InYourCase

Parv, do you not go into matches with a "____ head"? In my head, I'd be ludicrous to look at every match from the same perspective. Every company is different. Context matters in every situation. I want something different from a 1985 Ric Flair than I do from a 2016 Shingo Takagi match, and I can still enjoy both to the same degree. I think there are stylistic preferences, of course. I can look at a lucha match that's hailed as a classic and understand the context of the match, but then still think it's shit.

This is the quintessential answer. /thread

This will annoy some people, but anything even as high as ****1/4 can't be considered a MOTYC for me. CIMA vs. Akira Tozawa from the 5/8 Dragon Gate show in Osaka is one of my favorite matches this year and seeing as how it has been such a loaded year, there's no way it's going to make it into my Top 10. The two have never had good matches together. Tozawa wrestled CIMA twice for the Dream Gate, once in 2012, and then again a year later, and they both fell victim to CIMA's one fatal flow of slowing the match down too much before having a killer last third. This match went 16 minutes, with the last 5 or so being a thing of beauty. I highly recommend it to everyone http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4ct7mj_akira-tozawa-vs-cima-5-8-16_sport (post-match promo is why the video is so long) Now that I'm typing this, another one came to mind - Big R Shimizu vs. Naruki Doi from the 5/22 Dragon Gate show. Shimizu is an under the radar candidate for being one of the 10 best wrestlers this year and he perfectly played to Doi's strengths. Hardway blood and a SWEET~ finish. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4h8xv6_big-r-shimizu-vs-naruki-doi-5-22-16_sport

Maeda vs. Fujinami is the perfect example for how important finishes are. If not that, then Hansen vs. Funk from 4/14/83. I can't get a match five stars with a flat finish, or no finish, or I finish that I don't enjoy. That's the last thing I see. It's the climax. It's all supposedly building up to one spot, and although in the case of Maeda vs. Fujinami, the finish makes total sense, I can't give it five because it's missing the dramatic 1...2...3 or a submission attempt that has me on the edge of my seat. Maeda vs. Fujinami is one of my favorite matches, I have it at ****3/4, and I'm sure if Maeda kicked Fujinami's lights out and pinned him, or Fujinami suplexed him for a three count, it'd be five stars. The actual finish is a let down. It's not five stars. If five stars is supposedly a "perfect match", although I think that talking point is overblown, then how can a disappointing finish lead to the illusive five stars?

Handwaved AXS as soon as Mauro left. I have no interest in Ross doing "his thing" with New Japan. I love Mauro, I get that some people don't, but he and Barnett were the perfect pairing for modern New Japan.

AIW has won me over this year. Part of it is their podcast, which is a great marketing tool (and a great listen), but they've put out some great stuff this year. They brought in Flamita and he was outstanding, and Absolution, their biggest show of the year, was very entertaining. Both the lucha six-man and Lyndon vs. ZSJ are worth seeing. I've heard their show from last week is the best one they've had this year and that Irie vs. Eddie Kingston is worth going out of your way to see. Simply the Best 10 (IWA-MS) had two great matches and they have a show coming out soon with the first ever Kongo Kong vs. Michael Elgin match and Irie vs. Matt Tremont. They are a fun promotion filled with lots of young, hard working guys. I'd watch more IWA-MS if they lowered the prices of some of their shows. I just can't spend 12 bucks on a show where half of them are students, no matter how hard they work.

I completely disagree with this. Not once have I ever thought that he had "it". He's replaceable. There have been people like him (Orton, mainly) and there will be people just like him for years to come. For now, he fits his role, and he's good in that position, more often than not.

Ar this point I just assume that anyone who thinks Reigns is less than top 3 in the WWE in ring either isn't paying attention, is trolling, is trying to confirm to perceived "smart norms," or hates WWE main event wrestling I think he's the best of The Shield guys. I'm at a point where I like Reigns more often than not when he's wrestling, but when Cesaro, Styles, Rusev, Neville, and Owens (we won't ever see eye-to-eye on him) are wrestling weekly, I think it's safe to say that they're better than Roman. I also feel that if Luke Harper or Big E were in Roman's spot, they'd deliver to the same degree in-ring (if not better) and Big E, especially, would run circles around his character work. I like Roman. I think he's good, and at times, great. He'll have at least one match in my Top 10 this year. I can buy into an argument that he's a top 10 guy, but not top 5, let alone top 3.

