Childs

Ok...

Against every rational fiber in my body, I hope the main event is entertaining.

Is Shane going to fight off the stretcher? Fuckhead.

This match really hammers home how astounding it is that people watch all these guys and decide Roman is the one who sucks.

I swear Ambrose is more terrible than good.

I feel awful for Adam's family. He was a good dude and a valued member of this community.

I don't get the complaints about the main event. It was a really good, hard-hitting match that happened to be overshadowed by the earlier tag match. Thought Joe looked quite good, and the finishing run clicked.

Pretty sure they charge the lump sum.

It hurts me in my heart that you had Hansen-Kobashi (and so much other great stuff) below that garbage joshi cage match.

I didn't get that with Tommy End at all, though I agree with Phil that it feels like he should be cool to watch. That opener was a real dog of a match. But I certainly can't complain about a show with the one-two punch of Sabre-Gulak and Hero-Riddle. Two totally different matches that both hit the spot.

That was my No. 1 Japanese match of the 2000s. Glad you liked it.

I agree the crowds are uneven, especially in Florida. I don't agree that translates to listless efforts by the wrestlers.

I promise not to let the resentment overtake me when I'm watching Hero vs. Riddle live next weekend.

I don't think it's bad if you're a WWN fan already, but they should have made a greater effort to have a robust archive coming out of the gate. I'm on board but somewhat reluctantly.

I finally got around to Lee-Everett, and watching Lee in CWF was a revelation. I had never seen anything to indicate he'd have that kind of command over a long match. But he looked like such a seasoned champion, which is something you don't see much of, even among the best indie workers. I wonder if he'll find other places to show that side of himself over time? It would be a shame if he spends most of his career being jammed into go-go-go matches in larger promotions.

I actually think the entire Kobashi GHC run is a worthwhile watch if you're trying to figure out where he lands historically. He worked a much more diverse group of opponents than he did in All Japan.

I enjoy the idea of Matt watching a bunch of NOAH main events. Also, I assume the universe is about to tilt off its axis when I agree with Nintendo Logic over Phil.

You need to see the recent PWG six-man that ended with the crowd chanting 5-star match as the wrestlers fixed solicitous stares on Meltzer, who was sitting in the front row :-)

But I don't think you explain why that match struck you as inauthentic. Though I share your feelings about a lot of modern wrestling, that match isn't a good example. It was a pretty classic wrestling story, with the legitimately wounded champ digging deep to fend off an invader who'd laid waste to the promotion all year. And a crowd that was legitimately invested in said story. If that's inauthentic, we might as well shut the whole thing down and watch only classic footage.

You would think but alas not.

Hero has had an absolutely fascinating career. There are pockets of self-indulgent garbage, but he's worth the journey. He'd be a great subject for a mega-comp.

I watch a lot of Evolve, and it's not a promotion where context is hugely important. Great matches (well, the attempt at them) are the brand. I'm interested to see what Parv makes of Matt Riddle.

I agree with Dave on the broad point, though maybe not the specific one. I find that a lot of classic matches feel like classics because they either epitomize the promotion or do a brilliant job of playing against type.

Yes, it enhances my rating of it. I almost always care more about what actually happened than about the blueprint for what was supposed to happen. And I think it's to their immense credit as workers that they created and sustained the tone they did, regardless of particular moments.

It looked and sounded violent to me, watching on TV. But it did not click as a big spectacle spot for the live crowd. So it worked on one level but not on another. Those concepts aren't mutually exclusive. And yes, the match would have worked just fine, maybe better for a lot of people, if Sasha had gone through the table. Cliche absolutely can and often does work. But what I liked so much about this match is that a lot of it didn't fall into typical WWE spectacle shit (as I said in my first post, didn't love the stretcher stuff) and the table not breaking fit with that. It was a happy accident.