Kronos

The more matches I watch, the less I love Manami - she's always in such a hurry, unless you have an opponent who slows her down. And god damn it, Woman, shut up! Hasegawa would have fit so well into ARSION. She has that serious-athlete look about her, and her constant submissions feel like Yoshida. There's a great sequence where she's going for an armbar but can't get the tap. So she stands up, drops an elbow, and goes back into the armbar. It's very smooth.

These things continue to rule. I can't believe the line about killing Francine's unborn child. I am not crazy about Raven, but anything about Beulah works for me. Pillman goes from being chef to eating dinner and stabbling himself with a fork.

Fun contrast to the Shawn/Bret story, which is based on rivalry and athleticism -- and old school vs new school. This one has death and coffins and dopplegangers.

There's a bit of great story here about how Bret's desperate to redeem himself in the eyes of his son. No wonder he's so quick to put down Shawn - he doesn't want his kid turning away.

How about the ending, where they encourage people to write to the chairman of the FTC to stop Ted's predatory merger? I kind of like the FEW GOOD MEN parody, but it's pretty shameful for Vince to run this sketch.

double post

It's clearly a match to further some storylines. As you say, Nash and Taker are never even officially in the ring together. And Bret and Shawn feel like they're testing their 60-min rest holds to see how the crowd responds (not very well in the early bits, as the white hot crowd almost dies a few times). What I like in this match is how much the crowd likes Diesel, how much more they like Shawn, and how much they go batshit insane for Taker. I had no idea he was that over that early. Watching the crowd respond to his brawling with Nash and his few moments in the ring with Shawn really made me happy. One other thing: This feels like quintessential Kevin Nash. Taker does 95% of the work. In fact, I haven't seen Taker move that much and that fast in years.

Royal Rumble 2004: Taz: "You know Billy Gunn used to be married to a guy, right? You been married a bunch of times. You ever been married to a guy?" JR: . . .

Fantastic! I have never seen Taue move as fast as he does throughout the early bits of this match. He and Kawada are so grumpy - it makes me smile. The crowd is really behind Jun. He gets his ass kicked pretty solidly early on, and they are thrilled when he makes his comebacks (and when Misawa gets all elbow-y).

Funny how things work. Foley was always thought of as some sort of sick fuck to some extent, especially with the "get bashed 10 times with a chair before my childrens" incident. Yet... I know, right? Funny how things work out. I came to rasslin late, and my introduction to Foley may well have been his first book in 2006 -- believe it or not. So when I did go back and watch Cactus Jack, KOTR, FMW, etc etc it was colored by my feelings about him as a loveable, cuddly dork who was kind of crazy but meant well. These impressions came from reading his first and second books. He's made some dumb decisions over the years, but on the whole I still more or less think of him that way. I never would have imagined Benoit to be cuddly, of course. But my markish impression was of a guy who wasn't the asshole that a Shawn or Flair or Bret or Warrior might have been at one time.

Never seen it, so I tracked it down on YT. Pretty awesome, right up there with Goldberg winning in '98. Luger's celebration seems so very REAL, when he jumps in the air and then lands on his knees. And I love all the guys coming out to celebrate with him. I watch wrestling for moments like this one.

I remember buying it in late 2006, I think. One of the things I remember liking about it was how much he seemed like a normal, if slightly geeky, guy who just loved what he did and brought a lot of people pleasure. In many ways, it was the same thing I loved about Foley. So weird to consider now. For awhile, I was able to watch his matches and differentiate between the work and the man. But a year or so ago, I suddenly just couldn't anymore. Now I feel terribly uncomfortable and often fast forward his parts of PPVs (and I never look up his matches on youtube).

This is a NMB thread about Maeda vs Andre. It's not an insane comment, and it makes a kind of sense in context. But I like it in general. It seems so applicable to so many things people say on forums (and in life). In a NMB thread about Green Lantern Fan, which contains a parody Straight Shootin cover:

I hope it was good, and Will puts it on his 2011 set. . .

Bunkhouse Buck vs Tim Horner, WCW Prime 6/19/95 Dusty cuts a bizarre promo with Gordon Solie before the match. Horner has a glorious mullet. It's a decent short match that could have taken place in 1987. The best part might have been Dusty and Solie getting frustrated because someone keeps standing up and blocking their view. Tim Horner vs Arn Anderson, World Championship Wrestling 3/28/87 Speaking of Tim Horner and 1987. . .the YT doesn't say which show this is from, but it's their usual studio with all the flags. I'm guess it's Saturday Night? I am such a mark for Arn. He moves really fast here and has such great facial expressions selling painful holds or anger. Both guys look terrific. Horner eventually wins by DQ when Tully, JJ, and Luger run in. (wow, I didn't realize Luger was already around in early 1987) Arn Anderson vs Chris Jericho, Nitro 9/30/96 Jesus Mary & Joseph, Nancy was sexy. Arn's fatter and slower than he was 10 years before. But he always knows where he needs to be. Jericho is working a Cruiserweight style that doesn't quite mesh with AA.

