JKWebb

I personally think Bock is the best. Back when we did GWE, I think he landed at 4 or 5 for me. But, I had him at 1 a few times before submitting. I'm pretty sure I'll have him at 1 if I ever make a list like that again. I love the intensity in Billy's headlocks on Bock. They really look painful. The way they transition in and out of that with Bock's hope spots flows so organically. After some really compelling matwork, Bock smacks Billy in the face and drops him to the outside. The pacing picks up after that. We get a fight. Everything Bock does makes so much sense in the context of the match. I love the little things. A punch to the head of Billy, and Bock immediately shakes off the pain in his hand. The match ends in a draw, but I loved it. More time could have given them the opportunity to make this even better.

Ricky Steamboat in 1980 is the shit. I push play and immediately get a jumping splits toe touch. The Sheik comes in with a wooden hammer and starts pounding on his head. They go to the outside and Ricky knocks it out of his hand and the brawling begins. I loved the intensity. Steamboat gets spiked in the head and they are both bleeding 3 minutes in. The brawling and spiking continues. They take turns ramming their heads against a standing table. Sheik goes after the ref. After the DQ Steamboat throws some monster right hands to the head of the Sheik and they brawl through the crowd. It basically ends with a pull apart. The match itself was probably under five minutes, but man this great stuff!

Night.and.day. This match was SO much better than 9/4/80. I would say it is the complete opposite of the previous match. There are no rest holds here. This is just a fun brawl. I love the jumping chops to Race's head. The action on the outside of the ring is heated. There's a chairshot in there. Harley gets busted open towards the end, when his head is rammed into the ring post, but pulls out the win. I enjoyed this one. I mean it starts with a jumping piledriver - id say it's a pretty fast pace too for these two.

I pretty much agree. This didn't really do anything for me. Race sold the end of the match like he had been through this huge battle, but it just didn't feel that way to me. I thought Race sold some of Baba's chops well, but that was really my only positive takeaway.

That German suplex was a thing of beauty. I liked the match fine during the beginning, and the huge drop to the outside was cool. But, they really grabbed me when Jumbo started laying in those brutal kicks to the head on Slater while he was working the spinning toe hold. Man, they looked stiff. Eventually Slater is busted open. I was feeling every near fall after that. I'd agree with the ****. For me it was the last 5-8 minutes that really got it there.

Loss ranked this #490 on his countdown of the Top 500 matches of the 90's on PTBN. placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-500-451/ It's been awhile since I've seen this. I had the VHS at one point. As a teenager, I remember we never took Fit Finlay seriously. We just laughed at his bad hair, and didn't really pay attention to his matches. It's unfortunate. In 1996, someone should have told him to buzz that mullet. Obviously, now we all know that he was and is awesome. They work this so stiff. The crowd isn't really into them, but they do react to the stiff blows. Dusty cracked me up with the "Oh man! Did you see that kick to the belly welly!" ha. "Where is Ireland? Five miles from London?" I thought Regal had great facial expressions throughout the match, and those stiff forearms to the head of Finlay looked awesome towards the end. The busted nose of Regal is crazy and shows the brutality of the match. I agree with Chad that it's a really high ***3/4. Good match.

Loss ranked this as #491 in his countdown: The Top 500 Matches of the 90's on PTBN. placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-500-451/ I watched this at some point earlier this year while going through the yearbook. But, I didn't really remember much about it. I like the wild/fast pace it starts off with. It sucked me right in. The offense from both guys looked really explosive to start the match. The crowd was really into it. I liked the spot where Muto got himself out of the submission and popped up firing punches. He backed Choshu into the corner and started pounding on his head. Choshu was able to counter with a very powerful looking suplex and get back to the ground work. The left leg selling was fine for me. It didn't seem like Choshu had enough of a consistent attack on the left leg to warrant any long term selling of it. The nearfalls near the end were well-timed. I actually think a little more work on the left leg (which hopefully would have resulted in more selling from Muto) would have made the match even better. Especially with the length of time Choshu holds the sharpshooter on Muto towards the end. This was a fun match.

