Superstar Sleeze

WWE US Champion John Cena vs NXT Champion Kevin Owens - WWE Elimination Chamber 2015 I cant think a match I have more disdain for than this match. I thought it was terrible ten years ago and watching it back now. I think I hate it even more now. There were matches like this before this match, but you could argue this style made its debut in the WWE Main Event scene with the match. This match highlights everything that is the antithesis to emotionally moving professional wrestling. It emphasizes that WHAT at the expense of WHY and HOW. The WHAT is MOVEZ~! and lots of them. It is not quite as bad today's motion-smoothing wrestling where everybody is perpetual motion trying to get to the next spot. They did let things breathe and allow for WWE to show replays and let highspots sink in, BUT there was no rhyme or reason to the high spots. There were no sense of consequences. Neither wrestler was reacting to the other. It was pure My Turn, Your Turn wrestling. I was surprised to see a wrestler hit two moves in succession. My recollection was they literally traded off in the last ten minutes. The transitions were pathetic, which brings me to the how. It is comical how silly each one was just hopping out of the others move. The absolutely zero struggle. Where was the character work? It felt like two fucking robots out there having a match. The first ten minutes, which nobody remembers were pretty boring. John Cena always goes into heat way too early. He was overselling like crazy. After the second blow by KO you'd think you JIP'd 20 minutes into the match. Owens had a pretty tame heat segment. The trash talk was good. The rest was pedestrian at best. Cena's extended comeback which is impossible to fuck up was the best part of the match as Owens countered each move and Cena had to unlock the moves of the comeback was the only good part. Then last ten minutes we had every cliche, finisher spamming bullshit of the 21st Century. I understand pro wrestling is subjective and I can understand there is a new breed of fan that wants action at the expense of characters, logic and emotion, but even this new breed has to admit this finish sucked the big one. It was just Cena hitting a couple massive clotheslines and then Owens hits a Pop Up Powerbomb out of nowhere for the win. IT WAS NOT EVEN A GOOD FINISH?!?! Like cmon if you are going to do a big fireworks spectacle hit me with a Grand Finale not with that wet fart.

WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar vs John Cena vs Seth Rollins - Royal Rumble 2015 I was there live for this bad boy with my brother in Philly. I remember there’s a blizzard on Friday in Boston but we braved the elements driving down to see two of all-time favorites: Brock and Cena kick some ass in their prime. I have never watched the match back until now ten years later. Does it hold up or should I have left the memories alone? Hell Yeah it holds up brutha! Probably the best Triple Threat of all time! Each wrestler stays true to their unique character. Brock Lesnar is the Horror Movie Monster. The Creature from the Black Lagoon, always stalking, always rising. John Cena is the valiant hero trying to slay the Beast by any means necessary. Seth Rollins is the coward using sneak attacks to insert himself. It is awesome. The reason why the match works isn’t because they changed the formula it is because of the characters. Yes they work at a break-neck pace and everything feels hot. It is still a spot fest just a very well-done one. It is the characters that enhance the viewing experience and take this from Eye candy to emotionally stirring. Brock Lesnar had a fucking Bitchin’ 2015! He starts off ROARING! The Horror Movie Monster is getting the babyface shine and the Philly crowd is loving it. Cena is still very much disliked and Rollins has some ROH street cred bur his cowardly character keep the fans from being full-throated in their support. Brock is Unstoppable just trucking Rollins and throwing Cena around. The high spot of this segment is CHUCKING Noble & Mercury like they were nothing. I like the first big chink on the armor. Brock applies the Kimura. Cena being the valiant hero that he is Bob Backlund his way out. However Seth Rollins LEAPS onto the Pile with a knee bowling everyone over. That is the perfect microcosm of the match. Cena snaps off an FU on a weakened Lesnar but Rollins that little fucking sneak throws Cena out and only gets a one. Perfect character work. Through some outside work, Cena and Rollins end up alone. Cena works through his finish stretch. Another reasons the match works well is that it feels like one long finish stretch from beginning to end. When Cena goes for the Five Knuckle Shuffle we get the first of the Horror Movie Monster popping up from behind and demolishing someone with a suplex. The next big high spot and the one burned in my memory because out seats were looking over the bottom right turnbuckle (hard cam perspective) was Brock plucking Rollins out of the air into a F-5. Saying I was able to see Brock Lesnar live multiple times in my life is a blessing. Another thing that worked well in this Triple Threat was the use of saves to protect the finishers. Very expertly timed. It is time slay the Beast or so we think. Three FUs and a Curb Stomp. Brock is loopy. CENA TACKLES BROCK THROUGH THE BARRICADE! SICK! Brock keeps getting up. Cena throws him into steps and Rollins DRIVES AN ELBOW THROUGH THE HEART OF TYE BEAT FROM THE TOP ROPE THROUGH THE ANNOUNCER TABLE! KILLER! So what stops this from being a 5 star classic is the Cena/Rollins solo stretch. It is very standard 21st Century main event wrestling. My turn, your turn big bombs. It wasn’t bad but it took something unique and made it feel ordinary. Liked the use of Mercury and Noble. Cena having to expend energy neutralizing them with a stacked FU gives Rollins the time make a serious push for victory. Busting out the Phoenix Splash here was genius. GOD could Lesnar’s timing be any better. One of the best Horror Movie Monster pop up and decimations. It was electric. I liked sneaking in the one hope spot of Rollins using the MITB Case stomp but Brock plucks him again for the F5 win. From Brock return to the F5 was maybe two minutes but absolutely electric 2 minutes. Maybe the best 21st Century-style match ever. I want emphasize the word STYLE. Plenty of matches in 21st Century are better but they are 20th Century style matches. This kicked some serious ass. Bravo to each man playing their character to perfection. **** 1/2

