Tetsujin

Yeah, great tv match. I, of all people, specially enjoyed Bálor's performance here: he clearly was very pissed off about not getting the UC title shot he deserves since 2016 and both Roman and specially Drew payed for it. The only thing I didn't like about this match was Reigns not selling enough the consecutive chairshots, and his win felt a bit anticlimatic as always due to how many punishment the other two guys gave to him just a couple of minutes before. Great nearfalls towards the end, with Finn on fire and Reigns kicking out of everything at 2'9, something I really love about him. ***1/2.

These two know how to work this style better than anyone in the world today. Great character moments with Incredible action, terrific "yeah-that-move-just-killed-me" selling and the art of reversals and kickouts to add tons of emotion and to get the crowd even crazier than it already was. Top 3 of the year, and that's coming from their worst match together. Awesome. These guys need to be the main rivalry of New Japan, fuck Okada. ****1/2.

EVIL was pretty good with his facials and both guys' offense looked hard without being stiff, something that I apreciate a lot. It was kinda weird watching EVIL as the guy working on top against someone like Elgin. Yeah, the arm stuff was good enough , but I wish it were a heavier handicap to Elgin than it was. EVIL needs to stop doing the 'hey ref hold my opponent's leg for like five fucking hours while I do a superkick', that's a Scurllesque spot that always kills the match flow. Solid, decent match, but it could've been a lot better. **3/4.

Seems soooo great. It could mean a lot from newers generations of fans/wrestlers, too.

This had everything I wanted to have: high pace, great spots, nice teamwork, a hot crowd, UE bumping like HBK, Dunne fired up against Strong, and BSS winning. And even when they gave all that to me, I can still feel both stables made just a fraction of what they can do together, and that's something I appreciate a lot in today's wrestling: non-excessive matches that create hype for a rematch, yet entertain a lot. ***1/2.

You're doing a great work, thanks a lot. Also, very happy with the changes.

This is the first no-Takeover NXT match I've seen in a while, so it's pretty spectacular to me watching Pete Dunne so over as a babyface. The match ruled, with all that fast-paced technique and hard hitting, also the crowd helped a lot. Dunne's work on Kyle's arm could have been sold better, and it really meant nothing at the end of the match, but it was still a very good fight between the two best wrestlers of their stables. It's funny because I didn't know I wanted to see this match that much untill I saw it. *** 3/4.

This was great: two technical masters giving an unusual type of match in WWE, and the NXT crowd totally buyed it. In less than eight minutes we see quality matwork, tension, limbwork, good selling and a last couple of minutes of pure european brawling. Loved every second of it. It's funny how they tried to work a classic grapple match, 'cause they respect each other and know the other one is a worthy mat-rival, but due to their personalities things got crazy sooner than expected. That final headbutt looked brutal, as always. Very good match, yessir! ***3/4

I'm a big fan of the Okada/Omega trilogy, but this... This was awful. Cliché after cliché and devaluated spot after devaluated spot, it's everything I hate about modern big matches. Second worst match I've ever seen in New Japan (Dynamite/Tiger), and it pains me to say it. Terrible pro wrestling. I'm happy for Kenny, though.

Loving the project, but damn I wish we have 'till WM 36 instead of 35...

About the whole "Who should be the new Ace project" thing... What about Ambrose? Remember how hot as a top babyface he was in 2014? How he carried the 2016 Road to WM? How behind him the crowd was when he won the title? The guy's always over, even with poor booking. He's great at promos, one of the most consistent tv and house shows workers of the company (even with his in ring flaws, but I think he's kinda underrated at this point). He even sold more merch than Cena at one little period of time in 2014 and draw better than Reigns in house shows of 2016. And he's still young enough. If I were Vince, I would give him that chance throughout this current year, alongside with Bryan and Strowman (and maybe Rusev, yeah). Just think about it.

Is Reigns gonna get the big underdog treatment... Once again? 'Cause they tried in 2015 and it didn't work, and now that Bryan is back it's going to be even worse.

