NOW WAGNER IS FUCKIN PISSED :mark: :mark:


I cannot put into words the joy that bestilled my heart as I read this. Anytime TLK watches Lucha I get a little fuzzy inside. 

P.S Seabs if you're reading this, Chicana/Perro Aguayo '86 Hair vs Hair match. Watch it you scoundrel.


I don't think I ever wrote about Park/Wagner in here but it was a great brawl. Classic Lucha structure with Park jumping Wagner and beating him senseless with headbutts, punches and just recklessly launching him into spectators. Lucha might not be for everyone but I don't think anyone who's seen a Lucha brawl can deny it really captures that aura of authentic and harrowing violence. Wagner comeback will always divide some because of the obscene and prolonged beating he suffers prior to it, but as far as revenge beatings go it was a stellar effort and leave it to Park to bleed more than an extra in a Tarantino flick. Final fall was by far the weakest with both men looking sluggish and struggling with a few sequences and of course its Lucha so the utter shite finish was unwelcomed but expected. Still, it was a riveting and captivating fight which had all the intangibles of a true Lucha bloodbath, with the only exception being the lacklustre final fall which is where a great brawl can become a classic with the right sequences and pacing.

Santo/Wagner/Park tease gave me a semi. That will be insane if and when it is made.


----------



## Obfuscation

Only have one word to use in describing the LA Park vs Dr. Wagner Jr. match & that word isn't violence. It's *SANGRE*. And there is oh so much of it. Here I thought in the destructive first fall that Wagner's blood loss would be on a significant level. Wrong. Dead wrong. Moment Wagner got pissed in the second fall it let the flood gates open. Flood gates being Park's head + the blood. Jesus. Using a legit beer bottle to the head to do the job too. Brilliant. I wouldn't expect any other weapon to come into play from the old vets brawling in Mexico. Certainly the finish was fucked. Big shock; the one drawback to Lucha, but we're so beyond used to it that it doesn't matter. Rest of the match was so good & so entertaining that we'll accept it. I knew this was going to be great after Park hit Wagner with a flaming chair in the first minute. Yeah, this was borderline criminal. <3


----------



## Chismo

The Bucks vs. Fox & Del Sol ****1/4

This was mental. And it had Chuck Taylor on commentary.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Chuck was hilarious with his commonts about Fox's high risks.


----------



## seabs

*Ugh. I was kinda looking forward to that too. I hope he doesn't spend all match going on about how AR Fox will be paralysed in the very near future because that's not what I want to hear watching wrestling and it sure as shit isn't funny because it's dead true. I don't really want to be watching AR Fox either. Damn the Young Bucks for being so good.*


----------



## Obfuscation

I don't know what to expect in that one. Nick Jackson made me tolerate an AF Fox singles match earlier this year, but then again I've wanted to punch my computer screen so fucking hard at the last two AR Fox matches in PWG. Those were bunches of shit.


----------



## The Lady Killer

WOOLCOCK said:


> I cannot put into words the joy that bestilled my heart as I read this. Anytime TLK watches Lucha I get a little fuzzy inside.
> 
> P.S Seabs if you're reading this, Chicana/Perro Aguayo '86 Hair vs Hair match. Watch it you scoundrel.
> 
> 
> I don't think I ever wrote about Park/Wagner in here but it was a great brawl. Classic Lucha structure with Park jumping Wagner and beating him senseless with headbutts, punches and just recklessly launching him into spectators. Lucha might not be for everyone but I don't think anyone who's seen a Lucha brawl can deny it really captures that aura of authentic and harrowing violence. Wagner comeback will always divide some because of the obscene and prolonged beating he suffers prior to it, but as far as revenge beatings go it was a stellar effort and leave it to Park to bleed more than an extra in a Tarantino flick. Final fall was by far the weakest with both men looking sluggish and struggling with a few sequences and of course its Lucha so the utter shite finish was unwelcomed but expected. Still, it was a riveting and captivating fight which had all the intangibles of a true Lucha bloodbath, with the only exception being the lacklustre final fall which is where a great brawl can become a classic with the right sequences and pacing.
> 
> Santo/Wagner/Park tease gave me a semi. That will be insane if and when it is made.




I'm not as akin to Lucha as the rest of you, so I was going into it with an unbiased and open mind (aside from thinking Park is beyond LEGIT). First fall was fantastic. Wagner just took a pounding from the get-go. Headbutts, fists, chair shots, etc. Being launched recklessly into fans. 

Second fall where Wagner snaps is great, but I guess I'm not used to seeing someone (adrenaline-fueled or not) take an insane beating for 15 minutes then seem fresh as a daisy while returning the favor. I got over it pretty quickly when Park took a beer bottle to the face and bled everywhere. Third fall was anticlimactic as you all have stated. Super fun brawl, though. La Parka doing the air guitar on the flaming chair that still had smoke coming from it =


----------



## Groovemachine

Well, gotta throw my two cents in, and I seem to have differing opinions on a couple of matches recently discussed.

Didn't go terribly high on the BOTSJ finals. Maybe ***1/2, but not a MOTYC for me. Nice little sprint from the two of them but I didn't feel it was anything memorable.

Conversely, I've only seen mediocre reviews and maybe one good review for CIMA vs Tozawa from Dragon Gate Dead or Alive 2013, and I thought it was brilliant, ****1/4. They worked a slow a methodical opening and it paid off down the line as Tozawa's comeback was absolutely captivating viewing. Tozawa employed a heavy dose of 'Dragon Gate selling' in that he showed signs of having an injured leg but could shake it off with a couple of 'fighting spirit' moments, hitting his own leg, hoping it will last out long enough to get the job done. I was OK with it anyway, as he wasn't ignoring it and always referenced the leg whenever running or climbing the turnbuckle. Certainly a recent highlight from Tozawa and one of CIMA's better defenses. 

Next up, Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival. Psyched!


----------



## mk92071

Groovemachine said:


> Conversely, I've only seen mediocre reviews and maybe one good review for CIMA vs Tozawa from Dragon Gate Dead or Alive 2013, and I thought it was brilliant, ****1/4. They worked a slow a methodical opening and it paid off down the line as Tozawa's comeback was absolutely captivating viewing. Tozawa employed a heavy dose of 'Dragon Gate selling' in that he showed signs of having an injured leg but could shake it off with a couple of 'fighting spirit' moments, hitting his own leg, hoping it will last out long enough to get the job done. I was OK with it anyway, as he wasn't ignoring it and always referenced the leg whenever running or climbing the turnbuckle. Certainly a recent highlight from Tozawa and one of CIMA's better defenses.


Seconded. My favorite match of Dead or Alive and Kobe World.

EDIT: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwSuhSUoI8s

Ray Rosas vs. B-Boy from local indy SoCal Pro - ***3/4
Really fun match that had a few good near falls at the end. Some nice counters and sequences. A short control angle by Rosas that I thought was really good. Didn't go overkill or anything crazy. I loved how Rosas sold his desperation at the end.


----------



## Bruce L

*Samuray del Sol vs. Anthony Nese *(EVOLVE 20)
★★★¾ - Maybe it's because I've only been able to see his first forays into the WWN universe in recent months, but it feels like Samuray del Sol came out of nowhere, made a big splash, then vanished. He's awesome here, as he is, and Nese makes you wonder how even TNA could fail to utilize someone this good. Lenny Leonard and guest commentator Johnny Gargano... spend pretty much the whole match discussing Gargano's then-recent heel turn. fpalm

*A.R. Fox vs. Nick Jackson *(EVOLVE 20)
★★★½ - I don't understand the general antipathy towards A.R. Fox at all. He's no PAC or Ricochet, but he's generally quite entertaining, and he doesn't strike me as any more reckless than the average indy high-flier. (As a point of comparison, I don't remember Jack Evans getting shit on to this extent at the peak of his Gen-Next popularity, and I'll take Fox over him any day and twice on Sunday.) Whatever; he puts forth a good, strong title defense here. Of course, he has help: To the surprise of nobody, Nick Jackson can be awesome in singles matches too.

Also liked Tomahawk TT vs. EITA (after finally getting to catch some of Tomahawk's run as "Naoki Tanisaki" in Japan, I'd love to see him as a DGUSA regular), Gargano vs. Matt Jackson, and - to my great surprise - the six-man. Oddly, besides Andrew Everett, the guy I came away from that one most wanting to see more of in DGUSA/Evolve is Tommy Taylor. Go figure.


----------



## Bubz

Y'all talking about Park/Wagner are trying to get me to watch my first proper Lucha match aren't you.


----------



## Obfuscation

DO IT. 

It's LA Park aka the original La Parka. You own him a watch.


----------



## Bubz

I fucking loved La Parka in WCW tbh. Definitely a guy I need to see more of. So is all Lucha really. I've tried to get into it but it always fails for one reason or another.


----------



## Obfuscation

Fails after watching or failed in terms of you've always had something come up to kill the interest? I like Lucha, however I'm not like Yeah, WOOLCOCK, or Rah on the subject. I can understand portions of Lucha where it can suck the interest out. I've had my spells at times too. Didn't help that the product over the years is on a lowered scale compared to the work I've seen in the past. Then out comes the LA Park vs Dr. Wagner Jr brawl and things suddenly look cheery for the sport.


----------



## Yeah1993

Rah said:


> Especially with the tease of Santo/Park/Wagner aspuestas, which Santo insists will pack a 100k crowd. :lol:


I actually really don't want this to happen because I couldn't live with any of those guys losing their mask.


----------



## Bubz

A bit of both really. I've tried watching matches that got pimped and then end up turning it off because it doesn't do anything for me. Then there's times when I plan on really trying to watch some full matches but there's just other stuff I'd rather watch instead.


----------



## Morrison17

Davey Richards vs. Kyle O'Reilly
PWG Is Your Body Ready


----------



## Bubz

Morrison17 said:


> Davey Richards vs. Kyle O'Reilly
> PWG Is Your Body Ready


Don't.


----------



## Obfuscation

Bubz said:


> A bit of both really. I've tried watching matches that got pimped and then end up turning it off because it doesn't do anything for me. Then there's times when I plan on really trying to watch some full matches but there's just other stuff I'd rather watch instead.


I say try Park vs Wagner and see if that can hit the sweet spot. It jumps into the violence asap so hopefully that could contain your interests for the majority. _(the final fall is a bit sluggish, but for logical purposes via the bloodloss)_


----------



## Chismo

Don't get carried away, Bubz, Park/Wagner was really good, but definitely not MOTYCworthy. Seen it twice already, and can't go higher than ***1/2. Very enjoyable, but not THAT enjoayble, tbf.


----------



## flag sabbath

Chismo said:


> Don't get carried away, Bubz, Park/Wagner was really good, but definitely not MOTYCworthy. Seen it twice already, and can't go higher than ***1/2. Very enjoyable, but not THAT enjoayble, tbf.


I'll second this. There are elements of a classic '80s regional bloodbath but they don't gel well enough across the three falls to call it a great match.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

If you're a novice to Lucha then title matches and singles matches are typically something you'll only get used to after multiple attempts. Lucha matwork is great for me when you have two guys who can trade holds smartly and time each counter well enough to mask the fact that they deliberately operate at a slower pace. Lucha matwork is more about the grace in the counters and holds, rather than working at a Tamura/Kohsaka/Volk Han esque speed of organic and mindblowing counters. Obviously when you're not experienced to Lucha though a lot of matwork matches fall on their arse because people can't get into the speed of the exchanges and find it dull. Something like Panther/Atlantis '91 or Dandy/Llanes '94 are breathtaking matwork matches, but then something like a maestros trios match can have some tame looking matwork exchanges.

Lucha brawls are amazing though Bubz, especially if you've ever seen Memphis/Mid South/territory brawls from the 80s. Stiff and amazing looking punches, crowds on the verge of rioting, biting exposed cuts, more blood than the ending to Django Unchained and the 3 fall structure for me works perfectly in building drama and tension when you have someone like Sangre Chicana who understands the style and how to manipulate it to heighten its strengths. Park/Wagner was a bloody war with two great opening falls, final fall doesn't match the preceeding falls which cuts off the match's potential but its still a worthy investment.


----------



## Bubz

I'd be much more motivated to check out a brawl than a mat based lucha match since the matwork really doesn't click with me. I'm the same with shoot style stuff, it doesn't do anything for me.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

You ever seen the Ishikawa/Ikeda '05 match Bubz? Its shoot style but they do away with the Volk Han/Tamura grappling and just work more basic grappling and frightening headbutts, kicks and counters. Think of it as an even more absurd demonstration of violence than Finlay/Regal.

As for classic Lucha brawls: Chicana/MS-1 '83, Chicana/Perro Aguayo '86 and Villano III/Atlantis (not so much a brawl, but a bloody war nonetheless) '00 are all tremendous matches and up there with any Lawler, Funk and Duggan brawl.


----------



## Bubz

I've not seen that match. I'm sure I've seen you pimp those before. Imma' make a note of them and maybe try them after I've finished my viewing for the poll.


----------



## DOPA

Kenny Omega vs KUSHIA (NJPW 6/6): ****
Prince Devitt vs Alex Shelley (NJPW 6/9): ****

Late BOSJ digs.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Bubz said:


> I've not seen that match. I'm sure I've seen you pimp those before. Imma' make a note of them and maybe try them after I've finished my viewing for the poll.


All three are exceptional and hard to pick a surefire candidate out of the three as the absolute best. I'd probably go '86 > '83 > '00 but that's purely because the first two are more brawl prientated whereas the '00 encounter is more relient on superb pacing and timing to create a plethora of captivating nearfalls which leave the crowd in a frenzy and heighten the drama to ridiculous degrees.

Oh man, Ishikawa/Ikeda is jaw droppingly sensational. It didn't gravitate Seabs in the way I hoped it would but many others loved it considerably and I think the minimal grappling (Ishikawa has more of a pro style grappling approach whereas Ikeda relies more on jaw shattering kicks instead of mat nonsense) and greater striking might appeal to you. The violence is harrowing and even the 5th most disgusting act would still be the most heinous spot in virtually any other match. The grappler/striker dynamic being constantly called back to in each sequence also adds a layer of storytelling so its not just a mindless exhibition of violence.


----------



## Matt_Yoda

Groovemachine said:


> Conversely, I've only seen mediocre reviews and maybe one good review for CIMA vs Tozawa from Dragon Gate Dead or Alive 2013, and I thought it was brilliant, ****1/4. They worked a slow a methodical opening and it paid off down the line as Tozawa's comeback was absolutely captivating viewing. Tozawa employed a heavy dose of 'Dragon Gate selling' in that he showed signs of having an injured leg but could shake it off with a couple of 'fighting spirit' moments, hitting his own leg, hoping it will last out long enough to get the job done. I was OK with it anyway, as he wasn't ignoring it and always referenced the leg whenever running or climbing the turnbuckle. Certainly a recent highlight from Tozawa and one of CIMA's better defenses.
> 
> Next up, Kobe Pro Wrestling Festival. Psyched!


I thought it was a fine main event, I personally didn't like it as much on a third watch but by no means a bad match. It doesn't compare to their match last year but I never expected it to. I don't really care for Tozawa in singles since his flaws and antics become more apparent whereas he shines in multimans. I'd probably put it in the lower end of CIMA's defenses.


----------



## Punkhead

If anybody's interested, here's a lucha libre MOTYC list made by me with help of TheCubsFan:

http://luchawiki.org/index.php?title=2013_Match_of_the_Year_Candidates

Tell me if you feel I should add or remove something.


----------



## Rah

Trauma/Angel needs the preceding part to it. I realise you could argue either way as to whether its a single match or not, but that isn't complete without the trio section. Besides, the trios was worth a nom, regardless.

Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA Par-K (02/06/2013 TxT)
Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)
Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera Vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita (18/02/2013 IWRG)
Namajague Vs Rey Cometa (26/04/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas, Stuka Jr. & Valiente Vs Fuego, Vangellys & Virus (14/06/2013 CMLL)


----------



## Chismo

Seiya Sanada vs. Go Shiozaki (AJPW Champion Carnival 2013 - Day 6)

_Despite Sanada acting like Orton’s lost brother sometimes, and Go raping us with his forced Kobashi tributes, this was still fucking good, there was plenty of great stuff in the match, they held nothing back. Sanada looked great here, he was fierce so much, it almost made Go an underdog. They were both selling like motherfuckers._

****


----------



## Punkhead

And is there anything I could remove from that list? It's really big and it's only half a year.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Lance Archer* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 1_ - ****

*Satoshi Kojima vs Katsuyori Shibata* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 2_ - ****
A well executed stiff slugfest. Shibata's selling of Kojima's larriets was great.

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 2_ - ****3/4
This is a definition of a star making performance. Tanahashi went beyond the call of duty to make Ishii look like a legit star. Tanahashi did this by playing a great heel in the match and selling a lot for Ishii. He also allow Ishii to counter or kick out of all of his big moves. Ishii played his role well as the underdog. Watch this match asap.


----------



## Groovemachine

NJPW G1 Climax Day 2:
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii - ****1/4

Yes. This was the match I've been waiting for. Best match of Ishii's career? There's certainly a good argument. He was the perfect underdog here and played his role to a tee, but major props has to go to Tanahashi. He absolutely sold his ass off, Ishii's offense looked brutal purely from how Tanahashi was selling it. Also, loved seeing a more vicious side from Tanahashi; his short, sharp headbutt retaliation to Ishii's onslaught came out of the blue and was perfectly timed, as if to say 'You're hanging with the big dogs now'. They peaked at the right time, and the finish was a great exclamation point. Check this out, STAT.

Shame the crowd was muted, I really wanted to hear the reaction!


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

I know people are gonna be hyping Ishii/Tana, but check out Shibata/Kojima as well.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Okay, I'm going to watch Kojima/Shibata and Ishii/Tana now. But, there's still half hour till the download will be complete, so..

Smackdown - RVD vs Charistian vs Orton: ***3/4
NJPW G1 Climax Day One: Archer vs Ishii (***3/4), Anderson vs Nakamura (***3/4-****)


----------



## flag sabbath

*Doug Williams vs. El Ligero (60 minute Iron Man, PCW, 2/8):* I voiced all kinds of doubts heading into this one, but goddamn if it wasn't superb. Not sure how the rowdy live experience will translate onto DVD, but I much preferred this to Cole vs. Callihan (which I rated ****1/4*). Unfortunately, PCW cocked it all up by pulling some nonsensical hotshot afterwards & putting the belt on Lionheart. Ignoring that bullshit, I'd say a comfortable ******


----------



## EmbassyForever

My god Ishii vs Tanahashi was amazing. Loved cocky Tanahashi in the beginning of the match and the K.Hall crowd was pro-Ishii as usual. ****1/2. I want Ishii to win G1 so bad.


----------



## seabs

*I didn't think Ishii/Tanahashi was great as it should have been or what others thought it was  I actually thought the crowd wasn't at their usual best given the context. I mean even with Tanahashi dicking it right up they were still pretty split and pro Tanahashi which meant it didn't quite come off as Ishii and Korakuen vs the world which was a shame. Match was still really good though but I was expecting a little bit more. Eh. Maybe I'll rewatch it. Thought Ishii/Archer was excellent though and better. Archer's brilliant in the monster role and these two play off each just perfectly. That overhead suplex that Archer does looks nutty every single time. Sucked that the crowd was dead silent for Archer though. Also thought Nakamura/Suzuki was very good if not slightly underwhelming. Great finish though but Shinsuke needs to go back to basics a little and stop trying to so flashy in every match.*


----------



## seancarleton77

Ishii is one of the best wrestlers in Japan. This G1 will be his coming out party. WAR ISHII!!


----------



## Obfuscation

Tomohiro Ishii vs Lance Archer ~ _NJPW G1 Climax 23 Night One_​
Duuuuuuuude who needs buckets of time when you have these two going toe to toe and playing off of the immense size difference? Archer was a beast in this one. The absorption of Ishii's crushing chops was surreal. The same chops that fell MiSu just a few weeks before were doing nothing to the monster of a man. Archer is so best; the guy is a total stud and a massive gem on the New Japan roster. And then there is Ishii. Ah, Ishii. His charisma & underdog nature screams volumes more often than not & it was on full display here. You were on your feet wanting him to simply knock Archer down. Kept wanting to yell "one more time!" as he gave it his all. These two are so great. Ishii has gotten better with age. The man can be a new star despite being around for as long as he has. Mark Henry, anyone? Different aspects, but same story. Can't say I'm all too surprised these guys gave me something to talk about. I'm just glad it was as special as I hoped it would have been. Strong, strong sub-11 minute bout here. They went out and made that story pop the moment the bell rang. Tremendous work put forth by both Archer & Ishii. Can't say I'm against all the rest; I'd love to see an Ishii triumph in the Climax.


----------



## Chismo

Satoshi Kojima vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW G1 Climax 23 - Day 2)

_Some may argue that Kojima's comeback was too sudden, but I don't care, I don't mind if my pro-wrestling looks like a video game. :lelbron Great match, Shibata was absolutely golden here, IMO, and Kojima is Kojima, simple moves and heat, he brings it. The first big match of this year's tournament._

****


----------



## Obfuscation

^YES!

Kojima vs Shibata was wicked. Kojima's comeback was fiercely believable. After seeing what Kojima did to gain the advantage over Shibata, I don't see how anyone could question the logic or credibility behind it. It's sprints like this which really, really excite me during the G1.

Definite plug to Tanahashi vs Ishii. Very good match with the expected insanely hot finishing stretch. Finish to this match is going to be the most insane of the year. Banking on it now. Holy CRAP.


----------



## Nervosa

From my full Kizuna road review in the Puro thread:

KIZUNA ROAD
Devitt vs. Okada
****1/4
Holy Shitballs, I can't believe people didn't love this! I have always thought Devitt was pretty crappy but I think Okada got something really special out of him here. Crowd was molten hot because they were so ashamed of Devitt and didn't even want to think about him being champion. As a result there seemed to be an extra cheer of joy every time Okada inflicted pain to Devitt. Okada also did a good job of keeping Devitt from getting to spammy, which is his main problem. When Deivtt controls the pace of his matches, they end up desperate and hectic, but Okada controlled it and it brought out the best in Devitt. The best stuff in this match was what happened after the ref bump. Gedo getting involved got a huge pop, and Okada taking out Fale was a great moment. The finish was great ending right at the highest point. Love, love, love this match.


----------



## seancarleton77

* “G1 CLIMAX 23″ match ratings*

Night one:

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Lance Archer = ***1/2

Katsuyori Shibata vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. = ***1/2

Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata = ***3/4

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Satoshi Kojima ***1/2

Night two:

Prince Devitt vs. Lance Archer = ***1/4

Satoshi Kojima vs. Katsuyori Shibata = ****

Minoru Suzuki vs. Shinsuke Nakamura = ***3/4

Tomohiro Ishii vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi = ****3/4 - I was actually cheering loudly for Ishii in my living room. My fiancée thought I was nuts.


----------



## Punkhead

NJPW KIZUNA Road - Kazuchika Okada vs Prince Devitt - ****1/2. My favorite puro match I have ever seen (I don't watch puro and don't really like it very much). Definitely on my MOTYC list.


----------



## Chismo

*NJPW G1 Climax 23 - Day 2*:

- Kojima/Shibata ****
- Naito/Ibushi ****
- Tanashi/Ishii *****3/4* 

Tanashi/Ishii had me LITERALLY screaming and jumping for 15 minutes. Those two motherfuckers are the best.


----------



## Concrete

*Jack Anthony/Shinya Ishikawa vs. Shinobu/MEN’s Teioh(BJPW 6/30/13):***3/4*
_Thursday, TNA delivered the most fun segment I have seen on TV in quite some time with Tito Ortiz’s debut. I could not stop laughing. BJPW has now given me one of the most fun matches I’ve seen in 2013. This was my first time seeing Jack Anthony and holy shit was I impressed. There are a ton of American indy guys who have stolen stuff out of the Johnny Saint playbook but he looks like one of the British wrestlers who truly embodies that style. He delivered some fancy grappling exchanges with Shinobu and, more so, MEN’s Teioh to start. Anthony’s exchange with Teioh led to a wonderful exchange of pins. Shinya Ishikawa has been doing real well this year from what I’ve seen but he wasn’t a massive factor in this one but he deliver a beauty of a dropkick to Shinobu who sold it like a champ. Loved when Shinobu and Teioh were double teaming on Ishikawa in the corner and they did a bit of a clichéd hit the partner and slingshot him into the corner but acted it out with each other. Maybe the best part of that was Teioh was too far on the slingshot and Shinobu ended up hitting Ishikawa dick level. Hehe. Teioh also had a stalling suplex on Ishikawa which was a sight. Also the ending was well and good with Teioh getting pissed at Shinobu accidently hitting him leading to Anthony having time to attempt to get offense in. I can’t really do justice to how much fun I had with this. Might not be a true blue MOTYC but for a shortish match with a ton of fun stuff it is highly recommended. Watch it. _

*2 Cold Scorpio vs. Mike Cruz(USA PRO 7/27/13):*****
_Part One
Part Two_
_I don’t really need much more of reason than 2 COLD BABY! That being said Mike Cruz is being severely underrated this year for some reason. He’s been in some grand matches this year, granted they were with good opponents, but Cruz has put in good to great performances in all of those matches. If he were in FIP I’d be much more willing to give it a try. This match involved a lot of Cruz pelting Scorpio with stiff shots and Scorpio throwing the BIG SHOTS when he was up at bat. Absolutely giddy when he was delivering knees to Cruz in the corner as if he were a heavy bag. Plus he threw some naughty jabs. I’m gonna keep the adjective. Always will hop off my seat when Scorpio hits his moonsault double stomp. It was purdy. Great match. _

After the match Vordell Walker attacked Scorpio. They will have a 2/3 falls match at the end of the month :mark:


----------



## Rah

Yeah, people need that Cruz/Scorpio match, but more so Vordell/Scorpio. That match is going to be awesome and just to think, probably the second best 2/3 falls match of this month. Wrestling is love, people.


----------



## Nervosa

My G1 thought from the puro thread.

8/1 G1 Night 1
Smith/Shibata****
Best spot is Smith reversing the leglock into a sharpshooter. Smith is just amazing, and showed it here against a very unorthodox opponent. I honestly think Smith is the best Gaijin in Japan. He just brings it in singles matches.

Nagata/Suzuki****
Not quite as good as their match on ¼, but just under it. Damn do thse two know how to get a crowd worked up. I NEED a Nagata/Okada title match before this year is over.

8/2 G1 Night 2 
Kojima/Shibata
****1/4
THIS MATCH RIGHT HERE!!! Must see stuff! Do you know why I have hated the Goto/Shibata series so much? Because instead of having the same boring match against a lame duck like Goto, Shibata could have been doing THIS against better opponents. This showed exactly how amazing Shibata really is.

And don’t look now, but Kojima has had an incredible year. He had the best match of the entire New Japan Cup Tournament against Ishii, numerous great tag matches with KES and Yano/Iizuka, and now he is putting together a very good G1 portfolio. Awesome stuff from the guy. 

Shinskay/Suzuki
****
The Korakuen crowd has taken to chanting Shinskay’s trademark “YAO” while he throws strikes, which is hilarious. Shinskay sold his arm well and Suzuki sold his arm AWESOME. This match had some great submission exchanges, and the finish was abrupt in a way that surprised the crowd and popped the pinfall. 


Tanahashi/TOMOHIRO FUCKING ISHII
****3/4



Spoiler: completely necessary



HE DID IT! HE DID IT! He finally got that big win in front of his Korakuen people! I cannot believe how emotional this was for me! Tanahashi played the dick heel perfectly. There was still a portion of the crowd rooting for him, so I see Seabs' point, but it didn't diminish htis one bit for me. I love how Ishii has to level up his offense for the occasion. Not just a powerbomb: Ishii does a Last Ride for the first time. Then he did a Magistral Candle for the first time, then his did his best friend Shinskay’s trademark back headbutt for the first time. Then he had to level up his brainbuster finisher by using the screwdriver. Absolutely amazing. This is what every underdog story should be.


----------



## Rah

*Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Tomohiro Ishii (02/08/2013 NJPW)*
_I was surprisingly fine with Ishii's easy resilience reversal spot in the corner following Tanahashi's forearms. That's nothing on Ishii's ability but rather on how abysmal Tanahashi is in making his offence look the least bit realistic. No buys on the feigned drop-kick reversal spot, though, as that should have been worked better than it was. I'm also a little hesitant in going with the underdog story here as I felt they came across on-par towards the beginning (albeit feint) and Tanahashi being a total clown in his inconsistent manner of selling Ishii's offence surely didn't help drive things home, either. One minute Ishii is the man with the Hulk-like smashes, the next Tanahashi is springing around doing his usual bullshit spots. At least Ishii's selling his neck and driving home the impact Tana's had (props for the collapse and continual pained grab towards his own neck, of course). Ishii out-working Tanahashi by a country mile shouldn't be a shocker, though. Nice no-kickout during the casita pin, too.

I'll probably rewatch it to give an actual rating, but I didn't love this._​

Kojima/Shibata _might_ be more my cup of tea if it's Goto/Shibata done right.


----------



## Nervosa

Rah said:


> Kojima/Shibata _might_ be more my cup of tea if it's Goto/Shibata done right.


First off, it is.

Second, I'm bummed you didn't like Ishii/Tanahashi. I can see your criticism, but I didn't think Tanahashi's usual problems were that bad here.


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> Yeah, people need that Cruz/Scorpio match, but more so Vordell/Scorpio. That match is going to be awesome and just to think, probably the second best 2/3 falls match of this month. Wrestling is love, people.


Walker vs Scorpio II (could be more but I only know their last one) has the potential to be real high on my end of the year list. Last year's match was great and I think this one will have a bit more heat so it should be even AWESOMER


----------



## smitlick

*New Japan 2/8/13*

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii
****1/4


----------



## antoniomare007

The last 10 minutes of Tana vs Ishii were absolutely beautiful. I've been an Ishii stan since he carried Inoue's sorry ass to a legit MOTYC in a fucking LOCK UP show in 09' and watching him work that Korakuen Hall magic in the MAIN EVENT of a G-1 show almost brought a tear to my eye.

I'm so behind everything non-WWE is not even funny, but I had to watch this, just had to, and it paid off.


----------



## Obfuscation

I know some might not thought as highly of it as me, yet I'm plugging it. Ishii vs Devitt from Night Three makes the cut off for my list. It isn't a whopper of a high level match, but it's in. Devitt & Ishii have some good chemistry. It manifested itself in a short span here & per usual the Ishii underdog story flourished. Part of the reason why I didn't mind another match with Fale shenanigans simply b/c it was aided in with Ishii as the opponent. Devitt's standout on the tournament so far and the third straight match from Ishii that found its way onto my MOTYC list. The man is shining in the tournament so far. Only guy to be hot on his tail is Nakamura going three for three. _(Kojima & Tanahashi almost too if their night three matches were a hair stronger)_ Speaking of Nakamura...

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Toru Yano from Night Three = my personal MOTN. You know what Yano is like once he's serious? He's like this. Taking no motherfuckin prisoners even with a fellow stablemate. He was out for blood & to make a mark against Nakamura. Nakamura's usual swag was present and it translated really well against the new opponent. Gosh this was a rad encounter. I was digging all of this. Legit from bell to bell. Yano proves so many wrong with his work. The guy is _really_ good.

Makabe vs Shibata II was fierce & fast. A notch below their Wrestle Kingdom match, yet plenty good enough to get mentioned here. Those two don't get paid by the hour. They'll kick each other's asses and do it in a blink of an eye. I want the rubber match. Maybe that will turn into the best five minute match of the year! GO TO SLEEP, SIGHTING. :mark:

Finally, Nagata vs Naito. Oh boy was this one a blast. Nagata goes into _"fuck your couch, ....."_ mode on Naito and roughs the young lad up. Naito's work appears to be underrated since returning for my money, although I won't deny him potentially not being quite back to his full self just yet. That's purely how great he was before the injury. Still hasn't stopped me from thinking highly of this match, vs Tanaka, & vs Ibushi _(despite having my minor gripe with a portion of it, it was still really quite good.)_ Another one on the night where I was having a ball from the start. Night three was keen on the quality sprints.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 4_ - ****3/4
This was a very crazy, stiff and ridiculous brawl. I may be overrating this match a bit but I don't care. I love this match.
Edit: I rewatched this match and I am bumping up the rating. The major reason was that Ishii's selling was phenomenal in this match.

*Kazuchika Okada vs Togi Makabe* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 4_ - ****

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 4_ - ****1/4
Nakamura was nuts as he beat the hell out of Ibushi using his knees. Ibushi was great here as his timing of his comebacks were excellent. I also liked how he tried to out brawl Nakamura late into the match.


----------



## Rah

Now THAT is the Ishii match I want to see.


----------



## Hera

Smith_Jensen said:


> *Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 4_ - ****1/2
> This was a very crazy, stiff and ridiculous brawl. I may be overrating this match a bit but I don't care. I love this match.


You aren't overrating it at all. 
I'm fucking exhausted just watching. I don't want to be either of them tomorrow morning.


----------



## Bubz

What the fuck? So many pimped matches from New Japan. Need to get on Kizuna Road tonight hopefully and then G1.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's been the status quo for the year. G1 Climax hasn't disappointed.


----------



## geraldinhio

I know I shouldn't post this but I've never seen an Ishii match ever. :side:


----------



## Skins

Orton/RVD/Christian

Decent match, not MOTYC worthy or a bad match in anyway. Decent in-ring action by the three the meshed pretty wel for a triple threat, nice little scoopslam by Orton, and pretty happy with the winner, should be a nice little whc title match


----------



## Obfuscation

_*everyone blown away*_

Just watch his matches from the Climax and I think you'll be sold :lol


----------



## geraldinhio

Will they be on youtube or dailymotion soon? Fuck XWT anyway. 

I really ave to give Puro another chance. Hell, I've to give promotions other than PWG and WWE another chance.


----------



## Concrete

Here is Day 1. Day 2 is also on there.


----------



## Obfuscation

Surprised you didn't watch some New Japan already with Devitt being on the roster. And yeah, at least Night Two is up on youtube. Which holds the Ishii vs Tanahashi match a good number have adored. Kizuna Road Akita is up too and that has a tremendous Ishii vs Suzuki match on it.


----------



## geraldinhio

Concrete said:


> Here is Day 1. Day 2 is also on there.


(Y) Thank you sir. 



HayleySabin said:


> Surprised you didn't watch some New Japan already with Devitt being on the roster. And yeah, at least Night Two is up on youtube. Which holds the Ishii vs Tanahashi match a good number have adored. Kizuna Road Akita is up too and that has a tremendous Ishii vs Suzuki match on it.


I watched a good bit of BOSJ mainly because of Ricochet too this year. Some good stuff in there.

I'll give them a look tomorrow after work. I'm gonna force myself to watch the full show start to finish because I know I'm missing out on something special. Love me some Suzuki all right. :mark:

It's weird, when I do watch puro I usually find myself leaning towards a pimped DG show then a NJPW show. I know it's blasphemy.


----------



## Obfuscation

I wouldn't say blasphemy. Simply preference. Everyone has their likes & dislikes. I try and get people to watch DDT and that's certainly not going to appeal to everyone. Even though I wished it did. YOSHIHIKO & wrestling in obscure locations~!

:suzuki is king.


----------



## Bubz

Almsot done with Kizuna Road Atika. Suzuki/Ishii was fucking boss. Exactly what you'd want from them. ****

La Sombra/Nakamura was a lot of fun too. Falls just short of being a MOTYC for me but thoroughly enjoyed it. I love Shinskay as much as the next guy but fuck he needs to stop trying stuff that he clearly can't pull off. Everything else has been skippable for me though. Wanted to turn Nagata/Sakuraba off but figured I'd give it a try and yeah, I didn't like it at all. I skipped Goto/Shibata though because I really can't be bothered watching that match again. I'll watch Devitt/Okada and then start on the G1 tomorrow night. Pretty excited.


----------



## Obfuscation

Suzuki vs Ishii was the def MOTN for me too. I loved the hell out of Nagata vs Sakuraba, although I remember you saying you're not big on that kind of wrestling. Thoughts on Tanaka vs Naito?

Also, for me, Okada vs Devitt was fine however nothing too special. Not sure their chemistry is on point like it is with some of their other opponents.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah I liked Tanaka/Naito. Nothing great, and kind of sloppy because Naito looked a little rusty, Tanaka matches don't do a whole lot for me but Naito is good enough to make it enjoyable.

Nagata/Sakuraba just felt like two guys without chemistry rolling around for ages to me. I love that style when it's injected with a dose of pro wrestling style storytelling (Nakamura/Sakuraba for example) but this just felt really flat and dull imo.


----------



## Groovemachine

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW G1 Glimax Day 4 - ****1/4*

This was intense and brutal from the opening bell, and OMG at the last few minutes, I was going ape-shit. Ishii hitting his explosive enziguri, and as Shibata falls to the canvas he fires off knee to the back of Ishii's head in desperation...incredible stuff. Ishii is somewhat more of an equal to Shibata in this one than in the Tanahashi match, so we get less of the underdog story, but this was a contest of will and determination and was a total blast to watch.

This is my first G1 I've been watching as it happens, and it's been off the charts. For the past 4 days my face has been solely like this... :mark:


Regarding Geraldinhio watching his first Ishii match, I think the Day 2 match versus Tanahashi is a fantastic place to start as it highlights his underdog personality perfectly. And it's a cracking match too.


----------



## Kid Kamikaze10

G1 Climax Day 4



Spoiler: G1 Climax Day 4



There are two MOTYCs in this one: Ishii/Shibata and Nakamura/Ibushi

*Ishi/Shibata* is what the Goto/Shibata matches wish they were. Brutal as fuck. Shibata was back to being a prick, and Ishii was doing what Ishii does best. I LOVED Ishii's "wandering around concussed" selling. 

The kneeling to take a shot worked better than the NJPW staple (elbow exchanges). Even some of the submission spots were great (the STF was kind of just there). This definitely deserves to be in the MOTYC discussion.


*Nakamura/Ibushi*: Aka "When Juniors Man the Fuck Up." While Devitt is taking short cuts via Bullet Club, Ibushi has been winning cleanly against heavies. Unfortunately he was up against Nakamura today. And Swagsuke don't play that.

The match itself was great. Some of Nakamura's more contrived spots made more sense this time. He was hitting knees from every angle, lol. And Ibushi's selling was better than in some of the previous matches. Plus, cool flippy spots.

It's the finishing stretch that REALLY caught my attention. For some, it might for the wrong reason. For me, it sold Ibushi to the NJPW audience like destroying Tanahashi did for Ishii. As I said before, Ibushi manned the fuck up. And it was awesome.


----------



## DOPA

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW 4/8): ****1/2*

Jesus christ this was amazing. Brutal as fuck.


----------



## DOPA

*Prince Devitt vs Hiroshi Tanahashi (NJPW 4/8): ***3/4*

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi (NJPW 4/8): *****

Two other MOTYC's from Day 4 which ruled as a show overall so hard.


----------



## Groovemachine

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW G1 Glimax Day 4 - *****

Ibushi's stock just went WAY up. Talk about BEAST MODE, Ibushi was a machine here, taking a ton of punishment but perhaps more significantly dishing it right back. Even his palm strikes looked legit. Both men are gonna be sore in the morning, that's for sure. This was a totally different Ibushi than I'm used to seeing. Terrific stuff.


----------



## Rah

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata (04/08/2013 NJPW)*
_It's in this type of environ that Shibata truly shines and one that can work Ishii's angle superbly. The opening moments are like the professional wrestling version of Takayama/Frye from PRIDE with both men just busting each other with vicious elbows and kicks. I absolutely adored both men throwing strategy out the window and rather going with ensuring they look like the total badass at the expense of their opponent. It may have been Shibata's kicks that leveled the bald, stocky bastard but, of course, Ishii had the last laugh in retaliating to every vicious kick with smart alec trashtalking.

Forget about Tanahashi/Ishii, this is the manner in which Ishii's matches are meant to be formed. Nothing akin to David & Goliath, yet Shibata is the perfect executioner hellbent on killing Ishii, while Ishii is the perfect victim to sell Shibata's work so, so well._​


----------



## seancarleton77

Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata was every bit as good as Nakamura & Sakuraba from earlier this year, if not better. There is no way this match is not a top 5 match of 2013 by the year's end. *****


----------



## seabs

*Half way through Night 4 and I'll post a proper review later or tomorrow but Ishii/Shibata is my MOTY right now and significantly better than the Tanahashi match. ****3/4.*


----------



## Chismo

Ishii/Shibata *******

I will never watch wrestling again.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rewatched Tanahashi vs Ishii. Yeah, not the top match of the Climax for me - Ishii/Archer & Shibata/Kojima > - but some top notch work from Ishii. Tanahashi was weird in it pardon the dick tactics in the start. Weird in a good way how he used his status in the company to force him to be a punching bag for Ishii leading into some terrific nearfalls. The La Magistral following the High Fly Flow was the tops. Ishii beats the tar out of Tana while he just won't stay down. A different way to root for Ishii on as a the underdog compared to the first match Ishii had vs Archer. Where that size difference was played out and it was a much more "traditional" type of underdog war.

So this is still the third best match for me so far. I'll be watching Night Four later tonight. By the sound of it...I think Ishii vs Shibata is going to blow the lot right out of the water.


----------



## DOPA

I may have to rewatch Ishii/Shibata tomorrow :mark:.


----------



## Chismo

Sweet Jesus, Ishii/Shibata had me marking out like a freakin' madman, there were points in the match where I was just laughing like Kevin Steen and Excalibur, unbelievable match. WAR!


----------



## Last Chancery

Just caught Ishii vs. Shibata, and that was some insane stuff. The best bit was immediately after the kneeling strike exchange when Ishii fucking sneezes and loses his place, then gets kicked hard as fuck right in the ribs. Never, ever seen that happen before, and I'll be damned if I didn't burst out laughing hysterically for two minutes straight before having to watch it all over again. I'm not too, too accustomed to strong style, so the ending sequence threw me for a bit of a loop. I appreciate the ferocity but it seemed like push-button video game type of stuff after so long. These guys are taking brutal, legit punishment all match long, so by the end of it, I feel like they should've been a little worn down. I don't know, in my opinion fighting spirit's pretty sweet, but having a whole match full of it takes a bit of the wind out of its sails. Still would rate this ****-****1/4.


----------



## seabs

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 04.08.2013*
_Jesus wept. The best thing about this for me is that you could give two ROH guys right now the exact same layout for this match and it would be awful. It had your turn my turn strike exchanges, leaping up from suplexes to get your own and kicking out at 1 yet it still ruled. Why? Because these two know how to this match perfectly and Generico ROH Wrestling A fucking doesn't. I'll miss a ton of great stuff out that deserves mentioning but whatever. I thought this did a better job of establishing Ishii as the underdo working from behind up a fucking massive hill than the Tanahashi match did. I mean Ishii was obviously the underdog there too but Shibata was a lot better at establishing how much ahead of Ishii he was than Tanahashi ever did. So that means you've got Ishii fighting for his life just to hang with Shibata and not get knocked the fuck out until he finally makes himself an opening out of literally nothing and THEN he gets to start working equal with Shibata and even working on top of Shibata. Ishii's selling of the early strike exchanges makes them too and establishes that Shibata is the superior from the start. Ishii's absolutely perfect selling strike exchanges because he has this perfect mix of not selling strikes and then making one strike seem like it was on the money and a potential death blow. And he doesn't do this silly Davey Richards lights knocked off sell of a strike either. Anyone can act dead and fall to the mat. Ishii's stumbling around the ring and acting disoriented is what makes it better than youy typical Indy strike exchange. Then you've got the leap up after a suplex spot which is generally awful but it works here and it works extra well as a huge spot in the match where Ishii really starts to get a look in. The spot is meant to be a spot where the guy leaps up and throws everything left at regaining the advantage in that split second and that's exactly what Ishii encompassed either. Then following it up by countering Shibata's attempt just ruled. Kick out at 1 spots from both men were exactly how they should be done too and at the exact right moment in the match. Those headbutts were absolutely sick, especially that one from Shibata. The kneeling down to get hit spots usually suck too but they're pretty cool in the right context. This was the right context with Ishii feeling the need to prove to Shibata that he's on his level and then Shibata trying to show Ishii up in return. This is pretty close to a perfect example of what this match should go like. MOTY right now for me by some distance. Expect Meltzer to give this the full 5.



Spoiler: Finish



Now here they had me losing my fricking mind. The Ishii/Tanahashi one was a little too perfectly set up for Ishii's big win for me and it didn't really have that shock feel good factor because it was so blatantly set up for a Ishii win. This one Ishii had no right to win and didn't buy into him actually pulling it out until he hit that brainbuster and then I just froze in shock. The back and forth false finishes were a lot better here too because they were more frantic and quite frankly the match was just better.


_
*****3/4*

*Minoru Suzuki vs Tetsuya Naito - NJPW 04.08.2013*
_So yeah I'm pretty surprised to see people not very high on this because I thought it was great. I really like Naito's new edge with his slaps. I do love a good slap to spark a match up. Suzuki's maybe the best worker in the world at his peak and this was maybe the best he's been this year. Their little strike flurries were great and I loved how Suzuki would come out on top of all them because Naito's playing his game now. Leg work is really good and Naito sells it really well even during his comeback. The legbar submission stretch was brilliant and perfectly followed up with the piledriver attempt.


Spoiler: Finish



I actually would have prefered for Suzuki to have finally got him up for the finish and ended it there but the actual finish was good too. I loved how Naito managed to leap from one end of the ring to the other and then up to the top rope without actually standing on the bad leg. Comeback was quick and effective and didn't discredit the leg work beforehand.


_
******

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW 04.08.2013*
_So this was just very good until them last few minutes when it turned into a serious MOTYC. Nakamura went back to basics more here which I was thankful because recent Shinsuke has been trying a bit too much and it generally hasn't worked. Here he just went back to doing what brought him to the dance and shockingly it worked. Ibushi's always a good base to work off and he's always reliable to get his big spots in. This time he brought a little something extra though that he does from time to time and it paid off massively here. So then you get to what you assume is the generic but good home run with the reversals before one hits their finisher and it's done. I was all prepared for Ibushi to win with the 450 and get his big win and then BOOM. Nakamura gets fucking PISSED and stomps the match into my kind of direction with two guys MAD at each other throwing super strikes. I've watched a lot of Ibushi and this is by far the best he's ever looked during these last few minutes. The moment when he rises up out of the corner and isn't taking any shit anymore is near perfect. Then he has these immense open palm strikes that are making Nakamura cowar away like a little girl and then he fucking closes the fist up and I thought for sure that was the finish. Actual finish is immense and I can live with all of Nakamura's arkward and failed Boma Ye variations this year for this run of Boma Ye's from every direction. Near perfect climax to a match and I'm really glad they kept it to just the final few minutes and didn't work the whole match like that. Better than Tanahashi/Ishii too btw._

*****1/4*


----------



## Obfuscation

Fuck me sideways. I'm watching this right now. Life can be put on hold.


----------



## Nervosa

From my Day 4 review on the puro thread:

Shibata/Ishii
****3/4
I DO NOT BELIEVE WHAT I JUST SAW! HOLY CRAP THIS WAS AMAZING! WHERE TO EVEN START?!?!

How about them both waiting in their corners to charge like horses in a gate, the crowd seeing it and getting pumped before the bell even rings. Then, THE BEST THING IN THE MATCH. They take turns GETTING DOWN ON ONE KNEE to take the others guy's shots. Holy crap, what warriors! Ishii then got cheeky and tried to steal Shibata’s finisher. Shibata responds by saying “Oh no you don’t! Fuck you and eat lariat!” Then later in the match, Shibata goes for his finisher and Ishii responds with: “Oh no, sir, I insist: Fuck you and eat lariat!”Then Ishii in the sleeper spitting all over the place, making it to the ropes, amazing kickouts at 1….holy crap, what a battle. This is even with the Tanahashi match. I’m not sure its better, as others have said, but its right there with it. My second or third place MOTY right now, depending on whether I like the Tanahashi match more or not.


----------



## Obfuscation

FUCK ME SIDEWAYS _(X2~!)_ AT ISHII VS SHIBATA. I just got done jumping up and down with orgasmic joy at what I witness. Holy zombie jesus that was unreal. The fans knew what to expect right as the bell was going to ring too. Oh. My. Goodness. Excuse me while I pick my jaw up off the floor.

The Art of War: as told by Tomohiro Ishii & Katsuyori Shibata. The bigger, bolder, better version.


----------



## smitlick

> New Japan 4/8/13
> 5. Ishii vs Shibata
> ****1/4
> 
> 10. Nakamura vs Ibushi
> ****3/4
> HOLY FUCK I loved this. Seriously never thought Ibushi had a chance in hell but jesus christ did he convince me at some points that he might actually pull it off. I'm probably one of the very few to only people but I have this ahead of both Ishii matches that everyone has loved so far.


New Japans G1 is on fire ATM... So many good matches. Only downsides have been Tenzan & Benjamin for me. Completely worth paying the $150 IMO.


----------



## antoniomare007

Holy fucking shit at Ishii vs Shibata. When overdoing it goes RIGHT. My god.


----------



## Bubz

Jesus I really need to get on G1.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Yuji Nagata vs Kota Ibushi* _G1 Climax 2013 Day 5_ - ****
I love how Ibushi tried to match Nagata blow for blow in their strike exchanges. Nagata work on Ibushi's arm was good and Ibushi did a good job of selling it. I love the finish with Nagata hitting Ibushi with the top rope exploder and several back suplexes to make sure that Ibushi doesn't get back up again.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

*Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomihiro Ishii, New Japan G1 Climax (8/4/13)*

I'd say this is perhaps an apt illustration of how character dynamics and timing can overcome stylistic faults within wrestling. This match had tropes that I generally loathe in current day puro and indy wrestling (repetitive strike exchanges, trading suplexes & fighting spirit kickout at 1s), yet everything was timed so smartly and ingrained in the character struggle of Ishii that I felt it ensured the adherance to said tropes was perfectly acceptable and in the process the best representation of this current style.

Ishii's character works in this environment because he's a genuine underdog and he communicates a sense of always needing to prove himself to his opponent. Seabs made a good point that two guys could wrestle the same match and it wouldn't work nearly as well because you couldn't argue the sequences needed to be included because neither guy works in the role as Ishii does. Even something as potentially egregious as willingly lowering to a knee to absorb punishment worked in the context of the opening exchange with Ishii being outfought and wanting to prove immediately he wasn't someone to be pushed around.

All the sequences were generally timed perfectly and Shibata established himself as the dominant force in dominating most exchanges and working from the top. Loved little moments like him trying to stamp on Ishii's head after finally planting him with a kick after much resilience. Even the spot where Ishii landed a german to Shibata after taking one worked through the timing with Ishii then winning a crucial exchange and immediately plummeting to the mat: the spot in of itself is capable of adding to a match but so many wrestlers utilise it in matches up and down the card that it loses its typical significance. 

The finishing stretch again saw both men utilise the rapid fire exchanges and defiantly shrug off punishment to land one more potentially decisive blow and the visuals of Ishii in the sleeper & Shibata collapsing to the mat after headbutting Ishii were tremendous. The kickouts at 1 generally didn't irk me either as they came about in a believeable manner (Ishii bullishly powering out after eating a kick is perfectly acceptable) although I probably could have lived with Shibata only kicking at 1 once after a lariat, but that's a small quibble for what was otherwise a pleasant experience given what the typical reservations I have with puro and especially New Japan matches.


----------



## seabs

*Forgot to mention it but it needs mentioning because it might have been my favourite spot in the match. Shibata's arm sell after THAT lariat to Ishii. That was amazing.*


----------



## DOPA

*Tomohiro Ishii vs. Lance Archer (NJPW 8/1): ***3/4*

This might end up being a sleeper match of the tournament and was definitely the best match of night 1. Loved it.


----------



## The Lady Killer

I suppose I should check out this Ishii/Shibata match, although I have a really hard time getting into matches when I know absolutely zero about the characters/backstory.


----------



## Chismo

G1 - Day 4:

- Ishii/Shibata is obvious (doh!)
- Naito/MiSu ****1/4
- Tanahashi/Devitt ****
- Makabe/Okada ****
- Nakamura/Ibushi ****1/2

Nagata/Benjamin was really good as well.


----------



## flag sabbath

The Lady Killer said:


> I suppose I should check out this Ishii/Shibata match, although I have a really hard time getting into matches when I know absolutely zero about the characters/backstory.


Shibata has entered the G1 with the express purpose of kicking every motherfucker's head clean off. Ishii is a tough, uber-spirited, never-say-die underdog at the height of his battling powers, having entered a career defining performance against Tanhashi two nights earlier. And frankly, the moments immediately before & after the opening bell should be more than enough to reel you in.


----------



## The Lady Killer

^ Thanks. Assuming G1 is the name of the promotion? Like I said, I know next to nothing about current puro wrestling.


----------



## flag sabbath

The Lady Killer said:


> ^ Thanks. Assuming G1 is the name of the promotion? Like I said, I know next to nothing about current puro wrestling.


Ah. The G1 Climax is New Japan's 23rd annual heavyweight tournament, this year featuring two blocks of 10 guys fighting round robin style over nine nights. As of today, they're five shows in.


----------



## Bubz

Ah, ninja'd.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Ah, gotcha. (Y) 

Thanks. Will have to try to get around to watching some of this.


----------



## seabs

WOOLCOCK said:


> *Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomihiro Ishii, New Japan G1 Climax (8/4/13)*
> 
> I'd say this is perhaps an apt illustration of how character dynamics and timing can overcome stylistic faults within wrestling. This match had tropes that I generally loathe in current day puro and indy wrestling (repetitive strike exchanges, trading suplexes & fighting spirit kickout at 1s), yet everything was timed so smartly and ingrained in the character struggle of Ishii that I felt it ensured the adherance to said tropes was perfectly acceptable and in the process the best representation of this current style.
> 
> Ishii's character works in this environment because he's a genuine underdog and he communicates a sense of always needing to prove himself to his opponent. Seabs made a good point that two guys could wrestle the same match and it wouldn't work nearly as well because you couldn't argue the sequences needed to be included because neither guy works in the role as Ishii does. Even something as potentially egregious as willingly lowering to a knee to absorb punishment worked in the context of the opening exchange with Ishii being outfought and wanting to prove immediately he wasn't someone to be pushed around.
> 
> All the sequences were generally timed perfectly and Shibata established himself as the dominant force in dominating most exchanges and working from the top. Loved little moments like him trying to stamp on Ishii's head after finally planting him with a kick after much resilience. Even the spot where Ishii landed a german to Shibata after taking one worked through the timing with Ishii then winning a crucial exchange and immediately plummeting to the mat: the spot in of itself is capable of adding to a match but so many wrestlers utilise it in matches up and down the card that it loses its typical significance.
> 
> The finishing stretch again saw both men utilise the rapid fire exchanges and defiantly shrug off punishment to land one more potentially decisive blow and the visuals of Ishii in the sleeper & Shibata collapsing to the mat after headbutting Ishii were tremendous. The kickouts at 1 generally didn't irk me either as they came about in a believeable manner (Ishii bullishly powering out after eating a kick is perfectly acceptable) although I probably could have lived with Shibata only kicking at 1 once after a lariat, but that's a small quibble for what was otherwise a pleasant experience given what the typical reservations I have with puro and especially New Japan matches.


*Where it would rank relative to your other MOTYC's this year?*


The Lady Killer said:


> I suppose I should check out this Ishii/Shibata match, although I have a really hard time getting into matches when I know absolutely zero about the characters/backstory.


*You should watch. It's 12 minutes so even if you don't like you've wasted very little of your life. G1 is the tournament that New Japan runs. Think of it like their KOTR which they run every year but in a league format rather than knockout. Shibata is the ex New Japan guy who left to do MMA but now he's back and he works more of a MMA style than a tradition pro graps style. Actually he's essentially a smaller Brock Lesnar. Exactly the same situation pretty much. Ishii is the undercard guy who is amazing (people finally realising this. yay), very rarely actually wins matches but never goes down without one hell of an almighty fight. Guy usually beat Ishii but not without going through a slugfest to get there. This is the first time ever that Ishii's been in G1 or anything close to it (NJ Cup this year kinda but point remains that this is Ishii's coming out party from the undercard) and it's his big opportunity show he can hang with the elite players in New Japan. Think of him as Bryan before he won MITB where he's presented as someone who's pretty low on the hierachy and loses a lot but people recognise how good he is and then he wins the world title and gets to show how good he really is. Now swap Bryan for Ishii and title for G1. And Shibata for Lesnar. 

I'd try and watch Ishii/Archer before it as you'll know who LANCE HOYT/VANCE ARCHER and it's a great set up of who Ishii is and how he works. You don't need to mind but it's a good reason to plug that match.*


----------



## The Lady Killer

Yeah, that helped a ton, actually. Thanks, Seabs. :hb

edit Now I just need a link :side:


----------



## seabs

*Pretty sure it's on youtube. Search NJPW G1 Climax Day 4.

Edit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyGwpDkxS-4 65 minutes in.*


----------



## flag sabbath

from around 1:04:00


----------



## The Lady Killer

Thanks again.

Davey Boy Smith Jr and Shelton are in this? :mark:


----------



## seabs

*Shelton is pretty bad. You should watch Smith's matches. There's a match on that show with Kojima that is very good. He actually faced Shibata on the same show with Ishii/Archer (Night 1) which is very good too.*


----------



## The Lady Killer

Shelton sucks now? Or has he always sucked and I just enjoyed his matches. :side:

Yeah, I think I'll watch this Smith match first.


----------



## seabs

*He's actually tolerable in New Japan because the guys he's wrestling are so good. He looked a lot better during his WWE run then he's shown post WWE. *


----------



## The Lady Killer

Cody was telling me about this NJPW stuff yesterday so naturally I found myself wandering into this thread and asking a bunch of questions. I was telling him the only NJPW I've seen in years (since Caligula showed me a bunch of 90s matches like 5 years ago) was a match Caligula showed me earlier this year. I guess it was Nakamura/Sakuraba from January? It was pretty great from what I can remember. Cali provided a bit of backstory prior which helped a ton.


----------



## The Lady Killer

What belt is Smith holding? :lmao @ him throwing his sweat on the fans after the match.


----------



## seabs

*It's the tag belt. It's not even his. Him and Archer lost them a few months back to the guy he faced there and his partner.*


----------



## The Lady Killer

:lmao Awesome.

If I was to make a guess based on your description of Ishii and Shibata, I would've thought Ishii was Shibata since he's wearing the Lesnar-type gear.


----------



## seabs

*Shibata's only really comparable to Lesnar in the background and history sense because of the pro wrestling to MMA and back to pro wrestling journey. *


----------



## The Lady Killer

Gotcha. Think I'm ready to watch now. :hb


----------



## Rah

Tbh, Shibata was working that style in G1 2003. His match with Takayama (yes, THE GOAT of taking a beating) felt eerily similar to his match against Ishii for the beginning half*. That said, he's swapped his shitty punches for menacing elbow strikes since. (Y)


* I say beginning half because that's how far I got. I couldn't watch anymore after witnessing Shibata's terrible punching in the corner.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Seabs said:


> *Where it would rank relative to your other MOTYC's this year?*


I'd say I'd probably have it above every WWE match this year bar Regal/Ohno and that's purely because the style of match they worked will always resonate with me better than something like Ishii/Shibata when both are worked to perfection. I'd have no qualms with Ishii/Shibata resoundingly being thought of as superior, but stylistically Regal/Ohno will take some beating. The matwork, Regal selling, limb/finger dissection, build to each moment etc just typified what I look for in wrestling. I'm not even really advocating Regal/Ohno was objectively better, but rather that what they did excel in will always gravitate me towards their match more.

I'd probs have it just above Nakamura/Sakuraba as well, though might need to rewatch that one. Nakamura/Sakuraba was definitely more of a UWF meets pro style matchup compared to Ishii/Shibata, but I wouldn't be surprised if I preferred Ishii/Shibata when it was all said and done.

I think you know by now but Okada/Tanahashi just wasn't my cup of tea. I can find a lot of positive aspects in their matches, but I'll forever find it a struggle to remain continually invested and I more often than not find the pacing to be off and a lot of meandering work is thrown in which often makes it hard for me to become fully immersed in everything. I'm also iffy on some of New Japan's finishing stretches. I enjoy the fact they present it as a struggle to escape the decisive finisher, but there are a few times in the past where I've found some counter-counter sequences a tad too choreographed.