Loss listed this match as #494 on his Top 500 Matches of the 90s article: placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-500-451/ Austin always talks about "getting in there" and working "tight" and "snug." I wonder if working with Ricky Steamboat helped develop his passion and/or mindset in regards to that. I love watching Ricky Steamboat lock in a headlock or submission. I remember when he came back to face Jericho after all those years of being away....he threw some armdrags and locked in a headlock... I came out of my seat. I was thinking... oh yeah! That's what that is supposed to look like! I love this starts off with some pushing to get heated, and it gets intense with those vicious looking full arm dragon twist from Austin. The headlocks, as always look great from steamboat, and the match has a great intense feel and pace. I really enjoyed the matwork. There wasn't a dull moment for me. The only thing I didn't really enjoy that much was the bearhug, but I've never really enjoyed that spot. However, the Steamboat comeback totally makes up for it. The finishing stretch is awesome. "They are out of their seats here" I agree with the sentiments that this a great TV match accomplishing exactly what it needed to, and that this match is "textbook on how to do hope spots and cutoffs." I think the ***3/4 is probably about right. Really fun stuff here.

I also like how Murdoch grinds his elbow into the face and neck of Jumbo when he's working the armbar. Jumbo does a nice job selling the arm while on offense. I like this match a lot more than the match from the previous month between the two. I love how violent Jumbo starts the second fall. He smells blood and wants the belt back. In the previous match, Murdoch won the first fall with the BB, and eventually Jumbo started working over his neck. It's a little reversed here because Jumbo wins the first fall and the second fall is won by Murdoch with the BB. Murdoch then works over Jumbo's neck, but Jumbo gets the win with the small package. To answer your question Marty, he didn't lose it on a hotshot. In the previous match Jumbo went for a flying knee off the top, connected, but landed weird and sold a knee injury. Murdoch went after the knee, and pinned him by pushing down on the injured knee. It's a good match, but I liked this one better.

I was unable to find #499 online at this time, but I do plan to eventually get there in the yearbooks. So, for now, I'll say I'll go back to it. I pick up here with viewing the Top 500 Matches of the 1990's (according to Loss) with match #498. placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-500-451/ I had some thoughts on this match prior to re-watching it posted above. Most of that centered around the booking. Marty has a great review of the match itself, so I'll just post some additional thoughts. I do want to point out that they recently had a great Sting discussion on "Survey Says" - Episode 3. In the discussion I was really glad that they talked about this match. Sting had a weak year in 1998, and this was definitely one of the few standout moments. One of the points I found interesting, was that the crowd actually began cheering for Sting louder than Goldberg as the match went on. This had not been accomplished by anyone else vs. Goldberg. Goldberg was super hot, and this was during the prime of that streak. The fact that the crowd actually cheered for Sting over Goldberg is pretty shocking and amazing. Even with the horrible Wolfpack character, Sting was still very much loved by the fans of WCW. I also liked their points that Sting should have beaten Hogan at Starrcade (in the way that we all wanted). He should have been pushed to the moon taking out other nWo members (until it went away completely) as the build for Goldberg continued in 1998. The logical main event for Starrcade 1998 should have been Goldberg getting his shot against Sting for the World Title. placetobenation.com/survey-says-a-wcw-retrospective-3/ Michael Buffer gives a great sports main event feel. DDP is great on commentary getting over Goldberg. I actually thought all the commentary was pretty good for this main event. This match still holds up as a memorable TV clash of the titans type match. It has a big feel to it, and you can still feel that now when you watch it. I love the piledriver reversal spot, but I would have liked to have seen Sting work over the leg a little more during the match prior to going for the Scorpion Deathlock. I'm sure time was an issue. The crowd goes nuts when he finally locks it in. Hogan comes out, womp womp. Kills the heat. Not needed. I do think this is a memorable match and deserving of it's placement. I don't think it's a great match, but I do think it is good.