Brock Lesnar vs The Undertaker - WWE Hell In A Cell 2015 The consensus based on Cagematch and my recollection of ten years ago is that this match is considered slightly better than Summerslam but I am flipped. To me Summerslam is definitely better as it is uptempo, more chaotic, physical and really builds to a Fever pitch. This match is a mid tempo war of attrition which is still great but nowhere near the excellence of Summerslam. I thought the home stretch really petered out. Brock started off more tentative than Summerslam which is interesting. They circle and I love their standup work. Nobody is bumping for shit, which is how it should be! Build to the bumps! The punches and the knees look great. You really feel both man is looking for a tactical advantage. I love Taker using the Bret-style escape of a reverse waist lock bucking Brock to the floor. Brock pretty egregiously blades on camera when he hits the post. The announcers are forced to say he got his hands up but im like you’re going to have walk that back, im pretty sure he bladed. Lo and behold, I was right and the announcers had to do the walk of shame. With Brock in such a bad way, we need to some way to even the playing field. Somehow Brock gets a steel chair and is swinging for the muthafucking fences. He is making them count. Taker blades as expected. Double Juice! Brock is in control with the suplexes , F-5s and steel ring steps. This is what I don’t like in these “epic” matches is pouring on the offense, all the laying around selling. It does nothing for me. I thought the beginning and middle were mid tempo but I was vibing with it. This shit like it is just lame. Taker getting up all the time undercuts all of Brock’s offense. The sheer amount of Brock offense undercuts the credibility of Taker’s comeback. Taker prevents his own murder with a kangaroo kick to the steel steps. Hells Gate! Brock loses his mind on the escape and pummels Taker into submission. That’s pro wrestling. He reacts to the fact that he almost lost and a match he was shoe-in to win with absolute FURY~! More of that less of the laying around bullshit. Brock rips the canvas which is why this match is remembered. I get it. They needed a big finish. That’s fine. I don’t mind that. You need that big memorable moment befitting of a match of this magnitude. They take turns hitting big moves of the human body-sized exposed wooden planks of the Ring. Taker hits the chokeslam and Tombstone. Brock ball shots Taker which is revenge for Summerslam and F-5 for the win. The body of the match is great. The finish they try to hard to make it epic with the “epic” selling and trading moves. I will comment briefly on the Wyatt Family ruining what should have been Taker going out on his shield (honestly it should have been this one, a match for his 25th anniversary Survivor Series and his last match should’ve been the 2016 WrestleMania). The far more interesting angle would have been Bray Wyatt trying to coax Taker into his family rather just a one ambush. With that out the way, Summerslam is the classic, this is great, Bur could have had a better climax. ****

Brock Lesnar vs The Undertaker - Summerslam 2015 This far surpassed my recollection of this match as I have it on par with the Roman WrestleMania match from the year. Holy fuck, Brock Lesnar is a phenomenal wrestler. I am really interested in seeing how this compares to their 2015 Hell In A Cell. I might have to rewatch their 2002 Hell In A Cell to see what is the best match they have together. Big Fight Feel is an understatement. I hate to harp on this point, but ten years later I am struggling to think of a match that felt like this match. This was a true blue heavyweight bout, who is the biggest dog in the yard. It is not an overly choreographed dance routine they are stand and bang and throwing bombs. Brock Lesnar is the best at setting that tone. The way he bumrushes Takes and he forces Taker to fight through that offense and dump him. That was a fist-pumping shine. The haymakers they were throwing early were great. Brock wrestles him to the ground and Taker just NAILS him with these VICIOUS straight rights on the ground. That shit started them at 5 stars, fuck we need more of that in wrestling pronto. I liked each teasing their finisher because these are heavyweights that dont get paid by the hour. They want the KO victory immediately. Just when it looked like Taker was going to run away with it, Brock dumps with the first suplex (belly to bell) coming out of the corner. The issue with Suplex City was less the multitude in my opinion but the way it was sold. Here I do think it was oversold, but it was a way for Brock to stem the bleeding. It is established as Brock's Ace in the Hole, even if Taker is pouring it on, all it takes is one suplex to turn the tide. In later matches, it was just a way to get a cheap pop. I liked after the second suplex, Brock gets cocky with "Suplex City Bitch" and Takes is able to dive into a turnbuckle to knock Brock for a loop and then hit some standard Taker offense (Snake Eyes, Big Boot, Leg drop across the apron) all the while Brock has a nice steady, stream of blook trickling down his face for the remainder of the match. I am not a vampire, but that is the perfect amount of blood for this moment. I loved the counter to Chokeslam. It was the perfect time for Taker to go for the chokeslam, but the way Brock did mid-air and with force was so credible and then BANG~! Suplex. Just like that Brock has that puncher's chance to totally turn a match on a dime because of his raw power and strength. The F-5 on the table was a sick spot and ensured the 21st Century crowd would be on their side because they are also delivering highspots. We get a little Cinematic here as Taker rolls back in at a count of 9, but it is good shit. Brock says "Ill Kill You" and Taker says "Youll have to" as he gozzles Brock from his knees and delivers an emphatic Chokeslam. It is always a case by case basis and this one worked. It set up the great Tombstone. Now we get to iconic part of the match as Brock sits up after the Tombstone first laughing and Taker does his Zombie Situp and mocks him back with laughter then trade heavy bombs. It was fucking sick! Again it is a case by case basis with a different twosome this could be lame and cringe-inducing but here it is just BADASS! Brock gets the Kimura in the corner, but Taker counters with Last Ride. This is when the match goes from ***** OMG to MOTYC. Without much transition, Brock gets two F-5s and kick outs. The epic selling starts to take hold and it feels more my turn, your turn as Taker gets Hell's Gate. No real transition between Last Ride and F-5s or the F-5s and Hells Gate hurt the stretch. The counter into the Kimura is also pretty flimsy. I actually kinda liked the finish upon replay. Taker taps in the view of the timekeeper but not the ref because Lil Naitch is watching Brock's shoulders on the Kimura and Brock is really wriggling to keep his shoulders off the mat. This is the beauty of pro wrestling is the added dimension of the pin that MMA does not have. By forcing the ref to watch the shoulders and Brock to keep his shoulders off the mat, it opens up this dimension as well as making submission holds like the Kimura and Hells Gate and Triangle Choke disadvantageous in pro wrestling. Heyman jumps for joy and into the ring that Brock has one-upped his Mania victory by making Taker tap. Lil Naitch is indignant that the Timekeeper went rogue calling for the bell on his own. Lil Naitch says the match is not over. Taker gives Brock a ballshot! Hells Gate! Brock gives him the Finger and passes out to give Taker the win by TKO. Fantastic Heavyweight Slugfest! Just two big uglies throwing haymakers and dropping each other on their heads. Like I said I didnt hate the finish as you needed a little sumthin sumthin to set up the third match because you knew Taker had to go over here to avenge his loss at Mania. If was really the section between Dueling Sit-Ups and the finish that dropped the match from a Top 100 Candidate to just one of the best matches of 2010s. Definitely check it out. **** 1/2