Barely seen any pimped Lucha and British/US Indy matches so again nothing from there jumps out ahead as being better. Might hopefully get back on track with both within the next few weeks.


----------



## Obfuscation

WOOLCOCK said:


> *Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomihiro Ishii, New Japan G1 Climax (8/4/13)*
> 
> I'd say this is perhaps an apt illustration of how character dynamics and timing can overcome stylistic faults within wrestling. This match had tropes that I generally loathe in current day puro and indy wrestling (repetitive strike exchanges, trading suplexes & fighting spirit kickout at 1s), yet everything was timed so smartly and ingrained in the character struggle of Ishii that I felt it ensured the adherance to said tropes was perfectly acceptable and in the process the best representation of this current style.
> 
> Ishii's character works in this environment because he's a genuine underdog and he communicates a sense of always needing to prove himself to his opponent. Seabs made a good point that two guys could wrestle the same match and it wouldn't work nearly as well because you couldn't argue the sequences needed to be included because neither guy works in the role as Ishii does. Even something as potentially egregious as willingly lowering to a knee to absorb punishment worked in the context of the opening exchange with Ishii being outfought and wanting to prove immediately he wasn't someone to be pushed around.
> 
> All the sequences were generally timed perfectly and Shibata established himself as the dominant force in dominating most exchanges and working from the top. Loved little moments like him trying to stamp on Ishii's head after finally planting him with a kick after much resilience. Even the spot where Ishii landed a german to Shibata after taking one worked through the timing with Ishii then winning a crucial exchange and immediately plummeting to the mat: the spot in of itself is capable of adding to a match but so many wrestlers utilise it in matches up and down the card that it loses its typical significance.
> 
> The finishing stretch again saw both men utilise the rapid fire exchanges and defiantly shrug off punishment to land one more potentially decisive blow and the visuals of Ishii in the sleeper & Shibata collapsing to the mat after headbutting Ishii were tremendous. The kickouts at 1 generally didn't irk me either as they came about in a believeable manner (Ishii bullishly powering out after eating a kick is perfectly acceptable) although I probably could have lived with Shibata only kicking at 1 once after a lariat, but that's a small quibble for what was otherwise a pleasant experience given what the typical reservations I have with puro and especially New Japan matches.


(Y)

Felt the need to try and plug this to you today, but you're in the loop and watched it before I could. And liked it. Goodie. This was top shelf on the year for me. If not potentially number one on the whole. Wow.



The Lady Killer said:


> Cody was telling me about this NJPW stuff yesterday so naturally I found myself wandering into this thread and asking a bunch of questions. I was telling him the only NJPW I've seen in years (since Caligula showed me a bunch of 90s matches like 5 years ago) was a match Caligula showed me earlier this year. I guess it was Nakamura/Sakuraba from January? It was pretty great from what I can remember. Cali provided a bit of backstory prior which helped a ton.


Yay. :mark:

I expect a few words on talking about Ishii vs Shibata. And hopefully some more to come. 

Backstories aren't too complex so they're easy to explain and jump right into viewing. Especially for the tournament where some develop the story once the match begins. IE Archer vs Ishii although they had some prior history earlier this year from a booming tag match.



Seabs said:


> *It's the tag belt. It's not even his. Him and Archer lost them a few months back to the guy he faced there and his partner.*


It's the NWA Tag Team Championship. He and Archer are the champs for that...organization/promotion or what have you.


----------



## seabs

*Oh *


----------



## Chismo

I remember Takayama and Shibata having a 4 minute match back in 2004, during the Hyper Battle tour, and it was amazing, I rated it ***1/2. It lasted less then 4 minutes, and Takayama fucking killed poor Shibata prick.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Tenryu/Ishii is now without doubt in a category of matches I sorely wish could have happened with both at their respective peaks. 1993 Tenryu marching into New Japan, or Ishii going into WAR stomping grounds to try and defend the honour of his company? Oh sweet jesus.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'd still take it now if it was booked.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Oh no doubt, but pudgy little Ishii going toe to toe with Tenryu when he was at his absolute peak between '93-02? My stars that would be something. Watching Tenryu in turn of the century tags in All Japan working with rookies and dragging them almost single handedly to great matches through his mannerisms, presence and overall ability to integrate the little touches in amongst his brutal offence and grumpy demeanour & then imagining someone like Ishii on the opposite end..ahh why do I do this to myself?

Its like the time I realised Lawler/Chicana or Lawler/Vader would have been incredible circa '85 and now I'm resigned to the fact its a lost pipe dream.


----------



## Obfuscation

This feels like the day when we couldn't help ourselves and mapped out some seriously golden scenarios if Necro Butcher was around during the territory days. Feud vs Lawler in Memphis would be blistering.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Feud would most likely originate after Lawler fucks a teenager he mistakenly believed was over 18. The girl's father is too inept to pose a threat, enter Uncle Necro with a penchant for ridiculous levels of violence.


----------



## Obfuscation

:mark:

Thy imagination is off to the races. What HEAT.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

It would be worth it if Lawler declared he'd give Necro a different piledriver than he gave his niece.


Ironic thing is not a thing I've hypothesised so far would make Lawler the heel in this feud. Man slapped the shit out of a woman on live TV and still got a tremendous pop from the studio audience.


----------



## Bubz

Caught up with some of the G1. Favourite stuff so far...

*Ishii/Archer.* Great dynamic, both guys play the roles you'd expect. Quality stuff. ****1/2*

*Kojima/Shibata.* Great little match, with Shibata shining. He looks like a badass here taking it to a veteran like Kojima, and Kojima isn't anything to scoff at in this either. Good comeback, short and sweet finishing run. ****3/4*

*Naito/Ibushi* was a fun match, some of the counters and sequences these guys did in the finishing run were swell. I enjoy Naito's leg work but it rarely leads anywhere, that was the case here.

*MiSu/Nakamura* ruled I thought. They got a lot of great stuff in for the time. Arm work from both was good, Suzuki sold the small amount of work really well. Nakamura sold it well enough. Great finishing run, fun counters and transitions, awesome finish. Match of the tournament so far for me. ******


----------



## Obfuscation

I was on board with him being the face despite the deflowering of a minor. Didn't even give it a second thought. :lmao


----------



## WOOLCOCK

HayleySabin said:


> I was on board with him being the face despite the deflowering of a minor. Didn't even give it a second thought. :lmao


In that scenario I assume this would make Lawler into something of an even bigger icon to you.

If you ever became a wrestler I'd book you as a CM Punk circa '03 IWA-MS loudmouth who'd constantly rip on the crowd. Your opening line could be 'this company's fees are as tight as the women in here'.


----------



## Obfuscation

I tried to control myself, but King would earn more points than he already has if that scenario was legit. :cgm

YES :mark:

Forever complimented by this. Those fans wouldn't know what hit 'em once I got the mic in my hands.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Just watched Shibata/Ishii. Damn.


----------



## antoniomare007

Imagine Ishii in the Hase role and having an IWGP title match against Hash...


----------



## Last Chancery

WOOLCOCK said:


> Feud would most likely originate after Lawler fucks a teenager he mistakenly believed was over 18. The girl's father is too inept to pose a threat, enter Uncle Necro with a penchant for ridiculous levels of violence.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOg_6s_Qdak

Relevant as fuqq.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs Yuji Nagata* _G1 Climax 23 Day 6_ - ****

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Hirooki Goto* _G1 Climax 23 Day 6_ - ****


----------



## MF83

All this hype got me back to 2013 watching: G1 Style.

I watched just the first four matches from night one and then all of night two. These are my enjoyment rankings of the matches I'd consider goodish to excellent:

1. Ishii/Tanahashi
2. Shibata/DBS Jr.
3. Archer/Devitt
4. Ishii/Archer
5. Yano/Nagata
6. Shibata/Kojima
7. Shinsuke/Misu
8. Ibushi/Naito

I dislike Okada a great deal. That's a hurdle I need to overcome but my god, does he ever irritate me. I'm in this bitch for the long haul now. I'll be back~!


----------



## ywall2breakerj

MF83 said:


> All this hype got me back to 2013 watching: G1 Style.


YES I DID WOOOOOOOOOOOO~!


Suprised you liked Nagata-Yano tbh.


----------



## MF83

Nagata bah gawd tried and he switched up his formula, at least since the last Nagata match I'd seen. They worked well within the Yano To-Ru style at a fastish pace, very entertainingly, and I was fully satisfied come the bell.


----------



## ywall2breakerj

It's probably just the fact you really missed the entertaining trainwrecks that are WAI-TI-ARU singles matches. At least I hope it's that cause that's like Yano's weakest G1 match so far IIRC. OR you'll start rating Yano's matches four stars AGAYN.


Shibata-Ishii was really good. The hype got to me so I ended up a little disappointed but watching them smash into each other was still great fun. Nakamura-Ibushi was a pleasant suprise. Shibata-Kojima and MiSu-Nak are both solid MOTYCs I reckon. G1 WARWAGON~!


----------



## MF83

Shibata vs. Ishii

This was a stupid match. It practically goes right in line with all of my disdain for stiff-for-stiff sakes matches. It had all the bad bits about late 90s All Japan mixed in with (I forget what we named mid 2000s onward Kensuke/Kobashi inspired strikeoff wrestling). However, they _made it work_, using demonstrative psychology, and plenty of it. The setting down on knees, bring-it-bitch machismo and one-upsmanship made the usually mind numbing traits of the typical strikeoff match somehow logical, and oh so effective. They went so hard and sold so well on the way down/when down that the no-selling ridiculousness at the end worked. They filled the typical nothing bits between holds with the little things. This some HIGH workrate match-working. That might be the best finishing sequence of stupid no-selling I've ever seen. It was so ferocious, intense, and quick, without going too long, that adrenaline-type neurohormonal response rationality is perfectly acceptable, and that was the point of it all: to go balls to the wall in a battle of manliness and wills. This almost should have failed but they pulled it off rather astoundingly. I don't know how to rate it and will likely rewatch it but oh hell YES.


----------



## Obfuscation

That's easily been the best part about Ishii vs Shibata. The fact that we all watch it, know that if it was probably anyone else in the world who did it, we'd hate it. _(Credit to Seabs for the comment)_ It's that niche which puts it up in the echelon that's it is held at. Bless both of them for it.


----------



## septurum

Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 8/4/13) **** 1/4

Austin Aries vs AJ Styles (Impact 8/1/13)- *** 1/2 (rating would be a bit higher if not for the lackluster finish)


----------



## Bubz

Ishii/Tanahashi was fantastic. Tana being a dick, Ishii as the underdog, awesome finishing stretch. ****1/4

Ishii/Shibata was fucking unreal. People have covered this really well so I won't harp on about it but fuck, beastly match with amazing little touches thrown in everywhere. Godly finishing run. ****1/2

Nakamura/Ibushi fucking ruled too. Shinskay bullied him around so Ibushi manned the fuck up right here. Another amazing finishing run. ****1/4

Crowd for all of these were amazing.


----------



## flag sabbath

Really enjoyed Smith vs. Ishii from G1 Day 6 - it's pretty much what you'd expect from these two given the strength of their respective performances so far ****3/4*


----------



## Japanese Puroresu

Tanahashi vs Ishii legit 5 stars. Shibata vs Ishi legit 4 1/2.


----------



## Punkhead

From AAA show review I did in lucha libre thread:

*Faby Apache & Drago vs Mary Apache & Halloween* for the AAA Mixed Tag Team Championship. The match started out as a technical showdown between Mary and Drago. I thought it was great. Drago and Faby Apache work very well together. They make a great team. Mary Apache got really fat. And that extra weight doesn't help her in the ring. Even the commentators noticed that. She once weighed 63 kilograms and now she weighs 105 kg, according to the commentators. Tirantes is working his rudo part very well. He may be the best non-wrestler heel in lucha libre. I'm enjoying him very much right now. While he was out, Pierro came to the ring and counted a pin for tecnicos. Title change! Tirantes didn't agree with that, but he couldn't change the decision. I would really love to see Tirantes feud with Pierro. I think the only reason the title change happened is because Halloween is leaving AAA. Anyway, I'm really happy for Faby and Drago. They're a great team. This was one of the best matches in a while. It was great. A bit too short for MTOY. ******

As I said, the match is a bit too short for MOTY, but definitely deserves a mention.


----------



## Nervosa

Only thing from Night 5 that was a MOTY was this:

Nagata/Ibushi
****
Seriously, fuck you, crowd. This was great. It was everything Naito/Nagata should have been on night 3, except Ibushi isn’t a pussy with his strikes like Naito, and Ibushi’s personality is better. Meanwhile, Greatness Grandpa has a great portfolio this week. The before-mentioned Naito match is his worst match, and a lot of people gave that one ****. Besides Shinskay, Nagata has been the most impressive in Group B, in my opinion.


----------



## seabs

*Tomohiro Ishii vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. - NJPW 07.08.2013*
_So these two have been probably the standout stars from G1 up to this point and it's no shock that they managed to produce this great little match. Similar vein to the Ishii/Archer match but Smith gives more up and carries it a little further with his own selling. I'm so glad the Ishii/KES matches delivered like I hoped they would. That double headbutt was brutal and the selling from both men after that was great. Ishii does his usual stuff but I was really impressed by how Smith sold the closing strike exchanges. Chalk another one up for Ishii. This is why I clamoured so hard for him to finally make a G1._

******


----------



## flag sabbath

I'm pretty certain I just saw Jay Lethal & El Ligero have a *****1/4* match (for Infinite Promotions in Liverpool), as implausible as that may sound. I hated Lethal's PWG appearances & he's one of the reasons I stopped watching ROH, but they kept this just the right side of overkill & it was up there with Ligero vs. Tozawa for my money. Red hot crowd helped too.


----------



## septurum

Randy Orton vs RVD (Smackdown 8/9/13) - *** 1/4
Christian vs Alberto Del Rio (SD 8/9)- *** 1/2


----------



## Obfuscation

Haven't made a plug for it yet and I'm feeling lazy but...

Minoru Suzuki vs Tetsuya Naito ~ _NJPW G1 Climax 23 Night Four_

Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi ~ _NJPW G1 Climax 23 Night Four_

These two were on a different level. That entire show was. It brought out the best match of so many in the tournament thus far. Some to where I don't think their performances can be topped. These are two of the better matches on the entire year for New Japan. Especially Nakamura vs Ibushi.

A shout out to Makabe vs Okada from the same event. That makes the cut off for my lists too. Makabe was fabulous as the burly brute in that one. A very fitting rematch that went a different route than the Dominion match. Lets say it subbed out the longer stretch of Okada's flash being negated until he decided to put his dukes up vs Makabe toe for toe & here Makabe took no prisoners and fucked him up. As simple and uncouth of a statement to be ever so truthful to describe the match.


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Lance Archer vs Satoshi Kojima* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****
Great power wrestler vs smaller wrestler match up here. Archer did a good job here by using his strength to counter most of Kojima's offense. Kojima's selling was good along with his timing of his comebacks. I also liked Archer's delayed vertical suplex. I think this is Archer's best match in this tournament.

*Togi Makabe vs Tomohiro Ishii* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****1/4
Another great and intense brawl from Ishii.

*Tetsuya Naito vs Shinsuke Nakamura* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****
This is Naito's best match in this tournament. His selling was actually pretty good here. Nakamura's offense was fun to watch with him pommeling Naito with knees.

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****1/2
Another classic match between these two. I didn't mind the deliberate pace in the beginning as both guys know each other very well. Once Tanahashi was able to get a good shot on Okada's left leg, he started to relentlessly attack it. Okada's selling of the injured left leg was great. 


Spoiler: finish of the match



The finishing stretch was great as both guys tried to hit their finishers but both guys were able to escape due to exhaustion and pain. The time limit draw was well done here.


----------



## Rah

*Kota Ibushi Vs Shinsuke Nakamura*
_This is most probably why you should never judge a book by its cover. On the one hand, Nakamura has done nothing for me in a long while, especially so in making grating performances during his CMLL venture by phoning it in as if he couldn't care. Rush/Nakamura could have been a great mesh of characters if it hadn't fallen flat and left me saddened at the prospect. On the other, though, Ibushi hasn't interested me in a very long time. Where Nakamura's had a phenomenal match with Sakuraba, Ibushi's been left in DDT to reinforce the stereotypes of the Japanese juniour division. Despite this, however, the culmination of both wrestlers brings forth a strong candidate for Japan's best match.

Up unto this point Ibushi had been the crowd favourite and rocked the tournament with win after win. Still, he hadn't faced the bracket's top dog, Nakamura, and was still a nobody in Shinskay's eye. The middle may have been a bit perfunctory in having to set up Ibushi's flashy moves, yet I could look past it considering the sections all held their own, logically. I'm equally lazy in trying to sell this as HayleySabin, yet the finishing stretch alone is worth witnessing as anything else from NJPW. The final kick is absolutely brutal. Pretty much an easy MotYC as any._​


----------



## Nervosa

Smith_Jensen said:


> *Lance Archer vs Satoshi Kojima* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****
> Great power wrestler vs smaller wrestler match up here. Archer did a good job here by using his strength to counter most of Kojima's offense. Kojima's selling was good along with his timing of his comebacks. I also liked Archer's delayed vertical suplex. I think this is Archer's best match in this tournament.
> 
> *Togi Makabe vs Tomohiro Ishii* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****1/4
> Another great and intense brawl from Ishii.
> 
> *Tetsuya Naito vs Shinsuke Nakamura* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****
> This is Naito's best match in this tournament. His selling was actually pretty good here. Nakamura's offense was fun to watch with him pommeling Naito with knees.
> 
> *Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 8_ - ****1/2
> Another classic match between these two. I didn't mind the deliberate pace in the beginning as both guys know each other very well. Once Tanahashi was able to get a good shot on Okada's left leg, he started to relentlessly attack it. Okada's selling of the injured left leg was great.
> 
> 
> Spoiler: finish of the match
> 
> 
> 
> The finishing stretch was great as both guys tried to hit their finishers but both guys were able to counter due to exhaustion and pain. The time limit draw was well done here.


Day 8 sounds amazing!


----------



## Smith_Jensen

*Tetsuya Naito vs Karl Anderson* - _G1 Climax 23 Day 9_ - ****1/4


Spoiler: the match



Anderson's offense were really fun to watch. He dominated Naito for a majority of the match. Naito sold desperation really well as he tried all his big moves on Anderson after countering Anderson moves. He eventually won with his new submission hold.


Edit - Sorry for the confusion. I meant to put in Day 9 instead of finals.


----------



## mk92071

Seeing ^^ post ruined my night. SPOILERZ


----------



## flag sabbath

That's not the final, it's a block match. But yeah, I'm off here til I've seen the last two nights now.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Another shoutout for Nakamura vs Ibushi from Day 4 as well. Absolutely brilliant match and one hell of a finishing stretch. The Boma Ye at the end was devastating.


Can't wait for Day 6, esp Okada vs Tanahashi.


----------



## Chismo

G1, Days 6 & 7:

- Nakamura/Nagata ****
- Okada/Ishii ****


----------



## rafz

NOAH 07/07
_KENTA vs. Naomichi Marufuji_
Best match of these two in the past three years.
*****1/4*

AJPW 14/07
_Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki - 2/3 Falls Match_
One of the best 2/3 falls match that i've ever seen, awesome!
*****1/2*

NJPW Kizuna Road Akita 20/07
_Kazuchika Okada vs. Prince Devitt_
Great to see Devitt work as a heel after all these years as a baby face.
******

NJPW G1 Climax 02/08
_Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii_
*****1/2*

NJPW G1 Climax 04/08
_Kota Ibushi vs Shinsuke Nakamura _
*****1/2*

NJPW G1 Climax 04/08
_Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii_
What fantastic war, so far the best thing that I've seen this year in professional wrestling and MMA.
*******


----------



## Chismo

*G1 Climax 23 - Day 8*:

- Makabe/Ishii ****1/2
- Suzuki/Ibushi ****1/4 (slapfest!)
- Tanashi/Okada ****1/2 (doh!)

Damn good matches, but not MOTYCs:

- Kojima/Archer ***3/4
- Nakamura/Naito ***3/4


Phenomenal show. 



rafz said:


> NOAH 07/07AJPW 14/07
> _Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki - 2/3 Falls Match_
> One of the best 2/3 falls match that i've ever seen, awesome!
> *****3/4*


Agreed. WATCH THIS MATCH EVERYONE!


----------



## Das Wunderberlyn

Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii - *****
G1 Climax Day 4


----------



## Bryan D.

Shibata vs. Ishii - ****1/4-****1/2

Not sure yet, really. I feel like ***** is too much but ****1/4 is not enough.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Shibata vs Ishii
****

Nakamura vs Ibushi
****1/2

Okada vs Tanahashi
****1/4


----------



## Das Wunderberlyn

Shibata is fucking ridiculosly good. The chop/kick fest, the sleeper with ishi spit. Great match. From the same show i was also impressed with Davey Boy Jr.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Yep, DBS Jr has improved massively. So has Lance Archer. I don't know how but New Japan usually does a great job in helping the gaijins realise their full potential.

I loved Shibata/Ishii too but Nakamura/Ibushi edged it out for me due to how well the underdog story was presented and DAT finishing sequence. DAT kickout at one, only to get nailed with another Boma Ye. Brilliance.


----------



## Obfuscation

Archer has been killing it to a degree I knew he would and while always been a fan of Smith, his work in the Climax has proven to be showcased at a very high level too. Talked somewhere about how I thought he made the match vs Tanahashi stand out more than Hashi himself _(my reasoning proved that to be a fine quality overall)_. Smith demolished Makabe in really good fashion - I liked the story and work behind that match. He had a neat battle with Shibata to start things. That one with some more time behind it could have been truly great. He & a hot Kojima worked incredibly well off one another, yada yada yada. Archer didn't surprise me so far, but Smith kind of did. And that's nothing more than a positive. Glad he's shining just as much. Ready for the bold comment? I think I'm liking him more than his father. Really. He appeals to me more and I can't quite explain it. Probably b/c he feels so massive and working matches that emphasizes his power game/size is doing wonders.


----------



## Das Wunderberlyn

Apart from his matches with the Harts i never really found dbs sr entertainig. Team with dynamite was great for sure but i can see why vince didnt give him the singles push. 

Prince Devitt also has been kicking there. His match with Tanahashi was very close with wwe main events with all sorts of interferences


----------



## MF83

Ibushi tai Shinsuke. 

Average, maybe above average first two thirds. Why is this hyped so? Then, Ibushi does the Phoenix Splash to knees. Then, Shinsuke drops the gimmick and is intense, veteran heavy heel face kicking, and I love him again. Then, Ibushi drops his babyface gimmick and starts, like, Vadering his way back. What the fuck am I watching? I don't know, but I love it. What a fantastic finish. Sliding Boma Ye one countftw; what a moment. Great finish. YAY~! ****1/4


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Nakamura/Ibushi G1 Day 4 - ****

Not agreeing with most of the ratings on here maybe because I'm still fairly new to puro/the characters/wrestlers/movesets and not into MMA stuff but this was my favorite match so far.


----------



## Nervosa

Tanahashi/Okada
****1/2
I love the familiarity between the two, especially in the early spots. Both of them are forced to come up with creative ways to hit their stuff. This was what everyone said Punk/cena was from earlier this year…..except this was done right. Neckwork vs. armwork ruled. Then Tanahashi switched focus to the leg, and I think that’s where it really picked up. Loved Tanahashi going apeshit and just stomping over and over into the leg. Okada’s selling is just amazing. It just adds so much to all of his matches. I thought the finish was really well done, and thought there were several spots where it looked like they just might beat the clock. The finish, to me, was perfectly timed.

I actually think this is their third best match together. Better than Wrestle Kingdom, but not as good as Dominion or their very best at Invasion Attack.


----------



## Chismo

*G1 Climax 23 - Day 9*:

- Naito/Karl ****
- Kojima/Okada **** 
- Tanahashi/Shibata ****1/4 (that COUNTER!)


----------



## septurum

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Invasion Attack 4/7/13)- **** 3/4


----------



## Rah

Where's *Concrete* at? I've got a match for him!

*Charles Lucero Vs Rey Hechicero (04/08/2013 Fighters NICE)*
_While Lucero is definitely no Navarro or Terry, he's still an interesting prospect as an old mat-wizard. Considering this guy hasn't made tape before three weeks ago (I'm sure he's been fucking around the Indies for decades), he's definitely become a bittersweet treat to witness (with the bitterness in realising I've missed years of his work that I will never see). It's funny to note that, on a card with only three matches, this was sandwiched between such throw-away, typical Indy bouts in an exotico tag, and a garbage inter-gender hardcore match. This most certainly is no throw-away, typical Indy bullshit, though. So frustrating seeing the official keep Lucero off the supposedly injured Hechicero (following a nasty missed dive), as I just wanted Lucero to go ape on the downed champion, but it played into the match fair enough. Without that, Lucero was a definite lock to win, so I hope this continues their feud. Still, Lucero most certainly shines in his role of out-dated mat-working brawler and foil to Hechicero's beautiful subs and holds. Old school lucha is alive and well!_​

While August has turned into an absolutely stellar month for wrestling (with a good number of matches still to come that may change a few MotYC lists), the 4th has also shown itself to be a strong contender for great wrestling. Not only did it feature both Ishii/Shibata and Nakamura/Ibushi from G1 Day 4, it also featured one of the better lucha matches of the year that absolutely creams the Japanese nominations.


----------



## Concrete

Did I ever post the trios match with Lucero and Hechicero?Cause there were bits of that match that were insanely awesome. But that is certainly a match I've been wanting to jump on. Video games have drawn me away from wrestling for a little bit. SO much to watch between that in G1.


----------



## Rah

I'm not sure if you did, quite frankly. Not that I was particularly high on it, anyway. Lucero wasn't truly a standout like he was pimped in it, while the two matches with Hechicero put him over for myself. First is nice, but this is just downright gold.


----------



## septurum

KENTA vs Naomichi Marufuji (Pro Wrestling NOAH 7/7/13)- **** 1/2


----------



## Concrete

I highly enjoyed the vets sections in that trios match. The other guys looked very scrubby with the first fall sticking out in my mind. They couldn't interest me in the slightest with their matwork. Second fall for me felt so much more lively.


----------



## Rah

Apparently Lucero had a match with Panther! It's on SlamBamJam's Lucha Libre Azteca Vol. 14 disc. If I had a credit card or Paypal I'd most certainly jump on that match.


----------



## Nervosa

G1 Final day

Just one MOTYC on the final day, and it's this beauty (copied rom my review in the puro thread)
Suzuki/Yano
****
I’m not even exaggerating: that’s how much I loved this! These two are awesome together. I love how Yano gets his ass handed to him for five minutes without landing any offense. Then he takes Suzuki down by his hair for ONE second and smiles like he just took a dump in Suzuki’s coffee. Hilarious. They told a good story of Suzuki having wrestled Yano so much that he is able to stay a step ahead of his bullshit and continuously work the leg. Favorite part was Suzuki about to do his trademark headbutt spot, but Yano reversing it into a backslide with a lowblow and two near rollups. The finish also worked perfectly, turning defeat into victory instantly for the winner. This was so incredibly cool. I know not everyone likes Yano…..but I think his act is genius, especially now that he gets cheers for it, somehow. I don’t think he gets appreciated for what a truly great storyteller he is. This was just a really smart, well-worked story, and played out in a way that was so much fun.


----------



## Bubz

*NJPW G1 Day 8*

*Okada/Tanahashi* was absolutely fantastic. The start was great with all the early finisher attempts and counters. The 'we know each other so well now' stuff came off so well here I thought. Okada at first avoiding the attempts from Tanahashi to go after the leg, moving out of the way of all the dropkick attempts to the leg etc, all great stuff. I loved the counter by Okada just popping up and dropkicking Tana off the ropes when it failed the first time. All new and creative ways to counter the others moves. Okada goes after the neck, neck work is swell as it usually is. Tana's facial expression in one of the neck submissions ruled. Some of this was the same as their other matches, sure, but I felt like they did more than enough to make it fresh and innovative. Okada was great here working in control with his mannerisms and expressions, seeming like he'd finally found out how to avoid everything that could be thrown at him. Then Tanahashi manages to get a hold of the leg and it gets really fucking good. Loved him being extra aggressive and stomping the fuck out of the leg. Okada's selling is magnificent. Like, this is where he looks like the best wrestler in the world imo. The way he would try to throw a strike and just fall over or stumble, or fall to the mat off an irish whip. They kept doing these ace new counters all the way through to really play up that storyline. Cloverleaf was a great spot, especially since it came out of a counter to the dropkick. Final 5 minutes ruled I thought. Great stuff like the HFF counter and Okada selling the leg. Timed brilliantly and executed pretty much perfectly. I know people disliked this portion but it did it for me. Only problem I had with this was Okada's neck work being brushed off by Tana, but Okada still has the advantage of all of his offense being focused on the neck so it will always come back in to play whether the opponent wants to sell it or not, I guess that can be a bad thing sometimes but here it was fine. I thought Tanahashi was great here too btw, not as good as his performance in the Invasion Attack match, but still very good. I get why he started going for his big moves instead of the leg stuff, plus I've really come around to his way of working over the last year or so with him using the leg as a way to cut his opponent down so he can hit his big stuff more easily. It's something that used to really irk me about him but I've grown to accept it and I actually think it's rather good. I knew this went to a draw beforehand, but honestly there were times when I forgot about it and bought into some of the stuff. I really wanted Okada to win on occasions. This was the match of the tournament for me, and I don't think it's far off their title matches at all, in fact I have it right behind their Invasion Attack match.
*****1/2*


----------



## Obfuscation

This is def making the cut and is probably my favorite match all year from a personal level:



Spoiler: G1 Climax 23 Finals



Tetsuya Naito vs Hiroshi Tanahashi

The drama was in high spades here. Didn't take much for me to get sucked in once Naito won his block. Especially after the great performance he showed vs Anderson. And debuting the new sequence into the Koji Clutch too. Off that high - and the high that was some wicked good Block A matches - I was primed and ready for this. Didn't fail for me. Not sure why some thought Naito's selling was off here. I felt he acknowledged it well even on the few portions he was using his speed to dictate his offense. I had a few more gripes with Ibushi in two other matches from the tournament on how he no-sold than anything I saw here. That's just me. Tanahashi was the MAN per usual. There is a reason why the man is the Ace. He rarely disappoints. Tana's formula has always been one I loved watching too. The dissection of Naito's knee was that of vs Suzuki from King of Pro Wrestling level gnarly. Only with the added element of it being where Naito was injured at. As if Naito wasn't 100% loved by the fans at the start of the match, Tanahashi destroying his knee would only offer up more sympathy for the kid to rise up and come back. Finishing stretch was about as dramatic as you could ask for. Good GRIEF was I spent during some portions. The insane cloverleaf by Tana, frankensteiner counter into the roll up INTO the Styles Clash followed by the HFF on the back of Naito. Insanity. Tana went for the final blow for another HFF only for Naito to counter it? WHAT? Yep. I was gone at this point. LOVED Naito using Tanahashi's wrap around neckbreaker as a counter spot to catch Tana off guard and lead into to the finish. Similar spot was used with Kojima & Okada earlier in the night. Great touches to both matches, for sure. Tana fell victim to his own slick transitional set up move. I loved all of this. I really, really did. If I'm the only who has it at a mega level then so be it. We all have our opinions and thoughts. As if I didn't adore the bulk of the tournament from start to finish, the finals tied everything together beautifully & I couldn't have possibly been any happier with the end result & match. All of the men who worked their asses off during the week are kings. And lucky me, Naito reigned supreme at the end of the day. Fantastic match. :mark:


----------



## Nervosa

Spoiler: response to cody



While I thought it was too sloppy and lost the crowd at key points, I agree entirely with Cody that Naito's selling was not at all that bad. Yes, he did the same moves, but he limped through them and actually made them look less effective as a result. Even when on offense, I always felt like he was struggling with the leg. I gave it ***3/4 due to the sloppiness and some poor storytelling decisions, but I can see the appeal.


----------



## Obfuscation

Spoiler: more stuff



Already rewatched it and everything held up. Even post match he was selling the knee. Sufficed to say, a bit like that even surprised me. Appreciated the little touch. And while I did notice one or two portions looking sloppy, I thought that was fair game with the exhaustion coming in. Only drew up the spirit of both trying to overcome the struggles of the match they were in + working previously in the night. Sort of making up the story as they went along type deal. The forearm & crossbody split/miss is the one that comes to mind. Perhaps not even going the way initially planned, I did like how it looked as if both wanted to hit a desperation move out of nowhere with both crashing and burning. All aspects clicked for me in this one.


----------



## Concrete

*Rey Hechicero vs Charles Lucero (8/4/13 Poder Y Honor):****1/4*
_:'). This match was a treat and a half. I'm not sure if there is a wrestler I've enjoyed more from my limited viewing than Hechicero. The man's submissions bring sexy back. He grabs limbs does a cyclone and makes his opponents say uncle. First fall is swanky matwork. Both guys can do it but in their own way. Hechicero walking up the ropes with his hands to take Lucero down with the headscissors was SWEET AS FUDGE!I mean it could have took me out of the match but it didn't. I think there was one strike in the first fall and it was a dropkick that I thought was gonna take off Hechicero's head. DAMN! Second fall took it a notch down in the cool as hell matrasslin' but whatever. Lucero wasn't out there to do the cool stuff. He was out there to be effective and cause that's what he does. Not bad by any means but just not at the cool level of FALL #1 nor did it reach the DRAMA of FALL #2

Third fall makes me flirt with rating this match even higher. Hechicero takes the nuttiest, and I mean NUTTIEST,of bumps. Looks like they might have to legitimately stop it. People are coming out and I have to imagine they are saying "WELL DAMN DUDE CALM YO SHIT! We might need to stop this before someone dies" Then Lucero wants to show he can go BOOM and does a splat on the floor. Now those people that thought Hechicero was hurt are still out here and they're still question health. Yes I am making up dialog. SO MUCH DRAMA! We get an ending and it feels so right. 

If we get yet another match between the two with awesome matwork mixed with the VIOLENCE that this match lacked we are talking top spot stuff. Heck this already high on my list and unlike some stuff I have above it this might actually go UP on a rewatch._​


----------



## Bubz

Thoughts on the final copied from the Puro thread...



Spoiler: Final



Naito totally brushing off the leg work constantly did my fucking head in. Naito's a guy who can be really good sometimes and other times come off as really bad and here he was leaning more towards really bad imo. Tana did his best to keep going back to the leg but what was the point when Naito is springbording and flying around like nothing the next minute. He was worse than Ibushi was in the Suzuki match for me because Tana obviously was going back to the leg and yet he still didn't sell it apart from a couple of limps. You can't be falling over one second off an irish whip during the workover because your leg is in so much pain, and then doing all kinds of kicks and dives and submissions and bridging pins that all involve the leg almost right after. Silly Naito. It was also too long.


----------



## Obfuscation

Well I disagree with Bubz on the length. :side:


----------



## Bubz

<3


----------



## DOPA

G1 Climax Day 2

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW 8/2): ****1/2*

Been said enough times but FUCK this was amazing. 

*Satoshi Kojima vs. Katsuyori Shibata (NJPW 8/2): *****

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Minoru Suzuki (NJPW 8/2): ***3/4*


Yes I'm well behind, still need to catch up on day 3, 5-9


----------



## bigbuxxx

Just finished the G-1 tourney:

Day 1:
Anderson vs Nakamura - ***3/4
Ishii vs Archer - ****

Day 2:
Nakamura vs MiSu - ****1/4
Goto vs Okada - ****+
Ishii vs Tanahashi - ****2/3

Day 3:
Yano vs Nakamura - ****

Day 4:
Ishii vs Shibata - *****
Devitt vs Tanahashi - ****
Okada vs Makabe - ****1/4
Nakamura vs Ibushi - ****1/2

Day 6:
Nakamura vs Nagata - ****

Day 8:
Makabe vs Ishii - ****
Ibushi vs MiSu - ****+
Tanahashi vs Okada - ****2/3

Day 9:
MiSu vs Yano - ****
Naito vs Anderson - ***3/4
Naito vs Tanahashi - ****+


----------



## EmbassyForever

*WWE Summerslam 2013:*

BROCK LENSAR VS CM PUNK - *****

MY GOD.


----------



## Rickey

*WWE Summerslam 2013*
CM Punk(The Best) vs. Brock Lesnar(The Beast)

Enjoyed it way more than all of Brock's matches vs. HHH. Up there with Lesnar vs. Cena, though not as brutal still pretty great.


----------



## bigbuxxx

oh wow  can't wait to d/l it tomorrow


----------



## Caponex75

Yeah, no spoilers please. I'm downloading the show as soon as I get home but love ti hear reviews.


----------



## dukenukem3do

*WWE Summerslam 2013*

Punk vs Lesnar ****1/2 Better than Lesnar/Cena imo
Cena vs Bryan ****1/2


----------



## darkclaudio

WWE Summerslam 2013
Christian vs Alberto Del Rio ***1/2+
CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar ***1/4 Overrated Match
John Cena vs Daniel Bryan ****


----------



## septurum

WWE Summerslam 2013:

ADR vs Christian- ****

CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar- **** 1/4

Daniel Bryan vs John Cena- **** 1/2


----------



## Rickey

*WWE Summerslam 2013*
John Cena(c) vs. Daniel Bryan(The Beard!)

Great match...WATCH IT!


----------



## Sephiroth

WWE Summerslam 2013
Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk - *******
*WWE Title*: John Cena(c) vs. Daniel Bryan - ***** 1/2*


----------



## EmbassyForever

*WWE SummerSlam 2013:
*
Christian vs Alberto Del Rio - ****
Brock LESNAR VS CM PUNK - *****
John Cena vs Daniel Bryan - ****1/4. DAT ENDING BRO.


----------



## antoniomare007

Brock/Punk and Cena/Bryan feels like Brock/Cena and Fella/Bryan at ER last year. Both great matches, both very different from each other (a "fight" vs a "wrestling match" kinda way) and both fucking awesome. Can't go wrong with either or them honestly so go watch them.


----------



## Zatiel

Both Lesnar/Punk and Cena/Bryan lived up to my expectations. Excellent matches, and very different thanks to the personal story and weapons in Punk's match. I don't buy one being "better" than the other. They ruled in their own ways. Summerslam is my favorite WWE PPV since the Cena/Lesnar Extreme Rules.


----------



## Obfuscation

Umm yep. Brock vs Punker & Danielson vs Cena. Here. Def. All the way.

Jesus christ.


----------



## peep4life

EmbassyForever said:


> *WWE SummerSlam 2013:
> *
> Christian vs Alberto Del Rio - ****
> Brock LESNAR VS CM PUNK - *****
> John Cena vs Daniel Bryan - ****1/4. DAT ENDING BRO.


This it's what i meant to quote sorry about double post

Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## geraldinhio

Loved Brock vs Punk I'd go about 4 and half, maybe more on a rewatch. Wasn't the biggest fan of the ending, seen no need for Punk to lock in the vice on Heyman. Other than that loved it. Punk played a fantastic face in peril and Brock was well, Brock.


----------



## Mr Joe Perfect

*Summerslam 2013*

Brock Lesnar VS CM Punk - ****1/4
John Cena vs Daniel Bryan - ****1/2


----------



## xdoomsayerx

Brock/Punk is MOTY. ****3/4



Brocks best match back IMO.


----------



## DOPA

Loved Summerslam

*Christian vs Del Rio: ***3/4*
*CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar: ****1/2*
*John Cena vs Daniel Bryan: ****1/4*


----------



## seabs

*Christian/ADR was really good. Their TV matches were always good and then they had one on SD 2 weeks ago that I thought was as good as this one. I liked Del Rio a hell of a lot more than normal in this. He's much better when he's focused on being vicious rather than trying to draw heat from the crowd in between every move and being too fancy. Arm work is great and duh Christian's selling is always gonna be on point. Finish was good too. ***3/4

Punk/Lesnar started out like a potential MOTY with Brock annihilating Punk. Then it got a little slow when they started doing their submissions and it looks less like a massacre and more like a contest which drew me out of it a little. Finish was a bit too .... traditional? I don't know. I would have preffered Brock to be throwing Punk around ringside for longer and for Punk to just get one or two big nearfalls before his focus on Heyman cost him. I think they were too worried about having Punk look too weak. Something closer to how Cena/Lesnar was structured would have worked a lot better here for me because I didn't think Punk needed to get in as much on Brock as he did. Especially when he's getting his win at a later date over him. GTS and the DDT F-5 counter were great near falls though. I would have done less with Heyman at the finish. Just have him run in once and get Punk to chase him before running right into an F-5 for the finish. Fits perfectly with the story that Punk wants Paul more than Brock and that's gonna get him killed because the other guy is BROCK LESNAR. Not sure why Punk is getting his hands on Heyman this early too. Really that should be the big finale of the feud but whatever. Could have done with it being a bit shorter too. Went like nearly 30 right? ***3/4

Main event was MOTN for me. Thought it was great but at the same time I was also waiting for it to become something special and it never really did. Maybe that was having my expectations too high but I think it's fair to expect for Bryan and Cena to produce something really memorable in this context. It was still great though. Finish was strange. If that's the finish then I don't know why Bryan was beating people with it on TV in the build up. I mean he didn't even beat Barrett with it on SD. Debuting a new move to win you the title is odd becase nobody really expects that to be the finish which is strange for the reaction when it is. Did anyone expect the AA to be the finish when it came? Thought not. Ending was predictable but at the same foreshadowed pretty well. It's a shame that Bryan will still be overshadowed at every point by others. Kinda like he's in the spotlight but the spotlight isn't ON him. He's still probably feuding with Orton, Hunter & Vince though which is definitely a move in the right direction and for the story to mean anything he has to win the title back now at some point and get a proper run with it. Hunter turning was clear once he stuck around but I'd rather him be heel than face right now. Orton/Hunter/Vince alliance doesn't sound like the worst thing. Someone has to be the babyface authority figure though. I guess Steph but she's so bad at being likeable. I read that Vince would be the babyface one but that makes no sense in the current context because he was doing everything to screw Bryan out of even getting to Summerslam. Cena/Bryan vs Orton/HHH at Survivor Series? *****


----------



## Groovemachine

*WWE Summerslam 2013*

Christian vs Alberto Del Rio - ***3/4

Brock Lesnar vs CM Punk - ****1/4

John Cena vs Daniel Bryan - ****1/2


Oh boy. Great show. The rest of the card was pretty average but Christian/Del Rio and the fantastic double main events really stood out. I think the thing I loved the most was how much submission work we saw throughout the evening. From the terrific selling of the arm work by Christian leading into Del Rio's arm bar, to the awesome MMA exchange by Brock and Punk, to Daniel Bryan getting the flex his technical muscles with a slew of various holds, we saw some brilliant submission work peppered throughout the show, and it felt unique and out of the ordinary for a WWE event.

Lesnar/Punk was the brutal war we all wanted, and even though we knew Heyman would be getting involved at some point, it never became an overbooked mess. Punk took an absolute beating which made his comeback spots all the more engaging. Thought the No DQ stip was used effectively too; they didn't rely on it, but it gave them a bit of leeway and helped them ramp up the animosity, especially with all the brawling around the ringside area. 

Main event was incredible. Cena and Bryan starting out with catch-as-catch-can wrestling made me so unbelievably happy. Puro-esque slapping segment was amazing, and it was so good to see Bryan and Cena as equals; I thought they'd play up Bryan as an underdog more but thankfully they went toe to toe, both holding their own.

Post-match was brilliantly executed, kept me guessing the whole way; for a second I didn't think they'd pull the trigger. Intrigued as to where we go from here.


----------



## Duberry

Can't be bothered looking up the dates/days for some of the G1 matches but there has been some amazing wrestling this month.

Top 10

Brock Lesnar vs CM Punk **** 3/4
Katsuyori Shibata vs Tomohiro Ishii **** 3/4
Daniel Bryan vs John Cena - WWE Championship **** 1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs Hiroshi Tanahashi ****1/2
Kota Ibushi vs Shinsuke Nakamura **** 1/4
Tomohiro Ishii vs Hiroshi Tanahashi **** 1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs Hiroshi Tanahashi **** 1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Katsuyori Shibata ****
Christian vs Alberto Del Rio *** 3/4
Kazuchika Okada vs Satoshi Kojima *** 3/4


----------



## Corey

*Cena vs. Bryan* may not have had the drama and the nearfalls that Punk/Taker did, but as an entire package from bell to bell I think I can say this is my new MOTY. Both guys did an absolutely astounding job of working off of one another. The strength Cena showed against Bryan's usual attempts at submissions was fantastic, the clothesline from hell out of desperation was fucking AWESOME, and those top rope spots were legitimately shocking. I thought Cena was gonna hit a Styles Clash.  The slapfest and the shock factor of the ending were both brilliant, even Bryan looked surprised he got the 3 count. Cena took all the strikes like a champ and Bryan did extremely well in taking all of Cena's bumps, ESPECIALLY that Liger Bomb and top rop leg drop. Great, great match. ***** 1/4 - **** 1/2

Brock vs. Punk* was hella good for the majority. Brock's control segment was beastly and I loved how he threw Punk around like he was nothing. It did have a really cool big fight feel to it like most of Brock's matches do. I do think some of Punk's offense looked weak as fuck and I believe seeing all the crazy shit that happened on RAW with them over the past couple weeks got our expectations a little high and led me to believe they'd pull out some even crazier stuff (but they didn't). Lots of nasty back shots with the chair and I loved Punk's top rope elbow with it but what really irked was all the slowness and predictability of the last 5 or 10 minutes. I was standing there yelling out everything that was gonna happen as Lesnar creeped out to grab a chair and as Heyman ruined every pinfall for Punk. Really good match still but I know they're capable of better. Put them inside Hell in a Cell and get rid of Heyman, then we've got a classic. ***** - **** 1/4

Christian & Del Rio *went out there and killed it in the midcard. Damn good back and forth match with some ridiculously stiff kicks to the face. Ending sequence was really good and the match as a whole was just great. I'm starting to like Del Rio more and more as time goes on. **** 1/2 - *** 3/4*


----------



## Chismo

Punk/Lesnar 

_I just didn't feel the energy of the match. Both guys were good, Lesnar was even great, but I just didn't feel it. Lesnar tossing Punk around made for excellent visuals (minus the horrible camera work from that one guy), but I don't know... There's something that bothers me in WWE's big matches, it's their damn style, they set up strong pace, fabulous dynamics - and then suddenly everything just dies, and there's a bunch of filler spots and moves. Same happened in this match, the pace was on and off, plus the Heyman stuff... Eh. Very good match, but not great, IMO. Also, fuck Cole and fuck Lawler. They're worse than Tenay and Taz, and that speaks volumes._

***3/4


----------



## Caponex75

I'm not going to lie but I am feeling very violent to those that don't consider Lesnar/Punk & Cena/Bryan MOTYs. Legit great matches right dur.


----------



## bigbuxxx

Punk/Lesnar - ****+. End just killed it for me. As Seabs said, having Heyman get in once is more than enough.

Bryan/Cena - ****1/4ish but def need to rewatch. was actually enjoying the match instead of even remotely thinking of how good it was in terms of stars


----------



## KingCrash

Have Brock/Punk at ****1/2 & Cena/Bryan at ****1/4. The only problem I had with the Heyman interference is it happened one too many times and not necessarily that Punk got Heyman in the Vice since it's been shown that Paul will take a bullet for Brock and the feud's more about Punk annihilating Heyman from the face of WWE then just beating him up once. I also liked Christian/ADR but honestly I liked their Smackdown match a little more then this one.


----------



## Bubz

Both main events were fantastic on first watch. Not sure what rating I'd slap on them yet so I need to rewatch them. There's something about WWE's big matches where I have to see them at least twice to fully appreciate them...or something. Right now I'm thinking that Cena/Bryan is better and strong MOTYC. Lesnar/Punk was great too but it had some stuff I didn't like. I'll go into more detail on both when I've seen them again.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Punk vs. Lesnar - **** 1/4
Bryan vs. Cena - **** 1/4

On first watch I thought Punk/Lesnar was better, which is surprising because I'm not a huge Lesnar fan. I haven't liked much of his matches since he's been back and none were ****. My favorite match was with Taker in Hell in a Cell and I have that at **** 1/2. This was my 2nd favorite Lesnar match and his best since he's been back. 

I was way more excited for Bryan vs. Cena but only had it at **** at first. I thought some of the botches kinda ruined the flow of the match but on the rewatch, I bumped it up to **** 1/4. The botches didn't bother me as much this time since I knew they were coming and the ddt reversal didn't look as bad this time. 

I watched both matches in a movie theatre and they NEVER make it loud enough so you can't really hear the crowd. After watching both matches on my laptop with headphones and no distractions and stupid ******** screaming around me, I have both matches about equal. I can't decide with one was better. They were both amazing and 2 of my favorite matches of the year.


----------



## Tanner1495

Top 5 Matches of the Year so far (Honestly if this changes I'd be surprised)


Lesnar vs Punk *******
Ishii vs Shibata *******
Undertaker vs Punk *******
Cena vs Bryan *****3/4*
Del Rio vs Ziggler *****3/4*

All of these matches have been viewed three times besides Cena/Bryan, which has been viewed twice. Fantastic year this year, I think my #10 is ****1/2 or some shit, and I have only had like 4 ***** matches from 2009-2012, just a good year in my opinion.


----------



## NOTnotJigsaw

*Brock Lesnar vs CM Punk SummerSlam 2013*
*****3/4*

*John Cena vs Daniel Bryan SummerSlam 2013*
*****1/2*

Both high tier WWE MOTYCs. I'll be back with a complete list of MOTYCs from this year later.


----------



## Chismo

Cena/Dragon

_Yeah, this was better than Brock/Punk. Although, I was worried after the first half, because they didn't suck me in, but Cena's flying legdrop changed everything, it led to some great exchanges and counters. Bryan is so damn good, he made this match great, I wish Cena could keep up little bit more, but he did fine. Bryan is insanely over, that's so nice to see, that catchphrase did wonders for his career, but he looks terrible with that long hair. He'd look much more badass with the "short hair + long beard" combo._

****1/4


----------



## Rah

*CM Punk Vs Brock Lesnar (18/08/2013 WWE)*
★★★★
_This started off as the perfect formula. Lesnar decimated Punk to start things off, with Punk taking advantage thanks to some high spots to topple the giant. Punk may not have Brock's strength but anybody goes down when an uncovered knee falls off the top rope into their face. As soon as Punk got his back cut open, Lesnar honed in. Both men had a body part to go for and stuck to it for a good part of the match. It lost all of that toward the end, but the body was good enough to cover for it. Bless Lesnar for fighting the armbar as he did, it keeps that move strong. On the other end of the scale, though, I'm not particularly fond of how the Kimura has been booked. It's the move that broke HHH's arm, yet they still fight within the hold for extended times whenever the hold is used. First with HHH and now Punk. It added a nice transition into the triangle choke, though, admittedly. Punk taking the one-armed powerbomb and relentlessly applying his choke, again, came far too quickly for my liking, too. But those are smaller gripes and down to Punk not being close to Lesnar's performance here; and that's what hurt it most.
_


*Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)*
★★★★ 1/2
_I hope this match plays as a myth-breaker to two important factors. First, and least importantly, to the widely-acclaimed belief that Cena cannot wrestle. Second, that there is no proper reason as to why the ace of a company hardly, if ever, loses. This match is exactly why Cena should be booked the way he has, as it cemented Bryan as the superstar he is. Who was the last guy to beat Cena absolutely clean, in the centre of the ring? Outside of The Rock I cannot think of anyone in recent memory (perhaps Sheamus in 2009) and it certainly wasn't Punk with his illustrious title reign. Additionally, who was the last guy to run as close to Cena's equal as Bryan was here? Forget the post-match shenanigans as this put Bryan right up there where he should be. Perhaps there wasn't a more metaphorical gesture, too, in having Bryan win his first WWE title in the same centre Cena won his.

The story was woven so beautifully, with Cena "the entertainer" now proving to Bryan and the fans that he is, rather, Cena the wrestler. Hell, not that those are mutually exclusive terms as wrestling is entertainment, and this match proved it. Cena is most probably the perfect opponent for Bryan as Bryan can work off of Cena's strengths to pull off his more wrestler/indy-oriented spots (bridging-lift out of pin) while keeping the crowd at an electric pace purely because of the difference in pull for each man. Perhaps because of that, though, this match finds its only drawback. It probably is not the best both men can get out of each other which, in of itself, is a great compliment to the talent of both involved. To his credit, though, Cena played the heel role to perfection. While he's obviously a babyface, and cannot go full blown heel, his little mannerisms drew immense heat from the smarky crowd. Having delivered his spin-out powerbomb, he knew the crowd would be throwing their hands up saying "it's over, 5 moves of doom time" and he played to that so incredibly well in stalling the set-up and smirking into their direction. The kids wouldn't notice a thing, but his haters would. Perfect. He transitioned well into his respect for Bryan, though, once he hit his AA for the two count. "Now I know why they like the kid" is probably why I love John as much as I do. Not because of him sucking up to Bryan, but because he always adds commentary into his matches which allows for more depth than you'd see otherwise. Punk's smart-mouth trash-talking in the previous match lies full-circle to Cena's positive remarks, yet they're moments that add to their characters and deliver the reason as to why sports entertainment is as great as it is. Nothing beats Brock's "that's my manager" line at Extreme Rules, though. 

As I mentioned, this probably was not the best the two could do against each other but it still delivered in every way as it should have. GLORIOUS~!_​




Spoiler: post-Summerslam thoughts



I don't even want to see what the WWE section looks like. Especially after stumbling across this video:





Haters are just going to hate, aren't they? I'd give them some leeway if the injury actually played into the ending (and that's why the match went "KO" not submission to prevent it from doing so) or if it was made more of a focal point in why Daniel Bryan managed to shift momentum. Heaven forbid they work an injury point in a match off a very real and visible injury, though. Of course the shenanigans were coming. Orton/Bryan has been brewing for months, and Orton has been HHH's buddy for years, so who else to work with him? There is no way his spotlight was stolen after he received confetti and fireworks like that. It was a huge moment and momentum shift to WWE's talent. The very fact that HHH turned heel kept Bryan strong, too, as it allowed a surprise attack to level the new champion and not simply Orton picking up the scraps from a tired Bryan (akin to Ziggler/Del Rio). The happiest scenario would have been Orton cashing in and Bryan winning, but where would that take us? With this, we have the best long-term strategy for Bryan worked out. His fight against the corporate machine continues, this time having won Cena's approval and hopefully him as an ally, and it's obvious that Bryan will come out on top afterward. Beating Cena may have been a mountain to climb, but now Bryan faces the summit of Everest on the horizon. When he eventually reaches the top, he'll be cemented in his rightful place. "We don't become champions because we win, we win because we are champions". That may have been a line Cena said to sell Night of Champions but it fits Bryan oh so much more.


----------



## Bubz

Rah that was awesome. Did you see RAW too? As if Bryan wasn't huge already, this is going to propel him into the fucking stratosphere imo. Along with beating Cena clean as a whistle, for god sake they can not mess what they have with Bryan up.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Great review, Rah. I'm a little higher than you on Brock/Punk, but I agree with everything you said about Bryan/Cena. The scary thing is that they could in fact pull off an even better match down the line. Would love a rematch.


----------



## flag sabbath

Thought the early going of Cena vs. Bryan was a right mess, with both guys shrugging off a bunch of big moves (dragon screw, table & steps collisions, steps suplex, yes kicks etc.), rendering everything meaningless. But once Bryan took control with wear downs & submissions, it was mostly terrific ******

Much of Punk vs. Lesnar had the feel of watching a stonewall five-star classic, but the match sagged too many times to maintain that level. I'm a WWE part-timer, but I got the distinct impression that the audience is no longer in awe of Lesnar & that definitely hurt the big fight aura *****1/4*

Del Rio vs. Christian was like watching Olympic ping pong, but they managed to walk the line between evenly matched sprint & indy xbox-fest ****3/4*


----------



## Groovemachine

Young Bucks vs Forever Hooligans - ROH Manhattan Mayhem V - ****

First ROH match of 2013 I've rated at 4* or more. Anyway, this was a terrific tag contest. They had a very grounded opening portion, exchanging tags, all good basic tag team stuff. And then things spilled to the outside and it went crazy. Crowd were going mental which helped things too. Funny to see the Bucks as faces again after all this time as solid heels. For me, Kosloz was probably the stand out of the match; his finishing sequence was incredible, catching Nick Jackson on his shoulders and flipping him over into a torture rack position. So smooth and effortless. Definitely check this out, I can see others going higher on the rating.


----------



## Bubz

*Lesnar vs. Punk*
I thought this was pretty great on first watch, but couldn’t really process my thoughts on it well enough. After this re-watch, it’s clear to me that this was fucking brilliant for the majority. It starts exactly how you’d want it with Lesnar annihilating Punk at every opportunity, just launching him around like nothing. Punk’s initial comeback near the start ruled so much, using high flying to take down Lesnar, but it wasn’t enough. Lesnar cutting Punk off whenever he’d try and come back was so good and Lesnar’s overall performance was phenomenal. So was Punk’s. Punk is seriously the best guy in the world right now at selling exhaustion of big matches, it really sets him apart from most other wrestlers imo. Lesnar worked over the back, ribs and slightly went after the arm in this, and while Punk didn’t sell any particular part, he sold the absolute beating and overall exhaustion and desperation for me not to care in the slightest. I loved all of the ways Punk would take Lesnar down, flying knee off the ropes ruled and looked nasty, the knee’s in the corner and the kicks to the head are going to put anyone down, even Lesnar. I actually thought the submission spots were pretty awesome. First off you have that great counter by Lesnar into the Kimura, then Punk goes for an armbar and catches Lesnar totally off guard with it and it comes off as Punk being so desperate as to try absolutely anything to get the win. I also loved the triangle spot, people have complained that Punk’s triangle looked bad, but I didn’t think it looked bad at all. It wasn’t especially clean or smooth looking, but that totally added to the story of the spot. Lesnar manages to fight out of the armbar and in to a position that enables Punk to just grab whatever he can, Punk already ended up with his legs around Lesnar’s body, so why not go for a submission, anything to try and put this man down. Really felt to me like this was Punk desperately trying to find something. Great spot. Saying that, Brock’s Kimura shouldn’t be applied for as long as it is in these big matches, it weakens the move. Brock’s power bomb out of the move ruled, and so did his amazing facial expression after. The crowd is chanting Punk’s name deafeningly, he’s just managed to kick out of the power bomb, he’s survived Brock’s submission and even managed to almost make Brock tap out, and Brock does this astonishing thing where he’s just looking around the arena in total disbelief at what’s happening. Amazing visual and something that really sets these big WWE main events apart, especially when you’ve got two guys like Punk and Brock in there. Brock wanting to get it over with and going for a chair was great too though, and so was the following chair assault by Punk and the elbow with the chair that looked sick. The last 5 minutes or however are slightly let down by the amount of times Heyman interferes and Punk takes his eyes off Brock. Just felt weird that they’d have Heyman interfere so many times instead of just the once (GTS kickout/interference which was great). I really could have done without the last heyman thing with the punch, for one, Brock shouldn’t need help from his bloody manager to win a match, it made Punk look awesome but he would have looked just as good had they not made out Brock couldn’t have done it without Heyman. Meh at that stuff. But, there was far, far too much greatness in this for that to hinder me enjoyment of the whole much too much, and the majority of this feels like the legit match of the year, but I’d be lying if I said the stuff towards the end didn’t take something away from this. *****¼+*

*Bryan/Cena*
This was absolutely fantastic on second watch. At first I thought it was really good, but a little too back and forth, but this time I really didn’t think that was the case. You have Cena trying to show that he is just as much a ‘wrestler’ as Bryan is, and for the most part he proves it, matching Bryan in the chain wrestling department mostly due to his power being so much more. Honestly, Cena’s performance is full of such subtle brilliant things. He knows how to tell a story in the ring through his facial expressions alone. Some cool sequences like the monkey flip sequence that we’ve all seen before but never in a WWE main event. Someone mentioned that the dragon screw got no sold, but I didn’t think it was intended as a move to set anything up other than a way for Bryan to get the surf board on, and when Cena countered that and got the control in his favor, there was no reason for that one move to the leg to come back in to play because Bryan had to change his game plan up. Cena charging Bryan off the apron was great and a little bit of a dick move, and Cena knew it. Rah said that the casuals aren’t going to think anything of stuff like this, but his facial expression after that and various other stuff was amazing in playing up to the smark fans. Only thing in the whole match I wasn’t keen on was Bryan going to suplex Cena off the steps, felt kind of random at that point in the match, and like they were just doing it to pop the crowd. After that though Cena is in control for a long enough amount of time using all of his power stuff , for Bryan to make a good comeback and transition into his portion of control, which actually lasted a lot longer than I remember, in fact he’s in control of a good deal of the match after that point and it’s great. Using his kicks and submissions to wear Cena down. Cena’s selling and facials are great again throughout this. Bryan going after the arm sets up the Yes Lock nicely, Cena’s selling of the arm is swell on the occasions Bryan goes after it, maybe because it’s a real injury, but still. Cena’s first AA was a really good desperation spot, but I don’t think anyone bought it as the finish. Cena’s face after is a sight to behold. Spider Superplex was awesome and brand spanking new, not sure I’ve ever seen that. Everything after this point is pretty bloody brilliant, a great finishing run but something that still left a lot for a rematch down the line. The call back to RAW with the slap ruled, and then they just start slapping the fuck out of each other and it’s fucking amazing. Maybe my favourite single moment in a match this year. Cena is great in strike exchanges, much like his strike exchanges with Punk in 2011, it just feels like he’s throwing anything at anyone. The whole last section of the match was basically Bryan showing that he is not going to be beaten in a strike exchange, not even by the mighty John Cena. Bryan did go for the Yes Lock again, but once Cena slapped him that was it, he’s going to fucking decimate him because he’s asked for it. Amazing. This felt really special to me, like the Punk mach at MITB, it felt like a realy career turning match for Bryan. The fact that we went out there, wrestled toe to toe with the face of the company, Cena gradually showing more and more respect to him throughout, even disbelief, then Cena asking for a full on fight towards the end to see if he really could beat Bryan, was he doubting himself? I think so, so he wants to see if he really is as good a wrestler as Bryan. He isn’t. And so Bryan wins in a totally clean and comfortable fashion??? Are you kidding me? That’s an amazing moment right there. Bryan is officially made after this, 100%. Who’s beaten Cena clean apart from Rock? Brock couldn’t do it, Punk could never do it, Cena’s even beaten The Rock at Wrestlemania. If they weren’t serious about Bryan, I really don’t think they would have booked that finish because that was ridiculous in the best way possible. Awesome match with a fantastic story and two great performances, a special atmosphere and an amazing finishing sequence. *****1/2*


----------



## Rah

*RAW DISCUSSION SPOILERS*



Bubz said:


> Rah that was awesome. Did you see RAW too? As if Bryan wasn't huge already, this is going to propel him into the fucking stratosphere imo. Along with beating Cena clean as a whistle, for god sake they can not mess what they have with Bryan up.


