Chris Hero vs. Davey Richards - PWG Seven 7/30/10
I haven't seen a Davey Richards match in a long while. Probably saw him back in January when I tried to keep up with ROH on HDNet. Anyway, I figured I should check this out because he's a pretty divisive dude, and I've had mixed feelings about him, and I like Hero a fair amount. Match works like a typical indy main event dream match-- they open with mat work, and then they do some strike exchanges and dives to the outside, each guy gets a brief control segment, and then there's a finishing stretch where they beat the heck out of each other and there are about 30 2.9999 counts, half of which would've been much better finishes than the actual finish of the match.
But it's not as irritating as most matches of this type for a handful of reasons. First reason is that both guys hit really hard. Like, really hard. Looked like they were trying to kill each other. Second reason is that Hero's selling was really good down the finishing stretch. Davey worked the knee for a while, and Hero sold like a champ. Tons of neat little stuff where he alters his offense to show he's protecting the bad knee. Opening parts of the match were good, too, as the mat work was well-paced, and it looked like they were picking their spots and struggling and all that. Early strike exchanges were tremendous-- tons of nasty stuff. As for Davey, I wouldn't say I thought he was great in this match. He can do things well-- he hits like crazy and can sell when he wants to. But he tends to get so caught up in his own seriousness, his own love for competition or whatever the fuck, that he actually becomes a caricature of "serious" pro wrestling. His expressions and mannerisms and yells become so overwrought that I stop taking the match seriously. That thing he does where he kicks out at 2.9999 and yells and grabs his stomach drives me crazy.
But he sold well during most of the early exchanges, and he made the knockout blows look convincing. Hero's stuff looked awesome-- bunches of great forearms and elbows and knees and punches. Way too many of them, actually. The finishing stretch was really the match's biggest problem. About 20 minutes in, the crowd started chanting, "This is awesome!" and so both guys decided to start hitting the poop out of each other and then kicking out. Fortunately, Hero's selling made this part of the match a bit more tolerable than most matches that end like this, but it still hurt the match a fair amount.
I'd still call this good but didn't think it was as good as any of the Danielson matches from this year.
Chris Hero vs. Ikuto Hidaka - EVOLVE 2 3/13/10
The first half of this match was truly great. They work the mat, and Hero is awesome on the mat, and Hidaka kept up. Both guys worked slow and picked spots; Hero targeted Hidaka's left arm and Hidaka targeted Hero's left leg. Hero does a lot of little selling things throughout the mat work: he yells when Hidaka locks in a new hold and rushes for the ropes when he's in serious danger. All those little things make the mat work more engaging and believable without reaching Davey's preposterous levels of SERIOUS COMPETITION. Once Hero picks out the arm, the match gets insanely good: Hidaka rolls out of things and comes up with nifty counters, always going back to Hero's leg, but he can barely hold onto anything because Hero always finds a new way to go back to the arm, grabbing it or kicking it or stomping on it or whatever. He uses all of his long limbs to his advantage. Hidaka's selling isn't great by any means, but it's better than what I'd expect to see from a Japanese junior in 2010. Better than any of the Dragon Gate dudes. He always shakes it off when he locks in a leg hold, and it becomes clear that the arm damage will continue to prevent him from making a serious comeback on the mat. Still, he does enough to Hero's leg to force him to start selling, and Hero's selling is great throughout.
Eventually, Hero starts going for knockout blows, probably because he's frustrated that his leg hurts and Hidaka's arm isn't broken yet. Hero's strikes are really great, and I liked how his frustration opened a window for Hidaka to comeback. Hidaka tried to comeback with headbutts to the midsection, but Hero pushed him off and hit some back splashes to Hidaka's midsection for payback. Here's when Hero started being a dick and left the window open for Hidaka to get back in the match. Rather than going back to the leg, he started busting out DDTs as hope spots. Finishing stretch is alright-ish. Hero continues to sell well but Hidaka forgets for the majority of the time he's on offense. He goes back to the leg after he weakens Hero, and Hero's selling gets even better while Hidaka's stops. Then they go through a whole bunch of big strikes and teased knockouts, and they all look cool, but I really wish the finish had gone back to the limb work, and I also wish they shaved about 5 minutes off the match length.
Still, this was a mostly great match. It looked like it was about to be my indy MOTY before the finish, but even with the problems in the finishing stretch, I'd only put this a notch below Danielson's matches with Fish and Kingston.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Backlund/Rose; Danielson in 2010; Random
Buddy Rose vs. Bob Backlund - MSG 8/30/82
I thought this was pretty great. Backlund rules the mat early on, which was really fun. It's been talked about before, but he really worked like he was the man, and the announcer puts over the fact that he was a former amateur champion, so it totally works. Couple really awesome things in the early parts: Rose has him in a full nelson, and Backlund just thrusts his butt backward and Rose takes this awesome tumble out of the ring, going butt first between the bottom and middle ropes. Later, Rose grabs the ropes to block an O'Connor Roll attempt. He turns around to celebrate but Backlund is already up and dropkicking him the face. At that point, Rose decides he's done with the mat stuff and starts throwing punches and this one crispy chop that sounds cool, and he smashes Backlund's face on some turnbuckles. That gives Rose the chance to control stuff on the mat, and so he works a headlock for a while. Too long, I thought, but it turned out to be ok because Backlund came back with a headlock on his own and the crowd went wild. For a headlock. The Man. And he wrenches the headlock like crazy and it looks so cool and the crowd loves it. He works the headlock for a while, and then Rose starts to comeback and smash his head around, and then Backlund hits a couple of his awesome monkey flips. Finish is actually really cool, as Backlund busts out a nifty counter to lock in the chickenwing.
On the whole, I dug this. I thought it dragged a bit during Rose's headlock sections and at some other points. No major complaints, though. I'd probably call it around ***3/4.
Bryan Danielson vs. Eddie Kingston - Chikara - We Must Eat Michigan's Brain 6/26/10
Danielson's entrance rules. They play the NXT song, and everyone's all wtf-ish, and then they play "The Final Countdown," and people go wild and throw ties and all that. The match is great, too. They work the mat early and Danielson does painful-looking stuff to Kingston's arm. Then he starts throwing these nasty kicks to Kingston's knee. Really awesome, and Kingston sells them well, too. He also sells frustration well, as he gets frustrated after a few kicks and just throws a forearm into Danielson's face. Forearm looked terrible, especially juxtaposed against Danielson's strikes, but the idea of it was excellent, as was Danielson's response. He just threw more and more kicks and really fucked Kingston's leg up. Really just tore away at it, and Kingston's selling was awesome, and Danielson brought all his hubris. It's so awesome that he could work a match like this in this veteran/universe-ruling titan role, and then turn around and work from the bottom against the Miz and be just as good in that role. Might've already said something like that when I talked about the Fish match, but fuck it, it's still true. Heck, it's even more true in this match because Kingston's fat and much bigger than Danielson, but Danielson works the match like he's a monster or something, and it's totally convincing. Also, kudos to Kingston for his selling being good enough to make him a convincing underdog despite the size disparity.
Kingston's offense isn't great, but he has some good throws and Danielson makes them look as good as they're going to look. Normally a dude just busting out random throws/suplexes would be stinky, but they work well as hope spots. There are some strike exchanges that I kind of liked. They were kind of awkward though because Kingston's strikes aren't that good. They aren't as bad as Kofi Kingston's, but they're probably only 40% as good as Danielson's strikes, and the disparity was awkward.
Fuck, I used "disparity" twice in one review.
Anyway, his chops looked a little better than ok, and everything else looked a little worse than ok, except this one clothesline that Danielson threw himself into at a million miles an hour and that sold it by flipping all inside-out and wildly, which was great.
Finish sucked a decent amount, but the match was still great, as were both post-match speeches.
Probably would call this ****. Two guys playing their roles really well. Awesome offense, really good selling. Even better because the size issue made the roles more difficult to pull off, but they did it anyway. Danielson's facial expressions were great. He really looked grumpy and focused at times-- like he was pissed about the whole WWE shit-- but he got in his fair share of the little comedy stuff that works well with a small crowd. He said Kingston was too fat for the surfboard. Not sure if I liked it more than the Fish match-- this benefited from being a bit more compressed, which cut the superfluous offense from Danielson, but the finish wasn't nearly as good.
Marty Jannetty vs. Shane Douglas - ECW Return of the Funker 2/25/95
I was interested to check this out because I think I saw it get love somewhere, and I really like Jannetty as a babyface and Douglas as a heel. Douglas is ECW Champ at this point, so this is a bit of a big deal, or something. Not sure how many matches Jannetty had in ECW-- I'll check now. He made several appearances in mid-95, according to Wikipedia.
Anyway, Douglas is known to be a dick, but he tells Jannetty before the match that he wants to wrestle a clean match because they used to be friends, and he offers a handshake. Jannetty does the smart thing and refuses for a while, and Douglas crosses his heart, so Jannetty finally gives in. Of course, Douglas tries to get in a sucker kick to the gut, but Jannetty catches and spins him. Early parts of the match are all about Jannetty rocking Douglas and Douglas taking breathers. Maybe a bit too much stalling, but Jannetty is great in the babyface shine role, and Douglas is maybe better in the stalling heel role. I'm sure some folks would watch a Shane Douglas match and complain about pace/workrate, but he's such a great character that I don't care. Jannetty teases the superkick a couple times and Douglas dodges it-- I liked how they built that up as a big move early on. After Jannetty's second attempt, Douglas went to the corner to stall/lure Jannetty in, and then he caught him with a kick to the dick. He then dumped Jannetty to the outside and kicked him in the face from the apron, which was awesome. But then Douglas tried to hit the same spot twice, and Jannetty punished him with a hot shot. They go to the outside and brawl, which is ok. Jannetty whips Douglas over the barricade and then dives into him recklessly and awesomely. They brawl in the crowd, which stinks because the camera doesn't get any of it.
It turns out alright, though, because Douglas catches him on the way back to the ring, dropping him ribs-first onto the barricade. Great spot, and Douglas then worked over the ribs really well. Awesome moment where Jannetty tried a hip toss but couldn't because his ribs were hurt. Some awesome spots on the outside: Jannetty flies into the barricade; Jannetty goes face first into the ring post and flips like crazy; Jannetty takes a back drop onto chairs that don't give at all; Jannetty finally hits two super kicks, which was a nice pay-off on the build earlier, but they won't win him the match on the outside. He does hit a nasty one on the inside, but he doesn't go for a pin, which was frustrating. Still, I generally dug the finishing stretch. Jannetty was really rolling-- he hit a couple nasty elbows, and then Douglas went shoulder-first into the ring post, and Jannetty followed grabbing his arm and jumping over the top rope and yanking Douglas's arm with him. Douglas sold the arm well. Jannetty hit a DDT for a good near-fall, and then, in the midst of this big flurry, he goes for a rana, which Douglas counters into a power bomb, and then he stacks Jannetty up for an awesome out-of-nowhere escape.
So yeah, this match had great moments, including some really nasty bumps and good selling by Jannetty. I thought the pace was pretty sluggish at points, but that wasn't a major detractor for me. Still thought this was a great match-- no crazy/obnoxious spots, really sound structure, two guys working roles they play well, and a good escape for the champion. They used the extreme-ishness in a good way-- Douglas used the environment to come across as even more of a dick, and there was nothing too far out there, aside from the brief crowd-brawling stuff. ***1/2-***3/4? I don't know.
