Superstar Sleeze

WWF Intercontinental Champion Greg Valentine vs Tito Santana - WWF MSG 11/26/84 Is this the best of the Valentine vs Santana matches? I really love the June 84 MSG one and the title switch in the Cage in 85, but this is one is a doozy for sure. We were one Tito revenge figure-4 away from me marking out like nuts. Valentine has won the IC Championship after injuring Tito's leg in his vaunted figure-4. Tito is sporting a brace. I dont know if we are at the point in the story where Tito has learned the figure-4 to exact pay back from the Hammer. I would describe Tito as cautiously aggressive at the beginning of the match. Anybody who has watched a lot of Tito knows about his furious temper and that he has a hair trigger and will really let those fists fly. Here, I think due to the bum wheel he is a little more tentative. All his offense are still fists to the face or driving the Hammer's head into hard objects but he is doing so a slower tempo to make sure he does not leave him self open to the Hammer's counterattack. Valentine is definitely playing up the chickenshit. Lots of stalling, bumping and stooging. He is hitting hard, clubbering blows on Tito, but Tito is fighting through those to earn his offense. Ultimately, Valentine has to resort to raking the eyes to get the advantage. How I missed Greg Valentine! Excellent heat segment! Just brutal. Everything looks like to it totally evacuates the air out of Tito's lungs. Good string chinlocks to sap Tito's energy and set up Valentine's clubbing offense. I love that swift kick to the bad knee to open up that part of the heat segment. Everyone knows about the figure-4 and Tito's bad knee so MSG is on the edges of their seats. I love how Tito kicks out of the figure-4 and his follow up is the Flyin Burrito! It just condenses so much drama into one moment. We go from almost having Valentine apply his finisher to Tito hitting his finish in a matter of seconds! It is really jarring and hypes you up. The momentum of the blow sends Valentine to the ropes so Tito cant follow up with a pinning combination. Protecting the finish! Instead Tito attacks the knee of Valentine! Here we go! Great leg work from Tito very vigorous. He attempts the figure-4, but Valentine yanks him down by the trunks and re-establishes control. Valentine is such a beast on top. What the match does really well is let Tito shine especially through transitions. The Mexican Hammer/Flying Burrito was a great one and then he gets a sort of monkey flip/catapult that sends Valentine hard over the top turnbuckle into the post and he comes out bleeding! Tito is tenacious! He hits another Mexican Hammer! 1-2-NO! Huge false finish! They never did that in 80s and it was insane. I really thought we would get a revenge figure-4 spot, but alas we didnt. Just a great brawl to the end match. Tito punching the hell out of the cut forehead, grabbing hair, trying to wrangle a cover anyway he can. Valentine trying to escape, but always being thwarted either by atomic drop (Tito yanked the trunks into an atomic drop), suplex (outside/inside always a great spot), and just by pulling him back in by the hair. Eventually the bell rings signifying a draw! One of those great physical wars of attrition that these two are known for, I think what elevates this from their usual great match to something extra special are very memorable spots like two Mexican Hammers and the blood. So you get all that brutal physicality you expect from these two and on top of that some real high drama! ****1/2