I look forward to the new format! It will be fun to watch and follow along with you guys. Really enjoyed this weeks show too.

Enjoyed hearing the Masa Saito love... I really dug his AWA 80s work and 2/10/90 vs Larry Z... I'll definitely be looking up this match... loved the show as always

I finished up the with the matches last night and working my way through the extras. This set was a ton of fun and exactly what I was looking for in regards to a deep dive into Portland. The late 80s stuff lost a step for me in comparison to the first 8 discs, but 9 and 10 have still been really fun. I didn't go into in my previous posts, but I also thought Curt Hennig was really great during his Portland run. My favorite match from the set still remains 4/26/1980, and most of my takeaways were discussed above.

Repost from Village Green: I'm almost finished with Disc 7 of the Portland set. I've really been enjoying everything. I've become quite the fan of The Assassin, as he is someone I don't think I've really watched much of prior to this. It also has me sucked into the 2/3 falls main events. I like how those work and how they can play into the booking by keeping all of the talents strong. I don't think anything has topped 04/26/1980 yet, but everything has been super consistent and strong. Lot's of really good matches. I've really enjoyed the Hennig/Rose/Jack vs. "The Clan" of Assassin/Rip Oliver/Dynamite Kid that has been going (around discs 6 and 7). Dynamite Kid's head is shaved about halfway through the feud, but I'm not sure that it ever gets explained. It might get explained in the extras, or maybe I missed it somehow. I'm wondering if it was match related - seems likely. I'm loving this set.

Repost from Village Green: I've been posting my thoughts as much as possible in the 80's threads. It has been amazing watching Buddy Rose work his magic in Portland. I have finished the first three discs and plan to start disc 4 tonight. I've probably reviewed 5 or 6 matches in there. The first disc is out of this world! Truthfully, my favorite part of the set thus far has been Roddy Piper though. His wild brawling and throwing punches and promos, it's just off the charts. He's over like The Beatles in Portland, and what better heel to have a solid foundation there other than Buddy Rose. There are some truly great Piper performances in there. One that comes to mind is vs. Ed Wiskowski on 08/23/1980. There is a great match with Rose and Wiskowsi vs. Piper and Martel on 08/02/1980. That one is probably my second or third favorite match thus far. My favorite match on the set so far is Buddy Rose vs. Rick Martel 04/26/1980. Martel is so awesome and so over in Portland as well. Other than the AWA set, this is the most I've watched Rose in bulk, and it has totally lived up to the hype. One of my favorite Rose moments thus far - I think it came against Brett Sawyer - He rolls him up early on and the match and gets really frustrated with Sandy Baker (ref) showing him how fast he needs to count to three (of course in this case very fast).... then Sawyer goes for a pin on him, so Sandy counts extra fast, ha and Buddy is so pissed... He then shows Sandy how to count "correctly" but he is counting extremely slow... of course this backfires on him too... and so on... great in his role... looking forward to more! Oh yeah, and just to add... Martel/Piper vs. Sheepherders stuff is great too - 05/31/1980 is just great TV - Rose taking credit for all their success is just awesome during this feud and where it eventually goes...

