WingedEagle

Ranallo sounds like he should be who paid for promotional consideration. Not like Lord Al Hayes used to do it, because that was some classy business, but more along the lines of the 2AM spots on basic cable. Ryback gets a whole lot of snowflakes for his belt.

Aries really belongs in the conversation as one of Danielson's best opponents. They killed it at closing out Survival of the Fittest '04 and I'll eventually get around to posting thoughts on their 2/3 Falls marathon match that summer, but needless to say I thought it was great and a likely high-level MOTY without the concussion. They do a great job letting this match develop, opening with a series of holds and counters reminiscent of an old-style world title match, but a bit quicker. Not that its a detriment here as there's not much to sell in these battles for control, but worth noting for pace junkies. Things escalate from there with Danielson channeling Tenryu as he throws short kicks and is talking trash, working like a legit heel. He even breaks out an Earthquake Splash! Danielson is criminally underrated for how he could incorporate comedy spots into a match without letting it take over from what the actual purposes. Awesome spot I hadn't seen before with Aries connecting on a kneebreaker and immediately backdropping Dragon to the floor, then paying him back with his own Tenryu tribute throwing the short kicks. He goes to work on Danielson's arm which becomes a factor when he can't keep the Cattle Mutilation locked in due to the damage. Simple, effective and logically playing off of what preceded it in the match. Aries gets greedy and tries for Cattle Mutilation but that's countered and Danielson now works over his arm with great armbreakers followed by a butterfly suplex and strikes that eventually set up the Flying Headbutt for a big near fall. Airplane Spin is countered and the action spills to the floor for a bit before they return where Danielson uses an atomic drop as a big move and perfect set-up to put Aries in position for his backdrop superplex. Really impressive how rather than just throwing out a bunch of random spots, they'd be chained together in a fashion that makes sense and looks like part of a coherent strategy to follow through on each other. The big moves are coming now and we get one of the longest Airplane Spins I remember seeing from Danielson during this time, which ends up leading to the finish. The finish? Clean as a sheet and strongly putting over the reigning world champion. My only issue with it, and the match in general, is that the transition from the spin to the finish came off a bit awkwardly. Still, this was a really good match and strong follow-up to their matches from the year before. ****1/4

Normally that type of booking would drive me mad, but Corbin is an act I have zero use for.

More talk about current wrestling would be great. Hopefully more threads would encourage people to check things out. I think WWE being an extra click away in its own folder keeps some traffic away from those parts outside of big shows, because if its not seen its just something people won't think about, but I could be completely wrong. I stay on top of WWE, NJPW and Lucha Underground but always seeking out recs for other current matches and wrestlers to check out. Don't have to catch it all but will never turn down being pointed in the right direction.

Yes! More!!

I suppose its possible my thoughts on wrestling impacted in this fashion, but if so, its so under the surface that I am unaware of it. Its not something that enters my mind whatsoever. But I do believe we all have certain prejudices, beliefs, opinions or whatever you may like to call them that color how we view things even if this is unintended. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a thing. While not necessarily political, I definitely believe there's a cultural obstacle for wrestling fans at a certain level. Otherwise everyone would be eager to jump into Japanese wrestling, lucha, shoot style and anything else outside of what they grew up on. Not sure how prominent it may be here as by the time you reach PWO you're probably watching more than the wrestling you were first exposed to (whatever that is), but among common fans that makes up the masses Sure. Same thing will hold true for music, movies, any aspect of culture.

US Title: Kalisto vs. Ryback Dolph Ziggler vs. Baron Corbin Intercontinental Title: The Miz vs. Cesaro Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens Dean Ambrose vs. Chris Jericho Tag Team #1 Contenders Tournament Final: Enzo Amore & Big Cass vs. The Vaudevillains WWE Women's Title: Charlotte vs. Natalya WWE WHC: Roman Reigns vs. AJ Styles Feels like an interesting lineup with the possibility for good matches up and down the card if people deliver and the right matches are given enough time. That's a question mark given there's also a presumably lengthy McMahon family promo & angle taking place. Hopefully its kept reasonably short and not slotted in at a point where it kills what follows. Very much looking forward to the main event which has the potential to be a MOTYC if everything cliques. Predictions? Thoughts? People looking forward to it, or is everyone opting for Toronto/Indy Game 7?

I think your point about good vs. great matches in Takeaway #1 is a great one, although I'm not sure how people would go about reconciling it or if that's even necessary. But a greater understanding of how we all approached and weighed that would go a long way towards at least understanding what people value in their wrestling and how that carried over to the thought process in making their list. For example, I cared more about a wrestler's classic matches -- how many, how frequently, against whom -- then his good matches. That's not to disregard the latter, which certainly enter into the equation, but were not my base in most cases. Someone approaching it differently may end up with wildly different rankings and a number of the podcasts that came out of this process clarified that and made for fascinating listening and points to think about. I wouldn't always agree with these points, but they made total sense and it was great to understand where someone is coming from in a way that's just not possible from a quick blurb. Why not just bombard this place with all the wrestling that interests you? Hopefully everybody takes the time to do that. My biggest issue there has always been opting to watch something else rather than hit pause and say something.