WWF World Heavyweight Champion Shawn Michaels vs Mankind - WWF Mind Games It is such a shame this match has such a lame finish. It would probably be the greatest WWF match of all time if it just had a half-way decent finish. First 15 minutes: What separates this match from the usual WWF fare is how much of this match feels raw and organic. It is chippy and everything is earned. Shawn earns his shine after being dumped on his ass by the Cactus clothesline. It is only because Cactus was indulging his sadistic tendencies by removing the mat that Shawn had an opening. The mat blocked Cactus' vision and Shawn was able to hit a dropkick. Vince must love this match because there are so many iconic moments. Shawn jumping up and down on Mankind was great. Again it was only because Mankind was emerging from the mat and his vision was obscured that Shawn was able to hit the reverse crossbody. Then Foley indulges his masochistic tendencies when Michaels forces him to take the Nestea Plunge. It really was a great violent babyface shine. Shawn got to throw some incredibly stiff punches. He even threw some stiff elbows in the corner. I am such a mark for finisher teases early in a match it really makes you feel like both men are trying to win and that anything can happen. Top rope elbow connects in this first five minutes when does that ever happen, but Foley bails on the impending Sweet Chin Music. When they do a worked shoot Shawn Michaels temper tantrum I thought that was the best two minute stretch in a WWF match. It was so heated. Some really stiff shots. The way Mankind really yanked Shawn down into the claw was intense and uncomfortable. Not to be outdone, those back elbows by Shawn to Foley's head were fucking brutal. It felt like a real fight in these moments. Shawn really hauled off and punched the hell out of Foley. Was he able to throw live rounds because of the mask? Even Foley is not known for stiff offense, throws a stiff elbow that makes you pop out of your seat. I loved Shawn jumping over the table to tackle Mankind. This is a great example of a "Think shoot, but work" match. then we get the classic Foley hits his leg on the steps on a suplex spot. Has Shawn ever looked this good on top? Shawn absolutely knocked this control segment out of the park. It was logical and compelling. Shawn Michaels even throws in a dragon leg screw. The Figure-4 complete with Wooos was classic. I love when Shawn had Mankind in the half crab that Bearer positioned the Urn at the rope to give Mankind that extra incentive to make the ropes. Great little character touch. The transition out of this segment was so good with Michaels going for a reverse victory roll, but Mankind falls back (knee gives out???) and Michaels gets clothesline on the the top rope. The next classic moment when Paul Bearer gives Mankind that pen to punch his own knee. Great deranged, psycho moment. Mankind works a great heel heat segment most it is targeted at Shawn's head as one of the announcers points out that Michaels has a history of concussion. The running knee into the head in the corner and diving onto Michaels into the Tree of Woe are great examples of this. Shawn never dies in this heat segment he gets in his hope spots, but is too foggy to ever fully capitalize. The first half is just as terrific as I remember and I know that the second half will totally rule too. Second half: Shawn wrestled out of his mind. He made every right decision. He was selling great. The way he falls ass first into the ropes at one point is Kawada-esque. I am a mark for really good transitions and I think thats why I love this match so much. Shawn moves out of the way of a Mankind knee (remember hit one earlier in the corner) and Foley rams his bad knee into the steps and goes ass over tea kettle. What I really love is that this does not immediately give Shawn the advantage. He needs a drop toehold into the steps and another duck & dodge on the apron with Foley nailing the steel post with his head. Shawn needed big three moves involving hard metal objects to even start working in some offense. It really puts over the challenge that Shawn is facing. Back to iconic moments, Foley gets his head caught in the ropes that is such a great spot. I cant believe i forgot it. That goes to show how many iconic spots are in this match. MANIDBLE CLAW WITH HIS HEAD STUCK IN THE ROPES! Foley is God. That spot is unbelievably great. Mankind feels like the World's Most Dangerous Man even when you have him trapped he can still hurt you. As Michaels tries to escape on the outside, Mankind tenaciously pursues him and tries to apply again so Michaels just throws him off into the Spanish announce team. I love how chaotic this match is. I didnt notice before but the metal chair Michaels grabs is mangled and he actually has to hold it together to hit Foley in the MANIDBLE CLAW HAND! I LOVE THIS MATCH! Hand psychology! Yeah I would be totally pissed if some dude kept putting his hand down my gullet. Shawn goes to town on Foley's hand rendering it useless for the rest of match. Even late in the match, Michaels takes a hellacious bump from the ring to the outside and a couple hard bumps on the concrete. Mankind gets his big nearfalls in the form of a Double Arm DDT and a piledriver since his hand is busted. Mankind has the best mid-match freak out when he cant win. Pulling out his hair and just ramming his head into the turnbuckle. He decides he will shove Michaels into a casket. Hey he is a psychopath it kinda makes sense. Michaels starts throwing haymakers and that Flying Burrito man he just clobbers him! Foley crotches him on the top rope to avoid the Elbow Drop, you cant hit the same move twice in a match, Shawn! This leads to the crazy table bump again iconic. I love how quickly it is done. No teetering. JUST EXPLOSION! They do a great job milking it. Foley grabs a chair and heads to the top. Shawn Van Dam hits a Sweet Chin Daminator! 1-2-3! Shawn Michaels retains the WWF Championship in a barnburner of a brawl and the greatest WWF match of all time. Wait! What do you mean Vader came out then Sid then Undertaker. Can we just pretend like that didnt happen? The finish did happen, but that just means instead of being the greatest WWF match of all time, it is like tenth, it is still an amazing way to spend 30 minutes. I think what this match does really well is mix brawling and psychology exceedingly well. Everything is smart & logical without feeling planned. Everything feels intense & chaotic without feeling aimless. It never drags, but it never throws too much at you. It is a very sticky match in that everything sticks with you. To me that is a sign of great pro wrestling storytelling. ****3/4 (The best ****3/4 match. To me this is the dividing line match).

