Superstar Sleeze

Chris Benoit vs Jeff Jarrett - WCW Starrcade 1999 Vacant US Championship Ladder Match Benoit's neck is freaking massive here. Double J's normal size neck looks like a stack of dimes compared to the juiced up Crippler. Benoit and Jarrett put together a really strong and violent ladder match sprint in this one. Benoit unleashes a can of whoop-ass early and hits a superplex to incapacitate JJ long enough to get the ladder. I like a small victory like that in the shine to show how dominate Benoit was early. Jarret is able to recover with a baseball slide into the ladder and then dropping Benoit face first on the ladder opening up a nasty cut on Benoit's face. I liked Jarrett as a heel taking advantage of the situation to take a control. They work some struggle spots with Benoit kept coming at Jarrett, but since Jarrett was a bit fresher he could still control the match. One of the scarier spots was Jarrett was in the Tree of Woe, but in the ladder and tipped over the ladder like you would reverse the pressure on a figure-4. Jarrett could have severely fucked up his knee and the way Benoit's head bounced off the ropes he could have seriously injured, but that's where the freaking massive neck will save your life. The spot of the match would be an all-time great spot if Double J did not hesitate forever and made Benoit look like a fool. That being said it is better to be safe and really focus. He dropkicks the ladder, which goes flying and Benoit takes an awesome bump. It actually came off pretty safe compared to a lot of ladder bumps, but was a sweet visual. Another fun spot is Benoit doing a roll through under the ladder and then dropkicking it into Jarrett's face. Benoit hitting the diving headbutt off the ladder and then grabbing the title does seem excessive, but they needed that climatic spot and it is a good one. The crowd was fucking dead for the beginning of this, but they won them over and Benoit's victory does feel like a big deal by the end. Some really great spots mixed with a strong sense of urgency and struggle makes this a pretty easy call for me to say this is a great, but too spotty to be a true classic. ****

Rey Mysterio Jr & Kidman vs Primetime & Kid Romeo - WCW Greed WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team Championship It is so WCW to debut a brand new title on their last PPV! I was actually how shocked how much liked this. I have not seen Elix Skipper in forever and I have never seen a Kid Romeo match, but fuck I thought they were a fun little heel duo. I actually think Romeo would have been decent in TNA and maybe he was, but I missed it. WCW Greed felt really TNA-y, maybe it was inevitable if WCW continued we would have gotten the same shit as we did from TNA. Still, I think the weird endearing WCW booking would have carried on in a way TNA has never really captured. Onto the match, but this was actually a really good tag team match and I know tag team wrestling (listen to my podcast, Tag Teams Back Again, with Chief Jay Historian, Kelly Nelson on Place To Be Nation.com)! They did a great shine, worked a solid heat segment with nice hope spots and then had a hot finish stretch that went a bit too long. The shine was some really good shit from Kidman & Mysterio constantly keeping the action moving and keeping the crowd into it. I thought the highlights was Rey Mysterio guillotine leg drop and I love how Kidman holds Primetime there. I hate it as a single move like KENTA used it, but as a tag team move great spot and logical. I loved the hiptoss of Primetime onto Romeo from the stage and then the double dive onto them. Damn, they got me rocking right with them. The heel transition is Romeo hitting Kidman with a blind forearm while he was running the ropes. Love it! Kidman does a great job using stuff like Irish whip/clothesline combo to get early hope spots, but Primetime and Romeo know how to bend the rules. This is a really basic layout that was just modernized with some of the more high-flying moves, but everything was still sensible. The funniest fucking botch ever happens in this match as Primetime whiffs so bad on a forearm he falls down. I was rolling and then a fan gets on his case and he jaws with him, good shit. Kidman hits a nice spinebuster/powerbomb-y thing from the top and Rey comes in. Holy Shit! Rey looked fucking awesome here. Words don't do it justice watch it. Kidman says two can play that game and he hits a beautiful springboard Shooting Star Press to the floor. WOW! It should have been over sooner rather than later, but it kept going with diminishing returns with lots of nearfalls and weak saves. Rey hitting two powerbombs seems a bit ridiculous to me and I am a powerbomb mark. The actual finish was pretty sweet with Romeo catching Rey Rey on the quebrada attempt and dropping down with the Northern Lights Bomb. Romeo & Primetime dance afterwards! I love this team! Well now I am sad WCW ended because we did not get more Primetime/Romeo goodness. They stuck with the tried and true formula sprinkled in some great spots, solid heel work and Rey Rey is such an elite wrestler that he adds that little sumthin sumthin to matches like this. Probably the best match of WCW's last 18 months. ****

WCW World Heavyweight Champion Scott Steiner vs Diamond Dallas Page - WCW Greed My main man, DDP, looks to give one last stellar performance on WCW's last ever PPV main event, but it just was not to be. DDP's magic of 1997-1999 has faded and it looks like Father Time has finally caught up to him. He was still one helluva promo as showcased in the pre-match hype video. Where he explains he is the last of the WCW standard-bearers and that no matter how brutal the attacks have been he still has the great equalizer, the Diamond Cutter. He could talk the talk, but he just couldn't walk the walk. The punches did not have the same zip and his step did not have the same pep. I love the Scotty Steiner character at this point as a totally despicable, vile human. I was hoping this would be a great Steiner match to add to his resume. It is too bad they did not turn Steiner earlier in his career. He was actually a pretty good bumper and stooge for babyfaces in addition to being violent. There were still some fun DDP spots early like his excellent flying clothesline, but then we descended into guardrail whips and obviously planted crutches and Paul London as a fan that Scotty Steiner badmouths. I actually liked the finish stretch though as DDP gave it one last burst of the old DDP. After the bearhug and suplexes, DDP had a great string on offense. I really liked the quick knee lift into a DDT. Steiner hit a nasty back elbow at on point. Shit is starting to heat up. Of course, we get some trademark DDP like the floatover DDT. He signals for the Diamond Cutter! BANG! I get why that went with Booker, but damn, the love I have built up for DDP, I really wish he was the last WCW champion and that was the finish. Instead, Rick Fucking Steiner pulls the ref out. I don't think I have ever seen Rick Steiner without his earguards. It is so weird. Anyways, they prolong the inevitable with some fun drama with weapons and submissions moves, but DDP passes out to the Steiner Recliner. Steiner puts out yet another WCW babyface legend. Steiner buries DDP in a Michigan flag! GO BLUE! I wish we were good at enough football when I went there to pull shit like that. It is a decent match, but really not worth seeing it besides for the novel value of being the last WCW PPV main event. Disappointing more than anything for me.

WCW TV Champion Steven Regal vs Psicosis - WCW Nitro 12/16/96 Penascola, Florida sure loved them some Psicosis and they can be on my team any day of the week. The entire camera side of the crowd was standing for the majority of this match start to finish and literally every Psicosis spot got a decent to huge pop. You really could not have asked for a better crowd. Psicosis sold phenomenally, but on offense was decent at best, if really ripped it up this had potential to be of the elite Nitro matches (I am talking top 5-ish). The crowd was clearly on Regal's case early with USA chants and they were even amped for the opening armwork. Look, I love Regal's intricate armwork and Psicosis with a lucha background had no difficulty keeping up. That is over with me, but I don't expect the crowd to really respond. This crowd was going apeshit over the littlest details, it was awesome. As soon as Psicosis slammed Regal down on the arm, you would expect fucking Hogan had just slammed Andre. I honestly think Psicosis was bewildered by the reaction. His tope was sick as always. I thought Regal's selling was incredible in this match. Honestly, this match featured some of the best selling I have seen in a long time. My major malfunction with the crowd so hot, they were basically begging fro Psicosis to do something, but he kept stalling and looked unsure of himself. Stuff like waiting for Regal to get up only to hit a dropkick. Look, I get you needed to sell, but we needed a babyface shine. The early Guillotine Legdrop got a massive reaction and was a great nearfall. I love Regal throwing Psicosis on the bad shoulder and then he just pounces with a gritty facelock and palm strikes to head. Regal was a beast in this match working the arm tenaciously, but selling fatigue and pain simultaneously. Psicosis gets one more nearfall by throwing Regal off the top rope, playing to the crowd and hitting a top rope splash for two. Psicosis looks to go for a victory roll, but Regal slams him face first and applies the Regal Stretch to break the hearts of every one in that Penascola crowd. Tighten Psicosis' offense and have reach the potential I know he has and this would be an all-time classic. As is, I still thought this was fabulous from a selling perspective especially. In addition, I thought the Psicosis nearfalls meant a lot especially due to the crowd and that Regal's offense and ability to capitalize on mistakes was great. The crowd definitely tips the balance for me. ***3/4

When did they stop announce matches ahead of time and why did they stop? Is the only reason they stopped because they literally have no idea what will be on the show next week at the time of the end of the last show? That has to be the stupidest fucking thing ever.

