anarchistxx

The tag was just kind of there, nothing different to a regular TV match. Watchable but nothing special. At least the right team won - I'm not sold at all on the Rhodes/Sandow team, they are pretty boring if you ask me. Sandow needs to ditch that blueblood snob gimmick as well, it was terrible and dated twenty years ago when Trips was working it. Regal is the only person to have halfway pulled it off, and Sandow isn't no Regal, he seems really forced on the mic from what I've seen but maybe that's just the gimmick constraints he's under. They sure waste a lot of time on PPVs with recaps and videos etc, why don't they just cut all this rubbish and have two minute gaps between entrants instead of ninety seconds? Would make the Rumble match feel a lot less rushed and clustered.

I hate this trend of starting a show with a world title match. What happened to a nice fast paced tag to open proceedings? The concept of pacing a card seems alien these days. Having said that the match itself was fine, the table bump was impressive and overall it was just a simple, solid match. Mainly avoided the LMS pitfalls of long periods just lying around while the referee counts.

I've only watched 2009 stuff: Negro Navarro, Trauma I, Trauma II vs. Black Terry, Cerebro Negro, Dr. Cerebro (IWRG 4/16/09) Negro Navarro, Trauma I, Trauma II vs. Black Terry, Cerebro Negro, Dr. Cerebro (IWRG 4/23/09) Black Terry/Shu el Guerrero v. El Signo/Negro Navarro (IWRG 8/20/09) Black Terry/Cerebro Negro/Dr. Cerebro v. Oficial 911/Oficial AK47/Oficial Fierro IWRG (11/9/09) People were arguing him as wrestler for the year and I didn't see it in these matches.

It isn't a troll post, just a badly worded expansion on what I thought was a good analogy. As I said just about everyone in this thread is more knowledgeable and articulate on the subject then I am, so a long argument is only a waste of time for all involved. On the recent Jerry Lawler matches I've seen I would find it entirely absurd to put him in even a top thirty in the world, but that is symbiotic of the change of fashion regarding smark tastes. As for Black Terry, I'm only going on the handful of pimped matches I've seen - an old guy working a fairly limited style who got praised a lot by people who liked the matches far more than I did. He never seemed to get effusive praise before, indeed his name had never cropped up particularly to my knowledge until 2007 or so, as you say yourself. Bill Fay is maybe the better musical analogy to him - a guy who went fairly unknown and forgotten for years, before releasing a 2012 album which gained a lot of hype for what was in effect just basic traditional songwriting and a classic pretty archaic sounding style.

This is how I feel about the praise for Jerry Lawler. It's like the music forum I'm on, where most people's end of year lists have a blend of new guys and old guys, of electronic, hip hop, jazz, soul, hyped records, indie rock, RnB, ambient, metal etc. Jessie Ware, VFTL, Actress, Frank Ocean, Kendrick Lamar, Beach House, OF, Allo Darlin, Andy Stott, whatever has clicked. And then you'll have a few of the older guys who will all have Springsteen, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Bill Fay, Van Halen as their top five, and inist the old guys are still putting out music better than anyone else. They are the Jerry Lawler's and Black Terry's and Terry Funk's. The same guys never list the latest Beach Boys or Paul McCartney though - they are Ric Flair and Hogan, good in their time but well past it now. -- I don't really want to get into this argument, as I've only seen a handful of the matches over the past few years, so I'll bow out before my argument gets destroyed and abused. Just wanted to agree with the analogy.

I only read the first page before replying. Will edit accordingly...