We finish out the first decade of the 21st century by looking at the best Puroresu matches to take between 2005-2009 NOT in Pro Wrestling NOAH. My man, Fujita Jr Hayato revitalizes junior heavyweight wrestling, Shoot-Style is back with a vengeance as Ishikawa and Ikeda resume their age-old rivalry in FUTEN & BattlArts, and Hiroshi Tanahashi has the first of his many masterpieces! All this and much, much more in Pro Wrestling Love vol. 9! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-vol-9-best-of-puroresu.html

This was not part of Ditch's project glad people brought this to my attention. This is badass. Genichiro Tenryu vs KENTA - NOAH 10/8/05 This is legalized murder. KENTA bumrushes at the outset of the match and just runs into a closed fist. Tenryu lays one of the most hellacious beatings you will ever seen. Fists, chops, lariats, punts to the head, chairs and even casually dropping the timekeeper table on KENTA. Ever the gentleman, he returns the table to the timekeeper only to take his hammer and hit KENTA with that. Those chops were insane. He was hitting through KENTA. KENTA gives a great "selling" performance, but I dont know how much he is selling or is just plain shoot hurt. Loved Tenryu's cutoff. That one flurry stopped by a well-placed right was great. There could have been a better transition to KENTA's big offensive comeback. His offense looked great I loved him relying on springboard dropkicks. Great kicks and hits his big Exploding knee, but when Tenryu kicks out you know it is just a matter of time. Big right jabs and then Tenryu just trucks him with a left lariat. Great veteran heavyweight vs young junior heavyweight match that was stiff and just an asskicker. ****

In this volume of Pro Wrestling Love, we look at the best matches from Pro Wrestling NOAH from 2005-2009 as it begins its decline with Kenta Kobashi being sidelined with cancer and then the total freefall from the tragic, in-ring death of Mitsuharu Misawa. Rest in peace, Misawa. The matches include Kenta Kobashi triumphant in-ring return from cancer, the rise of KENTA The Junior Heavyweight Destroyer and the Last of the Great King's Road matches! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-8-best-of-pro.html

I thought Smackdown ruled too. Watched live on Tuesday because my parents wanted to know what was going to happen with Becky! They are so invested in her. It is so cool. Smackdown rules so hard. i actually came on here to praise Chad Gable. This dude rules and am glad he is getting a slight push. I hope he can make it to the top. Also always been a fan of Dana Brooke. I thought she was great in the Bayley match. Bayley's finish combo was great! Rezar is a future number one heel!

Pro Wrestling Love vol. 7 Top Six Best Non-NOAH Puroresu Matches 2000-2004! Nagata vs Murakami overachieves! Kawada Invades New Japan! Is Misawa vs Akiyama the greatest match ever? http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-7-best-of.html

"Rowdy" Roddy Piper vs Tonga Kid - WWF MSG 11/26/84 Tonga Kid (aka Tama) is the biggest missed prospect of the 80s. He had oodles of charisma. He debuted as a part of the red hot Piper vs Snuka storyline. Snuka was making his return to the Garden after an extended absence due to Piper. Snuka was over like rover. Piper of course had his bodygaurd, Ace Cowboy Bob Orton. So much fun. Piper made the Kid look like a million bucks. Simple, but exciting from bell to bell. Fun shine. I loved Piper getting the smallest advantage, taunting Snuka and turning around and just eating it from the Kid. Heat segment was great. Why the hell cant heels wrestle like this anymore? Eyerakes, gnawing, spitting and chops to the throat all the while taunting the Superfly. I dont want to see moves. I want to see emotion! Piper grabs the Sleeper. Tonga kid elbows out. Piper smashes his head into the top turnbuckle. Bad idea. The Kid hulks up in the coolest way possible busting out some very hip 80s dance moves. I loved it. Now Piper done did it. Kid charges but Piper uses his own momentum against and dumps him over the top rope onto the floor. Orton realizing the trouble Piper is in attacks the Kid. They try to take the Kid out with a chair, but Superfly saves with a punch to the head of Piper. The crowd is ROARING as all four men are in the ring. Orton gets dumped. That leaves Piper alone with these two. Piper gets the Hell out of Dodge as Snuka/Kid dive for him. Wow! Talk about setting up a red hot tag team match! Now this is damn good booking! ***

Brutha, all this writing about wrestling, means I am not watching! Maybe we should put it to a vote?