Chris Benoit vs Chris Jericho - WCW Fall Brawl 1996 You can tell how much Jericho wanted to be a great wrestler. Just how bad he wanted it is really admirable and looking back I can't help but at least root for him to succeed. That being said, I am shocked he did not cripple himself or someone else in this timeframe. He just would totally overly extend his capabilities in these matches in the ridiculously stupid highspots he would do and his general sloppiness. The falling springboard back elbow to the floor where he basically took a flat back bump on the apron was just ridiculous. Dusty was just hilarious, "Jericho is a tremendous athlete...silence...I think he just broke his back.". He goes from raving Dusty to Oh My God that stupid muthafucker almost killed himself in a heartbeat. I have always wanted to watch this match due to the names attached. It seems that besides the Eddy Guerrero match at Fall Brawl 1997 that Jericho just did not really have the framework to have a great match in WCW. Benoit did not really put it together until 1998, but boy, once he did he was great. He was really hit and miss up until that point. This match is just a standard spotfest. Benoit's spots always look great and he just tears into Jericho. Jericho's spots look better than normal because Benoit was better at selling and bumping than Jericho at this point. Up until the Swandive Headbutt, I thought this was a fun little spotfest and look at what these two could. Then after the headbutt they just ran out of gas. There was aimless walking then quick roll ups and then a surfboard. They totally had no fucking clue what to do next. Then it is like light bulb goes off we are in WCW, why don't we do a tombstone reversal. Hey, I am all for it. Jericho instead of covering goes for the Lionsault. For some reason, that little skip Jericho does over his opponent cracked me up. Jericho's nearfall is a top rope frankensteiner, but Benoit wins with a super back suplex. Jericho really did have no concept of psychology until WWF. Wow! Benoit in 1998 would have been mature enough to extract a lot more out of Jericho in a bout like this, but in 1996 Benoit is just as spotty (better spots and safer) so it is just a clusterfuck.

WCW Cruiserweight Champion Rey Misterio Jr. vs Dean Malenko - WCW Halloween Havoc 1996 They are afforded to have an extended version of their Nitro sprint and they do not disappoint with an unheralded classic. They utilized the extra time wisely to have Rey sell more convincingly and really milk it before his spectacular comeback. Malenko worked a similar heat segment to the Nitro match vacillating between holds and high impact blows and throws. Where the time really came in handy was in the beginning and end. Before the match, Malenko was pissed that he came in with a two match losing streak to the champion and wanted his belt back. So in order to get into his head, he stole Rey's mask to get into his head. Right at the beginning, the usually reserved Malenko wasted no time jumpstarting the match with blows and throws. He even looked to hook up the Texas Cloverleaf early. Rey desperately escaped and seemed a bit overwhelmed. However, once he was able to create some space and use his quickness to keep Malenko off balance he had Malenko looking like a fool tripping on his face. Rey punctuates this great shine segment with a somersault plancha and regains the stolen mask. I love little victories inside a match. I also loved that Rey Rey had to earn that shine over an early Malenko onslaught. Probably, my favorite part of the match to be honest. Malenko catches Rey on a rana attempt and slams him. He works a solid heat segment making sure to pepper in highspots to keep the crowd involved while he worked holds to keep Rey grounded. The heat segment at Great American Bash was world class and it is hard to compare, but this is a step down. There either needed to be more direction or more Rey hope spots to take this to the next level. I thought the Great American Bash match also featured more Rey verbal selling. I really did like the instances of Rey crawling away from Malenko to the apron gets attacked and then tries to crawl to the other side. There was great Rey selling, but I don't think it was as showcased. They both head to the top and they simultaneously punch each off the top, which I was not a fan of that spot, but the finish run we get is just excellent. Rey hits a tremendous springbaord somersault plancha in the ring that Malenko takes beautifully and is a contender for best Rey spot of the year in a year loaded with them. After struggle between both to negotiate a pinfall, Misterio gets a two and follows up on Malenko with a corkscrew Asai Moonsault well there is another one for the highlight reel. Misterio gets the exact hurricanarana that won him the title, but Malenko kicks out. Tony exclaims that he had never seen someone kick out of that predicament. Ruh Roh! Undeterred, Misterio looks to hit the springboard version and rallies the crowd, but Malenko has a different idea with a POWERBOMB! That should have been the finish. Live by the sword, die by the sword is a favorite finish genre of mine so I am biased. Malenko is looking for his Super Gutbuster, but Misterio looks to counter with top rope Frankensteiner, but we end up with a SUPER GUTWRENCH POWERBOMB! The shine of the Nitro match with the heat segment of the GAB match and the finish of this match and at the very least you have a contender for the greatest match in WCW history. This is just a tremendous series and this match features some of the most exciting moments in WCW Crusierweight history. Rey was just awesome in the beginning, his selling was great in the heat segment, but not as highlighted as before and the finish stretch was paced perfectly with escalation between spots. Malenko worked a strong heat segment that did a go a bit long without action towards the end, but more than made up for it by telling the great story of a man obsessed with the winning championship. He had Rey scouted. He kicked out of the rana that cost him the title and he crushed Rey on the springboard rana. Then when it came down to the end and it was anyone's ball game on the top rope, Malenko showed that he wanted it just that much more. ****1/4

WCW World Cruiserweight Champion Dean Malenko vs Rey Misterio Jr. - WCW Nitro 7/8/96 I have said it before and I will say it again if you put this shine on the Great American Bash match and you have an all-time classic. This shine is perfect for whetting the fan's appetites for how exciting Rey can be. It makes them invest more in the heat segment because they want to see the grand finale. From a strictly kayfabe perspective, it establishes what Malenko has to worry about. If he can't control him, Misterio is going to dictate the pace with armdrags, ranas and dropkicks and keep him off balance. Once Malenko grabs a a hold of him with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker he does not let go. He alternates between controlling holds (surfboard, camel clutch) to regain his energy & sap Rey's and nasty throws like the butterfly powerbomb and hanging him out to dry on the ropes. Once again, when Rey can create space he is deadly as he snaps off a rana to the floor and hits an Asai Moonsault, now granted this was not the smoothest exchange, but it was the right idea. I hated Dean picking Rey up towards the end when he had him after super gutbuster and again after another suplex. Did not fit Dean's characters and there was no storyline motivation. Rey winning with an out of nowhere hurricanarana was an awesome way to kick off the most important Nitro in history coming after the Hogan heel turn. It pops the crowd and gives them something feel good after Hogan just turned heel. Plus, Rey totally deserved it. The blown spots and Malenko pulling Rey up hurts this from being one of the all time great Nitro cruiserweight matches, but still very entertaining. ***1/2

At that effort level, he can't get over anywhere. Now, if he was in JCP and motivated then there is no reason he couldn't get over. The tag team roster was pretty stacked, who would you put him with? I am imagine he is a face. You have America's Team, RnRs, Road Warriors, Garvin/Windham (87). I can't think of a midcarder to stick him with. I think financially he made the best decision for himself, but maybe Mid-South or AWA could have used his talents more even if both on the verge of collapse. On your other point Parv, I was speaking about how the Harts/Bulldogs deviated from the house style with a short shine & double FIP. From your talking point of 20mins, perhaps due to the compression of the WWF style, they took the AWA style, which may have influenced Stampede and compressed. Maybe, it was the Stampede style and we just don't know? Everybody else thanks for the kind works. Ax and Smasher are coming, don't you worry! I am making Kelly sit through all those Powers of Pain matches that I watched. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

