Gus_McCrae Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 So how do you do it? I marvel at so many of the posters here seemingly recollection of matches, dates, quality and even move sequences. I've seen tons of wrestling in my life. Re-watched a ton, but most of it is a blur. How do you keep track. Do you use notepaper and pencil? Excel? Word? A blog? Help. I feel like matches I watched last week are already going fuzzy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grimmas Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 I have a notebook that after I watch a match that I rate over 3.5 stars I mark it down. After a page is filled I copy that information down into my excel sheet. That excel sheet is broken down into decades. I find that helps me keep track. I started about a year ago and this year I have a better recollection than I have in a long long time. The other thing you can do, is go to the matches section of this board and after you watch a match just fill in some comments about it. That way you can always go back to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerryvonKramer Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 Total nerd you are Steven, total Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillThompson Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 I keep a running tally of every match I watch that I rate at **** or better. Other than that I go on recollection, and despite having a shoddy memory in other areas my memory is really good when it comes to pro wrestling, baseball, and movies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoe Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 I'm like Steven. I have close to 30 notebooks with everything I watch listed. I have star ratings, and the dreaded check mark for matches that are too short or clipped to rate. No Excel for me though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TannerT Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 I currently have a huge list in chronological order broken up into sub categories by years and everything ***+ is on it. The list is fairly short considering I just started it this past January. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackwebb Posted October 4, 2014 Report Share Posted October 4, 2014 I have primarily used a 10 star system for rating matches. I do it this way since I also have a tendency to forget stuff. Also I like to know where to look for individual performances as well as overall match quality. I do this for tag matches as well. Triple threats, battle royals and things like I do the standard 5 star rating but I still use it as a guideline. For a standard one on one match I give zero, 1/2 or 1 full star for the following. Never use quarter stars. Each wrestler gets their own 5. 1. Offense execution- How clean looking the moves are and how well timed they are in the matches. 2. Offense Selling- In match charisma like facial expressions, selling the force behind the moves, etc. I'm using the word defensive here even though I don't think it is a good choice of words. 3. Defensive Execution- Timing in taking opponents moves, how well the moves look, how much blames goes in their direction for a botch, bumping quality. 4. Defensive Selling- Charisma while taking the beating, selling the damage, selling it consistently throughout the match. 5. General Psychology- Is the match story coherent, appropriate crowd response, engaging the crowd, match pacing. A lot of this ties into the first 4 as well which makes it a more important element when grading. So the final grades better reflect what I like. I also make note of match times since if the match is shorter I start things at half a star. I am also more quick to go up or down with it in those matches. Has been effective for grading sprints as I typically agree with the initial grades when I go back and watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeteF3 Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 I don't know what's scarier--the degree to which some of you keep track of what you've watched and how you rate it...or the fact that I'm teeming with jealousy and lamenting lost opportunities. I love lists, rankings, and databases and would definitely keep an all-encompassing one if I could do it all again. My big projects in wrestling-watching since June of '07 have basically been limited to '80s sets and more recently the Yearbooks. The past few '80s sets I've kept reviews in an Excel spreadsheet that I use for rating and ranking matches. For those I use the Pitchfork rating system--1 to 10, with decimal points, which really means 1 to 100. Luckily I have a few from before the DVDVR board crashed--for earlier sets, I just have my rankings. My Yearbook thoughts on everything from the longest AJPW epics to the shortest throwaway promo are kept in the respective forum that's hopefully a little more secure. Including star ratings and ranking matches by month is something else I would do if I had to start over again, but what's done is done. In addition to loving lists I love consistency, so I can't bring myself to start doing it now. It's the reason I waited until the 1990 set was out to start watching, and why I simultaneously welcome and curse a potential 1989 set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 I don't use any sort of rating for matches nor do I keep any sort of master list. I do comment a lot and write things up and can search here and DVDVR but in general I either remember something or I don't. I tried to start using the blog function here to keep track of matches for the GOAT but that hasn't gone so well so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JerryvonKramer Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 It would be cool if there could be a thread where people share a snapshot of these. The main place where my ratings are stored are in various threads on PWO, not the most organized system in the world. I haven't kept track of any ratings I've given out on podcasts beyond keeping a tally of the various end-of-show and end-of-year/decade awards on WTBBP, and there's no way I'm trawling through 200+ hours of audio to find them all. Never use quarter stars. That's funny. I never use a straight 1/4 star but do use ***3/4 and ****3/4. It's why I sometimes use the letter ratings. A* = ***** - one of the best matches I've ever seen, all-time classic A = ****3/4 - superlative match but not quite all-time best level for whatever reason A- = ****1/2 - excellent match that you could point to as an example of "great" for any of the workers involved B+ = **** - very very good match but with some reservations or otherwise something is missing to stop it being truly "great" B = ***3/4 - very good match B- = ***1/2 - solid stuff but with some flaws or issues C+ = *** - solid but not setting the world on fire, a lot of "fun" stuff will find its way to this rating. Generally anything of C+ and up is something I liked. C = **1/2 - solid but with serious flaws that significantly undermine it C- = ** - getting into territory here where I really didn't like the match D+= *1/2 - I didn't like the match and think it actively sucked D =* - serious levels of suck now D-=DUD - total crap E+= -* - total crap that caused me to actually get angry at how bad it was E= -** - as above, squared F = Contender for worst match I've ever seen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loss Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 I am blessed with a freakish memory when it comes to just about everything except taking out the garbage and locking the door behind me. So wrestling projects and holding grudges are two things that just work well for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackwebb Posted October 5, 2014 Report Share Posted October 5, 2014 I am blessed with a freakish memory when it comes to just about everything except taking out the garbage and locking the door behind me. So wrestling projects and holding grudges are two things that just work well for me. I have an odd memory. I remember music perfectly. Note for note all the instruments. Don't even need a portable music player. I can play whatever I want in my mind. My ability to visualize in my mind is extremely limited. Like if I'm watching television when I recognize someone I usually recognize them by the sound of their voice not their face. If I witnessed a murder I wouldn't be able to describe the face of the person that did it to a sketch artist. If I had to describe my mother to you after saying red hair and freckles I get stuck. Never use quarter stars. That's funny. I never use a straight 1/4 star but do use ***3/4 and ****3/4. It's why I sometimes use the letter ratings. Yeah I like the way you order them. When I first started doing them I tried doing 1/4s as well. I'm just naturally indecisive. To the point it can be a problem. So I would end up debating whether I should give it 1/2 or 3/4 for far too long. Figured I should just know my limitations and simplify it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WingedEagle Posted October 9, 2014 Report Share Posted October 9, 2014 Speaking of organized -- it might be helpful if there were a thread for mod-only posting that collected all the various match lists that people are including in the wrestler threads. Looking at those for Misterio, Flair, Danielson, etc. I would hate for those resources to get lost in the shuffle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Exposer Posted October 13, 2014 Report Share Posted October 13, 2014 I have documents upon documents in multiple PCs of match reviews. Unfortunately, two of those PCs are barely functioning if not at all. I try and keep my thoughts in one place so that when I do projects like this I can use them as a reference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elliott Posted October 13, 2014 Report Share Posted October 13, 2014 I am blessed with a freakish memory when it comes to just about everything except taking out the garbage and locking the door behind me. So wrestling projects and holding grudges are two things that just work well for me. This is my favorite quote ever. Amazing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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