Another day and another volume of Pro Wrestling Love! NOAH did NOT have the market cornered on great matches from 2000-2004! Here are the best non-NOAH matches of the first half of the new millennium. Shinya Hashimoto and Naoya start the 21st Century with a chaotic brawl in the Tokyo Dome! Keiji Mutoh reinvents himself! Toshiaki Kawada proves he can go it alone without his fellow Four Corners of Heaven! All this and much, much in Pro Wrestling Love vol. 6! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-6-best-of.html

Thanks brutha! I have really enjoyed re-visiting these classics. For some reason, this recent batch really hit me hard. I really love that Kobashi GHC title reign. I am a huge Kobashi fan and just thinking about all those matches was overwhelming. Murdering Rat Boy with closed fists was great. Surviving Takayama and landing a moonsault on the face, epic. SEIZING The Torch from Misawa, there is no words to describe how sublime that moment was. There is so much goodness in this Pro Wrestling Love volume. I love pro wrestling! Best heel vs heel match ever is covered. Quintessential Misawa and Kobashi matches are covered. There is tag team insanity! There is blood & closed fists in the Budokan when Kobashi The Destroyer Murders Rat Boy! Then we close with a match that may be the Greatest Match of All Time. It was a decade in the making when Kenta Kobashi SEIZED the torch from Mitsuharu Misawa in 2003. This is a Pro Wrestling Love Volume you just cant miss! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-5-best-of-pro.html

YES! YES! YES! More publicity for the GME project the better! I have been reading that over at the other forum. I have been meaning to comment, but I have been busy. The April deadline seems way too close!

Thank you both. I really appreciate knowing that these are being read. Anyone who knows me knows I love BIG! Big production values! Big solos! Big Hair! Big Smiles! Even Bigger EYES! Woooooooo-hooooooo! There is nobody that does Big better in Pro Wrestling history than Pro Wrestling NOAH! Founded in the Year 2000 by the great Mitsuharu Misawa when he left All Japan Pro Wrestling with the majority of native talent in the wake of Giant Baba's death. He founded a promotion that built on the emotional, dramatic inter-match storytelling style of All Japan Pro Wrestling with even more excess in every regard. In this time period, we cover the very beginnings of NOAH starting with the red hot Kobashi vs Akiyama feud and ending in the middle of the epic Kenta Kobashi title reign. All this and much, much more in Pro Wrestling Love vol. 4! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-4-best-of-pro.html

Alright staying on track with Volume 3 out today finishing up Best of WCW in 1995-2001 countdown. #1 is obvious and I am not spoiling anything when I say it is Eddie vs Rey from Havoc '97, but my #2 will definitely raise some eyebrows, turn some heads and maybe even leave some mouths agape. All this and much, much more in Pro Wrestling Love Vol. 3! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-3-best-of-wcw-in.html

I am super pumped for this show. I was really seriously contemplating buying plane tickets to San Antonio to see this live. Smackdown is firing on all cylinders. I am really excited for Becky vs Charlotte I cant remember the last time I was so pumped for a match. I really hope Becky wins. AJ vs Joe is gonna be so badass. Love the mixed tag match make so much sense and it is a great next step in that feud. I wish Carmella and Asuka were on the show. Hardy vs Orton is a weird choice for the Cell, but makes sense so Hardy can do something crazy. RAW sucks what else is new. Why should I care about Rousey vs Bliss? Roman vs Braun will be very good, but I dont really care. Thank God for Smackdown!

I am already behind guys! Goddamnit! I originally intended to be Volume 2 to be completion of the WWF from 1993-1997 countdown, but I have not watched Mind Games recently and I need to give it another watch so I can do it justice. So to keep up with my insane schedule, I just posted a volume that I could complete without any rewatching. My favorite time period WCW from 1995-2001! Ok so 1999-2001 sucks, but it does not deserve its own blog so I tacked it on to this blog. I started watching wrestling in the summer of 1997 and I was a diehard WCW fan. So this time period just has so much nostalgia for me. Here's Volume 2: Best of WCW from 1995-2001: http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-2-best-of-wcw-in.html

