PeteF3

Pretty good match with good heat, but it's the kind of match that would have been a sensation in 1995 but feels far more tired in '99. Speaking of 1995, a bunch of mediocre heels run in on the main event. For no justifiable reason other than they couldn't come up with an actual finish. I didn't expect a pinfall here, but come on.

Looking over my Yearbook-based list...the 10/10 These Days Michinoku Pro match is widely considered one of the greatest and most definitive lucha-puroresu spot-fu matches ever. That's my 3rd-most-favorite MPro match of 1996. Finished at #10 overall. So yeah, a loaded year.

This is literally Jeff Jarrett's WCW theme with lyrics put over it. Not bad even by that standard, but "Rap Is Crap" was actually way over and this...less so. The Rednecks appear to be having fun.

As destructive as Russo was I can't say that I'm too sorry that we never saw the endgame of this, whatever it was going to be.

I want to let it be known that I marked for the Magnetic Fields menu music. And a funny contrast to Limp Bizkit on page 1. Stizzing has a lot of "the street" in him, apparently. I'm glad I wasn't imagining the muffled chatter coming over either the ring or TV mics here. Spinal Tap at the air force base WCW, everybody. The cheesy lines I can deal with because that's part of the deal with Sting, but I really don't like it when he acts like the same old Sting when he's in the Crow get-up, even at this late stage. Sting is interrupted by a man making a surprise return, Greg Valenti...oh, wait, that's Luger. He's over, at least. Lex comes back and tells Sting not to trust Hogan. We've basically stepped back into late 1995 with the roles reversed. Sting is fine with this because Hulk agreed to put the title on the line tonight. The Stinger, everybody!

Yeah, noticed that last night. I wonder what the hell he did--that isn't your standard "violation of copyright policy" takedown statement. My bold prediction is that he rises again.

Of course not--they're creating a dorky heel to feud with dorky babyfaces.

Also, pushing a guy as a pure babyface just so he can turn heel is something that literally only ever worked in the Attitude Era. In a PG era where babyfaces aren't really allowed to be "cool" there's nothing really separating him from other faces. They're all dorks, just to differing degrees.

Huh, I was reading this thread and thinking how Peña was more of a McMahonlike candidate, but then a lot of his booking feels overwrought to me. His biggest achievements IMO were making the EMLL easily the number one promotion in the country (largely on the strength of TV) and then creating a promotion from out of nowhere that overnight became bigger than the one he'd just helped build up, and had a different way of doing business than any promotion in Mexico. I don't know that either of these falls under what would traditionally be called booking. No doubt the wrestling programs that he booked helped these things happen, though. In my Yearbook viewing I've had a lot of praise for some of the creative AAA finishes in big matches...but now I have to confess that I don't know if Pena booked those specifically or if he had a Pat Patterson with him. "Overwrought" isn't a wrong term in some cases as those finishes did eventually start to get frustrating. Then again, I think some of Riki Choshu's upset booking was him being too clever by half and booking upsets just for shock value, too. No booker is immune from going to the well a little too often.

I feel like Antonio Pena needs to at least be in the team photograph here, even if not at #1. As Bix said on the latest BTS...strictly in terms of booking wrestling--angles, gimmicks, finishes, feuds and payoffs, etc., not promoting or marketing or even running an organization--he may have had an even better mind for the business than Vince. Pena also had a hand in designing costumes and masks for his guys, which I don't think any other booker anywhere can say. '85-'86 Crockett is some of the best wrestling anywhere in any time period, and Dusty was the man behind it.

Heads up: the site is going offline after the 30th.

I'd also like to nominate Kick Ass Wrestling for most uncomfortable promotion to watch. Well-documented by Loss, soup, and myself in the '99 Yearbook threads.

I'll also add Gary Albright. Has been in some matches that are universally considered great (except by those who hate UWFI and its style) but rarely gets more credit for them than his opponent. A big scary guy who suplexes motherfuckers will never, ever get old to me. A better worker than John Tenta (among big '90s guys) or Rick Steiner (among bullying suplex machines), in my view.

I'll co-sign on Sandman, at least through the Mikey feud. Of course when even Paul E. and Tommy (and probably Sandman himself) are so adamant and outspoken about how shitty he was, well... I'll not only agree on Mortis & Wrath but fuck it, I'm throwing Glacier in there as well. Always a solid worker under any guise and the Bash at the Beach '97 tag opener needs to be seen and respected by more.

I've been on a bit of an All-Japan Archive kick and decided to break out some rarities I had that I've never seen online and amend that. Three rare appearances by Roddy Piper in 1983 All-Japan, all teaming with Dick Slater against various opponents. And also, the only meeting probably ever between Billy Robinson and Bruiser Brody. Not really a good match but a rarity--interesting to see multiple instances of Brody doing his usual sandbag act with a guy of Robinson's rep. I won't accuse him of lack of guts here, at least, even if he was already a made man in Japan by this point.

There's still those Canadian versions of Shotgun with Gorilla alongside Cole and Kelly that lasted into '99. That's as close as you'll get.

Norio Honaga. Basically a serious version of Toru Yano. Didn't look like he had an athletic bone in his body but won three IWGP Junior titles despite far less talent than the usual junior staples, won through a combination of luck and cheating.

When the Headshrinkers were doing their first few TV squashes, announcers mentioned rumors of a third, bigger Headshrinker. So plans were pretty far ahead for that to go through if they were talking about it on TV.

When the Headshrinkers were doing their first few TV squashes, announcers mentioned rumors of a third, bigger Headshrinker. So plans were pretty far ahead for that to go through if they were talking about it on TV.

Looks like it was broken by Gene Okerlund who got it from Bobby's daughter. You'd have to think Gene O. would know. Only a few celebrity deaths will "get" to me, but this is one of them.

I didn't think it actually happened, but wrestlingdata shows three Warrior-Earthquake singles matches, so add Tenta.

Ric Flair. Vader. Wouldn't surprise me if there were some crossover underneath guys in there (Gene Ligon, George South, and others who did TV jobs for both companies).

No, no, Rock needed to give Mr. Ass THE RUB. But yeah, the match itself and the ridiculous number of hoops needed jumping through on the last two Raws to get to this spot reeked of a guy--Russo--who didn't know how to get out of a booking corner. Austin was banged-up and not working house shows and they felt that HHH needed to be put over in a great match, which Austin couldn't provide in his state, so we get Mankind and bells and whistles instead. But Jesse is also there, so you need a babyface to win--whether Jesse insisted on it or not, with him as guest ref it's just Promoting 101. Weak finish with Triple H being taken out by one shot to the head, allowing Mankind to steal a pin on Austin--Austin's first clean defeat since, what, Mania 13?