Just finished watching it now. I absolutely adore the intricate work they're putting in like how The Shield get their wins over Show and, to a lesser extent, Ziggler earlier in the show only for Bryan to run in there and beat them up when it was his time to shine. If going over Cena clean was something, now (hopefully) he's to go over HHH, Vince and The Shield. That's a resume. Wow.

I think it's sinking in that Cena won't be around forever, either. Considering he'll now be out for 6 months (perhaps longer, with a return at the Royal Rumble, I'd assume), this will be Bryan's test run as the face of the company. You know what, I never thought I'd ever say those words but boy does that make me happy.


----------



## 777

Bubz said:


> *Lesnar vs. Punk*
> I thought this was pretty great on first watch, but couldn’t really process my thoughts on it well enough. After this re-watch, it’s clear to me that this was fucking brilliant for the majority. It starts exactly how you’d want it with Lesnar annihilating Punk at every opportunity, just launching him around like nothing. Punk’s initial comeback near the start ruled so much, using high flying to take down Lesnar, but it wasn’t enough. Lesnar cutting Punk off whenever he’d try and come back was so good and Lesnar’s overall performance was phenomenal. So was Punk’s. Punk is seriously the best guy in the world right now at selling exhaustion of big matches, it really sets him apart from most other wrestlers imo. Lesnar worked over the back, ribs and slightly went after the arm in this, and while Punk didn’t sell any particular part, he sold the absolute beating and overall exhaustion and desperation for me not to care in the slightest. I loved all of the ways Punk would take Lesnar down, flying knee off the ropes ruled and looked nasty, the knee’s in the corner and the kicks to the head are going to put anyone down, even Lesnar. I actually thought the submission spots were pretty awesome. First off you have that great counter by Lesnar into the Kimura, then Punk goes for an armbar and catches Lesnar totally off guard with it and it comes off as Punk being so desperate as to try absolutely anything to get the win. I also loved the triangle spot,* people have complained that Punk’s triangle looked bad*, but I didn’t think it looked bad at all. It wasn’t especially clean or smooth looking, but that totally added to the story of the spot. Lesnar manages to fight out of the armbar and in to a position that enables Punk to just grab whatever he can, Punk already ended up with his legs around Lesnar’s body, so why not go for a submission, anything to try and put this man down. Really felt to me like this was Punk desperately trying to find something. Great spot. Saying that, Brock’s Kimura shouldn’t be applied for as long as it is in these big matches, it weakens the move. Brock’s power bomb out of the move ruled, and so did his amazing facial expression after. The crowd is chanting Punk’s name deafeningly, he’s just managed to kick out of the power bomb, he’s survived Brock’s submission and even managed to almost make Brock tap out, and Brock does this astonishing thing where he’s just looking around the arena in total disbelief at what’s happening. Amazing visual and something that really sets these big WWE main events apart, especially when you’ve got two guys like Punk and Brock in there. Brock wanting to get it over with and going for a chair was great too though, and so was the following chair assault by Punk and the elbow with the chair that looked sick. The last 5 minutes or however are slightly let down by the amount of times Heyman interferes and Punk takes his eyes off Brock. Just felt weird that they’d have Heyman interfere so many times instead of just the once (GTS kickout/interference which was great). I really could have done without the last heyman thing with the punch, for one, Brock shouldn’t need help from his bloody manager to win a match, it made Punk look awesome but he would have looked just as good had they not made out Brock couldn’t have done it without Heyman. Meh at that stuff. But, there was far, far too much greatness in this for that to hinder me enjoyment of the whole much too much, and the majority of this feels like the legit match of the year, but I’d be lying if I said the stuff towards the end didn’t take something away from this. *****¼+*
> 
> *Bryan/Cena*
> This was absolutely fantastic on second watch. At first I thought it was really good, but a little too back and forth, but this time I really didn’t think that was the case. You have Cena trying to show that he is just as much a ‘wrestler’ as Bryan is, *and for the most part he proves it*, matching Bryan in the chain wrestling department mostly due to his power being so much more. Honestly, Cena’s performance is full of such subtle brilliant things. He knows how to tell a story in the ring through his facial expressions alone. Some cool sequences like the monkey flip sequence that we’ve all seen before but never in a WWE main event. Someone mentioned that the dragon screw got no sold, but I didn’t think it was intended as a move to set anything up other than a way for Bryan to get the surf board on, and when Cena countered that and got the control in his favor, there was no reason for that one move to the leg to come back in to play because Bryan had to change his game plan up. Cena charging Bryan off the apron was great and a little bit of a dick move, and Cena knew it. Rah said that the casuals aren’t going to think anything of stuff like this, but his facial expression after that and various other stuff was amazing in playing up to the smark fans. Only thing in the whole match I wasn’t keen on was Bryan going to suplex Cena off the steps, felt kind of random at that point in the match, and like they were just doing it to pop the crowd. After that though Cena is in control for a long enough amount of time using all of his power stuff , for Bryan to make a good comeback and transition into his portion of control, which actually lasted a lot longer than I remember, in fact he’s in control of a good deal of the match after that point and it’s great. Using his kicks and submissions to wear Cena down. Cena’s selling and facials are great again throughout this. Bryan going after the arm sets up the Yes Lock nicely, Cena’s selling of the arm is swell on the occasions Bryan goes after it, maybe because it’s a real injury, but still. Cena’s first AA was a really good desperation spot, but I don’t think anyone bought it as the finish. Cena’s face after is a sight to behold. Spider Superplex was awesome and brand spanking new, not sure I’ve ever seen that. Everything after this point is pretty bloody brilliant, a great finishing run but something that still left a lot for a rematch down the line. The call back to RAW with the slap ruled, and then they just start slapping the fuck out of each other and it’s fucking amazing. Maybe my favourite single moment in a match this year. Cena is great in strike exchanges, much like his strike exchanges with Punk in 2011, it just feels like he’s throwing anything at anyone. The whole last section of the match was basically Bryan showing that he is not going to be beaten in a strike exchange, not even by the mighty John Cena. Bryan did go for the Yes Lock again, but once Cena slapped him that was it, he’s going to fucking decimate him because he’s asked for it. Amazing. This felt really special to me, like the Punk mach at MITB, it felt like a realy career turning match for Bryan. The fact that we went out there, wrestled toe to toe with the face of the company, Cena gradually showing more and more respect to him throughout, even disbelief, then Cena asking for a full on fight towards the end to see if he really could beat Bryan, was he doubting himself? I think so, so he wants to see if he really is as good a wrestler as Bryan. He isn’t. And so Bryan wins in a totally clean and comfortable fashion??? Are you kidding me? That’s an amazing moment right there. Bryan is officially made after this, 100%. Who’s beaten Cena clean apart from Rock? Brock couldn’t do it, Punk could never do it, Cena’s even beaten The Rock at Wrestlemania. If they weren’t serious about Bryan, I really don’t think they would have booked that finish because that was ridiculous in the best way possible. Awesome match with a fantastic story and two great performances, a special atmosphere and an amazing finishing sequence. *****1/2*


Great reviews once again Bubz. Without getting into a full on debate. Two points I would like to make.

As to Punk/Lesner and the triangle spot. It was sloppy, I could see the slackness of the hold, particularly when you're trying to sell an MMA style spot the hold has got to look tight.

Am I the only one who felt the opening sequences painted Cena as the actual underdog in the match, as Bryan continually one-upped him trading holds.


----------



## Nervosa

Brock vs. Punk
****
This had incredible drama and an amazing story. I almost liked how well Punk timed his comeback. Brock always looked dominant, but Punk got just enough offense in to let us know he wasn't dead to rights. I do have some problems with this match however, mostly timing issues. When Punk jumps off the top to the outside and Brock holds the chair up, its supposed to look like Brock gets the worst of it, but it ends up being a really confusing spot, and the crowd didn't really know how to react to it. another time when Punk was up top, he waited a suspiciously long time for Brock to finally notice him. Finally, my primary problem, Brock got straight up from the GTS very quickly. I'm spoiled by New Japan and their ultra-respect for finishers, so Brock being up to his feet so quickly after really hurt the match for me. Great story, but I could have used some better execution.

Now, on to Bryan/Cena!


----------



## ywall2breakerj

Brock should've kicked out of the "GTS" earlier. Fuck Phil and his improper tehnique, no wonder everyone kicks out of two "GTSs". Imagine if Danielson didn't learn the proper Busaiku Knee tehnique before using it in the Cena match, :cena2 would have won and just vacated the belt. Shibata learned the proper G2S, that's why shit like that didn't happen to him in the G1. Pro wrestling is real, Phil Brooks had shitty strategy, his mind wasn't clear and he was fighting a superior athlete, hence he lost. DAT STORYTELLING :clap


----------



## Obfuscation

:mark: Bubz.

I may the only guy out there who didn't exactly care about Heyman interfering like he did. I suppose it's b/c I fully expected that. Not to mention it soften the blow that was Punker losing. As if he needed it in losing to Brock Lesnar. It only made his defeat look a touch more credible on how he had Brock defeated, only to be distracted and outright screwed by Paul at the end of the day. The hatred for Paul took over instead of focusing on proving how he's better than "The Beast". No bother. Thoughts you and I share _(and everyone else for that matter)_ are dead on.


----------



## Rah

ywall2breakerj has embraced the Shiraishi gimmick, I see.

EDIT (so it's on topic): GO WATCH ZAYNE/CESARO NOW!


----------



## Groovemachine

*Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayne - WWE NXT 8.21.13 - ****1/4*

:mark: I wasn't convinced at first, but this one is all about the final fall and it is INCREDIBLE and totally MOTYC worthy.



Spoiler: Thoughts



I kinda expected a cheap first fall, and I was fine with that as it was Zayne catching Cesaro off guard. Great moment where Cesaro has control and gets cocky with his feat of strength deadlift gutwrench, and Sami capitalises and takes over. Nice touch. Second fall annoyed me somewhat; who taps out of a chinlock? That's the kinda shit that bugs me about 2/3 Falls matches, especially in the WWE - they give away the falls really cheaply for moves/holds that would never normally get the job done.

Anyway, we got to the third fall and went into a whole new gear. The sequence where Sami goes for a small package and Cesaro puts the breaks on and deadlifts him into a suplex which is reversed into a pin, followed by Antonio flipping Sami into a rear naked choke was absolutely beautiful and unbelievable that it all happened in the space of about 5 seconds. Zayne getting the diving through the turnbuckle tornado DDT was a total mark out moment, and the NXT crowd loved it, so that was a really cool moment.

And as for that finish...my jaw still hasn't closed yet. That image of Cesaro doing the 'Dirty Dancing' lift (Trademark Groovemachine 2013, thank you very much) on Zayne before hitting a definitive uppercut will forever be imprinted on my brain.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Cesaro/Zayn - ***3/4+



Spoiler: Thoughts



Great match. Wasn't MOTY, but still really, really great nontheless. What a crazy finish :lmao even when Cesaro botches he makes it look even better than it should've been in the first time. Incredible. My only problem with the match was that the first 10 minutes were uninteresting and crowd wasn't into it.


----------



## Rah

Don't read the spoilers if you wish to see Zayn/Cesaro. That final fall and its spots need to be seen with a fresh mind.



Spoiler: Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro



The issue with 2/3 falls matches is that they need to build themselves correctly or they feel forced. Thankfully, though, we had the perfect iteration with "callbacks" to their previous encounters playing out as each section. Despite Cesaro's insults leveled towards Zayn on his cheap first win, the little Canadian knew it would be his best shot at this. There's no way he'd outwrestle Cesaro so a mat-wrestling start is out the question, and he most certainly isn't stronger so a tie up is out, too. What is he better at, then? Making his body go SPLAT~! onto your head. The quick first fall transitioned well into allowing Zayn to maintain control over the bigger man in the second with slow ditches in swinging the momentum to tease the finish. It would mirror their second match, thus, in how Zayn out-paced Cesaro but the Swiss' brute force approach and wrestling ability would always see the better of his opponent. Who taps out to a sleeper? A man who wants to fight another day, that's who. Let's not forget the transition was basically a lariat into the oncoming Zayn that turned into a sleeper. The purpose of the sleeper is to wear down your opponent, and if there was another fall to go (as Cesaro most certainly had this) Sami would much rather do so as fresh as possible and not groggy and disoriented. No words can describe the third fall, however, as only watching it does it justice. It's everything Sami/Cesaro should be and more with the most holy shit finishing stretch this year. I thought Ricochet's Matrix-inspired finish in Dragon Gate was something, yet it pales in comparison to this.



We've waited ages for this, and it does not disappoint. How could it? Watch this.


----------



## Bubz

Oh shit. Is it online anywhere?


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Bubz said:


> Oh shit. Is it online anywhere?


Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro 2/3 Falls (8/21/13)



Spoiler: review



Very smartly wrestled encounter here with a series of subtle yet appreciated callback spots to their prior two encounters alongside the frantic and fluid sequences which have forever been associated with their chemistry. The match is a total farcry from Bryan/Sheamus in terms of layout but I appreciated their desire to do away with convention and produce their own version. Opening fall lasts a matter of seconds after Zayn dives to the floor and immediately hits a corner Yazakuza kick and immediate rollup before Cesaro can even register what has happened. Typically the second fall is often the shortest in matches of this ilk so it was certainly a departure from protocol but emphasised the urgency of Zayn's plight as well as reinforcing how his speed was an equal counterpart to Cesaro's power and precise technique. The second fall becomes more equal and sees Cesaro gradually try to reinforce his dominance whilst being wary of his predicament & it's here where a number of small little callbacks are evident. Zayn finally countering the tilt-a-whirl backbreaker Cesaro had succeeded with in their first two matches, the gut-wrench suplex which has been a staple Cesaro spot since his emergence on TV was finally countered and most importantly Zayn was wary of the chinlock and spent the brunt of the second fall frantically trying to block Cesaro's repeated attempts at replicating his success with the same manoeuvre which proved decisive in their second match. The fact Cesaro ultimately was able to overcome Zayn's defences and score the submission with the chinlock was a nice payoff to that developing theme. Cesaro's power and technique were also similarly on show in this fall much like Zayn's speed was in the first with the powerbomb and bridging fallaway slam standing out.

The final fall however really built on the opening two falls and felt like two gifted athletes pulling out everything to win. Cesaro once again countering Zayn's counter out of the suplex which won him the first match with the chinlock counter that won him the rematch, only for Zayn to then counter that was an inspired callback and the featured spots (apron to ring superplex, Zayn hitting the DDT through the ropes on the floor, the powerbomb/sunset flip counter) in amongst the supreme selling of exhaustion by both men were excellent. The finish itself was incredible and they did amazingly well to recover what nearly proved a blown transition and the execution itself was mind-boggling.


----------



## geraldinhio

Bubz said:


> Oh shit. Is it online anywhere?


Click on Rah's link. Thanks for that BTW.



Spoiler: Thoughts



My God that final fall and finish. I genuine thought Cesaro was going to both the "dirty dancing " spot but then I remembered how was in the match. Haven't marked for a finish that much in ages. Even the naturalizer, which I'm not the biggest fan of, looked great.

Crowd was going batshit crazy for the final fall. Went nuts for the Brian Cage turnbuckle suplex spot and the ddt on the outside. The ddt made me smile. If the crowd was hotter for the first two falls it would be probably be up there in my motyc. First fall was very well done in my opinion, not sure how I feel to Zayn tapping out from the choke though.

Anyway fantastic TV match. *****+- 1/4*


----------



## Bubz

WOOLCOCK said:


> Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro 2/3 Falls (8/21/13)
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler: review
> 
> 
> 
> Very smartly wrestled encounter here with a series of subtle yet appreciated callback spots to their prior two encounters alongside the frantic and fluid sequences which have forever been associated with their chemistry. The match is a total farcry from Bryan/Sheamus in terms of layout but I appreciated their desire to do away with convention and produce their own version. Opening fall lasts a matter of seconds after Zayn dives to the floor and immediately hits a corner Yazakuza kick and immediate rollup before Cesaro can even register what has happened. Typically the second fall is often the shortest in matches of this ilk so it was certainly a departure from protocol but emphasised the urgency of Zayn's plight as well as reinforcing how his speed was an equal counterpart to Cesaro's power and precise technique. The second fall becomes more equal and sees Cesaro gradually try to reinforce his dominance whilst being wary of his predicament & it's here where a number of small little callbacks are evident. Zayn finally countering the tilt-a-whirl backbreaker Cesaro had succeeded with in their first two matches, the gut-wrench suplex which has been a staple Cesaro spot since his emergence on TV was finally countered and most importantly Zayn was wary of the chinlock and spent the brunt of the second fall frantically trying to block Cesaro's repeated attempts at replicating his success with the same manoeuvre which proved decisive in their second match. The fact Cesaro ultimately was able to overcome Zayn's defences and score the submission with the chinlock was a nice payoff to that developing theme. Cesaro's power and technique were also similarly on show in this fall much like Zayn's speed was in the first with the powerbomb and bridging fallaway slam standing out.
> 
> The final fall however really built on the opening two falls and felt like two gifted athletes pulling out everything to win. Cesaro once again countering Zayn's counter out of the suplex which won him the first match with the chinlock counter that won him the rematch, only for Zayn to then counter that was an inspired callback and the featured spots (apron to ring superplex, Zayn hitting the DDT through the ropes on the floor, the powerbomb/sunset flip counter) in amongst the supreme selling of exhaustion by both men were excellent. The finish itself was incredible and they did amazingly well to recover what nearly proved a blown transition and the execution itself was mind-boggling.


Cheers sexy face.


----------



## WOOLCOCK

Spoiler: 2nd Fall Finish



I had no qualms with it personally. Perhaps they could have emphasised Zayn's predicament and teased him being choked out more if he didn't tap so as to justify it through context, but it served as a payoff to Cesaro repeatedly trying to execute it in the second fall with Zayn fending him off continually and I had no problems with it in terms of Zayn tapping out then once he realised he couldn't counter it to avoid risking further harm.


----------



## DOPA

Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro (WWE 8/22): ******

This didn't disappoint. That final fall was fucking amazing.


----------



## C-Cool

So... after seeing Cesaro/Zayn, I have to ask, is Cesaro the pound for pound strongest guy in the WWE?

Great match. ****1/4


----------



## Rickey

Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro-2 out of 3 Falls. GREAT MATCH!



Spoiler: WATCH THE MATCH!



That crowd going crazy towards the end, dat finish, dat "WE THE PEOPLE!" Both men pretty much getting a standing ovation.


----------



## Bubz

*Sami Zayn vs Antonio Cesaro (NXT 22/8)*



Spoiler: Cesaro/Zayn omgamazingness



Good grief. This was absolutely fucking phenomenal. From the start with Zayn taking it right to Cesaro and getting the super quick first pinfall, all the way to that mind blowing finish, this was on another level to most other stuff this year. This was as good if not better than anything on Summerslam, seriously.

The first fall worked so well in cementing the idea that Zayn does indeed have Cesaro's number and knows exactly how to catch him off guard and it really plays up the idea that his speed might be the game changer. Cesaro being rocked at the start of the second allowed Zayn to take it right to him again and keep up the pace until Cesaro gets control and it gets really brilliant. It's Cesaro working a control segment, he's the best in the entire world at it and this is up there with his best performances ever. Zayn trying so hard to fight back but not having enough in him played perfectly in to the finish of the second fall and then the third fall. At first the finish to the second caught me by surprise a little and might be the only reason I'm not rating this any higher because it kind of tool me out of it, but only for like, 10 seconds because it sunk in almost straight after what they were going for. Zayn was in danger of being totally out cold if he didn't tap and that really made it feel like he was genuinely fighting for his life. 

The third fall. Oh my god, the third fall. God damn spectacular and smart and insane and ridiculous all in one. Zayn knows he has to start fighting with every last ounce of energy, and Cesaro knows he can't let that happen, so they bring out the big guns. And I mean the big guns. Jesus wept at some of this stuff. It's not all just big spots either, everything has a purpose and that's what makes it so fucking fantastic. Cesaro's expressions of pure desperation in hitting his big moves are from another planet. Zayn's exhaustion and his ability to get a crowd behind him and make huge, ridiculous spots mean something in the bigger picture is just...I don't know. This is the best finishing stretch this year by a country mile. As if I wasn't freaking out before hand, they go and unleash that fucking finish on us...Are you actually joking? What in fuck did I just watch? God Damn.



*****1/2*


----------



## The Lady Killer

Well if Bubz thinks it's amazing, it must be. 

Time to check it out. :mark:


----------



## Bubz

needs to make more appearances ITT.


----------



## Rah

The most depressing news I've read in a long time is that they shaved 10 minutes off the match in the edit.


----------



## The Lady Killer




----------



## Obfuscation

That explains so much now. Assholes.


----------



## Bubz

Seriously? I didn't notice that at all. I thought what we got was pretty much perfect as far as the time goes.


----------



## Obfuscation

Ok thoughts on Zayn vs Cesaro 2/3 Falls match. Ha. Here comes the review nobody expected. Including myself...



Spoiler: The match, duh



This was good. Honestly though, WAY, WAYYYYY too little shown. Now that I know about ten minutes or so were cut, I can easily see it. Match only went nine friggin minutes. What a jip. Then again, not really. I hate the way 2/3 falls matches are structured on mainstream wrestling so I shouldn't be surprised. Oh look, it's supposed to be three matches in one. Lets have the match go shorter than the previous bout. Match was a far cry from where their last match was. Plain and simple. Everyone is gaga over the final fall, and yeah, it was wrestled well - how could it not be? - but I really thought the nuances & callbacks throughout the match were > the moves you saw busted out in the last six minutes. Minus the finish. No doubt that was friggin insane. The only portion of the match I truly went apeshit for. Keeping all of this in mind that I thought the result didn't fit the story a single bit. Zayn's goal was to prove his worth. That he is worthy competition. Sure he gave Cesaro a fight, but he lost. Umm, was I the only one not expecting to see that? I thought this was Zayn's golden ticket to his big catapult win. Bad enough the fall he got on Cesaro in this came off like a total fluke too. Another roll up. That's how he beat Cesaro last time. Eh. Didn't like the idea behind that. Defeated the purpose. Now I'm hardly one to gripe about Cesaro winning a match. Lord knows that is far too hard to come by these days despite the man being the ultimate workhorse. I can't say I thought he should have gone over in this context. Would claim that to be my "Generico love/marking" coming through in the most passionate display, yet I'm nearly as super huge of a Claudio Castagnoli/Antonio Cesaro fan to match that. So that can't be the case... I dunno. This was good, but I did expect a lot better. I'm going to be the lowest on this match more than anybody. That said, it's still quite good. Sourpuss reaction or not, that can't be said enough. Better than the general run of the mill type crap you could see. It has that beat by days. With these two it's just a massive scale to work off of. And I felt they didn't get enough to completely showcase that with the almost hindrance of the stipulation. _(and edit that cut time away. Jerks.)_ A low end MOTYC for me. Didn't expect to say that. Expected myself to have the messiest pants of us all. I'm gonna go sulk in the corner. I love how I'm saddened that this was really good and not great. Oh those expectations. This felt more like a highlight reel of their capabilities than a full blown classic. That's the best way I can map out my feelings on it.


----------



## Rah

I seriously think you got screwed by a bullshit link. It was 15 minutes for myself, check the link I put two pages back.


----------



## Obfuscation

Did your's only have one commercial break in the match? b/c I don't time those portions. Only what is shown. And that was 9:15.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Yeah, the one from the DVD thread had like an 18 minute video.


----------



## Rah

No break.


----------



## Obfuscation

Yep. I did get screwed. I just looked via the dailymotion link and there was a gutwrench that wasn't even shown on my copy.

WHAT IN THE FLYING FUCK. K, third times the charm now.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Yeah, dailymotion link is the one I watched. Go with that.


----------



## Obfuscation

:lmao



Spoiler: Don't blame me. Blame society.



Ignore my original review. Heck, even my gripe about the booking doesn't even look at that poor now. Still kind of rings true, but the way the match was worked, it managed to have a beneficial aspects for next week & beyond. Fuck that asshole who legit cut five minutes from the match and made it feel as if there was no build up towards the sequences in the final fall. Yeah, that was as great as I expected. All is right with the world. And I'm now in agreement with Bubz. It doesn't appear as if any time was cut from the match. It was either the best edit job around or those two were surreal in going FOURTEEN MINUTES _(nine, ha!)_ and having ten or so along with it and not needing that portion to still be a top notch contest. 

Ok seriously that whole second fall being cut really made the match feel like a lazy poke of a bout that only captured aspects of both being great. Now with that bit filled it you truly got the sense of urgency by Zayn _(which again, ties into the booking qualms I had previously. The story was more about Zayn's urgency to prove himself than to get that clear cut definitive victory. Win by any means necessary, if you will. Won't lie, did think Zayn winning here could have fit the story all the same. Small potatoes.) _and the overall beasting nature of Cesaro with more wonderful callbacks put in. The gutwrench counter, Zayn countering the pop up European with a dropkick. The entire chinlock/sleeper sequence that built to the finish, etc. I was pigeon-holed on the original two watches.


----------



## seancarleton77

You won't find a bigger Antonio Cesaro fan than me. Fun match, fast paced and exciting. 3 and 3/4 to 4 stars. Cesaro performance was 6 star though.


----------



## seancarleton77

Rah said:


> The most depressing news I've read in a long time is that they shaved 10 minutes off the match in the edit.


I think I saw this version then.


----------



## antoniomare007

They may have missed the boat on a potential huge star in a masked Sami, but he's so fucking talented he's gonna have success in the main roster no matter what. That 3rd match against Cesaro was awesome, loved the first fall with Sami knowing he couldn't let Cesaro take control as that fucked him in the 2nd match. Loved the 2nd fall with Antonio (GOAT name) getting the upper hand and dominating with his dumbass strength. 3rd full was full retard good, marked like a little girl with the Sunset bomb, the turnbuckle DDT and the finish.

They deserved a better crowd but fuck, even a tired Full Sail crowd couldn't help but pop in the 3rd fall.


----------



## djmathers1207

CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar ****1/4
John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan ****1/2-****1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs. Christian ****


----------



## Bubz

Yeah the second fall makes the match what it is and people really need to see the full version.


----------



## Chismo

I downloaded the NXT show from a torrent, with a 15 min long match version with one commercial break, is that the real one?

Anyway, ***3/4.


----------



## Obfuscation

Yeah. That's the full tilt edition.


----------



## Bubz

Wow, either I'm mental or people are really underrating this match. Probably for the former but I digress.


----------



## Rah

Latter.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm on board with you chaps now. Probably would be the best thing I've seen from WWE all year had it not been for what just took place at SummerSlam.


----------



## C-Cool

Bubz said:


> Wow, either I'm mental or people are really underrating this match. Probably for the former but I digress.


Way too many people saw the wrong version of the match.


----------



## The Lady Killer

It'd probably be in my top 5 this year.

Punk/Lesnar
Bryan/Cena
Punk/Cena
ADR/Ziggler
Cesaro/Zayn III

Bryan/Cesaro
Punk/Taker
HHH/Lesnar III
Random Shield tags

are close behind.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's a good problem to have when trying to figure out what your top five from WWE happens to be this year. b/c honestly, a ton are rather interchangeable via their quality. So many singles matches then you realize there are a lot of Shield tags out there. Impressive.


----------



## Rah

If I'm going to go with the lens of WWE-style, then this is probably more my list:

CM Punk Vs John Cena (25/02/2013 WWE)
The Undertaker Vs CM Punk (07/04/2013 WWE)
Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)
Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (21/03/2013 WWE)
Mark Henry Vs John Cena (14/07/2013 WWE)
HHH Vs Brock Lesnar (19/05/2013 WWE)
Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro (21/08/2013 WWE)


----------



## Nervosa

Cena vs. Bryan
***3/4
Not too crazy about this. Good action and some really fun sequences, but a lot of strange issues with this one. Arm work on Cena never really seemed to pay off with anything. I know its ACTUALLY injured which makes it even weirder that Cena didn't seem to act like it. Didn't like Dragon getting head-dropped, and didn't like the timing issues after his second backflip over Cena that Cena caught. The counter that resulted from that also looked very unclear. I also don't like how easily both guys recovered from big spots, but that's pretty mch all 'big' WWE matches, these days. Bryan had Cena in the guillotine FOREVER, but as soon as Cena got out he just scoops up Bryan and AAs him. Then Bryan recovers super fast from Cena's finisher. Just a little weird. Crowd also died out a lot in between the action, and took a lot out of this. The finish fell far, far flat. They had never seen the move, so they didn't see it as the finish. The pop for the win was more 'that's it?' than 'he did it!' Kinda lame. Brock/Punk was much better, imo, and I'm actually really disappointed with how this turned out.


----------



## seabs

*TO TRULY APPRECIATE THIS MATCH YOU NEED TO WATCH THE FIRST TWO MATCHES AND MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE 18 MINUTE VERSION WITH NO COMMERCIALS.

Seriously. The first 2 matches build everything they do in this and if you watch the clipped down version you lose the second fall basically and the structure goes way off without the length of the second fall. The Sky Sports version is the shorter one btw. If you download the full show then you need the one that goes 55m rather than 46m. The link to just the match in 720px on XWT is the full length one. If you don't want spoilers then don't read the fucking review ya fucking fish bowl head twat.*

*Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayn - 2/3 Falls - NXT 21.08.2013*
_Add this to the second Cesaro/Zayn match and I've got more than enough evidence to call Cesaro WOTY at this point. Guy is off the rails good right now and he doesn't even have any spotlight on him. Surely he's due a big push soon. Surely. Imagine Heyman brining Cesaro in as his hired gun to go against Punk or the McMahon's doing the same vs Bryan? Like I said before it's almost essential to watch the first two matches to truly appreciate this one. First fall plays off their first match brilliantly with Zayn repeating the quick finish trick. Not only that but it also makes every single roll up by Zayn later in the match mean the world as a potential finish. Even the near fall of the running boot in the corner. Match is superbly laid out as a 2/3 Falls match too. This isn't 3 matches joined together. It's one single match worked with 3 falls and exactly how a 2/3 Falls match should be worked. 

Second fall felt really odd in the shorter version because you come back from commercials and they go almost straight to Zayn tapping to the chinlock and it feels really odd and the cut length makes the match feel way too dependent on the frantic paced 3rd fall. Control segment isn't out of this world but it's essential to this being as good as it is. I say it isn't out of this world but if I had to watch anyone working a control segment on literally anyone it's Cesaro right now. Oh and his dance partner is El Generico. Not bad going at all. Chinlock finish is actually superb. The second match uses the chinlock as a really major spot with Cesaro going to it time after time to wear Generico down effectively and it leads to the finish in the second match. Zayn knows that and isn't letting it lead to the finish again here. First watch I was a bit iffy on a character like Zayn tapping so easily but the story from the second match and the story in this match more than makes up for it, it makes it work. It's 2/3 falls and Zayn isn't gonna let himself be easy pickings with another fall left at one up. It's a tactical conceding of a fall rather than a weak submission loss. And he clearly taps before he's out for the count too. 

3rd fall is an incredible sprint and if you watch the shorter version then it feels like the match is too dependent on this fall when it's not. The finish from the first fall pays dividends with the roll up and dividends from the second fall with the pinfall counter to the chinlock that's a super bossy spot with no backstory behind it anyway. Cesaro's power spots are always incredible from an aesthetics point of view but they also look brutally stiff without being dangerous. There's a powerbomb in the second fall that gets cut from the short version that looks viscous. Marked when Zayn set up for the DDT through the ropes because I knew exactly what was coming as soon as he rolled out. Always a tremendous spot and it leads to an amazing near count out too. Actual finish itself is just bonkers. I said after the Bryan/Cesaro match that there's no way you'd see a better finish than that all year and this was even better. Wasn't this taped before that match though? Kinda right then. Fuck it. Incredible how Cesaro almost losing Generico on the pop up makes the spot even better somehow. The squat and then lifting him dead up for the uppercut like that. Fuck me sideways and don't call back. Neutraliser looked legit in a rare case too. 

Cesaro looked like a destroyer of galaxies post match. Guy needs to moved to the top of the card like yesterday. Awesome matches that get him and his opponent over and he's got the memorable spots too. They need a big heel badly but he'd rule the earth working this role in a babyface capacity too. WWE MOTY right now and yes I watched Summerslam._

*****1/4+*


----------



## Bubz

Yay!


----------



## Obfuscation

Never seen bold large text have so much validity to it.


----------



## Skins

Rah said:


> If I'm going to go with the lens of WWE-style, then this is probably more my list:
> 
> CM Punk Vs John Cena (25/02/2013 WWE)
> The Undertaker Vs CM Punk (07/04/2013 WWE)
> Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)
> Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (21/03/2013 WWE)
> *Mark Henry Vs John Cena (14/07/2013 WWE)*
> HHH Vs Brock Lesnar (19/05/2013 WWE)
> Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro (21/08/2013 WWE)


Thank you my good friend, this match need more loving, people look down upon it but its excellent. The storytelling is superb, Henry's best performance in a long time and John Cena played the underdog incredibility ****1/4 IMO


----------



## Mattyb2266

So I'm a little late on this, but I hate watching wrestling on the computer so I had to wait until I was able to get these from someone on DVD. But G1 came in the mail today, so I immediately popped in day 4. 

I just finished Shibata/Ishii, and all I can say is holy shit. I'm not normally as into New Japan as most are, so my expectations weren't as high, and that probably helped, but this really blew my mind. It was excellent until Shibata hit that drop kick in the corner, then it became mind numbing. I loved the forearm sequence and the kicking out at one, and Ishii looked like a million bucks throughout the whole match. This is without a doubt my match of the year thus far.

*******


----------



## Obfuscation

Shibata's dropkick in the corner is probably the most brutal strike seen in wrestling today. It's not right. Yet, I credit him for being a hard nosed fucker all the same.


----------



## septurum

Smackdown 8/23/13:

Christian vs Alberto Del Rio- *** 1/2

Daniel Bryan vs Wade Barrett (Steel Cage)- *** 3/4


----------



## Bubz

Yeah Shibata's corner drop kick is fucking vile.


----------



## Rah

redskins25 said:


> Thank you my good friend, this match need more loving, people look down upon it but its excellent. The storytelling is superb, Henry's best performance in a long time and John Cena played the underdog incredibility ****1/4 IMO


Same rating for me, I believe we were one of a small handful pimping it in the WWE Match Discussion Thread, too. I really don't get why, that is exactly what WWE is about. Mark Henry is king of it all.


Not sure if *Oxitron* is still reading this, but I do have Bryan/Cesaro somewhere in my list. I tried to do the top matches up until Cesaro/Zayn.


----------



## Concrete

*John Morrison vs Sami Callihan II-No DQ(2CW 4/19/13):*****
_This match is a doozy. If you enjoyed their match last year, which is up for free on the interweb if you want to watch that before watching this,you'll dig this. Just imagine a more zany version of the first. Morrison is a guy I feel I enjoy more than 90% of other people. The man's offense is not hyper realistic but ever kick and knee in this match though looking a little awkward also looked brutal. And he throws quite a bit of them. Last year they did a guardrail/ring moonsault spot and this year they tried to add in an unexpected location moonsault spot this time off the hockey wall and it was cool even if it missed a bit. There were some awesome moments in this which really made this match great. Like early on Callihan comes rushing in and Morrison knocks him to the ground with a totally rad superman elbow. You have Morrison taking out a hockey stick only for Callihan to mug it and come after Morrison like a axe murderer. I mean he smacks that stick on the ground to the point the head breaks off. He looked like he was gonna kill somebody. Morrison gets out a leg pad for goalies which came off better on DVD I thought than live. Hockey pads aren't pillows. There was only one big time false finish in this match before the actual finish which is nice to see in an indy match. There was no parkour offense in this match which is also a plus.Seek this out!_​
I also want to note since we're talking about Sami that 2CW is coming out with a Best of Sami Callihan DVD soon which will be a must have for Callihan fans. It'll have both Morrison matches, Hardy, RVD, and Rachel Summerlyn which are all from 2013.


----------



## Corey

Having still not seen other highly toted matches such as Cesaro/Bryan & Cesaro/Zayn, here's how my top 5 would shape up atm:

1. John Cena vs. Daniel Bryan (Summerslam)
2. CM Punk vs. The Undertaker (Wrestlemania)
3. John Cena vs. CM Punk (RAW 2/25)
4. CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar (Summerslam)
5a. Triple H vs. Brock Lesnar (Wrestlemania)
5b. Shield vs. Team Hell No & Kofi (RAW 5/20)

1 and 2 may be interchangeable as well as 3 and 4.


----------



## ATF

My Top 10:

1. The Undertaker vs CM Punk, WM
2. CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar, SSlam
3. John Cena vs CM Punk, Raw 2/25
4. John Cena vs Daniel Bryan, SSlam
5. Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayn, NXT 8/22
6. Dolph Ziggler vs Alberto Del Rio, Payback
7. The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston, Raw 5/20
8. Daniel Bryan vs Jack Swagger, Antonio Cesaro & Ryback, Raw 7/22
9. The Shield vs Team Hell No, Raw 5/27
10. Antonio Cesaro vs Sami Zayn, NXT 6/12

Not to mention the countless ***1/2+ other matches.


----------



## Bubz

Cesaro/Zayn
Cena/Bryan
Punk/Taker
Punk/Lesnar
Bryan/Cesaro

I think anyway. WWE have had a cracking year anyway in terms of motyc's. After those 5 you have all the shield tags, Bryan/Ryback, Cesaro vs a whole bunch of opponents including Kofi and Sheamus, Del Rio vs Ziggler and Christian and I personally loved the Bryan/Orton street fight.


----------



## Skins

To each's own and I respect everyone here opinion but I just am shocked with the love for punk/taker. Its a good match, but some of these list have it a MOTY and ****1/2+, I just don't see it, pacing and flow is off IMO


----------



## bigbuxxx

i gave it ***3/4. punk/brock so much better but still just 4* for me.


----------



## Skins

same I give it a ***3/4 but I got brock/punk at ****3/4 need a rewatch, havent since the day

WWE-only MOTYC

brock/punk
ziggler/del rio
cena/bryan


dbryan/cesaro
sheamus/cesaro me
punk/cena
cena/henry
ziggler/cesaro
adr/show
christian/adr ss 13
zayn/cesaro II
zayn/cesaro III

some of those can be interchangeable


----------



## Chismo

So far Punk leads the "overrated" list with two good matches that people tend to overworship, Punk/Cena and Punk/Taker. *** for both.


----------



## seancarleton77

Chismo said:


> So far Punk leads the "overrated" list with two good matches that people tend to overworship, Punk/Cena and Punk/Taker. *** for both.


CM Punk is still amazing on the mic and his match with Brock Lesnar was a classic. But, he is not quite on the level of Bryan, Cesaro, Ishii, Lesnar or Shibata this year. Punk was clearly rusty against Chris Jericho with the long layoff and he was hurt pretty badly against Taker, who is almost 10 years past his peak. We only saw Punk's best once this year, and that was against one of the best in the game, Lesnar. At least Punk is not as overrated as Kazuchika Okada. Okada has like four guys he can have good matches with.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Cesaro vs. Zayn 2/3 falls - *** 3/4

Not a MOTYC personally but an honorable mention. Dat finish.


----------



## Ten410

DDT 8.18.2013 Kazuchika Okada vs Kota Ibushi


----------



## JustJoel

So, just started G-1, and holy shit Ishii v. Tanahashi. What a match. I was caught off-guard because I've never gotten into Tanahashi, and was not familiar with Ishii, but these two absolutely killed the first three nights. So many spots had me - almost everything after the powerslam on the outside was great. Ishii had the chops working and that kick to the head was extra good - didn't see that coming. Tanahashi was a bit SOS, but you have to respect his toughness here. His toughness made his offense look better when he got it, and had a great sequence ending with a bridging dragon suplex. Crowd was on fire - booing Tanahashi? I remember remarking to my roommate that the crowd was solidly pro-Kojima on night one. But it was the first I've heard outright booing. Really set the tone for him to prove his toughness to the crowd in a losing effort. Not unlike Cena at SS, really. He took a bruising from Ishii. I couldn't believe he kept kicking out until the Steiner Screwdriver finish. One of the rarer moves in pro wrestling, and was executed very well. I marked the fuck out, and counted to three with the ref. Shows over folks, have a safe drive home.

*******

Maybe it was not being prepared for it, and I'm going to withhold judgement as my MOTY until I at least finish G-1, but it was better than any match at SS, or WWE so far this year.


----------



## Rah

Chismo said:


> *So far Punk leads the "overrated" list* with two good matches that people tend to overworship, Punk/Cena and Punk/Taker. *** for both.


I realise the irony in this reply (noting my reviews of those matches) but is that not Punk, in general? Guy is far too hyped for what he is.


----------



## Obfuscation

Not at all. If it wasn't for him, I doubt I would have branched out into more wrestling when I was a young teen. So he holds a ton in my books. From interest, consistency, everything.


----------



## Bubz

I don't think Punk is overrated at all. Nobody is saying he's been the best wrestler this year, especially from an in-ring standpoint. I don't see why because he's had 3 matches that people have praised that he's overrated. Even if he had been I think it would be valid. His performance in the Taker match was absolutely Phenomenal. His character work is fantastic in his matches whether that was as the heel he was at the start of the year or as the resilient never say die badass babyface against Lesnar. That's not even taking into account his ridiculously great promo work since he came back. Sure he was rusty at first and the Jericho match sucked, but he seems to be getting his mojo back more recently, the fight with Axel was great. He's never been the most technically sound guy in the ring but he makes up for that in more than enough other areas that he's brilliant at.


----------



## Chismo

I enjoyed his great TV matches with Ryback and Jericho much more than his PPV stuff, tbh, minus the Lesnar match.


----------



## Rah

I mean from a general stand-point. Meltzer's comment about how he isn't nearly as big as he's thought of, got me thinking. While I agree with him in that regard, I also see it from his work, too. This thread/section doesn't exist in a vacuum, and is more a generalised statement. Perhaps here I'm preaching to the choir, but that is just a point I replied, somewhat in jest, to Chismo's post.

On a microphone, I honestly feel that he believes what he says and a lot seems to come from personal, real issues so he has that advantage over a lot of superstars, but when it comes to his ring-work I'm a little hesitant to go the full way in how a lot of guys take him. Good wrestler, that fluctuates, but isn't this super great worker that a lot of people hang to. He obviously isn't someone that needs to be carried, but I cannot remember a carry job of his (memory is flaky, so don't take me on that). He'd also probably be in the latter half of a top 10 workers in WWE currently (general merit, not merely this year); though that's more something on how great WWE's talent pool actually is.


----------



## seabs

*I agree with where Rah's coming from. He's not the BITW like some proclaim (not talking about the gimmick duh.). I mean he's one of the best but he's definitely not THE best purely from an in ring standpoint. A lot of his great stuff is improved by his promo and character work though so I guess it depends on how greatly you take that into consideration.*


----------



## Rah

Anyway, on to more important matters...


*Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis Vs Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (16/08/2013 CMLL)*
Yeah, so this made tape, and it's every bit as good as you'd expect it to be. I'm really glad, too, that they allowed each man to have a section with each other. The only downside is that, because of this, you do not get any extended segments between particular wrestlers and this never extends beyond an exhibition. Still, for an exhibition, you could hardly wish for any better pairings than those right here. It also worked the Maestro dynamic well, in peppering the swanky matwork (especially from Solar/Panther to start) with Casas' heel tendencies and need to beat the living shit out of Navarro following their earlier encounter in the year at Chilanga Mask. As much as I am a fan of matwork, nothing can beat Casas interjecting himself into the spotlight and just kicking the hell out of his opponents. Navarro getting tired of his chops and punching him, hard, in the face to level him was a great sight, too. As was the brutal kicks to Terry (who injured his eye thanks to them).

There's a handheld that has a slightly longer version of the match (that I've put together here), but the quality is atrocious and often times misses the action. Thankfully, WarriorsX2000 seems to have come out of lurking and uploaded an HD, TV version of the match. I'd recommend sticking through the handheld for the extended Solar/Panther work (amongst other cut parts in the TV edit), but the better copy is still a great match, regardless of the missing time.​


----------



## Concrete

More damn lucha to watch. I was gonna post my Top 50 so far so people could tell me what I need to watch still but copying an excel spreadsheet to here is not kind. Oh well. I guess I'll have to hunt down some lists to figure out what I need still. I there is lots of WWE I need to watch but I think that's about it.


----------



## Rah

Throw the spreadsheet onto Google Drive or some such similar device. Worst comes to worst, print screen the list.


----------



## Concrete

*Luke Gallows vs. Jake Davis (EPWA 8/18/13):***3/4*
_Luke Gallows is back on the indies folks and unless a random promotion pops up and signs him expect him to deliver more of this goodness on the indies. Like, my excitement is hard to contain. These two are not strangers to each other and have put on GREAT matches before. This match had Terry Funk as the special guest ring enforcer. This is a bloody good brawl. Honestly this treaded briefly into the great territory but the ending took it down a notch and probably would make my Top 50 but it’d be close. With all the matches I don’t have listed yet I have to believe I could manage a Top 100 by year end. Gallows brings it to Davis like the awesome big man he is. Love his stiff high kicks. They seem random yet so awesome. Davis is no slouch in a brawl. They brought some weapons into the mix such as chairs, kendo sticks, barbed wire, and thumbtacks. This was really such a fun brawl. Probably the second funnest brawl I’ve seen all year behind Necro Butcher vs Bonesaw. Of course Terry Funk being brought in for Elite Pro meant he was gonna get involved which in the end brought this one down slightly. The match had just treaded into greatness off a spinebuster from Davis into the thumbtacks but Funker brought it down a notch. Still a really good match nonetheless._ 

*Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis vs. Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (CMLL 8/16/13):***3/4*
_We have six older gentlemen having a wonderful exhibition even if one looked like a bag of poo(looking at you Atlantis). Panther bringing back the mask for his anniversary was a nice touch. Him and Solar start things off swimmingly to set a nice tone. Loved the Casas and Navarro bits where they’d break from the matwork theme comes they want to beat up each other. They need a match against each other that gets time and a quality finish though I have still not seen their match from earlier which I probably should get on. Black Terry seemed to get lost in the shuffle between the other four men who didn’t suck. Haven’t seemed much of Solar but he looked awesome. Panther’s dive at the end seemed very much old man style yet I dug it. Navarro also isn’t a guy I’ve seen much of but he looked like a pisser. POW POW! Don’t know if anyone making a legitimate list of the top workers of the year can keep Casas out of the Top 10. Honestly I’m not sure how he could be any less than 3. Only Bryan and Cesaro are his competition for the #1 spot. So damn good. Really darn good mat based match._​


----------



## Obfuscation

YOU FOUND A GALLOWS MATCH. :mark:


----------



## Rah

Match happend on the 9th, btw.


----------



## Obfuscation

Joyous times.


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> Match happend on the 9th, btw.


I officially have no idea why I put the 18th...

Gallows was also in a shitty wargames match in WrestleForce (some Carolina indy). He looked awesome but wargames on the indies 9/10 times don't work out well. Is Gunner released because I would have no qualms with Team Impact going ham on the indies.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Punk's mannerisms, intensity and facial expressions tend to make up for most of his lack of technical skill, so I'd still consider him one of the better workers. Definitely not the best, though.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

*Akira Tozawa and BxB Hulk vs. Ricochet and Naruki Doi *- **** (Dragon Gate Kobe Festival World 2013)

Double backflip moonsault!


----------



## Skins

What are your guys in here opinion on ziggler/cesaro superstars ? Rah, TLK etc if you have seen it 

I thought it was pretty good. A little faster pace, and shorter as opposed to their main event encounter, but you'll never hear me complain about short matches.


----------



## Obfuscation

It made my cut-off for the list. Quality sub-nine minute match. Glad it had an actual finish this time, which was the only drawback to their first bout. Another drop in the bucket for Cesaro _(and Dolph too now that I acknowledge it)_ on my list of top notch WWE matches. Cesaro though, good lord.


----------



## Rah

Pretty damn good match, and one I'm so happy seeing that end, too. Albeit with some help, and on a "non-canon" show, but Cesaro's starting to get a few bigger wins the past few months. A win here, too, against a former world champion. The heel stuff in this was worked really well, and I thought Cesaro made good use of his offence without making them seem like check-list spots in each match. Despite a good few being staple transitions or moves in his matches of late, they still take you by surprise and they're still very exciting to watch. I'd hope Elgin is taking notes there. Oh, yeah, that deadlift, stalled superplex was NUTS.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah said:


> Pretty damn good match, and one I'm so happy seeing that end, too. Albeit with some help, and on a "non-canon" show, but Cesaro's starting to get a few bigger wins the past few months. A win here, too, against a former world champion. The heel stuff in this was worked really well, and I thought Cesaro made good use of his offence without making them seem like check-list spots in each match. Despite a good few being staple transitions or moves in his matches of late, they still take you by surprise and they're still very exciting to watch. *I'd hope Elgin is taking notes there.* Oh, yeah, that deadlift, stalled superplex was NUTS.




Couldn't help but have the same thought come into my head while I watched.


----------



## flag sabbath

Don't sleep on *Suwama vs. Shiozaki from 25/8*. It's another epic, slow-burn war of attrition with an exciting & unpredictable climax *****1/4*


----------



## Bubz

HayleySabin said:


> Couldn't help but have the same thought come into my head while I watched.


Yeah right. That's like wishing Michael Bay would take notes from Scorsese.


----------



## Obfuscation

tbf it was more along the lines of _"jesus, Michael Elgin why do you suck so much ass when you do try shit like this? you're awful."_

:hayley3


----------



## Rah

Bubz said:


> Yeah right. That's like wishing Michael Bay would take notes from Scorsese.


The over-usage of close-ups and explosions are a much under-appreciated art form that only the viewer with discernible taste would cherish. Pleb.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

PWG TEN

Young Bucks vs. Dojo Bros vs. Inner City Machine Guns - ****


----------



## Bubz

Rah said:


> The over-usage of close-ups and explosions are a much under-appreciated art form that only the viewer with discernible taste would cherish. Pleb.


So what you're saying, Rah, is that Michael Elgin is some kind of misunderstood master just like Michael Bay?


----------



## Rah

Yep.

(obvious sarcasm should be obvious)


----------



## EmbassyForever

Rhodes vs Orton from RAW was excellent. ***3/4-****.


----------



## Obfuscation

It wasn't obvious enough. Obviously.


----------



## Groovemachine

Eddie Kingston vs Green Ant - Chikara Battle Not With Monsters - ****

Kingston once again provides a masterclass in selling, I'd go so far as to say he's the best on the indies when it comes to selling. This was heated and intense from the opening bell; Green Ant in particular had some really stiff strikes, I was surprised at how brutal they were with each other. I've seen lots of higher ratings, and although I enjoyed this match immensely, it never got into 'legit MOTY' territory. Perhaps I've lost out as I haven't seen their first encounter from January. Perhaps I was waiting for a more decisive, climactic finish. Whatever the case, it's up there alongside Pieces of Hate vs 3.0 from _Aniversario: No Compromise_ as the potential Chikara MOTY. I'll have to give both another look.


----------



## Bubz

Rah said:


> Yep.
> 
> (obvious sarcasm should be obvious)


Don't worry, it was obviously obvious .

Actually I'm pretty sure it's sarcasm whenever anyone says they like Elgin.


----------



## geraldinhio

PWG Ten

*B-Boy, Candice LeRae, & Willie Mack vs. "Pretty" Peter Avalon, Joey Ryan, & Ryan Taylor* 
~FUN. Candice and Willie Mack were the stars. PWG needs more PPA. Obviously not a legit MOTYC but bags of fun and probably the most fun I've had watching a match all year. ******

*TJP vs Kyle O Reily* 

Same as above really. TJP is a fucking ninja. Beautiful technical exchanges, innovative offence and some really good chemistry and counters. A bit more selling from both and maybe shave off five minutes I would of rated it a lot higher. I want a rematch anyway. ******

*Inner City Machine Guns vs Dojo Bros vs Young Bucks.*

~Insane. Ricochet is not human. Doesn't hold a candle to the Tremendous III match but defiantly worth a watch. 

*****1/4*


----------



## Máscara Dorada

*Soberano Jr., Estigma, Súper Halcón Jr. vs Artillero, Nitro, Súper Commando*

The best lower card match in CMLL for months. Not that any of the tecnicos actually belong in the lower cards. Halcón should be in a succesful tagteam with Hombre Bala Jr, Estigma & Soberano should be pushed to at least Tercera & occational semi main.. A little to much matwork in the beginning but as soon as Soberano is tagged in, that changes. The first fall ends great, and the segunda caida was overall great. I thought they could have had some more action in the last fall.. Really miss when the lower card tecnicos where allowed to do dives. Anyway, this was the match of the night. ****3/4*

*Aerostar, Angélico, Jack Evans vs. Machine Rocker, Pentagón Jr., Soul Rocker
*
Absolutely insane action from start to finish. 12:47 minutes match time. Counted it to 8 dives in those 13 minutes. Couldn't get my eyes off the screen one time during the match. Every spot was totally perfect. Since i can't, in any way, see how this could have been improved other than giving it more time since i could watch this forever, and i don't like holding back.. It's a five star match. *******


----------



## Srdjan99

***1/4 for Orton/Rhodes, nice match and a great aftermath, but not MOTY potential


----------



## Rah

WHAT? AEROSTAR?! NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED


----------



## JustJoel

Finally watched the rest of G1, and let me say, Shibata v. Ishii was really good. The crowd was on fire, and you could see the adrenaline was up for both guys. Really love Ishii's old school style. Shibata hasn't really been my thing, and the incessant focus on trading, while enjoyable, was a limited experience. The drop kick was brutal in the turnbuckle - reminded me of London v. Davey in ROH from this year. That actually was probably more brutal, mostly because Davey didn't _intend_ to crush London's head on the double stomp. Shibata, OTOH, don't care. Shibata gonna kick you where you lie _after_ putting boots to your face. Roll out of the ring if you need a break old man. It's pretty cool.


The ending was good, but after the Steiner Screwdriver, how can you top that? The answer is you can't. You just give guy a brainbuster, and say "I can't nearly kill a guy every night. Remember Misawa?" It was good, but not better than Tanahashi/Ishii. I didn't think it was any better than Cena/Bryan. Actually liked SS more, but could well be personal bias. The striking was good. Stiff as hell. It just felt more limited, and didn't provide the full range of emotions for me like the other two did. I gave Bryan/Cena *****1/2* and think that's about right for this.

Shibata v. Ishii *****1/2*


----------



## Chismo

It's really sad to come over here and say that TEN was the first PWG show probably in years without a great match(es). Nothing touched the **** territory. Too bad, since this is a major anniversary show we're talking about, but they put themselves into the corner with really bad booking:

- two 3-way title matches
- two 3-way title gimmick matches
- two back to back 3-way title gimmick matches
- two completely unnecessary back to back 3-way title gimmick matches
- two completely unnecessary back to back 3-way title gimmick matches that came across as a cheap way to recreate the last year's glory
- Brian Cage in a singles match
- removing Chuck Taylor from the commentary position in favor of Kevin Steen, who acts like a wannabe each day more and more, sad but true

Anyway: Elgin/Fox, Kyle/TJP and Guerrilla Warfare are ***3/4.


----------



## Concrete

*Blue Panther/Mascara Dorada/Mistico vs. Averno/Polvora/Rey Escorpion(CMLL 8/30/13):*****
_I'm going to admit the back half of this match is real spotty but heck if I didn't enjoy this. The wrestle at a wonderfully brisk pace throughout. This match wrapped all the fun spots under the Panther vs Averno theme. That's a pretty swell way to get this over with me. Panther and Averno are not Casas and Rush but they were crazy old guys going at each other so that's all well and good. I've only seen one Polvora match and he seemed like your regular spotty lucha guy but for some reason here he seemed like that mixed with a dickhead. Escorpion has become one of my favorite roleplayers in wrestling. Not every wrestler needs to be the center of a feud or be in the main event and Escorpian is a prime example. CMLL can throw him into a trios for Rush/Casas or Panther/Averno and he looks like boss. Mascara Dorada is super fast. So is Mistico. Yep, thats all they needed to do. High pace + Averno/Panther + SPOTZ=A super duper fun match _​


----------



## Matt_Yoda

*Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (8.23.2013)-*****
-First off Shingo’s Mullet is a work of art. Now a very good match between these two; YAMATO controlled the flow of the match well and Shingo as always played a great underdog despite his size. I love the story they told throughout the match as YAMATO tried everything in his arsenal (submissions, heavy strikes & interference) to put down Shingo while Shingo focused more on just wanting to hurt YAMATO. Both guys got in their signature offense such as the Pumping Bomber/Stay Dream & Galleria/Brainbuster; they put together a damn good finishing stretch and the crowd popped big (so did I) for the unexpected finish which accomplished putting the strap on YAMATO in a rudo fashion, keep Shingo looking strong and not showing off too much to save for a rematch.


----------



## Obfuscation

I should give that a watch myself. I'm usually lukewarm at the end of the day with Dragon Gate despite liking the roster, but maybe I can get into it. The Kobe World matches last month left me underwhelmed. Hoping I can really dig it b/c SHINGO vs YAMATO? Sounds good to me on paper. idk the length it went and usually those overblown in duration matches take me out of caring. I think later tonight will be playing some catch up with various Puro I haven't watched this year.

Meanwhile right now is Manhattan Mayhem V time. Saw the card. Actually a bit excited for a few matches. Some I'm going to skip b/c I know myself, but still there are some that actually earn my interest. That's better than nothing at this rate. I'm still holding on PWG...it's just not clicking for me atm.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Swagger vs Zayn - ****
Better than Cesaro/Zayn. The crowd was super-hot for Zayn. Great stuff.


