MichaelZ

I always enjoy reading your write ups Sleeze! These have been great but looking forward to more of your contributions on Greatest Match Ever. I’ve been in kind of a GME viewing slump and want to pick up the pace on that front myself.

I have been watching a lot of Bobby and it has felt really rewarding. I think there was a sense that he was a little high in the last go around but I am seeing the basis of a well rounded case beyond the peak midnight express work. The couple of matches I watched where he teamed with Koko were exciting. Great offense, great storytelling. He may not have that signature singles match but some matches like the ones vs Flair and Dustin are really good. As a babyface in tv matches vs Arn and Abdullah he has a way of getting the crowd invested as the match goes on. The post prime stuff with people like Regal or Keirn doesn’t lead to special matches but he plays his role really well on both teams. He seems like a guy who never took it easy, always gave something for the crowd to latch onto or provided a memorable moment. He has a shot at my top 20 and I don’t see him falling too far past that.

I have barely watched AEW but tuned in last night and the pop for Punk’s entrance, the look on his face As he took it all in, and the dive into the crowd was so awesome and cathartic. I felt good for the guy, he seemed so happy and felt like he had finally gotten to the place physically and mentally where he wanted to be. There is a lot for any of us to overcome before we get there, so seeing that was gratifying.

Yep, this match is great. I am a Wahoo fan so this was up my alley. Wahoo seems like a good opponent for Race. This match felt big and Race’s style in this match helped that along

When I was dipping my toe in, I don’t know if I picked the wrong matches but there was a stinker vs Baba, a match against Hogan where Hogan was the better wrestler...I don’t remember what else I saw but there were a couple of other matches that didn’t leave an impression. I’m sure I’ll see more Race as I explore others and I’m still kind of curious but there are too many other people to prioritize right now.

Awesome work Elliott, so great. I am a sarge supporter and am excited to dig a little deeper. All the high end stuff that I have watched is top notch. I would vote for Tully who I love and would like to see how his case rounds out, or Fuerza who is on my list to explore And sounds really interesting.

Very sad news. Midnight Express squashes on TBS with Beautiful Bobby leaping out of the sky were such a big part of my childhood. Some all-time great offense and of course an all-time great tag team wrestler. On top of the classics with the RnRs and the Fantastics, I love the matches the Midnights had vs Watts/JYD, Valiant/Garvin, Morton/Rich, and the list goes on. The feud vs Windham and Garvin is kind of forgotten but I remember it being intense with good action and memorable angles. That might be worth a revisit. I second the love for that babyface singles run in 1991, just some cool memories. And when he moved down the card he was still entertaining and gave you something memorable. I appreciate the comments here and the info on his early career. RIP Beautiful Bobby

I just watched this thanks to a recommendation on the greatest match ever project and it was really good. Sarge in particular was a standout, but the last half or so of this match is outstanding. Great fire from both guys and a laundry list of cheating and bumping from Sarge. A+ post match too.

This was part of the Zybysko watch party and I wanted to drop in and add to all the praise. An excellent out of the box performance by Saito and Larry complemented him nicely. Great work by both men.

It’s funny that Hennig’s name came up, I have told myself that if Hennig makes my top 100 that means I didn’t work hard enough. I am looking forward to finding the people that push him and other late 80s wwf stalwarts off my list.

Either this is very recent or it just slipped by me, mid-south and mid-Atlantic episodes have been added to Peacock. It gives me hope that JCP and hidden gems will follow. I didn’t notice them when I was browsing tonight. I agree with all the comments that the “season” stuff is horrendous but I did find it interesting that the earliest available mid-Atlantic shows on Peacock from 1981 were referred to as “season 9.”

I like Bryan a lot but saying that his prime is his whole career isn’t useful. I like Tetsujin’s approach. Even if you do believe Bryan has been the best in the world for his whole career we should critically think about how some periods are stronger than others.