The last great Randy Savage match as he puts in one last great selling performance. After he got "Waffle-legged", he was on jelly legs and just did an excellent job staggering around. El-P was right on with the sloppy elbow drop just really putting it over the top. I still like Spring Stampede the match most with Savage's heeling and the crazy ending. I also thought the crowd was hotter for the Stampede match and the action was a bit hotter. Here, the action was a bit slower, but this match featured the best selling by far. I already discussed Macho Man's, but DDP was awesome milking those ribs and then tioming those wicked hot comebacks that finally whipped the Vegas crowd into a frenzy. The women getting involved was good, loved Liz knocking out the ref and then choking DDP with the cord that was some pretty serious shit. Kim got a good pop dragging her away and gave time for the guys to sell while having some action for the crowd. I consider them both **** class, but I have the Stampede match slightly ahead. Randy Savage vs Diamond Dallas Page - WCW Halloween Havoc 1997 Liz is rocking sexy leather short shorts. HAVE MERCY!!! OOOOHHHH YEEEEEAAAAHHHH!! Savage’s promo before this is a thing of beauty. “Slim Jim’s Halloween Havoc. Snap Into It! Check it out! Party Time. Las Vegas. It’s a gamble. But we like to gamble, don’t we? YES WE DO!!!!” DDP is in jeans because this is not a wrestling match, scumbag (DDP had a real penchant for using the word scumbag). This is a FIGHT~! Savage is choosing instead to rep his Slim Jim’s deal on his jacket, well Savage is fuckin BATSHIT so he doesn’t need jeans to convey he is in for a FIGHT~! The infamous ribs are still taped. No Kimberly. “Savage will drive you nuts” – The Brain, perfect. They start outside, obviously, with Savage gaining the early advantage by working over the ribs. Page with nasty biel using Savage’s own shirt. Page hesitates allows Savage to hotshot DDP across the top rope. Macho Man is using combination of jabs and chokes to maintain control in the corner. Brief flurry of offense from DDP ends with both men colliding in a double clothesline. Dusty takes him to time define a double clothesline, which renders colleagues speechless that he spent time to explain something so self-explanatory. I LOVE BIG DUST! Failed Diamond Cutter attempt leads to Page performing his pescado onto Macho Man on the floor. Dusty wonders why they are not using the “Utensils and PLUNDAH~!” Savage clobbers DDP with a double axe-handle as he was draped across the guardrail. Savage then connects with a nasty axe-handle off the guardrail onto a prone Page in the crowd. Sick spot. When Savage shouts “Move out of the way!” you move the fuck out of the way because he will run your bitch-ass over. Dusty is excited as the prospect of PLUNDAH~! Instead of a BBQ picnic, there is a prop cemetery setup with prop tombstones that Page uses to regain advantage and then hits Savage with some sort of object, which prompts the Dream to go into hysterics just shouting “HE WAFFLE-LEGGED HIM!” His colleagues try to continue commentating, but Dusty has gone into a trance just repeating that. Say it with me, I love Big Dust. Dusty informed me it is a “waitress tray” and Tony basically says “What the fuck?”Savage’s continuous work on the ribs is affecting DDP’s ability to string together offense, good selling and psychology from Page. Savage finally breaks his momentum sending him ribs first into the steel guardrail, but DDP semi-blocks it. DDP is left to crawl away, while Savage regains his wits, I mean he did he just get WAFFLE-LEGGED. Most people don’t recover from getting WAFFLE-LEGGED!!! You know why Savage is able to? BECAUSE HE IS MACHO~! The Power of Slim Jims Compels! Savage sends his ribs and then his “noggin” into steel ringsteps. But Page just keeps on coming because he has guts. Savage frustrated, smacks around a cameraman, steals camera. DDP blocks his close-up with two feet sending the camera right into the Macho Man’s face. As both men are out, Liz somehow has found Dusty’s phantom waitress, stolen her tray and proceeds to WAFFLE-LEG the referee. Immediately, Dusty is rubbing it in his colleagues faces that no one believed him about the waitress tray and for the second time, Dusty has rendered his partners silent. Holy Fuck, Liz is choking DDP with a cable, (“Extension Cord” according to Dusty). Kim comes out to put a stop that nonsense. She is all like “I am the only woman who can choke my husband for sexual pleasure, you vixen” Liz is all like “Why did Randy say I would do this spot. He doesn’t even invite me to his parties anymore.” Dusty is all like “CATFIGHT! CATFIGHT! CATFIGHT! CATFIGHT! CATFIGHT! “ Finally they get the waffle-legged referee out of there, Kimberly drags Liz to back by the hair. Savage is up and there is a new ref for him to deck. Page hulks-up gets his typical combination of atomic drop and pancake. Savage hooks the ropes to block the Diamon Cutter. Savage selling fatigue like a champ, nearly falls off the top and then delivers an exhausted big elbow that lands on the ribs. Savage is on spaghetti-legs barley can lift Page for a bodyslam. Savage struggles to hit a big elbow, which gets him a 9-count. Savage’s selling is amazing as he is struggling just to stand. Ref bump as DDP’s leg whacks the ref’s head, but DDP reverses into the DIAMOND CUTTER!!! All three men down. 7-Count. Diamond cutter attempt reversed into a backslide with a low-blow kick by Savage on DDP. As Page rolls to the outside, Hogan dressed as Sting, WAFFLE-LEGS DDP in the ribs with a bat. The ref is forced to count out DDP. Savage celebrates his victory looking as if he lost, but to make him feel better he WAFFLE-LEGS a ref and takes a shot at DDP’s ribs. The commentators out over DDP’s hearts and guts and that it took two men and a woman to beat a man with busted ribs. I think this is one of rare instances when a wrestler wins by losing. DDP is one of the very few wrestlers that made it out of the WCW mid-card mire because he was one of the few that was well-booked, but the big help came from Savage’s selflessness. Hogan and Nash are notorious for burying people to make themselves look good and to hold them down. Savage was not afraid to lose to DDP in Page’s first PPV main event. Savage was a true professional and sold like a champ for DDP. They should show this selling performance at the end of this match to every kid that wants to be a wrestler it was that good. The story of DDP is that he is a fighter. Like John McClane of Die Hard, just a everyday blue collar guy, not afraid to get his hands dirty and get his ass-kicked while standing up for what’s right. DDP actually won by losing and a true credit to Savage to put him over and the booking team. This match and the Spring Stampede matches are toss-ups for me. I feel that both matches have long spells where the offense could be more varied. Basically it comes down to the character showcase for Savage’s Wildman persona at Spring Stampede vs. Savage’s incredible selling at Halloween Havoc. I give the edge to Stampede by a bit, but I call them both ****.

I know a lot of people pay $2/minute (1-900-909-9900, kids make sure to get your parents permission first) to hear me breathe and you all complain when you get it for free! :p : Yes, we did fix it in the post-production meeting, I pinky swear.

WCW United States Champion Diamond Dallas Page vs Chris Benoit vs Raven - WCW Uncensored 1998 Call me crazy, but I really enjoyed this clusterfuck. It was non-stop action, but much like the cruiserweight triangle match at Starrcade they always incorporated all three guys in logical ways. I liked this a bit better than the cruiserweight match because of the three distinct characters involved and how they built drama going into the finish stretch. You have the asskicker Benoit, the sado-masochist Raven and the never say die DDP and the match really felt really character driven. They do a triple lock up, which is contrived, but I liked the intensity of the lock up and they establish early it is every man for himself when they each deck each other. The lock up spills to the outside and they throw DDP into the stairs ribs, those pesky, never healing ribs, first. DDP sells this and we get some Benoit and Raven, but it is a normal amount of selling as opposed to the egregious amount you normally see in this time of match. I loved DDP avoiding baseball slide only to have Raven take it and then hitting a nice slingshot cross body. Raven was actually really good in this too by wildly just on top of people. It really felt very chaotic with people just shoving each other when they weren't looking. I think this Raven's best match in WCW as opposed to the asskicking he took at Souled Out. Raven directs traffic and forges an alliance with Benoit to take out the champion by sending him through the Uncensored sign. DDP is fucking out and looks done for. Raven suplexes table onto Benoit. I am such a mark for throwing objects and I loved that spot, but Raven gets overzealous and goes flying into the table. Benoit plays it smart and he carries Raven back to the ring to increase the distance between him and DDP. Kudos to Tenay for picking up on this. Benoit hits the drop toehold onto the chair, which always looks nasty and Raven's eye starts to swell pretty immediately. DDP slide on his side back to the ring in just awesome dramatic fashion. I love DDP! It is time to rip-off ECW wholesale, but hey what has not been seen by this audience is new now. They do the triple sleeper spot. It turns out NOAH ripped off this match for the triple German. DDP is fucking over it is awesome. The dude totally deserved to main event five PPVs in a row in 1998 and his reign in 1999. Anyone who says otherwise has either not watched the footage or is blind! Raven tells Benoit lets take out the champ again and here is the Use My Sign from Lodi, but it is a Stop SIgn! AWESOME! DDP is laid out on the table and Benoit attacks Raven. Raven fucked up that one. Benoit looks to superplex Raven through DDP in the table, which would have a HOLY SHIT spot for the ages. But DDP sends Benoit flying off and hits a nasty Diamond Cutter where the table does not break and Raven goes chest first into the edge. Wrestlers not being as athletic made these types of spots look brutal as hell. Great fucking finish! Benoit looked like an asskicker, but just did not pull the trigger early enough. DDP may have never-healing ribs, but his spirit just won't die. There is a never dull moment and never a moment where the match loses credibility. It was a chaotic war between three men. Another feather in the caps of Benoit & DDP! ****