Bryan Danielson vs. Tim Donst - Chikara Faded Scars & Lines - 6/27/10
This was probably the weakest of the 3 Danielson matches I've talked about, but it was still good. Donst is his first opponent to work full heel, and he cuts a promo beforehand about how he's a "mat wresting machine" and the "new best in the world." He has Chikara's Young Lions Cup, which I guess means he's a bit of a big deal in that promotion. Anyway, this all means that Danielson has to give Donst a crap-ton. They work even in the early mat exchanges, and it looks good. Donst is an obnoxious prick, mocking Danielson and stealing his signature lines and moves. He slaps Danielson in the face, and Danielson's expression is perfect, and later he gets his revenge slap, which is nice. They also go to the outside for a bit, which was actually really cool because they continued to chain wrestle rather than brawling, and they tease a double countout.
Back on the inside, Donst gets to work a control segment, which is alright. I found him annoying, which would maybe have been a bad thing, but I knew Danielson was going to start laying some nasty blows into him, so I was ok with it. Donst doesn't focus much on a particular body part-- there's some rib work that Dragon sells expertly, and then he steals some of Dragon's moves, including some bad-looking elbows. Again, we have a guy whose strikes aren't nearly as good as Danielson's, but it was actually a little cool here because it felt rewarding. They'd go into strike exchanges, and Danielson would hit Donst four times harder than Donst hit him, which was way cool. Another cool moment when Danielson was eating forearms and yelling at Donst to hit him harder. Also, there's a really cool exchange where Danielson tries to jump up and lock in a triangle, but Donst counters and rolls through into a pinning combo, but Danielson counters again back into the triangle. It surprised me and it looked cool and fluid. Finish is good, too, as Danielson goes to his signature stuff to get revenge on Donst for mocking him and aping his moves.
So yeah, I thought this was really good, but it would've been a lot better if Donst were better. He played a douche bag pretty well, but his offense didn't look as convincing as Danielson's. Danielson worked from the bottom really well. The early mat exchanges were great because they established Donst as a legit threat without knocking Dragon off of his "best in the world" perch.
Maybe ***1/2.
Bryan Danielson vs. William Regal - Memphis Championship Wrestling
Not sure about the date for this, but I think it was some time in 2001. Regal talks shit before the match about how he's the WWF Commissioner and Danielson should just give up; Danielson talks shit about Brits. The match goes about 8 minutes and is really fun. All the mat exchanges look awesome, and there are neat little selling things, like when Regal sells some arm stuff early on. Regal is fantastic throughout, sneering at the crowd, condescendingly applauding Danielson for an escape, etc. Danielson works well as the smaller, quicker opponent. It was crazy how much smaller he looks here than against Kingston. It's also interesting seeing him in this role: instead of working as the superior mat technician/best wrestler in the world, he works as the student who has something to prove. He fills the role well and looks shockingly quick at different points. Nothing super great, but it was really fun to see these two go at it. If they get a 10 minute match on Superstars this year or any time, I'll go wild.
Friday, September 24, 2010
WWE SUPERSTARS! (best show)
Goldust vs. Ted Dibiase - Superstars 9/2/2010
Goldust rules the world. He totally rocks Ted early on, and Ted's selling is good. He goes to the outside quick, and Maryse, who is awesome throughout the match, yells at Cole and King not to look at him. But Dustin's early shine period is the best thing ever: he rocks Ted with a nasty uppercut and hits some gorgeous arm drags and his fantastic butt bump, and Ted sells it all well. He's really at his best when he's bumping around and selling, and he takes a nice bump into the barricade. Transition to Ted's control is good, too: Maryse distracts, and Ted knocks Dust off the apron and to the ground, and then he smashes him face-first into the ring post. Ted's control stuff is fine. I don't think much of him on offense, but he hits that nice clothesline spot, and Goldust sells well throughout, and Maryse talks trash and looks great at ringside. Match picks up again when Dust starts his comeback. He always gets the crowd into it, and he hits his awesome kneeling uppercut spot, and his great snap powerslam, and everything he does is awesome. Really cool sequence where Dust counters Dream Street with this nifty throw, and then charges right into a flapjack. Legit great performance from Goldust, plus some fantastic selling by Ted, plus great stuff at ring side by Maryse. Really good little match.
Kofi Kingston vs. Chavo Guerrero - Superstars 9/2/2010
Kofi isn't very good, and his offense always stinks, but Chavo rules the goddam world in this match. Kofi hits a dragon screw early and throws some shitty kicks at Chavo's knee, but Chavo makes it look good, and he sells his ass of throughout the entire match, and all through his control segment. The transition spot is kinda neat: Chavo catches Kofi getting cute on the apron and sweeps his legs out from under him. Chavo's control is also cool, as he gets revenge by taking Kofi's knee out. He hits some really cool stuff, including a hilo to Kofi's legs. Also some really great cut-off spots, including his rolling Liger kick, and a cool counter to Kofi's flying cross-body where he essentially hits a codebreaker to Kofi's abdomen. Finish was actually really cool, too. Trouble in Paradise is a garbage move, but Kofi hits Chavo when he's on the top rope, and Chavo tumbles and it looks great. Another good little match. Kofi's offense drags down every match he's in, but his selling was mostly fine here, and Chavo's was really great. He's still selling the stuff from the beginning of the match at the end of the match, and Kofi goes back to the knee during his comebacks, which is really satisfying, and it's cool to see both guys selling knee work at the same time. Not as good as the Goldust/Dibiase match, but still really good, especially for a Kofi match. Chavo might be Kofi's best opponent.
William Regal vs. Goldust - Superstars 9/23/2010
They didn't get as much time as their last match, and it's definitely not as good as their last match, but this was still an awesome little contest. They go back-and-forth early with some really cool chain wrestling. Dust rocks Regal's arm in a kind of a revenge spot for Regal's arm work in the last match, and Regal comes back with some super nifty neck vice work. Goldust comes back and Regal goes to the outside to stalk Dust's rookie diva. Goldust chases him and tries to drag him back into the ring, but Regal trips him on the steps and then attacks Goldust's left leg. Really cool transition spot followed by really good leg work by Regal. Goldust's selling is really tremendous, and it's awesome to watch him hobble around trying to make his comebacks. It would've been nice if they'd had more time to work a finishing stretch, as the finish felt out-of-nowhere in a bad way. Still, great little match.
Goldust rules the world. He totally rocks Ted early on, and Ted's selling is good. He goes to the outside quick, and Maryse, who is awesome throughout the match, yells at Cole and King not to look at him. But Dustin's early shine period is the best thing ever: he rocks Ted with a nasty uppercut and hits some gorgeous arm drags and his fantastic butt bump, and Ted sells it all well. He's really at his best when he's bumping around and selling, and he takes a nice bump into the barricade. Transition to Ted's control is good, too: Maryse distracts, and Ted knocks Dust off the apron and to the ground, and then he smashes him face-first into the ring post. Ted's control stuff is fine. I don't think much of him on offense, but he hits that nice clothesline spot, and Goldust sells well throughout, and Maryse talks trash and looks great at ringside. Match picks up again when Dust starts his comeback. He always gets the crowd into it, and he hits his awesome kneeling uppercut spot, and his great snap powerslam, and everything he does is awesome. Really cool sequence where Dust counters Dream Street with this nifty throw, and then charges right into a flapjack. Legit great performance from Goldust, plus some fantastic selling by Ted, plus great stuff at ring side by Maryse. Really good little match.
Kofi Kingston vs. Chavo Guerrero - Superstars 9/2/2010
Kofi isn't very good, and his offense always stinks, but Chavo rules the goddam world in this match. Kofi hits a dragon screw early and throws some shitty kicks at Chavo's knee, but Chavo makes it look good, and he sells his ass of throughout the entire match, and all through his control segment. The transition spot is kinda neat: Chavo catches Kofi getting cute on the apron and sweeps his legs out from under him. Chavo's control is also cool, as he gets revenge by taking Kofi's knee out. He hits some really cool stuff, including a hilo to Kofi's legs. Also some really great cut-off spots, including his rolling Liger kick, and a cool counter to Kofi's flying cross-body where he essentially hits a codebreaker to Kofi's abdomen. Finish was actually really cool, too. Trouble in Paradise is a garbage move, but Kofi hits Chavo when he's on the top rope, and Chavo tumbles and it looks great. Another good little match. Kofi's offense drags down every match he's in, but his selling was mostly fine here, and Chavo's was really great. He's still selling the stuff from the beginning of the match at the end of the match, and Kofi goes back to the knee during his comebacks, which is really satisfying, and it's cool to see both guys selling knee work at the same time. Not as good as the Goldust/Dibiase match, but still really good, especially for a Kofi match. Chavo might be Kofi's best opponent.
William Regal vs. Goldust - Superstars 9/23/2010
They didn't get as much time as their last match, and it's definitely not as good as their last match, but this was still an awesome little contest. They go back-and-forth early with some really cool chain wrestling. Dust rocks Regal's arm in a kind of a revenge spot for Regal's arm work in the last match, and Regal comes back with some super nifty neck vice work. Goldust comes back and Regal goes to the outside to stalk Dust's rookie diva. Goldust chases him and tries to drag him back into the ring, but Regal trips him on the steps and then attacks Goldust's left leg. Really cool transition spot followed by really good leg work by Regal. Goldust's selling is really tremendous, and it's awesome to watch him hobble around trying to make his comebacks. It would've been nice if they'd had more time to work a finishing stretch, as the finish felt out-of-nowhere in a bad way. Still, great little match.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Continuation of the Random: Steamboat, Hardy, Finlay, :)
Ricky Steamboat vs. Jake Roberts - Boston Garden 8/9/1986
Watched this last night but didn't feel like writing anything afterward. Anyway, the match is awesome for all the reasons you'd expect a match between these two to be awesome. Match happens after THE DDT, so Steamboat comes out pissed and throwing wild karate that doesn't look great, but the crowd loves it anyway. Roberts blocks all his karate and then heels it up like a douche, grinning and talking and taunting and pointing to his head to let everyone know how smart he is. Steamboat rocks him for a while but ultimately hurts himself with his own aggression, as he whiffs on a strike and his the ring post. Roberts takes over and works the arm, and the control segment is really awesome. He uses the ring post some more, and Steamboat creates some good hope spots only for Roberts to go back to the arm to cut him off. Pretty sure Roberts got in a good hot shot spot, which set up a really great revenge spot for Steamboat, which Roberts sold brilliantly. Finish is interesting, as the ref bump prevented Roberts from getting a clean win and led to Steamboat winning by roll-up. Sort of odd to see a babyface winning that way, but that wasn't the only time they gave Steamboat a win that way. Anyway, this was a really great match and an easy recommendation. Among the best mid-80s midcard WWF matches I've seen-- nearly on par with the best of the Tito/Valentine series, and about as good as Savage/Steamboat from MLG and the awesome Savage/Santana matches. Maybe just a notch below those matches, but still great.
Bob Orton vs. Ricky Steamboat - Landover, MD - 7/20/1985
This was great, too, though a notch or two below the Roberts match. Orton has a loaded cast on his forearm, so they work some shtick around that for a while, and then Steamboat teases some karate blows, which Orton manages to dodge. Major pop when Steamboat finally catches Orton, and then there's a really awesome heel-in-peril segment where Steamboat tears at that arm, and Orton's selling is all great, and the crowd totally eats it up. I really love seeing segments like that in '80s WWF matches because crowds always go wild, and this segment was about as good as any from that era I've seen. Orton's facial expressions and selling are just really great. His transition to take control is great, too, as he takes a pretty whacky bump to the outside, and then he comes back to throw a soda in Steamboat's face. I didn't think Orton was as good on offense as he was in peril, but he was still good, and Steamboat was of course stellar as the FIP. His comebacks are all good, as are Orton's cutoffs. Finish is slightly disappointing, but not really a major detractor for this match. Really good and totally worth checking out.
