Childs

Both guys were willing to go too far, in story terms and literally. And it worked to create one of the great spectacles in the history of the company. First off, the intro video was one of the very best ever created by a promotion known for its great videos. Even if you didn't know the whole Foley mythology, they boiled it down perfectly and let you know what Hunter was in for. I guess they lost the crowd a little when they were brawling out of sight, but even that part wasn't exactly lacking in intensity. I'm a mark for the rapid-fire punches Foley threw when he was trying to set the tone for a real fight, and that wound to Hunter's leg looked gnarly. The last 15 minutes were note perfect, from Foley hurting his leg with that nutty bump to Rock's pop-in to Foley staging a rally while handcuffed to the pedigree kickout. I didn't expect to get swept up in it, but I did.

I actually didn't realize this was Tazz's debut. I don't think I was watching the WWF intently at this point, and I had not been an ECW fan in real time. Anyhow, it certainly was an effective way to bring him in, and Angle played a big part in that, between the promo, the way he bumped around and the fact he sold the choke as death. That said, Tazz was never destined for a big in-ring career in WWF. He was a limited worker, and Vince was never going to present him as a long-term monster the way Heyman did.

I tried to watch this without thinking too much about everything it helped spawn. And I have to give them credit for creating something that felt genuinely violent and chaotic. The key was how tight they kept it. I never felt like I was just sitting there waiting for some dude to set up a movie stunt in the middle of what was supposed to be a blood feud. These guys cared more about creating a vibe than about some "moment" that would live on through generations of video packages. All four of them were nuts of course, but Jeff really earned his reputation for being the most nuts. I hate the fact these car-crash matches have become endemic to WWE main-event programs. But if you want to see it done well, here you go.

They told an effective tale of the new-jack thugs taking down the former baddest boys on the block. I do think that story was a little diminished by the fact Kawada was still clearly the best wrestler in the match. Takayama and Omori took him down by fighting dirty rather than outwrestling him. Actually, Taue was the poignant figure in the match, because he desperately tried to fight fire with fire but just couldn't level the odds for his partner. The crowd seemed stunned by how decisive the finish was, which spoke well for these guys achieving their intended purpose. And they did it in unusually concise fashion. One of the best matches of the month.

Doc teasing a pre-bell takedown attempt made for an odd opening, but I enjoyed him and Misawa working the opening minutes like they were renewing acquaintances. Doc certainly did not look done, though he was notably less explosive than he'd been in the mid-'90s. I popped both times he stopped Ogawa dead in his tracks with straight rights. And I also dug the way he and Misawa kept fighting after the bell. That felt like something ripped from '80s All Japan. The crowd also seemed pretty into Scorpio, which was nice to see. Overall, this was a collection of interesting parts more than a coherent example of great wrestling. But I was more intrigued by it than say, the 1/17/00 Kobashi-Kawada, which was a better match. Matches like this speak to the value of casting such a wide net with the project.

It is surprising that Bradley never became much of anything. He had the look and was a strong fundamental wrestler. He made Ali look good in dropping the strap to him.

This was more of an angle than a match, but you can't teach what Tracy Smothers understood about portraying a pro wrestling character. He instantly made me want to see him against anyone who might come his way in Memphis, including Dinsmore in a potential rematch.

Did these guys ever fail to have a good match against one another? This one lacked the extra kick in the pants that might have pushed it to great. But Tajiri was just in total command of what he was doing, from the way he moved around the ring to the way he interacted with Big Sal on the apron.

This felt like a heel vs. heel match a lot of the way. These were maybe your two most highly regarded indy guys at the time, and I guess I can see why. They both hit their shit pretty well. But I was bored. It felt like they were doing stuff in the same space but not really competing, if that makes sense. And the finish was flat as a board.

This was okay. The control segment on Honda dragged, especially when Omori was in the ring. He just wasn't that good. We got to see a little bit of Takayama standing toe to toe with the big dog, but it was pretty clear Misawa had little interest in imposing his will on this match.

Another chapter in the gruesome death of Tarzan Boy. This time our dashing young hero was covered in blood long before he reached the ring. Satanico is a beautiful man. Loved his jacket, loved his driving head butts to the gut, loved the way he strutted around like he owned the place, loved him going straight to the low blow rather than allow Tarzan Boy an extended shine. Great shit. And the stuff going on around the main two was perfectly entertaining as well.

