WingedEagle

Can't blame them if the issue is the death match aspect of the promotion. Easy enough for me to skip those matches but it must limit their appeal to a certain level.

Ziggler more than held his own on the stick tonight. Would AJ have to work harder to have a bad match than a good one at this point? Smackdown's crowds seem hotter than Raw from the very opening of the show these days. Perhaps silly, but is the weight of a 3+ hour TV show to follow dragging them down? I know I look forward to Smackdown more now because it just moves so much quicker and has a fraction of the backstage and talking shenanigans.

Last few months they've certainly given the go ahead on apron spots.

Absolutely loved this. Who would think Nomura manages to stand out above Yuji & Sek as the star of this match? His kicks were pure fire, but credit where its due to Strong BJ as they sold like hell to put him over, and it worked like magic. But that only got him so far before a decisive finish. Looking forward to more iterations in this matchup following the tag tourney as fresh pairings among the core crew here can only bring good things. An easy ****

Wow, maybe that's the difference. I thought the first Owens-Zayn match in NXT had a great, hot start and could've been a great match. Then they pulled the injury angle very quickly and it ended much too prematurely to be anything great. Didn't approach that again until Battleground. But unless Zayn is being directed to temper himself and not sell in great fashion to build a hot comeback, I'm just not sure it can be blamed squarely on a push. Still waiting for him to be part of a single match approaching Nakamura in Dallas. This is where I am at with Sasha Banks. She had a couple good matches in NXT but the hyperbole over her was out of control. I like Sasha and think she can be great but I didn't think she was already great and it felt like quite a few people had already crowned her. Yeah the hype train got out of the station a bit quickly there. I loved the Bayley matches, but those were 2 outings. The threeways at Mania and Clash of Champions were both really good in my book, as were the matches where she traded the belt with Charlotte, but we're talking very good, not upper tier for the company in a given year. If anything, her sloppiness seems to stand out in a good way where it adds to her matches because they approach a level of danger and insanity that kicks things up a notch. Much like when Zayn was dumped on his head at Battleground, as opposed to some other instances where he may slip up in a fashion that takes you out of a match.

I love Big Japan Pro Wrestling. It can't touch New Japan for depth and you have to work around the death match nonsense, but they have a great core of talent in the strong division along with some fun youngsters and the Akebono/Hama super heavyweight team that somehow always delivers an entertaining match by working to their strengths, around their weaknesses and not going too long. They've also got one of my absolute favorite wrestlers and someone I'm determined to fit onto my Most Outstanding ballot this year in Yuji Okabayashi. He's anchored the promotion as Strong Champion throughout the first half of the year while mixing things up in tags in All Japan and the top of the card since dropping the title. The style is tremendous and simple, grounded in big strikes and simple, effective offense. No killer head drops and generally no finisher spamming either. Their pacing is always terrific with ample time for offense to sink in and tell a story. What stands out about Okabayashi is how seamlessly he can work as the promotion's ace on a big show or an interpromotional setting, coming off as a ridiculously strong and serious force of nature who's at the same time an incredible seller. Just so expressive in all facets of the game with an offense that never gets repetitive and more than willing to put over an opponent of any size along the way. Kamitani looks like one hell of a prodigy as their new champion who more than held his own in the 7/24 title change, which was a legit MOTYC. Absolutely need to go back and check out his big matches that I haven't seen from the past couple years. Nomura is another youngster with incredible potential who was actually the star in a recent tag league boat with him and Hideki Suzuki against Okabayashi & Sekimoto. Don't have the time to comment on all of these matches now, but a few favorites from this year include: Okabayashi vs. Kamitani (7/24) Yuji & Go vs. Sekimoto & Daichi Hashimoto from Kobashi's Fortune show Okabayashi vs. Shuji Ishikawa (3/6 and 5/5) Twin Towers & Okabayashi vs. Kamitani & Sekimoto & Hama (6/29) Okabayashi & Sekimoto vs. Zeus & The Bodyguard (AJPW 7/23) Okabayashi & Sekimoto vs. Suzuki & Nomura (9/22) Sekimoto vs. Kento Miyahara (AJPW 5/25) Can easily come up with more, but if you stick to the strong style crew there's a lot of good stuff to be found. Question: Is anyone familiar enough with the company and landscape to speak to their positioning in Japan? From what I understand the big show on 7/24 did decent business but nothing out of this world. Just not at all sure if its at all beyond the fringe/niche level. And if so, why wouldn't NJPW look to poach some of these names or bring them in for certain big matches? That's always happened with a lot more frequency in Japan.