Matt Hardy vs. Finlay - Smackdown 6/22/2007
Similar feel to the Kennedy match in the opening parts of this match, except it's better because Finlay is better than Kennedy. Finlay throws some really nasty strikes at Hardy, and Hardy sells them all expertly. All the holds and headlocks look snug and uncomfortable. As he tended to do at this time, Finlay took control on the outside, thanks to a distraction from Hornswoggle, which allowed him to hit a brutal clothesline. He works Matt over for a bit, but the match really takes off when Matt, trying to mount a comeback, goes to the second rope. Finlay catches him and yanks him off, and Matt lands on his knee, and JBL/Cole tell us he's been having knee problems, and Finlay evidently knows that because he just tears into Matt's knee. I mean, as soon as I saw Matt grab his knee, I knew the match would be good because Matt can sell his ass off and Finlay can rip a dude's limbs off, but it exceeded my already high expectations. Finlay just goes nutso, using his environment and a variety of holds and blows that all look stellar, and Matt sells the knee as well as I've seen anyone sell a knee injury. Seriously, I thought he was about as good as Savage at Mania 8, and I thought this match was about as good as Savage/Flair (though it didn't have all the extravagance/drama at ringside). Just a brutal and manly match with tremendous selling, plus a pretty awesome finish.
Finlay vs. The Undertaker - Smackdown 3/9/2007
Another tremendous TV match, here. Taker rocks Finlay early on, doing his usual arm wringer/shoulder thrust combo, except it looks extra rough and rugged here, and Finlay's sell is awesome. Finlay takes control on the outside thanks to a distraction from Hornswoggle, which allows him to whack Taker in the ribs with a chair. Then we get really good rib work from Finlay, and some really good selling from Taker. On the whole, I didn't think Taker's rib selling was as good as Hardy's knee selling, but there were some standout moments. He catches Finlay trying to dive off the apron, and then he clutches at his ribs while holding Finlay, before driving his back into the ring post. Then he goes for an Irish whip into the steps, but his ribs prevent him from pulling it off, so Finlay counters it and sends Taker rib-first into the steps. Awesome moment. As you'd expect and want, all of Finlay's stuff goes back to the injured ribs. Taker does continue to sell during his comeback, though his selling gets slightly weaker: he hits his moves and then sells rather than selling while hitting his moves, as he had done earlier in the match. Finishing stretch starts out strong, as Finlay takes advantage of a distraction from Hornswoggle to thump Taker in the ribs and face with the shillelagh. Then Taker sits up and hits his big moves and wins. Pretty meh-ish finish, but still a great match. Thought Finlay/Hardy was better, though.
I still love wrestling.
Watched this last night but didn't feel like writing anything afterward. Anyway, the match is awesome for all the reasons you'd expect a match between these two to be awesome. Match happens after THE DDT, so Steamboat comes out pissed and throwing wild karate that doesn't look great, but the crowd loves it anyway. Roberts blocks all his karate and then heels it up like a douche, grinning and talking and taunting and pointing to his head to let everyone know how smart he is. Steamboat rocks him for a while but ultimately hurts himself with his own aggression, as he whiffs on a strike and his the ring post. Roberts takes over and works the arm, and the control segment is really awesome. He uses the ring post some more, and Steamboat creates some good hope spots only for Roberts to go back to the arm to cut him off. Pretty sure Roberts got in a good hot shot spot, which set up a really great revenge spot for Steamboat, which Roberts sold brilliantly. Finish is interesting, as the ref bump prevented Roberts from getting a clean win and led to Steamboat winning by roll-up. Sort of odd to see a babyface winning that way, but that wasn't the only time they gave Steamboat a win that way. Anyway, this was a really great match and an easy recommendation. Among the best mid-80s midcard WWF matches I've seen-- nearly on par with the best of the Tito/Valentine series, and about as good as Savage/Steamboat from MLG and the awesome Savage/Santana matches. Maybe just a notch below those matches, but still great.
Bob Orton vs. Ricky Steamboat - Landover, MD - 7/20/1985
This was great, too, though a notch or two below the Roberts match. Orton has a loaded cast on his forearm, so they work some shtick around that for a while, and then Steamboat teases some karate blows, which Orton manages to dodge. Major pop when Steamboat finally catches Orton, and then there's a really awesome heel-in-peril segment where Steamboat tears at that arm, and Orton's selling is all great, and the crowd totally eats it up. I really love seeing segments like that in '80s WWF matches because crowds always go wild, and this segment was about as good as any from that era I've seen. Orton's facial expressions and selling are just really great. His transition to take control is great, too, as he takes a pretty whacky bump to the outside, and then he comes back to throw a soda in Steamboat's face. I didn't think Orton was as good on offense as he was in peril, but he was still good, and Steamboat was of course stellar as the FIP. His comebacks are all good, as are Orton's cutoffs. Finish is slightly disappointing, but not really a major detractor for this match. Really good and totally worth checking out.
Matt Hardy vs. Finlay - Smackdown 6/22/2007
Similar feel to the Kennedy match in the opening parts of this match, except it's better because Finlay is better than Kennedy. Finlay throws some really nasty strikes at Hardy, and Hardy sells them all expertly. All the holds and headlocks look snug and uncomfortable. As he tended to do at this time, Finlay took control on the outside, thanks to a distraction from Hornswoggle, which allowed him to hit a brutal clothesline. He works Matt over for a bit, but the match really takes off when Matt, trying to mount a comeback, goes to the second rope. Finlay catches him and yanks him off, and Matt lands on his knee, and JBL/Cole tell us he's been having knee problems, and Finlay evidently knows that because he just tears into Matt's knee. I mean, as soon as I saw Matt grab his knee, I knew the match would be good because Matt can sell his ass off and Finlay can rip a dude's limbs off, but it exceeded my already high expectations. Finlay just goes nutso, using his environment and a variety of holds and blows that all look stellar, and Matt sells the knee as well as I've seen anyone sell a knee injury. Seriously, I thought he was about as good as Savage at Mania 8, and I thought this match was about as good as Savage/Flair (though it didn't have all the extravagance/drama at ringside). Just a brutal and manly match with tremendous selling, plus a pretty awesome finish.
Finlay vs. The Undertaker - Smackdown 3/9/2007
Another tremendous TV match, here. Taker rocks Finlay early on, doing his usual arm wringer/shoulder thrust combo, except it looks extra rough and rugged here, and Finlay's sell is awesome. Finlay takes control on the outside thanks to a distraction from Hornswoggle, which allows him to whack Taker in the ribs with a chair. Then we get really good rib work from Finlay, and some really good selling from Taker. On the whole, I didn't think Taker's rib selling was as good as Hardy's knee selling, but there were some standout moments. He catches Finlay trying to dive off the apron, and then he clutches at his ribs while holding Finlay, before driving his back into the ring post. Then he goes for an Irish whip into the steps, but his ribs prevent him from pulling it off, so Finlay counters it and sends Taker rib-first into the steps. Awesome moment. As you'd expect and want, all of Finlay's stuff goes back to the injured ribs. Taker does continue to sell during his comeback, though his selling gets slightly weaker: he hits his moves and then sells rather than selling while hitting his moves, as he had done earlier in the match. Finishing stretch starts out strong, as Finlay takes advantage of a distraction from Hornswoggle to thump Taker in the ribs and face with the shillelagh. Then Taker sits up and hits his big moves and wins. Pretty meh-ish finish, but still a great match. Thought Finlay/Hardy was better, though.
I still love wrestling.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Aimless Rant: I LOVE WRESTLING
Mr. Kennedy vs. Matt Hardy - Smackdown 5/4/2007
I remember Cal making a comment in a review of a Kennedy/Taker match about how Kennedy always worked kinda awkward-looking in his mat exchanges and holds and stuff like that. Not awkward-looking in a bad way, but awkward-looking in a way that makes the stuff seem more organic and realistic, like they're really struggling. That's what we see early on here-- they really just do some basic headlock exchanges, but it comes across really well thanks to great facial expressions from both guys, and they both just look like they're working so damn hard to get into and out of these holds. They don't deliver gorgeous, textbook Benoit/Angle-esque exchanges; they deliver a bunch of ugly but snug matwork, and then Kennedy throws a good elbow, and Matt's sell is even better, and they exchange some strikes and Kennedy's nose gets busted open, and then Kennedy takes a realistic and ugly-looking bump to the outside. The whole match looks like an ugly fight. Kennedy works the arm for a bit, and Matt's selling is really tremendous. The arm work doesn't last long enough for the selling to become a focal point, but it's noticeably great.
But Matt Hardy's punches are the best part of the match. Seriously, they look insanely good. All his comebacks are well-timed, and the crowd eats them all up because he's Matt Hardy, and he really doesn't do much other than throw these ridiculous fucking punches. I could watch Matt Hardy punch bad guys in the face forever. Kennedy gets in some awesome cutoff spots, including a nasty running knee, and a cool spot where he tosses Matt off when Matt's going for his bulldog spot.
But Matt is definitely the star-- he was a legit great worker at this point-- with awesome facial expressions while he's caught in holds, and fantastic selling, and really tremendous punches.
Just a really good TV match that felt like a total slugfest and looked like a nasty brawl between two tough bastards.
I remember Cal making a comment in a review of a Kennedy/Taker match about how Kennedy always worked kinda awkward-looking in his mat exchanges and holds and stuff like that. Not awkward-looking in a bad way, but awkward-looking in a way that makes the stuff seem more organic and realistic, like they're really struggling. That's what we see early on here-- they really just do some basic headlock exchanges, but it comes across really well thanks to great facial expressions from both guys, and they both just look like they're working so damn hard to get into and out of these holds. They don't deliver gorgeous, textbook Benoit/Angle-esque exchanges; they deliver a bunch of ugly but snug matwork, and then Kennedy throws a good elbow, and Matt's sell is even better, and they exchange some strikes and Kennedy's nose gets busted open, and then Kennedy takes a realistic and ugly-looking bump to the outside. The whole match looks like an ugly fight. Kennedy works the arm for a bit, and Matt's selling is really tremendous. The arm work doesn't last long enough for the selling to become a focal point, but it's noticeably great.
But Matt Hardy's punches are the best part of the match. Seriously, they look insanely good. All his comebacks are well-timed, and the crowd eats them all up because he's Matt Hardy, and he really doesn't do much other than throw these ridiculous fucking punches. I could watch Matt Hardy punch bad guys in the face forever. Kennedy gets in some awesome cutoff spots, including a nasty running knee, and a cool spot where he tosses Matt off when Matt's going for his bulldog spot.
But Matt is definitely the star-- he was a legit great worker at this point-- with awesome facial expressions while he's caught in holds, and fantastic selling, and really tremendous punches.
Just a really good TV match that felt like a total slugfest and looked like a nasty brawl between two tough bastards.