Dreamslam II has to be up there, the last three matches are straight fire, with the undercard being pretty damn awesome as well. The main event is one of the greatest of all time, of course, which always helps. 1. Sakie Hasegawa vs. Hikari Fukuoka 2. Kaoru Ito & Tomoko Watanabe & Saemi Numata vs. Utako Hozumi & Leo Kitamura & Mikiko Futagami 3. Terri Power & Bat Yoshinaga vs. Rumi Kazami & Miki Handa 4. Etsuko Mita & Mima Shimoda vs. Combat Toyoda & Megumi Kudo 5. Kyoko Inoue & Takako Inoue & Yumiko Hotta vs. Cuty Suzuki & Plum Mariko & Bolshoi Kid 6. Suzuka Minami vs. Harley Saito 7. Chigusa Nagayo vs. Bull Nakano (Memorial Superfight) 8. Aja Kong & Akira Hokuto vs. Shinobu Kandori & Eagle Sawai 9. Toshiyo Yamada & Manami Toyota vs. Dynamite Kansai & Mayumi Ozaki (2/3 Falls WWWA World Tag Championship) -- WWF/E won't ever top Wrestlemania X7 as a top to bottom card. Every wrestler pretty much was crazily over, every match had the right build. It had everything from overbooked attitude era clusterfucks to high flying ladder spotfests to workrate matches to the epic main event. Pretty much encapsulated what the WWE strives for in four hours or brilliance. I loved it as a kid and I loved it as a smark, kind of wish I'd kept the tape now as I've the urge to watch it. Followed up No Way Out as well which was another fantastic night. 1. Intercontinental Championship Chris Jericho © vs. William Regal 2. Six Man Tag Match Tazz & APA vs. RTC 3. Hardcore Championship Kane vs. Raven © vs. Big Show 4. European Championship Test © vs. Eddie Guerrero 5. Kurt Angle vs. Chris Benoit 6. Women's Championship Chyna vs. Ivory © 7. Street Fight Shane McMahon vs. Vince McMahon 8. The Hardyz vs. The Dudleys © vs. Edge & Christian 9. Gimmick Battle Royal 10. Undertaker vs. Triple H 11.WWF Championship The Rock © vs. Stone Cold -- Then there are the shows that are just personal favourites. I used to have a fantastic tape of an indy tournament in 2001 with Low-Ki, Danielson and a few others, would love to see that again. The talent working the indies at that time was phenomenal. A few ROH cards I loved top to bottom at the time including All Star Extravaganza II. Davey Andrews, Shane Hagadorn, Anthony Franco & Matt Turner vs Special K (Izzy, Dixie Deranged & Angeldust w/Lacey, Becky Bayless, Cheech and Cloudy) Jay Lethal vs The Weapon of Mask Destruction (w/Prince Nana) The Outkast Killers (Diablo Santiago & Oman Tortuga) vs The Ring Crew Express (Dunn & Marcos), The Carnage Crew (HC Loc & Tony DeVito), Dan Maff & BJ Whitmer John Walters vs Jimmy Rave Austin Aries vs Low Ki (w/Julius Smokes) The Rottweilers (Ricky Reyes & Rocky Romero w/Julius Smokes) vs Nigel McGuinness & Chad Collyer Trent Acid vs Jerk Jackson Colt Cabana & Jimmy Jacobs (w/Bobby Heenan) vs Generation Next (Roderick Strong & Jack Evans w/Jim Cornette) Bryan Danielson vs Homicide (w/Julius Smokes) Samoa Joe (w/Jay Lethal) vs CM Punk (w/Davey Andrews and Shane Hagadorn) -- I used to really enjoy watching the 90s Super-J Cup tournaments as well, though I imagine they stretched across a few shows each year even though the matches were back to back on the discs I had. Some Michinoku-Pro card blew me away once too, when I just sat and watched it randomly, someone had sent me the DVD by mistake. Wish I still had all my listings so I can recall the date, pretty sure it wasn't the one with the famous ten man. 96 J-Crown: Negro Casas vs Shinjiro Ohtani Jushin Liger vs Ultimo Dragon Gran Hamada vs El Samurai Great Sasuke vs Masayoshi Motegi Great Sasuke vs El Samurai Ultimo Dragon vs Shinjiro Ohtani Great Sasuke vs Ultimo Dragon -- Can't really speak for WCW or ECW, as mostly I only saw the pimped stuff rather than full shows.

Even when I'm not following WWE the Rumble always seems to hold a weird attraction. Can't say I'm too excited about the card but I'll be staying up to watch it, as ever. This and Wrestlemania are the only ones I always want to catch as they happen. The Rock won't work a chamber match, surely? Not unless he just comes in at #6 and destroys a few guys, I suppose, without having to take a major bump.