Terrible show. Fuck WWE, fuck Vince McMahon, and fuck Saudi Arabia. Hate this show and everything it represents. If you truly support LGBT, you don't go and perform in Saudi Arabia in front of the Royal Family who's idea of gay rights is "immorality, perversion and whiplashes". Or you do make a statement of sorts if you got the iron balls to do it. What message it sends to the LGBT in SA, really is : "Hey, I'm really supporting you, but I had to put smiles in the faces of people who consider you as sub-human beings and don't recognize your right to even exist.". It's better to say nothing at all really. I know it's probably not his reponsability anyway, but then again, you're not a robot either. I understand and agree with you. But he's just a worker, he has no responsability of what he wears when he's on camera. If Vince says "don't wear this", there's nothing else you can do if you wanna keep working in WWE. It really, really sucks, but it's not Bálor's fault at all.

Really good lucha championship match but with no ambition to make something different, epic. They weren't lazy, don't get me wrong, just... conformists. Superb matwork in the primera caída and great nearfalls in the tercera, but nothing more. 0 character work, 0 innovation, just another day in the office for these two guys. ****.

After a couple of months disconnected from this project, I finally came back. Updated with 1990 (aka el año del Dandy) and going through 1991 as we speak. The toughest part of 1990 was the big disapointment both Fujiwara/Takada were, and having to take back the 5* rank from Dandy/Satánico apuestas match; on the other side, Azteca/Dandy was near-perfect and Kong/Nakano cage match was holy shit levels of amazing (and still not enough for top 3, what a year).

This is the most personal, violent, intense and full of storytelling brawl modern WWE can do. I miss more brutality (thinking about SCSA/Hart, HHH/Foley Street Fight, Cena/Umaga, Taker/Edge HIAC...) and they have a couple of "we-don't-know-what-to-do-right-now-give-us-a-second" moments, but fuck, they killed it here. Amazing chapter of a perfect rivalry. ****1/4. According to your top 500 of the 90s, Dandy's 5* matches that year were la lucha de cabelleras against Satánico and....? Wasn't vs Azteca ****3/4?

Lee/Dijak for me. Just... Man I don't even wanna remember it to talk about it.

Well then, you are part of the greatest pro wrestling crowd ever

I don't see any greatness either. It was a decent match, just that. Nobody did anything out of his 'RAW mode', the cage was there... I don't know why. The opener had very good using-the-structure-moments, even without being RA Era levels of violence, but this one was dull af. They only made Strowman shine (and with the laziest booking ever in an EC match; as El-P said, Braun doesn't need to eliminate everyone and kick out of everything, that way you only make the other five guys look stupid), and only to make Reigns look like the most powerful wrestler in the world again; it was like his whole four-year-push compressed into one match. Reigns push has been funny to talk about for the first two or three years, but right now it's simply... boring. Crowd didn't gave a shit about him winning, and that's something. **3/4, to say something. And you know what, I'm so happy the women EC was so much better than this one.

Yes, also the 92 tag with Kikuchi against Furnass & Kroffat. But I guess that one is more a Kikuchi moment than a Kobashi moment. His title win against Misawa is up there, too. The crowd went insane.

Kobashi in ROH.

Yeah. I hear the 'he was great in early 00s and after going to NJPW, but the dark era of TNA keeps him out of the all-time elite' argument a lot, and I don't think that's true at all. Like El-P said, he managed to shine no matter what. That's pretty great.

Man, what started as another tough guy vs tough guy turned into one of the most enjoyable slugfests in recent months. Two monsters giving everything they have to each other, specially Zeus, who looked like a great big underdog here; his strength bombs felt organic, he earned every single one of them. Doering's title reigns started not so well, but here he finally gives a main event performance, being a difficult ladder to climb for the challenger but also being able to look weakened and vulnerable sometimes, when the match required it. Not a MOTYC by any means, but it was worthwile and they earned the crowd's attention and respect. I hope Doering keeps at this level. *** 3/4.

Trully a great match, one of those hard hitting contests I really like, but I did't see anything special. Walter's hand being his debility is a good story, but I think Starr and ZSJ did a better job than Thatcher with it (and c'mon, it's Timothy Thatcher, we all know he can destroy that hand if he wants to). I fucking love Tim's resistance as always, he's one of the best at having believable nearfalls with 2'9999 kickouts. And WALTER being WALTER, with his fucking chops, big boots and aura in general, is always a pleasure. Yeah, great match, but just another day in the office for these two ring generals. ****.

The answer has to be one of Buddy Rose's matches during his jobber run in WWF. Also, great call on Strowi/Ellsworth.