I think it is a bit too easy to attack this match as "overly scripted" given who is involved. We know Savage and DDP liked to pre-plan their match, which was not the norm in this era so I think it is a bit of bias to levy that as the problem. We have seen Savage and DDP have other matches that feel totally organic, chaotic that are urgent and filled with struggle. I think they came in with a strong layout, but they just did not execute. Didn't Savage get legit hurt after Spring Stampede and this was his first match back. I feel like there was just not the same level of heat or just immediacy from their work. I liked the fact that DDP got more offense in this match and it showed progression. In the first match, Savage did not take the oldest rookie ever very seriously and took his time to attack others and get his licks in, but it cost him. Here we see DDP grow by really taking it to Savage and Savage responds by working harder to win the match. Plus DDP's infamous never healing ribs become a factor in the story and a focus of Savage's attack. I agree the BBQ pit was a lamer version of Benoit/Sullivan in the bathroom. The first match you take DDP seriously as a main eventer, this match cements it, but this time the NWO ensures a Savage victory thus leading to a series of Savage/Hall vs DDP/Partner, which was smart booking to extend the blowoff to Halloween Havoc. I think this is the weakest of the three Savage/Page matches, but yet finished highest in the Smarkchoice Poll, go figure. “Macho Man” Randy Savage vs “Diamond” Dallas Page – No DQ Match Great American Bash 1997 Liz is in quite the sequined, black jumpsuit, Savage is all business and it looks like he finally taking DDP seriously. You know how I can tell he licks his lips like an insane gecko. Tony expects that this fight will go all over the arena and given DDP’s limitations, I agree. “SELF HI-FIVE” over the speakers as the sexy as all hell Kimberly gives the Diamond Cutter signal in the entrance-way distracting the Madness. DDP sneak attacks the Macho Man, hell after Savage’s Wildman performance last time, DDP has some big balls just stepping in the ring with this Madman. Page has the infamous taped ribs, which would last approximately 2 years and would give his matches an instant sympathy card, while he looked like a million bucks in the fans’ eyes for fighting through the pain and gutting it out. It was like the reverse Cowboy Bob Orton arm injury. I think it was a good gimmick. Early cutter attempt and Savage wisely takes a powder. Pescado over the top onto the floor by DDP wipes out the Macho Man, but Page hurts his ribs. The Brain questions the wisdom of the move given both the ribs and the fact he has never done such a high-risk move. Tony retorts this shows the guts of DDP and just the lengths he will go to hurt Savage. Savage right on the ribs because he smells blood, baby. Savage hides behind Liz, but this brings out DDP’s inner scumbag and tosses Liz out of the way and calls her a bimbo. B.I.M.B.O. B.I.M.B.O. B.I.M.B.O. and Bimbo was her name-o. I am getting a strong John McClane of Die Hard vibe from DDP, I am digging it, which Brain emphasizes that DDP is willing to take on the New World Order by himself and is a double tough man for it. Savage gets the eye-rake like a true Macho Man apparently how the ribs were injured was petite Liz slamming a car door on DDP’s side. Really, Liz was on the one to do that irreparable damage. Fear and adrenaline can do wild things for a woman, as we found out from Desperate Housewives. Now we take the tour of the arena with Savage in command until Page sends him into a brick wall in desperation. Dusty gets excited about the PLUNDAH~! (a crutch) And says that DDP is really rag-tagging him. What??? Savage gains himself a breather by sending DDP crashing ribs first into the ring steps. Then Liz gives Savage a mysterious white substance, *wink* *wink*. Before Savage can ride the white lightning to victory, DDP approaches so Savage tosses his “energy powder” into DDP’s face taking some sort of PLUNDAH from Page and breaking it over his head. Savage exposes the ribs as the announcers discuss the psychological affects, Dusty says now Savage is doing the rag-tagging. Fans chant for the everyone’s favorite recluse, “WE Want Sting!” to put an end to this inhumanity. Personally, I don’t think the Macho Man has even begun. Yep, I was right. Savage has a zero tolerance policy for the ref’s tonight. He spits on this one, decks him, tears his shirt off and piledrives him into next week. If this was Memphis, Savage would be in prison and that ref would be legally dead. DDP is kicking and clawing, even hitting a headbutt, I have never seen DDP do that. Savage tosses a second ref over the top. Story of the match: Savage is not fuckin around. DDP gets another flurry, but this is all Macho Man as he lariats him over the top rope. Ruh roh, Savage catches sight of Kimberly and grabs her by the hair bringing her over the guardrail. This nearly causes a fuckin riot in the front row. Seriously everyone is yelling obscenities at the Macho Man and at least two guys are thinking about taking a swing at him. Heel Macho Man, everyone, that best in the business. Another ref and this one calms him down before anything he regrets happen. Classic Macho high-knee to DDP’s back as Page was trying to create separation up the ramp. They end up finding a gimmicked BBQ picnic area that some VIP fans are sitting at. DDP takes advantage of all this PLUNDAH~! Really turning the tide with it. Dusty desperately wants him to use the grill and pops like mad when it happens. I love Big Dust. DDP leads Savage back to the ring by choking him with his own shirt. Once back, he sets up Savage to go balls-first into the ringpost. Signals for the Cutter, so Savage hits the jawbreaker, he really should stop signaling for it. Savage removes the protective mats off the floor and looks to maim DDP by piledriving him on the exposed concrete. When the ref tries to stop him, Savage decks him. ZERO TOLERANCE. Savage, being an uber-dick, decides to physically intimidate a photographer at ringside. I have watched wrestling for 15 years and 99% of everything you see is choreographed. But when Savage goes on his rampages of attacking cameramen and other ringside attendants you just don’t know. I love that of feeling chaos. This gives DDP enough time to get hold of a chair and waffle Savage. Savage counters with a low-blow. Page reverses a suplex attempt into the DIAMOND CUTTER~! WCW did such a good job putting over that finisher as deadly. Savage does his job and sells it like a champ. But the is NO REF, Tony. The crowd is going apeshit. Here comes Scott Hall (nWo member) with the WCW Tag Team title in tow. He is ineffective at first, but the numbers game catch up to DDP as Savage clobbers him with the belt from behind. Outsider Edge (Crucifix Powerbomb) by Hall on Page that almost ends up getting fucked up, but it was one of the better ones I have seen. Hall tells Savage to go up top and hit him with elbow. Savage, ever-present of trying to get just that much more heat from the crowd, goes to a different corner. Why? So he can kick the unconscious ref. It is the little things that make Savage the greatest. Big elbow and the pin is academic. This time the New World Order and Savage don’t fuck around. There is no deliberate attacks from Savage and a true nWo member comes out to make sure that Savage gets the duke. ***1/2

WCW Cruiserweight Champion Rey Misterio Jr. vs Ultimo Dragon - WCW Hog Wild 1996 I loved the Misterio/Dragon matches when I got the Rey set, but they just have not aged well for me personally. Dragon was just stalling and being generally awkward through this match. I just don't think he was suited for the American environment. Whereas in his third PPV match, Rey already showed how much he got by inciting USA chants. He understood the flow and psychology of American wrestling better than pretty much an cruiserweight they brought at this time. Their opening sequence is just the worst of the New Japan juniors as it is totally perfunctory. Once we get the Dragon kicks, the match kicks it up. It is sort of a mini-World War III match between the two as Dragon unleashes his badass offense here, but the problem is how he strings things together. There is no sense that he is trying to win, rather he is trying to impress. I am at least glad he put Rey in the figure-4 so we get some great Rey verbal selling. There were also a couple botches and miscommunications like the surfboard spot and at one point we kinda just stare at each other while Rey is on the apron and Dragon is inside the ring. Once Rey starts to make his comeback, the match really picks up. Rey hits a great springboard dropkick to hit the mutha of all springboard splashes as he goes from the top rope to the dirt floor, which had to be a good twenty feet down. It is was fucking crazy. Then not to be outdone, Dragon hits a monster crossbody from the ring to the mats, but Rey was standing and he just fucking squashed. Those two spots actually elevate this to must watch because they are both insane. Again, the finish run is filled with Dragon doing his shit (Suplexes and Moonsaults), but not making covers. Dragon goes from another running Ligerbomb, but this time Rey wrangles a hurricanrana to win the match. The World War III match is a better introduction to what Dragon could do as he looked clueless for a lack of a better term, but I think if they mashed these two matches together then they could have had a great match. Watch for the two dives! ***

Rey Misterio Jr & Ultimo Dragon vs Psicosis & Heavy Metal - World Wrestling Peace Festival 1996 Wow, the rudos get even less in this than I remember. Don't get me wrong, this is an incredibly fun exhibition of the techinco's abilities and rudo's bumping and a total feel good match. When you are promoting Peace through wrestling I can't think of a better match as it features Rey and Dragon at their crowd pleasing best and Psicosis at his most selfless. Besides an early Psicosis guillotine, this was the Rey show with just breath-taking spot getting a bigger and bigger pop. Psicosis was a total pro taking all of Rey's ranas and insane dives. Dragon and Heavy Metal was perfect for what it was with Dragon showing off his kicks and quick movements. I loved Psicosis not being to catch Dragon in the corner with repeated strikes and then the crazy bump he took over the top turnbuckle. The dive train in this was awesome. You kinda miss Rey's somersault plancha, but then all of sudden you have a Psicosis crashing into your scene full force. I thought Dragon would go Asai, but he when with a somersault off the top so Rey could do a corkscrew Asai moonsault. To set that corkscrew Asai moonsault up, Psicosis takes my all time favorite bump the slide on your belly to the floor bump (usually a Rey Rey bump). Heavy Metal follows that up with another favorite bump of mine when technico kicks the rudo's feet from under him and he flies into the ropes/turnbuckles ass-first. A Tiger Suplex gives the technicos the victory to a big pop. One of those matches that will always bring you up when you're down, but without more offense from the heels it just feels like an exhibition. ***1/2