I Love Pro Wrestling. Pro wrestling has not always been good to me and I have not always been good to pro wrestling. But Love is not about being perfect to each other all the time. It is about caring unconditionally about the welfare of one another and putting the other first. I love Pro Wrestling in spite of its flaws because it can be the most beautiful form of human storytelling. So this is my ongoing tribute to the greatest art form on Earth and to the men & woman who have entertained me and millions of other worldwide for over a century now. This is Pro Wrestling Love. Greatest Match Ever Project is being hosted at http://gweproject.freeforums.net/ I have at least 64 volumes planned before the April Deadline to help myself choose the 100 best matches of all time and help inspire others to discover new matches or take a fresh look at old matches. In the first volume, we cover a expansive breadth of topics, the importance of the beginning of a match, how pro wrestling matches build drama and with all this critical analysis to always be remember that pro wrestling is at its best when it is visceral passion play that lives in your gut & heart and not in your mind. It is the WWF 93-97. All this and much, much more in Pro Wrestling Love Vol. 1! http://ridingspacemountain.blogspot.com/2018/09/pro-wrestling-love-vol-1-best-of-wwf-in.html?m=1

Rey Mysterio Jr vs Juventud Guerrera - ECW Big Ass Extreme Bash '96 It has been a while since I have had some Juvy Juice in my life. First Fall: Action is fast & furious. I am a sucker for those knucklelock/monkey flip spots. Rey was so breath-taking in this era. There were little things that bothered. A couple times Rey just stood there waiting to be kicked. It was definitely very spotty, but the spots are legitimately. Rey hits an amazing split-legged top rope Asai Moonsault. Then Juvy drills him with a brainbuster like I said a spotfest, but they two are executing to perfection. Juvy hits an amazing Springboard Somersault Dropkick that I totally marked out for. Dragon Suplex for Juvytude! I didnt feel like Juvy is as good of a pure heel as Psicosis. But this was super fun. Second Fall: Just as I write that Juvy takes the ass-first Psicosis bump into the top turnbuckle! Rey just goes off in this fall. I am not super into this Rey gets beat up and then just makes a Superman comeback. It is not often you see Rey hit not one, but two powerbombs in a match. I loved the somersault plancha over the ref. That was awesome. Just a really good showcase of Rey's talents as an offense wrestler to tie up the match. Third Fall: AWESOME! They kick it into overdrive taking this from a good showcase match to one of the best spotfests you will ever see. Juvytud starts off the fall with three awesome dropkicks all from different angles. Juvy hits an Asai moonsault into the crowd. Then it is just balls to the wall. I remember Juvy missing a slingshot somersault legdrop. Rey Rey hitting a powerbomb as Juvy was coming off the top. Suplexes being traded. Hat Guy giving Rey a chair and him smashing Juvy's brains in before a massive somersault plancha into the crowd by Hat Guy and just wiping everything out. Powerbomb by Juvy on the hood of a car and Rey then hits a rana off the hood of the car onto the concrete. Insane! Rey throws a chair so hard at Juvy that it fucking horse collars him! Joey nailed it on this one "That hurt!" Fuck yeah. Splash Mountain->Rana you know the finish but goddamn it is an awesome one. Rey wins the match. Just a great balls to the wall spotfest. This was lucha should have been in WCW like all the time for years. ****

Rey Mysterio Jr vs Psicosis - ECW November 2 Remember 95 Mexican Death Match They go the "I cant believe he kicked out" resilience route, which I have never cared for. I think it undercuts the heel way more than it helps the babyface. I prefer that the babyface shows resilience through hope spots. Psicosis has great offense and Rey is a great seller, but it felt too ragdoll-y for me. There was no struggle. Rey kinda died. He was getting up at 9 after the first fall and he said had three falls left. Then he kinda just sprang into action after Rey positions the chair to have Psicosis land on it. Joey Styles says Rey was playing possum. I dont blame Joey for that he had to call what he saw. I felt like Rey just blew off the heat segment, which was the majority of the match. They did some pretty good crowd brawling. I love Rey throwing chairs around and diving into the crowd. The rana off the balcony underneath the Crow's Nest was a great finish. Easily their worst match together, but it is Rey vs Psicosis it is still entertaining because Psicosis bumps like a madman in the beginning & end and he does have great offense. ***1/2