Obviously not going to touch Stacey’s post which is incredible what a brilliant statement of joy. NXT Women’s Champion Sasha Banks vs Bayley - NXT Takeover 8/22/15 What a fucking moment! It is funny watching this ten years later when ice I am fucking cold on Bayley and Mercedes has only clicked again for me recently but man as soon as the video package rolled, I was transported back in time and fuck I got a little misty when Bayley came out with the polka dots. It was definitely Dusty in the room just now. Bayley was tailor made for a SuperIndy. I am not surprised the character didnt translate on the main roster but who gives a fuck. It worked like gangbusters here and it is crowning glory of her work as a character. The characters are so well-established, so relatable and so well-done by each woman that it is fucking money. To me Bayley has the way tougher job. Anybody can be an asshole. In the hands of a lesser character actor, the Bayley character would be lame and cringing. Bayley commits to the bit and the match and the world are all better for it. Let’s just get this out the way early, the beginning of the match is the weakest part of the match. Bayley is not a great athlete or an offensive dynamo which is fine some of the best wrestlers ever are unathletic. This shine definitely leaves a something to be desired. It’s a short shine and the match is a classic but it is the one ding. Bayley uses a Lucha style arm drag to discombobulate Sasha but Sasha uses her own momentum to get out the Ring and created a timeout. The genius here is that boundary conditions are a heel’s paradise. You’re setting yourself up for success for a meaningful transition here. Sasha goes for the double knees way too early. Bayley to her credit cuts her off but in the tumult in the corner in a boundary condition where the heels feast Sasha is able to knock Bayley off the top careening to the floor. BANG excellent transition. Another genius element of this match is how they split the heat segment in two. The first part is more about the character work of Sasha. Being that dick heel bitch to the loveable underdog Bayley. Mocking the Wacky Arm Inflatable Tube Man to deliver a WICKED SMACK was awesome! The Top Rope Double Knees actually doesn’t look as good as the Middle Rope but I understand what they were going off given the setting and circumstances. It paid off Sasha finally hitting her signature. Then she just lays a verbal beat down that would make Mark Henry proud. Bayley Cant take anymore and gives her a STIFF kick to the mush. Brilliant. Whats even more Brilliant and what takes this match from Great to Classic status is that Sasha immediately cuts Bayley off with the hand psychology. They could have let Bayley run roughshod and do a full-blown comeback but they went right back to heat which was genius. They did it on the outside. They had Sasha tear off American Dream Polka Dot wrist band and just crush that hand with the steps. It was brilliant work. I love the escalation the first half of the match is establishing the characters and because both characters are so over and the crowd is so invested it is such an easy watch. At the same time that’s a lot of faith in Sasha and Bayley to deliver on character work. Thats Whats missing in today’s wrestling which is crazy because this is only ten years apart. No one takes time to establish the character; it is just Bing Bang Boom nowadays. It is because establishing the characters is scary. Silence is scary. If you just run through a bunch of moves and never take a rest you’ll never be able to hear the silence. It is an insecurity problem. You gotta believe in yourself that you can get your gimmick over and become comfortable with the uncomfortable. The hand psychology is when the plot of the match kicks in. They go from a character-driven match to a plot-driven match. I was a little cool on this match when it first happened. I thought it was great but not a classic. Watching it back in it is the incorporation of both these driving forces that makes this a classic. One thing about Sasha even though she is a heel he is a risk taker. She can’t help herself. She’s just got too much Eddie in her. She does the Rey MYSTERIO Summerslam 2002 you can argue whether or not a heel should successfully execute that spot BUT it works because just like when LeBron makes his his first three (you know the feeling LeBron fans you just hope the rest aren’t laser beam bricks) Sash is feeling it. So she goes for another one. This time Bayley knocks her off the springboard and now we have the leveling the playing field spot. There are really strong parts of the finishing stretch, Sasha’s stomping on the injured hand is iconic, the first Bayley 2 Belly and ultimate win. There’s the bad 21st Century excesses of the reversed Bank Statement and the DragonRana and the ugly Bayley nearly pile driving herself on top rope flip. Overall it does leave you fist-pumping. Even if I wish they reined it in a bit more. I get it too. This was the first time the women were billed as co-main event so they wanted the DragonRana to show they were on the level of the Men. To give that crowd a little extra something something because this was their WrestleMania. I’d argue you didn’t need to do that but I also concede that I get where they are coming from. Four Horsewoman Curtain Call I would have been against especially Sasha coming out to join and hug them. This was not a babyface vs babyface match. Sasha was a real asshole and she should be a sore loser. It was a very post-modern finish. I also understand how significant the match was and how they knew it would be instantly significant so I see that side as Well. I think Sasha vs Becky is the better match but that match just showed the women could do it. This match proved they were main event. Even at the time many said that this should main event over Owen’s/Balor and it should have. There was still a little doubt. This effaced all doubt. The women were just as good and just as over as the men. It is not a perfect match BUT if it was somebody’s favorite match I wouldn’t bay any eye. It is such a meaningful, significant FEEL-GOOD match man thats what pro wrestling is missing FEEL-GOOD matches. Meaningful to women’s wrestling, these two women’s career but also to NXT and the Culture at the time. It was the climax of a specific time and place and it fucking hits and it hits hard. **** 1/2

