WingedEagle

Love these quick hit podcasts. Always fun and never overstay their welcome.

Watch it happen.

I wouldn't bet a shiny nickel on the Smackdown Mania title match being Orton vs. Cena.

So Bray/Orton at Mania after Wyatt wins the title at Elimination Chamber. Rest of Mania lineup feels very much up in the air.

They are teasing so many matches. Brock/Goldberg. Goldberg/Taker. Goldberg/Reigns. Reigns/Strowman. What's Fastlane vs. Mania?

There's an interesting swerve at #30. Very surprised no surprise entrances.

Jesus they are teasing so many potential matches. Fastlane a loaded show?

This Rumble has been spectacular.

Jesus, they are going to have Brock kill Goldberg dead at Mania huh?

They clearly had no concerns back loading this match. Could've worked against them but there have been more than enough angles and twists to make the match work to this point. Should be a fun close. And while I may regret saying this later, it really looks like the show will wrap up early. What a night of wrestling.

Rusev needs to rock the mask post-injury like Rip Hamilton. Dig it.

They made just about perfect use of Ellsworth. What a wonderfully put together match thus far.

Number 10! Its the little things that put smiles on faces!

So much fun thus far. Between the bigs making Braun look stron gto Gallagher's comedy, this has been great.

Shame on all of us for not calling Cass #1 to allow ample time for Enzo's entrance routine. Shame!

Very valid point about the Summerslam comparison. Can probably easily argue for one over the other, but they didn't go out of their way to work this all that differently.

Cena vs. Styles There is never a time I won't love these two doing their thing. I was concerned early as they basically went right into the big, non-finisher moves, but once it slowed down and they started selling this was great. Plus they didn't run too long with the finishers (at least compared with what they usually do). Love the AA & Styles Clash kickouts, loved the exection on the big stuff down the stretch, and loved how it was a super clean finish. A real highlight were Cena's lariats, which were built up and sold so well, featured terrific bumps from Styles and given time to really matter. Plus this absolutely makes the Rumble that much more of an open question. Loving this show. ****1/4

Crowd has been checking their phones but this is a very solid match thus far.

Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens This was how you work a plunder brawl. Big spots, big weapons, almost all action without too many prolonged setups. Reigns selling just enough as he always does. Midway through I thought this was the best match they've had, which given the last PPV and nonsense on Raw isn't a high bar. But they had a lot of leeway and Reigns's willingness to take and sell so many major spots and bumps made this a terrific match. Fully expect AJ/Cena to top it, but these two went out in hour one and literally said "beat this." I wasn't a fan of Owens for most of the past year, but he held his own tonight as well. Wow. That finish. Didn't love it, but it certainly raises more questions than it answers about the Rumble match and Mania. Not sure it holds up on multiple viewings, but this match was awesome for what it was. ****1/4

Charlotte vs. Bayley Easily Bayley's best outing on the main roster. Thought the transition and early action on the floor were solid, as well as a nice middle featuring Charlotte's control and Bayley's comeback with really strong offense from both. It almost felt like they got a cue to hit the finish out of nowhere, as things escalated very quickly and the end saw some awkward transitions. Still a very good match and another feather in the cap of wrestling's best heel. ***1/2

Finally finished the show today after a late start. I expected this to be mediocre at best and was quite pleasantly surprised. Absolutely nothing was bad as every match was solid and enjoyable, although nothing out of this world. A few thoughts on each match -- Dillinger vs. Young -- Thought this would be my chance to catch up on emails, but they gelled pretty well together and with the crowd so hot for Dillinger it was a very fun watch. Tye losing was an understandable buzzkill, but they tried protecting him to an extent with all of the interference, and in truth have never seen any kind of commitment to pushing him so it wasn't all that disappointing. Hopefully he eventually finds himself in this kind of role on the main roster. **3/4 Strong vs. Almas -- Roddy has some of the best offense in the game. Everything he hits looks so crisp and vicious. I miss La Sombra. This act does him zero favors whatsoever. I didn't think there was any chance of a Strong win here, so this was quite the pleasant surprise, especially with such a decisive finish. ***1/4 DIY vs. AOP -- Johnny Gargano is so terrific. Ciampa is an awesome tag team wrestler and hot tag. I freaking love DIY. I knew their names for quite a while but really hadn't seen them a great deal before NXT, and they're easily one of my favorite acts in the company. This was nothing short of a miracle given AOP's limitations. Very interested to see the next direction for them and the division. ***1/2 Asuka vs. Cross vs. Aussies -- Again, much better than I expected and well laid out as most WWE three- or four-way matches are, for whatever reason. They simply do a great job of laying out a wrestler and letting the others work cleanly. Nikki Cross was the highlight for me here as it was her first opportunity to wrestle a serious match with some time, and she looked great. Hoping we get to see her and Asuka have a proper singles match. ***1/4 Nakamura vs. Roode -- Nakamura's shine was pretty pedestrian and Roode's selling certainly wasn't going to make that segment. The bump to the floor and ensuing heat on the neck & shoulder were solid. Thought they did a nice job escalating things down the stretch with big moves and near falls, properly peaking with the knee injury. Just a great job selling that and teasing it without going overboard and extending it too long. I couldn't believe it when I saw the match time, as it didn't feel that long at all. Job well done. ***3/4

This still felt very much like a match to firmly establish Kobashi & Akiyama's personal issues and build towards a more epic encounter. The work was solid, particularly Kobashi's early shine and control on the floor, as well as Akiyama's focus on the leg. But although Kobashi sold it well for a while, they didn't stick with it long enough for it to develop into a huge issue rather than something to fill the time. The match also seemed to shift into big moves and attempted finishers a bit suddenly for this crew, as they usually make the journey more meaningful. All of which is to say it was still a really good match that I probably underrated a bit, but not anything I'll remember as one of their signature encounters. ***3/4

You're the man. The '84 Gauntlet and 6/9/95 are immediately the first 2 that came to mind. Henning/Bock is also definitely in the discussion on the domestic side of things, likely along with some of that Flair fella's work from 1989.

I'm firmly behind 90s All Japan as the greatest thing ever, but still had to go 80s. I think New Japan, NWA & all the various territories and satellites are much better, while All Japan isn't exactly a slouch that decade.

NO to Shibata/Riddle, per my thoughts in the MDA. A good, solid match but far from MOTYC.