WOOF

I saw Tatanka at an indie show around four years ago, right as I was getting back into wrestling. Kongo Kong was on the show (before I knew who he was) and had a killer match (the only passable match on the show) and I ended up walking out on Tatanka in the main event. In like 8 minutes, he had made no physical contact with his opponent. He kept going to the outside and hanging out with plants (yes, they had plants with Tatanka signs) and it was so cringe.

Shocked to see the prior two comments. Trying to compile Top 10's for 1990-now and as much as I love NOAH and all four guys in this match, I had never seen this one. I can't help but feel like if this were to happen ten years prior, it would be heralded as one of the last great All Japan matches of that era. This was unreal. KENTA was arguably at his peak in 2009 and he continued his feud with Nakajima in the most beautifully violent fashion I may have ever seen. They'd wrestled each other so many times by now that Nakajima had counters for KENTA's greatest hits and KENTA had Nakajima perfectly scouted. Shiozaki and Sasaki were on fire. I thought Sasaki was the fourth best guy in the match and he had his moments of greatness. I can't say enough good things about this. It's my new match of the year for 2009, edging out Danielson vs. Hero from PWG. *****

I guess this is my new project. Compiling (hopefully) a Top 10 for each year from now-1990. It's a large work in progress but here's what I have so far. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ssuZaw6piS8O_wb9q7HHoWiU_y7tAyGTgRkLcwUltgk/edit?usp=sharing

Flamita vs. Laredo Kid vs. Aerostar vs. Septimo Dragon: Martinez Promotions 6/3 I'm sure I liked this more than any other human, but I really really loved it. Flamita did flips, Laredo did flips, Aerostar did flips, and Septimo Dragon did flips. That's what this match was and it was great. After going through some lucha this year, I can officially consider Flamita for a spot on my WON Ballot for Best Flyer. He's so crisp in everything he does and it continues to blow my mind. Amazing sprint, clocked in at under 10 minutes. So much fun. I love the little bit of Martinez Promotions that I've seen. **** Joe Lider, Toro Negro, & Danger vs. Flamita, Crazy Boy, & Super Crazy: Cara Lucha 2/22 Buy it from Black Terry Jr I guess Cara Lucha doesn't give a shit about disqualifications? I mean this had everything including a staple gun, a kendo stick, and a finish that involved light tubes. More great stuff from Flamita and one of my personal favorites, Super Crazy. There was a little too much standing around in this match for me, which might sound odd, but there were portions in which the guys in the ring were literally just standing around. I really enjoyed it, though. Flamita once again killed it. ***1/2

Eita, who will be representing DG in the Super J Cup, has had a very good year. He's finally found some footing since his team with T-Hawk disbanded and he's changed his in-ring style from the traditional DG junior style to the llave style, which is something that rarely anyone does anymore and something that I am covering for Voices of Wrestling in my T2P rewatch project. Keep an eye on Eita. Check out the matches with Susumu and Tozawa. He's been great. Shingo vs. YAMATO is the Kobe World main event, as it should be. That will be outstanding. Mochizuki & Yoshiaki Fujiwara vs. Don Fujii & Masakatsu Funaki has also been announced, so that will be just all sorts of great.

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2016/05/27/njpw-best-super-juniors-night-6-may-27-review/ Here's my review of the show this morning. I'm interested as to what people on this site think of the main event and how they differ from my thoughts.

http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2016/05/20/dragon-gate-king-gate-may-8-review/ http://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2016/05/17/dragon-gate-king-gate-may-11-review/ Links to my reviews of the first two King of Gate shows that have aired. Lots of good matches, one noticeably bad one in Korakuen. Tozawa and CIMA finally had a good match together on the 8th. That was nice to see.