I hope you take this as a compliment, but you were NOT the only one. I voted it #99 and have voted it #99 three years in a row and plan to vote it that way again. After reading Kadaveri incredible review, I dont think I can do anywhere near as good of a job, but it is the only match I have voted for where I have no review so that needs to change. NXT Women's Champion Sasha Banks vs Becky Lynch - NXT Takeover 5/20/15 Almost ten years to the day it happened, I am rewatching this. I remember watching this ten years ago and being blown away. It was the day I adopted Becky as my favorite Horsewomen. I remember traveling all over New England in 2016-17 watching her and my boy, AJ wrestle on Smackdown. It is still my belief that this is the best women’s match in North American history (I will continue to revisit that claim in the next decade). What may be most impressive about this match is the context of which I watched it in. I am disillusioned with 2025 pro wrestling. Until the Harley Cameron feud, I was really down on Sasha/Mercedes this past year. And as much as I did like Becky/Lyra, but Becky’s character has grown long in the tooth. Coming off Robinson vs Inoki 1975 last night, there was a part of me that though would the match still hold up. Would it feel too 21st Century? I am here to emphatically declare WHO AM I TO DOUBT BECKY LYNCH AND SASHA BANKS BABY! This match rules no matter the context or mood! The easiest comp is Ohtani versus Samurai from January 1996 with the dueling limb psychology and the attention to detail. This match is wrestled like high-end, mat-based juniors wrestling. Look how much time they spend in contact with each other. They are wrestling, struggling for position. It is NOT a track meet. NOT a gymnastics routine. It is a fucking pro wrestling match. God bless them. I remember immediately why I was instantly enamored with this match: Becky came out firing. Using a drop-down into a trip! Ankle pick out of a cross cross! I would say this if they were men so I’ll say it here, that shit gives me a pro wrestling boner! Wrinkles to an otherwise ordinary exchange and then consolidating the advantage with a hold or pinning combination. I remember being lucky enough to go live to see Becky vs Belair at RAW in Providence in 2021 if memory serves me right Becky busted out similar moves that night Becky was targeting the arm but Sasha was really judicious here. She didn’t oversell anything. Becky had a strategy but Sasha kept her cool. I love the use of the apron to give the heel an advantage. Becky was overwhelming the Champ early with the full court press but Sasha catching the kick and wrenching Becky down by the wrist shoulder first onto apron was a killer transition. They sold it in such a way that it felt consequential. Aaaaahhh the days when Sasha would mock and taunt her opponents. Becky debuted her steampunk look that night as Corey Graves makes sure to capture for posterity with all his snide remarks. Sasha works the arm really well. The Double Knees to the bad arm is the crown Jewel and gives Otani/Sammy vibes! Short Arm Scissors is a favorite of mine and we get the Backlund hulk up from Becky. My favorite paying homage to another favorite. I love how Sasha uses a Lucha style arm drag to discombobulate Becky but also put her in position for the Double Knees! Becky does a good job as a one arm woman making her comeback firing back. She is able to pull Sasha shoulder first into the post to give her big opportunity to torture Sasha and set her up for he patented Disarm-Her. The torture of using her feet to hyperextend her elbow sealed the deal as one of the best Becky offensive performances of her career. I love the use of a blocked vertical suplex into a takedown leading to the Disarm-Her near fall. Sasha does a nice suicide dive to the floor but Becky kinda sorta catches her and once she recovers it is not clear where she wants to deposit her and it led to Becky kinda slamming her against the steps. It was one weak spot. It was made even weirder because they pretty much go into the finish immediately after with Sasha winning with the Bank Statement. Absolutely terrific pro wrestling. Duel limb psychology. Minimalist. Ground-based. Body on body. Everything was consequential. Efficient at ~15 minutes. It was Becky’s coming out party solidifying her as a Four Horsewomen. For Sasha it began discussions of her being the American Female GOAT. For American Women’s Wrestling, this is the match was the turning point when all the sliding scales were thrown out and women proved they were every bit as good as the men sometimes better! Still my pick for best US women’s wrestling match of all time! We will see if it changes as I watch the last decade over again. **** 3/4