That was a great story from Cox! Really cool! Rey Misterio Jr. vs Psicosis - ECW 10/17/95 2 Out of 3 Falls This match won best ECW Match Ever in the Smarkschoice poll. I remember thinking this was the best of the ECW series, but the Bash at the Beach 96 is still my favorite match of theirs (I feel like I have seen the highly acclaimed AAA match, but I cant remember it). First Fall: All Rey All The Time! Sometimes Rey can be a little shy with his shine like in the first match of this series, but here it is two dives into the crowd and snapping off a rana. Psicosis is an all-time great bumper. Rey what you actin shy for? Second Fall: The party dont stop as Psicosis goes ass first into the top turnbuckles when he charges in like a maniac. Psicosis is the long lost member of the Midnight Express. Rey keeps the party going with another rana out on the floor. Psicosis wants to shake hands. It was a bit clunky but he got an enziguiri out of the deal. Good Psicosis offense. I was not keen on him just relinquishing the Scorpion Deathlock, a pet peeve of mine. I liked Rey getting a hope spot before Psicosis caught and planted him with a Tomsbtone Piledriver. To tie this up. Third Fall: AWESOME! Totally have no complaints with anybody who says this is the best ECW match ever because wow! Psicosis was so damn good in the mid-90s. Rey is trying to catch his breath as the bell sounds. Psicosis drills him into a table and then does that awesome Psicosis leap over the top rope into the crowd. Torpedos Rey. Then Psicosis takes a nutty bump ala Sgt Slaughter over the top turnbuckle into the post and then to the floor. Then Rey POPS the crowd huge with a springboard somersault plancha to the floor! Wow! Loved all the chairs throws by Rey and driving Psicosis into the post with the chair. Extreme Rey! Psicosis whips Rey into the railing and then hits a MONSTER Senton through a table! He does a backwards Skytwister Press onto a chair for the win! The typically awesome Rey/Psicosis match adapted to the ECW setting. I really dug the 3rd fall. I totally forgot Psicosis wins the match to set up the Mexican Death Match, which I also love. I have Sabu/Sandman and Sabu/Funk over this, but this definitely one of the best ECW matches ever. ****1/4

ECW World TV Champion 2 Cold Scorpio vs Sabu - ECW Cyberslam 96 Raucous Mayhem! It almost feels like a Sabu workrate match. With Benoit/Dean/Eddie gone, this was ECW's response lets throw Sabu out there for 30 minutes and see what happens. It was just fucking insane. Most of it made no sense, but it was entertaining as fuck. This was not a WWF house show 30 minute draw. This was balls to the wall from jump. Sabu got a steel chair and was throwing it around within two minutes of the opening bell. Sabu is so interesting he is the guy that is going to take insane risks, but also the guy that grabs double wristlocks during his pinfall and also the guy that will sell the hell out of a ballshot. Thats what makes Sabu so damn great. Was this spotfest? Yes! Was selling blown off? Yes! Was it unpredictable as hell? Yes! Yes! Yes! Today's spotfests feel so routine. Like they are just walking through the match. Sabu's are organically chaotic. You always forget who good of a punch he had. Scorpio to his credit was laying his shit. That superkick that busted open Sabu's mouth was gnarly. Great punch exchanges. The transitions for the most part were piss poor, but the action was great. I loved all the ballshots, but then Sabu was up doing slingshot flip legdrops and Arabian Facebusters. There was a 5 star classic in here, but they were just so scatter-brained. There was a part where Scorp missed a tumbleweed and Sabu was too injured to take fully advantage. They were building to a classic babyface comeback that I really thought they had something but they kinda pissed away that heat with spots. You can actually tell it was during that Sabu dive that the crowd was at a fever pitch. It shows that formula does work. But then again absolutely destroying a table in the crowd got the loudest pop so what do I know. After that spot and Scorpio not getting the win on Drop the Bomb, I knew they were going for the draw. I thought they telegraphed it too much with the time call as the boo birds came out. Petered out towards the end, but still helluva match. If all spotfests were this good, I would never complain. Highly entertaining. ****