From my earlier post: By this point, the Sheepherders have the belts. Buddy Rose is told to leave ringside, and things pick up with a call back to the 05/03/80 match as Piper and Martel work over the left arm of Williams. Things quickly change as Roddy Piper's right knee becomes the focus. Piper does a great job throughout all three falls of this match selling the knee. To me, this is one of those segment vs. match type moments. Kind of like Flair/Dibiase and Lawler/Flair, this is just a great 40 minutes or so of television. This is a much longer match than those other two, but I just mean I feel like the entire segment is what makes it so classic. Butch and Luke take the first fall, and Buddy Rose takes the microphone and talks about how he brought them here (Portland) and is basically responsible for their success. Piper has to start the second fall because he lost the first fall, so he limps out to the ring. There is great suspense built here as Piper tries to desperately find a way to tag in Martel. Martel is fantastic after the tag, and you see the excitement level of the crowd. They eventually have Williams tap due to the damage of his left arm. The next interview is in the back with Piper and he discusses an upcoming title shot he has with Martel, but it's all respect, pure babyface. The third fall, Rose tries to attack with a stick of some kind (watched it last night, so I can't remember exactly what type of weapon/stick he has here), and he nails Williams on the head. This busts Williams open and allows for Piper and Martel to get the pinfall. There is some great back and forth between Rose and Butch here, as Butch turns to the crowd to see if Rose did it on purpose, and Rose decides to throw in some more licks on Williams when Butch isn't looking. He finally gets busted, which leads to Butch probably cutting the best promo of his career on Buddy Rose. He wants revenge and the match is set for the following Saturday. This was a really good match, and very heated and awesome moment all around. Great stuff here.

Yeah that news feature is pretty awesome. I'm watching it right now. Buddy Rose is great in it... they report he was making $250k a year... (referencing 10/4/1980)

Hey PWO, My first memories of wrestling are the build to WrestleMania 5, and constantly renting WrestleMania (1) from my local video store. I was amazed that Hulk Hogan and Mr. T teamed together, and my favorite wrestler was and still is Randy Savage. I remember that kids in my first grade class were still talking about Hulk Hogan body slamming Andre the Giant in 1989, and I remember being beyond thrilled when I rented that tape for the first time (at that age). My favorite tape as a kid became Royal Rumble 1990, and I became a big fan of Ted Dibiase during that match. I remember I dubbed off the rumbles 89, 90, 91, and 92 and those became my most watched videos. My only memory of WCW around this time is Sting. I remember always asking my Dad to stop on WCW when I saw Sting on there, and I thought he was the coolest wrestler alive. I know I had the rumble 92 on tape, but I think I fell out of wrestling around the time Randy Savage retired at 7 and just sort of watched it some after that. My favorite storyline as a kid was the Randy Savage/Liz stuff. I don't think I really understood what WCW was, or thought about it enough to really dig into it. I quit watching wrestling for good, as mentioned, probably at some point in 1992. I didn't think about it all until 1996. I guess it was shortly after Bash at the Beach 1996 that a friend was looking at a WCW Magazine at school and talked me into checking out WCW because of Sting vs. the nWo. I immediately got into Sting, and I rented the tape of the Fall Brawl where he showed them he wasn't nWo, and I was hooked. All my friends started getting into it after that (renting tapes and PPVs). WCW was more popular in my town, and as we moved into High School in 1997, wrestling was on fire. I quit watching WCW around Road Wild 1999, I just couldn't stand it anymore. I came back for the final Nitro. WWE surpassed WCW as my favorite probably around Summerslam 1998. I quit watching WWE again around 2001. The return of nWo got me back in, and I've been back in ever since. My first show was WCW in 1997 - houseshow - I remember it featured DDP, Giant, Rey, Juventud, and Jericho, and Luger... I'm sure others. I went on to attend Thunder later, Superbrawl, ECW, and WWE Events. I attended TNA during the fairground days in Nashville. Up until a few years ago, I was primarily into WWE/WCW/ECW until I stumbled upon Place to be Nation because of PWInsider. From there I found Where the Big Boys Play, and that show is what ignited my wrestling fandom into another level. They did their 100 greatest matches episodes, and I watched all of them. From there I went into deep dives of All Japan, Memphis, Portland, AWA, 1990, 1991, and Mid-South (and the diving hasn't stopped). I continue to find things I want to check out based on the great conversation that takes place here. My favorite wrestler is: Randy Savage Tag: Midnight Rockers Active Favorites: AJ Styles & Johnny Gargano & Elias My favorite match is: Sting vs. Vader - Starrcade 1992 ... probably...but, possibly the first ever Hell in a Cell Tag: Blood in the Sand (Rockers vs. Rose/Somers) ... I'm certain. GME: Clash 6 (Flair/Steamboat) ... I think? Misawa/Kobashi have some I go back and forth on as better.... GWE: Nick Bockwinkel ... most likely...in the ring anyway, but overall still Savage Favorite era - 80's Favorite Show - Great American Bash 1989 or maybe MITB 2011 Love the conversation here. Thanks for having me aboard.