NWF Heavyweight Champion Antonio Inoki vs Billy Robinson - NJPW 12/11/75 2/3 Falls Greatest Match Ever voting is on June 30th at https://gweproject.freeforums.net/ and I am in hotel room in Minnesota (taking a class at the University, Go Gophers!) and I figured it has been a long time since I have had some time to sit down and watch an hour long match. Lets watch one of my favorites Antonio Inoki go up against somebody have not seen nearly enough of, Billy Robinson. This match is coming up on its 50 year anniversary. First Fall: I can see why a lot of people who dont usually like Inoki like this as Inoki is far more "subdued" for lack of a better term. Robinson is really in charge and takes the meat of the first 20 minutes. As someone who likes Inoki it was a bit jarring to watch his opponent take so much of the match, but variety is the spice of life. Robinson wins the majority of the early exchanges: headlock, armdrag takedown, a brilliant gutwrench out of an Inoki facelock. Inoki works a long, tight cravat. There's a nice full nelson exchange which ends with an Inoki mule kick so Inoki is starting to win. Things get chippy when Inoki has Robinson's legs tied up and he keeps swiping the arm out from Robinson as he is trying to hold himself up. Robinson gets frustrated and breaks free and gives Inoki a stiff slap. Next thing you know they both take a massive tumble over the top to the floor courtesy of a Robinson belly to belly suplex. I like how tempers flared and Robinson's instinct was just to chuck Inoki over the top rope, his own well-being be damned. Back in Robinson wants a butterfly suplex, but Inoki blocks and he settles for a cross-armbreaker. The work on the cross-armbreaker is exquisite. The pop for Inoki countering into an Indian Deathlock is huge! They end up in the ropes. Robinson gets a Robinson Backbreaker out of an Inoki headlock which was sick. People bit on that nearfall as did given this 2/3 falls. Greta Inoki sell. Robinson Boston Crab. The drama is high! Great Inoki sell of how hard it was to reverse. Inoki attempts his own but settles for a leg lace as 20 minutes elapses. Started slow, but picked up in a big way once tempers started to flare. Love that at the 20 minute mark Inoki is trying to put on a Boston Crab and at the 40 minute mark he finally applies it. What a tremendous 20 minutes of grappling. The struggle is real. Coming out of the leg lace at 20 minute mark, Robinson has to work hard to break free and goes into the bodyscissors, but that leaves him open to one of my all-time favorite counters: The Ankle Cross, 20 years before Volk Han baby! I was pop pop POPPING here in Minnesota 50 years later. Then they out do themselves by working the best damn headscissors I have ever seen in my life. It was so damn good I had to take 10 second video clip send it to my wife with the caption "What happened to the game I loved" because this shit is the shit, whereas as the shit today is the shits. I will not do the struggle justice. Watch the struggle not just to escape the hold by Robinson but the struggle of Inoki to maintain the hold. That's pro wrestling, baby. I love that Robinson's first instinct out the headscissors is to get a pinfall and second is to stretch the neck. The crowd popped when he finally got out of the headscissors. Thats pro wrestling, baby. They trade dropkicks and Inoki's looked fucking great. There were so many Butterfly Suplex attempts. Tokyo and me are ready to lose our shit when someone finally snaps off a Butterfly. Best Damn Reverse Neckbreaker youll ever see in your life by Robinson here coming out of the Cravat. Really nifty Tombstone Piledriver that feels so organic the way he falls forward but is too close to the ropes for a pin. Theres an Inoki abdominal stretch somewhere in this stretch that gets over as a nearfall because it is Inoki. They battle over a bodyslam that turns into a Full Nelson by Robinson, but Inoki pulls the stump and applies Boston Crab. This is how pro wrestling should be. 40 minutes in and still no fall. Inoki falls in love with the Boston Crab to his detriment. Robinson breaks free but Inoki still wants it. Robinson takes a hard Whip to the buckles and sells it like a million bucks. Inoki sees blood and wants to finish weakened Robinson with the Boston Crab, but Robinson musters up all his strength stands on his head, twists and sends Inoki flying. Watch the time they take to set this up and really milk the struggle. Robinson scrambles for a backslide 1-2-3! Just like that around 43 minute mark he goes up 1-0! What a fall! Second Fall: Unless, we have 100% proof that something is a shoot, my default position is that it is a work. I can see how this fall feels like a shoot with how uncooperative Robinson is being with his stalling and you do get the feeling from Inoki's disposition that he seems anxious he might get the tying fall in time leading to some serious egg on his face, but at the same time I think that's just really good selling on their part. Typically the second fall is a very short fall in these type of matches (<5 minutes) and the drama is in if someone can break the time and goes the full 60. I actually liked this a lot more. I kinda figured it would go 1-1, BUT given how long it was taking to get there, I started to worry. As an Inoki fan, I was concerned and it was egging me on. I was feeling emotionally moved. Maybe Robinson went off script, but I dont think so. I think the fan was to put the heat on could Inoki tie it. Then everyone knows it was going 60. If Inoki tied it with ten minutes to go, yes there would still be heat, but not as much as Inoki tying it with a minute left on the clock. The fall was very interesting. Robinson opened with a backslide the move that gained him the first fall, which I liked. Inoki BLASTED him with a hard back elbow that sent him careening over the top rope to the floor. Robinson sells it like his bell is rung. Inoki gets two easy suplexes: vertical and belly to back as he looks like he is going to cruise to a tie. Then a curious thing happens Robinson in his stupor keeps falling into the ropes. Is he selling having his bell rung? Is he parking the bus? Taking that 1-0 lead to the time limit and claim the World Title? Is he shooting and making Inoki sweat? That's the magic of pro wrestling. Regardless of the actual motivations and it is uber compelling television. Inoki goes for the Argentine Backbreaker and they get into a tremendous tussle over a backslide. Robinson pops off the Butterfly Suplex for two. He has stopped selling having his bell rung and it becomes apparent that he is stalling on purpose to try to milk the clock for victory. Inoki and the crowd are pissed! There is a great Robinson German Suplex that you think might even seal the deal 2-zip. He is getting under Inoki's skin and exploiting it. In an insane feat of strength like 55 minutes in, Inoki bridge with Robinson's full weight on him with no hands and then Robinson slams his body weight onto Inoki twice and Inoki holds like the muthafuckin man. What a stud. Inoki really starts firing up and smacking Robinson around trying to goad him into fighting. Excellent finish stretch. Inoki Dropkick. Pin. No. Baba-esque chop. Pin. No. Finally the Butterfly! Pin. No. Bodyslam! Pin. No. Robinson comes back with European Uppercuts and a Butterfly Suplex of his own! Holy shit! It is coming down to the wire. Robinson misses on a chop. OCTOPUS STRETCH! ROBINSON GIVES! CROWD GOES APESHIT! 50 YEARS LATER IN MINNESOTA I LOST MY MIND! Third Fall: THREE INOKI DROPKICKS! MISSED THE FOURTH! Robinson 1-2-NO! THEY ARE THROWING ELBOWS! IT IS A STREET FIGHT! TIME EXPIRES! Damn what a great match. This is pitch perfect sporting pro wrestling. I love narrative-based wrestling, but this is one of the best matches I have seen where pro wrestling models sport. They are both always looking for the win and always looking for the advantage. Robinson's stalling down the stretch and making me believe that he might fuck Inoki over seals the deal for me. ***** one of the top 100 best matches of all time.

