Loss
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Everything posted by Loss
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I don't think the AAA style at this point was capable of producing an all-time classic title match, and this wasn't that. But it was a very good match that was lots of fun, maybe the best possible match AAA could have with all the gaga mixed in. The purist in me hated this, and for those of you who enjoy title match lucha, you're not going to find your typical title match here at all. But if you set that aside and just judge the match on the merits, it's good stuff with lots of crowd-popping dives and outside interference. Worth watching for sure.
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I think it's more about doing arcs that last a certain amount of time, then end, then the guys either don't work the next show or take a greatly reduced role. I think the big thing is that more top guys are needed. WWE storylines right now don't lend themselves to the type of scrutiny that an MMA hour-type show would require, so I think it might not be the best idea. I think more than anything, it's about rotating the wrestlers in the main event scene to keep things fresher.
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I feel like saying "how many companies have ever changed the format of their TV?" and "how many companies have ever had so much content to produce?" are inconsistent. If they have more content than anyone ever, then changing the way they present television is probably in order so that it feels fresh, instead of them expecting fans to understand how much they have on their plate. As for fresh talent, it's one of the biggest reasons I was disappointed that Daniel Bryan got hurt. I feel like he could have defended his title against a lot of guys who just need that big breakout performance and given them something big to showcase them. They haven't had that type of workhorse world champion who makes everyone around him better in a really long time. I think both issues are tied together. I think they should rotate talent basically, and give everyone at least a month off per year while rotating guys in and out of the top mix.
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This was awesome. Tenryu and Chono are meant to do their thing in big buildings and get plenty of chances to do it here. I liked how lean this was for a big match too - everything they did had purpose and they didn't go overboard with nearfalls at the end, even though there were some strong ones. Just below MOTYC level. I'm enjoying this stretch of matches. -
There are such small things they could do, like give him a knee injury or something that he works through for a few months. It gives his matches some focus and a different dimension, it builds sympathy on him, and they could actually do an upset or two that would do wonders for a couple of guys without hurting Cena at all. In fact, it would help him because it would give him fresh rivalries.
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Also, I'm tired of WWE acting like they are a victim of the content machine. The problem is stale talent that is overexposed and booked against their strengths, and a tired television format. The reasons for that have little to do with the volume of content. It's more about WWE being stuck in an outdated mindset about what their television shows should look like and feel like, and failing to create new main event-level stars regularly.
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What company could really sustain that year after year while producing this much content? They've been in the 2-hour RAW format for 17 years now. What company sustained a hot consistent year-round run for that long? There's a reason TV shows have repeats for 3 months.I think it's just the nature of the beast. I was watching 1985 Worldwide and it's on fire for a few months heading into the Bash with great angles every week, but by August-Ocrober, it's lots of squashes and interviews with not much happening. I'm working my way through 1980 Memphis (a down year, I know) and they'll shoot a really hot angle like the Valiant-Ellering double turn or whatever and it's great for a while, but then you'll get a month where nothing really noteworthy happens. I don't mean that they need to have hot angles constantly, but I do think shows can be really good all the time. When the angles slow down, the matches should kick in. I understand not having hot angles on every show, but I don't understand bad comedy, bad finishes and matches that don't deliver. I realize that good wrestling has peaks and valleys, but there is a huge gap between WWE's hot periods and WWE's cool periods, and both tend to be pretty extreme. Last year's last three months were ruined by horrible PPV finishes more than they were anything else. There's a slow period, and then there's a bad period.
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This was a great match that also disappointed me at the same time. I was hoping for MOTY with the heat and atmosphere of the Choshu matches in the 80s. I know that's a high bar. But still, this was a really great match, and it seemed designed to build to the future, even if the Kendo Ka Shin push makes me want to puke. Liger and Otani going out early really did shock me. Fun to see that Wagner and Kanemoto look to be developing a rivalry, with Wagner avenging his loss from two days earlier. Hayashi made a surprisingly good showing. I guess in some ways this is a sacrifice I can understand. They may have pumped up the crowd a lot more if they'd had Liger/Wagner vs Otani/Kanemoto in the end, but they were trying to build something for the future, so guys that don't normally get that spotlight got it here. They chose Kendo Ka Shin, but at least they were trying with someone. I guess what we say about juniors in domes can also be applied to juniors at Budokan Hall though, because there was very little heat for this. That's unfortunate because the match was set up with lots of crowd pleasing spots, and they did a lot of things early where one team would do unto the other team, then the same thing would be done unto them moments later. The crowd didn't bite, the work was strong, they pushed new guys, but I don't know about their choices in who to push. Lots to admire here, not as much to love.
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The sad thing is that if it was good year round, the excitement would be there year round.
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Really strong match. The Kobashi-Kawada stuff is really well done heading into their TC match in one week. Kobashi and Ace work over Taue's knee and do a great job of it. Ace has a few what the hell moments in this, but nothing too major, and Kobashi is so good in this match that it almost doesn't matter, and it's not like Ace is terrible. They go for broke with all the nearfalls at the end, and Taue takes a lot of punishment in this match while managing to kick out before ultimately staging a comeback and pinning Kobashi. Knowing how much higher Taue was in the hierarchy than Kobashi at one point, it's cool to see Kobashi as his superior now, even though Taue got a win to set up Kobashi's TC defense a few months down the line. I like how Kawada and Taue work together as a team, including the spot where Taue grabbed Kobashi out of desperation to keep him from going anywhere so Kawada could do a high kick. There's a cool rhythm to this where one big spot is immediately followed by someone else doing a big spot. Despite the work being really good, at a certain point, I wanted them to just get to the finish, because there were way too many kickouts. So the finishing stretch of stuff did get really excessive after a while. Still, I thought this was great at times and very good overall.