Rob Van Dam vs Doug Furnas - ECW Natural Born Killaz 8/24/96 These two accidentally had a great match. I really dont feel like this match should have been as good as it is, but holy hell I couldnt keep my eyes off it. Word to wise if your opponent is going to piledrive you on a chair later on the match you probably should NOT crack him in the back of the head really hard with a steel chair. You are only doing yourself a disservice. I actually really dug the beginning of the match. It was RVD's cuteness against Furnas' power. RVD fucks around with JCVD bullshit and Furnas throws him down on the mat hard. Then RVD does the JCVD split and Furnas picks him up and slams. That was a fucking nasty stun gun RVD took. Furnas absolutely BULLDOZED RVD from the apron into the crowd. Holy shit! They kinda lose this storyline once the crowd brawling starts. The crowd brawling is the weakest portion of this match. The transitions not surprisingly are terrible. RVD all of sudden musters up the power to suplex Furnas from the ring into the apron which was nasty. Then Furnas is suplexing the hell out of RVD. Then match just becomes insane. Both men take absolutely crazy unprotected chair shots to the head. RVD really cracks the back of Furnas head. He gives him the chair to do a prop spot and Furnas is like fuck that and throws the chair away. RVD still does the crossbody anyways. Then Furnas catches RVD awkwardly and basically hits an INVERTED GANSO BOMB ON A STEEL CHAIR! I lost my shit. That was insane. Then Furnas smashes RVD skull with a chair. Then we get the setup for the Best Van Daminator ever. The ref realizes that he should you know do something to protect RVD and gets in Furnas' way. Furnas shoves him away and puts the chair up to hit RVD, but RVD quickly kicks the chair into Furnas' fucking face! 1-2-3! Great finish! I am glad this style of wrestling is mostly dead because it is incredibly dangerous, but wow you cant help but love this trainwreck. It makes so sense but every spot is insane. Really damn good spotfest. One of the best RVD matches ever! ****

ECW World Tag Champions Raven & Stevie Richards vs The Pitbulls - ECW 9/16/95 Double Dog Collar Match 2 Out Of 3 Falls Raven's Masterpiece. When I first discovered Youtube in about 2006, one of the first channels I discovered was devoted to '95 ECW. So while I am not nostalgic for this in the same way most of you are. I was still in High School when I first saw the whole Raven/Dreamer story and watching this teleported me back to my the back room of my parents' house gobbling up this feud up. If there was ever a match that needed context for a person to fully understand it, it is this match. Pro wrestling should be able to do this more often weave so many stories together. The Pitbulls, the former minions of Raven, now off their leash seeking vengeance against their former master. Stevie Richards as the chump extraordinaire who somehow managed to pull Francine, but of course he fucked that up and we get a catfight. Raven's new freaks, the Dudley Boys, get involve. There is a piledriver through a table to end the first fall, a Superbomb to end the second fall. Raven nearly gets decapitated on a Superbomb into the edge of the table. The Original Dudleys and Pitbulls (the Superbomb is an awesome move, but they suck otherwise) are fucking terrible wrestlers, but who cares Raven is just mindfucking every fan into lapping this up as he busts out a FUCKING ETHER RAG! Bow to the Master! Pitbull #2 is sent to the back and of course here is Tommy Dreamer. DDT! 1-2-3! WHAT THE FUCK...I THOUGHT THAT NEVER...Fonzie is out and he is striking it from the record book because Dreamer was not offically a part of the match. Fonzie is so damn good at crazy promos. I was watching him cut an absolutely insane rant against Heyman where he first banned the Chokeslam and just loved it. He legalizes the Chokeslam after Big Dick chokeslams Dreamer. 9-1-1! 911 is such a great name for a pro wrestler. 911 chokeslams FONZIE STRAIGHT TO HELL! ELEVEN STARS! DOUBLE SUPERBOMB ON BOTH RAVEN & RICHARDS! Gordon and Dreamer count the pinfall and new Tag Champs! Pro wrestling is fucking great. ***********

This is the one fall match brutha.

Rey Mysterio Jr vs Psicosis - ECW 9/16/95 Rey vs Psicosis never gets old no matter how many times you watch this and I have watched this a lot. You wanna see how to get over on your debut match watch this. This is the Touring match that they would perfect at Bash 96. They are about one week away from their greatest match ever in AAA, a match I need to see. i think my takeaway from this viewing is that Psicosis feels like the star here. Amazing bumping. I can never get tired of watching him go ass first into things. Great high impact offense. Great rudo charisma. I thought he outshone Rey Rey until Rey started popping off ranas like nobody's business and that catapult on the apron still pops me. Rey gets to shine on the dives: stopping Psicosis' with a chair shot and then the massive dive from top rope into the crown which sealed the deal that these two were over like rover. They hit this out of the park. There were some things to tighten up. They got themselves over. There is a key difference between getting your moves over and you over. These two got their characters over that's what makes this great. It is the Tom & Jerry of Pro Wrestling. ****