Savage is so awesome from beginning to end in this match. This is like Heeling 101 from asking Liz if he could invite 14-22 to a Slim Jim party to roughhousing Penzer and Mark Curtis to almost decking Kimberly. Savage when he is a heel always goes the extra mile to be despicable. I am surprised people do not like this match at a higher level. It is not just an entertaining Macho Man heeling session, DDP does a great job as the die hard, blue collar champion. This was his first shot at the big time and he fucking hit out of the park. The crowd absolutely loved him and he knew all the right moments to play to them. I loved the fan in the front row encouraging DDP, wish we had that kind of commitment from fans today. “Macho Man” Randy Savage vs “Diamond” Dallas Page in a No Disqualification Match. Spring Stampede 1997 Savage’s backstage rant was hilariously spectacular. “I’m going to moiderize the bum. Then I am going to to throw a party. Invite a lot of women. Maybe 14 or 22. You got a problem with that, Liz? Not a problem. I LIKE THAT! SLIM JIMS FOR EVERYONE!!!” Kimberly’s waist is wicked tiny and double damn is she hot. DDP and Kimberly walk to the ring with a purpose and Tony shills that DDP is the common man, a People’s Champion that has a story that resonates with everyone. Savage taunts DDP telling him that this is “his last day on the planet Earth”. Savage does some stalling tactics, but Page is pissed and he takes to the Macho Man. Page is so pissed he almost kills Savage on a horrible atomic drop. Savage blocks the Diamond Cutter by hooking the ropes. Savage runs over DDP on the outside and almost takes on Kim. They do the usual 1997 tour of the arena with garbage cans and cables. Back to ringside, Savage, the Paragon of Virtue he is, hides behind DDP’s wife to halt DDP’s momentum. Elizabeth, lookin fineeeeeee, rakes DDP’s back and Savage shoves Kim into DDP and the waffles DDP sandwhiching Kimberly. Kimberly, who was not a fan of wrestling and never seemed very into it, must have hated working with Savage. Macho Man was a terrifying loose cannon that just flew around ringside like a whirlwind really knocking anything over that got in his way. An overzealous fan attempts to spur on DDP with such exhortations as “Look out behind you! He is going after Kimberly!” Alas, Savage is still able to connect with his double axe-handle as DDP was draped over the guardrails. Macho Man goes for a cover with his feet on the ropes, but DDP kicks out. Savage accuses the ref of a slow count and Liz thinks the ref needs glasses. Um, ok? Strike One against the ref. Savage jumps out to ringside and intimidates Michael Buffer taking his chair. He smacks DDP across the back with his chair. The ref grabs the chair and removes it. Strike Two against the ref. Savage now pissed. Beat the ever-loving shit out of the ring announcer and tosses the chair into the ring, but that allows the debilitated DDP to get back into the match. The announcers put over DDP’s will to win and defend Kimberly even as Savage is picking him apart. Savage kills DDP with a clothesline. Savage catches DDP’s foot, which leads to the usual DDP spot, where he spins around and hits a desperation clothesline. Even Tony saw it coming making Savage look kind of dumb. The move took too much of DDP and Savage regains the advantage with a low-blow, however DDP continues to try to get his feet, really putting over his guts. Savage again intimidates Buffer, this time grabbing his signature weapon: the ring bell. Savage randomly shoves a cameraman. People must hate working Savage matches, such a Wildman. Kimberly snags the ringbell eventually, come on Kim, fuckin up the match. Savage to the top, but DDP gets his boot up and a beautiful sell-job by Savage. He now hit one of Savage’s favorite spot a backslide, which only gets two. Strike Three against the ref, you are outta here. Savage grabs the ref by the chin, paintbrushes him, piledrives him, rips his shirt, takes his belt off, and finally whips him and then whips DDP. Despicable. The Brain wonders if the ref will ever walk again because he only has a 12 inch neck. Tony wonders WHAT HAVE WE BECOME????? A picture-perfect big elbow drop seriously that may be one of the best one ever by Savage (that was the desktop background for my computer when I was 8 years old for the longest time, could not find the picture). No ref. Evil nWo ref, Nick Patrick is out and embraces Savage. DDP, playing possum, hits the Diamond Cutter, which WCW did a great job making it into a devastating finisher. Savage sells it well being out for a couple minutes. Patrick ends the drama by making the count giving DDP the win. “Big Sexy” Kevin Nash is incensed as he was observing and sticks Patrick with a powerbomb. Savage finally up goes LOONEY TUNES!!! Grabs Kimberly by the hair and threatens to deck her. This goes too far even for the nWo and Eric Bischoff steps in to calm down and reason with the Macho Man. So Savage shoves Bischoff and then decks him. That is why friends is why I love nWo Savage, totally unpredictable and out of control. You never knew what the hell he would do next. DDP is notorious for being a meticulous pre-match planner. Most wrestlers work out the major spots beforehand, but fill in the gaps based on crowd reactions. Savage acknowledged that DDP couldn’t cut the pace he was accustomed to thus worked a very DDP-style match. Savage was great at adapting to different styles and really showed his versatility. He worked a deliberate pace, but it was still a chaotic Savage match as he was using everyone at ringside as props and ultimately decking his own boss. It is not a great match in the traditional wrestling-way even as brawl. What it is a great character showcase. The gritty, gutsy common man fighting for his wife’s honor against a loose canon that has totally snapped and is steamrolling everyone. I give it ****. I figured out another reason why the match was wrestled so undecidely Savage. They wanted to tell the story that Savage was not taking DDP seriously as in his league because DDP has been a career mid-carder and this is first ever PPV main event. Thus explaining why Savage’s intensity was down early on and why he fucked around with everyone. He took Page a lot more seriously in the following matches. Great storytelling

This is an absolutely amazing offensive exhibition from Ultimo Dragon. In fact, it may be the best single man offensive runs in a single match. At the end of the day, it felt just like that an exhibition. I could not suspend my disbelief when Rey finally made his comeback because he just got his shit kicked in and now he is flying all around. If Rey peppered in more hope spots than I think this would be a different story, but as is it just came off as an Ultimo Dragon fireworks show. It was an incredible fireworks show, but I wouldn't call it a great match. All the stars for commentary, I have not laughed so hard in so long. This is a "draws down, mama hitting you with a switch" whupping from Dusty slayed me and then when they were outside, Dusty asking who is that guy in the red jacket and Hey Bob, turn around they are right behind you, I was dying. J-Crown Champion Ultimo Dragon vs Rey Mysterio Jr. World War III 1996 Rey Mysterio had become the centerpiece of WCW’s cruiserweight division, but had dropped the title back to Malenko at Halloween Havoc, the previous month. In this match, it is Rey’s job to cement Ultimo Dragon as the top heel of the cruiserweight division. This is the match where people rightfully so complain of Rey getting gobbled up by Dragon’s offense. Whereas, the Malenko match felt like a struggle where two men were trying to win a match with natural strategies, this match felt like an exhibition of Dragon’s spots. Don’t get me wrong, Dragon has some pretty nifty spots (he busts out the Giant Swing!!!), but never feels like he is trying to win. Instead, he is just trying to show-off all his cool moves. Here is a list of the cool moves: Spinning Argentine Backbreaker Giant Swing Slingshot Powerbomb His Intricate Outside the ring sequence Spinning Tombstone Piledriver Running Ligerbomb Brainbuster Surprisingly did not do the Asai Moonsault, but the splash from the ring to a prone Mysterio was beyond awesome. This is the type of story that always falls flat with me. It is simply because there is no story. There is not a struggle. It is just an exhibition. It is fun visually, but not emotionally. In addition, Dragon did really use anything to set up his moves. Usually, he uses a ground game to weaken his opponents before he works his shit in. Instead, it just felt like pick up Rey and do his spots. Rey be assertive. Where were your hope spots? The match was dying because of the babyface was getting totaled out there. It looked like match I had against my stuffed bear yesterday erm I mean 15 years ago. I totally mean 15 years ago. Dusty was cracking me up throughout the match, but this quote not only makes me laugh, but is accurate portrayal of the match “This is pants-down momma spankin you whuppin!” Of course at the finish, Rey does make his comeback and hits his visually impressive spots like his somersault plancha. The finish was hot, but the how fuck would the finish not be hot when you have Dragon with his ZILLION moves and Rey flying around at a mile a minute. They had a perfect ending: Dragon is able to catch Rey Rey off the springboard and hit a fuckin Slingshot Powerbomb (BITCHIN~!) for the win. I have watched this match a lot because I happen to love watching Ultimo Dragon’s offense, but it is not a very dramatic match and thus loses a lot of points in my book. ***1/2