----------



## Matt_Yoda

HayleySabin said:


> I should give that a watch myself. I'm usually lukewarm at the end of the day with Dragon Gate despite liking the roster, but maybe I can get into it. The Kobe World matches last month left me underwhelmed. Hoping I can really dig it b/c SHINGO vs YAMATO? Sounds good to me on paper. idk the length it went and usually those overblown in duration matches take me out of caring. I think later tonight will be playing some catch up with various Puro I haven't watched this year.


Eh, you should probably approach with caution then. I mean its still DragonGate and if you're not a fan of that wrestling style then it may not mesh well with you, but by all means check it out if its something that interests you (Y)



EmbassyForever said:


> Swagger vs Zayn - ****
> Better than Cesaro/Zayn. The crowd was super-hot for Zayn. Great stuff.


Will be checking this out later then.


----------



## Obfuscation

I continue to try, but I think the Dragon Gate style has lost most appeal for me these days. Still going to give the match a look. So unusual b/c once those chaps make their way to a promotion in America it usually clicks 9/10.


----------



## Bubz

I agree 100%. I try and watch a DG show and I just genuinely can't watch it. Put SHINGO in a ring with a US tag team or singles and it's usually good. Weird.


----------



## flag sabbath

Chismo already gave this the hard sell in the puro thread, but in case you missed it, this a fucking nuts, seriously appalling & genuinely outstanding deathmatch....


----------



## Obfuscation

Bubz said:


> I agree 100%. I try and watch a DG show and I just genuinely can't watch it. Put SHINGO in a ring with a US tag team or singles and it's usually good. Weird.


It's a situation I can't quite explain. It is what it is. Only leaves me wanting Tozawa back in America full time.


----------



## flag sabbath

EmbassyForever said:


> Swagger vs Zayn - ****
> Better than Cesaro/Zayn. The crowd was super-hot for Zayn. Great stuff.


I'd go as far as *****1/4* & call it my TV MOTY - amazing performance from Zayn, really good commentary & a fever-pitch crowd.


----------



## Bubz

Can't wait to watch that. Is it online yet?


----------



## EmbassyForever

Bubz said:


> Can't wait to watch that. Is it online yet?


Yep.

http://prowrestlingnews.org/cgi-bin/protect.cgi?File=iz8eIv0Tp.html

37:41


----------



## Bubz

Awesome (Y)

Yeah, the match was great. Definitely not as good as Zayn/Cesaro for me, but it's not like that's a bad thing. Swagger was great, his best performance for ages, looked like a bully near the end kicking Zayn down. Zayn is amazing, we all know this, but now so do the crowd and it's awesome. Another perfectly told story from him, he's a master at getting people to care, just as much without the mask as when he had it. ******


----------



## Skins

Good lord is swaggie/zayn that good ?


----------



## DOPA

Sami Zayn vs Jack Swagger (WWE 9/4): ******

Arguably better than Cesaro/Zayn III


----------



## The Lady Killer

OK, Bubz has convinced me to watch this.


----------



## Bubz

Oh hi TLK! Definitely watch it, it's really good.


----------



## Obfuscation

Generico is the greatest living person on this planet. GIVE HIM EVERYTHING, WWE.

Yeah, that was fabulous. He's already beloved and the atmosphere has created some to replicate the intense emotion he provided while working on the Indies. I don't mean to undersell Jack Swagger in any of this b/c he's always been fantastic & very underrated himself and a damn good piece in this match being so great, but Generico lads. Still, after nearly a decade, still amazes me to this day with his work.

-----------

Also that Ishikawa vs Takeda deathmatch was frightening on some levels. Dug it. Certainly started off a bit "run of the mill" in terms of setting up the spots, but the building towards bigger and more dangerous moments were quality. When it was all said and done you got sucked into the brutality. So much *BLOOD*. Really good stuff. Soda can spots were 100% as disgusting as I knew they would be. Head drops were just about as vicious. Which says a ton.

I love wrestling so much.


----------



## Skins

HayleySabin said:


> Generico is the greatest living person on this planet. GIVE HIM EVERYTHING, WWE.
> 
> Yeah, that was fabulous. He's already beloved and the atmosphere has created some to replicate the intense emotion he provided while working on the Indies. I don't mean to undersell Jack Swagger in any of this b/c he's always been fantastic & very underrated himself and a damn good piece in this match being so great, but Generico lads. Still, after nearly a decade, still amazes me to this day with his work.
> 
> 
> I love wrestling so much.


I echo everything here, superb match tbh(hayley :lol), When I saw someones rate it ****1/4 I thought that may be alittle to high but I think I give it about the same. Anybody else notice there was only two restholds the entire match, just a excellent faced paced all-out match.


----------



## Concrete

*Kyle Matthews vs KT Hamill(DSCW 8/2/13):*****
_YEAH! Kyle Matthews is a highly pimped cat but I don't know if I've ever truly got it. I may have gotten it here. Hamill is a guy I've tried to watch a bit of but most of his stuff that's taped literally hurts my eyes. I'll try again at some point cause he was real good in this. These guys worked a nice mat-based match which is not something you see done well on the American independents. They brought contrasting mat styles with Hamill being steak and potatoes(not even close to a bad thing) and Matthews being more flash. Hamill having a waistlock and slapping Matthews to the ground was so nice.Loved that both guys escaped a headscissors with two totally different approaches. Hamill being a bit bigger used his momentum and floated over to a headlock. Matthews being the flashy sonbitch does a headstand for a bit then escapes into a sub on the legs. The matwork was a solid foundation for a fine finishing stretch. Wasn't crazy over the top but that's what made it so nice. Always there being a clear fan favorite was nice. Matthews was SUPA OVA! Matthews hits a nasty dropkick near the end that Hamill sells like he got shot in the face. IN THE FACE! I think this is gonna be the peak of indy matwork in 2013. It is not Virus vs Blue Panther but this match has a little more grit that I DUG! _​
Fuck there is another Gallows match I'm gonna be watching in the future but W-1 first because MYSTERY OPPONENTS! Gallows is gonna make a run for Top 30 worker this year with minimal time on his side. LOVE IT!


----------



## Bruce L

Watched Swagger/Zayn. Really, _really_ good match, but much like the 2/3 falls with Cesaro, it feels like we're missing a lot. The first part of the match, before the commercial break, was good and everything, but to get a "this is awesome" chant almost as soon as the break ends? Feels like we missed some pretty important stuff there. I'm really happy to see that Sami has been able to get over to the degree he has without really changing the style we fell in love with on the indys, but there are a few signature mannerisms that worked for Generico, but come off a bit too over-the-top without the mask. That's a minor complaint, though.

A bigger complaint, although it may be a weird one: Did anyone else find it a little off-putting that Swagger was in firm control before the break, but the first thing we saw after was Zayn hitting the Blue Thunder Bomb? I tend to like prefer it when (non-live) TV matches just edit out part of a single heat segment for the commercials.


----------



## Rah

*Kyle Matthews Vs Anthony Henry (24/08/2013 LPW)*
_These guys are no strangers to making impressive mat-work and transitions with each other, as they've been doing that for, at least, the past two years. Still, it's always a treat to witness. Matthews now being less-capable of hanging with Henry, which drives him to run shitless at every escape he got, delivered a great performance edge to their match-up instead of being one of simple class exhibition. Concrete may have pimped the Hamill/Matthews match but I thought this was infinitely better, especially due to the first half. That's no slight on the other bout, but rather of just how great these matches are. Utter sleepers_.​


----------



## Concrete

*Kyle Matthews Vs Anthony Henry (24/08/2013 LPW):*****
_This did not disappoint at all. I'm not sure I'd agree with it being infinitely better, or better at all, but this was another great Matthews match. He is certainly creeping up more and more on my Top 100. I hadn't seen a quality heel performance from Matthews yet but he did a swell job in this one going to the outside when he was in danger. They built well to big moves and exciting sequences which was wonderful since it made the crowd really pop in a meaningful way. I have seen zero other Matthews vs Henry matches so I feel as though I must go watch some in the future. _


----------



## septurum

Antonio Cesaro vs Kofi Kingston (WWE Main Event 9/11/13)- *** 3/4

Thought I would mention this, it was an awesome TV match.


----------



## Obfuscation

Nowhere near as good as their last match was. Decent at best via a Cesaro show, but nothing greater than that. Smackdown doesn't look to hold any promise here either. So it's probably only going to be RAW & NOC to look out for this week. Unless NXT has itself another glorious gem on the horizon.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Daisuke Sekimoto & Yuji Okabayashi vs. Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi (Wrestle-1, 8/9):* Bodyslams & backbreakers bitches!!! Strong BJ smash the living shit out of the Last Revolution juniors for much of this, but Kondo & Hayashi rally magnificently with some hi-octane double team assualt & battery ******


----------



## Concrete

I have that BJPW tag from W-1 as well as the KICK-FEST 2013 at ***3/4. Probably should have loathed the KICK-FEST but there became a certain pleasure I got from just crazy kicks and Koji being a bad ass when he was in. They didn't try and disguise the match as an epic or give me layers just to yank them away. Straight forward and stiff.

*Dean Allmark/Hiro Takahashi vs. Bravado Brothers(ASW:UK 8/20/13):*****
_There is something so super charming about Dean Allmark matches and ASW:UK. The Bravados are in full heel mode and work over Allmark for a good portion of this match. Allmark being a MEGA FACE certainly makes this work better than it would with 90% of wrestlers right now. Bravados use ever single trick in the book to make sure they can beat up on Britain's favorite son(this may not be a statistical fact). Hiro Takahashi comes in off a hot tag and looks amazing! Like that's the most time he spends in the match and it is so good him going full on Japanese Jr. cat and throwing elbows with authority on the evil foreigners(USA SUCKS chants WHY). So yeah, an Allmark tag that's super fun with rad heel work and a great comeback from the babyfaces. _

Not a MOTYC but since I don't want to go to the indy thread for such a simple thing match but Robbie Dynamite vs. Dean Allmark in a Tables Match was tons of fun. First tables match in a long while that I actually rather enjoyed. There was an overbooked finished but since this never reached awesome levels it doesn't make me too sad. Not a surprise that Allmark was involved. Oh and Dynamite is extraordinary as well.This is the sort of wrestling I want on TV. Super fun, clear cut good guys and bad guys plus only taking up minimal time.


----------



## Obfuscation

Link for the BRAVADOS match? Last ASW:UK tag match you plugged was fantastic.


----------



## Concrete

Match is little in the way of frills but tremendous in the way Bravados looked like douches and the babyface team had that FIRE!


----------



## Saint Dick

*Antonio Cesaro v Sami Zayn - NXT (8/21/13)*
Finally got around to seeing this. Wow. It lived up to the hype and then some. Wonderfully constructed with each fall linking together seamlessly to form the overall structure and story of one complete match. Loved how they used the continued focus on the roll up and chin lock to capture and reinforce the battle between Zayn's quickness and agility and Cesaro's raw power. The callbacks to their previous bouts were nifty and satisfying, and what can I really say about the final fall other than it was batshit crazy awesomesauceness. Zayn's diving DDT on the floor was nuts and the finishing sequence might be the sickest thing that's ever happened in this company. Superb performances from both men. I want to a heap all the praise on Cesaro because he's like the biggest badass in the world but that wouldn't be fair because Zayn ruled the universe in this too. Fantastic match.

WWE MOTY list:

1. Brock Lesnar v CM Punk - Summerslam (8/18/13)
2. Dolph Ziggler v Alberto Del Rio - Payback (6/16/13)
3. Antonio Cesaro v Sami Zayn - NXT (8/21/13)
4. CM Punk v Undertaker - Wrestlemania 29 (4/7/13)
5. John Cena v Daniel Bryan - Summerslam (8/18/13)
6. CM Punk v John Cena - Raw (2/25/13)
7. Kassius Ohno v William Regal - NXT (4/10/13)
8. Brock Lesnar v Triple H - Extreme Rules (5/19/13)
9. Daniel Bryan, Kane & Kofi Kingston v The Shield - Raw (5/20/13)
10. Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins v Daniel Bryan & Kane - Raw (5/27/13)


----------



## Rah

I did a write-up on that Dynamite/Allmark match in the British thread. I echo the sentiments on it being fun for the first half, but once the interference hit that match found itself in the Twilight Zone of booking hell. It accompanied Allmark/Brown which I've yet to watch, but that should be good.


----------



## Concrete

It was really weird how it worked out. It didn't make me go "GAD NABBIT" but just "Well..." haha. Mix Allmark and Mason with Rampage and Dynamite in some combination always seems to lead to a good chunk of fun even if the booking this time took it down.


----------



## Obfuscation

Sweetness. Gonna watch that tag in a little bit. BRAVADOS :mark:

oh and Danielson vs Reigns from Monday > than just about everything from Night of Champions. How about that. Enough for me to pug it in this thread to be more specific. Wished the leg work of Reigns in the first half was focused more on in the end. Nonetheless, quality match. Non-finish doesn't help, but screw it. Feeds with the story & we knew it was coming.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Okada, Tanaka, Takahashi & Gedo vs. Kojima, Naito, Honma & Bushi (Elimination, NJPW 5/9):* Not only does New Japan boast the best PPVs in the business, it also has a great format for hyping them. This is the usual action-packed 8-man, with the Chaos boys resorting to some dirty heel tactics & Korakuen lapping it up. The finishes are predictably safe thanks to the over-the-top-rope elimination option, but there's enough drama along the way to earn a recommendation ****3/4*

Credit to KeepinItReal for unearthing the link:


----------



## Stardust Genius

Toby Blunt vs. Ilja Dragunov from wXw FAN Night 2:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaEo_pu7ZGc 
I can't rate this match objectively, but everyone says it is very good.


----------



## Concrete

Meant to post this yesterday but I thought I was going to watch more so I held off...I didn't watch more. So before I forget.

*Antonio Cesaro v Sami Zayn - NXT (8/21/13):****1/4*
_I could not possibly gauge my expectations going into the match. I was hearing that the match was amazing while at the same time that it was really good but didn't quite live up to the hype. I'm of the former group. What a match?! Really shouldn't at all surprised that a Generico vs Castagnoli match in a WWE setting would be bad ass. There is this scary thing about Sami where he may be even better now than on the indies. I don't want to jump the gun but he just looks so damn good. The quick 1st fall finish I dug for it kind of playing off the fluke idea of the first match. Thought the second fall in general was real good with a stupidly amazing end in my opinion. Then that third fall was wonderful and put a nice bow on the whole package. Loved Zayn busting out the tornado DDT through the ropes on the outside. The finish was truly one of the most incredible things I've seen in wrestling. WOW!_


----------



## Obfuscation

It's believable that he (Generico/Zayn) could be considered better now. Generico has assimilated to the WWE so well. Then again, so has Cesaro. KINGS.


----------



## Bubz

11 on 3 match from RAW was great btw. Bryan and Reigns ruled in it.


----------



## ByTor

I haven't seen much, and should probably just steer clear of this thread altogether, but I loved Shield vs. Usos from MITB. Shield were awesome at cutting off Uso tags and both teams hit some really cool stuff. Love the Shield's finish too.


----------



## KeepinItReal

ByTor said:


> I haven't seen much, and should probably just steer clear of this thread altogether, but I loved Shield vs. Usos from MITB. Shield were awesome at cutting off Uso tags and both teams hit some really cool stuff. Love the Shield's finish too.


Dude that match was so awesome and the crowd went nuts (which is enough to save bad matches even). My only issue is that it was so good, they were essentially breaking the fourth wall and saying "We know we're on the pre-show. Give us a better spot next time."


----------



## Obfuscation

Shield vs Usos would be good - if it was only the last three minutes. Match was mediocre standard Usos nonsense. Not a fan.

Handicap Elimination match from RAW deserves a pug in here. Absolutely. Dare I say it was the most fun I've had with a match on TV all year. Some other contenders out there, but this was a total joy from start to finish.


----------



## Bubz

I agree Cody. REIGNS fucking people up with his spear was so awesome. The booking of all the falls was perfect too, then you have Bryan coming in and fucking shit up like only BRYAN DANIELSON can, and the crowd going bat shit as always for him. Babyfaces swarming Rollins was great.

But I hated King on commentary basically saying that Rollins was the weakest member of the Shield and basically useless on his own. ffs.


----------



## Obfuscation

King said that? Was so consumed by the match I tuned out all commentary. C'mon, Jerry.


----------



## Concrete

*Black Metal/Pegasso/Tritón vs. Bárbaro Cavernario/Espíritu Maligno/Skándalo(CMLL 6/24/13):***3/4*
_This is a borderline ***3/4 but DEM RUDOS! They just did the simple thing of being jerks and making every comeback from the faces something to get behind. A love a luchadore with a little meat on their bones, looking at you Skandalo. Not much else to say. Isn't a Top 50 but felt worth a mention. _


----------



## THECHAMPION

You shouldn't say it if you're an announcer, but it is clearly true the way they book the three of them.


----------



## Joshi Judas

He was saying something like "Who would have thought Seth Rollins.." when he was interrupted by either JBL or Cole. Thankfully, he didn't go back to finish his sentence. Classic Lawler.


----------



## Rah

THECHAMPION said:


> You shouldn't say it if you're an announcer, but it is clearly true the way they book the three of them.


I believe the justification is that Ambrose is a singles title holder and Reigns is a monster. Individually, the group weren't originally booked to look strong but then they slowly grew traction and that statement becomes void. Rollins has had a good few shining performances, and his match against Daniel Bryan (who beat Cena clean) was nowhere close to being a squash.


----------



## Obfuscation

Rollins always felt like the lead stud of the group to me in terms of in ring credibility. You put them in the ring, and yeah Roman will KILL, but it always seemed to come down to Rollins being the mind/action for their successes. Not to mention his slew of singles work that has impressed. Hardly, hardly the weak link. Plus, how does being the last member left allow him to be dubbed weak all the same? He was the elusive, cagey one that it took four guys to corner to finally stop in the elimination match. That only makes him look like a force to be reckon with in my eyes. As all three members are conveyed to be. Lawler's comment at the end of the day was just daft. End of. Love him, but nah. There isn't a weak link.


----------



## Rah

I'd honestly penned the members as follows:
*Reigns:* the muscle. If The Shield needed someone destroyed, he was the guy to do it. Hardly anyone gets up once he gives a pounding

*Rollins:* the wrestler. He had the most experience coming in, both in reality and in story, so he was always put on the pedestal as knowing how to get himself out of tight spots and out-wrestling his opponents

*Ambrose:* the leader. The certifiable madman who you knew had a screw loose, even if he wasn't pulling off stunts from his past. He controlled the madness and would direct traffic from the apron once the match started. Many a time you'd hear him screaming out orders on how Rollins or Reigns should behave. Ultimately, he was the glue that compacted the talent and heightened their abilities.


I can see where Lawler was coming from, in that it was a surprise anyone could hold their own against five (?) men, but Rollins, most certainly, isn't someone to flub off as least capable.


----------



## Obfuscation

I really don't consider Ambrose the leader. More of the mouthpiece. They're all equally established for my money. Company has tried to separate Ambrose from the pack, yet the other two pop way more. Until Ambrose, speaks, that is.


----------



## flag sabbath

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (NJPW Destruction, 29/9):* This was wild & completely over the top. It won't be to everyone's tastes for sure, but for my money the non-stop shenanigans were great fun. They also ignited a crowd which was dead for a throwaway first half & understandably subdued for the three decent, but predictable title matches ******


----------



## Obfuscation

Got Destruction all lined up for _(preferably)_ tomorrow. I've been one of the bigger advocates for Devitt vs Tanahashi matches, so it being a bit of a wild hot mess is enough to up the anticipation. This is one match where I can actually anticipate Bullet Club shenanigans and it'll be fitting for the story. b/c it all started with Tanahashi.


----------



## flag sabbath

Yeah, it's a suitably chaotic payoff to their rivalry.


----------



## Bubz

I was going to say where has New Japan been recently. Feels like ages since their last big show.


----------



## Chismo

Kojima/Okada was great. Tanahashi/Devitt was close.


----------



## Obfuscation

Climax gave it over a month till the Destruction PPV iirc. Felt like it too. Despite the two house shows in the middle. With the first having a great match on it; the eight man elimination. Not sure if I plugged that in here.


----------



## doctor doom

just watched ibushi vs nakamura, now I need to watch Sakuraba vs. Nakamura.


----------



## Concrete

Not a big fan of Tana vs Devitt. They did the lumberjack match quite well but still felt there was a bit missing from it. Oh well. 

Any DG matches people would like to recommend? Only have seen SHINGO vs Ricochet.


----------



## Rah

*Prince Devitt Vs Hiroshi Tanahasahi *- Bullet Club are really ineffective on offence, as lumberjacks; their stomps and punches look pretty awful. Devitt's plugging through some good moments but he doesn't quite get how to work them, if I'm honest. He doesn't highlight nor milk the spots to make them feel big or worthwhile. When he had Tana's head within that black bag, he should have emphasized how he was strangling him and not be continually whispering "bang bang" to the audience. Make it loud, clear and visible, dammit. I sincerely hope the rumours on WWE wanting him are true, as they'll be able to tweak him into something so good. How is it a deathmatch if weapons aren't legal (ref didn't seem awfully phased by the crutch at the start, though, or by the random weapons every time else)? How is it a ref distraction if Devitt is playing the fucking guitar before hitting Tana? That finishing run was shit, too. It'll be fun for some, I assume, though.

*Satoshi Kojima Vs Kazuchika Okada* - I didn't mind this. There was some really weak offence and some awkward moves/transitions (Red Ink :no but this really wasn't bad at all. Some really fun stuff in the mix.


----------



## Lane

Beyond Wrestling: Americanrana
Eddie Edwards vs Biff Busick
******


----------



## Concrete

Lane said:


> Beyond Wrestling: Americanrana
> Eddie Edwards vs Biff Busick
> ******


That match was wicked cool live. Especially with the atmosphere the venue gave. Not sure how much I'd enjoy it on DVD though. Certainly a show I wish would come out NOW! Been a slow road getting that bad boy out.


----------



## Lane

VOD is a hell of a thing.


----------



## Concrete

I'd rather not do VOD. Thing is if I know VOD is the ONLY option I'm more likely to get it but knowing their is a DVD eventually coming makes me wait.


----------



## malek

Time Splitters vs Taichi and Taka

Decent match, not what I expected though, with good portion happening out of the ring. TAKA and Taichi though must be most enetertaining comedy/heel act I've ever seen. Kushida and Shelley did their rutine in this match. Decent fun if nothing else. Time for Time Splitters to get a new title reign...


----------



## darkclaudio

WWE Battleground 2013
-The Rhodes Family (Goldust & Cody Rhodes) vs The Shield (Roman Reigs & Seth Rollins) ***1/2+


----------



## Rah

*Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (06/10/2013 CMLL)*
_Now these are submissions that I like; little additions to every hold is something that just cannot be beaten, frankly. Guerrero was also on top of his game, here, and perhaps indicative of why others were so high of him. The kidney punch while he has Virus in an armlock and grinding his forearm into Virus' shoulder socket while he wrenches the champ's arm out of it was so great. As, too, was his selling. He realises his chance to break the arm lock is to be fast and violent but the ripping free hurts his arm more and boy does he sell that. The first fall comes quick enough, though, and while Maya is showing promise, he isn't going to out-wrestle Virus and his beautiful submissions. Where the fuck do you think the second fall goes? Onto the mat, of course. YES! This is the environ in which Virus shines and offers Maya an interesting foil dynamic in his more hard-hitting transitions into subs. I bet Guerrero wished he had kept it more to the mat once the third fall started, though, as it looked like he completely fucked his neck up on that dive. He quickly returns the favour by throwing his body off the top-rope, side-ways, into Virus' head in the hopes of decapitating Virus' at the expense of his own body which pretty much just splats onto the hard floor. Virus, too, is immensely agile for a bulky man in his mid-forties as he pulls off some of the slickest high-speed moves of the match (a list that includes a sliced bread #2 from the ground onto the apron and turnbuckle; NUTS).

I see now on LuchaWiki that they had an immense match back in 2011 that I should watch to tie this up (Cubsfan makes note of a play back to that match during the final stretch) but this certainly holds on its own both in terms of narrative and as a top-placer in the list of great lucha matches of this year._​


----------



## Chismo

BOLA Night 2:



Spoiler: BOLA N2



- Steen vs. Gargano ****1/4
- Team Superkick vs. Candice, Fox, Swann ****1/2
- Elgin vs. Kyle ****


----------



## EmbassyForever

WWE Battleground:

Rhodes Family vs Shield - ****1/4


----------



## Stardust Genius

wXw/CZW/BJW World Triangle League

- Ricochet vs. AR Fox (Night 2): As you can expect it was a very good spot match. ******
- Big Van Walter vs Daisuke Sekimoto (Night 3): Totally different than their previous matches in wXw. This time Daisuke tried to destroy Walters leg, which was injured from the match against Kim Ray. *****1/4*
- Sumerian Death Squad (Tommy End & Michael Dante) vs. Ricochet & AR Fox: Similar to the tag matches on the third day of the wXw 16 Carats in 2011, 2012 and 2013, this was a very good match with many spots. *****-****1/4*


Spoiler: World Triangle League Final



Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Jonathan Gresham: The story of this match should be obvious and it worked very well.


 ******


----------



## Concrete

This year feels really awesome. Maybe I'm judging too easily, or I've just expanded my horizans but DAMN!

*Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (10/6/2013 CMLL):****1/4*
_A match like this makes me truly happy I've gotten into lucha this year. You get two falls of absolutely stunning grappling. All the submissions either take some craftyness to get or there is something rugged added in to a locked submission for good measure. I wouldn't say it was classy but maybe raw? Virus is a stud and this match just further proves it. Not sure if I've seen a Maya match but he looked rather good as well. Loved the first two falls giving such a deep contrast to the final fall that was more fun than anything. Maya's dives were reckless as could be. Apparently he talked to my old high school football coach where you aren't suppose to tackle the man but tackle through the man. Nearly shat myself on that. Then he decides to do a crossbody from the top to the floor nearly taking Virus's head off. I'm a sick bastard that loved both moments. Virus doing the flipping armdrag off the turnbuckle on the outside made me audibly go "WHOA". Great match and shows off two of the wonderful ways lucha is done._

*Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii(NJPW 8/4/13):****1/2*
_Not gonna go into too much depth since most have already but this match is just insanely stiff. They kept it relatively compact which made it so damn wonderful. Both guys are the bomb. And they throw them as well. BOMBS!_

*Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi(NJPW 8/4/13):****1/2*
_I might be in the minority but I thought this was every bit as good as Ishii/Shibata if not better. I don't always love Ibushi since he seems a little too flippy floppy for me yet always seems to have the same damn expression on his face. This though started out good but then by the end it was FUCKITY FUCK FUCK. Nakamura looked like a beast on offense with him being a clearly larger individual and Ibushi stepped up in the offense department it felt. Was not expecting this to be as awesome as it was. Not sure if Nakamura is a Top 5 guy for WOTY but he looks like it with performances like this. _


----------



## smitlick

Concrete said:


> This year feels really awesome. Maybe I'm judging too easily, or I've just expanded my horizans but DAMN!
> 
> *Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (10/6/2013 CMLL):****1/4*
> _A match like this makes me truly happy I've gotten into lucha this year. You get two falls of absolutely stunning grappling. All the submissions either take some craftyness to get or there is something rugged added in to a locked submission for good measure. I wouldn't say it was classy but maybe raw? Virus is a stud and this match just further proves it. Not sure if I've seen a Maya match but he looked rather good as well. Loved the first two falls giving such a deep contrast to the final fall that was more fun than anything. Maya's dives were reckless as could be. Apparently he talked to my old high school football coach where you aren't suppose to tackle the man but tackle through the man. Nearly shat myself on that. Then he decides to do a crossbody from the top to the floor nearly taking Virus's head off. I'm a sick bastard that loved both moments. Virus doing the flipping armdrag off the turnbuckle on the outside made me audibly go "WHOA". Great match and shows off two of the wonderful ways lucha is done._
> 
> *Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii(NJPW 8/4/13):****1/2*
> _Not gonna go into too much depth since most have already but this match is just insanely stiff. They kept it relatively compact which made it so damn wonderful. Both guys are the bomb. And they throw them as well. BOMBS!_
> 
> *Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi(NJPW 8/4/13):****1/2*
> _I might be in the minority but I thought this was every bit as good as Ishii/Shibata if not better. I don't always love Ibushi since he seems a little too flippy floppy for me yet always seems to have the same damn expression on his face. This though started out good but then by the end it was FUCKITY FUCK FUCK. Nakamura looked like a beast on offense with him being a clearly larger individual and Ibushi stepped up in the offense department it felt. Was not expecting this to be as awesome as it was. Not sure if Nakamura is a Top 5 guy for WOTY but he looks like it with performances like this. _



Nakamura/Ibushi is my current MOTY and I loved it so much more than the Ishii match.


----------



## Saint Dick

*Cody Rhodes & Goldust v Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins - WWE Battleground (10/6/13)*
Legit GREAT match. Two great FIP segments, two great hot tags and a fantastic finishing stretch. Can't ask for much more from a tag match but it had even more in the form of a strong angle to give it meaning, Dusty Rhodes being awesome on the outside, and a hot crowd. Both Cody and Dustin were on fire. Cody had his career babyface performance so far, along with his showing at MitB earlier this year. I always thought he was a decent talent but he's really starting to step his game up and reach the next level. He's the type of guy who's easy to get behind and root for in a match, at least for me. Everything here was well worked and a ton of fun. Cody's moonsault was the bomb.com. Give me that as a desperation high spot leading to a hot tag any day of the week. Goldust following it up with his own top rope move was sweet too and there's never been a better Cross Rhodes in the history of mankind. The crowd went apeshit for that. Super stuff.


----------



## Rah

Concrete said:


> Not sure if Nakamura is a Top 5 guy for WOTY but he looks like it with performances like this


His penchant for crap during his CMLL tour will hurt his final standing but that performance was so, so good. I wouldn't have him top 5, at all, but he might just get a top 10 at that rate.


----------



## Obfuscation

Only thing I'd add from Battleground would the be tag and honestly, that's all that's needed. It's pretty great, but I feel with a rematch it could be even BETTER. This match was more about the Rhodes' babyface work being the full catalyst instead of it being a blend of Shield's 100% explosive offense vs the babyfaces willing to win. If that makes sense. Point meaning I felt Shield could have added more on the big time offensive, but it wasn't exactly essential to leave this being very good. Something to add towards if we are lucky enough to get a rematch. Dumb the Usos pointless tag team championship match already and sign this for the straps come HIAC. Please, WWE.


----------



## Rah

The Primer said:


> Only thing I'd add from Battleground would the be tag and honestly, that's all that's needed. It's pretty great, but I feel with a rematch it could be even BETTER. This match was more about the Rhodes' babyface work being the full catalyst instead of it being a blend of Shield's 100% explosive offense vs the babyfaces willing to win. If that makes sense. Point meaning I felt Shield could have added more on the big time offensive, but it wasn't exactly essential to leave this being very good. Something to add towards if we are lucky enough to get a rematch. Dumb the Usos pointless tag team championship match already and sign this for the straps come HIAC. Please, WWE.


Dustin is making me depressed that I've never watched his earlier work as that performance was so great. I wouldn't put it as a MotY but it was the feel good moment of the year. Much room for expansion, as you allude to, but even if we don't get it I'm happy we got this.


----------



## Obfuscation

Go back and watch all of his goods...NOW.

You won't be disappointed.


----------



## Bubz

Saint Dick said:


> *Cody Rhodes & Goldust v Roman Reigns & Seth Rollins - WWE Battleground (10/6/13)*
> Legit GREAT match. Two great FIP segments, two great hot tags and a fantastic finishing stretch. Can't ask for much more from a tag match but it had even more in the form of a strong angle to give it meaning, Dusty Rhodes being awesome on the outside, and a hot crowd. Both Cody and Dustin were on fire. Cody had his career babyface performance so far, along with his showing at MitB earlier this year. I always thought he was a decent talent but he's really starting to step his game up and reach the next level. He's the type of guy who's easy to get behind and root for in a match, at least for me. Everything here was well worked and a ton of fun. Cody's moonsault was the bomb.com. Give me that as a desperation high spot leading to a hot tag any day of the week. Goldust following it up with his own top rope move was sweet too and there's never been a better Cross Rhodes in the history of mankind. The crowd went apeshit for that. Super stuff.


Fuckin' ay. Was going to write about it but might as well just point to this. Match fucking ruled.


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> His penchant for crap during his CMLL tour will hurt his final standing but that performance was so, so good. I wouldn't have him top 5, at all, but he might just get a top 10 at that rate.


The comment was more to point out how good he looked in this match as well as a few other times this year. I've seen him have a few going through the motions matches even in NJPW. He's not in my Top 10 right now and I don't know if that's changing.


----------



## Saint Dick

The Primer said:


> Only thing I'd add from Battleground would the be tag and honestly, that's all that's needed. It's pretty great, but I feel with a rematch it could be even BETTER. This match was more about the Rhodes' babyface work being the full catalyst instead of it being a blend of Shield's 100% explosive offense vs the babyfaces willing to win. If that makes sense. Point meaning I felt Shield could have added more on the big time offensive, but it wasn't exactly essential to leave this being very good. Something to add towards if we are lucky enough to get a rematch. Dumb the Usos pointless tag team championship match already and sign this for the straps come HIAC. Please, WWE.


I totally agree The Shield kind of wrestled within themselves, not going the extra mile like they're capable of, but that said I still thought it was basically perfect for what it was. Couldn't have asked for more. If they give us more in a rematch then fuck me that'll be a treat.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's one of those "gave us enough, but room for more" type scenarios. Which only speaks volumes about the talent & capabilities of all four once in the ring with each other.


----------



## Groovemachine

Finally got around to the Rhodes & Goldust vs The Shield match at Battleground, and it was pretty great. A fantastically structured tag match, peppered with feel-good touches that all built to the finish. As others have said, that was the best Cross Rhodes I've ever seen. He should always do it like that from now on, although I imagine it was more to do with Rollins' selling. Loved the big hug between Cody and Goldust as soon as they got the three count, it made it feel so important. That's something that carried all the way through the match actually; it felt like a very big deal, which it should have given the stipulation. Crowd helped this one big time too, they were molten.


----------



## Rah

Las Traumas Vs Valiente y Virus (25/08/2013 Chilanga Mask) - The PWG of Mexico delivers again, this time with 25 minutes of non-stop action between two great teams. Valiente and Trauma II start this with some of the most struggled-for matwork I've seen in Lucha, so if you're one to dismiss the style for being too co-operative then this will be right up your alley, instead. I was hoping throughout for Virus and Trauma II to mix it up but their section was extremely short and a bit of a let down so it's good that the opening section was as long and great as it was. Of course this is a match of two halves in that they ditch the matwork for rope-running and flurried offence but that's perfectly acceptable considering Virus is a star at that and the Traumas are game for anything. A clean finish would have been a nice touch, as this fell off toward the end (in terms of becoming a mess), but I thought the booking fitted the story of Virus and Valiente well, considering they don't like each other in CMLL. A missed move and these two are beating the living crud out of each other around ringside. Traumas win via countout but the real winners are the viewers who will hopefully now be treated to a Virus/Valiente brawl in the future. After Valiente/Navarro, of course. :mark:


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Spoiler: PWG BOLA Night 2



Adam Cole/Young Bucks vs. AR Fox/Candice Lerae/Rich Swann - ****

Awesome awesome stuff. One of my favorite tags of the year.


----------



## EmbassyForever

RAW -

The Shield vs Rhodes Bros - ****1/4+


----------



## flag sabbath

Need to watch it again, but on first viewing, I've got Ishii vs. Shibata II at *****1/4* It has a more methodical pace than their G1 classic, with a couple of lulls, but damn if they don't knock another seven shades out of each other in a captivating & unpredictable fashion.


----------



## Groovemachine

Ishii vs Shibata II - ***3/4

For me, it's not in the same league as the fantastic G1 encounter. The G1 match was a rare example of everything just working and coming together perfectly. Here, I think they slightly misjudged it; the section of silly 1-counts irked me and was too much. Nevertheless, there's still a lot to love. Beginning of the match is great, especially Ishii pretending to wipe off one of Shibata's Yakuza kicks as it were just a scratch. And taking out the 'kick outs at 1', the delayed selling was good. I'm sure others will love this a lot more than me, but I wouldn't go into it expecting it to be better than the G1 classic.


----------



## Obfuscation

Groovemachine said:


> Finally got around to the Rhodes & Goldust vs The Shield match at Battleground, and it was pretty great. A fantastically structured tag match, peppered with feel-good touches that all built to the finish. As others have said, that was the best Cross Rhodes I've ever seen. He should always do it like that from now on, although I imagine it was more to do with Rollins' selling. Loved the big hug between Cody and Goldust as soon as they got the three count, it made it feel so important. That's something that carried all the way through the match actually; it felt like a very big deal, which it should have given the stipulation. Crowd helped this one big time too, they were molten.


Good thing. b/c their rematch on RAW last night is a must watch too. Which is exactly what I came in here to plug:

Shield vs Rhodes Dynasty No DQ was a tremendous follow up. Exactly what it needed to be as the follow up - got to contain a few more "spots" during the match along with all the other x-factors that made the previous so good. Babyface work was the tops via the Rhodes' goal this time was to capture the championship over their jobs. Shield were a touch more explosive this time out & had the advent of some good Ambrose interference which added to the match/chaos the match brought as it built towards the ending. Rollins, Reigns, & Rhodes were fabulous per usual, but lads, Goldust is right there with 'em. Handful of matches back in WWE this year and he's making a strong case for having one of the better catalogs of matches around. Guy is just a _natural_. Yeah, I went there. His punches & tumble to the outside bump are :mark:

This whole match was :mark: worthy. If you haven't people, WATCH. No doubt a top twenty WWE match out there. Could be top ten for some; including myself. A drop in the bucket for WWE's strong stance with their TV matches in 2013.


----------



## darkclaudio

WWE Championship Match: John Cena vs Daniel Bryan - WWE 18/08 ****+
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 10/08 ****
IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi 14/10 ***3/4+
IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Prince Devitt - NJPW 20/07 ***3/4
IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Prince Devitt (c) vs Gedo - NJPW 5/07 ***3/4
Hirooki Goto vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 22/06 ***3/4
Lumberjack Death Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Prince Devitt - NJPW 29/09 ***1/2+
Daisuke Sekimoto & Yuji Okabayashi vs Shuji Kondo & Kaz Hayashi - Wrestle-1 8/09 ***1/2+
BJW Strong Heavyweight Championship Match: Daisuke Sekimoto (c) vs Madoka - BJW 27/08 ***1/2+
IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Satoshi Kojima - NJPW 29/09 ***1/2
Open The Dream Gate Championship Match: Shingo Takagi (c) vs YAMATO - Dragon Gate 23/08 ***1/2


----------



## flag sabbath

I'll stick my neck out & go *five fucking stars* for Okada vs. Tanahashi - fantastically confident performances from both made for a full-on epic.

Nakamura vs. Marufuji is ace too - effortless & full of swagger, like *****+*


----------



## Obfuscation

Better than Invasion Attack?


----------



## flag sabbath

I think so, but I did watch it at work with distractions. Whatever the case, it's another must-see encounter.


----------



## Obfuscation

Joyous times.

I'll be watching no matter what. This has simply upped the excitement level to eleven. I needed this too after how I was letdown by their droll G1 encounter this year.


----------



## Bubz

The G1 match ruled. Pretty sure I liked that match more than anyone in the world, seems that way.


----------



## Rah

I don't think the new encounter is better than their Invasion Attack outing but I do think Okada shone pretty bright there. Tanahashi's his usual (so if you like that, you'll love this) but Okada with DAT SELLING~! really helped keep the match going for me. Nice to see Tana finally go for the arm, too. I think he kinda forgot about the arm towards the end but 99.9% of the match is well done, regardless. Go in spoiler-free, if you can.



*Rhodes Dynasty Vs The Shield (14/10/2013 WWE)* - this was as perfect as perfect can be. While their match at Battleground delivered in terms of its feel-good moment, I cannot help but wonder if The Shield kept back purely to have the Rhodes brothers spotlight ever so much brighter than theirs. The need was no longer there, now, and, as such, we're left purely with the beauty that these two teams can create. I'm almost glad that they didn't go for the No-DQ stipulation straight away as when the chair came into play it felt wholly more like a desperation ploy than an added weapon for the sake of violence. In addition to this, the build was to the tee good and allowed for Goldust to deliver himself in a role he's so great at playing. Every teased moment had a logical counterpoint to it, as well, and turned you full circle in believing who would be picking up the win in the forthcoming moments. For example, when Goldust brought in the chair, out of desperation, it did not feel like a cheap way of turning the tides further on the faces. I believed, in that moment, that Goldust found an equalizer against Reigns but, boy, did my belief change when Reigns got a hold of that chair. I almost felt sorry for Goldust, considering Reigns sold his vicious monster gimmick to perfection at this point. Once this sense of equality is built, though, the match devolves into a whirlwind of chaos that's become endemic of The Shield tags. There's interference and spots galore yet nothing surpasses the right amount. It had every bit of a chance to become a clusterfuck yet turned out to be, as I said, perfect. It's not only how sports entertainment should be booked but tag team wrestling, as well. For my money, this is the best of The Shield tags by a healthy margin.


----------



## Obfuscation

Young Bucks vs Inner City Machine Guns vs Dojo Bros Ladder Match from PWG Ten _(Years of Lovin...)_ is totally on the list. Chaos, madness, disorder. It's not the nWo. It's a main event with six nut job workers looking to tear the house down in true top quality Pro Wrestling Guerrilla fashion. Amazing. They did it again.


----------



## Chismo

New Japan KOPW '13:

- Shibata/Ishii ****1/4
- Tanashi/Okada ****3/4


*Shibata/Ishii*, well, it was obvious the magic from G1 was impossible to recreate, but they came as close as possible at this point. Absolutley punishing match. *Main event* was unreal, IMO. I fully expect from many dudes not to think much of the match, because it was worked a la Tana/MiSu from the last year's KOPW, i.e. "boring" style, with long and strategic workovers, but I enjoyed almost every second of it, they really sucked me into everything they done. A human chess game 101. Not to mention the spoiler-free excitement.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Well, fuck. Shame on me for complaining about a 6th match. 

Ishii/Shibata 2- ***3/4

Nakamura/Marufuji- ****1/4

*Okada/Tanahashi- ******


----------



## Groovemachine

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2013 - ****1/4

In my book, Invasion Attack still stands a head above this one, as they captured magic back at that show and it was really something special. This was a terrific contest from the get go but I wouldn't go the whole hog.

Tanahashi is particularly awesome here. I won't spoil anything but he has a few 'heelish' tactics that are so great and made me chuckle. Tanahashi targeting the arm was really smart; he knows the Rainmaker is Okada's best weapon, so he focuses on the arm early to take it out of the champ's arsenal. Okada's selling was top notch for the most part, and I enjoyed him struggling to hit the tombstone, but then after he hit it on the outside it seemed like he forgot all about the arm and it wasn't a problem for him again. Shame as the final stretch would have been even more incredible if he'd really expressed the arm pain.

Anyway, I'm just nitpicking to explain why I wouldn't give it 5 stars. It's an awesome match and another example of these two being at the top of their game. I probably don't need to see another encounter for a while, but seriously, can Okada and Tanahashi do no wrong together?


----------



## Joshi Judas

Oh yep, as great as Okada was, I especially loved Tanahashi's heelish tactics and viciousness here. Will be an interesting heel if NJPW decides to turn him someday.


----------



## Bubz

Oh shit, finally some new wrestling outside of a couple WWE matches I'm excited about.


----------



## jawbreaker

yo I haven't been up to date with just about anything all year but the two Rhodes-Shield tags have been unbelievable. I thought Battleground was perfect and then the Raw one was more perfect. All four of these guys (plus Ambrose) have incredible senses of timing and facial expressions and it makes their matches so much better than just about anyone else's. Reigns in particular was incredible in the Raw match. It's rare I watch a Goldust match and come out enjoying someone's performance more than Goldust's, but oh man did Reigns do that here. His facial expressions were outstanding and I really got that not only would he hurt you, he'd enjoy it. Cody and Rollins were also excellent, though: Cody's kicks looked awesome and he made me wonder why WWE wasted him as a heel for so long, and Rollins' character work and selling was impeccable, as usual. If I still gave star ratings I'd throw all five at this for sure.


----------



## Bubz

*Goldust & Cody Rhodes vs The Shield (WWE RAW 14/10/14)*
Motherfuck this was amazing. Jawbreaker (wtf are you doing here man?) and Rah summed up my thoughts on this really. It's incredible. Like, really fucking incredible. Every single thing was done so damn well. Shield working on top is always going to be great, and good lord where has THIS Cody been? He's brilliant. Goldust is spectacular in this, far more so than the Battleground match. It's been said that these guys have impeccable timing, and that is so true because I was watching this thinking that everything was timed perfectly. From Shields workover, Cody's comeback, Goldusts tag, the spots, the introduction of the chair and the No DQ rule etc. Everything. Then you have the overbooked (is it?) finish and the crowd going bat shit and everything adds up to make something truly great. One of the best matches of the year. *****1/2*

Watched some of King Of Pro-Wrestling. Ishii/Shibata II was shit. Nakamura/Marufuji I really liked. When did Marufuji become so swag? The start of this was just overflowing with it. It's got some silly contrived Marufuji spots sure, but when they're focused like this was I don't mind really. Nakamura could have sold better though. Hot finishing stretch with some fun stuff and I'm happy. I'll watch the main tomorrow.


----------



## darkclaudio

Dave Meltzer ****+ Matches

*****
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW 14/10
-Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata -NJPW 4/08 
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 7/04

****3/4
-Shinsuke Nakamura vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW 4/08
-Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW 2/08
-Open the Twin Gate Championship Match: Akira Tozawa & BxB Hulk (c) vs. Naruki Doi & Ricochet - Dragon Gate Kobe Pro-Wrestling Festival 21/07
-Katsuyori Shibata vs Hirooki Goto - NJPW 22/06
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Karl Anderson - NJPW 10/02
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 4/01

****1/2
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Satoshi Kojima - NJPW 29/09
-Mask Vs. Mask Two Out Of Three Falls: La Sombra vs Volador Jr. - CMLL 13/09
-WWE Championship Match: John Cena (c) vs Daniel Bryan - WWE 18/08
-No DQ Match: CM Punk vs Brock Lesnar - WWE 18/08 
-Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tetsuya Naito - NJPW 11/08 
-Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 10/08 
-Money In The Bank Match: Randy Orton vs CM Punk vs Daniel Bryan vs Rob Van Dam vs Sheamus vs Christian - WWE 14/07
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Togi Makabe - NJPW 22/06
-CM Punk vs Chris Jericho - WWE 16/06
-GHC Heavyweight Championship Match: KENTA (c) vs Takashi Sugiura - NOAH 12/05
-The Undertaker vs CM Punk - WWE Wrestlemania 7/04
-ROH World Tag Team Championship Match: ReDRagon (Bobby Fish & Kyle O´Reilly) (c) vs American Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) - ROH 5/04
-John Cena vs CM Punk - WWE Raw 25/02
-IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Prince Devitt (c) vs Low Ki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW 4/01
-IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Kazushi Sakuraba - NJPW 4/01

****1/4
-IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Naomichi Marufuji - NJPW 14/10
-Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 14/10
-NEVER Openweight Championship / IWGP Heavyweight Championship #1 Contendership Match: Masato Tanaka (c) vs Tetsuya Naito - NJPW 29/09
-Lumberjack Death Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Prince Devitt - NJPW 29/09
-Togi Makabe vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 4/08
-Kota Ibushi vs Tetsuya Naito - NJPW 2/08
-Open the Dream Gate Championship Match: CIMA (c) vs. Shingo Takagi - Dragon Gate Kobe Pro-Wrestling Festival 21/07
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Prince Devitt - NJPW 20/07
-Minoru Suzuki vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW 20/07
-IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Prince Devitt (c) vs Gedo - NJPW 5/07
-Shinsuke Nakamura & Tomohiro Ishii vs Minoru Suzuki & Shelton Benjamin - NJPW 22/06
-Daniel Bryan vs Seth Rollins - WWE Raw 10/06
-Kenny Omega vs KUSHIDA - NJPW 6/06
-WWE US Championship Match: Kofi Kingston (c) vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Main Event 30/04
-Complete Players (Masato Tanaka & Yujiro Takahashi) vs Great Bash Heel (Togi Makabe & Tomoaki Honma) - NJPW 7/04
-IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. - NJPW 7/04
-American Wolves (Davey Richards & Eddie Edwards) vs Forever Hooligans (Rocky Romero & Alex Koslov) - ROH 2/03
-Minoru Suzuki vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 10/02

****
-WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Shield (Roman Reigs & Seth Rollins) (c) vs Goldust & Cody Rhodes - WWE Raw 14/10
-Tag Team Two Out Of Three Falls: Dragon Rojo Jr., Polvora & Rey Escorpion vs. Mascara Dorada, Mistico & Valiente - CMLL 13/09
-Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 11/08
-Satoshi Kojima vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 11/08 
-Tetsuya Naito vs Karl Anderson - NJPW 11/08 
-Minoru Suzuki vs Kota Ibushi - NJPW 10/08 
-Togi Makabe vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW 10/08 
-Prince Devitt vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW 4/08
-Tetsuya Naito vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW 4/08
-Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Davey Boy Smith - NJPW 3/08
-Hirooki Goto vs Satoshi Kojima - NJPW 3/08
-Hirooki Goto vs Kazuchika Okada - NJPW 2/08
-Satoshi Kojima vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW 1/08
-Austin Aries vs AJ Styles - TNA 1/08
-Daniel Bryan vs Antonio Cesaro - WWE Raw 22/07
-IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: La Sombra (c) vs Shinsuke Nakamura - NJPW 20/07
-NEVER Openweight Championship Match: Masato Tanaka (c) vs Tetsuya Naito - NJPW 20/07
-Prince Devitt vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW 22/06
-IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match: Forever Hooligans (Alex Koslov & Rocky Romero) (c) defeat Time Splitters (Alex Shelley & KUSHIDA) - NJPW 22/06
-Kurt Angle vs AJ Styles - TNA 2/06
-Steel Cage Match: Brock Lesnar vs Triple H - WWE 19/05
-IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Tag Team Championship Match:Time Splitters (Alex Shelley & KUSHIDA) (c) vs Apollo 55 (Prince Devitt & Ryusuke Taguchi) - NJPW 7/04
-Jay Lethal vs Michael Elgin - ROH 5/04
-IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Championship Match: Prince Devitt (c) vs Alex Shelley - NJPW 5/04
-Final New Japan Cup Match: Kazuchika Okada vs Hirooki Goto - NJPW 23/03
-ROH World Tag Team Championship Match: The Briscoes (Jay & Mark Briscoe) (c) vs reDRagon (Kyle O'Reilly & Bobby Fish) - ROH 2/03
-ROH World Championship Match: Kevin Steen (c) vs Jay Lethal - ROH 2/03
-World Heavyweight Championship #1 Contendership Elimination Chamber Match: Jack Swagger vs Chris Jericho vs Daniel Bryan vs Kane vs Mark Henry vs Randy Orton - WWE 17/02
-WWE Championship Match: CM Punk (c) vs The Rock - WWE 27/01
-TNA World Heavyweight Championship Match: Jeff Hardy (c) vs Bobby Roode vs Austin Aries - TNA 13/01
-Yuji Nagata vs Minoru Suzuki - NJPW 4/01
-Togi Makabe vs Katsuyori Shibata - NJPW 4/01


----------



## BKKsoulcity

Has New Japan's match quality suck that much before Okada arrived in the main event or has Meltzer been sleeping since 1997?

Okada vs. Tanahashi (KOPW 2013) is ****3/4 and possibly only ****1/2 on a rewatch for me. It felt like a more toned down version of Invasion Attack match plus without the excitement throughout.

Shibata vs. Ishii (KOPW 2013) ****1/4 Same situation with the match above, felt like a toned down version of their G1 match and probably building up to a final showdown at Wrestle Kingdom?


----------



## Chismo

BIG DAVE is simply bandwagonin', nothing else, he's experiencing the joys of watching puroresu live and spoiler-free, so mix that with the really awesome modern New Japan, and yeah, it seems there was a massive black hole between 1997 and 2012, heheh. I wonder if he ever seen, let's say, Tenzan vs. Akiyama from 2003, Tanahashi vs. Goto from 2007, or Nagata vs. Kanemoto from 2005, or... feel free to chime in. All I know is, back when Inoki was runnin' wild, he was predicting New Japan's death every month.


----------



## TEWA

Chismo said:


> BIG DAVE is simply bandwagonin', nothing else, he's experiencing the joys of watching puroresu live and spoiler-free, so mix that with the really awesome modern New Japan, and yeah, it seems there was a massive black hole between 1997 and 2012, heheh. I wonder if he ever seen, let's say, Tenzan vs. Akiyama from 2003, Tanahashi vs. Goto from 2007, or Nagata vs. Kanemoto from 2005, or... feel free to chime in.


When have you read his newsletter? Starting from? 



Chismo said:


> All I know is, back when Inoki was runnin' wild, he was predicting New Japan's death every month.


No he didn't he was actually making fun of Zach Arnold forecasting those things. Your statement simply isn't true.


----------



## Rah

BKKsoulcity said:


> Has New Japan's match quality suck that much before Okada arrived in the main event or has Meltzer been sleeping since 1997?


He plays favourite, I think. I'm pretty sure most of his ratings are down to enjoyment than context and workrate/good wrestling (which he claims to play a factor). It's his opinion, but it's clear a lot of his choices are only there because he was pointed to them rather than following the product and realising what is "good" and what isn't. The only Lucha matches that I saw (on a quick skim through) were from the CMLL Aniversario show yet they're not anywhere near the top of the pile from this year. Especially when the Rush/Casas trios and the Panther/Averno match (which he disliked) were more solid in terms of wrestling.


Can't bash him for his opinion, much like people are giving the full five to Okada's matches at every turn. I don't see argument for either side, but that's your call and your call is obviously different to mine.


----------



## Chismo

TEWA said:


> When have you read his newsletter? Starting from?
> 
> 
> 
> No he didn't he was actually making fun of Zach Arnold forecasting those things. Your statement simply isn't true.



Oh please, he was riding NOAH's dick, but rightfully so, because NOAH was the best, it's just there were some really great New Japan and All Japan matches (what BKKsoulcity was talking about) that possibly got overlooked, IMO, and I don't really know if he checked all of them, I'm pretty sure his New Japan coverage wasn't as rich back then, if we exclude attendance reports and management updates. PRIDE was the be-all-end-all for entire world, and NOAH got by far the biggest puro coverage because of their network. And in 2005-06, he was predicting New Japan's doom, but he was not the only one. Those were troubled times indeed. Didn't the January 4th 2006 draw only, what, 14-15K in the Dome?

And no one really attacked Meltzer, so you can stop the passive aggressive white knighting. This is not TNA section.


----------



## Obfuscation

I thought it was known the way Meltzer goes about with his "ratings" - always plays his favorites and well _(like stated already)_ it's just his opinion. Got to disagree with someone out there...

Fairly irrelevant topic, to say the least.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Ok I rated Nakamura/Marufuji ****1/4 and Okada/Tanahashi ***** before Meltzer did. Exact matches :shocked:

I don't think Meltzer is being too kind on Okada though. He generally gives higher ratings to Tanahashi matches. Then again, Tana has been involved in some pretty awesome matches recently.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'd say Tanahashi is still better than Okada overall as it is.


----------



## DOPA

I seriously need to catch up with wrestling.


----------



## seabs

*Okada/Tanahashi KOPW is great but it's not even in the boundary park for a perfect match. I remember liking Invasion Attack more at the time but it feels like years ago since I saw it now and my opinion of it might go down if I rewatched it. Ignoring the mass overrating of it it's a great match. Tana dicking it up is always a great addition and he could probably be the best wrestler in the world if he spent an entire year working heel. It was still pretty formulaic by Okada/Tanahashi standards but I thought there was enough originality to this one to make it feel like it's own match rather than a repeat of Invasion Attack or Dominion for example. The headlock segment at the start I really liked and set the tone nicely for Tanahashi controlling the bulk of the match and being the front runner. Could have done without Okada's first comeback. It's realistic if we're looking at this being real but I didn't think it added anything for the time to took up. Arm work is real good and so is the selling. That's basically a given in this matchup. I'm glad they didn't do the double limbwork formula though and had Tanahashi be more dominant in the match. Tombstone being used as a clear transition spot in the context of the match was refreshing if you can get past a tombstone on the outside not being a killer. I haven't got a list for this year and haven't even come close to watching much outside of WWE and New Japan but I think it might be a top 5 match for the year, will be top 10 at least come January.

Shield vs Rhodes Bros I preferred their Battleground match. Stronger heat segment on Goldust and a more satisfying finish. Powerbomb and spear spots on the outside in this one ruled though. If I was nitpicking then I'd pick apart the no dq stip and how Ambrose only runs in at selected times at the end and how Cody stands on the apron while Goldust is getting killed despite there being no dq's. Big Show run in I thought was awesome as a stand alone spot but it should never have been the finish. I get that WWE never puts midcard acts over properly now and Cody/Dustin winning the tag belts is as good of a big win as them two guys are getting at this point but would it have hurt to put them over clean and end the show focusing on them? You can still do the KO punch but then let Cody hit Cross Rhodes for the win rather than totally relying on Show to KO Reigns. HATED HATED HATED Hunter coming down straight after and shoving the new champs out of the ring like opening match geeks. Well played Hunter. Babyfaces get their big win and all the camera focuses on besides the new champs being shoved out of the ring by the boss so he can take center stage and throw a paddy and a brief two second shot of them on the ramp is Big Show stealing Bryan's Yes shtick and Hunter throwing a tantrum. Eh. That left me a bit sour on the ending but otherwise it was really good, just below Battleground for me.*


----------



## Chismo

The Primer said:


> I'd say Tanahashi is still better than Okada overall as it is.


Yep... Tanahashi is a bonafide Best In The World contender for years now.


----------



## Groovemachine

Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs The Shield - WWE Raw 10.14.13 - ****

SO MUCH FUN! Really liked that this was a regular tag until the interference by Ambrose and then shit got real. Tons of chaos at ringside, it all broke down and made it so exciting as you just didn't know what was going to happen next, it was all happening so fast. Props to the camera work when Big Show came down; we got a load of shaky cam which really helped it all seem like it was unplanned.

Goldust was on top form and had some standout moments but for me it was Reigns that really caught my attention here; he had some fantastic 'monster' moments. Seems like he's really settled into his character. Having said that, all four men were fantastic here. Definitely one of the top Shield tags this year.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Tana is definitely better than Okada right now but I think in the next 5-6 years Okada will be a beast. I really liked Tana playing possum and jumping up later to do his signature air guitar taunt


----------



## Rah

Both have problems, but I wouldn't refute that, too much. I much preferred watching Okada to Tana in the previous two matches, though. Okada sells miles better than Tanahashi. :ksi1


----------



## DOPA

Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazuchika Okada (10/14): *******

Fuck me, another classic by these two. Unreal. I dunno if it's better than their invasion attack match, I'd have to watch both again.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Daniel Bryan, Cody Rhodes and Goldust vs Shield - ***3/4


----------



## Nervosa

Battleground Tag ***3/4

Raw tag ****

really enjoyed both, but not sure they are elite MOTYCs.


----------



## TEWA

Chismo said:


> Oh please, he was riding NOAH's dick, but rightfully so, because NOAH was the best, it's just there were some really great New Japan and All Japan matches (what BKKsoulcity was talking about) that possibly got overlooked, IMO, and I don't really know if he checked all of them, I'm pretty sure his New Japan coverage wasn't as rich back then, if we exclude attendance reports and management updates. PRIDE was the be-all-end-all for entire world, and NOAH got by far the biggest puro coverage because of their network. And in 2005-06, he was predicting New Japan's doom, but he was not the only one. Those were troubled times indeed. Didn't the January 4th 2006 draw only, what, 14-15K in the Dome?
> 
> And no one really attacked Meltzer, so you can stop the passive aggressive white knighting. This is not TNA section.


Your above post here is vastly different from the one I replied to with you saying he was predicting New Japan's death every month which coincidently is the type of the thing someone would make up in the TNA section to discredit him.