I don't think we needed the WON awards to tell us that, US wrestling has needed a major rejuvenation for about ten years. These days there isn't even a ROH circa 2002-2006 to provide a genuine alternative for the hardcores. All the 90s workrate idols are gone, leaving even less to care about on the major shows. WWE relies on special attractions to generate interest. TNA still hasn't got beyond wheeling out decrepit has-beens for whatever reason - they need to learn it is angles and characters that get people interested/invested rather than just getting a load of star names. They are like the clubs in China or America who throw a load of money at football superstars who are well past their best, expecting the name value to rocket their leagues into the global marketplace, without working on other aspects. Or maybe QPR is a better example, buying up as many names as they can without working out how they're going to use them all. Bad analogies all round, I think, but the point is TNA desperately needs its own identity. I really think there is room for a third promotion, that offers something genuinely unique and a wide range of talent, with challenging angles and interesting characters. Like ECW, I suppose, but slightly sanitised and with better presentation values*. * By better presentation values I don't mean clean, high definition and like the WWE - I mean a genuinely unique, interesting look. It also needs a new approach, as mainstream NA wrestling is so stale in terms of both booking and aesthetics. A cool set, better music, a more casual feel, less regimented, less scripted, more relaxed, different styles and looks, less forced, interludes for stuff that isn't long, lame awkward promos (i.e. include upcoming music acts in the show, perform a song, hang in the back, maybe do interviews etc. And not the tired old rock acts the WWE pedals out, actually exciting and hyped electronic acts, hip hop etc). It also needs to be economical with time. Streamline everything, no drawn out promos or contrived scenes, keep it sharp and lean, letting everyone come in and do what they do best without exposing their flaws. Ninety minutes is more than enough for such a show, probably too long even with that. And it needs to ditch the PPV model, it is outdated in the internet age. I know WWE still sells a fair few but they have name value, and the fact that people have been buying them for years. Concentrate on merchandise sales, advertising revenue, attendance and other forms of income. I'm convinced that with the right presentation and some great booking you could build a show around: - Upcoming indie talent. Not especially workrate guys, but guys who can talk, have presence and charisma. Obviously them being fantastic in ring is a bonus, but you can get carried to a good match a lot easier than you can wing a good promo. You can either cut an interview or you can't. They need a decent look, too - and again, I don't just mean chiseled and clean cut, I mean a genuinely intriguing look. Necro Butcher, for instance, has an amazing look, without fitting the traditional mould. Same with Sabu. - A couple of established names - not too many, just enough to get people to take notice. - A handful of brilliant in ring workers - Some charismatic guys to work as managers, commentators - Guys who have a distinct personality and style already, without having been tarnished by WWE and TNA i.e. Briscoe Brothers, Young Bucks, Kota Ibushi Things to avoid are stale tropes like authority figures, repetition, overly scripted promos, promoting ex-WWE guys like Matt Morgan and Tyson Tomko as big stars despite their obvious lack of star power. It also needs to be kept fairly young, so as to seem fresh and a genuine alternative. Unfortunately it would take serious capital to start something like that up, so until we get a persuasive, dogged visionary and a sugar daddy it isn't happening. -- On a sidenote, I saw four or five matches from NJPW last year recently, and on that scant evidence it probably deserves the awards. Tanahashi in particular surprised me a lot, I don't remember many people rating him when I was in the Puro loop a few years back. It was certainly a lot more enjoyable than the WWE I have watched this year, especially Raw which is torturous to get through.

Mexicans would be considered white in the UK. It is mostly in the USA that they seem to desperately distinguish between caucasian and hispanic. But anyway, as you say. Off for a few months again to escape the impending bullying for things I said as a mere child...

I think mic work is very important in many respects. I love good feuds, good storylines - nothing enhances a match more than a really awesome buildup and a hot crowd, and much of that is down to the mic work. Austin/Rock, Canadian Stampede, Flair/Dusty, none of that is half as exciting if it isn't for the feuding that preceded it. Mic work by itself isn't completely essential. Sometimes you get workers with exceptional charisma or a strong aura, even though they might not be particularly strong on the mic - Vader comes to mind, or even Randy Orton (obviously not in the same league as Vader, but someone who gets by with his look and presence rather than any particular skills on the mic). Good writing can also make a feud special, but that still often relies on at least someone involved being able to cut a promo. I'd rank someone a lot higher on a list if they cut great promos, to answer the original question. I'd much rather watch Dusty Rhodes cut a promo than work a match, most of my love for him comes from his work on the stick. The truly great workers should be able to do both, of course, which is why a lot of people regard Flair as the greatest ever.

