Predictions

[Reel]

I think there's a certain reverence for it in most circles, but at the same time, I think a lot of people just haven't watched it, and don't really want to. I mean, I saw a ballot with Moxley over Stan Hansen today. 

[Matt D]

42 minutes ago, Garbage said:

I'd hate to single out the guy but I also think Dave Meltzer planting his feet in the ground that matches have only gotten better over time doesn't help a lot of it. Maybe a lot of these younger fans would like Misawa vs. Kawada or Duggan vs. DiBiase, but they also might go into assuming it can't be better than Tanahashi vs. Okada or Omega vs. Hangman Page. Maybe I'm overestimating how far this has spread, though. 

Give me ten years.

[NotJayTabb]

I think a lot of AJPW 90s stuff can be daunting just on the length of the matches. If you aren't too au fait with Misawa or Kobashi, and you look up one of their matches on YouTube, a 49 minute running time feels a lot. In contrast, I found a lot of territory stuff easy to get into because of how much everything zips by.

[josephweirdness]

I don't really expect the Pillars to fall too steeply. I'd put my money on seeing all four still represented on the final list. While I agree that there's been a pushback on the King's Road canon, I feel like this still comes from a more niche subset of the voters that are maybe just in the same general circles we frequent which is why we see the narrative more often. Just speaking anecdotally, of course, but I think the fact that the most remembered and requested aspect of my own work is still continued coverage of 90s King's Road means that there's still very high interest in the time period and that'll likely come through in the final list. 

[Garbage]

I do think the pillars will be fine, and I think the 'push back' on a lot of it is pushing back against the idea that it's the definitive and unquestioned peak of what a time period can be in terms of matches. Which, as big a fan of that era as I still am (if I made a top 100 matches, I'd bet 90s All Japan would still be the most well-represented decade for a company), I think is healthy as long it doesn't feel unnecessarily contrarian (though, how can that be proven person-to-person anyway). I think someone like Hashimoto should have always been seen as equal to any of them.

I do think the length of the matches is daunting for people too like NotJayTabb said above, not to mention for newer viewers there can be pressure to think "well these four 35 minute matches need to be watched before the BEST one, is what I heard."

8 hours ago, Matt D said:

Give me ten years.

I name one of my children Matthew D if you get Gen Alpha to think Andre is better than Will Ospreay let's gooooo (or whatever gen alpha are saying as a hype phrase in 2036)

[brockobama]

Forgot to mention this the other day but Matsunaga will skyrocket up the list. I'd guess he ends up in the 100-200 range but wouldn't be shocked to see him land in the double digits. 

 

13 hours ago, NotJayTabb said:

If you aren't too au fait with Misawa or Kobashi, and you look up one of their matches on YouTube, a 49 minute running time feels a lot.

Speaking from personal experience with a lot of fellow first-time voters, I think this is a very common feeling.