Randy Orton vs. Eddie Guerrero - Smackdown 10/14/2005
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvQFi...BB9A7&index=15
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztfPNd8uQ0w
Had no idea this ever happened, but I'm glad I caught it because it turns out it was a really fun little 10-minute gem. Happened just after No Mercy, where Eddie lost a title match against Batista after spending the whole match refusing to cheat and take any shortcuts. So, the match opens with some fine exchanges-- we know from his series with Benoit that Orton could work stiff and snug, and though this doesn't match the manliness of those matches, both guys throw some really good uppercuts. But it really gets fun when Orton pokes Eddie in the eye, provoking Eddie to start cheating. He hits an eye poke of his own and chokes Randy with the tag rope and it's great: nice revenge spot with the eye poke, and good character development in general. Randy hits a beautiful dropkick right before the break to take control. I normally wouldn't bother to recap a dropkick, but ya'll really need to see this one. Right in the goddam face. Orton's control stuff is fine and his headlocks look better than usual. Really great cutoff spot where, after hitting a backbreaker (which Orton sold really well), Eddie charges, only to get caught with a drop toe hold. Eddie just launches himself full-throttle into the middle rope, and it looks great. Randy goes for multiple pins but can't win, so he takes Eddie to the outside and smashes his face on the announce table. As before, dirty stuff from Orton prompts dirty revenge stuff from Eddie. Orton sells having his face smashed into the table even better than he sold the backbreaker from earlier. There's even more good stuff, as Eddie gets launched arm-first into the steps, and then they work a good sleeper spot, and then Eddie makes a really fiery comeback, throwing a zillion elbows into Orton's ribs to get out of the sleeper.
Finish is pretty disappointing, but it is what it is. Really nifty match for the most part, and it's definitely worth checking out. A legit program between these two could've been really special.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvQFi...BB9A7&index=15
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztfPNd8uQ0w
Had no idea this ever happened, but I'm glad I caught it because it turns out it was a really fun little 10-minute gem. Happened just after No Mercy, where Eddie lost a title match against Batista after spending the whole match refusing to cheat and take any shortcuts. So, the match opens with some fine exchanges-- we know from his series with Benoit that Orton could work stiff and snug, and though this doesn't match the manliness of those matches, both guys throw some really good uppercuts. But it really gets fun when Orton pokes Eddie in the eye, provoking Eddie to start cheating. He hits an eye poke of his own and chokes Randy with the tag rope and it's great: nice revenge spot with the eye poke, and good character development in general. Randy hits a beautiful dropkick right before the break to take control. I normally wouldn't bother to recap a dropkick, but ya'll really need to see this one. Right in the goddam face. Orton's control stuff is fine and his headlocks look better than usual. Really great cutoff spot where, after hitting a backbreaker (which Orton sold really well), Eddie charges, only to get caught with a drop toe hold. Eddie just launches himself full-throttle into the middle rope, and it looks great. Randy goes for multiple pins but can't win, so he takes Eddie to the outside and smashes his face on the announce table. As before, dirty stuff from Orton prompts dirty revenge stuff from Eddie. Orton sells having his face smashed into the table even better than he sold the backbreaker from earlier. There's even more good stuff, as Eddie gets launched arm-first into the steps, and then they work a good sleeper spot, and then Eddie makes a really fiery comeback, throwing a zillion elbows into Orton's ribs to get out of the sleeper.
Finish is pretty disappointing, but it is what it is. Really nifty match for the most part, and it's definitely worth checking out. A legit program between these two could've been really special.
Cactus Jack vs. Sting - Submit or Surrender - 11/16/1991
Right, so the youtube thing says this is an "I Quit" match, but they tease a 10-count KO spot, and they eventually go with a KO finish. Not that that's a knock or anything, but they don't quite deliver on the "Submit or Surrender" tag. Doesn't matter, though, because this match is really great. Don't remember the Beach Blast match well enough to say whether I thought this was better or not, but I know I liked both a lot. Foley is really great at taking dudes who aren't comfortable in "hardcore"-type environments and making them look great in a brand-new element, and that's just what he does here, resulting in an uber-fun brawl. Foley comes out with a trash can, wearing a Sting shirt that's all torn up and has a big "X" on it. Love little crazy man stuff like that from Foley. There's also a moment where he hits sting with a chair and then he kisses the chair. Awesome.
Right, so the youtube thing says this is an "I Quit" match, but they tease a 10-count KO spot, and they eventually go with a KO finish. Not that that's a knock or anything, but they don't quite deliver on the "Submit or Surrender" tag. Doesn't matter, though, because this match is really great. Don't remember the Beach Blast match well enough to say whether I thought this was better or not, but I know I liked both a lot. Foley is really great at taking dudes who aren't comfortable in "hardcore"-type environments and making them look great in a brand-new element, and that's just what he does here, resulting in an uber-fun brawl. Foley comes out with a trash can, wearing a Sting shirt that's all torn up and has a big "X" on it. Love little crazy man stuff like that from Foley. There's also a moment where he hits sting with a chair and then he kisses the chair. Awesome.
Anyway, match is mostly Foley. He rocks Sting early but then he whiffs on a clothesline and tumbles to the outside with that awesome over-the-top rope bump he takes. Sting smashes Foley's face around on the outside, and then he beats him up with a rubber trash can. I could complain about a rubber trash can being a garbage weapon (PUN!!!!), but it was kid-friendly Sting in 91 WCW, so whatever. And a top-rope splash onto a trash can that's over Foley's head actually seems like it would hurt both guys, maybe. Foley's transition spot to take control is really great: Sting whips him to the ropes and goes for a leapfrog, but Foley headbutts him in the nads. Then he hits a leg drop on Sting's nads and dares the ref to do something about it. Foley tosses Sting around for a while, and Sting takes some great-looking stuff. There's an awesome hope spot/cutoff exchange where Sting goes for a splash in the corner but misses. He catches himself and tries to come off the top rope only for Foley to catch him and hit a hot shot on the top rope. Hot shot spot wasn't the best-looking thing ever (not even half as good as the hot shot spot from Bourne/Ryder from 5/27/10, for example), but the whole exchange came off really well and looked fluid.
And then there's the chair stuff on the outside, and a pretty great finishing sequence where Foley takes something crazy that looked reckless and dangerous and slick. Awesome little match, probably ****-ish.
Jerry Lawler vs. Bill Dundee - Memphis 12/30/1985 (Dundee's title & hair & wife's hair vs. Lawler leaving town)
Lengthy build-up video shows Dundee turning on his tag partner, Lawler, and then goading him into a title match and then winning using some foreign object, and then bragging about how he got to face Flair, the world's champion, and then refusing to give Lawler a rematch. Lawler threatens to bust up his car to get a rematch; Lawler turns into an alcoholic; Dundee laughs, and we're to the match.
Lawler comes out with a big eye bandage because of something that had happened in an earlier match. It makes for a really great visual as the bandage looks all bloody and stuff, and Lawler sells semi-blindness brilliantly, especially in the early parts of the match. He whiffs on all sorts of punches and it just looks great. Dundee dominates the first half of the match. It's literally ALL Dundee, and it works great. He dances around and heels it up and hides in Lawler's blind spot, and he throws really fantastic punches, and Lawler's selling is even better. The match is mostly punches, and the fact that it comes off as one of the best matches ever anyway is a testament to the quality of both guys' characters and selling. Lawler-in-peril is really great. The fans clearly love him, and he draws sympathy really well, and Dundee comes across as a total dickbag.
The transition to Lawler's comeback is great, too-- he bounces off the rope after taking a ten-minute long beating and throws this wild punch that miraculously connected. Dundee's sell was great, but I totally loved how Lawler threw the punch: it looked like the desperate effort of a blind dude who was in a bad way, and it seemed like the punch had about a one-in-a-million chance at connecting as well as it did. Then they go to commercial, which was probably my only problem with the match. I felt like I missed something important. They come back and Lawler throws Dundee into a bench, which looks reckless and great, and then they tease a countout. Dundee grabs his wife and tries to run away to save their hair, but Lawler chases, and they punch each other through the crowd, and it all looks great. Then Lawler goes up some stairs and gets thrown over the rail and onto the ground. Not sure what he landed on because they didn't cut to it, but it looked like a really wild spot. That whole sequence was awesome, from Dundee being a shitbag heel, to Lawler refusing to take what would have essentially been a forfeit, to the brawl, to the bump, to the teased countout-- Dundee literally drags the ref back to the ring to make him count-- to Lawler returning with blood all over his face, looking like a madman. He takes some punches and yells and comes back and rocks Dundee all over the place, and I'm totally into it, like, "Fuck yeah, Lawler's gonna rock this dude and it's gonna be great."
But then they call back to the match where Dundee won the strap as he comes out of a corner with some object, and I'm crushed, and then I imagine what the folks in Memphis must have been feeling. I mean, Lawler was a goddam superhero, and then he had to leave because some fuck head cheated. I mean, he was about to win, and then BOOM. He's gone.
Fuck Bill Dundee.
Great match. Infinite stars. Not really sure where I'd rate this on an all-time-ish list, mainly because I haven't seen enough 80s stuff. But if this had happened in the WWF and I'd watched it for the poll, it would've been a lock for my top 20, and it would've had a good shot at my top 10. Both guys were just great in their roles, and the atmosphere was great, and the selling was top-notch, and the structure was flawless, and the finish was as heartbreaking as the fall of a hero should be.
Lengthy build-up video shows Dundee turning on his tag partner, Lawler, and then goading him into a title match and then winning using some foreign object, and then bragging about how he got to face Flair, the world's champion, and then refusing to give Lawler a rematch. Lawler threatens to bust up his car to get a rematch; Lawler turns into an alcoholic; Dundee laughs, and we're to the match.
Lawler comes out with a big eye bandage because of something that had happened in an earlier match. It makes for a really great visual as the bandage looks all bloody and stuff, and Lawler sells semi-blindness brilliantly, especially in the early parts of the match. He whiffs on all sorts of punches and it just looks great. Dundee dominates the first half of the match. It's literally ALL Dundee, and it works great. He dances around and heels it up and hides in Lawler's blind spot, and he throws really fantastic punches, and Lawler's selling is even better. The match is mostly punches, and the fact that it comes off as one of the best matches ever anyway is a testament to the quality of both guys' characters and selling. Lawler-in-peril is really great. The fans clearly love him, and he draws sympathy really well, and Dundee comes across as a total dickbag.
The transition to Lawler's comeback is great, too-- he bounces off the rope after taking a ten-minute long beating and throws this wild punch that miraculously connected. Dundee's sell was great, but I totally loved how Lawler threw the punch: it looked like the desperate effort of a blind dude who was in a bad way, and it seemed like the punch had about a one-in-a-million chance at connecting as well as it did. Then they go to commercial, which was probably my only problem with the match. I felt like I missed something important. They come back and Lawler throws Dundee into a bench, which looks reckless and great, and then they tease a countout. Dundee grabs his wife and tries to run away to save their hair, but Lawler chases, and they punch each other through the crowd, and it all looks great. Then Lawler goes up some stairs and gets thrown over the rail and onto the ground. Not sure what he landed on because they didn't cut to it, but it looked like a really wild spot. That whole sequence was awesome, from Dundee being a shitbag heel, to Lawler refusing to take what would have essentially been a forfeit, to the brawl, to the bump, to the teased countout-- Dundee literally drags the ref back to the ring to make him count-- to Lawler returning with blood all over his face, looking like a madman. He takes some punches and yells and comes back and rocks Dundee all over the place, and I'm totally into it, like, "Fuck yeah, Lawler's gonna rock this dude and it's gonna be great."
But then they call back to the match where Dundee won the strap as he comes out of a corner with some object, and I'm crushed, and then I imagine what the folks in Memphis must have been feeling. I mean, Lawler was a goddam superhero, and then he had to leave because some fuck head cheated. I mean, he was about to win, and then BOOM. He's gone.
