evilclown

If fans think Bryan Danielson was a "subtle" heel in ROH, something I read in this thread, then there's no reason to attempt any actual subtlety. It would be lost completely. Modern fans want their spots, want people to know they are cheering at the right time and demand instant gratification.

I think he does.

Before the Kindle was a thing I almost always had some with me on trips for various projects. Lots of funny looks.

That's pretty cool. Do you always travel with the Observer?

I forgot to post this, but here it is! http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2226821-wwe-mark-henry-interview-exclusive-haters-steroids-and-15-years-of-smackdown

Why doesn't Dave decide what categories the voters should be eligible for? If he doesn't know, should they even be voters in the first place?

I can't imagine a world where Edge and Yuji Nagata are wrestling "Hall of Famers."

My ballot: I FOLLOWED THE HISTORICAL PERFORMERS ERA CANDIDATES Gene & Ole Anderson Johnny "Mr. Wrestling II" Walker I FOLLOWED THE MODERN PERFORMERS IN U.S/CANADA CANDIDATES Ivan Koloff Ken Patera Rock & Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN JAPAN CANDIDATES Volk Han Minoru Suzuki Kiyoshi Tamura I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN MEXICO CANDIDATES Not Eligible/Abstain I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN EUROPE CANDIDATES Not Eligible/Abstain I FOLLOWED WRESTLING IN AUSTRALIA/PACIFIC ISLANDS/CARIBBEAN/AFRICA CANDIDATES Not Eligible/Abstain NON-WRESTLERS Jerry Jarrett Gorilla Monsoon George Scott

I can buy Scorpio being pissed off with Shawn, especially after how he treated Vader (who broke Scorpio in the business). LOL at wrestlers calling Dave Meltzer asking him if they should fight Shawn Michaels. If you're calling the dirtsheets to discuss your feelings, you aren't fighting anyone.

Workrate was a movement first and foremost, a way for online fans to distinguish themselves from the marks in the crowd. Sure, the people in the audience and THE IDIOT BOOKER loved Nash and Hogan. But we knew better. We knew that the best wrestlers in the world are the guys who opened Nitro. We knew it was those little Mexican guys in ECW. Workrate was spots and sustained action, but it's more than that. It's a faux sophistication. We liked dives, sure, but we could also appreciate Eddy Guerrero and Dean Malenko's choreographed mat sequence. Wrestling, you see, wasn't about steroids and promos. It was about MOVES~! We were the Workrate Cru. Lurk and Learn.

Was a joke for the old school internet wrestling dudes. Relax.

Casebolt gets it. Everyone else...lurk and learn!

Exactly. You can say what you want about Dynamite Kid as a draw, but when he was on top the promoter was broke and looking for a lifeline. If that's the biggest draw in the company's history, it's amazing they lasted to the that point?

He was a fiat pick but Dynamite Kid was also either the biggest or second biggest draw in the history of Stampede Wrestling according to someone Bix mentioned to me who I can't remember at the moment. I can't imagine that was true. I'd assume that the guys who Stu flew around in chartered planes and who helped him build the big mansion were bigger draws than the guy on top as they declined and eventually sold out to Vince.

No, he wouldn't be in just for work. He wasn't an opening match guy. But he'd be in primarily for work, like Ricky Steamboat or Kurt Angle.

No one is saying Taue wasn't good for God's sake. The argument is whether he is a WON HOF'er based on work. He's certainly not a HOF'er by other standards. That's a pretty high bar to leap for a guy who, at best, was the fourth best guy in the ring during his most famous and critically lauded wrestling matches.

Well, I certainly wouldn't put myself on a pedestal. I'm just some dude. But this was poorly constructed. There's no flow, no clear purpose or direction and he does a bad job writing into and out of his quotes.

Who's talking about "workrate?" We're talking about the same thing. Wrestling. How good was Taue at professional wrestling? When looking at business factors, there's nothing about Taue that stands out. I think it's also telling what happened when he and Kawada parted ways. He didn't slot into a top position. He was a midcarder. So it boils down to work. And I don't know that he's a work candidate.

That was poorly written.

Taue had about a decade as a relevant wrestler. He was pretty good by the time 1990 rolled around and then he fell off the map by 2000 when NOAH popped up and he became an after thought. Rather than be impressed by his two excellent singles matches with Misawa, I wonder about why that's all he has to show for that time. He was in the single most "work" friendly promotion of all-time. There were no artificial limitations on him. He had the chances. He just wasn't built to deliver as a singles wrestler. He worked much better as a tag wrestler where he could do his spots and then get the hell out of the way while Kawada did the heavy lifting.

I'm not sure how those things are related? I felt that, especially early in his career before he figured things out, you could feel the crowds kind of balk at his inclusion in matches with the top guys. He clearly wasn't on their level. To his credit, he developed to the point he could participate in some of the best matches ever. If you believe that Taue was a great heel or that his awkward physicality was somehow good for the matches, I suppose that's a matter of personal taste. I'm not sure what else there is to say about that.

You guys are drifting into "Benoit and Guerrero got the biggest pops of the night" territory.

Also, OJ just convinced me I probably shouldn't vote in the Japan category even though I've been following it closely for damn near 20 years.

I always thought it was fairly clear Taue was booed because he couldn't keep up with the others in the matches. Especially early in his career.

I love when someone here takes a view counter to the traditional wisdom about a wrestler and then says things like "Doubtful at this point the light is going to come on for you" like I'm the one out in left field. The onus is on you to explain why everyone has been wrong for two decades, not vice versa. I like Taue. I think it's commendable that he was able to take part in some classic wrestling matches without ruining them. It's also clear that All Japan's fans, hierarchy and contemporary American fans didn't see him on the same level as the promotion's top stars. There's such a desperation in some circles to be the one to "discover" someone that people are able to talk themselves into things that are self-evidently not true.