Ric Flair vs Arn Anderson - WCW Nitro 10/2/95 Terrific episode of Nitro, I'd say the best since the show's inception. A really hot, strong opener between Savage and Luger, fun new age workrate match between Eddie and Malenko and the excellent Hogan/Dungeon angle where Sullivan dressed as an old lady throws powder in Hogan's eyes, canes him and shaves off his Fu-Manchu. Then to top it all off you get two of the best of all time kicking ass in the ring. Like all Nitro matches, this is a hyper compressed form of the Fall Brawl match. Flair cant seem to decide if he wants to work the match as a babyface or as a heel as tendencies of both sides of Flair slip into this match. He is more aggressive than normal and on the Flair Flip he low bridges to avoid the clothesline, but he also begs off at one point and takes plenty of back body drops. It is a battle of eyepokes. They wrestle brisk. It is very Crockett, lots of action. Everything is snug and well-worked. Anderson works in the typical Anderson spots of going after the arm and the Spinebuster. Flair is firing back with chops. They trade sleepers is very 80s Flair. Anderson calls for the DDT but Flair hooks the rope and Flair regains advantage. They trade some more hard-hitting spots. Flair has the Figure-4 on when Pillman arrives on the scene and leaps from the top rope onto Flair triggering the DQ. Flair fights valiantly but ends up getting mugged. Bischoff says this is what happens when you are an island. I wish modern Bischoff, known MAGA sycophant would tell this to his dumbass overlord. Anyways, this is all leading to Flair/Sting goodness, but in the meantime we are getting Flair vs Double A in a steel cage next week! HELL YEAH! ***

Excellent angle! This Chicken Soup for the Pro Wrestling Fan Soul! Hogan cuts a pretty ridiculous promo about some kid that needs a double lung transplant told Hogan that he needs to belly up to the bar and take care of this big, stinky, nasty Giant. Then Hogan goes to take a victory lap mid-promo so something is up Sullivan is dressed as an old lady throws powder in his Hogan’s eyes and canes Jimmy Hart & Hogan. God Bless Pro Wrestling! Giant waylays everyone including American Males & Nasties killing that match. They SHAVE OFF THE FU-MANCHU! They threaten to cut off his hair but that is a bridge too far. Excellent pro wrestling. If the Dungeon was just Giant, Sullivan and Jimmy Hart and Lex Luger it would have been a damn good group or get them a new name.

Randy Savage vs Lex Luger - WCW Nitro 10/2/95 I knew there was one really good Savage/Luger match in this timeframe and this is it! This is the match they should have had at Halloween Havoc or WWIII. The intensity was off the charts. The way they battled over the lock-up, the vertical suplex on the floor or the backslide. So much struggle. Both men wanted it. The chippiness with the slaps and shoves. Savage is always fired up but Luger was bringing it too. Luger’s Military Press in Savage was really impressive. The brawling on the outside both times was awesome. How they worked that vertical suplex into a reverse neck breaker was so good. The railing and post shots were great. Ref bump. Macho Man Elbow! No ref! Giant CHOKESLAM on Savage! I love that Luger doesn’t go for the pin but RACKS him to win. If they got even more time, they had a classic in them but what we got was still very good. They continue the suspense of Luger & the Dungeon. Awesome opening match! *** 1/2

Eddie Guerrero vs Dean Malenko - WCW Nitro 10/2/95 The Eddie/Malenko/Benoit trio finally make their debut on Nitro. True to form, WCW cuts to the back to see Hogan arriving and telling Jimmy Hart he is going Giant hunting. lol after all the lip service Bischoff was paying to these two as being the best, you knew he knew where his bread was buttered. Their hyper-condensed touring match. Lots of symmetry. Lots of exhibition style chain wrestling. Malenko gets a nice dropkick. Eddie hits that awesome chest puffed out splash he does to the outside. Drills him with a brainbuster but eats knees on the frog splash. They battle over some pinning predicaments and Eddie kneels down to win. A good taste of what they could but it was more of an exhibition than a match.

Lex Luger vs Meng - WCW Nitro 9/25/95 Meng is Dungeon 4 Life but no Taskmaster as he is in the back calming The Giant down. This is directly after Giant chokeslammed Luger and thus Luger is at a significant disadvantage. Shockingly Meng steamrolls him and wins. I was surprised how well-protected Meng was both at Bash at the Beach and Halloween Havoc. It seems like they wanted to push him but then the main event scene got too crowded so he got put in a tag team with Barbarian. Good heat segment work by Meng including a piledriver, suplex, killer gut wrench suplex which was a really nice cutoff of a Luger hope spot. Luger really for very little in the way of offense. Meng definitely had his nerve holds and what have you but it was an energetic performance. He missed a top rope dive which sent him crashing head first to the mat. Smart money would’ve been on Luger making his comeback here and cruising to victory especially with his high profile match against Macho Man next week but Meng cuts off again and dazes him long enough to hit the Golden Spike to win! Shocking upset! Between Giant Chokeslam and the Golden Spike, there was a lot of protection for Luger but I am still surprised given Luger’s super push and his big time match against Macho Man next week. Feels like they wanted to do more with Meng but they didn’t know what. Explains Halloween Havoc finish too Meng won here and presumably would’ve won at Havoc had it not been for Sullivan. A lot of investment in Meng I guess it was all to take the L to Hogan in a Nitro could’ve been more. Good match. ***

Randy Savage vs Kevin Sullivan - WCW Nitro 9/25/95 Sullivan getting a main event push in 1995 is crazy but it kinda works. This is the result of the well-done Baywatch attack. If Hogan vs Giant is Feud A then Savage vs Sullivan & Luger Feud B. Not much of a match. The Zodiac is out with Sullivan he shoves Savage into the steel post to set up the Savage babyface formula. Sullivan is a good meat and potatoes heel. Everything is snug and hard. Liked the slam ball first on the guardrail and clothesline. Savage ends up rallying bringing in both men. Savage shoves down the ref. He goes to Elbow both but only nails one. The Giant comes out and the angle kicks in. Giant chokeslams Savage. Giant destroys three men. Luger comes out and they do the which side is he on. He punches Giant who CHOKESLAMS Luger but Sullivan is pissed. Left with more questions than answers. If they wanted to sow more doubt I think there was better ways to stir dissension between Giant, Luger and Sullivan but good enough. The Giants first in-person appearance on Nitro and already feels like a main event player.