I watch hardly any wrestling anymore, but if I do it's likely to be these guys: Briscoe Brothers Great promos, great matches. Characters you can buy into, chemistry, a unique look, seem like genuine badasses - all you can want from a tag team really. It's a shame WWE didn't deem them 'cosmetically pleasing' enough because they would absolutely flourish in that division. A feud between them and Daniel Bryan/Kane would be hilarious out of the ring and incredible in it. Kota Ibushi I'm not really around to see the consensus anymore, but I assume Ibushi is pretty much seen as a spot monkey? That's OK by me, I still love his matches. A friend introduced me to him a couple of years ago, and he gripped me straight away. Spectacular spots, agile, looks great, has charisma. Another one who would probably do well in WWE if they're looking for young, good looking flyers. Katsuhiko Nakajima Probably basing this too much on his series with KENTA, which was a while back now. They were two of the best big matches I've seen in a long time, even if they got a bit ridiculous. They will still worked smartly as well, there was loads of cool stuff in the second 2009 match referencing their earlier stuff. Just another guy who goes hard, has loads of awesome looking offence and is generally cool as fuck. Young Bucks Awesome little tag team. Can be spectacular, high flying babyfaces and dickish, conceited heels and either comes across as natural. Some of the spots they pull out are insane, innovative as hell, they always try to do something special for each match. Necro Butcher Still can't get enough of Necro. You know what you're getting, it's violent and painful and awesome a lot of the time. His stuff is kind of samey so the match quality does often depend on his opponent, which isn't to say he brings nothing to the table, as his wild, crazed act never gets old. I'm a sucker for sick death matches as well, as long as they don't drag with tons of set up for the spots etc. If I was randomly throwing a match on these days it would be one of those five. A few months ago CM Punk might have made the list, but he has bored the hell out of me lately. I stopped watching Raw about two months ago after a brief resurgence of interest. Three hours is just too much and Punk has been doing the same act for ages now. Daniel Bryan was also close to getting on the list, his tag team with Kane is brilliant and was always the best thing about Raw. It's still weird to me that these guys I watched and chatted to in tiny little halls are major stars in WWE now.

This has to be bullshit. I don't buy for a minute that nearly 2,000 people left that show only three matches in, with John Cena, Batista, The Undertaker, Randy Orton and Chris Jericho to come, not to mention the small matter of Hulk Hogan vs Shawn Michaels. Not doubting that Rey/Eddie pushed up the attendance and the buyrate but to say 10% of the crowd walked out after the first hour is ridiculous. Maybe they just went for a piss or a break whilst Eugene vs Angle was on. (cue the reply; "but you once said the HOLOCAUST was bullshit so what do you know?" etc etc etc yawn).

Saw the two matches everyone is pimping. The six man was indeed fantastic - loved the way they shot it with all the close ups and cuts, really made it feel manic and insane. Pretty much the perfect use of Ryback, his offence looked so rough and violent, you can see why he got so over with the casuals. Only thing I didn't like was the big Tyler Black table bump near the end, which felt really setup to me. Why would the other two guys leave him instead of holding Ryback down for a few more seconds so he could take him out? Kane being out for about ten minutes from the barrier spot was a little unbelievable too. Still, that's just nitpicking as it was a fantastic match that got everyone over. The main event was kind of going-through-the-motions, but it still wasn't too bad and Ziggler seemed over. Not sure why they didn't just call it a TLC like the other match since there was plenty of use of tables and chairs. The hurricarana spot was amusing, and the crowd seemed to buy the turn even though it was easy to call from a minute or so before. Saw a little bit of Sheamus/Show, the finish was awful. Having a big chair looks cool and everything but he didn't exactly lay into him with it.

There is a match against RVD on Raw in 2003 or something which is surprisingly fantastic. Orton gets legitimately concussed IIRC and bleeds a ton hardway, or maybe it is the other way round. I certainly remember rating it a top five TV match of that year. Aside from that, the Foley match is obviously great. At the time it definitely seemed 'great', maybe due to the surprise of Orton taking these crazy tack bumps and Foley looking incredible for someone who had not worked properly in four years. Not seen it in years, though. The Summerslam title win is superb too, bit of a carry job by Benoit who takes some heavy bumps but it got Orton over as a title threat and it seemed like a big moment. The one thing that sticks out to me with Orton and others is how they messed up the 'dream' matches of that period. Cena/Orton, Cena/Batista and to a lesser extent Orton/Batista should have been huge Wrestlemania showcases, instead of being wasted at Summerslam. With patience and a long build those matches could really have meant something, which seems pretty unthinkable now since they all seem to have wrestled each other a million times. Orton himself has never recovered from HHH beating him in that terrible Wrestlemania main event, of course, just as he'd got really hot. The Shane 'O' Mac stuff didn't exactly help either. That was the last chance they had to make him a star - the internet went crazy over that Raw when he kicked Vince McMahon, even cynical bastards like me were tuning in the next week. He is still over but he is never going to have a massive run again you wouldn't think. I won't be surprised if he drops out in the next year or two - I'm sure he's financially set and he doesn't give the impression of getting much joy out of wrestling these days. Only a matter of time before he gets fed up of it all or WWE gives him the push for wellness.