----------



## Concrete

*Cody Rhodes/Goldust vs. Seth Rollins/Roman Reigns(WWE 10/14/13):****1/4*
_Another great Shield match this year and another great performance by Goldust in this run. This match was a quality traditional match but when they flipped the scrip into chaos it delivered in an even greater capacity. It is a good kind of clusterfuck where nothing feels out of place and it all seems natural. Of course Ambrose is going to interfere with it being No DQ and of course Goldust is going to grab THE EQUALIZER in the form of a steel chair. The shots he delivered with it, OUCH! Rollins destroying Cody with the powerbomb into the barricade was nuts. I don't know if the Big Show bit at the end was necessary but it didn't hurt the match one bit. Goldust laying out whenever he goes to the outside never gets old. I think he can probably join a small group of workers in America that have been able to deliver in their later careers in the 2000's. Wonderful job by all involved who delivered a type of match that is so hard to make completely work. _​


----------



## Bruce L

*IWGP Heavyweight Title shot vs. NEVER Openweight Title
Tetsuya Naitō vs. Masato Tanaka *_(NJPW, 9/29)_
★★★¾ - ★★★★ — I will be hearing those headbutts in my nightmares for at least a week. Naitō lays to rest my fears that he'd be diminished after his injury (I haven't seen most of his G1 matches), while Tanaka surprises me with a far more varied performance than I feel like we usually get out of him. Awesome stuff here. If you haven't seen it, see it.


----------



## seabs

*I thought the 6 man on Smackdown this week was better than the Raw tag.*


----------



## Joshi Judas

Me too. I'd rate it around **** and the Raw tag around ***3/4.

The Shield's consistency, twice every week for almost the entire year is astounding.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Quoth the Raven said:


> Ok I rated Nakamura/Marufuji ****1/4 and Okada/Tanahashi ***** before Meltzer did. Exact matches :shocked:
> 
> I don't think Meltzer is being too kind on Okada though. He generally gives higher ratings to Tanahashi matches. Then again, Tana has been involved in some pretty awesome matches recently.


Yea for some reason Meltzer thinks Tanahashi is MUCH better than Okada even thought their the top 2 guys in the world right now.Okada is so young,I don't think he has peaked yet,which scares me.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Has anyone been keeping up with NOAH and know what their MOTYC are?


----------



## Rah

Nothing is MotYC, at all, but these have been plugged by others:

KENTA vs Takashi Sugiura 12/05/2013
KENTA vs Naomichi Marufuji 07/07/2013
Katsuhiko Nakajima vs Mohammed Yone 07/07/2013


----------



## cobray

*Go Shiozaki vs Kotaro Suzuki - AJPW 11.09.2013
*
Goddammit why aren't more people seeing and pimping this match? Just a total blast of a match. The sequences and moves these 2 men pulled out in the middle and finishing stretch of the match is amazing. 

By the end of this match Suzuki's chest is bleeding, not red but bleeding from the chops of Shiozaki. I'm totally loving the in ring style of the new AJPW, the struggle for moves and the pacing is up to my taste.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x14pe9y_06-go-shiozaki-vs-kotaro-suzuki-ajpw-09-11-13_sport[/video]

You can watch the match up here.



> Has anyone been keeping up with NOAH and know what their MOTYC are?


For NOAH I highly recommend the 2 TMDK vs Yano & Iizuka tag matches this year. Now those 2 matches are how you do a face vs heel invader team right. A joy to watch.


----------



## Obfuscation

Yano & Iizuka vs TMDK series > those Juniors matches mentioned by Rah. Those are the only NOAH matches worth watching. KENTA's streak of matches are terrible.

I also loved the Kobashi retirement match & Ishimori vs Kondo from January, but those could be more personal than universal. Def watch the tags.


----------



## Caponex75

Must of been missing these bad KENTA matches that Primer is going on about. His reign has been pretty solid. Only match of his that I didn't like was the Marafuji match. Didn't live up to that boss ass encounter him and Sugiura had.


----------



## Bubz

Honestly think the Kenta/Sugiura matches are terrible. The thought of watching any 2013 Kenta match is really off putting to me.


----------



## Obfuscation

KENTA's performance vs Morishima when he won the strap was so bad. Guy is a far cry from where he used to be in 2006.


----------



## Caponex75

I'm pretty sure it was unanimous decision that Morishima'a unmotivated ass really brought down that match. It was the only match KENTA had this year that I would actually call bad. It was a blessing for NOAH thus far that Shima lost the belt.


----------



## Zatiel

Watched Marufuji Vs. Nakamura after getting home from a grueling week abroad. Damn, that was fun. Loved their cheesy hesitations in all the early holds, loved the cocky personalities throughout, and was totally into what felt like a standard-but-tried Nakamura ending. I would happily watch them go at it many more times.


----------



## Snapdragon

Noah's been so far down on my radar I haven't been following KENTA's reign since the first few months when we won

From what I heard he was defending against guys like Yone and Shane Haste because they had no challengers


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Wow,it seems like NOAH is on it's way out.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## djmathers1207

Kurt Angle vs Bobby Roode ****

Great match and the BEST part of Bound For Glory


----------



## EscapedIllusion

djmathers1207 said:


> Kurt Angle vs Bobby Roode ****
> 
> Great match and the BEST part of Bound For Glory


I would give it ***3/4 the ending was kinda flat.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## ATF

On first watch, Angle/Roode was definitely ***1/2-3/4 worthy, despite the somewhat meh ending. Action was always quick but senseful and that's a plus anytime.


----------



## jawbreaker

I actually paid attention to that entire Angle match and can't remember more than two things that happened. Roode was okay but Angle was Angle, which is to say "not very good."


----------



## Bubz

Watched Tanahashi/Okada from KOPW. It was great (duh) but I didn't think it was anywhere near as good as Invasion Attack or their G1 match. I think I might be getting to the point soon where it feels like I've seen it too many times. Everything is great though, arm work, selling, counters etc. Just wasn't as in to it this time. Tanahashi controlling the majority of this was a slightly different approach so that was nice. Seabs said that if Tana was allowed to go full on heel he'd be the best wrestler in the world and I think that's actually a scientific fact. Dick Tana is the greatest. Finish was the same old for these two but like I said, still really good. Overall didn't feel as fresh as their IA and G1 matches because, well, it wasn't. Still great though. Did I say this was still great? Because it was.


----------



## geraldinhio

Having no internet is balls. Anyway just from flicking through the last few pages I know I've to get on them Shield tags, which is the pick of the bunch? 

Hell, I haven't even seen BOLA.


----------



## Groovemachine

If you're just gonna watch the one, the Shield tag from the 10/14 Raw against Goldust and Cody is the best, but as always it works better if you've seen the Battleground match beforehand. They're both great though, can't go wrong!


----------



## flag sabbath

geraldinhio said:


> Hell, I haven't even seen BOLA.


I've really struggled with BOLA. Fucking loooong matches with no rhyme or reason, just move after move after move after.... ASW9 was great, but PWG have lost me as a regular customer since then.

And speaking of long matches with move after move, La Sombra vs. Volador Jr from 13/9 is a massively hypocritical *****1/4*


----------



## Corey

geraldinhio said:


> Having no internet is balls. Anyway just from flicking through the last few pages I know I've to get on them Shield tags, which is the pick of the bunch?
> 
> Hell, I haven't even seen BOLA.


How far do you need to go back? The essentials are the Battleground match against Goldust & Cody and the RAW 10/14 rematch for Tag Titles. I'd put both in *** 3/4 - **** with the RAW match getting the slight edge because of the pure chaos in the final minutes. I believe they had a 6-man against Bryan & the Rhodes Bros on the following Smackdown that people pimped too but haven't seen that yet myself.


----------



## Obfuscation

Smackdown six man was tremendous. Exact same field of quality as the other tags one could say. All three were different & unique too. Amazing the series of matches all being great on their own merit over and over again.


----------



## Saint Dick

The SmackDown 6 man was good but not on the same level as the other two.


----------



## Rah

The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (20/05/2013 Raw)
The Shield Vs Ryback, Sheamus & Cena from EC needs a watch, too.


----------



## Saint Dick

Also the 5/27 tag. As good as the 5/20 match and better than EC imo.


----------



## Obfuscation

YES.

Still think it might be my favorite on the year. _(meaning 5/27)_


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Saint Dick said:


> The SmackDown 6 man was good but not on the same level as the other two.


Yea if it had 5 more minutes it would've been **** easily.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Nervosa

Copied from the Puro Thread. Only one MOTY for me from Destruction, and this is it.

Kojima vs. Okada
****1/4
LOVED this. I'm bummed others didn't. They did a lot of cool things to play off the G1 match, with Okada winning the early grappling before Kojima took over with awesome neckwork. Okada sells crazy good, as he always does. Okada's comeback was also really good, and just as he started building momentum BANG: Kojima starts doing Tenzan's chops. The crowd went apeshit for that, and the vice that followed. Didn't like the countout tease much, but what I did like was that Red Ink was actually used very well for the story here. Okada used it right after the countout tease, and it helped the crowd rally Kojima behind his final comeback. All of the Rainmaker counters ruled, especially with the prematch building up the similarity of the finishers. The finish itself, was a little out of nowhere, but even that kinda makes sense with how they build up the finishers. Overall, I thought the match had an excellent story.

Generally, this is why I prefer Okada to Tanahashi, and would even say he is a better wrestler. Tanahashi has some severe selling issues, and Okada's selling is what truly MAKES his matches special. Between the bumps and facial expressions, it just truly makes his match. Tanahashi may have better timing, but Okada's storytelling is just unmatched, for me.

This match makes me really hope/think Okada will go over at Wrestle Kingdom. Naito is still nowhere near close to being ready to be THE guy, and Okada's reign still has a lot of steam, especially if he can eventually defend vs. Yano, Nagata, Nakamura, and Shibata before its over.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm under the impression I'm the only guy who is pulling for Naito come Wrestle Kingdom. And I'm ok with that. Been huge on the guy for awhile now. Okada winning wouldn't be a negative, b/c lets face it, I'm a fan of his too. Unsure when we'll get the Okada vs Nakamura & Okada vs Shibata matches. We all know they have to happen.

Keeping in my I haven't gotten around to King of Pro Wrestling yet. Today is probably the day.


----------



## Chismo

Naito has to win.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Makes more sense for Naito to win, but as a fan, I know I will be pulling for Okada.


----------



## Rah

Why does Naito have to win? Shining like a million bucks against a winning Okada at the biggest show of the year after a return-win of G1 seems good enough for me.


----------



## Chismo

They made Okada a big star, he reached Tanahashi's level, and it's obvious Naito is the next project. Naito new champ = bunch of fresh challengers.


----------



## Bubz

I really don't want Naito winning tbh. Just generally don't think he's that good and his matches rarely interest me. I can't think of a Naito singles match I'd have in the 4* range bar the Okada matches.


----------



## Joshi Judas

I think he'll win anyway. NJPW seems intent on making Naito the next Tanahashi. Okada is a made man anyway. They could create two superstars in two years with Naito winning at the Dome.


----------



## Obfuscation

Naito has been on the cusp of breaking out for a few years now. He's healthy, got the Climax win, everything is in place. Even if he doesn't get the W come Wrestle Kingdom, I'm certain he'll hold the strap sometime in 2014. Think Okada from this year. Although the immediate backlash from Okada fans was terrible. New Japan appears to know what they're doing with making new stars.


----------



## Nervosa

Chismo said:


> They made Okada a big star, he reached Tanahashi's level, and it's obvious Naito is the next project. Naito new champ = bunch of fresh challengers.


Fresh challengers, sure, but who cares about fresh challengers if the matches are gonna be a huge step down? (as I believe they would be with Naito as champion) Can naito even have a good match with anyone besides Okada? G1 really hurt my confidence in him being able to produce top singles matches.


----------



## Chismo

Heheh, what? Naito worked the MOTN at Kizuna Road PPV, had good-to-great matches in G1 against Ibushi, Nagata, Suzuki, Nakamura, Tenzan, Karl and Tanahashi, all between *** and ****1/4. The Yujiro trilogy has disappointed, but I guess that's because they lack any kind of heat together, the chemistry is not good either. Naito's G1 performance > Okada's G1 performance, and keep in mind Naito's been just 4 months in since the return in June.

Naito over Okada at the Dome, please Jado & Gedo. :woolcock


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Well everyone thought Okada was gonna go over at last year Wrestle Kingdom and it worked out better for him in the long run.I think Okada/Naito should be a 60mn draw or Okada wins in a very close match.There are still a lot of people I'd like to see Okada defend against.


----------



## Groovemachine

Yeah I still want to see an all-out Okada/Nakamura match. Have Nakamura drop the IC belt soon and move up the card. That'd be golden.


----------



## Obfuscation

Well he was given the IC strap for a reason. To be an acceptable reason for him not to be the IWGP Champ "guy" atm _(instead of floating around with grudge after grudge)_ & to elevate the Intercontinental Championship to a huge level - which he has. Once the booking team feels that's passed, he'll be back in THE main event scene yet again. I think he's been booked exceptionally well, personally. The La Sombra loss was a scare that was luckily rectified in no time.


----------



## Nervosa

Bubz= said:


> I really don't want Naito winning tbh. Just generally don't think he's that good and his matches rarely interest me. I can't think of a Naito singles match I'd have in the 4* range bar the Okada matches.


I'm in the same place. Only other one I can think of was the Karl match for the G1, and that took a while to come to mind.



Chismo said:


> Heheh, what? Naito worked the MOTN at Kizuna Road PPV, had good-to-great matches in G1 against Ibushi, Nagata, Suzuki, Nakamura, Tenzan, Karl and Tanahashi, all between *** and ****1/4. The Yujiro trilogy has disappointed, but I guess that's because they lack any kind of heat together, the chemistry is not good either. Naito's G1 performance > Okada's G1 performance, and keep in mind Naito's been just 4 months in since the return in June.


I honestly really liked Devitt vs. Okada at Kizuna road and thought it was way better than the mindless sprint Naito was in.

We are probably just never going to agree on the G1 when it comes to Naito and Okada's G1. I've said over and over that I think Okada was awesome for and that naito was very disappointing, but I know you didn't like Okada's work at all. Probably just a difference in taste.

I had 4 Okada matches from the G1 that were ***3/4 or higher(Tanahashi, shibata, Makabe, Kojima)....only one Naito match did that for me, which was the Karl match. You thought Tenzan/Naito was good to great? That match was an abomination. Granted, that is mostly Tenzan's fault, but still bad. Yano/Naito was also horrible and Yano is a genius. Naito's Ibushi match was a fun sprint, and Nagata managed to carry him to a decent match, but his selling and timing were just awful in his match with Suzuki. The Shinskay match was fine, if you can get by how lame and fake and horrible Natio's heel antics were. the Tanahashi match was very, very sloppy, for me.


To me, Okada blew Naito away in G1 work. Granted, he had a better group to work with, but I have been nothing but disappointed by the lack of growth from Naito. All his G1 matches were spotty little matches with really nothing memorable in them. Naito still has no personality at all, bad facial expressions, sloppy execution, even on his trademark spots, and most of all, he can't sell, which is Okada's greatest strength.

Yes he has only been back 4 months, which for me, is even more evidence that they need to wait until he regains his timing and maybe develops some kind of personality.



EscapedIllusion said:


> Well everyone thought Okada was gonna go over at last year Wrestle Kingdom and it worked out better for him in the long run.


I actually do not think it was better for him at all. It actually hurt his reputation of having Tanahashi's number and undid all of the work from the G1. I think it really put him behind on starting his reign the right way.


----------



## Nervosa

Sorry, I'm bout to double post on two threads. Mods are gonna kill me:

Tanahashi vs. Okada
*****
Full boat for me. I want to rewatch the Invasion attack match again, which I gave ****3/4, and make sure this is clearly better than that one, but I am pretty sure it is. The early injury stuff set a presendent for both characters that we hadn’t seen before, temporarily switching the heel/face dynamic until Okada set into his usually neckwork. But the really story was the armwork by Tanahashi, and the incredible job Okada did at selling it. Okada takes selling to an entirely new level. Other guys guys hold their arms, or change their offense. Okada will attempt his same offense, but recoil in pain as he tries, or even execute the move, but intentionally make it look like he struggles to do so. The best arm selling was everything done with the Red Mist submission. In the past, I have always hated that submission so much, but to me, the two applications of it MADE this match. The first time, his arm is so worked over he can’t even apply it. The second time, his arm still hurts, and he has to struggle tooth and nail to apply it. When he finally locks it in the crowd went nuts. The submission that has sucked for so long finally got a great reaction, all due to intense selling. As for the finish….it was perfect, there is nothing they could have done better to climax and end the match. 90% sure this is worth the quarter star over Invasion Attack, but I am quite certain this is my match of the year. 

For the record, here is how I rate their series
1. King of Pro Wrestling 2013
2. Invasion Attack
3. Dominion
4. G1 2013
5. Wrestle Kingdom
6. New beginning 2012


----------



## Bubz

Surprised at the 5* reviews for Tana/Okada 6. But hen again, like I said everything in it was really good, I just wasn't as in to it personally. I do plan on watching most of their series again soon but as far as rating their matches:

Invasion Attack
Dominion
G1 13
kOPW
Wrestle Kingdom
New Beginning 

BTW, did nobody like Bryan vs Ambrose from RAW? Match was fucking great.


----------



## Chismo

It's incredible that I have the "weakest" matches from the Tanahashi/Okada series at ****1/4 (New Beginning and G1).


----------



## Obfuscation

Only match of their's I wasn't into was the Climax one personally. Been into a lot of detail there, so no need to talk about it again. Wrestle Kingdom match is the one I really need to watch again. I dug it a lot on the first watch, but I could do with another go around. I'll wait until WK XIII is around the corner as I'll just watch this year's show over again to get hyped.

+1 on Danielson vs Ambrose. No doubt it ruled. As good as their last one. Another comparison bit that could go down. It's surreal how WWE is being carried by the same...oh...less than ten people each and every week. If only Sheamus, Henry, & Christian were around too. At least Cena is coming back. That'll help.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Close but no cigar:

Marufuji vs. Nakamura - *** 3/4 (NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2013) - might be **** on re-watch later on 
Tanahashi vs. Okada - *** 3/4 (NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2013)


----------



## darkclaudio

WWE Hell In A Cell
-*WWE Tag Team Championship Match*: Rhodes Family vs The Shield vs The Usos ***3/4


----------



## Groovemachine

3-way tag match from Hell in a Cell was my MOTN, and even then I'd probably only go as high as ***1/2. Bit of a lacklustre PPV to be honest. Skipped ADR/Cena though, am I missing much?


----------



## almostfamous

Groovemachine said:


> 3-way tag match from Hell in a Cell was my MOTN, and even then I'd probably only go as high as ***1/2. Bit of a lacklustre PPV to be honest. Skipped ADR/Cena though, am I missing much?


It was probably the 2nd best match of the night, but still, it was mostly Del Rio just working the arm. You've seen the match done better a bunch of times.


----------



## djmathers1207

John Cena vs. Damien Sandow *** 3/4- ****

No doubt Damien Sandow's best match since coming to WWE


----------



## Obfuscation

Groovemachine said:


> 3-way tag match from Hell in a Cell was my MOTN, and even then I'd probably only go as high as ***1/2. Bit of a lacklustre PPV to be honest. Skipped ADR/Cena though, am I missing much?


I'd say you're missing something good. I didn't think the three way tag was anything more than average, whereas I found Cena vs Del Rio to be good with a good competent story behind it. Worth a watch.

Cena vs Sandow tonight was top notch. Basically better than the whole PPV.


----------



## Rah

There goes Cal's theory about Cena needing good workers.  I really must rewatch Sandow's FCW work and see if it holds but the reality of him no longer using that look and theme upsets me.

I'll watch HiaC tonight, though I'm a bit dismayed by the lacklustre nature this thread has given it. Add in the WWE App spoiling me on a few important moments and I feel I may not even bother. Why tell me to use the app and then add spoilers when you know we're three weeks behind?!


----------



## Obfuscation

Nobody took Cal's opinion on Cena seriously. :side:

Didn't Sandow have a whopper of a bout vs Rollins in FCW? Or perhaps I'm getting my memory all fluffed up. Idk. Should just go look myself.


----------



## Rah

Well, that's back in 2011 so I don't remember exact dates off hand. He had a couple. That FCW 15 concept was the best thing to ever happen to developmental.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah Sandow had a really good match with Rollins that I only watched because Seabs pimped it.

I'm watching HIAC and RAW tonight. So Cena is off to a good start back then it seems. I know reaction to the Del Rio match has been mixed, but I haven't seen a good Sandow singles match since he was brought to the main roster.


----------



## Obfuscation

Not even the majority vs Sheamus? b/c I personally dug the heck out of those.


----------



## Groovemachine

The matches vs Sheamus were awesome, particularly the one on Raw that was No DQ/Street Fight/whatever. I remember that one being pretty stiff, they really went to town on each other.


----------



## Bubz

I didn't particularly care for them much but yeah, they weren't bad.


----------



## Obfuscation

Groovemachine said:


> The matches vs Sheamus were awesome, particularly the one on Raw that was No DQ/Street Fight/whatever. I remember that one being pretty stiff, they really went to town on each other.


Tables match? Dublin Street Fight did happen on Smackdown, so perhaps that's the one you are referring to. I found that one to be their second weakest bout of the bunch, haha. Typical WWE fare once they decide to slap a stip behind a match; the goods get watered down. Except for the tables (...) Felt that one kind of rocked.


----------



## seabs

*The Sandow/Rollins FCW 15 match is awesome. Might have even been 2 of them but there's definitely one that people should try to unearth from somewhere. Sandow hasn't put on anything close to that level since though. The match is good for Sandow but great for Rollins fyi. Rollins' improvement from the end of his ROH run is pretty amazing. The end of his ROH run was from the peak of his Indy run tbf but even compared to the peak of his ROH run it's a massive leap forward.*


----------



## Bubz

Yeah Rollins' improvement is amazing. He's so good now, I'd probably say he's been one of my favourite guys to watch this year. He was absolutely nowhere near the level he's at now on the indy's. Guy has a great personality in the ring, something nobody ever said before he was brought up to the main roster. His in ring stuff is so much more focussed and his bumping is fucking ridiculously amazing.


----------



## Obfuscation

I've always thought he was flat out amazing so it's all relative to me. 8*D

but he's proven so many wrong with his work in the E & I absolutely adore that. Knew he'd be a-ok. Guy is a stud.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Rollins is definitely one of my favorites right now. He's the total package in the ring. Still needs time to improve his mic work for when he goes solo, but I could watch that guy wrestle all day.


----------



## Obfuscation

Love how he's also a go-to guy for bumping like a champ in he face of a loss. Almost like he's rewarded for taking the fall at times b/c he'll put over his opponents move with so much passion. A weird perspective to some, perhaps, but I look at it like the company enjoys all aspects of his game in the ring. Everything counts.


----------



## The Lady Killer

He sold the Cross Rhodes @ HIAC like a fucking champ. :mark:


----------



## Obfuscation

That's one large example in regards to my last post, haha. :mark:


----------



## seabs

*People should watch as much of his FCW run as you can. Not just the Ambrose series either. Ton of great stuff there around the FCW 15 title and the tag titles from Rollins. His FCW 15 reign was when he suddenly seemed to step it up. Him and Reigns smoke Ambrose so much in every department other than mic work.*


----------



## Joshi Judas

Rollins has been one of my favorites since his time in FCW. I just hope his excellent bumping ability doesn't make him the whipping boy of whoever WWE decides to push that month. With a Shield breakup being subtly teased, I think they'd go with a Reigns/Ambrose feud so a little worried about Rollins.

Anyway, Cena/Sandow was a solid match from Raw. ***3/4.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Agreed, and that's coming from someone who thought Ambrose was the clear-cut best of the bunch overall. I prefer Rollins/REIGNS over Ambrose any day of the week. Ambrose is obviously the mouthpiece, as Seabs, stated, but in every other facet of pro wrestling, he's the weakest. His facial expressions during matches is the only thing I enjoy about his ring work atm.


----------



## Obfuscation

He's watered down by the company. It's perplexing as to why that is, but it's 100% the case. Other two don't even know what a rest hold is, meanwhile Ambrose lives off 'em.

Almost as if WWE wants Ambrose to be the guy who talks the best and uses interesting mannerisms only as opposed to being a good wrestler with his two partners. Hence the constant bits on commentary: _"Rollins the speed, Reigns the power, & Ambrose...the eccentric one."_ Doesn't quite compute.


----------



## Bubz

Before Ambrose got signed I always thought he was genuinely terrible bar his promos, then he did some good stuff with some much better workers in FCW and everyone thought he was special. I admit he had me thinking he had something great with the Regal, Rollins and Punk matches there, then he gets brought up and is instantly shown up at everything other than his promo and mannerisms which definitely rule. His singles matches have sucked so much apart from the Bryan matches, and even one of them wasn't great. Reigns has proven everyone wrong, guy is legit and everyone figured he was just the big muscle head who couldn't do anything. If he's not huge in the future then something is drastically wrong with the company.


----------



## The Lady Killer

They do have an interesting mixture of talents in that group, which is a big reason why they're so awesome to watch. I agree, though, that it's odd that Ambrose seems so straight-jacketed.

edit Agreed w/Bubz (shocker). REIGNS just has "it."


----------



## Obfuscation

I liked Moxley on the indies. Thought he was good and capable. He's had his whoppers and those are proof he can deliver at times too. Unfortunately nothing is being translated much on the main roster in the form of a singles career. I like to hope down the line. We'll see. Always found it interesting how Jon Moxley blew up to begin with. Sort of out of nowhere. Guess I was too busy being focused on Callihan to notice, but good for him and his successes. Lets see WWE utilize him better now.

oh and REIGNS.


----------



## Chismo

I don't watch Dean Ambrose wrestle too much, but Jon Moxley was not great in the ring either. He was mostly solid-good, sometimes great with right opponents (i.e. Jacobs and Dragon in DGUSA), sure, but mostly... solid. He never really set the world on fire on a regular basis like Tyler Black, Claudio or Danielson. He was an awesome character to watch, though, the way he sells himself is why people like him, not the ringwork.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

The Lady Killer said:


> He sold the Cross Rhodes @ HIAC like a fucking champ. :mark:


Yeah! He sold it like it was Chris Hero's 'Hero's Welcome.'It looked great the finishing sequence of that match was awesome.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Groovemachine

The Primer said:


> Tables match? Dublin Street Fight did happen on Smackdown, so perhaps that's the one you are referring to. I found that one to be their second weakest bout of the bunch, haha. Typical WWE fare once they decide to slap a stip behind a match; the goods get watered down. Except for the tables (...) Felt that one kind of rocked.


That was it, the tables match! How could I forget?! They used the stipulation fantastically, using the table as a legit weapon rather than just the big bump at the end.

Anyway, I realise conversation has moved on since this morning so...yep, Rollins is awesome. I've particularly enjoyed his little mocking mannerisms over the past few months. Sarcastic 'Yes!' chants when facing Bryan, and more recently him stealing Godlust's trademark taunt; little things like that have really added to his character and make him seem like such a prick.


----------



## seabs

*Ambrose has never really been a good wrestler in my view and it kinda annoyed me more than it should have when everyone was creaming themselves over him calling him one of the best ring workers in the company because he had an awesome match with William Regal. Well yeah WILLIAM REGAL. Granted I thought Ambrose was great in them two matches too and he can look great with the right opponent. Being carried to something great by names as good as Regal/Danielson/Jacobs/Rollins doesn't make you a great wrestler yourself though. It just means someone else can raise your game higher than you can raise it yourself and until that wonderful day arrives when everyone is on par with Regal and Danielson's, only having great matches with them guys in no way constitutes being great. Always irked me how willing people would be to forget the 50 average matches Moxley had for that one great one with a great wrestler. I really hate how he's had a tendency during his run on the main roster to do really bad immitations of technically great wrestlers because he sucks so bad when he tries to wrestle like Bryan Danielson. Them dropkicks he does are fucking terrible and I kinda hate some of the mannerisms. I guess he hasn't had the opportunity yet to cut THAT promo yet but I wouldn't say of his promo work has made him stand out from the pack. 

I really fucking hope they don't break The Shield up yet but if they go with the hints of breaking Reigns off as a face then I really hope Rollins turns with him. They need to stay together face or heel. Reigns is really good in the ring but he's not the most polished singles guy yet when he has to carry a match by himself. WWE love to throw guys like Reigns in at the deep end before he's ready and then lose faith when he can't swim in a pool of sharks. I hate the term "it" but like Greg said he has IT. Just give him time to come into his own as a singles worker and he could be money. I don't see Rollins being a big draw for them but he could be awesome as a bridge between the upper-midcard and the main event who's used to enhance the value of others. *


----------



## The Lady Killer

I hate the term "it" too but I really can't think of any other way to explain REIGNS atm. He has so much potential. He just totally "gets" pro wrestling, and knows what to do/when to do it/etc.


----------



## Obfuscation

Groovemachine said:


> That was it, the tables match! How could I forget?! They used the stipulation fantastically, using the table as a legit weapon rather than just the big bump at the end.
> 
> Anyway, I realise conversation has moved on since this morning so...yep, Rollins is awesome. I've particularly enjoyed his little mocking mannerisms over the past few months. Sarcastic 'Yes!' chants when facing Bryan, and more recently him stealing Godlust's trademark taunt; little things like that have really added to his character and make him seem like such a prick.


(Y)

Tables match was one of the better ones from the gimmick. (did I say that already?)

Rollins is quality. Mastered the taunting aspect of his heel work while being with The Shield. I know I love it.

-----------

Reigns being pushed into the main event pool too soon is a fear I have. b/c he's showing SO much already, WWE might think "oh lets give him everything right now" when he's not exactly ready. That's how they always seem to do their crap these days. It ruins people or it proves they don't use their brains when booking. Don't ruin him, guys. Keep him with the group - or at least Rollins - & let him grow. He's got time. There's no rush. I swear WWE is begging to find the next Goldberg type blow up. Newsflash: You won't, WWE.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Yeah, Rollins is great at being a little shit.


----------



## THECHAMPION

Rah said:


> There goes Cal's theory about Cena needing good workers.


What? I didn't see the theory but the man has had semi-entertaining matches with Bobby Lashley and The Great Khali.

Granted that was a few years ago but still.

Cena's only really terrible work over the last few years was with The Rock and The Miz.


----------



## Obfuscation

Agreed. Although I liked one of the matches vs Miz in 2011. 5/2. Good match, imo.


----------



## Bubz

Watched Cena/Sandow. Great stuff. Cena ruled it. Selling was immense, especially that STF spot, trying to lock it in with one arm. Awesome.

Also I thought Cena/Del Rio was really good too. Not keen on the finish but eh, the AA is used as a full on out of nowhere move recently so I'm used to that.


----------



## Obfuscation

:hb

Felt Cena looked damn good in both matches upon return. Stole both nights he worked.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah Cena was great in both. I really think motivated Cena is unfuckwithable. Similar to Tanahashi really, when he's motivated he looks like a legit BITW contender.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Haven't seen Cena/ADR yet, but I thought Cena was ridiculously good in Cena/Sandow. Indeed, the attempt to lock in the STF with one arm was fucking awesome. He sold the shit out of that arm.


----------



## Obfuscation

Funny enough, that's why they're the aces of their respective companies.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Bubz said:


> Watched Cena/Sandow. Great stuff. Cena ruled it. Selling was immense, especially that STF spot, trying to lock it in with one arm. Awesome.


That reminded me of the Okada/Tanahashi 6 Red Ink spot.Great stuff.




Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Did anyone give any TNA match **** or above this year?


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Chismo

I gave Bully vs. Anderson ****.


----------



## Corey

EscapedIllusion said:


> Did anyone give any TNA match **** or above this year?
> 
> 
> Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


Nah, closest I've came was the first BFG series match between Aries & Styles, but I'm not even sure how well that would hold up on a rewatch. Some other folks like to plus the 3-way between Sabin, Aries, and Manik too.


----------



## flag sabbath

I have a list of around 120 MOTYCs from ****3/4* to *******. None are from TNA.

http://www.wrestlingforum.com/20419745-post1532.html


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Nah, closest I've came was the first BFG series match between Aries & Styles, but I'm not even sure how well that would hold up on a rewatch. Some other folks like to plus the 3-way between Sabin, Aries, and Manik too.


Yea I gave those matches ***3/4.


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----------



## EmbassyForever

EscapedIllusion said:


> Did anyone give any TNA match **** or above this year?
> 
> 
> Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


My top 5:

1. Manik vs Sabin vs Aries - ***3/4-****
2. Bully vs Anderson - ***3/4
3/4/5 - New School vs Old School, Aries vs Roode vs Hardy (underrated match imo) and GM/BI, all were around ***1/2.


----------



## Concrete

*Angel Blanco Jr./Dr.Wagner Jr. vs. Villano IV/LA PARK(ACM 6/2/ACM):*****
_If you came to this match not to see an extension of Wagner vs Park then you came for the wrong reason cause they lit it up!Not at all the only good stuff to come out of it but clearly the focal point. For all the recent disappointments this match was one of the two it seems that they went all out in trying to be terrible human beings. This match was a fight where we had several stand offs where the wrestlers would be in their striking position looking for an opening. Real tension building stuff. The absolute crazy violence of the May match between Park and Wagner was not matched but no one really needs to desire for two men to bleed unhealthy amounts to have a good match. That isn't saying this match ain't violent because boy it is. Pieces of wood that looked stronger than plywood were used for Park to deliver BOOMING powerbomb onto Wagner as well as braining each other.LA Park looked like one of the best in this one willing to kill men and lay out on moves. For a man his age you'd think he would calm that down but NOPE. Villano IV for me was a weak link in this. Seems like a guy with a nasty punch but not much more. He did steal a mask and DDT'd the guy while wearing it so there's that. In the end of this one you get around 7-10 minutes of just Park vs Wagner and it is a move throwing fest which was not something I expected but something I sorta enjoyed just not quite at the level of everything prior. The ending of this did have some BS but it was a lot less "WTF" than the match where Terry was reffing. Seek this one out, longer than something I usually watch but oh so good. _​


----------



## Obfuscation

Styles vs Aries semi-finals this year was really bad.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

The Primer said:


> Styles vs Aries semi-finals this year was really bad.


Really? I only saw the end I thought it was good.Why was it so bad?


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Obfuscation

Both guys were off in the match. Which was unusual. Chemistry fell flat on every transition, spot, etc. For two guys who are usually smooth workers, it wasn't the case that night.


----------



## Concrete

*Dean Allmark vs Hiro Takahashi (ASW 10/27/13):***3/4*
_This match is around 10 minutes and is pretty much another Dean Allmark match but that means it is ANOTHER DEAN ALLMARK MATCH! I feel Hiro Takahashi is going to benefit from working with this Allmark guy. He just knows how to get the most bang for his buck. Allmark is such a great babyface where Takahashi doesn't need to do any real heeling to get massive boos just for daring to strike Allmark. Match is a sprint with trademark Allmark spots so dives and a whole lot of fun. BRITISH WRESTLING~ _


*Super Porky vs Rey Escorpion HAIR VS HAIR LUCHA SHOOT FIGHT(CMLL 10/18/13):*****
_OKAY! Totally cool with this lucha shoot fight. Rey Escorpion is making it harder and harder to keep him out of my Top 10. He is absolutely great at getting heat, dishing out violence, and taking it. First fall was super short. Second fall includes Porky throwing headbutts with FURY!!! Third fall is fantastical. Both guys throw punches well with Escorpion looks like this big dick beating down on this old, out of shape Super Porky. At one point Escorpion has a triangle on Porky in the ropes and is still peppering him with punches. I would be sorta upset that Escorpion didn't win by murder of the elderly IF Maximo didn't come in looking like a guy he was going to kill to protect his family. It wasn't a lackadaisical interference but one with true hate filled punches. Different type of match that still uses aspects of lucha I love but in a unique way. _​


----------



## topper1

The Primer said:


> Both guys were off in the match. Which was unusual. Chemistry fell flat on every transition, spot, etc. For two guys who are usually smooth workers, it wasn't the case that night.


They have never worked well together as far I can remember, I was super excited for Aries vs Styles on the undercard of this means war back in 05 but it pretty much stunk up the place.


----------



## Obfuscation

I tried remembering their past chemistry from what they got to have on the Indies and nothing came up. That's probably the reason - nothing to speak about.


----------



## Corey

The Primer said:


> Styles vs Aries semi-finals this year was really bad.


Nah bro, we were talking about the 1st one that ended in the double pin. We all know the 2nd installment was no good.


----------



## seabs

*Hiromu has been wrestling Allmark?








*


----------



## Concrete

They've teamed together I know as well as faced off against each other now. I'd like to believe there has been more pairings of them that haven't made tape.


----------



## Groovemachine

Cody Rhodes, Goldust & John Cena vs Antonio Cesaro, Jack Swagger & Damien Sandow - WWE Smackdown 11.01.13 - ***3/4

Another smartly worked, well paced six-man tag in a string of them this year. But wait, no Shield?! Credit to all six men here, they busted ass, but once again props go to Goldust, who showed some great athleticism in this encounter. Absolutely shoe-in for Comeback of the Year. Fantastic FIP segment on Goldy, and when he finally got the hot tag to Cody, the place went nuts. Cesaro had a nice counter out of the AA, and Cena in turn deftly reversed the Giant Swing into an STFU attempt. Cena also had a beastly spear to Swagger on the outside, although it was probably Swagger's selling that helped that one stand out. Once again, a great TV main event on the blue show. 

I still haven't seen Sandow/Cena from Raw, but judging by the positive reviews, Sandow is 2 for 2 this week. Let's hope he keeps up the good work.


----------



## Shepard

The Primer said:


> Styles vs Aries semi-finals this year was really bad.


Really really bad. Magnus vs Roode from the same night was a much better match. Like ***1/2. Also haven't got anything from TNA breaking **** this year. Probably the ONO old/new school tag for the best I've seen.


----------



## seancarleton77

Is the John Cena hate beginning to fade? I hope so. His last two performances, not just the matches, were insanely good.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Last 3 performances. Ever since returning prematurely, all 3 Cena matches have ranged from good-great.


----------



## Groovemachine

And in the Smackdown 6-man I just pimped, there's a big 'Cena' chant with not a single 'Cena sucks' retort. That's gotta be a first for like...a decade?


----------



## Obfuscation

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Nah bro, we were talking about the 1st one that ended in the double pin. We all know the 2nd installment was no good.


Fine. That one was mediocre. I completely forgot about it. 8*D


----------



## mateuspfc

Jack Evans 187 said:


> Nah bro, we were talking about the 1st one that ended in the double pin. We all know the 2nd installment was no good.


What double pin? Aries pinned AJ clean, even if the finish sucked hard. And the match was excellent, **** at least.


----------



## Corey

mateuspfc said:


> What double pin? Aries pinned AJ clean, even if the finish sucked hard. And the match was excellent, **** at least.


Well I wouldn't call the pin clean in any fashion and I never said the first match was bad. Forgot that Aries actually won that one, recalled it being a double pin (because it looked that way). I actually enjoyed that one, contrary to their semi final match at No Surrender which was a hot mess. You folks are just gettin really confused here.


----------



## Snapdragon

Is Hiromu Takahashi just going by Hiro Takahashi now?

Has he been allowed to ditch the all black young boy trunks yet?

Are any of his UK matches online, big fan of Hiromu. He's going to be a huge star someday


----------



## Rah

Snapdragon said:


> Is Hiromu Takahashi just going by Hiro Takahashi now?
> 
> Has he been allowed to ditch the all black young boy trunks yet?
> 
> Are any of his UK matches online, big fan of Hiromu. He's going to be a huge star someday


Couple matches here.


----------



## Groovemachine

At the 4FW/Michinoku Pro event a couple of weeks ago, Takahashi had some Susumu Yokozuka-esque trunks on, and he's styled his hair. Looks legit.


----------



## Obfuscation

Finished PWG BOLA Night One. Only one match to add here as a pick for my criteria: _(it doesn't contain any result, but I'll keep it in spoilers in case someone doesn't know any of the matches.)_



Spoiler: BOLA Night One



Kyle O'Reilly vs Trent?

Long story short, I felt this was the "good" version of what Callihan vs O'Reilly tried to be earlier this year. I'll go into better detail on the match once I post my complete _(mini?)_ review thingy on all of BOLA Night One. Look at that, another O'Reilly match I dug. MOTN even. Huh. PWG + him is starting to work out it seems. Wasn't all him of course, Trent? put out his best PWG showing yet. He fell a bit flat back at ASW, but he brought what he needed to here.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

I think that was probably Trent's best match since leaving WWE,or maybe ever.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Ganso Bomb

My top 10 as of now (in loose order):

Tanahashi vs. Okada - Invasion Attack (*****)
Nakamura vs. Ibushi - G-1 Climax Day 4 (****3/4)
Shibata vs. Ishii - G-1 Climax Day 4 (****3/4)
Punk vs. Lesnar - SummerSlam (****1/2)
Tanahashi vs. Okada - King of Pro Wrestling (****1/2)
Nakamura vs. Sakuraba - Wrestle Kingdom (****1/2)
Shibata vs. Goto - Dominion (****1/2)
Bryan vs. Cena - SummerSlam (****1/2)
Punk vs. Undertaker - WrestleMania (****1/2)
Tanahashi vs. Ishii - G-1 Climax Day 2 (****1/2)


----------



## CZWRUBE

Bubz said:


> I thought *Punk/Taker* was brilliant, not going to lie. Punk was down right fantastic in it. From his stuff during Taker's entrance, to his stuff during his control segment to his stuff during the finishing run. Everything he did was great, and that's not just me being a big Punk fan talking, he was legit awesome in it. Punk and Taker are two guys who just know what they're doing in terms of controlling a crowd in the ring through their performances, and while Punk was the star, Taker was great too. Loved Punk being a fighting dickhead and not a chickenshit dickhead, that's exactly how he should be booked. He wasn't scared, he acted like he didn't give a toss and it ruled, usually that might be annoying but Punk makes it work here through his mannerisms and expressions. I absolutely adored the Old School spot, again Punk came off as a guy who knew what he was doing against Taker, he was the champion for over a year, he beat everyone, so he's going to be a threat to Taker kayfabe wise no matter his size because of his tenacity and skill in the ring and he played that role to perfection. I honestly thought the GTS no sell into the Tombstone was ridiculously awesome and I flipped my lid for it. This isn't anyone no selling the GTS, this is The Undertaker at Wrestlemania with his streak on the line avenging his dead father and fighting a guy he's learned through the course of the match is actually really fucking good and might have the win if he lets up for a second. The way he stumbled on to the ropes and then came off as almost possessed and threw Punk up like a child was just really cool to me. Plus I bought that near fall like anybody's business and Punk kicking out was awesome because I legit thought that was it unlike the HHH Tombstones the two previous years. I know people have kicked out of that move before at Mania (recently anyway), but that was HBK, Undertaker's greatest rival, and Triple H who'll obviously make himself look super human, I honestly didn't think they'd have Punk kick out of it. Table spot looked nasty on Punk's end and was the only slight blip in the match for me, it didn't look good for either guy. I really liked the Urn spot, played into the build up and even though that build was awful at least in didn't come off as completely pointless. Taker sitting up in the Vice was another super cool spot, and so was the tombstone reversals and Punk doing Taker's pose, once again coming off as a guy with no fear which is the exact way he needed to be booked in this match for anyone to believe he was a threat. Final Tombstone looked sick too. So glad it didn't turn in to a finisher fest in the slightest, Punk didn't get a nearfall with the GTS either and I didn't mind that, It wasn't really needed to get Punk over because he did that himself through his performance. Having a crowd vocally cheer for him at least 50/50 with Taker is testament to that. Yeah, I thought this was brill. *****1/2*
> 
> As for other stuff from Mania, HHH/Bork was bad, Rock/Cena was pretty ridiculous but I didn't actually hate it. probably all down to Cena being fucking great in it with his expressions and mannerisms and slight heel tease stuff. The spot where he punked out the rock with the Peoples Elbow and stopped at the ropes and gave him that 'Bitch, please' look was legit amazing.


I would have to say Punk vs Taker is up there On my list. Very good.


----------



## flag sabbath

Bucks vs. Hooligans from Road to Power Struggle #9 is ****** despite some predictably screwy shenanigans from their ringside factions. The Jacksons have effortlessly transplanted their PWG personas into Bullet Club and it's great to see Romero & Koslov with the crowd solidly behind them.

First half of the show is instantly forgettable, but everything post-intermission is well worth your time. 

Also gotta love Gedo & Jado's approach to booking: 

"Who shall we elevate this tour?" 

"Erm, YOSHI-HASHI?"

Done.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

flag sabbath said:


> Bucks vs. Hooligans from Road to Power Struggle #9 is ****** despite some predictably screwy shenanigans from their ringside factions. The Jacksons have effortlessly transplanted their PWG personas into Bullet Club and it's great to see Romero & Koslov with the crowd solidly behind them.
> 
> First half of the show is instantly forgettable, but everything post-intermission is well worth your time.
> 
> Also gotta love Gedo & Jado's approach to booking:
> 
> "Who shall we elevate this tour?"
> 
> "Erm, YOSHI-HASHI?"
> 
> Done.


Where did you see the show?


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Corey

EscapedIllusion said:


> Where did you see the show?
> 
> 
> Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


It's on XWT.


----------



## Obfuscation

I still haven't even watched KOPW yet - FUCK.

Stupid socializing. What good is that doing me? Missing out on New Japan.


----------



## Concrete

*Samoa Joe vs. Willie Mack (CWFH 11/4/13):***3/4*
_Let me lead this off by saying this isn't going to be for everyone and this isn't really a super strong ***3/4. I feel it absolutely is owed a watch though. I didn't find this worked in your typical indy match styling and I think it certainly benefited the match. The match seemed to build to a rather fine conclusion. Match started with a little dab of indy chain wrestling. I don't really see it that often any more. Seems guys more want to do it 1000MPH and making it super intense. These guys spend a few seconds doing it and ended in a stand off with tension. Loved early on how Joe's jab kept him in it and helped lead comebacks. Mack isn't the greatest wrestler ever but he tries which counts for something. This match doesn't really suffer from any selling issues since there aren't a ton of big moves being thrown around for no reason. That's always a nice plus. This match certainly had its ebbs and flows which I preferred here over a go-go style of match. There felt like a lot more weight to the match because of it. Oh and there is a kickout at 1 the actually comes off as cool. So often not done well on the independents. This match I doubt will blow any minds but I think it certainly deserves a watch if for nothing else than to watch Joe have an independent wrestling match again._​


----------



## Obfuscation

Joe on the indies? Holy crap, the nostalgia is hitting me like a ton of bricks right now.


----------



## Concrete

For nostalgia alone it is worth the watch


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm down for that. Wished I knew about this show - would have loved to attend just for Joe.


----------



## Concrete

It was blowing up good old Twitter The past week or so.


----------



## Obfuscation

Me + social media is about as strong of a relationship as the Dudleys & WWE. Not good. :hayley2


----------



## Concrete

I see haha


----------



## Last Chancery

The Primer said:


> Me + social media is about as strong of a relationship as the Dudleys & WWE. Not good. :hayley2


And Bully just quoted Stone Cold not even 10 minutes ago. Not offhandedly, either.


----------



## flag sabbath

EscapedIllusion said:


> Where did you see the show?


Via XWT. If you can't access there, here's the main....


----------



## Bubz

Joe vs Mack? Yes please. Joe On the Indy's again is awesome. Joe having an against the norm Indy match on the Indy's is even more awesome.


----------



## Chismo

But Joe is terrible.


----------



## Obfuscation

He wasn't in that match.


----------



## DOPA

Bucks vs Hooligans? :mark: :mark: :mark:

I still haven't watched all of KOPW either. I haven't watched a lot of NJPW as of late. I did watch Okada vs Tanahashi from KOPW though.


----------



## Bubz

I don't think anyone can really say whether Joe is good or not based on his TNA stuff tbh. What's he been doing? Under 5 minute Impact matches against shitty guys? Genuine question. All I know is how amazing he used to be because I haven't watched TNA properly in about 4 years.


----------



## Concrete

*Damien Wayne vs Dirty Money (VCW 10/5/13):*****
_Damien F'n Wayne!!! The man rules and I so badly wished he would have gotten more time to work quality singles matches like this instead of forming LOK. Solid tag team but not as many fun matches on the table. This is what I wanna see from him MORE! And hey, Dirty Money was pretty good so it wasn't just the Damien Wayne show. Wayne takes the heel role quickly by attacking Money after he threw his gold chain into the crowd. I'm assuming it wasn't real gold. These guys brawled like men. A match that built. Hey, that makes two indy matches in a row where this has happened. What universe is this? Damien Wayne's Guillotine Fist Drop! He looked almost TOO smooth when doing it. It was rad. I wanna say more good things about this match but I don't know what really what to say. Both men went at each other STRONG and made each other look like worthy champs! Only detractor I would say is the match felt sorta slow at points but nothing that can't be looked past, as my rating shows. _​


----------



## Corey

Bubz said:


> I don't think anyone can really say whether Joe is good or not based on his TNA stuff tbh. What's he been doing? Under 5 minute Impact matches against shitty guys? Genuine question. All I know is how amazing he used to be because I haven't watched TNA properly in about 4 years.


Wonderful point in the first sentence. Frankly don't see how Joe sucks at all these days, I just feel like he's unmotivated so much of the time because TNA does NOTHING with him. He had a bit of a resurgence in 2012 due to the Tag Title reign with Magnus, then the eventual feud with Magnus, and of course the X Division Title match with Aries at Slammiversary. The latter of which damn near stole the show in the opener. I'm sure he's had a decent share of good BFG series and/or Impact matches over the past couple years too. Remember some quality ones against Hardy & Van Dam.


----------



## Chismo

He just bores the shit out of me currently, with his boring character, awful presence, trunks, shitty promos, etc. He's become so repetitive in the ring, yes, it's mostly short matches, but not always. Aries works buckets of short matches, but he puts some effort and color into them. The last decent matches from Joe? I remember the match with Garett from England being shockingly good. His BFGS performances were terrible. Same old shit.

Now, without watching the Mack match, I am willing to bet it was same old shit from Joe, plus some slower workovers. Eh, I just don't wanna bother myself with this...


----------



## Bubz

Well, the Mack match was better than anything I've seen him do in TNA recently apart from the Aries match last year which totally ruled. That basically proved to me that Joe can still go when motivated, same with the Magnus feud and tag matches that Jack Evans mentioned. I still enjoy watching Joe work, but I've only watched the stuff that gets anything from relatively positive reviews so what do I know. I'm sure a lot of his stuff has been sub par, but then again from what I've seen that's the entire TNA product apart from the odd Aries match.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

flag sabbath said:


> Via XWT. If you can't access there, here's the main....


Awesome thanks,I saw their match from Manhattan Mayhem live and it was awesome MOTN.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Bubz said:


> I don't think anyone can really say whether Joe is good or not based on his TNA stuff tbh. What's he been doing? Under 5 minute Impact matches against shitty guys? Genuine question. All I know is how amazing he used to be because I haven't watched TNA properly in about 4 years.


Yea that's true but he's really out of shape these days compared to his indy days.I'm not sure he can go an 30 or an hour anymore.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Obfuscation

Nobody knows that but Joe himself. Not like we'd get to see that happen in TNA as it is, so it's fairly irrelevant.


----------



## Groovemachine

The Young Bucks vs Forever Hooligans - NJPW Road to Power Struggle 11.06.13 - ****

Thanks to Flag Sabbath for pimping this one out, this was great. Loved the ref bump, best one I've seen in a while, legit looked like it came out of nowhere. The interference was possibly overplayed a little, but at least it fed into the Okada/Anderson program. Bucks and Hooligans really delivered here. Same rating as their Manhattan Mayhem V match, but I'd say this was marginally better. Everything was crisp, they gelled really well and most of all it was exciting throughout. Hearing the commentators shouting out 'MORE BANGA FOR YOUR BUCKA' made me smile immensely too.


----------



## Concrete

*Luke Harper vs. Kassius Ohno (NXT 10/10/13):***3/4*
_I'm not going to go into a ton of detail on this one. All you truly need to know is Ohno hits hard and so does Harper. Ohno shows fire on comebacks and Harper consistently looks like a jerk. OH and Harper is becoming a Top 5 guy in the WWE just because he throws a mean lariat. This may be Ohno's last match in NXT and it was a good one to end on if so._​


----------



## darkclaudio

-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - NJPW 14/10 ***3/4+
-The Young Bucks (Nick & Matt Jackson) & Adam Cole vs Rich Swann, AR Fox & Candice LeRae - PWG 31/08 ***3/4+
-IWGP Intercontinental Championship Match: Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs Naomichi Marufuji - NJPW 14/10 ***3/4+
2013 Battle of Los Angeles Quarter-Final Round Match: ACH vs Kyle O'Reilly - PWG 31/08 ***3/4+
-WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Rhodes Family (Cody Rhodes & Goldust) (c) vs The Usos (Jay & Jey Uso) vs The Shield (Roman Reigs & Seth Rollins) - WWE 27/10 ***3/4
-IWGP Heavyweight Championship Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs Karl Anderson - NJPW 9/11 ***3/4
-The Rhodes Family (Goldust & Cody Rhodes) vs The Shield (Roman Reigs & Seth Rollins) - WWE 6/10 ***1/2+
-Lumberjack Death Match: Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Prince Devitt - NJPW 29/09 ***1/2+
-WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The Shield (Roman Reigs & Seth Rollins) (C) vs The Rhodes Family (Goldust & Cody Rhodes) - WWE Raw 15/10 ***1/2
-Super Jr. Tag Tournament - Final: Young Bucks (Nick & Matt Jackson) vs Forever Hooligans (Rocky Romero & Alex Koslov) - NJPW 6/11 ***1/2


----------



## Obfuscation

Concrete said:


> *Luke Harper vs. Kassius Ohno (NXT 10/10/13):***3/4*
> _I'm not going to go into a ton of detail on this one. All you truly need to know is Ohno hits hard and so does Harper. Ohno shows fire on comebacks and Harper consistently looks like a jerk. OH and Harper is becoming a Top 5 guy in the WWE just because he throws a mean lariat. This may be Ohno's last match in NXT and it was a good one to end on if so._​





Spoiler: Ohno



It's not his final NXT match btw. He taped about three more on the most recent tapings before he was just released. I imagine they will still be aired, but we'll see. vs Tyler Breeze & someone else iirc. Or maybe it was only twice with Breeze. I'm 100% about those ones, haha.


----------



## flag sabbath

The second half of DG Gate Of Destiny is very strong (albeit Marmite stuff)....

Dragon Kid & K-Ness vs. Eita & T-Hawk ****3/4*
BxB Hulk, Yamato & Cyber Kong vs. Akira Tozawa, Shingo Takagi & Uhaa Nation ******
Masato Yoshino vs. Naruki Doi ******


----------



## Groovemachine

*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW Power Struggle 2013 - ****1/4*

This was...wonderful! A very high end ****1/4 indeed. Tanahashi dishes out some great leg work, Ishii once again proves he is the master of selling right now, and there's a great story running throughout where Ishii constantly cuts off some of Tanahashi's main offense with German suplexes.

Now, at one point we get a kick-out-at-1, and IT IS PERFECT. Ishii exerts all his energy to make the kick out, and then they both sell it, lying flat on the canvas. And that's how it should be done. And it's for that reason it kinda makes me very sad, as all the American indy goofs will see it working here and bastardise it further, instead of employing the proper context. /Rant 

Ishii grabbing Hiroshi's ankle as Tanahashi goes for the High Fly Flow is an awesome moment, and you can see Tanahashi's annoyance. It's a fantastic, endearing moment, and the formerly pro-Tanahashi crowd are now audibly split.

Sure, it doesn't have quite as climactic a finish as their G1 match, but this match is consistently worked better. I can see others loving this even more than me. A top 5 NJPW MOTYC for sure.


----------



## Bubz

I thought it was good but not great. Didn't like how even it was for one thing. Ishii's matches have a tendency to end up being far too back and forth sometimes for me. There was no real control for either guy which bugged me. I don't think that's always necessary for a match to be great, but when you've got the Ace in Tana going up againts this supposed underdog in Ishii, there needs to be some kind of dominance in there for me. The leg work went absolutely nowhere either, although Ishii stealing the leg dropkick and Dragon Screw was really cool, but then again nothing came from it. I love Ishii, but I don't like it when his matches just become spots to pop the crowd which is what a few of his recent matches have felt like and occasionally this one did too. I thought the 1 kick out from Ishii worked perfectly because it followed a great sequence with Tana showing his dominance, and then the spot where Ishii was holding on to Tana's leg for dear life was amazing. But for every great sell job and spot Ishii would come up with, there was one from Tana that didn't work at all. Ishii getting back up after the dragon suplex and tumbling around was brilliant, then Tana popping back up after he took one and not selling it was terrible. Same with Tana's 1 kick out, it was nowhere near as good. That probably sounds like I thought it was bad, but I didn't, it just wasn't what I was after from these two. There was just those flaws there for me that I couldn't get past. Perhaps others will see past them and enjoy it more, which I suspect will be the case. An argument could be made for the match being so even for the majority because it was Ishii proving his worth, but that's just not what I personally wanted. I thought their G1 match was so much better in telling the story of Ishii as the underdog and Tana being the cocky Ace.


----------



## flag sabbath

I think as the sequel to Ishii's G1 upset (and him leaving Tanahashi laid out at Korakuen last week), the story of the rematch was Tana approaching with some caution, not wanting to play into Ishii's strengths, but then getting cocky & paying for it once he got the upper hand. That enzui lariato crashing the air guitar party was beastly.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Do you guys think WWE will resign Hero like the did with Dragon a couple years ago?

I mean his release came out of no where.He got his weight problem under control plus he still has matches that haven't aired on NXT yet.Maybe they'll resign him,and put him on the main roster.Maybe I'm just being too optimistic.Hero was one of the few Indy guy that had all the tools to make it in WWE and it just sad to see him never make it to the main stage.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## seabs

*No because he doesn't have the fanbase that Danielson had and he wasn't released as a PR move.*


----------



## Bubz

flag sabbath said:


> I think as the sequel to Ishii's G1 upset (and him leaving Tanahashi laid out at Korakuen last week), the story of the rematch was Tana approaching with some caution, not wanting to play into Ishii's strengths, but then getting cocky & paying for it once he got the upper hand. That enzui lariato crashing the air guitar party was beastly.


Yeah that spot was one of the best things about the match. I'm going to rewatch the match at some point without the mind set I had going in to it probably.



EscapedIllusion said:


> Do you guys think WWE will resign Hero like the did with Dragon a couple years ago?
> 
> I mean his release came out of no where.He got his weight problem under control plus he still has matches that haven't aired on NXT yet.Maybe they'll resign him,and put him on the main roster.Maybe I'm just being too optimistic.Hero was one of the few Indy guy that had all the tools to make it in WWE and it just sad to see him never make it to the main stage.
> 
> 
> Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


I'm not sure about Hero. I think he's great and before he got signed up he was one of my favourite guys to watch in the world, but the only matches I saw of his that were really any good on NXT were the Regal and Harper matches. I really don't think he adapted well to working WWE's tv length matches, most of his indy stuff went pretty long and had him in firm control of the matches which obviously wasn't the case in WWE. I heard something about him not having a good attitude towards the whole thing and that contributed to his release. I think the situation with Danielson was a lot different.


----------



## seabs

_*All of Hero's best matches on the Indies were long matches. A lot of them VERY long matches. Nothing of his Indy work really suggested that he'd adapt well to working sub 10 minute TV matches where he wasn't already a star to the audience. Punk could adapt because of his character, Cesaro because of his moveset and Danielson because he's the best wrestler in the world and succeeds at everything. What was Hero popular for on the Indies? Slow matwork and his long classics with Punk and Danielson. 

