WingedEagle

Agreed. They've done a pretty good job the past few years of not telegraphing an obvious winner, Batista and Roman being the outliers. I don't think anyone thought Orton was winning last year (I don't remember who was "supposed" to win last year at all) and that was certainly a thing that happened. Sheamus is another modern winner that felt kind of random. It's not like the old days where the winner was 99% guaranteed to be Austin or injury-comeback HHH. Exactly. Even during that era they went wild one year and had Vince win. It certainly can end up predictable, but that's never a lock.

The good (and bad) of the Rumble(s) is that past years have shown that just about anything is possible. Logic says you can rule out quite a bit of contrived scenarios, but there's a way to get almost anyone in if they're determined to do so, and plenty of ways to get to an unlikely winner.

We all spend some of our disposable income on silly things. Vince can afford to waste bigger sums than the rest of us.

And the guy in a Mets jersey who's at seemingly every NXT taping, Takeover, TV and PPV. He watched Raw this week on the Manhattan Center's big screen.

I heard that as well. A friend who sparingly recommends matches went out of his way to say I should watch that one.

What am I missing on Elias? I see a solid gimmick that stands out because of how differently its presented in promos, but have yet to see him deliver a standout performance in the ring.

http://www.wwe.com/article/enzo-amore-released?sf180033371=1 That didn't take long.

No Taker/Cena? They have to deliver something big tonight, no?

I'm sure there's a car waiting to bring Taker to Brooklyn, but I thought he looked unusually old and came off like a complete nostalgia act before a pretty dead Manhattan Center crowd. Shouldn't have presented him without the literal smoke & mirrors of his entrance and total package.

That opening was exactly what I was afraid of. And it was outstanding. And this. Classic.

I am very pumped for the show. A little concerned it may be one very long Old Timers Day / history package, but it should still be a blast and feature at least the one big angle that's been expected for a bit now.

Ha that's pretty great.

Has NXT produced any male talent that was trained and developed in house? Enzo Amore is probably the best example. Indeed an example, but not one I'd point to as any kind of success. Interesting question. I don't recall hearing much about either before their time in the system. Perhaps they're the success story.

Has NXT produced any male talent that was trained and developed in house?

Had to tune out Austin's recent podcast with him for this reason. Just insufferable.

The Rumble should be fascinating. There's no reason Roman has to win and logic says they don't want to see him booed out of the building after winning en route to finally overcoming Brock. Right? On the other hand, they're well aware of how crowds respond to him outside of Shield situations, and why rely on logic at this point? Nakamura would be my pick on the Smackdown side, almost because of problems with other candidates or where they're already tied up. But he's been dead cold since the Jinder feud and there's been no effort to heat him up in advance of the Rumble. Either way it should make for a fun night on the couch. Hopefully a good crowd here in case things turn sour. Elsewhere, I'm glad they moved the US Title Tourney final to TV this week, as the PPV already looks overloaded. Presumably 1 or 2 matches (crossing my fingers for Enzo/Cedric) are on the preshow, but I hope both tag title matches are given ample time.

Imagine how I feel knowing I'm paying to see Brock live at MSG in March...one on one against Kane.

Thanks, really looking forward to this as I haven't seen much at all from this era. Familiar with both names but have only seen Blears in his role reading proclamations in All Japan, so this should be very fun. It looks like you've watched a ton of joshi but not necessarily much Stardom or Io Shirai, who I think has been among the top 5-10 workers in the world in recent years. This match may have already been rec'd elsewhere in this project but hopefully its new to you. If not, I can come up with a bunch of others very easily and make sure that its available for you online. Enjoy! https://rutube.ru/video/ad1961e437db7fd81e86d81f4cb2c6d2/

Finally sat down to watch Beast's rec of Hogan vs. Savage from Detroit in 1986. Added my thoughts to the MDA at the link below, but this was a fun look at what both were doing at the time before their program heated up years later. http://prowrestlingonly.com/index.php?/topic/39971-wwf-world-heavyweight-champion-hulk-hogan-vs-randy-savage-wwf-detroit-042686/ Really like the idea of this as it very much breaks me out of my usual viewing habits to watch something that's not on the agenda.

This was a really fun flashback to a classic feud before its major escalations. Hogan didn't take any shortcuts putting Savage over along the way, selling for his offense and falling for the outside shenanigans with Liz when called for. Perhaps its been a while since I watched him, but Savage's offense really stood out here. He's not fast like cruiserweights or explosive like an athletic big man, but he moves and attacks with a real suddenness that projects unpredictably and makes his strikes look really strong. Sleeze noted it above, but the finish here was really strange and completely unexpected. Hogan follows a 1 count kickout with the Hulk Up comeback that leads to the finish. Except it doesn't, as Savage cuts it off before meeting a boot as he comes off the top which gives Hogan the win. You could call this the Big Boot if you want, but certainly not the one we know and there was no Legdrop. Very curious what was behind going this route as I don't recall them veering from the script for clean finishes during this era. Either way, this was a really fun watch with a great crowd and a pair of all time characters meshing quite well. They even keep a pretty nice pace while working for the local crowd. Very much worth a watch for those looking to see them in this era. ***

I think Shirai's work in the latter half of the year has generally been as strong as the first half, but she hasn't been given the same opportunities. Its generally been tag/trios matches or league matches. She brings it every single night but hasn't been asked to deliver at the level she was as champion during the first 6 months of the year. I liked the Kagetsu and Bito matches quite a bit, but found the botches and timing spots you noted in your review to be more problematic. Still very good matches, but not as outstanding as her earlier title defenses. Still at worst a top 5 WOTY candidate in my book.

Perhaps a silly question but will this be available in the US?

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/ I love this match. Baszler more than held her own but this is one hell of a performance from Shirai.

Thanks, really looking forward to this! I've been looking forward to tomorrow's Wrestle Kingdom for weeks. Okada's my runaway wrestler of the year and I think his 2017 is in league with the best year any wrestler has ever put together. From some quick browsing it doesn't look like you've commented on or perhaps watched a ton of modern NJPW, so I thought I'd point you to Kazuchika Okada vs. Satoshi Kojima (NJPW 7/27/2017) from last year's G1. Its not his best match of the year or perhaps even among the 5 I'd rate the highest, but its arguably the most different and interesting performance he put in all year. Well worth watching from his intro rather than the bell as its all part of the approach he takes on this night against a vet the crowd is eager to get behind. https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5v20j5

Reigns has had 3 matches that I think you can argue as among the best in company history. Along with his consistency over the last few years that puts him in discussion with the greats we've seen. I can't argue that its premature to really evaluate where he stands given how that most of his career is arguably ahead of him, but he's got a pretty strong case thus far.