Been a while since I watched with any kind of regularity, so I'll have to go with the matches that stick in the memory and meant the most to me at the time. My top five would be pretty indisputable; Jumbo Tsuruta v Kerry Von Erich (AJPW, 5/22/84) Toshiyo Yamada & Manami Toyota v Dynamite Kansai & Mayumi Ozaki (AJW, 11/26/1992) Mitsuharu Misawa & Kenta Kobashi v Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue (AJPW, 9/6/1995) Samoa Joe v CM Punk (ROH, 10/16/2004) Kurt Angle v Steve Austin (WWF, Summerslam 2001) Then after that it would be some combination of; Mitsuharu Misawa & Jun Akiyama vs Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue (AJPW, 6/12/1996) Jumbo Tsuruta vs Mitsuharu Misawa (AJPW, 8/6/1990) Jumbo Tsuruta/Masa Fuchi/Akira Taue v Kenta Kobashi/Mitsuhura Misawa/Tsuyoshi Kikuchi (AJPW, 10/27/1991) Jumbo Tsuruta vs Toshiaki Kawada (AJPW, 24/10/1991) Mitsuharu Misawa vs Kenta Kobashi (AJPW, 20/1/1997) Ric Flair v Kerry Von Erich (NWA, 12/10/85?) Rey Mysterio Jr. v. Eddie Guerrero (10.26.97 WCW) Akira Hokuto vs. Shinobu Kandori (02/05/1993, AJW) Toshiyo Yamada & Manami Toyota vs. Dynamite Kansai & Mayumi Ozaki (AJW, 04/11/1993) Devil Masami vs. Chigusa Nagayo (AJW, 8/22/85) Jaguar Yokota vs. Lioness Asuka (AJW, 8/22/85) Jaguar Yokota vs. La Galactica (AJW, 1/5/85) Dump Matsumoto vs. Chigusa Nagayo (AJW, 9/28/85) Thunderqueen (JWP, 31/07/1993) Tatsumi Fujinami vs Dynamite Kid (NJPW, 02/05/80) Ric Flair vs Bruiser Brody (St Louis, 1983?) Ricky Steamboat/Jay Younblood vs Kernodle/Sgt Slaughter (NWA, 3/12/1983 ) Shinjiro Ohtani vs. Jushin Liger (NGPW, 17/03/96) Vader v Sting (WCW Starrcade 1992) Sting v Vader (WCW Superbrawl 1993) Bryan Danielson vs. Alex Shelley (ROH 03/11/2006) CM Punk v Samoa Joe (ROH, 04/12/2004) Samoa Joe v Bryan Danielson (ROH, 02/10/2004) Samoa Joe v Necro Butcher (IWA, 6/11/05) Samoa Joe/Low Ki vs. Kenta Kobashi/Homicide (ROH, 10/2/05) KENTA vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (Kensuke Office 2/11/09) KENTA vs. Katsuhiko Nakajima (NOAH 3/1/09) KENTA vs. SUWA (NOAH, 9/18/05) CM Punk vs. John Cena (WWE, 7/17/11) Samoa Joe v Bryan Danielson (ROH, 05/05/06) Shawn Michaels v Undertaker (WWF, 05/10/97) Ric Flair v Jumbo Tsuruta (AJPW, 6/8/83) Brock Lesnar vs Chris Benoit (WWE, 12/04/03) Ric Flair v Rocky Steamboat (WCW, 2/4/89) The Rock v Rikishi (WWF, 19/11/00) Chris Benoit v The Rock (WWF, 23/07/00) The Rock v Steve Austin (WWF, 1/4/01) Steve Austin v Triple-H (WWF, 25/2/01) Dick Togo, Taka Michinoku, Mens Teioh, Shiryu & Shoichi Funaki vs El Gran Hamada, Super Delfin, Gran Naniwa, Tiger Mask IV & Masato Yakushiji (Michinoku Pro, 10/10/96) Tommy Dreamer v Raven (ECW, 6/6/97) Rob Van Dam v Jeff Hardy (WWF, 22/07/01) Hardy Boyz v Dudley Boyz v Edge/Christian (WWF, 2/4/00) Chris Benoit v Steve Austin (Smckdown, 31/5/01) Kenta Kobashi vs. Jun Akiyama (NOAH, 7/10/04) Wild Pegasus vs. The Great Sasuke (NJPW, 16/4/94) Jushin Liger vs. Ultimo Dragon (NJPW, 13/12/1995) Jushin Liger vs. Shinjiro Ohtani (NJPW, 09/02/1997)