Hero was always very much about having control of himself and his character too. Hero was as much a brand as a wrestling character in some (but obv. not all) aspects. He's always seemed to like control of doing things his way whether it be working matches his way or doing his own thing with his look/gear/etc. WWE still have a pretty fixed view of what they want their wrestlers to be and I doubt Hero was well motivated by being told he has to be this and not have the creative freedom he had over his character like he had before. I remember him once saying he kept the extra weight while in Japan because he dug the Barry Windham look he was pulling off for his character at the time. Basic point is Hero from the Indies was never going to be a strong fit with what WWE needed him to be and he clearly didn't make the transition very well.*_


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Groovemachine said:


> *Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Tomohiro Ishii - NJPW Power Struggle 2013 - ****1/4*
> 
> This was...wonderful! A very high end ****1/4 indeed. Tanahashi dishes out some great leg work, Ishii once again proves he is the master of selling right now, and there's a great story running throughout where Ishii constantly cuts off some of Tanahashi's main offense with German suplexes.
> 
> Now, at one point we get a kick-out-at-1, and IT IS PERFECT. Ishii exerts all his energy to make the kick out, and then they both sell it, lying flat on the canvas. And that's how it should be done. And it's for that reason it kinda makes me very sad, as all the American indy goofs will see it working here and bastardise it further, instead of employing the proper context. /Rant
> 
> Ishii grabbing Hiroshi's ankle as Tanahashi goes for the High Fly Flow is an awesome moment, and you can see Tanahashi's annoyance. It's a fantastic, endearing moment, and the formerly pro-Tanahashi crowd are now audibly split.
> 
> Sure, it doesn't have quite as climactic a finish as their G1 match, but this match is consistently worked better. I can see others loving this even more than me. A top 5 NJPW MOTYC for sure.


I just saw it an thought it was pretty damn good.I wouldn't put it in my top 5 tho.****1/4


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----------



## EscapedIllusion

Seabs said:


> _*All of Hero's best matches on the Indies were long matches. A lot of them VERY long matches. Nothing of his Indy work really suggested that he'd adapt well to working sub 10 minute TV matches where he wasn't already a star to the audience. Punk could adapt because of his character, Cesaro because of his moveset and Danielson because he's the best wrestler in the world and succeeds at everything. What was Hero popular for on the Indies? Slow matwork and his long classics with Punk and Danielson.
> 
> Hero was always very much about having control of himself and his character too. Hero was as much a brand as a wrestling character in some (but obv. not all) aspects. He's always seemed to like control of doing things his way whether it be working matches his way or doing his own thing with his look/gear/etc. WWE still have a pretty fixed view of what they want their wrestlers to be and I doubt Hero was well motivated by being told he has to be this and not have the creative freedom he had over his character like he had before. I remember him once saying he kept the extra weight while in Japan because he dug the Barry Windham look he was pulling off for his character at the time. Basic point is Hero from the Indies was never going to be a strong fit with what WWE needed him to be and he clearly didn't make the transition very well.*_


Well said,you articulate very well.I hope Hero finds success where ever he goes.

Cabana is another guy that looks right for the WWE.Anyone know why he hasn't really had a shot yet?


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----------



## Bubz

BTW, I'm throwing **** at Ohno/Harper. Really thought it was great.


----------



## Snapdragon

EscapedIllusion said:


> Well said,you articulate very well.I hope Hero finds success where ever he goes.
> 
> Cabana is another guy that looks right for the WWE.Anyone know why he hasn't really had a shot yet?
> 
> 
> Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


Cabana's talked about this multiple times listen to him on the Steve Austin podcast for more detail


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Bubz said:


> BTW, I'm throwing **** at Ohno/Harper. Really thought it was great.


Yea it was really different from all the other matches I've seen in the WWE.I read the spoilers and still bought into the rolling elbow near fall.Very good match.


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----------



## Bruce L

FINALLY got around to Okada/Tanahashi from KOPW. I think I may have preferred their Invasion Attack match ever-so-slightly, but it's by the slightest of degrees. ★★★★★ for both, says I.


----------



## Chismo

Tanahashi/Ishii II was great, obviously not as great as the G1 instant classic, but nevertheless, it was crazy good. They paced it extremely well, the match just kept getting better and better, awesome finishing stretch, nifty little details and callbacks.

****1/4


EDIT:

Sweet fuck, Anderson/Okada IV was insanely good, their best match together, easily. It really shocked me, since I didn't care for this pairing at all, but some amazing things happened to make this match so epic: *a)* Okada was very serious, like, VERY serious, and more intense than ususal, and if you watch NJPW regularly, you're gonna notice this easily, he's much more focused and serious because the burden called Tanahashi is finally off his back, he defeated him in a blow-off match and earned himself the Ace position, and he wrestled Karl as the true Ace, mind you, this was not the young cocky punk Okada, this was the Ace Okada defending his title and company from evil gaijins; *b)* Anderson's heel persona really helped (and elevated) the match, he was great all around, and it restored my faith in him; *c)* the Bullet Club angle rocked, and also helped to emphasize Okada's new role; and *d)* the Osaka crowd was so great, god bless those people.

****1/2 (better than Tanahashi/Ishii, wow)


----------



## tboneangle

What did everyone think of AJ vs Ray at BFG? Hear mixed things.There live was awesome.Slow paced at times but storytelling and SPOTZ was top notch


----------



## Groovemachine

Paul London vs Roderick Strong - ROH on SBG 11.09.13 (Glory By Honor XII) - ***3/4

ROH are touting this one as a legit MOTYC. It's not, but it's pretty darn great and a step above most of the other matches I've seen from the company this year. Strong re-asserts himself as the 'Messiah of the Backbreaker' with some ridiculously sick variations; I openly cringed on 3 separate occasions. Half-nelson backbreaker on the ring apron was particularly notable! London had a great tease of going for the Davey-face stomp when Strong was lying on the apron, that was a nice callback and the fans picked up on it straight away. Don't know how Strong was standing after that tombstone on the outside, I'm pretty sure it was botched, but either way it looked like it had to suck.

Putting on my critical hat for a moment, I had issues with London kicking out of all of Strong's main offense; as with other marquee ROH matches this year, there's a tendency to go all-out and run through each man's entire arsenal. In this case, I guess you can say it's fitting for London's 'never say die' attitude. But that could be enough of a turn off for some.

I really like ROH's use of London this year. Having him come in and have good-great matches with everyone. Suits me just fine. Sure, more of a storyline would be fun, but it certainly doesn't hurt the company. Looks like London's starting to be that reliable guy again that can make gold with pretty much anyone.


----------



## darkclaudio

KENTA vs Daisuke Sekimoto - NOAH 19/10 ***3/4


----------



## flag sabbath

*Kevin Steen vs. Kris Travis vs. Joey Hayes vs. Dean Allmark (PCW Supershow 3, 15/11):* Fantastic opener to the weekend & the best match of night one. It flowed flawlessly & was brimming with multi-man creativity ****3/4*


----------



## MoxleyMoxx

Really liked the Drew Gulak vs. Chuck Taylor match from CZW's Night of Infamy. What started as a great "technical wrestling" contest evolved into a pretty good brawl. Also noteworthy that for the first time I got to see the more serious side of Taylor, and I gotta say that it's a nice change from his more goofy stuff. Didn't really feel the ending, but it's still one of CZW's best matches of the year. 

***3/4

Ater seeing the reviews for Tanahashi-Ishii II and Okada-Anderson IV, I'll now have to finish Power Struggle soon.


----------



## Chismo

Eh, it seems I'm alone in my love for Karl/Okada IV.


----------



## Rah

*Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW Power Struggle)*
This should be the Ishii/Tanahashi match that everybody raves about as it easily trumps their first encounter purely because Ishii isn't being great in a vacuum here. Basically, while a few moments are prone to his usual self, Tanahashi tries hard to keep up with Ishii's performance here and aids in delivering a great portrayal of the underdog/ace formula that they so wildly missed in their first encounter. Building off Tana throwing shitty punches was smart, too, as it gave Ishii an opening that kept him believable while not crippling Tana's legitimacy, either. Nice callback lariat to the back of Tana's head as a measure of revenge for the neck-work Tanahashi laid on Ishii in G1. I'd have to rewatch this but I wouldn't be too against this getting a rub as one of the better Japanese matches this year.​


----------



## EmbassyForever

******
*Punk vs Lesnar
Ibushi vs Nakamura
Shibata vs Ishii

*****3/4
*Punk vs Cena
Okada vs Tanahashi IA
Sakuraba vs Nakamura
Ishii vs Tanahashi G1

*****1/2
*ACH vs O'Reilly BOLA
Bryan vs Cena SS
Taker vs Punk

And shitload of Bryan, Shield, Rhodes Tag, etc matches are ****+. I'm really behind NJPW and ROH atm. Haven't seen anything from NJPW after G1 Night 4 (the fuck is wrong with me) and I'm stuck at Road To Greatness Night 2 which is really hard to sit through, new house shows looks good so hopefully I can catch up asap.


----------



## Bubz

Chismo said:


> Eh, it seems I'm alone in my love for Karl/Okada IV.


I haven't gotten around to it yet, sadly.



Rah said:


> *Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW Power Struggle)*
> This should be the Ishii/Tanahashi match that everybody raves about as it easily trumps their first encounter purely because Ishii isn't being great in a vacuum here. Basically, while a few moments are prone to his usual self, Tanahashi tries hard to keep up with Ishii's performance here and aids in delivering a great portrayal of the underdog/ace formula that they so wildly missed in their first encounter. Building off Tana throwing shitty punches was smart, too, as it gave Ishii an opening that kept him believable while not crippling Tana's legitimacy, either. Nice callback lariat to the back of Tana's head as a measure of revenge for the neck-work Tanahashi laid on Ishii in G1. I'd have to rewatch this but I wouldn't be too against this getting a rub as one of the better Japanese matches this year.​


I really thought this second match actually lacked the ace/underdog formula of the first match. Funny, I said earlier I need to re-watch this one though. I didn't like how Ishii was in control of a lot of it and I didn't particularly feel like Tana did enough to make his role stand out as being the ace. It was worked too equal for me. I also hated the leg work from both guys leading to absolutely nothing although Ishii stealing the leg offense from Tana was cool as hell. I did really really like a lot of stuff they did in it. Ishii hanging on to Tana's leg was amazing and the lariat to the back of the head ruled. I think it was just a matter of them not doing what I wanted or rather what I was expecting. I'll re-watch it this week.


----------



## Mattyb2266

ISW BKOTR2 - Chris Dickinson vs. Pinkie Sanchez - ****
Beyond Wrestling - Eddie Edwards vs. Biff Busick - ****1/2
Beyond Wrestling - TFT2 Finals - **** - ****1/4


----------



## Lane

*DGUSA: Freedom Fight 2013*
Johnny Gargano vs Chris Hero
*****3/4*


----------



## JustJoel

Tanahashi v Naito G1 Climax​
Haash determined to make me eat all my bad words for him over the years. This final was some skimpy selling and one botch away from *******. Naito's style is great - Western as hell, taking influence from Jericho, Michaels, Eddie - dropping sick neckbreakers on fools (somewhat rare in Japan). I think the botch was supposed to be a double cross-body. Haash's cross-body off the top to the outside...:jay2 Naito could've been a little more consistent on his knee. Not terrible, though. I like his Hammerlock Side-Walk Slam (think that's what it is). He's a spritely dude; he has a good mind on how naturally to get into spots, and fluid counters. Also his flying headlock takeover - so butter. I really enjoyed the closing stretch with the Frogsplash to back and the transition beforehand into the Styles Clash. Marked for the knees. Beautiful Stardust for the finish. Big surprise ending to an amazing show.

*****3/4*


----------



## ultimogaijin

PCW SuperShow 3

Kevin Steen vs Dave Mastiff

**** at least

When do you see a 315lb man do a missile drop kick then kip up? Great action from beginning to end including two strong irish whips into the corner which made the ring move a foot.


----------



## flag sabbath

Casadros said:


> PCW SuperShow 3
> 
> Kevin Steen vs Dave Mastiff
> 
> **** at least
> 
> When do you see a 315lb man do a missile drop kick then kip up? Great action from beginning to end including two strong irish whips into the corner which made the ring move a foot.


Seconded. Stiff & beastly as hell with "holy shit" agility blowing the roof off the place. Both men teasing corner cannonballs right up to the finish was ace.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Lane said:


> *DGUSA: Freedom Fight 2013*
> Johnny Gargano vs Chris Hero
> *****3/4*


Really? I was suppose to be at that show.


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----------



## Lane

You missed a fucking wonderful match.


----------



## THECHAMPION

I don't know about 4.75 but it was really good.

Also clearly the whole dead crowds for DGUSA/Evolve thing doesn't apply in Brooklyn.

That crowd was on fire for both Brooklyn shows this year. Can't comment on the Queens shows though.

DGUSA isn't coming back until late February which is a bit of a shame. The crowd appeared to have doubled since the Evolve show a few weeks ago so I think the Lyceum could be big for them.


----------



## ninetwentyfour

THECHAMPION said:


> I don't know about 4.75 but it was really good.
> 
> Also clearly the whole dead crowds for DGUSA/Evolve thing doesn't apply in Brooklyn.
> 
> That crowd was on fire for both Brooklyn shows this year. Can't comment on the Queens shows though.
> 
> DGUSA isn't coming back until late February which is a bit of a shame. The crowd appeared to have doubled since the Evolve show a few weeks ago so I think the Lyceum could be big for them.


The EVOLVE 24 crowd in Brooklyn was shit. A complete turnaround last night, however.


----------



## THECHAMPION

I liked the crowd at Evolve.

It wasn't quite as good as last night's crowd but it was a lot better than the other Evolve shows I've watched.

The only real issue was that the crowd spent the majority of the show chanting for a guy who lost in the opener.

Because Green Ant is the best.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Raw 12 Man Tag ****1/4


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----------



## darkclaudio

CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Cody Rhodes,Goldust, Jey Uso & Jimmy Uso vs Roman Reigs, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper & Erick Rowan - WWE Raw 18/11 ***1/2


----------



## ninetwentyfour

THECHAMPION said:


> I liked the crowd at Evolve.
> 
> It wasn't quite as good as last night's crowd but it was a lot better than the other Evolve shows I've watched.
> 
> The only real issue was that the crowd spent the majority of the show chanting for a guy who lost in the opener.
> 
> Because Green Ant is the best.


It's a good thing they followed that up by not booking him at all!


----------



## Groovemachine

CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Goldust, Cody Rhodes & The Usos vs The Shield & The Wyatt Family - WWE Raw 11.18.13 - ****

I've always thought WWE does a good job of putting together big multi-man TV matches, especially in the main event slot, and this was no exception. They got time, for one thing, which certainly helped. I really liked the Shield knocking Goldust off the apron when Cody was the FIP, as he would have been Cody's logical choice for a hot tag, and meant that Daniel Bryan got the big house-of-fire ring entry instead, which is what the crowd wanted.

The dynamic between the Shield and the Rhodes Brothers was great; they wrestled in a way that showed how familiar they are with each other. Of particular note was Rollins catching Rhodes mid-Disaster Kick and replying with a turnbuckle powerbomb. 

We got the usual finisher-fest in the climax, and it worked well here as they'd built up to it with only a couple of teases for finishers during the early goings. Reigns proves he can take the Cross Rhodes just as well as Rollins. 

This was very good indeed. The build to Survivor Series has been crap (or would it be fairer to say 'non-existent'?) but this piqued my interest in the two featured matches at least.


EDIT to avoid double post:

BxB Hulk, Yamato & Cyber Kong vs Akira Tozawa, Uhaa Nation & SHINGO - Dragon Gate The Gate of Destiny 2013 - ****

MOTN. Absolutely chaotic, in the best possible way. The last 10 minutes are pure insanity at a constant break-neck speed. Everyone had their moment to shine and looked good in doing so. Don't know why the ref didn't question the fact that Tozawa had a face full of flour at the end but there we go. Fun stuff.


----------



## Bubz

Yeah the 12 man was great. Loved Shield only tagging each other and all that stuff. Bryan's hot tag ruled and then they did another work over that was great and the hot tag to Punk and the following chaos was ace. Really dug it. Great crowd too. I still love how over Bryan and Punk both are even though they've been the most over guys for a long time now, it's still great to hear the crowd go nuts every time they come out.


----------



## Concrete

*Alexander Otsuka/Jinsei Shinzaki/Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Riki Choshu/Taro Nohashi/Rui Hiugaji (MPro 6/30/13):***3/4*
_This is from Shinzaki's 20th Anniversary Show and this was certainly a worthy main event. I'm not familiar at all with Nohashi or Hiugaji but they didn't really hurt this match they just looked so tiny compared to the other guys. They made up for that by being explosive little demons to Riki Choshu coming off like an Arch Demon. This match totally revolved around leg work on Shinzaki which he sells like a GAWD! Okay,maybe not that good but really really well. The legwork also made the tinier heels look like threats to the 46 Shinzaki who looks like he's still in his 20's. So legwork, big thing here. Alexander Otsuka isn't a guy I watch a lot but when I do he always comes off like one of the best offensive wrestlers I've ever seen. His big swing on Nohashi, which only looked better with his flailing around during,came off beastly. Okay, this write-up is going to continue moving all over the place. The finishing stretch came off real well. Riki Choshu ROCKED Shinzaki with a kick while Shinzaki was doing his straight-jacket choke. HAPPY 20 YEARS DUDE! Otsuka held Hiugaji up ready for a dead lift German and then Shinzaki comes in to help the cause and we get DAS DOUBLE GERMAN on little guy who gets released and lands on his neck. Real enjoyable match that if it were more exciting and meaty upfront it would have landed higher for sure._​


----------



## Rah

Concrete said:


> *Alexander Otsuka/Jinsei Shinzaki/Tatsumi Fujinami vs. Riki Choshu/Taro Nohashi/Rui Hiugaji (MPro 6/30/13):***3/4*
> _Real enjoyable match that if it were more exciting and meaty upfront it would have landed higher for sure._​


Seems to be a sad trend to a lot of matches I've been hoping to get into this year. That and the high expectations this came with (MotY credential) kinda plugged it too high a standard to reach. Still, CHOSHU~!


----------



## Obfuscation

Skimmed through and managed to avoid anything discussing New Japan. Those PPVs have kept me away from here for a bit. Anyways:

Surprised to see the 12 man tag from RAW get mentioned in here. I can't say I thought it was more than solid with some good performances by a few cats, but nothing to the extent of great. Timing felt off during more portions than I would have expected. Wyatt did more to add to the match in a non-wrestling capacity than Usos or Rowan really did. That cheesed me. Moreso with Rowan, b/c I know he can be a good hand in tags. Shield not wanting to tag any Wyatt members for a stretch was entertaining, and logically astute. Aside from a few positive pieces stemming from the general swag of all the talents workers in the match, nothing here really quite popped. Finishing stretch was run of the mill more than naturally electric. Not sure why, but I wasn't feeling Punk's hot tag. Thought that could have been given to Danielson to end the match. Or even Goldust. Punk's the big fish, so that explains it. For every bit of entertainment this provided thanks to a lot of just general "like" from 10 of the 12 involved, this didn't have enough for me to personally shout to the rooftops with adoration. Came off like a true definition of a 'TV match' with something holding things back. House show style in the 80's where the babyfaces win and fans get sent home happy, but didn't quite get THE match you would have preferred. In a year where tag matches being wonderful seem to be in a boundless supply, this is a forgotten coal in a sea of gems.


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> Seems to be a sad trend to a lot of matches I've been hoping to get into this year. That and the high expectations this came with (MotY credential) kinda plugged it too high a standard to reach. Still, CHOSHU~!


I didn't come in with super high expections into this one so for me it really came off pleasantly. I saw it getting mentioned at WKO and wasn't quite sure where it'd land for me but in the end it did quite well. It feels a lot harder to plop star ratings on these sorts of matches than say a 2009 ROH match. Almost plays by its own rules. Certainly worth the watch. VERY excited to watch that tag that was getting pimped from MPro. Hoping that I'm not coming in TOO excited.

*Fujita Jr. Hayato/Kenou vs Jinsei Shinzaki/Great Sasuke(MPro 11/4/13):****1/4 *
_This is a 30-ish minute match and it actually worked for me. That sound weird but I rarely can keep invested past the 20 minute mark(if that) so that alone makes it worth going out of your way to see. The other reason is to see Shinzaki look like THE MAN! I have not seen much of old Sasuke out of his KOT11 stint but he was bringing an old man shoot style in this which worked for me. His early stuff with Hayato was super cool with Hayato wanting to bring the pain with his insanely stiff kicks but Sasuke crumpling into ropes when he felt like he was in danger. When he got a hold of Hayato that's when he could play. Totally pulled off the biggest dick move on the playground by bending Hayato's wrist in a rude way to say the least. Oh and Sasuke busts out an Asai Moonsault pretty much out of nowhere which was made all the more bad ass but the juxtaposition to his style prior to it. Hayato and Kenou come into this one as rivals. I wouldn't say there is hate but certainly a bit of heat which shows up in a tag to Kenou after Hayato had to deal with being on the receiving end of punishment from the vets. Showed hesitance yet acceptance of the situation. I mentioned Shinzaki looking like THE MAN and that was indeed the case. He was taking gnarly strikes from the youngsters cause he can. Not only did he do that he laid his clubbing hand into them. The dude was busting out top rope chokeslams, powerbombs through the mat(hyperbole), and doing FIGHTING SPIRIT in one of those fun ways. Also there was a moment where Kenou double stomped Shinzaki, Shinzaki said FUDGE THAT, and then got kicked in the stomach which brought him to the ground. This was quite like 20 minutes prior in the match where Shinzaki double stomped Hayato , Hayato got back up, and then got brought to the ground with a kick to the stomach. REVENGE! The finishing stretch I may have found irksome in other situations but Shinzaki fighting out of shit because he's part Frankenstein's Monster felt believable and all around awesome. I don't think I have over two tag matches this whole year I've liked more. _


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Has anyone seen the Glory By Honor XII 8 Man Tag? I hear it's ROH's MOTY.


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----------



## Groovemachine

Checked out Hayato/Kenou vs Shinzaki/Sasuke from MPro 11/4/13, and it's a fun watch. Like Concrete pointed out, the moment where Sasuke bends back Hayato's fingers was cringe-inducing. I really enjoyed how methodical the early portion of the match was; they took their time and made the bigger spots mean something. Very technical, mat-based stuff, which I love. My main problem with the match (and why I don't quite have it as a MOTYC) is that Hayato didn't get a chance to shine at all, in my opinion. He gets pretty much squashed in the first 20 minutes. Kenou has more of a showing, but I feel that this one was more about the old timers showing they can still go. No bad thing, I just didn't like that coming at the expense of the young guns. Maybe the finish might make up for it, but I felt it came a bit out of nowhere and didn't do enough to make Kenou/Hayato look like a real credible challenge.

Anyway, a very well worked match, and if you've ever been a fan of Shinzaki and/or Sasuke, it's most certainly worth a watch to show that they 'still got it'.


*Champions (Adam Cole, Matt Taven, Kyle O'Reilly & Bobby Fish) vs All-Stars (Michael Elgin, Jay Lethal, Cedric Alexander & Caprice Coleman) - ROH Glory By Honor XII - ***3/4*



Spoiler: Review



This was the full 70+min version from the GBHXII VOD. They kept my attention for the whole thing so that's certainly a positive and worthy of commendation. Lethal's bump off the top rope through a table came off fantastically well, and they played it up as a big deal. Nigel joined the commentary team, and although it meant the three of them weren't particularly paying attention to the in-ring action, they sold the ordeal well, bringing up the danger of competing with a concussion. This all led to the big moment where Lethal returns, and Cole taking him out by focusing on the head was a dick move. So that was a good section of the match.

One issue I had was that it all felt very predictable. I loved Cole avoiding Elgin for the first 25 minutes, but it telegraphed him working his way through each of the other opponents until he got to Cole. 

I'm not one to normally hate on Elgin but this showed up some of his weaknesses. There's a long segment where it's 3-on-1 with Elgin at the disadvantage. That should be a prime opportunity for Elgin to garner support from the crowd. Thing is, he just doesn't sell it facially AT ALL. I didn't once see any emotion from him. He just has that blank stare the entire match. 

Closing minutes were great, lots of nice reversals. Elgin kicking out of the Panama Sunrise was awesome purely because Cole sells it so perfectly. He has this look on his face that shows he has nothing left, no more offense, and he lies in Sinclair's lap, incredulous that he didn't get the 3 count. Top notch cowardly heel work. 

Not sure how I feel about the finish itself; looked like Elgin didn't give Cole enough time to prepare for the top rope Elgin Bomb, which led to his concussion. Accidents happen and all that, but if you're doing a risky move like that, you've got to be certain the guy's ready for it.

I realise I may sound like I've been quite negative about the match. I had some issues as I've pointed out that detracted it from being a proper MOTYC (it's definitely not ROH's MOTY as some have been touting) but it's an enjoyable long match that never gets boring. Cole is great throughout, Lethal has some good work, Bobby Fish is also a standout (and gets a standing ovation after his elimination)...there's more than enough good work to enjoy here. Just don't go in expecting absolute greatness.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Thanks for the review man,I'm gonna check it out later.


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----------



## Nervosa

Anderson vs. Okada
****
A very good match, but less than what I expect from these two. Okada sold his neck incredibly well, because that is just what Okada does. The Bullet club interference was really good. I think this would have benefitted from a more gradual comeback by okada. Anderson still does way too much stuff for no actual reason.There is a BIG false finish near the end that suckered me, and everything that happens between then and the end, with all the interference, actually added a ton of excitement. I think the finish was also a very nice punctuation for the match’s story.


----------



## Bubz

Nervosa said:


> Anderson vs. Okada
> ****
> A very good match, but less than what I expect from these two. Okada sold his neck incredibly well, because that is just what Okada does. The Bullet club interference was really good. I think this would have benefitted from a more gradual comeback by okada. Anderson still does way too much stuff for no actual reason.There is a BIG false finish near the end that suckered me, and everything that happens between then and the end, with all the interference, actually added a ton of excitement. I think the finish was also a very nice punctuation for the match’s story.


Just came here to give this a mention, I thought it was great. I got the sense they were going for something more than that though, but no matter because I don;t think these two have ever had a less than 'really good' match together. I think it was JoeRulz that said this was Okada wrestling as the 'ace', really serious and there to get business done and that's totally the vibe I got from him here. He's great in this all the way through really. Andersons control I liked, Okada's comeback as you said could have been worked slightly better, but I dug everything they did after it so I was fine with it. They did a bunch of stuff to make it feel like Anderson was a threat because I don't think anyone in their right mind expected a title change here. Andersons bicycle kick on the apron as Fale was holding Okada looked like it landed right on the money. Damn that looked good. They tried to do a bit too much with the sequence leading up to the first Rainmaker I thought but just as they looked to be losing a little momentum Okada hits it. Really enjoyed the interference and Okada looked super strong and like the big fish that he should be by fending off all of Bullet Club and then finishing the match in seriously decisive fashion. ******


----------



## Groovemachine

Adrian Neville vs Sami Zayn - WWE NXT 11.27.13 - ***3/4

Hell yes. This was a mere whetting of the appetite compared to what these guys are capable of, but they crammed a ton into the rougly 12 minutes they got. A couple of spectacular counters on offer here; Zayn catching Neville mid-handspring and seamlessly transitioning into the Blue Thunder Bomb was a thing of beauty. Tease of the BRAINBUSTAH was neat too. Good bit of selling, too; they really sold the wear and tear of having such a fast paced match. God, these guys on PPV would be so damn awesome.


----------



## Obfuscation

After FINALLY getting around to seeing it, I'm on board with those who felt Tanahashi vs Okada was close to, or possibly on par with their classic from Invasion Attack. Seriously amazing match with no flaws whatsoever, for me. Unbelievable how the bout went 35 minutes - I swear when it ended I was left saying "It's over already?" - thanks to being so into it that it went by in a flash. Okada selling the torn up arm was fabulous, among many other aspects. The fluidity, callbacks, counters, etc & all that love to come with it. Certainly not the most detailed analysis here. More an overview of my praise, but my oh my. It went above and beyond. An absolute blast. Fitting finale for the two.

Big love towards the Nakamura vs Marafuji match from the show too. Knew the chemistry there would click. Marafuji in New Japan works for me. Not sure about anyone else, but novelty or not, he really pops among that great audience. Nakamura swag remains in general with my comments. Dude is basically unstoppable. Can't wait for the clash vs Suzuki that's lined up for Power Struggle.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Groovemachine said:


> Adrian Neville vs Sami Zayn - WWE NXT 11.27.13 - ***3/4
> 
> Hell yes. This was a mere whetting of the appetite compared to what these guys are capable of, but they crammed a ton into the rougly 12 minutes they got. A couple of spectacular counters on offer here; Zayn catching Neville mid-handspring and seamlessly transitioning into the Blue Thunder Bomb was a thing of beauty. Tease of the BRAINBUSTAH was neat too. Good bit of selling, too; they really sold the wear and tear of having such a fast paced match. God, these guys on PPV would be so damn awesome.


Yes! I was gonna say that.
***3/4
Zayn and Nevile are on a whole different planet when it comes to in ring work in NXT.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## CZWRUBE

EscapedIllusion said:


> Yes! I was gonna say that.
> ***3/4
> Zayn and Nevile are on a whole different planet when it comes to in ring work in NXT.
> 
> 
> Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


Sounds like I need to check out this match!!


----------



## Concrete

*Sami Zayn vs. Adrian Neville (NXT 10/24/13):***3/4*
_This felt very much like a match these guys would have had on the indies but maybe a few minutes shorter and not worked at a constant ERMERGERD pace. I think that was beneficiary in this environment. Brodie Lee vs. Chris Hero was what I would want in that match happening in the WWE and so was Generico vs. PAC. The teasing of the superplex was worked on a different level. It applies to everyone since a superplex is considered a big move, maybe not really big but it always seems to get a pop, but with it being a match between two beloved indie talents it is also the tease of DAT BRAINBUSTAAAAAAAH! That made it seem so cool that it was working for everyone there but it meant it a different thing based on whether you were familiar with their work or not. In conclusion, really good match but not the time nor place for a better match. Maybe a rematch for the strap down the line is in order. _​


----------



## hgr423

Zayn vs Neville NXT was great for a WWE match but nothing new from these two. 

I enjoyed the rasslin as expected but the commentary almost made me turn it off. Why did the broadcaster say "They gotta wrap it up." ???

I usually expect bad wrestling and good commentary from the E but this was the opposite!


----------



## Concrete

hgr423 said:


> Zayn vs Neville NXT *was great for a WWE match* but nothing new from these two.
> 
> I enjoyed the rasslin as expected but the commentary almost made me turn it off.
> 
> I usually expect bad wrestling and good commentary from the E but this was the opposite!


I think that phrase should be put to rest.


----------



## Obfuscation

Especially in regards to their 2013. Tons of wonderful matches.


----------



## Concrete

For 2013 I don't know if there is any promotion pumping out the amount of quality stuff WWE has. Only other two promotions I'd even put in the mix are CMLL and NJPW.


----------



## Obfuscation

If it wasn't for New Japan, they'd be a lock for promotion of the year. It's still close, as amazing as that is.


----------



## Nervosa

Ok, so I am happy with WWe this year, too, but to say its close to NJPW is quality is a little silly. NJPW can consistently get 2 four stars matches and 5 ***+ matches on every big show. WWE is nowhere near doing that, especially recently.

And when you factor in that the average WWE match is a meaningless squash, a filler match, or a Ryback/Big Show/Orton Snoozer, it can't possibly be seen as close.

Is their top stuff a lot better? Sure. Is their average match on the card good? No. And the Average New Japan match is.

Actually, now that I mention it the gap between WWE's best stuff and New Japan's best stuff is enormous.

Second best company in the world? Sure, maybe. Anywhere close to first? Not at all.


----------



## Obfuscation

When one is on TV as often as WWE is, we all expect most of the matches to be throwaways that get no time. But when the emphasis is put there, WWE comes through. Aka all that gets focused on here. It's simple enough to understand. This isn't going to turn into a debate either. b/c there's nothing to do in that realm. I'm happy with the goods WWE has produced & that's that.


----------



## Nervosa

I'm happy with it too, heck, its the best its been in years, but there's a big gap between satisfactory and the best in the world.


----------



## djmathers1207

I think WWE has put on some really exciting matches this year not only on PPV but on Raw and Smackdown


----------



## Concrete

Nervosa said:


> I'm happy with it too, heck, its the best its been in years, but there's a big gap between satisfactory and the best in the world.


Comparing NJPW bigger PPVs to WWE PPVs isn't an apples to apples comparison. 

Any who, WWE churning out great stuff on a consistent basis(they have like 900 hours a week) and more than really any other company this year. NJPW produces most of their great matches on a card every two months while WWE might have a great match on TV every other week. So when it comes to POTY, NJPW looks really good with their ability to create big shows while WWE simply doesn't do that as well.


----------



## Obfuscation

When you take the overall consideration of the approach for which is the strongest promotion outside of only just significant match quality, the gap between NJPW & WWE is widened. Consistency in WWE has been accurate among the same variables _(IE workers)_, but not in terms of an overall production on events that should be delivering top notch work. _(TV outshining PPVs by a large margin, for example)_ Meanwhile, when New Japan puts together a big show, they more than come through in the clutch. And then some. For the sake of the topic, I'd comment on that. 

Both are awesome in the elements that are harped about for the nature of this thread and building blocks of dubbing one as having a "great year". That's what matters most with this subject. About ten poor booking decisions by WWE can be nixed by one fabulous match. If you're willing to turn a blind eye to the bad stuff, that is. It won't go away. Might as well embrace the quality work. That's the whole area where I was giving WWE praise at to begin with.


----------



## Concrete

I think I read the reasoning behind WWE pumping stuff onto RAW is that it is a contract year for them? Boost ratings of the show, take hits on the PPV, and return to the previous format after getting a sizable extension with USA. That could be way off but food for thought I suppose. Find it interesting that the BIG promotions from Mexico(I feel is though CMLL and AAA aren't too far apart in size), USA, and Japan are delivering the best stuff in their areas. Seems as though in years past we'd be talking about how PWG and ROH were above WWE for match quality in comparison to output or maybe IWRG was the swankiest promotion south of the border. 2013 has been a nifty year.


----------



## hgr423

To those who think WWE is having a great year, can you please suggest the 4 star or better matches from 2013? I am curious and not trolling. After all this is the MOTYC thread. 

Personally from what I saw on TV this year I though the Shield tags were generally okay but got repetitive, Goldust looked surprisingly good but in short bursts, and Daniel Bryan's repertoire has become pretty limited. However I don't watch PPV's.

What am I missing? Thanks.


----------



## flag sabbath

Concrete said:


> Comparing NJPW bigger PPVs to WWE PPVs isn't an apples to apples comparison.
> 
> Any who, *WWE churning out great stuff on a consistent basis*(they have like 900 hours a week) and more than really any other company this year. *NJPW produces most of their great matches on a card every two months* while WWE might have a great match on TV every other week. So when it comes to POTY, NJPW looks really good with their ability to create big shows while WWE simply doesn't do that as well.


What great stuff has the WWE churned out since Summer Slam? A few Rhodes vs. Shield matches in three months and counting? That's hardly consistent.

And did you watch the G1? That alone (minus WK7, Invasion Attack, King Of Pro Wrstling etc.) blows Vince's in-ring product out of the water.

I know it's all subjective, but my MOTYC list has 49 matches from New Japan and 13 from WWE (inc. NXT).

EDIT @hgr423 - Punk vs. Taker, Punk vs. Lesnar, Bryan vs. Cena //


----------



## seabs

*Assuming we're talking just pure match quality and nothing to do with any other aspects, New Japan still has the edge. Actually it's more than an edge. Stronger consistency and higher peak. WWE's had a super year for TV matches at it's peak but the match quality on PPV has been horrendous for the most part. Punk/Taker, HHH/Brock, Cena/Bryan, Punk/Lesnar and Shield/Rhodes are the only PPV matches that are really worth watching. That's pretty terrible in comparison to New Japan. They haven't produced as many MOTYCs as New Japan either.*


----------



## Chismo

I've said it before (countless times), and I'm saying it again, the best stuff from WWE comes from their weeklies, where they usually cut the pretentious C-level acting crap, and just let their guys wrestle. I find some of their radnom 5 min matches from SmackDown better than 90% of the PPV stuff.

The "epic" PPV matches such as Punk/Lesnar are solid-to-good, but insanely overrated. Dragon/Cena is probably the best WWE match this year. Again, from what I've witnessed ringwise.


----------



## Concrete

NJPW holds smaller shows between their big shows and I don't know if those can really be discounted when trying to compare constancy of WWE to NJPW. You could say they are more equal to house shows but without including them an inherent slant towards NJPW is present. And to be slightly more clear, on my end I'm including NXT in the equation. I'm not doing it for POTY purposes or anything like that but for me it all falls under the same umbrella. 

And as far as G1 goes Flag Sabbath, them running a stretch of great shows in the span of 10 days really doesn't change my thought that they cram their good stuff into a short window. It isn't like they are pulling that off twice or thrice a year.


----------



## flag sabbath

I guess it's worth adding that those 49 New Japan matches on my list took place on 26 different shows.


----------



## Concrete

flag sabbath said:


> I guess it's worth adding that those 49 New Japan matches on my list took place on 26 different shows.


JEEZUS!

Then I'm going to assume that a bit of it comes down to taste. Since A) I don't have 49 matches from NJPW B)I don't have near that amount of different shows popping up on my list from them.


----------



## flag sabbath

My list includes ****3/4* for whatever that's worth, but it has to be said that plenty of NJ's secondary / 'Road' shows (their equivalent of Raw) have featured very strong offerings. Moreover, I can think of numerous ****1/2* bouts which didn't make my list, but were rated more highly by trustworthy WF posters.

I appreciate what you're getting at & don't doubt this has been a decent year for WWE TV matches, but New Japan remains light years ahead for over all in-ring quality.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

Young Bucks vs. Candice LeRae and Joey Ryan - **** (PWG Matt Rushmore)


----------



## Rah

I'm not sure I understand what the argument is for.

Unlike wrestler of the year, where that should hold some objectivity (despite not everyone watching every promotion), promotion of the year lies on what you enjoy in wrestling. I can take or leave NJPW and haven't watched their shows almost all year (outside of the heavily pimped matches). I'd assume Concrete, like myself, doesn't rate NJPW's matches that highly, either. I enjoy wrestling for wrestling's sake but prefer to channel it through certain Indy wrestlers and Lucha while, weekly, I watch WWE because I enjoy that "c-level bad acting crap". Even without masterful booking there's still an emotional investment within some of the wrestlers, themselves. I want to see Goldust, Bryan, Cesaro, The Shield, Sami, Neville wrestle every week. NJPW doesn't have a Goldust FIP segment, a Bryan hot tag nor a wrestler as good as Cesaro just being a beast week in and week out. The Japanese also do not have a future-star I want to see the build of like I wish in Reigns. They do not have a charismatic babyface like Sami and Neville is leagues ahead of Ibushi.

Because of that, there's a lot of pairings I wish to see in WWE while I could take or leave anything NJPW could do. Will WWE deliver and/or is that because NJPW have already done those pairings, though? Probably both. There is one more match I'd like to see in NJPW and it's the only match that appeals to me on WK, after that I'm not quite sure what would draw me in. I don't believe Naito is much more than average, at his best, and I certainly cannot bear seeing him with Okada. I sincerely hope this becomes another Okada moment where his detractors are proven wrong but I doubt that. As for WWE's future, I do believe Regal/Cesaro on NXT will be better than anything on Wrestlekingdom.

The majority will have a different brush to mine, and thoroughly enjoy NJPW more than anything else, but this is an apples to oranges comparison we're all making. The ideas on wrestling are too widely different between promotions and, so too, are our enjoyments in wrestling. Different boxes will always be checked, so I cannot see a definitive answer being made nor should there ever be one.


----------



## Concrete

*"Golden Boy"Dylan Drake vs. "British Messiah" Timothy Thatcher(Premier Wrestling):***3/4*






_My current dream is an American shoot style promotion where Thatcher main events every damn show. The man is so super amazing at grappling that it is crazy to think he works small West Coast independent promotions and not bigger places. Dylan Drake is totally serviceable in this match and I guy I totally enjoy at times. He tends to be a fun heel. Sometimes I don't need much more than that. The match has a focus around Dylan Drake dragon screwing...I'm rolling with how that looks, Thatcher which Thatcher takes totally differently than I usually see yet equally effective in me believing the pain. Drake's use of the dragon screw gives him the opportunity to submit Thatcher more easily but at the same time he has to grapple with the wizard which isn't a fun place to be. The dragon screw playing into the ending is REAL NICE! It was the thread throughout the match and when something like that plays into the conclusion I'm a happy camper._​
And...what Rah said. Though I really do adore plenty of stuff from NJPW but at the same time I adore just as much stuff from the WWE. When it comes to the good but not great matches there aren't a ton of guys in NJPW I really care to go out of my way to see in those sorts of matches where I can find myself enjoying more of those types of matches in WWE. PERSONAL TASTES. HOORAH!


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Can we talk about how bad Raw was for a second?I mean I can already see every other match being on Botchamania.Brodus Clay couldn't take the La Magistral,the Sin Cara match was so sloppy,even Fandango and Henry botched their finish too.I haven't seen the Divas match so i won't comment on that.We had 3 flash pin finishes,who books this stuff?

I'm not even gonna go into the TLC build,this show I think might be the single worst Raw of the year.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## EmbassyForever

EscapedIllusion said:


> Can we talk about how bad Raw was for a second?


No, we can't.

http://www.wrestlingforum.com/raw/1042153-official-12-2-monday-night-rollup-discussion-thread.html


----------



## Obfuscation

Naito vs Tanaka III not being mentioned here is a shame. Best damn trilogy of the year that next to nobody mentions. All three bouts, fabulous. Each one with qualities to separate it from the last. Awesome, awesome, awesome. On a show where I had a feeling Tanahashi vs Ishii II couldn't be topped, these two gave me something to love, ever so slightly, a hair more. It's close. Really damn close. But gosh. Naito vs Tanaka kill it every single time. Those who dislike Naito have their reasons. Don't quite "get" them, yet, that's life. But I have mine for adoring the dude. He's had a hell of a year and only needed five months to do it in.

Next stop: Tokyo Dome. :mark:


----------



## Bubz

Rah's post is spot on.

I haven't liked any Naito or Tanaka match I've seen this year tbh.


----------



## Obfuscation

All I know is, WWE & NJPW. They're killing it for me. Already stated it, but that's why I'm done with any argument. Funny that I knew one would arise. No reason for it. Personal preference.

It's ok, Bubz. I found Naito vs Tanahashi G1 Finals a classic on the year too. Me & Naito against the world it seems. I'll take it.


----------



## Concrete

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> All I know is, WWE & NJPW. They're killing it for me. Already stated it, but that's why I'm done with any argument. Funny that I knew one would arise. No reason for it. Personal preference.
> 
> It's ok, Bubz. I found Naito vs Tanahashi G1 Finals a classic on the year too. Me & Naito against the world it seems. I'll take it.


I must have missed the argument cause I thought I was having a discussion


----------



## flag sabbath

Yeah, there weren't any hostilities, just shared perspectives. Peace on earth, goodwill to all men and all that :suzuki


----------



## Concrete

*Astral, Eléctrico, Shockercito vs Demus 3:16, Pequeño Olímpico, Pierrothito(CMLL 11/29):*****
_Maybe I'm in a generous mood but hot damn this is the sort of fun match I feel has been missing in my life. Thanks CMLL minis that I've never watched before! Shockercito came off like the most insane man on the planet. Like the bumps he took were wacky on another level. Planting neck first on the ramp looked crazy but then since that was too safe I guess he took a monkey flip off the ramp and, instead of getting caught by Demus 3:16, flies into the barricade like a rag doll and still continues on with the match. It makes the shoulder he took from Pierrothito seem like child's play yet even that was made to look like a train wreck. Demus 3:16 is someone I have heard as being awesome but I haven't seen any of his stuff and him being out most of this year(or not making tape, sue me for not knowing which) it hasn't been easy to see the awesomeness. Well I saw it. The guy is a JACKED mini and destroys a guy with a powerbomb on the floor because he can. The match isn't silky smooth, like there are some glaring botches such as Astral's TERRIBLE standing moonsault attempt but there were certainly moments that made up for that. Actually if it wasn't for Shockercito not caring about his body Astral may have been my favorite in the whole match. Looking super duper athletic. The match gave me everything I really wanted currently. Nutty bumps and flippy shit. Some will be down on the match because of the botches and understandably so but for me I didn't see it hampering things at all really and I was met with a more than pleasing match._​


----------



## Rah

Thoughts on the Rush/Casas/Shocker three-way and the singles-outings this week, Concrete?


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> Thoughts on the Rush/Casas/Shocker three-way and the singles-outings this week, Concrete?


I need to rewatch the three-way since I wasn't entirely focused and I have yet to see Rush vs. Shocker BUT Rush vs. Casas is the sampler I was hoping for. I'm really tempted to give it the nod but I'm just not sure if there was enough of it. To be fair I've given solid ratings to matches near its length but STARZ are confusing me currently haha.Really damn good for what we got.


----------



## Wrestling is Life

I feel like CM Punk vs Dean Ambrose from Smackdown last night could be considered a candidate for TV MOTY - maybe not the #1, but a very good match. Even had a non-wrestling fan who was watching it with me into it.


----------



## Concrete

*Tajiri vs. Taka Michinoku (WNC 10/31/13):*****
_Tajiri is good. Tajiri is really damn good actually. These guys worked the mat which is rather rad. Tajiri aims to kill with kicks. Taka works the leg for a bit and Tajiri sells it phenomenally. Taka's facelock is a key part of the match. I popped out of my seat when Tajiri did a counter into a facelock of his own. Taka trapping the outreaching arm when Tajiri was near the ropes was marvelous. The brief ending sequence(before the weird Double KO spot) was fast paced and fun.Not sure how to lump all my thoughts into this one. So go and watch it and say your thoughts so this isn't the only review for people to look at and say "Well that's fucking terrible". _​


----------



## Violent By Design

Hey fellas, long time since I've posted here. Haven't watched any wrestling at all this year except Wrestlemania.

How was the year overall? What promotions were good and bad? Who was the best wrestler? Any break outs? Any good wrestlers fall from grace quality wise?

And of course....MOTY recs. Obv I'm gonna search through the thread, but might as well start with the cream of the crop aye? :cheer


----------



## Mattyb2266

Violent By Design said:


> Hey fellas, long time since I've posted here. Haven't watched any wrestling at all this year except Wrestlemania.
> 
> How was the year overall? What promotions were good and bad? Who was the best wrestler? Any break outs? Any good wrestlers fall from grace quality wise?
> 
> And of course....MOTY recs. Obv I'm gonna search through the thread, but might as well start with the cream of the crop aye? :cheer


Well for starters, my match of the year thus far is Shibata vs. Ishii from G1 Day 4 this year. ***** for me.

Beyond wrestling is definitely a breakout Indy promotion this year check out they're last 3 shows, starting with Americanrana. AIW, AAW, and CZW have also been having great years.

PWG is hit or miss for some people. I love it but others are up and down on it. I'd say DDT4, All Star Weekend 9 and Ten are all worth checking out, as is a good chunk of this years BOLA.

Other matches I'd give a look to,

Biff Busick vs Eddie Edwards - Beyond Wrestling - americanrana 
Biff Busick vs Eddie Edwards - Beyond Wrestling - TFT2 (not released yet)
4 Loco vs Beaver Boys - CZW - Tangled Web 6
Adam Cole vs Sami Callihan - CZW - BOTB 12
Young Bucks vs Dojo Bros - PWG - ASW 9 night 2
Ricochet vs Akira Tozawa - DGUSA - Open the Ultimate Gate 2013
Shingo vs Gargano - DGUSA - Open the Ultimate Gate 2013

That's off the top of my head. I'm not much help for puro but seriously, like I said, check out Ishii/Shibata.


----------



## Violent By Design

I had Okada vs Tanashi as my MOTY last year. Is the entire trilogy from this year worth checking out?


Mattyb2266 said:


> Well for starters, my match of the year thus far is Shibata vs. Ishii from G1 Day 4 this year. ***** for me.
> 
> Beyond wrestling is definitely a breakout Indy promotion this year check out they're last 3 shows, starting with Americanrana. AIW, AAW, and CZW have also been having great years.
> 
> PWG is hit or miss for some people. I love it but others are up and down on it. I'd say DDT4, All Star Weekend 9 and Ten are all worth checking out, as is a good chunk of this years BOLA.
> 
> Other matches I'd give a look to,
> 
> Biff Busick vs Eddie Edwards - Beyond Wrestling - americanrana
> Biff Busick vs Eddie Edwards - Beyond Wrestling - TFT2 (not released yet)
> 4 Loco vs Beaver Boys - CZW - Tangled Web 6
> Adam Cole vs Sami Callihan - CZW - BOTB 12
> Young Bucks vs Dojo Bros - PWG - ASW 9 night 2
> Ricochet vs Akira Tozawa - DGUSA - Open the Ultimate Gate 2013
> Shingo vs Gargano - DGUSA - Open the Ultimate Gate 2013
> 
> That's off the top of my head. I'm not much help for puro but seriously, like I said, check out Ishii/Shibata.



Will do. Is ROH still bad? I remember last year was a dark time.


----------



## Snapdragon

ROH has had a fantastic year, especially in terms of match quality (although no one here seems to want to admit it)


----------



## Bruce L

Violent By Design said:


> I had Okada vs Tanashi as my MOTY last year. Is the entire trilogy from this year worth checking out?


I haven't seen their G1 match yet, but the two IWGP title matches are amazing.





Violent By Design said:


> Is ROH still bad? I remember last year was a dark time.


Not sure what the overall product will do for you, since it's virtually unrecognizable from before the Sinclair purchase, but the in-ring consistency has improved by leaps and bounds from last year.


----------



## flag sabbath

Here's my MOTYC list: http://www.wrestlingforum.com/20419745-post1532.html

Just to clarify, there have been four Okada vs. Tanahashi bouts - three for the strap & one at the G1.

I haven't seen any ROH since early in the year, but nothing anyone's written here (or elsewhere) has made me want to give them another try.


----------



## MTheBehemoth

Violent By Design said:


> I had Okada vs Tanashi as my MOTY last year. Is the entire trilogy from this year worth checking out?
> 
> 
> 
> Will do. Is ROH still bad? I remember last year was a dark time.


Better than 2012 but still pretty weak. A good match here and there (Bucks/FH, Ishimori/Roddy, Cole/Jacobs) but still not many of 'em, and nothing is above ****.


----------



## 5*RVD

Concrete said:


> *Tajiri vs. Taka Michinoku (WNC 10/31/13):*****
> _Tajiri is good. Tajiri is really damn good actually. These guys worked the mat which is rather rad. Tajiri aims to kill with kicks. Taka works the leg for a bit and Tajiri sells it phenomenally. Taka's facelock is a key part of the match. I popped out of my seat when Tajiri did a counter into a facelock of his own. Taka trapping the outreaching arm when Tajiri was near the ropes was marvelous. The brief ending sequence(before the weird Double KO spot) was fast paced and fun.Not sure how to lump all my thoughts into this one. So go and watch it and say your thoughts so this isn't the only review for people to look at and say "Well that's fucking terrible". _​


Do you have a link? That'd be fantastic.


----------



## Concrete

Snapdragon said:


> ROH has had a fantastic year, especially in terms of match quality (although no one here seems to want to admit it)


1) How annoying?

2)We don't admit something we don't agree with silly guy. 

3)Maybe instead of that sort of remark you can constructively give matches and stuff for him that would represent what made ROH "fantastic" instead of saying that it is an absolute fact that people here have too much pride to state. Cause that isn't the case.

EDIT: 
This is the Tajiri vs. Taka match.


----------



## Bruce L

flag sabbath said:


> Just to clarify, there have been four Okada vs. Tanahashi bouts - three for the strap & one at the G1.


I always forget to include the WK match. Which is pretty damn good as well, but the April and October matches are my #1 and #2 picks for the year, and I go back and forth between which is which pretty frequently.


----------



## Chismo

Sure, there have been four Okada vs. Tanahashi bouts, but the WK one was the clear end of the first stage in the feud, while the IA, G1 and KOPW matches are the second trilogy. But yeah, there have been four Okada vs. Tanahashi bouts this year. :bron4


----------



## The Lady Killer

Tajiri vs Taka? :mark:


----------



## Violent By Design

flag sabbath said:


> Here's my MOTYC list: http://www.wrestlingforum.com/20419745-post1532.html
> 
> Just to clarify, there have been four Okada vs. Tanahashi bouts - three for the strap & one at the G1.
> 
> I haven't seen any ROH since early in the year, but nothing anyone's written here (or elsewhere) has made me want to give them another try.


Ah, okay. Thanks. What was the first match they had this year? Trying to figure out what order to watch them in or if they're all worth watching.


----------



## Snapdragon

Concrete said:


> 1) How annoying?
> 
> 2)We don't admit something we don't agree with silly guy.
> 
> 3)Maybe instead of that sort of remark you can constructively give matches and stuff for him that would represent what made ROH "fantastic" instead of saying that it is an absolute fact that people here have too much pride to state. Cause that isn't the case.
> 
> EDIT:
> This is the Tajiri vs. Taka match.


I disagree but you're entitled to your opinion. Also If he wanted match recommendations I'd be glad to give them.


----------



## Joshi Judas

First match was in WK7 from the Tokyo Dome in January. Okada was the G1 winner going in and main eventing their biggest show with Tanahashi.

Next match was the one at Invasion Attack- most of the people here rate it as their MOTY. So did I for most of the year.

3rd match happened during the G1 Climax 23 Tournament.

And the final match was in Kings of Pro Wrestling- personally, this is my pick for MOTY. Most users go back and forth between this one and the IA match. Both excellent choices.

All matches have been great. The weakest one this year was probably the one at Wrestle Kingdom 7 but I'd even rate that at ****+

So yeah, check them out definitely (Y)


----------



## BKKsoulcity

As 2013 comes to an end here are my quick MOTY's ...

5. Toss up to any PWG Young Bucks match
4. Bryan vs. Cena (Summerslam)
3. Nakamura vs. Ibushi (G1 Climax)
2. Tanahashi vs. Ishii (G1 Climax)
1. Tanahashi vs. Okada (Invasion Attack)


----------



## Concrete

Snapdragon said:


> I disagree but you're entitled to your opinion. Also If he wanted match recommendations I'd be glad to give them.


Totally different attitude.

He asked for match recs in generalin his first post then asked if ROH was still bad. The statements aren't directly connected,sure, but there is a connection there. To back up the statement that you believe they are having a fantastic year,a minority not just on this board since even if others are higher on them I have yet to see a person say anything above "pretty good" across all spectrums,it would be helpful to your cause to give reasons to why you believe in that statement.


----------



## Violent By Design

So I saw Tanashi vs Okada at Invasion Attacks, man that was awesome.

They just played off each other so well. Okada is still a great character wrestler, and Tanashi plays up the arrogant rockstar face real well, I loved seeing him get boo'd for being too cocky.

The arm selling was phenomenal for Okada. He really just gets it.

The ending was great, such a huge burst of emotion. Love seeing that.

Well, I've only seen this, Royal Rumble and WM - so it is my MOTY as of now .


----------



## Snapdragon

Concrete said:


> Totally different attitude.
> 
> He asked for match recs in generalin his first post then asked if ROH was still bad. The statements aren't directly connected,sure, but there is a connection there. To back up the statement that you believe they are having a fantastic year,a minority not just on this board since even if others are higher on them I have yet to see a person say anything above "pretty good" across all spectrums,it would be helpful to your cause to give reasons to why you believe in that statement.


Like I said before and I'll say again. If anyone wanted match recommendations from ROH of this year, I'd be happy to provide them as there is plenty to choose from. You don't seem to be willing to be open-minded to changing your opinion however, so doing that for you would likely be a waste of my time. It'd be helpful to *YOUR* cause to ask the correct questions if you expect answers. But as I said you are entitled to *YOUR* opinion.

Have a nice day.


----------



## Concrete

Snapdragon said:


> Like I said before and I'll say again. If anyone wanted match recommendations from ROH of this year, I'd be happy to provide them as there is plenty to choose from. You don't seem to be willing to be open-minded to changing your opinion however, so doing that for you would likely be a waste of my time. It'd be helpful to *YOUR* cause to ask the correct questions if you expect answers. But as I said you are entitled to *YOUR* opinion.
> 
> Have a nice day.


Not likely that I'll change my opinion, no. That's not what I was ever expecting or desiring. I'm more curious in what makes you feel the way you do. Of course if you have no desire in explaining why you have the feelings that you do that is fine by me. Opening up with a statement that directly goes against the "You're entitled to your opinion" makes me curious where you're going to go with it. So here's my question that you can answer since this is rather direct:

Why is Ring of Honor having a *FANTASTIC* year in your opinion?


----------



## Violent By Design

Anyone have a link to Okada vs Tanashi G1 Climax?


----------



## flag sabbath

Violent By Design said:


> Anyone have a link to Okada vs Tanashi G1 Climax?


http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1...i-vs-kazuchika-okada-njpw_sport?search_algo=2


----------



## Snapdragon

Concrete said:


> Not likely that I'll change my opinion, no. That's not what I was ever expecting or desiring. I'm more curious in what makes you feel the way you do. Of course if you have no desire in explaining why you have the feelings that you do that is fine by me. Opening up with a statement that directly goes against the "You're entitled to your opinion" makes me curious where you're going to go with it. So here's my question that you can answer since this is rather direct:
> 
> Why is Ring of Honor having a *FANTASTIC* year in your opinion?


Finally getting away from the stench of Cornette for one. Lots of new talent being brought in and developed for the future. A return to actual good, developed feuds. Every single match on Final Battle except for The Bucks vs ACH/TD has actual build-up and a storyline/angle behind it. I'm actually glad ROH didn't just book Hero to throw in some random match nobody will care about in a week.

The TV show has been a lot better really good for the past few months as well and the quality is a lot higher.

In terms of match quality this has been ROH's best year in a good while. There have been a great amount of MOTYC contenders. As I said before I'd be willing to list some of the many great matches there have been this year.

If you have any reason to think ROH did not have a fantastic year, I'd love to hear it.


----------



## EmbassyForever

Snapdragon said:


> Finally getting away from the stench of Cornette for one. Lots of new talent being brought in and developed for the future. A return to actual good, developed feuds. Every single match on Final Battle except for The Bucks vs ACH/TD has actual build-up and a storyline/angle behind it. I'm actually glad ROH didn't just book Hero to throw in some random match nobody will care about in a week.
> 
> The TV show has been a lot better really good for the past few months as well and the quality is a lot higher.
> 
> In terms of match quality this has been ROH's best year in a good while. There have been a great amount of MOTYC contenders. As I said before I'd be willing to list some of the many great matches there have been this year.
> 
> If you have any reason to think ROH did not have a fantastic year, I'd love to hear it.


Nothing's intresting. Dumb booking for most time. SCUM. House Of Truth. Matt Taven's reign. Kevin Steen losing on left and right to midcarders after his undefeated-for-a-year storyline. No hype and buzz. iPPVs. Other than Briscoe/Cole, I don't remember any other really good storyline. Matt Hardy. And more and more.

Now, I don't think they are the worst right now, they still have solid shows and great matches and match-wise it's better than last year, but it's nothing anyone expected last year around GBH-FB when the ROH was hot after the great Glory By Honor, Generico's return and all the good stuff.


----------



## Obfuscation

ROH's angles are bad. Their matches are worse. And their crowds are dire. 

Company is suffering from lack of interest & heat behind 99% of what they produce. Nearly everything done isn't worthy of creating interest. I did get behind the SCUM angle the night they formed, but that quickly fizzled out once the TV tapings behind it aired. Then something unfortunate such as BJ Whitmer breaking his neck on a dumb spot, being used as a catalyst to form a random piledriver grudge between Steen & Bennett. Don't know how anyone is meant to care about that piece of work. I can't, personally. Toss in how 9/10 the matches aren't worth seeing, which adds onto the less than desirable product _(consider that the inverted effect that has come from WWE in 2013 - bad angles; great matches) _ & it's not much of a stretch to hear folks claiming they consider ROH bad. Let alone for someone to acknowledge that they're having a "fantastic" year & have their reasoning as to why they firmly disagree with the claim.

Didn't even touch some issues within the company suffering by losing previous top names such as Roderick Strong & Davey Richards, who both had their strong fan bases. Or the Charlie Haas fiasco. Or Cheeseburger. Or booking being more down than up. Or that recent "We Are 18" ad thingy that was _(or wasn't?)_ linked to a slight porno phone-line. 

Basically the gist of this is that one shouldn't care if someone - or a good amount, yada yada - doesn't like ROH these days. Everyone has their reasons.