I fucking love this match. This is Malenko's career match in my opinion, he has never looked so good working a body part. The armwork and all the different holds and slams were incredible. Rey's verbal selling was off the charts great especially that first snap on the arm. They went just a little long there without a hope spot and the crowd got a bit restless. I see the argument to flip flop the Psicosis Bash At The Beach match and this, but I think allowing Rey to sell and show a lot of heart in his comeback ultimately won the crowd more over than just doing the showcase match with Psicosis. I think the solution is to splice the Malenko/Mysterio shine from the July Nitro match in the beginning with this and then run this match as is. I really think if that was the case they would have had a match that could compete with the best of All Japan in 1996 for match of the year. This was great to rewatch as is. WCW Cruiserweight Champion Dean Malenko vs Rey Misterio Jr. Great American Bash 1996 This match simultaneously salvaged the fledging cruiserweight division and made it into a sensation over night. This match is the best exhibition of Malenko’s chain wrestling being entertaining and working well within the confines of the layout. Malenko knows he cannot let Rey create space between them or otherwise face the damage of Rey’s vaunted aerial attack. If he can ground Rey, he eliminates that threat. That is the crux of the match Rey trying to squirm away from Malenko and Malenko trying to wrangle Rey. From the outset, Malenko is one who is able to strike first with a cool looking Greco-Roman knucklelock arm snapping-thingy. It looked sweet trust me. He works over that arm relentlessly and convincingly with a great variety of moves. It always feels like he is trying to gain a new advantage or add a different degree of pain to Rey’s arm to keep him off-balance. My favorite moment is a flying hammerlock into a kimura that just looks so fuckin sweet. The key in this control segment is that Rey still has hope spots. This was Rey’s debut and it was critical to have these hope spots especially when he did not get an opening shine or you run the risk of jobberizing him. As the match progresses and Dean is still struggling to put Rey away, you come to see a recurring theme with Malenko he does show emotion. Dean is not more relatable wrestler or the best seller, but he is really good at selling frustration at the inability to put an opponent away. This combined with Rey’s resilience and sympathetic underdog selling creates a very powerful story for the audience that is rooting for the underdog in this debut match against the champion. When Dean finally does lose control, Rey unleashes that arsenal of aerial maneuvers, which both wow the fans and does a good job displaying why Dean was working so hard to ground Rey. The finish is thrilling with Rey’s quick pinfall attempts and all his quick counters. However, he finally succumbs to a massive powerbomb by Dean, who puts his feet on the ropes for three. The finish is a satisfying climax to this cat and mouse game. Rey looks like a champ with hot finish and Dean is able to retain due to one big move. Most of what I have read has been in favor of declaring this match a classic, but it feels that many feel the need to defend it against a vocal minority that believes Dean gobbled up Rey for too long. Now, if Dean just sat in an armbar for the entirety of his lengthy heat segment, I would agree. Dean was really active with a lot of gnarly submissions and high-impact blows into pinfalls. It truly felt like he was trying to win a match and I can appreciate that. I think where these critics have a point is that Dean should not have immediately entered into a heat segment. In their subsequent Nitro match in July, Rey has a really cool babyface shine to open it. In that match, it really sets up the idea of what Dean has to fear. If Dean can not ground him, Rey will have him going in circles and Dean really sells that frustration in that match well. In this match, you don’t really get the feeling that Dean has anything to worry about in the context of the match because Rey did not open with anything. The drama in the Great American Bash would have been greatly enhanced by allowing Rey to hit a couple big moves off the bat to demonstrate how he lethal he could be. Since I brought up the Nitro match, the big problem with that match is that Malenko’s heat segment really meanders and is not really as good as this one. The Great American Bash match is a better complete match. In sum, I think if you tack the babyface shine segment from the Nitro match and splice it into the Great American Bash match you have a Match of the Year Candidate for 1996. As is, it is one of three best matches from 1996 in WCW (Mysterio/Psychosis), but just cant compete with the All Japan and othere matches of 1996. This heat segment definitively proves in my mind that Dean Malenko is not boring. Can he be boring? Yes and we will see that! But he definitely can be a fuckin fantastic offensive wrestler. I think Dean’s strong suit is as a heel. Malenko is one of the few American wrestlers to always be straddling the face/heel line. I think if the booking team just went full bore with Dean as a sadistic, ground-based heel he would have had more entertaining matches consistently. This match showed how effective he could be as a yin to Mysterio’s yang. Mysterio for his part continued his campaign to be best wrestler in North America. I agree that Mysterio should have worked the majority of the match from underneath. His selling endeared him to the fans, his hope spots were well-timed to keep the audience engaged, and the match was structured to give his aerial spots time to breathe and seem more important to the audience. In the Dragon match, he will not be so lucky. One thing I want to debunk is that at least initially the commentary team (sans the Brain) did a very good job trying to get over the cruiserweights. You could feel how excited Dusty was to watch them and how much he enjoyed their work. As time progressed, of course like with all things in the mid-card, the WCW commentary team would just ignore it and talk about the Hogan-related item of the night.

Daniel Bryan vs Triple H w/Stephanie McMahon - Wrestlemania XXX In light of recent events, this match should only be more cherished as the night everything was right with the world of pro wrestling. The most emotionally impactful of the match of the year contenders of 2014. The Shield versus Wyatts made the best use of past history, AJ Styles vs Minoru Suzuki told the most interesting intra-match story and Tanahashi/Nakamura rocked the limb psychology like no one else this year. Wrestling should not hit in you the head, it should hit you in the gut. When I watch this match, I was moved moreso now than probably when it happened. Daniel Bryan represents so much more to me than just a great wrestler. He proves if you love it, want it and work hard enough for it that anything is possibly. We all know the obstacles in front of him and he just kept his head down plowed through them and became the World Champion on the Grandest Stage of Them All. Before the fairy tale ending, Bryan had to face the man who was the exact antithesis of Bryan. He was not the populist choice. He was a member of the Kliq, given a forced push to the top, and married the boss' daughter. Triple H is a lightning rod of controversy. Some contend he is a great ring general and master of ring psychology while loathing his backstage politics and knack for burying opponents. Others call his entire reputation a sham manufactured by the WWE to work the fans into believing he was one of the greatest of all-time when he was just a mediocre wrestler that happened to be connected to the correct people. This made him the absolute perfect opponent for Daniel Bryan because no matter your feelings on Triple H, he represented everything corporate and artificial about pro wrestling while Daniel Bryan embodied the passion and humanity of pro wrestling. Triple H offers his hand to begin the match and Bryan kicks it away only to roll him up quickly. Bryan came to play, brutha. Bryan is on him with kicks and HHH bails. Stephanie, who is a total smokeshow tonight with those short shorts, gives The Game exhorts while Bryan now offers his hand. What I love about the early part of the match is that even though Bryan shoulder is taped and HHH targets it, it is not as soon as HHH attacks it that Bryan just writhes in pain. There are levels of pain. Bryan is able to fight through the first couple attacks because of his determination and he can't afford it to be worked on. Yes, it causes a wince, but it is a just brief inconvenience. It is a babyface shine that is truly earned that culminates with Bryan hitting a tornado DDT from the apron and the somersault off the top rope onto The Game. Triple H seems shaken from this onslaught and has underestimated Daniel Bryan. He is able to cause Bryan to lose his balance on the top rope. HHH is not going to fuck around and looks to end this early with a Pedigree on the announce table, but the feisty Bryan fights out so Triple H quickly switches gears and wrenches the bad shoulder right into the edge of the announce table. OUCH! Only now does the heat on Bryan begin with Triple H destroying Bryan's arm and delivering the best limb work of his career. Stephanie laying the badmouth on Bryan, "Mess with the bull, you are going to get the horns" among others was just awesome. She would be such an excellent manager if she ever committed to it full time. Bryan's first hope spot is his signature suicide dive, but Triple H blasts him with a right hand. HHH hits a nasty back suplex with the arm behind the back on the apron. Triple H busting out the Crossface Chickenwing into the Crippler Crossface was wicked cool. Daniel Bryan will not be denied. He makes it to the ropes and begins his signature high-octane comeback. Triple H looks to cut him off with a suplex, but Bryan gets two Germans of his own. Triple H looks to stop the bleeding with a Chickenwing Crossface, but has to settle for the Tiger Suplex. Sick! Triple H showing he is not always a Cerebral Assassin mounts D-Bry on the top rope, which gives him the high ground and the chance to hit a sunset flip powerbomb. Daniel Bryan with a repeated running dropkicks, but on the third Triple H bursts out of the corner with a wicked lariat. I love the struggle of this match. You really feel like two men are fighting strongly for their respective ideologies and pride. Neither one wants to give an inch to the other. Triple H is getting anxious and abandons the arm work for the one surefire way to end this: The Pedigree. Bryan counters into a pinning attempt. Bryan's diving headbutt eats a boot and HHH right back on the arm with a Crippler Crossface, but Bryan reverses into the YESLock. Triple H after all the smack he talks feels desperate to end this. Bryan is a fucking maniac and hits not one full speed suicide dive, but two full-speed suicide dives! Bryan is feeling it, kip up, YES CHANTS! He is looking for that Knee that took down Cena. SPINEBUSTER~! PEDIGREE~! IT IS OVER 1-2-NO! NO! NO! YES! YES! YES! Honest to God, had totally forgotten Triple H hit the Pedigree in this match and Bryan kicked out. I actually saw him hit the Pedigree, my stomach dropped, then I remembered Bryan won and was ecstatic he kicked out. Now if that is not the hallmark of a great fucking match, I don't know what is! Triple H is flabberghasted and tries to beat the shit out of him while Stephanie screams in the background. This is Daniel Bryan's night and Triple H is coming to the realization he cannot overcome the power of Daniel Bryan and the People! Triple H desperately tries to pull the trigger on a second Pedigree, but Bryan wriggles out until finally EXPLODING KNEE~! 1-2-3! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! Awesome match that feels like a real war and really mirrors Bryan's rise to the top. Bryan had to earn every single move in this match. His babyface shine was earned working through Triple H's early arm work. Then he fought tooth and nail not submit to HHH's killer arm work. From there, just when you think Bryan has the match won, it turns on a dime and Triple H hits his knockout shot and Bryan kicks out. They don't waste time with 8 million false finishes. Triple H gets his and keeps going for another Pedigree and then Exploding Knee knocks him out. Stephanie has to carry her husband out while they watch Daniel Bryan go to the main event of Wrestlemania. It is such a feel-good story combined with amazing fundamentals. I don't see a flaw. *****

