WingedEagle

This was really terrific. While Tamura would eventually earn his rep as an all time worker, Sano was an absolute boss here. He connects on some nice suplexes while mixing in arm submissions along the way. I liked how they integrated the high spots with the subs and even had an awesome slap exchange. Tamura eventually finished it with a submission of his own after multiple awesome exchanges by both. ***3/4

Bryan, Reigns, whatever. Taker back to the face Wyatt? Who cares. Are we getting Miz vs. Mizdow at Mania?!?

I didn't mind the finish of HBK/HHH in '04. The blood was nice and I thought the finish was well executed. The match was just a lot longer than it needed to be given where they were going, which is saying something given what they'd do 6 months later. Cut out some of the aimless filler and I'd have thought it was damn good. As it was I enjoyed it.

I thought tonight was the best job they've done making Reigns feel like a big since perhaps the breakup of the Shield. Problem is there's just nothing about him that feels like a Mania main eventer. This isn't Batista in '04/'05 where you had the slow tease of his turn and people were dying to see him against HHH. It feels like he's being forced into a position people have zero appetite or demand for yet.

This was great. I like that even back then they were calling it Sports Entertainment. Consistency!

Yeah that's an awful, terrible way to look at it. Why can't it be left to the fact that certain people make for good babyfaces while others are natural heels? Koscheck's nuclear heat back the day wasn't because he was black but rather because he was an absurd dick on TUF. If him and Leben switch roles on TV I'm sure he'd be the babyface coming out of the show.

Not exactly the place for it, but I think his role in turning things around was as much a single-handed effort as any. If you want to include another performer there I can see giving the nod to Vince for arguably the greatest heel ever and being the perfect foil for Austin's character, but he was pulling a ton of weight.

Looking forward to cherry picking some matches from these shows this week. Last year's were fun and breezy. Nothing blowaway but a really enjoyable way to mix up the styles.

I wonder if the "don't subscribe because of lack of TV access" is getting no love on PWO because its a community of people who will seek out wrestling wherever they can get their hands on it and aren't going to be swayed by big screen vs. small screen. Which I find entirely possible. If you're WWE you have to hope more people become friendly to purchasing & viewing content in that manner as they become more comfortable with it because otherwise this thing is going to be facing a pretty strong headwind.

I might've loved it if I watched it in or close to '87. By the time I was old enough to appreciate good wrestling, which was years after having this touted as a GOAT, it seemed like a good match. Say about 3-3.25 stars? I wonder if its similar to Michaels-Razor at Mania 10 in that it felt state of the art when it took place but following years filled with matches that met or exceeded the original, which loses much of its luster when looked back upon.

9 of the 10 best ever from the last 18 months? All 10 from the last 2 years?

Not sure Angle/Benoit makes my top 10 all time matches from the promotion, but very possibly my favorite from at post-Mania 17 until maybe Cena/Umaga, if not later. Speaking of Mania 17, Rock/Austin is definitely on that list for me.

I've been PS3 from day one and if I didn't have that I'm not sure I would. I don't mind watching wrestling from Japan on the computer since there's really no way for me to get it on the big screen, but if I didn't have a way to blast the network on the TV I doubt I'd be willing to pay for it.

Google translate doesn't seem to be picking up exactly what he's going for. What are the ratings / categories?

I know its been asked over and over for nearly a year now, but why are they still not promoting the network? The sell thus far has been a price shill and a middle finger to those who buy PPV. Presumably everyone who deems it cheap enough has come aboard, why not go after those who have no clue what's there besides the PPVs and the price? That spot for the Savage feature that aired just before Raw went off the air was great. How can they still not have a regular weekly lineup with programming (mostly old to keep costs down with some new things like this and the countdown features mixed in) that are pushed as hard as Raw and Smackdown? 60 second live or pre-taped cut-ins from Stamford, backstage at TV, the road, wherever giving a quick hit on the show that just aired or is about to air? I'm basically a subscriber for life at this or any slightly higher price point. I'm not the guy they need to talk to. Why won't they try something different when pitching this thing?

Thanks. Looke like a *very* limited list of wrestling items. If anyone local wants to do some shopping for me, let me know

Does Shosen Grande sell anything online? Is there any way I can get any merch from them if I'm not going there?

I've enjoyed Rollins as a heel. I think he's done a pretty great job in that character and held his own on the mic. Certainly some guilt by association as far as being dragged down by some poor storylines involving HHH/Steph, but he hasn't devolved into the self-parody that their recent promos have become. His in-ring is probably a better fit as a babyface, but he's integrating J&J, Show and other shortcuts pretty well at this point. If the goal is headlining with the title heel, I don't think he's at all there yet as the presentation is still too dependent on these other characters. At this point I think they've done more to solidly establish him as a singles act than either Reigns or Ambrose. I know, you can argue that's a backhanded compliment and not a high standard, but its definitely a statement I didn't expect to be making heading into Mania.

A couple questions: 1) Ignoring the obvious answer suggested by crowd reactions, does any segment of the audience like the Reigns' mic work thus far? Kids? Women? Is it getting over anywhere that isn't represented here? 2) The focus in Heyman's promo on the Taker match (ignoring for the moment they were in New Orleans) -- any chance they're going with Taker getting his win back this year and switching to Cena/Reigns for the title?

Got it, thanks.

In NY? Those are already on sale?

Its some pretty big hyperbole, but I think its great and am really happy that the guy can find that kind of passion for anything in wrestling no matter how over the top it may be. The thousands of hours he's spent watching, thinking, reading and writing about wrestling -- good and bad -- would sap the enthusiasm for many.