----------



## Snapdragon

EmbassyForever said:


> Nothing's intresting. Dumb booking for most time. SCUM. House Of Truth. Matt Taven's reign. Kevin Steen losing on left and right to midcarders after his undefeated-for-a-year storyline. No hype and buzz. iPPVs. Other than Briscoe/Cole, I don't remember any other really good storyline. Matt Hardy. And more and more.
> 
> Now, I don't think they are the worst right now, they still have solid shows and great matches and match-wise it's better than last year, but it's nothing anyone expected last year around GBH-FB when the ROH was hot after the great Glory By Honor, Generico's return and all the good stuff.


What's wrong with the House of Truth? Matt Taven's reign has picked up a lot of steam since Best in the World. I think he's come into the character very well and is a perfect foil for Truth. His match quality has noticeably improved over the last few months as well. What midcarders has Steen lost to? Steen's honestly been winning a lot more than he really needs to at this point. If you're refering to Mike Bennett, the point of their feud is to elevate Bennett which it has.

No hype and buzz, except for all the hype and buzz that has been going on? While Matt Hardy didn't bring the match quality, he didn't need to. Matt Hardy during his SCUM run with Corino was one of the best things about ROH and even fans that absolutely hate him agree. His promos and all around character were completely gold from a heel standpoint. He was the only heel in ROH that really got booed.


----------



## Snapdragon

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> ROH's angles are bad. Their matches are worse. And their crowds are dire.
> 
> 
> Didn't even touch some issues within the company suffering by losing previous top names such as Roderick Strong & Davey Richards, who both had their strong fan bases. Or the Charlie Haas fiasco. Or Cheeseburger. Or booking being more down than up. Or that recent "We Are 18" ad thingy that was _(or wasn't?)_ linked to a slight porno phone-line.


I'll touch on these sections since I covered the other paragraph in my other post.

I agree ROH lacked angles around the first half of the year, but I think in the last few months there has been a clear effort and development of angles. As I said before, every match at Final Battle except for the Bucks match has a developed angle surrounding it.

In regards to the other stuff. How has ROH lost Roderick Strong? Was the Davey Richards thing ROH's fault? All things seem to indicate that Davey was given multiple chances and shot himself in the foot. The Charlie Haas thing, again not really ROH's fault. Cheeseburger? Don't really seem the problem with the character. Booking being more down than up? Not sure what this means.

The "We Are 18" thing seems like an issue with SBG who gets the sponsors than ROH. Also what does that have to do with the wrestling?


----------



## Obfuscation

So was it your plan to ask why people dislike ROH, only to come back with your rebuttals to try and disprove all the reasons? What happened to the "your opinion" game?


----------



## Snapdragon

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> So was it your plan to ask why people dislike ROH, only to come back with your rebuttals to try and disprove all the reasons? What happened to the "your opinion" game?


I thought we were having a discussion. It is your opinion yes, but I assumed it was open to discussion.

My mistake, although we should probably get back on topic regardless.

Also I'll point out I'm not saying everything in ROH is perfect but in my opinion I don't think this year was bad or awful by any stretch of the imagination.


----------



## flag sabbath

Still waiting for a list of ROH MOTYCs. Anyone?....


----------



## Obfuscation

1) Taiji Ishimori vs Roderick Strong - _(ROH TV - 5/25)_


2) Jimmy Jacobs vs Adam Cole - _(The Hunt For Gold - 1/18)_


3) Roderick Strong vs Adam Cole - _(Honor in the Heart of Texas - 6/1)_


4) *ROH World Championship*
Jay Briscoe(c) vs Adam Cole - _(Border Wars 2013 - 5/4)_


5) Young Bucks vs Forever Hooligans - _(Manhattan Mayhem V - 8/17)_


6) *ROH World Championship - No DQ Match*
Adam Cole(c) vs Roderick Strong - _(Charm City Challenge - 10/5)_

---------

Red Dragon vs Forever Hooligans matches from TV were both swell bouts too. At least for a watch and see if you think higher of them.


----------



## Snapdragon

flag sabbath said:


> Still waiting for a list of ROH MOTYCs. Anyone?....


I've said multiple times I'd be willing to write up a list.

Here are some ones to check out (from mainly house shows/PPVs)

Adam Cole vs Jimmy Jacobs Hunt for Gold 1/17/13

Roderick Strong vs ACH Honor vs Evil 2/26/13

Kevin Steen vs Jay Lethal 11th Anniversary 3/2/13

Jimmy Jacobs and Cliff Compton vs Michael Elgin and Kevin Steen (and Lethal) Border Wars 5/4/13

Eddie Edwards vs Taiji Ishimori 5/4/13

Davey Richards vs Paul London 5/4/13

Michael Elgin vs Jay Lethal Supercard 4/5/13

Michael Elgin vs Paul London All-Star Extravaganza 8/3/13

The Young Bucks vs Forever Hooligans 8/17/13

Adam Cole vs Tommaso Ciampa 9/20/13

Champions vs All-Stars Glory by Honor 

ACH vs Elgin 5/11/13

Karl Anderson vs Michael Elgin 8/17/13

Jimmy Jacobs vs Adam Cole 2 11/15/13

Paul London vs Roderick Strong

I can't remember as many TV matches off the top of my head but

Roderick Strong vs Ishimori and the Hooligans vs redDRagon from Providence are both fantastic as well.


----------



## Groovemachine

I'll add to that list:

[Edit: Oops, I was adding to Haley's list. Eh.]

Paul London vs Davey Richards - ROH Border Wars 2013 - ***3/4

Kevin Steen, Jimmy Jacobs & Steve Corino vs Adam Cole, Davey Richards & Michael Elgin - ROH Honor vs Evil - ***3/4

Roderick Strong vs ACH - ROH Honor vs Evil - ***3/4

Paul London vs Roderick Strong - ROH Glory By Honor XII - ***3/4

Champions (Adam Cole, Matt Taven, Kyle O'Reilly & Bobby Fish) vs All-Stars (Michael Elgin, Jay Lethal, Cedric Alexander & Caprice Coleman) - ROH Glory By Honor XII - ***3/4



And that is it. That's all I've got for ROH (aside from those already mentioned) that could even be remotely considered as a MOTYC. I don't really see how anyone could say 2013 has been better than ROH's 2012. Not that 2012 was a stellar year for them, but I could reel off a ton of matches that are better than anything they've done this year. Hey, let's give it a shot:

Davey Richards vs Michael Elgin - Showdown in the Sun Night 2
Kevin Steen vs El Generico [La Revancha] - ROH Showdown in the Sun Night 1
El Generico vs Kevin Steen [Ladder War] - ROH Final Battle 2012
Adam Cole vs Kyle O'Reilly - ROH Best in the World 2012
Davey Richards vs Jay Lethal - ROH Glory By Honor XI
Kevin Steen vs Davey Richards - ROH Border Wars
Kevin Steen vs Michael Elgin - ROH Glory By Honor XI
Eddie Edwards vs Davey Richards - ROH TV


----------



## Obfuscation

While I didn't think it was _too_ great, I'd certainly plug Steen vs Jay Briscoe here over some of the others listed. All the Elgin matches, for sure. Only one that wasn't too much of a struggle to sit through was vs ACH.


----------



## Snapdragon

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> While I didn't think it was _too_ great, I'd certainly plug Steen vs Jay Briscoe here over some of the others listed. All the Elgin matches, for sure. Only one that wasn't too much of a struggle to sit through was vs ACH.


Surprised you mentioned Briscoe vs Cole from Canada. I've seen people either love it or completely shit on it.
I thought it was good but they didn't go all out (makes sense now since the rematch is coming up). Told a good story.


----------



## Obfuscation

I don't want to use the word "reserved" for it b/c that sounds negative, but they didn't reach into overkill with their work - I liked that. It was gritty in all the right aspects and the finish parlayed itself for some long term booking that has come around full circle these days. That match alone is the main reason why I wished the Final Battle main event was strictly one on one.


----------



## Snapdragon

I think they're saying Cole vs Jay 2 for the Anniversary show.


----------



## Obfuscation

A tad unusual considering Final Battle is their "big" show. Unless they're gearing up for a potential championship change on the night of the Anniversary. Upcoming three way doesn't feel eventful enough to close out the year. That's the bummer, for me. Nothing to invest in. Also, when they gave a world championship match I'd fully support main eventing a large show - Cole vs Jacobs - on a house show with a result that was expected, it doesn't do much either to look at the follow up & be underwhelmed by it.


----------



## Snapdragon

Predicting Cole sneaks in a win over Elgin to keep Jay strong.

Cole/Jay feud ending in a match with both belts on the line and Cole winning.

Meanwhile Elgin is rebuilding himself up after losing to Cole at Final Battle and gets a rematch winning the title.


----------



## Violent By Design

Is it me or did the Multimedia section used to have an indy subsection? Am I imagining things or was it just taken down :$?


----------



## MoxleyMoxx

I think it's invisible for the time being because ROH sent a notice or something.


----------



## Platt

It is invisible for now, hopefully it will be back soon but there won't be any ROH in it anymore.


----------



## Bruce L

Given that a lot of what's made ROH so good this year has come at the hands of Davey Richards, Michael Elgin, Jay Lethal, Eddie Edwards, and Kyle O'Reilly, it was probably never going to be that easy a sell around these parts. But for anybody who doesn't have any particular antipathy towards those performers, it was a much more rewarding year for them (at least in-ring; I can't speak to storylines or anything) than last year.

Then again, given the major roles played by Adam Cole, Jimmy Jacobs, Kevin Steen, ACH, and perennial favorite Roderick Strong, it shouldn't be _that_ hard a sell.


----------



## Rah

Platt said:


> It is invisible for now, hopefully it will be back soon but there won't be any ROH in it anymore.


I know you can register free of charge to view RoH TV but does that include PPV matchings at some point? If not, how do those fans burnt by continually ordering the iPPVs have means of assessing whether the PPVs are worth their money or not, again, without pirated material?


----------



## Concrete

Rah said:


> I know you can register free of charge to view RoH TV but does that include PPV matchings at some point? If not, how do those fans burnt by continually ordering the iPPVs have means of assessing whether the PPVs are worth their money or not, again, without pirated material?


Since PPVs aren't an option anymore than that issue is taken care of pretty much. If they want the individual shows they'd pay for them. I am under the impression that through a subscription that somewhat current shows will get added as it goes.


----------



## Rah

Concrete said:


> Since PPVs aren't an option anymore than that issue is taken care of pretty much. If they want the individual shows they'd pay for them. *I am under the impression that through a subscription that somewhat current shows will get added as it goes.*


If this is true of their free subscription, and includes their major shows (i.e. Final Battle) then ignore the rest of my post, otherwise:

What I'm getting at is, say I'm a customer that bought those iPPVs, now on top of those mess-ups is a product that is not what RoH once was. Would I have to risk spending more money, now, in buying that show (obviously one at a later date, for sake of continuity) to see if it has gotten any better now that RoH are going ham on shutting down piracy? I suppose you could gauge by their TV shows, but the PPV is the litmus test; it's where the angles come to fruition and the wrestling gets time. If I truly was that fan, I'd rather pirate two shows and, if they were good, return to buying shows off of Ring of Honor. Now? I'd rather save my money and not return.


I've said it ad nauseam, piracy does not reflect an inherent trait within the viewer but one in the product. RoH are not losing a sale if someone downloads their show, as that viewer would most probably not buy the show, anyway. They do not think the show is worth the money, it's as simple as that. Tape trading/piracy is as old as the medium of taped wrestling, so companies in 2013 coming across with statements in how piracy is killing their business are doing nothing more than externalising the reasons as to why their businesses are failing. I'd also hazard a guess that the reason why they're failing is due to their mindset not adapting to contemporary realities. RoH shouldn't focus on ending piracy, but looking at means of bringing the pirate across the divide and turning them into a paying customer. They're potential cash-points not criminals.


----------



## Snapdragon

Last I checked, stealing something without paying for it is technically a crime. You can spin it a million different ways but if I pirate something that costs money without paying for it I am stealing.

Whether or not you're ok with that is another story but it is stealing case and point. I don't see how someone can argue it isn't. I personally know plenty of people over the internet and in real-life that pirate plenty of things and I've never once heard of them going back to pay for the thing they already got for free. Maybe I live in a bubble but I don't think it happens as much as pirates claim it does.

It's kind of funny when people who are stealing a product try to make the company out to be the bad guys when they get mad. Although it'd be hilarious for someone to rob a bank and then get mad when the bank isn't excited he robbed them.


----------



## Concrete

That does not carry over to the free subscription.

I agree on the fact that every download does not equal a loss of sale. That wouldn't be remotely close. At the same time though it can't truly be viewed as a distinct negative that they are trying to prevent their content from being pirated. 

The vast majority would pay for a product they feel worthy but time and time again I see people on this very forum discuss all the stuff they download off XWT and how they are excited to watch it. They are no longer participating in a "test drive" to see how the company is doing but getting content for free. "But they wouldn't have bought it because they didn't have the money." Then they don't watch it. There was never going to be a gained sale from that. Word of mouth from a pirated product has just as good a chance, honestly more so, of leading to another pirated product versus an actual sale.

Bridging the gap would be like what Beyond Wrestling is doing with the amount of free, current, content they are giving. People are willing to pay for certain footage of their weekend tapings from them because they'be had the taste and they like it. Giving out free LEGAL content that gives the idea of the product is how you can transition people from free watchers to paid customers.


----------



## Snapdragon

Concrete said:


> That does not carry over to the free subscription.
> 
> I agree on the fact that every download does not equal a loss of sale. That wouldn't be remotely close. At the same time though it can't truly be viewed as a distinct negative that they are trying to prevent their content from being pirated.
> 
> The vast majority would pay for a product they feel worthy but time and time again I see people on this very forum discuss all the stuff they download off XWT and how they are excited to watch it. They are no longer participating in a "test drive" to see how the company is doing but getting content for free. "But they wouldn't have bought it because they didn't have the money." Then they don't watch it. There was never going to be a gained sale from that. Word of mouth from a pirated product has just as good a chance, honestly more so, of leading to another pirated product versus an actual sale.
> 
> Bridging the gap would be like what Beyond Wrestling is doing with the amount of free, current, content they are giving. People are willing to pay for certain footage of their weekend tapings from them because they'be had the taste and they like it. Giving out free LEGAL content that gives the idea of the product is how you can transition people from free watchers to paid customers.


I agree it's very important to give out free LEGAL content. I think guys like Beyond and ROH are good at this.

Beyond has so many free matches that they've put out that are fantastic. ROH as I said has a free option to watch their TV show, old Throwback Thursday matches, and at least 15-20 free TV episodes on their youtube.

Chikara was putting up a lot of free full matches at one point and still sort of is on the Wrestling Is channel occasionally.

People that try to say piracy isn't stealing with a straight face are just insane.


----------



## Concrete

Snapdragon said:


> I agree it's very important to give out free LEGAL content. I think guys like Beyond and ROH are good at this.
> 
> Beyond has so many free matches that they've put out that are fantastic. ROH as I said has a free option to watch their TV show, old Throwback Thursday matches, and at least 15-20 free TV episodes on their youtube.
> 
> Chikara was putting up a lot of free full matches at one point and still sort of is on the Wrestling Is channel occasionally.
> 
> People that try to say piracy isn't stealing with a straight face are just insane.


I don't see anyone saying that piracy isn't stealing. That's not the discussion. The idea of some is that pirating is negligible in the fact that companies aren't losing much money via it and if they want to keep up with the product but don't feel it is worth the money that pirating is justified. I feel the same with music I can't really judge on that front. It is when a person would get upset that pirating was no longer option that I don't understand.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's b/c the person pirating doesn't care if it is technically a "crime" or not. They just want the goods to watch or listen or what have you and that's all. Last thing someone probably thinks of in the scenario is if it should be morally ok to do.


----------



## Concrete

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> It's b/c the person pirating doesn't care if it is technically a "crime" or not. They just want the goods to watch or listen or what have you and that's all. Last thing someone probably thinks of in the scenario is if it should be morally ok to do.


BINGO BANGO!


----------



## Rah

Concrete said:


> The vast majority would pay for a product they feel worthy but time and time again I see people on this very forum discuss all the stuff they download off XWT and how they are excited to watch it. They are no longer participating in a "test drive" to see how the company is doing but getting content for free.


That still does not limit itself past my argument that the product is worth the money or manner of sourcing the product is worth their time. They may be excited for it, but are they excited enough at $15? No. Why don't people buy directly off of PWG's shop? Because of the notorious issues around the delivery of that service. I assume they get a cut of High Spots (et al) orders yet, if they didn't exist, would their sales be as high as they currently are? Of course not. 2CW do a great job in throwing out free iPPVs to grow interest in their product. If those existed for RoH or other companies, at times, my argument would be lessened as those loyal fans jaded by contemporary RoH would have points to dip back into the product to assess its quality.

To make an example, Seabs runs/ran a British megapost of pirated material and constantly pimped matches from his local promotions. Because of this, those companies grew fans they normally would not have had. I fucking love Allmark and would watch his shows (along with PCW and 4FW) when I am in England visiting my family. Many users (who I'd argue are those you mentioned with the XWT line) also downloaded/streamed NJPW shows yet, now that NJPW are on Ustream, are paying good money to watch these shows.



Snapdragon said:


> It's kind of funny when people who are stealing a product try to make the company out to be the bad guys when they get mad. Although it'd be hilarious for someone to rob a bank and then get mad when the bank isn't excited he robbed them.


Except the product in question does not exist. You are copying a bought product - thus one becomes two. Your analogy is equating one to one. 

As for their "legal" content, I do not wish to judge a product based on throwback videos of a time I know them to be good. TV shows also do not reflect their PPV quality. Please read this, as it encompasses exactly why companies need to focus on besting pirate sources not increasing anti-piracy measures. They would make a loss if piracy didn't exist - because the word of mouth would be a lot less, especially in terms of their customer reach. Without piracy I wouldn't know anything outside of WWE and TNA existed. There is zero difference between piracy and you owning a DVD and giving to a friend as a recommendation. Of course Supplier Pirate A isn't my friend but the process is no different. Simply because the medium given is technologically based, does not change the premise. You're then met with three reactions:

1) Well, the DVD was good but I'm not a fan enough to buy it. 
_Outcome for consumer_: I'll watch it at my friend's house when he buys it (continue to pirate). 
_Outcome for company_: no sale nor loss generated. 
_Possibility_: the product may entice you at a later date and equate to:

2) Well, the DVD was fantastic and I want to buy the product.
_Outcome for consumer_: spends money on buying the product
_Outcome for company_: sale generated
_Possibility_: N/A

3) Well, that show was shit.
_Outcome for consumer_: ignores product completely
_Outcome for company_: no sale nor loss generated
_Possibility_: (high unlikely) return to reaction 2

Let it be known, though, that I wouldn't pirate RoH - I'm just stating a point.


----------



## Snapdragon

Concrete said:


> I don't see anyone saying that piracy isn't stealing. That's not the discussion. The idea of some is that pirating is negligible in the fact that companies aren't losing much money via it and if they want to keep up with the product but don't feel it is worth the money that pirating is justified. I feel the same with music I can't really judge on that front. It is when a person would get upset that pirating was no longer option that I don't understand.


We don't really know how much money companies lose via pirating. It must be enough to cause companies to want to stop it however. I don't think justified is the right word also. Maybe accepted is a better word but I don't think taking money from independent wrestling companies is really justified just because someone is being a cheapskate. I can see how people justify it when they're stealing from a giant faceless movie company. I can't really say stealing from say a small company like Beyond Wrestling who rely primarily on DVDs purchases as a stream of revenue is justified. Although I'm sure after watching the show for free anytime they want they'll go back and buy the show for $20 to watch it again.

But then again people have found ways to justify worse things than internet piracy.


----------



## Snapdragon

Rah said:


> You're then met with three reactions:
> 
> 1) Well, the DVD was good but I'm not a fan enough to buy it.
> _Outcome for consumer_: I'll watch it at my friend's house when he buys it (continue to pirate).
> _Outcome for company_: no sale nor loss generated.
> _Possibility_: the product may entice you at a later date and equate to:
> 
> 2) Well, the DVD was fantastic and I want to buy the product.
> _Outcome for consumer_: spends money on buying the product
> _Outcome for company_: sale generated
> _Possibility_: N/A
> 
> 3) Well, that show was shit.
> _Outcome for consumer_: ignores product completely
> _Outcome for company_: no sale nor loss generated
> _Possibility_: (high unlikely) return to reaction 2
> 
> Let it be known, though, that I wouldn't pirate RoH - I'm just stating a point.


You're missing out come

4) Well, that DVD was fantastic and I want to watch this product

Hey look this website has a link to every single show this company has ever done and every show that will be released in the future. I'll just use this website with all the free links to keep up on that product.

In this scenario why would I be compelled to send money on the product? I have the milk already, why would I buy the cow?

(For the record in your example of a friend loaning a DVD, that doesn't apply here because someone still had to buy the DVD).


Edit: In this scenario



> 3) Well, that show was shit.
> Outcome for consumer: ignores product completely
> Outcome for company: no sale nor loss generated
> Possibility: (high unlikely) return to reaction 2


The company does lose a sale. Maybe if there was no piracy option and the consumer had no knowledge of the show he'd buy a DVD to check it out. Maybe he decides the show sucks and never buys a DVD again. That is still a sale gained that otherwise would not have existed. I've been unhappy with plenty of products I've bought and sometimes it sucks but hey that's the risk you take sometimes.


Edit2: The piracy argument against ROH would be a lot stronger if the company didn't already have a ton of free content out outline.


----------



## Concrete

4)Well, the show was great but this is free:
_Outcome for consumer:_Continues to get the product for free.
_Outcome for company:_Loss of sale. 


It is a part of the equation and maybe a large enough segment that it does indeed matter. The ratio of pirated shows to loss of revenue isn't 1:1 (We have that point) BUT to say there is not a loss or absolutely minimum loss feels off as well. 

For the purpose of ROH, if they give the TV show for free then they are giving some of their product out for no cost for anyone. It provides storylines and matches so you have understanding of the product. That for me should be a good enough gauge at how worthy the product is. Will it be identical to a "major" show? No but for me that would be a good enough gauge. We have a difference of opinion on this. I don't think my mind is being changed on this though. I based a trip to Rhode Island based on videos had seen online of Beyond Wrestling and the show I saw was representative of what I saw online. ROH wants to protect the product that other people pay for and I don't blame them for that. 

EDIT:That was unplanned repetitiveness.

As far as Steam is concerned that is a totally different ballgame, IMO. I just know that people love them some PWG, have Highspots.com, have a VOD service to watch it, and still pirate it consistently despite "loving" it. That would be my test to this theory. If there is any product that shouldn't be vastly pirated based on its quality it would be that.


----------



## Chismo

I need Steiner.


----------



## Platt

Lets get this thread back on track. If you really want to discuss the pros and cons of piracy make a new thread.


----------



## Violent By Design

Off topic but w/e, what's the deal with death valley drivers latest lists? What's the latest DVD they're voting on, and what was the last one they finished?


----------



## smitlick

Last one was the 80s Lucha set I think?


----------



## darkclaudio

-Yuji Nagata & Daisuke Sekimoto vs KENTA & Takashi Sugiura - NOAH 27/11 ****+


----------



## flag sabbath

darkclaudio said:


> -Yuji Nagata & Daisuke Sekimoto vs KENTA & Takashi Sugiura - NOAH 27/11 ****+


Intense match, but the apathetic crowd killed it for me.


----------



## FITZ

Hero/Gulak from Cage of Death last night was around ****1/4 I thought. 

Great leg work and a match that was really exciting and made me feel like it could end at any time during the second half.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Merry Fitzmas To All said:


> Hero/Gulak from Cage of Death last night was around ****1/4 I thought.
> 
> Great leg work and a match that was really exciting and made me feel like it could end at any time during the second half.


How was Davey vs Dickinson?


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## EmbassyForever

Randy Orton vs Daniel Bryan - ******


----------



## Bubz

Holy shit, Bryan/Orton just had their best match ever last night. Great stuff from both guys.


----------



## Groovemachine

Yeah Bryan/Orton from Raw last night was awesome. Right up there with their No DQ match from Raw in June. Bryan's offense was made to look so good. They also didn't over-do the false finishes; Bryan never hit the running knee or got to lock in the Yes Lock for an extended amount of time, so his offense wasn't killed, and it made it look like he would have won if he'd hit them.

Finish was as well done as a cheap finish can possibly be. The match was just reaching a crescendo, and it totally cut off Bryan just as he was building steam. Great main event. Why didn't they run this sort of match on PPV?


----------



## The Black Mirror

*I'm new here, but this is an awesome thread. I've been compiling my MOTY contenders over the past several weeks. There's a few more matches that were recommended in this thread, which I still need to check out. Once I do, I'll post my list too. Thanks to all of you for the recommendations in this thread.*


----------



## Violent By Design

The only MOTY stuff I've seen are the Summerslam main events and the Tanashi vs Okada series. Nothing else seems like a must watch, maybe I'm just ignorant.


----------



## Obfuscation

Groovemachine said:


> Yeah Bryan/Orton from Raw last night was awesome. Right up there with their No DQ match from Raw in June. Bryan's offense was made to look so good. They also didn't over-do the false finishes; Bryan never hit the running knee or got to lock in the Yes Lock for an extended amount of time, so his offense wasn't killed, and it made it look like he would have won if he'd hit them.
> 
> Finish was as well done as a cheap finish can possibly be. The match was just reaching a crescendo, and it totally cut off Bryan just as he was building steam. Great main event. *Why didn't they run this sort of match on PPV?*


:shaq

The question that has been asked about WWE for the majority of this year. We still don't have the answers.


----------



## Concrete

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> :shaq
> 
> The question that has been asked about WWE for the majority of this year. We still don't have the answers.


The idea they are trying to run bigger matches on TV to attempt to boost ratings is the theory being thrown around. With WWE looking to begin negotiations for TV rights they trying to put their best foot forward there even if it means some so-so PPVs. That's really all I can think of at this point and which case it does make more sense then WWE just being silly.


----------



## Obfuscation

It's still silly when that's the thing you give away for free. Fans benefit, but you know what doesn't? PPVs. Unless WWE know some fans out there are so blinded by , I suppose, a multitude of factors to be the term used, that they'll purchase blindly w/o taking quality into consideration. I'd rather not take this into a bs discussion about "figures", but it's more on the aspect of their PPVs hardly giving us anything worth seeing.


----------



## Concrete

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> It's still silly when that's the thing you give away for free. Fans benefit, but you know what doesn't? PPVs. Unless WWE know some fans out there are so blinded by , I suppose, a multitude of factors to be the term used, that they'll purchase blindly w/o taking quality into consideration. I'd rather not take this into a bs discussion about "figures", but it's more on the aspect of their PPVs hardly giving us anything worth seeing.


Like I was saying, they're willing to sacrifice quality on PPV to boost ratings (is it working isn't the discussion) and get a deal that justifies what they're currently doing. After March I think it'll be easier to judge if they are really screwing the pooch on this or not. So yeah PPVs aren't giving us too much but in all honesty if WWE doesn't want to deliver on that front for now I'm not gonna fret on them not delivering on that platform.


----------



## rafz

NOAH 05/10
_KENTA vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima_
*****1/2*

WWE RAW 16/12
_Randy Orton vs. Daniel Bryan_
******


----------



## Joshi Judas

How was Tanahashi/Naito vs Okada/Nakamura? Anyone seen it yet?


----------



## Obfuscation

Concrete said:


> Like I was saying, they're willing to sacrifice quality on PPV to boost ratings (is it working isn't the discussion) and get a deal that justifies what they're currently doing. After March I think it'll be easier to judge if they are really screwing the pooch on this or not. So yeah PPVs aren't giving us too much but in all honesty if WWE doesn't want to deliver on that front for now I'm not gonna fret on them not delivering on that platform.


The main concern from me these days is interest. If they're not making one _(large)_ aspect of their product worth seeing, then, that's a negative. No matter how good another aspect is. TV is great in the matches that deliver. Oh hell yeah it is. But, call me old fashioned, I want something more from the PPVs. I can handle TV being "ok" in patches if the areas where the big payoffs, should be, are kicking ass.


----------



## Snapdragon

Honestly WWE probably looked at the numbers and realized that they make more money off TV ratings+advertising revenue since they've moved to 3 hours.


----------



## aivaz

Plus with the network they're planning, PPVs would be less of a factor and WWE would be more interested in providing an overall appealing subscription package. TV rights are coming up soon too, and PPV business has been expected to decline for years (and it has, and will).


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

October 03, 2013 NXT episode. Santino Marella & Emma v Fandango & Summer Rae. 5/5

This was an excellent comedy match. Really impressive the chemistry between the four, Fandango was the perfect prick. Santino made it legit funny and the tag work between Santino and Emma was excellent. I felt the match had a really classic feel to it. A great introduction match for a new fan as well; show them a unique side of wrestling.


----------



## Obfuscation

Either a great, albeit unexpected, troll attempt or :jaydamn if serious.

b/c unsure if there was a match from WWE all year that made me want to hate the company more than that shit.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Quoth the Raven said:


> How was Tanahashi/Naito vs Okada/Nakamura? Anyone seen it yet?


When was this suppose to happen?


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Obfuscation

Tonight. On the Road to the Tokyo Dome Korakuen iPPV.


----------



## Last Chancery

Snapdragon said:


> Honestly WWE probably looked at the numbers and realized that they make more money off TV ratings+advertising revenue since they've moved to 3 hours.


Not really. There was a piece of news that came out a year, maybe two years ago that said WWE is focusing its business endeavors on TV instead of PPV for the first time ever. Whereas before, TV built up to the payoff of a pay-per-view, it's now the other way around. Which, admittedly, makes no sense and gives us zero reason to buy the PPVs.

Then Vince will complain about low buyrates and pin them on our favorites, who we now know are failing by design.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Is posting links allowed here? If not, I'll edit and remove it.

Here's Okada and Nakamura vs Tanahashi and Naito.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x18sh3s_tetsuya-naito-hiroshi-tanahashi-vs-kazuchika-okada-shinsuke-nakamura-njpw_sport


----------



## Chismo

Quoth the Raven said:


> How was Tanahashi/Naito vs Okada/Nakamura? Anyone seen it yet?


****1/4

Watched it spoiler-free. Amazing tag match to end the amazing 2013. Such a smart contest, everyone was great. Got my blood pumping for RASSLE KINGDM. 

Seriously, watch this match everyone.


----------



## darkclaudio

NJPW 23/12
-Hiroshi Tanahashi & Tetsuya Naito vs Shinsuke Nakamura & Kazuchika Okada ***3/4


----------



## Nervosa

Tanahashi/Naito vs. Okada/Nakamura
****
I liked this, but there were some flaws. 

First the good: Okada rules at everything he does. Even Red Ink is over now. The Title match interactions also worked really well. The counters to familiar offense was also really nice. Naito does a good face in peril, and they basically had him get worked over twice, which showed his strengths. 

The things that hurt this match were the fact that Naito still struggles to get the crowd to care about him. Those who aren't booing him aren't even cheering when he does something cool. His submission move sucks the life out of the crowd every time, and here, it was during the most intense part of the match. I also didn't like some of the booking. Okada recovers WAY too quick from the Stardust Press. 

I think I may do a december to december thing with MOTYs, so I will probably put this in the new thread.


----------



## Obfuscation

Didn't think Naito's submission move sucked out any heat from the match. Okada did recover quickly from the Stardust Press, but I'm willing to forgive in the sake of adrenaline. Besides, Tanahashi did pick him up to begin with. It was more of a swift counter into the Rainmaker rather than a complete no sell. Okada collapsed as soon as he hit his finisher.

w/all that said, it was a whale of a tag match. Pretty epic. Did a tremendous job promoting the excitement WK is going to bring.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Okada/Nakamura vs Naito/Tanahashi 
****1/4
I was gonna give it **** but I wasn't tried or zoned out at any point in this match so it deserves a little more.Okada and Naito stole the show here,also Okada definitely proved that he's NJPW's MVP here.After this match I'm more invested in Okada/Naito than Tanahashi/Nakamura.The only flaws that I had with the match is that it felt more like a singles match at times rather than a tag match.Still a very good match,really hyped for Wrestle Kingdom!


----------



## Nervosa

Hayley's Xmas Ecstasy said:


> Okada did recover quickly from the Stardust Press, but I'm willing to forgive in the sake of adrenaline. Besides, Tanahashi did pick him up to begin with. It was more of a swift counter into the Rainmaker rather than a complete no sell. Okada collapsed as soon as he hit his finisher.


That is a good point. It was still a bit to quick, but it isn't like he just jumped up from it.



> Didn't think Naito's submission move sucked out any heat from the match.


The crowd pops for the counter, and then he struggles to get it locked in, and the crowd mostly just goes from molten hot to quiet again. It has pretty much happened every time he has used that hold.


----------



## Obfuscation

Suppose we'll agree to disagree here. I mean, I do agree w/you that it's done that to audiences since debuting it at the Climax finale. Although, I wouldn't say every crowd has been brought down. Thought the reaction to it in the tag match was positive all the way. It can't only be in my head, could it?!


----------



## Joshi Judas

I did hear the crowd chant "Naito" at times, or was it something else?

Either way, match ruled. Shinsuke beat the crap out of Naito almost every chance he got. I liked all 4 men, especially Okada and Tana. Naito was good, but I'd prefer if he showed more emotion in his matches. His face has that same look all the time :lol


----------



## Obfuscation

Def his only bit of a problem I'd say. More emotion in his face to show the trials & tribulations of taxing matches and he'd be set. On that note, I love the way Okada sells almost getting knocked out. From the glazed look in his eyes, to the noodle way his body goes. It's terrific. Funny how I noticed Okada did it so well, then Naito was selling fine himself, but contained the same look per usual. Haha. The little things like that can certain change things for the better.


----------



## bigbuxxx

Chismo said:


> ****1/4
> 
> Watched it spoiler-free. Amazing tag match to end the amazing 2013. Such a smart contest, everyone was great. Got my blood pumping for RASSLE KINGDM.
> 
> Seriously, watch this match everyone.


I echo all of this.


----------



## Rah

WWE would like to wish you a Merry Christmas.


----------



## Joshi Judas

Loved Regal vs Cesaro. ****


----------



## EmbassyForever

Cena/Rollins from SD is really, really good. Around ***1/2-***3/4. Highly recommended.


----------



## Bubz

Cena vs Rollins? Regal vs Cesaro? Okada/Nakamura vs Naito/Tanahashi? Merry Christmas indeed.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm expecting Reigns vs Henry to rule too. Even if it only has a limited amount of time behind it.

oh, and Regal vs Cesaro is epic. Stating the obvious; it's been done. Watch immediately.


----------



## EmbassyForever

The Primer said:


> I'm expecting Reigns vs Henry to rule too. Even if it only has a limited amount of time behind it.
> 
> oh, and Regal vs Cesaro is epic. Stating the obvious; it's been done. Watch immediately.


Reigns vs Henry was fun. Reigns was really impressive (duh) and showed that he has a lot more to offer other than his sweet spear.


----------



## Obfuscation

Gonna have to watch Smackdown on the day of _(tonight)_ just for those two matches. A rarity. Yet, sounds oh so worth it.


----------



## Zatiel

Cesaro Vs. Regal is one of my favorite matches in months. Not necessarily better than Orton Vs. Bryan from Raw, but a concise story that was so well executed. Cesaro plays better into the technical arm-and-hand-work than Ohno did, and then it gets increasingly personal. The ending has Michaels Vs. Flair-like pathos, though obviously isn't as grandiose.

Love it. WWE needs more stuff like this.


----------



## Bubz

*Cesaro/Regal* fucking ruled so, so much. Amazing match with so many layers of greatness. Cesaro looks like the absolute best wrestler in the world in this, and Regal proves there is no way he wouldn't be in that conversation if he wrestled more regularly. Everything you'd want from these two is here. Multi layered character work, fantastic meaningful mat work, pure struggle for control, rugged and nasty transitions and counters and sequences etc. It's all there but it's turned up to 11 in the best way possible. They really went out there and put on a 'human chess match' which usually people say and it doesn't fit, but here it's absolutely appropriate. The struggle for control at the start is something that can seem like filler sometimes and can be used poorly (people criticize Hero for it), but when the two guys in the ring are this good and they make it genuinely feel like they're trying everything to wear their opponents down and get the advantage without going for their high end moves, it's fascinating to watch. Cesaro getting pissed when Regal uses the back kicks in the corner and taking out the leg from behind was amazing and when the match really kicks in to higher gear. Leg work is great, selling is amazing, the struggle for every single piece of offense is incredible. Best part of the match is when Regal finds a way in and destroys the arms of Cesaro. How often do you see someone going after both fucking arms? Cesaro's selling is as good as Regal's, and this really feels like watching two totally similarly brilliant performers and everything they do just clicks together to create greatness in the ring. The drama in the final stretch is insane, little touches like Regal just screaming in anger and frustration just because he couldn't get the stretch locked in just add so much more to a match like this. I won't spoil anything here, but the lead up to the finish is vile and nasty and brutal and amazing, and the evolution in Cesaro's character throughout is really something quite special and unique. This is the first time I've watched a Cesaro match and genuinely thought he was the best wrestler on the entire planet and it didn't even seem close. Phenomenal. *****1/2*


----------



## Groovemachine

Perfect write-up, Bubz. Couldn't put it better myself. Absolutely incredible match, so cleverly put together. Cesaro's almost remorseful look towards the end was a huge character moment for him and made for a really poignant finish.

Worth pointing out for those that have only sought out the match, make sure you catch the full episode as Regal cuts a FANTASTIC pre-match promo earlier in the show that once again makes me sad we never saw that Regal World Title run. It's almost ridiculous how good Regal is in all aspects of wrestling these days. Needs to be on the 'mainstream' WWE shows more and not just NXT.


----------



## Rah

*William Regal Vs Antonio Cesaro (25/12/2013 WWE)*
This may possibly be the closest you'll find to maestro matwork within a WWE ring. Both men gel unbelievably well and waste almost no motion in creating a setting that showcases just how much this match means to both of them. It's seemingly a running gag throughout Regal's developmental matches that his opponents sickeningly try to pop something back into place. Except that gag isn't humorous but rather harrowingly vicious in its testament to Regal's means. If this really is Regal's last hoorah in a professional ring, it's a fitting end to a career of beauty. The second-to-none technician was finally bested by the one man who could come along and claim his throne.​


----------



## 777

Regal/Cesaro - Absolutely fucking beautifully brilliant. It's gotta be a top 5 contender.


----------



## Violent By Design

anyone got a link to this regal match?


----------



## 777

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x18vll1_regal-vs-cesaro-nxt-25-12-2013_sport

or

http://www.wrestlingforum.com/wwe-weeklies/1066497-official-nxt-12-25-2013-links-thread.html


----------



## Bubz

Edit: Ninja'd.


----------



## Violent By Design

Regal match was fantastic, my only complaint was I thought Cesaro's arms got injured too quickly/easily.

It's such a shame that Regal blew his only main event push in the WWE. He's excellent in so many ways, really just a brilliant artist.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm yes & no on that. Yeah, he messed up. One slip. WWE can't try and do it again? Can't even give him much of anything once ECW folded? There was plenty of time to try again. Always a bit bitter about it. Felt like both sides missed the boat, equally.


----------



## Violent By Design

The Primer said:


> I'm yes & no on that. Yeah, he messed up. One slip. WWE can't try and do it again? Can't even give him much of anything once ECW folded? There was plenty of time to try again. Always a bit bitter about it. Felt like both sides missed the boat, equally.


They should have yeah, but Regal really did miss his chance to strike. It was a period where RAW really was at its weakest and there was nothing to look forward too those nights except Regal mispronouncing Umaga's name. It would have been so epic to have him as the GM and champ at the same time. I think slightly after though WWE starting picking up some better talent, and I guess they couldn't carve out room for Regal again.

It didn't help that Regal did that all while being fat and middle aged either.

Considering Smackdown started to melt away into a more irrelevant show, it really is a shame that Regal couldn't get a belt. Guys like Swagger and Miz had runs.


----------



## Obfuscation

Miz even had the WWE Championship & got the final slot on the WM card. Company wasn't shy about giving chances around that time. I still stand by my personal opinion that Regal _could_ have had another shot following. It is what it is. Instead he'll simply be a top talent in the world who never got to be used at "that level" while in WWE. He doesn't need it to solidify his work. But it would have been really, really swell if he did get it.


----------



## Matt_Yoda

*Dragon Gate 2013 Year In Review*







This was a solid year for Dragon Gate. Overall I’d call it a step up from 2012 despite last year having much stronger main events. You had a lot of good wrestling, some new faces and factions settled in; more than anything you got a clearer picture of storylines this year versus last year. My favorite unit this year was easily World-1 International and now Monster Express as the primary members of their respective factions absolutely put on a clinic of strong performances this year (with World-1 Int. dominating the first half of the year). I had my reservations with the hotshoting of the Dream Gate Championship, but I will admit that it has added to the element of surprise and helped deviate from the complacency that can affect longer title reigns. My MVP of the year is Masato Yoshino, who has turned out to be one of the biggest surprises of the year putting on some of his best work in years. He competed across four different divisions this year (Triangle, Twin, Brave & Dream) and absolutely killed it in each. Runner up was YAMATO who really surprised me with his heel run thus far, especially considering that I didn’t care for his original heel run 3-4 years ago.

You got some great shows like Dead or Alive 2013 (my DG Show of the Year) plus the other major PPVs like World, a decent Gate of Destiny and a solid Final Gate. The Korakuen Shows were great as usual; I can’t say that I’ll big up this year like other DG fans seem to be doing but it was a good year for my money that set up all the right moves that will allow for an easy transition going into 2014.



> *My Top 5 Dragon Gate matches:
> Masato Yoshino vs. Dragon Kid (5.5.2013)
> Shingo Takagi vs. Ricochet (5.25.2013)
> Akira Tozawa & BxB Hulk vs. Naruki Doi & Ricochet (7.21.2013)
> YAMATO vs. Ryo Saito (9.12.2013)
> Masato Yoshino vs. Naruki Doi (11.6.2013)*


________________

*Dragon Gate USA + EVOLVE 2013 Year In Review*







This was a decent year for the promotion(s); I say this because while the DGUSA shows have been relatively consistent I feel like the EVOLVE shows (sans 22) have been lackluster and more so forgettable.

My show of the year is easily Open The Ultimate Gate and for the promotion(s) MVP that would be Johnny Gargano. Now with that said, I feel it is time for Gargano to drop the strap. I’ve always said that as long as the booker can keep the title reign interesting, then he/she can keep it as long as they like, I feel like Gargano’s reign (outside of the matches themselves) have lost a lot of steam. As I’ve said many times before, AR Fox should’ve been the guy to beat Gargano for his title after his feud with Callihan. Instead they copped out and made the EVOLVE title for him instead, which serves no meaning since DGUSA/EVOLVE are united now. *Rant continued in Indy DVD thread*

Regardless of all of that, I had a hard time picking my top 5 because I had so many matches rated around the same level so I had to do some re-watches. For the matches they put on in the promotion, most of them hit that sweet spot so you really couldn't have gone wrong depending on what style of wrestling you prefer.



> *My Top 5 DGUSA + EVOLVE matches:
> Johnny Gargano vs. Shingo Takagi (4.6.2013)
> Ricochet vs. Akira Tozawa (4.6.2013)
> Chuck Taylor vs. Jon Davis (6.1.2013)
> AR Fox vs. Lince Dorado (6.2.2013)
> The Young Bucks & Ricochet vs. CIMA, AR Fox & Tomahawk TT (7.27.2013)*


----------



## The Pitbull

First of all, hello to everyone. Just subscribed to the forum. Now i see a lot of Japanese matches listed. I am not familiar with them. So my picks are: 1. Jay Lethal vs Michael Elgin at the Supercard of Honor VII, 2. The American Wolves vs reDRagon at the same show, 3. John Cena - Cm Punk on RAW 1st contender for the WWE title at WM 29.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

Ziggler vs Cesaro on Superstars 
***1/2
Very good match,I'm pretty sure this is the best Superstars match this year.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## Rah

*Best of 2013*

*1.* CM Punk Vs Brock Lesnar (18/08/2013 WWE)
*2.* Shinsuke Nakamura(c) Vs Kazushi Sakuraba (05/01/2013 NJPW)
*3.* Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)
*4.* Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (06/10/2013 CMLL)
*5.* William Regal Vs Antonio Cesaro (25/12/2013 WWE)
*6.* Charles Lucero Vs Rey Hechicero (04/08/2013 Fighters NICE)
*7.* The Undertaker Vs CM Punk (07/04/2013 WWE)
*8.* Rhodes Dynasty Vs The Shield (14/10/2013 WWE)
*9.* Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (21/03/2013 WWE)
*10.* CM Punk Vs John Cena (25/02/2013 WWE)
*11.* Jun Akiyama Vs KAI (29/04/2013 AJPW)
*12.* Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA Par-K (02/06/2013 TxT)
*13.* Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata (04/08/2013 NJPW)
*14.* Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)
*15.* HHH Vs Brock Lesnar (19/05/2013 WWE)
*16.* Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis Vs Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (16/08/2013 CMLL)
*17.* Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Kazuchika Okada (07/04/2013 NJPW)
*18.* Mark Henry Vs John Cena (14/07/2013 WWE)
*19.* Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro (21/08/2013 WWE)
*20.* Oficial 911 Vs Trauma II Vs El Angel (03/03/2013 IWRG)​

Well, for one thing, my taste in wrestling has changed dramatically over the past 12 months. Something most evident, I assume, in the lack of Japanese matches in the final list. While I will come to Okada/Tanahashi later in this post, my stance on matches of that kind has been oft posted. As such, I won't go into these reasons, ad nauseam, yet, suffice to say, it is a style I have begun to almost loathe, at times. As for AJPW, it would seem there has been little talk surrounding the promotion this year. Whether this indicates a lack of tape or quality I'm not sure but it's reason why I haven't much watched anything from the promotion in the past few months. As for everything else, the year seemed to be stacked fill with good to great matches yet nothing truly broke that mould. While the top four are master-class matches, they're not out-of-the-ball-park home-runs, either. Still, the year offered a little bit of something for each fan with a resurgence in the WWE tag scene (to the point of it becoming its diamond in the rough), the showcasing of hard-hitting and anger-fueled trios in CMLL (that helped propel many guys into new light in my eyes) along with some beautiful maestro match-ups across Mexico, and a G1 tourney that almost stole the entire year with a single day outing.



*Best Promotion:* WWE
_I think this is pretty much an easy one, for myself. While I foresee this accolade going to NJPW for many (as made evident in a discussion a few week ago within this very thread), there was not a promotion even near the WWE's calibre this year. Whether it's in form of entertainment or sheer output, WWE trumped with what seems just short of a royal flush. Their tag team division (thanks, in part, to The Shield, Real Americans and Rhodes Bros) was a roaring success throughout the year with each outing of the trios match-type(or the previously mentioned teams) being a bucket of fun, at the least, and serious contender for match of the year, at most. Additionally, even WWE's own developmental system showered itself in entertaining characters and breath-taking feuds (akin to FCW circa 2011). Between Regal/Ohno, Regal/Cesaro and Zayn/Cesaro and, to a lesser extent, Neville/Zayn NXT rewrote many MotY lists. 

While bogged down in the cesspool that wrestling storylines seemingly gear towards, the entertainment-oriented nature of WWE's flagship show also delivered in spades. From the electric title wins of Daniel Bryan and Dolph Ziggler (as well as the character work in the Ziggler/ADR Payback match), to Punk trying to cement himself as the best in the world against 'Taker and, later, Brock as well as the beautiful pseudo-retirement performance of Mark Henry WWE was a gem to keep up with when the ball was rolling._


*Worst Promotion:* IWRG
_Not so much the worst, as it was the most disappointing. With a roster of truly talented workers, it defied reason that the promotion had so little to speak about this year. While it certainly aimed to redeem itself in these final few weeks, it still falls as a rather large let-down in terms of the output that could have been achieved. So, yeah, a great start, a good end but a meddling middle-half of the year. At least we got Los Traumas/Navarro/Terry in Chilanga Mask to almost make up for that, though._



*Best Wrestler:* Antonio Cesaro
_Did you expect anyone else? While Reigns certainly deserves an award for most-improved, hot on his heels most certainly has to be Cesaro. We all adored him during his independent run but did any of us think he was this good then? Cesaro has quickly transitioned from being a great American worker to being the best worker (and versatile base) in the world and when you realise the quality of the performers he's been given (Kofi/Khali/Miz), that accolade seems rather impressive, in its own right. Even so, when given a talented opponent each and every match delivered. It's quite funny to note, too, that he started the year with little to no favour in McMahon's eyes (if reports are to be believed) yet seems to have created himself as a worthwhile commodity by year-end - especially noting the manner in which Regal put him over before their match, and the slow-build in winning the crowd over as the year progressed (despite being heel). While Zeb may have been a strong worker on the microphone for the trio of patriotic numpties, it's hard to argue against Cesaro's newly freed arsenal being a strong role in gaining the audience's vote._

Recommended matches:
William Regal Vs Antonio Cesaro (25/12/2013 WWE)
Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro (21/08/2013 WWE)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Kofi Kingston (01/05/2013 WWE)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Sheamus (05/06/2013 WWE)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Daniel Bryan (22/07/2013 WWE)



*Runner Up #1:* ***** Casas
_I've said it before and I'll say it again, it's unbelievable how great Casas is at the age of 53. Seemingly breaking the stereotype of aging wrestlers (and adhering to the cliche of fine wines), there is hardly a missed moment in anything ***** Casas does. Whether he's getting his head beaten in by a vicious Rush dropkick or laying down pornographic-level matwork with Blue Panther, it's always the treat of the night. Quite honestly, as long as he keeps making tape I don't think there is anything stopping ***** Casas from continually reaching (or coming extremely close to) #1 for years to come. One of the few GOAT contenders still wrestling today and a blessing to witness._

Recommended matches:
Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)
Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis Vs Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (16/08/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas Vs Rush Vs Shocker (24/11/2013 CMLL)
Blue Panther Vs ***** Casas (13/12/2013 CMLL)
***** Navarro Vs ***** Casas (19/05/2013 ChilangaMask)
***** Casas(c) Vs Valiente (11/02/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas, Stuka Jr. & Valiente Vs Fuego, Vangellys & Virus (14/06/2013 CMLL)



*Runner Up #2:* Daniel Bryan
_The greatest babyface of the year and hot-tag specialist who can kick it into a higher gear like no other. There's been a lot of expectation riding on Bryan by WWE management (of which he, weirdly, failed to live up to) yet there's no question he assuredly lives up to the expectation of being one of the best wrestlers alive. Whether it's working with Orton or Kane against The Shield, or going it alone in his hunt for the title, Bryan was, at the very least, an entertaining spectacle to witness throughout the year. YES! YES! YES!_

Recommended matches:
The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (20/05/2013 WWE)
Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Daniel Bryan (22/07/2013 WWE)
Daniel Bryan Vs Seth Rollins (10/06/2013 WWE)



*Runner Up #3:* Goldust
_Has anyone in the world had a quarter-year sprint as great as Goldust? Is there anyone in the world who does a FIP as great as Goldust? If I'm honest, those questions wouldn't sound too hyperbolic if asked within the history of the sport, either. Just when I thought the top five workers were stitched up, Goldust returns and absolutely decimates just about every performance anyone has had this year. Quite truthfully, too, he almost doesn't need a recommended matches list. If he's in a tag, and hopefully the FIP-worker, it's worth your time watching._

Recommended matches:
Rhodes Dynasty Vs The Shield (14/10/2013 WWE)
Rhodes Dynasty Vs The Shield (6/10/2013 WWE)
Rhodes Dynasty Vs Rybaxxel, The Real Americans & Big Show/Rey Mysterio (15/12/2013 WWE)
Goldust Vs Randy Orton (09/09/2013 WWE)



*Runner Up #4:* Rush
_Most of you should know my overly-attached fanboyism to Rush, by now. Most, I assume, still wonder why I enjoy him. Ever since his performance at the aniversario show, last year, Rush has been on an utter roll. His new persona and move-set hide everything that once made it possible to dislike him and, instead, has transformed him into a world-class performer. I assume a lot of this to be much akin to why CM Punk works so well. Both characters just feel natural fits on the wrestler, almost as if they are that very person they portray. Quite honestly, though, Rush does appear to be that cocky, better-than-you douchebag that would sooner kill you than shake your hand and it works so very well for it. It's a rather large pity that we never got the payoff to Rush/Casas (well, Rush against the world, anyway), this year, but I have hope it will be done in the new year. Even if it doesn't, there's plenty of luchadores in the CMLL roster that I'd enjoy watching their face kicked in, regardless._

Recommended matches:
Rush Vs El Terrible (26/01/2013 CMLL)
Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas Vs Rush Vs Shocker (24/11/2013 CMLL)
Máximo, Rush, Titán Vs Tama Tonga, Terrible, Vangellys (03/11/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas, Mr. Aguila & Rey Bucanero Vs Blue Panther, Rush & Maximo (14/07/2013 CMLL)
Rush, Terrible, Vangellys Vs ***** Casas, Shocker, Valiente (07/09/2013 CMLL)



*Runner Up #5 (tied):* Virus & Blue Panther
_Another two aging luchadores that are still putting out great work and both deserving of a mention, in their own rights. If I'm to make a confession, when I first started watching lucha Virus grated me. If that barrier some maintain over overly co-operative matwork rang true for me, strangely, it was with regard to Virus. I'm glad I've stopped being a complete imbecile as his work is so crisp Walkers tried to sell it. If you're going to take a dip into any lucha this year, make sure it's his return match against Guerrero Maya Jr.

As for Panther, is there anything that truly needs being said? He had an absolute bender of a 2012 with his feud against Casas (delivering some early match of the decade contenders) and 2013 saw him try to reclaim that glory with just about everyone. 35-years into his career and he's still going strong._

Recommended matches (Virus):
Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (06/10/2013 CMLL)
Las Traumas Vs Valiente y Virus (25/08/2013 Chilanga Mask)
***** Casas, Stuka Jr. & Valiente Vs Fuego, Vangellys & Virus (14/06/2013 CMLL)
Virus Vs Blue Panther (12/05/2013 CMLL)

Recommended matches (Blue Panther):
Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis Vs Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (16/08/2013 CMLL)
Blue Panther Vs ***** Casas (13/12/2013 CMLL)
Blue Panther Vs Averno (13/09/2013 CMLL)
Virus Vs Blue Panther (12/05/2013 CMLL)​


A pretty easy top 6 without many coming close to changing the list. Quite honestly, if tape hadn't been a factor, William Regal, Jun Akiyama and Charles Lucero would probably be in with a close shout; most especially Regal, considering his only two matches were both high-class MotYC outings. Shinsuke Nakamura is another I'd have loved to add, with some truly world-beating performances (Ibushi/Sakuraba), yet he is often prone to taking a backseat or delivering some rather annoying performances (MiSu). 

Kyle Matthews and Roman Reigns both enjoy their position on the cusp for somewhat similar reasons. At rather young ages, they're performing their requirements to a tee. For Reigns, he is an almost polished monster that has certainly come into his own in the last year. With a massive improvement over his state as Leakee in FCW, I wouldn't doubt his placing in a future list once he gets given his much deserved singles push. As for Kyle, he still remains the most sound American Indy worker going. While he doesn't deliver anything other-wordly, I've yet to see a performance of his that is less than good. He works both face and heel dynamics well, and isn't a scrub in a clinch, either. Here's hoping he gets another shot at a bigger league in 2014.

Finally, in the opposite end of the spectrum, lies talents like CM Punk, John Cena, Tanahashi and Okada. Of all those mentioned, Punk probably had the most half-and-half year with a delivery of truly spectacular matches ('Taker/Cena/Lesnar) mirrored by some shite-awful drivel (Jericho). Cena had a good start (well, as good a start as you'll get with Rock) and returned with energy post-injury yet dies off rather quickly. Regardless, he did put up two classic matches to drive further home his run as one of the top big-event wrestlers to lace up their boots. As already mentioned in this post, my gripes on Tanahashi/Okada have been given many-a-time before. Rather, I'd argue simply why they do not deserve these spots. Tanahashi, despite his rather good pacing and ability when he desires to act accordingly (Ishii rematch), grates me to no end with his fanciful bullshit (Devitt) and his no-selling is tiresome and often doesn't work the suited role for the match (Ishii, G1). I'm a lot higher on Okada, most especially his limb selling, yet he's had his own share of rather poor outings. His start to the year in the CHAOS tags were rather meddling, if I'm honest, and his inclusion of the Red Ink submission completely devalued any legitimacy he tried to possess within this sport. I'm rather glad he's since dropped the move, and I do hope he can work some better opponents in the coming year.




Spoiler: final list (top 60)



CM Punk Vs Brock Lesnar (18/08/2013 WWE)
Shinsuke Nakamura(c) Vs Kazushi Sakuraba (05/01/2013 NJPW)
Daniel Bryan Vs John Cena (18/08/2013 WWE)
Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus (06/10/2013 CMLL)
William Regal Vs Antonio Cesaro (25/12/2013 WWE)
Charles Lucero Vs Rey Hechicero (04/08/2013 Fighters NICE)
The Undertaker Vs CM Punk (07/04/2013 WWE)
Rhodes Dynasty Vs The Shield (14/10/2013 WWE)
CM Punk Vs John Cena (25/02/2013 WWE)
Jun Akiyama Vs KAI (29/04/2013 AJPW)
Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA Par-K (02/06/2013 TxT)
Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata (04/08/2013 NJPW)
Shocker, Terrible & ***** Casas Vs Maximo, Rey Escorpion & Rush (28/06/2013 CMLL)
HHH Vs Brock Lesnar (19/05/2013 WWE)
Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal (21/03/2013 WWE)
Blue Panther/***** Casas/Atlantis Vs Black Terry/***** Navarro/Solar (16/08/2013 CMLL)
Hiroshi Tanahashi Vs Kazuchika Okada (07/04/2013 NJPW)
Mark Henry Vs John Cena (14/07/2013 WWE)
Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro (21/08/2013 WWE)
Oficial 911 Vs Trauma II Vs El Angel (03/03/2013 IWRG)
Rey Cometa & Stuka Jr. Vs Namajague & Shigeo Okumura (15/03/2013 CMLL)
Jun Akiyama/Go Shiozaki Vs Manabu Soya/Takao Omori (17/03/2013 AJPW)
The Shield vs Team Hell No & Kofi Kingston (20/05/2013 WWE)
Rush Vs El Terrible (26/01/2013 CMLL)
Jay Briscoe Vs Kevin Steen (05/04/2013 RoH)
***** Casas Vs Rush Vs Shocker (24/11/2013 CMLL)
Tomohiro Ishii Vs Hirooki Goto (17/03/2013 NJPW)
Chico Che, Freelance & Hijo del Pantera Vs Apolo Estrada Jr., Avisman & Eita (18/02/2013 IWRG)
Sami Callihan Vs Drake Younger (22/03/2013 PWG)
***** Casas(c) Vs Valiente (11/02/2013 CMLL)
Lance Archer & Davey Boy Smith Jr. Vs Nakamura Shinsuke & Ishii Tomohiro (05/04/2013 NJPW)
Volador Jr Vs Rey Escorpión (02/02/2013 CMLL)
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) Vs Kazuchika Okada (05/01/2013 NJPW)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Sheamus (05/06/2013 WWE)
Las Traumas Vs Valiente y Virus (25/08/2013 Chilanga Mask)
Kyle Matthews Vs Mike Cruz (30/05/2013 Rampage Pro)
The Shield Vs John Cena, Ryback & Sheamus (17/02/2013 WWE)
Sami Callihan Vs Shane Hollister (17/05/2013 AAW)
Alberto Del Rio Vs Dolph Ziggler (16/06/2013)
Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (16/02/2013 LPN)
Kyle Matthews Vs Shaun Tempers (29/03/2013 DSCW)
Shinsuke Nakamura Vs Davey Boy Smith Jr. (07/04/2013 NJPW)
Dean Allmark & Leon Shah Vs Robbie Dynamite & Rampage Brown (10/04/2013 ASW:UK)
Namajague Vs Rey Cometa (26/04/2013 CMLL)
***** Casas, Stuka Jr. & Valiente Vs Fuego, Vangellys & Virus (14/06/2013 CMLL)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Sami Zayn (12/06/2013 WWE NXT)
Dean Allmark & James Mason vs Rampage Brown & Robbie Dynamite (22/02/2013 ASW)
Hiroshi Tanahashi(c) Vs Karl Anderson (10/02/2013 NJPW)
Samuray Del Sol & AR Fox Vs The Inner-City Machine Guns (22/03/2013 PWG)
Rampage Brown Vs Dean Allmark (16/03/2013 ASW)
Shingo Vs Ricochet (25/05/2013 2013 Dragon Gate)
Vordell Walker Vs Mike Cruz (04/05/2013 SCGW)
Yuji Nagata Vs Minoru Suzuki (05/01/2013 NJPW)
Yuji Nagata & Hirooki Goto Vs Kazushi Sakuraba & Katsuyori Shibata (07/04/2013 NJPW)
Antonio Cesaro Vs Kofi Kingston (01/05/2013 WWE)
Green Ant Vs Eddie Kingston (09/02/2013 Chikara)
Kyle Matthews Vs Anthony Henry (24/08/2013 LPW)
La Sombra Vs Shinsuke Nakamura (31/05/2013 CMLL)
Archibald Peck Vs Mark Angelosetti (09/02/2013 Chikara)
Masato Tanaka Vs Tomohiro Ishii (03/02/2013 NJPW)


----------



## Bubz

Tanahashi/Naito vs Okada/Nakamura was really great. They did exactly what they needed to, teased their matches at WK and everyone played their role perfectly.