So Linda lost again and has supposedly rinsed $100 million overall on her two campaigns, which is thought to be the most personal money any American has ever invested to try and gain office.

Well, WCWs shitty finishes usually included pointless heel/face turns, clusterfucks, countless run ins, laughable convoluted swerves et al. Whereas the Punk/Ryback finish was a fairly standard face gets screwed by corrupt ref with a fast count. It wasn't satisfying in the least but it made sense and was a pretty conventional way of having a heel retain with the face remaining strong.

I think bland, barely over guys like Jack Swagger, Miz, Dolph Ziggler et all having title reigns did a lot more to damage the belt than a typical screwy finish. Having a title that was lost every time through a Money in the Bank cash in damaged the belt - "you don't have to be good to win this title, you just have to wait until the champion has been laid out and get lucky". If anything this shows how desperate Punk is to retain the strap. Ryback's anger at the end showed how devastated he was to have been robbed of his chance to be champion. Kurt Angle retained the title through luck, outside interference and whatever from October 2000 to February 2001. Every match he was in he looked like a bitch. Didn't damage him, didn't damage the strap.

I still think the Attitude Era is the finest moment of weekly wrestling programming. It felt exciting, live, must-see television, managing to be unpredictable and compelling, something you talked about excitedly at school the next day. I watched the episode of Raw with the famous ten man tag from early 2000 and it was fantastic - the promos were great, the matches were good enough, everything was extremely fast moving, there was no dead space on air. The entire roster was over, there was a lot of variety, everyone had a unique look and style. Look at the tag team lineup; - Hardy Boyz - Dudley Boys - Edge and Christian - APA - New Age Outlaws - Too Cool - Funaki/Michinoku - T + A All over, all different, all easily identifiable, all appealing to different segments of the audience. Compare that with the cardboard cut outs you get today. So yeah, I love WWF from 1997-2001 in terms of being compelling television. I'm not sure how well it would all hold up if I decided to watch it back to back, although I've enjoyed reminiscing with friends watching small segments. Part of it is nostalgia, sure, but not all of it. Depends what you want from your wrestling, I suppose. There is plenty of silliness and the odd dreadful angle or appalling match (and plenty of bland wrestling in 1999 especially before guys like Benoit and Jericho jumped). As the type of person who'd much rather watch a garbage TLC match from 2000 than an acclaimed territory match from the 80s, as someone who likes hot angles and good promos and compelling characters and matches with a lot of heat, I really like it. As for its effects in the long run it's harder to say. On the one hand, without it WWF/E might not even be in business anymore, and certainly wouldn't exist in the form that we know it. Whether that's a good or a bad thing depends entirely on perception. In terms of actual content perhaps it has had a negative effect.

