WingedEagle

I don't think you can make any case that the women have drawn a dime in NXT. I'm also not sure you can point to a single male wrestler who has either, though I'd be open to the numbers there, though they'll obviously be incredibly limited given that NXT has only run a few shows off campus.

26 week deal. Hopefully they stick to the formula and keep everyone happy.

Apparently ROH debuts on Destination America next Wednesday, 6/3, at 8pm. Stoked that I no longer have to watch online, and excited that they have a legit opportunity to expand. Remind me to never get divorced from DA.

I loved the G1 final vs. Akiyama. Crazy crowd, great build and finishing stretch. But this list is not for him.

See now you are veering into sexist talk. I would put Sasha on the level of all, if not the majority of WWE midcarders. Charlotte has as much potential as any WWE midcarder, probably more. Bayley has the potential to be more over than anyone in the WWE midcard. Becky, we will see. Yes, we would all love the WWE to care about things that aren't in the main event. However, saying the divas are lesser wrestlers sometimes borders on sexist behaviour. Depends on if we're now treating #givedivasachance as a shoot or simply a marketing tag. They can be utilized 1000% better than they currently are on Raw/Smackdown/PPVs. There is nothing to suggest they can draw and grow the business in a meaningful way.

This one is a lot tougher for me than Jumbo/Misawa. Tenryu has the amazing 90s interpromotional period as well as later runs in NJ, AJ and NOAH that all add a ton to his record. Not sure just yet how I'd weigh that against Jumbo's work in the 80s and his run in the Misawa feud.

Last 2 weeks of TV have continued the strong run ROH has been on. ACH/Page was really fun for what it was and a great contrast on the same show with Briscoes/War Machine, which I absolutely loved and may very well be my favorite TV match of 2015. Great characters playing their role to perfection along with simple booking. Really digging things here right now. This week, Lethal/O'Reilly was a bit longer than I would've liked but paid off with a terrific finish that I hope is a precursor to a post-PPV KOR singles run.

I agree there is an opportunity to make female performers into legit draws and a significant, featured part of the product. But at the end of the day I don't think that will in any material way change the gender breakdown of wrestling's audience.

Definitely still watching here. Haven't seen last week's yet but even on a down week, this show flies by and is very enjoyable as a change of pace from any other wrestling out there. Fingers crossed for another season.

I happened across some 80s AWA this weekend that included some Henning and now see why some say this is an argument. Will need to see what top end stuff is there and in Portland but if Henning's volume from that decade is substantial he definitely has a shot as Bret's stuff hasn't held up nearly as well as others from the era.

I absolutely get your points and what you said about Becky's offense gives me something to keep an eye out for on a rewatch. My biggest issue was that we got some great, focused arm work from Banks that was vicious and should've been a constant theme throughout the rest of the match. But then Lynch completely stopped selling it on her comeback and that really took me out of it. I still dug the match and thought it was very good and a terrific performance from Banks. But that's what keeps me from thinking about it as even near MOTYC level.

This is a really great comp. Objectively I know I could write out a much longer list of good Dustin matches, and his list of great matches might be longer as well. But we're not here to be completely objective and there's no way I'd pass on an Austin career comp for Dustin's so he takes it.

I don't think the Total Divas audience has any interest in wrestling or ever will. Its into a reality show that follows a certain formula and is presented in a familiar style and forum. Its wrestling. Some women will like it but any notion of building a significant female audience outside the margins of historical norms doesn't strike me as remotely realistic. Perhaps more women are watching Ronda Rousey in UFC than were watching Anderson Silva, but Rousey is a success because men will pay to see her. If you make the female product appealing to the base it will succeed. Trying to carve out some completely new audience for it will likely backfire in every sense.

There is none. It's just a thought, since they don't get many women viewers. Has an increase in female viewership ever been attributable to female talent? Have they ever treated women talent well? I'm referring to any promotion ever. Outside of joshi groups in Japan, when have female fans packed the house to see female talent? At the end of the day wrestling is more like sports than other TV/entertainment, which mean its going to attract a heavier male audience.

There is none. It's just a thought, since they don't get many women viewers. Has an increase in female viewership ever been attributable to female talent?

Are there any good comps ROH put together cover some highlights from the last 5-7 years? Plan on checking out their Memorial Day sale later but hoping someone else has already done the dirty work of ID'ing some worthwhile DVDs.

Seconding the request that this thread be pinned. Great reference.

Thanks, really looking forward to this.

No issues with Banks selling the arm, but Lynch used it to prop herself up on the ropes, ran with it like there was nothing wrong, and braced her fall on the dropkick with it as well. But more importantly. JOE!

Lynch/Banks was great, but Lynch completely dropping her selling of the arm when on offense, after Banks went out of her way to work it so well, brought it down a bit.

Are there any good online stores for wrestling memorabilia?

Locks: Styles, Cena, Bryan, Lesnar, Tanahashi, Nakamura.

Okay, definitely intrigued now. Not sure if this is the beginning of the end of NXT as the standalone entity as we know it, Owens graduating a lot sooner than anyone expected or something in between, but its interesting.

That Owens debut was phenomenal. Really, really interesting how they've positioned him, Zayn and the NXT brand at this point but are perhaps hesitant to promote them. For all we know this is setting up Cena stepping in on Wednesday if Zayn is injured, as it feels way too soon for Owens to leave the territory.

Thanks for the recs. I've seen the Suzuki and O'Reilly matches but this gives me quite a bit to work with.