Hell Yeah great promo! Right to beat arms, the right to assemble (with Four Finger Salute) and right to hospitalize is something I have always remembered with the WOOOO great shit! Arn explaining that Flair has no friends because he alienated everyone by his actions and now he alienated the one person he couldn’t afford to: The Enforcer. You almost have to wonder what if they tried to recreate the Horsemen without Flair how that would have went with these two as the nucleus.

Kurasawa vs Sgt. Craig Pittman - WCW Nitro 9/25/95 Kurasawa is Manabu Nakanishi, who I have seen a smattering of and have no strong opinion. I think was an attempt by Bischoff to have a more martial arts-based match on the card as the rise of UFC was running parallel at this time. You see more submissions here than in other Nitro matches. This match exceeded my expectations. This is one of those perfect bowling shoe ugly type of matches where a scrappy guy like Pittman takes on an Inoki Strong-Style wrestler and magic just happens. Pittman comes out with these Zinedine Zidane style launching head butts. Nakanishi dumps him hard back first on the exposed concrete. Nakanishi basically tries to rip Pittman's arm off and take it home with him. Some really strong arm work. Pittman comes roaring back with another Zidane-esque headbutt through the ropes. Then he just starts destroying Nakanishi's arm. He applies the Code Arm, but Nakanishi gets to the ropes. Pittman counters the Fujiwara armbar takedown with a gutwrench suplex, which popped me huge! Nakanishi ultimately wins with a German Suplex, but it looked like Nick Patrick only counted to two. No one will confuse this with Volk Han vs Kiyoshi Tamura, BUT this would be a good addition to a modern day Bloodsport card. A breath of fresh air. I might be a Sgt. Craig Pittman guy. *** 1/4

Alex Wright vs Disco Inferno - WCW Nitro 6/25/95 The Battle of the Dancing Fools! Two of young Marty Sleeze’s favorites! Loved both these guys wish they had a run as tag champs! I still busy out the Alex Wright dance from time to time at weddings! Although Wright has the techno music, he is not yet dancing! It is a very prescient match. While I liked Disco as a kid I think this is one I probably got wrong back then but I got a soft spot for him. Disco seems to be presented as the star they are debuting but the commentators point out he may be too worried about his hair or his dance moves. Besides what looked like a botched belly to belly that turned into a very dangerous hot shot, Disco really didn’t have much. He is also not be very good at dancing but that might be part of the gimmick but he was also not so bad it was entertaining or unique. Wright both here and in the Sabu match showed he had something. Two great dropkicks one springboard style, the other a standing dropkick to Disco on the top rope. The craziest Wright spot is over the top rope suicide dive to the floor that looks so much better than 90% of the middle rope ones today. Disco goes for a neckbreaker bur Wright counters to the backslide win. I guess this pushes the Disco is distracted narrative which is always a strange thing for wrestling companies to promote. An alright match but nothing special.

This is such a great segment. 2025 bookers watch this segment. This isn’t a fucking insult humor battle rap, it is not a 15-20 minute exchange of monologues. It is a reaction what happened and pushing forward to the next match. Luger feels disrespected and he has earned respect previously by combat with his opponents. Savage is paranoid and feels he was wronged at Fall Brawl and wants to kick Luger’s. Each man has a character with specific motivations and react to those events credibly within their role in the universe. Let’s get back to making pro wrestling like this.

Pretty stock Hogan Schtick with the added bonus of a neck brace and Jimmy Hart. We are going to hook it up machine Vs machine brutha! Between the neck brace, Andre’s son, Taskmaster/Dungeon angle, the monster truck shit, there is a ton going on this feud. Compare that today where the angles are paper-thin. Unfortunately while there is a lot of quantity not a whole lot of quality but I did appreciate the delivery of the Hulkster.

Ric Flair vs Brian Pillman - WCW Nitro 9/18/95 Flair vs Pillman from 1990 or 1991, this is not, but this is still a lot of fun. Like most Nitro matches thus far the primary directive seems to be squeeze as much action in as possible and never let the tempo die down. The 1990 and 1991 version of this pairing has more time to breathe and they really build both matches into Free TV classics that everyone should see. What keeps this match on right side of good and the second best Nitro match thus far is the intensity. The way they exchange the chops and the strikes feels like a stand & bang, knock down drag out fight. It is not this Fighting Spirit strike exchange bullshit. It feels like they both want to destroy each other. Flair wants to come off the top so bad in this match. He is exerting the full court press. He gets caught with Pillman's anti-air dropkick. Pillman tries to go after the arm, but Flair is just relentless and just comes roaring back overwhelming him with chops. It just feels like a brawl from beginning to end. This might be the most effective use of the Figure-4 since Flair became main eventer. Belly 2 Back Suplex. Figure-4 tap out! Babyface Flair is such a different beast than heel Flair. I liked getting to see the inverse roles here of Flair vs Pillman. The promo before the match was also really good. How Arn should have settled the family dispute within the family and not brought in an outsider. Babyface Flair is always a treat and he was definitely the MVP of Nitro #3, great promo and match. *** 1/4

I enjoyed the beach attack by Kevin Sullivan on the Macho Man while he is doing a bench press. It looked vicious and heated. Flair was great calling him The Devil. Saying he walks his own path. The Devil has lost it. This is clearly a red herring to lull people into a false sense of security that Flair might be turning babyface. Savage/Luger segment which is under 5 minutes is killer. We need to get back to all promos in the Ring need to be done by an interviewer who will keep people in check. 15-20 minute promo needs to die. We succinctly understand that Macho Man does not trust anyone besides Hulk Hogan. He doesn’t need Flair’s help. Constructive criticism you Hulk Hogan are a horrible judge of character is a great line. He predicts Luger, Sting and Jimmy Hart will be in Dungeon soon. I am surprised they are foreshadowing Jimmy I thought that was supposed to be a surprise. The Dungeon is just the proto-NWO with how it is booked. Luger says he is at least upfront that his only focus is the World Title doesn’t Macho Man have that aspiration too? Macho Man admits to it and now seeds of doubt are being down everyone. We almost get a Savage/Luger match but we are getting a Savage/Sullivan match next week due to the attack and wanting to cut the head off the snake. Just to capture this here, no Hogan this week. He had his head twisted off his shoulders by The Giant at Fall Brawl as well as his Hog destroyed by Giant’s Monster Truck. Giant makes his Nitro debut at the beginning of the show doing an interview with Sullivan. Giant is definitely prone to overacting here but the angle is so campy it kinda works honestly. Thought the booking of Nitro 3 was really good even though the opening two matches were kinda lame. The Flair/Pillman main event was not as good as 1990 or even 1991 but I would say it was second best Nitro match so far, pretty fun stuff!