Fuck Bill Dundee.
Great match. Infinite stars. Not really sure where I'd rate this on an all-time-ish list, mainly because I haven't seen enough 80s stuff. But if this had happened in the WWF and I'd watched it for the poll, it would've been a lock for my top 20, and it would've had a good shot at my top 10. Both guys were just great in their roles, and the atmosphere was great, and the selling was top-notch, and the structure was flawless, and the finish was as heartbreaking as the fall of a hero should be.
Low-Ki vs. American Dragon - Submission Match - JAPW 6/7/02
Man, this was cool. It's a submission match, so they go to the mat and trade holds for most of the thing. I'm not going to bother trying to recap the holds because there was a bunch of stuff I'd never seen before, but it all looks awesome and painful. The camera work really helps, which is surprising considering it's obviously a low-budget deal. But there's just a single camera, no commentary, and the camera man gets in close and low to the mat so you can really see the stiffness of the mat work and the holds. It helps that both guys are willing to get stretched, and both guys bring some great facial expressions, and both guys grunt and yell really well, so you get a sense that all of the holds hurt a lot. There isn't much body part focus, which means selling isn't a huge issue, aside from the immediate reactions to holds, which are all awesome. And the lack of body part focus isn't a knock at all-- it actually makes the match come across as more organic. It really feels like they're looking for the upper-hand on the mat, taking whatever openings they get because they both know a handful of holds that'll make a guy submit without any build, as long as they get it locked in in the middle of the ring. Naturally, the ropes come into play a lot. And there are some really stiff strike exchanges, and there's an awesome moment where Dragon locks in an STF and just starts throwing forearms at the back of Ki's head. Just tons of awesome little stuff like that throughout to make the 20 minutes fly by. Seriously, the forearms looked totally nasty. Everything in this match just looks nasty, like they're really trying to fuck each other up.
Stiff and manly and totally worth watching. I'm not an expert on stuff like this, but I thought it was great, and it looked legit, and I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it.
Man, this was cool. It's a submission match, so they go to the mat and trade holds for most of the thing. I'm not going to bother trying to recap the holds because there was a bunch of stuff I'd never seen before, but it all looks awesome and painful. The camera work really helps, which is surprising considering it's obviously a low-budget deal. But there's just a single camera, no commentary, and the camera man gets in close and low to the mat so you can really see the stiffness of the mat work and the holds. It helps that both guys are willing to get stretched, and both guys bring some great facial expressions, and both guys grunt and yell really well, so you get a sense that all of the holds hurt a lot. There isn't much body part focus, which means selling isn't a huge issue, aside from the immediate reactions to holds, which are all awesome. And the lack of body part focus isn't a knock at all-- it actually makes the match come across as more organic. It really feels like they're looking for the upper-hand on the mat, taking whatever openings they get because they both know a handful of holds that'll make a guy submit without any build, as long as they get it locked in in the middle of the ring. Naturally, the ropes come into play a lot. And there are some really stiff strike exchanges, and there's an awesome moment where Dragon locks in an STF and just starts throwing forearms at the back of Ki's head. Just tons of awesome little stuff like that throughout to make the 20 minutes fly by. Seriously, the forearms looked totally nasty. Everything in this match just looks nasty, like they're really trying to fuck each other up.
Stiff and manly and totally worth watching. I'm not an expert on stuff like this, but I thought it was great, and it looked legit, and I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen it.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Night of Champions 2010
Kofi Kingston vs. Dolph Ziggler
I thought this match was really good. These two have great chemistry, but their series of matches is probably doomed to get overlooked and lost in the shuffle because they needlessly had a zillion matches in a span of two months, and I think everyone started to get worn out. I know I don't want to revisit any of those matches even though I'm fairly certain if I did I'd end up putting one of their earlier matches in my top 40 for the year. But this was maybe the best of the batch, or at least among the best. Kofi is garbage on offense, but you don't notice it when he works with Ziggler because Dolph is a guy who bumps well and is willing to toss himself around to make garbage look decent. There were a whole bunch of nifty counters throughout this match that looked surprisingly fluid given Kofi's general ineptitude. They also made good use of the stipulations (title would change hands on a DQ or a countout), with a couple teased countout spots, and a moment where Vickie nearly slapped Kofi. Dolph stopped her to prevent a DQ, but it also reminded me of the time she slapped Kofi and Kofi went apeshit and destroyed Dolph.
Crowd was really great throughout this match. They were totally into it, and there was this great moment where Kofi hit that secondary finisher of his and Dolph barely got his foot on the ropes. Folks didn't notice it, and Kofi got a huge pop for the false win. Also, finishing stretch was great. Kofi busting out the sleeper was good, the teased Vickie slap was good, and though I think Trouble in Paradise is a garbage finisher, it looks great when Kofi whiffs and hits the ropes. This match will probably get slept on by most, and rightfully so, as these two have really had way too many matches together, and they've all blurred together. But this was still a good little opener.
***
Punk's promo before his match with Show was fantastic. Too bad King and Cole had to snicker the whole fucking time. Children.
Big Show vs. CM Punk
I was disappointed this match got less than 5 minutes. I was also disappointed that Punk lost. But he still looked awesome in this, and the match was about as good as it could've been considering the time they got. His selling was fantastic in the early parts of the match. Really made Show's punches to the ribs look awesome. And then Punk catches Show coming back into the ring with a nasty kick to the head, and he gets some really good control stuff. It's tough for a guy Punk's size to make a control segment on a guy the size of Big Show look legit, but Punk does it, throwing lots of really good kicks. Punk does facial expressions as well as anyone, and he's definitely on-point here. Finish was cool, but too abrupt. And Punk needed the win here.
Not going to slap a star rating on it, but it was very good for what it was.
The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan
Build-up video for this match was really awesome. The whole angle has been awesome, and these two were really perfect for a feud with each other. The match itself is legit great, too. Top 5 WWE match this year. Danielson is probably the best guy in the company (and world, maybe), and Miz really showed how good he can be. Should silence a lot of Miz critics. Miz is a guy who has been really good for a while, and he has a pretty impressive skill set and a good grasp on how to work a match, but for whatever reason, he hasn't had the opportunities to put together enough good matches to build a resume that's as impressive as his ability level. Now he has a match that people can point to where he legit looks awesome.
Early exchanges are good, and Bryan teases the LeBell Lock, putting it over as a dangerous submission. Miz takes control quickly by yanking Bryan's arm against the ropes. Good spot for Miz to take control, and his arm work is really great, too. Bryan's selling is even better, and his facial expressions are great, too. Really, this match is pretty much perfect. I don't want to spend too much time talking about it because it might come across as hyperbole, but whatever. Miz always goes back to the arm whenever Daniel starts to get rolling. He throws a lot of good boots to the arm, and all of his holds look good. Then he charges and whiffs and goes through the ropes and Bryan hits that whacky suicide dive he hit against Jericho, and then he gets up and looks at the crowd, and it's just refreshing how much intensity he brings. He sells his arm the whole time, and he even conveys desperation, throwing together a quick string of reckless offense to trying to get the quick win. Awesome little touch after he hits his missile dropkick: rather than kipping up like he normally does, he immediately goes for the pin, showing that he wanted to win and get out of there quickly. Bryan throws a whole lot of stiff kicks, and Miz eats them. Their punch exchanges look good, and they're helped by the fact that Bryan sells the arm injury throughout. Miz does a great job of seeming intense and determined because he definitely had something to prove in this match. Awesome touch where he tries to force Bryan to submit with an armbar, and he yells at him to tap out and all that. Just more evidence of how well Miz is fitting into his character. Riley was great at ringside, too, interfering at the right moments. Also, Miz busted out a Nigel-esque lariat from the second rope after crotching Bryan on the top rope. That was great. Plus, the near-falls were fantastic, and the crowd was red-hot. Chicago is fucking awesome, apparently.
Finish was great, too. Miz looks pissed and furious, throwing these really good mounting punches. The ref pulls him away twice, and each time, he sneaks in a couple extra boots to the injured arm, just to show how vicious he is. But then he comes back, and Bryan gets the LeBell lock out of nowhere. Miz never really had an answer for that move, and he can't get to the ropes even though he's already close. Bryan's facial expression is great, too, as it really looks like he's tearing his own arm apart to lock the move in. Totally dramatic finish, as I really wasn't certain if Bryan's arm would prevent him from keeping it locked in, or if Miz would make it to the ropes, or if he would tap. They totally had me thinking that if Miz could have held on for just a second longer, he could've escaped the hold.
Pop for Bryan winning was really incredible. Bryan Danielson winning gold in the WWE was surreal and inspirational and great. Legit MOTYC
****, at least. I'd go higher before I'd go lower.
Melina vs. Michelle McCool
Man, the lumberjills were really terrible. Camera work was bizarrely non-sensical, too, as they didn't get a single close-up of Layla looking grumpy. The story of the match should've been that LayCool were feigning dissension to trick Melina so Layla could interfere and help Michelle win, but none of that came across. Instead, the whole match was a mess, and Layla and McCool came across as the only competent divas in the whole company. But they were both awesome. Layla was great, standing to the side with her arms folded across her chest. Michelle was awesome, too, heeling it up and slapping lumberjills in the face for no reason. But everything else was sloppy and silly, and there's this ridiculously funny moment where Rosa acts like she's going to punch Jillian for no reason, and then she doesn't hit her, and then they walk away together.
At least LayCool won. Really awesome celebration. Junk match.
Kane vs. The Undertaker
The NHB stip definitely helped here. I don't give a shit about Kane and think he's generally garbage, but he brought his best for this match, and as a result, we got something really fun and surprisingly fresh, considering it was another chapter in a feud that's been done too many times before. I wouldn't say this is something that was up my alley, and I'd definitely say it's more fun than good, but still, that's more than I expected. The crowd definitely helped, as they were going nuts for Taker. Better strikes from Kane would've helped, but whatever. This angle has given Taker more chances to show how good he can be at portraying a human rather than a monster zombie, and he's definitely good. Kane winning clean was sort of refreshing, and though I generally wouldn't be excited about a prolonged reign for Kane and another match for these two, a HIAC match seems fitting, so I won't complain. I might actually watch this again at some point, as I'd like to get a better assessment of it. I typically tend to dislike crowd brawling stuff, but it all went well here and looked good and everything, and the match was around ***-ish.
TAG TEAM TURMOIL
Harts got eliminated in 2 minutes? Wtf? Silliness. Usos aren't very good. Santino/Koslov were crazy over. Mizark was crazy over. Bourne looked great. Bourne/Henry would be a great tag team, I hope they let them work together full-time. Both guys need something to do, so they might as well help the tag team division. The closing stretch, between Cody/Drew & Mark/Evan, was really good. I hope they do a rematch with just those two teams, as that could be legit awesome.
As for this match, it was too much of a mess to really like a lot. Fuck if I know why they didn't include 2 of their 4 or 5 real tag teams (don't know if Koslov/Santino count) in this match. But I think the right guys came away with the belts, and Drew & Cody both looked really good, Drew especially. Bourne looked even better.
6-Pack Challenge for the WWE Championship
Really hard to rate a match like this. As expected, there was a ton of stupid isolation shit where dudes stood on the outside to wait for an encounter to finish. Stuff like that always hurts the cred of these types of matches, but this was still fun. The early elimination of Jericho surprised me. He has fallen off a lot this year, but I'll still miss him. I think he has one more good babyface run in him. I think he may return to do something with the GM angle. His facial expression after elimination was great. Jericho still does faces really well.