I really don't see how having Ryback win the belt would affect ratings. His segments haven't exactly seen spikes in the viewing figures, and although he has seemed pretty over at times, he hardly got a superstar reaction last night. There were almost as many 'Goldberg' chants as there were 'Feed Me More' pops. No one man is going to change the ratings around dramatically - Rock, Cena, Austin, Undertaker, Triple-H, Vince, none of these big stars have contributed a huge jump in ratings in recent years. Rock/Cena at Wrestlemania is a marquee match sold well, true, but that is pretty unique as a dream match with a long build featuring a guy who hasn't worked for eight years, on a show that sells a massive number of buys whatever the card. The product itself needs to change considerably for a shift in the ratings, there is not an overnight solution. There also needs to be a change in perception of wrestling in order to increase the demographic. It's hardly disastrous right now though, despite what people say. The boom years may just have been an anomaly, a unique occurrence of wrestling being a fad. They seem to be making plenty of money now, so they can't be too worried. I thought the finish was alright in all honesty, and Ryback still came out of it looking like an unstoppable monster. Punk isn't getting nearly enough credit for carrying him like he did last night, making him look absurdly strong at the expense of his own character. As people have pointed out, it really isn't good to have someone who is over on the basis of being undefeated, certainly not unless you are committed to a long term booking plan, which WWE certainly isn't. Ryback can't talk, looks cartoonish and has flavour of the month written all over him - it would be short sighted, short term panic booking if he won. Him winning and then working The Rock at the Rumble like some have suggested is a stupid idea to say the least; Rock has had one match in nine years, it's unrealistic to expect him both to carry Ryback and to take a lot of his powerful offence and make it look smooth. As for the show itself, it was pretty average. Couldn't care less about Del Rio and Orton has lost his mojo so I drifted in and out of it. Everything else was pretty unmemorable, except for the stretch of Show/Sheamus which was fun as hell but would have been crucified if it had involved Kurt Angle - stuff like the KO Punch and Brogue Kick have been protected to hell, yet here they are up within a few seconds of being hit with them. The main was just about there, the aftermath could have done with some blood maybe. I also thought they should have done a worked bump off the cell like they did with Rikishi in 2000 - Ryback military pressing Punk off the top would have been an awesome image, even if the landing was obviously protected.

I think with the 90s you get a bit of everything. Amazing heavyweight wrestling in AJPW, amazing junior wrestling in NJPW, AJW busting out the best women's wrestling of all time, hot feuds and angles in WWE and WCW, ridiculously entertaining garbage wrestling in ECW, memorable characters and feuds, fairly interesting stuff happening on the indies, feds like Michinoku Pro bringing the goods month after month, plus all the Lucha I've never got round to watching. Somehow it feels more exciting than the 80s and 70s for me.

The biggest problem to me is a sense of sameness. The majority of workers look essentially the same the same, have the same character, talk the same, feuds are booked the same, matches are worked the same, the structure of shows is the same, commentators throw the same terminology down our throats night after night. The ideas a regurgitated and regurgitated. Authority figure, Jericho-type heel. I watched Raw last week and this dude was doing a blueblood gimmick - when has that ever got over? Anyone who gets that gimmick overacts, over exaggerates - the entire gimmick is an unrealistic cliche, so people don't buy into it. The only way heels get heat these days (and this includes CM Punk) is by insulting the crowd. There is no sense of surprise to anything, you can change channel and you won't miss anything, the matches are nothing to write home about, the long, drawn our in ring promos just say the same stuff again and again. Big Show and Sheamus must have had exactly the same interaction on all of the last six shows pretty much. Give me Bossman dragging a coffin and squealing "you're a bastard Paul Wight" over Sheamus making lame scripted jokes any day of the week. I don't know what the solution is, but they could start by bringing in guys who have a different look. Briscoe Brothers are guys who could genuinely get over in the WWE setting, but they were deemed not 'cosmetically pleasing' enough if that amazing promo is to be believed. What about Necro Butcher? He would get over huge with that ridiculous look (with a little tweaking), even if he'd end up playing comedy face within a few months. Look back to 1999/2000, and you have the Hardyz, The Rock, Mankind, Big Show, Austin, 2 Cool, Dudley Boys, Guerrero, Benoit, all massively over guys who looked and acted completely different to one and other. The main thing is that it felt natural, whereas everyone in the WWE today, reading their scripted promos in their carefully designed t-shirts and clean, made up look just feel totally forced. Live TV is always better when it feels real and organic and exciting.

Doesn't Edge have the highest segment rating since the boom years for the live sex with Lita? Crazy really. I actually flicked on the sports channels the other day and there was 'WWE Vintage' or something on with him wrestling Angle Hair v Hair in 2002, and it was a really fun match. Fast paced, gripping, a lot of heat etc. But by the time he started getting pushed as a top level talent in 2005 or whatever, he had declined so much in the ring.

The PPV match Goldberg had with Jericho later on in 2003 is more interesting and smartly worked than the match with The Rock, if maybe less entertaining on a casual level. There is some good work around Goldberg's shoulder, a fairly unique barricade bump and while Goldberg comes out of it looking a monster, Jericho is reasonably protected as well. Not seen it for a good seven years but it sticks in the mind. Other than that, it's probably a safe bet to avoid all other Goldberg PPV matches from 2003/2004, the endless ones with Trips are especially terrible.