Zayn has not been very impressive since he's come to the main roster and I'm baffled by why so many people still cry about him being "wasted" or "buried" like he should be a permanent fixture of the main event. I struggle to think of any really impressive TV match that Zayn has had since he's come to the main roster while a guy like Sheamus is always churning out good matches to zero fanfare outside of some people on this board. I didn't even really care for the Owens matches which everyone would probably point to as Zayn's best stuff on the main roster. When a great wrestler looks unimpressive in a promotion, I blame the promotion not the wrestler. I'm not sure I think Zayn is all that great. I think he's had some great and really fun matches in both ROH & PWG, but hasn't been anything spectacular in NXT or WWE outside of the Nakamura match. Very good at times, sloppy and mediocre at others. Even with all of that, there's the point below. Its not very helpful to immediately blame promotion or wrestler in such a situation. Both may or may not be responsible. Outside of the debut against Cena last year, arguably the return against Owens early this year and the build to the Nakamura match, I'm not sure he's been put in a position to shine as an attraction. But he has had a number of lengthy singles matches against workers up and down the roster, as well as a slew of multi man affairs and more often than not have found these matches and his performances generally haven't been all that special. The Owens Battleground match is probably my favorite of his this year. That match had a lot more intensity as well as big, loud performances and psychology. Did he just click that night or did they simply take the shackles off for that lone occasion? I don't know the answer, but he has had the diverse opponents and enough time in the ring where you'd think he could deliver above his booking and slotting unless he and his opponents are regularly instructed not to heat up the crowd too much.

These conversation killers are great at killing conversations. And this one surely needed to die.

I also expected Ric to work underneath here before pulling out a win, but was pleasantly surprised that he was in fact The Man most of the way. Not to say that there weren't moments where Flair begged off or gave some credibility to Gilbert as his challenger of the moment, but those were the wrinkles rather than the story here. The chops were solid, the finish decisive and as simple as this was nothing looked preposterous and just about everything as sold. I'm sure the match by match comps will stop as I get deeper into the set, but its natural to think in terms of what came before it at this early stage. I enjoyed this a hair more than our the first Abby/Colon outing, primarily because it was much tighter with no wasted time or motion. Just love the way Flair paces things -- long, short, his tempo is always outstanding. Let's things breathe but never too much. Fun TV match. Was this a studio taping? It appeared so but the crowd also looked large enough that I'd believe it if you told me otherwise. ***1/4

That wasn't good. I'll take one more night of babyface Jericho, but my god was that long and lifeless.

This match would absolutely do record low ratings if it were on TV. Why tease us with focusing on the leg if you refuse to work it at all? Just hoping it doesn't go too long past 11. Really, really disappointing match thus far.

Rusev vs. Reigns Match was fine, but really just fine for the most part. I wanted a bigger, louder more explosive Cesaro vs. Sheamus and got a solid Raw match. Very curious to see where they go with Roman Reigns, US Champion, but they did seem to get him a babyface pop for the win. Progress?

According to a friend in the building, they've been dead since Sheamus/Cesaro.

Charlotte vs. Sasha vs. Bayley Maybe I'm crazy and will regret this tomorrow, but I absolutely loved that, probably as much as Sheamus/Cesaro even if completely different. How are these multi-women matches always laid out so well? Never lacking creative transitions whether going from 2 to 3 or 3 to 2. Smartly weaving in spots and storytelling. Why can't they do that with the guys? For my money, Charlotte is far & away the best heel in the company. That's not a knock on anyone else, she is just that great. Promos, presence, little facials and mannerisms in the match. Very much the glue in these matches. **** for now

Love the Jordans, but beyond that I don't see him as all that charismatic.

