Matt D

On the one hand, that's fair, but I think what made it so good was the restraint that Triple H showed relative to other matches that he's had. He was able to make it still seem like a big deal but without the bloat that brings down almost all of his big matches. That was on him, not Bryan. He probably could've had two dozen matches in his career there were just as good if he'd only shown that restraint before.

I could be off on this, but I do think a huge issue with CMLL is that a lot of the traditional tecnico fans who'd come in with the huge signs and the drums and what not have been alienated and just don't show up anymore. It really affects the feel of the crowds.

I think Triple H had his single best big match ever in 2014. Maybe even his top two.

I won't go quite as far but I will say that 2013 was probably the best year for offering us consistently good TV matches that WWE ever had.

I haven't seen much Liger. I'm not sure I've seen any Sano. This was great. I really don't think Liger went full speed on offense either. Maybe that first comeback burst that ended with him diving all the way over the rail, but then he sold it big. Later on every time he hit something there was that sense of desperation, like Loss mentioned earlier.I'm the first guy to get frustrated at shrugged off selling and it didn't bother me here. I don't have time to really write it up now but I do have some notes, likes/dislikes. The main point, which isn't really in the notes is that it was just an awesome beatdown, blood and mask ripping and bombs, just real nastiness with the best possible use of "fighting spirit." -I like how definitive the early transition moves are. A pile driver on the floor SHOULD turn the match around like this. -I like that it's not back and forth at all but just a thorough beating. -I like that Liger gets full on comebacks instead of hope spots. The match really breathes -I wish that Sano might have gone for the pin a little less and done damage for the sake of it a little more because Sano has SUCH big moves. More rope escapes, like at the Tiger at the end. -On the other hand I'm glad Liger hit a bunch of stuff on Sano before winning. since it was so one sided. He had to earn the win. -You feel so bad for Liger when he goes flying over the top towards the end. -I like the callbacks. two superplexes (second with a reversal). Both guys hitting quebadoras. Germans. Tombstones. -There are some spots that look sloppy and flubbed but given the selling they feel weirdly organic and work in the context of the match, as if Liger simply couldn't hit what he was trying to do because he was so beat up and thus they go around in a different circle after the attempt. Maybe I'm being too kind there. -Not perfect but it's a pretty glorious match.

What's to be done with Bryan? I sort of liked the broad story they were presenting here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xb51LfCR-2k I'd love to see a match where Bryan targets a body part.

There were a lot of eyes on that Raw too.

So, let's see. 1. Maintain the schedule I've set up for myself when it comes to Segunda Caida and WTBBP. I don't know if I'll be able to, especially with SC, but I'd like to. 3 lucha matches a week and one essay for each WCW PPV. For SC, I'm going to do a focus on Hechicero and then probably one on Virus. I'll also keep looking at Garza as my lens for 2010 (I'm almost to the full on rudo turn and the Invasores). My guess is that I do Rush vs Terrible later on in the year and the build to some other Apuestas match (Maybe Mistico vs Casas?). I'm always open to suggestions for longer form projects when it comes to what I'm doing on SC. 2. Watch more of the following wrestlers specifically: Baba, Liger, Breaks, Finlay, Judy Martin, El Dandy. As well as IWRG in general. 3. Finish watching the Sid in Memphis stuff on youtube (I know, not a big commitment but I'm only on #3). 4. I'm torn on the Portland set. It'd be a lot of dipping back in to things I'd watched in the last couple of years and seeing other things out of context when I'd much rather see them in context. On the other hand, I feel like I need to be part of that discussion since I devoted so much time to it. I don't know. I'm much more eager to jump into the PR set to be honest. I would like to continue on Portland the all-inclusive way I was watching it though. 5. See the first live wrestling I've seen in over 10 years. (I'm taking an overnight trip to Philly to see the Rumble with a college friend). 6. Maybe guest on a podcast? I don't know. 7. There's a broader introduction-to-lucha project that I want to tackle too, preferably with a few other people, that looks at getting people acclimated by stressing the similarities to what they're used to instead of highlighting the differences, which is how people usually go at it.