Mark Henry vs The Rock, Judgment Day: In Your House 10/18/98 Henry opens with a terrible promo dedicated to Chyna, including a poem expressing his desire to have children with her. One thing Henry had going for him then -- and he sometimes still does today -- is that when he's not being a badass angryface, he often has an expression that seems to say that he can't believe he's getting to do this. Rocky comes out guns blazing. He looks thicker here than in his chiseled later years. Henry doesn't know many moves, as JR and King repeatedly point out. It's not a squash match -- if only because he gets the pinfall following interference by D-Lo -- but Henry does essentially get beaten up for 6 min. Mark Henry vs Undertaker, SD! 2/10/06 Solid TV match. Henry shows himself to be a monster early on, particularly in a great shoulder block spot that puts 'Taker on his ass. They try to trade hiptosses, but Taker can't lift Henry. It takes Henry to slip up and crash to the floor, which leaves him dazed enough for Taker to get the momentum (watch for a gorgeous kick to Henry's head). Henry does a great job of selling the shots to the head, stumbling around the ring. He gets a few good shots in, but eventually Taker has enough momentum that he gets a pinfall after a chokeslam. It's a bit weird that he can't do a hiptoss early, but he can do a chokeslam? That's Taker for ya, though. There's a chaotic run-in from MNM. It's amusing how much smaller Nitro and Mercury are compared to Taker. Davari gets chokeslammed from about 7 feet in the air. And then Angle comes into the ring and german suplexes everyone. A silly ending, apart from Davari getting slammed. But Henry looked really good in this match. He felt a bit like Vader, selling well for his opponent but still coming across as a Supertough Big Guy. Mark Henry vs Undertaker, Unforgiven 9/16/17 I am not sure of the story here. I guess Henry put Taker out of action for several months? (the recap is clipped on the video I am watching) This match is Taker's big return. Start s out strong, with Henry backing down from the faceoff and getting punched like a heavybag in the corner. Henry kick's Taker in the face and is rewarded with a serious look which screams "shoot pissed off". Taker doesn't look as fluid here as he did in the Feb 06 match. The momentum is off. Things wake up towards the end when Taker starts to hit his signature spots leading to a nearfall. I like Taker breaking out of the bearhug by choking Henry. Very nice modified Last Ride for the win. It's not a sloppy match, but it's a bit of a boring one for a PPV Main Event. Aside: I love JBL on commentary. The crowd is pretty quiet, and he sells it like a sign of respect. "They are just sitting here watching." Normally, I enjoy him for his insults, but that was some good broadcasting right there. Aside Two: Undertaker has perhaps the most epic entrance in rasslin history. And it takes frakkin forever. I always fast forward it these days. Mark Henry vs Batista, SD! 1/18/08 I like Batista a lot more than I used to do, though this match isn't anything special. Some pretty basic back and forth. Batista does this bizarre shoulder attack in the corner where he kicks his leg back behind him first. It looks like a knee strike, but the announcers call it a shoulder strike (and I am inclined to agree). There's a good spot where Dave goes for the pin after a spear, and Henry doesn't just kick out; he throws Batista off of him. Throwaway 6 min match, but the crowd is lively. BTW, what is with Henry squeezing his eyes shut tightly to show he's angry? Mark Henry vs HHH, RAW 6/23/08 Apparently, Henry is only good for 5-6 min on free TV, because that's all he keeps getting. This match is basically Haitch's babyface formula of getting beaten up for awhile and then coming back to win at the last moment. But it works, keeping the crowd involved. Henry throws a Vader Bomb and goes for the pin with that goofy smile I mentioned above. I like how much Henry is willing to sell for his opponents. Watching these matches, I don't think it ever makes him look weak. And it allows a bit of drama. Mark Henry vs Rey Mysterio, SD! 4/29/11 Crazy Heel Henry is pretty awesome, and modern Rey is a good punching bag to get a heel over (see also: Batista last year). Fun squash that builds on the story of Henry's heel turn and then feeds into the Cody story as Rey is stopped from his comeback by a run-in. Terrific energy from Henry.

I have to second the suggestion for Mariko Yoshida in ARSION. From about 1998-2003, she was a submission wrestling MACHINE -- and if you like your matwork wicked-looking, then she's your gal. There's not as much ARSION on youtube as there are other promotions, but you can find some. Sounds like you're gonna be busy for awhile.

Thought this comment from DVDVR might amuse John:

Okay, then, we're an older crowd (but not as old as Wrestling Classics, I'll wager). I'm totally fine with it. But the question remains: How old is RE?

You gotta admit: you do have a grumpy old man aspect about you. Not as much as John! It's one of the reasons I love this forum so much -- it's full of crusty, wise old rasslin watchin vets.

I was watching an April 2010 tag between Kings of Wrestling and The Briscoes, two teams I generally like. But I thought this match was pretty weak. In particular, the opening matwork was embarrassing. And the moves just felt sloppy and ill-designed, with an overall lack of drama. It was on Will's 2010 set, so obviously some people thought it was pretty great. I am wondering if I missed something - maybe some feud between them that helped provide context? Or maybe it got better, but my eyes and brain had already glazed over?

You gotta admit: you do have a grumpy old man aspect about you.

WTF??? Bix is 26? My 37 yr old self is in shock. . .

sorry, error post

Vader vs The Boss - Spring Stampede, 4/17/94 How can any rasslin fan not enjoy the spectacle of two giant men beating the crap out of each other? This one's great fun, with a number of sweet spots including Bossman ducking under Vader and causing Race to get squashed on the ramp. Vader gets his ass kicked for quite awhile, and I am reminded of why I like him so much -- the man is a mountain, and he can do almost anything; witness his getting whipped over the railing like a man half his size. Eventually Vader works himself back into control, and he hits his signature moves. A thoroughly entertaining match.