WCW TV Champion Fit Finlay vs Chris Benoit - WCW Slamboree 1998 The Wocestah crowd was rabid for the Wolverine on this night with a big Benoit chant early after a chop and even chanting Finaly Sucks! Hell they popped for an early hiptoss cover by Benoit. That's what happens when wrestling treated as real by the fans and the wrestlers. They care that their favorite wins not how he wins or if it is at the expense of making someone look bad. It is Benoit and Finlay. You know it is going to be a war and this one was awesome. It totally built on their badass Nitro '97 sprint with them having more time to draw things out. Benoit looks strong in the early going controlling with chops, but as he gets up from a Finlay submission he is blasted with a wicked clothesline. For the rest of the match, Finlay is going to town on the neck and head of Benoit. Benoit does a great job selling this clothesline rolling out of the ring in such a way that he makes a thud when hits the floor. Finlay follows up with a bodyslam on the floor and another clothesline. Benoit comes roaring out of the corner with chops, Finaly stymies him with an eyepoke/chinlock combination. Perfect use of the chinlock to control the match and lean on your opponent sapping him of his energy. Finlay peppering in wicked elbows to Benoit's neck and kicks to his back. Finaly goes for the chair on the outside, but Benoit grans a hold of it to hit Finlay in the back to a big pop. I love chair shot in stiff midcard matches it is a great change of pace. Benoit goes for his dive to the outside, but Finlay uses the chair to block it. Jesus, Benoit! Finaly is working double time on the neck, but runs into the corner full steam ahead. Two Rolling Germans land, but on the third Finlay runs Benoit throat first into the ropes. DAMN! A violent counter that makes total sense in the match. Really should have led to the Tombstone finish in my opinion. Benoit counters an attempted clothesline with the Crossface, but too close to the ropes. Snap suplex and he signals for the diving headbutt and the crowd just explodes. Huge boos for Booker T sauntering out as payback for Benoit doing it to him and costing him Television championship. Finlay blasts him in the back of the head with wicked dropkick. Benoit just crumbles to the floor and deadweights Finlay. FInaly finally rolls him back in and Benoit gets a desperation inside cradle, but nothing happening. Finaly ends his misery witha Tombstone! Awesome, brutal match with Finlay wrestling a perfect strategy to control the explosive Benoit with stiff shots and chinlocks. Benoit is just relentless and always knows when to come out at you with his stiff offense. I can't see how these two could ever have a bad match. I would put this above the Raven match since Finlay contributed more, but behind the DDP match, which I think told a better story and had even more urgency. ****

WCW Cruiserweight Champion Juventud Guerrera vs Billy Kidman - WCW World War III '98 Juvytud is LWO 4 life and gives a very uneven performance. I have really liked what I have seen so far from Juvy, but he is missing that classic and I was hoping this may be it, but between the botches and the boring stalling, it was not to be. On the other hand, Kidman gave the best performance I have ever seen from him. He was so crisp on offense and everything was hit with intensity. You could feel him fighting hard to regain the Cruiserweight Championship. I loved the opening strike exchange between Kidman's forearms and Juvy's chops. It felt like they were fighting through each other. Juvy throws a mean chop and you get plenty of them in this match. However, now that he is a heel, he does a lot of stalling and it is just not good stalling. Kidman, being an expert counterwrestler, was able to cut Juvy off with moves like the BK Bomb, the whip into the corner with a follow up lariat with great velocity and fabulous, snug dropkick to catch Juvy off the top. Juventud finally consolidates an advantage with a slightly botched rana off the apron not exactly the easiest move. I liked the Brainbuster, but then he hits the chinlock. Juvy has two awesome short dropkicks to keep Kidman at bay. Kidman does a really nice job modulating his selling. Juventud is not able to pull of the difficult double jump dropkick between the rings. Kidman for his money hits a nice cross body from one ring to the other and takes a wicked bump from one ring to the ring's ropes. They do a great reversal exchange between Juvy Driver and the Reverse Suplex. Juventud's nearfall is a hurricanarana, but when he can't negotiate the pinfall, it is back to stalling. He tries to powerbomb Kidman and Kidman follows that up with an excellent wheelbarrow suplex. Instead of Kidman getting the clean win, Rey blocks Kidman from taking a top rope Frankensteiner so Kidman hits the Shooting Star Press to regain the title. the Rey interference furthers the Rey/LWO issue and Kidman still got a big pop for his victory. Kidman crushed it on this night, but Juvy was still getting used to being a pure American heel and was having a bit of an off night. The Nitro match is their best match in my opinion, but definitely check this out for a strong Kidman performance. ***1/2

Why Cesaro has not been turned face is one of the great mysteries of the past year? I echo everything you say and on top of that he just flat out is not a very good heel. He would be an excellent power babyface spot monkey. John Cena vs Cesaro w/Real Americans - RAW 2/17/14 Much like the Bryan/Cesaro RAW match from 2013, I thought this match was overhyped initially by the commentary I was reading. The difference here was that upon rewatch, Cena and Cesaro lived up to the hype of being one of the best matches on free TV for the year of 2014. It is true testament to both competitors that even though the match was a showcase for Cesaro's strength spots, it never descended into an exhibition. On the surface level, many would attribute that Cesaro's creativity in setting up his own strength spots such as: 1. Using a Cena leapfrog (very typical Cena spot) to hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker. Almost never see Cena's leapfrog countered and an excellent transition to Cesaro controlling the match. 2. Catching a Cena cross body block into an incredible fallaway slam. 3. Reversing the STF into a deadlift gutwrench 4. Using an uppercut to block Cena's top rope legdrop to setup his middle rope suplex from the apron. Cesaro really does come off as the Swiss Superman in this match and this is not against Rey Misterio, but against John Cena. It is not just Cena's presence that makes it all that more incredible, but how Cena sets Cesaro up to look amazing. Cena is purposefully wrestling smaller to make Cesaro look larger than life. He tried to match strength and power with Cesaro early, but two mistakes (leapfrog and crashing & burning over the top rope) put him in a bad position as Cesaro is content to lean on him with chinlocks. Cena tries to pull unexpected tricks like the hurricanrana and the cross body block in doing so he magnifies Cesaro's strength. Of course, Cena's most important role in this is to maintain that this is a sporting contest not an exhibition for Cesaro, which could have very easily devolved into with a more mindless performance. Cena was always on Cesaro fighting from underneath and making Cesaro earn every inch. I enjoyed the Giant Swing teases because it gets a rise out of the crowd, but also I see the move as the ultimate grandstanding, hot dog move. He could win with the Neutralizer, but the Giant Swing shows off Cesaro's strength and humiliates Cena. You see that Cesaro's hubris almost costs him twice: STF and a DDT. He finally takes Cena on the Merry Go-Round, but that does not get it done and now it is time for the Neutralizer. This is of course the perfect position for the FU, wait, Cesaro lands on his feet. Wicked Cesaro big boot and WHATTA CLOTHESLINE, MICHAEL, BY CENA! Cena fireman's roll through into a FU for the victory. Great ending because at the end of the day, Cena can beat Cesaro at his own game because he is still John Cena and power is his game. Cesaro pushed Cena hard, but came up short because he became obsessed with the Giant Swing and not just winning but proving he is The Man. I really liked the champion veteran against hungry up and comer dynamic throughout the match and how Cena was so selfless throughout the match. Selflessness is something I like to see in my heel because it is his job to shine up the heel. Cena walked the perfect tight rope to make Cesaro look like a million bucks, but he himself never lost his luster. Say what you will about Cena the promo or Cena the character (and I have my issues), but inside those ropes, he knows what he is doing. My slight qualms with this match. This match could have benefitted from body part psychology because Cesaro would go for chinlocks, which is fine, but the match could have used a little more spice. Even thought, I liked the ending, Cena did to readily get into the FU position from the Neutralizer. If you look at his selling and body language during his standard comeback (shoulderblocks), you see a man fighting through pain and exhaustion to win. The Cena at the end was a little too fresh. Regardless of these qualms, on the surface, the match showcases Cesaro as a Swiss Superman on the cusp of main event stardom, but if you look closely you see why John Cena is The Man and has been The Man for all these years. ****1/4