Furniture-fu will never be my favorite style of wrestling. But Tajiri as a swaggering, vicious bastard was very cool, and Super Crazy had the crowd going apeshit with the intensity of his comeback. This felt genuinely wild at times. Tajiri could easily have maimed someone in the crowd when he skipped those chairs across the surface of the table and through the ropes. I certainly don't recall Attitude Era WWF approaching this level of mayhem on television. I could see this standing up as one of the most memorable matches of 2000.

That Panther takedown was an all-time badass move. Good lord. Both he and Casas looked great in this while it lasted. This felt a little inconsequential compared to some of the other trios we've watched, but there was no downtime. Again, the CMLL has been relentlessly entertaining.

Maybe 2 1/2 hours.

As with the other great match from this show, I don't have a lot to add. But I had this No. 44 for the decade in the Ditch project, so I'm a big fan. This was just the first of many indications that Tenryu in the 2000s was every bit as good as Tenryu in the '90s, and Sasaki had finally started to come into his own as a top guy.

Even though Sid was theoretically the monster, he basically worked this from underneath. Benoit did the stalking and all the cutoff spots. Sid actually played his part well, never letting his ego get in the way of selling. And he didn't do enough for his awkwardness to come into play. Benoit delivered a solid attack as you'd expect. The finish was crap, even if it was somewhat of a necessary evil given Benoit's circumstances. I didn't like this as much as Loss or Chad. They did the best match they could but never tapped into anything legitimately stirring. Maybe *** or ***1/2 but nowhere near a MOTYC.

AJ gave a promising performance. He hit some impressive stuff without going over the top, and he put a lot of effort into selling the damage to his ribs. His execution on punches and stomps was iffy, and the match kind of petered out. But the seeds were evident.

This wasn't real deep, but I'll never complain about eight minutes of rugged, fast-paced action in my TV wrestling. Tajiri was pretty great almost every time out in this period, and Lynn held his own. I"ll take this over most of the bloat we saw from ECW in the '90s.

I don't generally think of Atlantis as a fiery wrestler, but he brought the fury after Villano III beat him down and stole his mask in the primera caida. Their interactions were the highlights here, though Casas and Pierroth also delivered a few fierce exchanges. As with the other trios we saw from this card, they did a great job of creating a wild atmosphere and wetting the appetite for bigger things to come. The tercera didn't feel fully fleshed out but again, it wasn't really supposed to. Exciting times in CMLL.

The Scenic City Invitational finals have also been really good four-man matches, albeit with only two guys in the ring at once. Speaking to the unfortunate cliches of a lot of triple threats, I loathe contrived three-man spots. Please no more three-man submissions or superplexes. They almost always look terrible.

This was more of an appetizer than a fully developed match, but it was a damn tasty appetizer between Los Infernales unleashing hell and the tecnicos delivering a spirited response. I liked Tarzan Boy's willingness to fight dirty with Satanico, and I'm certainly eager to watch them go at it again, which was the point.

Akiyama vs. Misawa 2/27, the 12/14 AJPW vs. NJPW tag and Kawada vs. Sasaki 10/9.

Good to see Sasuke looking spry after a decade of death-defying bumps. And of course Hamada was eternal. I didn't expect them to get so rugged on the mat with Tiger Mask, but that work was cool. Mochizuki's strikes looked crisp, but he seemed less essential than the other three. I didn't vibe with the overall match as much as Loss. My reaction was more similar to Chad's.

I liked this a bunch, though it probably stood out more because it was atypical for the promotion. I'm a fan of UWFI Takayama, but this was probably the earliest I've seen him look like the major star he would become. That combination of heavy hitting, competent matwork and selling just enough vulnerability would become his trademark. They really packed a lot into 10 minutes, and I dug the way Akiyama pulled it out using guile more than force.

No matter what you think of the ultimate direction this style took, it's hard to argue CIMA was anything less than a big-time talent. Everything he did here, from the basics to the big moves in the finishing stretch, looked great. Fujita looked good too, though his selling of CIMA's legwork was spotty. After initially worrying that this might drag, I was pleasantly surprised by how well they paced it. Very good stuff overall.