Zayn vs. Jericho Rarely impressed by these two and tonight was no exception. Perhaps we're getting the Jericho face turn and title match with Owens at Survivor Series in Canada, which actually sounds promising as a one-off. Zayn seems to have a few spots in every match where he goofs in a manner that screams at you how planned everything is and this was no exception. Feel like he needs to be in whatever amounts to a blood feud in WWE these days rather than relying on flippy spots that don't seem his strong suit.

Sheamus vs. Cesaro This started off the weakest of any match in the series. That did not last long. These two killed each other, and Cesaro even tried to kill himself on the grossest tope I've seen in some time. Great transitions once it got going, stiffness, selling, murder. Good stuff! The finish couldn't kill it even if that may have been the goal. Curious where they take the booking from here, as hopefully there's something planned other than simply going again tomorrow. **** and would've been higher with a proper finish.

Perkins vs. Kendrick - Still don't quite get the fuss about Perkins. Generally moves well and has some unique offense, but he's not great selling and working underneath and seems a bit rough keeping things together. Structure here was also odd as they set up a few spots to build heat and generate some sympathy for the babyface, both with the awesome early apron spot and then later with the neck injury, but didn't stick with it in either case for very long. Not bad but the botch and spotty nature definitely held this back. Post-match was nice though.

New Day vs. Anderson & Gallows - Enjoyed this a hell of a lot more than I expected. They kept it tight at roughly 8-9 minutes and was all action the entire way. Hot start with the Club jumping the champs for a big near fall, and then near falls down the stretch seemed to matter as well -- perhaps because of how they've hyped the length of New Day's reign? Seemed ripe for a title change, but then came the finish which is apparently why we were here, as New Day debuted a Kofi-assisted Big Ending called the Midnight Owl. So it was a marketing opportunity. But solid stuff until then.

Not sure how that's consistent with pushing her as a monster heel in matches. Would make more sense when the time comes to begin teasing a face turn, but its just something they harp on during her entrance and on commentary. Doesn't seem to add a whole lot to the overall package at this stage.

I love the ear attack because its unique, brutal, and fucks up your equilibrium. A monster like Abby is going to ignore/only be further angered by something like arm work. Abby isn't some mere mortal so you have to approach him differently from a normal wrestler. Ear work fucks up his balance and his ability to think clearly (well as clearly as Abby can). I dug it. And Colon was so focused and forceful attacking the ear. I haven't seen a single Abby/Colon match yet that would contend for my top 5, but I've really liked every one of them and they take different approaches to each of their matches which you wouldn't expect. Awesome, great to hear that they're all so different. The ear attack was completely unexpected and not something I sure I've ever seen right out of the gate. Its one thing were there's a storyline or blood that makes it a focus, but this was so unique and grabbed your attention right away because of it.

You are the man. That power outage did not sound like a great time.

You are a maniac. Love it. I will be moving at a much slower pace

Opening the set with Abby having his head stitched together is quite apropos. This was the blood and violence you want and expect from these two but without the insanity of a gimmick or blow off match. From Colon attacking the ear (I'd ask why, but will opt instead for why not?) at the start to Abby's thrusts to the throat -- always a favorite and something I constantly forget how much I love, to the double juice this was a hot way to kick off Puerto Rico. A blood stoppage finish that felt a bit premature along with some extended stalling early on hold this back a bit, but just a bit. Very fun and a very different vibe from most territories and promotions. We'll see how far into the set I keep saying that. *** Some other random likes and thoughts: - Abby looks pretty terrifying and insane when he mutters to himself as his lips vibrate as blood flows down his face after jabbing someone in the throat. - We weren't on the verge of a riot, but when that crowd was right up next to the ring and you could see policy gathering a few rows deep it felt like something crazy could happen. Have a feeling this is not your PWG / west coast Brooklyn crowd. - Speaking of the crowd, loved the Ed "Too Tall" Jones lookalike in the first row who couldn't even be bothered to uncross his arms early on. - Again expected a riot when someone clearly hit Abby on his way out. All involved were fortunate things didn't escalat.e - Colon looked older with the stache and for whatever reason looked quite dusty.