The Shield vs Wyatt Family - WWE Elimination Chamber 2014 I watched this match and RAW rematch back to back and came away so thrilled about the rematch's chaos that it actually overshadowed this match initially. I went back and rewatched this one and just absolutely loved it even more when paying attention to all the little details. To me, this is the match to beat for WWE match of the year. It is crazy to think that if they pulled the trigger on a Dean Ambrose/Bray Wyatt feud at this point, I would have lapped it up. By November, I was actively rejecting it as one of the worst things on TV. It tells you how cold the product has gotten and cooled off these two molten characters are now. Ambrose was just rocking it as the firebrand that was the trigger for the chaos. I loved when everyone was turning to go to their respective corners, Ambrose just jumped the Wyatts. The tag wrestling in this was better than in the rematch. I loved how strongly they emphasized getting their opponent into their corner. That's the Shield to exploit the numbers game, but they may have met their match in the Wyatts that will throw that strategy right in their face. Rollins opening with speed to get Rowan into the Shield corner was perfect with Rowan bowling him over to escape. It put over how much strategy mattered in this match. Roman Reigns versus Bray Wyatt felt huge during their showdown and I loved how Reigns fought through everything. Nothing was given, he had to go through the Wyatts. The beatdwon of Harper in the corner was just classic Shield. That's tag team wrestling baby! They do a great transition where Ambrose's temper gets the best of him as he takes a swipe at Bray on the apron and eats a Harper dropkick. What follows is just badass. Ambrose bites Rowan, Harper steps on Ambrose head and claws at his face. I love it, Michael! The swinging neckbreaker transition is super weak though. Rollins was a great house of fire with great speed moves and climaxing on an excellent suicide dive that got the crowd rocking. He gets the drive by knee, but whiffs on the Curb Stomp and eats a swinging powerslam. The Bray Wyatt senton on the outside looked nasty. My favorite spot of the match was Harper had Rollins by the hair just playing with his food and Rollins slaps him in defiance and Harper slaps the taste out of his mouth. That was powerful shit. People talk up Ambrose's fighting from underneath prowess, but Rollins should not be underestimated as he fights in the corner with great urgency only for nasty Bray headbutts to keep him at bay. This match utilized Bray better as the game changer for his team. I like the idea of him letting his heavies do the dirty work, but if ever gets out of hand, he is there to keep in check. Ambrose makes the save for Rollins and eats a hellacious big boot from Harper. Rollins hits an enziguiri to get Reigns in the match (I am not digging these transitions). Reigns is so great in these hot tag situations and not just the typical Reigns offense, there is a nasty back elbow to Rowan that keeps you on your feet. In an electric moment, Reigns is thrown outside and just runs around the ring to kick Rowan's head in. AMBROSE SWARM!!! KATIE BAR THE DOOR! There is a pier-six brawl a brewin'! Harper suicide dive and Rollins says two can play at that game. Ambrose and Wyatt tumble into the crowd and Rollins gets double chokeslammed through the table. Hey, come the monitors did not explode when they were ripper out of the announce table. After more than a year of The Shield picking their opponents off one by one, The Wyatts gave them a taste of their own medicine. Now Reigns was left alone surrounded by the Wyatts just as he surrounded so many others. Luke Harper serves a beaten Reigns to his master. I loved how Reigns blocked Sister Abigail and turned it into a test of strength. SUPERMAN PUNCH! Reigns goes for the spear on Bray, but Harper takes the bullet for his leader. In the chaos, Bray hits his wicked cross body and Sister Abigail to win. I loved the finish. The Shield's strategy was predicated on two tenets: create chaos and divide and conquer. The Wyatts took out two members of the Shield leaving Reigns alone and then in the chaos that ensued Bray Wyatt took advantage to win the match. The match weaknesses: the transitions were lame & uncreative and I would have liked more chippiness. They were too willing to just let one guy have his segment and that be that. The rematch thrives on that chaos and full court press by both teams. I think if you could combine the best parts of this match and the rematch, you would have all-time classic that really could rewrite how North American tag team wrestling is executed and presented. As is, it is still an incredible match from both an action and storytelling standpoint as the Shield essentially get beaten at their own game. ****3/4

The Shield vs Wyatt Family - WWE RAW 3/3/14 It was around the Harper double stomp to break up an Ambrose bridging FIgure-4 that I thought to myself if the WWE produced something better in 2014, I must have a really foggy memory. The sense of struggle and urgency in this match from all six combatants was unparalleled in the WWE this past year and was downright All Japan-ish in nature. Harper was the God King Prick of the match. With the chippy big boot to Reigns' face when he was on the apron, clawing Rollins' face and stepping all over Ambrose's face, Harper did everything he could to get under their skin and hurt his opponents. It was not about entertaining the fans, it was about inflicting pain and proving the Wyatts were the top faction in this turf war. His counterpart was the crazy, violent Dean Ambrose. It is amazing that in nine months, I find Ambrose to be this lame, moody, and sulky spaz. This Dean Ambrose in this match. He is the fucking man. The Ambrose Swarm is the greatest thing ever. He is just bowling people over with his boundless rage. Even the little shove he gave Bray had me and my brother marking out on initial watch because it is so atypical in the neat, orderly WWE matches. I want it rough around the edges, I want it RAW, goddamnit. Ambrose gave that performance. From the craziness that was Ambrose, there was the high flying excitement of Seth Rollins. I watched a lot of 2013 Shield matches at the beginning of 2014 and remembering being impressed by Rollins' ring awareness and movements in the tag settings. In this match as a babyface, he was finally set free and opened the match up with gangbusters, but unfortunately a skirmish between Ambrose and Bray caused him to lose his balance on the top rope. Ambrose losing his cool and Reigns being belted cost Rollins the ability to make a tag, but is finally able to tag Ambrose. Ambrose is just a burst of energy onto Rowan and does some quick, but effective leg work on Rowan to set up a figure-4, where he bridges on his head for more pressure!!! HARPER DOUBLE STOMPS AMBROSE!!! I LOVE THIS MATCH! Let's talk Rowan, dude was a beast dismantling Ambrose and keeping him contained. Harper is the firebrand like an Ambrose he is going to get shit started and be a jerk. Rowan is there as a heavy hitter that is going to pummel you. Crowd chants for CM Punk, fuck them! If you want pro wrestling, watch what is going on in front of you, numbskulls. Ambrose hits a JBL-Orgasm-Inducing clothesline, but Harper hangs on to tag in Bray Wyatt. Ambrose with a DDT. Wyatt comes in and wipes Reigns out. Ambrose hits a DDT on Wyatt. Rollins is all pissy and leaves Ambrose hanging because of what happened earlier. Fine be a bitch, I am going to go destroy everything. Roman Reigns is an amazing ring clearing presence. The Superman Punch is just fucking cool. He just goes to town on the Wyatts. Ambrose holding Harper down for the Reigns dropkick was awesome. The Spear onto Rowan was badass and Harper wipes Reigns out with a suicide dive then sends Reigns flying. Somewhere in there, Ambrose was just swarming muthafuckas with punches. Wyatt picks his spot and hits his wicked cross body block on Ambrose and hits Sister Abigail as Rollins watches. Finally, lets talk about Wyatt, who carefully waited in all the chaos with all the bodies piling up to attack Ambrose and swing the match in their favor. At Elimination Chamber, the Wyatts were able to out-Shield the Shield by taking out one at a time. Here, the Shield collapsed on itself and the Wyatts took advantage of the chaos to win the match. Rollins and Reigns were used perfectly to get the crowd hot as hell at the beginning and end. Ambrose anchored the middle and showed why he is an incredible face in peril. He can sell, but he is always fighting. It is always chippy. That's what made this match special was the constant struggle and urgency everyone displayed. This sounds shocking, but I thought this was a bit too short. I think they could have added more to the beginning and more to why Rollins was pissed to really drive home the point. Still if anything can top this I will shocked. Cena/Lesnar had the big match atmosphere and the Bryan Wrestlemania matches will have emotion, but I don't think they can top the chaotic and violent feel of this. ****1/4

WCW Cruiserweright Champion Juventud Guerrera vs Kidman - WCW Nitro 9/14/98 Gotta commend the WCW booking team on this one, exactly how you build on a hot babyface turn. They parlay the heat of Kidman's face turn and give him a run with the cruiserweight title and it gets a lot of fanfare. The match itself is a good match, but to me this one is more about the evolution of the Kidman character from misguided junkie to cleaned-up babyface making the most of his second chance. The crowd responded in turn by cheering him throughout and popping huge for his victory. It was a little weird that Kidman took most of the offense when he really did not have enough offense to carry a match at this point and plus as a sympathetic, underdog character you think getting some heat on him would make sense. I really liked Juvy's offense in other matches and would have him to get a couple more memorable spots in. Overall, it was paced as an even back and forth bout with Kidman in charge for the most of it and did not really kick in until Kidman reversed some Juvy's aerial moves into some sick suplexes. The reverse suplex out of the Juvy Driver was a great nearfall. I thought the finish was good shit, but did not really much else to support it. Still a great victory for Kidman and strong booking by WCW. They mentioned Juvy had a match with Silver King the night before at Fall Brawl and that piqued my interest. Is it any good?