As for the rest of the match... Well, there were the frustrating isolation bits we've come to expect in these deals. There were also great, fun, finisher/counter exchanges, which came across even better thanks to the red hot crowd. They teased some Orton/Cena stuff and then delivered a brief exchange, which was nice, but it would've been even better had they not done that match for free on Raw.
Barrett's reaction to getting ganged up on was great, as was his attempt to give orders for some beatdowns. The Nexus interference was well-timed, too, and Barrett pinning Cena was a nice touch. Cena womping on some Nexus dudes with a chair was cool, too, and it gave Orton the chance to work his raging pterodactyl-shtick, which is always fun and shockingly over. I guess Orton winning was fine, though I don't know why they had to let him dominate everyone on Raw for the last 3 weeks before winning the title. Fuck, the dude's already wildly over.
So yeah, the match wasn't something I'd bother throwing ninja stars at because it's probably going to be one of those divisive things, where you either dig that sort of thing or you don't. But it is what it is, and for what it is, I thought it was fun, maybe even good.
Good show overall, with Bryan/Miz standing out as a legit classic.
I thought this match was really good. These two have great chemistry, but their series of matches is probably doomed to get overlooked and lost in the shuffle because they needlessly had a zillion matches in a span of two months, and I think everyone started to get worn out. I know I don't want to revisit any of those matches even though I'm fairly certain if I did I'd end up putting one of their earlier matches in my top 40 for the year. But this was maybe the best of the batch, or at least among the best. Kofi is garbage on offense, but you don't notice it when he works with Ziggler because Dolph is a guy who bumps well and is willing to toss himself around to make garbage look decent. There were a whole bunch of nifty counters throughout this match that looked surprisingly fluid given Kofi's general ineptitude. They also made good use of the stipulations (title would change hands on a DQ or a countout), with a couple teased countout spots, and a moment where Vickie nearly slapped Kofi. Dolph stopped her to prevent a DQ, but it also reminded me of the time she slapped Kofi and Kofi went apeshit and destroyed Dolph.
Crowd was really great throughout this match. They were totally into it, and there was this great moment where Kofi hit that secondary finisher of his and Dolph barely got his foot on the ropes. Folks didn't notice it, and Kofi got a huge pop for the false win. Also, finishing stretch was great. Kofi busting out the sleeper was good, the teased Vickie slap was good, and though I think Trouble in Paradise is a garbage finisher, it looks great when Kofi whiffs and hits the ropes. This match will probably get slept on by most, and rightfully so, as these two have really had way too many matches together, and they've all blurred together. But this was still a good little opener.
***
Punk's promo before his match with Show was fantastic. Too bad King and Cole had to snicker the whole fucking time. Children.
Big Show vs. CM Punk
I was disappointed this match got less than 5 minutes. I was also disappointed that Punk lost. But he still looked awesome in this, and the match was about as good as it could've been considering the time they got. His selling was fantastic in the early parts of the match. Really made Show's punches to the ribs look awesome. And then Punk catches Show coming back into the ring with a nasty kick to the head, and he gets some really good control stuff. It's tough for a guy Punk's size to make a control segment on a guy the size of Big Show look legit, but Punk does it, throwing lots of really good kicks. Punk does facial expressions as well as anyone, and he's definitely on-point here. Finish was cool, but too abrupt. And Punk needed the win here.
Not going to slap a star rating on it, but it was very good for what it was.
The Miz vs. Daniel Bryan
Build-up video for this match was really awesome. The whole angle has been awesome, and these two were really perfect for a feud with each other. The match itself is legit great, too. Top 5 WWE match this year. Danielson is probably the best guy in the company (and world, maybe), and Miz really showed how good he can be. Should silence a lot of Miz critics. Miz is a guy who has been really good for a while, and he has a pretty impressive skill set and a good grasp on how to work a match, but for whatever reason, he hasn't had the opportunities to put together enough good matches to build a resume that's as impressive as his ability level. Now he has a match that people can point to where he legit looks awesome.
Early exchanges are good, and Bryan teases the LeBell Lock, putting it over as a dangerous submission. Miz takes control quickly by yanking Bryan's arm against the ropes. Good spot for Miz to take control, and his arm work is really great, too. Bryan's selling is even better, and his facial expressions are great, too. Really, this match is pretty much perfect. I don't want to spend too much time talking about it because it might come across as hyperbole, but whatever. Miz always goes back to the arm whenever Daniel starts to get rolling. He throws a lot of good boots to the arm, and all of his holds look good. Then he charges and whiffs and goes through the ropes and Bryan hits that whacky suicide dive he hit against Jericho, and then he gets up and looks at the crowd, and it's just refreshing how much intensity he brings. He sells his arm the whole time, and he even conveys desperation, throwing together a quick string of reckless offense to trying to get the quick win. Awesome little touch after he hits his missile dropkick: rather than kipping up like he normally does, he immediately goes for the pin, showing that he wanted to win and get out of there quickly. Bryan throws a whole lot of stiff kicks, and Miz eats them. Their punch exchanges look good, and they're helped by the fact that Bryan sells the arm injury throughout. Miz does a great job of seeming intense and determined because he definitely had something to prove in this match. Awesome touch where he tries to force Bryan to submit with an armbar, and he yells at him to tap out and all that. Just more evidence of how well Miz is fitting into his character. Riley was great at ringside, too, interfering at the right moments. Also, Miz busted out a Nigel-esque lariat from the second rope after crotching Bryan on the top rope. That was great. Plus, the near-falls were fantastic, and the crowd was red-hot. Chicago is fucking awesome, apparently.
Finish was great, too. Miz looks pissed and furious, throwing these really good mounting punches. The ref pulls him away twice, and each time, he sneaks in a couple extra boots to the injured arm, just to show how vicious he is. But then he comes back, and Bryan gets the LeBell lock out of nowhere. Miz never really had an answer for that move, and he can't get to the ropes even though he's already close. Bryan's facial expression is great, too, as it really looks like he's tearing his own arm apart to lock the move in. Totally dramatic finish, as I really wasn't certain if Bryan's arm would prevent him from keeping it locked in, or if Miz would make it to the ropes, or if he would tap. They totally had me thinking that if Miz could have held on for just a second longer, he could've escaped the hold.
Pop for Bryan winning was really incredible. Bryan Danielson winning gold in the WWE was surreal and inspirational and great. Legit MOTYC
****, at least. I'd go higher before I'd go lower.
Melina vs. Michelle McCool
Man, the lumberjills were really terrible. Camera work was bizarrely non-sensical, too, as they didn't get a single close-up of Layla looking grumpy. The story of the match should've been that LayCool were feigning dissension to trick Melina so Layla could interfere and help Michelle win, but none of that came across. Instead, the whole match was a mess, and Layla and McCool came across as the only competent divas in the whole company. But they were both awesome. Layla was great, standing to the side with her arms folded across her chest. Michelle was awesome, too, heeling it up and slapping lumberjills in the face for no reason. But everything else was sloppy and silly, and there's this ridiculously funny moment where Rosa acts like she's going to punch Jillian for no reason, and then she doesn't hit her, and then they walk away together.
At least LayCool won. Really awesome celebration. Junk match.
Kane vs. The Undertaker
The NHB stip definitely helped here. I don't give a shit about Kane and think he's generally garbage, but he brought his best for this match, and as a result, we got something really fun and surprisingly fresh, considering it was another chapter in a feud that's been done too many times before. I wouldn't say this is something that was up my alley, and I'd definitely say it's more fun than good, but still, that's more than I expected. The crowd definitely helped, as they were going nuts for Taker. Better strikes from Kane would've helped, but whatever. This angle has given Taker more chances to show how good he can be at portraying a human rather than a monster zombie, and he's definitely good. Kane winning clean was sort of refreshing, and though I generally wouldn't be excited about a prolonged reign for Kane and another match for these two, a HIAC match seems fitting, so I won't complain. I might actually watch this again at some point, as I'd like to get a better assessment of it. I typically tend to dislike crowd brawling stuff, but it all went well here and looked good and everything, and the match was around ***-ish.
TAG TEAM TURMOIL
Harts got eliminated in 2 minutes? Wtf? Silliness. Usos aren't very good. Santino/Koslov were crazy over. Mizark was crazy over. Bourne looked great. Bourne/Henry would be a great tag team, I hope they let them work together full-time. Both guys need something to do, so they might as well help the tag team division. The closing stretch, between Cody/Drew & Mark/Evan, was really good. I hope they do a rematch with just those two teams, as that could be legit awesome.
As for this match, it was too much of a mess to really like a lot. Fuck if I know why they didn't include 2 of their 4 or 5 real tag teams (don't know if Koslov/Santino count) in this match. But I think the right guys came away with the belts, and Drew & Cody both looked really good, Drew especially. Bourne looked even better.
6-Pack Challenge for the WWE Championship
Really hard to rate a match like this. As expected, there was a ton of stupid isolation shit where dudes stood on the outside to wait for an encounter to finish. Stuff like that always hurts the cred of these types of matches, but this was still fun. The early elimination of Jericho surprised me. He has fallen off a lot this year, but I'll still miss him. I think he has one more good babyface run in him. I think he may return to do something with the GM angle. His facial expression after elimination was great. Jericho still does faces really well.
As for the rest of the match... Well, there were the frustrating isolation bits we've come to expect in these deals. There were also great, fun, finisher/counter exchanges, which came across even better thanks to the red hot crowd. They teased some Orton/Cena stuff and then delivered a brief exchange, which was nice, but it would've been even better had they not done that match for free on Raw.
Barrett's reaction to getting ganged up on was great, as was his attempt to give orders for some beatdowns. The Nexus interference was well-timed, too, and Barrett pinning Cena was a nice touch. Cena womping on some Nexus dudes with a chair was cool, too, and it gave Orton the chance to work his raging pterodactyl-shtick, which is always fun and shockingly over. I guess Orton winning was fine, though I don't know why they had to let him dominate everyone on Raw for the last 3 weeks before winning the title. Fuck, the dude's already wildly over.
So yeah, the match wasn't something I'd bother throwing ninja stars at because it's probably going to be one of those divisive things, where you either dig that sort of thing or you don't. But it is what it is, and for what it is, I thought it was fun, maybe even good.
Good show overall, with Bryan/Miz standing out as a legit classic.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Catching Up: 2010
I was on vacation for the last couple weeks, so I missed everything. Trying to cram and get caught up real quick, and I figured I'd post some thoughts on stuff that stuck out.
John Cena vs. Justin Gabriel - Raw 9/6/2010
Wouldn't call this a great match or anything, but I wanted to point to it because I thought Cena was really stellar in this match. Gabriel isn't a guy I'd call great, but he does bust out some pretty nifty stuff. Still, the reason this match stuck out was because of how willing Cena was to sell for him, and because of how much Cena was willing to give. Cena plays the superior veteran in the early parts, taking Gabriel to the mat and controlling him. I really like Cena in this role-- he's not a stellar mat worker or whatever, but all his mat exchanges look good and realistic and engaging. But then Gabriel catches Cena with an average-looking cheap-shot forearm, but Cena sells it so well that it comes across as a really awesome moment. Cena makes all of Gabriel's average offense look fantastic. Gabriel just kinda goes through some "cool moves" rather than putting together anything focused, which prevents this from being as good as it could have been, but he does display that he has a pretty decent arsenal of stuff he can hit competently. Also, Cena busts out his biggest move to put Gabriel away, which I thought was nice of him.
I'd call this a match worth checking out if you're bored, or interested in seeing how good Cena is these days, or wondering what Gabriel can do. Nothing great, but enjoyable.