I second that request for a podcast if possible.

Loved the Art of Storytelling episode - You guys had really great discussion on all four feuds. Glad some Memphis wresting was included, and loved the All Japan talk. Looking forward to more.

Well, Loss has done an incredible job of compiling his top 500 matches of the 1990's, and the list is currently being released in 50-match increments over at placetobenation.com (placetobenation.com/countdown-top-500-matches-of-the-90s-500-451/). There is a main thread on the board where everyone is discussing this MEGA list. I'm going to try to journey through all 500 (starting at the bottom - which is exactly where this match is). Most of these matches seem to have been reviewed in great detail, and I love reading all of the reviews. I'm sure I won't have much to add to those, but I'm going to plow through and throw in my thoughts. This will probably take forever, but that's cool, it sounds fun. I love lists. I'll track my ranking, and when I someday make it to the end I'll see how the lists compares. This match was listed as #500 of the Top Matches of the 1990s: I'm sure Parv loves this match. You have Jimmy Garvin and a "Good God!" from DDP right in the beginning. It may have been covered in the 1991 review for WTBBP, I'll have to check. I just listened to the "Psychology is Dead: Art of Storytelling" podcast (placetobenation.com/psychology-is-dead-art-of-storytelling/), and this made me think they need one on the "Art of Stalling." I've always loved the Badstreet Music and the entrance from Hayes and Garvin during their WCW run. For some reason, it always cracks me up. I can't help but to smile seeing these guys dance their way to the ring, looking sort of out of shape, and really too old for a "cool" gimmick (especially when they get into wearing eyeliner... which I still don't understand). The way they play to crowd is just too funny. In this match, I love when Hayes tries to get the crowd to clap along with him, like they are the beloved faces. Then the pistols get the crowd to clap for them, and Hayes goes for a time out after receiving an elbow and a dropkick. Funny stuff. I like how JR says "This has been a pretty grueling match, we're at the 15-minute mark!" He makes it sound like they've been destroying each other. I agree with Childs here that there is actually more action than I anticipated, but to say it's been grueling is amusing. JR is just amazed that Badstreet isn't getting tagged in, he mentions it quite a bit. The leap frogs from the Freebirds into the punch to Smothers was awesome! Finally, JR gets Badstreet "The Masked Man." I thought Garvin's kick to Smothers into the railing on the outside was pretty sweet too. This was after Dink got in a good cheap shot and Hayes flirted with the camera ha. Ah yes, and Richard Morton comes in for the DQ, just hearing him called Richard kind of makes me laugh - then there is immediately a commercial for "Brut - The Essence of Man" and Dustin Rhodes is called the Brut of the Week! Congrats Dustin. The crowd really helps to make this as entertaining as it is, and it's fun seeing this match as regarded as something memorable from the 1990's. It deserves to be.

I think I'm going to try to watch and/or rewatch all of these in your order (500 to 1). Sounds fun to me.

This is just fantastic! Thanks!

Still enjoying the picks from the PTBN-MOTWC...this weeks match looked at LA Park and Caristico from 10/22/16. Not much of a review here, but I'd probably go around **3/4 for the fun and violence. I wasnt feeling the interference. Didn't really like those blue plastic chairs and the time they were taking to set them up. Hope you guys keep it going!

It'd be cool if that Sting/Scott Hall dark match surfaces some day... sounds fun