I want to review what I did and didn't do. Let's review: - Well, I did not make it through the lucha set. I did make it through disc 6 and I'll finish the rest this year. Part of this was because I realized, after watching MORE lucha, I would have had to start from the beginning to do a ballot and I just couldn't manage that time-wise and some was beacuse (again, time-wise) it wasn't conducive to the sort of things I was writing about and the commitments I made (to myself or in general). I feel bad about it but there wasn't a lot that could be done. Basically, I didn't make it through the lucha set because I was watching too much lucha due to the lucha set which I'd hope Kris and Phil find acceptable if not ideal as a consequence. - I have watched some 1990s lucha, a decent amount, I'd say, but due to availability, I've focused much more on 00s lucha, specifically 06, 10, and 2014. - I petered out on Buddy, actually, and some of that was due to a break in the footage at the end of 81 into 82. I went from seeing mostly weekly TV to seeing far more spotty stuff and that hurt the appeal on some level. Some of it was due to the board upgrade and the feeling I'd have to go back and edit all I'd done up til that point before continuing on. I'll have to go back to it at some point. I did not do another big Buddy essay. - I did manage other writing though. Doing 3 matches a week for Segunda Caida was not part of the plan last December, certainly, and it's been a lot of fun. I've done over 100 so far and I've got enough in the pipeline there to keep me busy. - I watched a spattering of WOS, not a lot. Some Jim Breaks mainly which I enjoyed considerably. I'll try to watch more in the coming year. - I did not guest on a single podcast in 2014 despite a slight attempt at it. Instead, I started writing a column for each and every Where the Big Boys Play which is really more my speed when it comes to this stuff. - I have started to watch Hansen but the initial takeaways were, if not disappointing necessarily, frustrating enough I didn't go deeper in. I've seen enough to realize he's not going to be a personal favorite to the level someone like Bockwinkel or Buddy Rose is so I'm going to look more at someone else, be it Baba or what not. - I watched a ton of Casas, covering his entire series with Rush in 2014 up til the hair match and selected matches from the 90s and 00s as well. I'm sure I'll see more in the year to come. Work really picking up, family life picking up, and The GOAT project just sending me all over the place did disrupt some of my focus, certainly. I'll do one for the year to come in the other note.

I kind of think that by this point, we've had enough turnover in the writing staff that there are people on staff who have no idea how to put together a show without them. They've just known no other world.

In any other territory ever, in any other era, Bryan would be about to announce his retirement and then Rusev or Rollins would come out and beat him senseless before he could and then he'd have to pull it together and manage to come back to get revenge anyway.

He was blown up though.

That's what Sting gets for trusting Cena to manage things. That guy just can't count on anyone.

For things that happened in the 00s, I've found cubsfan's site invaluable in that you can go back to the archives and see what the prevailing thought at the time was on a day by day basis.

The only place I've seen a tag match even mentioned is here. None of the news sites have said anything about it so I don't even think that they're considering it. I honestly think that the main event of the pay-per-view should probably be Brock and HHH vs Taker and Sting. As sad as it is, that's the biggest main event they can manage.

Wrestlemania is wide open right now. They could do Taker vs Sting or Taker vs Bray or Taker vs Brock or Taker in a tag match with Sting to protect him or he could not be on the show at all. Brock could defend against Reigns or Rollins could defend against Reigns or Rollins could defend against Cena or the Shield could have a three way or Rollins might be up against Orton. I sort of slot it all out in my head and then I think "Oops, forgot Cena." It's wide open but none of the possibilities seem all that great.

We're in 2014. I think the crowd will revolt because, frankly, they can, and because it seemed to work last year. This is the Rumble which has people travelling to it to begin with. It's also in the Northeast, which will make it easier. They'll want to make the show about them and if rebelling against Reigns is easiest, that's how they'll do it.

Fire for Bock is too low. Watch the sprint vs Larry Z. There were very few matches in his career where he was called upon to do that, but when he was, holy hell.

Counterpoint:

In defense of Parv, I do this sometimes, but in a qualitative way and not a quantitative one.

It's a good question. Based on who they had on the roster, there are really only three choices. Earthquake is one and they needed him for Hogan and had just done Bravo vs Warrior to start the year. I don't think they could cycle Dibiase or Savage back in yet. After that, you've got Barbarian and Warlord. Of the two Barbarian was the better choice (win at Mania vs Tito, Heenan, the better wrestler) but neither are great. You know, maybe I'd have them turn Duggan. Really, the best choice is to not let Windham leave before Survivor Series 89, no matter what. Last thought, have Ax debut Crush as part of a heel turn as his weapon to destroy Warrior and take over the WWF. Something like that. The match would be absolutely terrible but it'd be two giant face-painted guys clashing and Demolition was still pretty over in early 90 and it'd work into the LOD debuting and all of the six mans that they ran anyway. I think it could have worked as well as Rude, actually. The more I think about this the more I love this idea.

He could have a Heathcliff the cat themed character.

Basically, the only upside Neville has at all is to be the guy who jumps on people for Wade Barrett in flashy beatdowns.

What are the specific performances for those four?