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Dean Malenko is facing Silver King when Jericho comes out and rings the bell. He hits the ring and says Malenko's title reign is through. Jericho has found an NWA rulebook from 1934 in the Library of Congress, citing the Ed "The Strangler" Lewis loophole which states that the champion has first right of refusal for any contenders. Jericho demands Malenko return the title and starts insulting Malenko's dad, which leads to Malenko laying Jericho out with the belt to a big pop. Jericho comes across as a guy trying too hard in some of these segments, but he's still a breath of fresh air.
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Match 5 of 7. They don't get as much time as I'd like, but they really do make the most out of what they are given. Nice, fast-paced match with a really hot crowd. Booker takes this one, putting the series at 3-2 overall.
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Typical ECW chaos with the referees wrestling, Beulah getting physically involved in spots, etc. Beulah ends up eating a 3D and I'm pretty sure that was the end of her in ECW. New Jack immediately comes out to brawl - not to make the save and run the Dudleys off, but just to do his normal brawling routine - which kills what should be a serious angle. Jack Victory ends up coming to the rescue. Jack Victory.
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I found the first 8-9 minutes of this match online, and I'd definitely recommend watching that before watching this. There is nothing groundbreaking there, but it serves to further emphasize how the match was laid out. This is very different from juniors matches of the time, and I say that as someone who has become a big fan of New Japan juniors through this project, despite common criticisms regarding the matches being overly formulaic. This match defies that logic and has Wagner bringing the lucha matwork to New Japan, doing all sorts of holds that aren't common among others in the division. This match is also laid out in a very different way than usual. Wagner takes 95% of the offense. Kanemoto starts showing glimmers of hope in the last 10 minutes or so, and his teased comebacks get over big because he was on the receiving end of Wagner's onslaught for so long. He has a breakthrough in the past few minutes and starts showing some signs of life. I think the match would have been better if Wagner won, just because it was laid out like it was his to win. But even that worked in a way, because Kanemoto snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. This is my MOTY at this point.
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Last few minutes. Austin and Vince are on commentary together! Priceless. Undertaker gives Kane a tombstone after a ref bump but no one is there to count. Foley is back out as Mankind and Vince plays dumb ("I fired him!"). Kane wins the match and is now the #1 contender. Austin and Vince get heated at the booth. Vince just continues to melt my heart with this stuff. Undertaker and Mankind brawl after the match, and the top two matches are set for King of the Ring.
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Clips of Austin on Mancow. It's been awesome to watch the WWF's meteoric rise week-to-week. I love that Vince calls in during Austin's appearance on the show.
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DX interrupt a Sable photo shoot with super soakers. This is as 1998 as it gets.
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Undertaker does a promo they try to present as a shoot, with him complaining about problems he has had with Vince McMahon through the years. Vince put him in a position for years to be "keeper of the kingdom" by putting every giant or freak out there against Undertaker - guys his hand-picked champions had no chance of beating. He claims he never had a long title reign because Vince never wanted anyone like him representing the WWF, that he gave Paul Bearer a forum to air all of his personal dirty laundry for ratings and this appears to be the first undeniably Vince Russo segment we have seen. Anyway, Undertaker has had enough and is ready to be the number one guy in the WWF. He demands a shot at the title and asks Vince to come out. Vince comes out and tops himself once again. He asks Undertaker if it's true that his mother was a whore and sets up a match against Kane for tonight. More Vince, please. This guy is ridiculously great.
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Foley's face looks nasty - looks like he took a beating the night before. He comes out by admitting he got his ass kicked by Steve Austin last night and asks Vince to come out so he can apologize. Vince is not in a forgiving mood and demands that Mick get on his knees and apologize. He calls him a total embarrassment to himself, his family and his fans all over the world. Vince is an unbelievable asshole here. Foley counters that Vince underestimated Austin. Vince's response to that is that he didn't underestimate Austin, he overestimated Foley. This prompts Foley to admit that when he cracked Vince with the chair last night, it felt good. Vince cavalierly suggests he do it again and keeps daring Mick to hit him and wow is Vince awesome, all while mentioning the new house Mick just bought, the college fund for his kids and the nest egg he has set aside for his parents. Vince finally admits that the only reason he hasn't fired Austin is because he makes him rich, while all Dude Love does is make Vince sick. This ends with Vince telling Dude Love his services are not required. This was a powerful segment. Vince was phenomenal.
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Evidence of something, yes. But what is the right action a wrestling promoter should take based on this? How do they capitalize on it?
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I also don't think it's indicative of anything.
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I listened to this show and thought wow Tony Schiavone would be a much better podcast host than Jim Ross. He came across as a really nice, sincere guy who loves wrestling and his family. He's also not wound up nearly as tight as Jim Ross.
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This brings up something that I think would be an interesting separate topic that I might start soon - alternative revenue streams (any way for a wrestling company to make money other than the live gate or PPV buys) are the enemy of good booking. I think it says a lot about WWE that they would rather sell merchandise than sell out shows and have more Network subs. A Cena heel turn has the potential to bring back lots of people who stopped watching if it's accompanied by a new promotional concept.
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The nWo - Did the positives outweigh the negatives?
Loss replied to JaymeFuture's topic in Pro Wrestling
Sting was asked about the Nick Patrick thing years ago and all he would say is that he had his suspicions on how things went down but didn't know for sure. He's so trusting! -
This goes beyond WWE. The last three months of the year have traditionally been viewed as the worst part of the year for wrestling because of kids going back to school and football. Holiday shows on Thanksgiving and Christmas were the exception to that.