RVD in 90s All Japan has always given me a good laugh. I would've LOVED him in MPro around the same time, but him just being this awkward guy in All Japan that was not over in the slightest is just my favorite thing.

Flamita & Caristico vs. Volador Jr & Mascara Dorada There was some lucha bullshit that prevented me from truly loving this match, but holy shit I really liked this. Flamita is SO great. If he would've had his 2014 run in New Japan instead of Dragon Gate, he'd probably be signed to NXT right now, or at the very least, he'd be a well-known guy on the same level as Ricochet, Ospreay, or KUSHIDA. I'm now adding Flamita matches to the list of things that are must-watch for me because if he's too damn good. I really want him back in Dragon Gate. Volador is someone that I'll be seeing more of soon in the BOSJ and I liked what I saw here for the most part. Dorada is great. I want he and Flamita to wrestle all around the world, every night, for forever. Really fun stuff. ****

Making an effort to watch more lucha now that GWE is over -- does anyone have a link to Casas/Hechicero? Cubsfan removed it from his YouTube.

Long shows that have time stamps do a lot for me. I know I don't have time to listen to BTS every week, but I'm sure to hit the Japan portion of the show at the very least. I don't mind long podcasts. I listen to VOW every week, Exile, anything Dylan does, the DKP Show, etc. and rarely do I find it tiring. Interviews that go over an hour kill me, though. Cabana hits the perfect length most weeks, because unless he's talking to Hero or Gargano or some I find really interesting, I can't do that for more than an hour. Comedy podcasts that go 2 hours kill me because if it's not CK or Kumail or someone that I love, I don't want to invest that time into the interview. I do think there's a market for a short podcast covering hot topics in wrestling and I don't know if anyone is filling that void. Something along the lines of Observer Live, but, you know, with more quality than Observer Live.

By no means was I comparing him to Lesnar. I don't give a shit about the hypothetical match. Elgin, in general, has had a stellar 12 months, and before that, there were times when he was absolutely great. And for what it's worth, I did not like the Davey match that most people loved.

Elgin bashing at this point in his career is laughable to me.

Both Reigns and Orton are subpar at best. That's the point I was making.