William Regal vs. R-Truth - Superstars 9/9/2010
These two had another match on Superstars a little while back, and it was fine but not great. Same for this one, but Regal raps before the match, which was awesome. Match consists of Regal trying to make garbage offense look credible for a little while, followed by Regal getting nasty and working a full nelson really well, followed by Regal jobbing. It was fine.
Goldust & Gail Kim vs. Primo & Jillian - Superstars 9/9/2010
Man, I'd really love to see a Goldust/Primo singles match. Their exchanges are so fun here. Starts out as all Goldust, rocking Primo with a really fun flurry. Primo's selling is all fun and old-school and goofy and great, and then he tags out. Jillian and Gail do some stuff that isn't fantastic, but there are fun moments when the boys interfere. Gail hits a nice looking dropkick from the top on Primo, and she also takes a cool bump through the ropes when Primo pulls the middle rope down. Then they do the hot tag, and Dustin womps on Primo, and it's freaking awesome. Dude looks so fit and hits the best inverted atomic drops. Primo sells that move brilliantly, too. Finish is awesome, too-- super great, fluid counters by Goldust. Probably not a must-see, but I can't imagine anyone not enjoying the Dustin/Primo exchanges in this match. I'd probably pay $5 to get them to air a 10-minute singles match between those two.
Drew McIntyre vs. Kaval - Smackdown 9/10/2010
Wow, this was fun. Only went about 4 minutes, which was kinda sad because if they'd doubled that time, this probably could've been a top 10 match for the year, but it was still fantastic for what it was, which was a super fun and smart sprint with fantastic selling by Drew and great strikes by Kaval. Dude busts out tons of swank kicks and counters that I'm not going to bother trying to recap. Basically, Kaval rocks Drew in the ring, but on two occasions, Drew goes to the outside to use his surroundings to take control. I really like how he does that-- definitely adds a consistent theme to his matches, and it's becoming a part of his character. First spot is really great and something I don't recall seeing-- he suplexes Kaval from the floor onto the apron, and it looks reckless and disgusting. Kaval comes back, going for a rana, only to get caught and launched upward. He lands on the top rope and hits a sweet kick. Really tremendous spot. He goes for the STOMP, but Drew rolls to the outside. Kaval goes for another rana, only to get caught and whipped into the barricade. Really awesome, sets up the finish.
Great short match, and I'd love to see something longer between these two.
CM Punk vs. The Undertaker - Smackdown 9/10/2010
These two had a good promo at the start of the show to set up the match and make it seem more important. Punk sends the SES away, showing that he wants to win this on his own. Taker comes out selling all his injuries or whatever. He's actually really good at conveying this sort of exhaustion, but Punk is the star of this match. His mannerisms and facial expressions are totally awesome. He comes out looking smug and confident because he knows Taker is hurt. He dodges a few times but eventually gets caught and rocked, and he sells Taker's early arm work really well. But then Taker slips on Old School, which was a nice way to communicate that he wasn't healthy, though I would've liked to see Punk take control on his own.
Still, he's awesome after the break, working Taker's arm using the same stuff Taker used against him, and asking, "How do you like it?!" Really tremendous spot, and Punk's control is good. But, honestly, I thought there was too much Taker in this match. It should've been mostly Punk on offense, dominating, but it felt like Taker got a lot in. Not that his offense looked bad-- it was fine, and stuff like Punk selling the leg drop on the apron was really great-- but given the whole injury angle, I thought it should've been structured a bit differently, especially considering Taker was going over. Also didn't dig the finish: an injured Taker eats a GTS but still has enough magical dark power to come back with a Hell's gate? Psh. Held the match back from being really great, and I thought it made Punk look weak. He couldn't even take control of the match on his own, which made him seem a notch below an injured Taker when he should really be the top heel in the company. Too bad.
John Cena vs. Justin Gabriel - Raw 9/6/2010
Wouldn't call this a great match or anything, but I wanted to point to it because I thought Cena was really stellar in this match. Gabriel isn't a guy I'd call great, but he does bust out some pretty nifty stuff. Still, the reason this match stuck out was because of how willing Cena was to sell for him, and because of how much Cena was willing to give. Cena plays the superior veteran in the early parts, taking Gabriel to the mat and controlling him. I really like Cena in this role-- he's not a stellar mat worker or whatever, but all his mat exchanges look good and realistic and engaging. But then Gabriel catches Cena with an average-looking cheap-shot forearm, but Cena sells it so well that it comes across as a really awesome moment. Cena makes all of Gabriel's average offense look fantastic. Gabriel just kinda goes through some "cool moves" rather than putting together anything focused, which prevents this from being as good as it could have been, but he does display that he has a pretty decent arsenal of stuff he can hit competently. Also, Cena busts out his biggest move to put Gabriel away, which I thought was nice of him.
I'd call this a match worth checking out if you're bored, or interested in seeing how good Cena is these days, or wondering what Gabriel can do. Nothing great, but enjoyable.
William Regal vs. R-Truth - Superstars 9/9/2010
These two had another match on Superstars a little while back, and it was fine but not great. Same for this one, but Regal raps before the match, which was awesome. Match consists of Regal trying to make garbage offense look credible for a little while, followed by Regal getting nasty and working a full nelson really well, followed by Regal jobbing. It was fine.
Goldust & Gail Kim vs. Primo & Jillian - Superstars 9/9/2010
Man, I'd really love to see a Goldust/Primo singles match. Their exchanges are so fun here. Starts out as all Goldust, rocking Primo with a really fun flurry. Primo's selling is all fun and old-school and goofy and great, and then he tags out. Jillian and Gail do some stuff that isn't fantastic, but there are fun moments when the boys interfere. Gail hits a nice looking dropkick from the top on Primo, and she also takes a cool bump through the ropes when Primo pulls the middle rope down. Then they do the hot tag, and Dustin womps on Primo, and it's freaking awesome. Dude looks so fit and hits the best inverted atomic drops. Primo sells that move brilliantly, too. Finish is awesome, too-- super great, fluid counters by Goldust. Probably not a must-see, but I can't imagine anyone not enjoying the Dustin/Primo exchanges in this match. I'd probably pay $5 to get them to air a 10-minute singles match between those two.
Drew McIntyre vs. Kaval - Smackdown 9/10/2010
Wow, this was fun. Only went about 4 minutes, which was kinda sad because if they'd doubled that time, this probably could've been a top 10 match for the year, but it was still fantastic for what it was, which was a super fun and smart sprint with fantastic selling by Drew and great strikes by Kaval. Dude busts out tons of swank kicks and counters that I'm not going to bother trying to recap. Basically, Kaval rocks Drew in the ring, but on two occasions, Drew goes to the outside to use his surroundings to take control. I really like how he does that-- definitely adds a consistent theme to his matches, and it's becoming a part of his character. First spot is really great and something I don't recall seeing-- he suplexes Kaval from the floor onto the apron, and it looks reckless and disgusting. Kaval comes back, going for a rana, only to get caught and launched upward. He lands on the top rope and hits a sweet kick. Really tremendous spot. He goes for the STOMP, but Drew rolls to the outside. Kaval goes for another rana, only to get caught and whipped into the barricade. Really awesome, sets up the finish.
Great short match, and I'd love to see something longer between these two.
CM Punk vs. The Undertaker - Smackdown 9/10/2010
These two had a good promo at the start of the show to set up the match and make it seem more important. Punk sends the SES away, showing that he wants to win this on his own. Taker comes out selling all his injuries or whatever. He's actually really good at conveying this sort of exhaustion, but Punk is the star of this match. His mannerisms and facial expressions are totally awesome. He comes out looking smug and confident because he knows Taker is hurt. He dodges a few times but eventually gets caught and rocked, and he sells Taker's early arm work really well. But then Taker slips on Old School, which was a nice way to communicate that he wasn't healthy, though I would've liked to see Punk take control on his own.
Still, he's awesome after the break, working Taker's arm using the same stuff Taker used against him, and asking, "How do you like it?!" Really tremendous spot, and Punk's control is good. But, honestly, I thought there was too much Taker in this match. It should've been mostly Punk on offense, dominating, but it felt like Taker got a lot in. Not that his offense looked bad-- it was fine, and stuff like Punk selling the leg drop on the apron was really great-- but given the whole injury angle, I thought it should've been structured a bit differently, especially considering Taker was going over. Also didn't dig the finish: an injured Taker eats a GTS but still has enough magical dark power to come back with a Hell's gate? Psh. Held the match back from being really great, and I thought it made Punk look weak. He couldn't even take control of the match on his own, which made him seem a notch below an injured Taker when he should really be the top heel in the company. Too bad.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
2010 WWE: Goldust, Masters, Regal, Chavo, etc
Kinda feel like I've been slipping behind with this, but whatever. Watched a little batch of stuff last night and had a really great time with it.
Chavo works over the ribs well, following the senton up with a hilo. Masters's selling is really great throughout the match, as you'd expect. Really awesome spot where he rolls out of Chavo's bodyscissor into his guard so he can LEVEL him with some forearms and then launch him into the turnbuckle with his fantastic slingshot spot. If you haven't seen a slingshot spot from Masters, go watch this match. Now. Or you suck. I can't think of another guy with a slingshot spot that's even half as good as his. Also, Masters busts out a sweet Jackhammer at one point, and he sells his ribs after hitting it. Finish is great and plays back into the rib work. Whole match is great, as it focuses on smart and credible-looking work from Chavo and incredible selling from Masters, with a few blowaway spots sprinkled in.
Goldust & Yoshi Tatsu vs. The Usos - Superstars 8/12
Not something I'd pimp as a great tag, or anything that anybody needs to go crazy in an attempt to hunt it down, but it's good, and really fun. Goldust looks like a monster here in a really fun and surprisingly lengthy babyface shine period, and Yoshi looked good, too. They busted out some nifty double-team spots, including a slick-looking inverted atomic drop/spinning heel kick combo. I don't think much of the Usos as a tag team, but they looked game here, bumping around and eating YoshiDust's offense well. Yoshi gets a fine FIP section, and then Dustin has a really awesome section where he sprints around and cleans house, and then he gets a shockingly huge pop when he sets up for his finisher. Sort of amazes me how much heat the dude gets for his matches despite working such a limited amount, and almost never winning. Finish is fine, too, though I wish they'd give YoshiDust a string of wins and a run with the belts. Goldust has been on such a roll lately, and I'd really like to see him in a role where he can shine.
Chris Masters vs. Chavo Guerrero - Superstars 8/12
If you told me this match happened in 09, I would've assumed it'd be a garbage comedy match engineered to embarrass Chavo, and it would've ended in Hornswoggle grunting and hopping and whatever. The times they are a-changin'. People who haven't been paying attention might not have expected much from this match, but those who have been watching open-mindedly probably expected awesomeness, and this match completely delivered. Masters establishes his size advantage early and goes for the Masterlock-- he always reminds everyone of what a threat that move is. So Chavo goes to the outside and runs around and catches Masters coming back into the ring and takes over, and Masters takes a nice bump to the floor, and then Chavo hits a really sweet rolling senton off the apron onto Masters's ribs, setting up the body part work.
Chavo works over the ribs well, following the senton up with a hilo. Masters's selling is really great throughout the match, as you'd expect. Really awesome spot where he rolls out of Chavo's bodyscissor into his guard so he can LEVEL him with some forearms and then launch him into the turnbuckle with his fantastic slingshot spot. If you haven't seen a slingshot spot from Masters, go watch this match. Now. Or you suck. I can't think of another guy with a slingshot spot that's even half as good as his. Also, Masters busts out a sweet Jackhammer at one point, and he sells his ribs after hitting it. Finish is great and plays back into the rib work. Whole match is great, as it focuses on smart and credible-looking work from Chavo and incredible selling from Masters, with a few blowaway spots sprinkled in.