----------



## Concrete

Fantastic write-up Rah. I'll probably post my Top 20 in the coming weeks. I think we'll have some of the same matches for sure. Gonna do some year-end writing for my site which will include a Top 25 matches(or 50 not sure quite yet) and 25-50 workers. Really well done sir.


----------



## 777

Yup, that time of year. Here's my list.

1. Tomohiro Ishii vs Katsuyori Shibata - G1 Climax Day 4 - NJPW
2. The Undertaker Vs CM Punk - WM 29 - WWE
3. Dr. Wagner Jr Vs LA ParK - TXT
4. William Regal Vs Antonio Cesaro - NXT - WWE
5. CM Punk Vs Brock Lesnar - Summerslam - WWE
6. Daniel Bryan vs Antonio Cesaro - Gauntlet match - Raw - WWE
7. Sami Zayn Vs Antonio Cesaro - 2/3 Falls - NXT - WWE
8. Guerrero Maya Jr Vs Virus - CMLL
9. Kassius Ohno Vs William Regal - NXT - WWE
10. Rhodes Brothers Vs The Shield - Battleground - WWE

Edit: Didn't get to see nearly enough ROH, AJPW, PWG and others.


----------



## The Lady Killer

Gonna need to get on this Regal/Cesaro match ASAP. :mark:


----------



## Obfuscation

Rah, brilliant stuff, chief. Digging the effort. GOLDUST.

I seem to be the only one who though Virus vs Guerrero Maya Jr was a really, really bad match. I was going to write up on it in the Lucha thread, but obviously didn't. The kind of lucha junk I can't get into.


----------



## 777

The Primer said:


> Rah, brilliant stuff, chief. Digging the effort. GOLDUST.
> 
> I seem to be the only one who though Virus vs Guerrero Maya Jr was a really, really bad match. I was going to write up on it in the Lucha thread, but obviously didn't. The kind of lucha junk I can't get into.


Simply a matter of taste my friend. I can totally see why somebody wouldn't like it.


----------



## Obfuscation

Indeed. I know what I like w/Lucha as it is, so when it wasn't going down that path, I knew it wasn't going to win me over. Something about long winded ground work in Lucha that doesn't always do it for me.


----------



## 777

Not even Casas?


----------



## Obfuscation

He's the exception to the rule, tbhayley. Casas has always been rad.

I should rephrase my initial statement. Ground work in more current Lucha doesn't do it for me. Current is the topic here. Slip of the mind.


----------



## Violent By Design

What happened to Black Terry?


----------



## PERFECTSHOW

Wow...I have watched a LOT of pro-wrestling this year! 2013 was the year I really expanded/matured as a fan, finally after 27 years I saw my first Japanese show that wasnt the Super J-Cup 1994 & became a huge fan of practically everything New Japan Pro Wrestling has been doing, sure it might be a "bandwagon" promotion, but I owe it to them for finally making me "get" puro! WWE had a GREAT year for TV matches, but only an average year on PPV, ROH had an awful year on iPPV as their issues continued, experiencing so many issues when compared to NJPW flawless iPPV record meant that I gave up after only a few shows! Well...anywho, this was definitely a year of firsts and Im glade to say that I've decided to love wrestling outside of and including the WWE this year!

Here is my top 5 for every promotion/iPPV I watched in 2013. Hope to make a more comprehensive list for next years awards!

2013 MATCH OF THE YEAR

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada © - IWGP Heavyweight Championship (NJPW KING OF PRO WRESTLING - *****) 
2. Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii (NJPW G1 CLIMAX 23 - DAY 4 - *****)
3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi © - IWGP Heavyweight Championship (NJPW INVASION ATTACK - ****¾)
4. Burning vs. Get Wild © - AJPW World Tag Team Championship (AJPW WRESTLING LOVE IN RYOGOKU - ****¾) 
5. Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (NJPW G1 CLIMAX 23 - DAY 4 - ****¾) 

TOP WWE TV MATCHES 2013

1. John Cena vs. CM Punk (RAW - 02/25/13) ****½
2. William Regal vs. Antonio Cesaro (NXT - 12/25/13) ****½
3. Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. The Shield © - WWE Tag Team Championship - No DQ Match (RAW - 10/14/2013) ****¼
4. Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton © - WWE Undisputed World Heavyweight Championship (RAW - 12/17/13) ****¼ 
5. Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins (RAW - 06/10/13) ****

TOP WWE PPV MATCHES 2013

1. CM Punk vs. Brock Lesner - No DQ Match (SUMMERSLAM - ****½)
2. CM Punk vs. The Undertaker (WRESTLEMANIA 29 - ****¼) 
3. Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena © - WWE Championship (SUMMERSLAM - ****¼) 
4. CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (PAYBACK - ****¼) 
5. Cody Rhodes & Goldust vs. The Shield (BATTLEGROUND - ****)

TOP ROH iPPV MATCHES 2013

1. Jay Lethal vs. “Unbreakable” Michael Elgin (SUPERCARD OF HONOR VII - ****¼)
2. Jay Lethal vs. Kevin Steen © - ROH World Heavyweight Championship (11TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW - ****)
3. American Wolves vs. Forever Hooligans (11TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW - ****)
4. American Wolves vs. ReDragon © - ROH World Tag-Team Championship (SUPERCARD OF HONOR VII - ****) 
5. “Unbreakable” Michael Elgin vs. Tomasso Ciampa (BEST IN THE WORLD - ****)

TOP NJPW iPPV MATCHES 2013

1. Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada © - IWGP Heavyweight Championship (KING OF PRO WRESTLING - *****) 
2. Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii (G1 CLIMAX 23 - DAY 4 - *****)
3. Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi © - IWGP Heavyweight Championship (INVASION ATTACK - ****¾)
4. Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (G1 CLIMAX 23 - DAY 4 - ****¾) 
5. Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Shinsuke Nakamura © - IWGP Intercontinental Championship (WRESTLE KINGDOM VII - ****½) 

TOP MISC. MATCHES 2013

1. Burning vs. Get Wild © - AJPW World Tag Team Championship (AJPW WRESTLING LOVE IN RYOGOKU - ****¾)
2. La Sombra vs. Voldar Jr. - ⅔ Falls Mask vs. Mask Match (CMLL 80TH ANNIVERSARY - ****½)
3. Burning vs. The Junior Stars © - All Asia Tag Team Championship (AJPW WRESTLING LOVE IN RYOGOKU - ****¼)
4. Kaz Hayashi vs. Yoshinabu Kanemaru © - AJPW Junior Heavyweight Championship (AJPW WRESTLING LOVE IN RYOGOKU - ****) 
5. Cibernetico vs. Perro Aguayo Jr. - Hair vs. Hair Match (AAA TRIPLEMANIA XXI - ****)


----------



## Groovemachine

Someone's posted a 'Collection of 2013 MOTYC' pack on XWT. Turns out I missed this little gem:

Masaaki Mochizuki, Don Fuji & Super Shisa vs Eita, T-Hawk & U-T - DG 10.10.2013 - ****

So stiff! Awesome beginning with the Millenials desperately trying to knock Don Fuji off the apron, and they absolutely lay into him with chops and strikes. But the "Absolute Dick" award has to go to Mochizuki who annihilates Eita with some horrendous kicks to the head, at one point stomping him into the canvas. Great little 15-minute match that I totally overlooked at the time.


----------



## Alan4L

BIG UPDATE!

Updated for 01/01 (New additions in bold) 

Including Dec 2012, Observer style – BUT CONTINUING TO END OF 2013! 

*WWE: *
Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena (8/18) ****3/4
Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk (8/18) ****3/4
Money In The Bank Rising Stars (7/14) ****3/4
The Shield vs. Cena/Ryback/Seamus (2/18 ) ****3/4
The Shield vs. Team Hell No (5/27) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Kingston (5/20) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Ryback (TLC) (12/16) ****1/2
John Cena vs. CM Punk (2/25) ****1/2
The Undertaker vs. CM Punk (4/7) ****1/2
Daniel Bryan vs. Antonio Cesaro (7/22) ****1/2
*Seth Rollins vs. John Cena (12/27/2013) ****1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs. William Regal (12/25/2013) ****1/2*
The Shield vs. The Usos (7/14) ****1/4
Money In The Bank All Stars (7/14) ****1/4
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (6/16) ****1/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins (6/10) ****1/4
Bryan/Kane/Orton vs. The Shield (6/14) ****1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/13) ****1/4
Elimination Chamber (2/18 ) ****1/4
Seamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (1/9) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan/Kane (6/3) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Seamus/Kingston (5/24) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (4/30) ****1/4
Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (4/30) ****1/4
Kofi Kingston vs. Antonio Cesaro (5/1) ****1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs. Christian (8/18) ****1/4
The Shield vs. The Rhodes Boys vs. The Usos(10/27) ****1/4
The Shield vs. The Rhodes Boys (10/6) ****1/4
The Shield vs. The Rhodes Boys (10/14) ****1/4
Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro (2/3 Falls) (8/21) ****1/4
*Adrian Neville vs. Sami Zayn (11/27) ****
The Rhodes Boys vs. The Wyatt Family (12/20/2013) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton (12/16/2013) ****
The Shield vs. The Usos (12/13/2013) *****
Goldust vs. Randy Orton (9/9) ****
Dean Ambrose vs. Daniel Bryan (9/9) ****
Sami Zayn vs. Jack Swagger (9/4) ****
The Shield vs. Bryan/PTP/Usos/RVD/Ziggler/Ryder/Gabriel (9/23) ****
Randy Orton vs. Christian vs. Rob Van Dam (8/2) ****
Randy Orton vs. Rob Van Dam (8/9) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (6/3) ****
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (Elimination) (5/13) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (5/3) ****
Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (4/30) ****
The Shield vs. The Undertaker/Hell No (4/22) ****
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/1) ****
The Shield vs. Jericho/Ryback/Seamus (2/19) ****
Rob Van Dam vs. Chris Jericho (7/15) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Seamus (7/8) ****
Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio (6/16) ****
The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan (6/16) ****

*Puro: *
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (10/14) (NJPW) *****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (4/7) (NJPW) *****
Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/4) (NJPW) *****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/2) (NJPW) *****
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/4) (NJPW) *****
*Masato Yoshino vs. T-Hawk (11/7) (DG) ****3/4*
Millennials vs. Team Veteran Returns (10/10) (DG) ****3/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (8/11) (NJPW) ****3/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/10) (NJPW) ****3/4
Dragon Kid vs. Masato Yoshino (5/5) (DG) ****3/4
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (12/23) (DG) ****3/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (1/4) (NJPW) ****3/4
Junior Stars vs. Aoki/Suzuki (3/17) (AJPW) ****3/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Ryuichi Kawakami (6/30) (BJW) ****3/4
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (6/22) (NJPW) ****3/4
Tozawa/Hulk vs. Ricochet/Doi (7/21) (DG) ****3/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Madoka (8/27) (BJW) ****1/2
CIMA vs. Shingo Takagi (7/21) (DG) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (6/22) (NJPW) ****1/2
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (4/7) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (3/17) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (3/23) (NJPW) ****1/2
GET WILD vs. Akiyama/Shiozaki (3/17) (AJPW) ****1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (2/10) (NJPW) ****1/2
Junior Stars vs. Hayashi & Kondo (1/3) (AJPW) ****1/2
Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (2/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/2
El Generico vs. Kenny Omega (12/23) (DDT) ****1/2
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International/CIMA (12/6) (DG) ****1/2
CIMA vs. Shingo Takagi vs. BxB Hulk (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Akira Tozawa vs. YAMATO (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Junior Stars (5/18) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kenny Omega vs. KUSHIDA (6/6) (NJPW) ****1/2
Masaaki Mochizuki vs. YAMATO (5/10) (DG) ****1/2
KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura (5/12) (NOAH) ****1/2
Jun Akiyama vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Go Shiozaki vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (5/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. Takagi/YAMATO (5/5) (DG) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. RyoSuka (4/19) (DG) ****1/2
Togi Makabe vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/4) (NJPW) ****1/2
Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi (8/2) (NJPW) ****1/2
YAMATO vs. Ryo “Jimmy” Saito (9/12) (DG) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima (9/29) (NJPW) ****1/2
Kota Ibushi vs. Minoru Suzuki (8/10) (NJPW) ****1/2
*Tanahashi/Naito vs. Okada/Nakamura (12/23/2013) (NJPW) ****1/2
Eita/T-Hawk vs. Doi/YAMATO (12/8/2013) (DG) ****1/2
Doi/YAMATO vs. Takagi/Tozawa (12/22/2013) (DG) ****1/2*
Eita/T-Hawk vs. Double Dragon (11/3) (DG) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (11/9) (NJPW) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. The Forever Hooligans (11/6) (NJPW) ****1/4
YAMATO vs. Masato Yoshino (10/10) (DG) ****1/4
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Katsuyori Shibata (10/14) (NJPW) ****1/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Naomichi Marufuji (10/14) (NJPW) ****1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi (8/18) (DDT) ****1/4
Satoshi Kojima vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/11) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Karl Anderson (8/11) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tomihiro Ishii vs. Togi Makabe (8/10) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/10) (NJPW) ****1/4
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Satoshi Kojima (8/2) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (8/3) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Minoru Suzuki (8/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
akatsuki vs. Mad Blankey (8/1) (DG) ****1/4
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (7/14) (AJPW) ****1/4
Shingo Takagi vs. Ricochet (5/25) (DG) ****1/4
Kobashi/Akiyama/Sasaki/Muto vs. Shiozaki/KENTA/Taniguchi/Kanemaru (5/11) (NOAH) ****1/4
CIMA vs. Akira Tozawa (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Team High Tension vs. Team Veteran Returns (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Ricochet vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (5/10) (DG) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/17) (DG) ****1/4
CIMA vs. K-ness (4/4) (DG) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
Killer Elite Squad vs. Nakamura/Ishii (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Veteran Army (12/28) (DG) ****1/4
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (1/27) (NOAH) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hayato “Jr” Fujita vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (12/12) (M-Pro) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. KAGETORA (12/23) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Team Veteran Returns/Nagata (Elimination) (12/2) (DG) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (2/23) (AJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (3/3) (NJPW) ****1/4
Mr. Quu Quu Toyanaka Dolphin vs. Naoki Tanisaki (1/27) (DG) ****1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Prince Devitt (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Gedo (7/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
CIMA/Mochizuki/Fujii/Uhaa/Saito vs. YAMATO/Hulk/Yoshino/Doi/Susumu (7/4) (DG) ****1/4
Suwama vs. Jun Akiyama (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Minoru Tanaka (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Kondo/Hayashi (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Akiyama/Shiozaki vs. Suwama/Doering (6/2) (AJPW) ****1/4
Shinjiro Ohtani vs. Masato Tanaka (4/5) (Z1) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (6/9) (NJPW) ****1/4
YAMATO vs. Masaaki Mochizuki (No DQ) (7/21) (DG) ****1/4
Masato Yoshino vs. K-Ness (7/21) (DG) ****1/4
La Sombra vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (Lumberjack Deathmatch) (9/28) (NJPW) ****1/4
Taiji Ishimori vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (8/4) (NOAH) ****1/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Yuji Okabayashi (3/31) (BJW) ****1/4
*Mochizuki/Arai vs. T-Hawk/U-T (12/19/2013) (DG) ****1/4
TMDK vs. Nakajima/Marufuji (12/7/2013) (NOAH) ****1/4
Masato Yoshino vs. BxB Hulk (12/22/2013) (DG) ****1/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. KENTA (10/19) (NOAH) ****1/4
Sasuke/Shinzaki vs. Hayato/Kenou (11/3) (M-Pro) ****1/4
Hashimoto/Sato vs. Hashimoto/Kawakami (11/22) (BJW) ****1/4
The Millennials vs. Hulk/YAMATO/Kong (12/5/2013) (DG) ****1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomoaki Honma (12/21/2013) (NJPW) ****
CIMA vs. Super Shisa (12/7/2013) (DG) ****
Monster Express vs. Mad Blankey (12/7/2013) (DG) ****
Speed Of Sounds vs. Kodaka/Miyamoto (11/22) (BJW) ****
Taiji Ishimori vs. Daisuke Harada (10/2) (NOAH) ****
Sekimoto/Nagata vs. KENTA/Sugiura (11/27) (NOAH) ****
The Millennials vs. Team Veteran Returns vs. The Jimmys (12/22/2013) (DG) ****
KENTA vs. Yuji Nagata (12/7/2013) (NOAH) *****
Takagi/Tozawa vs. YAMATO/Hulk (9/7) (DG) ****
T-Hawk/Eita vs. Susumu/Kanda (9/7) (DG) ****
Sekimoto/Okabayashi vs. Kondo/Hayashi (9/8) (W-1) ****
World-1 International vs. Mad Blankey (Naniwa Elimination) (8/23) (DG) ****
Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (8/23) (DG) ****
Lance Archer vs. Satoshi Kojima (8/10) (NJPW) ****
Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/8) (NJPW) ****
Yuji Nagata vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/7) (NJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (8/7) (NJPW) ****
Satoshi Kojima vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (8/4) (NJPW) ****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (8/4) (NJPW) ****
Karl Anderson vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/1) (NJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/2) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Lance Archer (8/2) (NJPW) ****
Tetsuya Naito vs. Yuji Nagata (8/3) (NJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Satoshi Kojima (8/3) (NJPW) **** 
Mad Blankey vs. World-1 International (7/14) (DG) ****
Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Kotoka (8/1) (DG) ****
Masato Tanaka vs. Tetsuya Naito (7/20) (NJPW) ****
Hayato Jr. Fujita vs. Koji Kanemoto (6/9) (M-Pro) ****
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Hiroshi Yamato (6/2) (AJPW) ****
Takagi/YAMATO vs. Fujii/Mochizuki (6/2) (DG) ****
Ishii/Nakamura vs. Suzuki/Benjamin (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Forever Hooligans vs. Timesplitters (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Liger/Titan/Tiger/KUSHIDA/BUSHI vs. Ricochet/Koslov/Romero/Kendrick/Barretta (6/9) (NJPW) ****
Shigehiro Irie vs. Kota Ibushi (5/3) (DDT) ****
Urano/HARASHIMA vs. Ibushi/Omega (1/20) (DDT) ****
KENTA/Takayama vs. Sasaki/Nakajima (4/28) (NOAH) ****
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Manabu Soya (3/1) (BJW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Masayuki Kono (4/21) (AJPW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Ryota Hama (4/27) (AJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (5/3) (NJPW) ****
Kenny Omega vs. Ryusuke Taguchi (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Ricochet (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (5/25) (DG) ****
Kota Ibushi vs. Daichi Hashimoto (4/15) (Z1) ****
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Satoshi Kojima (3/11) (NJPW) ****
Kaz Hayashi vs. Kotaro Suzuki (2/23) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (1/27) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (2/10) (AJPW) ****
World-1 International vs. Team Veteran Returns (2/7) (DG) ****
Mochizuki/Fujii vs. Kanda/Horiguchi (1/27) (DG) ****
Takeshi Morishima vs. Satoshi Kojima (12/9) (NOAH) ****
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (4/18) (AJPW) ****
YAMATO vs. Kenchiro Arai (4/4) (DG) ****
Seiya Sanada vs. Masayuki Kono (3/10) (AJPW) ****
CIMA vs. Masato Yoshino (3/3) (DG) ****
Suzuki/Aoki vs. Irie/Ishii (10/27) (AJPW) ****
Masato Yoshino vs. Naruki Doi (11/3) (DG) ****
Mad Blankey vs. Monster Express (11/3) (DG) ****
Kazuchika Okada vs. Karl Anderson (11/10) (NJPW) ****

*PWG: *
Inner City Machine Guns vs. Del Sol/Fox (3/22) ****3/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Del Sol/Fox (6/15) ****3/4
*The Young Buck$ vs. Joey & Candice (10/19) ****1/2*
Kyle O’Reilly vs. TJ Perkins (8/9) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Inner City Machine Guns vs. The Dojo Bros (Ladder Match) (8/9) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. Taylor/Gargano (3/22) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Dojo Bros (3/23) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Young Buck$ (12/1) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Super Smash Bros (12/1) ****1/2
ACH vs. Kyle O’Reilly (8/31) ****1/2
Young Buck$/Cole vs. Candice/Swann/Fox (8/31) ****1/2
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Michael Elgin (8/31) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Johnny Gargano (8/31) ****1/4
Davey Richards vs. Kyle O’Reilly (6/15) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Drake Younger (6/15) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (1/12) ****1/4
Cage vs. Mack vs. Perkins vs. B-Boy (12/1) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Adam Cole (Guerrilla Warfare) (12/1) ****1/4
The Unbreakable Fucking Steen Machines vs. Fox/Swann/Ricochet (3/23) ****1/4
*Tommaso Ciampa vs. Brian Cage vs. Drake Younger vs. Anthony Nese (10/19) ****1/4
The Best Friends vs. AR Fox & Rich Swann (10/19) ****
Roderick Strong vs. Johnny Gargano (10/19) ****
Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly (10/19) *****
The Best Friends vs. Ciampa/Mack/B-Boy (8/31) ****
Mack/Candice/B-Boy vs. Ryan/Avalon/Taylor (8/9) ****
Samuray Del Sol vs. TJ Perkins (3/23) ****
Drake Younger vs. Sami Callihan (Guerrilla Warfare) (3/22) ****
Paul London vs. Kevin Steen (3/22) ****
Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (12/1) ****
The Dojo Bros vs. Taylor/Gargano (6/15) ****

*DGUSA/EVOLVE:*
Johnny Gargano vs. Shingo Takagi (4/6) ****3/4
Ricochet vs. Akira Tozawa (4/6) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. CIMA & AR Fox (4/6) ****1/2
*Johnny Gargano vs. Chris Hero (11/17) ****1/4*
Drew Gulak vs. Biff Busick (9/22) ****1/4
The Super Smash Brothers vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (4/6) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (6/2) ****1/4
Johnny Gargano vs. Samuray Del Sol (6/2) ****1/4
*The Young Buck$ vs. Mochizuki/Fox (11/17) *****
Bravados/Everett vs. Dos Ben Dejos/Strickland (6/2) ****
AR Fox vs. Nick Jackson (5/30) ****
Chuck Taylor vs. Anthony Nese vs. Jigsaw vs. Fire Ant vs. Arik Cannon vs. Shane Strikland (4/6) **** 


*ROH: *
Kevin Steen vs. El Generico (Ladder War) (12/16) ****3/4
Michael Elgin vs. Paul London (8/3) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. ACH (5/11) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Briscoe (4/5) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. Jay Lethal (4/5) ****1/4
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (12/16) ****1/4
Adam Cole vs. Jimmy Jacobs (1/18) ****1/4
Eddie Edwards vs. Taiji Ishimori (5/4) ****1/4
Davey Richards vs. Kyle O’Reilly (4/6) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Forever Hooligans (8/17) ****1/4
*Roderick Strong vs. Paul London (11/9) ****1/4 
The Young Buck$ vs. Adrenaline Rush (12/14/2013) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Mike Bennett (Stretcher Match) (12/14/2013) ****
Tomasso Ciampa vs. Matt Taven (12/14/2013) ****
Adam Cole vs. Michael Elgin vs. Jay Briscoe (12/14/2013) *****
Adrenaline Rush vs. C&C Wrestle Factory vs. The Young Buck$ (8/3) ****
Davey Richards vs. Bobby Fish (7/19) ****
redDRagon vs. Forever Hooligans (7/27) ****
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (4/5) ****
Davey Richards vs. Ricky Marvin (10/26) ****

*wXw:*
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tommy End (3/3) ****3/4
Super Crazy/ Marvin vs. Taylor/Ricochet (3/3) ****1/2
Johnny Moss vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (3/1) ****1/2
Ricky Marvin vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/1) ****1/4
AUTsiders vs. RockSkillet (3/3) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Robert Dreissker (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/2) ****
Bad Bones vs. Yuji Okabayashi (3/3) ****
Taylor/Ricochet vs. Hot & Spicy (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Ricochet (3/1) ****
*Ricochet vs. AR Fox (10/4) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Drew Gulak (10/4) *****

*Other:*
Ricochet vs. Prince Devitt (10/19) (Rev-Pro) ****1/2
Elgin/ACH vs. Richards/O’Reilly (5/17) (AAW) ****1/2
Kitsune vs. AR Fox (3/16) (ISW) ****1/2
Ricochet vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fujita Jr. Hayato (3/9) (4FW) ****1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Davey Richards (10/19) (Rev-Pro) ****1/4
Quackenbush/Liger vs. Jigsaw/The Shard (4/6) (Chikara) ****1/4
Samuray Del Sol vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Nick Jackson vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Jon Davis vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/15) (FIP) ****1/4
Namajague vs. Rey Cometa (4/26) (CMLL) ****1/4
Shane Hollister vs. Jimmy Jacobs (3/23) (AAW) ****1/4
L.A. Park vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. (5/11) (TxT) ****1/4
The Colony vs Devastation Corporation (6/2) (Chikara) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. TJ Perkins (4/19) (QPW) ****1/4
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fujita “Jr.” Hayato (10/18) (4FW) ****
Rush vs. El Terrible (1/22) (CMLL) ****
Flamita vs. Rich Swann (12/16) (DTU) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kenny Omega (3/8) (4FW) ****
ACH vs. Mat Fitchett (2/10) (AAW) ****
Namajague/Okumura vs. Stuka Jr./Rey Cometa (3/23) (CMLL) ****
*Kyle O’Reilly vs. ACH (8/23) (AAW) *****


----------



## 777

For Christ's sake, am I the only one who 'didn't' like Cena/Rollins?

Typical Cena, guest starring Seth Rollins. Yawn. Rollins looked great showing off his moveset, sure, but otherwise...


----------



## blink_41sum_182

1. *Undertaker vs. Cm Punk - **** 1/4 (WWE Wrestlemania 29) - MOTY*

Tanahashi vs. Okada - **** 1/4 (NJPW Invasion Attack)
CIMA (c) vs. Akira Tozawa - **** 1/4 (Dragon Gate Dead or Alive)
Brock Lesnar vs. Cm Punk - **** 1/4 (WWE Summerslam)
Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena - **** 1/4 (WWE Summerslam)
Akira Tozawa and BxB Hulk vs. Ricochet and Naruki Doi - **** (Dragon Gate Kobe Festival World 2013)
The Shield vs. Ryback/Sheamus/Cena - **** (WWE Elimination Chamber)
Inner City Machine Guns vs. Young Bucks - **** (PWG DDT 4)
AR Fox and Samurai Del Sol vs. Inner City Machine Guns - **** (PWG ASW 9 Night 1)
Unbreakable Fucking Steen Machines vs. Fox/Ricochet/Swann - **** (PWG ASW 9 Night 2)
CM Punk vs. John Cena - **** (Raw)
Young Bucks vs. Dojo Bros vs. Inner City Machine Guns - **** (PWG TEN)
WHC MITB - **** (Money in the Bank 2013)
Kota Ibushi vs. Nakamura - **** (G1 Day 4)
Adam Cole/Young Bucks vs. AR Fox/Candice Lerae/Rich Swann - **** (PWG BOLA Night 2)
Young Bucks vs. Candice LeRae and Joey Ryan - **** (PWG Matt Rushmore)


Honorable Mentions:

Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins - *** 3/4
KENTA vs. Sugiura - *** 3/4
Adam Cole vs. Jimmy Jacobs - *** 3/4
Antonio Cesaro vs. Kofi Kingston - *** 3/4
Shingo vs. Ricochet - *** 3/4
Alex Shelley vs. Prince Devitt - *** 3/4
Okada vs. Makabe - *** 3/4
American Wolves vs. ReDragon - *** 3/4
Michael Elgin vs. Jay Lethal - *** 3/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada - *** 3/4 (Wrestle Kingdom 7)
The Rock vs. CM Punk - *** 3/4 (Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber)
Royal Rumble Match - *** 3/4
Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro 2/3 Falls - *** 3/4
Rhodes vs. The Shield - *** 3/4 (Battleground)
Rhodes vs. Shield - *** 3/4 (Raw)
Marufuji vs. Nakamura - *** 3/4 (NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2013)
Tanahashi vs. Okada - *** 3/4 (NJPW King of Pro Wrestling 2013)
Damien Sandow vs. John Cena (Raw) - *** 3/4
Rhodes/Bryan/Punk/Usos vs. Shield/Wyatts - *** 3/4+ (Raw - rewatch)
Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton (Raw December) - *** 3/4
Naito/Tanahashi vs. Nakamaru/Okada - *** 3/4 (Road to Tokyo Dome Day 6)
John Cena vs. Seth Rollins - *** 3/4 (Smackdown)


----------



## Obfuscation

777 said:


> For Christ's sake, am I the only one who 'didn't' like Cena/Rollins?
> 
> Typical Cena, guest starring Seth Rollins. Yawn. Rollins looked great showing off his moveset, sure, but otherwise...


It's a winning formula for folks. I'm in the pile who dug it a lot too.


----------



## 777

The Primer said:


> It's a winning formula for folks. I'm in the pile who dug it a lot too.


The expression is 'no accounting for taste', mine or anybody else's. I just don't and have never liked the Cena formula...ever. And as long as he keeps using it, my opinions of his matches won't change. That and I dislike the way he bumps.


----------



## Obfuscation

I'm pretty pro-Cena most of the time, so I knew what to expect going in. _(that and I'm equally as huge, actually more, of a Seth Rollins/Tyler Black fan)_ so I was geared up ready to expect something I'd dig under a standard formula. Always the mentality of Rollins being strong competition for Cena, despite the finish, being the go sign that I'm cool w/it. Especially when the work that follows is really swell, imo. Tried & true is another expression to be said here. That's how I feel w/John-boy's general formula.


----------



## Lane

*CWF Mid Atlantic: Battlecade 14*
Trevor Lee vs Arik Royal
*****3/4*\
Holy fffffuuuuuck. This match was nuts. Nobody needs to sleep on these two. They went out there and killed it and every company on earth needs to book them. The entire show is for on demand viewing at ondemand.cwf247.com for 7 bucks. Entire show is just a load of fun but the mainevent is sick on so many levels.


----------



## EmbassyForever

I'm late to the party, but....

Tanahashi and Naito vs Nakamura and Okada - ****1/4+

Fantastic match with fantastic booking.


----------



## Bruce L

Belatedly catching up with some last-year misses before this year really gets crowded...


*KENTA & Takashi Sugiura vs. Naomichi Marufuji & Shinsuke Nakamura *_(NOAH, 8/24)_
★★★★ — Much more fun than NOAH usually gets these days, thanks almost entirely to Shinskay and the dynamic he has with the NO MERCY badasses. Character dynamics are pretty strong throughout, actually, but you don't really get excited about KENTA/Marufuji action, or even Marufuji/Sugiura action, the way you used to be able to. In the interpromotional setting, though, and especially against this duo, even Nakamura's goofiest mannerisms play like his vintage late '09-'10 swag -- and Sugiura trying to mock it is the best thing he's done since, like, the first year of his GHC heavyweight title reign.


*Eddie Edwards vs. Taiji Ishimori *_(ROH, _Border Wars 2013_ [5/4])_
★★★½ — Great action, simple story, neither guy overdoes anything. They could've had this exact match at Korakuen with the title on the line and it wouldn't have disappointed.


*King of Gate 2013 quarterfinal match
Dragon Kid vs. Jimmy Susumu *_(Dragon Gate, _Infinity 296_ [5/17])_
★★★¾ — I actually could've gone as high as ★★★★ if Kid didn't completely disregard some early leg work by Susumu the second he got back on offense. As it is, this had pretty much everything you want in a D-Gate main event: nifty exchanges, flawless execution, a crowd that was into everything. Best match of the tournament, IMO.


*World Heavyweight Championship match
Dolph Ziggler (c) vs. Alberto Del Rio *_(WWE, _Payback_ [6/16])_
★★★★¼ — I actually saw and reviewed this one when it first happened; it holds up really well. The much-ballyhooed (at the time) double turn was always a little overstated; Del Rio was never _that_ solid a babyface against anybody other than Jack Swagger, and way too much of the crowd was already into Ziggler to say that his "valiant hero" status at the end of the match was a 180 transformation from the beginning. The match still holds up, though. Dolph's all-too-human hero performance, in contrast to the more overblown superhero stuff we traditionally get in WWE main events, was genuinely stirring, and Del Rio brought a simulated aggression, and with it a genuine sense of trying to put over his offense as _dangerous_, that you hardly ever see out of WWE in the overly injury-phobic "Performance Center" era. I get why this got lost in the shuffle, with the various Shield/Team Hell No & partner six-mans still fresh in the memory when it happened, Cena/Bryan and Punk/Lesnar coming fairly quick on its heels, and the Shield/Rhodes brothers tags coming so soon after that, but this is still one of WWE's top contributions to 2013.


*IWGP Intercontinental Championship match
Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Naomichi Marufuji *_(New Japan, 10/14)_
★★★¾ — Marufuji starts this one off like he's trying to match Nakamura swag-for-swag. It's exactly as fun as it sounds, and it stays great from there. Marufuji's neck-work is almost Okada-like in its focus; not only does it make sense from him, given that he favors "drop you on your head" finishers, but it sidesteps the problem of Nakamura disregarding work done to his legs so he can hit his offense. And it's always wonderful to see somebody in a Marufuji match understand that, unless it's a tag match and his partner is holding you in place, there's no damn reason to ever be in position for his sliding dropkick from the floor. 


*Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii *_(New Japan, 11/9)_
★★★★¼ — I loved this as a follow-up to their G1 match, with Tanahashi coming into this one not necessarily believing Ishii to be his equal, but knowing that he can take his best shots and still come back to win. He still feels comfortable taking an air guitar break after he gets off to an early advantage, though -- giving Ishii the perfect opportunity to lay him out with a lariat. Not quite as good as the G1 match, but good in the same way and built off it beautifully.


*IWGP Heavyweight Championship match
Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Karl Anderson *_(New Japan, 11/9)_
★★★★ — Another great defense for Okada, whose Best In The World claim, unimaginable just two years ago, gets stronger every time out. I've avoided the Tanahashi/Devitt feud due to the negative reviews for the Bullet Club's general MO, but it didn't bother me here; if anything, it enhanced the match by making Okada look like a total ace for fighting them all off before roaring back to put away Anderson -- and speaking of the Machine Gun, more people should be taking note of how unrecognizably he's improved himself from where he was when he started in Shin Nihon.


----------



## blink_41sum_182

PWG All Star Weekend X Night 1

*Kevin Steen and the Young Bucks vs. Richochet, Rich Swann, and AR Fox - **** 1/2*

Match of the year. 

Most insane shit. Hilarious. Awesome triple team moves. I marked out like 10 times. So fun and so good.


----------



## Chismo

Yep, it was fantastic. ****1/2

It had Chuck Taylor on commentary too. "Here comes a terrible idea by AR Fox".


----------



## THECHAMPION

Yeah great match, I usually don't do stars but I'll say very good.

Chuck is Excalibur's best commentary partner by a mile.

While he wasn't getting booked consistently and Joey and Hero were away Steen dominated commentary I hope with all of them back that fades. I like Steen but he doesn't need to be on commentary for half the show now.


----------



## EscapedIllusion

PWG All Star Weekend X
Night 2 

Awesome show better than night one.

Dojo Bros vs Inner City Machine Guns 
****
Eddies's last PWG match with Roddy and it delivered.Hard stiff chops and great spots with AR and Swann.There was one botch with the referee buy they made it work.

Davey Richards vs Ricochet 
****
Great wrestling match and lots of entertaining spots I don't wanna spoil a lot of it but Davey does one of Ricochet's spots and it was awesome.Davey is the king of **** matches almost all of his Indy matches since his ROH departure has hit the **** mark.

Adam Cole vs Johnny Gargano 
****1/2
Watch this match it was incredible.


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


----------



## RMis2VULGAR

*Antonio Cesaro* vs. *Sami Zayn* - 2 out of 3 falls match - 7/12/13 - NXT - light to decent 9/10


----------



## Chismo

Guerrero Maya Jr. vs. Virus (CMLL 10/6) ****3/4 :mark:

Dojo Bros vs. Swann & Fox (PWG ASW X - Night 2) ****1/4


----------



## Alan4L

possibly my final update for 2013

Updated to include end of year PWG and some other stuff. Doubt there's too much more 2013 to go through.

Updated for 02/03 (New additions in bold) 

Including Dec 2012, Observer style – BUT CONTINUING TO END OF 2013! 

*WWE: *
Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena (8/18) ****3/4
Brock Lesnar vs. CM Punk (8/18) ****3/4
Money In The Bank Rising Stars (7/14) ****3/4
The Shield vs. Cena/Ryback/Seamus (2/17) ****3/4
The Shield vs. Team Hell No (5/27) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Kingston (5/20) ****1/2
The Shield vs. Bryan/Kane/Ryback (TLC) (12/16) ****1/2
John Cena vs. CM Punk (2/25) ****1/2
The Undertaker vs. CM Punk (4/7) ****1/2
Daniel Bryan vs. Antonio Cesaro (7/22) ****1/2
Seth Rollins vs. John Cena (12/27/2013) ****1/2
Antonio Cesaro vs. William Regal (12/25/2013) ****1/2
The Shield vs. The Usos (7/14) ****1/4
Money In The Bank All Stars (7/14) ****1/4
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho (6/16) ****1/4
Daniel Bryan vs. Seth Rollins (6/10) ****1/4
Bryan/Kane/Orton vs. The Shield (6/14) ****1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/13) ****1/4
Elimination Chamber (2/18 ) ****1/4
Seamus vs. Dolph Ziggler (1/9) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan/Kane (6/3) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Orton/Seamus/Kingston (5/24) ****1/4
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (4/30) ****1/4
Dolph Ziggler vs. Kofi Kingston (4/30) ****1/4
Kofi Kingston vs. Antonio Cesaro (5/1) ****1/4
Alberto Del Rio vs. Christian (8/18) ****1/4
The Shield vs. The Rhodes Boys vs. The Usos(10/27) ****1/4
The Shield vs. The Rhodes Boys (10/6) ****1/4
The Shield vs. The Rhodes Boys (10/14) ****1/4
Sami Zayn vs. Antonio Cesaro (2/3 Falls) (8/21) ****1/4
Adrian Neville vs. Sami Zayn (11/27) ****
The Rhodes Boys vs. The Wyatt Family (12/20/2013) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton (12/16/2013) ****
The Shield vs. The Usos (12/13/2013) ****
Goldust vs. Randy Orton (9/9) ****
Dean Ambrose vs. Daniel Bryan (9/9) ****
Sami Zayn vs. Jack Swagger (9/4) ****
The Shield vs. Bryan/PTP/Usos/RVD/Ziggler/Ryder/Gabriel (9/23) ****
Randy Orton vs. Christian vs. Rob Van Dam (8/2) ****
Randy Orton vs. Rob Van Dam (8/9) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (6/3) ****
The Shield vs. Cena/Bryan/Kane (Elimination) (5/13) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Ryback (5/3) ****
Randy Orton vs. Cody Rhodes (4/30) ****
The Shield vs. The Undertaker/Hell No (4/22) ****
Alberto Del Rio vs. Dolph Ziggler (2/1) ****
The Shield vs. Jericho/Ryback/Seamus (2/18) ****
Rob Van Dam vs. Chris Jericho (7/15) ****
Daniel Bryan vs. Seamus (7/8) ****
Dolph Ziggler vs. Alberto Del Rio (6/16) ****
The Shield vs. Orton/Bryan (6/16) ****

*Puro: *
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (10/14) (NJPW) *****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (4/7) (NJPW) *****
Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/4) (NJPW) *****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/2) (NJPW) *****
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/4) (NJPW) *****
Masato Yoshino vs. T-Hawk (11/7) (DG) ****3/4
Millennials vs. Team Veteran Returns (10/10) (DG) ****3/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (8/11) (NJPW) ****3/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/10) (NJPW) ****3/4
Dragon Kid vs. Masato Yoshino (5/5) (DG) ****3/4
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (12/23) (DG) ****3/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazushi Sakuraba (1/4) (NJPW) ****3/4
Junior Stars vs. Aoki/Suzuki (3/17) (AJPW) ****3/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Ryuichi Kawakami (6/30) (BJW) ****3/4
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (6/22) (NJPW) ****3/4
Tozawa/Hulk vs. Ricochet/Doi (7/21) (DG) ****3/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Madoka (8/27) (BJW) ****1/2
CIMA vs. Shingo Takagi (7/21) (DG) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Togi Makabe (6/22) (NJPW) ****1/2
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (4/7) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii (3/17) (NJPW) ****1/2
Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (3/23) (NJPW) ****1/2
GET WILD vs. Akiyama/Shiozaki (3/17) (AJPW) ****1/2
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Karl Anderson (2/10) (NJPW) ****1/2
Junior Stars vs. Hayashi & Kondo (1/3) (AJPW) ****1/2
Masato Tanaka vs. Tomohiro Ishii (2/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
Prince Devitt vs. Low Ki vs. Kota Ibushi (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/2
El Generico vs. Kenny Omega (12/23) (DDT) ****1/2
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International/CIMA (12/6) (DG) ****1/2
CIMA vs. Shingo Takagi vs. BxB Hulk (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Akira Tozawa vs. YAMATO (12/23) (DG) ****1/2
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Junior Stars (5/18) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kenny Omega vs. KUSHIDA (6/6) (NJPW) ****1/2
Masaaki Mochizuki vs. YAMATO (5/10) (DG) ****1/2
KENTA vs. Takashi Sugiura (5/12) (NOAH) ****1/2
Jun Akiyama vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Go Shiozaki vs. KAI (4/29) (AJPW) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Minoru Suzuki (5/3) (NJPW) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. Takagi/YAMATO (5/5) (DG) ****1/2
BxB Nation vs. RyoSuka (4/19) (DG) ****1/2
Togi Makabe vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/4) (NJPW) ****1/2
Tetsuya Naito vs. Kota Ibushi (8/2) (NJPW) ****1/2
YAMATO vs. Ryo “Jimmy” Saito (9/12) (DG) ****1/2
Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima (9/29) (NJPW) ****1/2
Kota Ibushi vs. Minoru Suzuki (8/10) (NJPW) ****1/2
Tanahashi/Naito vs. Okada/Nakamura (12/23/2013) (NJPW) ****1/2
Eita/T-Hawk vs. Doi/YAMATO (12/8/2013) (DG) ****1/2
Doi/YAMATO vs. Takagi/Tozawa (12/22/2013) (DG) ****1/2
*Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Kohei Sato (12/23/2013) (BJW) ****1/4*
Eita/T-Hawk vs. Double Dragon (11/3) (DG) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (11/9) (NJPW) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. The Forever Hooligans (11/6) (NJPW) ****1/4
YAMATO vs. Masato Yoshino (10/10) (DG) ****1/4
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Katsuyori Shibata (10/14) (NJPW) ****1/4
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Naomichi Marufuji (10/14) (NJPW) ****1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Kota Ibushi (8/18) (DDT) ****1/4
Satoshi Kojima vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/11) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Karl Anderson (8/11) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tomihiro Ishii vs. Togi Makabe (8/10) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/10) (NJPW) ****1/4
Katsuyori Shibata vs. Satoshi Kojima (8/2) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (8/3) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tetsuya Naito vs. Minoru Suzuki (8/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
akatsuki vs. Mad Blankey (8/1) (DG) ****1/4
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (7/14) (AJPW) ****1/4
Shingo Takagi vs. Ricochet (5/25) (DG) ****1/4
Kobashi/Akiyama/Sasaki/Muto vs. Shiozaki/KENTA/Taniguchi/Kanemaru (5/11) (NOAH) ****1/4
CIMA vs. Akira Tozawa (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Team High Tension vs. Team Veteran Returns (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
Ricochet vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/5) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. World-1 International (5/10) (DG) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. Jimmy Susumu (5/17) (DG) ****1/4
CIMA vs. K-ness (4/4) (DG) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
Killer Elite Squad vs. Nakamura/Ishii (4/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Veteran Army (12/28) (DG) ****1/4
Minoru Suzuki vs. Yuji Nagata (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Taiji Ishimori (1/27) (NOAH) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (1/4) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hayato “Jr” Fujita vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (12/12) (M-Pro) ****1/4
Dragon Kid vs. KAGETORA (12/23) (DG) ****1/4
The Jimmys vs. Team Veteran Returns/Nagata (Elimination) (12/2) (DG) ****1/4
Shuji Kondo vs. Yoshinobu Kanemaru (2/23) (AJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (3/3) (NJPW) ****1/4
Mr. Quu Quu Toyanaka Dolphin vs. Naoki Tanisaki (1/27) (DG) ****1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Prince Devitt (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Gedo (7/5) (NJPW) ****1/4
CIMA/Mochizuki/Fujii/Uhaa/Saito vs. YAMATO/Hulk/Yoshino/Doi/Susumu (7/4) (DG) ****1/4
Suwama vs. Jun Akiyama (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Minoru Tanaka (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Aoki/Suzuki vs. Kondo/Hayashi (6/30) (AJPW) ****1/4
Akiyama/Shiozaki vs. Suwama/Doering (6/2) (AJPW) ****1/4
Shinjiro Ohtani vs. Masato Tanaka (4/5) (Z1) ****1/4
Prince Devitt vs. Alex Shelley (6/9) (NJPW) ****1/4
YAMATO vs. Masaaki Mochizuki (No DQ) (7/21) (DG) ****1/4
Masato Yoshino vs. K-Ness (7/21) (DG) ****1/4
La Sombra vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Minoru Suzuki (7/20) (NJPW) ****1/4
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (Lumberjack Deathmatch) (9/28) (NJPW) ****1/4
Taiji Ishimori vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (8/4) (NOAH) ****1/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Yuji Okabayashi (3/31) (BJW) ****1/4
Mochizuki/Arai vs. T-Hawk/U-T (12/19/2013) (DG) ****1/4
TMDK vs. Nakajima/Marufuji (12/7/2013) (NOAH) ****1/4
Masato Yoshino vs. BxB Hulk (12/22/2013) (DG) ****1/4
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. KENTA (10/19) (NOAH) ****1/4
Sasuke/Shinzaki vs. Hayato/Kenou (11/3) (M-Pro) ****1/4
Hashimoto/Sato vs. Hashimoto/Kawakami (11/22) (BJW) ****1/4
The Millennials vs. Hulk/YAMATO/Kong (12/5/2013) (DG) ****1/4
Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomoaki Honma (12/21/2013) (NJPW) ****
CIMA vs. Super Shisa (12/7/2013) (DG) ****
Monster Express vs. Mad Blankey (12/7/2013) (DG) ****
Speed Of Sounds vs. Kodaka/Miyamoto (11/22) (BJW) ****
Taiji Ishimori vs. Daisuke Harada (10/2) (NOAH) ****
Sekimoto/Nagata vs. KENTA/Sugiura (11/27) (NOAH) ****
The Millennials vs. Team Veteran Returns vs. The Jimmys (12/22/2013) (DG) ****
KENTA vs. Yuji Nagata (12/7/2013) (NOAH) ****
Takagi/Tozawa vs. YAMATO/Hulk (9/7) (DG) ****
T-Hawk/Eita vs. Susumu/Kanda (9/7) (DG) ****
Sekimoto/Okabayashi vs. Kondo/Hayashi (9/8) (W-1) ****
World-1 International vs. Mad Blankey (Naniwa Elimination) (8/23) (DG) ****
Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (8/23) (DG) ****
Lance Archer vs. Satoshi Kojima (8/10) (NJPW) ****
Kazuchika Okada vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/8) (NJPW) ****
Yuji Nagata vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/7) (NJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (8/7) (NJPW) ****
Satoshi Kojima vs. Davey Boy Smith Jr. (8/4) (NJPW) ****
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Prince Devitt (8/4) (NJPW) ****
Karl Anderson vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/1) (NJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Kazuchika Okada (8/2) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Lance Archer (8/2) (NJPW) ****
Tetsuya Naito vs. Yuji Nagata (8/3) (NJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Satoshi Kojima (8/3) (NJPW) **** 
Mad Blankey vs. World-1 International (7/14) (DG) ****
Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Kotoka (8/1) (DG) ****
Masato Tanaka vs. Tetsuya Naito (7/20) (NJPW) ****
Hayato Jr. Fujita vs. Koji Kanemoto (6/9) (M-Pro) ****
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Hiroshi Yamato (6/2) (AJPW) ****
Takagi/YAMATO vs. Fujii/Mochizuki (6/2) (DG) ****
Ishii/Nakamura vs. Suzuki/Benjamin (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Forever Hooligans vs. Timesplitters (6/22) (NJPW) ****
Liger/Titan/Tiger/KUSHIDA/BUSHI vs. Ricochet/Koslov/Romero/Kendrick/Barretta (6/9) (NJPW) ****
Shigehiro Irie vs. Kota Ibushi (5/3) (DDT) ****
Urano/HARASHIMA vs. Ibushi/Omega (1/20) (DDT) ****
KENTA/Takayama vs. Sasaki/Nakajima (4/28) (NOAH) ****
Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Manabu Soya (3/1) (BJW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Masayuki Kono (4/21) (AJPW) ****
Go Shiozaki vs. Ryota Hama (4/27) (AJPW) ****
Hirooki Goto vs. Katsuyori Shibata (5/3) (NJPW) ****
Kenny Omega vs. Ryusuke Taguchi (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Prince Devitt vs. Ricochet (5/30) (NJPW) ****
Shingo Takagi vs. YAMATO (5/25) (DG) ****
Kota Ibushi vs. Daichi Hashimoto (4/15) (Z1) ****
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Satoshi Kojima (3/11) (NJPW) ****
Kaz Hayashi vs. Kotaro Suzuki (2/23) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (1/27) (AJPW) ****
Baka Hentai vs. Junior Stars (2/10) (AJPW) ****
World-1 International vs. Team Veteran Returns (2/7) (DG) ****
Mochizuki/Fujii vs. Kanda/Horiguchi (1/27) (DG) ****
Takeshi Morishima vs. Satoshi Kojima (12/9) (NOAH) ****
Suwama vs. Go Shiozaki (4/18) (AJPW) ****
YAMATO vs. Kenchiro Arai (4/4) (DG) ****
Seiya Sanada vs. Masayuki Kono (3/10) (AJPW) ****
CIMA vs. Masato Yoshino (3/3) (DG) ****
Suzuki/Aoki vs. Irie/Ishii (10/27) (AJPW) ****
Masato Yoshino vs. Naruki Doi (11/3) (DG) ****
Mad Blankey vs. Monster Express (11/3) (DG) ****
Kazuchika Okada vs. Karl Anderson (11/10) (NJPW) ****
*Shiozaki/Miyahara vs. Doering/Suwama (12/8/2013) (AJPW) ****
Millennials vs. Team Veteran Returns (12/16/2013) (DG) ****
Yoshinobu Kanemaru vs. Ultimo Dragon (12/15/2013) (AJPW) *****

*PWG: *
Inner City Machine Guns vs. Del Sol/Fox (3/22) ****3/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Del Sol/Fox (6/15) ****3/4
*Mount Rushmore vs. Fox/Swann/Ricochet (12/20/2013) ****1/2
PPRay vs. Mack/B-Boy vs. RockNES Monsters (12/21/2013) ****1/2
Best Friends vs. Cage/Elgin (12/21/2013) ****1/2
Dojo Bros vs. Fox/Swann (12/21/2013) ****1/2*
The Young Buck$ vs. Joey & Candice (10/19) ****1/2
Kyle O’Reilly vs. TJ Perkins (8/9) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Inner City Machine Guns vs. The Dojo Bros (Ladder Match) (8/9) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. Taylor/Gargano (3/22) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. The Dojo Bros (3/23) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Young Buck$ (12/1) ****1/2
The Dojo Bros vs. The Super Smash Bros (12/1) ****1/2
ACH vs. Kyle O’Reilly (8/31) ****1/2
Young Buck$/Cole vs. Candice/Swann/Fox (8/31) ****1/2
Kyle O’Reilly vs. Michael Elgin (8/31) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Johnny Gargano (8/31) ****1/4
Davey Richards vs. Kyle O’Reilly (6/15) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Drake Younger (6/15) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. The Inner City Machine Guns (1/12) ****1/4
Cage vs. Mack vs. Perkins vs. B-Boy (12/1) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Adam Cole (Guerrilla Warfare) (12/1) ****1/4
The Unbreakable Fucking Steen Machines vs. Fox/Swann/Ricochet (3/23) ****1/4
Tommaso Ciampa vs. Brian Cage vs. Drake Younger vs. Anthony Nese (10/19) ****1/4
*Chris Hero vs. ACH (12/21/2013) ****
Mount Rushmore vs. Joey/Candice/Drake (12/21/2013) ****
Adam Cole vs. Chris Hero (12/20/2013) ****
Adam Cole vs. Johnny Gargano (12/21/2013 *****
The Best Friends vs. AR Fox & Rich Swann (10/19) ****
Roderick Strong vs. Johnny Gargano (10/19) ****
Adam Cole vs. Kyle O’Reilly (10/19) ****
The Best Friends vs. Ciampa/Mack/B-Boy (8/31) ****
Mack/Candice/B-Boy vs. Ryan/Avalon/Taylor (8/9) ****
Samuray Del Sol vs. TJ Perkins (3/23) ****
Drake Younger vs. Sami Callihan (Guerrilla Warfare) (3/22) ****
Paul London vs. Kevin Steen (3/22) ****
Sami Callihan vs. Drake Younger (12/1) ****
The Dojo Bros vs. Taylor/Gargano (6/15) ****

*DGUSA/EVOLVE:*
Johnny Gargano vs. Shingo Takagi (4/6) ****3/4
Ricochet vs. Akira Tozawa (4/6) ****1/2
The Young Buck$ vs. CIMA & AR Fox (4/6) ****1/2
Johnny Gargano vs. Chris Hero (11/17) ****1/4
Drew Gulak vs. Biff Busick (9/22) ****1/4
The Super Smash Brothers vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (4/6) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Eita & Tomahawk T.T. (6/2) ****1/4
Johnny Gargano vs. Samuray Del Sol (6/2) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Mochizuki/Fox (11/17) ****
Bravados/Everett vs. Dos Ben Dejos/Strickland (6/2) ****
AR Fox vs. Nick Jackson (5/30) ****
Chuck Taylor vs. Anthony Nese vs. Jigsaw vs. Fire Ant vs. Arik Cannon vs. Shane Strikland (4/6) **** 


*ROH: *
Kevin Steen vs. El Generico (Ladder War) (12/16) ****3/4
Michael Elgin vs. Paul London (8/3) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. ACH (5/11) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Jay Briscoe (4/5) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. Jay Lethal (4/5) ****1/4
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (12/16) ****1/4
Adam Cole vs. Jimmy Jacobs (1/18) ****1/4
Eddie Edwards vs. Taiji Ishimori (5/4) ****1/4
Davey Richards vs. Kyle O’Reilly (4/6) ****1/4
The Young Buck$ vs. Forever Hooligans (8/17) ****1/4
Roderick Strong vs. Paul London (11/9) ****1/4 
The Young Buck$ vs. Adrenaline Rush (12/14/2013) ****1/4
Kevin Steen vs. Mike Bennett (Stretcher Match) (12/14/2013) ****
Tomasso Ciampa vs. Matt Taven (12/14/2013) ****
Adam Cole vs. Michael Elgin vs. Jay Briscoe (12/14/2013) ****
Adrenaline Rush vs. C&C Wrestle Factory vs. The Young Buck$ (8/3) ****
Davey Richards vs. Bobby Fish (7/19) ****
redDRagon vs. Forever Hooligans (7/27) ****
American Wolves vs. redDRagon (4/5) ****
Davey Richards vs. Ricky Marvin (10/26) ****

*wXw:*
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Tommy End (3/3) ****3/4
*Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Big Van Walter (10/5) ****1/2*
Super Crazy/ Marvin vs. Taylor/Ricochet (3/3) ****1/2
Johnny Moss vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (3/1) ****1/2
Ricky Marvin vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/1) ****1/4
*Ricochet vs. Zack Sabre Jr. (10/5) *****
AUTsiders vs. RockSkillet (3/3) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Robert Dreissker (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Jonathan Gresham (3/2) ****
Bad Bones vs. Yuji Okabayashi (3/3) ****
Taylor/Ricochet vs. Hot & Spicy (3/2) ****
Tommy End vs. Ricochet (3/1) ****
Ricochet vs. AR Fox (10/4) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Drew Gulak (10/4) ****

*Other:*
Ricochet vs. Prince Devitt (10/19) (Rev-Pro) ****1/2
Elgin/ACH vs. Richards/O’Reilly (5/17) (AAW) ****1/2
Kitsune vs. AR Fox (3/16) (ISW) ****1/2
Ricochet vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fujita Jr. Hayato (3/9) (4FW) ****1/2
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Davey Richards (10/19) (Rev-Pro) ****1/4
Quackenbush/Liger vs. Jigsaw/The Shard (4/6) (Chikara) ****1/4
Samuray Del Sol vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Nick Jackson vs. AR Fox (3/24) (King Of Flight) ****1/4
Jon Davis vs. Samuray Del Sol (3/15) (FIP) ****1/4
Namajague vs. Rey Cometa (4/26) (CMLL) ****1/4
Shane Hollister vs. Jimmy Jacobs (3/23) (AAW) ****1/4
L.A. Park vs. Dr. Wagner Jr. (5/11) (TxT) ****1/4
The Colony vs Devastation Corporation (6/2) (Chikara) ****1/4
Michael Elgin vs. TJ Perkins (4/19) (QPW) ****1/4
*Oliver John vs. Jeff Cobb (12/15/2013) (PREMIER) ****
Shocker/Casas/Terrible vs. Rush/Escorpion/Maximo (6/28) (CMLL) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Jimmy Havoc (5/19) (PROGRESS) *****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Fujita “Jr.” Hayato (10/18) (4FW) ****
Rush vs. El Terrible (1/22) (CMLL) ****
Flamita vs. Rich Swann (12/16) (DTU) ****
Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Kenny Omega (3/8) (4FW) ****
ACH vs. Mat Fitchett (2/10) (AAW) ****
Namajague/Okumura vs. Stuka Jr./Rey Cometa (3/23) (CMLL) ****
Kyle O’Reilly vs. ACH (8/23) (AAW) ****



1.	Kota Ibushi vs. Shinsuke Nakamura (8/4) (NJPW) ***** 
2.	Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (10/14) (NJPW) *****
3.	Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/2) (NJPW) *****
4.	Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Kazuchika Okada (4/7) (NJPW) *****
5.	Katsuyori Shibata vs. Tomohiro Ishii (8/4) (NJPW) *****
6.	Inner City Machine Guns vs. Del Sol/Fox (3/22) (PWG) ****3/4
7.	The Shield vs. Cena/Ryback/Seamus (2/18 ) (WWE) ****3/4
8.	Daniel Bryan vs. John Cena (8/18) (WWE) ****3/4
9.	Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Ryuichi Kawakami (6/30) (BJW) ****3/4
10.	Tozawa/Hulk vs. Ricochet/Doi (7/21) (DG) ****3/4


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## smitlick

Me and Alan definitely agree on something then. Ibushi vs Nakamura being MOTY


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