WCW World Tag Team Champions Harlem Heat vs American Males - WCW Nitro 9/18/95 This is supposed to be the Males vs Blue Bloods in a midcard tag match but the newly minted Harlem Heat having defeated the Studd Stable the night before beat up the Blue Bloods. I kinda get Harlem Heat’s point they are the new Tag Champions and as new Champs they want air time on the newest, hottest show in wrestling to increase their exposure. I dig the motivation. Putting the titles on the lines because they are arrogant based on the win last night and they think pretty boy Males are chumps makes sense. This match more exists to continue the thread that anything can happen on Nitro where the newly minted champs get upset the next night by heavy underdogs. I wish today they did more short reigns. This is so refreshing. The match is meh. If it was not for Booker T’s killer Axe Kick and almost decapitating Riggs with most vicious Harlem Sidekick of all time this was not be memorable. Bagwell has a milquetoast hot tag. Sherri and the Colonel do their weird romance that seemingly lasts forever. This distracts Harlem Heat long enough to have Bagwell shift his weight on a slam to get the upset victory! Cool for Booker’s two moves and a necessary shock title change to make you believe anything can happen on Nitro. But still just meh.

Paul Orndorff vs Johnny B. Badd - WCW Nitro 9/18/95 WOW! I am totally the opposite of everyone else. I thought music was lame and entrance with mirror was meh. Pushing Orndorff late 95 when you’re the edgy product just felt like it ran opposite of everything they were doing in the main event. On top of that, this was a bad match. The first really bad match on Nitro. Basic Orndorff clobbering to start. The one redeeming quality was they both kept missing high risk moves which at least put over they were high risk. Wonderful misses a top rope splash. Badd’s comeback with the punches and clotheslines is so…bad! I have seen the Pillman/Badd match from the night before it is awesome. Johnny B. Badd looked like he never wrestled before here. They tussle over piledrivers. Orndorff reverses a sunset flip and sits down to win. Where’s Sabu?!? Where’s Eddie?!? This sucked.

Randy Savage vs Scott Norton - WCW Nitro 9/11/95 Norton is someone who want to like because I love his look and he jut looks like he should be an all-time great power wrestler but he always leaves me wanting more. Classic Savage babyface formula match. Norton cuts him off right at entrance and whoops ass. Savage sells well. I like the double axe handles as hopefully spots not the hip toss and clothesline. Norton was leaving his feet too easily. Norton’s offense looked killer: powerslam, flying shoulder tackle, the power bomb! The offensive onslaught was there. The top rope Orton DDT! Great shit! The layout just has a ceiling. The finish was fun. Savage sends Norton into Avalanche and Avalanche lays on top of Norton’s legs leaving him prone to the Macho Elbow. Ignoring the legality that was a fun finish. Norton’s offense and Savage’s selling were a great mix and a fun finish but ultimately it is just good because of the layout. ***

WCW World Heavyweight Champion Hulk Hogan vs Lex Luger - WCW NItro 9/11/95 Second Nitro and this has a huge fight feel! Luger looks like a million bucks. Not too much meat on the bone in this match. They give you enough that doesn’t feel like a ripoff. Luger more than the Warrior for me personally is the dream match for Hogan. This is Arnold vs Sylvester brutha. One thing that’s interesting even though the crowd is majority pro-Hogan to the point where Bischoff could claim absolute victory for the Hulkster by the crowd he claims it is a 50/50 split. He is really trying to push the shades of grey. Babyface Vs babyface clash of the titans symmetry. Each no-selling the other’s suplex was awesome. Hogan misses a charge and a Luger powerslam. He is calling for the Rack!!! LUGER RACKS HOGAN!!! The Hulkster withstands the pain long enough that Luger has to relinquish. Hogan Hulk-Ups after the pin fall attempt. Basic Hulk Up and the Dungeon attacks so we don’t know if Luger would kick out or not. It casts enough doubt in people’s head. Savage and Sting make the save BUT the Dungeon never touch Luger. The resulting brouhaha with Mean Gene whether Luger’s blood is running red & yellow or if he is Dungeon 4 Life! Is great pro wrestling theatre. I love how all four stay true to their characters and their motivations. Sting wants to win at Wargames and he has been friends with Luger for almost ten years. Savage is a paranoid lunatic and doesn’t want to be stabbed in the back. The uncertainty is killing the Hulkster and he has to just know one way or the other. Luger is willing to help them out if he gets another title shot down the line. It is genius. This is how pro wrestling should be.

WCW US Champion Sting vs VK Wallstreet - WCW Nitro 9/11/95 I love the early Nitro booking: Sabu and Wallstreet get introduced last week and now have matches on Nitro. Wallstreet has inexplicably changed his name to VK as a potshot to Vince. This is the famous match where Bischoff gives a way the result of the main event of the competing RAW saying Shawn Michaels beats the big guy with three superkicks. Another sub-5 minute match that is heavy on action, light on narrative. Liked Rotundo busting out the fireman's carry early. Sting was throwing great punches and dropkicks. Wallstreet sent Sting crashing to the floor. Wallstreet was a little out of place for big Sting Slingshot Splash, BUT Wallstreet sells it as a glancing blow. Sting makes a comeback with a clothesline, a Stinger Splash and a top rope crossbody to polish off Wallstreet. Sabu/Wright was more entertaining in a car crash way, but this was normal US heavyweight wrestling.