Goldust vs. William Regal - Superstars 8/26
Shit, I loved this. Totally different from anything else we're seeing these days, which is awesome. For the majority of the match, these two just really beat the heck out of each other. Look at the names, and you know that'll produce 7 minutes of greatness. Not really much need to talk about it because the match speaks for itself, but yeah: nifty match exchanges early on, disgusting arm work from Regal, stiff shots from Dustin, really incredible missed crossbody spot from Dustin where he goes full-fucking blast and completely whiffs and flies through the ropes to the floor, and it's goddam beautiful. Best spot of the match: Dustin starts a comeback, so Regal kneels and begs off. Dustin STOMPS on his hand, and the Regal sells it beautifully. You can talk about Regal's offensive brutality all you want, but this is what he's best at: selling whacky little shit like that. Someone, I think over at Segunda Caida, said they'd love to see Regal sell a stubbed toe. Yeah, that'd be awesome. Finish is fantastic, too. Like, it's one of those things that made me yell, "Holy shit!" Awesome match.
And to anyone who says WWE is too "vanilla" or generic or whatever... Well, sure, maybe the creative direction of the company is at a low point (though the Nexus angle was really good in theory), but they're putting on such an impressive number of quality tv matches, and there's so much great variety among those matches. In just a couple weeks, they put on this match, plus a tremendous juniors-style sprint between Yoshi and Primo, plus some a McIntyre/Christian match focused around body part selling, plus the really good Kofi/Dolph series, plus good little man/big man stuff between Rey and Kane.
Chris Masters vs. Drew McIntyre - Superstars 8/26
Hard to believe this match and Goldust/Regal happened on the same show. And a large portion of the WWE Universe probably didn't even notice. McIntyre works over Masters's leg, and Masters sells his ass off, and the match is awesome. Probably a notch below Masters/Chavo and McIntyre/Christian, but who cares. And, frankly, I could see a case for this being actually better than those matches even though I didn't prefer it. But yeah, Masters gets his little moment to flex early on, but then McIntyre goes to the outside and launches Masters face-first into the ring post. Striker tries to convince everyone Masters hit his shoulder, but that dude's full of shit half the time (<3 you, Matt!). McIntyre follows up with a nasty boot to the face and an even nastier spot where he smashes Masters's leg into the ring post. McIntyre looks vicious on offense throughout, but Masters is still the better guy here, with tremendous selling and awesome comebacks. He manages to dump McIntyre to the outside, and then he catches him coming back in with a Samoan drop. Normally, a Samoan drop should be a "meh" spot, but it was awesome here, totally catching me off guard (which means it probably surprised the bad guy, too-- good work, Chris!) and looking slick. Plus, Masters sells the leg immediately after hitting it. Ditto for after he hits a spinebuster. Seems like someone noticed the effectiveness of Christian selling his ass off in matches. Seriously, I'm quasi-in-love with Christian, and after this match, I have to admit that Chris Masters is nearly as good as he is. Go back to this time last year and try to get me to say that and mean. I'll call you a tardball.
I was the tardball. Chris Masters rules. Still think Christian is better (slightly better seller, slightly better facial expressions. I'd probably take Christian as a bumper, too, though if you take into account how well Masters bumps for a guy his size, that's not even a fair comparison. Still, Christian can take bigger and crazier shit and make it look better than anyone. Offensively, I'd say it's a wash, but they're really not too comparable in that area-- it's really just a choice between power moves and aerial moves, but they're about as good as each other with their respective types of offense).
Finishing stretch is great. Like, really great. Plays into the injury, the Masterlock, and McIntyre mastery of his environment. I saw someone compare McIntyre to Finlay a little while back, and I thought that was kinda crazy, but now I see McIntyre working these really brutal matches with nasty offense and intelligent use of his environment, and it totally seems like he's been working with Finlay quite a bit. Awesome, awesome match here. Stellar performances from both guys.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Some Indy Matches
Watched some random indy stuff the other day and figured I'd talk a bit.
Bryan Danielson vs. Tommy End - 2010 wXw AMBITION
Or I think that was what the event was called. Anyway, the match is from a shootstyle tourney in Germany, and wXw posted it on youtube for free, I guess as kind of a teaser for the whole thing. Anyway, it's really interesting, at least. End doesn't really do a whole lot in the match, and I thought was selling wasn't very good. But Danielson looked great. I thought the mat exchanges were really engaging and organic and legit-looking. Basically, they go about 7 or 8 minutes, and they just trade some holds and maneuver for position, but in between lock-ups Danielson throws some really stuff kicks at End's knee to take him down. No idea how to rate something like this, but it's worth checking out.
LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPs_Y-djBBU
TJP vs. Munenori Sawa - EVOLVE 1
Was peeking around and saw Phil Schneider pimping TJP & Hero as two of the best guys on the indies today, and so I figured I should check out their shit from EVOLVE. Didn't think this was anything blowaway great or whatever, but I had fun with it. TJP looks awesome when he's doing fast matwork. Dude totally shines there. But the real fun of this match is when both dudes just stiff the fuck out of each other. Sawa is a bit goofy, smiling during the stiff exchanges and throwing some whacky "baseball" punch (winds up like a pitcher annnnnnnnd PUNCH!). I generally liked TJP's reactions to Sawa's strikes, and TJP's strikes looked good, too. Really awesome exchange where TJP eats the baseball punch, but then he kicks Sawa in the fucking face while he's winding up for the second one. Finish kinda irritated me. They had built toward Sawa's Shining Wizard, and TJP had taken a lot of headshots, so a Shining Wizard would've been a perfect KO-type move for the finish. Instead, Sawa hits it, TJP kicks out, and then Sawa locks in an octopus out of nowhere for the win. Silly. Still, fun little 10-minute match.
***
TJ Perkins vs. Bryan Danielson - PWG BOLA 08
Thought this was awesome. Not sure who's on commentary, but they talk about both guys' training and how TJP trained under Danielson somewhere, and they put over how TJP wants to prove he's the best wrestler in LA and that he can hang on the mat with Danielson. So we get lots of really nifty mat exchanges early on, setting up a really fantastic story. General structure goes like this: Danielson generally gets the advantage throughout the early mat stuff, but TJP establishes himself as competent and dangerous. He counters a rear naked choke with a slick leglock-type thing, and when Danielson breaks, he sells it really well, establishing TJP as a threat. But Danielson is clearly the better of two and refuses to take rope breaks to prove he can get out of anything Perkins throws at him. TJP, on the other hand, takes several rope breaks. They also throw some really stiff strike exchanges early on, which are all awesome. Danielson looks like he's slightly ahead of TJP early on, too. He probably tries to work even longer than he should, but eventually, he resorts to cheating, going back to the ropes and using them to his advantage. Pretty much the perfect way to characterize a heel in a match: he comes across as capable in the early segments, and then he seems smart for cheating when he's overmatched. Plus he flips the crowd off and looks like a smug fuck with a douchebag haircut. Only knock on TJP here is that I would've liked to see him sell Danielson's early armwork a bit more. It was a really small segment, but that would've been a really nice little touch, and Danielson was adding those nice little selling moments more than Perkins was, which made me notice what Perkins wasn't doing. Small thing, though.
Perkins gets control for a bit and works the knee, and then Danielson misses a flying Captain Falcon knee off the apron and crashes knee-first into the chair, which starts the REAL control segment for TJP. Don't remember it too well, but I remember thinking he busted out some swank holds and it all looked good. Finishing stretch is awesome too, with great nearfalls and threatening submission holds and a fantastic teased countout that pissed the crowd off. LOVED THIS.
****1/4
Bryan Danielson vs. Tommy End - 2010 wXw AMBITION
Or I think that was what the event was called. Anyway, the match is from a shootstyle tourney in Germany, and wXw posted it on youtube for free, I guess as kind of a teaser for the whole thing. Anyway, it's really interesting, at least. End doesn't really do a whole lot in the match, and I thought was selling wasn't very good. But Danielson looked great. I thought the mat exchanges were really engaging and organic and legit-looking. Basically, they go about 7 or 8 minutes, and they just trade some holds and maneuver for position, but in between lock-ups Danielson throws some really stuff kicks at End's knee to take him down. No idea how to rate something like this, but it's worth checking out.
LINK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPs_Y-djBBU
TJP vs. Munenori Sawa - EVOLVE 1
Was peeking around and saw Phil Schneider pimping TJP & Hero as two of the best guys on the indies today, and so I figured I should check out their shit from EVOLVE. Didn't think this was anything blowaway great or whatever, but I had fun with it. TJP looks awesome when he's doing fast matwork. Dude totally shines there. But the real fun of this match is when both dudes just stiff the fuck out of each other. Sawa is a bit goofy, smiling during the stiff exchanges and throwing some whacky "baseball" punch (winds up like a pitcher annnnnnnnd PUNCH!). I generally liked TJP's reactions to Sawa's strikes, and TJP's strikes looked good, too. Really awesome exchange where TJP eats the baseball punch, but then he kicks Sawa in the fucking face while he's winding up for the second one. Finish kinda irritated me. They had built toward Sawa's Shining Wizard, and TJP had taken a lot of headshots, so a Shining Wizard would've been a perfect KO-type move for the finish. Instead, Sawa hits it, TJP kicks out, and then Sawa locks in an octopus out of nowhere for the win. Silly. Still, fun little 10-minute match.
***
TJ Perkins vs. Bryan Danielson - PWG BOLA 08
Thought this was awesome. Not sure who's on commentary, but they talk about both guys' training and how TJP trained under Danielson somewhere, and they put over how TJP wants to prove he's the best wrestler in LA and that he can hang on the mat with Danielson. So we get lots of really nifty mat exchanges early on, setting up a really fantastic story. General structure goes like this: Danielson generally gets the advantage throughout the early mat stuff, but TJP establishes himself as competent and dangerous. He counters a rear naked choke with a slick leglock-type thing, and when Danielson breaks, he sells it really well, establishing TJP as a threat. But Danielson is clearly the better of two and refuses to take rope breaks to prove he can get out of anything Perkins throws at him. TJP, on the other hand, takes several rope breaks. They also throw some really stiff strike exchanges early on, which are all awesome. Danielson looks like he's slightly ahead of TJP early on, too. He probably tries to work even longer than he should, but eventually, he resorts to cheating, going back to the ropes and using them to his advantage. Pretty much the perfect way to characterize a heel in a match: he comes across as capable in the early segments, and then he seems smart for cheating when he's overmatched. Plus he flips the crowd off and looks like a smug fuck with a douchebag haircut. Only knock on TJP here is that I would've liked to see him sell Danielson's early armwork a bit more. It was a really small segment, but that would've been a really nice little touch, and Danielson was adding those nice little selling moments more than Perkins was, which made me notice what Perkins wasn't doing. Small thing, though.
Perkins gets control for a bit and works the knee, and then Danielson misses a flying Captain Falcon knee off the apron and crashes knee-first into the chair, which starts the REAL control segment for TJP. Don't remember it too well, but I remember thinking he busted out some swank holds and it all looked good. Finishing stretch is awesome too, with great nearfalls and threatening submission holds and a fantastic teased countout that pissed the crowd off. LOVED THIS.
****1/4
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