My first exposure to Orndorff is similar to Ricky Jackson’s, tuning in week to week at that time helped lock in my fandom. I remember watching his match vs Hogan at the big event A few years back and thinking it was pretty good. He was always entertaining and did a good job in any role. RIP Mr Wonderful.

Just finished this book today and I really enjoyed reminiscing about the matches I know and learning more about the context of those matches. Plus I have quite a few matches In excited to see for the first time. Great job Phil! I am not a big podcast follower but this latest one about the Sheik sounds exciting. I’m planning on catching up on the others. I would recommend it highly for everyone who hasn’t gotten it to go get it if you can. This is the type of work I’d love to see more of.

It’s a long 5 years, but thinking about throwing a nod to Jimmy Valiant at 100 because I get a kick out of him and am never tempted to fast forward.

This is a really great comp and My initial reaction was that this was going to be one where I sit out but In the the end I feel comfortable going with Valentine as well. Feuds are kind of the backbone of great wrestling and Valentine has a laundry list of compelling ones from Wahoo and Backlund to Piper and Tito. Valentine brings intensity every time and is a great counterpoint to babyfaces of all stripes. Then when I was watching with GWE in mind whenever Valentine turns up in these random matches they almost always deliver. I’m thinking of matches like his cage match with Carlos Colon, completely great and under the radar. It feels like you can plug anyone in against Valentine and get something interesting and exciting. Regal was a big part of rekindling my interest in the 90s and you always get something entertaining out of his matches, but Valentine brings a little more to the table in terms of intensity and realism and his peaks are just higher. Love both these guys.

I think Loss gets at a few of the reasons why I lean toward Bull. Bull is always drawing me in and doing something to make me feel invested and connected. Aja on several occasions causes me to disconnect, through the weapons and brawling stuff Loss refers toor sometimes repeating high impact moves over and over again. I have more Aja to watch but I view Bull as a strong top 10 candidate and I don’t know what Aja could do to have me view her the same way. Bull is just more in line with what I want in a wrestler.

I am probably ranking Sheamus and am not really considering Drew. On top of the high end stuff mentioned above I really liked Sheamus as part of The Bar, and would even put his pandemic era work ahead of Drew’s.

This is an interesting and difficult one. I think both will make my list, but I think Buzz deserves to be higher. Buzz’s to end matches with people like Duggan, Rich, and Reed stand alongside Brock’s best. Additionally I have seen Buzz be asked make matches with people like Pez Whatley and Brian Adias interesting and pull it off. Brock has rarely been put in that position and on the other hand will sink a match that has all kinds of support around it if he is not interested.

I completely agree about the footage against Ladd and I think everyone should make a point to see it. Bock has always impressed me, but this showed a different side than 80s AWA. Some of his actions almost reminded me of Heenan and served to make Ladd look like a world beater.

Posting with the understanding that answers may differ depending on the individual case.... 1) I was wondering how many matches does it take for you to start thinking about where you are ranking someone? I've been thinking about this and how to assess wrestlers I am seeing for the first time vs wrestlers I have watched for a long time. 2) How many matches will you watch before you decide to remove a wrestler from consideration for your list?

I thought SD was a good show from top to bottom. Bianca and Bayley in the cell seems odd but I get it under the circumstances. And if Roman doesn’t want to work on Father’s Day and got this match changed, that is awesome.

Mine is arriving on Father’s Day and I can’t wait to read it. I’m also excited to listen to the podcast. Congratulations and I wish you continued success.

Two of the best babyfaces and tag workers ever, each with singles classics to boot. Who are you taking?

These two are right next to each other in my ranks and it really just depends on the day. I think if you pulled some matches out of a hat for me to watch I’d pick Regal, who I find just a tad more entertaining in TV matches. Also, Regal was probably my favorite wrestler to watch in 1993-4, something I couldn’t say about Arn for any period. But Arn is in more of my all time favorite matches: Wargames 87, w Ole vs the RnR Express, w Larry vs Dustin and Steamboat. I know we aren’t including mic work for GWE purposes, but I prefer Arn a tad there. This feels too close to call but curious to hear from others.