This is most of my list. I think I have 95-99% of things down, somewhat organized. **I should note these are all 5* matches. No way I could keep track of ****3/4 All Japan: Riki Choshu & Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. Jumbo Tsuruta & Genichiro Tenryu: 1/28/86 Jumbo Tsuruta & Yoshiaki Yatsu vs. Genichiro Tenryu & Toshiaki Kawada: 2/23/1989 Genichiro Tenryu vs. Jumbo Tsuruta: 6/5/89 Jumbo Tsuruta, Masa Fuchi, & The Great Kabuki vs. Kenta Kobashi, Mitsuharu Misawa, & Akira Taue: 5/26/90 Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Mitsuharu Misawa: 6/8/90 Akira Taue, Jumbo Tsuruta, & Masa Fuchi vs. Kenta Kobashi, Mitsuharu Misawa, & Toshiaki Kawada: 4/20/91 Akira Taue, Jumbo Tsuruta, & Masa Fuchi vs. Kenta Kobashi, Mitsuharu Misawa, & Toshiaki Kawada: 5/22/92 Kenta Kobashi & Tsuyoshi Kikuchi vs. Dan Kroffat & Doug Furnas: 5/25/92 Stan Hansen vs. Kenta Kobashi: 7/29/93 Mitsuharu Misawa & Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue: 12/3/93 Mitsuharu Misawa & Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue: 5/21/94 Mitsuharu Misawa vs. Toshiaki Kawada: 6/3/94 Kenta Kobashi vs. Steve Williams: 9/3/94 Mitsuharu Misawa & Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue: 6/9/95 Mitsuharu Misawa & Jun Akiyama vs. Toshiaki Kawada & Akira Taue: 12/6/96 Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa: 1/20/97 Kenta Kobashi vs. Toshiaki Kawada: 6/12/98 Kenta Kobashi vs. Jun Akiyama: 7/24/98 Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa: 10/31/98 Big Japan: Daisuke Sekimoto vs. Shuji Ishikawa: 3/31/15 DDT: Antonio Honda vs. Dick Togo: 1/30/11 Dragon System: Condotti Shuji, Milano Collection AT & YOSSINO vs. Dragon Kid, Kenichiro Arai & Masaaki Mochizuki vs. Genki Horiguchi, Magnum TOKYO & Susumu Yokosuka vs. CIMA, Don Fujii & SUWA: 8/30/03 CIMA, Naruki Doi, & Don Fujii vs. Ryo Saito, Dragon Kid, & Genki Horiguchi: 7/3/05 Bryan Danielson vs. Shingo Takagi: 7/24/10 Shingo Takagi vs. Susumu Yokosuka: 10/22/11 PAC & Dragon Kid vs. CIMA & Ricochet: 7/17/11 Shingo Takagi vs. Masaaki Mochizuki: 11/1/15 New Japan: 5 on 5 Gauntlet: 4/19/84 Antonio Inoki, Tatsumi Fujinami, Kengo Kimura, Umanosuke Ueda & Kantaro Hoshino vs. Akira Maeda, Yoshiaki Fujiwara, Osamu Kido, Nobuhiko Takada & Kazuo Yamazaki 3/26/86 El Samurai vs. Shinjiro Otani: 1/21/96 Shinjiro Otani & Tatsuhito Takaiwa vs. Koji Kanemoto & Minoru Tanaka: 6/25/00 Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi: 4/7/13 Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi: 8/4/13 Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi: 10/14/13 Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kazuchika Okada: 8/10/14 Hirooki Goto vs. Tomohiro Ishii: 11/8/14 Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Kota Ibushi: 1/4/15 Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi: 1/4/15 Kazuchika Okada vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi: 1/4/16 NOAH: Kenta Kobashi vs. Mitsuharu Misawa: 3/1/03 Kenta Kobashi vs. Yoshihiro Takayama: 4/25/04 Kenta Kobashi vs. Jun Akiyama: 10/7/04 Kenta Kobashi vs. Kensuke Sasaki: 7/18/05 KENTA & Naomichi Marufuji vs. Takeshi Morishima & Takeshi Rikio: 7/16/06 NWA/WCW: Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat: 4/2/89 Ric Flair vs. Ricky Steamboat: 5/7/89 Ric Flair vs. Terry Funk: 11/15/89 Barry Windham, Larry Zbyszko, Ric Flair & Sid Vicious vs. Flyin' Brian, Rick Steiner, Scott Steiner & Sting: 2/24/91 Arn Anderson, Beautiful Bobby, Larry Zbyszko, Rick Rude & Steve Austin vs. Barry Windham, Dustin Rhodes, Nikita Koloff, Ricky Steamboat & Sting: 5/17/92 PWG: Chris Hero vs. Bryan Danielson: 9/4/09 Young Bucks vs. Futureshock vs. Super Smash Brothers: 7/21/12 ROH: Samoa Joe vs. Kenta Kobashi: 10/1/05 KENTA vs. Low Ki: 12/17/05 CIMA, Masato Yoshino, & Naruki Doi vs. Dragon Kid, Genki Horiguchi, & Ryo Saito: 3/31/06 Bryan Danielson vs. KENTA: 9/16/06 Kevin Steen & El Generico vs. The Briscoe Brothers: 11/30/07 CIMA, Dragon Kid, & Ryo Saito vs. Masato Yoshino, Naruki Doi, & Genki Horiguchi: 3/29/08 TNA: Samoa Joe vs. AJ Styles: 12/11/05 WWE: Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart: 3/23/97 Edge & Rey Mysterio vs. Kurt Angle & Chris Benoit: 10/20/02 CM Punk vs. John Cena: 7/17/11

I wish I could see Roman Reigns in the same light that some people on here do. To me, he's just the next Randy Orton. He's a guy. He's fine, but I don't ever have the urge to watch him. He'll never go out there and kill it, but rarely will he have a truly terrible match. I thought Reigns getting votes this time around was asinine, and while in 10 years his case may have more bulk, I can't imagine voting for him.