This was a lot of fun and I could read it forever.

I thought this was a terrific read that summarized many points and thoughts along the way throughout the GWE process. Perhaps I'm alone, perhaps many agree, but I found myself nodding in agreement at various points throughout and appreciate the thought and sentiment that went into it.

Glad this was bumped as I wanted to add a few things here. More to come when I stop watching this CHIKARA tag, have dinner & a drink and then catch Spurs/Thunder on tape. Long night ahead!

I love that on the day the results come out a Funk match I'd never seen comes out showing him in my absolute favorite form. Somehow feels appropriate that even though I hvae him behind Flair, I see one of the best cases possible for his greatness.

A deserving #1. You know how it goes, and no one could beat The Man.

My thoughts on the match from the MDA -- Wanted to add that here as well, as this match is *exactly* what I love and want from Terry Funk. In this setting, working this style he is right there with those I consider the best wrestlers ever. The wobbly selling and punch drunk route his selling often goes doesn't have as much mileage for me as does his work against Orton here. Or against Jumbo in '76, Flair '89, other babyface in Japan. I want more of this! Its gross to think about how much outrageously fantastic Funk material from the 70s we don't have on tape. Where are more matches like this one?? Hit me up.

Wow! Talk about a match that came out of nowhere. No need for a detailed review as Sleeze hit the nail on the head, but this match was a textbook example of escalation and progression. The clean start with contested lockups and attempts for control. The handshakes that soon became slaps. The wristlock and arm twists that became vicious elbows to the back of the neck by Funk or big bombs from Orton as Funk was draped over the apron. After delivering the scientific start and the brawling, they deliver the limb work as well with Funk's Spinning Toehold weakening the leg and playing a factor down the stretch. Like near falls? I do. We had a great one here on the Orton Piledriver, but they weren't overdone. It was a big moment in the match rather than part of any finisher spam that might take some out of the moment. This was a real treat and one hell of a find as I'd never heard about this from even the most ardent Funk fans. I can't go quite as high as my man Sleeze given the finish, as those kind of snowflakes usually require a hot and convincing conclusion that builds upon the match, but we're splitting hairs here and this just below. ****1/2

Weird, since two if three made the majority if their cases in Japan. By that logic, Bret Hart is American

Bash '89 is one of the most enjoyable matches for me to watch. Others rate higher, but not sure how many are more fun. From the entrances to the match and everything they do their utilizing both rings, to the post-match it is the kind of spectacle that gets you cheering along for your man while loving every second of it. The Funker was an early gateway for me into ECW and that whole world back in the day. Which means you can indirectly give him some credit for getting me back into the game in high school after falling out for a year or 2, and never looking back. While the AJ 90s crew were what first led me into Japanese wrestling, it was hearing about Funk's work in '70s and '80s All Japan, and my familiarity with him by that point, which led me to jump deeper down that rabbit hole. This means the wife may not love him, even if she has no idea who he is. I was too young to watch NWA Ric Flair during his prime. After-40 Flair was still a legend to me because of how he carried himself, how he wore that robe, how he nailed Piper with that chair and then how he won the Rumble no matter how much 11 year old me wanted Hogan to win. I still have the '92 Rumble on PPV from taping it that day even though I haven't had a VCR for years. When I finally dove into his older work he made everyone else look like a world-beater. People I'd written off or never given a chance from every corner of the country looked like they belonged in the role of world title challenger. His NWA squashes were not the time-fillers I remember growing up on WWF Superstars, but showcases for the champ and an opportunity to put forth something special even in a nothing situation. Its more subtle, but he's also the wrestler who first made me appreciate doing little things to make a match.

Folks did say Flair would lie down too willingly, so you never know.

Bash '89 for the Title! Here's hoping the post-match is just as awesome.

Definitely, his top 10 and top 3 votes really stood out. Can't complain about showering him with love though.

Honestly, I'm baffled that of all the AJ guys, Misawa is the one who actually *gained spots* since 2006. Considering the criticims thrown at All Japan style and NOAHism, considering the fact Misawa is actually the one who died because of it, considering his NOAH work really isn't talked about with much enthousiasm, I really thought he would be the one who would drop he most out of the 4 pillars. I'm kinda stunned. Totally pulling for him though. Can't say I understand it either. Love them all but would've expected them to move as a pack. I suppose that may very well be the case though with 3 in the top 10 and 4 in the top 11.

The Misawa Vengeance Tour continues.

Not everything in his run is a classic or on par with AJ's best if you're high on it. But it absolutely doesn't feel dated, even the early stuff from '01-'02 where he was essentially learning on the job and developing his game. Then you watch how his work develops and the wrinkles he adds at various junctures along the way in ROH and the Indys before reinventing himself in WWE. Don't think the Eddy comparison is a fair one at all, as even if you don't rate his run as highly as those of us who go gaga for it, Eddy looked to have written many matches off. I'm not sure you can argue Bryan did that even if you don't appreciate the output.

I ranked Kobashi #1, so no surprise that I think he's pretty great. But how do 6 people that vote for him not vote for Kawada at all? Have no idea what it says about those ballots, the overall process, nothing. Its just mind-boggling.