[1996-07-08-WCW-Nitro] Rey Misterio Jr vs Dean Malenko

[Loss]

Talk about it here.

[Loss]

Pretty sure this is the best Nitro match of the year. Rey wins the cruiserweight title in an outstanding match. One of the better spotfests you'll see, with everything hit cleanly and the pace being pretty consistently fast. I think about someone like Jerome who doesn't like modern Rey in WWE and say he'd probably love this match because it's Rey doing all the stuff that got him over.

 

I like this match-up more than I used to after seeing this and the Bash match.

[El-P]

Yeah, I do like this match a lot, although I thought Dean wasn't at his best against Rey and grounded him too much at times. But yeah, Rey was allowed to shine by doing *his* stuff and got himself over like crazy. This is what was great about WCW, they let their guys do their own stuff, and this created an interesting mix and diversity. The opposite of the modern WWE philosophy.

[shoe]

I thought this was just a great sprint. I thought Rey almost killed himself on that Asai Moonsault to the floor. I didn't understand the point of picking up Misterio twice on pinfall attempts. It kinda buried his victory instead of giving him the momentum he deserved and needed to be the ace of the division. Still a fun filled match. Their were a couple miscues. Malenko covered for the 1st one really well. The Asai Moonsault thing I'm not sure who to blame. Malenko looked to be selling and then Misterio did the move while Malenko wasn't 100% ready to catch him. Oh well still a really good match between the 2 who were having the best matches between one another in WCW in 96.

[PeteF3]

Really good sprint but I don't agree that "everything" hit cleanly, as there were at least 3 really awkward spots--though to their credit, they did cover for all of them well. With them sprinting for TV purposes, Dean doesn't get as much of a chance to ground Misterio, and also gives Rey an opening from the start to flash some of his stuff before taking over. Not really as good as GAB, but again--booking and card placement and all that matter, and this was an improvement in that regard. The Cruiserweight division has finally arrived.

[Superstar Sleeze]

WCW World Cruiserweight Champion Dean Malenko vs Rey Misterio Jr. - WCW Nitro 7/8/96

 

I have said it before and I will say it again if you put this shine on the Great American Bash match and you have an all-time classic. This shine is perfect for whetting the fan's appetites for how exciting Rey can be. It makes them invest more in the heat segment because they want to see the grand finale. From a strictly kayfabe perspective, it establishes what Malenko has to worry about. If he can't control him, Misterio is going to dictate the pace with armdrags, ranas and dropkicks and keep him off balance. Once Malenko grabs a a hold of him with a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker he does not let go. He alternates between controlling holds (surfboard, camel clutch) to regain his energy & sap Rey's and nasty throws like the butterfly powerbomb and hanging him out to dry on the ropes. Once again, when Rey can create space he is deadly as he snaps off a rana to the floor and hits an Asai Moonsault, now granted this was not the smoothest exchange, but it was the right idea. I hated Dean picking Rey up towards the end when he had him after super gutbuster and again after another suplex. Did not fit Dean's characters and there was no storyline motivation. Rey winning with an out of nowhere hurricanarana was an awesome way to kick off the most important Nitro in history coming after the Hogan heel turn. It pops the crowd and gives them something feel good after Hogan just turned heel. Plus, Rey totally deserved it. The blown spots and Malenko pulling Rey up hurts this from being one of the all time great Nitro cruiserweight matches, but still very entertaining. ***1/2

[soup23]

Pretty sweet match with a steady pace that got over the action. I can't really see how anyone would justify watching whatever was on WWF if this type of action was on. I only saw one really blown spot that they covered for nicely. Rey is really put together a great resume for himself for the entire year. ***1/ 2

[tim]

Really good match. Very compact and well executed, although it is a shame about the two significant blown spots -- it's not even that they were awkward or detracted from the flow of the match, the match just would have been better if they were pulled off right. Malenko's top rope gutbuster was awesome. I liked the ending, it's still a clear clean win for Rey and a good way for a babyface to pick up a win. Feels like a satisfying comeuppance for the heel rather than just stupid, which those heel pick-up-before-the-three-count spots often do.

[TheDuke]

I love midget wrestling! I am disappointed that they didn't do the "bite the referee's butt" spot though. How can you have a midget match and not have anyone biting the ref's butt? In fact this match had almost no comedy in it. There was one funny spot though where the masked midget jumped from the ring apron, did a backflip, and fell face first on the outside floor! And then the unmasked midget was so surprised at what happened, that he fell over too! Hilarious! 4 stars. (Would have been 6 stars if somebody's butt had been bit).