NintendoLogic

Here we have a matchup of two guys who would go on to bigger and better things. Yamada would go on to become Jushin Liger while Funaki would change his first name to Masakatsu and become a pioneer of MMA in Pancrase. At this point, however, they're just a couple of young lions toiling away in prelims. This is a pretty basic match built around a contrast of styles-Funaki wants to establish separation so he can throw his kicks while Yamada would prefer to stay on the mat. The biggest highspot for most of the match is Yamada powering out of a triangle choke. There is some questionable no-selling toward the end. Yamada goes for the shooting star press but gets tossed off the top rope like Ric Flair. He then pops right back up so Funaki can dropkick him out of the ring and hit him with a tope. Yamada wins with that double leg clutch hold that I'm sure has an actual name. Given the huge angle that was planned for the main event (this is the show where a debuting Big Van Vader would beat Antonio Inoki in three minutes, causing a riot that would lead to New Japan being banned from Sumo Hall), these two clearly weren't setting out to steal the show, and they didn't. To be honest, given the trend toward maximalism in modern wrestling, I found the lack of ambition rather refreshing. They stuck to the basics and executed well without overstaying their welcome, so there's nothing to complain about. This isn't a substantial addition to either man's legacy, but it's nothing to be ashamed of either.

I'd also add the Rock match from No Mercy to the list of Jericho matches. I don't think the Omega match is Jericho's best, but I do think it's his best individual performance.

Looks like SANADA is going to be Okada's next challenger. He'll get an opportunity in return for giving Okada a shot at the tag titles with Goto as his partner. That photoshopped picture of HHH holding every championship belt in WWE might actually become a reality in New Japan.

This is something I've been wanting to do for a while now.

I started watching with the 6-man tag match. Good show overall. There's nothing I'd rate as a MOTYC, but there's nothing I actively hated either. A couple of notes. One, I thought Jericho was clearly the better wrestler in the Omega match. I don't recall ever thinking that in a Jericho match before. Two, I wonder what's next for Okada. He's run through the entire division and Jericho and Jay White, who could be plausible challengers if properly built up, both lost. And his bell bottoms were distractingly bad. Who was the chick on the Japanese announce team? She was pretty cute.

I'm most intrigued by the Jericho/Omega match. I'm sure Jericho has enough self-awareness to realize that he can't hang with Omega athletically, which is why it has built up as a grudge match. I haven't seen much evidence that either guy is particularly skilled at working a high-end hate-filled brawl, but it should at least provide a change of pace from the other matches on the card.

Thanks. I'll try to write it up later tonight. For you, I pick Io Shirai vs. Shayna Baszler from Stardom on 2/23/17. You had mentioned wanting to get into joshi, and I enjoyed this match quite a bit. https://rutube.ru/video/ad1961e437db7fd81e86d81f4cb2c6d2/

A new selection for 2006 from out of nowhere. Like the Diamond Cutter, I never saw it coming.

I never imagined that Yoshi Tatsu would be in a MOTYC, but here we are. This match deserves a more detailed write-up than I'm giving it right now, but it's one of those matches that works on a number of levels. You have the veterans torturing a young lion aspect, the regulars defending their promotion's honor against the invading outsiders aspect, and the pro wrestler vs. shooter aspect. Suzuki in particular turned in a virtuoso performance as the uncooperative asshole who refused to play by the rules of fake pro wrestling. Him casually sidestepping Tatsu's flurries was a thing of beauty, as was his strike exchange with Nagata. This was fantastic. I loved everything about this. I have a new MOTY for 2006.

Count me in. I have WWE Network and New Japan World.

As I heard it, Jacques made it known to the locker room that he had put out a contract on Dynamite that was to be fulfilled if anything happened to him. Specifically, he told Dino Bravo, who was even more deeply tied to the mob and could verify its veracity. That was the story in Ring of Hell, so make of that what you will.

Made my final picks for 2017.

Made some additions/alterations to my original post.

You'd probably have a different perspective on finances if you've been around the wrestling business as long as Dave has. He's seen more guys than he can list end up broke who he thought were set for life.

I've been on my fair share of message boards, and I know how difficult it is to keep conversation lively while maintaining a strong signal-to-noise ratio. You need strong moderation for that to happen, but you also need a strong crew of regular posters who are willing to police each other and check themselves if need be. Thanks to everyone here for making this board what it is.

If you think Fujinami's heavyweight matches are a chore to get through, just hang in there. I'm sure the elimination tag matches will be more your speed.

How exactly do the Bucks tear apart the conventions of the genre?

I'm not sure "looks fake" and "embarrassing to non-fans" are terribly useful standards. If we're really being honest, much of the territory wrestling a lot of us love is just as goofy and fake-looking to a non-fan, if not more so.

But that small niche audience is willing to pay premium prices for tickets and merchandise. Is 50 fans paying $100 to watch a match really less impressive than 1000 fans paying $5 to watch one?

I respect the hell out of anyone who manages to beat the system and make a good living outside of the WWE machine. I don't particularly enjoy their matches, but I long ago resigned myself to the fact that the kind of wrestling I really enjoy is dead.

Has Brock ever wrestled Kane before?

Dave not exactly covering himself in glory in his discussion of the Michael Elgin sitution. For those who haven't been following, one of Elgin's students was accused of sexual assault by a fan. Elgin was then revealed to have behaved in an assholish manner toward the fan in DMs. He's lost some bookings as a result.

Here's the arrest report: https://twitter.com/GainesvillePD/status/939852538026872839/photo/1 Not a good look when your statement to the police is contradicted by two eyewitnesses. Also, the fact that she was willing to jump out of a moving car to get away from him leads me to believe that this wasn't the first incident.

I don't know. The ring boy scandals were a pretty huge deal in 1992.

Was he there to buy a Young Bucks shirt?